《Affinity:Chaos》 Chapter 1：Test "I''m coming mom" A boy''s voice filled with excitement could be heard from upstairs. Before long, Martha heard the sound of running on the stairs, "Take it easy dear, you might hurt yourself" Martha said in a soft tone when she heard the rushed footsteps A young boy about the age of 12 could be seen running down the steps with a flushed look, "I''m ready mom, let''s get going before it starts. I want to get a good position on the list" Grey said with enthusiasm. Martha looked at him with a smile and helped arrange his hair before they left for the Arena where the test will be held. Martha was a lady in her early thirties, she had fair skin and beautiful brown eyes. An oval-shaped face and shoulder-length blonde hair (In short, she was a breathtakingly beautiful woman :)¡­). Today was the day when the Academy union did a test for the youngsters in this city to know their aptitude and which elements they were inclined to. This is a world of Elementalists. Everyone has an element they are in tune with and the Academies help the people check what elements they are inclined with. Elementalists cultivate by absorbing their said elemental particles from the world to increase their realms. With each increase in realm, there is also an increase in lifespan. Everyone wants a long life, so they always work hard on cultivating. One can only check which elements they are compatible with after reaching the age of 12, but anything older isn''t advised as the body is at its best state to start cultivating at that given age. You can get a cultivation technique after you get admitted into any of the Academies or if you are from a big clan, getting one wouldn''t be hard. ************ The entire town was abuzz with activity and people could be seen coming out from almost every home, heading in the direction of Arena at the eastern part of the city. The test is held every year, as a lot of kids reach the age of 12 every year. There are different places where the test could be taken. And big cities have multiple centers for taking the test since they have more people. This city though, well, it''s not that big and only has about 20 participants taking the test each year. On getting to the arena, the stands were already filled to the brim with people, and they were all chatting about the possible result of today''s test. A kid could be seen on the Arena''s stage, this indicated that the test had started. "Mom look, they''ve already started. Now I''m going to be among the last people tested" Grey complained when he saw the test had already commenced. Martha looked at her son speechless, ''You were the one who took heavens know how long dressing up, yet I''m the one to blame because we came late''. She was too lazy to reply to her son''s statement. She looked around for the registration stand. "Come on, let''s go and get you registered little man," Martha said as she walked towards the place for registration. A table and a chair were set up there and also a man could be seen sitting on the chair taking down names. "Hello sir, I''m here to register my son for the test," Martha said towards the man sitting on the chair. "Okay, what''s his name, and exact age," the man said politely. "His name''s Grey, and he is 12 years 2 months old" Martha replied "Okay, he will be the 16th person called up," The man said after taking down the details of Grey "Okay sir" Martha turned and was about to leave with Grey "Currently, 3 people have already gone up to take the test, just be prepared. If his name is called, and he doesn''t come up the stage within 1 minute he would be skipped and will have to wait till next year to have his test done" "Okay, thank you sir" Martha thanked him sincerely before taking Grey with her as they looked for a place to sit. "Now sit down and behave. Wait for your turn patiently and don''t get nervous okay" Martha advised her son calmly, she knew how mischievous he can get. Although he causes a lot of trouble, she knew he was a sensible kid. While the mother and son duo were still talking, a loud voice could be heard from the platform. "Jonas, elemental affinity fire. Grade, purple" The Elder who took the test declared the result of the test loudly. The entire arena immediately went into an uproar when this result was announced. "Did he just say purple grade?" "Oh my God, a purple grade appeared" "The last time a purple grade appeared, all the big academies fought for who would admit her into their school" Talents are graded with colors and there are 4 colors known to the people of the Qilin empire, which are, Pink, Orange, Purple, and Blue. With Blue being the highest and Pink the lowest. Pink and Orange talent takes up the majority of the population, while the talented have Purple and Blue. There are rare cases of people who have multiple elements. It was said the Emperor of the empire is a Dual Elementalist and also had a Blue and Purple grade respectively on each element. The Emperor is the strongest Elementalist known to the public. The representatives of each Academy immediately got into a heated argument on who would take Jonas as a student. Usually, after the result of a test is announced, the representatives discuss among themselves before one of the Academies gets the kid. But in this case, none of the Academies wanted to miss out on such a talented individual. Although the Academies had a good relationship outside, they were still competing against each other. "Cough, cough, Why don''t you allow him to choose which Academy he would like to enter as a student" The Elder announcing the results couldn''t allow the Academies to lose face in front of the crowd, so he quickly tried to stop their dispute. The representatives quickly calmed themselves and looked at Jonas with eager looks. Jonas felt glad for attracting such attention from the representatives. "Seniors, can I go talk with my parents before deciding on which Academy I will join?" Jonas asked respectfully. "Yes of course, besides, the test is still ongoing," The representatives said with a smile. Usually, they wouldn''t have been so courteous towards anybody from such a small city, but, the case was different for Jonas. Jonas was someone who will grow to become a powerhouse later in the future with his talent, so, having a good relationship with him isn''t bad even if he will only be able to join one of the Academies. Everyone looked at Jonas with envy, he was currently the center of attention in the entire arena. His current status has already risen to a new high as even in the Academy, he will be someone the Academy will nurture greatly. "Wow, a Purple grade" Grey said with a tinge of envy while looking at Jonas who was walking towards his parents with a smile on his face. Martha looked at Jonas also, surprised that someone with a purple grade appeared in this little city of theirs. "Okay now, let''s continue with the test" the Elder shouted as he tried to restore order to the arena The people in the arena quickly toned down the noise. The Elder continued calling the names of the children on the list given to him. After getting to the 10th name, the Elder called for a break. He used the opportunity to take the new list which had been made since some people came late, they decided to hold the test in this manner. After the 10 minutes break, the test continued. Quickly, it got to the 15th name on the list. Grey tensed up as it was soon going to be his turn. His palm became sweaty and his nervousness could visibly be seen. "Calm down sweetie, no matter the outcome of the result, promise me you''ll remain the same," Martha immediately held onto Grey''s sweaty hands. "Un." Grey nodded. "Next up, Grey" The Elder shouted the next name on the list, everyone in the arena looked on with interest awaiting the boy whose name was called up. Chapter 2：Affinity - Zero Grey nervously stood up from where he was seated and slowly walked towards the platform. When he got there, he couldn''t help but look at everyone staring at him intently. "Huuu" Grey breathed heavily trying to calm himself down. "Step forward and place your hand on the stone" the Elder in charge looked at Grey with a smile. Grey carefully observed the stone. It was quite an amazing thing as it was what was used to check the elements people are compatible with and also it checks their talents. Grey calmed his mind and stepped forward, he looked at the stone before gently walking closer to it and placing his hand on it. The stone felt cold when he placed his hand on it. The moment he placed his hand on the stone, he felt something moving out of the stone and passing through his hand into his body. Grey was slightly surprised by the feeling and instinctively wanted to take his hand off the stone. "Don''t move, it will be over soon" It was like the Elder could read his thoughts and quickly whispered to him before he could take his hand off the stone. Grey stilled himself and let the strange energy run freely in his body. The energy moved from his hand, before making a circle around every single part of his body. After circling 3 times, he felt the energy leaving his body the same way it came. When the energy left his body, he finally loosened up. The Elder looked at Grey for some time before walking closer towards the stone. He stared at it profoundly before taking a look at Grey again. "Place your hand on it one more time," He said to Grey Grey was surprised by what the Elder was doing. All the kids who had taken the test before him only did it once and the Elder would announce the result, how come his case was different. He couldn''t refuse the order, so he placed his hand on it again. The audience was quite surprised on seeing Grey placing his hands on the stone again. "What is going on, why is that kid doing it again" "Is there a problem with the stone" Martha just watched on without any emotions, like she knew this would happen already. Although deep down she felt sad, there was nothing she can do about it. He told her to make sure she took Grey to the test, and she couldn''t refuse him, so she did. The process repeated itself, the Elder got close to the stone again to look at it and was stunned again. He looked at the stone, then at Grey again before sighing. Sympathy could currently be seen in his eyes when he looked at Grey. Grey was taken aback by the way the Elder was looking at him, he suddenly had a bad premonition. "Senior, what is the result?" Grey asked with a slightly shaky voice. "Grey, affinity, zero" The Elder announced the result loudly *BOOM* It was like a bolt of lightning struck Grey, he stood there dumbfounded and just stared at the Elder. "What, zero affinity" "How can he not have an affinity" "This is my first time seeing someone without an affinity, I''ve only heard of them, but never seen one before." "So, there truly are people with no affinities" "What a pitiful kid, how can he live without having any affinities" "Scoff, he made us wait for nothing. I even thought he was something special as the Senior told him to take the test again, who knew he didn''t even have an affinity". Shocked voices could be heard from the audience and there was also some with scorn. Some people are just prone to kicking a man when he is down. "Sigh, hopefully he doesn''t break down," Martha said with a sad voice Grey stood still amidst all the noise without any reactions. One word was reverberating in his head currently, ''How?''. The representatives looked at the boy on the platform and felt sad for him. But since he was someone without any elemental affinity, he was not of much use to them. They looked at the Elder in charge of the test and signaled him to continue with the test. They were eager for the test to end as they were waiting for the decision Jonas will make. "Get on with the test Elder, we don''t have all day" the representative of the Starlight Academy urged the Elder to go ahead with the test. Since Grey didn''t have any affinity, he was no different from a cripple. "Young boy, don''t feel down. You might be a late bloomer, as some people don''t awaken their elements on time" the representative of the Lunar Academy tried to console Grey. Although it was rarely seen, there have been times it had happened. But usually, it rarely happens. Grey looked at the representatives, he couldn''t reply to any of them as he couldn''t even process what was going on. He walked down from the platform like a lifeless zombie. He just walked straight and even forgot to head back to his seat. "This kid" Martha worriedly went after him. She knew Grey was very cheerful and this will definitely affect him, but she knew he will be able to walk out of the darkness with time. "Next..." The Elder continued with the test and everyone''s enthusiasm was instantly reignited. Since the tragedy didn''t happen to any of them, they couldn''t really wallow in sorrow. Jonas looked at Grey''s fading shadow without any emotion. He didn''t feel anything towards him as even if he had any talent it didn''t matter much to him who had purple talent. As a child, he has always set his sights very high, and now things have already started to click as he envisioned. The test went on normally and soon ended. After the test was completed, Jonas went over to the representatives to tell them his decision. He joined the Starlight Academy as it was publicly regarded as the leaders of the Academy union. In public opinion, the Starlight Academy was known as the strongest, and Jonas wanted the best for himself. A lot of events took place in the test today, first, a purple talent appeared, and then, a person with no elemental affinity also appeared. The news of what happened in the test quickly spread around the city. When the people staying in the city heard of Jonas, they were awed by the fact that he had a purple talent. But Jonas wasn''t the only one who became famous after the test, Grey''s name also became widespread since he was someone without any elemental affinity. It was later announced that Jonas joined the Starlight Academy and immediately left with the representative of the Academy. *Knock, Knock* "Grey, can I come in?" Martha knocked on the door that led to Grey''s room. She waited for some time and didn''t get any response. She opened the door and walked in, she saw Grey lying on his bed, staring at the ceiling. "Grey" Martha called out softly "Why, why did this happen to me," Grey asked with a croaked voice. Martha felt pained on seeing her son like this. This wasn''t anything she would wish anyone to go through, in a world where Elementalists reign supreme, having no affinity is the same as being a cripple. "I don''t know dear, but you have to be strong. You remember what your dad said to you before leaving right?" Martha said while caressing Grey''s cheek. "Yes, he said I should never give up on myself. Even when the world does, he said I should always stand tall and stay strong" Grey replied but without much firmness in his voice. "I know my son is the greatest, " Martha looked at Grey lovingly Grey knew his mother was trying to cheer him up but still, whenever he thought of how he was going to live without any elements, he felt sadder. "Grey, remember this. What makes you different, makes you special. You are unique from the rest of the world, I''m not saying this just to cheer you up, I''m saying this because I know the child I gave birth to was not meant to live an ordinary life. You will reign above all, only you shall be at the top, and no one shall be your equal" Martha looked at her son in his eyes and said with all seriousness. ''What makes you different, makes you special'' That statement kept repeating itself in Grey''s head, and he started seeing the light in the darkness which he had fallen into. Although a little, it was something that will help him leave his current state. Martha was happy when she noticed he had some reactions to her words. She went over to her room and dropped on the bed crying, she was only being strong in front of her son as she wanted him to pull himself together soon. "I know you said it was for his future, but why must you make him through this," She said angrily while looking out the window. No mother wanted to see her child downcast, she felt bad on seeing his reaction when the result was announced. ************ Somewhere far away On an open field, a man could be seen standing gallantly in the air, ahead of him, there were over eight thousand soldiers, yet, they were filled with fear when looking at the man who was standing before them. The man had striking white hair, yet he only looked to be in his early thirties, with a handsome face which had a somewhat sad smile on it. He looked at the army cold, before stretching out his hand. "Retreat!" One of the leading figures in the army yelled in fright. Even though he was scared of the man before him, he had to make sure his soldiers escaped first before he left as well. The white-haired man standing in the air smiled wryly before flying away to stand at the top of the city walls not too far from the field, looking at the army retreating back to their camps some kilometers away. "Why didn''t you kill them?" A slightly older man came over to question the white-haired man. The white-haired man looked at him without replying. After confirming that the army had returned to their base, he turned around and left the city walls. He walked to a building not too far away from the city walls, and was greeted along the way by everyone he passed on the way. He soon got to a small bland looking building which looked worn out, before disappearing inside. Inside the building, there were no chairs, only a bed and a small shelf that was beside it, on top of the shelf, a painting could be seen. In the painting, the white-haired man could be seen smiling, accompanied by a beautiful lady who held a little cute boy in her arms. The boy had a somewhat naughty expression on his face. The white-haired man picked up the painting and traced his hand over it. "*Sigh* He must have reached 12 by now. Time sure does fly fast, I wonder how he would react after finding out. I hope Martha can talk him out of his bad mood." The man said with a sad smile. "I really miss them." He said with a voice filled with longing. Chapter 3：Awakening On a rocky patch in the forest Northwest of Red City, a young boy could be seen, with his hands on his knees while in a standing position panting heavily. Sweat dripped from his chin as he bent exhausted. When he raised his face, a stunningly handsome face could be seen. He had short black hair and an inverted triangular-shaped face, he had bow-shaped lips with beautiful black eyes. His skin was toned, from being in the sun for too long each day. He measured 5 ''7'' in height and has a slender body, adding his chiseled-like muscles, further made physique just amazing. Any girl will fall heads over heels for him. Grey stood up and looked at his hands which looked rough for someone his age. It has been 3 years since the day of the test. After wallowing in sadness for some time, he was able to pick himself up. One day during dinner, Martha suggested he should start training his body since there was no way he could hone it using the element which would in turn keep him healthy. At first, he rejected the idea, but after multiple convincing from Martha, he finally decided to try it out. Grey took up the idea and started training ever since, it has been 3 years already. He had forgotten just how many times he had trained himself so hard he couldn''t stand up. He has always been a determined person, so he decided, if he couldn''t cultivate, he will pour all his energy into honing his body. Besides, spending his time here helps him escape from the reality of what happened to him. "Well, that should be it for today. I better get back before it gets dark" Grey immediately rushed home before his body would give up on him after the rigorous training. He always tries to surpass himself every day he heads out to train. ************ Red City "Mom I''m home" Grey shouted as he opened the door and walked into the house. Grey immediately smelled a great aroma coming from the kitchen as he walked in. "Okay dear, go freshen up. Dinner will be done shortly" Martha''s voice came from the kitchen. "Okay mom" Grey replied as he went to take a warm bath. He always baths warm water after training as it helps wear down the fatigue. But nothing beats a good night''s sleep. Ten minutes later, Grey came downstairs and saw a wonderful sight on the table. Martha prepared his favorite food. "How was your training today?" Martha asked while inviting Grey over to have his meal. "It was okay, I was able to go 30 minutes more than my usual time" Grey stated proudly "Did anything strange happen today?" Martha asked Grey curiously. "No mom, you always ask me this question every time I tell you I surpassed my previous records in training" Grey couldn''t help but ask. Martha has asked him this question frequently lately, and it was sort of making him worried. ''Will something happen to me if I hone my body too hard?'' Grey was starting to get scared. Elementalists don''t hone their body, the elements do it for them. But the result is different from honing the body. His body is stronger than most Elementalists of his age, because of how much he had honed it. "Nothing dear" Martha replied. ''Why isn''t it happening yet, could it be that he hasn''t met the requirements. He said it should awaken after he clocks 15 years old, it has already been 5 months now'' Martha couldn''t help but begin to worry about her son''s future. She hid it to herself though and didn''t show any visible reactions. Grey looked at her suspiciously, before focusing back on his meal. After dinner, he spoke with Martha for some time before he went to his room to rest. Grey grew as time went on and was able to put everything behind him. His situation made him find comfort in reading when he''s alone. Grey continued his daily routine and quickly another month went by without any major thing happening. On a particular day, Grey was in the forest doing his usual training routine. He suddenly started feeling hot and sweating more than usual. He felt maybe it was because of his training and decided to take a short rest to calm his temperature. He got hotter as time went on and also sweated more. "What''s happening to me" Grey started panicking because of what was taking place. He immediately packed his things and ran home as fast as he could. Grey is faster than most people because of his training, only some Wind and Lightning Elementalists will have an edge over him in terms of speed. And his stamina was also high, so he had no problem sprinting a long distance. When he got home, he immediately pulled all his clothes and jumped into cold water. The hotness in his body continued getting hotter, and it got to the point he couldn''t bear it anymore, he screamed in pain for some time before passing out. Huge changes were currently going on in his body, and his body began automatically absorbing the elemental particles in the surrounding. His body was like a black hole as it absorbed the elements greedily. His toned skin started reverting to his usual fairness and his rough palm also turned as smooth as a baby''s palm. By the time he woke up, it was already late in the evening, and he noticed he was fully dressed in his bed. ''Who dressed me up'' That was the first question that entered his mind on seeing his condition. He looked around confused by everything that happened, he managed to sit up. He walked downstairs after some time and saw Martha sitting quietly on a chair, she raised her head and looked at Grey with a big smile when she noticed him coming down. "Mom were you the one who dressed me up," Grey asked the most important question on his mind after seeing her. Grey felt embarrassed because he remembered being fully naked when he passed out. Martha was taken aback by the question, she couldn''t believe the first thing Grey said after waking up was who dressed him up. "I have no idea" Martha replied as she looked at Grey with eyes saying ''Do you live in this house with someone else, try asking that question again, and I''ll beat you up''. ''He is actually embarrassed because I dressed him up, I''m his mother. This kid'' Martha thought wryly. When Grey heard her reply, he wanted to talk more but when he saw the look in Martha''s eyes, he quickly swallowed his words. He knew just how scary she could be if she got angry. "Grey, why were you unconscious when I came back?" Martha asked worriedly. "I don''t know mom, I suddenly started feeling hot during training. I rushed home and took a cold bath, but the hot feeling didn''t stop, instead, it increased. I passed out shortly after" Grey recounted everything that happened before he passed out, omitting the part where he screamed like a baby. He still wanted to keep his pride in front of his mother. Martha immediately fell into deep thoughts when she heard this, she glanced at Grey before getting up and walking towards the kitchen to get dinner for him. As she walked past him, she froze in the spot and looked at him again from head to toe. Grey was surprised by his mother''s abrupt behavior and started feeling scared thinking his mother was angry. "Grey, did you notice the changes in your skin?" Martha asked. She clearly remembered how he looked in the morning. Grey didn''t really take notie of the change in his skin and looked at it. He was dumbstruck by what he saw, ''How is this possible'' He looked at his skin and his eyes drifted to his palm. Chapter 4：Cultivation Martha kept staring at Grey, happiness clearly seen on her face. "Mom, what''s going on" Grey inquired. "He was right, he''s lucky he didn''t lie to me" Martha was ecstatic "Who was right mom, what''s going on?" Grey was nervous because of his mother''s current strange behavior. "Your Father" Martha said happily. "Dad?" Grey raised his brow clearly still confused about everything that was going on. "Yes Grey, your father. He told me when you turned 12 years old, if you go for the test, there was a possibility you wouldn''t awaken your element" Martha slowly explained to her son. "Wait, he knew I wouldn''t have any affinity with any of the elements?" The confused Grey asked. "Well, it can''t really be said knew. But, yes, he did. According to the scroll, it would have to stay inside of you for fifteen years" Martha continued "Inside me, I don''t get it, did he put something inside me?" Grey still wasn''t comprehending what was going on. "Yes baby, as a newborn, you had a lot of health issues and no matter what I tried, you didn''t get any better. Your father came back from one of his adventures and seeing how unhealthy you were, he also tried his everything he could and even took you to the best healers he knew, but unfortunately, nothing worked" Martha slowly started explaining. "So, how was I cured?" Grey asked curiously. He never knew he had health problems as a newborn. "A pearl" Martha said. "A pearl? How does a pearl cure someone?" Grey asked still confused. "I''m getting to it" Martha smiled and recounted what happened to her son. During one of his father''s adventures, he accidentally stumbled upon a ruined ancient temple. He saw a pearl with myriad colors rotating slowly in the middle of a hidden room of the temple. Beneath the rotating pearl was a scripture, after reading it, he was astounded by the information it contained. He quickly kept the pearl and the cultivation technique. Yes, cultivation technique, what he thought to be a scripture was a cultivation technique. He remembered the feeling he got from the pearl and was certain it wasn''t fake. The description of the cultivation technique was unique, it stated that once one assimilates with the pearl after fifteen years, they would be able to wield all elements. Seeing this, he wanted to cultivate it, but alas, there was a catch to it. First, the pearl can only assimilate with a body that hasn''t awaken any element yet. And it would need fifteen years before completing assimilating with the body. He sadly kept the pearl and cultivation technique when he realized there was no way he could use it. He got home a week after Grey''s birth and realized the situation his son was. After trying everything he could but there was still no way to save him, he placed all his hope on the pearl. If the pearl has such a monstrous ability to give someone the ability to train all elements, then saving someone wouldn''t be impossible. Martha refused the idea when he brought it up, which mother would allow an unknown pearl to be placed in her baby? But after her husband persuaded her and seeing there was nothing they could do to save Grey, she gritted her teeth and accepted it. Two days later, her baby was as healthy as he rightly should be. Although she still took Grey to take part in the test, she didn''t know if he would awaken his element then. She also hoped there was a possibility he would awaken an element, but unfortunately, he didn''t. The notion of telling Grey about came to her when she saw how depressed he was after the test, but then again, what if after he reached fifteen years of age he didn''t awaken any elements? What would she tell him then? He would be even more traumatized than when he didn''t awaken it at the age of twelve. Even she was starting to lose hope when there wasn''t any difference in him after he passed fifteen, the scroll stated Grey should use physical exercises to hone his body which he had been doing for almost three years now. So, it was understandable she started feeling fearful about it. Grey sat down stunned by what he was hearing. "But, why didn''t you tell me earlier?" He asked. "When you passed fifteen did you awaken your element then?" Martha asked. Grey shook his head. "I know it seems like a flimsy excuse, but if I told you something was placed inside of you and you wouldn''t awaken your element by twelve rather by the time you turned fifteen, you wouldn''t believe me since it was known everywhere that one can only awaken their elements by twelve although there are a few late bloomers, it can''t be predicted from birth. Maybe after the test, you''ll start feeling what I said was true, but what about after you turned fifteen? Then what? Even I was starting to lose hope" Martha said calmly. Hearing Martha''s explanation, Grey knew she was right. There was no way he would have believed it if she told him he wouldn''t awaken his element by twelve. When he thought of all the possible heartaches his parents must have gone through due to his sickly nature as a newborn, he felt grateful to them. At least they didn''t give up hope, even when it meant placing their last hope on a pearl with unknown origins, at least they just wanted to save their child. Although the thought of it being fake and probably killing him passed through his mind, he remembered what his mother said at that time, he was dying anyway. After some time, he immediately thought back to what he heard. "Yes, not just any ordinary Elementalist, but one who controls all elements," Martha said while holding Grey''s hand in joy. ''Control over all elements'' It kept ringing in his ear. "How can someone have control over all the elements," Grey asked with shock. "I don''t know baby, but what I do know is that your dad will never lie to me, and will not do anything to harm you too," Martha said. "Wait here," Martha ran into her room and brought an ancient scroll out. She looked at Grey before handing it over to him. "Study it closely," She said after Grey collected the scroll. Grey took the scroll from her still not knowing what to do. He studied the scroll closely before opening it. Then he looked at it with great curiosity. The scroll showed him the exact way of cultivating the technique. Without the pearl, anyone can have the technique but will never be able to cultivate the technique. Grey finally calmed his thoughts. ''No wonder mom was so confident. It truly is worth it'' Grey thought happily. Grey felt like he had regained something. It was a desire, the desire to grow strong. Ever since he was little, he had always wanted to be the strongest, but that desire died at the time of the test. But now, the fire is suddenly reignited, and the fire was burning stronger than ever. "I can finally cultivate, I will definitely work hard" Grey clenched his fists tightly Grey rushed to his room as he couldn''t wait anymore to start cultivating. He had waited for so long and now, finally, he can start cultivating. Martha looked at Grey hurrying inside and did nothing to stop him. She knew just how badly he wanted to be an Elementalists. She felt happy for him, now he can start his rise to the top. She knew it won''t be easy as he will face a lot of obstacles, but she believed he will definitely be able to overcome them. He already overcame one of such obstacles in his journey, and it was also one of the hardest. Grey went inside and immediately tried entering a meditative state, so he can clearly follow the pattern of the technique. He sat in a lotus position and stayed motionless to try to calm his mind. After 10 minutes, he finally got into a meditative state. He followed the instructions said in the scroll. He tried searching for the energy in his body, it took him close to an hour before finding it, of course after failing several times. "Found it, now for the second step" Grey was thrilled on managing to find the energy. Now the next step was to move the energy in a particular pattern in his body, he has to repeat the cycle 10 times to get his body accustomed to it. Grey tried the first time and failed to even move the energy from its current location. He didn''t give up though, he didn''t give up when he found out he didn''t have any elemental affinity, talk less of now that he can cultivate with having an affinity with all elements. He tried again, which also failed. He kept on attempting it for the rest of the night with no progress. By the time he got totally exhausted, it was almost dawn. He collapsed on the floor and fell asleep there and then. His body was totally worn out from all the attempts. By the time he woke up, it was already midday. He felt pain all over his body and was still exhausted. If a normal Elementalists tried what he did, they wouldn''t be able to get out of bed for a week. The cultivation technique took a great toll on the human body. "No wonder it required such strict physical training before one can start cultivating it, if it were my previous physique before I started training, I would not have been able to get out of bed for a month" Grey exclaimed when he felt the aches all over his body. The process continued for another 2 days before Grey started making small progress. He was finally able to move it, albeit a little, it was still something. He was so happy but also felt sore all over his body for his little progress. Due to his strong training, he was able to withstand pain more than others because he wrecks his body almost every day in the training session. After another week, he was already able to complete one cycle, he felt excited when he imagined himself using the different elements and couldn''t help but laugh in his bed. He couldn''t laugh properly because of all the pain his body was going through. During the process of the second cycle, Grey felt the pain increased a bit. He was already starting to get used to the pain then it increased. "Hiss" Grey hissed in pain while midway of the circulation. "I can''t continue like this, this pain will probably kill before I complete the circulation. I need to come up with a way to reduce it" The pain was already getting almost unbearable for him. He had to quickly think of a way, else he would go on pause then continue some other time. But, he didn''t want that. "I will head out to train tomorrow, it''s been a while I trained," Grey said. He had already gotten used to training his body, and these days he had focused fully on cultivation, he had somewhat missed it. Grey stopped the circulation and went to sleep. He will wake up early tomorrow to go for a long training session. Chapter 5：Shock The next morning, Grey got up filled with energy as he ran out of his room. He saw Martha in the living room and told her he was going out to train. Martha noticed how cheerful Grey became since he started cultivating, although he hadn''t made a breakthrough yet, it was good he can cultivate now. Martha was surprised Grey was going to train, she remembered that since Grey started cultivating the technique, he had immersed himself fully on it. "Eat something before you go, also, remember to take some food with you" Martha immediately shouted when she saw Grey was about to leave without eating. Grey hurried back and ate some food. He took a little along and went on his way. "I will return late today" Grey yelled from outside. Martha smiled wryly. Grey came out of their house, and headed straight for the entrance of their little city. On his way to the city entrance, he noticed that even though it had been some time since the test, people still recognized him, not only that, but they mostly look at him like an anomaly, and some could even be seen whispering to little kids while pointing at him. "Trash!" Grey saw a young boy his age shouting at him. If it were before, he would have felt bad when he was called a trash. But now, he doesn''t give a shit about what they''re saying about him. He ignored them and continued his journey towards to forest. The youth who was with two others looked at Grey with a small smile, "Oh, looks like he''s starting to grow wings, good thing I noticed it early. Guess it''s time to teach him another lesson." The two others chuckled slightly, but didn''t plan on joining him when he''s teaching Grey a lesson, they only planned to watch, after all, they''ve heard about Grey''s mother''s violent nature. Most of the people in the city knew that Grey usually goes to the woods to train, the city wasn''t big anyway, so the occupants are familiar with each other. Some of the people usually mocks him, saying he had gone mad because he was trash. But he stopped paying attention to them when Martha told him those were just people who had sad lives, so they were looking for an outlet to pour out their frustration. This youth was called Derek, and surprisingly, he was recently kicked out of the Academy. He was a Wind Elementalist, only his elemental grade was the lowest there is, pink. Not just that, but he was bad at cultivating, so when he didn''t meet up with the target set by the Academy which admitted him, he was sent back home. After joining any of the Academies, there are tests carried occasionally to see the growth of the students, if they notice a student isn''t making any improvements, the student will be dropped. The pressure and competition at the Academies are really high. Derek and his friends were part of the students dropped. Although he was dropped, he was already in the Seventh stage of the Collection Plane. His age should usually have broken through to the Fusion Plane by now. The Collection Plane is the first Plane in an Elementalist''s journey, this is the Plane where the Elementalists collect the elemental essences from the world into their bodies for the first time, thereby strengthening it. ******** Grey got to where he trained and immediately began with his usual training session. Before he knew it, it had already started to get dark, and he still didn''t get as tired as he used to. "Wow, seems like my physique improved . I can train for longer periods without quickly tiring out now." Grey said with astonishment. "Could it be because of the technique I''m currently cultivating" He pondered for some time. Since he couldn''t figure out what caused it, he decided to forget about it for now. He prepared his things and headed home. On the path leading to Red City from the forest, a group of youths could be seen standing by the side of the road. Their leader was a boy around fifteen years old, there were four boys in total gathered by the side talking. When Grey walked closer to where they were gathered, he paused and looked at them. This was not his first time encountering something like this, since the leader of this group in particular came to the city some months ago, he had been targeting him. But due to the fact he didn''t want to make any trouble for himself, he always tried his best to avoid him. Although, there had been one time, or two times, or three times, okay, it''s been a lot of times that he had been unfortunate to not have been able to avoid him, and they spoke amicably, with him having a black eye at the end of the conversation. "Here comes the trash, boys." Derek looked at Grey with disdain. The boys started laughing when they heard this, they''ve always accompanied Derek whenever he bullied Grey, or any other youth. Grey looked at them with emotionless eyes, before asking, "Derek, what do you want now?" He asked while thinking of a plan to get out of his current predicament. He knew what Derek wanted to do to him, and he didn''t plan on having a black eye this time, he was a little tired of telling Martha lies although he knew she was aware he was lying. "I never knew you were this stupid, you obviously offended me this morning. I called you and you snubbed me" Derek replied with a mischievous smile. Derek''s group snickered when they heard this. Grey''s expression changed to one of surprise, "What? When? Derek, isn''t this a little too much? I don''t recall you called my name, I remember hearing your voice, but you were clearly talking to someone else." "Did you call my name?" Grey asked to clarify things. "Yes, I did." Derek affirmed "Trash," Grey said. "Yes," Derek responded to what Grey said. After responding, he paused for a moment and realized Grey was calling him trash, and he even answered. "You see, you said your name is trash. I clearly heard when someone asked you your name, and you replied ''trash''. So I thought you were speaking to someone else" Grey said playfully. "You!" Derek almost exploded in anger, he didn''t think Grey would dare to trick him. "Apolo... You know what, forget about apologizing, cause even if you did, I wouldn''t forgive you." Derek said. He knew he couldn''t beat Grey in a war of words, so he decided to beat him up. ''Crap! I messed up, I shouldn''t have toyed with him.'' Grey immediately regretted his decision. Before he could even say another word, he saw a change in Derek''s appearance. ''Shit!'' He cursed inside and prepared himself. Derek mobilized the wind elements in his body and charged towards Grey, stretching out his hands to grab hold of Grey''s shoulder. When an Elementalist is still in the Collection Plane, they aren''t able to wield the elements outside their bodies, because they''ve only not collected enough elements, but they''ve also not fused with their said elements yet. It''s only when an Elementalist goes above the Fusion Plane, can they wield it. But while in the Collection and Fusion Plane, they can only use it to improve their strength and speed. Being a Wind Elementalist, Derek was faster than others in the same stage as himself. Grey sidestepped quickly, and he unexpectedly managed to dodge Derek''s grab. "Huh!" Grey, Derek, as well as the youths watching from the side all exclaimed in surprise. ''What just happened?'' Grey asked himself. Although his motive was to dodge Derek''s attack, he knew he couldn''t, but he still attempted it since there was no harm in trying. Due to his frequent physical training, he could be said to be fast, even amongst some Collection Plane Elementalist, but in front of a Wind Elementalist, it wasn''t much. He never expected he would be able to dodge the attack, he also noticed his senses were heightened. The youths watching were amazed, Derek couldn''t even believe Grey dodged it. He only planned on hitting Grey once or twice, but now, he changed his mind and prepared to beat him up properly. Grey on the other hand was excited when he thought of what just happened. ''Don''t get cocky, maybe it was a mistake.'' He told himself. "Hmph! Don''t get full of yourself because you were able to dodge my attack," Derek said before attacking once again. He mobilized the wind element in his body and pounced on Grey, throwing a fist at his face. Grey panicked a little when he saw this, but he quickly tried shifting his head to the side, and to his surprise, he was faster than Derek once again. This time, he dodged the attack almost effortlessly, had it been before, then there was no way he would have been able to dodge the strike due to its speed. Derek didn''t stop with this attack, after his fist missed, he immediately tried to hit Grey on the stomach with his knee, but just like before, Grey dodged the attack, only, this time, he retreated back. Derek kept on attacking, and Grey was like an experienced fighter, easily dodging the strikes. "How can he be so fast" One of the youths exclaimed. They knew just how fast Derek was, yet Grey was still able to dodge his attacks. "Stop..." Grey wanted to try to convince Derek to stop attacking, but he was interrupted by his roar. "Ahh!" Derek roared in anger. He had been attacking for almost one minute now, yet he hadn''t been able to touch Grey even once, it was infuriating. On seeing that Derek didn''t plan on stopping, Grey knew he shouldn''t stay on the defensive anymore, he finally decided to attack if an opportunity presented itself. It didn''t take long before the said opportunity showed itself, but being someone who was inexperienced in fighting, he was unable to capitalize on it. Luckily, he was faster than Derek, so it didn''t come back to haunt him. Another opportunity presented itself when Derek threw a reckless punch towards him which was enforced with the wind element. Grey dodged the attack by bending down, after dodging it, Derek''s body was completely exposed and defenseless due to his stance. Grey gathered as much energy he could muster and sent a punch towards Derek''s chest. Bam! His fist connected, and an even more unexpected scene followed right after, Derek''s body shot through the air and hit one of the trees that was at the side of the road. He passed out right after. "Huh!" Grey stood stunned, alternating his gaze between the unconscious Derek, as well as his outstretched fist. ''That shouldn''t be possible, right?'' He asked himself. The youths watching were dumbstruck, their mouth opened so wide that an egg could easily fit right into them. They stared at the unconscious Derek and back at the dazed Grey. After standing for a while, Grey quickly went home. This was his first time he was able to fight back, and he was elated by it. On getting home, he didn''t tell his mother of it, not because he wanted to hide it, but since he had refrained from telling her when he was bullied by him, he decided to let the matter go. He took a warm bath before eating dinner, then the thought struck him to try cultivating. Chapter 6：Tenth Cycle Grey immediately tried circulating the energy, he noticed it became easier than the previous time he tried it, and the pain reduced significantly. "Wow, guess I shouldn''t have stopped my training" Grey was delighted. He immediately started feeling remorseful when he thought about all the days he had to go through pains just to make the energy move. "Why didn''t they make it known in the scroll, I wouldn''t have passed through days of pain" Grey complained bitterly. Although he knew it wouldn''t change anything, he didn''t want to blame himself for not continuing his training, so he just shifted the blame. Grey was able to complete the second circulation before long. He was exhausted from the hard work and immediately fell asleep. The Next day, Grey woke up late in the day. Although it wasn''t midday yet, it wasn''t far from it. "Ah, what a great night" Grey woke up with a huge smile on his face, after having a breakthrough in the circulation, he felt fantastic with himself. Although it wasn''t anything big, Grey felt like it was a major accomplishment. He freshened up before going downstairs. He saw Martha just coming into the house. When she saw Grey, she gave him a sweet smile. For some reason, when Grey saw the smile, he felt a chill run down his spine. ''I haven''t done anything wrong lately, have I'' Grey started thinking about everything he had done lately and couldn''t remember upsetting his mother on any occasion. Grey paused instinctively and slowly retreated to a distance he deemed was safe enough. "I''m fine thanks. How are you doing today?" Grey asked with a smile. "I must say, you look very beautiful this morning" Before Martha could reply to the question Grey asked, she heard him speak again. ''What a glib tongue he has. Just like his father'' Martha sneered coldly in her heart. She knew why he was complementing her. Whenever he does something wrong, he always does this to get on her good side. Although she never falls for it, she does reduce the punishment she has in mind for him unknowingly. "How was your training yesterday?" Martha asked with a smile. "It was fine, I noticed my stamina has gone up a notch since I started cultivating the technique, although I have not started cultivation fully, I think it wouldn''t take long anymore. Oh, and I made some progress in the second circulation, now all that''s left to do is to continue till I reach the tenth one" Grey spat out everything he did yesterday. He forgot about what happened with Derek as he was too excited over the success of his cultivation breakthrough the previous night. Martha looked at him closely, ''Why is he hiding it from me, or did he forget about it? No need, I will just ask about it''. "I was told you sneak attacked Derek yesterday when you were coming back from the forest" Martha studied Grey''s reaction closely. Grey was shocked when he heard that, then it all clicked, no wonder she was acting strange, so it was because of the small conflict he had with Derek. "Of course not, he wanted to bully me, so I decided to teach him a lesson." He said proudly while sticking out his chest. Martha looked at him not knowing if to laugh or cry, ''This kid''. "Well, that was not what he said. He said he was minding his business at the side of the road when you suddenly sneak attacked him while he was distracted. He said you attacked him possibly because you were mad at him when he jokingly called you a trash." Martha recounted what she was told. She knew her son all too well, although he was mischievous, he wouldn''t sneak attack anyone. Well, not for that particular reason though. ''With his character, he will definitely sneak attack his enemies''. Derek can''t be counted as an enemy, he isn''t even worth Grey''s time. Not only that, but she knew of Derek bullying Grey lately, but she didn''t interfere since Grey didn''t tell her about it. "He''s lying" Grey defended himself confidently. He knew his mother knew he was right, she was just trying to scare him. Even if he was wrong, he knew she would definitely protect him. Martha looked at him for some time, "Oh, tell me what happened." Grey recounted the whole event, from when he was heading out to when he was blocked by Derek. Martha was similarly dumbfounded when she heard how Grey was able to defeat Derek effortlessly. Derek is someone at the Eighth stage of the Collection Plane, just a bit away from the Fusion Plane. Yet Grey was faster than him, what was more shocking was the fact that Derek is a Wind Elementalist. She looked at her son, pride filled her heart, but she didn''t show it out. If Grey were to know she was proud of him, she didn''t know what he might do next. "Okay, don''t worry about this. I will take care of it. I don''t want to hear something like this happened again. Focus fully on your cultivation and try to complete the circulations as soon as possible, so you can start the real cultivation" Martha told him seriously. She really didn''t want him to waste his time with all these little things. So long as he can start cultivating for real, I will be happy. "Yes mom, I will work extra hard!" Grey proclaimed with determination. Martha looked at him and nodded in approval on seeing how determined he was. Grey continued his training that day, only now, his routine had changed. He would train in the day, and meditate at night. Slowly, time passed and a month quickly went by. Grey didn''t hear from Derek or anyone later. He was given a rare moment of peace. He was happy as now all his focus was on his training. During this month, he was able to get to the seventh circle. The more the cycles, the harder it was for him. He was determined, so he didn''t stop or give up halfway because he felt it was too hard. He kept on pushing himself to the brink and surpassing himself. Whenever he wants to train, he will set himself as the target to beat. If could do more than what he usually does, then he had successfully surpassed his previous self. Another month went by without any major event taking place. Grey continued his frenzied training and Martha even began worrying over him. There was one time Grey came home looking like someone who had a foot on deaths'' door. She had to make him stay at home for a week to take a rest before he was allowed to continue his training. Even when staying at home, Grey focused fully on meditating. During these two months, Grey had been able to complete 9 cycles. Now it was left with the last circle, once he completes it, he will officially step into the realm of Elementalists. Grey was so excited about it and couldn''t wait to start manipulating each element. Grey took a break, before going for the last circle. He noticed he should always take breaks sometimes, so his body doesn''t breakdown. After the break, he immediately started training and he started moving the energy according to the instructions of the tenth cycle. Each cycle had a different route, so he had to be careful when studying it to avoid making any mistakes. Although they were almost identical, there is always a different route for each cycle. Grey worked hard and after 2 weeks of rigorous training, one night, he finally completed the last cycle. Chapter 7：Chaos Element? *RUMBLE* A rumbling sound could be heard from Grey''s body. After completing the tenth cycle, huge changes started taking place in his body. Grey got in a trance when this happened. He saw a man standing majestically in the air looking down at the world. He had a noble aura spreading in all directions, it was like he was the lord over everything. He stretched out his right hand and all elements could be seen converging at the top of his hands, it was a beautiful sight. The elements formed an orb at the top of his hand, the orb was captivating. But Grey could feel the destructive powers hidden in the beautiful orb. This could be called a beautiful killer. The man spread out his hands wide and the orb exploded. It was a stunning sight and was also beautiful. Grey was surprised by the number of elements the man had control over. The man looked in the direction of Grey and flashed a smile at him. Only after the lights died down did Grey realize they were alone. The man leisurely walked towards him, he studied him for some time before nodding his head. Grey stood nervously and also studied the man in front of him. The man was handsome, with long shoulder length hair. "What is your name young boy," The man asked calmly. "Grey" Grey replied cautiously. The man raised an eyebrow and stared at him closely, "You were the one who inherited my powers, good. You were just barely able to meet the minimum requirements, you must have a strong body if you want to use the chaos element". "Chaos elements?" Grey was surprised, although he didn''t know everything, he knew there were only seven elements in the world. Which are Fire, Water, Wind, Earth, Lightning, Darkness, and Light elements. He had never heard of this chaos element the mysterious man was talking about. "Hmm, you don''t really need to know much about it for now. Just have it in the back of your mind. You''ve inherited the power of the strongest God, the Chaos God" the man said to Grey. "Chaos God?" Grey had read about Gods in some books and knew there was a God for each element. But he had never heard of this Chaos God this man was talking about. "Yes, the Chaos God. He was the strongest among all the God''s and was the one who led the God''s" the man said. "I''ve never heard of this Chaos God you speak of senior" Grey said to him. The man looked at him with a bewildered look. "Is there no record of the Chaos God?" he asked. "No senior, after the great war of Gods, the Gods haven''t been heard about since then. And that war took place over 100,000 years ago" Grey explained. The man was alarmed, "Seems like another war took place after that one, no wonder they don''t know of the Chaos God" he muttered under his breath. "Hmm, forget about it for now. You will get to know more as time goes on. Now, since you have inherited this power, you should already know some things about it?" The man asked seriously. "Yes senior, I know I can wield all elements with it" Grey replied. "Hmm, well, that isn''t the strongest aspect of it. You still won''t be able to form the chaos element soon" the man said with a smile. "Okay, so can I start using the elements now?" Grey asked excitedly. He didn''t care about the Chaos God or the Chaos element, what was important for him now was if he could use the elements. Although he was curious about it, it wasn''t too important to him. "No" the man answered. "What!" Grey exclaimed. "No," the man said again "But it stated in the scroll that I will be able to control all elements" Grey quickly spoke. He had already envisioned how he would control all the elements, now, this man was telling him he can''t use the elements now. "I know, but it isn''t that easy. The human body wasn''t supposed to have an affinity with all elements, so, it will take some time and hard work from you" The man said while looking at Grey. "Hard work, I''ve been working so hard just to be able to hone my body, yet you''re telling me I will still get to do more hard work" Grey was feeling down. He had already worked so hard from his view, yet, he will still work more just to get what was promised to him. He thought he already had everything in his hands, who knew he was holding onto clouds. "You don''t expect it to be that easy right?" The man said with a chuckle. Grey felt scammed, "Senior, can I have only one element and just forget about all this?" Grey asked. Although the idea of wielding all elements sounded great if he had to wait for another 15 or even 20 years, it wouldn''t be nice. If he can have one element, he will be satisfied. He wasn''t greedy, okay, he wasn''t too greedy. But he feels like it wouldn''t be worth it to have all elements if he had to wait for so long, what if he died because he couldn''t control any elements. The man looked at Grey, speechless. "How can you settle for less?" He couldn''t help but ask. "I''m not settling for less, I''m just doing the more reasonable thing from my view. I''m already behind my peers in terms of cultivation, so if I take much longer, I might as well just give up on the rest and have one" Grey reasoned. The man looked at Grey for some time before sighing helplessly. "Oh, so all I have to do is comprehend the elements?" Grey asked with an excited look. ''Why didn''t you say this earlier, instead of scaring me'' Grey thought. "Don''t think it will be easy, comprehending elements and being born with a given element are two different things. Comprehension is harder, and your talent in the element will tally with your comprehension, if your comprehension is low for the element, your talent and control over it will also be low" He patiently explained to Grey. "It shouldn''t be that hard. How can I get into this space?" Grey said naively before asking the important question. For him, he didn''t think it would be hard for him to comprehend the elements. What he was bothered about was how to get here. The man looked at him and didn''t reply. He knew how hard it was to comprehend an element and also, he didn''t want to give Grey a scare. So he just let him be. "Just will it, and you can come here anytime," The man said. "Okay" Grey replied happily, since he now knew how he can get here, everything was settled. "Oh!, I haven''t told you the strongest aspect of it yet" The man suddenly said. Grey looked at him with interest. "Elemental fusion," He said with a smile. "Elemental fusion?" Grey''s interest was piqued when he heard this. The man knew he would have to explain it to Grey, so he patiently explained to him, "Yes elemental fusion. As the name implies, this power gives you the ability to fuse elements. After being able to fuse all elements, you will then be able to create the chaos element, which is a combination of all elements and also the strongest element". Grey was shocked when he heard this, so the chaos element is a fusion of all elements. "Was that what I saw you did earlier?" Grey asked. He remembered seeing the man forming an orb at the top of his outstretched hand. It was as beautiful as it was dangerous. "Yes, what you saw me create was the chaos element" The man didn''t hide anything from him and told him more about it. "How can there be such an overpowered element? Also, elements can be fused together" Grey was astounded by what he was hearing, and also excited. Doesn''t that mean he will have such an amazing ability. Not only will he be able to use all elements, but he will also be able to fuse them. And once again, Grey started envisioning himself when he was using the chaos element and couldn''t help but cackle maniacally. The man looked at him and couldn''t help but sigh, "What sort of fellow inherited this power" He started pitying the world because an overpowered moron will soon be let loose. He held a moment of silence for everyone. He knew Grey was a determined person as he was able to train himself to reach the requirements stated. If he knew Grey didn''t do it on purpose, he would be dismayed. Chapter 8：F**k!, What Sh*t Luck Grey kept smiling in a silly manner, the man just looked at him, lost of words. He just ascertained Grey was a total nut case. "Stop smiling and listen up, I will be gone soon, there are things you should be aware of" The man tried to turn the atmosphere serious once again. If he were still alive, he was sure he would probably beat Grey up, no wait, he will definitely beat Grey up. "Okay senior, I''m all ears" Grey tried to calm down when he noticed how serious the man was. ''He will be gone soon, where is he going?'' Grey thought in his heart. "Comprehending each element isn''t as simple as you think it is. For you to have perfect control over it, you have to know everything about it you have to be one with the element. Being one with the element is the highest level of comprehension. Although you''re still far away from this level", the man looked at Grey before continuing, "You should also know that the higher you comprehend the elements, the faster your cultivation speed" Grey listened closely and felt stupefied by what he was hearing. "Senior doesn''t that mean, unlike the rest people who have a fixed talent for their said element, mine isn''t fixed" "Yes, that''s basically the point. Of course, it can only increase if you can have a high comprehension of the said element" He explained patiently as a teacher would to his student. Grey had a solemn look and started having a feeling it won''t really be that easy to have a high comprehension of the elements. When the man saw Grey''s look, he started having a different opinion of him. ''Seems like he has finally realized how hard things are going to be'' He nodded in approval in his heart. "You can actually start cultivating now, you were originally born with an affinity with an element," The man said. Grey was overjoyed when he heard this, so he had an element also. This made him calm his mind, at least now he wouldn''t start from scratch when he wanted to start comprehending each element. "The more elements you comprehend, the faster your cultivation speed grows. Meaning if you can comprehend two elements, your cultivation speed will double. And your talent also matters" He said with a slightly calmer tone. When Grey heard this, he was beside himself with joy. "Doesn''t that mean I will improve at a faster pace?" Grey asked just to be sure he heard correctly. "Yes you will" The man replied "Hahahaha" Grey laughed crazily. Well, there goes the good impression he had managed to build of himself. The man stared at Grey and couldn''t believe how quickly he changes his demeanor. ''Sigh, forget it. He is already here'' He was mentally exhausted from his conversation with this young boy. After Grey finished his wild imagination, he quickly composed himself. "Senior, you said you would be gone soon" Grey asked. "Yes, I''m just a spiritual being currently. I have already died long ago" The man replied calmly without any emotions. Death was something, not even the Gods could avoid. Although if they were left alone they could live almost forever, wars were a brutal and bitter part of the world. "You are dead" Grey view on life was once again shattered. "You don''t have to say anything about it. It is something that happened long ago. Now, I will tell you how to perfectly use this space" The man slowly explained to Grey. Grey listened keenly as he knew, once this senior disappears, he will never see him again. He felt bad for him, but this wasn''t the time to think about it. Grey was able to find out how to use the chaos space. It wasn''t really that hard, all you have to do is think of the element you wish to comprehend, and you will see it. There was also an object used for checking talents. It was just like the one he saw when he went for the test, only this was more sophisticated. "Well, that is all you need to know. Remember this won''t be easy, and always be careful of how many elements you show people. You can show multiple, but not too many okay. You will be surprised how far greed can push people" He warned Grey sincerely. The man looked at Grey with eyes of encouragement. "Train well. Oh!, and don''t forget to train your body as well. Don''t allow the elements to hone it for you, that is the wrong path" He said while fading slowly. "Yes senior, I''m already used to it. So now, I can''t really go a day with doing a little training" Grey said. "Senior, how can I leave?" Grey hurriedly asked, wouldn''t it be embarrassing if he couldn''t leave this space. "Just will it, and you can leave," He said while shaking his head with a smile. ''What an interesting young boy''. "Okay senior, do take care. Oh, sorry my bad" Grey wanted to wish him well before he remembered he was already dead. Grey had an embarrassed smile while waving goodbye to him. The man laughed when he saw this. Before fading away completely. Grey looked at the place the man faded with a look of melancholy. He stayed in the space for some time before leaving and returning to the real world. When he returned, he looked around calmly. He knew his life will change completely from this day. "Wait, let me take a look at which element I''m attuned with naturally" He suddenly remembered and went back into the space. Grey stood before the stone nervously. He had waited for 3 years, he had suffered countless insults all for this day. With a heart of expectation, he placed his hand on the stone. Just like what he experienced the last time, he felt an unknown energy entering into his body from the stone. After it circulated around his body, it went back to the stone. Grey waited patiently for it to read the results. After a minute, the stone lit up. Grey was slack jawed when he saw the result. His heart couldn''t stop racing. "Fuck, what sort of shit luck is this, how can I have a pink talent" Grey immediately cursed out. It was depressing, after waiting for so long, this was what he saw. A Pink talent, although he had a great element, it was annoying. He had a Lightning element but with a Pink talent, if it had been orange, he would have at least managed it. Besides his element was rare, but pink. If people knew about this, he would be a laughingstock. He was already being laughed at for not having an affinity, now that he awakened it after so long, it was a Pink talent. "*Sigh* Well, at least this is better than having no element." Grey sighed, although somewhat dejectedly. He immediately left the chaos space and went to sleep. Chapter 9：Plans The next morning, Grey got up early, although he still felt dejected because of his talent, he couldn''t hide his joy of being able to finally cultivate. Now all he needs is a cultivation technique for his element. He still wanted to join an Academy though, but with his current talent, that''s not happening. "I will improve my talent, that way they will accept me even though I awakened late" Grey already had a plan in his heart, he would first comprehend the Lightning element to improve his talent, then after that, he will join the Academy to have a better cultivation technique. The cultivation technique which followed the pearl was only for the circulation, now, he needs a technique for each element separately. The higher the grade of the technique the faster he can cultivate. Grey washed up and went downstairs, he saw his meal was on the table and quickly wolfed it down before heading out. Grey initially wanted to try comprehending the Lightning element, but he decided against it. I will continue my training for now. Grey left the house for his usual training session and came back earlier than usual. "Grey, why did you come back this early?" Martha inquired when she saw him coming home early. "I couldn''t concentrate, so I just came back home" Grey replied. Martha looked at her son for some time, "Did something happen?". Grey knew he couldn''t hide anything from her, so he just told her what happened. On his way to training, he was blocked by Derek and his squad. Although they didn''t fight, he was mocked by them. What annoyed him the most was when he remembered the fact that he had Pink talent, so there was no use talking about it. Grey wasn''t someone who acts out of anger, so he was able to restrain himself from fighting. But due to his youth and hot bloodedness, he told them he would be taking part in the test that was going to take place in 3 months. He was laughed at by them, Derek laughed so much and said he would tell the entire city about it. Martha looked at Grey and shook her head. "Will you be able to complete the tenth circulation before then?" She knew how hard it was to complete each circle and Grey also told her the process gets harder with each circle. Martha wasn''t aware Grey had already completed it the previous day. Grey hadn''t been able to tell her, he planned on telling her tonight during dinner. "Mom, I completed it yesterday," Grey said. Grey recounted everything that happened, including telling her about the man and also the chaos element. Martha was left stunned by this information. She was surprised by the fact that Grey could increase his talent. But what truly surprised her was that Grey''s original elemental affinity was the rare Lightning element, although it was only a Pink grade talent, it wasn''t really bad since the element was unique. She felt genuinely happy for her son and teardrops unknowingly left her eyes. She knew just how much Grey had suffered for this. If she was given an option, she would never have allowed her husband to do this. Now her little boy will be able to show them all, who was the most talented. What got her reeling was the fact that with Grey''s ability to be able to improve his talent if he could get a purple talent before the test, he would definitely be fought over by the Academy and might even attract attention from the higher-ups of the empire. Having a Lightning element is something which rarely happens, adding to the fact that the owner is a purple talent, that will give him more attention. The Lightning element is as destructive as the Fire element, and it also gives the user almost unparalleled speed which is also one of the advantages of the Wind element. It is sometimes regarded as a 2 in 1 element. She didn''t have any techniques for the Lightning element and getting one would be difficult. But, if Grey was able to join any of the Academies, he will be able to get a high grade technique. "Grey, you have to work hard. If you can push your talent to Purple before the test, that would be great" Martha said. "Yes mom, I know what to do" Grey already planned this. He will work hard to improve his talent before the teat, then shock the entire city with his results. Grey left Martha before heading to his room. He tried meditating but to no avail. So he just gave up and started reminiscing about how he had been treated by everyone in the city. He was mocked and abused by everyone. His so-called friends stopped talking to him because he wasn''t an Elementalist. He was downcast during that time, but his mother has always been there with him all the time. She was his backbone when he couldn''t stand up straight. She made sure she did everything she could to assist him, she was his greatest support. "Mom, we will show the world how wrong they are soon" Grey clenched his fist tightly. Even if he doesn''t want to do this for himself, he has to do it for his mother. He is grateful to his mother, if not for her, he would have still been down, wallowing in self pity. He promised himself he was going to make his mother proud. Not only that, but he would be her source of joy. The best is the only thing he wishes for her. After this test, his life would change completely. His social status will also change. He imagined the look of shock that will be written in the faces of everyone when he gets the test done. "How would they react, I can''t wait to find out" Grey smiled to himself, he was going to give it his all. Chapter 10：Training The news of Grey taking the test quickly spread over the entire city. Grey was pretty famous in the city, due to not being an Elementalist. They really didn''t expect Grey would still be hopeful in awakening his element. It''s already been so long, yet he still thinks he can awaken it, some were pessimistic about it and felt Grey just wanted to make a fool of himself. Others felt there might be a good chance he might awaken. They all couldn''t wait for the next test to happen, what would happen that day was unknown. But what they knew was that there is certainly going to be a scene that day, and they were all looking forward to it. People hate being bored, so when they knew something was going to happen, they can''t help but be excited. They don''t care if it''s the misfortune of others, so long as it doesn''t affect them, they''re good with it. Nothing major has happened in the city since the time Jonas rose to fame and Grey fell during the test 3 years ago. Although Grey retaking the test wasn''t anything major, at least it will give them something to talk about for some time, regardless of the outcome. Grey started his hard training once again, only this time, all his focus was placed on trying to comprehend the Lightning element. Before he started, he knew it would be hard. Well currently, he is cursing the man for not telling him how hard it was. Actually, the man clearly told him. But he wasn''t really paying attention at that time, so when he heard it, he didn''t think it will be hard. He was in an overexcited state, the man didn''t expect him to clearly remember everything he was told right. "Fuck! This is impossible, I''ve been studying this for so long now but still have no results" Grey was feeling dejected, who knew comprehending would be so hard. What was worse was the fact that this was the element he was aligned with, how hard would the other elements be then. Well, he really didn''t want to find out any time soon. For the past 3 days, Grey had been coming to the chaos space to try to comprehend the Lightning element, but no advances had been made. He had stared at it so much that even when he closes his eyes, all he sees is lightning. Grey left the chaos space and tried to relax his mind. He slowly started thinking about lightning and how it is. After 1 hour, he got nothing. ''Will I have to disgrace myself in front of everyone again'' Even though he had awakened an element, he was already getting past the perfect time of cultivating. The only thing that might probably be able to help him will be his rare element, but he doesn''t want that. He wants to enter the Academy with a good position, good talent, and also with pride. How would the students feel if someone who can be referred to as a late bloomer still has such low talent, he would be a laughingstock again. Grey calmed himself, he still had time. There is no need to think about all this now. He didn''t want anything to discourage him, so this was the best option. Eliminating negative thoughts can be hard, but not impossible. Martha had been less worried about Grey since she knew he had awakened an element, although poor talent, it doesn''t really matter with that ability of his. She knew as long as Grey set his mind to it, he will surely succeed. She knew how stubborn he can get when he wants something, and also, she knew just how badly Grey wanted this. The few people close to her had brought up the topic of Grey wanting to take the test again, and some even advised her against it. They felt if the result was the same, Grey might really breakdown. It has been tough for him all these years, if the result once again showed the same result of him having no affinity, the consequences would be worse than the first time. She told them all it wasn''t her decision, and Grey wasn''t a child anymore. He can make some decisions for himself now, since he said he wanted to retake the test, he definitely has his reasons. And he had assured me that regardless of the result, it wouldn''t affect him much. They looked at her and felt she was just as rash as her child. Some even left angrily thinking she didn''t want to hear what they wanted to say. Martha didn''t try to stop them, she knew they had her best interest at heart, but they will definitely understand when the time came. She saw how hard Grey was trying to comprehend the element, so he could increase his talent. Regardless of everything, she was really happy seeing how hardworking Grey was. At dinner, Grey told her how difficult it was for him to comprehend the element. "You don''t expect to be successful right off the bat, do you. Everything takes time and perseverance, no one wakes up an overnight success. You might be talented but lazy, someone who has an average talent will surely surpass you if he is hardworking. Strive to be the best you can, never compare yourself with others. Behind every successful individual, there are countless days of pure hard work. Remember this, people don''t care about the battle, only the result" Martha advised him gently. She knew what Grey needs now is time, with time, he can achieve it all. So she wants to ensure he doesn''t rush when doing things lest he makes a mistake. Grey looked at his mother for a long time and her words resounded in his head continuously. Sometimes, he feels his mother is too wise for someone her age. He never says this out though, he knew just how fierce she was. There was this one time she froze his father because they were having an argument. (Martha is a water Elementalist, so she also has the ability to freeze things) She had never told him her grade or what grade her talent is, but he knew it was definitely not lower than Purple, it might even be higher. But he is definitely scared of her, well, scared really isn''t the right word. He prefers using the term ''respect''. Grey never tries to upset her, because, she just freezes his legs to the ground and according to her, ''trains'' him to her heart''s content. That way, there is no way for him to run. Chapter 11：Pressure It''s been a week since Grey started trying to comprehend the Lightning element, and so far, well, he hasn''t made any progress yet. But he didn''t feel down though. Every day, he tries harder than the previous day. He really wants to comprehend it badly, if he could make a little progress, it will definitely increase his talent. Although he didn''t know what grade it will get to, but he knew it wouldn''t stay at the Pink grade. Also, having a little bit of understanding, will pave the way for him for his future comprehension. It''s like building a house, once you get the foundation done, it becomes easier. Well, so he thought. Grey didn''t rush things and took it slowly, he knew since it was with him, he will definitely succeed someday. Since he hadn''t made any progress, he decided to head out and train since it has been quite some time he did. The next day, Grey prepared and went over to the forest to train as usual. Midday while he was still training, it suddenly started raining. Grey immediately went over to a cave close to where he usually trains. He found this one day when it was about to rain, he couldn''t head home, so he found somewhere to wait it out. It quickly started raining heavily. *RUMBLE* The sound of thunder immediately reverberated in the sky. *BOOM* Grey suddenly couldn''t hear anything, his ear was ringing continuously. He immediately ran out of the cave and stood outside in the rain. When he looked at his left, he saw some part of the ground was scorched black. That was what entered his mind when he saw it. *RUMBLE* Grey once again heard the sound of thunder and looked up, he saw lightning flashing in the sky like it was doing a dance. *CRASH* The lightning struck a place far from Grey, but he saw everything clearly. Grey stood completely still, not moving even after 10 minutes. He was in a trance, when he saw the display of the lightning and how it struck, he suddenly had an epiphany. The scene kept on playing in his head, from the fast movement to its destructive power. Everything kept repeating itself. After some time, it stopped. "What a pity, if I can have this feeling once more, I will definitely be able to improve my talent to Purple grade" Grey said sadly. This wasn''t a total waste though, he learned some things from witnessing it himself. Although the chaos space is amazing, it wasn''t the real deal. So there is a major difference with how you feel both. But with this as reference, he can finally start making progress in his understanding of the Lightning element. After it stopped raining, Grey decided to stop training. Besides, he had trained for some time already. He was also eager to see if this little progress of his will make any changes to his talent. On his way back to the city, he noticed the gate was crowded. He curiously walked over to see what was going on. When he got there, he couldn''t see anything as the crowd was just too much. "Good day mister, please can you tell me what is going on?" Grey asked a man on the scene. The man looked at Grey before shifting his gaze away, not evening bothering to answer him. The man didn''t know Grey, but he just didn''t care. ''Well, what a scum'' Grey cursed angrily before walking to search for someone else to tell him what was going on. After asking around, he found out Jonas returned from the Academy. This was the first time he had come back to the city since joining the Starlight Academy. Grey still had an impression of Jonas. I mean, who wouldn''t have an impression of someone with a Purple talent. Grey remembered the envious look he gave Jonas when he saw how all the Academies were fighting over him. He also found out Jonas would be staying until the test, ''Why did he come at this time, couldn''t he come after the test'' Grey suddenly felt pressured. If it were before, even if he had an Orange talent, he wouldn''t care since he can improve it with time. But now, Jonas came. The only person who has ever had a Purple talent in the history of the city. (Just to be clear, Martha isn''t from the city) He currently lorded over all in this little city, even in the big cities, he was still someone with a high status. No one likes being in the shadow of anyone. Had Jonas not appeared, Grey would have been satisfied with an Orange talent. But now, he wanted more. He had to get his talent up to Purple, no matter what. Grey went home with new conviction and the fire in his heart was burning fervently. He immediately wanted to see how far his bit of comprehension took him. After getting home, he went straight to his room and sat in a meditative position, after calming his racing heart filled with expectation, he entered the chaos space. He went over to check if his grade improved. After placing his hand on the stone, he waited for it to do what it usually does. The energy circled his body before returning to the stone. When Grey looked at the result, his face fell. He still had Pink grade talent. Although he came with expectations, he also knew it wouldn''t be that easy after trying to comprehend it for so long. One moment of epiphany couldn''t do the trick. Well, unless he stayed in the state for long. While this was happening to Grey at home, the city was abuzz with discussions. And the name mentioned the most was Jonas. Jonas was not the only name mentioned, Grey''s name was also in the mouth of many because he was going to retake the test. With the arrival of Jonas, everyone remembered they both took the test on the same day. With one being fought over by the Academies, and the other most likely not remembering how he even left the arena. Jonas got word of the fact that Grey was going to retake the test. He clearly remembered that lonely figure who stood at the platform stunned. "Interesting" Initially, Jonas had no plans of attending the test even if he was around. He had better things to do, if not for wanting to meet his parents, he wouldn''t have come to this low classes city. He also enjoyed the feeling of being adored by the people here, and idolized by the kids. Chapter 12：Talent - Orange The city quieten down after some time. Everyone went back to what they were doing. Although there was still some places where the issue of Grey retaking the test was still talked about, it wasn''t really much. Grey didn''t think of any other thing and focused fully on comprehending the Lightning element, since he already made a breakthrough, it would be easier, wait, saying easier will give people the wrong idea, it would be less hard. Now that''s better. It got less hard for him, and he saw some improvements as he studied the element more. In this fashion, one month quickly went in a flash. The pressure on Grey increased as it got closer to the time of the test. Now he had only two months left, he had to make significant improvements within these two months to ensure he makes his mother proud. Grey didn''t know if he can make it in time, but he knew he was going to try his best no matter what. It took him so long just to have any improvements in the element he was more attuned with, "Just how long will it take to comprehend other elements turn" Grey was tired but not frustrated, he knew by increasing his talent and also having another element, it would increase his cultivation speed. This way, he would be able to catch up and quickly surpass his peers who started cultivating before him. All he needed is time. Only, time waits for no man. Fortunately, Elementalists gets to live long the higher their level. So he still has a lot of time on his hands. Grey noticed he had made good progress during this month, so he decided it was time to check if his talent increased. After entering the chaos space, he walked towards the stone slowly. He stood there feeling apprehensive for some time. He slowly breathed out, before placing his hands on the stone. Once again, the unknown energy went into his body from the stone. After going a circle in his body, it went back to the stone. Grey nervously looked on waiting for the result, his heart pounding with anticipation. After some time, the stone lit up. Grey looked at the stone in front of him without having any reactions for some time. Finally, a huge grin broke out of his face. After trying for so long, he finally made some progress. His talent has increased from Pink grade to Orange grade. Grey felt like he was in a dream, if it wasn''t happening to him, he would never have believed it even if he was beaten close to death, okay not really, he wouldn''t allow himself to get beaten up that badly just because he didn''t believe it, at least if he said he believed he would be free to go right!. Grey was initially already beginning to have some doubts. Although he could see it all happening, nothing seemed to change. If not for the fact that he awakened an element, he would have thought this was just a sham. Grey left the chaos space. He wanted to share his new progress with his mother. Unfortunately, when he went downstairs, she wasn''t around. "Hmm, where did she go to?, oh well, I will tell her the good news once she returns" Martha returned late, looking exhausted. When Grey saw her, "Mom, are you okay?" He walked up to her. When she saw him, she tried to hide her weariness but just couldn''t, "I''m fine dear, give me a sec. I''ll go prepare dinner" She smiled to him Grey looked at her and didn''t say anything more, he knew it hasn''t been easy for her and didn''t want to make her feel sad. "Don''t worry mom, I''ve made dinner already" Grey told her gently. Martha was slightly taken aback when she heard this, a sweet smile bloomed on her face. "How thoughtful of you young man" She said in a praising tone. "Taking care of you is my duty. Now, go freshen up before you come back down for dinner" Grey said gentlemanly. Martha laughed when she saw how Grey was acting. No matter how tired she feels, whenever she sees Grey, it just feels like all the fatigue fades away. "What a great son you have" When Martha was on her way upstairs, she heard Grey make this statement and nearly fell down. ''Can''t he just be normal for once''. Although she thought of this, she didn''t really want that. Grey was her light, and she likes the cheerful him, if he suddenly starts behaving like people usually do, he wouldn''t be fun to be with. Grey always makes her laugh, so she enjoys his company a lot. Martha returned after taking a bath. By the time she got down, Grey had already prepared the table. They sat together and started eating. Martha couldn''t deny it, Grey was a great cook. But she restrained herself from praising him. "I''m such a great cook" Grey exclaimed after doing the dishes. Martha rolled her eyes when she heard this, ''At least let someone praise you first'' Grey really is one of a kind. But he is always a great company. "Mom, I have good news for you" Grey said with a mysterious smile. "Oh, what is it?" Martha raised her brow when she heard Grey. "Well, I managed to advance to an Orange talent today" Grey said with a proud face. "Really" Martha was stunned when she heard this. But quickly, it turned to joy. Grey being able to increase his talent is something unbelievable, but she knew Grey would never lie to her. He probably wouldn''t even think of it, he really is scared of her. "Congratulations, that''s great news" Martha congratulated him happily. "Mom, I''m aiming for a Purple talent before the test" Grey told her his aim. Martha looked at Grey, "Don''t put too much pressure on yourself, having an Orange talent is already considered good. Especially with that element of yours" Not that she wanted to discourage him, but she knew some times, it was best to take it easy. "Don''t worry mom, I''m confident about this. If I can''t make it before the test, I''ll just make it after it. It''s no big deal" Grey assured her. ''I''m definitely going to make it before the test'' Grey declared in his heart. "Okay baby, remember to your health comes first. Don''t overwork yourself" Martha said with care. Grey has always been her pride and joy. She still remembered how happy she was the day of his birth. ''What a rascal'' She said in her heart when she remembered just how troublesome he was as a child. Chapter 13：Times Almost Up The time for the test was getting closer with each passing day. The test will take place in another 2 weeks. The kids who have reached the age for the test were all excited, as after the test, they will start their own journey. They were all filled with anticipation towards the test and couldn''t wait for it. This usually happens every year. The new kids will be filled with expectation towards their new journey. Not all the kids get into the Academies though, since some have low talents, they are picked up by some lower powers in the empire. Only a few of the kids with Pink talent actually get admitted into the Academies. However, the majority of the kids with Orange talent gets into the Academies. A lot of lives would change after this test just like how it happens every other year. The Academies are the meeting ground for the young people all over the empire. Apart from the Emperor''s faction, the Academies are the next in terms of strength. But they are always below the empire. They have groomed a lot of powerhouses for the empire. The Academies can virtually be said to be an important part of the empire, the Emperors'' faction can''t reach out to every part of the empire. This is where the Academies come in, although they can''t be said to have reached every single part of the empire, they have a larger network compared to the empire. Grey''s full attention has been placed on his training lately that he even forgets about eating sometimes. As the time edged closer, the voice in his head got louder. The voice was telling him to make sure he gets to Purple talent before the test starts. He still has hope though, there''s still 2 weeks left. Grey was very determined and didn''t want anything to stop him from doing it. He really wanted this, so he has to work extra hard. Martha didn''t disturb him as she knew with the time of the test getting closer, he needs to be fully focused. If he can make an improvement, it will certainly do him more good. Having a Purple talent and an affinity with the Lightning element, it would attract a lot of attention from the Academies and also the empire. Although the Fire element is just as destructive, due to the fast nature of lightning and also its ability to electrocute people, it has a very high view for the people. Lightning can shock, burn and also has the ability to paralyze people. So it can be said to have a higher firepower than the Fire element all round. Martha always tries her best to support Grey. ''He has been working really hard lately, he can do it''. Grey didn''t forget to hone his body also, he was very diligent in his training. He always heads out to train every 5 days. He had crossed paths with Jonas during one of the times he went out to train, but nothing was said between them. Grey didn''t even recognize Jonas. He had only seen him once, so he really can''t be blamed for it. He hadn''t made any improvements since the previous time, he knew it would be hard, but he wasn''t giving up. Grey has been hoping to see lightning once again, he had a feeling that if he could see it, he would be able to get a deeper understanding of the element. Lightning is something that can only be seen when it is storming. It doesn''t always appear when it rains also. Also, the few times it has rained, even when there''s lightning, he isn''t as lucky as that day. Besides, no one would wish for lightning to strike their house. It was already 3 days left before the day of the test. Grey still hadn''t made any progress. He didn''t want to give up like this, he would continue until the day of the test. He must try harder. At dinner, Grey asked if Martha knew of a way to attract lightning towards a particular spot, or she knew of a place that attracts lightning to it. "Why are you asking this" Martha inquired "I want to see a lightning strike, I feel if I can see it, I will help me in deepening my comprehension towards it" Grey said. "Don''t you have the chaos space, you can comprehend it there right" Martha asked. "Yes, but due to the uniqueness of the element, it''s hard. And I can''t feel it in the chaos space" Grey explained. Martha mused for some time, "I know of a place, but before I tell you, you must promise me you won''t even think of getting close if I find a place for you." Martha knew her son too well, given how daring Grey was, she is over eighty percent confident he truly might go close to it. "Relax mom, I won''t put my life at risk. I will only take a look from a distance away" Grey reassured. He knew she would definitely know of a place which attracts lightning. If he knows of this place, it would be helpful, well, as long as it storms. "Okay, I know how wise you are" Martha said with a sneer. Grey knew she still hasn''t believed him, so he continued convincing her. Luckily, Martha loved him a lot and quickly gave in. She told him the place where lightning strikes a lot. Grey was happy after finding out the location. It was said lightning always strike that particular mountain top whenever it storms. No one knows the reason or cause of it, but it had been happening for long. They have investigated it, but they came back empty-handed. Grey immediately made up his mind, he will go check out the place tomorrow. That way he would know what to do next when it storms. "Hopefully, it storms before the test. This is my only hope now. I should be able to make it in time, I think" Grey wasn''t too optimistic about his chances of progressing though, but he knew he could get a sudden realization and progress immediately, so he hasn''t given up hope. Grey went to his room, he entered the chaos space to comprehend more. Although he would be heading out tomorrow, it didn''t mean he shouldn''t continue his training schedule. Grey has already gotten used to always training before bed. In fact, he can be said to be a maniac with how he trains. Chapter 14：Lightning Mountain Grey headed into the forest he usually trains in. Surprisingly, the location was in this forest. His mom told him very few people knew of lightning striking the mountain top. Only the higher ups of the City knew of it. The mountain was in a deeper region of the forest. Although he had been to the forest for a long time, he never tried to head deeper into the forest. There were magical beasts in the forest. The magical beasts were also attuned with elements and some of them are even better at using it than humans. The mountain wasn''t too deep into the forest, that was why Martha was able to tell him freely. If it was too deep in, she won''t be comfortable telling him about the place as he might be in danger if he encounters a magical beast. Grey cautiously headed deeper into the forest, he had to be careful as some times, magical beasts do come out from deep in the forest. After 30 minutes, Grey has already gone deep into the forest. The trees were really high and looked old. "They must have been here for a long time" Grey muttered while placing his hands on the old tree. Grey looked at the trees, he couldn''t take his hands off it when he placed them on it. It was like he could hear the heartbeat of the tree from the earth. He traced his hands down the tree towards the earth, he felt the solidity and support of the earth. It was able to support everything and all the trees could depend on it. The earth was regarded as the sturdiest element. Grey had a little beat of understanding with the element and for some time, his heart was breathing in the same rhythm as the earth. "What a wonderful feeling" He felt strong at that moment. His eyes glowed with a dark brown color for some time before returning to normal. The earth element truly was resilient and was also the best element in terms of defense. "How great would it be if I can awaken the earth element. That would make me almost perfect for now. With great attack and great defense" Grey said with a smile. He was completely aware of the brown glow that flashed through his eyes for some time. Grey really didn''t think this short realization would help him awaken the earth element for him. He continued his journey into the deeper parts of the forest. This is the deepest he had gone into the forest since he started coming here. Shortly, a huge mountain appeared in front of him. The mountain was over 1,200 meters high, and it extended over a range of 300 miles. Grey stood at the foot of the mountain looking towards the top of the mountain. He began climbing the mountain, the mountain was rough, so he couldn''t hurry while climbing it. The top of the mountain had an empty space. It looked very smooth, probably because of after being struck by lightning for too long. Grey reached the top of the mountain after some time. He felt a stinging wind hitting him hard, he looked into the distance from the top of the mountain. The forest extended as far as his eyes could see. This really was a huge mountain, he wouldn''t dare to go into the deepest part of it. He was curious about it though. The mountain had a high concentration of the lightning element. Although Grey hadn''t started cultivating yet, he can still feel how high the lightning concentration in the mountain is. Due to the high concentration of the lightning element in the mountain, Grey was able to feel some sort of closeness to it. "This is really a great place, even without any lightning descending, I can clearly feel the lightning element" This mountain could be regarded as a paradise for all lightning Elementalists. The element could even be felt in the air, it was amazing. Grey felt great. If he could stay here frequently, he can increase his comprehension on the element. Grey sat in a meditative state and tried feeling the lightning element in the air. He focused intensely on the element. While Grey was in a meditative state, the lightning element in the air immediately got attracted to him. His body was like a magnet towards the element, even the mountain had a reaction. The lightning element gathered in the mountain started moving towards Grey. Grey couldn''t feel anything as he was fully immersed in meditation. Some earth element also moved towards him, although a little, it still moved towards him. Grey stayed in a meditative state for 3 hours without making any movements. He got out of the meditative state and decided to head home. "What a wondrous feeling" Grey felt greatly surprised by the feeling he got. He even felt somewhat intoxicated by it. He almost couldn''t draw himself out of meditation. Grey headed home, this was a fruitful experience for him. He couldn''t wait to come back tomorrow. Grey decided he won''t check if he made any improvements, he will wait till the test and see what he got. He needed someone to protect him if he wanted to stay longer. He had to always remain vigilant when he was meditating, although he forgot himself sometimes. It was his first time, so the feeling took him by surprise. Grey went to bed early, he wanted to go quicker tomorrow, so he can comprehend for a longer time. He truly enjoyed the feeling and wanted to feel it again. Grey got up the next morning and headed towards the mountain in high enthusiasm. This was the last day before the test, he had to make good use of the day. He meditated for a long time before heading home. Soon, the next day reached. The day for the test have finally reached after waiting for so long, Grey got up early like usual. "This is the day it all changes" Chapter 15：Grey Appeared The city was filled with activity since today was the day of the test. All the kids that are 12 years old, were all excited. A lot of people attended the test this time. ''Could it be the number of children participating in this test is greater than the number we usually get for the previous tests'' This was the thought going through the mind of each representative. Even the Elder in charge of testing was also surprised by the number of people present today. He couldn''t hold himself back and asked someone if something else was going on. "Excuse me, is something going on?" He asked someone by the side. "Do you remember the boy who didn''t have an affinity with any element 4 years ago at the test?" The stranger asked. "Yes I do" He answered, it was quite easy to remember Grey. Since what happened to Grey was something rarely seen, so a lot of people present that day still remembered him clearly. "What does that have to do with what is happening?" He asked again, he couldn''t see why they would be this much people just because of something that happened 4 years ago. "Well, I heard he will be coming to take the test today. A lot of people didn''t come back then and heard about what happened from others. So this time, they all wanted to see what will happen" The stranger replied. ''So it''s like that huh'' He still remembered how shocked he was when he saw the result of Grey''s test. He even had to tell him to retake it just to confirm if the first result was true or if he was just seeing things. Only after the same thing showed up did he confirm the result was real. After he heard this, he went over to the representatives of the Academies and told them why the arena was filled up today. "Humph, I see no reason why they''re all making a fuss over nothing. The result will be the same, why would he want to humiliate himself once again" One of the representatives spoke coldly. The other representatives thought the same as well. Someone who couldn''t awaken his elemental affinity at the age of 12 years old will most likely be unable to do so for the rest of his life. This happens to very few people, and out of every two thousand people it happens to, only one of them might be able to awaken his elemental affinity later on in his life. This was the reason they didn''t have any hopes of Grey being able to awaken his element again. "You might be wrong, what if he is a late bloomer. It''s not like someone has never done it before, so you shouldn''t just count him out just yet" One of the representatives said calmly. Even he knew how hard it is, but that doesn''t mean this boy can''t create a miracle. "Humph, we shall see then. But this boy better not waste our time" Another one of the representatives said. Most of the representatives felt allowing Grey to take the test was a waste of time, but they also knew there was a small possibility that he might truly be able to awaken his element. Who doesn''t want to be a witness to something that amazing?. People who awaken their elements later than usual are always strong willed. Not everyone will have the courage to come and retake the test after not being able to awaken their elements the time they were supposed to. "Look!, it''s Jonas" Someone suddenly exclaimed with a high pitched voice. The noisy arena quickly quietened down. They all looked at the same location simultaneously. "It truly is Jonas" "Wow!, look how cool he is" "I hope I can also have a Purple talent once I take the test." The arena immediately got noisy once again, a lot of kids look up to Jonas, they felt since he can have a Purple talent, they too can have it. Jonas was like a god in the eyes of the kids. Jonas walked calmly without any changes in his face. He looked calm and confident. He walked towards where the representatives of the Academies were seated close to the platform. Even the mayor of the city wouldn''t dare to walk towards the representatives so leisurely. These were people from the Academies, they were people at a place the mayor can only dream of reaching. Whenever he sees them, he always has to be polite towards them. Jonas walked towards the representative from the Starlight Academy and sat close to him without saying anything. The man didn''t utter a word when he saw Jonas and even smiled calmly. Although he felt he lost face when Jonas didn''t even bother to acknowledge him, there was nothing he could do. Jonas'' status in the Academy is higher than his, Jonas can even order him around without any issues. He still remembered when Jonas called him senior respectfully when he came here, but only 4 years later, the difference in both status and attitude was huge. The other representatives looked at Jonas without saying anything. Even though he was a junior, his status was better than theirs. "What do you think about what''s going on, will that boy be able to truly awaken his element?" Jonas asked while looking around. "It is almost impossible, but there has been times when it happened. But his chances aren''t high" The man said. Currently, there wasn''t any sign of his previous overbearing attitude when he spoke. He was as meek as a sheep. Jonas looked at him, "Well, we will see how he fares. Hopefully he won''t waste any of our times". Jonas currently spoke with dignified bearing. He had always been with people of high status when he was at the Academy or other big cities. His world view has changed completely, he has learned a lot and can''t be said to be the little boy he used to be. "I''m not really sure he can awaken it, but there''s no harm in allowing him to retake the test" The man said. Soon it was time for the kids to register their names. Grey still haven''t arrived yet. The Elder started the test without any delay, they couldn''t put the test on hold just because of someone. If Grey can come before he is given the second list, then he can also be tested. By the time it was the eight person, a commotion took place at the side of the arena. It immediately drew the attention of everyone there. "He has finally showed up" Grey had appeared!.. Chapter 16：I Was Only Trying To Look Mysterious! Grey walked into the arena calmly. His eyes were like still waters, calm yet enchanting. He walked towards the place where registrations take place. "Okay, what''s your name and age?" The man in charge of registration was quite surprised that someone who had clearly passed the age came to register. Then he quickly remembered what he heard before the test began, about a boy who failed to awaken his element 4 years ago. "Grey, I''m 16 years old" Grey replied politely. "Okay, you will be the 21st person called up. They''re already at the 8th person. If you don''t get to the platform within one minute after your name is called up. You won''t have a chance to take the test this year and will have to wait till next year" He told Grey the rules. "I know sir. Thank you anyway" Grey thanked the man before heading towards the stands in search of Martha. Martha came early, unlike the last time they came together. The last time, she had to register Grey before getting a seat. But this time, it was different as Grey is already old enough to do it properly. She knew the arena will be filled today, so she came early and saved a seat for Grey. There was no way she was going to miss this, not for anything in the world. Today, her son was going to be in the limelight and today will be one of the happiest day of her life. She knew how much this means to her son, he had suffered for so long just for this day. She had been with him all through, so she knew his pain. Whenever he''s happy, she''s happy. When he''s sad, she''s also sad. If he gets bullied by anyone, she beats up the person, this was one of the reasons few people troubled him. Grey quickly found her and sat beside her. Everyone were shocked by his calm look, it was like he wasn''t even nervous. They thought he would have a serious look on his face, if it were to be them, they would be scared silly. Like, what if I still haven''t awakened my element?. The representatives fixed their eyes on the youth. "His bearing is amazing" The representative from the Lunar Academy said with surprise. The other representatives nodded in approval. This was a big day for Grey and the pressure on him must be intense, if he couldn''t awaken his element then he will be totally finished. For him to still look so calm even in the presence of this huge crowd who he knew came just to watch him most probably fail, they couldn''t help but admire his bearing. Jonas looked at Grey for some time. It was like Grey felt his stare in particular and looked at his direction, they stared at each other for a while before moving their gazes from each other. "How come I suddenly felt inferior when I met his eyes just now. That should be impossible, it''s definitely a mistake" Jonas was alarmed in his heart. When Grey looked at him a moment ago, he felt something he only felt from his seniors in the Academy. It was a feeling of inferiority, he rarely feels this among his age group. The only people he looks up to in his age group are those rare monsters with either a Blue grade talent or are Dual Elementalist. He had only heard of 3 people his age who has Blue talent. And only one who was a Dual Elementalist. Dual Elementalists were even rarer than people with Blue talents. They rarely appear and are stronger than people in their stages. They can easily fight across multiple stages without any issues, because they were fortified by two elements. Grey didn''t feel anything when he looked at Jonas. He knew although Jonas was currently better than him, it wouldn''t take long for him to catch up and surpass him. As long as he remains hardworking, he will rise to be the strongest. As time went on, the people got more tense. They all wanted to know what the result of Grey''s test will be. Some were hoping to witness something which they didn''t think was possible, while others, just wanted to see how Grey failed again. Martha looked around with confidence, she knew her son was going to shock them all. She couldn''t wait to see their reactions. The Elder went for the usual break and got the new list before he continued the test. Grey calmly looked at the kids who were having their tests. Some of them were happy with their results while others were sad. That was life though, everyone can''t be successful. But there were some kids who didn''t care what grade their talents were though. Some were met to rise while others fail, but there are also a few who doesn''t care about anything though(Those are the legendary group). They just came to take the test because they had to and nothing else. The time moved slowly, it was like the time was moving at a snails pace. Usually they would have already called up to the 20th name, but they are still stuck in the 15th name. Everyone waited patiently for the main event of the day. Grey could feel the unease in the air, it was like they all wanted him to take the test immediately. ''Morons!, I''ll scare your hearts out with my result'' Grey sneered in his heart. After a long wait, the audience finally heard the name they were waiting for. "Next up Grey" The Elder called the next name on the list, even he had some expectations for what would happen with this particular test. ''Will he be able to change his destiny, or will he fall deeper into the darkness'' The Elder thought in his heart. Grey calmly stood up and gently walked towards the platform. He slowly got there under the watchful gazes of everyone. ''This kid, he''s doing this on purpose'' Martha complained when she saw how slowly Grey was walking. She knew he was doing it on purpose to create more tension in the hearts of everyone. ''Humph!, how shameless. I''ll teach him a lesson when we get home''. Grey was having a good time with the gazes of everyone focused on him, unaware of his mother''s plan. If he knew, he would surely scream in his heart ''What did I do mom, I was only trying to act mysterious''. When he got to the platform, everyone''s gazes were still tightly glued to him. He nodded in his mind for how cool he was. "Place your hand on the stone" The Elder spoke to him calmly. Grey looked at the man, smiled before walking towards the stone confidently. When he placed his hand on the stone, everyone held their breaths and waited for the result. A.N: We''re out of the top 10 guys. We need more power stones Chapter 17：Surprise Suckers The entire arena was quite, they all had their eyes fixed on the figure whose hand was on the stone. They wanted to know the result badly. Time slowly moved as the seconds crept at a sluggish pace. Their hearts were racing in anticipation. What would be the result?, this was the question in their minds. Jonas and the representatives also had the same thoughts. They were closer to the platform, so they saw how calm Grey looked. "He really is different from the rest" One of the representatives said. They all looked at the lazy looking Grey whose hand was on the stone. Grey had a lazy look when his hand was on the stone, he didn''t have the disposition of someone who had failed to awaken his element previously. It was like it was his first time doing the test, and he didn''t even care about the result. After some time, the strange energy left his body and returned into the stone. The Elder walked over to confirm the results, when he saw the results, he looked at Grey shocked. "Please place your hand on the stone again" The tone of the Elder changed slightly when he asked this. Grey looked at him for some time before placing his hand on it again. When the crowd saw this, they immediately started to murmur among themselves. "This was how he was also told to place his hand on the stone the last time" "Seems like we came in vain. Clearly he''s failed to awaken his element again" Different opinions came in when they saw this. Those who were present the last time Grey did his test, also didn''t think Grey will be able to awaken. To them, seeing this was like seeing Grey in the platform years ago. What happened in both cases was exactly the same. The energy circled all over his body before returning to the stone. The Elder once again came over to check. He was left stunned by what he saw, he couldn''t even speak the results of the test. The people were surprised by his behavior. "Could it be that he was able to awaken his element?" They immediately started speculating about the result of the test. They knew something must have definitely happened for the Elder to have this sort of reaction. "Elder, what is the result?. We don''t have much time, so tell us the results" The representative of the Starlight Academy spoke coldly toward his for not calling the result sooner. The Elder immediately got out of his shocked state and immediately announced the result. "Grey, Lightning element Purple grade talent and Earth element Pink grade talent" He announced loudly. When everyone heard the result, they all looked dumbstruck. Even Grey had a surprised look in his face. Jonas had a look of disbelief. "Dual Elementalist" Grey was surprisingly a rare Dual Elementalist, and what was more shocking was the fact that he had the Lightning element as well. Although the grade of the talent for the Earth element, it doesn''t change the fact that he is a Dual Elementalist. Martha looked at her son surprised, ''Did he know about this. We will talk when we get home'' She didn''t want to distract herself from what was happening. Today, Grey has shamed them all. And also, he had surprised even her who stayed with him. Martha looked at Grey''s face which also had a look of surprise. ''Seems like he wasn''t aware of this as well'' She calmed down when she felt it okay already. The crowd immediately burst into an uproar. "Did the Elder just call two different elements?" "Yes, Lightning and Earth elements" "He is a Dual Elementalist" The crowd couldn''t calm down. Not only were the crowd agitated, the representatives felt more agitated. This is an unseen talent. Each of his element balances him completely. One is for attacking, while the other is used mostly for defense. Jonas just looked on without being able to say anything. The representatives from each Academy even forgot to fight over which Academy he will be admitted to. Grey looked at the reactions of everyone and also how they looked. ''I''ll always remember this day''. Grey was proud of himself. He searched for Martha with his eyes and saw her smiling towards him. He walked out of the platform towards his mother. The stunned crowd still haven''t been able to get over what they heard. The representatives quickly regained their wits and quickly shouted for Grey to wait. "Wait!, which Academy will you like to join" The Elder of the Lunar Academy said. Grey looked at them and chuckled to himself. "I will be joining the Lunar Academy". Grey didn''t bother to wait before replying. He had a good impression of the representative from the Lunar Academy. He still remembered how he cheered him up when he came for the test previously. Grey left the platform and headed towards where his mother sat. The crowd still haven''t been able to get out of the shock, from what they witnessed. Derek''s face paled when he heard the result. He knew there was a bad blood between the both of them, so when he thought about Grey''s current status, he couldn''t help but be scared. Grey felt very happy deep down when he saw the reactions of everyone. ''Hehehe, surprise suckers'' Grey snickered in his heart. The feeling of victory truly was a good feeling. After being mocked for so long, now he had climbed up from the abyss and stood straight before them. Yet, none could speak before him. "Well done Grey, you''ve truly silenced them. And also, you made me proud" Martha spoke with a huge smile on her face. "Of course, I''m the best. You didn''t expect anything less from me right?" Grey shrugged and said with a little laugh. "Will you die if you don''t praise yourself for once?" Martha asked with a look that scared the shit out of Grey. Grey immediately dropped his head, clearly not having any plans of replying. Martha looked at him and shook her head, she could tell no matter what happened, Grey will always be Grey. A.N : We made it back into the top 10 guys. Now new target, top 5. We can do it!! Chapter 18：Wait! Can She Read Minds? The entire arena stayed quiet for a long time. The representatives forgot to even remind the Elder to continue the test. The representative from the Starlight Academy was obviously stunned, not expecting Grey to pick the Lunar Academy instead. He already had the thought of sucking up to Grey while they were still here. He clearly remembered how he acted towards Jonas, he felt he didn''t do enough. That was why Jonas didn''t bother with him all this while, he planned to make it up with Grey. If he could have a good relationship with someone like Grey, it would make life easier for him. The best Elders were sent to better and bigger cities, but he was sent here, this little place called Red City. But what he can''t deny was the fact that he had witnessed things the other Elders haven''t. To be able to first witness Grey failing to awaken his element, to seeing him awakening dual elements. It was an unforgettable experience. The Elder from the Lunar Academy was struck with joy when he heard Grey''s reply and burst into laughter. The other representatives looked at him with envy. They knew he would surely be rewarded by the Academy for bringing such a talent back. Even if this would be the only achievement he had in the sect, it was something worth being proud about. What annoyed the representatives from the other Academies was the fact that Grey didn''t even think and just chose them outright. He should have at least gave them all a chance before deciding which he wanted to join. Although most of the talents head to the Starlight Academy, at least there had been some who picked them. Jonas looked at everything going on with a complicated look. He remembered how much of a stir he caused when he took his test. But comparing it to Grey''s, it wasn''t worth talking about. When he chose to join the Starlight Academy, the other representatives only felt sad about losing such a talent. But the reactions they are currently showing towards losing Grey was clearly more than just being sad. He looked at Grey''s smiling face and suddenly felt irritated, ''Humph, what is there to be proud about. I''m already ahead of you in Planes, there is no way for you to catch up even if you''re a Dual Elementalist''. Jonas has always liked being the center of attention, he enjoyed the looks everyone gave him. But with the emergence of Grey, everything changed. All the kids who used to look at him with worshiping eyes, were now staring at Grey like he was more than a God. "Humph, why are you holding up the test. We don''t have all day" Jonas immediately snorted and coldly said towards the Elder in charge of the test. The Elder immediately regained his calm and quickly called out the next name on the list. The kid whose name was called, stood still, it was like he totally forgot his name. The crowd still hadn''t gotten over what happened, so he couldn''t be blamed. The Elder shouted the name for the second time before the kid hurried over for his test. The entire arena didn''t have any enthusiasm towards the rest of the test, they knew they had already seen the highlight of the test. The test ended with the crowd still stunned. The boy who failed to awaken his element 4 years ago was actually a Dual Elementalist. It was shocking, no one expected something like this to happen. Everyone who had previously mocked him started feeling scared, they felt like they were standing on fire. ''What if he wants to get revenge on me'' This was what they were all thinking. Some even went over to Grey''s house to congratulate him. When Martha saw them, she frowned immediately. She didn''t like any of them because they insulted Grey when he hadn''t awoken his element. If not for the fact that they were all scared of her, they might have done more than just insulting him. Grey didn''t even bother with any of them. Currently, the representative from the Lunar Academy came over to talk to him. "It''s surprising you were able to awaken your element after not being able to awaken it while you were 12 years old. This truly is a rare sight" The representative said with a sigh. "It was all thanks to Seniors word that I was able to hang on and not lose faith" Grey said calmly. When he saw him, he suddenly remembered what he said. Truth be told, he didn''t even remember how he got out of the arena, talk less of what he was told. But he had to put up a good demeanor in front of the representative. ''Like I remembered what you said'' Grey thought. That truly was the worst day of his life. "I only said it to encourage you. Truth be told, I have never seen anyone who was able to awaken his element after failing once. I''ve only read about it in books" The representative said with a smile. "Oh by the way, my name''s Chris. You can call me Elder Brother Chris" Chris told Grey his name. "I think I''ll stick with Senior" Grey said with a smile. Although Grey was troublesome, he was respectful. His mother taught him this, so no matter if he will one day grow stronger than them or stand at his peak, his elders will always remain his elders. But there have been a few times he was disrespectful towards some older people, not everyone deserves the respect an elder should be given. Martha almost got to the point where she wanted to chase all their visitors away. Luckily they left on their own. If Grey were to be present, he would have clearly seen the fear in the eyes of the leaving visitors. When Grey saw her coming inside, "Mom are they all gone?" He asked. "Yes, they said they had things to do, hence they left early" Martha replied. Grey looked at her for some time, he clearly didn''t believe it. ''She must have scared them away'' Grey thought. ''Why is she giving me that look, did she know what I was thinking?. No!, impossible'' Grey felt genuinely scared. A.N: Come on guys, we''re now at the 7th place in the ranking. 5th place not far away.. We can do it!! Chapter 19：Wish You Were Here Chris looked at the mother and son duo, clearly surprised by the sudden silence after Martha replied to Grey''s question. "Grey, how come you didn''t even get tea for our guest?" Martha decided to break the silence. Due to receiving guests, she was unable to personally receive Chris. When she saw Grey didn''t even prepare tea for him, she immediately chided him. "It''s okay, I didn''t plan on staying long. I only came over to confirm with Grey when he will be able to leave for the Academy with me" Chris said with a smile. Martha looked at Grey when she heard this, clearly indicating the decision was up to him. When Grey saw her look, he knew what she meant. When he wanted to reply, he immediately froze. He was excited about starting cultivation, so he wanted to say they could leave the next day. But when he thought of it, he felt lucky. ''That was a close call, she would have definitely flipped out if I said I wanted to leave tomorrow'' Grey thought while heaving a sigh. Although he said this in his heart, he knew he couldn''t leave her so soon. He wanted to spend time with her. When he still hadn''t awoken his element, he was totally occupied with training. Now, he would be leaving soon. It will be wrong of him if he didn''t spend some time with his lovely mother. When Martha heard this, she felt happy inside. She knew how eager Grey was about cultivating, but he decided to stay a week just for her sake. "Okay, I''ll come back a week from now. I''ll be in the city until then" Chris nodded and prepared to leave. "Okay" Grey walked Chris to the door. "Take care of yourself, goodbye for now" Chris advised before heading out. "I will, goodbye" Grey waved at him before heading back into the house. When he stepped in, he looked at Martha who was standing and looking at him lovingly. "Why did you decide to wait a week before leaving?" Martha asked, although she knew the reason, she still wanted to hear what Grey would say. "What''s the difference if I start cultivating now or in a weeks time. I only took a week off, so I can rest after so many days of constant training" Grey said. When Martha heard his reply, her smiling face immediately changed. On seeing the change in her facial expression, Grey burst into laughter. "I''m only joking mom. I wanted to spend time with the best mother in the world before leaving. If I had left immediately, wouldn''t that make me a bad child" Grey continued laughing while stating his real reason to Martha. When Martha heard this, a sweet smile immediately surfaced on her face. "Humph, luckily you still think of your mother" "Of course, I''ll miss you a lot when I''m not here. Besides, I won''t be able to see a beautiful lady who lights up my life every day" Grey said cheekily. "Save your teasing for the young girls of the Academy" Martha rolled her eyes when she heard Grey''s teasing. She also felt sweet inside. "By the way, how come you''re a Dual Elementalist. You didn''t tell me you comprehended a new element" Martha asked the question she had wanted to know when she heard the result. "Even I didn''t know about it until today, I had a little understanding of the Earth element when I went over to the lightning mountain, but I didn''t expect it to actually awaken the element so quickly" Grey said in a tone that clearly showed his surprise. "Truly unexpected. Well, it''s a good thing for you. Only, I don''t think it will be easy for you to comprehend new elements. You were fortunate this time, let''s hope your luck continues" Martha said seriously. "Yeah, now I''ll have to focus on cultivating and comprehending the elements. It wouldn''t be as it used to, since I wouldn''t be to put all my focus on one of them" Grey shared his thoughts with Martha. Grey spoke with Martha for the rest of the day before deciding it was time to get some rest. "Mom, I miss dad" Grey suddenly said when he was about to leave. It had already been so long yet his father still haven''t returned. "Yes, I miss him too" Martha said with a faint voice. "When will he return?" Grey asked. Grey had been asking this question for a long time now. "I don''t know dear, but he promised me he''ll return safely. He also told me he might stay for a long time before returning, I initially begged him not to go, but he said it was very important and had to leave. And besides, he''s never lied to me. So I know he''ll come back to me" Martha said firmly. She knew just how many times she had used this statement to not lose hope. After being gone for so long, she had never once lost hope. Her husband will never lie to her. He will definitely return. "Yeah, he will definitely return. It''s just, I wish he were here to celebrate with us" Grey said with a smile. He knew bringing up this topic will ruin their celebratory mood, but he just had to bring it up. Martha looked at Grey with a smile, she really does love him a lot. She decided to let him off for his performance during the time he was called up. She suddenly felt lonely when she thought about Grey''s upcoming departure, her husband still hasn''t returned, now her son would be leaving soon also. She looked out the window with tears flowing down her cheek like rain. She''s always been strong because of Grey. But when she''s alone, she clearly feels the pain of her husband not being here. Doing so much has not been easy for her, but she had to stay strong not just for herself but also for her son. "Wish you were here" Chapter 20：Departure Grey spent time with Martha, but he had already gotten used to always training. So after 3 days, he had to go train. Martha shook her head when she saw this. She knew he wouldn''t be comfortable staying this long without doing anything. Fortunately, he didn''t spend all day training like he usually does. He would only spend approximately 4 hours training before heading back home. He encountered the representative from the Starlight Academy when he was returning from his training. "You can still change your mind, you know," He said to Grey "I''ve already made my decision. Thanks for the invitation though" Grey declined politely. Grey wanted to continue his journey but was blocked again by the representative. "The Lunar Academy isn''t even in the top 3 in terms of strength. We''ve dominated the empire for years now" He said proudly. Grey knew what he said was right, but he didn''t care about it. He liked how Senior Chris presented himself, this, in turn, made him have a good impression of the Lunar Academy. Grey had never been the haughty type, and he had learned a lot during these 4 years he was not able to awaken his element. He knew more about human nature also. "You will regret this decision of yours," The representative said coldly before leaving. Grey looked at him with cold eyes, he didn''t like him. Good thing he wouldn''t see him once he joins the Lunar Academy. Grey went home and continued his normal routine. He spent most of his time with Martha then went over to the forest to train. He also visited the lightning mountain once more, he savored the feeling he got from it. "This is a nice place, hopefully, I can find a place like this in the Academy" Grey loved the feeling he got whenever he came here to meditate. Elementalists cultivate by meditating, they try to attract the elemental particles of their said elements into their bodies. It would then be refined by the Elementalist. The Collection Plane is all about collecting the elemental particles into the body of an Elementalist. After collecting the particles to a certain level, then the fusion stage would begin. Grey heard Jonas had already broken through to the Arcane Plane. This was the same Plane the mayor of Red City was currently in. Grey couldn''t wait to start his cultivation journey, just the thought of it got him excited. Grey prepared himself for his journey and soon it was only a day before he left. Senior Chris was staying at an Inn in the city, so getting to him wouldn''t be an issue. Grey was sure he wouldn''t even need to search for him. Normally, the representative wouldn''t have asked when he wanted to leave. He would have just told him they will be leaving soon. Each representative rarely stays more than 4 days in the city. They didn''t like coming here in the first place, so they were always grumpy if they had to stay longer. But due to Grey''s talent, he had to stay for a week just so he could fulfill Grey''s demands. Although he wasn''t sucking up to him, he wasn''t trying to offend him either. This was one of the reasons Grey respected him even more. Grey knew if it were to be other representatives, they would have tried to suck up to him. This also made him more curious about the Lunar Academy. If the Academy isn''t as the representative presented, then he would be very disappointed. Although he wouldn''t have a problem since he was a Dual Elementalist, he would have a high status anywhere he went. Power was everything, and talented individuals were respected a lot, since they would turn into powerhouses in the future, so long as they do not die early. Finally, the day of his departure finally came. Martha was feeling both sad and happy, she was happy Grey''s dream of cultivating was about to be realized but was sad since she would be left all alone. She suddenly thought of something and quickly made a decision. "Grey, I''ll be heading to meet your father" Martha suddenly spoke. "You know where dad is?" Grey asked in a surprised tone. "Actually, I would have gone with him if not for you. You were the only reason keeping me here. Now since you''re about to go to the Academy, I''ll be able to go freely without worrying about you" Martha said while caressing Grey''s cheek. Grey thought about it and felt it was the right decision. Staying here wouldn''t bring her anything. "So, how will I find you," Grey asked. He wanted to know where they were so in case he wanted to go find them, it would be easy. "Don''t worry about us for now. I''ll send you a message when I get there. Just focus on your cultivation for now" Martha reassured Grey. She wanted him to focus fully on his cultivation. He has already fallen behind, so he needs to fully focus on his cultivation. "Okay mom, but don''t forget to send me the message, so I won''t get worried about you" It has already been so long since he heard from his father, if his mother was added, it would be devastating for him. Chris came after some time, "Grey, are you ready" he asked. "Yes," Grey replied. "Okay, come with me" Chris replied before going out of the house, heading in the direction of the city gate. Grey hugged Martha before walking out. He stood outside and looked at the house for some time before following in the footsteps of Chris. When they passed through the city gates, Grey suddenly felt nostalgic. He couldn''t help but taking another look at the city he had stayed in all his life. When he looked back, he saw Martha standing not too far from him with tear filled eyes. A new phase of his life was about to begin. Chapter 21：Let Me Admire In Peace! On seeing they were about to head into the forest, Grey couldn''t help but ask, "Senior, will we be heading to the Academy by foot?" Grey was puzzled. ''What have I gotten myself into, at least he should have prepared a carriage to take us there''? Chris laughed when he heard Grey''s question, "Hahaha, of course not. Come with me, I''ll show you our ride" Chris motioned for Grey to follow him into the forest. Grey looked at him suspiciously before heading into the forest. They walked for some time, before they got to an open field in the forest. Grey was stunned by what he saw, there was a large bird like creature laying on the grass in the open fields. When Grey got closer and saw the creature up close, he was more astonished. It was a legendary creature. Its head was that of an eagle, it was coated in glossy brown feathers and had dangerous curved beaks. Two tufts of feathers sprang up its head like they were ears. At its shoulders, a pair of powerful, feathered wings could be seen folded at his back. Behind the wings, the feathers faded into tawny fur, and what looked like the body of a lion took over. Its front leg was that of an eagle with razor sharp talons that could easily rip him apart, while its hind legs were that of a lion with terrifying sharp claws which only the tip could be seen. As Grey got closer to it, the creature raised its head to look at the stranger who was coming close to it. Its black beady eyes were enchanting. Grey looked at the majestic creature in front of him, and was lost for words. "This....this" Grey couldn''t complete his statement and was stuttering none stop. Grey had seen magical beasts, so this wasn''t his first time seeing one. But this was the legendary beast he had only seen in books, it never crossed his mind he will be able to see one at the start of his cultivation journey. "This is Brown, she will be our ride back home" Chris introduced the creature with a smile. He had expected this reaction, so he wasn''t surprised. Every time he went out to carry new students, this was always the best part for him. Whenever he sees the shocked reactions in the faces of the new students, it always makes him laugh. "It''s a Griffin!" Grey exclaimed. Grey''s eyes never once left the creature since seeing it for the first time. This was one of the rulers of the sky in terms of aerial speed, and it had terrifying strength. How can Grey not be shocked. He started wondering the identity of this Senior who came to this small city. There was no way he will get to ride a Griffin here if he were ordinary. Griffins weren''t legendary for nothing, first of all, getting the chance to see one was incredibly hard as they were rare beasts. Taming one was even harder. Griffins are proud beasts and would rarely allow themselves to be tamed by humans. Even when caught, it would fight back with all it has. Clearly the relationship between Brown and Senior Chris isn''t ordinary, since he could leave her here without worrying she would escape for so long. Chris walked towards Brown and gently caressed her feathers. Grey just stood at a spot looking at the majestic beast without moving. This truly was unexpected. Now he was also eager to go to the Academy. How would the Academy look like, he couldn''t wait. "Are you going to stand there all day, come on lets get going" Chris laughed again on seeing how Grey was still standing stunned. "Is she really going to be the one to take us there?" Grey asked again to be extra sure. Although he knew it was a stupid question, he just had to ask it. "If not her, then who?. Do you have any other means of going?" Chris retorted grumpily. ''I think his brain is already fried from shock'' Chris thought inside. Grey dropped his head embarrassedly. ''Can''t you just reply normally, you have seen the creature for a long time, this is my first time seeing it. Let me admire it in peace'' Grey thought grumpily. Grey suddenly felt he made the right choice in choosing the Lunar Academy, just seeing a legendary beast before he even went to the Academy suddenly felt worth it. He could brag with this for a long time. He almost wanted to run back to Martha and tell her he just saw a Griffin. When Brown stood up, Grey was once again stunned by its immerse size. It stood over 5 meters tall with a length of over 3 meters. It truly was a majestic beast. Grey walked closer to Brown with extreme caution. He was scared of irritating the beasts, else it might just rip him to shred with those terrifying talons it possessed. As Grey stood closer to it, he felt how small he was. Chris just stood at the side looking on. He has always enjoyed this. This was the reason he always came to little cities for the test. This was the fourth time he was coming to Red City for the test. Surprisingly, he witnessed Grey took the test twice. Unlike the other representatives, he can head over to other cities. Maybe it was fate that made him witness the miracle which Grey was. He couldn''t describe the feeling, but he knew Grey wouldn''t be someone ordinary in his life. He had heard of how Grey suddenly started training in the forest after failing to awaken his element. Not only that, but he also heard how Grey was able to defeat Derek who was already at the Eighth Stage of the Collection Plane easily. This wasn''t something someone ordinary can achieve. He was looking forward to Grey''s future accomplishments. "Come on lets get going, we have a long journey ahead of us" Chris said after allowing Grey fill his eyes with the image of Brown some more. Brown squatted down so they could climb onto her. Grey climbed up easily and looked ahead with great enthusiasm. They were about to head for the Academy. After they climbed up and steadied themselves, Chris patted Brown on her back indicating it was time to leave. Brown took off into the air¡­ Chapter 22：Hes Not Bad, But Im Still Better. Two days later... Grey and Chris were in a restaurant having a meal. Usually, Elementalists could go days without eating, but most of them still enjoy the taste of delicious foods, so they eat whenever they can. And some foods are also helpful to cultivators. Grey hasn''t started cultivating yet, so he still had to depend on the nourishment of food. Although he could go without eating for a day, he would rather not. Grey was a foodie, he loved food a lot. So him not eating is like a punishment to him. "Senior, how come I am the only one who joined the Lunar Academy from Red City?" Grey asked after taking a big bite of the meat in front of him. He noticed there wasn''t any other kid going with him to the Academy, and it was quite strange since other Academies representatives get at least two kids when they''re heading back. "Well, we have a low admission rate," Chris said without even raising his head, clearly he was also just like Grey, a foodie. Grey could see how much Chris was enjoying his meal, so he decided to ask after their meal. They had been making stops in different cities during their journey. They would have to stop flying when it was almost dark to get to a city where they would have to sleep at an Inn. Grey had already taken note of how much Chris loved eating. They hadn''t spoken much during the journey. Whenever they are in the air, Grey always studied his environment and carefully observed their traveling routes. It was a stunning sight while he was in the air, it felt amazing. Surprisingly, Brown can make air shields that would stop the air from hitting them while she is flying at full speed. Brown would have to hide in a forest close to the city whenever they stopped and went into a city. Since unlike other aerial magical beasts, she was rare. Of course, she wouldn''t be in any danger in a place like this since she was stronger than the residents in the cities. Well, that only applies to small cities. "But we also have the highest retention rate. Meaning, we rarely chase out our students for not meeting the required stage during the yearly test. All our students are hardworking" Chris continued. "Oh" Was the only reply Grey could give. He knew about the yearly tests the Academies give to their students. This was one of the reasons Derek was in the city. "The competition is really tough at the Academy, you will know more when you get there" Chris refrained from going deep in details of how the Academy operates. Grey didn''t ask any more questions since he could clearly see Chris wasn''t going to tell him anything. After eating, they immediately went to the Inn to get some sleep. Since they still had about two days journey ahead of them, they needed to rest properly. Two days later... Grey looked at the biggest city gate he had ever seen. Grey could see people entering and exiting the city on a large scale. This truly was a large city, unlike Red City where he previously stayed. Lunar Academy was situated 1 kilometer west of the city. Lunar Academy was named after the city. The city was boisterous, Grey curiously looked around. "Senior, why did we come over to the city, is the Academy located in the city?" Grey asked, he knew most Academies weren''t located in the cities. And were mostly located outside the city. "No, we are heading over to meet a friend of mine. After that, we''ll head over to the Academy" Chris said while heading in the direction of the city. "Oh okay," Grey responded while closely following behind him. When they got into the city, they headed straight towards the center of the city. Grey studied the city closely. It was a very busy place and people could be seen walking everywhere. They stopped at the front of a huge manor. Although Grey wasn''t a resident of this city, he could tell this was definitely the biggest manor in the city. There were guards at the gate of the manor, but they didn''t stop them from going in. "What a nice place" The tranquility of the garden calmed Grey''s tired mind. He had been restless throughout their journey, but being here was able to calm his heart. He closed his eyes to sink deeper into this peaceful state. Chris walked out after some time with a young boy in tow. The boy was about the same age as Grey. He had refined features and looked quite handsome. When they got to the garden, he looked at the stranger who had his eyes closed like he was in a trance. "Grey, it''s time to leave," Chris said loudly. Chris''s voice disrupted Grey''s reverie. Grey opened his eyes and stared at Chris. He noticed Chris didn''t come alone and was with a young boy. Grey stared at him for some time before redirecting his gaze back at Chris. "Okay Senior" He replied with a smile. Staying in the garden for this short time had really helped calmed the state of his mind. "Oh Grey, this is Klaus" Chris introduced the newcomer to Grey. "It''s nice meeting you, I''m Grey," Grey said while stretching out his right hand. "I''m Klaus, it''s nice meeting you too" Klaus shook his hand with a smile. Grey evaluated Klaus, and Klaus was also doing the same. Klaus had always been proud of his looks, but this was the first time he was totally defeated by someone else in terms of looks. ''He''s not bad'' Grey praised Klaus for his looks in his heart. ''But I''m still better'' Grey felt it was impossible to see someone as handsome as he was. "Klaus is a student of the Academy, since we were going to the Academy, he decided to come along" Chris said calmly. Chris turned after saying this and walked in the direction of the exit. A.N: Come on guys, we can do it. We''re currently out of the top 3 in the contest and we''re now in the 9th spot in the new book rankings for male leads, we need more STONES!!! Chapter 23：Lunar Academy The trio left the city and headed west. Grey already knew they were heading towards the Academy, so he just stayed quiet without speaking much. "So where are you from?" Klaus broke the silence. Since they would be walking all the way to the Academy, he might as well have a conversation with Grey. If only Chris had allowed them to take a carriage, it would have been better, but he refused when Klaus brought it up. "I''m from Red City, it''s a long way from here," Grey replied. "Oh, I''ve never heard of it" Klaus thought for a while before responding. "It''s not a big place, so it''s normal you don''t know about it" Grey flashed a smile on his face. "How come you came together with Senior Chris, I thought he went out to get new students" Klaus asked with a puzzled expression. He had never seen Chris come back with a kid older than the age of 12 whenever he heads out for the test. Sometimes, he doesn''t even return with anyone. Chris went out for the usual annual test for new kids who just awoken their elements. But seeing him returning with someone who was fully over the age was surprising. "Well, I just awakened my element" Grey figured there was no use in lying to Klaus since they would attend the same Academy and would get to see each other. "Did you wait until now before you had the test?" Klaus asked, this was the only reason he could think of when he heard what Grey said. But it was unexpected that someone would delay until they were over 12 years old before taking the test. This would put you at a big disadvantage with your peers, since they would have already cultivated to a higher level before you can even start cultivating. "No. I had the test once, when I was still 12 years old. But I failed to awaken my element at that time, so after waiting for 4 years, I took the test again" Grey explained. "Wait, you failed to awaken your element?" Klaus was dumbstruck when he heard this statement. This was totally outrageous, not being able to awaken an element at the age of 12 was usually very rare. But, being able to awaken your element after failing to do so while you were 12 years old, was even rarer. Since there weren''t many people who didn''t awaken their element when they were 12 years old, so the amount who could later awaken their element were few in numbers. In fact, in the Qilin empire, there haven''t been any such case happening in recent times. "Yes, Senior was also present on the day I failed the test. He was the only one who spoke encouraging words to me that day" Grey recounted what he could. Although he remembered little, he still recalled what Chris said to him. "So, what element did you awaken after the test?" Klaus asked curiously. "Lightning and Earth element" Grey replied hiding nothing from him. "You''re a Dual Elementalist?" Klaus exclaimed. Chris looked back when heard Klaus'' shout. Klaus immediately closed his mouth, fearing to anger Chris. "Yes, I am" Grey answered. Klaus felt fascinated by Grey''s story. This was something truly shocking. At first, he couldn''t awaken an element, then later on, he awakened not only one but two elements. And one of them was the rare lightning element, and they generally regarded the other as the element with the best defense. With lightning''s terrifying attack, coupled with earth''s resilient defense, he could say Grey was a perfect fighter, wielding both attack and defense, respectively. "How about you, what element did you awaken during your test?" Grey inquired. "Well, I''m a Water Elementalist" Klaus declared with a calm voice. He had already been at the Academy for some time now. "Okay" Grey thought of his mother when he heard Klaus was a Water Elementalist. He knew she was terrifying. Luckily, she only freezes his legs and doesn''t do more whenever he messes up. Grey and Klaus continued talking as they walked closer to the Academy. Grey got to find out there were 5 halls in the Academy, with each hall representing an element. There was the Water Hall, the Fire Hall, the Earth Hall, the Wind Hall, and the Lightning Hall. There were also special classes which took place at the Academy. Each hall was further divided into 3 classes for 3 cultivation planes, respectively. Collection Plane students are in the 1st class in their subsequent elemental hall. The Fusion Plane students are in the 2nd class. While the third class were for the Arcane students. Klaus was already in the 3rd class, which was for the Arcane Plane students. Grey was astonished by how fast they cultivate. He also found out Klaus was a Purple graded talent just like him(for now). He was slightly taken aback since Klaus made no mention of the Darkness or Light Halls. Compared to the Lightning element, they were far rarer, but he never thought they would be this rare. After asking Klaus the reason for the lack of Darkness and Light Halls, he found out it was because they had no Instructor who was a Light or Darkness Elementalist. After all , a Light or Darkness Elementalist rarely appears. How long would it take him to get to the Arcane Plane?. Well, he couldn''t wait. Apart from the time Chris looked at Klaus, he didn''t interrupt their conversation, not even once during their entire journey. They reached the Academy before long, and Grey stood awed by it. Well, if he says the gate of Lunar City was the largest he had seen, then the gate of Lunar Academy was the grandest. The gate erected at over 9 meters high, with a width reaching over 6 meters. The designs on the gates seemed life like, and when Grey looked closely, he could see the image of a Phoenix at the center of the gate. They headed into the Academy grounds, the Academy was clearly bigger than Red City. The moment they entered the Academy, Chris immediately ditched Grey and only instructed Klaus on what to do before disappearing. Grey glanced at the unreliable Chris without much reactions. Since he already had a good relationship with Klaus, he didn''t have any problems with Klaus showing him around. "So where are we headed first?" Grey asked with some enthusiasm. "We''re going to get you registered first of all. Then after that, I''ll introduce the Academy to you," Klaus told Grey his plan. Grey agreed with it. Since he was here, he should register as a student of the Academy. Klaus and Grey discussed as they headed in the direction of the registration building. A.N: I just noticed we don''t have a rating guys, anyone wanna do a review?. We also at the 3rd spot guys. Keep the power stones flowing... Chapter 24：You Bet I Am Klaus took Grey to the registration building. When they got there, they noticed about 8 kids were waiting to get their registration done. Klaus told Grey to join the queue since he was here to get his registration done. The kids all looked at Grey with peculiar eyes, even the instructors who brought them over, did the same. When they saw Klaus, they knew Grey being here had something to do with Chris, so they just let him be. Although they were curious about him, they didn''t bother with him. When Grey went in to get his registration done, the instructors went over to Klaus to find out who Grey was. "Hey Klaus, who''s the fella you brought over?" "I haven''t seen him in the Academy before" "Did he come with Senior Chris?" "He''s a little too old to register with the new batch, isn''t he?" They asked Klaus so many questions that his head immediately started arching. Klaus just looked at them and was speechless. These were instructors of the Academy, yet they all act like 12-year-olds. This was what made the Academy more interesting. The instructors are very welcome with the students, although they do have moments when they''re strict, they are friendly most of the time. Klaus is still amazed by how almost every single instructor in the Academy had odd personalities. Like, how do the Academy even find these bunch of weirdos. But he couldn''t deny the fact that they were all superb in their fields and were outstanding teachers. "He''s Grey, he just took the test this year, this was why he just joined the Academy" Klaus replied in a helpless manner. "Is he a moron?, who would wait till they were above 15 years old before they take the test?" "I must say, he''s quite handsome" "Yeah, I don''t think I have seen anyone this handsome before. He definitely is a gem". "I thought you were the most handsome in the Academy Klaus, but this friend of yours is definitely better looking than you," While they were talking, one of the female instructors brought up how handsome Grey looked. If Grey had been present, and heard those comments, he would have been like, ''You bet I am''. "He actually took the test while he was 12 years old, but failed to awaken his element. He only awakened his element this year" Klaus told them the reason Grey was just taking the test. "And he''s a Dual Elementalist" Klaus added. It amazed the instructors when they heard Grey''s story. From not being able to awaken his element to turning into a Dual Elementalists, it was truly something else. They''ve not seen anyone who was unable to awaken his talent before, so they were quite shocked. These cases were rare in the empire. While they were still discussing how handsome Grey looked, Grey stepped out of the registration office. He curiously looked at the instructors who were having a heated conversation with Klaus. The moment Klaus noticed Grey was already out of the registration office, he immediately went over to him. Stopping him from coming any closer, before quickly escaping with him. He definitely didn''t want Grey to see how weird the instructors of the Academy were on his first day. Grey was surprised because of Klaus'' reaction, but said nothing. While they were walking, Klaus thought of something and asked, "By the way, where is your living quarter located?" They assigned each student a quarter for staying. Their living quarters occupied the western and southern parts of the Academy. The instructors'' and other Academy workers'' quarters were located in the northern part of the Academy. The eastern part housed the halls used for classes, the library, the registration office, and the mission hall. "they assigned me a living quarter at the western part" Grey said as he fished out the card they gave him at the registration room. He glanced at it and saw the number 413 on it. Klaus looked over at the card, "Oh, you''re assigned to quarter 413" "You know where it is?" Grey asked when said this. "Yes. My living quarter is also situated in the western part. So, we will see each other more easily" Klaus said with a smile. "Okay" Grey replied. Since they were in the eastern part of the Academy, Klaus showed Grey the halls used for classes. Each hall''s building was enormous, with only the Lightning Hall being smaller than the rest. Grey found out there were over 800 students in the Academy, but the number didn''t exceed 900. This surprised him. Academies usually have more than 5,000 students, how come the Lunar Academy had such small number of students. "Do you know why the recruitment rate of the Academy is low, it''s baffling that an Academy this big only has 800 plus students?" Grey was puzzled by this. "There have been one time they admitted a student whose talent was only Orange, but I heard he was a Dual Elementalist with both elements having Orange talent respectively" Klaus continued. Grey was amazed by the requirements to get into the Lunar Academy. "The other Academies don''t have this requirement also, right?" Grey asked. "No, they recruit students with Orange talent. Some even recruit students with Pink talent. But the top 5 Academies don''t accept Pink grade talent in their Academies. Each Academy has their given requirements, though. Although we have the lowest numbers of students, we have the second highest numbers of Blue talent in the entire empire. We''re second only to the Emperors Organization" Klaus stated proudly. They walked towards the eastern part of the Academy, towards the living quarters of the students. Grey quietly memorized all the information Klaus was telling him. A.N: Okay guys, we still need some more reviews to get a rating. We can do it!!!.. Chapter 25：Blake Grey and Klaus walked towards the students'' living quarters. Klaus had shown Grey most parts of the Academy while they were walking. "Oh, they informed me at the registration office that the new students would have to assemble to take the test again. Is there any use for this?" Grey remembered what he was told at the office and asked Klaus in a puzzled manner. "This didn''t happen in the Academy previously, it was only after an instructor brought his relative to the Academy, and he wasn''t up to the requirements of the Academy. The Academy only found out after some time. Therefore although each new students have already done the test in their cities, they will also take the test again here in the Academy" Klaus explained the reason for the test. In the living quarters, Grey saw each student had a house in a spacious compound. All the buildings had the same size and style. Each compound was approximately 220 yards in length and width. It was massive for a single student. Each compound had a number tagged at the small gate leading into the compound, they walked until they got to the compound with the number 413 on the gate. Grey fished out the key given to him at the registration office and opened the gate. When they went into the house, it was dusty and cobwebs could be seen everywhere. There were chairs and when Grey went into the room, he also found a bed well placed at the side of the room. It was decent for a student. After Grey completely checked out the house, he asked Klaus where his house was located. "I stay at building 227" Klaus replied. Grey followed Klaus to his apartment and stayed with him for some time. He left quickly since he would have to clean up. Due to the space before each compound, the environment was quiet. He noticed the Academy didn''t give any special treatments to the students and each house contained the same things. The students can decide to decorate it after they start living in them. He thought students would have to stay in the same building, but since the students in the Lunar Academy aren''t much, they could live alone in each building. Grey worked almost all through the day and didn''t step out once. By the time he was done cleaning, it was already night. He was totally exhausted and immediately fell asleep. The next morning, Grey woke up early as he usually does and washed up before heading towards where the new students were to take the test. Klaus already showed him the place, and he had a good memory, so he quickly found the hall. When he got there, he saw 20 kids were already there. They had to wait outside the hall, more students appeared before the instructors came out of the hall. Grey counted and found out they were only 46 new students, ''How can such a big Academy have this small amount of new students'' Grey thought, stupefied by the Academy''s selection. Grey focused his gaze at the instructors who came out of the hall. They were led by a woman who seemed to be in her fifties. When she got closer to the student, she spoke in a clear voice "Hello everyone, I''m the Head instructor of the Wind Hall. We will now begin the test to know which halls each student will be going to" "Once you hear your name, you should head into the hall for the test" An instructor by the side said after the woman finished talking. The first name on the list was quickly called up, and the kid went into the hall filled with excitement. The instructors were pretty fast with the test since they already knew the elements and talents of each kid. They just had to follow the rules. Soon it got to Grey''s turn. When he stepped in, all the instructors looked at him with interest. They''ve heard of how he could not awaken an element when he was 12 years old and could only do so when he got to 16 years of age. They felt he was pretty lucky since he could awaken his element even after failing to do so initially. "Since you all haven''t officially started cultivating yet, you won''t really need to go to classes. You all have one month to get into the Collection Plane and then start your classes. Now you can head to the first floor of the library to collect the cultivation technique" The Head instructor of the Wind Hall said before dismissing the kids. When Grey was about to leave, he was called up by a man among the instructors. "I''m the head instructor of the Lightning Hall, you can call me instructor Blake" Blake said with a friendly smile. "Hello sir" Grey said courteously. Blake looked sharp and handsome. He looked like someone in his early thirties and had a dignified voice. Well, it sounded dignified when he heard him speak just now. "Actually, I''m the only instructor in the Lightning Hall, so I take all my new students of the Hall very importantly" Blake said seriously. Grey immediately knew why he called up only him. ''Seems like I''m the only one who has an affinity with the Lightning element among all the new students'' Grey thought. From this, one could see just how rare the Lightning element is. "Come with me, you don''t need to go over to the Library to take a technique. Besides, they are all low leveled ones" Blake said with a smile. "Blake, what are you doing?" Grey heard a stern voice from behind Instructor Blake. Blake immediately tensed up when he heard this voice. "Nothing" Blake replied with a small voice. Grey stared at Blake, completely shocked by his sudden change. One second he was a dignified man the next he was as meek as a child. A.N: Sorry for the late update guys. Currently working on this current arc and also want to re-read previous chaps and work on them. My current uploading schedule will be Monday-Friday: 1 chaps and Saturday-Sunday: 2 chaps. Thanks guys Chapter 26：Tricked Grey stared in the direction of the voice was coming from and saw it was the Head instructor of the Wind Hall. Blake turned around to meet the icy gaze of the lady. He instinctively took a step back. "You should know we don''t give special treatments to any of our students" said the woman in an icy voice. "Instructor Lynn, I''m not giving him any special treatment. You know clearly that my Hall has the least number of students. So I try to help them as much as I can" Blake explained briefly. "It changes nothing, all new students are required to have the same starting point" Lynn snorted coldly. She was quite surprised by Blake''s behavior. He usually doesn''t act like this towards a new student. "Well, he will also be given an ultimatum if he accepts to take this technique" Blake said seriously. "Ultimatum?" Lynn asked. Grey raised his brow when he heard this. He didn''t want to any special treatment from the Academy. Well, a special treatment would be nice but having an ultimatum attached to it isn''t. He waited to listen closely to the ultimatum. "Yes. Since he will get to use a better technique, the time required for him to break through is shorter also" replied Blake. "How long precisely?" Lynn asked "10 days" Blake responded When Lynn heard this, she was surprised. Something like this haven''t happened in the Academy before, so it was quite surprising. She felt something was fishy about all this. "Since this ultimatum is attached to it. I will let it slide" Lynn gave in while giving Blake an understanding look. She knew this wasn''t Blake''s idea, it must have been from the higher ups in the Academy. She turned to glance at Grey, "Well, do you agree this?" Grey didn''t really expect all this. He would be given a better technique but the deadline would be shortened. "I''ll accept it" Grey said after thinking for some time. The first reason he accepted this was due to the fact that he loves challenges and this will stimulate him to work harder. The second reason was that he was already behind his peers due to his delay, so he wanted to do everything he could to advance at a quicker pace. "Okay, since it''s settled, you can head over to my office. I will be there shortly" Blake stated, clearly approving of Grey''s decision to accept this challenge. Grey asked Blake for directions to his office before leaving. After Grey left, Lynn looked at Blake, "I know this wasn''t your idea. Although you have the lowest number of students, you have never given any of them such treatments" "I received this letter yesterday. It was from Chris" Blake handed a letter over to her. "Chris" Lynn took the letter with a suspicious look before going through it. Her face changed a couple of times before returning it to Blake. "Although he goes out for the test, he doesn''t concern himself with the affairs of the Academy for a long time now. Why is he suddenly interested in this boy?" Lynn asked. "He was the one who brought him over to the Academy. He was also present when he failed to awaken his element during his first test. So I think he developed an interest for him" Blake explained. "But this is clearly the same cultivation technique as the one the other kids are going to pick up from the library" Lynn furrowed her brows. The technique the letter stated to give to Grey was exactly the same as the one the other kids would get. "Yes it is. Chris said I should tell Grey this technique is better than the one the kids would take at the library" Blake replied with mixed feelings. He didn''t want to trick a new student, but he couldn''t say no to what Chris ordered. "This will be difficult for him, but not impossible" Lynn was visibly shocked. Blue talents wouldn''t have an issue breaking through within 10 days. Since Grey was a Dual Elementalists it was also possible. Since they didn''t want to put too much pressure on the kids, they usually gave all of them the same time without differentiating the ones with higher talents. "I have no idea why he said this, but that was what he told me to do" Blake gave a wry smile. Chris has always had an odd personality, so they didn''t know what he was up to. "Since it was his idea, we''ll wait and see what happens" Lynn said before leaving. Grey headed to the Lightning department and quickly found Blake''s office according to the description he was given. When he got there, he waited patiently for Blake. Blake arrived quickly. The both went in and Blake sat down at his chair. The office was well organized and a bookshelf could be seen at the side. There was a seat at the center of the room. "Sit down" Grey sat while still surveying the office. "This is the technique, you have one day to memorize the patterns. After that, you must return it to me since you are not supposed to hold on to such a precious technique for longer periods" Blake handed over a scroll to Grey. The scroll had the detailed description of how Grey was to cultivate. Grey looked at it before keeping it. "Okay Sir" Grey left the office and headed back home to study the scroll perfectly to ensure there wouldn''t be any mistakes while he was cultivating. Chapter 27：New Friends Grey went back to his house and immediately started studying the scroll. He had to return it by tomorrow, so he had to make use of his time well. Just like the scroll he got from his mother, this one was also very detailed to ensure whoever was using it doesn''t make a mistake. Making a mistake while cultivating can be very disastrous, worse case scenario, the Elementalist dies, best case scenario was getting bedridden for at least three months. Grey studied the patterns described in the scroll and also the instructions. There were nine layers outside the body which will hinder the absorption of the elemental particles. Once one can get to sense these nine layers and break the first layer, it was a sign of entering the Collection Plane. While in the Collection Plane, the Elementalist will have to break each of the nine layers. The process of breaking them indicates the advancement in the Collection Plane. For each layer broken, the Elementalist advances a stage in the plane. The first thing stated on the scroll was to get into a meditative trance and try to sense the elements in the air. Once you are done with that, the next phase is to attract the elemental particles with the given technique to your body. Grey didn''t have an issue with getting into a meditative trance since he had been meditating for a year now, trying to comprehend the elements. He quickly entered into a meditative state, and following the instructions stated in the scroll, he tried sensing the elements. It would take an average kid a day or two to be able to fully enter a meditative state for the first time. Since Grey had already done it before, he could enter easily. He calmed his mind and was able to enter a meditative state after ten minutes. He felt many silver colored specks floating around him, it was fascinating. He became excited when he sensed them and lost concentration, his excitement disrupted his meditative state and he was forced to exit it. "Those silver colored specks must be the Lightning element" Grey said with excitement. "Hmm, how come I was only able to sense the Lightning element" Grey felt stumped by what was happening. Since he was a Dual Elementalists, he should have been able to sense both the Earth and Lightning element, but he only sensed the Lightning element with no trace of the Earth element. "I''ll try it again. I got distracted quickly, maybe that was the cause of me not noticing the Earth element" Grey quickly decided to try again. He calmed his mind and entered a meditative state once more. This time, when he sensed the silver colored specks, he tried to focus more to see if he could sense the Earth element. Unsurprisingly, he faintly started sensing the Earth element around him. Due to the fact that his talent grade for the Lightning element was higher than the Earth element, he could only sense the Lightning element first. Only after completely focusing his mind was he able to sense the Earth element. The other reason he was able to quickly sense the Earth element was due to the fact that he was sitting on the Earth. Since an Elementalist had the advantage when they were in a place where their elements were abundant, Earth Elementalist basically have the advantage over other Elementalist since battles were mostly carried out on the ground. After sensing the elements, it was time for Grey to try out the next phase. If he can successfully attract the elements to his body and break through the first layer, then he would have successfully broken into the collection plane. He followed the instructions, but there was no result. Although the time given to him by the Academy was shorter than the one given to the rest of the children, he felt since he was given a better technique, he wouldn''t have a problem in entering the collection plane within these ten days. The next day, Grey went over to the Lightning Hall to return the scroll back to Blake. When he got there, he saw Eight students from the Lightning Hall, they were all around his age with only two looking slightly older. When they saw him, they immediately focused their attention on him. They hadn''t seen him before and students from the other Halls rarely comes to the Lightning Hall. "Hello, I''m Grey" Grey introduced himself to them when he noticed them approaching him. "Hello, I''m Alice" One of the girls in the group stepped forward and introduced herself. "Are you new here?" Alice asked. "Yes, I just completed my admission yesterday. I came over to see instructor Blake" Grey answered. "Oh, you''re a student of the Lightning Hall?" Alice asked again. She wanted to confirm if Grey was a student of their Hall also. Although students from the other Halls rarely came to their Hall, doesn''t mean they don''t come at all. "Yes" Grey replied with a smile. "Haha, then we are brothers" A boy in the group suddenly spoke up with a laugh. Grey shifted his attention from Alice and stared at the boy who just spoke up. "That is Reynolds. Students of the Lightning Hall are united since we have the least number of people" Alice introduced the boy who just spoke. "You can call me Rey" Reynolds said smiling while stretching out his hand. Grey shook it with a smile also on his face. Grey and the group got along well, and he got to know the names of everyone in the group. "What Plane are you in?" Reynolds suddenly asked after they had talked for a while. Since they were all in the same Hall, knowing each other more wasn''t bad. "Actually, I only just started cultivating" Grey said with an embarrassed smile. When the group heard this, they looked at each other. Clearly not expecting this answer. "How come you only just started cultivating?" Alice asked with surprise. Grey told them of how he was unable to awaken his element the first time and was only able to do it after four years. They were all also surprised since Grey was a Dual Elementalist, they knew how rare the Lightning element was, being a Dual Elementalist and having the Lightning element as one of your elements was stunning. "Oh, so that''s the reason. Anyway, you can easily catch up since you''re a Dual Elementalists" Reynolds encouraged Grey sincerely. Grey didn''t expect they would treat that like it was nothing. He suddenly felt being in the Lightning Hall wouldn''t be as boring as he thought. They talked for some time before Grey asked to be excused, so he could go over and meet Blake. Only after Reynolds asked of what was his house number before he allowed Grey to go. Grey went over to Blake''s office with a smile on his face. He felt great since he got to have new friends. When he got to the office, Blake was sitting lazily at his desk. Grey returned the scroll over to him. Blake asked him repeatedly of he had completely memorized the pattern, only after Grey had assured him repeatedly did he collect the scroll. Although he was given an order by Chris, he didn''t expect Grey to completely memorize it in a day. He only told him what he was told by Chris, but he had no problem with Grey holding on to it for another day if he couldn''t memorize. After Grey left the office, he went over to Klaus'' house to check on him. After talking for some time, he immediately went back home to once again start meditation. Chapter 28：Sorry! I Didnt Know You Were Busy Two days passed without any notable progress. In these three days, Grey had tried multiple times to break the first layer but failed. He was able to successfully attract the elemental particles on the second day. Grey had also searched for a place where he could continue his usual physical training. He was already accustomed to it, and after his battle with Derek the last time, he knew training his body has its advantages. He didn''t want to be disturbed at the Academy so he chose to find some place else. Grey soon found a spot, a mountain located right behind the Lunar Academy. Being located close to a mountain range, naturally there were many mountains close to the Academy. Grey also went to take classes during these three days and decided he''ll just stay at home. When he got to class one of the Lightning Hall, he was shocked by the number of students in the class. He was literally the only student in class one. He later found out the Academy gives all new students a year to break through from the Collection Plane to the Fusion Plane, so all the previous class one students are already in class two. Most of the students of the Lightning Hall are in class two, with class three only have nine students. The total students in the Lightning Hall was a meager 24 including Grey. Since he was the only student with the Lightning element among the new recruits, there was no way for class one to have another student, because students are recruited once every year. Blake told him to focus fully on trying to break through to the Collection Plane. For now, there isn''t anything important to teach him. So Grey just focused fully on his training. Grey had only seven days left to break through. He didn''t put pressure on himself since he was already very close to doing it. He felt it wouldn''t take him up to the said ten days before he breaks through to the First stage of the Collection Plane. On the seventh day when Grey was meditating, he heard a puncturing sound. That was the sound made when someone breaks through a layer. He had finally broken through to the First stage of the Collection Plane. After breaking through, he felt his body strengthening under the influence of the elements which were rushing into his body. Although little, it still caused a little change for him. He felt stronger than before and also much lighter. "What a great feeling" Grey said with delight. The feeling of breaking through was new to him, he felt great pleasure from it. His body was greedily sucking in the elements and improving his physique with each passing second. Grey calmed his mind and continued his meditation, he had already broken through to the Collection Plane, so he felt totally relieved. The next morning, he went to the mountain as usual for his physical training. He noticed his strength, speed, stamina, senses have all increased. Although by a little, since he trains every day, he was able to notice it. Grey didn''t stop his meditation after breaking through to the Collection Plane, he knew this was only just the beginning, and he needed to work hard if he wants to have any hopes of catching up with his peers. The strong became strong one step at a time and through achieving many accomplishments. Grey was able to break through another layer before the tenth day, his speed could be said to be terrifying as it would take a new Elementalist at least two months to go through from the First layer to the Second given they had Purple talent. Even those with Blue talents would take at least a month and half to achieve this feat, only the most exceptional ones do it within a month. Blake''s office.... "Today is the last day, do you think he can do it?" Lynn asked thoughtfully. "I don''t know, but I told him to report to me today no matter the outcome of his training" Blake replied. He hadn''t seen Grey since he told him to focus fully on his cultivation. He wasn''t confident in Grey breaking through within these ten days. If he had been given twenty days, then he would have been certain he would. But ten days, it was just too short for him. "I can''t believe you actually played such a trick on a new student" A soft voice filled with amusement rang in the office. Blake looked at where the voice came from with a long face. The speaker was one of the instructors of the Water Hall. She looked like she was still in her early twenties. "Delia, I''ve already told you it wasn''t my idea. I''m not that free to play tricks on kids" Blake immediately rebutted. "Enough you two. One more word from you and I''ll send you out Delia" Lynn immediately stepped in. She knew there would be no end to it if they didn''t stop it. Delia was the only instructor present who wasn''t a head instructor. "What is she even doing here?" Blake asked in displeasure. "She heard about it and was also curious to see if Grey would succeed. She begged to follow, and I couldn''t say no" The head instructor of the Water Hall shrugged while answering. If Grey could successfully break through to the First stage of the Collection Plane within ten days, it would be the fastest of any student in the history of the Academy. This was the reason the head instructors were all present. Only one student have been able to successfully break through to the Collection Plane in ten days. And that student was precisely Delia, she had a Blue talent and was a freak in cultivation. Although she was still very young, she had already caught up with most of the instructors who taught her while she was still a student. Grey walked towards the Hall while humming a little tune to himself. He was in a great mood after breaking through to the Second stage of the Collection Plane the previous night. "This technique is truly great. It only took me ten days to break through two layers" Grey couldn''t help but praise the technique in his heart. He felt grateful to Chris for giving him this special treatment. *Knock Knock* Grey lightly knocked at the door. "Enter" Blake''s voice could be heard from the office. Grey opened the door of the office and went in. He was startled when he walked in, he realized Blake wasn''t alone in the office. The only person he recognized was Lynn. "Oh sorry, I didn''t know you were busy" Grey apologized and turned around quickly heading outside the office, he closed the door after going out without even waiting for a response. Blake and the other instructors were dumbstruck, never expecting something like this to happen. Chapter 29：Head Instructors After Grey closed the door, he was about to leave when he heard a roar coming from the office. "Grey where the hell are you going, get back here now" Blake''s voice thundered from the office. Grey froze with fright when he heard the shout. At the office..... "Haha, what an interesting fellow" Delia covered her mouth while giggling. After the initial surprise at how quick Grey left the office, she felt amused by it. Blake glared at her with a spiteful look. He was incensed when Grey just taken off without even waiting for a response from him. Grey turned around and opened the door lightly. He thought Blake was having a meeting with the other Head Instructors, especially after he recognized Lynn. He never expected Blake would still have time to attend to him. He planned on waiting outside, probably seeing Reynolds and the rest before returning. After entering, he closed the door gently behind him and looked up feeling slightly anxious. Blake stared at him with anger still visible in his face. "Why did you leave the office?" Blake asked with slight annoyance. Lynn glanced at Blake then back at Grey, "Sigh, forget it" Lynn suggested. She knew Blake was only grumpy because of Delia and nothing else. Delia stared at Blake with a mocking smile, Blake didn''t even bother with her anymore as he knew she would just aggravate him. "Grey, we aren''t having a meeting. Actually, they''re all here for you" Blake calmed down and spoke after seeing Grey was just looking at him saying nothing. "Me?" Grey asked with a confused look. ''I have always been focused on training, how did they even know me?'' Grey thought. "Yes, you. They wanted to know if you would be able to break through within these ten days" Blake explained with a smile to disperse the slight unease Grey might be feeling with so many people present here. "Oh that, I thought it was something else" Grey said in a relieved tone. He thought he had done something he wasn''t supposed to, that was why they were here for him. "You don''t need to be tense, they are all Head instructors here like me. Except for a certain someone though" Blake stressed the last part of the sentence while looking at Delia. He had the ''She''s the one I''m talking about'' look when he was staring at her. Delia snorted coldly when she heard what Blake said and the look he was giving her. ''Humph, if not for the fact you are still stronger than me, I''d have beaten you up for a long time now'' She thought inside Grey followed his eyes and saw the stunningly beautiful Delia. Grey greeted them with a smile, trying to look the best he could. Delia looked at him, seemingly surprised by how handsome he was. The initial time Grey entered the office, she didn''t get a chance to see him clearly. She was not the only one sizing him up, the other instructors who were just seeing him for the first time also did the same. Grey also sized them up, he was most curious about Delia though. Since she was too young to be an instructor from his point of view. He saw the always serious looking Lynn, a well refined man with brown hair, the beautiful Delia who was flowing with the spirit of youth, a middle aged lady with blue hair and a man who had a masculine body with rough looking black hair. ''The rough looking one is definitely the Head instructor of the Earth Hall'' Grey thought when he saw the man. When Blake saw how they were all sizing each other up, he introduced each of the instructors to Grey. When Blake introduced the Head instructor of the Earth Hall, Grey was surprised by the one Blake was pointing at. ''Maybe he made a mistake'' This was what rang in Grey''s mind. "You''re also an Earth Elementalist, very good. You should try visiting the Earth Hall. Although your talent for the Earth element isn''t as high as it is for the Lightning element, the Earth element is very formidable" The Head instructor of the Earth Hall, Michael said. "I will surely do. Since I was focused entirely on cultivation, I haven''t had time" Grey replied gently. He was surprised the one who spoke to him wasn''t the rough looking man, rather it was the refined looking man. The Head instructor of the Earth Hall had brown hair which was starting to gray, with a well chiseled face and amber eyes which glittered with youthful mischief. Grey was surprised by Michael''s appearance, he thought all Earth Elementalist were crude looking. He didn''t expect the refined looking man to actually be the Head instructor of the Earth Hall, he even looked better than Blake, although older. Michael saw Grey''s weird look and laughed, "What, you expected me to look crude?" Grey smiled awkwardly, "Sorry, it''s just the few Earth Elementalist I''ve seen were all crude looking." The instructors all laughed when they heard this, Michael has already gotten used to getting this reaction from people the first time to know he was an Earth Elementalist. Due to the rough nature of the Earth element, most Earth Elementalist looked crude. The elements usually reflects on the Elementalist, so it is not surprising most Earth Elementalists looks crude. Most Wind Elementalists looked nimble while Fire Elementalists almost always has a fiery personality. "Okay, now back to the reason we are all gathered today" Blake said solemnly after the bout of laughter. The office once again went calm, with everyone focusing their gazes intently at Grey. Chapter 30：It Expires?! Grey walked closer to Blake with a calm expression. He knew he didn''t have anything to worry about so he wasn''t worried. "So, were you able to break through to the Collection Plane?" Blake asked with little hope, although still slightly expectant. Being just at the Collection Plane, the elements won''t be fully active in the body of the Elementalist, so although everyone present was already in a high plane, they wouldn''t know without inspecting personally. Grey smiled and said, "Yes". When they all heard his answer, they were all astounded. They never thought he would have been able to do it. "I was also able to break through another layer" Grey added unhurriedly. The instructors were all visibly surprised when they heard his first reply. But on hearing the second part of his words, they were stupefied. ''How''s this possible'' This was the only word resounding through their minds. "Grey, this is not a joke. Are you certain of what you just said?" Blake had to be sure. He thought Grey was saying this without any seriousness. "Of course" Grey affirmed. He didn''t know why they took it this way. ''You were the one who asked me, why would I be joking with you'' Grey thought, feeling wronged. "Give me your hand" Blake stretched out his hand. Grey placed his hand on the outstretched hand of Blake. When his hand was placed on Blake''s palm, he felt a mysterious energy going into his body. It was a strange feeling, as this was something he had never felt before. ''This must be what they call Spiritual energy'' Grey thought will feeling expectant. He thought of how it would feel like when he would also be able to use Spiritual energy. After some time, Blake''s expression changed drastically. "Impossible, this...this" He stuttered with a voice filled with surprise. The other instructors looked at him with interest. Grey was also surprised by the sudden outburst from Blake. "What is it?" Lynn asked. She had never seen Blake like this before. Her curiosity was seriously piqued by it. "Check it out yourself" Blake said as he passed Grey''s hand over to her. She held Grey''s hands and, just like Blake, sent her spiritual consciousness into his body. After thoroughly checking, she was also shocked by the findings. Although, her reaction was not as excessive as Blake''s reaction. "You truly are a very lucky boy" Lynn looked at Grey with glittering eyes. Seeing the look from both Blake and Lynn, Grey was beginning to get curious about what was going on in his body. Not just him, but the other instructors were also getting curious. "What is going on?" Delia couldn''t hold it back anymore and asked. She saw how Blake and Lynn acted, she got curious and wanted to know what happened. "He has a unique physique" Blake replied in a bland voice. Delia pouted when she heard how Blake replied her. When Blake saw her pouting, he was stunned and couldn''t take his eyes off her. When Delia saw how Blake was staring at her intently, she quickly dropped her head down to avoid his gaze. Her lips curled upwards, with her face blooming with a radiant smile. Lynn cleared her throat to try to bring Blake back from his trance. When Blake''s mind was clear, he felt awkward realizing he was staring at Delia shamelessly. He thickened his skin and acted like nothing happened before explaining, "Well, it can''t be referred to as a unique physique per se. But for some unknown reasons, his body has a high concentration of both Lightning and Earth elemental essence in it" Everyone in the office were surprised when they first heard Blake say the word ''unique physique'' including Grey. Although Blake later clarified it wasn''t a unique physique rather it was a huge concentration of elemental essence, it was nevertheless a shocking thing to hear. For someone who just started cultivating having a huge concentration of elemental essence was unheard of. Now they all understood what Lynn meant when she said he was very lucky, except for Grey. He still didn''t understand what having such a high concentration of elemental essence. He threw a questioning gaze at Blake, clearly wanting him to explain further. "This simply means for the time being, your cultivation speed would be terrifyingly fast. We don''t know when it will be used up, but from the amount you have, it should be able to get you to the Arcane Plane without any issues. And you''ll also advance very fast" Lynn explained to Grey to clear up his doubts. Grey''s mood turned sour when he heard this, ''And here I was thinking I had hit the jackpot by having a unique physique, who knew this was a miracle with an expiring date'' He complained grudgingly. But he couldn''t hide the fact that he was also excited by the news. With this, he wouldn''t have an issue with closing up the gap with his peers. Although not everyone his age is at the Arcane Plane, those with Purple or Blue talent were already in the Arcane Plane. Except for the ones who weren''t hardworking. "Well with this, you wouldn''t be far behind your peers. And you might have hope in participating in the yearly tournament at the Academy" Blake said with a smile. He had already gotten over the initial shock and with what happened when he lost himself looking at Delia, he wanted to talk as much as possible, hoping to take everyone''s mind of it. "What''s the tournament all about?" Grey inquired. "Students from each Hall will get together and have a little combat with each other to determine how far they had grown. This is done every year, although not compulsory," Blake calmly explained. The Academy always has an end of year tournament to see who the best student is for each class, although not all students participate. When Grey heard the tournament was not mandatory and he could skip it, he was glad since he didn''t have any interest in battling and currently wanted to fully focus on increasing his Plane. He planned on going into the forest to train with magical beasts when he got to the Arcane Plane. Only after reaching the Arcane Plane before the Academy would allow any of the students to go out to train. The class three students rarely participates in the tournament. Since Grey was already checked by Blake and it was already confirmed he was in the Collection Plane, he didn''t have any reason staying at the office any longer and opted to leave. When he got out of the office, he could hear Delia calling Blake a pervert. ''What''s up with those two anyway?'' Grey asked himself as he walked out of the hall heading back to his house. On his way, he couldn''t help but think of the reason why he had large amounts of Lightning and Earth elemental essence in his body. ''It must definitely be back at the Lightning mountain, but how come my body was able to store it even though I haven''t started cultivating?'' Grey was puzzled by everything, but he didn''t dwell in it for too long. Since he couldn''t find the reason for now, he''ll just stop thinking about it. Chapter 31：Boar It Is Then! A youth could be seen sitting crossed leg on top of a boulder with his chest bare. He had a well chiseled body, which was a clear sign of training his body frequently. After some time, the youth breathed in deeply and stood up. The youth stood at 5''9 in height, with a slender body and fair skin which looked like that of a baby. When he raised his face, a stunningly handsome face could be seen. He had short black hair and an inverted triangular shaped face with beautiful black eyes. The youth was precisely Grey. It had already been one year since he got into the Lunar Academy, and he can say, it had been an amazing experience so far. He had not only started cultivating, but he had broken through to the Ninth stage of the Fusion Plane with this one year. The entire Academy was shocked from how fast he advanced in his cultivation, this was by far the fastest anyone had ever broken through in the entire Academy. One has to remember that there was a penalty if the students didn''t break through from the Collection Plane to the Fusion Plane within a year, but Grey not only broke through to the Fusion Plane, he was already at the peak of it. "I should be able to break through to the Arcane Plane within a week" Grey said with emotions. He could still remember how he was still being mocked one year ago. But currently, he had already almost caught up with his peers. It usually takes those with purple talent almost three years to break through to the Arcane Plane, while those with blue talents at least one year and eight months. But Grey had already defied all logic for the students that is, the higher ups in the Academy were all aware of the reason. During this one year, Grey had attended class in both the Lightning and Earth Hall, although not much. He focused fully on his cultivation, ''since this will be used up, it''s best I make fast work of it'' this was his thoughts whenever he remembers he has a huge amount of elemental essence in his body which was slowly dwindling away. Grey was scared the essence would suddenly disappear, so he wanted to use it as fast as possible. He had also been able to upgrade his grade for his Earth element, this further increased his cultivation speed by a little. "The Academy tournament is probably going on right now" Grey looked in the direction of the Academy. Blake had tried persuading him several times to take part in the tournament, but he refused every time. *RUSTLE* Grey heard the sound of leaves moving coming from his west. He turned his head, looking at the direction with an interested look. He calmly listened to know the distance the noise was coming from. After confirming where the noise came from, he walked towards the direction with caution. Although he was curious, he wasn''t stupid enough to charge there with knowing what was making the sound. Fifty meters away from him, two magical beasts were in an intense fight. One was already lightly injured but had no thoughts of stopping. Because if it stops resisting, it will surely be killed by one attacking it. A boar and a cat like creature were brawling fiercely, the boar was in the defensive, but it also counter attacked if the chance presents itself. The cat like creature was very nimble and was moving like the wind, hard to predict. The boar tried its best to try to hit the cat, but the cat was too agile for it. Each of the beasts stood at a height of forty inches and thirty-three inches respectively, with the cat being the smaller of both. Grey climbed a tree fourteen meters above the ground and watched them closely. ''The cat is most likely a magical beast with wind affinity'' He guessed. It wasn''t hard to figure out seeing the quick movements of the cat. But what caught most of Grey''s attention was the boar. Its defense was terrifyingly hard to break through. The cat had tried multiple times, but it was unable to cause any harm. After another three minutes of fruitless struggle, the cat finally gave up on the boar and disappeared into the trees. It was already most likely getting exhausted from the endless attacks it was dishing out. The boar wasn''t overly exhausted, since it placed most of its time on defending. "Boar it is then" Grey said with a smile. Since he saw the boar, the only he thought about was cooking it. He had even planned on stealing the kill if the cat was able to defeat the boar, who knew it was so weak. Grey had already turned into a master hunter during his one year here. He hunts frequently here, although the beasts here aren''t too strong. With most of them being at the Collection Plane and few being at the Fusion Plane. Grey speculated the boar broke through to the Fusion Plane recently. He could already smell the sweet aroma of the meat, he almost started salivating just staring at the boar. After seeing it was all alone, the boar lowered its guard. This was the best time for Grey to make his sneak attack. The boar wouldn''t expect to be sneak attacked by someone after just fending off the cat. Grey silently edged closer to the boar without it realizing. Because of training his body to a high degree, he had perfect control over it. He took out a stone carved knife which he made for himself. ''Stupid rules'' Grey cursed in his mind. He had asked for a knife from Blake, but he was rejected. Blake said all students below the Arcane Plane are not allowed to wield weapons in the Academy. Grey was frustrated by the rule and almost cursed out in the presence of Blake. After reaching his striking range, he calmed himself. Grey sprang out as fast as the cat, aiming his knife at the skull of the boar. *THUD* The sound of something hitting the ground resounded in the area. The boar fell down lifelessly with blood flowing out the back of its head. Grey''s sneak attack was alarmingly effective. He was like a well seasoned hunter, bidding his time before giving a fatal strike. The boar didn''t even get a chance to raise its defense. Grey had a huge smile on his face as he picked up his dinner before heading back to the Academy to prepare his meal. Chapter 32：Nice Young Man Soon, the sweet smell of roasted boar permeated the entire compound. Grey''s cooking had gotten better since he started living alone. "If mom were here, she would''ve definitely praised my cooking" Grey smiled when he thought of his mother. "It''s already been so long, yet I haven''t heard anything". Grey had missed her during this year he had stayed at the Academy. Due to the distance, he couldn''t go back since it would take a long time for him to get there. "If only I had an aerial beast" Grey thought of the griffin which brought him here. "I would have been able to go back and check if she''s still around". Martha told him she would be going over to meet up with his father. She refused to tell him where he was, she only told him she''d find a way to contact him when she was gone. It had already been a year, but he had heard nothing from her. While Grey was still reminiscing, an unexpected guest walked into his house without even knocking. When the man walked in, the only thing he had his eyes on was the boar which was currently being cooked by Grey. Due to Grey''s high training and high attainment in meditation, he could be said to have a strong sense of vigilance. He could clearly sense something over a hundred meters away from him, but surprisingly, someone was within ten meters of his sensory range, yet he failed to pick up on the person. There are only two possibilities which could have caused this; either he wasn''t as good as he thought, or the person who intruded was just too good. From the way the man walked in, one could see he was walking in a very leisure manner. "What a great aroma" The man said while strongly breathing in. Grey was startled when he heard a voice coming from behind him and scurried to his feet getting into a defensive stance. He couldn''t believe someone got so close to him without him even noticing. "What are you jumping for?" The man asked with a confused voice. He clearly didn''t expect Grey to react like a scared rabbit. "Senior, it''s...it''s you" Grey said with a stunned voice. Surprisingly, the man in front of him was the same person who brought him to the Academy. "Of course it''s me, do you see anyone else?" Chris chuckled. "But, how did you get in?" Grey asked. "Through the door, obviously" Chris responded while still staring intently at the meat. Grey''s mind was still trying to comprehend what was happening, he clearly remembered closing the door. He should have heard the sound of Chris opening it, since it always makes a creaking sound when opening it. ''Forget it, luckily it was him. I really need to be more alert'' Grey thought while sighing at his negligence. He thought it was his carelessness that made him not sense Chris entering the compound and getting so close to him. He totally forgot there were people who could easily sneak up on you. "Senior, you didn''t watch the tournament?" Grey didn''t expect Chris to be here, since most of the instructors were watching the tournament. "Tournament, what tournament?" Chris asked while furrowing his brow, trying to recall if he heard about this tournament Grey was talking about. Grey was astounded by Chris'' reply, "The Academy''s yearly tournament" He added. Chris made an expression of suddenly recalling something, "Oh that, it''s today?" He asked. When Grey heard his question, he knew Chris was definitely a lost cause. ''Is he even an instructor here'' Grey thought clearly puzzled by Chris'' lack of information. "Yes senior, the tournament is today". "Okay" Chris replied with indifference, clearly not interested in it. Grey noticed since he saw Chris, he hadn''t even thrown a glance at him. The only thing he was staring at, was the meat. Grey was certain he could see some droll coming out from the side of Chris'' mouth. ''At least try to keep your image as a senior. And where has he been over the year'' Grey complained in his heart. Since Chris dumped Grey with Klaus, he had not appeared until now. Grey had asked of him from Klaus, but didn''t get any positive responses. So he just thought maybe Chris wasn''t present at the Academy. "Why don''t you stay for dinner, I''m almost done preparing it?" Grey asked, trying to buy some face for this so-called senior of his. "Good, good, you''re truly a nice young man" Chris repeated good twice just to show his delight while nodding like a bird pecking grains. Grey facepalmed in his mind. When he saw how Chris was acting, he remembered the time they traveled together and how much Chris loved food. After dinner, Grey couldn''t stop staring at Chris. He was shocked by how much Chris could eat. ''The body isn''t supposed to contain that much food'' He exclaimed in his heart. "Oh" Chris threw a glance at Grey before making a surprised sound. "You''re already at the Peak of the Fusion Plane" He added. "Yes, I''m close to breaking through to the Arcane Plane" Grey said with a gleeful smile. ''He just noticed after being here for so long'' thought Grey. "That''s good, I heard you have a high concentration of elemental essence in your body" Chris smiled while asking. "Yes, this was what enabled me to advance this quickly" Grey said, "I was also given a better cultivation technique than the one the other kids used, I think this also added to my speed" Grey said further. "Wait, you still think you were given a better technique?" Chris blurted out with surprise. "What?!" Grey exclaimed when he heard this. "Nothing" Chris said, clearly not planning on saying anything more. ''Could it be that the technique I was given wasn''t better than the ones the other kids received from the library?'' He wasn''t dumb, from Chris'' reaction, he could tell something was wrong and Chris knew about it. He thought Chris wasn''t in the Academy, but clearly, Chris had been keeping tabs on him. "I will be going now" Chris stood up and prepared to leave. "Oh and after breaking through to the Arcane Plane, tell Blake to bring you to me" He said before leaving. Grey just stared at him, his mind still on what Chris said. "I''ll head over to the library tomorrow" He declared. Chapter 33：Because Im The Instructor The next day, Grey was about to head over to the library to check out the technique given to new students. "Hey Grey" Grey turned around at the sound of the voice. He already knew the owner of the voice, "Hey Klaus" He greeted Klaus. "Where are you headed?" Klaus asked. He was on his way over to Grey''s place. "I''m on my way to the library" Grey replied. "Great, I was also about to head there" Klaus said and joined Grey. "So, how was the tournament" Grey asked as they started walking. Klaus mused for some time before replying, "Not bad actually. Unfortunately I was unable to make it into the top eight, the competition was fierce". "Oh, which hall''s student was the champion for class three?" Grey asked. "The champion of class three can''t be said to be from one hall. She is a Dual Elementalist with Blue and Orange grade for each element" Klaus said with an expression which showed he was still thinking about the events that played out yesterday. "Yes, the champion is a girl. You should have heard of her, she''s also a student of the Lightning Hall" Klaus said while looking at Grey. "You mean Alice?" Grey raised a brow. "Yes, that''s her" Klaus confirmed. "Are you sure we''re talking about the same person. The Alice I know is a sweet cute girl, she doesn''t seem like someone who would enjoy fighting" Grey said thinking maybe there was a difference between the Alice Klaus was talking about and the one he knew. "Is there any other Alice in the Lightning Hall class three?" Klaus asked exasperated. "Well, no" Grey thought for some time before replying. "Don''t be deceived by her cute look. When she''s in the arena, she''s as fierce as a tiger. Luckily I didn''t encounter her" Klaus said with a relieved sigh. This was the only reason he wasn''t upset when he was eliminated from the tournament. The person who advanced after defeating him went on to face Alice. ''I can still hear his screams'' Klaus shivered when he remembered the fight. Although the Academy doesn''t entertain students getting hurt in the tournament, the same can''t be said for the rules of the class three students. The rule there, was to ensure you do not attack an opponent when you clearly see he can''t fight back, try to be as lenient as you can and no killing. Once a student admits defeat, the battle must stop immediately. The Academy believes if the students don''t go through tough battles now, they wouldn''t stand a chance outside. And since most of the class three students have to do missions, they need as much fighting experience as possible. Klaus went on to tell Grey everything that happened at the tournament. When Grey heard of how Alice ran through all her opponents, he couldn''t help but sweat profusely when he thought of how he mocks her when they were together. ''She knows I''m only joking. But¡­but what if she suddenly attacks me some day?'' Grey thought with fright. Alice was one of the few female friends he had in the Academy, she had an easy going personality and could be seen almost always smiling. Grey couldn''t picture her with the description Klaus was giving. She wasn''t breathtakingly beautiful, but she could be classified as above average in terms of beauty. She had a cute round face with big eyes which totally made her stand out in a good way. The only downside was, she had a small stature. Although she was already seventeen, she could still be misjudged for a thirteen years old due to her small physique. This was what Grey used to make fun of her whenever they were together. "She''s that strong. Luckily I''m friends with her" He knew if he wasn''t her friend, she would have definitely dealt with him. ''No wonder Reynolds and the rest always gives me weird looks whenever I''m making fun of her'' Grey thought feeling lucky. They continued discussing the tournament, before they knew it, they were already at the library. The library was divided into two buildings, both were three-story buildings. Grey had visited the library, but he had always gone to the one which had information on the history of their continent and also magical beasts. Grey had never visited the library which housed techniques, mostly because students under the Arcane Plane didn''t have access to upper floors. They could only go as far as the first floor, which contained the basic cultivation technique and some training manuals. When Klaus noticed Grey heading over to the technique building, he was surprised. Although Grey frequented the library, it was only the building which contains information. He had never once gone to this other building. "Grey, you''re heading over to the technique building?" Klaus asked with surprise. "Yes, I''ve decided to check it out after being in the Academy for so long now" Grey scratched his head as he replied with an embarrassed smile. After all, being in the Academy and not visiting this particular building was somewhat embarrassing. Even if you''re not here for the technique, at least check it out once. After entering the building, Klaus asked if Grey needed any help but was politely declined. Klaus said goodbye to Grey and headed towards the upper floor. Grey watched him leave before looking at the bookshelf arranged in rows. ''They are arranged in the same pattern'' Grey thought as he walked closer. This building was arranged just like the other one, the only difference was the details the scrolls contained. He started searching for the cultivation technique. He heard there was only this technique in the Academy for students below the Arcane Plane. He quickly found it on row three. He opened the scroll calmly and studied it. He had already memorized the technique he was given to by Blake, so he knew it like the back of his hands. On seeing the technique, he realized that it wasn''t different from the one he was given under ''special treatment''. "Shit!, I was scammed" Grey cursed out loud. The few students at the library all looked at him wondering why he was talking this loud. Grey stared around after realizing his mistake. He placed the scroll back on the bookshelf and went outside. He was pretty annoyed by the fact that someone tricked him just after entering the Academy. ''If I weren''t lucky to have had a huge amount of elemental essence in my body, would they have kicked me out after ten days?'' Grey thought to himself while heading in the direction of Blake''s office. Grey stood at the door of the office looking at it profoundly before knocking. Blake''s voice could be heard from inside. After Grey heard the affirmation from Blake to come in, he opened the door and went in. When Blake saw him, he knew he wasn''t in his usual jovial self. "What''s wrong with you today?" Blake asked with concern. "I just went over to the library" Grey hinted. "So?" Blake asked, clearly not understanding why Grey was telling him he went to the library. "And I saw the same technique you said was better than the one at the library" Grey said. "Oh, that. Well, they suddenly changed all the techniques to that one since they didn''t want to give you too much of an advantage over the rest students" Blake lied through his teeth. Grey was surprised by Blake''s lie. Before leaving the library, he had asked if that had been the technique all new students received. But now, Blake was telling him something else. Grey was stunned by how quickly Blake came up with the lie, ''Or had he prepared it beforehand'' Grey asked himself. "I asked around, and they said it was the same technique from years ago" Grey exposed Blake. Blake looked at him before sighing, "Well, you''ve finally found out". After saying this, Blake didn''t add anything else. "Don''t I at least deserve an explanation?" Grey asked. "No" Blake replied while fiddling his thumbs "Why?" Grey asked again. But Blake''s reason almost made him faint. "Because I''m the instructor" Blake replied with a small chuckle. Grey stayed for a while, but couldn''t get anything from Blake, not even an apology for tricking him. Instead, Blake told him to thank him because the pressure was what made Grey grow at a faster pace. He couldn''t deny he was right though, but still, being tricked was no fun. "How shameless" Grey complained as he left the office. Chapter 34：Thats How A Man Should Act Three days had passed since Grey found out he was using the same technique as the rest of the students. Although it was depressing, it wasn''t without its advantages. Due to having the mindset of using a better technique and also his hard work, he was able to advance quickly, the elemental essence in his body was like an added bonus. Grey was currently sitting cross-legged next to flowing waters. Listening to the mummers of the water, he naturally entered a meditative trance, and all the lightning and earth elemental particles were moving into his body. "Splash, splash" The flowing water murmured unceasingly. Lightning and Earth elemental particles entered his body through his four limbs, as his flesh, bones, and organs slowly absorbed nourishment from the essence. Slowly but surely, the strength of his body continued to rise. After some time, a change started taking place in his body. "I''m about to break through" Grey said with a grin. The biggest change was the awakening of his spiritual energy, it was a strange feeling. It felt like something was forming inside his head, but the process was painless. Grey felt like he could see even when his eyes were closed. He could clearly sense everything within a hundred-meter radius from him. He saw inside his body and saw the elemental essence which was in his body. When he saw the amount of elemental essence left in his body, he was stunned. "Shit, its already finished" Grey felt sad. He would advance at a slower pace. Now, he could sense the elements more clearly in the air. Cultivation would now be faster than when he was in the Fusion Plane. The essence needed for every stage breakthrough in the Arcane Plane was almost what was needed for the breaking through five stages in the Fusion Plane. Grey felt stronger after this break through, now his real training had begun. He could now head out for missions in the Academy. The Academy only allows students of the Arcane Plane to take missions. Most of the missions involves hunting down magical beasts and searching for herbs in the forest. Grey had waited for so long to get some real fighting experience, although there were magical beasts at this forest, the Academy always eliminates any beast above the Third stage of the Fusion Plane for the safety of the students. Magical beasts in the Arcane Plane are tougher to deal with, because unlike those in the Collection and Fusion Plane, they could do long ranged attacks. With the addition of their strong defenses, they are very hard to deal with. Grey settled his raging emotions. This year had been like a dream for him. "Senior Chris said I should come see him after breaking through to the Arcane Plane, seems like he has something for me" Grey said expectantly. Since it was still midday, he could still go meet Blake. Grey left the forest and headed towards the Academy. When he got to Blake''s office, he noticed Blake wasn''t inside. On his way back home, he saw Reynolds. "Hey Rey" Grey called out to Reynolds. Reynolds turned on hearing his name. When he saw it was Grey, he flashed a smile which quickly disappeared. "Grey, why didn''t you attend the tournament? I know you didn''t want to participate in it, but you should have at least come to cheer up your bro" Reynolds immediately questioned Grey after the initial smile. Grey have an embarrassed smile, "I planned on coming, but suddenly felt like I would be able to break through so keep continued training. I never expected not to be able to" Grey explained. Reynolds was about to continue scolding him when he noticed a change. He paused and studied Grey closely. "You''ve broken through?" Reynolds asked to confirm if his speculations were right. "Yes, I only just broke through. I came to see instructor Blake, but he isn''t in his office" Grey replied with a smile. He felt happy inside, since he has been able to close the gap with almost all his peers. Although he''s not as strong as them, he isn''t too far behind anymore. "That''s amazing, your cultivation speed is the fastest I''ve ever seen. How do you cultivate so fast, at this rate you''ll not only be able to catch up, but you''ll also be able to surpass us" Reynolds praised wholeheartedly. Grey smiled without giving any reply. "Oh, you said you came to see instructor Blake?" Reynolds asked. "Yes, but he isn''t in his office. I''ll come over tomorrow" Grey responded. "I know where he is" Reynolds gave a cheeky smile. "You do?" Grey raised a brow when he saw the smile. He knew something was definitely up with how Reynolds was smiling. "Yes. He''s at the Water Hall" Reynolds continued. "Is something going on there?" Grey started getting curious. "You know instructor Delia right?" Reynolds didn''t answer his question but asked a question instead. "Yes" Grey nodded. "She went out for a mission and was attacked by Elementalists from the Starlight Academy" Reynolds told Grey what he heard. The previous day, they saw instructor Blake furiously charging out of his office. When they asked around, they found out an instructor from the Water Hall was attacked by someone from the Starlight Academy. The Elementalists from the Starlight Academy attacked her because they found a treasure and wanted to monopolize it for themselves. She helped in fighting the beast which was guarding the place, yet she was sneaked attacked by one of them. She was lucky to have survived. When Blake found out, he charged over to the Starlight Academy and almost killed the man who attacked her. The other instructors who were with the man joined hands, but they still couldn''t defeat him. Only after the Principal arrived did Blake let the matter go. The entire empire was shocked by the news. It had only been a day, yet it had already spread around the entire empire. When Grey heard what happened he was dumbstruck, he never expected Blake to be this strong. The higher ups of the Starlight Academy were furious when they saw this. The Principal stopped them from attacking him. He knew there was a terrifying existence in the Lunar Academy even the emperor wouldn''t want to offend. Although they were the publicly acclaimed number one, he knew just how strong the overall strength of the Lunar Academy is. For him to charge over to the Starlight Academy all by himself and almost killing the man showed just how strong he was. If not for the Principal personally making an appearance, then it''s most likely he would have killed the man. "That''s how a man should act" Grey said with emotion. Chapter 35：Principal The entire empire was rocked by the news, they always had the notion that the Starlight Academy were the strongest. So for a single instructor from the Lunar Academy to charge over to the Academy and even almost killing an instructor was a surprise. What shocked the people more was the fact that the Principal of the Starlight Academy let him go scot free. It was like a slap to his face. They were waiting patiently for more chaos to ensue, because they believed the matter won''t end like this. Back at the Lunar Academy.... In a room in the teachers living area.... "What you did was rash" A soft voice said. "I couldn''t just let him go like that, what if he had killed you?" The voice of a man rebutted strongly. Anger was slightly visible in his voice. "She''s right Blake, you shouldn''t have just charged over without notifying us. What if it escalated more than this?" A stern voice reprimanded also. "To hell with them, if it''s war they want, we''re not afraid of them" Another voice filled with anger spoke up abruptly. "For once I agree with this hothead here. If it''s war they want, we aren''t afraid of them" A serene voice could also be heard. The people gathered here were the Head instructors of each Hall, along with the injured Delia who was lying on a bed. Delia looked at Blake and stopped speaking, she knew his personality very well. Once he''s angered, he wouldn''t think of the repercussions of his actions. Although he''s cool-headed some of the time, he mostly acts according to his emotions. "We should try to resolve this peacefully, you should know the empire is at odds with the Azure empire. The emperor will certainly not allow for there to be any internal strife in the empire" Kyla the Head instructor of the Water Hall said. When the rest heard this, they all nodded in approval to what she said. The Azure continent was ruled by the four major empires, which are the Qilin empire, Azure empire, Stellar empire, and the Blue wind empire. The continent was divided into five parts, with each empire occupying one. The last part was the mysterious magical beasts forest. It is a land of fortune, but also a land of death. Those who are lucky, venture into the forest and come back more powerful than they were. The people who have ventured inside and met lucky encounters, almost always turn out to be major powerhouses in the continent. Not everyone who returns finds fortuitous encounters though. Some head into the forest in groups numbering over ten, but only a scant few would return. In some cases, none of the adventurers returns. With each empire balancing each other, none have been able to claim total superiority over them. So they just settled for their territories, fights do break out between the empires, but it rarely extends into an all out war. The Azure empire and the Qilin empire have never agreed for a long time now. If not for the fear of the other empires, they would have already had an all out war multiple times. The Qilin empire broke out from the Azure empire after a huge war which took place hundreds of years ago. This was what also gave rise to the other two empires. The Azure empire used to be the only empire at that time, but due to revolt from some of the citizens and a betrayal, the empire''s power started dwindling. This was the reason the Azure empire hated the Qilin empire greatly, but a war would be detrimental to both empires, so they''re keeping themselves in check. Each wouldn''t mind capitalizing on an opportunity if found. The current struggle which might take place between the Lunar and the Starlight Academy will definitely be to the advantage of the Azure empire. If the Azure empire decides to launch an all out attack, both the Lunar and the Starlight Academy will be focused on their own battles. This will cause a major drop in the overall power of the empire. The Stellar and the Blue Wind empire have always kept a neutral stance this entire time, but no one knew what they were planning. "Fine, I''ll let this matter rest for now" Blake said with a cold voice. Killing intent could still be felt leaking out from his eyes. Delia glanced at him before sighing helplessly. "What do you mean you''ll let the matter rest, you''ve already caused a huge disturbance at the Starlight Academy" A voice suddenly spoke up. The others turned around to see a middle aged man walking into the room. "Principal" They said in unison. The man who walked in was the Principal of the Lunar Academy, he was also the mayor of Lunar City, Oliver. Oliver nodded and studied the injured Delia for some time before shifting his gaze towards Blake. "Blake, I see you''re still as hotheaded as usual" Oliver said with a carefree smile. When Blake saw that smile, he felt a chill down his spine. He was very familiar with Oliver and knew when he was angry or in a good mood. "Not at all Principal, it''s just I couldn''t allow them to step on our instructors" Blake explained with a shrinking voice. Blake expected punishment for what he did, Oliver has always been the type who liked avoiding trouble at all costs. People always thinks he has a weak personality, only those close to him knows just how terrifying he can be. Oliver had a fiery temper when he was young, there was a time when he was offended by a clan while he was on a mission. He nearly wiped out the entire clan due to his temper. It caused a huge stir back then. Since then, he has always tried to keep his temper in check. "Feed her this, it should help with her injuries" Oliver handed a tonic over to Blake before leaving. "Don''t worry about the outcome of what you did, I''ll settle it" Oliver''s voice echoed in the room even after he had left. Blake stared at the departing Oliver, before staring at the tonic in his hands. "You should drink this" Blake placed the tonic close to Delia. He stared at her for a while before heading towards the door. "We should let her rest" Michael suggested. They all nodded their heads in approval before leaving Delia alone. Delia just stared at the ceiling after they were gone. Some minutes later, she heard sounds of footsteps. Blake walked back into the room. "How come you''re back so soon?" Delia asked when she saw it was Blake. "I came to ensure you take the tonic" Blake said calmly. "Dummy" Delia said with a smile. ''What a silly excuse'' she felt happy inside at the thought of Blake returning. Blake didn''t respond to her comment and just sat close to her. Chapter 36：Mission Hall It has been four days since the incident of Blake charging to the Starlight Academy occurred. Although there has been no major event, the people believed it was the calm before a storm. The Starlight Academy has always had a tyrannical attitude, if not for Blake being so strong, it wouldn''t have ended the way it did. Lunar Academy... Grey was heading in the direction of the mission hall, he was now qualified to take on missions since he had broken through to the Arcane Plane. He had gone over to Blake''s office over the past four days, but he still wasn''t around. He decided he would take on some missions to increase his experience. Although he usually spars with Klaus and Reynolds, there was a difference between sparring and a real battle. After breaking through to the Arcane Plane, Grey got some unexpected surprise when he went into the chaos space. He noticed with the awakening of his spiritual energy, he could sense the elements more clearly like it was in the real world. This will enhance his ability to improve his grade, which will in turn further increase his cultivation speed. That was not the only surprise he got from the chaos space, he also got the method on fusing elements. But he hadn''t tried it since he got it. If it''s not done properly, there was danger involved. He also got a cultivation technique from it, which was better than the one he got from the Academy. His elemental essence is much more thicker than when he first used the one the Academy provided after breaking through to the Arcane Plane. His speed was not only faster in gathering elemental essence in his body. The essence not only got purer, it was also thicker than the previous one. Grey had already visited the library twice to check out techniques. He took two home to learn, which were a movement technique and a defensive technique. Students were only allowed to take one scroll out of the library, except for Dual Elementalists which were privileged to take two. The student must return the scroll ten days after collection. Only after returning the one you collected can you collect a second one. But most students prefer to master the technique they were practicing before going for a new one. The name of the movement technique was Lightning Steps, this technique enables the Elementalist to channel lightning essence around his feet to form something like a boot, giving the user a burst of speed. The distance you can cover depends solely on the Elementalist and the elemental essence in the body. An Elementalist could decide to do a short burst while fighting, this can give him an edge over his opponent because of the quick change in his speed. The Elementalist can also focus fully on escaping, this is where the amount of essence in the body comes in. The defensive technique he took was a basic Earth technique, Earth Wall. This technique allows the Elementalist to form a protective wall around himself. The earth element is truly the strongest defensive element. Grey practiced those techniques for two days, after making small progress in it, he decided to return them and check out offensive techniques. He took one lightning and also one earth offensive technique. The lightning technique was called Thunder Gloves, the technique involves coating the hands with lightning to attack. It''s a close combat technique. The Earth technique was called Shattered Rocks, it''s a long range attack. Although Grey preferred close combat due to his training, having an added attack option was good. Grey had stayed at the Academy for over a year now, so he decided it was time to head out. He had gone out of the Academy over the year, but it was only to visit Lunar City with Klaus. Since Klaus was from the city, he often frequents it. But most of his attention was on his training. After entering the mission hall, he went over to the side of the hall designated for students in the Arcane Plane. The hall was divided into three parts, the right side was for the students in the Arcane Plane, the one in the middle was for students in the Origin Plane, and the one in the left is for the Overlord Plane. The Academy only have a few students in the Origin Plane, these students rarely stayed in the Academy. Once a student breaks through to the Origin Plane, they can decide if they want to graduate or still continue staying at the Academy. Most of them decides to return, while some of them choose to stay. Some also decide to become instructors in the Academy. But you would need to break through past the Mid stages of the Origin Plane. Just like the case of Delia, after breaking through to the Origin Plane, she chose to stay and became an instructor at the Academy. Each part, had students who were assigned to hand out missions to students who wanted to do it. There were seventeen missions available to students in the Early stages of the Arcane Plane. After glancing through all the missions, Grey decided to go with the one which he felt he could handle. "Hello, I would like to take the eighth mission" Grey said to the young man sitting behind the desk. The youth glanced at him before going through the scrolls in his desk. After locating the mission scroll, he handed it over to Grey. "This mission was posted three days back. You have two weeks to return with the required item". He took the mission which Grey took off the board after handing the scroll over to Grey. Each mission has a time range on them, the student were required to finish the mission with the recommended time. "Okay", Grey registered his name and left with the scroll. Grey studied the scroll, the mission he took was to bring back three eggs of a Red Lizard. It was the breeding season of these lizards, and they could be found in the Misty Mountain. Red Lizards are fire attributes magical beasts and a fully grown Red Lizard is usually around the Early stages of the Arcane Plane. Grey headed towards the Academy''s weaponry. Since he was already in the Arcane Plane, and was going out for a mission, it was time for him to choose a weapon. Chapter 37：Heading Out The weaponry was located west of the library, before long, Grey got to a one-story building. There was an instructor at the door of the building who first confirms the identity and Plane of a student before they are allowed entry into the building. The instructor was seated bored as usual. Only a few students like using weapons, since weapons were mostly used for close combat fights. He raised his brow when he noticed someone was headed in the direction of the building. "Hello, I would like to select a weapon" Grey said with an amiable smile. "Oh, your ID" The instructor gave a surprised sound before asking for his ID. Grey brought out his student ID and gave it to him. After confirming it, he checked Grey''s Plane using his spiritual energy to guarantee if he had reached the requirements. "Okay, you can head in now. You''re only allowed to choose one weapon" He said while handing Grey his student ID. Grey kept the ID before he walked past the instructor and opened the door. Grey stared at the weapons for some time before slowly walking in. ''I think I''ll go with a dagger'' thought Grey. He had already gotten used to using his stone carved dagger, so he thought since he was getting a weapon, he should go for one he was already familiar with. Amongst the numerous weapons in the building, swords numbered in the majority. There were several hundreds types of swords. The dagger rack was situated close to the sword rack. Grey''s gaze meticulously swept through each and every type of dagger. After going through them, he decided to check out the sword rack since he didn''t find any dagger to his liking. His gaze was immediately attracted to a pair of short blades hung by the side of the sword rack. The blades were hung criss-crossed on the wall. Grey walked closer to the blade and felt the scabbard, before unsheathing one of the blades. He studied the blade momentarily. The total length of the blade was fifty-six centimeters. Its handle blade was sixteen centimeters, and it was made from metal, it had a nice grip. There were stars engraved on the blade which also gave it a nice look. It was very sharp. The scabbard was made with strong leather, and it had three straps on the back which can be attached to a belt. After careful studying it, Grey decided he was taking the short blade since it was like a dagger, only longer. He took both blades before heading out of the building. When he exited the building, he went over to the instructor to register the weapon he collected. On seeing Grey coming out with the short blades, the instructor was greatly surprised. Elementalists rarely used weapons, and when they do, they always used weapons which had a long reach, like the spear halberd, sword, bows. But Grey chose a short blade which will mean he would need to get within a very close range before using. Although there were techniques which can be used with weapons, he didn''t think Grey had access to them. "I''ll take these" said Grey while showing the blades to the instructor. "Are you sure?" Asked the instructor. "Yes" Grey nodded with a smile. "Okay" The instructor registered the blade before giving it back to Grey. Grey happily took the blade and returned to his house. He planned on getting familiar with the blade before he leaves tomorrow. Short blades are a class of bladed weapons which trade reach and power for speed. The blade can slash, hack, stab, cut, gouge, slice, parry, is flexible, and easy to control. Furthermore, it is easy to learn and easy to train. A blade''s flexibility, ability to attack and defend, and ease in learning and training, were all traits other weapons simply could not match, except for a sword. Grey started practicing with the blades immediately after getting home. Since this was the first time he was going to wield a weapon with both hands, he had to get accustomed to the basics before heading out. He held the blades in a reverse grip, with one hand positioned a little further than the other. He tried attacking with both hands and also defending. Although he was alone, it wasn''t hard for him to practice with them. After countless tries, he was finally getting the hang of them. Now he could simultaneously use one blade to defend while attacking with the other. Well, he wouldn''t know until he tries it out in battle. After practicing with the blades, he started practicing his elemental techniques. He would have to return the techniques before he heads out tomorrow. Grey could be regarded as a training maniac due to the intensity of his training schedule. He rarely has times to do other things because he has to train almost throughout the day. Grey went to bed early, since he would be going for a mission the next day. This was the first time he would have to journey alone, he can''t help but feel excited because of it. He had stayed at Red City for most of the time before joining the Lunar Academy. The next morning, he got up filled with energy and prepared for his journey. He carried the short blades in a sheath strapped across his back, with the handle facing down. He picked up the small pouch which he saved all his money in. After counting, he noticed he didn''t have enough to get a horse for his journey. Without a horse, it would take him almost three days to get to the Misty Mountain. "I should find a way to earn money while I''m out" Grey thought out loud while walking out of his building. He first headed towards the library to return the techniques, before heading towards the exit of the Academy. Chapter 38：Silver Moon Restaurant Grey walked out of the Academy and stared in the direction of Lunar City. After a brief moment of contemplation, he decided to head over to the city to have a meal before leaving. "Grey, wait up" Grey heard a voice calling him from behind, he turned and saw Klaus running in his direction. Klaus carefully examined Grey, "You''re heading out?" asked Klaus. "Yeah, I''m going for a mission" Grey nodded. "Okay, I''m heading over to the city. Want to have a meal before leaving?" Klaus asked. He had gotten used to Grey''s company while eating in the city. So whenever he wants to go, he always heads over to call him. One of the few things Grey never says no to was if you invited him for a meal. Klaus knew just how much Grey loved eating, and he also knew how great of a cook Grey was. "I was about to head there. Let''s go then" Grey said with a grin. They walked together and talked about a variety of things, with Klaus doing most of the talking. Klaus was a very social person, lots of people don''t know his father is the mayor and principal of Lunar City and Lunar Academy. Klaus doesn''t put on airs the son of a mayor of such a big city usually does. He has a carefree attitude and likes making new friends. The Academy was very united, having little to no conflicts among the students. Although not all the students adhere to the unity of the Academy due to competitiveness. They mostly try to keep the conflict as minimal as possible. After entering the city, they went to the restaurant they always eat at. After Grey came up with the idea of tasting the food from the different restaurants in the city, they finally found the one Grey felt served the most delicious meals. Since Grey was a great cook, Klaus didn''t doubt his judgement when it came to the taste of food. They soon arrived in front of the restaurant. It was a magnificent restaurant with luxurious decorations and on top of the entrance hung two words ''Silver Moon''. It was a two-story building, and the decorations were magnificent and luxurious. Anyone could sense an aristocratic aura from the place. They walked into the building and headed towards the second floor. Only those who had high social backgrounds could enter the second floor. But being students from the Lunar Academy, they were exceptions. Well, unless you can afford the meal that is. Most of the tables in the first floor were occupied. When those seated at the tables noticed Grey and Klaus heading towards the second floor, they all looked at them with envy. "They must be students from Lunar Academy" "Yes, don''t you see how young they were" "I heard the students from the Starlight Academy are planning on attacking students from the Lunar Academy" "They''re not that strong. If they were strong, how could a single instructor from the Lunar Academy cause a ruckus there and come back in one piece. They only know how to bully the weak" Different conversations started off with the arrival of Klaus and Grey. The main topic was still the matter of Blake charging over to the Starlight Academy. Grey and Klaus were already gone, so they didn''t have a chance to hear what they were saying. On getting to the second floor, the people present were fewer than that of the first floor. Grey picked a table closer to the window, and they headed over to take a seat . A waiter came over to serve them, since they were regulars here, most of the waiters already knew them. After some time, their foods were prepared. Grey immediately dug into his food without any second thoughts. When Klaus saw this, he just smiled and shook his head while also following in Grey''s footsteps. They were still eating when they heard movements from the stairs. Grey didn''t bother to look since this was a restaurant and people came often. "Grey" A young lady''s voice called out. Grey was startled on hearing his name, when he raised his head, he saw Alice, Reynolds and two other students from the Lightning Hall walking in their direction. "Hey Alice" Grey said while moving to the side to create space for her to sit. "You broke through to the Arcane Plane and you didn''t even bother to come see me" Alice pouted as she complained. "I''m sorry, after breaking through I had to search for instructor Blake. Then, I also had to collect techniques from the library to train. I planned on coming to see you after returning from my trip" Grey apologized before explaining. "You''re going for a mission?" Alice asked with a surprised look. "Yes, I wanted to go out and train myself" replied Grey. "Since you''ve broken through to the Arcane Plane, we can now start sparring" Alice said with an evil smile. Amongst the group, Alice was the one who enjoyed fighting more. When the rest heard her say ''sparring'', they all looked at Grey with pitiful eyes. They knew just how terrifying she was. Grey shivered when he heard this, he still remembered what Klaus and Reynolds told him about the tournament. "Sure, we''ll spar when I return" Grey said with a stiff smile. He couldn''t deny her request since she was still mad at him for not informing her after he broke through. "We went on a group mission, and we got ambushed by those cowards from the Starlight Academy" Reynolds said in a spiteful tone. "What!" Grey and Klaus exclaimed at the same time. Reynolds went on to tell them what happened. They went for a mission just outside the territory of Lunar City. There was a group a bandits who blocked the path of traveling merchants and extort money from them before they are allowed to pass. After several complaints, the Academy decided to deal with it. Since the bandits were only around the Second and Fourth stage of the Arcane Plane, they set it as a mission for the students. Alice was already in the Late stages of the Arcane Plane. She went with Reynolds and to rest in case there was a misinformation about the stages of the bandits. Luckily, they didn''t need her intervention since the information was spot on. On their way back after completing their mission, they were ambushed by the students from Starlight Academy. Due to the sudden attack, they quickly fell on the defensive. Alice being the strongest of the group, managed to deal a strong blow to the leader of the Starlight Academy. This gave them the chance to escape since they were outnumbered. Although they were ambushed, amazingly, they came out uninjured. "You should be careful when you head out" Alice said with concern. "Sure" Grey replied. "Besides, it''s not like they''ll know I''m a student of the Lunar Academy" Grey added. Unlike them, he was still totally unknown to people outside the Academy. He can pretty much go anywhere without fear of being attacked by the students of the Starlight Academy. "You should still be careful. You know this is your first time heading out for a mission" Reynolds also warned. Grey nodded, but didn''t take it to heart. Since he didn''t plan on offending anyone, he would just go out for his mission and return after completing it. His main concern for this trip was how to make money. Chapter 39：Bandits Grey finished his meal, and prepared to leave. Heading to the Misty Mountain on foot would take him about three days. So he planned on starting his journey as soon as possible. He said goodbye to his friends before leaving under their watchful gazes. He took out a map of the area, he had already mapped out his route. He would have to pass four cities before he could get to the Misty Mountain. The Misty Mountain was located northwest of the Academy. He just had to follow the routes on the map and he should be able to get there within three days. He started his journey and soon disappeared into the horizon. ******************* Tranquil City Just as the name implies, this city was very calm. And not many people could be seen outside. Unlike most cities which were busy, this city was quiet, too quiet even. A youth could be seen walking through the door of an Inn. He went over to the receptionist to take a room. Grey would need to cross one more city before he gets to Misty Mountain. This was the second day since he left Lunar City. He was already almost totally broke. After paying for the room, he would only have enough for a meal in the morning. He even had to cut down the amount of food he usually eats, just so he could have some money left before reaching the mountain. He already had a plan for making money, he would hunt magical beasts and sell their cores for money. He heard the cores of magical beasts in the Arcane Plane fetches a good sum. The next morning, he had a meal with the last money with him before heading out. After going broke, he sought for a quicker route to the mountain. After studying the map, he found a route which lead past the rocky canyons. He headed over to the direction of the canyon since going through it would cut down the time needed to reach the mountain by nearly half. Once he gets to the mountain, his first objective was to hunt for a meal. Grey walked into the canyon in a dull state. He had never really felt the need of money since he never really uses it, but now, he was totally dependent on himself. He kept sighing at the thought of how poor he was. Grey suddenly stopped in his track and looked over his shoulder, he had already walked into the deeper parts of the canyon and could most likely have reached the middle of it. He saw a group of eight men walking in his direction with savage smiles. Some of them held metal batons, daggers, while others held swords. "Hand over all your money and scram" The man in front said haughtily. The rest of the group burst into laughter when their leader said this. They were amused by the fact that a youth would walk in this canyon all by himself. When they saw how Grey looked, they felt he was just a green youth who didn''t have any experience. From his clothing, fair skin, and handsome appearance, he seemed like someone who was rich. "Bandits" Grey muttered in a voice only he could hear. He turned and observed the bandits clearly. He chuckled when he noticed their Planes. The one at the front had the highest cultivation level among them, being at the Eight stage of the Fusion Plane. The rest of them were around the Fifth and Third stage of the Fusion Plane. The leader immediately felt annoyed when he realized Grey was just staring at them without heeding to his command. "Seems like you''re deaf" He said with a sneer. "Go get all his money, and try to be ''nice'' " He ordered his men. When they heard him say ''nice'', they once again laughed. Two of them walked towards Grey with a wicked smile on their faces. "Kid if you had listened to our boss, you would have been able to walk out of here in one piece" The one on the left said. He was wielding a dagger and had a scar just above his right eye. Grey didn''t move from his spot and just stared at them as they edged closer. "What?, you''re so scared that you can''t even move?" The other one said with a big grin. The man on the right stretched out his left hand after getting close to Grey. He placed it on Grey''s shoulder. "Boss, can I keep his blades?" One of the men with the leader said. "I''ll check it out first" said the leader coldly. They continued their conversations before they were interrupted by sounds of something hitting the ground. *THUD, THUD* When the leader raised his face to check what made the sounds, he was stunned. The rest of the group already had their mouths agape since they saw how Grey dealt with the two men who were sent to him. "What happened?, why are they on the floor?" The leader asked with a confused voice. He knew how strong those guys were since they were part of his squad. Although he could defeat them, it wouldn''t be this fast. "Boss, he..he" One of them tried to explain but couldn''t stop stuttering. "He what?" The leader roared in anger on seeing how flustered his men were. "He knocked both of them out in seconds. We didn''t even see how he moved" Another was able to calm himself after their boss'' shout. The leader stared at the man who spoke with a dazed look. Even though he was stronger than they were, they were still able to see how he attacks. For them to say they didn''t see how Grey attacked was shocking to say the least. "But boss, he was able to easily defeat Jack and Dorian" One of the men said timidly. "Are you stupid?, it was because he attacked them suddenly so they were unable to react. Now go get him down. He must be taught a lesson, we''re not people he can offend" He said with annoyance. "Make sure he doesn''t die" He added. When the rest of the group heard this, they felt what he said was logical. Although they didn''t see how Grey attacked, they knew it wasn''t something spectacular since both men only fell by his side. They were only shocked by the fact that Grey was able to defeat them, so after the initial shock, they calmed down and prepared for battle. They were all experienced fighters, so they knew just how to deal with him. Amongst the five men, two were wielding batons. The others dropped their weapons since the boss told them not to kill him. Grey calmly stared at them. ''Come'' He roared in his heart. This was going to be his first battle, and he was exhilarated by it. Chapter 40：Fight! In the middle of the rocky canyons, Grey could be seen crossing blows with the bandits. He had moved from his previous spot over the course of the battle. At first, Grey was able to trade blows with the bandits. Since he trained his physique and enjoyed close combat, he decided to only use his fists during the first stages of the fight. Since the bandits were in the Fusion Plane, they could only attack in close range. The bandits had exceptional teamwork, so he quickly fell into a passive state. Grey tried to look for an opening to create space for himself, but due to the experience of the bandits, they didn''t give him the chance to do that. With each attack enforced with their elements. ''F**k, this is harder than I thought'' Grey screamed in his head. He didn''t expect to be put in such a difficult situation moments after the battle started. Since he didn''t have a good mastery of his movement technique, he would need some time to use it. A time which the bandits clearly have no plans of giving him. "How can he be so strong?" One of the bandits said while attacking. They were surprised by Grey''s abilities. Although he had been on the defensive since the battle started, he had still been able to evade most of the fatal strikes. "With these abilities, he should at least be at the same stage as the boss. If not even higher" Another one exclaimed. The leader had been calmly watching the battle since it started and he was astonished by how high Grey''s realm was. Although he didn''t know if Grey had broken through to the Arcane Plane, he knew Grey wouldn''t be far from it. "Shit!, if you''re all so tough, why don''t you come at me one on one" Grey yelled after he was hit by a baton on his left hand. "This is not a tournament brat" the guy who hit him with a baton snickered. They all knew they were no match for Grey one on one. This was also the reason they didn''t give him any chance to free himself from their barrage of attacks when they noticed how strong he was. "Damn!" Grey cursed out loud while blocking a fist that was heading towards his face. "Who hits the face of an opponent?" Grey angrily yelled at the man who almost punched him in the face. If that blow had connected, Grey''s face would have surely changed in looks. In the middle of yelling and curses, the brawl continued. As the fight went longer, the bandits realized something wasn''t right. Grey was able to evade more of their attacks, compared to when the battle just started. The leader of the gang was the first to notice this. His face immediately sank at the thought of how quickly Grey was getting better at fighting. "At this rate, he''ll be able to overpower them. If he does that, I won''t be a match for him" He muttered to himself. He knew his strength clearly, there was no way he could free himself from the clutches of his men if they ganged up on him. "End the battle quicker" He yelled towards his men. They had also realized the shocking changes that were happening as the fight progressed. Although Grey was getting better at fighting, it still didn''t change the fact that he was still getting hit by the bandits. *BAM* Grey was hit once more with the baton, he clenched his teeth in pain. ''I need to get out of this encirclement'' thought Grey. If his body wasn''t stronger, he would have already lost the ability to fight back. He came up with a plan that he decided to try out. Although the plan was going to be painful, it was better than staying closed up in this tight encirclement. His plan was simple, that was to trade a blow for a chance to escape. He would allow one of the bandits to hit him while he would pounce on another one, if he could get a clean hit, he would have his freedom. There were some flaws with the plan, but it was all he got for now. Hopefully, it works. If he could free himself, he would immediately use his movement technique. There would be no way they would be able to see him if he uses it. A chance finally showed itself, since the group couldn''t all attack together, they had to take turns. And because of their understanding with each other, it was hard for Grey to predict who would attack next. One of the bandits struck out a blow which was headed for Grey''s back. Grey stilled his mind and randomly picked one of them. The moment the blow was about to connect, Grey threw a blow towards the unsuspecting bandit. The bandit never expected Grey would launch an attack instead of defending, he quickly tried to retreat. But Grey moved closer to him. The moment the blow connected with Grey, he launched himself towards the bandit. The bandit was brought to the ground quickly. Grey immediately used the chance to escape the encirclement. He first distanced himself from the group so he could catch his breath. The bandits were dazed by the sudden turn of events. They never expected Grey to come up with such a plan to escape their entanglement. *HISS* Grey hissed in pain as he held the place where he was struck. "I''m done playing," Grey said with a cold voice. He felt pain all over his body and the only thing on his mind now was getting revenge. "Lightning Steps," Grey said. The bandits were immediately stunned when they saw Grey''s foot being coated with Lightning. Since they were still in the Fusion Plane, there was no way for them to manifest their elements outside of their bodies. What Grey just did was something only those in the Arcane Plane could do. "Arcane Plane," the leader said in terror. Elementalist of the Arcane Plane rarely gets into close combat. This was the reason they all mistook Grey for someone in the Fusion Plane. With the advantage of using long ranges attacks, Elementalist of the Arcane Plane could wipe out those in the Fusion Plane easily. "No wonder he could keep up with them," the leader said with enlightenment. He now knew why Grey was that fast and why he could take so many hits. Elementalist of the Arcane Plane naturally have stronger bodies than those in the Fusion Plane, and they are also quicker. He was scared shitless and didn''t even dare to look back. It suddenly became quieter and he stopped hearing noises. He suddenly heard a voice coming from his side. "Where are you heading to?" Grey said with a smile. Although he was bruised from the fight, it wasn''t without its gain. And he had a strong body due to his daily physical training. The leader stopped and looked at Grey''s smiling face. To him, the smiling face of Grey was that of an evil monster. ''Why would someone in the Arcane Plane engage in hand-to-hand combat'' He screamed in his mind. It just didn''t make sense. He started sweating buckets when he remembered how he wanted to rob Grey of his money. He thought of the phrase ''A wolf dressed in sheep''s clothing''. "I...I... I suddenly remembered my wife told me to get her something to eat, so I just wanted to hurry and get her the meal before returning" the bandit leader stammered. Grey clicked his tongue when he heard what he said. "Don''t worry, I don''t have any plans of killing you" When the bandit leader heard this, he felt happy inside. This was what worried him the most. He turned to look at his men and noticed they were just unconscious and not dead. "Thank you, oh handsome one," He said with a fawning smile. When Grey heard how he was addressed, he felt elated deep down. "I planned on dealing a blow or two to you, but I''m suddenly in a good mood," Grey said while laughing happily. "Come, let''s head back" Grey added. He placed his hand around the shoulders of the leader like they were close friends. "Don''t try anything funny" Grey reminded him. The leader obediently followed Grey back. He was scared if he refused, Grey would beat him up. When they got back to where the rest of the bandits were, Grey told him to wake them up. The bandits were surprised when they regained consciousness, they were unable to react before Grey wiped them all out. They all stared at Grey with trepidation. "Okay, now line up everyone" Grey instructed. After he caught up with the leader, he was suddenly struck with a wonderful idea. Chapter 41：Lord Of The Misty Mountain Grey was in a great mood, he still remembers how gloomy he was when he entered the canyon. "Who knew this canyon was such a wonderful place" a wide grin spread across his face. After he woke the unconscious men, he asked them to lead him to their hideout. When they got to the hideout, Grey realized the hideout wasn''t far from where he met them, it was only about two hundred and fifty meters from there. The hideout was well hidden which would help the bandits go unnoticed if people came in search of them. There were chairs, tables, and even beds. It was nicely decorated and felt comfortable to live in. The bandits were living comfortably in the canyon, they must have robbed a lot of people since they could afford all this. He still remembered how stunned the bandits were when he told them to take out all their money. When they brought out the money they had with them, Grey found two gold coins, he estimated there were over one thousand silver coins, with copper coins taking the majority. A single gold coin was equivalent to one hundred silver coins. This was a huge fortune for the current Grey. If he had a single gold coin, he would have been able to get a horse and travel at a more comfortable pace. He took both of the gold coins, and also took all the silver coins. Grey left the copper coins with them since he didn''t want to completely wreck them. And besides carrying so many copper coins would be stressful. "I''m such a nice person" The leader almost fainted when he heard Grey make this remark. If Grey had seen these copper coins earlier, there was no way he would have thought of going through the canyons. But now since he was rich, he held the copper coins in disdain. "This is a really nice profession, no wonder lots of people engage in it," said Grey with a multitude of emotions. He suddenly felt intoxicated with how quickly he was able to make money. "I can''t go around robbing people though," Grey said thoughtfully. He was contemplating about it. "Forget it, I''m rich for now and that''s all that matters. I''ll try to hunt some magical beast and sell their cores" Grey discarded the thought of robbing. Willow City is bustling. Being the only city close to the Misty Mountain, it became the resting ground for adventurers who wanted to go into the mountain. Grey was currently sitting in a restaurant having a wonderful meal. He came to this restaurant for two reasons, first, he wanted to eat something nice after ''earning'' money. Second, he wanted to know what was going on in the mountain. This was the perfect place to find out what was going on since a lot of people come here to dine. And just as expected, he heard a major event took place in the Misty Mountain. "Even an Origin Plane powerhouse was killed," a man said in a bewildered voice. Due to him suddenly raising his voice, he attracted attention from the people around them. Grey shifted his gaze to where the voice came from. Two men who were eating close to his table were having an animated conversation. "Yes. He trespassed into the territory of the Lord of the mountain and was killed immediately by the beast. The others were lucky to escape" the man opposite him said. "But we all know the Lord of the mountain attacks intruders on sight, why would they even venture there when they knew they weren''t a match for the beast?" the first man said. "I heard it was because of a natural treasure. They accidentally noticed traces of it, and tracked it there" the second man said. "A natural treasure?" the first man asked while a glint flashed through his eyes. "Yes, but they refused to say the details of the treasure. But they said it hadn''t completely formed yet. I heard they''re forming a party to once again head back into the depths of the mountain" the second man said. When the surrounding people heard what they were saying, they all shook their heads in disappointment, since their Planes were too low to be involved in that kind of struggle. "Hello Mister, can you please tell me what part of the mountain did the treasure appeared in?" Grey went up to them and asked. The man who was just speaking earlier didn''t show any response. When Grey noticed this, he placed a silver coin on the table. The man was surprised when he saw the silver coin, he quickly kept it before telling Grey what he knew. Grey left the restaurant after acquiring the information he wanted, ''Luckily I''m headed to the northern part of the mountain''. Grey found out from the man that the treasure appeared in the southern part of the mountain. The reason he asked of this was to know if he was headed in the same direction as to where the treasure appeared. He planned on quitting the mission if the treasure was also located in the northern part of the forest since he had no plans of seeking death. The Lord of the Misty Mountain is said to already have half a step into the Overlord Plane, if it is able to get the treasure, its chances of breaking through would be increased greatly. Grey headed over to the mountain. Because of this unexpected event, he wanted to finish his mission as soon as possible so he could get out of the mountain. Grey noticed a lot of people heading into the mountain, some are in groups, while others are alone. From the looks of where they were headed, it wasn''t hard to guess they were all going towards the southern part of the mountain. What shocked Grey the most, was the fact that the majority of the people headed in that direction were still in the Arcane Plane. These were people who were going to see if they might be lucky to obtain the treasure. Although they knew it was dangerous, they still headed there like moths attracted to flames. Many of them will probably not return from this journey, some might not even reach their destination since there were still magical beasts in the Origin Plane at the mountain. Grey didn''t think too much about them and headed into the mountain. He planned on training his techniques, so he could use them faster. If he had been able to use a technique immediately, he wouldn''t have been put in such a bad spot by the bandits during the battle. He also planned on also training with his blades to have a better understanding of them. He went deeper into the mountain since the beast at the outer region wasn''t worth his time. Chapter 42：Wind Wolves *THUD* "Awooo" A cry of pain left the mouth of the beast which was sent flying. The beast hit a nearby tree violently. On closer inspection, one could see different cut marks on its body. The beast was a Wind wolf, they usually grow to the Late stages of the Arcane Plane, and there have even been records of Wind wolves breaking through to the Origin Plane. This Wind wolf wasn''t much though, it was only still at the peak of the Fusion Plane and still can''t use the trademark ''wind blades'' the wolves are good at. Wind wolves usually move in packs, but surprisingly, this one was all alone. Due to being injured in multiple places, the wolf had already lost its ability to fight back. It just laid on the floor motionless and stared at the human who was walking closer to it with hate filled eyes. The human stood in front of the wolf and gave it a decisive blow, ending its life with a simple stab to the head. "This is just a Fusion Plane beast yet it is so hard to deal with" The voice of a youth complained. Grey had already headed more than four kilometers into the mountain. The Misty Mountain is said to cover an area of over seven hundred kilometers in length and spanned over a width of over three hundred kilometers. Grey was still in the outer region of the mountain. From the information he gathered, getting past the one hundred and fifty kilometers mark, he would start seeing beasts in the Early stages of the Arcane Plane. The deeper he heads in, the stronger the beasts get. But some strong beasts have been heard wandering in the outer region of the mountain, unless you''re unlucky, you will most likely not encounter them. Magical beasts have always had a strong repulse towards humans, and have something like a kill on sight policy whenever they encounter one. Humans also kill these beasts for different reasons, this is a cycle that has lasted for ages and will continue for more. A continuous battle between humans and magical beasts. Although it is said humans have the upper hand, there are beasts they don''t dare to wantonly kill. Grey had already engaged with six beast, with all of them being at the Late stages of the Fusion Plane. He was getting used to his weapon and also his techniques. He was moving at a slow pace to ensure he gets the best of his training as he heads deeper. If he still couldn''t completely use his techniques instantly, then he would be in a tight spot if he encounters a magical beast in the Arcane Plane. Gaining mastery of his techniques was a must for him. Grey quickly departed the area, since this was a place infested with beasts, they are bound to be attracted to where he was by the smell of blood. Grey didn''t forget to take out the core of the beast before leaving. He placed it in his backpack and went further into the mountain. It was already almost sunset, Grey decided it was best to camp early since this was his first day in the mountain. He found a hole at the side of a huge tree, it was probably dug by a beast. But it had long been abandoned from the looks of it. Grey patrolled the surrounding just to be extra sure, he cut down some branches from trees around then used them to cover the opening on the tree. Grey being an Earth Elementalist, could sense any vibrations on the ground through the Earth element. He is also a very vigilant person with keen senses. So unless the intruder is an expert, he had no fear of not noticing them. Grey sat in a meditative position and soon fell asleep. Late at night, all was dark "Rustle, rustle" The soft sound of something rustling against the grasses could be heard. A group of powerfully built Wind wolves with grooming black fur were pacing about through the forest. Their green-tinted eyes were restlessly scouring the area as their strong limbs quietly stalked through the area. Still seated crossed leg, Grey''s eyes snapped open as he immediately stared southward. He couldn''t see or hear anything, but he knew the vibrations he felt from the ground were real. Although soft, he was able to feel them. This was the sensory ability being an Earth Elementalist gives. One can easily sense things using the tremors on the ground. "A group of magical beasts is headed in this direction. They will reach here in approximately two minutes" Grey deduced from the vibrations. There was no way he could know the Plane of the beasts, or what type of beasts they were. But since they were moving in a group, it was most likely a wolf pack. Since he was still in the outer regions, he didn''t think there would be a pack filled with Arcane Plane beasts. There are three major types of wolf packs; Ice wolves, Wind wolves, and Gray wolves. Gray wolf packs were the weakest with the Ice wolf pack being the strongest. Grey came out of the tree to scout out the beasts. Peering through the trees, it was just as he had predicted. There was a group of Wind wolves moving in his direction. A fully grown Wind wolf will be at the Early stages of the Arcane Plane. From what he could see, there were juveniles in the pack. There were about ten or fifteen Wind wolves. ''They shouldn''t be hard to deal with. I''ll have to leave this area once I''m done with the battle though'' Grey thought. The wolves quickly got to where he was and immediately charged at him when they saw him. Grey unsheathed both his short blades for the battle, he plans on ending the battle quickly then moving from this area. The wolves were fast after having imbued their bodies with the Wind element. Grey wasn''t any slower than they were. Within two minutes of the fight, he had already injured four of the wolves. With cut marks on different parts of their bodies. The injured wolves cried out in pain. "Crash!, Crash!, Crash!" Grey successfully sent three wolves flying with strong kicks. He was already getting better with battling and is much more proficient with his blade. He was still uninjured during the battle, and this was thanks to his good use of his techniques. "Hoooowl" The wolves suddenly let out a loud howl, which was met with howls coming from all directions close by. Grey suddenly felt a chill down his spine when he heard this, ''How did they get this close?'' He asked himself with a stunned expression. What he saw next shocked him. The wolves which were just coming out were all in the Arcane Plane, there were about eight coming out. Added with the previous thirteen, the pack was made up of twenty-one wolves. When these wolves appeared, they immediately sent out their trademark attacks ''wind blades''. Over twenty deep green blades of wind appeared out of nowhere. Grey''s scalp went numb when he saw this. "Lightning Steps" Grey immediately used his movement technique to escape the area of the attack. ''How can I be so unlucky?, this is just my first day in the mountain and I''m not even allowed a good night''s rest'' Grey complained as he escaped. "Brother wolf, why don''t we settle this amicably?. I know it was wrong of me to kill one of your brother, or sister. I will apologize for it" Grey yelled as he dodged their attacks. The wolves snarled when they heard it. It was like his statement provoked them more. They immediately attacked again. "Fuck" Grey cursed out loud before employing his movement technique to dodge the attacks again. Chapter 43：Rescue On seeing he was surrounded, Grey tried to leap into a nearby tree. He was able to dodge the first and second barrage of attack, but being mid-air, he was unable to dodge the next attack. He quickly used the Earth Wall technique, although it was late, it was able to help him from getting any major damage. He was knocked off course by the impact of the attacks hitting his wall. The moment he landed back on the floor, he quickly deployed the only technique in his arsenal which wasn''t a single target attack. "Shattered Rock" Suddenly, the nearby earth began to crack and shatter. Three skull-sized pieces of rock flew up and began to circle around Grey''s head. These three rocks were all covered with earthen specks of light, he let out a deep shout. The three rocks rapidly shot off, carrying a gust of wind with them. "SMASH!" Two of the three stones were able to accurately hit two wolves with one of them missing its target. The wolves who were hit cried in pain. With two of the wolves in the Arcane Plane injured, he only had to deal with the remaining six. The others attacked with more fervor as they saw their colleagues getting injured. The wolves were able to catch up with Grey due to their fast nature. ''I need to come up with a way to deal with the ones in the Arcane Plane'' Grey thought. He was thinking of a plan to deal with the wolves as he dodged their attacks while running. If there were only two wolves in the Arcane Plane present, he was confident he could deal with them. But with over five present, he wasn''t that strong yet. Grey saw a huge tree up ahead and an idea struck him. He quickly dashed towards it, when he got close, he leaped towards it. Grey stomped heavily on the tree with his right leg while turning his body mid-air. "Lightning Steps" While in a vertical position, he used his movement technique added with the force he generated from rebounding off the tree. He launched back towards the charging wolves and stab both his blades into the head of the unlucky wolf which he targeted. The wolf died on the spot with blood flowing out of his head. There were now only Five wolves remaining among the wolves in the Arcane Plane. They had outrun the wolves in the Fusion Plane. After killing one of the wolves, Grey created a distance between himself and the wolves. The wolf he killed was one of the leaders of the pack. Of the eight wolves that appeared, only two were in the Second stage of the Arcane Plane. The remaining six were all in the First stage of the Arcane Plane just like Grey. The wolves stared at him with furious eyes, the last surviving leader gave a furious howl and they all charged towards Grey. Grey was overjoyed when he noticed they weren''t going to use their troublesome attacks again. Magical beasts always engage in physical battles, and due to their strong defenses, they rarely lose out to humans in terms of it. When Grey saw them coming, he held his blade in a reverse grip and charged straight at them. After his battle with the bandits, he gained some experience and he had been able to improve his fighting abilities since he entered the mountain. He had engaged in different battles and had grown with them. Grey dodged the attacks of the wolves, while also dealing strikes of his own. Soon, he was able to injure another two but wasn''t able to deal the last strike since he was disturbed by the remaining three. The rest wolves caught up with them. Grey immediately came up with a skill that would deal more damages to the wolves. He coated his blades with lightning, this made his attacks more destructive. When the last leader saw his pack members being killed one by one, it immediately turned tails and ran. The surviving wolves all turned around and also escaped with their leader. Grey caught up with the injured two at the Arcane Plane and ended their lives. "Huuu, they''re finally gone" Grey breathed heavily. He was already sweating from the battle and he had already depleted most of his elemental essence. Using the techniques over and over again was really straining. "Thankfully they left, I don''t think I would''ve been able to support any more techniques" Grey felt lucky since he was able to overcome this challenge. If it were others in the same plane as he was, they wouldn''t have been able to support this much use of techniques. But Grey''s essence was thicker hence it was more durable. "This is a great haul. With the cores from these three beasts, I would be able to sell them for a lot." This was the first Arcane Plane beasts cores he had acquired. He was only able to kill three of the Arcane Plane wolves with the rest escaping. The majority of his kills were those in the Fusion Plane, but he had no complaints. Grey retraced his steps and was able to easily find the tree where he slept. He picked up his backpack and moved to a different location since the noise from the battle must have alerted nearby beasts. He found a cave in a secluded area in the mountain, after thorough searching to ensure it was unoccupied and that his environment was safe, he found something to block the entrance of the cave. He immediately started cultivating to recover the elemental essence he lost during the fight. The next morning, Grey was up early. He had completely recovered the essence and he even felt he made some improvements in his cultivation. He scoured the area and quickly found a pig. A little spark of Lightning and his fire was up. He ate as much as he could to replenish his physical strength and also saved some for dinner. Unfortunately, there was no way he could take the entire meat with him. Grey went deeper into the forest and had different battles. Things were going well for him since his main purpose of coming which was training was already going really well and he had also acquired some beast cores. He had met humans during his journey but they had always avoided each other once they saw. Apart from magical beasts, humans were the major threats here. There are cases of people attacking each other because of greed or other reasons. Grey hadn''t met anyone who attacked him but he had seen corpses of people over the course of his journey. Some of the corpses had marks of being killed by beasts, while others, you could clearly see the traces of human attacks on their body. Grey had always known this is a place of survival of the fittest. Only the strong came could enter the deeper regions of the Misty Mountain. Most of the people who come in here are hunters who are trying to get beast cores to sell. Getting a core from the beasts can be taxing and even very dangerous, but if they were able to ambush others who had already had some cores, they would be able to acquire more cores with lesser works. After another two days, Grey soon passed the one hundred and fifty kilometers mark in the mountain. Now he had to be extra careful with his movements since he wasn''t strong enough yet to walk freely in this part of the forest. Although he could have reached past it sooner, he wanted to gain more training from his stay here. He would soon get to where the Lizards were said to be located in the mountain. Due to the thrill of his training, he had completely forgotten about what he heard about before entering the forest. When he got to this part, he noticed human activity had increased and he would see groups of people or individuals within a range of every five hundred meters. Grey was very cautious with them since he didn''t know them and would avoid them as much as possible. "Arghh" Grey heard a shout of pain coming from his left while he was walking, he stared at the direction the shout came from and went closer to know what was going on. He saw a group of youths being attacked by some beasts, three boys and two girls. They were all in the Early stages of the Arcane Plane from the auras coming from their bodies. Grey could clearly sense the fear in them. One of the boys have been injured on his right leg and could barely stand on his own. The two young ladies in the group were too scared to even attack. The two boys left were the only ones who were still able to fight, although barely. The group was being attacked by four Conflagration Apes, these Apes were all fire attributes magical beasts and could deal some major damage if they get too close. Clearly this was this group of youths'' first time heading out to train, seems like they got too confident and charged all the way past the one hundred and fifty kilometers mark. The sudden attack distracted the Ape for some time which gave the students some breathing space. Both boys who were attacking also stopped looking in the direction the attacks came from. "Are you crazy?, why did you stop attacking?" They suddenly heard a shout which made them recover quickly, they capitalized on the fact that the Apes were still trying to make heads of what was going on and were able to fatally injured one of them with a combined attack. With Grey joining in the attacks, they managed to kill one of the Apes with the others escaping. Magical beasts in the Arcane Plane are far more intelligent than those in the Fusion Plane. The first time they try to do when losing was to escape, they only try to fight to the death when they no there is no way out. "Thank you," One of the boys said while deeply bowing to Grey. Grey turned and looked at the youths calmly. Chapter 44：Red Lizards Grey turned and looked at the youths calmly. He shifted his gaze to the one who was hurt. "Thank you for lending a hand, if it weren''t for you, we would have been in a tough spot," the youth said again "It''s okay," Grey said coolly. When the youths got a clear view of his face, they were stunned. The boys almost thought he was a girl, as he could almost be described using the term ''beautiful''. The girls on the other hand were dazed, they never expected the youth who saved them to be this handsome. "What are you all doing here anyway?" Grey turned to the youth who thanked him and asked. "My name is Claude and this is Aaron, the two ladies are Nina and Tessa. And that''s Ryan" The youth introduced himself and the others before continuing, "We''re from the Idris Academy, we came out for training. We didn''t expect to be attacked by those Apes just after getting here" Claude said with a wry smile. "This is your first day here?" asked Grey. On seeing how they lacked experience, he guessed it probably might be. "Yes, we heard you can only find beasts in the Arcane Plane after passing the one hundred and fifty kilometers mark" Claude answered truthfully. Claude and the rest dropped their head in embarrassment. It was just like Grey said, after finding out beasts in the Arcane Plane were present after the one hundred and fifty kilometers mark, they charged in because they felt confident in their abilities. Clearly, they''re still lacking. "We''ll not be able to stay here longer, since we have to take Ryan back to recover," Aaron said. "Okay then, I''ll be on my way now" Grey smiled before turning to leave. After Grey left. "We were lucky he showed up, else" Claude shuddered when he thought of what the outcome of the battle might be. "Yeah" The rest nodded in unison. They truly were thankful for Grey''s help. .... Grey was already getting close to the territory of the Red Lizards. Although not only the Lizards stay at this part of the mountain, they make up the majority of the beasts in the area. "Hmmm, I should be close now. I wonder what they want to do with the eggs of the Lizard" It was quite baffling since the person only asked for the eggs and nothing more. He soon found the first lizard''s nest, but unfortunately, even after going through a tough struggle with the Lizard, it was empty. The next nest he found, he couldn''t get close because the Lizard was already in the Mid stages of the Arcane Plane. Grey kept on searching until he finally found the right target. It was a Red Lizard in the Second stage of the Arcane Plane. Although it might be troublesome, Grey could still deal with it given his prowess. He quickly made short work of the Lizard and found only two eggs inside its nest. "One to go" Grey extracted the core from the Lizard as he kept it with the eggs. His backpack was already almost filled. Luckily, the eggs weren''t too big. They were the size of a human head, his backpack could hold them but that would be it. He had already acquired close to ten cores of beasts in the Arcane Plane and more of those in the Fusion Plane. Grey went in search of the last egg since he was required to bring back three. His experience in the mountain so far has been just as he wanted. He is now able to use his techniques faster and was also growing adept at fighting. Grey''s learning speed truly was beyond normal. That day ended without Grey seeing his target, although he got into some battles with some beasts, he was able to end it quickly. The only regret he had was that his backpack couldn''t contain all the cores from the beasts. The next morning, Grey got up and continued his search for the last egg. He soon found a nest inside a cave. "Hopefully I can get the last egg from this nest" Grey had already found some nest, but either there are no eggs or the Lizards are stronger than him. He wanted to train to be stronger, not kill himself. Once he attacks and notices the difference in strength, he''ll quickly escape to avoid injuries. Getting injured this deep in the mountain won''t be good for him since he was alone. Grey could deal with those in the Second stage of the Arcane Plane, he could hold out against those in the Third stage, but he doesn''t stand a chance against those in the Mid stages. Grey walked deeper into the cave with caution. If the lizard here is in the Mid stages, he will immediately flee the cave. When he got closer, he heaved a sigh as he saw an egg but the lizard wasn''t present. "Seems like the lizard isn''t in the cave" Grey was quick to act and quickly kept the egg in his backpack and turned towards the exit. "Hiss" Grey heard the sound of something running quickly into the cave. He raised his head to see a huge eight-meter-long lizard staring at him with vicious eyes. "Do these things place a trigger in their eggs so whenever someone touches it they will be aware?" Grey couldn''t help but ask. He thought this would be the easiest egg he would acquire but seems like it''s not the case. What was more frustrating was the fact that the lizard in front of him was already in the Fourth stage of the Arcane Plane, there was no way he could defeat it. Even defending against it was not going to be easy. The Lizard screeched and charged at him, it spat out a huge fireball that seemed to occupy most of the cave. Grey cursed his bad luck before using the Earth Wall technique to protect himself. After the fireball died down, the Lizard was shocked when it couldn''t find the human it just attacked. It screeched again and started searching for Grey. Grey was nowhere to be found. Chapter 45：Unwanted Guest After some time, a rock fell from the side of the wall on the cave. A human body could be seen in the walls of the cave. "F**k" Grey cursed before vomiting a mouthful of blood. He was really angry. After the Red Lizard attacked with the Fireball, Grey decided to use his Earth Wall to block the attack. Who would have thought that the force from the attack would impale him into the side of the cave. Luckily, the Earth Wall he used followed him and ended up covering him in the wall of the cave. "At least it was able to hide me from that stupid beast" Grey felt lucky also, he knew escaping from the Red Lizard would have been hard given the fact that he was inside the cave with the Lizard being the one close to the exit. For Grey to escape, he would have to pass the Lizard, which would have been difficult. "Hmph, it''s lucky I need to turn in this mission, else I would have waited until it returns then teach it a good lesson" Grey snorted coldly. "Crack" Cracking sounds could be heard from deep inside the cave, clearly, the Lizard was coming back. "Damn, can''t it just let me act tough in peace" Grey immediately turned tails and fled the cave without a second thought. Who was he kidding, there was no way he would want to face that beast again with his current strength. Besides, he was already slightly injured and needed to rest in other to recover his strength. Grey successfully escaped from the area and went in search of a place where he could heal himself without worries. Since the injury wasn''t that severe, simple meditation and some tonic would do. The tonic was made from a special herb that had healing properties. "My mission is already successful with the acquisition of this egg, I should still have a little over a week left before I hand in the mission" Grey calculated the time he left the sect and noticed he had been gone for six days now. "I should heal up before I plan on what next to do" He would take it one step at a time since he wasn''t in a race against time there was no harm in resting. Grey healed up but his body was still a mess, "I haven''t washed up since I came into the mountain" He enjoyed the refreshing feeling one gets after washing up. Grey decided he would search for a river in the mountain, it shouldn''t be that hard since the Misty Mountain was huge. There was bound to be a river somewhere. He started searching, but he made sure not to head in deeper into the mountain since he was already having a hard time with the beasts here. If he accidentally encounters a stronger beast, there was no telling if he would be as lucky as he was back in the cave. Grey avoided most of the beasts that came his way. He has been searching for nearly the entire day without any results. He made camp and started eating the last piece of meat he had with him. It was already sunset, Grey always finds a place where he would stay before it gets dark completely. He suddenly saw smoke coming from the south, "Hmm, who would be so foolish to make a fire in the woods when it''s already getting dark?" Out of curiosity, Grey headed in the direction the smoke was coming from. When Grey got there, he was surprised to see a familiar face. "It''s them, but why are they still here?" He was puzzled. The people he saw were the two young ladies from the Idris Academy, Nina, and Tessa. Since Grey was already an acquaintance, he thought it would be best to advise them against what they were doing. He walked closer to them. When the two young ladies heard the sound of footsteps, they immediately sprang to their feet and they were shivering from fright. Grey was surprised by their reaction but what shocked him most was the state both ladies were in. Their hairs were unkempt and some injuries could be seen on their bodies, they looked visibly exhausted and were pale. "It''s me don''t be afraid" Grey spoke up when he saw the girls were shivering in fright. The girls got a closer look at his face before tearing up instantly, they both ran towards him and started crying. Grey was stunned by the sudden intimacy and couldn''t speak for some time. "What happened to you two, and where are the others?" Grey asked them after getting himself together. Although both girls can''t be called world toppling beauties, they were still well above average and they had great figures. The tight clothes they wore brought out their hourglass shapes more. ''How can two beauties be alone here?'' Grey''s mind couldn''t help but start wandering. But he didn''t have any other thoughts about the girls and quickly separated himself from their embrace so they could speak. "On our way out of the mountain, we were attacked by a group of mercenaries," Tessa said while sticking to Grey closely. "Thanks to Aaron and Claude, we were able to escape. But we don''t know where they are now" She continued. "What about the injured one?" Grey had already forgotten their names since he didn''t really put it in his head. He felt they were people he would only see by chance, so what''s the need of remembering their names. He would recognize them if he sees them, but remembering their names was something different. "Ryan is dead, because of his injury he was unable to protect himself" Nina answered this time. "The leader of the mercenary is already at the Third stage of the Arcane Plane, we don''t know if Claude and Aaron were able to escape since. They blocked them so I and Tessa could escape" She continued. "And you decided to flee back into the mountain was the best choice?" asked Grey with a weird tone. It''s understandable that they were attacked, but why would you flee into the mountain region again. It just doesn''t make sense. "We were panicking and since they came from our front, we could only flee backward" Tessa explained. "So there might be a group of mercenaries searching for you two as we speak?" Grey asked. "Yes," both ladies answered in unison. "And you thought setting up a fire was a good idea?" He asked again. Both girls looked at each other, confused by his questions. "Do you know how I found you two?" Grey asked another question. The girls shook their heads, they were still baffled how he found them. "Because you called me here," Grey said with a light smile. "Huh" the girls were surprised by his answer. How did we call him here?, this was what they were asking themselves. "Because of the fire, you should know that you shouldn''t make fires here when it''s dark. It attracts unwanted guests" Grey put out the fire before he finished what he was saying. He could tell these young ladies weren''t used to a hard life and the ordeals they had gone through lately was still too much for them to take. He suddenly looked behind him and furrowed his brow. "Hehehe, too late" Chapter 46：First Kill! Six men walked out of the woods with evil grins and eyes filled with lust. Both girls immediately turned paler from fear. Grey''s gaze turned cold as he glanced at the men. The men were all in the Arcane Plane with the one at the front was already the Third stage. ''This is going to be troublesome''. Although beasts are stronger, humans are much more difficult to deal with in the same plane. Well, that only applies to beasts who haven''t completely awoken their intelligence. Most beasts in the Arcane Plane have already awoken their intelligence, only some are much more intelligent. Some beasts are even more cunning than their human counterpart. "Hmph, if not for those morons who delayed us, they would already have been in our arms. But it''s not too late, the night is still fresh" Another said lewdly. When Grey heard their conversation, he understood the reason they were attacked. They had been overcome by lust, after being in the mountains for so long and not being with any women. Seeing the young beautiful ladies, their lust erupted. "Brat, leave here now and we will act like you were never here," The leader said while looking at Grey. Both girls looked at Grey with hopeful eyes. He was their only hope currently and they knew since the mercenaries have caught up with them, there''s no way they could fight with them. Grey shifted his gaze to both girls. He sighed before asking, "Can you at least deal with one each?". If they couldn''t deal with even one of the mercenaries, he would leave them to their fate. He knew the rules of the jungle, only the strong survive. There was no way he was going to risk his life battling these guys alone when there were two Arcane Plane Elementalists by his side. ''If only Alice was here'' Grey thought of Alice when he saw how timid the girls were. If Alice was the one these guys dared to have thoughts about, Grey was confident she would kill them instantly. Even if she spares them, they wouldn''t be too far from death. Both girls looked at each other clearly they weren''t confident. " Can you at least delay them?" Grey asked again. Their timid nature is starting to annoy him, ''Seriously if you know you can''t fight, what are you even doing here?'' He almost said this out loud. The girls didn''t respond. They''ve sparred with others before but that was just sparring, this was a whole different matter. And the death of Ryan affected them mentally as well. "Forget it, just don''t get in my way and also, try not to die" Grey reminded them before turning towards the group. There was no way he could hold them all off, so even if the girls are too afraid to fight, they wouldn''t have a choice. "Seems like you''ve made a decision" The leader snickered, "A very foolish one I must say" He added coldly. "Make sure he doesn''t escape like the last one''s, boys" He ordered coldly. When the girls heard this statement, they felt a little bit better since both Claude and Aaron were able to escape. "Boss last time was an accident, this time we will surely get the girls and this hero here would die," The man with a small build said with a tone filled with killing intent. Grey squinted his eyes, ''They want to kill me. Interesting''. This was the first time he was going to have a life and death battle with humans. He unsheathed both his blades, this time there is no room for errors. When he battled with the bandits, he noticed they only wanted to beat him up so he didn''t really care. If he had taken out his weapons then, he would have been able to easily deal with them. The mercenaries were all in the Arcane Plane, so the first challenge for Grey was how to get close to them. When the mercenaries saw Grey taking out a weapon, they stopped their initial charge. If Grey had a technique that he uses with the weapon, it would be detrimental to them. The effects of a technique boosted with a weapon were terrifying. But to their surprise, Grey charged at them. "Get him," The leader said. When the others heard this, they immediately released different attacks towards him. It was a colorful sight. "Earth Wall" A three-meter wall appeared in front of Grey. He stopped and hide behind the wall. The attacks all landed in the wall, due to Grey''s thick elemental essence, the wall was very sturdy. The stronger he becomes, the sturdier it would also become. Grey charged out from behind the wall and headed towards the one closest to him. While Grey was engaged in battle with four of the men, the remaining two went towards the young ladies. Nina summoned some courage and sent Ice Arrows towards the men. The leader was able to easily destroy the attack. "Pointless struggles, come with us willingly. I promise you will have a good time" He laughed heartily as he said the last parts of the sentence. When Tessa saw Nina''s was fighting, she gritted her teeth and also attacked. They knew Grey wouldn''t be able to free himself and come help them soon, they can only depend on themselves and drag on as long as they can. Although the leader was stronger than them, there was no way he could neglect their attacks. On Grey''s side The long-range attacks of the mercenaries were annoying since it has been able to keep Grey at bay. Although the attacks can''t touch him, he couldn''t get close to them. He had tried using Shattered Rocks, but the speed of the rocks was too slow. The mercenaries were able to easily evade them. "I should have taken a long-range Lightning attack" Grey regretted his choice of not taking a long-range lightning attack. With the speed of lightning, he would have at least gotten one of them by now. Even if it doesn''t kill him, he would have a chance to get close. An idea suddenly struck Grey, "Shattered Rocks". As the rocks flew up towards Grey from the ground, he quickly coated his feet with Lightning and did a tornado kick. He kicked one of the rocks strongly. As his foot connected with the rock, the rock was almost covered in lightning and shot towards one of the men at a lightning-fast speed. The man only saw a light flash before him before he was sent flying. Grey didn''t stop there, he used Lightning Steps to charge towards another man. The men were distracted by the rock that suddenly hit their companion. Before they realized it, the man with a small build held his throat with blood streaming out of his mouth. Grey had been able to quickly take out two of the four men. It was almost simultaneously. The remaining two men looked at each other in horror. " He''s a Dual Elementalist" One of them shouted towards their boss who had almost gotten the girls. The boss turned and saw one of the men lying down a distance away, it was unknown if he was dead or alive. While the man with a small build was lying in a pool of his own blood. "Lightning Elementalist" Chapter 47：Overlord?! Grey stared at his blade which had blood dripping from it, ''So that''s how it feels huh''. He knew every Elementalist must kill, he had already known this day would come. He was not a heartless person, so seeing that he ended a life, he was somewhat shaky. ''If I wasn''t strong enough then I would be the one lying in my own blood'' Grey repeated this over again. He knew these people would kill him if he wasn''t strong enough. If he didn''t kill them, they would kill him. Nina and Tessa were stunned when they heard what the leader said, "He''s a Dual Elementalist, and his second element is the rare Lightning element". They had thought he was just an Earth Elementalist because when he helped them the previous time, he only used the earth element. "He killed him," Tessa said with a shaky voice. "Do you expect him to leave him?. Tessa, they deserve more than death, don''t forget they killed Ryan and would''ve also done the same to Claude and Aaron if they didn''t escape" Nina chided. Tessa knew Nina was right, but she still couldn''t accept reality. Now she knew why her parents always told her the world was a brutal place and only the strong at heart could make it. "You little bastard, I will kill you" The leader roared in anger and threw an attack towards Grey. He was a Fire Elementalist, seeing his brothers being killed sent him into a frenzied state. Now he didn''t have any thoughts towards the girls, he only wanted to kill Grey now. Grey had already snapped out of the state he was previously when he killed the first man. He immediately got into his battle mode and blocked the flames with his blades which were covered in Lightning. Grey dodged to the side, he breathed a sigh when the dragon passed by him. The fire dragon suddenly turned mid-air and charged towards Grey from behind. Grey who had already escaped to the side suddenly felt a chill and all the hairs on his body stood up. He immediately summoned a wall all around him. There was no time to think, the first thing that came to his mind when he felt the threat was to set up a defensive line before anything else. He felt danger and his heartbeat intensified to a terrifying level. Just after the walls appeared, it was hit strongly. *BOOM* The wall at his back suddenly exploded from the violent attack. Rubbles flew everywhere and dust covered the area Grey was located. The girls and the others were all looking at the battle with interest. The men didn''t attack since they knew their boss would definitely be able to deal with Grey, although Grey was strong and was also a Dual Elementalist, they didn''t believe he could skip two stages to defeat their boss. There was no way for the girls to escape, so now all they can do was pray Grey can defeat the leader of the group or else they were done for. The leader squinted his eyes and stared at the dust intently. He wanted to know if his ultimate attack got the kid. His plan was perfect, after attacking with a normal fireball, he would send his strongest move just behind it. Even if the opponent was able to dodge the surprise attack, he wouldn''t expect what would follow next. When the dust settled, everyone present focused on the place. The earth around the place was shattered and scorched around. Grey couldn''t be seen anywhere. Both girls turned dispirited when they didn''t see Grey. "He lost" "I knew the boss would deal with him easily. He didn''t even have a corpse left" One of the men said with a smile. Although one of them was dead and it was unknown if the other was alive, it wasn''t his problem. They all knew every battle they fought there would be a chance they might die. The prayer he always prays is ''If anyone going to die, Lord let it not be me'' and it had worked for him so far. And it seems it''s still working. "I thought it would be difficult, who knew he was just trash," The leader said in disdain. "You''re next" The leader turned and said icily. "But don''t worry, I won''t kill you. You would have to entertain us every night" He said lewdly as he licked his lips viciously. Despair filled both girls completely, this was the first time they came out to train. One of their friends is dead, they don''t know where Claude and Aaron were and now they are about to be captured by these men. They felt deep regret, if they had known, they would have just stayed at the Academy. The other men had already surrounded both girls and they laughed cruelly. "Huh," A surprised sound came out of the leader''s mouth. He turned towards the rubble and his pupils dilated from what he saw. "Impossible" He blurted out with fear. "Crack, Crack" Sounds of lightning could be heard all around. The sky suddenly turned cloudy. A hand covered in lightning could be seen pushing the rocks from the body underneath it. Grey stood up from the rubble with a bare upper body with burn marks all around his body. His shirt had been burnt completely and he was currently only covered from his waist down to his knee, from his knee down to his feet was also opened. The remaining cloth on his body had different holes on them, clearly, they were burnt. Grey floated up into the air. He looked like the God of Lightning. Lightning snakes could be seen dancing all around Grey''s body, his eyes glowed with bright blue color and his black hair was dancing in the windless night. "What is that" The men exclaimed when they saw Grey''s appearance. They knew Elementalist could cover themselves in their elements completely, but it was something only people in the Overlord Plane could achieve. It was impossible for those in the Arcane Plane or even the Origin Plane to do this. What was even more shocking was the fact that Grey was currently standing midair. That was not something an Arcane Plane Elementalist could do. Grey looked at them with his emotionless glowing eyes. They all felt terror, including the girls. The pressure Grey was radiating was something they had never felt before. Grey stretched his hands towards the leader and pointed a finger at him. "Crack, Crack" The clouds were immediately filled with activity, the leader felt a terror he had never felt before. "Plop" The leader knelt on the ground, "My lord, please spare me" He started begging for his life. He thought Grey was a strong expert who hid his cultivation and now that he was angered he decided to unleash his full strength. "Crack, Crack" The activity intensified in the clouds, clearly, a bolt of lightning would fall soon. The leader was scared shitless. When he noticed Grey didn''t respond, he stood up and ran for his life. "Crash" A lightning bolt almost the size of an arm came crashing down towards the leader. *BANG* The lightning struck the leader fiercely. "Arghhh" A horrid scream could be heard from the location the leader fled to. The rest of the group felt their scalp tingle when they heard this. It''s not that they too didn''t want to run, but fear had already pinned their legs to the ground. They all raised their heads to see Grey staring at them. ''Lord if he''s going to kill anyone else, let it not be me'' The man said his prayer in his heart with fear, he could swear he saw death when he stared into Grey''s eyes a moment ago. "Crash, Crash, Crash" *BANG, BANG, BANG* Three explosions rang out as three bolts of lightning came crashing down on the remaining three men. Unfortunately, his prayer didn''t work out this time. After eliminating the men, Grey turned his attention towards the two girls. Nina and Tessa immediately started shivering with fear, they could still smell the charred flesh of the men and hear the horrid scream of the leader in their heads. They couldn''t speak. Grey slowly moved towards them. As he was getting closer, the girls were retreating in fear. He suddenly stopped and looked at them. Suddenly the sky started clearing up and the lightning on Grey''s body started dying down. When the last lightning disappeared and his eyes returned to normal, he collapsed. ************** The southern part of the Misty Mountain "What is that?" A middle-aged man said while looking at the North suspiciously. "Lightning!, an Overlord Plane expert," Another said with fear after he figured out the cause of the lightning. "What is an Overlord Plane expert doing in the mountain, don''t tell me they''re here for the treasure too?" A lady asked with apprehension. "No, I don''t think so. From the aura, the expert must be in a battle with another expert" An old man said. The old man had a wise visage and anyone who sees him will think he''s a harmless old man. Only those who were familiar with him knew how cruel he was. "Let''s go investigate" Someone suddenly suggested. "Are you insane?" The middle-aged man looked at the man who brought up the suggestion like he was a fool. "If you want to die you can do it alone, why would you bring up the idea for us all to go together. Were we born on the same day?" The old man said with an annoyed tone. The man immediately shut his mouth, he realized he made a mistake by bringing up such a suggestion. The North has already been tagged a danger zone by all the experts gathered here. They were all in the Origin Plane, but a single Overlord Plane expert could kill them like they were ants. ********** Deep in the mountain, a fifteen-meter Stone Lion looked towards the north with fear. This was the King of the Misty Mountain. A magical beast that was close to the Overlord Plane, yet at the thought of there being an Overlord Plane expert in its territory, it was scared. If it were to be someone in the Origin Plane, it would have come out and attacked without a second thought. *********** The northern part of the Misty Mountain. The entire area was in a silent state, all the beasts close to where the battle took place had already fled the vicinity. The girls looked at the unconscious Grey with gaping mouths. The burns on his body were gone, and his fair skin was visible for them to see. His well-developed muscles and his handsome face were a sight to behold. The girls'' emotions went from fear to awe. They were relieved when the sky cleared up, it was a sign Grey wouldn''t harm them. But, how can he be so powerful?. Chapter 48：Whats Going On?! Two figures could be seen moving swiftly in the cover of the night. Both were ladies and on the shoulder of one of them was an unconscious young man. "This is a good spot," Nina said towards her companion. "Yes," Tessa replied. At their front was a cave that was dimly lit. They had been searching for a place to rest since leaving the place where the battle occurred. They took the unconscious Grey with them but had only managed to see this unoccupied cave. "Strange, did you notice we didn''t come across even one beast all this while" Nina suddenly asked Tessa as she placed Grey on the floor. "Yes, I noticed it too. Usually, beasts are very active at night" Tessa nodded confirming what Nina said. Over the course of their search for a place to rest, they didn''t find a beast. Although they didn''t want to, but not encountering any felt strange. "Forget it, we''re safe and that''s all that we should be concerned about" Nina walked out of the cave in search of what she was going to use to block the entrance of the cave. She cut down some branches and used them to block the entrance. "How do you think he did it?" Nina asked as she looked at Grey. "What?" Tessa asked, clearly not sure of what Nina was talking about. "You know, become so strong all of a sudden" Nina still couldn''t get her mind off what happened earlier. The way Grey dealt with the mercenaries like they were ants, all he did was stretch out a hand, and it started raining lightning. It was an unforgettable experience, something both girls will not be able to wipe out from their memories for a long time. "I don''t know. I heard there were secret techniques which are used to raise cultivation levels, but not by this much" Tessa said after some time. She had heard of these secret techniques from her father and knew they were detrimental to the body of the user. "These sorts of techniques always comes with an effect towards the user. If what he used was something like this, then it must have been a high leveled one" Tessa continued with her hypothesis. "I hope he will be alright," Nina said. She didn''t care if what Grey used was a secret technique, all she knew was that Grey saved them and that''s what truly matters. She only asked out of curiosity. Both ladies continued talking about other things and soon they fell asleep. The next morning. Grey opened his eyes and was surprised when he saw rocks all around him, he tried standing, but his body was a wreck. He felt pain all over his body, and it was like something drained all the energy from him. When both girls heard the small sound Grey made when he tried to stand up, they turned around. "Grey, you''re awake," Tessa said happily. Clearly she was also worried about their savior. Grey was surprised by the voice, he didn''t remember how he got here. A beautiful face suddenly popped up in front of him. "Are you feeling any better?" Nina asked as she also walked closer. Another beautiful face popped up again, "What''s going on?" Grey blurted out unconsciously. He was confused by what these two beauties were doing here with him. He knew they were alone since he didn''t hear any other sounds of movement apart from the two girls. The girls were confused by his question and how he looked at them. Grey was currently looking at them like they were strangers, "Could it be that he doesn''t remember anything?" Tessa whispered to Nina. "Maybe" Nina shrugged. Grey suddenly felt a sharp pain in his head, he couldn''t help but grit his teeth because of it. He managed to move his hand towards his head. Scenes from the previous night started flashing past his eyes. The pain died down after some time. "How did we escape the mercenaries?" Grey asked the girls after remembering what happened. The last thing he remembered was setting up a defensive wall. Since that was the last thing he remembered, it obviously meant he lost. There was no one else there and from the little interactions he had with both girls, there''s no way they could defeat the mercenaries. "Well, it seems like he remembers us but doesn''t know how we escaped" Nina whispered to Tessa. "Maybe it''s one of the effects of the technique" Tessa whispered to Nina. "You know I can hear you right?" Grey spoke again when he saw both girls weren''t answering his questions. They finally turned their attention towards him. "You don''t remember how you defeated them?" Nina asked just to be sure. "Defeated who, I''m talking about the mercenaries" Grey reminded them, he thought maybe the girls were talking about the Apes. Grey''s answer showed he really didn''t remember, so Nina went on to tell him about everything that happened. Grey''s mouth was left agape since he didn''t believe the person they were talking about was him. "You truly don''t remember any of it?" Tessa asked. "No, I blanked out after his attack destroyed my walls," Grey said sincerely. ''Could it be because of the pearl?'' Grey was baffled by what they told him. This is the only thing he could think of which might cause what they said. There''s no way he used a secret technique, he didn''t even know any. After thinking about it for a while, he still couldn''t think of a reason. He could only attribute it to the pearl which had assimilated with him. Grey was finally able to sit down, when he saw the condition his clothes were, he suddenly thought of his backpack. ''My money'' Grey almost said out loud when he remembered his backpack. "Did you bring my backpack?" Grey asked, the most important thing to him right now was his money. There was no way he would be able to see free money like that again, and the cores he has gathered were inside. "Yes, it''s there" Tessa was the one who replied as she pointed towards a particular spot in the cave. When Grey looked at where she was pointing, he saw his backpack along with his blades by the side. "Thank you. If you hadn''t come, we would have already been captured by now" Nina thanked Grey wholeheartedly. This was the second time Grey had saved their lives. Tessa also offered her thanks when she saw her friend thanking Grey. Grey just nodded as a reply. Since his essence was drained, he wanted to cultivate as soon as possible since they were still in the mountain. He sat crossed leg and started cultivating. ''I broke through'' Grey was surprised when he noticed this. It hasn''t even been up to fifteen days since he broke through to the First stage of the Arcane Plane, but now he had made another breakthrough. Grey replenished some of his essences before they left the cave. The girls wanted to head out of the mountain, they had already experienced so much over their short stay in it. He decided to accompany them till they got to the outer region of the mountain, after that he''ll head back in. He didn''t have any plans of leaving yet. Since he came out to train, he''ll make sure to train till his heart''s content. He sat crossed leg and started meditating, he noticed something while he was cultivating earlier, but he couldn''t confirm it while the girls were still present. Now that he was alone, he wanted to check it out. He entered into the chaos space and went towards the stone used for testing. After placing his hand on it, the energy entered his body just like before. After the energy returned, the stone lit up. Chapter 49：Unexpected Rewards When Grey saw the results, a look of ecstasy immediately spread across his face. His Lightning grade had advanced to blue, the thing that caught his attention was the appearance of a new color on the stone. This represented he had gotten a new element. Although the grade was still Pink, it wasn''t an issue for him since he could improve it. With the addition of the Wind element, he would now be a Multi Elementalist. He had not heard of anyone in the history of the empire being one. Now he would be much faster in terms of cultivation, and also in terms of speed. "What an unexpected surprise," Grey said with joy. With this, he could well be said to be ahead of his peers. Grey stayed inside the cave and replenished the rest of his essence. With the addition of the Wind element, his absorption speed was almost double his previous speed and the amount of elemental essence he could refine was terrifying. The essence in the area suddenly dropped. The beasts in the area immediately felt puzzled by the sudden decrease in the essence in the area. When Grey also noticed it, he was shocked. "How will I be able to cultivate in the Academy if this continues" He felt a headache. Luckily the essence returned in a short period of time, when he tried it again, it wasn''t as strong as the first time. After Grey finished his round of cultivation, it was already midday. "I should go check out how strong I''ve become after breaking through. Then, also get something to eat" He got up and left the cave. Grey mobilized the Wind and Lightning element in his body and started moving. He felt lighter and much nimbler, his speed had increased to a terrifying level. With his current speed, if he uses ''Lightning Steps'' His speed should be able to catch up with those Wind Elementalist in the Fourth or even Fifth stage of the Arcane Plane. Due to the refinement his body got from the breakthrough and the new element, his body grew stronger. Added to his normal intense physical training, the strength of his body alone could almost rival those at the Peak of the Fusion Plane. His body will continue going stronger with every breakthrough, coupled with his own training, he''ll be a force to be reckoned with. "Now I shouldn''t have a problem with defeating those at the Third stage of the Arcane Plane easily. Although I don''t know if I can defeat those in the Fourth stage, I shouldn''t have a problem defending myself and even escaping unharmed" Since there was a gulf between the Early and Mid-stages of the Arcane Plane, Grey wasn''t sure if he could defeat someone in the Fourth stage while still being in the Second stage. Grey engaged in battle with beasts in the Third stage of the Arcane Plane and was able to defeat them easily without wasting too much effort. He felt great since he was advancing at a fast pace, he knew once his friends noticed his cultivation after his return, they would be shocked. ************* The southern part of the mountain "The treasure is about to completely mature," The old man amongst the group said. The others had all felt it also, they looked at the valley ahead of them with greed visible in their eyes. Getting one of the treasures meant a chance to break through to the Overlord Plane, they had all been stuck in the Origin Plane for a long time now with no hope of breaking through. The old man walked up to the middle-aged man in the group. "Hey Mark, why don''t we join hands together to take the fruits. You can feel the amount of essence in the right, even if we got one we would be able to share it equally and break through our current bottlenecks" The middle-aged man didn''t reply and stared at the valley instead deep in thoughts. He knew for one person to be able to successfully get one of the fruits would be very difficult. Inside the valley, a tree which was about four meters in height and three meters thick could be seen in an open space. There were only two red-colored fruits on it. This was what they were all here for. This tree was a rare treasure that was birthed from the essence of the world. Its fruits are filled with pure essence which was very beneficial to all Elementalists. Even those in the Overlord Plane wouldn''t mind taking them. ************ Not too far from the valley, in the deepest part of the mountain. The Stone Lion raised its head and looked in the direction of the valley. Its gigantic body got up in a flash and charged towards the valley at an insane speed. Its body clearly didn''t hinder its speed in any way. Not just the Stone Lion, other beasts in the Origin Plane all over the mountain were all headed in the direction of the valley. They all wanted to get a chance at the treasure. The struggle for the treasure was about to start. Although the Stone Lion was the strongest, there was no way it could dominate them all. It was a wise creature and would definitely leave the scene after getting one of the fruits. Now it was up to fate for the one who would get the other one. ************** All this had nothing to do with Grey, he was currently humming a tune to himself as he roasted the leg of a Wild Boar. He was expertly adding the required ingredients to make sure the taste of the meat would be the best. Grey brought ingredients with him when he wanted to leave the Academy to ensure he was always prepared. After some time, a sweet fragrance wafted in the air. The color of the meat had already turned into a golden brown, this was a result of Grey smearing honey on the meat before roasting it. Grey took a piece of the meat and tasted it. He looked at the sky in pure bliss from the taste of the meat, it had a great taste. "Ahh," He moaned with pleasure as he took another bite. Slowly but surely he finished the meat. He patted his stomach with joy before heading towards a spring not too far from him. He accidentally found it when he was searching for a meal. Grey removed his clothes before diving into the water. "What a great life" He sighed with pleasure. After he washed up, he walked over to a huge tree not too far from the spring and started cultivating. He wasn''t scared of being sneak attacked since now he had two sensory abilities. With the Earth element, he could sense any vibrations on the ground, and with the Wind element, he could feel any disturbance in the air caused by fast movements. It was about to turn dark, so he decided to rest till the next day. Later that night... "BAM" The sound of something crashing heavily into the ground reverberated in the mountain. Grey was startled by the sound and immediately stood up. He walked out of the hole in the tree and looked towards the south, "It came from that direction" Grey had unknowingly drifted close to the southern part of the mountain. After waiting for some time and confirming it wasn''t a fight, he headed in the direction cautiously. When he got there, he was surprised to see a man lying in a pit motionless. Clearly, the pit was made when the man fell and hit the ground heavily. Grey looked around to confirm no one else was around, after confirming he got closer to inspect the man. When he got closer, he noticed it was a middle-aged man and he had a hole in his chest. The hole was already starting to rot, this was obviously the work of being attacked with poison. By the side of the man was a pouch. From its shape, Grey deduced a fruit was inside. He picked it up and opened it slowly. The moment a little part of it was opened, thick essence immediately spilled out of the small opening. Grey quickly closed it. "What pure and thick essence. This is definitely a treasure" Grey was ecstatic, "This must be the reason this man was killed, I better leave now since his killers wouldn''t be far" He immediately kept the pouch in his backpack and ran from the place. He used ''Lightning Steps'' while also enhancing himself with the wind element to further increase his speed. Not too long after Grey left, an old man walked out of the trees. "I felt the energy coming from this place" he looked around before seeing the corpse on the floor. "I knew he wouldn''t be able to get far. I spent over half of my savings to get my hands on that poison all for this" He laughed with elation as he walked towards the corpse. After getting close to the corpse, he started searching the corpse for what he wanted. "Where is it?" He exclaimed with disbelief. "It was clearly with him after we managed to escape" He started looking around the area to see if he could find the pouch. He couldn''t find it. He continued searching like a mad man but still, he couldn''t find it. Grey who had already run far away from the location heard a loud roar, it was a roar that was filled with anger. He knew it must be from the person who killed the man or maybe an accomplice of the man, he didn''t care who roared and didn''t want to know either. He fastened his speed and bolted out of the inner regions of the forest towards the outer regions. He wanted to find a secluded spot there before using the fruit. ''With this, I should be able to break through to the Late stages of the Arcane Plane'' he said with elation in his heart. Chapter 50：Teacher Two days later, Grey could be seen swaggering out of the mountain with a pleasant smile on his face. He didn''t think it would take him this long to completely absorb the essence in the fruit. With the amount of essence in the fruit, he should have at least broken through to the Eight stage or even the Ninth stage of the Arcane Plane. But surprisingly, he was able to only breakthrough to the Sixth stage. From this, one could see just how terrifying the amount of essence he would need for future breakthroughs. Grey noticed after getting the Wind element, although his absorption speed increased, the amount of essence he needed also increased. When Grey used spiritual energy to inspect himself, he saw his essence orb had three different colors. The additional color was from getting the Wind element. Lightning took the majority of the orb, while Earth followed, with the Wind element getting the minority. Each Elementalist has an essence orb in their bodies where they store up their essences. Dual Elementalists orbs only contain two colors, which are the colors of both elements they wield. Single Elementalist orbs only have a single color. Grey could tell he wasn''t far from breaking through to the Seventh stage, "This has been a fruitful journey all-round" He smiled to himself as he headed towards Willow City. Just like the previous time he came here, the city was as busy as always with people entering and exiting it. There were a lot of trade caravans that were being brought into the city. He didn''t stay idle, he walked towards a restaurant to drink some tea before he returns. He overheard the conversation of some people at the restaurant. "The battle at the Misty Mountain was brutal, most of the Arcane Plane Elementalists who went to the valley where the treasure appeared, died" "The ones who escaped were lucky. I heard the treasure was a fruit from a tree" "Yeah, the tree only had two fruits in it. After the Stone Lion took one of them, it wisely left the last one so the rest of the people and beasts could struggle over it" "It truly is cunning, it knew the others would think of the risk of engaging with it and decide to fight for the other fruit which was left behind" Grey was surprised by their conversations, ''So the treasure was a fruit, I wonder if it has anything to do with the one I found'' He thought to himself. As the conversation of the men went on, he found out that the second fruit was acquired by two people, an old man, and a middle-aged man. They teamed up and were able to escape successfully with the fruit. When he heard all this, he knew the fruit he found was most likely the treasure. ''Since they successfully escaped, that means the man was attacked after their escape. There are only two possibilities for the man''s death, either he was attacked by his partner, or they were attacked'' deduced Grey. From all the clues he was picking out, he was already over seventy percent sure the fruit he found was the treasure they all battled for. ''Hehehe, I didn''t even do anything, yet the treasure came to me'' He laughed in his heart. If the people around found out someone acquired the treasure without even fighting for it, they would be dumbfounded. Grey paid for his tea before heading out to get a horse he''ll use for his journey. Since he was rich now, there was no way he was going to walk back the same way he came. He bought a high-quality horse and also some food he''ll eat on the way. Morning of the second day... A horse was galloping along the path that leads to the Lunar Academy. Grey sat on top of the horse with a calm and steady presence. It''s surprising how just a few days could change a person. "I''m finally back," Grey said as he looked at the majestic gate in front of him. He got off the horse and went into the Academy on foot. As he entered the Academy, he felt like he only went out yesterday. He first headed towards the mission hall to submit his mission. When he got there, the student he saw was different from the one who handed out the mission to him. He submitted the mission and collected the reward before heading towards the students living quarters. Grey decided to visit Klaus before heading to his house, but when he got there, Klaus wasn''t at home. "Maybe he went to the city" He assumed and walked towards his house. He planned on visiting Reynolds after he settled down. When he got home, it was just like he had left it. Only it was dusty, he decided to clean it before heading over to Reynolds place. After he was done, he went over to Reynolds place. Luckily, he found him at home, "Hey Rey" called out Grey as he walked into the house. "Grey, you''re back," Reynolds said as he walked towards his friend and gave him a hug. "Yeah" answered Grey after managing to break free from the clutches of his friend. "How was your mission?" Reynolds asked as he sat down. "It was a piece of cake" Grey sat down beside his friend. Grey asked about what had happened since he went out of the Academy. He found out the fighting between the Starlight Academy students and the Lunar Academy students had intensified. The students of the Lunar Academy started retaliating when they found out about the attacks their students faced. The Emperor summoned the Principal of both Academies to resolve the issue. Although both Academy''s students had stopped attacking each other, they knew it was only for the time being. Grey asked if Blake had returned to his office, thankfully he had returned. He decided to go see him after leaving Reynolds place. When he asked Reynolds about the whereabouts of Klaus, it was just as he had predicted, Klaus was at Lunar City. Grey stayed there for some time before heading over to Blake''s office, he still didn''t know why Chris wanted to see him after he had broken through to the Arcane Plane. When he got to the office, he knocked. After some time, he heard Blake''s voice telling him to enter before he went inside. Blake looked at him for some time. He could tell Grey was different from the last time he saw him. "What can I help you with?" asked Blake. "Senior Chris told me to come find you after I broke through to the Arcane Plane. He said I should tell you to take me to him" Grey stated his reason for coming. "Oh, come with me" After hearing it had to do with Chris, he stood up quickly and walked out of the office. Grey followed him, soon they were at the gate of the Academy. He was surprised when Blake took him outside the Academy. They headed towards the back of the Academy, just past where Grey usually does his training. They soon got to a huge rock. Blake made some seals and struck a spot on the rock. A path opened and they walked inside. Grey had seen this rock before but didn''t think it was something important. Who would investigate every rock he sees?. In the valley ahead of them, Chris was sitting on a chair with his eyes closed. The Griffin which brought Grey here could be seen not too far from him. When they went closer, the Griffin raised its head and looked over. After seeing it was Blake and Grey, it dropped its head and continued its nap. "You''re finally here" Chris suddenly spoke up, "What took you so long?, from my deductions, you should have broken through two weeks ago" He added. "I did break through two weeks ago Senior, it''s just I couldn''t find instructor Blake to bring me here" Grey explained. Chris darted a glance at Blake waiting for an explanation. Blake dropped his head embarrassed, "That was the time I went over to the Water Hall". Chris didn''t ask any further since he knew what happened. He suddenly raised his brow and looked at Grey, after careful observation, "How did you advance so fast?" he asked in a surprised voice. Grey was surprised by how quickly Chris was able to notice his breakthrough even without him releasing his aura. He had to applaud Chris''s sharp senses, even Blake didn''t take note. When Blake heard this, he looked at Grey with interest. "I was lucky to obtain a natural treasure when I went on a mission at the Misty Mountain," Grey told them what happened in the mountain, omitting the part he used that unknown state. "You''re truly fortunate. You didn''t even go to the treasure, it was brought to you" Blake said with envy. Grey''s luck was amazing. "The Misty Mountain you say?" Chris went into deep thoughts. "Did you tell anyone else about this?" Chris asked. "No" Grey answered. "Good, keep it that way. If anyone asks just say it''s a secret or tell a lie" Chris said offhandedly. "And you, don''t tell this to anyone" He looked at Blake. Blake nodded his head before leaving. "Senior Chris" Grey called after seeing he hadn''t said anything to him. "Yes" "Do you live here?" "Yes" "I thought you lived at the Academy?" "It''s too noisy" Grey was left speechless by the answer, ''you call that place noisy?''. Due to the lack of students, the Academy is just too big for the students. Even Grey feels it''s too quiet since one rarely sees students around the area. "Release your spiritual energy" Chris suddenly said. Grey raised his head and looked at him, surprised by his request. He didn''t think too much and just did as he was told. A formless energy spread out with Grey at the middle. Grey looked at him with confusion. "Do you want to be my student?" Chris asked. "Your student" "Yes. Now answer, I don''t have all day" Grey was surprised by it and didn''t know how to reply. He knew Chris wasn''t simple and from the way Blake treated him, his status must be something else. "Yes" "Good" "Now as your teacher, the first task I have for you is to make me lunch," Chris said as he pointed at a bunny by the side. Chapter 51：Teacher II Chris was happily eating the bunny he asked Grey to prepare for him. ''Having a student who knows how to make good meals really has its perks'' Chris regretted not having a student sooner. If he had known, he would have just accepted Grey as a student the moment he came to the Academy. Although he was interested in Grey, it was just from the fact that he felt it was quite amazing to experience both of Grey''s tests. He started having thoughts of taking Grey as a student after he tasted Grey''s cooking. This was the only way he could think of to get Grey to cook for him frequently. After he was done eating, "Do you know about arrays?" asked Chris. When Grey heard him mention arrays, he was suddenly reminded of the books he had read regarding arrays. Although there wasn''t much information about them, this was not the first he heard about it. "A little" replied Grey. Chris stood up and went into the cabin behind him. After some time, he came back out with a bunch of scrolls. He tossed them at Grey, "This contains the basics of arrays. After reading this, you should have a good idea about it". Grey caught the scrolls before sitting down not too far from Chris and started reading the scrolls. After reading the introductions, Grey understood why Chris asked him to release his spiritual energy. Without strong spiritual energy, it was almost impossible to make arrays. The stronger your spiritual energy, the easier it is for you to make them. Grey didn''t expect Chris was an array master, talk less of taking him as a student. He felt he was extremely lucky for Chris to choose him. If only he knew what made Chris take him as a student, he might probably faint from exasperation. While Grey was still reading the scrolls, Chris suddenly asked. "Have you heard of Inscribers?" Grey thought for a while before shaking his head, "No". Chris didn''t seem surprised with Grey''s reply, he only asked just to confirm. Although a lot of people knew about arrays, only a few knew about inscribers. "Let me show you something," said Chris. He suddenly stretched out his and some fire arrows suddenly formed and struck the lake close to them. After that attack died down, a symbol suddenly appeared in the sky about two meters in diameter. Fire arrows suddenly rained down from the symbol. "What is the difference between both attacks?" Chris asked while looking at Grey. Grey thought for a while before responding, "The second attack is faster and stronger than the first". Chris nodded, "What I just did was air inscription. Although it''s not very effective in a one-on-one fight since it takes time to inscribe the symbol, it''s terrifying when it comes to attacking groups. You can make the range of the attack wider, and it also has a longer range" Chris explained. "This is like a branch of arrays. Without in-depth knowledge of arrays, you won''t be able to inscribe" Chris continued. "I''ll tell you more about it tomorrow, take these scrolls home and study them. Come tomorrow at the same time" Chris made a shooing gesture indicating for Grey to leave. Grey didn''t stay any further and bid his farewell to his teacher before turning to head out. When he was about to walk past the passageway, he suddenly remembered something and turned back inside. "What else?" Chris asked on seeing Grey coming back. "I don''t know how to get past the rock if I want to come back tomorrow," Grey said. "Oh that!, it''s easy, just hit the spot which has a spiral shape on the lower left of the rock," Chris said. "But I saw Instructor Blake making weird hand seals" Grey voiced his confusion. He remembered how Instructor Blake made complicated-looking hand seals before striking the rock. "Haha, that''s just to confuse people who try to sneak in here. Although anyone who is successful regrets it, hehehe" Chris laughed. From the looks of it, someone might have been successful in entering the place but met misfortune afterwards. "Okay, you can leave now. Don''t disturb me" Chris chased Grey out after telling him how to get through the rock. Grey left the valley, after heading out, he searched for the spiral symbol on the lower left of the rock. Where it was located wasn''t too low, it was located around the height of his chest. He carefully examined the rock and found there were different symbols on it. After examining the rock, he left intrigued by how this rock was the doorway to a valley. The rock was stuck in a mountain. Grey walked to the other side of the mountain but was unable to find the valley, it was fascinating to him. When he was in the valley, he could clearly see the sky. After contemplating for a while without being able to deduce a convincing method, he decided to let it be and head back to the Academy. He headed towards Klaus'' place after entering the Academy since he knew Klaus would be back by now. When Klaus heard someone barging into his house without knocking, he was about to fly off the handle. But when he heard the voice, his anger suddenly turned to joy as he hadn''t seen his friend for two weeks now. "Haha, I was just thinking of when you''d return" Klaus laughed happily as he got up to welcome his friend. They fist-bumped before Grey went to take a sit. "I came to your place after I returned, but you weren''t at home, I guessed you must have gone to the city," said Grey. "You know me too well," Klaus said with a laugh. Grey noticed his friend was in a happier mood than usual, "Did something good happen?" He couldn''t help but ask. "Haha, yes of course" Klaus laughed again. Grey chuckled when he saw his friend laughing. "Do you remember Leanne?" Klaus asked with a smile. "That girl we met at the city gate?" Grey asked to confirm if it was who Klaus was talking about. "Yes" replied Klaus. "What''s up with her?" Grey asked since he didn''t know why his friend brought up her name. "She''s now my girlfriend" Klaus proudly declared. Grey stared wide-eyed at his friend, "What about Danielle?". "Dani" Klaus sighed, "We just weren''t meant to be" He added. "But you said you felt something special from her?" Grey said. Clearly confused about this whole relationship thing. "I thought I did. But I suddenly felt she wasn''t the one" Klaus said sadly. "I was lost in the darkness of my little world, and then Leanne came in, she lit up my entire world" Klaus''s sad face immediately turned into a smiling one. "This was exactly what you said after breaking up with Trista and hooking up with Danielle," said Grey in exasperation. "I know, but the feeling I get from Leanne penetrates deep into my very core," Klaus said still grinning. "The last time you said the feeling you got from Danielle penetrates deep into your skin. Now, the one you get from Leanne goes deep into your core" Grey felt a headache when he looked at his buddy who was grinning like an idiot. In one year, Klaus had already broken up with nine different girls. Grey didn''t know how their relationships even worked in the first place. He decided to just let it be, since talking more about wouldn''t make a difference. After they fooled around for some time. "Hey Grey" Klaus suddenly said. "Hrm" Grey raised his head to look at his friend. "Do you know about the competition held among the Academies every five years?" asked Klaus. "No, I haven''t heard about that" Grey shook his head. Klaus went on to tell Grey about the competition. The competition was held at Capital City, the city where the Emperor resides. It would be a contest among the students of each Academy, the winners always receive some amazing rewards from the Emperor. People say the Emperor did this competition, so he would be able to know all the young talents in the empire and build a solid relationship with them. No one truly knows the reason, but the competition is something that was always anticipated by the citizens since it was the only time the gates of the Capital City would be opened to all. "There''s still three months before the competition, I should be able to break through before then," Grey said confidently. Chapter 52：Underground Fight Club The next morning, Grey got up early like always and went over for his physical training. After two hours of hard training, he went home for a bath before heading to the Lightning Hall. After leaving the Lightning Hall, he headed over to the library since he needed to practice new techniques. His current schedule was insane since now he barely even has time for any other thing apart from training. He headed over to meet with Chris for his array training. When he entered, he noticed the Griffin was not in the valley. Chris came out of the cabin shortly after his arrival. "Did you study the scrolls?" asked Chris. "Not all of them" answered Grey. After leaving Klaus'' place, he went over to Alice''s place since she would probably attack him if she finds out he had returned and didn''t visit her. He only started reading after his visits, but he was able to read most of the scrolls. "Okay, you''ll continue studying them," said Chris. "But first and foremost, before you start studying, make me lunch" Chris added shamelessly. He got some chickens and pigs now, so there would be a variety of meats for Grey to choose from when making lunch. Grey was startled by his request again but didn''t think too much, he quickly made lunch for him before starting his study. Two weeks passed in this manner, Grey would almost always do the same things. The only changes were when he would go to the Earth Hall or the Wind Hall. Although he was only a student of the Earth and Lightning Hall, he was free to head over to the Wind Hall any time. The only problem was getting wind elemental techniques from the library since he was only entitled to collecting only earth and lightning elemental techniques. Before taking techniques out of the library, the student will have to register it with their school ID. So there is no way for him to take an elemental technique that wasn''t in his ID. He had gotten some benefits from going to the Wind Hall, but it didn''t amount to much. Another two weeks went by without any change. Grey was already making good progress in his training with Chris, although it''s small, it was a good start. He had to read different scrolls for over two weeks before Chris felt he was ready to try out making small-scale arrays. He hasn''t been able to hang out with his friends during this month. Klaus came over several times, but they didn''t do anything fun since they only talked about a few things. What shocked Grey was the fact that Klaus was still with his girlfriend, he thought they would have already broken up since Klaus rarely stays up to the one-month mark. He had sparring sessions with Alice, Reynolds, and Klaus. They were all surprised by how fast he had advanced. Now, only Alice was ahead of him in cultivation. She was already in the Eight stage of the Arcane Plane, Reynolds was in the same plane as he was. Klaus was lower by a single stage. The competition was a grand event for the students since they would get a chance to show their abilities to everyone in the empire. Grey who was about to head out suddenly saw Alice, Reynolds, and Klaus walking towards his house. "Good thing we came early, any later than this, and we would''ve missed him," Reynolds said. "We''re heading to the city, are you coming along?" asked Klaus. Before Grey could reply, Alice spoke up. "Why are you even bothering to ask him, of course, he''s coming with us," said Alice. Grey felt a headache, he was about to head over to the valley for his array training. "Sorry guys, I really can''t go this time, I have to go train". "You said the same thing last time" The group all felt Grey trained too much. He rarely has time to go out and have fun. "You train too much, you should go out with us today," Alice said walking towards Grey. "I really can''t guys, sorry" Grey stood by his first answer. "Are you sure nothing can change your mind?" Alice asked with a grin. "Absolutely not" affirmed Grey. Thirty minutes later, Grey and his friends could be seen passing through the gate of Lunar City. On the way, Klaus was still stunned by the scene that played out when Alice tried to ''persuade'' Grey. It seems Alice''s definition of ''persuasion'' was to beat up the person until they agree to her demands. At first, Grey managed to keep up with her, but after she got serious, Grey gave in. Reynolds and Klaus had already decided they would never allow Alice to persuade them for anything in this world. They gloated at Grey''s misfortune. "Grey, so what changed your mind?" Reynolds asked for the tenth time while they were walking. When Klaus heard the question, he started laughing. Grey glared at them but refused to answer. He still felt pain in some parts of his body, he never expected Alice would use such methods. "Alice I sincerely approve of your persuasion methods. If I ever want to get Grey out of his place, you''re the one I''ll take with me" Klaus gave Alice a thumbs up. "Anytime" Alice replied with a giggle. Grey looked at her with fearful eyes, she was a terrifying opponent. But he didn''t really take it seriously. If it were to be a real battle, even though he knew he couldn''t defeat Alice, he would definitely be able to escape given his speed. But he knew he also needed some time off from his daily training. He had been too focused on his training lately. They all joked and laughed as they walked into the city. Klaus suggested taking them to a place he newly discovered in the city. After walking for some time, they reached an old-looking building in a secluded part of the city. Klaus knocked on the door with a strange rhythm. The door was suddenly opened from the inside. Klaus told them to follow him as he walked inside. "What is this place?" Alice looked around with curious eyes. "You''ll know once we get to our destination," Klaus said mysteriously. They walked deeper into the building, after passing a series of doors, they started hearing noises. After passing through the last door, the newcomers stood rooted on the spot. They were in what seems to be a huge arena, with five battle platforms at the center of the arena. People were cheering for the fighters on the platforms. They looked around and estimated there were over three thousand people present here. "How did they even build this place," Reynolds asked dumbstruck. If he wasn''t taken here, there was no way he would believe there was a place like this in the city. "I asked the same question you did the first time I came here. This is an underground fight club, a friend of mine brought me here about a year ago when I came to the city" Klaus said. They searched for a place to sit and watched the battles going on. Grey was surprised to see a student he had seen in the Wind Hall on the battle platforms. Grey pointed out his discovery to his friends. "Students from the Academy come here to battle frequently since this is different from sparring with fellow students. Although deaths are a rare sight here, injuries are seen frequently" Klaus said. They all nodded. Grey hadn''t had a real battle since leaving the Misty Mountain, discovering this place was great for him. He could try out just how strong he had grown. After his previous breakthrough, he hadn''t fought a satisfying battle since. While they were still discussing, one of the battles ended with the student from the Wind Hall suffering a defeat by a small margin. "How do they choose fighters?" asked Alice enthusiastically. "You can either register to have a battle or take up a challenge if a fighter puts up a challenge" Klaus explained. Alice listened intently, Grey also focused on the conversation since he also wanted to ask the same question. Before long, a fighter stood on stage and challenged anyone from the crowd on the same stage as him. He was at the Eight stage of the Arcane Plane. ''This will be a good way to test myself'' thought Grey and charged towards the platform. "Whoosh" A silhouette suddenly appeared on the platform. Chapter 53：Underground Fight Club II Grey who was about to charge into the platform stopped in his tracks, he looked at the silhouette who appeared on the platform and shook his head. Alice was faster in making a move. She stood on the platform with an excited look. The crowd was surprised when they saw a little girl get on stage, but they couldn''t deny the fact that she was pretty fast. "Little girl, this isn''t a place for you" The man who made the challenge said towards Alice. Alice looked at him without bothering to reply, she turned towards the man in charge of the platform. The man didn''t know if to allow the fight at first since it would be dangerous for the little girl if her strength didn''t reach the required level. He looked back to get a confirmation from the organizers, only after they nodded their heads did he approve of the fight. The man looked at Alice again, "Seems like you''re not so simple. For the organizers to agree to you battling me, but I should warn you before we start, I don''t hold back even when my opponent is a little girl" Only after seeing that the battle would go on, did the crowd know the little girl should be able to protect herself. But they weren''t too optimistic about her chances of winning. "Begin" The man in charge called for the start of the battle. The man attacked with a huge water snake immediately after the battle started. Lightning crackled on Alice''s hand before she sent a huge sword made out of lightning towards the water snake, the sword cut through the snake before heading towards the man. Seeing this, the man made a wall of ice which successfully blocked the lightning sword. They continued exchanging moves back and forth. The crowd was awed by the strength Alice was displaying, even the man didn''t expect the little girl to be this strong. A glint flashed through his eyes as he started attacking more aggressively. "I pity him," said Grey suddenly towards his friends. Reynolds nodded also since he felt the same way. "Why did you say that?" Klaus asked. "If he had continued attacking with his previous style, although he would still lose given Alice''s strength, she wouldn''t beat him up too much" Reynolds was the one who spoke up this time. From the man''s attack, you could tell his grade is only Orange. This has given Alice the first advantage since her attack power is stronger. If the man was battling some other students on the same plane, he has an eighth out of ten chance of being victorious due to his experience. But Alice is totally different, she''s a battle maniac who enjoys fighting. She already has a great amount of experience from the multiple life and death battles she has engaged in when on a mission. Alice could barely find an opponent in the same stage as her. Grey and Reynolds had spent the most time with her, so they knew her well. The only reason the battle was still ongoing was just her seeking to enjoy a prolonged battle. Alice''s attacks suddenly started getting stronger, ''She wasn''t using her full strength previously'' The man was shocked in his heart and couldn''t help but start sweating. He had already used all his strength, but Alice was able to destroy his attacks. At first, he thought she was already at her end and was planning on how she would make a mistake he could capitalize on. The crowd was excited when they saw how spectacular the battle was turning out to be. They all felt lucky being able to watch such an intense battle, they prayed the battle would go on for longer. Only the experienced one''s knew the battle would come to an end soon since one of the fighters is already on his last leg. "That girl is strong," A shocked man said towards his partners. They nodded in response. Alice suddenly made a move that scared the hell out of her opponent, a huge wall made of fire suddenly sprang up around her opponent. They had been battling for some time now and Alice had only used the lightning element for her attacks. The sudden appearance of the fire wall scared and stunned him. He literally thought someone was interfering with the fight, but he knew no one would do that since they all knew the rules of the place. ''She''s a Dual Elementalists'' He felt more fear. Whenever he thought Alice had showed her true power, she would surprise him with something stronger. The walls limited the area he could move. This wasn''t the scariest part of it all. What truly scared him was the make-shift roof the fire walls had. When he looked up, all he could see was a sea of lightning which perfectly fit on top of the fire walls. The people outside suddenly saw a hut made of red and silver color appeared with the man stuck inside. "Dual Elementalists" They all said simultaneously. It was rare for a Dual Elementalists to appear here, especially someone so talented. "Checkmate" Alice said with a smile. The man who was about to attack and break through the fire walls suddenly felt a chill run down his spine. He raised his head and saw what looked like lightning spears coming out of the roof. When he looked at the walls, he saw the same thing happening only this time it was fire spears. His leg suddenly went soft, and he dropped to the ground. "I give up" He yelled at the top of his lungs to make sure the man in charge heard him clearly. The crowd was surprised by the terrified shout they heard. Alice pouted when she heard the man say this, "You''re no fun, you didn''t even try to block the attack" She complained while first extinguishing the walls and the roof. The crowd suddenly felt their eyes nearly jumped out of their heads. Even Grey and his friends were stupefied by the sight. "Did she plan on killing him?" Klaus couldn''t help but ask in a fearful voice. The man was shaking on the floor with lightning and fire spears surrounding him from all angles. They floated on the same spot for some time before just like the walls, they extinguished. "Had he been a little slower in admitting defeat, he would have definitely died from that attack" The crowd looked at the little girl in horror, they all knew there was no way the man could have been able to block that attack. Even some people at the Ninth stage of the Arcane Plane among the crowd were not confident they could block it. The man stood up with shaky legs, "Thank you" He said towards Alice before he pulled himself together and managed to walk away from the platform. He wasn''t stupid, if it were to be a life and death battle, Alice would have attacked sooner and not do everything slowly. He knew she was giving him a chance by taking her time to create the attack. If he was confident in blocking it, then he would take the attack head-on, but if he wasn''t, he could always admit defeat. Alice stood at the platform even after the man had left. She clearly wanted to challenge others as well. After the man in charge of the platform issued the challenge, no one stepped up. Even after five minutes, no one dared to step up. The man had to tell Alice to return since no one wanted to battle her and more battles were still supposed to take place. Alice left the platform dejectedly and walked towards her friends, she was clearly disappointed by the lack of opponents. Grey suddenly smacked his head, "Hey buddy, do they make bets here?" He asked Klaus. "Of course, before each battle starts, a betting pool would be opened for the two fighters" Klaus explained to Grey. "Damn," Grey said when he heard this. If only he had remembered this sooner, he would have bet his entire savings on Alice. He could have made a fortune. ''What a waste'' He complained. Alice sat down close to them still in a sad mood. "That attack of yours is not easy to pull off," Klaus said towards her. "Not really, but it''s still quite taxing to use it since you have to manipulate two elements at the same time. It''s getting easier for me now compared to when I first learned it" replied Alice. Grey confirmed what she said since he had also tried using two elements simultaneously, he had even tried using three. Although it''s taxing, once you get the hang of it, it becomes easier. It''s like multitasking yourself, once you get used to it, it becomes simple. After some time Grey later went on to battle, just like Alice he calmly defeated his opponent. But unlike Alice, he was able to have another battle. Since both Grey and Alice had participated in the battling, Klaus and Reynolds felt left out, so they also participated. Klaus won his first battle but lost the second one to an Elementalist who was two stages higher than him. After leaving the place, they walked into the city and did different fun things before heading back to the Academy after sunset. Chapter 54：You Call This An Array On their way back to the Academy, Klaus opted to stay behind. He wanted to see his girlfriend. The group left the city without him and headed back to the Academy, they all knew they had to train harder since the competition will be taking place within the next two months. Grey started cultivating immediately after getting home, he could feel his break through was just around the corner. After breaking through to the Late stages of the Arcane Plane, his strength would increase once again. The next day... Grey''s usual routine started, waking up early for his physical training before choosing to head to the Earth Hall today. After that, he went over for his array training. Immediately after he got into the valley, the first thing he did was head straight towards the farm. Chris surprisingly made a small place where the chickens, pigs, and bunnies were kept. Since Chris always asks him to prepare lunch before his training starts, he decided to prepare the meal immediately after entering to save Chris the stress of asking. When he was done with the meal, he started his training. "Why didn''t you come yesterday?" Chris asked while he was still eating. "I was about to come but Klaus, Reynolds, and Alice asked me to go with them to the city. Since I have been too busy with my training recently, I decided to take a break and go with them" Grey explained. "You shouldn''t train too hard, create some time for yourself," Chris said. He knew all about Grey''s tight schedule with his training. "Do you plan on participating in the competition?" Chris suddenly asked. "Yes," Grey nodded. This was the first competition he would take part in. He wanted to know how he would fare when placed among the younger generations. "Good" Chris nodded in approval. He knew Grey would definitely want to participate in it. "Your stage is still too low, you shouldn''t have a problem breaking into the Seventh stage before the competition. But you should be prepared because those who would participate in this competition are the best in their Academy, some are even more terrifying than that little lass you hang out with" Chris advised. Grey knew what he said was correct. Although he could fight across stages, he wasn''t the only one. Alice could do the same without any problem. But this also made him more determined on participating in the competition, battling with young geniuses would tell him just how far behind he was. This would be a new boost for him to grow quicker and better. "Set up the defensive array you have been practicing," said Chris. He wanted to see the progress Grey had made so far. Grey nodded and got to work. He carefully used his spiritual energy to guide the lightning element in the air and started making patterns on the ground. After two hours, he was done with the defensive array. The array only covered a diameter of three meters, this was the largest he could make currently. He activated it, and the array lit up. A translucent thin light came out from the array, it had strange lines on it with lightning flickering around it. This array also had attacking properties, if it was touched by anyone the lightning would immediately attack. It was a special property the lightning element gave it. The lightning element is mainly focused on attack, so even when made into a defensive array, it still had the unique attacking property. Chris nodded, he could tell Grey was improving at a very fast rate. This attributed to how focused Grey was in his training, Grey''s speed of learning wasn''t the best among all the people he knew, but the amount of time Grey puts into his training was insane. This was the edge he had over others, his learning speed wasn''t bad, it was just above average. Coupled with his hardworking nature, it wasn''t surprising he was advancing at this speed. "Brown" Chris called out to the Griffin. Brown raised her head to look at Chris. "Break the array" Chris pointed at the array. Brown got up with and steadily walked towards the array. After getting to the front of the array, she raised one of her talons and poked at it. Just like a shattered dream, the array came crumbling down. Grey stood stunned in the array, he didn''t expect something he put so much time into preparing was destroyed just like that. Brown looked at Grey in disdain, her eyes clearly asking ''you call this an array?''. "That came out wrong. You were supposed to try out the strength of the array". Chris said with a light embarrassed laugh. Grey just stood still, he still couldn''t believe what happened. Chris looked at him and laughed. "Don''t be discouraged, she only struck the weak link of the array that was why it broke so easily" Chris comforted him. Brown is knowledgeable about arrays, so breaking an array with the weak link was normal for her. She wouldn''t be able to break the array a master set so easily since it would be hard to find its weak link. After hearing what Chris said, Grey was able to figure out the rest. Without proficient knowledge of arrays, there was no way she would know where the weak link was located. It seems she is even more knowledgeable about arrays than he was. Grey took a short break since making arrays was taxing on his spiritual energy, only after getting sufficient rest did he make the array once again. This time, Chris made sure to remind Brown to test out the strength of the array. Brown did as ordered and attacked the array. Her first attack wasn''t too strong, when it hit the array, the lights dimmed a little but shone after some time. She increased the strength before attacking it again. When the second attack hit it, cracks appeared on the array. The cracks increased before the array fell apart. "Not bad, the current strength of it could withstand the attack of a Third stage Arcane Plane Elementalist" Chris acknowledged the strength of the array. Grey felt the same way when he made the array, so the confirmation from Chris proves his senses were right. The strength of the array would increase as he improves in the act. After staying in the valley for another hour, he went back home and started practicing the new techniques he took from the library. When he was done with his practice, he started cultivating. He only entered the chaos space after cultivating. Grey''s schedule was exactly the same every day, he rarely had time to visit his friends. Klaus was the first among them to make a breakthrough, he was able to break through to the Sixth stage of the Arcane Plane one week later. Grey and Alice made a breakthrough after another two weeks. The time of the competition was getting closer by the day. When it was one month left before the competition, the empire announced the quotas for each Academy. The students were all surprised by the number of students participating from each Academy. Even the citizens were also shocked. Normally, the number of spots each Academy had has always been fifteen. But for this competition, it was suddenly increased by ten. They all figured something must be going on for the sudden increase in numbers. With an increased number of spots, the competition would be fierce. Each student would want to grab a spot from their Academy, so they could participate. Most of the students rejoiced since they would get an opportunity to grab a spot. After the quota was announced, the Lunar Academy also announced how the spots were to be given. Fourteen spots had already been taken by the students in the Ninth stage of the Arcane Plane, a tournament would be held to determine the remaining eleven spots. The tournament was to be held in two weeks. The entire Academy was immediately filled with activity, each student wanted to progress before the tournament, so they could participate in the competition. Fighting in the competition platform was a dream for most of the students since only the best students get the chance to fight there. The days moved faster, and soon it was time for the tournament. The Academy advised only those at the Late stages of the Arcane Plane should participate in the tournament, but if any student felt they were strong enough, they could also take part in it. Reynolds was able to break through to the Seventh stage of the Arcane Plane just before the day of the tournament, giving him increased confidence in his chances of obtaining a spot for the competition. Finally, the day the students were all waiting arrived, it was the day of the tournament... Chapter 55：Lucky Bastard The arena of the Lunar Academy was filled with the little students they had. This tournament would decide the remaining eleven spots for the competition. Grey hadn''t battled with anyone from the Academy except for Alice, Reynolds, and Klaus. He was quite expectant towards the students of the Academy, he knew almost all the students of the Academy were talented due to the strict rules of the Academy. The rules for other Academies were less rigid, but it didn''t change the fact that the other Academies also had talented individuals. The Starlight isn''t the publicly acclaimed number one for nothing, they had won the previous two competitions comfortably. But this time, the Lunar Academy seems to have more geniuses compared to the previous times. During the last competition, the Starlight Academy had three people in the top ten. That was the highest number of students a single Academy had in the top ten in the history of the competition. The Lunar Academy grabbed two spots in the previous competition with both students being in the top seven, one was placed second while the other was seventh. The Academy aims for the top spot, but the Starlight Academy wouldn''t be that easy to defeat. Grey and his friends came to the arena, Alice also came to watch to support her friends who were participating. She would love it if they all could participate in the competition, so she came to cheer them up. When Grey and his friends went to register, they were each given plaques with numbers on them. Since they registered at the same time, their numbers were close. Grey''s plaque had the number fifty-five, while Klaus had fifty-four, Reynolds had fifty-six. The number of students registering was still increasing. Soon an instructor came to the platform, all the students ceased their conversations on seeing the instructor on stage. "The registration has ended, now each student who registered for the tournament should come towards the platform," The instructor said in a clear and resonant voice. All the participating students got up from their seats and walked towards the platform. "One hundred and seven students are participating. The tournament would last for ten days, with twenty battles taking place each day" The instructor said. "One student will be exempted from this first round since we can only have fifty-three battles in the first round. The student who has plaque number one will battle the student with plaque number one hundred and seven, number two would battle number one hundred and six and so on" The instructor continued. "The student with the plaque number fifty-four would advance automatically into the next round. After this round is finished, those who advanced will get new plaque numbers" The students all knew their numbers, some of them started searching for who their potential opponents were. When Klaus heard the student with the plaque number fifty-four advanced automatically, he was over the moon with joy. Reynolds looked at him with envy, even Grey couldn''t help but click his tongue at his luck. Grey was supposed to be the first one to register, but Klaus jumped in front of him and therefore collected the lucky number as it seems. The instructor ordered them all to step down from the platform, there were four platforms in the arena altogether and battles would take place on each of them simultaneously. The students with plaque numbers one to four and plaque numbers one hundred and seven to one hundred and four all stood opposite their opponents on the platforms. "Remember to give up once you feel you can''t deal with the attack of your opponent. This is not a life and death battle so there is no need to endure till your last breath, although we encourage your courage, it doesn''t mean you should get yourself killed" "Once you see your opponent can no longer fight back, you are not allowed to continue attacking. After your opponent admits defeat, you are not allowed to attack them" "Are we clear?" The instructor asked after telling them the rules. "Yes" The fighters answered together. "Alright, begin" The instructor nodded his head before leaving the platform and going to the side. He would step in immediately any of the students is in danger. Instructors were also assigned to the other three platforms, after they were all ready, the battles commenced. Grey and his friends decided to stay and watch the battles, there would be twenty battles today, and they weren''t among the fighters. Watching the battles of others was a good way to also learn. The students who weren''t participating in the tournament because of their low levels were all watching the battles with interest. They were all excited at the thought of the battles since they all enjoyed watching battles. There would be five sets of battles taking place today on all four platforms which would make a total of twenty battles for the day. They sat till the third set of battles before Grey decided to leave, since he wouldn''t be participating in any of the battles for today, he wanted to train. He first headed over to meet with Chris, he practiced for two hours before heading to his house to continue his training. They watched the battles on the second day as well but didn''t stay till the end. Klaus was more carefree among them since he didn''t have to battle in this round. The next day, Grey and his friends came to the arena early. He still didn''t know his opponent and didn''t really care, whoever stood in his way, he would storm past them. There were only thirteen battles left for this round to come to a close and Grey''s battle was the last battle. Reynolds would be battling before Grey did. He would be part of the third set to battle today, Grey and his opponent would be the only ones in the fourth set. "Do you know who you''re fighting?" asked Reynolds. Grey shook his head, "I don''t, how about you, do you know who you''re fighting?". "Hehehe, I''m quite lucky, my opponent is Larry from the Fire Hall. He''s at the Sixth stage of the Arcane Plane, so I shouldn''t have a problem defeating him" Reynolds scratched his head before answering. Although he said this, he knew he shouldn''t underestimate his opponent. When he was in the Sixth stage, he didn''t have a problem with battling those at the Seventh stage. Even if he couldn''t beat them, he wasn''t totally helpless against them. Grey nodded when he heard this. Getting to battle someone at the Sixth stage wasn''t challenging for him. He didn''t believe anyone in a lower stage than he was could defeat him. Yes, he was that confident. "Don''t dare return here if you don''t advance to the next round. I mean look at me, I''ve already advanced. I am too awesome that my opponent had to admit defeat even before seeing me" Klaus said shamelessly. "Yes, I agree with him" Alice added. Grey and Reynolds glared at Klaus. "Lucky bastard," They said simultaneously. "Hehehe, you don''t have to feel bad, as long as you decide to follow me for the rest of your lives, I could allow you to rub off some of my awesomeness. If you guys were awesome just by a little bit, you wouldn''t have a problem getting a girlfriend" Klaus laughed loudly. Alice also joined in the laughing when she heard this. If looks could kill, then Klaus would have already died ten times by now with the way Grey and Reynolds were glaring at him. While they were bantering, it soon got to Reynolds turn to head towards the platform. After this set of battles, it would be Grey''s turn. "Make sure to win," Alice said. "Of course, I can''t bring shame to our group right?" Reynolds asked with a smile as he walked confidently towards the platform. Both fighters on the platform majored in the offensive, their elements were focused mainly on attacking, so it was going to be an interesting battle. The battles soon started and Reynolds charged towards his opponent before sending an orb made of lightning towards his opponent. When the orb got within ten feet of his opponent, it immediately exploded and sent lightning towards him. On seeing the attack, Larry didn''t panic and used a sea of flames to block out the attack. He knew there was no way he could match up to Reynolds in terms of speed, so he had to keep a cool head and defended calmly. The battle went on for some time and Reynolds couldn''t find a chance to deal a strong attack on Larry, he didn''t rush and took his time. He knew just like how he was searching for an opportunity, his opponent was also doing the same. Their battle was the most intense one among all the battles which were taking place. It was as spectacular as it was colorful due to the series of attacks from both fighters. "Larry is cool-headed, if he were to be in the same stage as Reynolds, he would have won already," said Klaus. "You''re not totally right, you should know Reynolds by now," Grey said. If Reynolds failed to defeat his opponent with his first flurry of attacks, he would immediately change his strategy to something better suited for his opponent. While they were still talking Larry suddenly screamed in pain before collapsing on the floor, shaking violently. The crowd was surprised by the sudden change, they were all enjoying the battle and Larry suddenly screamed and collapsed. Reynolds immediately stopped his attack, he smiled and walked out of the platform. Others might not know what happened, but he knew. Over the course of his flurry of attacks, he was carefully leaving behind little lightning elements on the air in the platform, if his opponent focused intently they might be able to sense the disturbance in the surrounding elements. But due to the high intensity of their fight, Larry didn''t notice it. The elements attached themselves to Larry, after it got to the required amount where it could totally incapacitate his opponent without killing him, he activated them. "Reynolds win" The instructor announced the result. Reynolds walked towards his friends confidently. "How was it?" He asked. "Not bad, your strategy was amazing, even I wouldn''t notice it," Grey said, he was stunned by the attack his friend used. Although it took time, it was very effective. They all laughed before the instructor called out the last battle. "Next up, plaque number fifty-three and fifty-five" "They''re calling me, I''ll be back soon" Grey stood up and calmly headed towards the platform with calm and confident footsteps. "Good luck," Klaus said. "Yeah, luck" a little smile formed on his face. Chapter 56：Inscribing Grey stood calmly on the platform and stared at his opponent, he couldn''t help but sigh with disappointment. His opponent was a girl from the Wind Hall, Grey had seen her some of the times he had attended classes there. Although they weren''t friends, they were still acquainted. She was in the Seventh stage of the Arcane Plane, but there was no way she was an opponent for Grey. Although he was disappointed, he didn''t show it out, so it wouldn''t feel like he was looking down on her. "Hello," She said towards Grey. "Hello," Grey waved at her with a smile. "Begin," The instructor said after both fighters got on the platform. "Please go easy on me," The girl said gently before using a movement technique to try to attack Grey with the element of surprise. When she appeared beside Grey and sent out an attack, Grey suddenly disappeared from where he stood and appeared on the other side of the platform. He looked at his opponent calmly with a smile still plastered on his face. The girl sent another attack towards Grey, but just like before, Grey was able to easily evade all the attacks. The girl went on attacking with Grey easily dodging them. "You should just give up," Grey said with a sigh. He had already gotten a lot of chances to end the battle, but he didn''t want her to feel bad if the battle ended too quickly. The girl looked at him and bit her lower lips, from this little exchange, she knew she wasn''t an opponent for Grey. But she didn''t want to give up without even trying harder. "No" She shook her head stubbornly. "Okay," Grey answered before disappearing from her view once again. There was no need to extend the fight any longer, he had already allowed her to show some of her abilities. The sooner he ends this, the quicker he could start training for today. Earth spikes suddenly came out of the ground, the girl immediately jumped upwards in a bid to dodge the attack. While she was still airborne, Grey appeared behind her and struck her on the neck. Since she was a student from the Academy, he didn''t want to hurt her. She was surprised by the sudden appearance of Grey behind her, before she could think of a way to maneuver, she suddenly blacked out. Grey caught the unconscious girl so she wouldn''t hurt herself before handing her over to the instructor. The instructor nodded when he saw Grey''s conduct, it was clean and effective. He could tell Grey was not like most of the students from how he fought, Grey must have engaged in different life and death battles. After handing her to the instructor, Grey walked out of the platform, it was like he didn''t even take part in the fight that just took place. Only the students at the Eighth stage could excite him a little, but he wasn''t sure they could make him go all out. Only those at the Ninth stage were the ones he regarded as his true opponents. If not for wanting to take part in the competition, he would have just focused on his training and not bother himself with all this. "All the students who advanced should come to the platform" The instructor called out. Since there was still time, the students would receive their new numbers today, so they could know the order of fighting tomorrow. All fifty-four students stood on the platform. There were fifty-three battles during the first round, half of the students advanced while the other half were eliminated. Klaus got an automatic advancement, that made them fifty-four students in total who made it to the second round. "Since the number of students tally, all students would fight in this round" The instructor explained before bringing out a big box which was filled with plaques. The students already knew they would all battle after they did the calculations. "Come forward and pick a plaque," The instructor said. The numbers were placed randomly, so there was no way the students could choose who they wanted to fight with. The first person went over to pick a plaque, the others followed in an orderly manner. Soon all the plaques had been taken. "Just like the first round, the student with plaque number one would battle number fifty-four and so on. There would be twenty battles each day just like the last round also" The instructor said before dismissing the students. "What number did you get" Klaus curiously. "I''m forty-three," said Grey. "I''m fourteen," said Reynolds "I''m six, luckily you guys won''t have to face me," Klaus said with a smile. After leaving the arena, Grey headed over to the valley. He was looking forward to his training today since Chris told him he could start learning inscription today. The thought of learning inscription excited him. Even though it was slower, its attack power was higher. Besides, as he continues training in it, the time it would take would decrease, till it will become almost instantaneous. When he got to the valley, he went to prepare the meal they would all eat. He joins Chris most of the time when he was eating, even Brown has grown to like the food Grey cooked. So she was always excited whenever he came. Over the period Grey had been coming, he had formed a close relationship with Brown. Chris always eats before he starts teaching Grey. "How was your battle today?" Chris asked after they were done eating. "It was disappointing" Grey shook his head. "Why did you say that?" Chris asked curiously. "Although my opponent is not weak, she''s not really my match," Grey told Chris what happened. "You shouldn''t have an equal in the same stage, I don''t think those in the Eighth stage can also pose a threat to you. Your real opponents are those in the Ninth stage" Chris said. Grey nodded. He also felt that way. "But there are some people in the Eighth stage who are terrifying, they are very rare though" Chris added. "I know," said Grey. If he broke through to the Eighth stage, he would also be regarded as one of those terrifying ones, if not even stronger. "Good, now to the business of today. I would teach you the basics of inscribing. Since you already have a good foundation in arrays, it shouldn''t really be too hard for you to do" Chris went on to teach Grey how to inscribe. "It''s just like making an array, only quicker, and it''s done on the air," Grey said. "Yes. Now that you know the basics, with your knowledge of arrays, you shouldn''t have a problem with it" Chris went back to his chair. Since he had already shown Grey what to do, all he had to do was watch Grey practice and correct him if he makes any mistakes. Grey followed Chris'' instructions and tried inscribing, but failed. It was within his expectations as he didn''t think he would be able to make it immediately. He continued with his practice, although he was failing, from his failure he was able to get more experience with inscribing. After staying till sunset, Grey headed home. He was unable to inscribe, but he had made some progress nonetheless. He did his usual training after getting home before going to bed. Since he would be battling tomorrow, he wanted to be in his best condition. Hopefully, he gets a worthy opponent. The next morning, they all gathered at Grey''s place before heading towards the arena. When they got to the arena, just like before students were already there to cheer on the fighters. After the instructors arrived, they immediately called for the students to start the second round. The first set of battles began heatedly. In one of the platforms, two students at the Eighth stage of the Arcane Plane were battling. It was totally unexpected since the number of students in the Eighth stage was few. Due to how random each of the fights is, students in the Eighth stage also battled during the first round. Now in the second round, they were also battling. The students in the Eighth stage who were eliminated would be unlucky since there are students they were stronger than. But this had nothing to do with the Academy, although they wanted to take their best students there, they still couldn''t act unfairly. Besides, without competent abilities, it would be impossible to advance. The battle was very tight, but just like all battles in a tournament, there was a winner. The student from the Earth Hall was able to beat the one from the Fire Hall. After the first round of battles, the second round began. Klaus would take part in the second round of the battle, it was the first time he was going to fight, and he couldn''t help but be excited. His opponent was from the Water Hall just like him but was one stage higher than him. Among the group, Klaus was the one who is the most playful, but they all knew deep down, he was just as hardworking as they were. Klaus could also battle across stages, so the result of the battle was unknown. After a long fight, Klaus was able to clinch victory. He was nearly defeated a couple of times, but he managed to pull through and win. It was Grey''s turn the next set, and just like the last time, he got someone who was at the Seventh stage. The only difference was his opponent was a boy from the Water Hall. ''How disappointing'' Grey sighed in his heart as he looked at his opponent. He didn''t waste his time and ended the battle quickly since he had to go practice. Chapter 57：You Again! Reynolds came up and also won his battle against a student at the Seventh stage of the Arcane Plane. The student was from the Earth Hall, so he mostly focused on defense, Reynolds just bombarded him with a series of attacks until his opponent made a mistake from the pressure. After Reynolds battle came to an end, the group exited the arena. Since they had already battled, they had no other reason to stay. They all wanted to go train and focus on the next task ahead. Grey headed to the valley, to continue practicing inscribing. It wasn''t going to be easy, the only way he could truly get the hang of it was through trying continuously. He failed, he tried again, he failed again, he tried again. The cycle went on till he went home. Even after getting home, he still continued with his practice. He could feel he wasn''t too far away from making his first inscription. So he continued doing it even after the failed attempts. Since he wouldn''t be having a battle tomorrow, he stayed up late because of his practice. The night passed with Grey still being unsuccessful, he managed to get up early, albeit tired. The pressure inscribing placed on spiritual energy was huge, and because he did it over again the previous day, he was exhausted. "There is no way I can practice this today" Grey knew he was at his limit, if he tried to force himself, it would only be causing more harm than good. Twenty battles took place yesterday so today only seven battles would be fought. After the battles, they would have to pick a new number. This was the reason Grey came. They didn''t come to the arena on time though, by the time they arrived the first set of battles were just rounding up. They found a seat and waited patiently for the second set to finish, so they could pick their new numbers and head back home. The second set soon started and they all watched the match, Grey was particularly lazy due to the stress of his training. He just wanted to head home and get some sleep, he wasn''t confident he could even prepare a meal for Chris, so he decided to head home for a rest. After some time, the second round ended. The instructor once again stepped into the arena. "All students who advanced should come to the platform," said the instructor. They all stood up from their respective seats and headed towards the platform. The number of students had reduced from one hundred and seven to a meager number of twenty-seven. "Just like the first round, a student will get automatic advancement since there is an extra student. The student who picks plaque number fourteen would gain automatic advancement" After saying this he took out the box and placed it in front of him. "Now step forward and pick a plaque," The instructor said. The plaques were all facing downwards, so there is no way for the students to know which one had the number fourteen. As they were lining up to go pick the plaques, Klaus wanted to get in front of Grey, but Reynolds immediately held him and pushed him towards his back, and stepped in front of Grey. There was no way he was going to allow Klaus to do the same thing twice. They were the last three on the line, so they would get to pick the last three plaques. When Grey thought about the first incident, he also pushed Klaus behind him. Now Klaus was the last person on the line, he wouldn''t even get a chance to choose which plaque he would like to pick. Although the picking was random, the chances of getting the plaque numbered fourteen was much higher than when he had to pick the last plaque. Klaus complained when he saw how they were acting, but no matter how much he talked to them, they refused to let him be ahead of them. Soon it was the last three plaques, Reynolds was the first to step up, and he picked one of the plaques. Grey followed and picked another one leaving the last one for Klaus. Klaus grumbled under his breath as he walked over to pick the plaque. "This round''s battles are arranged in the same order as the previous round. Since there are only thirteen battles, all the battles will take place tomorrow" The instructor said before walking out of the arena. On his way out, he suddenly turned and asked. "Which student has the number fourteen?" All the students looked at their plaques. With none stepping forward. Grey and Reynolds also looked at their plaques and shook their heads with disappointment, they clearly did not get the lucky number. Klaus grumpily looked at his plaque, his facial expression suddenly changed. Grey noticed the sudden change in Klaus and couldn''t help but take a peek at the plaque, his eyes opened wide when he saw the number fourteen boldly written on it. Reynolds curiously looked at it also when he saw Grey''s weird behavior, the result almost made him pass out from shock. Klaus stepped out and showed his plaque to the instructor. "You again," The shocked instructor said. He still remembered how Klaus also got the lucky number in the first round. Now in the third round, he also acquired it. The shocking part was the fact that the plaque he picked was the last plaque there. The surrounding students were also surprised since they knew Klaus was the one who also got the automatic advancement during the first round. The eyes they all used to look at him was filled with envy. Not fighting means he is already so close to obtaining a spot at the competition. Klaus smiled and nodded. When Klaus stepped forward, Reynolds edged closer to Grey and asked with a whisper. Grey slapped Reynolds at the back of his head when he heard this question. "I only asked a question" Reynolds whined. "He was just lucky," said Grey. Klaus was lucky, too lucky even. For him to be able to consecutively get the automatic advancement twice in a row, was unbelievable. "Too lucky if you ask me" Reynolds stressed the first part of his sentence. Klaus returned confidently. He looked at Grey and Reynolds before laughing, they were the ones who pushed him to the last spot. They even picked before him, yet they surprisingly missed the plaque. They all headed back towards their seats to meet up with Alice before leaving. "How did it go?" asked Alice. "It went well" Klaus replied with a grin. "Oh, I saw you meeting with the instructor, was there a problem," The curious Alice asked. "It really isn''t a problem per se, I got the automatic advancement" Klaus spoke like it was something normal. When Alice heard this, even she couldn''t help but wonder how lucky Klaus was. Getting the automatic advancement twice in a row was something that had never happened in these sorts of tournaments before. "I''m just too awesome. Once again, my awesomeness scared my opponent into admitting defeat without even seeing me. You should learn from me, my lessons start at sunset every day, you should not miss it, especially you Grey. You haven''t hooked up with one girl since you came to the Academy" Klaus said shamelessly. Grey glared at him when he heard the last part of the statement. Alice giggled when she heard this and Reynolds couldn''t help but chuckle. "I still haven''t found the right one," Grey said gritting his teeth. Klaus has always used this to mock him, but there was nothing he could do about it. Due to his handsome appearance, a lot of girls approach him. He always declines their offers. There was a time he went to an occasion with Klaus, he had to leave the occasion quickly due to the number of girls who made advances towards him. Reynolds had a girlfriend once, but they aren''t together anymore. Klaus is the only one who hooks up with another girl the moment he breaks up with one. He was already tagged a playboy by Alice. They all played and laughed on their way home. The group always enjoyed each other''s company, having a girl in their midst didn''t dampen the fun at all, it unexpectedly increased it. They all had playful personalities, so they got along pretty well. The moment Grey got home, he fell asleep. His head was a wreck, and he needed some time to rest. After getting a good rest, the fatigue will surely fade away. By the time Grey woke up, it was already dark. He felt the fatigue had decreased, if he could get a good night''s sleep, he would be as good as new tomorrow morning, if not even better. Grey had a meal before he continued his rest. This was the first time in a while now that he got a good rest, and it felt refreshing. Chapter 58：Almost Lost My Poor Little Life The next morning, Grey woke up earlier than usual. He felt very refreshed after the long rest he had. Since he still had time before the tournament starts for the day, he went out for his physical training. He noticed his spiritual energy was stronger than it was previously. With the increase in spiritual energy, he noticed he could feel the elemental particles in the air more clearly and his mind was more relaxed which in turn increased his focus. He felt his control over the elements was better than before. "I should be able to attempt it now," Grey said confidently. When he noticed how strong his spiritual energy was, he suddenly remembered there was a technique he had, but had never attempted it since acquiring it. Elemental fusion. He got the technique after breaking through to the Arcane Plane, but he had never once tried to attempt it since he felt his control over the elements wasn''t good enough yet. But with this current increase in spiritual energy, his confidence increased. Grey calmed himself, he wanted to be in the best state before attempting it. The sun was just about to rise, the light from the rising sun passed through the trees and shone in the serious-looking face of Grey. When he felt he was prepared, Grey slowly stretched out his right hand. He put all his focus into sensing the surrounding elements. He slowly started using his spiritual energy to carefully guide the lightning and earth element slowly towards the top of his outstretched hand. Although he also had the wind element, he didn''t want to add it as well since controlling two elements at a time was already tiring. If he were to also add the wind element, he wasn''t sure if he would be able to fuse them. Grey totally lost himself in what he was doing and soon, lights made of brownish and silver color started congealing at the top of his outstretched hand. Slowly an orb started taking shape with two different colors intertwining perfectly in it. After the orb grew to the size of a fist, it suddenly started trembling. Clearly, it was starting to become unstable. "Shit" Grey cursed out when he noticed he was losing control of the orb. He tried to regain control over it. The trembling increased and Grey''s heart suddenly tightened, the orb was about to explode and Grey felt an energy that scared the life out of him. The power contained in the orb was terrifying, if it exploded on his palm, he would definitely die. "Fu*k!, it''s going to blow" Grey cursed again before he threw the orb in one direction and dashed towards the other direction. As he was running, he suddenly heard a deafening sound. *BOOM* The orb exploded in the forest, Grey''s heart started beating faster and faster, when he turned to look, he felt the scare of his life. The explosion was expanding from the spot and moving towards him. "Shit, shit, shit" Grey cursed repeatedly and employed lightning steps enforced with the wind element. He was practically on the verge of crying. "Why didn''t they say it was this dangerous" Grey was running like his life depended on it? Oh wait, it does, if he gets caught up this close to the blast, he would definitely lose his little life. It was clearly stated that the technique was dangerous, but it wasn''t stated how dangerous it was. *************** Inside the valley... Chris was sleeping peacefully. Brown was lying lazily on the ground. *BOOM* The sleeping Chris woke up from the sound and walked outside his little cabin. He looked towards the forest with interest before disappearing from his previous spot. Brown also raised her head vigilantly and was about to fly out on seeing Chris disappearing. "Stay here" Chris''s voice echoed out, but he was nowhere to be seen. *************** Inside the Academy... *BOOM* "What is that?" Blake suddenly looked towards the forest behind the Academy. Lightning danced on his body before he disappeared. At different places on the Academy, different instructors were heading towards the location of the blast. "Did you hear that?" "Of course I did, I''m not deaf" "What do you think made such a loud sound" "I don''t know, but from the direction of the sound, it came from behind the Academy" "Do you think it''s an enemy attack?" "Who would be stupid enough to come here and attack us?" "The Starlight Academy?" "I don''t think they have the guts to dare" "We shouldn''t bother about this, the instructors will take care of it. Whatever it is" Different conversations started off among the students. The explosion shook the surrounding, some students thought it was the handwork of the Starlight Academy, others thought maybe some experts were fighting. The explosion became the hottest topic among the students. ************* Back at the forest... "Creak" The sound of rock grating against the ground sounded out. "Bang" The rock fell on the ground with a loud sound. A youth who looked messed up appeared in sight, his hair stood straight and his face was covered with black substance. He was covered in armor which appeared to be made of rock. Some parts of the armor had holes in them, this was clearly a result of the impact. This was the new defensive technique he learned, earth armor. It would form an armor on the body of the Elementalist. The strength of this technique increases with the strength of the Elementalist. For now the armor is made to rocks, as his strength increases, it would be made of jade, before turning to crystal and then finally diamond. Grey looked at his surroundings with a disoriented look. He was still playing out what just happened. Grey was currently over six hundred meters away from the blast. After the blast occurred, Grey tried running, but he was unable to surpass the speed at which it was moving. Luckily, he managed to get to the outer regions of the blast where the strength of the blast wasn''t as strong as the central region. Grey made an earth wall to try to reduce the impact of the blast, after doing that, he also used earth armor to protect himself, he had to be extra sure. Fortunately, the wall was able to help him reduce the impact, but he still suffered from the little that passed through. "I could have lost my poor little life if I didn''t act fast" Grey whipped off the sweat on his face, he truly did feel fear when he lost control of the orb. The earth armor started falling apart from his body. "The instructors will probably come here after this blast, what will I tell them if they asked me what happened?" There is no way the blast won''t attract the instructors over, and since Grey was currently the only one near the blast, they would naturally question him. "There''s no way I can tell them I was practicing a new technique, the strength of the blast exceeded what someone who is still at the Arcane Plane can do," Grey thought hard about it. "Thankfully I didn''t try it out when I was in the Academy" Grey sighed, the thought of the consequences of destroying his home and maybe putting the lives of other students at risk terrified him. "I should probably leave here" Grey turned and immediately started walking in the other direction. "Where are you going?" A voice suddenly rang out. Grey''s heart tensed up when he heard this, but he didn''t show it out. He had learned to mask his reactions well, so even if he''s shocked or afraid, it would be almost impossible to notice it from his body language. He turned around calmly only to see Chris standing midair looking down at him with interest. Chris was the first one to arrive here since his place was closer to the site of the blast, and he was faster. "Teacher, I''m heading back to the Academy" Grey replied calmly. "What happened here?" asked Chris "I have no idea, I was training when I suddenly heard an explosion, luckily I wasn''t too close to it" Grey answered. "Hmm, okay. You should head back now" "Yes, Teacher," Grey said and quickly dashed away from the place. Chris''s eyes followed the shadow of Grey till he disappeared from his sight. ''Seems like this cook of mine has some secrets, interesting'' Chris heard everything Grey said when he arrived. When he arrived at the site of the explosion, he didn''t sense anyone. He knew there was no way the person who did this attack would have already escaped before he arrived. He suddenly heard movements coming from some distance away and headed towards the place. When he arrived, he saw Grey pushing off a wall he used to protect himself from the blast. After hearing what he said, he knew this was done by Grey. But what he still couldn''t figure out was how someone in the Arcane Plane could make an attack which strength equals someone at the Early stages of the Origin Plane, it just doesn''t make sense. "Whoosh" Chris looked over when he heard this. He saw Blake coming towards him at a very fast speed. Blake quickly appeared in front of him. "Senior" He quickly greeted as he saw Chris. "What happened here?. Oh!, and I saw Grey leaving here just now," Blake asked. When he was flying here, he saw Grey leaving the place. Since Chris was already here, he must have met Grey. "I don''t know, seems like whoever did this already fled before I arrived" answered Chris. "So fast?," Blake was surprised. He knew just how fast Chris was. "Did the blast affect Grey?" Blake asked, he remembered how Grey looked when he saw him. Grey was like a beggar in the street. Some parts of his clothes were torn, so he guessed Grey might have suffered from the blast. "He was able to act quickly and use his defensive techniques, but he was still impacted by it. But he should be okay" said Chris. He knew there was no way Blake would think Grey was involved in what happened, if not for accidentally hearing what Grey said when he arrived, he still wouldn''t have thought Grey was involved also. The other instructors arrived while Chris and Blake were still conversing about the blast, Blake told them what Chris told him. They decided to investigate the site. After searching for some time and finding nothing, they all went back to the Academy. But they agreed on increasing their guard since they still didn''t know what caused the blast. Grey got back to his house and finally heaved a sigh. "I was lucky today, but I did learn some things from this attempt" Although he was scared by the blast, he was also amazed by the strength of it. If he could master it, he would be able to easily defeat everyone in the Arcane Plane, he wouldn''t even be scared of battling those in the First stage of the Origin Plane. Grey decided not to attempt it for now since he wasn''t as confident anymore. But he would try it again in the near future. After he took his bath, he waited for his friends to arrive before they headed towards the arena. Chapter 59：Finally! The group headed towards the arena while discussing the blast that occurred. Klaus was particularly lively about the topic, he was adamant the explosion was caused by two experts fighting. He even came up with a conjecture that Grey couldn''t help but wonder if he was talking about the explosion he made. If Grey wasn''t the one who made the blast, he would feel what Klaus said might be what truly happened. It made so much sense, that you can''t dispute it. They were not the only ones talking about it, students in groups who were also heading towards the arena were all talking about it. After getting to the arena, they found a seat not too close to the platform and sat down to watch the battles that would take place before it gets to their turn. Grey would be battling in the second set of battles, while Reynolds would be in the third set. Grey''s number was eight, so he will be battling the student with the plaque number twenty. He was hopeful about the battle since the chances of meeting a student in the Eighth stage of the Arcane Plane had increased, due to the decrease in numbers of participants. Currently, Klaus was the only student still at the Sixth stage of the Arcane Plane among the participants. Although he didn''t stand much of a chance fighting with those in the Eighth stage, against those in the Seventh stage, his chances are not bad. There was a total of twenty-eight students in the Eighth stage of the Arcane Plane who registered and currently, sixteen of those students have been eliminated. Most of them were eliminated while facing students of the same plane, only one of them was eliminated by a student in the Seventh stage of the Arcane Plane. The name of the student was Damian, he was a student from the Earth Hall, and he is currently the one with the most eye-catching performance so far in the tournament. Even Grey and his friends acknowledged his strength. The first round of battles soon started and Damian was among the first set of fighters. His opponent was someone from the Lightning Hall who was also at the Seventh stage just like him. Compared to most Earth Elementalists, Damian didn''t focus fully on defense. He was focused more on attacking. Among all the elements, the earth element is regarded as the mightiest element. Unlike the rest elements, the earth element relies mostly on brute strength. "Who do you think will win?" asked Klaus. "Which of the battles are you asking about?" Alice asked. There were currently four different battles going on and one of them had two fighters in the Eighth stage battling. "The one with Damian" replied Klaus. "Given the strength he has shown so far, he shouldn''t have a problem with defeating his opponent," Reynolds said. He didn''t have full confidence in defeating Damian, but he would love to battle him. "Yeah, in the Seventh stage, he has few rivals," Grey said while focusing his gaze on the platform which held Damian. "How confident are you in defeating him?" Alice looked at Grey. When the others heard this question, they also turned to look at him. They had never seen Grey go all out, so they were still in the dark about his true strength. They all knew Grey was strong, but they don''t know just how strong he was. "From what I have seen..." Grey paused. "He doesn''t stand a chance," Grey said with a smirk. From all the battles he had seen so far, he hasn''t seen anyone among the fighters that could make him go all out. Damian was strong, but from his performance from the battle with the student at the Eighth stage, he was still lacking. Unless he was still hiding his strength even in that battle. He wouldn''t know until he had a battle with him. The rest of the group could hear the confidence in Grey''s voice. They all really started getting curious about Grey''s true strength. "I would like to see you fight against him," Alice said. "Same here," Klaus and Reynolds said while raising their hands simultaneously, clearly agreeing with what Alice said. They also wanted to see Grey battle against Damian. "I think we would get the chance" Grey smiled. They watched the battle of Damian and the lightning user. From the way Damian attacks, you could tell he was an experienced fighter. His strike was as precise as they were deadly, all his attacks were well planned out. His opponent started struggling just after the fight started, the battle went on for another three minutes before he finally yielded. He couldn''t get past Damian''s defense, and he was being struck by his attacks. He could barely stand, so there was no need to endure the pain when he knew there was no hope in winning this. Damian was the first to defeat his opponent among those in this set of rounds. After his victory, he walked to a less crowded space in the stands and took his seat. Soon the first set of battles ended, and it was time for the second set to begin. Grey headed to the platform his number was called. He stood and waited for his opponent to arrive, he soon heard footsteps and saw a fairly handsome youth ascending the stairs to the platform. ''Finally'' Grey almost said this out loud. "Ready?" asked the instructor. "Yes" "Yes" Both fighters answered. Grey was a little excited, he would be able to finally test out the strength of a student at the Eighth stage of the Arcane Plane. "Begin" "Crack" "Bam" As soon as the instructor finished his words, both fighters immediately sent out attacks towards their opponents. Grey sent out a series of lightning towards his opponent, who countered with his own attacks. They exchanged some more moves with Grey holding a clear advantage in the exchange, they both stopped and looked at each other. Grey smiled towards his opponent. "Earth tremor" Grey muttered under his breath before he stomped one of his feet on the platform. *RUMBLE* The platform starting vibrating and his opponent nearly lost his footing from the sudden vibration. The sudden commotion immediately attracted more attention from the crowd. Since four battles were going on, some students pick a specific battle to watch and just forget about the rest, it''s not like they could watch them all at the same time. But if any of the battles in the other platforms start getting exciting, it immediately draws their attention towards it. Grey sent three rocks flying towards his opponent, just as the rocks were about to reach his opponent, he released lightning arrows which attacked his opponent from another direction. His opponent raised a wall of flame which blocked the arrows and only managed to dodge the rocks in a sorry manner. He was shocked by the strength Grey displayed. He could tell Grey hadn''t gone all out yet. Not only that, but he was already breathing heavily and Grey''s breath was still calm and collected like he has not even started fighting. Grey immediately went on the attack once again, since his opponent could last longer than the previous ones, he wanted to enjoy himself. His opponent soon fell on a passive state and couldn''t do anything to Grey. He was a Fire Elementalist, yet he was currently fully on the defensive and couldn''t attack. He didn''t want to admit defeat since losing meant he couldn''t participate in the competition. Grey was kind not to be too hard in his attacks, but his opponent still had a hard time defending. Soon he sent him flying with a punch, he covered his hands with lightning which in turn increased the strength of his attack. *THUD* His opponent fell on the platform and passed out. The instructor came to check on him and noticed he only passed out, he also checked to see if his injuries were severe. Luckily Grey was lenient with him, so he didn''t really have any severe injuries, as long as he gets a good rest, he should be okay. "Grey wins" The instructor announced. Some students cheered when the battle ended. Grey walked towards his friends before seating calmly. Grey suddenly raised his head and looked in a specific direction. He saw Damian staring at him intently, with eyes filled with fighting intent. ''Hmm, seems like I attracted his attention'' Grey smiled at Damian before shifting his gaze back to the platform. This was the first time Grey had fought more than a minute. The first battle he fought only lasted about one minute and the second one was even shorter. He hasn''t attracted much attention since his battles had ended too quickly. People only felt he was strong since he was able to end his battle quickly. This battle only showed them a little glimpse of his strength. ''Hopefully he doesn''t disappoint me'' thought Grey with a smile. Chapter 60：Initial Success The second set of battles finished and the third set started immediately. Reynolds was part of the third set. As long as he didn''t meet an opponent in the Eighth stage of the Arcane Plane, his chances of victory were high if his opponent is in the Seventh stage. Luckily, his opponent was a Water Elementalist in the Seventh stage of the Arcane Plane. They fought for a couple of minutes before Reynolds got the upper hand. His opponent tried everything he could to reverse the situation, but the moment he allowed Reynolds to gain the upper hand, he lost the match. Another two minutes passed before he finally gave up. He sighed while leaving the platform, his dream of participating in the competition was over. Reynolds walked down from the platform with a smile on his face. He''s currently one step closer to earning a spot. The last set of battles soon started, there was only one battle taking place since twelve had already been fought over the last three sets. The battle didn''t last long, it ended with a victory for the student in the Eighth stage of the Arcane Plane. After the last battle ended, the instructor walked towards the center of the platform. He called all the students who successfully advanced to the last round. "Since we have fourteen participants and there are only eleven spots, the last round will be different from the previous ones," The instructor said in a clear and calm voice. "We would be using a ranking system to determine the final eleven students. Each student will have to battle with the rest thirteen students and the number of wins you acquire will determine your rank" He explained further. Conversations immediately started amongst the participants, with this new system, they wouldn''t have a problem even if they lost. It was good news for the remaining few students in the Eighth stage of the Arcane Plane. Grey felt excited about this, with this new system, he would be able to battle with each of the students at the Eighth stage of the Arcane Plane. Currently, there were only seven students at the Eight stage of the Arcane Plane. There were two, in particular, he really wanted to battle with, they were the ones he felt were the strongest amongst the participants. Including Grey, there were six participants in the Seventh stage of the Arcane Plane. Klaus was the only one who was on the Sixth stage, and this made him stand out from the rest. Having the weakest stage amongst them, the chances of him qualifying was not good. But they wouldn''t write him off yet. Surprisingly, Klaus had only fought just one battle in the three rounds which took place. From the strength he displayed when he defeated his opponent, he had a shot at getting a spot. The instructor brought out the box as usual which had fourteen plaques inside, numbered accordingly. The students all stepped forward to pick a plaque. "Each student will get to fight four battles each day. This round will last for four days" The instructor told them the rules of the round. "Now go home and rest properly, tomorrow the fourth round begins" The instructor left after this statement. "Seems like he has his eyes on you" Klaus didn''t miss the little exchange between Grey and Damian. "He''s not that bad, his grade is most likely blue" Grey replied after giving it some thought. "Yeah, but he''s too..., hum..., how should I put it..." Klaus thought of the right word to use. "Moody?" Reynolds joined in the conversation. "Yes, that''s the word. He''s too moody" Klaus said. "You don''t expect everyone to be like you right?" Grey raised a brow. "How can you live a life that isn''t fun?" asked Klaus. "You can''t," Reynolds said firmly. "You see, even Rey understands the importance of fun," Klaus said pointing at Reynolds. "Bastard, what''s that supposed to mean?" Reynolds cursed out on hearing Klaus''s remark. Reynolds and Klaus immediately got into a heated cursing episode. The surrounding students all looked at them with weird eyes, Grey tried creating some space between them, so others wouldn''t think he was with them. "And where do you think you''re going?" Klaus called out to Grey when he saw him creating a distance between them. "Fu*k" Grey cursed. And soon, the two-man cursing team turned into a three-man team. In the midst of cursing, they managed to walk back to their seats. On seeing the boys acting this way, Alice couldn''t help but giggle. Being with them, especially Klaus was always fun. There was rarely a dull moment in his life. After leaving the group, Grey headed towards the valley for his training. He was a little bit more experienced about it and knew he shouldn''t try it all through the day. It wouldn''t be great if he was exhausted before his battle. On his way to the valley, he passed through the place the blast occurred. The trees were all destroyed, after the blast. Grey didn''t come back to the main spot it exploded, so he didn''t know the extent of the damage. Seeing the damage it made, he took in a deep breath. He still felt lingering fear towards the orb that exploded. The blast would have surely taken his life had he been close to it. He smiled wryly when he thought of it before walking towards the valley. When he entered the valley, a huge shadow suddenly launched towards him. "Brown" Grey called out on seeing the shadow. He placed his hand on the body of the Griffin, his fingers ran through the hair on the neck of Brown before reaching the fur on the body. ''What a magnificent creature'' Grey was awed by the Griffin. When he went in, Chris was not in the valley. He guessed he must have gone out, this was not the first time he comes and didn''t find him in the valley. Sometimes even after his training, Chris still wouldn''t have returned. Grey still prepared the meal since Brown was waiting patiently for it. When he was done with eating, he immediately started his training. He could feel he would be able to inscribe soon. He hoped to successfully learn to inscribe before he heads to the competition, which would give him a trump card when battling with those at the Ninth stage. Grey calmed himself and focused on making the inscription midair. After some time, a symbol suddenly lit up in the air, but it died down just as quickly. Grey was exhilarated by the initial success, this shows he wasn''t far from it. Maybe he could even succeed today or the next. He continued his training, and sometimes he would be able to get the symbol to last longer, while other times he wouldn''t be able to make it appear at all. Chapter 61：Fourth Round The next day... Grey and his friends were discussing the upcoming battles. "If you are not confident about any battle, you should admit defeat immediately, so you can save your strength for the next battles," Grey said looking at both Reynolds and Klaus. "I know, I''m not that dumb to waste my energy in a lost battle" Klaus was the first to reply. "There are only eleven spots, the students in the Eighth stage will all qualify, leaving only four spots left," Reynolds said. "Make that three spots left since I will definitely qualify" Grey said calmly. "Okay fine, three spots left. Since..." Reynolds continued but was interrupted mid-sentence. "Make that two spots, since Damian is also likely to qualify" Klaus interjected. "Fine, two spots. That leaves us with four students at the Seventh stage, and you" Reynolds looked at Klaus. "My chances of defeating the other three are pretty high, so I should be able to grab a spot. How confident are you in grabbing the last one?" Reynolds asked Klaus. "Not too confident" Klaus shook his head after some thoughts. "You should be able to defeat two out of the three" Grey said. "Yeah, I should. But it''s not going to be easy" Klaus clenched his fist tightly. Among the group, he was the weakest. Being friends with Grey, Reynolds, and Alice had pushed him to work harder in his training. It''s just..., sometimes he feels like it''s still not enough. He was already in the First stage of the Arcane Plane when Grey entered the Academy, now Grey was already one stage ahead of him. And even if they were in the same stage, he knew he had no chance of defeating Grey. Luckily, this didn''t make him depressed, it only pushed him harder to train more than he usually does. He has advanced quicker than his expectations over the year since he became friends with Grey. "You can do it" Alice encouraged from the side. "As long as you cheer for me, I will win," Klaus said with a smile. "Of course, just make sure you win whenever I cheer you on," Alice said with a cute smile. ''Sometimes I wonder if they''re the same person'' Klaus thought after seeing Alice''s smile. It''s hard to associate the cute girl in front of him with the one who beats the hell out of her opponents at the yearly tournament. "Okay. I think I should be among the first fighters" Klaus said. His plaque number was thirteen, if the battles follow the same patterns as the first ones, he should be among the first fighters. "Me too" Reynolds''s plaque number was one, so he would be the first participant who would be called out. While they were still discussing, an instructor climbed onto the platform. "Since each student will get to battle four times today, after each battle, you will be given thirty minutes to rest before you start the next battle" The instructor spoke calmly. "Now, students with plaque number one to four and number fourteen to eleven should step into the respective platforms assigned to them" After speaking, the instructor stepped down from the platform since the battles would begin immediately. "Wish me luck," Klaus said before heading towards the platform. "Good luck" Grey and Alice said at the same time. They both wanted Klaus to grab a spot, so they could all participate in the competition. Reynolds headed towards the first platform, while Klaus headed towards the second one. When Reynolds got to the platform, on seeing his opponent, he shook his head with a wry smile. His opponent was none other than Damian. Although he wasn''t confident in defeating him, it didn''t mean he shouldn''t try. He wants to at least know the difference in strength between them. Klaus'' situation was even less hopeful, his opponent was a girl called Sheila. She was one of the two stronger ones in the Eighth stage, Klaus was familiar with her since she was also from the Water Hall. "Hey, Sheila" Klaus waved a hand with a smile. "Hey Klaus, truthfully, I''m quite surprised you made it this far. I never knew you were this strong until your battle with Mike," Sheila said truthfully. Klaus smiled in response. He knew Sheila wasn''t trying to look down on him, she was only saying what she thought. They couldn''t be said to be close friends, acquaintances at best. They spoke for some time since all the students haven''t gotten to the platform yet. "Begin," The instructor said after the other students arrived. Klaus knew this battle was lost, so he didn''t plan on wasting his energy. And he caught sight of the battle between Reynolds and Damian, so after sending out some series of attacks, he yielded. He spoke with Sheila as they descended the platform together. Sheila was happy Klaus admitted defeat quickly since it would save her the energy of battling. Although she would win even if he didn''t admit defeat quickly, it wasn''t like Klaus wouldn''t be able to fight back. The instructor nodded at Klaus''s wise decision, he felt Klaus had a chance against those in the Seventh stage. From his point of view, Klaus shouldn''t bother with those in the Eighth stage and just save his strength for those in the Seventh stage. Klaus returned to his seat to watch the battle between Reynolds and Damian. "Rey is strong" Klaus said after watching the battle for a while. He knew although Reynolds said he wasn''t too confident in defeating Damian, there was no way Damian could defeat him easily. "Yeah, but Damian already has the upper hand in this battle. It would be pretty hard for him to reverse the situation, but it''s not impossible" Grey said what he thought about the battle. "Yeah" The battle continued and Reynolds was able to reverse the situation for some time, only Damian quickly took control of the battle once again. He lost by a narrow margin, but he wasn''t disappointed. The difference between them wasn''t much so with a little more training, he should be able to catch up. Besides, it hasn''t been long since he broke through, while Damian had already been in the Seventh stage for longer now. When he returned to his friends, they all commended his effort in the battle. The first set finished and Grey went up in the second set, his opponent was someone in the Seventh stage. He was victorious after a couple of exchanges with him. The day went by quickly, and they finished the four battles for today. Among Grey''s four battles, he fought with only one student who was in the Eighth stage which he won comfortably. Grey won all four of his battles, Klaus won one of them, and Reynolds won two. Klaus and Reynolds met two opponents in the Eighth stage today, with Reynolds getting a surprise victory over one of them. They all went home to prepare for the battles of the next day. Chapter 62：Fourth Round II Grey headed to the valley, with the success he had the previous day, he wanted to use the momentum to at least send out a single attack with the symbol. After they were done eating, he started his training. Chris was slightly taken aback when he first saw the symbol appear. ''This is faster than I expected'' Grey''s learning speed was incredible, he remembered it took him over two months before he was able to inscribe. But Grey has already made the symbol appear just within a week, and with the way it''s going, he should be able to successfully use it to attack within the next two days. Chris started pointing out some of the mistakes he was making. With this help, Grey was able to make the symbol appear more frequently, although he still sometimes failed, his success rate is well over sixty percent. His only problem now was attacking with it, if he could do that, then he could be called an inscriber. He wasn''t far from success though, within a day or two he should be able to make it. Once he''s comfortable attacking with it, he would then focus on reducing the time needed to inscribe the symbol mid-air. He didn''t forget to practice his arrays. Practicing both at the same time had increased his experience in them. Grey stayed till after sunset before he headed home, today he wanted to focus fully on comprehending the wind element. If he could increase its grade to orange, it would boost his strength once more. He was currently stuck in a bottleneck in his comprehension of the earth element, so he hasn''t been able to improve the grade to purple. Hopefully, he would get enlightenment on it soon. After getting home, he entered into the chaos space immediately and started comprehending the wind element. The next day... Grey went for his physical training after waking up, although the time spent was short, it was still better than not going at all. He had already battled with four of the other thirteen students. From the remaining nine students, six were in the Eighth stage, Reynolds, Klaus, and Damian were the other three. It can be said his upcoming battles should be interesting, although he was only interested in two of the six students in the Eighth stage, the others won''t be that easy. The student he was most interested in among the two was a Dual Elementalist, he is the strongest among the other participants. All his battles have been simple and quick, he hasn''t had any eye-catching fight. But Grey could feel he would be his biggest challenge in the tournament. The battles started and his first opponent was one of the six Eighth stage students. The battle lasted for about seven minutes before Grey defeated him. This victory drew the attention of Sheila and the Dual Elementalist in the Eighth stage. Even the instructors and students had taken note of him. Grey had already defeated three students in the Eighth stage since the tournament began. He defeated the first one in the third round, before defeating one the previous day. The addition of this student made it three. Reynolds and Damian are the only other students who have defeated a student in the Eighth stage while being a stage behind. Reynolds has defeated one, the same as Damian. Damian lost both of the battles he fought with students in the Eighth stage yesterday. Reynolds also won his first match of the day, while Klaus unfortunately lost. It wasn''t unexpected, but he gave his opponent a tough time before losing. Getting another victory would increase his chances of grabbing a spot, but he knew it wouldn''t be easy. One more win and he should be able to grab a spot, hopefully. His next battle was against a student at the Eighth stage, which he didn''t waste his time on and quickly admitted defeat. Grey and three other students at the Eighth stage are the only ones who have won all five of their battles. His next battle was also against a student in the Eighth stage which he also won. With this win, apart from the Dual Elementalist, no one else has defeated more students in the Eighth stage as much as he has. Reynolds lost his second match, with three victories, he should be able to get a spot since there''s a student who still hasn''t had a single win. Reynolds next match was against Klaus. They both walked side by side towards the platform, laughing on the way. On seeing them, the instructor knew there was no way both of them would fight, given how close their friendship seems. "Begin," He said anyway. "Hey Rey, who do you think will win in the battle on the next platform?" Klaus asked with a curious look. "I think Alan will win, although Sheila is strong, Alan is a Dual Elementalist and that gives him more attacking options," Reynolds said. Currently, Sheila and Alan were in a heated battle. None have been able to gain the upper hand, but the battle just started, so it''s still too early to judge. "You know one of you can just admit defeat and watch the battle in your seats right?" The instructor said with a long face, he can''t chase them out of the platform since, technically, their battle was ongoing. "We''ll watch for some time here before going back to our seats, watching the battle here is more thrilling, right Rey?" Klaus walked over to Reynolds and threw a hand across his shoulder. "Yeah" Reynolds nodded. The instructor sighed, ''Forget it, even if they leave the platform now, it''s not like another battle would start immediately''. He also turned his attention to the fight between Sheila and Alan. "Bang" A fire snake clashed heavily into a wall made of ice. The wall immediately started cracking, but it managed to hold on. As soon as the fire snake was blocked, Sheila sent out ice arrows towards her opponent. Alan utilized the wind element to quickly dodge the attack. They exchanged some more moves. This had been the most exciting battle since the tournament started. It got everyone''s attention, the few who were still battling even took peeks at it. "Lotus," Alan said calmly. A three-petaled lotus appeared in the air, it was entirely made of scorching flames. "Look, he has been able to make three petals appear" "Wow" Different conversations started when the lotus appeared. This was a powerful technique that both the Fire and Water Elementalists could use, if used by a water Elementalist, it would be made entirely of ice. The more petals the lotus has, the stronger it is. Only after reaching the fifth petal can one make another lotus appear, but it wasn''t that easy since congealing the petals increases in difficulty after each petal. "How many petals can you make?" Grey asked Alice who was sitting beside him. "Same as him, but I should be able to make the fourth petal soon" Alice replied. Grey nodded before he continued watching the battle. "Let''s see who has the strongest lotus," Sheila said seriously. "Ice lotus" A chilling wind came with the appearance of an ice lotus floating at the front of Sheila. Just like Alan, her lotus also had three petals. "Go" "Go" They both sent their lotus towards their opponent. *BOOM* Both lotuses crashed against each other and exploded, one part of the platform was covered in ice while the other side was covered in fire. It was a spectacular sight. A war of ice and fire has always been a spectacular sight. They were clearly in a stalemate, none was able to get the advantage. "Hurricane" Alan''s calm voice was heard once again. The flames immediately started raging with the boost it got from the wind. Alan ingeniously used the wind element to increase the intensity of his flames thereby giving it the advantage in the war between ice and fire. The fire soon started gaining the upper hand. "Alan wins" Chapter 63：Fourth Round III Alan looked at the instructor calmly before walking off the platform. "What an exciting battle," Klaus said. "Yeah, this was absolutely a top-notch performance from both fighters" Reynolds added. The instructor in charge of their platform looked at the two commentators and couldn''t help but roll his eyes. Klaus and Reynolds spoke all through the fight between Alan and Sheila, there were times they made him laugh with their commentary. "Are you two done?" Klaus and Reynolds shifted their gazes back to him. "Oh sorry, we forgot our battle was still ongoing," Klaus said. "Rey," "What?" "Admit defeat" "Why?" "Well, because I need this victory," "Why don''t you admit defeat instead?" "You idiot, don''t you want me to participate in the competition?" "Hmm, you have a point there" The two continued bickering some more. The instructor felt like beating both of them up, ''Why was I the one sent here?'' He almost couldn''t hold back anymore. Luckily, Reynolds admitted defeat before his anger exploded. The instructor knew Klaus and has always known him for being playful, so he just let it slide. When they both got back to their seat, one more battle was still ongoing. So Grey was still there. "Why did you two take so long?" Grey asked. Because of the fight between Alan and Sheila, he didn''t check on his friends. He knew they weren''t going to fight anyway, so there was no need, the only thing that is puzzling him was why they took so long. "You didn''t see our fight? We had an epic battle" Klaus started exaggerating the nonexistent fight he had with Reynolds. Reynolds just looked at him with a confused look, the only thing in his mind was, ''When did we have such an epic battle?''. "....and after I dodged that attack, I was able to immediately send him flying off the stage." Klaus smiled after he finished his story. "So in short, Reynolds admitted defeat after you were done watching the battle?" "Yeah, that''s pretty much the summary of the entire battle" Klaus nodded continuously as he replied. Alice laughed when she saw this, Klaus came up with such a great battle that even she hoped to see something like that. "You currently have two wins, adding my battle would make it three" Grey surmised. "Yeah, I''ve already defeated that one guy who I don''t know his name, Reynolds, and I don''t think you''ll be much of a challenge. So yeah, I already have three wins in the bag" Klaus shrugged. Grey looked at him and declined to reply, it was best to let a man dream. If someone who didn''t know them heard what Klaus said, they would think Klaus would be able to comfortably defeat both Reynolds and Grey. It soon got to Grey''s turn. When he stepped onto the platform, he was surprised by his opponent. ''Damian'' Grey was slightly taken aback. "Hello," Grey greeted with a smile. Damian looked at him for some time before speaking. "I know I''m not your opponent, but I really do want to fight you" "Well, here we are" Grey spread his arms. "Begin" "Let''s fight," Damian roared. "Hope you don''t disappoint me" Grey smiled before charging towards Damian. Three pillar-like rocks shot towards Grey, he sidestepped to avoid it before sending out an attack which took the shape of a fist, only it was made of lightning. On seeing the attack, Damian set up two protective walls in front of him in a bid to stop the attack. "Boom" The strike easily shattered the first wall before crashing into the second one. After holding out for some time, the second one crumbled as well, it was able to reduce the power of the attack significantly before it crumbled. Damian was able to block the weakened attack but was pushed back a couple of steps. ''He''s this strong?'' The strength of Grey''s attack exceeded his expectations. He thought very highly of Grey, that was why when he saw the attack, instead of using just one wall, he made two. But it seems like it still isn''t high enough. He once again increased how highly he thought of Grey. Since he took notice of Grey, he decided he would go all out for this battle. Even if it means he would lose the next due to fatigue, as long as the battle was great, he didn''t care. They continued exchanging moves but Grey got the upper hand in the entire battle. He had been able to counter every move Damian used. While the battle was still on, Grey sent out an attack that stunned the crowd. "Fu*k, that attack is too overpowered" Klaus shouted out. "I still haven''t been able to master it yet, but he unexpectedly has" Alice opened her mouth in amazement. This technique was the hardest technique he has mastered so far. "Lightning Rain" The entire arena was completely covered with bolts of lightning falling from the sky. Damian had a tough time defending against it, he was able to block some, but they were just too many. He was hit multiple times, but even after this attack, he was still standing. ''His ability to take a beating is amazing'' Grey clicked his tongue when he saw Damian was still on his feet. The crowd was also surprised by it, most of the students felt the battle was already over with that attack from Grey. He stamped his foot strongly on the platform, and it shook strongly. "Crack" Cracks started appearing on the platform. "Thump, Thump" Grey felt like something was pounding the platform, the sound almost resembled the sound of a heartbeat. Not just him, everyone in the arena heard it. "What is that?" They all started asking the same question, what was making that sound. "It''s like a heartbeat," Klaus said. "Where is it coming from?" Reynolds asked. Klaus shook his head, he had no idea where the sound was coming from. "I think it''s from the platform Grey''s on" Alice said. The instructor looked at Damian with eyes filled with shock. ''It shouldn''t be....'' He tried to dispel the thoughts coming to his head. The sound got louder and the crack on the platform started increasing, it was like something wanted to break free from underneath the earth. The shaking in the platform increased, Grey subconsciously took a step back. He didn''t expect something like this to happen, from what he saw, he knew this was definitely related to Damian. All the battles in the other platforms ceased, and they all looked in the direction of Grey and Damian. Everyone looked intently at the platform, they all waited patiently. The sound kept on growing louder and soon. *BOOM* The middle of the platform exploded out and dust immediately covered the place, small pieces of rocks flew everywhere and Grey easily destroyed the ones that came his way. The entire arena went silent, they all looked at the platform with eyes filled with curiosity. "RAWR....." The roar shook the arena. Those who were weaker and were closer to the platform felt intense fear. "Oh my God!" Chapter 64：Fourth Round IV Grey looked at the creature that appeared in front of him. It was a stone golem that stood at a height of over five meters. "He''s a summoner" One of the instructors exclaimed. "Summoner?" Grey looked at Damian closely. This was not the first time he had come across this word, he had read about it in some books. Summoners are even rarer than Dual Elementalists, they have the special ability to summon a creature made entirely of their elements. Not all summoners were born with the gift, some had resonance with their said elements which in turn gives them this special ability. The chance of a summoner appearing in a hundred thousand Elementalist is meager. These summons are always at least a stage above their summoner, and their strength is always at the peak of said stage. For example, since Damian is at the Seventh stage of the Arcane Plane, his summon would be at the Eighth stage of the Arcane Plane. Its strength could rival the weaker ones in the Ninth stage. The downside to this is that, after the summon disappears, the summoner will enter into a weakened state. There is no free meal in this world, everything has a price. In the case of summoners, the price they pay is their elemental essence. As long as the summoner''s elemental essence is still available, the summon will last till it''s dismissed. But since it runs entirely on the elemental essence of the summoner, the consumption rate is quite high. With Damian''s current abilities, he can keep the summon for about six minutes tops. If he were battling any other person, he was confident five minutes would be enough to give him victory. But he knew Grey still hadn''t shown his full strength yet. Grey looked at his new opponent with excited eyes, he had already changed the previous thought he had, now Damian was his strongest challenge in the tournament. "It seems sentient. Amazing!" Grey was awed by the wonders of the world. The crowd looked at the golem in shock. "That''s a golem from the legends" Most of the students were excited when they found out what it was. It was something they never thought to appear in the tournament, not even the competition. They never even had the thought to start with, so this was a fairly pleasant surprise. And they loved it. The golem looked at Damian, before switching his gaze to Grey. It can''t really be said to be looking at Grey since there weren''t any eyes on its face. It only had a mouth, which is clearly used for scaring the shit out of people with its roars. If any other student were to be in Grey''s position, they would have been scared senseless when they heard the roar. To be honest, Grey slightly felt fear when he heard it. But his curiosity got the better of him. Grey sent a lightning bolt towards it, he wanted to test how strong its defense was before planning on what next to do. "Bang" The lightning crashed into it, but it did not affect it. Apart from making some marks as a result of the strike, nothing else happened, it didn''t even flinch on getting hit. This was within Grey''s expectations, the attack didn''t have the strength to deal strong damage to it. But still, it should have at least broken some rocks on its body. It roared again angrily and charged at Grey. ''Oops, I think my attack angered it'' Grey thought and quickly tried to dodge the attack of the golem. But to his surprise, the golem was able to keep up with his movement and was even able to put him in a difficult position. He expected the size of the golem to affect its speed, but his thoughts were dead wrong. The golem was as fast as he was, which wasn''t supposed to happen given its size. It sent a fist towards Grey, the power behind it was unbelievable. The instructor by the side was already prepared to charge in once he notices Grey couldn''t hang on. Lightning covered Grey''s hands completely, and he struck a fist towards the fist of the golem. When the instructor saw this his heart nearly jumped out of his throat. "Is he mad?!" The students all had similar reactions, Grey''s idea of using his fists against the golem was idiotic from their point of view. "Bang" Both fists slammed into each other and Grey was pushed back. He clearly lost in the battle of strength, but he managed to destroy some parts of the golem''s fist. "How''s this possible?" The students and the instructors felt like their view of life had shattered. Grey attacked the golem with his fist covered only in lightning but was alright. After some thought, they all attributed it to the lightning he used. ''This isn''t so bad'' Grey looked at his fist with a smile. Although the lightning did most of the work, his physical strength still came up with about forty percent in that attack. No one would dare to replicate what he just did. He sent an orb towards the golem, the golem tried to slap it away, but before it could do that, it exploded right in front of it. Some parts of the golem broke off. Just as Grey was about to make another attack, he saw the golem''s body was repairing itself. "It heals?" Grey was dumbstruck. First of all, he didn''t know how long Damian could keep the summon. Coupled with its ability to self-repair, it can be said to be almost undefeatable. It has only been around one minute since the golem appeared. Grey didn''t feel discouraged, he once again charged towards the summon and attacked. After attacking for almost thirty seconds, he was able to successfully break off some other parts of the golem''s body. But just like before, it repaired itself. Only this time, Grey noticed a difference. The speed at which it used in repairing itself was much slower compared to the first time. "Hmm, seems like I found a way" Grey came up with a plan, that was to beat the golem so much that its repair speed won''t be able to keep up with the damage it would be taking. He charged at the golem, but this time, the golem sent him flying with a punch. Luckily he was able to keep himself on the platform, else he would have lost this fight. Grey had already used earth armor, which was able to limit the damages he took from the golem. During the course of the next minute, Grey had been sent flying two more times, but he had been able to make some major damages to the golem. Currently, one of the golem''s hands was in the process of repairing itself. Grey managed to completely destroy one of its hands with a lightning blade he sent towards it when he found an opening. The battle has been exciting all through, the students were all watching the fight animatedly. Since this was something they were seeing for the first time, they wanted to see just how strong the summon was. And it hasn''t disappointed them so far. The surprise they got from the battle was the fact that Grey was able to still battle with the golem even after the times it had sent him flying. He not only was still battling, but he had been able to destroy one of the golem''s hands. Grey was already starting to worry, his insides were already not in the right spots from all the attacks he had received from the golem. Although the golem is healing at a slower pace, it hasn''t shown any signs of crumbling yet. He sent out an attack that took the shape of a fist made from lightning towards the golem. Since one of its hands was still under repair, it was left with only one hand. Grey attacked the side of its body where it would be hard for it to use its only hand to block the attack. Another minute went by and Grey had already successfully destroyed more than half of its head, with multiple holes in its body. Grey was about to send out another attack when the golem slowly started crumbling. He turned his gaze to Damian and only saw him lying unconscious on the floor. The instructor went over to check on him. "He''s fine, he only passed out from overexertion" Grey nodded before he turned to leave the platform. "Grey wins" The instructor announced the result before taking the unconscious Damian out of the platform. The students all applauded Grey''s strength. For him to be able to battle the golem for as long as he did without suffering a defeat was just amazing. Sheila felt she wouldn''t stand a chance against the golem if she were in Grey''s position. Grey walked over to his friends and sat down to rest. He still had one more battle for today, so he needs to recover as much strength as he possibly can. Reynolds won his next battle which was against a student at the Seventh stage of the Arcane Plane. But the most shocking thing happened at Klaus''s battle, his opponent was Damian. Damian was still unconscious and would only be able to battle the next day. So Klaus won the battle as a result of a forfeit. He immediately started one of his legendary bragging sessions once again, which Grey showed no interest in, but Reynolds was completely hooked to what he was saying... Chapter 65：Fourth Round V Grey''s last battle was against a student in the Eighth stage. Although he won, he was worn out from the after-effects of the battle he had with Damian. It took Grey almost ten minutes before he was able to defeat his opponent, and he was mostly on the defensive, trying to save as much energy as he possibly could. One clean strike was all it took to defeat his opponent at the end. This was the first time Grey was this exhausted from the battles, the upside about the whole event was that his last opponent wasn''t either Sheila or Alan. He would have definitely lost if he had battled any of them. After the battles, Grey went home directly. There was no way he could train in this condition, he needed rest. He woke up just before sunset, the exhaustion had died down a little. Since he couldn''t train, he decided to try comprehending the elements. Damian''s use of the earth element gave him more understanding of it. Compared to him, Damian was more adept in the earth element, hence he has more understanding and depth of it. Grey was able to learn some things in the battle, so he wanted to use his newfound knowledge and see if he could break through the bottleneck and successfully advance the grade to purple. The next day... Grey went for his morning training as usual, after returning he felt more energetic compared to the previous day. The battle with Damian nearly drained him, the other battle, did the job. Luckily, he won both. As it stands, out of thirteen battles, he had already won eight. He had five battles left, Reynolds and Klaus were two of the five, while the other three were Sheila, Alan, and another student at the Eighth stage. "How are you feeling today?" Alice asked on seeing Grey. They all saw how exhausted he was after the last battle he had yesterday, he was barely able to walk home. "I''m much better, I shouldn''t have a problem with battling today" Grey smiled. He appreciated the support and care his friends always showed him. When the group heard this, they all smiled. Grey''s situation could almost be said to be the same as Damian''s, the only difference was that Grey managed to struggle home, while Damian didn''t even know how he left the arena. "Who would have thought Damian was a summoner?" Klaus asked. "I was taken by surprise when the golem suddenly appeared" Reynolds joined in the topic. "How did it feel to battle against it?" "Well, not good," Grey said. After thinking for a while, he added. "It''s like battling an unbeatable opponent. It doesn''t feel pain, so no matter how hard you hit it, it would just shrug it off like it was nothing. It can regenerate which made it almost immortal, it''s fast, which you all witnessed during the battle. And it radiates some sort of pressure that oppresses its opponent" "Now that I think of it, it suddenly made sense why it was able to keep up with my speed. Although it''s fast, it shouldn''t be to the same extent as I am" This baffled Grey during the battle, no matter what movement technique he uses, the golem was always able to keep up with his speed. There was a time he even infused his body with the wind element, coupled with the lightning element, but it was still able to keep up. Speed was something he was proficient in, given the fact that he has two elements which boost the speed of the Elementalist. "It truly is strong, but the consumption of elemental essence is terrifying. Damian wasn''t even able to keep it up for five minutes before passing out from overexertion" Reynolds said. "I think it had something to do with its regeneration ability. Since it depends fully on the element essence of its summoner, technically, it would also need the essence in regenerating. This, in turn, would increase the amount of essence the summoner provides" Grey deduced. He thought of this when he noticed the difference in speed after the first regeneration, this must have been a result of the limited amount of essence in the summoner''s body. They continued discussing till the battles were about to start. Grey''s first battle was against Sheila. When the crowd noticed the fighters, they all looked on with interest. Grey was already tagged the second strongest in the tournament. Although Grey was strong, they felt Alan was stronger by a margin. Grey and Alan were the only ones who had never lost a battle since the tournament started. Grey and Alan were both tied on eight victories, with Sheila following closely behind with seven. The next student only has five, same as two others, Reynolds was on four, while Klaus was on three, same as Damian, and two others. One student was on two victories, with one student having one victory. The last student had zero victories, and he knew his chances were gone. After the battle started, Grey didn''t waste any time and sent out three earth spikes and six lightning orbs towards Sheila. He planned to end the battle as soon as possible to prevent any unexpected surprise, the one he had the previous day was enough for him. Sheila dodged the attack expertly before sending out her own attacks. They exchanged moves with Grey getting the upper hand during the first two minutes. "Lightning Rain" Grey mumbled under his breath. He had been searching for an opportunity to use it, so when he got to the opportunity, he didn''t delay. Sheila''s heart tightened when the first bolt struck towards her, she remembered the attack from the previous day. It was hard to defend against due to the number of lightning that strikes towards the target. She used water to form a protective shield around her. It was able to survive the first set of attacks from the lightning, but on doing this, she couldn''t have a chance to attack since her focus was placed on her protective shield which was being bombarded with attacks. On seeing his opponent fall on the defensive, Grey''s attack started getting more aggressive. Slowly but surely, the water started dying down and soon Sheila was left unprotected, Grey launched towards her and ended the battle quickly with Sheila admitting defeat after not being able to keep up anymore. Grey went back to his seat and waited for his next battle. Klaus won his first battle for the day which brought him to four wins, Reynolds wasn''t so lucky. Grey''s next battle was Klaus, which he didn''t even bother to go to the platform. Since Klaus was the only one present, he won by forfeit. They all waited patiently. Grey had three battles left, one against Reynolds, one against the other student at the Eighth stage, and finally one against Alan. Chapter 66：Heading Back Grey''s next battle was against the student in the Eighth stage which he won. He currently had two people left to battle, one was Reynolds, and the other Alan. Both fighters stood on the arena staring at each other, unlike Grey''s previous battles, he was one hundred and one percent focused on this battle. He couldn''t be careless since he knew how strong Alan was. "Begin!" The instructor called for the battle to start. Both fighters attacked at the same time, Alan used the fire element to launch his attack while Grey used his lightning element. Boom! The attacks collided causing an explosion in the arena. The students watching the fight from the stands all held their breaths and kept quiet watching the fight intensely, this was the most anticipated battle in the tournament. Although most of them felt Alan was stronger, they wanted to see how far he could push Grey. The explosion soon died down and both fighters could see each other once again. Grey squinted his eyes, and launched an attack at Alan. He created three earth maces that he sent at Alan. Alan didn''t panic and used a wind technique to dodge all three maces Grey threw at him while also sending out a palm made of fire towards Grey. An earth wall appeared before Grey, completely blocking the path of the palm. Bam! The palm struck the wall, causing cracks to appear on the wall. Crack! The cracks on the wall gradually grew bigger, while the flaming palm slowly started to shrink. But before the fire shrunk. Bang! The wall instantly exploded as it couldn''t withstand the force from the flaming hand anymore. Grey quickly dodged to the side, avoiding the rubbles as well as what was left of the flaming palm. The battle went on for four minutes, with Grey and Alan exchanging multiple moves. From their exchanges, it was clear to see that Alan had a slight advantage over Grey since he had been able to push him back on more than one occasion, only, he still hadn''t been able to completely dominate him as there were times when Grey would come out with a flurry of attacks that overpowered him. ''Lightning Rain!'' ''Fire Lotus!'' Grey and Alan decided to bring out their big moves after over four minutes of fighting. Alan''s three petaled fire lotus went straight at Grey, while Grey''s lightning rain started falling down on him. Being a Wind Elementalist, Alan managed to escape from some of the lightning, but not all. While Grey on the other hand tried to block the fire lotus coming his way, he made two earth walls, but the first one was instantly destroyed, and the second one only lasted a second, before it was also destroyed. Grey tried to escape from the impact of the blast, but was a little too late and was sent flying. He crashed into the ground of the arena, slightly injured. He quickly stood up, and saw that Alan who had escaped the area of the lightning rain was already coming in his direction. Alan sent a fireball towards the unsteady Grey who tried to block it with a lightning bolt. Boom! The attacks collided and Grey who was too close to it was sent flying once again by the impact of the explosion. Alan seeing that Grey was down once again charged at him with the intent to attack once again. Grey was already feeling some aches all around his body, and just as he was trying to stand up, he saw Alan charging at him. He could only smile wryly, because he knew this was already a lost battle. "I concede!" He gave up before Alan could get to him. If he continued fighting, then from the current advantage Alan had over him, it would be difficult for him to turn the tide. Alan stopped and looked at Grey, this wasn''t an easy battle for him and the lightning rain Grey used in attacking him did some damages to him, and he was currently panting heavily. He knew clearly that his stage was what gave him the first advantage over Grey in the battle. Grey accepted the defeat since he lost fair and square, there was no excuse for it. Alan was stronger than he was and that was a fact. He didn''t sulk over it and went over for his array training. He still hasn''t been able to strike with the symbol so far, so he had to focus on it. That day went by quickly... The next day... Grey''s only battle for today was against Reynolds which he wouldn''t fight, of course. He only went over to the arena because the tournament would be ending today, and the instructors would tell them when they would be leaving since the competition would be starting soon. After the battles ended, the rankings were set, with Alan being the only one who didn''t lose a fight, Sheila was behind him as she lost only two. Grey was third since he lost three battles, well, technically, he forfeited two, but a loss was a loss. Klaus and Reynolds, with another student, were tied at five victories. "All participating student should prepare themselves, we will be heading to the Capital in three days" After the announcement, the tournament finally came to an end. Grey went over to the valley for his training. "Teacher" Grey suddenly called out after failing to once again unleash an attack from the symbol. Chris raised his head to look at his cook, oh sorry! Student. "Yes" "I have a request," Grey said in a small voice. "Oh!, what is it?" Chris asked with curiosity. "The instructor announced we would be heading to the Capital in three days" "I''m aware of that" "Could you take me back to Red City? Since I came to the Academy, I haven''t gone back because my mom told me she would send a letter. It''s been over a year now and I haven''t heard anything from her yet. I haven''t seen my father since I was eight, and she said she was heading over to where he was. I know the chances of her still being in the City is small, but I still want to check" The volume of Grey''s voice decreased the more he spoke. He had missed his mother so much, she was his greatest support, and not hearing from her for over a year now, he was starting to get worried. His father left in a hurry and he didn''t hear from him again. His mother always told him he was fine, and he could feel she wasn''t lying from how confident she was whenever she says it. Now, she said she was going over to meet him and refused to tell Grey the location. He missed her care, voice, ''training'', as weird as it sounds, he really did miss her training. And most of all, he missed her cooking. Chris thought for a while before replying, "Okay, we''ll leave tomorrow. Also, inform Blake they can leave without you. I''ll bring you to the Capital myself" Grey was elated when he heard this, he wasn''t too optimistic about Chris agreeing with his request. He bowed towards Chris and expressed his thanks before continuing with his training. Chris narrowed his eyes, he remembered Martha. ''There''s something about this family, from what I felt that day, Martha should at least be at the Seventh stage of the Overlord Plane, if not higher'' How could someone with that strength stay at that little place, Chris knew without a doubt, they were hiding something. He didn''t even think Grey knew what Plane his mother was. That attack Grey did, summed up his suspicion about the family. But he could tell Grey knew nothing about his mother''s strength. If he knew, he wouldn''t be worried since no one in the empire could harm her, unless she was sneaked attacked by a group of experts. But the possibility of that happening is too small since the amount of Elementalist in the Late stages of the Overlord Plane are few. The next day, after bidding farewell to his friends, Grey went over to meet up with Chris at the valley. He was a little hopeful about the journey, but he could deal with whatever the result was. Blake was present in the valley when he arrived. He turned his attention to Grey on seeing him enter. Grey bowed to Blake before walking over to where Brown was. Blake smiled when he saw Grey. He had heard about Grey''s performance in the tournament, and he was proud of his student. It wouldn''t take long before Grey completely surpasses everyone in his group. Chris soon came out and after speaking with Blake shortly, he walked over to where Grey and Brown were. "There''s still a little over five days before the competition starts, given the amount of time it took to bring you here, I wouldn''t have accepted your request" "But, since you''re already in the Arcane Plane, you can cope with Brown''s full speed. So unlike the last time, we should be able to reach before noon tomorrow" Grey was slightly taken aback. "That fast!" When they came over from Red City, they only arrived here on the morning of the fourth day. But now, the journey was cut down by more than half. Chris smiled. "Oh! And we''ll sleep in the forest during the night" Grey was puzzled by Chris''s words "The last time we stayed at an Inn, why would we sleep in the forest this time?" Chris laughed and then asked. "You can''t train in the Inn, right?" When Grey heard this, he finally understood why Chris said this. He was currently trying to use the symbol to send out an attack, if he accidentally succeeds in the Inn, the owner can pretty much kiss his Inn goodbye since it would be destroyed by the attack. Chris added after seeing Grey got the picture. "And besides, you''re a better cook compared to those morons who cooked at the Restaurants we ate at" Grey didn''t know if to cry or laugh. Chris had started getting used to his cooking lately that he even tells him to prepare his dinner most of the time before leaving the valley after training. They immediately set off from the valley, their destination. Red City... Chapter 67：Capital City Grey stood at the front gate of the city, it had been over a year since he left now. The city seemed almost exactly like he left it, but for some reason, he felt something was missing. ''I should get this over with'' He touched his nose with a sad smile on his face before heading into the city. Chris opted to stay behind with Brown, back in the forest since there was nothing in the city that interested him. With a slight smile on his face, Grey entered the city. He didn''t have any friends in the city since they all abandoned him during the first time he took the test. He couldn''t say they were true friends though. Grey looked at the building not too far from him, this was the place he spent over fifteen years of his life. The smile on his face only got sadder the more he looked at the place. ''So that''s what is missing, huh'' He could see someone in the building, but it wasn''t who he wanted. A new family was already living in the place, he watched the kids play for some time before leaving. It was a bittersweet moment for him. He remembered all the times he played here with his mother and father, the times he hid whenever he had messed up and his mother was searching for him to give him a good thrashing, oh training. ''Looks like she has left for a while now since the building is already occupied by someone else'' Grey asked the neighbors to know when she left. He got to find out that Martha disappeared just over a month after he left for the Academy. They woke up one morning and didn''t see any signs of her. It was only after a month did they confirm she was gone. But the building was only occupied after a year had passed. Grey walked around the city for some time, he visited the arena, the marketplace, and other places he frequented while he was still in the city. On his way to the arena, he surprisingly encountered Derek. On seeing Grey, he was gripped with fear, thinking Grey would get revenge on him for what he did previously. Grey on the other hand just smiled at him before continuing his tour. Derek had already broken through to the Fusion Plane. It''s below Grey to bully those lower than him in stages, talk less of an entire plane. He wanted to see the city since he would most likely not come back here again, even if he would, it wouldn''t be anytime soon given Martha wasn''t there. Grey spent exactly one hour in the city before leaving, although he was recognized by some people since their relationship wasn''t good, there was no way they could talk to him. ************** Boom! A crater half a meter deep appeared on the ground. If one looks at the sky above the crater, a symbol could be seen flickering with silver lights. The symbol was made up of strange lines that formed a circle. "Hmm, compared to yesterday, you''ve made some improvements" Chris said as he inspected the site of the attack, this was the fifth time Grey was attacking with it today. They left Red City two days back and were already more than halfway to the Capital. Grey was able to successfully attack with the symbol the previous day and was now working on increasing his success rate and speed. With Chris''s help, he was improving quite quickly. He could already be called an inscriber, okay well, half an inscriber. At least in five tries, he could now successfully attack with the symbol three times. His proficiency with controlling the essence has also improved with time. A thought came to him which he quickly dismissed, he still wasn''t confident enough to try it again, but he knew it wouldn''t be long before he tried it. "I feel the attack isn''t as strong as it should be" Grey said looking at the flickering symbol above him. Chris looked at the symbol and laughed. "Well, what do you expect from that?" He pointed at the symbol before explaining. "It''s not good enough yet, so you don''t expect it to have a higher attack power than what you already have. The flickering shows the symbol might die out at any moment, it can''t gather the required essence for the attack due to this" Grey felt what he said made sense since his symbol looked like it was just holding on and might die out any moment. Chris gave him some tips on what to do. He continued his training while they were still on the journey. *********** On the evening of the next day, they arrived at the Capital. A magnificent City appeared before Grey, the city had the most illustrious buildings he had ever seen, and even the gates were imposing. It exuded an aura that made those ordinary citizens shake in fear. What surprised Grey was the fact that the guards at the gate were all in the Late stages of the Arcane Plane. One has to remember the mayor of Red City was only in the Arcane Plane, he hadn''t even gotten to the Late stages yet. This was the Capital City, the most dignified city in the entire empire. It had everything you could ask for. --------------- "What! How can it cost so much?" Grey''s heart was currently bleeding as he looked at the meal before him. After entering the City, he told Chris he wanted to have a meal. Chris warned him on how expensive meals were in the City. But on remembering the money he took from the bandits which he rarely used, he was confident he could pay. Besides, meals in the most expensive restaurants back at Lunar City only cost around two to five silver coins. "It''s just fifty silver coins" Chris said with a smirk, clearly enjoying the current plight of Grey. "What do you mean just fifty silver coins? That''s half a gold coin. What the hell are the meals made of?" Grey looked at the meal before looking around again. "This is even a run down place, yet they charge so much" Chris shrugged. "It''s not my problem, I told you when we entered the City about how expensive things were" Grey felt his head hurting, this was his hard-earned money, okay, the bandits'' hard-earned money, you know what, just forget it, it doesn''t matter. The main problem now is, a meal is about to cost him almost one-tenth of his entire wealth, who would eat something like that?!. "Can I return the meal?" The waiter looked at Grey with emotionless eyes before replying. "NO" He left after his reply. Grey ate the meal with a heavy heart with Chris laughing by the side. "Teacher" Grey looked up at Chris when he was almost done. "Yes" "Why don''t you pay for my meal since it''s the first time you''re bringing me to the Capital?" "No" Chris answered with a sneer. ''Stingy old man'' Grey said in his head before paying for the meal. When he took out the coins, he almost couldn''t let go of it, only after the waiter dragged with all his might did he finally let go. The waiter looked at him with an expression of fear, he knew since Grey was this strong, he was definitely from a large force. But he still couldn''t understand why Grey was so stingy. "We should head over to meet the others" Chris said after they left the restaurant. This was not his first time coming to the City, so it didn''t take long before he took Grey over to the others. The empire always provided a residence for each Academy. Contrary to Grey''s expectations, the Capital wasn''t that big. Lunar City was larger than it was. They headed towards the eastern part of the city, before arriving at a gate that had the word ''Lunar'' boldly written on it. This was the residence assigned to the Lunar Academy. Chapter 68 - True Dawn "The competition will start tomorrow, why isn''t Grey here yet?" Reynolds asked with a worried look on his face. "He should be here before the competition starts" Alice said calmly, she knew Grey wouldn''t miss the competition for anything in the world. "Since he went back with Senior Chris, he should arrive on time" Klaus knew Chris, so he wasn''t worried about Grey not making it in time. Before leaving, Grey told them he was heading back to Red City. Among the group, only Klaus knew Chris, so he was the most carefree. While the group was still conversing, Grey and Chris were just entering the residence. Grey looked around awed by the exquisite designs of the buildings. Luckily, he didn''t act like a country bumpkin, else Chris would''ve been embarrassed. He followed Chris, and they soon got to a building, Grey heard voices as they got close to the building. "Have you been able to find out the reason they increased the quotas?" "I have" "A trial...." The speaker suddenly stopped and looked towards the entrance of the building. Chris was the first to step into the building with Grey following closely behind. The building wasn''t too large and was just like a hall, with seats at each side of the building and five seats arranged at the front. Tables were in front of the seats at the front and also the ones by the side. Grey looked around and most of the faces here were familiar with him. The one who was speaking earlier was clearly the man seated at the front seat. This wasn''t the first time he heard the voice, so he was able to figure out it was him. Seated at the front seat was none other than Oliver, the principal of the Academy. He saw Blake and the other head instructors, with a few other instructors he wasn''t too familiar with. But since they were together in the meeting, it''s evident their status at the Academy was high. "When did you come?" Oliver asked with a smile on seeing Chris. "Just now" Chris said offhandedly and took a seat. "Why is he here?" An instructor said while pointing at the Grey. Grey looked at Chris before replying. "I don''t know the place where the students reside" The instructor looked at Chris before saying towards another instructor. "Take him to where the students reside" The instructor took Grey out of the building and directed him towards where the students were. "What were you saying?" Chris asked after Grey had been taken out. "It''s about to open" Oliver said in a solemn voice. "You mean, that place?" Chris asked with a startled look "Yes, it has already been over a hundred years now. So it isn''t surprising it''s about to open" Oliver said after some thoughts. He looked at the instructors in the building before continuing. "Some of you already have an idea about what I''m talking about. Every hundred years, a land of trial opens up just at the border of the Magical Beasts Forest" He paused and waited for the few people who were just hearing this for the first time to digest the information before continuing. "It was first discovered by the Stellar empire, but we were able to catch wind of it. Just like how we have spies there, so do the other empires. The emperors..." Oliver calmly told them about the history of the land of trial. Nine hundred years ago, a strange array suddenly appeared on the border of the Magical Beasts Forest. It was discovered by an Elementalist from the Stellar empire, and he reported it to the higher-ups. On reaching there, they saw the most complicated array they had ever seen. Since they had knowledge of arrays, they tried to power it up and see what it was used for. It took them several tries before they were able to power it up. A portal twenty-five meters wide suddenly opened up. They tried entering the place but were rejected, after multiple attempts, someone was finally able to enter. The others all tried again but failed, only after the third person enter did they find out the pattern. Only those below twenty years of age could enter. The people who entered came out after some time and told the others what they saw. From what the first set of people said, it was a very large place which was just like the outside world, they saw some debilitated buildings which clearly showed the place used to be occupied. Not all the people who entered returned though, some of them were killed by magical beasts that resided in the place. Some came out with rare treasures. After sending in more people, they found out the place was occupied by a faction called True Dawn. They had never heard of this faction, nor was there any records of them in their history books. The Stellar empire was only able to hide it for three weeks before the information leaked to the other empires'' upper echelons. This was a place that could greatly boost the strength of an empire, if one of the empires were to have full rights of it, it would be a catastrophe for the others since it would only take at most ten years before they completely surpass them. The empires finally came to an agreement to each send in one hundred geniuses into the place for training. They didn''t care what happens inside, but as long as one hundred of their geniuses went it, at least forty or fifty should be able to make it out. But the results of the first trial stunned them all, the portal only stayed open for six months before it started flickering, clearly a sign that it was about to close up. Only twenty percent of people who entered managed to come out in time. The loss of people wasn''t what shocked them the most, it was the fact that of all the people who escaped, more than eighty percent of them were at the Mid-stages of the Origin Plane. When they all entered, none of them was at the Origin Plane. But now, within six months, more than fifty people were able to not only breakthrough into the Origin Plane, but they also reached the Mid-stages. They monitored the place for over ten years but nothing showed up. It was like the array never appeared in the first place. Only after one hundred years did it appear once again. After it appeared, the empires sent in one hundred geniuses each and strongly reminded them to come out once it''s getting close to six months. Only after three hundred years were they able to confirm that it appeared at a particular time every one hundred years. They have still not been able to fully explore the place even after so long already. After Oliver was done with the explanation, he added solemnly. "This should not go out of this place. The empire keeps this information under strict orders, anyone found dessiminating it would be executed immediately" They all nodded before they spoke about other important things. *************** Klaus and the others were still speaking when Grey suddenly walked in. Alice was the first to notice him before Klaus and Reynolds turned towards him. On seeing Grey, Klaus jumped towards his friend with a sad face. "Bro, I''ve been so lonely without you" Grey''s mouth twitched when he heard this and immediately kicked Klaus away. "Although I don''t have a girlfriend, I''m not into boys" He glared at Klaus after saying this before sitting beside Reynolds. Klaus stood up immediately and complained "Bro, you''ve become so cold-hearted. My heart is broken and this is how you treat me?" Grey looked at Klaus with a puzzled look. On seeing Grey''s look, Reynolds burst into laughter before explaining "Leanne broke up with him just before we came over to the Capital" "Oh! This is new, Klaus was always the one who broke up with his girlfriends" He looked at Klaus with pitying eyes before adding "Now you know how it feels when you break up with them, right?" Klaus almost started crying, this was the longest he had been in a relationship, he really felt maybe she was the one. But she unexpectedly broke up with him. He sighed when he thought of all the times they spent together "Maybe it was just not meant to be" The group burst into laughter when Klaus made this statement. Grey was finally able to cheer up Klaus before the end of the day. The day soon ended. After waking up the next day, Grey looked out the window. "The day of the competition is finally here" Chapter 69 - Competition On this day, the competition which takes place once every five years officially began. Although the number of people in the Capital increased every time the competition takes place, it''s still as orderly as it always was. All the Inns in the Capital were all occupied by people who came from different cities to watch the competition. They rarely get the chance to come here since the requirements for entering the Capital are different from the other cities. Only those who were in the Origin Plane, or above were given free rights to enter. But your identity still needs to be confirmed before entering, this way they can stop those who are not from the empire. The arena where the competition was going to be held was already almost filled with people, yet more people coming in by the minute. Different groups of people were already conversing. Two sets of people were in a heated argument. "Dregs from the Lunar Academy, watch how we put you people in your place in the competition" "Says the sc.u.ms who only knows how to sneak attack their opponents" "Yeah, why don''t you people come at us one on one. We''ll see how tough you are then" The two sets who were in an argument were clearly students from the Lunar and Starlight Academy respectively. From their conversations, you could infer that one of the students from the Lunar Academy was sneaked attacked by a student from the Starlight Academy. The surrounding people only watched on with interest, they all knew about what was going on between the two Academies. Even if the Emperor didn''t intervene, the other Academies had no interest in doing so. After all, they all had their own plans. While the students were still throwing shades at each other, a commotion suddenly drew their attention. "Look, aren''t those students from the Royal Academy?" Someone in the crowd recognized the insignia crested on the clothes of youths who just entered the arena. They all had haughty looks plastered all over their faces. There were six boys and four girls. "Could it be that the Royal Academy will be participating in the competition this year?" "Are you crazy, the Royal Academy has never participated in any of the previous competitions, why would they start now?" "I for one, I''m very suspicious about this year''s competition. I mean, each Academy was usually given a quota of fifteen students. How come it was suddenly increased to twenty-five?" "I don''t know, and I really don''t care. Those are not things we want to get involved in. The empire and the Academies know what they are doing, all I came here to do is watch some kids beat the crap out of each other, nothing else. You can play detective on your own, I have no interest in dying yet" The arena was very lively, soon the students from each Academy started coming in together. Each Academy was assigned specific areas in the arena where the instructors and students who are participating in the competition seated. Because of the conflict between the Lunar and Starlight Academy, when the students from the Lunar Academy entered, they immediately attracted attention from the crowd. Grey was among the students heading towards the area which was assigned to the Academy. The students from the Lunar Academy all wore the same clothes with a half-moon insignia crested on the left side of their c.h.e.s.ts. The area assigned to them was close to the Royal Academy. When they got to their seats, some of their students went over to the area assigned to the Royal Academy. From this, one could see how close their relationship was. Grey saw a familiar face among the students from the Starlight Academy, Jonas. But on checking closely, he noticed he wasn''t talking with anyone among the group. He was all alone and seated at a corner when they got to their seats. Unlike the Lunar Academy who tries to create a friendly environment for all its students, the system of the Starlight Academy was completely different. In the Starlight Academy, only strength mattered. Those who are strong can do almost anything without facing any repercussions. They bully those who are weaker than them, with the Academy showing no signs of stopping them. The Academy even found ways to encourage this, they said only the strong deserved respect. Klaus noticed Grey looking at the students from the Starlight Academy and couldn''t help but get curious. "Hey buddy, who are you looking at?" Grey shifted his gaze from that direction before replying. "Remember Jonas from my city?" Klaus thought for a while before replying. "That guy you said was a Fire Elementalist with purple grade talent?" Grey nodded before adding. "He''s among the students who are participating in the competition" Reynolds looked in the direction of the Starlight Academy with cold eyes "Those bunch of bastards, they better pray I don''t meet any of them at the competition" He still remembered when they were attacked by students from the Starlight Academy, if not for Alice being present, they would have died. A middle-aged man walked into one of the platforms in the arena. He immediately attracted attention from everyone, and they stopped what they were doing and focused on him. They knew he was about to make some announcements about the competition and also tell the participants the rules. On seeing everyone was focused on him, the middle-aged man immediately started speaking. "Welcome, everyone, to this year''s competition. Unlike the previous competitions, this one will be a little different. Of the three hundred students participating, the top seventy-five will be taken by the empire for special training. Rewards will be given to the top ten as usual also" When the guy who said he was suspicious about the competition heard this, he immediately turned to his partner. "See, I told something was going on" His partner looked at him with eyes that said ''Who doesn''t?'' The middle-aged man continued "So try your best and remember to admit defeat if you know you''re not as strong as your opponent. Once you have incapacitated your opponent, you are not allowed to kill them. You''re all regarded as the future of the empire, so the more geniuses we have, the better for the empire" "Please distribute the plaques to the students of your Academies. They would all be battling according to the plaque numbers. The first round will consist of one hundred and fifty battles, anyone who successfully makes it to the third round automatically gets a spot for the special training..." The instructor continued explaining the rules of the competition, after all the plaques were successfully distributed the competition officially began. The first round of the competition would take three days with fifty battles taking place each day. Grey had a battle the day the competitions started. His opponent was someone from the Ernst Academy, who was at the Sixth stage of the Arcane Plane, which he won easily. After the battles for the day ended, the group from each Academy all headed towards their residence. "Grey" On the way back to their residence, Grey suddenly heard his name. Klaus and Reynolds were with him, so they also looked in the direction the voice came from. A smile formed on Grey''s face when he saw who it was... Chapter 70 - Competition II Two beautiful girls were coming in Grey''s direction with two boys following closely behind them. They were the group from the Idris Academy Grey met at the Misty Mountain. Grey asked with a smile when they got close "Hey, how have you been doing?" The girls answered simultaneously "Fine" The boys on the other hand kept looking at Grey as if he were a monster. They watched Grey''s battle against the student at the Sixth stage of the Arcane Plane, and they were shocked. It had only been just over three months since they met Grey at the Misty Mountain, and they knew he was either in the First stage or Second stage of the Arcane Plane at that time. The girls already told them about Grey being a Dual Elementalist, so they weren''t surprised when Grey used another element. They had only advanced a single stage since then, yet Grey had gone five or six stages. His speed is terrifying, to say the least. The girls weren''t really too shocked since they felt Grey was far stronger compared to what he showed. After all, they were present when Grey battled with the mercenaries, so they knew he could be even more terrifying. But they were still puzzled by the fact that his cultivation speed increased this fast, if he used a secret technique, he shouldn''t be able to advance at such a speed. Unless, he was hiding his real strength at that time. Claude couldn''t help but ask "How did you become strong so fast?" Only after asking did he realize he made a mistake since this was Grey''s secret. He added hastily "The girls told us about you helping them out again, thank you" He bowed while saying this Grey acted like he didn''t hear the question Claude asked before replying with a shrug "It''s nothing, I only found them by accident" Claude said immediately after Grey finished speaking. "Even though you found them by accident, you could have easily left them to their fate, but you didn''t" While they were speaking, Grey was able to deduce that the girls kept his secret just like they promised him. Klaus and Reynolds just looked at what was going on with confused eyes, given how well they knew Grey, they knew he didn''t have any friends outside the Academy. Klaus said after they left "Hey buddy since this is your first time coming to the Capital, why don''t I show you around. I''ve come here lots of times, I''ll be your official guide." Grey accepted Klaus''s offer. It was his first time here and not seeing the famous places in the city would truly be a shame. Although things here were expensive, given Klaus''s background, he doesn''t have a problem with paying for anything here. They went to a famous Art gallery in the Capital and other famous places in the city, before heading to Klaus''s favorite place, The Jade Water Paradise. Day turned to night. On the western side of Capital City''s main road, the King''s Avenue. The third floor of the Jade Water Paradise. Grey and the other two had a room of their own. The nights at Capital City were always busy, especially during the time of the competition. But the nights within the Jade Water Paradise were even more bustling, having reached the peak of busy-ness. The coquettish giggles of women could be heard nonstop, while the roaring, heroic laughter of men also constantly sounded out. Within a private room, the three bros drank while having an idle conversation, and by each of their sides was a delicate and pretty girl, well, except for Grey. This was not the first time he had visited a place like this since Klaus always took him to a place like this in Lunar City especially after he breaks up with his girlfriend. Generally, Klaus and Reynolds would go off and have fun after having their fill of the wine, while Grey would at most drink a little before heading out. "Buddy I''m going to bed now" Klaus''s hands dr.a.p.ed around a girl with long, green hair. His breath smelled strongly of liquor. Reynolds also got up with the girl he was with "Bro, we''ll be going now. Are you sure you don''t want a partner for..." Grey interrupted Reynolds "That''s enough Rey, stop talking alright?" Reynolds and Klaus looked at Grey with pitiful gazes, before Klaus said "It''s your loss bro. You don''t know what you''re missing" Grey shook his head when he heard this, he watched as Klaus and Reynolds staggered out of the private room with their hands around the waist of their respective companions. He looked at the night sky through the window. He left the Jade Water Paradise and took a stroll around the City, his desolate shadow faded into the darkness of the night. If they all successfully pass through the second round, they would all get a spot in the special training. During these two days Grey focused on his training, he was trying to increase the speed at which he could create the symbol and also try to create it while he was doing something else. If he could successfully do that, then he could use it in battles and attack his opponent with a sneak attack. The second round of the competition soon started with twenty-five battles taking place each day. On the second day, it was Grey''s turn to battle. His opponent was a student at the Eighth stage from the Starlight Academy. "Begin" Grey and his opponent struck at each other at the same time. Boom! An explosion rang out in the platform from their attacks. Grey''s opponent stared at him with surprise, he planned on dealing a heavy blow to Grey when he found out he was a student from the Lunar Academy, but it seems like it''s not going to be as easy as he thought. ''It''s him! Impossible, how can he improve so fast? It''s not even been up to two years yet'' Jonas was dumbstruck when he recognized Grey. He was already very proud of himself for being able to progress at such speed, but seeing Grey greatly diminished his pride. He had already broken through to the First stage of the Arcane Plane when Grey took the test again, but now, Grey was currently battling an opponent he wouldn''t even dare to, and he''s having the upper hand also. "Grey wins" The voice of the instructor announcing the results brought Jonas out of his stupor. ''He won'' He just couldn''t believe it, the only thing on his mind currently was ''How?'' Chapter 71 - Danger In Capital City ************** Red City, one month after Grey left for the Lunar Academy. Martha looked at his room with a sad face, she was about to leave this place and head over to meet her husband, Lucas. She reminisced about all the times they spent here and couldn''t help but sigh in frustration. "If that moron hadn''t gone when they called him, I wouldn''t need to leave my little boy behind" Although she said this, she knew Lucas had to go since it was an important matter. "I thought we would be able to leave everything behind and just live a peaceful life, seems like fate has something else planned for us. Hopefully Grey will be okay" After saying this, Martha crushed a small red glowing bead that suddenly appeared out of nowhere in her hand. Two minutes later, a figure appeared from the void without making any sound. It was like he had always been there. Plop! "Milady, do you have any orders for me?" Martha looked at the man before her before asking "I forgot to ask you when you first arrived, how are things over there with that bastard?" The figure almost choked when he heard Martha calling Lucas a bastard, this was not the first time he had heard Martha calling her husband a bastard, but it had been long since he heard it. He could only smile wryly before replying. "The bas..." He froze subconsciously before saying "Lord''s appearance has acted as a deterrent, but we don''t know how long this would last. Before I left last month, I heard they''re already tired of waiting and are planning a full-on assault on our territory" Martha snorted coldly before saying angrily "Hmph, those lowlifes want to benefit from what they didn''t work. That secret realm opened in our territory, and we also cleared it. Do they know how many of our people died during the process?" The figure smiled wryly, he was very familiar with Martha''s temper. Although she was a Water Elementalist, her temper was the polar opposite of her element. "There has been increased contact between them and Yulan Region, there is a high chance they are planning to join hands on the assault" Martha''s anger increased on hearing this and the poor house suffered from it. Most of the furniture in the house started freezing rapidly. But she quickly calmed herself before she completely froze the entire house. "I''ll be going over, it seems like they have forgotten about the last time" "You will stay here and protect Grey, don''t interfere with his daily life only if his life is in danger, should you intervene, but try to do it secretly" The figure nodded "Yes Milady" "What about Chris?" Martha raised a brow before asking "What about him?" "There''s something different about him" When the figure first arrived here, Martha sent him out to obtain information about the higher-ups in the Lunar Academy. Martha said in disdain when she heard this "He''s a mere Half step Sage Plane Elementalist, what is there to be worried about?" "Besides, I showed him a little hint of my strength, if he is wise, he should get the message I was trying to convey" "Although it''s surprising to see someone of his caliber in this backwater place, it''s not impossible. Besides, Lucas and I also came here to spend the rest of our lives peacefully. If not for Lucas asking for their help which they couldn''t even offer, there was no way they would have been able to find us" Martha said. The figure knew she was right he didn''t even know a place like this existed if not for Lucas giving him the coordinates when Martha asked for him. Martha disappeared from sight after giving her final orders to the figure. He was someone they trusted, so she knew Grey''s life was in safe hands. Just like Martha, the figure also disappeared. ************** "Grey wins" Grey looked at his opponent who was currently lying unconscious on the platform, he didn''t feel bad about how badly he beat him up since he knew his opponent also had the same thoughts towards him. During the first round, a student from the Lunar Academy was almost beaten to death by a student from the Starlight Academy, luckily, the man in charge stopped the battle quickly. But it didn''t change the fact that the student was almost crippled by his opponent. The students from the Lunar Academy were sent into an uproar because of this and a brawl nearly happened between them and the Starlight Academy. They all wanted to get revenge, so when Grey was given the opportunity, he didn''t miss it. He was a student of the Lunar Academy, so even if he didn''t want to get involved, he didn''t have a choice in this since his opponent would not hold back. The students and the instructors from the Lunar Academy all nodded their heads in approval of what Grey did. While the students and the instructors from the Starlight Academy all threw death stares at him. Grey was completely oblivious to the death stares he was getting from the students and also the instructors of the Starlight Academy while he walked towards his seats. Since Grey was the first student from the Lunar Academy to dare to beat one of their students this badly, he was automatically placed at the top of their must-kill list. Well, this was not the only reason for that. The crowd already knew the conflict between both Academies would continue in the competition, so they weren''t surprised by what was going on, some were even enjoying it since the battles between the students are more brutal. With this victory, Grey had secured a place in the special training the empire spoke about. Alice qualified after having an epic battle with a student from the Wellen Academy who was at the Ninth stage of the Arcane Plane just like herself. The shocking part of it all was the fact that of the sixteen students who qualified from the Lunar Academy, eight of them were Dual Elementalists. It was a large number compared to the other Academies, from this the crowd already deduced the winner of the competition this year will most likely be the Lunar Academy. The students were all given a three days break after the second round ended. *************** Later that night in the Starlight Academy residence. "We need to think of a plan, the number of Dual Elementalists present in their ranks is terrifying. If they are all allowed to grow, it will spell catastrophe for us" "I also heard of a summoner appearing in their ranks also. You should all be clear about their strengths" The upper echelon of the Starlight Academy was currently holding a meeting. The appearance of so many Dual Elementalists in the Lunar Academy was a threat to them. Added with the fact that a summoner was also among the students. If they had no qualms with the Lunar Academy, they wouldn''t be worried, but they had always been at loggerheads with them. "Enough!" A deep voice said. "You all know how we usually solve our problems" The speaker spoke in a cold voice while looking at the people present in the room. A glint flashed past his eyes before saying. "By making them disappear" The others all nodded in compliance when they heard this. "I''ve already sent someone to investigate the backgrounds of all the Dual Elementalists present at the competition and also the summoner" "For now, our main target is a student called Grey. He''s a Dual Elementalists who is at the Seventh stage of the Arcane Plane and I regard him as our greatest threat" When the others all heard of Grey''s cultivation stage, they were puzzled why their leader placed a student at the Seventh stage as the main target. "I understand you''re all puzzled by my decision, but after Clayton explains, you''ll all understand" A man stepped forward after the leader finished speaking. "Grey is born in a little city called Red City, the mayor there is just at the Second stage of the Arcane Plane. When he turned twelve, he took the test but failed to awaken his element. He took the test again when he was already sixteen, that was when he was able to awaken his element, he was surprisingly a Dual Elementalist with the Lightning element as his base element" "Grey is currently seventeen years old, and he has already advanced to the Seventh stage of the Arcane Plane. You should all remember that he only awakened his elements by the age of sixteen, this means he went from a normal person with no cultivation, to someone who is already stronger than his mayor within just over a year and six months" "This is the fastest speed I have ever seen and even the fastest speed recorded in the history of the continent" When the others all heard the explanation, they couldn''t help but suck in a cold breath. Given the current speed Grey was advancing, it would take at most three to five years for him to catch up, added to the fact that he would go into the trial grounds, it might even be shorter as long as he didn''t die in there. Grey was like a ticking time bomb for them, from his performance at the competition, they could all see he was already a full part of the Lunar Academy, hence the grudge with them was also part of him. A cold glint all passed through their eyes, "We must get rid of him" "And we will, the second reason I placed him first in the list is the fact that among all the Dual Elementalists, he is the only one who doesn''t have a strong background, which means, he wouldn''t have anyone protecting him as the others do" They all approved of their leader''s plan, this was not the first time they had done something like this in the Capital City. As long as they could corner Grey in a hidden place, it would be over. Of course, they wouldn''t be going alone, they had people just for jobs like this. "Inform the Black Hand, they will know what to do" Chapter 72 - Danger In Capital City II After the second round ended, later that night Klaus suggested they should go out and have some fun since they were given three days to rest. Grey agreed since he needed some time off on his training. This was the third time Grey was coming to the Water Paradise, and he couldn''t say he didn''t like the place, for one, their food tastes delicious and their wines were also topnotch. At the Jade Water Paradise "What you did was f.u.c.k.i.n.g amazing, I didn''t expect you would beat him that badly" Klaus laughed out loud "I only reciprocated to what he wanted to do to me" Grey answered with a shrug. He''s not some psychopath who derives p.l.e.a.s.u.r.e from the sufferings of others. During the battle, he had multiple chances to deal a killing blow, but he refrained from it. Although in the end he beat up his opponent badly, he didn''t really expect he would continue fighting even after taking such beatings. The reason Grey beat up his opponent that badly was only after he noticed the killing intent in his opponent''s eyes, only then did he retaliate coldly. But even after getting the chances, he just couldn''t deal a fatal strike. He didn''t even know what to call what held him back, was it weakness? Or was it just his mind playing tricks on him? Maybe it was his humanity? To be honest, he didn''t know. "That''s what those sc.u.ms deserve. If I get to meet any of them, they''ll be treated in the same fashion Grey did to his opponent". Reynolds said coldly. After his experience, he hated the students from the Starlight Academy to the core. "So, what do you all think this special training is all about?" Klaus took a sip of his wine before asking. "I have no idea, I have never heard of the empire ever conducting any special training after the competitions" Reynolds replied. "Grey, got any ideas about it?" Klaus asked looking in Grey''s direction. Grey continued with his drink before replying "I have no idea, we''ll all find out about it after the competition comes to an end" Klaus nodded before switching topics to something more exciting. After staying for some time, just like the previous two times Grey had followed his friends here. They retired with their partners leaving Grey alone once more. Grey didn''t stay long in the room, after finishing his drink, he walked out of the place. He looked at the busy night street in front of him before turning his gaze towards the center of the city. ''I want to see it again'' Grey started walking towards the center of Capital City. His destination wasn''t too far from the Jade Water Paradise, and he soon got to the place. Outside the castle of the emperor of the Qilin empire stood an enormous statue of a man who looked to be in his mid-thirties. The man had a serious-looking face with sharp eyes and a heroic air strongly radiating from him. It was surprising a statue felt so life-like. Grey was awed the first time he saw it, this was why he decided to see it again. This was the statue of the first emperor of the Qilin empire, Constantine Gale. This was the man who spearheaded the rebellion against the Azure empire long ago. Since the Qilin empire was created, only the Gale family had occupied the ruling seat. Although there are other top families in the empire who might have an eye on the ruling position, none have made a move yet, maybe they''re biding their time. In the history of the Qilin empire, just after it was formed, only one of the families who followed the Gale family in the rebellion tried to usurp power, but they were defeated and nearly completely annihilated. Although the family still stands, they keep to themselves without getting too involved with matters of the empire. Grey stared at the statue and couldn''t help but ask himself ''What does it feel like to be at the top?'' **************** While Grey and his friends were at the Jade Water Paradise. A middle-aged lady could be seen entering into a luxurious compound in the southern part of the city. Flowers were planted on the side of the walkway which gave the place a serene look, added with the peace and quiet, it gave one a certain sense of comfort. In a secret room in the building. "This is the information gathered of the target" The lady passed a file over the beautiful lady seating across her who looked to be in her late twenties, with golden hair and black eyes. She was dressed in all black. The black-dressed lady collected the file and went through it before asking, "Did you come with the payment?" The middle-aged lady brought out a pouch and passed it to the lady. When the lady in black opened the pouch, three colored stones could be seen glowing inside the pouch. She smiled after confirming their originality before saying, "This is only half the payment" The middle-aged lady nodded before replying, "You''ll get the balance after accomplishing the mission" The lady in black nodded, "Fair enough, is there a time limit?" "Yes, the target should be dead before the competition ends. From what we gathered, he''s currently in the Jade Water Paradise with his friends" The lady in black frowned when she heard this, "The owner of the place has a good relationship with me, and killing someone there will be bad for his business" "I know, we gathered some added information about the target before coming here. He never sleeps in the place. He stays till just after midnight before he leaves the place, he takes a stroll around the City before heading back to his residence. Although we''re not certain if he would also do it today, this has been his usual routine whenever he visited that place" "Okay, I''ll send one of the girls over" "Okay, we''ll be waiting to hear from you" After getting assurance from the lady in black, the middle-aged lady left the building. A girl came into the room minutes later. After getting the details about her mission, she left swiftly. ''What does it feel like to be at the top?'' Grey stared at the statue a while longer before heading towards his residence. As a kid, he has always had the dream of standing at the top one day, this was one of the reasons he was devastated when he couldn''t awaken his element. Now with this inheritance and his hard work, he believed it wouldn''t be long before he realized his dream. While Grey was staring at the statue, a shadow was staring at him intently. This shadow has been following him since he left the Jade Water Paradise, but he had no idea of it. The cool night breeze was always a refreshing experience. On his way back, he saw Claude and Nina walking with arms locked around each other, and Nina''s head was placed on Claude''s shoulder as they were walking. ''Seems like they''re a couple, no wonder he thanked me so much for saving her'' Since the couple didn''t see him, he didn''t want to spoil their romantic moment, so he just walked silently on the other side of the road. The shadow was following closely behind Grey, seemingly searching for an opportunity to strike. Grey discovered an alley that cut across two streets and took him quickly to the place designated for the Lunar Academy the last time he went to the Jade Water Paradise. The moment she wanted to strike out, she quickly held back and hid back at her hiding spot. Grey also stopped in his tracks and looked ahead of him. Chapter 73 - Danger In Capital City III Grey looked ahead of him and his eyes instantly turned cold. Two boys were walking in his direction from the alley. He recognized one of them from the competition, and from that, he already guessed their identities. ''Students from the Starlight Academy'' "Do you know how long we had to follow you before finally getting this chance?" One of the boys said as they walked closer towards Grey. They saw Grey heading out of the Jade Water Paradise and decided to follow him and teach him a lesson he would never forget. "No, and I don''t really care" Grey answered before preparing to leave the alley the same path he used in walking in. The student he recognized was a Water Elementalist in the Eighth stage of the Arcane Plane and was strong. Although he could battle with him, that was if they were alone. The addition of the other student will make things very difficult for him. "You think you can leave" The boy said with a sneer Grey turned around only to see two figures coming from the direction he planned on using, now he was trapped in the middle of both sets of boys. At least if he was left with the previous two, he had a good chance of escaping, he wasn''t even thinking about fighting since it was a lost battle. But now, with the addition of the other two boys, his chances were almost zero. "What are you trying to do?" Grey asked in a cold voice. "What does it seem like?" The boys laughed as they got closer, they knew the city too well. They couldn''t believe their luck when Grey took this path which had almost no guards in the vicinity. The place around the alley was a lonely environment, to begin with, so it would be hard for people to come here since it was already so late in the night. The girl who wanted to assassinate Grey stuck to the shadows without making any moves. She looked on with interest and if an opportunity presented itself to her, she''ll take it without a shadow of a doubt. None of the people present knew of her presence. Grey looked at the boys with angry eyes, he knew the students from the Starlight Academy were sc.u.ms, but he didn''t expect them to follow him from the Jade Water Paradise. He had already figured they followed him when he left the Jade Water Paradise. Two minutes later Bang! Grey''s body slammed into the wall by the side. ''F.u.c.k! There''s no way I can fight with them, I need to think of a plan to escape''. This was a battle he knew he wasn''t going to win, he was not a God, he can''t battle with this number of opponents who were on the same stage as him or higher. If they were two, although his chances wouldn''t be too good, at least he was confident he could escape safely. Now he was blocked on both sides and his opponents clearly have no plans of letting him off. "Damn, doesn''t the city guard patrol this area? How come none of them have been attracted here by the noise?" Grey was already starting to feel helpless. This was a situation he had never been in before, all his battles have either been one on one or one on two, even when he battled with the mercenaries it was one on three, but those were people who are weaker compared to these students in the same stage. Although he was stronger than the students personally, the difference wasn''t too large and with numbers on their side, the result was clear for all to see. The Water Elementalist he recognized seems to be the leader of the group, and he was also the strongest among them. Now Grey understood why Reynolds hated them so much, this was not a situation anyone wanted to be caught in. ''Why are they even doing this? It was their student who refused to give up''. Grey complained as the battle went on Grey managed to send one flying, but before he could capitalize on the space created by the missing man, he was sent flying again. ''Shit! They''re not even giving me a breather. I need to deal a fatal strike''. He couldn''t help but curse in his mind The chances of his escape were getting smaller and smaller with the increased injuries he was sustaining. ''Lightning rain'' Grey called in his heart and a sea of lightning struck at his unsuspecting opponents. He had not used this technique during the competition, so they knew nothing about it. The group scurried to block the lightning bolts, but they were still struck, the guy Grey sent flying in particular had it worse and was hit with momentary paralysis. This was the special trait of the lightning element, paralyzing one''s opponent. Although it doesn''t always happen, it has a twenty percent chance of occurring. Grey went for the kill by sending a rock the size of a fist towards the paralyzed youth''s head. The leader of the group saw this and quickly made a water shield that helped reduce the impact of the attack, but the youth was still sent flying and hit the walls which immediately knocked him out cold. ''One down, three to go'' His surprise attack had helped him reduce the number of attackers, but it didn''t change the overall situation of the battle, he was being beaten badly. The battle had already gone on for over fifteen minutes with Grey getting the short end of the stick. He had already coughed up multiple mouths full of blood that he even started wondering if he had any blood left in his body. There were different injuries on his body which were bleeding although not strongly, the loss of blood is already starting to take its toll on him. His opponents weren''t without any injuries with some getting multiple burns from his lightning attacks. ''Why does it take so long?'' Grey asked in frustration. Currently, his only bet was inscription, but with him not being able to create the symbol immediately, and the constant distraction from the battle, it wasn''t easy to concentrate on it. He planned to make three symbols and hopefully use them to strike at his opponent simultaneously. With his increased training, the attack power had gone to the level of his normal attack power, so he was certain that even if his opponents don''t die from the attack, they would be fatally injured, and he might get a chance to escape, or even go for the kill. Grey sent out a ball of lightning which exploded as it got close to his opponents and also raised a wall to block the attack of one of the students. He was currently trying to buy as much time as he could, so he could complete the inscription. Just after he had completed the third symbol and was prepared to use them to attack, he was hit by a wind blade which not only sent him flying again, but it also cut open a new wound on his back. Being surrounded by walls on his left and right, he hit a wall again. After landing, he coughed up another mouth full of blood. ''Seems like I still have some more'' Grey thought jokingly, even in a desperate time like this, he still had the energy to make fun of himself. Unknown to Grey, he landed within a few meters from where the shadow hid. There was no better opportunity to strike other than now. The girl who already had her dagger in hand sprang out of her hiding place behind Grey and immediately aimed for his heart. The distance was too close and Grey didn''t expect someone to sneak attack him even when he was already in such a tough battle. Before he realized what was happening, it was already too late as the dagger was about to plunge straight at his c.h.e.s.t. He could almost see death staring at him, despair almost washed his entire being. His adrenaline shot through the roof, and he was able to shift to the side, the dagger missed its target and plunged straight into his shoulder. Blood splattered from his back, but Grey didn''t have time to think, he sent out attacks from the three symbols in the air, with two targeting the two strongest members of the group and the last one attacking the shadow who almost killed him. Everything happened so fast that before the girl or the students from the Starlight Academy could react, they were already struck by the inscription and one of the students lost an arm that completely detached from his body. The girl also wasn''t lucky as a huge injury appeared on her back. Although all this took some time to explain, it only happened within the space of five seconds. Grey didn''t think of any other thing and immediately used both his lightning and wind element to escape from the place before the last student who wasn''t attacked could recover from the shock of what just took place. He was already on his last legs and there was no way he could battle with anyone currently. Even keeping his consciousness was already starting to get difficult. He managed to get to the residence albeit barely, only after the instructor who was keeping guard of the place appeared did he finally lose consciousness. Chapter 74 - Teacher Is So Overbearing! "What happened to him?" "I don''t know, he lost consciousness the moment he entered the place" "Hmmm" Blake looked at the unconscious Grey the man held in his arms. Seeing Grey''s identification, the instructor took Grey to Blake the moment he lost consciousness. "Okay, you can leave now" Blake said before taking Grey in another direction. Some moments later... Chris looked at the unconscious Grey and couldn''t help but furrow his brow. "Leave" Blake dropped Grey on the bed before heading out of the room. "Although his injuries are bad, it''s not a challenge since he''s still alive" Chris said as he placed his hand on the body of the unconscious Grey. Blake stood outside the room and saw a white light flash in the room. He squinted his eyes and looked on with interest. ''So the rumors are true, he truly is a Light Elementalist'' Although the rumor has been on for a long time, it still hasn''t been confirmed. *********** Back at the alley The girl managed to stand up and picked up her dagger which Grey managed to remove from his shoulder before leaving. The injury in her back was painful, but that was the least of her issues right now. She was still replaying what happened in her mind. ''How did he dodge it?'' Given her experience, she knew her target couldn''t evade from that distance. After careful thinking, she recalled something. ''I froze'' Now she knew the cause, she froze when the dagger was about to pierce through Grey''s c.h.e.s.t. Even though it wasn''t up to a second, it was enough for Grey to move so his vitals wouldn''t be hit. It was something that some people might not even notice since it felt like she was paused just before the dagger hit. The only student who wasn''t struck by the attack first stared in the direction Grey fled towards, before staring in the direction of the figure who appeared out of nowhere and almost killed Grey who has also left the alley. The student whose arm was detached screamed in pain on seeing his arm a couple of meters away from where he was sitting. Only the Water Elementalist who was the strongest of the group wasn''t badly hurt, but he was still bleeding from his hands nonetheless. He looked at his comrades and couldn''t help but feel a little twinge of regret, but since he wasn''t the one whose arm was detached, he quickly got over it. "Get him up, we should head back and report this to the instructors. Those bastards from the Lunar Academy sneaked attacked us" He said gritting his teeth. They all thought it was a sneak attack since they didn''t see Grey attacking. But they were all still surprised they didn''t see or even sense the presence of the students who attacked them. The student whose arm was detached picked up his arm with his other hand and the more he was looking at the arm, the more rage, hatred, regret, and tears were flowing from his eyes. This was not how it was supposed to end, they would have beaten Grey badly or even killed him. But now, Grey escaped, although injured, he escaped. They on the other hand got multiple injuries, and he got it worse with one of his arm cut off his body. ************* On getting to the residence designated for the Starlight Academy, the students rushed over to their instructors and told them about the attack they faced, with the injuries they sustained, it wasn''t hard for the instructors believed it completely. Of course, they said they were sneaked attacked by the students from the Lunar Academy when they were on their way home. The instructors knew they were lying, but they didn''t really care. This was an opportunity for them to get rid of Grey. According to the students, Grey was the one who blocked their path, when they tried reasoning with him, the other students attacked from behind, they didn''t see the others and Grey was the only one they saw. The instructors dismissed them before starting a meeting. "They''ll have to hand over that brat to us if they don''t want to start a war" "Such audacity, to think they had the guts to attack our students in the city. This is breaking the rules of the city, we should report this to the emperor if they refuse to hand over the boy and his accomplices to us" The instructors of the Starlight Academy starting planning on which actions to take. *********** Back to the Lunar Academy Chris walked out of the room and glanced at Blake who was seemingly lost in thoughts. "What are you thinking about?" Blake was startled and looked at Chris. He couldn''t help himself anymore and asked, "Are you also a Light Elementalist?" Chris''s facial expression didn''t change before he asked, "Why are you asking if you already know?" This statement was the confirmation Blake needed to affirm his eyes didn''t play any tricks on him. He couldn''t help but look at Chris again, he had always felt great respect towards this man who had an eccentric character, now he found out he was not just a Dual Elementalist, but a Multi Elementalist. The shocking fact of it all was that his last element was one of the two extremely rare elements, the Light element. Although Lightning Elementalists were rare, compared to Light and Darkness Elementalists, they could be said to be very plentiful. Light Elementalist are known for their extreme speed, but that isn''t their most special attribute, they had the unique skill of healing. The Light element had a special trait, Life Force energy. With this, they can be said to be the best healers given their special ability. But don''t be deceived by the fact that they are good healers, the Light element is known to also have terrifying attack power. Just like the Light Element, the Darkness Element also had the special attribute of corrosion, it can corrode almost everything, and it is regarded as one of the most, if not the most terrifying attacking element there is. Blake finally came back to himself after being lost in thoughts once again, "How''s Grey?" "He should be fine, a little sleep and he will be back to new" Blake saw Grey''s state when he brought him here, so when he heard this, he couldn''t help but be shocked. He expected Grey to take at least two weeks or so to heal, but now, Chris said a little sleep and he would be as good as new, who wouldn''t be shocked when they heard something like that? "You should keep your mouth shut about what you saw today" Blake nodded, he didn''t have any plans of telling anyone, okay, maybe he might tell her, but he wouldn''t tell any other person. "By the way, what happened to him?" Chris asked, because Grey was badly injured when Blake brought him in, he didn''t ask what happened and just started healing him outright. But now that Grey was alright, he wanted to know what happened. "I don''t know, the instructor guarding the place brought...." Blake told Chris what the instructor told him. "Hmm, guess we''ll have to wait for Grey to wake up before we can know what happened" "Yes, that''s the only solution" Grey opened his eyes and looked around, he didn''t recognize the place so he panicked a little, but on remembering he saw an instructor, he guessed he should at least be within the residence. He subconsciously touched his shoulder where he was stabbed but was shocked when he couldn''t feel anything. ''Was I dreaming?'' He asked himself, he clearly remembered being stabbed by someone in black yesterday, or was it the day before, he didn''t really know since he didn''t know how long he was unconscious. But the injury miraculously disappeared, not just that one, even the other ones were nowhere to be found also. ''What''s happening?'' He got to his feet and walked out of the room, on getting to the courtyard outside the room, he surprisingly saw Chris sitting. "Teacher" Chris turned and looked at his coo¡­ ahem, student. "How are you feeling?" Grey checked his body again just to be sure before replying "Fine, I feel great in fact" Chris nodded "Good, good. Now tell me, what happened to you yesterday?" ''So it wasn''t a dream. But, how did my injuries disappear within the space of a single night?'' Grey went on to tell Chris about what happened with the students from the Starlight Academy. Chris squinted his eyes and a cold light flashed past it. "Hmph, those people are just like pests, they need to be exterminated" Chris said icily, he was already fed up with what was going on with the Starlight Academy, they were lucky he was not the principal, or he would have already destroyed them already. He definitely didn''t give a shit about what the emperor was going to say. Chris took Grey over to the instructors so he would explain what happened the previous night. While Grey was still in the process of explaining what happened, the instructors were already all turning red from rage when a loud voice traveled to the meeting room. "Where is the student called Grey?" The speaker made sure to enhance his voice to ensure everyone in the residence heard it. Even the people who were walking heard this and all curiously stopped on their tracks and looked at what was going on. "Aren''t those people from the Starlight Academy?" "Yeah, but why are they yelling in front of the residence of the Lunar Academy" "I don''t know, but it would be interesting" Different conversations broke out, the instructor who yelled smirked inside. This was the result he wanted. The principal, instructors, and the students who resided in the place all came out and looked at the group who were floating in the air outside the gate. Grey was behind Chris when they walked out, he stared at the group with cold eyes. Klaus and Reynolds were already back from the Jade Water Paradise so on hearing Grey''s name being mentioned, they rushed outside their rooms. "What are you doing here?" The head instructor from the Fire Hall asked coldly. "A student from your Academy attacked our students yesterday, and one of the students is almost dead and even lost an arm. We want you to hand the student over to us so we can punish him appropriately" The man said confidently The instructors from the Lunar Academy all looked at him like he was a fool, did he really think they would hand over their student to him?. They didn''t even have the strength to bother with him, arguing with people whose brains weren''t functioning properly was too tiring. The crowd was finally able to get the gist of the whole issue, it seems a student from the Lunar Academy attacked the students from the Starlight Academy and even successfully injured them badly. "You should leave, people from the Starlight Academy are not welcomed here" Oliver said calmly, he was already holding himself back from unleashing an attack towards the group. "We came here for the student and also an explanation, we are not leaving until we have both. Also¡­" The man suddenly stopped talking and a scene that stunned everyone present played out. The man who was still in the middle of his speech was sent flying by a slap from someone who suddenly appeared beside him. The rest of the group from the Starlight Academy looked in the direction the man flew to, and couldn''t help but feel a chill run down their spines. "I don''t like him, he should''ve just left when he was told to" Chris said with a shrug before he returned to his previous position like nothing happened. ''Teacher is so overbearing'' Grey looked at the man in front of him and his respect for him increased to a new level. Chapter 75 - Augustus Gale The crowd gathered outside looked in the direction the man landed, his life and death is unknown since there have been no movements from him since he crashed into the ground. Oliver looked at Chris and couldn''t help but sigh, he knew now the issue wouldn''t be settled easily, and he didn''t really care. Now unlike the previous time, the higher-ups from the Starlight Academy will try to make a big issue out of this. But to hell with them, did they think the Lunar Academy was scared, if they thought that, then they were dead wrong. "Are you still here?" Oliver asked while releasing a cold aura from his body, since things have already gotten to this stage, there was no use in trying to talk calmly to them. If they still decide not to leave, then they will face the same fate as their comrade. He was over a hundred percent sure Chris killed the man with that slap. The instructors from the Lunar Academy all released intense killing intent from their bodies, the group from the Starlight Academy quickly scurried away like a pack of scared dogs with their tails behind their legs. They came here with heads held high, thinking they might use this opportunity to not only get rid of Grey but to also show everyone who was the number one, but now they left in disgrace and mostly fear. From how the instructors from the Lunar Academy were acting, they knew they weren''t joking and might attack if they stayed any further. Among the group, the man who was smacked to death was the most pitiful. If he could talk he would have surely complained about the nature of his death, if he was killed with some flashy move, it wouldn''t be as bad as being smacked to death. He only came here to show dominance, why did it end like this? Even in the underworld, he would be a laughingstock because of the way he died. The group quickly went over to get the man who was smacked away, but on seeing his condition, they were stupefied, and the fear they felt increased once again. The side of the man''s head caved in, and he couldn''t be any deader. They picked up the corpse and disappeared from the area. News of the event quickly rocked the entire city. The fact that a group from the Starlight Academy went over to the Lunar Academy to demand for a student was shocking on its own, the fact that one of the group was smacked to death was even more astonishing. *********** The instructors all looked at the corpse with rage, this was an instructor who was most likely to be the next head instructor in the Wind Hall, but now he was dead, even the manner of his death was annoying, he was smacked to death, like an annoying fly. "Good, very good. The people from the Lunar Academy are getting more daring, do they think we''re pushovers?" "Call everyone here, we''re heading over to confront them" The principal of the Starlight Academy said in anger. *********** The Castle of the emperor "Your highness, the conflict between the Lunar and the Starlight Academy seems to have escalated again. An instructor from the Starlight Academy was killed today when they went over to the residence of the Lunar Academy to demand for a student who they said attacked some of their students" Seated on the throne was a man who looked to be in his early forties. With refined features and a calm look, he was the emperor of the Qilin empire, Augustus Gale. He stared at the man who was reporting what happened to him. "To dare break the rules of the city, the Lunar Academy doesn''t seem to put his highness in their eyes" An elder by the side spoke in a spiteful manner. The others looked at him but didn''t say anything, they shifted their gazes back to the emperor. They all knew that the elder had close ties with the Starlight Academy, and he''s not the only one, more than half of the elders present here had close ties with them. This was one of the reasons the Starlight Academy had not only grown in power but also why they always acted overbearingly. The man who was giving the report suddenly spoke up again. "Your highness, it seems the people from the Starlight Academy are currently on their way to confront the Lunar Academy" Augustus felt tired from the entire issue, he didn''t know what to do about the two academies. "Head over to the residence of the Lunar Academy and summon both Academies over" "Yes, your highness" The man bowed before leaving the castle "Your highness, if I may?" The emperor nodded. The elder continued after getting the go-ahead from the emperor, "This is a very delicate matter, and if not handled properly it might cause internal strife in the empire" "So what do you have in mind?" The emperor looked at him with interest "We still don''t know if what the group of the Starlight Academy said is the truth. For all we know, they might just be looking for a way to get back at the Lunar Academy for the matter that occurred previously" The elder said. The elder who spoke up previously quickly jumped into the fray, "What do you mean by that? Do you think the people from the Starlight Academy will just decide to bully someone of the younger generation unreasonably?" "Yes, yes I do" The man didn''t hide his thoughts and said it out loud, he was tired of the tyrannical way the Starlight Academy were acting in the empire for a while now. They soon got into a heated argument before the emperor decided to step in, "Enough, we''ll hear from both sides when they get here" ************ When the crowd saw another group from the Starlight Academy approaching the residence, they weren''t surprised since they expected this. The principal and the instructors from the Lunar Academy all came out also when they sensed the aura the group from the Starlight Academy was doing nothing to hide. "He''s the one" One of the people in the group who came the first time pointed at Chris hatefully. On seeing that the one who was pointed at was Chris, the principal couldn''t help but be taken aback. If it was the principal or any other instructor from the Lunar Academy, he would have been a hundred percent confident in doing what he came here for, but in front of Chris, he wasn''t too confident. Chris is known for his unreasonable conducts, and given his strength, offending him was not a wise choice. Just as he was about to speak, he noticed someone coming from the direction of the castle. He heaved a sigh of relief since he knew the emperor has already gotten involved in the matter. "His highness summons both parties to the castle" Both sides nodded before heading towards the castle. They landed when they were five hundred meters away from the castle since it was forbidden to fly within this range of the castle. After entering the castle, both sides told the emperor their sides of the story. The students weren''t called over and only the higher-ups of both Academies were present. Augustus was caught in a dilemma as he didn''t know which side to believe. "How are you sure what that brat said was the truth?" The elder who spoke up the first time said. "How are you so sure what those twerps said was the truth" Oliver retorted calmly. "You people from the Lunar Academy all feel like you''re on top of the world, to even have the guts to protect such a lowly student who would sneak attack his peers" "If you continue speaking, make sure to never leave this castle again" Chris said calmly as he looked at the elder. Since they came to the castle, this elder has been the one opposing them. Even the people from the Starlight Academy weren''t as dedicated as he was. "Is that a threat" Chris looked at him without replying, but his gaze gave him the answer he wanted, his eyes were simply saying, try me. The elder sensibly shut his mouth, he knew some things about Chris and knew he would really kill him regardless of what the emperor said. Augustus was beginning to feel a headache, especially with the sudden involvement of Chris. He was still confused why Chris was involved in the issue, why was he even here? He had never attended the previous competitions. "Chris" Augustus called out. Chris turned his gaze to the emperor. "Why are you interested in this matter?" "Because the boy in question is my student, I brought him personally to the Academy and I know what he can or can''t do. There is no way he would sneak attack their students. But if he really did, given his talent, they''d be dead" "Your student?" "Yes, my student. Do you have a problem with me having a student?" Augustus thought for some time before saying, "Since there is no way to confirm who is right in this matter, we''ll have to end the matter here. Chris, you''ll have to compensate them for their dead instructor. I do not want to hear of this matter anymore. If the younger generation wants to compete against each other, they''re free to. But none of you in the older generations should interfere with it anymore" The elder suddenly objected "Your highness, do you mean you''re going to just dismiss the matter like this?" Augustus looked at him coldly, "Are you saying I don''t know what I''m doing?" The elder suddenly realized his mistake, "No your highness, please forgive this old one''s incompetence" Augustus snorted before adding, "Good, you''re all dismissed" The group from both Academies left the place with the Lunar Academy coming out the better of the two. Later that day, inside the depths of the castle "Father, why are you still tolerating Chris? He didn''t even put you in his eyes" "The plan is still ongoing, and he is an unknown factor in the overall shape of things. He still hasn''t accepted my offer yet, but he promised not to interfere with the plan. He is also a huge asset to us in case a war breaks out with the other empires. For now, we''ll leave him be, besides, he''s not someone we can easily get rid of" "Why don''t we use the Starlight Academy to deal with him?" "The chances of them succeeding is below twenty percent" "He''s that strong?" "Yes, but I have a plan" Chapter 76 - Upgrade At the residence of the Lunar Academy... Grey told Klaus and the others what happened after he left the Jade Water Paradise. He gave them a detailed description of the entire event, and they all felt like they were there when it happened. "Those sc.u.mbags" Reynolds said through gritted teeth. Grey looked at him and was almost a hundred percent sure Reynolds was the one who hated the Starlight Academy the most. While the others were speaking, Klaus stayed unusually quiet. He suddenly spoke up, "There''s still something puzzling about the story" The rest looked at him with interest. "You said one of them suddenly appeared and tried to stab you with a dagger?" He asked "Yes, I didn''t really get a good look at the figure. But I think the person is also one of them. He just hid and waited for the right time to strike, luckily, I was fast enough to make sure he didn''t hit my vitals" Grey answered, he was totally taken off guard when that figure suddenly appeared. "I don''t think so" Klaus said calmly. "Huh" Not just Grey, but Reynolds and Alice were also taken aback when Klaus said this. "From the way the person appeared, I think it was an assassin" Klaus told them his conjecture. From the way the figure stayed until that moment to strike, it was evident the person was quite experienced in it. "Assassin!" The others all exclaimed in surprise. "But what I don''t know is who would want to send an assassin to kill you, and why?" The group looked at Klaus with surprise. Grey thought about it and couldn''t help but feel what Klaus said was right. "I don''t think I''ve offended anyone since we got to the city" Grey said after some time. He rarely had contact with people, how will he offend people and didn''t even remember it? "What about the Starlight Academy?" Klaus asked "Why would the Starlight Academy send someone to assassinate me just because I beat up one of their students?" Grey said. He didn''t think the people from the Starlight Academy did it, he knew they were upset he beat up their student, but sending an assassin to kill him is just being unreasonable. "Beats me, but they are the ones I think are likely behind it, or, the family of the boy you beat up" "We all have to be careful from now on. I''ll inform my father about this" Klaus said to the others. They stayed for a while before they all left. Grey decided to tell Chris about Klaus''s deduction. "It''s definitely them" Chris said without a second thought. After hearing the full details of the fight, he couldn''t help but applaud Klaus''s perception. For him to be able to know there was something different about the figure was brilliant. "By chance, did you see any symbol in the shape of a hand on the dagger?" Chris asked to confirm if it was the group he suspected. "I don''t know since it happened too fast, but from what I could remember when I touched the dagger, it was made from what seems to be steel. Oh!, and the dagger is black, even the blades of the dagger were black" Grey said "It''s definitely them" Chris mumbled "You know them?" "Why are you asking? Now get to training, if you were able to make the inscription faster, you wouldn''t have been beaten so badly" Chris reprimanded him "Teacher, how come all my injuries were healed when I woke up?" Grey couldn''t help but ask, he was puzzled by this, but he had not been able to ask Chris because of what happened earlier. "A miracle" Chris answered nonchalantly. Grey left frustrated after not getting any answers from Chris, he was sure Chris definitely had a hand in it. After Grey left, Chris squinted his eyes. ''Hmph!, To dare try to assassinate my cook'' Chris appeared in a luxurious compound on the southern side of the city. It was like he was a ghost as he appeared and disappeared in random places. Some minutes later, Chris came out with a confused look on his face. He searched the entire place and he didn''t find a single soul in the entire compound. This was unexpected since the place was always occupied. Since the black hand established themselves, they had never left this place. They had powerhouses who could protect the place and given their strong network of friends, they rarely made enemies who are strong enough to threaten them. ''Could it be that they have fled the city? I don''t think so, seems like something else is going on''. Chris left the place since he didn''t find who he was looking for. He was not the only one who had come searching for the people here, even the middle-aged woman in black had come earlier today but couldn''t find them. She came the previous night, so it was surprising they just disappeared the next day. It was like they were never there. *********** The previous night, while Grey was battling with the group from the Starlight Academy, there was another person present who none of them took notice of. Even the girl didn''t notice there was someone else there. A man was watching the battle from the sky, but it was impossible for the others to know of his presence, even the strongest expert in the city will not be able to detect him. ''Hmm, little lord seems to have improved compared to the last time he battled against a group. Although he''s still getting beaten, the result of the battle is not that bad''. He had been following Grey since he arrived here a month after Grey joined the Lunar Academy. He had watched all of Grey''s battle and could tell Grey had improved compared to before. One of the things that shocked him the most was when Grey battles with the mercenaries. After Grey was covered in rocks, he knew he wasn''t dead and was just about to step in and eliminate the mercenaries, when Grey suddenly rose from the rubble. It was a shocking sight as the power Grey showed was something someone of Grey''s stage wasn''t supposed to have. But the thing that shocked him was when he noticed Grey suddenly had an extra element, the wind element. He was sure from the time he started following Grey, he could only sense lightning and earth elemental essence around him, but the wind element suddenly joined the fray after that night. During the current battle when Grey is being badly beaten, he sensed when Grey was making the inscription. ''What a great plan, if this is successful, he wouldn''t have a problem with defeating them. But that lass is still a problem though, let''s see how it goes''. He nodded in approval when he noticed what Grey was trying to do, and also kept a close watch on the girl hidden in the shadow. Just as Grey landed close to the girl, the girl sprang out and dashed towards Grey aiming the dagger towards his heart. ''What a smart girl, an assassin truly is an assassin no matter where they are. Such sublime timing and impeccable spot targeted. With the speed of the strike, her target can''t escape this. Sigh, if only she wasn''t trying to kill little lord, I would have taken her as a disciple'' He waved his hand and the girl froze for a slight moment, this was all Grey needed to dodge the attack and use the symbol to attack the others. On seeing Grey was able to shift his body, he nodded in approval. If Grey hadn''t been able to move, he would have been disappointed since he thought Grey''s reaction speed was fast. Given an opportunity, he firmly believed Grey would be able to make sure his vitals weren''t hit, and Grey didn''t disappoint. ''This battle should teach him to never lower your guard when battling'' He could have easily made sure the girl never appeared, but he wanted to see Grey''s reaction and also his vigilance. And the outcome showed him Grey still had a lot to learn. After he confirmed Grey had entered the residence of the Lunar Academy, he followed the girl back to her hideout. He saw the girl speaking with a lady, ''Guess you will all have to disappear now, you can only blame your bad luck for trying to assassinate the little lord'' The man spoke with a sigh, he still felt bad about killing the girl, but he knew he had no other choice. ************ Back to the present day... "Ahh, finally" Grey said in a satisfied manner. After so long, he had finally increased the grade of his earth element. Now, his lightning element was blue grade, the earth element was purple grade, and his wind element was still in the pink grade. But he was sure it wouldn''t take long before it improved to the orange grade. The three days break soon came to an end and the third round was about to begin. Of course what happened previously at the residence of the Lunar Academy was still the major topic. Soon, the man in charge of the competition took to the platform and announced the rules, just like the previous times, they will all be given a plaque with numbers, but since there was an extra person, one person would get to skip this round of battles. The moment Grey and his group heard this, they all turned to look at Klaus. They still remembered how he was able to get both lucky numbers during the tournament at the Academy. Grey shook his head, ''There''s no way he would also get it this time'' He was not the only one who had such thoughts, Alice and Reynolds also thought the same thing. The participants were all called into the platform and the plaques started floating midair air. "A plaque will come to each of you. You are only allowed to grab the one which comes to you" The man said before the plaques shot towards the participants. After each participant got a plaque, the man said, "Now the student with plaque number seventy-five should step forward" They all looked at the plaques in their hands... Chapter 77 - Its A Date "The participant with plaque number seventy-five should step forward" The man said after all the plaques were distributed. Grey looked at the plaque in his hand, and twenty-nine was boldly written on it. He was not the only one who check his plaque, the rest of the participants also did the same. The few weaker ones prayed they were the ones who got the lucky number. Grey had no problem with not skipping this round since he mainly came here to test his limits against others. With the upgrade in his earth element, he''s stronger compared to the last time he battled, but it didn''t mean he could defeat a student in the Ninth stage yet. But he was sure he might be able to fight Alan to a draw now. Alice also didn''t have a problem with this, after all, she was a battle maniac. She might even feel sad if she had to skip this round. Reynolds and Klaus didn''t really care also, if they had it, they''ll just relax and watch the battles, if they didn''t, they''ll fight. Grey looked around to see who was going to step forward but didn''t see any movements from the crowd, he subconsciously turned his head towards Klaus and his expression changed when he saw Klaus smiling stupidly. Klaus stepped forward and showed his plaque to the man in charge. Reynolds mouth twitched a little when he also saw this, since Klaus stepped forward, it only meant he got the lucky number again. "Crap! How come he always gets it?" He wasn''t the only one who had this thought though, everyone who came from the Lunar Academy who witnessed the tournament was also dumbfounded. They had witnessed Klaus''s terrifying luck during the tournament which allowed him to skip two rounds. But witnessing it once again was just shocking. They could only smile bitterly and curse their poor lucks. The second round soon began, Grey''s battle was among the last set for the day. Although he hoped to battle with a student in the Ninth stage, he didn''t get it. His opponent wasn''t weak though since she was in the Eighth stage of the Arcane Plane. After a long battle, he was able to obtain victory. When the group who attacked Grey saw him, they were stunned, especially the one who lost an arm. Grey was perfectly normal, they knew too well how many injuries Grey sustained during the battle, he wasn''t even supposed to be able to fight, talk less of beating someone in the Eight stage. Regret suddenly washed him up once again, he regretted following them to attack Grey. If he had just stayed where he was, he would have been perfectly fine. Unfortunately, there''s no medicine for regret. Of the seventy-five participants left, more than half of them were in the Ninth stage, the number in the Sixth stage was only four, with Klaus and Jonas being two of them. After getting through this stage, Grey knew his chances of advancing once again was very low since the participants left were mostly in the Ninth stage. Even though he really wanted to fight with them, he knew he wasn''t their match yet. The battle soon got to Reynolds turn, his opponent was surprisingly Jonas. Given the way he hated the Starlight Academy, Grey was sure he would try to beat Jonas up badly. Well, so they thought. When the battle started, Reynolds didn''t even try to hold back, he unleashed a strong attack towards his opponent. With his strength, coupled with the stage advantage, he should normally be able to completely overpower Jonas. But... Boom! Both fighters were pushed back by the impact of the first clash Reynolds retreated three steps backward from the impact of the attack, Jonas on the other hand retreated five steps before he was able to get his footing right. The result of the first clash stunned Reynolds, although he got the upper hand, it was just merely. Grey was also surprised by it, he didn''t think Jonas would be able to almost fight Reynolds to a draw given the grade of his element. But it didn''t surprise him too much since Klaus''s grade was also purple, but he could battle with those who had blue grade and a higher stage too. "He''s pretty strong" Klaus stared at the battle before commenting. "Yeah" Grey replied calmly. The battle went on with Reynolds holding the advantage most of the time, but there were a few times he nearly lost due to his hotheadedness, but luckily, he was able to calm himself and slowly grind down his opponent. The advantage of having a higher stage soon started to play out, and just as expected, Jonas lost. Reynolds came back to his seat after the long battle, he was feeling exhausted, luckily, he won the battle. "To think you almost lost against a student from the Starlight Academy, who is even a stage lower" Klaus said in a mocking tone. Reynolds looked at Klaus and felt speechless, sometimes he felt like just beating him up. He knew Klaus was just playing around, but it didn''t mean he couldn''t beat him up still. "You want to try?" "Please, like I haven''t defeated you before" Klaus said with a scoff, particularly stressing the first word he said. Grey looked at Klaus and didn''t know what to say. He still didn''t remember when Klaus defeated Reynolds. "What are you looking at? Do you want me to beat you up again?" Klaus looked at Grey arrogantly. Grey looked at Reynolds and they both nodded, they seem to have come to a conclusion about how to deal with Klaus. On seeing this, Klaus couldn''t help but freeze, "G...guys, you know I''m only playing around right?" He stuttered while trying to butter up his friends, which ended in a failure. Grey didn''t even bother to look at him and drew closer to Reynolds, seemingly planning out what methods will hurt Klaus the most. Klaus almost wanted to cry but no tears came out, he was already cursing his big mouth inside. He totally forgot about their sparring sessions, given his strength, he might be able to struggle longer than Jonas against Reynolds, but it didn''t change the fact that he would get his a.s.s whooped. Against Grey, he didn''t even have the chance to struggle for more than three minutes. "Damn you! Do you think I''m afraid?" He suddenly shifted his gaze over to the laughing Alice, and an idea struck him. "Hey, want to spar with me today?" Alice stifled a laugh when she heard Klaus''s offer. Klaus has always been scared of sparring with her, she didn''t expect he would take this route to escape from punishment from Grey and Reynolds. "How about next time? I can see you already have plans with Grey and Reynolds" She said trying to hold back her laugh. "No...no, today is good" Klaus said with a shaky voice. Only after continuous persuasion did Alice finally agree. "Okay fine" Alice agreed helplessly. She didn''t think Klaus was such a persistent person. "Great, it''s a date then" Klaus said without thinking. His arrogant look once again returned as he looked at Grey and Reynolds, ''Hmph! They think they can bully me, but I''m one step ahead of them''. There was no way Grey and Reynolds would object to him sparring with Alice, all he had to do now was spar with her for some days. By then, Grey and Reynolds would have already forgotten about their evil scheme. Alice however lowered her head shyly when she heard Klaus say the word ''date'', she blushed unknowingly with her heart beating like crazy. "Hey, are you okay?" Klaus asked when he suddenly noticed Alice''s strange behavior. Alice nodded, she didn''t dare to raise her head though, she covered her face with her hands and her imagination started running wild. It was only after some time had passed was she able to calm her racing heart. "I have a sparring session with Alice today" He said as he walked past them with a smirk, ''Let''s see how you will beat me up'' Klaus gladly went over to Alice''s place for their training session. Although he was still beaten by Alice, it wasn''t to the extent Grey and Reynolds had planned for him. They soon ended their sparring session and he volunteered to show Alice around. Although Alice was from a big family, she didn''t travel frequently, this was only the second time she had been to Capital City... Chapter 78 - Magical Beast Forest The next day... The group all went over to the arena, Alice was in a good mood, and she laughed more often compared to the previous days. Grey noticed the change but didn''t think too much about it since he knew Alice was a cheerful person. Alice was still reminiscing about the previous night which she enjoyed, she hadn''t had this much fun in a long time. Klaus being a great company only made things better, he took her to all the fun places he could think of, and they only returned when it was past midnight. They would have stayed longer if not for the battle she had today. Her opponent was in the Eighth stage of the Arcane Plane, who she easily defeated and came back hopping to her seat. Just like the previous day, Klaus ditched Grey and Reynolds and opted to train with Alice. He still didn''t know if they still wanted to beat him up, and didn''t want to take the risk. Although he was also beaten up like the previous day by Alice, she seemed to have held back compared to yesterday. After training, they continued their touring of the city. Reynolds could only find comfort in Grey since they were the ones who were left out. But unfortunately, Grey also left Reynolds and headed over to meet up with Chris for his training. Although Grey wanted to be with his friend, he couldn''t reject it when Chris called him since he had been training on his own since they came here. He noticed since the incident, Chris had tried to make sure he improved in his speed in creating the symbol. It felt like he wasn''t going to see him for some time. "Teacher, do you know what this special training is about?" Grey suddenly asked after finishing his practice. Chris gazed at the sky before replying, "You''ll know about it anyway, so there''s no use in hiding it from you. You will all be going..." Chris told him some details about the land of trial which was about to open up. He also made sure to tell him not to tell others about it, well, he could tell his friends, but they should keep it to themselves since the empire would execute them if they found out they knew. Well, Grey would be safe, so also would Klaus and Alice. Reynolds however didn''t have a more prominent background like the other two, so he might be executed. "Twenty-five spots have already been taken by the Royal Academy, while the remaining seventy-five are taken by the top seventy-five participants in the competition" Grey was stunned, this was the first time he was hearing about something like this. Seems like the previous people who went in all kept it under wraps. But why were they keeping it a secret anyway? It''s not like someone else would take the spot from them, given there were only four empires, and they jointly keep guard of the place to ensure none of the others cheated and placed in more people. "So that''s the reason they increased the number of students, but why didn''t the Royal Academy fight for a spot like the others?" He couldn''t help but ask. "Because they are ''royals''. The twenty-five spot which they took will be given to the youths from the royal family. The empire is actually quite good in this aspect, I heard the Azure empire only gave ten spots to the Academies there, and they took ninety spots" Chris said with a light smile. Although the current emperor isn''t as good as the previous one, it was good he didn''t change this rule. But Chris knew some things were going on behind the scenes which he didn''t know, but as long as it didn''t clash with his interest, he didn''t care. The day ended without much happening, the third round soon ended and the fourth round began. Just like Grey expected, his opponent was someone in the Ninth stage. He battled with all he had, but still couldn''t change the expected result, he lost. The defeat didn''t dampen his mood though since it was within his expectations, he was not the only one who was knocked out in this round, both Klaus and Reynolds were also eliminated. Klaus in particular almost had it worse, with his opponent being a student from the Starlight Academy in the Ninth stage of the Arcane Plane. He made sure to curse him as much as he could before the battle started. The student almost went on a rampage when Klaus told him something in particular, luckily, as soon as the man in charge said ''begin'', Klaus immediately jumped off the platform and admitted defeat. Well, he didn''t forget to unleash more curses on the guy, which in turn, provoked the guy even more. The guy''s eyes literally turned bloodshot from rage, but Klaus didn''t care. Klaus knew since they were no longer on the platform, the guy wouldn''t dare to attack him since it will attract a huge punishment on the guy and he on the other hand will most likely come out unscathed. Grey and Reynolds joined in the fun when Klaus returned, and they all had a good laugh while watching the rest of the competition. Soon it got to the final twenty in the competition, and Damian was surprisingly still in it. He was lucky not to have met anyone in the Ninth stage, so he was able to advance, only after bringing out his summon that is. When the crowd saw it, they were all stunned as they never expected to see a summoner in the competition. Of the final twenty, the Lunar Academy had seven left, while the Starlight Academy had only four left. Alice''s next battle was against the guy who Klaus met the previous time, she was unexpectedly more violent compared to the previous times she battled and completely whooped him. She even broke one of his arms before he was able to admit defeat. Klaus got excited when he saw this, ''Hmph! Trying to show your petty strength in front of me, now that you met my sparring partner, you couldn''t even do shit''. Reynolds on the other hand, was always excited whenever he sees the people from the Starlight Academy being beaten. When it got to the final ten, the Starlight Academy only had one student left. This was a total setback compared to their previous year''s triumph. The Lunar Academy had five students in the top ten, this was an amazing record. They completely dominated this year''s competition, from now, they would definitely be regarded as the number one Academy among the others. The competition ended with the Lunar Academy winning it comfortably, with two of their students taking first and second place. This was the first time in the history of the competition that one Academy took first and second place. Alice was ranked fifth overall, the student from the Starlight Academy was able to grab the third spot, just barely. The result of the competition was announced in the empire and the rewards were given to those in the top ten. Five days later... Grey looked at the man who stood before him giving a speech, and was quite moved by the majestic aura radiating from him. "You all, are the future of the empire" The man ended the speech with this. The participants all cheered after the man finished his speech, this was the emperor of the Qilin empire. They never thought they would get the chance to meet the emperor, so seeing him was a pleasant surprise to the seventy-five participants. Well, there are some new faces among the seventy-five participants, but the others didn''t really care. It was not like they were the ones changed, right? When the majority of the crowd heard about the mysterious land of trial, they couldn''t help but feel excited. They all knew this was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, and they were glad they would be able to participate in it. Now they understood why the quotas were improved previously. The youths formed different groups and chatted about the new place they were about to head to. They were informed beforehand to come with their weapons if they used any, and some clothes since they would be out for a while. Grey had finally reunited with his short blades, he was about to step into a dangerous land, going without his blades was impossible for him. He had spent the last five days training mostly with Chris since he would be gone for a while, and he needed to improve the speed at which he created the symbols. Inscription will be very useful for him in a place like that. A group of men came out and directed the youths towards an open field in the castle. The youths were stupefied by the sight, a bunch of aerial magical beasts gathered in the place, this was going to be their ride. They all got on the different birds and the birds took off, their destination, the Magical Beast Forest... Chapter 79 - Magical Beasts Forest II *************** Somewhere in the Azure empire... In a mountain range, a large compound was situated in the depth of it. Inside a study room in the compound... "Lord, they are ready" A man stood in front of a refined-looking man who sat on the chair behind the desk, reading a book. There was a desk at the side of the study room and books could be seen arranged in an orderly fashion on a book rack. The man who was reading shifted his attention to the man standing. This was the butler of the compound, he hadn''t stayed with the family for too long though. "Hmm, okay. Have you given them the map?" The butler nodded, "Yes lord, they should have no problem with locating it this time" The man replied, "Good. Make sure to remind them there is no room for failure, you should know how long it took us to create that map, and how many lives were lost because of it" The butler was aware of this since he had stayed with the family for some time now. "Yes my lord, they know acquiring it is their main objective. They have promised to return with it, but we still don''t know if there might be any unforeseen events yet" The man replied before shifting his gaze back to the book he was reading. "As long as they are careful, they should be able to acquire it" The butler was about to leave when he suddenly paused, after gathering the courage, he said, "My lord" The man continued reading his book when he answered, "Speak" The butler asked with a shaky voice, "What is this thing they''re going to acquire anyway" The man looked at the butler while squinting his eyes. The butler immediately regretted his decision and quickly knelt on the ground, Thud! "Forgive me for intruding my lord" The man seemed satisfied with the butler''s reaction, after some thoughts, he said, "Don''t worry it''s okay, you''ve been with me for over ten years, and I''m very pleased with your work so far. I don''t think there''s any use hiding it from you, and besides, I trust you" "The truth is, I don''t know what they will acquire, but according to my ancestor, it''s a great treasure in the land of trial that can increase our strength drastically. He found a record in a room which said a great treasure is located in a specific region. He searched for it throughout the time he was in the place but couldn''t find it due to how vast the place was" "He made a map of the place he had explored, and every time the place opens, he would send someone inside to continue the search from where he ended. The map is modified after every opening since the people who go in, explores new places" "Even I have entered, but we''ve still not been able to find it. But from the map, we have been able to search most of the region said in the records. The place left is all they have to explore, and they will most likely find it. With it, we will be able to get back what my family lost for so long, the throne. I will not only rule the Azure empire, but I will unite the entire continent as well and be the only ruler" The man said with eyes sparkling. He truly was a man with big dreams. His gaze then went cold, "If those bastards didn''t betray us and claimed the throne, our family would have been the one ruling the Qilin empire. There would have been only two empires and not four, because of the Gale''s family betrayal, those other old folks who refused to die took the opportunity to create their empires as well. The Gale family will pay for what they did" The butler looked at the man in shock, although he had been in the family for a while now, he didn''t know much about the history. He couldn''t help but ask, "My lord, I thought it was Constantine Gale who led the rebellion?" The man scoffed, before saying through gritted teeth, "That fool, what could he do, it was my ancestor who made the plan for everything. He was even the one who started the fight at the castle, but who would have thought Constantine would backstab him at the end. And those stupid families also joined hands with him" The butler was startled by this discovery, this was the first time he heard the story of the great rebellion differently. Usually, it was Constantine Gale who would get all the praise, but now, there seems to be some hidden information about the entire issue. If it was as his lord said, then Constantine Gale was not the hero. "My lord, what if there is a chance others have already acquired the treasure?" "It''s impossible, only we have the method of getting it. Others might have gone to the place, but they will not be able to open it" The man said confidently. The butler left after clearing this up. The man stood up from his seat and walked towards the book rack, he pushed a book, and a secret door opened up in the study room, he quickly disappeared into the stairway before the secret door closed shut. ************** The border of the Magical Beasts Forest Two days later... The group from the Qilin empire just got to the borders of the Magical Beasts Forest where they met up with some experts from the empire who were already there waiting for them. This was Grey''s first time coming to this place, and he was awed by it, the view while they were still in the sky was simply breathtaking. All he saw was a never-ending view of trees, and when he got to the ground, the trees towered into the sky like they wanted to peek into the heavens. "Hmph! You people are always late" A cold voice rang out from the camp nearby. Grey looked in the direction of the voice and noticed the speaker was a man whose hair had started turning gray with deep eyes and an obese build. "You people are always too eager" The man who was in charge of the group from the Qilin empire retorted in contempt. The man who just spoke was a member of the Azure empire. The man snorted coldly before turning his gaze to the other camps. "Since everyone is here, we shouldn''t waste any more time" The members of the other camps all agreed, the quicker the youths get into the place, the better it was for them. The leaders of each group all walked out. "Are we going to enter the place now?" "Seems like it" Grey nodded. "But, we just got here. Shouldn''t they at least give us some time to rest?" Klaus complained. "Seems not" Grey replied. Although the journey was tiring, since they wanted them to head in now, he had no problem with it. He curiously stared in the direction the leaders all gathered, and he could see them placing some stones on the floor in a specific pattern. Looking closely, one could see the lines which formed up a huge array on the floor. ''Essence stones'' Grey searched his memory for the information about them. These stones are formed in places where there are high concentrations of elemental essence. It usually takes a long time before they are formed, and they are divided into three grades; low, mid, and high grade. After the stones were placed in their required spots, the array lit up. The stones were what was used in activating the array, Grey hasn''t gotten to this level yet, but he already knows of it. "Step into the array, you will all be transported into¡­" The leaders all told each group entering the land of trial about some of the dangers they knew about. They also reminded them to keep track of time, and they should always be wary of those from the other empires. The youths all nodded enthusiastically before slowly stepping into the light shining off the array and disappearing. It soon got to Grey and his friends'' turn, he stilled his mind and stepped into the array. The light shone on them, and just like the others, they too disappeared. After all the youths entered the place, the leaders all went back to their camp. They will spend the next six months here, waiting for those who would be lucky enough to come back out of the place. Sometimes, the number of people who make it out is higher, while on other times, not even up to thirty percent will make it back. The only thing which has never changed was the fact that over ninety percent of the people who came out would have already broken through to the Origin Plane. At the camp of the Qilin empire "How many do you think will make it?" "I have no idea, but if more than half of the youths from our empire make it out, I''ll be content" They weren''t the only ones wishing for this, the other empires also hoped at least half of the youths they sent into the place makes it out. ************ Grey felt like his body was being dragged by an unknown force after the light covered his entire body, he was unable to keep his eyes open and shut them tight. The feeling didn''t last long before he felt a cool breeze on his face, he slowly opened his eyes... Chapter 80 - Horned Snake Grey looked around and found himself on a hillside halfway up the mountain. The ground was carpeted in green, and a purple bamboo tree patch dotted the hillside. A faint mist wreathed around the purple bamboo forest, giving it the ethereal feeling of a unique realm. Grey''s senses penetrated into the somewhat loose dirt beneath his feet as he breathed in the incomparably fresh air. The first thing he noticed was the high density and concentration of elemental essence that exceeded that of the Qilin empire in the place. "A single day of cultivation here is almost equal to fifteen days outside, it''s amazing" Klaus said. Given the high density of the place, it wasn''t hard for everyone to realize this fact. "We should head forward, staying here won''t be any good given the enmity between us and the Starlight Academy, added with the Azure empire, we could be attacked at anytime" Alice said while the boys were still in a state of reverie due to the feeling of the high elemental essence in the air. Her words quickly snapped them off their somewhat almost intoxicated state. "You''re right" Grey and the others nodded. They actually failed to realize that there wasn''t anyone here when they arrived, it seems like the other groups all headed inside in fear of being attacked by their enemies. The group walked forward with extreme caution. Looking at the sky, one could see it was covered with grayish lights, it was somewhat dark and gloomy, but they could clearly see their surroundings. The flora here was different from the outside, they were long and tall, ancient trees at the height of several hundred meters but everything felt like it was covered in dust. Looking afar, one could see mountains, rivers, and jungles. One hour later... Boom! "What the hell! That''s the sixth one already" Klaus said in frustration. They had only headed around one kilometer, yet they had been attacked by six different beasts. The only upside was the fact that the beasts were alone and not moving in groups. "They did say it was going to be dangerous. And besides, they are only in the Mid-stages of the Arcane Plane" Reynolds said with a laugh. "That''s why I''m complaining, we haven''t even gone deep into this place and the beasts we are encountering are already in the Mid-stages, this last was one step away from breaking through into the Late stages. What would happen when we head further?" "Stop complaining, it''s not like you couldn''t defeat them even if you were alone" Grey reproached Klaus. The group continued their journey, and they soon started seeing some buildings, the buildings all had an ancient feel to them, like they had existed for a long time now. It was just like they were told, this place used to be inhabited by people. But it seems like it was a long time ago. "What happened here anyway?" Reynolds looked at the shape the buildings were and asked. Most of the buildings had holes in them, and they didn''t seem to be made due to the passage of time, rather, they were made from some kind of attack. "A war maybe? Well, from what they said, this place has been existing for so long, and there weren''t even any records of it" Alice said while also surveying the place. They entered into one of the buildings but found nothing relevant inside. The group continued on their way when they suddenly heard a scream, on looking ahead of them, they saw a boy being eaten by a giant snake, well, swallowed is the right word. More than half of the body was already inside the mouth of the snake. "A Horned Snake" Grey said as he looked at the snake that was moving in their direction. This snake seemed to already be at the Late stages of the Arcane Plane, and the chances of it being in the Eighth stage is very high, it could most likely be in the Ninth stage even. The snake immediately opened its mouth and spat out a greenish gooey liquid which shot at a very fast speed towards the group. Grey acted fast and quickly set up an earth wall. But as soon as the liquid came in contact with the wall, it immediately started corroding it at a fast pace. "Venom!" Klaus yelled. "We can see that!" Reynolds retorted "Why would we meet such a troublesome beast this early?" The snake swung its tail agilely and was able to easily destroy the spear. Alice and Reynolds also sent out attacks that landed on the body of the snake, but the snake seemed to be oblivious to the attacks. "Its scales are too hard, there''s no way our attacks can penetrate through" Alice said while dodging the venom the snake spat out towards them again. Grey brought out his short blades, given the current circ.u.mstance, there''s a chance he might be able to inflict damage to the snake due to its sharpness. But that was not going to be an easy task since it will be incredibly difficult to get close to the snake. He infused both the lightning and wind element in his body to maximize his speed. As he dashed towards the snake, Alice, Klaus, and Reynolds immediately sent out attacks towards the head of the snake to distract it so Grey could get the chance to get close to it. Just like they expected, the snake immediately protected its head with the other parts of its body thereby leaving a large target for Grey. Although Grey initially planned to go for the head, but the current defensive stance the snake took made sure he didn''t get the chance. Held in a reverse grip, lightning started dancing around his blade as he slashed it at the body of the snake with terrifying force. Slash! Shriek! The snake shrieked in pain as a deep gash opened up at the side of its body. It looked at Grey with hatred before swinging its tail quickly towards him, wanting to smash him to minced meat . He already knew the snake would counter-attack, so he immediately retreated after leaving behind a wound. Slash! Grey who had been on the sidelines waiting for an opportunity immediately struck again. This time, leaving a bigger wound. The snake shrieked again and wanted to attack Grey, who had already wisely escaped from its attack range. They had already left the area the previous snake was during the battle. The group continued with the same tactic, and they slowly started tearing down the scales of the snake. Grey was literally just descaling the snake so it could be dealt strong attacks from the rest of the group. Alice was very effective since she was now able to inflict damage on the snake. The wounds increased and the snake was barely able to counterattack. It suddenly let out a strange sound. And they once again heard the sound of something rubbing against the ground. "It''s calling for backup" Grey yelled as he once again delivered another slash close to the head of the snake. The snake had managed to protect its head almost all through the battle, but Klaus had been able to get a good strike which almost hit its eye if not for it closing it quickly. The attack struck the eyelids of the snake, but the strong scale ensured it didn''t leave any wounds. The first snake crawled out of the building where it swallowed the boy. On seeing the wretched state of its partner, it charged towards the group. "The same tactic?" Alice asked in excitement. "Yes" The others all nodded and once again started slowly wearing out both snakes. The new one was much easier since it wasn''t as strong as the one they were fighting previously. The snake seemed to have realized it made the wrong decision in rushing into the group and wanted to escape, but the realization was a little too late. Ten minutes later... The two huge corpses of the snakes laid on the floor with the group breathing heavily, especially Grey since he had to get close and attack, before retreating as quickly as he came. "Did anyone notice the beasts here are much stronger compared to their stages?" Grey couldn''t help but ask. Given the stages of the snakes, it shouldn''t have taken them this long to deal with both of them. Grey even felt the chances of him defeating the first one they battled personally were very low. "Yeah" The others all nodded. "This truly is a mysterious place" Chapter 81 - Black Metal Warriors Two days later... The group continued heading forward, they encountered more beasts on the way, only they were not as strong as the horned snake they had faced previously. They had also encountered more people throughout the journey, but they focused on the task ahead of them without getting involved with anyone. ... "Look" Klaus pointed towards their right with his mouth wide agape. When the others stared in the direction, they couldn''t help but suck in a cold breath. An Azure Palace could be seen, floating midair. "How''s that even possible?" Reynolds asked in a dumbfounded manner. The others couldn''t answer since they were just as shocked as he was. Looking closer, they noticed there were already about eight people who were gathered outside the palace. They walked in the direction and soon got close to it. They hadn''t seen these people before so they knew they were most likely from another empire, but it didn''t stop them from approaching the palace though, they only increased their guards against the new people. On getting close, they all saw steps that led to the huge golden door of the palace. There were about forty steps in total which were all at least forty inches in length. The group who were gathered there all looked at the new group who were making their way towards the palace. "What do you think is inside the palace?" "Well, we won''t know until we enter" A youth gathered courage and took the first step on the steps. The moment he placed his foot on the step, he suddenly paused, his body shook a little before he took the second step. On seeing one person take the first step, another person also went forward, and then a third. But something strange happened when the fourth person placed his foot on the steps, he was suddenly sent flying. "What happened?" Someone suddenly asked with surprise. Nothing like this happened when the others all took the first step. The other youth who was about to step forward immediately stopped on his tracks, an unknown fear suddenly gripped him. He looked in the direction of the youth who was sent flying. "Could it be some sort of test?" Grey stared at the steps trying to comprehend what just happened. The youth who was sent flying stood up from where he landed with a shocked gaze, he still didn''t understand why he seemed to be rejected. Seeing the youth was fine, the fifth person summoned up the courage placed his foot on the step. His body shook a little, but after that, he was okay. He heaved a sigh of relief before he ascended the step like the others who had also climbed up the steps. ''Seems like it''s a test. If one can''t withstand the pressure, then one would be rejected''. This was the only thing he could surmise from what took place on the first step, but he still didn''t know what the energy was searching for on their bodies. Seeing Grey successfully passing through the first step, the others all took their first steps, and they successfully passed just like Grey. One more person was rejected from the previous group which meant in total, only ten of them were able to make it to the door. But now, they were faced with a new challenge, getting the door to open. They had all tried pushing the door, but it didn''t budge, it didn''t even make any sound. They sent out different attacks, but it still didn''t budge, the attacks didn''t even leave a single scratch in the golden doors. While the others were still thinking of ways to get the door to open up, something by the side of the door caught Alice''s attention. She walked towards the side of the wall and saw some instructions on the wall. Presumably, it was the instruction used for opening the door. Three minutes later... Boom! "F.u.c.k! Why won''t it budge?" Klaus cursed out in frustration, he wasn''t the only one who was starting to get frustrated. Given the fact that they experienced what seemed to be a small trial at the first step, they all had huge expectations for what might be inside the palace. They had even used their strongest attacks, but the door still didn''t budge. After reading the instructions, Alice looked at the group who were all almost out of breath before calling them over "Hey dummies! Come over here" On hearing the call, Grey, Reynolds, and Klaus all looked in her direction. She pointed at the walls. The trio curiously walked over, they were not the only ones though, the other six also walked over. On seeing the instructions, Grey couldn''t help but ask, "When did you see it?" "Just now" Alice replied with a slight smile. The trio looked at her with suspicious gazes, they felt she had seen it for some time now but just wanted them to suffer a little before she called them over. Well, they were right, she had seen it for almost three minutes now. She just wanted to watch them suffer a little. They helplessly shook their heads before once again turning to the instructions. The method of opening the door was actually quite simple. The door had a mechanism installed in it, there was a small hole at the side of the door where one places their hands and channels their elemental essence. Only then would it open. There were ten holes which meant ten people would have to do it simultaneously. "Well, that''s easy" Creak! The door slowly started opening on its own. Some moments later, the golden door opened wide and a cold ancient breeze blew in the faces of everyone as they stood in front of the door. They looked at the dimly lit palace before staring at each other, they all steeled their minds and walked into the palace, as soon as the tenth person walked inside, Bam! The door suddenly slammed shut. ''Well, there''s no turning back it seems'' Grey looked at the current closed door. He stared around to see how the place looked, he noticed they were all in what looked like a huge spacious hall, he couldn''t see the walls of the palace due to the dim light. They all stood on the black and gold floor, which was made of a hard material, which gave a cold feeling. With the groups'' strength, they couldn''t even damage it. A voice suddenly rang out in the palace, "Trial: Metal Warriors, Objective: Survival, Time: Four hours" The voice suddenly disappeared after this. "What was that?" A boy spoke out with a tinge of panic. "Sounds like we''re in some sort of trial palace" "What are these metal warriors the voice spoke of?" "I have no idea" The youth wasn''t the only one panicking, some others also had panicked expressions. Dang! Dang! Dang! From the dimly lit side of the palace, a soul-shaking sound appeared. At the same time, a strong aura spread forth. "What is it?" Everyone turned towards the side of the palace, but could only see five blurry figures slowly walking out of the dark place. They all looked puzzled, but the metallic footsteps behind them became closer and closer. The aura from it also pressured most of them, with only Alice and another youth being the ones who didn''t feel pressured in any way. Dang! Dang! In the darkness, five black metallic warriors three meters tall appeared, they all had a pair of green eyes that were opened. There was also a pair of dark green wings on the black metal warrior ''s back which had a two-meter span. "What is that thing?" The hearts of everyone trembled. "Oh my God!" Klaus''s mouth was agape. He wasn''t the only one though, almost everyone else stood stunned. "The monsters auras all seem to be in the peak of the Ninth stage" Alice said after sensing the exact strength of the monsters. The hearts of everyone tightened, including Grey. Among the group who entered the palace, only Alice and one other youth were in the Ninth stage, the rest all ranged within the Sixth and Eighth stage with Klaus being the only one at the Sixth stage. Chapter 82 - Rewards Bang! Grey slammed into the ground heavily. They had been battling with the metal warriors for over two hours now. Since there were five metal warriors, they fought them two against one. Klaus and Alice teamed up, given he was the weakest, while Grey and Reynolds teamed up against one of the warriors. The others also teamed up, for now, they put down their guards against the other since if one of them died, it would spell disaster for the others. They had only been able to barely hang on against the metal warriors, if they were to attack each other, they will all die for sure. "These things seem indestructible" Reynolds used his movement technique to dodge the fist the construct sent towards him. "It''s not them being indestructible, it''s just our attacks not being strong enough" Grey rolled to the side while still on the ground as the monster stomped towards his head with its right foot. He suddenly had the urge to try using elemental fusion, but given the current space, it might probably affect them all. If he was able to do it, the attack should be strong enough to destroy these things. Only, they might also die in the process. For things made of metal, they were surprisingly very agile. Paired with the wings on their backs, they were difficult to deal with. Although the group hadn''t been able to cause any major damage, they had been able to at least leave some dents on the body of the metal warriors. They were all starting to get tired since they had been expending energies since the battles started. The metal warriors on the other hand, seemed perfectly fine, except for the dents on their bodies. While the battle was still ongoing, Klaus suddenly realized something, one of the hands of the warrior they were battling seemed slower compared to the other one. ''How come that hand seems slower?'' Klaus asked himself. Of the ten people fighting, he was the one who was having a relatively easier time since Alice was able to hold off the warrior. Although just barely, but it was enough for Klaus to think and move more freely. Once he gets an opportunity, he attacks the metal warrior. And whenever he notices the pressure on Alice was getting too much, he would distract the warrior to relieve the pressure. Twenty minutes later... "Shit! We can''t go on like this" Reynolds said in frustration, they almost couldn''t hang on anymore. He already had some slight injuries, luckily, the warriors were only using their fists. If they had been equipped with weapons, they would have definitely been in a more difficult situation. "That''s it!" Klaus suddenly yelled after he sent an attack towards the metal warrior. "What?" Alice who was once again pushed back by the warrior asked. "The reason one of its hands is slower than the other one" Klaus gave a slight chuckle. With this discovery, they would be able to defeat the metal warriors before the time is up. Well, given the way things were going, they might not be able to last that long if they didn''t defeat them. "I don''t understand" Alice said as she sent out an attack towards the incoming warrior. She couldn''t be blamed for not noticing it, she was already having a tough time keeping herself alive, there was no way she could notice the slightly slower hand. "One of¡­ *Sigh* Forget it" Klaus wanted to explain, but it would take too much time. He decided to try out his hypothesis. While Alice was entangling with the warrior, he carefully aimed for the space which was in the shoulder of the warrior. Since it was a construct, there was no way it would be fully covered like humans were. He carefully manipulated the water he created and tried to put it in the space between the shoulder. But he unfortunately, failed that attempt. It was expected though, given the fact that the construct was moving. "Try to keep it still" Klaus said to Alice. "It''s not going to be easy" Alice replied. "I know, just try. Even if it''s for two seconds" Klaus urged. "Okay" Alice continued battling with the construct. She was able to keep it still sometimes, but Klaus wasn''t able to hit it. "Klaus whatever you want to do, do it fast" Now she was facing more pressure since she had to face the construct alone. Two minutes later... "Success" Klaus said in glee. He was able to finally get some water into the space in between the shoulder of the construct. When the water entered the space, he froze it. The right hand of the construct suddenly stopped moving. Since one of its hands was incapacitated, the pressure reduced greatly. "So that''s it" Alice was quite impressed with Klaus''s quick thinking. They were able also to immobilize the second hand shortly. "Yes" Klaus and Alice said simultaneously. The shout from them drew the attention of the others. Well, the ones who could afford to be distracted, that is. "Good job buddy. Now try to get that done and get your a.s.s over here" Grey yelled in excitement when he saw the construct Klaus and Alice were battling was unable to move either of its hands. Klaus told the other two Water Elementalist in the group. On hearing the way to defeat the constructs, they all quickly put it to use. Thirty minutes later... Boom! The last construct fell on the ground, immobile. The group all sighed in relief. Although they were unable to destroy the constructs, they were able to immobilize them. At least now they could take a rest. They were still trapped in the place though since the time wasn''t over yet. They all took the time left to recover their essence. One hour later... A door suddenly opened up at the other side of the hall. They all looked at the door which opened up. It was the only door they could pass since the one they used in entering the place was still shut. They didn''t go in immediately though. It was only after another hour did they all stand up and walked towards the door. The youth who was injured was carried along by his friends he came with since he couldn''t be left in the hall. After passing through the door, they entered a room. Inside the room, three boxes were lying on the floor by the side, there was a bed, and also a door which led outside the room. They all stared at each other with cautious eyes. They knew the rewards for passing the hall were likely to be in those boxes. Grey looked at the others before dashing towards one of the boxes. He wasn''t the only one who made a move, the others all made a move as well. Now the group who fought as a team moments ago were against each other. Chapter 83 - Simple And Effective! "Grey, the box on the right, get the box on the right" Klaus exclaimed from behind. On seeing the boxes, he suddenly had a gut feeling about the one on the right. His gut feelings weren''t usually wrong as it always tends to bring something good. The trio who were already aiming for the one in the middle quickly changed their direction towards the one on the right. Since Klaus said they should go for the one on the right, then they''ll do just that. Of the ten people in the room, only the injured youth stayed in the same position. Klaus was the one who moved last, but he set his sight on that particular box. He knew given his speed and strength, there was no way he could get it. That was why he quickly told the others to help him get it. "F.u.c.k off" Grey sent a lightning orb towards the youth who was about to reach the box Klaus told them to acquire. The surprise attack stunned the youth as he didn''t expect the trio who were already moving towards the box in the middle to suddenly aim at the one he wanted. "What''s the meaning of this?" The youth yelled in anger. "That box is mine" Three people suddenly moved in the direction of Grey and his group. They were already in front of the box and Klaus had also caught up with them. Currently, there were three different groups in the room. Grey''s group had the highest number with them being four, the group who just spoke consisted of the other youth in the Ninth stage and two youths who were in the Eighth stage. They had already acquired two of the boxes, but their greed was getting the better of them. Given the fact that they had one person in the Ninth stage, they had no reason to be wary of Grey''s group since they felt the only person who would give them a tough time was Alice who was also in the Ninth stage. Although they didn''t know the strength of Grey and Reynolds, but since they were in a higher stage compared to the two, they felt they would be able to easily defeat them. Unfortunately, they didn''t even add Klaus to the fray. Even though he was the one who came up with the idea of how to defeat the constructs, they all felt he wasn''t strong since he had to rely on Alice during the battle. "This box is ours. Besides, you guys already took two of the three boxes in the room" Klaus stepped forward and said. He was actually quite upset with what the group was doing, they had already gotten two of the three boxes in the room, yet they wanted to take the last one. There was no way he would let that happen. "Move aside ant, we''re speaking with those three" The youth in the Ninth stage said in disdain. To him, he felt like killing Klaus wouldn''t even take much of an effort, so he didn''t even put him in his eyes. "Motherf*****" Klaus immediately cursed out. He had never been treated in this manner before. And to think he even told them all the method of defeating the constructs. If he knew something like this would have happened, he would have preferred to let them die, it wasn''t like he was a saint anyway. Grey''s eyes immediately turned cold, one of the people he hated the most were greedy people. You''ve already taken three boxes, at least let the others have a share. Even when he robbed¡­ahem took coins from the bandits, he left them with the copper coins. Of the three people left by the side, one was injured, one looked at Grey with hateful eyes since he felt the last box was supposed to be his. The last one was hesitating if to help Grey''s group or just see how everything played out. He was the one who was supposed to take the box in the middle, but he was attacked by the trio who were currently facing off with Grey''s group. In the end, he decided to stay at the side since he didn''t know just how strong Grey''s group was. Both groups attacked at the same time. Luckily, the room was spacious enough for the battle. Alice faced off against the youth in the Ninth stage, Grey faced off against the youth in the Eighth stage who was a Water Elementalist, while Reynolds faced off against the last youth who was also in the Eighth stage. As the battle progressed, Reynolds immediately entered into a passive state. Seeing this, Klaus immediately jumped into the battle. He was already pissed off by the total disregard the youth in the Ninth stage showed him, so his attacks were fierce. The moment Klaus and Reynolds teamed up, the youth quickly fell into the passive state. Klaus and Reynolds had grown familiar with each other''s attacking methods since they spared a lot, so their teamwork could be said to be almost flawless. Grey''s opponent was shocked when their battle started. At first, he thought he would be able to easily take care of Grey, but as the battle progressed, he noticed he wasn''t even able to fight Grey to a draw, rather, he was on the losing end. He was still able to hold at first, but it all changed the moment Grey started using his earth element. Alice being the cute, violent girl she was, was already beating the hell out of her opponent. She didn''t even give him a chance from the start and just pummeled him mercilessly. Two minutes later... "Hahaha, who were you calling ant? Grey, Alice, beat them up" Klaus laughed out loud as he was enjoying the sufferings of their opponents. The three people who were watching the battles were all stunned. "Aren''t they a little too strong?" The youth who was hesitating asked in dread. "Too strong, too strong" The other youth said foolishly while nodding his head. He felt happy that he didn''t recklessly attack Grey the previous time, else, he would have been beaten up badly. He was in the same stage as the youth Grey was currently beating up. Of the three battles, Alice''s was the most fearsome, while the battle on Grey''s side was somewhat steady even though he''s beating his opponent. The battle on Klaus''s side was, well, somewhat odd. "Arghh" A scream of pain suddenly rang out in the room. When the three spectators looked towards where the scream came from, their eyes opened wide, and they subconsciously held their crotch region with sweat unknowingly pouring out of their bodies. They saw a scene that will frighten every male in the world. Klaus''s leg was currently in between the crotch region of the youth they were battling. The youth''s eyes rolled back after the scream, and he immediately passed out from the pain. This was the first time he felt something like this. When Grey glanced in the direction, he caught sight of what happened and nearly tripped over in shock. "What the hell!" He immediately pushed his opponent back before calming his racing heart. "Kekekeke" Klaus''s psychotic laughter rang out. He felt really good about what he just did. While they were battling with their opponent, okay, beating him up, an idea suddenly popped into his head which he carried out without hesitation. The idea was simple, ''kick your opponent in the balls''. It was a simple and terrifying move. One attack was all it took to leave his opponent out cold. A sick smile appeared on his face after seeing the results of his attack. The battle which was going on stopped with that scene. The trio was defeated, and they were defeated badly, to be honest. Grey''s opponent was aching all over, so was Alice''s opponent. The duo''s opponent on the other hand was still out cold. The other two retreated towards the two boxes they had acquired previously. They picked up their comrade, and just as they were about to leave, "Leave the boxes behind" Grey''s calm voice rang out. "You..." The youth in the Ninth stage eyes bulged in anger and veins were already visible in the side of his head. He regretted his decision of wanting to acquire all the boxes. After leaving the boxes, just as they were about to leave, another voice rang out, "And your clothes" Klaus said mockingly. The spectating trio almost fainted. "Isn''t this too evil?" The youth who hesitated previously asked with fear. "Too evil, too evil" The other youth repeated the word twice in terror. In the end, the trio left the place with only their u.n.d.e.r.w.e.a.r on. This was currently the worst day of their lives. The youth who was out cold would have a better time for now since he didn''t know what was going on. "What do you want to do with their clothes?" Grey felt a headache when he looked at Klaus. "Nothing, hahaha" Klaus replied as he casually destroyed them. After settling that issue, they all turned their attention towards the boxes once again... Chapter 84 - Ice River Source The group slowly walked towards the boxes. On getting there, Klaus hurriedly opened the box he initially wanted. He was quite curious about what was inside. He wasn''t the only curious one, Grey, Reynolds, and Alice all looked towards it curiously. Even the spectating trio did the same. When he opened it, he saw a smaller box carefully placed in the middle. ''Who puts boxes in boxes?'' Klaus asked himself. He picked the wooden box which was roughly twelve inches long and eight inches wide. It had a height of ten inches. The box seemed to be made from an unknown wood, if one didn''t look at it closely, they would think it was jade. He slowly opened the box. On opening it, a bone-chilling coldness enveloped the entire room and Klaus who was closest to it felt like he was about to freeze. But that was not the only thing he felt, he sensed a terrifying amount of water energy from the box. He looked inside and saw a transparent blue tear-shaped crystal the size of an orange. But the crystal wasn''t exactly ''solid'' because its surface slightly rippled like a teardrop. "What is that?" Reynolds asked while shivering from the cold. "It''s an Ice river source" Alice replied. She was quite surprised seeing something like this was part of the rewards for passing the trial. She had only read about them in books before. "Ice river source?" The others all asked at the same time, among the spectating trio, only one of them didn''t look confused, seems like he also knew of it. On seeing the confused look on the faces of the others, Alice told them what she knew about it. Acquiring an ice river source was very hard since they only formed in the deepest parts of some mysterious rivers with temperatures below freezing point, yet they don''t form any ice. These rivers could easily freeze Elementalists in the peak stage of the Origin Plane if they go within thirty meters of where the ''source'' is formed. Only powerhouses in the Overlord Plane could acquire them, and even then, it is a very difficult task to contain the energy. It is very beneficial to Water Elementalist due to the pure water essence it contains. After hearing what Alice said, Klaus couldn''t help but ask, "If it could easily freeze those in the peak stage of the Origin Plane, how come we''re all perfectly fine apart from the chilling cold?" Given the fact that this was something so strong according to Alice''s explanation, it was surprising they were all still okay. "I don''t know, but it seems like the energy inside was controlled, or tamed to the extent that it could be used by those in the Arcane Plane. If you could refine this, there''s a high chance that you will break through to the Origin Plane within a month" Alice smiled as she said. Usually, due to the freezing cold, only Water Elementalists at the Overlord Plane could use it. But now, given the sudden gentler nature, Klaus could refine it without fear of anything happening. "A month, that''s unbelievable" Reynolds replied in shock. Klaus was still in the Sixth stage of the Arcane Plane. It would usually take at least eight months or one year before he should be able to break through to the Origin Plane. Given that they''re in this place with much more abundant essence, it should take four months or so. But now Alice was saying all he needed was one month, it was shocking, to say the least. "It''s not unbelievable, that''s just the minimum. Given the amount of essence in the source, he shouldn''t have a problem with getting to the Second stage, or even the Third stage of the Origin Plane if he was lucky" Alice added. They all looked at Klaus with envy, it seems the reward was made especially for him, and the surprising fact was that Klaus told them to get that one initially. "How did you know what was inside was beneficial to you?" Reynolds couldn''t help but ask. He was quite surprised that the box Klaus told them to get had something this good, and it was totally beneficial to himself. "A gut feeling, haha" Klaus answered with a light laugh. He didn''t think it would contain something this precious. The thought of breaking through to the Origin Plane excited him also. He carefully closed the box before turning his gaze to the other two boxes. Now he was quite expectant towards what was inside the other two boxes. Seeing the first reward, the others all looked at the two boxes with excitement. They all prayed it was beneficial to them all, unfortunately, their expectations were shattered when they opened the first box. Inside the first box, laid an odd-looking silver ring. "That''s it?" Reynolds asked in disappointment. He looked inside to confirm if there was anything else, but he couldn''t find any. "Why would a ring be placed in one of the boxes?" He asked again in frustration, he had high hopes for the boxes, but on seeing what was inside the first one, his hopes were crushed. Now all could do was pray the last box had something good. The others were also disappointed by the outcome, they all expected something good. But seeing the ring, they were all crestfallen, except for Grey. He felt a weird energy around the ring, so he collected it since no one else wanted it. They moved their attention towards the last box, with hopes not too high, Alice opened it. And just like the last box, what was inside wasn''t anything precious, only this was something they could actually use. The last box contained a tonic, from what they knew, it was used for healing. None of them were injured, so it was also basically useless for now. Grey looked in the direction of the injured youth who was by the side before throwing it towards him since they weren''t injured now, it was best they have it to the youth. Although they didn''t know them, it didn''t hurt to do some good sometimes. The youth caught the tonic with a surprised expression, he didn''t expect they would hand him the tonic. This was something that would be helpful during the time they would spend here since they didn''t know when they might get injured. Although his injuries were severe, he should be able to recover within the next two or three months. It''s just his chances of advancing in this trial would be shortened, and he might also die if faced with a dangerous situation. "Thank you" He tried to bow towards the group, but he couldn''t due to his injuries. His friend also showed his thanks. "It''s nothing. It would be bad if he stays in this state" Grey replied with a small smile. "Now that we''re done with this, we should get going" Klaus looked in the direction of the door. They still didn''t know what awaited them there. But if he was given a chance, he would find a secluded place and immediately start refining the ice river source. Grey and the others looked at the door before walking towards it. "We''ll be leaving now" Grey said to the trio before they disappeared past the door. What awaited them was still unknown. "Thank you" The injured youth mumbled under his breath while looking at the tonic in his hands. This was a lifesaving grace he didn''t know if he could repay. But he had already placed Grey and his friends in his heart, he will forever remember this kindness... Chapter 85 - Lost Caves After walking past the door, the group entered a large hall with two doors. One at the side, and one ahead of them. The door they used in entering the hall disappeared just after they passed through it. "How mysterious" Klaus looked at the hall in bewilderment. "How was this palace even made?" Reynolds couldn''t help but ask. After passing each door, it always felt like they were being transported into another place entirely. They get the same feeling they had when they passed through the formation to get here. So far, this palace was the most mysterious place they had been to since entering the trial lands, they hadn''t been to a lot of places, so this place definitely takes the top spot in mystery. "The door by the side appears to lead outside the palace. We''re given two choices in this round, we can either choose to continue or exit the palace" Grey walked towards the door by the side and said after inspecting it. "What do you guys think?" He asked the group. If he were alone, he would have definitely tried to see what the next round would be, but since they were a group, he had to know what the others all thought about it. "I think we should continue, maybe we could get something good if we can clear it" Reynolds was the first to speak up. "You should also be aware that in any trial, the second round tends to be harder than the first. We would be in a tough spot if what we are facing is an opponent in the Origin Plane" Klaus spoke up after a while. The others agreed to what he said, trials were usually like this. But still, there was no way they would know what they were going to face until they entered the place. "But... I still think we should continue since this is a rare opportunity for us" He added. "Alice" Grey and the others looked at her. Now, all they awaited was her decision, if she said they shouldn''t continue, then they''ll have to exit the palace. "Of course we''re going to continue" Alice''s lips curved upwards. She has always been one who liked challenges, so there was no way she was going to miss this. "Great! Since we''ve all agreed to this, we''ll continue the trial" Grey exclaimed in excitement, he would''ve felt sad if they didn''t continue the trial. The group looked at each other before walking towards the door ahead of them. After passing through it, they appeared in a cave. The only thing different about this place was that the door they used in entering the place was still there, which meant they could leave the place at any time. Ahead of them were three paths, now they had to choose which path to take. On seeing they had to make a decision on which path to take, Grey, Alice, and Reynolds looked at Klaus concurrently. Feeling their gazes, Klaus stared back at them, "Why are you all staring at me?" The puzzled Klaus asked. "Well, which path do you feel we should take?" Reynolds asked what was in the mind of the other two. "Why are you asking me? I''ve not been here before, so how should I know?" Klaus retorted abruptly. "What about your gut feeling?" Reynolds asked with a long face. "Damn you! Do you think I can control it?" Klaus cursed out, he didn''t know whether to laugh or cry. After a bout of cursing between Klaus and Reynolds, the group finally agreed on how to choose the path. Since they were four, and there are three paths, they would all have to point at a path at the same time, the path which two or more people pointed, would be the one they''d take. In the end, Klaus and Reynolds pointed at the same path. Which was the one in the middle, when they all walked into the path, a voice just like the last one rang out. "The Second Trial: Lost Caves, Objective: Find The Exit, Time Limit: None" The voice went silent after this. "This sounds relatively easier compared to the first trial. All we have to do is find the exit right? How hard could it be?" Klaus asked the group started walking forward. *************** Four days later... "We''ve been through here before" A frustrated voice rang out. "What! How''s that possible?" Another voice asked in disbelief. "Yap, we''ve definitely been through here" Someone else spoke up. "We passed through here six hours ago" A fourth voice spoke up, only it was softer compared to the others. These were obviously Grey and the group, they had been wandering in the cave for four days now, and they still haven''t been able to find the exit. What was worse was that they had been attacked by different groups of beasts in the cave, with bats being the most. "I hate this place!" Klaus yelled out loud. "Same here" Reynolds said. The cave had a series of paths intertwining, and there are places where they would be faced with multiple paths to choose from. So far, it seems like they have not been able to take the correct path. "How do they expect us to leave this place?" Klaus asked in sheer frustration. "By finding the exit" Reynolds responded. "It was a rhetorical question you dumbass" Klaus shook his head when he glanced at Reynolds. "Who are you calling dumbass you moron?" Reynolds retaliated . The duo once again started a cursing session. This was not the first time they were doing this on the journey, Grey was already used to it, so he didn''t even have any plans of stopping them. He called Alice over and showed her what he had been working on while they had been walking in the maze-like cave during these four days. He had been carefully trying to create a map after they started walking in the cave, although it wasn''t accurate, it at least was better than just walking blindly. The group once again started their journey, with the map Grey created, they were able to not walk in circles again. But there were still times the routes on the map were wrong, and they had to correct it after going in a circle. **************** Ten days later... "Finally!" Klaus exclaimed in pure delight as they walked towards the exit they had finally found. It took them a total of two weeks to find it from the time they entered the place, and unlike the first trial, there was a bunch of things inside the cave. The auras radiating from each of them was clearly stronger than when they first entered the palace, and Klaus had even broken through to the Seventh stage of the Arcane Plane. Grey and Reynolds weren''t far from a breakthrough as well, they should be able to breakthrough within a week. Among the group, only Alice didn''t show any signs of breaking through yet. But it wasn''t unexpected since she was already in the Ninth stage of the Arcane Plane and the next breakthrough would take her to the Origin Plane. Klaus could be said to be the most fortunate since he hadn''t even refined the ice river source yet. "I thought we were never going to leave this place" Reynolds shuddered at the thought of staying in this place. The constant attacks they faced from the beasts in the cave had improved their abilities all round, and there was also a faint killing intent that would sometimes radiate from their bodies due to killing too much when they were in the cave. Walking past the cave, they saw an open field before them. They looked behind them, only to see the big palace. "So there were only two trials?" Grey looked back at the palace with a glad expression. He was happy he could experience both trials since they had helped honed his fighting skills. He was confident he would be able to hold on against some Elementalist at the Ninth stage of the Arcane Plane now. "So what do you all think should be our next course of action?" Reynolds asked the group. They all stared at each other, they knew they would have to separate at some time during the trial. "I think going out separately is the wise choice for now. First, I need to find a secluded place to refine this since keeping it with me isn''t a good idea, and there''s no way I will agree for you all to stay with me since it would decrease your chances of gaining something here" "And besides, I don''t even know how long it would take me to completely refine it, it might take a month just as Alice said, or, it might take two months" Klaus was the first to speak up. "You''re right" The others all agreed with what he said. "I''ll be leaving first, you all better make sure you don''t die. I''ll try to find you guys after breaking through" Klaus turned decisively before disappearing into the forest by the side. Reynolds was the next to leave before Alice went in the other direction. Now, Grey was left all alone. The true trial has just begun for the group... Chapter 86 - Jackpot! Grey stared at the vast landscape ahead of him, from now on, he would have to journey alone. Although having company was great, he still enjoyed being alone in places like this. After taking a deep breath, he set off towards the eastern part of the trial lands. ''I''ll increase my strength first before I start exploring the place. I should be able to breakthrough within two days''. He sensed it wouldn''t take up to two days before he breaks through, so he decided to first breakthrough before he heads out since it was always better to increase your strength in places like this. In this aspect, he slightly felt envious of Klaus. If he had been the one to refine the ice river source, he would definitely have been able to awaken his water element, and it would have been a high grade also. Not just that, but he would have also gotten a higher boost in strength compared to Klaus since awakening a new element will naturally give him an upgrade, added with the essence in the ice river source. But since it was beneficial to his friend, he wouldn''t fight over it with him. It would be great if Klaus would be able to breakthrough given his stage was the lowest among them all. He located a cave not too far from the palace, after confirming it was safe, he immediately started his cultivation. Later the next day... "Huuuu" Grey who was seated crossed leg breathed out a turbid air, after almost a day and half, he had successfully broken through to the Eighth stage of the Arcane Plane, and he could clearly feel the difference in his overall strength. Sending his spiritual energy inside his body, he saw the chaotic form of his essence orb which had three different colors. Getting to this stage, he suddenly remembered what he read about breaking through to the Origin Plane. On getting to the peak of the Arcane Plane, the essence orb in the body of the Elementalist will transform into a bead that will settle in the dantian. The bead is usually one, but in the case if Dual Elementalists, they have two different beads since they have two different elements. Since he currently had three elements, he would form three beads when he breaks through to the Origin Plane. He hoped he could awaken a fourth element before he breaks through to the Origin Plane. He felt he wasn''t far from awakening both the water and fire elements since he had been comprehending them for a long time now when he didn''t try to comprehend either of his three elements. Now, it was time for him to explore this place, if he''s lucky, he might be able to break through to the Ninth stage within the next two weeks. If not, it will take him one month. Calculating the time, he had spent almost three weeks here. He still had over five months left, there was a good chance he might reach the Mid-stages of the Origin Plane before he leaves this place. Grey got to his feet and walked out of the cave, it was already starting to get dark when. ''I should get something to eat first. I''ll think of what to do after that''. He lightly patted his stomach, during the time they spent in the palace, he didn''t eat anything, and he immediately started cultivating after leaving the place. This was the longest he had gone without eating, and although it hasn''t started to affect him since Elementalists at the Arcane Plane could easily go over a month without eating, he just enjoyed eating. Before long, he appeared in a place that looked like a garden. "I''ve struck gold" Grey''s eyes lit up as he stared at the garden in front of him. The garden stretched to at least two hundred meters in length and width. There were some plants and fruits he recognized there. If he could refine a good amount , forget about one month, he would be able to break through to the Ninth stage within a week. "Hahaha, I knew my luck wasn''t bad" Grey laughed out loud as he immediately ran towards the garden. Just as he was about to enter, he suddenly stopped. "This place should usually have beasts around since it has abundant resources" He calmed his excited heart and carefully surveyed the area, if he carelessly charges into the garden and ends up being attacked by a strong beast, it would be bad. "Strange, how come I can''t see any beast?" Grey furrowed his brows. He couldn''t see any beast around the area the garden was. Just to be extra sure, he sent out his spiritual energy, although it couldn''t cover an overly wide area, it shouldn''t have a problem with covering a hundred and fifty meters. If he still doesn''t sense any beast, he''ll immediately start harvesting. Another three minutes passed and he still didn''t sense any beast, he sent out his spiritual energy three more times to be extra sure before he ran into the garden. "Haha, a Scarlet Blood Fruit. This place is heaven" Grey happily plucked the five fruits which were on the tree. These fruits had the unique property of increasing the strength of an Elementalist in a short period of time, they were very rare, and he never expected to find them here. They also had a very faint trace of fire element in them, maybe they might just be what he needed to awaken his fire element. The garden had different rare plants and fruits he had read about. There was a lot he wasn''t familiar with though, but it didn''t stop him from collecting them. He was still stuffing his bag when he suddenly heard a noise. On lifting his head, he saw the head of a bunny popping out from the ground. The bunny twitched its nose like they usually do. "Huh! Bunny?" He was slightly taken aback seeing a bunny popping out of the ground, he was stunned by its size though. The bunny Chris had at the valley was only about half a meter tall, but when this one fully emerged from the ground, it was well over a meter in height. The most surprising thing was its cultivation level, the bunny was already in the Seventh stage of the Arcane Plane. "Who knew bunnies could cultivate to this stage. Well, you, my friend, came at the perfect time. With these plants, I''ll be able to make a great bunny soup" Just as he got within ten meters of the bunny, he suddenly caught sight of a movement from the side of his eyes. Pop! Another bunny popped out from the ground, this one was also in the Seventh stage just like the first one. "Two bunnies, not bad" Grey nodded with a smile. Given his current increase in strength, he didn''t have anything to fear in the Arcane Plane any longer, even Alice might not be able to defeat him anymore. Facing two bunnies wouldn''t be too much of a hassle, the only thing he felt regretful about was the fact that he could only kill one since there was no way for him to store the other one. Taking another step, he suddenly froze in place. A series of popping sounds echoed over the place. Pop! Pop! Pop!... Looking around, Grey''s hair stood on end. Over one hundred bunnies popped out of the ground, and the one with the lowest stage was at the Sixth stage of the Arcane Plane. There were even three who were in the Ninth stage. Grey stood on the spot staring at the bunnies, the bunnies all stared back at him. It was like he was in a sea of bunnies. Surrounded from all angles, escaping was not going to be easy. Squeal! One of the three bunnies at the Ninth stage screech and raised one of its paws pointing it at Grey. With a fierce light in its eyes. Although Grey couldn''t hear or speak bunny, he was able to understand what the bunny said. It was one word ''attack''. Squeal! The other bunnies reciprocated and just like a moving tide, they all dashed towards the still stunned Grey. The current posture of the bunny was too cute, so he couldn''t help but stare a little longer. He was quickly knocked off his daze when the bunny closest to him kicked on the stomach. "F.u.c.k! Do they know how to fight? I thought they only knew how to bite?" Grey swore as he immediately turned and fled. There was no way he could fight against them, if there were only three bunnies, he might have still had plans of making soup, but now, to hell with the soup, all he wanted to do was escape from them. He managed to escape the encirclement after some time. While he was running, he turned around from time to time to check if they were chasing him. And to his greatest surprise, they were, he thought after leaving the garden they''d let him be. But he was wrong, he almost had the urge to cry. If Klaus or Reynolds finds out he was chased by bunnies, they mock him forever. He suddenly heard a loud squeal from behind him again, and just like the first time, the bunny in the Ninth stage had the posture of a general telling his soldiers to attack. But unlike the first time, Grey didn''t find it cute. "Bunnies aren''t cute like everyone says" Grey said out loud as he once again used his movement technique to flee from the area. Chapter 87 - Twelfth Prince "Damn bunnies" Grey cursed while sitting in a crossed leg position inside a hole in a huge tree. The bunnies surprisingly chased him for over one hour. He could swear the leader of the bunnies gave him a smug look, like, ''I thought you wanted to make bunny soup?''. Looking at his bag, he felt a little excited about his harvest. Although he didn''t take a lot which would have guaranteed him a quick advancement to the Ninth stage, they were still better than nothing. Since he was not an Alchemist, there was no way he could fully bring out most of the essence from the plants. The best he could do was just cooking them since unlike fruits, plants shouldn''t be eaten directly because there are toxins present in them. There are procedures in extracting their essence, but he did not know of them. However, cooking them will only bring out at most ten percent of the herbal essence. But he''ll have to do with that for now, he didn''t plan on using all the plants since he didn''t know most of them. What if some of them had poison? Thinking up to this point, he decided to only use the ones he was familiar with. Since it was dark, he didn''t cook the plants, instead, he went into the chaos space and started comprehending the water element. The days passed by and before Grey knew it, he had been in the trial lands for one month now. This one month could be said to be fruitful since he had been able to advance quickly in his cultivation. Currently, he was just a whisker away from the Ninth stage of the Arcane Plane. The only thing that dampened his mood was that apart from the garden, he hasn''t obtained anything good that boosted his strength. He had searched multiple buildings but couldn''t find anything could. .............. "A castle" Grey saw a castle in the distance from the hilltop he was currently on, and made his way towards it. From the palace he entered the last time, he had big expectations for this castle. Although this place wasn''t as big as the palace he entered the previous time, it should have good items inside. It took Grey three minutes to get to the castle. There wasn''t anyone outside the castle, which meant two possibilities, either they were inside, or there was no one here. He cautiously entered the castle, and before he could walk any further, he heard sounds of battles. ''Someone''s fighting? No, seems like a group'' At first, he thought it was a single battle, but from the sounds, it was clear the battle was between two groups. He sneaked towards where he was hearing the sounds and soon a big hall appeared before him, and he noticed the groups fighting against another. There were at least ten people in each group, and at the side of the hall, six beasts could be seen lying lifelessly on the ground. ''These beasts aren''t weak, they are all stronger than an average peak Arcane Plane Elementalist'' Grey thought. He had battled with beasts that were exactly like these, so he knew just how strong they were. Focusing his attention back to the group fighting, he saw some familiar faces he saw not too long ago. ''It''s them! What are they fighting over?'' He saw them about a week ago. When he was about to enter a compound, he saw this group. They consisted of about ten people, and the one with the weakest cultivation stage was at the Eighth stage of the Arcane Plane. But none of them had been able to break through to the Origin Plane though. The leader of the group was a refined-looking young man who had sharp features and a warm, gentle smile. When the group noticed Grey, the leader suddenly walked up to him and introduced himself with a calm voice. The way he spoke was very soothing to the ear and Grey was sure he wouldn''t have a problem with convincing people. Just from how he spoke, Grey almost had the notion of befriending him. But when he recognized the students from the Starlight Academy behind him, he quickly dismissed that thought. Seeing them, he thought they came to find trouble with him. When the leader noticed this, he laughed before introducing himself to Grey. When Grey heard his identity, he was shocked. The leader of the group claimed he was the twelfth prince of the Qilin empire, and from the way, the students from the Starlight Academy were behaving towards him, it didn''t seem like he was lying. He didn''t expect the twelfth prince would recognize him, he hasn''t even seen this twelfth prince before or any other prince. He was invited by the prince to join their group, which he politely refused. Since the prince was talking to him calmly, there was no need to be rude to him. But there was something he noticed the moment he refused. He felt a hint of animosity from them, the prince included. Well, he already felt it from the trio from the Starlight Academy the moment they saw him. Although the prince hid it quickly, he was still able to sense it. ''I understand the animosity coming from the students from the Starlight Academy, but I''ve never met any of the other people. So I don''t get the reason they are feeling this way towards me''. ''It shouldn''t be because I refused to join them right?'' Grey had always kept his guard up whenever he crosses part with people, he increased it further the moment he recognized some people from the Starlight Academy. He further increased it when he sensed animosity from people he hadn''t even made contact with. ............. ''Huh! What''s that?'' Grey''s attention was immediately drawn to the box which was placed not too far from the fighting group. ''There''s an array protecting it, but it seems to have worn down due to time'' ''They are probably fighting over who will acquire it. But from the aura radiating from the array, it has been attacked before. It''s almost broken even''. "F.u.c.k you all, this place was found by us. And we also defeated the beasts here, now you all want to claim the reward" A youth from the other group yelled towards those from the Qilin empire. The prince replied in a very cool and calm manner, "It doesn''t matter who finds it first, it''s who has the strength to acquire what''s inside that matters" The group from the Qilin empire all laughed. They had been here before the other group defeated the beasts, but they hid so as not to alert them of their presence. When the group successfully killed the beasts, they immediately went over to the box but seeing it was protected by an array, they started attacking it. Luckily, the array didn''t seem to have a self-repair function, or maybe it had, but it wasn''t working properly. They were about to break the array when the group from the Qilin empire showed up and attacked them. Grey looked at them for a while, the moment he saw the box, his interest was aroused, and he was already plotting on how to acquire it. He didn''t care about any prince, if he''s a prince, what does it have to do with him? Given his knowledge of arrays, although this array was more complex compared to the ones he knew, they all had the same outline. If he could figure out the weakest link, he could quickly destroy the array and escape with the box. But he wasn''t in a hurry, even if he finds the link now, he couldn''t attack since he had to make sure he moved at the best time. The group from the Qilin empire already had the upper hand, and he estimated they would most likely win the battle since the other group was already exhausted from the previous battle with the beasts. "You should just give up. Some of you are already injured, and there''s no way you can contend with us" The prince tried convincing the group. It would be better if they didn''t have to waste their energy fighting a prolonged battle. The other group all looked dismayed, they had worked so hard just to get here. Even defeating the beasts wasn''t easy, but now, someone wants to take the fruit of their labor. They didn''t want to accept it, they couldn''t. They would rather fight it out with them, what if what was inside the box was a life-changing item. The battle soon entered the crucial stage with both groups attacking more fiercely. Grey knew his time had come since there was no way he would wait for them to finish battling before he makes a move. Now that they were more focused on their opponents, they would not be able to notice him as he sneaks towards the box. He had already picked out the weak link in the array. ''Now'' Chapter 88 - Couldnt You Knock Him In Another Direction? "This is ours, we can''t let them have it" A youth said persistently. The sneaking Grey looked at the youth and couldn''t help but feel their decision to fight wasn''t the best one. From the time he had been watching the battle till now, they were on the losing side. There didn''t even seem to be any hope of them being able to turn the tide, yet they still chose to stubbornly hang on. Maybe they had a trump card, he wasn''t really sure. It''s not cowardly to admit defeat when you know there''s no hope of winning. Although there are times in life when even though you know there''s no way for you to win, you just shouldn''t admit defeat, Grey felt this wasn''t the time. They were in a trial land, a land where treasures were supposedly numerous. There was no way they wouldn''t be able to find another treasure, why the hell would they want to give up their lives just because of one? Well, thanks to their stubbornness, he had the opportunity to be the person benefiting. If the group had given up, there was no way he would have had the thought of stealing the treasure. He wouldn''t even be here as he would have immediately left the place the moment he sees the group from the Qilin empire. The thought of stealing the box only came to his head when he realized what was going on, he saw an opportunity when the other group decided to fight resolutely. But he admired their bravery though, although he felt their choice wasn''t a wise one. He even felt his current choice of action was impulsive since if he were to be caught, it wouldn''t be great. The group from the Qilin empire would definitely not let him off. He was already lucky they didn''t attack him the first time, stealing the treasure is no different from slapping them in the face. Well, that was on the premise that he was caught. If he could successfully steal the treasure and leave the place with no one noticing it, then it would be perfectly okay. Boom! An attack that was dodged by a student from the Starlight Academy landed close to Grey. ''Shit! What the hell!'' Grey almost screamed out loud. Luckily, he was able to quickly regain his composure. The attack landed just five meters away from him. If he were hit by it, it would have been a painful experience. There were a bunch of things in the hall he could easily hide behind as he was making his way towards the box. He would stop and look at the battle to confirm if he should still continue with his plan. It wouldn''t be funny if just as he stepped out to take the box, the battle ends and both groups stared in his direction. Attacks were flying left and right in the battle and the group from the Qilin empire were gaining more advantage against their opponents. If it continues like this, the battle would end in at most ten minutes. Well, that was enough time for him to take the box and make a run for it. The distance from the door to the other side of the hall was almost five hundred meters, this showed just how big the hall was. Currently, Grey had already gone over one hundred meters. There was the corpse of one of the dead beasts about sixty meters away from him. This would also be one of the things he would use to hide from the fighting group. "Arghh" One of the youths screamed out in pain. On hearing the shout, the others from his group all looked towards the direction. They saw one of their comrades was seriously injured by his opponent. "Ah! You animals!" Another youth shouted in anger and increased the fierceness of his attacks, he was not the only one, his comrades also did the same. The youth from the Qilin empire furrowed his brow since this was not the result he expected. According to his speculations, after seeing their comrade seriously injured, they''ll decide to retreat since their hopes of victory would also be diminished due to the injury. But unexpectedly, they all attacked with renewed vigor. It was like seeing their comrade injured was a form of motivation for them. "Hmph! Fools who don''t know what''s good for them" The youth snorted coldly before he resumed his attacks. Grey looked at them all and was quite surprised, these people were really passionate. ''Well, the more they fight, the better for me'' Grey thought as he silently moved towards the body of the dead beast. On getting there, he squatted by the side of the beast. Given its size, there was no problem for it to hide Grey''s body even though it was lying on the ground. At the time Grey battled with the beast, he estimated they were at least six meters tall. Grey who once again focused his attention on the battle, failed to notice that the beast which had its eyes closed previously, was currently staring at him. He even placed his hand on the head of the beast as he stayed in the squatting position. ''Strange, what''s this foul smell? I didn''t perceive it a moment ago''. The beast which currently had its mouth open was breathing slowly. The stench which came from the mouth of the beast quickly enveloped Grey''s nose. Trying to sniff out where the stench was coming from, Grey''s head uncontrollably turned in the direction of the beast. In fact, his head was right in front of its mouth. Grey''s heart nearly jumped through his throat as he unconsciously retreated. After carefully observing the beast, he breathed a sigh of relief. ''*Sigh* It nearly scared me to death'' Although the beast was still breathing, it was no different from its dead friends around the hall, it couldn''t move due to the injuries it had sustained. Grey looked around to check if his sudden movements alerted anyone, but he was relieved when he saw they were still fighting their battles fervently. "It''s time to join your friends" Grey murmured as he pierced one of his blades through the eyes of the beast. The blade quickly traveled from the eyes and reached the brain of the beast. The beast twitched when the blade made contact with its eyes, but the twitching stopped the moment the blade reached its brain. After killing the beast, he checked on the group once more. Seeing they didn''t notice anything, he continued sneaking steadily towards the box. Two minutes later... ''Got it'' Grey thought excited as he broke the array. It wasn''t as easy as he thought it would be, the array was much more complex. Looking at it from afar, he could already tell it wasn''t on the same level as the ones he had worked with. But when he tried breaking it, he had to reevaluate it. At first, he thought the difference wouldn''t be too much, but on getting in touch with it, he noticed just how big the difference was. He slowly picked the box from the erected stone, and once again starting sneaking quietly towards the door. ''Hehe, before they''ll realize what happened, I''ll already be long gone'' Grey snickered in his mind as he carefully sneaked towards the door so he could escape. Bang! A sound echoed in the room, it was different from when attacks had been landing on the walls of the hall, it sounded like someone hitting a wall. Looking closer, Grey realized it was a youth from the Qilin empire. Seeing where he landed, Grey broke out in cold sweat. The youth was sent flying, and he smashed into a wall close to where the box was supposed to be. When he managed to stand, he realized the stone he used in supporting himself looked familiar. He was quite shocked by the sense of familiarity he got from the stone, but he shrugged it off when he couldn''t figure out the reason. He couldn''t be blamed for not realizing the stone was where the box was placed since he only looked at it the first time they entered the place. The rest of his time had been focused on fighting with the other group. Just as he was about to get back into the fight, he suddenly jolted and looked back at the stone. "Where''s the box?" At this time, Grey was already fifty meters away from the door. ''Damn! Why did they have to knock him in that direction?'' Grey swore as he immediately dashed towards the door. Currently, there was nothing he could hide behind and since they had already noticed the box is missing, they will definitely search the entire place. They might even block the door until they were sure the person is no longer in the building. Staying here, wasn''t a wise option for him. The fighting stopped instantly when they heard the youth. How can they still continue fighting, when what they were fighting for was gone? "Where''s it?" The prince asked with a cold face. ''There is no one else in the hall, or could it be...'' He quickly looked in the direction of the door but only saw the back of the fleeing Grey. "There!" The prince dashed towards the door. When the others saw this, they immediately followed behind him. Chapter 89 - Black Lightning Crocodile The moment Grey passed the door, he sensed they had already started chasing after him. ''If not for that moron, I''d have successfully left without them realizing it. Oh well, I''ll run first'' Looking at the box in his hands, he couldn''t help but feel curious about what it contained. The size of the box was somewhat impeding his movement speed. He decided to take out what was inside and ditch the box. When he opened it, he was surprised by what was inside. Inside the box laid an egg, it was pitch black in color and was slightly larger than two fists combined. ''An egg'' Grey was slightly dazed and his speed reduced substantially due to him putting most of his focus on the egg. But he quickly snapped out of it and once again increased his speed. ''I''ll study it later. But there seems to be a trace of life inside, although it''s faint, I can sense it'' He kept the egg in his bag before charging out of the castle. Some seconds after he exited the castle, the prince came out also. But Grey was nowhere to be found. There were trees around the castle, so there was no way he could guess which direction Grey faced. "He''s fast" Although he was a Wind Elementalist, he was still unable to catch up to the thief. This could be attributed to the fact that the thief had the head start, and the distance from the castle to the trees wasn''t large. But he was sure the thief was fast as well, at least no slower than he was. Giving chase was useless, given the fact that the terrain was good for escaping. "Where''s he?" The others slowly caught up with the prince who was standing outside the castle looking in the direction Grey faced. "Gone" The prince said indifferently before turning back inside the castle. That was not the only hall in the castle, there were others. So, he wouldn''t brood over losing this box. He was upset, that was certain, but there was nothing being angry could do. But there was something he found strange. When he saw the back of the thief, he felt a sense of familiarity. It was like he had seen the person before. ''Who was it?'' He went deep in thoughts as he walked into the castle. He had seen many people since entering the trial lands, so it would be hard for him to remember just who it was from seeing only their back. "Shit! After all our hard work, another person was the one who benefitted" A youth from the Qilin empire said angrily. The other group also felt frustrated, but they were happy the group from the Qilin empire wasn''t the one who obtained the box. "Now you all know how it feels, only in your case, you couldn''t even fight back" A youth laughed out loud, pleased on seeing the misfortune of the group from the Qilin empire. "Who would have thought you were all working for someone?" They continued mocking them since they couldn''t have it, they were happy the group who blocked them didn''t also obtain it. Under the gloating gazes from the group, the group from the Qilin empire furiously headed back into the castle. ........ Five minutes later... Grey was sitting on a tree with the egg in his hand. ''What could be inside? How come it is still alive?'' He could feel a faint ancient aura coming from the egg. Just how old was the egg? He didn''t know. According to what Chris told him, this place was discovered nine hundred years ago. This meant the egg was at least nine hundred years old, that was a terrifying number. How strong was the creature which was inside, for it to still be alive even after so long? ''Or, could it be dragons?'' Grey''s imagination started running wild. But unfortunately, there was no way for him to get an answer. After looking at it for some time longer, there was no change in the egg. He thought maybe the egg would hatch after it was removed from the box, but it didn''t seem like it. He placed the egg back into his bag before thinking of where next to head towards. Two days later... Bang! The body of a huge crocodile slammed heavily into the ground. Grey walked calmly towards the beast. ''It truly does live up to its name'' He thought while looking at the corpse on the ground. This was the corpse of a rare beast, the black lightning crocodile. The crocodile is equipped with a rare type of lightning, black lightning, hence its name. Its scale is tough and it took Grey a great amount of effort before he was able to defeat it. Well, the crocodile was in the Eighth stage of the Arcane Plane. Had it been in the Ninth stage, there would have been no way he could have defeated it. Grey felt excited while looking at the beast. This beast could be said to be a walking treasure. Its scale could be used for making clothing that is almost fully resilient to lightning. The lightning element was imbued in its bones which could be refined with weapons. There are rare weapons that have attributes imbued in them, if an Elementalist uses a weapon that was imbued with his element, the attack power will be increased by almost twenty percent. These weapons are known as elemental weapons. But the most important treasure in the body of this beast to Grey was its heart. The black lightning crocodile heart is called a water heart pulse. It was biased towards to water element and had the effect of cleansing the body. In Grey''s situation, he wouldn''t have a problem in awakening his water element if he acquires it. "Who''s there?" He asked as he vigilantly looked around. Three young men walked out behind the trees around the place. They all had a smile on their faces. "You''ve done well. Now, we''ll take it from here" One of the youths said while chuckling lightly. "Take what over?" Grey asked with a long face. He could already guess what they were saying, but he hoped it wasn''t what he thought. "Are you dumb? Or just acting like you are? Step away from the beast" Another youth said. Grey''s face went dark when he heard this. How could he accept this? After fighting so hard to kill the crocodile, now the spoils were about to be taken by others. Now he knew why that group refused to give up. After painstakingly defeating the beasts, then someone would just step out of nowhere and tell you to leave it, which was impossible to accept. Grey studied the group and his heart sank when he realized their stages, two of them were in the Ninth stage, while the last one was in the Eighth stage. He couldn''t leave the heart behind given how important it was to him. But the chances of his victory weren''t even close to forty percent. "All I need is one thing from it, you can have the rest part of it" He tried to negotiate a deal, getting the heart was a must for him since he couldn''t guarantee he would be able to see this creature again anywhere. This was a rare beast to start with, and they were very difficult to deal with given their strength. Even if he sees another one, what if it was stronger than he is? "No! Now get lost before I lose my patience" The last youth who hasn''t said anything spoke up. Compared to the other two, he had cold eyes which were filled with killing intent. The three youths were currently twenty meters away from him. Grey couldn''t accept the fact that this opportunity will pass him by, steeling his mind, he held his blades in front of him and prepared himself for battle. Against one of them, he was confident he would be victorious. But against three of them, his chances weren''t that good. "You want to fight against us?" The youth with cold eyes asked while laughing. The other two also started laughing like they had heard the funniest joke. Even if Grey were to be in the Ninth stage of the Arcane Plane, his chances of victory against them were almost zero. With two being in the Ninth stage, and one being in the Eighth stage, they could be said to be almost invisible if they faced a three-man team also. Grey didn''t bother answering and just stayed in the same position. As long as he could take out one of them quickly, his chances of victory will be increased. And the delay was exactly what he needed. The trio was mocking him, while he was currently busy inscribing. He was trying to inscribe at least two symbols before the battle starts, with that, he''ll be able to at least take one of the trios out of the picture. "Hmph! Fool" The trio immediately attacked him. ''Couldn''t they mock me a little more?'' Grey thought as he used a defensive technique to block and also used his movement technique to evade their attacks. He wasn''t done with the inscription before they attacked him. He knew inscribing will be harder now since he also has to focus on the battle. If he lost focus just for a moment, he''ll be in a tough spot. Now, all he had to do is delay them till he''s able to finish his inscriptions. Chapter 90 - Dont Celebrate Too Early "Shit!" Grey cursed on seeing the attack which was currently flying towards him. Bam! The attack landed on his body, and he was sent flying. He landed almost fifteen meters away from his previous spot. Looking at the earthen armor which was almost completely ruined from the attack, he couldn''t help but feel lucky for awakening his earth element sooner. Had it been delayed just like the other elements, he would have been in serious problems in his current battle. With the increase in his grade and stage, the strength of the earth armor has increased significantly. If before, it could defend against an all-out attack from someone in the Sixth stage, now it had no problem defending an attack of someone in the Eighth stage at least twice. But against someone in the Ninth stage, it could only withstand one attack. He stared at his opponents calmly, being hit had disrupted his inscribing, now he has to start all over. If only he was already as proficient as Chris was, then he wouldn''t have a problem dealing with these people. "He''s from the Qilin empire" The youth in the Eighth stage suddenly said. "Qilin empire, hmm, at first I only wanted to beat you up and let you go. But now, I''ve changed my mind, this will be your burial ground" The cold-looking youth said arrogantly. Although he was surprised Grey was able to survive their first onslaught of attacks. It still didn''t change the fact that, to him, Grey wasn''t an opponent who could bother them. "What makes you feel you''re capable of achieving such feats?" Grey said in disdain. ''Since there''s a chance to talk for some time, I''ll take it happily'' Normally, he wouldn''t entertain them, but these aren''t normal times. He needs the heart of the beast, and there was no way fighting with them normally will work. If he could take out one of them, or even two before the fight gets to the critical point, then that would be great. "You''ll know soon enough" The youth didn''t waste time and immediately went on the offensive. "Wait!" Grey suddenly stretched out both arms in front of him. Seeing this, the youth narrowed his eyes but still halted. "What?" He asked coldly. "Where are you from?" He really didn''t give a shit where they came from, but currently, he''ll do almost anything to delay them. The trio looked at him before the other youth in the Ninth stage asked, "Why are you asking?" When he heard their reply, he felt elated. If he could at least delay them for three minutes, then it''ll be great. But he knew that was just a pipe dream. "Oh you see, I haven''t really interacted with anyone outside my empire, so I thought maybe you could tell me how things are in your emp¡­" Boom! Grey who was still speaking quickly dodged to the side and an attack landed where he was previously standing. ''So impatient'' He complained as he once again engaged in battle with the trio. Well, so far, Grey really hasn''t been having a good time. Attacks were landing on him left and right, and he had used earth armor so many times that he couldn''t keep count. Usually, after making the armor the first time, it stays with the Elementalist till the end of the battle unless it takes heavy attacks that will destroy it. But unfortunately for Grey, each time he makes one, it doesn''t last up to a minute before it''s destroyed, some were even destroyed instantly. His still being able to fight is mostly because of the earth armor and his movement technique. Currently, he felt like the speed boost he got from both the lightning and the wind element isn''t enough, as, although he was fast, he couldn''t dodge all of them. "He''s strong" The cold-looking youth said with a stunned expression. Given their strength, they should be able to easily overpower Elementalists at the Ninth stage of the Arcane Plane. Yet, they have been unable to put down this person who is clearly in the Eighth stage. What''s worse is that he isn''t only defending, but he''s attacking as well. They''ve seen Dual Elementalists before, but they have to admit that Grey was the strongest they''ve seen. Unknowing to them, Grey was also using his wind element, but he was only using it to increase his speed and not using it to attack, so there is no way they''ll find out. The youth previously believed he could even deal with Grey on his own, but now, he knew he stood no chance against him. He even felt threatened, and it infuriated him, how can someone who is in a lower stage compared to him be stronger than he is? Not just that, but he also felt a sense of threat from him? He immediately strengthened his resolve to kill Grey. "We must kill him" They nodded their heads. He wasn''t the only one who felt threatened by Grey, they also felt the same way. If they battled Grey one on one, they would not last five minutes before he makes short work of them. Their opponent was from the Qilin empire, and there have been rumors saying they''ll be going to war with the Qilin empire soon. The trio was from the Azure empire. And naturally, they''ll also take part in the war. If they were to allow Grey to grow further, he''ll become a big threat to them if the war starts. Someone like Grey could greatly influence the flow of a battle since he can take on several opponents who are in a stronger stage than he is. Their attacks became fiercer and soon, injuries started appearing in Grey''s body. Although they weren''t severe, at the rate the battle was going, it wouldn''t be long before he falls. Six minutes later... ''Just a little more'' Grey told himself. He was already starting to lose hope in the battle as his inscriptions had been stopped halfway countless times during the battle. But this time, he was already almost done, in another minute, his inscription will be complete. Then these people will get it from him. While the battle was going on, something was taking place that none of the people there noticed. Grey''s blood was slowly flowing towards his bag like it was being attracted by a strange force. Inside his bag, the previous pitch black egg was different compared to its previous appearance. Now, if one looks closer, they''ll notice vein-like red lines moving around the egg, it was like a moving blood vessel. Grey''s blood flowed in the direction of the egg and it in turn absorbs it. But there''s no way the bleeding Grey will realize the blood which was flowing from his body was moving in the direction of the egg. ''Lightning Rain'' Grey used one of his strongest moves. The trio was slightly taken aback by the sudden appearance of the lightning, but the two at the Ninth stage were able to escape the range of the attack quickly. The youth in the Eighth stage wasn''t as fast as they were, and he was caught in it. "Great!" Grey didn''t think twice and sent an earthen spear towards his opponent. His current motive was simple, and that was to, kill these people. The thought of letting them go if he were to defeat them had already far left his head. He already noticed the killing intent from them, since they want to kill him, why would he let them go if he had the chance. When he started cultivating, one of his mottos was, as long as you attempt to kill me, then I''ll kill you first. Showing mercy to your enemies is the same as hurting yourself, he learned that from the different books he had read which told the stories of some legends who fell because they decided to show mercy to their enemies. He already marked them dead the moment he sensed their killing intent. The youth in the Eighth stage was unfortunately hit with paralysis when the lightning touched him, so all he could do was stare as the earthen spear moved towards him. Fear and despair were visible in his eyes, he didn''t want to die. The youth who closed his eyes opened them after some time. When he noticed he wasn''t hit by the earthen spear, tears of joy fell from his eyes. He survived, he had escaped death. A smile appeared on his face after this thought flashed through his head. But then, his smiling face froze, and his eyes were filled with unwillingness as his body fell lifelessly on the ground, he was dead. "Don''t celebrate too early" Grey who noticed the youth''s joy when he realized he wasn''t hit said with a cold smile. "How?" The cold-looking youth asked dumbfounded. He destroyed the attack Grey sent towards his friend, so how did he still get hit and die? The other youth also stared at the dead youth with fear eminent in his eyes. ''Who attacked him?'' At the thought of this, he quickly looked around but still couldn''t find anyone. Grey stared at the two stunned youths and his smile grew colder. "This place is really fitting for a burial ground. Only, it won''t be mine" He said as he launched himself towards them, above him was a silver symbol. Chapter 91 - To Protect! "What''s that?" The cold-looking youth pointed at the silver symbol which was on the sky with horror. After Grey killed the first youth, he had completely suppressed them. It was even harder for them to defend against the attacks which would sometimes fall from the sky unexpectedly. They were always confused about where the attack came from, it was only after some time passed did the youth notice the symbol. ''So that''s how he killed him'' He thought as realization dawned on him. He had been puzzled about how their friend died, now he knew the reason, it was because of that. Being too engrossed in the battle, it was hard for something else to draw his attention as he knew any slip-up, and he''ll end up like his dead friend. At first, he thought it was some kind of special technique Grey was using to unleash the attacks, but now he knew it wasn''t because of any special techniques, it was that odd silver-looking symbol that was attacking them. But what he couldn''t figure out was how Grey did it. ''If he had such a trump card before the battle started, why did he allow himself to be beaten up before using it? From the looks of it, it seems like he could use it almost limitlessly''. Every single brain cell in his head was trying to process what was happening, but he still couldn''t figure it out. As the battle went on for another minute or so, the situation of the duo entered a more dire state. If they continued battling, they will most likely end up dead within another five minutes. They had to escape. "There''s no way we can defeat him, we have to escape and tell the others" The youth said to his companion. Although he said this, he still didn''t turn to run away, it was like he was waiting for something. ''I''ll wait till he''s distracted with trying to kill Lucas, then I''ll make a break for it'' The youth thought coldly. He didn''t care if his friend died, as long as he could escape with his life, then he''s satisfied. They could call him whatever name they wanted, he didn''t care, what matters is survival. If you can use your friend to bait the enemy who wants to kill you, so you can escape, why not? "Go! I''ll hold him back" He looked at Lucas with eyes that said, ''I''ll try to stop him, so you can escape, even if it means I''ll die trying, what matters to me is your survival'' Hearing this, Lucas stared at his friend with mixed feelings, but he was touched by his act. Even Grey who was attacking them was touched by his loyalty. "I''ll make sure this Qilin empire monster pays for this. This is my promise to you! He will not leave this trial land alive!" Lucas said before turning away to escape. ''We still don''t know who will die here, hehehe'' "Hmph! Do you think you can escape? Anyone I''ve tagged dead will surely die" Grey snorted coldly before sending an attack towards the escaping Lucas. Lucas didn''t even bother to turn around as he had already placed his hopes on his friend. Since his friend said he''ll block their opponent so he can escape, there''s no way he''ll allow the attack to get to him. "Stay here!" Grey said as the rock he sent towards Lucas turned into a hand and grabbed him. ''This is my chance'' The cold-looking youth didn''t delay, he immediately dashed towards the other direction at the fastest speed he could muster. Lucas who was caught by Grey was surprised by what was happening, before he could realize anything, his friend was already escaping in the other direction. "Bernard! How could you betray me?" When Bernard heard this, he snickered before replying, "This is for the good of the empire, I''m stronger than you, so naturally I should be the one to survive. And even if you escape, you might get killed by something else. But my chances of survival are higher. And you should know killing a monster like him is a must. Don''t worry, your good deed will not go unnoticed, I''ll make sure the empire knows of it, and your family will be celebrated for giving birth to a hero" With these words, he disappeared into the forest. Grey was just as dumbfounded as Lucas was. He actually didn''t expect his attack to get to Lucas. He knew there was no way he could keep both of them here if they wanted to escape. Not only that, but he might be able to kill one, but the other will almost definitely escape. But if they decided to continue fighting, then he could kill them. Had both of them turned their backs on him at the same time, then he could have killed them. But if one wanted to hold him back so the other could escape, then there was nothing he could do other than watch helplessly as the other escaped. Looking at the despairing Lucas, he almost felt pity for him, well, almost. "Don''t worry, so long as I come across him, I''ll kill him" Grey tried to comfort Lucas. ''At least, maybe after hearing this, he will die with less hatred, who knows? It''s none of my business anyway, it''s just, seeing his friend betray him is kinda sad''. With hatred deep in his eyes, Lucas died with his eyes opened. It was like he wanted to tell the world that he was betrayed. "*Sigh* Life is so unfair, betrayers deserve death. Yet they are the people that tend to live longer" Grey shook his head looking at the lifeless corpse on the ground. Since entering the trial land for one month now, except for beasts, he hadn''t killed any human. But today he killed two, and he was sure more will follow as time goes on. "There can''t be peace in the world, I have to grow stronger to ensure I can protect everyone and everything I hold dear to me" He said with determination. Initially, when he started his journey in cultivation, all he wanted to do was become strong just like those legends he read about, and be worshiped by all. But now, a new d.e.s.i.r.e had risen inside him, and it was stronger than the first one. He wanted to protect, he wanted to grow stronger so he could protect himself, his mother, his father, his friends, his master, everyone who was close to him, he wanted to protect them all. Thinking of this, he suddenly realized why Claude determinedly faced off against the mercenaries to ensure Nina escaped, although he knew he couldn''t defeat them, he still faced off against them to ensure he protected her. "Will I ever find the one who would make me do something like that?" ''This will be the first step towards my new goal'' He slowly walked towards the dead crocodile. Acquiring the water heart pulse will mean an increase in strength since he''ll awaken his water element. He will not only awaken his water element, but his cultivation will also see a breakthrough with the awakening of the new element. Only, he wasn''t confident he would be able to reach the Origin Plane with it. ''Some people might have already broken through to the Origin Plane already, I can''t fall behind'' After acquiring the heart, he left the other parts of the crocodile. He carefully placed the heart in his bag before heading further into the forest. "*Sigh* What a waste of good materials" Looking at the body he couldn''t help but feel sad. Inside his bag... The vein-like lines on the egg had long disappeared, but there is still no sign of its hatching. It was like it didn''t get enough blood from Grey. "This place will be perfect" Grey said as he looked at the cave ahead of him. The cave was well hidden, and it will be difficult for anyone to accidentally come across it. After collecting the heart, it took him almost three hours before he was able to find a good place to head into seclusion. Seeing this place, he couldn''t help but feel elated. "Now all I have to do is set up some defensive and trap arrays around it to ensure my safety" He nodded his head when this thought came to him. He quickly started with the array as he couldn''t wait for his upgrade anymore. Four hours later... "*Phew* That wasn''t easy" He breathed out heavily as he looked around to confirm he got all the spots right. "Now it''s time for my upgrade" With a joyful expression, he entered the cave and made a wall that covered the entrance of it. For the next two weeks or so, he''ll shut himself out from the world. His full focus will be on refining the water heart pulse and breaking through. Chapter 92 - Dont Want To Beat Them In a secluded building, a youth could be seen sitting in a meditative position with an orb in his hands which gave off an intense cold aura. "Hmm" The youth opened his eyes and looked towards his right. Hearing the increased sounds of movements, he stood up from his sitting position and slowly walked towards the direction the sounds were coming from. Reaching there, he saw a black leopard. ''From the aura it''s giving off, it seems to be in the Ninth stage of the Arcane Plane. I should be able to deal with it, but I don''t know if there are others around''. The youth thought while looking at the creature as it took big strides around the building. As if sensing the youth''s gaze, the leopard looked in his direction. It looked at the youth and faced him. Both the youth and the leopard stared at each other for some time, each clearly wary of the other. ''I haven''t battled a beast in the Ninth stage since I advanced'' The youth thought as a little glimpse of fighting intent surfaced in his heart. But after some thought, he decided against it. ''Although I''ll like to test my current strength, doing it now isn''t worth it. Besides, the beast doesn''t seem like it wants to attack'' The youth looked on for some time before slowly backing off. He knew turning his back against the beast might trigger its predatory instinct, and it might just probably lose what little reasoning it had. The leopard didn''t make any other movements and just stared at the departing human. Just as the youth turned and was about to exit the building, he saw another leopard outside the building. This one was slightly weaker compared to the first one as it was in the Eighth stage, but it isn''t far from a breakthrough. ''Had I gotten into a battle with the first one, I would have been in a difficult situation if this one joined the battle'' Unfortunately, things don''t always go as planned. The leopard being a predatory type beast, had keen senses, so it was able to sense the arrival of the human. Unlike the first one, this one charged straight at the youth. ''Damn! Couldn''t it just pretend it didn''t see me?'' The youth thought frustrated before sending out a water snake towards the leopard. Bam! The leopard was immediately sent flying. "Stupid cat" The youth said with a smirk. ''Wow! My attack power is insane. Normally, someone in the Ninth stage of the Arcane Plane can''t easily send a beast in the Eighth stage flying so easily'' He didn''t stay any longer and quickly left the place before the other leopard would recover from the attack, and the other would exit the building. The youth soon disappeared from the area. This youth is Klaus who found a place for his seclusion two weeks ago. ''It has been two weeks now, I wonder how the others are doing'' Klaus thought while running in the forest. In these two weeks, he had already broken through to the Ninth stage of the Arcane Plane. His speed could be said to be the fastest among everyone who entered the trial lands. In one month of entry, he has gone from the Sixth stage to the Ninth stage. And it seems he isn''t far from breaking through to the Origin Plane. This was the second time his seclusion has been disrupted during these two weeks, he couldn''t complain though since there is a high number of beasts present in the place. ''I should find a good spot to complete my refining, or even, I should at least break through to the Origin Plane before they disrupt my cultivation again'' Shaking his head, Klaus continued heading deeper. ''This place should be a go...'' He didn''t finish his statement before he started hearing the sounds of fighting not too far away. Going over to check it out, his jaw dropped. With stars almost shooting out of his eyes, he stared at the opened box at the side of the building. ''Essence stones and two of them seem to contain water essence. I will acquire it, no, I must acquire it''. Klaus stared at the box greedily. There were about seven fist-sized stones in the box. With two of them being blue, this was a sign of them being filled with water essence. One had earthen brown, which signified it was of the earth element, and the other three were orange. He couldn''t see the last one clearly. ''I''ll use the water essence stones, I''ll give Alice the fire essence stones. Then Grey will get the earth essence stones, it''s a pity there isn''t a lightning essence stone, I would have given it to Rey''. Klaus started thinking about how he''ll divide the stones among himself and his friends. If the people fighting knew someone had already distributed the stones they were fighting over, they might cough out a mouthful of blood. If Klaus could get this, then he could gain a bigger boost in his cultivation after breaking through to the Origin Plane, as they can only be used for cultivating when an Elementalist reaches the Origin Plane. Also, acquiring one is very difficult. ''Oh! Beauties''. When he finally shifted his attention from the box to the fighters, he saw two beautiful faces. ''Stealing is great! But stealing from a beauty is even better!'' Klaus laughed inside. From the aura of both ladies, one of them is just a bit away from breaking through to the Ninth stage, while the other seems like she just broke through. The fight was currently tied as none of them seems to be getting the upper hand. From Klaus''s love for ladies, one would expect he wouldn''t steal what they were battling for. But, what would their beautiful faces give him? Nothing! What would the essence stones give him? Increase in strength. So you see what''s more important. Arranging his hair, Klaus sneakily swaggered towards the box. It''s not like he couldn''t defeat both ladies if they were to fight, but seeing how beautiful they were, he decided to only steal the stones. Before long, he had already reached the spot the stones were. Opening his bag, he started picking them and placing them in his bag. ''Oh! Guess Rey is lucky after all''. He thought when he saw the last stone in the box. It had a silver color which showed it''s of the lightning element. After putting the last stone on his bag, ''Huh! That''s strange, how come I don''t hear fighting anymore''. Turning around, Klaus was greeted by the furious gazes of both beauties. He immediately raised his hands, "It''s not what you think" He said to the ladies. "Oh really, what does it look like then? You thief!" The lady in the Eighth stage was the first to lash out words towards Klaus. ''If not for the fact that I don''t want to beat up two pretty ladies, I wouldn''t bother talking to them'' "Drop the stones and piss off!" The girl in the Ninth stage said in a commanding tone. ''Anyone would be upset if what they were fighting for was being stolen. I''ll just take it as they said nothing, I really don''t want to beat them up'' With this in his mind, Klaus started walking in the other direction, with the mind of leaving the building. But would the girls allow him? Boom! "Stay here you thief!" The girl in the Eighth stage was the first to attack. "If you know what''s good for you, I''ll advise you to let me go" Klaus shook his head as he dodged the attack. The other girl stood without making any movements, it seems like she was weighing her options. She didn''t want to allow Klaus to leave with the stones, but from his aura, he seems stronger than she was. "Hey, let''s team-up. After taking the stones from him, we''ll decide on what to do next" The girl in the Ninth stage said toward her previous opponent. "Okay" The girl in the Eighth stage nodded. When Klaus easily dodged her attack previously, she knew she was no match for him. "Why do they never listen?" Klaus prepared himself for battle. ''I really don''t want to beat them up'' He thought. Five minutes later... Two bloodied girls were lying on the floor motionless, it was unknown whether they were dead or alive. At first when the battle started, Klaus wanted to go easy on them. But then he realized something, these ladies wanted to kill him. After realizing this, he changed them from beauties, to enemies. Just like Grey, Klaus hated it whenever someone directs a killing gaze towards him. If he notices this, then he''ll try everything he can to kill the person. It''s not that he was evil or anything, it''s the rule of the world. And leaving someone who wants to kill you alive, is like leaving a sword hanging above your head. ''I should start my seclusion, the battles from now on will be harder than this was'' Klaus felt a little sense of urgency. He knew some people must have already broken through to the Origin Plane, if he were to accidentally encounter one before his breakthrough, it will be bad for him. ''Alice should have broken through by now, I''m not really sure about Rey and Grey. But hopefully, the next time we meet, you all should have broken through to the Origin Plane''. A smile appeared on his face when he thought of his friends. He missed them a lot, especially Rey. Chapter 93 - Reynolds Plight In the northern part of the trial land... A youth could be seen moving at a fast speed towards a tower. ''This place should have something good'' The youth thought excitedly as he increased his speed. This youth is undoubtedly Reynolds. After separating from the group, he had gone through different places and could be said to have gained some rewards since he had already broken through to the Ninth stage of the Arcane Plane not too long ago. He had gotten into different battles during this time, but none of them got to the stage where both parties wanted the other dead. Now that he had ventured deeper into the trial land, the frequency of meeting others had increased dramatically compared to the first two weeks, where they barely met others. Entering into the first floor of the tower, he found nothing. "Well, this place is already ransacked" Turning around, he headed towards the second floor. "Still nothing" He moved and went to the third floor. Finding nothing there also, he faced the stairs to the fourth floor, and then the fifth. It was only on the eighth floor did he find something, and his eyes lit upon seeing it. "An elemental weapon!" He exclaimed before running towards it. Picking up the old-looking spear, he carefully examined it. "It looks broken, but not completely destroyed. It should still be able to be used for some time before it becomes useless" "Sadly, it''s a water elemental weapon. Guess I''ll keep it for Klaus" He searched for something he''ll use to strap it to his back since it was too long to fit into his bag. The disadvantage of this though was that everyone would be able to see the weapon, and the greedy ones will attack him so they could acquire it. But there was nothing he could do, he couldn''t hold the spear constantly since it will impede his movements. And even holding it was no different from this due to its length. Searching the other floors, he didn''t find anything good. He left the tower and headed for another one he saw while he was at the top of the tower. On his way, he encountered a youth. Seeing the spear on his back, the youth immediately attacked him. ''I know keeping this with me will attract trouble, but I can''t leave it behind since I don''t know if I can find another weapon, or even if Klaus could'' With this in his mind, he also attacked. There were no greetings or words. Both parties engaged in a battle immediately. After three minutes of fighting, Reynolds held the upper hand. Although not completely. There might still be a chance for his opponent to turn the tide, so the youth refused to stop the battle. But after another two minutes, Reynolds started completely suppressing him. Without seeing any hope of being able to gain the upper hand, the youth escaped quickly. Reynolds on the other hand abstained from chasing him. He knew having the spear was like setting a target on himself, it would be best if he didn''t come across any more people as most of them are likely to attack him. ......... Two hours later... "F.u.c.k! This is bad" A youth with a bloodied arm said as he looked at the people coming his way. "How am I this unlucky? Those bastards from the Starlight Academy, I''ll make them pay" The youth said through gritted teeth. This youth was Reynolds who was heading towards the second tower. He accidentally came across a group of people from when he was about to get into the second tower. The spear on his back immediately attracted their attention, and they surrounded him and told him to give it to them, which he promptly refused. After struggling with the trio for some time, he was defeated. After they acquired the spear, they still didn''t show any signs of retreating, but they also didn''t show any signs of attacking. But just as he was about to leave, he heard a youth saying he''s from the Lunar Academy while pointing in his direction. The moment the others heard this statement, they immediately turned cold and once again started attacking. From this, he figured they were all from the Starlight Academy. Although he had already broken through to the Ninth stage of the Arcane Plane, he didn''t have any advantage since all his opponents were in the Ninth stage also. If he were to fight them one on one, or even, one on two, he was confident in his abilities. But fighting against three always difficult, too difficult even, especially for an Elementalist with a single element. "Where do you think you''re running to?" One of the trios sneered while looking at him "Hehehe, a worm from the Lunar Academy. Why don''t you run your mouth anymore? Or, did the cat got your tongue?" Another one said while laughing. The others all burst into laughter when they heard this. They all felt a certain joy when they are beating up the people from the Lunar Academy. Due to the event where Blake charged over to their Academy and almost killed one of their instructors, they all developed a strong hatred towards the Lunar Academy, Chris smacking one of their instructors to death, increased their hatred to a terrifying rate. Now all they wanted to do was kill any Lunar Academy student they find in the trial. This group had already killed one student during the second week they were in the trial land. Presently, they were about to add another student to the list. "Don''t worry, you wouldn''t even know how you died. I''ll make it as painless as possible" The last of the trio said softly. Being the girl among the group, one expected her to be the kindest in the group. But don''t be fooled by her soft voice, deep inside is a terrifyingly wicked monster. Even the two boys are scared of her. She enjoys torturing her enemies to the brink of madness. The first student they killed was actually personally killed by her. They watched her torture him for over six hours, they could still hear his horrified voice when he was pleading for death. The torture was so intense that the youth only pleaded for death and nothing more, he wanted to die, but she didn''t allow it. Only after torturing the student to her fill did she finally kill him. Yet the death wasn''t fast in any way. First, she gouged out his eyes, cut off his tongue, before finally dismembering him. ''I can''t die here, I still have a lot to do'' Reynolds screamed in his heart. He had tried battling them, but still to no avail. They were just too strong for only him to fight against, he tried everything he could, yet he still couldn''t escape. His bloodied hand is a result of his attempt to run which as you can see was futile. ''Starlight Academy, I''ll personally destroy you if I survive this'' Reynolds thought hatefully. He had always hated the Starlight Academy, but now, the hatred has increased by a hundred folds. Death was in front of him, and he didn''t know if he might be able to escape. "I''ll kill you people" Reynolds spat hatefully. "Haha, good. I''d like to see you try" The girl giggled with her hands covering her mouth. They once again started fighting with Reynolds getting hit most of the time. If not for his movement technique, he would have already been dead. The lightning element was known not just for its destructive power, but also for its insane speed. This speed had allowed Reynolds to hold on for this long, but he was already starting to tire. Once again he tried to flee the trio but was soon caught due to his tiredness. "These hateful bunch" Reynolds was infuriated. Currently, they had been chasing and attacking him for over five hours. It was like he was a game to them. He was already injured in multiple places, and the prolonged running and fighting were already starting to take their toll. Not to mention his injuries as well. "Running is futile, you stand there humbly like the dog you are and stretch out your neck" One of the boys said while grinning evilly. They were now in a compound and there was no place for Reynolds to run to any longer. Reynolds looked at them with madness visible in his eyes. His eyes had already turned bloodshot from the anger boiling inside him. But being unable to unleash that anger seemed to make matters worse. He was grinding his teeth so hard that blood was already dripping from his mouth. "Be careful boys, even a cornered rabbit will fight back" The girl said laughing. The others also burst into laughter. They knew she was only mocking Reynolds. "Arghh" Reynolds roared in madness. "I''ll kill you all" He yelled out loud. "Hehe, if you can survive, that is" The boys said while laughing. They once again resumed their attacks on him. Chapter 94 - Reynolds Plight II Bang! Reynolds slammed into the wall heavily. Standing up, he vomited a mouthful of blood. For the past three minutes, he had received injuries of different calibers. Some heavy, while others light. It was like they didn''t want to kill him hence they were holding back. His vision was already blurry from the blood which entered his eyes. Defending had gotten hard, evading was even harder. ''Will I really die under the hands of people from the Starlight Academy. I don''t fear death, but I don''t want to die at the hands of these people. Okay, I''m scared of death, I mean, who wants to die?'' Reynolds''s mind was a mess. But there was something he knew, he didn''t want to die. Even though he might eventually die, but not now. He still hasn''t married, hasn''t had a kid. And he hasn''t given his parents the good life he promised them. Yes, he had a rare element and a great grade in it also. With this, his parents are living well, but that was on the premise that he is alive. If he dies here, they would go back to the way they lived previously, when eating twice a day was hard. Sometimes they couldn''t eat a meal all day. As a kid, he was very malnourished and had to ensure he also doesn''t eat much because he didn''t know if he would have anything to eat the next day. But it all changed when he went for his test, the moment his element was discovered, and also the grade of it. Their lives changed, his mother didn''t have to be mistreated at the place she worked just so she could earn enough for them to eat. His father could be said to be one of the unluckiest people alive. On the first day he set out to become an adventurer, he was almost killed by a magical beast and had no option than to stop. With a grave injury, doing anything else was difficult. Two years before his test, his family welcomed another child. At first, he felt upset at the thought of it, he even almost scolded his parents. They were already having trouble feeding, and they wanted to add another mouth to the fray. In the end, he was the one who loved the little guy more. And the little guy could be said to be their lucky star since just after clocking two years, their entire life took a turn around. Coming from a poor family and having not just a rare element but also a high grade on it, was uncommon. ''Carl, your test will be coming in six years'' When he remembered his little brother, tears filled his already bloodshot eyes. He couldn''t fight back, standing on his two feet was even harder. He couldn''t hear anything except the high-pitched buzzing sound which was ringing constantly in his ears. He placed both hands on his ears, trying to at least make the annoying sound stop. But it didn''t, he tried to speak, but no words came out. With a ''thud'' he fell on his knees. His legs couldn''t support his body anymore, his consciousness was slowly fading away. ''Will I never see my friends again? Alice, Grey, Klaus. My family, Dad, Mom, Carl''. His fading mind did all it could to ensure he didn''t lose consciousness. ''No! This isn''t the end. I won''t die here''. Giving himself motivation. With sheer willpower, Reynolds straightened his back, raising his left leg, he planted it firmly on the ground. Using his hands as support, he stood up. Although staggering, he was up. "Look boys, our prey still has some fight left in him" The girl said with joy pointing at Reynolds. The boys laughed when they saw the bloodied Reynolds struggling to stand still. "Your willpower is strong. Kekeke, just how I like them" The girl gave off a sinister laugh while l.i.c.k.i.n.g her lips. "Stop being a p.u.s.s.y you fools. I won''t do anything to him just yet. I just want to see how long he will be able to keep standing after falling" The girl pouted before scolding the boys when she saw their scared expressions. Seeing her delicate face when she pouted, the boys didn''t even dare to admire her beauty, all they saw was an evil woman. "Luckily, we are from the same Academy" One of the boys said in a voice that only he and his partner will hear. The other boy nodded agreeing to what he said. If they were to be enemies with someone like her, then they would rather commit suicide than face her. Well, they wouldn''t know she was like this until they met her anyway. But still, they were thankful she was one of them. Reynolds who stood on the same spot currently couldn''t discern his left from his right. There was only one thing going through his mind presently, that was, to live. As of now, nothing else mattered. He wanted to live, to fulfill his promise to his family, his friends. He remembered what Klaus said before they separated. ''How can I die when the others are still alive? I can''t make them feel the pain of losing a friend''. All this was to rekindle the fighting spirit in him. If his fighting wasn''t rekindled, then there was no way for him to have the strength to fight back. A little spark resurfaced in him once again. Slowly, the spark turned into a fire that started burning brightly. "I know I''m not the strongest, but the likes of you aren''t enough to keep me down" With this, he stood as straight as an arrow. Staring dead in the eyes of his enemies, without any fear he started this round of battle this time. He didn''t wait for them to attack before he retaliated, he attacked first. ''Lightning rain'' The technique he had not been able to utilize for a long time, was used. This was one of the strongest attacks, and also the one with the widest range in the lightning element arsenal they knew of. And for the first time in his life, he used it. The attack was flawless as it was able to take his enemies unaware. The girl who was lmore alert compared to the two boys was able to escape from the range of the attack after being hit three times. ''A chance'' A glint flashed through Reynolds''s eyes when he noticed one of them had been hit with paralysis. Swoosh! The sound of something breaking the wind was heard. And before anyone could figure out what was happening, a lightning arrow had already pierced through the head of the boy. With that, his body fell lifelessly on the ground. "One down, two to go" Reynolds said coldly. "*Sigh* This is why mother said to never play with your prey, especially one as dangerous as this. You never know when they will strike back" The girl said with a sigh. The other boy looked at her, but she still wore the same casual smile she had on her face all this time. It was like she didn''t even notice one of their companions was dead. "He''s dead" The boy couldn''t help but say to her. "And so? Don''t worry, after I''m done with this prey, we''ll get a new partner" She said nonchalantly. The boy alternated his gaze between the dead body of their companion and the smiling face of the girl. A thought told him to leave the place, but his rationality told him otherwise. The chances of the girl killing him if he tried to leave were quite high, and he was no match for her if they were to fight. Seeing he couldn''t blame the girl, he directed all his hatred to Reynolds. "It''s all because of you. You mutt, you killed him!" With a roar, he charged at Reynolds and unleashed a sea of flames his way. "Haha, didn''t you want to kill me? I told you I will kill you all. His death is just the beginning, soon both of you will join him in hell" Reynolds released a defensive technique that was able to easily deflect the sea of flames. "I want you dead" The girl also joined the fray. "Strange, so do I" Reynolds said icily. Boom! Attacks clashed against each other. And the girl was pushed back for the first time since they started attacking Reynolds. ''Something''s wrong'' She was able to quickly notice the difference in his strength. "Don''t attack him head-on, at the current state he''s in, we can''t take him down. Let''s go on the defensive, he shouldn''t be able to last long" The girl said on seeing the boy was thinking of fighting Reynolds head-on. Her deduction was actually spot on. Reynolds won''t be able to keep this up for another three minutes. His boost from adrenaline will soon die down, and he will go back to his weak and defenseless state. Three minutes later... Thud! Reynolds once again dropped to the ground on his knees breathing heavily. He couldn''t keep on, he was out of strength. Normally, with the boost he got, he should have been able to quickly kill them, but the girl was able to figure it out and told her partner they should go on the defensive. After attacking for over one minute with no results, he wanted to flee. But the girl was also able to stop him from fleeing. "Is this the end?" A teardrop fell from his eyes. The girl walked towards him smiling widely. "Now, I will make you suffer" She said every word slowly. It was like she was afraid given Reynolds''s condition, he wouldn''t be able to hear her clearly if she spoke normally. ''No! It can''t be''. Reynolds refused to accept his current predicament. Unwillingness rose in his heart once again. "I refuse to accept this!" RUMBLE!! Chapter 95 - Unexpected Gift "I refuse to accept this!" RUMBLE!! A rumbling sound came out from the sky, it was like the sky was angry. Crack! Crack! The sounds of lightning could be heard all around the place. The girl who was making her way towards Reynolds stopped in her tracks and stared at the sky. "What''s happening?" The boy asked in a surprised manner. "Seems like it''s about to rain" "Could it be because of him?" The boy asked pointing at Reynolds. "You''re even dumber than I thought, why would it rain because of him?" She looked at the boy like he was a moron. "Guess the rain wants to help you wash away your blood after I''m done with you" She once again focused her attention on Reynolds. But what she saw amazed her, Reynolds, was standing once again. "Your willpower is terrifying" She couldn''t help but praise. "I want to see just how long you can keep standing" She waved her hand sending out a casual attack. The attack hit Reynolds firmly, and he fell down once more. Five minutes later... Bam! Reynolds hit the ground again. In these five minutes, the girl had struck him over six times. But he always gets back on his feet. Stubbornness evident in his eyes, his body had already given up on him, but his mind keeps finding ways to make it move once again. The sky was still rumbling, and the sounds of lightning got louder. But the assumed rain still hasn''t started. "How does he still have the energy to get up?" He has been watching Reynolds fall, and stand up again for five minutes now. If he were the one in his position, he knew there was no way he would still be up. He wouldn''t even have lasted this long under the assault of three people. But Reynolds not only lasted, but he also killed one of his attackers. The girl on the other hand is already starting to get frustrated. Although she enjoys torturing her opponents, she has started feeling somewhat uneasy seeing Reynolds getting up every single time. "Stay down" She yelled releasing a stronger attack. Previously, she was just having fun hence the strength of the attacks was meager since she believed he wouldn''t be able to take them even. Drip! A raindrop dropped on her shoulder, feeling the coldness from the water, she calmed down. Soon, the rain started pouring down. ''I guess the shock he''s been giving me after standing up multiple times is starting to affect my mind'' She thought with a wry smile appearing on her face. ''It truly isn''t because of him. Guess I was thinking too much''. With this thought, he relaxed visibly. Reynolds was on the ground, with the rain continuously hitting his face, he tried to raise his hands so he could cover his face with it, but it felt like something was placed in his hands which kept them stuck to the ground. Not just his hands, his entire body felt like it was being pressed to the ground by something heavy. ''I refuse to accept this'' He kept repeating this word in his head. He didn''t want to accept the fact that he was going to die, he couldn''t accept it. There was still a lot he had to do, he can''t fall here. RUMBLE! The sky thundered once again. But none of them attached any attention to it. Had it been before the rain started falling, the boy might have still taken a peek, but now, he didn''t care anymore. Besides, it wasn''t the first time he was hearing the sounds of thunder anyway. "What? You can''t stand anym..." Before the girl could finish her statement, she paused halfway. The reason for that was because, just like before, Reynolds was standing up once more. "Why won''t you stay down?!" Frustration was starting to eat her up. She is the one beating him up, yet she was the one getting frustrated. Reynolds was just like a c.o.c.kroach, he just won''t die. His tenacity was insane. "Just kill him already" The boy said from the side. He was already getting tired of watching the same thing happening over and over again. Reynolds clearly can''t fight back, yet, she still didn''t want to kill him. What was the reason? Was it to satisfy her sadistic nature? Or was there another reason for it? "Shut up!" "I''ll make sure you never stand again, how will you stand with a broken body?" The girl laughed maniacally before aiming an attack towards Reynolds''s leg. This time, she was ruthless and didn''t hold back. She wanted to break his leg. The fact that he had been standing up had already ruined the fun for her. Now all she wanted was to see him lying on the floor. CRACK! RUMBLE! BOOM! Just as her attack was about to hit Reynolds, lightning fell from the sky, its target, Reynolds. The girl quickly retreated when she saw the lightning heading towards him. "Hahaha, you see, even the heavens are angry with you. How will you rise from this?" The girl laughed continuously. Looking at the girl, the boy felt she wasn''t stable mentally. At first, she was enjoying it whenever Reynolds stood up, but then, she started getting frustrated whenever he does. ''Is this coincidental?'' He felt suspicious about the whole event. He remembered it was only after Reynolds roared did the clouds start gathering. But after the rain started, he thought it was just normal. But now, lightning suddenly fell and hit Reynolds. His thought process was still trying to comprehend what was going on. ''What''s this? How come I don''t feel hurt?'' Reynolds who was covered in lightning felt a strange sensation. His consciousness had almost faded when he suddenly saw the lightning heading towards himself. Although he was already very weak and was probably at death''s door, he still nearly shit his pants from fright. Although he is attuned with the lightning element, he still hasn''t reached the level where he can come in contact with real lightning and not get hurt from it. So, he was pretty scared. Being completely covered by the lightning, none of the duos could see what was happening. They just felt the lightning will fry him, well, that was what was supposed to happen. "Why is this taking longer than expected?" The uneasiness the boy felt grew as time slowly ticked on. When lightning strikes someone or a place, it doesn''t usually take more than two seconds, but Reynolds has been covered in lightning for over thirty seconds now. ''I feel energized. Hmm, my body is absorbing the essence of the lightning'' Reynolds whose strength had already dwindled completely felt a surge of power flowing through his body. His cultivation slowly started increasing. Within ten seconds, he had already reached the peak of the Arcane Plane. Just one more step and he''ll cross over to the Origin Plane. Unfortunately, after getting to the very peak, it stopped increasing, and the lightning slowly started fading. Seeing that the lightning was beginning to fade, the duo looked closer with squinted eyes. "Why do I see two figures?" The boy rubbed his eyes again feeling the light was the cause of it. Staring at it again, it was still the same thing, and the lightning was fading at a faster rate now as if it was being absorbed by something. He remembered Reynolds was the only one who was covered by the lightning, but he could swear he was seeing another figure in there currently. "Do you see it also?" He asked the girl just to confirm he wasn''t seeing double. The girl didn''t reply to his question as her full attention was on the light, she too, could also see a second figure in the light. When the light finally died down, they saw the cause of the other figure. Reynolds was standing calmly with a smug smile on his face, by his side, was a man, made entirely of lightning. "A summoner" The boy exclaimed. "How could this be? If you were a summoner, you wouldn''t have waited this long before summoning..." The girl froze mid-sentence and looked at the man made of lightning again. Unlike the usual summons which is bigger, Reynolds''s summon was the size of a man. And what was surprising was the fact that it had a bow, a quiver, and a sword. "No! Impossible! It''s... an elemental warrior!" The boy shrieked in terror and immediately turned to flee. Summons are divided into two, one is a normal summon just like the one Damian did at the tournament, while the other which is a grade higher and much stronger is the one Reynolds currently summoned. They are called Elemental Warriors. Unlike normal summons which are mostly a stage above their summoners, the strength of an Elemental Warrior will see an increase after every leap in Plane. Meaning, for now, it''s only a stage above Reynolds, but once Reynolds breaks through to the Origin Plane, it would go two stages ahead and so on. They could be said to be the perfect warriors, only, the consumption is just as terrifying as their capabilities. Currently, Reynolds could only keep it for about three minutes. But that''s enough to kill the duo. "Don''t run you fool, we can hold it back for some time" The girl tried to stop the boy, but she was unfortunately too late. Thang! Swoosh! The sound of a released string sounded out, followed by the sound of something breaking the wind. The Elemental Warrior had released a lightning arrow towards the running boy. Just one arrow and it didn''t follow up with another. Bam! The sound of something hitting the ground was heard coming from some distance away. The boy was dead, he didn''t even make a sound before he died. Reynolds s.u.c.k.e.d in a cold breath when he saw this. "I don''t know if I should thank you or not. Hehehe, because if not for you, I wouldn''t have gotten this unexpected gift" He laughed out in joy when he said this. The girl suddenly felt regret for the first time. ''Why didn''t I kill him when I had the chance?'' Despair washed over her, she knew she was no match for the Elemental Warrior since it was a Plane ahead of her. Had the boy stayed, they might have been able to fight for some time. Although they would still be defeated, it wouldn''t have been this quick. "Go to hell, you b****" Reynolds looked on as the warrior charged towards her. One minute later... "No...." A shriek of terror was cut short. The head of the girl was cut off by the warrior, with her mouth still wide open. The warrior soon started to fade. Reynolds heaved a sigh and looked around before walking to where the trio stood previously, he picked up the spear once again. In the end, he still retained it... Chapter 96 - Two Months Reynolds strapped the spear to his back once more. Looking at the corpse of the duo, he quickly went through their bags but didn''t find anything good. Seeing there was nothing else for him to do there, he soon disappeared into the trees. Two minutes later... A figure appeared at the scene of the battle. ''This should be the place'' The figure thought as she started walking closer for further inspection. The figure was none other than Alice who was attracted here by the scream. She was moving in the forest when it suddenly started raining. At first, she was surprised since for the one month they''ve been here, there haven''t been any signs of rain. But she didn''t attach too much importance to it since it was normal for it to rain anyway. But surprisingly, after the lightning strike, the rain stopped instantly. This only added to the mystery she felt this place was, it was only after she heard the faint scream of the girl did she guess the rain was probably caused by someone. And from the direction of the shout, it was almost the same place the lightning struck. She moved quite nimbly and delicately. With a beautiful face, she looked at the bloodied scene of the battle without many reactions. Even when she saw the beheaded girl, there weren''t any changes in her facial expression. "So she''s been killed. Hmm, good. She was lucky to escape from my hands previously, guess her luck ran out. Huh! Where''s the last one?" After separating from the group, she ran into this girl and her crew. When they recognized she was a student from the Lunar Academy, they attacked her, but unfortunately for them, she was too strong for them to handle. At that time, the trio were all in the Eighth stage of the Arcane Plane, while she was in the Ninth stage She was able to quickly suppress them, but unfortunately, they escaped. Since the battle was already over and there was no one else present, she turned to leave the place. Initially, she came here to find out who caused the rain, but it seems like the person is looking long gone. Only, just as she was about to leave, she stopped and looked to her left. She sensed someone was watching her from the shadows of the trees. "Come out" Alice said calmly. She didn''t have anything to fear, she had already broken through to the First stage of the Origin Plane. So even if she faced off against those in the Origin Plane also, she didn''t think she would lose out. The figure of a young man slowly came from behind one of the trees. Looking closely, Alice thought he looked familiar and tried searching her memories from where she saw him before. The young man was actually Jonas. Just like Alice, he was also attracted here by the girl''s scream. On arriving here, he noticed someone else was here, so he hid behind a tree to observe what was going on. It was just that, he didn''t think the girl would be able to sense his presence. "You''re from the Starlight Academy, right?" Alice suddenly asked after some time. After thinking closely, she was finally able to remember who the youth was. She didn''t really know his name, but she remembered Grey had spoken of him once, and she also saw him during the competition when he fought against Reynolds. "Yes. You''re from the Lunar Academy" Jonas didn''t try to hide his identity since there was no use anyway. He remembered seeing the girl at the competition, and she sat close to Grey. So he guessed they might be friends. He had actually forgotten Grey''s name, it was only during the competition that he remembered it once again. "Friends?" Alice asked while pointing at the corpse of the headless girl as well as the one of the boy with a hole in his head. She was still quite skeptical about where the last boy was because she remembered the trio always moved as a group. Not seeing the corpse here, she assumed he most likely escaped. Of the trio Reynolds killed, only the bodies of the girl and the first boy he killed were present at the scene of the battle. The other boy ran quite some distance away before he was put down by the Elemental Warrior. Since none of the two people present passed through that direction when coming, they didn''t see the third body. "I don''t have friends" Jonas replied coldly. "I figured" Alice nodded. Although she had only seen him once which was during the time of the competition, she remembered after his battle with Reynolds, when he went back to his seat, the other students didn''t have a welcoming attitude towards him, some even looked at him with scorn. "Are you going to attack or not? If not, then I''ll be on my way" Jonas spoke calmly, there wasn''t even an ounce of fear evident in his face. With this question, the atmosphere suddenly tensed up. After some time Alice spoke up. "I''m quite surprised you didn''t run the moment you noticed I''ve sensed your presence, given the relationship between our Academies" "Hmph! Why would I run?" Jonas snorted coldly before replying. "Given the difference in strength, running the moment you saw me was the best option for you. You''re still in the Eighth stage of the Arcane Plane, and I''ve already broken through to the First stage of the Origin Plane. Also, with the feud between both Academies, we can be said to be enemies. I might even consider sparing you because of how quickly you ran away" Alice replied with the same playful smile. "Then why aren''t you attacking? Or do you usually talk this much to people you want to kill?" Jonas asked calmly. "Of course not, I''m not that bored to start talking with people I want to kill" Alice replied with a laugh. "The reasons you''re still alive is that I remembered hearing Grey say you were from the same city as himself, and also, when I saw the reception you got from your fellow students, I figured your life was quite miserable at the Starlight Academy. But the real reason was because you came from the same city as Grey, and he didn''t say anything bad about you. Actually, he didn''t say anything about you other than being from the same city" Jonas didn''t speak any further and just looked at her. Just as he turned to leave. "Did you see who did this?" Alice suddenly asked. "No" Jonas replied as he continued walking away. ''Hmm, I can sense a high amount of lightning element in the environment. Looks like the person who killed them is a lightning user''. Alice thought while leaving the place. "Oh! So here you are" Alice gave a light laugh when she saw the corpse of the second boy. Two weeks went by without much happening on the side of Grey, Klaus, Reynolds, and Alice. The three boys were still in seclusion trying to break through to the next Plane or in Grey''s case the next stage and awakening his fourth element. Alice had already broken through to the Origin Plane, so there was no use in going into seclusion for her. With her strength, she had few opponents among the people who entered. Only those beasts at the Origin Plane or higher could scare here, but she hasn''t gone that deep yet. Klaus had unsurprisingly broken through to the First stage of the Origin Plane but still didn''t exit seclusion as he wanted to increase his stage before coming out. Another two weeks went by uneventful for the trio as they spent their time cultivating. They were already preparing to exit seclusion because they had already met their objectives. Grey had broken through to the Ninth stage of the Arcane Plane and wasn''t far from the peak. But that was not the biggest gain in his one month of seclusion. His biggest gain had to be the awakening of his water element, and also the increase in the grade of his wind element. As it stands, his lightning element was blue grade, his earth element was purple grade, his water element was also purple grade, and lastly, his wind element was orange grade. His strength has seen a great boost, although he hasn''t broken through to the Origin Plane yet, he doesn''t have a problem battling with someone at the First stage of the Origin Plane and winning given his current strength. Reynolds had broken through to the First stage of the Origin Plane, while Klaus broke through to the Second stage. From their cultivation, Klaus could be said to be the strongest. But Reynolds is the strongest among them, given his Elemental Warrior is now in the Third stage of the Origin Plane. But if they said who had the highest attack power, then it would be Grey. The reason, elemental fusion. When he was still in the Seventh stage of the Arcane Plane, and only had three elements with his wind element still being at the pink grade, he could already dish out an attack that didn''t lose out against someone in the First stage of the Origin Plane. Now, among his four elements, one was blue, two were purple, while the last one was orange. The attack power currently will be terrifying, Grey felt it might even exceed the attack power of someone in the Fourth stage. One week after the trio exited seclusion, a light suddenly shot up at what looked to be around the middle of the trial land attracting the attention of everyone. Chapter 97 - Origin Plane, Just So So "Damn! All our hard work will be for nothing since this foolish light will attract everyone here" An angry youth exclaimed in frustration. "Hopefully it opens before the others get here. Otherwise, it would be hard for us to acquire it" Another voice spoke calmly. "Shit! We spent the past two months searching for this, we didn''t even search for any good items to increase our strengths. If not for the abundant essence here, then we wouldn''t have made any improvements" A third voice said. Five young men were currently standing in front of what looked like a sealed door that led underground. The light which shot upwards came from that door. They were the group sent here to acquire the unknown treasure which would likely boost the strength of the hidden family. Amongst the young men, there was one who had some resemblance to the middle-aged man at the study room. ''It''s weird father attached such importance to this treasure. No one has seen it before, what if it isn''t what they expected''. The youth contemplated. The fact that his father, grandfather, and even his ancestors all placed their hopes in something they haven''t seen before surprised him. Although from the looks of the door, it might still be there. What if the treasure was taken by the people who stayed here previously, then what? "As long as the treasure is still here, then no one will be able to take it from our hands even if they come here" The youth said confidently. He had the right to be this confident because even before coming here, he had already broken through to the Second stage of the Origin Plane. The two months he had spent here had seen him advanced to another stage. He was also a rare multi Elementalist wielding three elements respectively. They are lightning, fire, and darkness element. Each of his elements was destructive on its own, now combined, they were a terrifying force. With one rare and another extremely rare element that has terrifyingly destructive powers, even if he faces off against someone in that Fifth stage, he wouldn''t lose. But if the Elementalist is a Dual Elementalist, then his chances of winning are below forty percent. He believed no one had reached the Fifth stage yet since it has only been two months hence he isn''t worried. "Okay" The others nodded. They all knew just how strong he was. Not just that, but they were all also in the Origin Plane. With two being in the First stage, and the other two being in the Second stage. They could be said to be one of the strongest groups, if not the strongest, that is in this place amongst the youths who entered. ........ "Uh! What''s that?" Grey looked at the light in the distance, intrigued. "It''s best I check it out" Without further delay, he started moving in the direction of light. Grey felt anything that could give off a light like that isn''t something ordinary, also given how extraordinary this place was, he knew there was something good to be acquired there. He came out of seclusion about a week ago and hasn''t been able to find anything good. This place had been searched by so many people over the years that it was hard to find something good. Apart from those places which are trials and also that garden, he didn''t think there was anything else worth finding. He had already decided to focus his time on cultivating and finding tough beasts to battle. Unless they decide to head deeper into the place which they were advised not to because there have been sightings of beasts in the late stages of the Origin Plane, and also beasts in the Overlord Plane. So unless you''re certain you could protect yourself, going there is equivalent to a death wish. The place didn''t seem close, and it might probably take him about a day or two to get there. ........ ''Hmm, the others will probably head there. I should also go, I wonder how much they''ve advanced''. Since the first two weeks of entering this place, he hasn''t seen his friends again. So the thought of teaming up again made him happy. Reynolds and Alice were also heading in the direction of the light, with the former being a good distance away and the latter being closer. ........ The next day... The light still hadn''t gone off yet, so a lot of people were still heading in the direction of it. Some who were closer to the place had already gotten to the place and just like the group who discovered the place, they were waiting for the light to die down, so they would enter the place. ''I should be able to reach before the end of today'' Grey looked at the light that was getting bigger compared to the first time he noticed it. He had been rushing here since he noticed the light the previous day. Although he had encountered some beasts, he was able to easily finish them off. On the way, he had also met others who were also heading towards the light. But they all went their separate ways since there were no profits to be made if they fought. "Hehehe, who knew we would cross parts again" Turning around, he saw two people. One was a familiar face, and the other was an above-average-looking girl who had a nice figure. "Oh! It''s you" Grey smiled when he saw the youth. The youth was Bernard from the Azure empire. Grey never expected to meet him again, but he still remembered what he promised his friends. "Given that I''m in a hurry, I wouldn''t have spared a glance at you. But I promised your friend before I killed him that I would kill you anytime I see you" He started walking towards Bernard. "You overestimate yourself. Heh, you''re still in the Arcane Plane and you dare to spout nonsense in front of me. I don''t know if you''re just stupid, or you''re acting like one" Bernard scoffed. He had already broken through to the First stage of the Origin Plane after escaping from Grey the previous time. Now he was confident he would be able to defeat him. "I''m in a hurry, so I can''t entertain you for long, you''ve already lived past your expiry date, now it''s time to die" Grey didn''t seem bothered even after noticing Bernard was in the Origin Plane. "Kill him quickly. Others have already reached there by now" The girl gave Grey an apathetic look. "I know you''re trying to find a way to delay me so you could create that mysterious symbol you did the last time. But sadly, you won''t live that long" Bernard attacked instantly not giving Grey any chances to inscribe. "For the likes of you, I don''t need it" Grey felt it was beneath him to inscribe when facing off against a single opponent. Since it took time and focus, he rarely used it against a single person. Actually, over the course of his previous battles, as long as his opponents are single individuals, the thought of using inscriptions hadn''t crossed his mind. It was only when he was facing off against a group does it come to his mind. Using one of the few wind techniques in combination with his lightning element, he moved at a fast speed. When he first came here, he still hid the fact that he had other elements. But he recently realized he only had to hide that fact from those who knew him, he could freely use a third element in the presence of others since there were Multi Elementalist. Boom! Bang! Grey and Bernard exchanged moves for a minute with Grey easily deflecting most of his attacks. He didn''t focus on attacking him, it was like he wasn''t interested in the battle. Bernard sent another attack towards Grey. Using both his lightning and wind element, he easily evaded the attack and charged forward. But his target was surprisingly not Bernard, rather, it was the girl who accompanied him. Swoosh! Grey sent a wind blade towards Bernard to act as a deterrent, so he wouldn''t stop him. Bernard who was about to give chase stopped and defended himself. "What are you doing?!" The girl shrieked in fright. Just like Grey, she was still in the Ninth stage of the Arcane Plane. But with the few exchanges she saw between Grey and Bernard, she knew she wasn''t his match. "Removing the ants" A cold glint flashed through Grey''s eyes as he went closer. ''This time, no one will escape'' Grey thought coldly. Within two strikes, he had killed her. Due to fear, the girl couldn''t even put up a defense. Everything happened so fast that before Bernard could discern what was going on, the girl was dead. Five seconds ago he was still battling with Grey, now five seconds later, his partner was dead. "You bastard! I''ll kill you!" Bernard''s eyes turned bloodshot. "Oh! Seems something was going on between you two. I''m usually not a heartless person, so I''ll quickly send you on your way, so you can meet her again. Although, I''m not sure your friend will allow that" Grey laughed lightly. "I''ll kill you! Ahh!" Bernard roared like an animal and charged towards Grey. "Okay, I''m done playing" One minute later... "Origin Plane, Heh! Just so so" Grey said looking at the corpse of Bernard. After saying this, he continued his journey towards where the light was coming from. Chapter 98 - Darkness Element "What do you think is behind the door?" "How should I know? Just like you, this is my first time coming here, and it will be the last since there''s no way we can get into the place after crossing twenty" "The light still isn''t showing any signs of dying down. It has already been two days already, a lot of the people has been attracted here by it" "Why are you acting like you''re the one who found this place? Weren''t you still attracted here by it?" "If more people comes, then the battle for the treasure will get harder" Looking closely, one could see groups of different sizes conversing quietly. Most of the groups each contained three or four people. Some of them were already together when they followed the light here, others grouped up after getting here. But they were all discussing the same thing, the door, and what they would potentially find in it. ...... "More people seem to be arriving, if the light doesn''t die down sooner, acquiring the treasure would be harder than expected" One of the youths from the group who discovered the door said worriedly. "I never thought it would give off this light, and even for so long. This wasn''t stated in the records else we would have been more careful" Another one said. The son of the middle-aged man looked around coldly, judging from the number of people present, he had already predicted things might get harder now. There was no way he could claim this place for himself since he couldn''t fight everyone here. He had already seen some geniuses who were in the Second stage of the Origin Plane already, and there were even six who are even at the same stage as himself. If he were to battle them one on one, or one in two, he was confident in his abilities to defeat them. But given the current numbers present, he wasn''t that powerful yet. "No matter what, we''ll still be the first to head inside" He said with certainty. They had already occupied the location closest to the door, and due to the cold aura they were giving off, none of the people dared to get close to them. ........ "Seems like Grey isn''t here yet, could it be he''s not coming?" Alice asked while searching the crowd if she could spot Grey. Among the group of four, she was the first to get to the place since she was located closer to it. Reynolds was a few hours later than she was, but at that time, the number of people wasn''t too much, so he was able to quickly locate her. Klaus came in the morning of the second day but was only able to locate them after staying for almost one hour. After the three got together, they searched for Grey but weren''t able to find him. Now the second day was almost up, and they didn''t know if the light would still be up by the next day. They wouldn''t want Grey to miss out on this if there happens to be something good inside. "Maybe he''s in seclusion, or probably on his way here" Klaus speculated. The thought of Grey being dead didn''t even cross either of their minds because they believed there was no way for that to happen. "Let''s continue waiting, it''s not as if the door has opened yet" Reynolds said calmly. The others nodded and took a sit by the side of a rock. They each started telling the others of the experience during the time they were apart. Among the group, Reynolds'' experience was the most heart-racing due to the fact that he almost died. When the others heard he was cleansed by lightning and also gained the ability of summoning, they felt happy for him. When they also found out his summon wasn''t an ordinary summon but an Elemental Warrior, they were shocked by his unexpected good fortune. ........... ''It''s coming from there'' The sun had already gone down, but luckily, he was able to get here before the day ended. He estimated he would be able to see the source of the light in another five minutes. After killing Bernard, he had rushed here as fast as he could. Facing no major obstacles on the way, his speed increased further. Shortly after, Grey could be seen walking out from the mountains. He didn''t attract any attention from others since he wasn''t the only one arriving at this moment. When he looked around, he estimated there were already at least one hundred people present here. He guessed more were still on their way here since the light was still in and like him, they weren''t close to it. The fact that some were dead also didn''t escape his thoughts, and others might also be in seclusion. The place where the people are gathered was an open valley with huge rocks present in different places. But the most eye-catching thing in the valley was a huge black door that was embedded on a mountain that seemed to lead underground. "So that''s the source of the light" Grey mumbled slowly as he studied the black door further. The door was at least twenty meters wide, and looking at it from the ground level, the door had an average height of about ten meters, although its real length was longer than that, but since the door was embedded on the mountain slope, the height was a mere ten meters. ''Looks like it will only open after the light dies down'' When he looked away from the door, he noticed there was a good distance between the first group who were close to the door than the other groups. He suspected there was a reason behind it. At the other regions of the crowd, he noticed some groups had already gotten into disputes and from the looks of things, a fight might break out any moment. Shifting his gaze from them, he looked around to see if he could find his friends, but unfortunately, he couldn''t. The valley was quite spacious spanning over eight hundred meters. Being filled with huge rocks, it was likely that they were behind one of them. ''I''ll wait till the door opens, there''s no way I wouldn''t see them then if they are here'' Being too lazy to search for them, he decided to wait till the door opens. There was also the possibility of them not even being here, so his best choice of action was waiting till the door opened since if they were here, there was no way they wouldn''t try to get in. He went close to the tree and sat in a meditative state, he entered into what looked to be a semi-conscious state and started cultivating. Just as he speculated, the group who got into a dispute started fighting, but the fight didn''t last long as they were all reserving their energies for the battle that will likely take place once the door opens. ........ Just as the sun was about to rise, the light slowly started dying down. "Look, the light is starting to die down" The group at the front were the first people to notice the changes in the light. Moments later, others started noticing it as well. Some who were sorted stood up and looked at it closer to confirm they weren''t seeing things. "The light is fading" "Does that mean the door is about to open?" "Who knows? We''ll only find out after it does" The dying light sparked different conversations among the groups gathered here. "Rey, let''s head closer to see" They weren''t the only group going closer, everyone wanted to be the first to head into this strange place. Even Grey stood from where he stood and walked closer as well. "No one is allowed to come any closer, you can all enter after we head in" Just as the groups were edging closer, the arrogant voice of the young man sounded out. When everyone looked closer, they realized it was one of the young men from the group who were seated close to the door. "It''s them, I remember seeing them when I got here" "Yeah, I guess they are likely the people who found this place" "But that doesn''t give him the right to be arrogant. We can head in when we want to" "Oh! Why don''t you try walking closer" "I don''t like entering strange doors first, so I''ll leave this to the others" What the young man said caused an uproar among the others. They all felt he was being too arrogant. Although they felt this way, most of them still stopped in their tracks. None of them wanted to be the one who would step out and challenge him, besides, it wasn''t like the door had opened anyway. And even if he was the first to go in, they would still be able to enter. While they were all contemplating on the matter, one of the few people present who was in the Third stage of the Origin Plane walked out. "Hmph! What gives you the right to enter before we do" He said coldly. He felt since he was in the same stage as the young man, he didn''t have anything to fear. Besides, he was confident in his abilities. He slowly walked closer to the group with a cold and conceited look on his face. "I don''t like repeating myself" The young man''s gaze went cold. And against everyone''s expectations, he attacked. "Heh! Let''s see if you have the capabilities to enter first" The youth laughed coldly. Seeing the attack the young man sent his way, he set up an ice wall in front of himself to block it. He didn''t even take it seriously, but the next moment, his expression turned into one of horror as his Ice wall was instantly destroyed and the attack reached him without any obstructions. "No...." A heart wrenching scream resonated in the valley. The others were still in the process of creating space for the battle. They too wanted to see what made him arrogant. But while they were still moving back, they froze because the scene which played out in front of them stunned them. "Instant Kill" A youth exclaimed in shock. The young man killed his opponent instantly, and what is more shocking was the fact that they were on the same stage. How quick the battle ended wasn''t the most telling thing, but it was the attack the young man used that caused an even greater uproar. ''Darkness element'' Grey''s gaze turned intent as he looked at the young man once again. Chapter 99 - Just An Ordinary Looking Rock "It''s the darkness element" Someone exclaimed in deep shock This was the first time most of them present were seeing the darkness element, so their reactions are quite understandable. Just like the light element, the darkness element is also extremely rare. With a high destructive capability and supreme corrosion ability, it is regarded as one of the deadliest elements there is. ''How corrosive'' Grey thought as he stared at the corpse of the dead youth. The youth''s body had already started to decay, and it hasn''t been up to two minutes since the attack killed him. Although had the youth not died under the attack, he would have been able to use his elements to stop it. The only way this particular trait of the darkness element can show forth is when battling an opponent a couple of stages weaker than you, or when the opponent is dead like in this case. Now Grey knew why the young man was able to one-shot his opponent, firstly, the element of surprise, secondly the high corrosive ability of the darkness element. His opponent didn''t know he was a Darkness Elementalist, so he never expected the attack would be able to make its way past his defense. Had it not been the darkness element, then even if the attack is stronger than his defense, it would''ve still been able to slow it down. But the attack regained its speed after passing through the ice wall, being so close to it, there was nothing the youth could do other than stare in shock and disbelief. He wasn''t even able to completely show his disbelief before the attack reached him. Grey couldn''t deny the fact that the young man was strong, but come on, an instant kill? On an opponent at the same stage as you? It''s almost unbelievable. This usually mostly happens when you sneak attack your opponent, or maybe your opponent is tired of living and just stands there with open arms waiting for death to take them away. It''s not a new thing for someone to completely overpower an opponent in the same stage, but instant killing is quite rare. The young man looked at the others with his cold eyes. "Anyone else?" He had returned to his previous spot as if nothing happened. The majority of the people gathered here were still dumbstruck by what happened, and also by the fact that the young man was a Darkness Elementalist. The others who had come out of their states of shock retreated a couple of steps backward. No one wanted to die, especially for a stupid reason as wanting to enter first. Yes, who enters first gets the advantages when it came to acquiring what was inside. But they shouldn''t also forget about the potential danger, one has to remember the one at the front will be the one who would have to clear them. Seeing who the hand belonged to, he relaxed and brought his hands back to its usual position. "I figured it was you" A youth said without any emotions. He couldn''t help but feel surprised by Grey''s high alertness. The part where Grey placed one of his hand on his back didn''t escape him, and he knew if he was an enemy, he would most likely be attacked. "Oh! It''s you, how are you doing?" Grey smiled while asking. The youth was surprisingly Damian. Since the time Grey fought with him, he hadn''t had any other interactions with him. Damian had already broken through to the First stage of the Origin Plane, so it seems he had also gotten some great rewards over these two months. If Grey knew among his friends he was the only one who hasn''t broken through to the Origin Plane yet, he would curse his bad luck, and the bunnies as well. Because if not for those bunnies, he would have already broken through from quite some time now. "I''m okay. Are you looking for your friends?" He remembered seeing Grey together with Alice, Reynolds, and Klaus most of the time. He had already seen the other three, and they were together, so when he saw Grey, he thought maybe they hadn''t seen each other yet. "Yes, did you see them by any chance?" Grey inquired. It would be great if he met up with the group before entering the place. "Yes" Damian pointed in the direction he saw the group last. "Thank you, I''ll go check it out" Grey thanked him. After telling Grey this, Damian walked in the other direction. Grey guessed there was a reason for his withdrawn nature, but since they couldn''t really be called friends, he didn''t pry. Although he never expected Damian would approach him to tell him where his friends were, he was grateful to him for his help. Following the direction Damian pointed him to, he soon got sight of Klaus. And he seemed to be talking about something interesting. Shaking his head with a little laugh he caught up with them. By the time he got there, Klaus was speaking on how he battled a group of Fire Apes. Everyone had already gotten over the initial surprise from the battle that took place moments ago, well, except for the dead youth''s friend that is. Since the light was in the process of dying down, they opted it was best not to provoke the Darkness Elementalist. Besides, it wasn''t like he was hoarding the place to himself, he only said his group would be the first to enter. Just as expected, when Grey saw he was the only one still in the Arcane Plane, the first thing that came to his mind was the garden. That was supposed to be what would''ve guaranteed him a quick breakthrough, but alas, he was chased by a group of bunnies. ''Damn bunnies'' Grey complained. If not for the fear of destroying the garden, the thought of using elemental fusion crossed his mind. He was confident the attack would wipe out the bunnies, and also his potential loot. So he refrained from it, and when the bunnies started chasing him, he didn''t have the time to do it since it required some time and focus. Two hours later... The sound of a door slowly opening sounded out. The light which the door was giving off died down five minutes ago, but the door only opened five minutes after. Everyone was already looking at the door in anticipation, so when the door slowly started opening, they all felt a surge of expectation. What would they acquire from this strange place? Just as the first group was about to enter, something strange happened in the trail land. "Look" Someone pointed towards the west. Hearing the shout, everyone looked in the direction she was pointing at, even the first group who was about to enter the place looked towards it curiously. "Wait! There''s more?" The young man suddenly felt a tinge of frustration. What annoyed him was the fact that the other light shot up right after this door opened. There was no way he would believe they weren''t connected. "So which one contains the treasure?" One of the youths among their group asked the question running through their minds. "Since this is the one we were directed to, then this is the one we''ll be entering" The young man said coldly. He threw the thought of the other possible door to the back of his head. Since they were already here, what''s the use of thinking of the other door? And so, they went into the place. After they entered, more people started entering slowly. This was a new place to them, and there was also a good chance that it contained great treasures, and also great danger. The moment Grey and his friends were about to head in, he suddenly froze and looked towards an ordinary-looking rock by the side of the door. "Grey, what''s up?" "It''s nothing, you guys head inside, I''ll check something out first" Grey waved for the others to carry on. He had a weird feeling when he walked past that rock. It was like there was something there, and he didn''t think his senses would be wrong. ''I don''t know if it''s anything good, it would be a shame if I wasted not just my time but theirs also'' Grey thought. The thought of telling them to wait for him crossed his mind, but since he had doubts about the feeling, it was best to tell them to head in first since he''ll go in after studying the rock. Besides, what could possibly happen to him while studying an ordinary-looking rock? He couldn''t understand why he suddenly got this sensation from the rock which wasn''t any different from the other rocks around. Thinking of possibly finding something good, he waited for everyone to enter the place. A few moments later everyone had already walked inside, he slowly walked towards the rock. Getting closer to the rock, he started scrutinizing it. After looking at it for some time and not finding any special, he placed his hand on it. Suddenly, he felt a strong s.u.c.k.i.n.g force from the rock. And before he could take back his hand, he was s.u.c.k.e.d into the rock. And the valley once again regained its peace... Chapter 100 - Great Earth Essence Liquid "There''s nothing here" Someone exclaimed while looking at the vast expanse of whiteness in front of him. "Where are the treasures?" Another person asked in a stunned manner. The people outside had all passed through the black door. After stepping through the door, they felt like they were transported to an entirely different location separate from the trial lands. It was a huge space and looking around, it seemed boundless. The atmosphere was heavy and dull, with mist filling the entire space. For the majority of the people, this was the first time they were experiencing this after entering the trial land. Although they prepared themselves mentally before stepping through the door, it still left them somewhat panicky. Looking below them, there was nothing to be seen. It was like they were all standing in the empty night sky, floating to be more precise because everything below them was pitch black nothingness. This further increased the agitation some of them were feeling towards the place. "Where are we?" One of the youths from the first group asked in a confused state. "This seems to be a separate space entirely from where we came from" The young man said while looking around curiously. He was also curious about this place. They were supposed to find a treasure here, but now, there was nothing to be seen, at all. Amongst the crowd, some weren''t as agitated as the majority of the crowd were though. Klaus, Reynolds, and Alice were amongst the few. "It''s just like that palace we encountered during the first period we entered the trial land" Klaus said to his friends. They were relatively more relaxed compared to most of the people here. Not just them, there were also a few groups who didn''t seem bothered by this, seemed like they had also experienced something like the palace also. "Yeah, only, this place feels more complicated" Reynolds nodded. At least at the palace, they could still see some things, this place, on the other hand, had nothing. There were no buildings, no nothing. It was like they were transported to an empire of nothingness. Everyone felt like they had entered into an illusory space, the idea of moving forward didn''t come across their minds. Under such situations, it would render one aimless even if they had the will to seek for treasures. Boom! "It''s a stone slab!" Someone yelled out. A fiery red light shone off the slab. The people all squinted their eyes while staring at the stone slab. This stone slab is most likely connected to the treasure here, so everyone held great curiosity towards it. After some seconds, the light slowly started fading. "Look, there are words on the stone slab" Someone exclaimed after the lights slowly started dying down. As the light continuously died down, more people started noticing the rows of words written on the stone slab. When the light died down completely, the words on the surface of the stone slab showed themselves completely. "This Old One isn''t able to come to fruition in the end, this Old One''s life affinity with Fire is left behind along with this Old One''s legacy. When all is said and done, there are still fifty-four difficulties. This place has fifty-four ancient paths. Each path is full of danger, however, this Old One has hidden the treasure of my lifetime in the fifty-four ancient paths. Once you enter this place, you have to go through trials before obtaining the treasure left by me. And at the end of the ancient paths, there will be nine drops of Great Earth Essence Liquid left by me. Anyone with great luck will be able to obtain it" Every golden word in the slab was strong and powerful, giving one an incomparable heavy feeling. When everyone saw the four huge words ''Great Earth Essence Liquid'', their breathing began to turn heavy, and their eyes began to blaze with d.e.s.i.r.e. They all wanted to acquire it. "Gods! A Great Earth Essence Liquid, and nine drops. With this, we''ll be able to rise to the peak. Hahaha" The young man exclaimed in excitement. He wasn''t even bothered with the legacy which was here, what mattered more was the Great Earth Essence Liquid. This was something none of them dreamed of finding here. It was generally known that the grade of everyone''s elemental affinity was fixed. Once you''re tested and your grade is pink, orange, purple, or blue, it would stay that way till the Elementalist died. But according to legends, there were extremely rare treasures that could increase the grade of one''s elemental grade, and this was one of them. One has to know, except for Grey''s special ability, no one else could increase their grade. But with this liquid, they would be able to increase it. With this, those with Blue grades would be able to reach the fabled violet grade of legends. In the history of the Azure continent, there have only been three people who had that grade, two went on to be peerless Elementalists before they died, and the last one was killed at a young age. The reason was that at the time he was tested, the Azure continent had already been divided into four empires. The youth was from the Stellar empire. ''If I could acquire it and possibly increase my darkness element to the violet grade, then within ten years, no, five years even, I would have no equals'' The young man thought excitedly. Since there were nine here, there was no way he would not be able to consume at least one. Given his extraordinary abilities, the family might even decide to give him three, so his strength would increase at an unrivaled speed. His eyes had nearly turned bloodshot. Not just him, everyone here was all thinking about the same thing, they had to acquire it, greed was starting to consume their minds. Even the youths he came with were starting to have other thoughts. Now, the thought of not taking it back was starting to creep into their minds, they were not from the family anyway. All they had to do was go into hiding, and in the next ten years or so, they would be able to look at the family in disdain. The young man looked at his group coldly. Sensing his gaze, they tried to hide their greed. "You better keep your heads straight, or you''ll lose them" He said coldly. A chill ran down their spines. Keeping their thoughts straight, they nodded. They were trained by the family anyway, and without the family, they wouldn''t have been here. "There''s still no signs of Grey. Don''t tell me he''s going to miss this treasure" Klaus said looking around. They had been here for some time now, but Grey still hasn''t appeared. Had the door still been visible, he would have gone back out and searched for him. Fifty-four ancient paths suddenly appeared out of nowhere. Now, they were all thinking of which path to choose. According to the words, there were treasures and dangers in each path. Some are more fruitful, and others were more dangerous. Also, one of the paths held the legacy the man spoke about. "Which path would we take now?" Some asked looking at the ancient paths. "Just pick randomly" Another one said. "*Sigh* There''s nothing we can do about it now. Let''s each choose a separate path" Alice sighed before suggesting. Since Grey wasn''t here, they couldn''t stay here and wait when others had already started picking different paths and entering. Klaus and Reynolds nodded before each choosing a path. Soon, everyone had picked a path and entered. ....... Back at the valley... "This is the place" A youth said calmly. Looking closer, the door was about to shut close. The youth quickly dashed towards the door and passed through before it closed shut. Entering the space, everyone had already picked a path, the youth read the words before randomly choosing a path and entering. Had Grey or his friends been here, they would have been able to recognize the youth. It was none other than Jonas. After Jonas vanished, the stone slab and the ancient paths disappeared as well. It only showed how lucky Jonas was, had he come moments later, he would have missed this opportunity. Chapter 101 - Im Your Teacher ..... Two months ago, the day the trial land opened.. Deep in the trial lands, in a hidden chamber. An old man could be seen sitting in a meditative state, his heart rate was moving at an extremely slower rate compared to normal with one beat every ten minutes. If one didn''t observe properly, they would think he was just a life-like statue. His skin was white like he was frozen in this state, which also gave the feeling of the body being a corpse. Suddenly, his heart rate slowly started beating faster. The pale white skin of the old man slowly started regaining some color, his outer appearance also experienced a change. At first, he looked like someone around the age of one hundred who was also at death''s door, but now, he looked thirty years younger with a sage appearance. His closed eyes slowly started opening. If one stared at his eyes for too long, one would get the feeling as if they were staring at the boundless universe. "Hmm, why do I sense him?", the old man said while looking at the walls. The old man suddenly disappeared from where he was sitting and appeared on top of a mountain peak. Standing with both hands behind his back, he looked ethereal. He gave off the feeling like he was there, yet, he also wasn''t. The man gazed in the direction of the formation Grey and the others passed through in getting here. Looking closer, he focused his attention on Grey, particularly. "Why do I sense his aura on him? Could they be related in some way?" The old man placed his hands on his chin trying to think of something. "I don''t remember him having any offsprings before he died", he shook his head. He sent out his spiritual sense to study Grey closely, while still in doubt. One has to know, the distance between both parties was immense. If Grey was told to head to where the old man was, even at his greatest speed, and without stopping. It would take him at least, one month to get there. Grey who was with his friends at that time didn''t have any idea he was currently being studied. "They are two different people, but why does he give off the same aura as him?" "*Sigh* I really miss that rascal", the old man said with a sad look. Shifting his attention from Grey, he looked outside the formation and stared straight into the Magical Beasts Forest. It was like he left his previous position and went there personally given how well he was seeing the forest. Deep in the forest, a huge seal could be seen under a temple. None of the inhabitants of the Azure Continent would ever think something like this existed in the depths of the Magical Beasts Forest. Inside the temple was the statue of a refined-looking young man, with a bright smile on his face. The old man stared at the young man for some time before looking at the seal. "The seal is slowly being damaged from the other side. *Sigh* Guess the war will start sooner than expected, these old bones of mine haven''t had any action for a long time, hehehe", the old man laughed lightly. While the man was laughing, another figure appeared by his side silently. "I see you sensed it too", said the old man. "Yes", the figure nodded. "Could it really be brother?", the figure asked in a low hopeful voice. "No, I''ve inspected the young man, and other than having the same aura, there''s nothing else", said the old man. After saying this, he looked at the young lady by his side. "I know it''s selfish of me saying this, but did he really have to go to that extent? We would have still been able to hang on even till this day", said the young lady. "How many lives would have been lost?", the old man asked while staring deeply at the young lady. Hearing his question, the young lady averted his gaze while staring at the ground. "Had your brother not did what he did, even if we didn''t lose, the world would have almost been destroyed", said the old man calmly. "You''re not the only one who hated his decision, but he did what he thought was right. He didn''t want to continue seeing people dying, families crying because of the loss of a loved one", the old man continued. "Then what about his family then? What about me?", the young lady asked with tears-filled eyes. "It''s already been so long, there''s nothing we can do about it. Now, what we need to focus on is the seal", the old man sighed before telling her the matter at hand. "What happened to the seal?", the young lady asked confusedly. "According to my current estimations, it shouldn''t last up to fifteen years, it might even be shorter", the old man said. "Then we should start preparing. I''ll go wake the others", the young lady said urgently. "No, it''s still too early. Had I not sensed my student''s aura from that kid, I wouldn''t have woken up this early", the old man said. "Okay teacher", the young lady nodded. "So what do we do now?", she asked. "You should go back to sleeping, I''ll watch the seal more closely. I''ll wake everyone a year before the seal is completely destroyed", the old man stared in the direction of the seal once again. "Understood, teacher", the young lady bowed, before disappearing. The old man was left alone standing in the mountain peak. "How come there''s no one who seems to have a good elemental grade among these youths", the old man suddenly said while observing all the youths who entered the trial land. "At their age, most of the kids in the faction were already at the Overlord Plane at the very least", the old man shook his head in disappointment when he realized the Plane all the kids were. "Ah! I remember now, student cut off this part from the rest of the world so he could isolate the seal hence the smaller essence the people here have and also, this gave birth to lower grades", the old man said with a hint of realization. "It''s been so long that I even forgot it was the reason I opened this place to them in the first place" "Let me check how far this part of the world has grown" The old man sat down in a meditative position and sent out his spiritual sense to inspect the Azure continent. If the people of the Azure continent knew a single person cut off the entire continent from the rest of the world, they would be dumbstruck. Although there were some records about ''the war of gods'' as they claimed, there wasn''t any about there being another part in the world. During the first time they were cut off, they thought the battle destroyed the other parts of the world, and only they were left. Soon, information about the other parts of the world started slowly disappearing, until, it got to the state they were now, where they do not know of the existence of a larger continent. While the spiritual sense of the man was studying the continent, he paused and studied someone in particular closely. "That rascal! When it was his time to close the formation, he had an offspring! I''ll break his legs when he wakes up", the old man fumed on seeing Chris. "Hmm, this kid is quite special. He even has the light element. I''ll take him in as a student once this place is opened officially. For now, I''ll just take him away and train him here" The old man stood up from the mountain peak and disappeared. ..... At the valley close to the Lunar Academy. Chris who was sitting leisurely outside his house suddenly saw a man appear in front of him. "Who are you?", he asked lazily. He didn''t even bother to stand. The man who appeared in front of him was stronger than him, so even if he wanted to run away, he couldn''t escape. So why bother? "I''m your teacher", the old man replied with a smile. "I think you have the wrong person", replied Chris. "No, you''re the one", said the old man. "I''m not. You can leave now", Chris closed his eyes once again. ''They''re so alike, guess I''ll also have to use the same method on him'', thought the old man with a smile. "Get your hands off me you old man!", Chris yelled "Shut up and come with me", the old man disappeared along with Chris. And so, Chris was dragged to an unknown place. "At least take Brown along!", Chris yelled from the void. ... Present day... "Where is this?" Grey looked at the unfamiliar scene in front of him. Chapter 102 - You Shall Not Pass! "Where is this?" Grey looked at the unfamiliar scene in front of him. Ahead of him was a vast expanse of water. He turned around to see what was located in the land he was currently standing on, and to his surprise, he was currently standing on an island, in the middle of the ocean. There were no trees on the island, and the only thing visible was the huge volcano which was situated at the center of the island. ''Is this place connected to that door?'', he thought. He still had some doubts about everything that happened though, for example, why was he the only one who felt the weirdness of the rock? Or could it be others who felt it but didn''t think it was anything special? But if others felt it also, at least one of his friends should have also felt it too. The entire event seemed strange. "Hopefully my disappearance doesn''t disturb their search for treasures" Grey felt a little worried about how his friends might react to his sudden disappearance. He didn''t want to be the cause of them delaying in their search for treasures. ''Guess I''ll have to head to the top of the volcano to see what this place has in store for me'', he thought. Since there was nothing else to do, he started walking towards the volcano. He had looked around and didn''t see any strange rock that might be able to send him back to where he came from. Other than the volcano, there was only the water he could enter. And there was no way he was going to enter the water. When he got to the foot of the volcano, he didn''t delay and immediately started ascending it. Given the height of the volcano, it might take up to at least two hours if he walked, but if he decided to use his movement techniques, it would take him twenty minutes tops. But being in a strange place, he had to be cautious since he didn''t know what he might encounter. It would be strange if he got to the top of the volcano without encountering anything, given how weird this place was. And just as he predicted, within five minutes of the climb, he saw what looked like a golem with lava running on the cracks of its body. Its eyes were made of lava, and it stood at a height of three meters. "Well, this was expected", Grey smiled lightly. Since he was already prepared mentally for anything that might happen, he wasn''t too shocked seeing this golem. Without further delay, he charged at it. The golem was already coming his way when it caught sight of him. Boom! Bang! A lightning spear hit the golem on its upper body, and contrary to Grey''s expectations, it exploded. "Uh! That weak?", the surprised Grey asked. He initially thought the golem would be able to give him a tough time, but who knew it would explode on the first attack. "Well, that''s unexpected" Although the first golem he faced was weak, it didn''t mean he''ll drop his guard, it even made him increase it. Given the mysteriousness of the trial land, he was sure there was a catch to this. He could already guess this place was a trial of some sort also, so he had to ensure he was ready for whatever might come his way. When he had climbed to about ten percent of the volcano, the strength of the golem started increasing. And unlike the first ten percent of the volcano, now, he would usually see the golems in groups of at least two. But because they were still only at the First stage of the Arcane Plane, it didn''t take much of an effort for him to destroy them. After climbing to about twenty percent of the volcano, the strength of the golems saw a rise as it went to the Second stage of the Arcane Plane. Although the strength of the golems increased, to Grey, they were still a bunch of assembled rocks waiting to be scattered by an attack. He waltzed through this part of the volcano without much difficulty. The strength of the golem also increased a single stage every ten percent he ascended. By the time he climbed to fifty percent of the volcano, an unexpected change occurred. According to the previous order of things, the golems were supposed to be in the fifth stage, but, they unexpectedly skipped a stage and were at the Sixth stage of the Arcane Plane. Grey couldn''t complain much since they were still not a threat to him, the golems were always in groups of fours and fives. ''I can still handle this, somewhat'' Without any other choice, he started his battle while ascending the volcano. Now unlike before, each battle was not as swift as it previously was, and he had to expend a little energy. Given his strength, he should be able to easily deal with these golems. But the golems were unexpectedly, not blockheads, meaning, they always attacked him in groups and some even performed sneak attacks. Luckily, he was always vigilant. ''This is starting to get complicated'', Grey thought after defeating this batch of golems. He once again started ascending the volcano, luckily, the order went back to the previous format, and each ten percent he ascended gave an increase in one stage for the golems. When he was ninety percent up the volcano, the golems were all in the First stage of the Origin Plane. The only good thing he could take out of this was that at least they were only three in a group. But he couldn''t celebrate since this was the first group he met. What if they increased as he continued further? He had currently spent almost four hours ascending the volcano. When he started the battle with the first group of the golem, he was quickly put on the defensive. These things were faster, stronger, and smarter than the ones in the Arcane Plane. It took Grey almost thirty minutes to completely destroy all of them, but it was not without some slight injuries. Grey decided it was best to rest and heal up before he continued on the journey. The battles could be said to be exhausting since he had been battling for a long time now with little rest. After resting for thirty minutes, he once again started climbing. He would usually meet a group every two and a half percent he ascended according to the previous order. But after facing one more group, he didn''t encounter any other. He was currently in the last five percent of the volcano. ''I should rest here'', Grey thought as he stared ahead of him. He didn''t know what he might face during this last five percent of the volcano, maybe something stronger? Or maybe, he might not even face anything at all. But he wouldn''t head forward without preparing himself for what might come his way. Sitting in a cross-legged position, he entered into a semi-conscious state. Two hours later... He was feeling energetic and pumped up. There was a chance he might face his strongest opponent to date. He had never fought against an opponent above the First stage of the Origin Plane. He vigilantly headed into the last five percent of the volcano. "Huh! How come there''s no golem?", asked the confused Grey. He had already prepared himself for the battle he would have with the golems, but surprisingly, there was none. He continued to ascend, ninety-six percent, nothing yet, ninety-seven percent, still nothing, ninety-nine and a half percent, still nothing. ''Seems like there''s no other challenge'' Since he hadn''t encountered any golem yet, he guessed maybe he wouldn''t see any, but he didn''t drop his guard though. In a place like this, if he dropped his guard even for a second, then he might die without knowing what killed him. Just as he was about to get to the top, he paused and stared ahead of him with a serious expression. "Third stage", he said slowly. Ahead of him, was a single golem. It was in the Third stage of the Origin Plane. Compared to the other golems, this one was smaller, standing at a height of two meters. The surprising thing about this one was that it wielded a weapon, a mace to be precise. Unlike the other ones, when it saw Grey, it didn''t charge towards him. It just stood at its spot, waiting. Seeing the golem wasn''t making any movements, he didn''t charge at it recklessly, nor did he send out an attack. Since the golem was being so kind, then he would make an inscription first before attacking. Two minutes later, a silver symbol became visible above Grey''s head. The golem silently watched all this without making any movements. It also raised its head and stared at the symbol in the air. "Okay, I''m ready" Grey sent out a lightning attack with the symbol, then he followed up with ice arrows as well. But what Grey saw next stunned him, the golem casually raised its hand and an earth wall blocked the ice arrows, while it swung its mace at the lightning attack which destroyed it. He never expected the golem was also an Elementalist. "This just keeps getting harder and harder" Grey complained before charging at it. If he didn''t defeat this thing, then there was no way he would be able to get off this place. Ten minutes later... Boom! Bang! The sound of attacks clashing against each other and something, or someone, hitting the ground heavily sounded out. And just as expected, it wasn''t the golem who hit the ground, rather, it was Grey who was already bleeding on different parts of his body. He hastily stood up in case the golem followed up with another attack. But luckily, after it repelled Grey, it stood at its previous location once again. Its message was clear, ''You Shall Not Pass''. Chapter 103 - Ill See How It Survives Seeing the golem wasn''t making any other movements, Grey spat out a mouthful of blood. "Damn! This thing is stronger than expected", he complained. From the battle he just had with the golem, he was confident it was stronger than someone at the Third stage of the Origin Plane. Even though he knew his chances against someone in the Third stage of the Origin Plane wasn''t high, there was no way he would''ve been beaten this badly. "I''ll recover first then think of what to do" With this thought, he quickly sat crossed leg. But just as he sat down, he stood up again. ''What if it suddenly decides to leave that spot and attack me while I''m trying to recover? I''ll move further''. Although he was injured, his healing ability is quite higher than others. And he still had some healing tonic left with him. After moving a considerable distance he felt was safe enough, he sat cross-legged and immediately used the tonic, before entering into a semi-conscious state to heal himself properly. While Grey was bleeding, the egg was absorbing his blood silently, and it even went on to secretly absorb his blood essence, but since Grey was already very weak, he didn''t notice it. Two hours thirty minutes later... "Whew" A white gas came out of Grey''s mouth as he breathed out heavily. "Just a little more and I''ll break through to the Origin Plane", he said excitedly. The battles he had fought today had squeezed out his potential which in turn increased his cultivation. Although it was by a little, if he had decided to cultivate for an entire day or two, then he would definitely break through to the Origin Plane. But the fight still isn''t over, he still had to defeat that last golem, or else he wouldn''t be able to get to the peak. "Charging at it is completely stupid since all I''ll get is being pummeled once again. It doesn''t seem like something that has exhausted its energy, so its strength will most likely be the same" "But what if it isn''t? If its strength drops then I''ll have a chance of defeating it. Well, there''s only one way to find out" One minute later... "No. Its strength is basically still the same" Grey gently massaged his shoulder which was slightly hit by the golem during the exchange. When he just started the battle, he noticed there wasn''t any difference in its strength, so he quickly escaped. He had been beaten once, he didn''t want to get beaten to that stage once again. This time he didn''t retreat far and just stood at a distance where the golem was still visible to him. The golem had once again stood in its spot. "That''s it!", Grey exclaimed excitedly. "Hehehe, I''ll see how it will survive this. Thankfully, as long as I don''t get twenty meters close to it, it doesn''t attack" He had studied the distance he gets to before the golem attacks, and noticed it was only after he gets within twenty meters of it does it attack. Once he was out of that range, it wouldn''t attack but just stare at him. When he first noticed this, the thought of going around crossed his mind, and he executed it. It was just that, after walking fifty meters from where that golem was located, he found another one standing there. And behind him was a group in the First stage of the Origin Plane. The first golem followed him till he got to a particular spot, then it stopped. From this, he was able to deduce that the golems were all placed in a particular territory away from each other, and they only attack once someone drifts into their territory. He didn''t bother to fight it out with those golems and just retreated back to where he came from. Now he was struck with a great idea, elemental fusion. After the first time he tried it back at the Lunar Academy, he had only tried it once during his time here. But he didn''t allow the orb to form fully since he noticed he still wasn''t able to control it. Now, he''s about to try it once more. His cultivation is stronger, the grade of some of his elements has seen an increase, and he also got a new element. He was quite expectant towards the outcome of the explosion, would the strength be stronger than what he expected, or would it be lower. He couldn''t wait to find out. Staring at the motionless golem, he walked to the edge of the twenty meters mark. He slowly stretched out his right hand, and his lips curved upwards to reveal a smirk. "This thing is in for the surprise of its life. Wait! Is it even alive? Who cares, I''m going to blow it up anyway", he shrugged. The golem looked at him with its listless eyes, it didn''t care what the human was doing, but if it tried to get within twenty meters of it, then it would attack without mercy. Grey''s expression turned into one of seriousness as he slowly started sensing the elemental particles in the air with his spiritual sense. Now, unlike the previous time, he had to guide four different elements to make the orb, so the process will require more concentration from him, and also more effort. But he didn''t forget to take a peek at the golem once in a while to confirm if it was still in the same spot. Soon, he started slowly guiding the elements towards himself, lights made of brownish, silver, greenish and blueish color could be seen slowly concealing at the top of his outstretched hand. Slowly, an orb started taking shape. It was made of four different colors intertwining perfectly in it. As time went on, the orb started to grow bigger. First, it was the size of a table tennis ball, then it slowly grew to the size of a fist. The golem looked at the orb taking shape in Grey''s hand and a hint of danger flashed across its previously listless eyes. It could tell the thing the human was creating had the capability of killing him. Compared to the other golems, the ones which are situated at the peak of the volcano have a sliver of consciousness, so its senses were telling it to escape as far as he could, but its order was telling it to stay put. Its order was to stop anyone who tried to reach the peak through its territory. It didn''t care what happened in the other territories, but it was supposed to stop whoever or whatever came its way. The orb soon started trembling, this was a sign of Grey losing control. Looking at the orb, he couldn''t complain because at least he was able to keep it stable for almost five seconds. Besides, he didn''t create it with the purpose of controlling it anyway. "Here''s a gift for your hard work", Grey said before throwing the orb at the golem. The orb was already close to exploding and any other contact would make it explode faster. The second the orb left his hand, he immediately dashed as fast as he could in the other direction. He didn''t want to experience the strength of the orb in any way. The golem seeing the orb coming its way instinctively wanted to run, but because it couldn''t defy its orders, it stood still and swung its mace at the orb coming its way. The fleeing Grey already expected the explosion. When he snuck a view over his shoulder, his pupils dilated, the explosion was catching up at a faster pace. Had the golem not swung its mace at it, it wouldn''t have exploded this early and might have given Grey an added precious one or two seconds. At the sense of danger, his speed increased to a new level. And he dashed towards the foot of the volcano as fast as he could. Since he was descending, his speed was also given a major boost. He managed to escape from the blast range by a hair''s breadth. Ten minutes later... "Wow! This place is really sturdy", Grey exclaimed at the sight of where the blast took place. After the blast died down, he came back to the site of the explosion. The golem was nowhere to be seen, obviously. But what amazed him was that the ground of the volcano didn''t even have a single scratch on it. Grey estimated the strength of the explosion was at least at the power of someone in the Fifth stage of the Origin Plane. No one would believe someone in the Arcane Plane was able to dish out such a strong attack. "Fated one, if you''re reading this then it means you have passed the first stage of the trial..." Grey read the words carefully before he walked into the entrance. According to the words, an expert kept his greatest treasure inside the depths of this volcano. The golems he fought were all adjusted according to his stage, so if someone with a higher stage came here, the strength of the golem would also see an increase. The stage of the last golem was created to be three stages ahead of the person entering the trial. And unsurprisingly, he would also battle a creature inside the volcano. It was an Elemental Warrior, and it will be a stage ahead of the last golem he fought. "At least I was given a heads-up" With this, he disappeared into the volcano. Chapter 104 - Life and Death After walking through the entrance, Grey saw a flight of stairs that led further down the volcano. Observing carefully, he slowly stepped on the stairs and started his descent. Although the text said the last challenge would appear close to the treasure, he didn''t want to recklessly charge straight down. What if the text was wrong? Or maybe it wanted to test how prudent he was? He slowly started going downwards, the stairs were carved out of the side of the volcano, given how hard it was, Grey couldn''t even start to imagine the strength of the expert. Although the light entering the volcano wasn''t much, he could still unexpectedly see properly. The inside of the volcano wasn''t as wide as he expected, given how big the volcano was outside, he expected to see a huge space inside. At the entrance, the wideness was about ten meters, it only started increasing as he went deeper. Thirty minutes later... Grey stared downwards from where he was standing, and he still couldn''t see where he was headed. All he saw was unending darkness. Without any options, he continued on his way. From all the points, the only way he could get out of here is by reaching where the so-called treasure was. He still didn''t know what to expect, also, he was thinking about the Elemental Warrior he would have to face. This wasn''t the first time he was hearing about Elemental Warriors, he knew they were a higher grade of summons. But he still wasn''t aware of Reynolds being able to summon an Elemental Warrior yet, because the time he met up with them, they were about to walk towards the door and Klaus was talking about his tales. ''I wonder how they are doing'', he thought. One hour later... Grey stood in front of a passage. After getting to the ground, he was faced with a single passage that was opened through the volcano walls. He couldn''t see the inside of the cave as it was dark. He warily walked towards the passage, this was his only ticket back to where he came from, there was no way he could miss it. "What a strange stone", Grey muttered under his breath as he walked closer to inspect it. Even after inspecting for almost a minute, he couldn''t figure out why the stones lit up only after he entered the passage. With no other choice, he brought out his trusted blades and tried removing one. "This is something precious, I''m not going to leave without acquiring any", he chuckled lightly. Although he still didn''t know what it was, he was not leaving without acquiring some. The path was long, and he couldn''t see the end of it. So he once again started walking cautiously, after removing some stones, that is. He was told he would face one more opponent, so he had to be ready in case of a sneak attack. The Elemental Warrior is stronger than the last golem he fought, well, the last golem that beat him up. If he were to be attacked unaware by this opponent, he might die. Five minutes later, he walked out of the passage and was greeted by a huge room that spanned over three hundred meters wide and over five hundred meters long. At the center of the room was a pool of lava, and at the middle of the lava pool was a floating blue lotus. The lotus was closed. "Well, there''s the treasure", Grey looked at the floating lotus curiously. "Now, where''s the guardian?", he asked as he stared around. He stood at the passage for some time, he looked around if he might find what might likely take him back to the valley. If he could find it, then he knew he had the opportunity of escaping with his life even if he didn''t acquire the treasure. Although he wanted this treasure, his life mattered more to him. He wouldn''t risk his life for a treasure, unless, maybe it was a life-saving treasure that someone very close to him needed. As Grey was looking around, all his hairs suddenly stood on end. ''An attack'', his heart raced. He quickly moved to the side and set up an earth wall. Bang! The earth wall exploded and a fire arrow shot towards Grey. Seeing his defensive wall was destroyed, he quickly retreated to the side. The arrow struck the ground and exploded, sending bits of fire in all directions. Grey used his water element to stop the fire coming towards him. Staring in the direction of the arrow, he saw a Fire Elemental Warrior floating twenty meters above the ground. "Well, there it is", Grey''s face turned sour. He looked back at the passage he used in coming here, and just as he was about to retreat towards him. Bam! A wall dropped from the top of it and closed it. He was stuck, there was no way he could destroy the wall since it was made from the volcano itself. He remembered how his elemental fusion blast didn''t even damage it outside. "This is bad" But now, his plan was totally ruined. Due to not spotting the Elemental Warrior sooner, he is caught in a tough predicament. He couldn''t even beat the golem that was in the Third stage of the Origin Plane. Even if he broke through to the First stage of the Origin Plane right now, his chances of victory were still very low, thirty percent max. All his hopes were previously placed on elemental fusion, now that opportunity was gone. He tried thinking of what to do, while also creating an inscription. Even if he couldn''t beat the warrior, it didn''t mean he''ll not attempt to fight back. Only cowards wait for death. Even though the Elemental Warrior was stronger, he will not be intimidated! The Elemental Warrior didn''t give him much time to think, it shot out three fire arrows towards Grey. With no other option, Grey started battling the warrior. Three minutes later... Bang! Fresh blood could be seen dripping from the side of his mouth, his clothes were in tatters, and for the first time in a while, his bag was on the floor, one of his blades was damaged, and he wasn''t sure if it could be fixed. Now, he was left with only one. The Elemental Warrior only gave him a few seconds, before it once again attacked him. He wiped the blood off the side of his mouth and once again started battling with the Elemental Warrior. The Elemental Warrior switches between close-range combat and long-range combat perfectly. Since it was equipped with a sword, it didn''t have any problems with fighting against Grey who was using his blades, if Grey retreated, it would use its bow and send out multiple arrows. Another two minutes went by and Grey was currently on his knees, supporting his body with his bloodstained hands. Drip! Drip! The blood dripping from his mouth slammed the ground and the sound echoed out. There was a long slash that ran through his back which was also gushing out blood. He was struggling for breaths, panting heavily. He managed to raise his head and looked at the Elemental Warrior, and for the first time in his life, he felt true despair. This thing had only one thing in its mind, and that was to kill any intruders. He couldn''t escape, there was no hope in beating his opponent, no one was going to appear and save him. ''I can''t die here''. He clenched his aching fists, the blood flowing from his head had already gotten into his eyes, and it was currently dampening his vision. Given his current defenseless state, another attack from the Elemental Warrior would be fatal. Swoosh! An arrow shot towards Grey at a breakneck speed, he wanted to crawl out of the way, but his body didn''t allow him. He tried using his inscription to send out an attack to block the attack, but his consciousness was almost at the brink of fading, and he missed it. Pu-Chi The arrow pierced right through Grey''s back and came out just below his c.h.e.s.t. Splat! He coughed up a mouthful of blood once again. His vision was starting to fade, the only thing keeping him awake was his willpower. He didn''t want to die here. Thinking back to everything he went through, from not being able to awaken his element, his three years of loneliness, his mother, his father, his friends. He still wanted to see them. Swoosh! Another arrow was sent towards him. It was able to once again able easily pierce through the defenseless Grey. The hands he was using to support himself couldn''t hold him up anymore and gave way. Thud! He fell head first, and the side of his face slammed into the ground before the rest of his body followed along. His inscription which was still in the air slowly started flickering before it finally faded away. The Elemental Warrior which was about to send out another attack paused on seeing the motionless Grey. Grey was currently lying on the ground without any movements, his consciousness was slowly fading away. ''I can''t give up'', he thought. Just as this thought flashed through his head, an unfamiliar technique appeared in his mind. Chapter 105 - Fusion State ''Fusion State'' This was the name of the technique that appeared in Grey''s mind. Just like when he got the technique for elemental fusion, this technique also appeared in his mind. He was sure this had something to do with the pearl he absorbed and the Chaos Element. When he got the technique for elemental fusion, he just broke through to the Arcane Plane. From the details of the technique, it seemed like he was supposed to acquire it when he broke through to the Origin Plane. But he unexpectedly acquired it sooner because of his current predicament. The technique was similar to elemental fusion in some ways since it also involved fusing the elements. Only, this time, he had to fuse them inside him. Unlike elemental fusion, the Fusion State required him to fuse each of his elemental beads into one. According to the technique, for every element, his cultivation stage will increase by a single stage. This means, since he currently has four elements, he could increase his stage by four. After entering the state, he could use elemental fusion instantly since all the elements were already fused inside him, and he could also use each element separately. It was just that, he couldn''t keep the state for long. After entering the Fusion State, all his injuries will start healing automatically just like the time he accidentally entered against the mercenaries. Only, at that time, he had no control over the state. But now, he will be fully conscious of everything, and can also exit the state whenever he wants to. He wouldn''t need to pay any price for using the technique nor will he enter a weakened state after using it. Once he enters the state, all his injuries will heal up almost instantly. What more could he ask for? But unfortunately, his body was still too weak to maintain the state for long. Given his current body strength, after one minute, his body will start cracking up from excess energy. If he still doesn''t exit the stage after two minutes, there is a high chance his body might blow up. With a renewed hope, he used his willpower to keep himself awake and study the technique properly. Now he was faced with a major issue, the technique explained the process of fusing his elemental beads, but because he was still in the Arcane Plane, he still hasn''t formed his elemental beads yet. Now he had to come up with a way to use the technique on his chaotic essence orb. The essence orb was currently divided into four parts. He tried using the same method for the elemental beads on it, but it failed. After two minutes, there was a slight change. The elements in his essence orb trembled slightly, but then they stopped after some seconds. Seeing this, Grey''s heart was filled with joy, and his previously motionless body twitched. Swoosh! Bam! Another arrow was shot towards Grey''s body. When the Elemental Warrior noticed the movement from the previously motionless body, it didn''t hesitate to shoot out another arrow. The arrow pierced Grey''s leg and pinned it to the ground. What was worse about all this was that since the Elemental Warrior was of the fire element, each of its weapons was made from fire. So, whenever the weapons came in contact with Grey''s body, the fire burns his flesh. Grey steeled his mind and endured the pain, he didn''t try to make any more movements hence he will be on the receiving end of more arrows. The fire arrow extinguished after thirty seconds, to the relief of Grey. The technique he was using to fuse the elements in his essence orb was almost exactly the type for the elemental fusion, and that was by slowly guiding the elements into one. This process is more tiresome and was longer, he had to be extra careful, so there wouldn''t be any mistakes. Compared to when he was fusing the elements outside his body, this one was almost three times harder. He managed to get the elements to start fusing after three minutes, but the attempt failed. He didn''t give up, it wasn''t like he was going anywhere. The only thing that gave him a sense of urgency was the loss of blood which was already starting to take effect. Another five minutes went by, and this time, he was already halfway through fusing the elements. He had failed in two other attempts, before this one. As the seconds slowly ticked on, the elements merged bit by bit. After another minute, it was already eighty percent fused. In one more minute, he will be able to fuse it completely and then heal. The fact that after entering the Fusion State, he could heal almost instantaneously excited him. This was like having an instant healing ability, and in his opinion, it was nothing less of an overpowered ability. With this, he wouldn''t need to fear any injuries, as long as he wasn''t dead, he could heal up. But that didn''t give him the idea of just standing still and not protecting himself though, or tanking attacks, so he could use the opportunity to hurt his opponent. This was because before he could heal up, he would have to first feel the pain of being hurt, which isn''t something anyone would want to feel. After a minute went by. With Grey''s body at the center, a force shot out in all directions. The Elemental Warrior was pushed back by the force. The previously motionless Grey slowly started standing up, the injuries on his body were healing at an unbelievably fast rate. Standing up, Grey looked at the Elemental Warrior calmly. Boom! Another force spread out in all directions with Grey at the center once again. His stage was increasing by the second. The First stage, Second stage, Third stage, and lastly Fourth stage of the Origin Plane. In five seconds, Grey went from a Ninth stage Arcane Plane Elementalist to the Fourth stage Origin Plane Elementalist. This was unheard of! Now he was in the same stage as the Elemental Warrior. Grey gently floated upwards and stopped at the same height as the Elemental Warrior. Unlike other Origin Plane Elementalists, he could fly. Looking in the face of the Elemental Warrior, he attacked without hesitation. The time he could stay in this state was limited, he had already spent almost ten seconds already, so time was not on his side. The Elemental Warrior blocked the attack but was pushed back by it. The strength of Grey''s attack was almost in the Sixth stage of the Origin Plane since he was using Elemental Fusion in his attacks. Boom! Bam! Bang! Grey and the Elemental Warrior started fighting mid-air with Grey obtaining the upper hand. Within thirty seconds, he had slammed the Elemental Warrior into the ground a total of four times. Its fire wasn''t as bright as it was previously, and it couldn''t fly properly anymore. Grey stretched out his hands, and ten inscriptions instantly manifested in the air. When he used the Fusion State, his stage wasn''t the only thing that saw an increase, his spiritual energy also saw an increase which in turn boosted the time he would spend in making inscriptions. Swoosh! Swoosh! All ten inscriptions sent out ice spears which shot towards the Elemental Warrior. The Elemental Warrior raised its flaming sword and the size of the sword increased, from thirty-five inches in length and a width of three inches, it went to over eighty inches in length and over thirty inches in width. After managing to fend off three of the spears, the Elemental Warrior was first pushed back from the force of the attacks, before the other seven came at it. One of the spears exploded at a close range because the Elemental Warrior sent a fist towards it, the effect of the explosion sent the Elemental Warrior towards the ground. Bang! It slammed heavily into the ground, and for the first time since Grey came here, a pit formed on the ground of the volcano. The other six spears, like they had eyes of their shot straight into the pit. Bam! Bam! Bam! All six made contact with the Elemental Warrior. The Elemental Warrior slowly started dissipating. Grey heaved a sigh before calmly floating down and exiting the Fusion State before the one minute time was up. ''Hmm, seems like I can''t use this state as frequently as I thought'', thought Grey. After exiting the stage, he noticed some energy was still left in his body. This meant that, if he were to use the state in a short period of time, the energy in his body will be too much. ''Although, it can''t be said to be a side effect since it wouldn''t affect me if I don''t use the state anytime soon. I guess it''s more of a limitation, so I won''t depend on it in every battle, or use it for its healing purposes without reservations'', he sighed at the thought of not being able to heal whenever he was injured. He couldn''t really say he felt bad about the limitation though, besides, he rarely got in this sort of situation where he would need a massive increase in strength. Now, he had a major trump card. With this, he wouldn''t need to fear anyone in this place, well, till he could use it again, that is. After settling his thoughts, he looked around but still didn''t see any way to exit this place appearing. ''Maybe I''ll acquire the treasure first before the exit will appear'' Thinking up to this stage, he first walked towards his bag. He wanted to get his bag before going towards the floating lotus. Picking it up, he froze. "Huh! Why is it lighter?", he asked with a confused expression. There were no items on the ground, so there was no way the items in the bag fell out of the bag. Gently opening the bag, his expression changed. ''What the hell!'' Chapter 106 - An Eighth Element?! ''What the hell!'' Grey stared at his bag in total astonishment. More than eighty percent of the plants left that he acquired from the garden were gone, there was a time he accidentally acquired two essence stones, those were also gone. The only thing he still found complete was the stones he dug from the passage wall when he was coming here. He looked deeper and noticed pieces of the black egg he stole from the prince''s group previously. ''Huh! Did it hatch? But why are there no movements inside the bag then, or could it be that it left?'' Thinking of what might be inside the egg, his attention changed from why the plants were gone, to where the creature might be. One has to remember that this was a creature that had been inside an egg in this place for at least one thousand years, so he was quite expectant towards what it was. If he knew the egg had been absorbing his blood for some time now, he would be dumbfounded. Because the inside of the bag was black, he failed to quickly notice the little sleeping furry creature at the end of it that is most likely the culprit of his missing items. Just as he was about to retract his gaze from the bag and start searching around for any strange creatures, he noticed a slight movement at the end of the bag. ''This is?'' With a confused look, he stretched his hand towards the creature. The moment his hand came in contact with the creature, he felt a sudden connection with it, and also a sense of familiarity. He was confident he had never seen this creature before. Due to the sense of familiarity, his curiosity towards the creature increased, and he picked it up. "A cat?!", He unconsciously exclaimed. In his hand was a cat that was seven inches long. Its pitch-black color is unique due to how dark it was. Grey had seen cats that were black before, but none could compare to this one. Feeling the movement from when Grey picked it up, the cat opened its eyes and stared straight at Grey. Looking at the eyes of the cat, Grey felt stunned. Just like its body the eyes were also pitch black, and for the first few seconds Grey made eye contact with it, it felt like he was looking at the boundless space. ''Wait! Why is there a cat?'', thought the confused Grey. This was not in his bag previously, he didn''t recall seeing it here when he entered, else the Elemental Warrior would have killed it also. And looking at its little bulging stomach, Grey was certain it just finished eating. But, how can something so small eat so much? And, where the hell was the thing that hatched out of the egg? Or, could it be that the cat ate it? But, the cat wasn''t here previously, and there are no signs or smell of blood inside the bag. Grey''s head suddenly ached at the thought of so many questions. "Don''t tell me this cat was what hatched out of it. But how can a cat hatch out of an egg? It doesn''t make sense", Grey started scrutinizing the cat. He looked at the side, back, head, tail, almost every possible thing he could. He even shook it at one time. Looking closely, he could tell that the cat seemed like it had just been born. ''Hey! Hey! Can you stop doing that, please! It feels creepy'', a small voice suddenly rang in Grey''s head. "Huh! Who said that?", Grey looked around but found no one, then his gaze came back to the cat. ''I must be hearing things, how can this small cat speak? Even if it can speak, there''s no way it will be inside my head''. Grey felt maybe the beating he received from the Elemental Warrior was starting to affect his mind. ''Put me down!'', the small voice once again exclaimed. ''No, this is definitely not me hearing things'', this thought flashed through Grey''s head. "You can speak?", he asked while still holding the cat. ''Of course'', the cat nodded while the small voice rang inside Grey''s head once again. "How come I''m only hearing it in my head?", Grey asked again. ''Because we''re connected. Don''t tell me you don''t feel the connection?'', the cat looked at Grey strangely. "This is so strange, how are we connected? And how can a cat hatch out of an egg?", asked Grey. He found the entire experience strange, first, a cat came out of an egg, which was something unheard of, then, he suddenly felt a connection with the unknown cat, then, he could hear the cat in his head. Could things get any weirder?! Just as these thoughts were running through his head, his expression changed, because, things got weirder . The cat which he was previously holding firmly had somehow disappeared into thin air. "O...kay. I think I''m going crazy. *Sigh* Looks like the hit I received to my head is affecting me, I need to rest to help alleviate the stress I went through", said Grey after not being able to see the cat anywhere. He sat down crossed leg and tried to calm his mind. ''You''re not crazy, I think'', the small voice once again spoke in Grey''s mind as the cat appeared on his shoulder. "How did you do that?", asked Grey. ''What? This?'', the cat asked before disappearing once again and appearing on his l.a.p. Grey nodded after the cat reappeared. ''It''s easy. One of my elements is the Space Element, although for now, I can''t go far'', the cat explained. "Space Element? There''s a Space Element?", asked Grey. This was the first time he was hearing about the Space Element, he only knew of seven, but now, according to this cat, it seems like there''s also a Space Element, this made it eight. ''Of course there is'', the cat looked at Grey like he was weird. He had decided to ask his teacher when he went back. But he was quite curious about it after seeing the cat use it, one has to know this was different from moving fast. The cat literally disappeared from one spot and appeared in another within a second, and it seems it could also regulate the time before it appears. ''Doesn''t that mean I could have it also?'', Grey thought excitedly. But he quickly calmed down and focused his attention back on the cat. "Okay. But you still haven''t answered my previous questions", said Grey. ''Oh that, well, we''re connected because only after absorbing your blood and part of your blood essence was I able to be born'', explained the cat. "My blood, and blood essence. When did you do that?", an expression of shock appeared on Grey''s face. ''I think when you were fighting and injured previously'' the cat said. ''Just so you know, I didn''t do it on purpose'', it said again after seeing the change in Grey''s expression. "But that doesn''t explain why a cat would hatch from an egg. Cats are mammals, they are normally given birth to", said Grey. ''I don''t really know why or how that happened either'', the cat said truthfully. Grey looked at the cat, he didn''t know if everything the cat said was true, but he knew the cat was right about the connection part. "Okay, we''ll put that aside for now. How did you eat almost everything inside the bag?", he looked at the cat curiously. ''There wasn''t much in the first place, besides, they don''t even contain that much essence. Since I''m just born, I need a lot of energy to sustain myself'', the cat spoke as if eating so much on its little body was natural. Grey looked at the cat stunned, today would most likely be at the top of the weirdest days he had experienced. ''Not that much? Has it seen its size?'', thought Grey. There was a particular fruit he had in his bag that he was certain one of them weighed more than the entire body mass of the cat, and the fruit was three in total, and all three were currently gone as well. If he only used those fruits, it meant the cat ate more than three times its body weight, just from those three fruits alone. Yet it said there wasn''t much. Grey rubbed his head to try to calm down, today has been an unforgettable day for him, first, he nearly died, then, he survived, now, he was talking to a cat that hatched out of an egg. He looked around and realized he still didn''t know how to leave this place. He picked the cat from his leg and dropped it on the ground, before heading in the direction of the lotus. Shaking his head disappointedly he walked towards the lotus. The cat hurriedly followed Grey towards the lava pool. At the center of the lava pool was a small piece of earth that spanned a radius of five meters with the lotus floating at the center. The distance from where he stood to the land at the center of the lava pool was almost fifteen meters long. But it wasn''t a challenge to him as he was able to easily jump to the land. The cat though, arrived before him. With its curious eyes, it stared at the lotus greedily while l.i.c.k.i.n.g its lips. It could sense an immense amount of energy radiating off of it. But it wisely stopped itself from moving towards the lotus as it knew this was what Grey came here for. It had already eaten most of Grey''s items, if it dared to eat this as well, then it might truly offend him. Grey felt the cat wanted the lotus because of the energy inside it. He didn''t know how he was able to feel it, maybe it was because of the connection. He nodded when he noticed the cat didn''t try to snatch the lotus or else he might have had to toss it in the lava, well, if he could catch it first though. He slowly walked towards the lotus, when he was one meter away from the lotus, an ancient stone slab appeared in front of him, and some words appeared on it. "Fated one....." The text spoke about the lotus and what was inside it. Inside the lotus was a rare heaven and earth flame that only forms after tens of thousands of years, the lotus was one of the few rare natural fire treasures that could hold the flame without burning. According to the expert, he was only able to acquire a very small amount of the flame. If a Fire Elementalist refines the flame, they would not only see an increase in their cultivation and elemental grade, but there''s also a chance they might acquire the unique blue flames. The lotus could also be refined as well since it was a rare natural fire treasure. The expert said these were his greatest treasures, and after acquiring this treasure, an ancient path would open that led to his other treasures, as well as his legacy. Chapter 107 - The Call When Grey was done reading the text, he changed his attention back to the floating lotus and walked towards it. ''Seems like I can finally awaken my fire element'', he thought. With the awakening of his fire element, he would have five elements. Had it been previously, he would have thought he would only need to comprehend the Light and Darkness element to have all elements, but now, he didn''t know how many elements there were. "I remembered you said the Space element was one of your innate elements, which other one do you have?", asked Grey who stood a few inches away from the lotus. ''I have four in total, Space, Darkness, Lightning, and Fire'', the cat replied. "Oh, four! That''s quite a lot", Grey replied. Although the fact that the cat had four elements was quite shocking, he didn''t brood too much over it. After all, he was about to acquire his fifth element. ''Actually, I think there might still be one more. But it seems like I''m not strong enough to awaken it yet'', the cat said while placing its little paws on its face like a human does when thinking. "Oh! How strong are you currently", asked Grey curiously. ''Around Late Rank three, I think'', said the cat. "Rank three? Magical beasts have ranks?", Grey asked. He had never heard of beasts having ranks, they had always used the same system as humans, well, according to the books he had read and also from how everyone in the empire calls their system. ''Of course. Are you from a small town or village?'', the cat suddenly asked. It felt Grey knew lesser compared to it that had just been born. Since Grey had been in the world for a while now, it was unexpected he knew nothing about the Space element, and now, he didn''t know how Magical beasts were ranked. Grey almost tripped when the cat asked him this question, he also felt like someone from a backwater place due to what was happening. It was quite embarrassing that he had to learn about these things from a cat that had just been born. But he couldn''t be blamed, this was the first time he was hearing about them, and he couldn''t pretend he knew about them just so he wouldn''t embarrass himself. As long as it was something new, he always wanted to learn, even if it meant learning from a newborn cat! "How are beasts ranked?", he averted the cat''s question and asked his own. ''It''s just like the human cultivation system, only, unlike you humans, we have ranks instead of planes'', explained the cat. "There isn''t much difference in the cultivation system then. It''s just a change of name. This means, according to your rank, you''re at the Late stages of the Arcane Plane", said Grey. ''Arcane Plane, is that the third plane for humans?'', asked the cat. Grey nodded. ''Yeah, you could say that'', the cat said. "So do you have a name?", asked Grey. Other than what the cat told him, the only thing he knew about it was that it was male. And he only found out when he was studying it the first time. ''Void'', said the cat. "Void? Who would name himself Void?", Grey chuckled. ''That''s a great name, it fits my magnificent features perfectly'', Void said proudly while sticking out his little c.h.e.s.t. Grey laughed seeing how the little guy stuck out his c.h.e.s.t trying to show his ''features''. ''What''s your name?'', Void asked after some time. "Grey", replied Grey. ''Grey? Who names himself after a color. And to think you had the guts to laugh at my name'' Void laughed on hearing Grey''s name. Grey looked at Void speechless, shaking his head, he once again placed his full attention on the lotus. "Time for an upgrade", he laughed lightly. He was quite expectant towards acquiring a new element, his strength will not only increase but his plane also. And there was a chance he might acquire the rare blue flame the expert spoke about. This wasn''t the first time he was hearing of blue flames, compared to normal red flames, it was almost two times stronger. It was just like the black lightning the crocodile he fought had, it was stronger than the normal silver lightning he had. Grey was shocked by how small it was, but he could also feel how strong its energy was. Compared to the lotus, it was almost four times stronger. ''I don''t think I''ll be able to fully absorb the energy in one cultivation session. I''ll just refine it now, and not only awaken my fire element, but also breakthrough. I''ll slowly absorb the rest of the energy later'', he thought before reaching for it. When he made contact with the flame, its warmth spread across his hand, before moving to the other parts of his body. He took it and sat cross-legged, looking at Void who was staring at him with pleading eyes, he sighed before waving for him to take the lotus. Although if he were to be the one to refine the lotus his strength will increase further, it didn''t hurt to allow the little guy to take it, besides, he had already taken the best treasure which was the flame. Also, from the looks of it, the little guy will be staying with him from now on. Getting the go-ahead, Void happily leaped towards the lotus, opened his mouth, and swallowed it instantly, like he was afraid Grey might change his mind. He laid down close to Grey, snuck a glance at him, and spat out a single petal which he slowly started absorbing. Grey who was still staring at him was surprised when he saw Void spit out one of the nine petals. He thought Void swallowed it completely. ''Seems like this guy has somewhere he stores things, but where? I''ll ask him after I break through'', thought Grey. And so, one human and one cat started cultivating. ......... While Grey and Void were cultivating, things had started heating up at the ancient paths. The paths intersected with each other, so the people were starting to meet up as time slowly went on. They had all been on this path for almost five hours now but still hadn''t reached the end. Some of them had gotten great treasures, such as rare plants, essence stones, elemental weapons, and even techniques, but most of the techniques were of the fire element. At one of the paths, a youth could be seen running quickly towards what looked like a castle. ''It''s stronger here'', the youth thought while staring at the castle. The youth was none other than Jonas. Since he entered into the ancient paths, he had not stopped for one minute and had been following a ''call''. From the time he saw the light, he suddenly felt a sense of calling from it. This was why he hurried towards it as fast as he could. Even after the light had died down for some time, he could still feel the call. After entering the ancient paths, he didn''t bother about any other thing and just focused on where the call was coming from. Now he had finally found it, it was from this castle. ''Why is it calling me?'', Jonas asked himself. This was a question he had asked himself over and over again, but he still couldn''t come up with an answer. He didn''t know what he might find in this place, but he knew it wasn''t something that would harm him. Steeling his mind, he slowly disappeared into the castle. ....... "Uh! People are fighting up ahead", a soft voice said. The owner of the voice slowly walked towards where the sounds of battles were coming from. It was ahead anyway, so there was no way the figure wouldn''t see who was fighting unless the figure decided to turn around. Boom! Bang! A figure slammed into the wall by the side. "So this is his full strength", the soft voice said. The owner of the voice was Alice, ahead of her was the Darkness Elementalist, and he was facing off against two youths. One in the Third stage, and another in the Second. The fact that he could fight against two people of this caliber and not only gain the upper hand but was about to kill them, was nothing less of a testament to how strong he was. Alice initially had no plans of stepping in but looking closer, she recognized both youths, they were from the Lunar Academy. Although she was still in the Second stage of the Origin Plane, her true strength was no weaker than those at the Third stage, and she is even stronger than some of them. Sensing someone else walking into the battle scene, the Darkness Elementalist turned and looked in her direction. "I''ll advise you don''t interfere with this, little lady", he said coldly. "I don''t meddle in other people''s affairs. But you see, they''re my friends", Alice smiled lightly as she walked towards both youths. Now it was three against one, although one of the youths was injured, it didn''t mean he still couldn''t fight. The Darkness Elementalist looked at them with an icy gaze. And the path fell into silence. Alice was waiting patiently for his decision, if he wanted to fight, then, she had no problem with that. She hadn''t fought someone this strong anyway, so it will be a test for her. Both parties faced off without anyone showing any signs of backing down. Chapter 108 - To Think You Would Dare "Do you really think even if you join them you can defeat me?", the Darkness Elementalist asked. Alice shrugged but didn''t give a reply, she wouldn''t bother answering him. She was just as confident in her strength, as he was. Even if she couldn''t defeat him alone, there was no way he could kill her. "They have something I want", the Darkness Elementalist said again. Alice looked at both youths by her side, they then recounted what happened. According to them, they found a fire elemental weapon, and just after obtaining it, the Darkness Elementalist came in and asked for it. Even though they knew he was strong, there was no way they were going to give it to him. They had to go through a tough battle just to acquire the weapon in the first place, and they felt they were strong enough to fight him together. But the reality was far from what they thought. The Darkness Elementalist not only completely overpowered them, but it also seemed he had the ability to kill them. Luckily, Alice came. "You can''t have it", Alice said lightly. She had never backed down from a fight, and she probably never will in a situation like this. The only time she''ll ever back down is when the power difference between both parties has gotten to the stage where numbers have no meaning, or if she was outnumbered. "Hmph!", the Darkness Elementalist snorted coldly and attacked. If not for the fact that he felt Alice in addition to the other two youths was going to take too much of his time, he wouldn''t have spoken to them and would''ve attacked immediately. But now, since they were not coming to an agreement, it was best he dealt with them instead of wasting his time talking. The path wasn''t that wide, it had a width of fifteen meters max. Seeing the Darkness Elementalist attack, Alice''s expression turned serious, and she also immediately attacked with her lightning element. Boom! With both attacks clashing against each other, both parties retreated a couple of steps backward from the impact with Alice retreating five steps more. ''Hmm, she''s stronger than even the youth in the Third stage. This is going to be harder than I thought'', the Darkness Elementalist reevaluated Alice. Just from this first exchange, he was able to estimate Alice''s strength. Although he had only used one of his elements, which was his trademark darkness element, the difference in strength wasn''t that much. Had Alice been in the same stage as he was, then the difference would be almost negligible. ''He''s strong'', Alice squinted her eyes. "Attack together", she said to the others. "Hmm", both youths nodded. Bang! All four people got into a heated battle in the path. Due to the width of the path, it limited some of their attacks, especially for the trio because they couldn''t use any large area of effect attacks, but the Darkness Elementalist had no such limitations and was attacking without restraints. Five minutes later... "Huff! Huff!" All four fighters were panting heavily, with sweat dripping from their faces. ''She''s a Dual Elementalist, if I want to acquire the weapon, then I''ll have to eliminate her first. If not, then I''ll have to leave and focus on reaching the end of the paths. I can''t waste my time here'', the Darkness Elementalist thought while once again reevaluating Alice. Alice was like a thorn on his path, she was stronger than most people in the Third stage of the Origin Plane. He felt there was even a chance that she might be able to defeat Dual Elementalists in the Third stage even though she was still in the Second stage. Other than the youth injured previously, none of the others had sustained any strong injuries. They once again engaged in a battle. The Darkness Elementalist was a great fighter and could easily switch between attack and defense. He knew the right time to attack, and also when to fall back. He was like a well-seasoned fighter. This was the first time Alice was fighting someone this experienced. Although, she felt the teamwork between her and the other youths was the cause of the Darkness Elementalist still being fine. ''*Sigh* Had it been me and the boys, then this guy would have been dead by now if he didn''t escape, well, I don''t think he could have been able to escape though. Those guys are like a pack of hyenas'', Alice smiled gently at the thought of her friends. Given how well they knew each other, their teamwork was almost flawless. There''s no way they would team up against someone and the person will survive. Another two minutes went by with no one gaining the upper hand. The Darkness Elementalist was on the defensive during these past two minutes, but other than pushing him back a few times, they hadn''t been able to do anything to him. ''Now'', squinting his eyes, he charged straight at the injured youth. Seeing the Darkness Elementalist charging towards him, the youth prepared himself to welcome the attack. Although he wasn''t as strong as him, it didn''t mean he''ll be overwhelmed by fright. "Oh no!", Alice exclaimed and dashed towards the injured youth to help just like she had been doing during the battle. She knew if the Darkness Elementalist got to him, the chances of him surviving was not much. Since both of them had the lightning element, they were pretty fast. Bang! A figure was sent flying, before hitting the wall. When the other youth looked closer, he was stunned on seeing Alice on the floor. Due to the speed of Alice and the Darkness Elementalist, he didn''t see their movements properly. "How?", he blurted out unconsciously. He remembered seeing the Darkness Elementalist charging at the injured youth, so how come Alice was the one he attacked instead? The Darkness Elementalist didn''t bother with the other two and slowly walked towards Alice who was trying to stand up. Her shoulder was already bleeding heavily from the attack, with a pale face, she struggled to stand on her feet but couldn''t. It was a fatal strike. If not for her reacting quickly, then the attack would have taken her life. Looking at the young man walking her way, she realized he tricked her. His initial target was her, but he only dashed towards the injured youth as a feint to draw her closer to him. "Once you''re out of the picture, these fries wouldn''t be a problem", the Darkness Elementalist chuckled lightly. The youth in the Third stage rushed towards the Darkness Elementalist trying to protect Alice. "Go! I''ll hold him back", He roared and attacked the Darkness Elementalist. Compared to other Academies, the Lunar Academy ensured the relationship between each student was good. Even though they might not be close friends, but as long as they saw a fellow student in danger, they have never hesitated to rush in, even if it cost them their lives. This was also the reason Alice stepped into the battle. Even the injured youth didn''t refrain from attacking, as long as they could protect Alice successfully, they were satisfied, even if it meant death. He also felt guilt because if not for him being weak, then Alice wouldn''t have been in this situation. This was the first time they were having any exchanges with Alice, even at the Academy, they never spoke. And now, she was about to die because she helped them, they couldn''t accept it. Alice looked at the two youths rushing to what looked like their deaths with a sad look, the Darkness Elementalist was not only strong, but he was also scheming as well, these were the toughest people to deal with, smart and strong people. Within one minute, the Darkness Elementalist was able to easily defeat both youths. "Since you want to save her so much, I''ll keep you alive, so you can watch me kill her", he said towards both injured youths. The two youths looked at each other with despair, even after sacrificing themselves, due to how severe Alice''s injury was, she couldn''t escape. "Don''t worry, your death will be swift. I don''t have any more time to waste", the Darkness Elementalist laughed lightly and raised his hand. Boom! An attack rang out. Both youths closed their eyes because they couldn''t stand and watch Alice die. Hearing the sound, they just waited quietly for their deaths. After some seconds, they heard an arrogant voice. "To think you would dare to attack her" Chapter 109 - Sub-Zero "To think you would dare to attack her" On hearing the voice, Alice smiled lightly, her friends were here. Klaus and Reynolds walked towards her slowly. The attack that connected previously was done by Klaus who instantly attacked the Darkness Elementalist on seeing he was about to strike Alice. He heaved a sigh on seeing they came in time, had they faced the path Reynolds chose, they would have never come here. After spending almost four hours here, he met up with Reynolds on one of the paths, they had been traveling together since. When they got to an intersection, Reynolds said they should head to the path on the right, but he was adamant they followed the path on the left, according to him, it was his gut feeling. After they argued like usual for some time, Reynolds finally agreed to follow his lead. Who knew they would see something like this? The Darkness Elementalist on the other hand was fuming currently, at first he wanted to kill both youths, then Alice showed up, now he wanted to kill Alice, then two others showed up as well. Being pushed back by Klaus''s attack annoyed him even more. "Hey Rey, what do you think this guy deserves", Klaus asked while giving Alice some tonic to help with her injuries. "Death!", Reynolds said clenching his hands. He was angry, really angry. Not just him, even though Klaus was still showing a smiling face, beneath it was a terrifying demon waiting to explode. The life of the only girl in their group was being threatened, they will not accept it. "*Sigh* If only Grey was here, then killing him wouldn''t be a problem", Klaus sighed softly. He was angry, yes, but not stupid. For someone to be on the verge of killing Alice, and two other youths who were in the Third and Second stage respectively wasn''t a fluke. It meant he had the strength to suppress them, even though the fact that he was able to injure Alice to this extent was quite surprising, it also showed how strong he was. "Rey, full power", Klaus said before turning serious. "I know", Reynolds nodded. "Hmph! More fries seeking death", the Darkness Elementalist snorted coldly. Although he was pushed back by Klaus''s attack, he only attributed it to the fact that he was attacked unaware and had to defend quickly. His disdain for them increased further when he noticed their stages. ''One on the Second stage, and the other on the First stage. This is going to be easier than those buffoons'', he thought. But his expression changed the next second. "An Elemental Warrior", he said in a small voice. His head was currently aching, how can these people be a group of friends. One was a Dual Elementalist whose strength was insane for her stage, another was a summoner who can summon an Elemental Warrior. Now, he didn''t dare to look down on Klaus, for him to be part of such a group, there was definitely something terrifying about him also. Had he known there was an even more terrifying fellow who wasn''t present, he would definitely curse his bad luck for clashing with such a group. Given how vengeful Klaus and the boys were, they will definitely never let the matter rest. The battle started off quickly. Boom! Bam! One minute later... Bang! For the first time since he was battling previously, the Darkness Elementalist slammed into the wall by the side. The Elemental Warrior wasn''t giving him any chances and was attacking him from both a close distance and far distance, added to Klaus''s insane attacks, he was quickly put in a passive state. ''I can''t delay any further. Although I can''t defeat them, they can''t keep me here if I want to leave'', he quickly made up his mind to escape. Klaus was like a terrifying monster, he attacked so ingeniously that defending his strikes means creating an opening for the Elemental Warrior most of the time. Klaus also attacks just after he had finished defending or dodging the attack of the Elemental Warrior which makes defending harder. He hadn''t acquired the Great Earth Essence Liquid yet, if he were to be injured fatally in this battle, his chances of acquiring it would reduce greatly. That was his initial goal, if not for taking a fancy of the elemental weapon, he wouldn''t have wasted so much time here. Coming to a decision, he quickly retreated but was met by an evil grin from Klaus. "Hehehe, I knew you would take this decision. But I won''t let you leave without any injuries", Klaus laughed evilly. After the battle started, he had guessed the Darkness Elementalist would try to escape the moment he realizes he was in a difficult position. He knew too well they shouldn''t engage in a prolonged battle since Reynolds couldn''t keep the summon for too long, so he had been brainstorming on how to ensure even if the Darkness Elementalist escapes, it wouldn''t be without any injuries. And the idea came to him quickly, it was a technique he acquired in one of the ancient paths. It was a water technique but it was quite difficult to execute. He had to congeal a small ice needle while storing a terrifying amount of ice in it. After the needle comes in contact with the human body, it dissolves before releasing a bone-chilling cold into the body causing hypothermia. If congealed to an even more terrifying state, it will freeze the target instantly from the inside-out causing death. But Klaus can''t get it to that stage yet. The name of the technique was ''Sub-Zero''. The needle pierced through the air at a terrifying speed. The retreating Darkness Elementalist who had just used a movement technique to escape from the barrage of attacks from the Elemental Warrior was left with no way to dodge the attack. Pu-Chi The Ice needle pierced into his shoulder and dissolved in his body. The second the needle dissolved in his body, his body started going numb. ''I knew this guy wasn''t simple'', he thought while trying to remove the effects of the cold. Having the fire element as one of his elements made things easier, he quickly circulated it around his body which reduced the effect of the cold effectively while he was also retreating completely from the path. He didn''t dare to stay any longer. "It''s a shame he also has the fire element, or even if he escaped, it would be hard to rid himself of the cold so quickly", Klaus shook his head in disappointment. Reynolds on the other hand quickly dissipated his summon before it drains him completely of his elemental essence. "Are you okay?", he asked while walking closer to Alice. "Yeah, better than before", Alice nodded. "You see, never doubt my gut feeling", Klaus said arrogantly while glaring at Reynolds. "Yeah right, and we nearly died because of this so-called gut feeling of yours previously", Reynolds scoffed before replying. "That was coincidental, who knew that beast would accidentally walk there?" Klaus retorted. "You moron, how can a sleeping beast walk? The beast had been sleeping there before you decided to chose that path, waking it in the process because of your loud voice", Reynolds didn''t back down. The two youths from the Lunar Academy who had managed to stand up were about to thank the duo when they started arguing. They were stunned, they never expected the two guys who they felt were powerful to have such traits. Alice on the other hand didn''t even bother with them and just laughed lightly while focusing on healing herself, this wasn''t her first time being around Klaus said Reynolds, so she knew their characters all too well. After almost two minutes of cursing at each other, Reynolds finally praised Klaus''s gut feeling. Because if not for it, then they might have lost Alice. "Have you guys seen Grey?", Alice asked after feeling a little better. "No, the chances of meeting at these paths is quite low. It''s already a miracle, and thanks to my gut feeling we are able to reunite", Klaus said, not forgetting to praise his gut feeling as well. Alice and Reynolds both rolled their eyes on hearing his answer. "You should heal up, we can''t delay any further, we need to reach the end of the paths as soon as possible", Reynolds said to Alice. While they were still speaking, the other two youths came over. "Thank you", they both bowed in appreciation. They even offered to give them the elemental weapon, but they were refused by the group. After staying for some time, they left the group and continued on their journey. ...... Back at the Volcano... ''I''m finally about to break through'', Grey thought excitedly when he noticed the changes happening in his body. Chapter 110 - Reborn From Fire After refining the flame for almost one hour, he had refined almost forty percent of it and had finally acquired the fire element. Now, his previous chaotic essence orb was undergoing a change with the acquisition of a new element. With the addition of the fire element, he currently had five elements, this, in turn, made his essence orb have five different colors with the fire element unexpectedly dominating it. But Grey couldn''t bother about the reason for now and focused fully on breaking through. He had currently reached the critical point of his breakthrough, that was, forming his essence beads. Although over fifty percent of the people who attempt to form their essence beads succeed, since there''s a failure rate of almost fifty percent, it showed forming the beads was easier said than done. Compared to Single Elementalists, the failure rate among Dual Elementalists was lower due to having higher spiritual energy, then for Multi Elementalists, their success rate was a whopping eighty percent. Because, forming each bead required a delicate procedure, and if Dual Elementalists succeeds in forming the first bead, given the experience from the first one, they shouldn''t have any problems when forming the second one. But on some rare occasions, they fail to do so. But for most Elementalists, their failures occur when forming the first bead. And once one fails in forming the essence beads, they would be stuck at the Arcane Plane, and only a few natural treasures could help them. Only Dual Elementalists and Multi Elementalists have it better since even if they failed in one element, they could still succeed in the other. Although their strength wouldn''t be what it was supposed to be, it was better than not advancing at all. Being fully aware of this, Grey knew there was no room for errors. Rushing into forming any of his beads might spell disaster for him. But once he completes the process, then he would become an Origin Plane Elementalist. He was slowly getting to the pinnacle of the Azure empire. Calming his mind, he decided to form the essence bead for his wind element first, the reason was quite simple, among the other elements in his essence orb, it occupied the smallest mass. So he would use it to get familiar with the technique of creating his beads. Also, if one''s spiritual energy isn''t strong enough, they might not be able to hold the elemental essence for too long, so they will not be able to compress it properly. If these type of people even manages to break through to the Origin Plane, their overall strength will just be slightly better than an Arcane Plane Elementalist, and geniuses like Grey and Alice could beat them easily even if they were still in the Eighth Plane of the Arcane Plane. Grey slowly used his spiritual energy to first isolate the wind element from the others before forming a sphere around it. After successfully forming the sphere, he slowly started compressing it. Given his strong spiritual energy, he had no issues with holding the element in the sphere. It took him almost fifteen minutes to compress the sphere to more than one-fifth of the previous size of the wind element while it was still in its previous matter state. While the wind element was still in a matter state in his essence orb, it occupied a space of at least twenty-five centimeters. ''I can still compress it a little further'', Grey pushed it to the limit. Although this seemed rash, there was a reason for it. The smaller you compress your essence beads, the thicker your elemental essence. This would then increase the boost in strength, speed, and defense it gives the user. This is also one of the reasons why, if Grey or Alice was still in the Eighth stage of the Arcane Plane, there were a few people in the Origin Plane they could defeat. But, they had not battled any of such people though. These such people are only Origin Plane Elementalists in name, and there was also a chance their beads might collapse reducing them back to the Arcane Plane. Another three minutes went by and Grey was able to compress it to one-eighth of its previous size. But after getting to this level, it didn''t budge anymore. When he tried to force it once more, he realized it was already at its maximum, and trying any further would make it unstable, so he ceased his actions immediately. With the knowledge from the first one, he started compressing the second element. Although he had done it once, he still didn''t dare to act rashly. But compared to the first time, his speed in compression was faster. While forming the first bead, it took him almost twenty minutes, but during the second one, he didn''t take up to fifteen minutes. After it got that the same size as the first one, it also stopped. Thirty minutes later... Boom! An incomparably strong aura shot out of Grey''s body, but he quickly retracted it when he remembered Void was still cultivating beside him. After breaking through, another change started taking place, his body started growing stronger by the second. When he came to the trial land two months ago, the strength of his physical body could only rival a Third stage Arcane Plane Elementalist, and because he hadn''t trained his body since arriving here, it only improved by a single stage. But at the speed it was increasing, there was a chance it might get to the stage where it can rival the strength of an Eighth stage or Ninth stage Arcane Plane Elementalist. Just as the strength of his body was increasing, an idea struck him. What if he used the rest of the flame to strengthen his body. It was a natural treasure after all, and doing this was different from honing his body with elemental essence. There was a difference between strengthening the body with the elements when cultivating, and what he was about to do. He would literally have to use the flame to refine his muscles, tissues, and flesh thereby improving their strength. Compared to refining with the elemental essence, this process was going to be painful. Since he had already decided to do it, he didn''t delay any further and struck the iron while it was hot. Void who was still cultivating felt the sudden increase in temperature and quickly exited his cultivation to find out what was going on. The scene of Grey being enveloped in blue flames nearly threw him off his little feet. ''What the hell is he doing? Even though it hasn''t been long since I was born, I''m confident they don''t absorb flames this way'', he thought to himself. He saw how Grey was refining it previously and knew he''s absorbing the flame. But now, how did it turn out like this? Looking at Grey''s face calmly, he could see it was distorted from pain. He could even feel Grey was in a tremendous amount of pain from their connection. ''Why would he put himself through this pain just to grow stronger?'', he asked himself. When studying Grey some moments ago, he realized the strength of his body was increasing at a dramatic rate. In fact, his body contained so much explosive energy that it was terrifying. ''How could the human body contain so much strength?'', Void asked himself in disbelief. Beasts are known for their tough bodies, but not humans. The body of a Magical Beast in the same Rank as a human is far stronger compared to the latter. Grey''s mind was currently a mess, the pain was stronger than he expected, it was even three times stronger than his expectations. It was like the flame was slowly eating away his flesh, tissues, and muscles, and slowly remolding them, making them stronger. ''It''s almost like being reborn from fire'', he thought jokingly while still in pain. Being strong-willed, he gritted his teeth and endured the pain of feeling his body being burnt and remolded. Due to the speed at which his flesh, tissues, and muscles were remolding, Void couldn''t see it. It was only after twenty-five minutes of constant suffering did the flame slowly start to die down. Grey had cursed in his mind so many times already because of pain. What was left of his clothes after the battle with the Elemental Warrior were burnt to nothingness, luckily he still had a spare. ''If I were to engage in another tough battle that might destroy my clothes, then I''ll have to walk around looking like a beggar. That can''t happen! *Sigh* Looks like I''ll have to be careful when fighting next time'', Grey shook his head wryly. When he stood up, all his bones made cracking sounds. His skin was smooth, and one wouldn''t find even a single blemish on it., "*Phew* Finally, I''m in the Origin Plane", he breathed out heavily. Observing his body properly, his essence orb had long disappeared, in its place were five rotating beads. Chapter 111 - Dont Unlock Error Chapter After refining the flame for almost one hour, he had refined almost forty percent of it and had finally acquired the fire element. Now, his previous chaotic essence orb was undergoing a change with the acquisition of a new element. With the addition of the fire element, he currently had five elements, this, in turn, made his essence orb have five different colors with the fire element unexpectedly dominating it. But Grey couldn''t bother about the reason for now and focused fully on breaking through. He had currently reached the critical point of his breakthrough, that was, forming his essence beads. Although over fifty percent of the people who attempt to form their essence beads succeed, since there''s a failure rate of almost fifty percent, it showed forming the beads was easier said than done. Compared to Single Elementalists, the failure rate among Dual Elementalists was lower due to having higher spiritual energy, then for Multi Elementalists, their success rate was a whopping eighty percent. Because, forming each bead required a delicate procedure, and if Dual Elementalists succeeds in forming the first bead, given the experience from the first one, they shouldn''t have any problems when forming the second one. But on some rare occasions, they fail to do so. But for most Elementalists, their failures occur when forming the first bead. And once one fails in forming the essence beads, they would be stuck at the Arcane Plane, and only a few natural treasures could help them. Only Dual Elementalists and Multi Elementalists have it better since even if they failed in one element, they could still succeed in the other. Although their strength wouldn''t be what it was supposed to be, it was better than not advancing at all. Being fully aware of this, Grey knew there was no room for errors. Rushing into forming any of his beads might spell disaster for him. But once he completes the process, then he would become an Origin Plane Elementalist. He was slowly getting to the pinnacle of the Azure empire. Calming his mind, he decided to form the essence bead for his wind element first, the reason was quite simple, among the other elements in his essence orb, it occupied the smallest mass. So he would use it to get familiar with the technique of creating his beads. The technique for creating the beads was by using his spiritual energy to form a sphere around the element and slowly start compressing it. If he rushes while compressing it, there was a chance he might lose control over it. If this occurs, the best case scenario was failing to break through and being stuck in the Arcane Plane, while the worst case scenario was death due to the essence exploding inside the body. Also, if one''s spiritual energy isn''t strong enough, they might not be able to hold the elemental essence for too long, so they will not be able to compress it properly. If these type of people even manages to break through to the Origin Plane, their overall strength will just be slightly better than an Arcane Plane Elementalist, and geniuses like Grey and Alice could beat them easily even if they were still in the Eighth Plane of the Arcane Plane. Grey slowly used his spiritual energy to first isolate the wind element from the others before forming a sphere around it. After successfully forming the sphere, he slowly started compressing it. Given his strong spiritual energy, he had no issues with holding the element in the sphere. It took him almost fifteen minutes to compress the sphere to more than one-fifth of the previous size of the wind element while it was still in its previous matter state. While the wind element was still in a matter state in his essence orb, it occupied a space of at least twenty-five centimeters. ''I can still compress it a little further'', Grey pushed it to the limit. Although this seemed rash, there was a reason for it. The smaller you compress your essence beads, the thicker your elemental essence. This would then increase the boost in strength, speed, and defense it gives the user. This is also one of the reasons why, if Grey or Alice was still in the Eighth stage of the Arcane Plane, there were a few people in the Origin Plane they could defeat. But, they had not battled any of such people though. These such people are only Origin Plane Elementalists in name, and there was also a chance their beads might collapse reducing them back to the Arcane Plane. Another three minutes went by and Grey was able to compress it to one-eighth of its previous size. But after getting to this level, it didn''t budge anymore. When he tried to force it once more, he realized it was already at its maximum, and trying any further would make it unstable, so he ceased his actions immediately. With the knowledge from the first one, he started compressing the second element. Although he had done it once, he still didn''t dare to act rashly. But compared to the first time, his speed in compression was faster. While forming the first bead, it took him almost twenty minutes, but during the second one, he didn''t take up to fifteen minutes. After it got that the same size as the first one, it also stopped. He went on to the third element. Boom! An incomparably strong aura shot out of Grey''s body, but he quickly retracted it when he remembered Void was still cultivating beside him. After breaking through, another change started taking place, his body started growing stronger by the second. When he came to the trial land two months ago, the strength of his physical body could only rival a Third stage Arcane Plane Elementalist, and because he hadn''t trained his body since arriving here, it only improved by a single stage. But at the speed it was increasing, there was a chance it might get to the stage where it can rival the strength of an Eighth stage or Ninth stage Arcane Plane Elementalist. Just as the strength of his body was increasing, an idea struck him. What if he used the rest of the flame to strengthen his body. It was a natural treasure after all, and doing this was different from honing his body with elemental essence. There was a difference between strengthening the body with the elements when cultivating, and what he was about to do. He would literally have to use the flame to refine his muscles, tissues, and flesh thereby improving their strength. Compared to refining with the elemental essence, this process was going to be painful. Since he had already decided to do it, he didn''t delay any further and struck the iron while it was hot. Guiding what was left of the flame, he tried to use it to envelop his body, and to his surprise, the flame was able to easily cover his entire body. But unlike when he was using it for his cultivation, the heat of the flame increased exponentially. The scene of Grey being enveloped in blue flames nearly threw him off his little feet. ''What the hell is he doing? Even though it hasn''t been long since I was born, I''m confident they don''t absorb flames this way'', he thought to himself. He saw how Grey was refining it previously and knew he''s absorbing the flame. But now, how did it turn out like this? Looking at Grey''s face calmly, he could see it was distorted from pain. He could even feel Grey was in a tremendous amount of pain from their connection. ''Why would he put himself through this pain just to grow stronger?'', he asked himself. When studying Grey some moments ago, he realized the strength of his body was increasing at a dramatic rate. In fact, his body contained so much explosive energy that it was terrifying. ''How could the human body contain so much strength?'', Void asked himself in disbelief. Beasts are known for their tough bodies, but not humans. The body of a Magical Beast in the same Rank as a human is far stronger compared to the latter. Grey''s mind was currently a mess, the pain was stronger than he expected, it was even three times stronger than his expectations. It was like the flame was slowly eating away his flesh, tissues, and muscles, and slowly remolding them, making them stronger. ''It''s almost like being reborn from fire'', he thought jokingly while still in pain. Being strong-willed, he gritted his teeth and endured the pain of feeling his body being burnt and remolded. Due to the speed at which his flesh, tissues, and muscles were remolding, Void couldn''t see it. It was only after twenty-five minutes of constant suffering did the flame slowly start to die down. Grey had cursed in his mind so many times already because of pain. What was left of his clothes after the battle with the Elemental Warrior were burnt to nothingness, luckily he still had a spare. ''If I were to engage in another tough battle that might destroy my clothes, then I''ll have to walk around looking like a beggar. That can''t happen! *Sigh* Looks like I''ll have to be careful when fighting next time'', Grey shook his head wryly. When he stood up, all his bones made cracking sounds. His skin was smooth, and one wouldn''t find even a single blemish on it., "*Phew* Finally, I''m at the Origin Plane", he breathed out heavily. Observing his body properly, his essence orb had long disappeared, in its place were five rotating beads. Chapter 112 - Dont Unlock Error Chapter After refining the flame for almost one hour, he had refined almost forty percent of it and had finally acquired the fire element. Now, his previous chaotic essence orb was undergoing a change with the acquisition of a new element. With the addition of the fire element, he currently had five elements, this, in turn, made his essence orb have five different colors with the fire element unexpectedly dominating it. But Grey couldn''t bother about the reason for now and focused fully on breaking through. He had currently reached the critical point of his breakthrough, that was, forming his essence beads. Although over fifty percent of the people who attempt to form their essence beads succeed, since there''s a failure rate of almost fifty percent, it showed forming the beads was easier said than done. Compared to Single Elementalists, the failure rate among Dual Elementalists was lower due to having higher spiritual energy, then for Multi Elementalists, their success rate was a whopping eighty percent. Because, forming each bead required a delicate procedure, and if Dual Elementalists succeeds in forming the first bead, given the experience from the first one, they shouldn''t have any problems when forming the second one. But on some rare occasions, they fail to do so. But for most Elementalists, their failures occur when forming the first bead. And once one fails in forming the essence beads, they would be stuck at the Arcane Plane, and only a few natural treasures could help them. Only Dual Elementalists and Multi Elementalists have it better since even if they failed in one element, they could still succeed in the other. Although their strength wouldn''t be what it was supposed to be, it was better than not advancing at all. Being fully aware of this, Grey knew there was no room for errors. Rushing into forming any of his beads might spell disaster for him. But once he completes the process, then he would become an Origin Plane Elementalist. He was slowly getting to the pinnacle of the Azure empire. Calming his mind, he decided to form the essence bead for his wind element first, the reason was quite simple, among the other elements in his essence orb, it occupied the smallest mass. So he would use it to get familiar with the technique of creating his beads. The technique for creating the beads was by using his spiritual energy to form a sphere around the element and slowly start compressing it. If he rushes while compressing it, there was a chance he might lose control over it. If this occurs, the best case scenario was failing to break through and being stuck in the Arcane Plane, while the worst case scenario was death due to the essence exploding inside the body. Also, if one''s spiritual energy isn''t strong enough, they might not be able to hold the elemental essence for too long, so they will not be able to compress it properly. If these type of people even manages to break through to the Origin Plane, their overall strength will just be slightly better than an Arcane Plane Elementalist, and geniuses like Grey and Alice could beat them easily even if they were still in the Eighth Plane of the Arcane Plane. It took him almost fifteen minutes to compress the sphere to more than one-fifth of the previous size of the wind element while it was still in its previous matter state. While the wind element was still in a matter state in his essence orb, it occupied a space of at least twenty-five centimeters. ''I can still compress it a little further'', Grey pushed it to the limit. Although this seemed rash, there was a reason for it. The smaller you compress your essence beads, the thicker your elemental essence. This would then increase the boost in strength, speed, and defense it gives the user. This is also one of the reasons why, if Grey or Alice was still in the Eighth stage of the Arcane Plane, there were a few people in the Origin Plane they could defeat. But, they had not battled any of such people though. These such people are only Origin Plane Elementalists in name, and there was also a chance their beads might collapse reducing them back to the Arcane Plane. Another three minutes went by and Grey was able to compress it to one-eighth of its previous size. But after getting to this level, it didn''t budge anymore. When he tried to force it once more, he realized it was already at its maximum, and trying any further would make it unstable, so he ceased his actions immediately. With the knowledge from the first one, he started compressing the second element. Although he had done it once, he still didn''t dare to act rashly. But compared to the first time, his speed in compression was faster. While forming the first bead, it took him almost twenty minutes, but during the second one, he didn''t take up to fifteen minutes. After it got that the same size as the first one, it also stopped. He went on to the third element. Thirty minutes later... An incomparably strong aura shot out of Grey''s body, but he quickly retracted it when he remembered Void was still cultivating beside him. After breaking through, another change started taking place, his body started growing stronger by the second. When he came to the trial land two months ago, the strength of his physical body could only rival a Third stage Arcane Plane Elementalist, and because he hadn''t trained his body since arriving here, it only improved by a single stage. But at the speed it was increasing, there was a chance it might get to the stage where it can rival the strength of an Eighth stage or Ninth stage Arcane Plane Elementalist. Just as the strength of his body was increasing, an idea struck him. What if he used the rest of the flame to strengthen his body. It was a natural treasure after all, and doing this was different from honing his body with elemental essence. There was a difference between strengthening the body with the elements when cultivating, and what he was about to do. He would literally have to use the flame to refine his muscles, tissues, and flesh thereby improving their strength. Compared to refining with the elemental essence, this process was going to be painful. Since he had already decided to do it, he didn''t delay any further and struck the iron while it was hot. Guiding what was left of the flame, he tried to use it to envelop his body, and to his surprise, the flame was able to easily cover his entire body. But unlike when he was using it for his cultivation, the heat of the flame increased exponentially. Void who was still cultivating felt the sudden increase in temperature and quickly exited his cultivation to find out what was going on. ''What the hell is he doing? Even though it hasn''t been long since I was born, I''m confident they don''t absorb flames this way'', he thought to himself. He saw how Grey was refining it previously and knew he''s absorbing the flame. But now, how did it turn out like this? Looking at Grey''s face calmly, he could see it was distorted from pain. He could even feel Grey was in a tremendous amount of pain from their connection. ''Why would he put himself through this pain just to grow stronger?'', he asked himself. When studying Grey some moments ago, he realized the strength of his body was increasing at a dramatic rate. In fact, his body contained so much explosive energy that it was terrifying. ''How could the human body contain so much strength?'', Void asked himself in disbelief. Beasts are known for their tough bodies, but not humans. The body of a Magical Beast in the same Rank as a human is far stronger compared to the latter. Grey''s mind was currently a mess, the pain was stronger than he expected, it was even three times stronger than his expectations. It was like the flame was slowly eating away his flesh, tissues, and muscles, and slowly remolding them, making them stronger. ''It''s almost like being reborn from fire'', he thought jokingly while still in pain. Being strong-willed, he gritted his teeth and endured the pain of feeling his body being burnt and remolded. Due to the speed at which his flesh, tissues, and muscles were remolding, Void couldn''t see it. What was left of his clothes after the battle with the Elemental Warrior were burnt to nothingness, luckily he still had a spare. ''If I were to engage in another tough battle that might destroy my clothes, then I''ll have to walk around looking like a beggar. That can''t happen! *Sigh* Looks like I''ll have to be careful when fighting next time'', Grey shook his head wryly. When he stood up, all his bones made cracking sounds. His skin was smooth, and one wouldn''t find even a single blemish on it., "*Phew* Finally, I''m at the Origin Plane", he breathed out heavily. Observing his body properly, his essence orb had long disappeared, in its place were five rotating beads. Chapter 113 - Dont Unlock Error Chapter After refining the flame for almost one hour, he had refined almost forty percent of it and had finally acquired the fire element. Now, his previous chaotic essence orb was undergoing a change with the acquisition of a new element. With the addition of the fire element, he currently had five elements, this, in turn, made his essence orb have five different colors with the fire element unexpectedly dominating it. But Grey couldn''t bother about the reason for now and focused fully on breaking through. He had currently reached the critical point of his breakthrough, that was, forming his essence beads. Although over fifty percent of the people who attempt to form their essence beads succeed, since there''s a failure rate of almost fifty percent, it showed forming the beads was easier said than done. Compared to Single Elementalists, the failure rate among Dual Elementalists was lower due to having higher spiritual energy, then for Multi Elementalists, their success rate was a whopping eighty percent. Because, forming each bead required a delicate procedure, and if Dual Elementalists succeeds in forming the first bead, given the experience from the first one, they shouldn''t have any problems when forming the second one. But on some rare occasions, they fail to do so. But for most Elementalists, their failures occur when forming the first bead. And once one fails in forming the essence beads, they would be stuck at the Arcane Plane, and only a few natural treasures could help them. Only Dual Elementalists and Multi Elementalists have it better since even if they failed in one element, they could still succeed in the other. Although their strength wouldn''t be what it was supposed to be, it was better than not advancing at all. Being fully aware of this, Grey knew there was no room for errors. Rushing into forming any of his beads might spell disaster for him. But once he completes the process, then he would become an Origin Plane Elementalist. He was slowly getting to the pinnacle of the Azure empire. Calming his mind, he decided to form the essence bead for his wind element first, the reason was quite simple, among the other elements in his essence orb, it occupied the smallest mass. So he would use it to get familiar with the technique of creating his beads. The technique for creating the beads was by using his spiritual energy to form a sphere around the element and slowly start compressing it. If he rushes while compressing it, there was a chance he might lose control over it. If this occurs, the best case scenario was failing to break through and being stuck in the Arcane Plane, while the worst case scenario was death due to the essence exploding inside the body. Also, if one''s spiritual energy isn''t strong enough, they might not be able to hold the elemental essence for too long, so they will not be able to compress it properly. If these type of people even manages to break through to the Origin Plane, their overall strength will just be slightly better than an Arcane Plane Elementalist, and geniuses like Grey and Alice could beat them easily even if they were still in the Eighth Plane of the Arcane Plane. Grey slowly used his spiritual energy to first isolate the wind element from the others before forming a sphere around it. After successfully forming the sphere, he slowly started compressing it. Given his strong spiritual energy, he had no issues with holding the element in the sphere. ''I can still compress it a little further'', Grey pushed it to the limit. Although this seemed rash, there was a reason for it. The smaller you compress your essence beads, the thicker your elemental essence. This would then increase the boost in strength, speed, and defense it gives the user. This is also one of the reasons why, if Grey or Alice was still in the Eighth stage of the Arcane Plane, there were a few people in the Origin Plane they could defeat. But, they had not battled any of such people though. These such people are only Origin Plane Elementalists in name, and there was also a chance their beads might collapse reducing them back to the Arcane Plane. Another three minutes went by and Grey was able to compress it to one-eighth of its previous size. But after getting to this level, it didn''t budge anymore. When he tried to force it once more, he realized it was already at its maximum, and trying any further would make it unstable, so he ceased his actions immediately. With the knowledge from the first one, he started compressing the second element. Although he had done it once, he still didn''t dare to act rashly. But compared to the first time, his speed in compression was faster. While forming the first bead, it took him almost twenty minutes, but during the second one, he didn''t take up to fifteen minutes. After it got that the same size as the first one, it also stopped. He went on to the third element. Thirty minutes later... Boom! An incomparably strong aura shot out of Grey''s body, but he quickly retracted it when he remembered Void was still cultivating beside him. After breaking through, another change started taking place, his body started growing stronger by the second. When he came to the trial land two months ago, the strength of his physical body could only rival a Third stage Arcane Plane Elementalist, and because he hadn''t trained his body since arriving here, it only improved by a single stage. But at the speed it was increasing, there was a chance it might get to the stage where it can rival the strength of an Eighth stage or Ninth stage Arcane Plane Elementalist. Just as the strength of his body was increasing, an idea struck him. What if he used the rest of the flame to strengthen his body. It was a natural treasure after all, and doing this was different from honing his body with elemental essence. There was a difference between strengthening the body with the elements when cultivating, and what he was about to do. He would literally have to use the flame to refine his muscles, tissues, and flesh thereby improving their strength. Compared to refining with the elemental essence, this process was going to be painful. Since he had already decided to do it, he didn''t delay any further and struck the iron while it was hot. Guiding what was left of the flame, he tried to use it to envelop his body, and to his surprise, the flame was able to easily cover his entire body. But unlike when he was using it for his cultivation, the heat of the flame increased exponentially. Void who was still cultivating felt the sudden increase in temperature and quickly exited his cultivation to find out what was going on. The scene of Grey being enveloped in blue flames nearly threw him off his little feet. ''What the hell is he doing? Even though it hasn''t been long since I was born, I''m confident they don''t absorb flames this way'', he thought to himself. He saw how Grey was refining it previously and knew he''s absorbing the flame. But now, how did it turn out like this? Looking at Grey''s face calmly, he could see it was distorted from pain. He could even feel Grey was in a tremendous amount of pain from their connection. ''Why would he put himself through this pain just to grow stronger?'', he asked himself. When studying Grey some moments ago, he realized the strength of his body was increasing at a dramatic rate. In fact, his body contained so much explosive energy that it was terrifying. ''How could the human body contain so much strength?'', Void asked himself in disbelief. Beasts are known for their tough bodies, but not humans. The body of a Magical Beast in the same Rank as a human is far stronger compared to the latter. Grey''s mind was currently a mess, the pain was stronger than he expected, it was even three times stronger than his expectations. It was like the flame was slowly eating away his flesh, tissues, and muscles, and slowly remolding them, making them stronger. ''It''s almost like being reborn from fire'', he thought jokingly while still in pain. Being strong-willed, he gritted his teeth and endured the pain of feeling his body being burnt and remolded. Due to the speed at which his flesh, tissues, and muscles were remolding, Void couldn''t see it. It was only after twenty-five minutes of constant suffering did the flame slowly start to die down. Grey had cursed in his mind so many times already because of pain. ''If I were to engage in another tough battle that might destroy my clothes, then I''ll have to walk around looking like a beggar. That can''t happen! *Sigh* Looks like I''ll have to be careful when fighting next time'', Grey shook his head wryly. When he stood up, all his bones made cracking sounds. His skin was smooth, and one wouldn''t find even a single blemish on it., "*Phew* Finally, I''m at the Origin Plane", he breathed out heavily. Observing his body properly, his essence orb had long disappeared, in its place were five rotating beads. Chapter 114 - Dont Unlock Error Chapter After refining the flame for almost one hour, he had refined almost forty percent of it and had finally acquired the fire element. Now, his previous chaotic essence orb was undergoing a change with the acquisition of a new element. With the addition of the fire element, he currently had five elements, this, in turn, made his essence orb have five different colors with the fire element unexpectedly dominating it. But Grey couldn''t bother about the reason for now and focused fully on breaking through. He had currently reached the critical point of his breakthrough, that was, forming his essence beads. Although over fifty percent of the people who attempt to form their essence beads succeed, since there''s a failure rate of almost fifty percent, it showed forming the beads was easier said than done. Compared to Single Elementalists, the failure rate among Dual Elementalists was lower due to having higher spiritual energy, then for Multi Elementalists, their success rate was a whopping eighty percent. Because, forming each bead required a delicate procedure, and if Dual Elementalists succeeds in forming the first bead, given the experience from the first one, they shouldn''t have any problems when forming the second one. But on some rare occasions, they fail to do so. But for most Elementalists, their failures occur when forming the first bead. And once one fails in forming the essence beads, they would be stuck at the Arcane Plane, and only a few natural treasures could help them. Only Dual Elementalists and Multi Elementalists have it better since even if they failed in one element, they could still succeed in the other. Although their strength wouldn''t be what it was supposed to be, it was better than not advancing at all. Being fully aware of this, Grey knew there was no room for errors. Rushing into forming any of his beads might spell disaster for him. But once he completes the process, then he would become an Origin Plane Elementalist. He was slowly getting to the pinnacle of the Azure empire. Calming his mind, he decided to form the essence bead for his wind element first, the reason was quite simple, among the other elements in his essence orb, it occupied the smallest mass. So he would use it to get familiar with the technique of creating his beads. The technique for creating the beads was by using his spiritual energy to form a sphere around the element and slowly start compressing it. If he rushes while compressing it, there was a chance he might lose control over it. If this occurs, the best case scenario was failing to break through and being stuck in the Arcane Plane, while the worst case scenario was death due to the essence exploding inside the body. Also, if one''s spiritual energy isn''t strong enough, they might not be able to hold the elemental essence for too long, so they will not be able to compress it properly. If these type of people even manages to break through to the Origin Plane, their overall strength will just be slightly better than an Arcane Plane Elementalist, and geniuses like Grey and Alice could beat them easily even if they were still in the Eighth Plane of the Arcane Plane. Grey slowly used his spiritual energy to first isolate the wind element from the others before forming a sphere around it. After successfully forming the sphere, he slowly started compressing it. Given his strong spiritual energy, he had no issues with holding the element in the sphere. It took him almost fifteen minutes to compress the sphere to more than one-fifth of the previous size of the wind element while it was still in its previous matter state. While the wind element was still in a matter state in his essence orb, it occupied a space of at least twenty-five centimeters. ''I can still compress it a little further'', Grey pushed it to the limit. Although this seemed rash, there was a reason for it. The smaller you compress your essence beads, the thicker your elemental essence. This would then increase the boost in strength, speed, and defense it gives the user. This is also one of the reasons why, if Grey or Alice was still in the Eighth stage of the Arcane Plane, there were a few people in the Origin Plane they could defeat. But, they had not battled any of such people though. These such people are only Origin Plane Elementalists in name, and there was also a chance their beads might collapse reducing them back to the Arcane Plane. Another three minutes went by and Grey was able to compress it to one-eighth of its previous size. But after getting to this level, it didn''t budge anymore. When he tried to force it once more, he realized it was already at its maximum, and trying any further would make it unstable, so he ceased his actions immediately. With the knowledge from the first one, he started compressing the second element. Although he had done it once, he still didn''t dare to act rashly. But compared to the first time, his speed in compression was faster. While forming the first bead, it took him almost twenty minutes, but during the second one, he didn''t take up to fifteen minutes. After it got that the same size as the first one, it also stopped. He went on to the third element. Thirty minutes later... Boom! An incomparably strong aura shot out of Grey''s body, but he quickly retracted it when he remembered Void was still cultivating beside him. After breaking through, another change started taking place, his body started growing stronger by the second. When he came to the trial land two months ago, the strength of his physical body could only rival a Third stage Arcane Plane Elementalist, and because he hadn''t trained his body since arriving here, it only improved by a single stage. But at the speed it was increasing, there was a chance it might get to the stage where it can rival the strength of an Eighth stage or Ninth stage Arcane Plane Elementalist. Just as the strength of his body was increasing, an idea struck him. What if he used the rest of the flame to strengthen his body. It was a natural treasure after all, and doing this was different from honing his body with elemental essence. There was a difference between strengthening the body with the elements when cultivating, and what he was about to do. He would literally have to use the flame to refine his muscles, tissues, and flesh thereby improving their strength. Compared to refining with the elemental essence, this process was going to be painful. Since he had already decided to do it, he didn''t delay any further and struck the iron while it was hot. Guiding what was left of the flame, he tried to use it to envelop his body, and to his surprise, the flame was able to easily cover his entire body. But unlike when he was using it for his cultivation, the heat of the flame increased exponentially. Void who was still cultivating felt the sudden increase in temperature and quickly exited his cultivation to find out what was going on. The scene of Grey being enveloped in blue flames nearly threw him off his little feet. ''What the hell is he doing? Even though it hasn''t been long since I was born, I''m confident they don''t absorb flames this way'', he thought to himself. He saw how Grey was refining it previously and knew he''s absorbing the flame. But now, how did it turn out like this? Looking at Grey''s face calmly, he could see it was distorted from pain. He could even feel Grey was in a tremendous amount of pain from their connection. ''Why would he put himself through this pain just to grow stronger?'', he asked himself. When studying Grey some moments ago, he realized the strength of his body was increasing at a dramatic rate. In fact, his body contained so much explosive energy that it was terrifying. ''How could the human body contain so much strength?'', Void asked himself in disbelief. Beasts are known for their tough bodies, but not humans. The body of a Magical Beast in the same Rank as a human is far stronger compared to the latter. Grey''s mind was currently a mess, the pain was stronger than he expected, it was even three times stronger than his expectations. It was like the flame was slowly eating away his flesh, tissues, and muscles, and slowly remolding them, making them stronger. ''It''s almost like being reborn from fire'', he thought jokingly while still in pain. Being strong-willed, he gritted his teeth and endured the pain of feeling his body being burnt and remolded. Due to the speed at which his flesh, tissues, and muscles were remolding, Void couldn''t see it. It was only after twenty-five minutes of constant suffering did the flame slowly start to die down. Grey had cursed in his mind so many times already because of pain. What was left of his clothes after the battle with the Elemental Warrior were burnt to nothingness, luckily he still had a spare. ''If I were to engage in another tough battle that might destroy my clothes, then I''ll have to walk around looking like a beggar. That can''t happen! *Sigh* Looks like I''ll have to be careful when fighting next time'', Grey shook his head wryly. When he stood up, all his bones made cracking sounds. His skin was smooth, and one wouldn''t find even a single blemish on it., "*Phew* Finally, I''m at the Origin Plane", he breathed out heavily. Observing his body properly, his essence orb had long disappeared, in its place were five rotating beads. Chapter 115 - Spatial Storage ''Hey! Why did you use the flame to refine your body? I''m almost certain only a Magical beast will do that'', Void asked Grey who was walking to get his last pair of clothes from his bag. "Oh, that? Well... It''s kinda weird, but I like training my body, so on seeing this chance I decided to further improve the strength of my body", Grey hesitated before replying. He couldn''t just tell Void about the pearl and his ability to fuse elements or gain comprehension of other elements. Even though there was a connection between him and Void, he would not trust him recklessly. What if Void left him after they left this place? Wouldn''t that mean his secret would be exposed? ''I can''t tell him about it, for now, I didn''t even dare to tell Klaus or Teacher yet. There''s no way I''ll divulge my secret to him so easily'', Grey thought seriously. Only his parents knew about this, well, so he thought for now. And according to what the Senior told him, he should keep it a secret, until he was strong enough to protect himself from the greedy eyes of others. There were a lot of people that wouldn''t hesitate to kill him because of it. This, he is well aware of. ''Well, you''re one weird human'', Void looked at him weirdly. Grey shrugged before putting on his clothes, there was no need for him to explain further. After putting on his clothes, he suddenly remembered something. "Where did you store the lotus?", he asked while staring at Void. ''I have a spatial storage in my body where I keep things'', replied Void. "Spatial storage? What''s that?", Grey couldn''t help but ask. He looked at Void in surprise, it hadn''t even been up to three hours since he ''hatched'', yet he knew so much. ''Don''t tell me you don''t know that as well?'', asked the stunned Void. ''How the hell does he not know even about spatial storage when he has one?!'', thought the flabbergasted Void. Although he didn''t know how it was made, he was able to clearly feel the space element in the ring Grey had. Grey stared at him blankly. "If I do, do you think I''ll waste my time in asking?", Grey asked with a tinge of annoyance. It wasn''t like he knew what Void was talking about. He knew what a storage was, and from the word spatial, he could deduce it was related to the space element, but he couldn''t use just that and start assuming things. As long as he isn''t a hundred percent sure about it, he would definitely ask. Other than his strength, he also enjoyed improving his knowledge, so these foreign words always pique his interest. ''It''s like a separate space where you store things. Watch this'', Void decided it was best to demonstrate it to him on seeing that Grey still wore a weird expression on his face. Grey looked at him seriously like a student taking lectures. One of the few things he enjoyed was actually learning, when it got to new and mysterious things, he wanted to know the why and how it was possible. Void walked to where Grey''s blade was on the ground and touched it. The next scene made Grey stare wide-eyed. Yes, he had seen Void ''store'' the lotus previously, but seeing it again was still intriguing. After Void touched the blade, it disappeared into thin air. "Wait! Is this an ability for Space Elementalists alone? Or can others use it?", Grey inquired. This was quite a fascinating ability, storing things in a separate space without others seeing where you stored them. This means, if he were to acquire a treasure, he wouldn''t need to be scared of others seeing it, also, if the space was large, then he could even keep the entire body of some of those rare beasts he had killed here. ''Naturally, it should be an ability for only Space Elementalists, but it seems like there are storage items which others could use as well'', replied Void with some uncertainty. He was just born, so there is no way he would know about everything, other than things related to him, he knew nothing else. "There are storage items others can use?", Grey''s eyes lit up when he heard this. How amazing would it be if he had one? He wouldn''t need to bother about his bag anymore. It was quite tiresome to carry it sometimes, although it was light, he had to ensure he was always careful with it, especially when fighting. Because of the fear of his items being stolen, he always keeps his bag close to him at all times. But if he had such storage items, he wouldn''t be bothered about that anymore. Void nodded. ''It looks like he has no idea there is one with him'', he thought internally. Grey calmed himself, he was excited about the prospect of obtaining such items, but thinking more about it, he knew the chances of getting one was low. He didn''t even know about the space element previously, so how would he know if those items existed? "How did you know there were spatial storage items others can use?", asked Grey. From the first reply he got from Void when he asked about it, he was able to sense the slight uncertainty in his voice, so he knew Void wasn''t a hundred percent sure about it. ''Because I''ve seen one'', Void answered casually. "What! Where?", Grey exclaimed in excitement. From Void''s tone and expression, he was sure he wasn''t lying to him. ''That ring on your bag'', Void pointed his paw at Grey''s bag. "What ring?", asked the stunned Grey. Because it had been quite a while he collected the ring, and after he studied it and didn''t find anything about it, he had forgotten he even had it in the first place. Void looked at Grey speechless. ''Do I really have to show him everything?'', he asked internally. If a stranger overhears their conversations, they would think Grey was the newborn while he was the one who had been in the world for long. Seeing the look on Void''s face, Grey knew how foolish his question was. The bag is right there with him, all he had to do was search for it. It didn''t take long for him to spot the ring in his bag. The bag wasn''t as occupied as it used to be due to Void eating more than half of what was inside. ''It''s the ring! I knew it was special. But, what can fit into this small ring?'', he asked himself. He recognized the ring the moment he laid his eyes on it, it was the ring he got from one of those boxes at the palace he entered with his friends. ''That''s it'', Void said after Grey took out the ring. "I acquired it by chance, to think it was a spatial storage item. But given its size, can it store a large object?", Grey asked doubtfully. ''I don''t really know, it all depends on the space created in it. I also think the quality of the material can affect the size of its space'', Void answered truthfully. Grey nodded before once again studying it. Even after some time passed, he still couldn''t figure out how to use it. "Do you know how to use it?", he decided to ask Void for help. But Void shook his head, he was just as clueless on how they can access it as he was. Although he had a spatial storage in him, it was something he was born with, he didn''t learn how to use it, he just knew how to. Both man and cat started studying it carefully, and after making multiple deductions, Grey was finally able to access the ring. And he was stunned by the size of its space. But after the initial shock, a surge of excitement enveloped him. "Haha, this is great", he laughed gleefully. Chapter 116 - Cyan?! On seeing Grey''s joyful expression, Void curiously took the ring and checked it out. When he saw the space, he threw it back to him in disdain. ''How can you be happy over such a small space?'' he asked disapprovingly. At first, he thought the space was huge given how excited Grey was, but when he saw it, he found out its size. It wasn''t even close to one-tenth of his spatial storage. The storage ring had a space of ten square meters in total. That was like the space of a room in some places. "What do you mean how can I be happy? Have you seen the bag I''m carrying?", asked Grey showing Void the bag. For someone who used to carry a bag that wasn''t even close to one-twentieth of the space in the storage ring, he should be happy, in fact, he should celebrate because of the upgrade he just received. It was like moving from a single tiny room apartment to a huge mansion, the difference was just too vast. Now, all he had to do was wear a ring, and all his items would be stored there, how could he not be happy? ''You do have a point though, but compared to my storage space, it''s quite small'', replied Void. "I''m happy with what I have, this thing is going to help me a lot", said Grey. He wasn''t bothered or jealous because compared to Void''s space, his own was small. Only ungrateful and greedy people would feel that way, he was grateful for this one he had. After he has awakened his space element, then he would create a bigger space. But for now, this will do! After calming down, he asked Void how to store things in the spatial storage, which Void quickly taught him. After keeping everything there, he focused his attention on the ancient path ahead of him. He had stayed here for over five hours now, it''s time to leave. And he also remembered the expert said something about a legacy, he couldn''t wait to find it. But even if he didn''t find it, he wasn''t bothered since he already got the greatest treasure according to the expert. Just as he was about to step into the path, he suddenly recalled something. "Haha, I got the blue flame", he laughed in exhilaration. Having a blue flame meant his firepower is higher compared to other Fire Elementalists. But this wasn''t what he was more concerned about though, he recalled when he was forming his essence beads, the fire element was the most dominant element in his essence orb, so he was curious what its grade was. Void was surprised that Grey who was about to enter the ancient path stopped in his tracks and started playing with his fire before he sat down crossed leg all of a sudden and went into a semi-conscious state. ''What''s he up to now?'', he thought while looking at Grey strangely. ..... Inside the Chaos space, Grey slowly walked towards the stone he uses to check the grade of his elements. The last time he used the stone was after he acquired his water element some days ago, now he was about to use it again. Where the stone was located in the Chaos space was a place built like a temple on top of a mountain top. Being the owner of the Chaos space, although it was vast, he could travel it instantaneously. Looking at it, he couldn''t help but reminisce about when he first came here. At that time, he just fulfilled the requirements needed to stimulate the pearl in his body. Now within just two years, he had gone from having a single element to having five, from an ordinary person to someone who was almost at the peak of power in the Azure continent. Thinking about all this, he suddenly recalled his mother. ''Why hasn''t she contacted me yet?'', he thought worriedly. Calming his mind, he placed his hand on the stone. Just like it usually does, an unknown energy seeped out of the stone and entered his body before circling around it. After going a circle, it returned to the stone. Five colors first lit up to represent each of his five elements, then in the center of each color, another color was visible. This was the color for the grade of each element. He already knew the grade for his previous elements, so he didn''t focus on them and just stared at the red-colored part of the stone that represented his fire element. "Cyan", he blurted out in confusion. At the center of the fire red part of the stone was a vibrant pale greenish-blue color. He had read about the violet grade from books, so he knew there was a grade higher than blue, only it was hard to come by. But he had never heard or read about a cyan grade before. Looking at it, he was certain the cyan grade was higher than the violet grade, only, he didn''t know by how much. Since there were records of the violet grade but not of the cyan grade, it showed it had not appeared in the Azure continent before, or maybe it was just like the space element, unknown to them. He left the Chaos space after checking the grade. Since he didn''t know about it, he''ll inquire about these new things from his Teacher. Maybe Chris knew about them but didn''t say because they were too rare. "Let''s go", Grey gestured before taking a step to enter the path. ''*Tsk* I thought you had fallen in love with this place and wanted to die here. I was already planning on how to conduct a burial ceremony for you after I''ve left this place'', said Void. "Fallen in love your head! Who would fall in love with this place?", Grey rolled his eyes at Void before stepping into the ancient path and disappearing. ''Hehehe, I''ll finally see new things. Be prepared world, for I, master cat, is coming. Hahaha'', Void thought in elation while running into the ancient path as well. This was the only place he had seen since coming into the world, now, he would get to see new things. ..... "Hmm, is this where the legacy is located?", a voice asked while staring at the castle ahead of him. The owner of the voice was none other than Grey, on his shoulder, a black cat sat lazily there. After stepping into the ancient path, he was transported to the front of a castle. Looking behind him, he realized the path also led somewhere else. If one looks at the castle clearly, they''ll realize it was the same castle Jonas entered some hours ago. ''There''s only one way to find out'', said Void. "Un", Grey nodded. He knew what Void was talking about, and that was entering into the castle. When he enters, he''ll know what lies in it. The path he was currently on led to somewhere else, so if there''s nothing in the castle, he''ll just head towards the other side of the path. Taking a step forward, he slowly pushed the door and walked inside it... Chapter 117 - Touch It! Grey slowly observed the castle after closing the door. He was currently in a hall that had four pillars that acted as a support, there were some seats placed at the side with a throne at the other side of the hall. The hall was at least one hundred and fifty meters in length, and it was seventy meters wide. That throne was obviously the seat the owner of the castle previously used. Seeing there was nothing of interest here, he changed his attention to the two doors by the side of the throne situated on the other side of the hall. "I''ll quickly check them out then leave this place, I still have no idea where this place is", Grey muttered while randomly choosing the door on the right and walking in. Void on the other hand was looking at everything curiously, he had never seen these things before. But he was able to deduce what they were, obviously. Ten minutes later... Grey came out of that side of the castle and faced the other door. After passing through the door, he entered a hallway. There were only six rooms there, and other than beds, chairs, and desks, he found nothing else. So he didn''t delay and quickly came to the other door, maybe he could acquire something nice here. Another ten minutes passed, yet he still couldn''t find anything. "Strange, could it be there''s nothing here? Oh well, guess I''ll have to leave then", Grey muttered under his breath. He sensed there was something here, but even after searching all the rooms, he still couldn''t find anything. He found the feeling quite strange since he was clearly sensing there was something here. Shaking his head, he headed towards the door. ''Wait! There''s something here'', said Void. "You can feel it also?", he stopped in his tracks while observing everywhere once more. ''Yes, but finding the location of it is another story'', Void nodded. Just like Grey, he could also sense there was something here, but couldn''t locate where it was. "Let''s search this hall thoroughly", gestured Grey. Void nodded before jumping off his shoulder and looking around. Three minutes went by and the duo still hasn''t found anything. Although Grey wasn''t impatient, he wouldn''t spend his entire time searching for what he didn''t even know. There were still things he had to do. Just as Grey was about to leave, one of the pillars caught his attention. On the pillar, there were weird inscriptions on them. When he observed them clearly, he knew they were arrays, but due to how complex they were, he had no idea what type of arrays they were. Following the inscriptions, he noticed the lines ran into the floor before moving in a particular direction. He traced the lines with his eyes and noticed it headed to the throne at the other end of the hall. He went to the other three pillars to confirm if they had it too, and just like the first one, they also did, and they all connected at the throne. Seeing how Grey was studying the pillars, Void realized Grey had found some clues about what was here. ''Did you find anything?'', he asked. "Yes, I think. I''m not too sure about it yet though", Grey replied truthfully. He once again focused on the throne before walking towards it. When he got close to the throne, he studied it properly before trying to figure out what the array was. Although it took him quite some time, he was able to find out what it was. ''It''s just like that stone Teacher placed in front of the valley'', he thought in realization. Now, all he had to do was find the spot he needed to touch before the secret opening appears. "Come here", he gestures towards Void. ''What?'', Void asked while walking in Grey''s direction. "Touch any suspicious part of the throne", Grey instructed. ''Uh!'', Void exclaimed unconsciously. He didn''t expect Grey would tell him to do that, but before he could question any further, he realized Grey had already gotten to work. In two minutes, they had molested the throne so much that there were only a few places left. Rumble! The sound of something opening up rang out in the hallway. "Haha, I knew there was a secret opening", Grey laughed happily. ''Yeah, after molesting the throne, that is'', Void mocked while looking at him strangely. "Molested! All I did was touch some parts", replied Grey angrily. "And it''s a throne for crying out loud!", he added. ''That''s how they all start though'', Void continued mocking. "Shit! What the hell are you even saying? Sometimes I feel like you''ve been in this world for so long now", Grey''s body trembled. ''Where does this little guy get such ideas?'', he thought while looking at Void suspiciously. After they finished their small quarrel, Grey focused his attention back on the opening. At the center of the hall, a stairway that led underground could be seen. "Let''s go in", Grey said still slightly annoyed. They headed into the stairway and disappeared underground. .... In a secret room under the castle, a figure could be seen covered in flames. His eyes were closed, and he was sitting in a crossed leg position. Unknown to that figure, there was an old-looking man, floating quietly above him. The man couldn''t be seen with the physical eyes. The old man was still staring at the figure quietly before suddenly raising his head and looking in the direction of the door that leads into the room. One minute later... "There''s a door here", Grey said while walking closer to it. He pushed the door and saw a figure bathing in flames, due to acquiring the fire element recently, and how high the grade was, he didn''t feel the heat radiating out of the room. Looking closely, he realized the figure was familiar. "It''s him", he spoke unconsciously. Chapter 118 - Voids Special Ability Grey stared at the familiar figure bathing in flames. What the figure was doing was different from what Grey did previously. Although it seemed he was bathing in flames since he was covered entirely in flames, the flame isn''t doing him any harm. ''You know him?'', Void asked when he heard what Grey said. "Yeah, his name''s Jonas, he''s from the same city as I am", said Grey while looking at the figure. The only reason Grey still knew his name till this day was because, in the entire Red City, Jonas was the only one who he could still remember since they took the test together, and he was even present when he retook the test. "If I''m correct, this should be the legacy of the expert", Grey said through narrowed eyes. ''So, are you friends?'', asked Void. "We''re not even acquaintances, I only know his name, nothing else", explained Grey. ''Okay, then why are you still standing? Stop him before he gets everything. This would give you another boost in strength'', advised Void. He didn''t know why Grey was still staring at Jonas. If he were to be in his place, he would have already attacked, so he could acquire the rest of the legacy. While he and Grey were descending the stairway previously, Grey told him about where this place was. So he knew they all came here to search for treasures that would increase their strengths. This was a golden opportunity for Grey to get another major boost, so why delay when you''re not even friends with who was currently inheriting the legacy. Grey squinted his eyes and stared at Jonas''s figure before shaking his head. "It''s not worth the hassle. He''s already here and had acquired most of the essence here. Although what is left could still probably allow me to make another breakthrough, I have no thoughts of taking this from him. Had we come at the same time as he did, or came before I acquired that blue flame, then I might have taken a fancy of it," "But now, let him just have it", he said before turning away decisively. He was not a saint, but it didn''t mean he was a demon either. If it were to be someone else, he might have still made this same decision, well, unless the person was an enemy, then he''ll kill the person straight away without any quibbles. Having acquired the blue flame, and even boosting the strength of his body to new heights, being too greedy might cause more harm than good. But if he really wanted to kill Jonas, he had no problems with that because from Jonas''s aura he could tell he was only in the Second stage of the Origin Plane. ''You''re too soft'', Void complained while following behind him. From Void''s point of view, Grey letting Jonas grow stronger when he had the opportunity to grow stronger himself was being softhearted. Compared to humans, magical beasts are more brutal, most wouldn''t even mind killing their entire families to acquire strength. But there are a few humans who wouldn''t mind killing not just their entire family, but their entire city just to acquire what they want. Some minutes after Grey and Void left, Jonas who was cultivating previously opened his eyes. He was able to sense the presence of Grey previously but because he was at a critical point in his cultivation, he didn''t dare to be distracted. Although he couldn''t open his eyes, his heart pounded furiously when Grey guessed this was the legacy of the expert, he almost made a wrong circulation during his cultivation because of the fear. He only calmed down after Grey said he didn''t have any plans of attacking. He recognized Grey the moment he said they were from the same city because other than himself and Grey, no one else would be able to cultivate to this stage before the age of twenty given their grades in their elements. ''I''m grateful for this, but, who was he talking to, and what is this blue flame he spoke about that made him not put even this legacy in his eyes?'', Jonas asked himself baffled by Grey''s decision. Even though he was curious about all this, he quickly threw them out of his mind. He already counted himself lucky that Grey was the one who came here, had it been someone else, then he would be dead for sure, so why would he bother with what Grey obtained? Even if it''s better than this legacy, so what? ........ Unknown to Grey, Void, and Jonas, the old man was quietly observing everything that happened. He couldn''t help but nod in approval to Grey''s disposition. He was able to tell Grey just refined the blue flame not too long ago. Even if Grey had decided to attack, there was nothing he could do since he was dead anyway, but he approved of how Grey didn''t let greed get the better of him. There were only a few people who would have such self-control when an opportunity is presented before them, even after they just acquired a better one. Besides, he knew all too well that no one would want to pass the chance to grow stronger. "Umm, why do I sense a second soul in the boy", the old man muttered. When he was still alive, he trained his spiritual energy to a terrifying rate, this was the reason he was able to use a technique to keep this fragment of his soul here till someone inherited his legacy. Even though before someone was finally able to come here most of the legacy''s essence was gone, given how low the person''s cultivation was, it was still a major boost for him. And being a soul himself, he was very s.e.n.s.i.t.i.v.e towards other souls. What puzzled him was that he didn''t sense the soul quickly, and it was only after Grey was leaving did he sense it. He peered straight into the departing Grey''s body, and just as he was about to confirm his conjecture, he shut his eyes and his body trembled, seemingly on the verge of fading. "Hmph! It''s surprising a mere soul fragment of a Demi-God would be able to sense me. But, even if your body was still here, I would still be able to kill you even though I''m just a soul", A voice said haughtily before a figure appeared in front of the old man''s fading soul. "Oh! It''s you!", the figure said while looking at the fading soul clearly. "You know me?", the old man asked with a confused expression. "Haha, of course I do, but looks like you died in that war", the figure laughed. The old man looked at the figure quietly, even though the figure was speaking in a friendly manner, he could tell the figure didn''t care about him at all. "I don''t remember seeing you, and from what I still know. No God has appeared in this domain for a long time now, even at the time I was still alive, no one was able to ascend into Godhood", the old man said. Being adept in spiritual energy, he didn''t have any problems with browsing through Jonas''s memory without hurting him. He was able to know some things from it, and he realized that people called that war the great war of God''s, but the truth was different. In the entirety of this domain, no one had ever ascended into Godhood. They all stopped in the Demi-God Plane, all failing to take that last big step. So how was the soul of a god present here? "Who are you?", the old man couldn''t help but ask. "I''m the creator of the Chaos element, the Chaos God", the figure declared proudly. When the old man heard the word ''chaos'', his fading body jolted, and he looked at the figure in shock. "It can''t b..." Before he could complete his statement, his soul faded away completely. After seeing the old man fade completely, the figure turned around and looked at the back of Grey who was about to start ascending the stairway before disappearing. If Grey was able to see this figure, he would be astounded, because, this was the Senior he saw in the Chaos space. ''Where are we headed?'', Void asked after they stepped out of the castle. "We only have one path to take", Grey walked towards the path ahead of them. Thirty minutes later... Grey and Void were currently standing at a three-way intersection, they were contemplating on which path to take. ''Follow the one on the left'', Void suddenly pointed at the path on the left in an excited manner. "What? Can you sense anything from there?", Grey asked puzzled. ''Yes, I can sense something giving off a good amount of energy from there. We aren''t far from it'', said Void. Grey looked at him speechless. "How can you sense there''s something like that from here?", he asked with a doubtful expression. When Void noticed the doubt in Grey''s voice, he quickly explained. ''Remember I told you that since I was just born I need a lot of energy to sustain myself. Well, it just so happens that I have an ability to sense energy from a long distance away'', he announced proudly. "There''s such an ability?", the amazed Grey asked. ''Of course, do you think I''m one of those ordinary beasts?'', asked Void who wore an arrogant expression. Grey was taken aback when he heard this, but he couldn''t refute it. Yes, there is no way he should compare Void with other magical beasts. Even if he doesn''t know Void''s abilities yet, just the fact that he hatched out of an egg had already made him special. After thinking up to this point, Grey didn''t doubt him anymore and dashed towards the path on the left. Chapter 119 - Great Void Technique "Uh! There''s an old-looking palace over there. Is this where the energy you''re feeling is coming from?", a voice asked thoughtfully while studying the old-looking palace on the right path on an intersection that was giving off an ancient vibe. ''No, it''s still some distance away. But we should check this place out, it might probably have something good'', a smaller voice replied, only, the voice sounded in the head of the first speaker. The duo speaking is none other than Grey and Void. Grey had his hand on his chin while he was scrutinizing the palace calmly with Void laying on his shoulder as always. It had been almost thirty minutes since they left the castle Jonas was in, and following the directions Void pointed out, they had gone through two other intersections. Their journey here could be said to be filled with blood since he also had multiple battles on the way here. Some were against beasts, but most of them were against humanoid creatures that Grey had not seen before. One had to say that those who would pass through the same route Grey passed through could be considered lucky because Grey didn''t hesitate to eliminate every creature he found on the path. The creatures were either in the First or Second stage of the Origin Plane and to Grey, they weren''t that strong. The only thing that might have complicated things was their numbers, in some instances, he faced off against ten at a time. But since he''s an inscriber, facing off against multiple opponents wasn''t an issue for him as long as he got his inscriptions up quickly. And after his breakthrough, his spiritual energy also saw an improvement. Now, the time he needed for inscribing was almost halved. Previously, he needed just over two minutes at most when creating the symbol, but now, he could create it within one minute and ten seconds. If he were in the Fusion State, then he could create multiple symbols almost instantly. The only regret he had during the battles was that because he was in a hurry, he didn''t test out the strength of his body. Now, they were currently at another intersection with the path on the right leading to an old-looking palace. It was very small compared to the other ones he had seen since entering the trial land. "There''s an array outside the palace", Grey spoke, after studying the palace a little more. ''Since this palace is covered with arrays, there have to be treasures inside. Grey, can you destroy it?'', asked Void. He did not know arrays, so there was nothing he could do here. "It shouldn''t be a problem. If this array had been recently created, it wouldn''t be possible for me to find the flaws or even think of breaking it, but because it has been here for too long, most of the power of the array has already disappeared and a lof of flaws have appeared.", Grey nodded, then strode towards the old looking palace. Staring at the palace, he couldn''t help thinking about his friends. "I wonder how they''re doing", Grey muttered to himself, but he didn''t worry about them as much. Soon, Grey approached the palace. His spiritual energy spread out like a torrent, allowing him to quickly find the flaws of the array very quickly. Then, he formed a seal with both hands, striking out a series of complicated seals that rapidly merged into a miniature array, then struck at the weakest spot of the old array. Bang! After a bang, cracks instantly appeared on the array. Once more, Grey struck out another series of seals. Due to the array having existed for a very long period of time, it could no longer withstand the pressure and shattered on the spot. After breaking the array, Grey came to the front of the palace. The wooden door of the palace seemed shabby. Its surface was full of traces of time. With a slight push, the door collapsed like a decayed wood. The scent of decay that came from the inside made Grey frown slightly. He wasn''t in a hurry to go in. Instead, he scanned the surroundings with his spiritual energy. He wanted to make sure that there was no danger inside before stepping in. Although his strength had improved drastically, he didn''t allow it to get to his head. In a place like this where dangers could be found everywhere, there was no mistake in being careful wherever you went. Sensing no danger, Grey walked inside. The interior of the palace was very small and empty. There was nothing in it. It was gloomy, looking like a haunted house that gave people an extremely uncomfortable feeling. But very quickly, Grey saw a box in front. It was a black box. This was probably the only thing in the palace. ''Get that quickly. There must be something good inside the box'', Void urged. Grey walked forward and stopped in front of the box. Despite existing for so long, there wasn''t any mark on the box. It only showed how extraordinary the material used in making the box was. He picked up the box and felt its weight wasn''t as heavy as he expected. The box could be opened directly as there wasn''t any lock on it. Grey struck out an air wave using the wind element and the box flung open. For an instant, Grey''s vision blurred. Opening the box, he expected something to happen, but not this. Instead of it to give off a brilliant light, all Grey saw was darkness. It was like he was s.u.c.k.e.d inside the boundless space, the feeling was unique. Just as he was starting to feel something about it, everything returned to normal. A scroll could be seen floating at the top of the box. Grey stretched his hand and grabbed it. Opening it, the word ''Great Void Technique'' was written boldly at the top of it. Below it was the description of how to use the technique. "It''s a space element technique!", Grey exclaimed in delight. Void read the description of the technique and couldn''t help but suck in a cold breath. ''It''s just like my movement technique, only, it is more advanced. If only it was made for beasts'', Void said with disappointment evident in his tone. Because of how different the bodies of beasts are compared to humans, they couldn''t use the same techniques as humans and had to create their own. This movement technique was a very sophisticated technique that even Void wanted to acquire it. It was a shame the technique was for humans alone. "Haha, this is a great treasure", Grey was beside himself with joy. ''Why are you so happy? It''s not like you can use the space element'', Void asked on seeing the excited Grey. Hearing Void''s question, Grey refrained from answering. He didn''t know if he could trust Void yet, so he didn''t bother to answer. ''If I could comprehend this technique, then I wouldn''t have a problem comprehending the space element'', he thought. Although he tried to keep a poker face on, he couldn''t stop himself from smiling. He had been thinking about how he could comprehend the space element for a long time now. But unexpectedly, even after entering the Chaos space, he didn''t find anything related to the space element. This has stumped him for some time now, but it looks like his luck isn''t bad. Keeping the scroll, he once again observed the palace to ensure he didn''t miss anything. After confirming there was nothing else here, he turned around to leave the place. ..... Outside the palace, two youths could be seen looking at the palace. "This is where it came from", one of them said. The other narrowed his eyes to observe the palace closely. Following the darkness, it led them here. So, they were certain someone had acquired the treasure here or was about to. And the treasure was what brought about the darkness. For something to cause such a strange phenomenon, if it wasn''t a mysterious treasure, then what is? "We should head in, maybe the person hasn''t been able to acquire the treasure yet", the other youth suggested. They didn''t delay and started walking towards the palace, only to stop after taking four steps. Because, a figure who had a black cat on his shoulder was coming out from the palace, and from his expression, it looked like he obtained something good. "It''s you!", one of the youths pointed at Grey with anger visible in his eyes and his entire body trembling. Grey who just stepped out of the palace was stunned by the youth who pointed at him. He didn''t recall seeing this youth anywhere before. "And you are?", he asked in a confused tone. When the youth heard Grey''s question, he flared up once again. "You bastard! I''ll kill you and those friends of yours!", he shouted seemingly on the verge of going crazy. Tears could be seen at the side of his eyes. "I don''t recall having any conflicts with you", Grey who was smiling previously was currently frowning. "What happened", the other youth couldn''t help but inquire of his companion on seeing he was on the verge of losing himself to anger. The youth recounted his experience with Grey and his friends, but because of his anger, he couldn''t explain properly. But Grey heard one of his sentences clearly, and it immediately struck a bell. This was the youth Klaus kicked in the nether region! Chapter 120 - Youre Ruthless! I Like It! A weird expression appeared on Grey''s face when he recalled the incident. He remembered the youth blacked out from pain after getting kicked by Klaus before being stripped off his clothes by Klaus once again. When the youth saw Grey''s expression after recognizing him, he was enraged once more. He didn''t know what happened in the room after he fainted, but when he woke up, he was surprised to see his clothes were gone. Not just him, his friends also. When had he ever been embarrassed like that before? Never! That was the greatest humiliation he had ever faced in his life, but it was nothing compared to when he checked his nether region. The moment he saw the result of the kick he received, he passed out once again. How could he accept it? His eggs were shattered! His life as a man was gone! He hated Klaus, he hated his friends. The hatred sank deep into his bones that the only reason he was still very much alive had turned to revenge. He grounded his teeth so much that blood started flowing from his mouth. His nails had sunken deep into his flesh because of clenching his fists too hard. Grey seeing all this didn''t say anything, even if he were to apologize in Klaus''s stead, it wouldn''t change anything. From the bloodshot eyes of the youth, he knew the youth would rather die than accept an apology. He didn''t feel sorry for the youth though, they were opponents at that time, so there was nothing to feel sorry about. Although, if he were to find out the youth was turned into a eunuch after that kick, he might feel a little pity since he was also a man. "Since we''ve found one of them, we''ll kill him first before finding the rest. And it''s great he was the one who acquired the treasure", the other youth said. To him, Grey would die even if he didn''t have any previous encounter with his friend because he acquired the treasure they came searching for. But since he was someone his friend wanted to get revenge on, it wasn''t an issue since it was the same as killing two birds with one stone. He would collect the treasure, while his friend would get revenge. "No! I''ll make him go through what I went through first. Then cripple him, after that, I''ll drag him like a dog wherever I''m going until he dies!", the youth announced with a maniacal glint flashing through his eyes. He didn''t want Grey to die an easy death, he wanted him to suffer, he wanted him to beg for death, he wanted him to live a life worse than death! ''Isn''t this a little too excessive? What did you do to make him hate you so much?'', Void asked in a stunned voice. He was left speechless when he heard what the youth said he wanted to do to Grey. Grey was also at a loss of words, he wasn''t the one who even attacked the youth, yet, the youth was facing him with such strong animosity. "You''ve already suffered enough, I''ll give you a chance to keep your life if you leave now. I''m in no mood to play with you", Grey waved them away. Both youths were in the Third and Second stages of the Origin Plane respectively. Even if he couldn''t defeat them within a short time, he was confident he could defeat them in the end. "Hmph! A First stage Origin Plane Elementalist dares to be so arrogant in front of me", the other youth sneered. He was in the Third stage of the Origin Plane, there was no way someone in the First stage could defeat him. "Don''t underestimate him, he''s also a Dual Elementalist, and can easily fight across stages. We''ll join hands together to quickly take him down", the castrated youth said. The fact that he was angry didn''t cloud his senses, he remembered Grey defeated his friend who was a stage above him. "No one had ever fought across stages against me and won! I''ll defeat him myself", the youth declared proudly. He was the one who fights across stages, not the other way around. He was a genius from the Stellar empire, a Dual Elementalist, who would dare to say they could defeat him when they were one stage below him, talk less of two? "You''re right! There''s no way he can defeat you", the castrated youth nodded. Being driven by anger, he quickly put the thought of Grey being overly strong to the back of his mind. It wasn''t like he was alone, since he was here with someone even stronger than himself, he didn''t need to fear Grey. "When I''m done with him, I''ll leave him to you", the youth said while walking towards Grey leisurely. Grey sighed while shaking his head, he didn''t like unnecessary battles. "To save yourself the pain, why don''t you kill yourself", the youth said coldly. "You think you can beat me?", Grey looked at the youth with a playful look. "Heh, you think too highly of yourself. But before I beat you up, I''m quite curious about one thing though, where did you keep the treasure?", asked the youth. He didn''t see any bag with Grey, so he was curious about where Grey kept the treasure he acquired. Grey didn''t bother to answer, to him, talking so much nonsense with someone you wanted to beat up was a waste of time. ''Time to test out the strength of my body'', he thought. Standing ten meters away from the youth, Grey suddenly disappeared from his spot. "Huh!", the youth exclaimed in shock. Grey appeared within half a meter of him the next second and sent out a blow. Bam! Grey''s blow connected with the earth armor the youth created. And to the spectators surprise, and even Grey, the youth was sent flying. Bang! The youth slammed into the ground fifteen meters away from his previous location. Splatter! He vomited a mouthful of blood that had pieces of internal organs in it. Raising his head, he looked at Grey with fearful eyes. The earthen armor he created could defend against a full-power attack of someone in the Third stage of the Origin Plane. But now, there was a hole in the spot Grey punched! The castrated youth s.u.c.k.e.d in a cold breath. He was initially shocked by Grey''s speed, but the attack power of that blow almost made him faint from fright. "How can his physical strength be this high?!", he exclaimed in terror. Due to the strengthening the body gets from the elements when cultivating, it''s natural to see people with strong physical prowess. But he had never seen or heard of anyone whose body was as strong as Grey''s body. "Wow!", Grey exclaimed while looking at his hands in shock. Because he wanted to test the strength of his body, he used his full strength in that blow, and the power stunned him. He wasn''t too surprised by his speed since he also boosted his speed with the lightning and wind element. But the attack power shocked him greatly. This was almost the attack power of someone in the Fourth stage of the Origin Plane! "Attack together!", the injured youth quickly suppressed the injury and ordered. He regretted not heeding his friends'' words. His earthen armor had shattered and the spot where Grey''s blow connected was red. Although there were no physical injuries, he knew how strong the internal injury he suffered was. "Yes", the castrated youth nodded. They both surrounded Grey, with the injured youth at the front while the castrated youth was at his back. Grey felt slightly regretful though, had he known, he would have struck the youth on the head. That would have killed him for sure, but he didn''t bother though. He knew if not for the earth armor, then the injuries the youth suffered would have been stronger. The other reason the youth wasn''t fatally injured also attributed to the fact that since he was a Dual Elementalist, his body was stronger than Single Elementalists. Even though it wasn''t half as strong as Grey''s body, it was better than others. "He''s a monster!", the castrated youth yelled grief-stricken. ''How can his defenses be so strong? Why did I have to be enemies with someone like this?'', he thought in despair. To him, Grey was an enemy he didn''t want to have! Even after trying for so long, they had not been able to break through his defenses. Even when some of their attacks managed to connect, because some of its strengths had been reduced, it didn''t seem to affect him much. The other youth was also in despair, his heart was on the brink of failing him. He thought he was a genius, but on encountering Grey, he knew he was nothing. Grey was also surprised by how strong his body was. He didn''t expect his body''s defense would increase by this much. Ten minutes later... "Please, spare me", the castrated youth cried out with snot running down his nose. Grey had already killed his companion, now he was the only one left. Initially, he thought he couldn''t live because he had been castrated, but now, Bullshit! He wanted to live, even if he wouldn''t have a child it doesn''t matter, as long as he''s alive, he was okay. "I''m sorry, I don''t give second chances", Grey said coldly before attacking. Thud! The lifeless body of the youth fell on the ground. ''You''re ruthless! I like it!'', Void said while once again taking his position in Grey''s shoulder. "Let''s go" Chapter 121 - Or What? After Grey acquired the Great Void technique, he unexpectedly didn''t find any other thing. Other than clearing the path of all monsters he saw on the way, he didn''t do anything else. He soon got to the end of the path, and it was blocked! He couldn''t help but ask Void if his senses were correct. Void first complained about being doubted before telling him he could still sense it, and the energy was coming from the other side of the wall that blocked the path. Grey further studied the wall and found out there was a seal on it. It seems he would have to wait for it to open automatically. Having nothing to do, he couldn''t help but think of his friends. ....... On the other side, Klaus and the other two had just arrived at the end of the ancient path they took. When they got there, there were also other geniuses looking around, trying to find the entrance to the place the final treasure was located, but to no avail. "How come the path is blocked?", Klaus asked with a confused expression. "I don''t know, but I suppose this should be the end of the path. But... Where is the Great Earth Essence Liquid?", Reynolds looked around. After Alice recovered slightly from her injury, the trio continued the journey, and other than the technique Klaus found, they found nothing else. Had Klaus not gotten that technique, he would have thought the expert was playing tricks on them. Since the path ahead of them was blocked with no other way to advance, it only meant one thing, they were already at the end of the path! But since they were already at the end, then where was the treasure the expert promised they''ll find after getting to the end of the path? "There''s an opening, only, it looks like this place is sealed and we''ll have to wait for it to open", Alice deducted after studying the wall closely "Doesn''t this mean that acquiring the treasure would become harder?", Reynolds counted the youths present and including them, they were ten. Since the path is sealed, it meant there was a chance for more people to appear, this will further increase the difficulty of acquiring the treasure. There were multiple paths and others might have also reached the end of them. It was unknown if these were the only ones who would end up at this particular path since most of the paths intersected. Amongst the other seven youths, there was one he had seen before, he was certain the person was from the Qilin empire, but he didn''t know which Academy she was from. He nodded as a form of greeting, to which the other party responded with a smile that showed her dimples. The young lady had an average height, she was around sixteen to seventeen years old, her pure face and appearance were particularly alluring Seeing the exchange between the two, Klaus drew closer to Reynolds and threw his hand on his shoulder. "Seems like someone caught your eye", he said with a mischievous smile. Reynolds seeing the smile on Klaus''s face couldn''t help but shake his head. "You think everyone is like you?", he glared at him before shifting his attention back to the wall blocking their paths. He couldn''t be bothered with what Klaus was thinking, he didn''t even know the young lady and only recognized her because he saw her when they got to the Magical beasts forest. "That''s why they are living an uninteresting lifestyle", he chuckled while darting a glance at the girl once more before nodding in approval. ''At least your taste isn''t bad'', he thought. With nothing left to do, they waited just like the others who got here before them. ........... On Grey''s end. Since there nothing he could do, he started cultivating. Thirty minutes later, some youths started appearing and within another thirty minutes, the people gathered here including Grey were ten. And the Darkness Elementalist was surprisingly one of them. When the youths couldn''t find the passageway to where the Great Earth Essence Liquid was, they were irked. "What is going on? We have reached the end of the path. Why is there no access to where the Great Earth Essence Liquid? Could it be that we have been tricked by the old man?" "There''s an eighty percent chance that we have been tricked. The old man said that each of the fifty-four ancient paths contained treasures and dangers, but we have come all the way here peacefully without discovering any treasures. We didn''t even encounter any dangers. Not even a beast has emerged. It was just like a pointless wander" "Don''t talk anymore. I''m afraid that this ancient path isn''t as simple as we had imagined. We should continue to look for the passageway once more" Most of the people were distressed. They began to have lesser respect towards the old expert. Some started to call him old man. As a matter of fact, they had grown depressed along the journey of this ancient path. After reading the words on the stone slab, they felt that this ancient path must have rare treasures. Even if there weren''t any great treasures, there had to be at least some essence stones or some sort of elemental weapons. Unexpectedly, they had gotten nothing even though they had reached the end of the path. This might not be the most depressing thing. The thing that depressed them the most was that they didn''t even encounter a single creature. Where were the treasures that were mentioned? How about the dangers? If they weren''t being tricked, then what would it be? Of the ten people who were here, about six of them used the same path Grey followed. So it was expected they all felt scammed. And because they didn''t find anything nor did they face any dangers, doubts started welling up in their minds. It was like they were taking a peaceful stroll in their backyards! In fact, their backyards were more dangerous than these ancient paths. They all felt the old man was a trickster when he was alive and even when he was close to death he didn''t spare them and set up this big ploy for them. Listening to the complaints of these people, Grey whose eyes were closed couldn''t help but smile, because all the treasures and dangers of the path had been met by him. The only thing he didn''t acquire was the legacy, and it was because he decided to leave it for someone else. First, he acquired the greatest treasure of the expert, then, he was transported to the castle the legacy was located, and then, he found an extremely rare space element technique. What was luck? This was! In truth, amongst all the geniuses here, the Darkness Elementalist was the most depressed one. Not only had he gotten nothing, but the time he finally found something he wanted, it was obtained by others. When he wanted to reclaim it, he kept on getting stopped by others. He was even almost fatally injured by Klaus. His pride as a genius was shattered on multiple occasions by the trio. The more he thought about them, the angrier he got. ''Hmph! After acquiring the Great Earth Essence Liquid, I''ll refine one to boost my strength. Then I''ll kill them all'', he thought coldly. Being a proud person, when had he ever been stepped on? Never! He had never even lost before, but this time, he not only lost, but he had to run away like a dog with his tail between his legs just so he could keep his life. He had always looked down on people who ran away from battles, yet, he did the same thing. How embarrassing! After calming himself a little, he managed to study the wall and realized there was a seal on it. ''Hmm, it''s just like the one on the door'', he raised his brow. He wasn''t the only one who noticed it, others also noticed it, that was why they were all waiting. "Hmph!", snorting coldly, the Darkness Elementalist walked closer to the door. The others made way for him when they saw him coming, they all recognized him, and didn''t plan on offending him. "Stand up and move five meters backward. No one is allowed to get this close to the wall", he said coldly to Grey who had his eyes closed. Grey slowly opened his eyes and a fierce glow shot out of them. The Darkness Elementalist was so shocked by the fierce glow that he unconsciously took a step back. The moment he realized what happened, waves of embarrassment surged in his heart and he instantly flared up. "Get up now! I don''t like repeating myself!", he yelled angrily. The others who were watching took some steps back and started pitying Grey because he was about to be picked on by the Darkness Elementalist. Just then, they all heard something that almost made them faint. The youth who was clearly in the First stage of the Origin Plane, and looked innocent asked a question that threw them off their feet. "Or what?" Chapter 122 - Blue Fire! Grey stared at the young man before him with his emotionless eyes without even making an attempt to stand up. How could he allow others to step on him as they like? Had this happened before his upgrade, then he would have let it slide since he wasn''t a match for the Darkness Elementalist at that time. But now, to hell with him! The crowd looked at Grey like he had a screw loose. ''Brother, are you tired of living? How can you ask him such a question? Didn''t you see him outside when he killed someone instantly? Even though it might be due to his opponent''s carelessness, his strength was still clear for all to see! And you still have the guts to ask him ''or what''?'' This was what was running through the head of everyone. Some even shook their heads thinking Grey was just seeking death. But some couldn''t help to admire his fearlessness. They had to admit that if they were in his position, they would have already gone not just five meters backward, but ten! "It''s good you''re sensible, now scra... Wait what?!", the Darkness Elementalist not expecting Grey to ask him such a question had already started rambling on before he realized what Grey said. He was on the verge of going mad! Why did people keep on obstructing him today? Who did he offend? Things all started going awry after clashing with Alice and the others. Since then, nothing good had happened to him. Now an ant even dared to refute him! What insolence! He would not take this lying! Without thinking, he launched an assault on Grey who was a couple of steps away from him. Now, even if Grey begged him, he would still kill the insolent bastard! The others all shook their heads in pity, such a handsome and brave young man was about to be killed. Already concluding that Grey was dead, some didn''t even bother to see how he would be killed. But the outcome of the attack once again threw those who watched off their feet that some even rubbed their eyes violently to confirm if they weren''t seeing things. Bam! The sound of a blow connecting resonated in the path before a figure was sent flying. Looking closer, the figure who was still standing was none other than the innocent-looking young man. Bang! Pu! The Darkness Elementalist slammed into the wall before coughing out a mouthful of blood. Grey who was previously in a sitting position was currently standing with both legs apart, and his left hand outstretched. His hand was still clenched into a fist. From his stance, it was easy to deduce he just struck out a blow. "Are my eyes failing me? How did he move at such speed?", one of the youths amongst the crowd asked in disbelief. He couldn''t believe it, if not for seeing it personally, he would have never believed something like this could happen even if he was beaten to death. How can someone in the First stage of Origin Plane, send the Darkness Elementalist who was not only two stages ahead of him, he had even instantly killed someone in the same stage as himself flying? It was impossible! "Maybe it was because it was a surprise attack", another youth chipped in still clearly in a state of shock because of what just happened. "Surprise attack your head! How do you call that a surprise attack? The victim of the surprise attack was clearly him", one of the few people who admired Grey''s bravery quickly jumped into the conversation to defend him. Due to the Darkness Elementalist attacking suddenly, he deemed it as a surprise attack. Unknown to Grey, because he stood up to the Darkness Elementalist, he had acquired some fans. Even if he knew, he wouldn''t be bothered with it. All he did was stand up for himself and nothing more. "You...", the Darkness Elementalist was about to speak, but... Pu! Due to the agitation he was feeling, he coughed up another mouthful of blood. What sort of monster did he encounter? If not for his quick reaction and strong body, that blow would have injured him fatally. Since he was a Multi Elementalist, his body was naturally stronger than that of Dual Elementalists. With anger surging in his heart, veins could be seen appearing on his forehead. He was infuriated! How can someone two stages below him, send him flying. He had thought Klaus''s group were monsters, but this young man in front of him was even more monstrous than they were. Others might think that Grey used the elements to boost the strength of his blow just like how Elementalists does while still in the Collection and Fusion Plane, but he knew otherwise. This was the pure power of Grey''s brute strength. While the Darkness Elementalist was still thinking about how Grey''s physical body could be that strong. Grey looked at his hands and a look of disappointment flashed on his face. ''*Sigh* It''s a shame this blow didn''t kill him. Although... This outcome isn''t bad either since I''ll get the opportunity to fight with him'', he sighed while shaking his head. Seeing Grey sigh with a look of disappointment appearing on his face, the crowd were all curious why he would show such an expression. ''You just sent someone we wouldn''t even dare to refute flying! What''s up with that expression?'' Some of them were yelling in their heads. After a minute went by, the Darkness Elementalist had been able to clear his head. He knew one of the reasons Grey was able to easily strike him was because he was too agitated and because of that, he left an opening for Grey to exploit when he wanted to attack him. He slowly walked closer to Grey, preparing to strike once more. But after taking some steps, he paused and retreated one step backward. He didn''t dare to get close to him, he had already experienced Grey''s formidable physical strength. Only a fool would allow himself to be hit twice. Noticing the Darkness Elementalist didn''t dare to come close, Grey''s lip curved upwards to form a smirk. ''Looks like he''s wary of my physical power'', thought Grey. He had already expected this though. It was just like that youth he fought with previously, after the youth noticed getting close to him while fighting was a mistake, he didn''t dare to get close to him any longer. Without further delay, both parties sent out attacks. Grey sent out a ball of blue flames. This was the first time he was using his blue flame since awakening his fire element. The Darkness Elementalists used his strongest element, which was the darkness element. Boom! Both attacks clashed and the shockwave spread out in all directions. The spectators all retreated further on seeing the power of the attack. Grey was pushed one step backward, while the Darkness Elementalists was pushed three steps backward. The result of the clash was visible for all to see, Grey won! Although this one clash shouldn''t be used to determine the final outcome of the battle, but the spectators were still thrown into an uproar. One of the fighters was a Third stage Origin Plane Darkness Elementalist, while the other was a First stage Origin Plane Fire Elementalist. The former was regarded as one of the strongest, if not the strongest person who entered the trial land, while the latter was an unknown bystander. The crowd wasn''t aware of both fighters being Multi Elementalists because they had only seen them use one element each. "Did you see that? The color of his fire was blue!" A yell brought everyone back from their absentminded state. And they all once again stared at the young man in shock. Just when they thought he was done surprising them, he would do something even greater than what he did previously. Elementalists with special colors for their elements were just as rare as Darkness and Light Elementalists. The strength of their attacks was always stronger than that of others with the same element and on the same stage. "How is this possible?", muttered the Darkness Elementalist. He had almost pulled out his hair from dragging it too much. Grey had almost sent him into a frenzy. His eyes were slowly turning bloodshot. Grey was also shocked by the power of his blue flame, he never expected it to be this strong. ''It''s because of the grade'', he thought. This was the only reason he could think of that made the attack power stronger than that of the Darkness Elementalist. Crack! The sound of walls cracking reverberated in the path. Everyone including Grey and the Darkness Elementalists shifted their attention to the source of the noise. The wall blocking the path was cracking rapidly. Boom! The wall soon exploded with debris flying in all directions. Everyone used their various elements to block the pieces that went their way. "This isn''t over!", the Darkness Elementalist yelled loudly before dashing past the newly opened path. Although he wanted to kill Grey, his top priority still remained acquiring the treasure. Grey didn''t delay and just like the Darkness Elementalist, he also rushed past the path. He recalled hearing the other youths speak of the Great Earth Essence Liquid, he knew of it, so he also wanted to vie for it. After he went through, the others also followed behind. This wasn''t the only wall that opened, the walls at the other paths also opened up. Now the true struggle had begun! Chapter 123 - Ancient Temple On the path where Klaus and the other two were located. Crack! Crack! On hearing the sound of the wall cracking, everyone stood up and stared at the wall intently. Some moments later. Bang! The wall exploded. Everyone protected themselves from the pieces. "It''s the passageway that leads to where the Great Earth Essence Liquid is located. I never thought it will activate on its own" "Haha! I thought that we had been tricked. Let''s go!" "What are you all waiting for? Go now! If someone else reaches there first, I''m afraid we won''t be able to get any share of the precious liquid" The sudden appearance of the channel excited everyone who was irritated just moments ago. One by one, they rushed towards the channel. After all, most of them hadn''t gotten anything in the ancient path and weren''t feeling very good. They were eager to be the first to reach where the treasure was as they were certain that the treasures there would be extraordinary. If they could obtain some of it, their trip here would be worth it. The passageway was very short and within five seconds, they were all out of it. When Klaus and the rest walked out of it, they saw silhouettes emerging from different directions. They were coming out from different ancient paths. For a moment, at least sixty people had appeared in this place and the number was still increasing. There was a hint of consternation on everyone''s face. Obviously, this situation was beyond their imagination. Many of them were thinking the same thing ''be the first to get in so that they could seize the treasure''. But now, it seemed like their plan had failed. However, none on the scene was an idiot. Very quickly, they understood the key to this situation. Clearly, the passageway of the fifty-four ancient paths were opened at the same time. Before it was opened, numerous people had already been waiting like Klaus and company at the end of their respective ancient paths. This explained why so many people had appeared as soon as the passageway was opened. This was the only explanation. "It seems like many have died on the way", said Alice. Anyone was able to discern this. From the beginning, there were over one hundred and fifty people who entered this place. Now, there were only sixty of them. Taking into account those who were coming in and still in the ancient paths, there were only about one hundred at most. That was to say, nearly fifty geniuses or even more had died in the fifty-four ancient paths. This was undeniably cruel, but anyone who decided to step into the trial land knew that dangers and cruelty co-existed together, and must be prepared to die. Death could occur at any time. There were battles between humans and also against creatures and the presence of other dangers in the place. Therefore, it was very normal for over fifty people to die along the way. "Look, it''s Grey. Let''s head over", Reynolds was the first to spot Grey. Since the people here weren''t that many, it was easy for them to spot Grey. They all went in his direction. ........... After Grey came out of the passageway he didn''t spot the Darkness Elementalist, but he was quite surprised by the number of people who were coming out from different paths though. It didn''t take long for him to realize what happened. ''All the paths opened simultaneously'', he placed his hand on his chin. Void was lying on his shoulder lazily. Grey sensed some movement from his right and turned towards that direction. He saw his friends coming towards him and a smile formed on his face, but his face soon went cold when he noticed Alice was injured. Even though she hadn''t come close to him yet, he was able to realize it from her movement. "What happened?", he asked the moment they got close. When Klaus and Reynolds heard the question, their smiling faces also went cold. Klaus went on to recount what happened to him through gritted teeth. Although he was able to injure the Darkness Elementalist before he left, he still hoped they should kill him. On hearing Alice almost died under the hands of the Darkness Elementalist, killing intent flashed through Grey''s eyes. He had promised himself to grow stronger to protect his family and friends. Now, he heard someone nearly killed his friend, he was infuriated. "He''s a dead man", he said icily. Initially, the only reason he wanted to fight with the Darkness Elementalist was just to test out his strength. But now, it had turned into a death battle. He would kill him no matter what, even if it meant entering the Fusion State! "We know", Klaus and Reynolds said simultaneously. Soon the trio started planning their revenge, and they completely forgot about Alice''s presence even though she was the reason they were planning revenge on the Darkness Elementalist in the first place. Alice felt happy seeing how her friends were already planning revenge on her stead. She couldn''t hope for better friends, although, she pouted when she realized they had all forgotten about her presence. Just as she was about to complain, Void caught her attention. "What a strange cat. Grey, where did you find it?", she asked curiously while gazing at Void. "An egg", Grey replied offhandedly and continued planning with the others. Void threw a glance at Alice but shut his eyes once more. Hearing Grey''s response, Alice almost rushed forward to attack him. ''What do you mean an egg? Do I look like a fool? If not for the fact that you''re planning on getting revenge for me, I''d have beaten you up!'', she complained internally but decided to let them be. ............. The other geniuses who came here all looked around. Some started complaining when they realized what happened. "Motherf***er! The old man does know how to play tricks. He has tricked us all even though he has already passed away. All the passageways are opened simultaneously. Even if there is a Great Earth Essence Liquid, it''s going to be a fierce fight" "That''s true. Look, even the Darkness Elementalist is here. Who''s able to compete with him? And there are those peerless geniuses of the Royal families and a few other Third stage Origin Plane geniuses. We won''t stand a chance in their presence." "Well, that''s not necessarily true. Even if we can''t get the Great Earth Essence Liquid, we may still able to get some other treasures. We can''t just go back with empty hands." Plenty of them with weaker strength began to feel slightly disheartened. This wasn''t the result they expected and was the last thing they wanted to see. With so many geniuses here, it had become even harder for them to obtain any treasure, but most of them revealed ruthlessness in their eyes. Since they had already come here, they couldn''t let themselves return empty-handed. Even if the competition was fierce, they couldn''t just give up like that. "There''s an ancient temple ahead. The Great Earth Essence Liquid is just ahead." Someone roared, stirring everyone into motion. Each of them shouted excitedly and ran towards the ancient temple with their fastest speed possible, fearing that they might be later than the others. .......... "The ancient temple has already existed for countless years. It must be left behind by the Old man. It should be the place that holds most of his treasures. The nine drops of Great Earth Essence Liquid should be inside. Let''s go over as well," said Grey. They all dashed towards the direction where everyone was going. That was the most important part of this place. Everyone ran towards the ancient temple. The strongest people that appeared on the scene traveled extremely fast. They reached the destination in a matter of a few seconds. Everyone opened their mouths, shocked by the scene. Ahead was a vast and empty field, the only thing visible was the ancient temple suspending in the air. The temple didn''t seem huge and only had a dozen of rooms and an ancient palace inside. The palace and rooms were fiery red. Even after an extremely long period of time, the brilliance of the place didn''t seem to diminish in the slightest. What really attracted the people''s attention was the mysterious crystal-like pond in the temple. It wasn''t huge and only had a size of one square foot. It was completely condensed using fire, red and the shape of lotus flowers were engraved on its surface. The illumination of the light seemed to be making it come to life. Everyone marveled at the sight of it. Buzz! Buzz! The crystal-like pond shook. Nine rays of light as white as jade shot out of it up to the sky like nine heavenly swords rising into the heaven. Each light seemed solid and radiated the unconcealed pure Essence of the World. The emergence of the white light immediately attracted the attention of everyone. "Look, the light is emanated by the nine drops of Great Earth Essence Liquid. The Great Earth Essence Liquid is just inside the pond" "That''s right. It has to be the Great Earth Essence Liquid. That''s the essence of the World, and is extremely precious" "Sure enough, the old man didn''t lie to us. There are truly nine drops of Great Earth Essence Liquid here. If I can obtain just a drop of it, the benefits will be inestimable. My elemental grade will increase and I will even see a breakthrough in my stage" Everyone was excited. The Great Earth Essence Liquid was an unparalleled natural treasure that had the effect of increasing one''s elemental grade. It also had a great healing property. It was so attractive that even a Peak Overlord Plane expert would be influenced by it. If words about the Great Earth Essence Liquid were to spread out, it would inevitably cause chaos and attract thousands of experts here to compete for it. It might even stir up a war in the empires. "I must get the Great Earth Essence Liquid", A young man could no longer control his emotion and was the first to run towards the pond. Upon seeing this, Grey couldn''t help but shake his head. This bastard was being too impulsive. He should at least gauge his own strength before doing so. How dare a puny little Ninth stage Arcane Plane Elementalist go and seize the Great Earth Essence Liquid? That was no different from seeking death. Swoosh! Sure enough, before that young man could get to the pond, a silver sword appeared from behind to slash him into half before he could even let out a wail. "Hmph! How dare an insect like you try to get the Great Earth Essence Liquid first before measuring your capabilities" Chapter 124 - The Protectors "Hmph! How dare an insect like you try to get the Great Earth Essence Liquid first before measuring your capabilities" A young man snorted coldly. A youth in blue clothing emerged from the crowd. He was a genius from the Royal family of the Blue Wind empire and was also one of the few people in the Third stage of the Origin Plane that was present here. From his previous attack, everyone was able to discern that he was a Lightning Elementalist. His strength sent chills down people''s spine. The strength of this young man jolted those who were not strong enough but were ready to rush towards the pond back to reality. Most of them showed disappointment in their eyes. After that, they began to shake their heads before sighing. Although they didn''t want to admit it, they knew it in their hearts that the Great Earth Essence Liquid was no longer related to them. It was something they could never touch. "Do we have to make a move?", Reynolds asked while staring at the pond. "Be patient. This isn''t as easy as it seems", replied Grey. According to the style of the expert, and his experience when he wanted to obtain the blue flame, he knew there was no way they would be able to acquire this treasure easily. Compared to what he faced in the volcano, the dangers in the ancient paths were a walk in the park for him. And the reason for that was because according to the expert, the blue flame and lotus were his greatest treasure. While he was still thinking about what the possible obstacles they would face could be, he sensed a gaze, turning his head in the direction he felt the gaze coming from. About two hundred meters away from their group, he saw a youth staring at them with eyes filled with unconcealed killing intent. Other than the Darkness Elementalist, who else would look at the group with such killing intent? After the Darkness Elementalist charged through the passageway, he moved a couple of meters before spotting the group he came here with. He went over to join them. The reason he was still among the crowd and hadn''t stepped forward to try to obtain the Great Earth Essence Liquid was that he was still feeling irritated from his previous battle with Grey, and also because no one had dared to obtain it. When he saw the first person who ran forward, he sneered in contempt after noticing his strength. He was about to make a move when the youth from the Blue Wind empire made a move. Just as he was looking around, he caught sight of a familiar figure that has been engraved in his head even though their contact wasn''t long. When he saw the people he was grouped with, a look of incredulity appeared on his face. ''How can they be friends?'', the Darkness Elementalist howled internally. The four people he hated the most in his life were unexpectedly friends. Had it been that only the first trio he encountered were friends, it wouldn''t have been as shocking as four of them being friends. His confidence was first shattered by Alice, then, he was almost killed by Klaus and Reynolds joint assault, then, he encountered the monster known as Grey. These were the first people among his generation he had ever felt inferior to. What was worse was that he was not only a Multi Elementalist, not only was his stage higher than theirs, but he also had the rare darkness element to boot. Yet, he felt inferior to a Dual Elementalist who was a stage below him, A Water Elementalist who was also a stage below, A Lightning Elementalist who was two stages below him and was a high-grade summoner, and lastly, an innocent-looking Fire Elementalist who was two stages below him, had blue flames instead of red and had terrifying physical strength. He started trembling unconsciously because of anger. Unrestrained rage and killing intent were visible in his eyes. But surprisingly, rage and killing intent wasn''t the only thing visible in his eyes, a slight trace of fear appeared without him knowing. When Grey made eye contact with him, he felt the other party''s fighting intent. He unconsciously prepared himself to attack. Just as he was about to make the first move... "Are you okay?" A voice brought him out of his enraged state. Hearing the voice, he calmed himself and shifted his gaze from Grey and his group. "I''m fine. We should focus on getting the Great Earth Essence Liquid, for now", he replied coldly. The person who spoke previously was one of the youths in his group. When the youth saw the Darkness Elementalist almost losing himself to anger, he was stunned. He had known him for a long time and knew how calm he was. This was the first time he had seen him like this. ............. "What''s up?", Klaus nudged Grey with his shoulder when he realized he wasn''t paying attention. "Our target", Grey used his head to point Klaus in the Darkness Elementalist''s direction. Following the direction Grey showed him, he saw the Darkness Elementalist with his group. "Hmph! He won''t leave this place alive", he snorted coldly. "That''s not going to be easy though, you should be aware of the stages of his companions", said Grey. ''Hmm", Klaus nodded. If they ganged up on the Darkness Elementalist alone, then the chances of killing him were quite high. But since he was with his group, if they attacked him now, there was a possibility the other parties might reverse the situation. Including the Darkness Elementalist, their group contained four other Second stage Origin Plane Elementalist. In Grey''s group, the one with the highest stage was Alice and Klaus who were each in the Second stage. Although they had no problem with facing them one on one, they were one man short, so the other group not only had the advantage in terms of cultivation stage, they also had the advantage in numbers. .......... After a man has been killed, it created a great deterrent force. The genius from the Blue Wind empire wore a smile on his face. He sent out a palm strike at the pond. Just as the enormous lightning palm was about to touch the pond, a ray of light shone from outside the pond, then a large fire palm materialized and collided with the genius''s palm. Bang! The power was ancient and extremely strong. Shuuu! Fiery red lights began to rush out around the pond. One by one, each light rapidly materialized and turned into nine warriors that were completely made out of fire. "Elemental Warriors!", A youth in the crowd yelled out Seeing the nine warriors appear out of thin air, everyone gasped in shock. When they all sensed the stages of the Elemental Warriors, they were all sent into an uproar. "They are all in the Fifth stage in the Origin Plane", the genius from the Blue Wind empire furrowed his brow. This was getting harder and harder. .......... When Grey saw the Elemental Warriors appear, he wasn''t too surprised. "Hmm, sure enough, it isn''t as simple. Let''s wait and see", he said. The nine Elemental Warriors had always been hiding in the pond. They would only emerge if someone tried to touch the pond. Grey had expected an obstacle, so he was incomparably calm. "They seem to be protecting the pond", said Reynolds. The others nodded to what he said. Getting past these nine Elemental Warriors wouldn''t be easy, from the positions they took, it was easy for them to help each other out. ............. The sudden appearance of the protectors immediately set off a wave of commotion. Most of them were astounded. The means of the old expert was certainly unimaginable. Fortunately, the Elemental Warriors just stood close to the pond. Their duty was to guard the pond and the ancient temple. They would never take the initiative to attack, so, as long as one didn''t go near the pond, one wouldn''t be attacked by them. "Let me see how powerful these Elemental Warriors are", the Darkness Elementalist walked out. When the crowd saw the Darkness Elementalist step out, they all waited curiously for the result of his test. He steadied himself and blasted out two attacks simultaneously, one was his darkness element and the other was his lightning element. The Elemental Warriors easily dispersed his attack and forced him back by three steps. His expression began to change. "So powerful! Each of them possesses strength slightly greater than my own, and they could join forces with one another during the most critical moment. It''s almost impossible to get past them and obtain the Great Earth Essence Liquid inside", he said. The circ.u.mstance was already clear for all to see, the only way for them to obtain the Great Earth Essence Liquid is to get rid of these protectors! Chapter 125 - Multi Elementalist "Let me try it one more time", the Darkness Elementalist said. This time, compared to the first time when he struck out, a look of utmost seriousness appeared on his face. When the crowd heard he wanted to try again even after being pushed back the first time, they all focused their attention on him once again. They knew since he wanted to try it once more, it meant the previous attack wasn''t his strongest. For most of the people here, they felt only the Darkness Elementalist could possibly fight these protectors and get the Great Earth Essence Liquid. The Darkness Elementalist''s body fluctuated. The mighty aura of an Origin Plane Elementalist was unleashed from his body, but surprisingly, instead of releasing the aura of someone in the Third stage, the aura he was releasing was on par with those in the peak of the Fourth stage even though he was still clearly in the Third stage. Under the impact of the powerful aura, everyone could feel tremendous pressure. The face of the genius from the Blue Wind empire turned pale from shock. ''How can he be so strong?'', he looked at the youth ahead in fear. The presence of the Darkness Elementalist had made it extremely difficult for the others who were at the Third stage like himself to obtain the Great Earth Essence Liquid. The difference between their strengths was shocking. From the look of things, he wouldn''t have a problem fighting more than two Third stage Origin Plane Elementalist. The Darkness Elementalist took one step after another, he strode towards the pond confidently. Unlike the time he battled with Grey or Alice and the group, his current demeanor was completely different. Currently, the air of an expert was revolving all around him. This was his true strength! If not for the fact that he was suppressed due to Alice''s perfect timing when attacking and strong attacks, or Klaus and Reynolds''s perfect teamwork, or Grey''s unexpectedly strong physical prowess and terrifying blue flames. He wouldn''t have been put in such a bad position by them. Who was he? He was a peerless genius! Well, until he encountered the freakish four though. Since then, things came crashing down. But now, it was his time to shine once more. He would show everyone here just how strong he truly was! They seemed to be adjusting their energy as though they could feel the difference in power of the opponent. The Darkness Elementalist launched his move. Compared to the first time, this move looked simple due to his body language, but it was anything but ordinary. This was an attack that should never be underestimated. Because, the strike contained all three elements he had in his arsenal. Darkness element, lightning element, and fire element. When the crowd saw him wielding all three elements simultaneously, their eyes enlarged into perfect circles. They initially thought he was a Single Elementalist, even then, they didn''t have any hopes of competing with him. But now, he wasn''t even a Dual Elementalist, but a Multi Elementalist. How could someone be this terrifying? "M...Mu...Multi Elementalist!", a stammering voice was heard from the crowd. Even Grey''s gaze turned intent when he realized the Darkness Elementalist was actually a rare Multi Elementalist. This was the first time he was encountering a Multi Elementalist other himself. Although he had spent a lot of time with Chris, he still had no idea Chris was a Multi Elementalist. There were only a few people who were aware of this. Even though the crowd was stunned by the fact that the Darkness Elementalist was actually a Multi Elementalist, they threw it at the back of their heads for now and focused fully on the protectors. The attack contained three elements, and they were all very close to each other. The three elements were aimed at one of the protectors. As though feeling the attack''s direction, the nine of them instantly wheeled to form a circle and aimed their palms at one of the protectors. For an instant, all the energy had converged in the body of the particular protector. A ray of energy wave rushed out of his head. The protector''s move was pretty mesmerizing, it struck out what looked like a seal, and a huge fire snake roared to life out of it. Roar! Boom! The snake rushed out of the seal and clashed with the attack of the Darkness Elementalist before both attacks exploded out. When the attacks exploded, everyone felt how terrifying both attacks were. Compared to the first attacks both parties used, the power in these ones was like night and day. Those geniuses who were close to the battle felt it hard to breathe and began to hastily retreat. If one got hit directly by such a residual wave, it would surely be fatal, especially for those First stage Origin Plane Elementalist and below who had too little power to counter it. Grey and his group didn''t retreat from their previous location though, they didn''t get too close when the battle was about to start, so the residual wave that got to them was something they could all handle easily. When Alice saw this attack, her heart trembled. "So this is his true strength", she muttered. She thought she had seen his true strength previously, but it seemed like the situation didn''t allow him to show his full strength at that time. Now that she saw him use this attack, she was left speechless. The way Grey looked at the Darkness Elementalist had taken a turn. ''Although the attack power isn''t as strong as when I''m in the Fusion State, for him to unleash this sort of strength naturally, is terrifying'', he was left in awe by the strength the Darkness Elementalist just showcased. He couldn''t deny the fact that the Darkness Elementalist was the strongest genius in his generation that he had ever encountered. Grey was almost certain there was no one in the Lunar Academy who was below twenty years of age that could match up to the power this young man just displayed. If he were to find out that because of searching for this treasure the Darkness Elementalist didn''t boost his strength properly in these two months, his evaluation of him would be a notch higher. "He''s strong", said Reynolds. "Yeah", Klaus nodded while staring at the clash that was slowly dying down. "But it doesn''t change the fact that we''ll kill him", he added. "It will make it more worthwhile. It would be a shame if he couldn''t fight back", Reynolds chuckled. "Yeah. Now, all we have to do is find a way to corner him alone", Klaus said. His previous plan was to attack the Darkness Elementalist here, but it looked like that plan has been thrown into the garbage, and the garbage was set ablaze. So now, he brought up a new plan! The strength the Darkness Elementalist showed had made both Klaus and Reynolds apprehensive. Now they understood it was because of their flawless teamwork that made it hard for the Darkness Elementalist to attack them. If not for them not giving him a breather, then there was a big chance he might have been able to turn the tides given the strength he just showed. Had he been able to use this attack on them once, then it was unknown who would have retreated from the battle. Who were they kidding? This young man was too strong that their resolve to kill him was even starting to waver. Besides, they were able to save Alice in time and even injured him. That counts as something, right? ...... A minute later. The dreadful attack died down completely, and the results of it shocked everyone present. Most of them thought that the Darkness Elementalist''s attack would definitely destroy at least one of the protectors. However, the attack of the Darkness Elementalist didn''t cause any harm to the protectors. Instead, the powerful seal that the snake came out from made the Darkness Elementalist somewhat uncomfortable. "The protectors are truly too powerful! The strength of these nine protectors can perfectly overlap and merge together. Even if I were to tire myself to death from attacking, there''s no way I can break their defense and step into the pond", the Darkness Elementalist whose face exuded arrogance when he was attacking previously had turned sour. "Not even the Darkness Elementalist is their match. Could it be that there''s no way to break through their defense? Doesn''t that mean that we won''t be able to get the Great Earth Essence Liquid? I believe there are still some benefits in the ancient temple. Will we be leaving this place without obtaining anything" "These protectors are just too strong. It''s extremely difficult to break their defense" Everyone sighed. The feeling of witnessing the existence of the nine drops of Great Earth Essence Liquid but couldn''t obtain it was certainly very painful. Just how powerful was the old man for him to create such protectors? They were even Elemental Warriors to boot! How did he expect them to obtain the treasure with these almost insurmountable mountain he placed in front of it? Chapter 126 - Alliance After seeing the outcome of this attack, Grey was able to estimate the overall strength of the protectors. ''If I go all out, I shouldn''t have a problem with breaking the defense of these protectors. But escaping with the Great Earth Essence Liquid is easier said than done'', with a calm expression he observed everything happening. Just like everyone here, he also wanted to obtain all the drops here. Only, unlike everyone, he was one of the few people, if not the only person who could confidently say he can obtain them single-handedly. ........ The Darkness Elementalist''s eyes swept back and forth the nine protectors. After studying their strength, he spoke to the crowd. "Everyone, the nine protectors are too powerful. Even my power won''t be able to destroy them. Now that the Great Earth Essence Liquid is just ahead of us, we can''t just let go of this chance. I invite all Third stage Origin Plane Elementalist here to fight with me. My companions will take on two of the protectors. I have already discerned that these protectors can combine into a single unit. As long as we attack from different directions, we will be able to break their formation, and their defense will then break, automatically." The Darkness Elementalist''s words immediately caused a commotion. Those few Third stage Origin Plane Elementalist exchanged glances, feeling what the Darkness Elementalist said was right. For the sake of the Great Earth Essence Liquid, this was the best and only way. Initially before passing through the door, including the Darkness Elementalist, there was a total of seven Third Plane Origin Plane Elementalist. But the Darkness Elementalist killed one of them before they passed through the door, and Grey had also killed one when he acquired the Great Void technique previously. This meant that only five surviving Third Plane Origin Plane Elementalist were present in the ancient paths. Currently, there were only four Third stage Origin Plane Elementalists present here, including the Darkness Elementalist. One of the five surviving Third stage Origin Plane Elementalist wasn''t present here. "Then, how should we divide the Great Earth Essence Liquid. You are the strongest amongst us, none of us will be able to fight you. If you and your group take all the Great Earth Essence Liquid away at the last minute, all our efforts will only be in vain." Someone asked. This was the most crucial issue and was also the matter that all the Third stage Origin Plane Elementalists was concerned about the most. After all, the Darkness Elementalist was too powerful, and he had four powerful companions beside him. So even if three of them joined forces, they wouldn''t be able to defeat the Darkness Elementalist, talk less of defeating him and his group. Once they helped the Darkness Elementalist break the defense of the protectors, then he turned his back on them at the last moment, they wouldn''t be able to do anything. There was also the difficulty of fighting against the protectors. They weren''t even confident in holding one of them alone, and the others around wouldn''t help since they wouldn''t get anything if they joined in the battle. Who would want to fight a fruitless battle? So, if the Darkness Elementalist were to betray them after the difficult battle, they would be dismayed. "You all can be rest assured about this. As long as we break the defense together, each of you will get one drop of the Great Earth Essence Liquid. My group and I will take whatever that is left. I am an upright person, so, as long as everyone takes one drop each and don''t try to scheme to acquire another one, I wouldn''t be bothered with you." The Darkness Elementalist declared uprightly. ''Hmph! I''ll kill you all after defeating the protectors.'' He thought internally. Hearing what he said, the others heaved a sigh. Everyone had seen his conduct outside. He only killed the Third stage Origin Plane Elementalist and didn''t attack anyone else. So they felt as long as they didn''t try to take another one, they should be okay. But that didn''t mean they trusted him fully though, they still raised their guard against him. "Alright. I agree to do this." "I agree, too." Soon, all three of them agreed to the suggestion of the Darkness Elementalist. Their objective in coming here was to get the Great Earth Essence Liquid. Furthermore, they weren''t too greedy. They knew that given their strength alone, it was impossible to obtain all the Great Earth Essence Liquids here. So, their objective could already be considered achieved even if all they obtained was a single drop of the Great Earth Essence Liquid. "Okay. But even if we decide to fight alongside you, we still wouldn''t be able to keep all nine protectors at bay. Including you and your companions, we can only keep six occupied. Then, what about the other three?" The youth from the Blue Wind empire recalled something and voiced his thoughts. With a quick glance, he calculated that there were only a total of four Third stage Origin Plane Elementalist, if the Darkness Elementalist''s companion were added, they were still short on fighters. "I have some people in mind for the last three." The Darkness Elementalist gazed into the crowd. Other than the freakish four, who else would he have in mind! He even felt each member of Grey''s group was relatively stronger than these three in the Third stage. Although, inviting the freakish four was a huge risk for him since he was already planning on acquiring all the Great Earth Essence Liquid. He had no other choice, and felt with his group around, they should be able to deal with them. ......... "They seem to be planning on how to obtain the Great Earth Essence Liquid." Said Reynolds. "Yeah. But they still aren''t enough to overpower the protectors." Grey still wore his calm expression. "Why is that bastard coming in our direction?" Asked Klaus. "I think he wants us to join them." Alice said. They didn''t go close when the Darkness Elementalist was speaking with the other three Third stage Origin Plane Elementalist, so they didn''t know what they decided upon. But, they could guess they were trying to form an alliance of some sort to team up against the protectors. The Darkness Elementalist wore his usual emotionless look and stopped in front of the group. "I have a proposal for you four..." He told them the reason for he walked up to them the moment he arrived without beating around the bush. Just as Klaus was about to start raining curses on the Darkness Elementalist, he heard Grey speak up. "If that''s all we have to do, then we agree. How do you plan on sharing the spoils?" Grey asked calmly. The Darkness Elementalist said all they had to do was keep three of the protectors at bay. For them, that was too easy. Although he knew the Darkness Elementalist was not to be trusted, he already had a plan on obtaining the liquids. "For the three protectors you hold back, you''ll get one drop for each of them." Said the Darkness Elementalist. "Hmm, okay." Grey nodded. According to the words of the Darkness Elementalist, it meant he and his group would obtain three, each of the youths in the Third stage will get one, and the last three would go to Grey and his friends. ''If my guess is not wrong, he only wants to use us to defeat the protectors. After that, he will most likely betray us and collect all nine drops. According to what Alice said, he seems to be a greedy person since he wanted to kill those youths from the Lunar Academy for something they acquired'' thought Grey. But, he still followed along with the Darkness Elementalist even though he was aware of his true motives. .......... "They are the ones. We should prepare ourselves for the upcoming battle." the Darkness Elementalist pointed at Grey''s group before walking to where his companions were and sat down in a lotus position closing his eyes. The other three wanted to question him upon seeing the stages of Grey and his group, but when they saw him preparing himself, they kept quiet and also did the same. After all, this was a world where strength ruled. As the Darkness Elementalist was a lot stronger than them, whatever he said goes. And, he was also the unofficial leader of the party. As for the others, they could only watch as Grey and the other experts divide all the drops of the liquid. Even if they felt that it''s very unfair, they wouldn''t dare to say it out, because they knew it would be useless. The Great Earth Essence Liquid wasn''t related to them anymore. They could only wait for some good items to emerge in the ancient temple. If they couldn''t eat the meat, it was still better to drink the soup. ....... Ten minutes later. "Is everyone ready?" Asked the Darkness Elementalist after opening his eyes. "Yes!" The others answered simultaneously. They hadn''t attack previously, so they were still energetic. "Okay. Let''s attack together. I hope everyone will give this their all. Please don''t allow the protectors to merge their strength or even though we''ve teamed up, it will still be extremely difficult. We will attack one protector each." The Darkness Elementalist said to everyone. "Enough talking. Let''s attack now." The genius from the Blue Wind empire said, clearly, he was eager to get his hands on the drop of liquid. "Good." The Darkness Elementalist nodded. Giving Grey and his group a meaningful glance, he walked forward. Before Grey and his group started following behind, he whispered to them. "Make sure to reserve your strength as much as possible." They all nodded. They knew they weren''t the only ones who would reserve their strengths, every single person here had a plan. With each member of the party getting in position, they all prepared themselves for the battle against the protectors. Chapter 127 - Shocking News ...... At the Lunar Academy, outside Oliver''s office. Blake was currently looking at the door with a slightly annoyed expression. Shaking his head, he sighed trying to calm his head before knocking on the door. Knock! Knock! After knocking, he waited for some seconds. Still not hearing any invitation to come inside, he couldn''t resist the urge of knocking again. Just as he was about to knock, he heard a voice from inside. "Enter" Oliver''s exhausted filled voice came from inside the office. Pushing the door lightly, Blake stepped in. "Teacher" He bowed to the haggard-looking Oliver. Oliver was currently going through a pile of files. From the looks of how many the files were, it was easy to discern that Oliver had been spending most of his time on them. "Hmm" Oliver nodded before adding, "Take a seat." Blake sat down on the chair facing Oliver''s seat. Flip! Flip! The only thing resounding in the office was the sound of paper being turned. Oliver was currently going through one of the files on his desk. Blake looked at the mountain-like files and couldn''t help but feel worried about his own future. According to his Teacher, he was the one who would become the next principal of the Academy. He didn''t think he was patient enough to do this work. Given his personality, there was a chance he might just burn all the files and be done with it. A minute went by without anyone saying a word. Flip! After going through the final words on the last page of the file he was looking through, Oliver tossed it at another mountain-like pile of files again. When Blake''s eyes followed the direction of where the file was thrown to, he saw another huge heap of files that almost gave him a breakdown. He instantly decided to discuss the matter of declining the offer of being the next principal. His future depended on this decision. How could he live such a life? "Is Chris back yet?" Asked Oliver. "Not yet Teacher. I just came back from the valley and there''s still no sign of him visiting" Blake reported. Oliver told him two weeks back to notify him if Chris returned. Since then, he had been going to the valley every single day after waking up to check if Chris had returned. But, even after going for so long, there were still no signs of him. Hearing Blake''s reply, Oliver fell into silence. Since the group returned from the capital, Chris had seemingly disappeared into thin air. Sighing, he threw it to the back of his head. Besides, this wasn''t the first time Chris had disappeared without informing anyone. There was this one time he disappeared for almost two years. But no matter what, he would always come back. "Hmm, okay. What have you found out about the recent move by the Starlight Academy?" Oliver asked once more. He recalled the slight look of annoyance on Blake''s faces when he came into the office. "According to the intel I gathered, it''s all because of the Crown Prince" A look of rage appeared on Blake''s face One month ago, news of the Starlight Academy''s students attacking their students started to spread. And after doing some investigating, they found out it was true. When Oliver heard the Crown Prince being brought into the picture, he suddenly frowned and a sense of foreboding welled up in his mind. "Why would the Crown Prince suddenly become part of the conflict between both Academies?" Asked Oliver whose brows were knitted. Given the loss they suffered at Chris''s hand in the capital, it was unexpected that the Starlight Academy would still dare to attack their students. Oliver expected them to shrink back in fear, and truthfully, they did during the first month. But who knew they would come back much more aggressively, and even started encouraging their students to attack the students from the Lunar Academy. "I have no idea, but he is the one riling the principal up. I also found out about something else" Blake said with his tone turning more serious. "Oh! What''s that?" Oliver asked curiously. "The emperor is fully behind the Starlight Academy." Blake straight at Oliver before dropping the bombshell. "What?! Why would the emperor actively seek unrest in the empire? It doesn''t make sense." Oliver exclaimed in shock. This was a piece of shocking news for him. This information meant that they were not fighting against the Starlight Academy as they thought, but instead, the emperor. He was aware of some of the higher-ups in the empire being close to the Starlight Academy, but never did he expect the emperor was part of them. "Apparently, we''re not the first ones going through this. In the other Academies, there have been massive changes in their ranks. Most of the higher-ups in the Academies have been replaced with those brought in by the emperor. As it stands, we''re the only ones left for him to take total control of." Blake reported the most vital part of the intel he gathered. After finding out the Crown Prince was currently the one who was instigating things, he investigated deeper and was able to unearth some things hidden from the eyes and ears of everyone in the empire. Hearing what Blake said, Oliver''s face turned red from anger. "What could he possibly gain from all this?" Oliver couldn''t resist asking. "Total control." Replied Blake. "Isn''t he afraid we might revolt?" Oliver was somewhat enraged and dumbfounded by the emperor''s reasoning. What did he want total control for? No one disobeys his orders. Well, except for Chris. But even then, Chris rarely does things that go against him. "Since he had already united the other powers in the empire, we can''t revolt," Blake said. "If we submit to him, isn''t that the same as being puppets?" Oliver rubbed his head. He had already started feeling a headache from what he was hearing. "Yes, that''s what they want. But if we were to refuse them, he would launch an attack against us. The only reason they haven''t attacked should be because of Senior Chris." Blake said. "Hmm, the emperor is wary of Chris''s strength. No one else should know of his disappearance. We don''t know if the emperor planted any moles here." Said Oliver. "I''m aware of that. Actually, I caught one three days ago. The moron was following behind me when I was heading to the valley." Blake recalled the incident that happened three days ago. He actually didn''t see the person when the person was following behind him, but who knew the person would be foolish enough to try to enter into the valley. Because of the fact that he usually uses weird hand seals before entering the place, the person tried repeating the hand seals he saw him do. When he was coming out of the valley, the person was still trying to open it. He didn''t spend up to a minute there, so he was able to catch the person. After questioning, in this case, torturing, he found out the teacher was actually sent by the emperor here. "Hmm, you should be more covert in your actions," Oliver advised. "I understand Teacher." Replied Blake. "Try and see if you can find out any clues about the whereabouts of Chris. But ensure to be careful when you''re out." Oliver ordered. "Okay Teacher." Blake bowed and prepared to leave. Just as he was about to open the door, he suddenly recalled something. "Uhmm, Teacher," Blake called out. "Yes?" Oliver who was about to bury himself in his work raised his head to look at Blake. "Can I decline the position of being the next principal?" Blake asked nervously. "No," Oliver replied resolutely. "But..." "No buts. I''ve already made my decision. You''re my only student and like a son to me, you will be the next principal. Maybe after that little brat is old enough you can pass the position to him." Oliver interrupted Blake. "Klaus?" Blake asked in shock. Other than Chris, Klaus was the next most unreliable person he knew. The only thing in Klaus''s head was having fun. How could someone like that become the principal? "If you have a better candidate it''s up to you. Now, leave. I still have a lot to do." Oliver waved him away. With no other option, Blake could only swallow his words and left. He wanted to beg Oliver to hand the position to someone else, but it looks like he''s stuck with it. Looking at Blake''s departing back. "If we get through this, I''ll immediately step down and hand the position over to him." He muttered before engrossing himself once more on his work. From the conversation of both parties, it was easy to see just how close they were. Just like how Chris was Grey''s Teacher, Oliver was Blake''s Teacher. ........ At the depth of the trial land. On a mountain top. "You''ve broken through." An old voice said. "Of course old man. Don''t think it was because of your teachings, I was already close to a breakthrough before you came and dragged me away." Another voice snorted. "Had I not taken you, you wouldn''t have broken through even in the next twenty years." The old voice proclaimed calmly not angry by the other party''s remark. "Hmph! Where is this anyway?" The other person asked. "Focus on your training." The old voice said coldly. The two people talking was Chris and his new Teacher. Apparently, he didn''t know he was in the trial land. He couldn''t be blamed for it though, compared to when he entered, the essence here was thicker than the part he entered previously. Although he was suspicious about it, he didn''t think there was a chance for him to enter that place again given the fact that it only accepted those who were below twenty. He had tried leaving the mountain on numerous occasions, but the old man always stops him. The strength of the old man was unfathomable. Chapter 128 - Terrifying Beast! _____ Grey and the others had all picked a protector. Alice would hold one back, Klaus and Reynolds would hold one back, and Grey would unsurprisingly hold one back. When the other three Third stage Origin Plane Elementalist saw Grey was going to battle one of the protectors on his own, they all sneered in contempt. "A fool who''s overestimating his ability." The blue-clothed youth said. "Tch! I don''t think he would last more than a minute against the protector." Another one said. Even they weren''t confident they could hold one back, yet, a First stage Origin Plane Elementalist dared to face one alone. If that wasn''t seeking death, what is? They weren''t the only ones who felt scorn towards Grey''s decision to fight against the protector alone, the companions of the Darkness Elementalist and even the crowd all felt Grey was overestimating his abilities. ''He will most likely die within one minute. At that time, he wouldn''t have a chance to regret his foolish decision.'' This was what everyone thought. They all tagged him dead. Other than Grey''s friends, the only ones who didn''t feel anything wrong with Grey''s move was the Darkness Elementalist since he had traded blows with Grey, he knew how terrifying the power of his blue flame was and also how powerful his body. And those who were present when Grey and the Darkness Elementalist fought previously. "Now!" The Darkness Elementalist gave the order to attack. Boom! Bam! Bang! Every single member of the party attacked at the same time. The sounds of attacks clashing against each other rang out in the surrounding. As the battle started, the entire crowd stared at a single individual, Grey. They all wanted to see how he would die due to his stupidity. Some of them even felt a little sense of satisfaction from the thought of Grey dying, especially those in the Second stage of the Origin Plane. They all felt indignant that they were not the ones chosen to be part of the party. But the next scene stunned them. "Blue fire." Everyone muttered under their breath. Some even forgot to breathe the moment they saw Grey using his blue flames. The shocking thing about the flame was the explosive power it contained. ''Even if you have blue flames, why is the attack power this strong?'' They all felt like crying, especially those who were feeling wronged some moments ago. They could still accept the fact that he had blue flames hence he was stronger than his stage, but when they noticed the strength of the flame, they all felt that life was unfair. Where the God''s blind?! How could they bless him alone? "The power of his flames can rival the attack of a Fourth stage Origin Plane Elementalist. This... this shouldn''t be possible, right?" A youth asked with a shaky tone. "Is he still human?" The entire crowd was thrown into a state of disbelief. They felt the Darkness Elementalist was talented, and Grey was nothing. They didn''t even put him in their eyes even when he went forward with Klaus and the rest. Not only that, but they just took him as an extra in the battle. If Grey was an extra, then what were the three Third stage Origin Plane Elementalists then? Grey''s attack power was a notch better than even the normal attack of the Darkness Elementalist. If the Darkness Elementalist was talented, then what was Grey? ______ "F.u.c.k! Since when did that bastard possess the fire element, and it''s even blue flame." Klaus stared at Grey like he was a monster. "It looks like he will be the one with the biggest gain in this trip," Reynolds added. Grey was originally a Dual Elementalist, to their knowledge. Now, with the addition of the fire element, he had become a rare Multi Elementalist. This had greatly improved his strength. Alice was shocked when Grey displayed the flame. But thinking about his behavior when they were about to pass through the door, she felt maybe Grey had inherited the legacy the expert spoke of. Even the three other Third stage Origin Plane Elementalists staggered when they saw it, but they were able to quickly regain their composure. But because two protectors were free, they merged their strength with the others, and soon, they forced back the fighters. "What happened?" The Darkness Elementalist asked coldly. "We''re sorry, it was our mistake." His companions apologized quickly for their mistake. "Hmph! You''ve made everyone waste their energies. This shouldn''t repeat itself." He snorted coldly and once again prepared to attack. Since they had already made the mistake, they shouldn''t brood over it for too long, instead, they should continue attacking once again. "You have a lot of explaining to do young man," Klaus spoke with an elderly tone while also putting on an elderly expression making his friends burst into laughter. "But seriously, you do," Reynolds added after laughing a little. "That would be later in the day. But for now, our focus is those drops." Grey changed the topic to what was more important currently. The others nodded. "But how do we share it?" Reynolds scratched his head. They were four, and they would only receive three drops. It wasn''t enough for them. "We''ll think about that when the time comes." Grey replied. Soon, they once again started fighting with the protectors. ______ ''Void, are we close enough yet?'' Grey asked Void who was nowhere to be seen while fighting with the protector. ''No, try going a little closer.'' replied Void. ''Shit! This isn''t going to be easy.'' Grey said before focusing his attention on the protector once again. When they were still waiting for the seal on the wall to open up, Grey discovered he could transmit his thoughts to Void just like how Void was doing. This way, he didn''t need to speak out, all he had to do was transmit whatever he wanted to say and Void would hear it clearly in his head. It was quite a mythical thing. Void was currently hiding in his spatial ring. Their current plan was simple, steal all the drops of Great Earth Essence Liquid in front of everyone while they were still fighting. Since Void couldn''t teleport far, they had to think of a way to get close to the pond without the others finding out. Who knew lady luck was on their side and the Darkness Elementalist would invite them to join the party? Grey refrained from using his physical strength in this battle. He had already shown one of his trump cards which happened to be his blue flame, he was not foolish enough to show it all. He didn''t even use any other element and just stuck with the fire element. That way, other than his friends, no one would be aware of his other elements. ''Shit! He''s almost done destroying his protector.'' Grey complained internally after he took a peek at the battle between the Darkness Elementalist and his protector. Cracks could already be seen all over the protector the Darkness Elementalist was fighting against. It was clear that it would be destroyed in a matter of a few seconds. ''Void aren''t we close yet?'' Grey asked Void once again after pushing back the protector. ''Almost. If I move now, I wouldn''t appear close to the pond, so there''s a high chance I would be seen by the others.'' Void replied. "F.u.c.k!" Grey cursed out in annoyance. Now, he was in a race against time. He had to push the protector closer to the pond without destroying it before the Darkness Elementalist destroys his opponent. It''s not like he couldn''t destroy the protector, but he didn''t want to display his full strength for all to see. "Ah!" Roaring, he sent out a flaming hammer that struck the protector fiercely. ''Now!'' Grey and Void said simultaneously. ____ Just as Void left the storage ring... Bang! The protector the Darkness Elementalist exploded into bits of flames which converged into a ball and flew into the ancient palace. The moment the first protector exploded, the strength of the other eight dropped significantly. And the protectors that had been giving the others a tough time were destroyed one by one in a matter of a minute with all of them turning into balls of flames and flying into the palace. "Hahaha, we''ve finally destroyed the protectors. Now, the Great Earth Essence Liquid will be ours." The blue-clothed youth laughed in exhilaration. Once he gets his share, he would instantly leave this place and refine it. Just as the others were still laughing excitedly. Roar! A terrifying roar was heard from inside the palace. The roar shook everywhere and those with weaker strength collapsed to the ground with a ''thud!''. ____ "Run!" Grey yelled at his friends and quickly dashed towards the opening they used in entering this place. Trusting Grey, and being scared almost senseless, the group followed behind him without delay. They couldn''t be bothered with their share of the treasure, their life mattered most. Some people in the crowd instinctively chose to also retreat from the place. _____ "Damn! Grab the treasure!" Because the place descended into chaos and the fact that Grey and his group had run away. Some people who couldn''t contain their greed dashed towards the pond. They wanted to take at least a drop of the Great Earth Essence Liquid before escaping. The Darkness Elementalist was the first to get there though. His expression took a turn when he discovered that the drops of Great Earth Essence Liquid were missing. "What!" He roared angrily, but he was replied by a terrifying roar from inside the palace. His heart tightened, and he quickly made a run for it. He wouldn''t stay here and die because of something that wasn''t here. He was sure the treasure had been stolen by someone because he clearly felt the treasure previously. His current plan was to be the first one to leave this place and search everyone. Because of the manner of his escape, the others felt maybe he was scared by the roar. Some of them actually forgot the fact that he went close to the pond. Just as the Darkness Elementalist and his companions were passing through the passageway, they started hearing shrieks from the field. Looking behind them, they saw a terrifying twelve meters long giant beast with three eyes massacring the youths who were consumed by greed. Their backs were instantly covered in sweat from fright. Over half of the people who came here had died. Of the four Third stage Origin Plane Elementalists, only the Darkness Elementalist and the blue-clothed youth escaped on time. Chapter 129 - Can I Keep It? Grey and his friends were the first group to escape from the field so they didn''t have a chance to see the beast when it went on a killing rampage. But from how terrifying the roar was, he was sure the beast was at least at the peak of the Origin Plane, or it had even reached the Overlord Plane. There was no way they could defend against something that strong. But what kept puzzling him was the fact that the beast only came out after they defeated the nine protectors. Could it be that it was supposed to be another challenge for them, and after defeating it they wouldn''t only get the nine drops of the Great Earth Essence Liquid but also all the treasures in the palace as well? If that was its purpose, then the expert who made this place wouldn''t expect there would be the anomaly called Void. Had it not been for Void, then there was no way Grey and his group would have been able to obtain anything. As it stands, they were the ultimate winners. _____ At the other side of the passageway, Grey and his friends could be seen stepping out of the passageway. ''You were able to obtain all the drops of the Great Earth Essence Liquid, right?'' Grey asked anxiously. When they heard the roar from the palace, Grey didn''t dare to delay and quickly signaled Void who was still in the pond to come out so they could escape, so, he didn''t get the chance to ask if Void was able to acquire the treasure. Void was currently on his shoulder looking at the passageway without any signs of fear. There was even a look of contempt on his face. ''Of course, getting them was too easy.'' Void replied proudly. On hearing Void''s reply, Grey heaved a sigh and a delighted smile spread across his face. "Huh! When did the cat come back?" Alice asked after seeing Void on Grey''s shoulder. When they were escaping previously, she remembered vividly that the cat was not on Grey''s shoulder, and she also didn''t see it running after them. So how did the cat suddenly appear on Grey''s shoulder after they came out? "Firstly, his name''s Void. Secondly... This isn''t the place to talk about it, I''ll tell you when we''re alone." Grey said. Seeing how cautious Grey was about Void, the curiosity of the group was piqued, and they all suddenly had a great interest in what sort of magical beast Void was for Grey to be this careful when speaking about him. _____ "Wait, so you''re saying there''s an eighth element, and this cat happens to have it?" Klaus asked with a look of incredulity. He wasn''t the only one who had a shocked expression after hearing about Void and the space element. There had been no records of there being an eighth element so hearing about this came as a shock to them. "Yes. Void." Grey answered before calling on Void to show it to them. At least, if they saw him use it, it would be easier for them to believe it and he wouldn''t need to explain much. Void knew the reason Grey called him, so he disappeared from his previous spot and appeared almost twenty meters away. This was the furthest he could go for now, but he felt if he pushed himself, he could go further. "Wow! That''s an awesome element. How come no one else has it?" Reynolds exclaimed, fascinated by the space element. If he had such an element, then wouldn''t he be unstoppable. "You also spoke of a spatial ring. What is that?" Klaus asked still shocked by what he just found out. "This," Grey showed them the ring on his hand and went on to tell them about it. "Can I see it?" Klaus stretched out his hand towards the ring. Without thinking much, Grey threw it at him. Holding the ring, Klaus studied it intently but still couldn''t figure out how to use it. "Can I keep it?" He asked while flashing his best smile. Who wouldn''t want to keep something like this? "No. And besides, you don''t even know how to access it." Grey declined his request immediately. ''Like I''ll give the only one I found to you?'' He scoffed internally. Had there been more, he didn''t mind giving it to them. But he only obtained this one, why would he give it to him? It''s not like he didn''t have any use for it. "Isn''t this the ring we found in one of those boxes at the first palace we entered?" Alice asked. As a lady, she was very observant of details, so she was able to easily recognize the ring even though she only saw it for a short time. "Yes." Grey nodded. "Grey, why don''t I help you in keeping it. You should know this is a very attractive treasure." Klaus persuaded once again. "Yeah, nice try. But it''s only attractive to those who know of it. And as it stands, other than you guys, no one else knows of there being an eighth element, talk less of knowing about a spatial storage ring, I think." Grey chuckled seeing how Klaus was acting. "*Sigh* Why are we friends? Had we not been friends, I''d have robbed you already." Klaus said sadly. "Tch! With that little strength of yours?" Grey mocked showing an expression of scorn. "Pfft!" Alice and Reynolds were thrown into a fit of laughter when they heard Grey''s response. "What? You want to fight?" Grey continued mocking when he saw Klaus''s expression. "Don''t think I''m scared of you. The only reason I''m not beating you up right now is that we''re buddies, and buddies shouldn''t fight against each other." Klaus proclaimed with a serious expression. "Hehe." Grey chuckled lightly. "Okay, now, you still haven''t told us how you acquired the fire element," Alice asked curiously. "Oh, that... Uhmmm." Grey fell into deep contemplation trying to figure out how to explain it. He couldn''t tell them that he refined a blue flame and then suddenly acquired the fire element. There was no way he could explain how it happened because Fire Elementalists are the only ones who should naturally be able to refine a fire element''s natural treasure. "It''s the expert''s legacy, right?" Alice said when she noticed he fell silent. "..." Grey''s mind went blank for some seconds. "Yes, that''s it. The expert''s legacy. How did you know?" He feigned a look of surprise. ''Although this isn''t the truth, it isn''t far from it. I mean, I did see the legacy.'' Grey thought internally. "The expert wrote about it on a stone slab," Alice replied. "Oh! Okay." Grey nodded. He didn''t know the expert wrote about his legacy on another stone slab, but since this had saved him from cooking up a lie, he was fine with it. "Now people, guess what I have in my possession," Grey said mysteriously. ______ The valley. At the front of the black door. The Darkness Elementalist and his companions were the first to exit the place just like he wanted. And after coming out, they''ve stopped and searched every single person that had come out through the door. They didn''t care if the person went close to the pond or not. What annoyed the youths who were coming out was the fact that the Darkness Elementalist''s companions would take whatever they liked from their bags after searching them. The youths didn''t dare complain or even tried fighting back because of the fear of death. One youth had complained previously, and he was almost killed. The blue-clothed youth from the Blue Wind empire walked out with four others. The four following behind him were people from his empire. Since he was from the royal family, it was natural for him to have multiple subordinates in his generation. "Stop there! Hand over your bags." One of the Darkness Elementalist''s companions said arrogantly. "What insolence! How dare you try to stop me? What gave you such guts?" The blue-clothed youth asked even more arrogantly. "I did." The Darkness Elementalist''s voice came from where he was sitting. "What is the meaning of this? I know I''m not your match, but that doesn''t me I''ll just allow you to step on me as you wish!" The blue-clothed youth yelled angrily. He was the son of the emperor of the Blue Wind empire, when had he ever been bullied before? Never! He was the one who usually does the bullying, not the other way round. "Someone stole the nine drops of Great Earth Essence Liquid, I''m just trying to get them back." The Darkness Elementalist said casually. "But I was fighting alongside you! How did I steal it?!" The blue-clothed youth shouted angrily with veins starting to appear on his head. "I don''t know. Either you hand over your bag willingly, or, I''ll come take it myself. And trust me, that wouldn''t be the only thing I''ll take." The Darkness Elementalist''s tone went cold on the last part of his sentence. The blue-clothed youth went silent, the four youths beside him did dare speak a word. They had seen the strength of the Darkness Elementalist, and they knew he could defeat them. Both parties stated at each other for some time. . The youths beside the blue-clothed youth were on the verge of crying. They regretted coming out at the same time as him. Had they been alone, they would''ve already handed their bags over. But since they were following beside the blue-clothed youth, they couldn''t do that without his permission. They all began praying for the blue-clothed youth to hand his bag over. The suspense they were currently in was on the brink of killing them, their blood was flowing faster than usual, and they had unknowingly started sweating profusely. "Hmph!" Snorting coldly, the blue-clothed youth threw his bag at the Darkness Elementalist. The four youths sighed in relief before quickly handing their bags over as well. A minute later. "Hmph! I''ll wait and see who stole the nine drops of Great Earth Essence Liquid. Besides, one of them belongs to me." The blue-clothed youth snorted after retrieving his bag before going to the side to wait. He was previously planning to leave, but on finding out the nine drops of Great Earth Essence Liquid was stolen by someone and given the method of the Darkness Elementalist, they would find it, he decided to wait so he could collect his share. ______ "The exit is just up ahead." Reynolds pointed at the portal that appeared outside the ancient paths. "Finally, we''ll be leaving this place." Klaus sighed. Chapter 130 - A Special Bunch ______ Outside the ancient path. The Darkness Elementalist and his companions persisted in their search. They had been outside for almost one hour now and had searched just over forty people. There were at least around ten to twenty people left in the ancient paths. This trip was cruel given how high the fatality rate was. Almost one hundred youths were dead, if not even more. The youths who had been searched didn''t dare to stay around the valley and immediately left after being searched. They had already lost some items to the Darkness Elementalist''s companions, and they didn''t want to lose more. The blue-clothed youth and his group were the only ones who had stayed behind. Since the Darkness Elementalist was searching for the Great Earth Essence Liquid, there was no way he would allow himself to lose out on such an opportunity. The allure of the Great Earth Essence Liquid was just too great for him to reject. Even if in the end they couldn''t find it, it was better than not trying. Who knows, maybe they could get lucky, and find the bastard who stole their treasure. "Stop there! Hand over your bags!" One of the youths in the Darkness Elementalist''s group immediately rushed forward from where he sat and stopped the group who just came out from the door. The group consisted of three young men and a young lady. Of the three young men, two of them could be said to be in a league of their own in terms of facial looks, but one of them was better looking than the other. The third young man was only slightly above average in terms of looks, but he was taller than the other two young men. The young lady in the group looked like someone who was still fourteen years old with her hair tied into two ponytails, she had an adorable face with lumps of baby fat still visible on her cheeks. But since she was able to enter the trial land, no one would dare take her for a fourteen-year-old. The group of four was obviously Grey and his friends. They were still in the midst of laughing after picking on Reynolds during their journey when the young man suddenly came to their front and started yelling like a clown. Not putting him in their eyes, they didn''t even bother to respond to what he said and just continued their joyful conversation at the expense of Reynolds. Although they knew the youth looked familiar, they didn''t really know much about him. Other than the Darkness Elementalist who left an impression on them, they didn''t really remember how the rest of them looked. This is expected since only those who make an impact are remembered. Being ignored, the youth immediately felt outraged but because he knew how strong Grey and his friends were, he didn''t dare to attack them. Instead, he looked in the direction of the Darkness Elementalist. "Stop." The Darkness Elementalist said calmly and walked towards Grey and his friends. "Uh! What do you want?" asked Grey. "Hand over your bags. Someone stole the Great Earth Essence Liquid, and since you and your friends were part of the group that fought against the protectors and also the first group to escape, I''ll have to check your bags." The Darkness Elementalist explained. "Sorry, but that won''t be possible. Why would we hand our bags over so you could search it just because you think someone stole it?" Grey said emotionlessly. The Darkness Elementalist looked at Grey and his friends clearly a little wary of their strength. He knew all too well how strong they were, especially when fighting together. He had also fought against Grey personally, although there were only two exchanges between them, he lost in both exchanges. "Hmph! Hand over the bags, if you know what''s good for you." The blue-clothed youth suddenly jumped into the conversation. "And... Who are you again?" Klaus asked looking at the blue-clothed youth strangely. He remembered who the blue-clothed youth was, but he only asked this question to irritate him, and looking at the expression the blue-clothed youth was putting on, he knew he had achieved his aim. "You..." "What? You want to fight?" The blue-clothed youth was about to shout in anger when Klaus interrupted him. Klaus''s lips curved upwards to form a smirk, and disdain was evident in the way he was looking at the blue-clothed youth. "You..." "Move to the side, we don''t have time to listen to an insect." Klaus interrupted the youth again while waving him away like he was a fly. "..." Everyone stared at the blue-clothed youth whose face was turning red from anger. Reynolds could almost swear he was seeing steam rising out of the blue-clothed youth''s head, or, maybe it was just his imagination though, to be honest, he didn''t really know. But he knew he was currently seeing something like that. Being riled up so much by Klaus, the blue-clothed youth couldn''t take it anymore and immediately attacked. "Ah!" He yelled loudly. Swoosh! "Uh!" The blue-clothed youth exclaimed unconsciously. Surprisingly, he was currently feeling the wind brushing against his body at a fast speed and hearing the sound of something breaking through the wind. He didn''t recall the place being windy. Also, all he could see was the blue sky. He was previously in a standing position, so the sky should be above him, he didn''t recall looking upwards. ''How come the sky isn''t above me? Wait, where is that bast...'' While he was still thinking of what happened, everything suddenly went black and he lost consciousness. Bang! He slammed headfirst into one of the rocks in the valley and immediately collapsed to the ground, motionless. "You were saying?" Grey stared at the unconscious blue-clothed youth before switching his gaze back to the Darkness Elementalist. The companions of the blue-clothed youth stared at the handsome innocent-looking youth in disbelief. Even the companions of the Darkness Elementalist couldn''t comprehend what just happened. Only the Darkness Elementalist and Alice were able to get a slight view of. Just as the blue-clothed youth was about to explode out with a terrifying attack. Grey suddenly appeared behind him, he held the shirt of the blue-clothed youth from behind and threw him like he was a spear towards the rock. There wasn''t even any form of resistance, and it felt like Grey just casually threw a normal spear. Everything happened so fast that the blue-clothed youth didn''t even feel it when Grey threw him. Before he could realize what happened, he had crashed headfirst into the rock, passing out in the process. "What just happened?" Reynolds asked stunned by his friend''s speed. "I think Grey just went from there to there in such a short timeframe." Klaus tried explaining, by pointing at Grey''s previous location and his current one. "I know, you idiot. I mean how did he move that fast?" Reynolds cursed at Klaus. And just like that, Klaus and Reynolds started one of their usual cursing sessions. "..." Grey shook his head and a slight smile formed on his face. ''These friends of yours are quite different.'' Void couldn''t help but comment. ''Yeah, they''re special. That''s for sure.'' Grey replied before trying to break up the duo. It is quite surprising that even when there was a possibility that they would get into a fight, Klaus and Reynolds could still comfortably start one of their cursing session. This showed they weren''t nervous in any way even though they were outnumbered. "Guys, we can continue this another time." Grey tried to stop their bickering, and... After some seconds, he managed to stop the duo from cursing at each other to cursing at him. Grey smiled wryly and joined the cursing session. And so, the two-man cursing team turned into a three-man team. ''They truly are fit for friends.'' Void said. The Darkness Elementalist and his companions, including the companions of the blue-clothed youth were stunned by the trio''s behavior. Soon, the cursing session ended with Klaus being the final winner. "Enough of all this, hand over your bags now or prepare for a thrashing." The Darkness Elementalist said coldly. "Heh. With the likes of them, you don''t stand a chance." Klaus pointed at the companions of the Darkness Elementalist. "I am enough." The Darkness Elementalist said "Looks like you have forgotten how our previous bout ended. Let me remind you, it ended with you running with your tail between your legs." Klaus retorted. When he remembered the last battle he had with Klaus and Reynolds, the Darkness Elementalist''s expression turned sour. "Hmph! You won''t get that chance again." He said coldly. Both parties fell silent with the atmosphere turning tense. Chapter 131 - Psychopath "Killing you will be an enjoyable experience." The Darkness Elementalist said icily while facing Klaus. Of the group of four, Klaus was the one he hated the most because the first person to hurt him was Klaus, and he didn''t hurt him alone, but he started to rub it in. And from his expression when saying it, it looks like he relishes the experience of hurting him. "Hey, blockhead! Your opponent is me. We had an unfinished business, remember?" Grey called the Darkness Elementalist while changing positions with Klaus. "I''ll leave him to you, I don''t want to defile my hands with his expired blood." Klaus turned to Grey fist-bumping him as he walked past him. The Darkness Elementalist almost charged at Klaus when he heard this remark. This was the most annoying person he had ever come across in his life. "I''ll see where that sharp tongue of yours gets you. After I''m done with him, you''re next, maggot." The Darkness Elementalist calmed himself before replying. "I don''t think you''ll live long enough to see this maggot transform into a beautiful butterfly, corpse." Klaus retorted smugly. "Uhmm... Klaus, maggots don''t transform into butterflies, caterpillars do." Reynolds whispered into Klaus''s ears when he got close to him. "I know. But you don''t expect me to say transform into a fly, right?" Klaus smiled happily, clearly excited by how quick-witted he was. "Yeah, you do have a point there." Reynolds nodded on hearing Klaus''s response. ____ "Wait, do maggots transform into butterflies?" One of the companions of the Darkness Elementalist couldn''t help but ask his comrade next to him. "I have no idea. But I don''t think they do." His comrade shook his head after pondering for some time. "I''ll have to find out from his mouth personally." The youth said before positioning himself opposite Klaus. Obviously, he had chosen his opponent. ____ Grey chuckled lightly when he heard Klaus''s reply, but he quickly regained himself and focused on the opponent ahead of him. It was time for him to test the limit of his strength, and no opponent would be better than the young man in front of him. Although he wasn''t too confident in being able to defeat the Darkness Elementalist after seeing his impressive battle when they were fighting against the protectors, he still didn''t back down, rather, he was pretty excited. He knew his strength, and the only way he could defeat the Darkness Elementalist easily was if he entered the Fusion State, which is impossible for the current him since it hadn''t been long he used it. And even if he could use it, he wouldn''t use the State, unless it was absolutely necessary. "You''re the first person in my generation I''ve regarded to be almost on par with me. It''s a shame we are meant to be enemies. Had we met on a different circ.u.mstance, there was a chance we might have become good friends." The Darkness Elementalist praised Grey for his strength. "You''re not bad yourself, but, I already have great friends who I wouldn''t change for anything in the world." Grey shrugged. Although he was slightly taken aback by the Darkness Elementalist''s words, he didn''t bother about it. Who would want to change such amazing friends? "Hmph! Don''t worry, after I kill you, those great friends of yours, will join you shortly." The Darkness Elementalist snorted. Without delaying any further, he launched an attack at Grey, not forgetting to keep a good distance from him though. He was still very wary of Grey''s speed and physical strength. At least at this distance, he would get the chance to react appropriately if Grey tries using his speed and physical strength. "Heh! You''re not capable of achieving such feats." Grey smirked at attacked as well. Boom! Attacks flew from one side to the other. The moment the Darkness Elementalist and Grey started their battle, the others also attacked. Reynolds was fighting against an opponent in the Second stage while still being at the First stage. Although the power difference wasn''t much given the fact that he was naturally stronger than his stage, his opponent was a notch stronger than him. Alice wasn''t having a good time either as she was facing off against two opponents on the same stage as herself. Both youths were talented and even though one of them was no match for her, two of them were a little too much for her to handle alone. But as long as she focused on defending, she wouldn''t have a problem holding on for now. Klaus was having a relatively easier time since his opponent was in the same stage as himself, and he even gained the upper hand from the first attack. Bam! Boom! The impacts from the attacks made the blue-clothed youth''s companions retreat in fear, with the unconscious youth in tow. They weren''t strong enough to get close to a battle of this caliber. But they didn''t retreat far from the battle and quickly started trying what they could to awaken the blue-clothed youth. ____ Grey crashed into one of the rocks behind him, and it exploded from the strength of the impact. "You might be strong, but in front of me, you''re nothing." The Darkness Elementalist declared with both arms open after sending Grey flying. Grey stood up from the rubble and stared at his opponent. The Darkness Elementalist was indeed the strongest opponent he had faced. He looked at the Darkness Elementalist calmly without any sign of fear in his eyes, rather, there was an unrestrained fighting intent. When the Darkness Elementalist saw the fighting intent, he chuckled in disdain. "You''re not fit to be my opponent. Had you waited for another year or two, then maybe, just maybe, you could stand on an equal footing with me. But for now, you''re not strong enough." The Darkness Elementalist slowly walked forward and started his attacks once again. "It''s still too early for you to say that, the battle had just begun." Grey smiled and also launched an attack, two to be precise with the second one following behind the first one sneakily. The first attack compromised of the fire element, and the second one was the lightning element. Boom! Bang! The Darkness Elementalist who had just destroyed Grey''s fire attack was pushed back four meters hitting the rock behind him in the process, by the lightning attack that followed behind the fire attack. "You''re a Dual Elementalist." The Darkness Elementalist looked at Grey in shock. From the first time he saw Grey, he had only witnessed him using the fire element. Even when fighting against the protectors, he took peeks at Grey''s battle, and he didn''t see him use a second element, so he concluded Grey was a Single Elementalist with terrifying physical prowess, and nothing more. "What? Do you think you''re the only one allowed to wield multiple elements?" Grey asked when he saw the expression of his opponent. The Darkness Elementalist refrained from speaking and instead, lashed out with another attack. Now, he didn''t know if Grey was still hiding his strength or not. ''I''ll have to kill him. If he doesn''t die, he might become someone that could foil our plans later in the future.'' The Darkness Elementalist thought. Grey and the Darkness Elementalist started their intense battle once again with the Darkness Elementalist having the upper hand in most of the exchanges. ____ Klaus''s battle. Bang! "Hehe! Do you think you can fight against me? I''ll beat you into a pighead." Klaus proclaimed after striking his opponent once again. Of all the fighters, Klaus''s opponent was currently the most depressed one. The reason for that was that Klaus wasn''t only beating him physically, but he was also beating him emotionally. Who are the worst opponents to fight against? The ones who curse at you even when they are beating you up! And Klaus fell perfectly into that category. Klaus''s opponent was on the brink of having a mental breakdown. The words Klaus had told him were things that shouldn''t be said, he still hasn''t been able to decipher some. And truthfully, he didn''t dare to. He was afraid he might go crazy if he were to discover the meaning of the words. But things went from bad to worse when Klaus would actively start to explain the meaning of some of the words he was telling him when he notices the expression of confusion on his face. "How can you call yourself a normal person! You''re a psychopath!" Klaus''s opponent yelled with tears-filled eyes. "Thanks for the compliment. Kekeke." Klaus''s hysterical laughter rang out. "Aron, let''s switch opponents." With no option left, he could only seek the help of his friend. "Okay." Aron who was one of the people fighting against Alice switched places with his friend. "*Sigh* Reynolds, look, my initial opponent ran away. I''m just too awesome." Klaus sighed putting on the air of an expert before calling on Reynolds who was having a difficult battle. Chapter 132 - Youll Die Before I Do "That''s good to know. Do you mind giving me a hand then?" Reynolds asked. He was currently overpowered by his opponent. Although it hadn''t gotten to a critical situation yet, getting a helping hand wouldn''t be bad. "I''d love to help, but a new target just arrived. I''ll talk to you when I''m done with him, it shouldn''t take long." Klaus replied before studying his new opponent. According to his previous opponent, the young man before him was called Aron. "To think Hank was beaten by someone like you," Aron said coldly. Klaus attacked straight away. It was still too early to start talking, after he''s beaten up his opponent a little, then, he''ll talk to him. With that, Klaus and Aron started fighting. The difference in strength between his current opponent and the previous one was nearly negligible, so he was able to gain the upper hand as soon as the battle started. Alice was having a tough time as well, although she was still able to counterattack on some occasions, she was mostly put on the defensive. ____ Bam! "What?! You have a third element?" The Darkness Elementalist was left bewildered when a surprise attack he thought would put Grey down was blocked by the earthen armor on Grey''s body. Other than suffering from the impact of the attack, Grey didn''t feel any other thing from it. Panting heavily, Grey raised his head to stare at the Darkness Elementalist. If not for his quick reaction, he would have been injured by that attack. The attack wouldn''t be life-threatening since his body was strong, but being injured against an opponent such as this was not something he could afford to allow. "You just keep on surprising me. I''ll see what you have in store next." The Darkness Elementalist launched an attack on Grey once more. ''I have to kill him no matter what.'' The Darkness Elementalist''s resolve to kill Grey had increased to a high level. The stronger Grey was, the more he wanted to kill him. The threat he was feeling from Grey was very high, and if he didn''t stop him from growing now, he''ll regret it later in the future. "It''ll be something great, I assure you." Grey took in a huge breath of air and once again started defending from the attacks of his opponent. ___ "Ah... what happened?" The blue-clothed youth g.r.o.a.n.e.d in pain grabbing his head. The moment he regained consciousness, he was hit by a severe headache. It felt like a battle was going on, and his head was the battlefield. "Uh! Prince Ellis, you''re awake?" One of the youths beside him was the first to notice him. "What happened?" Ellis asked again. "It''s like this..." The youth went on to tell him what happened after he lost consciousness till now. He also didn''t forget to tell him the reason he blacked out. "You mean that guy with the blue flame threw me at a rock?" Ellis asked to confirm if they were talking about the same person. The youth nodded in response. "But, I didn''t feel anything. How can someone grab me by my clothes and throw me without me feeling any force or contact?" Ellis couldn''t believe what he was hearing. From what the youth told him, he should''ve at least felt some contact, or a pulling force when Grey grabbed his clothes. But he felt nothing, how could he believe something like that? "I don''t know, but that was what happened. You can ask the others if you feel I''m lying." The youth replied. Still having doubts, Ellis asked the other three about the issue, and they all narrated the same thing. "What sort of terrifying speed and power will allow him to throw me so casually without me not even feeling anything?" Ellis muttered to himself. "Huh! He''s Dual Elementalist as well?" A look of confusion appeared on Ellis'' face when he saw Grey using the earth element. "No. He''s a Multi Elementalist." One of the youths corrected. "You mean other than the fire and earth element he has a third one?" Ellis asked with his mouth agape. "Yes, the lightning element." The youth answered. "How can there be such a monster? Luckily he was found sooner rather than later." Ellis sighed. Since Grey wasn''t from his empire, all he wanted was his death. If such a genius grew up, then wouldn''t that mean he could almost single-handedly defeat the other empires given how strong he currently was. "Come, let''s go closer. If the situation permits, then we''ll remove these future threats." He said coldly. Grey wasn''t his only fear, the Darkness Elementalist was the second person he wanted to eliminate as well. He didn''t know where the Darkness Elementalist or Grey was from, but he knew they weren''t from the same empire as himself. ____ Void was sitting by the side enjoying the ongoing battles, without making any moves. It''s not like he didn''t want to, but he was still too weak to fight them. Had he broken through and became a rank four beast, then he wouldn''t have a problem with helping Grey fight against them. When he saw Ellis and his group coming closer, he was able to quickly sense the ill intent that came with them. ''Hey Grey, I think your situation just went from bad to worse.'' He alerted Grey of the group''s arrival. ''Huh! What do you mean?'' Grey asked. Being engrossed in the fight against the Darkness Elementalist, he couldn''t afford to be distracted. But the only reason he placed his entire focus on the battle was that he knew Void was keeping watch of the surroundings. ''That guy you threw away is coming back with his friends. And from their faces, it looks like they want revenge.'' Void explained. ''Hmph! I should''ve killed him the first time.'' Grey snorted. He felt Ellis didn''t do anything that deserved death the first time hence he didn''t attempt to kill him and just knocked him out. But on hearing he was coming back and it seems like he wanted to find trouble with him, he felt annoyed. ''You should have.'' Void said. ___ When Ellis and his group went closer, the Darkness Elementalist noticed them and threw a warning glance at them. His message was clear, don''t come any closer. "We''re here to help," Ellis said. "I don''t need it." The Darkness Elementalist replied coldly. "You can''t defeat them at this rate. Look around, other than you, the others aren''t in a good condition." Ellis persuaded. He was right about this though, other than the Darkness Elementalist, the other four were not in good conditions except for the one who was fighting against Klaus, his condition wasn''t as bad as the rest. The reason for this was because, after the others saw how strong Klaus was, they started switching positions. At first two of them wanted to gang up against him, but then they realized something. Alice was even more terrifying than Klaus was. Before the other opponent could go back, she had already beaten her opponent with the chance she got. But because the second person returned quickly, she couldn''t deal the finishing strike. Looking around, the Darkness Elementalist was shocked by the sorry state his companions were in. If not for the fact that one of them was still looking okay, he would''ve thought they were someone else. The faces of three of them were swollen, and the mocking laughter of Klaus almost made them go crazy. Grey was also taken aback when he took a glance at the other battles. ''Of all your friends, I think I like that one more.'' Void told Grey of Klaus''s deeds. ''*Sigh* That''s Klaus for you. Always finds fun in anything he''s doing.'' Grey sighed. ''He''s quite fun to be with though.'' Void said. The brief time he had been around the group, Klaus was the one who keeps the group entertained most of the time. He was sometimes accompanied by Reynolds as well. Grey and Alice were the ones who spoke less in the group. "Fine. But this one is mine." The Darkness Elementalist agreed to Ellis'' offer but didn''t forget to warn him not to come close to him and his prey. "Whatever you say." Ellis chuckled lightly and charged straight at Klaus. "You bastard, I''m back for you." Ellis laughed when he got close to Klaus and attacked. "F.u.c.k! You stupid moron. How can you gang up against me." Klaus cursed out. "Blame that lousy mouth of yours," Ellis replied. "You''re lousy! Your whole family is lousy!" Klaus cursed again even when he was being beaten. "Shit! Don''t attack my face you fool. How can I get a wife if you deform it?" Klaus cursed. "It''s none of my business. Do you think you can leave this place alive?" Ellis asked. "I don''t know about that. But what I know is that you''ll die before I do!" Klaus laughed after being pushed back. Klaus, Reynolds, and Alice were facing off against three opponents each. Things were particularly worse for Reynolds and he was already planning on summoning his Elemental Warrior. The reason he didn''t summon it at first was because he didn''t want to depend on it. If most of his battles were fought by it, how would he grow strong? ___ "That should be the exit." A youth said looking at the portal ahead of him. Without delay, he stepped through it and disappeared. Chapter 133 - Unexpected Helper ___ At the valley. A youth stepped out of the big black door and was welcomed by the sight of a huge tornado coming his way. He unconsciously froze in shock, not expecting something like this to happen. But after going through multiple fights, he was able to quickly regained his calm and sent a wave of fire that destroyed the attack. When he stared ahead of him, he was greeted by the sight of a heated battle. The battle was divided into four parts. There were fourteen youths present, four of the youths seemed to be ganged up on by the other ten. Other than the most eye-catching battle which compromised of two fighters, the other three had four fighters with one person fighting against three others each. "How shameless, how can they team up against four people?" The youth wasn''t a fan of this. But, he knew all was fair in war. The only person he felt still had a shred of dignity left was the one who was fighting against a single opponent. Both of them looked like they were the strongest amongst the groups fighting and from the little exchange he had seen, he could tell they both wielded multiple elements. ____ ''Finally!'' Grey almost exclaimed out in delight. The inscriptions he had been trying to make were finally done. At first, he wanted to create one symbol to fight against the Darkness Elementalist, but when Ellis and his group joined the fray of things, he changed his mind and decided to create three instead. And all of them would be to assist his friends. Since he could still hang on against the Darkness Elementalist, he didn''t need one. Now, he planned to create a chance for them to escape. Had they been fighting against the Darkness Elementalist and his group alone, then he didn''t fear anything, but now, things had gotten too difficult for them. When he noticed Reynolds was about to summon his Elemental Warrior, he signaled him to wait a little longer. If he summoned it at the wrong time, it wouldn''t give them the opportunity they needed to run since their opponents were too many. Boom! Boom! Boom! Three attacks struck out from the symbols with none of the others being aware of them being above them. This was the first time Grey was using his inscription in front of his friends. Ellis and two others who were in the Second stage were struck by the surprise attack. Ellis having a higher cultivation stage was more s.e.n.s.i.t.i.v.e to danger and managed to defend against it. But it still threw him off balance, this presented an opportunity for Klaus that he didn''t miss. Sending out an attack, he was able to send Ellis flying. The two others didn''t have it any better and the attack from the inscription injured them, although not fatally. Having one opponent less in each of their battles, the pressure on Alice, Klaus, and Reynolds would naturally reduce greatly. The youths as well as the Darkness Elementalist retreated and looked around vigilantly to find out who attacked them. ___ "Which bastard dares to sneak attack me?!" Ellis roared after managing to stand up. Blood could be seen at the side of his mouth. Klaus didn''t hold back on the attack and truly wanted to take his life with it. Looking around, the only unfamiliar person he saw was the youth who was standing in front of the door. "It''s you! Who the hell do you think you are?!" Ellis shouted, clearly infuriated by the fact that he was injured because of the sneak attack. "I''m not that lowly to sneak attack someone like you. And... I don''t involve myself in things that have no connections with me." The youth said coldly. "Then did you see who did?" Ellis questioned. But unlike the first time, the youth didn''t respond to him, instead, he just stood at his position with his arms crossed. "He''s not the cause of it." Just as Ellis was about to yell at the youth, he heard a voice, turning around, he realized the speaker was the Darkness Elementalist. "If he''s not the one, then who is?" Ellis asked. Since the youth was the only one present, it was natural that he would be the only suspect. "Look above you," The Darkness Elementalist pointed upwards. "Uh! What are those?" Ellis asked in surprise. "If I''m not wrong, those should be inscriptions. There''s an inscriber amongst these four," The Darkness Elementalist pointed at Grey and his friends who had grouped together since the battles were placed on hold. When Ellis heard what the Darkness Elementalist said, he s.u.c.k.e.d in a cold breath. He had some knowledge about inscribers and knew they were a terrifying bunch. ''To think there''s an inscriber amongst them. They''ll all have to die, I can''t allow them to leave this place alive.'' Ellis thought. Now, he wanted Grey and his group dead. But before that, he''ll allow them to weaken the strength of the Darkness Elementalist and his group, so killing them would be easier. "So those are inscriptions, to think you''d learn it," Alice said looking at the flickering symbols in the sky. "It hasn''t been long I learned it," Grey replied casually. Unknown to everyone else, Grey was secretly creating another inscription. Since the battles have gotten to this extent, creating more inscriptions would make the battle easier for them. Even if they would escape at the end, he wanted to make sure these people wouldn''t be left unscathed, especially Ellis, if he had the chance, he''ll be the first one he kills. "Isn''t that the guy from your city?" Klaus pointed at the youth standing by the side. "Yeah," Grey nodded. He recognized Jonas the moment he saw him. When he noticed Jonas''s stage, he was slightly taken aback but when he remembered the legacy, he felt it wasn''t really unexpected. Jonas had reached the Third stage of the Origin Plane. When he passed through the door, he was only in the Eighth stage of the Arcane Plane. "So what''s the plan now?" Reynolds asked. "We''ll have to fight. How long can it last?" Grey asked. "Five minutes max, Reynolds answered. "Hmm, we should be able to escape within that time," Grey answered after pondering for a while. ____ "Don''t give them any more time, kill them now. But remember to be wary of those symbols." the Darkness Elementalist ordered and charged at Grey. He was dead set on killing Grey, and since he had the chance now, he wanted to make sure he does. Although he didn''t know who was the inscriber, he didn''t care. As long as they all died, then he was satisfied. Ellis and the others charged at their previous opponents. But just as Ellis was heading towards Klaus, an unexpected figure appeared before him. "I''ll be your opponent this time," Jonas said casually. "What is the meaning of this? I thought you said you don''t involve yourself in things that are not connected to you?" Ellis asked in rage. "I don''t. But you see, I''m indebted to him, and I hate being indebted to others. So, this is me repaying a favor." Jonas shrugged and attacked Ellis. The battle got more heated with the addition of Jonas. Although Jonas wasn''t as strong as Grey or the Darkness Elementalist, he was a notch stronger than Alice and Ellis, which made him the third strongest person in the battle. He was ganged up by three people, and Alice, Klaus, and Reynolds were fighting against two people each. But given the damage some fighters have taken, they weren''t at their best, so the battle wasn''t as pressurizing as it used to for the three. Being wary of the symbols, they had to ensure to didn''t put their full focus on the fight or else the consequences would be detrimental. Due to the sudden involvement of Jonas, Grey stopped Reynolds from summoning the Elemental Warrior, for now though. ____ Grey managed to create a fourth symbol after one minute went by, and used it to immediately attack his opponent. Having so many inscriptions up was quite tiresome, so he planned on escaping soon. "It''s you!" the Darkness Elementalist exclaimed when he was attacked by an inscription all of a sudden. If he still didn''t realize that Grey was the inscriber then he was a fool. Now, he felt more driven to kill him. Grey wasn''t just a Multi Elementalist, he also had a terrifying physique, and now, he found out Grey was also an inscriber. How could one person be equipped with all this? Having one of the three things he had would already make one a genius, yet, one person has all three. It was shocking, to say the least. "Rey, now!" Grey said. Having four symbols up was very taxing to his spiritual energy, and if he didn''t dismiss them, it would tire him out soon. ____ When Reynolds heard Grey''s call, he quickly summoned his Elemental Warrior. The moment the warrior appeared, it sent out attacks towards Reynolds opponents and sent one of them flying. Bam! Managing to escape, Reynolds second opponent wisely created a distance between them and struck out an attack. When the others saw the appearance of the Elemental Warrior, one of them left Klaus and came to the aid of his companion. With two fighting against the Elemental Warrior, they managed to contain it, although just barely. Klaus being left with a single opponent didn''t delay and went to work on him. One minute later. Klaus had managed to send his opponent flying and sent out an attack to help Alice while also preparing a gift for Ellis. "Grey, We''re ready!" Klaus said after they managed to escape from their opponents. ____ "Goodbye," Grey waved and made an attack that consisted of three elements and also with the symbols. Attacking three people simultaneously, he dashed away from the Darkness Elementalist. Jonas, Alice, Klaus, and Reynolds also ran into the forest beside him. Although Jonas wasn''t aware of their plan, he was able to pick up some things since he knew they couldn''t defeat their opponents and the others were also exhausted from the long battle. But before Klaus left, he didn''t forget to throw the gift he was preparing for Ellis. The ice needle was too fast for Ellis to dodge, and it entered his c.h.e.s.t. ____ "Consider us even," Jonas said before walking away after the group stopped running. Grey stared at the fading shadow of Jonas, he didn''t expect because he left him back at the secret room to acquire the legacy, Jonas would feel indebted to him. He shrugged and focused on recovering. The mental stress he had from using four symbols made him tired. He needed to rest. Chapter 134 - Exposed ____ As Grey and his friends were escaping into the forest, the Darkness Elementalist chased after them trying to stop them. The attack Grey sent his way slowed him down at first, so Grey and his group had gotten to a considerably far distance before he started his chase, but he didn''t want to allow them to escape just like that. But just as he stepped into the forest, his heart skipped and a feeling of danger welled up on him, without daring to wait and see what was the cause, he quickly retreated as fast as he could. Boom! A loud explosion rang from where he was meant to step next. Although the Darkness Elementalist retreated quickly, he was still caught by the force of the explosion which threw him over twenty meters into the air. Bang! Crack! "Argghh" The Darkness Elementalist screamed in pain when he landed hard on the floor. His body ached from the hard fall, and he was sure the bone on his left arm was cracked. Although it didn''t break, it was still painful. Looking at the edge of the forest, he shivered in fear and a chill ran down his spine when he saw the result of the explosion. Had he not retreated quickly, then he knew he wouldn''t have survived that explosion. His companions quickly rushed over to give him the tonic they had with them. "Those bastards, they better pray they don''t cross my path again." The Darkness Elementalist murmured coldly. "But, there''s something strange about that black cat," He thought out loud. Just before the explosion, he recalled seeing a small black shadow. Only now did he remember where he had seen it before, on Grey''s shoulder. From what happened, he guessed this was all planned by Grey. Now, Grey was the one he hated the most. Because, had he not been alert, he would have died some moments ago. ____ While the Darkness Elementalist was still thinking about the explosion, Ellis was currently in a bad condition. Klaus used a technique the Darkness Elementalist was all too familiar with on Ellis, ''Sub-Zero''. Since Ellis wasn''t a Fire Elementalist, the attack was much more effective on him than it was on the Darkness Elementalist. Ellis was even more unfortunate and was struck by hypothermia, before long, he started shivering from the intense cold. Soon, he started mumbling things none of his companions could hear. Within two minutes, his breathing became shallow, and he started becoming drowsy. At first, he tried to use his element to help relieve some of the cold, but he couldn''t. Now, he couldn''t think properly and was also in a state of confusion. "We need to keep him warm. Fire, we need a Fire Elementalist." One of Ellis''s companions yelled. Looking around, he realized none of them was a Fire Elementalist, the only people that he recalled using the fire element here were Grey and the Darkness Elementalist. Grey had escaped, and even if he were here, there''s no way he would help, he might even kill him quicker. With no other option, they turned to the slightly injured Darkness Elementalist whose face was still somewhat slightly pale. "Please, help him." They came begging carrying Ellis along. When the Darkness Elementalist looked at the shivering Ellis, he quickly sensed the chilling cold coming off his body. Being a victim of this attack, he was able to quickly connect the dots and figured out what happened. "Hmph! I have no business with him, he can die for all I care." The Darkness Elementalist snorted coldly and turned around preparing to walk away with his group. Losing the nine drops of Great Earth Essence Liquid had placed him in a bad mood, when he thought he would be able to finally kill Grey and his friends using the excuse of them not agreeing to be searched, they escaped, not just that, but they almost killed him as well. This was the third time he was facing off against the group, and he had been injured on all three occasions, the last one was even more deadlier since he might have lost his life. After taking five steps, he stopped and turned back to look at Ellis. "Move to the side," He said and walked closer to Ellis. Ellis''s companions were elated and quickly moved away from Ellis. The Darkness Elementalist took a glance at his companions before squatting and placing his hand on Ellis''s c.h.e.s.t. He sent a warm stream of essence into Ellis''s body which quickly started to provide the heat necessary for Ellis. Soon, Ellis started recovering. The moment his head cleared up, the first thing he saw was the Darkness Elementalist squatting close to him. His heart raced a bit, but when he realized that the Darkness Elementalist was trying to help him, he calmed down. "What? Are you surprised I''m the one helping you?" The Darkness Elementalist asked coldly. Before Ellis could reply, he started hearing screams filled with pain around him. Looking at the Darkness Elementalist, he noticed a grin had formed on his face. "Initially, I wanted to let you die from the cold, but then I realized something, it wouldn''t be as painful as dying by burning from the inside out." the Darkness Elementalist said emotionlessly. "Please...stop," Ellis begged weakly when he realized his previously cold body was starting to burn up. Due to suffering from hypothermia previously, he was currently very weak and could barely speak properly. There''s no way he could defend himself against the Darkness Elementalist. In other words, he was totally defenseless, and his companions who could''ve helped him had all been killed. "I sensed the killing intent you had towards me when you said you wanted to help previously. I initially planned on disposing of you after I was done with them, but since they''ve escaped, you''ll have to suffer for your foolishness." The Darkness Elementalist increased the heat he was releasing inside Ellis''s body. The Darkness Elementalist and his group could be seen walking away from the wreck the valley had turned into because of the fight that took place here not too long ago. On the ground of the valley were five corpses, one of them was particularly attention-grabbing due to how the body looked. "Quinn, I think those four are connected to the disappearance of the Great Earth Essence Liquid." One of the Darkness Elementalist''s companions said to him. "Hmm, why''d say so?" Quinn raised a brow. "I remember seeing that cat you spoke of inside the pond." the youth explained. He recalled when they were still fighting against the protectors, he saw a small shadow that fits the description of the small cat that Grey had with him. But due to the intensity of the fight and how things later turned out, he forgot about it. It was only after Quinn spoke of seeing a small shadow did he remember seeing something like that. "You mean they have the nine drops of Great Earth Essence Liquid?" Quinn didn''t want to believe what he was hearing. "Since that cat entered the pond, then there''s a chance it took it. And since it''s the pet of that Multi Elementalist, he should be the one who has it." The youth pondered before answering. "Then why didn''t you say so earlier?!" Quinn yelled angrily. Had he known Grey and his friends had the nine drops of the Great Earth Essence Liquid all along, then he wouldn''t have tried killing Grey alone and would''ve accepted help. "I only remembered about it just now," the youth tried explaining. "You good for nothing! This is the reason we came here, now, someone else has gained the reward of our labor." Quinn exploded in rage and veins started appearing in his head. "Calm down, there''s no way they can refine it in a short time. And given how exhausted they are from the battle as well as the slight injuries they''ve sustained, it''ll take a day or two before they''ll think of refining it." Another one of the youths interjected. "Damn! What are you all still standing here for, go find them!" Quinn ordered. "Wait, take this. You know what to do right?" Quinn passed a two inches long object that had weird symbols all over it. The group nodded and all disappeared into the forest. They all faced different directions since they couldn''t be sure Grey and his friends went in a straight line. "Guess you all can''t escape death." The Darkness Elementalist said coldly before walking in the initial direction Grey and his friends went. _____ At a ruined building four kilometers from the valley. Inside of the rooms. "We should fully recover before using them," Alice suggested. "Yeah, they''ll be better then." The others all agreed to her suggestion. Grey wanted to give them their drops, but since they should wait till they recovered, it was safer with him. After the others left, Void who wasn''t present appeared on his shoulder. "How was it?" Grey asked. ''He''s very alert and managed to escape. Although he was injured, it''s something he can quickly recover from.'' Void replied. "Oh! What did you use in the attack?" Grey couldn''t help but ask curiously. When they were running, he overheard the explosion. ''It''s none of your business.'' Void replied before going to the corner sadly. When Grey was about to escape, he asked him if he could stop Quinn momentarily, which he agreed to. But he never expected he would have to ignite three of the lotus petals to generate enough power. When he ignited the third one, his heart was bleeding due to the loss. ''From the looks of it, it seemed like the attack he did took a lot from him.'' thought Grey. He shrugged and started his recovery. Chapter 135 - Toying With Quinn ____ Boom! A tree exploded into bits after being struck by a powerful fireball. "Ah! Where are they?!" Quinn could be seen with frustration all over his face. He had been searching for Grey and his friends for almost six hours now, and the lack of results was starting to irritate him. Since none of his companions have released the signal yet, it meant neither of them have found Grey yet. What was more frustrating was that he was already starting to tire out since he hadn''t gotten a good rest since the prolonged battles. Although physically he was quite okay after taking some tonic that helped restore his essence, he was feeling tired mentally, and the only way to solve that was to rest. Walking out of the woods, he saw a ruined building. This was the sixth building he had come across since he started searching for Grey and his friends. It was a five-story building with at least twenty-five rooms. ''If I don''t find them here, I''ll rest a little. After recovering, I''ll continue the search.'' thought Quinn. Getting closer to the building, he didn''t sense anyone on the first floor, being too tired, he didn''t bother to search all the floors after not finding anyone on the second floor of the building. He randomly picked a room on the second floor before going in. After entering the room he set up some defensive measures and immediately sat in a lotus position. If he didn''t rest for even a little, then even if he finds Grey, he might not be able to even fight against him. After getting into a meditative state, he carefully hid his presence just in case. Unknown to Quinn, Grey and his friends were in this building. Only, they were all situated on the fourth floor and were all fully engrossed in recovering. ____ Two hours later. Grey was the first amongst the group to awaken from his state of cultivation. He walked out of the room he occupied, leaving the still cultivating Void alone. He initially wanted to wake Void up, but when he remembered how he disrupted Void''s cultivation the last time when he refined his body, he dismissed the idea. ''I remember sensing someone, but, looks like the person didn''t stay for long.'' thought Grey When he was cultivating previously, he sensed the presence of someone walking inside the building, but after some time, the presence disappeared. He initially wanted to go check it out, but after not sensing the person again, he stopped himself and focused on cultivating. He assumed it was probably one of the geniuses who came into the trial land. Although this looked careless, he was very safe. Being an Inscriber means he''s naturally good with arrays. He had placed multiple arrays in not just his room, but also the rooms of his friends. If anyone were to carelessly charge in, then, they''re in for a rough time. Although the attacks from the arrays aren''t strong enough to kill them, they shouldn''t have any problems hurting them. With nothing to do, he decided to look through the other floors. In no time, he had already looked through the other two empty rooms on the fourth floor and was on his way to the fifth floor. Some steps on the stairs were missing for some unknown reasons, there were holes in the walls, and when Grey got to the last floor, he was greeted by the moonlight shining through the roofless building. The end of the passageway was destroyed so there was a huge hole in the wall. Grey walked closer to the hole and looked through the hole, observing the compound, and also the forest that was not far from the building. "Huh!" Grey saw a familiar shadow walking out of the building. ''What''s he doing here? Could it be that he followed us here?'' Grey pondered when he saw Quinn leaving the building. ''Well, since he''s here, then I''ll play with him for some time.'' Grey jumped through the hole in the wall. He was bored and since a prey had appeared for him to have fun with, then he wouldn''t mind playing Quinn to death. Using his wind element, he slowed his descent, so the impact of the landing wouldn''t spread far. He planned to kill Quinn slowly, first, he''ll break him down mentally, before killing him. Quinn who just stepped out of the building felt his ear twitch. ''Someone or something is following me.'' He thought coldly. Compared to other humans, Quinn''s ears were more s.e.n.s.i.t.i.v.e to sound just like that of an animal. Although it couldn''t be compared to an animal''s hearing, it was better than that of regular humans. So even when Grey tried to be as silent as possible, he still made some sounds which Quinn surprisingly picked up from over fifty meters away. Quinn raised his vigilance and continued walking without looking back. He didn''t want to alert whoever, or whatever was following behind him. The only thing that made him slightly worried was the fact that he didn''t know the strength of his soon-to-be opponent. If he could find out, then he''ll know what measures to take. He reduced his speed and focused hearing on what sounds he could pick up. From the light footsteps he was hearing, he was able to confirm it was a human that was following behind him, but he was still unable to sense the Plane or presence of the person. ''To think someone would follow me. Hmm, I''ll know who the person is soon enough.'' thought Quinn. Had it not been for his impeccable hearing, then there was a chance the person following behind him would be able to successfully sneak attack him. "Show yourself!" Quinn turned around sharply and exploded out with a sea of fire that spread out in all directions. The power of the flame was quite weak due to it spreading in such a large scale, but Quinn didn''t plan on using it to kill, he wanted to force out his stalker. ____ ''He sensed me, to think he knew I was following behind him.'' Grey casually waved his hand and an earth wall appeared in front of him that blocked the flame. But after blocking it, he climbed up one of the trees. With the aid of the wind element, it didn''t take him long before he got to the very top of the tree. It hadn''t even been close to two minutes since he started following behind Quinn, yet he was discovered. He felt quite embarrassed at how poor his stalking was. He just finished creating the first symbol but he hadn''t made it appear yet. But he knew there was no way Quinn would be able to sense it. ''I originally planned on using two symbols, but...whatever, one should be enough.'' Grey thought and attacked with the symbol while still hiding in the trees. After the symbol sent out the attack, unlike before when the symbol would remain visible, this time, after the first attack, it disappeared, like it was never there. ''Let the fun begin!'' Grey laughed happily inside. Bam! Quinn managed to dodge the attack, but after looking around, and not finding anyone, his face turned sour. "Come out and fight like a man!" Quinn roared. Grey wanted to shamelessly retort and say he was a lady, but after some thought, he decided it was best to attack him again. If he were to speak, then there''s a chance Quinn might figure out which tree he was hiding on. Quinn slammed into the tree that was closest to him and his hair turned into a mess. Another minute went by with him not seeing his opponent, or where the attack was coming from. Only a fool wouldn''t realize what was happening, his opponent was toying with him. "I''ll kill you!" He almost dragged his hair out from annoyance. Why was this happening to him? Who was so bored to follow him and start tormenting him? The most annoying thing was that his opponent wasn''t trying to kill him, and was currently playing with him. He had tried escaping multiple times, but he was met with assaults that had nearly taken his life. He remembered Klaus was a Water Elementalist, but he knew none of them was a Wind Elementalist. He tried burning the trees, but the person would put out the fire with the water element. Even though he knew the person was in the trees, there was nothing he could do to get the person out. "Who are you? Come out this instant!" Quinn ordered. Grey hearing this felt like Quinn wasn''t as smart as he thought he was. ''Does he really think I''ll come out? I think he has a screw loose or something.'' Grey shrugged and continued his assault. Chapter 136 - Darkness! Consume! Another minute went by with Grey not stopping his assault. He naturally has a reason for this. Although he wanted to kill Quinn, he knew it wouldn''t be easy. Had Quinn not found out he was following behind him, then maybe he would have done a sneak attack that would end his life or at the very least, injure him, instead of toying with him. But alas, Quinn was too vigilant, and quickly figured out he was being followed. After being found out, Grey decided it was best to wear him down while also toying with him. This wouldn''t only break him physically, but also mentally. Once he''s worn down, then the real battle would commence. But there was one thing he had to make sure of, and that was, as long as he showed himself, then he had to kill Quinn at all cost since he had used two other elements. Quinn would be able to figure out he had five elements that would put his life at risk if the information of him wielding more than three elements were to be disseminated. The first reason for this was because, in the entire history of the Azure continent, the highest number of elements a Multi Elementalist had ever wielded was three, although, there might be a chance of people having more but not showing it. Then the second, and most important reason was that, if the people from his empire were to find out he could wield five elements, then he would be subject to multiple questioning and possible experiments since when he took the test, he had only two elements. ____ After being assaulted for almost three minutes, Quinn had finally calmed himself and started thinking, soon, a realization dawned on him. ''This person is trying to wear me down. Well, there''s also a chance the person is deranged, so there''s no way I''m sure this is his plan. But, if I''m the one doing something like this, that would be my only reason.'' Thought Quinn. Placing himself in the shoes of his unknown opponent, he assumed the reason the person was doing this is to wear him down. Although he wasn''t a hundred percent sure, he felt he shouldn''t be far from it. Having come to an assumption, he stopped trying to escape since it had been futile all this while and focused on defending mostly. This allowed him to conserve more energy. ''Hmph! There''s no way you can do this for long. Your essence will be used up soon and then, I''ll see where you can escape to.'' Quinn snorted while blocking an attack. Given the amount of essence an Origin Plane Elementalist can keep in the body, attacking for over thirty minutes straight without taking breaks would naturally dry it up. Only when an Elementalist gets to the Sage Plane will they have an unlimited supply of elemental essence. When defending, an Elementalist tends to use lesser essence, but again, this all depends on the strength of the attack the Elementalist is defending against. ____ It didn''t take long for Grey to realize Quinn had changed tactics. Instead of trying to escape, it looks like he''s trying to fight a war of attrition. ''*Sigh* Although he acted dumb previously, he truly is a great fighter. But unfortunately for him, I can go on for hours without running out of essence.'' Grey sighed at Quinn''s quick thinking but also felt pity for him since his plan wouldn''t work out. When attacking with the symbol, it doesn''t require the Inscriber''s elemental essence, rather, it takes its essence from the environment. Given how abundant the essence here is, there''s no way it would run out. The only downside of inscribing was that if the number of inscriptions the Inscriber is using simultaneously is too much, it wears the person down, just like what happened to Grey previously. But for the current Grey, he could keep up a single inscription for just over one hour before it starts straining him mentally. ''Since he wants to play, I''m pretty free, so I don''t mind.'' Grey chuckled playfully and increased the speed of his attacks. He just stayed on his tree, in the cover of the night, and was enjoying the show Quinn was putting on. Another fifteen minutes went by with Grey sometimes increasing the tempo of the attacks, and sometimes decreasing it. ''It shouldn''t be long now, once this person runs out. I''ll immediately kill the person!'' Quinn thought spitefully. This was the only word he could use to comfort himself. Even though he hadn''t been injured, defending nonstop for almost twenty minutes without resting is annoying. He felt like an animal being toyed with. A terrifying aura was being congealed in his body. He was gathering so much energy that once he sees this person, he''ll kill whoever it was instantly. Fifteen minutes later. ''How can he still keep going?'' Quinn''s mind was turning into a mess. It had already passed the estimated time of thirty minutes, but the person still hadn''t stopped the attack, and the speed of the attacks was still the same. ''What''s all this? It doesn''t make sense!'' Quinn felt confused by everything. He was already starting to get exhausted, even though he hadn''t been attacking. The energy he had been preparing previously had already started to slowly reduce, and the stress of having to defend against attacks that would come from unpredictable locations was starting to eat him up. "Why are you doing this? Come out and we can talk things out!" Quinn roared looking like someone who was on the verge of going insane. Anyone facing the same situation would feel that way. The most annoying this was that he hadn''t even caught a glimpse of his opponent. ____ ''*Sigh* It''s a shame a nice young man like him is about to go crazy.'' Grey shook his head in pity like he wasn''t the cause of it. If Quinn were to know what he was thinking, he''ll surely curse him and his entire family. ''But, I''ve had my fun, and, watching someone do one thing repeatedly is quite boring.'' Grey slowly stood up. ''It''s time to end this!'' Grey prepared himself for the last fight. ____ "Ahh! You don''t want to come out?! Fine! I''ll force you out!" Quinn shriek madly. "Darkness! Consume!" Quinn spread his arms wide and a terrifying scene occurred. Darkness essence soon started spreading in all directions, and the moment it came in contact with any living thing, it slowly started consuming it. When it came in contact with a tree, the tree would slowly start decaying, like it was going through the passage of time. After decaying to a certain extent, it would fall and shatter into bits. Even the ground he was standing on wasn''t spared from this attack, and it soon parched up. The earth slowly started having cracks like it would give way shortly. Within ten seconds, all the trees within a three hundred meters radius had all decayed, with the earth also suffering from the same thing. The impact of the attack was dreadful, no one would believe this was the result of an attack. Even Grey who witnessed it was having a hard time believing it. Looking at it properly, it felt like it was the natural work of time! Chapter 137 - Quinns Death ____ Grey who just prepared to attack had a fright when the phantom appeared behind Quinn. ''What is that?'' He looked at it curiously. But the next moment, he turned and jumped from his tree to the next one trying to escape the range of the attack. The scene of the first tree and the earth being consumed sent a chill down his spine. He didn''t even dare to block the attack, he outright ran away. Who would dare to block something like that? The speed at which the darkness essence was eating up everything on its path was frightening. Grey was almost sure if he set up a defense, there was a chance it might also eat it up. Although there was a chance he might be able to successfully block the attack, he didn''t dare to take the chance. What if he couldn''t block it? Wouldn''t that mean he''ll dry up like the trees and the earth? While running, he realized the attack was still spreading out. When he originally started attacking Quinn, they were just over two hundred meters away from the building. But, after Quinn''s multiple attempts to escape, they had moved further by at least one hundred meters or so, he wasn''t too sure about it though. Now, at this pace, there was a chance the attack would get to the building. If his friends were caught up by it, then the consequences would be detrimental. He quickly ran towards the building at his fastest speed, but the speed at which the attack was spreading was only a little bit slower than he was. When he reached the building, he wanted to send out an attack and disrupt the cultivation of his friends. Even though the sudden disruption might harm them, it was better than dying, right? Just after passing through the fence surrounding the compound, the darkness essence also reached there. But it stopped after moving two meters from it. Grey hastily canceled his attack the moment he realized the darkness essence had stopped spreading. When he turned to look at the result of Quinn''s attack, he s.u.c.k.e.d in a cold breath. "Oh my God! How can this be the result of a single attack?" He exclaimed in shock. Every single thing on the path of the attack had been destroyed. The fence had fallen, the few trees still standing looked like they were transported here from one thousand years ago. Grey was sure if the trees were hit by a little wind, they would fall apart like the others. He curiously sent out a wind attack, and the result was just as he had predicted, it fell apart and shattered into bits. "This guy''s a monster. Luckily, the attack stopped spreading, or I wouldn''t have forgiven myself if something were to happen to the others." Grey sighed in relief. Had he not played Quinn to a state of almost going mad, then he wouldn''t have used such an attack. Having this technique and not using it previously meant the technique couldn''t be used lightly. Thinking up to this stage, he quickly dashed towards where they previously were. Even though he had predicted the state of the forest after seeing what its outer region looked like after the attack, he was still left speechless when he stepped on a tree that had fallen on the ground and it shattered. Getting to the location, he couldn''t find Quinn. "Of course he''d escape. But he hasn''t gone far, I can still sense him around." Grey charged towards where he was sensing the darkness essence. Two minutes later. Grey caught sight of an emaciated-looking young man. "Oh my God! No wonder he didn''t use it previously." Grey was shocked by the price Quinn had to pay. Quinn who was slowly walking away turned around instantly and looked at Grey with eyes filled with insanity. His previous amazing looks were gone, his face and body were all dried up. "It''s you!" He exclaimed. "Me? I don''t know what you''re talking about. Also, who are you?" Grey replied while looking around innocently before he questioned. He knew it was Quinn, but after hanging around with Klaus for so long, he had picked up a thing or two about annoying people. Quinn''s anger increased a notch higher when he saw the innocent-looking expression on Grey''s face. But on hearing the question, he flared up instantly. "I''ll kill you? I know you were the one who attacked me," Quinn yelled. "If I attacked you, you''d be dead. Also, I still have no idea who you are," Grey said confidently. Quinn was actually slightly taken aback when he heard this. From the little contact he had with Grey, he felt Grey was speaking the truth since he didn''t think someone of Grey''s caliber who he even thinks of as an equal would stoop so low. "Hmph! I don''t care if you''re the one or not. Hand over the nine drops of the Great Earth Essence Liquid, and I''ll leave your corpse intact," Quinn snorted coldly. "Have you seen yourself?" Grey chuckled. If Quinn decided to lie down without moving an inch, it would be very easy for everyone to mistake him for a corpse. ''There''s no bag with him, this means the nine drops of Great Earth Essence Liquid is not with him, but his friends.'' Quinn thought while placing his hand on his bag and destroying a two inches object that had weird symbols. ___ The moment the object was destroyed, Quinn''s companions who were in different places felt their own heat up. Taking it out, it floated into the air before moving in a particular direction. ___ "Where are your friends?" Quinn asked. Grey glanced at Quinn before looking around. He didn''t miss the part where Quinn placed his hand on his bag and took it out moments later. ''I shouldn''t delay any further. I almost caused a catastrophe for my friends when I played with him previously. I''m not making that mistake again.'' With this in mind, Grey attacked. "Don''t think you can defeat me even though I look like this. You''re a fool to think I''m weak." Quinn laughed and struck out. Grey''s fireball was met with Quinn''s attack. The attack exploded, but Quinn''s attack surprisingly continued moving towards Grey. Quinn used a lightning attack, but for some reason, it had the corrosive effect of the darkness element. While Grey was scurrying to destroy the attack coming his way, Quinn coughed up a mouthful of black blood. ''I need to stop attacking. The after-effects of this technique are too powerful, although it gives my other elements the corrosive ability of the darkness element, it also continues eating me up.'' Quinn struck out another attack before trying to escape. "Heh, like I''ll allow you run away," Grey smirked after once again using a flurry of attacks to destroy Quinn''s attack. He had already noticed although Quinn''s attack didn''t decline in terms of strength, his body looked more dried up. Blocking Quinn''s escape route, he attacked him without hesitation. Three minutes later. Quinn was on his knees panting heavily, he didn''t have any strength left to keep himself standing. "If you know you''re a true genius, allow me to recover and we''ll have a real battle with no one else intervening!" Quinn tried to rile Grey up. "Hehehe, I''m actually a shameless genius," Grey replied with a shy expression on his face. "Accept your death!" He declared and attacked. "It''s you! How is this pos..." Quinn''s speech was cut short. His body fell lifelessly with his eyes filled with shock and unwillingness. The element Grey used in killing him was the water element, so he quickly realized Grey was the one who assaulted him, only, it was a little too late. "*Sigh* It''s a shame we didn''t have a grand battle." Grey shook his head and went to search the bag of Quinn which had fallen some distance away from his body. Chapter 138 - Always Check The Corpse! "Uh! What''s this?" Grey took out a map from Quinn''s bag. Studying the map, he realized it was a map of the trial land, the part that they had explored, that is. ''How long did it take to make this map?'' He rubbed his chin while carefully analyzing the map. With the size of the map, coupled with the freshly drawn locations, it was easy for him to figure out they were the ones who made it. Looking closer, he realized the spot circled was where the valley was located. ''Seems like he was the one who found the door.'' Grey guessed. From how Quinn acted when the door just opened up, he felt there was at least a fifty percent chance they were the ones who found it. There was also a chance he was wrong though, and Quinn wasn''t the one who found the door, but he didn''t care about it. He had already gotten some massive rewards thanks to whoever found the place. After going through the map, he once again focused his attention on the bag. But at the end of his search, he was left disappointed by what it contained. Given Quinn''s strength, he should have at least gotten some great stuff here. But other than the map, multiple two inches wooden objects with array lines all over it, and some tonic, he found nothing else. Not even spare clothes! ''What a disgrace. Well, I should head back.'' Shaking his head, he turned to leave. But he stopped midway his turn when something caught his eye. The object was under Quinn''s body and only the edge was slightly visible. "Oh!" He exclaimed softly. Filled with curiosity, he walked towards the body and moved it to the side. Picking the object, he was surprised that it was actually a darkness element technique. Without further delay, he read the content of the scroll. This was unexpectedly the technique Quinn used previously. Although Grey was stunned by its power, he didn''t like it. The technique was like a double-edged sword that not only hurts the one being attacked but also hurts the one attacking. The price of using this technique was something Grey felt was too excessive. Using the technique not only drains one of his essences, but it also takes a little bit of the user''s lifespan. But this mainly depends on how much the Elementalist allows it to. If the Elementalist wants a stronger attack, the price they need to pay would be higher. It''s even stated that an Elementalist can sacrifice his entire life to use a one-time catastrophic attack. If the Elementalist is at the Overlord Plane, then the attack from sacrificing his entire lifespan can easily destroy one of the four empires. It truly was a deadly technique. Unfortunately, it''s not something Grey would ever wish to use. ''No wonder he looked so dried up when I found him, his essence had almost been completely drained for that attack. It would take at least a month or two before he could slowly recover. It''s a good thing I didn''t get c.o.c.ky and tried to defend against it though.'' Grey sighed in relief thinking of the attack. This wasn''t an attack the current him could defend against, it would be hard even if he were in the Fusion State, but not impossible. He kept the technique in his ring before searching Quinn''s body. ''Note to self; remember to search the bodies of your enemies after killing them.'' Grey smiled while searching the body. Had he not caught sight of the scroll, then he would have missed such a golden opportunity. Even though this was an attack he didn''t plan on using, but, who knows what the future holds. Maybe this attack might be of great use to him in the future. When he was done searching the body, he unexpectedly found another technique and a dagger hidden in Quinn''s clothes. The dagger was surprisingly a lightning elemental weapon, and the technique was a darkness element technique. "*Sigh* What a waste of good clothes." Grey shook his head before deciding it was time to leave. He had unknowingly spent almost fifteen minutes there. Since he had killed an enemy, and also acquired some items, he was in a good mood. The scene of Quinn''s death, ten minutes after Grey left. A young man could be seen walking behind a floating wooden object. The object was glowing slightly in the night. Before long, the young man walked closer to the body of Quinn. His expression changed drastically when he saw the dead body of Quinn. "It''s Quinn! But...but..." He wanted to speak but he couldn''t get the words out of his mouth. This young man was Aron. Of Quinn''s companions, he was the one closest to this place, but it still took him almost thirty minutes to get here. When he saw the emaciated-looking corpse of Quinn, he was left speechless. The reason he recognized him quickly was because of his clothes. Yet, he still didn''t dare to believe it. Who was strong enough to force Quinn into using his forbidden technique? Not only that, but the person survived it and killed him in the end. "It''s definitely those bastards. They must have ambushed him!" He yelled angrily. "He wasn''t ambushed, I killed him myself." A voice suddenly traveled from behind Aron. He quickly turned around and saw Grey smiling softly. "Hmph! Although you''re strong, you''re not strong enough to kill him. Now, hand over the nine drops of the Great Earth Essence Liquid, and I''ll forget I saw you." Aron stretched out his hand towards Grey. ''Okay... I think everyone in this group has a screw loose.'' Grey looked at Aron weirdly. He originally planned on leaving, but when he was about to leave, his instinct told him to wait a little longer. He hid behind a tree, and just when he was about to give up and leave, he saw Aron being guided here by the wooden object. "What''s that thing?" Grey pointed at the floating wooden object. He noticed this was what directed Aron here. It was quite intriguing, being curious, he asked about it. "It''s none of your business. Give me what I asked for before the others get here!" Aron ordered trying to scare Grey with his companions who were on the way. "Actually, I have a better idea. Why don''t I kill you before they get here?" Grey asked playfully. Aron didn''t answer but his eyes went cold. "Also, I''m quite surprised you''re not going to take revenge for him," Grey said. "I don''t believe you''re the one who killed him. But since you''re already an enemy, I wouldn''t mind killing you." Aron said icily. "*Sigh* You''re even dumber than he was." Grey felt speaking with Aron was a waste of time. Without delay, he lashed out an attack. Aron who was about to refute swallowed his words and immediately defended himself. But was sent flying from the force of the attack. ''He''s this strong! I need to stall till the others get here.'' Aron thought. He immediately changed his mind and instead of fighting back, he only defended, trying to stall Grey till his companions returned. Now he knew it was stupid of him not to run away the instant he saw Grey. One minute later. "Arghhh!" Aron screamed in pain as his left arm detached from his body. "Hehe, I bet you regret not running away the moment you saw me. Well, it''s already too late," Grey chuckled coldly. Aron looked at Grey and felt he was looking at a monster. He was a stage ahead of Grey, yet, he couldn''t even fight back. "Please, spa...spare me. I...I''ll tell you what the object does," Aron stammered as he dropped to his knees begging for his life. Aron''s body fell on the ground after being stabbed by Grey''s new weapon. "Don''t worry, I''ll ask the next person who comes," Grey replied. He thought of searching him, but after keeping Aron''s bag in his storage ring, he decided to hide in his previous spot. Since searching Aron would take some time. Another twenty minutes went by, and the body count had increased to three. Now, of Quinn''s group of five, only two were left alive. Grey only took the bag of his new victim without searching the body. He wanted to stay hidden until the remaining two from Quinn''s group arrived. Once he''s done killing them, then he''ll search them together. ___ "Nathan!" A young man called out to another man who was one hundred meters away from him. When the young man turned around, he noticed it was someone he knew. They were the last two from Quinn''s group. They were accidentally not far from each other, so after seeing one another, they continued the journey together. Before long, they got to the scene of Quinn and their companions'' death. They looked at each other with fear in their eyes after seeing the corpses on the floor. "I''ve been waiting for you two." Chapter 139 - Refining The Great Earth Essence Liquid "I''ve been waiting for you two." Both youths jumped in fright when they heard the voice. Of the five of them, they were the weakest. Seeing the other three dead, they instinctively wanted to escape from here as far away as they possibly could. They turned around only to see Grey. When they realized he was alone, they breathed a sigh of relief. Even if Grey was strong, it wasn''t to the extent he could kill them, right? "What are you doing here?" The youth called Nathan asked coldly. He had striking gold hair, beautiful aquamarine eyes, and a slender body. The only thing that spoilt his looks was his unexpectedly huge front teeth. They were just like that of a rabbit, sticking out no matter how he tried to cover it up. Even though he tried to hide his fear, it was still evident in his eyes. "Killing people," Grey replied casually. "Huh!" The other youth exclaimed, not expecting Grey to be this forthright. "You''re saying you killed them?" Nathan asked, pointing at the corpse on the ground. Grey was the only one present, so naturally, he should be the one who killed them. But, Nathan and the other youth couldn''t believe he was the one who killed all of them. They had seen him fight against Quinn previously so they knew he was powerful, but at that time, Quinn suppressed him, so even if he could kill the other two, there was no way he could kill Quinn. Grey couldn''t be bothered with their thoughts, he slowly walked towards them. He wanted to end this quickly and return to his friends. He had already spent a long time here. Twenty minutes later. Grey could be seen walking away from the forest. Five figures were lying motionless close to each other. Although fighting against two opponents was harder than fighting against one, given that both youths were already consumed by fear, they couldn''t really put up much of a fight. After killing them, Grey didn''t forget to search them properly, along with the others. Unlike Quinn, they didn''t have any valuables in their person, he only found some items after rummaging through their bags. From the four bags, he managed to obtain two earth element techniques, one wind element technique, and four water element techniques. He also found three elemental weapons and about a dozen or so elemental stones. ''The gains aren''t bad. Although I expected more given the strength of their group, I''ll have to do with this. Maybe, I could rob people.'' Grey pondered while walking back to the building. The idea of robbing others was quite interesting since he wouldn''t need to worry about searching for treasures, but after thinking more about it, he decided against it. Doing something like that would mean creating a huge number of enemies for himself, unless, he''ll have to kill everyone he robs. But he wasn''t that type of person. He might be cruel to his enemies, but that doesn''t mean he''ll start killing people who didn''t even offend him. Had Quinn not tried to kill Alice, or tried to search them forcefully with the intent of killing them, then he wouldn''t have killed them. All in all, this was something he''ll think about some other time, for now, it''s time for another upgrade. "The others should be up by now." Grey increased his speed and darted towards the building quickly. ____ At the building. Alice, Klaus, Reynolds, and Void were currently looking at the forest in shock. Of the four, Void was the first to wake up, after not finding Grey, he decided to explore the building. On getting to the top floor, he was left dumbfounded by what he saw. The others followed him to the top floor after they woke up and couldn''t find Grey. For almost thirty minutes now, they had been looking at what used to be part of a forest. "How did this happen?" Klaus couldn''t help but ask. "I don''t know," Alice and Reynolds answered. They were just as astounded as Klaus was. How could a well-nourished and lively forest turn into this within a matter of hours? "This should be the result of an attack," Alice said with a hint of uncertainty after contemplating for a while. She still had doubts about it though, but since only some part of the forest was like this, an attack was the only thing she could think of. But, how powerful can one be to unleash such a catastrophic attack? "Grey should know the cause. But he isn''t here, unfortunately." Reynolds said. "''Hopefully he''s safe," Klaus said. Normally, given the strength of the people who entered the trial land, they weren''t scared for the well-being of Grey. But, the current state of the forest frightened them. If there was someone who could unleash such a powerful attack among those who entered the trial land, then there''s a chance that Grey wasn''t the person''s match. And since the attack wasn''t far from the building, they felt there was a chance Grey was battling against such an opponent. No matter how much confidence they had in Grey, they still felt fearful seeing the state of the forest. Now, all they could do was hope Grey didn''t battle against this person, and even if he did, he should be safe. Another ten minutes went by before they saw a figure moving towards the building from the destroyed forest at an outstanding speed. "It''s Grey," Klaus said happily. The others impatiently stood up from their sitting position and ran closer to the hole on the wall. "*Sigh* Thankfully, he''s okay." Reynolds breathed a sigh of relief. When the group confirmed it was Grey, they felt like a heavy stone had been lifted off their hearts. They had been worried sick when they couldn''t find Grey, only Void wasn''t bothered since he could still feel the connection he had with Grey. Void was able to sense this was a darkness element attack since he also had the darkness element. The first person that came to his mind was Quinn, but he couldn''t be sure since Quinn wasn''t the only Darkness Elementalist. Grey was left speechless when he was bombarded with questions by the group. It took him a while before he managed to tell them this was the result of a technique Quinn used. "He''s that powerful?!" Reynolds exclaimed in shock. "I was also surprised by the power of the attack. If not for my quick getaway, I''d have most likely been severely injured if I didn''t die from it." Grey replied still fearful of what might have happened to him had he tried to block the attack. "It''s good you''ve killed those bunch of hateful fellow though. I''m quite sad I wasn''t able to witness it." Klaus said sadly. He wanted to be present when Quinn died, but he was still satisfied since he died under the hands of one of them. It was better than him escaping, right? "We should forget about that and focus on the matter at hand. I think since you all have recovered completely, it''s time we refine the Great Earth Essence Liquid." Grey said looking at the others seriously. If they didn''t want to refine theirs now, he''ll still refine his. Although the Great Earth Essence Liquid wouldn''t give them a sudden boost in strength and might only push them a stage higher, the benefits in the long run were amazing. Even if he didn''t refine anyone, it wouldn''t change anything since he could still increase the grade of his elements in the future. But being in a place like this, it was important to increase your strength at any given chance. You can never tell what might happen, so improving further was a must for him. "I originally planned on asking about that, it''s just seeing the forest made me forget about it temporarily," Alice said. "Hmm, okay then it''s settled. We should all head back into the building. I have some essence stones with me, I''ll use them to create a protective array around our rooms." Grey passed one drop of the Great Earth Essence Liquid to them. Each drop looked like a single teardrop that had congealed over time and formed into a pearl. It was quite comfortable to hold and just breathing in the air around it nourished the body. After each person collected their drop, they went over to their rooms. Grey quickly went to work to set up the protection arrays before going to his room. The array required him to use four essence stones, so he had to collect from Klaus to complete the last array. ____ Grey''s room. "Here''s one for you," Grey threw one of the drops to Void. ''Hmph! I thought you had forgotten about me," Void snorted, but was still unable to hide his happiness. ''I''ll improve the grade of my wind element, it''s the one with the lowest grade currently. I still have four drops left with me, I''ll think of who to give them to later on.'' Grey thought before entering into a state of cultivation. Since he wanted to improve the grade of his wind element, then he''ll carefully guide the drop to merge with his wind essence bead. The bead will then slowly absorb it. Given his speed in absorption, it should take him at least half the time the others needed. Chapter 140 - I Cant While Grey and his friends were improving the grade of their elements, a heated battle had started between the youths from the Qilin empire and those from the Azure empire. This was not unexpected since there was a feud between both empires. It was only a matter of time before they started killing each other more openly. ____ Currently, two groups were facing off against each other, and a long sword could be seen in the middle. One of the groups had seven youths in total, and the other group had nine people. "This weapon was found by our group, I''ll advise you to leave here if you want to keep your lives." A youth from the group of seven said. He was the leader of the group and was someone Grey had encountered previously, the Twelfth prince of the Qilin empire. When Grey saw them previously, they were around ten or so, but now, they were only seven. Of the trio from the Starlight Academy Grey recognized, two were missing and only one of them was still around. The most likely cause of this might be that they separated from the group, or, they were dead. "I don''t see your name written on it," The leader of the other group said c.o.c.kily. Even though compared to the other group, their group had fewer people in the Second stage of the Origin Plane, they had more people overall, having an advantage of two extra people. Of the nine people, four were in the Second stage of the Origin Plane, while the remaining five were in the First stage. While the twelfth prince''s group had only two in the First stage, and the rest being in the Second stage. "Bullshit! This is ours and the sooner you leave here, the better for you." The last of the trio from the Starlight Academy said angrily. "Heh! We''re taking this, and there''s nothing you can do to stop us." Another youth from the Azure empire laughed coldly. Both groups stared off with no one showing any sign of retreating, but from the expression on the faces of those from the Azure empire, one could tell how confident they were. With both sides disagreeing, a fight soon broke out. Due to the advantage of having two men extra, they quickly started oppressing the group from the Qilin empire. "Haha, since you refused to leave, you should stay here." The leader of the group from the Azure empire laughed arrogantly and attacked the twelfth prince. The leader of the group was surprisingly no weaker than the twelfth prince, this further increased the morale of his group. But the same can''t be said for the group from the Qilin empire, with their strongest person tied up by the leader of the other group, their morale plummeted. Their only hope was now placed on the second strongest person in the group, a youth from the Royal Academy. Just like the twelfth prince, he was royalty, only, his status was nowhere near that of the twelfth prince. He was the son of the Emperor''s brother. If even he couldn''t defeat his opponent quickly, then their group was doomed. This tactic was actually ingenious since once they killed off the weakest in the other group, their numbers would further increase, giving them a better advantage. But there''s a downside to this tactic of theirs. If the strongest person in the other group were to overpower their own and maybe kill him before they killed off the weakest ones, then they would be in danger. Luckily, the people they sent out were up to the task. The twelfth prince was held by their leader, and the second strongest person was only a little stronger than his opponent, so there was no way he could kill his opponent soon. The twelfth prince''s heart fell when he saw what was going on, he knew once they managed to kill off the weakest ones, then his life was in danger. ''I need to escape.'' He urged himself. Staying here was no different than seeking death, his current opponent was on par with him, but, if he wanted to escape, this was the best time. Even though his opponent was on par with him, there''s no way he could stop him from escaping. "Neil, you know what to do." He said to the second strongest person in the group. The only reason he''s informing him was that they were related, and given his strength, he could also escape from here. But if he decides to play hero and die with them, then it had nothing to do with him. ____ Three youths could be seen walking into the compound the battle was currently taking place, they were all in the Second stage of the Origin Plane. "Isn''t that Finn?" One of the youths asked pointing at the person fighting against the twelfth prince. "Yeah. Hmm, those are people from the Qilin empire," Another youth said identifying the twelfth prince''s group from their attire. Although the difference in clothing between each empire wasn''t that much, there are still some notable differences. For example, the design and fabric used in clothing for the Azure empire are more appealing than that made in the Qilin empire. "Those are the bastards who attacked my group previously. I was lucky to escape alive," The third youth said with anger visible in his eyes. "Then let''s go get your revenge." The first youth said walking towards the groups fighting. Although they weren''t as strong as Finn, or the twelfth prince, they couldn''t be called weak either. ___ The twelfth prince who was just about to make a break for it was stunned when someone else attacked him from behind. He hurriedly dodged to the side, narrowly escaping. After landing, he quickly turned around the see his attacker. "Remember me?" The third youth asked grinning evilly. Well, one of those insignificant people is about to make his life hell. "Hmph! Even if you have forgotten about me, I still remember you clearly, you nearly killed me you asshole!" The youth yelled before attacking once again. ''F.u.c.k! How I wish I could go back in time and kill him!'' The twelfth prince cursed. Although he still didn''t recall when he saw this person, he still felt he should have killed him when he encountered him previously. One of the things he hated was being attacked by an already beaten opponent. Finn who was standing by the side was also surprised when an unknown youth attacked his opponent. He didn''t recognize him even though they were from the same empire. Being from the second best Academy in the Azure empire, he was naturally arrogant, he was about to yell at the youth before he saw the other two. Since they were people he knew, he decided to kill the twelfth prince first and reprimand the youth later. ____ While the battle was ongoing, two youths were sitting on top of a building in the compound watching the battle calmly. The youths were Damian and Alan. They were surprisingly together. "Are we still going to keep watching?" Damian asked blandly. Although he wasn''t friends with the twelfth prince and his group, he wouldn''t just sit by and watch people from the Azure empire kill them. Being a citizen from the Qilin empire, he would fight against those from the Azure empire, although not blindly. The only reason he wanted to stop them was that he was here before the battle started, so he knew the twelfth prince''s group were the ones who found the weapon. But he also knew only the strong could keep such things. "Let them suffer a little longer. You should know how they act towards us," Alan said nonchalantly enjoying the suffering of the twelfth prince''s group. "Once one of them is killed, then saving them would become difficult," Damian said. "It''s none of our business, if things become complicated, we can always just sit here and do nothing," Alan said not being bothered by the already injured group. "I can''t," Damian said before jumping off the building. "*Sigh* His lack of interaction with people has made him somewhat naive." Alan said while shaking his head. With Damian already revealing himself, he had no other option but to do the same. Damian was still in the First stage of the Origin Plane, but Alan had unexpectedly broken through to the Third stage, added to him being a Dual Elementalist, they shouldn''t have a problem lending a hand. It''s just, left for Alan alone, he wanted the twelfth prince, those piece of shits from the Royal Academy, and the sc.u.mbag from the Starlight Academy to suffer a little more. Chapter 141 - Such A Brave Young Man ___ Boom! An attack exploded out with the twelfth prince being pushed back by the impact. He could fight against Finn without much fear since they had almost the same strength with him being only slightly stronger. It was so small that it was barely noticeable. ''Shit! Where did this moron come from? Couldn''t he have just waited till after I escaped before he came over?'' The twelfth prince cursed. This was the worst situation he had found himself in since entering the trial land. He even felt his luck was pretty bad since someone this weak would be the reason for his death. Escaping was currently getting harder, but, it''s not impossible though. So long as the chance presents itself, he''ll run away without looking back. He wouldn''t even be bothered about Neil. If Neil could escape then he was okay, but if he couldn''t, it was not his problem, what mattered was that he could survive. The twelfth prince who was currently cursing his bad luck and coming up with an escape plan, almost fainted when he saw two more unfamiliar people coming towards where the battle was taking place. His chances of escaping against two people were already low, even keeping himself alive was already a tough task, if one more person joined the fray, then his fate would be almost sealed. His group wasn''t having an easier time either, Neil who was the second strongest person of the group and was previously suppressing his opponent was currently fighting against two people, now, he was already slightly injured. Things were a little worse for the weakest person who was ganged upon, he was severely injured and had one foot on death''s door, if he isn''t saved, then he would die within a minute or so. And once he dies, then it was over for the group. ___ "Who are those?" Finn who was about to continue his attack on the twelfth prince paused and asked when he saw Damian and Alan coming in their direction. "People from the Qilin empire, I think," The youth fighting alongside Finn replied with a little hint of uncertainty. "Hmph! More fools coming to their death," Finn snorted coldly. If these people were truly from the Qilin empire, then they wouldn''t mind killing them too. The twelfth prince whose face was sour was elated on hearing their conversation. Although there are some differences between the attires of each empire, there are some that are almost identical, and in a place like this, it''s easy for someone to wear the clothes of those from another empire, so there''s no way to be certain of a person''s identity through what they''re wearing. "Where are you from?" One of the youths who was fighting against Neil left the battle and stopped Damian and Alan from advancing any further. Bam! Alan struck immediately without even bothering to answer the youth. Since they came to fight, then there''s no need for unnecessary conversations. An enemy is meant to be killed, not talked to. Bang! The youth slammed into the ground hard, he coughed up a mouthful of blood with a few teeth as well. "Kill them!" Finn roared angrily. There was no need to speak any further, Alan''s actions had already given them the answer they needed. And, even if Alan and Damian joined the battles, they still had the advantage in numbers, so, Finn wasn''t afraid of them. "Are you calling that thing?" Alan asked without showing any signs of nervousness. It was like the battle was nothing to him. "No, there''s no need. I can handle them myself." Damian shook his head and started walking forward. He immediately went to assist the youth who was almost dead. If he didn''t move any sooner, then the youth would die. Now it was twelve against nine, two ganged up on Alan, two faced off against the twelfth prince, two faced off against Damian, and the rest fought against one opponent each. Neil and the youth who was severely injured had a little breather, but the youth who was severely injured couldn''t fight properly anymore. Two minutes later. ''They''re strong,'' Finn was surprised by Alan and Damian''s strength. Although he was a bit stronger than Damian, he was sure he stood no chance against Alan. He still didn''t know his stage yet though. "Arghh..." A scream spread out in the battleground, but it was quickly cut short. The others subconsciously took a glance at the cause of the shout, and they saw the previously injured youth in the twelfth prince''s group lying lifeless on the ground. He managed to hold on for some time, but his injuries were just too severe for him to continue fighting. ''Hmm, one out. It wouldn''t be bad if another one died though, maybe that one from the Royal Academy.'' Alan thought looking at the dead youth blandly. He could''ve saved the youth, but he didn''t. He knew just how heartless these people were, the only reason he was helping out was because of Damian. Since he started fighting, he had not used his full strength, he hadn''t even used his second element, yet, one could see how easily he was fighting even when he was fighting against two people. Damian looked in Alan''s direction but saw him shaking his head, he smiled wryly and summoned his elemental creature. Although this couldn''t compare to Reynolds'' summon, it was still a force to be reckoned with. Rawr! The creature roared the moment it appeared, stunning both youths who were fighting against Damian. Bang! Bang! Bang! Everyone stared at the scene in shock. This wasn''t the first time most of them were seeing summons, it''s just, the way it was currently slamming the youth into the ground continuously was excruciating to watch. Even Damian felt somewhat sorry for the unlucky youth who was being slammed repeatedly into the ground. Within twenty seconds, the golem had slammed the youth into the ground a total of twelve times. Crash! The golem threw the youth away and he crashed to the ground. Seeing the appearance of the youth, everyone s.u.c.k.e.d in a cold breath. ''How could the creature be this cruel?'' This was the only question running through the minds of everyone present there. The youth was currently unrecognizable, his legs were broken in multiple places, and some bones on his hands could be seen piercing out through his skin. While the appearance of the youth stunned everyone, the golem dashed towards the second youth. "..." The youth''s action left everyone speechless. The golem was in the Second stage of the Origin Plane, just like the youth. But, being scared shitless because of what the other youth went through, he didn''t dare to fight against it. Damian was shocked by the youth''s cowardly nature. Had he been in his situation, he wouldn''t have run away, he wouldn''t even stand and look on as his companion was being mauled. "Tsk, tsk, such a brave young man," Alan''s voice brought everyone back from their dazed state, but the mockery in his words was evident for all to see. The twelfth prince and his group laughed lightly, only two of them had long faces. From the looks of things, the dead youth was a friend of theirs. "What are you all standing there for? Stop it!" Finn yelled loudly. The golem not finding its supposed opponent turned its attention to another person. Luckily, it knew its allies and enemies. Unlike the first youth who was grabbed easily and the second youth who cowardly escaped, this one stood his ground against the golem. Even though he wasn''t its match, he could still hold on for a while. "Alan!" Damian called out. He couldn''t keep the summon up for too long, so the quicker they ended the battle, the better for them. Alan hearing his name could only shake his head and unleash his full strength. With the group from the Azure empire losing two people in quick succession, their morale took a hit. Six minutes later. The group from the Azure empire had lost another two people, and Damian had dismissed the golem. He didn''t dare to keep it up till he became thoroughly exhausted. "Escape!" Finn yelled loudly when realized things weren''t in their favor anymore. Staying any longer was no different than a death wish. "Heh! Is that even possible?" Alan chuckled coldly. Ten minutes later. Twelve corpses could be seen on the ground. "Thank you," The twelfth prince said. He didn''t know them, but since they offered a helping hand, he was grateful. "It''s nothing," Alan said offhandedly before walking in the other direction. After Damian and Alan left. "That bastard, he allowed Francis to die," One of the youths said angrily. The others knew who he was talking about. After Alan showed his strength, they felt he could''ve saved their friend but he didn''t. Chapter 142 - One More Time The twelfth prince smiling face changed right after Alan and Damian were out of sight. He only put up a facade when they were around to put up a good impression. "Hmph! We''ll deal with them later, for now, we need to stay together," The twelfth prince said. Although he hated Alan''s arrogant attitude, he couldn''t allow the others to go ahead and attack them for now. They still have almost four more months to stay here, and since the conflict with the Azure empire has escalated to this stage, they need every single member of their empire. "Which Academy are they from?" Neil asked. He too wanted revenge on Alan and Damian, he felt they might have been watching the battles previously but only intervened when things were too difficult for them to handle. The reason he felt this way was because of the direction Alan and Damian came from. This compound had a single entry, and they were fighting close to it. "I recognize the summoner from the competition, he''s from the Lunar Academy. Since he''s close to the other guy, then there''s a chance they''re from the same Academy," The youth from the Starlight Academy said. "The Lunar Academy, they''ve been pretty c.o.c.ky lately. Once we get out of here, we''ll put them in their place!" A youth from the Royal Academy declared. They all heard about the incident where Blake charged up to the Starlight Academy and injured their instructors, they also heard about the incident with Chris. "They''re a bunch of arrogant ingrates." The youth from the Starlight Academy said hatefully. Had Alan and Damian still been present here, the chances of Alan attacking them all would be very high. But, he wouldn''t be surprised by how ungrateful these people were though. Damian was the only reason he even helped them anyway. "That''s enough! We''ll settle this after leaving this place." The twelfth prince ordered. The others immediately stopped speaking about the matter after hearing the twelfth prince''s order. But, they kept the grudge in their hearts. ____ The next day. ''Hmm, blue. Well, it''s better than purple, so I''m okay with this.'' Grey thought while staring at the result of his test. He was currently in the chaos space checking how high the grade of his wind element increased. His wind element was originally in the orange grade, but after absorbing the drop of the Great Earth Essence Liquid, it went up two grades. With the increase in his grade, his stage also saw an improvement and he had broken through to the Second stage of the Origin Plane. If one has a purple grade in one element, one would already be considered a genius and be vied for by the Academies. Having a blue grade would put one at the very top, yet, Grey had five elements, one of them had a grade he had never heard of, two were of blue grade, and the other two were purple grade. If news of this spreads out, then there''s a chance all four empires would try to kill him at all costs. The reason the Qilin empire was added to the fray was simple, they wouldn''t allow someone they couldn''t control to grow too powerful. Chris was enough headache for them. ___ Leaving the chaos space, Grey realized everyone else was still absorbing their drops of Great Earth Essence Liquid, Void included. "This is expected," Grey said before walking out of the room. Looking around, he felt very bored. It took Grey just over six hours before he completely absorbed his drop, so, it should take the others twelve hours or so. This means he still had to wait for six hours. ''Hmm, what should I do?'' Grey thought rubbing his chin. He had been cultivating for so long, so naturally, he wouldn''t want to continue cultivating. The only thing that made him feel slightly better was that after the first round where he recovered, he had some fun with Quinn and his group. He couldn''t help but stare at the forest once again. ''That truly was a powerful move.'' He thought before bringing out the technique. He decided once he awakens his darkness element in the future, he''ll learn the technique. ''*Sigh* It''s best I train while waiting for them.'' He sighed before walking out of the building. Had he been alone, he would''ve already continued exploring the trial land. At least, he would get to face different challenges on the way, but since he had to wait for his friends, he decided to do his physical exercises. Besides, it''s been over two months since he last trained his body. If not for strengthening it with fire previously, then its strength would have remained stagnant. Two hours later. Grey could be seen sweating profusely, but his breathing was still light. ''This isn''t that bad.'' Grey thought pleased with the outcome of his training. He was currently behind the compound, and for the past two hours, he had been training none stop. Yet, other than sweating, he didn''t really feel tired. When Grey was about to take a seat, a thought suddenly came to him. He had only seen the chaotic essence form of elemental fusion but had tried seeing its physical state. There are some cases in nature where elemental fusion actually takes place. He hadn''t thought of it before, but now, he suddenly recalled it. Since he could make earth walls appear at will, and also make a ton of water appear, doesn''t that mean with his ability to fuse elements he could turn the ground into mud? Thinking about all this, he felt his reasoning was plausible and since he currently had nothing to do anyway, he''ll try to work on it. If he could successfully make it, then he would gain a new trump card. When fighting, all he had to do was turn the ground into mud and his opponent would sink downwards. The sudden disruption would then give him the upper hand, and also this would make escaping almost impossible for them. The thought of it excited him, and he quickly went to work. Thirty minutes went by without Grey getting any results. But didn''t give up, he knew what he was attempting wasn''t something he could get instantly, so, he was slowly taking his time. ''Hmm, my first hypothesis was wrong. Rather than creating the mud element instantly, I should try influencing the state of the ground with the water element.'' Grey thought while staring at the ground. Normally, before the ground turns muddy, it required being soaked by or in water. So the first thing he decided to do was channel water essence into the ground and see the outcome. When he tried it the first time, the result showed him he was heading in the right direction. Although the ground didn''t turn into mud, he was softer compared to before, but it immediately hardened the moment he stopped channeling his water essence into it. "Haha, I''m such a genius," Grey laughed happily. The result of his test was very pleasing with this, he knew his theory wasn''t wrong. ''But how come no Water Elementalist ever thought of this?'' He questioned thoughtfully. From his current theory, he didn''t even need to use the earth element on this. The earth was already available, all he had to do was add in the water element. This was something every Water Elementalist could do later in the future. ''Hmm, I won''t think about that for now.'' He dismissed the thought and focused on his training. Another one hour went by with Grey performing multiple attempts. Although he hadn''t gotten the required results, he knew he wasn''t far from it. "The amount of essence I put in is too small, and I also need to channel it in quickly. This is quick taxing though," Grey said rubbing his head. After multiple trials, he felt the reason he wasn''t getting the d.e.s.i.r.ed result was due to his speed in channeling in the water essence and also the amount of essence he channels in. ''I still have about three hours or so before the others wake up. With my current progress, I should be able to succeed before that time. Well, even if I don''t succeed now, I can always continue another time.'' He tried to keep himself calm. When doing something like this, rushing oneself isn''t the best decision. Although sometimes it''s quite helpful, it''s not always good. One hour later. "*Sigh* I should take a rest, attempting it too much will not get anywhere." Grey shook his head and went to take a sit. Even after trying for two hours, he still hadn''t gotten it. Although he tried to stay positive, failing repeatedly is quite frustrating especially within such a short time. "I should try it one more time before I stop," Grey who just sat down stood up again opting to try it out again. Who knows, maybe he could get lucky! Chapter 143 - Overpowered Ability At the back of the building. Plop! "F.u.c.k! Too much water essence," Grey cursed out as he tried to escape from the spot he was standing on. But due to the suddenness of what happened, he failed and sank downwards. Splash! The sound of water splashing out sounded in the area. Currently, over half of Grey''s body was submerged in mud-like water. What differentiated this from mud was because of the excess water, so instead of it turning into mud, it turned into a small pool of about a twelve-foot radius, that was filled with dirt. "Shit! How could I have forgotten about this possibili..." Grey''s words were cut short when water filled with dirt entered his mouth. Ptui! Grey spat out multiple times, he didn''t forget to rinse his mouth with water and spitting it out again. "*Sigh* How unlucky," He sighed after managing to wash off the taste from his mouth. Due to failing multiple times, he forgot that he was doing the test right under his feet. When he was trying out this attempt, he channeled in way too much water essence, and the result was not surprising. He fell into the pool of water he created. Had he know this would be the result, he wouldn''t have attempted it one more time, rather, he would''ve just rested and gone back to the building. How embarrassing was it to fall into the dirty water? ''Luckily, no one was present.'' Grey thought feeling lucky. Just as he was about to step out of the pool of dirt and wash up. ''What are you doing?'' Grey heard the familiar small voice in his head. ''*Sigh* Just when I started feeling a little lucky, guess someone was bound to see me in this state,'' He tiredly shook his head. "I''m bathing, wanna join?" Grey replied while splashing the dirty water around. Void suddenly disappeared from his previous spot, appearing some distance away. ''Who baths with such dirty water?'' Void looked on curiously. "People, of course, who else would?" Grey replied while putting on an expression of enjoying his dirt bath. ''Are all humans just as strange as you and your friends are?'' Void couldn''t resist asking. When he first saw Grey, he felt he was quite weird. This further Increased after he made contact with Grey''s friends, Klaus and Reynolds to be precise. He felt Grey and his friends were a weird bunch, Alice excluded. "How come you''re up this early?" Grey tried to change the topic while getting out of the dirt pool. ''I''m already done with absorbing the drop you gave me.'' Void declared proudly. "Oh! That''s fast, I thought you''d take another hour or so," Grey said while washing the last bit of dirt off his body. ''When did you finish absorbing yours?'' Void asked. "About four hours ago," Grey said. Void was stunned by how quickly Grey finished absorbing his. It took him just over ten hours, and he was already thinking his absorption speed was fast, but on hearing Grey''s time, he felt a little disheartened. ''Monster,'' Void said before looking around curiously. "Huh!" Grey turned around abruptly when he heard this. ''But, there''s nothing here.'' Grey scratched his head, confused by Void''s statement. It was only after some time passed did he realize what Void meant. Since there was nothing left for him to do, he created a pool by using his earth element to create an opening on the ground, and used his water element to fill it up, he took off his last surviving wet clothes, spread them on the trees so they could dry up, and jumped into the cool clean water. ''*Sigh* How relaxing, I should do this more often.'' He thought. Void came closer to the pool, touched it with his paw, and silently retreated. Grey who was leisurely cooling-off caught sight of Void''s strange behavior. ''He doesn''t like water.'' He thought. From how Void reacted, Grey guessed there was a possibilty that he didn''t like water. "Hey Void, aren''t you going to cool off?" Grey asked trying to confirm his guess. ''No, I''ll just watch from the side,'' Void said firmly. "You''re scared of water?" Grey asked raising my brow. ''No, who would be scared of water?'' Void said looking at Grey oddly. ''Hmm, maybe he truly isn''t afraid of water.'' Grey thought. After three minutes went by, Grey got somewhat bored because Void hadn''t been speaking since. When Grey was alone previously, he would go for hours, and sometimes even days without speaking to others while he was here, but since meeting Void, he would quickly get bored if he''s not training, cultivating, fighting, or sleeping. The thought of Void being scared of water crept into his head once again. "Since you hatched, you haven''t taken a bath. Why don''t you wash off now, at least that way, you''ll smell nice," He tried persuading. ''Who says I haven''t cleaned myself? And I do smell nice,'' Void said. Grey and Void soon got into an argument. Void stuck with saying he had cleaned himself, but Grey kept telling him that l.i.c.k.i.n.g himself was different from taking a proper bath. "Fine to settle all this, why don''t you just take a dip?" Grey said trying to stop their little argument. ''No,'' Void refused once again. ''There''s no way I''m getting into that.'' He thought, looking at the water. "Fine," Grey finally verbally agreed to his refusal. ''*Phew* That was close, luckily, I stood my ground.'' Void breathed out heavily while thinking. He hated getting his fur wet, so naturally, he didn''t want to get into the pool. Grey closed his eyes and his lips curved upwards. "Void! Catch," He threw a small fruit to Void. This was something he found in one of Quinn''s companions'' bags. It really couldn''t be said to be a great treasure, but its aroma and taste were quite appealing, and it also contained a little essence inside. Void raised his head vigilantly, when he saw the fruit coming his way, he instinctively wanted to dodge thinking Grey threw a ball of water at him, but the aroma of the fruit shot straight into his head and he paused in place. ''Hehe, got him.'' Grey laughed evilly inside while creating a ball of water behind Void. He initially wanted to use the water alone, but when he recalled Void''s space element, he knew he would be able to escape easily. But if he''s distracted by something, then there''s no way he could escape. Thinking his plan was already a success, he couldn''t help but let out a chuckle. But his smiling face froze, and the next scene shocked him. The water ball, as well as the fruit which was supposed to hit Void at the same time suddenly disappeared and appeared on top of Grey. "Ouch!" Grey unconsciously yelped even though the hit he got from the fruit didn''t hurt him in any way. The water ball also fell on top of him, exploding on impact. Grey was very careful when he was creating the water ball, so it didn''t have any strong effect, its only use was to completely soak its target. "What just happened?" Grey asked while rubbing his head which took the hit from the fruit. A smirk had formed on Void''s little face. ''Hehe, I''m not dumb enough to fall for that trick.'' Void chuckled looking at Grey. "It still doesn''t explain what just happened," Grey said still confused. ''This is just an innate ability of mine, I can mess around with the space around me, this way, I could easily return an attack that is being sent towards me back to the unsuspecting attacker.'' Void explained, not forgetting to omit its limitations. It''s not that he didn''t trust Grey, but what if after he found out its limitations he adjusts the water he sends his way? He couldn''t take that risk. Grey s.u.c.k.e.d in a cold breath when he heard Void''s explanation. "Such an overpowered ability! The space element truly is something else!" He exclaimed. Since the ability had something to do with space, then it''s surely something of the space element. How great was it to return an attack that was sent your way? It''s an epic ability, to say the least! But, Grey knew such great abilities all had limitations and in some cases even side effects. Take his Fusion State, for example, that was nothing less of an overpowered ability, but it had limitations as well. Grey''s curiosity towards the space element increased and he started asking Void things about the space element, which Void told him what he knew about it. The truth was, other than what his abilities could do, he didn''t really know everything about the space element. Just as Void finished explaining, the ground he was standing on suddenly turned into a pool of dirt, just like the one Grey created previously, and he fell into it with a ''Plop!''. The sudden appearance of the dirt pool shock Void. But alas, he couldn''t escape his fate. After managing to come out of the dirt pool, he was forced to get into the clean pool Grey was soaking in. "Haha, I won at the end." Grey laughed when he saw Void''s expression when he entered the pool. And so, one human and a cat enjoyed the cool pool in the midday sun. Chapter 144 - Back To The Garden! At the entrance of the building. Grey who was accompanied by Void was staring at the fading shadows of his friends. After they all came out of their seclusion, they each saw an increase in strength, naturally, they''ll continue exploring the trial land. Even though the chances of finding something at the level of the Great Earth Essence Liquid, there were still other things to be found. Just like they did previously, they were all separating once again, only, this time, Grey had a companion. ''So, where are we headed now?'' Void who was perched on Grey''s shoulder asked with excitement visible in his expression. "Hmm, let''s see." Grey took out the map he acquired from Quinn''s bag and studied it. Although this wasn''t a complete map of the trial land, the parts on it were well detailed, there were even some landmarks Grey recalled seeing, it was amazing. Even the places they passed through when they entered the trial land were shown on the map. He couldn''t help but feel somewhat apprehensive of Quinn''s background. For him to have such a vivid map, and being the one who discovered the black door, not just that but from the map, it felt like that was their goal of entering the trial land. This meant that they had been searching for this place for years now, and since the trial land only opens up once every one hundred years, one can only imagine how long it took them to create this map. In the end, Grey was the one who benefited from their hard work. Even though he was a little fearful of Quinn''s background, he''s dead now, and there''s no way people would know he was the one who killed him, so, he threw that to the back of his mind. While he was going through the map, a place suddenly caught his attention. ''The garden is close to this place, once I get here, I should have no problem locating it.'' Grey thought while staring at the familiar-looking landscape. "We''ll be heading to a garden, there are a lot of fruits there." Grey said showing Void their destination on the map. ''Oh! You''ve been there before?'' Void asked. "Yeah, about two months ago." Grey replied. ''Wouldn''t others have cleaned it up by now?'' Void asked. It''s been so long, so there''s a chance others have found it just the way Grey found it. "Had it been any other garden, I wouldn''t have wanted to return but given what is protecting it, I don''t think anyone else would be able to clean it up. Besides, there''s somewhere close to it, so even if we don''t find anything there, it''s not that bad." Grey said. He found a place on the map which was marked with a book. So there was a chance it might be a library, even if it isn''t a library, it should definitely be related to books. Since he was quite curious about this place so he wanted to check it out. ''Okay.'' Void nodded and they soon went on their way. ____ "*Sigh* So weak. Staying on this side of the trial land wouldn''t help me improve in any way." Grey said while looking at the wild bull lying on the ground. The bull was in the Ninth stage of the Arcane Plane, had it been one and a half month ago, then this would have excited him, but now, it''s not even worth speaking about. This was the eighth beast he had encountered since leaving the building, but none of them were in the Origin Plane. "Hey, Void! I''ve never seen you fight before, why don''t you take out the next beast?" Grey looked at Void who was lazily looking at the dead bull. ''Not a chance, they''re not worth me making a move.'' Void refused before praising himself. "Hmm, haven''t you reached rank four?" Grey inquired. ''I have.'' Void nodded. "Okay, so, you''ll be dealing with the next beast." Grey said pointing ahead of them. A beast could be seen coming in their direction, it was a Ninth stage Arcane Plane Two-Tailed Fox. Each tail had different colors, red and green respectively which represented the fire and wind element. This type of fox is quite rare outside, but it''s still found in some places, there were reports of it being seen in the Magical Beast Forest. ''Fine.'' Void replied grumpily and disappeared. Boom! A deep red fire exploded out on the place where the Two-Tailed Fox was previously standing. The fox didn''t even react before it was blasted to pieces. "Wow!" Grey exclaimed on seeing the strength of Void''s attack. ''The strength of that attack could easily rival an attack of a Third stage Origin Plane Elementalist, it might even be stronger. Also, how can something like this be defended against.'' Grey was speechless. Void''s attack appeared out of nowhere, not just that, but it appeared directly above the fox. How can that be defended against? The more Grey saw the prowess of the space element, the more he wanted to awaken his own sooner. ''Happy now?'' Void appeared in his previous position once again. Grey nodded but didn''t speak a word. "Attack me." He suddenly said after keeping quiet for some time. ''Huh!'' Void was stunned by Grey''s odd request. "Attack me, I want to check out something." Grey said seriously. ''Okay, should I use my full strength, or...?'' Void asked still slightly "Full strength." Grey''s expression turned serious. ''I should warn you though, my attack power is stronger than what you just witnessed.'' Void warned. "I know." Grey responded. ''Okay, if you say so. But remember, if you get injured, this was your idea.'' Void said. Grey didn''t answer and just prepared himself. He didn''t want to speak too much, he was currently using his spiritual sense to the fullest. He wanted to see if he could sense Void''s attack. Seeing Grey''s actions, Void knew he was prepared, so he also prepared himself and disappeared. Since Grey wanted to test out his strength so much, then he''ll gladly entertain him. He still held a slight grudge over what Grey did previously, and had been looking for a way to get back at him, who knew he would ask for it himself? Grey steadied himself while keeping his senses as sharp as possible. "There." Bang! Grey was sent flying and crashed into the ground. "Shit! Do you plan on killing me?!" Grey yelled out. ''I warned you previously.'' Void retorted immediately. Grey stood up and thought about what just happened. He sensed a slight vibration in the air but it was too late. ''Had my spiritual sense been stronger, I would have been able to sense him quicker. I''ll try it again. It''s best I can sense it now while I haven''t awakened my space element, that way if I were to chance upon a Space Elementalist, I wouldn''t be caught unprepared.'' Grey thought. "Again!" Grey said after clearing his head. ''No.'' Void declined. It''s not that he didn''t want to beat Grey up, but if he accepted it so easily, then Grey would be able to figure his thoughts. ''I''ll beat him up. Hmph! This will teach him not to put me in water again.'' Void thought. Bam! Bang! Boom! In six minutes, Void had attacked Grey four times, and other than shouting out in pain, Grey hadn''t been able to stop even a single attack. Had his physical body not been this strong, and had he not used earth armor, then, he would have been injured badly. The only good thing was that he had managed to sense him quicker on the last attack, only, he was still sent flying. After managing to stand up from the last attack, he decided to stop the training. Just as he sat down, a thought came to him. ''I should try it one more time before stopping for today.'' He thought. But then, he remembered what happened the last time he said something like this. ''Nah, I''ll just rest.'' He quickly dismissed the thought. He still clearly remembered what happened in the morning. At that time, his clothes were only dirtied, maybe this time, they''ll be ruined. He didn''t dare to take the chance. ''Are we stopping now?'' Void asked when he saw Grey taking a seat. "Yeah, we''ll continue some other time." Grey waved tiredly. ''*Sigh* Well, I had my fun while it lasted.'' Void sighed. "What?" Grey asked. ''Nothing.'' Void quickly shook his head and appeared close to Grey resting on his shoulder. After resting for ten minutes, Grey felt revitalized. "Okay, we should continue our journey." He stood up and started walking towards his destination. The next day. "We''re here." Grey said looking at the still flourishing garden. ''I knew it would still be intact.'' Chapter 145 - Abnormal Bunnies! ''I knew it would still be intact.'' Grey thought staring at the garden in front of him. It was almost just as he left it, only, there were more fruits and plants present. ''Wow! There are quite a lot of fruits here.'' Void said looking at the garden. Although, he wasn''t too interested in them since the essence they contain isn''t much. But, he wouldn''t mind taking a few, they look delicious! "Yeah." Grey nodded. ''So, what''s protecting this place?'' Void couldn''t help but ask. From how confident Grey sounded when he was speaking about the garden''s protectors, it meant he knew what it was, and also how strong it was. An awkward expression suddenly showed up on Grey''s face when he recalled his past experience with the bunnies. "Bunnies." Grey said in a low voice. ''Bunnies?'' Void asked just to be sure he heard correctly. "Yeah, bunnies." Grey nodded seriously. Had it been when he was still in the Arcane Plane, he wouldn''t have dared to come here. Even though the bunnies couldn''t kill him, they could still seriously hurt him. Being familiar with the place, he didn''t rush in, rather, he sent out a light attack on the ground. Boom! The sound reverberated throughout the garden, soon, what Grey was waiting for started appearing. Pop! Pop! Pop! More than twenty bunnies appeared within a second of the blast, with more still popping out of the ground as the seconds went by. ''Damn! That''s a lot of bunnies.'' Void was dumbstruck by the sheer number of bunnies. Although his attack power was insanely high, he wouldn''t want to go through the hassle of going against such high numbers. And, more bunnies were still popping out. Now he knew why Grey was so confident that this place would still be intact. Who could defeat these guys? "Oh! There''s an increase in their average stage, and also in their numbers." Grey suddenly realized that there was not only an increase in their strength, their overall number also saw an increase. The first time he encountered them, he was sure they weren''t this many, and the average stage of the bunnies was the Seventh stage of the Arcane Plane, now, the average stage was the Eighth stage of the Arcane Plane. And of the three bunnies that were in the Ninth stage of the Arcane Plane, two had already broken through to the Origin Plane. The most shocking thing was that the leader of the bunnies was still in the Ninth stage of the Arcane Plane. Grey couldn''t help but wonder how it still managed to keep its position as the leader since two were already stronger than it was. Unlike the first time, Grey ensured he wasn''t surrounded by the bunnies. Staring at the leader, he saw it hopping forward from the group. When it got to the forefront, it looked at Grey, and a look of surprise flashed across its face, clearly, it still recognized the human who had come to disturb their peace once again. A smirk appeared on its face. Squeak, Squeak The bunny leader made some squeaking sounds. "Wait, is it trying to talk to me?" Grey was taken aback by its weird behavior. According to its arrogant nature, it would have ordered its army to attack immediately. "Hmm, maybe it''s scared after realizing how much my strength has improved." He added. ''No, if I''m not wrong, it''s mocking you.'' Void spoke after some time. "You can understand them?" Grey asked, stunned by what Void said. ''Yeah, you should know animals understand each other. We have a universal language, and also specie-based languages. Also, the bunny is cursing at your family.'' Void said looking at Grey. "Oh! I forgot." Grey scratched his head in an embarrassed manner. He completely forgot about this. ''*Sigh* I really need to think more carefully before asking some questions.'' He thought. The part where animals understand each other was general knowledge, so he naturally knew about it, but due to their situation, he forgot about it. Because Void had been speaking to him since he hatched, he sometimes forgets the fact that Void was an animal. "Wait! It''s cursing my family?" Grey suddenly remembered the other half of Void''s statement. ''Yeah, and it''s quite good at cursing, if I may add. It should be on the same level as that friend of yours.'' Void said. When Grey heard this, he naturally knew who Void was talking about, other than Klaus, he didn''t have any other friend that''s as good at cursing. "F.u.c.k! I knew it, that damn bunny is no good." Grey cursed. ''Shit! That''s it! I can take it when you''re cursing at him, but what did I ever do to you?'' Void yelled angrily and disappeared from Grey''s shoulder. Boom! The next scene shocked Grey to no end. Void who suddenly appeared and attacked out of nowhere was unable to hit his target. The bunny, for some strange reason, plunged into the ground the moment Void attacked. "How did it sense him?" Grey was astounded. From how quickly the bunny escaped, it was easy to figure out it was able to sense Void. Grey had been trying to sense Void previously, but he had always been too late. Yet, a bunny at the Ninth stage of the Arcane Plane was able to sense him easily, and also escaped so quickly. ''This bunny isn''t normal!'' This was the only thought in both Grey and Void''s minds. How could a normal bunny be this s.e.n.s.i.t.i.v.e? To confirm his thoughts, he once again disappeared and sent out another attack aiming at another bunny. The attack was once struck the ground. Just like the first bunny, this one also sensed Void and escaped into the ground. "Shit! They all aren''t normal!" Grey exclaimed. ''What the hell!'' Void was stunned by what was happening. ''Are these even bunnies?'' Given the speed and unpredictability of Void''s attacks, Grey felt it was almost impossible for some in the Fifth stage or even in the Sixth stage of the Origin Plane to block it, not to mention of escaping it. Yet, these bunnies at the Arcane Plane were escaping it so leisurely. Just as Void was about to unleash another attack, Grey quickly stopped him. "Don''t destroy the garden! I came here for it." He quickly said stopping Void from attacking any further. ''How are you gonna get it from this sea of bunnies?'' Void asked. Other than attacking them, there''s naturally no other way to acquire the fruits and plants. "Don''t worry, we''ll attack them, just, not here." Grey smiled. The bunny leader that escaped into the ground previously suddenly popped out and looked at both human and cat in disdain. ''Damn! I swear I''ll kill that bunny!'' Void declared. "Yeah, it''s pretty annoying." Grey added. Now he knew why most of their enemies wanted to kill Klaus first. Squeal! The bunny squealed, stretching out its right paw like it did the first them Grey came here. The sea of bunny followed the command of their leader and charged at Grey and Void. Even though Grey was in the Second stage of the Origin Plane, he still couldn''t help but feel a chill run down his spine. He hadn''t gotten to the level where numbers wouldn''t bother him, yet. Without wasting any time, he turned around and started running. Before coming here, he had prepared a place where he would trap the bunnies. When the bunny leader saw Grey escaping, a look of contempt appeared on its face. ____ ''To think you prepared this because of those bunnies.'' Void said while staring at the ground of the huge compound they just entered. The building in the compound was already almost destroyed, so there was nothing inside other than the big space. "Yeah, I already knew how they act. This time, I must clean that place dry!" Grey declared before entering the compound. Before heading to the garden, he had created some small-scale arrays all over this compound. After creating the arrays, he made a huge array that hid the other ones. While he was running here, he didn''t forget to create inscriptions as well. After getting inside the compound, Grey looked around warily, he wanted the bunnies to think he was scared. After some seconds went by, he heard the normal squeal of the bunny leader. But surprisingly, it stopped at the front of the compound, not entering. It looked around warily, only after it didn''t sense anything before it squealed like a commander once again, only, it didn''t enter the compound. For some odd reasons, it felt danger, so it didn''t dare to enter the compound. Although it was arrogant, it was scared of death. ''Why isn''t it coming in?'' Void asked when he saw the bunny leader staying outside. "I don''t know." Grey said looking at the bunny leader thoughtfully. ''Could it be that it sensed it?'' Chapter 146 - Two-Faced Bunny Grey was shocked by the fact that even though the bunny leader sent its army into the compound, it refused to enter. Not just it, but the other two bunnies at the Origin Plane also stood at its side like guards, refusing to go inside as well. ''So, are we killing them all?'' Void asked preparing himself to attack. "Of course not. The only one I really want dead is the leader. I think I''ll kill three more for dinner." Grey replied. He didn''t plan on killing all the bunnies, he wasn''t a blood-thirsty fiend, so killing all of them didn''t cross his mind. Currently, over two hundred bunnies had flocked into the compound. Inside a three hundred and fifty square meters compound where the building took up almost one hundred meters, there was little room for over two hundred bunnies, with each bunny being over one meter respectively. The compound suddenly looked small compared to when it was empty. ''I''ll use the arrays to trap them here, then empty the garden.'' Grey thought. He wasn''t too bothered about the three bunnies that were outside the compound, as long as he could keep these ones here, then the threat was already removed. Those two at the Origin Plane couldn''t defeat him, even if there were five of them, he was still very confident in his abilities. Since things had already gotten to this stage, there''s no point in delaying any further. Grey quickly made some weird hand gestures, and a small array could be seen forming above his hands, after it completely formed, he struck the ground with it. Squeal! The bunny leader squealed loudly when it saw this, and for the first time, panic was seen on its face with Its nose twitching continuously. The bunnies which were about to attack Grey stopped on hearing their leader''s order, and they immediately turned tails and tried to escape out of the compound. "Oh! You''re quite alert, but it''s already too late." Grey chuckled lightly. Buzz! Buzz! With buzzing sounds ringing in the compound, the transparent glass-like wall appeared, forming a semi-circle around the entire compound. A few bunnies managed to escape before the glass-like wall came up though, but looking at their entire numbers, they didn''t really make much of a difference. Grey couldn''t create a single array this large, all he could do was use the help of multiple small arrays and merge them together. The disadvantage of this was that once a single array was destroyed, the entire thing will crumble. ''Well, guess there''s no use for these anymore.'' Grey thought while dismissing the two inscriptions he created while he was running here. The moment he activated the array, he immediately left the compound with Void, now, instead of facing hundreds of bunnies, all he had to face was just over six bunnies. Squeak, Squeak The previously smug-looking bunny leader made some squeaking sounds putting both hands together and making its already huge eyes turn bigger, except, in a cute way. "Huh! What''s it doing?" Grey couldn''t help but ask. ''It''s...begging.'' Void said, dazed by how quickly the bunny changed. Some minutes ago, it was cursing them and their entire family, it even chased them for almost three minutes, but the second it saw things were stacked against it, it quickly started begging. "What?!" Grey exclaimed in surprise, not expecting the always proud and arrogant bunny to actually beg. ''It quite cute with its big round eyes, fluffy white hair, twitching nose... No, no, it''s not cute!'' This was an evil bunny! A two-faced bunny! He attacked immediately without giving the bunnies any chances, but he was left speechless when the two bunnies at the Origin Plane used the wind element to block his attack. The impact sent them flying, but the bunny leader was still in his previous spot, only this time, it looked to be on its knees. "I''m actually starting to feel a little sympathy towards it." Grey said when he saw how seriously it was pleading with him. ''I''m not.'' Void said and attacked. Boom! Boom! ''What''s that?'' Void who just sent out an attack asked in surprise. Boom! The rhythmic sound continued echoing out. It was just like the sound of a giant taking one step at a time. "Something big is coming." Grey''s expression turned serious. After Grey and Void''s attention had turned to where the sound was coming from, a smirk formed on the face of the bunny leader, clearly, it knew what was coming. The sound was surprisingly coming from the south, and that was the direction they came from, it was also where the garden was located. ''Uhmm... Should we leave?'' Void enquired. From how loud the footsteps were, it was easy for them to guess whatever was coming their way was something big. Although size isn''t might, in a place like this, anything this big has to be powerful. The reason they thought this way was simple, if a creature here is big but isn''t strong, then it would have already been killed and eaten by the stronger beasts. "Not now, I''ll like to see what is coming, and... Wait, where''s the bunny?" Grey''s attention was previously mostly placed on where the sound was coming from, so he failed to realize the bunny had somehow sneakily escaped. The fact that the bunny leader could escape right under his nose amazed him, even though what was coming drew most of his attention, he wasn''t that stupid to not keep track of the bunny, yet, it still escaped. Of all the bunnies present, only the leader escaped. ''Damn! I can easily fight against opponents two stages ahead of me and even kill them, yet I can''t seem to be able to defeat a bunny that''s still in the Arcane Plane. Either this bunny is too incredible, or those people I thought were geniuses are nothing more than rags.'' Grey felt a little dejected over his repeated failure against a bunny. With the bunny gone, it felt like staying here was meaningless, but he was still left annoyed since he couldn''t even take a single thing from the garden. The beast was coming from that direction, so going that way was out of the question. It felt like his entire trip was a waste of time, and he even made such a time-consuming array, yet he couldn''t fulfill the purpose he created it. "We should retreat to a safe distance." Grey agreed to Void''s suggestion of leaving this place, only, he was curious about what was coming here. One minute later, the beast making the loud step appeared in Grey and Void''s view. The beast was surprisingly not walking, but...hopping. Coming towards the compound was a huge seven meters tall bunny, and perched on its shoulder was a smaller one-meter bunny that had a smug expression. ''Isn''t that the leader of the bunnies?'' Void asked when he saw the bunnies. "Yeah." Grey nodded. ''Wow! That''s a huge bunny!'' Void exclaimed. "Such a large reinforcement. But, when did it call it?" Grey was stumped by this question. ''Doesn''t this mean that it was only pleading to delay time? Shit! The bunny''s something else!'' Grey felt even more dejected. Just when he thought maybe he had something against the bunny, he found out the bunny was only buying time. "*Sigh* I give up, we should head over to the building with the book. If I see that bunny''s face any longer, I might attack." Grey sighed before leaving, heading towards the west. Just as he turned around. Ka-cha! The sound of his array breaking rang out, he turned around only to see a strange occurrence. The bunny leader that was perched on the huge bunny''s shoulder had its right paw raised, the back of the paw was facing Grey, and the bunny was surprisingly able to keep only the middle finger straight, folding the other four. ''What''s it doing?'' Void asked. "Showing us its middle finger." Grey replied with a sour face. ''Oh! What''s the meaning?'' Void asked curiously. Although he acts smart sometimes, one has to remember it hasn''t been up to a week he was born yet, so he didn''t know everything. "F.u.c.k you." Grey replied. ''Damn! What did I do to you? I only asked the meaning of what it was doing!'' Void said a little annoyed. "Yeah, f.u.c.k you." Grey said again. ''If you don''t want to tell me the meaning you can just say it outright.'' Void said angrily. "It''s f.u.c.k... Oh... I''m sorry, my bad. The meaning of what it did is f.u.c.k you." Grey suddenly realized why Void was getting annoyed. ''Hmph!'' Void snorted, still feeling a little annoyed. Grey apologized again before continuing their journey, he knew he was the one at fault since he didn''t explain it properly, so he didn''t really hassle over it. Their shadow soon disappeared into the thick forest. Chapter 147 - The Crowned Prince "Hmm, most of the books here are already destroyed." Grey said while picking up a book from the ground. When he saw this place on the map, he thought maybe he might be able to get a piece of useful information from the place, but unfortunately, none of the available books were good. Most of them were already completely destroyed. "*Sigh* Such a waste of time." He shook his head in disappointment. Had he known this would be the result of this trip, he wouldn''t have wasted his time, first, he was played with by that damn bunny, now, he couldn''t even find anything good here. ''But isn''t this to be expected, since they had already found this place for a long time now, it''s normal that they had already cleaned it up. We should leave, there''s still a lot of places to explore.'' Void suggested. "Yeah." Grey nodded. After contemplating for some time, Grey decided that they should continue heading west. Looking at the map, he never noticed compared to the other parts, the western part had lesser landmarks. This meant that it was the side least explored by the people who made the map. They left the building and soon started heading deeper into the trial land. ____ Meanwhile, somewhere in the Azure empire. Quinn''s family compound, at a hidden room. "Things are going to plan, even if we don''t obtain the treasure this time, we should be able to take charge of the Qilin empire first." A middle-aged man spoke. The middle-aged man was none other than Quinn''s father, other than him, there are two more men in the room. Both men looked to be in their seventies, but their real age is far from that. They were surprisingly identical twins. "Oh really?" One of the old men asked curiously. "Yes. Remember I told you I managed to brainwash a young prince of the Qilin empire twelve years ago?" Quinn''s father asked. Both old men fell silent for some time before nodding. "He is the current Crown Prince of the Qilin empire. And from the message I received from him, the war between both empires would start soon." Quinn''s father said. "Hmm, I recalled you said there were two Princes ahead of him. What happened to them?" The second old man asked. The voices of both men were also unexpectedly the same, if one isn''t present, one would think other than Quinn''s father, there was only one person present here. "I helped him get rid of the obstacles. Now, he''s the only one who is eligible to take the position as the next emperor." Quinn''s father said. "With him helping us on the inside, taking over would be easier. You''ve done well" The old man who spoke earlier said clearly pleased by the middle-aged man''s work. "Thank you, uncle. Father, I''ll be leaving now." The middle-aged man bowed preparing to leave the room. "What about the pawns placed on the other empires?" The old man Quinn''s father called father said. "They are all currently placed in high positions in the empires. One of them is trying to urge the emperor of the Azure empire to declare war on the Qilin empire, while the others are ensuring the other empires wouldn''t get involved in the war." Quinn''s father turned around to reply. "Okay, once the war starts, all our hidden power will come forth." The old man who was called uncle said. The family planned to start a war between the Qilin and Azure empires, while slowly taking control of the major powers in each empire. Before both empires would realize what was happening, more than half of their powers would be controlled by them. ____ Two months later. At the gate of the Lunar Academy. "What are you doing here?" An angry voice asked a refined-looking elegantly dressed young man standing outside the Academy''s gate. "Is this how you welcome an old friend?" The refined-looking young man asked with a soft smile, not at all offended by how he was welcomed. "Hmph! Our friendship ended years ago." The owner of the angry voice snorted. "Blake, at least show some respect for your Crown Prince." The refined-looking young man said, still wearing the same soft smile. The first speaker was surprisingly Blake, the head instructor of the Lunar Academy, but the identity of the refined-looking young man threw the few guards present at the gate off their feet. They had never seen the Crowned Prince of the Qilin empire before, but they also never expected to see him like this. Being the future emperor, they expected he would always move with an entourage, being carried around like the king he was meant to be, but, other than dressing elegantly and looking a little handsome, although not at the level of Blake, they didn''t feel anything special about him. "What are you doing here?" Blake asked not showing any respect for the Crown Prince. "I see you''re still angered by what happened the last time, I''ve already apologized. You know there was nothing I could do at that time." The Crowned Prince said taking a step into the Academy''s compound. "That didn''t answer my question." Blake said blocking the path of the Crown Prince. "I''m here to see instructor Delia, I heard she was injured previously. But I had been too busy to come to check on her." The Crown Prince stated his reason for coming. "She''s fine now, you can leave if that''s the only reason you came here." Blake''s angry face contorted even more when he heard the Crown Prince speaking about Delia. "Okay, fine, that''s not the only reason I''m here. I''m actually here to seek the guidance of Instructor Chris." The Crown Prince said still smiling softly. The more Blake looked at the Crown Prince''s smiling face, the angrier he got. "First, Senior Chris is not an instructor in this Academy, second, he doesn''t welcome uninvited guests." Blake said. "If he knows I''m the one here, he''ll come out and see me." The Crown Prince refused to give in. "Even if the emperor comes here personally, if senior Chris doesn''t want to see him, there''s nothing he can do." Blake was trying his best not to explode in anger and attack the Crown Prince. "Well, you see, I''ll be staying here for a while since I have some business here. It''ll be best if Senior Chris can spare a few minutes to entertain this little one." The Crown Prince said not bothering about how Blake was acting and walked straight into the Academy''s compound. Blake stared at the back of the Crown Prince and a hint of worry flashed through his eyes. He knew the reason for the Crown Prince''s visit wasn''t ordinary. ____ At Oliver''s Office. "He''s most likely here to confirm if Senior Chris is around." Blake said a little anxiously. "Hmm, they''re even more eager than we thought. There''s still no news of his whereabouts?" Oliver asked rubbing his aching head. "No, Teacher." Blake replied sadly. He had been searching for Chris''s whereabouts for over two months now, but there had been no news of him. It was like he just disappeared into thin air. "Okay, I''ll go see the Crown Prince and see why he''s here." Oliver said. After saying that, Oliver stood up from his seat and walked towards the door. "You should keep an eye on him while he''s here." He ordered before leaving. Blake nodded and also left the office. One week went by with the Crown Prince not moving as much as a muscle. What left Blake annoyed was that he spent all his time with Delia. Not being able to contain his anger, he went over to meet the Crowned Prince. "When do you plan on leaving?" Blake asked the Crowned Prince who was speaking with Delia. "No time soon." The Crowned Prince answered offhandedly. "You''re not welcomed here." Blake said. "This is my empire, I can stay wherever I want." The Crowned Prince said not bothered by Blake. He was already used to the way Blake speaks to him, so he didn''t feel annoyed or irritated by it. "In case you''ve forgotten, you''re still a prince, not the emperor." Blake looked at him after managing to calm himself. "That''s the Crowned Prince to you." The Crowned Prince retorted. "You know what? It''s been a long time we sparred." Blake responded. "Yeah, I really enjoyed beating you up." The Crowned Prince chuckled. "Heh! You wish." Blake laughed lightly. ''I''ll beat him up every day till he leaves this place.'' Blake thought. Since the Crowned Prince was searching for entertainment, he didn''t mind entertaining him. In fact, he''ll entertain him every single day! His plan was simple, beat up the Crowned Prince until he leaves the Academy voluntarily. He was already tired of seeing his smiling face repeatedly, if he had the opportunity, he''ll beat him up until he losses a few teeth. Delia looked at Blake and couldn''t help but let out a small smile. She could sense he was jealous because she was spending time with the Crowned Prince. Although she didn''t want to spend time with him, she couldn''t refuse it when the Crowned Prince summoned her since, unlike Blake, she couldn''t disrespect him. Chapter 148 - Blake vs The Crowned Prince At an open field behind the Lunar Academy. "Are you sure you want to do this old friend?" The Crowned Prince asked with a chuckle standing on the small earthen platform he created for the battle. Unlike normal earth, this one had a silvery color and was much stronger. If someone at the Peak of the Origin Plane struck it with their full strength, it wouldn''t be damaged, not even a crack would appear. But in front of someone as strong as Blake, it wouldn''t last long. "Heh!" Blake smirked as a response. If not for the fact that he didn''t want it to look like he assaulted the Crowned Prince, he would have already attacked him by now. "Okay, just to be clear, I won''t go easy on you just because we are friends." The Crowned Prince said while stretching his arms. "We were friends, not anymore. I''ve been waiting for so long for this day." Blake said with an evil grin appearing on his face. "Oh, why didn''t you come to find me in the Capital, you know I''m always there." The Crowned Prince smiled lightly. The truth was, although he was angry at the Crowned Prince, the main reason he was finding trouble with the Crowned Prince was that he felt disgusted by what he and his father were currently doing. He was friends with the Crowned Prince when he was younger, so he knew him all too well. The Crowned Prince is a cunning evil snake, he would wear a smile while slowly killing off his family. "Enough nonsense." Blake said preparing to attack. Seeing that Blake was about to attack, the Crowned Prince shut his mouth and also prepared himself. Since he''s quite familiar with Blake, he knew he would attack him even if he wasn''t ready. Buzz! Lightning danced all around Blake''s body as well as within a meter of his body. "Ah...the lightning element. So...beautiful." The Crowned Prince looked at the lightning and a glint flashed past his eyes. Earth slowly revolved around the Crowned Prince with an armor gradually covering up his entire upper body leaving just his head open. Swoosh! Bang! A huge earthen fist appeared and clashed with the bolt of lightning. Causing a loud banging sound. Blake appeared once again, but this time he was mid-air staring at the Crowned Prince with listless eyes. He naturally didn''t expect to take out the Crowned Prince with just this attack. The Crowned Prince looked at Blake who was mid-air and his smiling face slowly turned serious. "*Sigh* My friend, you''re still so powerful. No wonder none of those morons at the Starlight Academy could stop you." He sighed, remembering what he heard about Blake charging over to Starlight Academy to cause a ruckus because of a woman. ''I must say, she isn''t bad.'' He thought looking at Delia. Other than appreciating her beauty, he didn''t have any other thoughts towards her. Unlike other people his age who wanted to frequently enjoy the p.l.e.a.s.u.r.e of being with a woman, he knew otherwise. There were bigger things he had to do, he couldn''t waste his time fulfilling l.u.s.tful d.e.s.i.r.es. "I''d have killed that fool if not for the intervention of the principal." Blake said icily. When he remembered the man who attacked Delia, his anger shot upwards once again. ____ Watching from the side were Oliver and Delia. "They''re both strong." Delia said looking at the ongoing battle. "Yeah. But you should know they''ve not gone all out, else, this wall of yours wouldn''t be standing." Oliver said looking at the transparent ice wall Delia used to isolate this place from the Academy. Oliver suggested this since he didn''t want to cause panic in the Academy. If the sound of the battle between Blake and the Crowned Prince were to be heard by the students, no one knew what the students would say. Delia smiled lightly when she heard this, of course, she knew if the battle turned serious, even standing this close wouldn''t be good for her. "Who do you think will win?" Delia asked while watching the battle. "I don''t really know the full extent of the Crowned Prince''s powers so I can''t really say for sure, but, I think your boyfriend will win." Oliver said with a smile. "Yeah, me too." Delia nodded. "He''s not my boyfriend." She pouted. "Okay, so does that mean he''ll lose?" Oliver enquired with a light laugh. "Of course not, he''ll definitely win." Delia said seriously. "Why are you so confident he wouldn''t lose?" Oliver asked curiously. "Because... I believe in him. Also, he said amongst his peers, he was undefeatable" Delia replied. "He told you that?" Oliver asked with an odd expression flashing on his face which he quickly hid. "Yeah. You''re his teacher, so you should know. Or could it be that he was lying?" Delia asked raising a brow. "No, amongst his peers, he truly was invincible." Oliver replied lying through his teeth. He was so professional when lying that even he wanted to believe himself. ''Invincible my foot!'' He thought. But he wouldn''t tell Delia that when Blake was younger, he was a scared, anti-social, bullied young boy. That would sully the image he had managed to build for himself. Most of his peers at that time still felt strange whenever they hear about Blake''s current actions, they never once expected he would turn out to be such a hot-tempered person later on. ____ After exchanging moves for over a minute. Blake stopped mid-air and looked at the Crowned Prince. "Still acting like a turtle." Blake said looking at the multiple defenses the Crowned Prince had set up. The fight still hadn''t gotten serious yet. Blake was still holding back, while all the Crowned Prince was doing was defending while attacking once an opportunity presents itself. He was a clever person and knew Blake was only looking for a way to beat him up, so he didn''t want things to get too serious. Although, he was still very confident in his abilities. "Okay, we should stop playing around. Why don''t we take things seriously this time around?" The Crowned Prince asked. "I thought you''d never ask." Blake smiled. Thang! Swoosh! The arrow shot straight at the Crowned Prince with lightning-quick speed. ''F.u.c.k! I love this element, just as much as I hate facing someone wielding it.'' The Crowned Prince scurried to set up a defensive wall. Nine six meters thick walls appeared in front of him, each separated by two meters. Bam! Crash! Crack! The lightning arrow went through the first four walls like a hot knife through butter. One has to remember this was a wall that could stop an all-out attack of a Peak Origin Plane Elementalist, yet, three couldn''t even stop a single attack. The arrow didn''t stop after passing through the first three walls, it went on the fourth one with its momentum still at its peak. After it went through the fourth one, it slowed down a little, but the fifth, sixth and seventh one couldn''t stop it. It continued to the eighth one, but its speed had reduced greatly. Yet, even after being disrupted by the previous seven walls, it still forced its way past the eighth wall and it soon slowly started penetrating the ninth wall. In the end, only the arrowhead managed to appear on the other side of the wall, but it couldn''t move an inch and just stayed put. "*Phew* That had me scared for a minute." The Crowned Prince breathed out a sigh of relief. "Hey, buddy! This all you got?" He asked Blake who was still floating mid-air. Blake only smirked as a response. When he saw Blake''s smirk, he suddenly remembered something and quickly retreated. "Shit! I hate this guy." He cursed as he retreated. But alas, he realized it too late. ''Explode'' Blake said internally. Boom! The arrowhead which was the only thing visible on the wall exploded out, causing a massive white light to cover the area of the battle. ____ "Does he plan on killing him?" Delia couldn''t help but ask when she saw the powerful explosion. "Haha, of course not. Do you think Blake is foolish enough to kill the Crowned Prince here? Besides, even if he wants to kill him, it wouldn''t be this easy." Oliver laughed while dispersing the impact of the attack that was coming in their direction. "Yeah, you''re right about that." Delia nodded remembering this was only a spar. She had always known Blake was strong, but she never expected him to be this strong. This was the first time she was seeing Blake fight, and she couldn''t hide the shock and awe in her eyes. The most shocking thing was that Blake was still holding back. How strong would he be if he really went all out? This question ran through her mind over and over again making her heart beat faster and faster. Chapter 149 - Blake vs The Crowned Prince II "Cough...cough...cough, Blake do you plan on killing me?" The Crowned Prince coughed while walking out of the dust after the explosion had settled down. "Heh! Stop pretending, you should know we''re just getting started." Blake smirked looking at the dust-covered Crowned Prince. "*Sigh* My friend, why don''t we stop here?" The Crowned Prince asked with a soft smile. "What? Are you scared?" Blake asked mockingly. "Not a chance, I just don''t want to beat you up." The Crowned Prince chuckled lightly. "You see, I want to beat you up." Blake shrugged and attacked once again. The Crowned Prince quickly sent out an attack, blocking the attack Blake sent towards him. Boom! Both attacks collided sending out a huge shockwave. The Crowned Prince being an Earth Elementalist preferred staying on the ground while fighting, since he''s much more comfortable there. But since Blake had already taken to the sky, he also had to fly up, else he would be at a disadvantage. "*Sigh* I miss the days when we used to fight on the ground." The Crowned Prince said while appearing mid-air. "Those days are long gone." Blake attacked once again. With both fighters flashing through the air sending out multiple attacks, it was impossible for low leveled Elementalists to keep track of their movements, especially Blake''s. Even for a Lightning Elementalist, his speed was unbelievable. Another two minutes went by with none of them gaining the upper hand. ''I hate this element.'' The Crowned Prince complained. What he hated the most about the lightning element was its speed, this was also what he loved about it. When he was younger, he hoped he would awaken the lightning element, but alas, when he went for the test, he awakened the earth element. For the past two minutes that the battle was ongoing, he couldn''t get a clear view of Blake due to his speed, but being a master in the art of defense, he had been able to block most of Blake''s attacks while also counter-attacking. But cracks had already started appearing on some parts of his armor after suffering from a few hits. ____ "Wow! He''s fast!" Delia exclaimed while watching the battle. Her eyes could barely keep up with Blake''s movements. There were even times where all she sees is a blur, before she could see the figure properly, it had already disappeared. "He''s a Lightning Elementalist, he''s meant to be fast." Oliver said, not surprised by Blake''s speed. He even felt he could go faster. ''I''ll have a little talk with him after this battle. Looks like he''s been slacking off lately.'' He thought. But he knew in the entirety of the Academy, if Blake said he was the second fastest person, no one would dare say they were first. Well, except for Chris, but Oliver wasn''t counting him as part of the Academy. Most of the time he just goofs off, then when he gets bored, he''ll go out as a representative for the test, and would rarely bring back any new students. But when he does, they all turned out to be extraordinary. He had been friends with him for a long time and didn''t really know much about his background. He also knew the only reason Chris was staying in the Academy was because of him, and he was grateful for that. When the previous emperor was still on the throne, he invited Chris over wanting to make him an official, but he refused without a second thought, the emperor even went as far as promising to make him the second highest ranking individual in the empire being below only the emperor, but he still refused. "I heard you wanted to challenge him to a battle, are you still confident in defeating him?" Oliver asked looking at Delia. "Hmph! Give me another three years, no wait, five years, and I''ll surpass him." Delia said confidently. "Hehe, and what would he be doing in those five years?" Oliver chuckled. "He..." Delia paused, not knowing what to say. Due to how strong Blake was, and since he was a head instructor, she forgot the fact that he was still young and would continue growing in strength. ''If he''s this powerful now, how powerful would he be in five years time?'' She asked herself while in a daze. Oliver smiled as a response before focusing his attention back on the battle that was going on mid-air. ''The Crowned Prince isn''t as simple as he looks.'' He narrowed his eyes. He had been watching the battle since it started, and could tell the Crowned Prince was just as strong as Blake, the only reason he was at a disadvantage was because of Blake''s insane speed. If he were facing off against some other head instructor, then he would''ve won the battle already. He also realized that since the battle started, almost every time the Crowned Prince counter-attacked, it was successful. How precise must one''s timing be to have such a high success rate? Especially when facing someone this fast? ''He''s like a patient hunter, waiting for the perfect time to strike.'' He thought. There had been cases where even he felt the Crowned Prince had won the battle, but Blake''s speed would help him avoid the attack. ____ ''I hate this element.'' Blake complained. Although his attack power was strong, due to the high defensive properties of the earth element, it has managed to block them. The only way he can break it is to use a high leveled attack, but whenever he does, the Crowned Prince would also bring out a high leveled defensive technique making his effort useless. Although there are times where he had struck the Crowned Prince, the effect isn''t as high as he wanted since the Crowned Prince''s defense would take out most of its power. "Hey, how about a close-ranged battle?" He suggested. "Hmm, okay." The Crowned Prince agreed to it. ''It''s been so long I had a heart-racing battle.'' He thought. This was the main reason he agreed to spar with Blake, being the Crowned Prince, even if people fought against him, they would hold back in fear of hurting him, either that, or his opponents weren''t strong enough. But he was friends with Blake, so he naturally knew he was just as strong as he was, if not even stronger. And given the anger Blake had towards him, there was no way he would hold back. He knew why Blake hadn''t used his full strength was because they didn''t want to alarm the people in the Academy, or a battle between two Overlord Plane Elementalists could easily destroy a city, much less an Academy. Blake stretched out both hands open his palms wide, the second he closed them, two lightning swords formed on them. Each reaching one meter in length. Holding them by the lightning-formed hilt, he pointed it at the Crowned Prince. "Damn! I never get tired of seeing this trick." The Crowned Prince laughed and created an earthen spear. In close combat, he preferred using the spear. Although he rarely gets the chance to use it, he still practices with it, so he''s quite good with it. Swoosh! Crash! Blake disappeared from his previous spot and appeared close to the Crowned Prince slicing his lightning swords at his side. The Crowned Prince blocked with his spear pushing him back. This was the advantage of the earth element, its pure brute strength! After pushing him back, he thrust his spear at Blake''s shoulder with unexpected speed. Blake used his sword to deflect the thrust of the spear by hitting its side. Before long, they had exchanged more than fifty moves with no one obtaining the upper hand still. ____ "Looks like their strength is on the same level." Delia spoke after seeing that even after trying multiple fighting styles, none of them has been able to gain the upper hand. "Not just that, but they are too familiar with each other hence they could guess what the next move of the opponent would be." Oliver added. Of all the people in Blake''s generation, for the first time in Oliver''s life, the Crowned Prince was the only one who could fight him to a draw. This alone made him think highly of the Crowned Prince. ''*Sigh* If only he and his father isn''t trying to take control of all the Academies, then he wouldn''t be a bad ally.'' He thought. ____ "You see, you still can''t defeat me." The Crowned Prince said while panting heavily. Blake looked at him while also trying to catch his breath. "Hmph! It''s only because I''m holding back, or else, you wouldn''t be standing." Blake snorted, not pleased with the draw. They soon fell into silence staring at each other. "You know what?" The Crowned Prince suddenly said after a moment of silence. Blake raised a brow looking at the Crowned Prince. "I did come back that day, it''s just that I was too late. I''m sorry for leaving that day." The Crowned Prince said in a low apologetic tone. His armor and spear disappeared. And he turned around to leave. After flying some meters, he turned around and smiled. "Also, I hope we never get to fight against each other." Chapter 150 - Its Shiny! The Crowned Prince flew towards the ice wall, he stopped and looked at Delia, only to see her staring at Blake. With no other option, he created a hole in it which he used to leave the area, heading back to the Academy. Blake remained mid-air staring at the Crowned Prince, he knew there was a hidden meaning to what the Crowned Prince told him before he left. ''Looks like he''s giving me a heads up. But he should have already known there''s no way we would accept to be their puppets.'' He thought before landing close to Oliver and Delia. Being lost in thoughts, he failed to realize that she was staring at him intensely, only after a while did he sense it. "Huh! Is there something on my face?" He asked while touching his face. "What? No!" The dazed Delia asked showing confusion, before answering. "Oh! Then why were you staring that hard? Wait, could it be that you want to imprint my impeccable appearance in your memory forever?" Blake asked with a cheeky smile. "You wish." Delia rolled her eyes before removing her ice wall. They soon started bickering while slowly making their way to the Academy. Looking at Blake and Delia bickering, Oliver chuckled lightly and told Blake to come to see and see him when he was done before leaving the duo. ___ Some hours later, at Oliver''s office. "The Crowned Prince is something." Oliver said after dropping the book he was reading. Seeing that Blake was looking around, Oliver guessed the reason and smiled lightly. "What do you think we should do?" He asked in a serious tone placing both hands underneath his chin. "About?" Blake turned his attention back to Oliver. "The emperor''s motive. With Chris nowhere to be found, fighting against them is suicide." Oliver said. "I...don''t know." Blake paused before answering slowly with furrowed brows. He too was confused about the whole issue. "Once the kids get back from the trial land, I''ve decided to step down as the mayor of Lunar City as well as the principal of the Academy." Oliver said looking at Blake without any changes in his expression. This move looks cowardly, but it''s actually the best decision. Klaus and Blake are his only family, he wouldn''t foolishly give his life away while putting theirs in danger just because he wanted to go against the emperor. He had invested a lot of his time in both the City and the Academy, but the life of his son and student mattered more. Besides, even though Chris is powerful, he''s just one man. He didn''t expect him to go against the entire empire because of him. Blake knew since Oliver has made this decision, there''s no turning back. "I''ll step down as well." He said not angry by his Teacher''s decision. Oliver looked at him and sighed. He had previously thought of making Blake the next Principal, but given the current situation, there''s no use in doing that. What he wanted to do right now was to keep a good distance away from the emperor and his people, this was why he also wanted to step down from his position as Mayor. "What about Senior Chris?" Blake asked. "Stop worrying about him. If he comes back after we''ve left, he would be able to find us." Oliver responded. "Okay, Teacher." Blake stood up and walked towards the door. On getting to the door, he stopped. "Should I inform the Crowned Prince, so he can leave?" He turned around to inquire. "There''s no need for that. I''ll head over to the Capital in two days time." Oliver said before picking up the book he was reading. "Okay." Blake bowed and left. ''I promised your mother I''ll never put you in harm''s way. I just hope they''ll let us be.'' Oliver thought with a sad look appearing on his face when he remembered his late wife. The sad look was quickly replaced by a smile before turning into a worried expression. ''I hope that little rascal is alright.'' He thought. ____ At the trial land. A young man could be seen running at the fastest speed he could muster through a forest. On his shoulder was a strikingly black cat, staring behind them with a hint of worry. ''Run faster!'' A small voice sounded in the youth''s head. ''I can''t go any faster! Shit! Why did you go and steal their treasure?!'' The young man asked angrily, only, his voice was only heard inside the head of the small cat. ''It was shiny!'' The small voice replied. ''F.u.c.k you! Return it!'' The young man ordered. ''No! It''s mine!'' The small voice replied. ''Damn it! Get off my shoulder so they''ll chase after you.'' The young man tried to push the cat off of his shoulder but missed. The cat disappeared from the left shoulder, appearing on the right shoulder within a second. ''Damn it! I shouldn''t have allowed you to come with me. You have the space element, aren''t you faster than I am?'' The young man asked slightly frustrated. ''I can''t travel long distances with it, yet. Also, you should know how exhausting it is using your elemental essence constantly.'' The small voice said while the cat dodged the hand coming its way. ''Damn you! Of course I know, I''ve been using mine for almost thirty minutes now.'' The young man cursed while trying to catch the cat which had appeared on his left shoulder. He threw his left hand towards his right shoulder while his right hand towards his left shoulder. The cat disappeared from the left shoulder, and appeared on the right one, only to be caught by the waiting hand. ''Hahaha, got you! If you don''t want to return it, run in the other direction.'' The young man said after managing to catch the cat. ''F.u.c.k you! How can you betray me?!'' The small voice yelled out. ''Betray your head! Don''t run in my direction. F.u.c.k!'' The young man yelled when he saw the cat coming his way. And for some weird reasons, his speed was faster than the first time. ''Stop! Where are you going?!'' The small voice screamed as the cat disappeared appearing closer to the young man. ''Somewhere without you!'' The young man replied. ''Okay, but take me with you!'' The small voice said. ''How would the place be without you if I take you along, stupid cat!'' The young man replied. The young man and the cat were obviously Grey and Void. Behind them was a horde of angry looking giant white ape, each ape had a silver horn at the middle of their heads with silver lightning snakes dancing around their bodies as they gave chase. Of all the apes, five of them were more eye catching because instead of having silver horns, they had purple. Purple lightning danced around their snow white hairs. One of the five purple horned monkeys roared and sent out a lightning bolt towards the running Grey. Boom! "F.u.c.k! I wasn''t the one who stole your treasure!" Grey yelled out after dodging the lightning coming his way. ''Don''t try to explain, they''ll still chase after you anyway.'' Void said while capitalizing on the small time Grey slowed down and jumped on his shoulder. ''Damn you! Return their treasure to them.'' Grey yelled at Void. ''No! I believe we can escape this chase!'' Void said confidently. ''Yes, if you return their treasure.'' Grey said. ''How can you be so cowardly? I thought you enjoyed fighting, why don''t you take out that one that almost blasted you?'' Void said, not forgetting to take a glance behind them. After training for two months, Grey had already reached the Fourth stage of the Origin Plane. He felt a little dejected about it when he thought about how quickly he advanced from the First stage to the Second stage, but then again, he knew had he not acquired those treasures, there was no way his strength would have increased that fast. And compared to others, the essence he needs for each breakthrough was humongous, so he was happy he managed to advance two stages in two months, this should be the speed of a few others as well, so his speed wasn''t that bad. He had ventured deeper into the trial land and had faced multiple beasts as well as humans. He also encountered Jonas on one occasion, but they didn''t speak. Other than that, he has faced off against some youths from the Azure empire, killing those who tried to kill him. Of the eight he encountered, only two were left alive, and the reason for that was because they didn''t try to kill him. Even though the Qilin empire was enemies with the Azure empire, it didn''t mean he''ll kill every one of them. So far, for the last two months, he could say his journey had been quite enjoyable. And just when he thought his luck was changing for the better, Void stole the treasure of these Horned Lightning Apes. He initially went to their territory in search of a plant, according to a book he read, where ever there are Horned Lightning Apes, a lightning attribute plant would be present. But who knew Void would go crazy and steal their treasure, he had always known Void loved shiny things, but he didn''t expect it to be this bad. He could be said to be obsessed with them! Chapter 151 - Unfortunate Group ''Come on Void, return it.'' Grey pleaded while dodging another attack. Boom! The lightning struck a tree ahead of them, creating a hole in it. ''No, I want it.'' Void refused once again. ''Shit! At this rate, either they catch up, or we run into the territory of a far stronger beast.'' Grey cursed. ''Don''t worry, they can''t catch up.'' Void comforted. ''Of course, I''m worried! Why wouldn''t I be worried?! I''m being chased by a horde of Horned Lightning Apes! Is that something not to be worried about?'' Grey asked a couple of questions in quick successions. The five Purple Horned Lightning Apes were around the Fourth to the Sixth stage of the Origin Plane, while the Silver Horned Lightning Apes were around the First to Third stage. How could he fight against them? Fighting against them was nothing more than suicide! If he met either one of the five Purple Horned Lightning Apes alone, then he would be able to deal with it. Other than the one in the Sixth stage, the others weren''t much of a problem. Even that one in the Sixth stage wasn''t much of a problem, only, it would require more of an effort compared to the rest. Roar! The leading Purple Horned Lightning Ape roared and sent out another attack. Swoosh! The lightning bolt shot through the air aiming for Grey who was a couple of meters away. Bang! Split! After being hit by the lightning, the tree split into two horizontally, with the larger part falling in the direction Grey was coming from. "Damn it!" Grey cursed when he saw the tree falling towards him at a fast speed. With no other option, he dodged to the side as fast as he could, but that slight delay allowed the strongest one of the Purple Horned Lightning Apes to shorten the gap between them to a mere three meters. Realizing that the strongest Ape had closed the gap between them, Grey was forced to send out a fireball while running. Stopping to fight it was stupid, all he could do was delay it with his attack, so he could gain more ground. The horn on the head of the Purple Horned Lightning Ape lit up when it saw the fireball Grey sent its way before it sent out a lightning ball that crashed into the fireball Grey sent its way. Boom! Both attacks collided sending out a huge shockwave. ''Phew'' Grey breathed out heavily when he saw he had managed to distance himself from the Ape once again. ''You''re attacking next time.'' He said to Void. ''Okay.'' Void nodded. He knew if he rejected to do this, then Grey would definitely search for a way to throw him out. Roar! The Purple Horned Lightning Ape roared angrily when it saw that the distance it had managed to close down, was increased further than the previous time. With red eyes, it charged towards the human and the cat. For it, since Void was with Grey, then they were together, and all it wanted to do to them was to pound them till they turned into a meat paste. The other Purple Horned Lightning Apes caught up with the first one, while the Silver Horned Lightning Apes was just a few meters away. The Apes continued their chase, while Grey and Void ran like their lives depended on it. Well, Grey was the one doing all the running, all Void was doing was lying around leisurely. After being given the task of attacking by Grey, he would occasionally send out attacks whenever he notices the Apes were getting closer. This further increased the rage of the Apes, they all felt the cat was a hateful creature. Once they catch up to them, they''ll make sure the cat suffers more. After pounding it into a meat paste, they''ll burn the meat paste with their lightning. They wanted the cat to die with no remains, if they were given an opportunity, not even its ashes would be left. If Void were to find out about the plans the Apes had for him, he''ll laugh it up while cursing at their entire ancestry. Did they think they''ll ever catch them? ____ Some distance away from where the chase was currently taking place, a group of youths could be seen together, they all had sour expressions with a few having minor injuries. "How can we be so unlucky? This is the sixth time this week we have been attacked by those mongrels." One of the youths complained with frustration very evident in his voice. "Yeah I know, it''s like they''re toying with us." Another one said through gritted teeth. "Hmph! Only a fool would leave an enemy alive. I''ll have my revenge, surely." A more composed youth amongst them said. The others looked at him and nodded. This group was none other than the Twelfth Prince''s group. After that battle when Alan and Damian saved them, they had managed to keep all their members alive and had been having a pretty good time. The Twelfth Prince had broken through to the Third stage of the Origin Plane, not just him, but two others have also broken through to that stage, one of them was Neil, while the other was also a student from the Royal Academy. After facing multiple challenges and coming out on top of most of them, they felt pretty great. They had even eliminated a few youths from the Azure empire, but their luck ran out when they accidentally crossed paths with a group from the Azure empire which had two youths in the Fourth stage of the Origin Plane. Not just that, but there were also three in the Third stage, making life hard for the Twelfth Prince''s group. For the past one week, the group from the Azure empire had been tormenting them by attacking them repeatedly. What was more frustrating was that they were stronger than the Twelfth Prince''s group, yet, they hadn''t killed any of them, rather, they would show up unexpectedly and launch an attack on them. Being stronger and more prepared, they always gained the upper hand in the battles and would leave right after hurting a few of the people in the Twelfth Prince''s group. It was like the Twelfth Prince''s group were their entertainment, and once they were bored, they would attack. On numerous occasions, after being attacked, the Twelfth Prince''s had tried escaping, but no matter where they go, the group from the Azure empire still ends up finding them. They all felt the group was following them closely. Rustle! "Who''s there?" Neil turned towards the direction the noise came from while preparing to attack. He was currently very edgy because of what he had gone through during the week. Not just him, but the others were just as tense as he was. Going through something like this could make almost anyone lose their cool. What made matters worse was that they did not know if the next time the group from the Azure empire attacked, they''d take their lives. So none of them were calm, not even the Twelfth Prince. They felt like prisoners that could be executed at any given time. "Hehe, don''t tell me you''ve forgotten about us so soon. I mean, we only left a couple of minutes ago, so it''s impossible that you''ve forgotten about us." A peal of playful laughter rang out from behind a tree twelve meters away, and a youth almost two meters tall walked out, with others following behind him. The Twelfth Prince''s group was currently in an open field that had grasses half a meter tall, it was almost impossible to see the ground because of the grass. "Haha, maybe we hit them too hard and messed up their heads." A youth following behind the first youth laughed out loud, making those around him laugh as well. "Oh! If that''s the case, why don''t we beat them again? That should be able to rearrange their heads, right?" A crisp voice belonging to a young lady sounded out. The moment the Twelfth Prince and his group heard the voice of the young lady, they shivered uncontrollably. To them, the voice didn''t belong to a young lady, but a demon. But, they couldn''t help but be grateful to this demon. Had it not been for her suggesting they had fun with them, then her group would have already killed them by now. Even though being toyed with isn''t fun, it was better than being dead. Living one more day meant, there was still hope for them to escape their present predicament. Chapter 152 - Possible Helpers? The Twelfth Prince''s group looked at the stunning young lady with dread visible in their eyes. Of the two people in the Fourth stage of the Origin Plane, she was the strongest. They still couldn''t comprehend why she would have such a thought process, but since it has kept them alive, they weren''t complaining about it. Even though they felt they were the most unfortunate group in the trial land, they were still better than those who had died, right? "Why are they back so soon?" The youth from the Starlight Academy asked the others softly. According to how the group from the Azure empire usually operated, after beating them up, they would give them a day or so to rest and recover before coming back, but now, it hadn''t even been up to an hour, and they''re back. Judging from their expressions, it looks like maybe they''ve come to a decision to end them this time. "I don''t know, but hopefully they''ll leave soon after finishing their work." The youth who previously complained about the assault said. He might have complained when the group wasn''t here, but since they were here, he didn''t dare to. Being the weaker party, he had already accepted his fate, besides, it wasn''t like this was the first time he was bullied. Getting used to being bullied is something only the brave and determined can do, that was his motto back then. Currently, he felt after some time, the others would get used to it as well and move on with their lives. Well, that was under the premise that they weren''t killed this time. The youth from the Starlight Academy looked at him weirdly and refrained from replying. If he were to answer the youth, then there''s a chance they might start quarreling amidst their current predicament. It wasn''t like they were as carefree as Klaus and Reynolds were, who would be able to quarrel even when they were outnumbered. "After a long deliberation, we have decided it''s time to stop these games." The tall youth said coldly while staring at the Twelfth Prince''s group. When the Twelfth Prince and the rest of his group heard this statement, their hearts sank. And for the first time in the lives of most of them, they wanted to beg to continue being beaten. ''Please, continue beating us!'' This was what they prayed for currently. "Just in case you all don''t understand what that means, it means we''re tired of our current toys and want to get rid of them. And, you all are the toys." Another youth said while laughing. Although most of them were still below twenty years of age, they had already gotten used to killing. Some of them could even kill entire families without blinking an eye, this was a world of Elementalists, a world ruled by the strong. If you don''t want to be stepped on or abused, then you have to strive to grow stronger, by any means necessary. ''I knew the reason they came back wasn''t good.'' The youth from the Starlight Academy thought feeling a little depressed. "Hmph! If you think you can kill us, I''m afraid you''re greatly mistaken." The Twelfth Prince snorted coldly with the deep-seethed pride of a prince showing forth. Since the group had already decided to kill them, then there is no use being courteous with them anymore. Even though he didn''t want to die, it didn''t mean that he''ll turn into a coward when faced with death. He was a Prince of the Qilin empire, how could he bow to mere citizens of the Azure empire. Given the severity of the upcoming battle, the Twelfth Prince knew that if he didn''t rile up the others, then their deaths would come sooner. Although, being a Wind Elementalist, there''s a slim chance he might be able to escape if the opportunity presents itself. "Hehehe, I like feisty toys. I''ll be the one killing him." The girl giggled while positioning herself in front of the Twelfth Prince, looking at him with playful eyes. The group from the Qilin empire had more numbers compared to their opponents, but the difference in individual strength made things difficult for them. The group from the Azure empire were five in numbers, with two being in the Fourth stage of the Origin Plane, and the other three being in the Third stage. Of the three in the Third stage, one was a Dual Elementalist whose strength almost rivaled that of the two in the Fourth stage. While the Twelfth Prince''s group had seven people, with three being in the Third stage of the Origin Plane, and the rest being in the Second stage. Boom! An attack was unleashed unexpectedly. A youth was sent flying by the unexpected attack, while the other tried to defend but was pushed back. The youth sent flying was one of the Third stage Origin Plane Elementalist from the Azure empire. Surprisingly, the Twelfth Prince''s group were the first ones to attack. Being taken unaware, the group from the Azure empire were momentarily stunned by the sudden attack and fell on the defensive with one of them sustaining an injury. Never in their wildest dreams did they think that this group from the Qilin empire would be the first to attack. All the while that they had been attacking them, they had always been the ones who attacked while the Twelfth Prince''s group defended, yet when it came to the most important fight, they were the ones on the defensive. It was an ironic situation from their point of view. "Yes!" Neil exclaimed and went straight for the injured youth. During the short period the group from the Azure empire was spouting nonsense, the Twelfth Prince told him to attack them while they were still picking opponents. He initially thought the plan wouldn''t be successful, but surprisingly, the youths from the Azure empire were dumber than they look. Seeing that one of their opponents had been injured, the momentum of the Twelfth Prince''s group shot through the roof and they felt, maybe, just maybe, they could escape this alive. What the Twelfth Prince did showed he truly was worthy of being the leader of the group, and also being a prince trained in the art of war. The only unfortunate thing about the plan was that the youth attacked didn''t die, and the injuries he sustained weren''t life-threatening. But it had decreased his strength significantly. _____ At the forest. The chase was still ongoing with Grey cursing at Void repeatedly. If Void had not stolen their treasure, they wouldn''t have been in such a position. Bang! Another attack landed close to him. "Cough...cough... Damn it! These things are relentless." Grey coughed out while dashing out of the dust that rose from the blast. Being too occupied with escaping, he couldn''t create inscriptions, and even if he did, since he couldn''t turn around to face the Apes, he couldn''t get a clean hit. One has to remember, he was the one escaping, not the other way around. ''Huh! There''s a battle going on up ahead.'' Void said after sensing ripples in the space caused by the impact of the battle going on. Being a Space Elementalist, he was naturally very s.e.n.s.i.t.i.v.e to the space around him, especially within half a kilometer radius. It was just like the sensory ability Grey had from the wind and the earth element. Only, the range of Void''s sensory ability was far better than that of Grey. ''Between humans?'' Grey asked the question he felt was most important. If the battle was between humans, then he wouldn''t mind bringing his escorts behind him to the party. With more people around, the Apes would instinctively attack them as well, especially if he acted like they were together. But if the battle was between two or more beasts, he would have to take a detour so as not to incite their wrath. He was already being chased by one group, if another group were to start chasing him, then he wouldn''t know what to do anymore. ''Yes .'' Void replied after a brief wait to confirm if the fighters were humans or not. ''Phew, thankfully we have helpers now.'' Grey breathed out a sigh of relief. Now all he wanted to do was take the Apes towards the people, so they could help him stop them while he makes a break for it. In short, he wanted to use them. Despite the fact that the Apes couldn''t catch up with him if he continued running, being chased for so long was quite tiring. ''But, what if they''re my friends?'' He thought. If the people fighting were his friends, then, it would be difficult since he couldn''t make the Apes attack just one group. The best case scenario was that he wasn''t acquainted with any of the people fighting, that way he could just dump the Apes at them, while the worst case scenario was that they were people he knew. He hoped for the former while also preparing a plan in case it was the latter. With everything in place, he darted towards where the battle was going on. Chapter 153 - Such A Destructive Element ____ Back at the field. The battle between the Twelfth Prince''s group and the group from the Azure empire had slowly started taking a turn. Unlike the rough start they had, the group from the Azure empire was slowly gaining the upper hand now. Boom! Crash! A human figure crashed through the field leveling the tall grasses in the process. After sliding across a distance of almost ten meters from where it crashed, the figure stopped. Looking closer, the figure was Neil from the Twelfth Prince''s group. After their initial sneak attack at the start of the battle, they only managed to hold the upper hand for about three minutes or so before the group from the Azure empire gradually started turning the tide of the battle. Currently, other than the youth injured at the start of the battle from the sneak attack, the others from the Azure empire were doing fine. Neil was presently fighting against one of the two people in the Fourth stage of the Origin Plane in the group from the Azure empire. Spit! He spat out the bits of grass that got into his mouth during the crash. Placing one leg in front of him while the other was in a kneeling position, he raised his head to observe the ongoing battle, but seeing how things were going, he couldn''t help but feel a little bitter inside. He was barely hanging on against his opponent, while the Twelfth Prince was being suppressed by the young lady who was the other person in the Fourth stage, and as for the other youth from the Royal Academy who was in the Third stage, he too was also being suppressed by the Dual Elementalist in the Third stage from the Azure empire. Since his strength saw a decline, he wasn''t as strong as he previously was, so fighting against two people was a little more than he could handle. His companions who were fighting against a single opponent would occasionally lend him a helping hand when they were chanced. They knew if the youth were to die, then they might not be the ones doing the killing, rather, it would be the other way around. But their opponents also being aware of this was trying hard to ensure they don''t get the chance to help him. The Twelfth Prince''s group knew if the injured youth could be taken out of the picture, then their chances of survival would increase exponentially. Because once the injured youth was dead, then the two who were fighting against him would join hands with the others to suppress their opponents. So, there was no way they''d allow the others to help him. As things stand, taking out the injured youth was their best shot at survival, either that or maybe someone would come to their aid just like the last time they were stuck in such a situation. "Heh! What are you looking at?" The tall youth asked mockingly while walking closer to Neil. Neil wiped the side of his mouth while hurriedly standing on his feet, gazing ferociously at his opponent. He knew he wasn''t his match, and escaping from his hands was quite difficult, but not impossible. But he had to tie him down so his companions could kill the injured youth. Unlike the other battles, this was a battle between two Water Elementalists. But since the tall youth had the advantage of being a stage ahead of Neil, his attack power was stronger. Neil''s elemental grade was blue, but since he couldn''t even fight the tall youth to a draw, it meant his elemental grade was also blue. "You think they can kill him? Hehe, even if they can, you wouldn''t live long enough to see it." The tall youth smirked and unleashed another attack. Neil created an ice wall to block the attack, but it shattered when the tall youth''s attack landed on it. Seeing his defense destroyed, he hastily sent out an attack towards the weakened strike coming his way. Boom! Both strikes collided sending out a chilling shockwave as both attackers used ice instead of water. Being closer to the strike, the impact of the attacks pushed him back, he only managed to gain his footing after moving four meters backward. Looking behind him, a strange thought suddenly came into his head, if things continued in this manner, then he might get a chance to escape. Since the battle started, the tall youth had blasted him a good distance away from their initial position, and he was presently only a hundred meters away from the forest. He wouldn''t mind it if the tall youth continued blasting him in this direction, that way, in case things didn''t work out with the duo, he would have a chance at escaping. ____ "Kekeke, to think you were hiding your strength previously." The young lady giggled coquettishly while battling with the Twelfth Prince. Bam! ''Even after using almost ninety percent of my strength, I''m still no match for her.'' The Twelfth Prince thought while dodging her attack. During the first time he fought against this group, he concealed some of his strength in case things didn''t work out for his group, he would be able to unleash his greatest movement technique and escape. Being a Wind Elementalist, he naturally placed more emphasis on speed, so even though the situation doesn''t look too good for him, he still had some confidence in escaping. He even had a secret technique that could raise his speed to a terrifying level that even those three stages ahead of him wouldn''t be able to keep up with him. It''s just, because of the price he''d have to pay to use it, he would only use it as a last resort. Besides, given their luck so far since they entered the trial land, they had been able to pull through most of the challenges that came their way, so he was still hopeful that maybe things would turn for the better. They even had a chance to do that now since if the duo could kill the injured youth, then they would be able to counter-kill their opponents. The young lady fighting against the Twelfth Prince was a Fire Elementalist, seeing that the Twelfth Prince was dodging most of her attacks, her fiery temper soon started taking over. "Hmph! Dodge this." She said coldly while unleashing a large-scale attack. Unlike her previous attacks, this one covered a twenty meters radius around the Twelfth Prince. ''Damn it!'' The Twelfth Prince cursed, not expecting his opponent to make use of this method just so she could strike him. Being forced to defend, he created a tornado around himself, using it to fend off the fire coming his way. But doing that not only protected him but also gave his opponent a target to attack since he wasn''t moving anymore. Swoosh! A large flaming sword sliced in the direction of the tornado, easily cutting through it from the top to the bottom, slicing apart the Twelfth Prince''s protective cover. The second the tornado was cut apart, the Twelfth Prince was revealed to the young lady who followed up the flaming sword with fire arrows heading straight at the Twelfth Prince. ''Why do I always get the troublesome opponents?'' The Twelfth Prince complained while setting up a windshield to block the arrows coming his way. Boom! Bam! Multiple arrows struck the shield as well as the surrounding places where the shield didn''t cover, causing a large area to be covered in smoke. Of all the battles, the area where the Twelfth Prince''s battle was going on was more glaring due to it losing more grasses. Although there were other Fire Elementalists in the two groups, none was as destructive as the young lady was. The Twelfth Prince was currently caught in the middle of the smoke after managing to fend off the arrows coming his way. He covered himself with a wind sphere that slowly grew bigger and exploded sending airwaves in all directions thereby clearing the surrounding air of the smoke. "Such a destructive element." The Twelfth Prince said looking at the once serene field that has been destroyed by the young lady''s attack. He had never liked fire, he didn''t know why though. Even though it''s among the strongest elements in terms of attack power, he still didn''t like. "I hate people who only evades. Fight properly!" The young lady yelled angrily with fire raging all around her. "I''m a Wind Ele... Wait, why am I even bothering to explain to you?" The Twelfth Prince who was about to explain the reason for his fighting style paused and asked. He truly wasn''t obligated to explain the reason for the way he fights to her. "Because you''re afraid." The young lady laughed and continued her attack. The Twelfth Prince quickly evaded the attack once again while also counter-attacking. Chapter 154 - What Did He Do?! While the battle was still ongoing, Grey appeared from the forest on the southern side of the field. He quickly analyzed the situation to know what to do. It didn''t take up to a second before he recognized the Twelfth Prince. ''Ah, to think it''s them. If I leave the Apes with them and by chance any of them successfully escapes, then that''s me creating an enemy I can''t fight against.'' He thought while looking at the Twelfth Prince. He was short on time so he had to make a decision as soon as possible since the Apes were only a few seconds away from him. When he was getting close to this place, he managed to increase the distance between himself and the Apes, so he would be able to think properly when he saw the people who were battling. Since he knew the Twelfth Prince, taking the Apes in their direction was out of the picture. But he didn''t worry since he had already come up with a plan in case he knew any of those fighting. "I got it!" He yelled attracting the attention of both groups who were still in a heated battle, while also making sure that the Apes who were following behind him would hear it from their location. Hearing the yell, everyone fighting subconsciously turned around to look at who was speaking. Given the current situation of the battle, each group was hoping it was someone they were acquainted with. Both groups immediately separated and came back to their groups. They didn''t know if the person coming was a friend or a foe, so getting together with their team was the best decision. ''What are you doing?'' Void asked Grey with a confused expression. ''When we get there, jump into the hands of that young lady.'' Grey ordered. ''What?!'' Void asked stunned. ''Just do it, or else you won''t get a meal for a week.'' Grey threatened, he didn''t have much time so he couldn''t tell Void what his plan was. But he knew Void would be able to figure it out soon. ''You don''t have to take it that serious, of course I''ll do it.'' Having no other option, Void could only grudgingly accept. He didn''t know what Grey was planning, but he could tell it was nothing good for the group he was targeting. Other than that, there was no way he would allow himself to miss a meal for a week. Being with Grey these past two months, what he enjoyed more than attacking him when he was training was his cooking. He hadn''t been in contact with many people, but he was almost certain there were only a few people who was as good as Grey when it came to cooking. "Do you know him?" The young lady asked those in her group when she saw Grey coming towards them excitedly. They all shook their heads signifying they didn''t know who he was. On the side of the Twelfth Prince''s group, the Twelfth Prince was the first one to recognize Grey and couldn''t help but feel that his behavior was slightly suspicious. Grey was from the Qilin empire, so he saw no reason why he was heading towards the people from the Azure empire with an excited expression. ''Could it be that he was originally from the Azure empire?'' He asked himself still not understanding why Grey was heading in the direction of the group from the Azure empire. Although he didn''t have any close relations with Grey, he didn''t dare to believe Grey was from the Azure empire, or else they would be dead if he joined the group from the Azure empire in this battle. Just as he was about to step forward and question Grey, he saw Grey signaling him with his eyes to stay back. He was naturally smart and quickly told the others to keep their distance, although he wasn''t friends with Grey, he decided to trust him once, it wasn''t like he had any other choices anyway. Even though both groups had separated, it didn''t mean the group from the Azure empire still couldn''t attack them. Everything happened within a couple of seconds and the others still haven''t been able to comprehend what was going on, some of them even had confused faces while staring at the running Grey. "Here!" Grey said throwing a stone in the direction of the tall youth, making sure the timing of the throw was perfect. If the youth caught the stone too fast, then the Apes wouldn''t see him catching it, while if it was too slow, then the Apes would easily figure out what he threw towards them was a stone and not their treasure. The tall youth subconsciously caught the stone Grey threw his way. The moment he caught the stone was the same time the Purple Horned Lightning Apes came out of the forest. The Apes didn''t see what the tall youth caught, but judging from the direction his hands were facing when he caught it, they figured it was the human they were chasing who threw it towards him. Being in the Origin Plane, they were naturally smarter than beasts in lower Planes. Only a freak like Void could be said to be smarter than they were. The leading Purple Horned Ape roared angrily thinking that their treasure had been given to the tall youth and charged towards them. While Grey on the other hand had hidden behind the tall youth and Void could be seen on the arms of the young lady who had a dazed expression looking at the strange black cat that suddenly jumped into her arms. The roar brought everyone back to their senses. The Twelfth Prince quickly retreated with his group when they saw the Apes coming. ''How the hell did he manage to run under the pressure of being chased by such beasts?'' This was the question running through the minds of everyone. They all knew that these Apes were one of the little Lightning attributes beasts, so they were naturally very fast, yet, Grey managed to run away from the angry looking Apes, not just that, but he still managed to create such a good distance between them. None of them present here was confident in being able to repeat that feat. ''No wonder he went in their direction, he''s trying to draw the beasts to them.'' The Twelfth Prince finally figured out why Grey went towards the other group. He wasn''t trying to help the group from the Azure empire, rather, he came to deliver their doom to them! "Oh my God! What did he do?!" Neil exclaimed subconsciously while shaking from fright. He was already feeling Grey was someone extraordinary to be able to run while being chased by the Purple Horned Lightning Apes, even though they were five, he knew he couldn''t escape from them. But never in his wildest dreams did he think the Purple Horned Lightning Apes weren''t the only ones chasing him, instead, it was an entire horde of Apes. Chapter 155 - The Sacrifice A chill ran down the spines of everyone when they saw the Silver Horned Apes coming out of the forest, especially those from the Azure empire, they felt their legs almost giving way due to fright. ''How can one person provoke so many of them?'' This was the question running through the mind of everyone. The Twelfth Prince''s group couldn''t help but feel lucky that Grey didn''t come towards them, if not, there''s no way they could fight against such a large number of Apes. Doing a rough estimation, they felt the Silver Horned Lightning Apes numbered more than thirty. "Who are you?! What the hell are you doing?!" The young lady yelled at Grey. She could tell that Grey was purposely attracting the Apes towards them, and from the look of things, he had already successfully done that. When she sensed the stages of the Apes, she almost fainted from fear, she didn''t have an ounce of confidence in being able to escape the pursuit of a Fourth stage Origin Plane Purple Horned Lightning Ape, not to mention the one in the Sixth stage. "What do you mean what am I doing? I brought the item you sent me to steal." Grey yelled making sure the Apes heard him clearly. When the leading Purple Horned Lightning Ape got close, it attacked immediately. It wasn''t like it could talk to these humans, and even if it could, it would still prefer attacking. They had already offended its clan, so they must die! "Run!" The young lady yelled while sending out an attack to block the one the Ape sent their way. Even though she knew the chances of them escaping were low, they didn''t have much of a choice. It''s either they tried to escape, or, they stayed and fight, which is nothing more than a death wish from everyone''s point of view. Boom! Both attacks collided sending out a shockwave that pushed the young lady backward. She was naturally weaker than the Ape in the Sixth stage. "What are you all still doing here? Run!" She screamed when she saw the others foolishly staring at her and the Ape. "And you! You will pay for this!" She yelled looking at Grey venomously. If looks could kill, then Grey would have died over a hundred times already from her gaze. Void had already left her arms and was currently sitting on Grey''s shoulder. ''What do we do now?'' He asked Grey when he saw the group was trying to escape. ''Isn''t it obvious? We''ve already delivered the goods, but leaving the group now might draw the Apes back to me, so we''ll follow the group.'' Grey snickered while dodging an attack from one of the Purple Horned Lightning Apes. The Twelfth Prince''s group had already made a break for it when they saw the Ape attacking the moment it got close, they ran towards the north, but they were unfortunately still followed by a small group of six Silver Horned Lightning Apes. Even if the group caught up with them, they were confident in being able to fend them off. They were quite lucky since most of the Apes chased after the group from the Azure empire who were running towards the west. Just as they were about to leave the field and enter into the forest. "Ah..." A scream of terror was heard by everyone. But other than Grey who was having a relatively easier time running, none of the others could afford to turn back and see the cause of the shout. Looking back, Grey noticed one of the youths from the Azure empire had been caught by a Purple Horned Lightning Ape, and his head was ripped off his body. ''Damn, such a nasty way to die.'' Grey shook his head while continuing his escape, not forgetting to dodge the attacks that came his way. The one chasing him was in the Fifth stage of the Origin Plane, but if Grey decided to stop and fight against it, he knew he would be able to kill it quickly, even killing the leader wasn''t a problem for him. ''*Sigh* Is it just me or is this group dumb?'' Void sighed while looking at the others who were trying to escape. ''Huh!'' Grey exclaimed lightly not getting what Void was getting at. ''They could''ve easily run separately that way they''d be able to divide the Apes, yet, they all foolishly choose to run in one straight line.'' Void said. ''Oh, I''m waiting for that as well. If they don''t separate, they will all die while we''re still being chased, that would mean my effort would be in vain.'' Grey replied to Void before sending a fireball behind him. ''Oh well, most of the Apes are focused on them, so I can make my break away anytime soon.'' Grey said. The only reason he followed them was so that the Apes wouldn''t suspect him, but now since he had followed them this far into the forest, he wouldn''t draw too much attention if he decided to head off on his own. But things would be better for him if the group could all scatter. ''Haish, maybe I''m overthinking this and the Apes might even let me be if I decide to escape now.'' He thought. He had once again created a good distance between himself and the others, and since most of the Apes focused on the group from the Azure empire, things became easier for him. He even rarely attacked, and just dodged the attacks sent his way. ''Since I''m such a nice person, I should give them a suggestion.'' Grey thought. If the group separated, then one person would have to attract most of the Apes, but since the person wasn''t him, he didn''t care. "If we continue running in the same direction, we wouldn''t be able to escape them. We all should run in separate directions." He yelled out loud so the others who were slower could hear him properly. When the young lady heard him, she felt dejected. ''What we? Since when did he become a member of our group? How could he be so shameless? I swear if I survive this, I''ll find him and kill him.'' The young lady thought, but she still followed Grey''s suggestion since she knew he was right. Escaping individually would give them a better chance than doing so with the entire horde following behind them. When she studied the group properly, she realized the youth who screamed previously was the injured one because he was the only one who wasn''t present. Just like her, the others also quickly scattered since staying together was a bad decision. Of all the people, the tall youth was the most unfortunate one since the strongest Purple Horned Lightning Ape followed him, accompanied by two others and over ten Silver Horned Lightning Apes. It felt since Grey had passed the treasure to him, he should be their main target. He couldn''t even go far before he was surrounded by the Apes, he wasn''t that fast anyway, and being targeted by the strongest and fastest Ape, it was impossible for him to escape. ''*Sigh* So he''s the sacrifice.'' Grey shook his head when he saw the tall youth being surrounded. Chapter 156 - Size Doesnt Matter After seeing the tall youth surrounded, Grey didn''t dare to stay any longer and quickly fled the scene with fewer ''escorts'' compared to when he came to this place. If he stayed here any longer, he was afraid the Purple Horned Lightning Apes would come for him after killing the tall youth. After all, the only reason he brought up the suggestion to them was so that he could create a better opportunity for him to escape. ____ ''How many are following us?'' Grey asked after running for about ten minutes away from his previous location. While running, he didn''t have time to check out how many Apes followed him since he focused on leaving that area first, all he knew was that one of them was a Purple Horned Lightning Ape in the Fifth stage of the Origin Plane. ''Six. One Purple Horned and five Silver Horned'' said Void. Since he was sitting in Grey''s shoulder, he naturally saw how many Apes followed Grey when he was leaving that area. Although currently, the Apes were some distance away from them. ''So, what''s the plan now?'' Void asked excitedly. ''Taking them out.'' Grey replied. After being chased for so long, he held a little grudge against the Apes, but the real reason he wanted to fight against them was that he hadn''t fought against them before, and lightning attribute beasts are quite rare, so he wanted to test out how strong they were. ''Well, that''s boring. How about we go steal something else?'' Void suggested. ''No.'' Grey refused instantly. ''Can you hold off the five Silver Horned Lightning Apes coming our way?'' He asked Void. Since he wanted to check out their strength, he naturally wanted to fight against the strongest one, if the Silver Horned Lightning Apes weren''t kept in check, then they would interfere with his fight. ''For a while.'' Void replied after a brief wait. His strength had also seen an increase over the past two months, but he was still only a Peak Early-stage Rank Four magical beast which according to the human system, he was at the Third stage of the Origin Plane. Grey still hadn''t gotten used to the system of magical beasts, he still preferred using the human system even after being corrected by Void on multiple occasions. Given Void''s stage, it was surprising that he confidently said he would be able to hold off five magical beasts even when some were in the same stage as he was, while the others were just a stage below. ''Hmm, that''s good. Guess we''ll be having one of the Apes for dinner.'' said Grey. He had been running for almost one hour because of the Apes, now after dealing with these ones, he wanted to eat and rest. Even though he could still go on physically, he was feeling exhausted mentally from the constant running, not just that, he had also used a huge amount of his elemental essence. If not for his massive reserve, the thought of fighting the Apes wouldn''t have crossed his mind. ''Dinner is here.'' Void announced albeit Grey not seeing any beast present. But it didn''t take long before Grey saw the Purple Horned Lightning Ape charging towards his direction. ''Okay Void, keep the others busy. Remember not to destroy their horns.'' Grey reminded Void before he disappeared. ''More like remember to stay alive.'' Void thought internally after appearing on the branch of a tree in the direction the Ape came from. He remembered telling Grey he could only hold them off for a while, yet Grey was telling him not to destroy their horns. How could he possibly destroy their horns when holding them off was already a big task? Bang! The battle between Grey and the Ape quickly started, and Grey gained the upper hand from the first strike. ''My physical strength alone can rival the strength of a Fifth stage Origin Plane Elementalist, if I boost it with the elements, I should be able to go toe to toe with this Ape.'' Grey thought looking at his fist. The Purple Horned Lightning Ape was just over four meters tall, yet it was engaging in hand-to-hand combat with a human that looked so small compared to its size. The shocking thing was that the four meters tall Ape was being manhandled by a human who wasn''t even two meters tall, yet. Bam! Grey''s fist connected with the large hairy body of the Ape and it growled in pain, clearly, the strike was too strong for it to handle. "Wow! To think my physical strength is this powerful after boosting it with the elements." Grey exclaimed looking at his fists in shock. His look of shock slowly turned into one of ecstasy, because he rarely used his physical strength despite training it frequently, he didn''t know just how powerful it was. Void stared at Grey''s battle and felt the situation was quite weird, it was rare to see a human manhandle a magical beast, especially one like this Ape which possesses immense physical strength. ''Well, that''s it for me, time to work.'' Void stood up and looked at the Apes coming his way. Their huge bodies rushed through the forest quickly. Void instantly sent out an attack that blocked the path of the incoming Apes. He disappeared, and appeared in front of the Apes, staring at them. When the Apes saw a small cat appearing in front of them, they were a little stunned since the size difference between them was massive. Void was like a small ant standing in front of a towering giant. The Ape at the front looked at Void with eyes of disdain and stretched out its huge hand in a bid to slap Void against the ground. This Ape was unaware of Void''s ability since when Void attacked previously, he only attacked the ground. Also, other than the Purple Horned Lightning Apes, the others didn''t know of Void''s capabilities. ''Heh! It''s underestimating me.'' Void smirked and allowed the Ape''s hand to get close to him. Seeing that Void didn''t even try to escape, the Ape felt even greater contempt towards Void. Being creatures that enjoyed fighting, it naturally hated anything that would give up without a fight. Bam! The Ape''s hand connected with the ground, but it was surprised other than the hard ground, it didn''t feel anything else. It slowly raised its hand and stared at the place it just smacked. Other than its handprint, there was nothing else. Confusion was soon written all over its face. ''Hi.'' Void appeared on its huge palm and attacked the unprotected face of the Ape. Before it could react, the attack had already reached its face, almost blasting off its head. Most of its face was burnt to crisp. ''*Sigh* I really shouldn''t have attacked its face.'' Void felt a little heartache when he realized he had lost one of the horns. Thud! The body of the Ape landed heavily on the ground. The other Silver Horned Lightning Apes were stunned, but they quickly regained themselves and attacked Void with lightning. Void agilely dodged the attack before sending out an attack of his own. If one looked at the battlefield, then one would realize that size truly doesn''t matter. On one side, an Ape that was more than double the size of a human was being manhandled by a young man, while on the other side, a small cat was single-handedly fighting against four Apes that were more than a hundred times its size if put together. Chapter 157 - Getting Carried Away After Void killed the first Ape with the sudden attack, the remaining Apes were able to quickly figure out how he moved so fast. Although they couldn''t keep up with him, they could protect themselves from his abrupt attacks that seem to always appear out of nowhere. On Grey''s end, he was still beating up the Purple Horned Lightning Ape. Since he was smaller and faster, the Ape was having a hard time hitting the target whenever it strikes. While Grey who had such a large target placed in front of him was having a hard time missing any of his attacks. Bam! His fist landed on the c.h.e.s.t of the Ape after he dodged the blow it sent his way, after punching it, he held its outstretched hand with both hands and tried to throw it with his pure physical strength. "Ah!" He yelled powerfully. Focusing all his force on his arms, his muscles suddenly swelled and his veins bulged out. An amazing scene followed right after his powerful yell, he lifted the over four meters tall seven hundred pounds Ape off the ground and swung it a round before letting go of the hand. Crash! The Ape crashed through a couple of trees breaking through three in the process. It slammed into the fourth tree almost also passing through it. When its body slammed into the tree, it created a hole in the almost three meters thick tree that left Grey puzzled as to how the tree was still standing. Growl! The Ape growled in pain while shaking its head to try to clear it from the spin and the hit it received. It looked at the little human coming towards it and couldn''t help but feel a little fear. There was no way it would have believed a human this small could lift it off the ground, not only that, but also throwing it successfully, yet, it happened to it. But being an Ape, one of the best fighting class magical beasts, it quickly regained its cool and even looked a little excited. Grey dashed towards the Ape who was still sitting in the hole its body created on the tree during the crash, he wanted to end things with it quickly so as not to allow any unforeseen events to take place if the battle were to take too long. He leaped off the ground and shot towards the sitting Ape, preparing to deliver a fatal blow towards its head. Swoosh! The Ape abruptly swung its left hand at Grey , not giving him a chance to dodge it. Smack! Bam! Grey slammed into a nearby tree, creating a hole that went through to the other side of the tree which he came out of. Crash! He crashed into the ground after passing through the hole in the tree, it was only after sliding a distance of almost fifteen meters did his body stop. ''Hiss.'' Grey hissed from the pain he felt all over his body. ''Damn it! I got carried away.'' He complained while dodging the lightning bolt the Ape sent towards him. Crack! After dodging the lightning, the earth armor he had on his body slowly started falling apart. Just as the battle was about to start, he made sure to create an earth armor in case any of the Ape''s strike lands. Although his physical strength and defense are miles better than that of other humans, it hadn''t gotten to the stage where it could ignore the attack of a Fifth stage Origin Plane magical beast, especially one that excels in physical strength like this Ape. The Ape immediately left its previous spot, running in Grey''s direction. Since it pursued him here, it naturally wanted to kill him. When Grey saw the Ape coming in his direction, he hurriedly used the water element to create icicles that instantly came out of the ground trying to pierce the leg of the Ape. Roar! The Ape roared angrily after two amongst the numerous icicles pierced one of its feet making it difficult for it to advance any further. Of all Grey''s elements, the water element was the one he used the least, while in the past two months, the fire element was the one he used the most. They were the only elements he hadn''t learned any technique for, so he didn''t have any particular flashy moves when using them. But he didn''t have any problems with using the basic attacks of both elements. When Grey saw that he had successfully stopped the Ape from advancing towards him, he dashed forward while covering his right hand with an earthen glove. Seeing the human coming towards it, the Ape sent out a punch in Grey''s direction, and to its utmost surprise, Grey met its fist with his. Bam! Both fists collided and the sound of flesh hitting stone rang out. The Ape roared, surprised that the human wasn''t sent flying like its prediction, instead, he stayed in the same position mid-air with both fists still together. Grey who was still mid-air felt his entire body vibrate from the inside out. ''Damn it! I got carried away again.'' He complained internally before swinging his right foot at the body of the Ape. Grey''s foot connected with it pushing it back by three steps. With everything set, Grey went on a flurry of attacks, moving agilely and smoothly, he delivered one blow after another on the body of the Ape. Before long, the snow-white hair of the Ape was almost covered in blood from head to toe. When Grey was fighting against it the first time, although Grey''s blows were effective, they couldn''t hurt it. But now, with the spike-covered earthen glove, he was able to wound the Ape with each blow that connected. ''Aren''t you done yet? I can''t hold on any longer.'' While Grey was studying the injured Ape, he heard Void''s voice. Being carried away by the battle, he had forgotten about Void. ''Almost.'' He replied before swiftly attacking the Ape once more. Within one minute, the body of the huge Ape landed on the ground with a ''thud''. After killing it, Grey kept the corpse in his ring and went in Void''s direction. Since he wanted to cook one of the Apes, the strongest one was naturally the best choice. ''Where''s the fifth one?'' Grey asked on seeing that Void was only entangled with four Apes. ''Dead.'' replied Void. ''Oh! Where''s its corpse then?'' Grey enquired looking around. ''It should be about fifty meters in that direction.'' Void replied pointing towards the south while dodging an attack. ''Hey! Where are you going?'' He asked hurriedly when he saw Grey leaving. ''To get its horn.'' Grey answered while quickly heading in the direction of the south. The horns of these beasts were treasures that could be used to forge elemental weapons, there was no way he was going to leave it behind. ''Where''s the horn?'' Grey yelled on seeing the faceless, hornless Ape lying on the ground. ''About that... I might have accidentally burnt it.'' Void said nervously. Grey stared at the Ape and felt slightly rueful about the loss of the horn. Chapter 158 - Theres Something Here Grey shook his head while staring at the dead Ape, but since there was nothing he could do about the lost horn, he went back and assisted Void in fighting against the remaining four Silver Horned Lightning Apes. Before he joined in on the battle, he created an inscription since he would be fighting against multiple opponents. He also planned to end the battle as quickly as possible. It took the duo almost ten minutes before they were able to kill off the remaining four Silver Horned Lightning Apes. Dealing with these ones was easier for Grey compared to when he was previously fighting against the Purple Horned Lightning Ape. When the last Ape died, Grey heaved a sigh of relief, because now, he could finally get the rest he wanted. He didn''t forget to take the beast core of the Apes as well as their horns. Only the corpse were left alone, due to their huge sizes, he couldn''t keep them all, and even if he could, he wouldn''t bother. He already had the Purple Horned Lightning Ape in his storage ring, so he was content. The beast cores of these Origin Plane magical beasts would earn him quite a lot. Compared to most of his friends, he was poor, in fact, in his group, he could be said to be the poorest. So since an opportunity just presented itself to him to make money, he grabbed it with both hands. He would sell the cores as well as the horns once he left this place. ''Where to now?'' Void asked after seeing Grey keeping the last of the horns. "Uhmm." Grey brought out the map he acquired from Quinn and studied it, he soon realized this part of the trial land wasn''t recorded on it. "Because we were on the run, there was no way for me to look at the map previously. The Lightning Apes are located here, and we came from this direction, so we obviously can''t head that way anymore. We''ll have to explore this part without the use of the map." Grey said after examining the map carefully. He felt a little regretful that he didn''t obtain the lightning attribute plant that took him to the Lightning Apes territory, and going back in that direction was something he didn''t dare to do. If the Apes were to accidentally see him again, then they''ll try to kill him using whatever means necessary given they grudge they held against him. He decided the horns and cores he collected from the Apes were his compensation. ''Aren''t we going to have a meal before resting?'' Void asked when he saw Grey was about to go to sleep after he finished setting up the defensive array. ''Nope.'' Grey replied and immediately went to sleep. Void couldn''t help but grumble inside, but since he couldn''t prepare the meal himself, he had to wait till Grey woke up before eating. ____ One week later. Grey was currently looking at one of the few buildings he had come across since entering this place that was still intact. ''Hopefully, I find something good here.'' He thought before stepping into the building. Since the time he stole the Great Earth Essence Liquid, he felt his luck ran out because he hadn''t gotten anything good ever since. What was annoying was that he had been chased by magical beasts on numerous occasions, but none made him feel as dejected as his encounter with the bunnies. ''*Sigh* Going to search another building, again.'' Void thought while staring at the building. He looked on without much interest, he was starting to get bored by this place because all they did was repeat almost the same routine daily. Train, search for treasure, and maybe fight against some magical beasts. He rarely got excited now, since he could almost predict what would happen next. If they couldn''t find anything here, then they would continue looking for more buildings to search. He knew training was good, but being in this place without having much contact with the world made life too boring from his point of view. On one occasion, he had even asked Grey if they could leave this place ahead of time, which Grey affirmed to, but after pleading with him, he refused. When he asked the reason for his refusal, Grey told him this was a place of opportunities for them, so leaving ahead of time was something only a few people had done since this place was discovered. With a dejected and lonely look, he could only hang on and pray the last two months they had here run out as quickly as possible. They didn''t even have up to two months left, so he felt a bit hopeful. There were times when he actually missed Grey''s friends, even though he didn''t communicate with them, at least then he had some company other than Grey alone. He couldn''t help but feel sorry for them since they were alone, unlike Grey who still had him to talk to. Grey was naturally unaware of Void thoughts and was currently cautiously entering the building. ''Oh! This is expected.'' He thought looking at the empty hall in front of him. Even he was starting to feel a little tired of this place, maybe very soon he might just agree to Void''s demand and leave this place. He had already gotten a major boost in strength anyway, if not for the fact that the elemental essence here is richer than the one outside, then he would have probably left after not being able to find anything good all this while. Luckily, he stole the c.h.e.s.t from the clutches of the Twelfth Prince and found Void, or else, life here would have been pretty boring. Still being a little optimistic, he decided to search the rooms in this place. There were two hallways in the building, with each having more than fifteen rooms. He entered the hallway by the right and started looking through the rooms, it didn''t take long for him to look through eight rooms, where he found nothing. ''Since I''ve already started searching, it would be bad if I don''t look through the other rooms.'' He encouraged himself and continued searching through the other rooms. ''There''s something here.'' Void who hadn''t shown any reactions since they entered the building said after Grey entered the hallway. Grey looked at both sides, and other than seeing walls, statues and doors ahead of him, he couldn''t see anything else. "Where?" He asked. From the time Void hatched until now, Grey knew he had never sensed anything wrongly. Whenever he said there was something anywhere, it always tends to be true. ''I can''t pinpoint it, but I can sense it.'' replied Void. Getting confirmation from Void, Grey felt a little better since this time, his search might actually yield a reward. What got him excited was that whatever Void sensed had never turned out to be ordinary, take the space element technique he got for example, and also the time he entered the castle where the expert''s inheritance was. At that time, although he sensed something, it was a little vague, it was only after Void sensed it did he decide to stay and search for the passageway that led underground. Chapter 159 - Searching For The Hidden Passage When the thought of finding something good came to Grey''s mind, he was instantly rejuvenated and the thought of leaving this place early was immediately thrown out of his head, and he started searching through the rooms with more zeal. After ten minutes. "Well, there''s nothing in any of the rooms, that means there''s a secret passageway either in the hallway or in one of the rooms." Grey said. He was currently walking out of the room at the end of the hallway, he had searched through the other rooms and didn''t find anything. Normally, he would''ve found a box or something by now. "Can you try to at least estimate which area the treasure might be?" He asked. Since he couldn''t find anything in the rooms, that means the treasure was either hidden somewhere in the rooms or the hallway, or there was a secret passageway in either of them. If he had to scrutinize each room, it might take days before he might find the treasure or passageway since he had to go as far as analyzing the smallest detail in the room, and there was also the possibility of not finding anything in the rooms. Even though Void sensed it while they were in the hallway, it wasn''t precise enough, so there was a chance the treasure was hidden in the hallway or the rooms. ''I don''t think so, but I could try, maybe I might be able to get an accurate position.'' Void replied after some deliberation. Grey nodded and kept silent so as not to distract Void, this was the first lucky break he was about to have in a long while now, and he didn''t want to miss it. Void closed his eyes and sent out his spiritual sense trying to find where the feeling was coming from. Three minutes went by with the duo not making any movements. ''I have nothing.'' Void shook his head slowly. He tried to get the rough location of where the treasure might be, but unfortunately, he couldn''t. ''Hmm, how about this, take me to each room once again, then I''ll try to feel it. I should be able to know if it''s not there.'' He suggested. Grey could only nod and accept his suggestion, assuming that Void can sense if the treasure or passageway was not in any of the rooms he entered, it would save him the precious time of searching that place. He went back to the room he just came out of. "Here?" He asked. ''No.'' answered Void after he used his spiritual sense to check the room. They left the room and went to the next one. "Here?" ''No.'' They continued like this until they went through all the rooms, and surprisingly, Void didn''t sense it in any of the rooms. ''This means it''s in the hallway.'' Void said confidently. Since he couldn''t sense it in any of the rooms, that leaves only the hallway. "Yeah. What do you think the treasure might be?" Grey asked in enthusiasm while slowly studying the hallway. ''I have no idea.'' Void replied. They continued talking about what they might find while Grey was studying the hallway. Rumble! Screech! Grey was currently standing in front of the statue of a dragon, which first pushed itself forward from the wall and dragged along the ground causing a grating sound while also opening a passageway. "This should be it." Grey glanced at the statue once again. Most of the statues in the hallway were that of animals, but what Grey found odd was that over eighty percent of the animal statues were of reptiles, there was that of snakes, lizards, frogs, and most important of all, dragons. He felt maybe the owner of this building had a thing for reptiles. When he stepped inside, his nose was assaulted by a foul stench, and he couldn''t see anything. He quickly created a fireball that floated in front of him, lighting up the way for him. Crack! When he took the first step downward, he stepped on something hard that made a cracking sound, he looked at his feet and found out he stepped on the skeleton of a human. Looking further, he realized almost half of the skeleton''s ribs were missing. He guessed this would probably be the cause of his death. Grey increased his vigilance and slowly continued walking further. Before taking another fifty steps, he saw another skeleton, this time, the skeleton was missing its entire head. Void''s expression slowly started turning serious the further they advanced. From what they were seeing, there was something in here that was killing all the people who entered this place. By the time they passed the hundredth step, they had seen twelve skeletons. "Can you see the pattern?" Grey suddenly asked. ''Of what?'' Void looked around trying to figure out what Grey was talking about. "From how all the skeletons are positioned, it looked like the people were all killed while they were ascending the stairs." Grey pointed at the most recent skeleton that had one hand on the step ahead of it, it seemed to be trying to crawl upwards. ''Oh!'' Void exclaimed slightly. He truly didn''t take note of how the skeletons were, all he knew was that people died, and nothing else. "There''s also a possibility that I''m wrong though, but we should be extra careful since what killed them might still be here." Grey added. ''Uh! Whatever it is, it should be dead by now. There''s no way all these people were killed during one of the times the trial land opened because finding this passageway is very hard.'' Void said. He didn''t think what killed the people was still alive. "You remember you stayed in an egg for hundreds of years, right?" Grey asked looking at Void weirdly. Void smiled awkwardly in reply. While they were speaking, they soon got to the last step. There was a total of one hundred and fifty steps, and on those steps, they saw twenty-three skeletons in total. Ahead of them was a tunnel that led further underground. Chapter 160 - Underground Lab Grey stood at the end of the stairs for a while thinking if he should advance further or not. The truth was, after seeing multiple skeletons, he was starting to have second thoughts about going further. He was curious about what killed them, and also what this place was. Not just that, there was also the treasure that brought him here in the first place. He thought about everything properly before deciding to continue heading deeper. If he didn''t check it out, he might miss out on an opportunity of a lifetime, there was also the chance of his life being in danger because of this. But he knew if he didn''t dare to take risks, then there was no way he could stand at the top someday. Had Constantine Gale not taken the risk of spearheading the rebellion, he wouldn''t have been adored by the millions of people in the Qilin empire today. Not just Constantine Gale, he was living proof of taking risks, supposing his dad did not take the risk of putting the pearl in his body, there was no way he would have inherited such an amazing legacy. But he also knew that reward wasn''t the only thing that came with risk, there was also danger. In fact, if one decides to calculate the rate of rewards and dangers that came with risks, then, danger would take up at least sixty-five percent of that ratio. "Huuu." Breathing heavily, he walked into the tunnel. With the fire floating ahead of him, he didn''t have an issue with seeing, he would occasionally make more fires and send it forward to see what lies ahead. After walking further down the tunnel, he started seeing claw marks on the walls of the tunnel, huge, deep claw marks. There was one in particular that caught his attention, it was over five inches deep and three meters long when most of the others were just over one inches deep and half a meter long. Grey placed his hand on the claw mark, slowly feeling it as he continued walking further. He continued on his journey vigilantly. If he said he wasn''t nervous, he was lying. He walked for about twenty minutes before he got to the end of the tunnel, normally it wouldn''t take him that long to walk here given the distance from the foot of the stairs to the end of the tunnel, but since he had to remain cautious, he couldn''t rush here. The first thing he saw when he entered the place was a table, he increased the flame so he could see the place properly. After creating a bigger fire, he was surprised by the sight he saw. There were other tables, chairs, a book stand, cages, and multiple platforms that had numerous chains on them. "It''s like a lab." Grey said after seeing the place. This was the first time he was personally seeing a lab, but he had read and heard of people who have places like these that they use mainly for studying things, especially magical beast. When he looked around, he estimated that the place was about three hundred meters wide, and he also noticed there were four doors in the place, two were on the left, and two were on the right . The lab was disordered with books lying all over the floor, the tables weren''t arranged with some being upside down, and the place looked like a battle took place here. He held it in his hands and walked forward, picking another book in the process. This one, contained details of snakes. Without knowing it, Grey had unknowingly spent almost thirty minutes here, and the only thing he did was pick up the books on the floor and flip through its contents. "It''s all about reptiles." Grey said. He didn''t really read them in detail, but from the drawings as well as most of the topics, he could tell they were about reptiles, all kinds of reptiles. The one he focused more on was the book about dragons. In the library at the Lunar Academy, no book really had much about dragons. Other than myths, there wasn''t any that mentioned the types of dragons. But in this one, Grey had seen at least three types of dragons, which were Wyverns, Basilisks, and the normal Dragons he had seen in their books. He kept the books in his storage ring, but since they were much, he didn''t keep all of them and only kept the ones he felt were more important. After keeping the books, he started studying the place once again. He still hadn''t seen anything here, so he was less hesitant now. He walked towards the platform and picked up the eight inches thick metal chains there. "Could it be that dragons were studied here?" Grey muttered while holding the chains. While thinking of the possibility of dragons being here in the past, another thought came to his mind. ''What if it''s the one who killed all those people, and it''s still here?'' He thought and hastily looked around with a grave expression appearing on his face. This thought frightened him, just as much as it excited him. What are the chances of seeing a dragon in this place? Thinking about dragons, he remembered Brown. Just like Dragons, Griffins were also rare legendary magical beasts. ''What if I tame it?'' Grey thought and a grin unconsciously appeared on his face. Void looked at him weirdly, amazed by the multiple expressions he had on his face. ''Are you okay?'' He asked. One moment Grey was tense, the next, he was smiling like a moron. Void''s question brought Grey out of his bewildered state. "Huh! Yes, yes." Grey nodded before dropping the chains. Clang! The sound of the metal chains landing on the ground echoed in the whole lab. Somewhere deeper inside the lab. Unknown to Grey, the metallic sound continued ringing deeper underground to a place he didn''t know existed here, and the closed eyes of a sleeping creature opened. Growl... A low growl escaped the creature''s mouth. Chapter 161 - Shiny Blade Grey and Void continued looking through the place, with Void being the one on the lookout. Although they hadn''t come across any creature yet, it didn''t hurt to keep a lookout though. When Grey finished studying the lab, he carefully headed to the first door on the left. Creak! He went in and created a fireball that lit up the room, the room was about fifty square meters, and other than beds that had leather straps on them, there was nothing else. The beds were ten in total. ''What are these things used for?'' Void asked. "I think for restraining animals, or people." Grey speculated. He hadn''t seen these sorts of beds before, but since this was a lab, and from how strong the leather felt, he guessed maybe that was its use. "There''s nothing here." Grey said before walking out of the room. The moment he left the room, the fire extinguished. The flame in the lab was still burning brightly because he didn''t put it out when he was going into the room. Opening the other door on the left, he saw the same things without seeing any supposed treasure. ''There are still two doors left.'' He comforted himself. He quickly got to the right side of the lab, after opening the door, he created another fire. The moment the fire lit the room up, Grey was happy not to see the same sight of beds. This time, what he saw were clothes, and pieces of equipment used in the lab. There was also what looked like a snake kept in a six meters long glass tube, but the tube had a crack on it and what was left of the snake were its bones. The glass tube containing the snake wasn''t the only one he found, he also found one that had a strange species of lizard that he had not seen before, but just like the one of the snake, the glass was broken but unlike the snake, the scales of this lizard was still intact. "Hmm, what a strange lizard." Grey voiced his surprise and went closer to the glass tube. Getting closer, he started examining the lizard properly. The lizard had three eye sockets, although, its eyes seem to have been removed, it had one horn just above the third eye in the middle, it had razor-sharp claws on the end of its three toes on both its forelimbs and hind limb and lastly, it had two tails. Grey''s curiosity kicked in, and he kept the entire glass tube in his storage ring the next second. He had never seen this beast before, and he would like to study it more. After keeping it, he saw other glass tubes, but none of them had their scales intact like that weird lizard he kept. ''There''s nothing here as well, that leaves the last room.'' He said before walking out of the room. Going back to the lab, he didn''t look around and just walked straight to the last door. He had unknowingly spent over one hour here, most of the time was spent on checking out the books, after that, the room he just left took up the other time. "Haha, success." He laughed happily. Ahead of him, were multiple weapon racks, but only the one at the middle caught his attention, it had a single short curved blade. Even from where he was standing, Grey could fill the energy it contained. The next moment, Void who was previously sitting on Grey''s shoulder jumped down quickly and dashed towards the blade. Before Grey could react, Void had already gotten to the weapon rack. "Void, what are you doing?" Grey asked slowly approaching Void. Void was currently looking at the blade with glistening eyes. ''So...shiny.'' This was the only statement Grey heard. "Shit! Void don''t you dare." Grey immediately cursed out. The moment he saw Void''s reaction, he already knew what was going on, Void wanted the blade, not for any other reason other than it being shiny. Void threw a glance at Grey stretched out his little hands, and grabbed the blade. The blade was about twenty inches long, including the hilt. Grey looked at Void and was left speechless. One has to remember that Void was only seven inches long when he came out of the egg, even after staying for over two months, he had only added three inches. Void stood on his hind legs and started running with the sword that was two times his length, hugging it tightly. Grey chuckled when he saw this scene because he found it quite comical, he still couldn''t help but feel Void''s love for shiny things was too much. "Void drop that blade, it''s mine." Grey immediately chased after the little guy. After chuckling, he quickly chased after Void who for some weird reason hadn''t kept it in his storage space yet. But Grey felt grateful he hadn''t, because if he had, then getting it back would be almost impossible. ''No.'' Void answered while running on his two short legs. "Give it to me!" Grey ordered. ''No, it''s shiny, I want it.'' Void said. "Damn it! You can''t have every shiny thing." Grey complained while giving chase. While chasing Void, they scattered the entire place, but Grey still wasn''t able to catch Void. "How is he so fast with those short legs of his?" Grey was left dumbstruck by Void''s speed. This was the first he saw Void'' running instead of using the space element, he found it quite bizarre given Void''s usual ways. Void ran out of the room and entered the lab, trying to look for a way to escape. ''Damn, why isn''t it working?'' He complained inside. Just when he wanted to collect the blade, he noticed he couldn''t use the space element for some strange reason, but being occupied with the thought of the blade, he decided to get the blade first before telling Grey about it. Grey soon exited the room chasing after Void. Chapter 162 - Is That What I Think It Is? "Void, stop!" Grey yelled while chasing after Void. Void heard him, but paid no heed to his command, he wanted the blade, it was shiny. Although he didn''t know what he wanted to use it for, but since it''s shiny, he wanted to keep it, he''ll think about its use later on. ''Damn it! Of all the things to be obsessed about, it just had to be shiny things?'' Grey thought angrily. From how strong Void''s obsession was with shiny things, Grey had already concluded he would never take him close to the castle in the Capital after they left here, otherwise, given Void''s guts, he might probably steal the crown off the head of the emperor. While the two were playing cat and mouse, with the cat surprisingly playing the role of the mouse, they didn''t realize that they were being watched. Growl... The creature growled gently. It was currently hidden in the shadows, and other than its somewhat faintly glowing green eyes, none of its other features could be seen. It stepped out from a hole that neither Grey nor Void saw in the wall facing the tunnel they passed through, it nimbly climbed the wall, making sure to avoid entering the area the fire covered so as not to be seen. Before long, it had gotten to the top of the lab, staring down at the duo who were still running around. "Haha, where can you run to now?" Grey grinned widely while staring at the cornered Void who had his back on the edge of the wall. With nowhere to go, Void was like a cornered rat, but even when he was cornered, he still refused to let go of the blade, instead, he held it tighter. "Just let it go, I''ll find you something shinier to play with later on." Grey persuaded. Void shook his head while tightly holding onto the blade, he also looked around, seemingly scanning the area for an opportunity to escape. "Come on Void, give it to me. You should know because of you we got careless." Grey said while walking closer to Void. When he was chasing after Void some moments ago, he had completely forgotten about where they were, it was only now did he remember they were in a place where there''s a likelihood of something old being here. Seeing that there was no way for him to keep the shiny blade this time, Void begrudgingly handed it to Grey. When Grey held the blade, he couldn''t help but praise its craftsmanship. The blade not only looked good on the eyes, it also felt great. It had a silver hilt with dragon carvings around it, and a snakelike creature that had legs, four to be precise, that ran from the start of the blade to the tip. "What an exquisite blade." He said out loud, not hiding the joy in his voice. During the time Grey was looking at the blade, Void suddenly recalled something. ''I forgot to tell you earlier, I can''t use the space element.'' said Void. "What?! What do you mean you can''t use the space element." Grey asked, confusion evident in his voice. He had never heard of an Elementalist not being able to use their elements before, unless they ran out of elemental essence, and that rarely happened. But he knew Void hadn''t been using his elements, so there was no way for his elemental essence to run out. ''When I wanted to take the blade, I noticed I couldn''t use the space element.'' Void explained. "And you''re only telling me now?" Grey''s face slowly turned serious. This was a major issue, and Void felt getting the blade was more important than telling him about it sooner. He tried keeping the blade in his storage ring, but just as Void said, anything related to the space element seemed to be blocked by something. ''I''m sorry.'' Void apologized when he realized the severity of the matter. Since he could use his space element previously, and it was then suddenly blocked, it meant that it was caused by someone, or, something. Grey''s thoughts went into overdrive, trying to think of a possible solution to the matter. He tried using his fire element, and it worked, not just that but his other elements as well, and they worked perfectly. "We should leave this place." He quickly came to a decision. He had already acquired this blade anyway, and from the look of things, there was nothing left for him to search here, leaving this place was the best choice for them. Just as Grey came to the decision, he realized Void who was still in a standing position was staring behind him, intently. "Void, what are you looking at?" Grey asked, not daring to turn around immediately. ''Behind you.'' Void said timidly, pointing behind him. Grey''s heart raced when he heard this, and he was suddenly gripped by fear. Gulp! He gulped in fear, the scariest thing was the unknown, now, the unknown was behind him, but he didn''t want to know it. If he was given an opportunity, then he wouldn''t ever hope to know it. He steeled his mind, and took a step forward, after walking to the edge of the wall, he slowly turned around, placing his back on the wall just like Void with his head looking at the floor. After placing his back on the wall, he gradually raised his head. The first thing he saw was the almost seven inches sharp claws that protruded out of the toes of the creature, it had five toes on each limb. Looking higher, he realized the creature had two forelimbs, and two hind limbs which were covered entirely with armor-like scales, there was also the long tail that was behind it, but Grey couldn''t get a clear view of it from his position. The creature had powerful muscular hind and forelimbs that were almost three meters in length, Grey wasn''t even two meters yet! His head was slowly but gradually starting to face upwards. The muscular shoulder of the creature was at least half a meter wide, and its neck was over one meter long, and positioned at the top of the neck was what looked like the head of a dragon, only without horns. ''Is that what I think it is?'' Grey transmitted his thoughts to Void, not daring to speak out. He was literally almost scared shitless right now. For the first time in his life, he was dead scared. Chapter 163 - Where Is It? The creature before him looked so much like the drawings of dragons depicted on the books he had read, and even some statues of dragons he had seen, but, there were some slight differences between them, an example is that it didn''t have any wings, unlike those he had seen on books. ''It''s not a dragon.'' said Void. He knew what Grey was thinking about, but he was confident it wasn''t a dragon. Although he hadn''t seen or been in contact with a real dragon before, as a unique magical beast, he knew some things about high-class magical beasts. Currently, Grey had his back against the wall, Void was also in the same position, and they were both staring at the creature vigilantly. They could feel an intimidating aura from it, and knowing that the creature had lived for hundreds of years, and maybe even thousands, they were very wary of it. ''It''s not? Then what is it?'' asked Grey. The creature was presently staring viciously at the two, and from how its eyes are glowing, Grey felt it might attack them anytime soon. ''I should rephrase my statement to help you understand better, it''s not a dragon, yet.'' said Void. ''Wait, I don''t get it, it''s not a dragon, but you''re saying it would be?'' Grey asked, a little confused by what Void said. ''Yes, actually, it should be going through an evolution process if I''m not wrong. It''s originally not a dragon, but some other reptile. My best bet is that it''s a lizard.'' Void speculated. He didn''t know what type of lizard it previously was, but he was at least sixty percent sure it was a lizard. ''Evolution?'' Grey got more confused with what Void was speaking about. ''Yes, evolution, and from the looks of it, it actually failed in the process. You see, high-class magical beasts go through evolution. I''ll also evolve someday.'' Void said proudly. ''High-class magical beasts? You''re getting me more confused.'' Grey felt like his head was spinning. ''How do you even know about all this? You know what, forget about this for now, what we should be worried about is how do we deal with this guy'' Grey brought Void back to the matter at hand. ''How should I know?'' Void cluelessly replied. ''But you''re the one speaking about high classed magical beasts a moment ago.'' said Grey. ''It doesn''t mean I know how to deal with them.'' Void retorted. Their conversation seemed long, but it only happened in a matter of seconds since transmitting thoughts is way faster than when speaking. "Hi." Grey raised his right hand to wave at the creature. Roar! Grey and Void rolled underneath the huge body of the creature. ''I think it likes you.'' Void said sarcastically. ''You think?'' Grey scoffed as he stood up and dashed towards the tunnel. The energy level he could feel from the creature was intense. But what gave him a little hope was that the power level the creature was emitting was actually still in the Origin Plane. He could tell the creature was above it, but for some odd reasons, its level is lower than its real stage. That''s good news for the duo though since they couldn''t fight against it in its full strength, even fighting against it now was almost impossible. Realizing Grey and Void rolled under it when it didn''t see them, the creature raised its tail and swung it down fiercely. Bang! Grey who saw it when it was raising the tail quickly shifted to the side to escape the tail. The tail slammed into the ground fiercely, causing a huge disturbance in the lab. He took a peek at the creature and was amazed by its size, he had seen the height of the creature previously, but not the length. Grey estimated the creature was at least six meters long, and its tail was also around that length, if not longer. Just as Grey was about the reach the entrance to the tunnel, the creature turned its huge body agilely and opened its mouth, and almost like a real dragon, it spat out fire in Grey''s direction. ''Look out!'' Void was the first to sense the attack and instantly warned Grey. Grey looked behind him and saw the fire that was two meters wide coming towards him, he quickly dropped to the ground to avoid it from burning him, up. The creature continued breathing out the fire and when it saw Grey dodge it, it aimed at him. ''I thought you said it''s not a dragon?'' Grey asked as he ran to the left, trying to escape the fire that was literally chasing after him. ''It''s not, it''s like a quasi dragon.'' said Void as he joined him. ''Well, this quasi dragon wants my life, our life! Can''t you talk to it?'' Grey panicked when he sensed the heat coming off the flames behind him. Being a Fire Elementalist, he shouldn''t be afraid of fire. But he hadn''t gotten to that stage yet, also, even though he''s a Fire Elementalist, the flames of his opponent would still burn him, especially if they''re stronger than he is. ''You''ve tried that before.'' Void replied. ''Damn it!'' Grey looked behind him and couldn''t help but curse out. The quasi dragon had been breathing out fire for almost ten seconds none stop now. Boom! The fire hit the wall and instantly destroyed it, it continued going forward and passed through the platform, but it couldn''t destroy it. Grey who was hiding behind the platform saw the fire going over the top, and the two sides of the platform, but it didn''t touch him. Another five seconds went by before the quasi dragon stopped breathing out the fire. Grey''s heart rate was beating quickly as he held onto Void, he encouraged himself to try and calm down. Breathing heavily, he slowly got up and looked over the platform, and to his surprise, the quasi dragon was gone. "Where is it?" Grey unconsciously blurted out. Chapter 164 - Going For A Spin! Grey instantly turned around vigilantly to see if the beast was behind him just like the last time when it silently appeared behind him, but to his surprise, when he turned around, he didn''t see anything. ''Where could it be?'' He thought looking around the lab. ''Can you sense it?'' Grey turned to Void for help. Over the past two months they had spent together, he had come to know that Void''s senses were sharper than his, so asking him in a situation like this was the only thing he could think of. ''No.'' Void shook his head. Grey''s heart dropped on hearing this, if even Void couldn''t sense the beast, doesn''t this mean that the beast could appear and attack them without them knowing where it would appear? ''We need to leave this place.'' Grey said, but he didn''t immediately rush to the tunnel. He could tell the beast was intelligent, and would definitely not allow him to leave so easily. ''Why are beasts so unreasonable?'' He couldn''t help but complain. ''What do you mean by that?'' Void asked, clearly displeased by Grey''s statement. He was a beast after all, so cursing all beast was the same as cursing at him. ''Can you explain why it''s attacking us? If that''s not unreasonable, then what is?!'' asked Grey. All they did was come into this place, other than collecting the blade, and that glass tube that contained the strange lizard, he didn''t take anything else, yet, the beast wanted to kill him. Could it get any more unreasonable? ''We trespassed into its territory.'' replied Void. ''Oh! Why didn''t it put a ''do not trespass sign'' so we would know?'' Grey asked mockingly. ''Because...'' ''I don''t have time to argue with you, after we''ve left this place, then we''ll talk.'' Grey cut him short, ending the argument. He was currently too preoccupied with trying to stay alive, maybe after passing through this hurdle, he might bring this topic up once again. Grey stayed in the same position for almost two minutes, after not seeing or sensing the beast, he decided it was time to make a move. If he could slowly push forward, then leaving this place would become easier for him. ''How can something so big appear and disappear so easily?'' He asked himself while carefully walking towards the tunnel. When he came here the first time, he remembered carefully looking around the lab, yet he didn''t find any living thing, there were only four rooms in the lab, which he also checked. How come he didn''t see the quasi dragon in any of them? Swoosh! He was actually calmer when the quasi dragon was previously attacking him, than how, when he couldn''t find it. At least then he knew where the attack was coming from and could prepare accordingly, but now, he was like a blind man. ''Be prepared to attack.'' He said to Void. Void was just as anxious as he was, with his space element blocked, his greatest reliance when it came to escape was gone. The duo continued forward while staying in full alert mode. Whenever they heard any sound, they would instantly turn in that direction. What was worse was that the previously quiet lab suddenly turned noisy to them, and they could hear noises from different places. While the duo was getting closer to the tunnel, a tail was slowly slithering like a snake towards them. Even in their full alert mode, they couldn''t sense it still. This didn''t mean their senses were weak, it''s just, their opponent is not only stronger but was also an expert in hiding. When the duo got to the entrance of the tunnel, Grey swiftly turned around, carefully observing the lab once more, but he still couldn''t see the quasi dragon. He turned around and assumed there was a possibility it had left the lab and was waiting for them in the tunnel, besides, none of the skeletons they found was in the lab anyway. The moment he turned around, three meters before him, the tail of the quasi dragon suddenly appeared once again and moved towards Grey faster. Just as Grey created a fire in the tunnel. "Huh!" He exclaimed unconsciously. He suddenly felt something wrap around his right leg, he looked below him and was shocked to see the tail of the quasi dragon around his leg. Before he could do anything, he felt a strong pull, and he fell face first. He quickly used his hand as support so he wouldn''t hit his face on the ground. Just as he got to the ground, he was dragged by the tail towards where the creature previously was and suspended mid-air, upside down. While struggling, he saw a scene that sent a chill down his spine. "Camouflage." He muttered underneath his breath. Now he knew the reason they couldn''t find the creature previously, it could camouflage perfectly with its surroundings. That wasn''t its only ability, it looks like the tail of the quasi dragon was also extendable. ''But, why didn''t it attack me the first time I entered this place? Why wait till now?'' He asked himself puzzled by the quasi dragon''s ways. The quasi dragon growled softly and slowly opened its mouth. When Grey saw the red light forming on it, all his hairs stood on end and without thinking, he created a huge hammer with the earth element, coat it with lightning, and swung it at the head of the quasi dragon. Bam! Grey heaved a sigh of relief when he saw this, had he been slow in reacting, then the quasi dragon would have lit him up! "Attack!" Grey yelled at Void who just got to where they were. Buzz! Lightning was already dancing around Void''s body when Grey was still saying this, giving him a strange but mythical appearance due to his black color. Creak! Void sent a huge bolt of lightning at the quasi dragon just after Grey''s words died down. Bam! The lightning bolt crashed into the body of the quasi dragon. It staggered when the attack hit it, still grabbing onto Grey. Grey who was already aiming an attack towards the tail holding onto him felt his head suddenly spin. The quasi dragon first slammed him on the right, then the left, and then the right again before spinning him three times and throwing him in the direction of the wall. Bang! Grey''s body crashed into the wall, creating a crevice in it. Thud! His body fell from the wall. ''What just happened?'' This was the question reverberating through the muddled head of Grey. He could still feel his head spinning from the quick swing he got from the quasi dragon, and his body was aching. He managed to muster a little strength and supported himself with his hands. The moment he got into a kneeling position, he felt the metallic taste of blood in his mouth. He couldn''t hold it in and vomited a mouthful of blood. Chapter 165 - Still Cant Control It ''That''s got to hurt.'' Void flinched when he saw Grey being slammed into the ground repeatedly by the quasi dragon. The quasi dragon threw its tail at Void, trying to slam him with it. When Void raised his head, he saw the tail coming down at a breakneck speed, he quickly moved to the side, narrowly escaping the attack. After escaping, Void threw a lightning ball at it which exploded on impact. Roar! The quasi dragon roared angrily, being attacked by Void angered it. Because Void was too small, it was having a difficult time hitting him, not just that, but Void was very fast. It lunged at Void, and just as it saw him trying to escape, he opened his mouth and spat out fire. Void quickly unleashed the darkness element when he saw the fire coming towards him, a black mass of fog almost two meters high and three meters wide appeared and tried to block the fire coming Void''s way. It managed to impede it, giving Void the much needed time he needed to escape. ''I need to buy as much time as I can.'' thought Void. Seeing that Grey was injured, rather than going over to meet him, he decided to distract the quasi dragon so that Grey could recover a little, furthermore, he also told him to rest. Void knew he wasn''t strong enough to have a one on one battle with the quasi dragon, but he knew given his speed, he would be able to at least escape some of its deadly attacks. After dodging the fire, Void created a lightning arrow, making sure to amass as much lightning essence as he could in it so it would contain a destructive power. He immediately sent the arrow towards the quasi dragon when he was done. When Void saw the arrow hit it, he was about to heave a sigh when the arrow was unexpectedly unable to pass through the defense of the quasi dragon. Other than feeling the impact of the force when the arrow exploded, it didn''t get hurt in any way. ''Can this thing even be hurt?'' Void asked, feeling a little despair. The quasi dragon is stronger than both of them, so fighting against it was a risk for them, now added with its terrifying defense, how could they defeat it? But with no other option, he could only continue fighting against it while waiting for Grey to join the battle. He created a flaming sword which he hacked at the tail that was coming in his direction. The fire spread out, trying to consume the tail of the quasi dragon, but it was just as unsuccessful as his previous attacks. ____ After Grey vomited blood, he tried to stand up but because of the spin, he still felt the world was turning around, and like a drunk man, he fell back down. Most of the earth armor he created previously was destroyed and only a few places of his body still had it on. His hair was ruffled, and blood could be seen at the side of his mouth. Just as he was about to try and stand again, he heard a voice in his head. ''I''ll stall for time, try to rest a little.'' said Void. He stayed in the kneeling position a little longer to try to clear his head, the pain he felt from the attack almost drove him crazy, he could swear some of his bones cracked from the attack. Luckily, he had trained his body, else, his bones would have broken from being slammed into the ground with such force. ''This thing is too strong.'' thought Grey. He had managed to clear his head a little and caught sight of when Void used the flaming sword to hack at its tail. Breathing heavily, he slowly stood up contemplating how to defeat their present adversary. ''I can''t use the Fusion State yet, it''s still too early. But I can use elemental fusion and attack it. I''ll have to give it a shot.'' Grey thought while looking at Void who was dodging most of the quasi dragon''s attacks. Grey felt trying out elemental fusion was his best shot other than the fusion state, from the small exchange he had with it and from his observations from when Void was fighting against it, he could tell only brute force attacks could work on it. The impact of the blast once the orb explodes should be able to damage it a little, if he sees it has an effect on it, then he wouldn''t mind using the Fusion State. ''Hey bud, can you stall it longer?'' He asked Void. Void who was just pushed back from the impact of the quasi dragon''s attack felt elated when he heard this. He initially thought Grey would stay down longer than this, but since he started fighting against the quasi dragon till now, it hadn''t even been up to three minutes. Although he couldn''t say he was really fighting against the quasi dragon since he rarely attacked and mostly only dodged. ''Yes.'' He hastily replied. ''Good.'' said Grey. Without delaying any further, he immediately got to work. Calming his mind, he tried to sense the elemental essence in the air. ''Huh! How come the elemental essence here is so thin? It''s almost none existent.'' Grey thought. When he was using the elements all this while, he noticed compared to before, they weren''t as strong, but because of the battle, he couldn''t think of the reason, now he knew why, with such thin elemental essence, it was hard to use the elements properly, only the earth element feels the same. Without being able to draw sufficient elemental essence from the surrounding, he could only rely on his essence beads. Soon, he started guiding the elements from his elemental beads, through his body, they followed his directions and headed to the palm of his right hand. The inside of his body looked like a multi-colored waterfall in reverse. The five elements moved from his stomach to his c.h.e.s.t, and then into his right shoulder, before heading to his palm. Before long, lights made of brownish, silver, greenish, blueish, and reddish color could be seen coming out of his palm and gradually started solidifying just above his palm. It formed the shape of an orb, made of five different colors perfectly intertwining in it. As time went on, the orb started to grow bigger. First, it was the size of a table tennis ball, then it slowly grew to the size of a fist. This was the largest he could grow the orb to without it exploding in his hand immediately. The orb currently had a mixture of five different colors, and it looked beautiful. Since the last time he used it at the cave underground when he obtained the blue fire, he hadn''t tried it again. He knew the power of the blast now would be far more powerful compared to that time. When the orb was still forming, the quasi dragon, as well as Void, was soon attracted by the strong aura they felt coming from it. Void was stunned when he saw the beautiful multi-colored orb that Grey seemed to be creating. ''Since when could he do that?'' He asked himself. The only reason he didn''t ask Grey was that he saw how serious he was looking, so he knew he couldn''t distract him. Roar! The quasi dragon roared and charged at Grey, discarding the annoying cat. ''Hey! Stop there!'' Void ordered and sent an attack at it. A spear created from a black mass shot towards the quasi dragon. The quasi dragon saw the attack but didn''t bother about it since it felt the result of the attack would be the same as all of Void''s other attacks, and since it wasn''t directed towards its head but its back, it just allowed it. The spear struck it, and to Void''s greatest surprise, it pierced into the body of the quasi dragon. Roar! The quasi dragon roared in pain when the spear entered its body. The spear soon dissipated and when Void looked at the place, he noticed the outer scale in that place was gone, and black fluids were coming out of the wound of the quasi dragon, not just that, but the flesh of the quasi dragon had also slowly started turning black. ''To think the darkness element could break its defenses'' Void thought flabbergasted. He had been wasting his time since trying to hurt it, and only used the darkness element to block the fire of the quasi dragon, how foolish of him. The quasi dragon immediately turned and lunged at Void. ''Void get out of there!'' Grey ordered. On his hand, the orb had already started trembling, he still couldn''t control it. Void quickly ran from the quasi dragon''s range, sending another attack its way to slow it down. Void dashed towards Grey and saw him throw the orb at the quasi dragon. Boom! The orb exploded on impact. Chapter 166 - Battling The Quasi Dragon ''What the hell! That''s insane!'' Void exclaimed when he saw the huge impact of the explosion. The moment the orb hit the quasi dragon and exploded, Grey grabbed Void and made a break for it. Yes, he would love to see the outcome of the attack, but he knew this was their best opportunity to escape. If the attack managed to hurt the creature, then he truly would regret it since if he could collect the body of this creature, it would mean a lot to him. But if the creature was fine even after this, then he would regret not escaping now. They soon got into the tunnel, and Grey quickly created a fireball that helped light up the way. Panting heavily, he ran as fast as his legs could carry him. ''What are you doing?'' asked Void. ''Uh... Escaping.'' replied Grey who was still running quickly. The tunnel was about eight meters wide and had a height of at least ten meters. ''What about the quasi dragon?'' Void asked feeling maybe they had a shot at killing it. ''What about it?'' questioned Grey. ''Wouldn''t you want to check if that amazing attack of yours killed it?'' Void looked behind them and asked after seeing no movements. ''No.'' Grey answered resolutely. He had already seen how strong the quasi dragon was, why would he risk staying there any further. If by chance his elemental fusion blast didn''t hurt it, then he wouldn''t know what to do since even if he entered the Fusion State, that was still his strongest attack. ''We''re missing out on a potential amazing meal, I think that attack of yours injured it at the very least. Just imagine how tasty it would be, and you should know, this is a magical beast that is previously at least in the Peak of Rank Five, so its flesh must hold a lot of energy.'' Void tried to convince Grey to turn back. Two minutes later, just as they were about to appear on the other side of the tunnel. ''You know what, I think we should go back and... No...no, running is fine, running is good. Can you run a little faster?'' Void who was in the middle of trying to persuade Grey immediately started urging him to go faster. Grey was stunned by Void''s sudden change, but it didn''t take long for him to realize why, he could hear the faint footsteps of the quasi dragon behind him, and it was gradually growing louder. ''Damn it! It couldn''t even keep it down for two minutes!'' He cursed out while trying to boost his speed further. He soon started ascending the flight of stairs, and just when he got to the twentieth step, the footsteps of the quasi dragon stopped. ''Oh no!'' His heart sank, and he pushed himself to the limit trying to run as fast as he could. Contrary to the first time when he was hearing the footsteps of the quasi dragon, now, he was tenser since he didn''t know the location of the quasi dragon. ''Can you sense it?'' Grey asked while running. He had managed to get to the fiftieth step, but he still had one hundred steps to go, given the speed with which the quasi dragon used in crossing the tunnel, it would be able to catch up to them before he got to the exit. ''No, it''s like its presence and aura disappears whenever it does that.'' Void responded while vigilantly looking around. He knew the quasi dragon was here, but just like the last time it disappeared, he couldn''t sense it, so he didn''t know where it was. ''Damn it!'' Grey cursed and tried to increase his speed, but alas, he was already at his limit. Just as he stepped on the eightieth step, the quasi dragon suddenly appeared eight steps ahead of him. Roar! Its roar stopped Grey in his tracks who because of his speed almost slammed into it. Grey looked at the quasi dragon and couldn''t help but curse his bad luck. ''Damn it! Not even a scratch!'' He felt like crying. The elemental fusion blast was his greatest attack at the moment, and it didn''t have a problem rivaling a full-powered attack of a Peak Ninth stage Origin Plane Elementalist. Yet, it couldn''t even leave a scratch on the quasi dragon''s body. Is this thing even killable? With this strong defense, Grey wasn''t confident he could harm it, not to mention killing it. Grey had already decided to leave this place, no matter what! Even if it meant doing the impossible! Growl... The quasi dragon growled and slashed its claws towards their attacks, the attacks exploded on impact but it surprisingly didn''t retreat, instead, it pushed forward past where the attacks exploded. Standing in a step that was just barely over one meter wide, and a few inches long, Grey was having a hard time contending with the huge body of the quasi dragon. Without realizing it, he was gradually descending the stairs once again as soon as the battle started. Bang! Grey''s earthen hammer slammed the head of the quasi dragon, forcing its upper body down. But just as it had always done, it rose almost instantly. Although Grey''s attacks didn''t have much of an effect on it, he noticed the brute strength attacks whenever he uses the earth element seemed quite effective against it, so he instantly resorted to using only it against the quasi dragon, but he was still descending the stairs trying to escape the attacks of the quasi dragon. ''Oh! I remember something now, the last time I attacked it with my darkness element, the darkness element was able to erode its scale, hurting its flesh as well.'' Void suddenly recalled his last attack at the lab and told Grey about it. ''Then what are you waiting for?'' Grey asked after jumping back almost ten steps to escape the attack of the quasi dragon. Void who was previously using his fire and lightning elements changed to the darkness element once again. But this time, whenever the quasi dragon saw anything that gave off even the slightest hint of the darkness element''s aura, it hastily retreats. Once it avoided the darkness element attack, it opened up its mouth and spat out fire in the direction of Grey and Void. Grey created an earthen wall, while Void formed a wall made of black mass behind it, the fire quickly destroyed the wall and went for the black mass behind it. Grey immediately jumped back when he saw the black mass being destroyed by the quasi dragon''s fire. After they landed on the ground, Void sent three arrows at the quasi dragon, all three arrows were black. The quasi dragon who just stopped spitting out fire scurried to escape the arrows. ''It''s avoiding it, good.'' Grey praised but cursed out loud the next moment. "Shit! Damn it! F.u.c.k this beast!" He complained when he realized they had actually gone back to the foot of the stairs once again. While he was attacking and dodging the attacks of the quasi dragon, he didn''t know when they got to the last step, not to mention the foot of the stairs. He could see he was even at least two meters away from the first step. He created a huge earthen pillar that had a sharp tip and sent it at the quasi dragon, hoping it would be able to successfully pierce the armor-like scale. Roar! The quasi dragon roared and swung its tail at the almost half a meter thick pillar. Bang! The pillar broke and fell on the ground with a ''thud''. When the pillar fell, it kicked up clouds of dust which Void capitalized on and slashed a huge black claw at the quasi dragon. The black claw was made using the darkness element, but for some reason, it looked very identical to Void''s claws. Before the quasi dragon saw the claw it was already too late and the claw slashed its c.h.e.s.t area, creating an injury in the process. Roar! Void''s attack made four almost fifteen inches long claw marks appeared on its c.h.e.s.t. With the scales there falling off, and the injured flesh eroded for some time before stopping. Grey caught sight of the injury and s.u.c.k.e.d in a cold breath. ''The darkness element truly is a mysterious, and powerful element.'' He thought. Although Void''s attacks weren''t stronger than his, the corrosive ability of the darkness element was currently making life a living hell for the quasi dragon. Grey was again attacked, he created what looked like a nail, and used the water element to create a hammer that smashed into the huge earthen nail. The reason he didn''t use the nail alone was that he wanted to generate enough force and speed so it could successfully pierce through the quasi dragon. The quasi dragon who was still feeling the pain from Void''s claw attack saw the two meters long nail made of earth coming its way and instantly tried to dodge it. Pu-Chi! Bam! Roar! The quasi dragon let out a roar of pain, looking behind it, it saw the nail pinning its tail to the ground. ''Yes!'' Grey exclaimed happily when he saw that the nail managed to pierce through the scale of the quasi dragon. ''Attack! Don''t give it time to break free.'' He urged Void. And the duo rushed at the quasi dragon, each preparing their respective effective attacks. Currently, they felt maybe they had a chance against this beast. Chapter 167 - Battling The Quasi Dragon II Roar! Bang! Grey slammed into the wall of the tunnel after suffering from the impact of the quasi dragon''s attack. ''Damn it! We need to leave this place soon.'' said Grey. Because of the thin elemental essence in the area, Grey didn''t wish to stay here for too long. He could continue fighting for at least thirty minutes, but after that, his reserves would be used up. Creating an inscription was also going to be difficult, but since the earth essence here is still normal, then he would have to use only the earth element to attack. ''How are we going to get past this thing?'' Void asked while using the darkness element to create what looked like a vine with spikes to stop the quasi dragon from attacking Grey once more. After Grey used the earthen nail to pin the tail of the quasi dragon to the ground, the duo instantly attacked, trying to hurt it as much as they possibly could, but it was able to easily remove the nail, and also spat out flames to block the attack they sent its way. Once it blocked their attacks, it began its assault once again, forcing the duo to gradually retreat into the tunnel. Like Grey, Void noticed the thin amount of elemental essence in this place during the battle, so he knew they had to end the battle quickly. But the problem was, how? The quasi dragon was not only stronger than they were, it was also faster, had stronger defenses, and also a terrifying attack power. ''I''ll have to use that soon.'' thought Grey. He had already realized how dangerous their current situation was, even if they''ve managed to keep themselves alive, it wouldn''t be long before they used up the elemental essence they had inside them, once that happens, they would be sitting ducks for the quasi dragon. Presently, given his current Plane, and the strength of his body, he could stay in the Fusion State for at most seven minutes, so he had to ensure that he would be able to defeat the quasi dragon within that time, or even at the very least, escape before the seven minutes time was up, or his skin would start cracking up from the excess energy. Before long, the quasi dragon forced the duo back to the lab. Grey wanted to create an opportunity to enter the Fusion State but the quasi dragon didn''t give him the chance. Bam! He crashed to the ground and the short blade fell. When he saw the blade, he recalled the energy he felt inside and quickly tried to pick it up so he would fight with it. But the quasi dragon was faster than he was and used its tail to drag the blade closer to it. ''Get the blade.'' Grey said. Void sent out dark arrows while edging close to the quasi dragon. Sensing Void''s attack, the quasi dragon retreated with the blade, dodging Void''s attack while attacking him in the process. Void instantly retreated but was sent flying by the impact, crashing into one of the platforms. ''Void!'' Grey yelled when he was Void crashing into the platform. ''I''m fine.'' Void stood up and assured Grey. ''Keep it busy.'' Grey nodded before adding. It was time for him to use the Fusion State, he couldn''t wait any longer, so as to avoid any more unforeseen events. This was the first time he was going to use the true fusion technique, the last time he used the Fusion State, he hadn''t formed his elemental beads. With his elemental beads now, he needed to stay undisturbed when fusing them. If the process was interrupted halfway, then if he''s lucky, his beads would be destroyed and he would fall back to the Arcane Plane, if he''s unlucky, he''ll blow up. ''I''ll try.'' replied Void. In the past over six minutes or so that they''ve been fighting against the quasi dragon, he had faced the quasi dragon alone for almost half of the time, so he was almost getting used to fighting it alone. His greatest advantage over the quasi dragon was not his darkness element, but his size. Unlike Grey, since the battle started, other than being forced back by the impact of its attacks when they collide, he had not been hit physically by the quasi dragon. The quasi dragon instantly tried to go after Grey when it saw he was trying to leave the battle. Swoosh! Void sent out a claw made of the darkness element at it, forcing it to stop and block the attack. It couldn''t use any part of its body to block Void''s darkness element attacks and could only breathe out fire to stop the claw from reaching it. Grey hid behind one of the platforms and sat in a crossed leg position fully focusing on his elemental beads. The quasi dragon changed its attention to Void when it saw Grey hid behind the platform. Although it wanted to stop what he was doing, it felt Void was more of something threat since almost all of Void''s recent attacks could hurt it. Suddenly, what looked like wings slowly started coming out of the back of the quasi dragon. ''Oh, Shit!'' Void cursed on seeing this. The wings on the back of the quasi dragon slowly revealed themselves, and to Void''s dismay, the bat-like wings slowly started moving. Flap! Flap! With the increased speed of flapping, the wind it caused almost threw Void off his feet. ''Shit!'' Void immediately attacked it before it could take flight. They were in a three hundred meters wide, two hundred meters high lab, that was underground. If the quasi dragon were to start flying, then attacking it would be difficult for the duo, while it would get a better shot at them. The quasi dragon spat out fire at Void who immediately escaped when he saw the fire coming out of its mouth. The quasi dragon soon took flight. While Void was stopping the quasi dragon, Grey was currently focused on the task at hand. ''Huuu'' After breathing out, he calmed his mind, removing all distracting thoughts, and focused fully on fusing the beads. He sent his spiritual energy into his body and used it to move the elemental beads closer to each other, with the experience he had from elemental fusion, and also the first time he fused his chaotic essence, fusing the beads was easier. After getting the beads closer, they slowly started naturally merging with each other. They didn''t face any problems with the merging process, and within forty-five seconds, they merged completely. Now, Grey''s previous five elemental beads have turned into a single five-colored elemental bead. With five beads, it meant an increase of five stages. Boom! An energy wave spread out in all directions from Grey''s body, but with the quasi dragon flapping its wings, Void was unable to sense it. Grey''s stage soon started climbing upwards, and in five seconds, he went from the Fourth stage of the Origin Plane to the Ninth stage of the Origin Plane. ''What the hell! Void! I thought you said it wasn''t a dragon!?'' He yelled at Void when he saw the sight of the quasi dragon taking to the air. ''It isn''t.'' replied Void. ''Then how do you explain the wings?'' Grey asked, not convinced by what Void said previously. ''Although its evolution was a failure, it still had some traits of a dragon.'' explained Void. Grey also took flight and shot straight at the quasi dragon who was mid-air, when he got close, he threw a blow to the body of the quasi dragon. Bang! After fusing his elemental beads, the strength of his physical body increased by two stages, although it wasn''t as powerful as his stage, once he fills his muscles with the elements, his physical strength increased by another stage. The quasi dragon was pushed back by almost thirty meters by Grey''s punch and it roared in pain. Now Grey was in the same stage as it was, but its defense was still better. Grey was able to easily dodge the attack and he created a huge two and a half meters hammer that he slammed into the jaws of the quasi dragon. The quasi dragon fell from the air and crashed into the ground, as soon as it landed, then inscriptions sent out ten pillars that slammed into it, and he also threw three fusion orbs at it that exploded on contact. Bang! Boom! Void was stunned when he saw Grey battling the quasi dragon mid-air, and seeing that he was not only in the same stage as it, but he was overpowering it, he couldn''t help but feel excited. Chapter 168 - Multi Elemental Blade ''Grab the blade.'' Grey reminded Void while closely monitoring the place where the quasi dragon crashed, he couldn''t see it because of the dust when the quasi dragon slammed into the ground. ''Hmm.'' Void nodded and hurried towards the blade which fell eight meters away from where the quasi dragon landed. Standing mid-air, Grey watched as Void ran towards the blade. He looked around with curiosity. Presently, he had two thoughts in mind, the first and most important was to escape if the quasi dragon was not hurt by his previous assault, the second one which was optional to him was to fight against the quasi dragon if it was hurt by his previous attacks. "Huh!" Grey exclaimed softly and looked above him. On the roof of the lab, he could sense a slight fluctuation of the aura of an array. Although it was very faint, he was confident what he sensed was an array. ''Could this be the reason for the low elemental essence here?'' He asked himself while trying to sense the array further. He also thought about their sudden inability to use anything related to the space element. But, he felt it wasn''t the reason because they were able to use it previously, but then it was suddenly blocked. ''Got it!'' Void''s voice brought him back from his thoughts. ''Okay, we should leave.'' Grey said. The dust still hadn''t settled even after almost twenty seconds, seeing that they had taken the blade back, he decided to leave this place. ''Okay, do you think it''ll survive?'' asked Void. ''I don''t know.'' Grey replied. He floated down slowly but still stayed in the Fusion State. From their previous encounter with the quasi dragon, he was sure that it wouldn''t stay down from this attack. The duo once again charged towards the tunnel, but Grey stopped midway and turned around, creating an almost thirty inches thick wall. An attack struck the wall the moment it was created, but unlike Grey''s previous defenses, this wall didn''t fall apart immediately due to his current increase in strength. ''That was close.'' Void heaved a sigh when he realized Grey just blocked an attack. He didn''t even sense the attack, not to mention dodging it, so he felt relieved seeking that Grey was able to block the attack. After the attack died down, Grey edged close to the earth wall and peeked from the side of the wall. "Shit! It''s gone again." He said while looking at the empty lab. Seeing the situation, Grey stretched out his hand to Void. ''What?'' Void asked when he saw Grey''s hand in front of him. "The blade." Grey said looking at him with fierce eyes. If Void dared to refuse, then he''d beat him up! ''Oh!'' Void chuckled awkwardly and passed the blade to him. He knew how serious their situation was, so he didn''t dare to hold onto the blade. Grey held the blade in his right hand and studied it closely. He didn''t know what elemental weapon it was because unlike the few he had seen, this one was unidentifiable by him. With no other option, he tried to channel his fire elemental essence into the blade. The second the elemental essence entered the blade, it lit up with a fiery red color. ''Fire.'' He thought. But on impulse, he withdrew the fire elemental essence and tried to channel his wind elemental essence into the blade, and to his greatest surprise, the blade lit up with a greenish color. Grey''s heart trembled when this happened. ''How is this possible?'' He asked himself with a look of disbelief. Although he was shocked, he quickly calmed himself and tried infusing the blade with his other three elemental essences, and just like the first two, the blade lit up signifying the color of the elements. It took Grey a total of about eighteen seconds for him to test out all five elements on the blade. ''To think there''s such a treasure.'' A look of disbelief was on Grey''s face throughout the eighteen seconds he was testing out the blade. Grey who was in a state of disbelief suddenly jolted and slashed the blade to his upper right, infusing it with the earth element. The previous light blade immediately turned extremely heavily, weighing almost three hundred pounds. Boom! The blade clashed with the claw of the quasi dragon who appeared out of nowhere. Grey was pushed back fifteen meters and he slammed into the wall of the tunnel after being overwhelmed by the quasi dragon''s power. Four black spears shot at the quasi dragon, and it immediately retreated and hid once again. ''It wasn''t injured.'' Void said feeling a little dejected by the quasi dragon defense. Grey stood straight and looked at where the quasi dragon appeared last. "Hmph! Even if we can''t kill it, it can''t do anything to us. Get going." Grey said while positioning himself behind Void. Since the quasi dragon wanted to play hide and seek, he didn''t have time to entertain it. He had already stayed in the Fusion State for just over a minute, so he couldn''t afford to waste any more time. The duo started moving through the tunnel with unimaginable speed, since the quasi dragon hadn''t left this place, it meant that it couldn''t leave the place, so once they head out, they would be safe. When they entered the tunnel, the quasi dragon appeared once more and attempted a sneak attack, but Grey sensed it like before and immediately attacked with an inscription. The reason he didn''t use the blade, was because he didn''t dare to. The elemental essence required to use it for a single attack was immense. Even though the earth elemental essence was still normal, the consumption of the blade was higher than his absorption speed. After blocking the sneak attack of the quasi dragon, Grey followed behind Void, trying to catch up. But after moving only fifteen meters, the quasi dragon appeared once again and attacked. Grey was forced to turn around and retreat slower than he normally would. A minute went by with Grey being attacked by the quasi dragon at least twenty-eight times. Grey realized when the quasi dragon noticed they were going closer to the end of the tunnel, it increased the frequency of its attacks, and in some cases, it would fight with Grey. But what left Grey puzzled was that the quasi dragon had the advantage in at least sixty percent of the times they battled, but for some reason, it would hide once again whenever he was managing to keep up. Bang! He hastily stood up, but bent down the next moment. Swoosh! Eight black arrows shot from behind him towards the quasi dragon that was stepping out of the tunnel. The quasi dragon immediately tried to move to the side to escape from the oncoming arrows, but when it looked below it, it realized its fore and hind limbs had sunk into the ground. Grey smirked when he saw this. Roar! The quasi dragon roared in pain when all eight arrows pierced into his body. Three of the black arrows pierced into his left forelimb, four struck its c.h.e.s.t, and the last one struck its neck. It struggled to get out of the muddy ground, but the more it struggled, the more it sank. Grey made an earth mace that was three meters long and held it with both hands. The huge head of the mace was behind him as he slowly dragged it closer to where the quasi dragon was located. The quasi dragon continued struggling when it saw Grey coming towards it with a weapon in tow. Before Grey got to it, it managed to take out its forelimbs with the help of its wings, but due to the small space, it couldn''t spread them out properly. Grey stomped on the ground, and an earthen cube pushed the head of the mace while he swung it forcefully towards the body of the quasi dragon. Bam! The mace struck it heavily, pushing it back into the mud once again, but broke in the process. "Go!" Grey yelled and flew up the stairs picking Void up in the process. He didn''t dare to wait till the quasi dragon recovered before attempting to flee. Roar! An angry roar came out of the mouth of the quasi dragon as it sent a stream of fire towards Grey and Void who were almost halfway through the stairs. Roar! The quasi dragon roared fiercely and the place shook, when Grey turned around to take a glance, a look of dread immediately appeared in his eyes and he pushed himself to go faster. The aura of the quasi dragon had currently gone past the Origin Plane and was now in the Overlord Plane. Grey was presently at the Peak of the Origin Plane, and it was almost impossible for him to fight against the quasi dragon once it reaches the Overlord Plane. But a shocking scene took place the next moment, the walls of the tunnel lit up with white array lines and continued shining brighter before the lights shot off the walls, charging at the quasi dragon. They formed weird array lines around the body of the quasi dragon, and it roared out in pain. The previously rising aura of the quasi dragon gradually started declining. ''What just happened?'' Grey thought but didn''t stay any further and when he landed on the last step, the statue moved on its own, creating an opening for the duo to escape. Chapter 169 - Why Do We Always Get Chased!? "Phew, finally, we''re out of that place!" Grey breathed out a sigh of relief as he dashed out through the opening on the wall. He turned to look back at the opening, and could still hear the painful roars of the quasi dragon, only, it was gradually turning faint. The statue was yet to return to its previous position, so the opening was still there. The roars soon died down, and Grey curiously walked over to the opening and stretched his head into the opening to see if the array lines he saw previously were still there. He was quite curious about it but because he was escaping, he didn''t get a good view of it. Just as his head appeared on the other side of the opening, he instantly withdrew it and jumped to the side, falling in a kneeling position. Whoosh! A stream of fire came out of the opening, blasting into the wall on the other side of the hall, before spreading to the left and right of the hall simultaneously. Void who was still savoring the moment of being able to use the space element once again, instantly used it when his tail was almost caught by the fire. ''What the hell did you do!?'' He asked after appearing four meters away from the opening. "Nothing." Grey scratched his head awkwardly as he replied. The fire continued streaming out until the statue went back to its previous position after five seconds. Rumble! The statue made a rumbling sound as it closed completely, once again sealing the quasi dragon in the lab, waiting for the next time an unfortunate person would venture here. "Wow! This had been an eventful experience." said Grey as he exited the Fusion State. ''Yeah.'' Void nodded. This had been the most heart-racing period of his life, and it was quite exciting. They almost died on some occasions against the quasi dragon, before he realized his darkness element was super effective against it, and then Grey jumped five stages and fought toe to toe with the quasi dragon, although he was overpowered sometimes. And just when they were about to exit the place, the quasi dragon which had kept its stage low all this while immediately started increasing in power, before being stopped by an array. ''Oh! What was that orb thingy you did that exploded?'' Void asked when he remembered the time Grey used the fusion orb against the quasi dragon. "About that..." Grey fell silent for a while, contemplating whether he should tell Void about it or not. ''Other than his obsession for shiny things, he''s pretty trustworthy.'' He thought. Thinking of his experiences with Void, and how he had helped him on some occasions during the time they had spent together, he decided it was time to tell him about it. Although, he wouldn''t tell him about the chaos God or the chaos element. "I can fuse the elements." said Grey faintly. His voice was so low, it was almost like he was muttering gibberish. ''You can what now?'' Void asked with a confused face. All he heard was I can, other than that, he heard nothing else. He could tell what Grey was about to tell him was a secret given his first hesitation before he finally answered. "I can fuse all my elements together." Grey spoke loudly this time so Void could hear him properly. ''What!?'' Void exclaimed, dumbfounded by Grey''s words. Although he didn''t know much of the world, he too had multiple elements, so he had naturally experimented on trying to merge them. Which obviously ended in a failure. The only thing he knew was possible was coating one element with another, not fusing. "Yes, that was what you saw me do previously." replied Grey. He had expected such a reaction given what he told Void was something impossible for others, but not him, if he were to tell Void that he could not only fuse the elements but also his essence beads to boost his stage, he couldn''t help but imagine his reaction. But he wouldn''t tell him about that, neither will he tell him of his ability to comprehend other elements. He wanted to study him more, after all, they had only spent just over two months and a week or two together. ''That''s incredible!'' Void said excitedly after his initial shock. ''Can others do it as well?'' He could not help but ask. If it was possible for others, then he would love to learn it, after all, he had witnessed its frightening power. "I don''t think it''s possible. I can''t really explain how I can do it, so don''t ask." Grey said when he saw the enthusiasm in Void''s eyes. He could almost tell what Void was thinking from his eyes, so he just rejected before he asked. Even though he was quite curious to see if another person would be able to do it if given the technique, this was not something he could just teach to anyone. Void looked down a little disappointed, but he soon threw it to the back of his head. ''How did you increase your strength by that much?'' He asked curiously once again. He had never seen Grey do that before, so he was also very curious about it. One has to know that although it was possible for someone to increase their stage, it was unheard-of to increase it by five. During their encounters with others, there had been times when their opponent would use a secret technique to boost their strength, but it was always by a single stage. So even if there were techniques that are of higher quality than the one that opponents of theirs used, it shouldn''t be by this much, right? "That, I can''t really explain for now. I''ll tell you later." Grey shrugged, avoiding to tell him the truth about this. ''Hmm, okay.'' Void nodded understandably. He knew everyone had a secret that they wouldn''t share so easily, for Grey to even tell him about being able to fuse the elements was already a sign that he trusted him, albeit not completely. ''So, what now?'' He asked looking at the wall that the fire of the quasi dragon burned. "We should le..." Rumble! A rumbling sound stopped Grey who was speaking midway, the sound was followed by intense shaking in the hall. ''What''s going on?'' asked Void. "I don''t know, but we should get... Oh my God!" Grey who was speaking suddenly exclaimed while looking behind Void. ''What? What?'' Void asked twice when he heard Grey''s exclamation and also the look of dismay. "Behind you." Grey pointed with a slightly trembling hand. Seeing Grey''s reaction, Void quickly turned around. ''Oh my God!'' And just like Grey, he exclaimed. "Run!" Grey turned around and dashed out of the hall, heading for the exit of the building. Void who was able to use the space element once again, disappeared and appeared on Grey''s shoulder, looking behind him worriedly. ''Why do we always get chased!?'' He thought a little dejected by their predicament. Behind them, there were at least fifteen seven meters long lizards and four two meters frogs chasing after them, but that was not all, more were still pouring out of the openings on the wall of the hall. Grey and Void were previously at the middle of the hall, and there were about ten statues they hadn''t checked, five on each side of the hall, and to their greatest surprise, all ten had openings, not just the one they entered. Although these beasts weren''t as strong as the quasi dragon, they were not weak either. Grey was only able to sense the stage of the first four, and they were all in the Sixth stage of the Origin Plane. The door to the building exploded, with Grey dashing out of it. He didn''t dare to wait and open the door, so he just blasted it away before he got there. Croak! The loud croaking of a frog was heard two seconds later as two of the frogs were the first to appear outside the building, giving chase. The other frogs as well as the lizards all dashed out of the building, following behind Grey and Void. Grey ran as quickly as possible trying to escape from the pursuit of the beasts behind him, but the frogs were actually slowly closing the gap between them. ''''Damn it!'' Grey complained when he saw this. Had he not used the Fusion State moments ago, he would have used it to escape from them. Although he could fight them one on one, as a group, it was impossible for him to fight against so many of them. ''Where are we going?'' Void asked while looking behind them. ''Anywhere.'' answered Grey. He was almost certain that no one had been chased as much as he had, and even if they had, most of them would not survive it. Chapter 170 - What Did They Do To You? Splat! A greenish gooey liquid landed on a tree and surprisingly opened a hole in the tree with smoke coming from the sides of the tree. "Shit! It also has corrosive effects?" Grey could be seen running towards the tree that was hit by the gooey liquid, and he could not help but look at it. The greenish gooey liquid was initially aimed at him, but being quick, he managed to evade it and it hit the tree, and to his greatest surprise, the greenish gooey liquid had a corrosive effect. Croak! Two frogs could be seen following closely behind him, while multiple other beasts could be heard from some distance away, they were all chasing after the same person, Grey. ''Why are they following me, what did I do?'' Grey asked himself while creating an inscription. He felt there must be a reason why the beasts were chasing after him, but he couldn''t think of an that could be the cause of it. One of the frogs following behind him suddenly opened its mouth, and its pink tongue shot straight at Grey. Void who was on the lookout instantly sent a lightning bolt at the tongue. Buzz! The lightning bolt made contact with the frog''s unprotected tongue and sent a stream of lightning straight into the body of the frog. The frog retracted its tongue and wailed in pain while also trembling continuously, it also temporarily stopped in place, unable to move for the time being. Void seeing that he got one of them, laughed happily, especially at the sight of the frog quivering repeatedly. Though he knew the frog wouldn''t die from the shock, it was still satisfying to watch. ''What''s so funny?'' Grey asked when he heard Void''s laughter. ''I just electrocuted one...'' Void told Grey what happened. ''Well, that''s good, now, we need to get the other one off our backs.'' said Grey. He had tried creating some distance between them, but the frogs were not falling behind, rather, they were slowly catching up to him. If the chase continued this way, then they would definitely catch up with him. Had there been only these two beasts, then he would have already stopped and tried to fight against them. Even though it wouldn''t be easy, he was sure he would be able to defeat them, with the help of Void that is. Grey was currently running towards the south, and the beasts were chasing after him continuously. After one and a half minutes of running, Grey had finally set up the inscription, while managing to keep himself alive as well. While he was running, the frog would continuously spit out those greenish gooey liquids at him, which Void blocked some of them, while he dodged the remaining ones. Scampering through the trees, he remembered when he was being chased by the horde of apes. ''It hasn''t even been close to two weeks, yet here I am, being chased once again.'' He thought self mockingly. ''If only I could encounter people just like the last time.'' Boom! The attack missed the frog who agilely jumped to the side, to escape from it while also spitting out the greenish gooey liquid. The greenish gooey liquid hit a tree ahead of Grey and was able to eat away a part of it, making the tree fall in the direction opposite Grey. Bang! The sound of it hitting the ground reverberated out, while Grey jumped above the just fallen tree. He once again used the inscription to attack, while Void also followed up with an attack of his own. With both attacks coming from two different angles, the frog was forced to spit out its gooey liquid at Void''s lightning attack. When the gooey liquid touched the lightning, it let out a sizzling sound with steam rising up into the air. _____ Three kilometers in the direction Grey was currently headed. "Where are your friends?" The young lady asked icily while looking at the young man with ruthless eyes. The young lady was none other than the one from the Azure empire Grey encountered just over a week ago when he was being chased by the horde of apes, and the young man she was facing was Neil from the Royal Academy in the Qilin empire. Neil separated from the group when they entered a castle just like the one Grey and his friends entered when they just came to the trial land. He had been searching for them around the castle for almost a day now, but he hadn''t seen any of them. Just when he gave up and leave the place, he was blocked the young lady. Neither of them had made a breakthrough yet, so they were still in the Fourth and Third stage respectively, with the young lady being in the Fourth and Neil being in the Third. Neil felt a little panicky when he recognized the young lady before him, he wasn''t as strong as the Twelfth Prince, so he was not one hundred percent confident in being able to escape her. Being the weaker party, his chances didn''t look good. He summoned enough courage not to show the slight fear that crept into his heart. "Hmph! What are you doing here? Seems like you were lucky to escape the pursuit of those apes." Neil snorted coldly making sure not to give away anything. Although, he was quite surprised seeing the young lady because he thought none of them would be able to escape from the clutches of the apes, except for Grey. Since Grey was able to keep himself alive from when the apes started chasing him till they saw him, he was sure he wouldn''t have any problems with escaping, especially when he had the group from the Azure empire as decoys. When the young lady heard him speaking of the apes, she was instantly infuriated and attacked. Her eyes turned red and for some weird reasons, tears were flowing from them. ''What did she experience that would make her react like this?'' He questioned himself. From the young lady''s reaction, it wasn''t hard to figure out she must have experienced horrifying things at the hands of the apes, but he couldn''t think of anything. The apes would normally only kill their opponents, so for the young lady to react this way was quite strange. "I will kill you!" The young lady yelled angrily and attacked once again. Boom! One minute later. The scene of their battle was currently a mess, the young lady could be seen looking at Neil evilly, and the gates to the castle had been blasted to smithereens by her vicious attacks. Neil was currently huffing, from the continuous attacks the young lady had sent his way. Even after blocking over eighty percent of her attacks, he was still injured and had suffered from multiple burns. But those were the least of his problems, due to blocking most of her attacks, he had suffered from the shockwave from when the two attacks collided, causing internal injuries. Blood could be seen trickling from the side of his mouth, but he quickly wiped it while focusing on the young lady once again. "What did the apes do to you?" He asked for the umpteenth time. Boom! "F.u.c.k!" They heard an explosion, as well as someone swearing. They both curiously looked in the direction where the explosion came from, and they saw a stunningly handsome young man running out of the forest, his short hair was fluttering in the wind, and he had a somewhat worried expression, but it didn''t hide the glint in his eyes. On his shoulder perched a small pitch-black cat. They were both dumbfounded when they saw the young man because he was someone they had seen not too long ago. "It''s him!" They exclaimed simultaneously. Grey who was running already knew there were people here, so he wasn''t too surprised when he heard their voices. "Oh! Hi!" He waved when he saw how both Neil and the young lady were staring at him. "It''s all because of you! You made them did those things to me!" The young lady screamed and charged towards Grey who was running their way. "What are you saying? What did they do to you? Also, who are you?" Grey asked three questions simultaneously. "I''ll never forgive you!" The young lady yelled hysterically and completely forgot about Neil while charging at Grey. Neil just watched from the side, his curiosity eating him up as he asked himself the same question, ''what did they do to her?''. Unfortunately, the young lady had refused to tell even after he asked her multiple times during the battle. It wasn''t like he cared or anything, it was just his curiosity getting the better of him. Chapter 171 - How The F.u.c.k Does He Do It? Grey was stunned seeing the young lady running hysterically towards him, and couldn''t help but wonder where he met her. He didn''t recognize her because after realizing he didn''t know the group from the Azure empire, he didn''t even bother to take a proper look at them, and just forgot about their faces, not just that, but he truly felt they would all die under the hands of the apes, after all, they weren''t as fast as he was. ''But... What did they do to her? And who did things to her?'' Due to how tears and snot were gushing out of the young lady''s eyes and nose, his curiosity was piqued, it got to the level that he almost forgot he was being chased, well, almost. "Shit! Who are you? Get out of my way!" He waved his hand sending a stream of wind that blew the young lady back. He was trying to run away, yet this unknown young lady was running towards him while crying. The only reason he refrained from harming her was that he didn''t know who she was, and he couldn''t just start killing people left and right just because they were running towards him, what if the young lady was only mistaking him for someone else? But the case would be different the moment the young lady tried to attack him though, if she were to attack him, then he wouldn''t take her as a stranger, rather, she''ll become an enemy he would try to take down. After all, he couldn''t just sit by and allow her to attack him just because he thought she''s mistaking him for someone else. ''You really don''t remember her?'' Void asked on seeing Grey''s confusion. ''No, have we seen her before?'' Hearing Void''s words, Grey figured they had crossed paths with this young lady before. He had crossed paths with a lot of young ladies, and he didn''t really remember all of them, the only ones he remembered were the eye-catching ones or those who did something worth remembering, either good or bad. ''Yeah... Remember the group that helped with the Lightning Apes? She''s the girl you told me to jump into her arms.'' explained Void. ''Oh, it''s her! To think she survived.'' Grey immediately remembered the young lady, although not too well, but he recalled telling Void to jump into the arms of a young lady to make their ruse seem more believable to the apes. ''Wait... Doesn''t that mean she''s talking about the apes? What did the apes do to her?'' Grey''s mind jolted when he thought of the apes. He couldn''t think of the apes doing any other thing other than ripping their opponents apart. ''I don''t know.'' Void shrugged. He, too, was quite curious as to what the Lightning Apes did to the young lady. "You bastard! You''ll not die peacefully!" The young lady cursed and immediately threw an attack at Grey. ''Damn it!'' Grey complained internally and created an earth wall to block the attack. ''Shit! Our friends have caught up.'' Void said in exasperation. Croak! "What''s that?" Neil asked while curiously looking at the forest. All of a sudden, his body trembled as if he recalled something, then he looked at Grey, then back at the forest, then back at Grey again. Soon, he connected the dots. ''How could I be so dumb!?'' He questioned himself as he gradually started taking steps back. This was exactly like the last time he saw Grey, at that time he was inexperienced, so he couldn''t escape on time and had to go through the stress of fighting against the apes that followed them, although the ones that followed them were weak, but had they run away sooner, they wouldn''t have gone through the hassle of fighting against them. He could tell Grey was in the Fourth stage of the Origin Plane seeing how casually he was able to block the attack of the young lady, and he''s definitely stronger than her, so since he was running away from something, it meant that thing was stronger than he was, and Grey was stronger than him. How could he fight against something stronger than someone stronger than him? ''I have to leave.'' He urged himself and turned around to run. Just as he turned around. Boom! A loud sound drew his attention and once again, he curiously turned to take a glance at the cause of it. "Oh my God! What did he do now!?" Neil felt his legs go soft and his head spun, he was sure he was so close to passing out. Three two meters frogs appeared at the same time, and Neil could swear he was hearing sounds of more beasts just as big as these frogs, if not bigger coming their way. "How does he always survive this?" He asked as he dashed towards the west. The frogs scared him, they scared the shit out of him. If he were to stay there a little longer, he might just piss on himself. While Neil was escaping, the young lady whose mind had been cloudy by hate didn''t even see the frogs, the only thing in her eyes right now is Grey. All she wanted to do was kill him, that was all that mattered, nothing else. "Ah!" She yelled and once again charged at Grey, preparing an attack which she soon released. The young lady''s attack went straight at him. ''Void!'' Grey yelled internally not bothering to look at the attack. ''I know.'' Void replied and disappeared from his shoulder, before appearing ahead of him. The moment he appeared, the stream of fire coming at them slowly started disappearing after getting within one meter of him. "Huh!" The muddle-headed young lady felt like she was seeing things and couldn''t help but rub her eyes to get a clearer view. Whoosh! The fire appeared behind the unsuspecting young lady, slamming into her back. "Argh!" She screamed in pain when it hit her. The force of the fire sent her flying in Grey''s direction. One of the three frogs shot out its tongue even though the distance between it and Grey was a whooping over three hundred meters. ''She''s coming.'' Void said after his counter-attack sent the young lady flying. ''Okay.'' Grey nodded and prepared himself for what would happen next. Since he was running over, it didn''t take up to two seconds for him to reach the young lady who was mid-air, he caught her leg, took a spin, and threw her in the direction of the tongue. The whole scene flowed so naturally that one would feel like Grey, Void, the frog, as well as the young lady had practiced this routine a thousand times. The frog''s tongue got hold of the young lady, and the shocking thing about it was that the tongue was over forty meters away from the frog''s body. Neither Grey, nor Void, nor the escaping Neil whose curiosity was making him take a peek at what was happening could comprehend how a frog''s tongue could stretch that far. "How''s that even possible?" Neil felt his view in life was taking a turn, a bad turn. But just when he thought he had seen it all, the frog retracted its tongue along with the injured young lady who was attached to the end of it and opened its mouth wide, swallowing her whole. Even though the frog was two meters in length and just over one meter and a half in height, Neil felt it shouldn''t be able to swallow the young lady who was just over a meter and a half. "I need to get out of here." Neil felt he was having a battle between passing out from shock, and keeping consciousness to escape, but his will to not die, or even if he wanted to die, not in ''that'' manner was making it impossible for him to pass out. Just as he got close to the trees, his curiosity once again made him glance over his shoulder, and behold, he saw different types of lizards, as well as frogs, flooding out of the other side of the forest. He stood still, dumbstruck, and could not help but turn to take a proper look. ''How the f.u.c.k does he do it?'' He asked himself. He felt his brain heating from the questions, he knew other beasts were coming, but he wouldn''t dare to imagine it was this much. Within the three seconds he had stood watching the beasts flood out, he could confidently swear that over fifty beasts had come out of the forest. Croak! When his body touched the ground, he huffed and looked behind him, only to see a greenish gooey liquid corroding the tree behind him. ''Shit! No wonder they say curiosity kills the cat! But not this cat! This cat will live to see another day!'' He said and dashed into the forest, disappearing into the woods. His curiosity had nearly killed him, had it not been for one of the frogs making a croaking sound while the other one sent its attack towards him, he would have been dead. But yet another question came to his head, how did the greenish gooey liquid travel from almost eight hundred meters away? Luckily, the frogs nor lizards chased after him, they all followed Grey. Meanwhile, Void looked in Neil''s direction like he was staring at a fool. Who was foolish enough to stand and watch as so many magical beasts pours out of the forest? ''Such a dumb guy, he should''ve died to rid this world of one moron.'' thought Void. Chapter 172 - Tiny Door ''We can''t keep this up for much longer.'' Grey said as he used the inscription to attack the frog that was getting closer to him. ''I know, but there''s no way to shake them off, it''s like they''re glued to your aura or scent.'' Void contemplated. ''I don''t think it''s my aura because the last time I managed to get out of their view, I concealed it, yet they still found us.'' Grey said while running past the compound. He suddenly halted and looked at the castle again. ''It''s like the one I entered with the guys when I just came here.'' He said. Standing at the place the gate was supposed to be, he looked behind him, then at the gate. His mind quickly flashed to the castle and everything that happened there. If this one is just like that one, then it meant there would be trials inside. It also meant that he would be able to escape his pursuers. "Let''s go in." He steeled his mind and decided to take the risk. He didn''t know what trials this place had in store for him, but if it would keep these beasts away, he was okay with it. After using the Fusion State against the quasi dragon previously, he should be resting, but he couldn''t because he had to escape. When he entered the compound, he turned around and created a wall to block the space. After doing that, he channeled water essence towards his feet and then into the ground. He had already gotten better at turning the ground into mud, and could easily determine how much essence is needed to create an extremely thick, or light mud. Currently, he was planning on creating a thick mud that would impede the movement of the beasts that were behind him. With the wall blocking the view of the beasts, they would all naturally jump over it, thereby landing in the mud he has prepared for them. By the time he was done with his preparation, the frogs were already within a hundred meters away from his location. ''This should be able to slow them down.'' He nodded looking at his work before dashing towards the door of the castle. The compound was large, spanning an area of at least seven hundred cubic meters with the castle taking up one-third of the space. Grey soon got to the door and just as he touched it. ''There are multiple spaces in there.'' Void said, surprised. ''Yeah, there are a lot of places like this.'' Grey said nonchalantly. It wasn''t his first time experiencing this, so he didn''t feel too surprised. Grey placed both hands on the wooden door, with the thought of pushing it. He had looked around and noticed it wasn''t like that one he entered with the group, so he guessed this one would open if pushed. And just as he was about to apply force on his hands, the door shook. Rumble! Creak... After shaking once, it slowly started opening up. "Oh!" Grey exclaimed lightly, not expecting the door to open in this manner. While watching the door, he heard a ''plop'' sound, and a smile formed across his face. He quickly turned around and saw all three frogs were caught in his mud trap. The mud was almost fifty meters long and was at least thirty meters wide, so it covered the area after the gate properly. Boom! Grey''s attention was once again drawn to the door with that sound. Looking back, he noticed the door was currently opened wide. "Don''t tell me it''ll stay like this?" He could not help but complain. Without wasting any more time, he dashed into the castle which was dark inside, although it was still daytime. Entering into the castle, other than pillars which had carvings of different magical beasts, there was only one door. "That should stop them." Grey said with a wry smile. The door was so small that he was sure it would stop him as well. "Maybe if I crawl I''ll be able to pass through it." He said self mockingly. Presently, he already gave up on this place and just assumed he was at a dead end and had to face the beasts. ''Hmm, if I turn back now, I should be able to escape.'' thought Grey. Just as he turned around. ''What are you doing?'' Void asked with a confused expression. ''Leaving on time so I could still keep a good distance away from them.'' replied Grey while walking towards the wooden door which for some reason was closed. He didn''t hear any noises, so he was quite surprised that it was closed. ''Aren''t you going to enter this place?'' Void looked at him strangely. ''I know you can pass through it, but have you seen the size difference between us? I''m sure only my head could get past it.'' Grey replied while trying to open the door. "F.u.c.k! Why won''t it open!?" He cursed out loud when even after using all his strength, the door didn''t budge in any way. ''Because it can only be opened from the outside.'' Void said. "Shit! We''re f.u.c.k.e.d. *Sigh* Such a bad decision." Grey sighed while shaking his head in disappointment. He never thought a single decision would cause so much harm, it might even cost him his life. There''s no way for him to leave this place, yet, the beasts don''t have a problem with getting in. If not for the mud trap he set outside, then he would have already started fighting against the beasts by now. ''Is anything wrong with your head or something?'' Void had a strange expression while staring at Grey. He still couldn''t comprehend why Grey was acting this way. ''Are you waiting for the beasts to come in before you go in?'' Void still had the same weird look in his eyes. Grey looked at him and declined to reply, he wanted to save his energy for the beasts coming his way. He felt maybe there was something wrong with Void''s head. Like, how the hell does he expect him to pass through that small door? ''I get it now, you don''t know.'' Void said after seeing his lack of reply. ''Don''t know what?'' asked Grey. ''That''s not the entrance, there''s a space opening just before it.'' Void pointed to the door. It was only now that he remembered unlike him, Grey didn''t have the space element, so he wouldn''t be able to sense the fact that there was an entrance just in front of the little door. ''Why didn''t you say that earlier?'' Grey instantly stood up and sprinted towards the little door. Since he could escape, why would he bother himself with fighting against the beasts? He soon got close to the door. ''Where?'' ''Take three steps forward.'' ''Okay.'' Grey took three steps forward, but nothing happened, just as he was about to question Void again, he heard the creaking sound the door makes when opening. He unconsciously took a fourth step, and just as his foot touched the ground, he was s.u.c.k.e.d in with a flash of dark silvery light. ''Oh, looks like it''s the fourth.'' Void said awkwardly. ''Where''s this?'' Grey asked looking at the dark space around them. He was currently floating, and looking ahead of him, he saw twelve lights, other than that, he saw nothing else. It was like he was in the night sky, and the twelve lights were the stars in it. Judging from the direction he was headed, he realized he was going towards the third light he counts from the left. ''A space created by a Space Elementalist.'' said Void. ''Wow, amazing! The space element truly is unique.'' Grey exclaimed, surprised by what the space element was capable of once again. He hopes to awaken his sooner, but alas, it was easier said than done. He knew how long it took for him to awaken the other elements, and luck was also what helped him in shortening the time. Had he not been lucky, then it would take longer. Comprehending the elements was just too hard, and since he had to increase the grade of the ones he had awakened, he had less time to start comprehending new ones. Just as he entered the light, a frog appeared in the space. Chapter 173 - Finding The Cause Whoosh! Grey heard the sound of the wind brushing against him quickly, looking around, he realized he was falling from the sky, and the ground was still at least over one thousand meters away. ''Isn''t this a bit too extreme?'' He complained but still felt lucky that he had awakened his wind element which he quickly used to support himself thereby slowing down the speed of his descent. Some seconds later, he landed softly on the ground like he was only taking a walk. After he got to the ground, he first stared at the sky, before observing his surroundings. They were presently in a mountain range that stretched out as far as the eye could see, and they could hear the roars of different magical beasts. ''This is a little different from the one I entered previously.'' thought Grey. He waited for some seconds, but he didn''t hear the robotic voice he expected to hear. Without the voice, he wouldn''t know what this place was, and given how wide it was, he couldn''t explore it completely before the time they were supposed to spend in the trial land runs out. ''There''s a building there.'' Void''s small voice brought Grey out of his thoughts. "I guess that should be our target." Grey placed his hand on his chin while scrutinizing the mountain. Without further delay, he started descending the mountain, heading towards the one with the building. Twenty minutes later. "Such a strange beast, it''s a shame it escaped once it realized I was stronger than it was." Grey said while looking at the ruined area in front of him. In the past twenty minutes, he had traveled more than halfway through the mountain and had encountered different beasts that were all around the Fourth to the Sixth stage of the Origin Plane, and he had unsurprisingly defeated them all. They weren''t even worth mentioning until he faced this previous one, it was a beast he hadn''t seen before and he hoped to capture it, but it escaped when it saw he was stronger than it was. The beast stood on two legs like humans, it had a dog-like head, and two hands that had four fingers each. It stood at a height of almost two meters, and its body was a shade of blue and black, with blue taking the majority while black only covered up its c.h.e.s.t and belly, as well as some parts of its face. It was surprisingly also a dual element magical beast, having the wind and earth element respectively. ''Huh! We need to get going.'' Void looked towards the top of the mountain while talking. "What''s up?" Grey asked after he had already started walking. He didn''t know why Void said that they needed to get going, but he decided to start heading forward anyway, in case he needed to run, he''ll have a good head start. ''Looks like one of them entered this place, and it is headed here very quickly.'' explained Void. "Just one?" Grey wanted to get a confirmation of the number. If only one of them entered this place, then he wouldn''t mind killing it. After all, the only reason he was running away was that they were just too many, and he couldn''t fight against them. ''Yes, but since one of them is here, it wouldn''t take long for the others to come in here as well. The sooner we leave this place the better.'' Void advised. "No." Grey shook his head. He initially thought of killing the first one, but after hearing Void''s statement, he changed his mind because he knew he was right. "The sooner we find out why they''re chasing after us, and how they keep finding us, the better. We can''t keep running forever." He added. When they entered this place, he realized something, although one of the frogs attacked Neil when it saw him, it didn''t go after him, rather, it continued chasing Grey. It was like they were only focused on him, and him alone. He had tried hiding his aura, but they keep finding him, now even after entering one of twelve lights which he felt should be able to hide him from them, they are still able to come after him. ''There must be something giving me away.'' He fell deeply in thoughts. Being chased wasn''t a good feeling, and although he was starting to get used to it due to how frequently he was getting chased, it still wasn''t a good feeling. ''Another one''s in.'' Void said after a brief lapse of silence. ''Could it be the things I took from the lab?'' Grey asked himself while moving forward slowly. "By any chance, do you think they''re able to find us because of the items we took from the lab?" He asked, thinking this was the most plausible explanation. ''Another three now. Sorry, what did you say?'' Void who was focused on sensing the beasts that were entering the place was unable to properly hear what Grey said. Grey repeated the question once again. ''That...might be a possibility, but we really can''t be too sure.'' Void said. "Then there''s only one way to find out." Five minutes later. Grey was currently almost at the foot of the mountain, but Void was unexpectedly not with him. ''Can you hear me?'' He transmitted his voice over to Void who was nowhere to be seen. Over one kilometer away from Grey''s position, Void could be seen jumping from tree to tree with a grumpy face. ''Yes.'' He replied grumpily. Grey chuckled on hearing how he responded, he was still left speechless by Void''s obsession over shiny things. After he thought of the possible reason they were being chased and found by the beasts, he suggested that he and Void should head in two separate ways with each carrying one of the items he took from the lab. The second Void heard his suggestion, he instantly voted to be the one to take the blade while Grey took the glass tube that held the lizard. Grey naturally wouldn''t agree to this, and after spending almost one minute arguing who would take the blade, he won. The reason for that was because the blade was in his storage ring. He was praying fervently, hoping the beasts don''t come after him, because the thought of discarding such a great weapon was already giving him a heartache. ''It''s amazing how we can communicate even from such a far distance.'' Grey said trying to get Void''s mind off the blade to help lighten his mood. Void is truly a great companion, and other than his love for shiny things, he was great. Grey isn''t even bothered about it, since everyone has something they love. Although, there''s a high chance that Void''s obsession would get him in trouble, just like with the Lightning Apes. ''Yeah, I didn''t think we would still be able to communicate even from this distance.'' replied Void. They soon focused on speaking about the mind link, and its possible limitations which slowly took Void''s mind off of the blade. ''I''m almost at the next mountain, what next?'' Void asked as he appeared at the foot of the mountain knowing another side, preparing to head into the next mountain. ''Wait there.'' replied Grey. At first, Void suggested that after he was a good distance away from Grey''s location, he would drop the glass tube and head back since he felt the glass tube containing the lizard was the most likely item that was attracting the beasts. But Grey rejected it since he couldn''t take the risk. What if after dropping the glass tube, the beasts still chase after him? Wouldn''t that mean he''ll lose both the body of the lizard as well as the sword? Grey and Void patiently waited on two separate mountains, the mountains they were currently on was not in the direction of the building, so even if the beasts finds them, after discarding the item, they would head towards the mountain, besides, they could still communicate, and once they get close to one another, they could sense each other. Ten minutes later. Rustle! Grey who had his eyes closed, sitting in a crossed leg position opened his eyes and his face turned sour when he heard the rustling of grass when stepped on. ''Don''t tell me the blade is the reason they''re chasing after me.'' He shook his head feeling a little dejected. This was a multi-elemental weapon, the first he had ever seen or heard of. It would be bad if he were to give it up. ''They''re headed in my direction, I''ve discarded the glass tube.'' Just when Grey was starting to think of what to do, he heard Void''s voice and couldn''t help but sigh in relief. If the beasts went after Void, it only meant they were after the glass tube holding the lizard all along. ''If they went after Void, then what''s coming towards me?'' Chapter 174 - Nice Pants! ''If they went after Void, then what''s coming towards me?'' Grey stood up and squinted his eyes, peering through the trees, trying to see what or who was coming towards him. It didn''t take long for him to catch a glimpse of a human figure, he felt a little more relaxed seeing that it was a person that was coming towards him, at least this meant he wouldn''t need to fight an unnecessary battle. "Who''s there? Come out!" He yelled towards the person who for some reason was still hiding. "Ah!" Accompanied by a powerful yell was a one and a half meters long earth spear that shot at Grey at a terrifying speed. Being caught unaware by the attack, he was slow to react, but he was still able to dodge the spear by a hair''s breadth. He sidestepped to the side and the spear brushed by his side, ripping a hole in the pants of his left leg while also slightly scratching his skin. ''Shit! My last pair of pants are ruined! Who the hell is this?'' Grey felt like beating the hell out of the person. He had been so careful all this while, and even when he found against the quasi dragon, he somehow managed to keep them from getting damaged. Now, a moron came from nowhere and destroyed it, even wounding him in the process. He was infuriated! Just as the first attack was dodged, three earth arrows shot at Grey once again at breakneck speed. Grey immediately created a wind dome around him that easily deflected the arrows coming his way. After deflecting it, he shot straight in the direction where the previous attacks came from. "Come out now! And we can still settle this...if you''re not an enemy." Grey yelled but the last part of the statement was so low that only he heard it. But he was met with silence, the person who attacked him didn''t make a sound, nor did the person attack any further. The person also concealed their aura, making it difficult for Grey to find them. Grey looked around for some time but was still unable to find the person. He even did a wide fire attack on the area, but other than scaring the magical beasts in the vicinity, nothing else happened. With no other option, he was forced to give up, while gritting his teeth hatefully. This person attacked him without warning and destroyed his last pair of pants, now he would have to walk around with it. Luckily, the place torn wasn''t that large, so he could manage. ''I need to get some pants.'' Grey declared inside. ''Where are you?'' He asked Void who was currently dashing through the trees on the mountain agilely. ''I''m almost at the second mountain.'' replied Void. ''Forget about it for now, come in my direction, and if you see any humans on the way, inform me. Also, when you get here, don''t immediately show yourself.'' Grey said. He wanted to find who attacked him, and he felt Void was the best guy for the job. Given how sharp Void''s senses were, he might be able to pick up this person who seems to be quite good at hiding. ''Is anything wrong?'' Void couldn''t help but ask when he heard Grey''s words. Grey went on to tell him about his ordeal, and his quest for revenge. After telling Void about it, he looked around vigilantly then walked away from the place, but he didn''t go too far, only about a kilometer from there. He walked towards a big tree that was able to perfectly block the sun and sat in a crossed leg position. ''How did the expert put a sun in this personal space?'' Grey asked as he stared at the sky through the leaves of the tree. Even after being here for almost one hour, Grey was still dumbstruck by the fact that this was a space created by someone, it was almost like the real world! In fact, had Void not said it was a space created by an expert before they entered the place, he would''ve thought there were only transported to somewhere else in the trial land. Rustle... Grey instantly snapped out of his thoughts when he heard the rustling sound, but he didn''t make any movements, he sat in the same position and if not for the frequent movement of his c.h.e.s.t when breathing, one might think he was dead. This was the reason he left his previous location, given how good the person was in hiding, he was unable to tell if the person was still there or not. But here, no matter how good the person was in hiding, the person would walk past some leaves which would certainly make a small amount of noise. Now, he knew he still had a chance of revenge, but he still didn''t know who would be attacking him. He sat down patiently while conversing with Void who was already close to where he was sitting. ''The person is here, so no need to look around for other humans, just head straight towards my location.'' He informed Void. ''Okay.'' Another minute went by with neither Grey nor his stalker making any move, made of the two, Grey seemed to be the most unbothered, it was like the situation was reversed. ''I''m here.'' ''I know, I can sense you. Try to find out the location of the bastard.'' Grey stood up. "I know you''re here! What''s your motive of attacking me?" Grey questioned, but it was like his words fell into deaf ears. He looked in the direction he heard the rustling leaves, and slowly approached it. Swoosh... Grey jolted at the sound of something breaking through the wind and sharply turned. An earth arrow was speeding towards him, even though he was prepared for an attack, he never expected it to come from this angle. The arrow was headed straight at his heart, he threw his right hand at the arrow with the hope of catching it, even if he couldn''t catch it, he should at least be able to change the course of its movement. But because of the speed, he was only able to move slightly, before the arrow hit him. Bam! Thud! With the arrow connecting, Grey fell to the ground, he laid sideways without making any movements, even his breathing seemed to have stopped. One minute went by with no one taking any action, it was only on the second minute did a figure slowly walk out of the trees. When the figure emerged fully, it was surprisingly the youth from the Starlight Academy who was in the Twelfth Prince''s group. He had a smirk on his face as he slowly approached the body of Grey. When they entered the castle, just like Grey they were all disheartened on seeing the small door, but because they couldn''t leave, they slowly started examining the hall. It was only after one of them mysteriously disappeared did the others started swarming towards the small door. He was resting when he suddenly heard movements, following where the sound was coming from, he found Grey. Before coming to the trial land, the instructors of the Academy told them to kill the students from the Lunar Academy if the opportunity arose, Grey especially, due to his involvement in the last incident that led to the death of one of their instructors. "This c.o.c.ky bastard is finally dead, the Academy would reward me handsomely." He laughed out loud in delight. At first, when he saw Grey, he wanted to fight against him, but he halted when he sensed Grey was not one, but two stages ahead of him. He remembered being the one who was two stages ahead when they entered the trial land, now, the situation was reversed. On getting to Grey''s body, he was about to kick it when Grey turned to look at him with a smile. "Oh! It''s you." Grey sharply stood up and threw the arrow that was held in his right hand away. The arrow unexpectedly didn''t pierce into his body, rather, if one looks closely, one will see a hole in his shirt, and behind that hole, was a glistening almost silvery colored earth armor. Grey had prepared this beforehand, just in case things took an unexpected turn. The youth took a step back while staring at Grey with horror-filled eyes, he saw his arrow hitting him, yet why was he perfectly fine? "Don''t be surprised, if not for the fact that I wanted to see you, you would have been dead by now." Grey patted the terrified youth on the shoulder. He recognized the youth was from the Starlight Academy and recalling that he saw Neil here previously, he was about to connect the dots. Void soon mysteriously appeared on Grey''s shoulder, which sent chills down the spine of the youth. He didn''t know when this small black cat came here, but from Grey''s words, it looked like the cat was what would''ve killed him. "I... I... I was...only...playing around." The youth stuttered, hoping for Grey to let him go. "I must say, you do have a nice pair of pants." Grey said with a mysterious smile. "Huh!" The youth was taken aback by Grey''s statement. ''What do my pants have to do with this?'' He thought. A minute later, a dead pantless youth could be seen on the ground, with eyes filled with sadness and regret. "It''s not very comfortable, but it''ll do for now. When we leave here, I need to go pants hunting." Grey said as he disappeared into the trees, heading towards the building. Chapter 175 - The Pants Thief On a mountain, Grey could be seen with an annoyed expression while walking in a somewhat awkward manner heading towards a building that looked like a temple situated at the top of the mountain. He was about fifteen to twenty minutes away from the top of the mountain if he continued walking at this pace. ''Why are you walking like that?'' Void couldn''t hold it in anymore and asked. He noticed that for some reason, after leaving the corpse of the youth from the Starlight Academy, Grey''s walking movement changed, it was like he was almost forcing himself to walk, and he has been grumbling all through the journey. Even when he was fighting against the magical beasts on the way, he was particularly more violent compared to before. "Damn it! These pants are annoying!" Grey said through gritted teeth while moving his hand behind him towards his b.u.t.t. At first, when he took the pants from the youth, he thought he could manage it even though it was a little too tight making it uncomfortable, but then, the discomfort increased and the pants kept getting into the middle of his b.u.t.t. He didn''t know how many times he had removed it since he started the journey, and whenever he was fighting, it was worse. He couldn''t help but regret the fact that he discarded his old pants when he took this one. "I didn''t think I''ll ever say this, but, I miss my old pants." Grey said with a sorrowful face. Void who was on his shoulder disappeared and appeared behind him, observing his b.u.t.t. ''They look perky!'' He exclaimed. "Huh! What?" Grey asked as he turned around to look at Void. ''Your b.u.t.t, this pair of pants is very tight, keeping it firm.'' Void said seriously. "..." Grey''s mind went blank, he didn''t expect Void was talking about his b.u.t.t. He opted not to reply, he was already irritated by the pants, if he were to reply Void, then he might just explode and pull off the pants! The duo continued walking forward with Void talking about the pants, and Grey moving his hand behind him every five minutes or so to remove the pants that had gotten into the middle of his b.u.t.t again. Presently, the only thing in his mind was to find a guy he could rob of his pants, and it has to be one his size! With a goal in mind, Grey walked as fast as he could, although his movement was quite strange due to the fact that he was walking in a somewhat bent position while occasionally stretching his legs. Void on the other hand was having a good time laughing at him, seeing Grey''s discomfort was quite entertaining. ''Imagine Klaus sees you in this condition.'' Void suddenly thought of Grey''s friends. When Grey heard this, his body jolted, and for the first time since he knew Klaus, he was praying not to see him. Even though it had been a while he saw his friends, and he''ll like to see them before leaving this place, but not like this. Given Klaus'' personality, he''ll mock him to no end. Grey''s movement speed suddenly increased, and he soon got to the building. He looked around, and other than some statues, an array at the middle which he guessed was the way out, he saw nothing else. "That''s it? No rewards or anything?" He asked while still looking around, hoping to find a reward with one of his hands going towards his b.u.t.t again. On the castle he entered with his friends, after every trial, one would naturally get a reward, although, he remembered the last trial there was no reward. He couldn''t really say there was no reward in that one since they found a bunch of things inside, not only that, but they got to hone their fighting skills through the repeated battles while searching for the exit. Void looked around as well, ''No, there''s nothing here other than the statues and this array.'' "Damn it! Such an annoying place! Let''s go." Grey said upset, not wanting to spend one more minute in here. They got to the array, and just like what happened in the hall, they were s.u.c.k.e.d in with a flash of light, disappearing from the temple. The moment Grey appeared outside the castle, he noticed there were still a few beasts from the ones who chased him here around, he immediately turned tails and ran, after dodging the tail of a lizard that was swung in his direction. "Void, let''s go rob some pants." Grey said as he jumped over the walls surrounding the castle. Void instantly got excited when he heard they were going to rob, this was different from when he stole from the Lightning Apes, and he couldn''t help but think of how thrilling it would be to rob someone. And so, two pants robbers were let loose in the trial land. In two weeks, they have robbed eight different people, with two of them being from the Qilin empire, of course Grey covered his face from them so as to avoid unnecessary trouble. Of the eight people robbed, six were beaten for refusal to comply with the demands of the pants thief. Another two weeks passed, and it didn''t take long for the tales of the pants thief to spread in the trial land, it was quite unbelievable that in a place as big as the trial land, of the small number of people who entered it and were still alive, at least seventy percent of them had heard a thing or two of the pants thief, whole a stark few of them had encountered him. It was unimaginable that a single individual would be so famous amongst all the people who entered this place, and what made him famous was not because he was strong or anything, rather it was all because he robbed pants! Grey was currently the most talked about individual in the trial land and was also the one hated by people from all four empires, luckily, he covered his face whenever he was robbing people. The only thing that kept everyone from ganging together to find him was that he didn''t kill any of his victims, and he only occasionally took the items in their bags. _____ Somewhere in the trial land. "Hey bud, why don''t we also go around robbing people?" A young man said with a hint of mischievousness. Another young man could be seen with him with his brows knitted. "To be honest, the thought truly is tempting. But... What if the real pants thief comes for us?" The second young man asked. "We''ll run." The first young man said nonchalantly. The two young men were none other than Klaus and Reynolds, after the group separated, they accidentally encountered each other five days ago, and decided since they would be leaving the trial land in a month, they should stick together till they leave the place. They had been searching for Alice and Grey, but they had unfortunately not found them. They had been hearing about the pants thief even before finding each other, and just a few hours ago they bumped into someone who said he was robbed not too long ago. Klaus felt it would be exciting robbing so many people, not just him, even Reynolds felt it would be an entertaining experience. They had also heard that the pants thief was able to defeat someone in the Fifth stage of the Origin Plane easily, so they knew he was someone they couldn''t defeat individually. Although, they felt there was a chance if they teamed up, but they couldn''t be so sure. "Okay, we''ll do it. I''ve gotten bored here, this should be able to thrill me till we get out of here." Reynolds accepted Klaus'' suggestion. The thrill they felt the first time they entered this place was gone, so seeing an opportunity to have fun, Klaus took it without blinking. They soon started planning out how they speak to their victims. "I have a suggestion, why don''t we rob ladies as well?" Klaus suddenly said with a grin. Reynolds gasped as he looked at Klaus with enlarged eyes. "That would be even more thrilling! But... Wouldn''t that leave the ladies n.a.k.e.d?" Reynolds asked. "They should have spare clothes, have you seen any of the people robbed by the pants thief n.a.k.e.d?" Klaus asked after some time. "Besides, we''re only doing this for fun. If the ladies truly don''t have spare clothes, we would leave them alone." He added. After their discussion, another set of pants thief was set loose on the trial land, and this group even robbed the ladies! Within one week, this group of pants thief grew even more famous than the first one, and many believed that the pants thief found a companion. Grey who had stopped robbing people was dumbfounded by the news of another pants thief and the only people who came to his mind was actually Klaus and Reynolds, he didn''t think there would be anyone who would be that bored to start robbing people, and given the fact that they were robbing ladies, he felt there was a sixty percent chance he was right. Chapter 176 - This Wasnt Part Of The Plan! "Run!" A loud shout was heard from inside a building that was surrounded by trees. Boom! The shout was followed by an explosion, and the doors of the building were blasted away with dust rising into the air. "Shit! How could someone in the Fourth stage be this strong!?" A young man''s shout could be heard from inside the building. Soon, two figures who covered their faces leaving only their eyes open could be seen sprinting out of the building through the damaged door. The figures were none other than Klaus and Reynolds, and behind them, silhouettes of two people could be seen coming towards them, fast. In the past week, they had always ensured they didn''t rob anyone who might be stronger than them, although fighting was quite exciting, getting beaten up wasn''t. The duo was still in the Third stage of the Origin Plane, with Klaus being the most likely one to break through to the Fourth stage first. He had been in the Third stage a little longer before Reynolds caught up, and he could already tell that there was a high chance he might break through before leaving the trial land. "Stop there pants thief! I''ve been searching for you two for a long time now!" A young man''s voice could be heard coming from behind them, soon, the figure of a dashing-looking young man appeared. The young man was handsome, although not at the level of Grey and Klaus, compared to others, he was very handsome. The young man was putting on a righteous expression that one would think he couldn''t condone anything evil, and behind him, was a stunning young lady. The young lady had a slender body with almost perfect features and a round pretty face that would stand out even when placed in a crowd. Unfortunately, she was almost robbed by Klaus and Reynolds who didn''t give a damn if she was pretty! Just as they were about to rob her, the young man appeared out of nowhere trying to play hero. When the duo sensed his stage, they didn''t bother about it too much since he was only a stage above them, and the young lady was in the same stage as they were. Being people who were confident in their abilities to fight across stages, they engaged in battle, hoping to rob the young man as well. Only, things didn''t go as planned. The young man soon overpowered Klaus, putting him in a tough position, when the duo realized what was happening, they instantly decided to flee. Although, if things were to get serious, Reynolds would instantly summon his Elemental Warrior to end the battle quickly, but since they didn''t want to kill anyone and were just having fun, he decided against it. "I order you to stop!" The young man said while chasing after the duo. "Is he normal?" Klaus who was running asked Reynolds who was by his side. "I don''t think so." Reynolds replied while sprinting into the forest. Their voices were very loud, so the young man, as well as the young lady, heard them clearly. "Damn it!" The young man exclaimed in a low and annoyed voice. He was trying to put up a good image in front of this young lady so as to catch her attention, yet these two kept abusing him. When the battle was going on previously, he was unfortunate to battle Klaus, who would haul insults at him from time to time. He had been trying to contain his anger so as not to show his real image in front of the young lady. But Klaus was driving him to the brink of exploding, given Klaus'' use of words, it''s quite amazing that the young man had been able to hold himself back till now. "Hey, this wasn''t part of the plan!" Klaus suddenly yelled. "Huh!" Reynolds, the young man and the young lady all wore a confused expression. "Hey bud, what are you talking about?" Reynolds asked Klaus in a low voice. "Just play along, I''m trying to make him look bad in front of the young lady." Klaus said with a cunning grin. "What are you talking about?" The young man asked. "Stop playing dumb, I only agreed to the plan because you said you''ll give us some treasures, yet you''re overstepping the boundaries." Klaus said in an angry voice. If one who didn''t know the truth heard him, they would truly feel he was annoyed because of how the young man was treating him, and the young lady was starting to have some doubts. Hearing what Klaus said, she couldn''t help but feel that what he was saying might be right, although, there was also a possibility that Klaus was only trying to separate them. But the moment doubt came into her mind, she''ll naturally not trust the young man anymore, after all, the way the young man appeared seemed quite rehearsed, and even the line he said when he appeared was also quite captivating. "What is he talking about?" The young lady immediately questioned. "I don''t know what he''s talking about." The young man immediately denied it, and it was the truth, only, it didn''t sound convincing in the ears of the young lady. Anyone caught stealing would naturally deny it, so there was no way the young lady would accept it instantly, and he didn''t know him in the first place. "Stop denying it! You said after we allowed you to show your strength a little you''ll let us go, but now, you''re pushing us too far!" Klaus yelled, feeling wronged. But he had a wide smile plastered across his face, it was just that there was no way for the young lady and young man to see it. "Yeah, don''t push us too far!" Reynolds added with a wronged voice. "What are you saying!?" The young man yelled almost on the verge of tears. He didn''t know what they were talking about, he was only following the young lady, and he couldn''t help but feel happy when he saw Klaus and Reynolds robbing her. He instantly stepped forward and said a cool line he read from a story when a hero was rescuing a beauty, and he felt great. He even saw a glint flash past the eyes of the young lady, and he felt he was getting close to his target. But now, a single statement from Klaus had ruined everything. "Stop!" Klaus suddenly yelled and everyone, except for him and Reynolds stopped. When they saw that the young lady and the young man stopped running, they both stopped and turned around. "I don''t know them." The young man tried explaining once again. But the doubt in the young lady''s mind already overshadowed her. "Thank you for your help, goodbye." The young lady said and left. Although she didn''t know if Klaus was lying or not, but she felt thanking him was a must since even if it might be a ploy, he did help her. The young man''s eyes turned red from anger and he looked at Klaus and Reynolds with annoyed eyes, he was incensed! "You bastard! I''ll kill you!" The young man yelled and charged at the duo. "Okay, enough." Reynolds said calmly and his Elemental Warrior appeared behind him. The young man who was charging towards them immediately stopped, and a look of dread appeared in his eyes. He didn''t imagine the duo were actually hiding their strength. "Why did you say that?" He questioned angrily. "You''re a moron, why did you keep chasing us?" Klaus asked. "You''ve already gotten her attention, yet, you wanted to do more. If I may ask, what did you plan to do to us if you caught us, kill us? beat us? I''m really curious to know." Klaus asked while smiling but all the young man saw were his eyes. "I... I...only wanted to teach you some lessons." The young man stuttered. He knew any wrong words from him and he might lose his life to the duo. "Oh really? Bud, why don''t we do to him what he wanted to do to us?" Klaus looked at Reynolds, squinting his eyes. Reynolds nodded with a chuckle, he also felt like teaching someone a lesson, and the young man volunteered himself. Before long, screams of pain could be heard resounding in the forest, luckily, the young lady had left or the young man would have been badly embarrassed. After being taught a thing or two by the duo, they went on to rob him of his pants. ____ "Haha, that was fun!" Reynolds said laughing. "Yeah, if only we can get someone to teach a lesson this frequently, life would''ve been great." Klaus said with a smile on his face. "Okay, now, where next? Should we continue with it?" Reynolds asked. "It was fun, but, I''m already tired of it. Let''s find the others." Klaus said. They''ve already had their fun, now it''s time to regroup with the others and possibly leave this place early. Chapter 177 - A Strange Reunion One week passed, and the genius'' who entered the trial land who were still alive had only two weeks left before leaving the trial land. The struggle for treasures intensified as everyone wanted to increase their strength even if it was by a small margin before leaving, so whenever a treasure was found, as long as there was another person in the vicinity, then there would be a fierce fight for it, there had been multiple cases where the fights ended with one of the parties suffering serious injuries, and in some cases, losing their life. Even the pants thief who grew famous during the past month and a half had been almost completely forgotten, and since no one was being robbed anymore, they were slowly forgetting about them and all their focus was placed on finding treasures. On different parts of the trial land, fights could be seen breaking out every now and then. Had it been when they first entered the trial land, then the genius'' would try to keep their distances from each other, but now, some people were actively getting closer to others with the hope of stealing something from them. In the next two weeks, they will all use one week to search for treasures, then the last week would be used to travel back to where the formation was located in the trial land. Every single individual in the trial land was searching for treasures, except for Grey, Klaus, and Reynolds. Unlike the majority, they were actually searching for each other. Even Alice was searching for treasures, so it was quite strange that there were three people here who weren''t too interested in increasing their strength. _____ On a rocky path, Grey could be seen gradually heading to the top of a mountain with Void sitting on his shoulder like usual. He had been tracking the pants thief for a few weeks now, and about a week ago, he felt he was pretty close to the duo, but then, he suddenly stopped hearing rumors about them, making locating them harder. He had seen multiple battles start because of a treasure during this week, but he didn''t even spare a glance at it. It wasn''t like he didn''t want to increase his strength, it was just that he hadn''t seen any treasure that had piqued his interest, nor had Void told him about there being any good treasures. "*Sigh* If I don''t find them here, I guess I''ll have to leave this place on my own." Grey sighed as he gradually climbed the rocky mountain. He had been searching for the pants thief for a while now, and there was also the possibility of them not being Klaus and Reynolds, so there was a chance he was most likely wasting his time. ''How does the outside world look like?'' Void asked curiously. "Well..." Grey went on to tell him about the outside world. And before they knew it, thirty minutes went by, and they were at the top of the rocky mountain. On getting to the top, it was empty. ''Looks like our search is in vain.'' Void looked around trying to see if there were any signs of people passing through here. But he unfortunately didn''t find anything. Grey also looked around, and shook his head in disappointment, "Guess we''ll be leaving on our own then." They started their descent, only, Grey decided to pass through the other part of the rocky mountain. Two hours later, six kilometers away from the foot of the rocky mountain. Two young men could be seen on a rocky plain, they were Klaus and Reynolds who were searching for Grey and Alice. "I knew finding them would be difficult. Why don''t we head back to where the formation is located, if we don''t see them on the way, then we''ll wait for them outside." Reynolds said while staring at the sky with squinted eyes. Klaus nodded, he knew finding either Grey or Alice in this large place was going to be difficult. Of all the times that they had encountered each other, it was due to pure luck, and he didn''t expect they would always be that lucky. "What''s that?" Reynolds pointed at a large dust cloud that suddenly rose into the air behind them. "Seems like people are fighting again." Klaus said not really interested in it, after all, they had seen different battles over the past week. "But not at this scale, maybe what they found is something good." Reynolds said after a brief silence. "We passed through there a few hours ago, why didn''t we find anything?" Klaus asked trying to dissuade Reynolds. He didn''t really want to go back, although, I''d Reynolds said they should head back he would agree to it since he couldn''t allow his friend to head back alone. What if it was too dangerous? Wouldn''t that put Reynolds'' life in danger? At least if they were together, the chances of any of them dying would be minimal, unless the opponent was at least four stages ahead of them. "We should check it out, you never know what we might find there." Reynolds said while heading back in the direction of the rocky mountain. Klaus could only grumpily follow behind him, he knew if he were the one who suggested anything, even if Reynolds didn''t want to do it, he would still agree to it, although not immediately, but he would definitely agree to it. At the foot of the rocky mountain. Beads of sweat could be seen dripping from Grey''s face, and his back was soaked. Even Void had a serious expression. They looked around vigilantly, but they didn''t see anything. "What was that?" Grey asked still not sure of what he saw. The thing suddenly came out of the ground, with the body of a worm, a big mouth filled with rows of razor-sharp teeth, what looked like tentacles around the mouth, only, they were short given the size of the worm, and it also had a fin on its back. ''I have no idea.'' Void shook his head. The creature appeared and disappeared like it was never there. Grey''s fast reflexes were the only thing that saved him, or else, he might have been in the stomach of the giant worm by now. Creak... Grey immediately turned when he heard this sound, looking in the direction of the sound, he saw the ground was a little higher than its previous state, it was like something was pushing it from below. ''There.'' He informed Void. ''I know.'' Void also heard the sound, so he was currently staring at the ground which had a bump. The bump on the ground suddenly started moving in their direction. ''It''s the creature.'' Grey immediately attacked the bump on the ground, but it didn''t stop it from moving towards them with increased speed. With the rocky ground as a shield, the creature was almost untouchable. ''F.u.c.k!'' Grey cursed and immediately tried escaping. If he stayed in the same position, that meant the creature could easily come out of the ground and swallow him up, even if he were to die, he didn''t want to die in this manner! Grey was running as fast as he could, heading towards the rocky plains as he would need to pass through there before getting into a forest. He had tried turning the ground to mud, but because of the rocky ground, he couldn''t, and that was the only way he could stop it since once it comes out of the ground, it immediately gets back in once it realizes it missed its target. Unknown to Grey who was running as fast as he could towards the rocky plains, Klaus and Reynolds were sprinting through the rocky plains, heading in his direction. One minute later. Grey who had already gotten into the rocky plain was surprised when he saw the silhouettes of two people heading fast in his direction. Klaus and Reynolds also saw the silhouette of Grey who was running towards them, but due to the distance, they couldn''t get a clear view of each other. The moment they got within eight hundred meters away from each other, Grey was the first to recognize the duo, and he couldn''t help but feel a little elated since he had finally found his friends, but the constant creaking sound of something racing through the ground quickly took the smile away from his face. "Run!" He yelled while waving his hands. Klaus and Reynolds didn''t hear him properly, but they saw him waving his hands, on getting a little closer, they realized it was Grey, and a smile spread across their faces. They even increased their speeds trying to get to him sooner. But then... "Run you morons!" They were currently within four hundred meters away from Grey who was getting closer to them. "Wait, why is he running?" Klaus asked. Because of the joy of seeing their friend, they forgot one thing. He was running away, given Grey''s strength, even if he was in the Third stage of the Origin Plane, only those at or above the Fifth stage could beat him. "I don''t know, but run!" Reynolds turned around instantly, heading back to where they were coming from. Finding Grey turned into a somewhat bittersweet moment since they were most likely in danger, the funny thing was, they hadn''t even seen what was chasing after Grey, and they didn''t plan to. Chapter 178 - Making Lava ''*Sigh* Once again, I''m running away.'' Grey sighed, a little dejected. If anyone asked him what he did the most in the trial land, then his reply would definitely be ''running away''. He had been chased so many times now that his physical speed had unknowingly increased by a lot. He''s currently faster than his stage, that was without using any movements techniques or boosting his speed with the elements, if he were to use either one, then his speed would increase by a great margin, he might even become faster than people who are four stages ahead of him. That kind of speed was unheard of! Grey has unknowingly started to grow accustomed to running away, but getting used to being chased wasn''t a great feeling, other than the few Lightning Apes he killed alongside Void, he had not been able to get back at any of the beasts that had chased him. Void looked at Grey and he couldn''t help but shake his head, finding their current situation very familiar. ''I must say, you''re quite good at escaping.'' He said mockingly. ''You think?'' Grey asked with a self-depreciating smile. ''I really need to get out of here.'' He thought internally. If he stayed here any longer, he was afraid he might get into another situation that would require him to run once again, and that was something he didn''t wish to happen. "Guys, run faster!" Grey said as he gradually closed the gap between himself and the duo. Klaus and Reynolds who were previously over three hundred meters away from him were now only within fifty meters of him, and from the look of how things were going, it wouldn''t be strange if Grey were to breeze past them. "You bastard! What did you do?" Klaus asked. "Nice to see you too buddy." Grey said with a smile while waving at him. "What''s chasing after you?" Klaus asked hastily. He had sensed Grey''s stage and knew it would be difficult for anyone or any beast even in the Sixth stage to cause any harm to him. But what he found strange was that he hadn''t seen anything behind Grey, anybody not for the serious expression Grey had on when he told them to run, then he would have thought he was only messing with them. Grey went on to describe the beast to the duo. "Have you seen a beast like this before, or even heard of it?" Grey asked, hoping to get some information about the beast from either of the duo since he was clueless about it. "No, this is my first time hearing of a worm with fins." Klaus said looking back at the fin which was visible in the moving bump on the ground. "Actually, I''ve heard about a beast similar to this." Reynolds who had been quiet all this while spoke up. "Oh, really?" Grey and Klaus turned their attention to Reynolds simultaneously. "Yeah, it''s said to only be found in the Southern Desert, ruling the sands there. But according to its description, the one found in the Southern Desert doesn''t have a fin like this one." Reynolds told them what he knew about it. Grey and Klaus fell silent, they had also heard that there were a lot of rare beasts that were only found in the Southern Desert. Unfortunately, it was a place they couldn''t head to because it was located in the Azure empire. Soon, Grey had caught up with the duo, creating a good distance between them and the beast that was chasing after them. "So... What have you been up to lately?" Reynolds asked after the trio fell silent for some seconds. "Nothing much, just, you know, running here and there. How about you guys?" Grey glanced at the bump that was slowly getting smaller, before switching his attention back to his friends. Before he caught up with the duo, he had sensed the stage they were in and discovered they were both in the Third stage of the Origin Plane, with Klaus'' aura being the stronger of the two, which indicated that he would be breaking through to the Fourth stage anytime soon. ''Since Rey is in the Third stage, that means his Elemental Warrior will be at the Fifth stage now. Amazing!'' He exclaimed inside. The sooner one becomes a summoner, especially in the case of an Elemental Warrior, the better. Had Reynolds become a summoner at the time he was in the Fusion Plane, then his Elemental Warrior would have been three stages ahead of him now. Even Grey felt a little envious of Reynolds, but since he had the Fusion State as well as elemental fusion, he wasn''t too bothered. Not just that, but there was also a slim possibility that just like Reynolds, he might be able to become a summoner someday, although, the chances were very slim. "Well...we''ve actually been..." Reynolds paused and took a glance at Klaus. Grey looked at the duo and laughed, "Stealing pants?" Klaus and Reynolds were taken when they heard him, not expecting him to easily guess they were the ones who had been stealing pants. "What I don''t get is why you actually decided to start stealing pants? And even from the ladies as well." Grey looked at the two curiously. "We got bored, so when we heard someone was going around stealing pants, it sounded fun, so we decided to join in as well." Klaus explained. ''Tsk, if only they knew why you started stealing pants.'' Void said with a chuckle when he recalled the way Grey walked after stealing the pants of the youth from the Starlight Academy. On hearing Void, Grey also remembered that day and he couldn''t help but feel grateful that he didn''t encounter Klaus and Reynolds then, even Void was still mocking him about it, so it''s easy to guess what Klaus and Reynolds would do to him. While the trio was speaking about the pants thief, Grey suddenly heard the usual creaking sound that the ground makes when the beast is speeding through it. He couldn''t help but turn to the source of the sound and realized it was coming from their right, and he recalled the one chasing after them was behind them. "Guys, there''s another one." Grey quickly signaled the others about the arrival of the new beast. "Oh shit! How could I have forgotten about that." Reynolds suddenly exclaimed. "What?" Grey and Klaus asked at the same time. "Wherever there''s one of this particular beast, there''s bound to be more, a lot of them." Reynolds said with a serious expression. The trio was already over seven kilometers from the rocky mountain and was currently within two kilometers of the forest that was ahead of them. But they soon started seeing more bumps chasing after them, with some being faster than others. There were even two charging at them from their front. Boom! Grey immediately slammed a two meters earth mace on one of the bumps. When the mace slammed into the ground, it sent a shockwave into the ground which easily hit the creature that was moving below it. The creature was only about half a meter in the ground, and although the shockwave couldn''t kill it, it didn''t have a problem hurting its soft body. Seeing that it was effective, Grey quickly did the same thing to the other one that was in front of them, thereby clearing the way for the trio to make a getaway. By the time they got to within a kilometer of the forest, there was already more than ten bumps behind them, all the ones that had appeared ahead of them had been taken care of by Grey, although, there was a time when one got close to them and came out of the ground with its mouth wide open, trying to eat one of them. But unfortunately for it, the only thing that went into its mouth was Klaus'' huge ice needle and Reynolds lightning bolt. When both attacks connected, the creature was fried by the lightning from the inside out, but it quickly cooled down from Klaus'' ice needle, before turning into an ice sculpture. Klaus had gotten increasingly better at using the ice technique ''Sub Zero'' he got from one of the fifty-four paths, now he could even occasionally get the ice needle to the freezing level. With the trio working together, they were able to fend off the beasts while edging increasingly closer to the forest. Grey initially planned on using mud to stop the beasts before killing them, but then he remembered something, Klaus and Reynolds didn''t know of him having the water element. Stuck in a dilemma, he quickly improvised. ''Instead of making mud, I''ll try making lava instead, it shouldn''t be too hard.'' He thought. "Once we get into the forest, keep some distance away from me." Grey ordered as they were about to enter the forest. ''You too Void.'' He transmitted to Void. Immediately after giving out the order, they entered the forest, the others immediately created a small distance between them and Grey. "Phew... Here goes nothing." Grey breathed out heavily as he channeled his fire essence to his leg, then into the ground. The others all watched him curiously, waiting to see the outcome of what he was about to do. Chapter 179 - Change Is Constant The bumps on the ground were moving quickly towards the forest, not showing any signs of stopping, and Grey estimated they will get to the forest within at least eight seconds. Grey felt a little pressured since he had never tried doing this before, although it would be the same process just like when he created mud, the outcome would be different. If the heat generated from the fire essence is not enough, then he will be unable to form lava. While everyone was waiting patiently, Grey focused his mind and channeled more of his fire essence into the ground. Just as the beasts were about to enter the forest, Grey tried to turn the ground into lava. But things unfortunately didn''t go as planned. The ground heated up, before gradually drying up, all the grasses in the area instantly died, but other than that, nothing else happened. ''What''s going on, why didn''t it work?'' Grey''s mind went into turmoil. He expected at least the same result as when he tried creating mud, but the results were far from what he wanted. Screech! A loud screeching sound filled with pain came from the ground, but it was a little muffled so the group didn''t hear it properly. "How did he do that?" Reynolds pointed at the parched up ground. Klaus shook his head, indicating that he had no idea how Grey did it. ''I get it now.'' Grey thought as he went closer to his friends, vigilantly staring at the bumps on the ground. The reason he didn''t get the same result as when he tried making mud was easy, mud was created using soil and water, but lava was made using rock and fire. He was currently in a forest, and the ground was made up of soil, not rock. ''I should''ve tried it while we were still in the rocky plains'' Grey thought with a little remorse. Luckily, the heat seems to be able to hurt the beasts, thereby making it hard for them to come any closer to the group. When Grey was previously trying to create the lava, he channeled his fire essence to cover up a width of about twenty meters, and the beasts were gathered in a width of just over ten meters, so even after they moved a little further, they couldn''t get to the trio. Before long, the bumps on the ground disappeared. A minute later. "Are they gone?" asked Klaus. "It seems like it." Reynolds replied after looking around. "I''m not too sure, we should stay alert." Grey added. Compared to the duo, he could be said to have more experience when it came to these beasts since he encountered them before the duo. They decided to stay for another minute, but when they saw nothing, Grey finally decided it was time to leave. After the group turned around and started heading deeper into the forest, unknown to them, on the ground thirty meters in the west, a bump was silently moving towards them. This worm in particular took a detour around the heated soil, not just this one, the others as well. The bump on the ground slowly retracted, leaving the surface flat again, but the worm was still headed in the direction of the trio. ____ One hundred meters into the forest. "How did you do that?" Reynolds asked. "Just a little trick I learned here." answered Grey who was still vigilantly looking around. He felt that his previous attack shouldn''t be able to stop the beasts since it didn''t cover a wide range. "A trick, you call th.." "Get back" Grey held Reynolds by the hand and pulled forcefully, Reynolds who didn''t expect Grey would pull him was unexpectedly sent flying by the pull. Just as he went airborne, the ground he was previously standing on cracked, and a worm sprang out from the ground with its mouth wide open. Bam! Reynolds landed on his b.u.t.t, but he didn''t have time to complain about the pain, not Grey''s freakish physical strength. He immediately stood up and seeing that the worm who wanted to turn him into dinner still haven''t gone back into the ground, he attacked along with Klaus and Grey. "F.u.c.k you! I don''t even taste good, why would you want to eat me?" He cursed as he continued attacking the worm violently. Before the worm could get back into the ground, it was unfortunately bombarded to death by the assaults of the trio, especially Reynolds'' crazy attacks. "Hey bud, it''s dead, you can stop attacking." Klaus stopped Reynolds who was still attacking the worm, even though it was dead. "Hmph! Ouch!" Reynolds snorted angrily, before crying out in pain while holding his left shoulder. "Shit! Grey, how the hell are you so powerful?" He asked while rubbing his shoulder with a painful expression. "Sorry, I didn''t... Stay close to me." Just as Grey was about to explain, Void told him about more worms that were coming their way. The trio stuck together and Grey channeled his fire essence into the ground again, heating up the soil around them. Screech! A screech of pain was heard once again as one of the worms was unlucky to be in the area Grey heated up. By slowly expanding the area, he gradually drove the worms back. Twenty minutes later. "That should do it." said Grey. Although he didn''t kill all the worms, the pain they felt from the heat should be able to keep them away. "So where are you guys headed?" He asked. "We were initially searching for you and Alice, since we''ve found you, I guess Alice is our next target. But if we don''t find her within the week, then we''ll have to leave this place without her. How about you?" Klaus explained "Same as you guys." Grey said. "Okay, let''s go find Alice, and then leave this place. I''ve missed the Academy so much." Klaus was the first to start heading deeper into the forest. "Yeah, me too." Grey and Reynolds said at the same time. "I wonder if the empire would change after not seeing it for so long." Reynolds suddenly asked after they caught up with Klaus. "I don''t think so, we''ve lived in the empire for so many years and it didn''t change, why would it change in a short six months." Klaus replied, he didn''t feel there would be any changes in the empire. "Because there are times when change happens instantaneously, without any warnings, it just happens. People who love you will hate you, and those who said they would die for you, would try to kill you instead. All these will happen in the blink of an eye." Grey joined in the conversation as well. He continued, "It''s not that they didn''t like you before, it''s just ''change''. That''s why it''s said, change is constant, you''ll never know when someone or something will change, they just do." "Well, I can''t say you''re wrong about that. But, I still believe even if the empire does change, there wouldn''t be much of a difference." Klaus said. "We all do." Grey replied. The group fell into silence as they all thought about ''change''. What if the empire does change, what would they do? And how can they adapt to the sudden change? "Hey Grey, you spoke like an elder just now." Reynolds decided to break the silence. "Yeah, are you sure you''re not over fifty?" Klaus added while laughing. The trio soon broke into laughter at the expense of Grey, but he didn''t mind since he joined them in laughing as well. "But seriously, where did you hear that?" Reynolds asked after their bout of laughter. "From a book I read." Grey replied after some time. "It''s a nice book." Reynolds said before keeping shut. The trio continued with their search for Alice, but even after six days passed, they didn''t see any signs of her. Although they were confident in the ability of their friend, they couldn''t help but feel a little fearful, after all, they knew there were dangerous places in the trial land that even if they all grouped together and entered, they would still most likely die. _____ In a mountain range deep in a forest at the Azure empire. The compound belonging to Quinn''s family could be seen standing proudly. In a study room. Knock! Knock! The middle-aged man who was sitting on the chair raised his head, a hint of tiredness could be seen on his face. "Come in." He said in a dignified manner. The door of the library was opened slowly and the butler of the family walked in with his heads down. "You summoned me, my lord." The butler knelt in front of the desk before speaking. "Are they back yet?" The middle-aged man asked. "No, my lord." The butler shook his head. "You can leave." The middle-aged man waved him away as a hint of grief flashed through his face. ''Could it be that they faced a mishap?'' Chapter 180 - Delias Choice ''Could it be that they faced a mishap?'' The middle-aged man felt a little worried, Quinn and the others were supposed to be back by now. Yet, there was only a week left before the trial land closes, but they''re still not back. Quinn was his only child, and he treasures him a lot. After Quinn''s test, on seeing that he had three elements, and one was the darkness element, he felt the fate of their family lied in the hands of Quinn. ''He shouldn''t have an equal in his generation.'' The middle-aged man tried consoling himself. And he wasn''t wrong about it though, Quinn naturally doesn''t have an equal amongst his generation in the Azure continent. Grey was the one who killed him, and his parents weren''t from the Azure continent, so technically, Grey wasn''t from the Azure continent. The middle-aged man picked up a book from his desk but threw it to the flow in annoyance. Even though there was still a week left, he didn''t feel optimistic about Quinn''s return. Slowly, the thought of Quinn possibly being dead started to creep into his head. ''He''s smart, so he wouldn''t go to areas which would put his life at risk.'' With an unsettled mind, he started thinking of multiple possibilities. Qilin empire, Lunar Academy. The Academy was quite peaceful with students occasionally walking in and out of the compound. Most of the students didn''t look as cheerful as they usually did, the reason for that was because, one week ago, the principal announced that he''ll be stepping down from his position once the students get back from their special training in a week time. Surprisingly, he was not the only one who would be stepping down, after hearing the principal''s announcement, the other head instructors, as well as a few high leveled instructors also decided to step down. Over the years they''ve worked with the principal, they''ve developed a form of attachment to him. Not just that, but they didn''t see themselves working with anyone else. Even the emperor wouldn''t have expected all the head instructors, and most of the old instructors in the Lunar Academy to step down just because Oliver was stepping down, this was a blow to the empire''s strength since all the instructors that stepped down were all in the Overlord Plane. Blake''s office. Blake was currently pacing around in his office, apparently thinking about something. "*Sigh* We''ll be leaving soon, and Senior Chris isn''t back yet. He doesn''t usually take this long whenever he disappears." "Also, what will I do with Delia? She didn''t say you''ll step down as an instructor, so that means she''ll be staying here. But, I can''t let her stay here and be controlled by the emperor." He quickly decided it was better to meet up with Delia and have a chat with her. Just as walked up to the door, he heard a knock. He hastily went back to his chair and took a seat. "Come in." The door opened, and a delicate-looking young lady walked into the office. "Delia!" Blake raised a brow, not expecting Delia to come to his office. "What? Am I not allowed in here?" Delia looked around before taking a seat opposite him. Blake looked at her and smiled wryly while shaking his head. Even after their frequent encounters, she still speaks in this manner sometimes. "Of course you are. What brings you here?" He asked. The only time Delia had come to his office was when Grey just entered the Academy, since then, she had not stepped into the office again. "I just came to check up on you." Delia said blandly while staring at the bookshelf that was close to the desk. "Oh!" Blake was slightly taken aback by her statement. "Yeah, so how are you?" Delia said in the same bland voice. "I''m fine. How about you?" Blake asked while wearing a surprised expression. "Fine." answered Delia before falling silent. Blake stared at her, a little dazed by the fact that she came to his office just to ask how he was doing. That shouldn''t be all, right? A minute went by and the office was still quiet, with only the sound of the duo''s light breathing being heard in the office. "Seriously, why did you come? It can''t be that you only came to ask how I''m doing, right?" Blake broke the silence, still staring at the almost fairy-like young lady sitting across him who was staring at the bookshelf by the desk. Delia continued staring at the bookshelf without replying. Just as Blake was about to question her once again, she opened her mouth, "When are you leaving?" "I''ll be going with the principal." Blake replied in a low voice. "I see. Did you plan on leaving without saying goodbye?" Delia finally stopped staring at the bookshelf and gazed right into Blake''s eyes. She could feel that after they''ve left the Academy, then getting in contact with them would be extremely difficult. Although she didn''t know much, she could tell there was something wrong. "Was about to come to your place and talk to you." Blake answered staring back into her eyes without blinking. Delia didn''t speak any further and dropped her head, seemingly waiting for something. "Do you want to come with us?" Blake finally asked after brooding over it for some time. He didn''t think the chances of her following them was good, given the fact that her father was a high ranking official of the empire, even if it wouldn''t mean much if she left, Blake felt her father wouldn''t approve of it. Delia''s eyes turned watery, and she kept her head down. "I can''t." She stood up and walked in the direction of the door. "Are you afraid of what your father would say?" Blake asked when she got to the door. He got on his feet and approached Delia. "Not what he would say, but how he would feel. Just like you don''t want to disappoint your Teacher, I also don''t want to disappoint my father." Delia said with one of her hands holding onto the doorknob. "Even at the cost of your freedom? I know I always do things according to Teacher''s demands, but there are times I did things for myself, for you." Blake said, standing behind her. "I know, but we''re two different people. If I decide to leave with you, father would be heartbroken." Delia said while slowly turning the doorknob. "And me? How do you think I''d feel?" Blake asked in a low voice. The turning doorknob stopped with a ''click'' sound, and Delia turned to look at him. When he saw her eyes, he felt sad inside. He could see the pain in her eyes, yet, there was also a resolution, she wouldn''t change her mind, not so easily. Blake continued, "What about you? Will you be able to live comfortably with this decision? Don''t ruin your life for someone who had already lived his." "I''m sorry, goodbye Blake." Delia opened the door and exited the office, closing the door behind her. After closing the door, she dropped to the floor with her back against the door, and tears poured down her face. Luckily, Blake was the only instructor in the Lightning Hall, so there was no one else in the building. Blake who was on the other side of the door could hear her sobbing, he wanted to open the door and go out, but he sent out his spiritual sense outside to see where she was. He heaved a sigh when he saw her, the reason was that, if he opens the door, Delia who had her back against it would lose the support of the door and fall to the ground. Standing at the other side of the door, and hearing Delia''s sob, Blake shut his eyes and remained motionless. "Don''t hurt yourself just to please someone else." Blake said from the other side of the door and walked back to his seat. He couldn''t force Delia to agree to come with them, since she''s decided that her father''s feelings are more important, then so be it. Delia stayed outside the office for some time before leaving, she felt like she was a little boat caught in a storm in the sea. Her heart was telling her to go with Blake, but her head was telling her not to hurt her father''s feelings. That night, she couldn''t sleep as she contemplated on the matter, over and over again. Is her decision to stay because of her father really the right one? The next morning, she silently left the Lunar Academy. _____ Back at the trial land. "This is the last day, if we don''t find Alice today, then we''ll see her outside." Klaus said while munching on the meat in his hands. This was the thing he had missed the most, Grey''s cooking. Like him, Reynolds was a terrible cook, and even though they liked good food, they couldn''t make one, so being together with Grey was a blessing to them. Chapter 181 - Terrible Cook The trio was currently sitting in a field, and a fire was burning mildly, with a stake set up and what looked like the remains of a pig could be seen on it. "I have to say bud, you''re a great cook. Not like some people I know." While saying the last statement, Klaus made sure to stare at Reynolds. Reynolds was left flabbergasted, ''Why is he looking at me?'' He asked himself. "Yes Rey, I''m talking about you, you''re a bad cook. No, not bad, saying bad makes it sound good, you''re a terrible cook." Klaus said looking at Reynolds in contempt. "Like you''re any better." Reynolds retorted angrily. "At least my cooking doesn''t cause diarrhea, even with our enhanced organs, your awful cooking is still poisonous. I''m very confident that your cooking can easily wipe out an entire town of people who are below the Arcane Plane." Klaus said still looking at Reynolds in contempt. Hearing Klaus'' statement, Grey, Void, and even Reynolds was taken aback. "Is it that bad?" Reynolds couldn''t help but ask. He had tasted his food, and he could agree with Klaus that he was a terrible cook. But come on! His cooking could wipe out an entire town of people below the Arcane Plane, isn''t that a little too exaggerated? "You could try cooking for your parents, if they survive it, then I''ll walk around n.a.k.e.d for a week!" Klaus was even ready to go n.a.k.e.d for a month because he was very sure that Reynolds'' parents would die from it. They might not even last two hours before dying! "Okay Klaus, I get it, I''m a bad cook. But don''t forget we couldn''t eat anything when you cooked. At least there was something left in mine to eat, you, on the other hand, burnt the outer part of the meat, yet the inside wasn''t properly cooked." Reynolds said laughing. "That wasn''t my fault, the fire wasn''t properly made!" Klaus tried explaining. "And who made the fire?" Reynolds asked with a sneer. "I di... I meant to say that the wood was bad." Klaus said, trying to shift the blame. "And... Who picked the wood? I remember you saying, and I quote, ''This wood is great! Grey always uses this type of wood''." Reynolds said the last statement imitating Klaus'' voice as much as he could. And for the first time since Klaus entered the trial land, he didn''t have a comeback. In this war of words, Reynolds was the victor, but he knew he''ll come back again stronger! ''I''ll accept defeat this time. But he should remember, he might have won this battle, but I''ll always win the war!'' He thought cheering himself up. Grey on the other hand was enjoying the bickering between the duo, since they had grouped up, his journey had been very amusing, to say the least. "Enough guys, you''re both terrible cooks." He said chuckling. "Hmph! Someday, I''ll be a better cook than you are." Klaus declared. "Haha, not a chance. But I''d like to see you try though, at least your cooking might get better." Grey laughed, and Reynolds soon joined in as well. "*Sigh* Who am I kidding? I''m not patient enough to cook, I''ll just find myself a wife that''s a great cook, but until then, you will have to cook for me." Klaus immediately gave up on the idea of learning how to cook. Eating good and tasty food was great, preparing one, was not so great. "At least you know your limits. Wait, who''s going to cook for you?" Grey asked looking at Klaus. "You of course, do you think I''d eat whatever Rey cooks? I still want to continue living." Klaus said while throwing a disdainful glance at Reynolds. The trio continued speaking about food until they finished their meal. "Okay, now where to?" Reynolds asked. "I don''t know, you know we''ve been moving randomly all this while." Klaus replied. "Hmm, let''s head in that direction then." Grey suggested, pointing at what looked like the roof of a building from where they were currently sitting. "Okay." Klaus and Reynolds nodded before standing. "Such a waste of good meat." Klaus said with a sad look. They weren''t able to finish the pig, so there was still some left. Grey walked closer to it and touched it. After touching it, it disappeared. "Shit! Grey, since when can you make things disappear?" Klaus immediately yelled out, stunned by the fact that after Grey touched what was left of the pig, it disappeared. Reynolds stood dumbstruck, looking at Grey like he was a freak. "Wait, what?" Grey asked with a confused expression. All he did was keep the rest of the meat in his spatial ring, what''s so shocking about it? Besides, it wasn''t like he hadn''t told them about it before. "Can you make humans disappear as well, if you can, I have a list of people I..." Klaus stopped when he saw the weird look Grey was giving him. "I only kept it in my spatial ring." Grey said. "Oh! You mean that spatial ring. Wait, what''s a spatial ring?" Klaus said as a series of expressions appeared on his face. Grey was once again left speechless, and he couldn''t help but pull a long face. He didn''t think Klaus would''ve forgotten about it so soon. ''Maybe he''s forgotten about it.'' Thinking of this, he decided to tell Klaus what a spatial ring was. Just as he was about to speak. "I''m joking, I remember what it is, I just wanted to see how you''d react if I said I didn''t." Klaus chuckled after seeing Grey''s reaction. "You... Forget it." Grey could only shake his head at how playful Klaus was. Now he knew how most of Klaus'' opponents feels whenever he asks who they were. With nothing left, the trio started their journey. ''Hey, are you okay?'' Grey transmitted his voice to Void. ''Yeah, why''d you ask?'' Void stared at him strangely. ''Oh nothing, it''s just that you''ve been a little quiet lately.'' Grey asked a little concerned about his companion''s behavior. Void felt quite good on seeing Grey''s concern towards him, and just as he was about to speak, Grey ruined the moment with his next statement. "Or, are you pregnant?'' Grey asked cheekily. ''F.u.c.k! How can I be pregnant, I''m a male!'' Void immediately exploded out. Grey who was walking suddenly burst into a fit of laughter. Klaus and Reynolds who were both behind him looked at him not understanding why a normal person would suddenly start laughing. "Do you think he''s okay?" Reynolds leaned closer to Klaus and whispered. "I''m not so sure." Klaus shook his head. They couldn''t be blamed, when Grey previously told them about the space element and spatial ring, he didn''t tell them he could speak to Void in his mind. "Grey, are you alright?" Reynolds poked Grey on his back as he asked. "Of course I am, why would you even..." Grey who turned around when replying Reynolds failed to see the rock which appeared in his way and tripped over it, falling face-first to the ground. The strange thing was, after he tripped on it, the rock disappeared like it was never there. "Are you okay?" They asked simultaneously. "Yeah, I just tripped on...a...rock." Grey said the last part looking at the place where the rock was supposed to be, yet he found nothing. He looked around, and found Void not too far from where he was laughing. ''It''s you.'' He said. ''Yes, that will teach you not to mess with me.'' Void continued laughing. He knew Grey was only making fun of him, so he decided to play as well, and since he had the space element, making things appear and disappear was his specialty. Grey squinted his eyes and a grin formed on his face. Plop! The ground Void was standing on suddenly went soft, and he fell into it. Grey made sure to be secretive about it so Klaus and Reynolds wouldn''t find out. ''Hehe, I won in the end.'' He laughed before standing up. The trio continued their journey with Void having to walk on his own, the reason for this was because he was covered in mud. And Grey refused to use the water element to wash him up. Klaus and Reynolds were actually shocked when they saw the muddy Void, they knew they didn''t pass any muddy place, so where did the mud come from. When the group was about to reach the building, Grey finally decided to clean Void up, since he couldn''t use the water element openly, he could only tell Klaus to do it. Boom! A loud explosion came out of the compound, accompanied by smokes and screams. "People are fighting again." Reynolds said sadly. He had seen more fights in this week than since he entered the trial land. He felt a little sad for the ones who lose their lives fighting for treasures, although one treasure could change their lives, if they die because they were trying to get it, what was the use? Although he also wanted to grow stronger, he was contended with the pace at which he was improving. Sometimes, moving too fast in life isn''t always the right choice. "Come on, let''s check it out." Grey said in low voice. He too, didn''t get why most of these people were fighting to the brink of death just for a treasure. He moved his hand along Void''s soft fur petting him, before entering the compound. After staying with Void for some time, he found out that just like every other cat, Void likes it when someone pets him, so whenever he sees he was angry, he''ll pet him. The trio soon entered the compound, and what greeted them was just as expected, four people were fighting against each other, with three corpses on the floor. Chapter 182 - Waiting For The Squad The arrival of an unknown group immediately alerted the fighters, they stopped and looked in the direction of the gate where Grey and his friends were standing. And their hearts sank, the reason for that was because they realized of the three people who just arrived, one of them was in the Fourth stage of the Origin Plane. The four who were fighting against each other were all in the Third stage, and after going through the gruesome fight, they weren''t at their peaks, and since they didn''t even trust each other enough to team up, there was no way these pair of two Third stage Origin Plane Elementalists could fight against Grey and his friends, even if they teamed up with the other pair, they still didn''t have a chance. ''Void, anything good?'' Grey transmitted his voice over to Void. If what these people were fighting for was something that could catch Void''s attention, then he wouldn''t mind taking it from them. At least that way they would stop killing each other. ''No, I''ve already checked, it''s not good enough.'' replied Void. After hearing Void''s reply, Grey retracted his gaze from the tensed fighters and turned to his friends, "Let''s go, there''s nothing good here." Klaus and Reynolds nodded, they weren''t too attracted to the treasures anyway. After getting the Great Earth Essence Liquid, they felt the reason for coming here had been obtained. Not just that, but they knew even if there was another treasure at the same level as the Great Earth Essence Liquid, it wouldn''t be acquired so easily. The four who were fighting were taken aback when they saw the trio leave without even heading into the building, after their initial shock, they heaved a sigh of relief. Now, all they had to do was get rid of their opponents and they would be able to obtain the treasure. ____ Outside the compound. "Hmm, where are we headed now?" Grey asked while looking around. Searching for someone in this big place was almost impossible, there was no way to contact each other so how would they know where they were. "Huh!" They all exclaimed simultaneously. Seeing the strange reactions from everyone, they looked at each other before curiously checking their bags and the ring for the cause of the heat. Klaus and Reynolds quickly brought out a wooden two inches object that was glowing resplendently and also slightly heating up their hands. They unconsciously let go, and to their greatest surprise, it didn''t fall to the ground as expected, rather, it started floating, before heading in a specific direction. "What the hell! What is that? And how did we end up with one each?" Klaus was left dumbstruck by the strange object. Grey had also taken out the same wooden object from his storage ring, and couldn''t help but look at it strangely. ''Where did I obtain this?'' He asked himself. It took only a few seconds and having to see Klaus and Reynolds'' objects float in the air before he recognized them. "Haha, they''re the wooden objects I took from that Darkness Elementalist. Follow it, it will lead us to Alice." Grey said excitedly. He got a lot of the wooden objects from Quinn''s bag, and he was lucky enough to know how it was used from one of Quinn''s companions, so when he and his friends were about to head their separate ways, he gave each of them one and told them how to use it. That way if any of them was in danger, they could call for assistance, well, that was on the premise that the person was close by. Klaus and Reynolds had forgotten about the item, but hearing that it would lead them to Alice, they immediately followed it. Even Grey forgot he had something like this. Although the other ones in his ring were also heating up, it wasn''t too bad. The trio chased after the floating glowing wooden object, and they unsurprisingly attracted some attention from the few people who saw them chasing after a floating object. These people didn''t know what it was, and seeing that Grey and his friends were following behind it, they felt it was leading them to some kind of treasure, or it was the treasure itself. "Hmph! We need to get rid of these pests." Klaus snorted coldly, not entertaining the idea that they were being followed. Presently, there were three people following behind them, and two were in the Fourth stage, while the last one was surprisingly in the Fifth stage. But it was of no concern to Klaus, he was confident in their abilities, well, in Grey''s strength and Reynolds'' Elemental Warrior. He also had no problems with fighting against someone in the Fourth stage, they are only a few people in the Fourth stage that could defeat him, so he was still quite confident in himself. Although, the main basis of his confidence when he made that statement was Grey and Reynolds. "Hmm, you''re right. But we can''t afford to waste time, so just let them be, for now." Grey said, after taking a glance at their followers. They didn''t know the situation of Alice, so they couldn''t afford to waste time dealing with these people. Even if they could defeat them, it would still take some time. So, Grey decided it was best to head over to where Alice was located, if they find out she''s not in any danger, then they''ll attend to the people following them, they might be able to even resolve the matter without needing to fight. _____ Deep in a cave in the southern part of the trial land. About six kilometers away from Grey and his friends. Alice could be seen hiding behind a rock, panting heavily with her hand bleeding. "Come out, there''s no use in hiding, and you can''t leave this place since there''s only one exit. I already promised I won''t kill you, I only want to teach you some things." A voice could be heard accompanied by laughter. Some distance away from where Alice was hiding, three young men could be seen smiling in a l.e.w.d manner. The one in the middle had a slightly average-looking face with a black mark just above his left eye, and the other two were identical twins who were relatively better looking than the young man in the middle. ''Hopefully, the boys aren''t too far from here.'' Alice prayed in her heart. She was unfortunate to encounter these young men some hours back, and about two weeks ago, she saw the one with a black mark, and he made advances towards her which she rejected. Although she currently didn''t have anyone in mind, it didn''t mean she''ll be with someone she didn''t even know. Not just that, but she didn''t like the way he was staring at her. At that time, the young man was alone, so after being rejected by Alice, he left. Alice didn''t try to attack him, after all, she couldn''t just attack someone because he liked her, and the young man didn''t do anything else, after being rejected, he left. To her surprise, when she encountered him some hours ago, he once again tried making advances towards her. And just like the last time, she rejected him, but this time, after he was rejected, he became forceful. All three young men were in the Third stage, just like Alice, so it was difficult for her to deal with them. If they were only two, then she was confident in being able to escape unscathed, but under the assault of three, her chances were quite slim. The only reason she managed to hide was because of the speed the lightning element brings, yet, it was not enough to completely escape because she was injured during the first clash, hence greatly diminishing her speed. "Come on, it''s not like I''m going to be the only one who will enjoy it." The young man with the black man said again, and the twins by his side burst into laughter once again. This wasn''t their first time doing something like this, and it was unknown how many young ladies had fallen victim to their l.e.w.d nature in and outside of the trial land. Now, they''ve set their sights on Alice. So she quickly shattered it, with the hope that the rest of the squad would come to her aid. She also knew that it would take them a while before getting here, that was why she was stalling as much as she could. Since these three were already set on ensuring she could escape, she could only pray, and wait for the rest of the squad. ''Hopefully, they get here soon.'' Chapter 183 - Since When Are You So Nice? "Shit! They''re five now?! We have to find a way to stop them before they become too much for us to handle." Klaus said in dissatisfaction when he saw another two people started following them. "Yeah, you''re probably right about that. We don''t know what situation Alice is in, but being followed by a lot of people wouldn''t do us or her any good either. Given how desperate they all are for treasures, they''ll do anything for it. That''s what also makes chasing them harder. Even if we explain what this thing is, they wouldn''t believe us, after all, only a few people know about it." Grey said. "Explaining won''t do any good, let''s just beat the crap out of them. That way, they wouldn''t dare to continue following us." Reynolds said impatiently. ''Yes, violence, let''s use that.'' Void said excitedly. From how happy he was, it was easy to see he didn''t like it when things are too peaceful. Since meeting up with Klaus and Reynolds, although their company was fun, Void preferred the time when Grey would either be fighting against a beast or running away. At least, he was always excited whenever they were doing those. But the most excited he had been all this while was when Grey started robbing pants! ''*Sigh* I miss those days.'' He sighed at the thought of their pants stealing days. ''You''ve always liked violence.'' Grey smiled wryly at Void''s words. "How long do you think it''ll take to send the message?" He finally conceded to the group''s plan. "Two minutes at most, as long as we go full power immediately." Klaus calculated. They didn''t want to kill the people following them since it was just a misunderstanding but they didn''t want them to follow them either. After all, they didn''t know Alice''s situation. Also, there was the possibility of Alice finding a heaven-defying treasure that she wanted to show them. Although the chances are small, it was a possibility they couldn''t rule out! "Okay, wait while I get my inscription up, until then, we won''t attack." Grey nodded. Since they were going to deal with them quickly, he might as well use his inscription also. The only problem was, they didn''t know if they were already close to Alice, or not, so if before he creates his inscription they get to where Alice was located, it would be quite sad. Another minute went by before Grey completed the inscription. "Okay, I''m ready." He said. The trio stopped and turned around. Grey had already suggested they tried explaining to them first, only when the group following them refuses to heed their words before they''ll attack. Although attacking will make the people following them feel like they were truly going to get a treasure, they didn''t have much of a choice. The people following behind them also stopped and looked at the trio, then they looked behind them, and saw that the floating object the trio was chasing after was currently stopped by an earthen hand that came out of the ground. "Why are you following us?" Klaus asked apathetically. "Nothing." The youth in the Fifth stage of the Origin Plane said. Since he was the one with the highest stage, he became the default leader of the group. Of the four people, three were male, while the last two who joined recently were females. "Then stop following us." Klaus said plainly. "You don''t sound convincing enough." Grey whispered in Klaus'' ear. He felt if he was the one following behind someone because of a strange floating object, and the person just turns around and says stop following us, he wouldn''t stop. Besides, he was following them for a reason. "Okay, let''s cut to the chase. We want a share in the treasure." The leader of the group of five said. "What treasure? There''s no treasure, this is only a device used to locate a partner. If you notice there are three, which belongs to the three of us, we''re only following it to our friend who has the last one." Grey explained. It''s not that he was scared of fighting, but he felt if they could settle this amicably, why fight? "Heh! Do you think we''ll believe that? Just continue heading forward, and we''ll follow you, we don''t care if you have any friend or not." The leader of the group said with a sneer. The others in the group all chuckled, feeling Grey''s explanation was stupid. ''Who would believe they were only heading to meet a friend, since when was a floating object needed before one can meet a friend?'' Thinking about this, they felt even more certain that the trio was going to a place where a rare treasure was located, and only that floating object could take them there. ''You see, if you had used violence from the start, you wouldn''t waste so much time explaining.'' Void said, edging to beat the crap out of some people. ''*Sigh* I hate to admit it, but you''re right. We can''t waste our time explaining to them.'' Grey sighed. "Well, I guess I tried. But just to be clear, we truly are heading to meet a friend. We can''t risk allowing you people following behind us, so it''s either you turn back on your own, or we make you." Grey warned. "Heh! I knew there was a treasure." The leader of the group scoffed. "I don''t wa..." Grey was about to continue warning before he was cut short by Klaus. "Stop preaching Mr goody two shoes. Attack!" Klaus ordered. "So much violence, but I have to say, it''s fun." Grey smiled and the inscription in the air lit up. ''Void, you''ll have to deal...'' Grey was once again cut short by a loud explosion. Boom! The attacker was none other than Void. ''Since when did you become so nice?'' Void asked with contempt before attacking once again. ''Ah... This feels nice.'' He thought to himself, relishing the feeling of getting to attack someone once again. Grey smiled awkwardly, ''Yeah, I don''t get why I''m being so considerate to them.'' After this thought, he joined in the attack as well. Chapter 184 - Not In The Mood To Kill Boom! Bam! The fight quickly got heated, and Grey''s opponent was none other than the leader of the group who was in the Fifth stage of the Origin Plane. He was a Water Elementalist, and he''s quite strong as well. Well, that would be if he was facing someone else, in front of Grey, he wasn''t much. To the young man''s greatest surprise, he was instantly put on the defensive when fighting against Grey, and the most annoying thing was that he could see that Grey wasn''t even too focused on him. ''Who is he? How can he be so strong?'' He thought to himself. Although the geniuses here weren''t from the same empire, there have been a few who had grown famous amongst the ranks in the trial land through battles. But the young man hadn''t heard of anyone who had blue flames, and he also saw Grey using the earth element, which made him a Dual Elementalist. "I don''t know why I''m being nice today, but I''ll warn you once again, turn around now before it gets too late." Grey warned again. He didn''t know what''s happening to him today, but since he isn''t in the mood to kill anyone, he thought it might be good to one the young man once again. "And miss out on the treasure? Not a chance." The young man said determinedly, not backing down in any way. "Fine." Grey''s eyes went cold. He didn''t want to waste any more time. "Rey, what the hell are you doing? Full power you idiot!" Klaus cursed out when he saw Reynolds was only fighting with his elements. "F.u.c.k you! You moron!" Reynolds cursed out like always and immediately summoned his Elemental Warrior. The duo fighting against Klaus and Reynolds initially thought they were about to start fighting against each other when they cursed at one another, but on seeing the Elemental Warrior, their faces turned pale from fright. They sensed the stage of the Elemental Warrior and got an even bigger fright, it was a stage ahead of them. But they knew its real strength would be at the Sixth stage of the Origin Plane, on could they fight against it. In a minute and a half, the group of five were all in their last legs. Grey was beating the youth in the Fifth stage while also using his inscription to assist the Elemental Warrior which was fighting against two people, although it was overpowering them, Grey felt the sooner they were defeated, the better. Klaus'' opponent wasn''t having it good as well, since he had to face two assaults, one from Klaus'' element, and the other, from his mouth. Just like always, Klaus had gotten used to cursing at his opponent while fighting. While the most pitiful was the young lady who was fighting against Void. At first, she found it strange that a cute little black cat wanted to fight against her, but now, she didn''t see him as cute, rather all she saw was a little devil. Unlike the others, Void wasn''t holding anything back and was attacking at almost full power. Had it not been for Grey threatening not to give him food a few times, he would have already killed the young lady multiple times already. But it didn''t stop him from hurting her though, he was a magical beast after all, and it was his nature to be violent. "I didn''t plan for things to happen this way, but it was all because of your greed. Also, we truly are going to meet our friend." Grey said before turning away to leave. After the group turned around, the trio continued their journey. "What the hell is wrong with you? Since when did you turn so soft?" Klaus couldn''t help but ask. He found Grey''s behavior quite odd, since he knew Grey, this was the first time he saw him behaving this soft to others. "I don''t know, maybe I''m not just in the mood to kill anyone today." Grey said with a faint smile. "Oh, okay." Klaus nodded. He knew there were also times when one wouldn''t feel like doing something, since his friend didn''t feel like killing today, then so be it! "We should increase our speed, I think we''re getting close." Grey said and tried to see if there was a way to get the object to move faster. He held it in his palm while protecting it with the earth element, whenever he notices it wanted to turn, he''ll let it go, after it turned, he''ll hold it once again and continue moving forward. "Looks like she''s here." Grey said after seeing the wooden object float into the mouth of the cave. "Yeah, guess she found a treasure after all." Klaus said with a glim flashing through his eyes. If it truly was a treasure, then it wouldn''t be an ordinary one. Since Alice wouldn''t call them over because of an ordinary treasure. "We can''t be too sure yet, let''s head in first." Grey said and walked into the cave. The others followed suit. Entering inside, they immediately saw a tunnel that led deeper into the cave, and walked in while cautiously observing the place. ''Anything good?'' Grey asked Void. ''No, but I sense people up ahead.'' Void said after a while. "Hmm, let''s pick up the pace." Grey urged the orders and quickly sprinted forward. In the depths of the cave. Alice was currently surrounded by the trio, and the young man with the black scar was laughing out loudly. "Hehehe, I have you now, I promise, you''ll remember this moment for the rest of your life." He licked his lips as he approached Alice. "I have to say, you''re quite strong, this will make the experience worthwhile." One of the twins said. He still couldn''t believe that it took three of them almost twenty minutes before they could beat her. Alice who was currently sitting on the floor looked up and her eyes turned watery, she didn''t think she will ever face a situation like this in her life. She felt like instead of something like this happening to her, it was better to end her life. ''Goodbye, guys. I hope you don''t miss me too much.'' She thought with a sad smile. Just as she was about to control the lightning in her body towards her heart, she heard an all too familiar voice. "Hey bud, are you sure you''re not in the mood to kill today?" Chapter 185 - The Nutcracker! "Hey bud, are you sure you''re not in the mood to kill today?" On hearing that voice, Alice smiled, since Klaus was speaking to someone else, it meant he didn''t come alone. When she raised her head to look at them, she was taken aback by seeing all three of them were present. Due to how big the trial land was, she naturally expected them to be alone. Even if they weren''t alone, she thought only two of them would be together, but to her greatest surprise, all three of them were together. The trio who surrounded Alice also turned to look at where the voice was coming from, when they looked behind them, they saw three young men, all emitting bone-chilling terrifying killing intent. "Who the hell are they?" One of the twins asked. "Look, if you also want to have fun with her, you''ll have to wait your turn." The young man with the black mark said while waving his hands at them, telling them to leave, before turning his attention back to Alice. The only reason he refrained from attacking instantly is that he was a little apprehensive of the group''s strength. Had they been in the Third stage like them, he would have thought of fighting against them, but Grey was in the Fourth stage, which made things difficult. So, he felt telling them to back off while he has his fun was the best thing to do, he even offered to also allow them to have fun with the girl. That should be enough, right? "What should we do to him?" Klaus leaned closer to Grey and Reynolds and asked while staring at the trio coldly. "Remember what you did to that youth at the first castle we entered?" Grey asked. "Huh! No." Klaus shook his head. He had done a lot of things, to a lot of people since entering the trial land, so he had forgotten about that youth from before. "When we fought for the boxes." Grey said again, hoping Klaus would recall. Klaus'' expression first went blank as he tried recalling what Grey was talking about, soon, his eyes lit up and a smile formed across his face. "You mean when I did ''the nutcracker''?" He asked happily. "The nutcracker?" Grey and Reynolds asked in confusion. They had no idea what ''the nutcracker'' Klaus was talking about is. "That''s the name I gave the attack, ''the nutcracker''." Klaus announced proudly. "From here, of course." Klaus pointed at his head laughing. "Wait, there''s something there? I thought it was an empty space." Reynolds chimed in, mocking Klaus in the process. Klaus was about to retort, but when he sensed Grey''s gaze, he recalled why they were here in the first place. "Okay, we''ll kill the other two first, and then, you''ll use that move." Grey said. "What move? Come on, say the name." Klaus urged with a grin. "The Nutcracker." Grey said with a weird expression. "See, the name is quite catchy right, ''the nutcracker''. Wanna know why I called it ''the nutcracker''?" Klaus asked as they approached the trio. "Seriously, no." Grey refused. Klaus was taken aback by Grey''s refusal, but he still told them anyway. "It''s because it can crack nuts!" "I have a feeling his disease is contagious." Reynolds said. "Yeah, me too." Grey nodded. Sometimes, it was hard for them to take things seriously, especially when Klaus was around. The young man with the mark found it odd that unlike before, Alice didn''t have that look of despair, instead, he felt she was looking at him pitifully, and he even saw her shake her head a few times. ''What''s wrong with her?'' He asked himself. He was about to grab hold of Alice when the twins suddenly yelled out. "What are you people doing? Get out now!" They ordered when they saw the trio getting closer to them. The cave was about one hundred meters wide, but it was only about fifteen meters tall. If a strong battle were to take place here, there was a possibility it may collapse on top of them. Even when they were battling with Alice previously, they also had to be careful. The young man with the mark turned around on hearing the yells, "I already told you to wait your turn, what else do you want?" "Hmph! Don''t take me for a pushover, get lost now before I get angry." The young man with the mark snorted coldly. "Or what?" Klaus asked mockingly. "Huh?" The young man didn''t expect Klaus to ask such a question. "What will you do if we don''t leave?" Reynolds was the one who spoke this time. "I...I...I''ll kill her." The young man with the mark pointed at Alice who was on the ground. He was no fool, at first he thought maybe Grey and his friends didn''t like what they wanted to do or something like that, that was why they were emitting the killing intent, but on seeing how they were prepared to kill them, it meant only one thing, they knew the young lady! Since they were trying to force him, then he''ll just have to threaten them with her life. "Tsk, tsk, and how would you manage to do that?" Grey asked laughing. "Uh!" The young man exclaimed in shock. Doesn''t that mean that he couldn''t hold Alice hostage anymore? ''*Sigh* It''s a good thing I''m very fast, added with the lightning and wind elements, it''s almost impossible for them to keep up with me. Unfortunately, after this initial shock, they''ll be able to defend against it.'' Grey shook his head while standing in front of Alice. "How''s this possible?" The young man blurted out in shock while retreating to the other side of the cave, along with the twins. "Klaus, Rey, head outside." Grey said while assisting Alice up. He knew they couldn''t fight here, that was why he didn''t attack after getting behind Alice. He was an Earth Elementalist, and he had sensed the top of the cave wasn''t stable, he guessed it was from when the trio battled with Alice previously. With Alice in tow, he started walking out of the cave. Right now, killing the trio was easy, but like Klaus, he didn''t want the young man with the mark to die easily. "If I were you, I''d start walking, or else, you will all stay buried here." Grey said coldly as they went into the tunnel that led outside the cave. The trio gulped in fear, losing Alice came as a big blow to the young man. After managing to trap her, those fools came and took her away just like that, what was worse was that he didn''t even know if he could keep his life, given how strong the killing intent Grey and his friends were directing towards them. Compared to the young man, the twins felt even more fearful, that was because they saw Grey and his friends laughing, yet, they still felt the terrifying killing intent. That was the only question they were asking themselves. "Come on, let''s go. They can''t defeat us." The young man encouraged and took the first step. On getting outside, they saw Grey, Klaus, and Reynolds standing ahead of them, with Alice sitting in a crossed leg position. She even had her eyes closed, it was like she already knew the result of the battle. "You too, how would you like to die?" Klaus asked the twins. The twins'' eyes went cold on hearing such a question. What does he mean how do they want to die? He''s crazy! His whole family''s crazy! They gritted their teeth and clenched their fists together, since Grey and his friends wanted to make things difficult, then they''ll fight them to the end. "Stop!" The young man with a mark stretched his hand out to stop the twins from attacking, before he continued, "Why don''t we settle this amicably? As you can see, we didn''t touch her, and she''s already healing from her wounds. We can just go our separate ways and act like this never happened." "Heh! You, shut your trap and wait at the side." Klaus scoffed before ordering. Settle what amicably? From the time he had l.e.w.d thoughts about Alice, he had already signed his death warrant! The young man''s face turned sour, "I don''t believe you can defeat us." This time, he was the one who initiated an attack, he was a Wind Elementalist in the Third stage of the Origin Plane, he naturally had confidence in his abilities. The twins also attacked, surprisingly, they had two opposing elements. One was a Fire Elementalist, while the other was a Water Elementalist. "You don''t need to call out that guy." Klaus said. ''Void, stay close to Alice, in case of any mishaps.'' Grey sent Void over to Alice. Although they were stronger, they shouldn''t get too confident, after all, they weren''t the only ones who can fight above stages. Grey had encountered a few who were quite stronger than their stages, so he knew every opponent in the trial land must be taken seriously. Chapter 186 - Klaus Ice Ability Boom! The attacks of the three fighters collided and exploded on impact. The shockwave spread out in all directions, but it was easily dismissed when it got close to any of the fighters. When the battle started, Klaus took on the young man with the mark, while Grey and Reynolds went for the twins. Reynolds fought against the Water Elementalist, while Grey fought against the Fire Elementalist. Grey initially wanted to fight against the young man with the mark, but Klaus opted to do it, and since the young man was the one who Klaus was going to use his ''special move'' on, Grey didn''t hassle over it. Besides, he felt the twins as well as the young man had the same level of strength, so it didn''t really matter who fought who, what matters was that they should defeat their opponents. "Hmph! You should have let him fight me." The young man snorted coldly. He felt he was being looked down on by Grey and his friends, after all, the strongest should fight against the strongest, right? "Hehe, you''re not strong enough to make him fight against you. Although I''m not as powerful as he is, even if I close my eyes, I''ll still be able to beat the hell out of you." Klaus laughed, not annoyed by the young man''s statement. He naturally knew who was stronger in their group and who was weaker, even though he could be said to be the weakest, that was in the midst of his ridiculously strong friends. When placed amongst all the geniuses who entered the trial land, only a few could beat him one on one, and none of those people are in the Third stage of the Origin Plane. "I''d like to see you say that after I''m done with you. Ha!" The young man yelled and a tornado formed around him. It slowly increased, two meters, three meters, four meters, and it went all the way to ten meters before stopping. The tornado was drawing in everything in the surrounding, trees, rocks, dirt. It even tried to draw in the people there. Void was currently laying close to Alice, he raised his head, and the attraction force of the tornado seemed to disappear from their area. It was like the place where Alice was sitting was covered with a strong wall, nothing could go in. Grey and the Fire Elementalist were able to easily break loose of the attraction force of the tornado, likewise Reynolds and the Water Elementalist. "Stupid, I''ll beat you into a pighead!" Klaus cursed and formed a ten meters radius water dome around himself. Klaus stretched out his hands and head-sized water balls started shooting out of the water dome at the tornado. Boom! Boom! Boom! The water balls disappeared into the tornado immediately after contact. The young man who was currently standing at the center of the tornado, pointed at Klaus, and all the items that were drawn into the tornado shot straight at Klaus. Klaus smiled on seeing this and immediately solidified the water dome, now, it turned into an ice dome, perfectly protecting the individual inside. Bang! Bam! Boom! The trees and rocks continuously slammed into the ice dome, but the ice was too thick, so they couldn''t break it. With the defense Klaus currently has set up, it was almost impossible to break it in a short period of time, especially for people who were in the same stage as himself. The only way to quickly break it was when the attacker was at least two stages ahead of him. Klaus stood in the ice dome with his hands crossed. "Tsk, he thought he was my opponent." He shook his head with a smile. Soon, the items stopped smashing into the ice, but it was unable to break it, there were a few places which formed small three inches deep pits on the dome, but that was all. With a smile still plastered on his face, the pits on the ice dome slowly started filling up, and soon, the ice dome returned to its previous state, without a single scratch. "My turn." Klaus said and ice arrows soon started protruding out of the ice dome. Swoosh! Multiple ice arrows shot towards the center of the tornado at the same time. The young man tried using the tornado to block them, but a few passes through. He instantly used wind blades to destroy the few that got close to him. ''Hmm, he''s strong.'' He couldn''t help but change his view of Klaus. At this rate, it would be impossible for him to break through Klaus'' defense. Although the earth element is always regarded as the best defensive element, one shouldn''t take ice out of the picture, a Water Elementalist can create a thick ice wall, it is almost impenetrable. In regards to creating ice, not all Water Elementalists can create thick ice, the thickness of the ice has to do with the individual as well as the grade of the element. Klaus wasn''t particularly the best when it came to ice, but that was in the past. After he acquired the technique ''Sub-Zero'', his ice ability increased by leaps and bounds, added to the increase of his grade when he refined the Great Earth Essence Liquid, there are a few Water Elementalist who can say their ice ability is as strong as Klaus''. "You''re stronger than I thought." He said sincerely before adding, "But, I was only warming up, now, the real fun begins." Infusing himself with the wind element, he launched forward while a huge wind crossbow appeared mid-air, the arrow notched on top of it shot straight at Klaus'' ice dome. A smirk formed across his face. "This attack will surely destroy that ice barrier of yours!" He yelled as the arrow made its way towards the ice dome. Whoosh! Klaus did reply, he just stood in the same spot, staring at the arrow. He could feel the power behind it, but he was still confident that it will not be able to break through his ice. If the young man was a stage ahead of him, then there might be a small chance it would break it, but currently, Klaus didn''t feel the attack was strong enough to break it on the first attempt. Boom! After hitting the ice dome, the wind arrow dispersed with a ''whoosh'' sound. Looking closer, the arrow was only able to create a pit that was one-fourth the thickness of the ice dome. The result of the attack left the young man standing with mouth agape, while Klaus nodded in satisfaction. "Your attack is just so so." Klaus said moving his hand in a way the young man perceived to be very annoying. "You''re belittling my attack! I''ll end you, this time." The young man yelled angrily. Just as he was about to attack... "Wait!" Klaus suddenly yelled out. And for some weird reason, the young man truly stopped his attack. He looked at Klaus attentively, waiting for what he wanted to say. "You''ve already attacked." Klaus said and a grin formed on his face, "My turn." Waves of water suddenly gushed out of the ice dome heading straight at the young man. Klaus also decided it was time to stop hiding in his shell, or else the young man might think he was scared of him. After exiting the ice dome, the ice dome slowly started breaking before turning into multiple ice spears floating in the sky. "Let''s see how long you can survive my onslaught." Klaus smiled as the spears shot at the young man. Boom! Bam! Bang! The young man couldn''t believe his eyes, he could take it when he couldn''t beat Alice alone, after all, she was a Dual Elementalist. But just like him, Klaus was also a Single Elementalist. ''Why was he this strong? Or, am I the one too weak?'' Multiple questions ran through the young man''s head, but he didn''t have an answer to them. The only thing he knew was that if things continued like this, it was only a matter of time before he would be defeated. He looked at the other battles, hoping that maybe one of his companions would be able to overpower either one of Klaus'' friends. But his expression changed on seeing the sorry state of the Fire Elementalist that was fighting against Grey. He could tell Grey didn''t want to kill him quickly, else, given how badly beaten the Water Elementalist was, he should have been able to kill him already. Looking on the side of Reynolds'' battle, he heaved a sigh because he saw that both fighters seemed to be on the same level, it even looked like the Water Elementalist had the upper hand. "You should focus on your battle." Klaus approached the young man and once again started attacking. They exchanged moves once again, and a minute later, they heard a scream which forced them to stop fighting. When they looked in the direction, they saw a lightning blade piercing out of the back of the Fire Elementalist who was fighting against Grey. Grey looked at the Fire Elementalist, before diverting his gaze to the other battles. He shook his head and went to sit in a corner, he didn''t plan on interfering with the battle of his friends. Chapter 187 - The Nutcracker II ''Grey''s already done with his opponent, I should end mine as well.'' Reynolds thought when he saw Grey disposing of his opponent. The Water Elementalist''s eyes turned red when he saw his twin brother lying lifeless on the ground. "Ah!" He roared angrily and immediately charged towards Grey. The only thing in his head right now was how to kill Grey, but just as he was dashing towards Grey, a human figure blocked his path. "Looks like you''ve forgotten about my existence." Reynolds chuckled lightly. "I''ll kill you all!" The Water Elementalist yelled at the top of his lungs. He was going crazy, how could he accept the fact that his brother, who had been with him since the day he was born, no, in fact, his brother had been with him since they were in the w.o.m.b, but now he had been killed right before his eyes. It was unacceptable, although he was seeing it, he didn''t want to believe it. "No need to yell, you''ll be seeing him soon." Reynolds said coldly, preparing to summon his Elemental Warrior. The reason he''s summoning it now was that he had already tested his strength, although he could kill the Water Elementalist without it, it would take some time, and he could already see that Klaus was overpowering the young man with the mark. "None of you deserve to live!" The Water Elementalist roared. "Die!" The Water Elementalist yelled and a water snake appeared and shot towards Reynolds. "It''s time." Reynolds muttered under his breath and spread both hands apart. Soon, his Elemental Warrior quickly started forming, the legs were the first to appear, before it moved upwards to the head, although it seemed long, the time it took in appearing completely didn''t take up to two seconds. As soon as the Elemental Warrior appeared, it sent a blow at the water snake that was coming in their direction. Boom! The water snake exploded and evaporated into mist. Because his view was impeded by the water snake, the Water Elementalist didn''t see the Elemental Warrior appear. It was only after a few seconds when the mist slowly started fading away that he saw the shape of a figure standing mid-air. Even though he was slightly taken aback by this, his anger clouded his judgment. He sent out an attack at the figure that was mid-air before the mist faded away completely. This time, the Elemental Warrior didn''t wait for the attack to get to it, instead, it took the initiative to go towards it. Bam! Seeing the figure made of lightning coming his way, the Water Elementalist was left dumbstruck, but he quickly attacked again, this time, he used ice spears that aimed at the Elemental Warrior from different angles. The Elemental Warrior expertly evaded the ice spears that were sent towards it while also using his sword to destroy the ones that were too close to it. Bam! Bang! The Water Elementalist went on a rampage sending out attacks nonstop without even trying to defend, it was evident he had already lost his sense of reasoning due to hate and anger. It didn''t take up to a minute before the Elemental Warrior shortened the distance between them and got within its range of attack. As soon as it got there, it instantly started attacking the Water Elementalist who wasn''t even trying to defend himself. The wounds on his body soon reached severe conditions, and the bone on his right hand could be seen after his flesh had been cut off by the Elemental Warrior. A minute later, he fell, with multiple serious wounds on his body as well as a missing arm. Yet, even after his death, his eyes were still opened, filled with hatred and anger. ''The pain of losing a loved one, I hope I never go through it.'' Reynolds shook his head sadly before turning to look at the situation over at Klaus'' end. Just like the last time, Klaus was still clearly overpowering his opponent, and it wouldn''t take long before he defeats him. After staring at Klaus, he shifted his attention to Grey and then Alice. After standing deep in thoughts for some time, he walked to a corner and sat in a crossed leg position leaving Klaus to his battle. On Klaus'' side of the battle. "Don''t worry, they won''t join in." Klaus said when he saw the young man throwing a glance at Grey and Reynolds from time to time. The young man settled down a little, but one could still see his wariness. Klaus found his behavior quite amusing, the reason for this was that he was clearly on the verge of beating him up, yet, the young man was acting as if Grey and Reynolds were the reason he wasn''t fighting properly. "If you can defeat me, you can leave, they won''t stop you." Klaus said again. The fight was starting to bore him since the young man wasn''t as focused as he was during the first time the fight started. Now he only defended without attacking, making it seem like they were practicing or something. "Are you sure?" The young man asked, not expecting Klaus to say something like that. "Of course, we are a set of honorable people, or, haven''t you seen that even after defeating their opponents, none of them came to lend me a hand?" Klaus said. ''He''s right, I don''t think they''ll attack me, if they wanted to, they''d have done it since the start. So now, all I need to do is defeat this guy.'' The young man thought to himself. Although he didn''t fully believe Klaus'' word, he felt since Grey and Reynolds didn''t attack him, he might be right. With newfound hope, the young man instantly attacked. A bird made of the wind element appeared and instantly charged at Klaus. "Haha, good!" Klaus laughed excitedly and blocked it. Both fighters exchanged moves for some time before Klaus finally got the chance to send him flying with an attack. Bang! Crash! The young man crashed into the ground, sliding over a distance of about six meters before stopping. He managed to stand up, but Klaus sent a water ball at him which exploded on impact sending him flying once again. If not for the fact that Klaus didn''t want to kill him instantly, he would already be dead. "Guys, I''m about to do it!" Klaus yelled to his friends while waving at them. Grey and Reynolds who sat crossed leg facing his direction immediately shivered at the thought of what Klaus was about to do. "Just go ahead!" Grey said, before mumbling, "Thinking about it gives me chills, I don''t think I want to see it." With that, he turned in the other direction, making sure he wouldn''t be able to get a sight of Klaus. Not just him, even Reynolds turned as well. With the duo turning, the only person who was staring at Klaus in anticipation was Void. He wanted to see what Klaus wanted to do, he only heard about the name, but he had not seen the attack before. The young man was taken aback by Klaus'' conversation with his friends. ''What is he about to do?'' He asked himself. He tried to stand, and seeing that Klaus was looking at his friends, he tried to escape. But he was already too weak, and even though he was a Wind Elementalist, he couldn''t run quickly. After he managed to run a distance of ten meters, he felt a chill on his leg. When he looked down, he noticed Klaus had frozen his leg to the ground, this meant that he can''t run even if he wants to. Klaus had a huge grin on his face as he walked closer to him. "Don''t worry, it won''t hurt." Klaus said as he flicked his hand, making the ice spread open the legs of the young man. "This is a special move I named, ''The Nutcracker''" Klaus said as he ran towards the young man. Crack! "Ah!!" A grief-stricken roar echoed in the area. Chapter 188 - Advantages Of Being A Lady In A Boys Group! ''Oh, that''s got to be painful.'' Void thought on hearing the scream of the young man with the mark. He was initially stunned when he saw Klaus spreading apart the legs of the young man, but on seeing the attack, and how quickly it knocked him out, he couldn''t help but feel that the attack was simple and very effective. ''I''ll keep note of this, if the opportunity presents itself, I don''t mind using it in the future.'' He thought to himself. Grey and Reynolds on the other hand were unknowingly sweating, they couldn''t help but get goosebumps when they heard the shout of pain from the young man. They shivered and their hands uncontrollably went over to their crotch region, covering it. Even Alice who was recovering opened her eyes to take a peek at the situation. Previously when the twins died, although they screamed, it was totally different from the shout of the young man. If one wanted to compare them, it was like the difference in sounds made by a cat when purring, and a lion when roaring, the difference was just too vast. Klaus currently had a satisfied smile on his face as he stared at the presently white-eyed young man who had drool coming out of his opened mouth. The young man wasn''t dead, but from the pain he felt before he fainted, he wished he were. "Hey buds, what are you doing over there? Come on, let''s wake him up." Klaus called out to Grey and Reynolds while waving at them. There was almost a one hundred meters distance between them, he could swear they were within fifty meters before he delivered the kick. ''How did they move so fast? And what''s with their hands?'' He couldn''t help but ask himself. Grey and Reynolds looked at each other before finally deciding to walk over to Klaus'' location. "So I can kick him again." Klaus said laughing evilly. "Shit!" Grey and Reynolds exclaimed simultaneously and instantly turned tails and ran back to where they were coming from. "Do it yourself!" Grey''s voice was heard from the distance. "Tsk, what''s so scary about this?" Klaus muttered to himself before creating water which he splashed on the face of the young man. Splash! The young man jolted up and his previously white eyes regained their usual visage. But just after he woke up, he almost fainted from the pain that ran from his crotch region straight to his brain. "Ah!" He screamed again, this time, even louder and longer than the first time. With both hands in his crotch region, he rolled on the floor in pain. Klaus didn''t bother to waste any more time, he quickly removed the young man''s hands from the target, made sure to spread the legs apart once again, only this time, the young man was lying flat on his back. Crack! "Ah!" For the second time within five minutes, the young man went through the same pain all over again, but he surprisingly didn''t pass out this time. But if one looks closer, one would realize he isn''t far from it. "That should do it." Klaus said while dusting his hands. The reason he kicked him again was that when he kicked him the first time, he only heard one crack, which meant the other nut was still fine. Yes, he wanted to kill the young man, but making him go through the pain first felt better, especially this type of pain. While the young man was wheezing on the ground from the pain, Klaus nonchalantly waved his hand and over twenty ice shards appeared mid-air. He pointed at the young man, and the ice shards all shot straight at him. The young man had his eyes wide open as the shards pierced into his body. Because of the numbers, the young man didn''t have time to plead before he died instantly after three of the shards pierced through his heart, and four pierced into his head. ''This is what you get for attempting to do ''that'' to our friend.'' Klaus thought as he walked over to Grey and Reynolds. "All done?" Grey asked as he noticed Klaus walking towards them. "Okay, we need to get out of here then." Grey said. Since the group is complete once again, it was time for them to exit the trial land, after all, they had stayed in here for so long already, and the rewards had been unimaginable. "So guys, do you think it will be wise to check our elemental grades again? Just to be sure it increased." Alice asked as she walked closer to them. Although they trusted the Great Earth Essence Liquid, without seeing it, they wouldn''t be too sure. There was also Klaus who''s elemental grade was purple, and Grey who was a Dual Elementalist with purple and pink grades. "No, there''s no need. Doing that would only put our lives at risk." Grey immediately rejected the idea. There was no way he would agree to this, the others could check theirs, but not him. When he was admitted into the Lunar Academy, he had only two elements, with Lightning being purple grade, and Earth being ping grade. Now, he had five elements, with one even being cyan grade, a grade he had never heard of. What would happen when people find out that of his five elements, one was cyan, two were blue, and the other two were purple? He didn''t even dare to imagine. "It wouldn''t be much of a hassle, my dad wouldn''t have a problem with lending us the Academy''s testing stone, he''ll agree if we tell him the reason, also, there wouldn''t be anyone there." Klaus interjected. Of course, he wanted to see what his previous purple grade turned out to be, he felt he was lucky enough, so he should be able to get a double increase. Although he didn''t say it, being in the presence of such amazing friends, he always wished he could be in the same elemental grade as them, his only consolation was that Grey also had a purple grade. And even though he was a Dual Elementalist, his second element was a pink grade. On hearing Klaus'' statement, the others all nodded. Grey wanted to refute, but he couldn''t since he knew what Klaus was saying was right. "Fine, we''ll go with what you said." He couldn''t help but agree. ''I''ll find an excuse when the time comes, I can''t carelessly allow anyone to know about this. I''ll talk to Teacher.'' Grey thought. Keeping this secret was getting increasingly harder since a slight mistake and he''ll be found out, obtaining new elements wouldn''t be the most important thing people would want to know, but it''s the secret to improving his elemental grades. That is even more important than acquiring more elements, although more elements increase the strength of an Elementalist, with a better grade, a Single Elementalist could easily kill a Dual or even a Multi Elementalist. With the group agreeing on what to do after leaving the trial land, they started their journey to the exit of it. "Did you guys hear about the pants thief?" Alice suddenly asked, looking at the boys suspiciously, Klaus in particular. She felt if anyone among the boys could do such a thing, then it''s definitely him. Given Klaus'' personality, she felt he could do almost anything without fear, Grey was the one she found least suspicious. "Yeah, I heard he walked around stealing pants from guys." Grey said with a small smile. "Then after turning into a two-man team, they also stole from ladies as well." He added while looking at Klaus and Reynolds from the side of his eye. Gulp! Klaus and Reynolds swallowed simultaneously, and for some reason, they felt the journey to the exit wouldn''t be as fun as they thought. "Hey bud, why don''t we dish them and head somewhere else?" Klaus leaned closer to Reynolds and whispered in his ear. "Yeah, I''m having the same thoughts." Reynolds nodded his head repeatedly. They could tell that Alice was already suspicious of them, if she were to find out, then they''d be dead. Even if they could beat her, they wouldn''t dare to, or else they''ll just quicken their deaths. Initially, they thought now that they were either as strong as she was or in Grey and Reynolds'' case, stronger, they felt she wouldn''t be able to bully them anymore. But on seeing the current situation, they knew they were wrong, even if they became the emperor and were a Plane ahead of her, she''ll always be able to bully them since they wouldn''t dare to fight back. And if any of them dares to fight back, then the others will gang up against that person. Given Grey''s freakishness, they knew he would definitely always be ahead of them now that he had gotten the advantage, who would dare to fight back when Alice had him behind her? Chapter 189 - Use Your Gut Feeling Three days later. In the trial land. "We should be getting close to the array, right?" Reynolds asked while staring at the mountains before them. He didn''t recall passing through here, so he was getting a little confused. "Yeah." Grey said as he took out the map he acquired from Quinn. "We''re currently here, so if we continue in this direction, we should get to the array in two to three days." He pointed at their current location on the map to the group, while also showing them the direction they would pass through to get to their destination. In the past three days, their journey had been fun, to say the least. Alice had managed to find out that Klaus and Reynolds were the pants thief, and it unfortunately didn''t end well for them. But since they couldn''t fight back, they could only grumble inside. Grey who started it in the first place wasn''t suspected at all, he couldn''t help but thank his luck. His situation can be compared to someone who always lies, even if the person said the truth, no one would believe it. Due to his usual moral and somewhat serious nature, the group felt he wouldn''t do something like that. But in the case of Klaus and Reynolds, even Blake who wasn''t in the trial land wouldn''t believe them if they said they weren''t the pants thief. "I''ll miss this place though, although it had been dangerous on some occasions, it has been mostly fun." Klaus said with a sigh. He had already started missing the trial land even though they haven''t left yet. "I won''t." Grey said with a long face. Although he acquired some great things here, they almost caused his death. The only thing he remembered doing here was running, he was already tired of it, so naturally, he didn''t even want to stay here for too long anymore. That was the reason he picked this route, it was shorter than the rest. "No I haven''t, I also haven''t forgotten how many times I almost died, or had to run for my life." Grey said ironically. "But you''re alive, stronger than you were before, that shows the treasures you acquired helped you." Klaus continued, not agreeing with Grey''s view. "Not stronger, faster. I ran so much that my speed almost doubled." Grey corrected with a little hint of dejection. The others didn''t run as much as he did, that was why they thought it was a great experience, well, it wasn''t. "I''m a little curious what grade your fire element would be though." Reynolds said thoughtfully. "Yeah, me too." Alice nodded as well. They have witnessed the strength of the blue flames, so they were sure it would be at least blue grade or even higher. They couldn''t wait to go out and check it out. "Cy..." Grey unconsciously blurted out, but luckily, he stopped himself in time. ''*Phew* That was close.'' He thought after breathing out in relief. "Hey, what did you say?" Klaus asked. "Nothing, we better get going, I really want to leave this place as soon as possible." Grey shivered to show his urge to leave the trial land. "Okay." The group continued their journey, and a day soon went by. They were currently almost at the end of the mountain range, and after passing through here, all they have to do is go through three forests before they will reach the array. ''There''s something close by.'' Void suddenly spoke up. Void had been relatively quiet lately, and although Grey speaks to him once in a while, he rarely spoke at all. ''Where?'' Grey stopped and asked curiously. Although he wanted to leave, he also knew that whatever Void senses had never been ordinary. If he could get something great just before leaving this place, it wouldn''t be bad. Reynolds who wasn''t looking at his front while walking bumped into Grey who suddenly stopped. "Why did you stop?" He asked grumpily while holding his nose which hit Grey''s head. Klaus and Alice also stared at him curiously, seeing how he was staring in a particular direction, they felt something was up. "There''s something here." Grey said to the group. "Something like...?" Klaus asked. "I don''t know, but it''s a treasure, a good one." Grey said seriously. The trio stared at each other, before looking at Grey again. The only question in their minds was, how did he know there was a treasure here? And he could even tell it''s a good one! "Don''t ask, are you guys interested, or should we continue on our journey?" Grey asked the trio. "Well, if what you said is true, then of course I''m interested." Klaus said excitedly. Alice nodded as well, with two agreeing, Grey, Alice, and Klaus started walking in the direction Grey was staring at. "What about my opinion?" Reynolds was left stunned, he couldn''t help but ask. "Doesn''t matter." Klaus laughed sarcastically. "Come on, we know you''d also agree." Grey said as the group continued towards a huge tree. ''There''s a passage underneath the tree.'' Void directed. ''Hmm.'' Grey nodded as he went closer to the tree. Knock! Knock! He knocked on the tree repeatedly to see if there were any spaces inside. It didn''t take long before he knocked on a place that the sound was lighter than the rest part of the tree. After locating his target, he brought out the dagger he got from Quinn and stabbed it into the tree. It entered easily, and he quickly dragged it downwards. The tree was at least three meters wide in radius, so there weren''t any problems for a human to pass through it. The group jumped into the tree and fell straight down, Grey was the last to go in as he wanted to close the place he carved open on the body of the tree, so in case anyone accidentally passes through this place, they wouldn''t see it. "It''s a tunnel." Alice said after she created a fireball that lit up the place. "So, which way?" The group looked at Grey who just landed. They could either head forward or backward. Since the Grey was the one who ''sensed'' the treasure, it was naturally right for them to ask him where they were headed. ''Void.'' Grey asked Void since he was the one who could sense it. "Forward." He said after getting confirmation from Void. The group walked for almost twenty minutes before stopping, they looked at Grey who was standing in front of them. Ahead of the group, three paths could be seen. "Shit!" Grey cursed out. "What''s wrong." Reynolds asked when he heard Grey cursing. "I don''t know which of the paths has the treasure." Grey said. He didn''t want to tell the others of Void''s treasure-sensing ability yet. "Well that''s a bummer." Klaus said wryly. While the group was thinking of which path to take, Grey, Reynolds, and Alice simultaneously turned to look at Klaus. Sensing their gazes, Klaus shivered unknowingly and raised his head to meet their gazes. "Why are you all staring at me? Is there something behind me?" He asked, not daring to look back. "No." The trio answered. Klaus felt relieved when he heard their answer, but seeing that they were still looking at him, he couldn''t help but ask, "Then why are you all looking at me?" "Your gut feeling." Grey said. "What?" Klaus'' face was instantly filled with confusion. "Use your gut feeling." Reynolds said. "F.u.c.k you! Do you think it''s an ability or something? It can''t be controlled, it just happens." Klaus explained, after cursing at them. "Well, we need it now. It''s better than randomly walking into any of the paths. Who knows, you might get it right." Grey persuaded. Although relying on Klaus'' gut feeling wasn''t really the best decision, there had been multiple times where it had been correct, so, there was no harm in taking the risk. Klaus naturally refused Grey''s persuasion and Reynolds'' as well. It was only after Alice decided to persuade him did he agree. "The one on the left." He quickly blurted out before Alice got to him. He knew how she persuaded people, and he didn''t want something like that to happen to him. "Good boy." Grey said mockingly before heading into the path on the left. Chapter 190 - Blooming Viper The group cautiously went into the tunnel, given Grey''s experience, he was almost a hundred percent sure that there would be an obstacle of some sort here, or even worse, a creature. ''Hopefully, I''m just overthinking.'' He thought to himself. ''Do you sense anything around?'' He asked Void who was on his shoulder. ''No, nothing.'' Void replied. He knew what Grey was talking about, but other than the treasure, he couldn''t sense anything else. Fifteen minutes later. The group got to the end of the tunnel, and at the end, they saw a door. "Looks like your gut feeling was right." Grey said while throwing a glance at Klaus. "Of course, when has my gut feeling ever been wrong?" Klaus asked smugly. Grey, Reynolds, and Alice rolled their eyes on hearing Klaus'' statement, being too lazy to talk any further, they all approached the door. With Grey leading the group, he held the doorknob, while preparing himself in case of an attack. The others on the other hand, were all standing behind him, using him as what they call the human shield. Given Grey''s physical defense, as well as his earth element, he was the only one who might be able to ward off any attacks that might come from the other side of the door. Creak... The door slowly opened with a creaking sound. Grey and the group immediately retreated, while also preparing their attacks. But after waiting for almost a minute, nothing came out through the door. "Come on bud, go check it out." Klaus said while pushing Grey forward. Grey glared at him, but he shamelessly continued speaking. "What? You''re the only one with great physical defense, as well as the earth element, you don''t expect us to send Alice, do you?" Grey shook his head, but he still went forward since he knew he was the one who had the best reaction among them, as well as the best defense. With a flick of his wrist, a blue flame lit up ahead of him and floated through the door, slowly revealing what was past the door. "*Phew* It''s just a normal gigantic cave." Grey said sarcastically and cautiously advanced towards the cave. Getting past the door, he was greeted by the sight of a hugely spacious cave, his flame couldn''t light up the entire cave given how big it was. On the places he could see, there were moss and weed on some parts of the ground, and well as the walls and ceilings above him. "Guys you can come in now." After making sure there wasn''t any danger, Grey called on the trio waiting outside. The trio soon entered after Grey''s voice died down. "Where''s the treasure?" Klaus was the first to ask excitedly as he stepped inside. "Well, given how wide this place is, we''ll have to search for it." Grey said. "Come on, make a bigger fire." Klaus urged. Grey instantly increased the size of the flame, but on seeing what was around, he almost wished he didn''t. "Bud, I thought you said there was no danger?" Klaus walked closer to Grey and whispered. "They''re all in the Second stage of the Origin Plane, stop acting like they''re a threat." Grey said while shoving Klaus away. Although he was slightly taken aback by the snakes he saw lying randomly on the floor, he didn''t feel much from it. The only thing that left him a little puzzled was that it was only after seeing them was he able to sense them. ''So, where''s the treasure?'' Grey asked Void since other than the snakes, he saw nothing else. ''You''re looking at them.'' Void said. ''Wait, the snakes?'' Grey asked a little confused. ''Yeah, these are no ordinary snakes. They have a special gland on top of their heads that is a great healing tonic as much as it''s a deadly poison.'' Void explained. ''Wait, how do you know of this?'' Grey was left speechless by Void''s knowledge of the snakes. ''Memories.'' Void said. ''But I thought you were just born? You know what, forget about it for now. But, how do you expect me to take something that is a double-edged sword?'' Grey said. Void said it was a healing tonic, and also a deadly poison. How does he expect him to collect something that might probably kill him if he''s not careful? ''There''s a way to extract the healing tonic alone...'' Void went on to explain. From his explanation, Grey found out that the snakes were known as the Blooming Viper, on top of their heads was something that looked like a budding flower. And according to Void, that''s where the special gland was. If one extracted the entire bud, then it would only become a deadly poison. The only way to extract the healing tonic is through a somewhat special and perilous way, s.u.c.k.i.n.g it out of a living Blooming Viper. If the snake was dead, the gland will automatically turn into a deadly poison. After hearing the method from Void, Grey felt a little dejected. Coming here, he had high hopes for the treasure they will find, but now, not only did he have to deal with snakes, but he also had to suck a special healing tonic from the top of its head, while it''s alive. ''I feel like this is a wasted journey.'' Grey said shaking his head. ''Of course not, did I tell you this healing tonic can save a dying person as long as there''s a breath left.'' Void said. Grey contemplated on the matter and felt having something like that wasn''t bad, since they didn''t know what awaited them in the future. There would always be times where their lives might be in danger, maybe this would be what will save them. ''Hmm, at least it''s better than nothing.'' Grey could only helplessly nod his head. He went on to tell the others about the snake, as well as the process of extracting the healing tonic. There were only about fifteen snakes on the ground, and surprisingly, even after sensing the presence of humans, they didn''t attack. "Wait, so you''re saying we have to suck out a healing tonic from the head of those snakes?" Klaus asked while pointing at the snake closest to them. "Yup." Grey nodded. "And there''s also a deadly poison there as well?" Klaus asked another question. "Yup." "So how do we know if what we''re s.u.c.k.i.n.g is the healing tonic or the poison?" "If we don''t die." "Okay... I think Grey has gone mad." Klaus said after he was done with his questioning. "Yup, me too." Reynolds said feeling maybe there was something wrong with Grey''s head. "Come on guys, do you think I''ll take you through all this trouble just for fun?" Grey said trying to convince them. "Well, I might, and since I might, there''s a chance you might as well." Klaus said while strangely waving his hand. Grey glared at him on seeing his antics, "I''m being serious." "And I''m just joking. I know you wouldn''t do all this for fun, but the thing is, why haven''t we heard of this snake before?" Klaus asked. He trusted Grey, but he hadn''t seen or heard of a Blooming Viper before, so he naturally felt a little doubtful. The others also felt Klaus'' question was reasonable. "Because they''re very rare." Grey said. "If they''re rare, then how did you know of them?" Alice asked this time. "Him." Grey said pointing at Void. Knowing that they were about to ask how he knew through Void, he quickly explained to them that he could communicate with him and that he was also the one who sensed the treasure. He also didn''t forget to warn them to keep it a secret, he warned Klaus to be precise. The others were sensible enough to keep it a secret, but given how much Klaus talks, he wasn''t too confident in his ability to keep a secret. "I know, I might talk a lot, but it doesn''t mean I''m a fool. I know what to divulge, and what not to." Klaus said angrily. He felt upset due to the fact that Grey didn''t trust him enough, he knew he talks a lot, but that doesn''t mean he''ll go ahead and tell others his friends'' secrets. Grey felt a little bad inside when he saw Klaus'' angry look, "I''m sorry, I didn''t mean it that way." Klaus'' face only brightened up after hearing Grey''s apology. "It''s okay, I mean, I wouldn''t trust me with a secret either." He said nonchalantly. Grey felt the world spun around when he heard that statement. "Haha, I''m joking." Klaus laughed on seeing Grey''s face. He had always been carefree so he knew Grey didn''t mean to offend him, he also knew how massive of a secret Void''s treasure-sensing ability was. If others heard that there was a special cat that could sense treasures, the fight for who would acquire him would have no end. "So, let''s begin." Grey said after everything was sorted out. The group went on to catch the first snake, it wasn''t easy though since they had to make sure the poisonous fire it was spitting out didn''t touch them. Unlike most magical beasts, the snake was small, stretching only three meters long, and wasn''t even up to four inches wide. Reynolds was the one who caught the first snake, after catching it, he passed it over to Grey. He was a little scared of the extraction process, so he didn''t dare to. Grey collected it, gulped in fear, but since he trusted Void, he steeled his heart and brought the head of the wriggling snake closer to his mouth. Just as he was about to suck on the bud. ''Wait!'' Void yelled out. Chapter 191 - Dont Swallow Klaus and the others were puzzled on seeing that Grey stopped just as his mouth was about to touch the head of the snake. ''Is anything wrong?'' Grey asked while moving the head of the snake away from his mouth. He was a little frightened by the thought of if there was why mistake with Void''s extraction process, and he accidentally sucks out the poison instead of the healing tonic, so when Void stopped him, he didn''t hesitate in any way. ''Where would you put the healing tonic after s.u.c.k.i.n.g it out?'' Void asked while staring at Grey strangely. ''Oh that, I forgot about that.'' Grey said truthfully. He checked his storage ring to see if there was anything inside that could be used to store the healing tonic, but he unfortunately had none. The few healing tonics he brought with him had been used, and the bottles had been discarded by him. "Does anyone have bottles we can use for storing the healing tonic?" He asked the others. "Oh, so that''s why he stopped, I thought it was something else." Klaus mumbled under his breath. "Well?" Grey asked on seeing that none of them was saying anything, and Klaus seemed to be mumbling to himself. Klaus and Reynolds shook their heads, just like Grey, they''ve also discarded the bottles after using the tonic, and since they didn''t bring much in the first place, they ran out about a month ago, luckily, they didn''t get into any precarious situation since then. "How many do you need?" She asked Grey while going through the bag. "Fifteen." Grey said after counting the number of snakes present in the cave. "Okay, here you go." Alice threw a bottle to Grey. She initially wanted to give him her bag, but since some of her personal belongings were inside, she refrained from doing so, rather, she''ll hand him one any time he needs it. Grey caught it and looked at the empty bottle, it was unsurprisingly a bottle used for storing tonic. ''Why is she keeping the bottles after using them?'' Grey asked himself, he was not the only one who thought of this, Klaus, Reynolds, and even Void thought of it. "What?" Alice asked while glaring at the boys. The expression in her eyes was clear, ''If you ask, I''ll beat you up.'' "Nothing." The boys shook their heads while staring in different directions. "Hmph!" Alice harrumphed, but left them alone since they didn''t dare to ask. Grey focused on the snake once again, and he was hit by a pungent smell. He couldn''t help but close his nose. Void who was previously on his shoulder immediately disappeared and appeared some distance away. "What''s that smell?" Alice asked while covering her nose. "I think it''s from the snake." Reynolds said while pointing at the rear of the snake. The snake was currently wrapped around Grey''s hands, and the tail was almost at his left shoulder. Presently, fluid could be seen coming out of the snake''s tail and falling on Grey''s hand. He instinctively wanted to let go, but on sensing that other than the smell, it wasn''t harmful, he held on. Since the snake was long, it had wrapped its head with its body as well, covering it from sight, luckily, Grey held onto the neck tightly, so there was no way it could escape. "That''s like an ultimate weapon." Klaus said while staring at Grey in pity. The smell coming from the feces of the snake was terrible, giving one the urge to throw up. The others were having a better time since they distanced themselves from Grey, while also covering their noses. But Grey who held it in his hands was having the worst time of his life, the smell was surprisingly stinging. It felt like tiny ants crawled into his eyes and started stinging him repeatedly. Grey hurriedly used the hand he previously used in holding onto the body of the snake to try and free the head from the body the snake used in wrapping it up. Although the snake was strong, given Grey''s physical strength, it didn''t take up to two seconds before he caught sight of the head of the snake once again. Without thinking, he brought the head closer to his mouth and s.u.c.k.e.d on the bud on the top of the snake. The others held their breaths on seeing Grey suck on the bud at the top of the snake''s head. Grey who was currently s.u.c.k.i.n.g on the bud had completely forgotten about the possibility of there being a poison because all he wanted to do was be done with the snake and then throw it away. It was only after a thick liquid slowly entered his mouth did his mind clear off, and he almost panicked. But he quickly calmed down after he noticed that the stinging in his eyes, as well as the urge to vomit, was completely gone. Even though the smell was still there, it wasn''t as bad as before. The liquid had a variety of tastes, Grey was only able to recognize five, but all in all, the liquid had a magnificent taste that he unconsciously wanted to swallow. When everyone saw Grey''s expression, they thought it was strange. How could someone make such an expression when his nose is being bombarded by that horrifying smell. ''Don''t swallow!'' Void hastily yelled to Grey when he saw his expression. Void''s voice came right on time, had he been a second late, then Grey was sure he would have swallowed it, even though he was stopped, he managed to swallow a little bit of it. Just before he closed the lid on the bottle, a strong and sweet floral scent wafted out of it into the air. The scent was soothing and made one''s mind clear after taking in a breath. Klaus, Alice, and Reynolds all took in a deep breath when the scent passed them. "I...feel...energized." Reynolds said slowly. It was unbelievable that just the scent from the healing tonic could make one feel energized all of a sudden. If the scent was this powerful, how powerful would the liquid be then? "Amazing, this truly is a treasure." Alice said with her eyes closed, still savoring the floral scent. "Yeah, a true treasure." Klaus nodded. His mind was exceptionally clear, and he felt since the snake could make something as sweet as this, then it had all the right in the world to also make that horrifying smell it released earlier. Klaus had the urge to taste it, not just him, Alice and Reynolds felt the same way as well. But unlike the duo, Alice wasn''t drooling. Grey held the bottle close to his face and observed the liquid properly, it had a greenish and yellowish color, with what looked like tiny touches of red. The dots of red scattered all over the liquid like the stars in the night sky. The liquid had a clear and reflective surface. Had it not been for something, Grey would have thought the scent could make one hallucinate when he saw the expressions of the trio. "Can I taste it?" Klaus asked. "No!" Grey refused. Klaus felt a little dejected, but then an idea struck him. "I''ll extract the next one." He immediately said before anyone could say anything else. "No!" Grey, Alice, and Reynolds said simultaneously. "What do you mean no?" Klaus asked hastily. "Because you''ll swallow it." Grey said. "Of course I won''t." "Yes, you would." After arguing for a while, Klaus was still unable to convince the group to allow him to extract the next one. "Fine, but I''ll extract the one after this one." He said, not willing to let go of the opportunity. "Till then." The group went on to capture the next snake, which like the first one, defecated once it saw it couldn''t break free from Grey''s grasp. But the smell didn''t mean anything to him, although it was horrible, the reward outweighed the smell, so he braced himself and quickly s.u.c.k.e.d on the head of the snake. Just like the first time, everything turned better after the liquid flowed into his mouth. After tasting it for the second time, a thought came to his head. ''How would it taste like if I were to cook with it?'' Grey threw the thought to the back of his head as soon as it came, but since the thought had successfully come to his mind, it was almost impossible to forget about it. After storing the second one, they went on to catch the third snake, and Klaus finally got the chance to extract the liquid. Although, it was only after the group warned him repeatedly not to swallow it, they didn''t only warn him, but they also threatened to beat him up if he dared to swallow it. Even though he was warned repeatedly, Klaus still almost swallowed it the moment he tasted the liquid. The taste was just too sweet that he had to keep the liquid in his mouth for almost one minute before putting it in the bottle. After Klaus s.u.c.k.e.d on the third one, Alice did the fourth one, and just like the previous two, she also almost swallowed the liquid after tasting it. Reynolds was the one who extracted the fifth one, and he too fell for the same thing, had it not been for the thought of being beaten if he swallowed it, then he would have swallowed it. Chapter 192 - Its Not Lost If We Consume It! "That''s the last one." Grey said after watching Klaus extract the last healing tonic from the last snake that wasn''t in an earthen cage. "So soon? I thought there were more?" Reynolds said with a hint of sadness. He didn''t expect the snakes weren''t that many, given the sweetness of the liquid, as well as the feeling they get from breathing in the scent, he didn''t mind doing this for another hour or so. "Well, unless there''s a way to make the previous ones create another healing tonic, that''s all." Grey said after looking around to confirm there was none left. "Wait, can''t we just capture them and train them till they create another one." Klaus asked after letting go of the snake. The snakes were relatively quite calm and only attacks whenever they were threatened, so it would be very easy to train them. "I don''t think that''s possible, or is it?" Alice asked while looking in the direction of Void. Since she knew Grey could communicate with Void without others knowing about it, she felt very intrigued by the black cat, added to Void''s space element, she felt it was very unique. They still had no idea Void had three other elements, and since Void rarely fought, they felt he was only attuned to the space element. Grey also stared in Void''s direction, along with the other boys. ''No, these snakes can only make one healing tonic their entire lives. Look at the head of the snakes, you''ll see the bud on it is gone.'' Void explained. ''Also, don''t think of capturing it so you could breed them to acquire their offsprings, there are special conditions they must go through before they can acquire the healing tonic, and I don''t think anyone knows of the conditions.'' He added when he noticed that Grey didn''t immediately give up. ''Oh!'' Grey exclaimed lightly. "No Klaus, we can''t capture them..." Grey told him the reason for it. "Well that''s a bummer. What now?" Klaus asked. "Going back to the Academy should be our next choice of action." Grey said. He felt there wasn''t anything left for him in the trial land, so getting out of here and going back to the Academy was the next possible thing to do. He also wanted to go back to Red City and search for the whereabouts of his mother, it had already been so long, and he didn''t know what happened to her. The others nodded to his suggestions and all turned to leave the cave. While they were walking on the pathway before getting to the spot where they had to choose which path to take, Klaus suddenly came up with an interesting topic. "Grey, if you were to cook with one of those liquids, it would be quite an unforgettable experience." He said while l.i.c.k.i.n.g his lips. "You also thought of it, I thought I was the only one." Reynolds said in surprise. When he tasted the liquid for the first time, he thought of Grey''s cooking and his imagination ran wild, he even planned on telling Klaus so they would team up together to plead with Grey to use one of the liquids. "What are you all talking about?" Alice looked at them weirdly, she knew Grey was a great cook and had gotten a taste of his food once, but it had been a while now. "Great minds they say think alike." Klaus said with a laugh. "So, are you?" Reynolds asked with an excited expression. "I still don''t know yet." Grey said with a hint of uncertainty, the truth was, the idea of cooking with it was quite tempting. "Wait, you want to cook with one of the healing tonics which according to Void could save someone who''s at the brink of death?" Alice asked feeling bewildered by the audacity of the boys. Who would freaking think of using such a life-saving item to cook? Sometimes she felt the boys all had a screw loose or something, they''ve never seemed to amaze her with some of their weird ideas. "Yeah, pretty much." The boys all nodded simultaneously. "Are you mad?!" Alice felt like beating the boys to stupor just for this thought. She''s felt angrier by the fact that Grey who she thought was the more rational one among the boys also thought of it. Although there had been times where Grey showed his irrationality, but not in a scenario where they had to use such an item. Boom! An attack struck Klaus sending him crashing into the wall by the side. Bang! Bang! Klaus wasn''t the only one who hit the wall, Grey and Reynolds also met with the same fate. "It''s a freaking miraculous healing tonic for God''s sake! If you dare to say you want to cook with it again, you''ll all be losing some teeth." Alice stomped her feet angrily and turned around to leave. The boys were currently sprawled on the floor, aching on different parts of their bodies. "We haven''t even cooked with it yet and I''m already feeling pains all over my body, do you think it''ll be worth it to lose a tooth or two just to have the chance of using the liquid to cook." Reynolds crawled over to Klaus and Grey who were closer to each other and asked. "I don''t know, but it might be." Klaus said while rubbing his stomach where Alice''s previous attack hit. Luckily, she was lenient on them, so they only felt pain from where they were struck, and also their backs which they used in slamming into the wall. If they were going to do this, then they had to prepare for every possible thing. It would be embarrassing for them to go out if they were missing a few teeth. "A week or so, I haven''t really lost one before." Klaus speculated as the trio got to their feet. "I have, it took two weeks at that time, but since we''re already in the Origin Plane, it shouldn''t take more than ten days." Reynolds said. The speed of each Elementalist''s recovery mostly depends on the Plane of the Elementalist, as well as the healing tonic used. "Hmm, but we only have fifteen healing tonics, losing one wouldn''t be nice though." Grey said seriously. "We''re not losing it if it''s consumed." Klaus said. "You do have a point there." Grey said while rubbing his chin. Alice who was already walking forward turned around when she noticed the boys were not following behind her. "What are you all still going?" She asked angrily. The boys caught up to her and they all continued the journey out. On getting to the point where they had to choose which path to take, Grey suddenly stopped. "What''s up?" The others asked simultaneously. "Void said there''s still something here." Grey said with a serious look. "Well that''s great, looks like even if we picked any of the paths it wouldn''t have made a difference." Reynolds said with ecstasy. "Are you trying to say my gut feeling had nothing to do with us discovering the previous cave?" Klaus said with a long face. "Of course not, I''m just saying it was quite useless in a situation like this." Reynolds mocked. "How dare you? I can allow you to mock me, but not my gut feelings." Klaus said before pouncing on Reynolds. "Sometimes I wonder how they''re so close given how frequently they fight against each other." Alice said as she watched Klaus biting Reynolds'' arm. The duo who were fighting were not using any elemental attacks, rather, they were using their physical strengths which compared to Grey''s, was like that of a newborn child. But the next moment, his expression changed, not only him, but Alice and Klaus'' as well. "Haha, try me now." Reynolds laughed happily. "Damn you! How dare you do something I would do if I were in your position?" Klaus yelled angrily as he ran towards Grey. Behind him, Reynolds'' Elemental Warrior could be seen chasing after him, with a whip made of fire surprisingly in its hand, it would occasionally lash out at Klaus, making him yell in pain every time the whip hit his b.u.t.t. Grey quickly escaped from the range of their battle with a weird look on his face. "It''s not every day you see Klaus being bested by Reynolds." He said with a chuckle. "Yeah." Alice nodded while laughing at Klaus'' plight. Chapter 193 - Touched! Grey, Alice, and Void watched on as Reynolds beat Klaus up without showing any signs of stopping him, it was only after leaving him to suffer at the hands of the Elemental Warrior for about three minutes did they finally decide to stop it. The moment they stopped them, Klaus was surprisingly the one who was still thrash talking. "This isn''t over, you think you can bully me? Just you wait and see, I''ll beat you up so good..." Klaus went on a rant for almost two minutes, talking about how he would beat Reynolds up. It still wasn''t clear how he was going to beat him up given the fact that since Reynolds had the Elemental Warrior, even if Klaus was ahead of him in terms of stages, the Elemental Warrior would not only be stronger than him, it would also be ahead of Klaus in the aspect of stages as well. "Come on Rey, apologize to him. Or, do you want to see him cry?" Grey urged Reynolds to apologize, before mocking Klaus in the process. Klaus who just kept quiet exploded once again and this time, Grey was his target. Grey quickly apologized, along with Reynolds. Only after the duo praised his handsomeness did Klaus decide to forgive them, although, he felt a little weird when Grey praised him since Grey was clearly more handsome, it felt strange. "Can we go now?" Alice who had gotten tired of standing and watching the boys show said while tapping her left foot on the ground. The boys nodded and quickly went towards the path on the right. When choosing a path previously, they followed Klaus'' gut feeling and entered the path on the left, but since there was a chance each path might have a treasure, they didn''t need to deliberate over which path to take anymore. They followed the long path, but just like the first one, they were cautious. After fifteen minutes of walking, they got to the end of the path, but this path unfortunately didn''t have a door which they could use in advance. "A dead end?" Klaus asked. "I think so." Reynolds responded. Grey approached the wall and placed his right hand on it, since he''s an Earth Elementalist, he could sense if it was truly a dead end or if there was a space inside. It hadn''t been long since Grey realized he could do something like this, he felt a little depressed when he noticed this because most of the time he spent on searching places if there were secret doors or paths, he would have been able to sense it with a touch. Their return journey was faster, and within five minutes, they''ve gotten to the spot where the paths converged. Without wasting any time, they entered the middle path, with high hopes and expectations. "Maybe we''ll get something that can actually improve our stages this time, or even better, improve our elemental grades." Reynolds said a little excitedly. "Don''t get over yourself, acquiring the Great Earth Essence Liquid was pure luck." Grey shook his head at Reynolds high expectations. But he couldn''t deny it though, he too hoped they would acquire something great, just like the life-saving tonic they got from the previous path, or even better. Speaking of the Great Earth Essence Liquid, Klaus and Alice turned to look at Grey. "Do you still have them?" Alice inquired. "What?" Grey asked with a confused look. "The Great Earth Essence Liquid?" Klaus was the one who spoke up this time. "Of course, other than the time we refined it previously, the rest are still intact." Grey said calmly. "Can you please give one to my dad?" Klaus asked with a somewhat anxious look. Grey was the one who acquired it, so they naturally didn''t have the right to them. They were already feeling grateful to him for giving them one each, so asking for another one was a little too overboard from their point of view given the value of the item. "Sure." Grey replied nonchalantly. "Huh!" Klaus was left dumbstruck by Grey''s answer. Even though he wished Grey would give it to him, he didn''t think he would agree so easily, he didn''t even think about it! Klaus felt touched by Grey''s kind gesture. "You''re a true friend." He said with a teardrop coming from the side of his eye while approaching Grey. "What are you doing?" Grey asked as he saw Klaus coming towards him. "From this day henceforth, I''ve decided to help you get any girl you finally fall in love with." Klaus declared in a low voice while hugging Grey. "Get away from me, and what makes you feel I''ll need your help then?" Grey said while pushing Klaus away from him. "I think you''ve forgotten about this." Grey pointed at his face and flashed a smile. "Wow, I''m impressed, but it''s not all about being handsome, there are some criteria you''ll need to fulfill." Klaus said with a grin. "Hmm, so you''re saying this isn''t important?" Grey asked to be sure. "Of course it''s important, but it''s not all about it." Klaus chuckled. "Oh, tell me more." Grey said a little intrigued while wrapping his hand around Klaus'' shoulder. "Don''t worry, we''ll talk about it when the time comes." Klaus said while the duo continued walking forward. Void has since discarded Grey''s shoulder and was on Alice''s, compared to Grey, she pets him a lot, which he likes. "You two, are crazy." Alice said while staring at the duo oddly. Some moments ago, Grey was pushing Klaus away, but in the next second, they had their hands wrapped around each other''s shoulders. Because the duo spoke in a low voice, she didn''t hear what they were talking about, neither did Reynolds, but Void heard it all, and he felt a little disappointed that Klaus didn''t share his knowledge. Chapter 194 - Is That What I Think It Is? The group soon got to the end of the pathway, and just as expected, there was a door. But compared to the one they saw on the previous path, this one was huge. "Wow, it''s like a door to a huge castle." Klaus said in awe. The door was surprisingly made of gold, and it lit up the moment the fire the group was using came close to it. It was so bright that everyone in the group instinctively closed their eyes, it was only after about five seconds went by did the light slowly disappeared. "What was that?" Reynolds asked looking around. "I don''t know, but whatever is in there must be something great." Klaus jumped happily and approached the golden door. "Stop!" Grey exclaimed on seeing that Klaus was heading towards the door. "What?" Klaus asked with a confused face. "Have the thought of obtaining a good treasure dulled your brain?" Grey facepalmed while shaking his head disappointedly. "What?" Klaus asked still confused. "There''s always a risk before obtaining any rewards here, especially something that might be very good." Alice explained. Although she hadn''t been as lucky as Grey who managed to get to a lot of fortunate places, she has had her fair share of adventures in the trial land, so she knew about this. "Oh that, I forgot." Klaus scratched his head awkwardly. ''How embarrassing.'' He thought to himself while shaking his head in discontent. Grey created an earthen staff, and sent it towards the door, he wanted to check if there might be anything on the golden door that might be harmful against them. Bam! The staff crashed into the door, but nothing happened. Grey didn''t head over immediately, he waited for over a minute before approaching it. When he got there, he held onto both parts of the door while standing in the middle, and pushed it forcefully. But it unexpectedly didn''t budge. "That''s strange." Grey muttered under his breath. "Join me." He called on Klaus and Reynolds to assist him in opening the door. The trio tried pushing the door, but it didn''t budge, after trying multiple times, they started attacking it. ''Sometimes I really don''t know which is smarter, and which is dumber.'' Alice almost facepalmed while looking at the trio who were tiring themselves out trying to open the door. Void on the other hand was staring at the trio with a playful smile on his lips. After staring at them for a while, he threw a glance at the writings on the side of the door. Alice caught sight of Void staring at the writing on the door. "You discovered it as well?" She asked a little surprised. Void nodded after realizing what she meant, he didn''t think she would have also seen it. ''Looks like the only girl in the group is the more intelligent one.'' He thought to himself. "Tsk, to think even a cat is smarter than them." Alice said while looking at the trio in contempt. They had been trying different methods, but none seems to work, even after five minutes, nine of them had seen the writing on the side of the door. "Is it just me or do they become dumber when they group up." Alice mumbled. The trio was currently panting while staring at the door with frustration. "Why won''t it open?" Reynolds asked angrily. "Because you three are blockheads, that''s why." Alice said with a playful smile. Although they looked stupid, watching them tire themselves out was quite entertaining. "What?" Klaus asked. "Look over there." Alice pointed at the writings on the side of the door. "Huh! There''s something there!" Reynolds exclaimed before heading over. Grey and Klaus followed behind him as well. "Was this here before? I could''ve sworn I didn''t see it here." Klaus said, placing his hand on his chin. "Me too." Grey nodded. "Seriously? You''re still trying to cover up for your lack of observation?" Alice asked, not expecting Grey and Klaus they say that. "There truly wasn''t anything there before we tried opening it, maybe it appeared after we tried pushing it." Grey said. Although he might be careless sometimes, he truly did look around, and this text wasn''t there previously, it must have appeared after they started pushing it or something. Alice didn''t look around at first and only saw caught a glimpse of the text after the trio started pushing the door, so she didn''t know if Grey was speaking the truth or not. "Hmm, fine, let''s ask Void." She suggested. "Void, did you see the text before they started pushing the door?" She asked. Void looked at Grey, smirked, before nodding his little head. ''Bastard! No food for you!'' Grey said angrily. Seeing Void''s smirk, he knew Void was lying, which meant that the text appeared after they''ve started pushing the door, yet Void nodded just so Alice would yell at them. Void''s pupils shrunk when he heard Grey say no food for him and he immediately shook his head. Alice was about to reprimand the boys when she suddenly saw Void shaking his head, "I''m confused, did you see it or not?" She was forced to ask again, and this time, Void shook his head. He witnessed the text appearing, and it was after Grey, Klaus, and Reynolds started pushing the door did it appear. ''Hmph! You''re lucky.'' Grey snorted and threw a glare at Void. Void shivered at the thought of not having to eat Grey''s dishes, he was already going through hell since the group reunited. That was because Grey hadn''t been able to cook anything since they were in a hurry to leave this place. "The text says only a Fire Elementalist could open the door, no wonder it had such a reaction when the flames came close to it." Klaus said thoughtfully. Alice was the one whose flame was floating, so she sent it towards the door, making sure to make it as powerful as she could. Rumble! The door rumbled intensely, but it refused to open up. "The strength of my flame is not enough, Grey, you do it." Alice said and withdrew her flame from the door. Grey stepped forward, and with a flick of his wrist, his blue flames came to life, it turned into a large snake and shot straight into the door fiercely. Rumble! The door rumbled for some time before making a ''crack!'' sound. After that, it slowly opened up. Creak... "Use your flames and you decided to perform a show." Klaus mocked as the door opened wide. After the door opened up, the inside lit up and the shadow of a large creature could be seen from the light. ''Void, is that what I think it is?'' Chapter 195 - So Shiny ''Void, is that what I think it is?'' Although it was only the shadow of the creature, Grey had read a lot about it too often and also seen statues as well as drawings to be able to guess what it was, not just that, but he battled what looked like it about a month ago. ''If what you''re thinking is what I''m thinking, then yes, it is what I think you think it is.'' Void said in a strange drunkish voice. ''Huh!'' Grey was lost for a moment due to how Void was speaking. ''In short, it''s a dragon.'' Void added in his normal voice this time. Grey s.u.c.k.e.d in a deep breath on getting confirmation from Void. This wasn''t like the quasi dragon he encountered the previous time, but a true breathing dragon. "What''s that?" Klaus asked before squinting his eyes to study the shape properly. Even though there are only a few people who had seen a dragon in the present Qilin empire, it was something greatly revered by people because of its immense strength as well as its superior magical abilities. According to legends, it was said to be the leader amongst all the beasts. "It...looks...like...a...dragon." Reynolds said after studying the shape. "Yeah." Alice nodded. Klaus had also figured it out as well. The trio gasped in surprise and anxiety, they currently had the opportunity to see a dragon, of course they would be nervous, but there''s one thing that was currently overshadowing their nervousness, excitement. The excitement of seeing a dragon was unimaginable, they were still youngsters, so it was normal to be excited when one sees a legendary magical beast like a dragon. Had Chris not been in the Lunar Academy, then they would just be as excited whenever they saw a Griffin as well, but because they''ve seen it too frequently, they''ve become numb to it, sometimes, they even forget it is a legendary beast. ''Since it''s a dragon, doesn''t that mean there will be a lot of shiny things?'' Void''s pitch-black eyes lit up at the thought of there being shiny things. ''Since it''s a dragon, that means we''re in danger if it wakes up.'' Grey thought and he unconsciously took a step back. The quasi dragon which was not a true dragon was already so overpowered that had it not been for the strange array in the lab, then they would have died under its attacks. Now, this was a real dragon, even if it might be restricted by an array, there would be no way it would be weaker than the quasi dragon, it would definitely be stronger. ''We need to leave.'' ''We need to get in.'' Grey and Void came to a conclusion simultaneously in their heads, only, both were contradicting each other. ''Huh! What do you mean we need to leave?'' Void asked disapprovingly. ''There''s no way we''re going in there, are you tired of living? Cause I''m not.'' Grey said seriously. While the duo was arguing about whose decision was right, Klaus slowly walked into the cave. Grey who was still trying to reason with Void almost passed out when he saw this. "Klaus, what the hell are you doing?" He asked in a hushed voice, fearing that if he speaks too loudly, the dragon might hear them. "I''m going to see the dragon, also, why are you speaking that way? I can barely hear what you''re saying." Klaus asked with a confused look. "Get back here right now!" Grey said in the same hushed voice. "What''s wrong with you?" Reynolds couldn''t help but ask when he saw Grey''s behavior. "Have any of you thought of the possibility of the dragon being far stronger than us?" Grey looked at the group as he asked. The others shook their heads, they truly didn''t think of it. Being too excited, they forgot the dragon was a magical beast who would most likely attack them if they intruded. "I''ve fought against a beast that seemed to have evolved, it wasn''t a dragon, but it wasn''t far from it..." Grey told them about the dangers he faced when fighting against the quasi dragon, of course, he decreased the level of the quasi dragon so it wouldn''t sound like he was overpowered being able to survive against it. Gasp... On hearing the story, the trio gasped in fear and shock. They didn''t think that Grey would have such an experience in the trial land, not just that, but he survived, although it was with the help of an array he knew nothing about, it was still amazing to be able to escape. "Do you all still think it''s a wise choice to head in?" Grey asked after seeing their reactions. "No, but to be honest, I''m very curious about it." Klaus replied. The others nodded as well, although going in might be risky, this was a once in a lifetime opportunity. What if this was their only chance to see a dragon? Grey sighed and looked at them, he was also curious, but his cautiousness was telling him not to go in. The group has managed to survive till now, it would be a shame if any of them, or all of them were to die here. ''Void can you sense the stage of... Shit! Void come back here!'' Grey''s facial expression changed when he couldn''t find Void on Alice''s shoulder. He initially wanted to ask if Void could sense the stage of the dragon, if it wasn''t too strong, then they might take the risk of going in, but who knew Void was long gone. "What''s it?" Alice asked when she noticed the change in Grey''s expression. "That crazy cat has gone in." Grey said through gritted teeth. "What? Why?" Alice asked a little fearful of losing Void. Although she couldn''t communicate with him like Grey, she likes him, especially his soft black fur. "Apparently, just like dragons, he too loves shiny things." Grey said while rubbing his temple to try and calm the headache he was feeling all of a sudden. "Since there''s a dragon here, then there would be shiny things as well." Alice said. Grey nodded with a tired face, Void is once again about to put him in a perilous predicament, his only prayer is that the dragon shouldn''t be too strong, so they might be able to escape. Inside the cave. ''Sooo shiny...'' Void said looking at the glittering shiny objects on the floor with drool dropping from the side of his widely opened mouth. He didn''t even put the over six meters creature in his eyes, all he was seeing were the shiny things. Chapter 196 - Magnificent! Outside the cave. "What do we do?" Alice asked a little scared for the little cat''s fate. "He should be fine." Grey said waving his hands. "What?!" Alice, Klaus, and Reynolds exclaimed simultaneously while looking at Grey with a little hint of disbelief. ''How could he be so cruel to his pet?'' This was the thought going through their heads. "No, no, don''t get me wrong, I don''t have any plans of leaving him there, but you all should remember he''s not an average cat. I can''t even call him an average magical beast, he''s too unique." Grey explained when he saw the expressions on the faces of the others. The trio didn''t buy his explanation and continued looking at him with the same expression. "Fine, let''s go get him before something untoward happen to him." Grey could only helplessly agree to their demands of retrieving Void. "See, I told you making this expression would make him give in. Now, let''s go see a dragon." Klaus whispered into Reynolds'' ear. Unlike Alice, they couldn''t say they liked Void that much, after all, he was just a cat. If not for him having the space element, as well as his treasure sensing ability, they wouldn''t even spare him a glance, much less trying to save him. "How do you think a dragon would taste?" Reynolds asked Klaus as they walked past the door. How bold! They didn''t even know if the dragon would take pity on them and allow them to go unscathed, yet Reynolds was already thinking of eating it. What a bold thought! "Given its superior quality, its taste should be exquisite." Klaus answered after a while. Grey and Alice who were walking alongside them felt their scalps tingle. Klaus and Reynolds were seriously planning on how to eat the dragon, how the hell does their brain process work?! "Grey, do you think we would be able to beat the dragon?" Alice asked. They had only walked for a few seconds, but it felt like days had passed. They were like an army who knew death was coming, but can''t flee. "If we''re truly able to beat it, then we''ll be having dragon soup for dinner." Grey said jokingly. Alice paused for a moment, ''The three of them are the same.'' She shook her head wryly. Before hearing Klaus and Reynolds speak of eating a dragon, Grey didn''t think about it, but after the initial fright from the thought, he found out it wasn''t a bad idea. I mean, not everyone could say they''ve eaten a dragon before, right? ''Void, are you okay?'' Grey tried to speak to Void. But his response was the same as before, ''So shiny.'' Void currently doesn''t say anything else, it was like he had been hypnotized by the shiny things. ''Damn! Stupid obsessions.'' Grey said hatefully. Going further into the cave, they had to climb up a rock so they could continue their journey. Just after they got to the top of the rock, they were left stunned by the sight ahead of them. Yes, there was a six meters long creature lying by the side, but what grabbed the attention of the group was the different treasures lying on the ground. Looking at the right side of the cave, the group saw different plants growing on the ground, and they were all thriving. They also noticed that after climbing the rock, the elemental essence in the cave seemed to have increased by threefold, that was a lot, considering how high it was outside. On the left side of the cave, a pond could be seen, a blueish light could be seen floating on top of it like an aurora. "So...beautiful." Alice said while gazing at the pond in a lost manner. It was like the floating light above the pond was all she could see. Amongst the treasures sprawled on the ground, different elemental weapons could be seen, there are even elemental defensive weapons. These defensive weapons could make one almost immune to a specific element. Although, that mainly depends on the grade of the weapon, as well as the strength of the attacker. Unlike offensive elemental weapons, these were much harder to forge, and no one amongst Grey''s group had ever seen one before. It took the group almost a minute to fill their eyes with the things sprawled all over the place. The fire which they were previously using as a source of light had been put out since this place was quite bright. Although not to the extent of when they were outside, they could see properly. "Guys, look." Reynolds said in a hushed voice while pointing to the six meters creature that was lying not too far from the pond. Looking at the dragon closely, the group guessed if its tail was added, then I would measure at least ten meters in length. They couldn''t get the proper height of it since it was lying on the ground with its eyes closed, but even in this position, it still measured over a meter high. Its bat-like wings, as well as its hind and forelimbs, were tucked close to its body, but the razor-sharp claws were still visible for the group to see. The dragon''s armor-like scales had a glistening look to it, like ice. On the head of the dragon were two light blue horns which sparkled with a unique charm. The entire body of the dragon was blue, only, the color of its body was darker than the color of his horn. The group had only one word to describe the dragon, ''magnificent!'' But they didn''t have enough time to praise the amazing features of the dragon. The reason for this was because on the dragon''s forehead, between its horn, a shiny crystal could be seen, and close to it, a pitch-black cat could be seen approaching it. Grey''s heart almost leaped out of his body through his mouth when he saw this, and his left eye couldn''t help but twitch uncontrollably. He wasn''t the only one who freaked out, the others felt their scalps going numb. "We''re doomed!" Klaus almost fainted from fright. Chapter 197 - Well Beat Him Up Alice was lost for words because of Void''s current greedy look as he approached the crystal on the dragon''s head. What the group didn''t understand was why didn''t Void choose any of the shiny things on the ground, rather, he had to go for the one that seemed embedded in the dragon''s head. The dragon currently had its eyes shut, which means there was a chance they might be able to obtain some things and leave this place successfully. Other than Klaus and Reynolds, Alice and Grey wanted to leave this place as soon as possible. They aren''t able to sense the stage of the dragon, and there are only two possibilities, either the dragon was just a normal magical beast, or, its stage was far above theirs. Given the fact that it is a magical beast, it was impossible that the former was the reason, so they were left with the last possibility, the dragon was far stronger than they were. ''Void, don''t touch it.'' Grey tried persuading Void. ''But...it''s shiny.'' Void managed to reply, although barely, it was better than his previous ones. ''There are other shiny things on the ground, why don''t you pick from them?'' Grey continued persuading. He had a feeling that if Void removed the crystal from the head of the dragon, then it might wake up. If they want to survive, then the dragon should stay asleep, if it wakes up, then according to Klaus, they were doomed. ''This is shinier, also, it''s a treasure.'' Void said excitedly. ''Oh, what does it do?'' Grey asked a little interested. But Void''s reply threw him off his feet. ''It keeps the dragon asleep.'' Void said, without showing any signs of retreating. ''Damn it! We''re dead.'' Grey almost wanted to cry. The crystal keeps the dragon asleep, so why would Void still want to remove it? Isn''t that the same as signing their deaths? "What''s wrong?" Alice asked when she saw Grey''s expression. She guessed Grey was trying to persuade Void to leave the crystal alone, but she never expected him to wear such an expression. "We''re dead." Grey declared to the group. "Huh!" The others exclaimed in unison. "You see that crystal there?" Grey pointed at the crystal, which prompted the others to nod. They all saw that Void was l.i.c.k.i.n.g his lips while staring at it. "Well, that is what''s keeping the dragon asleep, if that greedy cat removes it, then we''re toast." Grey explained through gritted teeth. "So what do we do now?" Alice asked. "What else can we do other than escaping." Grey shook his head with a wry smile. Even if he doesn''t want to go without Void, he didn''t have much of a choice here. He couldn''t risk the lives of his friends because of Void''s greed for shiny things. Had they been alone, then he would have tried to think of something, but since Klaus and the others were with them, he couldn''t take the risk. "Why don''t we stay and fight?" Alice asked clenching her fist. "Because we don''t know just how strong the dragon is. Alright, everyone retreat immediately." Grey ordered and dragged the others. Before they jumped down from the rock, Grey saw Void taking out a knife he wanted to use in extracting the crystal. ''Given the size of the crystal, it should take him at least eight minutes before he completely extracts it, by then, the others should have gone far.'' Grey thought. He didn''t have any plans of leaving Void behind, he wasn''t that heartless. Although if they were to fall into danger, it would be Void''s fault, he knew the crystal would have other uses than just keeping the dragon asleep. ''Try not to die before I come back.'' He transmitted his voice over to Void as they ran towards the spot where they entered the tunnel. Given the stages of everyone, it didn''t take up to four minutes before they got to the spot they used in entering this place, had it not been for Klaus who was slower, they would''ve arrived a little sooner. Grey made the rock beneath them rise, taking them closer to the surface, before long, the group could be seen coming out of the hole in the big tree. "Take this, follow it and you''ll get to the array soon, wait for me there. Also, run as fast as you can, I''ll try to delay the dragon." Grey said hurriedly while throwing the map to Alice. Before any of the others could comprehend what was happening, an earthen wall appeared, blocking the hole that led inside the tree. This was not a normal earth wall, rather it was the advanced form of it which was not only sturdier but thicker. But this naturally wasn''t enough to stop the others. While they were coming, he also made a small defensive array beforehand, while also enforcing the wall with a thick ice wall as well. It would take the trio outside at least six minutes before they can break all three defenses. Boom! Klaus and Reynolds were the first to attack the wall. Even though Grey told them to leave quickly, they didn''t plan to. "Guys, don''t worry about me. Do you think I''m tired of living? Go to the array, I''ve already memorized the map, I''ll meet you there. Also, run quickly, because I think the dragon would be behind me when I''m coming over." Grey knew his friends wouldn''t leave instantly, so he assured them once again before running back to the cave. "We should leave, we''ll beat him up when we leave this place." Klaus said angrily. They knew Grey did this for their good, but they didn''t like it. If they wanted to fight, then they should fight together, at least dying together would be better than dying alone. "Don''t worry, he won''t die, not yet." Alice said to Klaus and Reynolds before they ran following the route Grey told them. But she agreed with what Klaus said, they''ll definitely beat Grey up once they leave this place. The trio soon disappeared. Underground. Grey could be seen sprinting in the direction of the cave. ''Stupid cat! Greedy cat! Just wait and see what I''ll do to you after we leave this place.'' He thought angrily. He wasn''t confident in being able to fight against the dragon at all, but he was a little confident in escaping from here. While he was running here, he was already brainstorming on the possible things he might use to bar the way of the dragon while they escape. And he had thought of a few, but that would all depend on the strength of the dragon. ''*Sigh* I really need to keep his obsession in check, or else it will be the end of me one day.'' He shook his head once again. The time he spent coming back was shorter than the time he spent when the group was leaving this place, he was naturally faster than them, added to his wind and lightning element, his speed was unbelievable. He got back within two minutes, when he got there, Void hadn''t been able to remove the crystal completely. ''Void, leave it alone.'' He tried persuading once again. When they were here previously, he thought of stopping Void, but when he recalled the space element, he knew even if he tried, it would be useless since he can''t catch him. ''I''ll need to think of a way to keep him at bay.'' Void''s obsession with shiny things was causing him a massive headache. Chapter 198 - Take It! Grey could only helplessly watch on as Void continued trying to remove the crystal. ''Well, I still have some time, better not waste it.'' He thought as he dashed in the direction of the herbs on the ground. Since he couldn''t stop Void, why not take some things as well? ''This herb looks good, I''ll take it!'' He picked up an unknown herb. This ball looks mysterious, I''ll take it! Oh, what is this? I''ll Take it! A red rock? I''ll Take it! Grey could be seen busying around the cave, picking items left and right. He didn''t care what they were or what they did, the only thing in his head was to keep as much as he could before the dragon wakes up. While he was running around, he didn''t forget to start creating an inscription since the dragon would be waking up soon. Within one minute, Grey had managed to pick fifty herbs, as well as over thirty treasures that he had no idea what they were. The only treasure he had an inkling of knowledge to was the defensive elemental weapon, and it seemed to be of the water element. The defensive weapon was surprisingly a blue vest, but Grey didn''t have time to test it out as he immediately kept it. Elemental weapons? Take it! Seeing that he hadn''t acquired any elemental weapons, he decided to take some as well. The reason he was taking them was simple, to use them as gifts when apologizing to his friends for leaving them outside. He knew they would be upset by his somewhat selfish decision, so he hoped after apologizing, as well as giving them gifts, they would forgive him. If only he knew the plans they had for him, then he''d try to kill the dragon so he could cook with it, at least Klaus and Reynolds would forgive him if he offered them dragon meat. Growl... To be honest, Grey felt a little scared inside. This was a legendary beast, something he had only read in books, and according to those books, dragons were terrifying creatures. Not just that, but this one was not only stronger than he was, but they''ve currently stolen some of its properties. The crystal Void was currently trying to pull out was more than triple his size, yet he didn''t even think twice about it, since it''s shiny, he had to have it! Grey hurriedly kept the bow, before turning around to prepare himself for what he had been doing most of the time since he came to the trial land, running. ''*Sigh* To think even at the end, I''ll leave this place while running for my life. It''s amazing how life treats some people.'' He shook his head lightly. But then, a little golden hairpin by the side of the dragon caught his eye, unlike the rest treasures here, the hairpin was closer to the dragon. Maybe it was because of the golden glow it radiated from time to time. No matter what the reason was, it was none of Grey''s business, because, since he''d seen it, then he''ll definitely take it! Boom! Just as Grey picked up the hairpin, the dragon''s tail slammed forcefully into the ground. He looked up only to see Void had removed the crystal completely, he had not only removed it, but he had stored it in his spatial storage. ''Run, it will take some time before it gets to full power.'' Void appeared some distance away with a satisfied smile on his face. ''What''s its full power?'' Grey asked as he ran in Void''s direction hoping to leave this place quickly. ''It''s definitely above Rank Five.'' Void said. ''Rank Five? Isn''t that like an Overlord Plane Elementalist?'' Grey stopped and asked in shock. ''Yeah.'' Void nodded before adding, ''Why did you stop running? Come on, before it catches up.'' ''Wait, and it''s above it?'' Grey asked again feeling like this gamble was too dangerous. ''Yes, but don''t worry, it can''t use strength above Peak Rank Four. Although since it''s one of the higher class magical beasts, its strength at that level is way above others.'' Void explained. ''Why''s that?'' Grey asked a little confused. ''This place isn''t as simple as it seems...'' Void explained. According to him, there''s a seal or something, that restricts the magical beasts in here not to go above Rank Four in regards to their strength, so even if they were Rank Five or higher, they can only unleash the strength of when they were at the Peak of Rank Four, just like the quasi dragon Grey encountered previously. ''It''s like the people who previously stayed in this place knew those who would come in here wouldn''t be able to fight against a single beast in the Overlord Plane, such foresight, it''s unbelievable.'' Grey thought to himself. Grey hadn''t gone far from the cave when a loud roar shook the area. ''Shit! It''s awake, we need to leave.'' Grey said while creating earth walls behind him to at least impede the movement of the dragon as it chases after them. ''No need to be scared, it''s just an oversized lizard.'' Void said nonchalantly. Since the dragon couldn''t use its full strength, then he wasn''t really scared of it. He was naturally aware of this, that was why he removed the crystal even though he knew it would wake it up. ''Oversized lizard! Damn, maybe only Void would dare to call a dragon an oversized lizard.'' Grey was left speechless but Void''s remark. Boom! Boom! The sound of the earth walls being destroyed behind Grey pushed him to increase his speed, but he was unfortunately at his highest speed. ''To think you''d be running once again.'' Void said a little mockingly. ''You''re the cause of it you greedy cat, you know what? Now that I think of it, you put me in this situation a lot.'' Grey retorted while running and setting up walls behind him. ''No I do not.'' Void instantly denied. ''Oh really, then what about the time you stole the treasure of the Lightning Apes just because it was shiny?'' Grey asked while preparing himself to rise up. He had managed to successfully get to the spot they used in entering the tunnel, and from how loud the sounds of each of his earth walls made when being destroyed, he knew the dragon wasn''t far from him. ''I''ll definitely have a dragon as a mount someday.'' He vowed to himself. If he had a dragon, just the mention of it alone would evoke fear in the heart of his opponents, unfortunately, he wouldn''t be able to catch the one. Boom! Bang! Grey soon came out from the hole in the tree and dashed in the opposite direction his friends took. At this current speed, the dragon would be able to catch up to him in about five minutes or so, if that happens, then he had to rely on using the Fusion State so they could survive. Chapter 199 - Void Getting Beat Up Boom! The tree Grey and his friends used in going underground was exploded into smithereens as the huge body of the dragon came through it. Roar! An earth-shattering roar came out of its mouth spreading in all directions as the hole that it came out from was sealed in ice. The dragon was an Ice Dragon. Unlike humans, there''s a distinct difference between an Ice Dragon and a Water Dragon. An Ice Dragon can only use the ice element, likewise, a Water Dragon can only use the water element. Humans are more fortunate in this aspect since a Water Elementalist is entitled to using both. But there are naturally some dragons that are blessed with both ice and water elements, they''re referred to as Dual Elemental dragons amongst the dragons'' community. The blue dragon spread its over four meters long bat-like wings and started flapping, before long, it took to the sky. ______ Six kilometers away from where Grey and the dragon were. "Did you hear that?" Reynolds asked and looked behind them. "Yes, it should be from the dragon." Alice nodded. "Hmm, should we head back?" Reynolds asked a little worried for their friend. "No, going back might do us more harm than good, also, Grey probably has a plan, and if we were to come into the picture, it will most likely disrupt it, not only putting us in danger but him as well." Klaus said after contemplating for a while. "Don''t worry, he''ll be fine." Alice assured Reynolds, a little uncertain though. They''ve always been confident in their friend''s ability to survive, but not a hundred percent confident in this case. After all, what he was going against was a legendary dragon, even their Head Instructors wouldn''t say they were confident in going against it. "Hmm." Reynolds nodded with a sad face, "But we''re still going to beat him up, right?" "Of course." Klaus smiled evilly. Of everyone in the group, except for Alice, Grey was the one who rarely gets beaten, since an opportunity has presented itself, he would definitely take it. ''Hehe, with Alice''s help, I''ll finally beat him up!'' Klaus laughed internally. "We should continue running, since Grey''s going to take a detour, it would be a shame not to see his scared expression when he''s running." Alice said with a light smile. Klaus and Reynolds nodded before they once again started running quickly. Given their current speed, they shouldn''t have a problem with getting to where the array was located within four hours. If they were walking, it would take no less than two days before they would get to their destination, but it''s a totally different matter once they decided to run there. ______ On Grey''s side. ''Crap! It''s already so close.'' Grey felt dismayed when he sensed the fast-approaching dragon. He had estimated it would take at least four or five minutes before the dragon caught up, yet, it hadn''t even been up to two minutes, and the dragon was already at his heels. ''It''s flying, it would naturally be faster than when running.'' Void said as he gazed at the silhouette that was getting larger by the second. ''Get ready to fight, you''re the cause of all this, so you''ll be the one who has to use up most of your energy.'' Grey said hastily while also preparing himself. He didn''t want to carelessly use the Fusion State this quickly since he would have to exit it mid-battle, so, Void would have to do most of the work before, and after he uses the Fusion State. ''Relax, I got this.'' Void said confidently. One minute later. ''I don''t got this, I repeat, I don''t got this.'' Void yelled as the dragon sent him flying towards the ground. Unlike the quasi dragon, a real dragon didn''t have any problems with matching up to his speed, also, given the real strength of the dragon, it had more experience than Void who wasn''t even six months old. Hearing Void''s words, Grey almost wanted to snicker, but their current situation didn''t allow him to. ''Done!'' Grey said excitedly as he completed the third inscription. Compared to the time he fought against Quinn and his group, now, he could use three inscriptions without suffering much of a side effect, he could even use it for a prolonged time without tiring out. Boom! He attacked with all three inscriptions instantly, but the dragon casually formed an ice sphere around itself that was able to easily block the attacks. The only way the attacks from the inscriptions could affect it slightly is if Grey were to use the Fusion State, since his attack power would increase then. But it was still too early for him to use it, it hadn''t even been up to a minute yet they were already forced into such a perilous situation. ''Stop playing dead and attack, you''re the cause of all this in the first place.'' Grey said while stomping his feet on the ground. The moment his feet touched the ground, the spot where Void landed on shot up quickly, sending Void flying straight at the dragon. Roar! The dragon roared before spitting out a stream of ice at Grey who was running. ''Shit! Too strong.'' Grey complained before he turned around and threw both hands in front of him. At first, before the ice got close to the fire wall, it would melt due to the intensity of the heat, but after the dragon noticed this, the stream of ice it released suddenly turned bigger and colder. Grey soon saw his fire dwindling by the second. ''What the hell are you doing Void? Distract it!'' He yelled at Void. ''It''s not as easy as you think.'' Void said feeling a little wronged. He was trying hard, but the dragon was just too strong. It''s amazing how it had been able to keep its head in the same position while defending against attacks that were coming from behind it. Void almost regretted his decision to take the crystal, well, almost. Since it''s shiny, for him, it was worth it. The dragon spat out the stream of ice for almost one minute before it stopped, the second it stopped, it immediately focused its attention on Void. ''Shit! I''m f.u.c.k.e.d!'' Void complained when he noticed this. Swoosh! Bam! Boom! He managed to escape some of the crystals, blocked some, but he was unfortunately struck one time, and since the crystals were bigger than he was, it sent him crashing towards the ground, along with it of course. ''Damn it, if I let this smash him as well, he might get seriously injured. I still want him to be beaten up.'' Grey immediately shot to the spot where Void would crash into. He made sure to attack the dragon with his inscriptions to distract it for some time. Boom! The ice crystal was quickly destroyed by Grey, and he instantly got hold of Void, stopping him from slamming into the ground. This was the first time Grey was seeing Void being beaten, and he couldn''t lie, he was enjoying it. If not for the fact that he might be in danger as well, he would have been cheering on the dragon from the sidelines. Chapter 200 - You Made It Angrier ''Are you okay?'' Grey asked while trying his best to put up a concerned expression. ''No, no I''m not. This guy is too strong.'' Void shook his head. ''Oh come on, it''s just an oversized lizard, there''s nothing to worry about.'' Grey said sarcastically, using Void''s previous words against him. ''How can...'' Void wanted to ask Grey why he would call such a mighty dragon an oversized lizard, but he quickly shut his mouth when he recalled the scene of him telling Grey it was an oversized lizard not too long ago. ''I get it, I messed up, no need to rub it in my face.'' He said. ''Apologize after fixing this.'' Grey said while giving him a boost so he could continue fighting against the dragon. This time though, he decided to help out as much as he could, although, he still planned to allow the dragon to beat Void up on some occasions, but he would distract it whenever he notices it might seriously hurt him. ''Thank you, Teacher.'' Grey couldn''t help but thank Chris when he saw how important inscribing was in this battle. Had he not been an inscriber, then things would have been a little too difficult for them, given how powerful the dragon was. Even with the inscriptions frequently distracting the dragon, it didn''t stop it from beating them. It was completely dominating the duo, and if things continued like this, they would most likely die under its attacks. ''Isn''t it time to use that technique yet?'' Void asked after he was once again pushed back by the dragon. He was the main attacker in the battle, although he couldn''t fly, his space element gave him an advantage which allowed him to stay in the sky for long periods, all he has to do was disappear and appear in different positions. But he couldn''t do this forever since it''s quite steadily dwindling his space essence reserve in his body. ''No, it''s still too early, and we''ve barely even gone a kilometer from the spot where we came out.'' Grey said while attacking as well. Unlike Void, he was actually having an easier time, even though the dragon attacks him sometimes, its main focus was on Void. ''Crap! Then when''s the right time?'' Void asked worriedly. ''When you''ve been beaten to stupor.'' Grey said to himself with a chuckle. ''We still have a long way to go.'' He answered. After responding to Void, Grey created a large four meters earthen staff and sent it slamming down at the dragon. The staff slammed into the ice sphere that appeared around the dragon when it got close. "Void!" Grey yelled out. ''I know.'' Void replied and disappeared from his previous spot. Grey made three long fire spears and sent them in the direction of the dragon that was mid-air defending against the assault from the inscriptions. On seeing the incoming spears, the dragon kept its ice sphere active, to block against both the attacks from the inscriptions, as well as Grey''s spears. Just as the fire spears were about to make contact with the ice sphere, Void who disappeared previously, appeared once again. As soon as he appeared, the spears vanished into thin air. The dragon''s large pupils dilated when it saw this scene, it knew what the duo wanted to do, but dodging it was easier said than done. The three spears materialized inside the sphere and continued their speedy charge towards the dragon, slamming into it before it could retreat. Bang! Bang! Bang! After the spears exploded, it caused smoke to rise up in the ice sphere the dragon created, and cracks could be seen forming around the sphere. Grey didn''t know if the was more effective because it was a fire attack, or if any other attack could harm it as well, after all, this was the first time they were able to strike it since the battle started, and it''s been over five minutes now! Roar! A roar of pain came out from the dragon''s mouth. ''Yeah! We got it!'' Void said excitedly. Roar! Another roar was heard, but this time, it was louder. ''Is it just me or does it sound angry?'' Void asked, but to his surprise, he didn''t get a response. When he turned around, all he could see was the dust Grey kicked up as he was running away. ''F.u.c.k! Wait for me!'' Void immediately turned tails and ran after Grey, not waiting to see the dragon appear from the smoke. ''You''ve made it angrier.'' Void said as he tried to catch up, but this time, Grey seemed a little faster than he was. With no other option, he used his space element to shorten the gap between the two, before long, he had caught up with Grey. ''I need to rest a little, I''ve used up a lot of my space essence.'' He thought. ''Try to recover before it catches up to us.'' Grey said to Void. He on the other hand seemed okay, even after the battle he had gone through, although he didn''t do much, he shouldn''t be this energized. ''It''s the tonic.'' He thought. This was the only thing he could think of that managed to keep him energetic even till now. If only tasting it as well as taking in its scent was this wondrous, how would it feel if one truly consumes it? Well, he didn''t plan to find out soon, unless he''s cooking with it. Back at the battlefield. But it didn''t take long before it managed to sense them though. Roar! It roared before flying in pursuit of the duo, a cold glint evident in its eyes, this time, its intent to kill was stronger . Chapter 201 - I Miss Food! Deep in the trail land. On a mountain peak. Chris could be seen speaking to Brown in a somewhat animated manner while raising his hands up from time to time, he would also occasionally point at the old-looking man who was sitting on top of a rock. "Brown, can you believe this guy? He has kept me here for so long, I haven''t even gotten a chance to eat something good." "Sometimes when I look at you, I get a feeling that you would taste good." "Okay, that came out wrong. I''m not talking about you, but other Griffins." "See the point is, I miss food, especially that little rascal''s cooking." "He''s a great cook, don''t you think so too?" Brown would occasionally nod at Chris'' words, the only time that he put on a strange expression was when he said it would taste good. But on hearing the part about Grey''s cooking, it couldn''t help but nod vigorously. It too wanted a taste of Grey''s amazing cooking. Chris has been here for over five months now, and the old man rarely speaks to him, although he likes peace and quiet, at least at the Lunar Academy, he would occasionally go out to speak with Oliver, or maybe Blake would come visiting. After Grey became his student, his days weren''t as boring as before. He rarely spoke with others because of his personality, and most of the instructors in the Academy were afraid of him since the day he nearly killed an instructor who spoke rashly to him. All in all, he''s a great guy as long as people don''t get on his bad side, only, his bad sides are quite a lot. "Hey, old man! When can I leave this place?" Chris called on the old man who had his eyes shut. The old man slightly opened his eyes and took a peek at Chris, he smiled before replying, "When I want." After his reply, he shut his eyes once again, not bothering to listen to Chris'' rants. He couldn''t help but click his tongue at the similarities between Chris'' father and Chris. They even have the same foul mouth when things aren''t going their way. Chris went on for some more minutes, but when he didn''t get a response, he could only turn to Brown for comfort. Boredom can push one to extremities, if anyone told Chris he would have to speak to Brown as much as he has done lately, he would have beaten the person up, but now, the reality of things is quite unexpected. Chris soon got tired of speaking to Brown and sat down feeling a little exhausted. The truth was, the five months he has spent here had been very beneficial to him, it''s just that, since he had already cursed at the old man from the start, he didn''t want to apologize. "Huh!" The old man who had been silent all this while suddenly opened his eyes and looked at the part of the trail land that Grey and the other geniuses entered. He followed the aura he sensed, and it took him to the scene of the Ice Dragon battling against Grey and Void for the first time. ''Hmm, interesting, he''s grown this much. Oh! He even got old Vaughn''s blue flames, he''s quite lucky. Two more elements have been awakened in his body...'' Just by sensing Grey from his position, he was able to tell how many elements Grey had in his body. He kept tabs on Grey during the first month or so, but since then, he didn''t really check on him much. He also wasn''t bothered about him since he could clearly sense his aura, the only reason he checked on him just now was not because of him, but the dragon. He naturally knew the dragon, and given what''s inside Grey, he couldn''t allow him to die. ''Why don''t I just bring him here like this guy, at least he''ll grow stronger here.'' The old man thought. Taking Chris away from the world would actually do the world more good, given his personality. ''There''s something strange about that cat, I can''t seem to sense its elements unless it uses them.'' The old man thought after he focused his attention on Void. The old man continued watching the battle and felt a little amazed since Grey and Void could fight against the dragon. Although because of what they did to that part of the land, the dragon couldn''t use strength above Rank Four, it was still a dragon after all, and it wouldn''t have any issues with fighting against Elementalists who are in the early stages of the Overlord Plane. ''Those two are quite special.'' He thought. If two other people at the same stages as Grey and Void teamed up against this dragon, then they would''ve been dead. But Grey and Void being able to last this long was a testament of their strength. Though the dragon was the one who was mostly beating them up, their performance has been praiseworthy since they''ve managed to stay alive. It soon got to the time when Grey and Void teamed up in attacking the dragon with the fire spears. "Ingenious, they seem to have built a chemistry between them." The old man blurted out. Chris who was by the side looked at the old man strangely. ''And here I thought I was the only one going crazy.'' He thought to himself with a snicker. ''*Sigh* I''ll have to speak to him before he kills them.'' The old man shook his head before waving his hands to set an array around the mountain peak. "Stay here, I''ll be back soon." He said to Chris before vanishing. Chapter 202 - Where Is It? Chris watched on as the man disappeared before chuckling to himself. "Brown, it''s time to escape." He said as he walked closer to the array. ''Hopefully that old man stays out long enough for me to break this array.'' He thought as he started looking for a way to break the array. This array was more advanced than the ones he''s familiar with, having more nodes that connect, making it difficult to break. But there''s one thing few people knew about him, when it came to learning, he was a genius. With the knowledge he had in arrays, although it was shallow when compared to this one, he was confident that if he was given enough time, then he would be able to break it. He soon focused fully on breaking the array while the old man was gone. _____ At the battlefield. The Ice Dragon roared angrily before pursuing the duo who were currently out of sight. But before it got far, it sensed a familiar aura getting close to it and stopped. "Why have you come?" The dragon spoke in an ice-cold, detached voice. "You''re just as cold as ever, Aetonth." The old man appeared mid-air, standing before the dragon. "Hmph! That puny human and annoying cat stole my crystal, I must get it back." Aetonth said angrily. "Oh! No wonder you''re awake. Don''t kill the boy, I''ll retrieve the crystal from the cat." The old man said. "What about the cat?" Aetonth asked icily. Even if it wanted to spare Grey, it didn''t want to spare Void. To it, Void is more annoying. "Don''t kill any of them." The old man said. "Hmph! Fine! I''m going back to my cave then." Aetonth said turning around. Since it wasn''t allowed to kill any of them, then what''s the point in chasing after them? "Actually, I have a job for you. Keep on chasing them like you were previously doing, beat them up, I want to see the boy''s limit." The old man said. "Fine, besides, I''ve been sleeping for so long, I need to stretch my legs a little before going back." Aetonth replied before once again giving chase. The old man smiled and followed behind them, it took Aetonth over ten minutes before it caught up with the duo. ''His speed is terrifying!'' The old man was left dumbstruck by Grey''s speed. Given Aetonth''s speed, he should''ve been able to catch up to them within five minutes even after the delay, yet it took over ten minutes. When he was at Grey''s stage, he paled in comparison when it came to speed. ''I should go back, Aetonth knows what to do.'' The old man thought before disappearing. He made sure to secretly retrieve the crystal from Void''s spatial storage, and to his greatest surprise, accessing Void''s spatial storage without him knowing was quite difficult. Even given his strength, he still had to be careful. Other than the difficulty in accessing it, he was once again shocked by what was inside of the spatial storage. ''Now I get it, it likes shiny things.'' The old man thought when he saw the items. Although there were good items in the spatial storage, most of the items inside were shiny, some weren''t even useful, yet Void kept them. Some seconds later, he appeared back at the mountain peak, but there were no signs of Chris or Brown. "*Sigh* To think he broke it this quickly." The old man sighed before sitting down on top of the rock and shutting his eyes. The array he set up was actually a test for Chris, he knew Chris was knowledgeable about arrays, but due to his personality, teaching him was difficult. He was already having a hard time teaching him about cultivation, if he were to teach him about arrays as well, then he might probably die from headache. He spread out his spiritual sense outside his body, and within ten seconds, he was able to sense Chris'' aura, although Chris hid it, it wasn''t a challenge for him. But what surprised him was the fact that after he sensed it the first time, it was suddenly cut off. It was like Chris was never there. "Oh, smart. He managed to sense me." The old man chuckled before disappearing. Three minutes later, he could be seen with Chris in tow. Chris had an angry expression but since he couldn''t fight back, he could only helplessly follow the old man back. But storms were currently brewing in his mind, with multiple questions running through it. Although he didn''t get far, he was able to recognize this place, after all, it was just like the other side where the geniuses all explore, only, it was more intact. ''This place is definitely that place, but how come there are people this strong here? I thought it was abandoned?'' "You''re quite good, to be able to actually break this array within such a short time." The old man praised before fixing the array once again, but this time, it was more complex. "Where are we? I recognize this place, I''ve been here before." Chris asked seriously. "Oh, try breaking this one and you''ll get an answer." The old man said before shutting his eyes again. At least with this, Chris would be too busy to complain to Brown about how bored he was here. ______ ''Void, it''s here again!'' Grey said when he saw Aetonth getting closer to them once again. As Aetonth flew through the sky, snow fell from behind it, making the area colder. ''I haven''t even been able to get a proper rest.'' Void complained. ''Well, it''s not my problem.'' Grey said while preparing to attack. ''Do you think it will let us go if I return the crystal?'' Void asked. Grey was shocked when he heard this, he didn''t believe Void would actually think of returning the crystal since it was shiny. He knew just how obsessed he was with shiny things. Boom! Aetonth attacked the moment it got there. The duo managed to block the attack, and Void instantly decided to return the crystal since they might die from Aetonth''s attacks. But his expression changed when he couldn''t find the crystal in his spatial storage. ''Where is it?'' Void asked. ''Where''s what?'' Grey had a baffled expression on his face. ''The crystal.'' Void said. ''I knew you''d never return it.'' Chapter 203 - Going Through Two Seasons ''I knew you''d never return it.'' Grey shook his head, not at all surprised by the fact that Void said he couldn''t find the crystal. Given how much Void loved shiny things, he was sure Void is just looking for an excuse not to return it. ''Seriously, it''s not in my spatial storage. Had my storage been like yours, I''d have shown you so you''ll see I''m not lying.'' Void said feeling wronged. The crystal truly wasn''t there, but since there''s no way for Grey to assess his spatial storage, there was no way for him to prove his innocence. ''Yeah right, less talking, more fighting.'' Grey didn''t believe a single word Void was saying. Boom! Grey''s fireball was destroyed by the jet of ice Aetonth sprayed out. ''Damn it!'' Void said in frustration before joining Grey in attacking Aetonth. Unlike the first time, this time, Aetonth didn''t fight the duo mid-air, but after dealing with Grey''s fireball, he flew down, landing not told far from them. The ground where it landed, was slowly covered by snow. Roar! It roared before its horns lit up, ice energy slowly started converging in the middle of the horns. ''Shit! Don''t let that thing release that.'' Void warned when he sensed the energy converging in between Aetonth''s horns. ''No need to tell me that.'' Grey shot a fireball at Aetonth, before sending out a lightning bolt as well. Void on the other hand quickly shot out three arrows made of black mass at Aetonth''s body, hoping to stop it from completing whatever it wanted to do. Seeing the black arrows, Grey was slightly taken aback, before recalling that Void also had the darkness element. Sometimes, he tends to forget about this due to Void''s heavy reliance on his space element. When Aetonth saw the black arrows, it created an ice wall, as well as the previous ice sphere it used in protecting itself. It was familiar with the darkness element and knew of its corrosive properties, one defense wouldn''t be able to stop the arrows from coming, two, on the other hand, might just be able to do the job. Grey''s attacks were the first to strike, the lightning bolt first struck the ice wall, but it was unable to leave any marks on it, before the fireball crashed into the ice wall, with intense heat. Bang! The fireball exploded, but the result wasn''t what Grey was hoping for, although there were some slight signs of damage, it wasn''t enough. Void''s arrows were the last to get there, the darkness element is regarded as one of the slowest elements, but its high damage made up for it. The first arrow struck the same spot Grey''s fireball hit, making it easier for it to corrode through it. With two seconds, it had managed to appear on the other side of the ice wall with the other two arrows going a little slower since they hit a more resilient part of the wall. Aetonth sneered on seeing this and enforced the ice sphere which was its second means of defense, if this didn''t stop the arrows as well, then it would think of something else to do. Grey didn''t stay idle, the moment his first two attacks died down, he had already prepared another attack, this one was a mixture of the lightning and fire element. It wasn''t fusion since the elements weren''t fused, he only used the lightning element to bolster the speed of the spear he sent through the hole Void''s attack had created. Swoosh! The fire-lightning spear made its way straight for the hole on the wall, as the arrows ahead of it were trying to open up another hole on the ice sphere as well. Everything happened within a matter of seconds, from Grey''s first attacks to Void''s darkness arrows, then to Grey''s fire-lightning spear again. The duo''s understanding had grown a lot over the time they''ve spent together, so they were very good when it came to working together. Boom! The fire-lightning spear struck the ice sphere, and a crack appeared from that spot, all the way to the other side of the ice sphere, running all around it. Crack! Crack! Bang! A second later, the ice sphere exploded, giving room for Grey''s fire-lightning spear, as well as Void''s three darkness arrows to head straight for the dragon that wasn''t even up to two meters away from the attacks. Unfortunately, Grey and Void didn''t see what they expected. ''Duck!'' Grey yelled and dived to the ground, covering his head with both hands. Void was more relaxed since he just vanished and appeared ten meters away from his previous spot. When he looked up, he saw what looked like an Ice beam shooting off the energy mass Aetonth gathered between its horns. ''Get out of there!'' Void yelled when he saw ice shards coming out of the ground as well, following the path of the ice beam, which had Grey lying directly under it. The cold radiating from the ice beam which was just only a meter and a half above Grey was intense, luckily, he was able to fight against the cold after he circulated his fire essence around his body. He thought he could dodge the attack by just lying down, but he felt a chill when Void told him what was coming. He couldn''t stand up since he was sure he''d be frozen to death if he makes contact with the ice beam, with no other option, he could only roll on the ground. Since they were in a forest, he also had to maneuver past the trees on the side. All the trees that the ice beam came in contact with were currently frozen solid, with no sign of returning to their previous state any time soon, and ice shards could also be seen around them. This part of the forest currently looked like it was going through two seasons at the same time, with one part being covered in ice and snow like it was winter, and the other part still having fresh green leaves like it was summer. Chapter 204 - I Swear It On All Things Shiny! Grey managed to escape the range of the attack on time, but as soon as he stood up, all he saw was a white flash coming straight at him, before he could react, it struck him on the c.h.e.s.t. Bam! Grey''s figure was sent flying, and Void couldn''t help but shake his head at Grey''s misfortune. While he was previously rolling to try to escape the ice shards that were coming out of the ground, because of the trees he had to maneuver past without standing up, he unfortunately rolled within a few meters from his attacker. Aetonth who was about to stop its ice beam instantly swung its currently snow-covered tail at Grey. In such a short distance, Grey didn''t have any chances of reacting before he was hit. Luckily, Grey not only has a strong body, but Aetonth went easy on him since it was told not to kill him, or else, it wouldn''t have had any issues with breaking most of his ribs with just that attack even though his body was stronger than most people. Bang! Grey crashed into a tree hard on his side, before falling to the ground. Void instantly attacked, in hopes of distracting Aetonth to buy Grey as much time as he could, but because of the huge gap in strength, he was quickly overwhelmed and sent flying by an ice pillar in Grey''s direction. Grey who was just standing was forced to catch Void, because of the suddenness, he could only put his body on the way before holding Void with his hands after Void hit him. The force not only sent him staggering back, but also increased the pain he was feeling on his c.h.e.s.t from Aetonth''s previous attack. "Ah..." He g.r.o.a.n.e.d lightly in pain while his face winced because of it. ''Void, how about you return the crystal to it, I''ll even allow you steal the shiny crown of the emperor.'' After regaining his footing, he tried to convince Void to return the crystal since that was the current best course of action. Initially, he thought this was going to be like the quasi dragon when even though they were overpowered, it wasn''t by much. But now, he really wished he had tried everything he could to stop Void, although it might be futile since he couldn''t keep up with Void''s speed when he''s using the space element, at least he would have known he tried. Who knows, maybe he might have been able to stop him. "Shiny crown?'' Void asked a little excited by the possibility of stealing a shiny crown. ''Shit! I shouldn''t have said that.'' Grey thought to himself. Now he had to make sure not to go close to the emperor or else Void might get him in trouble. But the funny thing was, he had only seen the emperor once, and at that time, he wasn''t wearing his crown, so he didn''t even know if the crown was shiny or not. ''Yeah, why don''t you return this so we can leave this place in one piece. You know you can''t get another shiny thing if you''re dead, right?'' Grey tried convincing Void to return. ''I know, but the truth is, I really don''t have the crystal, it just vanished!'' Void said feeling wronged. He didn''t recall taking the crystal out, so how did he lose it if it was in the same place? ''Come on Void, we''re being serious here, return it before this dragon kills us.'' Grey said a little annoyed. He couldn''t just let Void do as he pleases, especially when it''ll put their lives in danger. Luckily, he told Klaus and the others to leave, else even though if they all fought against the dragon they might fare better than his current situation, the dragon would still be able to easily overwhelm them in the end. But since he''s currently alone with Void, he could easily run once he uses the Fusion State, without the fear of leaving anyone behind. ''I''m serious as well, it just disappeared! I swear it on all things shiny!'' Void said while sending out an attack at Aetonth. Since they''re speaking via the mind link, they could communicate faster than when people speak openly, so although their small conversation seemed a little long, it all happened in a short time. Grey created a large boulder that he sent at Aetonth. ''Wait, you''re being serious?'' He asked to clarify. He wasn''t really too sure if Void was lying, but since Void could swear on all things shiny, which is probably the most precious thing to him, there might be a chance that he''s right. But he didn''t believe him completely though. ''Yes, I still want more shiny things, I don''t want to die now. Although I know we have a small chance of escaping, I really can''t find the crystal in my spatial storage.'' Void explained. ''That''s strange, if it''s not with you, and given how the dragon is still chasing, it shouldn''t be with it as well, then who has it? Or is there a chance you brought it out while we were running previously and misplaced it?'' Grey asked, he found Void''s words baffling. ''We were together, did you see me taking out any crystal?'' Void looked at Grey weirdly before disappearing from his position and appearing not too far from Aetonth, sending out a black mass that covered a three meters radius towards it. Aetonth opened its mouth and sprayed out a stream of ice that gradually ate away the black mass. The black mass started shrinking at a fast pace, and within three seconds, it vanished. But Aetonth''s attack continued heading in Void''s direction. Grey who was by the side stepped in by using three elements simultaneously. He first formed the strongest earth wall he could, before sending a lightning bolt, as well as a stream of fire in Aetonth''s direction. Both attacks struck from the left and right side respectively, that wasn''t all, two blue symbols also lit up in the air, they were inscriptions he made with his fire essence. The symbols also sent out two huge fireballs at Aetonth, one headed towards its tail region, while the other targeted its back. It was a four-way pincer attack, Grey was hopeful it might be able to do some damage, even if it''s a little. ''Void, again.'' Grey called on Void to repeat the same trick they did the first time. Aetonth''s attack struck the earth wall the same time Grey''s four attacks got to it. Seeing them, it quickly formed its protective sphere once again. Void who previously disappeared, appeared outside the sphere, and it sneered. It wouldn''t fall for the same thing twice. It quickly came out of the sphere, taking the path where his ice stream was going, heading towards Grey. It all happened so fast that just after Void moved all of Grey''s attacks into the sphere did it leave it. Grey smiled on seeing this, as well as Void. Unknown to Aetonth, Grey also released a fifth attack, with a third inscription, but it never appeared since Void kept it the moment it sent out the attack. Boom! Chapter 205 - One-Hour Break Boom! Grey''s first four attacks collided in the ice sphere, exploding on impact, but it didn''t even get as much as a glance from Grey and Void, the reason for that was because his secret fifth attack appeared above Aetonth at the same time as well. The third array he made which he used in secretly unleashing the fifth attack was larger than the previous two, since his target was large, he wanted to use a big attack that might cover over half of Aetonth''s body. Of course, he made sure the attack was of the fire element since he thought it was more effective against the Aetonth, the Ice Dragon. Aetonth who was running in Grey''s direction while still sending out ice streams immediately sensed the attack that appeared above it, it immediately stopped attacking and tried to dodge to the side, but when it wanted to move, it realized that moving actually became quite difficult. It looked below it only to realize that at least one-fourth of its leg had sunk into the thick mud which formed all of a sudden beneath it, it couldn''t struggle free quickly given the time, so it spread out its wings, hoping to fly away in the crucial moment. Aetonth managed to flap its wings twice, but it was unfortunately not enough to get it out of the mud before the attack landed fiercely on its back. Boom! A large explosion rang out, but that wasn''t all, Void attacked as well, sending out a lightning, fire, and darkness element attack all at the same time, aiming for one place. Seeing this, Grey also attacked as well, he didn''t know if these attacks could kill it, but he hoped they should at least wear it down. After almost twenty seconds of continuous attacks, the duo stopped and Void returned to Grey''s shoulder, panting. Even Grey wasn''t having an easy time as well, it had been over twenty minutes since Aetonth was chasing and beating them up, and since then, he haven''t had time to rest. Void on the other hand managed to rest during the time they spent running, it''s just that, compared to Grey, he was the one who had taken most of the beating. ''Do you think we got it?'' Void asked looking at the smoky and dusty place where they unleashed barrages of attacks. ''No, we...need to leave here.'' Grey wasn''t optimistic about their chances if killing Aetonth from those attacks, but he wanted to find a place to rest, hopefully, Aetonth wouldn''t chase after them anymore. According to his calculations, his friends should get to the array within three hours or so, and he''s currently about four hours away from the array. He ran following the route he planned out, while also hoping to find a secure spot to rest, he didn''t wait to confirm if their attacks damaged Aetonth, but he hoped it did, even if it was by a small amount. Four minutes after Grey and Void left the forest, the dust and smoke still hadn''t completely died down, but Aetonth''s figure could properly be seen now. It was currently sprawling on the muddy ground, and letting out slight painful groans. It was thoroughly stumped by the duo''s attacks, and he nearly had the impulse to kill them, it didn''t remember when last it was hit by this much. "Clever human, annoying cat, you''re lucky my power is restrained, or else I''d have beaten you so bad for this that you wouldn''t even recognize yourselves. If not for that old man, I wouldn''t even go easy on them. Hmph!" Aetonth''s voice could be heard coming from the dust. "I''ll let them rest for one hour, I need to recover from their attacks." Aetonth''s figure moved, and it soon walked out from the dust. When it came into sight, a transparent ice scale-like armor could be seen covering its scales, but some parts of it were missing and its scales had multiple black spots. Of Grey and Void''s attacks, the one he hated the most was Void''s darkness attacks, followed by Grey''s fire element attacks. Both attacks were so powerful that even though its present strength was five stages ahead in Grey''s case and six stages ahead in Void''s case, they still managed to break its defenses. After Aetonth came out from the dust and laid down at the side of a tree, the old man appeared in front of him once again. "To think they would be able to break your defense." The old man said with a soft smile. "If they were by themselves, they wouldn''t have a chance." Aetonth said disapprovingly. "But you have to admit, they''re quite strong, and clever as well, even I didn''t expect them to trap you in such an ingenious way. If you were facing any other duo, I don''t think you''d be in such a sorry state." The old man said. "Hmph! Stop praising the brat, if not for you saying I shouldn''t kill him, he would''ve been long dead." Aetonth scoffed before saying. "But you have to give them credit, they tried." The old man said. "Fine." Aetonth nodded. "So why are you here?" The old man asked while staring in another direction. He could currently see Grey and Void running away, they''ve even left the forest, and were currently heading in the direction of a building. "I''m giving them a one-hour break, at least they should rest a little, or they might truly die from my attacks." Aetonth said before closing its eyes. With how powerful it originally was, it didn''t have any problems with locating the duo with his spiritual sense. Although its true strength was restricted, it could still easily use its original powerful spiritual sense. "Okay, try to push him harder this time, you''re beating the cat too much." The old man said. He had been watching the battle, and compared to Grey, he noticed Void was the one who was getting more beat up by Aetonth. "I feel the brat wants the cat to be beaten up, so I''m just helping him." Aetonth said. "Oh, I also noticed his physical defense was amazing when I struck him previously." It added. "Just like him, hmm, okay, try to push him harder, I want to see how strong he truly is." The old man said before disappearing. "Oh! I already have your crystal" The old man''s voice rang out from the void, but he was nowhere to be seen. Chapter 206 - Sacrifice The Cat! Thirty minutes later. Grey and Void could be seen sprinting out of a forest, and heading in the direction of a building. After they left the forest where they were battling with Aetonth, they''ve passed by multiple buildings, as well as two other forests before getting here. Grey didn''t even know how far he had run, but he estimated that he should be at least forty kilometers away from Aetonth. It only now did he decide to rest, once he''s recovered, he would head towards the array. ''I think it stopped chasing us.'' Void said while relaxing on Grey''s shoulder. ''Me too, but it''s best we move out after resting for a while.'' Grey replied before entering the compound. He looked around, and other than some beasts, he saw nothing else. The beasts were all in the Arcane Plane, so all Grey did was to release his far superior aura, scaring the beasts away. He made some defensive arrays outside the room he entered, before shutting his eyes to enter into a meditative state. His body greedily started to absorb the elemental essence in the area, rejuvenating the tired Grey, and also filling up his wind and lightning element reserve. Of all his elements, they were the ones he had used the most since he constantly had to channel them in his body while he was running away, so when he was absorbing the elemental essences, he focused more on them since he didn''t know if he might have to run away once more. Grey''s wind and lightning elemental reserve in his elemental beads were almost filled, while his other elements were once again filled up. If it were to be someone else, then they would''ve needed at least nearly double the time he took in almost refiling his wind and lightning element. But compared to others, his absorption rate was faster. ''Void, let''s go.'' He opened his eyes and said. He was currently feeling energetic and was ready to continue his journey. Now, he wanted to leave this place more than anything else, if he continued moving at this speed, then he might get there within another three hours or so, making him an hour late given the time he estimated Klaus and the others would get there. ''Okay.'' Void who was previously resting opened his eyes and jumped into his shoulder. Grey came out of the room, exited the building, and once again started his race towards the array. Unknown to them, Aetonth had already begun its chase once again. Grey and Void quickly passed through different terrains in fifteen minutes, from entering a forest to going through a tall grassy field to currently being in a mountain. Just before they got to the peak of the mountain, Void suddenly stood up and looked behind them. ''Crap! It''s coming.'' He said to Greg hastily. ''The dragon?'' asked Grey. Void nodded with a sour face before replying, ''Yes.'' If he truly had the crystal, he would have returned it after going through the first round of beating from Aetonth, but now, he not only lost the crystal, he was being beaten for it. Although everything was his fault in the first place, he was still stumped by how the crystal suddenly disappeared. When they were previously in the building resting, he even checked his spatial storage again, just to be sure. This time, he went through it meticulously, but he still didn''t find the crystal. His current situation was like being beaten for stealing something you planned to return but then lost it on the way, only in his case, he thought of returning it after being beaten, only to find out it was gone. ''Are you sure you don''t have the crystal?'' Grey asked once again. He was still having doubts about what Void said, he couldn''t be blamed though since Void loved shiny things. ''I don''t. If I knew it was this powerful, I wouldn''t have taken it.'' Void said with remorse. ''Well, it''s too late now.'' Grey said before increasing his speed. His senses weren''t as sharp as Void''s, but since Aetonth hasn''t entered his range yet, it meant he was still some distance away, that''s a valuable time for the duo to come up with a strategy before it will catch up to them. Grey continued running while thinking of something to do, surprisingly, he asked himself, ''If Klaus were here, what would he do?'' As soon as the thought came to his head, the only answer he could think of was, ''Sacrifice the cat.'' He couldn''t help but chuckle and take a glance at Void, ''Maybe I might try it.'' He thought to himself. It took Grey another two minutes to get off th2e mountain, running past the buildings he saw on his way. Another five minutes later, Grey started sensing Aetonth''s aura. ''It''s getting closer.'' He thought. In another two minutes, Grey caught sight of Aetonth''s figure when he looked behind him, it wasn''t really hard to miss the over six meters blue dragon in the sky, especially with its wings spread apart. He was currently running in an open field that seems to go downhill. Boom! An ice shard came from underneath Grey''s feet, pushing him up. Luckily, Grey trained his physical body a lot, so he managed to quickly use the boost he got from the ice to leap forward. He landed on the ground before doing a roll because of the momentum, he instantly continued running as soon as he got up again. This time around, Aetonth fired ice balls that exploded once they came in contact with anything. After the ice balls explode, they''ll release ice that will freeze anything within a meter of them. "Crap! Crap! Crap!" Grey ran while dodging the ice balls that were falling from the sky. The chase went on like this for almost a minute before one of Grey''s legs was unfortunately frozen, after being in the one-meter range of the ice ball''s freezing range. The ice froze his left leg from the foot to his t.h.i.g.h. "Damn it! Come on, come on, come on!" Grey urged as the ice on his legs slowly started melting when he channeled his fire essence to his leg, but the problem was, Aetonth was getting closer to them. "Yes, I''m free." Grey said after the ice melt completely from his leg. Bam! Aetonth landed on the ground, blocking his path. "Shit! I''m f.u.c.k.e.d." Grey immediately cursed when he turned around only to see Aetonth in front of him. A scene quickly played out in his mind, it was the scene of him offering Void as a sacrifice, and Aetonth letting him go. He quickly threw the thought to the back of his head since he knew it was unrealistic. "Mister dragon, just so you know, he was the one who stole your crystal." Grey pointed at Void who was on his shoulder. ''You''re selling me out.'' Void complained immediately. ''Good, we''re even.'' Grey sneered. ''When did I ever sell you out?'' Void asked feeling wrong. ''Oh, how about all the times you nearly cause my death because of your obsession. If we survive this, you''re only allowed to steal what might put my life in danger, you know what, tell me first if you want to steal something.'' Grey retorted angrily, releasing all the pent-up frustration he felt from this chase. ''Does that mean I can''t steal the emperor''s crown?'' Void asked, he didn''t try to talk back since he knew he was wrong. ''Did you even listen to a word I said? Don''t steal what might cause my death! The emperor''s crown will not only cause my death, but it would also put those I know in danger.'' Grey yelled at him. ''Oh, I''m sorry about this though. It''s just that, it was shiny.'' Void apologized. ''Why do you like shiny things?'' Grey couldn''t help but ask. ''Honestly, I have no idea.'' replied Void after some time. Unfortunately for the duo, Aetonth didn''t have time to wait for them and attacked instantly. During the battle, Void had been slammed by Aetonth''s tail, was hit by an ice ball that exploded, freezing him in the process, and had been sent flying in every possible direction, even downwards! Chapter 207 - Fighting Back! ''I can''t take this anymore, we need to escape!'' Void yelled after slamming into the ground for the eighth time. ''You can still go on.'' Grey sneered while blocking the advances of Aetonth to give Void time to regain himself. ''No, no I can''t. Look at all the pits I''ve formed on the ground. Look! There''s even one that draws for almost two meters! I''m not even close to half a meter in length.'' Void complained while showing Grey all the little craters his figure had made after he slammed into the ground. There is one that was particularly eye-catching since it drew over a distance of nearly two meters. It was from the time when Aetonth''s tail connected with Void, sending him crashing into the ground. Regardless of the fact that Void had been the one receiving most of the beatings, Grey hadn''t been particularly lucky as well. Whenever Void was out of the picture, he had to face Aetonth alone to try and cover for Void. It had been over five minutes since Aetonth caught up with them, and they haven''t even been able to strike him once. All their attacks had either been destroyed by Aetonth''s attacks or stopped by the ice sphere which appears only when an attack gets close to it. Grey currently had three inscriptions set up which were frequently attacking, as well as his personal attacks, this was the only reason they were still alive. Distracting Aetonth was the only thing Grey could currently do. Without Void''s space element, it was almost impossible for him to get past the ice sphere, since even when he manages to destroy it, Aetonth would be able to easily escape and create another one. He thought of using his physical strength, but he realized that getting closer to Aetonth would put him in more danger, so, he decided against it. Also, after recalling how painful the tail strike he got from Aetonth was, he knew it was a fool''s wish to think his physical strength would be on par with its or even stronger. ''Looks like I''ll have to use that again.'' thought Grey. Without wasting time, he quickly started channeling water essence through his legs, to different parts of the battlefield, he hoped to once again trap Aetonth before he and Void attacked with their strongest attacks. But he was left stunned when he realized once his water essence got within two meters of Aetonth, he would suddenly lose the link with it, it was like it was suddenly frozen. Grey tried again, and the result was just like the first time, he couldn''t help but stare at the eyes of Aetonth, and from its eyes, he could tell it figured out what he wanted to do and stopped it. ''I''ll have to use the Fusion State for a little while then escape, as quickly as possible.'' Grey thought. He was left with no option, he had to use the Fusion State so they could have an opportunity to escape, hopefully, he might even get to hit Aetonth more, after all, they would be in the same stage. ''Void, buy me some time, I''m going to use that technique now.'' He said to Void who was just managing to stand from the new pit he had formed on the battlefield. ''Ah, finally!'' Void exclaimed in delight before vanishing and attacking Aetonth the moment he came into sight again. Grey created an earth wall to block any possible attacks that might come from Aetonth and focused on fusing his elemental beads since it wasn''t the first time he was doing it, it was faster than before. His only concern was that he used the Fusion State about a month or two ago, so he didn''t know if it might be harmful to him or not. The elemental beads quickly fused, sending out a shockwave with Grey at the center, soon, his stage increased from the Fourth to the Fifth stage, and then all the way to the Ninth stage before it stopped. Boom! The intense activity quickly alerted Aetonth who was having a good time beating Void up, it sensed the sudden spike in Grey''s strength and couldn''t help but be stunned. How could the human improve by so much? It wondered. Aetonth knew of techniques that increased the strength of their users, but not by this much, especially given the Plane Grey was on. ''Looks like the old man knew of this. Fine, things would become a little more interesting now.'' thought Aetonth. It had gotten a little tired of beating the duo up, but since Grey could actually improve his strength to this level, the battle wouldn''t be boring anymore. It stomped on the ground, and from where its forelimb touched, the ground slowly started being covered in snow. In ten seconds, it covered the area within a thirty meters radius. He quickly picked up speed, and soon appeared before Aetonth. Being in the Fusion State gave him more confidence to get close to Aetonth, he knew Aetonth''s body was far stronger than his own, but he still wanted to try it out. He clenched his right hand into a fist and threw a punch at Aetonth. Aetonth retreated three meters back and the ice sphere appeared once again, blocking Grey''s punch. Crack! Cracks quickly spread across the ice sphere, but it managed to hold on. Grey didn''t seem bothered as he quickly withdrew his hand to throw another punch with lightning speed, this time, his fist was covered in blue flames like a flaming glove. He got this idea from a technique he picked up during the first time he headed out of the Lunar Academy, lightning gloves. It was a technique he went on to regret picking since he never really got the chance to use it. Boom! The already cracked ice sphere exploded and the flaming glove in Grey''s hand shot from his hand, heading straight for Aetonth. Aetonth didn''t have enough time to evade the attack, so it quickly improvised and its claw at the flaming fist. Boom! Ice and fire exploded out in two directions. Chapter 208 - Throw One More Grey stood calmly in the same spot while watching as Aetonth was able to block his attack. ''Void!'' He called. He couldn''t even beat the quasi dragon when he was using the Fusion State, so he didn''t try to get c.o.c.ky and fight against a real dragon with the same strength. Aetonth was far stronger than the quasi dragon was. He needed Void''s help if they were going to be able to escape this nightmare. Aetonth roared excitedly after blocking that attack and ice shards shot at Grey. Grey quickly used Aetonth''s previous way of defending himself, he created a fire sphere around him that managed to make short work of the ice shards, not letting them come close to him. After blocking, he pointed at Aetonth as fireballs steadily shot out from the fire sphere, heading in its direction. Aetonth reciprocated by spitting out a stream of ice that destroyed most of the fireballs, but some still managed to hit him thanks to Void''s space element. The trio fought back and forth with Aetonth unsurprisingly being the one who held the advantage. Within one minute, it had sent Grey flying a couple of times and had also frozen some parts of his body. Likewise, in this one minute, Grey and Void had managed to hit it more than they had done since encountering it. After managing to dodge Aetonth''s tail strike, Grey took to the sky, standing mid-air with his short hair fluttering in the wind. He was sweating from the intense one minute fight it just had with Aetonth, but he couldn''t rest long since Aetonth attacked once again. ''Void, don''t get close to it.'' Grey warned before a multi-colored orb appeared in his hands. As soon as Void saw the orb, he instantly retreated since he knew how powerful it was. Aetonth on the other hand looked at the orb with curiosity, and shock could be seen present in its large eyes. How could he wield something this powerful? Aetonth was left puzzled. It didn''t have time to think about it when it saw the multi-colored orb coming its way at a frightening speed. It couldn''t escape, so it quickly when into its defensive mode, the ice sphere, as well as the transparent ice scale-like armor that covered its body appeared almost instantaneously. But even then, it felt they weren''t enough. With that, it created an ice pillar that it sent at the orb, hoping to destroy it. Given the speed by which the orb was moving, it got close to him almost as soon as the ice pillar finished forming, so it didn''t really move by much before it struck the orb. Boom! A huge explosion followed suit, right after the orb made contact with the ice pillar. Grey who was mid-air felt Void appear on his shoulder, ''Let''s go.'' ''Wait!'' Void stopped him. ''What?'' ''Throw one more. You know, just to be sure.'' Grey felt Void''s idea wasn''t bad, another orb was soon thrown into the explosion which was still increasing further. He made sure to aim it at the spot he previously saw Aetonth. The first explosion hadn''t even reached its peak when the second one exploded after making contact with something. Boom! Grey quickly flew away from the scene, not waiting to see the outcome of the explosion. The only reason this battle felt a little easier than the one with the quasi dragon was because of the huge space they had around them. Here, Aetonth couldn''t corner them. _____ Deep in the trial land. At a mountain peak. The old man was currently watching the battle between Aetonth and Grey, while Chris was busy studying the array before him. The old man watched on from how Aetonth was beating the duo to when Grey hid behind an earth wall. At first, he was puzzled by this, but it all made sense when he sensed Grey''s energy increasing by the second. "Oh! It''s that, how come he can''t enter instantaneously?" He asked himself in a low voice. Chris looked at the man as he was muttering what sounded like gibberish to him since he couldn''t hear what he was saying properly. He shook his head and felt maybe, just maybe, the old man would go insane soon. "Oh! He can use that now, excellent. How smart, attacking once again to make sure the opponent is at the very least, hurt." The old man muttered under his breath when Grey used the orb to attack Aetonth again. "Hmm, but he''s quite cautious though." The old man said as he saw Grey escaping as soon as he used the orb the second time. As soon as Chris saw that the old man was gone, he instantly smiled in elation. "Hehe, that old man, he didn''t know I''ve already figured out how to break this thirty minutes ago. Hmph!" He thought as he walked towards the array. Brown stared at him, but didn''t have any reactions, it not that it didn''t want to go out, but it knew it was a waste of time since the old man would bring them back before they even get far. Chris knew this as well, he knew he couldn''t escape, but he just wanted to break the array and examine this place further. On getting to the array, Chris calmly closed his eyes and used his spiritual sense to create an array that would break the weak link he had long found in the array. But the next moment... "Damn it! That cunning old man!" Chris yelled in annoyance. The old man knew he had found the way to break the array, so he modified it a little. This, in turn, made Chris'' previous effort be in vain. ''Fine, I give up.'' He thought depressingly, but that didn''t stop him from studying the array though. He needed more knowledge on arrays, and the old man was giving it to him for free. ''Unfortunately, I can''t teach them to my precious cook.'' Chapter 209 - Train Him The old man soon appeared at the site of the battle. Of course, Grey and Void were long gone. He waved his hand, and the smoke and dust in the area died down. The hill currently didn''t have any semblance to what it looked like ten minutes ago before Grey and Aetonth started fighting. There was an over ten meters deep crater at the spot where Aetonth was previously standing, and the surrounding looked like a place that just suffered from strong burns due to the ashes flying everywhere, technically, it has. In the crater, Aetonth could be seen sprawling on the ground. Its transparent ice armor scale was completely destroyed, most parts of its body were charred. Yet, none of its armor-like scales was removed. They were only charred, nothing else. When it noticed that the aftereffect of the explosion suddenly disappeared, it guessed it was the old man''s doing. It got to its feet, staggered a little before finding its footing, shook its body, and leaped out of the crater. "He''s quite something." Aetonth praised before fixing its gaze in the direction Grey and Void escaped to. "Well, it''s normal since he inherited that." The old man said mysteriously. Not everyone knew of what was inside Grey''s body, but he did. He knew it too well, that was why he wasn''t shocked when he saw Grey displaying such power. If for anything he was shocked, it was not by the power Grey displayed. But because he felt compared to his student at this stage, Grey seemed to be lacking in strength. ''When that little brat was at this stage, he wouldn''t have any problems with defeating Aetonth.'' The old man thought to himself. "What did he inherit?" Aetonth asked curiously. "It''s not something you should concern yourself about. Do you still plan on chasing after them?" The old man asked. He could tell that Aetonth was fine. Given Aetonth''s real strength, its physical defense wasn''t something to laugh about, it was terrifying! Therefore, the old man knew other than the explosion shaking it up a little, it was perfectly fine. "No, I''ve played enough for today." Aetonth rejected the idea. It still couldn''t figure out why the old man was doing this, okay, maybe it has, after witnessing Grey''s last attack. But, is there still a need to go after him? The old man had seen what he wanted anyway. "Okay, but just a reminder. You''ll see him again, and at that time, you wouldn''t be able to beat him up." The old man said with a smile. He was bored, Chris had not really been entertaining. Why not watch Aetonth train the boy? He thought. Aetonth looked at the old man, it knew what the old man was implying. If you don''t beat him now, you''ll never have the chance again. But the question was, what good would beating a human boy do for it? Like the old man could read its mind, he said, "When the time comes, this will be something you can brag about." Dragons are known to be prideful creatures, and Aetonth for one is also very prideful. But it had a weakness, it enjoyed bragging about things it had done or had acquired. That was one of the reasons it had so many treasures. Had Void not taken the crystal and woken it up, if the group looked inside the pond, they might have fainted from the sheer shock of the shiny things stacked inside. "Something to brag about? Old man, are you sure you''re not tricking me?" Aetonth who had previously lost interest suddenly looked at the old man curiously. Why would it brag to others about beating up a human boy? Had it been a strong man, then it would have been truly interested. "Because the boy would become someone even stronger than me." The old man said with a smile. Of course, he trusted Aetonth hence he knew he could tell him this much. He knew Aetonth wouldn''t kill Grey, especially after hearing he would be stronger than him. ''Stronger than the old man? Doesn''t that mean I have a chance to beat someone who might become the strongest person in the world in the future? That truly is something to brag about.'' Aetonth fell deep into thoughts. "Take this as me asking you to train him, you could even say you trained the boy." The old man continued convincing him. The old man had already predicted Grey''s destination when he saw the direction he was headed, so he knew Grey would be leaving here soon. He hoped to toughen him up more before he left this place. It might seem unfair to Grey, but this would help him when he gets out of this continent to see the world. He was currently too weak for the old man''s liking. "Okay, but you better not be lying." Aetonth agreed. Since the old man said he should take this as him asking him to train the boy, that meant the old man would reward him for his effort. It wasn''t a bad deal since he would also be able to brag about it in the future. The old man nodded before going back to his mountain peak, he wanted to see how far Chris had gone in breaking the modified array. Aetonth opened its mouth and spat out a cloud of snow. It gently walked through it, and its charred scales went back to their previous blue color. On getting to the mountain peak, the old man wasn''t disappointed. Chris just like the first time had broken the array, but unlike the first time, he didn''t leave the peak. "Now, tell me old man, what is this place?" He asked. ____ Aetonth gave chase and quickly caught up to Grey within forty minutes, it immediately attacked, but unlike the other times, this time, he gave Grey a lot of openings trying to see if he would be able to see them. The old man said it should train Grey, and that it will do. But it still beat him now and then. Grey was able to capitalize on some of the openings and attack Aetonth, but because he still wasn''t experienced enough, he couldn''t see them all. Chapter 210 - Whenever You See Him Running, Run! Aetonth would occasionally let Grey attack him and escape, before giving chase after letting him rest for twenty minutes. Grey on the other hand didn''t find it odd since he felt Aetonth was probably chasing them because it wanted its crystal back. Unknown to Grey, the continuous back and forth battle was gradually increasing the elemental essence in his body since he had to refill it after each battle. At this rate, it wouldn''t take long before he would break through to the Fifth stage of the Origin Plane. Another two hours passed, but because of the battles, Grey was still over two hours away from his friends. He estimated that they would''ve gotten to the array by now since it was over three hours already. Even if they hadn''t gotten there, they wouldn''t be far from it. He unfortunately couldn''t use the Fusion State anymore, so he had to run quickly. Another one hour went by, and he was attacked by Aetonth twice in that one hour. Compared to the first time, Aetonth noticed the human seemed to have been able to notice more openings. Now, it wouldn''t take up to five minutes before Grey would be able to send out an attack that would hold him down for some time, allowing the duo to escape. In comparison to Grey, Void was quicker in spotting openings, hence making the work easier for the duo. He was also the one who for some reason always gets beat up the most during each battle session. _____ At a valley, some miles away from Grey''s current position. "It''s a shame Peter died in here, he had been very loyal to me all this while." The young man leading the group said. He was none other than the twelfth prince of the Qilin empire. Amongst his entourage was Neil, as well as some of the surviving youths from the Royal Academy. Their group of eight had been reduced to four. But they all felt lucky since they weren''t the ones who died. "How are you so sure he died? There might be a chance he came out after we left." One of the two youths said. "Hmm, there''s also that possibility. After all, we all thought Neil died as well, it was only after seeing him did we realize he came out first." The second youth said. The youth called Peter in question was the youth from the Starlight Academy who Grey killed in that secret place, but there was no way for them to know about this since none of them entered that place. Neil didn''t say much and just continued walking silently, this almost six months he had spent here had thought him a lot of things about life. He had come face to face with death a couple of times, and on some occasions, he felt he would truly die. But help would always come from unexpected people, people he was confident that if he saw them in the same predicament, he wouldn''t help them. He might even watch from afar as their enemies killed them. There was even that time when they were planning on dealing with Alan and Damian who saved their lives just because they didn''t come on time. He felt their way of thinking had been very childish. He had always thought the people from the Lunar Academy were the enemies, that was what the Royal Academy made him believe. But it seemed like he was wrong, totally wrong. Yet, why would the Royal Academy say they were the enemies if they truly weren''t? Roar! A roar suddenly brought him out from his thoughts. "What was that?" The twelfth prince asked while staring behind them. "I have no idea, but I don''t think it''s coming this way." The first youth who spoke previously said. The others nodded and continued on their previous pace. Neil on the other hand looked behind them more thoughtfully. He didn''t know why, but there was a voice in his head telling him to run. Seeing the others were walking, he continued as well but prepared himself to run regardless. _____ At a forest. Grey was running quickly, he originally thought he was the type who enjoyed battling. But against Aetonth, he was dead tired. The fear of not knowing if he might be able to escape every time he fought against it made him not want to encounter it anymore. He felt grateful that he had been able to escape all this while, but he didn''t know if he could escape the next time they meet. There was also the issue of his friends. They would be scared thinking he might have died since he hadn''t arrived yet. ''There should be a valley there, it''s faster than the normal route I planned on taking.'' Grey said pointing towards his left. He had studied the map properly and remembered most of the places to pass through when going back to where the array was located. Because he was in a hurry, he forgot about this valley. It was only now that he got close to it did he recall it. Without further delay, he turned around and headed straight for the valley where the twelfth prince''s group was walking with Aetonth hot on his tail. Grey soon got to the start of the valley. Looking behind him, he could visibly see Aetonth getting closer and closer. He charged straight into the valley, hoping to exit it before Aetonth caught up. According to his estimate, taking this path would cut off at least forty-five minutes from the time needed to get to the array. ''There are people up ahead.'' Void was the first to sense the group. ''Oh, they better not get in my way then.'' A cold glint flashed across his eyes. He was already angry from the chase, if these people try to delay him, he didn''t mind making them regret it. Even at the cost of allowing Aetonth to catch up to him. The group''s figures soon appeared ahead of Grey. Neil who was walking in the back of the group looked back, and he was surprised when he saw someone running in their direction. He didn''t see Aetonth immediately so he decided to take a proper look at the person. The others noticed he stopped and also took a look. Disdain appeared in their eyes even when they haven''t seen who the person was. It didn''t take long before Neil''s expression changed. He immediately started backing away. "Run if you know what''s good for you!" He said before turning around. The twelfth prince caught his hand before he could runoff. "Why are you running, isn''t that the boy from the Lunar Academy?" The twelfth prince asked. "Yes, now let me go. Just a piece of advice, when next you see him running, you run for your life as well." Neil shook off the twelfth prince''s hand and made a break for it. Grey who was almost close to the group was taken aback when he saw someone running, but he quickly recognized it was Neil. This was the third time he had encountered him while being chased, to think he would run away the moment he saw him running as well. Chapter 211 - Going For A Dive ''Isn''t that the guy we saw the last time you were being chased by those frogs and lizards?'' Void looked at the running Neil. He recalled they had seen this guy before, the first time was when they were being chased by the Lightning Apes, and then by the frogs and lizards. Now, they''ve also encountered him when they were being chased again. How coincidental! ''Yes, it''s him. Why is he running as if I''m a calamity?'' Grey asked feeling a little shocked by Neil''s reaction. ''Well, had we not been connected. I''d have also run away from you. You''re like a walking calamity.'' Void said mockingly. ''And you''re a calamity magnet.'' Grey retorted sharply. "Hello!" He waved at the twelfth prince''s group as he got close to them, hoping to dash past them. He didn''t have time to stop and talk to them, maybe he might speak to them after they leave this place. But for now, he doesn''t even have time to change his damaged clothes, much less the time to talk to them. The last time they fought against Aetonth, it destroyed his clothes. He had some spare in his storage ring, but he couldn''t delay since he knew Aetonth would chase after him once again. "Hey! Why are you running?" The twelfth prince tried to block Grey''s way as he questioned. But to his surprise, Grey did a strange footwork and he was already behind him. "Wait!" He yelled. "I''d run if I were you!" Grey''s said but didn''t even turn to look at them. At least he warned them. He didn''t know why they didn''t wisely run away, just like Neil. "What?" The twelfth prince and his group looked at Grey like he was crazy. They felt Neil was even crazier, why the hell would he run away just because he saw someone running? But they got an answer a few seconds later. A chilling cold seemed to be coming from behind them that made them turn around. Roar! They were greeted by Aetonth''s roar that sent a chill down their spines. The twelfth prince shivered in fear and unconsciously took a step back. He wasn''t the only one who got scared, the other two who were with him stood rooted to the ground. It was like their spirits left their bodies on seeing the ice blue dragon coming in their direction. "Dra...dra...dra...gon." One of the youths stammered while raising his shivering hand, pointing at Aetonth. Aetonth who was originally chasing after Grey was slightly taken aback when it heard this. It''s not like it didn''t see them at first, but it couldn''t be bothered by these unimportant people. It opened its mouth, spraying streams of ice at them. The twelfth prince panicked. They couldn''t run now since Aetonth was already so close to them. He looked around, and it was like time stood still. It was at that time that he heard it clearly, the sound of running water. "Jump into the stream!" He yelled as he dived into the water. They were very close to it, so jumping in before the ice would get to them was very doable. Plop! The other two heard this and followed as well. Getting wet was better than dying. Plop! Plop! Two more sounds of people diving into the water rang out. Aetonth didn''t bother to look at them and just continued on its way. Currently, there were two people running, and one dragon chasing behind them. Neil was at the front, but Grey was slowly catching up to him, while Aetonth was closing the gap between itself and Grey. Neil who was at the front couldn''t help but look behind him. Looking behind him, he was stunned when he didn''t see the twelfth prince nor the other two. His eyes trailed from where they were previously standing, and he caught sight of a head popping out of the flowing stream. Two more heads came out as well, and he quickly figured out what happened. He looked behind Grey, trying to figure out what was chasing him this time. He didn''t see anything on the ground, so he curiously looked at the sky. That was when he got the biggest scare of his life. ''How does he always do it?!'' Neil felt like his head wanted to fall off when he thought of this. He suddenly recalled when they first encountered Grey. At that time he thought there was nothing special about him. Then they encountered him again, at that time they were fighting what looked like a lost battle. Grey dashed out from the forest and acted strangely while running towards their enemies. He initially thought Grey was a traitor, but when he saw what was following behind him, he quickly understood the reason for his actions. Then he encountered him for the third time, in that particular encounter, he thought he would truly die. But just like the second encounter, Grey came dashing out of a forest, and behind him were multiple frogs and lizards. This was the fourth time he was encountering Grey, and he didn''t dare to say there was nothing special about him anymore. Being able to always survive these chases had already made him special. In fact, if there was something higher than special, that was what Grey was. When he thought of his third encounter with Grey, he suddenly remembered the young lady who was swallowed by the frog. ''If only she told me what those Apes did to her.'' He thought sadly. Sometimes, his curiosity made him have different thoughts about what the Apes might have done to the young lady. Even after coming up with multiple scenarios, he still couldn''t figure out what they did to her. If only she was alive, he would try to find her, so she would tell him what they did to her. "Hi!" Grey''s voice brought him back from his thoughts. When he looked at his side, he saw that Grey had already caught up. "Bye!" Grey said as he dashed past him, not forgetting to flash him a smile. They were almost at the end of the valley, but Neil knew Aetonth would catch up to him before he got to the end. ''I guess I have no choice.'' Plop! With that, Grey was the only human left on the valley who was on land, the rest were in the water, thanks to him. Aetonth didn''t look at Neil, since he got out of the way in time, there was no use in attacking him. Void looked at Neil in pity, he felt jumping in the water was just as much torture as getting beat up by Aetonth. Grey was thinking about how they would deal with Aetonth when Void suddenly asked a strange question. ''Did you know that the only time we were being chased and we didn''t encounter that guy was when we were chased by those bunnies?'' asked Void. ''Yeah, why are you bringing that up now?'' Whenever Grey heard about those bunnies, he felt like going back there and smashing that annoying bunny leader to pieces. ''Nothing, I just thought I should inform you.'' Void said. ''Well, I don''t like recalling that stupid bunny.'' Chapter 212 - Sneak Attacking Void Neil watched on as Grey and Aetonth disappeared from sight. ''No wonder he always manages to escape.'' Neil suddenly realized something. Grey''s speed was terrifying! He hadn''t really thought of it before. But this time, on seeing Grey running for this short time, he was flabbergasted. ''How can he be so fast?'' He asked himself. He quickly got out of the water and went stood in the same spot, waiting for the twelfth prince and his companions to catch up. "Why didn''t you warn us?" One of the two youths with the twelfth prince snapped at him. Neil''s expression turned dark and he almost attacked, he managed to keep himself in check before replying, "First, you better remember your place. Secondly, I did warn you all." They all hang around in here, but other than the twelfth prince, his status was far above theirs. They were just students who went to the Royal Academy. He, on the other hand, was royalty. "You weren''t clear enough." The twelfth prince chipped in when he realized that the others couldn''t contend with Neil given their status. He was the one who instigated them to say this. He felt annoyed thinking of the fact that he had to jump into the water just to avoid Aetonth''s attack, so he wanted to take it out on Neil. "I told you to run. It''s none of my business if you decide to run or not. Or do you expect to wait and explain everything to you and put myself in danger?" Neil didn''t back down even when the person he was speaking to was the twelfth prince. He wasn''t wrong, so why would he allow him to take out his frustration on him just because he was angry. Unlike the others, he wasn''t afraid of him. It wasn''t like he would be the next emperor. The twelfth prince narrowed his eyes into a slit, then he let out a small chuckle and tapped Neil on the shoulder. "What Academy was that brat from again?" He asked. "Lunar Academy." The two youths answered in unison. "Hmm, Lunar Academy again. Isn''t that the Academy those two morons were from as well?" The twelfth prince looked at the duo again. They quickly understood who he was talking about and nodded. He was speaking about Alan and Damian. "Good, it''s nice we won''t get to go to different places to settle our scores. We''ll visit the Academy later on." The twelfth prince let go of Neil before he continued walking. "But I''m quite curious, what did he take that made a dragon chase after him? It must be a great treasure since it''s from a dragon." He said with greed evident in his face. For a mighty dragon to chase after him and not even bother with them meant that he took the dragon''s treasure. Everyone knew how valuable things belonging to dragons were. If he could acquire it, maybe his strength would skyrocket. At that time, he wouldn''t be scared of his brother. If he''s strong enough, he would just kill whoever becomes the emperor and take over. He had been very ambitious since birth, and maybe he might just have his way soon. "It must be something valuable." One of the youths said. "Yes, extremely valuable." The other one nodded. The twelfth prince squatted down to touch the snow that fell after Aetonth flew past, "I thought as much, let''s follow them. Thanks to the dragon, we have a trail." Neil looked at the twelfth prince but didn''t say much. Yes, he was curious about what Grey might have done to the Apes, Frogs and Lizards, and now a Dragon as well. But he never once thought of obtaining it. He followed along as the group followed the trail Aetonth left on the way, but he had other plans. _____ At a compound. A three-story building could be seen in the compound, some parts of it had been destroyed. If one looks closer, one would realize that some of the destructions seemed to happen not too long ago. Boom! A human figure shot of the highest floor in the building, behind him, was ice shards heading straight at him. The figure was Grey, of course. After fleeing from the valley, he passed through a forest before Aetonth caught up with him at this compound. He had been fighting with him since, and he had just been flung from the other side of the building, passing through the windows, as well as the almost destroyed walls that broke the moment his body came in contact with them. The walls couldn''t stop his figure as he went from one side of the building to the other. ''Void, don''t let it come this way.'' Grey said as he did a flip mid-air while trying to use the wind element to stabilize himself before crashing into the ground. But since he controlled himself, he landed on his foot and drew a few meters before stopping. As soon as he stopped, he dodged to his left and the ice shards struck the ground where he was previously standing. Grey breathed out a sigh of relief, "*Phew* That was close." ''How are things over there?'' He asked Void as he dashed into the building. ''Not good! I think this thing hates me.'' Void almost wanted to cry. Whenever Grey was not in the scene, then Aetonth would beat up him so much. But would always make sure not to send him flying, that way, it could beat him some more. ''I''m on my way, try not to die.'' Grey advised. He quickly climbed up the stairs, appearing on the top floor before long. Aetonth didn''t fly down this time, it stayed mid-air. Since Grey couldn''t fly, the only way he could easily attack it was when he was on high ground. The last time he was flung through the window was when he was accidentally caught by Aetonth''s tail. Grey was left dumbstruck when he saw the suffering Void was going through, ''You''re right about that, it truly does hate you.'' Luckily, Grey came in time. ''Maybe it knows you''re the one who stole its crystal.'' Grey mocked. ''It''s not funny, help me distract it while I free myself.'' Void said angrily. He had the fire element so he could free himself, but before he could even do it previously, Aetonth had frozen him again. What was more annoying was the fact that he couldn''t escape with the space element. ''Hehe.'' Grey snickered as he dashed towards Aetonth. Just then, he flicked his wrist. After doing that action, he attacked Aetonth using his fire element. Void who was only thinking of escaping didn''t notice Grey''s action. An ice whip suddenly appeared above his small b.u.t.t and smacked it. Aetonth caught sight of this and it almost burst into laughter. ''I knew the human wanted me to beat him up.'' It thought. ''Ah...'' Void screamed in pain when the whip lashed him. Chapter 213 - Following The Trail ''Hehe, that should teach him a lesson.'' Grey snickered inside but acted like he knew nothing about what just happened. ''Void, why are you screaming?'' He asked with concern. ''That bastard whipped my butt! Let''s...let''s kill it!'' Void said in pain. He hadn''t even been able to free himself yet he was attacked again. Now he regretted stealing the crystal all the more. If he could go back in time, he would not have taken it. Without any further delay, he quickly thawed the ice that was restraining his limbs, before Aetonth would whip his b.u.t.t again. As soon as he freed himself, he stood on his two hind legs and rubbed his b.u.t.t with his forelimbs like a human would do if they were whipped in the b.u.t.t. ''We should escape first, after that, we''ll think of what to do next. Which I presume is running, again.'' Grey didn''t even have the thought of killing Aetonth. When he was previously using the Fusion State, he couldn''t defeat it, much less now that he couldn''t use it anymore. Besides, why would he want to kill Aetonth for something he did? ''It''s because you weren''t the one lashed, that''s why you''re saying this.'' Void''s voice was in between crying and speaking normally. Grey felt Void was just a question away from actually crying, and he opted not to ask it, for now. Once they''ve escaped, then he''ll get on Void''s nerves. ''Stop acting like a scaredy cat and fight back, don''t you want to get your revenge?'' He urged him to attack. ''Ah!'' Void yelled in anger before attacking with the darkness element. He made a cloud of darkness and sent it Aetonth''s way. He was incensed! How dare Aetonth whip his butt? It was unforgivable! Boom! Bang! ''No, no, I''ll get revenge later. Let''s find a way to escape first.'' After getting hit, Void quickly discarded the thought of revenge. Who was he kidding? There was no way for the duo to go toe to toe with Aetonth, much less beating it. Yet, he was thinking of killing it? How stupid of him. Grey chuckled and attacked as well, he wanted to find an opportunity to take down Aetonth then run away. He was already close to the array, about one hour thirty minutes or so. He hoped that Aetonth wouldn''t be able to catch up with him before he gets there. Boom! His fireball clashed with Aetonth''s ice ball, sending heat and chill in two directions. Grey immediately used his inscriptions to attack before the aftereffects of the explosion when the two attacks collided died down. Bam! Bam! The two inscription''s attacks connected with Aetonth, pushing it down a little. Grey saw this as an opportunity and quickly jumped from the top of the building, making an earth glove around his hand. He prepared his right hand, and as soon as he got close to the descending Aetonth, he struck a terrifying blow on its back. Boom! Bang! Aetonth''s body crashed into the ground, making a pit in it. Grey on the other hand was boosted upwards from the explosion he caused after his fist connected. He quickly landed on the top of the building once again before turning around to flee. ''Void! What are you doing?'' Grey was left speechless when he saw Void going close to the end of the building, looking at the pit Aetonth made when it crashed into the ground. A dark orb formed just above his head that he sent straight into the pit. He didn''t even allow it to travel at its usual speed as he moved it into the pit directly, using the space element. Bam! Roar! Aetonth''s roar of pain was heard from the pit. When it previously slammed into the ground, it didn''t really feel any pain. But the corrosive ability of the darkness element always finds a way to cause it harm. This was one of the other reasons it always beats Void up more compared to Grey. ''That little cat, just you wait for the next time I catch up to you.'' It hissed in pain. After hearing the roar, Void quickly withdrew his head from the edge of the building before saying, ''Quickly let''s go, before it recovers.'' Without being told, Void knew Aetonth''s hatred for him just increased to a new height. It''s just that, he wouldn''t be at rest if he didn''t get revenge. Now that the opportunity presented itself, of course, he was going to use it. Grey looked at him in pity, ''Pray it doesn''t catch up before we get to the array.'' Even Grey wasn''t optimistic about their chances of not encountering Aetonth again, after all, there was still around one hour thirty minutes before they got there. Given how things had been going all this while, it might catch up to them at least once, before they got to the array. The duo quickly ran out of the compound, disappearing into the forest on the right. Fifteen minutes after Grey and Void left. A group of four walked into the compound, heading to the side of the building where Aetonth crashed. The group compromised of the twelfth prince, Neil, and the two other youths. They had been tracking Grey and Aetonth after they got out of the water, yet even when Grey and Aetonth spent so much time fighting here, they still weren''t able to catch up. "They''re gone." The twelfth prince narrowed his eyes as he examined the compound. The building was originally damaged, but he quickly noticed the new parts of it that were broken. "What if the boy is hiding in the building?" One of the two youths said. "They shouldn''t be far, they definitely fought here not too long ago." The twelfth prince said and looked at the pit Aetonth made when it crashed. ''Is he that strong to cause this? I''ll have to see for myself.'' He thought before following the trail once again. The group headed to the forest on the left. Grey headed to the right, but since Aetonth usually gives him some time to rest, it went to the left to also rest a little. The twelfth prince nor anyone in their group knew of this, hence they followed Aetonth thinking it was still pursuing after Grey. Chapter 214 - Showing No Pity While the group was walking further, Neil was thinking about the state of the compound when they got there. The pit he saw on the ground was obviously made by the dragon, so it meant Grey was able to hit it. He didn''t just hit it, but he hit it fiercely. ''If the dragon could make such a deep crater from his attack, will any of us be able to survive it?'' This was the question he was asking himself over and over again. From what the twelfth prince previously said, it wasn''t hard to know his reason for following behind them. He wanted to collect the treasure by force. ''Wait, how could I be so foolish to follow them. If we encounter the dragon or that guy and the prince wants to collect the treasure, neither of them would listen to my explanation, they would kill me, instantly.'' Neil thought in fear. The others seemed to have been blinded by greed, so they forgot about the fact that they couldn''t fight against the dragon. If Grey was capable enough to fight it to that extent, doesn''t that mean that Grey was almost as strong as the dragon? How could the twelfth prince dare to think of forcefully taking something from someone as strong as that? Neil immediately decided to warn them, "Don''t you think this is a bad idea?" "Huh!" The twelfth prince stopped to look at him. "You know, trying to steal the treasure from that guy." Neil explained. "What are you even saying? If you don''t want to come along, then beat it." The twelfth prince said while waving his hand as if Neil was an annoying fly. Neil stopped and wanted to leave, but then he thought about the fact that the twelfth prince was his cousin, he shouldn''t just let him walk towards his doom without trying to convince him. "Think about it, didn''t you see the outcome of their battle? If that guy could fight against the dragon to that extent, it means we can''t take him on." He continued convincing the twelfth prince. But this time, the twelfth prince didn''t even bother to spare him a glance. How could Neil say he should forget about a treasure that belongs to a dragon? He must be sick in the head if he would let such an opportunity slip by. Neil got a little annoyed when the twelfth prince ignored him, he decided to warn him for the last time, if he didn''t listen to him, then it wouldn''t be his fault if anything happened to them. He was once again ignored by the twelfth prince. "Fine, I''m leaving then. Don''t say I didn''t warn you." Neil immediately stopped following the group and changed his direction. He didn''t want to be near them nor the dragon. The twelfth prince and the others continued running for another fifteen minutes, slowly getting closer to where Aetonth was resting. _____ Deep in the forest. Aetonth was resting beside a tree with its eyes shut, its shut eyes suddenly snapped open and they looked ahead of it a little surprised. ''Why would these little brats follow me?'' It thought as soon as it sensed the twelfth prince and his group. It didn''t go too far from where it fought against Grey. But given the speed of the twelfth prince and his group, it looked far. It continued monitoring them and soon quickly figured out something. Aetonth had lived for a long time, so it knew greed whenever it senses it. Even though the twelfth prince hadn''t appeared in front of it, it had already noticed the greed in his eyes. ''Heh! Looks like I''ll kill someone after all.'' Aetonth thought. Compared to Grey and Void, it did not pity anyone else. Okay, it might not really have much of a pity for Void, but it wouldn''t kill him, unlike these morons who were running to their deaths. It shut its eyes waiting for them. Another one minute passed before the twelfth prince and his group got to where Aetonth was lying. "Look, it''s the dragon. Do you think it''s injured?" One of the youths whispered on seeing that Aetonth had its eyes shut. "Maybe, let''s go closer. It would be best if it''s injured, we could kill it then. A dragon''s heart is a supreme treasure." The twelfth prince said. He felt like he had hit the jackpot, and even started thanking Grey for wounding the dragon. Now, all they had to do was finish the dragon and they would be able to acquire its heart. ''When I see that boy, I''ll thank him for this gift. Before I take the treasure he stole from the dragon.'' He thought a little excited by the prospect of obtaining the dragon''s heart. Since Aetonth was an Ice Dragon, its heart would be more beneficial to a Water Elementalist, but the twelfth prince didn''t care. The little benefit he could get from this would make his Plane skyrocket. He might even get the chance of reaching the Sage Plane within five years. That was a Plane he didn''t even think he might reach before his life runs out. There were a lot of people who had been stopped in the Overlord Plane for so long, yet, none of them could find a way to breakthrough. He had heard of a rumor in the palace about there being a Sage Plane Elementalist in the palace, but he couldn''t confirm it. The twelfth prince and his group edged closer to Aetonth. Their hearts were beating wildly just thinking about what they were about to do. As soon as they got within five meters of Aetonth, they attacked. The moment they released their attacks, Aetonth who previously had its eyes shut, opened them and stared at the group with curiosity. It didn''t even try to dodge the attacks. Its transparent armor appeared on its body and easily blocked their attacks. In the group, the twelfth prince was the only one who had managed to get to the Third stage of the Origin Plane, the other two were just in the Second stage. And unlike Grey, they didn''t even have attack power that was stronger than their stages. After blocking their attacks, it stood up and looked at them with its large eyes, there was a hint of playfulness in them. The previously silent forest turned noisy by the screams of terror from the twelfth prince and his companions. Chapter 215 - Voids Mystery The twelfth prince and his companions managed to keep their lives for about ten minutes or so. But as soon as one of them was killed, it didn''t take long before Aetonth killed the twelfth prince''s last companion. Regret washed over the face of the twelfth prince when he watched the last of his companions die. He quickly tried to escape, going as far as using the secret technique he was given in the palace in case he met any danger. Unfortunately, compared to Aetonth, even when he used a secret technique, he still wasn''t fast enough. "Please don''t kill me. I...I...I can be your slave! No, no, I''m a prince, I can get you anything you want. I''ll become the next emperor so...so...I''m...I''m...very wealthy." The twelfth prince initially thought of becoming a slave, but he quickly changed his mind thinking he could trick Aetonth into letting him go. Aetonth looked at him like he was looking at a fool. Seeing that there was no reaction from Aetonth, the twelfth prince started thinking once again, "How about you keep me, then find someone to send a message to my father, the emperor? He will comply with whatever demands you make." Aetonth studied the twelfth prince again and felt like someone so stupid shouldn''t have been born. How could someone who didn''t even have a storage ring say he was wealthy? It moved closer to the twelfth prince who was still speaking of his wealth, opened its mouth and let out a breath of icy wind. After the icy wind passed the twelfth prince, an ice statue was what appeared in place of the twelfth prince. Crack! Lines ran across the statue from the head to the toe, before the statue crumbled down. "No." Aetonth replied to what the twelfth prince was saying after killing him. ''Hmm, the kid seems to be heading out of this place. I''ll attack him one more time before letting him go.'' It shook its body before taking to the air. ______ In an open field. Grey was currently running, hoping to get to where the array was before Aetonth located them. He did not know the twelfth prince stupidly following behind him, or getting killed in the process. Even if he did, he wouldn''t care. ''Is it coming yet?'' He asked Void who was still grumpy from when his b.u.t.t was lashed. ''No, and it better not come.'' Void said angrily. ''Or else?'' ''I''ll beat... You''ll see what I''ll do to it when it comes.'' Grey chuckled but refrained from speaking any further. He should at least allow Void to fantasize about something he was unable to do. It had been just over one hour since he escaped from Aetonth, and he estimated he would get to the array within thirty minutes or so. ''After leaving this place, I''ll have to go back to Red City. I need to find mom.'' thought Grey. He was already in the Origin Plane, and other than those in the Overlord Plane, he could fight against anyone in the Origin Plane, with Void''s help, of course, or the Fusion State. He could move freely without really having to worry for himself. ''It''s been so long I saw dad, will he be able to recognize me?'' He instantly thought of his father. His mother said she was going over to meet his father, which meant that he was still very much alive. It had been almost ten years since he last saw his father, and he couldn''t help but think how it would feel like seeing him. The truth was, he didn''t really know how he felt towards him. He had been with his mother for so long that he sometimes forgets his father is still alive. Not just that, but he felt he might not recognize him if he sees him again. After going to the Academy, other than his mother, he rarely thinks of his father. If not for the fact that his mother said she was going to meet him, he wouldn''t be too bothered about him. ''What would Void''s parents be like? I wonder if they have the same obsession as he has.'' Grey threw a glance at Void who was sitting on his shoulder. He almost wanted to ask, but he felt it didn''t sound right because when he found Void, he was still in an egg. ''Hmm, so those memories of yours, how do you get them?'' asked Grey. Void usually behaves weirdly sometimes, there are also times when he knows things that he hadn''t seen before. There had to be something that made him remember all these things. ''I don''t know, I just do. There are some things I see and I just recall things about them, it''s like I''ve always known about them.'' Void replied after thinking for a while. ''Strange, are you sure you''re not something else?'' Grey picked Void up and started scrutinizing him just like he did the first time he saw him. ''Honestly, I don''t know.'' answered Void. Grey looked at Void for some time before continuing their journey. It must be though being surrounded by so many mysteries, even his birth was a mystery. A cat hatching out of an egg. Not just that, but he needed to absorb blood essence before he could hatch. He had a rare element. Now, he could recall things. ''Don''t worry, we''ll find out, eventually.'' Grey consoled Void on their way. ''Hmm, I know. You don''t need to doubt me, I''ll never do anything to harm you.'' Void said. He could tell there was a little doubt in Grey''s voice, he wasn''t really surprised though since even he didn''t know what to believe about himself. Hatching out of an egg and recalling things he knew nothing about was not easy for someone to accept. ''Seriously?'' Grey asked with a weird expression. Void had put him in danger multiple times, so hearing this was very strange. ''You know what I mean.'' Void said lightly while wearing an awkward smile, he could tell what Grey was thinking. Grey shook his head with a soft smile. Of course he knew what Void meant, it was just that Void putting it that way didn''t sound right, given their current situation. Chapter 216 - Leaving The Trial Land Five minutes later. ''It''s here.'' Void said as soon as he sensed Aetonth. ''*Sigh* Let''s get this done with. If we can escape from it this time, then we''re free.'' said Grey. They were still in the open field, just ahead was a forest. After going through this forest they would appear before the hill that leads to the mountain where they first appeared. ''Why don''t we fight against it here?'' Void suggested. ''I feel fighting against it in the forest would be better.'' Grey voiced his opinion. ''No, it would catch up as soon as we get into the forest. We should take this time to prepare.'' Void urged. ''Hmm, okay.'' Grey nodded thinking the idea wasn''t bad. ''Shit! I''m running out of essence stones.'' Grey complained after putting the last stone on the array. He got the stones from Quinn''s group, but rarely used them in cultivating, rather, he always used them whenever he was making arrays. Since he couldn''t make a strong array without them. Aetonth soon came in sight, and Void was staring at Grey''s hand with big round eyes. He still couldn''t figure out how Grey always does this thing. Grey immediately started creating the fusion orb when Aetonth got within the range of his senses. He planned to use it during their first barrage of assault. Calculating the time, he felt he would be able to form it before Aetonth arrives. And luckily for him, Aetonth came just in time. To Grey''s greatest surprise, this time though, he managed to keep the orb under control for almost ten seconds. ''That''s a new record.'' He thought excitedly before noticing the orb was losing control after just getting to the ten seconds mark. But that was all he needed since Aetonth had already gotten close to them. Void was the first to attack, disappearing from Grey''s shoulder and appearing some distance away from Aetonth, he stayed mid-air before sending out fire and darkness element attacks. This was part of the plan they had, he would distract it for the first second or so to give Grey time to attack properly. After all, Aetonth wouldn''t just stand there and allow the orb to hit it. Roar! Void quickly vanished once again before appearing behind it. He decided to follow in its footstep and also formed a claw made of the darkness element. Aetonth turned around to block it. It couldn''t rely on its ice sphere against this since it would be able to corrode it. Grey threw the orb the moment Aetonth turned around. He not only attacked with the orb but the three inscriptions, as well as the attacking array. The array was of the fire element, as well as the inscriptions. ''Void!'' Grey yelled but to his surprise, Void was already on his shoulder. The duo retreated since Aetonth was only fifteen meters away. If the orb exploded and they were caught up by the blast, even though they might not die, it would definitely hurt them. Boom! Being forced to block Void''s attack, before defending against the attacks from the inscriptions, Aetonth was unable to evade the orb. He hated it a lot, this was the second time he was going to be blasted by it, and to be honest, he didn''t like it. Grey looked at the explosion as he retreated further. He recalled it was able to stop Aetonth the last time. ''Haha, this time it didn''t even touch us.'' Void said happily. For the first time since they were fighting against Aetonth, they managed to quickly put it down. They couldn''t even call this a battle, it ended too quickly. ''Yeah, preparing wasn''t really that bad.'' Grey nodded. Had they not prepared, then they would''ve had to go through a long though battle before they would be able to strike it. The duo had always made sure that whenever they got the opportunity to attack it, they gave it their strongest attacks. They ran into the forest, heading for the hill. Grey couldn''t wait to leave this place. He had been running all this time, at least once he leaves here, he would finally be able to rest. Twenty minutes later. Grey appeared at the foot of the hill that led to the mountain, he saw the purple bamboo tree patch that was on the hillside. It still had the faint mist that wreathed around it, while giving one an ethereal feeling of a unique realm. ''What are you standing here for! Have you forgotten what''s behind us?'' Void''s yell woke Grey from his state of reverie and he quickly started ascending the hill. He got here at least ten minutes faster than the time he estimated, the reason for this was because... Roar! Grey and Void looked behind them and he tried to push his speed further. Unfortunately, he was already at his limit. At the peak of the mountain. Three youths could be seen sitting idly close to an array, they were Klaus, Alice, and Reynolds. They stood up simultaneously when they heard Aetonth''s roar. This was the second time they were hearing it today, so they recognized it. "Grey''s almost here." Reynolds said. "We should move closer to the array." Klaus said moving a little bit closer to the array but not entering it. If he places his foot on it, then it would suck him in, transporting him outside the trial land. He didn''t know if he could enter again after leaving, so he didn''t dare to try it. It took Grey almost three minutes to get to the peak of the mountain, and Aetonth was already very close to him. If not for the fact that Grey never stopped running even when Aetonth attacked, they would''ve already been fighting. "What are you guys standing there for? Get in!" Grey yelled as soon as he saw the others. Chapter 217 - Leaving The Trial Land II "Huh!" The trio exclaimed simultaneously when they heard Grey. As soon as Grey appeared, Aetonth''s figure soon came into view. "Crap! It truly chased him all the way here." Klaus was the first to react. He quickly stretched out both his hands, holding onto Reynolds and Alice''s arms respectively. He dragged them closer to him as he stepped into the array. He recalled when Grey said the dragon might actually be behind him as he was coming here, but he never thought it would happen. After stepping into the array, Klaus, Reynolds, and Alice were quickly enveloped by light before vanishing. Aetonth sent an ice ball in Grey''s direction. ''Incoming!'' Void alerted Grey of the ice ball. ''You take care of it.'' Grey said not changing his direction. Void had been the one changing the direction of some of Aetonth''s attacks, since they were already this close, Grey saw no reason to dodge to the side. Aetonth might even catch up with them if he does so. ''I can''t.'' replied Void. ''Why?'' ''I''m out of space essence. I haven''t had much time to refill before each battle. I don''t think what''s left will be enough to transport the ice ball, it would be bad for us if it doesn''t.'' explained Void. Grey''s absorption speed was faster than his, so unlike Grey who would use about one hour or so to fill up his essence reserve, he needed nearly double the time. He was very reliant on his space element, so it''s understandable why even after resting for thirty minutes, it couldn''t keep up with his consumption. ''Fine! But attack it, I don''t think I can fight against it anymore.'' said Grey. Grey appeared almost seven meters to the right. The moment he appeared, he continued running since he didn''t dare to waste any more time. ''Luckily, I''m very fast.'' Grey thought as he looked behind him, to his surprise, Aetonth didn''t continue chasing after him when he got close to the array. Aetonth didn''t have any problems with deflecting Void''s fireball. It stopped in place after deflecting the attack and looked at Grey as he was about to step into the array. ''Looks like it can''t leave this place. No wonder it tried so hard to stop me when I started ascending the mountain.'' On seeing Aetonth''s reaction, Grey thought it stopped because it couldn''t leave this place. He felt it was just like the quasi dragon who couldn''t leave that underground lab, so it tried to do everything it could to stop him. "Goodbye mister, miss..." Grey paused since he didn''t know how to address Aetonth. He had no idea if it was male or female. ''What are you doing?'' Void asked looking at Grey strangely. He felt they should''ve already left by now, yet Grey was trying to tell Aetonth goodbye. Was he crazy? ''I''m trying to say goodbye. Oh! Do you know if it''s a mister or a miss?'' Grey asked enthusiastically. ''Now I see why he''s friends with those two.'' Void shook his head. He had always thought compared to Klaus and Reynolds, Grey was relatively more serious. But on seeing what he was currently about to do, he felt they were the same people. Presently, he wouldn''t be surprised if Grey truly used the healing tonic he got from the Blooming Vipers to cook. ''Why don''t you ask it? Or even better, check.'' Void said sarcastically. ''Forget it, it''s not like knowing its gender matters.'' said Grey. "Goodbye dragon, I''ll truly miss you. Just like ever..." Roar! Aetonth who just wanted to make sure Grey left before it went back to its cave roared angrily. It was currently about fifteen meters away from where Grey was standing, yet, saliva and snot still came out of its mouth and headed straight for Grey. It wanted to attack, but it recalled that Grey would be able to easily dodge it. But with this, Grey would definitely want to leave. "Crap! Gross." Grey immediately stepped into the array, hoping to disappear before the yellowish substance that came out of Aetonth''s mouth got to him. He didn''t know if it was an attack or not, but just from how it looked, he didn''t want it anywhere near himself. He was quickly enveloped by a white light, before disappearing. Just as he was disappearing, the yellowish substance got to the place. Splat! It touched the ground, with Grey nowhere to be seen. But looking closer, Aetonth noticed there was a part of the substance that was missing. Because of the trajectory, the substance was supposed to form a complete circle since it missed Grey. Yet, a chunk from that circle was missing, at least one-third of it. Aetonth burst into laughter when it realized what happened. It originally didn''t expect it to touch Grey, so on seeing that it did, it was amusing as well as satisfying. "Haha, I have something else to brag about. I spat on him. Haha." Aetonth was laughing happily as it took to the air. The old man appeared above him with a wry smile. He didn''t know Grey''s personality, so seeing him standing there seemingly wanting to say goodbye to Aetonth stunned him. He was further shocked when he saw Aetonth spraying saliva and snot in his direction. "Why did you do that?" He asked with a curious expression. "Haha, I didn''t really plan for it to go this way, but I''m glad it did. Haha." Aetonth didn''t answer his question, rather, he continued laughing joyfully. The old man couldn''t understand the joy it was currently feeling. In the future, it wouldn''t only say it beat up Grey, it would also say it sprayed saliva and snot on him. Its friends would be envious! Well, that was all on the premise that Grey turns out to be stronger than the old man in the future. If not, it''ll never speak of it. It''s not like it lost anything anyway, everything that Grey took was nothing much compared to its wealth. "That doesn''t answer my question." The old man said calmly. "I just wanted him to go so I could go back to my cave." Aetonth said while chuckling. It still found the whole scenario very hilarious. "I saw what you did though." The old man said with a smile. "It''s just a small amount of water, it''s nothing much." Aetonth said nonchalantly. The old man looked at him with a strange smile. ''Heh! Even though this guy likes bragging, he didn''t forget to help Grey out.'' He thought. When Aetonth opened its mouth to roar, a string of ice-cold water shot straight at Grey. It was faster than the yellowish substance, and Grey didn''t even sense it before it entered into his body. The water was from the pond in Aetonth''s cave, it''s very beneficial to Ice Dragons. In the case of humans, it increases a Water Elementalist''s ice ability. Aetonth always carries some with it. It originally didn''t want to give some to Grey because from the first time they fought, Grey only used the fire, lightning, earth, and wind elements. It was when Grey first used the water element to trap it that it started getting the thought. If finally decided to give him some as a parting gift when it saw Grey''s ice ability when Grey created an ice whip. Since Aetonth was an Ice Dragon, it naturally favored ice, in regards to humans, Water Elementalists. It noticed compared to some of the humans it had seen, Grey''s ice ability was lacking, so it decided to help him out. But given Grey''s current abilities, there was no way he would know it helped it. Aetonth didn''t do it to gain his favor anyway, it did it because it wanted to. "My crystal." Aetonth said, not forgetting what made it do all this in the first place. "I thought you''ve forgotten about it?" The old man laughed before making the crystal appear before him. He waved his hand and the crystal went back to Aetonth. With this crystal, Aetonth''s ice power is almost double. This meant that had it been with this crystal while fighting against them, they wouldn''t stand a chance. The crystal floated before Aetonth for two seconds, before going back to its head. As soon as it came close, it embedded itself into it once more. "I''ll be going back now, old man. Call me when you need me." Aetonth said before flying off. The old man stood in the sky for a while before looking in the direction of the array. "*Sigh* Hopefully he grows in time." He muttered before vanishing. _____ ''Haha, what a way to leave this place.'' Void laughed on seeing the sight of Grey after he appeared on the other side of the array. Chapter 218 - Incensed Klaus! Outside the trial land. Before Grey and his friends came out. Some guards could be seen on each camp, carefully patrolling the area. There was the threat of them being attacked by magical beasts, after all, they were at the borders of the magical beasts forest, so they had to make sure the place was safe. Each empire left a group in the camps to help protect the youngsters once they came out of the array. There was no way to predict when they would come out, so there was always someone watching it constantly. Once anyone exits the array, there is a group that would immediately transport the person back to the empire. Given the conflict between the empires, especially the Qilin and Azure empires, it wasn''t safe for the youths to stay there. Over the past ten days, at least twenty youths had already exited the trial land, and they were all in the Origin Plane. Although not even one-tenth of the people who went in had come out, the guards from their respective empires were all happy seeing the increase in the strength of the youths. At the Qilin''s empire camp, some guards could be seen discussing. "*Sigh* Only two from our empire have exited the array so far, could it be that most of them are dead?" "I don''t think so. Maybe they are trying to further increase their strengths during these last few days." "Yeah. The Azure empire are just like us, only having three people coming out." "Hmph! Those stupid fools, to think they would try to assassinate one of our geniuses." "Hehe, if not for the fact that we still have to wait, I''d have killed someone already." The guards discussed while glancing at the Azure empire''s camp. Three days back, the second person from the Qilin empire exited the trial land, he was surprisingly in the Fifth stage of the Origin Plane. As soon as the guards from the Azure empire noticed this, he immediately attacked, trying to kill him. Luckily, the guards from the Qilin empire were quick to react, so they managed to block it in time without harming the young lady who just exited the trial land. When they wanted to attack, the guard from the Azure empire said he saw a magical beast that was why he attacked. Since if both empire''s guards went into an all-out battle it would benefit the other two empires, the leader of the Qilin empire''s guards told them to keep calm, for now. Besides, they were also given the order to kill any genius above the Fourth stage of the Origin Plane that was from any of the other empires. But they didn''t dare to do it so blatantly. The guards from each empire were all around the Sixth and Eighth stage of the Origin Plane, only the leader of the guards were in the Ninth stage of the Origin Plane. But hidden within each camp was an Overlord Plane expert. They were there in case of any mishaps. While the guards were still discussing, the array lit up. "Someone is coming out." The guards from each camp rushed out of their camps before the light would die down so they could see which empire''s genius came out of the trial land. The lights soon died down, and Alice, Klaus, and Reynolds came into view. The guards from the Qilin empire who were closer to the array quickly surrounded the trio. The guards coming from the camps still hadn''t gotten there yet so these guards had to protect them. It didn''t take up to two seconds before the other guards got to where the array was, since the guards from the Qilin empire had already come out in full force, the Azure empire''s guards didn''t try anything funny. Almost all the guards from the Qilin empire surrounded the trio as soon as they got there. Although they were only in the Third stage, the guards didn''t want to risk it, after all, only two of their empire''s geniuses have previously exited the trial land. "Quickly, before they try to attack." The leader of the guards said as soon as he got there, not forgetting to glare at the group from the Azure empire. Before Klaus and the others could say anything, the guards pushed them away from the array towards their camps. Most of the guards from the Qilin empire followed behind the trio so they could ensure their safety. It wasn''t like anyone would come out instantly, right? "There''s..." Klaus tried explaining but he was cut short. "Talk after we go in, these people wouldn''t mind fighting us just for the chance to kill you three." The leader of the guards said. "I know, it just..." Klaus tried speaking again but he was once again interrupted. "Please, wait till we enter the camp." The leader said but continued taking them to the camp. Klaus, Alice, and Reynolds felt like they were prisoners who were being taken to the dungeons. They wanted to speak but the leader of the guards would always interrupt them. They immediately lost their patience. The leader of the guards said they might be attacked by the guards from the other empires, doesn''t that mean that when Grey comes out he would also be attacked? Klaus looked back and realized only two guards were close to the array, and they were even at the Sixth stage of the Origin Plane, while the other empire''s guards were still there. Some haven''t even started going back to their camps yet. "F.u.c.k this! Now you listen to me, my friend will be coming out soon, and since you''re saying those guards would attack us, the chances of him being attacked is higher since he''s far stronger than us." Klaus cursed out in anger. He also said some more vulgar words, that made the guards'' expressions changed. Some were angry, while the leader on the other hand nearly fainted. "Why didn''t you say so earlier?" The leader of the guards asked. "Did you give me the chance of speaking?" Klaus asked looking at him angrily. "Why are you still standing here? Get going!" He ordered like a commander. Chapter 219 - In Danger While Klaus was speaking with the leader of the guards, the array lit up once again. Grey was about to exit it, but there were only two guards from the Qilin empire there. "Someone''s coming out again." Before the leader of the guards from the Qilin empire could rush back to the array, the light died down and Grey who was covered in yellowish substance appeared. The guards were initially taken aback seeing him, but when the leader of the guards from the Azure empire saw the panicked expression in the face of the leader from the Qilin empire, he immediately knew Grey was not from their empire. He also noticed that Grey was in the Fourth stage of the Origin Plane. Smiling evilly, he attacked. He was a Water Elementalist that was already in the Ninth stage of the Origin Plane, just one more breakthrough and he would become an Overlord Plane expert. There was no way the two guards who were at the Sixth stage could stop him. When his guards saw him attacking, they attacked the two guards as well. They didn''t care if this might spark the flames of the battle between the two empire''s guards here. But they knew there was no way the Qilin empire would want to risk fighting against them once the boy was dead. Even if they fought, it wouldn''t be to the extent of them killing each other. Anger and despair surfaced in the faces of Alice, Reynolds, and Klaus. They felt even if Grey was powerful, defending against someone at the peak of the Origin Plane was impossible given the difference in strength. But a little hint of hope appeared when they thought of how he managed to escape from the pursuit of Aetonth. According to Alice, it was above the Origin Plane. Grey who was currently cursing his stupidity, and swearing at Aetonth for spraying saliva and snot on him was stunned when he not only sensed a thick killing intent coming towards him, but also a terrifying attack. The power of the attack was not on the level of Aetonth''s attacks, but it was still too powerful for him, especially when he was being sneak attacked like this. Without the Fusion State, he couldn''t really defend against Aetonth''s attacks. Grey immediately went into his defensive mode, even Void who was previously laughing at him because of the yellowish substance in his body expression changed. This was the first time he was seeing the world, yet he was sneak attacked! What sort of welcoming was this? He still hadn''t recovered his space essence, so helping Grey out of this circ.u.mstance was impossible, he couldn''t even escape. He could only brace himself while also preparing to defend as well. The fire element was currently Grey''s strongest element, without even trying to figure out where the attack was coming from, he immediately raised a wall of blue flames around himself. After doing that, he also created an earth armor. The strongest earth armor he could create. Boom! The water snake the leader of the guards from the Azure empire sent towards him crashed into the firewall. Contrary to the expectations of everyone, it didn''t break through the defense instantly. "What?!" The leader of the guards from the Azure empire exclaimed in disbelief. Even though he could tell that the attack would eventually break through the defense, he was shocked by the quick reaction from Grey. He also didn''t think that someone in the Fourth stage of the Origin Plane could block his attack, even though it was just barely. Those watching also felt surprised by this. Seeing the blue flames had already ignited their surprise, but never in their wildest dreams did they think the young boy who just left the trial land would be able to react this quickly. ''He must die.'' The leader of the guards from the Azure empire made up his mind. Those from the Blue Wind empire, as well as the Stellar empire, did nothing to stop Grey from being killed. Since he could block this attack, it meant he might also become a possible threat to them later in the future. The leader from the Qilin empire felt a little excited hoping Grey could hold on for another three or five seconds. He couldn''t allow someone who has such a special flame to die, his flame wasn''t only special, but his strength and reaction speed were exceptional as well. He felt even some of his soldiers might not react as quickly as Grey did. The water snake soon gained the advantage and quickly opened up a hole in the firewall. It crashed into Grey with a frightening force. Grey''s body shot out from the other side of the flame wall when the water snake hit him. He felt like his organs were falling apart, and his bones were destroyed. Luckily, his body was far stronger than that of a normal Elementalist. But it didn''t change the fact that he was currently in danger. After his body shot out of the firewall, it moved for almost fifty meters before falling down. Crash! He first crashed into the ground, but the force bounced him into the air again, after crashing about four times, his body finally slide into the ground before being stopped by a boulder. He was currently almost one hundred meters away from where he was attacked. As soon as his body stopped moving, it was like time stood still. No one could believe what happened, they didn''t think the leader from the Azure empire would truly be this heartless enough to kill a genius from another empire. The leader wasn''t only heartless, but he was extremely bold as well. "Grey!" Alice, Klaus, and Reynolds screamed in unison while charging straight for the currently motionless Grey. "You animal!" The leader of the guards from the Qilin empire said with angry eyes. He still couldn''t believe what just happened. Everything happened within the space of a few seconds, yet it felt like it happened in one hour. Chapter 220 - Kill Him! The leader of the guards from the Azure empire smirked on hearing what the leader from the Qilin empire called him, he didn''t care what they said about him, so long as he''s doing what he was told to do by his empire, he was satisfied. But his smirk didn''t form completely before it turned into a frown. Looking in Grey''s direction, he could see that he was trying to stand up. "Impossible! How can he survive that?!" He exclaimed in disbelief. He knew just how powerful his attack was, there was no way in the world that even someone in the Seventh stage could survive it after being hit by the full force of it. Yet, Grey who was only in the Fourth stage of the Origin Plane not only survived, but he was currently about to stand up. It wasn''t even up to a minute yet! Klaus, Alice, and Reynolds who were running in his direction were elated when they noticed Grey was actually moving. "Haha! I knew he wouldn''t die. You old dog, count your days." Klaus laughed out hysterically while not forgetting to threaten the leader of the guards from the Azure empire. "It''s impossible, he shouldn''t be able to stand this early even if he survives." The leader from the Azure empire didn''t even bother about Klaus'' threat because he still couldn''t believe what was happening. The leader from the Qilin empire who previously stood on the same spot thinking Grey was dead was beside himself from joy. He couldn''t believe Grey was alive. He acted quickly and headed in the direction of the leader from the Azure empire. He was afraid if he went in Grey''s direction, then the leader from the Azure empire would get there before him, after all, he was closer than he was. Grey was currently struggling to get on his feet, blood could be seen flowing out from the side of his mouth. The veins on his head bulged out while his eyes were red due to anger. After the light died down, he didn''t even get the time to take in what was happening in his surroundings before he was attacked. When he stood up, he recalled Void was previously on his shoulder. "Where''s he?" He asked while touching his shoulder. He couldn''t feel Void there. Hastily, he looked around. Lying about thirty meters away from him, was Void who was currently motionless. His previous black fur was covered in blood. That was when it all settled in Grey''s head, just as the attack was about to reach him, Void jumped from his shoulder, taking the full force of the attack. This was the reason why even though he was hit by the strike, it didn''t affect him by much. The reason he was hurt was because of the times he bounced off the ground, other than that, he was feeling a slight pain in his c.h.e.s.t. Had he taken the strike head-on, given his physical defense and earth armor, he wouldn''t die, but he would most likely be seriously injured. "Void." He muttered softly as he staggered in his direction. "Void!" He ran quickly while yelling the motionless Void''s name with watery eyes. If he was told that he would cry one day because of Void, there was no way he would believe it. He didn''t even think that if he were to see Void in such a state anytime he would get emotional. But one shouldn''t forget that even though he tries to act m.a.t.u.r.e sometimes, he was still only seventeen years old, and he had never seen anyone close to him being hurt before. Klaus and the others were running towards him, yet, he was running in the other direction where Void was lying. ''This boy is a threat, he must die.'' He didn''t think that the small cat on the young boy''s shoulder was what saved him, but he didn''t care either. Since Grey was able to obstruct his attack even if it wasn''t even up to five seconds, he had already regarded him as a threat to his empire. According to the orders they received, it was to remove all potential threats. Currently to him, Grey wasn''t a potential threat. He was a threat! A threat that he had to eliminate at all costs. "Kill him!" He immediately gave the order to his guards. Unlike the leader from the Qilin empire, he wasn''t scared of them fighting to the death with the other guards. The reason for this was simple, he knew the guards from the Qilin empire wouldn''t dare to fight to that level. His current plan was to hold off the guards from the Qilin empire and kill Grey, since Klaus and the others were also here, he would kill them as well. Boom! The leader from the Qilin empire immediately attacked, trying to stop the leader from the Azure empire from going close to Grey. He was an Earth Elementalist, so his attacks weren''t something his opponent could neglect. The earth element wasn''t just used for protection, it''s also deadly in attacks, and it has been proven during multiple wars. Its greatest asset when it came to attacking was its terrifying weight. The boulder that the leader from the Qilin empire sent towards the leader from the Azure empire was blocked by the ice wall that appeared before him. Bam! Crack! Cracks appeared on the ice wall the moment the boulder came in contact with it. The force from the boulder was too much for the ice wall. Bang! The ice wall fell apart after a second boulder celebration into the scene. With no other option, the leader from the Azure empire was forced to stand and fight against the leader from the Qilin empire. The guards from each camp had already started a brawl. But since the guards from the Azure empire were closer to Grey, some were already heading in his direction while the others tried to stop the guards from the Qilin empire. The entire scene was a mess, but the group from the Blue Wind empire and the Stellar empire just watched from the sides with folded hands. This had nothing to do with them. Chapter 221 - Curious Experts Grey couldn''t even sense the battle that was currently ongoing, the only thing in his eyes was Void who was on his hands. He had tried communicating with Void via their mind link, but he didn''t get a reply. He was almost on the verge of going crazy, tears were already slowly flowing down his eyes. He couldn''t think properly, it was like nothing else existed. "Void, wake up." He called with his already croaked voice while lightly shaking Void. He suddenly recalled what he promised himself while in the trial land, he said he would become the strongest so that no one close to him would face any danger. Now, he hadn''t even properly left the trial land yet Void''s life was already in danger. He didn''t even know if he was still alive or not. His mind was a mess. Klaus and the others soon got to where he was and Alice seeing the bloodied Void almost started crying. She liked Void, even though they hadn''t spent much time together. Klaus and Reynolds on the other hand were calmer, when they saw Grey''s current state, they could tell he was hurting because of Void''s current condition. "Move aside, give him to me." Klaus hurriedly took Void from Grey''s hand. He could tell Grey currently wasn''t in his right mind. He couldn''t blame him since he had spent the last four months or so with Void. Although he didn''t know why Grey was this emotional over the cat, he could tell there was already a close bond between them. "He blocked the attack." Grey said while staring at Void. He currently felt like killing someone, but since Void''s state wasn''t confirmed yet, he was holding himself back. As it stands, he didn''t even mind using the Fusion State. "Hmm, he''s still alive, although, barely." said Klaus. He had been too angry and sad when he saw Void''s condition and also when he didn''t get any response from him that he didn''t try to check. Even if he checked, given his state, he wouldn''t know if he was still alive or not. "Don''t you have that healing tonic we extracted from those B...b... Those snakes?" Klaus asked. He wanted to call the name of the snakes, but he had completely forgotten about them, all he recalled was the sweet tonic as well as the use of it. "Oh! That, I forgot about it." Grey was about to take out the healing tonic when Klaus stopped him. "Not here, people are watching, if they see you suddenly making something magically appear from nowhere, then you''d be in bigger trouble." Klaus explained. The guard was in the Sixth stage, so Reynolds couldn''t really stop him. After blocking two attacks, he quickly summoned his Elemental Warrior. He knew doing this would put them in more danger, but if he didn''t do it, then they might probably die. What''s the use of hiding his strength when death was looming around them. "Hmm, keep him close to you." Grey''s eyes which were already red turned even redder. He wanted to fight, this was the only way he could release the pain and anger he was currently feeling. _____ On the other side of the battle. The leader from the Qilin empire was in a heated battle with the leader from the Azure empire. When he saw Reynolds fighting against the first guard that got close to them, he panicked and tried to go over. But there was no way his opponent would allow that. "Haha, watch as we kill all of them." The leader from the Azure empire laughed happily. Presently, he wasn''t even trying to go over anymore, he felt as long as he could keep the leader from the Qilin empire at bay, his men would take care of the rest. The leader from the Qilin empire pushed himself harder, but he still couldn''t break away from his opponent. Despair soon appeared on his face, he felt like the stupidest person alive. How could he allow Klaus and the others who he had already brought to his side to go over? What was worse was that neither he nor his guards followed after them, they all stood dumbstruck when they thought Grey was dead. His despair increased when Reynolds summoned his Elemental Warrior. He should''ve been happy seeing this since it meant that they could survive a little more, but he felt more depressed. The reason was that he realized Grey wasn''t the only outstanding person among his friends. With the current situation of things, he didn''t think they would last long enough before he and his guards would manage to get to the other side. He could already see that two other guards from the Azure empire were already edging over to Grey and his friends. One of the two was even in the Seventh stage of the Origin Plane. There was no way Reynolds'' Elemental Warrior could fight against them alone. "Hmph! To think there''s another threat amongst them. Haha, they will all die." The leader from the Azure empire snorted coldly when he saw Reynolds summoning an Elemental Warrior. ''These people must die, they can''t be left alive.'' He thought. ____ In the Qilin empire''s camp, the Overlord Plane expert had been watching everything that was happening since Grey was attacked till now, but it hadn''t made a move yet. The thing that he was currently more curious about wasn''t Grey or Reynolds who had an Elemental Warrior, rather, it was the pitch-black cat that was on Klaus'' hands. The others didn''t notice it, but it couldn''t escape the senses of an Overlord Plane expert, they all saw Void taking the strike for Grey. The thing that made all the Overlord Plane experts more curious was that even with their powerful senses, they couldn''t figure out how Void moved from Grey''s shoulder to his front and blocked the attack. ''It''s almost like it teleported.'' Chapter 222 - Vengeful Grey ''It''s almost like it teleported.'' thought the expert from the Qilin empire. The expert from the Qilin empire was a plump lady whose hair was slowly starting to grey. What surprised the lady even more was the fact that Void not only blocked the attack, but he was still alive. Although he was seriously injured, they knew he would survive. Compared to Klaus senses, theirs were far superior. ''The cat must be a strange magical beast.'' She thought. She had seen magical beasts that are cats, but almost all the powerful ones were big. Void on the other hand was small, too small to be noticed even. If not for his eye-catching pitch-black fur, people would rarely take note of him. The plump lady couldn''t sit still anymore when she saw Reynolds'' Elemental Warrior. This group of youths not only had someone who had rare blue flames but there was also a high-grade summoner as well, the empire couldn''t afford to lose them. It was time for her to intervene. She disappeared from where she was sitting, quickly flashing past the entrance of the camp. Even though she was fat, she had no issues with moving quickly. She appeared mid-air but was confronted by an old man with long white beards who had both hands behind his back. "Why don''t we leave them to fate? If they can survive this, then they are true geniuses." The old man stroked his beard as he said. He was overjoyed just thinking of the talents the Qilin empire was about to lose. Once this was reported back to the empire, he would be rewarded greatly. "You shameless old man, get out of my way." The lady said while preparing to attack. "Haha, I don''t need to fight against you, all I need to do is delay you till they''re killed." The old man laughed as the two started to struggle mid-air. They were by no means close to the battlefield on the ground, and they also couldn''t afford to allow their attacks to hit those fighting since it will most likely kill them. The Overlord Plane experts from the Blue Wind and Stellar empires looked at the duo mid-air, but taking a glance at Void, they were more curious about him. But getting involved in the scuffle between the Qilin empire and the Azure empire wasn''t a good idea, unless, there was something in it for them. ______ On Grey''s side. Reynolds'' Elemental Warrior was fighting against the guard in the Sixth stage, and it was surprisingly gaining the advantage. It was in the Fifth stage, but its true strength was in the Sixth stage. Against someone in the Sixth stage, it naturally shouldn''t be able to quickly overpower them, but it seems like this guy''s elemental grade wasn''t that high. His elemental grade was probably orange, hence him being weaker compared to those with purple or blue elemental grades. Whenever anyone close to him was hurt, his vengeful side comes out. People might hurt him and he''ll let them go, well, that was on the premise they didn''t show any killing intent. But messing with those close to him means incurring his wrath. He was currently quickly making two inscriptions mid-air while also preparing a powerful fire spear that he shot straight at the guard who was fighting against the Elemental Warrior. The guard who just managed to dodge the Elemental Warrior''s attack was faced with an attack that he couldn''t dodge. He braced himself to face the attack head-on. ''He''s just a Fourth stage brat, does he think because he accidentally managed to survive the leader''s attack he can become c.o.c.ky.'' The guard thought. The guard was a Wind Elementalist, so he quickly created a wind screen before him. He was confident it would be able to defend against Grey''s fire spear. His expression changed when he noticed the fire spear passing through the wind screen like a hot knife through butter. The power of Grey''s fire element has always been stronger than his stage. One shouldn''t forget that at the time he was in the First stage of the Origin Plane, his blue flame''s power was already stronger than Quinn''s darkness element''s power, and at that time, Quinn was two stages above him. Much less this guy whose elemental grade was orange. Boom! The fire spear first pierced into his t.h.i.g.h before exploding. "Ah!" The guard''s scream of terror resonated in the entire area. Everyone was forced to look in that direction, and they all s.u.c.k.e.d in a cold breath when they saw the guard. He was currently lying on the ground, using both hands to try to hold onto his right leg. But the thing was, his right leg was gone. From his t.h.i.g.h down to his feet was missing. On the ground, bits of flesh and blood could be seen all around. "Oh my God!" Some of the guards from the Azure empire exclaimed and looked at the guard in shock. Not all of them were looking at what was going on there, after all, most of them were currently in a heated battle. Some guards from the Blue Wind and Stellar empire who witnessed the scene of Grey attacking were dumbfounded. "How could he be so powerful?" One of them asked. Most of them still had their mouths wide agape. To say they were shocked was an understatement. Just like everyone froze when the leader from the Azure empire attacked Grey, the entire battlefield was also currently frozen. They were all in a state of disbelief, none of them moved an inch, they just stared at the wounded guard. Everyone stopped, except for the vengeful Grey. His eyes were currently bloodshot, and seeing an opportunity like this, he wouldn''t miss it. He could tell the reason why everyone hadn''t reacted was because of the surprise, being warriors, they would quickly get over it, that was why he had to strike now. He wasn''t the only one moving, unlike people, the Elemental Warrior had no reason to be surprised. It had only one mission, and that was to kill his opponent, nothing else mattered. "Die!" Grey muttered through gritted teeth as a large hand made of earth came out from the ground where the guard was lying. Grey closed his hand, and the earthen hand closed as well. "Stop him!" The guard in the Seventh stage who was originally coming in Grey''s direction attacked. But Reynolds was quick to react as he sent the Elemental Warrior to block the attack. "No..." The guard who was held by the hand screamed in fear when he sensed the hand closing. He was already too weak from the pain he was feeling in his leg, he still hadn''t realized his leg was gone. The pain he was feeling made it too hard for him to previously think properly, but now, the fear of death woke him up. His scream soon came to an end as his body was crushed by the large earth hand. Blood was slowly dripping out from the hand that crushed him before it crumbled to the ground. Grey''s bloodshot eyes turned to the other guard who was held up by the Elemental Warrior. The guards from the two empires which were watching the battle all gasped when they saw his eyes. Those were the eyes of a killer. What left them astounded was that it hadn''t even been up to fifteen seconds since Grey joined the battle, yet, he had already killed one person. This was the first kill in the battle, and the one who did the killing was the one whom everyone thought would be the first to die. The leader from the Qilin empire was filled with joy, he couldn''t believe what he was seeing. Since Grey could kill that guard at the Sixth stage, it meant he had a chance against the other one who was in the Seventh stage. The leader from the Azure empire on the other hand couldn''t believe what just happened. "How could he be so strong?" He asked in shock. Now he understood why Grey''s firewall was able to stop his water snake for some time, it was overpowered! The leader from the Qilin empire attacked more fervently, compared to before, he was more motivated now. _____ In the sky. The two experts who were previously fighting stopped and looked at each other, they were slightly taken aback on seeing that Grey was actually able to almost one-shot someone who was two stages above him. Had the spear been aimed at the guard''s head, then Grey would have killed him in one strike. "Hmph! He won''t survive past today." The old man snorted coldly. "Haha, watch as he kills your guards." The plump lady''s cheek vibrated as she laughed. If Grey and the Elemental Warrior could kill another guard, then the result of the battle was fixed. Chapter 223 - Vengeful Grey II Grey''s current appearance was something that neither of his friends had ever seen, even he didn''t know he had such a side to himself. Alice, Klaus, and Reynolds stared at the somewhat lonely figure that was standing before them. It was like this was the first time they were seeing Grey, he was currently releasing a horrifying killing intent, it was almost visible. The killing intent wasn''t directed at them, yet they felt pressured by it. Alice and Klaus who weren''t involved in the battle looked at each other, but other than the pressure from Grey''s killing intent, they felt angry. Alice was originally aggressive, it didn''t take long before she decided to join in on the battle. She also wanted to fight alongside her friends. Klaus was boiling inside but because he had to take care of Void, he couldn''t join in as well. "Shit! I should be fighting, not catsitting." He said angrily. Grey was just about to attack the guard who was in the Seventh stage. While fighting against the Elemental Warrior, the guard had a slight advantage. But as soon as Grey''s attacks joined in, his life was placed in danger. Things went from bad to worse when Alice joined in. Luckily, the second guard in the Sixth stage came over just after Alice joined the battle, so he was able to relieve him of the pressure. It hadn''t been up to one minute, so Grey hadn''t been able to complete any of the inscriptions. They had to fight against the guards using their normal attacks. Alice was using her lightning element which is her fort, Grey was using his fire and earth element for attacking and defending, while the Elemental Warrior was originally made of lightning, so it used only the lightning element. After the group consumed the Great Earth Essence Liquid, the power of their elements each saw a boost, which also goes for the Elemental Warrior as well. Now compared to before, it was more overpowered. "Kill that brat first!" The leader''s order could be heard even on the chaotic battlefield. To him Grey was the greatest threat, so he had to be eliminated first. The two guards fighting against Grey, Alice, and the Elemental Warrior weren''t having an easy time, so there''s no way to carry out the order. The Elemental Warrior was facing off against the guard in the Sixth stage, while Alice and Grey were fighting against the guard in the Seventh stage. Had it been any two youths at the Fourth and Third stage fighting against this guard in the Seventh stage, they would probably have been dead. But he was unfortunate to have encountered these two. At first, he mostly focused on Grey''s attacks and neglected Alice. But when he was hit by Alice''s lightning whip, he almost cursed at his stupidity. ''What are they?'' He asked himself. He didn''t even know if to classify Grey and his friends as humans. He had seen human geniuses before, but none like them. They were all too overpowered, currently, Alice''s attack power was almost at the Fifth stage of the Origin Plane and she was only in the Third stage. The reason she was defeated by the trio previously in the trial land was because of the numbers, had they been only two, she wouldn''t have had any problems with beating them up. Just as the guard was starting to fight back, Grey''s inscriptions lit up mid-air. Buzz! Boom! The guard at the Seventh stage was fast enough to sense the attack and quickly tried dodging it. On the other hand, the guard on the Sixth was too focused on the Elemental Warrior to sense the attack. Before he realized it, the lightning bolt was already above him. "Ah..." For the second time in the battle, another scream of terror resonated in the area. The guard in the Sixth stage was currently burnt all over his body, it was shocking that he managed to survive the attack even after literally taking it head-on. While he was shouting in pain, the Elemental Warrior drove its lightning sword into his head. The scream seized abruptly before the guard dropped dead. The guard in the Seventh stage who just managed to escape from the lightning bolt didn''t have time to steady himself before Grey and Alice assaulted him with attacks. Grey sent out a barrage of fireballs, while Alice sent a lightning blade towards him. Bam! Boom! "Ah!" Another scream rang out in quick succession after the first one, but this time, it didn''t stop. The guard in the Seventh stage was currently missing an entire arm. His left arm had been detached from his body by a lightning blade. Alice smirked when she saw this and continued attacking. Grey hadn''t stopped attacking, so why would she? "Stop! Stop! I don''t want to fight anymore!" The guard in the Seventh stage yelled in horror. Not everyone is brave enough to face death. Seeing Alice and Grey''s incoming attack, the guard knew in his current injured condition, he couldn''t fight against them properly. ''They''re youngsters, they wouldn''t kill me if I give up.'' thought the guard. But to his surprise, neither of them stopped. He could understand that since Grey was a man, and he was the one who was sneak attacked, he naturally had the right to be angry. However, what he couldn''t comprehend was why Alice who looked so young and tender had such a bloodthirsty nature. She didn''t even blink when he told them to stop! "I give up, stop! I''m only following orders." He said again, trying to get them to stop attacking. Grey and Alice didn''t even bother and attacked ruthlessly. The already injured and scared guard couldn''t fight against the bloodthirsty duo, he could only blame his leader for what was happening. He died with eyes wide open as if trying to tell the world that he died wrongly. While Grey and Alice were fighting against the guard in the Seventh stage, the Elemental Warrior had located another opponent. In a battle that had two Overlord Plane experts, two Ninth stage Origin Plane experts, it was unbelievable that the ones making the impact were three youths. One was in the Fourth stage, while the other two were in the Third stage. In contrast to the intense battle ongoing, Klaus was surprisingly the most eye-catching person, even though he wasn''t even fighting. The reason for this was because he was cheering on his friends from the sidelines in a very distracting way. Some of the guards fighting had been distracted by it. He made what looked like a mini volcano, but out of ice. Whenever Grey, Alice, or the Elemental Warrior''s attack struck anyone, the volcano would explode, shooting out snow into the air. He became his friends'' unofficial cheerleader. The people from the Blue Wind and Stellar empires camp would occasionally take a glance at him. They couldn''t help but wonder how such a weirdo had so amazing friends? There were even times when he would say catchy phrases! In the space of within four minutes, they''ve been kept amused by Klaus even when an intense battle was ongoing. Grey and Alice quickly went over to join the Elemental Warrior who was being ganged up on. One more guard teamed up with the one it was previously fighting against, making it two. While Grey was slowly going into the battlefield, he was searching for the leader of the guards from the Azure empire. That was the person who caused all this, he was the one who hurt Void, so naturally, he should die. Another two minutes went by, and one more guard from the Azure empire was killed by the trio. More guards from the Azure empire couldn''t attack them because they were all occupied. They couldn''t try to turn and attack Grey and his friends because they were currently facing off against the guards from the Qilin empire. Yet, they couldn''t fight against the guards from the Qilin empire fully because of the fear of being attacked by Grey and his friends. Each empire had to send in the same number of guards here, with the removal of two from the Azure empire, it placed them in a very unfavorable position. Although they had some guards who could fight against two people, the Qilin empire also had guards like that as well. The old man from the Azure empire realized things were no longer going in their favor, and if he allows this to continue, then most of their guards would die. "Order you guards to stop, if this continues, you should know not only my guards will die. We can''t allow the other two to gain the upper hand." The old man tried persuading the lady from the Qilin empire. The lady knew he was right, even though Grey and his friends had surprisingly managed to kill three guards, she could also see that some of her guards were also injured. "Ah!" Another guard''s scream of fear spread on the battlefield. Grey, Alice, and the Elemental Warrior had killed yet another guard, increasing the tally to four. ''Another one? Are these really kids?'' The old man thought frightened. Grey''s ruthlessness was not something youngsters should have, although they could sense that he was incensed, they still couldn''t believe he was killing people this easily. Chapter 224 - I Dont Threaten People The lady was taken aback seeing Grey and his friends killing yet another guard. But she knew that if this continues, even if more of the guards from the Azure empire dies, some of her guards would still die. That wasn''t good for them since the Blue Wind and Stellar empires still had their complete guards. There was also the problem of Reynolds'' Elemental Warrior, she didn''t know how long it would last. It has been the thing making the killings easy for Grey and Alice, once the Elemental Warrior dissipates, then things wouldn''t be like this anymore. "Fine. I think you''ve learned enough lessons for today." The lady said with a smug smile. She was winning, so she had every reason to be happy. Presently to her, Grey and his friends are gems, people that would take the empire to its greatest height! She planned on sending a report to the emperor about this incident so the emperor would know how to treat them. The old man sighed in relief when he heard her agree to what he said, he couldn''t watch on as these monsters who masquerade themselves as kids kill off all his guards. To him, Grey and his friends were monsters, not kids. They stopped fighting and quickly descended while ordering both guards to stop fighting. The guards from both empires stopped fighting, except for three figures, Grey, Alice, and the Elemental Warrior. They had no reason to listen to the Overlord Plane expert, and besides, Grey hadn''t vented enough. The guards who were being attacked by the trio were forced to continue fighting since stopping would mean their deaths. When the guards from the Azure empire saw that Grey still didn''t stop his assault, they all wanted to gang up on him, but the guards from the Qilin empire acted quickly holding them down. With things being like this, it became extremely difficult to stop the battle, the Overlord Plane experts couldn''t stop it since Grey had no plans of stopping now, yet, they couldn''t allow it since it would cause further damage to each camp. The lady from the Qilin empire quickly moved in Grey''s direction. "Stop this now!" She ordered. The lady had an awkward expression since she thought after hearing her order, Grey and his friends would stop fighting. She felt annoyed being ignored by these youngsters in front of so many people. ''Even if they''re geniuses, they still need at least five years before they can get to the Overlord Plane.'' She thought angrily. Some people can''t even break through to the Overlord Plane, so an Overlord Plane expert should be given the respect they deserve. With anger evident in her voice, she ordered once more, "Stop this now!" But just like before, Grey didn''t bother to listen to her. Currently, other than the guard fighting against Grey, the others all stood still, looking in Grey''s direction, even Alice and Reynolds had stopped fighting. Alice walked closer to Grey, "Hey, that''s enough. You need to take care of Void." Hearing Void''s name, Grey grew more enraged. Alice felt genuinely angry because of their situation, on one hand, she wanted to get revenge for Void just like Grey, but on the other hand, she knew she couldn''t allow Grey to keep up with this. There''s a chance he might die if he continues, and there''s also the possibility of him changing forever. Clenching her fist tightly, she walked closer to him. Looking at Grey, she felt he was like someone who was losing his mind to anger, she raised her hand, and... In the battlefield which only the sound of Grey''s attack was being heard, a hard slap rang out in all directions. "Enough! Void needs you, we need you." She said softly with watery eyes to Grey who was in a state of shock. Klaus and Reynolds were standing close to each other with mouths currently shaped like an ''o''. "Oh! That took an unexpected turn." Klaus said not feeling Alice''s actions were wrong. In fact, he applauded her decision internally. "Yeah, Grey seemed to be on the verge of losing it." Reynolds nodded. When they saw the Overlord Plane experts, they felt it was probably time to stop the fighting, for now. But they didn''t expect Grey to continue fighting, not heeding to a single word the lady said. Grey stood still, not expecting Alice to slap him. His pupils dilated, before turning to looked at Alice with his infuriated eyes, but all he saw was care. Care for her friend who was on the verge of taking a path he might probably regret for the rest of his life. He stood in the same position for some seconds while staring at her watery eyes, everything slowly started playing out in his mind once again. He recalled how he felt when he thought Void was dead, and pain as well as the hate and rage. Recalling Void''s injury... "Void..." He said slowly before turning around, heading in Klaus'' direction. The Overlord Plane experts couldn''t believe that Grey did all this just for a cat, a magical beast pet. Yes, it saved his life, but they didn''t think a magical beast was actually worth all this. To them, magical beasts were tools, once they''re useless, they should be discarded. It might be special, but it''s not the only one in the world. There are other beasts he could easily train to block attacks for him, why go to such lengths? Alice went after her friends since Grey and the others started walking away, but she was stopped by the lady. "What Academy are you from?" The lady asked. Since the four of them were friends, they should be from the same Academy. "Lunar." Alice said while trying to walk out. "Thank you for stopping him." said the lady. She thought Alice did what she did because of her, and since these people would turn out to be very useful later in the future, she thought of putting on a good impression on them. "You don''t need to thank me, I did it for myself and my friends." Alice looked at the trio who were walking alongside each other and smiled lightly. These three weirdos were her friends, her best friends. Some people find it strange that her best friends were actually boys, they felt since she''s a girl, her best friend or friends should be girls as well. But she didn''t really think about it, these were the only people she could be free with, they were the ones who she knew in times of danger, they wouldn''t think twice before running to her aid, even if there''s a chance of them endangering their lives. The lady looked at her but didn''t say anything. Alice quickly caught up with them before saying, "Guys, you know that isn''t our camp, right?" Klaus and Reynolds looked around and realized they were actually heading in the Azure empire''s camp direction. But being the shameless people that they were... "He''s the one leading." They pointed at Grey simultaneously, trying to shift the blame to him. He was the one who was at the front, so shifting blame looks very easy. Grey looked behind them but didn''t say anything, he wasn''t in that mode. He shifted his gaze to Alice, "Thank you." "It''s nothing, we''re friends so we should help each other out." Alice smiled softly. "Yeah I know, but thank you." Grey said before looking in the direction of the leader from the Azure empire. They weren''t far from him, since they were technically still around the Azure empire''s camp. The leader looked at the youngster who survived his sneak attack in hatred. He would be punished because of his mistake. Had he been able to kill him, he would have been rewarded but causing the death of four of his guards while still not being able to kill the boy was something he would be punished for. "Count your days." Grey said calmly. Compared to before, he wasn''t putting on an angry expression or even acting like someone who was infuriated, rather, he acted as if nothing happened. This actually scared the leader more than when Grey was infuriated. Given Grey''s talent, he knew as long as Grey broke through to the Seventh stage while he was still in the Ninth stage, he wouldn''t stand a chance against him. "Is that a threat?" The leader asked icily. "No, I don''t threaten people." Grey continued walking, not turning to look at him anymore. The leader narrowed his eyes. If he were threatened by someone else in Grey''s age, he would laugh it off, not even bothering to think about it. But he had seen Grey in action, and all he saw was a ruthless killer. Chapter 225 - Breakthrough! Grey and the others soon got to the Qilin empire''s camp. There were different tents and Klaus asked if the group could get a private tent. A guard took them to a tent that wasn''t far from the Overlord Plane expert''s tent. The guards felt the people from the Azure empire might still try to kill them, they even went as far as stationing three guards at the front of the tent. "Let me take a look at the cat." The lady said gently. She realized speaking to Grey in an authoritative way wouldn''t yield any results. "Thank you for your concern, but it isn''t needed. He''ll be fine." Grey spoke in the same emotionless manner. He could tell that the way the lady was looking at Void was strange, so he didn''t want to hand him over to her. Since he had the healing tonic from the Blooming Vipers, he would use one on him. "Hmm, okay. Take this, it should help." The lady took out a tonic from the small bag she was wearing. She felt curious about Void, but since Grey didn''t even want to let anyone else take him, then there was no use in disturbing him about it. Grey took the tonic from her and went into the tent. "Thank you, my friend is just sad because his pet is injured. He''s usually not like this." Alice thanked the lady before going in. Klaus and Reynolds also thanked her before going in, they knew the reason Grey didn''t thank her was that he was still annoyed, but mostly worried about Void. After entering the tent. "What are you doing?" Klaus asked when he saw Grey busying himself around the tent. The tent wasn''t that large, around fifteen square meters. There was a cotton that separated it into two. Grey was currently on the other side of the tent, moving from one spot to the other. "Array, those old guys are snooping around in here. I think they are curious about Void." Grey spoke hurriedly. Presently, he knew his life was in danger given his previous performance, so bringing out this as well would put him in more danger. There''s also the problem of him making the healing tonic appear out of nowhere. "Do you have some stones?" He asked looking at the trio. He had studied Chris'' array books, so he knew of an array that could block the senses of those in a higher Plane from snooping. Although, he wasn''t really confident in it since he had not done it before. They gave him the stones that they had in their bags, after placing them in the needed lines, the lines lit up before fading. "Give me your bag." He stretched out his hand to Klaus. There was a chance of the array not working, so he wanted to act like he took the tonic out of his bag. Klaus passes his bag over to Grey who quickly placed his hand inside like he was taking something out. The hand he placed inside was the one the spatial ring was on. He brought out the tonic and quickly poured it into the mouth of Void. _______ "Looks like the brat has a way of healing his pet." The old man said while closely monitoring Grey''s actions. He knew he wasn''t the only one who was watching Grey. Grey''s performance was just too eye-catching that he had the idea of luring him to their empire. If the Azure empire could nurture a talent like him, he could single-handedly defeat an entire army once he grows to his peak. Grey not heeding to the lady''s orders even made him more convinced that he could bring him over to their empire. Luckily, he wasn''t that old yet, so there''s still the chance of brainwashing him. All they needed to do was provide him with all he wanted, and he would slowly start becoming loyal to them. The old man knew a thing or two about the Qilin empire, and he knew the Lunar Academy was not on good terms with the Royals because of a certain man called Chris. "He''s proficient in arrays as well, such a talent." praised the old man. It was only now he recalled the inscriptions he saw during the battle. This further made him want to make Grey a part of their empire. "Huh!" He exclaimed slightly when he realized what Grey was doing. "Cunning brat." He complained after he couldn''t sense anything happening anymore. He was forced to come out of his tent and ascend into the sky, but to his surprise, he wasn''t the only one who appeared mid-air. This time, it was all four Overlord Plane experts from all camps. "Why are you all looking at my camp?" The lady asked. "Don''t act like you also don''t want to know what the boy is doing?" said the old man. "Hmph! What he''s doing is none of my business." The lady snorted coldly. Yes, she was curious, but she couldn''t give these old guys the chance to pry into her empire''s genius'' secret. "Why don''t we go and check?" The old man from the Azure empire insisted. The other two men from the two empires looked at him but didn''t reply, after looking in Grey''s tent direction once more, they went back to their tents. "Not everyone is as stupid as you are, old man." The lady laughed seeing the others ditching him. "Hmph!" The old man snorted coldly before going back to his tent. He wanted to convince the other two to force their way into the Qilin empire''s camp but looks like his plan was unsuccessful. ''I''ll take the boy, one way, or another.'' He thought. The lady looked at Grey''s tent for some time, "*Sigh* This is going to be difficult." She couldn''t control Grey, nor his friends. And from the looks of it, neither can the empire. As it stands, the relationship between the Lunar Academy and the Royals was heated, and there were a lot of rumors going around about a possible fight against them. Three hours went by, and Grey and his friends stayed inside their tent without coming out. Just like Void said, the healing tonic was very impressive. Void wasn''t awake yet, but he was already looking good. Grey was sitting close to him stroking his fur, a slight smile was on his face. ''Void is going to freak out if he finds out we soaked him in water for over two hours.'' He thought jokingly. Later that night. "Hello." A voice came from outside Grey''s tent. Alice and the others walked out, but Grey was currently sitting in a meditative state. He was extremely tired from the prolonged battle with Aetonth, adding this intense battle and the emotional stress, he couldn''t stay awake. On going out, Alice and the others saw the lady standing outside. "We''ll be leaving first thing in the morning, we can''t afford to let you stay here any further." said the lady. "Okay, thank you for your help." Alice bowed to show her gratitude. Klaus and Reynolds quickly bowed, well, after being dragged by Alice. The lady left and the trio walked back into the tent. They were speaking of today''s event when they suddenly sensed a power surge from the motionless Grey. Boom! The tent rippled as the energy wave spread in all directions. Klaus and Reynolds looked at Grey, and they were surprised to actually see the elemental particles around him. "This...this..." Klaus couldn''t complete what he was saying. Five different elemental particles were around Grey, red, silver, blue, brown, and green. This represented five elements, fire, lightning, water, earth, and wind. "How''s this possible?" Alice opened her mouth in shock. "He''s having a breakthrough." Reynolds said with surprise. "We know that, but he only has three elements, this doesn''t make any sense." Klaus said. An Elementalist can only absorb the elements that he an affinity to, so how can Grey absorb five different elements. "Quickly..." Alice looked at Klaus in panic. Klaus had already made a move, creating an ice sphere that covered Grey completely. After the first shockwave that spread out, Klaus quickly sealed Grey inside his ice sphere, this stopped the aura from spreading out. ______ In the Qilin empire''s camp. The guards sensed a strong energy wave that quickly disappeared. "What''s that?" One of the guards asked. "Go over to their tent, make sure nothing happens to them." The leader ordered. He felt it might be an assassin who wanted to kill Grey and his friends, but accidentally released some of his aura. Chapter 226 - Questions Grey whose eyes were closed was totally oblivious to what was happening outside. This was not the first time he was breaking through, so he didn''t really think much about his breakthrough here. It wasn''t like he had ever caused a ruckus before when breaking through. Moreover, he was currently in a state that even he didn''t understand. He felt relieved! Breaking through might relieve one physically, but not mentally. Yet, he felt relieved both physically and mentally, it was like his previous mental state was also going through a breakthrough. He didn''t feel annoyed anymore, nor did he even think about the leader of the guards from the Azure empire who hurt Void. He continued his breakthrough without a care in the world, extremely relaxed. He even had a satisfied smile on his face! Klaus, Reynolds, and Alice watched his every movement from outside the ice sphere. "Should this be possible?" Reynolds asked, shifting his gaze to the other two. "No!" Klaus answered firmly, before adding, "Unless, he initially had all five elements." "That''s impossible, he was tested before coming to the Academy, and even after entering the Academy. His results showed he had only two elements at that time." Alice explained. They all knew of Grey''s story, and Klaus even confirmed it since his father was close to Chris. Not just that, but they also knew it was impossible to gain a new element. They didn''t find it weird when he displayed his fire element since they thought it was the expert''s legacy, but now, they couldn''t think of an explanation for the two new elements. "But...but...how''s he doing that?" Reynolds pointed at Grey who was absorbing the elemental particles of five different elements. "We don''t know, but being able to absorb them means he has an affinity with them." Klaus placed his hand on his temple, gently massaging it. For some reason, he suddenly had a headache from the multiple questions that were running through his head. How''s this possible? If people were to find out about it, wouldn''t that put him in danger? Why the f.u.c.k didn''t he tell me about this? Should I beat him up for not trusting me? What would a soup made with the healing tonic taste like? Will I ever find true love? Why is Trisha''s b**bs so small? I still don''t see what Pharrell has that I don''t? Do magical beasts date? Or do they just skip to the main part? Klaus'' mind soon wandered from Grey''s secret to different weird things. ''*Sigh* I really need to keep my thoughts to myself, the day I''ll think out loud will be the end of me.'' He sighed wryly. "Huh! Someone''s coming." Alice turned to look at the entrance to the tent. "They must have sensed the first energy wave, let''s head out to make sure Grey isn''t disturbed or seen." Klaus suggested. If Grey is seen in this state, it would spell danger for him. Being the wielder of five elements wouldn''t be a blessing, rather, it was a curse. Even the Qilin empire wouldn''t allow someone who has five elements to keep growing, especially with how powerful his fire element was. The guards who were sent to check on them got to the tent, but they realized the three guards stationed there were still there. "What are you doing outside, did you check on them?" One of the newly arrived guards asked the trio who was stationed there. "Is something wrong?" The first guard stationed there asked hastily. The guards stationed here surprisingly didn''t sense the energy wave that Grey gave off, even with how close they were to him. "You didn''t sense that strange aura? Quickly, let''s go in." The newly arrived guard who spoke previously hurriedly rushed towards the tent. Just as they were about to go in, Klaus, Alice, and Reynolds rushed out. "What''s going on? Did something happen?" Klaus asked two questions in quick succession. "Where''s the last one?" The newly arrived guard asked when he saw that only the three of them came out, instead of four. "Our friend is very tired, he''s already asleep." answered Alice. "I''ll check on him just to be sure." The guard said. "You going inside would disturb his rest, we''re his friends, we naturally aren''t stupid enough to say he''s fine if he isn''t." Klaus said coldly. He knew if he spoke to the guard softly, the guard would insist on going in. Even after saying this, the guard still insisted on seeing him. It was only after a combined effort from, Klaus and the others did he finally decide to stay outside. "Okay, we''ll stay out here. Yell if there are any issues." The guard said before standing around the tent. Klaus hated being monitored, but their current situation warranted it. In the Overlord Plane expert''s tent. "Hmm, this aura." She muttered softly, trying to find where the aura was coming from. It disappeared almost as soon as it appeared, making it difficult to sense it out. ''I''ll have to make sure to watch the kids, there''s a high chance of that old man being responsible for this.'' She stood up, walked out of her tent and took to the sky. The safety of Grey and his friends was just too important to her. She had even prepared a letter that had a report of what happened here. Back inside the cave. "Wouldn''t the Overlord Plane experts be able to trace the aura here?" Reynolds asked worriedly. "Klaus acted quickly, but their senses are sharper than Origin Plane Elementalists. Hopefully, Grey''s array should be able to keep them out." Alice looked at Grey. Today had been stressful for her to say the least. "What''s taking him so long? He needs to end this soon." Reynolds said worriedly. Crack! "Shit! The energy wave is intense." Klaus complained. This ice sphere could withstand an all-out attack of a Third stage Origin Plane Elementalist, yet, it was breaking under the impact of Grey''s energy wave. Klaus hastily created another sphere, before the first one breaks down. Chapter 227 - Finding Out Thirty minutes later. Grey''s breakthrough was already finished, but he still had both eyes closed, not showing any signs of moving from his sitting position. Now, he was a Fifth stage Origin Plane Elementalist, the Overlord Plane was just a few stages away. "Hmm, looks like his array worked." Alice looked around. The lady didn''t show up, which meant that she couldn''t trace the aura here. There''s also the possibility of the lady not wanting to alert them of her being aware of what happened tonight. "Yeah, probably. So, do you think he knows about this?" Klaus asked the other two. The two looked at him without replying. "Like, you know. Maybe he doesn''t know he has an affinity with the wind and water element?" He explained. "Since he''s absorbing it, he should be aware of them. How else would he absorb them if he doesn''t attract them to himself?" Alice looked at Klaus. "I''m just saying, there''s a chance this might be a new development he doesn''t know of." Klaus shrugged. "We''ll find out when he''s awake." Alice said. "Find out about what?" He asked with a confused expression. The trio was slightly surprised that he had finally woken up. "Did you notice anything strange when you were breaking through just now?" Klaus asked strangely. "Strange when I was breaking through? Did something strange happen?" Grey wore a baffled face. Since when does something strange happen when he is breaking through? "Not really, only that you were able to absorb five different elements instead of three." Alice took charge of the questioning. "Huh! How did you know that?" Grey asked in shock, before realizing he shouldn''t have asked that question. ''Damn it! I should''ve acted like I didn''t know what they were talking about.'' He complained internally. The trio''s expression took a change when they heard what he said. "Does that mean that you have five elements?" asked Reynolds. "Yes." Grey could only helplessly nod. The cat was out of the bag anyway, so there''s no way he could deny it. "But...how''s that possible?" Klaus looked at Grey in awe, he also felt like Grey was more freakish compared to Reynolds who was a high-grade summoner. "That...I''ll explain later. First of all, tell me how you found out about this, what happened when I was breaking through?" Grey asked seriously. He felt something must have happened when he was breaking through that made his friends realize he didn''t have three elements, but five. Klaus went on to tell him about the commotion he caused when breaking through, he also told him about the manifestation of the elemental particles which led to them figuring out about him being able to use five elements. "Wait, you mean the elemental particles were actually visible?" Grey couldn''t help but ask. He had just been told this, but he found it extremely shocking to believe. This wasn''t the first time he had broken through, even when he was breaking through to the Origin Plane, he didn''t cause any ruckus other than the time he wanted to refine his body. "Yes, all five elemental particles were visible. Luckily, we were here, else you might have been in danger given the fact that there are no records of anyone ever having four elements, much less five." Alice said. "Also, how the hell did you have five elements? I recalled your test only showed two." Klaus looked at him seriously. Grey sighed before saying, "*Sigh* I planned to tell you all anyway, so there''s no use if I tell you now, or later. I can comprehend new elements." "Wait, what?!" Klaus and Reynolds exclaimed simultaneously, but their mouths were quickly closed by Alice. "I mean, I can gain new elements. I originally had only the lightning element, but I comprehended the earth element before my test." Grey explained. Gasps! The trio gasped in shock, well, Klaus and Reynolds tried to, but with Alice''s hands covering their mouths, it wasn''t easy. "Meaning you can..." Alice looked at the sleeping Void. "Yes, but it''s not as easy as it sounds. The two elements I comprehended here were due to external factors. The space element is much more complex to comprehend than the other elements, I haven''t even been able to start studying it properly yet." Grey continued. "Yuu yuu yuu." Klaus tried speaking but with Alice covering his mouth, all they heard were mumblings. Grey, Alice, and Reynolds looked at him. "Oh, sorry." Alice hastily removed her hands from the duo''s mouths. "Thank you, you mean you already have one more element before coming here?" asked Klaus. "Yeah, I awoke my wind element when I went out on a mission." Grey smiled. "You only left the Academy once." Reynolds said. "Yeah, that was the time." Grey affirmed. "Wow! That''s so insane. Is there a reason for this?" Reynolds asked, but quickly shut his mouth. This was a great secret, it must have taken a lot from Grey just to tell them this. Yet, he wanted to know more. Grey acted like he didn''t hear the question before smiling at his friends, "There''s one more thing though." "Oh, what''s that?" They looked at him curiously. "I can increase my elemental grade." Grey said with a mysterious smile. Even though he couldn''t tell them of the pearl, telling them of his ability to gain new elements and increasing his elemental grade wasn''t that bad. Since there''s a chance they might also find out someday. "What?!" This time, Klaus and Reynolds weren''t the only ones who exclaimed, even Alice exclaimed in shock. They all looked at Grey in disbelief. They previously felt being able to comprehend and gain new elements was insane, but hearing about being able to improve his grade, they didn''t know what to think anymore. Was there anyone more amazing than the young man who was sitting before them? The answer is most likely, No! Chapter 228 - The Dawson Family The next morning. When Grey and his friends came out, the lady was surprised when she noticed Grey had already broken through to the Fifth stage of the Origin Plane. ''Could it be he was the one who released that aura yesterday?'' She asked herself. The timing of Grey''s breakthrough and the release of that aura was just too coincidental. She knew during the previous day, Grey was still only at the Fourth stage. ''No, it shouldn''t, the aura I sensed wasn''t something a Fifth stage Origin Plane Elementalist should have.'' She contemplated. The aura she felt was stronger than even what a Sixth stage Origin Plane Elementalist has, so she couldn''t link Grey''s breakthrough with the aura. "You broke through yesterday." She said. "Yeah, I was already close to breaking through before I left the trial land." Grey replied. "That''s good, the empire needs more people like you." The lady nodded repeatedly while studying Grey. "Thank you for yesterday." Grey bowed slightly. "It''s nothing. Oh! How''s your pet?" The lady asked when she saw Void on Grey''s hand. Void currently had his eyes closed. He woke up the previous night while Grey and his friends were speaking, but since they couldn''t show the others he was already fine, he had to pretend he was asleep. "He''s better now, but it''ll take a while before he wakes up." Grey smiled softly. "What element does your cat have?" The lady asked curiously. "Wind." Grey said offhandedly. "Hmm, it''s quite fast for a Wind Elementalist." The lady continued looking at Void. ''Looks like the Overlord Plane experts saw him when he helped me, but luckily, they have no knowledge of the space element. No wonder she wanted to take Void, she planned on studying him.'' thought Grey. Grey smiled without responding any further, he had already told her Void was a Wind Elementalist, there''s no reason for him to keep answering her questions. Seeing no more response from Grey, the lady sensibly stopped asking about Void. "Are you all going back to your Academy, or are you willing to join the empire''s forces?" She asked. Once a citizen of the empire breaks through to the Origin Plane, they can freely join the empire''s forces. They would all be given positions according to their stages, as well as their potentials. The lady felt with Grey''s talent, his position wouldn''t be meager. "We haven''t decided yet." Alice answered. Of all of them, only Grey and Reynolds didn''t really have a prominent background. Given Reynolds background, the chances of him joining the army is very high since it would increase his family''s background. Grey on the other hand, didn''t seem like someone who cared about the empire or joining any forces. Just like Klaus and Alice, he didn''t want to get involved in anything. "Hmm, okay. They''ll drop you off at the Capital." said the lady. "You don''t need to worry much about us, just drop us off at the borders of the empire." Klaus waved, rejecting the lady''s idea of taking them to the capital. "No, it''s not safe letting you four wander around the empire, especially after what happened yesterday." The lady immediately rejected their suggestion. Leaving the four alone would probably mean their deaths. She felt the Azure empire hadn''t given up on their attempt to kill Grey. So they would most likely send people after them. "Fine, take us to Red City." Klaus said after getting a nod from Grey. The lady looked at them before helplessly nodding. She knew she couldn''t change their minds, so she could only agree to get them to Red City, after all, it was deep in the empire. Although it was a small city, it was relatively safe. "These will be the guards accompanying you all, they are all in the Eighth stage of the Origin Plane." The lady introduced them to five young men. The young men all looked to be in their late twenties. According to the lady, after they left the Academy, they joined the empire''s forces. The reason they were already in the Eighth stage was because of the items provided by the empire for their growth. Grey and the others naturally knew she was only saying this to try to lure them into joining the empire''s forces. Other than smiling, they didn''t show any signs of even giving it a thought, except for Reynolds. ''Maybe they''re from great backgrounds.'' She thought. "I forgot to ask, what are your names?" The lady asked. She wanted to tell the emperor about them, although her rank wasn''t high, she could inform her superiors about them. Klaus, Alice, and Reynolds told her their names, she easily recognized Klaus and Alice''s family, but she didn''t know a thing about Reynolds'' family. "What about you?" She looked at Grey. "Grey." Grey said. "Just Grey?" The lady couldn''t help but ask. Grey looked at her for a while, his last name was something he rarely said, even his mother rarely used it. He recalled it was Dawson, but since his father was gone for such a long time now, he didn''t like talking about it since it always reminded him of his father. "Dawson, Grey Dawson." He said gently. ''Hmm, I don''t know about any Dawson Family from Red City.'' She scanned her memories for a Dawson Family from Red City, but she didn''t know of any. She thought hard about it, but just like Reynolds'' family, she knew nothing of it. ''Maybe they are a small family, this should increase the chances of him deciding to join the empire''s forces.'' She thought internally. Of all Grey''s friends, Grey was the one she wanted the most, Reynolds was the second, then Alice, before Klaus. She placed Klaus on the end of the list because she didn''t see him make any move other than cheering animatedly on the sidelines, so she didn''t know just how strong he was. "Okay. They''ll take you to Red City, just make sure to head to your Academy soon, the empire might summon all four of you." She said. There''s a chance the empire would summon them once they get the news of what happened here. Grey''s talent and ruthlessness would make him a terrifying figure if placed on a battlefield. Reynolds'' Elemental Warrior was strong, Alice could not be removed from the picture as well. But Klaus, there was nothing she could say about him. The group soon left the camp, heading for Red City. The journey would take the group at least a day and a half, which was on the premise that they traveled without rest. But since the beasts couldn''t fly continuously for such a long time, they would naturally have to rest while on the journey. Two days later. The sun was just about to set when two huge birds landed on a forest. These were the birds that carried Grey and his friends from the border of the magical beast forest. The journey was surprisingly safe. The young men guarding the group didn''t believe it would be this peaceful, according to what the lady told them, they thought they will be attacked while taking Grey and his friends here, but not even a magical beast attacked them. "Thank you, we''ll be going now." Grey said as he leads the group out of the forest. This was the same forest he first saw Brown, he still couldn''t help but look at the area where Chris left Brown feeling a little nostalgic. "Is this the city you came from?" Klaus asked while looking at the city gates. This was the smallest city gate he had ever seen. Alice and Reynolds looked at the city walls curiously as well. Although Reynolds wasn''t from a big family, the city he came from was bigger than Red City, even the mayor was in the Origin Plane. "Yeah, I spent fifteen years of my life here." Grey nodded with a soft smile. He couldn''t say he was overly attached to this city, after all, his memories here weren''t that fun. Other than his mother, he didn''t really have any other friends here. "Come on, let''s go check it out. I''ll show you where I stayed." He walked through the city gates, heading into the city. The guards at the gates were all in the Fusion Plane. Unlike the gates of big cities like Lunar City, and the rest, Red City wasn''t bustling. The activity was minimal since merchants rarely came here. The group walked in, Klaus and Reynolds were particularly looking around curiously. Alice would occasionally take a glance around, but would then focus on their journey. Grey soon got to the building he used to stay. He looked at it, and it was just like the way he left it, only, he still felt there was something missing, his mother. He stood on the roadside looking at it, "This is where I grew up." The others had already guessed it seeing that he stood here looking at the building for some time. "It''s nice." Alice smiled softly. Klaus and Reynolds looked at the building for some time. "So, what did you usually do for fun here?" Klaus asked. Chapter 229 - Youre No Fun "Does training count?" Grey asked after thinking for a while. Unlike Lunar City, Red City was too small, so there are almost zero places where one could have fun. Of course, there were taverns and inns, but not on the same level as Lunar City. There were also a few places with women just like the Jade Water Paradise Klaus and Reynolds usually goes to in the Capital. "Since when have training been fun?" Klaus asked while looking at him weirdly. Even Reynolds had an odd expression. "Oh, then nothing. No, wait, there are some times I follow my mother to the market to buy things for cooking, it''s pretty fun. Does that count?" Grey looked at the duo. "Okay, you''re a no fun guy, we get it." Klaus stopped him from speaking. How could going to the market with your mother be fun? It''s exhausting! Klaus didn''t get the chance to go with his mother though, since she died early. He rarely knew her, but his father did a nice job training him, so he doesn''t usually remember the fact that he didn''t have a mother. Reynolds looked around, but there was nothing interesting around here. Of the group, Alice and Void were the more composed ones. Alice looked around curiously, while Void looked around enthusiastically. During the journey here, he had to pretend he was still asleep, but as soon as they left the guards who brought them here, he instantly stood up. ''So this is where he grew up, lame.'' He thought arrogantly. There weren''t any shiny things even in the streets, how could someone grow up here? The houses didn''t even look classy, they all looked old. Almost like the ones in the trial land. "Wait here, I''ll be right back." Grey said to the others before walking to the building on the left side of the one he previously lived in. This building was occupied by a family of four, an old lady, a middle-aged man and woman, and finally, a little boy. Although, the boy might not be so little anymore since it has been a while Grey last saw him. Grey knocked on the door of the building, after waiting for a while, he heard footsteps from inside. The door opened, and he saw a young boy who looked to be around ten years old or so. The boy had a short hair, just like Grey, only, his hair was blonde while Grey''s was black. He still had baby fat which made his face look chubby, he had an enchanting sapphire colored eyes, and a pointed nose. When Grey came with Chris the last time, they weren''t around. ''Wow! He''s already so big? It hasn''t even been up to three years I left.'' He exclaimed inside. The young boy who opened the door for him was called, Athan. When Grey went for his first test, Athan was still only four years old or so, after his result was announced, Athan''s parents, his father to be precise, stopped him from speaking to Grey. But whenever his father was not around, he would sneak off to Grey''s place. Grey stopped him from coming when his father found out about it. According to his mother, Athan''s father beat him up even though he was still only four years old. But the little boy didn''t stop coming, it was only after he was beaten for a third time did Grey decide to stop him from coming, so his father wouldn''t beat him anymore. He always took him as a younger brother. "Grey!" Athan exclaimed happily on seeing him. Grey didn''t change much, although he was taller now, his facial appearance was still the same. "Athan, how are you doing?" Grey ruffled Athan''s hair while smiling happily. "Fine." Athan said while pushing Grey''s hand away from his hair while trying to arrange it back to the way it previously was. "Come in." He invited Grey in while holding his hand, trying to drag him in. "I can''t come in, I came with some friends." Grey smiled as he saw the Athan''s expression. After leaving this place, he rarely thought of this boy who seemed to like him to no end. He thought maybe Athan would''ve forgotten about him, but who would''ve thought he still had the same love for him. "Oh, will you stay for a while?" asked Athan. "Unfortunately, no. I need to get back to the Academy soon." Grey said gently. "Oh." Athan said with a sad expression. While looking around, he saw Void who was in Alice''s hand. "Wow! Such a strange cat." He pointed at Void. "He''s my friend, his name''s Void." said Grey. "Your friend? Isn''t it just a cat?" Athan asked in confusion. Humans should have only human friends, while beasts should have beasts friends. When a human has a beast, it was usually as a pet. "No, he''s my friend. More than that actually... Is your mother at home?" Grey asked. "No, she went to the forge to see dad." Athan replied. Athan''s father was one of the few blacksmiths in Red City, so he was quite popular in the city since he made some of the weapons in the city. "Okay, is your grandma inside?" Grey asked again. Athan was still too young when his mother left, so he wouldn''t know if she left any messages for him or not. "Grandma died last year." Athan''s expression turned even sadder when Grey asked of his grandmother. "Oh, sorry about that." Grey tapped him on his shoulder. "I''ll be taking my test soon, I want to be like you." Athan suddenly said. "Soon? But you''re only ten." Grey said. "No, I''m already eleven." Athan stood straight as he announced his age. ''Shit! I forgot about his age.'' Grey cursed. He couldn''t be blamed since he focused more on training after he stopped seeing Athan. There are times he even forgets about his age, much less the age of someone. "Oh, that''s true. Did my mom leave anything for me when she was leaving?" He asked the question that originally brought him here. Chapter 230 - Unknown Danger "No." Athan replied. "Hmm, okay." Grey nodded. ''Where did you go to?'' Grey looked at the place he used to stay with a complex emotion. It has been over two years now, yet he hadn''t heard anything from his mother. This was exactly how his father left, now it was his mother''s turn. He could accept losing his father, but he couldn''t take it if he lost his mother. "I''ll be going now, make sure to take care of yourself." Grey smiled softly to Athan. "I will come find you at the Lunar Academy." Athan said. Grey chuckled but didn''t say anything, he knew the chances of Athan joining the Lunar Academy was slim. Athan needed to have at least a purple elemental grade to be accepted into the Lunar Academy. But he couldn''t discourage him, so he could only smile to him. "I''ll be waiting for you." He turned around to walk over to the others who were standing on the pavement at the side of the road. "Hey guys, there''s nothing about my mom here. We should head back to the Academy, there''s no use staying here any further." Grey said to the others. They headed to the city gate, Grey didn''t forget to say goodbye to Athan before leaving. "Which way?" Klaus asked immediately after the group walked past the gate. "That way, I think." Grey pointed to the north with uncertainty. They didn''t have a map, and Grey who had traveled from here to the Academy didn''t know the way. When he left for the Academy, he was carried by Brown. When he came here as well, Brown brought him here, and he could barely see, much less seeing the route they took. Reynolds went over to ask one of the guards at the gate which way led to the Lunar Academy. The distance from here to the Lunar Academy wasn''t by any means close, so the guard only pointed them in the general direction he could recall. "It''s already dark. Why don''t we go back to the city?" Alice suggested. When they came here, it was already almost sunset. But after they spent some time in the city, it was already dark. Thinking of the possible dangers, Grey and the others agreed to Alice''s suggestion. They went back into the city, heading straight for an inn. The next morning, the group woke up feeling energized and started their journey to the Lunar Academy. This was the first time Grey would be personally going to the Lunar Academy from Red City, and he wasn''t excited at all. "How come we are unable to get a horse in your city?" Klaus asked sourly. The thought of walking to the Lunar Academy was not something he could accept. He had been walking for so long in the trial land, and now that he left the trial land, he didn''t want to walk for a long distance anymore. "I''ve never really thought of it." Grey shrugged. The only time he has left Red City was when Chris took him to the Academy, so he never really had any use for horses. "Rey, you''ll have to carry me." Klaus looked at Reynolds. "In your dreams." Reynolds didn''t even bother to look at him. "Grey." Klaus looked at Grey hoping he would agree to carry him. "I''ll break your legs." Grey replied. "Al..." Klaus didn''t dare to complete his statement when he saw the look Alice gave him. If he were to accidentally call her name, then she would most likely beat him up. "We''ll get a horse in the next city." He said. The trio who were currently ahead of him didn''t answer him. The group walked along the path with Klaus complaining as they walked. ______ A group of ten men who were dressed in black were closely watching the group as they started their journey. "How come they managed to get here?" One of the men asked. "I''m not sure, but looks like the other group missed them." Another one replied. "They are only kids, according to the reports, only the one in the Fifth stage is a treat, the others aren''t much of a challenge given our stages." A third guy said. "Hmph! We should kill them now. The ladies at the tavern are still waiting for me, we''ve been here for three days now." A burly guy said with l.u.s.t in his eyes. "No, we need to make sure they''re all alone." The fifth guy said. They all stood in the forest looking at the group as they disappeared into the horizon. "Let''s go, we''ll kill them once there''s no one near." The fifth guy said. Just as they were about to follow the group, a man appeared before them, making them unconsciously retreat. "Who are you?" The burly guy asked after taking a step back. "Death." The man said. He was the man Grey''s mother left to protect him. When Grey went into the trial land, he couldn''t get in, even after trying on multiple occasions, he still couldn''t go in. He almost fainted from fright. If anything happened to Grey while he was inside, he knew Martha would kill him. She wouldn''t even want to know why he was unable to save her son, she''d kill him instantly. He waited outside for the entire time Grey spent in the trial land, whenever the array lit up, he would always look at who was exiting it. When he saw Grey come out, he was exhilarated. He didn''t except Grey to be sneak attacked by the leader of the guards from the Azure empire, but Grey''s performance impressed him. He felt Grey''s improvement during the time he spent in the trail land was massive. After all, Grey''s reaction speed wasn''t something others his age had. Void''s appearance also surprised him, he knew of the space element, so he wasn''t too surprised about it using it. He only found Void''s appearance strange. He was the one who made sure Grey and his friends traveled here safely, and he planned on making sure they didn''t face any problems from people until they got to the Lunar Academy. Chapter 231 - Which Is Better? Later that day. Grey and his friends could be seen walking on a forest path, and Klaus was surprisingly carrying Reynolds on his back. Grey still didn''t know how Reynolds was able to convince Klaus to carry him on his back, he recalled Klaus was the one who was complaining at the start of the journey. ''Hey.'' Void who was in Alice''s arms glanced at Klaus and Reynolds with a weird look. ''Yeah.'' Grey replied. ''I know I''ve said this a lot of times, but your friends are weird, except for Alice. Alice is nice.'' said Void. ''Heh! At least they''re not that crazy.'' Grey chuckled not feeling offended by Void''s statement. He didn''t need anyone to tell him his friends were weird, he knew their personalities, but he loved them. Life wouldn''t be the same anymore without them. ''Yeah, but I think they''re not far from it.'' Void added. Klaus and Reynolds were currently arguing while Reynolds was still on Klaus'' back. Grey looked behind him and couldn''t help but wonder where Reynolds'' confidence came from. Reynolds was stronger than Klaus, which is well known by the group, but he was currently on Klaus'' back. Given Klaus'' personality, he would most likely slam him into the ground when their argument gets to a heated stage. "Wait, what are you people arguing about again?" He asked, trying to stop the duo before it''s too late. "If magical beasts ruled the world, who do you think would be the leader?" Klaus asked. "Well, I think..." "It''s a hydra, right?" Reynolds interrupted Grey. "Of course not, it''s a peac.o.c.k with a multi-colored tail." Klaus said angrily. "Wait, do peac.o.c.ks usually have a single colored tail?" Grey asked a little confused. "Shut up Grey! Peac.o.c.ks are amazing magical beasts, they''re not only beautiful, but they''re also strong when using any of the elements. Also, most peac.o.c.ks are at the very least Dual Elementalists." said Klaus. "*Pfft* Grey, can you believe this guy? How can a peac.o.c.k be as strong as a hydra? Have you forgotten they have over three heads? And according to legends, each head not only uses one element, but it can also work separately from the others." Reynolds laughed out loudly. Hydras were legendary creatures just like dragons, griffins, phoenix, and the rest. According to the legends, it was said that they were a type of dragon. They are said to have two heads from birth, but with time, they would start growing a third head that not only has a different element from the first two but can also operate on its own. There are very few records of hydras having only a single head, most of them had at least two heads. It was also said that if one of a hydra''s heads was cut off, it would grow two new ones from the wound, that''s how it''s said to grow multiple heads. How could a colorful peac.o.c.k be stronger than that? "I personally feel that dragons would be the leader." Grey said after finally getting the chance to speak. "Can dragons regenerate heads?" Reynolds asked. "No, I don''t think so." Grey shook his head. "Is the tail of a dragon as colorful as a peac.o.c.k''s?" Klaus asked. "Not really." Grey shook his head once again. "Okay, now go over there, let the real men argue which magical beast is better." Klaus pointed at a spot not too far from them in a mocking way. Grey was left speechless seeing how the two chased him away, it was like they didn''t even think of the strength of a dragon. ''Most people regard dragons as the rulers of the magical beasts, how the hell does these idiots'' thought process work?'' He asked internally, of course, he didn''t dare to continue arguing with the duo. In regards to strength, he was the strongest. However, he knew Klaus and Reynolds wouldn''t try to beat him up, rather, they''ll team up and curse at him. He could barely face either of them one-on-one, much less when the duo ganged up on him. They continued walking before what Grey predicted happened. Bang! Reynolds slammed into the ground hard after being thrown by Klaus. Not expecting it, he couldn''t resist it. "F.u.c.k you! Either you accept that peac.o.c.ks are the strongest, or you get out." Klaus pointed at Reynolds who was currently lying on the floor. Grey and Alice looked at them but didn''t try to stop them. "Do you think Reynolds would beat him up?" Grey walked closer to Alice and asked softly. "Yeah." Alice nodded. "Damn you! Peac.o.c.ks are nothing, they wouldn''t even last a second if confronted by a hydra." Reynolds stood up angrily and pointed at Klaus. The duo soon got into a hand-to-hand brawl with Grey and Alice watching on from the side. With both boys using their fists, it was a battle filled with screams from both sides. "*Sigh* I''ll stop them." Grey shook his head as he walked over. "What do you want?" Klaus whose head was locked between Reynolds'' arms asked when he saw Grey approaching. "Stop fighting, we need to get to the next city before it gets dark." Grey said but made sure to keep his distance from the duo. "Damn you, I still want to beat him up." Klaus said. "Me too." Reynolds raised one hand which Klaus capitalized on to escape. Grey looked at the duo, feeling a little helpless. Sometimes, he felt like he was speaking to two kids. He walked back to where Alice was standing, just as she was about to take over, an idea struck him. He quickly went back to where the duo was facing off against each other. "How about this, we''ll fight hand-to-hand without using any elements. If I beat any of you, we''ll leave immediately, and you wouldn''t delay us any further." Grey proposed. "And if we beat you?" Reynolds asked curiously. "Then you beat me, isn''t that enough for you? But remember, we''ll start the journey immediately after the fight." Grey said. Klaus and Reynolds looked at each other, and the duo who were previously fighting against themselves drew nearer. "Hey, do you think this is a trap?" Klaus whispered in Reynolds'' ear. "I think so, but beating him sounds good. Also, if he cheats, I''ll summon my Elemental Warrior." Reynolds said thoughtfully. "Hmm, deal. But remember, you are not allowed to take revenge after we''re done beating you up." Klaus agreed to Grey''s proposal, while also warning him. "Of course, shall we?" Grey motioned as his lips curved upwards. Alice by the side shook her head while staring at Klaus and Reynolds in pity. She still recalled Grey''s insane physical strength, yet these two morons readily agreed to be beaten by him. Gently c.a.r.e.s.sing Void, she watched as Grey prepared to pummel the duo. ''They''ve been too much of a headache lately, this should teach them a lesson.'' She nodded at the thought of Grey beating them up. Chapter 232 - Zivia City Grey looked at the duo, he almost felt pity for them, well, almost. "I''m coming." He declared. Klaus and Reynolds prepared themselves, thinking they would beat Grey up. They''ve always wanted to beat him up, now that he presented the opportunity to them, they didn''t want to miss it like the last time. According to their plan, they would''ve beaten Grey up after they left the trial land, but because of the sneak attack, they couldn''t beat him up. Their pupils dilated the next second. "F.u.c.k you Grey! No cheating!" Klaus was the first to curse out. "Who''s cheating?" Grey asked as he appeared behind him. Bam! He threw a blow at Klaus'' back that sent him flying. "Ah... Grey, how could you be so cruel? I''m your friend!" Klaus yelled as he landed on the side of the forest path. ''Damn it! I forgot about his insane physical strength. It''s all that bastard''s fault.'' Klaus complained while rubbing his back. He didn''t even try to stand up since Grey would just pummel him back down. On seeing this, Reynolds immediately started retreating, praying that Grey would focus on Klaus so he could escape. "And where are you going?" Grey asked with folded arms. "Nowhere, I''m only creating some space between us so that I can beat you up properly." Reynolds replied, still retreating. "Oh really? How about this, I''ll let you attack first." Grey said motioning to him to give it his best shot. "No, why don''t you just let me go and beat up Klaus in my place." Reynolds said pointing at Klaus who was still on the ground. Klaus jumped up when he heard this and started cursing at Reynolds'' shamelessness. Grey turned to look at Klaus, and to his surprise, Klaus fell back to the ground, pretending he never stood up. Reynolds continued retreating when he saw this opportunity. But just then, he sensed someone behind him. "Huh!" He exclaimed in surprise when he realized Grey was no longer standing in front of him. ''Shit! How could I have forgotten? It''s all Klaus'' fault.'' Reynolds complained inside. "Since you don''t want to attack, then I will." Grey''s voice sounded out before his figure appeared at Reynolds'' left-hand side. Bam! Just like Klaus, Reynolds was sent flying with a single punch. "Ah..." He yelled before crashing into the ground, a few meters away from Klaus. "*Psst* Don''t lie so close to me, go the other way." Klaus whispered to Reynolds. "This is bad, how do we escape now?" Reynolds whispered. "Play dead, maybe he''ll let us go if he sees we''re hurt." Klaus said. Just as Reynolds was about to speak, he heard Grey''s footstep coming closer to them. Without any other choice, he yelped in pain, hoping Grey would take pity on him. Grey smiled and stretched his arms, "I''m going to enjoy this." Bam! Bang! Bam! The sound of fist hitting flesh rang out on the forest path, accompanied by the screams of pain from both Klaus and Reynolds. Alice who was watching from the side couldn''t stop laughing, especially when Klaus and Reynolds started shouting like they were two ladies who were about to be r.a.p.ed. Three minutes later. "You bastard, I''ll get you for this." Klaus muttered while raising a fist, of course, he was the only one who heard it. He was already hurting all over, if Grey heard what he said, then Grey might probably continue beating him up. "What did you say?" Grey who heard his mumblings but not the exact words turned around with his left brow raised. "Nothing, I said nothing." Klaus quickly said. "Hmm, I don''t trust you." Grey squinted his eyes and stared at Klaus seriously. "Come on, I win. Let''s get going." He laughed before turning around. He was a hundred percent confident that Klaus cursed at him, but the reason he made a deal with them was so that they could quickly get to the next town. There wasn''t any need in delaying any further. Besides, he has had his fun, and knowing the duo, he knew they would most likely plot revenge against him. "This is all your fault." Klaus and Reynolds said simultaneously while looking at each other, with sparks flying everywhere. From the looks of things, they were about to start fighting again. Alice couldn''t help but place her hand on her forehead. "These two are just crazy." She mumbled. "You two better start walking, or else what Grey did to you would feel like heaven compared to what you''re going to suffer in my hands." She looked at them with fiery eyes. The duo stood up instantly, unlike Grey, Alice wasn''t that lenient. And unlike Grey, they couldn''t get revenge on her, so getting on her bad side was not a good idea. Immediately the duo stood up, Klaus looked at Reynolds before saying, "It''s your turn now." "How do you expect me to carry you in this state?" Reynolds spread his arms. "It''s none of my business. Our deal was to switch, and we''re switching now." Klaus demanded. "Damn you! I''m not carrying you." Reynolds didn''t give in. He couldn''t give in, he was exhausted just like Klaus. Klaus and Reynolds continued quarreling as the group advanced in the forest path. They would occasionally encounter some people on the way. After two hours, they still haven''t gotten to the next city and Klaus and Reynolds were already getting tired. Grey was forced to stop the next person they encountered to ask if they were already getting close to the city. The person told them they were only an hour away from the city. The news invigorated the group, and they surprisingly saw the visage of the city within thirty minutes. "Let''s go, I need to eat." Grey said while patting his stomach. Chapter 233 - Trouble Grey and his friends soon got to Zivia''s City gate, this was their first time here, and they didn''t plan on staying long. There were two queues at the gate, and they joined the one on the right. Klaus suggested they skipped the line, they were already in the Origin Plane, in a city this small, the mayor shouldn''t even be at the Peak of the Arcane Plane, much less the Origin Plane. Grey and the others opted to go with the queue, they didn''t want anything that would draw attention to them, especially Grey. After waiting for a while, it got to their turn. The guard looked at them properly before saying, "Fifty silver coins per individual." He had a cross-shaped scar just above his left eye, it was most likely caused by a sword. These guards were only in the Fusion Plane, so they still relied on their bodies and weapons for battles. "Oh!" Grey exclaimed slightly, not expecting that it would be this expensive. However, he didn''t bother about it since it was something they could easily cover. Although when he previously went to the Capital he didn''t pay a dime to go in, he didn''t want to make an issue out of this. Just as he was about to take out the coins to hand them over to the guard, he heard an elderly man quarreling with one of the other guards on the other queue. "What do you mean twenty-five silver coins, since when was the charges this high?" The elderly man asked angrily. "If you can''t pay then move to the side, there are others who would like to enter." The guard said without any shred of pity. "It has always been five silver coins, in only two months you people increased it to twenty-five silver coins." The elderly man argued. "Move aside old man, if you don''t want to go in then leave this queue." The guard shoved the elderly man away. Grey and his friends gaze switched from the elderly man back to the guard in front of them. "Twenty-five?" Reynolds whispered to Grey softly. "Just forget it, we''ll be out by tomorrow." Grey waved. He couldn''t help but glance at the old man who was pushed aside once again, the elderly man fell on the ground after he was pushed aside. "Should we beat them up?" Klaus whispered to the group. "No need to cause so much trouble, it''s just fifty silver coins." Alice said nonchalantly. ''Yeah, your family is rich, it really isn''t much.'' Reynolds and Grey who wasn''t as rich as the duo thought. They looked at Klaus scornfully, how could he be so stingy? Although, they didn''t really support the idea of also paying so much to enter a city, especially one this small. After all, this doesn''t usually happen. "Maybe it''s just their rule, we''ll pay and head in." Grey said to the others as he prepared to go in. "Are we going to let them do that to the old man?" Alice asked a little taken aback. Grey glanced at the old man but shook his head. He didn''t want to get into an unnecessary situation because he wanted to act as a hero. Even though there shouldn''t be anyone on a higher Plane than he currently was in this city, he didn''t want to involve himself in something that isn''t related to him. "Let''s go, he should be aware of the rules here. I don''t think this is his first time." Grey and the boys were the first to hand their coins over and head in. Alice was a little more concerned for the elderly man, so she walked over to where he was. "Hello sir." She assisted the elderly man in standing back up. "These people are increasingly getting greedier, it was usually five coins to enter the city, now they''ve increased it by so much." The elderly man said sadly. "Okay, I''ll help you pay the entry fee." Alice smiled softly. "Oh, thank you young lady." The elderly man almost bowed to her in gratitude, but she quickly stopped him. Inside the carriage. Two young men were closely watching the gates, they both looked to be around their early twenties, one of them had sharp eyes with a thick brow, and the other had a long face with short beards and long curly hair. "What do you think of the girl?" The young man with sharp eyes asked his companion. "Not bad. I don''t think she would stay here for long." said the young man with curly hair. "You can have her now, my father is the mayor here. And with your strength, she should feel honored." The young man with sharp eyes said fawningly. "No, just find out where she''s going." The young man with curly hair said calmly. "Okay." The young man with sharp eyes called a guard over to the carriage and told them to find out where Alice and his friends were heading towards. Twenty minutes later, the guard sent someone to inform them about Alice''s current whereabouts. It wasn''t really hard to locate them since as soon as Grey stepped into the city, the first thing he looked for was an Inn. The group was currently eating on the ground floor, they were sitting at the table on the far end of the inn. There were few people in the inn other than the group. Grey looked outside the inn with squinted eyes. "We''re being watched." He said calmly to the others. A sharp glint flashed through the boys'' eyes, while Alice smiled lightly. "Stay, I don''t think we need to go out." Grey held Klaus'' hand just as he was about to stand up. While the group was still eating, a carriage stopped at the front of the inn. Two young men stepped out of the carriage, walking elegantly into the inn. As soon as the innkeeper saw them, he quickly ran over to them. "What brings you here young lord?" He asked with a slight bow. "Nothing, you can go now, we want to take care of something." The young man with sharp eyes patted the innkeeper''s on the shoulder and threw a glance at Grey''s table. Chapter 234 - Klaus Antics Grey looked around when he saw people walking out, but he didn''t bother about it and focused on his meal. He sent out his spiritual sense to inspect the young men who walked in. He was taken aback when he sensed that the young man with curly hair was in the Origin Plane, although it was only the First stage, it was not something you see every day, especially in such a small city. The young man with sharp eyes was in the Late stages of the Arcane Plane. From the way he acted towards the young man with curly hair, it was easy to figure out he was trying to get on his good side. Both young men approached the group who focused on their meals. "Hello." The young man with sharp eyes said with a pleasant smile. "..." He was met with silence, neither Grey nor any of them turned to take as much as a look at him, much less replying him. Even Void didn''t spare him a glance. That was what annoyed him even more. His facial expression changed, not just him, the young man with curly hair as well as the innkeeper''s expression changed as well. They couldn''t believe Grey and his friends were this rude. The young man before them was the son of Zivia''s City mayor, such a big figure and he was given the cold shoulders by a group of brats! The young man restrained himself from attacking before flashing a smile once again. "Hello, can I have a moment please?" He asked still wearing the same smile. "Can we help you with anything?" Reynolds stopped eating and looked at him. "No, I noticed you''re new here, and seeing how you were scammed at the gate, I decided to help you guys while you''re staying here." The young man replied. "Oh that, well, we didn''t want to waste too much time there. It''s just fifty silver coins anyway." Reynolds waved with a forced chuckle. He didn''t want to speak to him, but seeing him standing there with no one answering him, he opted to talk to him. Grey couldn''t be bothered with answering the young man, Klaus would most likely curse at him if he were the one who answered, and Alice was the only one who might probably talk to him properly, but she didn''t want to speak to him as well, so he was forced to do it. "Well, in our city, we don''t allow good people to be scammed." The young man proclaimed. "What about bad people?" Klaus who hadn''t spoken a word asked while still eating. The young man who was about to speak almost choked on his words when he heard Klaus'' question. ''Who''s this moron?'' He asked himself. He chuckled awkwardly without replying. The young man with curly hair cleared his throat. "Ah... Where are my manners, I''m Smith, and this is Richard." He introduced himself as well as the young man with curly hair behind him. Reynolds looked at Richard who was behind Smith. Seeing Reynolds'' gaze, Richard nodded as a sign of greeting, which Reynolds reciprocated with a wave. "Here are your coins back, the guard has been sent to the dungeon where he would be punished for his crimes." Smith placed the coins on the table. Other than Reynolds, no one else was speaking to Smith. This made him feel extremely awkward, but mostly angry. If not for Richard telling him not to do things aggressively, he would have already summoned the guards to beat up these fools. He didn''t know what else to say since there was literally nothing for him to speak about. Richard slowly stepped in front of him, approaching Alice. "Helping that old man was very nice of you." He stood before her. "Oh, thank you." Alice finally raised her head to look at the young man who was standing before her. She didn''t see anything special about him, maybe it was because she was always with Grey and Reynolds which made her expect all guys to be just as handsome, or at the very least, at Reynolds'' level. But, this guy was below Reynolds, making her feel somewhat totally uninterested. "It''s nice meeting you, I''m Richard." Richard stretched out his hands. "Alice, those are Reynolds, Klaus, and the Grey." Alice introduced the others to them as well, but she refused to shake his hand. Richard withdrew his hand but still wore a smile, "I''d like to invite over to stay at the mayor''s villa. If that''s okay with you?" Alice was about to refuse when she saw Klaus nodding his head. Even Grey looked at Klaus a little surprised. ''Since when was this bastard so friendly?'' The trio who was familiar with him thought. "Forgive me, I''ve been too hungry which made me a little angry. We''d love to go to the mayor''s villa with you." Klaus stood up and shook Richard''s hand. "Haha, it''s okay, I can understand how you feel." Richard chuckled while shaking Klaus'' hand. "It''s good you understand, why don''t we go now?" Klaus asked. "Sure, if it''s okay with your friends." Richard nodded. "They''re good with it. I feel a strong connection with you, it''s like we''re meant to be friends, can we be friends?" Klaus asked, leaving Grey and the others speechless. "Of course." Richard replied. He didn''t care about Klaus or any of the other boys, but if it will bring Alice closer to him, he didn''t mind befriending them, for now. "Haha great! As my friend, why don''t you help us with the bills for our meal? You see, we were robbed on the way here." Klaus laughed before saying the last part with a sad expression. "Huh!" Everyone around the table exclaimed, including Grey and his friends, but they quickly hid their expressions so it wouldn''t look like Klaus was lying. Well, he was lying, but they didn''t know what he was planning, so they had to play along. Richard had an awkward expression when he heard this, but he quickly put on a forced smile. "Of course, take this as my first gift to you." He laughed softly. "Haha, great!" Klaus laughed, "Come on guys, let''s go to the mayor''s villa!" ''And cause some havoc.'' He added to himself. Chapter 235 - Multi-talented Klaus! The group left the inn, with Klaus and Richard walking side by side, laughing on the way. "Hey, do you know what''s wrong with him?" Reynolds leaned closer to Grey and asked. "No, but from the way he''s smiling, it''s nothing good for them." replied Grey. "Hmm, I really wanna know." Reynolds said curiously. Grey rubbed his chin before replying, "He''ll tell us when we get there." The group soon got to the carriage alongside Smith and Richard. It was all white, with the decorations painted gold drawn by four snow-white stallions. The carriage looked quite luxurious, but there was an issue, it was a little too small to fit all of them. "One person would need to walk over to the mayor''s villa." Richard said when he realized the problem. Klaus looked around and a smile crept up his face, all he wanted to do was annoy these guys. "How about this, Alice will walk over to the villa?" He pointed at Alice. Grey and the others looked at him in shock, only to see him winking at them. He knew exactly what he was doing. "No, it''s ungentlemanly of us to allow such a kindhearted lady to walk to the villa when there''s a carriage here." Richard quickly objected to it. "Hmm, okay it''s settled. You, you''ll walk over to the mayor''s villa, the rest, come in." Klaus pointed at Smith before going into the carriage, accompanied by Grey and Reynolds. Grey and Reynolds realized what he wanted to do the moment he said that Smith should walk to the villa, so they quickly followed him inside the carriage without any delays. Alice smiled softly but still climbed into the carriage, leaving Richard and Smith outside. Richard and Smith stood outside shell-shocked, Smith actually had his mouth wide open because he could not believe what just happened. Klaus knew that the only reason Richard and Smith approached them was because of Alice, if he had pointed at Grey or Reynolds, Richard might agree to it, but if he pointed at Alice, he would not. He also sensed that Smith was acting submissive towards Richard, even though it looked he had a high status in this city. ''What the hell?! That''s my carriage!'' He almost screamed out loud. Richard''s mouth twitched a couple of times before he whispered, "Don''t worry, they will regret this." Smith couldn''t believe his ears, first Klaus acted like he was the owner of the carriage, and now, Richard was actually telling him not to worry? Doesn''t that imply that he would have to walk to his father''s villa? A cold glint flashed through Richard''s eyes before he climbed into the carriage leaving Smith all alone outside. Smith stood outside, tears almost running down his eyes. And just when he thought things couldn''t get worse, it''s started raining. "What?!" He exclaimed in surprise. The sun was just about to set, and the weather was still fairly bright, there weren''t even any signs of rain, so, how the f.u.c.k did it suddenly start raining? Unfortunately, the carriage had already departed, and even if it was still there, he couldn''t get in. He almost wanted to cry, but his expression turned worse when the rain stopped after the carriage went out of sight. Smith was an Earth Elementalist, but the surprise from Klaus'' actions, and Richard actually agreeing for him to walk to the villa stunned him to the extent that he didn''t form something like an umbrella to shield himself from the rain. In the carriage. Klaus and Richard were talking enthusiastically with Klaus telling him of their travels. Of course, he didn''t speak of the trial land, or where they came from nor where they''re headed. In short, he lied all through the conversation. He even said they were kicked out of their Academy because they couldn''t get to the target set by the Academy. Some of his stories are so enthralling that even his friends listened intently. There were times that they were shocked by what Klaus said they did. Void looked at Klaus and couldn''t help but praise him, ''This guy is amazing!'' ''He''s a good liar.'' Grey replied. ''No, you saying he''s a good liar is an understatement, he''s a terrific liar. When were we robbed when coming?'' Void took at Klaus who was still speaking. ''Or attacked?'' Grey added. ''When did we even sleep in the forest? Okay, that might be true since we did sleep in a forest while we were in the trial land.'' If someone who wasn''t with the group heard all of Klaus'' bullshits, they would definitely believe it, just like how Richard was believing almost every word he was saying. Five minutes later, the carriage got to the mayor''s villa. When the carriage stopped, Grey and the others looked out the window, only to discover they were just at the gates of the villa. Two fully armed guards talked to the coachman, before inspecting inside, above, and below the carriage before letting them pass. Once inside the gate, and beyond the high grey walls, the carriage slowed down, allowing Grey and his friends to take in the full villa view. The park around the manor extended over eight hundred meters. The air smelled of cut grass, flower beds, and finely trimmed bushes adorned the cobblestone paths that went across the whole park. Halfway between the gate and the villa, there was a plaza, surrounded by benches. At the center, there was a huge pedestal with a marble statue of someone that the group assumed had to be either the first mayor or an Ancestor they were proud of. There''s also the possibility that it was the current mayor as well. The villa itself was bigger than the group imagined, it extended for at least three thousand square meters, divided into a main building, a left and a right wing forming a reversed U shape. It took almost three more minutes to actually get to the villa''s entrance. Grey sent out his spiritual sense to examine the area, and he easily noticed the guards that were hiding behind the bushes, watching them. It was only after they highlighted the carriage did the guards stop watching them. ''Void.'' He called. ''On it.'' Void replied. His senses were sharper and covered a greater distance compared to Grey''s, so he would be able to sense what Grey missed. ''Nothing to worry about, they''re all in the Arcane Plane. There''s one guy hidden inside that seems to be close to the Origin Plane, or maybe he''s in the Origin Plane. I really can''t tell, but the person isn''t a problem, even Klaus can defeat him.'' Void reported. If Klaus were to hear Void''s statement, he would definitely curse at him. "We should wait for that guy." Klaus suggested. He acted like he had forgotten Smith''s name, when the truth was, he had also forgotten Richard''s name as well. But since they were now ''friends'', he didn''t need to call Richard by his name, well, that was what he was telling himself. Klaus'' behavior was currently strange for the group, but knowing that he wasn''t up to anything good, they decided to watch with folded arms. They entered the carriage back to the plaza and sat on one of the benches around the plaza. Richard had tried on multiple occasions to strike a conversation with Alice, but it had all been futile. "Hey, do you like my friend?" Klaus asked Richard. The duo was sitting on one bench, while Grey, Reynolds, and Alice were sitting on another bench. "Yeah, I fell in love with her when I saw her helping that elderly man." Richard nodded with a soft smile. ''After tonight, you''ll all be dead.'' thought Richard. "You saw her helping that old man that was pushed aside?" Klaus asked while wearing a surprised expression. Richard nodded, but his expression changed when he heard Klaus'' next question. "Why didn''t you step out to help the old man, instead of allowing her to do it?" Klaus asked thoughtfully. ''This guy deserves death! I''ll make sure he suffers.'' Richard gritted his teeth hatefully but did it secretly so Klaus wouldn''t see it. "You see, I was just about to walk out when she helped." He smiled awkwardly. "Haha, I knew you were a noble person. Oh! Why did you guys also allow the guards to extort money from us?" Klaus laughed before asking. ''I''ll irritate you till you drop dead.'' thought Klaus. There''s something only his friends knew about him, he was multi-talented! He could talk, annoy, and irritate someone all at the same time! "You...see...actually..." Richard was left short of words. How could Klaus ask him such obvious questions? Of course, he didn''t want to help, but he couldn''t say that. Just as he was about to try explaining, Smith walked in. "Ah! You''re finally here!" Klaus stood up and swaggered towards him. Smith tried to force out a smile, but his expression turned even sourer when he heard Klaus'' next words. "How was the weather?" Chapter 236 - Unlucky Smith "How was the weather?" Klaus asked with a big grin. "..." Smith''s eyes twitched when he recalled how he got soaked in the rain which for some reason fell only on the area he was standing at. He knew this was the handwork of Grey and his friends, but he didn''t know which one, hearing Klaus'' question pointed him to the culprit. ''I''ll kill this guy.'' He thought through gritted teeth. This was the most humiliated he had ever been, what was worse was that he didn''t actually see a horse, so he had to walk all the way from the inn to his father''s villa. "I think it''s lovely, don''t you think so too?" Grey actually joined in this time. He sensed the increase in the water elemental particles at the inn when they were just about to enter the carriage, but he didn''t know the reason. However, on hearing Klaus'' question, it wasn''t hard to figure out what happened. Klaus actually created a make-believe rain, how ingenious, and evil! "Yeah, amazing." Reynolds nodded as well. The trio continued speaking of how great the weather is, making Smith''s expression turn even more sour. He felt like burying the trio alive. "Why don''t we go in?" Richard quickly tried to help him out. He could sense there was something weird going on, but he didn''t know, nor did he care. All he had his eyes on was Alice, that was what he wanted, nothing else mattered. The group of six slowly walked over to the villa, heading in the direction of the right wing. It took the group over five minutes to walk there. One should remember that when the group previously came here, they used a carriage, and even though the horse was moving slowly, it was still faster than their current pace. Klaus was surprisingly at the forefront of the group, chatting animatedly with Richard. Richard''s expression showed how tired he was, yet for some reason, Klaus still didn''t stop talking. When he noticed Richard wasn''t speaking anymore, he turned his attention to Smith. Veins could be seen on Smith''s forehead, he gritted his teeth so hard that his gums started bleeding, but he refrained from attacking. He was wary of Klaus'' strength, he didn''t know his exact strength, but he knew he was at least in the Arcane Plane. As soon as they entered the building, Smith took them straight to a hall on the left side of the building. An eight meters long, two meters wide table could be seen by the side of the building, with ten chairs arranged around it. Grey, Alice, and Reynolds were sitting on the other side of the table, with Grey facing Klaus, Reynolds facing Smith, and Alice facing Richard. Klaus was actually the one who told Grey and the others to sit this way, he initially wanted Grey to take the sit Reynolds was presently occupying, but then he recalled Reynolds was the only one in the group other than himself who could properly annoy someone. After taking their seats , Smith called for the servants to bring in some food and wine for his visitors. Even though he didn''t like Klaus and the boys, he still had to be a good host. Klaus was exhilarated when he heard this, "Haha, I haven''t had a good wine in a long time." When the servants came back with different foods and also around four types of wine, Klaus was the first to pick up a wine bottle and helped himself with some. He poured some on one of the silver cups on the table, before emptying it in a single large gulp. Richard and Smith took a glance at each other, a little surprised. They could see the same question in each other''s eyes. ''Isn''t he afraid it''s poisoned? Also, we were his ethics?'' "Good wine! Here have some." He exclaimed before pouring some for Richard. "Thank you." Richard smiled lightly before picking up the silver cup. "Haha, cheers." Klaus laughed out happily. Both glasses made a ''clink!'' sound when they lightly tapped them on each other. Klaus also went on to pour some for Smith and Reynolds as well, he winked at Reynolds while pouring it, " Here, you guys should try it as well." Smith had an awkward expression on his face, normally, it was the duty of a host to pour his guests drink. Yet, Klaus was the one who was doing it. ''First, he acted like he was the owner of the carriage, now this? I can''t stand this guy anymore.'' Smith was on the verge of exploding. Richard on the other hand just watched on without showing much interest, other than the first time he was shocked by Klaus being the first to drink, his attention was fully placed on Alice. Smith reluctantly picked up the silver cup. And just like what Klaus did with everyone else, he wanted to lightly touch his cup with Smith while saying cheers. But just then... "Cheers." He said but his voice reduced at the end of the word. The reason for this was because he accidentally hit his cup too hard on Smith''s cup, making both cups which were filled with wine to fall on Smith''s body. And just when Smith was about to react to the wine falling on his body, the worst happened. Pu... Reynolds who just took a mouthful of wine spat it out, spraying the wine straight at Smith''s face who was sitting opposite him. Everyone''s mouth opened unconsciously when this happened. It hadn''t even been up to two seconds after Klaus ''accidentally'' poured some wine on Smith''s body, yet Reynolds spat the wine in his mouth into his face. This was the highest level of embarrassment! "Sorry, it was an accident." "Sorry, I didn''t like the flavor." Reynolds and Klaus apologized simultaneously. Bang! "Enough!" Smith yelled angrily, banging his hand on the table forcefully. Chapter 237 - Were Robbing This Place! This was the last straw, Smith was already on the verge of losing it, so having wine not only poured on his body but also sprayed on his face sent him hysterical. He wanted Klaus dead! Grey and Alice watched on in disbelief while Void seems to have stars in his eyes, he loved these guys. They were terrific people! He even felt Grey was starting to get a little too boring. "Calm down, it''s probably an accident." Richard stood up trying to calm Smith down. "They did it on purpose." Smith didn''t want to let it go. There was a limit to a person''s patience, and Klaus had obviously not only pushed Smith to the limit, but he had also pushed it off the cliff. Gasps! Klaus gasped in shock, "How can you say that about us? We genuinely want to be your friends. Since we''re not welcomed here then we''ll be leaving. Thank you for your hospitality." He wore a wronged expression, it almost looked like he was the one who was offended. Grey and the others stood up as well. "There''s no need for any of you to leave, sit. We''ll be right back." Richard quickly stopped them. He dragged Smith with him to the side of the hall. _____ At the side of the hall. "Why are you tolerating that piece of shit? Let me at him." Smith said angrily. "Don''t act like you aren''t wary of their strength. I''ve grasped their stages, and they''re only at the Fifth stage of the Arcane Plane, except for that one guy who talks a lot, that guy''s in the Sixth stage." Richard said. At first, he didn''t think much about checking the group''s Plane since he felt people in such small cities couldn''t grow to a high stage at their age. Take Smith for example, he was still in the Arcane Plane, while he had already broken through to the Origin Plane despite being two years younger than him. But when they were still in the carriage, he decided to check them out. Although he was surprised when he noticed they were already in the Fifth stage of the Arcane Plane, he didn''t think much about it since he should be around four or five years older than them. And he didn''t think they would be able to break through to the Origin Plane when they get to his age. Well, that''s if they get to his age, after all, he planned on killing them, except for Alice. "Hmph! You can beat them all, why bother with all this?" Smith snorted coldly. "It''s already dark, prepare that special wine. They shouldn''t be able to move after consuming it." Richard said with an evil grin. Smith could only nod his head when he heard this, he still didn''t know why Richard wanted to use such a long, stressful method when he could just bash Grey and his friends up. Unknown to him, Richard couldn''t be counted as a true Origin Plane Elementalist. He failed in the process of forming his essence bead, but his father used a method that helped him to form what looked like a patched-up bead. With this, he would be in the Origin Plane in terms of cultivation level, but his true strength was actually lower than an Eighth stage Arcane Plane Elementalist. The only reason he wasn''t scared was that no Arcane Plane Elementalist who is in his right mind would dare to fight against an Origin Plane Elementalist. Smith might even have a chance of defeating him, but because he couldn''t dare to challenge him, he didn''t know. ______ Back at the table. After Richard dragged Smith away, Klaus and Reynolds started chuckling. They refrained from laughing out, so they wouldn''t be caught. "I have to say Klaus, you''re putting on an amazing show." Grey chuckled as well. "Of course, these morons are just plain stupid." Klaus laughed, "Oh! How did you know he would want to check our Planes?" "I guessed, given his somewhat proud personality, he would want to confirm if we were small fries. I think he would have run away if he knew we were stronger than him." said Grey. "Don''t you find it strange he''s wary of us even though he thinks we are weaker than him? I mean, if I were in his shoes, I''d have already killed Klaus by now." Reynolds said thoughtfully. "You''re crazy! You should''ve said I''d already kill Reynolds by now. But it''s quite strange though." Klaus cursed before adding. "It''s simple, he''s weak. He isn''t a true Origin Plane Elementalist. Have any of you ever seen an Origin Plane Elementalist whose aura is this weak?" Alice asked. The boys shook their heads, they''ve also thought of why his aura was that weak. An Arcane Plane Elementalist might not be able to sense it, but Origin Plane Elementalists have no problems with sensing this. "That explains it." Reynolds said with enlightenment. "Klaus, I''m still confused why you asked them to pay for our meal." Grey had thought about this while they had been in the carriage, but he couldn''t think of the reason. "How many coins do you think we have left?" Klaus asked. "Uh..." Grey was left stunned. "Smart." The others praised Klaus'' quick-wittedness. "Hey Grey, can Void hear me?" Klaus suddenly asked. "Yeah, why?" Grey nodded. "I need to talk to him." Klaus stood up and walked over to Alice''s sit. He bent down close to Void, and for some weird reasons, started speaking slowly, "I...need...you...to..." "Klaus." Grey interrupted him. "Uh!" Klaus raised his head to look at Grey. "You don''t need to speak like you''re speaking to a toddler who can''t understand you, Void understands when you''re speaking normally." Grey almost facepalmed when speaking. "Oh! I thought I needed to speak slowly so he could understand." Klaus scratched his head awkwardly. "Why the f.u.c.k would you think that?" asked Grey a little puzzled. "I don''t know, I''ve not communicated with a magical beast before. I thought maybe they would have their language." Klaus rubbed his chin as he explained. Grey shook his head but didn''t ask any further questions since asking would only lead to more unreasonable explanations from Klaus. "Okay listen up, we''re going to rob this place." Klaus said to Void. Void''s eyes lit up when he heard the word rob. ''I really like this guy.'' He couldn''t help but say to Grey. ''Yeah, me too.'' Grey nodded as well. Chapter 238 - Its A Gift! "Since this is the mayor''s villa, there should be a treasury somewhere, that''s where we''re going to rob." Klaus explained in a low voice. The others were stunned by Klaus'' boldness, even though they know that no one here could defeat them, this was still an offense against the empire since each mayor was placed here under the orders of the emperor. "Isn''t there usually a high leveled expert around?" asked Alice. A small city just like this one should have an expert that should be at the very least at the Origin Plane, to stop anyone from robbing these cities, or else, most Origin Plane Elementalists would see them as ways to get free coins. "There are, why do you think I''m telling this guy?" Klaus pointed at Void. "No one knows of the space element, except for us. With that, he can sneak in and out of the mayor''s treasury without being caught." He explained further. "So what are you planning on stealing?" Grey asked. "Everything." Klaus said with squinted and excited eyes. He had never been able to do something like this before, and probably never would have thought of it, but with Void''s appearance, the idea came. There are a lot of things in a mayor''s treasury, he knows of this because he had been to one. But what they needed most were coins, lots and lots of coins. "Aren''t you being a little too greedy? I mean, all we need is to get a horse and quickly head over to Lunar City. Once we get there, we shouldn''t have any problems with getting money." said Alice. "I know, I just want to annoy these guys." Klaus waved his hand nonchalantly. "No, I think Alice is right. If they notice everything missing, we''ll be the first suspects. That''s not good for us since this not only involves a city but the empire as well. Unless, we''d kill the expert stationed here. This city is too small for an Overlord Plane expert to be stationed here." Grey said thoughtfully. They shouldn''t carelessly invite trouble, the empire wouldn''t take it lying if one of their mayor''s treasury were to be robbed. This had to do with their pride, so they would want to get to the bottom of it, especially now that war seems to be looming over the entire empire. "Fine, we''ll steal only a few coins." Klaus said grumpily. While the group was still speaking about their plan of robbing the treasury, Richard and Smith walked back to the table. "I hope everything is alright?" Klaus stood up to ask in a concerned tone. "Yes, everything is fine. He was just a little grumpy from what happened earlier today." Richard said before taking his seat. "Okay. Once again, we''re sorry for what happened. It was totally unintentionally on my path, I don''t really know about his." Klaus said, saying the last part in a low voice. "Don''t worry, everything is fine now. I''m not a petty person." Smith waved it off, he wanted to end the conversation as quickly as possible. The table fell into silence for a few seconds, but Klaus spoke up even before it got to a minute. "Okay. So...can we start eating now?" He asked. "Of course." Smith nodded. He was just about to start eating since it was the norm for the host to taste the meals so the guests would know they weren''t poisoned, but just like with the wines, Klaus was the first to start eating. ''Well isn''t that brave, or is he just plain stupid?'' He asked himself. Everyone watched on as Klaus started devouring the meal like someone who hadn''t eaten anything in months. ''You''re just coming from an inn, how could you be so hungry even after already eating?'' Richard looked at him oddly. "Aren''t you guys going to eat?" Klaus asked with a mouthful of food. The others could barely hear what he was saying through his full mouth, and the bits of food coming out every time he said something. Grey and his friends soon dug in as well, only, not like him. Reynolds wanted to eat that way as well, but he wasn''t as shameless as Klaus, so he ate with the proper etiquette. They ate for almost twenty minutes, and this was the worst twenty minutes in Smith''s life. He didn''t think there would be any other twenty minutes that would be as horrifying as this. The reason for this was simple, Klaus. While they were eating, Klaus would only speak when his mouth was full, thereby spraying bits of food from his mouth. What made it annoying was that since Klaus was sitting close to him, he would occasionally look in his direction when speaking. This meant that the bits of food he sprays out mostly got on his body. There was even a time in accidentally entered his mouth. ''How can a single person be this annoying?'' He wondered. If Klaus were to hear this question, he would most likely say, ''It''s a gift.'' Smith reigned in his temper so he wouldn''t lose it for the second time. Once he gets his hands on Klaus after they''ve been given the special wine, he would get his revenge. He had so many evil things planned out for him that he couldn''t even wait to start the torture. Just after they finished eating, Klaus asked a question that surprised even his friends. He first burped loudly without any manners before asking, "So what''s for dessert?" ''Dessert? You''ve already eaten so much yet you''re asking for dessert?'' Smith felt like beating him up right there and then. Hearing no response, Klaus explained thinking they didn''t know what a dessert was while picking his teeth with his pinky finger, "Dessert follows right after a meal." "I know what a dessert is." Smith said through gritted teeth. "Then why are you here? Chop chop, come on go get the dessert." Klaus did a waving motion with both hands. Chapter 239 - Strange Feeling Smith called the servants over to serve them dessert, which consisted of cakes, pudding, milk and eggs, pastry, and fruits. Klaus immediately started eating, but mostly focused on the cakes. Void who hadn''t tasted something that had this much sugar was left amazed by almost every single dessert that had sugar in them. He would occasionally take a bit from one, then go to another, there was even a time when he used his space element to cut off a small piece of the cake while taking a slurp from the pudding. The taste was amazing, he was almost on cloud nine. ''I knew the outside world was amazing!'' He exclaimed. ''I don''t think too much sugar is good for you.'' warned Grey. Grey almost always acted like an elder brother to Void. If others could hear their conversations sometimes, they would be shocked by how caring he was to this seemingly small cat who would almost always be ignored if not for its eye-catching pitch black fur. ''It''s okay, I''ll just take a few more drinks and bites, after that, I''m done.'' Ten minutes later. Void could be seen lying on the table with both front paws on his now protruding stomach. He was lying close to Grey, who would occasionally shake his head whenever he takes a glance at Void. He would shake it even harder when he takes a glance at Klaus. Bits of cakes could be seen at the side of Klaus'' mouth, if he remembered correctly, Klaus and Void were the ones who ate almost seventy percent of the desserts. Everyone except for Grey and Klaus looked at Void with shocked eyes, wondering how he managed to fit in so much into such a small body. Grey already knew he could eat much, while Klaus was too bothered about himself to think about Void. Klaus quickly circulated the elemental essence in his body to try to quickly digest the food and desserts he just ate. ''Crap! I ate too much.'' He complained internally. ''Hey.'' Void called out to Grey, he was getting a strange feeling inside. ''Yeah?'' Grey looked at him. ''Why do I feel like what I just ate wants to come back out, but from my mouth?'' Void asked a little confused. This was the first time something like this was happening to him, he usually mostly digests almost everything whenever he eats. But this was the first time he was feeling this way. ''That''s called throwing up. I told you too much sugar wasn''t good for you.'' Grey said without showing any emotion. ''What do I do now?'' Void asked. ''Seriously? Just through up.'' Grey threw an apathetic glance at Void before looking in another direction. ''No, I can''t let them go. They''re good.'' Void refused. "F.u.c.k!" Grey cursed out unintentionally which attracted everyone''s attention. How could someone refuse to throw up when the body wants to? Void''s excuse was even crazier. Grey immediately decided to stop listening to him, but it was hard, especially when they were talking through a mind link. ''Shit! Void just throw up already, it''s not like having the cakes inside you would change anything.'' Grey said after Void continued bugging him about it. ''But...but...'' ''You''re probably going to explode if you refuse to throw up.'' Grey lied with a serious expression. ''What?! I don''t think that''s possible.'' Void who was previously lying on the table tried to stand up, after a couple of seconds, he managed to struggle up, but his feet were wobbly. He tried standing but staggered a few times. Grey scoffed but didn''t answer, he wanted to trick Void into throwing up, but he knew it wasn''t going to easy. Although Void was smart, he still acts like a child in most situations, so Grey was a little confident his lie might be able to make him change his mind. Alice looked over a little concerned, "What''s wrong with him?" "He ate too much." Grey explained. "Oh, he''s so cute." Alice said looking at Void with her round eyes. "Yeah...he''s not going to be cute soon." Grey said. "Why''s that?" Alice asked worriedly. Grey went on to tell her about Void refusing to throw up even when his body wanted him to. Alice giggled on hearing that Void refused to throw up, she stretched her hand over to Void and gently c.a.r.e.s.sed his fur. "Hey, you should do what he said." She whispered to Void. While Alice and Grey were speaking, Klaus and Reynolds had seemed to become good friends with Smith, asking him all sorts of questions that mostly irritated the life out of him. "Since we''re done here, why don''t we take some fresh air on the garden?" Richard suggested. "Sure." The others nodded before standing up, following behind him. But just like before, Klaus was at the forefront of the group, annoying Smith to no end. Grey refused to carry Void because of the fear of him throwing up on his body, Alice on the other hand happily carried him as they walked over to the garden. After going past two doors, they got to the garden. It was already dark when they came out since they spent almost an hour inside, but they didn''t have a problem seeing the garden, besides, the moon was already out. There was a variety of flowers in the garden; roses, daisies, daffodils. Carved hedges depicted different magical beasts, including a dragon, a griffin, a wolf, and many more. There was also a small pond in the center of the garden. The garden was around fifty to eighty square meters. Having a twenty meters space in the middle. Grey and his friends guessed the space must have been there because of training. Even though it was quite small, it''s enough for training. There were benches positioned on different parts of the garden. Klaus was the one who led them to a bench on the eastern side of the garden. "This place is nice." He praised after taking a seat. Smith smiled but didn''t reply, the group stayed there for about thirty minutes, with Klaus and Reynolds being the most active people, followed by Richard. Grey managed to convince Void to throw up. He didn''t know if to cry or laugh because he had to actually beg Void to throw up. This was something that was for his benefit, yet he had to beg him because of his childishness. "We would like to go to bed now, we still have a long journey ahead of us." Alice said, interrupting Klaus and Reynolds'' storytelling. "So soon? If that''s the case, we''d like for you to taste this city''s special wine before going to bed." Richard said sadly. "Is it better than the ones we drank inside?" asked Klaus. "Of course." Richard nodded. "If that''s the case, then what are you waiting for?" said Reynolds. Richard and Smith stood up going through the bag of the garden. "Where''s the antidote?" Richard asked while they were going inside. "It''s inside, we''ll drink it before coming out." Smith said with ruthlessness in his eyes. He wanted to make sure Klaus died a painful death. He hadn''t hated anyone as much as he hated Klaus. If he were told he would hate someone this much, he would never believe it. Chapter 240 - Immune To It Back at the garden. "Does anyone else find this suspicious?" Grey asked the group. "I do." Klaus and Alice nodded. Reynolds only nodded after a few seconds seemingly thinking of why the others find the situation suspicious. "If my speculations are correct, then there should be something inside that special wine of theirs. I might also be wrong though, but I think they''re definitely planning something against us." Grey voiced what he thought. They all knew that Richard and Smith didn''t approach them for anything good, and given how much they hate Klaus in particular, they would rather die than give him a special wine. They might agree to give the others, but giving Klaus was definitely out of the picture. "Yeah, from how that guy hates me, I think he would want to kill me more than anything else in the world." Klaus said with a chuckle. During their conversations, there had been times when he sensed a thick killing intent coming out from Smith''s body, even Richard wasn''t able to mask it sometimes. But he didn''t give a shit what they were planning to do! In the face of overwhelming strength, schemes wouldn''t save them. Each individual here could confidently say they would be able to one-shot either Richard or Smith. Even Klaus could kill them without much of a hassle. "Then what do we do?" Reynolds asked. "Leave?" Grey raised a brow. "No, we need those coins. There''s no way I''m walking back to Lunar City." Klaus refused the idea of leaving. ''I could test it for you.'' Void who was lying on Alice''s l.a.p said to Grey. ''Wait, wouldn''t you be hurt by the poison?'' Grey asked curiously. ''Unless the poison can instantly kill a Peak Rank Six magical beast, if not, I''m okay.'' Void said confidently. ''Wow! Is your immunity to poison that high?'' Grey asked in surprise. ''Of course, even a Rank Six venomous magical beast can''t kill me with their venom.'' Void stood proudly, trying to show off. ''Well, that''s something.'' Grey was once again awed by Void''s ability. If he counts properly, then a Rank Six magical beast should be on the Plane above the Overlord Plane, that was the Sage Plane! Void was only a Rank Four magical beast, yet he wouldn''t be affected by a Rank Six magical beast''s venom. That was awesome! "Guys, Void would test it out." Grey was a hundred percent confident in Void, since Void said he could do it, then it meant he could. After Void blocked that attack for him, his bond with him increased to an unimaginable level. If it were around seventy percent before, now, it was well over one hundred percent. "That''s great!" Klaus exclaimed. "Is that safe?" Alice asked in concern. Compared to Klaus, she cared about Void more than he did. If not for Void blocking the attack for Grey, then Klaus would barely have any sort of feelings for him. "Yeah, he said he would be fine." Grey assured her. "If that''s the case, then okay." Alice c.a.r.e.s.sed Void''s fur before adding, "If you know you can''t do it then don''t okay." Void nodded his small head which made Alice giggle. Grey and the other boys still didn''t know what she always finds cute in whatever Void did. ''It''s probably a ladies thing.'' They thought. "What happens if it''s not something we can dismiss?" Reynolds suddenly asked an important question they all missed. If Void said the poison wasn''t something they could purify if it enters their bodies, then that would be an issue since rejecting the wine would be odd. "We can always reject it, it''s not like they can force us anyway." Klaus shrugged, not bothered by it. ''I can create a small space in your mouths that the wines would pass through then transfer them behind those flowers.'' Void said. ''Is that possible?'' Grey asked. ''Of course, I can even create it now.'' Void said. ''Can you remove it any time?'' asked Grey. ''Yup.'' Void nodded. ''Okay, then do it now. Wait, can we talk when you do that?'' Grey asked to clarify things. It would be strange if they were unable to speak. ''I don''t know. Okay, we''ll do this. When they bring the drinks over, if it''s not something you guys can purify, I''ll create a small space when you all open your mouths.'' Void suggested. ''That''s even better.'' Grey quickly agreed to this idea. After that all agreed to that, they waited for Richard and Smith, with Klaus telling Void the plan. He didn''t know where this city''s treasury was, although he knew it was in the mayor''s villa, he didn''t know the exact position. Richard was the one who personally poured for each person, just as he was about to sit down. "You missed someone." Klaus suddenly spoke up. "Huh!" Richard and Smith looked around a little confused. They were clearly only six people here, and they only came with six silver cups, so how did they miss someone? "No, I think you''re mistaken, we''re only six here." Smith said. "You''re forgetting that little guy." Klaus pointed at Void. "Uh!" Richard was left speechless when he saw who Klaus was referring to. ''A cat? How dare he say I pour drink for a cat?'' Richard''s lips twitched a couple of times. "Isn''t going back to get a cup for a cat a little too outrageous?" He asked after he managed to compose himself. "I know, that''s why he should do it." Klaus pointed at Smith. Smith''s eyes almost turned completely red from anger. Such disrespect! He couldn''t take it anymore. Klaus chuckled when he saw his reaction, he passed his cup to Void before grabbing the jug of wine, "I think this settles it." "You''re going to drink directly from the jug?" Richard asked in surprise. "Yes, is it bad?" Klaus raised a brow. "No, it''s perfect, actually." Richard smiled. Klaus was the strongest of the group, so taking Klaus out first was even better. Void took a sip of the wine, while the others waited curiously for the result of his test. Chapter 241 - Let The Fun Begin! Richard and Smith were a little taken aback when they saw that neither of them was drinking the wine. According to Klaus'' previous behavior, he would usually instantly drink the wine as soon as he got hold of it. ''Damn! Could it be that they figured it out?'' Smith asked himself with clenched fists. He brought his cup closer to his mouth and took a sip, he wanted to use this to convey to them that the wine was safe to drink. Even after taking a sip, he didn''t see any reactions from the group. He took a glance at Richard, and just as he was about to ask the group why they weren''t drinking, he saw them drinking simultaneously. Klaus held the wine jug and drank directly from it, with some wine dripping from the side of his mouth. "Haha, good wine." He praised after swallowing a mouthful. Grey and the others were a little more relaxed as they savored the taste of the wine before gulping it down. "Wow! It''s great!" Even Grey was forced to praise the wine. It was one of the best wines he had tasted, one has to know that he had drunk wine from one of the best places in the Capital, the Jade Water Paradise, and there was a good difference between both. The taste of the wine was intense, yet elegant and full of fresh herbs, cherry, and multiple aromas and flavors. The sweet fruit notes persist from beginning to end, where the aftertaste is expansive. Terrific harmony and balance. Grey almost wanted to say, the wine was impeccable! After Void tasted the wine, he said they wouldn''t have any problems with it given their Planes, so he gave the others the nod to drink it, that was the only reason they drank it. And he had to say, he would have regretted not drinking this wine. Richard and Smith smiled even wider when they heard the praises Grey and his friends showered on the wine, even Alice was no exception in throwing praises at it. ''Hehe, now all we have to do is wait till it kicks in.'' Smith laughed evilly inside. "I''m glad you all enjoyed it. This is the best wine our city has to offer, it is made in a special process, with a variety of fruits and herbs used as well. A lot of merchants come from far and wide to taste it. Unfortunately, it can''t be mass produced since the method of producing it is quite difficult, and the family who made the recipe refused to share their secrets." explained Smith. Knowing that he would get what he wanted soon, he didn''t mind explaining to them to pass up more time. What he placed in the wine would take at least ten minutes or so to start taking effect, that was when the real fun would begin. "This wine is a treasure, I don''t expect the family to let go of that recipe. If I were in their position, I would also do the same." Grey said while waiting for the effect of the poison. He wanted to know what it was. He was a little anxious since he still hasn''t been able to sense what the poison does. When he previously saw Richard and Smith take a mouthful of the wine, he thought there was a chance that the wine truly isn''t poisoned. However, he also thought of the possibility of them already taking the antidote when they went in, after all, only one person could''ve brought out the wine and the cups. Grey took another sip from the wine, this time, he closed his eyes to savor the taste more. The wine was so good that he didn''t think he had a problem drinking it over, and over again. They all continued to take small sips, and before they knew it, twenty minutes had gone by. He decided to wait a little longer, ''Maybe they''re slightly resistant to it.'' Five minutes went by before Grey started sensing something, he couldn''t help but click his tongue. ''So that''s what it does?'' He thought calmly. He noticed an unfamiliar energy circulating in his body, what it was doing was out of his expectations. Instead of poisoning, what it did was slowly corrode their elemental essence, thereby making them unable to wield any element. They would then be reduced to normal people, but stronger in terms of physique since their bodies grew stronger after every breakthrough. Grey circulated his elemental essence to try to fight against it, and he noticed that doing that actually increased the speed, but after using his spiritual energy as well, he was able to isolate the energy that wanted to block his elemental essence. He wasn''t the only one who was sensing it, the others have sensed it as well and they were also trying to stop it from taking any effect. Just like Grey, they tried circulating their elemental essences but when they noticed it worsened the situation, they instantly stopped. Alice was the first to use her spiritual energy, followed by Klaus and then Reynolds. The group''s extended quietness alerted Richard and Smith, and they both broke out into smiles. They knew what they mixed into the wine was starting to take effect. This was not their first time using it, so seeing the group''s behavior, they were certain it had started working. "Haha, finally I don''t need to take their bullshit anymore." Smith stood up laughing happily. Richard tried to stop him but he pushed his hand away, "There''s no need, since they''ve already drunk the wine, then they would all become normal people. I can already see the wine is starting to take effect." "Okay, I don''t think there''s a need for our facade anymore." Richard smiled. "Let the fun begin!" He licked his lips lecherously as he approached Alice. Chapter 242 - Join The Queue! Grey was the first to get rid of the energy in his body, he looked at the others and realized it would take at least a few more seconds before they got rid of theirs. "What are you doing?" He asked Richard and Smith coolly. "Oh, to think you''re still able to keep calm even after knowing you can''t wield any element, truly praiseworthy." Richard chuckled. "Stupid." Klaus said mockingly. "What?!" Smith looked at Klaus in disbelief. When Grey spoke, he thought maybe Grey was pretending to still be normal. But Klaus also doing it meant that something was wrong. His expression changed a couple of times as he couldn''t understand what was happening. Richard also had a shocked look when he saw Reynolds and Alice''s calm expression, this wasn''t an expression someone who couldn''t wield any elements should have. "Why that face? I''m sorry I hurt your feelings when I called you stupid, I honestly thought you already knew!" Klaus continued mocking Smith. Smith almost spat out blood from anger. Klaus'' taunts were annoying. "How come it didn''t work?" He asked in surprise. "Simple, we already took the antidote." Klaus said with a mocking smile. "But...but..." "Haha, you''re even stupider than I thought. How could you believe me when I said we took the antidote?" Klaus laughed out loud as he interrupted Smith. He looked at Reynolds before taking a jab at him, "And I thought you were the most stupid person I knew." "You''re the stupid one! Moron." Reynolds retaliated fiercely Richard and Smith looked at each other with disbelief present in their eyes, the only question in their minds was ''how?'' "No need to be too surprised, this level of energy isn''t enough to affect us, given how Planes." Grey cleared their heads so they wouldn''t be too surprised. "What do you mean? It''ll affect me, and I''m already in the Origin Plane! Much less Arcane Plane Elementalists like you guys." Richard almost screamed out. ''Void?'' Grey looked at Void questioningly. ''Nope, we''re alone. I''ll isolate this area so even if they scream at the top of their voices, it wouldn''t be heard.'' Void said before disappearing from Alice''s l.a.p, shocking Richard and Smith. "The...the...dis..." Smith couldn''t process what he wanted to say. He just saw a small black cat disappear without a trace. Richard was more shocked compared to him, his stage was higher, but he still didn''t catch a glimpse of how Void moved that quickly. ''If the cat is this powerful, doesn''t that mean?'' He looked at the youths in front of him in dread. "We''re not really at the Arcane Plane. Do you think we''re stupid enough not to know you approached us with ill intent?" Grey asked before taking a sip of the wine in his hand. Even after so long, he still hasn''t finished his wine. He even almost had the urge of keeping it in his storage ring, but he had a better idea. "But...but...I inspected your Planes, and it was only at the Arcane Plane. The strongest of you all is that guy who is in the Sixth stage." Richard stammered before pointing at Klaus. "Heh! He wished." Reynolds scoffed. "What do you mean I wish? I''m the strongest!" Klaus glared at Reynolds. "Haha, yes, you''re the strongest, from the back." Reynolds chuckled before mumbling the last part. "What did you say?" asked Klaus. "Nothing." Reynolds shook his head. "Hmph! Better." Klaus snorted before looking in Richard and Smith''s direction. When he realized they were staring at him weirdly, he asked angrily, "What are you bastards looking at?" Reynolds and the others laughed at Klaus before focusing on the duo in front of them. "I don''t believe they''re not in the Arcane Plane. First, they''re too young to be in the Arcane Plane, secondly, why would geniuses in the Arcane Plane come to such a small city?" Richard refused to believe them. "Yeah." Smith nodded. "Guys, I think these guys have something wrong with their heads." Klaus said while staring at the duo. "Forget about waiting for it to react, we can beat them even without it." Richard said while preparing to attack. He was an Origin Plane Elementalist, although not as strong as a real one, he still had a bit of confidence in himself. If he couldn''t defeat these wimps who were at the Fifth and Sixth stage of the Arcane Plane, then it was a disgrace to his name. "Yes, I don''t have any problems with beating them up either. Leave that annoying brat to me, you take care of the rest." Smith said. He wanted to fight against Klaus, he couldn''t give any other person the privilege of killing him. "What? Do you hate me? Haha! Join the queue, you''re not the first person to hate me this much." Klaus said while laughing in delight. The number of people who hated Klaus was huge, with a mouth like his, added to his personality, it was hard for his enemies not to hate him. Grey and the others nodded when they heard this, they''ve seen too many people who Klaus had driven crazy with his words. It''s amazing how he''s still alive given how much people hate him, some are even willing to pay a huge sacrifice just to kill him. Grey, Klaus, Alice, and Reynolds all stayed in the same position without moving an inch. It''s not that they didn''t want to defend, but if they all made a move, then Richard and Smith would die within a second. "Klaus, why don''t you take care of this?" Grey suggested. "Nope, they''re too weak. Reynolds should do it." Klaus said. "Don''t you want to beat that guy up?" Grey waved his hand and used the wind element to deflect the fire stream coming towards them. "Fine, but next time, you''re fighting." Klaus said before standing up. Chapter 243 - Taking Care Of The Trash Richard stood rooted to the ground, not expecting Grey was able to deflect his attack with nothing more than a wave of his hand. "Impossible!" He refused to believe it. Smith, on the other hand, was already shaking, he could already see the power difference between them, he''s not as stupid as Richard and refuses to believe what was in front of him. "Please, spare me." He instantly begged for mercy. What was important now was keeping his life. Given how adamant he previously was to kill Klaus, he was sure Klaus wouldn''t think twice before killing him. Klaus who just stood up looked at him in disgust, "At least fight with pride." Boom! Richard attacked once again, this time, he sent out a huge fire stream, hoping to cover up the group with it. "Haha, I don''t believe you guys are what you said you were!" He laughed after seeing that his attack wasn''t blocked this time. They waited for a few seconds and the fire slowly started dying down, looking closer, they didn''t sense any movement from where the group was previously sitting. "Haha, you see, they were only posers. I think there was something that made the effect of the wine not affect them." Richard broke into a fit of laughter. Smith who was previously afraid looked around properly, after not sensing anything, he wanted to celebrate but he was still slightly optimistic. He decided to celebrate after the fire died down completely and was sure they had truly defeated Grey and the others. Just as Richard was about to turn around, Klaus'' voice could be heard from the flames. "You think this would actually hurt us? Ha! Don''t make me laugh." He said in amus.e.m.e.nt. "Huh!" Richard turned around. "Tsk tsk, such a shame, this was a good garden." Klaus shook his head as he removed the ice wall that was in front of them. Grey and the others soon came into full view of Richard and Smith, and they noticed that they haven''t even moved from their previous spot, Grey and Reynolds were even drinking and chatting casually, while Void had mysteriously appeared on Alice''s l.a.p once again. The flowers around them had been destroyed, but the ones behind them were protected by the ice wall. "I won''t accept this, attack together." Richard ordered. "Okay." Smith nodded after managing to gather some confidence. "Let''s end this quickly, I still need to get some sleep." Klaus said nonchalantly. This wasn''t a battle that would really bother him, all he wanted to do now was to rob the treasury of some coins before leaving. Once they''ve left this place, he would sleep peacefully in an Inn. Richard sent a fireball towards Klaus while Smith caused an earth spike to come out of the ground, below Klaus. "Hmph! Ants." Klaus snorted before making ice rise from the ground just as the earth spike was coming from the ground. Standing on top of the ice, he rose higher into the air. Bang! The ice pillar which rose along with Klaus was hit by the fireball that Richard sent over, but due to Klaus'' high proficiency with ice, it couldn''t break it. Richard sent another fireball at Klaus who was standing on the ice mid-air, and Klaus casually moved the ice, dodging all the fireballs coming his way. "Don''t let them go, it''ll notify others." Grey said before using his water element to stop the fireballs before they exploded in the air and drawing attention to them. He forgot Void isolated the area and acted unconsciously, it was only after destroying them did he recall it. ''It''s not bad being a little too cautious.'' He thought. There''s a chance that the fireball might draw attention to them, that was a chance he didn''t want to take. "Okay, boss." Klaus said sarcastically. "Attack the pillar that''s supporting him." Richard switched tactics. Since he couldn''t hit Klaus while he was in the air, he would bring him down. Smith made an earth sword that he sent towards the pillar supporting Klaus in the air. Richard on the other hand sent a barrage of fire arrows towards it. Klaus raised both hands into the air exaggerating and a water wall rose almost six meters into the air, easily blocking the attacks sent out by Richard. Klaus stayed on the defensive for another minute, easily blocking the attacks of both Richard and Smith anytime they attacked. He was still mid-air, showing off his awesomeness. "Time to end this." Klaus smirked. The ice pillar he was standing on top suddenly sunk into the ground. Boom! Ice smoke spread across the space in the garden, barring the vision of both Richard and Smith. Klaus casually moved around in the place, and before long, the smoke died down, with both Richard and Smith incapacitated, the pond at the center of the garden was also frozen solid. They were currently unable to use their elements, and their feet were frozen to the ground. "I initially planned to kill you, but you have a more important use." Klaus said while standing in front of Smith. After saying that, he walked to where Richard was frozen, "You on the other hand are very useless, but killing you now is no fun." Richard looked at him with hateful eyes, but said confidently, "You can''t kill me, my father is an Overlord Plane expert. You can''t afford to offend someone like him." "Haha, you think you can threaten me with that? I''ll kill you if I want to, even if your father was the emperor." Klaus laughed it off but didn''t kill him yet. He walked back to where Smith was standing, "Now, tell me, where is the mayor''s treasury?" Chapter 244 - Important Guests "What?" Smith asked with a confused expression, not expecting Klaus to ask such a question. "You heard me, where''s the mayor''s treasury?" Klaus looked at him coldly. "It''s in the villa." Smith said hurriedly. "I know it''s in the villa, I just need to know where?" Klaus had the urge of smacking him in the face. "That...that...you see." Smith tried to look for a way to evade the question. "Trying to avoid the question? The funny thing is that your life depends on the answer I get." Klaus shrugged. He could guess the area where the mayor''s treasury was located, but it would take a lot of time to pinpoint its actual location. Why go through that stress when he could just get the location from Smith? Hearing the threat, Smith gulped and threw a glance at Richard, hoping that he might be able to say something that would save them. "I see no reason why you''re placing your hopes on someone who can''t even save himself, much less, you." Klaus followed his gaze and realized he was staring at Richard. Smith refused to tell him the location of the mayor''s treasury. "It''s not even yours, why are you protecting it that much?" Klaus was left stumped by his stubbornness. ''I''ll do that to the other guy, that should scare him.'' he thought. "Hey Grey, hope there''s no way for sounds to get out of this place?" He asked to confirm. He was planning on using his self-named technique, the nutcracker. It has been a while since he used it, but it looks like it''s time to bring out the big guns once again. "Yeah, Void isolated the place." Grey nodded. When he saw Klaus'' smile after getting confirmation, he immediately knew he was planning to do something evil. Seeing the position Richard was in, a chill went down his spine, ''Don''t tell me he''s about to use ''that''?'' He got to affirmation when he saw Klaus preparing for a run-up, "Alice, you shouldn''t watch this." Grey and Reynolds hastily turned around. Thinking about it always scares them, watching someone experience it scares them even more. Alice nodded and turned around as well. "If you don''t speak, you''ll be the next." Klaus said before running in Richard''s direction. "Why are you coming towards me? Stay away!" Richard yelled. He had a bad premonition about what Klaus was about to do to him. Smith stared wide-eyed as Klaus got close to Richard whose leg was wide opened. That was when he saw one of the scariest things of his life, Klaus drew his right foot backward, before releasing a frightening kick to Richard''s crotch region. Bam! Crack! The sound of something cracking rang out in the garden. Richard''s premonition came to pass as an unbearable pain came from his crotch region. He didn''t pass out immediately from the pain. "Ah..." He screamed at the top of his lungs. The shock and the pain he was feeling were what finally knocked him out. This was a pain that staying conscious made worse, so it was better if he passed out. He didn''t even care if he was killed in the process, he just wanted the pain to stop. "Heh! Never gets old." Klaus looked at Richard with a hint of amus.e.m.e.nt. ''Someday, this technique will be known all over the world.'' thought Klaus. "You see that? Now start talking." Klaus said pointing at Richard, when he saw Smith''s expression, he added, "Also, unlike what he''s currently going through, I''ll make sure you don''t pass out, and feel double the pain." Smith almost fainted on the spot, if he hated Klaus previously, now, he dreaded him. Klaus was the most psychotic person he had ever seen. How would a guy do this to another guy when he fully knows how much it hurts? Klaus slowly started approaching Smith, preparing to start his run-up. "There''s a secret passageway in my father''s room. You''ll find the treasury there." Smith blurted out everything he knew. He told Klaus how to get to the mayor''s room without being spotted. But since it was already late, the mayor would most likely be in his room. When the group previously came to the villa, other than when they were inspected at the gate, and when the servants brought the food over, they didn''t see others. They haven''t encountered any other guards nor servants. They were quite surprised about this and couldn''t help but ask Smith the reason for this. The answer Smith gave to them was that most of them were dismissed by the mayor. According to him, the mayor seemed to be expecting some important guests, and having too many people in the villa wasn''t a good thing. "This seems suspicious." said Alice. "Yes, we need to complete what we want to do and leave immediately." Grey said seriously. He recalled how the guards checked the carriage properly before letting them in, making it all click. Since the mayor was being that thorough with the people who entered the villa, it was a testament to how important the guests were. "Yeah." Klaus nodded. "Who are these important guests?" Grey tried to see if Smith knew the people. "I don''t know." Smith answered. From his response, Grey guessed he wasn''t lying. He also thought of the possibility of him being a good liar as well. "Okay, now that his question has been answered, I have one as well. Do you still have more of this wine?" Grey asked pointing at the wine jug. "Yes, such an important item, to think I forgot about it. Well, do you?" Klaus lightly smacked his head when he heard this. He also thought of asking for more of the wine, but the coins came first. "Yes, I have one more jug in my room, and there should be others in the treasury." Smith nodded hastily. Chapter 245 - Klaus And Reynolds Regret They decided to get the wine from Smith''s room first, before heading over to the mayor''s room. Smith gave them a rough description of the villa, so they had some knowledge about where was where. "How about him, what do we do to him?" Reynolds pointed at Richard. "Alice." Grey looked at her. She had the final decision on what would happen to Richard, if she took pity on him and decided they should let him go, then he should count himself lucky. But the group knew given Alice''s personality, she probably wouldn''t want him to live because of what he thought of doing to her. "Kill him, keeping him alive doesn''t change anything." Alice said decisively. According to what Smith said, Richard didn''t come with the important guests, which meant he wasn''t of any use. The group planned to keep Smith alive since he could be used as leverage if by chance things didn''t go as planned. They didn''t know the strength of the guests the mayor received. However, Grey was a little hopeful since Void said he only sensed a single person who should either be in the Origin Plane or close to it. Klaus walked closer to the unconscious Richard before fl.i.c.k.i.n.g his hand. Multiple ice shards came from the ground, piercing Richard''s body. Richard died a quick death, he didn''t even know what killed him. Klaus went on to further tap a finger on his body, freezing him entirely. ''*Sigh* If only my ice ability has gotten to that level, I would have been able to freeze him, then break him into smithereens, leaving no evidence behind.'' He thought sadly. He moved to the pond, touched it, taking it back to its previous state when it was filled with water. He looked around before finding a perfect spot. "Grey, come here." He called Grey over. When Grey got there, he told him what he wanted to do, and Grey agreed to it. He wanted to keep Richard''s corpse hidden from the world. So he had Grey carve an opening inside the pond, on its walls. He calmly placed the frozen corpse in the pond, before manipulating the water to move it to the opening. Grey sealed it up, and it was like Richard was never here. "If only we could find a way to fix the garden, then we wouldn''t need to be afraid of it alerting the guards here." Grey said thoughtfully. "It doesn''t matter, we should get to work now, and leave as soon as possible." suggested Klaus. The others nodded before using the same back door Richard and Smith used when they went to get the wine for them. Reynolds was the one tasked with carrying the unconscious Smith on his shoulder which annoyed him but excited Klaus. It was almost like the duo found each others suffering funny, that was why they always laughed at each other whenever one of them was suffering. Void was the one who the group sent ahead, he would alert them if there were any guards or servants around. After going through two halls, and three turns, they got to Smith''s room within three minutes. When they entered the room, Grey looked around to locate the place Smith said he hid the wine. The room spanned about fifteen square meters, with a large bed located in it, it surprisingly also had a table and chair that were positioned close to the window which was wide opened, with the curtains hanging on his side. Looking to the extreme left corner of the room, Grey found the place he could use in going into the bathroom. ''He said he kept it there.'' He cautiously walked towards it, entering the bathroom room, he saw a bathtub, as well as some towels and a closet where a large c.h.e.s.t was located. Grey walked closer to inspect the c.h.e.s.t, it looked a little worn-out, which was strange given Smith''s status. "He''s a strange one." Grey said as he pushed the c.h.e.s.t to the side. He gently tapped on the spot where the c.h.e.s.t was previously on, he could tell it was hollow from the sound he heard, Smith only created a thin wall to block it. Being an Earth Elementalist, he tapped his finger on it once again, but this time, the outcome was different from the previous time when it only made a sound. The thin wall Smith previously created moved to the side with little to no effort, and Grey was left speechless by the number of wine jugs he found in there. There were at least twenty in there. ''This guy sure does love his wines.'' He thought internally while searching for the wine Smith brought out. It took a while, but he finally found it after almost two minutes of tasting the different wines. He kept some that he found good, while he left the rest. After keeping the wines, he left the bathroom. The others were waiting for him in the room . Reynolds placed Smith on the bed since carrying him constantly was uncomfortable. Klaus and Alice were sitting on the bed. They all looked in his direction when they heard his footsteps. "We should..." Grey froze mid-sentence before continuing, "Hide, someone''s coming." He quickly went back to the bathroom, hiding in the closet. Klaus and Reynolds hid under the bed, while Alice hid behind the curtain that was on the window. They left Smith on the bed, trying to make it seem like he was already asleep. Tap! Tap! Creak! The footsteps increased before a lady walked in, she looked to be around her late twenties, and from her clothes, it was easy to tell that she was a maid in the villa. She had deep brown long hair, a slender and well-curved body, a slightly average-looking oval face, and blue eyes. "Young lord, are you asleep?" She asked while blinking her long eyelashes as she approached the bed. Getting no response from the unconscious Smith, she walked over to the bathroom, "I''ll go freshen up." This wasn''t the first time Smith was keeping her quiet, but whenever she gets on the bed, he would always hold her tight, as if afraid she would disappear the next moment. Klaus and Reynolds who heard this looked at each other with regret deep in their eyes. ''Why didn''t I hide in the bathroom?'' Chapter 246 - Klaus Misery Grey stood in the closet and created a wall that made it seem like he wasn''t there. It would be hard for Smith who frequently used the bathroom to notice the small change, much less a maid who used it once in a while. He created a hole for his eyes, so he could see the entire bathroom perfectly. He was a little stunned when he heard the voice of a lady saying she wanted to freshen up. ''It shouldn''t be what I think it is.'' He shook his head. Unlike Klaus and Reynolds, he hadn''t been with a lady before. He doesn''t even think of it since he placed all his focus on getting stronger. Whenever he hung out with them, other than drinking wine, he did nothing else. When the lady walked into the bathroom, she immediately started taking off her clothes, leaving Grey, and surprisingly Klaus and Reynolds who weren''t here in despair. Grey felt despair because he didn''t want to see what was currently happening in front of him, Klaus and Reynolds on the other hand wanted to very much see something like this. They wouldn''t mind changing positions with him right now. "Uh! That isn''t in its right position." The young lady who had already removed her gown and u.n.d.e.r.w.e.a.r and was currently unclad walked closer to the closet. Even though she only occasionally uses Smith''s bathroom, she knew exactly how he always kept the c.h.e.s.t where he keeps his clothes. As soon as she got close to the c.h.e.s.t, the scent of wine wafted all around the closet. "Looks like he''s drunk again. I''ll get a good rest then" She mumbled softly. Smith shared some of his secrets with her, so she knew of his stash of wine under his c.h.e.s.t. Thinking this was the cause of it, she turned around and walked over to the bathtub. ''I need to get out of this place right now.'' He thought inside. The young lady poured the hot water she had previously prepared before Grey and the others came into the room into the bathtub before soaking in it, closing her eyes in the process. She was exhausted from the days'' work, so finding out that Smith was asleep elated her. While Grey was thinking of how he could leave the bathroom, Klaus and Reynolds were thinking of how they could get into the bathroom. ''Void!'' Grey called on the only individual he knew could help him in his current strange predicament. ''What can I help you with?'' Void was previously in the room, but he went out after the young lady walked in. ''I need your help, you need to knock her out. Wait for about a minute or two so it wouldn''t look suspicious.'' Grey said. ''Okay.'' Void replied before appearing in the bathroom. Given his small size, it was almost impossible for the young lady, or anyone else to notice him. Two minutes quickly went by, and the young lady was just starting to feel extra relaxed in the bathtub. Void soon appeared behind her and did what looked like a chop with his small paw. The young lady didn''t even feel anything before passing out. "*Phew* Thanks." Grey removed the wall that he used in hiding himself before breathing out a sigh of relief. He quickly exited the bathroom, not wanting to see any more, but was stunned when he almost bumped into Klaus and Reynolds who seemed to be about to walk into the bathroom. "What are you guys doing?" He asked suspiciously. Knowing the duo, he was sure they were up to no good. "Oh! You''re out, you see, we wanted to come to save you." explained Klaus who for some reason continued sneaking towards the bathroom. Reynolds on the other hand stood still since he wasn''t as shameless as Klaus. "I''m here now, why are you still walking over there?" Grey looked at Klaus speechlessly. "I want to make sure you didn''t leave any traces of your appearance there." Klaus said in a serious tone. "Shameless pervert, if you take a step into the bathroom, I''ll break your legs." Alice came out when she overheard the boys talking. Klaus was currently standing at the entrance of the bathroom, he could already see the young lady''s head and her hair which was floating on top of the water. If he walks a little bit further, he might be able to see the unclad lady who was currently unconscious. But Alice''s threat wasn''t something he could shrug off. "It''ll be a shame if we were found out because of Grey''s carelessness, you know how careless he is. All I want to do is a quick sweep of the area, it wouldn''t take more than a minute." Klaus tried persuading Alice, giving up when he was already this close wasn''t something he could accept so easily. "I''ll not only break your legs, but I''ll also break your hands as well." Alice said coldly. "F.u.c.k! How unlucky." Klaus cursed out in frustration, but in the end, he could only take another glance at the head of the young lady before turning around. "Good boy, now carry him." Alice patted his cheek before pointing at Smith. "But...I thought it was Reynolds'' job." Klaus protested. "It was, but now it''s yours. Have a problem with that?" Alice raised a brow while smiling. Her smile sent goosebumps all over Klaus'' body. Reynolds laughed on seeing Klaus'' misery, luckily, he wasn''t as shameless as Klaus so he didn''t follow him after they bumped into Grey. Klaus reluctantly carried Smith on his shoulder with a long face, which caused Grey and Reynolds to start laughing at him. "What are you laughing at? It''ll soon get to your turn, we''ll see who will be laughing then." Klaus snorted coldly before walking towards the door. Alice was unsurprisingly the only one who could bully all three of them, and just as Klaus said, it would get to either of the laughing duo''s turn soon. Chapter 247 - Treasury The group soon left Smith''s room, with Void taking the lead just like the first time. According to what Smith said, the mayor''s room was located at the heart of the main building. Smith''s room was in the right wing of the building, now, the group had to move from Smith''s room to the mayor''s room without being spotted by either the guards or the servants in the villa. Even with Void leading the group, it still took them almost ten minutes to safely navigate from the right wing to the main building without being sensed or spotted. After sneaking into the main building, their speed decreased exponentially due to the dramatic increase of the guards there. "I thought that guy said most of the guards were sent away?" Klaus couldn''t help but ask in frustration when the group was stuck in a hallway for almost five minutes. They were currently hiding behind a small tree-like decoration in a hallway, but moving forward or retreating was impossible because there was not only a guard ahead of them, but there was one behind them as well. "Looks like he wasn''t completely honest with the information he gave us." Grey furrowed his brow while communicating with Void who was ahead of them, trying to seek a better path for them. Seeing the situation, Reynolds suggested, "Why don''t we knock out the guards, instead of staying here for so long?" "No. If a single guard goes missing, it will probably give us away." Grey said thoughtfully. "Void should try distracting the guard ahead of us. The longer we stay here, the greater the chances of us being discovered. You all should know that a guard will eventually patrol through that garden, I don''t need to tell you what would happen when they see the state of the garden." Alice said after a while. Grey nodded before telling Void to find a way to distract the guard ahead of them, so they could continue advancing. It took almost two minutes before Void managed to distract the guard that was ahead of them. As soon as Void told them it clear, they quickly dashed forward. Ten minutes later, they were already only a few turns away from the mayor''s room. And they noticed that the closer they got to the mayor''s room, the lesser the guards were which was actually weird since it should be the closer they got to the mayor''s room, the higher the guards there. "Does anyone else find this fishy?" Grey asked looking at the completely free passage ahead of them. Void had scouted from their current location up to the mayor''s room and he didn''t find a single guard on the way. All the rooms along the way were also empty. "Yeah. Do you think it has anything to do with the guests the mayor received?" Klaus nodded. He initially wanted to rub his chin with his right hand, but he was carrying Smith on his right shoulder which made it extremely difficult for him to do. He couldn''t help but glare at Alice while she wasn''t looking at him. "Possibly." replied Grey. "Standing here and contemplating wouldn''t change anything. Let''s get those coins and be out of here." Reynolds urged. The group cautiously advanced closer to the mayor''s room. After walking for almost one minute unhindered, they saw the mayor''s room. Void had already scouted it, and there was no one inside. The mayor was most likely with his guests. The group didn''t delay and quickly entered the room. Compared to Smith''s room, this one was almost twice its size, and it had more decorations, couches, and a table and chair. There was also a small bookshelf close to the table that was located close to the window. What looked like the fur of a bear-like magical beast was used as a center carpet in the room. Klaus immediately dropped Smith on the center carpet since his shoulder was already starting to feel numb from carrying him for so long. He located the switch to open the secret passage which was close to the bed, luckily, Smith didn''t lie about it. The secret passage opened up, but not in the room. Klaus followed the sound, and it was just like Smith said, it was on the wall in the bathroom. Since they were short on time, Grey and Klaus quickly went in while Void went outside to keep an eye out so someone wouldn''t come in when the group was still inside. After walking through the passageway for almost a minute, they got to the treasury. And it was just like it was called, a treasury. There were weapons, armors, herbs, some low leveled natural treasures, and so on. Klaus looked around and quickly located the spot where the coins were kept. "Gold or Silver?" He asked Grey. Although there were copper coins, he didn''t put them in his eyes. "Is that a question? Step aside." Grey pushed him aside as he quickly started taking gold and silver coins. The number of gold coins here was around five thousand to Seven thousand, Grey took just over four thousand, while for the silver coins that were over fifty thousand, he took around ten thousand. "This is more than enough, we should get going." Grey turned around after keeping the coins. The reason Klaus wanted to rob this place was so that they could afford horses, but seeing so many coins, Grey decided to take more. It doesn''t really change anything if they took a few or if they took more, the mayor would still try to catch them and possibly kill them if he found out about it. The duo left the treasury without touching anything else, it wasn''t like they didn''t want to, but the items there were too low leveled for them. They would only be effective on Elementalist below the Origin Plane. After leaving the bathroom, the group left the mayor''s room, preparing to escape from the villa without being spotted. So far, it has been quite successful since they haven''t been spotted, nor had the guards been alarmed. But with that garden there, it was only a matter of time before someone finds out about their existence in the villa. Chapter 248 - Shocking Discovery They decided to pass through the same route they used in coming here. While the group got to the second turn, they were forced to use another route when they saw two guards discussing on the path. Void even tried distracting them, but only one left to check it out, so they couldn''t pass through it. The route they were currently using wasn''t much different from the other one, they would occasionally hide for extended time periods before moving. They continued walking for almost five minutes before noticing a decrease in the number of guards. Although the number of guards decreased, the stages of the guards that were patrolling the halls and hallways saw an increase. Even a fool would know that there was something important going on in this part of the villa. With the absence of the mayor in his room, and the so-called important guests Smith talked about, the group was able to connect the dots. Unknown to the group, the part they were currently passing through would take them past the mayor''s personal office in the villa. This office was different from the one the occupants of the city knows about. The group soon got close to the mayor''s office, and two guards could be seen standing in front of the huge double door that led to the office. Of all the guards that the group had seen, they were the strongest, being in the Eighth stage of the Arcane Plane. Grey and his friends were currently looking at them from where they were hiding. Reynolds couldn''t help but look at the door curiously, "What do you think is going on there?" "Nothing that we should concern ourselves with, we should take another route and leave this place." Grey didn''t want them to involve themselves in what wouldn''t bring them any good. Since he had collected the coins, all he wanted was to leave this place. Had they been outside the building, he would have already charged out of the villa. But running out now is a little complicated since they would have to face more guards. "Crap! Why didn''t think of this earlier?" Klaus smacked the back of Reynolds'' head as he exclaimed softly. "Why did you smack my head?" Reynolds asked with a long face. "Cause I was just hit with an idea and if I don''t smack my head, it wouldn''t be dramatic. Unfortunately, I can''t smack mine, and since you were standing right in front of me, I thought why not?" Klaus shrugged with a smirk, annoying Reynolds. Reynolds glared at him but Klaus acted as nothing happened, he even threw him a challenging look, like he couldn''t do anything to him. "Stop this the two of you. Klaus, what brilliant idea do you have now?" Alice stopped the two before they started bickering. "It''s quite simple actually, instead of passing through so many twists and turns, why don''t we just go through a window or something. There''s an empty room right there, and passing through a window would take us directly outside." Klaus explained. "Oh! That''s simple and very fast." Grey nodded. Unlike the first time where they needed to stay in the building to locate the mayor''s room, now they didn''t need to be inside, after all, they were trying to go outside. It doesn''t matter how they went outside, be it the door or the window, it all gave them the same result. "Of course, I''m brilliant, what else do you expect from me?" Klaus smiled while looking at Reynolds demeaningly. It was like he was asking him if he was smart enough to think of something like this. Reynolds almost went crazy when he saw this, but he was reigned in by Grey who was standing close to him. "Let''s get out of this place." Alice said as the group silently went into the room that was close to them. After going into the room, they went over the window, landing in the bushes behind the window. They stayed close to the walls and continued walking. "Huh! Do you guys hear that?" Klaus looked at the others who were behind him The group was currently standing close to a window, and they could hear voices from inside. If they guessed correctly, this was the mayor''s office. Grey and the others nodded with serious expressions, this was something they didn''t think they would hear. Klaus peeked through the window, and he saw ten men and three women sitting inside, having a heated discussion. The man on the mayor''s seat had a complicated look on his face. ____ Inside the office. "I''ve already kept over five thousand of your soldiers in the mountains, if more were to join them, it will certainly give us away." The middle-aged man in the mayor''s seat said with a serious expression. "This is a small city, your empire doesn''t care about it. There''s no way they would find out about this since they missed the first ones." One of the ladies who was sitting at the right side said. "You''re not understanding me, I''m taking a great risk doing this for you people. If I''m caught, my entire family risk annihilation. Hiding five thousand soldiers is my limit, any more and the increased activity might alert the empire." The mayor said. "We offered you a price, and you accepted. Now, you''ll do as we say." A younger-looking man said calmly. "But..." "There are no buts. The soldiers would be coming in a week''s time, we do not want any mishaps." The young man interrupted the mayor. "Fine, but you will have to increase the offer." The mayor said through gritted teeth. "That''s fine with us, but make sure to keep this tight. The war would begin soon, and these soldiers are who would take this empire down." An elderly man said. Just as they were about to continue, the mayor''s door was knocked quickly. "My lord, there are intruders in the villa!" A yell came from outside. Chapter 249 - Shocking Discovery II "What?!" The mayor stood up in surprise. The others who were in the office also stood up alongside the mayor. "The garden on the right wing by young lord Smith''s room was destroyed. It was presumably caused by a fire attack." The guard outside reported. "And where is Smith?" The mayor asked angrily. "He is nowhere to be found, neither is master Richard." replied the guard. "They still haven''t returned?" The mayor asked with a strange expression. "They returned my lord, alongside four youngsters. But neither they nor the youngsters have been found." answered the guard. "Could they have left the villa?" The mayor asked a little confused. "No, my lord. The guards at the gates didn''t see anyone leaving after they came in. This means they are still in the villa." The guard replied. The mayor looked at his guests with a little concerned face, "Please stay here, I assure you, this isn''t something to worry about. I''ll settle it soon" "Hmm, do we need to be worried?" One of the ladies asked the others with a thoughtful expression. "No, they''re just kids. Let''s wait so we can finalize everything with the mayor. The longer we stay in this villa, the higher the chances of us getting found out." An elderly man said. The others nodded before taking their seats, this wasn''t something they should concern themselves over. _____ Outside the building. "Shit! Shit! Shit! They''re people from the Azure empire!" Klaus whispered with a shocked expression. He couldn''t believe what he was hearing, nor seeing. What the hell are people from the Azure empire doing in the Qilin empire? And in a mayor''s villa for that matter?! "Looks like the coming war is inevitable. We need to get to the Academy and report this to the principal, he''ll know what to do with such pieces of information." Alice suggested. The others nodded before they started to sneak off once again. They''ve not only stolen from the treasury, but they''ve also found out about a shocking secret, the Azure empire was deploying soldiers into the Qilin empire in preparation for the war. This was insane! Grey was the one leading the group now, with Klaus at the end of the group. Due to the shock they got from this unexpected discovery, none of them realized that Smith had already gained consciousness. He sensibly kept his eyes shut, and regulated his breathing so he wouldn''t be found out by the group. Just as the group crossed the mayor''s office window, he decided to take the risk of alerting the guards of their location. He took a peek at where they were, and he quickly recognized the mayor''s window. He also realized that he could freely use his elemental essence once again which gave him a sense of relief. ''The guards close to father''s office are always there. This is my chance to escape.'' Smith thought to himself. Even though he knew if those guards came to his rescue, they would most likely die since they were not Grey or his friends'' match, but he hoped they would at least be able to distract them so he could escape. Being an Earth Elementalist, it would be easier for him to cause a disturbance since all he needed to do was create a hole in the wall of the mayor''s office, that would definitely attract attention. It will not only attract attention, but it''s stealthier, giving him more time before Grey or his friends finds out he was awake. The group was just about to completely leave the mayor''s office''s area when Smith secretly tried to create a hole on the wall, hoping to directly expose the group to the people in the mayor''s office. "Huh!" Grey suddenly stopped when he sensed the sudden high activity of the earth particles around the area. "What''s wrong?" Alice asked. "Oh no." Grey wore a serious expression when he saw the hole that was being created on the wall. It was already over a meter wide, which had attracted the attention of the people in the office. Grey could see the people in the office standing, and looking at the hole with shocked expressions. "Mayor! They''re here." One of the ladies called on the mayor who was outside speaking to his guards. "Crap! That bastard is awake." Grey cursed out before blocking the hole on the wall, as well as the window with an ice wall. "What? But he''s still...oh crap!" Klaus was about to say Smith was still asleep, but he quickly threw him off his shoulder before freezing his arms and legs to the wall. "Who we wanted to use as leverage actually turned out to be bad luck. Shit! How unlucky can we get?" Reynolds said with a little remorse. Grey instantly sent a lightning blade straight for Smith''s heart. He wasn''t useful anymore, so he wanted to get rid of him since he was the only one left who had a good look at their faces. While Grey and the others were about to kill Smith. The mayor and his guards were already inside the office. Without any delays, they quickly attacked the ice wall. But to their surprise, it didn''t break instantly like what they expected. Some cracks ran across it, but it didn''t fall apart, even after the second wave of attacks, it still didn''t fall apart. The mayor and his guards were all still in the Arcane Plane, although it was the Peak of it, they wouldn''t be able to destroy Grey''s ice so easily. Had Klaus being the one who created this ice, then it would have been almost impossible for them to break through it within one hour. "Attack with me, we can''t allow the news of you guys being here to spread out." The mayor begged the guests who were still in their seats. Chapter 250 - Somethings Wrong The mayor couldn''t believe Smith would bring people into the villa at a time like this when he was expecting important guests. Even after dismissing some of the guards to show everyone in the villa how important the guests were, his son still foolishly brought people in. ''I''ll deal with him once this is over.'' The mayor thought angrily. The representatives from the Azure empire stood up and joined him in breaking the ice wall, when they noticed how hard it was, the younger man amongst them improvised and destroyed the earthen wall that was there all this while. This allowed them to see Grey and his friends as he was about to kill Smith. When Smith saw Grey''s lightning blade coming towards him, he immediately created an earth wall, as well as an earth armor around his body to help block against the attack. Bam! The lightning blade easily passed through the earth wall and aimed at Smith''s heart even with the earth armor there. Despair was the only thing present in Smith''s eyes as he watched the lightning blade slowly penetrating his earth armor. "Stop!" The mayor who was still inside the building yelled loudly. The lightning blade which had already penetrated through the earth armor and just started piercing into Smith''s c.h.e.s.t, stopped. Smith who had his eyes closed, seemingly waiting for death was surprised when he noticed he was still alive. He slowly opened his eyes and realized that although the lightning blade was still there, it wasn''t moving. Because of the fear of dying, he wasn''t actually feeling the pain of the blade that had pierced a few centimeters into his c.h.e.s.t. "Let us go and your son will live." Grey turned around to look at the mayor. His face was covered by an ice mask, which only left his eyes open. The mayor was caught in a dilemma when he heard their requests, if he let Grey and his friends go, then there was a chance that not only would he die, but his son who he was trying to protect will die as well. "Father, please save me." Smith begged when he saw that there was a possibility that he might be saved. The mayor didn''t think long before making his decision, "Attack!" Some of the guards that were inside had moved outside while the mayor and the others were here trying to break through the wall. Not just that, but all the guards outside were running in this direction, a few were already hiding around, while some hadn''t gotten to this place yet. Hearing the mayor''s order, the guards who were inside and outside attacked Grey and his friends instantly. Smith was gripped by fear and shock when he heard his father''s order. His father left him to die, he couldn''t believe his father would do this to him. "Your stupidity, as well as your father, was the cause of your death, remember that." Grey said as he drove the blade deeper into his c.h.e.s.t, piercing his heart. Klaus, Alice, Reynolds, and Void blocked the attacks that the guards and the mayor sent their way as Grey killed Smith. Smith stared at his father in shock as blood started flowing out of his mouth, he could see a slight pain in his father''s eyes, but what was more present was fear. "You''re a smart man, this is the reason we made a deal with you in the first place." The young man from the Azure empire said as they all came out of the building, and attacked Grey and his friends as well. "He''s not my only son. Allowing these people to escape will cause the death of my other children as well, why not sacrifice one to save the others?" The mayor hid the pain in his heart and said. Although his son was stupid, he was still his son. No parent would wish for their child to die, especially in front of them. Grey and the others started defending as they moved towards the fence surrounding the villa, they planned to escape since they''ve acquired more than they originally planned for. Although facing so many attacks was a little pressurizing, they tried their best to keep calm and collected. Boom! Within a minute or so, the number of guards has increased to over twenty, added with the mayor and his guests who were all at the Peak of the Arcane Plane, it was getting a little hard to advance because of the numbers. "No need to hold back. Go all out." Grey ordered. Since all they needed to do was escape, so there was no use in reserving their strengths. A single attack from any of them is not something anyone among the mayor''s guards could defend against. They continued blocking the different elemental attacks coming towards them from the guards as well as the mayor, while also attacking to create an opening. Buzz! Lightning rumbled as Alice sent out a huge lightning attack, it was none other than lightning rain, but on a larger scale compared to the ones Grey and Reynolds have previously used. Bang! Bam! Over ten guards were caught by the attack, immobilizing a few, while killing some. But even with this causality, the number of guards increased instead, more were rushing towards this place. The battle had been going on for almost two minutes, and Grey and his friends were already over halfway across the villa, it would take a minute or so for them to get to the fence. Klaus did a large-scale attack ice attack, multiple ice shards appeared mid-air, before shooting straight at the guards who were gathered in a particular area. It was a massacre. The group hadn''t been touched by any of their opponents'' attacks, yet they have killed over twenty guards with only two attacks. Reynolds sent lightning arrows towards the mayor''s group, but it was blocked. ''Something''s wrong.'' Void suddenly said to Grey. Chapter 251 - Unexpected Change Grey who was about to attack looked at Void a little puzzled, ''What''s it?'' ''Weren''t those guys previously in the Arcane Plane?'' Void appeared on Grey''s shoulder, pointing his paw at the mayor''s guests who were from the Azure empire. ''Yeah, did any... Oh crap!'' Grey nodded, and just as he was about to ask what was wrong, he noticed it. The mayor''s guests who were previously in the Peak of the Arcane Plane were currently all in the First stage of the Origin Plane. ''How...how''s this possible?!'' Grey couldn''t believe what was happening. ''It must be a special technique since I was unable to sense them. The technique should also have a disadvantage because if they were truly above the Arcane Plane, they would have been able to sense us when we were watching from the window earlier.'' Void deduced. ''Hmm, this is bad. We need to leave immediately.'' "Rey, full power, there''s trouble." Grey said when he noticed Reynolds didn''t summon the Elemental Warrior. "What''s up?" Klaus asked after casually destroying an attack sent towards them. "Those guys, they just went from the Peak of the Arcane Plane to the First stage of the Origin Plane in a matter of minutes, and from the looks of it, they haven''t stopped increasing their stages yet." Grey explained to the others. "What?! I thought Void said it was safe?" Klaus asked with a shocked expression, not forgetting to take a glance at the mayor''s guests which shocked him even more because they had just gone from the First stage, to the Second stage of the Origin Plane. "That''s...that''s... F.u.c.k!" He exclaimed with a look of panic. At this rate, the mayor''s guests would reach the Third stage in three or four minutes. There were ten of them! How the hell do they expect them to fight against that?! Especially when being bombarded by the mayor''s guards. "Rey, why haven''t you summoned it yet?" Grey asked when he noticed Reynolds still haven''t summoned his Elemental Warrior. "Shit! It hasn''t even been up to a minute." Reynolds complained, before quickly trying to summon the Elemental Warrior. "We need to leave before this gets out of hand." Alice advised while sending out a barrage of lightning bolts towards the guards that were coming towards them. Grey was well aware of this, but leaving wasn''t easy since they had to first find a way to escape from these guards. When he saw the number of attacks sent towards them, he quickly created an earth wall, hoping to block it. The young man amongst the group looked at Grey and his friends a little surprised by their strength, although he couldn''t see their faces, he guessed they were above twenty-one years old yet. If he knew they were only around seventeen and eighteen, he would be extremely shocked. "They should be killed, these are geniuses." He said casually as he launched a large wind blade at the earth wall that Grey set up to block the attacks that the guards sent their way. Bam! The wind blade cut the wall, but it didn''t destroy it as the young man expected. "Oh! They''re even better than I thought." He said softly before preparing another attack. Boom! What followed was the complete destruction of the wall, but as soon as the wall was destroyed, Grey and his friends rained attacks at the guards. Grey created a large fire blade that he slashed horizontally across the open ground, killing multiple guards, and wounding more. Klaus and Alice used aerial attacks, with both sending out ice shards and lightning arrows at the guards. In a matter of seconds, their attacks had killed almost thirty guards. This was already almost half the number of guards that were here fighting against them. Just when the guards thought it was over, a silver figure dashed into their midst, swinging a lightning spear left and right, harvesting more lives. It was none other than the Elemental Warrior! It was a one-sided massacre. Void who was previously on Grey''s shoulder is currently nowhere to be found, it was unknown when he disappeared, and where he was currently located. The mayor was shocked when he saw how quickly the intruders managed to kill over half of the guards that were here. Some of these guards were people he was barely stronger than, doesn''t that mean that he couldn''t defend a single attack from any of these people? "Hmm, things aren''t as easy as it seems. There''s a high-grade summoner amongst them. Since there are two Lightning Elementalists, it''s unknown which of them is the summoner." The older lady amongst the three ladies said with narrowed eyes. Of the three ladies, two had identical looks, only being separated by the colors of their eyes, they even had the same heights. They were obviously twins, the twins looked to be in their early thirties, with long waist-length blonde hairs, they stood at around five foot four inches with hourglass figures. The third lady was a little older with black hair mixed with hints of grey, she was taller than the twins, with a chubby figure, unlike the twins. Of the ten men, three had grey hairs, four with black short hair, two with brown hairs, and the young man who had striking ember shoulder-length hair. He looked to be in his later twenties with an athletic figure, standing at a height of six foot three inches. "We''ll just kill them both and be done with it." The young man said nonchalantly. To him, Grey and his friends were unimportant people, they might be talented, but since they were part of the enemies, they are regarded as enemies as well. The young man opened his left palm, and a small wind orb the size of a fingernail appeared above it. It quickly started rotating and before long, it looked like a wheel with spikes at the end of it. "Go." He ordered softly as the small spinning wheel left his palm, and headed straight for Grey and his friends. Chapter 252 - Unexpected Change II "Hmm," Grey looked at the spinning wheel that was coming in their direction. The wheel was only around the size of a human head, having a greenish color. "Shit! Klaus!" He called when he sensed the power that the wheel contained. Klaus didn''t need to ask any questions since he already understood Grey, without any delays, he spread out both arms in front of him, creating an ice sphere that he used to trap the spinning wheel. Boom! An explosion rang out from the sphere as multiple small wind blades could be seen trying to burst out from the sphere, but with the hardness of Klaus'' ice ability, it was impossible given its current strength. "Oh! They''re good." The young man with ember hair said indifferently. The twins attacked after Klaus blocked the young man''s attack, they were both Water Elementalists. The one with blue eyes created a water storm that she sent towards Klaus, while the one with green eyes pointed forward and a water screen appeared mid-air. Water arrows came out of the water screen, shooting straight at Grey and his friends nonstop. "Hmph!" Klaus snorted arrogantly when he saw the water storm coming towards them. ''Done.'' Grey thought to himself as two symbols lit up in the sky. Klaus was currently the one doing most of the defending against the mayor''s guests, Grey, Alice, and Reynolds were trying to get rid of the guards. Individually, the guards weren''t a problem, but collectively, Grey regarded them as threats. If they could remove the guards from the scene, then escaping would be easier. Presently, after their last massacre, the guards numbered at about fifty now. Void suddenly appeared on Grey''s shoulder, ''No need to worry about reinforcements anymore, once this wave is whipped out, we are clear to go.'' Grey nodded and immediately attacked with his inscriptions. When he realized that the mayor''s guests were progressively getting stronger than what they initially portrayed, he quickly devised a plan. Although the mayor and his guests were the strongest people among their opponents, they couldn''t stop them with their current strength. But the guards though, could. Not because of their strength, but by their sheer numbers. Grey could neglect their attacks given his insane physical abilities, but the others couldn''t. This was why he sent Void to make sure no more guards came this way. If they wanted to escape, then the guards had to be removed first. Bam! Bang! Grey wasn''t the only one attacking the remaining guards, Reynolds '' Elemental Warrior was casually cutting them down, Alice''s large-scale attacks were immobilizing them, while even Void who recently came back started killing them as well. Klaus was the one tasked with defending the attacks from the mayor''s guests, given his superior defensive ability. His ice wall has currently grown stronger than Grey''s earth wall. "They''re trying to remove the guards so they can escape." One of the elderly men said. "Impressive strategy." The second elderly man praised. If he was met with the same circ.u.mstances, he would chose to also flee instead of fighting, especially after seeing that the strength of his opponents was increasingly improving. "Oh! An inscriber. These youths just keep on giving us reasons to make sure they don''t escape." said one of the men with brown hair when he saw the symbols attacking. "This Water Elementalist is different from the others I''ve seen. His ice ability is far superior to anyone I''ve ever seen." The chubby lady commented on Klaus'' ice ability. Thirteen Second stage Origin Plane Elementalists were simultaneously attacking, and yet, Klaus was single-handedly defending against them. Although they had destroyed his ice walls a couple of times, it was still very impressive, to say the least. Bang! The ice wall crumbled once again which forced Klaus to retreat, but he was stopped by a hand place on his back. Grey who was standing behind him looked at the attacks that were raining towards them after the ice wall was destroyed, he quickly created an earth wall but supported it with an ice wall since he knew his earth wall wouldn''t be able to block the attacks. "Aren''t you guys done yet?" Klaus asked, he was the one facing the strongest attacks, so unlike the others, he was feeling pressured. "Soon, try to hold them off for another minute." Grey said before turning back to continue attacking the guards. Within a minute since he formed the inscriptions, they had already killed or injured at least thirty people. If they continued at that speed, then they should be done in a minute. The guards aren''t even able to put up a fight against them, they couldn''t even block a single attack. "Damn it! We should''ve just left after taking the wine." Klaus complained, but once again started blocking the attacks of all thirteen people. The mayor was currently standing behind his guests, there was nothing he could do in a battle like this. Klaus who just started defending again cursed his bad luck when he noticed their attacks were getting stronger. "Why are they getting stronger? Why the hell are they getting stronger?!" He almost wanted to start crying. This wasn''t how it was supposed to be, after stealing the coins, they would escape. Now, because they were nosy, they discovered something shocking and were being attacked because of it. Had they just left after obtaining the coins, none of this would have happened. Grey took a peek at Klaus who was currently scrambling left and right to try to block the attacks from their opponents. "You guys deal with this quickly, I''ll help him." He turned around and started attacking the people from the Azure empire with his inscriptions, while also assisting Klaus to defend against their attacks. Whoosh! A huge wind blade cut through Grey''s earth wall, slashing at the group. "Shit! They''ve reached the Third stage." Chapter 253 - A Threat Grey''s expression turned serious, the battle was taking an unexpected change, and it wasn''t in their favor. With the improvements the mayor''s guests are making, the longer the battle is delayed, the higher their chances of losing it. He narrowed his eyes before sending a stream of flames to block the wind blade that was coming towards them. Boom! Both attacks clashed causing an explosion, his flame quickly overpowered the wind blade, after destroying it, it continued forward, heading straight for the young man who was a Wind Elementalist. Seeing Grey''s fire stream coming in his direction, the young man squinted his eyes when he sensed the power it possessed. He felt a sense of threat from this attack, unlike the rest. "Huh! Multi Elementalist." He mumbled softly as he created a windshield, but it was destroyed but the fire stream that continued aggressively towards him. "Help me." He asked the others for assistance. They didn''t delay and quickly offered their help, it took the combined effort of four Third stage Origin Plane Elementalists to stop a single attack from Grey. "So he''s the inscriber?" One of the elderly men said. "Yes, he''s also a Multi Elementalist, with special flames that are at least two stages more powerful than his stage." replied another man who was surprised by this. What were the odds of meeting a rare Multi Elementalist with special flames, almost zero! Other than the time Grey used his inscriptions, he hadn''t used the fire element, this was why the people from the Azure empire were shocked knowing when they found out he was a rare Multi Elementalist. Since the battle started, they have seen him use three elements now, earth, water, and fire. "He''s more of a threat than the others." The young man said with squinted eyes. The group from the Azure empire were still relatively calm, to them, it was only a matter of time before they would be able to overpower Grey and his friends, once they''ve done that, they would kill them. After Grey sent out that attack, he continued attacking the group from the Azure empire with his inscriptions, but the remaining nine who didn''t help the young man stop his flame, were able to block the attacks, after all, it was only two inscriptions. They also attacked, but most of their attacks were blocked by Klaus'' water screen or ice shield. ''Shit! If only I could make ten or even better, twenty simultaneously, they would have been dead or injured by now.'' Grey thought a little sad inside. When he was in the Fusion State, he had no problems with making over ten inscriptions, but normally, his limit was three. While he was attacking with those two, he hastily made the third one. His job right now was to stop the group from the Azure empire from getting closer to them. However, the only thing his attacks were doing was slightly delaying them. They were steadily getting closer to the group. Now he knew why Klaus was so pressured previously. "Guys!" He called out to Alice and the others. "All done, let''s go." Alice reported. "*Phew* You guys leave, I''ll delay them." Grey said. "Seriously? You must be crazy to think we''d leave you again." Alice looked at him as if saying they weren''t going anywhere. "You do know I''m faster than all of you right?" Grey couldn''t help but say. Although facing these people alone was dangerous, it would be easier for him to escape if he didn''t think of the others. Given his current speed, even if the group from the Azure empire got to the Seventh stage of the Origin Plane, they still wouldn''t be able to catch up to him. "Yeah, you do have a point there." Klaus nodded thoughtfully. "You see, now you guys retreat slowly while I and Void will try to stall them. Since they''ve just reached the Third stage, it''ll take a while before they get to the Fourth, much like the Fifth stage, and even if they do, they still can''t stop us." Grey said confidently. He might not be confident if it were any other thing, but after spending almost six months of running in the trial land, he was fully certain that escaping wouldn''t be a problem for him. "Okay." Alice and Reynolds nodded. ''Void, why don''t we play with them.'' Grey said while retreating two steps back as an earth spike came out from the ground where he was previously standing. Void nodded before vanishing from view, now that they didn''t need to bother about the guards, it made things easier for them. Bang! Klaus'' ice shield was destroyed once again, and multiple earth, lightning, fire, and water elements attacks rained down on the group. "Damn it! Why don''t you guys fight us four on four?" Klaus yelled out to the group from the Azure empire as he scrambled to block a few of the attacks. He only managed to block three, but even then, he was sent flying after doing that. Alice and Reynolds were Lightning Elementalists, so instead of defending, they quickly retreated out of the range of the attack, leaving only Grey to face off against them. Boom! Bam! Bang! Some of the attacks missed their targets, striking the ground instead before exploding. Grey managed to set up three defenses before the attacks got to him, an earth wall, an ice wall, and lastly, a firewall. The group from the Azure empire approached the location where Grey and his friends were previously standing even though the explosion hadn''t died down. They were forced to retreat because of the sudden attack that came out of nowhere. Looking around, they couldn''t find who attacked them, they guessed it was probably the Elemental Warrior since it was a lightning attack. "Mayor, where are your guards?" The young man asked when he sensed that no more guards were fighting against Grey''s group. The mayor who was a couple of meters away from them looked around, it was only now that he realized that there were no guards in the area. He couldn''t reply since he didn''t know what to say. Why were no more guards coming? Chapter 254 - I Just Want A Peaceful Life "I...I...I..." The mayor tried to explain, but he had nothing. He didn''t know why his guards weren''t rushing here anymore. He had over two hundred guards in the villa, and not even close to one hundred had shown up. So what the hell happened to the over one hundred guards that were in the villa? "Hmph! We''ll take care of everything ourselves." The young man said before turning to one of his companions and giving him a nod. Boom! Just as he was about to take a step to advance forward, an attack was launched at him once again. And like the first time, it came out of nowhere. "Find out who''s attacking us!" He ordered. The explosion was just about to die down. Alice and Reynolds were already close to the villa fence, Klaus was just trying to stand up after he was sent flying by the attack. Grey was completely covered in blue flames. This confused the group from the Azure empire more, since the two times they have been attacked were accurate. ''Could it be that there''s someone else helping them that we aren''t aware of?'' This was the thought running through the heads of all the people from the Azure empire. After sensing that the explosion had died down, Grey removed his fire to look at the group from the Azure empire, he still had his earth mask on, so the people had no way of seeing his face. "Leave, I''ll catch up with you all soon." He said to the others. Klaus who was closer to him retreated to where Alice and Reynolds were standing, while Grey stood in his previous position, prepared to fight against all the people from the Azure empire. "Are we really going to let him do this?" Reynolds asked a little concerned. "He did escape from that dragon, this shouldn''t be a problem for him." said Klaus. "But we''re going to beat him up." He added. Because Grey was attacked when he left the trial land, they couldn''t beat him up according to their original plan. Who knew Grey would give them another opportunity? "We''re not beating him up, this is different from the last time. And besides, he''s doing it to help us." Alice looked at Klaus as if telling him to behave. "But... Fine! Let''s go." Klaus destroyed the fence before running into the city. "Be careful." Alice advised before dashing out along with Reynolds leaving Grey and Void alone. The people from the Azure empire didn''t do anything to try to stop them, leaving the mayor dismayed. "They are getting..." The mayor was about to speak of Alice''s and the others'' escape, but a cold look from the young man shut him up. "Heh! You''re trying to delay us so your friends can get away? How noble of you." The young man said calmly with a small smile. Grey didn''t reply and stood in the same position. Void was hiding behind a rock and given his color, and since it was dark, it was almost impossible for the people from the Azure empire to see him. "You''re a talented one, so I don''t really want to kill you. Join us." The young man said while stretching out an open arm before adding, "Aren''t you tired of all these wars? Of people dying because we''re from different empires? We''re all the same, people. But we chose to fight against ourselves because we believe some are better than the other." "This continent is named the Azure continent for a reason, we were once united, but because of greed and the stupidity of one man, we were divided..." The young man went on to continue preaching about why Grey should join them so they could unite the continent once again, and stop all the killings and sufferings. ''He''s pretty good with words though, no wonder they managed to convince the mayor into doing their bidding.'' Grey said to Klaus. "If we can stop this..." Bang! The young man was about to take a step while still talking, but like before, Void attacked him, forcing him back. "Even if the continent is united, it wouldn''t stop this war. I might not know much, but I know the greed of people is insatiable. After unification, something else would start up a war. I don''t want to be a hero, I just want to live a peaceful life, free from war and killing." Grey said. ''Well, they should''ve already gotten close to the city walls by now. Time for me to go.'' He thought. "You do not under..." "After unification, who would rule?" Grey stopped the young man from continuing his speech. He could trick others with his words, but not him. They say they want to unify the continent to stop the war, but the truth was, will the war ever end? Once the continent is unified, another battle would begin, a battle for the leading seat. "The people." answered the young man. "And you really believe that?" Grey looked at the young man weirdly. "Even though it''s hard, we can try." The young man continued trying to persuade him. "If the people are not united on their free will, do you think they would accept this? The only way you can keep them is through fear, and I have no plans of doing something like that. Whoever wins this war has nothing to do with me." Grey said before tapping his foot on the ground softly. "I''ll be leaving now." He turned around and swaggered off. The young man from the Azure empire as well as his companions tried to go after him, but they were left surprised when they realized they couldn''t move. They didn''t know when, but they were currently standing on mud. Although this couldn''t stop them from chasing him, it would give him the time he needs to leave. "Why aren''t you chasing after him?" The mayor asked almost hysterical. "Did you think I said so much for nothing?" Chapter 255 - Bad News "Huh!" A confused expression appeared on the face of the mayor. "No need to explain to you. If news of this gets out, then our months of hard work would be in vain. You didn''t think I''ll come here alone, did you?" The young man smiled lightly before using the wind element to forcefully push the mud around him. He floated a few feet into the air before landing on dry land. "The boy is ingenious, I haven''t seen or heard of anything like this." One of the men who was an Earth Elementalist praised Grey before casually making an earth pillar rise from the ground where he was standing, taking him out of the mud. He didn''t only take himself out, he also did the same for the other eleven people. "Have you notified them?" The young man looked at a man who was dressed in blue amongst his companions. The man nodded before raising his hand, to show a small plaque-like item. "What is that?" The mayor looked at the item curiously. Firstly, it was like a plaque, but it gave him a unique sense. "This is something we made recently, it can be used to communicate with others within a five kilometers radius." The young man stated proudly. "Wow!" exclaimed the mayor, he was awed by this. This gave him more confidence that working with these people was the best choice. The Qilin empire couldn''t come up with something like this, well, none that he had heard of. "Let''s go, they should be heading to the city walls." The young man took a step forward before covering his feet with the wind element and moving at a breakneck speed. The mayor barely caught a glimpse of him. Of the other twelve people, there were two Wind Elementalists, one Lightning Elementalist, Four Water Elementalists, two Fire Elementalists, and three Earth Elementalists. The Lightning Elementalist was the one who followed behind, before the two Wind Elementalists. The others were slower since their elements aren''t ones that drastically increases the speed of its user. _____ Outside the villa. After Grey left the villa, he ran towards the east. The city gate was located in the south. He and the group initially planned on staying in an Inn before leaving, but since they''ve been discovered, they need to leave the city as soon as possible. He ran from the mayor''s villa to the nearest street. Although it was already almost midnight, Grey noticed the city was still active. People were walking to and fro in the streets, and he could hear shouts from some parts of the city. ''Moving on the ground might delay me.'' He thought while rubbing his chin. ''That''s it!'' He jumped onto the roof of the building close to him and started running on top of it. The distance between each building was around five to ten meters, this was something he could cover in a single jump. He started moving from rooftop to rooftop, heading straight for the city walls. The city walls stood at around twenty meters high. To Grey and his friends, that was a piece of cake. It took him almost five minutes to get to the city walls. On reaching the walls, he leaped over it without much problems, to find the others waiting for him outside. "So quick?" Klaus who was currently leaning on his knees was left stunned by Grey''s speed. It hadn''t even been up to one minute that they left the city, yet Grey who was supposed to delay their opponents was already here. If not for the trust he had for him, he would have asked if he truly delayed them. "Go!" Grey didn''t stop. The people from the Azure empire might have already reached the Fourth stage by now, he didn''t know what their true strength was. All he knew was that, it was not something they should want to find out. Alice and Reynolds immediately followed after him. Klaus who was catching his breath could only complain inside before chasing after the group. They soon disappeared into the forest around the city. Using the normal pathway wasn''t a good idea since they are trying to escape from their pursuers. Another five minutes passed before the young man from the Azure empire showed up on the top of the city wall. This was the side Grey and his friends used. "He''s very fast." The young man said while staring in the direction Grey and his friends took. It was almost like he saw them running in that direction. He had already reached the Fifth stage of the Origin Plane, yet he still wasn''t able to catch up with Grey. This discovery left him dumbfounded. The Lightning Elementalist was the next to appear on the city wall. "Tell them to stop them." The young man turned to the Lightning Elementalist before jumping down from the city wall. The Lightning Elementalist followed suit, just after they jumped off the city walls, the two other Wind Elementalists appeared on the wall, before going after them. Two lights flashed through the night sky, heading in the direction Grey and his friends took. _____ In the forest, Grey didn''t stop running for one bit. Times like these were the times he wished he was alone. Alice and Reynolds were fast, but not to his level, Klaus on the other hand was a drag. Grey literally had to carry him on his back after they ran for two minutes. This excited Klaus since he didn''t have to bother with having to run anymore. "Faster you two." He said while looking at Alice and Reynolds who were behind them. Reynolds had the urge of beating him up, while Alice was already planning how she would beat him up once they escaped their current predicament. Just when Klaus was about to continue mocking the duo for being too slow, he saw two flashes in the sky. His heart immediately sank. "Bad news guys, two Overlord Plane Elementalists are coming in our direction." Chapter 256 - Nothing Personal "What?!" Alice, Grey, and Reynolds exclaimed simultaneously in shock. "No need to panic yet, there''s also the possibility that this is just a coincidence and they''re heading in the same direction as us." Klaus tried to calm the others down. "There''s also the chance of them being sent by those guys, all in all, we''re either doomed, or this is just like I previously speculated, a coincidence." He added. "You''re not helping!" Grey and the others felt like beating him up. How does he have the courage to say those words in their situation? If they were actually being chased by Overlord Plane Elementalists, then they were toast! Who''d joke with that? "I''m just saying guys." Klaus shrugged. Grey felt like slamming him into the ground, this guy just doesn''t know when to shut up. Alice and Reynolds tried increasing their speed, but they were already at their highest speed. If they were truly being chased by Overlord Plane experts, then no matter how much they increase their strengths, they wouldn''t be able to escape. Grey looked around, trying to access the situation. His only bet right now was using the Fusion State, it hadn''t been long he used it, but breaking through helped him remove the excess energy in his body, so using it is safe. With his current stage, he should be able to advance to the First stage of the Overlord Plane since he had five elements which meant a boost of five stages. But he wasn''t sure the Fusion State would take him into the next Plane. ''Can you sense their stages?'' He asked Void who was on Alice''s shoulder. ''Hmm, one of them is in the Second stage of the Overlord Plane, while the other is in the Fourth.'' Void replied a few seconds later. ''Shit! It doesn''t matter, I''ll have to try.'' Grey resolved his mind to use the Fusion State. He was the man Grey''s mother assigned to keep him safe. During the first time he was protecting Grey, he rarely did anything, other than the time he helped when he was about to be assassinated. However, since Grey entered the trial land, his life had not been the same. First, he was unable to enter the trial land, which made him almost go crazy from fear. He was confident that if anything happened to Grey, Grey''s father might be lenient with him, but his mother would definitely kill him without a doubt. When he saw Grey coming out of the trial land, it was the happiest moment of his life. He almost wanted to hug Grey at that time. Now, people had been trying to kill him, and it hadn''t even completed four days that he left the trial land. ''Hmph! These people don''t know who his mother is, or else, they would rather die than chase after him.'' The man thought inside. The two Overlord Plane experts who were already close to Grey and his friends suddenly stopped mid-air when they saw someone appearing all of a sudden. Of the two experts, one of them had a robust body with an average height while the other who was taller had a smaller build. They both looked to be in their early fifties, with hairs that were already starting to Grey. "Who might this venerable one be?" The robust one of the two men asked respectfully. He was in the Fourth stage of the Overlord Plane, yet, he was unable to sense the man who appeared before them, he just appeared out of nowhere. "Hmm, you''re respectful, unlike the others I''ve encountered." The middle-aged man said while gently shaking his head. All the people he encountered previously asked the same question, ''Who are you?''. And they all acted arrogantly, these two though were exceptions. "You''re a senior, of course, we should be respectful." The robust man said with a bow. He had already noticed this man wasn''t from the Qilin empire, so talking to him politely was the best choice. He still didn''t understand what the man meant when he said they were respectful. "What are you doing here?" The middle-aged man asked. The robust man hesitated for a while before replying, "We''re taking care of a small problem." "Oh! You mean the boy?" The middle-aged man pointed at Grey and his friends who were getting further away. "How did..." "*Sigh* This is your greatest mistake, had you been going after something else, I wouldn''t even be bothered with you." The middle-aged man interrupted with both hands clasped behind him. "Senior, you..." "Unfortunately, this is the end of the road for you two. Anyone who has the thought of harming the young lord is not allowed to be left alive. It''s nothing personal, I''m just trying to stay alive as well." The middle-aged man shrugged. The two men were fear stricken when they heard the middle-aged man addressing Grey as young lord. "Senior we didn''t..." "Come, take me to your master. No need to try, that cheap trick of yours with that small thing can''t deceive me." The middle-aged man interrupted the man once again. He noticed they were trying to communicate with the young man with the small plaque-like device. Given his strength, blocking them from transmitting anything to the young man was not a problem. The middle-aged man snapped his finger and they all disappeared. _____ In the forest. "Huh! They''re gone." Reynolds said when he noticed that the lights not only stopped following them, but disappeared. Grey asked Void to clarify if the Overlord Plane experts were gone, after getting confirmation, he nodded to the others. "You see, I told you there''s also the probability that this was just a coincidence." said Klaus who was still on Grey''s back. "Let''s keep going, just to be safe. I''m sure those guys are still chasing after us." Grey said not stopping. Klaus who was on Grey''s back was the most carefree among the group. Chapter 257 - Journey To The Academy The group continued running for another fifteen minutes, it was only after Grey was sure they were no longer being chased did he stop. Of course, Void was the one who gave him confirmation. As soon as he stopped, the first thing he did was to throw Klaus off of his back. Klaus who wasn''t expecting Grey to toss him off his back landed b.u.t.t first on the ground and yelped in pain. "Damn you! Couldn''t you just drop me like a normal person would?" He glared at Grey. If not for the fact that he couldn''t beat him, he wouldn''t mind teaching him a lesson. "I could, but doing this is more fun." Grey chuckled as he took a seat on the ground under a tree. They were still in the forest, and since they aren''t being chased anymore, Grey suggested they rested here. He was a little skeptical about why the group from the Azure empire stopped chasing after them. Naturally, given how important the information they found out was, he didn''t think they would let them go. When Void told him they were no longer being chased, and that the group from the Azure empire disappeared, just like the Overlord Plane experts, it left him deep in thought. However, no matter how hard he thought about it, he couldn''t figure out why they stopped chasing them. ''We''re lucky they stopped chasing us though since we''re safe, that''s all that matters.'' He thought. After all, it wasn''t like he wanted them to keep on chasing them. Alice and Reynolds saw how Grey threw Klaus on the floor, and couldn''t help but laugh at his misfortune. He had been telling them about how slow they were, completely forgetting that he was being carried by Grey. They didn''t think he forgot though, he was just a shameless individual. "So now what?" asked Alice as she took a seat close to Grey and Klaus who was still rubbing his b.u.t.t with both hands. "We head back to the Academy. Although I have no interest in this war, we should report it to the principal." Grey said after a moment of silence. "Okay." Alice nodded. With nothing left to say, she entered a meditative state since she had been using her lightning essence throughout the chase. Reynolds also followed suit, leaving Grey and Klaus awake. "Hey, bud." Klaus moved closer to Grey, moving in a very odd way. He still in a sitting position, so he dragged himself along the ground before getting close to Grey. Grey shook his head when he saw Klaus doing this, "Huh?" "Why don''t we take some wine and reminisce about the trial land." suggested Klaus. He didn''t need to recover his elemental essence since he didn''t use any. He wasn''t feeling sleepy as well, so why not have a good time with his friend. "Sure, but we''re not drinking that wine." Grey agreed to them drinking, but they were not to drink the special wine. Klaus agreed since he wasn''t really too bothered about which wine they drank, as long as it was not terrible, he was fine with it. Grey brought out one of the wines he took from Smith''s room, he also had silver cups in his storage ring. The duo stayed up all through the night drinking and chatting, while Void was the one who was mostly on the lookout given the massive range his senses can cover. They spoke about their times in the trial land, Grey told him about the times when he was chased by a horde of Lightning Apes. He almost accidentally also spoke of the bunnies when he was speaking of the times he had to run away, but luckily, he stopped himself on time. If Klaus hears about that, his life would be hell since Klaus would definitely mock him with it. As soon as the sun rose, the group continued their journey once again. They left the forest and used the normal pathway. Klaus was against them walking and suggested they bought a horse once they got to the next city, but the others thought it would be fun if they walked to the Lunar Academy. This would provide them more time to talk about their experiences in the trial land. They passed through multiple small towns before they got to the next city. Klaus refused to leave the city if they didn''t get horses. Grey and Reynolds tried convincing him, but he refused. It was only after Alice stepped in did he agree to it, but it was only after she said they would get a horse once they got to the next city after this one. It took them three days to get to the next city, and it was surprisingly the same city Grey and Chris stopped in when he was being carried to Lunar Academy after his test. This brought a lot of memories back to him, he couldn''t help but laugh when he recalled how Chris was eating when they stopped at the restaurant. He took the group to that same restaurant, telling them how he and Chris stopped here. The food was good which brightened Klaus'' day. Grey had refused to cook since they started the journey, even after being bugged by Klaus and Reynolds. They stayed at an Inn, and on the next day, they followed Klaus'' wish and got a horse. According to their current pace, it would still take them about four days or so before they get to the Academy. If they were walking, it would take about a week at least before they got there. Grey took his time to take in all the sceneries as they headed to the Academy, they passed through different terrains, mountains, swamps, valleys, canyons, and so on. There was a time when they had to cross a river, Grey and the others wanted them to take a boat that was carrying people to the other side, but Klaus had other ideas. Chapter 258 - What Are You Planning Now? On a river, a ship could be seen transporting people from one side of the river bank to the other. The river was around seven kilometers wide. The ship was around one hundred meters long and extended around twenty meters wide. The ship had three floors with each floor having around forty cabins. On the deck of the ship, some people could be seen resting while enjoying the midday sun. "Look!" A young girl that looked to be around fourteen suddenly yelled and pointed behind the ship. Her surprised scream caught everyone''s attention, and they all rushed to the deck to see what the young girl was pointing at. Seeing the sight before them, most of their mouths were left agape from surprise. Klaus could be seen sitting proudly on his horse, with his hair dancing in the wind as his horse ran on top of the ice bridge in front of him, his right hand was outstretched, and snow could be seen coming from it, creating the ice bridge as they went on. His handsome visage caught the attention of most of the young ladies in the ship, making a few blush. The young ladies weren''t the only ones who his face caught their attention, the young men on the ship who were planning to speak to the young ladies had sour faces since Klaus had ruined their chances, seeing how most of the ladies were reacting. When Klaus noticed how they were looking at him, he made the ice bridge go closer to the ship, while also taking it higher so he could be at the same height as the deck of the ship. Grey, Reynolds, and Alice who were behind him looked at each other lost for words. When Klaus told them of the idea, he said he didn''t want them to waste their hard-earned money. Now, they already knew he only wanted to show off. "No wonder he waited till the ship set off before he said we should go as well." Grey said in enlightenment. "Yeah. But, this is not the most shameless thing he has done, so I''m not surprised." Reynolds nodded. They''ve already gotten used to Klaus'' shamelessness, so whenever he does things like this, they are never really surprised. Alice looked behind them to watch as the ice bridge was steadily thawing out. When she asked him why he didn''t make it last longer, he said this would make it more dramatic. Klaus was almost ten meters ahead of the trio, the reason for this was simple, he didn''t want to be close to Grey. "Wow! So handsome!" "And he''s powerful too!" "He must be from the greatest Academy." "Yeah, just look at his dazzling hair." Some young ladies exclaimed in awe, from Klaus'' appearance, it wasn''t hard for them to figure out he was around their age. Klaus smiled softly when he heard all this, but he didn''t look at them. His smile got even wider when he heard a lady saying she wouldn''t mind being his servant girl. Most of the young people here were around the Fusion and the early Stages of the Arcane Plane, none could use their elements as well as he does. Just as he was having a great time, what he expected happened. "Wow! The one behind him is even more handsome!" "He''s beautiful." Louder exclamations rang out when Grey''s horse got close to the ship. Klaus almost felt like kicking the young ladies, they didn''t even praise him close to five seconds before they all turned their attentions to Grey. It couldn''t be helped, Grey was just too handsome. Grey was the only guy his age he had seen that had superior looks to him. Alice who was with them looked at the girls who were screaming loudly, she didn''t know why they were acting this way. When she first saw Grey, she couldn''t deny it, his face left her dumbstruck for a few seconds, but she didn''t have the kind of reaction these girls currently had. Unlike Klaus, Grey felt a little embarrassed being stared at in such a way. It made him a little uncomfortable, he knew he was handsome, but isn''t their reaction a little over the top? Klaus who wasn''t being stared at by the young ladies anymore quickly lowered the ice bridge, before giving the ship some distance. The people on the ship watched as the moving ice bridge disappeared from sight. ''Well, at least I got to enjoy the feeling, even though it was only for a few seconds, it was worth it.'' Klaus thought, trying to encourage himself. "You''re a nutjob." Reynolds said. "Haha, if only you''re as handsome as we are. Then, you''ll know why." Klaus laughed before throwing a glance at Grey. "How did you end up like this?" Grey shook his head as he asked. The only reason Klaus made the ice bridge was that he wanted to show off. "It''s a gift. Now tell me, how did you feel a few seconds ago?" Klaus asked. "Uncomfortable." Grey said with an odd expression. ''This is going to be hard, with this mindset, he will never get a girlfriend. Which boy feels uncomfortable when being stared at by so many girls?'' thought Klaus. Klaus was almost one hundred percent sure that if Grey had his skills, then he would get more girls. Grey''s answer made him take the decision of wanting to make sure Grey had a girlfriend soon. "Do you hate girls?" asked Klaus. "No, why would I?" Grey replied. "Do you, you know, like boys?" Klaus brought his horse closer to Grey and whispered to him. "Of course not! Where''s this going?" Grey almost pushed Klaus into the river. Klaus looked at Grey, as if sizing him up, while occasionally nodding his head. His stare frightened Grey because Grey knew whenever he''s acting this way, it''s that he''s planning to do something crazy. "What are you planning to do now?" questioned Grey. "Oh! nothing." Klaus shrugged. His reply scared Grey even more. Chapter 259 - Its All About Perspectives After getting to the other side of the river, they continued their journey to the Academy. The group would occasionally stop at different cities and towns so the horses could rest. One week later. Grey, Alice, Klaus, and Reynolds could be seen riding towards the huge compound of the Lunar Academy. It surprisingly took them a week to get here, even though according to Grey''s calculations, they were supposed to reach here three days ago. "If only you agreed to us taking the route Reynolds suggested, we would''ve been here sooner." Grey said turning around to face Klaus. "I knew that route was longer, that was why I picked it in the first place." Klaus said not admitting he was wrong. "Bullshit! The only reason we took the route was that you said we should take it since it was shorter." Reynolds said, imitating Klaus when saying the last part of his statement. "Your route was boring, mine was great." Klaus didn''t back down. "How is being almost robbed great?" asked Reynolds. "By people who just broke through to the Origin Plane. Didn''t you enjoy whooping their asses? Cause I sure did. Also, when we saved that small village from being destroyed by a horde of magical beasts, didn''t you feel like a hero?" Klaus said putting a heroic posture as they rode closer to the Academy. "I get the part where we were almost robbed, but since when did killing the last beast make you the hero of the village?" Grey looked at Klaus with raised eyebrows. When they defeated the bandits who tried to rob them, they took them to the city close to where the bandits'' hideout was located. After they dropped the bandits off to the guards there, they continued their journey only to see multiple dead bodies of people and magical beasts on a path. They followed the trail and saw that a village was being attacked by a horde of beasts, but the villagers were already close to victory with only a few beasts still alive. Before they got to the village, there was only one beast left alive, and the warriors of the village had no problem in killing it since it wasn''t the strongest beast anyway. But before anyone could attack it, Klaus created a huge ice shard that he used to stab it. The villagers naturally were grateful, although Klaus killed only a single beast, it showed he was trying to be helpful since the villagers noticed that they only just arrived. "Grey my friend, let me tell you something you still don''t know, it''s not about the journey, it''s about the beginning, and the ending." Klaus said putting on the air of an otherworldly wise old man. "What do you mean not about the journey? What if you die on the journey?" Grey felt like using a boulder to smack Klaus'' head, maybe he would start thinking properly then. "If you die in the journey, then technically, that''s the end of your journey. Everything has an end, that why you should make the most out of your life, like me." Klaus said thoughtfully. "Where do you hear all this?" Grey couldn''t help but ask. "From a wise old man." Klaus said respectfully. "You mean the crazy old drunk who sits by the side of the road close to The Garland tavern in the city?" Grey easily guessed the identity of the wise old man Klaus was speaking about. In Lunar City, Klaus loved going to two places whenever he wants to drink and have fun. One was The Cony tavern, and the other which Grey personally prefers going was The Garland tavern. "You see, it''s all about perspective when we view things. From your perspective, he''s a crazy old drunk, but from my perspective, he''s a wise old man. It''s amazing how two people see the same thing in different ways." Klaus didn''t try to deny that the wise old man was the same person Grey was talking about. "Where did you hear this as well? No wait don''t answer that, it''s also from the wise old man." Grey asked but answered the question himself since he knew Klaus was going to give him the same answer. "You should take some life lessons from him, two silver coins could make you a whole lot wiser. Rey, I don''t think he can help your case though, I brought your issue up to him some time back, and he was flabbergasted by how your head works." Klaus said to Grey, before patting Reynolds'' shoulder sympathetically. "I under... Wait, what?!" Reynolds almost jumped out of his horse to attack Klaus. Other than being stronger than Klaus, Klaus defeats him in every other aspect, especially when it came to cursing. Sometimes he wonders how great Klaus would be if he actually decides to spend the time he uses in annoying someone in thinking of something good. Klaus'' quick-wittedness when it came to annoying a person was insane, it makes him wonder about the purpose of life sometimes. "Nothing." Klaus refused to speak on the issue any further. Grey looked at the duo and smiled softly, Klaus seems to always think of ways to annoy Reynolds. "Does this mean you''re going to end up like a ''wise old man'' as well?" Grey asked with a smirk. "Yes." Klaus nodded, but his expression soon changed when Alice and Reynolds started chuckling, "Wait, no, no. We don''t know what the world has in store for us." "But you said to make the most out of your life, the wise old man sure is doing it. He does what he loves doing, that is drinking, you on the other hand are not far from that." Grey continued with a smile. He had finally gotten a chance to win Klaus in a war of words, this was a once in a lifetime opportunity, how could he dare waste it? "Well played Grey, well played." Klaus said with squinted eyes while nodding. Grey and the others burst into laughter when they realized Klaus admitted defeat. ''Reynolds should be happy, Grey just took the baton from him without him asking.'' Klaus thought. The baton in this case was who he would naturally annoy. Chapter 260 - He Must Be A Bigshot! "Finally, I''ve missed this place." Grey took in a deep breath when they got to the gate of the Academy. It had been six months since they left, and now they''ve returned, stronger than before. The Academy''s gate wasn''t as deserted as it has always been which was came as a surprise to the group. They would rarely see people at the Academy gates whenever they came back from a mission, but there were surprisingly almost ten people who were walking into the Academy at the time they got here. The group didn''t bother about it, after all, it wasn''t like there weren''t people in the Academy. Of the group, Alice could be said to be the one who didn''t have a major power-up other than increasing her Plane and elemental grade with the Great Earth Essence Liquid, she got nothing else. Klaus was able to learn a move that increased his ice ability to a terrifying stage, and it was still on the increase. Reynolds became a high-grade summoner. While Grey awakened two more elements, got a spatial ring, formed a bond with an amazing cat who introduced the space element to him. The flame of the fire element that he recently awakened was blue, while also having a never before heard of cyan elemental grade. All these are added to the fact that he still got a multi-elemental weapon. If anyone were to get just one of these things, they would feel extremely lucky. "I didn''t miss it much, the trial land was more fun." Klaus said while highlighting his horse. "It''s safer here, but you''re right, that place was fun." Grey followed suit. Alice and Reynolds came down as well. Void had been with Alice almost all through the journey. Just as they were about to go in, Reynolds asked a question that Grey wanted to ask the last time he came back with a horse, "What happens to the horses?" "Huh?" Klaus looked at him with a confused expression. "You know, the horses. I''ve never seen any horses in the Academy, and I never get to see the ones I leave outside whenever I come back out." Reynolds pointed at the horses that were tied on the side of the Academy gate. "Hmm, I don''t know. I''ll ask my dad once I see him." Klaus said. When Grey heard Klaus speaking about his father, he suddenly recalled his Teacher. "You guys head in first, I''ll go see someone." He turned around and started walking out of the Academy compound once again. When Void saw this, he quickly vanished and appeared on Grey''s shoulder. Leaving two young boys who were about to walk out of the Academy dumbstruck. "Come back soon, we''ll wait for you at my place. You know we have to report to the principal about what we heard." Klaus said. "I won''t take long." Grey nodded before heading to the back of the Academy. He passed a group of youngsters that were around twelve to thirteen years of age, he couldn''t help but reminisce about the first time he went for the test. It was a depressing moment in his life. ''Looks like they''ve just been admitted.'' He thought to himself. When he got to the back of the Academy, he soon got to the area he does his daily physical training, he smiled softly before advancing on his journey. After he got to the place where he tried fusing the elements for the first time, he couldn''t help himself but burst out into laughter. The trees around had already started growing once again, and all signs of the destruction he caused here were gone. Void who was on his shoulder couldn''t help but look at him in a strange manner, he didn''t understand why Grey suddenly started laughing. ''Why are you laughing?'' Void couldn''t help but ask. ''Oh, it''s nothing much, I just recalled something that happened here some time ago...'' Grey went on to tell him about how he almost lost his life to his experiment. He didn''t tell Void he got the power or the technique from the Chaos God, so telling him about it wasn''t a problem. ''Haha, to think you actually almost killed yourself.'' Void laughed when he heard how Grey ran for his life when he lost control of the orb. ''Yeah, funny.'' Grey said while staring at his open palm. He slowly clenched it with a smile, that technique turned out to be very important during his time in the trial land. If not for it, he wouldn''t have been able to defeat the last golem in a short time. It has also been greatly beneficial to some of his battles. He walked past the place, before getting to the rock that led to the valley where Chris stayed. It has been so long he met his Teacher, he couldn''t help but wonder how he was doing. Thinking of Chris made him chuckle once again, ''I think the first thing he''ll tell me to do once he sees me is to cook him a meal.'' The thought made him laugh out again, before making weird hand seals and hitting multiple places on the rock. Even though he didn''t sense anyone following him, he has already gotten used to making hand seals before opening the rock. ''Oh! A secret passage?'' Void exclaimed softly. ''Yeah, my Teacher stays here.'' Grey said as he walked into the tunnel. ''Your Teacher? He''s separate from the ones at the Academy?'' asked Void. ''Yeah, I don''t think he teaches anyone else in the Academy. Also, behave yourself, he has a fiery temper, he might probably want to cook you if you make him mad.'' Grey warned as they got closer to the end of the tunnel. ''Hmph! If he can catch me.'' Void snorted. ''I might not think anyone else can catch you, but my Teacher doesn''t count as anyone. I don''t really know much about him, but I heard even the emperor of the empire doesn''t want to offend him.'' Grey stated proudly. ''Wow! He must be a bigshot!'' Void was amazed by Grey''s Teacher. ''Of course, do you think someone mediocre could teach me?'' Grey asked smugly. Void didn''t reply and waited patiently to see who Grey''s Teacher was. Chapter 261 - Your Teacher Lives Here? Grey walked out of the tunnel and into the valley, hoping to be welcomed by Brown. "Huh! He''s not here." Grey looked around when he didn''t feel nor see Brown jumping on him. After looking around, he quickly discerned that they weren''t around. He thought of the possibility of Chris being sent to become a representative, but he threw that thought away when he recalled seeing youngsters while he was coming here. "Hmm, looks like he went out." Grey mumbled as he walked towards Chris'' house. ''There''s no one here.'' Void said after sweeping the area with his spiritual sense. "Yeah, looks like Teacher went out." said Grey as he stood in front of the door. He looked to the side and noticed the small barn where Chris used to train rabbits and chickens were empty. "He must have been gone for a long time now." Grey speculated. ''Your Teacher lives here?'' asked Void. Grey nodded, before turning to look at the lake in front of Chris'' house. He gently c.a.r.e.s.sed the chair Chris used to seat on. ''Like in this small wooden house?'' Void asked scrutinizing Chris'' house. ''No.'' Grey replied with a blank look. ''Oh, thank...'' ''Of course, he lives here, what''s so bad about it?'' Grey glared at him. ''Nothing, it''s great, very peaceful.'' replied Void. ''How can a bigshot live in such a place? There are no shiny things here!'' Void thought internally. But of course, he kept his thoughts to himself. Over the time they had spent coming to the Academy, he had seen how lavishly people who regard themselves as bigshots live in those cities and towns, even a small village''s bigshot possessed some shiny things. Yet, Grey''s Teacher who according to him the emperor was wary of didn''t have any, how preposterous! ''Shiny things are a symbol of power, yet such a powerful man doesn''t have any, such a shame.'' Void shook his head while saying to himself. "*Sigh* Let''s go, instructor Blake would know where he went to." Grey sighed before heading back to the tunnel. He took another look at the valley before stepping into the tunnel. After leaving the valley, he headed straight for Klaus'' building and was surprised to see the two boys cleaning Klaus'' house. "Haha, good thing you''re here. Join us." Klaus invited Grey the moment he saw him. "Where''s Alice?" Grey asked when he didn''t see Alice around. "Seeing how dusty my house was, she decided to go clean hers." Klaus said. "Then why is he here?" Grey pointed at the hardworking Reynolds. "Oh, I promised to help him when he''s cleaning his house as well." said Klaus with a mysterious smile. Grey looked at him, then at Klaus, before shaking his head. Klaus was probably trying to take advantage of Reynolds, this would most definitely not end well for him. All Reynolds needs to do is summon his Elemental Warrior, and Klaus is toast. "Why are you looking at me that way?" Klaus asked disapprovingly when he noticed the look Grey was giving him. "Nothing." Grey didn''t bother to advise him, sometimes, it was best to just let some people suffer for their stupidity. "You think I''m not going to help him?" Klaus asked with a long face. "Your smile said so." Grey didn''t deny it. "Of course I''ll help him, it''s a deal after all." Klaus said thumping his c.h.e.s.t. "Although I don''t believe you, I''m not going to speak about it. But why are you the one outside, and he''s inside." Grey asked thoughtfully. "So that I can receive the guests." Klaus responded, making Grey roll his eyes. It wasn''t hard to see that Klaus was only trying to avoid doing most of the work. "Yeah...good luck with that. I''m going to go clean my house now, it must be in a terrible state by now." Grey said before heading straight for his building, not minding how Klaus and Reynolds were going to settle their upcoming dispute. "Okay, we''ll head over once we''re done with Rey''s house!" Klaus waved at him before getting back to work, this time, he went inside. ''I still think Rey is going to beat him up.'' Grey said to Void. ''Fat chance, Klaus will think of a way around it. Also, I think he''s going to try to get revenge for the time he carried Reynolds, and Reynolds refused to carry him.'' Void speculated. ''Revenge, that''s very likely. Heh! Rey is still going to beat him up.'' Grey stood by his first statement. Getting to his house, it was just like he left it, only, dusty. The chairs not only had dust, but cobwebs as well. Without wasting any more time, he quickly got to work. The wind and the water element were quite useful since they made the work easier for him. He used the wind element to blow out all the dust in the parlor, before using the water element to wipe every part of it clean. It didn''t even take him up to ten minutes to completely clean his house. After all, all he had was a parlor and a single room. Given the huge space each compound had, it wouldn''t be easy for anyone to build a villa or a mansion in their compound. Even after building it, there would still be some space left. Of the group, although Grey was the last to come back, he was the first to get his house to its previous clean state. He noticed that the building on his left was currently occupied. With nothing left to do, he sat outside his house, on a small lawn and waited for his friends to come over so they could all report to the principal''s office. Klaus and Alice were popular amongst the students, so a few had already started spreading the rumor of their return. Grey was also very popular because of his face, but since he''s not as social as Klaus, there were very few people he spoke with other than his three friends. Chapter 262 - Visiting The Principals Office "You guys are early," Grey said when he saw Klaus and Reynolds walking into the compound. He was a little taken aback when he realized Klaus was actually looking okay, he initially expected Reynolds would rough him up when he refuses to help him clean his house. "Why wouldn''t we?" Reynolds asked before taking a seat close to Grey. Grey threw a glance at Klaus, and Reynolds immediately understood why before bursting out into laughter. "Of course I''d help him, we''re friends after all," Klaus said in discontent before glaring at Reynolds which increased Reynolds'' fit of laughter. Seeing this, Grey knew something definitely happened. He gave Reynolds a questioning stare. "Actually, when we got to my house, he said he wasn''t going to help me, and I summoned my Elemental Warrior." Reynolds chuckled while saying. "I told you, it was a joke," Klaus explained. "And my Elemental Warrior only appeared so he could laugh at the joke," Reynolds said, making Grey laugh alongside him. "Did you, you know, beat him a little?" Grey whispered to Reynolds. "Nah, he immediately started helping when he saw the appearance of the Elemental Warrior," Reynolds said with a little remorseful, he would have loved to teach Klaus a lesson or two. After all, this was the only advantage he had over him. "Hmph! Don''t get ahead of yourself, do you think I can''t beat that little summon of yours?" Klaus snorted coldly. "No, no you can''t." Grey was the one who answered with a sneer. "I don''t like outside interferences when fighting, if he knows he a man, then he should face me one-on-one, without any summons." Klaus glared at the duo. He knew there was no way for him to beat them in a fight, well, if Reynolds doesn''t use his Elemental Warrior, then he had at least a sixty percent chance. But since he knew that was impossible, and he couldn''t beat them in a fight, he would defeat them with words. "Let''s head over to Alice''s place, you know we still need to report to the principal," suggested Grey after they were done laughing at Klaus. "Why don''t we go to the city instead?" Klaus looked at the two, making Grey facepalm. "This is an information that will save thousands of lives, we''ve already wasted so much time cleaning our houses, now you want to have fun instead?" Grey almost felt like knocking some sense into Klaus. "I''m joking. Why are you all so serious? Take life as it comes, you''ll live better, although not always long, but better." Klaus advised. "Another one of the wise old man''s teaches?" Grey asked with furrowed brows. "Yeah. Don''t always get too worked up or serious, I know sometimes it''s good to be serious, but not always. Always being too focused on the goal will make you lose touch with the things around you." Klaus continued his advice. "From the man as well?" Reynolds asked. "No, this is from me." Klaus shook his head, feeling proud that he managed to come up with something like this. ''I should write it down, I''ll write a book about all my teachings about life and spread it across the entire empire, no, the continent.'' He thought in excitement. They left Grey''s house and headed for Alice''s place, with Klaus deep in thought. He would occasionally nod his head while rubbing his chin. His strange behavior confused Grey and Reynolds who were walking behind him. Getting to Alice''s place, they saw her coming out of her house. She looked fresh and clean, and even put on new clothes which reminded the boys that they didn''t even bother to bathe after cleaning their houses. They have been wearing the same clothes for weeks now. Alice was slightly taller than the time they left for the trial land, which made the clothing she wore a little short, but it wasn''t too noticeable. She wore a long scarlet red dress that extended to her knees and light blue trousers which were just above her ankle. Her brown hair was tied into a ponytail, bringing out her youthful face. "Why are you all still wearing the same clothes?" She asked seeing the trio. Grey laughed awkwardly before replying, "We wanted to make sure we got to the principal''s office without wasting any more time." Alice looked at them, seeing their expressions, she knew they didn''t even think of wearing new clothes. She was more surprised about Grey since he usually baths a lot before they went to the trail land. "Heh! Pigs." She sneered before skipping in front of the trio, leading them to the principal''s office. Grey didn''t reply and followed behind her, Klaus gave Reynolds a look before joining Alice and Grey. Reynolds was left surprised by the look Klaus gave to him, it was almost like he was saying, this was your fault. On their way to the Academy, they encountered a few instructors who followed them to the Capital. Seeing the improvements made by the students exhilarated them. Grey''s improvement was particularly extraordinary, he was already at a stage where he could even decide to be an instructor in the Academy. To become an instructor in the Lunar Academy needed to be at least in the Fourth stage of the Origin Plane. The requirements were a little lower in the other Academies, as long as you have broken through to the Origin Plane, you''re eligible to become one. On getting to the principal''s office, Klaus stepped forward. Although they had a piece of important information, if not for the fact that the principal was his father, there was no way they would''ve come here. They would''ve at most, gone to meet an instructor, someone like Blake, then he would then bring them here. Klaus softly knocked on the door, after waiting for a few seconds and not getting a reply, he knocked on it again. "Come in, son." Oliver''s voice came from inside the office, "You three as well." The group wasn''t surprised by the fact that the principal knew Klaus was the one knocking, they would have been surprised if he didn''t. Chapter 263 - What Do I Do Now? "Hmm, this is a very important information for the empire." Oliver said with both fingers interlocked, supporting his chin. After the group entered, before he could ask how their experience in the trial land was, they told him about what they found out in Zivia City, it was something he couldn''t neglect. "I can see you all made great improvements." Oliver nodded with a smile while examining the youths. Klaus was already sitting opposite Oliver, while the others were still standing. They couldn''t take a seat without being invited, unlike Klaus. He asked a little about what they faced in the trial land which the group answered accordingly. Of course, they didn''t tell him everything since it wasn''t necessary. "You can leave now, except for you two." He said pointing at Klaus and Grey. "Also, call Blake over." He added before Alice and Reynolds left the office. "Okay sir." The duo bowed before leaving the office. Grey was a little confused because since he got admitted into the school, he had never had any interactions with the principal, the only time he saw him was when Chris took him to the Capital. "Take a seat." Oliver showed Grey the second seat that was in front of the desk. "I know you must have gone to check on your Teacher." Oliver asked with a small smile. "Yes sir, but he''s not there." Grey replied a little surprised that Oliver guessed he went to see Chris first. "Wait, you have a Teacher?" Klaus asked before Oliver could continue speaking, he didn''t mean to interrupt their conversation, it was just that he was dumbfounded by the discovery. "Yeah, I thought I told you about it?" Grey asked with a confused expression. "No, no you did not." Klaus shook his head while still wearing a shocked expression. "Crap, it must have slipped my mind. But yeah, I do. How else do you think I learned inscribing?" Grey asked with a thoughtful expression. After accepting Chris as his Teacher, he didn''t tell them about it, and since he usually trains outside, his friends didn''t ask. When they left for the trial land, he had completely forgotten about not telling them that he had a Teacher. "Oh, so who is it?" Klaus asked curiously. Oliver who was sitting in his seat looked at the two youngsters with a smile, he couldn''t help but recall his friendship with Chris. When he was younger, although he wasn''t as playful as Klaus, compared to the always serious-looking Chris, he was better. As they grew older, he started changing to the serious one, while Chris turned to the one who doesn''t bother about anything and lives a carefree life. Sometimes, he wonders if his decision to become the principal of the Academy was the right choice. He coughed lightly to draw the duo''s attention back to him, "Your Teacher has been gone for quite a while now, no one knows where he went to, or when he''ll return. I asked you to stay to see if you might know where he might have gone to." He felt since Chris took Grey as his disciple, he must have a special place in his life, so maybe he might''ve told him about a secret place he usually goes to. "No, I don''t." Grey shook his head without thinking about it. There was no need to, other than teaching him, Chris rarely speaks about other things, well, except for food. "Oh, okay. You can leave now, I''ll call you if I need you." Oliver replied before switching his attention to Klaus. "Goodbye sir. I''ll be waiting outside." Grey stood up from his seat and bowed to Oliver before saying to Klaus. "I don''t think you''ll need to wait." Oliver said gently. "Alright." Grey responded before leaving the office and heading straight for his house. He needed to take a bath. "Dad, is anything wrong?" Klaus asked when he saw Oliver''s serious expression after Grey left. Oliver is usually almost always serious, but not when they were alone together. ________ On getting home, Grey found Void sleeping casually on the bed. He didn''t bother about him and went straight to the bathroom. Since he had the fire and water elements now, he didn''t need to get water, or boil it before bathing, all he needs to do is make water appear on the bathtub, then place a finger into it, heating it to the temperature he feels will be comfortable for him. That day turned out to be uneventful since he didn''t see Klaus for the rest of the day, Alice and Reynolds seemed to have plans hence he was unable to see them as well. With nothing left to do, he decided to rest for the rest of the day. The next day. Grey woke early the next morning and headed straight to the forest at the back of the Academy, accompanied by Void. It had been a long time since he trained his physical body. Void watched Grey running around a certain area, doing pull-ups, push-ups, squats, and so on. ''You do this daily just to have a strong body?'' He couldn''t help but ask. ''Yeah. This is why compared to other Elementalists in the same stage, I have a far greater speed.'' Grey replied. He was grateful that when communicating with Void, he didn''t always need to speak out. In his current worn-out state, he was already struggling to catch his breath, there was no way for him to speak properly in that state. ''That''s quite a lot, we don''t need all this to have our superior bodies.'' Void said proudly. ''Have you seen yourself?'' Grey asked sarcastically. He found Void classifying himself as part of magical beasts with superior bodies funny. ''Of course, do you think you humans can compare with us when it comes to better physiques?'' Void asked mockingly. ''A dragon, no. But you, heh!'' Grey smirked, he didn''t complete his statement, but his reaction said it all. Void was annoyed by Grey belittling him, but Grey didn''t bother to argue with him. He had other things on his mind. ''Since Teacher is gone, and given my Plane, there''s little I can learn from the Academy, what do I do now?'' He asked himself. Chapter 264 - The Forge ''Hmm, I have multiple elemental techniques, they should be able to help me with my other elements. Then there are the items I obtained in the trial land.'' Grey thought to himself. He was currently stuck between selling them or doing something else with them. ''I recall the Academy having a forgery class or something.'' An idea struck him, since he wouldn''t be going to elemental classes anymore, he would go for one that creates things. After joining the Academy, his main focus was getting stronger, therefore, he didn''t take his time to fully explore the Academy. All he did was to go to elemental classes, once he''s done, he would go for his personal training. The only time he heard about the Academy having a forgery class was when he overheard it at the library. He still wasn''t too sure. The truth was, each Academy has Blacksmiths and Physicians. They are the ones who create the weapons, as well as the tonics that the students had access to. There are even array classes. But Grey never looked around. It was just as Klaus said, he was too focused on his goal that he lost sight of the things around him. ''Alice should be aware of it.'' He immediately came to a decision and went back home. There were a ton of materials in his storage ring, he planned to try out forgery. If he could become a blacksmith, then maybe he could create weapons for himself, there''s even the chance of creating something like the multi-elemental sword. The sword says the reason he thought of this, its essence consumption was too high that even in his current state, he couldn''t use it to unleash more than four moves. One has to recall that his elemental essence was more than double of what any other Elementalist his stage has. The high consumption led him to thinking maybe there was a problem with the sword, if he could learn forgery, then he might be to figure out how to reduce it. On getting home, he quickly took a bath, changed into better clothes before heading straight for Alice''s place. Getting there, he asked if there truly were forgery classes in the Academy, leaving Alice dumbfounded. "You''ve been in the Academy for over two years, and you''re saying you didn''t know there were forge classes?" Alice couldn''t help but ask again. Grey scratched his head before nodding awkwardly since he knew it was quite weird for someone to be in a place for over two years yet know only three or four places. He had never been to the Water Hall, nor the Fire Hall, and because he didn''t have the elements at then, he felt he didn''t need to. "Didn''t you take arrays classes?" Alice asked still shocked. The forgery class was right next to the arrays class, there was no way he would be that oblivious and miss it. "Wait, there are arrays classes?" Grey asked with a shocked expression. "Of course there are arrays classes, unless, you learned arrays from somewhere else." Alice said while giving Grey a suspicious look. "I have a Teacher." Grey said but made sure to take two steps back. "Oh, in the Academy?" Alice asked. "I don''t really know if he''s part of the Academy, but you should know him." Grey went on to tell her about Chris which stunned Alice even more. She was from a big family and was fully aware of how highly regarded Chris was. Chris could be said to be the reason the Lunar Academy was at its current height. He might not be an instructor, but his presence was more than enough. After managing to calm herself down, she told him where the forge was, and also where students take forgery classes. With Alice pointing him in the direction, he headed for the forge first. He had never been to a forge before, other than seeing the few blacksmiths shops at Red City, he didn''t see the actual forge, the place where all the weapons and tools were created. On getting to the forge, he was surprised to see a huge building in front of him. He had always thought that a forge would be a small place. He went in to see what it looked like inside, on getting inside, he was greeted by the sight of two people working. It was just like a normal blacksmith''s workshop, with a furnace at the extreme end of the building, a boat-like wooden object with water in it, it was probably what was used in cooling the items after they were shaped. There was a normal-sized table inside, Grey didn''t know what it was used for, there was also a hammer which looked too shiny, he guessed it was rarely used here since it was lying close to a man who was working on what looked like a shield. He saw coals staked up close to the furnace, and a young man who looked around his age could be seen putting some in the fire underneath the furnace. He would also occasionally use his fire element to increase the temperature. The use of the coal is so that the furnace could maintain a steady temperature since the Fire Elementalist couldn''t release fire constantly for long. The man who was working on the shield was an Earth Elementalist, he created a huge earthen hammer that he used in shaping the shield. Grey stood at the door of the forge for over ten minutes just watching how forgery works. The man working on the shield saw him when he entered, but didn''t bother about him. A lot of students come to the forge, but after seeing the strenuous work, they always run away, he didn''t see the need to chase this one since he would leave on his own. Chapter 265 - Forgemastering Grey watched on for a little longer before leaving the forge, now, he wanted to check out the forgery classes. For someone who woke up every morning to train his physical body, before doing his normal elemental training, and then cultivating later in the day, he didn''t see the process of forging to be strenuous. He actually looked at it as another way of practice. The man watched on as Grey left the forge, but didn''t even say anything. Over the past two years, only five students had stayed in the forge for longer than a week. They all had the same excuses, ''How could top experts become blacksmiths?''. _______ The building where the forgery classes take place was close to the actual forge. Grey walked in and was surprised by how few the people taking the class were. Doing a headcount, there were only about thirty plus people, and most of them had uninterested looks. ''If they aren''t interested, why did they bother to come?'' He couldn''t help but ask himself. The instructor was a middle-aged man who had shoulder-length blonde hair, he stood at around six foot two and had a burly build. He had a mustache which was the same color as his hair and was dressed in brown loose clothes. "Come in, the class is just about to start." The man said when he saw Grey standing at the doorway. He thought the reason Grey didn''t enter was that he felt the lessons had started, and barging in without invitation was rude. Grey was surprised since he originally didn''t plan on coming in today, he only wanted to take a peek at the class then go back home to contemplate. ''Oh well, it''s not like I have anything to do anyway.'' With a shrug, he calmly walked into the class while being watched by the over thirty people in the class. He wasn''t really bothered by the looks they were giving him, finding an empty seat at the front, he took it without much deliberation. Since he came here to learn, then of course he would be at the forefront so he could hear every single thing the instructor says. "Hello students, my name is Instructor Scott Dunstan, and I will be the one who will teach you all you need to know about forgery before you go for the practicals. Usually, forgery classes are mostly practicals, but there are some things you should be aware of before going." "Firstly, there are two branches of forgery, which are forgery, and forgemastering. The difference between both is simple, arrays. A forger can forge weapons which are used by those in the Collection and Fusion Planes, they also forge tools used for daily activities." "Forgemasters on the other hand, create elemental weapons. Unlike normal forging, a forgemaster will have to inscribe arrays in the object, while forging it." "I presume most of you should know about this. Also, this class only accepts two kinds of Elementalists, Earth and Fire Elementalists. Since some of you are still in the Fusion Plane, the class will be divided as those in the Arcane Plane, and above will need actual practicals. But for now, I''ll distribute these books to you all, you have thirty minutes to go through the first three chapters." The book was surprisingly smaller than what Grey expected, being someone who enjoys learning new things, he quickly dug into the new world of forging that he had discovered. Luckily, he left Void with Alice, or else, he wouldn''t have been able to focus with him around. Hearing about forgemastering excited some of the students, every single one of them here is either an Earth Elementalist or a Fire Elementalist, a few of them is actually both. They all enthusiastically took the books to study their content. The first three chapters only contained the basics of forging as well as the types of forging. It glossed a little at forgemastering, and some of the mistakes to avoid. Arrays can only be inscribed in the weapon just before the start of the tempering phase. It is a very fast process that only those that are proficient in arrays can do due to the small timeline given. Thirty minutes later, Instructor Dunstan stood up, "Students above the Fusion Plane should step forward." Grey and about twenty more youths stood up, of the other twenty, eight of them were ladies. "Hmm, come with me. As for the rest of you, continue studying the book, I''ll send someone over." Instructor Dunstan led Grey and the twenty other youths to another room that was on the upper left side of the class. The room was bigger than the previous one, and as soon as Grey stepped in, he recalled the forge he saw earlier, only, this one only had furnaces. There were at least fifty furnaces in the room. "Forgery is all about practicals, without sufficient practicals, you can''t actually do anything." Instructor Dunstan said as the group entered the forge. "Here, you all will be tasked with different practicals, of course, the materials you will be using are only cheap metals which the Academy has in tons." "There are different steps in forging, but for now, we''ll focus on the heating step. Here, you will all be tasked to regulate the temperature of the furnace to the required intensity to be able to melt the items inside the furnace." "Because of the properties of each material, they all require different temperatures. Since you''re all students, we can''t use actual high-end materials, for now." Instructor Dunstan said with a smile. Grey listened intently as Instructor Dunstan continued speaking on the temperature needed for melting. Instructor Dunstan further went on to give them an example, he was surprisingly a Dual Elementalist, being a Fire and an Earth Elementalist. After he was done with his example, "This process is better for Fire Elementalists since it''s easier for them to regulate the flames. Of course, the others are allowed to give it a try." Chapter 266 - Forgemastering II "Now, each of you, pick a furnace." Instructor Dunstan ordered. Grey and the other students went on to stand in front of different furnaces. The one Grey picked was on the right side of the room. There were damaged ingots of low quality close to the furnace, as well as coal. Instructor Dunstan''s example wasn''t long, only about five minutes or so. He explained the process of regulating the temperature, and when and how to know when to increase, and decrease the fire. Grey placed the ingots in the furnace, before placing them in coal. "Too much." Instructor Dunstan''s voice sounded beside his ear. "If the amount of coal placed in is too much, it would increase the difficulty of the heating process, of course, given your Plane, you shouldn''t have any problems with controlling the intensity of your flame." He added. Just like Grey, Instructor Dunstan was still in the Origin Plane, although he was in the Ninth stage, he couldn''t compare himself with Grey. From Grey''s appearance, he guessed he wasn''t over twenty. He had never seen anyone Grey''s age that was already in the Origin Plane, much less in the Fifth stage. ''He must have been one of those who went for the special training.'' He thought to himself. "I''m not really proficient in regulating the intensity of my flame, I''ll still need your guidance, Instructor." Grey said with a light bow. Instructor Dunstan nodded slightly before heading over to assist the other students. Of the twenty others, three were Earth Elementalists, so they had to use the more traditional way in the heating process. Grey took out some coal, before lighting up the furnace. His rare blue flames once again caught the attention of everyone in the room. Instructor Dunstan was dumbstruck when he saw Grey''s flame. This was the first time he was seeing a special flame, and he felt overwhelmed by the difference between it and normal flames. He was further left speechless when he recalled how effective special flames were in forging. There are three grades of special flames, and Grey''s blue flame was surprisingly in the mid grades. Seeing something like this, to a blacksmith like Instructor Dunstan was a dream come true. He didn''t go over to Grey though, rather, he urged the other to continue what they were doing. Giving Grey a special treatment because of his flame was not something someone of his character would do, it was not something that was allowed in the Lunar Academy. In the Academy, all students must be treated equally by the Instructors. Oliver places this law in the Academy to improve the courage of some of the students. There are some people that naturally have low self-esteem, seeing others getting special treatments would further decrease the already low self-esteem, this will in turn affect their cultivation life. Grey and the others stayed in the room, practicing their flame control as well as the intensity of their flames. After staying in the room for almost three hours, only one student made substantial improvements, and it was unsurprisingly not Grey. In the aspect of learning, Grey couldn''t be said to be the brightest, this was proven with his time learning arrays. His advantage was his dedication and inhumane hard work. The student was a young lady called Aella. Grey didn''t know her full name, just the name she was called by her friends. This motivated Grey to trying harder so he could make some improvements, but even after staying two more hours, his control only increased by a little. ''This is good, at least there are some improvements.'' He thought to himself. Luckily, Void wasn''t here, or else he would have laughed him to no end. Of the twenty-one students, Grey could be said to be average in terms of improvements, this was with the fact that he had a higher Plane, and a better fire. Instructor Dunstan was flabbergasted by how small Grey''s improvement was. He didn''t expect that he would make such small improvements. But seeing the look of determination on Grey''s face, he could only encourage him to try harder. It wasn''t like they wouldn''t come again, so no need to pressure them. When the students were walking out of the room, Grey called out to him. "You want to stay a little longer?" Instructor Dunstan was stumped by Grey''s request. Most students want to leave this place as soon as possible, yet, Grey wanted to stay longer. "Yes, you see, I feel I could improve a little further today. So I plan to stay longer." Grey nodded with a determined look. He wasn''t only learning to forge, but also training himself. If he went home now, he would only continue his training, so why not stay here a little longer? Instructor Dunstan looked around still not sure of what to say, the materials in the room that were prepared for their training were already finished. He could only get a new batch the next day, getting more today would be difficult. "I can cover for the cost of the materials." Grey suggested when he saw Instructor Dunstan''s look. "Hmm, it''s okay, no need to. Stay here, I''ll go get more materials. But there''s a limit to how much I can bring." Instructor Dunstan said. To him doing this was already giving Grey special treatments, but since this was Grey''s request, he couldn''t deny it. He left Grey and headed to the forge, he came back with some materials, but not really enough to last Grey for long. "This is all I can get my hands on, from tomorrow, you can prepare your materials." Instructor Dunstan said, since Grey could get the materials, there was no need in taking the risk of getting them for him. Chapter 267 - Checking The Loot "Thank you sir." Grey thanked him sincerely. Just as Instructor Dunstan was about to leave, Grey called out to him again. The reason Grey called him this time was to know if he could get books on forging from the library. Grey was elated after knowing there were books about forging and even forgemastering in the library, well, he expected the Academy to have some in the first place. "Won''t you be going to the arrays lessons? If you want to be a good forgemaster, you must be proficient in arrays." Instructor Dunstan asked when he was about to leave. It was already mid-day, and array lessons were just about to start. He felt it would be beneficial for Grey if he went to the array lessons. "Not today Instructor, I''ll focus on this for now." Grey said, he was already good in arrays, and his time in the trial land, having to break those complex arrays increased his proficiency. He wasn''t even sure his Teacher knew arrays that were as complex as those ones, else, he would have taught him, or at the very least told him about it. Instructor Dunstan left Grey alone after his refusal to go to the array lessons, he didn''t think his decision not to go was wrong though, after all, some people only started learning arrays after they were good in forging and vice-versa. Being left alone, Grey quickly got to work with the items. Some of the materials brought in were different from the last ones they used, in this small batch, there were three pieces of a bronze plate, and a small piece of a silver horseshoe. The different items needed different temperatures to melt them, this helped Grey within the time he was there, and he almost had the thought of trying out one of the weapons he had with him. He took so many weapons from Aetonth''s cave that he still didn''t know what to do with them, he hadn''t even studied them properly. After much consideration, he decided to check them out when he got home today. That way, he''ll know what to keep, and what to discard. After staying for almost two hours, he ran out of materials, with no other choice, he left the room. ''There''s still some time before it gets dark, I''ll go to the library to take some books home. I need to check up on Klaus, it''s weird he didn''t come to find me after leaving his father''s office yesterday.'' Grey thought as he headed to the library. He initially wanted to read in the library, but thinking about how much time he had spent on learning forging, he felt it wasn''t a good idea. Twenty minutes later, he was in front of Klaus'' house, and Klaus wasn''t around. Not expecting this, he decided to see if he was in Reynolds'' house. ____ "Hey Rey, have you seen Klaus today?" Grey saw Reynolds sitting in a very relaxed manner outside his house, so he asked while walking into the compound. "No, I was planning to go see him." Reynolds shook his head before sitting straight. "There''s no one in his house, that''s why I came over." Grey explained. "Hmm, strange." Reynolds stood up, finding the fact that Klaus wasn''t in the Academy strange. "We shouldn''t bother about it, he''s probably spending time with his dad." Grey waved it off. If not for the fact that he still couldn''t find his mother, then he would''ve already gone there to spend some time with her. "Okay, I''ll be going home in a week time or so." said Reynolds. It had been almost a year he saw his little brother, after having a close call with death in the trial land, he wanted to see him again, his parents as well. "That''s good to hear." Grey said with a smile. He felt sad inside since he couldn''t see his mother or father. It has been so long, yet no words from his mother. The thought that something bad might have happened to her scared him. He stayed with Reynolds a little longer before going over to Alice''s so he could get Void. The little guy was having a great time at Alice''s and almost refused to leave. When Grey got home, he went to his backyard, and slowly started taking out the items he got from Aetonth''s cave one by one to inspect them. Behind his house, other than the school fence that separated it from the forest, there was nothing else. He created to high walls on each side to block anyone from seeing his backyard from the other two houses. Taking a look at some of them, he was stunned when he realized they were just shiny, nothing else. But there were at least twenty which were good. The only elemental weapon that caught his eye was a bow, it was a wind elemental weapon that increased the speed of the arrow to a terrifying level. However, other than the dual blades he previously used, he had never trained with any other weapon. ''Hmm, I''ll keep it.'' He took out the blue vest he got from Aetonth''s cave, it was the only defensive elemental weapon he found, but he didn''t know how it worked. He used the earth element to create a man-like statue, before putting the vest on it. Taking a few steps back, he sent a wind blade towards it. Bang! ''Well, that''s hopeless. I thought it would at least reduce the impact of the attack.'' Grey shook his head as he walked towards it. Void watched Grey as he walked closer to where the statue was shattered, he took a peek at the shiny things that Grey stacked on the side. After finding out that some of them were useless, he kept them aside, hoping to use them in his forging lesson the next day. They were good materials after all, and most of them were even silver. Seeing that Grey was distracted by the vest, Void vanished from his position. By the time he reappeared a few seconds later, two items from the weapons stacked had gone missing. They were shiny, although not as shiny as some of the things he stole, they weren''t that bad. Chapter 268 - Getting The Better Of Void After studying the vest a little longer, Grey tried infusing elemental essence in it. Seeing that it was blue, he infused water elemental essence into it. As soon as the water elemental essence entered the vest, it lit up with a light blue color. "Oh, guess it was only out of energy." Grey mumbled with a soft exclamation before continuing to feed the blue vest with elemental essence. While he was focused on the vest, the shiny weapons he kept on the side were slowly starting to get smaller in numbers. Void would occasionally disappear, then appear. His little face had a wide smile plastered on it. After five minutes, more than half of the items were gone, without a trace. Grey decided it was time to test out the vest again after he infused it with water elemental essence. Creating another statue, he wore the vest on it, taking a few steps back, he attacked it with a wind blade. Bam! When the wind blade got within three meters of the statue, a blue light shot out of the vest, covering the statue and everything within a one and a half meters radius of it. It was almost like an ice sphere, only, it wasn''t as solid as ice. The wind blade came in contact with the blue light, but other than making a small sound, it didn''t go further before disappearing. ''Hmm, this should be the attack power of a Peak Arcane Plane Elementalist.'' Grey thought to himself. When attacking, he reduced the strength of the attack greatly, to gauge the defensive power of the blue light. ''Isn''t it a little too dangerous, you know, doing this experiment here and all?'' Void couldn''t help but ask when he saw how freely Grey was showing his assets. He might not have been in this world for long now, but he knew all too well about greed. He was a greedy cat after all. ''Aren''t these enough to keep the prying eyes of people out, and besides, you''re also here. I don''t think there''s anyone here who can escape your senses.'' Grey said a little too confident in Void''s sensory ability. Other than Overlord Plane Elementalists, there was no way any other person could spy on him, and since Void could easily sense the stages of those two Overlord Plane experts back at Zivia City, Grey felt he shouldn''t have a problem with sensing any other person in the Academy. ''You''re right about that, but the sooner you get done with this the better.'' Void advised. ''I''ll be done soon.'' Grey nodded, he took a glance at Void before turning around. Just as he turned around, he looked back again, this time, at the items he wanted to use as materials. Although he didn''t know how many they were, he knew they weren''t that small. ''There should be at least fifty there, how come it isn''t up to twenty now?'' He asked himself. ''Unless...'' His eyes darted straight at Void who acted like he wasn''t seeing him. ''Void, keep them back. I need them for forging.'' Grey said. If he didn''t have any uses for them, then he didn''t mind giving them to Void. But now, he needed materials, and Void was stealing the few he had managed to acquire. ''How can you destroy shiny things because you want to learn how to forge shiny things?'' Void asked disapprovingly. It just didn''t make sense, Grey wanted to learn how to make shiny things, so why did he want to destroy the ones he already has? ''Because you have to destroy to rebuild.'' Grey said. ''Well, that''s just dumb.'' Void said not wanting to give the items back to Grey. ''Void, they''re mine. You saw them but your greed made you steal the crystal instead of them.'' Grey sneered before walking closer to Void. ''Fine, I''ll give them back to you. It''s not like they''re great anyway.'' Void snorted and waved his paws. Ten weapons appeared on the ground. Seeing them made Grey smile while still looking at Void, he could see the pain in Void''s eyes as he returned them, but it was not his concern. ''That''s all I took.'' He said angrily. ''Heh! Only a fool would believe you.'' Grey smirked. For Void to release twenty, meant he still had at least forty with him. There was no way he would believe this was all he took. ''I''m telling you, this was all I took.'' Void tried to persuade. Grey didn''t buy it and continued staring at him, seeing that he still didn''t want to return it, he threatened, ''Hmm, looks like you wouldn''t be eating for the next five days.'' ''You''re such a heartless person.'' Void said before making another ten more appear. ''Three days then.'' Grey showed Void three fingers, making him anxious. ''Fine, take it. This is all I took.'' Void said before another twenty-three weapons appeared on the ground. Grey had a smile on his face before dropping a single finger. Now, he had two fingers up, which meant Void wouldn''t eat for two days. ''I swear, that''s all.'' Void almost wanted to cry. He was telling the truth, that was all the items he took, unfortunately, Grey didn''t believe. ''You''re such a despicable person.'' Void said before taking out ten more from his storage to hand over to Grey. They were the worst of the worsts in his spatial storage, but he still almost couldn''t bear with parting away with them. Grey smiled before turning his attention back to the vest, he had managed to see what Void liked, although he didn''t like it more than the real shiny things, he still liked it, and it was food. Void''s appeal for food was almost on the level of shiny things. Grey knew he was only able to take these items because they weren''t a treasure, and weren''t that shiny. Had they been on the level of the crystal Void took from Aetonth, then he would never return it. Even if it meant starving for two weeks. Chapter 269 - Connor Aella Grey finished with his experiment on the blue vest and noticed its defensive prowess was amazing, although, he couldn''t use his full strength since he didn''t supply the vest with enough energy. But it didn''t have any problems with defending an all-out attack from a Fourth stage Origin Plane Elementalist for a short time. When he was done examining the blue vest, he started studying the books he got from the library, completely neglecting Void. The day ended without much happening. On the morning of the next day, he went for his usual training, came back, and prepared to go for forging classes. The books he read increased his knowledge of forging overall, and he would like to implement some things when practicing. Grey was currently stuck in a dilemma, given Void''s love for shiny things, he was scared to take him into the Academy, but he couldn''t always leave him with Alice, and he refused to stay at home, alone. Left with no other choice, he had to repeatedly warn Void not to take anything. Void nodded grumpily, asking him if he looked like someone who would steal other people''s things. Grey didn''t reply, but he knew the answer in his heart, as long as it''s shiny, Void would most likely forget it belongs to someone else. He dared to steal a treasure from a horde of Lightning Apes, and an Ice Dragon, there was nothing Grey didn''t think he wouldn''t dare to do for shiny treasures. Taking Void with him, Grey headed for forging classes. This time, there were only three students in the class when he stepped in, the young lady from the previous day was amongst them, Aella. She was a Fire Elementalist who was in the Third stage of the Arcane Plane, with a heart-shaped face, and waist-length black hair, she was the dreams of some of the boys here. When she saw Grey step in with a strange, cute black cat, she was stunned, not expecting Grey would have such a pet. During the entire lesson the previous day, Grey was the one who spoke the least, he was always focused on what the Instructor was saying. Being annoyed by the two boys who were bugging her, she decided to switch seats, taking the seat close to Grey, she turned to him after sitting, "Hello, I''m Connor Aella." Grey raised his head to look at the hand stretched towards him from the next seat, "Grey." He said before shaking her hand. Aella looked at him a little oddly, not expecting he would be this bland. Due to her looks, she always tends to attract attention from every single boy around her, there were even some who only came to forgery classes just because they wanted a chance to get close to her, like the duo who were bugging her a moment ago. "That''s a strange cat, I haven''t seen anything like it before, can I touch it?" She asked still smiling. She felt more free speaking with Grey when she noticed he didn''t really care about her looks. But thinking about it, she didn''t find it strange, given Grey''s facial appearance and calm demeanor, he must have gotten countless girls more beautiful than she was. And besides, she didn''t have any plans with being with him, she already had a partner. "Sure, he''s a little grumpy at times. But, it should be fine." Grey replied with a small smile. He would do almost anything to get Void off his hands right now, since an opportunity had presented itself, then he didn''t mind the young lady looking after Void for him. He wanted to place his entire focus on the lesson, and with Void, he couldn''t. He passed Void over to Aella, and he noticed Void gave him a knowing look. ''Sorry bud, you''ll enjoy her company more. I really need to focus on this lesson.'' Grey apologized to Void. ''Hmph! You''ll have to cook something... Oh...yes, that''s the spot.'' Void who was speaking to Grey stopped midway when his stomach was being scratched by Aella. "His name''s Void..." Grey told Aella a little about Void before opening the book he brought with him to the class. A few boys who recently entered the class were speechless when they saw Grey actually focused on reading a book when a nice-looking young lady was sitting close to him. Even Void didn''t think Grey was this addicted to learning, but when he thought about how he always looked serious whenever he was telling him about new things, he just shrugged it off and continued enjoying his time with Aella, she was a good belly scratcher, almost at Alice''s level. After a few minutes, Grey closed the book and started speaking to Aella who placed her focus on the black cat on her l.a.p. There wasn''t really anything to talk to Grey about in the first place, and the only reason she approached him was to ward off the boys disturbing her. Her friends hadn''t arrived yet, and they most likely won''t since they didn''t like the lessons the previous day. "Oh that, you see, I come from a family of forgemasters, so I already have some experience." She said. "It doesn''t change the fact that you made such a huge improvement. If you were already good with it, you would''ve skipped that part, unless, you just want the attention, which I think you don''t." Grey looked behind her while speaking of the part, only to see almost half of the boys staring at him evilly. "Sorry, but compared to them, I''d rather talk to you. Although, I don''t think you have any interest in speaking to me." Aella apologized. "The truth is, I don''t like being disturbed when I''m learning. But these guys wouldn''t really be able to do anything to me." Grey shrugged. He wasn''t lying, being disturbed when training or learning was something he hated. Being a slow learner, every single second was precious to him. The reason he entertained Aella was because he wanted to learn some things from her, since she made good improvements the previous day, she must know some things about forging. Grey spoke with Aella for about ten minutes, and just when he was about to complain of being too early, Instructor Dunstan finally arrived. When he saw how the number of students had decreased, he smiled softly but didn''t bother about it. Most of the Fusion Plane students didn''t attend the class, it looked like they were waiting till they broke through to the Arcane Plane before continuing. He expected to see Grey, given how enthusiastic he was the previous day, the only thing he didn''t expect to see was Aella sitting close to him, but it was none of his concern. Without further ado, he started the lesson for the day, speaking on the different materials as well as the temperatures needed to be maintained. For the second day running, they would be focused on temperature once again, this time, he told them to keep the furnace within a particular range of temperature. They were going to use lead for the practicals today, and they needed to keep the temperature around three hundred to three hundred and fifty degrees Celsius. Grey immediately started the training, due to the superiority of his flame, he had some problems with lowering it to such temperatures. But with the practice from yesterday, he managed to reduce it. Keeping the furnace in the temperature though, was another story. He had to occasionally put coal in the furnace, while also occasionally sending flames inside. The practice ended one hour later, and just like the previous day, Aella was the one who had the best results of the students. Grey was below average in this practice, because of the natural high temperature of his flame. Grey decided to check out the array class, he couldn''t say he was already the best when it came to arrays, and learning more about it wasn''t too bad. Unfortunately, other than things he already knew too well, they didn''t speak about anything else in the array class. But getting to listen to the lesson gave him new conjectures about arrays, so he didn''t take it as a waste of time. Void was with Aella all through the time they were in Forging class, to when they went for the array class, all in all, he had a pretty good day since Void didn''t get to disturb his learning. "Thank you for your help today." Aella said before returning Void to him. "You were more helpful." Grey smiled lightly while taking Void. Void jumped out of his hand, landing on his shoulder like he usually does. Turning around, Grey saw Klaus, with a smile plastered across his face. Knowing him, he knew he must be definitely thinking of something. "Hey, bud." Klaus called out to Grey before Aella could leave. Chapter 270 - Ill Kill Him! Grey almost facepalmed when he saw Klaus coming over with a strange smile, from his encounter with Klaus, he knew he was definitely thinking of something bad. "Hey, I''ve been waiting outside for almost an hour." Klaus said before lightly tapping Grey on his shoulder. "Hey Void, how have you been?" He asked while looking at Void. He only turned his attention elsewhere after Void nodded. "Why didn''t you just come in?" Grey asked when he saw Klaus was done with his pleasantries with Void. "Oh, I didn''t want to disturb you. I know how much you love learning. It''s quite a weird habit though." Klaus said thoughtfully. "We''ll talk when we get home." Grey said before turning to Aella, "This is my friend, Klaus. Klaus, this is Aella." Aella looked at Klaus a little surprised that he was friends with Grey, when she first saw Klaus, his handsome face stunned her almost as much as Grey did. Had she not seen Grey, then Klaus would''ve been the most handsome guy she had ever seen. Other than his handsome face, she also felt a little sense of familiarity, like she had seen him somewhere before. "It''s nice meeting you, I''ve heard so much about you." Klaus said while shaking her hands, leaving her stunned and confused at the same time. Grey almost passed out, while Void was laughing inside. ''What the f.u.c.k is he doing?! I''ll kill him!'' Grey almost screamed out loud, but since he didn''t want to look like a psychopath, he held himself back. "You, you have?" Aella asked with a confused expression. "Yes, my friend speaks a lot about you." Klaus said after glancing at Grey. "He does?" Aella was lost for words. She only spoke with Grey today, so what did he know about her that he said to his friends. "Of course, I have to always beg him to stop before he does." Klaus chuckled. Grey was literally on the brink of passing out. ''What the hell! I''m dead, I''m dead. He''s taking revenge on me.'' Grey wanted to cry but no tears came out. What did he do to be cursed with such a friend? Who did he offend? Klaus is probably going to kill him with a heart attack someday. Although he was a little panicky inside, he still put on a calm and collected expression. Other than his mouth which twitched a few times when Klaus was speaking, he basically had the same expression as when Klaus first came. "Oh, I didn''t know." Aella glanced at Grey a little perplexed. She couldn''t assimilate the Grey she spoke with in the class today to the one Klaus was speaking about. Her initial impression of Grey was that he was someone who didn''t care about her beauty, but from what his friend is saying, it looked like he was actually into her. ''But, why does he have such a nonchalant expression?'' She thought when she looked at his calm face. Seeing her glance towards her made Grey feel as if the ground should open up and swallow him. He couldn''t stop Klaus from speaking, because if he did, it would look like what he was saying was true. But if he didn''t, then Klaus would say more. Void was shaking from laughing too hard, he had truly missed Klaus. ''Haha, this guy is amazing. Things are always lively when he''s around.'' He said while laughing. ''Well, he wouldn''t be alive for long. I already have ten different ways to kill him. F.u.c.k! Since when I have spoken about this girl? I haven''t even seen the idiot since leaving the principal''s office!'' Grey said a little annoyed by Klaus'' prank. Klaus glanced at Grey and smirked inside, he knew Grey wouldn''t reveal his true expression, but he must be screaming inside. ''Hehe, this will teach him not to mess with me.'' He thought before looking in Aella''s direction. Aella was currently speechless, she originally taught she had made a new friend in the forging class, but if he liked her, then that would make their relationship awkward. She was thinking of ways to politely reject Grey when Klaus dropped another bombshell. "He said he wanted to spend the rest of his life with you. Tsk, tsk, you sure are lucky." Klaus said while shaking his head with a faint smile. Aella was left wide-eyed, and Grey who had been keeping a cool expression didn''t know when his mouth opened wide. Void laughed so hard when he heard this that he nearly fell of Grey''s shoulder. ''Shit! This has to stop.'' Grey couldn''t allow Klaus to speak any further. Aella stared at Grey who had a different expression for the first time, and it was almost like what Klaus said was correct, given his expression. Grey currently had the shocked expression of someone whose secrets had been made known to everyone. If only she knew Grey was currently planning ways to kill Klaus, he originally had ten ways, but new ideas just keep popping into his head. Just as Klaus was about to continue speaking. "Enough Klaus!" Grey stopped him. "Enough of what? Does it look like I''m talking to you?" Klaus asked while glaring at Grey before returning his gaze to Aella. "By the way, how''s Cleo? I haven''t seen him since I returned." He asked when he noticed Aella was looking at him. "Cleo? Wait, you know him?" Aella asked with a dumbfounded expression. "Yes of course, he''s my friend." Klaus nodded before looking at Aella, and then Grey acting like he didn''t know what he did. "Wait, you thought I was talking about him?" Klaus pointed at Grey, almost on the verge of bursting into laughter, and asked, "And you, you thought I was talking about you?" "Wasn''t that the case?" Grey and Aella asked simultaneously. They couldn''t be blamed for thinking this way, the way Klaus said everything sounded like he was talking about Grey. "Pfft! Of course not." Klaus laughed out loud while holding his stomach. Chapter 271 - What Are Your Plans? Grey and Aella had awkward expressions while Klaus and Void were laughing their hearts out. Grey knew Klaus did this on purpose, but there was no way he could scold him in front of Aella. "Oh, it''s you, the son of the mayor!" Aella almost exclaimed. After Klaus revealed he knew Cleo, she knew the sense of familiarity she felt was true, so when she calmed down while Klaus and Void were laughing, she thought hard about where she saw him. Klaus'' handsome face wasn''t something one could see every day, and there was only one person she had seen that had left a deep impression on her with his facial appearance other than Grey and Klaus, and it was the son of Lunar City''s mayor. Cleo who Klaus was speaking about, was her boyfriend. Her family and his family had close ties, and they had been friends since they were young. About a year ago, Cleo took her to a gala held in Lunar City, that was where she met the charming Klaus. Being the son of the mayor made Klaus a highly respected figure at the gala. She didn''t expect her boyfriend would be friends would such an individual, and because of how free Klaus was, made her have a great impression of him. Only, it had been so long that she saw him, so she wasn''t able to recognize him immediately. The fact that he was able to recognize her shocked her, to say the least. "Yeah, I knew you would recall me. I mean, who would forget seeing such a face." Klaus said with a playful laugh. "If you''re standing next to him, it''s hard to remember you." Aella giggled while pointing at Grey. After knowing that Klaus knew her boyfriend, she was freer with him, especially after seeing his nature. There are only a few people in the world that would have a status like Klaus yet still be so carefree. If not for the fact that she recognized him, she wouldn''t have believed he was the son of the mayor of such a big city. On the way back to their living quarters. "I know you did that on purpose." Grey said while they were walking. "Did what?" Klaus pretended like he had no clue about what Grey was talking about. "You... I really don''t know what to do with you." Grey shook his head in defeat. Klaus was just a shameless individual, and there was no way he could get him to admit that he did it on purpose. "It''s not my fault you misunderstood me." Klaus said with a grin. Grey wanted to argue, but thinking about it, was it truly Klaus'' fault that he misunderstood him? The answer was no. "Where have you been for the past two days?" Grey changed the topic as they approached Reynolds'' house. "Oh, just bonding with my dad. You know I''m all he has, so he wanted to know about everything in the trial land." Klaus scratched his head with a sad smile. They continued speaking as they got to Reynolds'' house. They walked right in without knocking. Other than Alice, the others pretty much act this way in each other houses. "Hey Grey, I see you''ve finally been able to bring him back." Reynolds said while walking out from the kitchen. "Nope, he came back on his own." Grey said as he took a seat. Klaus looked at Reynolds and couldn''t help but ask, "What were you doing in the kitchen?" "Well, you see... I was trying to cook something." Reynolds revealed which threw Klaus in a fit of laughter. "Let me tell you something bud, there are things you can do, and there are things you can''t. Cooking wasn''t made for everyone, just let Grey do it." Klaus said seriously. Grey flicked his right hand and wind blew in Klaus'' face, messing up his hair. "But there''s no harm in trying." Reynolds shrugged. "Hmm, I''ll leave you to your demise then." Klaus sneered. He didn''t know why Reynolds was even bothering, if it were something else, he would say there was a possibility he might be able to become an expert in it, but as for cooking, he should forget about it. Only monsters like Grey who were blessed by the God of cookery could attain something like that. And even if by some means Reynolds was able to learn how to cook, its taste would be either average or below average. "So, what are your plans now?" Klaus asked after Reynolds sat down. "I''m thinking about joining the empire''s forces. Unlike you, I don''t have a good family background, so this is the best option for me and my family. Although, I''m also thinking about becoming an Instructor. This is why I want to go back home and discuss it with my parents." Reynolds said. At his current age and Plane, he could take decisions for himself. But sometimes, it''s good to seek advice from those older than you. Once his parents tells him what they feel is the right choice for him to make, he would analyze it as well. Klaus nodded, expecting Reynolds to make such a decision. "How about you?" Klaus asked looking at Grey. "I''ve not really made a decision yet." Grey smiled lightly, "I think it''s best we talk about this with Alice as well. It would be bad if she''s not included in this conversation." "Yeah, I have an announcement to make. We should head over there now." Klaus said, his previous playful smile was gone. Grey''s gaze turned intent before nodding, just as they got to the door to leave Reynolds'' house. "What''s burning?" Grey asked after sniffing the air. "Nothing." Reynolds waved before trying to open the door. Klaus'' previous serious expression was gone because he was currently laughing. "I knew you didn''t have any chances of becoming a great cook." He laughed out. "Shit! My food!" Reynolds exclaimed before dashing back into the kitchen. Chapter 272 - Sad News The group went over to Alice''s place with Klaus and Grey laughing at Reynolds for burning his food. "Why are you two laughing?" Alice asked after opening the door. From Reynolds'' expression, she could tell the other two were laughing at his expense. Klaus went on to tell her how he forgot he was cooking. "At least he''s trying, unlike you." Alice comforted Reynolds which lifted his mood, only by a little though. Klaus suggested they headed over to the Silver Moon Restaurant, the time he spent outside waiting for Grey, and Reynolds'' attempt to prepare a meal made him want to eat something. Reynolds quickly agreed to it, Grey had no problems with them going to the restaurant, and neither did Alice. They spoke about what they''ve been up to in the past two days, and other than Grey, the rest of them were actually resting, Alice included. Grey was the only one who immediately started learning something new. The group soon got to the city gate, Lunar City is always bustling with activity, from the multiple carriages entering the city, to the people exiting it. There are times when people would actually need to slowly walk in like they were standing in a queue. "Bud, I think you need to take it slow with your training. I know you want to be strong and all, but you still need to look at other aspects in life." Klaus advised as they entered the city. Alice and Reynolds nodded simultaneously. Grey trained too much, and this had made him kind of antisocial. The only reason they were able to become friends with him was that they had befriended him just after he came to the Academy. Even with that, they still don''t get to see him often. "Like what?" asked Grey. After the time he took the first test, his whole life had revolved around training. Other than learning about new things, he technically didn''t have another hobby. "Go out, make more friends, see things. You could even decide to travel around the empire now given your Plane." Klaus suggested. "You guys are enough." Grey said. "Yeah, but we won''t always be with you. Let''s face it, a time will come when we will have to take different paths. It''s not like we wouldn''t see each other again, but not as frequently as we do now." Klaus said as the group headed towards the Silver Moon Restaurant. "Yeah, you''re right about that. I''ll think of something else, but for now, I want to focus on becoming a forgemaster." Grey replied. Because of the experience he had after his first test, he made becoming stronger his goal. After training every single day for three years, he kind of got used to the feeling, for three years, his mother was the one he spoke with the most. Even at the time he came to the Academy, he wasn''t all that optimistic about making friends. Klaus was the first friend he made, and from all the people who were always with Alice and Reynolds, he became friends with only the duo. Of all his friends, Klaus was very persistent, he would always check up on him, almost every day when he just arrived at the Academy. Alice and Reynolds were very helpful in the Lightning Hall, and whenever he had a problem with the element, he would usually search for either of the two to clarify some things to him. Other than Klaus, Alice, and Reynolds, the only other person he speaks with a lot in the Academy compound was Instructor Blake. When the trio heard his reply, they shook their heads wryly. They could tell from his reaction, he wouldn''t really change any time soon. They soon got to the restaurant and we''re stopped because animals weren''t allowed into the restaurant, but after Klaus declared his identity, they allowed them inside. They headed straight for the upper floor under the gaze of the crowd on the lower floor. As usual, compared to the lower floor, it was less crowded. Taking a table, the group sat down. While waiting for their food, they continued speaking about their plans. Just like Grey, Alice didn''t really know what to do yet. Reynolds was the only one who was currently contemplating two choices. "I recalled you said you wanted to make an announcement." Reynolds said right after the waiter brought their meals. "*Sigh* Yes, the thing is, my dad has officially become the ex-mayor and principal of both Lunar City and Academy." Klaus sighed before saying. "What?!" The trio exclaimed simultaneously, drawing the attention of the few people on the floor. "He resigned?" Alice asked. "Yes." Klaus nodded. "Wow, that''s unexpected. Why, what happened?" Reynolds asked. "Well, I don''t really know the details, he didn''t tell me much." Klaus responded. He knew the reason though, but his father warned him not to tell anyone. "Hmm, something''s obviously up." Grey speculated. "Yeah, something probably big." Alice nodded, agreeing with Grey. "That''s not all." Klaus said, drawing their attention back to him. After successfully drawing their attention, "We''ll be leaving as well." "Oh!" Grey exclaimed softly. The fact that Klaus'' father was leaving with Klaus made him feel his speculation was accurate. Resigning was one thing, but leaving the city as well, was another. There''s also the possibility of Klaus'' father wanting to just spend some time with his son. "When are you leaving?" Alice asked. "I don''t have any idea yet, but soon." replied Klaus. The table turned silent, Klaus didn''t know what else to say while the others were still trying to accept what was about to happen. "Guys, it''s not like I''m dying." Klaus joked when he saw their reactions. "Yeah, we''ll still see each other again." Reynolds forced out a laugh. "Come on, let''s eat." Klaus said before digging right into his food. Reynolds and Alice also started eating, Grey didn''t really feel hungry, so Void ate most of his meal. After leaving the Silver Moon Restaurant, the group headed back to the Academy, but not in the same lively fashion as they came. The news of Klaus leaving was sad, to say the least. They''ve always known they would separate soon, but they didn''t expect it would be this early. Reynolds also said he would be going home to meet his parents. Alice decided to do the same as well. With the help of the trial land, their Planes improved faster than they usually should have, this changed the time they needed in making life decisions. Most students their age are still in the Arcane Plane, so they are still focused on learning and improving their Planes. But since they''ve skipped a few years, courtesy of the trial land, they had to make the decisions which they''d have made in like three to seven years from now. Of course, they could still wait till then, after all, no one is forcing them to make any decisions now. "Oh Rey, there''s something I want to tell you." Klaus walked up to Reynolds just as soon as they were about to enter the Academy compound. "What''s that?" Reynolds asked curiously. "Do not join the empire''s forces. Also, don''t become an Instructor yet, wait for a few more years." Klaus advised. "Those are my only two choices." Reynolds said a little confused. "Well, don''t join any of them, for now. You''re still young, why hurry?" Klaus asked with a shrug. "Fine, but I''m still going home though. I miss my family." Reynolds nodded reluctantly. He could tell something was going on, and it had to do with the Academy, and the empire. He felt the presumed upcoming war had something to do with it. Grey and the others all went back to their houses after their conversation. Of the group, Grey was a little sad since the others would be going back to their family, leaving him all alone. Had Chris been around, he wouldn''t feel lonely, but now, he didn''t know where Chris was. ''Guess it''ll just be me and you very soon buddy.'' Grey said while c.a.r.e.s.sing Void''s fur. ''Don''t you know where your parents are? We could go there.'' Void asked. ''Nope, no clue.'' Grey shook his head. ''Why don''t we go with Klaus?'' Void suggested. ''I''m I''ll think about it.'' Grey said looking at the sky. The bond he had with his friends was so high that he didn''t actually want to see them separate. He was not the only one who felt this way, Klaus, Alice, and Reynolds all felt the same. Later in the evening, Grey started practicing with his wind, fire, and water elements. Training was the only thing he knew of that could take his mind off things, so he started training. Chapter 273 - Studying The Wooden Objects The next day, Grey woke up a little earlier than usual and started his normal training routine. After going for his morning training, he went for forging lessons. This time, they were taught the tempering process. From there on, he went to the array class. Void was left with Alice all through the day, so when he was done with his lessons, he went over to get him. He didn''t find Klaus nor Reynolds at home, so he guessed they might''ve gone out together. ''*Sigh* More time to train for me, I guess.'' He thought before he started training once again. He couldn''t use his wind and water element openly in the Academy since it might arouse suspicion if the few people who recognized him for having only two elements come to see him using it. Not seeing anyone he was acquainted with in the forging lessons made things easier for him, well, he didn''t really know all the people who knew him. He started his training with the fire and earth element, trying to see the limit of his earth''s armor defense while attacking it with the fire element. Void watched Grey continue the same routine from the past day and couldn''t help but feel staying in the Academy would probably be the most boring moment in his life. The thrill he got while they were in the trial land wasn''t here, it was too safe here. Well, it technically is a learning facility so it was supposed to be safe. But for a magical beast like him who loved fighting and adventure, it was not his cup of tea. Later that night. ''Hey Grey, we need to leave this place.'' He said when he saw Grey coming out of the bathroom. ''Yeah, I know. But not now. I need to at least get the basics of forgemastering first before leaving.'' Grey agreed with Void. The time he spent in the trial land had changed him, there, training was faster, he always had an opponent and he was leaving freely. ''I heard there''s a place called the magical beast forest, it sounds exciting. Why don''t we go there?'' Void suggested. ''That was where we came from actually, the place where the array to the trial land is located.'' Grey explained while falling onto his bed, preparing to sleep. ''Oh, we should''ve gone there then. Why bother to come to this boring place. Even if we don''t want to go there, we should at least see the world.'' Void urged. He wanted to see the world in its entirety, not stay in a single boring place. ''Hmm, yeah but first, I think I have an idea.'' Grey said standing up from his bed. He was just struck with an amazing idea, well, that''s on the premise he could pull it off. ''Oh, what''s that?'' Void asked. ''Remember those wooden objects I got from that Darkness Elementalist?'' Grey said while taking out one of the wooden objects from his storage ring. ''Yeah, the one you used to locate where your friends were.'' Void nodded. ''Well, I''m planning to improve it. If I can figure out how they made it, then there''s a chance of improving it. I can even add another function to it.'' Grey explained excitedly. Since finding out that his friends were going, he had been a little down. And once he leaves the Academy, he planned on searching for his parents, so he didn''t know when he would be able to see his friends again, nor where to start searching for them. But if he''s successful with his current idea, then locating them wouldn''t be a problem. He sent his spiritual sense into the object trying to figure out how and why it was able to be able to locate the ones which were crushed. It didn''t take long before he found out the reason. "Arrays, haha. This makes everything simpler." Grey laughed out excitedly. One of the few things he was confident in was arrays. Since he is a slow learner, he actually learned the basics of arrays multiple times from Chris which made his foundation in it very strong. Even Chris was amazed by how good his foundation was. Now, all he needed to do was study the array and see what type of array it was. There are different types of arrays, and he learned all he could from Chris. Even if this wasn''t part of the ones Chris taught him, with his basic knowledge, he would be able to figure out something. Void looked at Grey speechlessly as he focused on deciphering the arrays that were intricately drawn in the small wooden object. He almost couldn''t take Grey''s continuous learning habit, it was like he was never tired of learning. Void fell asleep from the boredom of watching Grey continuously staring at the wooden object and drawing down some lines on the ground. Grey would also contemplate on the lines he was drawing out. There were times he would have a complicated look, while at other times, he had a look of exhilaration. Before long, it was already morning. Void woke up and saw Grey was still engrossed in the object. He had drawn out so many lines that were across each other that got Void confused for the first few seconds he looked at them. ''Hey, wouldn''t you be going for morning training?'' Void asked when he saw that the saw was about to rise. ''Oh, it''s daybreak already? Hmm, this will take longer than expected. Come on, let''s head out.'' Grey stood up before walking out. An Arcane Plane Elementalist could go days without sleep, much less an Origin Plane Elementalists like Grey. He could even go ten days without sleep. ''You''re going out like that?'' Void asked when he saw what Grey was wearing. ''Oh, I forgot. I''ll change right now.'' Grey came back in, changed into his training clothes before heading out. When they got to where he trained, Void disappeared into the forest to explore while Grey was training. Chapter 274 - Encountering An Acquaintance Grey stayed in the forest for just over two hours before heading back to the Academy. He needed to head over for forging lessons since he wouldn''t be going for the next two days. He wanted to focus fully on modifying and improving the wooden objects, if possible, create his own before any of his friends leaves the Academy. They continued with the tempering process, before ending the lesson with the cooling process. With this, he was almost done with the basics of forging. But since his friends would be leaving soon, he had to wait a little longer before completing it. He didn''t go for array lessons this time since they were only going to repeat what he already knew. Although it would help him understand it better, nothing beats actual practical. On his way back home, he encountered an acquaintance. "Hey." Damian called out when he saw Grey walking by. Grey turned around to see who it was, "Oh, it''s you." Damian was the first summoner he saw before Reynolds became a high-grade summoner. After seeing him at the door that led to where the old expert''s legacy was, he hadn''t seen him again. "When did you return?" He asked while approaching Damian. "Yesterday. Hmm, the Fifth stage, that''s the highest anyone from our Academy who came out of the trial land got to." Damian said after noticing Grey was in the Fifth stage of the Origin Plane. "You''re not far from it yourself." Grey smiled lightly. Damian was already in the Fourth stage, had they been allowed to stay in the trial land for another week or two, then he wouldn''t have any problems with getting to the Fifth stage. "When did you return?" asked Damian. "Four days ago." replied Grey. "And your friends, have they come out as well?" Damian asked again. He remembered always seeing them together, so he wanted to know if they came out as well. After all, not everyone who goes into the trial land walks out. "We came out together, we were lucky to find each when heading to the array that led outside." Grey explained. He spent a few minutes with Damian before leaving, of which he was the one who did most of the talking. Damian had always been the type who spoke less, so getting to actually have a conversation with him was extremely hard. Grey went over the Klaus'' place and was lucky to find him at home. They headed over to Reynolds'' place, before heading to Alice''s. He told them of his plan to modify the wooden objects, so they could find each other when they''ve left the Academy. "Will you be able to make it in time? From everything you''ve said, you haven''t seemed to make any progress with it." Alice asked a little concerned. She could tell Grey was putting in so much effort just to make this thing, especially how he didn''t attend array lessons, it was evident how much effort he was putting. "Well, if I can decipher the array, then modifying it will be too easy..." Grey explained. He planned to change the process of locating each other. Unlike before when one of them had to break the wooden object before the others could find the person, this time, as long as they had it with them, they would be able to get a general direction of where each other were. He even had a bigger plan, being able to use it to send messages across a long distance. But he knew that wouldn''t be possible for now, so he wanted to focus on just locating each other first. "If you can do it then that''s wonderful." Alice said which the others agreed with. Grey''s plan to make this communication device wouldn''t only help them, but it would help their families as well. "Of course I can, since those guys could make it, I can modify it. All I need is just time. But I''m not too confident in the communicating part for now, I don''t even know how to start with that. At least with the locating process, I can use their previous model as a guide." Grey shook his head sadly. "No need to beat yourself, being able to think of it is already amazing." Klaus encouraged. "Yeah, I''m not too bothered if I fail in doing that though. Locating you guys is enough for now." Grey nodded. They stayed for some time before Alice suggested they sparred. Klaus immediately rejected the idea since he was the weakest, but after the others agreed and gave him an ultimatum, he didn''t have much of a choice, it was either he sparred with them, or they would gang up on him and beat him up. The group stayed together till just after sunset, and Grey even prepared something for them to eat. Alice had some items in her house that he used in making porridge. "You see Rey, this is what it means to be a good cook." Klaus said after burping out loud. "I know, it''s like he''s blessed by a God or something. My mom''s a great cook, but to be honest, I don''t think she''s near as good as he is." Reynolds replied while looking at the delicious porridge Void was eating. They were done with theirs, and Void''s own was starting to call them. But recalling the cat''s space element, they gave up the idea of stealing it. They each went to their houses after their meal. Grey soon went back to work, he noticed each of the objects didn''t have the same arrays. There''s always a difference, even though it''s small, there''s always a difference. This made deciphering it hard, but he was already starting to get a rough idea of it. ''I should be able to completely decipher it within the next five days, hopefully.'' He thought while looking at the different lines he had drawn on the papers on his table. Chapter 275 - Wood Fanatic Three days passed with Grey following the same routine, after his morning exercise, he would head back home to continue his research on the wooden objects, later in the day, he would hang out with Klaus and the others. He got around twenty of the wooden objects from Quinn, Alice used one of them the last time leaving him with just nineteen. He took the two that were with Klaus and Reynolds when he spoke with them previously about modifying the wooden objects. It took him three days to completely draw out each array drawn on the nineteen wooden objects, he not only had to study them, but he also had to study the basics of arrays he got from Chris when he became his student. After he started getting the basic idea of the arrays, he went on to the next phase, crushing the wooden objects. ''This process is going to be harder than I thought.'' thought Grey as he studied the wooden object while slowly crushing it. While crushing it, he noticed how the arrays on it converge to a particular point before giving out an almost untraceable aura. The only reason he managed to sense it was because he was focused on it. After the crushed wooden object gave off the aura, Grey quickly took out two of the wooden objects from his spatial ring to see how it would react to it. He initially felt since each wooden object has a different array set up, the reactions will be different, but his conjecture was wrong. The objects all showed the same reactions, with three major arrays in each wooden object lighting up that allowed the wooden objects to float. Once the wooden objects flew mid-air, two more major arrays lit up as well, but quickly died down before the wooden object''s light dimmed as well. ''Why didn''t it last as long as it usually does?'' Grey asked himself with his hand rubbing his chin. Without this stage, there was no way for him to modify it. But due to the short time it reacted, he couldn''t continue with his research. He didn''t hurry and carelessly crush another one, rather, he slowly started drawing out how the lines moved when he was crushing the wooden object. Before long, his table was filled up with multiple arrays carefully drawn out in different sheets of paper. Three big books were on arrays; he got two of them from Chris, while the last one was from the Academy''s library. Void who was sitting on one of the chairs curiously appeared on Grey''s shoulder to view what he was working on, the different confusing lines almost threw him off his feet. He was not proficient in arrays, and seeing these lines made him less interested in it. ''Isn''t it time to go out yet?'' He asked Grey who was in thoughts while looking at the papers laid out in front of him. Just as Grey was about to answer the question, he paused and looked in the direction of the door. He could sense that someone was walking towards his compound, and the aura was also a familiar one. It was none other than Klaus. "Hey, I was just about to head over to your place," Grey said right after Klaus opened the door. Void stared at Grey with a bewildered look, he was the one who was trying to get Grey to go out a few seconds ago, yet, Grey was lying about wanting to head over to Klaus'' place? How Shameless! "There''s no need, I''m here now," Klaus said while walking over to take a seat. After taking his seat, he looked at the table that was stacked with papers that had different weird lines drawn on them, "How''s your research going?" "Good. I''m getting increasingly closer to figuring out how they did it." Grey replied while arranging his research papers. An idea struck Grey just as he was keeping the papers, "Do you know anywhere I can get wood that''s like this?" Grey took one of the wooden objects, showing it to Klaus who was still seated. Klaus took the wooden object to inspect it, but he couldn''t find the difference between it and normal wood. He knew of some special woods, but the one he was currently holding in his hands was not among the few he knew of. "Isn''t it just like ordinary wood?" He asked while passing it back to Grey. Grey kept the wooden object before shaking his head, "No, it''s a type of special wood called Spiracotanue." "Spira what now?" asked a confused Klaus. "Spiracotanue." Grey said before taking out the wooden object once again, "You see these black spiral lines on the side of the wood?" Klaus nodded while looking at the black spiral lines Grey was pointing at. "Apparently, that''s where the wood got its name from¡­" Grey explained. The wood is not the rarest type of wood out there, and because most people didn''t know its uses, they don''t attach much importance to it. Before Grey started his research on the wooden objects, he had zero knowledge of there being such a wood. He only got to know about the wood due to his meticulous nature, since he was researching the wooden object, he thought he might as well find out what type of wood it was. He got to know about the wood in the Academy''s library. "Hmm, I''m sure yet since this is the first time I''m hearing about it. But, I think there might be someone I know in the city who might be able to have it." Klaus answered with a smile. "Oh, that''s great!" Grey replied happily. Chapter 278 - Homeless! BOOM! A deafening explosion rang out behind Grey''s house frightening the hell out of Klaus and Reynolds, even Void who was with Alice was stunned by the explosion. ''What did you do?'' Void asked Grey who was still running. ''Nothing, it exploded on its own.'' Grey said while looking behind him to see the range of the blast. The explosion covered from his backyard to his house, completely demolishing it. It also destroyed the Academy fence that was behind his house. Luckily, the space of each compound was huge, so it didn''t get to the other houses by the side "My house!" Grey yelled in dejection. Klaus and Reynolds walked closer to him when they saw that the explosion wasn''t spreading anymore. Alice and Void also came closer to him. They were all looking at him with suspicious gazes. "What happened, did someone sneak into your house or something?" Klaus asked while taking a glance at Grey''s burning house after the explosion started dying down. "No, it was those wooden objects," replied Grey who currently had a sour face. The explosion was bound to draw attention to him, especially given the size of it. He couldn''t tell everyone what he was working on. But Instructor Blake and the principal were exceptions though. It didn''t take long before the students around started flocking around Grey''s house. Some Instructors had also rushed to the scene as well, Instructor Blake was the first to arrive amongst the Instructors, he was standing with Grey and his friends. "So, you''re saying that two wooden objects were the cause of this?" Blake asked a little confused. "Yes." Grey nodded. ''''Normal woods?" Blake asked again. "They are not entirely normal," Grey said, stressing the last parts of the statement. Grey told Instructor Blake what the wooden objects were, and what he was trying to do, of course, he didn''t tell him about everything, only some parts of it. Blake cleared the area after getting to know what happened. It was an accident, and he didn''t want to unsettle the students. He made up an excuse but made sure to tell them it was an accident and not an enemy attack. "You four, come to my office." Blake said before flying to his office. Grey looked at the trio with a wry smile before heading to the Lightning Hall, he knew Instructor Blake was not going to let this go easily. At Blake''s office. "Where did you get those?" Blake asked after Grey and the others walked into the office. This was the first time he was seeing this device, he had heard of it, but had never seen it before. Finding out that Grey and his friends had some surprised him. "In the trial land, we encountered a group who used it¡­" Grey told Instructor Blake about their encounter with Quinn. Blake was thrilled by the story of them fighting against a Darkness Elementalist. Chris was the only one he had seen who had one of the two rarest elements which was the light element. "You say they had a map of the place?" Blake asked. "Yes, they seem to be searching for something over the past years they''ve gone in." Grey handed the map over to him. Blake didn''t miss the part where he took out a map from his seemingly previous empty-looking pocket. This discovery shocked him to no end. Given the size of the map, Grey''s pocket was supposed to at least bulge out a little, but there was no difference even after taking out the map. "This is beyond me, we''ll have to go see Teacher." Blake said standing up from his seat. He didn''t know much about the trial land, other than the few things his Teacher told him about it, he knew nothing else, so having the map wasn''t of any use to him. Oliver was taking care of the few things remaining before he would officially leave the Academy when he sensed Blake walking towards his office with his son and his friends. As soon as he saw them coming, he knew they were definitely involved in the explosion that took place some minutes ago. After hearing everything from Blake, he looked at Grey and his before taking the map. "I heard a secret place opened up this time in the trial land, even an expert''s legacy was inherited." He after looking at the map. There was a spot crossed in the map, it indicated a treasure or something. And according to some people who came out of the trial land, two huge black doors opened up, and they were filled with treasures, as well as danger. "Yes, we came across the first door. The people who had that map were the ones who discovered it." Klaus explained. "What was inside?" Oliver asked with curiosity. "The Great Earth Essence Liquid," Klaus said. Oliver narrowed his eyes when he heard about it, he knew what it could do, so hearing that some of it was actually located in the trial land amazed him, but he quickly removed it from his mind. "Okay, you shouldn''t continue that research of yours in the Academy since it seems dangerous. Go to your Teacher''s valley when next you plan to do it." Oliver said before dismissing them. Grey was trying to make something he could use to contact his friends, so he didn''t want to stop him. After sending the group out, Blake was the only one left in office. "There''s something about Senior Chris'' student," Blake told him what happened in his office. "No need to worry about him, he doesn''t have any malicious intent towards Klaus." Oliver waved it off. "I know, but his background is suspicious. Not just that, but if he''s able to successfully create this thing, then he would be able to locate us at any time of his choice." Blake added. "If he didn''t trust you, do you think he would come clean with you?" Oliver asked with a smile. Blake kept quiet for a few seconds, "I was only trying to be cautious. I can tell he wouldn''t do anything to harm Klaus, but if he loses that thing after making it, then we would be in danger." "Let me worry about that, okay." Oliver shook his head when he saw how cautious Blake was. "Yes, Teacher." Blake bowed before leaving the office. "I''ll see if the little boy can successfully make that, if he can, then he''s as much of a genius as his Teacher." Oliver muttered while looking through the window. Chapter 280 - You Two Are More Than Enough! In Oliver''s office. "Teacher, this must be the work of the Emperor, he wants to sully your name since you''re leaving in such a way," Blake said in an annoyed tone. "I know, but what''s the use of fighting with them? That is exactly what they want. I think they''re trying to see if Chris is around. Given his temperament, he would''ve killed a few people by now, heh!" Oliver chuckled at the end of his statement. "Hmph! Underhanded tactics." Blake snorted coldly. After finding out what the Emperor was trying to do some time ago, he hated them strongly, especially because he would most likely lose Delia because of this. Since she left the Academy the last time, she hadn''t returned, even till now. He had even headed to her family''s compound but she wasn''t there. "You still haven''t seen your little girlfriend?" Oliver chuckled when he saw Blake''s expression, it was like he could see through him. "No, I''ve searched every possible place I can think of." Blake shook his head with a sad face. "She''s fine, don''t worry too much. I believe she will show up before we leave." Oliver consoled him. Blake nodded but didn''t say anything else, just as he was about to leave, he asked, "When are we leaving?" "Two days from now. Tell that little nuisance to be prepared." Oliver said. "Yes, Teacher." Blake bowed before leaving the office. ____ Alice''s house. Alice and Klaus could be seen sitting outside with serious expressions. "Why isn''t Grey here yet?" Alice asked while looking at Void who was lying leisurely on a chair. "Void confirmed he asked him to come, right Void?" Klaus asked, looking at Void. Void nodded when he saw them looking at him, he had told Grey to come over, it had been almost thirty minutes now, but he still wasn''t here. Alice and Klaus were just about to continue when Void looked in the direction of the small gate that led into the compound. Grey''s figure could be seen walking towards them. He looked a little exhausted from working too much. "Hey, what''s up?" Grey asked as he walked into the compound. "Haven''t you been hearing about the rumors around the Academy?" Alice asked with a raised brow. "I have, but why are you guys bothering about it? You should know this is the plan of some people to spoil the name of the Principal." Grey replied nonchalantly. Although he wasn''t close to the Principal, he knew he wasn''t the type to shirk away from a fight. This must be a plot by some people. "Why aren''t you bothered?" Klaus asked. "Because given what the Principal had done for the Academy and the City, the people wouldn''t believe it. Of course, there would be people who would believe it nonetheless, but it doesn''t really matter." Grey explained with a shrug. The fact that all the Head Instructors and almost all the high ranked Instructors willingly resigned along with the Principal showed how united they were. How could someone who could build such a great Academy be someone who would run away because of a war? Grey didn''t believe any word the people were saying. "You''re more relaxed than I am," Klaus said. "I''m not, I''m exhausted. Worrying about the stupidity of people is not something I usually do. You and Rey are more than enough for me to think about, if I have to add every other person out there, I might die." Grey chuckled before taking a seat. Alice burst out laughing when she heard Grey''s comment , Klaus on the other hand snorted. "How are things with your research?" asked Alice. "Going well¡­" Grey paused mid-sentence before adding, "I think," "You must have blown up the place, right?" Klaus asked with a smirk. Grey called him stupid a few moments ago, now that he had the chance to get back at him, of course he would! Grey hesitated before replying, "No, no I did not," "Haha! You''re lying. How many times did it blow up?" Klaus laughed when he saw Grey hesitating. "Okay fine, they blew up, maybe once, or twice. But I''m increasingly getting closer to successfully making it." Grey replied truthfully. After the last time the two wooden objects exploded, he made sure not to replicate any more arrays, but to his surprise, after he made his own set of arrays in the wooden object, it exploded. There was one time when it exploded while he was still working on it. If not for his quick reaction and his strong physical defense, he would''ve been injured. Luckily for him, his Teacher''s house was still intact. Apparently, his Teacher created a defensive array around his house, so even when the explosion goes close to it, it doesn''t cause any damages. Grey still hasn''t been able to find out the cause of the explosions, but he had been making improvements on it. His only concern was that he was running out of wood. "Haha! Did you almost die?" Klaus asked in the middle of his laughter. Grey glared at him, which made Alice giggle. She always enjoyed being with the boys, they are always fun to be with. They stayed in her place for a little while before heading to the city, Klaus took them to the underground fight club they visited before they left for the competition. Alice felt a little downcast because she couldn''t fight due to her strength. This was the only thing she hated about being in the Origin Plane, not being able to fight like she usually does. Other than sparing with the boys, she doesn''t fight as she previously did. When they got back to the Academy, Alice told them she would be leaving the next day. Her father sent someone to come get her, she would''ve left if not for wanting to hang out with the boys one more time. She didn''t know when next they would be able to hang out like this again. Grey felt more pressure on his work, but the truth was, he was already trying his best, but he still hasn''t been able to make it till now. Chapter 281 - Where Did They Come From? The next day. Grey, Alice, and Klaus could be seen at the Academy''s gate. A silver carriage could be seen waiting by the side. "I''ll miss you guys, hopefully, we''ll see each other soon," Alice said while hugging the duo. "We''ll miss you too. Try to stay out of trouble, you know we aren''t there to help." Klaus advised. "I should be the one telling you that." Alice giggled after she replied. Given Klaus'' bad mouth, he was bound to offend people wherever he went. "I''m awesome, people are just jealous they''re not my friend, that''s why they feel angered when I speak," Klaus said righteously. "Haha, I''ll keep that in mind." Alice laughed lightly before adding, "Bye guys." "Goodbye." Klaus and Grey waved her off as he walked to the carriage waiting for her. Grey made sure to give her one of the wooden objects, so he could track her after he was done making the perfect one. He planned to visit all of them before he headed out to search for his parents. The battle of the empires had nothing to do with him. While they were going back to Klaus'' house, Grey was met with more bad news. Klaus was leaving the next day. He decided to spend the rest of the day with him, it wasn''t like he was going to successfully make it today. Besides, Reynolds and Alice took the normal type, it wouldn''t change anything if Klaus took that type as well. Later that day, news of the Twelfth Prince dying spread across the entire empire, according to what was said, the Twelfth Prince was killed by people from the Azure empire. This caused a spark in the empire, and a small brawl even broke out between both the Qilin empire''s army and the Azure empire''s army that was stationed at the border between both empires. In the Silver Moon Restaurant, Klaus, Grey, and Void were eating when they overheard some people speaking of the battle between both empires and the Twelfth Prince''s supposed death. "Hmm, that''s strange, I could swear I saw him when I was being chased by that Ice Dragon. He was heading for the exit, and other than the Dragon chasing after me, there were no other magical beasts that could threaten his group from that area to the exit," said Grey. "What if he was attacked by those guys when he came out?" Klaus speculated. "Not likely, they only attack those in the Fourth stage of the Origin Plane and above." Grey shook his head. He recalled the Twelfth Prince was either in the Second or Third stage of the Origin Plane, although he was not too sure about which of the two stages he was in, he was certain the Twelfth Prince was not in the Fourth stage. "You never can tell, maybe they decided to attack him anyway," Klaus said, he didn''t care if the Twelfth Prince was killed in the trial land, or outside the trial land, it was none of his business. "Yeah. By the way, do you know where you''re heading to?" Grey changed the topic. The Twelfth Prince was not someone he wanted to think about, if he didn''t encounter him in the trial land, then he wouldn''t even know there was a Twelfth Prince. "Nope. How about you, where do you plan to start your search?" Klaus shook his head before asking. "I haven''t decided yet, but I''ll visit Red City one more time before starting," replied Grey. "I''ll ask my dad if he could help out, they usually run background checks on each student," Klaus said while tapping his finger on the table. "They do?" Grey asked with a bewildered expression. "Of course, it''s not like the Academy takes in that many students anyway," Klaus answered before he started eating. Grey felt slightly hopeful, even if they couldn''t tell him where his parents were, he might be able to get some clues if they could tell him where his parents came from. After eating, Grey and Klaus headed for the Principal''s house. It was already late, and according to Klaus, his father had stopped going to the office and had handed everything over to the next Principal, well, not exactly everything since he was still staying in the Principal''s compound in the Academy. At the Principal''s house. Grey and Klaus were obediently sitting, waiting for Klaus'' father to come out. This was the first time Grey came to a house other than that of students, and he was flabbergasted by what he saw. The house of the Principal was exactly the same as that of the students, it was unexpected! He had always expected the houses of the Instructors would be better than that of students, but seeing the Principal''s house, he changed his mind. Oliver walked in and Klaus told him the reason for their visit, "No need to check his files, there''s nothing you can find about his background. The only reason he was allowed to stay in the Academy was because of Chris." Grey and Klaus exchanged glances, not understanding what the Principal was saying. "Sorry Sir, but I don''t understand what you mean." Grey voiced out. "There are no records of your parents, according to our intel, they appeared in Red City out of nowhere, at that time, your mother was already pregnant with you. Your dad rarely stayed at home before your birth, but after you were born, he stayed at home more frequently, before suddenly disappearing ten years ago," explained Oliver. Grey couldn''t refute a single word, since that was exactly what his neighbors also said when he asked about the origin of his parents, he initially thought they didn''t want to tell him. He had asked his mother about it on some occasions as well, but she always told him the time wasn''t right yet. Different questions ran through his head after the Principal told him what he knew. It was like a layer of mystery was covering his origins and the whereabouts of his parents. Now, the only way he could locate them was if he knew where they originally came from before staying in Red City. They left the Principal''s house after getting the answer they came in search of. ''Where did they come from?'' Grey asked himself the same question over and over again for the rest of the night. Chapter 282 - Klaus, The Writer! Grey was left bothered by the question for the rest of the day, but he made sure to have fun with Klaus while he was still here. The next day soon reached and it was time for Klaus to leave. Grey followed them to the Academy''s gate. "Why don''t you come with us?" Oliver offered when he saw the sad expression of both boys. "Thank you, Sir, but I''ll have to decline. I''ll come to visit when I''m done with my research." Grey smiled. Oliver didn''t say any more since he only asked him to come because of Klaus. "Goodbye bud, hopefully, you can get a girlfriend before we meet again," Klaus said while patting Grey on the shoulder. "I''m not interested in that, for now," Grey replied. "The chances of you having a girlfriend without my help is basically zero anyway, I was just saying so it wouldn''t look like I don''t care." Klaus chuckled. Just as they were about to leave, Klaus turned around while taking a small book out of his backpack, "Here, I almost forgot." He tossed the book over to Grey who caught it, and looked at the cover curiously, on it was written ''The Ways Of Life''. "What''s this?" Grey was forced to ask when he saw the title of the book. "The ways of life. It was written by me. It''s not complete yet, but I felt you should have it since you need it." explained Klaus. He suddenly started rummaging through his backpack once again. "Oh! There''s also this, I think you actually need this more." Klaus said after taking out a second small book from his backpack. When Grey caught it, he looked at the title, and couldn''t help but smile awkwardly, on it was written ''How To Get And Handle A Woman Properly''. He had always seen Klaus as a nutjob, but it seems like Klaus keeps surprising him every single time. What the hell does he want to use these books for? "You see, you''re not the only one who was working hard because of our departure. The reason I didn''t give Rey any of these was that the first book wouldn''t be able to help him, and unlike you, the second book isn''t needed." Klaus explained which caused Grey to facepalm. Oliver and Blake who were waiting for him curiously checked the titles of both books and couldn''t help but shake their heads, Klaus always finds new ways to amaze them. How did he even come up with writing these things? "I''ve always known you were not normal, but now it seems to call you crazy is a disrespect to crazy people." Grey looked at his friend with a smile. "Haha! I''m the king of crazy." Klaus declared before turning around, he continued waving at Grey even though he wasn''t facing him anymore. Grey watched on as the group left, and it was like the last reason he was staying in the Lunar Academy was gone. He totally lost all interest in the Academy. ''*Sigh* A new era is about to begin in the once prestigious Lunar Academy, hopefully, it keeps the reputation the Principal built over the years.'' Grey thought as he headed to his Teacher''s valley. Oliver, Blake, and Klaus were walking on the pathway when Klaus noticed Blake was putting on a sad face. "Are you okay?" He asked as he went closer to Blake. "No." Blake shook his head sadly. "Haha, he''s sad because he can''t see his little girlfriend anymore." Oliver laughed out. "Teacher!" Blake called out. "Haha, I''ll stop talking about it." Oliver laughed out again. "Do you want my help? I might not be good at many things, but in matters concerning women, I can proudly call myself an expert." Klaus said while thumping his c.h.e.s.t. Blake glared at Klaus, if not for the fact that they were still in the open he would''ve already started beating him up. "You know, I even wrote a book about how to get and handle a woman, why don''t I give you a copy, how does that sound?" Klaus asked. "That''s it!" Blake said before grabbing Klaus and spanking his b.u.t.t with a small lightning hand he created, which threw Oliver into a fit of laughter. They had always had the relationship of a family, Blake became Oliver''s student a few years after Klaus was born, they had always taken each other as brothers, with Blake being the responsible elder brother, and Klaus being the naughty younger brother who caused problems wherever he went. While Blake was still teaching Klaus a lesson, he suddenly jolted and looked ahead of them. "Why are you bullying him?" A delicate voice was heard ahead of them as a young lady who covered part of her face leaving only her eyes visible appeared from the side of the bush on the pathway. "Delia¡­" Blake muttered softly, letting go of Klaus who fell on the ground. "Oh, she''s back? I knew she would return, this was why I refused to give you the book." Klaus said loudly, making sure Delia heard him. Blake tried closing Klaus'' mouth as soon as he started speaking, but he was unfortunately too late. He knew whatever Klaus was going to say was nothing good. Being close to him since he was young, he knew Klaus would find a way to get back at him for beating him. "What book?" Delia asked curiously as she approached the group. Blake gave Klaus a death stare, but the only thing he saw in Klaus'' eyes was a young fearless bastard. Oliver laughed when he realized Klaus was about to start one of his pranks again, and Blake was his unfortunate target. "Bribe me, or else I''ll spill everything," Klaus whispered in Blake''s ear before Delia got close to them. "I didn''t even do anything!" Blake felt like crying, Klaus was someone who wouldn''t admit defeat easily. "She''s already close. Well, your time is up." Klaus said before moving closer to Delia, Blake tried getting hold of his hand, but he quickly escaped. "What book did he ask you to give to him?" Delia asked with her delicate and serene voice. Klaus threw a wicked smile at Blake before saying, "It''s a book titled ''How To Get And Handle A Woman Properly''." "Oh!" Delia blinked and looked at Blake oddly. ''Hehe, this will teach him not to mess with me.'' Klaus thought. Since he knew he couldn''t beat Blake physically, then he might as well torture him emotionally, or in this case, get Delia to do the dirty work for him. "It''s not what you think. He''s saying rubbish, you can ask Teacher, he can vouch for me." Blake said nervously. Oliver laughed as the group continued walking while Blake tried to settle the small chaos Klaus caused. Blake was finally able to settle things with Delia after some time, of course, Klaus would occasionally b.u.t.t in, be he gave them some time to talk since he could see how much Blake missed her. "Teacher, did you know she would be here?" Blake approached Oliver and asked. "Nope." Oliver shook his head with a smile. "Oh really, then why were you so adamant that we should take this route?" Blake asked with a sneer. "Because of my gut feelings," Oliver replied which made Klaus burst into laughter. It had been a long time since he saw his father this carefree, it was almost like being the Principal and Mayor changed him. Thankfully, he had stepped down from both positions. Chapter 283 - Changes After Oliver, Blake, and Klaus left, the new Principal and Head Instructors were announced. They were all from Capital City, making some people speculate about the Emperor having a hand in the stepping down of the previous Principal. All this though had nothing to do with Grey, he was currently cooked up in his Teacher''s valley. Once he was done with his research, he planned to immediately leave the Academy. The only thing that made him feel a little down was that he hadn''t completely learned about the basics of being a forgemaster. ''Guess, I''ll have to buy books concerning it and learn for myself.'' thought Grey. Five days later. Grey was about to come out of his Teacher''s valley when Void suddenly told him to wait. ''What''s it?'' He asked curiously. He was already at the tunnel, a few more steps and he would come out of the place. ''There are people outside, they seem to be searching for something.'' Void replied. ''Are they coming towards the rock?'' asked Grey. ''No, I don''t think they know what this rock is, but from how they are searching, it looks like they are searching for a hidden passage or something.'' Void continued monitoring the people outside. Grey''s senses weren''t as sharp as Void''s, so he couldn''t sense past the array his Teacher placed on the rock. He waited patiently with Void constantly giving updates. The people outside checked everything outside, including the rock, but didn''t find any clues to where any hidden passages were. After they stayed for almost ten minutes, they finally left. Grey sent Void outside to eavesdrop on their conversations while they were still there, and according to him, the people knew about his Teacher''s hidden passage, but they didn''t know the exact location of it. The reason they stayed for almost ten minutes was that they were discussing with the Instructor who took them here. ''Why are they searching so desperately for Teacher? Could it be that the resignation of Klaus'' dad had something to do with him?'' thought Grey. While he was thinking about this, Void told him a piece of news that worried him, the people were looking for him as well, they said Grey always came towards this part of the forest and would stay for hours without leaving. There was one time the Instructor came in a few minutes after Grey entered the forest, but he was nowhere to be seen, it was like he disappeared into thin air. The Instructor said if they could find Grey, then they might be able to locate the hidden passage since he felt Grey knew about it. The Instructor also said he saw Grey heading into the forest some days ago, but he didn''t see him come out even till now. ''This is bad, I can''t stay here for too long, or else I might be in danger. I may not know what is going on, but it definitely has something to do with Teacher, which has rubbed off on me.'' Grey fell into deep thoughts. This discovery made him feel threatened, it had only been five days since Klaus'' father left the position, yet the Academy was no longer safe for him, a student. ''What do we do now?'' Void asked after coming back to the tunnel. He could tell the issue wasn''t as simple as it seems, there''s a chance of them being captured if found. ''It''s still too early for us to leave. I''m confident that no one would be able to get into the valley without my help. Since Teacher is gone and Instructor Blake and the Principal are also gone, I''m the only one who can come in here and go as I please.'' Grey said while rubbing his chin. ''Okay, I have no problems with staying here.'' Void shrugged. ''I''ll need your help to navigate through the forest unnoticed, I''m out of wood, and I need to get more from that Hugh guy.'' said Grey. Void nodded before vanishing and appearing outside once again, he scouted the entire area, as well as outside the forest to know where the people were positioned. He came back thirty minutes later with more bad news for Grey. ''There''s no way you can use the same route we used in coming here. People are positioned in every corner of the Academy, it will be hard to pass through them without being seen.'' Void reported his findings to Grey which placed him in more thoughts. ''We''ll take the longer route then, it''s only an added four hours.'' Grey quickly came to a decision. This time, he would take as much wood as possible from Hugh, he was already very close to successfully making it, if he could get a few more array lines right, then he would be done with his project. The reason it''s taking so long was that instead of using the one from the previous wooden object, he started making his own arrays because those ones always blew up even after he made some changes. Since he started using his own set of arrays, the wooden objects rarely blew up, only that he hadn''t been able to get what he wanted. Grey went out after getting a go-ahead from Void, with Void''s help, he managed to come out from the forest from another side. He saw some people who were traveling towards Lunar City and joined them. They soon got to the city before Grey separated from the group, they encountered something he had never seen before at the city gate, the guards were now collecting entry fees from each person coming into the city. ''Hmm, it has only been a few days since the handover, yet they''ve already started taking fees?'' Grey thought after entering the city. When in the city, he heard about the different changes that had not only started taking place in the city but the Academy as well. Most of the remaining Instructors were dropped, and in the past two days, more than half of the older students have left the Academy. This outcome was in no way what the Emperor or the Crowned Prince hoped for. But this also showed how much the students liked the previous Principal and Instructors. Chapter 284 - Getting Complicated ''They seem to have ramped up the security, that doesn''t seem good.'' Grey thought while he was heading over to Hugh''s house. He only thought the guards at the gate were the only ones increased, but now, he noticed even the ones patrolling the city were increased as well. There were even more groups this time. When he got to the alley before Hugh''s house, Void told him that there were guards hiding around the place. ''Damn it! What do they want me for?'' Grey cursed out. There is no way the guards were here because of Hugh, that leaves only one possibility, they were waiting for someone, and given how they have been searching for him, he felt he was probably the one. There''s also the possibility that he wasn''t the one though, but he wouldn''t want to take that chance. ''Is there a way we can go inside undetected?'' asked Grey. ''I can, but you can''t.'' replied Void. ''Shit! If only I''ve comprehended the space element, I wouldn''t even bother with any of these people, I''d just go in and out as I wish.'' Grey thought sadly. Since meeting Void, and training with him in the trial land, he had been trying so hard to comprehend the space element. Currently, it was the most useful element he knew of, but it was harder than the other elements. Luckily for him, he not only had Void, but he also had a spatial ring, this had greatly improved his contact with the element. But even after so long since discovering the space element, he still hasn''t been able to sense it in the Chaos Space. He had tried comprehending the Great Void Technique but had been unable to. Although, he felt that he wasn''t far from sensing it in the Chaos Space given how much he uses the spatial ring. Without the spatial ring, Void, and the Great Void Technique, it would probably take him months, if not even years before he would be able to make any progress with the space element. ''I''ll have to disguise myself,'' said Grey. With a plan in mind, he walked back into the city. Since he was coming to this part of the city which was the slums of the city, he decided to dress like one of them. He even decided to put a scar on his face just in case those guards knew what he looked like. Two hours later, Grey was back in the alley. Now, he was different from how he previously looked. He had a scar on one part of his face that slightly entered the other side, like that of someone who suffered from burns. The scar covered almost half his face and went past his nose to the other side of his face, ending just under his right eye, added with the clothes he was wearing, it was hard to associate him with the previous handsome-looking Grey. Now he was wearing casual plain-looking trousers with a loose shirt. He even found a way to make his skin look tanned, unlike his previous pale-like skin. ''They shouldn''t be able to recognize me with these, right?'' Grey asked Void. Void nodded with a tired look, this was the ninth time Grey was asking this question. Grey was the most cautious person he had ever seen, even after disguising himself to the extreme, he was still scared of being recognized by people who might''ve only seen a drawing of him. Even those who had been with him for so long would have a hard time recognizing him, much less these people. After getting confirmation from Void, Grey walked out of the alley and walked straight for Hugh''s house. He told Void to go in on his own. He noticed different spiritual senses observing him when he was approaching Hugh''s house, but he remained calm and collected. ''I really need to thank Teacher.'' He thought. He used a cloaking array that was able to perfectly hide his Plane from people, even those in the Early stages of the Overlord Plane. The guards around this place were only in the Mid stages of the Origin Plane, so he had no problem with his disguise. To them, he was only a Sixth stage Arcane Plane Elementalist. Knock! Knock! After a few seconds, he heard Hugh''s footsteps. When Hugh opened the door, he was taken aback by the person who was standing outside his house, he didn''t recall ever knowing or seeing this person. Grey looked at him and said only one word, "Spiracotanue." Hugh quickly connected the dots before welcoming him inside with a smile, he closed the door the moment Grey stepped in. "I don''t mean to pry young master, but did you offend the new Mayor?" Hugh asked as soon as he turned around. "I don''t even know him, but, why do you ask?" Grey answered before asking. "Firstly, you''re disguised, which means you''re hiding from some people." Hugh said before taking a seat, "Secondly, the..." According to Hugh, three days after the new Mayor took charge, he personally came to see him, asking him some questions about his relationship with Grey in particular. He asked what Grey wanted when he came to visit him the last time he visited him. "Don''t worry, I didn''t tell him anything," Hugh said when he saw Grey''s expression. Grey sighed in relief but didn''t say anything, he waited patiently so Hugh would continue speaking. Hearing the amount the Mayor offered, Grey s.u.c.k.e.d in a cold breath. That was a lot of money, even some families wouldn''t mind betraying a family member, much less someone they knew nothing about. Grey''s impression of Hugh skyrocketed when he saw how loyal he was, it was just as Klaus said, these people were more trustworthy than those two-faced rich people he knew. "So, what brings you here?" Hugh asked after he was done telling Grey about the guards that came looking for him. "I''m out of wood. I need more, a little bigger than the one I took the last time." Grey went straight to the point. "Okay, come with me." Hugh stood up before walking in the direction of where the secret passage was located in his house by the end of the passage after leaving the living room. "Huh!" Hugh exclaimed softly when he saw Void on Grey''s shoulder just before they entered the secret room. He didn''t recall seeing Void with Grey when he opened the door for him to come inside. "When did the cat come in?" He couldn''t help but ask. "I hid him," replied Grey. "Oh I see, it''ll be easy for people to recognize you since you''re known for always having a small black cat on your shoulder, so you hid it," Hugh nodded in enlightenment before turning around to open the secret passage. As soon as he turned around, Grey''s expression changed, ''Shit! How did I forget about that?'' ''Luckily, I wasn''t on your shoulder when you came out of the alley,'' said Void. ''Yes, but they must already be aware of me coming into the city. Why exactly are they looking for me?'' Grey asked. He felt Hugh wasn''t the only one who the new Mayor must''ve visited, he might''ve gone to see the other few people he was acquainted with in the Academy. This was already past just because of his Teacher, for the Mayor to move personally meant it was more than what he thought. Chapter 285 - Its Been Long Lunar City, the Mayor''s office. "My Lord, I have something to report." A guard''s voice could be heard from outside the office. The new Mayor was currently seated on his seat, accompanied by two men. He had a slim build and short grey hair with a mustache. He looked to be around his late thirties. "Come in." He said calmly. The guard entered the office and bowed with a knee to the ground. "Speak." "My Lord, a young man was sighted entering the City with a black cat on his shoulder, we believe he''s the one you have been looking for." The guard reported. "Where is he?" The Mayor stood up instantly on hearing this. "He headed to the southern part of the city but disappeared soon after." The guard reported with his head still bowed. "Fools! How can a brat in the Origin Plane disappear just like that? Search the city, he''s still inside. Block the gates, no one goes in or out." The Mayor ordered. The guard bowed before leaving hastily to give out the Mayor''s orders. After the guard left, the two men who were seated by the side looked at the Mayor curiously, one of them couldn''t refrain from asking anymore, "What did the boy do to His Majesty?" The Mayor sat down before looking at the two men, just like him, they were both from Capital City as well, "He has something the Emperor d.e.s.i.r.es." "Huh! Something the Emperor d.e.s.i.r.es? What could that possibly be?" The second man asked. "I don''t know, but the Emperor said the boy brought it out of that place." _____ At Hugh''s house, Grey was oblivious to what was currently going on in the city, they had just entered the secret room, and he was thinking of ways to hide the wood in his spatial ring without Hugh finding out. But he knew it was impossible. With no other choice in mind, he decided to hide it after getting to the alley, just like the time he came with Klaus. While Grey was thinking about how to leave, a weird scene was currently playing out, Hugh was actually apologizing to the tree before cutting it. He was even holding the tree tightly, making Void who was watching feel uncomfortable. ''This guy is just plain weird. It''s a f.u.c.k.i.n.g tree, just cut it and be done with it.'' said Void. ''Let him be. As long as I''ll get what I came for, he can do whatever he wants with the trees. It''s none of our business.'' Grey said nonchalantly. After Hugh was done, he cut out a branch that was double the size of the one he previously gave to Grey. Grey gladly thanked him before taking it. With what he came for, he soon left his house with the big wood branch on his shoulder. The guards who were stationed outside the house instantly lost interest in him when they saw that he came out with a piece of wood, they took him for someone who was just as weird as Hugh, a wood loving moron. When Grey got to the alley, he checked if he was still being monitored, but after seeing that no spiritual sense was locked on him, he heaved a sigh before keeping the wood in his spatial ring. ''With this, I wouldn''t need to leave the valley until I''m done.'' Grey clenched his fist before walking in the direction of the gate. This time, he not only kept his disguise on, but Void was nowhere to be seen. After he heard what Hugh said, he knew he messed up when he entered the city. But what kept bugging him was that he didn''t know why the new Mayor was so adamant on getting him, what did he have or know that brought so much interest to him? When he got close to the city gate, he knew his conjecture was right, the guards definitely recognized him when he entered the city previously. ''Hey, can''t you just jump over the wall? The other side is very free.'' Void who was nowhere to be seen advised. ''No, this isn''t a small city like Zivia City, there''s a huge detection array around the walls. The guards would instantly be aware once I do that.'' replied Grey. He was only able to know this because he was friends with the son of the previous Mayor. Klaus, being a good friend, told him a lot of the city, especially after his father stepped down, he even told him where the city treasury was located in the Mayor''s compound, in case he planned on robbing the new Mayor. ''What do we do now?'' asked Void. ''Wait it out, it''s not like I''m in a hurry anyway. I''m going to a tavern,'' said Grey. ''It''s been a long time since I tried comprehending the elements. I''ve been so focused on the space element that I forgot I have a technique for the darkness element.'' He thought. There''s no way the Mayor would keep the city closed for the entire day, even if he does, it''s none of his business. He could even keep it closed for a month, it was none of his business. Grey went to a tavern that was close to the Mayor''s compound, with his disguise on, he didn''t have a problem with taking a room. When he entered his room, Void appeared, but Grey didn''t bother with him. He sat crossed leg and entered a semi-conscious state, his spiritual self appeared in the Chaos Space. "Other than my fire element, the rest are either blue or purple grades. Instead of increasing the ones on purple, I should find a way to get a new element. It''s been so long I had a new element." Grey muttered out. While in this spiritual state, he couldn''t take the things in his spatial ring here. Since he planned to comprehend the darkness element, he came out of the Chaos Space and brought out the darkness element techniques he got from Quinn. He had a lot of time in his hands, so he started slowly studying it. Chapter 286 - New Plan Grey stayed in his room for the rest of the day without taking a single step outside, he didn''t even check if the city gate was still blocked or not. He focused fully on his learning. ''Hey, create a small darkness ball, I need to observe it.'' Grey turned to Void after not getting a result from the scroll. He never really expected to make any progress immediately, so he wasn''t disappointed by his lack of results. ''Okay.'' Void nodded before making a small mass appear in the shape of a ball. He had been idle since they got here, so doing this was better than nothing. Grey watched as the ball of black mass floated mid-air, he carefully observed its properties. After watching it for a while, he picked a cup from the table and gradually placed it in the ball of black mass. He wanted to watch how it''s able to corrode the cup, maybe he might be able to understand it more if he could understand its destructive ability. Corrosion was the most notable ability of the darkness element, it could even be said to be its main ability. Grey felt if he understood this, then comprehending the darkness element would happen sooner than he expected. Having Void with him also made things better. As soon as the cup came in contact with the darkness ball, it started being shrouded by a black color, it started from the bottom of the cup to the top. This was even before the cup completely entered the black mass. After the darkness spread to the top of the cup, Grey quickly let go and used the wind element to support it mid-air, but the darkness soon started creeping into the wind he was using and it was soon destroyed. The cup turned to ash from a touch from the darkness ball. ''Hmm, it''s like a venomous substance, all it needs is but a touch.'' Grey thought while observing the ash that was on the floor. He decided to try another experiment, given how corrosive the darkness element was, he wanted to see if his powerful blue fire would be able to withstand it. With a wave of his hand, a blue fireball appeared and slowly started going closer to the ball of darkness. Void watched curiously as Grey''s blue flame gradually got to his mass of darkness. When the fireball touched the black floating mass, a tug of war started. At first, the darkness started to corrode the fireball, but the fireball soon fought back, it grew brighter before pushing away the darkness around it. Both elements went to a standstill with none giving the other an upper hand. After a while, Grey saw both balls had started to shrink, so he extinguished the flame. ''Hmm, the flame is too strong. I''ll use the earth element to see how it feels as the darkness element corrodes it.'' Grey thought. ''Why are you doing this?'' Void was forced to ask. He didn''t understand why Grey was trying different experiments with the darkness element, he was even more confused when he saw Grey studying the scroll that was about the darkness element. ''I''m trying to understand how it works. If I can, then I''d be able to use the darkness element sooner than I thought.'' explained Grey. ''Wait, you have the darkness element?'' asked a confused Void. ''Technically, not yet,'' said Grey. ''You can have it? But, how''s that possible?'' Void asked wide-eyed. ''Oh, you were still asleep when I told the others¡­'' Grey told Void about his ability to comprehend new elements, leaving the small cat lost for words. Void had never heard of anyone or anything that has been able to learn new elements. Well, he hadn''t been in the world for a long time now, he knew from the others that one couldn''t have an element they were not attuned with. ''Doesn''t that mean you can learn the space element as well?'' asked Void. ''Yup, every single element out there.'' Grey said with a grin. ''Damn! That''s amazing.'' exclaimed Void. ''Yeah, it''s just that, comprehending each element isn''t easy.'' Grey sighed before creating a knife with the earth element. Void became even more curious after finding out what Grey was trying to do. Grey continued with his experiments till it was evening, he went out to get some food for them and was surprised to see that the city was still on lockdown. ''What did I do?'' He asked himself in annoyance. If he knew why they were looking for him, he would be less worried, but now, he had no idea why they were searching for him. All he knew was that it was not anything good, given how the Mayor''s making it look like he was a fugitive. When he got home, he ate with Void before sending him to infiltrate the Mayor''s house. He needed to know why they were looking for him, and the Mayor was the only one he could find out from. Luckily, he had Void who could go into a place guarded by Overlord Plane experts unnoticed. While Void was spying on the Mayor to see if he could find out why they were searching for Grey, Grey was busy trying to comprehend the darkness element. For some reason, he felt he would be able to easily comprehend it. This feeling made him strive harder, he was slowly starting to understand the corrosiveness of the darkness element, and once he''s able to, it would greatly boost his chances at comprehending the element. Void returned two days later with good news, the city was no longer on lockdown. Unfortunately, he wasn''t able to find out why they were searching for Grey. The Mayor never spoke of it when he was there, not even once! Grey felt burdened by his lack of not knowing why they were looking for him. ''I''ll have to abduct one of those Origin Plane Instructors who are stationed around the forest, they should at least know why they are searching for me.'' Grey came up with a plan. Grey and Void could easily overpower any of the Instructors that are still in the Origin Plane, but just to be safe, he would find one who is still in the Mid-stages of the Origin Plane, like him. ''Haha! Yes! I love this plan!'' Void said excitedly. It was finally time to beat up someone! ''We''re not beating anyone Void, we only want to ask him some questions.'' Grey clarified. Chapter 287 - Fix Him Grey kept his disguise on as they left the city. The guards at the gate were more than when they came in, rigorously checking every individual that was entering or leaving the city. Void was already outside by the time Grey came out, but it was only after going almost one kilometer away from the city did he appear close to him. ''I''m pumped! Who do I have to beat?'' Void asked as soon as he appeared. ''I have no idea, we''ll have to get there first.'' replied Grey. He was going to take the same path he took when he was leaving the forest. Once he gets in, he would send Void out to bring an Instructor, seeing how energetic Void was, he is already starting to pity the unlucky Instructor he would choose. After they got to the forest, Grey realized the number of Instructors increased. ''It''s probably because they found out I left the valley. Hmph! Such pests.'' He snorted coldly. He was chased almost throughout his time in the trial land, as soon as he left the place, he was attacked and Void was injured, now it hadn''t even been up to two weeks since leaving, yet he has to go into hiding. It was starting to get on his nerves! He sent Void ahead of him to scout the area like he did when he wanted to leave, after Void returned, he was able to navigate through the forest easily, without being found out. Without wasting any time, he quickly entered the valley, before sending Void out to abduct an Instructor. He made sure to warn him to handle it as quietly as possible, not to alert the others. Two hours later. In Chris'' valley. Splash! A ball of water splashed on the face of a man who was tied to an earthen chair. He had claw marks on his face, although small, it was very distinct. His eyes were swollen, his hair was a mess, his clothes were torn on different parts. From how he looked, it was easy to discern that he must have been through a lot of hardship. When the ball of water was splashed on his face, he opened his eyes, but everything looked blurry. Seeing the unfamiliar scenery, he hastily looked around, but he still wasn''t able to see properly. He tried standing, but failed. It was at that time that he noticed he was bound by ropes. He quickly tried to use his element, but his expression changed when he realized he couldn''t. ''Do you think he can see us?'' Void asked when he saw the panicking Instructor. They were standing right in front of the Instructor, yet he hadn''t even taken notice of them. ''Given how he looks, I''m surprised he''s still alive.'' Grey sneered. ''I''m sorry, I got carried away.'' Void apologized. Grey looked at him speechless. When Void brought the man some minutes ago, he almost couldn''t believe that the man was still alive. ''You call that being carried away? Look at him, do you think he can see us properly?'' Grey pointed at the man who seems to be having difficulty seeing his surroundings, much less Grey and Void. Void looked at the man before shaking his head, even he didn''t think the man would be able to see them. "Hey, can you hear me?" Grey snapped his finger in front of the man to draw his attention to him. The Instructor looked ahead of him, although he couldn''t see properly, he was able to easily figure out where the sound was coming from. "Who is that? How dare you kidnap me?!" The Instructor yelled out arrogantly, stunning Grey in the process. ''Are we the ones tied to a chair, or is he?'' the dumbfounded Grey asked Void who was on his shoulder. Void didn''t have a reply, and raised both shoulders as if saying ''I don''t know''. Grey looked around just to be sure they were alone before sending another ball of water at the Instructor. He felt the Instructor wasn''t awake yet, he''s probably semi-conscious. "Are you mad?! Didn''t hear me the first time? I''m an Instructor of the Lunar Academy, if you know you aren''t tired of living, you''ll let me go now!" The Instructor continued yelling. ''F.u.c.k! Void, where did you get such a psychopath?'' Grey cursed out irritatedly. ''I didn''t know he was like this. It''s not like they write ''I''m a psychopath'' on their heads.'' replied a dejected Void. ''Fine, since he''s like this because of your beating, fix him.'' Grey said before taking a seat on the wooden chair Chris had outside. Since the Instructor was being stupid, he would leave him with Void, given Void''s character, it would be a miracle if he didn''t kill him. Some minutes later, the valley was filled with the screams of the helpless Instructor. At first, he was ordering them, but it soon got to the point when he started cursing at them, but a few minutes later, he started begging. Void continued beating him and a few minutes later, other than the sobs of the Instructor, Grey couldn''t hear any other thing. "It''s enough, I think he''s ready to talk," Grey said while standing up from Chris'' chair. The crying Instructor continued crying even after Void had stopped beating him. His previous swollen eyes had turned double their previous size, now there is definitely no way he would be able to see. "Hey, can you hear me?" Grey repeated the same action as before and unlike the last response, the Instructor nodded. "Good. I have some questions for you, I believe you can talk, right?" asked Grey. "Y...e...s" ''A little slow, but it''ll do.'' thought Grey. He made an earthen chair close to the Instructor and started questioning him. He first asked when he became an Instructor in the Academy. And it was just as he suspected, the Instructor was part of the new people assigned. After a little about his background, he asked the important question that had been bugging him. "Why is the new Principal searching for me?" Chapter 288 - Just Barely "Why is the new Principal searching for me?" Grey asked. "I¡­ I don''t know." The Instructor hesitated before replying. "Hmm, looks like you''re still not ready to speak. Void, fix him one more time." Grey said nonchalantly. He was not so kind-hearted or free to play games with the Instructor, if the Instructor had no plans of speaking, he''d just kill him and get Void to bring another one. Void was more than happy to give him more beatings. Unfortunately, the Instructor had no plans of cooperating with him, because he quickly agreed to say what he knew. ''*Sigh* Such a shame.'' Void shook his head after Grey told him to leave the Instructor alone. "What do you know?" Grey asked as he came closer to the Instructor. "Water, please¡­" The Instructor begged as soon as he noticed Grey was coming close to him. Grey looked at the stream behind him, but still gave him the water he created with his water element. The Instructor spat out the water as soon as it got into his mouth. There''s a difference between normal water, and water made by an Elementalist. The water made by an Elementalist had a sour and metallic taste that didn''t taste good for drinking. Although, in extreme times, some Elementalists have been known to drink it, but it rarely happens. "Speak," Grey said, not caring about the Instructor''s reaction. He had already tagged most of the Instructors as an enemy, and guessing that this one was one of the new ones, he had almost zero sympathies for him. "But¡­ but¡­" The Instructor wanted to speak of the running water he was hearing, but remembering how Void beat him up, he shut his mouth. "I don''t know about anything, I don''t even know who you¡­" He paused midway, thinking why someone he didn''t know would kidnap him. Initially, he didn''t know who he was speaking to, but hearing the mention of the word ''New Principal'', he was able to figure out who he was talking to. "It''s you!" The Instructor yelled in shock. Never in this world would he expect that the young man they were searching for would kidnap him. "Instructor, my patience is very slim," Grey said slowly. "This has nothing to do with me, I''m only following orders." The Instructor begged. "I guess you''re not needed." Grey stood up from his seat, planning to let Void kill him. "Wait¡­" The Instructor called out, "All I know is that you have something the Emperor wants." "The Emperor? So, you mean this has nothing to do with my Teacher?" Grey sat down, not too surprised about being the one they were looking for. What truly shocked him was that he had something the Emperor wanted. He didn''t recall ever meeting the Emperor, nor did his Teacher leave anything important with him that others would covet, except for his teachings, that is. "Yes, yes, the Emperor. He ordered that you should be captured, alive." The Instructor nodded continuously. "And?" "Nothing, that''s all I know." "Are you sure?" "Yes, I swear on my life, I don''t know anything else." "Void," "Wait, wait, he also didn''t want us to make this known to the public, and¡­ and he only asked about you after the trial land closed." "Anything else you want me to know?" "No, that''s all I know." Grey looked at the Instructor for a while, he couldn''t say he fully believed him, but he felt worried about the involvement of the Emperor. ''Hmm, the Emperor. How does a mere Instructor know that the Emperor is the one who wants me?'' He asked himself. It''s totally impractical for someone who is only in the Origin Plane to know about this. ''Void, bring in another Instructor.'' Grey said, he wanted to confirm something. ''Yes!'' Void exclaimed happily. ''Alive, please.'' ''Wasn''t this one alive?'' ''Just barely.'' ''Fine.'' Void went out again, and this time, it took him only thirty minutes to come back with an Instructor. Fortunately, this one was able to see clearly. Grey asked him the same question he asked the previous one who was currently unconscious on another chair, and he got a different answer. This one apparently only knew that the new Principal wanted him, and nothing else. Grey woke up the unconscious Instructor, and after asking again, he found out the Instructor eavesdropped on the higher-ups during one of their meetings. He currently had two possibilities in his head, first, the Principal was only searching for him because of his Teacher. Second, the Principal was searching for him because the Emperor ordered it. And to be honest, he believed the first possibility more than the second one. What could he possibly bring out of the trial land that the Emperor would want? It was when he was thinking about this he recalled something. ''The Great Essence Liquid.'' thought Grey. That was the only thing he could think of that would make even an Emperor search for him, and from how the Emperor wanted to hide it from the public, it''s like he wasn''t the only one who knew about it. There''s also the chance that he was overthinking, and maybe the Emperor wanted him for a different reason entirely. But whatever it was, he didn''t want to find out, especially given how they were searching for him like a criminal, and what the Instructor said. After what happened in the Capital the last time, going there wasn''t part of his agenda. "Void, take care of them," Grey stood up and walked in the direction of his shack. Well, almost a shack. The shack had been destroyed from different explosions, and after using the earth element to make a shack multiple times, he gave up and just stayed in his roofless wooden shack. It wasn''t so bad after he got used to it. Before he got in, he could already hear the screams of the Instructors, but it quickly came to an end. There was no way he was going to let the Instructors leave, doing that would mean putting himself in danger, that wasn''t something he would deliberately do. Chapter 289 - Appearance Of A Sixth Element Grey once again focused on completing the wooden object, since the Emperor didn''t want to make it known to the public that he was searching for him, then he wanted to quickly make the device and escape from this place. Two weeks went by in this manner and the search for Grey did not decrease, but rather it intensified. Not just that, but small skirmishes have been happening more frequently between the Qilin and Azure empires that everyone felt the war wasn''t too far away from starting. In Chris'' valley. "Haha! Finally!" Grey''s excited laughter rang out from his shack. Void was previously lying outside leisurely, but after hearing Grey''s laughter, he hurriedly went in. ''What, what? Did you finally make it?'' He asked as soon as he went in. ''Haha! Of course! I knew I would be able to make it.'' Grey said excitedly before taking out a wooden item. Compared to the previously square-like ones, this one was circular, and almost five times the size of the previous ones. Although it was circular, it looked very crude. ''What is that?'' Void asked when he saw the crude-looking circular object. ''What do you¡­ you know what? I''m not going to answer that.'' Grey said before tapping on the middle of the circular object with his index finger. "Huh! Why are there five sources instead of four?" Grey muttered under his breath. ''This must be me, those belong to Klaus, Alice, and Reynolds, so who does the last one belong to?'' Grey first pointed at the light with the second highest number of lights before pointing at the three which had one light each. The three lights obviously represented his friends, and the reason he was able to guess his light was the one with the second highest number was because of the proximity of them. The source with the highest number was quite some distance away from them. ''If this is you, then who is this?'' Void asked curiously. ''It should belong to the people who originally created this thing. Since I linked mine with the other ones, it''s also connected to theirs.'' Grey speculated. This was the only reason he could think of. ''Well, can''t you just remodify your own so you don''t see them? You know they might also be able to locate you with this.'' suggested Void. ''It''s not entirely possible for them to be able to do that, you see¡­'' Grey explained how he made this wooden object. Unlike the previous ones which were all connected in some way, this one was different from the others. First, it didn''t have a distance limitation, secondly, the arrays he drew on this one made it almost impossible for any other wooden object to be able to locate it. Lastly, he only linked the others to it, and not the other way around. He used the identical array in the previous ones to create some sort of a connection with the one he made, he could locate them, but they couldn''t locate him. ''You mean to say only you can find them, but they can''t find you?'' asked Void. ''Exactly,'' replied Grey. While he was making it, he thought of the possibility of this and realized since these ones were made and given to Quinn in such high numbers, it meant the people who made them had more. But neither they nor the people have had any reactions from their respective wooden objects. This means that there''s a limitation to the distance. If not, the people would''ve searched for him when he was crushing the wooden objects during his research. ''When are we leaving?'' Void asked. Since Grey was already done with what he wanted to do, then it was time to leave. ''Not yet, I''m already very close to comprehending the darkness element. It would be a shame if I leave without it.'' Grey said before keeping the device. During the past two weeks, Grey had not only focused on the device, but he also tried comprehending the darkness element. Had it not been for the near success he could feel from his comprehension, he would leave as soon as he completed his device. Void looked at him a little frustrated before going outside once again, ''I''m going hunting.'' He disappeared from the valley after saying this. This had been the only thing he had been doing for the past two weeks while Grey was cooked up with his project. Other than hunting, he had also been venturing into the Academy as well as the city in search of shiny things. Grey knew what he was up to, but knowing how hard it would be for anyone to catch him, he let him be. And Void had been very careful with the things he had been taking, well, that''s according to him. The real reason he let Void go into the city and the Academy compound was so that he could bring the latest news to him. Initially, he only had the Lightning, Earth, Wind, Water, and Fire elements present in his Chaos Space, but now, a small dark place had started forming. This represented the darkness element. When he first entered the Chaos Space, the initial five elements were present. He had always felt puzzled as to why he couldn''t find any other element in it, now he understood it, they would slowly appear as he comes in contact with them. He had always been in contact with the four elements, which were fire, water, wind, and earth. The reason why lightning was added to the fray was that it was his original element. ''So that''s it, huh?'' thought Grey. Once he starts comprehending a new element that was not in the Chaos Space, it would appear in the Chaos Space, making comprehension easier. This gave him more hope in being able to comprehend the space element soon. Chapter 290 - Appearance Of A Sixth Element II Grey stood in the Chaos Space and looked at the budding darkness in it. He still didn''t understand how this place truly worked, other than when he came here to comprehend the elements or to check his elemental grades, he knew nothing else about it. The appearance of the darkness element gave him a little understanding, but it''s not really much. Compared to the darkness element, he had been in more contact with the space element, yet he hadn''t seen anything concerning it in the Chaos Space. "*Phew* Here goes nothing," Grey sighed before walking into the darkness. When he stepped into the darkness, he could sense a ravaging destructive energy that wanted to destroy everything in its part. Other than that, there was really nothing else. He looked around, but he couldn''t get a glimpse of light, the only source of light was from the place he used in entering the darkness. He walked about a hundred meters into the darkness, but as soon as he took another step past the one hundred meters mark, he suddenly felt a sense of danger and quickly retreated. ''The energy there is at least five times greater than it is here. I can''t go any further, or I might hurt myself. Guess this is the first limit for this element huh?'' He thought. Each element in the Chaos Space has a separate space, there''s always a limit when he first enters. After his elemental grade for that element increases, the distance he could go in without hurting himself increases. There''s a different distance in each element, like for his wind element, before comprehending it, he could go as deep as three hundred meters, but for his fire, it was only two hundred meters. The darkness element has been the shortest so far. With that, Grey sat crossed leg in the darkness and closed his eyes. There''s no better way to understand something than to personally feel it. The destructive and corrosive energy of the darkness element started ravaging his spiritual body, giving him a better understanding of it. This was his first time entering the darkness space in the Chaos Space, and it was a strange feeling. He had experienced the feeling of the fire, water, lightning, wind, and earth element, but this was the time he was experiencing the darkness element on his body, well, spiritual body. Twenty minutes later. ''Crap! So soon?'' Grey opened his eyes before standing up and dashing straight for the only source of light in the darkness space. Parts of his spiritual body was starting to slowly become black. He managed to come out from the darkness space within a few seconds, but his left hand was almost completely black, and even though he was currently in a spiritual state, it was very painful. The darkness which was previously moving upwards had stopped in its track. Grey stared at his left hand in fear, this was only the second time he had been hurt in the Chaos Space. The first time he was hurt was when he entered the lightning space for the first time, and it was because he didn''t understand the rules of the place at that time. Even though he knew that the time he could spend in the darkness space was short due to the short distance he could travel, he expected it to at least get to an hour, not twenty minutes. The color of his hand slowly started reverting to its normal color after thirty minutes of pain. ''Shit! I hate this element!'' Grey complained. But as soon as the pain stopped, he ran back into the darkness space. He couldn''t stop himself, how could he give up on the darkness element just because of a few minutes of pain? This time, he sensibly timed himself. He stayed in the darkness space for only about fifteen minutes. After the fifteen minutes time, he would go out of the darkness space. He repeated the same routine another three times before he noticed he couldn''t go in anymore. ''Well, that''s it for today.'' By the time he came out of the Chaos Space, it was already late, but Void was not in the shack. He didn''t sense Void in the valley as well, but he knew he wasn''t far away. ''Where are you?'' He asked Void through their mind link. ''On my way.'' replied Void. Grey sat down close to the stream and placed his legs inside it, enjoying the coolness of it. Bam! A dog-like beast with antlers was dumped on the ground before Void appeared above it. ''I brought dinner,'' ''I''m out of ingredients,'' Grey replied with a shrug. ''I know, that''s why I got you some.'' Void said before making some small containers to appear close to Grey. Grey picked up one of the containers, opened the lid, and sniffed it. ''This isn''t used for cooking, it''s what ladies use for make-up.'' Grey burst out laughing when he realized what Void brought back thinking it was ingredients used for cooking. Although there were two among the five items he brought which were ingredients, he couldn''t use them on this meat. He decided to roast the meat without any ingredients, it wasn''t like it wouldn''t taste good without the ingredients anyway. The next day, Grey gave Void a detailed description of the ingredients he wanted before going into the Chaos Space. Three weeks passed in this manner, Grey stayed in the darkness space most of the time, with Void having free reign to go out as much as he pleased. Now, Grey could stay in the darkness space for almost one hour without getting hurt by the darkness element. ''Just a little more, and I''ll finally be able to leave this place,'' Grey thought. The only good news he got so far was that he could freely come out of the forest now since the Instructors weren''t searching for him in the forest anymore. During the next week, he would occasionally head to the city, with his disguise on of course, and a large cloak. One week later. Grey was currently sitting in a crossed leg position in the darkness space, he looked like a statue that was completely covered by a black cocoon. A crack ran across the cocoon, after the first crack, more lines started spreading across the cocoon. Boom! The cocoon exploded out, spreading in all directions, and Grey who was seated opened his eyes, but his eyes were pitch-black. Chapter 291 - The Darkness Element Grey''s looked around, and the darkness seemed perfectly lit. He was currently seated close to the one hundred meters mark, with a casual step, he walked past it into the other side. ''Hmm, even after awakening my darkness element, it''s still difficult to freely enter this place.'' He thought before walking back. Just as he was about to walk out of the darkness space, he sensed a strange occurrence in his body that was outside the Chaos Space. ''Huh?'' He wore a confused face, a little taken aback by what he was sensing. It was only after a few seconds he realized what was happening, he was starting to form the elemental bead for his darkness element. His previous five elements were attained before he broke through to the Origin Plane, so he forgot about this. Without wasting any time, he sat down crossed leg while still in the darkness space and focused on forming his elemental bead. What better place to form an elemental bead than the place where the element is abundant? He was currently in a spiritual state, but he could perfectly form it in his body that was outside the Chaos Space. He was already very familiar with the technique after already creating five, with a calm mind, he used his spiritual energy to form a sphere around the darkness element which was still in a chaotic state. After forming the sphere, he slowly started compressing it. He made sure to compress it to its limit, while also making sure not to overdo it. It took him about ten minutes to completely form it. As soon as he finished it, he sensed the increase in his strength. Unfortunately, he was unable to get to the Sixth stage of the Origin Plane. He expected this since it hadn''t been long he broke through to the Fifth stage, and after he broke through to the Fifth stage, he had not made any attempts to even cultivate. Not just that, but he knew with every increase in strength, the harder it would be for him to breakthrough. When he was done with forming the elemental bead, he stood up and left the darkness space heading in the direction of the mountain peak in the Chaos Space, although he could already guess the elemental grade of his new element, he still wanted to see it for himself. Who knows, maybe it might go higher than the pink grade. After walking to the stone, he placed his hand on it, and after the usual routine, the stone lit up with six different colors. The fire element took up most of the stone, while the lightning and wind elements which were blue grades each covered the same area, the earth and water element were purple each, while the darkness element was pink. ''Hmm, none of my elements have seen any increment for a while now. I guess I''ve been too focused on getting a new one.'' Grey thought before leaving the Chaos Space. His previously motionless body twitched before he opened his eyes, a dark aura spread out from where he was seated, and its corrosiveness slightly affected the things around him. The wooden shack slowly started decaying, while the grass around the house also showed signs of decaying. Luckily, nothing important was close to him, by important, he meant his Teacher''s chair which was some meters away from his shack. Void who was outside sensed the aura and quickly stood up, he could already guess that Grey had awakened the darkness element. This excited him because they would be leaving this boring place soon. ''Hey, you''ve done it?'' He still asked even after knowing the answer. Grey nodded before opening his hand, and the black mass appeared above it. It gave off a deadly eerie aura which gave Void a fright. He smiled before sending it in Void''s direction. Void quickly escaped with the space element, ''Hmph! Even though you have this now, I still have the space element, which gives me the edge.'' ''I''ll get it soon, that''s when you really need to worry.'' Grey smirked when he saw how easily Void escaped his attack. ''When will we be leaving?'' Void asked the question that was important to him. ''In a week''s time or so. I still need to prepare the devices for the others, I''m already done with two, all I need is one more.'' said Grey. During the time he was trying to comprehend the darkness element, whenever he couldn''t enter the darkness space, he would focus on making the devices. He hadn''t been able to figure out how to add a communication array, so he left that out for now. The devices he was making for the others weren''t like his own, they would only be able to sense each other, but not the fourth group, the people who originally made the wooden object. He was scared that maybe if it was linked to it, they might curiously head there, or maybe those people might be able to sense them. Void nodded without asking any more questions, this was the reason they stayed here for so long anyway, so it would be a waste if they didn''t prepare the other devices for the other three. Grey wasn''t too bothered with the device, since he already knew how to make it, it was no longer an issue, what really bothered him was another issue. ''I still have four with me, one of them belongs to Klaus'' dad, which leaves me with only three. If I use one now I''ll be left with two.'' He thought. He was currently contemplating if he should use the Great Earth Essence to improve the elemental grade of his darkness element, but it didn''t take him long to come to a decision. He originally thought of giving one to each of his parents, then one to his Teacher, and then Klaus'' father, but it looks like his dad won''t be getting any since he was about to use it. After coming to a decision, he immediately brought out one of the drops of the Great Essence Liquid and started refining it. Chapter 292 - Borrowing Some Books The last time he absorbed the Great Earth Essence Liquid, it took him around six hours or so, this time, he did it within four hours. His absorption speed when it came to cultivating had increased significantly with the increase in his strength, as well as elements. ''At this rate, if I were to enter the trial land again and focus fully on cultivating, I shouldn''t have a problem with getting to the Overlord Plane within six months.'' Grey thought while rubbing his chin, ''*Sigh* Unfortunately, that''s impossible.'' He entered the Chaos Space to see what grade his darkness element got to, he expected it to be around the purple grade at least, and he wasn''t disappointed. Now of his six elements, the fire element was cyan, the lightning and wind elements were blue, the earth, water, and darkness elements were purple. The only disappointing thing about the increase in his darkness elemental grade was that he still didn''t break through to the Sixth stage of the Origin Plane, but he could sense he wasn''t far from it. Three days later. Grey walked out of the decayed-looking shack while stretching his body, it was finally time for them to leave this place, and he couldn''t be happier. He brought out three disk-like wooden objects, and lightly tapped on the middle of each of them. A hologram appeared above them, and four lights could be seen, all very close to each other. It was just as Grey planned, they were all only linked to each other, so they couldn''t track the ones he got from Quinn, only his own could do that. He kept them in his storage ring, before taking out his crude-looking own, after tapping on the middle, a hologram appeared. "This should be either Alice or Reynolds, Klaus is most likely the one who is farther away," Grey muttered as he looked at the hologram. Two were not that far from his location, and two were quite far. It wasn''t hard to differentiate between which one belonged to Klaus and the people who made it, one had a single light source, and the other had multiple light sources around the same area. The one Grey felt belonged to Klaus had moved a significant distance compared to the last time he saw it, and since Klaus was the only one he knew who was on the move amongst the three, he felt his guess was right. ''Where are you?'' Grey asked Void through their mind links. ''Academy, why?'' asked Void. ''Did you take the books I told you about?'' Grey asked. ''Yes, I took them, I took them all¡­'' Void said in a dramatic manner, making Grey chuckle lightly. Before he went back into his seclusion-like training, he gave Void a task. He told Void to go to the Academy''s library, and get him books that he could find that touched on forgemastery, he didn''t tell him an exact number, so hearing that he took all of them amused him. ''Well, it''s not like I have any goodwill towards the current Academy anyway, but taking all the books on forgemastery seems a little too overboard,'' Grey said. ''So... should I return some?'' asked Void. ''No, there''s no need. Come let''s get going before they notice the books are gone.'' Grey said with a grin. He would return them after he was done studying them, he wasn''t stealing them anyway, just borrowing. ''Great! We''re finally leaving!'' Void exclaimed excitedly before hurrying back to the forest. Although the Academy had stopped searching for him in the valley, Grey wouldn''t carelessly come out without Void first telling him if the area was safe. Void soon got to the valley, and after going around the place, he gave Grey the go-ahead to leave the place. Grey wore a long black hooded robe that covered parts of his face, while also putting a disguise on. He didn''t want to make any mistakes, getting caught wasn''t something he wanted to happen. ''So where are we headed?'' asked Void. ''Well, I don''t really know the exact location, all I know is that it''s in that direction.'' Grey pointed in the direction of the south while staring at the wooden object in his hands. He didn''t know which of his friends was there, but he didn''t really bother about it since he would find out when he got there. Grey and Void towards their destination, they didn''t know where they were going, so Grey planned to get a map once they got to the next city, that way he would be able to at least guess their destination. That would also give him a rough idea of who he was going to see. ______ One month ago. Two days after the trial land closed. In Quinn''s family compound. In his father''s office, a man could currently be seen kneeling with his head bowed, afraid to look at the enraged eyes of Quinn''s father. "You''re saying none of them made it out alive?" Quinn''s father asked with an infuriated and sad look. "Yes my lord, the arrays had already disappeared, but there were no signs of them." The man kneeling replied with his head still bowed in fear. Boom! The table in the office was smashed into smithereens by Quinn''s enraged father, his son whom he had high hopes for was dead, of course, he would be annoyed. "My¡­ my lord," The kneeling man called out, trying to calm Quinn''s father. "What?!" roared Quinn''s father. "According to reports, they seemed to have found the treasure," The kneeling man said. "What?! Where is it?" Quinn''s father asked agitatedly. If Quinn was able to find it before his death, that means that his death was worth it, the only thing now is that he was not able to personally bring it home. "The treasure is actually the Great Earth Essence Liquid, I believe my lord has heard of it," The man said, only managing to raise his head now. "The Great Earth Essence Liquid? Where¡­ where is it?" Quinn''s father asked, stuttering. "They found it, but couldn''t take it, rather, it was stolen by a group." Chapter 293 - The Crowned Princes Plan "They found it, but couldn''t take it, rather, it was stolen by a group." The man said in a serious tone. Quinn''s father looked at the man, indicating for him to continue speaking. "When the young lord and his group found the Great Earth Essence Liquid, it was being protected by elemental warriors¡­" The man told Quinn''s father what happened in the trial land, it was almost like he was present there when everything unfolded. He told Quinn''s father about how Quinn''s group fought against Grey''s group before he was later killed by Grey. "How do you know all this?" Quinn''s father couldn''t help but ask. The man''s story was so detailed that it looked like he was there at the time it was happening, he had a hard time not believing it. "While I was waiting for the young lord to come out, a youth from the Stellar empire came out. I happened to overhear him when he was speaking to the leader in his empire''s camp, not just me, even the other empires are aware of this fact." The man said. "Hmm, where''s the boy who took it now?" asked Quinn''s father. "The Qilin empire, I''ve sent people to retrieve him, but none of them have been successful." The man said with a serious expression, before adding, "Neither has any of them returned." "What? You mean that they''ve all been killed?" Quinn''s father was left dumbfounded by this discovery. "I''m not sure, but it seems to be the case." The man answered with uncertainty. After finding out about Grey, he did a little research about him and found out he was from a small city. This was why he sent people to search for him, who would''ve thought that they would all be killed? "We must retrieve the treasure at all cost, send word to the Crowned Prince, he would know what to do." Quinn''s father said. "Yes, my lord." The man bowed before leaving the office. Quinn''s father stood up from his seat, and a tear unconsciously dropped down his face, "It''s a sacrifice worth paying for the future of the family," He walked towards the bookshelf in the office, after pushing a book, a secret passage opened behind it. He wanted to report this to the elders of the family, as well as his father. The loss of Quinn was a great loss, given how talented he was, but the appearance of the treasure outweighed it since it involved years of planning. _____ The next day. Qilin empire, the Royal Palace. The Emperor and the Crowned Prince were currently walking in a garden in the palace discussing. "You mean to say that a young man from my empire brought out such a treasure?" The Emperor asked in surprise. "Yes father, I believe you''ll hear of this soon from those stationed at the exit." replied the Crowned Prince. "How did you find out so early?" The Emperor couldn''t help but ask. "I''m the Crowned Prince, it''s only normal for me to have my own people who bring me information at the fastest speed." The Crowned Prince answered in a cool and collected manner. "Hmm, that''s understandable. So who''s the boy? Summon him to the palace this instant," The Emperor ordered. "That''s where the problem lies, he''s a student in the Lunar Academy." The Crowned Prince said. "Since when has the Lunar Academy been a problem? Have you forgotten I''ll be taking over in a few days'' time?" The Emperor asked. "The fact that he''s a student of the Lunar Academy isn''t the problem, the problem is that his personal Teacher is Chris. You should know who I''m talking about." "You mean that¡­" "Yes, it''s him. The young man was the reason Chris killed an Instructor from the Starlight Academy during the time of the competition." "Hmm, what do you suggest we do then?" "The other empires have gotten wind of this as well, so we need to act quickly. It''s still unknown if Chris is in the Academy or not. Oliver and Blake have been very cautious when talking about him. But I have a plan, and given Chris'' personality, he would appear if it works." "Okay good¡­ Do you know if your brother made it?" "He''s dead." The last batch of people who left the trial land still hadn''t gotten to their destinations, but Neil had already returned, and the Crowned Prince questioned him, when he found out about the Twelfth Prince''s stupidity, he gave up on him making it out alive. Who in their right minds would go and attack a dragon? "Okay, act according to your plan, I''ll wait for your good news. If we can''t have it, then no one should, especially someone related to that unruly bastard." "What if he has already used them?" "Then kill him," "And his friends?'' "What about them?" "It is said he took nine drops of the Great Earth Essence Liquid, I think he might share it with them." "Get the boy first, kill the others later." "Okay, father." A few days later, the Crowned Prince heard of Oliver officially stepping down from his position as the Principal and Mayor of Lunar Academy and City respectively. He sent people to spread the rumor of them being scared of joining the war and tagging them cowards. Oliver would not be bothered with the rumor, Chris on the other hand would not only bother about it, but he would also want to kill people. After a day of peace, the Crowned Prince speculated that their guess for the past months has been true, Chris was not in the Academy. This meant they could technically do whatever they wanted with the Academy, unfortunately, Oliver had stepped down, as well as the major powers in the Academy. This gave the Emperor a headache, but the Crowned Prince wasn''t too concerned about it. Now with Chris and even Oliver out of the picture, he could take care of Grey without any problems. The only issue now was how he could get Klaus since he would be with his father. Chapter 294 - Eternal City The moment Oliver, Blake, and Klaus left the Academy, the Crowned Prince gave the order for Grey to be found. The Instructors started to search for him, but after he hid in Chris'' valley, it was impossible to locate him. They wasted weeks searching for Grey, but they didn''t get any result. The Crowned Prince wasn''t sure if Grey gave his friends a drop of the Great Earth Essence Liquid, but he couldn''t let it go without investigating. With Grey and Klaus currently impossible to find, he set his eyes on the other two, Alice and Reynolds. Alice was the daughter of a prestigious and powerful family, it wouldn''t be easy to get her, Reynolds on the other hand, was a piece of cake. One week before Grey left Chris'' valley. Eternal City. Reynolds could be seen walking leisurely in the busy city with his hands behind his head, a young boy could be seen walking behind him, they had a striking resemblance, with the younger one having blue hair, while Reynolds had brown short hair. "Big bro, where are we going?" Carl asked tugging on Reynolds'' shirt. "Huh?" Reynolds stopped and looked at Carl before smiling, "I have no idea, I just wanted to take a stroll." "Oh!" Carl replied before looking at the ground with a sad face. "What? You want to do something else?" Reynolds asked while squatting to the height of Carl. "Uhmm¡­ uhmm¡­" Carl fidgeted while looking at his fingers which he was rotating around each other. "Come on, tell big bro, you know I will do whatever you want," Reynolds said while ruffling Carl''s hair. "Really?!" Carl asked with shining eyes. "Well, not everything, but I''ll try my best," Reynolds said, scratching his head awkwardly. He had to tell Carl he couldn''t do everything. It would be awkward if he asked him to do something he couldn''t do. "Okay. I want to watch big bro train." Carl said with sparkling eyes. "Just that?" Carl nodded enthusiastically, waiting for Reynolds'' reply with a little hint of nervousness. "I can''t practice in the city," Reynolds said with his hand on his chin which caused a look of disappointment to appear on the face of Carl. He smiled before continuing, "But, I''m totally free to practice outside the city. A smile crept into Carl''s face when he heard this. "Come, little man, let big bro show you how powerful he is," Reynolds said proudly before lifting Carl up and placing him on his shoulder. Reynolds was genuinely happy, this was the longest he had stayed with his family since joining the Academy. His younger brother was only two years old when he joined the Academy, and now he was already very close to eight years old. His parents were beside themselves when they learned he would be staying for an extended period this time. Reynolds took Carl out of the city and headed for the open field that was not too far from the city. It was a hidden place where he could perform most of his moves freely without fear of destroying anything. He placed Carl on a boulder before saying, "Sit here and watch how awesome your big bro is," Carl nodded excitedly, waiting for Reynolds to begin his performance, it was almost like he was waiting for a performer in a show. Reynolds turned around and breathed out heavily, a serious expression appeared on his face, and just as he was about to make lightning appear, he paused and looked at the south. He could sense some people coming in his direction, and the strongest amongst them was in the Fifth stage of the Origin Plane. ''Huh? People in the Origin Plane,'' He thought to himself, a little taken aback. Eternal City was not a big city, if the cities in the empires were ranked, it would be a mid-ranked city at most. The Mayor was an Origin Plane expert, and the number of Origin Plane Elementalists in the city could be counted on just one hand. He quickly turned to Carl, "Hey little man, we might have to go home sooner than expected," Carl wanted to refute, but on seeing Reynolds'' serious expression, he shut his mouth. He knew since Reynolds brought him here, it meant that he wanted to show him what he asked for. Reynolds smiled before grabbing hold of Carl and heading towards the city. He didn''t know what those people wanted, and even if they wanted to cause trouble, he wasn''t scared. But with Carl here, he didn''t want any accidents to occur. He suddenly noticed that as soon as they started walking to the city, one of the people from the group hurried towards him. He didn''t lose his cool, walking at the same pace, he held onto Carl''s and tightly. If things were to go wrong, he would prioritize the safety of his younger brother above everything else. It didn''t take the person who was running after him two minutes before he caught up. "Hello, you must be Reynolds," The young man called out from behind them. The young man was putting on a blue fitted shirt and trousers, with a golden eagle-like insignia imprinted on the c.h.e.s.t of the shirt. The young man looked to be around his mid-twenties but had already reached the Third stage of the Origin Plane. From how he was able to quickly catch up, and the wind element rotating around him, it wasn''t hard for Reynolds to guess that he was a Wind Elementalist. Reynolds stopped and turned to look at the young man coolly, there wasn''t a change in his expression. If Klaus saw him in this current state, he would definitely curse at him for trying to act like a cool guy. After studying the young man carefully, he asked calmly, "Yes, how may I help you?" "We''re from the empire''s forces. You were recommended by an expert who met you some time ago, the Crowned Prince sent us here to come to ask if you would like to join us since you haven''t given a reply yet." The young man explained the purpose of his coming to Reynolds. "Oh, the Crowned Prince," Reynolds said with a surprised and excited look appearing on his face. The young man nodded with a smile, waiting for Reynolds to continue. Chapter 295 - Jump "I recalled telling the senior I wanted some time to think about it," said Reynolds. The young man''s expression changed slightly when he heard this, but he quickly hid it from Reynolds. He was about to speak when he noticed Reynolds was about to continue. "But¡­ I''m done thinking about it now. I planned on heading to the Capital and request to join, to think I was recommended by that senior. I''m very grateful for her goodwill." Reynolds added with a grin. The young man heaved a sigh when he heard this, the others weren''t here yet, and according to their intel, Reynolds was a high-grade summoner, someone the likes of him couldn''t deal with. "You see how awesome big bro is? Even the Crowned Prince has heard of me," Reynolds said with a big smile to Carl. "Wow! Big bro is so cool," Carl exclaimed with a look of worship on his face. He aspired to be like Reynolds, someone who was strong and powerful. "Of course, now let''s go home and tell mom the good news," Reynolds said to Carl. After Carl had turned around, he said to the young man, "I''ll need to drop him at home, then get some of my things, then we can leave together." "Okay, but I''ll have to follow you to your house." The young man replied. "Sure, there''s no problem with that." Reynolds shrugged before patting Carl in the head and heading to the city. Reynolds played with Carl along the way, laughing happily, and telling Carl how awesome he was. He told him cool things about the empire''s forces as well as their duty, there were different units in the empire''s forces, and each unit is very important to the empire. When the young man saw how enthusiastically Reynolds was speaking about the empire''s forces, he felt he truly wanted to join them. This made him less worried about him. When they were sent on this mission, he thought it would be a bit difficult since Reynolds was a high-grade summoner and the chances of him refusing weren''t low. They soon got to the city and headed straight for Reynolds'' house. It wasn''t the most luxurious house in the city, just barely above average. When Reynolds returned, he suggested they move to a better house, but his parents refused, saying they were already attached to this one. They moved to this house a year after Reynolds was admitted into the Lunar Academy, and for people who originally didn''t have much, it was perfect. The house was a story building with three rooms. The compound wasn''t really much since there wasn''t even up to ten meters of space between it and the next house. "You want to come in?" Reynolds invited the young man when they got there. "No, there''s no need. I''ll just wait out here." The young man rejected the offer, he wasn''t comfortable with going in, after all, he and Reynolds weren''t really friends. "Okay, your loss. I''ll be back shortly." Reynolds replied before taking an excited Carl inside. As soon as they got in, Carl''s voice could be heard calling for their mother. Five minutes later. The young man was still standing outside, waiting for Reynolds to come outside. Just as he was starting to grow impatient. Creak! The door opened and Reynolds brought out his head, "Please give me a little more time, it hasn''t been long since I came home, so my parents are a little reluctant to let me go." "Oh, I understand. But don''t take long." The young man nodded in understanding. He also knew the feeling of leaving one''s family. Reynolds thanked him before going back in. "How considerate," muttered the young man. Inside Reynolds'' house. "Come on mom, you don''t need that. Dad''s already on the roof." Reynolds said in a low voice when he saw his mom carry her box of clothes. "But¡­ but¡­ fine." His mother replied. Reynolds'' mother was a lady who was in her late thirties, but due to the hardsh.i.p.s she faced during her early life, she looked older than forty. She had long blue hair, just like that of Carl, and brown eyes. She had a small build with an oval-shaped face. "They''ve already carried everything we need," Reynolds said before hurrying his mother upstairs. He had zero wishes of joining the empire''s forces or anything for now, but he knew if he refused when the young man asked him previously, then the young man would''ve attacked. He didn''t have any problems with killing the young man, but he wasn''t sure if he would be able to kill him instantly, and there was also the issue of protecting Carl. He also didn''t know if the others that came along with the young man would be able to locate his house and use his family to threaten him, so he had to play it safe first. When he was still in the Academy, he recalled Klaus telling him not to join the empire''s forces or the Academy as an Instructor. He could already guess there was something going on, and seeing the young man''s reaction when he wanted to refuse confirmed his guess. The only thing that was baffling him was what connection he had with what was going on, after all, his family background wasn''t the best, and there were tons of people who were at the Third stage of the Origin Plane. There were also other high-grade summoners in the empire, so it wasn''t like he was the only one. ''I''ll think about that later. First of all, I need to make sure my family is safe.'' Reynolds thought when he got to the roof. "Are you sure about this son, I don''t think running away from the Crowned Prince would be possible," Reynolds'' father said. He was a normal citizen of the empire, with a poor background and a little sense of inferiority towards those of higher statuses. Opposing the Crowned Prince was not something he would dare to do. "Trust me, dad, will I ever do something that would put you all in danger?" Reynolds asked with a reassuring smile before continuing, "I may not know what they want, but I can tell it''s not anything good for me." "Okay son, I''ll believe you since you say so." His father replied. "Great, now jump." Chapter 296 - Terrifying Sensory Ability Ten minutes later. The young man was still standing outside the house when the others from his group appeared from the other side of the road and approached him. "Hamon, where''s he?" The young man leading the group asked as soon as he got close to him. The group consisted of seven people, two young men, and five ladies. They were all in their mid-twenties, and in the Origin Plane. Of the two young men, one of them had a robust build, and the other was just like Hamon who had an average build. The five ladies all had great shapes, with one''s shape being more eye-catching, added with her incredible looks, it was hard to take eyes away from her. The young man who spoke earlier was the leader of the group, he was the one with a robust build, and the only one in the group who was in the Fifth stage of the Origin Plane, the others were between the Second and Fourth stages. Hamon, who was still waiting for Reynolds, turned to look at the group before gesturing at the house with his head. "He''s in there?" The eye-catching lady asked. "Yes, he agreed to go with us. He wanted to bid farewell to his family before leaving," explained Hamon. "It''s been too long already," The leader said before spreading his spiritual sense out, wanting to check what Reynolds was still doing. Hamon wanted to speak but he stopped himself, he originally wanted to do this, but most Elementalists take it as an act of disrespect and intruding into their privacy, so he didn''t try to check what was going on inside. The leader''s expression suddenly changed and he took a step forward. This drew the attention of the others. "What''s wrong?" They all asked simultaneously. "There''s no one inside," The leader said with a sour face. "What?!" Hamon exclaimed in shock. "I thought you said he agreed to follow us back, what''s the meaning of this?" The leader questioned Hamon angrily. "Yes, he even came out a few minutes ago to plead with me to be a little patient¡­" Hamon said, trying to justify himself. "Hmm, smart. He played you for a fool, he didn''t have any thoughts of going back with us in the first place. I think he must''ve sensed that something was wrong." The leader speculated. "Hmph! He won''t be able to get away." Hamon snorted angrily, irritated by the fact that he was fooled by Reynolds. "Johanne, if you would please," The leader turned to the eye-catching young lady in the group. The young lady whose name''s Johanne nodded before stepping forward, "There are four Origin Plane Elementalists in this city, if he''s added then that''s five. I can''t get the accurate location, but I can sense the general position of each one of them, as long as they''re in the city," After speaking, she closed her eyes and placed her index finger on her temple, trying to stay focused. The leader created a water barrier around them to keep any distractions away from Johanne. Two minutes later. "He''s still in the city, all five energy signals are in the city. There''re two in the southeast of the city, one on the north end of the city, another one is close by, in the east, and the last one is in that direction." Johanne said, pointing straight at Reynolds'' house. The others looked at where she was pointing at and smiled, they felt that was definitely Reynolds since it hadn''t been long he left. They also felt he was planning to hide in a house close by, then come out as soon as he noticed the coast was clear. "It''s most likely that he''s the one close by, after all, not everyone knows of Johanne''s special sensing ability," The leader said with a grin. Johanne could sense all the energy signals in an area, and the distance she could cover was insane. Eternal City was at least three square kilometers in size, yet she was able to perfectly sense where the five energy signals were. With her, searching for Reynolds would be easy. The group headed towards the back of Reynolds'' house, heading in a straight line. It didn''t take them three minutes to get to where the energy signal was coming from. It was a huge compound that even had guards at the gate, on the gate was boldly written, Lark Family. The Lark family was one of the three big families in the city, aside from the Mayor''s family. The head of the family is an Origin Plane Elementalist, this was why they had such a huge property in the city. Reynolds'' family could also be this powerful, even more powerful given how young he was, but his parents refused. "Damn it, this guy sure is slippery. He knew there was someone close to his house." Hamon cursed out in annoyance. "No need to worry, as long as he stays in the city, we will be able to track him down." The leader said before taking a glance at Johanne who already had her eyes closed. After she opened them, she nodded to him, signifying that he was still in the city. "This time we will split up, given how lavishly these old grunts live, we should be able to know if he''s the one there or not." The leader ordered. ____ Reynolds could be seen hugging his parents. This was the part of the city they stayed in while he was still young, the houses here were all old and worn out. He brought his parents here to hide. "I''m going to be okay mom, no need to worry," Reynolds said reassuring his mother. He didn''t want to stay close to them, he didn''t know if staying close would bring danger to them. If he left them here, he would attract the group towards him and leave the city. They were here for him, so he knew they would chase after him once they knew he was escaping from the city. He was oblivious to the fact that a group was currently heading in his direction, but he wanted to leave as soon as possible. "Don''t cry little guy, nothing will happen to big bro, have you forgotten how awesome I am?" Reynolds squatted to Carl''s height while hugging him. "Big bro is the best," said Carl who was on the verge of tears. "You''re right about that." Reynolds ruffled his hair before turning to his father, "I''ll be back soon," His father nodded before embracing Reynolds'' mother, so she would let go of him. He felt fearful for what his son was currently facing, but he knew this wasn''t the time to delay him. He might not have been strong enough to enter into the world of Elementalists, but he knew a thing or two about it. Reynolds nodded before waving at them, with that, he turned around decisively, heading into the main parts of the city. ''It''s been long I had to run away, but given their numbers, it''s the only thing I can do.'' He thought while walking further into the city. Chapter 297 - Divide And Conquer Reynolds didn''t head deep into the city before he sensed three strong auras not too far from him, he didn''t need to see them before he knew they were the people searching for him. He quickly made a run for it, spreading out a hint of his aura so they would know he was there. The three people consisted of Hamon and two other ladies, they sensed Reynolds'' aura as soon as Reynolds sensed theirs. "This way," Hamon said to the two ladies, before chasing after Reynolds. There was a good distance between them, but just like Reynolds, he didn''t need to see him before he knew he was the one. The girls followed behind Hamon in chasing after Reynolds, they could also sense the aura, but they weren''t really sure if it belonged to Reynolds. It didn''t take them long before they exited the city, given their speed, they could reach here sooner, but they didn''t want to draw any unwanted attention in the city. When the group came out, they noticed Reynolds was heading to the south. This was the area he previously went to when he wanted to show Carl some of his skills. "Hmph! He''s pretty c.o.c.ky if he thinks he can take on the three of us," One of the ladies said. The other one shared the same opinion as well, even Hamon felt the same way. Even though Reynolds was a high-grade summoner, it didn''t mean he could fight against all of them. Reynolds, who was currently running, had no wish to fight them, for now. Had there been only two of them, he would''ve thought of taking them out quickly before the others came, but three wouldn''t be easy to handle. The odds of the others coming before he killed all of them were high, and there''s also the difficulty of the battle. While he was running, he suddenly sensed energy in the sky, and when he turned around to look at it, he realized it was a signal the others who were chasing after him sent to call the others. Only people in or above the Origin Plane could sense it. ''Crap! They''re calling the others.'' He thought in a dejected manner. He was still calculating how far he needed to take these three before trying to deal with them, but now, they''ve called the others. While running, he suddenly sensed two auras on the city wall that was on his left, looking at it properly, he saw two people standing on top of the city wall. They were obviously attracted here by the energy wave, luckily, they weren''t part of the group chasing him, rather, they were two of the four Origin Plane Elementalists in the city. The two men standing on the city wall looked to be in their late fifties, but Reynolds knew they were well over one hundred years. They had been in the Origin Plane for so long, and due to their poor elemental grades, it was almost impossible to get to the late stages of the Origin Plane, much less breaking through to the Overlord Plane. Both had shades of grey in their black and brown hairs. One of them was chubby, while the other had a slightly above average build with a long beard. "Isn''t that the young man who recently returned to the city?" The chubby man asked while pointing at Reynolds. "Yes. I noticed that some experts came to the city about an hour ago, to think they were this young," The other man said while stroking his beard. Seeing so many young people in the Origin Plane felt strange to them. The reason they refused to go to a bigger city was that they enjoyed the feeling of revel they got from the people here. The only chance of them going to a big city is if they managed to break through to the Overlord Plane. But that''s impossible for the current them, they were only in the Sixth stage of the Origin Plane. But given the number of years they have left to live, there''s a chance they might still have a fortuitous encounter. "They''re obviously here for the kid. Two of them approached my compound a few minutes ago, but left right away," The chubby man said. The other man nodded before saying, "We don''t need to involve ourselves in this, we have no relationship with the boy." "Okay," The chubby man replied before leaping back into the city. He originally intended to step in and ask what was wrong but after listening to what the other man said, he gave up the idea. The only time they noticed Reynolds was after his test, but he joined the Academy soon after which didn''t give them any room to speak with him. His parents had some sort of inferiority complex so whenever they tried speaking to them, they rarely spoke much. This brought about an awkward relationship. Reynolds didn''t feel anything towards them going back into the city so quickly. He spoke to them when he returned from the Academy some weeks back, but they didn''t really have any relationship. Although, he would''ve been grateful if they stepped forward to at least try to help or find out what was happening. ''The others will be coming soon, time to start separating them.'' He thought. Lightning covered his foot and his speed skyrocketed, before long, he was out of Hamon''s group view. "No, he''s going to get away. Hamon, go after him," One of the ladies said. They weren''t as fast as Hamon who was a Wind Elementalist, so it was only logical that he was the one who went after him. "What if he attacks?" Hamon asked, a little fearful of Reynolds. "You don''t need to fight against him, just stall him." The young lady said, looking at Hamon with demeaning eyes. She felt disgusted by his fear. They were also geniuses, had they also gone into the trial land, then they would''ve been stronger than their current state. "Okay," Hamon replied with gritted teeth. He couldn''t refuse since he didn''t have to fight against Reynolds. Even though he felt this was a trap, and he was wary of Reynolds'' strength. He had the utmost confidence in his abilities, if he wasn''t powerful, there''s no way he would''ve been able to join this unit. Chapter 298 - Divide And Conquer II Reynolds ran into the forest, accompanied by Hamon. He didn''t have any qualms with killing any of these people if the chance presented itself. After dashing into the forest for a few minutes, Hamon looked around searching for Reynolds who had disappeared into the forest. The thought of waiting for the others came to his mind, but thinking of the possible punishment he might face if he was the reason Reynolds escaped, he gritted his teeth and continued searching. ?? Reynolds was currently sitting on top of a boulder deep inside the forest on an open field. Being a Lightning Elementalist, he was faster than Hamon. Although, not all Lightning Elementalists are faster than Wind Elementalists in the same stage. He could sense that there was only one person chasing after him, and this was exactly what he wanted. He waited leisurely while swinging his legs on the boulder until Hamon arrived. When Hamon got there, he looked at Reynolds with serious eyes. He could already guess his plan and knew his life was currently on the line, but he didn''t plan to fight against him. ''I just need to stall him, that is enough. I''ll escape as soon as he''s overpowering me, then come back again.'' Hamon planned out his tactics. "So, you''re here?" He asked when he saw Reynolds. "Yup. I was waiting for you, to think you came foolishly," Reynolds nodded with a grin. "I have no reason not to come, don''t think of yourself so highly," Hamon said. He was comfortable with how things were currently going. If he could get Reynolds to continue speaking, then that would be great. Reynolds looked at him with a smile, he could almost tell what he was thinking. Unfortunately, he had other plans for him. "*Sigh* It''s a shame you''ll have to die," Reynolds continued before jumping down from the boulder. "This attributes to you, unfortunately," Hamon replied without showing any fear. Reynolds smiled, his Elemental Warrior was already in the surrounding area. He hid it somewhere Hamon couldn''t notice it. "Why are you people searching for me?" Reynolds couldn''t help but ask. He found this very strange, there was nothing he had that could attract the Crowned Prince. "You should come with us peacefully if you really want to know," Hamon replied. ''Hmm, that should just about be enough. The others shouldn''t be very far by now.'' He thought. Reynolds was a little disappointed that he didn''t get a good reply from Hamon, but he didn''t really expect him to tell him the answer. Without delaying any further, he attacked. Buzz! Boom! A lightning bolt struck where Hamon was standing, but he wasn''t standing there anymore. He was a Wind Elementalist, and speed was his forte. He appeared a few meters to the right, "If you think you could¡­" Boom! He was still speaking when another attack was sent towards him. This time, the blast range was larger than the previous time. But just like before, he dodged the attack effortlessly. ''This is going to be eas¡­'' Hamon who just appeared stopped thinking midway, he looked down only to see a lightning sword piercing through his c.h.e.s.t. The sword accurately pierced through his heart. "How?..." He asked with blood dripping from the side of his mouth and a look of disbelief. "Behind you," Reynolds replied casually. The Elemental Warrior was standing behind Hamon, with his hand holding onto the lightning sword. After the first attack, Reynolds had a rough estimation of Hamon''s speed. Getting the Elemental Warrior to sneak attack him became very easy. When he sent the other attack out, he waited for where Hamon would appear and sent the Elemental Warrior there the moment he appeared, not giving any chances of dodging it. Thud! Hamon''s lifeless body fell on the floor, with eyes still wide open. Although Reynolds gave him an answer, he couldn''t turn around before he died. Reynolds waved his hand, and the Elemental Warrior vanished. "One out, seven to go." He made sure to check the corpse of Hamon before leaving, but there was nothing useful on him. Two minutes after he left, the two young ladies who were with Hamon appeared at the scene of the fight. "I always knew this fool shouldn''t have been assigned to our unit," The young lady who felt disgusted by Hamon''s fear of Reynolds said when she saw his corpse. "Should we go after him?" The other lady asked. They were in the Third and Fourth stage of the Origin Plane respectively. She was in the Third stage, while the other young lady was in the Fourth stage. "Of course," The first young lady answered assertively. She was not scared, even after seeing Hamon''s corpse. She might not be that much stronger than him, but she felt it was his fear that caused his death. "Why don''t we wait for the other? Johanne wouldn''t have any problems with tracking him down," The other young lady advised. "Don''t tell me you''re scared? We''re two, and you have me. Don''t even bother about that guy, even an Elementalist in the Seventh stage wouldn''t be able to defeat us," The first young lady said confidently. "Okay," The other young lady nodded. She was in the Third stage, just like Hamon, so it was natural for fear to develop in her heart after seeing his corpse. No one wanted to die, and going after an opponent like Reynolds who could kill them, and they can''t kill was more frustrating. They followed Reynolds'' trail after coming to a decision. Five minutes after they left, the other group appeared at the scene. The leader of the group looked at Hamon''s corpse, "He must''ve separated them after he noticed they signaled us," He was able to quickly guess what happened after seeing only one corpse. Hamon would''ve not been able to fight against a high-grade summon that was in the same stage as himself, much less one that was two stages ahead of him. The leader felt for them to fall for Reynolds'' trap was very foolish of them. He had already guessed the other two young ladies wouldn''t last long as well since they followed after Reynolds''. "Johanne," He called out. "I know what to do," Chapter 299 - Divide And Conquer III Reynolds was currently resting in a cave trying to recover as much elemental essence as possible. He didn''t use much when he fought against Hamon because the summon didn''t stay out for long, but he would be relying heavily on it if he wanted to kill the ladies. ''Hmm, those two ladies shouldn''t be far behind. I''ll kill them before the others come.'' ?? He thought of a plan while waiting for his opponents. While waiting for them, he suddenly recalled his friends. If Grey, Alice, and Klaus were here, then he wouldn''t need to run away. They could take on this group without any issues. Thinking of his friends, he searched his body and brought out the wooden object Grey gave to him. He ran his finger through it before keeping it. The thought of using it to call on his friends flashed through his head, but he quickly dismissed it. Since these people were searching for him, he was almost one hundred percent certain that his friends weren''t having an easy time as well. ''If only Grey was able to make those things, then I''d have been able to ask how they were doing,'' Reynolds waited for a few more minutes before the two young ladies got close. He stood up and walked out of the cave stretching his body. He didn''t summon the Elemental Warrior immediately, rather, he waited patiently till the young ladies appeared before him. "Surrounder now," The young lady in the Fourth stage of the Origin Plane said when they saw Reynolds. "Heh! With the likes of you?" Reynolds asked mockingly. The young lady in the Fourth stage''s expression turned sour. She didn''t think Reynolds would be so c.o.c.ky. "Hmph! We''ll see about that," The young lady snorted coldly before attacking. She sent out a huge fire snake towards Reynolds. The other young lady attacked when she saw the first one attacking, she was an Earth Elementalist, so she made earth spikes sprout out of the ground where Reynolds was standing. Lightning danced around Reynolds'' body before he disappeared from the spot he was standing on before both young ladies'' attacks got to him. Boom! The fire snake struck the ground, causing an explosion, and destroying the earth spikes. Boom! Bam! Bang! Reynolds continued dodging her attacks, vanishing and appearing in different locations. The quickness and accuracy of the young lady''s attacks were terrifying. He genuinely felt some pressure from her, if not for his Elemental Warrior, then he didn''t think he would have any chances of fighting her to a draw, much less defeating her. Boom! He dodged another attack, but this time, he noticed an earth cage surrounding him. Buzz! Bang! The lightning dancing around him exploded out, destroying the earth cage that was trying to hold him down. After destroying it, he summoned his Elemental Warrior. Bam! An attack that was coming from behind him was blocked by the Elemental Warrior. The Fire Elementalist''s expression turned serious when she saw the lightning summon. This was the first time she was fighting against a summon, but she still felt confident in her abilities. Swish! The Elemental Warrior moved at lightning speed towards the Earth Elementalist, pointing its sword at her. The Earth Elementalist freaked out for a second, but she quickly got herself together before setting up a wall to block the advances of the Elemental Warrior. Bang! The Elemental Warrior slashed through the wall with a single stroke but was met with an attack from the Fire Elementalist who had been waiting for it. They continued exchanging attacks for a minute before both young ladies started having a difficult time defending against the onslaught of attacks from the Elemental Warrior. Its attacks were strong and relentless, giving the ladies a headache. The Elemental Warrior is a stage above the Fire Elementalist, and two stages above the other young lady. It has attack powers that could rival a Sixth stage Origin Plane Elementalist, so it was difficult for the ladies to keep up. What made things more difficult was its close-range attacks. "We can''t keep on like this, attack him, he''s defenseless now," The Fire Elementalist said to the other young lady when they managed to get a breather. "Okay," The Earth Elementalist nodded. With a plan in mind, they immediately set it in motion. The Fire Elementalist would try to keep the Elemental Warrior busy, while the Earth Elementalist would deal a fatal strike to Reynolds. They couldn''t kill him, but they weren''t ordered not to beat him up. According to what was known about summoners, they are vulnerable once they summon their summons. Summoners mostly summon their elemental creatures when fighting against a single opponent since multiple opponents could keep the creature busy while the others deal with the summoner. Both young ladies were planning to use precisely this knowledge to deal with Reynolds. Although it was a bit risky since it was difficult for both of them to defend against the Elemental Warrior, much less one of them. Reynolds watched as the Elemental warrior easily overpowered the ladies, and a smirk appeared on his face. At this rate, he should be able to finish off both ladies within three minutes. Boom! The fight raged on, and most parts of the forest they were in had been destroyed by it. The Fire Elementalist gritted her teeth angrily, she had been trying to create an opportunity for her comrade to exploit on getting close to Reynolds, but the Elemental Warrior was more than a handful. They were both looking tattered, and their hairs were a mess. They weren''t concerned about their current appearance though, keeping their life was more important than looks. One more minute went by and the Fire Elementalist was finally able to create an opportunity for her comrade, at the cost of being stabbed on the shoulder by the Elemental Warrior with a lightning blade. "Go, now!" She yelled while sending out a fireball that exploded out on the Elemental Warrior. Chapter 300 - Records Are Not Always Correct Reynolds watched as the Earth Elementalist approached him, there was no sign of fear on his face, rather, he even had a smile on it. The Earth Elementalist who was already close to him suddenly felt goosebumps when she saw him smiling and doubt sprang up in her mind. But she quickly suppressed the doubt in her mind and attacked Reynolds with her most powerful attack. ?? Huge boulders appeared mid-air from different positions, shooting straight for Reynolds who was standing not too far from her. Her attack was so precise that it cut off all of Reynolds'' escape routes, only with an insanely precise and fast movement will he be able to escape. ''Since he currently has to keep his Elemental Warrior up, he shouldn''t be able to use any elemental essence since all of it is being channeled to the Elemental Warrior.'' thought the young lady. Her expression changed when she realized that Reynolds was no longer in his previous position. All she heard was the buzzing sound of lightning before her vision slowly started to fade. "How?" She managed to ask with blood rushing out of her c.h.e.s.t and mouth. But she closed her eyes soon after she asked this question. "Since you''re dead, I''ll do you the honors and answer that. You see, high-grade summoners are not like normal summoners, we can perfectly fight while our Elemental Warriors are fighting. The only reason we refrain from doing it is that the essence consumption almost doubles. I hope you can rest peacefully with this explanation," Reynolds replied with a chuckle before removing his hand that was covered in lightning, and passing through the back of the young lady, appearing on the other side of her c.h.e.s.t. His hand was covered in blood, but it didn''t bother him. Reynolds'' hand was the only thing keeping the young lady''s body standing, when he removed his hand from her c.h.e.s.t, she fell on the ground with a ''Thud''. He turned to look at the Fire Elementalist who currently looked like she just saw a ghost. She saw everything clearly, from how Reynolds casually escaped from her comrade''s attack, to when he stabbed her with his hand which was covered in lightning, almost like a blade. She also heard Reynolds'' explanation which brought her into a state of even more shock. "But¡­ but¡­ the records," She couldn''t accept the fact that the hard-earned opportunity she created at the cost of herself was wasted. Not just that, but it would also be the cause of her death. "Are not always right. Next time, don''t place all your hopes on it, it might just fail you," Reynolds advised. But his advice did nothing other than irritating the Fire Elementalist who was bleeding from the gash on her shoulder. She felt he was mocking her since he was still going to kill her. She wanted to speak, but was unable to since the Elemental Warrior started its relentless attacks once again. She could already foresee her death the second her comrade died, but she didn''t want to accept it without fighting. "Ah!" She yelled powerfully before frantically attacking the Elemental Warrior, under Reynolds'' emotionless gaze. Reynolds didn''t try to fight alongside the Elemental Warrior again, he had already used more than half his elemental essence during the course of this battle. Now all he wanted was for the Elemental Warrior to end the battle as soon as possible so he could run away from here to try to recover. He still had five more people to fight against, and his Elemental Warrior was his greatest reliance. If he didn''t have sufficient elemental essence during the battle, then he would be in danger. The Elemental Warrior didn''t fail him and quickly made short work of the young lady within a minute. She surprisingly put on a strong performance against the Elemental Warrior alone, but after getting pierced by three lightning arrows, she couldn''t stay up anymore. Reynolds checked the corpse of both young ladies, but just like Hamon, they had nothing on them. After he was done searching, he quickly left the area. This battle took about four to six minutes, the others should be very close by now. Judging from how he hadn''t sensed any of them, he guessed they were all moving together. ''Crap! Why the hell are they chasing after me? It''ll be nice if the other ones would tell me though.'' Reynolds thought while running through the forest. All he knew about this was that it had something to do with the Crowned Prince, other than that, he knew nothing else. But he had never had any contacts with the Crowned Prince, so why was he searching for him, going as far as sending such a squad after him? Two minutes after Reynolds left, the other five people appeared from the west. The leader and Johanne had angry eyes when they saw the corpse of the two young ladies. Although they had predicted it, it was still painful to see, especially for the leader. "Where did he go?" The leader tried to ask in a calm voice, but every one of them could sense the chilling killing intent seeping out of his bones. Johanne closed her eyes, and after a few seconds, she opened them and pointed in the direction Reynolds was running in. With her in the group, it is impossible for Reynolds to escape, much less separate them again. They were all wary of his strength now and knew he could very much kill any of them in a one-on-one battle. So they didn''t have any plans of splitting up to search for him, even though some of them were slowing the group down. The leader looked in the direction Johanne pointed at before clenching his fists tightly, this had been the worst mission he had led in his life. Of the seven people he brought with him, three were already dead. If they were still unable to get Reynolds in the end, it would be more frustrating. "Let''s go," He ordered and they started the chase for Reynolds again. Chapter 301 - We Might Have A Problem "How do they keep finding me?" Reynolds, who was currently hiding in a hole in a tree, opened his eyes and looked in the direction of the north. It has been over six hours since he killed the two young ladies, he had tried to recover his elemental essence, but before he even properly started cultivating, he would sense the aura of the group. At first, he thought they only managed to locate him out of pure luck, but after it happened a second and third time, he knew it was not by luck, they had a way of searching for him. ?? The thought of waiting to question them passed through his head, but when he thought of the battle that would ensue right after, he decided against it. He could fight against two, but five was too much for him to handle. He got out from the tree and started heading in another direction. ''At this rate, it''ll be hard for me to recover. I can''t set an ambush for them since they can sense my location.'' He thought while walking. After a few moments, he decided it was time to leave the forest. There were still other places he could run to, there was no need to stay so close to the city anymore. A day later. Reynolds was currently sitting outside a cave in a canyon, a frustrated look on his face. He had been trying to get away from the group for over one day now, but he still hasn''t been able to escape. Now he feels like there might be something on him that''s attracting them, but after checking himself properly, there was nothing on him that could attract them. He had tried hiding his aura, but it was no use. ''Could it be that he succeeded but was caught?'' He suddenly thought of Grey. The only thing he knew that they could use in tracking him was the wooden object that Grey gave to him, which was on the premise that Grey had completed the other one he wanted to make. If Grey had successfully made and was caught by these people, then it was not surprising that they were able to always find him. ''But, these people shouldn''t be able to catch him. Unless they send people in the Overlord Plane.'' Different conjectures came to his mind, but he couldn''t confirm anyone. He suddenly thought of confronting the group from a considerable distance that he might still be able to escape if necessary. ____ While Reynolds was waiting for the group to catch up to him, Grey was currently over ten kilometers away with an angry expression. "That bastard, he was here a few hours ago, why''s he moving so much?'' Grey cursed out in annoyance. Grey got to Eternal City the previous day after tracking the light here, but when he checked the wooden object again, he noticed that the location had changed. He came out of the city and when looked at where his dot was, he realized it was in the forest at the side of the city, so he followed it into the forest. But before he could even head deep into the forest, he brought out the wooden object again and noticed the light wasn''t there anymore. He guessed the light belonged to Reynolds since Alice was from a big family which was in a huge city that was on the same level as Lunar City. Eternal City might be big, but it''s not on the level of Lunar City. He would occasionally bring out the disk to check Reynolds'' position, and every time he brought it out, the position was always different. There was a time he decided to just leave it out while tracking him, but he kept it after Reynolds stopped moving for a while and when he passed through a city. If people were to see that in his hands, they would definitely be curious about it. He wasn''t bothered about them, but if he were to encounter strong people, then that would be a problem. ''Why do you think he''s moving so much?'' Void who was perched on Grey''s shoulder like usual asked. ''I have no idea, but I don''t think it''s anything good. Hopefully, he isn''t in any trouble.'' said Grey. ''And if he is?'' asked Void. ''I''ll help him,'' ''If he isn''t?'' ''I''ll beat him up for making me walk so much.'' Void chuckled when he heard Grey''s reply. Although it sounded like Grey was angry, he could sense the urgency from him. They were currently standing at the exit of a small town, ahead of them was a vast canyon. According to the light dot of Reynolds, he was currently in this canyon, or maybe just after it. They didn''t know how big the canyon was, but from what the traders around said, it was huge. Grey immediately headed into the canyon, with the disk in his hand, he wouldn''t have a problem with locating Reynolds. He increased his speed to its limit, hoping to catch up to him before he starts moving again. ____ Two hours later. A group of five could be seen walking on one of the many paths of the canyon. They were the group who were chasing after Reynolds. "Johanne," The leader called out. Johanne nodded before closing her eyes, trying to find out where Reynolds was located. Since they entered this place, she would occasionally check where Reynolds'' position was every ten minutes, to make sure he hadn''t left the direction they were headed. "Huh?" She exclaimed softly. "We might have a problem," She said with a serious look. "What''s it?" The leader asked. "I can sense another energy which is at the Origin Plane as well, they''re almost in the same direction, I don''t know which of them belongs to him," replied Johanne. "No need to worry too much about it, let''s head in the direction of the nearest one. It doesn''t change anything if we find him first, or later," The leader said. The others nodded and started hurrying in the direction of the nearest energy Johanne sensed. ______ On another part of the canyon. Grey was currently resting under a protruding rock, using it as shade. His closed eyes suddenly snapped open as he looked in the west. Chapter 302 - Inscriber ''You''ve sensed them?'' Void asked casually. "Un." Grey nodded without any change in his expression. ?? He had been running through this canyon for the past two hours, he could see that he wasn''t too far from Reynolds. He only sat down to catch his breath and planned to continue his journey in a few minutes'' time. ''Heh! As long as they''re not here to cause any trouble for me, I have no problems with them,'' said Grey. He still had his cloak on, but his disguise was already gone. He couldn''t be bothered with making a new one in a place where he was barely known, so he just let it be. After three minutes, the figures of the five people soon appeared in Grey''s view. He stared at them in curiosity, but he didn''t have much interest in them though. The group continued approaching him, because of the cloak he had on, they couldn''t tell if he was the one they were searching for or not. After getting within one hundred and fifty meters of Grey, the group stopped. "He''s not the one," The leader of the group said. "How can you tell?" Johanne asked the question that was on the minds of the others. "He''s on the stage as me, probably about to even break through to the Sixth stage. That''s not an individual we''d want to tangle with." The leader replied. After getting a direction, the group headed straight for it without any delay. This had been the longest Reynolds had stayed in a position, so they hoped he might be tired of running. Grey watched as they left curiously, "Hmm, they seem sensible," ''Such a shame, I thought we were going to fight some people,'' Void said sadly. ''Heh! I think it''s better this way. Although they wouldn''t be too much of a problem, I''m not a fan of unnecessary fights.'' Grey chuckled before taking out the disk. ''Good, he''s still in the same location, looks like he finally stopped moving,'' He thought when he looked at the hologram above the disk. He stayed for a few more minutes before standing up and scratching his body, it was time to see Reynolds. He was a little excited at the thought of seeing Reynolds again, it has been well over a month since he saw any of his friends. The only thing that made him sad was that he couldn''t make the communication device, but on the way here, he added a modification to the disk. It was a way to signal the others if the user was in danger, just like the original use of the wooden objects when he collected them from Quinn. With the one he made though, it wasn''t a one-time use like the previous one, rather, it could be used repeatedly, unless the device was destroyed. Grey soon got to the path the group took, he looked at it interestingly before looking at his disk again. "Hmm, interesting." _____ Reynolds was currently still sitting outside the same cave, waiting for the group. There were three paths ahead of him, one on the right, and two on left. He was feeling a little nervous because the thought of Grey being caught scared him. He didn''t want to believe it, but thinking of how they kept finding him and connecting it to the device Grey wanted to make made him feel like Grey was already captured. ''Hopefully I''m just overthinking,'' he tried consoling himself. ''Maybe they stole the device from him after he escaped, yes, that''s very plausible,'' He thought once again. While he was still in the middle of racking his brain about Grey being possibly captured, he sensed the group coming in his direction. "I see you''re tired of running?" The leader said before their figures appeared from the path on the right. "Who says I''m running? But I''m curious though, why are you people after me?'' Reynolds asked while standing up. Other than the three paths ahead of him, there was one behind him. Once he gets what he wants from these people, or if they attack him, he would flee immediately. "A criminal always knows the crime they''re being captured for," The leader said with a fake smile. "Oh, but what if the criminal commits six crimes in the same day and escapes, but was later captured. Then there''s no way he would know why he''s being captured," Reynolds replied thoughtfully while putting on a mocking smile. Spending so much time with Klaus was bound to yield some results, although he might not be as quick-witted as Klaus when it came to saying things that would offend his opponents, he was sure he was slowly catching up. The leader was lost for words when he heard Reynolds'' reply. He couldn''t refute it because it was correct, but not replying meant that he was wrong with his initial statement. Seeing Reynolds'' mocking smile irritated him even more. Just when he was about to attack, he noticed Reynolds wanted to say something else. "I didn''t wait for you people to speak about criminals." Reynolds said before his expression turned serious, "How do you keep finding me? I''ve been intrigued by this for some hours now," The leader looked at Reynolds before laughing out, "You really want to know?" Reynolds didn''t respond, he already knew they weren''t going to tell him. He took a step back, planning to escape. Since they didn''t want to tell him what he wanted, then there was no use in staying behind. Just as he took a step back, a feeling of danger suddenly enveloped him. He didn''t waste any time and quickly jumped forward. Boom! An attack came from behind him, striking the rock on the side. Luckily, he didn''t retreat when he sensed the attack, or he might''ve been struck by it. After Reynolds stood up from where he landed, his expression changed before looking at the sky. "An Inscriber." Chapter 303 - Whats Going On? "An Inscriber," Reynolds looked at the blue symbol on the air in shock. He would never have thought there was an inscriber amongst the group chasing him, he knew just how rare Inscribers were. The fact that Grey was the only Inscriber he had seen shows how rare they are.?? "Oh, you know about Inscribers. Guess you''re more knowledgeable than I thought. Since you know about us, then I believe you should be aware that your chances of escaping just went down by a whole notch," The leader of the group snickered when he saw Reynolds'' expression. The only way Reynolds could escape now is if he were willing to risk being injured by an attack. Reynolds looked at them with a serious expression, and just when the thought of using his Elemental Warrior to block the attacks as he escaped came to his mind, he saw a black cat sitting leisurely on top of a rock. That''s a cat he was all too familiar with, there was no other cat in the world that had such pitch-black fur and the glint of intelligence in its eyes was very evident. ''If Void''s here, then that means he''s also here. Heh! Guess I don''t need to escape anymore,'' He thought with a smile. From how Void was looking, he could tell Grey wasn''t captured. ''Hmm, but since Grey wasn''t captured, how do they keep finding me?'' He asked himself. This question had been bugging him for some time now, he initially waited for them because he thought they might''ve caught Grey. But after speaking to them, he knew they did capture Grey, this meant that they were using another way. "Who says I want to escape? The likes of you can''t make me run away," Reynolds sneered. The group looked at him strangely, they clearly saw him trying to escape a few seconds ago, yet now he was denying it so casually. "Tsk tsk, so shameless. Surrender yourself now," Johanne said while approaching him. "Even if he surrenders himself, he''s not going to escape the punishment of killing my compatriots." The leader ordered icily, "Attack!" ''Crap! I thought they were only going to continue speaking until Grey showed up,'' Reynolds thought, but quickly summoned his Elemental Warrior to fight against the group of five. Boom! The leader of the group attacked with his inscription. He was a Water Elementalist. His attack consisted of ice arrows, shooting straight at Reynolds. "You''ll lose one of your hands as punishment for your evil deeds," The leader declared as he continued the attack. Reynolds focused on dodging, while his Elemental Warrior would occasionally block the attacks he couldn''t dodge. He couldn''t attack because of the numbers, if he sent the Elemental Warrior to attack any of them, then he would have to use his elemental essence as well while blocking some of their attacks. Void watched as the battle raged on, with Reynolds moving from one spot to another, without even trying to attack. The group currently surrounded Reynolds as they sent out organized attacks. They had good chemistry among them which made their teamwork amazing, Reynolds is just barely dodging their attacks. ''Hey, they''re beating up your friend.'' Void said to Grey who was still on his way here. ''Oh, those people from before?'' He asked while walking casually on the path. ''Yeah, how did you guess?'' asked Void. ''Well it''s actually quite simple, from how Rey was moving, it was easy to guess he was either going after something or moving away from something. The timeframe between each of his movements was too short for him to just be traveling, if he were traveling he would''ve at least rested for the night, but he didn''t. Then from how that group acted when they saw me, it was obvious that they were searching for someone.'' Grey explained. He only guessed that they were searching for Reynolds when he noticed the direction the disk showed Reynolds was on was the same direction the group headed to. ''Hmm, should I help?'' Void asked, he was itching for a battle. ''Hehe, not now, wait till I come. Reynolds can''t be defeated so easily by them, and knowing you, if he was truly being beaten up, you would''ve joined the battle by now,'' Grey chuckled. The only thing he found strange was that they were able to locate Reynolds in this huge canyon. If not for the disk he made, then he wouldn''t have been able to find him. ''It must have something to do with energy signals,'' He thought. He had read about this in one of the books at the Academy. Each Plane gives off a different energy signal, hiding one''s aura doesn''t help hide against this ability. There were few people who were recorded to have this ability in Lunar Academy, but Grey wasn''t acquainted with them. ''Make sure they don''t beat him too badly, okay,'' Grey said to Void. ''Got it,'' Void replied before disappearing from where he was lying. The battle had been going on for two minutes now, and Reynolds had already been hit by a few attacks. Some parts of his clothes had been burned, and he was bruised on his shoulder after being hit by an earth attack. The only attack that hadn''t hit him was the water element attack of the leader. Reynolds looked around, searching for Grey, but to his disappointment, he hadn''t arrived yet. ''Damn it! Where''s that damn cat? It shouldn''t have a problem with beating at least two of them,'' He cursed when he couldn''t find Void. While Reynolds was cursing at Void, the leader sent an ice spear at him after he just dodged an attack. The Elemental Warrior was blocking two attacks, so it wasn''t free to help him. ''F.u.c.k!'' Reynolds cursed, trying to mobilize his elemental essence to block the attack since it was already too close to dodge. But just then, something strange happened, the ice spear started gradually disappearing from its tip, down to the last part. This scene stunned the leader, as well as the others, they couldn''t believe their eyes. Reynolds was the only one who heaved a sigh of relief, he knew this was the handwork of Void, and it came at a perfect time. ''Finally, he decided to help'' He quickly scrambled to a better position, and even called off the Elemental Warrior. With Void helping to divert all the attacks, he didn''t need to finish his elemental essence on the Elemental Warrior, he was already almost dry. "What just happened?" The leader asked in disbelief. "I don''t know," The others shook their heads in unison. "Maybe he destroyed it with an attack, attack again, he''s almost out." The leader said after he saw Reynolds dismissing his Elemental Warrior. They all knew about the huge elemental essence needed to sustain the Elemental Warrior, so seeing him call it off meant that he was already almost out of elemental essence. But the leader''s expression changed when his next attack disappeared just like the last one. The attack of the others also disappeared when it got close to Reynolds. "What''s going on?" Chapter 304 - Showoff "What''s going on?" A voice came from behind the stunned group. ?? On hearing the voice, Reynolds heaved a sigh of relief and fell on his b.u.t.t, tired from the fight. They were still trying to comprehend what was happening to their attacks when Grey suddenly arrived. His voice brought them out of their shocked states. They turned around to look at the arriving Grey who still had the cloak on. The cloak was covering the upper side of his face, leaving only his mouth visible to the group. The leader of the group who was still rattled, quickly composed himself when he saw him. He remembered he was the one they saw some minutes back. "It''s none of your business," One of the young ladies in the group said coldly. Grey was just about to speak when he heard the leader scolding the young lady. "Mind your manners Bell. Although it''s not appropriate to tell you this, we''re a special unit in the Qilin empire''s forces, we were sent by the Crowned Prince to apprehend this young man," The leader explained. Had Grey come a few minutes ago while they were still beating Reynolds up, he wouldn''t have told him this. But after the weird scene of their attacks vanishing into thin air, it wouldn''t be nice to add another issue to it. He might be wary of Grey''s strength, but that didn''t mean he was afraid of him. "Oh, the Crowned Prince," Grey muttered while still approaching the group. "If I may ask, what did he do?" He stopped a couple of meters away from the group before asking with a smile. "This is something that involves the Crowned Prince, if you''re sensible, you wouldn''t ask any more questions and be on your way," The leader replied coldly. "You see, I''m a very nosy and curious person. Whenever I see something, I really want to know what it is, especially something like this," Grey said with a shrug before taking a step forward. Boom! "That''s a warning, take another step and it will be your last," The leader declared standing straight. "Oh, an Inscriber," Grey exclaimed softly before taking another step. "You see, I''m more of an Inscriber myself," He said before spreading out both arms. Two red symbols lit up in the sky and small fireballs shot out of the symbols, heading straight for the group. "What?!" The leader was dumbstruck when he saw the symbols mid-air. Inscription has always been his unique weapon, yet even after training for years, he still isn''t able to make more than one symbol. Seeing this stranger make two so casually caused a wave of jealousy to arouse in his heart. Boom! Boom! Boom! The group separated to dodge Grey''s attack. "Now that''s what you call a warning shot. Also, stop staring as if you''ve seen a ghost. You didn''t think you were the only Inscriber, did you?" Grey asked with a mocking smile while walking forward. "Hmph! Don''t blame me for being ruthless," The leader snorted angrily before commanding, "You two, take care of him. We''ll deal with this nosy guy." He didn''t forget about Reynolds. They had already worn him out, it would be a shame if he escaped after their hard work. Two of the ladies turned to face Reynolds who was still sitting on the ground, leaving Grey to the leader, Johanne, and the last young man in the group. "This isn''t too good, I mean, I don''t want people to say I bullied you. How about this, call those two to attack me as well," Grey jeered at the group. ''Hey bud, are you ready now?'' He asked Void who was currently back at his previous lying position on top of a rock. ''No, opening so many space tunnels at the same time to block their attacks is exhausting,'' Void replied tiredly. When he helped Reynolds previously, he thought he was going to block at most two attacks, but who would''ve known that the moment Reynolds realized he was helping, he would stop defending. This forced him to open multiple space tunnels to block the attacks. This was a very strenuous task for a Space Elementalist, and it requires a large amount of spiritual energy to maintain it. Had Grey not come at the time he did, then if the group attacked again, he wasn''t sure he could block off all of them. ''Crap! How do you expect me to beat them?'' Grey couldn''t help but ask. ''I''ll need a few minutes to rest.'' Void replied blandly. Grey cursed inside but maintained a straight face while staring at the group. With Void out, for now, he needed to draw the whole group to himself, he could tell Reynolds was even more tired so it would be hard for him to defend himself. The leader of the group attacked straight away with the others. The two young ladies who were both Fire Elementalists attacked Reynolds at the same time as well. "*Sigh* It''s been a while I fought, time to see how much I''ve improved," Grey sighed before casually stretching both hands forward. Boom! What followed was an intense energy wave with Grey at the center, the energy wave kicked up wind and dust in the area. Just as the group''s attacks were about to close in on him, he vanished from his spot with a lightning shadow taking his place for a fragment of a second before disappearing. Bam! A human figure was launched into the air, followed by an ear-piercing scream. Bang! The figure fell heavily on the ground in front of the group of three whose attacks just landed on the ground. "Huh!" The leader exclaimed in confusion. When the dust died down, he was shocked to see the body of one of the young ladies who was supposed to attack Reynolds. He looked in Reynolds'' direction and saw the other young lady was impaled by a lightning sword which was on Grey''s hand. Grey pulled out the sword and the lightning around it died down. This was one of the few good elemental weapons he got from Aetonth''s cave. He stretched his body while the young lady''s corpse fell to the ground with a ''Thud''. "How¡­ how¡­ did¡­ he moved so fast?" Johanne asked in dread. It hadn''t even been up to thirty seconds since they attacked, yet two people from their group were already dead. They even died before their attacks got to the target. What sort of terrifying monster had they encountered? "*Sigh* I''ve gotten rusty after so long," Grey shook his head in disappointment. The group looked at him in terror when they heard this comment. "Showoff," Reynolds said with a smile. Chapter 305 - Hes My Friend Grey stood in the same position, holding his sword casually. The attack he used against the two young ladies was very simple, explosive speed. ''My physical strength should be around the Fifth or Sixth stage now.'' He thought to himself while looking at the dumbfounded group of three. ?? The group looked at him with dread, with a hint of fear appearing in their eyes. Grey''s capabilities scared them. Having such speed meant that it was almost impossible for their attacks to hit him since he could easily dodge it. "Wait, he''s also a Lightning Elementalist!" The second young man in the group exclaimed. When Grey used inscriptions the first time, he attacked with the fire element, but his blade was coated with the lightning element. This explained his explosive speed, but to a certain extent. After all, he wasn''t the only Lightning Elementalist in the world, but the group hadn''t seen anyone that''s as fast as him. Grey''s speed is almost double the speed of a Lightning Elementalist in the same Plane as himself, if not even over. The leader of the group as well as Johanne only realized this fact after the young man pointed it out to them. This increased the feeling of dread in their hearts once again. "Mister, we don''t know why the Crowned Prince wants this man, but we were sent by him to bring this young man with us," The leader immediately changed his approach back to the first way. Grey''s show of strength petrified him, he wanted to get as far away from him as possible. He wasn''t part of the group that would willingly chase after death just because he didn''t want to disappoint the Crowned Prince. He had a family waiting for him at home and would be getting married soon. It would be a shame to die for someone else''s cause. "Oh, that''s a shame. I really want to know why," Grey replied with a shake of his head. He almost lost interest in them, he thought this was a group of die-hard loyal people that the Crowned Prince, or whoever assigned them picked, who would''ve thought they were just like normal people and would bend at the sight of seeing someone far more powerful? "Mister, we were only given orders, we know nothing else. I know you have no relations with this young man here, so there''s no need in getting involved with the Crowned Prince''s matter." The leader said once again. He was scared of Grey, but thinking that there isn''t any relationship between Grey and Reynolds, he thought he might as well try to speak to him so he could let them take Reynolds. There wasn''t really any reason for someone to offend the Crowned Prince over a stranger. Grey chuckled when he heard what the leader said before replying, "But the Crowned Prince wouldn''t know if you don''t tell him, right?'' "I swear on my life, none of us will speak of you killing some of our party. I''ll tell the¡­" "I don''t think you get what I''m trying to say here," Grey cut short the leader who was already swearing with his life on the line. "Huh!" "I mean, if none of you leave here, who would tell the Crowned Prince of our encounter?" Grey said while giving off a calm aura like he wasn''t speaking about the lives of a group of people. "No one," "Exactly," Grey said pointing at Johanne who was the only one confident enough to answer his question. The leader of the group, as well as Johanne''s pupils, dilated, while fear could be visibly seen on the face of the other young man. Grey is probably the only Origin Plane Elementalist in the world who could make a group of three who he was only ahead of two with a single stage, and on the same stage as one feel like they were fighting against someone who is a whole Plane ahead of them. The strength gap between them was horrifying. "Mister, isn''t this a little too excessive? We didn''t offend you in any way, killing us just because of a stranger, why?" The leader asked, not willing to accept the fact that they might die here. "Simple, he''s my friend," Grey laughed before taking off the hood that was covering over half of his face, leaving the group stunned. Since Grey appeared, he had been shocking them, but this revelation seems to top it all. Seeing a seemingly flawless young face appear behind the hood shocked the group no less than when they saw him kill two of their comrades. They couldn''t associate the beautiful-looking young man in front of them with the ruthless killer they envisioned. Grey was a complete contrast of what they imagined the man would be, and looking at him, it was easy to see he was slightly younger than Reynolds. "Friend? That means you''re the one the Emperor wants!" The leader exclaimed in sheer disbelief. Most of the people in the empire''s forces knew of the Emperor''s hunt for a certain young man. Although they didn''t know the details, they knew he was an Inscriber and had a powerful Teacher behind him. When this group was given the order to bring Reynolds, they found out he was friends with that mysterious young man. ''And here I was, feeling honored that the Crowned Prince was searching for me," Reynolds said jokingly while walking closer to Grey. "Heh! You''re still an amateur. I''m wanted by the entire empire, do you think you can beat that?" Grey replied with scorn. His facial expression threw Reynolds in a fit of laughter, "I''ve missed you bud, but on a more serious note, what did you do to the Emperor?" "I have no idea, I tried asking some of the new Instructors at the Academy, but none of them knew why they were sent to capture me," Grey replied with a thoughtful expression. The duo completely disregarded the group who were standing a few meters away from them, but the group was too shocked to even try escaping. ''What sort of man is his Teacher to train such a monster?'' This was the question revolving around their heads. They also thought of the trial land since they''ve heard about it from their superiors, but they didn''t want to believe it was the reason for his monstrous strength. He wasn''t the only one who entered the place, so there''s no way he would be the only one showing such insane levels of strength. While the group was still looking at Grey and Reynolds speaking, they got the scare of their lives. a pitch-black cat suddenly appeared out of thin air and laid on Grey''s shoulder. "How?" The leader asked. He suddenly sensed a feeling of mystery clouding this young man before him. He was in the Fifth stage of the Origin Plane, even though he wasn''t as strong as Grey, his strength was evident. He was focused on Grey and Reynolds, so if something came in at high speed, he would definitely sense it. But he didn''t even sense any energy until Void appeared. "Now, time to care of these guys," Grey said while releasing a massive killing intent. He didn''t plan on allowing any of them to leave this place. Chapter 306 - The Blue Vests Capabilities Reynolds took a few steps back when he realized Grey had gotten serious with the group, he was fine with watching from the sidelines. ''I don''t need your help with these guys, I can deal with them on my own,'' Grey said to Void which doused his already raging fighting intent. ?? Void instantly regretted not joining the fight the first time, but there was nothing he could do about it. At that time, he truly needed the rest, or he might hurt himself. ''Fine,'' He replied grumpily before disappearing from Grey''s shoulder to Reynolds'' shoulder. "What type of cat is that?" Johanne asked her group while pointing at Void in sheer curiosity. The way he moved was intriguing. Neither she nor the rest of the group could fathom how he did it which piqued their curiosity, but unfortunately, they had other things to worry about. "I know that you''re stronger than either of us here, but don''t think you can kill us so easily." The leader said seriously. After finding out that Grey and Reynolds were friends, he had already given up the idea of begging, and he knew escaping wasn''t going to be easy either. But since they already know of Grey''s explosive speed, they will be able to defend against it. His only issue now was that for them to hit Grey was going to be difficult because of his speed. "Heh! I know I won''t be able to easily kill all of you, but I''m confident in killing you all at the end of the battle," Grey said confidently. "Hmph! We''ll see about that," The leader snorted coldly before attacking with his inscription. Ice arrows formed in the air and shot in Grey''s direction. The arrows covered almost a fifteen square meters range. The other young man who was an Earth Elementalist also made a move at the same time. He made four twenty meters tall earth walls which were each three meters thick to block Grey''s escape routes from the leader''s attack. Johanne on the other hand created multiple fireballs, waiting for where Grey might appear so she would attack him, in case he dodges the leader''s attack. Just before the attacks struck Grey, he smirked and raised his hand. A thin ice shield appeared on top of him, blocking any potential arrows that might get to him. Boom! The ice arrows continuously slammed into the ground, since the leader didn''t see Grey leave the place, he didn''t stop his attacks. After almost a minute of continuous attacks, the leader finally stopped attacking. He nodded to the second young man to remove the walls, so they could see if their attacks did anything to Grey since he didn''t make any moves. Rumble! The earth walls made a rumbling sound as they sank into the ground. While Grey was inside the walls, his ice shield managed to hold off the attacks for about twenty seconds before breaking apart, but just as it broke apart, a blue light appeared around him, covering a one and a half meter radius around him. ''Oh, it works perfectly,'' He thought with an embarrassed smile. Although he had already tested the capability of the blue vest before, he was still quite reluctant to use it. His cautious mindset made him feel as if it might not truly hold up. This was why he first made an ice shield before preparing himself. Had the vest not managed to block the attacks, he already had a second plan waiting in order to block the attacks, but luckily, it managed to stop them. He stood casually in the place while waiting for the attacks to die down, his inscriptions were still mid-air. After waiting for a few more seconds, the leader stopped attacking. He knew they would take down the walls to check if he was there since he hid his aura from them. As soon as he saw the walls shaking while going down, he made a lightning bow, the arrow was a combination of both the fire and lightning elements. The body of the arrow was made of lightning, while the arrowhead was made of the fire element, he also prepared his inscriptions for his attacks. When the walls sank down to where his head appeared, the arrow which was notched was released, he also used the wind element to boost the speed of the attack. Grey used three different elements in a single attack. This was something unheard of in the Qilin empire. He had a smile on when his attack was released, but his face was soon covered by a surprised expression when he realized the leader of the group managed to sense him on time and made sufficient preparations. Boom! Grey''s arrow was the first to connect with the ice shield the leader made in front of them. It exploded on impact, instantly spreading cracks around the ice shield. Crack! The ice shield was destroyed within a second. The leader nor Grey''s inscription attacks had gotten to the opponents yet before this arrow showed such destructive force. Johanne was a little slow to react, but she attacked just after Grey''s ice arrow hit the leader''s shield. Boom! Bam! Bang! Grey and the leader''s inscription attacks arrived at almost the same time, while Johanne''s fireballs attacks arrived a little later. The group was pushed back by Grey''s attacks. The leader was the one who suffered the brunt of the attack since he was closer to the ice shield. After the shield broke apart, they faced the onslaught of Grey''s inscription attacks. The other young man managed to make an earth wall to block the attack, while also making an earth armor for himself. The earth wall was quickly destroyed by Grey''s attack. While the group was panicking on how to block the attack, Grey was casually strolling forward in the midst of their attacks. ''Hehe, this thing is a true treasure, I don''t need to bother too much about being attacked.'' He thought with a smile. When he was making the device and comprehending the darkness element, he made time to give the vest as much elemental essence as possible. It took him almost three days before it stopped accepting any more essence. He tested out the defense again to find out just how much it could block. The result of his test was terrific, the vest had no problems with blocking his all-out attack, which was something that was almost the same as an Eight stage Origin Plane Elementalist''s attack. The thing he didn''t test out was if it could block his chaos orb. With the addition of his darkness element, he was certain that the power of his chaos orb was well above the Origin Plane. But he didn''t know if it could rival an Overlord Plane Elementalist''s attacks. He hadn''t fought or seen an Overlord Plane attacking before so he couldn''t gauge it. After moving out of the area of the attacks, Grey attacked the group once again. Both sides exchanged moves in an intense battle, but it was evident to all that Grey was gaining the upper hand as the battle progressed. Chapter 307 - Gotten More Powerful! Boom! An explosion rang out in the canyon with a human figure flying out of the dust in the explosion. ?? Bang! The figure crashed into the wall by the side. The figure belonged to the leader of the group whom Grey was fighting against. Just as the leader struck the wall, Grey shot out of the area of the explosion, heading straight for the leader whose back was just hitting the wall. ''Damn it! How can such a young man have such battle experience? It''s almost unbelievable!'' The leader cursed inside, but still reacted accordingly on seeing Grey coming towards him. He created an ice wall in front of him, before attacking Grey with his inscription which was mid-air. Bam! Grey punched the ice wall with his b.a.r.e fist when he got close to it, which caused the wall to slowly start cracking. As soon as his fist hit the ice wall, lightning danced around his body as he disappeared from the spot. Bang! Multiple ice shards struck where Grey was previously standing, missing him by a few milliseconds. Grey appeared a few meters away from the ice wall before looking at the leader of the group with a serious expression. ''This guy''s a pest. His battle experience is amazing.'' Grey cursed and praised the leader at the same time. "You do know you''re only delaying the inevitable, right?" Grey asked while looking at Johanne and the other young man who was running towards where the leader was standing. He didn''t do anything to stop them since he knew he couldn''t divert his attention from their leader. There had been times during the battle that he wanted to focus on this duo, but this gave the leader a chance to attack him sneakily, luckily, he was wearing the blue vest. "Your defensive tool will soon be out of energy, by then, we''ll see who will have the last laugh," The leader replied with a sneer. He had taken notice of Grey''s defensive tool, he didn''t know what it was, but he knew Grey was wearing a defensive tool. All the times he had managed to get a clean strike on Grey, a faint blue light would always cover him just when the strike was about to land. He had been watching it and noticed the light had slowly started diminishing. With a few more attacks, it would surely run out of energy. Grey showed an indifferent expression when he heard this, but deep down, he was a little shocked by the leader''s observation ability. A smirk appeared on Grey''s face before he gave a reply, "You do know I''m not the only one here, right?" When they heard Grey''s question, they looked at the side and remembered Reynolds and the mysterious black cat was still there. They didn''t attach much importance to Void, but they were wary of Reynolds'' Elemental Warrior. If it were to be added to Grey''s overwhelming strength, then they have no hopes of winning this. The group''s expression turned sour when they thought of it. At least previously, they still had a slim chance of escaping once Grey''s defensive tool ran out of energy. But now, that hope has plunged down the drain. Grey burst out laughing when he saw their expressions. The easiest person to kill is someone who has given up any hopes of surviving, this is why he''s playing the psychological game with them. If he is successful, then the group would put on less resistance against his attacks. "Heh! Looks like you also know your fates are sealed," He said with a smirk. The leader looked at his downcast party before taking a step forward, of the entire group, he was the most experienced, this was why he was made the leader of the group. "I know what you''re trying to do, and to be honest, you were almost successful. But I know your friend still needs more time before he can summon his Elemental Warrior, this is why you''re trying to delay us. Although you''re stronger than each of us, you know you can not kill us," The leader said confidently while staring straight at Grey. He noticed Grey''s body language changed when he said this, which increased his confidence in his conjecture. "Don''t be afraid, he''s almost at the end of his rope," The leader whispered to Johanne and the other young man with sheer confidence. It was almost like he could already see Grey''s downfall. Grey on the other hand was laughing inside, he purposely did the change in his body language to trick the leader. And from the looks of the confident smile on the leader''s face, he could tell he was successful. ''Hmm, I can''t depend on the blue vest any longer, it''s already almost out of energy. Damn it! How can it use so much energy for those few strikes?'' He cursed at the high consumption of the blue vest. Given how long it takes to fill it up, he expected it to last longer. But he couldn''t say he was disappointed in it since it has helped him greatly during this battle. With a renewed vigor, the group attacked him first. The leader used his inscription to keep him busy, while the young man who was an Earth Elementalist focused mainly on blocking the attacks of Grey. Johanne and the leader attacked Grey simultaneously, making it hard to dodge. Had this group been fighting against someone else, then they would''ve been able to win, but against Grey, their chances of surviving are almost zero. "Wow! Grey''s gotten more powerful!" Reynolds exclaimed when he saw them restart the battle. The battle was currently at its climax, seeing Grey move from one place to another easily dodging the group''s attacks before attacking, he was awed by his show of strength. Chapter 308 - Gamble Crash! "Ah!"?? The Earth Elementalist yelled in pain as he crashed hard into the wall by the side, almost half of his body was crushed by the impact. He was currently bleeding from the side of his blonde hair, shaking from the pain. "Erwin!" Johanne and the leader yelled out at the same time while looking at the pain gripped Erwin. "You¡­ you monster! I''ll kill you!" The leader yelled with his eyes almost bulging out as he stared at Grey. In the group, Erwin was the one he was closest to, seeing him in such a state sent him hysteria. Just as he was about to charge at Grey who was looking at them from a distance, he was held back by Johanne. "Carlos, stop! This is what he wants. His defensive tool is already out, we just need to hang on a little more, and we can defeat him," Johanne said while holding onto the enraged Carlos. Carlos looked at Grey before moving his gaze to the shaking Erwin who was m.o.a.ning in pain. He clenched his fists while trying to calm his emotion. Even though the injury looks severe, as long as Erwin doesn''t die, he can recover. He nodded at Johanne before taking a step in front of her. Johanne understood his intent and quickly went to feed Erwin a healing tonic to stop the bleeding as soon as possible. Grey on the other hand stared at them without much emotion. He couldn''t say he really felt anything for them, after all, they are enemies. But he didn''t really like these senseless killings. ''Who is wrong and who is right? It doesn''t matter, what truly matters is whose side you''re on. Tsk! Crazy people.'' He thought with a shake of his head while looking at them. His defensive tool was out of energy and he had been stuck once, luckily, he prepared an earth armor as well. The group thought it was the defensive tool when it blocked one of their strikes. "This is a battle I''m bound to win," Grey declared as he started slowly approaching Carlos and Johanne. Carlos looked at Johanne who was feeding Erwin a healing tonic, before looking at Grey once again. He had tried accessing Grey''s strength since the beginning of the battle, but he had been unable to find out his true strength, or come up with a plan to deal with him. ''He not only has explosive speed, but his attacks are explosive as well. To think he could last this long? Normally, when an Elementalist uses explosive speed or attacks, the consumption is insane. We''ve been fighting for almost five minutes now, and he still has two inscriptions up. Guess we''ll have to go with a battle of attrition tactic, if we can defeat him, then we wouldn''t need to worry about dying.'' Carlos'' brain went into overdrive trying to come up with an escape plan. "Don''t attack him carelessly, focus on defending," He whispered to Johanne. Johanne nodded when she heard his order. Grey slowly picked up speed before lightning flashed across his body and he disappeared from sight. Buzz! Swoosh! A bolt of lightning could be seen moving across the area of the battle scene while releasing attacks simultaneously. Carlos and Johanne focused on defending during this battle, while Carlos would occasionally attack with his inscription whenever Grey presented an opportunity for him. But most of his strikes missed because Grey''s speed was not something his attack speed could match. Another three minutes went by with the lightning bolt moving almost throughout the time. After not being able to get any strike at them, Grey was forced to stop. ''Dammit! Taking down this guy is harder than I thought.'' Grey cursed while looking at Carlos and Johanne. They were both breathing heavily, but so was Grey. Compared to them who had their backs against each other trying to defend against Grey''s onslaught, Grey had been moving almost nonstop. Although he had been able to successfully hit them, the attacks didn''t get to them with full power because most of the power was used in destroying Carlos'' attacks. Both sides went into a standoff once again. With Carlos focusing all their energy on defending, it was difficult for Grey to kill them. "How can he have so much stamina?" Carlos asked in-between gasps. He initially thought that Grey would already be out, but even after almost eight minutes of using such explosive attacks, he was still standing. Other than the sweat and his heavy breathing, he looked to be perfectly fine. "It doesn''t matter, it''s almost ready. Johanne just a little more, and we''ll be able to avenge everyone and kill this bastard." Carlos clenched his fists tightly. He''s currently planning on taking a gamble, if he''s successful, then they will defeat Grey, but if he fails, they die. ''Phew! I have to say, this guy''s more experienced in fighting than most of the people I''ve faced. With the position they took up, they can perfectly block my attacks, and although my fire element attack is far more powerful, that guy always nullifies them.'' Grey thought while breathing out. ''One more time, if I can''t, then I guess Void will have to join the battle, with his space element, they wouldn''t know how they died.'' Lightning danced around Grey''s body before he disappeared once again, this time, he wanted to end the battle with this round of attack. If he couldn''t, then there''s no harm in calling for Void''s assistance. "Get ready, he''s coming!" Carlos yelled, "We''ll end him with this move!" Boom! Bam! When Grey''s fireball was about to hit them, Carlos set up an ice sphere that covered an area of almost twelve meters in radius with a spread of his hand. Twelve faint lights raced along with the sphere as it expanded from Carlos'' position. Boom! Bang! Crack! The sphere managed to block five of the fireballs before cracks ran across it. Another hit and it exploded, sending bits of ice across the battlefield. "Now!'' Grey, who was biding his time from another location, shot straight into the twelve-meter range with a lightning sword in hand. Just as he was about to attack, twelve lights flashed on the ground before rising into the sky. It formed a straight line up, almost twenty meters high, and shrunk to the area Grey was standing before trapping him. Grey looked at the translucent shield-like array trapping him, "Oh, an array, how convenient." Crack! Chapter 309 - Frost City Crack! The shield-like array started cracking under Grey''s touch, before finally. Bang! It exploded within a few seconds. "He destroyed it, just like that?" Johanne couldn''t believe that the array Carlos had been making during the course of Grey''s last attack would be destroyed with a mere touch. "Car¡­" She turned around to speak, only to see a blade piercing through Carlos'' head, his eyes were still wide open. He was dead. Grey withdrew the sword from Carlos'' head, and his body fell to the ground. "Car¡­ Carlos!" Johanne screamed with dilated pupils. Within a second, Grey moved from where he was standing three meters away and appeared behind them. "I must say, although he was smart when coming up with your defensive plan, trying to secretly create an array in front of me was the most stupid thing he did in his life," Grey said emotionlessly. When he was fighting against them previously, at first, he found it weird how Carlos always attacked twelve specific spots. He would always wait for when he was in a particular spot before striking. After observing it a few more times, he realized he was actually trying to make an array, a killing array. If the array traps him, then he wouldn''t be able to move in the small space, neither will he be able to attack, but attacks from the outside could come in while also being bolstered by the array after they pass through it. After figuring out the array, he quickly started thinking of the quickest way to break it, he had personally never created this array before, but being good at arrays, he was able to quickly find the weak point in it while Carlos was still in the process of making it. All he did when he tapped on it was using his darkness element to corrode the weak link, easily shattering it. The reason he let Carlos complete the array was so that he could get a chance to go close to them since Carlos would be confident in his array trapping him. Johanne looked at the body of Carlos, before switching her gaze to Erwin. Her eyes were currently filled with tears and hatred. "All we were doing was following orders," She muttered under her breath. Grey heard what she said before shaking his head, "And all I''m doing is trying to survive. Do you think the people who want me will keep me alive given how desperately they''re trying to find me?" "Now tell me, why are they searching for me?" He asked while approaching Johanne who had stopped moving altogether. "I¡­ I don''t know. Make it quick, I don''t want to suffer." Johanne said before closing her eyes with tears running down the side of her face. She knew Grey would kill her no matter what, so all she could do was at least beg him to make it quick. She tried committing suicide, but she couldn''t bring herself to do it, she didn''t want to die. Grey nodded before raising his hand, after dropping it, Johanne fell as well. A small hole could be seen on the middle of her forehead with blood flowing out of it. Grey also made sure to kill Erwin as well, he couldn''t afford to allow himself to let them go. If they won the battle, then he would''ve been the one to die, but since he won, he will continue living. "This is a cruel world." He muttered while approaching Reynolds and Void who were waiting for him. "Hey bud, I can see you''ve grown stronger," Reynolds said before hugging Grey. Grey, who was lost in thoughts came back to himself when he felt Reynolds hugging him. The duo went into the cave where Reynolds was previously sitting before the group came to rest. Reynolds recounted how they came to his city, and how he was chased by them for the past day. "What do you plan on doing now?" Grey asked Reynolds after also telling him of how the new Mayor tried hunting him down. "I still have some things to attend to here. How about you, where are you going?" Reynolds replied before asking. "I''ll be going to meet up with Alice, and then Klaus." Grey said before bringing out one of the disks, "Oh! Here." He tossed it at Reynolds while also telling him how it works. "I was unable to make the communication tool yet, but hopefully I''ll be able to figure it out soon." "It''s okay. With this, we wouldn''t have any problems with locating each other. What would be really convenient now is a spatial ring, if we could get one then traveling would be great." "Yeah, but unfortunately I haven''t comprehended the space element yet. So you guys are stuck with the conventional method." The duo stayed the night in the cave before leaving and heading back to where they came from. Grey followed Reynolds to the town just before the canyon, after bidding farewell and telling him to take care, he left. Reynolds knew the city Alice came from, so he showed him where it was located on the map, after cursing him for not knowing where his friends came from. He almost punched him in the face when he told him he followed the light here, that he also didn''t know his city. Grey followed the route Reynolds showed him on the map, heading to where Alice was. He also made sure to always look at the disk to make sure he was actually going in the right direction. Twelve days later. After going through multiple cities, towns, and villages, he finally got to the city Alice was from. Standing in front of the huge gate, the word Frost City was written boldly on it. Merchants could be seen escorting carriages into the city, while soldiers who were guarding the city gates were sitting by the side, watching every individual that goes into the city. "Time to see Alice," Grey took a step into the city, walking through the bustling city gate, into the crowded street. Chapter 310 - Reiss Family After entering the city, Grey headed straight for the first tavern he could find. He bought a horse after leaving the canyon, so he kept it in the tavern''s stable. He recalled Alice was from one of the three big families in Frost City, the Reiss family, so he might not even need the device to locate her. Grey didn''t immediately head there, he knew it wouldn''t be easy to see Alice since he couldn''t just swagger into the family compound. He planned to go over and check out the general situation of the family first, after all, since the Emperor went after Reynolds, the chances of him going after Alice were also very high. ''Void, you''ll be sneaking into Alice''s compound tomorrow. When you find her, give her this letter.'' He passed a letter over to Void. He also gave Void one of the devices to give to her, the content of the letter didn''t say much, it only said Alice should come to meet him if she could. But if she couldn''t, she should reply to the letter so he''d know what to do. He stayed in the room for some time before going out to get food for them, after getting their food, he immediately started cultivating. He was already very close to breaking through to the Sixth stage of the Origin Plane after he comprehended and improved the elemental grade of the darkness element, so he hoped to increase his strength while he was in Frost City. The next day. He headed into the city accompanied by Void, who was hiding in his cloak rather than lying on his shoulder like always. Void being on his shoulder is something the Emperor''s people would probably already be aware of, so he didn''t want to take the risk. He walked through the busy streets of Frost City, heading for the Reiss family compound. It took him almost one hour to get to the compound which was located in the southern part of the city. Looking at the gates of the compound, it wasn''t hard to figure it belonged to a big family. Grey estimated the compound was around eight hundred square meters, which he felt was quite small given how big the spaces big families in other smaller cities take. An Inn was across the compound, so he headed there for a drink. If anything happened in the city, especially to the Reiss family, this was the best place to find out. With his cloak covering half of his face, he stepped into the inn. He walked to an empty seat by the window on the right side of the Inn, from there he got a great view of the front gates of the family. ''I''m counting on you Void,'' He said to Void after taking a seat. After getting the go-ahead, Void disappeared. Grey gave him the device so he could easily find Alice. He ordered a bottle of wine before looking across the inn, hoping to get something juicy from the conversations of the people who were sitting close to him. But unfortunately, even after almost twenty minutes, he didn''t get any useful information from the people there, most of them were speaking about their personal lives. ''Hey, did you find her?'' He asked. After a few seconds of waiting, Void replied, ''No, the guards here are more than those at that Mayor''s compound,'' ''Which Mayor?'' Grey asked, a little lost. ''The one you stole that wine from, you know, who was betraying the empire,'' answered Void. ''Oh, that one. I totally forgot about him. But, why would there be so many guards in the compound? Something must definitely be going.'' ''Well, I heard some guards speaking about the Emperor sending some people here some days back¡­'' Void told Grey all he heard from the conversing guards. According to the guards, Alice''s father sent the people away, saying she wasn''t in the compound. Being the head of such a big family, the Emperor''s people didn''t object much, rather they told him to send her to the Capital when she returned. ''That explains the high number of guards,'' ''No, actually, just before the Emperor''s people came, one of the Reiss'' family members was almost assassinated, an Elder to be precise,'' ''Well, there''s that too. Did you use the device? Since it shows her light is here, it means she''s obviously in the mansion,'' ''Or maybe she dropped the wooden object before leaving,'' ''Yeah, that too. Try to locate her quickly, you''re a small black cat with the space element, getting past some many people shouldn''t be difficult for you.'' ''It''s not, I only delayed because I saw something shiny,'' On hearing the reason Void hadn''t gotten to Alice yet, Grey almost spat out the drink that he just took a sip of. ''Did you take it?'' He asked a question which he knew would give him a very obvious answer. Since Void stopped because of something shiny, then of course he was going to take it. ''No,'' Void replied hastily. His hasty reply only proved to Grey that he took it. ''You''re lying, return it this instant. We do not steal things from our friends'' house,'' Grey reprimanded him immediately. ''But it''s her father''s house, not hers,'' Void tried to justify himself. After a few seconds of scolding, Void finally agreed to return it. Grey didn''t think he would return it though, but there was no harm in trying. Had he been there, then there might''ve been some hope in Void returning it, but with Void being alone, the chances are low. Grey waited for a few minutes before contacting Void again, to his surprise, Void said he was already at the place where Alice''s light dot was on, but he couldn''t find her. This probably meant that she left the wooden object in her room. ''Hmm, she should know this is the only way for me to reach her, so even when leaving, she would take it.'' Grey thought while rubbing his head a little distressed by the missing Alice. If he couldn''t locate Alice within the next week, then he would take the risk of going to her family compound. He didn''t plan on leaving this city until he was certain that Alice was safe. Void returned, and Grey went on to ask him about the situation in the house, and also if he returned what he took. Void told him all he heard while he was inside the house, and other than the information he got the first time, there wasn''t really anything more. Chapter 311 - Sasha Reiss Four days went by with Grey going to the same inn across the Reiss family compound every day, he would also send Void to sneak into the mansion to see if he could find anything useful, but all their endeavors have always almost ended the same way. But Grey had been getting a general overview of the relationship between the three families in the city. The Reiss family is currently clashing against one of the other two families because of a newly discovered mine that was just between the boundaries of both family''s property outside the city. The Reiss family was the first to discover it, but they were unable to keep the Smith family from finding out about it. Neither family agreed to share the mine since it was something that was very valuable, especially to the Smith family which was a blacksmith family. The third family in Frost City has been keeping a neutral ground on the matter, just like the Mayor''s manor. They were both waiting to see the outcome of the struggle between the two families. ''Have you been able to see Alice''s father during the times you have been going inside the mansion?'' Grey asked Void who was about to sneak into the Reiss family once again. ''No, he''s never been in the mansion whenever I go,'' replied Void. ''That''s strange, I''ve never seen him come out of the compound nor come back. Does this mean he went on a trip?'' Grey asked while rubbing his chin. ''No, the guards always say he leaves during the morning,'' said Void. ''Fine, guess I''ll have to sneak into the compound later tonight,'' Grey quickly came to a decision. He usually comes to this Inn almost as soon as it opens, the workers are already starting to look at him with suspicious gazes. But since no one has come to disturb him yet, he planned on leaving before that happens. ''If only I can find a spot to stay close by,'' Grey thought while drinking the wine on his table. While he was speaking with Void, he suddenly sensed someone approaching him. Raising his head, he saw a young lady who seemed to be around his age or maybe slightly older walking in his direction. She had short black hair that was just barely below her ears, brown eyes with a beautiful face. The young lady was five foot ten, with an hourglass figure. All eyes were on her as she approached Grey''s table. Behind her was a small entourage of two young men and two more young ladies, but none were as beautiful as she was. The group of five were all dressed extravagantly in trousers and long shirts. The young lady at the front was wearing a silver shirt with gold embroidery designs on it, while on black pants. Grey guessed they were most likely from an influential family in Frost City. He waited patiently for them to walk past him, but to his surprise, the young lady stopped in front of his table. "If you don''t mind, can I join you?" The young lady asked with a crisp and delicate voice. "Oh, sure," Grey replied after looking around, before asking blandly, "And your friends?" "You don''t have to worry about them, they''ll get their own seats," The young lady waved off her group before sitting on the chair across Grey. The group of four headed to the table behind Grey''s table and to his surprise, the couple sitting there left the moment they saw them coming. "You must be new here?" The young lady asked while signaling for the waiter to come over. Grey nodded before taking a sip of his wine. He hadn''t sensed any form of malice from the young lady in front of him, so he decided to entertain her since he was bored anyway. "Sorry to ask, but can I see your face?" The young lady asked with a curious expression. "No," Grey replied in a straightforward manner. The young lady gave Grey a strange look, not expecting he would be so straightforward with his reply. "I''m Sasha Reiss, and you are?" The young lady extended her hand across the table for a handshake. Grey was taken aback when he heard her say her name. ''She has the same last name as Alice, hmm, maybe she could help me.'' He thought while stretching out his hand to shake hers. "Zeke Hoover," replied Grey. He didn''t feel it was appropriate to tell this young lady his real name since he wasn''t a hundred percent sure she was from the Reiss family. "It''s nice meeting you, Zeke," Sasha replied with a light smile. Grey nodded before focusing on his drink, since he was still here, he decided to order a meal. While Grey was waiting for his meal, he found out from Sasha that this place was actually owned by the Reiss family. They engaged in a casual conversation with Sasha being the one who spoke the most. After she was done with her meal, Grey asked her the question he wanted to ask the moment she walked up to him. "Why did you approach me?" He looked straight at the young lady. "Nothing, I''m just curious why you''ve been coming here for the past four days, are you from the Smith family?" Sasha asked with a playful smile. "Smith family? I have no idea who they are," Grey replied calmly without showing any reaction. "Oh, that''s nice then. But coming here every day seems a little bit suspicious, don''t you think?" Sasha asked with the same expression. "I like the wine here," answered Grey. While Grey was speaking with the young lady the first time, he called Void over. Since she claimed she was from the Reiss family, maybe Void might''ve seen her in the mansion. The appearance of Sasha has changed his plan. Instead of sneaking into the Reiss family this night, he might as well have Void tail her. "Okay, have a nice day Zeke," Sasha said before standing up. She signaled the others in her group before saying to Grey, "I''ve taken care of your meal and wine, so you don''t need to worry about it." "Oh," Grey replied casually. His casual reply irked the young ladies, as well as the young men from the group. They gave him a disgusted look before walking out of the Inn. ''Looks like I''ll be keeping the money I was supposed to spend today,'' Grey thought with a chuckle. Chapter 312 - [Bonus chapter] Report Everything! Sasha Reiss left the Inn accompanied by her group as she headed for the Reiss family compound. "Why didn''t you just throw him out of the Inn?" One of the young men asked, clearly irritated by Grey''s behavior. The other three nodded in approval of his suggestion. The brief encounter they had with Grey made them have a bad impression of him since he couldn''t even appreciate Sasha''s kindness. "Why would I throw him out, did he do anything wrong in going to my Inn?" Sasha asked nonchalantly. "He couldn''t even say thank you. I think he''s just a freeloader," One of the ladies replied with a cold snort. "I''m not too bothered about that. Ezekiel, get someone to follow him, I want to know where he''s staying in Frost City, and if possible, everything you can find out about Zeke Hoover," Sasha turned to one of the young men before ordering. "Yes, my lady," With a bow, the young man called Ezekiel left the group, heading to the right side of the compound. Void had been relaying everything that had been happening with Sasha and her group to Grey since they left the Inn, he even told him about everything they spoke about since Grey told him to report everything. Grey was still drinking what was left of his wine when he heard Void''s report. He wasn''t surprised by this since he already knew Sasha would definitely get someone to follow him. The only thing he was thinking about was how he would be able to use Sasha to find out about Alice. ''Should I ask her directly?'' He asked himself. If Sasha was Alice''s sister, which seems very likely right now, then she might know where she is. There''s also the probability of her not having a good relationship with Alice because Grey had never heard Alice speaking of any of her siblings before. He decided to see the outcome of Void following her, if she has any bad relationship with Alice, he might find out. His second option was to find someone who is working in the Reiss family compound to ask. This was all on the presumption that Void was unable to find out anything from Sasha while he''s following her. Thirty minutes later. Grey stood up after finishing his drink, heading out of the Inn. After he chatted with Sasha, he noticed most of the people who were at the Inn at that time were all looking at him strangely, especially a group of four. He didn''t bother about them and walked out of the Inn. As soon as he stepped out of the Inn, four men stood up and walked out as well. When they got out, they looked in the direction Grey faced, before heading in the same direction. Of the four men, only one looked to be in his twenties, the others looked to be around mid and late thirties. The man in his mid-twenties had a small scar that ran under his left eye. His brown eyes glowed with a murderous glint, and his huge figure scared most of the people who were in their way as they were walking. Grey was walking casually on the busy street, fully aware of the fact that these men were following him. In fact, they were not the only ones following him, two more people were following him in the shadows. ''The ones in the shadows should be the ones sent by Sasha, these guys on the other hand should probably be her enemies.'' He thought while walking. Of the four men, two of them were in the Eighth stage of the Origin Plane, so Grey had no plans of finding out why they were following him. He could fight against one of them, but two was a little too much for him to handle. He saw a shop that was selling clothes, looking at it interestingly from the outside, he walked inside. The shop wasn''t too big, but it had a variety of clothes. There were over twelve rows in the shop, each row was filled with different types of clothes. When Grey stepped in, a well-dressed young lady stepped forward to greet him with a friendly smile. "Hello, sir, I''m Petra, is there anything in particular you''re looking for?" Petra asked after a bow. Grey was a little taken aback by her question, he rarely went shopping, especially in these kinds of shops. Most of the time he went to buy clothes, he would just get one from the roadside, or a small stall. "Do you have something for a banquet?" He quickly recovered before asking. "Yes sir, right this way," Petra showed him one of the rows in the shops. Grey followed Petra to one of the rows, he looked at the clothes that she suggested while telling him about the designs as well as who made them. Most of them were made in Frost City, but some were brought from other cities. While Grey was in the shop, he noticed none of the people following him entered the shop, but they all kept their spiritual senses locked on him. ''Looks like they can''t cause a scene here,'' Grey thought with a chuckle. From the appearance of those men, he felt they would come in if this place was ordinary, but seeing how they waited outside, he knew this place was owned by an influential figure in the city. Grey curiously asked Petra about the store and found out it was owned by a merchant organization. The discovery surprised him, he didn''t think there would be a merchant organization that would be powerful enough to stop two Eighth stage Origin Plane Elementalists. He was still thinking about the merchant organization when Void suddenly spoke to him. ''What''s up?'' ''She''s heading into a room,'' Void reported. ''And?'' ''It''s the same room Alice left her wooden object,'' ''Oh, follow her, maybe she knows something,'' ''I''m already in the room,'' Grey felt somewhat relieved when he heard this. Assuming that Alice and Sasha were to have a close relationship, then he wouldn''t mind taking the risk of contacting her, after all, he had initially decided to take the risk of sneaking into the compound. Just as Grey was looking at a blue shirt and pants Petra was showing him, he almost stumbled when he heard the next thing Void said. ''She''s taking off her clothes, I think she wants to take a bath,'' ''She has taken off her clothes and is headed to the bathtub now,'' ''Shit Void! Don''t tell me that!'' Grey yelled at him angrily. ''But you said to report everything,'' Void replied feeling wronged. Chapter 313 - Ceremony "Is everything alright, sir?" Petra asked when she saw Grey almost falling. "Yes, I''ll take this one, and the black one you showed me earlier," Grey replied gently after calming himself. ''Void, never tell me something like that again, okay?'' He reprimanded. ''Yeah, but Klaus wouldn''t mind me telling him,'' Void replied cheekily. ''You know what, get out of the bathroom,'' ''What if she uses a secret entrance?'' ''Fine stay, but mind what you tell me.'' Grey continued speaking with Void while Petra packed up the two clothes he wanted. There were a lot of people in the shop, so he planned on changing into one of the clothes, and leaving the place with one of the people here, hopefully, a group. He paid for the clothes before going into one of the changing rooms in the shop to put on one of his new clothes. Ten minutes later, Grey walked out of the changing room, dressed in the blue shirt and pants Petra was previously showing him. Petra who was standing outside the dressing room was left dumbstruck at the sight of Grey. She almost wanted to ask if Grey was the person who walked into the changing room just now, or if he was inside before. The cloak Grey previously wore covered at least half of his face, so she didn''t know what he looked like. "How do I look?" Grey asked while spreading out his hands. "It¡­ it looks good on you, young¡­ sir,'' Petra was flustered by Grey''s handsome face that she was lost for words. Luckily, she managed to speak, although just b?r?ly. Grey quickly caught the attention of some young ladies, as well as young men in the shop. Even the older ladies stared at him in awe, after all, it''s not every day they get the chance to see such a handsome young man. Grey, who was already used to being stared at by people, didn''t really feel much from the gazes. He looked around, hoping to find a group he could tag along with when going out. While he was in the changing room, he made a small array on the clothes that was able to block out the spiritual senses of those watching him. He planned on activating it when one of the groups in the shop is about to leave. That way, it would be difficult for the people outside to find him. The people outside didn''t know how he looked, so he didn''t have any fears about walking out. "Guess I''ll take some traveling wears as well," Grey spoke calmly to Petra with his hands placed behind his back. Petra nodded before showing him in the direction of where the traveling wears were located. Due to being stunned by Grey''s appearance, she forgot that he didn''t come out with any of the bags he took into the changing room. Grey stayed in the shop for another five minutes before noticing a group of eight who were planning to leave. The group consisted of five young men and three young ladies, and they were all well-dressed, not as extravagant as those who followed Sasha, but they would do. Without any further delay, he tapped his right pocket, and the essence stone that he kept there lit up for a second before going out. Array lines on the inside of his clothes lit up at the same time as the essence stones before going off. After successfully blocking out all prying senses, he regulated his stage with the help of the array as well, decreasing it to the First stage of the Origin Plane. If he took it lower than the Origin Plane, the group of four that were following him would find out since his control over hiding it wasn''t strong enough to hide it from them. But in the Origin Plane, he was certain that only those in the Overlord Plane would be able to notice he was hiding his stage. Grey approached the group of eight with a friendly, even though his people skills aren''t on the same level as Klaus, he didn''t think he would have a problem with talking to the group. The group of eight was surprised when they saw him approaching them. Just as they started heading out while talking, the man in his twenties from the group of four walked into the shop. He stared at the group suspiciously, after not recognizing any of them, he walked straight for where Grey was standing before he activated the array that hid him from them. Grey smirked inside while leaving the shop with the group. The group invited him to join them for a birthday ceremony they''ll be attending in two days'' time, and he agreed since he wouldn''t really be doing much with Void following Sasha now and he could hopefully get to find out the relationship between Alice and Sasha from this group as well. After taking the invitation letter from the group, he left them and headed back to the tavern he was staying at. He made sure to wear his cloak before going into the tavern. Later that night. "Phew!" Grey breathed out heavily with a white mist leaving his mouth. He opened his eyes to look at the full moon through the window. "I''m finally in the Sixth stage, to think I''ll advance this quickly," He muttered to himself while staring out the window. After just four days of constant cultivating every night, he had finally broken through to the Sixth stage of the Origin Plane. Now, he was starting to see the advantages of awakening more elements. Awakening the darkness element greatly boosted his cultivation speed, but what made him break through this quickly was obviously the Great Earth Essence Liquid he absorbed when improving the elemental grade of his darkness element. Grey brought out the disk and touched the middle, he looked at the positioning of everyone and noticed Reynolds and Klaus had moved a considerable distance from where they previously were. The only thing that made his face turn sour was Alice, whose light dot was still in the same position. ''Hopefully, I''ll know where she''s located soon.'' Chapter 314 - Such A Headache! Frost City, Serene Villa. Grey was currently standing outside the villa, dressed in a gold shirt and black pants. This was the place the group he spoke with at the shop told him to come for the ceremony. It was the birthday ceremony of an influential old man in Frost City. According to the group, the man was over eight hundred years old. The sun would be setting in a few minutes'' time. Grey was told to come just after sunset, but he felt coming earlier wouldn''t do him any bad. He waited quietly at a corner, trying to attract as little attention as he possibly could. There were others who were standing outside the villa gate as well. While he was waiting for the group to come, he watched as different people walked into the villa, both young and old. But most of them were around his age or in their mid-twenties. Apparently, only those who had invitations could go in, luckily, he didn''t try to go in when he arrived, rather, he waited in a corner, observing the whole situation. He suddenly sensed Void coming close to his location, raising his head, he saw Sasha Reiss, along with the group of four who followed her to the Inn two days back walking towards the villa. ''Oh, looks like she was invited as well,'' He thought inside. Void following Sasha these past two days hadn''t gone without rewards. They haven''t been able to locate Alice yet, but Void had gotten the chance to see her father, and also find out that Alice wasn''t in the Reiss compound when the people sent by the Emperor got there. Grey started a conversation with Void who didn''t have any problems with sneaking into the villa along with Sasha who had an invitation. Seven minutes later. Grey finally saw the group he was waiting for, heading towards the villa gates. The group consisted of four, three young ladies and one young man. The three ladies are sisters, two were born from the same parents, while the other was their cousin. He recalled the ladies were called Marie, Aldreda, and Elda, they were from the Earl family, while the young man accompanying them was Randel Lankin After getting to the gate, the group stopped and started looking around, seemingly searching for Grey. "I don''t think he''s here yet," Elda said while looking around. "We should wait a little longer, I believe he''ll come," Aldreda said, trying to make sure the group waited for Grey. Aldreda is the youngest amongst the group, she''s the younger sister of Elda. "Hehe," Elda laughed cheekily while giving Aldreda a playful glance, "You like him, don''t you?" Aldreda''s cheeks turned red as she quickly looked at the ground, not wanting to make eye contact with any of them. The group was still teasing Aldreda when Grey walked up to them. "Hello," He said out loud to gain their attention. He was already close to them when they were teasing Aldreda, so he overheard their conversation, but he didn''t plan on letting her know she heard them, hence he acted as if he was just arriving. Aldreda''s cheeks burned up when she heard Grey''s voice, and she became even more embarrassed, which prompted more laughter from her group. "Hello, Zeke. We were just talking about you," Elda said while spying Aldreda from the side of her eyes. "Oh really, what were you saying?" Grey said, feigning ignorance. "I¡­" Aldreda quickly hurried to close Elda''s mouth before she spilled everything. She knew her sister, she just might say everything to see how Grey would react to it. "Why don''t we go in? The occasion has already started," She said after stopping Elda from speaking. They showed the guards at the gate their invitation before the guards allowed the group inside. Grey shook his head as he headed into the villa. He didn''t know how to get past this situation, this was the first time he was facing something like this. ''*Aish* Being handsome is such a headache,'' He thought dejectedly. If other boys were to hear him, they would definitely beat him up. Reynolds wouldn''t mind getting Klaus to rally the people who would beat him up. After going through the door, Grey was greeted by a sight of a wide and spacious courtyard. There was a stone bridge, as well as a small man-made lake in the villa. The lake stretched across five hundred meters. A pavilion was just after the bridge with people already seated there. ''Where''s Sasha sitting?'' Grey asked Void as soon as he walked past the bridge. ''On the right part of the pavilion, the seats at the front.'' replied Void. When Grey got to the pavilion, he realized it was separated into two parts, one on the left, and one on the right. There was a small space in the middle, and he could see some silhouettes dancing to the music being played. Grey was just about to suggest to the group that they should head to the right part of the pavilion, he noticed that someone came up to them, and after looking at their invitation, directed them to the left side of the pavilion, while also asking for his and Randel''s name. The man introduced the Earl family which consisted of the three ladies, Randel Lankin, and Zeke Hoover. Grey almost facepalm when the man called his name, although he expected it when he asked for his name, he still didn''t really want him to call out his name. He wasn''t a fan of attracting attention. Not just that, but Sasha was here, and she knew this name since it was the name he told her. As soon as Sasha heard his name, she immediately looked in the direction of the group as they were walking towards their seat. After seeing the group, she instantly knew which of the two young men was Grey. This wasn''t the first time she was attending an occasion with Randel, so he knew what he looked like. "Wow, he''s handsome," She blurted out unconsciously. The two ladies who were sitting alongside her nodded with mouths wide open. They didn''t know this was the same freeloader they saw two days back, only Sasha knew his name. The group wasn''t the only ones who stared at Grey in awe, most of the young people there stared at him for extended periods. Even after he took his seat, some people still occasionally stole glances at him. Grey looked straight at Sasha before smiling slightly and giving a small nod as a form of greeting. They were seated two tables behind the first table on the left. Sasha responded with a nod of her own before looking away from him, staring at her front. The celebrant was about to arrive, so everyone focused their attention on the front of the pavilion, where a special seat was placed. Chapter 315 - Lenz Organization Everyone watched on as the silhouette of a man could be seen walking in the direction of the pavilion from the right. The figure walked softly and elegantly, his steady steps resonated across the quiet pavilion. Grey stared intently as the figure soon came into view, in front of him stood a man who looked to be in his fifties, broad-shouldered, and stood around six foot two. From his facial appearance, he looked only to be older than Klaus'' father by a few years or at most ten years. The only thing that truly showed his old age was his grey hair and beard. ''Is he really over eight hundred years old?'' He couldn''t help but ask himself. ''Be careful, he''s an Overlord Plane expert, above the mid-stages.'' Void warned Grey as soon as the man walked in. Even though he knew the man didn''t have anything against Grey and would most likely not even speak to him, he felt he should at least warn him. ''Oh, I didn''t think he would be in the late stages.'' Grey said before reassuring Void, ''Don''t worry, I''m not here to cause trouble. If anyone needs to be careful, then it''s you.'' ''Hmph! I''m not that stupid to cause a problem here,'' Void snorted coldly. ''Oh really? If I remember correctly, you stole the treasure of a dragon that I think is over five hundred years old without even thinking. I think when you see anything shiny that catches your eye, your brain turns off.'' Grey replied with a sneer. There''s no way he would believe Void would sit still if he sees something shiny, luckily he was here. And besides, if he couldn''t stop him, it''s not his problem since they weren''t together. "That''s old man Gerald, he''s the owner of this pavilion. He''s not affiliated with any of the big families here, rather, he''s the regional leader of the Lenz''s organization. Even the head of the big families shows him maximum respect." Aldreda explained to Grey as the old man took his seat. "You said regional leader, does that mean there are other regional leaders?" Grey asked, a little perplexed. "Yes, actually, the Lenz''s conglomerate has a long history, it''s even older than the Qilin empire. According to the history books, they started when the continent was still united, since they''re a merchant organization, they don''t get involved with the battles for power. They currently have branches in each of the empires." Elda chimed in on the conversation to tell Grey what she knew about the organization. Aldreda glared at her sister for stealing her opportunity to impress Grey with this information. Elda smiled before staring at Grey. She shook her head softly when she saw how his attention was currently on Gerald. "Wow! That old? They should have powerful figures since they can perfectly operate in each empire without being controlled by any." Grey exclaimed softly as he shifted his attention back to Gerald. Given the tension between the empires right now, Grey found it amazing that an organization could perfectly operate, moving things and personnel between them without being interrupted by either of the empires. Clink! Clink! Clink! "Welcome everyone, this old one is Gerald Lenz, I''m grateful to see so many of you coming here for my birthday celebration once again. It only felt like yesterday when I celebrated my eight hundredth birthday, but now, it''s already been ten years¡­" Gerald spoke slowly and cooly while appreciating his audience. He didn''t say much, after greeting his audience, he quickly started the birthday party off before taking a seat. ''Wow! Eight hundred and ten, now that''s old! Grey, what''s the lifespan of humans in the Overlord Plane?'' Void asked. ''Around one thousand to one thousand two hundred years,'' Grey replied after a while. The ceremony continued for about two hours, entertainment was going on from the people who were playing the instruments. Some moments ago, a few ladies approached Grey asking him for a dance, actually, they weren''t the first. This caused him to draw attention from most of the young men in the big families since even some of the ladies they liked were all looking at Grey with heated eyes. After one lady summoned the courage to ask him for a dance, it was almost like the others took it as a challenge upon themselves to make sure he danced with at least one of them. On the front table. This was the table Gerald Lenz was sitting at. Five people were seated at this table, Gerald himself, and four others. One young lady who looked to be in her late twenties, an older looking lady who had the same features as the young lady, and two old men. "Who is that young man?'' Gerald couldn''t help but ask. Seeing the attention Grey was drawing to himself amused him, hence he felt curious about him. "His name''s Zeke Hoover, he came with the Earl family. I think he''s a friend of the youngsters." A young lady by his right replied. "Hoover, I don''t think I''ve heard of that family name before, do you know of it?" Gerald asked while rubbing his beard. "No, I don''t think he''s from this city," The young lady shook her head. "Hmm, well, he''s going to have a hell of a time when ''that'' segment starts,'' The older lady said gently. "It should be about time now, I think," The young lady said before giving Grey a pitiful glance. Ten more minutes went by and a middle-aged man walked forward, he announced that it was time for presenting gifts to Gerald Lenz. ''Crap! I forgot about this,'' Grey''s face twitched a little. This was the first time he was attending a birthday ceremony of this caliber. He had followed Klaus to one of the ones he forced him to at Lunar City, but it was for a young man, and he didn''t stay long. He immediately started going through his spatial ring if he could find anything good to offer to Gerald as a birthday gift. After going through his storage ring, he decided against it. The only thing he had in abundance was elemental weapons, but those weren''t something someone of Gerald''s status would see any value in since he could get them at any time. Other than that, he had some extremely valuable treasure, like the liquid extracted from the blooming viper which had amazing healing capabilities, but bringing out any of such treasures would instantly put him in danger since he wasn''t from any of the big families here. Grey stayed in his seat while the Earl girls went over to offer their gifts, even Randel brought a gift. After drawing so much attention previously, most people stared at him, waiting for him to stand up, but to their surprise, he didn''t move an inch. Chapter 316 - Not Interested! "Heh! He''s just a poser, he didn''t even bring a gift for old man Gerald." A few of the young men started poking fun at Grey when they realized he didn''t bring a gift. He wasn''t the only one who didn''t bring a gift, but after drawing so much attention, he was the one who stood out the most. Sasha looked at Grey, amused by his current situation. However, she was left disappointed when she realized he wasn''t the least bit fazed by it. He was even eating what was left of his food, not bothering to look at the people speaking. ''A foodie?'' She thought to herself. This was the second time she was encountering Grey, and from what she has deduced, he was a lover of food. At the front table. "He doesn''t seem to be bothered by the hate he''s currently getting," Gerald chuckled softly while looking at Grey who was almost taking all the attention on his birthday. "He wouldn''t be so unconcerned soon," The older lady said. "Hehe," Gerald laughed but didn''t say any further. He knew Grey had nothing to worry about. He''s more curious how Grey planned on handling being public enemy number one. The Earl sisters came back along with Randel after giving their gifts. Grey sensed someone approaching him, he raised his head to see an elegant young man walking towards him with a smirk. He shook his head before looking away. ''I didn''t even do anything to them, yet they''re all hating me,'' He complained internally. He noticed he had been getting hate glares from some of the young men at the ceremony. Without being told, he could tell the young man walking in his direction is one of his haters. "What do you want?" Grey asked while still looking in the Earl sisters'' direction. The young man who stood behind Grey felt disrespected because Grey didn''t even bother to look at him when speaking. He swallowed his anger before asking, "How useless can you be to come to a birthday party without even bringing a gift for the celebrant?" The young man raised his voice to ensure he got the attention of everyone. His plan was to disgrace Grey in the presence of everyone, as well as make him look bad in front of old man Gerald and the girls. "Is this your birthday party?" Grey asked unperturbed by the unwanted attention the young man was bringing his way. "N¡­" The young man almost choked on his answer. But he summoned the courage to answer, "No," "Then why are you here clamoring for gifts?" Grey asked while taking a sip of the wine on the table, still not giving the young man a glance. "You¡­ you''re disgracing the Earl family with this attitude," The young man said pointing at Grey. "Are you from the Earl family?" Grey asked with a sneer. The young man was currently at a loss for words hearing Grey''s question. The answer to this question was also no, if he says no then Grey would just say it was none of his business. All his plans were ruined by a simple question from Grey. Now everyone was looking at him as if he was a fool. It would have been okay if he was able to disgrace Grey, but having the outcome turned on him the moment he went there made things worse for him. "Go back to your seat, stop disgracing yourself," Grey continued when he saw that the young man couldn''t speak any further. The young man looked around with a long face, "How¡­ how can you come here with the Earl family and disgrace them?" Grey stopped answering him entirely and focused on his wine, savoring the taste with eyes closed. "He''s not from this city and knew nothing of the birthday celebration. We only invited him when we saw him a few days ago," Aldreda spoke up when she saw the young man planning on continuing his taunts which Grey clearly wasn''t bothered with. "How could you bring a stranger to¡­" "Are you really that desperate?" Grey interrupted the young man when he saw how far he was taking it. After asking the question. He glanced at the young man from the side of his eyes. The young man stood rooted when he saw Grey''s stare, it was like he was looking at a grim reaper waving at him. He gulped before unconsciously retreating to steps. Gerald and everyone else was watching the scene attentively. They didn''t miss the part where a single glance from Grey sent the young man retreating in fear. Gerald looked at Grey again before looking at the middle-aged man who was in charge of announcing the events in the ceremony. He nodded to give him the go-ahead to continue with the ceremony. The middle-aged man quickly stepped forward and coughed twice to draw the attention of the crowd, "It''s gotten to ''that'' part of the ceremony once again. This time, we made sure to make a bigger platform to ensure everyone can use their full abilities," Grey gave the girls an inquisitive look. Aldreda quickly explained what the middle-aged man meant by ''that part of the ceremony''. Apparently, old man Gerald enjoyed watching youngsters spar, so whenever he celebrates his birthday, he would always have this segment at the end of the celebration. The young man who was trying to disgrace Grey had long disappeared. While Aldreda was explaining to Grey, the crowd all stood up and moved to the western part of the villa. There was a space that spanned at least four hundred square meters. A two hundred meter platform was placed in the center. ''A jade platform, damn!'' Grey exclaimed inside when he saw the platform. Jade might not be the hardest type of stone, but it was extremely difficult to destroy. Only an Earth Elementalist in the Overlord Plane could easily make jade. Grey was already very close to being able to make jade. The crowd all took their seats around the platform, before the middle-aged man climbed onto the platform. "I presume most of you know the rules, but since some of you are new, I''ll go over it again¡­" The rules of the battles were simple, anyone who first stepped onto the platform could challenge anyone they wanted. During the battle, as soon as one party is unable to continue or admits defeat, the battle is stopped. Death was not allowed in the battle, and although there are mistakes since it''s a battle after all. If the judges find out that the act of killing the opponent was deliberate, then the other party would be punished according to the rules. "Interesting, this should be entertaining," Grey mumbled. He could already almost foresee the number of challenges he would get. It wasn''t hard to guess given the number of people who were currently looking at him with fiery eyes. The young man who previously walked up to him was staring at him with killing intent. ''If looks could kill, then you''d be dead by now,'' Void snickered at Grey''s misfortune. ''Being handsome is such a headache,'' Grey replied with a shrug. As soon as the middle-aged man announced for the battles to start, the young man who previously walked up to Grey was the first to get to the platform. Everyone naturally expected this, and most of the people wanted to see Grey''s strength hence they let this guy go first. "I challenge Zeke Hoover," The young man announced loudly. The crowd turned to Grey''s location, only to see him staring at the young man with an amused smile. "Not interested" Chapter 317 - Ill Be Back! "What?!" The young man exclaimed with eyes almost bulging out. "I''m not interested. What''s so hard about understanding that?" Grey said with a wave of his hand. He rested his back on his seat before raising his leg and putting it on the empty seat by his side. After he got into a comfortable position, he started picking his nose. His nonchalant attitude about the challenge sent the young man hysteria, he almost pulled his hair out from frustration. Just when he thought he was about to have his revenge, Grey rejected the challenge without a second thought. "You¡­ you¡­ you coward!" He stuttered while pointing at Grey. Grey removed his finger from his nose, after looking at it, he flicked it repeatedly before looking at the young man on the platform. "I''m not interested, go play with someone else." He repeated. The young man looked at Grey speechless. The crowd was just as surprised as he was, not expecting Grey to ignore the young man so blatantly. Sasha, the Earl sisters as well as Randel looked at him in shock. Of all the people here, they were the ones who could say they had come in contact with him, and he didn''t show such an attitude. Gerald chuckled seeing how Grey was handling the issue, "He''s doing better than I thought," "He''s literally doing nothing," The young lady who was previously accompanying him at the pavilion said. "Well, what did you expect him to do? You see, I also feel his choice of not fighting is the correct one." Gerald stated calmly. "Huh! Why do you say so?" The young lady asked, a little confused. "Do you think this will be the only battle he would fight if he agrees?" Gerald asked. The young lady looked at the young man standing on the platform, then at the crowd. She could see there were a few who were eager to see the young man fight against Grey. If Grey were to accept this battle, it meant he was paving the way for the others to challenge him as well. "He is such an interesting and calculative individual, only a few people his age can match that," Gerald praised. The group who were accompanying him all nodded in approval of his remark towards Grey. Grey on the other hand didn''t think of anything when he rejected the young man''s challenge, he just didn''t want to go through the hassle of fighting him. Even if he didn''t have any issues with the young man previously, he would''ve still rejected the challenge. "You''re not a man, how can a real man reject a challenge so easily?" The young man continued taunting, but this time, he was met with deaf ears. Grey didn''t even bother to spare him a glance anymore, rather, he changed his attention to the Earl sisters and started talking about something else. Elda felt a little awkward, but Aldreda immediately started speaking with him. One minute went by with Grey not responding to the young man who was standing on the platform. With nothing left to do, the young man left the platform with his head dropped low. For the second time in little over five minutes, Grey had disgraced him once again. The entire place fell into an awkward silence due to Grey not fighting. The next challenger stepped onto the platform a few seconds later after the young man left and challenged someone from one of the three big families. They were both in the Ninth stage of the Arcane Plane. After they fought for almost ten minutes, the young man from one of the big families won by a small margin. Their battle managed to quell the awkwardness that Grey''s refusal to battle caused. The next battle started immediately right after, with two people in the Early stages of the Origin Plane battling. Grey watched all the battles with little to no interest, he spoke with Aldreda almost during the entire time these battles were going on. Thirty minutes later. "I challenge Zeke Hoover!" A young lady announced as she stepped on the platform. Grey, who was in the middle of speaking with Aldreda totally forgot that was his name, so he continued speaking. "I challenge Zeke Hoover!" The young lady said again, this time, heading in Grey''s direction. "Huh!" Grey exclaimed slightly when he saw someone standing in front of him. He looked at the face of the young lady, she had flawless skin, fiery amber eyes, black hair that was tied in two ponytails. Looking at her, he felt she looked a little familiar, he just couldn''t figure out where he saw her. "Uhmm¡­ can I help you?" He asked while looking around. He felt a little strange when he realized everyone was staring at him. ''Why are they staring?'' He asked internally. "I challenge Zeke Hoover," The lady said while staring straight into his eyes. Grey thought after refusing the young man, no one else would challenge him, but to his surprise, he was challenged. The only thing he found good about it was that he wasn''t challenged by a man, at least this showed the lady truly wanted to battle him and not because of any grudges. "As much as I''d like to accept your challenge, I''ll have to decline." He refused her politely. "Fine, I challenge Aldreda Earl," The young lady shifted her gaze to Aldreda. She was in the Early stages of the Origin Plane, just like Aldreda, but she is two stages above her. Grey looked at her, before shifting his gaze to Aldreda. He had the intuition of not interfering, but he couldn''t bring himself to allow Aldreda to fight against the young lady. The young lady was clearly targeting her because he refused to fight against her. "I¡­" Aldreda tried speaking but was instantly cut short by the young lady. "What? You want to refuse like this spineless guy right here?" The young lady jested while pointing at Grey, looking at him in disgust. Grey shook his head wryly, if he were alone, he wouldn''t be bothered with being called spineless. But letting it affect Aldreda was something he couldn''t stand. "You know what, I accept your challenge. But I have to warn you, I don''t spar with people I don''t like, I fight." He said coldly. "What''s the difference?" The young lady asked mockingly. "It means one of us will most likely die" Grey slowly, with a cold smile on his face. He was naturally unafraid of anyone here, except for those in the Overlord Plane. There were only eight people in the Sixth stage of the Origin Plane, and three in the Seventh stage; these were all people he was confident he would be able to defeat easily one on one. The young lady didn''t back down when she heard, instead, she pushed on, "Just what I wanted," "If I may ask, do you have anything against me?" Grey asked. Given the level of everyone here, they didn''t have any problems overhearing Grey and the young lady''s conversation. Grey agreeing to fight came as a surprise to them, but they were taken aback when he said one of them would die. "She''s the sister of William," Aldreda said to Grey who was about to head to the platform. "William? Who''s William?" Grey asked with a questioning look. "The guy who challenged you," "Oh! No wonder I thought she looked so familiar." Grey nodded before adding, "I''ll be back." Chapter 318 - Twenty Seconds Grey stood on the platform, staring at the young lady who was standing before him. The young lady''s brother who previously challenged Grey suddenly stepped forward, "You coward! You couldn''t fight against me, but you agreed to fight against my sister who''s weaker¡­" "Oh, I was just about to call you over. Beating her wouldn''t satisfy my current d?s?r?, why don''t you join her?" Grey tilted his head to the side to look at the young man. "Hmph! Do you think you can defeat me?" William snorted before stepping into the platform. The middle-aged man who was in charge of the rules was about to step in, but Gerald stopped him. He wanted to see how Grey would be able to handle this issue. William was among the few people who were in the Seventh stage of the Origin Plane, added to his sister who''s in the Third stage, he didn''t think Grey''s chances of winning would be high. In fact, he believed Grey would most likely lose, miserably. William is from the Smith family, being someone who''s only twenty-five years old but already in the Seventh stage of the Origin Plane, it showed how hard he trained. Well, he couldn''t compare him with Grey who didn''t seem to be even twenty yet but was already in the Sixth stage of the Origin Plane. But he still felt Grey would lose if he fought against the siblings. "So much for being calculative," He muttered quietly. On the platform, Grey was facing off against both siblings. ''*Phew* This better be worth it,'' He thought internally. Fighting here is almost the same as revealing his identity, since the Emperor''s people were in Frost City, then they would obviously be here as well. While he was speaking with Aldreda previously, one of the topics they mostly spoke about was Gerald. His current plan is simple, find a way to get Gerald behind him. He didn''t know how long he would be staying in Frost City, and the longer he stays, the more dangerous it becomes. But if he could have ties with someone as powerful as Gerald, then he wouldn''t need to worry about anything else and focus fully on finding Alice. "Are you ready?" He asked the duo standing before him. His confidence stunned the crowd as well as the duo in front of him. Other than those in the Overlord Plane, the rest thought he was a First stage Origin Plane Elementalist, so they didn''t know where his confidence was coming from. "I really want to see if you can continue talking in this manner in a few seconds'' time," William snickered. To him, Grey was dead. He already planned to kill him after they left this villa, but since Grey had presented him the chance to put him through pain, then he didn''t mind taking it. Grey smirked before taking a step forward, as soon as his foot touched the ground, his cultivation stage increased by one. He took another step, and his cultivation stage increased by one again. After taking the fifth step, his stage had increased by five, putting him in the Sixth stage of the Origin Plane. "What?!" Sasha, the Earl sisters, Randel, and every other individual in the Origin Plane exclaimed in shock. Only a few who had been informed beforehand about Grey''s real cultivation stage didn''t feel surprised. "Is this where¡­" William who was about to speak stopped mid-way, his pupils dilated as his hairs stood on end. Without delay, he immediately retreated three steps back and stood on his sister''s left-hand side, raising his left hand before him, a lightning wall appeared before him. Bam! Bang! The sound of something making contact rang out, followed by an explosion. Grey used the wind element to stabilize himself mid-air before doing a flip and landing on his feet. "A Lightning Elementalist, he''s pretty fast," He muttered to himself. This was the first time his surprise attack failed, but he didn''t dwell in it. William was able to control himself, so just like Grey, he landed on his feet. His sister on the other hand was a little less fortunate, she had a slower reaction speed, so before she could comprehend what was going on, she was sent flying by the force of the explosion. She landed on her back, before bouncing a few times. Had the platform been only fifty meters long, then she might''ve bounced out of it. "So fast!" Everyone su?k?d in a cold breath of air. Just like William''s sister, people with lower stages couldn''t comprehend what just happened. All they saw was Grey taking a step, and the next thing was that he appeared some distance away accompanied by a loud explosion. Other than that, they also saw William''s sister crashing on the platform. Gerald squinted his eyes and started reaccessing Grey once again, from his single attack, he noticed him using two different elements. What caused the explosion was Grey covering his hand with his fire element when he saw the lightning wall blocking his path. Then he also used the wind element to stabilize himself so he could land properly after being sent flying by the aftereffect of the explosion. William reacted quickly just like the first time, but this time, his face was covered in horror. A large fire snake was currently making its way towards him very quickly, while multiple fire arrows shot towards his sister who was still trying to stand up from the ground. Boom! Bam! The lightning wall William made in front of him couldn''t block Grey''s fire snake, so it exploded once again. The impact sent him flying, his sister who was struck by the fire arrows shot straight out of the platform, slamming into the empty seats by the side. William crashed into the ground, and just as his body bounced up, Grey appeared before him and delivered a kick to his midsection that sent him flying in his sister''s direction. Bang! William slammed onto the empty seats as well, just two meters away from his sister. Twenty seconds, all it took was twenty seconds and Grey completely dominated the siblings. One has to recall that although William''s sister was weak, William himself was by no means weak, not even those in the Seventh stage could beat him this easily. "He won the battle with the first strike, unbelievable," Gerald said, shocked. This wasn''t the outcome he predicted, no one expected this to happen. Grey literally just manhandled the siblings, and they couldn''t even fight back. They weren''t even able to defend, much less fighting back. "What¡­ what just happened?" Aldreda asked with a stunned expression. But she was met with no reply, her sisters, as well as Randel, were looking at Grey in a dumbfounded state. They were not the only ones not speaking, the entire place was deathly quiet that one could even hear a pin drop. Grey looked at the location where both siblings landed, before shaking his head. Although he warned he would kill them, he didn''t actually kill them. "Anyone else?" He asked while looking at the crowd. His question was met by the same deathly silence. Everyone was staring at him, but no one could say a word. Chapter 319 - Ruthless! Grey stood at the platform for fifteen more seconds, with no one else stepping up for his challenge, he decided it was time to leave and allowed others to continue fighting. Before leaving, he glanced in Gerald''s direction. Seeing the stunned expression on his face, he smiled before walking out of the platform. As soon as he left the platform, he suddenly sensed a strong aura launching in his direction, but he made no efforts to dodge or even look in the direction of the aura. "Hmph! This is not the Smith family villa, know your position," Gerald snorted coldly before exploding out with his own terrifying aura. The figure that was launching towards Grey stopped a few meters away from him, cowering in fear, knowing fully well that the Lenz organization was not something their family could fight against. They stood zero chances against them. The figure turned out to be a middle-aged woman, who quickly apologized, "I''m sorry for my misconduct," When she was done apologizing, she looked at Grey, "Cherish the time you have left boy, it''s not going to last." "Heh!" Grey scoffed as a response before taking his seat. After taking his seat, "You should hurry while they''re still alive, it would be a shame if they died with you here." Gerald''s intervention currently shows his plan was going accordingly, if things fall through, this section of the ceremony would end soon. "Hmph!" The woman snorted coldly before flying in the direction of William and his sister, on getting there, her pupils dilated and she instantly turned to look at Grey who had a devilish smile on his face. The current condition of the duo was not very good, each of their elemental beads was cracked, and essence was slowly sipping through. Healing the crack on the beads is something that has been seen as almost impossible. With the crack on their elemental beads, their cultivation stage will slowly start receding, before finally taking them back to the Arcane Plane. In the history of the entire continent, there have been only two cases of people who have been able to mend their cracked elemental bead. According to what was written on the records, what they used to heal it was a rare natural treasure. Presently, this treasure hasn''t been found in over three thousand years. The duo found it by accident at that time, but as things stand, the Smith siblings have no way of mending it. "You bastard!" The woman couldn''t contain her anger and exploded out with a pressure she sent towards Grey''s position. "If I recall correctly, I remember saying I don''t spar with people, not killing them was the best I could do," Grey said casually. It was almost like the pressure the woman sent his way was nothing. This once again shocked all the Overlord Plane experts in the ceremony. ''Crap! I''m going all in, if this guy doesn''t reach out to me, I''m doomed.'' He thought worriedly inside, but he still kept his calm and collected outward expressions. He couldn''t afford to show any signs of fear in this state. Since they were previously in the Origin Plane, they might get lucky to get a bonus fifty years, but that''s it. A normal human can live within eighty to one hundred years, those who are extremely healthy could live as much as one hundred and fifty. Well, this is for those few who fail to awaken their elements. As soon as one awakens their elements, their body becomes naturally healthier, this means even without cultivating, they can get to one hundred and fifty years. The lifespan of a Collection Plane Elementalist is two hundred years, once the Elementalists breakthrough to the Fusion Plane, it increases by one hundred years more, another breakthrough in Plane bumps it to four hundred years. But as soon as the Elementalist gets to the Origin Plane, it increases by three hundred years, raising it to seven hundred years in total. Getting to the Overlord Plane almost doubles that figure, only going short by two hundred years. Grey watched on as the lady took the siblings out of the villa, he couldn''t say he regretted what he did. One of the reasons he was this ruthless was because he knew William would definitely attack him when he leaves this place, the second reason was that the Smith and Reiss family weren''t on good terms. He might not be part of the Reiss family, but since Alice was there, that was enough. Just like Grey predicted, the ceremony came to an abrupt end thirty minutes after the Smith family left. "You shouldn''t have done that," Elda said as the group walked towards the exit of the villa. Grey noticed there was a change in her tone, it wasn''t as friendly as it used to be. He also noticed she stopped Aldreda from speaking to him on multiple occasions since he came back from the platform. "Don''t worry, I know what I''m doing. Also, I totally understand the change in your attitude," He said, not trying to explain himself. While the group was still walking, Sasha walked up to them, "Zeke Hoover, the last time I saw you, you were munching away in my Inn. Now, here you are, making an enemy of the Smith family," "I think it should be the other way around," Grey replied with a chuckle. "For someone who hid his appearance, you seem very confident," Sasha said while wearing a curious expression. "For someone who sent people after me, you seem very carefree," Grey replied with a slight smile. Sasha was about to reply when the middle-aged man who was in charge of the ceremony approached them. "Zeke Hoover, master Gerald would like to see you," The middle-aged man said as soon as he got there. "Guess this is where I bid you farewell. We shall meet again, Zeke Hoover," Sasha turned and walked back to her group before exiting the villa. "You can leave, I''ll be fine. I hope we meet again," Grey said to the Earl sisters before turning to the man. Aldreda wanted to speak, but Elda held her hand before shaking her head. With that, the Earl sisters left the villa. "Shall we," Chapter 320 - Threat To All Grey was led by the middle-aged man into the main building in the villa. It had a very simple but exquisite decoration, but he didn''t have time to appreciate it, his mind was currently filled with what to say to Gerald. He needed his help, but he knew this was no way Gerald was just going to help him. ''How can I convince him?'' He thought as the middle-aged man stopped in front of a golden double door. Knock! Knock! The middle-aged man knocked twice before opening the door for Grey to head in. Grey exhaled before stepping through the door. On walking into the room, he was surprised to see three people there instead of one. He recalled seeing the other two faces at the ceremony, they sat close to Gerald during the entire ceremony. It was both ladies who were with him at the ceremony. Gerald was seated on the chair behind the desk, the older lady was seated opposite him, while the younger one was seated on the couch in the office. "Welcome, Zeke Hoover, or should I say Grey Dawson," Gerald said after Grey stepped into the room. Grey was taken aback but he didn''t show any change in his expression, "You seem to be very well informed," "For someone my age, I make sure to investigate the background of everyone who seeks my attention," Gerald said while pointing at the couch in the office. Grey took his seat while giving the young lady a quick glance, "Since you know who I am, no need to beat around the bush, I need your help," "With what?" Gerald asked curiously. "The Emperor is searching for me, and seeing how desperate he is, I don''t think it will turn out to be anything good for me. If he were only searching for me, then I wouldn''t be too bothered, but apparently, he''s searching for my friends as well." "I was able to get to one of my friends before his people got to him. Since you''ve done your research, then you should know why I''m here in Frost City," Grey explained. "You''re searching for the little lass from the Reiss family, I presume?" asked Gerald. Grey nodded with a serious expression. "Hmm, why do you think I will help you?" Gerald looked at Grey curiously, waiting for a reasonable reply. "Well, to be honest, I''m not a hundred percent sure you will. This is me taking a risk for my friend. It''s either I take the risk of coming to you, or sneaking into the Reiss family compound." Grey said. "From my point of view, sneaking into the Reiss family compound seems to be a better option than coming here, at least you could be protected by the fact that you''re friends with the little lass. But here, you have nothing to hide behind," "Two reasons, firstly, an opportunity to create ties with such a big organization, secondly, mutual benefits," explained Grey. "Huh?" The young lady by the side looked at Grey with a questioning look. "What can I benefit from you?" He asked Grey. "If my presumption is correct, the reason the Emperor is searching for me and my friends is because he sees us as a threat. I can''t say I''m one hundred percent sure, but I''m at least forty percent sure. For someone the Emperor sees as a threat, I don''t think I need to explain any further, do I?" Grey asked calmly. While he was speaking with the Earl sisters, he found out from Aldreda that the reason the Lenz organization was so powerful and feared was because of the ties they had with some terrifying individuals. The organization creates ties with people they see have the potential to be great, and in turn, gets them to be on their side. "And if your presumption isn''t correct?" Gerald answered with a question of his own. "It doesn''t change anything, I don''t need your help with going against the Emperor, I only need to find my friend and make sure she''s alright. This is a deal where you have nothing to lose, and I''ll owe you a favor. Well, that''s on the premise we aren''t friends," Grey replied with a smile. "You do have the potential to be great, but do you think the Emperor will allow you to grow? From what I know, the Qilin empire isn''t the only one searching for you," Gerald said. "What?" For the first time, there was a visible change in Grey''s expression. "All four empires are searching for you, some of them have even come to us for information regarding you. So, why do you feel I wouldn''t hand you over to them right now?" Gerald asked while pressuring Grey with his full Late-stage Overlord Plane cultivation. Grey looked at him, lost for words. He didn''t know what to say, because this had gone beyond his expectations. ''Why are the other empires searching for me? Could it be that they also found out about the Great Earth Essence Liquid?'' He asked himself in shock. "I ?ssume you know why they''re searching for you?" Gerald asked Grey. Grey shook his head, he could guess it was because of the Great Earth Essence Liquid, but he wanted to see if Gerald knew why. "You found something that will make you a threat not just to the Qilin empire, but all four empires. But it seems only the Qilin empire is searching for your friends, the others are only looking for you." Gerald explained while taking a sip of the tea on his table. Grey sat still, looking at Gerald. This discovery was out of his expectations, never would he have thought that the other empires would be searching for him. ''But how? Other than the Darkness Elementalist, no one else knew of me taking the Great Earth Essence Liquid,'' He thought worriedly. He didn''t think the group from the Blue Wind empire who ?ssisted Quinn and his group knew the Great Earth Essence Liquid was with him, the only time he said he had it was when he killed Quinn. "Could someone have heard me?" He muttered quietly to himself. "You still haven''t answered my question, why do you feel I wouldn''t hand you over to them right now?" Gerald asked once again. Chapter 321 - Scared! "If you wanted to, I won''t be sitting here," Grey replied. He felt fearful when he heard all four empires were looking for him, but he could tell Gerald didn''t plan on handing him over. "You''re calmer than I expected, but you''re not wrong. If I wanted to hand you over, then I''d have done that after finding out about you," Gerald chuckled, impressed by Grey''s cool-headedness. Others would freak out if they found out that not one, but four empires sees them as a threat. "Is there a reason for that?" Grey asked curiously. Gerald''s decision of not handing him over showed him there was some hope in creating ties with him, he could also sense he didn''t have any malicious intentions towards him. "Do you really want to know?" Gerald asked with a straight expression. Grey nodded. ''If I don''t want to know, then why would I bother asking?'' He thought to himself but refrained from speaking it out. "I''m scared," Gerald shook his head with a wry smile. "Huh!" Grey and the two ladies in the room looked at Gerald in surprise. "This wasn''t the answer you expected, right?" Gerald asked before standing up from his chair, walking towards the window. "Let me tell you a story, fifty-five years ago¡­" He started speaking while looking out the window with both hands behind his back. On one of his journeys, he encountered a man at an old ruin. They clicked so they were together through most of the exploration. There were others there as well, and all of them were Overlord Plane Elementalists, all eighteen people there. The person with the lowest stage among them turned out to be the man, he was also the youngest. The man refused to hand the book over since he nearly died in a trap while trying to obtain the book. A scuffle broke out between the man and the other sixteen people. Gerald didn''t fight against him nor did he ?ssist him, rather, he walked to the side. According to him, that was the best choice to make. But when the fight started, he got the greatest scare of his life. The man who was in the Fourth stage of the Overlord Plane went toe-to-toe against sixteen people. Each of these sixteen people was at least a stage above, yet he went toe-to-toe with them. That was the first time Gerald saw a Light Elementalist. The man in his story was none other than Grey''s Teacher, Chris. Chris not only fought against them being in a lower stage, but he also defeated them, killing all of his opponents. Among the sixteen people, there was one in the Eighth stage of the Overlord Plane, but he didn''t stand a chance against the rampaging Chris. Gerald watched in terror as Chris killed every single one of his opponents. When he was done fighting, he looked in his direction, and he stumbled in fright when he saw his eyes. Chris approached him, and he immediately started explaining his reason for not helping out. To his surprise, Chris didn''t even bother with him and went to sit by the side to recover. After that exploration, he managed to create ties with Chris. Since then, he had been the one giving Chris most of the information he needed, especially for his explorations. "Now you see why I said I''m scared? If Chris were to find out I handed his precious student to the Emperor, I''d most likely be the first one he kills. I don''t think even the organization can stop him from killing me." Gerald said after telling them the story. "Dad, he might be strong, but I don''t believe he can go against the organization," The young lady who was sitting on the couch with Grey stood up and said. "Hehe, you do not know him, child. I''ve seen him almost wipe out one of the oldest families in the Qilin empire because of a piece of roasted rabbit. Apparently, one the heir of the family smacked the rabbit out of his hand into the water," Gerald shook in terror as he recalled the bloody scene. ''Damn! Thank God Teacher''s temper is better now.'' Grey said to himself with his back soaking in sweat when he recalled the day he stole Chris'' roasted rabbit. "He almost wiped out an entire family all because of a rabbit?" The young lady asked, not wanting to believe what her father was saying. "A very small piece, his temper is very unpredictable. The Emperor sent people after him, but he killed them as well. After killing a few high-ranked individuals in the empire, the Emperor decided to let the matter slide after he apologized." Gerald stroked his beard as he said. "Isn''t that a bit too excessive, also, how come I don''t know of this?" The young lady asked. "Simple, the Emperor kept it under wraps. Of course, Chris was punished, he also had to compensate the rest of the family," Gerald shook his head in pity. The status the family enjoyed was reduced all due to the arrogant nature of a young lady. Chris'' temper also had a role to play, but the family actually tried killing Chris after he killed the youth, hence his retaliation. "Although Chris has a fiery temper, I''ve never seen him actually start a fight. All the killings he had done were all due to retaliation." Gerald explained to the trio in the office. Grey who was hearing about his Teacher''s deeds almost left his mouth wide open because of shock. This was the first time he was hearing about his Teacher''s past, Chris never told him anything about himself, even after staying with him in the valley for most of the time. Chapter 322 - Two Requests "Does this mean you''ll help me?" Grey asked hopefully. When he first came here, he came with the confidence that things would go according to his plan. It was only after meeting up with Gerald did he know things weren''t as they seem. ''Looks like even till now I still need to depend on Teacher. It''s nice having such an amazing Teacher though,'' He thought to himself while awaiting Gerald''s response. "Yes and no," Gerald replied. Grey gave Gerald a questioning look when he heard his reply. The reply wasn''t as straightforward as he wanted. "Even though the Emperor doesn''t want to offend us, it doesn''t mean that I can actively go against him in his own empire. Doing that would incite rage among the other empires." "All I can promise you is this, I can help you with information, as well as protect you while you''re in Frost City, but that''s it," Gerald explained. "That''s already more than I expected, thank you," Grey was elated when he heard this and instantly showed his gratitude. At least with Gerald behind him, he could walk freely in Frost City. He didn''t really plan on staying in Frost City anyway, as soon as he finds Alice, he would immediately leave this place. Now his focus is handing the devices to his friends, once he''s done with that, then he would focus on increasing his strength as he searches for his parents. When the thought of his parents came into his mind, he suddenly had an idea. With the vast resources the Lenz organization has, they could help him with that. The fact that Gerald was able to quickly get information about him within the short space of half an hour showed this. Since he could do that, then he might be able to help him locate his parents while he''s still here in Frost City. "Sir Gerald, I have two requests. Firstly, given your status, you should be able to send for the family head of the Reiss family. According to what I''ve gathered, when the Emperor''s people came, he told them Alice was not in Frost City, with his help I should be able to find her quickly." Grey explained. "Oh, I see you''ve been busy. Such devotion towards a friend is quite admirable. I''ll send for him, he''ll come first thing in the morning." Gerald replied casually. Seeing that Gerald agreed so easily surprised Grey. He thought he might brood over the matter, but he agreed so quickly. "What''s your second request?" Gerald asked when he noticed Grey wasn''t saying anything. "I need your help with locating my parents," Grey said with a serious expression. "Hmm, I''m sorry kid, but that I can''t help with. Remember when I said I did thorough research on anyone who wants to see me, that included your parents as well." "You see, from what I''ve gathered, your parents only appeared in Red City some months before you were born. No one knows where they came from, it was like they appeared out of nowhere." "Some years after your birth, your father disappeared. Your mother disappeared after you joined the Lunar Academy, there are no records of them anywhere else. The only reason I agreed to see someone like you who had a mysterious background is because Chris is your Teacher." Gerald took his time to explain to Grey. ''Then where did they come from?'' He asked himself. He recalled he had a similar answer when he went to see Klaus'' father the last time as well. "Sorry if I''m asking too much, but can you tell me how you were able to gather so much within such a short time. The only you can get to know so much is if you communicated with someone in Red City, as well as Lunar City. Given the distance, it''s impossible, unless¡­" Grey''s eyes widened when he thought of a possibility. "A communication device," Grey and Gerald said at the same time. "Oh, you''ve heard about them as well?" Gerald asked curiously. This was something that was made not too long ago, they were able to acquire it due to their influence. The one they had was a better version when compared to the one the group from the Azure empire used when Grey and his friends visited Zivia City. "No, actually, I''ve been planning to make something like this. I just haven''t been able to figure out the necessary arrays." Grey shook his head as he explained. "Chris truly is your Teacher, the fact that you can think of this is quite fascinating. Here, you can take a look," Gerald fished out a plaque-like item before throwing it Grey''s way. Grey caught the item before curiously inspecting it. What happened next came as a surprise to Gerald and the two ladies. The previous impression the young lady had of him died totally when she saw him in this state. It was like she was looking at an obsessed student who wouldn''t stop learning until he found out the reason for something. Another ten minutes almost passed before Grey managed to come back to himself. He looked around, confused by the stares he was receiving from the trio. It was only after a few seconds did he recall what happened. "I''m sorry, it''s just I''ve been bothered with making this for a while now, so seeing this intrigued me." He explained as he scratched the back of his head awkwardly. "It''s okay. You''ll stay in the villa until you leave the city." Gerald replied with a smile. "Thank you," Grey bowed to Gerald to show his gratitude once again. This was more than he hoped for so he was pretty happy. "Take him to the room on the right-wing," Gerald said to the young lady before turning to Grey again, "You can study the item for the night," He could tell Grey wanted to ask him this. Grey was all smiles as he left the room. The only thing he didn''t get from this visit was the location of his parents, other than that, he pretty much gained a lot from this. Chapter 323 - I Take It Back "What do you have that is making four empires search for you?" The young lady asked as she was taking Grey to the room he was going to stay in. "I have no idea," Grey replied with a shrug. "Stop playing dumb, I could tell from your expression that you knew why," The young lady said a little aggressively. "I''m asking for your father''s help, not yours. Since your father didn''t ask, I see no reason why you''re asking," Grey replied coldly. "Hmph! Don''t think I''m scared of your Teacher. I don''t believe my father''s scared as well, he''s only helping because they are friends," The young lady said. Grey threw a glance at the young lady and decided against speaking any further. ''Heh! Friends my foot.'' He thought inside. He was smarter than that, so he obviously knew there was a catch to Gerald helping him. From the story Gerald told them, he could already figure out he was someone that wouldn''t do something that won''t benefit him, hence he didn''t help his Teacher when the group wanted to fight against him. Grey knew the only reason Gerald became friends with his Teacher was because of his insane strength. For someone who could kill people who are four stages ahead of him while also fighting against others, it was unimaginable what he could do when he reached the peak of this world. ''If not for the fact that I really needed his help, I''d be out of here by now.'' thought Grey. ''Void, come back. Can you spy on that guy in the Late stages of the Overlord Plane?'' He asked. Void, who was on his way back to the Reiss family compound, instantly halted. ''What about Alice?'' He asked. ''I already have a way to get to her. Apparently, old man Gerald decided to help. The thing is, I can''t really say I trust him.'' Grey explained, before telling him the story Gerald told them. ''It will be a little strenuous, but I can.'' replied Void. ''Okay, good. Remember how I said you were not allowed to steal the Emperor''s crown previously?'' Grey asked. ''Yeah,'' Void nodded. ''I take it back, once I comprehend the space element, we''ll sneak into the castle,'' said Grey. ''Haha, great! I''ve always wanted that!'' Void exclaimed happily. Grey had a smirk on his face as he followed behind the young lady. ''Since the Emperor wants to kill me, then I don''t mind playing with them and going into hiding. Well, that''s all on the premise that I comprehend the space element and breakthrough to the Overlord Plane.'' He thought. Although he currently hates the Emperor and his family, he wasn''t stupid to just charge towards them while he''s still in the Origin Plane. Doing that was no different from a death wish. But after comprehending the space element, and breaking through to the Overlord Plane, he was confident in being able to escape. Grey wasn''t bothered with her and immediately inspected the room before going in, he had to make sure there were no trapping arrays in it that might trap him after he stepped in. He only walked in after five minutes. While he was inspecting the room, he noticed the young lady didn''t actually leave but was standing by the side. Before he walked in, he turned to her before waving and walking inside. He shut the door the moment he walked in and immediately started studying the communication device. There wasn''t much time to study it, so he had to understand it tonight. Outside the room. After Grey walked into the room, the young lady who was hiding by the side walked out with a cold expression. "Hmph! I don''t see why dad decided to entertain such an arrogant person," She snorted coldly before walking away. She headed back to the office they were previously in to tell Gerald of how Grey didn''t trust them and inspected the room before going in. "Well, the truth is, neither does his Teacher," Gerald shrugged. "Then why are you helping them?" The young lady asked in confusion. "The thing is this, we both have things to benefit from each other. Like Grey said the first time, mutual benefit. I don''t need his trust, I only need his help when I want it." Gerald explained. "Understand this, child. The reason we are so powerful is not that we have the trust of people, but favors. Of course, most of them trust us, but the really powerful ones know we''re only using each other. As long as what I ask them to do doesn''t go against what they want, they will help." He continued. "I understand, father." The young lady replied with a lowered head. "Also, I''m really scared of his Teacher. If the Emperor demands me to do something, I can chase him away, but Chris, that''s another story. He is not someone I''d like to offend. The last time I saw him, he was already close to breaking through to the Sage Plane." "For someone who can beat people while in the Mid-stages of the Overlord Plane, it''s unimaginable what he could do after breaking through to the Sage Plane. He''ll be unstoppable," Gerald said, a little fearful. He couldn''t deny the fact that he was dead scared of Chris. Void had already made it back to the room before Gerald and his daughter started talking, so he heard everything. ''Wow, Grey''s Teacher is a bigshot!'' He exclaimed. He didn''t disturb Grey since he knew he was currently in his engrossed state, so speaking to him now would be a grave mistake. Void stayed with them for the rest of the night, while Grey focused on trying to understand the array on the communication device. Grey''s room. Pieces of papers could be seen across the table that was in the room, different array lines were drawn in all of them. Grey could be seen drawing some lines on a piece of paper in front of him. "There, luckily, I managed to draw them all out," Chapter 324 - Donald Reiss Knock! Knock! Grey heard a knock on his door, and quickly kept the papers in his storage ring. After keeping them, he walked towards the door and opened it. "Well, you''re early." He said with a smile. "The Reiss family head is here," The young lady said blandly before turning around. "How annoying," Grey muttered under his breath. "What?" The young lady turned around and asked. "Lead the way," Grey said before walking out of the room. The young lady snorted coldly before turning around. ''Void, how did things go?'' Grey inquired as he walked behind the young lady. ''Better than you think,'' replied Void. ''Oh really, tell me about it.'' Grey said. ''Looks like his fear for Teacher is genuine, at least that should guarantee my safety. Where''s he now?'' Grey asked. ''In an office, accompanied by Alice''s father.'' answered Void. ''How efficient, he was able to call him over this quickly.'' Grey thought to himself. A few minutes later, they got to the office after going through multiple hallways in the villa. Creak! The young lady opened the door to the office but didn''t go in. Grey entered the office and closed the door after entering, almost slamming it on the face of the young lady. After entering, he looked around the office, Gerald was sitting on his chair as usual, and a middle-aged man could be seen sitting opposite him. Both Gerald and the middle-aged man looked in his direction when they heard the door opening. "You must be Grey?" Alice''s father asked as Grey walked in. He had a serious expression, with a deep voice that sounded just like his expression, serious. His blue eyes were the only thing Grey found he had in common with Alice. "Yes," Grey nodded before walking closer. He could see Alice''s father was scrutinizing him as he stepped into the office. "Old man Gerald said you wanted to see me because of Alice?" Alice''s Father asked. "Yes sir. I believe your daughter might be in danger, so I came to check on her to see if she''s alright," Grey explained. "Alice is not in the city. She left for a journey some weeks ago." Alice''s father said gently. "Sir, can you please tell me where she went? I know I shouldn''t ask, but I need to make sure she''s okay." Grey said. Alice''s father raised a brow when Grey asked this, his expression told Grey he was getting visibly angry with his question. "Donald, cut him some slack. He came all the way to Frost City even though he knew the Emperor was searching for him, don''t you think you should at least show him a bit of trust?" Gerald interrupted when he noticed the situation was going differently. "No. From what I found out, he''s the one who acquired the treasure. Why is the Emperor searching for my daughter then?" Donald replied. "I don''t know, but if my guess is correct, the Emperor must have guessed I shared it with my friends. I only have three friends, and your daughter is one of them." Grey answered his question before Gerald could reply. "Hmph! What''s this treasure that would make even the Emperor make a move?" Donald snorted. "That''s something I can''t say," Grey shook his head. "Then why should I trust you with my daughter''s location? The thing is, I believe the Emperor would leave my daughter alone if I hand you over to him," Donald said while staring at Grey coldly. Grey''s expression changed when he heard this. He never expected Alice''s father would be this difficult to get to. "I''m not the enemy here, the Emperor is. Do you think the Emperor would let Alice go even if he gets me? He sees us as threats, threats to his supreme reign," Grey replied with a stubborn expression. Gerald shook his head when he saw this, he already knew of Donald''s stubbornness, especially when it has anything to do with Alice. From Donald''s point of view, telling Grey Alice''s location would endanger her since they were also searching for her. That means if the Emperor were to capture Grey, then he could get Alice''s location from him. "I''m not going to tell you where she is, you should give up and leave Frost City while you still can," Donald said calmly. "I''m not leaving this city until I find Alice, I don''t care if you''re her father or not," Grey said, looking straight at Donald. There wasn''t a bit of an atom of fear in his eyes, only stubbornness, and determination. He had made his stance clear. It''s either you tell me where Alice is, or I find out myself. Gerald looked at both parties before shaking his head, "Donald, stop playing with the boy''s emotions. You can already see all he wants to do is to make sure his friend''s safe." "Please, can we have some privacy? I want to ask him some questions." Donald looked at Gerald. "Fine, but make it quick. This is my office, after all," Gerald stood up and left the office. After Gerald left, Donald focused his attention on Grey. "What''s the name of the treasure?" He asked again. Grey looked at him but refrained from answering. "If you want to know where Alice is, then I advise you to tell me. I''ve asked her this question as well, but she refused." Donald continued. Two minutes later. Donald and Grey could be seen walking out of Gerald''s office. After going through the pros and cons, Grey decided to tell him the treasure. He didn''t tell him the number they acquired, and to his surprise, Donald didn''t ask. Donald had a look of incredulity on his face as he walked out, and Gerald guessed it must have something to do with the treasure. "He''ll be following me to my family compound," Donald said as they walked past Gerald. Gerald nodded without any reply. "Thank you for your help," Grey bowed to him when he walked close to him. "It''s nothing," Gerald waved it off. He watched on as Grey left the villa with Donald. Chapter 325 - New Ability! Frost City. Reiss family villa. A carriage could be seen entering the compound through the front gate. Donald and Grey were sitting inside the carriage. The atmosphere in the carriage was a little tense. On the way here, none of them had spoken a word. Back at Gerald''s office, Grey took the risk of telling Donald the name of the treasure since Donald said if he didn''t tell him, he wouldn''t tell him where Alice is. ''How are things there?'' Grey asked Void who was still watching over Gerald. ''Okay, his daughter seems to have a bad impression of you though. All she does is complain about you, should I... you know, take her out?'' Void asked. ''No need. If things work out well, then I''ll be out of here later today. I''ve already gotten some ideas on how to make the communication device, all I need to do is make it as I head over to Alice.'' Grey rejected the idea of Void killing Gerald''s daughter. He couldn''t say he liked her, but he didn''t really hate her to the extent of killing her. He naturally knew not everyone would like him, so he wasn''t bothered by her hate. A few minutes later, they got to the building. Grey and Donald highlighted the carriage. Coming out of the carriage, Grey was greeted by a familiar face. "Zeke Hoover, I didn''t think the next time we''d meet would be in my family compound." Sasha said with a smile. "Hello, are you sure you''re not stalking me?" Grey asked with a smirk. "It''s my family compound, I should be the one saying this," Sasha replied. "Well, given how you''re the one who always comes to me, I doubt that." Grey replied with a shrug. "Dad, what''s he even doing here?" Sasha turned to her father. "He''s the reason the Emperor is searching for Sasha," Donald pointed at Grey before walking into the building. "That''s an odd way to introduce someone," Grey complained quietly. "Huh! You''re Grey, Alice''s friend?" Sasha asked in surprise. Grey nodded before following behind Donald. "Wait, then why did you say your name was Zeke Hoover?" Sasha asked as she chased after them. Grey raised his shoulders as if saying ''I have no idea what you''re talking about''. "So you came here because of Alice, sorry to burst your bubble but she isn''t in the city," Sasha said with a smirk when she saw him not responding to her. "Why do you think I''m here?" Grey tilted his head to the side and asked. Donald took Grey to an office before taking a seat. Sasha followed them into the office as well. "Dad, you want to tell him where Alice is? You even refused to tell me." Sasha asked. "Since you''re here, I''ll tell you as well." Donald said while looking at Grey and Sasha. "Alice is in the building," He said in a low voice. Grey raised a brow in suspicion, while Sasha looked at her father in confusion. "But, but I saw her leave before the Emperor''s people came," Sasha stood up from the couch. "I got the intel that the Emperor would be sending people over, so I made a ruse so everyone would think she really left the city. Only I and your uncle know she''s in this building," Donald explained. The reason why Alice''s light dot was in the building suddenly dawned on Grey. "She''s hidden somewhere in the building, no wonder," He muttered to himself. "Yes, there''s an underground room in the building. This is known only by a few people, people I know would rather die than to say anything about this to just enemies." Donald looked at Grey and Sasha with a serious expression. "Can I see her?" Grey asked. "No. I only told you I''ll tell you where she is, I didn''t say I''d allow you to see her. The only reason I agreed to tell you was because you took the risk of telling me what I wanted to know." Donald refused. "If you wouldn''t let me see her, then why did you tell me she''s here?" questioned Grey. "Firstly, because I promised to tell you where she is. Secondly, where is it?" Donald looked in Grey''s direction with cold eyes. Grey looked at his cold eyes before smirking, "I don''t have it. I only acquired four, and I distributed it between myself and my friends." "I don''t think you understand the weight of your current situation. Now, let me rephrase myself, hand it over, or die," Donald placed his right hand on the table before he started tapping it repeatedly. The sudden change in Donald''s attitude stunned Sasha. She was just about to ask him to take them to Alice when he suddenly started threatening Grey. "Like I initially said, I don''t have it. Moreover, do you think I''d he stupid enough to take something like that with me wherever I''m going?" Grey replied with a calm expression. Donald squinted his eyes, before unleashing the pressure of his cultivation Plane in Grey''s direction. The close distance between them made Grey feel the pressure firsthand. It was completely different from the one the woman from the Smith family sent his way. But in the face of the chaos orb which he had absorbed, it was nothing. As soon as the pressure came his way, Grey noticed his elemental beads would revolve on their own, before sending out an aura that only he could sense. Once the pressure comes in contact with the aura, it fades instantly, and passes through him. It was like he was never there. He didn''t notice this when the woman from the Smith family did this to him, maybe it was because she was only in the First stage of the Overlord Plane. ''Hmm, an ability to negate pressure from those in higher Planes than me. This is new,'' He thought to himself with a smile. Donald looked at him with a weird expression, not expecting he would be smiling when he unleashed his pressure on him. ''It must be because of the treasure, nothing else can make someone in a lower Plane feel so calm against my pressure,'' He thought as greed flashed through his eyes. Chapter 326 - Donalds Greed "Dad, what are you doing?" Sasha yelled in terror. ; "Stay out of this, Sasha. What he has can take our family to the top of the empire, no, the world." Donald replied before standing up. ; "He''s Alice''s friend. And he said he gave it to her as well, wouldn''t that mean that Alice can help us?" Sasha tried to stop her father from doing what he wanted to do. ; "Sasha, what if he''s lying? Then what? This is a once in a lifetime opportunity, we can not let it go," Donald explained. ; "He''s friends with Alice, you can''t just make him an enemy when you can turn him into a friend," Sasha stood in front of Grey who was still sitting down. ; ''Oh, drama, how entertaining. To think the child is more pragmatic than the parent.'' Grey thought to himself. ; He wasn''t the least bit bothered Donald would try to kill him. First of all, Donald needed the treasure, and only he knew where it was. Secondly, he already had a plan against this before coming. ; "Sasha, you don''t understand what''s happening. The family isn''t what it used to be. Why do you think we placed so much hope on Alice? If what he said is true, then Alice should already have the legendary violet elemental grade. What do you think would happen if she refines another one of the treasures?" Donald explained to Sasha. ; "Violet grade?" Sasha said in shock. ; "Yes, what he has can improve elemental grades. Why do you think Alice improved so much within such a short time? If she could improve it again, then wouldn''t she grow stronger faster?" Donald continued speaking. ; "A piece of advice, I don''t think Alice would like the fact that you''re threatening me," Grey suddenly spoke up. ; He was tired of hearing Donald''s justification. ; ''Greed will always have its way of manipulating people,'' He thought to himself. ; "I don''t care if she hates me, I''ll shoulder it all. But what I know is that she will not stand by and watch the family wither away." Donald continued speaking. ; "No, I''m not in support of this idea of yours," Sasha stood in front of Grey, in a bid to protect him. ; "No need to waste your time, he''s already corrupted by greed," Grey held Sasha''s shoulder before moving her to the side. ;After pushing her away, he added, "And besides, he wouldn''t dare to kill me," "It''s good you''re cooperating," Donald said. ; "Who said I''m cooperating? I''m only moving her away so I could look at you properly." Grey said, before adding, "I don''t have the treasure, and on behalf of Alice, I''m disappointed in you," ; Donald looked away when he heard Grey say he was disappointed in him on behalf of Alice. He knew Grey was right, doing this will most likely make Alice hate him forever, but this was a burden he was willing to bear for the family. ; If Alice could be the strongest, they will not only go to the top, but they would even rule the world. A chance for his family to rule was not something he would allow a little hatred deter him from. Had Alice not absorbed the first one, then he would''ve absorbed them himself. ; But since she had absorbed it, he felt it was more rational for her to use both. ; "Sasha, go outside and lock the door." He ordered. ; "Dad¡­" "Sasha, now!" Donald ordered more authoritatively this time. ; Sasha turned away from her father with disappointment in her eyes before heading out. She couldn''t even look at Grey because she felt ashamed of her father. ; Alice had told her of Grey and the others, so she was naturally looking forward to seeing one of Alice''s friends. Never would she have expected it would turn out this way. Her father was threatening Grey''s life for the benefit of her family. ; Bang! ; She slammed the door as she left, not bothering to lock it. ; "Where did you keep it?" Donald asked. ; "Like I said the first time, I don''t have any more. Also, from what you said, I believe you should be building bridges, not burning them." Grey said coldly. ; "I can not leave the future of my family in the hands of a stranger because he''s my daughter''s friend." Donald replied. ; He naturally understood what Grey meant by what he said. But to him, he trusted his family more than outsiders. If anything were to happen, before anyone else would lend a hand, his family would be the one to fight first. ; "I''ll forget you threatened my life on account of my friendship with Alice. I do not have any more, and your daughter should know how highly I value my relationships." "Would I take the risk of coming here if I didn''t value her life? Think about it." Grey said a little annoyed by Donald''s behavior. ; "This is the last time I''m asking, where is it?" Donald didn''t give in to his words. ; "There''s no more, you can ask your daughter if you think I''m lying." Grey replied with folded arms. ; "Hmph! Then you''re of no use," Donald snorted angrily before waving his hand. Grey was sent flying by the force that was generated from that simple movement. ; Bang! ; He slammed into the wall of the office, creating a crevice in it. He didn''t see Donald making use of any elements, yet just the force of his hands movement sent him flying. ; ''Is this the power of someone in the Overlord Plane?'' He asked himself. ; This was the first time he was being attacked by someone in the Overlord Plane, to think it would turn out to be his friend''s father. ; Donald looked at Grey a little surprised, he could tell Grey wasn''t hurt by what he just did. The force he generated from that simple motion could kill a Peak Arcane Plane Elementalist, and wound an Origin Plane Elementalists. ; "I really didn''t hope it would get to this," Chapter 327 - Did It For The Family "I really didn''t hope it would get to this," Grey said casually before turning towards the door, to the surprise of Donald. "Where do you think you''re going?" Donald asked with a long face. "My ride''s here, I''m heading back to old man''s Gerald''s villa," Grey replied before placing his hand on the doorknob. Donald was about to attack to stop him from leaving before his expression suddenly changed and you looked outside. Whoosh! Bang! "Sorry, I had to destroy the window. Master Gerald will cover for the cost of the destruction," A middle-aged man said after flying through the window into the office. The man stood between Grey and Donald as soon as he came in. When Donald saw the man, his face turned darker. "Diluc, what''s the meaning of this?" He asked coldly. "Nothing, I was sent to ensure his safety," Diluc shrugged before pointing at Grey. "This is the Reiss family compound, do you really think only you can stop me?" Donald asked coldly. "Of course not, I was only sent to show you how serious master Gerald is. For the safety of the boy, he doesn''t mind going against a dying family," Diluc said nonchalantly. Grey opened the door and walked out of the office to the dismay of Donald, he wanted to stop him, but he knew he couldn''t since Diluc was there. Diluc was regarded as one of the best geniuses Frost City had ever produced. He broke through to the Overlord Plane at the tender age of twenty-six, which was the youngest in the history of the entire city. He wasn''t from any of the big families, rather, he was groomed by the Lenz organization, old man Gerald personally groomed him. He could be said to be Gerald''s greatest asset, sending him was a message to Donald. If anything happened to Grey, then he should prepare for a war he definitely cannot win. Donald stared at the disappearing view of Grey, regret flashing through his eyes. He initially didn''t think the relationship between Grey and Gerald would be this close. From his years of contact with Gerald, he didn''t think he would take the risk of sheltering someone who the Emperor wanted to kill. ''For him to do this means the boy has someone terrifying behind him. Either that or the boy promised him something,'' He thought to himself. He just created an enemy out of greed, it was just as Grey said, this was time for building bridges, not burning them. But now he burned down a really important one. ''*Sigh* I hope Alice would understand, I only did it for the family,'' Donald sighed before sitting down on his chair. He seemed to have aged a bit just from the fear of who might be behind Grey, and how he would face his daughters again. Had his plan worked, he would''ve felt it was worth it, but now, he gained nothing from it. Outside Donald''s office. After Grey left, he saw Sasha running towards the office hurriedly, almost bumping into him. "You.. you''re okay?" Sasha asked in surprise when she saw Grey walking out. "Yeah, shouldn''t I be?" Grey looked at her strangely. "But¡­ but my dad," Sasha looked behind him, trying to catch a glimpse of the office before the door shut completely. "He let me go, I said it earlier, he wouldn''t dare kill me," Grey waved it off. "He just let you go?" Sasha asked again, surprise and confusion were very evident in her face. "Yup, after speaking to him for a while, he decided to let me go," Grey nodded with a smile. "That''s strange, my dad isn''t one who would easily change his decision," Sasha said in doubt. She knew her father all too well, changing his mind was something she had never seen occur before. Once he''s made up his mind to do something, especially one that he thinks is for the good of the family, he would never go against it, no matter what. "I''m a very capable talker, although it was a little difficult, I was able to convince him in the end," Grey beat his chest in confidence. "That¡­ that has never happened before," Sasha still had some doubts about Grey''s claim. She was finding it very difficult to believe. "What if what I offered would greatly benefit him and your family, do you think he wouldn''t change his mind?" Grey said with a curious smile. "Well, if it would benefit the family, he would change his mind," Sasha nodded thoughtfully. If it was just as Grey said, then her father would change his mind. "I''m sorry for how he treated you earlier," She said after a while with her head hung low. "Even if you managed to convince my father, he wouldn''t apologize for what he did," She added. Grey looked at Sasha before shaking his head wryly, if only Sasha knew he was lying. He could tell she was greatly disappointed in her father, this was why he said this. This was Alice''s family after all, he didn''t want to be the cause of a conflict between them. "Don''t let Alice know of what happened today, okay, given her fiery temper, I don''t know what she would do," He said with a wry smile. "If she were strong enough, she would attack our father," Sasha said with certainty to Grey''s surprise. "What?!" Grey exclaimed, he didn''t think Alice would do that but seeing how certain Sasha looked, he felt she might be right. "Has she attacked him before?" He couldn''t help but ask before he continued walking. The only reason he stood close to Donald''s office while speaking with Sasha a few moments ago was to let him know he didn''t really want anything bad for the family. He would get revenge later in the future, well, that all depends on how things pan out. If Donald continued being the dickhead he currently was, then he wouldn''t mind teaching him a thing or few when he had grown stronger than him. But if he changed, maybe, just maybe he might let him go. Donald''s office. Donald and Diluc heard Grey and Sasha''s conversation. Donald''s hand was currently shaking from disappointment, he looked at his shaking hands in surprise. "Thank you," He muttered quietly. "To think you attacked him earlier," Diluc said before heading towards the window, "Goodbye, I''ll send people over to fix the door." Chapter 328 - Fight! "Wait, why did she attack him again?" Grey asked stunned as he exited the building with Sasha. "Because he refused to tell her a story," Sasha replied with a chuckle. "If I remember correctly, you said she was only five at the time, right?" Grey asked in shock. Sasha laughed out when she saw the expression on Grey''s face, before nodding. ''Looks like she has been this way since she was young,'' Grey thought as he shook his head on hearing about Alice''s antics while she was younger. They soon walked to the villa gate. "Well, I''ll have to go now before your dad snaps again. It was nice speaking to you, also, no need to ask, he didn''t agree to let me see Alice," Grey said when he saw the questioning look on Sasha''s face. He waltzed out of the villa, stepping into the carriage Gerald sent to get him outside the Reiss family compound. "How did you know he would attack you?" Gerald asked as soon as Grey stepped into the carriage. "Simple, I''ve been doing my research on the Reiss family since I came here, and acquainting myself with the Earl sisters helped a lot," Grey replied. Before leaving Gerald''s office, he notified Gerald to get another device he could use to contact him. That way, if things went south, he could quickly contact him. He found out from Void that Gerald was truly scared of his Teacher, so he knew he could count on him if his life were in danger. Seeing how quickly he reacted, he couldn''t help but feel impressed. Fear truly is a powerful tool. "Did you get what you wanted?" asked Gerald. Grey nodded but didn''t speak any further. He couldn''t take the risk of telling Gerald. He might trust him with his life because of his Teacher, but not with Alice''s. "Good, how long will you be staying in the city?" Gerald asked. "I need to stay a little longer, as soon as I''m done with my research, I''ll leave," replied Grey. "Okay, but I believe the Emperor will already be aware of your presence in the city. The mayor here is one of his lackeys," Gerald said. "I know, I have a plan that will solve that," Grey said before telling Gerald his plan. It wasn''t really his plan per se, rather, it was Donald''s plan. He would pretend to leave the city just like Alice, before sneaking back in. "That''s a brilliant idea," Gerald praised when he heard of his plan. "Yeah, I need to be carefree while I''m working, so that''s the best thing to do," Grey said. "Okay, we''ll go ahead with your plan, just inform me when you''re ready," Gerald said after a while. "I''ll leave as soon as we get back to the villa," Grey said. He wanted to stay behind for two reasons. Firstly, to make the communication device, the second reason made him feel more excited than the first reason, it was because he could feel he was very close to comprehending the space element. Even till now, a place for the space element hasn''t appeared in the chaos space, unlike the darkness element. He felt a little enthusiastic about the prospect of using the space element. Once he comprehends it, he would try to see if he could sneak into the Reiss villa, with Void as his teacher, he would be able to quickly grasp the element once he comprehends it. When they got to the villa, Grey left the carriage and headed straight to the hotel he previously stayed in. He wanted to retrieve his horse, before heading out. Twenty minutes later. Grey could be seen leaving Frost City riding on his horse. He soon disappeared into the horizon. One hour later. "Hmm, looks like they followed me all the way here," Grey, who was currently sitting under a tree, muttered quietly. "Come out, I know you''re here," He said. Five men walked out of the bushes. Looking at them, he recognized one of them because of the scar under his eyes. They were the group who followed him after he spoke with Sasha the first time. "Why are you following me?" Grey asked nonchalantly. "To kill you. Attack!" The man who was the youngest of the group said immediately, without even giving Grey time to prepare himself. Unfortunately for them, he had already prepared himself before he called out to them. Three symbols lit up in the sky before attacking the group. Grey attacked with his fire element as well while moving at a terrifying speed to escape the attacks the group sent his way. Boom! Bam! Bang! One of the men was hit by Grey''s attack, and was immediately sent flying. This has always been one of Grey''s specialties when fighting, taking out an opponent with the first strike. His explosive speed and strength is very hard to defend against, especially when his opponent knew nothing of him. When the others from the group looked at the man who was sent flying, they were shocked to see a hole in his chest. "Dead?" One of the men said in surprise. The man with the scar immediately turned to look at Grey, "You bastard, I''ll kill you," "What did you originally plan to do if not kill me?" Grey asked with a smirk before attacking once again. After he broke through, he felt even more confident against the group. Although he knew he couldn''t defeat them quickly, he was certain of being able to kill them all. With the high amount of elemental essence he has in store, he wasn''t scared of the group being able to defeat him in a battle of attrition. Added with the blue vest, he wasn''t scared of being hit by any of their attacks. Diluc followed behind him to ensure his safety, he initially wanted to attack the group, but Grey told him to stay put. Grey made sure to use only two elements, the ones Gerald saw him using in the birthday ceremony. The fight went on with Grey constantly being on the attack against the group. Chapter 329 - [Bonus ] Seal! Bang! A figure crashed into the ground to form a crater. "How¡­ how is he this powerful?" The man with a scar under his eyes asked with dilated pupils. He couldn''t believe a youth of Grey''s age would be this powerful. What was more shocking was that Grey was two stages below him, and he wasn''t the only one in the Eighth stage of the Origin Plane. Of the group of five, currently four, two were in the Eighth stage, while the other two were in the Sixth and Seventh stage respectively. The last man who Grey had already killed was in the Seventh stage as well. They had heard of Grey''s might when he battled against William at Gerald''s birthday ceremony, but seeing his strength firsthand was shocking, to say the least. "Escape, we have to escape and report this," The man with a scar quickly came to a decision. They were all people who usually walked the line between life and death. The job they did require this, so they naturally knew they would die one day or another. "Scatter!" The man with the scar said after raising an ice wall to block Grey''s fire arrows. Boom! The fire arrows quickly made short work of the ice wall, easily melting it. As soon as the wall was destroyed, the group who were on their feet quickly made a break for it, leaving the guy Grey''s strike hit not too long ago behind. "Heh! Like I''ll let you leave," Grey scoffed before spreading out both hands. Four symbols lit up in the air. The symbols were all positioned in four different locations, forming a large two hundred and fifty meters square in the sky. "Seal!" Grey spat out and lines shot from the symbols into the ground. The symbols were currently hanging at least two hundred meters in the sky, but it didn''t take up to a second before the lines touched the ground. After the four lines simultaneously touched the ground, they immediately started spreading towards the left and right. Before long, they completed a square, trapping Grey and his opponents before they were able to leave the area. Bam! Boom! Three attacks rang out from three different locations, but the results were the same. Not even a scratch could be seen on the barrier-like cube the light made. Grey casually walked to the center of the square, not too far from where the fourth man was lying on the ground, injured. "There''s no escape for any of you, this thing can withstand an all-out attack of a Peak Origin Plane Elementalist. I don''t think any of you can match that," His voice was gentle, but it managed to travel easily across the two hundred square meters. During the past months when Grey was in his Teacher''s valley trying to create the device, he was struck with an idea after working with so many arrays. When the idea struck him, he immediately implemented it. He would make a trapping array, which would be fueled by his inscriptions that were mid-air. Being proficient in arrays, and also learning more about it from his research, he was able to quickly make some progress on it. It took him all through the time he was in the valley, when he searched for Reynolds, and on his way to Frost City before he was able to successfully complete it. After successfully making it, he naturally instantly tried out its defense. It didn''t disappoint him as his all-out attack with the fire element was easily stopped by it. He attacked a few more times with it, but the seal held on and remained perfectly fine. The three men who were trying to break it turned to look at him in fear. They had already given up on the idea of beating him, but yet, he still didn''t want to let them escape. "What¡­ what do you want?" The injured man asked, stuttering. "To kill you all, obviously," Grey replied nonchalantly. He didn''t really care about these people, although he looked emotionless because of how quickly he decides to kill his enemies, he never regrets his decision. Friends are friends, and enemies are meant to be killed, if not, they will come back and hurt you. Grey stretched out his right hand, pointing his index finger at the man. Under the horrified gaze of the man, a small fire beam started forming at the front of his finger. Swoosh! The fire beam shot straight at the man, creating a small hole on his forehead. Thud! The man who was trying to stand up, collapsed on the ground, dead. The trio who were still trying to break the sealing array were forced to group together once again. "Let''s fight till the end, he wouldn''t be able to support this thing for too long. Added with the burden of fighting three of us together, he''ll wear out soon," One of the men said after the group came together once again. The other two nodded simultaneously, they felt his conjecture was right. Keeping something this powerful running would need a high amount of concentration and energy, and they don''t think anyone would be able to keep it for a long time. ''Hehe, if it were others, then they would be right. But for me, hehe,'' Grey chuckled inside. He could keep this thing up for at least ten minutes, that was more than enough time he needed to deal with these guys. If they decided to attack the seal, on the other hand, it wouldn''t be able to last three minutes. The danger of them attacking the seal however was that they would be open to his assault, so trying to break it didn''t seem plausible. Boom! The man with a scar was the first to attack, ice spikes sprung out of the ground where Grey was standing, trying to impale him. Grey immediately mobilized his wind element, maneuvering through the multiple ice spikes that were sprouting out of the ground by a hair''s breadth. While Grey was dodging the ice spikes, the other two men attacked as well. One was a Wind Elementalist, while the other was an Earth Elementalist. The Earth Elementalist followed the Water Elementalist''s lead and also attacked with earth spikes, while the Wind Elementalist sent wind blades towards Grey who was currently trying to dodge both the ice and earth spikes. ''Damn, these guys are tough.'' Chapter 330 - What Do You Think? Crash! Boom! Grey occasionally destroys the spikes he couldn''t dodge with his fire element. Swoosh! With a huge leap, he leapt out of the area where the Water and Earth Elementalist focused their attacks on, hoping to escape from their assault so he could start his. "Just what I''ve been waiting for," The Water Elementalist smirked when Grey went airborne. "Don''t let him back on the ground," He commanded the others. Grey might be powerful, but compared to these seasoned veterans, he still had a lot to learn in terms of battle experience. The Wind Elementalist was the first to attack Grey while he was mid-air. He sent out multiple wind blades his way, before sending out a small tornado behind them. The Water and Earth Elementalists attacked as well, the Earth Elementalist created what looked like a pillar that he swung in Grey''s direction, trying to smack him with it, while the Water Elementalist created a water blob under Grey which shot out small droplets of water at Grey. All three people attacked within the short time frame Grey leapt into the air, it didn''t even take up to a second after the man with the scar commanded before they attacked. "Shit!" Grey, who was still mid-air, immediately cursed out when he saw the pincer attack of the group. He stretched out his left hand, and like a missile, it shot out a powerful air current that shot Grey out of the position he was currently taking mid-air. The force took him at least fifty meters away from the group''s attack. Just when he was about to land, he noticed multiple earth and ice spikes sprouting out of the ground. Rip! One of them tore through his pants, before putting a gash on his left thigh. With no other choice, he had to immediately go airborne again. With the wind element, he could stay airborne for a short period of time. But he was more versatile on the ground. ''Damn it! I forgot it was out of energy! If that guy didn''t attack me, it would have still had some energy left,'' He complained inside. The reason he was able to take Alice''s father''s attack without so much as breaking a sweat was because of the blue vest. But the vest used up all the energy it had to block that attack. Although, the impact still sent him flying. When the battle first started, he completely forgot about Alice''s father attacking him. Luckily, he didn''t dare to take any attacks head on, or else he might''ve been seriously wounded. Seeing Grey getting injured before going mid-air again gave the group fighting against him hope. As soon as things keep going like this, they would be able to kill him. They immediately employed the same tactics like the first time, using a pincer attack once again. Just like the first time, Grey couldn''t afford to get stuck in that attack, so he had to use the wind element to change his direction once again. When he was about to set foot on the ground, the Earth and Water Elementalist repeated what they did the first time. The cycle continued for two more minutes, with Grey slowly getting more cuts from the spikes. One of them had even nearly pierced him on the chest. ''If only I didn''t have to hide my¡­ Crap! Why the hell am I even hiding my lightning element in the first place?'' Grey almost faceplamed when he recalled that Gerald already knew about him. The reason he was initially hiding his lightning element was because Diluc was watching him, so he didn''t want Gerald to be aware of his lightning element since he had used two during the ceremony. It was only after he was caught in this situation did he realize Gerald already knew everything about him. Once he adds the lightning element to his arsenal, his speed would immediately go a notch higher, this will not only take the group fighting against him unaware, but it would also give him the opportunity he greatly needs right now. After moving through the air, he slowly mobilized his lightning and wind elements simultaneously, while also constracting his leg muscles. As soon as his foot touched the ground. Bang! Whoosh! He stomped heavily on the ground, before exploding out with a speed that was far superior to the one he was previously using. Before the Earth and Water Elementalists could bring out the spikes, Grey was already no where to be seen. Bam! "Ah!" The sound of flesh hitting flesh rang out, followed by an agonizing scream. Grey soon appeared with a smirk on his face, and lightning dancing across his body. The Wind Elementalist was the one who screamed in pain, his arms were currently crossed in front of his body, and blood could be seen gushing out of a wound on it. "Tsk tsk, you''re faster than I thought, but I still wouldn''t change the end result," Grey tutted while shaking his head. After escaping from the attack range of the Water and Earth Elementalists, the first person he targeted was the Wind Elementalist, he originally wanted to punch him on the chest, but he reacted quickly and raised his hands to block the attack. Grey could tell the Wind Elementalist''s hands were currently broken, so he wasn''t really concerned about him anymore. "A Multi Elementalist," The Water Elementalist muttered bitterly. If Grey''s third element were to be any other element, then he would feel they still had a chance, but since it was the lightning element, he almost didn''t see any hopes for them. Grey was already fast when he had only the wind element, now adding the lightning element was no different from making him untouchable. Buzz! Buzz! Lightning danced around Grey, before he disappeared. Three minutes later. "Oh, the Smith family," Grey said while looking at the bleeding Water Elementalist, he was currently the only one left alive. "Yes, if we don''t return, they will send more people after you. You''ve already offended them by damaging the elemental beads of William and his sister," The Water Elementalist said. "If you let me go, I''ll tell them that we''ve killed you, but the others died in battle, what do you think?" He continued. "The Emperor is searching for me, and here I am perfectly healthy and walking freely, so, what do you think?" Grey''s lip curved upwards to form a playful smile. Thud! The Water Elementalist collapsed on the ground a few seconds later. "The Smith family won''t be able to find me, and I believe the next time we see after I get out of here, they wouldn''t dare to offend me," Grey said before burning the bodies of the men. Chapter 331 - Time To Work! "*Aish* That guy almost used my sealing array against me," Grey sighed before disabling the array. The forest he was previously resting in was already in ruins. "Damn it! Those morons killed my horse, do they know how much it cost me?!" He yelled in anger when he saw the bloodied horse. From how it looked, he guessed it must have been pierced through by multiple spikes when the Water and Earth Elementalists were attacking him previously. Whoosh! "You''re truly something," Diluc said as he appeared behind Grey. Grey shrugged before opening up a hole on the ground and gently pushing the horse into it with his wind element. "Such a shame you had to die because of me," He muttered after burying the horse. "When will we be heading back?" He turned his attention to Diluc. "I could sneak you back to the city now, but I think waiting till it gets dark isn''t a bad idea," Diluc replied. "Hmm," Grey nodded gently before heading towards one of the few trees that was still intact in the area. ''Since it''s not even noon yet, I have a lot of time before it gets dark. I''ll focus on comprehending the space element while I''m here.'' He thought. While he was leaving the city, he told Void to go and check out the Reiss family compound again. Since Alice''s father confirmed she was still in the compound, it meant she would be under the room Void tracked the light dot to. Void never saw the device anyway, they just assumed she left it since she wasn''t there. ''Hey, have you been able to find her?'' He asked Void who was currently in the Reiss villa. ''Not yet, but I should be getting to the secret passage soon, I think,'' Void replied. ''Okay, don''t make contact with her when you find her. After I come back to the city, I''ll write a letter to her explaining what happened.'' Grey ordered. ''Okay,'' After passing on what he wanted to Void, he immediately started cultivating. Diluc glanced at him, seeing that Grey immediately started cultivating as soon as he was free, he decided to let him be. Later that night. "It''s time, let''s go," Diluc walked up to Grey and said. Grey''s closed eyes snapped open, he stood up and held onto Diluc''s left hand. Whoosh! Diluc flew into the sky, with Grey in tow. After getting to a proper height, he shot straight for Frost City. ''So this is the speed of an Overlord Plane expert when they''re flying?'' Grey''l thought to himself. He could barely see anything since they were moving too fast. When Brown took him to Red City the last time, he thought it was fast, but the griffin is no match for Diluc''s current speed. A minute later, he was able to see the outline of Frost City from a distance, but to his surprise, the city became bigger within the quarter of a second. Frost City, Lenz villa. "I''m afraid you''re going to have to stay here, keep the communication device with you so you can contact me if you need anything," Gerald said after opening the door to a small room. After Grey got to the villa, Gerald quietly brought him to a secret room in the villa. Each family naturally has something to hide, so must would rather build these secret rooms. The only people who knew Grey was in the villa were Gerald and Diluc. To make it seem real, Grey told him to try and make sure only a few people knew of his presence in the city. "It''s okay, I don''t plan on going out anyway," Grey stepped into the small room. The room was barely ten meters wide, but it would do. "Okay, contact me when you need anything," Gerald replied before turning around and leaving Grey alone. After watching Gerald leave, Grey walked out of the room. He wouldn''t only be researching on the communication device, but he would also be trying to comprehend the space element. It would be dangerous if someone were to walk in accidentally when he comprehends the element and sees him using it. Therefore, he decided to made a detecting array on stairs that leads to the room. Once any one walks through it, then he would be instantly alerted about it. Creak, Slam! He closed the wooden door after he was done with the array. "Come on out, how did it go?" He looked at the empty bed on the room. Void suddenly appeared on the bed after hearing Grey''s question. ''I found her, and she''s alright.'' Void replied lazily. "Oh, that''s good. I''ll start writing a letter for you to take to her now," Grey brought out ink and brush, and immediately started writing a letter to Alice. He told her the reason why the Emperor was searching for them, as well as what happened during the time they left him in the Academy. Not only that, but he also told her about Reynolds, as well as his encounter with her father. Of course, he left out the part where her father threatened him, he also told her not to let him know he contacted her since he refused to take him to see her. "Since I''ve confirmed Alice is okay, I need to get to work on the communication device." "Hmm, now I''ll need to head back to where Reynolds is located so I can give him the device when I''ve made it." Grey thought out loud after Void left with the letter for Alice. "Guess it time to get to work, I need to make this as soon as possible. Luckily, I took enough wood from that guy," With that, Grey brought out all the papers he had previously drawn the arrays on. He initially didn''t think he would get to keep the device with him for this long. After preparing everything, he immediately started working on the arrays. Once he gets the catch of it, he would implement it on a wooden item. He planned to add the communication array to the same wooden disc he was using to locate the others. Chapter 332 - Communication Device, Acquired! Two days later. "Huh! Someone''s coming," Grey, who was sitting before multiple papers which had different array lines on them, looked in the direction of the door. With a wave of his hand, he kept all the papers in his storage ring. Knock! Knock! He soon heard knocking on the door. Creak¡­ The wooden door made a creaking sound as it was opened. "Master Gerald asked if you would like to see Donald?" Diluc asked after walking in. Grey initially wanted to complain about how he entered the room without waiting for his response, but he decided to let it go when he heard what he said. "Alice''s father, how did he know I was here?" Grey asked. He had been in contact with Alice during these past two days, and according to her, she didn''t tell her father, nor anyone of their contact. "He doesn''t, he only came to ask if we knew of your whereabouts. Master Gerald told me to come ask you if you''d like to see him. Now answer, yes or no," Diluc said. Grey thought about it for a bit before nodding, since Donald came looking for him, maybe it was because he had decided to let him see Alice. Although it wasn''t really all that important now, he didn''t mind seeing her. "Here," Diluc threw a brown robe to him. Grey didn''t ask any questions and wore the robe. They left the secret room, and headed for Gerald''s office. They encountered Gerald''s daughter, the young lady who didn''t like Grey, but since she didn''t see his face, she didn''t even bother them. After a few twists and turns, they got to the office. Diluc opened the door, and the duo stepped in. "I knew you''d decide to meet him," Gerald said after Grey stepped in. Donald turned around, only to see Grey removing the part of the robe that covered his face. "Huh! I thought he left?" He asked, a little taken aback. "No, I only pretended to. Like I said, I''m not leaving until I see her," Grey replied calmly. "It''s good that you''re here. First of all, I''d like to apologize for my actions the last time we saw each other, but my decision is the same, I will not allow you to see her." Donald said. "Then why are you searching for me?" Grey asked, confused. "I wanted to thank you for what you did when you spoke to Sasha after you left. I never thought you''d be that thoughtful for someone your age. Even after I offended you, you didn''t want Sasha to look at me in disappointment, just because of your friend." "That, and, for your thoughtfulness, I can allow you to write a letter to her, but that''s it." Donald said after a while. Grey almost snapped when he heard this. ''Write a letter your head! I''ve been writing to her for the past two days, why would I need you to help me write a letter to her?'' He complained inside. Donald noticed the change in his expression, but he pretended like he saw nothing. "I can not allow you to see her, doing that will only endanger her. I hope you understand," He said, trying to convince Grey. "Fine, fine. Here, I already wrote a letter, you can hand this to her," Grey fished out a letter from his robe before handing it over to him. "Thank you, I''ll be going now, I never saw you," Donald took the letter and left. "Hmph! Such strictness, he even told me he never saw me like we''re committing a huge crime," Grey snorted after Donald left. "Well, technically, you''re a criminal in the eyes of the Emperor and his people. Otherwise you wouldn''t be hiding here," Gerald chuckled. "I''m going back to cultivate," Grey said before turning back to the room. He didn''t expect Alice''s father would be this stubborn, even after he apologized to him, he still refused to allow him see Alice. This will change after he comprehends the space element though, so he wasn''t too bothered. After going back to his room, he focused mainly on the device. Whenever he was trapped in a difficult situation, he would start comprehending the space element to get his mind off arrays. It worked wonders as within two weeks, he was able to make a breakthrough in making the device. He managed to make one separately; now, all he had to do is to add it to the already existing arrays on the disc. This was what he found challenging since it would be difficult connecting them. "Should I just make one like this, and forget about connecting them?" He asked himself. This seemed to be the more rational decision since it would save time, but he wanted to make an improvement to the communication device. "This will do for now, I''ll improve it later. What''s important now is that we can speak to each other. But I don''t know the limit of the distance, I''ll have to ask old man Gerald," He muttered. Distance was going to be a very important factor of this device, if he doesn''t know the limit of it, then it would be a wasted effort. If he could find out the distance, then he could work on improving it. He already knew it could contact someone who''s in Red City, that was thousands of miles away from here. But he didn''t know exactly where Klaus currently was, so he couldn''t guess the distance. If the distance on the device turns out to be too short, then they would not be able to contact each other after he leaves Frost City. He quickly contacted Gerald, and to his surprise, he didn''t need to improve it since it could travel across two empires. That was a massive distance. "How did they do it, impressive," He couldn''t help but praise after finding out. With that, he started working on three others. He wants to finish it, before focusing his full attention on the space element. One week later, he was done with the devices. "Void, take this to Alice, let''s test it out," He handed one of the devices to Void. ''Okay,'' Chapter 333 - [Bonus ] One Month Buzz! The wooden device in Grey''s hand vibrated, drawing his attention. He looked at it, before sending his spiritual sense into the device. ''Grey, Grey, can you hear me?'' A voice rang out in Grey''s head as soon as he sent his spiritual sense inside. It was a voice he was all too familiar with. He shook his head with a smile before replying, ''Yes, I can hear you. You don''t have to call my name twice, you know,'' ''Ahh, it works! How wonderful! But seriously, how does this thing work anyway?'' Alice''s excited voice rang out in his head once again. ''It''s very simple actually, the arrays that are drawn in the device connect with the spiritual energy of the world¡­'' Grey explained. Once a person uses their spiritual sense to activate it, they could speak through it, and it would travel as some sort of vibration. It would manifest into the voice of the person, after reaching the other device. One could speak out loud on it, or with a thought. ''Wow, amazing! You really outdid yourself this time, Grey,'' Alice praised after Grey''s explanation. "Well, like I originally told you in my letters, others had already made it. I just copied their works. Although there are a few changes, it''s not that much different," Grey scratched his head awkwardly. Hearing Alice''s voice again felt wonderful, if only he could see her, and the others. ''Oh, okay. But you still did good, I''m praising you, so accept it,'' Alice yelled, almost making Grey drop the device from fright. "Fine, fine, tsk. You don''t have to be so aggressive about it," Grey complained. ''Hmm, now that you''ve made the device, I guess you''ll be leaving soon,'' Alice asked in a low voice. "Yeah, I need to take this to Reynolds, and then Klaus. But before leaving, I''ll come to see you," Grey answered. ''You know, I really miss you guys. Staying here is so boring, there''s no one to beat around here,'' Alice said. When Grey heard the first part of her statement, he felt sentimental thinking how they had to hide, but on hearing the other part of the statement, he almost didn''t want to go visit her after comprehending the space element. "Alice, you''re a lady, you shouldn''t be beating people up so much," Grey said with his mouth twitching. ''What?! Who says a lady shouldn''t beat people up?'' Alice yelled, making the device shake repeatedly. "I¡­ I¡­" ''Repeat that and I''ll break your legs!'' Alice threatened. Grey was scared shitless when he heard this, they hadn''t seen for so long that he completely forgot how she acts. ''Luckily we''re not together,'' He thought gratefully. They continued speaking for almost thirty minutes before Grey decided to stop their chat. From how enthusiastic Alice was, he could tell she must have been very bored in that place. "Don''t worry, all this will end soon. Then we will travel the continent freely," Grey said. ''I really hope so. Also, try to give Reynolds and Klaus theirs, it has been so long I spoke with them,'' Alice said in a low voice. "Yeah, but you do know you can talk to me any time, even if I''m busy, right?" Grey asked with a chuckle. ''Really?'' "Yeah, all you have to do is leave a message. Even if I don''t reply instantly, I''ll hear it and reply later," Grey smiled. ''Hmm, okay,'' "Okay, bye, I really need to get to work now," Grey waved, even though Alice wasn''t there. ''Bye-bye, I''ll talk to you whenever I''m bored,'' Grey smiled before keeping the device in his storage ring. "*Aish* I miss the old days," He sighed. Talking to Alice made him remember their time at the Academy, and the trial land. "Stupid Emperor, it''s not like I have any interest in challenging him, why the hell is he doing this to me? And according to old man Gerald, it''s not just him, but the other empires are also after me. Damn it! I''ll need to grow stronger faster, or else I''ll be killed by these stupid people," Grey clenched his fist, as determination flashed across his eyes. The quickest way for him to improve his strength is if he comprehends another element. Once he comprehends the space element, he would be left with one more known element, the light element. After comprehending the space element, his cultivation speed will receive a significant boost. Not just that, but his stage will also see an increase. Although he might not instantly breakthrough to the Seventh stage of the Origin Plane, he wouldn''t be far from it after he increases the elemental grade of the space element. Grey waited for Void to return and immediately started working with him on comprehending the space element. He wanted to use the same way he used with the darkness element. He would get Void to use the space element while studying it. Although he knew this wasn''t going to be easy since he had tried it multiple times over the months, he didn''t plan on giving up. Furthermore, he could sense that he wasn''t far from comprehending it. The feeling was almost like when he comprehended the darkness element, only, it wasn''t as intense as it was at that time. The day went by with Grey spending most of his attention on the space element. Unfortunately, he was unable to fully focus on it since Alice would reach out to him every two hours. The days started slowly going by as he tried to comprehend the space element. Whenever he was not working on the space element, he would either be talking to Alice, or he would be cultivating to improve his elemental essence. He didn''t neglect his daily physical training, only, there was only so much he could do trapped in such a small place. But he focused on his training. A month went by in this manner, and Alice had been in a more cheerful state since she could talk to Grey every day. Grey was able to convince her to give him some time, so they made a scheduled time they would talk every day. Chapter 334 - Sudden Enlightenment! ''It''s been a month already, are you confident in being able to comprehend it?'' Alice asked. "Of course, I don''t do things I''m not confident in," Grey replied with confidence. ''I know you''re still here because you want to see me,'' Alice said. After a while, she added, ''You know you can leave, right?'' "Yeah, I know," Grey replied with a wry smile. Comprehending the space element has proved harder than he expected. He had told Alice he would be able to come to see her when he comprehends the space element, but even though he could feel he was close to it, he hasn''t been able to yet. "Congratulations on breaking through to the Fourth stage!" Grey changed the topic. ''Yeah, but I''m still no way near you. You''re already in the Sixth stage, and that was over a month ago,'' Alice replied. "I have six elements with the lowest grade being purple grade, you shouldn''t compare my speed with yours," Grey encouraged her. ''Yeah, I''m glad I''ve been able to talk to you lately. If only the others were around,'' Alice replied sadly. "Yeah, Reynolds would be the first I''ll give this to, so you''ll be able to talk to him soon. Klaus seems to be moving further away from me, so it would take a while to get to him," Grey said. ''Hey, I''d like to see you, but I think it''s best for you to leave. I know you also want to go find your parents,'' Alice said softly. "Yeah, I''ll stay for two more weeks. If I''m unable to comprehend it, then I''ll head over to give Reynolds the device before heading over to give Klaus the other," Grey nodded. He wasn''t going to waste all his time on the space element. If he couldn''t comprehend it now, he would be able to comprehend it later, there was no use bothering himself over it. "I feel like I''m missing something, if I can get that, then I would be able to comprehend it," He added. ''Okay, good luck!'' Alice cheered him on. "Thank you, I''m also working on something else actually, and I might just be able to complete it within the next two weeks," Grey said with a proud smile. ''Oh, what''s that?'' Alice asked curiously. "It''s like a communication device, but unlike this current one, we will be able to see each other," Grey replied. ''How do you even think of all these? Is something like that even possible?'' Alice almost couldn''t believe what she was hearing. "Actually, it shouldn''t be too hard, I think. I''ve been doing some hypothesis for some time now, and I feel it''s quite plausible," Grey replied. ''You have a crazy mind, always coming up with weird ideas,'' Alice laughed as she replied. "I also planned on making some type of teleportation array, just like what we used in going into the trial land. I feel if I''m able to integrate the space element into an array, it should work," Grey continued telling her of his other plans. ''You really need to get out of that room, the longer you stay there, the crazier you''ll become,'' Alice chuckled. She knew what Grey said about the teleportation array was right, but she felt he had been thinking too much, which isn''t necessarily good. "Come on, think about it. Being able to move from one city to another in an instant, would be revolutionary. I think why no one has had this idea was because they didn''t understand how the array on the trial land works." "But after coming in contact with Void, and knowing of the space element, I know why," Grey explained. ''The array in the trial land?'' Alice asked thoughtfully. "Yeah, if my conjecture is right, the space element was integrated into it, making us travel through space to another place," Grey replied. ''Space element? I can''t really say much about it since I know little about arrays and the space element,'' Alice said. "Yeah, do you remember the feeling of being sucked into¡­" Grey suddenly paused. ''Grey, are you there?'' Alice asked when Grey suddenly went quiet. "Haha, that''s it! All I need to do is remember that feeling," Grey laughed out excitedly. ''Are you alright?'' Alice asked worriedly. "Yes, thank you!" Grey said happily. ''For what?'' asked a confused Alice. "For helping me find the missing piece," Grey replied. ''Uhmmm, you''re welcome,'' Alice replied with a little uncertainty. "I have to go now, I''ll talk to you later!" Grey said and tossed the device to the bed. ''Okay, good bye,'' Alice said, unfortunately, Grey wouldn''t be able to hear her, nor reply to her. Grey was currently grinning from ear to ear. ''All I need to do is remember that feeling, once I do it, it''ll all click.'' He thought excitedly. Who knew talking with someone would actually lead him to finding out what was missing. Although he was the one who spoke about it, if he never had this conversation with Alice, there was no way he would''ve been struck with this idea. He had been thinking about this for a while now, but he never thought about it this way. He quickly calmed his excited mind, now, he had to clear his head from all distractions so he could go back to the time when they were being pulled into the trial land. That was a feeling he had felt multiple times, all of them were in the trial land. If he could properly recall the feeling, then he would be able to comprehend it. He had been studying the space element for a while now, with Void''s help, but it was different from the darkness element where all he had to do was a couple experiments. He had tried it with the space element, but he had been unable to do it. After calming his mind, he tried to recall how he felt during all the times while he was being transported by the space element in the trial land. If he''s able to get the feeling, then he would be able to unlock the space element. ''This time, I''ll definitely get it!'' Chapter 335 - Risk! Two hours later. ''Just a little further, I can already feel it,'' Grey opened his eyes which were starting to turn red. When he initially got the idea, he thought it would make him easily comprehend the space element. But it was just like the first time, it wasn''t as easy as he expected. ''I can make it, I just need to dig deeper,'' He encouraged himself. Void who was beside him couldn''t help but stare at him when he saw his expression. Even when Grey didn''t sleep for two weeks, he didn''t look this haggard. ''Don''t force yourself,'' He said to him. ''I know, it''s just that, I can already feel it''s close to my fingertips, if I stretch just a little further, I''ll grab it. I''m usually the one who always says not to stress yourself too much over something, but when it''s this close, you have to push yourself further, no matter what,'' Grey replied with determination in his eyes. ''Also, I feel if I miss this chance, it might take longer before I comprehend it. That''s not something I want,'' He added before closing his eyes once more. He had tried to recall the feeling of being sucked by that mysterious force, but it still hasn''t been enough to trigger it. Now, he plans to go deeper, and he knows just the place to think about. When he was being chased by frogs and lizards after acquiring the multi-elemental blade, he entered a place where he traveled through space for a while. That was the perfect place for him to recall. If he''s able to recall the feeling of being in that place, then maybe he might just be able to grab onto the space element that seems to be on the verge of slipping away from his finger. Three more hours. "Damn it!" Bang! Grey punched the wall furiously, causing a huge hole to appear on it. "I can''t get it, I can''t get it. It''s been too long," He said while holding onto his head in annoyance. He could slowly sense the feeling of comprehending the space element moving away from him. ''No, no, I can''t allow this. I won''t allow it,'' He thought with blazing eyes. As he looked around for a solution to his dilemma, his eyes lit up as he saw Void. ''How big is the space tunnel you can create?'' He asked hurriedly. ''Not that big, at most three to four times my size,'' Void replied. ''But what of those shiny things you steal?'' Grey couldn''t help but ask. ''They''re long, not wide. If you notice, most of the items I take, not steal, are long,'' Void corrected him. ''Fine, open a space tunnel,'' Grey said through gritted teeth. ''What do you want to do?'' Void asked worriedly. ''There''s no way I can go through it since I''m more than four times wider than you, I just want to place my hand inside to feel how it''s like there,'' Grey replied. ''That''s a bit too dangerous, a lot of things could go wrong with it. First of all, if you''ve noticed, I don''t open space tunnels in a single position, I move from one location to another,'' ''The reason for this is because sometimes, there are things that might disrupt the stability of a space tunnel when it''s opened in a particular spot for too long. Secondly, I''m not adept enough to properly control it. After reaching Rank five, then I''ll have an even bigger control, by then, I wouldn''t have any problems with taking you along,'' Void explained. ''Don''t worry, I''ll make it quick,'' Grey said. ''Fine, I''ll hold it for as long as I can. Try not to leave your hand in there for too long, if the tunnel closes with part of your hand still inside, it''s gone,'' Void warned after agreeing. He could see how desperate Grey was for this, so he couldn''t say no. Their conversation didn''t take more than five seconds since communicating with their minds was faster than when speaking out. ''I can still sense the feeling, but just barely. If this works, then I''ll be able to get the space element,'' Grey thought while clenching his fists. "Open it," He said to Void. Void nodded before stretching out his small paw. A black hole opened, around twelve inches wide. Grey took in a deep breath before placing his left hand inside the hole. As soon as his hand touched the hole, it effortlessly slipped into it. ''Huh! This feeling, it''s almost like there''s nothing there,'' He thought. With his eyes closed, he tried to engross himself in the feeling he was getting from his left hand. He even moved all his spiritual sense into the hand to get the best feeling of it. After sending his spiritual sense towards his hands for a clearer understanding, he completely shut out the outside world. In this state, he had zero knowledge of what was going on in the outside world. Even communicating with Void would be difficult, but not impossible. But because he wanted to employ his full focus on the space element, he decided to shut him out as well. It would be annoying if he were close to it, and Void suddenly spoke to him, distracting him. Two minutes later. ''Grey, I can''t hold on much longer,'' Void said shakily. ''Grey,'' He called out again, only to be met by deaf ears. ''Crap! He had shut out everything, does he really think he would be able to comprehend it before I wear out? Damn it! He''s purposely putting me under pressure!'' Void complained before forcing himself to hold on much longer. He could frequently travel with it since the difficulty of going from one location to another was inferior to when keeping a single space tunnel active. If he could enforce it with arrays just like the one to the trial land, then he wouldn''t be bothered. Now, it was all up to luck, and how long Void could last. If he could last long enough before Grey comprehends the space element, then they win, if he couldn''t, then Grey would become a mindless person since his spiritual sense would be lost in the space tunnel along with his hand. Chapter 336 - Resolve! While Void was complaining, Grey was trying his best to comprehend the space element. He didn''t get much from just sending only his hand into the space tunnel, but adding his spiritual sense made up for it. But doing this increased the danger, and he is fully aware of it. If he doesn''t pull out his hand before the space tunnel collapses, then he would lose his mind, literally. Losing the part of the body where the spiritual sense lies would render one mindless. The spiritual sense of each Elementalist contains the consciousness of the Elementalist. If for example, an Elementalist places their spiritual sense in a space tunnel just like this one and the tunnel collapses, then there''s no way of sending it back to the body. Without the consciousness in the body, one''s mind would revert back to when they were just born, only this time, they wouldn''t grow mentally. Grey decided to take the risk because he knew rewards only come with risks. It was just his time in the trial land, without taking the risks he took, he wouldn''t be where he is right now. Going to the trial land was a risk on its own as well. The other reason he decided to do this was also due to the risk factor as well. Once he''s conscious of the fact that he might die if he doesn''t comprehend the space element quickly, he feels he might be able to get it. It has been proven that human potential is far more active when it comes to life and death scenarios. Although, he is well aware that not all scenarios end well. ''I can feel the space element slowly filling my mind, the longer I stay here, the clearer it becomes,'' Grey thought while lost in a daze. The only thing in his mind right now was the space element, it got to the extent that he even forgot the danger he was currently in as he embraced the feeling he was getting from the space element. While Grey was lost in comprehending the space element, Void on the other hand was having a difficult time hanging on. ''Shit! He better prepare something good for me after this or else we''re done!'' Void complained after two more minutes went by. If not for the fact that he knew Grey''s life would be in danger, he would''ve already stopped this by now. He was presently only hanging on with sheer willpower. Just when he thought things were bad, things turned worse when he looked at Grey. ''Fuck me!'' He yelled, staggering with frightened eyes. Around Grey, spatial distortions could be seen. This would''ve been good since it meant Grey was starting to have good contact with the space element. But in their current state, it wasn''t just bad, it was the worst possible thing that could happen. These spatial distortions would quickly disrupt the flow of space in the room, easily shattering the spatial tunnel Void currently has set up. If the tunnel were to collapse, Void might still be able to find the coordinates and retrieve Grey''s hand, thereby reuniting him with his spiritual sense which is in the hand. But if the spatial tunnel shatters, it would destroy everything in it. ''Shit! Shit! Shit! I might die as well if this continues any further,'' Void almost felt like crying. The spatial distortions around Grey were starting to grow bigger and covering a wider range. Void hastily set up another spatial tunnel to counter the distortions that were appearing close to the tunnel Grey''s hand was in. ''Damn it!'' He complained as he stared at Grey with gritted teeth. His vision was already starting to get blurry from over-exertion, but he was forcing himself to stay awake. If he fails to hold on, then Grey would most likely die. What is currently stopping the spatial distortions right now from destroying Grey''s body is because he currently has some connection with the space element. If it were to be someone else, then the person would already be dead. If Void falls asleep and the spatial tunnel closes, then the link between Grey and the space element would be broken. This will allow the distortions to destroy him. One more minute went by, and Void could barely see what was around him. His eyes were already drowsy, and standing was already starting to become difficult. ''I¡­ have to¡­ hang on¡­ just a¡­ longer,'' He pushed himself. His consciousness was already starting to fade, but he couldn''t give up on Grey. He didn''t dare to. As it stands, he had already pushed himself far beyond his limits. Right now, he could even say he was at his limit''s limit. He didn''t even know if that made sense, but that was how he was currently feeling. Void was not only trying to keep himself awake, but he also has to focus on stopping the distortions that were headed towards the spatial tunnel, as well as the ones heading his way. Void could barely hang on, while Grey was getting a better feeling of the space element as his consciousness stayed in the tunnel a little longer. He could feel the space element was in his grasp, all he had to do is pull and it would be his. But the space element was being more stubborn than he expected. ''I will comprehend you this time, no matter what!'' Grey thought while pushing his spiritual sense further into the spatial tunnel, away from the protection of his hand. When the spiritual sense left his hand, it was immediately hit by a wave of unknown energy, almost destroying it. ''Haha, yes, yes, a little more,'' He laughed as he pushed it deeper into the tunnel. The energy wave struck his spiritual sense once again, harder, pushing it further back. After being hit again by the energy wave, Grey''s starting bleeding from his mouth and nose on his physical body. His spiritual sense was getting damaged from the attacks from the energy wave, but he refused to give up. ''I will move further, no matter what it takes!'' ''I will hold on longer, even if it kills me!'' Grey and Void said at the same time. Chapter 337 - Just A Little Further Inside the spatial tunnel. Grey''s spiritual sense has been hit over and over again, but he keeps on pushing further. It was already starting to grow faint. ''Just a little more, a little further,'' He kept telling himself the same thing after being assaulted by the energy wave. One time, two times, three times, it went on and on, he couldn''t even keep count. His physical body was already starting to bleed from his eyes and ears as well. Void was shaking violently, the spatial distortions around them were not just increasing, but they were also growing stronger. Void was already on his last legs, keeping the spatial tunnel for this long was already starting to have an effect on his core, a bad one. But he couldn''t bring himself to stop it. It has been only five minutes, but Void felt like it has been years. These five minutes currently felt longer than the almost one year he had been living. ''I can''t go on anymore,'' He thought shakingly. His thoughts were currently a mess, he couldn''t even see what was going on around him. His senses were the only thing telling him about what was happening, and that too was starting to fade. ''Please, stop,'' He called out to Grey unconsciously. He was literally on the verge of losing it, but Grey''s consciousness was still inside the spatial tunnel. A minute more went by, and his senses started losing the last bit of what was left. ''I''m sorry, even if I want to hold on, I can''t,'' Void said to Grey weakly, his voice growing fainter towards the end of his statement. Thud! Void collapsed on the ground. As soon as he collapsed, the spatial tunnel Grey''s hand was inside started flickering. This was the last Void could do, even before going out, he still instilled his will on the spatial tunnel to last a little longer. In the spatial tunnel. Grey''s spiritual sense was only left with a small faint flickering light, it was so small that it was barely visible. ''Further, I need to go further,'' This was the only statement his mind was resonating to himself. The spatial tunnel suddenly shook, after shaking, the energy wave which was heading towards Grey''s faint, flickering spiritual sense multiplied in strength by at least five times. As it was charging at Grey''s spiritual sense, the spatial tunnel was shaking violently. Boom! The energy wave hit Grey''s spiritual energy fiercely, but this time, the small faint spiritual sense wasn''t pushed back, instead, it continued advancing. Rumble! The spatial tunnel continued shaking, but the spiritual sense kept moving forward. Ahead of the spiritual sense, a light could be seen. ''I¡­ just need to go further, just a little bit more,'' Grey repeated as he continued moving forward. His spiritual sense continued moving closer to the light, but the tremors in the spatial tunnel increased. Spatial distortions could be seen on some parts of the tunnel. ''No, no, I just need a little more,'' Grey complained when he noticed the spatial tunnel was slowly starting to fall apart. If he turned around now, there''s at least a seventy percent chance that he would be able to get back to his hand and then exit the place since he would be able to move faster when going back. ''No, not after all I''ve done, and¡­ and¡­ Void, how''s he doing?'' He was barely conscious, but he could tell the only reason the spatial tunnel was falling apart was that Void must have most likely lost consciousness. With the addition of the spatial distortions, the energy wave''s power increased once again, by two folds. ''Ah! I refuse to let our hard work go in vain,'' Grey yelled and continued pushing forward. What he was currently doing was like a child going against the current of a huge waterfall. The current was pushing him, but he refused to back down. The spatial tunnel continued falling apart, as more spatial distortions appeared in the tunnel. Lenz villa. Gerald was sitting in his office casually, speaking with three people. "The roads are getting increasingly dangerous for the merchants, and the mercenaries seem to be charging higher now for escorting the caravans," The lady in the group reported. "Hmm, I''ll send someone to go check out the route. If possible," Gerald suddenly stopped talking and looked in the direction of the secret room Grey was staying in. ''Huh? What''s the feeling?'' He asked himself before standing up. "Wait here, I''ll be back shortly," He said before walking out of the office. After stepping out of his office, he saw Diluc outside with a worried expression. "You also sensed it?" He asked. Diluc nodded with a serious expression. "What could he be doing? Even I feel threatened by what I''m currently sensing," Gerald said while walking out of the building his office was in, heading to where Grey was located. Given his cultivation stage, there is only one thing that could threaten him, and that was a Sage Plane Elementalist. He didn''t think the Emperor would send a Sage Plane expert after Grey. But he couldn''t think of anything that Grey could do that would be able to threaten him. "*Sigh* This kid is trouble, the sooner he leaves, the safer I will feel. I dreamt he died while he was here, and Chris chased me all over the continent before killing me," Gerald trembled when he recalled the dream. He knew how unreasonable Chris could be, even if he showed him proof that he tried keeping his student safe, he would still blame him. Diluc sent a glance Gerald''s way. He could tell he was traumatized by the thought of making Chris angry. He had heard of Chris from Gerald, but he had never seen him before. "Don''t worry master Gerald, I don''t think anything will happen to the boy," He consoled him. This was the best he could do right now. They got to the place that led to the secret room within a minute, before pushing the mechanism that hid the door that led to the room. Chapter 338 - Damaged Consciousness Rumble! The secret passage opened before the duo disappeared inside. "Huh? It stopped?" Gerald paused and looked in Diluc''s direction while they were still in the stairway leading to the room. "I can''t sense him," Diluc said. Gerald''s pupils shrunk when he heard this and he quickly tried to sense if Grey was in the room, but his expression worsened. He couldn''t find anyone in the room with his spiritual senses. There was no way Grey could hide his aura from someone like him. This meant only two things, either Grey was dead, or he was not in the room. But they sensed him while they were rushing here, even after they opened the passage they still felt him in the room. So there''s no way he left the room. That leaves them with only one possibility, Grey was dead. "Impossible," Gerald muttered before sprinting towards the door. He felt his life was attached to Grey''s life while Grey was here. If Grey died under his custody, then he was most likely a goner. Slam! He didn''t bother to knock, with a wave of his hand, the door shattered immediately. "What?!" Gerald and Diluc exclaimed simultaneously when they looked inside the room. "Im¡­ impossible," Diluc was the one to mutter to himself this time. In the center of the room, Grey could be seen sitting in a crossed leg position, wearing a silver shirt and blue pants. The room was perfectly arranged as it had always been whenever they came to see him. Grey opened his eyes to look at the duo who just shattered the door. When the duo looked into his eyes, it was like it was sucking them into the boundless space. This feeling stunned the two Overlord Plane experts, this was something they have never felt before. "You know you could just knock, right?" Grey asked while holding a piece of the shattered wood that shot his way when Gerald destroyed the door. Gerald and Diluc looked at each other, it was as if they were staring at a ghost. Even after coming into the room, they still can''t sense Grey''s aura or presence. "Phew¡­ Thank the stars you''re alright," Gerald breathed out a sigh of relief. He didn''t even want to ask what Grey was doing in the room, as long as Grey was alive and alright, nothing else mattered. Diluc looked at Grey suspiciously, on seeing that Gerald refused to ask him what he was doing, he also refrained from asking as well. Gerald stayed for a few more minutes, asking about Grey''s well-being. Grey didn''t know if Gerald genuinely cared about him, or was just scared of his Teacher. It was only when Gerald wanted to leave did he get his answer. "So¡­ when will you be leaving?" Gerald turned around to ask just as he was about to leave. "Soon, in a day or two," Grey replied calmly. "Okay," Gerald nodded before turning around, just as he was about to leave. "Uhmm, can I have a moment alone with you?" Grey suddenly called out. Gerald paused, looked at him, before nodding to Diluc. Diluc understood what he meant and immediately left the room, leaving the duo alone. After confirming Diluc was gone, Grey pulled out Void from his shirt. "Huh? What''s that?" Gerald asked unconsciously, taking a step forward, "A cat, how strange," "Can you find out if he''s fine? He''s alive, but he isn''t responding to anything," Grey said in a low voice while gently handing Void over to Gerald. Gerald took Void from him and noticed Grey''s hands were shaking after he passed Void to him. ''Hmm, so this is the cat they spoke about,'' He thought while looking at Void. He naturally knew about Void after doing his research on Void. When they told him about it, he felt overwhelmed by it. For a cat to be able to block the attack of a Peak Origin Plane Elementalists while being in the Early stages of the Origin Plane was unbelievable. He always found it strange that he hadn''t seen Void with Grey since Grey came to him, making him a little skeptical. "What happened to it?" Gerald asked Grey. "Him, not it, his name''s Void and he''s not something you can address as it," Grey snapped when he heard Gerald addressing Void like he was an object. "I''m sorry, what happened to him?" Gerald was a little taken aback by Grey''s sudden outburst, but on seeing his expression, he could tell he wasn''t alright. "He overexerted himself while helping me. Can¡­ can you help him?" Grey said, guilt very evident in his words. "Wait, let me check his condition," Gerald said. A few minutes later, Gerald opened his eyes, looking at Grey. "What exactly did he do?" He asked, but after being met without any reply, he added, "*Sigh* His physical condition is fine, but his consciousness is damaged. Whatever he was helping you with, he literally damaged himself just to make sure you did whatever you wanted," Grey clenched his fist when he heard Gerald''s analysis, he didn''t expect it to be this bad. "Is there a way to help him?" He asked with a shaky voice. "To be honest, it''s going to be difficult. What you''ll need is a natural treasure that has the effect of improving spiritual senses. That should be able to help mend his damaged consciousness," Gerald replied. Grey felt a little better on hearing there''s a way to help Void. This was all he wanted to find out about, so hearing it made him grateful. "These treasures are very rare, and I haven''t heard of anyone finding one in years," Gerald said to Grey, quickly waking him back to reality. "I''ll find it," Grey said confidently. He didn''t care where the treasure was, as long as it would heal Void, he''ll find it. Gerald shook his head wryly, "A lot of people say that, it''s only after they start the journey do they find out that it''s not as easy as it sounds," "I''m not like them, I''ll find it. No matter where it is," Grey eyes gleamed with determination. "Fine, then I''ll give you a heads up, the only place you can find it is in the Magical beasts forest. That''s the only place it has ever been reported to be seen," Gerald said after seeing how determined he looked. Chapter 339 - Space Element "Okay, thank you," Grey bowed, showing his gratitude. "No problem. Just another reminder, there''s also a possibility that he might heal without it. But the chances of that are very slim," Gerald added before walking out. After Gerald left the room, Grey created a wall to block the space where the door used to be. ''Hmm, I didn''t expect it would take me that long,'' He thought, feeling remorseful. He looked at Void with a sad smile, he had finally comprehended the space element, but at what cost? "*Sigh* I was too rash, I should''ve come out when I noticed how difficult it was. Maybe he would''ve been fine if I came out sooner," He muttered while caressing Void''s fur. While he was inside, he knew the longer he stayed in the tunnel, the harder it was for Void to keep it up. But he couldn''t help it, the space element was just at his fingertips, he couldn''t lose it. He didn''t want to lose it. ''Will the tonic be able to help him? I recalled he said it could heal someone that was on death''s door,'' He suddenly recalled about the healing tonic he got from the blooming vipers. Without wasting any time, he quickly took out one of the bottles from his spatial ring, before feeding it to Void. He waited patiently as the tonic went through Void''s mouth, into his body. After five minutes, there were no reactions from Void. From the looks of it, it seems like it only works on the physical body, and not the consciousness. The consciousness of any creature is a very complex entity. Although he felt the chances of the tonic helping were slim, he did feel a little hopeful when he recalled how it helped him the last time. "I need to start moving, the sooner I head to the Magical beast forest, the better," He muttered before standing up. With Void injured, he didn''t have the time to sit around and mope. The best thing to do now is to find a way to heal him. His current plan remains like before, only this time, he was in a hurry. Grey picked up the robe from the side of the bed before putting it on. He came out of the secret room and headed straight to Gerald''s office. On getting there, Gerald was still discussing with the people who came, but when he noticed Grey''s presence outside, he excused himself from the office. "Thank you for your help throughout the time I was here, I''ll be leaving now," Grey bowed to him as soon as he saw him. "You''re leaving?" Gerald asked to confirm. "Yes, I need to head to the Magical beast forest as soon as possible," Grey didn''t hide the motive of him leaving. "Going there alone is dangerous, but it would help you advance quicker," Gerald didn''t try to stop him. Grey threw the communication device he got from him back, before turning around. "Here, you should keep it. If you''re in any location where there''s a merchant organization, I might be able to help," Gerald gave the device back to him. "Thank you," Grey took it and started walking away again. He would go visit Alice, before heading to give Reynolds one of the communication devices. Klaus would be the last of them to get the device, but before leaving, he wanted to make an array close to Frost City. According to the disc, if he wanted to meet Klaus after giving Reynolds the device, then he would need to pass through Frost City again. Either that or he had to go around, and he didn''t have that time. Grey left the Lens villa and hurried over to where the Reiss family villa was located. He had gotten the information of how to sneak into the secret room from Void, so he wasn''t too bothered. After getting to the Reiss villa''s wall, his body flashed twice before he disappeared. The next moment, he appeared on the other side of the wall, silently. ''So, this is the feeling,'' Grey stared at his hand. This was his first time moving through a space tunnel he created. Not just that, it was completely different from the array they used. The time frame in moving from one location to another was faster, this could be attributed to the fact that where he was going was closer. He looked around, ''There, there, and there,'' Void had studied the movements and locations of each guard, which he later told Grey. Grey easily moved through the villa like it was his backyard thanks to Void''s detailed explanation. Ten minutes later. In a secret room inside the Reiss villa. Alice could be seen lying on the bed leisurely with her legs hanging out of the end of the bed. She was wearing a casual knee-length shirt with white pair of pants. "Hmm, will he be done by now?" She said with her finger on her lips. "Huh?" Buzz! She stood up and attacked the left side of the room with a lightning bolt. "Is this how you welcome a friend?" Grey asked after opening a space tunnel to dismiss the lightning strike. "I knew it was you, I just wanted to see how fast your reaction was," Alice giggled while looking at Grey. "You, you''ve comprehended it?" Alice asked with a shocked expression. "Yeah," Grey said with a sad expression. "What''s with that face? You should be celebrating?" Alice scolded with her hands on her hips. "I really want to," Grey said with a wry smile, "But you see, I can''t," He brought out Void from his storage ring where he was keeping him, showing him to Alice. "Gasps! What happened?" Alice asked with a gasp as she took Void from him. Grey went on to tell Alice about what happened, and why Void was hurt. "Why didn''t you exit it sooner? He told you he couldn''t keep it up for long!" Alice scolded him when she heard the story. "I¡­ I¡­ I could feel it. Heh! I guess I was greedy," Grey said with a self-deprecating laugh. "You¡­ *Sigh* What are you going to do now?" Alice wanted to scold him, but seeing his guilty expression, she couldn''t. "I''ll be heading to the Magical beast forest, I only wanted to see you before I leave," Grey told her his plan. "Okay," Alice nodded. "Oh, I''ll need essence stones. A lot of them," Grey said. "There''s some in my father''s room," Alice replied instantly. She didn''t even ask him what he wanted to use them for. Since Grey said he needed it, then it''s okay. "Is it okay, taking them?" Grey asked. "Of course, my dad has no use for them," Alice waved it off. Grey looked at her suspiciously, but since he needed it, he couldn''t say no. Besides, he had a small grudge against him when he came here the last time. Even though he had apologized, it wasn''t that bad to steal a thing or two from him. "What do you need them for?" Alice asked after telling him where the location of the essence stones was. "I want to make a teleportation array like the one we used in entering the trial land," Grey explained to her. He would create the array close by, then connect it with the one he was going to make wherever Reynolds was located. That way, he could easily travel here from that side without bothering about the time he would need. "Oh, how convenient," Alice exclaimed in awe. "Yeah, I''m sorry I can''t stay long. I''ll visit when I come back," Grey said with a smile. "Okay," Alice nodded. Grey hugged her before vanishing from the room. He followed Alice''s directions and quickly made his way into her father''s room. The essence stones were kept under his bed, but it wasn''t too difficult for him to collect them. After keeping them, he snuck out of the villa. ''Crap! The consumption is outrageous!'' He almost screamed out after leaving the villa. Now he understood why Void didn''t use it all the time. He didn''t use the space element for too long, but he was already feeling tired from it. After experiencing this, he felt even more guilt when he recalled how he made Void open the tunnel for a long time. He slowly headed towards the exit of the city. There was a stable close to the city gate, so he went to buy one horse since he couldn''t walk to where Reynolds was located. He didn''t know if Reynolds was in Eternal City, or if he had left the city since he was currently hiding. After getting the horse, he rode to the forest close to Frost City, searching for a secret place where he could make the array. He found a hidden cave after a while and immediately got to work. When they used the array to get into the trial land the last time, he picked up a few things from the array when it lit up. Now with his expanded knowledge of arrays, he was trying to make one by himself. Chapter 340 - First Try! "Hmm, I''ll need to try out a small scale teleportation array, before going for the big one," Grey said while looking at the empty cave. He hadn''t made one before, so he couldn''t simply make one here then head to Eternal City, hoping it would work. He brought out a piece of paper and a brush and ink and started drawing array lines on them. Before trying them on the ground, he had the habit of first drawing the array lines on a piece of paper. He wouldn''t be working with what others had previously made like for the communication device, instead, he would be trying to integrate his space element into a movement array. This is an array that, as its name suggests, boosts the speed of the one who makes it or a selected few while they are in the array. It''s usually an array that covers a large area. This array is mostly used in wars. After completing the movement array on the piece of paper, he started searching for ways to modify it so he could integrate the space element into it. ''Should I try it without modification?'' He thought with his hand rubbing his chin. After a few minutes, he decided to try it out. There are different ways to integrate the space element into the array, so he quickly started trying it out. First of all, he would get the coordinates of the spatial nodes of this place, then infuse them into the array. Once he''s done with that, he would go to the last step, activating the array. Although there''s no destination for now, he wasn''t disturbed by that, what mattered was that the array worked. Grey sat crossed leg with the piece of paper before him. After calming his mind, he started feeling the space around him. When he closed his eyes, it was like he was standing in the boundless space, around him were multiple nodes connecting like an intricate array. He slowly started searching for the nodes, and after a few seconds, he located them. It wasn''t that hard to locate since it was shining brighter than the rest. After locating it, he slowly started trying to infuse the node into the array. It took him five minutes before he managed to complete it. "Damn!" Grey exclaimed as soon as he was done. He was currently sweating profusely, infusing the nodes wasn''t too difficult, but it took a toll on him. As a result of not resting after using the space element repeatedly in the Reiss family, he was almost completely exhausted. Grey looked at the array on the paper, "Well, it''s time to try it." He brought out a single essence stone and tried activating the array. The lines on the paper lit up, accompanied by the essence stone Grey placed on it. Grey sensed the space element revolving around the array which surprised him. He expected for it to at least have some issues, but it seemed to be working fine, or so he thought. Without further ado, he tried to see if it could transport something to another location. He took out the second paper, and hastily infused another spatial node on it, a node that was in the same cave. After completing the second one, his face was completely pale, and he knew after this experiment, he needed to rest. He left the first paper in its original position, while he moved the other one a little further away from it. "Phew! Here goes nothing." Grey picked up a rock by the side, and just as he turned to the first paper, he noticed it was no longer lighting. ''It''s completely exhausted the essence stone within such a small timeframe?'' He was left flabbergasted by the consumption. Everything about the space element seems to yell high consumption to him. It didn''t take him up to three minutes to complete the array and infuse the space element on the paper, yet the array on the first paper had completely exhausted the essence stone. One has to remember that this was a small-scale array. Grey couldn''t help but shiver at the thought of the essence stones he''d need for the large-scale array. ''Luckily, I took quite a lot.'' He smiled slightly as he tapped on his spatial ring, taking out another essence stone. Only one of the arrays needs to be activated for them to work, so he didn''t need to place any essence stone on the other paper. After placing the essence stone on the paper, the array lit up once again when he activated it. He hastily threw the rock in the paper. As soon as the rock came in contact with the array, the array shone brighter, engulfing the rock. A few seconds later, Grey saw the other paper lighting up. After the light died down, he saw the rock on the other paper. "Haha, success on the first try!" Grey laughed out unconsciously. Given his previous luck whenever it came to things that had to do with research and experiment, he thought he might need to at least try it up to five or six times before he would succeed. He never expected to be successful right off the bat, this was a first for him, and he felt genuinely happy. Had Void not been injured, then he would''ve been extremely happy. ''Time to rest, if I stay up any longer I might not be able to move properly for the next day,'' Grey thought before sitting down cross-legged. He had gotten used to always meditating whenever he was tired. Before he started his experiment, he made some detection arrays around the cave. That way if someone wanted to sneak in, he would be alerted and prepare himself for whoever was coming. He quickly went into a semi-conscious state, recovering the essence he used while making the array. Six hours later. Grey opened his eyes and looked around. The cave was dimly lit, indicating it was already dark outside. ''Hmm, I didn''t check the elemental grade for the space element.'' He suddenly recalled and closed his eyes once again, heading into the Chaos Space. Chapter 341 - Town Of Mercenaries Grey''s consciousness entered the Chaos Space. Since comprehending the darkness element, and increasing its grade, he hadn''t come here often. After entering, he looked around, and just like he expected, a new zone had appeared in the Chaos Space. It was the zone for the space element. His gaze stayed on the zone for the space element for a little while before switching his gaze to the mountain where the temple resided. He soon appeared on the temple, heading for the rock in the middle. He placed his hand on the stone, and just like usual, an energy moved into his body before going round and going back to the stone. A few seconds later, seven colors lit up on the stone. ''Seven elements, heh, to think a few years ago I had none,'' Grey thought when he saw the seven colors on the rock. He didn''t look at the rest since he already knew their elemental grades. There were two blacks in the stone, but the one which took his attention was the one which seemed like it was drawing someone into it the longer they stared at it. When he looked closer, he was surprised to see a small purple light in the middle. "Purple! It jumped right through two grades," Grey exclaimed on seeing the results of the test. After comprehending an element, he usually starts from the first elemental grade, but slowly grinding it to higher grades, or using natural treasures. Although, there had been one case where his elemental grade didn''t start from pink, that was when he comprehended the water element. He was already close to comprehending the water element at that time, so after using the water heart pulse he acquired from the crocodile which had black lightning back at the trial land, it went up to the orange grade as soon as he comprehended it. ''Hmm, could it be because of the energy waves I had to endure?'' He asked himself a little confused. That was the only thing he could think of which could improve the elemental grade of the space element after comprehending it. His excitement quickly died down and he left the Chaos Space. For some reason, he couldn''t bring himself to be excited because of the space element. Whenever he thinks about his success, he''d recall how his actions hurt Void. "*Sigh* After waking him up, then I''ll be able to celebrate," Grey sighed. "Wait, if it''s already purple and the consumption is this high, how would it feel like if it were in the pink grade? Come to think of it, I never checked the elemental grades for Void''s element," He thought out loud. Since Void hatched, he never thought of checking his elemental grade. Maybe it was because he had never actually heard of people checking the elemental grades of magical beasts before. It was after seeing the elemental grade of his space element did the thought come to him. If his elemental grade was purple yet the consumption was that high within that short time, then how high was Void''s since he could use it for longer? ''I''ll find out when he wakes up, for now, it''s time to make the array,'' Grey quickly threw the thought to the back of his head. There was no need brooding over it when Void''s asleep. Once he gets the treasure and wakes him up, then he''ll find a way to check his elemental grades. With the help of the array he drew on the paper, it didn''t take him long to draw the array, nor find the spatial nodes. The only part that was harder was actually trying to integrate the space element into the array since it was bigger. For almost thirty minutes, he was done with the array. This was the first teleportation array in the entire continent, well, except for the one that led to the trial land, and probably more that are unknown to the people living in the continent. After completing the array, Grey was once again exhausted, but this time, he was better compared to the first time. ''I''ll rest for the night,'' Since it was already dark, there was no need to start the journey. He''ll wait till it''s bright before setting out. The next morning. Grey quickly left the cave, making sure to seal it completely. He not only sealed the opening with his earth element, but he also created an array around it. With the help of a few essence stones, the array would be able to last for at least a month if someone who''s proficient in arrays didn''t break it, or someone in the Overlord Plane. He also made precautions around the teleportation array, just in case someone managed to break into the cave. Without him activating it from the other side, there''s no way others would know about it. This was possible with the help of the space element. Now he knew how Void was able to hide from experts in the Overlord Plane without being caught. With everything set, he started his journey back to Eternal City. It had been just around two months since he left Eternal City, now he was heading back. Twelve days later. "Hmm, this isn''t Eternal City," Grey muttered while looking at the city gates before him. He followed the route to Eternal City, but he forgot some of the paths, so he brought out the disc to use it to track Reynolds. But on getting to where Reynolds'' light was coming from, it wasn''t Eternal City. This city was smaller, even smaller than Red City. Grey guessed it was most likely a small town. There were multiple people coming and going at the gate of the city. Most of their expressions looked serious, and Grey could sense bloodlust from some of them. ''This must be a mercenary town,'' He thought. He had heard of these places, it''s a town built and owned by mercenaries. A guild was created by some merchants and mercenaries some years ago, Grey didn''t think it had already grown to become this big. After looking at the gate once more, he walked forward. Chapter 342 - Lightning Tree After walking into the town, Grey headed for the Inn that wasn''t far from the gates. Whenever he enters a new city or town, he has built the habit of first finding out what''s happening in the place before doing whatever brought him to the place. The inn he picked looked a little shady, the plaque that the name of the inn was written in was hanging vertically by the side of the inn, swinging from side to side. On entering the inn, he noticed it was filled with people, there were only about two empty seats or so. He calmly walked over to one and took a seat. As soon as he sat down, he overheard the conversation of the group sitting on the next table. "*Sigh* Over half of the group was wiped out," A middle-aged man sighed with a sad look. "Damn that guy! He gave us false information, I''ll kill him!" Another man said angrily. "Yeah! If not for him, then we wouldn''t have gone there in the first place," A slightly younger man said. Grey turned his head to look at the table, there were six people sitting around the table, there were four men in the group, the other two were ladies. Of the men, three looked middle-aged, the last one was younger, looking to be in his mid-twenties. The two young ladies also looked to be in their mid-twenties. "Heh! No one sent you guys there, you went on your own free will," A man from the next table scoffed. "Who called you into this?" One of the men from the first group yelled angrily, standing up. The rest of the people in the group immediately stood up to confront the other group. The inn went silent as the two groups attracted the attention of everyone. Grey, who was sitting close to them stared at the group curiously, he tilted his head to look at a young man sitting not too far from there. The young man had a robe on, just like him. The lower part of his face was visible, and he could see him smirking while looking at the group that were in a heated quarrel. The young man suddenly sensed something and looked in Grey''s direction. Grey turned his head after seeing that the young man noticed he was looking at him. ''Hmm, a treasure,'' Grey thought to himself. Had Void been fine, then he wouldn''t mind finding out what this treasure was. But now, he doesn''t have the time to spare. Grey waited for a little longer, and other than the group who quarreled about the treasure, there was nothing else. All he heard the other people talking about was also the rumors of a treasure. According to the people, a lightning tree appeared at the heart of the Chimera forest. This forest has been ruled by a brutal Chimera for hundreds of years. The Chimera is said to be in the Overlord Plane, and because of the uniqueness of the magical beast, it was extremely difficult to handle. Luckily, it had stopped getting involved with humans, even when they entered its territory. The only time it attacks is whenever its interest is threatened. According to what was said, the reason it stopped attacking humans was because after a tough battle with multiple experts, they decided to call a truce. The Chimera would stop attacking people as long as they did not do anything against the rules it set. Surprisingly, the Chimera didn''t say a lot. It only said it wouldn''t attack if it''s interest was not threatened. At first, the experts thought they made a good deal, it was only after a few years did they find out that the Chimera had a lot of interests. After a few hundred years, they managed to find most of them. The Chimera hasn''t shown any interest in the lightning tree yet, so some people felt they might be able to acquire it before it develops any interest in it. A lightning tree forms after a tree has been struck multiple times by lightning. There are a lot of requirements before a tree would successfully turn into a lightning tree. First of all, it has to be extremely strong, not like the average tree. Most trees would be destroyed from a single strike from a lightning bolt. The second requirement was the age of the tree, it would get to at least three hundred years before there would be any chances of it turning into a lightning tree. With each strike from the lightning, the previously huge tree will slowly start shrinking. If the tree was initially over one hundred meters, it would reduce to just half a meter in height, with a thickness of a few inches. Experts say the tree goes through a refining process after each strike, but it hasn''t really been verified since no one has ever witnessed this event take place. Grey walked out of the inn, ahead of him was the young man he saw in the inn while the group were quarreling with the other group. The young man suddenly stopped and walked his way. "Excuse me, but can I interest you with a deal?" He said to Grey. Grey stopped and glanced at the young man, "Sorry, I''m not interested," After speaking, he started walking once again. "You''re not someone simple, so I''ll go straight to the point. The lightning tree was found by me and my group, but there''s a strong Lightning Leopard guarding it. It seems to be waiting to refine it." "Since you were able to notice me back in the inn, I know you''re powerful. And besides, I can''t seem to see through your Plane," The young man chased after Grey and continued persuading. "I don''t recall looking at you," Grey replied nonchalantly. "I''m willing to split it with you," The young man said. "Like I said, I''m not interested, good day." Grey didn''t change his mind and continued walking away. Even if he wanted to hunt for the treasure, he had no plans of going with the young man. Firstly, the young man must be the one the group were talking about. While he was in the inn, he sensed the Cultivation Planes of the group who were complaining, and he noticed that other than the two young ladies and the young man, the three middle-aged men were all at the Peak of the Origin Plane. If over half of such a group could be wiped out, why would the young man who was in the Seventh stage of the Origin Plane want to team up with him to hunt for the treasure. ''He''s purposely spreading the rumor of the lightning tree. If my hypothesis is correct, it means he knew I wouldn''t team up with him. He doesn''t plan on going in the first place.'' Grey thought while walking in the busy street of the town. He walked to a hidden spot in the town before taking out the disc. After looking at the distance between his light and Reynolds'' light, he calculated the direction Reynolds light was coming from before going in the direction. It took him twenty minutes, but he finally stopped at a two story building. "It''s coming from here, I''ll find out what this place is before heading in." He muttered while looking at the front of the building. He walked a bit further into the street before stopping at a small shop. After asking around, he found out that the building was surprisingly the headquarters of the guild. ''Hmm, what''s Reynolds doing in the guild''s headquarters?'' He asked himself. After brooding over it for a moment, he decided against going inside. The Emperor was searching for them, so he didn''t know if Reynolds was being held captive or not. He planned to wait till later in the night before going there. He would sneak into the building at night, then search for Reynolds. If Reynolds was in trouble, he would find a way to rescue him, if not, he''ll speak with him then give the device to him before leaving. Later that night. Grey suddenly appeared on the side of the guild headquarters building. After looking around, he sent his spiritual sense into the building, trying to figure out if there were people walking close to the other side of the wall. A few seconds later, he vanished and appeared inside the building. What looked like a reception desk was at the front, facing the door of the building. The doors were currently locked, and no one could be seen around. Grey brought out the disc, and started following it to where Reynolds'' light was coming from. With the increase in his knowledge in arrays, he improved his personal disc. The closer he got to the other light, the more accurate it was. It seemed to zoom closer, so he could get a better idea of where the light was coming from. He continued following the light deeper into the building. Chapter 343 - Oh, Crap! Grey soon appeared in a hallway, with the help of the space element, his aura was perfectly hidden. Added with the black clothes he was currently wearing, it was almost impossible to see him in the dark hallway. He followed the light until he stopped in front of one of the rooms. ''Here,'' Without further delay, he vanished from the hallway. In the room. Reynolds could be seen sprawling on the bed, fast asleep. His mouth was slightly open, and drool could be seen coming out of it from the moonlight that was shining through the window. When Grey appeared in the room, he almost wanted to punch Reynolds in the face. ''Really?'' He asked before using the wind element to raise the bed sheet, placing it on Reynolds'' body. When Grey appeared in the room, Reynolds was sleeping, butt naked. On feeling the bed sheet touching his body, Reynolds opened his eyes, albeit lazily. His lazy expression disappeared when he caught a glimpse of the human shadow in front of him. He hastily stood up on the bed, throwing away the bed sheet in the process. Grey''s mouth twitched repeatedly before he facepalmed. "What the hell is wrong with you?" He asked quietly. "Huh? Grey?" Reynolds narrowed his eyes to a slit, trying to get a better view of the shadow. Grey stepped closer to the window, allowing the moonlight to shine on his face. "Buddy, it''s you!" Reynolds exclaimed before jumping towards him with open arms. Grey''s eyes twitched uncontrollably before he punched Reynolds on the head as he got close to him. "What the hell is wrong with you?" Grey asked again, exasperated. "Ouch! Fuck you, Grey! Do you want to kill me?!" Reynolds shouted before jumping to his feet while cursing at Grey in an exaggerated manner. His sudden exaggerated movement annoyed Grey even more. "Rey, put on some clothes," Grey said with a long face. "What do you¡­"Reynolds paused mid-sentence and looked down, "Oh, crap!" "So¡­ what are you doing here?" He asked, walking leisurely towards where his clothes were kept. "You¡­ *Sigh* I''ve completed the communication device, Alice already has one, I came to give you another," Grey looked at him, he was too tired to complain about the nonchalant nature of his current appearance. "Oh, that''s great! Quick, give it to me, let me talk to her," Reynolds ran back to him, without even putting on anything. Bam! Grey punched him on the head once again, this time, a little harder. "Ouch! Ouch! Damn you!" Reynolds shouted, but quickly turned around to wear his clothes. Some minutes later. "Don''t try to contact her now, she might be sleeping," Grey said when he noticed Reynolds was trying to speak to Alice after he explained how the device worked to him. "Oh, I forgot. I was eager to talk to her," Reynolds scratched his head while chuckling. "What are you doing here?" Grey asked. From how carefree Reynolds looked and acted, it was easy to see that he wasn''t under any danger. "After you left, I decided to leave Eternal City¡­" Reynolds told him all about what he encountered after they separated. According to him, he traveled for a few weeks, before coming across a caravan in a forest. The merchants were being attacked, and the mercenaries protecting them were already severely injured. At first, Reynolds didn''t want to help, but after seeing a little girl who ran to the front of a young man, trying to protect him from one of the beasts attacking, he couldn''t sit still any longer. The beasts were all in the Early stages of the Origin Plane. Even though he hadn''t broken through to the Fourth stage of the Origin Plane, he had no issues with fighting against these beasts. With the help of the injured mercenaries, he was able to quickly make do of the eight magical beasts. After helping them, he found out that the young man and the little girl were the children of one of the founding merchants of the guild. He followed them here and got to hear the rumor of the lightning tree. Being a Lightning Elementalist, he naturally wanted to see if he could acquire it. With the help of that, he would not only advance in his stage, but his Elemental Warrior would grow stronger. "How are you so sure the rumor is accurate?" Grey asked after hearing his story. "Well, I''m not too sure about it. But from what I heard, the source is very accurate," Reynolds explained. He asked the people from the guild, and they said the source was accurate. "Hmm, so you''ll be joining in on the expenditure?" Grey asked. "Yes, I wasn''t too confident all this time, but with you and Void here, as long as an Overlord Plane expert doesn''t appear, then that tree is mine," Reynolds said confidently, smacking Grey''s shoulder. "You¡­" "Wait, where''s Void?" Reynolds cut Grey short while looking around, trying to find Void. He initially thought that Void was in the room, but since he was black, he couldn''t find him. "Void is¡­" "Also, how did you sneak into my room without anyone, or me finding out?" Reynolds cut him short again. "There are¡­" He was about to continue speaking, but when he looked at Grey''s expression, he hastily shut his mouth to allow him to speak. "Void is injured," Grey brought Void out of the spatial ring to show Reynolds. He went on to tell him how his greed caused Void''s injury. "He''ll be fine, I believe we''ll be able to find the treasure," Reynolds said decisively. "Yeah, I hope so," Grey said with a sad look on his face. "Can I come with you to the magical beast forest?" Reynolds suddenly asked. When he first came in contact with Void, he wasn''t too close with him, after all, only Grey could talk to him. But after he saw Void taking that attack for Grey, his impression of him shot up to a high level. Now he didn''t see him as a magical beast, rather, he saw him as a friend. "No, I''ll go alone," Grey shook his head. He knew Reynolds wanted to help, but he didn''t plan to put him in danger. The magical beast forest was not like the trial land where the stage of the highest magical beast was the Peak of the Origin Plane. In the magical beast forest, there are countless magical beasts in the Overlord Plane. Chapter 344 - I Want To Marry Him! "When will you be heading to the Chimera forest?" Grey asked. Since Reynolds wanted to acquire the lightning tree, he wanted to help him out before leaving. "A group would be setting out by tomorrow, I''ll follow them," Reynolds replied. He tried bringing up the issue of accompanying Grey to the magical beast forest, but Grey refused. He knew Grey was only doing that because he didn''t want him to get hurt, but he felt annoyed by it. If only he were stronger, Grey wouldn''t need to protect him. It was just like the time in the trial land when Aetonth woke up, Grey stayed behind while telling them to run away. They knew it was not only because Void was there, but it was because he didn''t want them to get hurt if Aetonth were to attack. To be honest, when he saw the dragon chasing after Grey, he couldn''t help but wonder how Grey managed to run with that thing chasing him this far. He wasn''t too confident he would be able to escape if he were in Grey''s shoes. From that experience, he told himself he wanted to grow stronger, so he wouldn''t need Grey''s protection. But since leaving the trail land, he hadn''t been able to improve his stage. This was the real reason he decided to travel around, to try and see if he could get a chance to breakthrough. When he heard about the lightning tree, he felt like this was the opportunity he was searching for. "Okay, I''ll accompany you. As long as someone above the Overlord Plane doesn''t show up, then you''ll be fine," Grey said with a soft smile. "*Sigh* Fine," Reynolds nodded with no other option. "So, you''ve finally comprehended the space element?" He asked again. Because of Void''s injury, he didn''t ask about the space element. But since they''ve put that matter on the side, he decided to ask about it. "Yeah," Grey nodded. "How does it feel like, you know, moving through the space tunnels?" Reynolds asked. "Well, it''s kinda¡­" Grey and Reynolds continued speaking about other things and before they knew it, it was already morning. Knock! Knock! "Come in," Reynolds replied. Click! The door opened and a little girl around six years old walked in. "Good morning, uncle Reynolds," The girl said excitedly. "Good morning little lady, how are you doing today?" Reynolds asked while hugging the girl. "I''m fine," The girl replied. After leaving Reynolds'' embrace, the girl noticed Grey sitting by the side. "Uncle, who''s this?" The girl asked, pointing at Grey. "He''s uncle''s friend," Reynolds replied with a small laugh. "Wow! Uncle, he''s so beautiful!" The girl said with stars shining in her eyes, making Reynolds burst out into laughter. Grey looked at the girl, a little embarrassed by the starstruck expression she had on her face. "Who''s beautiful?" The voice of a man came from outside the room, soon, a young man who looked to be in his early twenties walked into view. He had a handsome face, just barely above Reynolds if they compared them. His build was slightly chubby, but he couldn''t be described as a fat person. The young man was around six foot one, taller than Grey and Reynolds. When the young man appeared in the room, his gaze followed the direction of his little sister, and for a second, he almost couldn''t believe that Grey was a man. "Damn, he''s truly beautiful," He muttered. Cough! Cough! Reynolds coughed twice when he heard the young man''s words. He couldn''t help but take a glance at Grey and winking. He laughed out after winking, making the silent room noisy. He was still laughing when the little girl dropped a bombshell. "I want to marry him," The little girl said. Reynolds almost choked on his saliva while he was laughing, while Grey''s face twitched repeatedly. "Al.. Alexa, you can''t marry him," The young man who was by the side said after a few seconds. "Why not? I like him, so I''m going to marry him," The little girl said with both hands on her hips. Reynolds looked at the little girl, then at Grey''s expression, before bursting out into laughter once again. Since the little girl walked in, Grey hadn''t been able to say anything since he truly didn''t know what to say. "Uncle, why are you laughing?" The little girl pouted when she saw Reynolds laughing. "Nothing, it''s nothing. I think you and uncle''s friend will look good together," Reynolds said while doing his best to hold back his laugh. He found Grey''s predicament hilarious. Grey and the young man looked at Reynolds after he finished speaking, if looks could kill, then Reynolds would''ve been long buried by now. The young man knew that there is naturally no way Grey would be able to marry his sister, for someone who looked this good, he would naturally have multiple companions. Even he, who wasn''t as good looking as Grey had three, much less someone like Grey. Grey shut his mouth, he didn''t try to say anything. ''*Sigh* This is why I don''t like going out,'' He complained inside. Whenever he goes out, there would always be a situation when he would be approached by a lady. There was this one time that he was not only approached by a lady who looked to be in her late thirties but he was also approached by a man as well. They left the room, with Alexa gluing herself to Grey as they walked towards the hall where the reception desk was located at the front of the building. Most of the people staying in the building were familiar with everyone in their group except for him. They would always give him a double-take whenever they saw him, especially with the way Alexa was holding onto him. They soon got to the hall, and Grey was astounded by the number of people present there. There were at least eighty people in the hall already, and more seems to be on their way. Chapter 345 - Fifteen Years "Are all of them going for the expenditure as well?" Grey couldn''t help but ask Reynolds on seeing the number of people present. "Not really, only those at the Late stages of the Origin Plane are allowed to go. Of course, there are a few who would go even with the warning from the guild," Reynolds explained. "Oh, then why are you allowed to go?" Grey looked at him. With the guild not allowing those below the Late stages of the Origin Plane to go, he didn''t understand why they''d allow Reynolds to go. Reynolds was powerful, but not to the extent of being able to fight against a Late stage Origin Plane Elementalist. His Elemental Warrior could at best fight to a draw with a Seventh stage Origin Plane Elementalist. And from what Reynolds told him, they''re not aware of him being a high-grade summoner. He suddenly felt a little suspicious of the guild, after all, this was not the proper way to show gratitude to someone who saved the children of an important member of the guild. "At first, they tried persuading me not to go since it was going to be dangerous. But after seeing my persistence, they decided to let me be. The leader of the expenditure has already made it clear to me that they can not guarantee my safety," Reynolds said. "Hmm, at least they warned you beforehand," Grey threw away some of the suspicions he had towards the guild after he heard it was only because Reynolds demanded they let him go. "Hmph! Uncle Reynolds is the strongest, he''ll beat that monster up!" Alexa jumped into the conversation. She thought Grey was trying to play down Reynolds'' strength. "Haha, I''m sure he would," Grey chuckled but didn''t say anymore. The group walked to the front of the crowd gathered there, and on a small platform that was raised there, three men could be seen standing with hands behind their backs, facing the crowd. Two of the men had long well-trimmed beards, while the last man had a mustache. All three men had the same facial appearance that it''s almost impossible to tell them apart. They had the same average body build, with the same length and color of hair. Luckily, two of them had a beard while one had a mustache. Grey felt the two with a beard were a perfect copy of each other. Added to the fact that they were wearing the same clothes, he almost thought he was seeing double. "It''s the brothers of destruction," "With them around, what''s the use in joining the expenditure? We''ll only be cannon fodders to fight against the beasts there since they will be the ones to acquire it," Different conversations were ongoing with the appearance of the three identical brothers. "Brothers of destruction?" Grey gave Reynolds a questioning look. Reynolds raised both shoulders as if saying he didn''t know anything about them. Grey and Reynolds turned their attention to the young man who accompanied them here. Seeing their gazes, the young man went on to tell them about the trio standing in front of them. According to him, the brothers were identical triplets, which Grey and Reynolds had already guessed. The reason the trio was called the brothers of destruction had to do with their elements. The two with a beard were Lightning and Fire Elementalists respectively, while the last one with a mustache was surprisingly a Darkness Elementalist. Having such destructive elements, and the strength to boot earned them the name brothers of destruction amongst the mercenaries. It was said that they were linked, hence none of them could advance above the other. All three of them had purple elemental grades for their elements. "Oh, but that''s a weird name," Grey unconsciously said with a nonchalant expression. Grey and his group were at the front of the crowd, not too far from the platform where the brothers of destruction were standing atop. His words were heard by a few people who stood close to them, as well as the three brothers who were standing on the platform. The hall suddenly went quiet, and the few people standing close to Grey and his group took a few steps back, distancing themselves from Grey and Reynolds. Grey was oblivious to what was happening because Alexa was tugging at his arm. "Look, little lady, you need to grow for at least fifteen more years before you can marry anyone," He tried explaining to her gently. "Fifteen years?" Alexa asked with a confused face. "Yes, in fifteen years time, you can marry whoever you¡­ want," Grey paused during the last part of the statement when he noticed a shadow looming over him. "Huh?" He turned around to see who it was. "What did you just say?" One of the brothers with a beard asked with a calm expression but fiery eyes. "That you could marry whoever you want in fifteen years time," Grey blurted out what he just said to Alexa. "..." A blank look appeared on the face of the man standing in front of Grey. He was not the only one who had that expression, almost everyone who was close to them had the same expression. Reynolds was the only one who seemed to be trying to hold back his laugh. He was just like Klaus in some aspects, so he found this very funny. "What did you say?" The man asked once again. "Oh, sorry, I wasn''t talking to you earlier," Grey apologized when he realized what just happened. The man looked at him with his fiery eyes, "I''m not talking about this, what you said about our name," "Huh? Name?" Grey asked with a confused look. It was only when he looked at Reynolds and the young man who was with them did he recall it. ''Oh, that. Why would a grown-up man be worried about something like that?'' He thought inside. He couldn''t wrap his head around how a man would confront him because he said their nickname sounded weird. Even he wouldn''t be bothered if someone said his name was weird, much less his nickname, if he had any. Chapter 346 - Ive Really Missed You The hall fell into silence as everyone was waiting for Grey''s reply. "Haha, I see even these egotistical triplets are here," A laugh was heard from behind the crowd. Everyone turned around to look at who was laughing, the crowd soon made way when they saw the duo who were making their way forward. The duo consisted of one man, and a lady. They both had a smirk on their faces as they walked forward. The one who laughed previously was the man. "Well, aren''t you a keeper," The lady giggled when she saw Grey. "He''s mine!" Alexa suddenly stepped in front of Grey, shielding him from the lady who just walked in. The lady laughed when she saw Alexa''s act. Grey, who felt he was in an awkward position when the lady appeared and spoke, felt even more uncomfortable with Alexa claiming him as hers. "Alexa, we spoke about this a few minutes ago. You''ll have to wait for fifteen more years before you can claim anyone," Grey explained softly to her once again. He was trying his best not to tell her in a hurtful way since he didn''t want to make Alexa sad. She was a cute little girl, the only downside was that she wanted to keep him. "What are you doing here?" The man who confronted Grey switched his attention to the duo who just walked in. "We''re members of the guild just like you morons, so naturally we''ll try to obtain this treasure," The lady who was speaking with Grey turned to the man as she replied. "Hmph! None of you is a Lightning Elementalist, so the tree is worthless for you people," The made said. "Who says it''s worthless? We''ve been looking for a fancy small tree to decorate our garden for some years now, and this lightning tree just happens to fit the bill. Isn''t that right, dear?" The lady said, turning to look at the man she came in with. "Yes," The man nodded. "Hmph!" The man from the trio snorted and turned back to the platform. Before leaving, he gave Grey a threatening look. After the man went back to the platform, the lady looked at Grey, "Don''t worry, pretty boy. He wouldn''t be able to harm you with us here." "Besides, are you planning on going for the expedition?" She asked. She could tell Grey and Reynolds were young, and one of them is not even in the Mid stages of the Origin Plane. Well, she could sense Reynolds'' stage, but not Grey. It was like Grey was shrouded in a cloak that perfectly hid his aura from the world. Grey and Reynolds nodded. "Hmm, okay," The lady nodded before following behind her partner who was already ahead of her. They stood on the platform, along with the three brothers, as well as two more men who arrived not too long ago. Grey noticed that every single individual standing on the platform was at the very Peak of the Origin Plane, a little boost and they''ll advance to the next Plane, the Overlord Plane. They continued waiting for another ten minutes before the man who would be leading the expedition walked in. By the time the man came in, there were already over ten people on the platform. "Hmm, stealing it from so many hands is not going to be easy," Grey whispered to Reynolds. "But you can," Reynolds said confidently. He could tell Grey wasn''t the least bit nervous, so there''s a chance he was confident about being able to acquire it. Thinking of it, he had never really seen Grey nervous before, he was always calm and collected. The only time he saw Grey going out of his usual behavior was when Void was hurt at the time they left the trial land. "Of course, as long as an Overlord Plane expert doesn''t appear then I''m at least sixty percent sure of being able to acquire it," Grey replied confidently. While Reynolds was speaking, the man who would be leading the expedition stepped forward after having a little conversation with the group on the platform. "Everyone, I believe you all know why you''re here. So I wouldn''t go through the stress of explaining anything about it. You all know how it usually works here in the guild, whoever acquires the treasure keeps it." "Let''s move out." The leader of the expedition said before stepping down from the platform. "Well, that was quick," Grey said. "Yeah," Reynolds nodded. "Do they really follow this rule of whoever acquires the treasure keeping it?" Grey asked Alexa''s elder brother who was there with them. "There are few cases where they don''t follow this rule, it''s a guild after all, and without these rules, it wouldn''t be able to keep these mercenaries in check, especially those who are used to stealing from others," "Whenever these rules are breached, if the assailant is captured, they would face the necessary punishments." explained Alexa''s brother. Grey and Reynolds were at the back of the crowd as they listened to the young man''s explanation. After walking out of the guild building, Alexa and her brother stopped at the front of the building. They naturally wouldn''t be going on the expedition. "Goodbye, uncle Reynolds, bring something for me when you come back," Alexa waved at Reynolds as he climbed on his horse. Grey headed to the tavern he stayed at which was not too far from the guild and acquired his horse. Because of his delay, the crowd left them behind, but he didn''t really care about it. He preferred going on his own anyway, and with Reynolds with him, he wouldn''t be bored. As they rode towards the Chimera forest which was miles away from the mercenary town, Grey brought out the communication device. Reynolds immediately recalled that he wanted to speak with Alice and quickly brought out his own as well. "Hey, Alice, it''s me, Reynolds," He said enthusiastically while waiting for her response. ''Rey, how are you doing?'' Alice''s voice resounded in Reynolds'' head a few seconds later. "Haha, I''m fine now. I''ve missed speaking with you so much," Reynolds laughed out happily when he heard her voice. Grey smiled softly before looking at the device, he used his spiritual sense to check on Void who was in the spatial ring. ''Hey bud, I''ve really missed you,'' Chapter 347 - Sentient Plants Grey found out from Reynolds that the journey would take about two or three days. They caught up with the main group a few hours later, and they decided to travel with them since it was safer. Later that night. The group set up camp on an open field after it got dark. They were surrounded by a huge forest, and they didn''t want to take the risk of traveling through the forest at night since they all knew powerful magical beasts are more active at night. Grey and Reynolds stationed themselves at the back of the camp since Grey didn''t want to stay close to the group. In the end, Grey estimated that only about thirty people decided to set out for the expedition. This was as a result of them not being confident in being able to obtain the treasure from the hands of people like the triplets who were at the very Peak of the Origin Plane. It was better they didn''t get involved, than to become cannon fodders who wouldn''t get anything in the end. Not everyone would want to take the risk of trying, after all, the chances of them getting the treasure with their strength was very low. Reynolds had been speaking with Alice almost all through the day, Grey joined in their conversation for a few minutes before letting them be. ''I should try practicing that technique while we''re here,'' Grey thought to himself. With the thought in mind, he quickly stood up from where he was sitting with Reynolds and started heading towards the south. He soon disappeared into the forest, under the moonlight. After walking for almost ten minutes, he stopped at an isolated area in the forest. A boulder could be seen in the area, surrounded by huge trees. Grey climbed onto the boulder and sat down. He spread his spiritual senses out, trying to ensure the area was completely safe. Two minutes later, he opened his eyes before opening his palm. A scroll appeared on his palm the next second, the scroll was completely black. He got this scroll in the trial land, just after Void hatched from the egg. At that time, he didn''t have any use for it since he didn''t have the space element. The name of the technique was the Great Void movement technique. It involves shuttling through the void at an incredible speed. According to the description, once Grey attains beginner level mastery of the technique, he could shuttle through a distance of at least five hundred meters. The overall distance he could shuttle through after attaining beginner level mastery solely depends on his elemental grade, but he would be able to at least cover a distance of five hundred meters. This was not the first time he was trying this technique, he tried using it to comprehend the space element the first time he acquired the technique, but he was unable to. With the knowledge he had from the previous times, he slowly started trying out the technique again. Grey sat down in a meditative position, and tried following the instructions on the scroll. He had to first create two space tunnels almost simultaneously, after creating them, he would connect them to make the movement instantaneous. After connecting the two tunnels, the movement speed is faster compared to the normal one a Space Elementalist uses. The tunnels must be stable, or else they might collapse while the Space Elementalist is going through it. The danger of being caught in a collapsed space was extremely high, especially for someone like Grey whose control over the space element was minimal. Grey started with the first process, which was creating the space tunnels simultaneously. He tried it the first time, and failed, he tried a second, third, fourth and continuously, but he continued failing. Luckily, he noticed after each failure, he was getting better at it. Time flew by, and before he knew it, it was already almost daybreak. Even after trying countless times, he was unable to make it. He didn''t feel downhearted since he naturally knew he wouldn''t be able to get it once. At the camp. The group were already getting ready to continue their journey, going through the forest. The leader of the expedition gathered everyone. "As you all know, there''s a sentient plant in this forest. Although we would be able to dodge them at night time, we would also endanger ourselves because of the beasts in the forest." "These plants are extremely poisonous, but luckily, they''re plants, and are very weak towards the fire element¡­" He explained. The leader created a strategy for the group to travel through the forest, since the plants are weak towards the fire element, Fire Elementalists would be positioned around the group, placing the other Elementalists in the middle. This would minimize the risk, while also helping them move faster. Everyone agreed to his plan, and they soon started getting into position before they departed. Grey came back just as they were about to leave. Reynolds was already trying to delay the group while waiting for Grey, so on seeing him he heaved a sigh of relief knowing he wouldn''t need to bother himself with delaying again. "What were you doing?" He went closer to Grey and asked. "Training," Grey replied before getting on his horse. "Heh! Try not to get eaten by the plants," A cold voice came from behind the duo, when they turned around, they noticed the Fire Elementalist amongst the triplets was the one stationed close to where they were in the formation. "Come on, let''s move to the other side," Grey said while moving his horse to the left wing of the formation. The Fire Elementalist was taken aback when he saw Grey moving away. He initially wanted to go after the duo, but after seeing where they were headed, he smirked before staying put. "You train too much," Reynolds said as they headed towards the left wing. "I need to grow stronger, faster. You know our current predicament isn''t great, the more we delay, the more we give them an opportunity to harm us. I hate feeling threatened," Grey said. "Yeah, but, try to take some time off, have fun," Reynolds laughed. "I''ll stop when I get to the top," Grey said blandly. "*Sigh* If only Klaus and Alice were here, they''d be able to make you loosen up easier, especially Alice," Reynolds said, recalling how Alice was able to convince Grey to always go out with them. Reynolds started speaking with Alice, telling her of Grey''s unwillingness to take a break from training. In the end, Grey, Alice, and Reynolds started speaking with the communication device as they traveled through the forest. Ten minutes after walking into the forest. Boom! An explosion rang out from the front. Grey and the Reynolds quickly tried to look what was happening, ahead of them was a huge flower like plant that had rows of teeth. It was spitting out a greenish fog that was spreading rapidly towards the group. "Don''t breath in the fog, it''s poisonous," The leader of the expedition''s voice came from the front of the formation. He was a Fire Elementalist and was the one who was leading the charge against the plant. Ah! A scream came from the right side. Grey turned around to see a man picked up by a huge vine. The man and his horse were both taken by the vine. The crowd sucked in a cold breath as they saw this. This was the first time Grey and a few of the people here were seeing this plant. Grey in particular found the situation strange since he was used to seeing dangerous magical beasts, not plants. He had read of these plants at the Lunar Academy library, but he hadn''t been able to see them. Ah! Boom! Screams was coming from different sides as vines wrapped around the legs and waists of horses, lifting them off the ground. Rustle! Grey suddenly heard the rustling sound of the leaves, when he looked below him, he saw the vines on the ground, slithering like a snake. ''Crap! How''s this any less dangerous than moving at night?'' He said while creating a flaming whip that he used to lash at the vines. "Rey, stay close," He turned to Reynolds. His expression changed when he noticed the vine that was around Reynolds'' horse legs. "Shit! Rey, jump," He exclaimed. The vines seems to be able to wrap around people without them being able to sense it, only after the squeeze tight will they sense it. Reynolds reacted immediately he heard Grey''s words. Due to the high trust he had developed for Grey over the time they had spent together, he didn''t doubt his words even by the slightest. If he were to be standing at a cliff, and Grey said he should jump down, he would do it without a doubt. He knew there was no way Grey would do anything that would hurt him. Chapter 348 - Officially Hate Plants! Reynolds kicked the back of the horse, using the force to propel himself towards Grey''s horse. Grey stretched out his hand to catch Reynolds who was mid-air, pulling him onto his horse. With a swipe of his hand, he sent a fire blade at the vine that was wrapping around Reynolds'' horse. Even without being told, he naturally knew plants were weak against the fire element. "Thanks," Reynolds said after sitting behind Grey. "It''s nothing," Grey said while squinting his eyes, looking around. He suddenly noticed something, in the left-wing where they were, they were the only ones the vines attacked. When he looked around, the other people were vine-free. He shifted his gaze to the man who was stationed there. ''Hmm, could it be an accident, or did he purposely let them in?'' He asked himself. He couldn''t figure out the answer, so he kept the matter at the back of his head, for now. Reynolds returned to his horse after Grey exterminated all the vines in the area. Without being told, he moved closer to Grey, with their horses almost touching each other. As the group continued the journey, the Fire Elementalists were constantly destroying the vines, as well as the flower-like creature. After the first wave of attacks where the vines were able to snatch some people, the Fire Elementalists managed to completely hold them back. The plants retreated whenever they sensed the heat from the fire element. Grey studied the plants curiously from his horse, trying to figure out how they actually came to be. According to what he read, it would take hundreds of years, and staying in a place with a high concentration of essence before these plants could gain sentience. At this stage, their intelligence isn''t really that high. But once they break through to the Overlord Plane, their intelligence would see an increase, taking it to that of a human''s. These plants grow stronger by consuming humans, as well as magical beasts. While Grey was looking around, he saw an unlucky boar that was caught by a vine. After catching the boar, the vine quickly moved towards the head of the plant. It opened its huge mouth, swallowing the boar in a single gulp. Grey had also witnessed this happen to the few people and horses who were caught by the vines during the first attack. "Huh!" Grey suddenly felt all his hairs standing on edge. ''Danger!'' Without trying to see what the danger was, he hastily jumped up, using the wind element to support himself mid-air. After leaping to almost ten meters off the ground, he suddenly felt something on his right leg. He looked down, only to see a vine tightly wrapped around his ankle. ''Crap!'' Bam! Before he could react, the vine tugged at him forcefully, slamming him into the ground. "Grey!" Reynolds immediately moved when he saw Grey being slammed into the ground. But to his surprise, he suddenly felt a tug on his waist, before he could do anything, he was dragged from his horse, slamming into the ground. Buzz! Lightning danced around his body as he struggled to escape from the vine that was wrapping around him. He sent an attack at the vine, but to his surprise, the vine seemed to be resistant to the lightning element. ''What? How?'' He asked as the vine hastily dragged him out of the formation they were in. The Fire Elementalist standing guard did nothing to stop the vines from dragging both Reynolds and Grey who was a bit rocked after he slammed into the ground. After Grey was slammed into the ground, he could barely see anything, and just after he slammed into the ground, the vine dragged him and Reynolds out of the formation. Grey soon came back to his senses after being dragged out of the formation. Boom! Raging flames engulfed him, burning the vines that were wrapped around him. He stood up, preparing to run back to the formation, but his expression changed when he couldn''t see Reynolds on his horse. He turned around only to see Reynolds struggling with lightning around him, trying to break free from the grasp of the vines. Grey infused his body with the wind element, dashing straight at the vine that was holding onto Reynolds. He didn''t even think about holding back. Boom! He unleashed a ferocious blue tiger-looking flame that shot towards the main plant. While he was running towards Grey, multiple vines tried to stop him from advancing, but they were all cut down by the fire blade he held in his hand. He soon got to the vine holding onto Reynolds. After he attacked the main plant, the movement of the vines became relatively slower. By the time he got there, Reynolds had already managed to struggle free from the vine''s clutches. "Fuck this! I officially hate plants!" Reynolds cursed as soon as he managed to break free. Grey grabbed onto him, dragging him as he hurried back to the formation. As they got closer to the formation, Grey saw the look of astonishment in the eyes of the Fire Elementalist who was supposed to be protecting them. "Blue flames," The Fire Elementalist muttered. Grey and Reynolds were the only people who had managed to escape back into the formation after being dragged out from it. There were a few people who were surprised by Grey''s performance. One of them was undoubtedly the Fire Elementalist amongst the triplets. Seeing Grey''s rare blue flames for some reason increased the hatred he had towards him. The couples who intervened back at the guild were also very surprised by Grey''s performance. The man among the duo was already on the verge of running out of the formation when he saw both Grey and Reynolds being taken by the vines, but after seeing how Grey easily took care of the situation, he halted. After stopping, he sent a warning gaze towards the Fire Elementalist that was stationed there. When the vines first attacked Grey and Reynolds, he took note of the area, and he had noticed that Grey and Reynolds were the only two who were attacked. He knew this wasn''t an accident, the Fire Elementalist let the vines in on purpose. Chapter 349 - Half-Assed Fire Elementalists Grey glanced at the Fire Elementalist as they stepped back into the formation. He had already guessed what was going on, and he had made a few decisions, and one of them was that this guy was not going to make it back from this expedition. "Wow, it''s nice you''re alright, pretty boy," The lady came over and said with a smile. Grey forced out a smile, he wanted to tell off the lady that his name wasn''t pretty boy, but seeing that she was a little concerned about them even though they didn''t really have any previous relationships, he decided against it. "Yeah, someone seems to be doing a really bad job at keeping the vines out," Grey said, making sure the Fire Elementalist heard his statement. He made the mistake of thinking it was an accident the first time, hence he let his guard down. But now that he knew it was being done on purpose, he wouldn''t let this happen again. "Of course, what do you expect from these half-assed Fire Elementalists?" The lady said, looking straight at the Fire Elementalist. Most of the people in that area could tell that the Fire Elementalist was targeting Grey and Reynolds, but it had nothing to do with them. They all came here for the treasure, the lesser the people, the better their chances. After seeing Grey''s display a few minutes ago, they all knew they couldn''t count him out of the picture. The vines could withstand the attack of a Late stage Elementalist, and although Grey''s fire was super effective against them, it didn''t take out the fact that it was powerful. The Fire Elementalist didn''t speak against them because of the couple who were with them. The couple stayed with Grey and Reynolds as the group continued heading further into the forest. One hour later. "*Sigh* We''re finally free of those hateful plants," Reynolds sighed as the group left the forest. After spending just over one hour in the forest, the party was able to exit the forest. A few more people were snatched away by the plants, but luckily, most of them made it out. Grey estimated that about eight or ten people died during this one hour, which was a high number, given the fact that there were just over thirty people who came for the expedition. "They''re not that bad," Grey said with a chuckle. "Yeah, easy for you to say. You''re not the one whose attacks don''t have any effect on them," Reynolds snorted. "You''re alive, that''s what is important, right?" Grey asked. "I guess so," Reynolds said. He felt a little scared after almost being eaten by the plant. Even if he wanted to die, he didn''t want to be killed by a plant. If Klaus were to find out about him being killed by a plant, he would definitely mock him, even in death. The leader of the expedition addressed the group after they left the forest. Apparently, this was only one of the few dangerous routes they would pass through before getting to where the lightning tree was located. According to the leader, there were two more places that were as dangerous as this forest, if not even more. After going through these routes, they would also have to face the dangers that were lying in wait in the Chimera forest. Grey felt at least half of the group who started the expedition would most likely be killed before they even got to where the treasure was. He wanted to object on the path that they were taking, but seeing that the mercenaries weren''t complaining, he shut his mouth. After the leader finished speaking with the group, they continued their journey. They didn''t face any challenges for the rest of the day, after it got dark, the group made camp at an open field. Grey realized these people were already very familiar with the routes, so they seem to be calculating their movements, always stopping at an open field, surrounded by trees. This time, the couple stayed closer to them. Grey stayed with Reynolds and the couple for a few hours, before heading into the forest. He still had to train on the Great Void technique, so he couldn''t stay and chat with the couple. The couple were stunned when they saw Grey heading into the forest, after asking him what he wanted to do, they were even more surprised when he said he was going to train. After walking through the forest, Grey saw a cave. "This should do," He said, but after taking a step forward, he paused, "No, no, I''ll find somewhere else," Growl¡­ Hearing the growl, Grey knew the beast was at the Late stages of the Origin Plane. Although he could kill it, he didn''t want to go through the hassle. And not just that, but since he got close to Void, he had a change towards magical beasts. Unlike before when he would kill the beasts without any remorse, he now had a slight difference in attitude towards them. He retreated from the entrance of the cave and started walking in another direction, before long, he saw another cave, this one was luckily empty. When he walked in, he could sense that a magical beast lived in the cave, and it seemed like it went out to hunt for the night. Without wasting any time, he created some arrays around the entrance of the cave, to make sure the beast didn''t enter while he was engrossed with his training. He was still in the first phase of the training, simultaneously creating two space tunnels. With the experience he got from the previous day, he felt a little more confident in being able to at least create the tunnels today. The next morning. Grey walked to the entrance of the cave, only to see a white tiger, lying outside the cave. The tiger was in the Early stages of the Origin Plane. "Hmm, sorry, I had to make use of your home. But you can have it now," Grey said to the tiger which stood up as soon as it saw Grey. Grey released a bit of his aura, to scare the tiger from attacking while he spoke with it. The tiger watched him as he left the cave, walking back to the camp. Chapter 350 - Sensory Trick Grey joined up with Reynolds just before the group set off. "Wait, you trained all through the night?" The lady asked when she saw Grey coming back. "Hmm," Grey nodded. "Wow, such diligence. No wonder you''re powerful," The lady said with stars in her eyes. She hadn''t seen anyone like Grey for a long time now, so seeing how trained during the night, she couldn''t help but praise him. "Yeah, that''s how he usually is. He trains all through, never having time for anything else, even going out with friends," Reynolds said while scratching his head with a smile. The group continued talking as they headed into the forest. This forest was not as dangerous as the one they walked through the previous day. Although they occasionally encountered magical beasts at the Peak of the Origin Plane, they didn''t engage them since the beasts retreated as soon as they sensed them. Their journey was relatively smooth for that day, and day soon turned to night. After the group set up camp, Grey headed into the forest around them like he had been doing for the past nights. The next morning. "We''ll be going through two terrains, a swamp, and a rocky mountain. We''ll be depending mainly on the Lightning Elementalists when we get to the swamp, while Fire and Water Elementalists will handle the rocky mountains," The leader said to them. He didn''t say much to them, since all the mercenaries were familiar with the area, except for Grey and Reynolds. These were the two places he said would be as dangerous as the forest that was occupied by the plants. "Ah, finally, I place where my attacks would be effective," Reynolds said with a sigh of relief. Grey casually looked around, having seven different elements made him the most versatile Elementalist alive. No matter the condition, he would have the element that could counter it. He would be complete once he comprehends the light element, that would make him have all eight elements he knew of. There was also the possibility of the wood element that wood fanatic spoke about, but he wasn''t thinking about that, for now. Two hours later. The group stopped, looking ahead of them. In front of them was a large swamp. "The horses will be safe here, we''ll complete the rest of the journey on foot," The leader of the expedition said as he highlighted his horse. The rest followed suit, tying down the horses by the trees. "Are they safe here?" Reynolds asked the couple while he was tying his horse to a tree. "Yeah, this isn''t our first time coming here. As long as the horses stay put, they''ll be fine," The lady said. "There''s an array around this area, although some mercenaries tend to act mindlessly, they know the value of having a horse in such an area," Grey said while tying his horse. "Such sharp senses, looks like I keep underestimating you," The man looked at Grey, impressed. Not all the mercenaries here knew of the array that was placed here to protect the horses, yet Grey who was coming here for the first was able to sense it immediately. "It''s not really that hard to notice. I picked up the clue when that guy said we should leave the horses here. Given the journey, there''s no way he''d want us to go back on foot since it would be extremely taxing and dangerous," Grey explained. "You picked it up just from that?" The man asked, a little taken aback. "Yeah," Grey nodded. ''That, and because I''m exceptionally proficient in arrays. I''ve sensed this array from over five hundred meters away,'' Grey scoffed inside. Even though these people seemed to be good to them, there''s no way he was going to tell them he was good at arrays. The leader of the expedition was the first to step into the swamp, after he entered, the others followed behind him. When Grey got to the swamp, he placed a finger in it and sent out a slight vibration, using the earth element as base. This was a technique he learned after reading about bats using echolocation. He would use the earth element, creating some sort of inaudible vibrations from his fingers. The vibration will spread out from where he was standing, covering an area of at least four hundred meters radius. He rarely used it previously, but in an area like this swamp, it was quite handy. He would be able to locate the magical beasts hiding in the swamp. Reynolds and the couple looked at him strangely, not comprehending why he placed his finger in the swamp. They were the last group to head into the swamp. "There are two magical beasts within a hundred meters from here, in that area. They can''t be counted as powerful, but with a surprise attack, they wouldn''t have any problems with taking out an Elementalist in the Late stages of the Origin Plane," Grey explained. "You sensed them just by placing your finger in the swamp?" The lady asked, surprised. "I''m a survivor, I try to learn as many useful things as I can. You can never know when they might come in handy," Grey shrugged before stepping into the swamp. After he placed his leg on the swamp, his leg sank to the knee level, before stopping. ''Hmm, this will impede my movement,'' He thought. He used the wind element to wrap his legs, from the foot to his knees. The wind moved the muddy water as he walked through it, making it feel as if he was walking on plain ground. Reynolds and the couple followed behind Grey, for some reason, he unconsciously became the leader of their small group. The few times the couple saw him in action, he earned their respect. Especially after seeing how he was able to easily sense the array, and the magical beasts hiding in the swamp. "Huh? Grey, how are you walking so freely?" Reynolds asked while struggling through the muddy swamp. "Oh, it''s another skill I picked up from reading books," Grey shrugged it off, refusing to tell him the reason. Reynolds wanted to reprimand him at first, but after recalling Grey''s usual behavior, he guessed he was probably hiding something from the couple. After walking around fifty meters forward. Splash! Boom! Something jumped out from the swamp, dragging one of the men in the group in. Before the attack of the man standing close could reach the beast, it dragged the man inside. "What was that?" A man exclaimed. The beast acted very fast, giving no one the time to see it''s features. ''Heh! The lower the number of people who reach the place, the better,'' Grey thought. He could sense there was a reason the leader decided to pass through this route, and if his guess was correct, it was to reduce the number of people who would reach where the lightning tree was located. Reynolds and the couple tensed up when they saw this. Reynolds tensed up because he hated sneak attacks, the couple tensed up because the person who was dragged down was someone who was at the Peak of the Origin Plane, just like them. "How did the beast hide its presence that well?" The lady asked, looking in Grey''s direction. "I have no idea, but with my technique, I have no issues with locating them," Grey said. Grey continued walking ahead of the group, guiding them through the swamp, unhindered. Some of the individuals in the main group tensed up when they saw the man who was grabbed into the water. Ten minutes later. Three more people had been dragged into the swamp, the speed of the beasts'' attack was something they couldn''t keep up with. But this wasn''t the first time some of them had come here, so they were prepared. In the past ten minutes, two magical beasts had been killed by the group. The beasts were fishes which seemed to have things like arms below their fins. They had sharp rows of teeth which could easily bite through a human. "This place is around one kilometer or so, so we''ll be exiting soon," The lady explained. Grey estimated they had walked around eight hundred meters in ten minutes. If they were alone, then they would''ve exited the swamp by now, but since they didn''t want to attract attention from the others, they walked at a slower pace. Another five minutes went by before the group exited the swamp. One more person died before they left the swamp. While six more magical beasts were killed in the space of five minutes. After exiting the swamp, the group didn''t delay and immediately headed towards the rocky mountain. The leader of the expedition wanted them to get to the Chimera forest before nightfall. They walked for another hour before the visage of the rocky mountain showed up before them. "Which magical beasts occupy this mountain?" Grey asked the couple as they headed towards the mountain. "Apes," The couple replied simultaneously. Chapter 351 - Thats How You Do It! "Apes?" Grey looked at the mountain curiously. "Stone Apes to be precise. The leader of the Stone Apes is at the Peak of the Origin Plane. We''ve encountered it a few times, but it''s too strong, so we tend to always escape," The man said, making the lady chuckle. Apes are generally known for their strength, Stone Apes are regarded as one of the strongest in the Ape species due to the immense strength the earth element adds to their already great strength. ''I''d like to see how powerful their physical bodies are,'' Grey thought. His physical strength has grown slightly weaker compared to his cultivation strength. Grey and Reynolds continued speaking with the couple who were telling them about some of their adventures and near death experiences. Grey listened intently to their stories, trying to gather knowledge from the stories. The group soon got to the foot of the mountain. They immediately started the climb when they got there. They climbed for only about three minutes before encountering the first Ape. These Apes usually move in hordes, so seeing one means more weren''t far from it. The Ape stood at around three meters, with a dark brownish fur. The group quickly made a move on the Stone Ape, killing it before it was able to call for others. The leader of the expedition had advised that it would be better if they did not have a brawl with the Apes. Their numbers had reduced by over thirty from when they set off from the town. The Apes would have the advantage in numbers, but there was only one Ape that''s at the Peak of the Origin Plane, so the group had the advantages in terms of individual strength. After they killed the first Ape, they extracted the beast core, before moving forward. They walked for another twenty minutes, killing eight more Apes as they advanced. Grey felt astounded by the proficiency of the group. He watched on as they killed the Apes in a matter of seconds, not giving them even the chance to make as much as a single noise. They soon got to the middle of the mountain, as they went higher, the frequency in encountering the Apes increased by a large margin. There are times they would encounter two or three as they went higher. According to the couple, the leader of the Ape resided on the eastern part of the mountain, not at the mountain top, so they weren''t worried about meeting it at the top. By the time they got to three fourths of the mountain, they encountered a small horde of Apes. The horde contained about twelve Stone Apes, all in the Origin Plane. Four were in the Late stages, while the rest were in the Mid and Early stages. The group was quick to attack. Grey, Reynolds and the couple were at the end of the moving group, so they didn''t bother themselves with attacking with the others, instead, they looked around, making sure that their backs were safe. Roar! One of the Late stage Origin Plane Stone Apes roared, calling for backup from the others in the mountain. Rumble! A few seconds later, Grey suddenly felt the ground shaking, even some pebbles were bouncing on the ground. He looked behind him, and his facial expression changed. ''Crap!'' He complained about the sight before him. Over fifty Stone Apes were charging towards them, and in front of the Stone Apes was a larger one, almost two times the size of the others. Grey didn''t need anyone to point it out to him, that was definitely the leader of the Apes. They were at the back of the group, so naturally, they had to fight against the Apes that were running over from this direction. "We''ll hold off the leader, you two try to stay alive," The man said, stepping in front of Grey and Reynolds. His wife joined him as well. Grey seeing the situation didn''t try to stop them. Even though he was powerful, there was no way he could fight against that Ape in his current state, unless he uses the Fusion State. They stepped to the side, preparing to fight against the weaker ones, at least those in the Late stages of the Origin Plane. Boom! The couple attacked the Stone Ape simultaneously, surprisingly, both husband and wife were Water Elementalist. The wife made a water snake that she sent towards the Ape, trying to halt its movement. While the husband created an Ice hammer that he slammed into the Ape. Bang! The Stone Ape threw out a punch, enforced with the earth element. When it''s fist came in contact with the ice hammer, the hammer shattered on impact. It tried to hold onto the tail of the snake, but since it''s made of water, it''s hand passed through it. The water snake coiled around its legs, before turning into a semi solid state so that it would be powerful enough to hold it down. The Ape was stopped for a few seconds by this, but after it forcefully moved its legs, the water snake was ripped into two. With the couple holding off the leader of the Stone Apes, Grey and the others started fighting against the other Apes. Grey was facing off against a Late stage Stone Ape, using the fire element, he sent multiple fireballs at it, which exploded in impact. The Ape was forced back by the explosion, after taking a few steps back, it grabbed a huge boulder from the ground, and crushed it to smaller pieces. After crushing it, they floated into the air, before shooting straight for Grey and the people who were around him. Grey looked around, and to his surprise, the Fire Elementalist who allowed the vines reach for him and Reynolds was just within the attack range of the stones the Ape sent. He squinted his eyes, and a cunning smile appeared on his face. With a light and swift movement, he took a step forward. As his feet touched the ground, an earth wall rose from the ground, blocking the pieces of stones that were shooting towards them. He made the wall a little softer in the area where the Fire Elementalist was. The Fire Elementalist was focused on fighting against the Stone Ape that charged at him, but he naturally had his eyes around the battlefield so as to be able to escape from sneak attacks. He initially wanted to move out of the area of the attack since he was just at the end of the range. If he moved four or five meters forward, he would be able to go out of the attack range. But on seeing the earth wall that sprang up, he decided against it. Moving forward would put him in the attack range of three more Apes, so he was glad he didn''t have to move. The Fire Elementalist didn''t know who set up the earth wall, but for some reason, he felt uneasy. He swept the feeling of unease out of his mind as he focused on the Ape before him. Crack! Pu-chi! Multiple stones easily passed through the earth wall, piercing into the body of the Fire Elementalist. He managed to react, but he was a little bit slow, so he was hit in his throat and on his back. Blood started gushing out of his throat since the stone passed through it, leaving a hole in it. He held onto his bleeding neck with one hand, as he turned around to look at the earth wall. His eyes widened when he saw that only the part where he was located was breached through. He looked further back and noticed the one who created the wall. Grey was looking at him with a small smirk. His eyes widened even further, his sockets almost popping out. He tried to speak, but he spat out a mouthful of blood as he opened his mouth. Bam! The Stone Ape he was previously fighting against quickly capitalized on the time he used in turning and looking at Grey. The Ape smacked him to the ground with its huge hand, crushing his head in the process. Grey removed the wall when he noticed the attack had stopped. No one noticed the small exchange between Grey and the Fire Elementalist because everything happened in a matter of seconds. From the time Grey created the earth wall, to the time the Fire Elementalist was killed by the Ape wasn''t even close to ten seconds. This was the second element Grey had used in front of the group. Although he previously used the wind element at the forest, he didn''t make it known, only using it to enhance his speed. If an Overlord Plane expert were to be around, they would naturally notice it, but since they were all in the Origin Plane, they would see the things he wanted them to see. ''That''s how you do it,'' Grey said inside, as if schooling the Fire Elementalist on how to secretly kill someone in the presence of others. Unfortunately, there''s no way for the Fire Elementalist to learn since he was already dead. Chapter 352 - Second To None! Grey attacked the Ape after dismissing the earth wall. Swoosh! To the surprise of everyone, Grey charged towards the Ape and threw his fist at it. Seeing Grey, the Ape threw its huge fist at him. Under the surprised gaze of everyone, Grey and the Ape''s fist collided. Bang! The Ape was sent flying when the two fists collided. Grey coated his fist with the fire element, so when his fist made contact with the Ape''s fist, it caused an explosion, sending the Ape flying. "Wow! Such powerful flames!" The lady exclaimed when she saw Grey was able to actually send the Ape flying. Very few of them would be able to accomplish this feat of his. The few people who saw him sending the Ape flying unconsciously added him among the people who were favorites to obtain the lightning tree. One of the reasons they felt this way was because of his insane speed. Some of them had noticed it at the forest when they were attacked by the vines, so seeing him show such strength, added with the speed, they felt he was someone who should be placed at the top with the others at the Peak of the Origin Plane. ''He''s gotten stronger,'' Reynolds looked on as Grey retreated after sending the Ape flying with a punch. He smiled wryly, he was happy seeing his friend improving so much, but this placed more pressure on him. Being close to someone like Grey would naturally push anyone to want to improve faster. The truth was, Grey was actually the reason he decided to leave Eternal City quicker. When he watched Grey defeat that group that was chasing after him, he felt inspired to train further. The weeks he spent traveling had yielded a good result, only, he wasn''t as dedicated as Grey. He couldn''t spend all his time training, just like Klaus, he liked having fun sometimes. "Retreat as you fight!" The leader of the expedition''s voice rang out from the front. He was a bit stronger than the couple individually, but if the couple fought him as a team, they would be able to defeat him. Grey already understood this, this was why he didn''t chase after the Ape after sending it flying even though that was the best time to kill it. The couple continued fighting against the leader of the Apes. After the group at the forefront killed the beasts in front of them, some of them moved to the back, so as to help the people at the back. "Huh? Where''s Roberts?" The Fire Elementalist amongst the triplets asked when he came to the back. "He''s dead, he got careless," One of the fighters at the back told him about the guy who was killed. They were all familiar with each other, so they naturally knew the name of the guy Grey plotted against. "How''s that possible? I''ve known him for years, he''s not one who would neglect an enemy in front of him," The Fire Elementalist said with a surprised look. After thinking about it, he decided to keep it at the back of his head since they were in a difficult position. Luckily, the Apes don''t usually leave the mountain. So as long as they are able to get to the other side of the mountain, then they would be able to escape from the assaults of the Apes. Ten minutes later. The group was still fighting against the Apes, they had already gotten to the top of the mountain, and had been able to kill almost five Apes, but two more from the group had died under the assault of the Apes. Grey was still amongst the people who were fighting against the Apes at the back of the group while they retreated. Some of the people had changed with others after they started getting tired, but he refused to change with others. He enjoyed fighting, and long fights are always beneficial to him. He is using these Apes to hone himself, and unlike the others, he hadn''t been hurt by any of the Apes. The couple watched him in surprise, they could almost see his improvements as the battle raged on. What they found even more astonishing was the fact that he hadn''t been hit, not by a single strike. Reynolds was still on the battlefield, fighting against the Apes in the Mid stages of the Origin Plane. Although they were stronger than him, the pressure was exactly what he needed. After leaving the trial land, he was unable to break through. The thickness of the elemental essence here was lesser than the one in the trial land, so advancing had become a little difficult. Battles like this were exactly what he wanted, he wanted to use them to push himself further. The group continued fighting against the Apes for almost one hour, and in this time, they had managed to just go past the middle of the mountain. Because of the constant attacks of the Apes, descending was slower than when they were ascending the mountain. Over twenty Apes had been killed in this time, and five more from the group had been killed. Currently, they were not even up to fifteen. All the people who were still alive were either at the Late stages of the Origin Plane or at the Peak of the Origin Plane, with the exception of Grey and Reynolds. The leader of the expedition would occasionally throw a glance at Grey and Reynolds, especially Reynolds, surprised that he was still alive. The reason he took this route was to eliminate all the weaklings, and of course, use them as cannon fodders. Some of them knew this, but their greed wouldn''t let them stop. "Disperse!" The leader of the expedition suddenly ordered, ditching the leader of the Apes he was fighting against. Grey charged over to where Reynolds was fighting against an Ape, he threw a punch that forced the Ape to retreat. After the Ape retreated, he held onto Reynolds, dashing away with him. Reynolds boosted himself with the lightning element, so it wouldn''t feel as if he was being carried by Grey. The Apes were slower since they were of the earth element which meant they had more strength, but lesser agility. This was something Grey had grown accustomed to while he was still in the trial land. If he said he came second when it came to running away from magical beasts, then no one would dare say they were the first. He could almost say thhe time he spent in the trial land was for honing his escaping skill, he wasn''t too proud of it, but he knew this was a necessity in surviving. Grey was able to get to the foot of the mountain before even the leader of the group could. This once again shocked everyone who went for the expedition, except for Reynolds who already knew Grey. When they got to the foot of the mountain, they continued heading forward since the Apes would naturally attack them if they stayed there any longer. Two hours later, the group was once again faced by another challenge, but this time, it was from other humans. When they got to the entrance of the Chimera forest, they saw two other groups camping outside the forest. The two groups consisted of around twelve to eighteen people. Grey looked at one of the groups closely, and he saw a familiar face. The young man he met at the inn when he entered the town. When he joined the guild for the expedition, he thought the young man would be among them, but to his surprise, he wasn''t from the guild. Grey glanced at the young man for a few seconds, and just like the time at the inn, the young man noticed him, giving him a nod as a sign of greeting. Grey nodded as well, before shifting his gaze to the other camp. The first camp was occupied by mostly people in their early and late twenties, but the second camp was occupied by middle-aged people. It was already almost sunset, so the leader of the expedition decided they should set up camp for the night. Grey went out at night just like the previous days, he wouldn''t slack even for one day. While he was heading into the forest, he sensed three people following him. In the forest. Grey stopped in front of a tree which had a hole in it. "Come out, I believe we can speak freely here," He turned around. The young man from the inn walked out from behind a tree, accompanied by two young ladies. "Such sharp senses, this was why I wanted you to come with me for this trip," The young man said, clicking his tongue. "Cut to the chase, what do you want?" Grey said casually. "I''m offering you the same deal, except this time, we''ll be sharing it among us four," The young man said. "And what about your group?" Grey asked. "They''re just here to help us acquire it, but I don''t think they''ll be enough," The young man said. "I''ll think about it," Chapter 353 - Chimera Forest "I''ll think about it," Grey said, after seeing the trio continue standing there, he asked, "Anything else?" "No, we''ll be leaving now," The young man said, before turning around. "Wait!" Grey called out to them. The young man paused, turning around to look at Grey. "Where are you from?" Grey asked curiously. "Is that important?" The young man asked. "Hmm, no. You can go," Grey waved them off before jumping onto the branch of the tree. He didn''t enter the hole yet since he didn''t want the young man to know what he wanted to do. The young man nodded, before leaving with the two young ladies. Grey sat atop the tree branch, contemplating the young man''s offer. To be honest, he wasn''t interested in the offer. After hearing what happened to that group, he didn''t trust the young man one bit. ''If I''m able to use this technique before we see the treasure, then I''m confident in being able to obtain all of the lightning tree.'' Grey thought while working on an array around the tree. After making the array, he stepped into the hole. The next morning. Grey came out of the forest earlier this time since they would be setting out sooner. "There are multiple magical beasts in the Late stages of the Origin Plane, as you all know, the Chimera isn''t the only Overlord Plane magical beast in this forest, it''s only the strongest. Most of you already know where to avoid while we''re going into the forest¡­" The leader of the expedition gave a small briefing to them about the forest. Grey and Reynolds were the only ones who didn''t know where to avoid while moving in the forest, luckily, the couple was with them. They brought out a small map, handing it to Grey. There were different places marked on the map, some of the marks were bigger, while others were smaller. According to the couple, the larger marks was considered the most dangerous, it was occupied by Overlord Plane magical beasts, while the smaller ones were areas that were occupied by magical beasts at the Peak of the Origin Plane. "Thank you," Grey showed his gratitude to the couple for their help since they started the journey. "It''s nothing. The reason we initially started helping you guys out is that my wife hated the triplet, so anything she could do to annoy them was fine. But in the end, you guys are pretty nice, especially you," The man said, looking at Reynolds. They spoke more with Reynolds, so they felt closer to him. Grey smiled when he heard this, he wasn''t really bothered if the couple liked him or not. "Why did you guys come for this expedition when the lightning tree is of no use to any of you?" He asked curiously. He recalled hearing the Fire Elementalist amongst the triplet asking them what they were doing there when they had no use for the lightning tree. And throughout the journey so far, the couple had been using only the water element. "And who says it''s of no use?" The man said with a smile while throwing a glance at Grey. Grey was surprised when he saw lightning flashing quickly in the eyes of the man. ''Oh, he also has the lightning element,'' He thought. He nodded to the man before focusing his attention on the map. If he was able to acquire the lightning tree, it would depend on Reynolds if he wanted to share it with the couple or not. Grey wasn''t interested in taking a share since splitting the tree would greatly reduce the lightning essence it had stored up for so long. This was something he learned from the books he read, this was also why he didn''t trust the young man who asked him to team up with him. Everyone would naturally want to refine the tree at its best state. After the leader of the expedition finished speaking to them, they immediately set off into the forest. Once they get to where the lightning tree was located, it would be every man for themselves. One of the other groups entered the forest a few minutes after the guild entered. The group the young man came with was the last to step into the forest. The young man had a smirk on his face as he took a step into the forest. In the forest. Grey''s group didn''t go far before they encountered magical beasts. None of the beasts had gotten to the Origin Plane yet, so the group quickly killed them, not forgetting to remove their cores before they continued heading deeper into the forest. After getting almost one and a half kilometers deep into the forest, the stages of the magical beasts started slowly increasing. Grey closely monitored the area, while staring at the map to see how accurate it was. Looking closely, he noticed that they had passed a few of the areas marked on the map. These areas were occupied by magical beasts at the Peak of the Origin Plane. According to the map, they still needed to go three kilometers deeper before they will get to where the lightning tree was located. There were three larger marks around that place, so there''s a chance that they might encounter magical beasts at the Overlord Plane when they get to the lightning tree. They continued heading forward, fighting against the magical beasts that appeared before them. They were forced to stop after going deeper by another kilometer. Ahead of them was a pack of wind wolves. Grey looked at the map, and according to it, these wolves should be around eight hundred meters away from here. "Looks like they moved," The man said. "Yes, for them to move means only one thing, an Overlord Plane magical beasts chased them from their territory," The lady said. "Couldn''t they just be roaming around?" Reynolds asked. "No, we''ve been coming here for over ten years now, and whenever the leader of a pack moves along with them, it means they were chased by a stronger group. There are few wolf packs in this forest, and only the leader of the wind wolves had managed to reach the Peak of the Origin Plane," The man explained. "Oh, okay." Chapter 354 - Chimera Forest II "Everyone, be careful," The leader of the expedition said to the group. The wolves had already made eye contact with them, and they were already preparing to attack. The wolf pack numbered around twenty-five or so. What made these wolves difficult to handle was their speed. Whoosh! The wolves were the first to attack, sending out multiple wind blades towards the group. This wasn''t the first time Grey was encountering wind wolves, but these ones were the strongest. Grey and the others were able to easily dodge the attacks, but they were met with more attacks from the wolves. After the wolves first two elemental attacks yielded no results, they charged at the group with their monstrous speed. Boom! Bang! The group soon started a brawl with the wolves. Grey mostly focused on dodging, while keeping an eye out for Reynolds. If he sees that he''s in any type of danger, then he would immediately step in to help resolve it. While the group was fighting against the wind wolves, the second group who entered the forest after them could be seen heading towards that area. When they saw the group fighting against the wolves, they stopped about a hundred and fifty meters away from where the battle was going on. They watched on for a minute or so, before taking another route. The last group also came along, but just like the previous one, they followed another route, so as not to get involved with the current ongoing battle. But the sudden change in the position of the wind wolves showed them they couldn''t use the previous knowledge they had of this place. Currently, there''s a chance that any of the groups might just encounter an Overlord Plane magical beast out of its usual territory. After the group fought against the wolves for almost twenty minutes, they managed to kill over half of them, without suffering any deaths from their ranks. Although some of them were injured, it was just small superficial wounds. Awoo! The leader of the wind wolves called out to the others, retreating. It was fighting against the leader of the expedition, and it had been suppressed throughout the battle. Reynolds was part of the few people who were injured. He had a gash on his right thigh, but it had already stopped bleeding for a while now. "Can you walk properly with that?" Grey asked when he came close to him. "Yeah, just a little scratch," Reynolds nodded. "You call that a scratch?" Grey looked at him strangely. "Haha, don''t worry about it. It''ll take more than this to keep me down," Reynolds laughed. Grey shrugged before looking at the wolf corpses around the area. "We should leave," The leader said, stepping over the wolf corpse in front of him. The others nodded and continued heading into the forest. They noticed the two other groups while they were fighting, so they knew they had to hurry up, or the expedition would be a waste of time. Grey stayed close to Reynolds, only when he noticed the wound had slowly started healing did he focus on the road ahead. He was making some slight changes to the map as they walked deeper, to make it more accurate, in case the couple wanted to come in here again. As they walked deeper, they saw signs of battles in different places. But there weren''t any corpses of people or magical beasts. The group tensed up as they followed the route the group ahead of them was using. Being behind them meant that they wouldn''t need to worry about what was in front since the group would''ve already cleared it. One hour later. They saw the two groups who passed them while they were fighting against the wind wolves. From how quickly they got here, it looked like they didn''t encounter any horde of beasts. The two groups were standing, looking in front of them. Grey''s group soon got to where they were standing. On getting there, Grey looked ahead of him. In front of them was a barren-looking land. It looked like a place that was burnt a long time ago. Grey guessed it was probably caused by the constant lightning strikes. But the land wasn''t what caught his attention, it was the small glowing tree that he could see from where he was standing. Even from such distances, he could sense the essence inside. The tree was located on top of a hill, when Grey looked below the hill, he was surprised by the sheer number of magical beasts that were roaming around the hill. He could tell they were all lightning attribute beasts. The beasts were using the bits of essence that the tree was constantly releasing to improve themselves, this was almost like holy ground for these beasts. ''This would be great for Rey! If only there was one more, then I''d break through to the Seventh stage in a matter of minutes,'' He thought while shifting his attention back to the lightning tree. "Hey bud, how confident are you in acquiring it?" Reynolds asked silently. "Before today, I''d say sixty percent. But now, I''m a hundred percent certain," Grey said confidently. A few people around them overheard his statement. "Heh! Such arrogance," A man scoffed. "There''s a difference between confidence and arrogance," Grey replied calmly. He was unperturbed by the looks the people were giving him because he had been able to successfully learn the Great Void technique the previous night. He hadn''t perfected it, but the little level of mastery he had of it gave him the confidence in being able to acquire the lightning tree. Grey could confidently say he was the fastest person in this place if he were boosted with his lightning, wind, and physical prowess. Now with the inclusion of the Great Void technique, he didn''t think any of these people in the Origin Plane would be able to stop him if he wanted to escape. The only thing he had to figure out is how Reynolds would escape. Chapter 355 - Red Lightning "Hey, find a place to hide once the struggle starts," Grey whispered to Reynolds. Reynolds nodded. He knew his strength all too well, getting involved in the struggle would undoubtedly distract Grey. Grey nodded when he saw how quickly Reynolds agreed to his suggestion. All three groups waited at the forest, none stepping a foot into the barren land. But it didn''t take long before greed pushed someone to take the first step. A man from one of the other groups dashed into the barren land, attacking the magical beast in front of him. With one person charging forward, the others started jumping in as well. They couldn''t take the risk of watching on. What if the guy manages to succeed and acquire the lightning tree, then what. Grey stood at the edge of the forest, watching people charge into the barren land. Reynolds and the couple were standing beside him. Most of the people from their group had also charged forward. The couple stayed for a minute before joining in as well. They weren''t the only ones who couldn''t hold back anymore, even the triplet, and the leader of the expedition joined in as well. There were different types of magical beasts at the hill, but they all had the same element, the lightning element. "Hey, bud, should I hide now?" Reynolds asked. "Not yet, things just started. Do you think these are the only beasts here?" Grey replied softly. "Hmm, okay," Reynolds answered. "What do you think about the couple?" Grey asked curiously. "Them, well, they''re good people. I don''t really know much about them, but they''ve been good to us throughout the journey," answered Reynolds. "Okay. But are you willing to share the tree with them?" Grey asked. Reynolds fell into thoughts for a few seconds, "I can''t say for now, I''ll know what to do after acquiring it," "Okay." Grey nodded. Grey and Reynolds stood at the end of the forest, watching the people who were fighting. Grey suddenly sensed someone walking towards him, he tilted his head to the right, only to see the young man from the inn walking in his direction. "So, what''s your decision?" The young man asked after getting within ten meters of them. "I''m not interested," Grey replied in a straightforward manner. "Hmm, working together would make things easier, don''t you think?" The young man asked again. "I prefer working alone," Grey turned his attention to the people who were fighting against the beasts. Within the short time of three minutes, over twenty beasts have been killed. A few people had died as well due to the numbers of the beast, but they were all those in the Mid stages of the Origin Plane. The young man squinted his eyes, looking at Grey. "Why did you come to me?" Grey asked when he sensed the young man''s gaze. "There''s something different about you. You ooze a sense of confidence even with so many people challenging for the treasure," The young man said. "If I remember correctly, you were the one who found this place, right?" Grey asked. "Well, not exactly. I overheard some mercenaries speaking about it in the forest, so I questioned them. They are among the people who came with me today," The young man explained. "But you decided to spread the information instead of keeping it, why?" Grey asked, darting a glance in his direction. "Okay, the truth is¡­" The young man paused and looked around, trying to make sure no one was close to them. He gave Reynolds a look. "He''s with me," Grey said. "I don''t want the tree, what I want is below the tree," The young man said. Grey raised a brow in suspicion, "Below the tree?" "Yes, that''s all I can tell you. You can keep the tree, but there''s something below it that I want. Without eliminating these beasts, or at least most of them, there''s no way to obtain it," The young man said. "Hmm, how precious is it?" Grey asked. "More than the lightning tree," The young man said. "Heh! How are you so sure I wouldn''t steal it?" Grey asked with a playful laugh. "Because I''m the only one who can use it," The young man stretched out his hand, and red lightning danced around it. "Oh! I see," Grey exclaimed softly, giving the young man another glance. ''No wonder he needed these people to kill the beasts here,'' Grey thought in enlightenment. Although he wasn''t too sure of the young man''s plan, he could already get the catch of it. He had read about red lightning in an ancient book at the Academy. It was among the strongest types of lightning, but unfortunately, it came with a major drawback. It needed something like a sacrifice. It''s strengthened by a mixture of blood and lightning. If a Lightning Elementalists who possesses the red lightning wants to strengthen it, they would need to go to a place that is filled with lightning essence, and this essence must be mixed with blood. It''s somewhat of a gruesome thing to do, but there are few people who possess this rare red lightning, and there are fewer places filled with lightning essence in the Azure continent. "What about the lightning tree?" Grey asked. "It''ll be fine," The young man replied. "All I need is for you to take the orb you''ll see after pulling out the lightning tree," He continued. "And what happens if you were to reach it before I do?" Grey asked. He doesn''t see anything that''s beneficial in this. If he were to pull out the lightning tree, he would naturally take whatever he sees below it. "The probability isn''t too high. The people I sent there are to ensure that no one reaches there before I do, but I can''t be too certain if they can stop others." The young man said. "That doesn''t answer my question," Grey said. "Fine, what do you want?" The young man asked. "Something to show your sincerity," Grey said. "Fine, take this." The young man threw a necklace at him, the pendant had a faint bluish glow. "Just looking at that already shows you it''s very valuable. If I get to the tree first, you can keep that. But if you do, you¡­" "Can keep it as well. This is like a payment for my services," Grey cut him short while pretending to hide the necklace in his shirt. "You¡­ fine, but make sure you get it," The young man said. "Of course," Grey smiled. Reynolds looked at the face of Grey and noticed there was a notable change in his expression. "Rey, I''ll be making a move first," Grey said, taking the first step into the barren land. As soon as his foot made contact with the ground, he shot straight to one of the magical beasts close to him. The beast was a small lightning fox. Its size and speed made it extremely difficult to handle, but for Grey, it was easy to deal with. Bam! Grey kicked the fox which was moving swiftly through the air. Bang! The fox slammed into the ground, bleeding from all parts of its body. It shook a few times before it stopped moving altogether. After killing the first beast, Grey charged at another beast, killing it with one clean strike again. All the beasts he was killing were those with low stages. ''I hope this works,'' Grey thought as he slaughtered his way closer to the hill. The pendant the young man gave to him contained something he read about. It was something that helped with improving consciousness. When he first sensed it, he couldn''t believe his eyes, it was only after holding it did he realize it was real. When the young man came close to him, he had sensed it the first time, but the feeling was very faint. It was only after a few times did he confirm it. He didn''t even think this was the first thing the young man would offer him when he asked for payment. ''Bud, looks like my luck is getting better,'' Grey thought while dishing out another strike. He wanted to kill as many beasts as he possibly could. The young man had already paid him anyway, and he would also collect the lightning tree for Reynolds, so it was a win-win all around. Reynolds watched as Grey went from beast to beast, killing anyone he encountered. He looked at the young man who was smiling by the side. "Let''s hope you''re not playing tricks on him, or else, you wouldn''t like the side he shows you," After speaking, Reynolds slowly retreated from the area. The young man looked at him but kept his mouth shut. He still had the same smile he previously had. Grey and the others were fighting against the beasts, killing multiple beasts as they tried to get closer to the hill. Unknown to most of them, the blood of the dead beasts were sinking into the ground, running straight to the hilltop. Chapter 356 - Unique Skill: Switch Bam! A silver panther slammed into the ground at the foot of the hill. Grey slowly walked closer to it, just as he was stretching his hand to extract the core, he noticed someone jumping to the front of the panther, carving a hole on its head, removing the core. He looked at the silhouette properly, only to realize it was the Lightning Elementalist from the triplet. The Lightning Elementalist gave him a look of contempt, before moving away with the beast core. This panther was a Late stage Origin Plane magical beast, so its core was valuable. Grey shook his head before he started climbing the hill. The hill was only around one hundred meters high or so, but the beasts that were on the way were all in the Late stages of the Origin Plane. The higher they went, the stronger the beasts. There are even some that are at the Peak of the Origin Plane. If those beasts were to stay in this place for three to four more months, then they''d be able to break through to the Overlord Plane, becoming rank five magical beasts. Others had already started climbing the hill before Grey started, he saw the couple were already within fifty meters away from the hilltop. The Darkness Elementalist amongst the triplet was around twenty meters away from the hilltop, and the leader of the expedition was just below him by a few meters. The number of beasts made the advancing difficult since most of the beasts from the thirty meters mark were at the Peak of the Origin Plane, and they weren''t few. Grey could easily get to where the lightning tree is located and retrieve it, but he was waiting a little longer because of his deal with the young man. He wanted to ask the young man where he got the liquid that was in the pendant. There isn''t a guarantee that the one in the pendant will be enough to heal Void, so if he could get a location of where more is, then he could head there personally to retrieve it. As time went on, more and more magical beasts were killed as the people kept advancing. Magical beasts weren''t the only ones who were dying, people from the three groups were dying as they stayed there longer. It couldn''t be helped, the beasts were just too much. Grey managed to get within the thirty meters mark, encountering his first opponent at the Peak of the Origin Plane. It was a Lightning Bull. It stood almost two and a half meters tall, and its horns were black, with silvery lines around it. The bull instantly charged at Grey when he confronted it. Grey sidestepped to the right, dodging the bull while using the earth element to raise a small three inches wall beneath the feet of the bull. The bull was easily tripped by the wall, slamming into the ground. Grey didn''t bother with it, he continued advancing forward. A few people were already within ten meters of the hilltop, and the Darkness Elementalist amongst the triplet was already on the hilltop, fighting against two beasts at the Peak of the Origin Plane. Due to the small distance between those still climbing the hill, their attacks sometimes hit others, causing and adding friction among the people. Grey focused on dodging the beasts that headed his way, moving quickly to the hilltop. It didn''t take long before he got there. The top of the hill was around twenty meters wide, with the place where the lightning tree was located being at the center. The top of the hill was congested by so many beasts that moving forward seemed almost impossible. While Grey was planning to make a move, he suddenly saw a red light flash by the side of his eyes. The red light quickly made its way through the beasts. Before any of them could react, the light had already gotten to where the lightning tree was located. Grey smirked, he knew this red light was none other than the young man. Now he understood why the young man wanted so many people here, without them fighting with the beasts, there''s no way he would go through without being stopped, even with such amazing speed. For the first time in Grey''s life, he saw someone that was almost as fast as he is if he went full throttle. The young man stretched out his hand, trying to take the lightning tree. "Heh!" Grey scoffed before taking a single step. After his foot touched the ground, he disappeared from his position, but that was not all. His position was now occupied by the young man who still had his hand outstretched, while Grey was standing next to the lightning tree. Grey grabbed the lightning tree, and the tree sent out lightning towards him, but he easily used the lightning element to deflect it before removing the tree from the ground. After uprooting the tree, a red orb appeared in the hole, he could still see blood flowing towards it. ''What if I try to refine it, what would happen?'' He thought to himself. He quickly picked up the orb. Just as he was about to turn around, he noticed something below the red orb, it was red just like the first orb but was darker. Compared to the first one, it was well hidden, and he couldn''t even sense it. ''Huh? Two orbs?'' He had a questioning look on his face, but he collected the orb nonetheless. The young man who caught mid-air was left stunned, he raised his head, only to see a magical beast charging towards his direction, he hurriedly looked around and saw Grey standing in the position he was previously standing. "How?" He muttered to himself. Everything happened quickly, so he didn''t see Grey collecting the first orb, he only saw him bending down. Grey turned to look at him with a smile. Other than the young man, no one else knew what happened because their views were impeded by the beasts. Roar! The magical beast closest to the spot where the lightning tree was previously located roared in anger. This was the strongest beast among the beasts here, its aura was already close to that of an Overlord Plane magical beast. ''Crap!'' Grey cursed out when he saw the magical beast charging towards him. Chapter 357 - Unique Skill: Switch II Grey hurriedly looked around, and the Darkness Elementalist amongst the triplet caught his eye, without wasting time, he took a step forward and disappeared. In his position stood the Darkness Elementalist who was defending against an attack. The Darkness Elementalist was shocked when he realized that the magical beast before him was gone, just as he was about to process what was going on, the claws of the Leopard that was coated with lightning struck his back, ripping off some of the flesh on his back. Bang! The strike sent him flying, landing in the midst of some of the magical beasts at the bottom of the hill. Grey, who was standing in the position where the Darkness Elementalist was, was helped by the blue vest which activated its defensive properties when Grey was unable to defend the attack. The attack sent him flying. Bam! He slammed into the body of another magical beast, pushing the beast backward. The body of the beast was the perfect cushion for him, helping him get his balance. After standing properly, he looked in the direction of the Leopard and was surprised when he couldn''t find the Darkness Elementalist. The Leopard stared at him with its angry eyes, scaring him a little. He quickly wrapped the lightning tree with a cloth, before keeping it in his loose shirt. Of course, that was just to deceive others, he truly kept it in his storage ring. ''This technique is beyond heavenly!'' Grey thought in excitement. The technique he used to switch places with the young man, as well as the Darkness Elementalist was a technique that was part of the Great Void technique. After gaining a bit of mastery, he realized he couldn''t just move to a designated area, but he could also switch places with anything that was there. This was a skill that would be greatly beneficial to him, only the consumption is higher when switching places. As things stand, he could use it five more times, and after that, he would be exhausted, even fighting with his other elements would be difficult by then. The Leopard charged towards him, making him turn around, fleeing. This was a unique skill he had honed in the trial land, and he was very confident in his fleeing abilities. On the cliff. Roar! The roar of the Leopard caught the attention of all the people who were still trying to climb to the top of the hill. "What''s that?" The Lightning Elementalist amongst the triplet asked. "Someone must have gotten the lightning tree," The leader of the expedition said, he was already close to the hilltop. "It must be brother," The Fire Elementalist said confidently. "I can''t say for sure, he isn''t the only one who has gotten to the top of the hill. The kid who came with us is there as well, then I recalled seeing a red flash, if my guess is correct, then it''s a human as well." The leader of the expedition said. "Hmph! That brat is lucky to be alive till now, if he dares to steal the lightning tree from brother, then death surely is¡­" The Fire Elementalist paused, looking at the figure that was flying towards the bottom of the hill. "Brother!" The Fire and Lightning Elementalist exclaimed simultaneously, darting straight to the bottom of the hill where the Darkness Elementalist crashed. Going down from a hill wish was just around one hundred meters high was a breeze for the duo, a single jump was all they needed. After getting to the ground, they were shocked by the sorry state of their brother. His back was bleeding profusely, and blood was running from the side of his mouth. They didn''t have time to ponder about what happened, they focused on fighting off the beasts that were running towards their brother. The Darkness Elementalist tried to stand up, but he was unable to. The Fire and Lightning Elementalist were still fighting against the beasts when they heard an annoying voice. "So that''s where you were, and I was searching for you all over," Grey said while charging towards the triplet, with the Leopard in tow. He planned on using the strength of the Leopard to deal with the triplet. He initially thought the Darkness Elementalist escaped, but he never thought he was actually thrown off the hill by the Leopard with a single strike. "You little piece of shit! What do you mean by that?" The Fire Elementalist immediately scolded when he saw Grey. But his expression changed when he noticed what Grey was bringing towards them. He could see a wicked grin in Grey''s expression, so it wasn''t hard to guess he must have had a hand in what happened to their brother. While Grey was running towards them, the Lightning Elementalist hastily picked up his brother. "Retreat," He said to the Fire Elementalist. "Count yourself lucky, brat!" The Fire Elementalist said before turning around. They knew they were no match for the Leopard that was chasing after Grey. If their brother was fine, then they had a chance, but with him being injured, they couldn''t take the risk. Grey grinned wildly, and with a step he vanished, appearing in front of the Fire Elementalist, where the Lightning and Darkness Elementalist were previously standing. Bang! He punched the face of the Fire Elementalist, sending him flying. The Lightning Elementalist who was trying to escape was shocked to see his brother in front of him. He recalled the Fire Elementalist was previously behind him. His pupils dilated when he saw his brother being sent flying by the kid who was behind them. Grey directed the punch he threw at the Fire Elementalist so well, making sure he was sent flying in the direction of the Lightning Elementalist. Now the Lightning Elementalist was caught in a dilemma, either he tries to save his brother or moves to the side to save himself. Saving the Fire Elementalist means putting both him, the Darkness Elementalist, and the Fire Elementalist in the range of attack of the Leopard.. But saving himself means he would be able to protect his life, as well as the Darkness Elementalist''s life, at the cost of the Fire Elementalist. Chapter 358 - The Expedition Is Over! The Lightning Elementalist pondered on which choice to take, and in the end, he valued his life more. He hastily moved to the side, to the delight of Grey. Roar! Smack! The Leopard smacked the Fire Elementalist with its paw, injuring him with his claws in the process. Surprisingly, the Fire Elementalist was unexpectedly sent flying in Grey''s direction once again. The Lightning Elementalist watched in dismay as his brother was thrown towards the kid he previously thought wasn''t even worth paying any attention to. Grey smiled when he saw the Fire Elementalist coming his way. He positioned himself in a fighting stance, drawing his right arm back, enforcing with every element he had in his arsenal. Bam! Boom! Grey punched the chest of the Fire Elementalist as he got close, with the blue flames in his hand exploding, causing further damage to the Fire Elementalist. While punching him, he made sure to punch him in the direction of the Leopard once again. The Lightning Elementalist almost lost his mind when he saw his brother going in the direction of the Leopard again. This time, since he was not standing in front of the Leopard, he decided to help his brother, but at the cost of hurting him. He couldn''t personally catch him since he was already carrying the Darkness Elementalist, so he threw a lightning orb that exploded, pushing his brother to the other direction. He tried to make the impact as light as possible, but with the Fire Elementalist already hurt by not just the Leopard''s first attack, but Grey''s brutal punch, it hurt a lot. The Leopard continued chasing after Grey, it wasn''t bothered with the Lightning Elementalist since he was out of its way. "The kid has it," The Lightning Elementalist muttered. He hurried over to where his brother was lying, and his appearance was far worse compared to the Darkness Elementalist. He could sense he was still alive, but barely. Grey''s punch was terrifyingly brutal, causing a crevice in the Fire Elementalist''s chest. The Fire Elementalist was barely bleeding because the heat from Grey''s flame when it exploded burnt all the injuries, while causing more damage as well. "The kid has the lightning tree!" The Lightning Elementalist yelled while pointing at Grey who was running away from the Leopard. He fed both his brothers the healing tonic he had with him. When the others heard his words, they looked at the direction he was pointing at, and sure enough, Grey was running away from the Leopard. When they sensed the aura of the Leopard, they immediately concluded what the Lightning Elementalist said was right. The Leopard was the strongest magical beast in this place, and for it to chase after a single person only meant the person took the treasure. The leader of the expedition looked at Grey in shock, likewise the couple. They never expected that Grey would be the one who would obtain the lightning tree, what was even more shocking was the fact that he was running away from a magical beast that even they weren''t sure they would be able to escape from. "Such talent, he must be from a powerful family," The leader of the expedition said. "To be honest, although I heard him saying he was confident in being able to obtain it, I didn''t believe him," The man couple said, the lady nodded as well. They only regarded him as a talented youngster, nothing else. They even felt he was arrogant when he made the statement. "What do we do now?" The lady looked at her husband. Most of the people here were already chasing after Grey as well. But surprisingly, those from the guild didn''t join in on the chase. This most likely has to do with the rules the leader said at the start of the expedition, whoever obtains the lightning tree owns it. Unfortunately, this rule did not apply to the people from the other two camps, even those from the young man''s camp were chasing after Grey. "Let''s settle our little conflict with those three," The man smiled while pointing at the triplet. "Lukka," The leader of the expedition called out to the man. "The expedition is over, we''re just settling some scores," Lukka said with a serious expression. "It''s not like they haven''t tried to kill us on several occasions," The lady said to the leader of the expedition. The leader of the expedition looked at the couple, then at the triplet before sighing. He couldn''t really dare to stop them, it''s not that he couldn''t, but he didn''t want to. He had witnessed the triplet trying to kill the couple a few times, but Lukka always comes up with a way to escape with his wife. The truth was, the triplet was the reason Lukka hadn''t been able to break through to the Overlord Plane yet. The couple jumped down from the hill, heading for the triplet. Presently, most of the beasts here have started retreating into the forest. The lightning tree was no longer in the place, so the lightning essence in the area was already starting to diminish. The people who were still alive were all currently hunting for Grey, except for those who came with the guild. It hadn''t been up to two minutes since Grey uprooted the lightning tree. With the beasts retreating, and the people changing their attentions to Grey, the Lightning Elementalist decided to take the opportunity to escape with his brothers within the chaos. The Darkness Elementalist is currently able to walk on his own, but the Fire Elementalist was out cold, so the Lightning Elementalist carried him on his shoulders. Just as they were about to leave the area, Lukka and his wife appeared in front of them. "My friends, what''s the rush?" Lukka chuckled mischievously. "Lukka, what''s the meaning of this?" The Lightning Elementalist said with a long face. He could already guess why the couple were blocking their path, but since the expedition was still on, he tried to put up a strong front. "Nothing, you see, the weather is nice today, so my husband and I decided it''s a good time to settle our dispute," The lady squinted her eyes as they approached the triplet. "Don''t forget we''re still on an expedition, the guild will not let you go if you break the rules," The Darkness Elementalist snorted coldly. "Hehe, don''t worry. The expedition is over," Lukka laughed before attacking. Chapter 359 - Replica Grey was currently running away, with the Leopard not too far from him. The aura of the Leopard made running easier, all the magical beasts retreat whenever they get close. ''It''s been a while I''ve been chased like this,'' Grey thought as he ran. Of course, he could easily escape. If he uses the space element, he would be able to give the Leopard a considerable distance. With the Leopard''s intelligence, it naturally knew when to give up. But Reynolds was still in the forest, and he couldn''t leave without him. ''Huh? They''re following after me,'' Grey looked behind him, he could sense people coming in his direction. ''Hehe, time to ditch this stupid cat on them,'' He snickered inside before changing his direction. While running, he broke a tree branch that was exactly the same size as the lightning tree. As he ran, he steadily pumped the lightning element into the tree. With his high elemental grade, and mastery in arrays, he managed to create an array around the branch, that was about to suck in the lightning element into the tree branch. Before long, the tree looked identical to the lightning tree he uprooted, its aura was even almost identical. Grey placed it in his storage ring, next to the original lightning tree. The array drew a little of its aura, making it difficult for even him to differentiate them, luckily he knew which was which when he placed it in the storage ring. After making a replica of the lightning tree, he ran in the direction of the people, after using the Leopard to run a cycle around a small hill. It didn''t long before people appeared in sight, the young man was among the people who were going after him. "I''m not willing to die because of this stupid thing. Do you guys want it so much? Here!" Grey threw the branch that was wrapped with a cloth to the people. Seeing the branch that was covered with a cloth heading towards them, the first thought that came to their mind was that it was fake, it was when the cloth accidentally blew away from the branch while it was still mid-air did they start to believe it might be real. The young man was the first to charge forward, with his superior speed, he could grab the branch before others. The Leopard chased after the branch as well, compared to the others, he sensed the essence in the branch even before the cloth blew away. Roar! It roared, trying to intimidate the young man, as well as the others from collecting the branch. The young man paid deaf ears to its warning, grabbing the branch and running in another direction. The Leopard and the people chased after him. Some of the people were already at the end of their life, although they looked young, they barely had over five years left remaining in their lifespan. While others couldn''t advance anymore. A treasure like the lightning tree was what they needed to help them break through to the Overlord Plane. Grey looked from the side as they all ran after the young man. "Well, that''s that," He dusts his hands, before casually walking back to the forest. On his way, he suddenly saw a flash of lightning dashing past him, behind that flash of lightning was another one. Looking closer, the first flash was the Lightning Elementalist from the triplet, while the one at the back was Lukka. "Oh, they attacked, how wonderful," Grey said in delight before taking out the communication device, as well as the disc. After looking at it, he went in the direction Reynolds was hiding while speaking to him. Ten minutes later. "Hey bud," Grey said in front of an old tree. "You don''t look like someone who has been running away from a magical beast at the Peak of the Origin Plane," Reynolds said after jumping down from the tree. "You see, after doing something for a long time, you become a pro at it. I could run for hours, and you wouldn''t know," Grey said nonchalantly. "Come on, let''s leave. My trick should''ve already expired by now," He started walking, following the direction they used in coming here. "Thanks bud," Reynolds said as he caught up. "We''re already past that, Rey," Grey said while looking at the map. "*Sigh* Fine, let''s go. Next time, I hope I''m the one who gets to help you," Reynolds said. "Sure," Grey replied. After confirming they were going in the right direction, they continued walking while speaking. Grey told him of how he was able to harm the Darkness and the Fire Elementalist. He didn''t know what happened after leaving, but seeing Lukka chasing after the Lightning Elementalist probably meant the couple had dealt with the other two. It took them about thirty minutes or so before they got to the exit of the forest. Given the fact that most of the people were running after the lightning tree, Grey guessed they would be the first people to exit the forest. On leaving the forest, Grey was surprised to see Lukka sitting at the place where the guild camped. "You''re Grey, right?" Lukka stood up, walking in their direction. "Yes," Grey nodded calmly. He didn''t feel scared or worried about the appearance of Lukka. "I never thought you''d be the one who would obtain it," Lukka said. "I do," Grey smiled. "Where''s that guy you were chasing?" He asked when he didn''t see any signs of the Lightning Elementalist. "He managed to escape, but without his brothers, he isn''t much of a problem," Lukka replied. "Oh, how unfortunate," Grey shook his head softly. "So, what now?" He asked, looking at Lukka. "You should leave before the others come, if they find you here, they wouldn''t be so welcoming. They might''ve let you leave the first time, but I''m not sure they''d let you go for a second time," Lukka advised. "I''m not bothered by them. It''s not like they can do anything to me," Grey shrugged. But in the end, he took Lukka''s advise, leaving with Reynolds. Chapter 360 - Wheres He? Grey and Reynolds left the camp, heading back on their own. "Will you refine it now, or later?" Grey looked at Reynolds. "I think it''s best I find a place here to refine it," Reynolds replied after pondering for a few minutes. "I guessed as much," Grey said. He was also eager to feed Void the liquid that was in the pendant the young man gave to him. They walked into the forest, if they went further, they would reach the rocky mountain. The duo soon found a cave in the forest, after Grey walked around to ensure it was safe, he made an array around the cave, before stepping into the cave, along with Reynolds. He tossed the lightning tree to Reynolds, before going to the side of the cave. He planned to protect him while he was refining the tree. Reynolds quickly unwrapped the cloth that Grey used in covering it. As soon as the cloth left the lightning tree, lightning essence immediately spread out in all directions. "Wouldn''t this attract people here?" Reynolds couldn''t help but ask when he saw how powerful the essence was. Given the purity, as well as the intensity of the essence, it was bound to attract attention not just from people, but the magical beasts that reside in this part of the forest. "I''ve taken care of that, the array I made will help hide the aura from going out, so you don''t need to worry about that," Grey assured him. "Okay," Reynolds nodded, before he closed his eyes with the lightning tree placed on his lap. Grey watched him for a few minutes, before taking out the pendant he took from the young man. ''I wonder if he''ll have more?'' He thought. He took out the two orbs he removed from the ground under the tree. When he sensed them, a surprised expression appeared on his face. The first orb he took didn''t have as much essence as the second one. The second one was not only better, it had a higher density as well. ''How come he didn''t tell me of this one, or could it be he didn''t know of it?'' Multiple questions ran through Grey''s head as he studied the orbs. Red lightning danced around the first orb, with lightning essence that''s almost double the intensity of that in the lightning tree. Grey kept the orbs back in the storage ring, he would think about that later, for now, he wanted to see what effects this liquid would have on Void. He brought Void out of the storage ring, placing him on his lap. With little to no effort, he opened the pendant, and the teardrop-like liquid was flowing lightly in the pendant. When the pendant opened, the liquid spread out an aura that soothed his head, making him think more clearly. This feeling gave him a little bit more hope in the liquid being able to help Void. He used his spiritual energy to wrap the liquid, lifting it from the pendant, before gently opening Void''s mouth, placing it in it. After the liquid entered Void''s mouth, it quickly dissolved inside, spreading into his entire body. The outer part of Void''s body lit up with the bluish light the liquid gave off. Grey watched on patiently as the light surrounded Void, shaking a little. He couldn''t help it, he was nervous. After five minutes went by, the light surrounding Void started to die down. He looked at him with hopeful eyes, but to his dismay, there was no reaction from Void. ''It didn''t work,'' He thought sadly, disappointment evident on his face. Grey ran his hand through the fur of Void. He sat in that position with Void on his lap for over two hours. Later that night. Buzz! Crack! Grey raised his head, looking at Reynolds. Lightning was currently dancing around Reynolds'' body, giving off a glowing light. Grey waved his hand, creating an earth wall at the entrance of the cave, sealing the light inside the cave. He stood up, walking outside. "He''s about to break through," He muttered while walking out. ... Chimera forest. After Grey threw the lightning tree at the young man. The young man went in another direction, hoping to escape with the lightning tree. Although it was not his objective in coming here, it wouldn''t hurt gaining the boost from the lighting tree as well. It didn''t take long though before he figured out that they had been duped by Grey. After running for around ten minutes, he suddenly noticed that the aura the lightning tree was giving off was starting to decrease. "Huh? What''s happening?" He asked in shock. He looked at the lightning tree he had in his hand, and his expression changed drastically. "Shit! He scammed us!" He yelled out, before ditching the tree. The Leopard which was chasing after him, went after the tree, on seeing it, it was infuriated. Roar! With an angry roar, it sent lightning in all directions, striking some of the people who were behind it. The young man had a wry smile on his face. After managing to escape from the infuriated attack of the Leopard, he hid somewhere, to try to regain his breath. Running for so long under the numerous attacks from the Leopard was difficult. He was hit on a couple of occasions, but luckily, they were not severe. "Heh! That guy," He laughed lightly. He waited for two hours, recovering the essence he spent on escaping, before turning back in the direction of the hill. Thirty minutes later. The young man stood at the top of the hill, walking towards where the lightning tree was previously stood. "How did he even do that?" He asked in confusion when he recalled how Grey switched positions with him. If Grey had disappeared and appeared close to him, he would''ve at least believed it was probably because Grey was insanely fast, but Grey not only appeared there, but he also switched places with him. Had he not been fast, then he would''ve been killed by one of the magical beasts in the area. He shook his head, after not being able to figure out how it was possible. ''He collected the orb, luckily I told him of it. But he wouldn''t sense, or see the second orb.'' The young man bent down, before he started digging the place. The reason he told Grey of the first orb was so that he would be able to acquire both orbs. The second one was far better than the first one. But it rarely releases any aura, and on multiple occasions, it forms not under the tree, but somewhere around it. Unknown to the young man, the second orb not only formed under the tree, but Grey had escaped with it. One hour later, he had dug almost ten meters around the place where the lightning tree was standing, digging it over five meters deep, but he found nothing. "Where is it?" He asked with an exasperated look. He was looking haggard from digging so much, a little frustrated since he knew the orb rarely formed very far or deep from where the tree stood. He calmed his mind, before he started digging deeper. He tried to console himself with the thought of this one forming a little further away from how it usually forms. Two more hours went by. "Where''s it?" The young man asked with his hands on his head. "That bastard! He took it as well," The young man said with bloodshot eyes. The thought of someone else taking it didn''t come across his mind, he knew only a few people knew of the first orb, much less the second orb. This was something he learned from an ancient text his father acquired. Because of his unique lightning, this seemed perfect for him. He had been searching for a lightning tree for years, and now after finding it, he was unable to obtain what he came for. He even gave Grey the precious pendant he had, all for nothing. "Where''s he?" He looked climbed up from the hole he had dug on the hilltop. He jumped down from the hill, heading in the direction where they set up camp. Thirty minutes later. The young man came out of the forest, and immediately headed straight for the guild''s camp. The people from the guild were still there, planning to leave the next day. When the young man came out, some of the people who chased after him from the other camps ran in his direction. "Where''s the lightning tree?" Someone asked. They didn''t hear the young man when he yelled, neither did they see him ditching the lightning tree. They only saw the attack of the Leopard, and not all of them saw that. "That guy duped us, the tree he threw our way was fake," The young man said with an angry look. The young man walked towards the guild. "Where''s he?" Chapter 361 - Scared Old Man The leader of the expedition confronted the young man as he walked towards their camp. "He''s gone, you don''t expect him to stay here after obtaining the lightning tree, do you?" He asked the young man with a calm voice. "Hmph! There''s something of mine that he has," The young man snorted coldly. "What does that have to do with us?" The leader of the expedition asked, this time, releasing some of his aura. "Nothing, but can you tell me where he came from?" The young man changed his approach. "I don''t even know him, he only accompanied us by chance. And besides, even if I did know him, I wouldn''t tell you a thing about him," The leader of the expedition said. The young man looked at the leader, and then at the couple. Seeing their attitude, he knew he would be getting nothing from them. With nothing else to do, he walked back to his camp. Back at the cave. Reynolds had successfully broken through to the Fourth stage of the Origin Plane, but he didn''t stop there. There was still quite a lot of essence in the tree, so he wanted to improve further. Grey was currently standing outside the cave, looking into the silent forest. The thought of searching for the young man came to his mind, but leaving Reynolds here alone was a little too dangerous. Although he made some arrays around the cave as well as its entrance, he wasn''t sure if it could shield off those beasts at the Peak of the Origin Plane. It was soon daybreak, but Reynolds was still in the middle of his strengthening. With nothing to do, Grey decided to practice the Great Void technique. It was a powerful skill to begin with, so gaining better mastery of it would bring a lot of advantages to him. Just the switch skill that came with it already made him almost unbeatable in fights. ''The danger levels will decrease by some margin now. I really need to see that guy,'' Grey thought while looking at the cave. He guessed the young man would be searching for him, even more so after he duped them. He couldn''t take the risk of not seeing the young man since he needed to know where and how he got that liquid. After setting up a few more arrays around the cave just to be sure, he vanished into the forest, heading to where the groups camped. It took him ten minutes to get to the place, it wasn''t really far from where they were hiding anyway, but he was sure the people wouldn''t go through that area. On getting there, he saw the groups had already started to pack up, preparing to leave the area. ''Luckily, I moved early,'' He heaved a sigh of relief, but he stayed hidden. He knew some of the people there would attack him if they saw him, after all, the appealness of the lightning tree hasn''t decreased by even the slightest. It didn''t take long before he saw who he was searching for, now all that remains was how to get the attention of the young man. ''*Sigh* Forget it, what''s the use of hiding anyway, it''s not like they can kill me,'' He thought before taking a step out of the forest. Just as he took a step out, he hastily turned around, heading back into the forest. ''That''s too risky, I''ll need to think of something,'' He climbed onto the branch of the tree at the start of the forest, while monitoring the movements of the people. Ten minutes later, the group started moving out. Other than the cores they obtained in the expedition, they got nothing else. Some of them even had it worse, dying. Rustle! A silent rustle caught Grey''s attention. The sound felt exactly like when someone was sneaking through the woods, silently. ''Huh? Someone''s here,'' He thought before turning his head around to look behind him. Just as his head was still turning, he caught sight of a lightning arrow shooting towards him. The lightning arrow was already within three meters of him, drawing nearer even while his head was still turning. The arrow will surely be able to pierce his head before he turns around completely. Buzz! Boom! Grey vanished from the tree, dodging the arrow by a slight margin. The arrow crashed into the tree, destroying it in the process. The commotion attracted the attention of the groups who just started to move away from where they camped. "What''s that?" Lukka asked, looking in the direction of where the sound came from. "It''s a lightning based attack," The leader of the expedition said. Although they were over seven hundred meters away from the tree, he could still see the silvery flash of lightning from the explosion. Lukka squinted his eyes, looking at the area of the explosion. "Stay here, I''ll be back shortly," He said to his wife. "Okay," His wife nodded. Lukka was the only one who decided to head in that direction. The reason for this was simple, no one wanted to get involved in a fight that had absolutely nothing to do with them. There''s a chance that two powerful magical beasts were fighting, so going near the area might incur the wrath of both beasts. ''I didn''t think the moron stayed behind,'' Lukka thought with a smirk as he headed closer to the forest. He guessed it correctly, it was the attack of the Lightning Elementalist from the triplet. When he chased after him, he managed to slip away due to some tricks. But he never thought he wouldn''t go far. ''But, who is he attacking? He''s not stupid enough to attract my attention when he fully knows I would come for his head,'' He paused, but only for a few seconds before continuing. He thought of the possibility of this being a trap, but he just couldn''t stop himself from not checking it out. After what the triplet had done to him and his wife, he couldn''t stand to let this chance go. At the forest. Grey appeared on the tree close to the one he was previously standing on. He didn''t know who attacked him, or where the attack came from. He looked in the direction of where the arrow came from, but he couldn''t see or sense anyone. ''Dammit! How could I have been so careless?'' He said a little angry at himself. If not for the space element, then he would''ve either died from that attack, or would''ve been severely injured. "Who''s there? Come out!" Grey called out. "Boy, there''s something strange about your movement technique," Grey heard a voice coming from every angle. It was like the person was speaking from different places, making it difficult to pinpoint his location. "Come out, and I might tell you about it," Grey spoke calmly. He felt the voice was familiar when he heard it, but he didn''t know where he had heard it before. "How did you switch places with me?" The voice asked another question. "Oh! It''s you! I knew the voice was familiar. Haha, now I don''t have to worry," Grey laughed out while using his hand to rub his chest. The fear of the unknown was something that affected anyone, not knowing who was attacking him scared him a little, but now that he knew it was the Lightning Elementalist from the triplet, he felt unbothered. Grey''s behavior annoyed the Lightning Elementalist. It was like he didn''t take him seriously after finding out he was the one speaking. "What insolence! Do you think I can''t kill you from where you stand?" The Lightning Elementalist said angrily. "Hehe, if you aren''t scared, why are you hiding?" Grey laughed in an annoying way, further infuriating the Lightning Elementalist. Swoosh! Buzz! Bang! Another lightning arrow shot towards Grey from the right, but he was able to quickly see it this time. He moved to the other side, before sending a fireball in the direction the lightning arrow came from. Boom! The fireball exploded, covering a wide range, but there was no reaction from the place. "If you think I am in the position where the arrow comes from, then you still have a lot to learn, boy," The Lightning Elementalist''s voice spoke out steadily. "Hmm, come on out old man. Oh wait, I forgot, you''re scared of a little boy, that''s why you ran away the last time," Grey said while laughing out loud. When the Lightning Elementalist recalled how Grey used the Leopard to attack him and his brothers, he was annoyed. "You little brat is the reason why two of my brothers are dead," The Lightning Elementalist said angrily. "And here I am, the reason even you are going to die as well," Grey spread out both hands. Swoosh! Bam! Another arrow shot towards Grey, but he was able to dodge it, while attacking where the attack came from. "Why are you still here?" Lukka''s voice came from behind Grey. Chapter 362 - I Tried "I knew you were the one coming," Grey turned to look at Lukka. "Watch out!" Lukka raised his left hand, a bolt of lightning shooting out of it. Grey smiled, before quickly evading the attack that was coming from behind him. ? Boom! Lukka''s lightning bolt struck the lightning arrow that was meant for Grey''s head. "Trying to sneak attack me won''t work," Grey''s appeared on another tree before saying. "Hmph! I''ll get you one way or another," The Lightning Elementalist snorted coldly. "I didn''t think you''d get to this level where you would sneak attack a kid," Lukka said while looking around the forest, trying to figure out the Lightning Elementalist''s position. "Once the kid dies, you''re next," The Lightning Elementalist said confidently. "Bold of you to assume you can kill me," Grey said while twirling his right index finger in the air. "Heh, if not for the fear of this guy aiding you, I''d have come out long ago to kill you," The Lightning Elementalist scoffed. "Okay, how about this, we should make a bet. As long as you come out on your own, he''ll promise not to intervene in the fight. That way, you could fight against him when you''re done killing me. How does that sound?" Grey asked, still twirling his finger. "Do I look like a child you could trick with a few words? I''ve been a mercenary for years now, I know more than believing an enemy," The Lightning Elementalist said, not believing Grey''s words one bit. "Well, I tried," Grey said with a shrug. "What do you mean you tried?" The Lightning Elementalist asked, a little confused. Even Lukka looked at Grey with a strange expression. "I mean, I tried giving you an opportunity to at least give you a fair fight, but guess you were too foolish to take it," Grey said with a strange smile while tilting his head to his left. He looked right through the trees as if he could peer through them. Around eighty meters away from where he was standing, the Lightning Elementalist could be seen looking at them. "Im¡­ impossible! How did you find me?" The Lightning Elementalist was stunned by the fact that Grey had managed to locate him. This was something even Lukka couldn''t do, and Lukka was stronger than himself. "Haha, it''s simple. But you see, I don''t like divulging my secrets to dead people, it''s just of no use to them," Grey laughed out loud. "You little brat! I''ll kill you even if it''s the last thing I do!" The Lightning Elementalist said, before sending out multiple lightning arrows in Grey and Lukka''s direction. They were forced to dodge the attacks of the Lightning Elementalist, but they made sure to follow his movements because he tried slipping away again. This was exactly how he escaped from Lukka''s hand the last time, luckily, Grey managed to find him this time. Lukka looked at Grey, feeling surprised by his prowess. He thought about how Grey managed to find the Lightning Elementalist, it was then that he recalled when they were crossing the swamp. At that time, Grey would occasionally place his finger in the swamp, and after doing that, he would get the general location of where the beasts were, and where they weren''t. ''I see, no wonder he was twirling his hand while speaking, he was using that thing. Such a resourceful kid, he would do well as a mercenary,'' He praised Grey in his mind. "You can''t hide anymore, old man. Stand there so you can join your brothers quickly," Grey said before chasing after the Lightning Elementalist. Lukka joined in on the chase as well, he couldn''t allow the Lightning Elementalist to escape for a second time. Boom! Bang! They attacked as they chased after him. Being adept in movement techniques, the Lightning Elementalist managed to dodge most of their attacks while also dishing out some of his own. Boom! Bam! Their battle quickly moved deeper into the forest as the Lightning Elementalist tried to escape. On the open field. The people quickly noticed that Lukka had joined in on the battle. The leader of the expedition as well as his wife were able to figure out he was fighting against the Lightning Elementalist as soon as the battle intensified, but they didn''t know who was there as well. "Do you think we should assist him?" Someone amongst the guild members asked. "No need, Lukka will be alright," The leader of the expedition said. He couldn''t allow the others to go since there were some who were closely linked to the triplet. If not for the chaos at the time Lukka and his wife killed two of them, then some of the people here would have intervened. But that was not the only reason though, the second reason was that just as the triplet had people who would support them, so did the couple. A brawl would definitely start if that happens, causing chaos between them. The guild might even end up breaking since some of them here were the old-timers of the guild. The guild does have some people who are already in the Overlord Plane, but being in the Overlord Plane puts them above these petty skirmishes of those in the Origin Plane. They rarely involve themselves with what''s happening with the guild, they would only show themselves if anything were to threaten it. Some of the people here dying wouldn''t really bring much harm to the guild since multiple mercenaries seek to join the guild on a daily basis. The leader of the expedition looked in the direction for a few more minutes before speaking to the others. "We should get going, Lukka knows the way," With his command, they started the journey back. Surprisingly, Lukka''s wife didn''t seem too bothered about her husband, she was just that confident in his abilities. The guild''s group was not the only ones who stopped to look at where the explosion came from, all three groups stopped. But Lukka was the only one who showed any interest in going there. The young man who Grey saw at the inn looked in the direction of the explosion, and just as their group was about to leave, he caught a small glimpse of a blue flame exploding. ''It''s him!'' Chapter 363 - Bullying The Weak The young man slipped away from his group, before charging towards the forest. He had heard of people with rare flames, but Grey was the only one he had seen. Those blue flames of his were too distinctive. ''He better remember our deal, or else he''ll get the other side of me.'' He thought while running towards where the explosion was coming from. In the forest. Grey and Lukka were still chasing after the Lightning Elementalist. Being faster than Lukka, Grey had managed to close up the gap on multiple occasions, but the Lightning Elementalist would always attack in a precise manner that would force him to defend against the attack, delaying him in the process. "You''re faster than he is, can you try to catch him?" Lukka asked after Grey was pushed back again by the Lightning Elementalist''s attack. "Well, I''m trying my best, but he''s acting like a slippery fox," Grey said, cursing at the same time. "Make a feint," Lukka said. "What?" Grey asked, unsure of what Lukka was getting at. "Make a feint," Lukka repeated himself. "I heard you the first time, I just don''t¡­ oh¡­ you mean a feint?" Grey was about to complain when he suddenly understood what Lukka meant. "Yes," Lukka nodded. "That''s easy," Grey said before speeding past Lukka once again. "Is that¡­ wow!" Lukka had been stunned by Grey''s speed from the first time he saw him running. This time though, he caught something that he had not seen before whenever Grey was running, lightning. He had witnessed Grey using two elements so far, now with the addition of the lightning element, that makes it three. Although there were Multi-Elementalists, they are very rare, so seeing one as young and as talented as Grey was quite amazing. Grey''s burst of speed attracted the Lightning Elementalist''s attention, and just like before he struck out. But to his surprise, Grey stopped before the attack came, before shooting past the place where his attack struck with even greater speed. Swoosh! Buzz! Bang! The Lightning Elementalist immediately started attacking wildly, trying to make sure Grey didn''t get close to him. But after moving closer, Grey didn''t plan on retreating anymore. Bang! Grey sent a fireball in his direction, blasting the tree branch he was about to stand on, making him lose his footing, falling to the ground. Lukka was still some meters away, but Grey naturally had no problems with fighting against the Lightning Elementalist on his own. All it would take was time, but he knew he would surely be able to defeat the Lightning Elementalist. Swoosh! Boom! Bam! Grey and the Lightning Elementalist continued exchanging moves as soon as they got close to each other, destroying most of the trees around them. When Lukka got there, he had the impulse of screaming, ''Is he even a kid anymore?''. Grey''s fighting capabilities were insane, one has to recall that Grey was still in the Sixth stage of the Origin Plane, while the Lightning Elementalist was in the Ninth stage. The Lightning Elementalist could even be regarded with those who were at the very Peak of the Origin Plane, yet Grey was fighting against him, and the battle seems to be balanced. Lukka watched on from the side, it''s not that he didn''t want to assist Grey, but looking at the battle, he didn''t think he would do much better than him. Although he was stronger than the Lightning Elementalist, he had to admit to the fact that he couldn''t just kill him willy-nilly, it would take a good deal of effort on his part. Looking at the battle, he decided it was best he stayed out of Grey''s way. He would only join in if the Lightning Elementalist was on the verge of escaping, although he didn''t think he would get that chance seeing how well Grey was keeping him grounded. Boom! Bang! Grey''s fireball explosion pushed the Lightning Elementalist back, slamming him into the tree behind him. "Damn it! This kid is a monster!" The Lightning Elementalist was lost for words. Grey was starting to gain the advantage over him, and the battle hadn''t even been up to five minutes. The explosive power of Grey''s fireballs was almost impossible to defend against. Even when he manages to dodge them, the aftereffects of the explosion still carry so much punch that they could cause major damages if not handled properly. "Hey, you see, it''s just like I said, you''ll fight against me while he watches from the side," Grey walked towards him in a dominant fashion. After being in multiple battles, and almost always coming out on top, Grey developed a dominant aura that shows forth whenever he battles. This aura alone dwindles the spirit of whoever is fighting against him, it''s like they know beforehand that they were fighting a lost battle. Grey rarely fights any battles without confidence, this confidence makes him believe no matter what happens, he would surely come out on top. "We''re just getting started, boy. I''ll show you what it means to be a mercenary," The Lightning Elementalist moved from the tree, dodging Grey''s fire attack. "You see, funny enough, the first person I killed was a mercenary," Grey chuckled before attacking once again. Earth spikes sprang up from the ground, forcing the Lightning Elementalist to go airborne. When the Lightning Elementalist went airborne, Grey immediately attacked with a widespread lake of flames that covered a twenty meters radius, not giving the Lightning Elementalist any chances of landing. With the Lightning Elementalist airborne, Grey started attacking with his fire and earth element simultaneously. Smack! An opportunity presented itself and Grey created a large earth pillar that he used to smack the Lightning Elementalist flying. Bang! Bam! Crash! The Lightning Elementalist went through four trees, destroying them, before crashing hard onto the ground. Lukka clicked his tongue on seeing Grey bullying the Lightning Elementalist, he couldn''t even say it was a fight among equals.. The difference between both fighters was clear for all to see, Grey was simply bullying the weak. Chapter 364 - Afterimage Bam! Bang! The Lightning Elementalist was sent flying once again by Grey''s attack, this time, crashing hard into a tree, almost breaking it in two. Grey appeared in front of him with no time to spare, punching him straight in the face, sending him flying again. Bang! Crash! The Lightning Elementalist crashed into the ground, sliding for almost twenty meters before stopping in a small crater his body formed. "Such a brutish way of fighting," Lukka muttered, feeling a little empathetic for the Lightning Elementalist. Grey''s way of fighting was strange amongst Elementalists, he had noticed it the first time when he saw Grey exchanging blows with the Stone Apes with his bare fists. Elementalist usually outgrow this method of fighting once they get to the Arcane Plane, yet, Grey was still using it, and for some reason, he noticed Grey''s physical strength was far superior to theirs. Grey kicked the Lightning Elementalist, sending him into the air once again, while he was still mid-air, he appeared above him, stomping on his chest heavily, stamping him into the ground. Crack! The Lightning Elementalist coughed out blood before he even reached the ground. After landing, he felt a sharp pain coming from his chest. Over fifty percent of his rib bones were broken from Grey''s aggressive attack. He tried to open his mouth, but blood was the only thing that came out of it, lots of blood. "You''re weaker than I expected," Grey remarked casually after landing. His casual remark threw Lukka off his feet. ''What do you mean he''s weaker than you expected? You''re the one who''s stronger than normal!'' He almost screamed out loud, but he managed to keep himself calm not to give away his image. Cough! Cough! The Lightning Elementalist continued coughing blood, he tried moving his arms to cover his mouth, but he could barely move them. "I''m done, you can complete your revenge now," Grey turned to Lukka. The Lightning Elementalist could barely move, so he didn''t see any reason in fighting anymore. He still had to search for the young man to see if he could acquire more of that liquid. Lukka looked at Grey for some time, before shaking his head. He had completely given up the idea of looking at Grey normally. Buzz! Swoosh! Grey blinked twice before disappearing from his position. Lukka''s pupils enlarged when he saw Grey suddenly disappearing. A lightning arrow shot past the place where Grey was previously standing. "What sort of movement technique is that? Or has he been able to attain the legendary speed that allows one to leave behind an afterimage when moving?" Lukka muttered to himself in shock. Bam! The lightning arrow struck a tree, almost destroying it. Grey soon appeared a few meters away, "I knew you wouldn''t give up so easily, even when you can''t move, you''re still plotting a sneak attack," Lukka was so shocked by Grey''s movement that he stood rooted to the ground, not moving an inch. He had read of people who attained unimaginable speed that allows them to move so quickly that they leave behind an image of themselves even after leaving the place. ''That explains why the Leopard was unable to keep up to him. This boy is unbelievable!'' He thought. Grey didn''t know what was currently going through Lukka''s mind, all he did was escape from the sneak attack with the space element. Although he had also read of people who were able to leave afterimages due to their speed, he hadn''t gotten to that level, yet. "Aren''t you going to kill him? Although, I think he would still die anyway, given how serious his injuries look," He called out to Lukka who had spaced out. "Oh, right." Lukka came back to his senses, with a point of his finger, he sent a tiny lightning bolt that shot past the forehead of the Lightning Elementalist, leaving a small hole in it. The Lightning Elementalist twitched twice before his movement stopped completely. "What are you still doing in the forest?" Lukka asked after taking care of the Lightning Elementalist. "Rey''s refining the lightning tree, I''m guarding him while we''re here," Grey replied. "You also have the lightning element, right?" Lukka asked. Grey looked at him for a few seconds before nodding. "Hmm, you''re a good friend," Lukka said before turning around. Not everyone would give up the chance of getting stronger for their friend, he could tell Grey didn''t even split the tree with Reynolds, allowing him to refine everything which would bring him better benefits. "He''d do the same for me," Grey replied with a small smile, "All my friends would," He said the last statement while caressing the ring on his hand. "It''s good to know you have such friends, your horses will be left at the same place. Make sure you leave here on time," Lukka said before turning around. "Okay, thanks for your help," Grey waved at him before following after him. Lukka noticed he was coming in his direction, but refrain from asking anything else. He coated himself with lightning, before disappearing, chasing after his group. The fight lasted around fifteen to twenty minutes, so he guessed the others would''ve left by now. Grey soon got to the edge of the forest again, but this time, he didn''t see anyone there. "They must''ve left, but I don''t think that guy would leave without taking what he asked for," He muttered. After waiting for almost thirty minutes, he decided it was time to go back. He had to check up on Reynolds, to ensure he was doing okay. When he got to where the cave was located, he was surprised to see the young man sitting outside the cave, seemingly waiting for him. Grey''s expression changed only for a second before hiding it. "How did you find this place?" He asked as he walked up to the young man. "It''s not that hard to find, if you know what you want, that is," The young man replied with a smile. Chapter 365 - How Unlucky! "I see you have the real lightning tree, you even gave it to your friend, such amazing kinship is rare to find," The young man said with a strange smile. "Who I give what I obtain is none of your business," Grey replied calmly. "Sorry, my bad," The young man apologized while raising both hands as if surrendering. "Do you have what I want?" He asked after apologizing. "Yes," Grey took out the orb from his pocket. It was neatly wrapped in a cloth. "Can I see it, it''ll be a shame if you were to dupe me twice," The young man said, stretching out his right hand. "I want something from you," Grey said, placing the orb back in his pocket. "You''re going to bargain with what I''ve paid for?" The young man raised a brow. "Well, technically, you didn''t pay for it. Had I not acted quickly, then you''d not only have it, you''d also have the lightning tree. You only gave me that to show your sincerity, in case I was the one who obtained the orb in the end." Grey replied with his hand on his chin as if thinking. "But don''t worry, I don''t want anything major from you," Grey said again with a wave of his hands. "Fine, what do you want?" The young man said with gritted teeth. "Do you have more of that liquid? If yes, can I have some, if no, then where can I find it?" Grey asked. "The one on the pendant?" The young man asked to be sure. Grey nodded, before taking out the pendant which had lost its glow. "No, I don''t have it. Neither do I know where to find it," The young man replied. "A shame, looks like you wouldn''t be getting the orb afterall," Grey said while shaking his head sympathetically. "Look, it was given to me by my father. It helps keep the mind clear, so I always have it on me. I only gave it to you because this was more important to me," The young man said in exasperation. "You really don''t know?" Grey asked again. "No," The young man shook his head. Grey sighed when the young man shook his head, before sitting on the ground, not showing any signs of wanting to give the orb to the young man. He was trying to see if the young man knew something but was not telling him. "What are you doing?" The young man asked, his face filled to the brim with anger. "Sitting, and I suggest you should be going. I can fetch a hefty sum from this, and I might even get the information I want as well," Grey brought out the orb, tossing it into the air and catching it. The young man looked at Grey with veins already appearing on his forehead. "I''ve heard of a rumor about a liquid like this being in the Magical beasts forest," The young man said. "Oh, so you knew something?" Grey looked at the young man. "It''s a rumor, I''m not certain of it." The young man responded. "I feel you know more than what you''re divulging," Grey squinted his eyes. ''Dammit! I hate this boy, I''ll kill him and his friend after I collect the first orb. I''ll take the second orb off his dead body.'' The young man thought inside. "There''s a place in the Magical beasts forest that''s filled with bamboo, it''s said it can be found there, a whole pond. But like I said, it''s only a rumor, and the Magical beasts forest isn''t like the Chimera forest," The young man said. "You see, now did you die after telling me about it?" Grey asked with a playful smile. Although he wasn''t even fifty percent sure what the young man said was accurate, he would try to find out from others as well. And besides, there''s a huge chance that the young man was only lying so he could take the orb, there''s no way he would be able to find out anyway. The young man looked at him with angry eyes, before stretching out his hand again. Grey didn''t keep the orb any longer, he threw it in the direction of the young man. But the scene he saw next shook him to the core. As soon as the orb got to the hand of the young man, he opened his mouth and swallowed the orb in one big gulp. Boom! An energy explosion shot out from his body, spreading in all directions. Crack! Crack! The array Grey set up outside the cave suddenly started cracking from the energy that the young man was giving off. "Crap! He''s¡­ breaking through," Grey was stunned by what was happening. He knew the young man was in the Late stages of the Origin Plane, but he never really bothered with him since he was confident in his abilities to fight against those in the Origin Plane. But never in his wildest dreams did he think the young man would ingest the orb, and start breaking through. And from the energy he was giving off, he seemed to be breaking through to the Overlord Plane. "How unlucky!" Grey rushed over to where the array was located, and immediately started reinforcing it. If the array was to fall apart, the energy the young man was giving off would do a lot of damage to Reynolds who was in the middle of cultivating. Grey wasn''t feeling any pressure from the young man, he attributed it to what happened when Alice''s father also tried pressuring him with the superior aura of an Overlord Plane expert. He had tried attacking the young man while he was still in a somewhat unconscious state, but all his attacks seemed to be repelled by an unseen force. ''This guy''s definitely going to try to kill me for sure, but I can''t escape now since Rey is here. Damn it!'' Grey thought while staring at the young man. ''I can only depend on that now,'' He quickly came to a conclusion and sat down in front of the array in a crossed leg position. He was going to fight against the young man, using the Fusion State.. For some reason, he actually felt excited. Chapter 366 - Fighting Against An Overlord Plane Expert Reynolds, who was inside the cave sensed the unrest outside, opened his eyes. When he saw Grey sitting calmly in front of the cave, he closed his eyes once again. He was already very close to breaking through to the Fifth stage of the Origin Plane, but there was still just barely over half of the lightning tree essence left. If he wanted to completely refine it, it would take another day or two. ''I''ll need to hurry up,'' He said to himself. He could tell that whoever Grey was about to face was very powerful, and the only reason he wasn''t escaping was because of him. Outside the cave. Grey was slowly starting to merge his essence beads together. He was quite expectant of how strong he would become. Presently, he had seven elements, and given how the Fusion State usually works, it would boost his stage by seven stages. That should take him to the Third stage of the Overlord Plane. But he didn''t know if the Fusion State would push him into Overlord Plane, after all, it was a different Plane, not a stage. The energy the young man was giving off continued rising. After a few minutes, it slowly started dying down. The young man soon opened his eyes, staring in Grey''s direction. "Boy, where''s the second orb?" He asked while turning to face him. Grey, who had his eyes shut all this while slowly opened it, and it flashed with seven different colors for about a tenth of a second before returning to normal. ''Thanks to his long breakthrough, I was able to completely fuse all seven essence orbs,'' He thought to himself. "Which orb are you talking about?" Grey asked with a lost look. He kept his aura safely hidden, not to alert the young man of his sudden increase in strength. "Don''t lie to me, boy, I could kill you with a snap of my fingers right now. There are two orbs below the lightning tree, the one you gave to me, and one that''s even greater," The young man said with a light snort. That light snort sent out a tremendous energy wave, but to his surprise, Grey didn''t move an inch, neither did anything happen to the array. "My eyes never fail me, I knew you were special," The young man said, not too bothered with Grey not being affected by the energy wave he sent out. He already saw Grey as someone he could kill whenever he wanted, so he decided to entertain him only for a little bit. Once he gets the orb, he''ll kill him. If he finds out Grey doesn''t have it, he''ll kill him as well, either, Grey dies. "I had no knowledge of the red orb, well, until you spoke about it. Does that mean there''s a second one as well?" Grey feigned ignorance. His acting was so good that the young man didn''t think he was lying. He knew Grey didn''t know about the red orb being under the lightning tree, so there was no way he could''ve known of the other one unless it was just beneath the first orb and he saw it. ''Hmm, could it be that one of those people searched the place?'' The young man asked himself. "Since you don''t know about it, then there''s no use in leaving you alive anymore. I''ll quickly kill you and chase after those people from the guild," The young man said. After saying that, he waved his hand, and a huge red lightning fist appeared mid-air, it shot straight towards the cave. He wanted to kill Grey and Reynolds in one clean strike. The strength in the lightning fist was not something anyone in the Origin Plane would be able to defend against. Although the difference between the Peak of the Origin Plane and the First stage of the Overlord Plane was just a single step, the difference in strength is huge. A single Overlord Plane expert could kill over twenty Peak Origin Plane experts in a battle. Grey looked above him, looking at the fist. A smile formed on his lips as he stood up, he cracked his fist, before darting a look at the young man. Whoosh! Boom! Grey suddenly disappeared from the ground, appearing in front of the fist, with his hand covered in blue flames, he punched the lightning fist, and it exploded. The shockwave from the explosion spread out in all directions, destroying the trees around the cave, but not affecting the cave in any way. The young man unconsciously took a step back in shock when he saw this happening. He waved his hand and easily neutralized the energy wave that was coming his way. After the energy settled down, the young man got another shock. "Impossible!" He said in disbelief. "Come on, it''s been a while I felt this good," Grey motioned to the young man with his hands, while standing in the air. "How''s this possible?" The young man took to the sky, standing opposite Grey. "There are a lot of things you''ll never be able to understand, so there''s no use explaining." Grey blinked twice even before he finished his statement. After blinking twice, he disappeared, a huge hammer soon appeared on the left side of the young man, slamming towards him. The young man who was still looking at where Grey was previously standing managed to quickly sense the attack. With a twist of his body, he dodged the attack while punching the hammer with a lightning fist. Lightning ran across the hammer, before destroying the rocks into debris. Grey appeared on his right side, and attacked again, this time, with the fire element. Boom! Bang! It didn''t take up to a minute before the area they were fighting in was completely left in ruins, other than the cave, the other parts of the area were completely destroyed, and this was just from the aftereffects of the attacks, not the main attacks. "Haha, this is amazing!" Grey laughed out while attacking again. Boom! Bang! His fire snake was met with a lightning bolt which caused both attacks to explode, pushing both fighters back a few meters in the air. Chapter 367 - Fighting Against An Overlord Plane Expert II Boom! Grey was pushed back by the attack of the young man. Swoosh! The young man suddenly appeared close to him, punching him with his hands coated in lightning. Crack! Bang! The blue vest''s protective light broke when the fist got close. Grey slammed into the ground from mid-air. "How''s he doing it?" The young man muttered while looking at the dust that kicked up after Grey slammed into the ground. His pupils suddenly dilated when he didn''t see any sights of Grey in the crater he formed after he slammed into the ground. Whoosh! Bam! Grey suddenly appeared above him and smashed him with both fists tightly connected together. The force of the attack was so powerful that even after it sent the young man plummeting into the ground, Grey turned a few times in the air before managing to regain his balance. Boom! The young man crashed heavily into the ground, creating an even greater crater than the one Grey did when he crashed previously. Grey stood mid-air, looking down at the crater with a dominant expression. The dust soon died down, and Grey saw the young man standing up, looking at him. He disappeared again, appearing on the left side of the young man, but the young man was able to block the attack, but was forced to retreat a few steps back by the force. Bang! Bam! Boom! They continued fighting with both fighters getting hit by the other''s attack. Buzz! Crash! A red lightning rain suddenly started with Grey stuck in the middle, but with a flicker of his body, he disappeared from the attack range. "Hmm, you''re not in the Overlord Plane, but I can''t say you''re in the Origin Plane either," The young man said to Grey. He just broke through, so he wasn''t the most powerful person in the First stage of the Overlord Plane right now, but given the uniqueness of his lightning, he could fight against those in the First stage of the Overlord Plane. While they had been battling, he had tried to sense what was going on with Grey, but he hadn''t been able to comprehend it. "Heh! As I said, there''s no use in explaining it to you," Grey scoffed while cleaning the blood that was flowing from the side of his mouth. He wasn''t the only one hurt, the young man was also injured, and Grey was sure he had some internal injuries as well due to the number of times he had punched him on the body. The young man attacked once again, sending multiple lightning bolts to attack Grey while going closer as well. He had noticed that Grey was very welcoming to hand-to-hand combat, and since he could cover his fists with the lightning element to increase the strength of his attacks, he decided to get closer to him. Grey looked at the lightning, as well as the young man that was coming his way. ''It''s time to use a third element in this battle,'' He said to himself. Although he had been using three elements so far, the young man had no knowledge of the space element which he was using for mostly escaping. He didn''t know any space element attacks, and he hadn''t been able to study it properly, so for now, he was only using it for escaping or dodging attacks. The element he decided to use was the darkness element. The reason for this, it''s insane destructive nature. Since the young man wanted to engage in hand-to-hand combat, he would slowly inject darkness essence into his body, causing him unimaginable harm. Grey quickly used his fire element to block the lightning strikes that were coming his way, before charging at the young man with hands coated with both the fire and the darkness element. The fire element was at the top, so it shielded the darkness element. Bam! Bang! The sound of flesh hitting flesh started resonating in the entire forest. Grey naturally had the advantage in this fistfight due to him having superior physical strength compared to his opponent. In the cave. It had been five minutes since the battle started, and the array was still intact, that''s to Grey always protecting it, and moving the battle away from that area. Crack! A cracking sound came from Reynolds'' body, he had successfully broken through to the Fifth stage of the Origin Plane. There was still half of the essence left in the lightning tree. Reynolds looked at the lightning tree, before staring outside, his expression changed when he saw the damage that had occurred just after the entrance of the cave. Even inside the cave, he could feel the tremors of the battle that was going on outside. Reynolds looked at the lightning tree in his hands, and an idea popped into his head. He had never heard of anything like that happening before, but he felt that there was a chance it might work, he wanted to use the lightning tree on his Elemental Warrior. As soon as the thought came to his head, he immediately implemented it. He summoned his Elemental Warrior and started channeling the essence in the lightning tree into it. At first, he didn''t see any response, but after almost a minute, he noticed that the essence in the lightning tree was suddenly depleting at a tremendous speed. This was when a thought came to him, it''s not that no one ever tried to do it, it was just that where the hell would they get such a huge amount of elemental essence to feed it. Within the space of a single minute, the Elemental Warrior had sucked one-fourth of the essence that was left in the lightning tree, this was something that took Reynolds around six hours or so. Even after sucking one-fourth of the essence, there weren''t any visible changes in the aura of the Elemental Warrior, it was still around the Seventh stage of the Origin Plane, with strength that could rival that of an Eighth stage expert. It was after it had taken half of what was left in the lightning tree did Reynolds start seeing changes in the Elemental Warrior. Chapter 368 - Of Course Not! ''Great! It''s improving!'' Reynolds exclaimed in his mind. The aura of the Elemental Warrior was slowly approaching the peak of the Seventh stage, from how it was going, Reynolds was certain it would get to the Eighth stage, or even the Ninth stage of the Origin Plane before the essence in the lightning tree was used up. Outside the cave. While Reynolds was trying to boost the Elemental Warrior''s strength to further increase his own arsenal, Grey was fighting a gruesome battle with the young man. With both fighters opting to go for close combat, it was easy for them to be damaged from an attack from the opponent. Grey was more fortunate in the battle due to his speed and the space element, the young man, not so much. Bam! Bang! Both fighters punched each other solidly on the chest, before retreating backward. The young man immediately tried to catch his breath as they separated, likewise Grey. They had been exchanging blows for over two minutes now, and both had suffered some damages that they needed to recover from. Having a better physique, Grey wasn''t too hurt, at least not internally. The young man on the other hand was getting the help of his new found strength in breaking through to the Overlord Plane to help repair most of the damages he had suffered. The higher the Plane of an Elementalist, the quicker they are able to recover from injuries. But there''s no way the young man would be able to completely recover within a day or two after suffering such damages, he was only using the energy to make sure they didn''t worsen. "Such a strange essence bead," The young man suddenly said. He couldn''t figure out what was going on with Grey, but given the fact that he knew Grey had two elements, he was surprised he was only sensing one essence bead in his body. Not just that, but he couldn''t even properly observe it, there''s an unknown force that always pushes his spiritual senses away when he got too close. "How did you not die after swallowing that orb, given the essence in it, you should''ve exploded," Grey said, gasping for breath mid-sentence. "We both have our secrets. I''d really like to take that bead out of you when you''re dead," The young man said. "Heh! And you think you can kill me?" Grey scoffed, not at all afraid of the young man. "You used a special technique to merge your essence beads, thereby drastically increasing your strength. The thing about such techniques is that they all have time limits, all I need to do is hang on until said time limit," The young man said with a calm smile. It was like he could see everything unfolding, how he killed Grey and his friend. "You think you can make it that long?" Grey asked with a smirk. Although he knew the Fusion State couldn''t last forever, he knew he could still hold on for another eight to ten minutes. He could even push himself and hang on for another fifteen minutes. Given the amount of darkness essence he had injected in the young man, he was sure to die if he didn''t attend to it within the next ten minutes max. The area they were currently in was around seven hundred meters away from Reynolds, but Grey was making sure to keep a close eye on the cave. He could sense that the lightning tree''s essence was depleting at a fast pace, and he couldn''t help but be worried. "Why do you¡­ Cough! Cough!" The young man who was talking coughed, when he placed his hand on his mouth, he was stunned when he saw black blood coming out from his mouth. ''Poison?'' This was the first thought that came to his head, but he quickly dismissed it since the only way he could be poisoned was if he ate something. He didn''t recall eating anything for the past month now, even when he was at the inn, he wasn''t really drinking or eating anything. ''It must be his doing, but how?'' He looked at Grey with dread. Coughing up black blood mostly represented him ingesting poison, but since that shouldn''t be possible, and from Grey''s smile, he could tell it was his doing. He hastily sent his spiritual sense inside himself, and he was further shocked by his findings. He saw threads of black energy wreaking havoc on his inside, it was a horrifying scene to behold. "Darkness element? You have the darkness element?!" The young man asked in shock. "Of course not," Grey denied with a shy smile. "You arrogant fool, do you think this can stop me?" The young man said with a shady expression. "Of course not," Grey said with the same expression again. His smile soon vanished before adding, "But this can," After saying that, he snapped his finger, and eight inscriptions appeared mid-air, all appearing within two meters of the young man in different positions. They all released a black spike at the same time, impaling the young man from different positions. It was impossible to escape! "Argh!" The young man screamed in pain as the attacks stabbed him on different parts of his body, some even went on the come out from the other side of his body. Luckily, he managed to move his head and his chest, or else, he would''ve been killed instantly. "Ah¡­ the art of surprise, such a wonderful technique," Grey moaned in pleasure while looking at the injured young man. "In¡­ inscriptions! You''re an inscriber as well?" The young man looked at Grey, and fear was starting to appear in his eyes. What else is this young man? He''s everything! "Of course not," Grey said with the same shy smile. Grey''s answer and shy expression annoyed the young man so much that he started vibrating, making the injuries around and inside his body worse. Blarg! The young man couldn''t keep it in anymore and spat out a mouthful of black blood.. This time it wasn''t from the injuries, but it was because of pure unbridled rage. Chapter 369 - The Boss Is Coming "Ah!" The young man screamed in rage. An energy wave shot out from his body, spreading out in all directions. It managed to destroy the attacks of the inscriptions while destroying them as well. "Just you watch, I''ll kill you!" The young man said, and to Grey''s utmost surprise, the young man turned and fled. "Huh? It wasn''t supposed to go like this," Grey said with surprise. He didn''t chase after the young man, not because he couldn''t catch up to him, but because he needed to leave this place along with Reynolds. A terrifying aura was speeding towards where they were fighting from the Chimera forest, and if his guess was correct, it was none other than the Chimera. Sensing two energies that surpassed the Origin Plane fighting close to its territory for so long must have alerted it. ''The lightning tree''s essence has been exhausted, it time to leave,'' Grey quickly disappeared from the sky. In the cave. The Elemental Warrior just finished absorbing the last part of the essence, its aura had gotten to the Eighth stage of the Origin Plane. Grey suddenly appeared in the cave, and as if it was by instinct, the Elemental Warrior attacked with its lightning sword. Grey flicked his hand and a fireball blasted the Elemental Warrior, sending it flying. Bang! It crashed into the wall on the side. "That''s rude!" Reynolds immediately stood up and yelled at Grey, before dismissing his Elemental Warrior. "Come on, you were trying to show off," Grey said while spreading his hand. Reynolds couldn''t help but give out an embarrassed smile. He knew Grey was the only one who could appear from nowhere in the cave, but after seeing the increase in the strength of his Elemental Warrior, he couldn''t help it, he wanted to see how Grey could fare against it, after all, it could currently rival a Ninth stage Origin Plane expert. Seeing how easily Grey was able to send his Elemental Warrior flying with a single attack, he couldn''t help but shake his head wryly. "Wait? How come you''re this powerful?" Reynolds asked in shock when he sensed the energy that was radiating off of Grey''s body. "We''re leaving, the boss is coming, and we can''t do anything to it," Grey grabbed him and immediately disappeared from the cave, he didn''t even bother to take what was left of the essence stones that he used to make the array. Boom! A few seconds after Grey and Reynolds disappeared from the cave, an attack destroyed the cave, easily destroying the array that was protecting it. "Deceitful humans!" An enraged voice spoke out from afar. Grey and Reynolds were currently far away, in fact, they had moved so far that they had surprisingly overtaken the group who were still in the Rocky Mountains. With two more blinks, Grey and Reynolds appeared after the swamp, where the horses were tied. "Alright, we should be safe here." Grey''s voice came from the void before the duo appeared close to the horses. Reynolds currently had a look of incredulity on his face, all he saw were three flashes of light, and they were already here? Did Grey know how many kilometers they had to travel to get here? "The space element is such an overpowered element. It''s the perfect escape element," He said in awe. No matter how he felt about his Elemental Warrior being trounced by Grey a few seconds ago, it had been thrown to the back of his head after what just happened. They just traveled a distance that would usually take them hours to travel within a mere four or five seconds, that was insane! "Wait! What was coming?" He suddenly asked. He recalled hearing Grey saying the boss was coming. "If I''m not mistaken, it was the Chimera," Grey replied while sitting on the ground, tired. Reynolds watched him, and his eyes widened when he sensed Grey''s energy started diminishing. It soon got to the level of the Sixth stage of the Origin Plane. ''How''s this possible? What sort of technique is Grey cultivating?'' He asked himself. He only gave Grey a glance before going to loosen their horses, they needed to leave before the others got here. There''s also the danger of the Chimera if it decides to chase. Grey was currently feeling weak from the battle he had with the young man, and he wasn''t even sure he could fight properly in the meantime. Luckily, he exited the Fusion State on his own and didn''t have to stay till its end. "Bud, how come you only got to the Fifth stage?" Grey couldn''t help but ask as they started heading back. "Well, after I sensed the battle going on outside¡­" Reynolds went on to tell Grey how he decided to give the essence to his Elemental Warrior. "That ingenious," Grey couldn''t help but praise. "How are we going to deal with those plants?" Reynolds suddenly asked. "Crap! Lightning is ineffective against them?" Grey asked with a dark look. Reynolds nodded. ''Damn it! I should''ve carried the horses with me, and taken them to the side.'' Grey thought dejectedly. He was trying to recover from the fight, now he had to fight against the plants as well. With no other option, he prepared himself before they got close to the forest. They couldn''t wait on the open field before the forest because it would mean giving the others an opportunity to catch up to them. They entered the forest, with Grey fighting against the plants on his own. He set up multiple fire inscriptions around them, to use them to help him as he fought against them. Since they were only two, they traveled through the forest faster than when they were a group. After about thirty minutes, they arrived on the open field after the forest where the plants were staying. As soon as they got there, Grey immediately raised an earth wall to form a tent, and instantly started sleeping.. He didn''t say anything, nor did he even give Reynolds a glance, he just went to sleep on the ground. Chapter 370 - I Can Refine Anything! The next day. Grey woke up a little later than he usually does, the sun was already shining brightly in the sky. "Damn, using the space element so many times is so taxing," He complained as he stepped out of his tent. Reynolds was sitting casually a few meters away from where he was, the communication device was on his hand, which indicated that he was speaking with Alice. "You''re awake," He said when he saw Grey walking towards him. "Yeah, I''m still tired though," Grey held his head before sitting down close to Reynolds. "What do you plan to do now?" He asked after a while. Since they''ve already gotten the lightning tree, then there was no need in staying here anymore. Grey also had important matters to attend to, finding a way to heal Void. He had gotten some clues from the young man, and he planned to immediately head there after seeing Klaus. "I''ll continue training. You know you''re not the only one who needs to grow stronger," Reynolds said. "Yeah, given the current strength of your Elemental Warrior, you don''t really have anything to worry about in the Origin Plane. Only those in the Overlord Plane can threaten you now," Grey said with a smile. "Really? Given how you were able to send it flying with a single attack, I really doubt that." Reynolds said in a disbelieving tone. "My strength at that time should be above the Origin Plane, so it doesn''t really count," Grey replied casually. There was no use in hiding that his strength was high, it wasn''t like Reynolds didn''t see him. Although he wouldn''t tell him about the Fusion State, he also wouldn''t deny the fact that he had a special technique that could boost his strength significantly. "Who were you fighting against?" Reynolds asked. Since Grey said his strength was above the Origin Plane, it meant whoever he was fighting against must''ve been in the Overlord Plane. There wasn''t anyone in the Overlord Plane amongst those in the groups, so he found it quite strange. "Remember that guy who came asking for my assistance?" asked Grey. Reynolds thought for a while before nodding his head. "Actually, he has a special kind of lightning, red lightning¡­" Grey explained why the young man came to ask for his help, and also how he got to the Overlord Plane. "Wait, you mean he actually swallowed an orb that had more essence than the lightning tree, and survived?" Reynolds asked in shock. "Correction, he swallowed it and advanced," Grey said. "That''s insane!" Reynolds said. "If I think about it correctly, I think I''ve done something like that before," Grey placed his hand on his chin while going deep in thoughts. "I can''t seem to remember it, but I think I can," He shook his head after a while. Grey doesn''t have a problem with refining things that contain so much essence due to the orb. He could even swallow beast cores like they were candy, but he doesn''t really do it. "Monster," Reynolds murmured while giving Grey a weird look. "We''ll have to wait a little longer before leaving. Ah¡­ I really need some rest," Grey laid on the ground, looking at the sky. Reynolds looked at him before asking, "What about that guy? You said he promised to kill you before he left," "He''s not someone we should concern ourselves with, remember, he escaped. I think I can deal with him when we next meet. My only worry now is that he might search for you as well," Grey expressed his concern. There was a slim possibility of the young man killing Reynolds if he ever saw him, so he naturally couldn''t remove this possibility. "I''ll be fine," Reynolds said. "You said your Elemental Warrior was able to absorb the lightning tree?" Grey suddenly asked. "Yeah, I didn''t even think it would be possible at first," Reynolds said. ''Hmm, would it also be able to absorb the other orb?'' Grey fell deep in thoughts. If the Elemental Warrior could absorb the lightning tree, then technically, it should also be able to orb the red orb. It was lightning essence after all. If it''s possible, then the Elemental Warrior would receive a significant boost in strength, further guaranteeing Reynolds'' safety. "See if it could absorb this," Grey brought out the orb, handing it to Reynolds. Reynolds collected the orb, looking at it seriously. "This is what that guy wanted, right?" "Yeah, but I don''t think he knows I have it, even if he does, it''s not like he could take it," "What did you plan to do with it?" "Refine it," "I thought it was for those with red lightning alone?" "Oh please, I can refine anything as long as it has an elemental essence in it," Looking at Grey''s confident demeanor as he said this, Reynolds was sure he wasn''t lying. He looked at the orb with a confused expression, to be honest, he didn''t want to take it. The reason for this was simple, Grey had already given him the lightning tree. Although he felt grateful for having such an amazing friend, he felt taking this as well was no different from taking advantage of Grey''s kindness. Yes, Grey was the one who gave it to him. But being the one who receives and never gives didn''t feel great. "I don''t need it," Reynolds tossed the orb back to Grey. "What do you mean, no?" Grey asked, confused. It was just an orb that contained lightning essence, why did he reject it? "I don''t need it," Reynolds remained resolute in his decision. It already felt like he was dependent on Grey, taking this just so he could advance faster would mean he wanted to continue depending on him. "Stop being stupid and take it. This is not the time to be reasonable, right now, we need as much upgrade as we need. I''m heading to the Magical beasts'' forest, I''m bound to obtain something that would boost my strength." Grey said. "Yes, that''s all the more reason you need it. The Magical beasts'' forest isn''t somewhere even the Chimera can do as it pleases, yet it was able to make you flee while you were in that powerful state. To be honest, you need this more than I do," Reynolds said. Grey looked at him, not responding.. The place soon fell into silence. Chapter 371 - Like Candy "You''re being stupid, you know that, right?" Grey finally spoke up. "It''s not like it''s the first time," Reynolds with a shrug which threw Grey into a fit of laughter. "Fine, I''ll refine it. You know what, I''ll do it now," Grey said before walking back into the tent he made. Since Reynolds wanted him to refine it, then he would do it now. Besides, he wasn''t sure if he would get an opportunity again before stepping into the Magical beasts'' forest. Reynolds watched him go in with a smile. He could''ve accepted the orb and improved the strength of his Elemental Warrior, sensing the essence inside, he was sure it would''ve been able to get to the Overlord Plane. But, Grey was the one in more danger when he looked at it properly. The Emperor was not only searching for him, but so were the three other empires. Even though they had been unable to catch him now, what if he was seen by someone stronger than the young man he fought the previous day, then what? Inside the tent. Grey looked at the orb and shook his head wryly, he didn''t really want Reynolds to be annoyed, hence he decided to take it. Besides, dragging who would refine the orb was useless. Since Reynolds refused, he would most likely not refine it even if he left it on the ground next to him. He closed his eyes, and prepared to refine the orb, thinking of how the young man did it, he had the impulse of doing it. ''What have I got to lose?'' With that, he opened his mouth and tossed the orb inside. With a single gulp, the orb went straight down to his stomach. As soon as it got there, it exploded out with terrifying energy that scared the hell out of Grey. But as soon as the energy exploded out, a second energy was emitted from Grey''s body. The energy was able to quickly tame the wild energy that was coming out of the orb. ''Oh, I knew I could do it,'' He thought while focusing on trying to direct the docile energy to his lightning essence bead. Although he said this, his back was saying something different. His clothes were currently soaked with sweat from fright. With the amount of energy in the orb, Grey felt confident in not just breaking through to the Seventh stage, but the Eighth stage as well. That was not the only thing he was confident about, the second thing was an increase in his lightning element''s elemental grade. He had been unable to improve the grade of his lightning element for a long time now, so he actually felt quite happy refining this. The reason he suggested giving it to Reynolds was when he found out that the Elemental Warrior could absorb it. After guiding the red lightning essence to his essence bead, he slowly started to integrate it with his lightning essence bead. He was taken aback when he noticed that when the red lightning essence entered his essence bead, it did not change to the normal silver-colored lightning essence inside, instead, it remained the same color. He didn''t think much about it and focused on guiding the essence, for now. When he had completely refined everything, then he would think about what was going on with the red lightning essence. Because of the way he swallowed the orb, the speed in the refining process improved to a terrifying rate. Compared to others, his speed had always been faster, but now, it was almost on the same level as the speed with which the Elemental Warrior was absorbing the lightning tree''s essence. Within the short time of ten minutes, he had completely refined the essence contained within the orb. It was only after completely absorbing it did his breakthrough begin. Boom! Bang! A violent energy shot out of his body, destroying the earth tent he made. Reynolds, who was sitting on the ground, was shocked by the energy wave that spread in his direction. "What the hell! What''s he up to now?" He quickly retreated fifty meters away from the place, but after standing, he realized it didn''t change much, so he retreated further back. "He''s going to draw so much attention," Reynolds shook his head while looking around vigilantly. ''He''s only breaking through in the Origin Plane. Only God knows what sort of ruckus he''ll make when he''s breaking through to the Overlord Plane.'' He prepared himself in case anyone came close. Although he knew no one would come, it didn''t hurt to be too careful. Swoosh! The energy wave soon kicked up wind around Grey, and inside the wind, red lightning could be seen moving around it. Two minutes later, the wind storm slowly started reducing. Grey could be seen sitting with his eyes still closed, it was like he knew nothing of what happened around him a few minutes ago. He opened his eyes, and red lightning flashed across it. A smile formed on his lips as he stared at his hand, at the tip of his finger was a little red lightning bolt. ''So, that''s why it didn''t change. But how come it''s on a separate side?'' He thought to himself. Presently, his lightning essence bead has two colors, half of it was the normal silver color, while the other half was surprisingly red lightning. Grey never expected he would actually obtain it, but what was more unexpected was that he could actually switch between the lightning he wishes to use. The red lightning was naturally more powerful, but it was more eye-catching. "Hey, what''s with all the ruckus every time you breakthrough?" Reynolds asked from afar. "It''s not always, only on some special occasions," Grey said. "Wait, how come it didn''t take you up to fifteen minutes?" Reynolds asked while looking behind Grey as if searching for the orb. "I swallowed the orb, it made refining faster," Grey said with a smirk. "Monster," For the second time within an hour, Reynolds murmured the same word while looking at Grey like he was something else. Chapter 372 - Growth "What stage did you get to?" Reynolds asked after managing to stop looking at Grey weirdly. "Eighth stage, but I''m not too far from the Ninth stage," Grey replied after checking himself to confirm. "Looks like you''re going to be the first to get to the Overlord Plane. To think we were already in the Arcane Plane when you even haven''t started cultivating," Reynolds said in awe. This was something that had always surprised him, Grey''s speed was unfathomable. In a short space of just three years, Grey has gone from a regular person, to someone who''s already close to the Overlord Plane. How was that even possible? "Yeah, when I think about it carefully, it is kinda unbelievable," Grey replied. Klaus was in the Third stage the last time Grey saw him, but he was sure he would''ve already broken through to the Fourth stage already, given the fact that Alice had broken through and he was ahead of her. Thanks to the lightning tree, Reynolds not only got to the Fifth stage, but his Elemental Warrior also got a major boost that took it to the Eighth stage. It could rival those in the Ninth stage without any problems. This meant that Reynolds currently faced no danger as long as whoever was sent after him was in the Origin Plane. Unknowingly, Grey''s influence had actually made the group grow faster than they would usually do, after all, no one wants to get left behind. Even if Grey grows more powerful, at least they didn''t want to be too far behind. "We should get going," Grey said while looking in the direction of the forest inhabited by those sentient plants. He could sense the group was making their way here, and they were already almost halfway through the forest. ''Looks like the Chimera didn''t give chase,'' He thought. "Yeah, I wonder how the couple is doing?" Reynolds nodded before recalling Lukka and his wife. He had grown to like the couple during the expedition. They were of much help, especially the map they gave to the duo while they were still in the Chimera forest. Without the map, they might have accidentally stepped into one of the territories of magical beasts in the Overlord Plane while leaving the place. "They should be fine, I guess," Grey replied. Given Lukka''s strength, he didn''t think that there would be anyone who could kill him single-handedly in the group. And since the guild seemed united, he guessed no one would attack them. With nothing left for the duo to do in the forest, they immediately started their journey away from it. Grey planned to leave as soon as they left the forest. Initially, he didn''t want to create the teleportation array anywhere, but after finding out they would still need at least one week of traveling to get to Eternal City, he gave up the idea and would rather create the array somewhere secluded close to the mercenary town. They wouldn''t really get to the town since Reynolds would definitely be assaulted by people from the guild if found, so not going back there was the best option. Two days later. After traveling for two days, the duo was finally within range of the town, but they had no plans of going there. When they got there, Grey told Reynolds of the array he was going to make which would transport him to Frost City in as little as a minute or so. "The space element sure is wonderful, it would be nice if we could have something like this positioned all over the empire though. It would make traveling easier," Reynolds shook his head. "I plan to make more, but the amount of essence stones it consumes is terrifying," Grey said. If he could make more teleportation arrays, then moving would be easy for himself and his group. Only those close to him would be aware of the arrays, and how to start them up. He would place a restriction on them so others couldn''t use it, but that''s something he would think about later in the future, for now, he was focused on heading back to Frost City, visiting Alice once more, before heading out to meet Klaus. Amongst all his friends, Klaus was the one he was actually hoping to see more, the reason, he''s Klaus, who doesn''t want to be with him? Oh, wait, there''s probably a ton of people who would want him dead given how annoying he is. "I''d like to see Klaus though, it''s been so long," Reynolds said. "Yeah. Luckily, you can talk to him when I give him his communication device," Grey said, comforting Reynolds. "This thing''s a lifesaver. Who would''ve thought that there would be a way to communicate with people even when they''re not close to you?" Reynolds looked at the communication device lovingly. "Come on, I need to find a good location to create the array," Grey said before moving away from the path that led to the town. The duo went into the bushes around, searching for a place Grey felt was secure enough, and after almost two hours, they found nothing. There was no cave nor a tree-packed place in the forest. "This place''s impossible. We should''ve just done it back in the forest." Grey complained grumpily. "Why don''t we head in the direction of Eternal City? We''ll definitely find a spot there, and I''ll be closer to my place," Reynolds suggested. "Yeah, we should do that." Grey agreed. Reynolds planned to continue his training. Now that he knew there was a way he could boost the strength of his Elemental Warrior ahead of him, he wanted to take it to the Overlord Plane as soon as he could. Although they were heading in Eternal City''s direction, he wasn''t really going there. The only reason he suggested this was in case he was in Frost City and wanted to come to Eternal City, then this would shorten his journey by a week or two. They followed the route Reynolds took, and on the next day, Grey found a secure place to make the second array. Chapter 373 - Goodbye, Rey "I have to say, this place is nice," Reynolds commented while looking around the cave. The rumbling sound of water crashing to the ground was resonating in the cave. The cave was well hidden behind a waterfall. "Yeah, quite nice. Hopefully, other people won''t find it." Grey said. "I''m less concerned about people, and more concerned about magical beasts. Just imagine appearing here all of a sudden and an eight-foot Water Bear pounces on you. That wouldn''t be nice, in any way," Reynolds said, a little annoyed. "Come on, it was only a small hit. And besides, you were the one who said you didn''t need any help," Grey laughed when he looked at Reynolds'' sour expression. When they found the cave, it was occupied by a Water Bear. The Bear was in the Sixth stage of the Origin Plane. Grey initially wanted to scare it away with an attack, but Reynolds said he wanted to test out his strength. After advancing, he hadn''t seen a worthy opponent. He couldn''t say he wanted to fight with Grey given how overpowered Grey was, so on seeing the Bear, he was excited. The cave was quite spacious, around one hundred to one hundred and twenty meters wide. When the battle first started, the Bear was quite conservative since it was wary of Grey sneak attacking it. But as time went on, it noticed Grey didn''t even have any plans of fighting, he went to the side and watched. It immediately exploded out with raw strength which stunned Reynolds. The sudden change caught Reynolds by surprise which allowed the Bear to land a swiping strike at him. It sent him flying, slamming into the side of the cave. Although he defeated the Bear at the end, the pain he felt all over wasn''t something to joke about. The Bear truly planned on killing him with that strike. He didn''t kill the Bear in the end, letting it go with a small wound. The wound wouldn''t really affect its daily life, so he counted it as being lenient with it. "It''s lucky I let it live," Reynolds snorted. "Come on, you were invading its home, it''s bound to attack. You don''t expect it to just sit there and watch you take it, right?" Grey chuckled. "*Sigh* I guess it was right to attack, but damn! That hit was ferocious," Reynolds massaged his left arm as he responded. Grey laughed before he got to work, he would be the only one using the array. Reynolds only accompanied him so he would know where the array was, and because he wanted to spend a little more time with his friend. Even though they would be able to communicate more frequently, he doubted Grey would be that free given how much of a training freak he was. Some minutes later, Grey completed the array, looking at it intensely. ''There should be a way to link all arrays together, given how this one is only connected to that particular coordinates, it would be difficult to use it to get to another place. I''d have to modify the array when I next plan to use it.'' Grey thought. "I guess you''ll be leaving now?" Reynolds said while looking at the array. He still couldn''t figure out how these weird lines could move someone from one part of the empire to another in a short time. Arrays had always stumped him, especially how they worked. ''No need to think about it, my brain might explode if I think about it too much.'' He said to himself. "Yeah, we''ll see sooner than expected, hopefully," Grey said. "Try to stay alive," Reynolds advised. "Of course, who do you think can stop me if I want to escape?" Grey said confidently. "An extremely strong, and fast Peak Overlord Plane expert," Reynolds replied after thinking for a while. "You''re no fun, it''s a rhetorical question, you weren''t supposed to answer that," Grey almost facepalmed. He knew a Wind or even Lightning Overlord Plane expert at the peak of the Plane could catch up to his speed even in the Fusion State, but he didn''t think the emperor would really send someone that strong after him. "I''m just stating facts," Reynolds replied with a shrug. "Haha, it''s nice being with you again. We''ll soon be able to meet up freely again, soon," Grey punched Reynolds on his shoulder lightly. "Yeah, I hope so," Reynolds replied as he watched Grey step into the array. His eyes almost shot out when he saw the number of essence stones Grey brought out. Essence stones were divided into three grades, low, medium, and high. And currently sprawling on the ground were over fifty medium-grade essence stones, which was a lot, given how rare essence stones were in the Azure continent. There were very few essence stone mines in the continent, and it was greatly fought over by not only the empires but the big families as well. Now he understood why Grey said the consumption was insane. He wasn''t lying, it truly was insane. "Where did you get so many essence stones?" Reynolds couldn''t help but ask. "Oh, this? I took it from Alice''s dad," Grey replied. "There''s no way he''d give you that much. You stole it," Reynolds immediately concluded. "It''s not stealing if Alice was the one who gave me permission," Grey smiled. "Damn, her dad would probably be crying after finding out so many essence stones are gone, and he doesn''t even have any idea where they went," "It''s not like he doesn''t deserve it," Grey muttered quietly. "Alright Rey, I''ll be going now. I suppose you already know how to use the array?" Grey asked. He remembered telling Reynolds how to use the array, but he didn''t know if he would be able to. "Yeah, I think. You know what, show me again just to be sure," Reynolds said calmly. "You''re not even embarrassed you couldn''t get it the first time?" Grey rolled his eyes, before going all over again on how to use the array. It was a very simple process, all he had to do is strike two spots after placing the stones in the right positions. After showing Reynolds how to use it, he activated the array. "Goodbye, Rey," Chapter 374 - Changed Lightning Region "Goodbye, Grey. Hope to see you guys sooner," Reynolds waved at Grey as he watched the array lightning up. With a bright flash, the light peaked before going down as quickly as it peaked. After the light died down, Reynolds was the only one left in the cave. This was the first time he was seeing this outside the trial land, well, he didn''t really see much of this in the trial land, so he was quite fascinated with what he saw. ''Luckily, Grey''s my friend.'' He thought to himself. The lines of the array soon disappeared, like they were never there. According to Grey, he did this so that others wouldn''t be aware of the array''s presence in the cave. The people of the continent aren''t dumb, them being able to activate the array to the trial land which was more complex than his own showed that. Reynolds decided to rest in the cave for two hours, after that, he left, heading for where next he might hear of a lightning element treasure. His new discovery of the fact that his Elemental Warrior could improve its strength was still shocking. He planned to halt his own cultivation so that he could boost his Elemental Warrior to the Overlord Plane. Only then, will he be able to walk freely. But for the meantime, he would cultivate whenever he could since he knew such treasures couldn''t be found anywhere. But if he ever finds any, he would be focusing them on his Elemental Warrior. ¡­.. In a cave, not too far from Frost City. Array lines suddenly lit up, shocking the few small critters in the place. They looked at the place where the light was coming from, and Grey suddenly appeared out of nowhere. Grey looked around the cave, he knew there wouldn''t be any large beasts here, so he didn''t really find it surprising. The small animals he saw in the cave were harmless, although they were magical beasts, they tended not to attack people. The only thing was that they were squirrels. Grey had a thing against rat-type magical beasts after his encounter with those bunnies in the trial land. It''s not that he was scared of them, he just didn''t like encountering them. They always remind him of that hateful bunny. He wasn''t scared of the other bunnies, but that bunny in particular, well, he doesn''t even think of it as a bunny anymore. It''s quite surprising how someone like Grey who would charge into a horde of beasts fearlessly without thinking much about it, having such a deep-seated fear for such small animals because of a single bunny. ''I better start going,'' Grey quickly disappeared from the cave, appearing outside the cave. The teleportation from where he previously was to here took less than a minute or so. The space element sure makes moving easier, and better. After leaving the cave, Grey observed the area properly. ''Hmm, I haven''t even checked the elemental grade of my lightning element. We left hurriedly because of those people,'' Grey climbed up the hill where the cave was situated, after getting to the peak he sat down. The hill was only around fifty meters or so high, but he got a good view of the entire forest from there. He sat down in a crossed leg position, then closed his eyes. ¡­. Chaos space. Grey appeared in the Chaos Space, and the first thing he did was to go to the lightning region. He wanted to confirm something, if his deduction was correct, then it was a mind-blowing ability. After getting there, he looked at the lightning region, wide-eyed. The lightning region was currently separated into two, although merged, it was two separate things. The left part was filled with silver lightning dancing about, and on the right side, red lightning could be seen dancing. There was a place where both lightnings merged. With a curious expression on his face, Grey walked into the lightning region, half part of his body was in the silver lightning, while the other half was in the red lightning. His body was struck with both lightning at the same time, and he could clearly feel the difference between both. The silver lightning had a better shocking ability than the red lightning, but the explosive power of the red lightning was far superior than that of the silver one. Although the silver lightning had more electric power, the red lightning can cause burns faster than the silver one. It was quite strange, thinking about it. It was almost like it had more of a fire style than a lightning style. Other than that, the red lightning was faster. This would greatly increase Grey''s already terrifying speed. ''Can I use both lightnings at once? If I can, then that would be amazing,'' Grey soon disappeared from the lightning region, appearing at the top of the hill where the stone was located. He didn''t come here to comprehend his lightning element, he came to check its grade. Once he was done with that, he would leave the Chaos space immediately, heading over to see Alice. Since meeting up with Reynolds, he hadn''t spoken to her too frequently. He had been too focused on his training whenever he was free, and since Reynolds was speaking to her, she wasn''t really that lonely. On appearing in the temple, he steadily walked to the small stone platform on it. The testing rock could be seen embedded on a small pillar. Without wasting any time, he placed his right hand on the stone. And energy left the stone, running through Grey''s physical body, before returning to the stone. Grey still hasn''t been able to comprehend how this thing works. This was clearly another space, and only his consciousness could enter this place, yet it is still able to interact with his physical body. ''Maybe it''s because this space is in my body.'' Grey threw the thought to the back of his head, he would worry about it later. For now, he wanted to see the outcome of his lightning element''s elemental grade. He curiously looked at the stone. Chapter 375 - Meeting The Earl Sisters Again "Just as I thought, violet grade," Grey muttered when he saw the violet color on the region of the lightning element on the stone. Grey currently had four different elemental grades for his seven elements, with the fire element supposedly being the highest with the cyan grade, lightning element follows being in the violet grade, the wind and water elements were blue grade, while earth, darkness, and space elements were all in the purple grade. "Uh! What''s this?" A fascinated expression appeared on Grey''s face when he looked at the water element, its grade for some reason had changed from purple to blue. ''How? I haven''t even tried improving it in any way, nor have I absorbed any treasure that has to do with the water element.'' Grey found this discovery surprising. His elements had never increased without his knowledge, so he found this quite strange. But he couldn''t hide the fact that he was happy about it. The higher his elemental grades, the faster his cultivation was. This could be seen in how quickly he had been able to surpass his friends. Yes, he was fortunate to encounter some treasures, but without his fast cultivation, he wouldn''t have been able to improve this quickly. His ability to absorb treasures far surpasses others, this makes him absorb the treasures completely, not letting anything go to waste. Even Overlord Plane experts wouldn''t be able to do it that well. Unknown to Grey, the drop of liquid Aetonth placed in his body when he was leaving the trial land was what caused the sudden increase in his water element elemental grade. The water was slowly dissolving in his body, strengthening his ice ability, while also improving his grade. Grey was the only one who could increase his elemental grade just by absorbing any special natural treasures that were affiliated with his elements. For example, had he been the one to refine the elemental essence in the lightning tree, then there''s a high probability that his lightning element''s elemental grade might''ve seen an increase. But with Reynolds being the one to refine it, it only increased his strength, nothing more. The grade of the treasures naturally has an impact on whether his elemental grade would increase or not, and the grade of his element before refining also determines if it''s possible with that treasure, or not. Let''s take that Grey was to find a fire element natural treasure, due to the high grade of his fire element, if the treasure was not at least double the level of what the lightning orb he refined recently is, then there are no chances of his fire element''s grade improving. One has to remember that he still didn''t know how high the cyan grade was. There''s a chance that it''s the grade above the violet grade, then there''s also the chance of there being some elemental grades before it. But in the history of the Azure continent, other than the violet grade which is just above the blue grade, Grey hadn''t read or heard of there being a higher grade. ''I''ll find out about it later, for now, improving is all that''s important.'' After completing what he wanted to do in the Chaos space, he quickly left. ¡­. Grey opened his eyes, looking at the features of the majestic Frost City that could be seen even from this distance. He planned to start his journey today, so after seeing Alice, he would immediately leave. ¡­. Frost City. On getting to the gate, it was just as rowdy as the first time Grey visited the city. He didn''t have a horse with him, and since he wanted to enjoy the view of the city, he decided to walk through the busy streets of the city, heading to the Reiss'' family compound. On his way there, he encountered some familiar faces, the Earl sisters. This time, the sisters were alone, with no one accompanying them. "Hello," Grey waved as soon as he saw them. He didn''t really have anything against them, although it looked like he used them, he only took advantage of the opportunity they gave to him. He knew nothing of Gerald''s birthday, nor the Lenz organization until meeting the girls. "It''s you!" Aldreda said in surprise when she heard Grey''s voice. Grey wore a hood to cover up his face, after all, he was still in danger. The Emperor hadn''t stopped looking for him, it was just that he was fortunate enough not to have seen any of them all this while. He was not only wary of the Emperor, but during his first trip to Frost City, he made an enemy of one of the big families here, so he couldn''t afford to be seen by them. What if they send a powerful Overlord Plane expert after him? He had used the Fusion State recently, and he could feel the energy hadn''t died down. And even though he could still use it to escape, he didn''t want to take such risks. "It''s been a while," Grey said coolly. "Yeah, you disappeared after using us," Elda said coldly. "Well, I can''t really say I used you. But I just can''t deny the fact that without your help, I wouldn''t have gotten what I wanted." Grey said, making sure they heard the word ''help'' in his statement. "Well, that ''help'' has placed our family in serious trouble. The Smith family are giving us troubles because we were the ones who brought you to the ceremony." Elda said in an annoyed tone. Grey''s expression changed when he heard this, he didn''t expect the Smith family would actually place the Earl family in a difficult position just because he was acquainted with the girls. "I''m sorry, that was never my intention," He apologized to the sisters. "Your apology won''t change anything, my family can''t fight against the Smith family," Elda said, her body shuddering from frustration. "What about the Reiss family, I thought they were fighting with the Smith family?" Grey couldn''t help but ask. "The Reiss family have their own troubles to deal with, they can''t help us.. According to what I heard, the Emperor summoned the head of the Reiss family for questioning," Aldreda was the one who spoke up this time. Chapter 376 - [Bonus ] Earl Manor ''Hmm, I don''t recall Alice saying anything about this. But he should be fine, as long as they don''t find Alice in the compound,'' Grey thought. He wasn''t too concerned about Alice''s father being summoned to the Capital. First of all, they didn''t find Alice in the compound, and secondly, the Reiss family is a big family. They couldn''t be dated back to when the empire started, but they rose to prominence around that time, after the empire was formed. The Emperor wouldn''t want to eliminate them over mere assumptions. They were most probably searching for Grey''s friends since they thought he might have shared the Great Earth Essence Liquid with them, there wasn''t even any proof of that happening. He was more concerned about the Earl family. He didn''t like others getting in trouble because of him. But there was nothing he could do to help them, it''s not like he could fight against the Smith family alone, and he didn''t want to ask Gerald for help. The Lenz organization would be able to easily help the Earl family with as little as a single letter, but Grey decided against it. "Did the Smith have any demands?" Grey asked. If the only thing the Smith family wanted was for them to provide him, then he would go to them so that the Earl family wouldn''t be bothered. He could easily escape when he got there. If the Smith family remained unreasonable, then he might get help from Gerald. "You, of course. What else would they want, they want you," Elda replied. "Well, that settles it. I''ll go with you to your family. Then you people would take me to the Smith family, that should be able to get them to stop bothering you people," Grey said. "What?! You''re going to come with us?" Elda was taken aback when Grey said those words so carefreely. "Yes, I got you people into this mess. It''s only right that I fix it," Grey waved. "No, I don''t agree with it. They''ll kill you," Aldreda immediately objected. "It''s okay, I''ll be fine," Grey smiled softly. "No, taking you to them is no different from killing you. I don''t agree to this," Aldreda said. "What are you saying, he said he''ll be fine. Stop this tantrum," Elda immediately chided. Unlike Aldreda, she was infatuated with Grey''s look. She couldn''t deny the fact that he was unbelievably handsome, but it didn''t mean she''d choose him over her family. "Sister! I¡­" "Don''t worry, I don''t do things I''m not confident in. Do I look like someone who wants to die now?" Grey interrupted Aldreda as she was about to continue her objection. "But, they will kill you," Aldreda said, tears already filling her eyes. "Don''t worry, I have a huge bargaining chip, so they wouldn''t dare kill me. Also, have you forgotten I''m friends with Old man Gerald?" Grey asked nonchalantly. He wasn''t even scared of the thought of going there, the reason for that is simple, he had a plan against the Smith family. This would set the Smith family against the Emperor. Given the Emperor''s nature, they might even attack them if he plays his cards well. Unfortunately, he wouldn''t be able to take it that far since he didn''t know what plans the Emperor had for him. But he would make sure the Smith got in trouble with the Emperor. "What''s that?" Aldreda asked. "Me, they wouldn''t dare kill me," Grey replied. "When are we going?" Elda asked. She had no plans of even knowing what Grey planned, all she wanted to do was take him back to her family, and then send him to the Smith family. It couldn''t be helped, after what happened at the ceremony, she hated Grey for using them. Presently, she didn''t even believe the name he told them was his original name. "Now," Grey replied. He didn''t bother about Elda''s attitude towards him. She had changed when she noticed how strong he was, so he didn''t take her acting this way strange. ''Alice, I''ll have to spend a little time with this family before leaving. Hopefully, my plan is successful. If not, I''ll just escape for the meantime, again.'' He thought to himself. His plan of setting up the Smith family was very easy, after the Earl family had handed him over to them, he would tell them of the Emperor searching for him and his friends, being a big family, he believed they must have heard a thing or two. After that, he would decide what to do next after the family head responds. If the family head plans to take the Great Earth Essence Liquid, then he would communicate with Old man Gerald and get him to inform the Emperor of the Smith family holding him captive and trying to obtain the Great Earth Essence Liquid. But if the family head decides to send words to the Emperor so they would send people here to get him, then he would escape with the space element, thereby making it look like they were trying to play games with the Emperor. If the people sent are in the Origin Plane, he didn''t even mind killing them so it would look like it was the Smith''s family doing, either way, he would set them up against the Emperor. ¡­. A few minutes later. Grey and the Earl sisters appeared in front of a manor, it wasn''t as big as the Reiss manor, nor the Lenz'' manor, but it had the appearance of a wealthy family. "This is my first time coming here, it''s pretty nice," Grey commented as the gates were opened for the trio to step in. "Hopefully, it will be your last," Elda said. Grey shook his head wryly. Elda''s animosity towards him didn''t seem to reduce even after he offered himself to the Smith family so they wouldn''t bother them anymore. They went straight to the main building, heading straight to the main hall. On getting there, two guards were stationed in the front of the closed doors. "You can''t go in Milady, family head is in a meeting with the elders to solve the family problems, he asked us to stop others from disturbing them.." The guards stopped the trio. Chapter 377 - Unreasonable Old Fogies "We''re here because of that. I have a way to solve this," Elda said calmly. "I''m sorry Milady, but we can''t go against the Lord''s wishes," The guard at the left side of the door said. "If my father were to find out you didn''t permit me entry given the importance of what I''m about to tell him, I doubt you''d be able to keep your head," Elda threatened. The two guards exchanged looks, they would naturally easily let Elda enter, but her family clearly told them to make sure no one disturbed them while they were in the meeting. "Did you say it would solve the problem?" The guard on the right asked. They were currently in a difficult position, if what Elda said was correct, then her father would most likely punish them for not allowing her to enter. But if she were lying, then they would be in even more trouble, but there might be a chance that the girls might be able to plead on their behalf. Elda nodded to his question. With gritted teeth, he made way for the trio. The second guard looked at him, and with gritted teeth, he also made way for them. They''ve decided to place their trust in the sisters. ¡­. Inside the hall. Over fifteen people could be seen in the hall, all seated with sour expressions. The people consisted of both men and women, all looked to be over fifty. A man with a dignified look could be seen sitting on a chair in the middle, with the others sitting on the sides. The man had dark circles around his eyes, it was evident he had been going through a lot lately. He was none other than the family head of the Earl family. "What do we do now? They want the boy, who we don''t even know where he came from. I''ve spent so much, yet I haven''t heard of a Zeke Hoover, nor a person that fits the description of that young man in the neighboring cities," The family head said with a downcast look. "Didn''t you get anything from Old man Gerald?" A man asked. "No, Old man Gerald gave me a glance and told me to leave. If my conjecture is right, the background of the young man isn''t something a family like ours could dare to go against," The family head said, feeling a headache about the issue. "The Smith family is being too unreasonable, they clearly know we can''t find the young man, yet they are giving us unnecessary troubles," Another man chimed in. "I think they''re taking their frustrations out on us. After Donald was summoned by the Emperor, they couldn''t fight with them anymore since they didn''t know why the Emperor summoned him," A lady said. "They''re only being stupid, why bother us over something we don''t have a hand in?" A man said. They continued speaking about the matter with different people having different opinions about the problem. While they were speaking. Creak¡­ The door to the hall opened slowly, with Grey and the sisters walking into the hall. "Elda, what''s the meaning of this?!" An old man immediately scolded her when they saw the trio. "Such audacity, you not only came here without permission, but you also brought in a stranger. This is what happens when your father lets you do as you please. We''re in a mess because of your actions, now you defy the family rules as well?" Another person scolded, a man this time. They weren''t the only ones who scolded Elda as soon as they saw her, almost half of the people here scolded her with faces of disgust. Elda looked at them with an apathetic expression, she didn''t even want to see them again. She slowly glanced at the man sitting in the center chair, her father, waiting for him to speak. "Leave at once, before your punishment increases," An old man said. "Why are you here?" The family head finally spoke up. His question silenced the others who were about to continue scolding Elda. Surprisingly, none of them even said a word to Aldreda. "Father, I want you to meet someone," Elda said, before looking at Grey. "You interrupted our meeting because you wanted to show your father the boy you like?! Family head, you''re being too lenient with your children, this is why they keep bringing troubles," The old lady who scolded the first time said, pointing at Elda. Most of the reason Elda had animosity towards Grey even after he said he''d help was just because of this. After the problem started, some of the old people in the family had been blaming her for it. Since she was the eldest, she was supposed to know what to do, instead, she brought trouble to the family. "Who''s he?" The family head asked. "Hello, I''m Zeke Hoover," Grey spoke up calmly, before taking off the hood of the robe that was hiding his face. His bewitchingly handsome face came to view for the people who were gathered in the hall, and they all came to a single agreement, he was handsome. "You''re Zeke Hoover?" The family head asked, shocked. "Yes, I encountered the sisters on my way back to the city and they told me about the crisis your family was facing because of me, so I decided to come to you so you could hand me to the Smith family," Grey went straight to the point. He didn''t really have a good impression of some of the people here, so he didn''t want to stay here for too long. Most of them were at the Peak of the Origin Plane. The old lady who was scolding Elda the most had not even gotten to the Peak of the Origin Plane, she was still in the Eighth stage, just like Grey. Grey felt he might kill her with a single strike if he stayed here for too long. He didn''t see any reasons for them to be scolding Elda without even allowing her to speak. ''Tsk, such unreasonable old fogies.'' Chapter 378 - Why Did You Come? The Earl family elders looked at Grey in shock. People would usually run away if the Smith family was after them, well, people without sufficient backings. Yet, here Grey was, offering himself up so that they would be pardoned. This further increased the beliefs in their mind that Grey''s background was terrifying. "Hmm, although handing you over to the Smith family would help us pass through this difficult time, I don''t agree with it." The leader replied after a moment of silence. The reason for his refusal was simple: what if the strong backing behind Grey decided to act against them because they put him in danger, then what? They could still somewhat deal with the Smith family, although barely, they were still holding on. But if the terrifying force behind Grey decides to act, then they might be doomed. All these were just his assumptions after adding up all he added when he tried searching for Grey. If even the Smith family couldn''t get Old man Gerald to tell them where Grey was, that meant he wasn''t someone they could mess with. Grey noticed the sense of apprehension from the leader and was kind of stupefied.. What''s he afraid of? I''m already here to help, why''s he rejecting my help? He didn''t think much about it though, "I plan on going to meet the Smith family anyway so it doesn''t really mean much who hands me over to them. But I''m doing this just so that your family wouldn''t be disturbed by them again," Aldreda and Elda looked at Grey, they knew he had no idea what was going on, so he didn''t even plan on visiting the Smith family. He''s only saying this so that their father would agree to take him to the Smith family. They couldn''t help but feel grateful inside. If their father were to reject Grey''s suggestion, there was nothing the others could do about it. And given what''s happening, it would only suffice if he was the one who personally handed Grey over to the Smith family, the Smith family was that unreasonable. "Father, you should consider what he said. This would definitely help resolve our problems with the Smith family, and as you''ve heard, he planned on going anyway," Elda stepped in to plead with her father. This was her chance to redeem herself in front of the elders, although she wasn''t particularly welcoming towards them, there was no way for her to live in the manor peacefully given how they currently treated her. "Family head, I think it would be best for you to take the boy over to the Smith family," The elders joined in to try to convince the leader to take Grey over. "Go outside while we discuss this, you''ll be summoned when we''re done," The leader sent them away. He truly didn''t want to hand Grey over to the Smith family, so he wanted to tell the elders about his reasons. If they still decided to hand him over to them, then he would accept it, after having a chat with Grey. Grey and the girls left the hall, stepping outside. When the guards saw them, they were a little tense, after all, they didn''t spend a long time inside, so there was probably the possibility of them being chased out. They exchanged gazes while simultaneously swallowing down a gulp of saliva. ''All he had to do was say yes, what''s the use of having a meeting with the elders?'' Grey thought inside as he walked out. The trio sat down on the bench not too far from the hall, while awaiting the head of the Earl family to summon them. After around ten minutes, the head of the Earl family came out from the hall, accompanied by the elders. He surprisingly had a look of disappointment, it was as if the outcome of the meeting wasn''t what he wanted. "Zeke Hoover, come with me," He called out. Grey walked forward to meet him, and they went to the side of the hall, away from the ears of the others. "To be honest, I don''t want to hand you over to them. Think about it, the Smith family would most likely want to kill you, do you still want to go?" The head of the Earl family asked. "I''m grateful for your concern sir, but do not fret, they will not dare to kill me, so you have nothing to worry about," Grey replied confidently. It seemed like the head of the Earl family was worried about the same thing as Aldreda, that the Smith family would kill him the moment he was handed over to them. "Hmm, since you say so, I''ll do as you''ve said," The head of the Earl family replied. The duo came back to where the Earl family elders were gathered, just as they were about to leave, Grey suddenly felt something vibrate in his storage ring. He sent his spiritual sense inside and noticed it was the communication device Gerald gave to him. ''He must''ve known I''m in the city,'' He thought. He didn''t take out the device, but he was able to assess the message there. ''Why have you come to Frost City, again?'' Gerald''s voice resounded in Grey''s head, and for some reason, Grey felt like he seemed to be in pain when he said the word ''again''. ''I came to see someone, I''ll be leaving soon,'' Grey replied. As soon as he replied, he suddenly felt the device vibrate again, it was like Gerald had been waiting for his reply again. ''Why are you handing yourself to the Smith family then? You know they obviously want you dead,'' Gerald was currently caught between tears, he thought he had been able to chase the little demon out, who knew he would come again, he didn''t only come, he even wanted to hand himself to the Smith family who obviously wants him dead. ''Yeah, but they''re troubling the Earl family, I can''t sit by and watch them suffer because of my deeds,'' Grey replied. ''You could''ve told me, I''ll settle it. In fact, I''ll summon the head of the Smith family now, they would stop causing troubles for the Earl family,'' Gerald said hurriedly. ''No need, I have a plan to take them down,'' Grey said. Chapter 379 - These Guys Are Rich! At the Lenz manor. Ten minutes after Grey entered the Earl manor. Gerald was casually sitting in his office, enjoying tea while playing a game of chess with Diluc. After Grey left, things had gone back to the same for Gerald, he would occasionally have business meetings, but nothing really too serious to worry about. The few weeks Grey stayed with him really stressed him out, the fear of Chris made things difficult for him. So when Grey finally left, he was beside himself with joy. He was about to make a move on the game when someone suddenly knocked on the door. "Strange, I don''t recall having any meetings today," Gerald muttered to himself, but still gave Diluc the nod to go see who it was. Diluc went to their door and after speaking with the guard, he came back to take his seat. "Master Gerald, Grey''s back in Frost City," He reported what he was told to him. "What do you mean Grey''s back in Frost City? He was supposed to go to the Magical beasts'' forest," Gerald said, not too worried. Even though Grey was back in Frost City, it was only because he knew him well, that was why his people were able to notice him, it''s not like the Smith family would be able to find him. He decided to let people monitor his movements while he continued playing the game of chess with Diluc. A few minutes later, the communication device he had with him vibrated, and when he heard the message, he almost fainted. "What?! I''m dead, the boy wants me dead," Gerald was flustered. The message stated that Grey wanted to hand himself over to the Smith family. Gerald had a good few people in each family, so he was always caught up with whatever was going on. Although, he never intervened unless he had something to gain from it. He hastily sent a message to Grey, hoping he would reply immediately. When he heard Grey''s reply, he almost went crazy. Diluc was calming him down, while he replied to Grey, trying to persuade him not to go. After almost ten minutes of persuasion which seemed futile, he hastily sent Diluc after them. Grey and the head of the Earl family were already in a carriage, headed to the Smith manor. "No matter what, nothing must happen to him," He ordered with a flustered look. He drank what was left of the tea on his cup, trying to use it to calm himself. ''They shouldn''t be able to kill him immediately, knowing the fool, he would want to torture him first. That would be even worse, what if Chris finds out?'' Gerald''s fear of Chris was stopping him from thinking rationally. But knowing there was nothing to be done, he poured himself another tea, trying to use it to calm his mind once again. The cup didn''t seem to be doing a good job, so he threw it away and started drinking directly from the jug. This for some reason seemed to have an effect on him, as he visibly calmed down. ''Aish, since knowing this kid, my peaceful life has been ruined. I really shouldn''t have called him over that day,'' He sighed with a melancholic look. ¡­. Frost City. The head of the Earl family was the only one who followed Grey as they headed to the Smith manor. They didn''t speak on the way, with Grey looking at the city as they moved on. Although he stayed in Frost City for over a month the last time he visited, he had only been to a few places, so he was taking his time to commit the route to memory so that after escaping, he wouldn''t wander around. It took them around twenty minutes or so to get to the Smith manor from the Earl manor, it wasn''t close by, but it couldn''t really be said to be far either. The carriage got to the manor gate, and they were stopped by the guards. "What''s your business here?" One of the guards asked the coachman. "The Earl family head wishes to see the head of the Smith family, he has important business with him," The coachman replied calmly. "No carriages are allowed into the manor, if your Earl family head wants to come in, then he''d have to walk inside," One of the guards said with disgust evident in his eyes. He didn''t put the Earl family in his eyes, even though he was only a guard at the gate, the Smith family''s pride ran deep through his veins. ''Such blatant disregard, heh! This Smith family really is something,'' Grey scoffed when he heard this. The coachman was about to protest when the head of the Earl family''s voice came from inside. "Since Master Jean has given this order, it''s not wise to go against it," The head of the Earl family highlighted the carriage, accompanied by Grey who had his robe on, and they entered the manor. He didn''t want to make a ruckus at the gate of the Smith manor, especially given what has been going on lately. With his hand behind his back, he gently walked forward, with Grey behind him. A guard led them inside after they passed through the gate. The Smith manor was almost double the size of the Earl manor, even the Reiss and Lenz manor didn''t match up to it in size. This showed the proud and dominant attitude of the Smith family. Grey even guessed that they were the ones with the biggest manor in the entire Frost City. Even, other than the Palace, he wasn''t sure he had seen any manor as big as this one. ''These guys must be rich. *Sigh* If only Void were here, then he''d be stealing everything while I was held captive,'' He thought to himself. Because of his arrays, he currently has a need for huge numbers of essence stones, and what''s the best way for someone who''s as poor as him getting them, stealing of course! Chapter 380 - The Emperor Wants Me! Grey soon started calculating how he would be able to steal the essence stones in the manor. It wasn''t like he had any good relationships with the Smith family. If he could take from the Reiss family without feeling bothered, then he could obviously steal the entire reserve of the Smith family if he could without batting an eye. They soon got to the hall in the main building, and even though the Earl family wasn''t much in the presence of the Smith family, they weren''t really a pushover either. If push comes to shove, then they will be able to deal some damage to the Smith family before they are eliminated. The guard went in to announce the arrival of the head of the Earl family to the people of the Smith family who were inside the hall. He soon came out, inviting Grey and the head of the Earl family inside. Grey walked behind the head of the Earl family, the sight that welcomed him in the hall were extravagant decorations, statues of dragons, griffins, and other mythical magical beasts were placed in different places in the hall. Looking forward, he saw what looked like an almost four meters high throne. Grey almost had the feeling of standing in front of a king because of the throne.. Seated on the throne was a man with a slim build, he had short brown hair, and his eyes were in a slit, it was almost like he didn''t open them. He was Jean Smith, the current head of the Smith family. Jean wasn''t the only one in the hall, there were three people in the hall as well, all ladies. Twl of the ladies looked to be in their early thirties and a younger one who looked to be around eighteen. "Francis, what brings you here," Jean asked while still in his seat. He didn''t even bother to offer him a seat. Usually, whenever the heads of the big families visit each other, the host would stand up to welcome them, before inviting them to take a seat. Although the Earl family can''t be regarded as one of the big families, they were at the top of the hierarchy below the big families. Jean''s attitude was a blatant show of disregard to the Earl family. Francis looked at Jean, with a sigh, he went straight to the point, "You''ve been asking for Zeke Hoover, well, here he is. I hope this will make amends for the error of my children," Jean looked at the youth covered by a robe who was standing behind Francis. "Remove the robe," He said to Grey. Grey had already looked at everyone in the hall, and to his surprise, Jean Smith was only in the Early stages of the Overlord Plane. If what he sensed was right, that was around the same stage as Francis. Most people in the Origin Planes will not be able to properly sense the stages of those in the Overlord Plane. Even with Grey''s high spiritual sense, he could only get a rough estimation. He recalled hearing the Smith family was wealthy. Their wealth was what propelled them to the peak of the hierarchy in Frost City. Grey was sure the heads of the other big families were in the Late stages of the Overlord Plane, yet, Jean was still in the Early stages. Although he knew he was no match for him in a battle even if he used the Fusion State, he didn''t have a problem with escaping from him. He slowly removed the robe covering his face, showing the few people in the hall what he looked like. "To think William lost to you," The young lady in the hall was the first to comment. She looked at Grey with eyes that clearly showed surprise. She had heard of his handsomeness from the people who went to the ceremony, but she didn''t think he would actually be this handsome. Unfortunately, he was an enemy who would be killed soon. Grey looked at the young lady, she was surprisingly in the same stage as William, the Seventh stage of the Origin Plane, and she was younger, this showed that her talent surpassed him. "He didn''t really put up much of a fight," He replied to the girl''s comment in a calm manner. "Hmph!" Jean snorted coldly when he heard Grey''s remark. Grey''s casual and calm attitude left him suspicious. For someone who would most likely die given what he did, he seemed too calm. "Do you know why you''re here?" He asked. "Yes, I heard you''re searching for me, well, here I am," Grey shrugged with a casual expression, he didn''t really show much of an emotion. "I commend your guts for actually coming, but get this straight, you''re not leaving here, alive," Jean said. There was no use in hiding his intentions from Grey, he had always mostly been a straightforward person, well, on some occasions. "Heh! I doubt that," Grey scoffed. "Why are you so confident?" Jean was curious about Grey''s coolheadedness, so he wanted to quell his curiosity. "Cause the Emperor wants me," Grey replied calmly. "Huh?" Surprise was written on the faces of all the people here, even Francis looked at Grey in shock. ''So that''s his reason for being so confident. If it''s true, then it will be impossible for Jean to kill him.'' Francis heaved a sigh of relief after hearing Grey''s words. "The Emperor?" Jean asked, he wanted to be sure. Grey nodded. "Hmm, but I don''t think I heard anything of the Emperor searching for anyone called Zeke Hoover," Jean spoke after a while. Lately, there''s been a rumor circulating amongst the higher-ups in the Qilin empire, the Emperor was reportedly searching for a young man. "You don''t really believe that''s my name, right?" Grey asked while walking to take a seat on one of the empty seats in the hall, he was tired of standing. Jean looked at Grey, he couldn''t make a move on someone whom the Emperor was searching for, although he couldn''t confirm it yet, he didn''t dare to act rashly since the Emperor was involved. He wanted to doubt Grey, but the fact that Grey knew about this either meant he was right, or he was like them, from one of the big families in the empire. They could oppress the Earl family because they were weak, and since the Reiss family was going through a rough time, they could still cause them troubles, but they didn''t dare to start a war with them. If Grey''s family turned out to be one of those ones that had been formed even before the Qilin empire was created, then they would be in trouble. "Father, don''t be tricked by him. Why is he here if he clearly knows the Emperor is searching for him?" The young lady spoke up when she saw the hesitation in her father''s eyes. Jean looked at his daughter, then at Grey. He kept quiet for a few seconds before switching his gaze to Francis, "Since you''ve brought him over, I''ll forgive you. You can leave now," Francis took a glance at Grey, after getting a nod from him, he turned around, leaving the hall. After finding out about Grey''s connection to the Emperor, he felt a little bit less worried about him. In the hall, Grey was left with Jean and the three ladies. "Answer my daughter''s question," Jean said. He looked at Grey, according to what he heard, Grey had something the Emperor wanted but he''s asking Grey to confirm if he was truly the one. "I have something he wants," Grey said to Jean. Jean nodded, according to what he had found out from other sources, the young man the Emperor was searching for had something he wanted. There wasn''t much information about the young man though, so although most of the big families knew about this, they didn''t know what Grey looked like. A conflicted look appeared on Jean''s face, this was not how he planned it to go after finding Grey. He initially wanted to get people to beat him up, then he would destroy his essence beads just like he did to his children, and then he would throw him into the dungeon while torturing him, but a single word from Grey changed all that. Now, he was not concerned about his children''s revenge anymore, but he was curious about what Grey had that the Emperor wanted. It''s normal, any would want to find out why an Emperor would be searching for a youngster. "What does he want from you?" After keeping quiet for a few minutes, Jean couldn''t hold himself back anymore. If what the Emperor wants was something great, then he would think of his next course of action. He would either hand Grey over or kill him and obtain whatever it is. "I don''t think it would be wise to tell you," Grey replied. "Hmph! Even if the Emperor wants you, I could just kill you here, if he comes, I''ll tell him I had no idea you were the one he was searching for," Jean snorted coldly. Chapter 381 - You Should Be! "And you believe that?" Grey sneered, not bothered with Jean''s threat. Although Grey didn''t know much about the Emperor, he was sure the Emperor would most likely execute Jean and the entire Smith family if he found out about this. The Emperor wants him for the Great Earth Essence Liquid, if Jean killed him, it would be equivalent to saying he had obtained the Liquids from Grey. This would in turn mean he wanted to usurp power from the Emperor after using the liquid, turning him into the threat. Jean naturally didn''t believe what he said, he was only trying to bait Grey into telling him about it. Others Grey''s age would''ve been scared if their lives were threatened, but the fact that Grey agreed to come here in the first place showed that he wasn''t simple. In fact, this made Jean all the more suspicious of Grey''s motive of coming. He could almost sense an ill foreboding. "Fine, you can keep the secret with you.. Given the amount of effort the Emperor has put into searching for you, I believe he would reward the Smith family handsomely for capturing you," He said after giving it some thought. Greed had been the downfall of many great individuals, so it was best not knowing why the Emperor was searching for Grey. There was a high chance he might covet the thing if he were to know it''s worth. This is a simple case of the saying, better safe than sorry. Grey nodded, not too bothered with them. Swoosh! He suddenly placed his feet on the ground, using the force he generated to push the seat back, casually evading the wind blade that was sent towards him while still seated on the chair. Boom! The wind blade struck the ground, sending out wind current in all directions. The breeze blew Grey''s hair, making his short hair dance in the wind. Raising his head, he saw the fiery gaze of the young lady who was sitting close to Jean. ''She''s most likely a prodigy of their family, well, it''s none of my business.'' He thought with his gaze turning cold. "I''ll take this as a mistake and let this go, if you attack me again, then don''t blame me for reciprocating," Grey said coldly. He had always been one to attack whoever attacked him, since the Smith family was going to go through a tough ordeal soon, he decided to let her go for it. Well, that''s all on the premise that she didn''t attack him again. If she did, then she might just join her siblings who are trying to heal their essence beads. "Hmph! Don''t think because my father didn''t agree to kill you doesn''t mean we can''t teach you a lesson. You ruined the life of my brother and sister, if we let you go, isn''t that the same as saying the Smith family are afraid of you?" The young lady asked. "Well¡­ technically, you should be," Grey replied with an amused smile, not even putting Jean in his eyes. It was almost like Grey was the one who caught them, not the other way around. "You¡­" The young lady stood up from her seat, anger written over her face, she turned to her father, "Father, let me teach this scoundrel what it means to offend our family," Jean gave her a nod, he also wanted Grey to be beaten, since he could beat William, it meant that he was at least in the Seventh stage of the Origin Plane. What he found strange though was that, even with his cultivation stage at the Overlord Plane, he couldn''t see through Grey''s stage. He had tried using his spiritual sense multiple times, but whenever it got close to Grey, it was like there was something that was taking the power into boundless space, no matter what, he could get his spiritual sense close to Grey. If Grey were to hide in this hall, there was no way he would be able to find him. Thinking about this, he sucked in a cold breath. ''I need to contact the Emperor as soon as possible. After getting feedback from him, I''ll send the boy over to them. No, I''ll tell him to send people to come and pick him up, that way, even if he escapes on the way, I wouldn''t be blamed.'' Jean immediately started thinking of ways to send Grey away, the sooner the better. He recalled that the Emperor sent people here to summon Donald Reiss, he was hoping to see if they were still in the city so they could take Grey. For some reason, he didn''t like the fact that Grey was with them. After all was said and done, he had great confidence in his daughter, hence he allowed her to fight with Grey. She had been able to go toe to toe with an expert in the Ninth stage of the Origin Plane when she just broke through to the Seventh stage. No matter how strong Grey was, there''s no way he would be able to easily beat someone in the Ninth stage, so even if he was stronger than his daughter, it wouldn''t be by much. This was the reason he allowed her to fight. The young lady stepped down from where they were sitting, heading towards Grey while releasing a malevolent aura. "Even if I''m not allowed to kill you, I''ll beat you to a pulp!" She said confidently. "You''re that confident?" Grey raised a brow. To be honest, he felt the young lady was okay in strength. But if she thought she had a chance against him, then she was dreaming. Even Reynolds'' Elemental Warrior would be able to easily beat her up, much less Grey. If Alice and Klaus were in the Sixth stage, they wouldn''t have a problem with facing her given their strength and foundation. This young lady might be strong to others, but when compared to Grey and his crew, she was lacking, by a lot. The only thing he found strange was how she was able to advance this quickly. One has to remember that William was already in his twenties, so it was understandable that he was able to reach the Seventh stage. ''Hmm, there''s no way she would''ve advanced this much, unless¡­ the trial land.'' Chapter 382 - You Can Fight With My Cat! "Did you also partake in the special training?" Grey couldn''t help but ask. He felt compelled to ask, at least he wouldn''t find it too amazing if she entered the trail land. After all, there were tons of things in the trial land that could make one advance very quickly. Grey and his friends could be said to be lucky, especially Grey given what they obtained, but there were a few people who were also extremely lucky. For example, Jonas. According to what Grey heard, Jonas got to the Fifth stage of the Origin Plane when he came out of the trial land. It was said that he wasn''t far from the Sixth stage at the time of leaving the trial land. Given the months that have passed, there''s a high chance that he had gotten to the Sixth stage, or even the Seventh stage by now. Jonas inherited an expert''s legacy, making him advance by leaps and bounds, but that was not the only legacy that was up for grabs in the trial land. After the first black door opened, others opened as well, and Grey didn''t know what those ones held. There would obviously be people who would''ve been lucky to get into that door, and who knows, maybe any of the doors had better legacies than the one Jonas inherited. The young lady was taken aback by Grey''s question, but she quickly understood it but refrained from answering. Grey already knew his answer from her body language and couldn''t help but heave a sigh, "And here I thought thinking you advanced normally," If Klaus, Alice, and Reynolds were to hear this, they would most likely beat him up, especially Reynolds. How could you say something like that when you''re advancing even more freakishly than them? When they came out of the trial land, Grey was only a single stage ahead of Klaus and Alice. But now, Grey had gone from the Fourth stage of the Origin Plane to the Eighth stage in a matter of three to four months, and he had the guts to say something like this? Reynolds had only managed to reach the Fifth stage, and the last time Grey met with Alice, she just broke through to the Fourth stage. Klaus would most likely be in the Fourth or Fifth stage. Currently, Grey has moved three stages ahead of all of them, and was even four stages ahead of Alice. Thinking back to how they were all in the Arcane Plane while he hadn''t even started cultivating, it was almost impossible to believe. If one didn''t witness it, one would have a hard time believing it. Swoosh! The young lady struck out a palm, sending out a wind tornado towards Grey. Bang! The tornado crashed into an earth wall, halting in its tracks. After a few seconds, it died down. Grey soon appeared in full view after the earth wall sank back into the ground. He was still sitting so comfortably in the chair that it was almost hard to believe he was the one who was attacked by someone a few moments ago. He yawned as if bored, "If that''s all you have, then I suggest you go take a seat. Sitting here is more entertaining than battling with you," The young lady''s expression changed a couple of times within a second, but one expression which was very clear to see was the rage that was burning inside her. She was visibly shaking after hearing Grey''s mocking words. "I''ll kill you," She said with dense killing intent spreading all over the hall. Jean watched on accompanied by the two middle-aged ladies. They didn''t do anything to stop her. They would''ve been able to stop her before the battle started, but now that Grey had somewhat trampled on her pride, they knew stopping her might hurt her instead. The first exchange had already shown that Grey was extraordinary, but the young lady hadn''t used her full strength yet, so it was unknown if Grey was stronger than her by a huge margin or not. Swoosh! Whoosh! Multiple wind blades shot towards Grey from different angles, while a gust of wind moved towards him from above him. The young lady was trying to make sure Grey wouldn''t be able to dodge her attacks. But did Grey need to dodge her attack? The answer was a simple no. Although not dodging the attacks would make him expend some energy, he didn''t mind. He wanted to completely shatter the pride of this pompous-looking arrogant genius. Still seated on the chair, Grey sneered before waving his hand around him. An earth sphere surrounded him, blocking all the attacks simultaneously. The earth spare wasn''t completely brown like the previous one, rather, there was a light silvery color in it. This indicated the stronger version of earth. The earth element is regarded as the best defense element for nothing. Just like how the water element makes use of its ice attributes to make terrifying attacks and defenses, the earth element could allow the Earth Elementalist to produce walls and armors made from jadeite or even diamond. Grey''s adeptness in the earth element has seen an increase over the years, and with the increase of his cultivation level, the toughness of the earth he could use increased. Of course, he hadn''t really gotten to the stage where he could use jade or diamond, but he was getting to that stage. Bam! Boom! All the chairs that were around where Grey was sitting were sent flying after the wind attacks hit the sphere Grey created. After the attack died down, Grey once again removed the earth sphere, still sitting casually on the chair. He was even looking at his nails as if he wasn''t doing anything. Staying with Klaus for so long had started to rub off him, he could annoy people if he really wanted to. Although, he didn''t do it as frequently as Klaus usually does, in fact, he rarely did, unless he wanted to break down his opponent mentally. "*Sigh* Just go back, maybe after a few more years, you can fight with my cat," He said with a sigh. His gestures and actions enraged the young lady, but what infuriated her more was when Grey said maybe in a few years she might be able to fight with his cat! Chapter 383 - One Strike "Your cat?! You''re dead!" The young lady shrieked, clearly more enraged. "Actually, saying this is like an insult to my cat, he''ll probably kill you with a single attack," Grey said after thinking for a while. "I''m not even confident in beating him," He added, but his voice was so low that other than him, no one else heard it. Although he had never tried to fight with Void, the few times they sparred, he was well beaten. Not just that, but Void didn''t hold back, although he was the one who told him not to hold back, he at least expected him to hold back a little. But who would''ve thought Void listened to him and fought at full throttle. There were times he almost wanted to hold a grudge against the small cat, but unfortunately, he couldn''t. Who could hate such a wonderful cat? "Guess you''ll not make it to the Emperor," The young lady said icily before attacking him once again. Just like the previous times, all he did was to wave his hand, and all the attacks were effortlessly deflected. The young lady didn''t stop at a single attack this time, instead, she continued attacking, again and again and again. But to her dismay, all her attacks were literally waved off by Grey, all he did was to wave his hand, and the attacks were disrupted. It was almost like he wasn''t even putting any effort. Jean and the two ladies looked at Grey with shock, they knew how strong the young lady was, yet she has been unable to make Grey even move an inch from the chair he was sitting on. "You coward! Fight like a man if you have the guts, stop hiding inside your shell like the tortoise you are!" The young lady yelled angrily. She couldn''t take it anymore, her pride was being trampled by the unmoving Grey. "Heh! Fine, if you can block three attacks, then I''ll take it as my loss and apologize to you," Grey sneered. He had already calculated everything he wanted to do, he''ll infuse a bit of darkness energy into the young lady''s essence bead when he attacks. When he was fighting with that young man back at the Chimera forest, even though he had broken through to the Overlord Plane, he only sensed it when it was too late. But unlike the one for the young man, he wouldn''t put much into this attacks against the young lady, just a little that would be able to slowly corrode her essence bead while she''s unaware. Before she would take note of it, at least more than half of her essence bead would''ve been corroded, leaving it unrepairable. "Three attacks? Fine, but what if you lose?" The young lady tried to calm herself. She was currently fuming, but she knew if Grey didn''t attack, there was no way he would stand up from that place. She felt that as long as Grey stood up, then she would definitely be able to attack him given the speed she possessed as a Wind Elementalist. Grey looked at her calmly before replying, "I''ll apologize, that should suffice, right?" "You''ll be flogged," The young lady said. She didn''t want Grey to go unpunished, so after she beat him up, she would get her family guards to flog him for his evil deeds. "Haha, then what if you lose?" Grey asked. "Then I''ll forget about you doing any harm to my siblings," The young lady said. "Are you really sure you''re siblings? You know, I don''t think a real sister would do this," Grey mused. His question managed to enrage the young lady who was already trying to calm down once again. "Don''t let his words get to you, he''s trying to infuriate you," Jean''s voice suddenly echoed in the room. Grey threw him a nonchalant look, he didn''t really care if the young lady was calm or incensed. "I know, father," The young lady replied before taking a deep breath to rationalize her breathing. "Come!" She yelled. Grey tapped his left leg on the ground, and to Jean''s and the two ladies'' surprise, the young lady was sent flying by an earth pillar that sprouted out of the ground from where she was standing. Bam! Bang! She slammed into the ground hard, before sliding almost fifteen meters. Her body came to a halt after she hit the wall of the hall. All it took was a single action from Grey, and the young lady was already on the ground. She struggled to stand up, looking at Grey who was still sitting leisurely on the chair. He even hung his right leg on the hand of the chair while swinging his left leg in the air. "What? How?" She couldn''t believe what happened. From the attack, everyone in the hall knew Grey was being lenient with her. Had he made earth spikes come out instead of the pillar, then the young lady would''ve been impaled by the attack, causing a fatal injury, if not even death. "That''s the first attack, I must say you''re doing very well. Tsk tsk, and here I was thinking I would expend a little bit of effort to defeat you," Grey shook his head in disappointment. Hearing his words and seeing the disappointed look on his face sent the young lady crazy once again. ''I''m a one in a million genius, the greatest genius in the history of Frost City, yet, I can''t even touch a hair on this guy''s body?'' She started questioning life when she thought about it. After returning from the trial land, it had been smooth sailing all the way, because of how high her stage was when she came out, a lot of people respected her. Some even lauded her to be someone who would go above the Overlord Plane, reaching the legendary Sage Plane, but now, her heart was shaken by Grey''s appearance. "Do I still need to attack again, or do you want to continue teaching me a lesson?" Grey asked when he saw the dazed young lady. "I refuse to accept this," The young lady said. "Oh really? I don''t think you have a choice here, you''ll accept it whether you like it or not," Grey chuckled. Jean shook his head before saying, "Enough, you are no match for him." The young lady who was about to pounce on Grey stopped and looked at her father, "You don''t have to worry father, he relied on sneak attacks if not, I wouldn''t have been hit," "You can not beat him, I don''t think there''s anyone in the Origin Plane who can." Jean said with a serious look. He could already tell from the start that Grey was stronger than his daughter, but he didn''t expect the difference to be this huge. One had to know that his daughter could hold her own against a Ninth stage Origin Plane Elementalists. But in front of Grey, she didn''t amount to much. Jean could tell that Grey wasn''t in the Overlord Plane, well, more like didn''t dare to think that he was. How scary would it be for an eighteen years old boy to be in the Overlord Plane that they all struggled for over hundred years to reach? The thought frightened him, and he wasn''t even thinking about it! "You should listen to your father, he does have a point," Grey advised. The young lady ground her teeth hard, before turning around to leave the hall. She couldn''t bear to see Grey''s arrogant face, all she wanted to do whenever she was looking at it was to pummel his handsome face until he was unrecognizable. Luckily for her, she didn''t encounter Klaus, given how foul mouthed he was, she might probably not be able to take this defeat the way she did. There''s a chance that she might even want to fight a life and death battle with him. Grey smiled when he saw her leaving, he had already completed what he wanted, that was why he didn''t bother to let her continue. His darkness element essence had already been placed in the young lady, and he could tell that it had traveled to her essence bead. In a couple of days, it would be able to corrode at least half of her essence bead. Jean looked at Grey with a conflicted expression, he was almost wishing he didn''t bring him into his house. Had he known that because of the Emperor he wouldn''t be able to harm him even when he was in his house, he would''ve just let the matter go. Besides, he still had other talented children, those two were unlucky, hence they met a freak like Grey. Jean called on the guards outside to escort Grey to a secured room in the manor, while telling them to make sure no one went in or out of the room. After they took Grey away, he called on an elder in the Overlord Plane, telling him to hurry to the Capital to report Grey''s capture to the Emperor. He didn''t dare to tell him to take Grey along, because he had heard of Grey staying in the Lenz manor the previous time. While the guards were taking Grey to his room, he was making a rough map of the manor in his head while looking around. He planned to steal as much essence stones as he possibly could. After all, it''s not everytime he would steal from Alice''s father. After getting to his room, since there was nothing to do, he took out his communication device, trying to contact Alice and Reynolds. Chapter 384 - Searching For The Vault Grey spoke with Alice and Reynolds for a while before soon getting tired. With nothing left to do, he recalled the books he sto¡­ borrowed from the Lunar Academy when leaving, the books about forge mastering. Since leaving the Academy, he hadn''t really had any time to go through them. ''I''ll need to think of a way to prepare a storage ring for the others. There''s also that multi-elemental sword, I need to find a way to reduce its consumption, or even better, make a new one, entirely from scratch!'' The thought of the sword kind of excited him since it was something he hadn''t seen before. He had not even seen a sword that could use two elements, much less one that has the ability to use all elements. It was like a cheat or something. Time soon flew by, and day turned into night. Grey spent all his time reading the books about forge mastering, further deepening his shallow understanding of the topic. Sadly, there was no way for him to practice, or else he would have improved even further.. He had already come to the decision that since he couldn''t practice for now, he would increase his theoretical knowledge about it, then when he could, he would start using it. ''It should take around two to three days for the people from Capital to come, so I should be able to find the vault within this period of time.'' He thought. He took out an empty piece of paper from his storage ring, placed it on the ground while also taking out ink and a quill pen. He slowly started to draw out the rough map he made of the Smith family manor in his head. After almost twenty minutes, he drew out almost the entire front view of the manor, as well as the places he walked through while being carried to his room. With the map in hand, he sent out his spiritual senses to check the people who were watching the door. They were still doing their job dutifully even though it was already night. Surprisingly, they were not the only ones Grey found, he sensed almost five more people hiding in different locations, all were at the Peak of the Origin Plane. ''This guy sure is cautious,'' He chuckled. Grey blinked twice and disappeared from where he was standing, the room was soon left empty. Outside the room. Grey appeared behind the room, hiding in the tall flowers close to the room. None of the people guarding the room noticed his departure, it wasn''t like they could sense him anyway. And due to Grey being an Earth Elementalist, the room he was placed in was actually made entirely of wood. This way, there would be no way for him to be able to use the earth element to create an opening in the room. After appearing behind the flowers, Grey did a rough estimate of where the people were hiding before blinking from one place to another within seconds. He appeared within the line of sight of one of the men, but he didn''t stay for even up to a second, so it was impossible for the man to see him. When Grey blinked past, the man looked at the spot Grey appeared before disappearing within a second. He was almost sure he saw someone there, but due to how fast, he thought maybe it was an illusion, or his eyes were playing tricks on him since he has been looking at the same place for hours now. And just like that, Grey evaded all of them without anyone realizing what was going on. He soon appeared in the main building. Almost all the manors he had seen had the same building system, they were divided into three buildings, the main building, left and right wing. If his guess is correct, which it probably is, then Jean would be staying in the main building. Not just that, but the vault would also be in the main building as well. There''s a chance the essence stones were not kept in the vault. Take Alice''s father for example, he kept all his essence stones in his bedroom, with most of them being mid or high grade. Grey was sure there might be some essence stones in the vault, but it would probably only be low grade essence stones. After sneaking into the main building, Grey started moving around the halls, searching his room with his spiritual sense, he would instantly retract it once he knew who was inside, trying his best not to attract any attention, while also using the space element to perfectly shield his aura from the people in the building. There were guards patrolling the halls, but they weren''t that many, so Grey didn''t have any problems with dodging them. After thirty minutes, he finally found Jean''s room. Now the issue was getting inside the room. Although it was already late, Jean was very much awake, in fact, he was quite busy in his room. He wasn''t the only one there, rather, he was accompanied by one of the middle-aged ladies from before. When Grey sent his spiritual sense inside, he quickly withdrew it, before moving as far away from the room as possible. ''I''ll have to look for his office then,'' He changed his direction, deciding it was best he searched for his office. Who knows, there might be a secret room in the office that might just be the vault. One hour later. Grey looked around the office intensely, but unfortunately, he couldn''t sense if there was a secret room in the office or not. He couldn''t start touching everywhere since it would alert Jean of someone entering his office. He could only leave in disappointment, times like this made him miss Void even more. Given Void''s size, and specialty in the space element, coupled with his superior sensory abilities, he would''ve already found the place by now. Grey wouldn''t even need to take the risk of coming out in the first place, he would''ve stayed in the room, studying his books while Void did all the dirty work. Chapter 385 - Unexpected Discovery Grey stayed in the office for a few more minutes, after not finding anything, he finally gave up on it and left. He decided he had spent enough time searching around the office, so it was probably time to go back to see if he could check Jean''s room again. And to his greatest surprise, Jean was still busy. He finally gave up and decided to go back to his room. He still had about a day or two to search again, it couldn''t be that Jean would continue doing it for two nights straight, right? The thought of that gave him a sense of foreboding as if something like this would actually happen. He suddenly recalled what he heard from the Earl sisters while asking around about the families in Frost City. According to the sisters, the head of the Smith family was a lecherous man and had forced many men to leave their wives if he found them appealing. Some of the ladies would jump into his hands willingly, after all, the Smith family were extremely rich, while others would rather die than have anything to do with him. Although, all these were just rumors, given how widely spread they were, it couldn''t be said that they were baseless. Seeing what was happening, Grey could see that there''s a high chance that these rumors were true. After going back to his room, Grey continued reading his books. There were a lot of them, and some of them were huge. Even if he decided to only read for a week, he wouldn''t be able to read more than half of them. Void was crazy, he literally took almost all the books that had to do with forge mastering. In fact, Grey had the feeling that when Void told him that he didn''t take all the books, he was lying, he probably took all the books on forge mastering. The next day went by slowly, Grey did nothing other than reading, he only took a few minutes of his time to respond to some of Alice''s messages, but he quickly forgot about her after he got engrossed in reading. Grey''s obsession with learning was massive, he would rather spend most of his time learning new things and training than talking to others. Klaus had been the one who mostly disturbed his training, he couldn''t chase him away since he was Klaus. Alice mostly left him alone whenever he was training, especially now that she could speak with Reynolds, she usually didn''t disturb him. Reynolds wasn''t as persistent as Klaus, so he wasn''t really able to stop him from training. Later that night. ''What the hell?! This man''s a¡­'' Grey was short of words. Just like the previous night, Jean was still very much awake, this time, he was with the second lady from the previous day. His left eye was twitching from time to time from annoyance, how would he be able to steal from them if he was unable to sneak into the room. He gave up on the idea of searching Jean''s room, instead, he would try to find the vault in the building. The building was huge, so searching around would be a little difficult. He decided to first search all the places he found suspicious. He even went to the place where the vault of the Lunar City mayor''s manor was located according to Klaus. Since the buildings had the same designs, he didn''t see any harm in trying it. Lunar City mayor''s manor vault was actually located in the kitchen, as odd as it sounded, it was true. There was a secret passageway that led to the vault. Grey soon started sweeping across all the places he marked in the small map he made of the Smith family''s manor. And before long, there were only two places left in the map that was marked, Jean''s room, and the garden at the back of his office. Grey snuck into the garden, there was a small building in the garden. When he got there, his suspicion increased because he could actually sense an Overlord Plane expert guarding the place. The expert was only in the First stage, so Grey didn''t feel any fear in him being able to sense him. Even Jean who was in the Third stage was unable to sense him while he was outside his bedroom, much less this person who was two stages below him. After sneaking into the building, he was able to quickly sense the presence of another room hidden inside. It wasn''t hard to notice, he didn''t even spend much effort. Normally, people would set up arrays that would hide the presence of hidden rooms from Earth Elementalists since they would be able to easily notice these places with the help of the earth element''s sensory ability. Grey monitored the place for a while, not rushing inside. Given how easy it was to locate it, he found it strange. Although people wouldn''t be able to come here since the expert would stop them once the person was noticed, it was still too easy. After waiting for almost twenty minutes, Grey finally decided to go in, he prepared himself. He would first appear inside and quickly disappear within a second or two. That time was enough for him to get the general situation of what it''s like inside the secret room, and what was kept inside. He soon vanished from the building, entering the secret room. When he appeared there, the sight before him stunned him so much that he was unable to leave according to his plan. In front of him was a huge open space, and cages could be seen all around, in each of the cages were women, both old and young. None of the women looked to be above forty, they were all kept in the cages like prisoners. From how they looked, he could tell that most of them were suffering. A malevolent aura almost burst out of his body when he saw a young girl who was around eight or ten years old tied to a chain in one of the cages. He wasn''t a saint or a hero, but there were things he could not accept. Chapter 386 - Unbridled Rage Grey stood on the same spot for a good two minutes, but none of the ladies noticed him. Although he didn''t even try to hide his aura, they still didn''t sense him. The eyes of some of the ladies were dull and lifeless, given the injury marks on the body of some of them, it was easy to see how much they''ve suffered. Grey was sure most of them had already given up on life, and would most probably want to die than continue living such a hellish life. Of everyone here, what Grey found more absurd was still the young girl who was around eight or ten years old, he still couldn''t wrap his head around why they would even keep her locked up. The young girl hadn''t even properly developed, what was she doing here? Grey looked around for a while, his heart aching for these people. If he didn''t see them, then he wouldn''t care about it even if he heard about it, but seeing them now, he couldn''t leave without doing anything. ''Hmm, I can''t kill all the people here, obviously, and I still don''t know how the Emperor would react if they find me missing when they come. Since that''s the case, I''ll slowly corrode the essence beads of the people below the Overlord Plane, if possible, I don''t mind corroding their life forces,'' He thought as he started strolling around the place. While strolling around, he noticed none of the ladies even looked at him, they all had their heads hung low, looking at the ground. He currently had his robe on, and even wore a mask since he couldn''t take the risk of being seen. On getting close to where the little girl''s cage was, he heard something that made him angrier. The little girl was mumbling three words repeatedly, the words were, ''Please kill me''. Even Grey who rarely showed his emotions was almost in tears when he heard this, his eyes red from anger. ''How could the Smith family be this inhumane?!'' He yelled in his heart. For such a little girl to give up on life, even to the extent of actually begging to be killed, it was unimaginable what Jean and his people had done to her. Grey didn''t speak to her, instead, he walked away from the cage. The longer he stayed in the place, the more he wanted to kill every single living being associated with the Smith family. At this rate, he might even kill the horses and beasts in the manor, if he found people who were friends with the Smith family, he might kill them as well. That''s how much hatred he currently bore towards the Smith family! It was so high that even people speaking to them might be affected by it. After walking around for another ten minutes, he unexpectedly found another secret passageway, this one was much harder to notice compared to the one at the garden. He could already guess it led to the vault, but he wasn''t excited after finding it. He walked inside the vault, and different treasures appeared before him. Plants, rare stones used for forging, essence stones, books containing different magical techniques, elemental weapons, and so on. He didn''t feel a shred of excitement even after seeing what he was searching for. As soon as Grey touched the essence stones, his expression suddenly changed. Due to his emotions, he got careless and didn''t even check for any traps in the place, he only wanted to take the essence stones and leave. When he touched the stones, an array immediately lit up in the secret room. It was a trapping array, and even those at the Peak of the Overlord Plane would find it extremely difficult to escape from it. Well, those without the space element. Since the people of the Azure continent knew nothing about the space element, there was naturally no way for them to counter it, so no matter how powerful their arrays were, it couldn''t trap Grey or Void. This is the reason they could go almost anywhere unhindered in the Azure continent. The trapping array wasn''t the only thing that was activated, another array was also activated. The second array was to notify all the experts in the manor that the vault had been breached by someone. ''*Sigh* I''ll grab what I can then,'' With a sigh, Grey sucked in as many essence stones as he possibly could. Previously, there was an area designated for essence stones, the number of stones there was well over hundreds of thousands, and Grey just took more than fifty percent of them. Of the fifty percent Grey took, more than half of the stones were mid or high-grade stones, the ones left were all low-grade stones. The reason he was unable to take all of them was simple: he didn''t have any enough space in his storage ring to take them. Had Void been here, given how big his spatial storage was, then they would''ve been able to completely sweep the entire vault in a matter of seconds. After taking the essence stones, Grey turned around and casually walked out of the secret room. Outside the secret room. All the experts in the Smith manor whose cultivation stage was in the Overlord Plane were already rushing towards the secret room. Surprisingly, there were different places to go into the vault. Just like Grey thought, there was one in Jean''s room. He was the first amongst all the people to get to the vault, on seeing that the things were intact, he heaved a sigh, there were some extremely valuable treasures in this place that the family couldn''t bear to lose. His expression changed when he noticed that the array was still intact, but no one was in the vault. After looking around, he almost fainted when he saw how little the essence stones numbered. Given how rare it was to get essence stones in the Azure continent, it was a rare commodity even for the big families. Although they had an easier time getting it compared to the others, it still wasn''t that much. There were few essence stones mines in the Azure continent as a whole, and each empire controlled about twenty-five or so. Chapter 387 - New Plan Jean appeared in the room a few seconds after Grey left. The second person to get to the vault was the expert who was at the garden. He was taken aback when he saw the trapping array intact, it wasn''t even destroyed which meant the thief should be in the vault. Unfortunately for him, when he walked in, all he saw was Jean in his sleeping robe. "Where''s the thief?" He asked after looking around. "Whoever came to steal the essence stones has escaped. But given how quickly they escaped with that many stones, I''m starting to have doubts if it isn''t someone from the family," Jean said. Each family all had their problems, so it was normal for Jean to suspect someone in the family. There''s no way someone would be able to take that many essence stones in such a short time. When he sensed the alert, he was still having fun with the lady, he instantly pushed her from on top of him, grabbed his robe, and dashed down, yet he found the array intact, and more than fifty percent of the essence stones gone.. ''Wait¡­ this is the first time something like this is happening, and it was when that small brat was brought to the manor. Could it be related to him, or is it just a coincidence?'' Jean suddenly thought about Grey. Since sending Grey to the room, he hadn''t seen or heard about him again. "Go and check if the boy is in the room," He ordered the man. The man hurriedly left the vault, while the other experts were coming into the room. Given the speed of an Overlord Plane expert, it was impossible for an Origin Plane expert to be faster than them, even if said Origin Plane expert were to be at the Peak of the Plane. In a flash, the man appeared outside the garden, and within two seconds, he had gotten to where Grey was kept. Normally, since Grey was in the Origin Plane, if he was the one who stole the essence stones, there''s no way he would''ve been able to sneak back into the room in this short amount of time. It hadn''t even been up to one minute since the alert went off, so it was impossible for him to have already hurried back without being spotted. Unfortunately for them, they can''t judge Grey using normal reasoning. When he appeared outside the room, he immediately opened the door, walking inside directly. "Huh?" He paused and looked at the door. He was sure he sensed something from the door just now, but the feeling was very faint, almost negligible. After shaking his head to get the strange feeling out, he walked in. Seated crossed legs at the center of the room was Grey. On sensing someone walking in, Grey opened his eyes which were still cold from what he saw at the garden. His emotionless gaze stunned the man for a few seconds, he couldn''t even speak any word for a few seconds. "Is it time for me to leave?" Grey asked. "No, I only came to see if you were alright. Do you need anything?" The man asked. Grey shook his head. "Alright," The man nodded before excusing himself. After he left, Grey looked at him with a soft mischievous smile. When he returned, he thought of the possibility of them suspecting him, so he hastily created a small darkness array in front of the door, whoever stepped into the room would activate the array. The darkness element will immediately sneakily slide into their body from the array, slowly corroding their insides. Of all the elements, there was none that had such destructive powers, well, the space element would also have it, but Grey didn''t really know how to properly use it until now. Other than teleporting with it, he didn''t know any way to use it to attack. He might be able to use it to make his attacks appear in front of his opponents immediately, or like Void''s innate skill, to protect himself. ''It should take a while before this guy notices, maybe I''ll be gone already.'' He thought. After finding those ladies, he had completely changed his plan. Once he leaves, he would hang around the manor, while slowly corroding the people''s essence beads and life force. Given how the Smith family usually carries themselves, they had created enemies in all places, Grey couldn''t even imagine what would happen to them if their enemies found out about them being poisoned. They would attack the weakened Smith family, especially the Reiss family, they might be the first to even attack them. There''s a chance that the Earl family might join in as well. Grey stayed in his room, waiting for the commotion he caused to subside. Once it subsides, he would immediately start his new plan. Since he had already gotten the essence stones, there was nothing left for him to do in the Smith manor. But he wanted to wait till the people from the Capital arrived, that way the Smith family wouldn''t have a way to avoid facing any issues. Even if the Emperor didn''t kill them, then there''s a chance that he would punish them heavily for playing games with him. Grey even hoped the people the Emperor would send over should all be in the Origin Plane, or at most, one should be in the First stage of the Overlord Plane. That way, he would set an ambush for them when they were leaving, making it seem like the Smith family found out what Grey had, and decided to kill off the Emperor''s people. ¡­. The Smith family increased the surveillance around the manor, hoping to catch the thief before he escaped. Grey wasn''t concerned about their increased surveillance, even if they brought out a whole army of Overlord Plane experts, they still wouldn''t be able to sense him if he didn''t want them to. He started his plan that very night since he knew the people from the Capital would either come after sunrise, or the next day. There wasn''t much time, the manor was huge, and there were a lot of people in the manor. Chapter 388 - Asking For Help ''I think it''s best to make an array that will cover the entire Smith manor.'' Grey thought rigorously. He was seriously contemplating on how to literally wipe off the entire Smith family, but on thinking about it properly, he really couldn''t. The reason for this was because not everyone in the Smith manor knew about this, and killing some innocent people wasn''t really too good for him. And making such a big array would take him weeks to complete, given the size of the manor. After going through some plans, he decided to speak with Gerald and see if there was an easier way to do this. ¡­. ''There''s a bunch of women kept in cages in the Smith manor?!'' Gerald''s stunned voice reverberated in Grey''s head. Clearly, he didn''t expect Jean would actually do something like this. There had been lots of rumors about his deeds while he was younger, but according to what was known, he had stopped those things when he was about to vie for the position of the clan head in the Smith family. Given such characters, there''s no way some of the old folks in the family would agree to it. ''Yes, there''s even a young girl around eight to ten years old¡­'' Grey told him what he overheard the little girl saying while he was there. ''Are you sure about this?'' Gerald questioned seriously. This was a very serious matter, so there was no way he was going to just charge to the Smith manor if he wasn''t sure of it. ''Yes, I saw this personally,'' Grey affirmed. ''But how did you¡­ *sigh* Never mind, everyone has their secrets. You said you could escape anytime you want?'' Gerald asked. ''Yes, but I want to wait till the Emperor''s people arrive first before leaving,'' Grey replied. ''Hmm, the Crowned Prince would be the one leading the charge, so if you could, leave now. According to what I''ve found out, they had already set off yesterday, so they''ll be arriving before noon,'' Gerald advised. ''The Crowned Prince?'' Grey was slightly taken aback, not expecting the Emperor to send someone so important. He heard of the Crowned Prince coming to Lunar Academy while they were still in the trial land. Other than the Twelfth Prince, he hadn''t come in contact with any of the other princes. ''Yes. He''s a very cunning individual for his age, and I don''t think it would be possible for you to escape under his surveillance when he gets to the manor, so I propose you leave right now,'' Gerald urged. It was already almost sunrise, but most cultivators rarely sleep, especially him due to being in a hot seat right now. Since Grey went to the Smith manor, Gerald found it extremely difficult to close his eyes for too long. Whenever he does, he would always see something like a vision of Grey being killed, and Chris charging into Frost City, causing a massacre, and he was among the people who were killed! So the sooner Grey left, the safer he would feel. ''Okay, I''ll be leaving then. Will you be able to take care of this matter then?'' Grey asked. Since Gerald had advised, he wouldn''t take the risk of staying. If the people coming were ordinary, then he might have continued staying, but since the Crowned Prince was coming, then other experts at the Overlord Plane would be coming as well. ''Yes, the Crown Prince coming will make things easier. I''ll expose Jean in front of him after they''ve been unable to provide you. Since he would already be in a tough situation, this matter will send him to his grave, as well as those involved,'' Gerald said confidently. Given his status, there are few people in the empire he couldn''t see whenever he pleases, and the Crown Prince was not one of those people. ''Okay, I''ll leave this matter to you then. Thank you,'' Grey said before keeping the communication device. He looked at the walls around the room with an emotionless face, the Smith family were lucky he wasn''t strong enough, or else, he would''ve directly razed the manor to the ground. Time flew by, and the sun was already up. Grey was still seated in his room, there were around three hours or so before noon, so he was already preparing himself to silently exit the manor. To be honest, he was a little tired because of the high frequency at which he was using the space element lately. After escaping, he planned to rest for a day or so before visiting Alice. Initially, he only wanted to visit her, but after seeing the progress Reynolds made, he changed his mind. There was no way Alice would be able to grow quickly if she was left in the secret room. So he wanted to take her out of there, that way, she could explore just like Reynolds, and get fortuitous encounters that would make her improve faster. She would also be able to fight against people and magical beasts during her journey, so her battle prowess would also increase from that. Just as Grey was about to leave the room, he heard the door opening, and one of the guards stepped in. "Come let''s go, they will be here soon," Grey stood up and followed them, his expression was calm as always, only his eyes betrayed his face. He still couldn''t help it, whenever he thought of what the little girl said, all he felt was unbridled rage. The guards took him through different pathways before they got to a small room at the back of the hall. Given how it looked, Grey was sure it hadn''t been long since it was built, most likely because of his earth element, so it was built completely from wood. "You''ll stay here, for now," The guard locked the door after saying this. Grey noticed that over six Overlord Plane experts were currently outside the small room, and from what he knew, the other side of the room was where the main building''s hall was located. ''Heh! They think I wouldn''t be able to escape even in this place?'' Grey scoffed, not bothered by all the people outside. It wasn''t like they could sense him anyway, so he was not bothered. Two hours later. The Smith manor. Jean and eight elders from the Smith family could be seen standing at the front of the manor''s main building, all with a smile plastered across their faces. They just received word that the Crown Prince would be arriving soon, he made a stop at the Lenz manor to visit Gerald, so they all came out to welcome him. Before long, the guards at the gate saw the Lenz manor''s carriage coming in their direction. The manor guards didn''t dare to be unruly like they were when Grey came with the Earl family, even if the Crown Prince wasn''t in this carriage, they also wouldn''t dare to tell Gerald to walk into the manor. They quickly opened the gates with heads bowed to show their respect as the carriage went into the manor. Jean and the elders were taken aback when they saw the Lenz manor''s insignia on the carriage. They knew the Crown Prince made a stop there, but they didn''t expect that Gerald would actually come along "Why''s that old man coming along?" Jean asked while still keeping the smile on his face. "I don''t know, but I don''t think it''s anything good. I heard he housed the kid the last time the kid came to the City," An elder behind him replied. "Hmph! If he''s here to make trouble for us, then he should prepare himself." Another elder snorted coldly. They didn''t have any good relationship with the Lenz organization, things turned for the worse after the incident that occurred during old man Gerald''s birthday ceremony when Grey severely injured the family''s prodigies. The carriage stopped in front of them, and old man Gerald was the first to alight the carriage, after alighting, a young man came out as well. The young man was dressed in gold and white clothes, with a lion embroidered on the left chest pocket of the shirt. His handsome face as well as long curly black hair was a sight to behold. Although he wasn''t on the same level as Grey and Klaus when it came to who''s more handsome, he could definitely be regarded as a handsome figure wherever he went. That was all on the premise that the people didn''t encounter Klaus and Grey first. "Greetings His Highness the Crowned Prince, it''s the pleasure of the entire Smith family to be graced by your presence," Jean bowed, accompanied by the elders. Although all of them were older than the Crown Prince, in respect of status, they were below him. Since he would be the one to rule them later in the future, they were all below him. The Crown Prince nodded, "Take me to him," He didn''t plan on staying here for long, after seeing Grey, he would immediately return back to the Capital. Grey''s use to them was just too precious. If they could get the Great Earth Essence Liquid, it would be better, if they couldn''t, then they had to find a way to make sure Grey supported them. If not, well, they''d just eliminate the threat. Of all the possibilities, the Crown Prince was sure that the last of them would be the most viable one, after all, there might be a stage Grey grew to, then controlling him would be impossible. Chapter 389 - Exasperated Jean "Right this way your highness," Jean forced out a smile before leading the way. He had set up a small banquet to welcome the Crown Prince, but unfortunately, the Crown Prince didn''t even give him the chance and went straight to the point. Gerald followed behind them confidently, he had already spoken to Grey before the Crown Prince arrived, and Grey had confirmed that he had already left the manor. He didn''t care how Grey left, all that mattered was that he was no longer there. He also asked him if he was sure the ladies were still kept in the cage, which Grey affirmed to. Jean tried starting a conversation with the Crown Prince as he led them to the place, but after only getting a ''hmm'' and a nod from him, he knew the Crown Prince didn''t want to speak to him. He felt angered by this, after all, it had been a long time since someone neglected him in this manner. Other than Gerald, no one else had neglected him in Frost City. Even though he was angry, he still wore a fake smile on his face.. It didn''t take long before they got to the back of the main building where the room was built. "We made a wooden room just for this kid since he''s an Earth Elementalist. There are eight Overlord Plane experts guarding this place, so that some people wouldn''t come to rescue him," Jean spoke the last part of his statement while purposely looking at Gerald. The Crown Prince saw how he was looking at Gerald, and turned to look at him. Gerald didn''t say anything, no one here had the right to question him. Even if the Emperor were here, he didn''t have the right. Jean smiled internally, when he saw how the Crown Prince looked at Gerald. He had never liked him. "Open the door," He ordered as they got close. His head held high thinking of the contribution he had made to the empire. Creak¡­ The guard opened the door before turning around to look at Jean. He didn''t even look inside the room since he was sure Grey was inside. Jean''s smile suddenly froze, he looked inside the room, then back at the guard again. Jean wasn''t the only one who was wearing a weird expression, everyone who was accompanying him also wore the same weird expression. The guard was taken aback when he saw their expressions, he couldn''t help but turn to take a peek at the room. He almost fainted from shock when he saw that it was completely empty. "Eh?" He exclaimed and charged into the room, looking everywhere to make sure Grey wasn''t hiding. The second guard charged in as well when he saw his flustered comrade. They checked behind the door, and everywhere in the room. They even started slowly demolishing the room, taking out pieces of wood to check underneath it. "Where¡­ where did he go?" The second guard asked in exasperation. "What do you mean where did he go? Am I the only one guarding this place?" The flustered first guard yelled at the other one angrily. They were both charged with guarding this place, and they were both outside, so why was the other guy asking him where Grey went as if he was the only one guarding the place. They didn''t dare to come out of the room, according to their knowledge of Jean, they were most likely going to suffer a terrible punishment, if they were lucky, their cultivation would be destroyed, if they were not, they would be killed. Outside the room. Jean and the others still hadn''t come to terms with what they thought was happening. They thought about it, but they didn''t want to believe it, especially the people from the Smith family. The repercussions of summoning the Crown Prince here and not providing Grey was something they didn''t dare to think of. The Smith family weren''t the strongest, their wealth was what had kept them in such a high position. Although they had some experts in the Overlord Plane, it couldn''t be compared to the other families, and some of their experts were actually people they hired. "Where''s he?" The Crown Prince asked, his face devoid of any emotions. "Your¡­ your highness, the boy should be inside," Jean stuttered a little, but managed to quickly compose himself. The thought of Grey escaping wasn''t something he believed was happening. He currently felt maybe Grey had hidden somewhere in the room. Yes, that was it, he hid in the room. "Bring the boy, his highness is waiting," He ordered. His voice scared the two guards to the extreme. They managed to come out of the room. The first guard was the one who broke the news to Jean, "My lord, the¡­ the¡­ the boy is¡­ gone," While speaking, none of the guards dared to look at the face of Jean, they only focused on the ground. "What?!" Jean exclaimed with his eyes widened. "Come out here now!" He ordered while looking around. Six Early stages Overlord Plane experts flew down from the sky, while two Mid stage experts came from the ground. "What''s the meaning of this?" The Crown Prince asked with a blank expression. No one knew what he was thinking. "Your highness, I can explain. The boy was here this morning. I even checked a few hours ago." Jean quickly tried to explain, "Where did you people put him?" After explaining to the Crown Prince, he turned to the experts. The Early stage experts were hired, but the Mid stage experts were part of the family, people he trusted with his life. He was a hundred percent certain that they wouldn''t betray him given their relationship. "Isn''t he inside?" One of the Overlord Plane experts in the Mid stages asked, a little confused. Both experts in the Mid stages were Earth Elementalists, this was why they were able to perfectly sink into the ground and out without any problems. All Earth Elementalists could do this, but it''s only after getting to the Overlord Plane before they could. "This¡­ this¡­" Jean was short of words, he wanted to try to explain, but he didn''t know what to say. Chapter 390 - Shattered Hopes "Jean Smith, you told my father that you had the boy we were searching for, now for the last time, where is he?" The Crown Prince asked, his voice turning cold. "Ah¡­ yes¡­ yes¡­ the boy. You see¡­ he¡­ he took him!" Jean stuttered, before pointing at Gerald. He wanted to try to pin the blame on him, since he kept him the last time, then there''s a chance he was the one who saved him. "Hmph! Point that finger in my direction one more time, and you''ll lose your entire arm," Gerald snorted. "Blazh, as you can see, they don''t have the kid," He turned to the Crown Prince. Blazh looked at Gerald with a suspicious gaze, but he knew he couldn''t question him. Although he was suspicious of him, he knew Gerald didn''t have Grey. Jean wouldn''t bring him here if Gerald truly did have Grey, he would''ve taken them there directly.. "You have two hours to provide the boy, if he''s not brought here by that time, then¡­" Blazh didn''t complete his statement, but Jean and the others knew exactly what he meant and couldn''t help but shudder. "How did a kid in the Origin Plane escape from under the watch of so many experts?" Gerald couldn''t help but ask. He suddenly recalled something after he asked this question. When he went to Grey''s room when Grey just comprehended the space element, he couldn''t sense his presence at all, although he didn''t know of the space element, but he knew whatever Grey was doing at that time, must be something that was far above their knowledge. ''That kid is just as mysterious as his Teacher. Luckily, I''m not their enemy!'' He thought while looking at the current pitiful Smith family. Jean and the others were sweating profusely, and from what Gerald knew, there was no way for them to find Grey, even if they turned the entire city upside down. To be extra sure, he told Grey to leave the city entirely, this way, he wouldn''t be at risk in case of any unforeseen situations. "The room was closed, we didn''t see anyone coming out of the room, nor are there any holes in the room the boy could use in escaping. This means he had help from someone, and that person is among us," One of the Mid stage experts said. There was no way someone in the Late stage of the Overlord Plane could escape from them in such a well guarded environment. One has to know that there were over eight experts watching a room that had a single door. If someone wanted to leave the room, then they had to go out through the door. Even if they decided to break the wood, it would surely make a slight vibration which the Earth Elementalists could sense. If for instance the person managed to break the wood using the wind element to perfectly slice through it, not making any sounds, then there was no way for that said person to join the woods back, so when they were searching the room previously, they would''ve been able to see the sliced wood. "Find him, you two, head to the Earl family and ask them to bring the boy here now!" Jean ordered. "What does the Earl family have to do with this? If I remember correctly, they were the ones who brought the boy to you the first time," Gerald asked. Jean was only trying to find trouble with the Earl family, and he didn''t want that to happen. Given how exasperated Jean looked, there''s a high chance that he might attack them when they''re unable to give him Grey. "We''re only going there to ask, and why are you even trying to stop me from asking them?" Jean asked. "The first time, you bullied them, when you clearly know that they don''t have any ties with the kid. Although I don''t involve myself in what is happening in the city, I''m fully aware of what was going on secretly or publicly," Gerald replied nonchalantly. "They are only going to question them." Jean said, after saying that, he turned to look at the ten people who were supposed to guard the room, "Come with us, none of you is allowed to move away from our sight," They were all suspects in this situation, and Jean was hoping to use them as a scapegoat in case they were unable to find Grey. Gerald looked at him coldly before they all moved to the main building''s hall. He didn''t tell the Crown Prince of the ladies yet, he wanted to wait until the two hours time was up, then when the fire was blazing, he would add more fuel to it. There had been reports of missing ladies in the City for a long time now, and none of the ladies had ever been found. Some of the ladies were even from some well off families in different cities, including the Capital City. Gerald was sure there was no way the Crown Prince was going to let this matter slide if he found out. Not just him, but the families of the ladies as well. This matter will surely bury the Smith family, then added to them being unable to provide Grey, they were literally finished. Two hours later. Jean was currently seated on his chair, his clothes completely soaked from sweat, and his legs shaking uncontrollably. Blazh had his eyes closed all this while, as soon as the time reached, he opened his eyes and looked at Jean. "Time''s up Jean Smith, where''s the boy?" He looked at him with emotionless eyes. "Your highness, please, give us more time, I swear we will be able to find him," Jean immediately started begging. "Tell that to my father, cease them," Blazh said nonchalantly. "Blazh, if I may?" Gerald suddenly stood up from where he was sitting. Blazh was surprised when he saw Gerald stopping him, he could tell there was bad blood between the duo, so why was he stopping him. Hope appeared in Jean''s eyes when he saw Gerald standing up, he felt he wanted to speak on his behalf. "Over the past years, there have been multiple cases of missing ladies. None of them has been found yet, according to my sources, they are kept in the Smith manor," Gerald explained calmly. Jean who thought he had been saved almost collapsed when he heard this, his hopes shattered into pieces. Chapter 391 - Plunged To The Depths Of Despair "Old man Gerald, what''s the meaning of this?" Jean quickly put himself together and scolded. "You''re abducting girls, and keeping them in your manor to have fun with them," Gerald said calmly. "Old man Gerald, because I respect you doesn''t mean you can slander me. I have never, and will never do such evil acts." Jean said with a face filled with anger, he turned to Blazh, "Your highness, like I said, give us some more time, I assure you, we can find the boy," Blazh looked at Jean, before switching his gaze to Gerald, "Old man Gerald, is what you''re saying the truth?" "Do I look so bored that I''ll falsely accuse this moron?" Gerald asked apathetically. "Old man Gerald! I will not stand by and watch you accuse me of something I have no idea about." Jean yelled angrily, he turned to Blazh, "Your highness, I think it''ll be better it we went to the Capital now, I need to report to your father about this evil accusation," Although Jean was panicking, he was still trying his best to get Blazh out of the manor. He had also secretly crushed something that would notify someone to move the cages away from the secret room. As long as he could hold them here for at least three minutes, everything would be fine. "Hmph! You''re only saying this to escape punishment. Blazh, no need to ask any more questions, come with me, I''ll take you there myself," Gerald snorted coldly, he already knew Jean was trying to stop them. "Old man Gerald, this is my manor, the Smith manor, not the Lenz organization''s manor. If you are going anywhere in my manor, then I should be the one inviting you." Jean said coldly. He was already under a hot seat because Grey escaped, if Blazh were to find out about the ladies in the cages, then he was done for. Not just him, but the entire Smith family. Gerald looked at Jean with a smile, he enjoyed seeing him look this desperate, but what he enjoyed more was seeing him think he has hope before it crumbles. Presently, he had already sent Diluc to the garden. Diluc has not only gotten there, but he has captured the Overlord Plane expert there, so no matter how long Jean tries to delay them, it wouldn''t change a thing. "Old man Gerald, where are they kept?" Blazh asked Gerald. He couldn''t let this matter rest given the caliber of it. Even in Capital City, there have been families who have reported to the Emperor of their missing children, and most of them were ladies, young ladies. If it were to turn out that Jean was the one holding them, then he was as good as dead. "Yes Gerald, if they are in my manor, where are they kept?" Jean asked, forgoing all formalities. "No need to be in a hurry, I''ll take you all there," Gerald chuckled before heading out of the hall. Jean took a deep breath before following behind them. He had tried to stop them for a few minutes, although it wasn''t up to the time he wanted, he was sure he would be able to delay them another minute or so. All he needed was one or two more minutes and the expert should''ve been able to remove all the evidence. While they were walking, he started introducing the manor to Blazh. He even went as far as calling his daughter, the young lady Grey fought with, hoping to introduce her to Blazh. But his fake smile turned for the worse when she got there. The young lady looked pale, and appeared to be very weak. "What''s wrong?" He asked hurriedly while approaching her. The group naturally stopped on seeing him hurry towards his daughter. Jean on the other hand was beside himself with joy, he didn''t care to know what happened to his daughter, but whatever it was, is a life saver. "Father, since the battle I had with Zeke Hoover, I haven''t been feeling too fine," The young lady explained. "Since you fought with him?" Jean asked, confused. Elementalists don''t usually get sick, although there are a few cases, but they were rarely natural. After their bodies have been refined by the elements, it would improve by a whole lot, making them impervious to sickness. The young lady nodded her head, Jean''s happy heart shook. "Give me your hand," He had already grabbed her hand when he said this. After placing his thumb on her hand, he closed his eyes. "This¡­ how?" Jean opened his eyes in horror. It was like he was falling into despair. "Father, what''s it?" The young lady asked anxiously on seeing her father''s reaction. "Your¡­ essence bead. It''s seventy percent damaged," Jean replied with a lost expression. ''What''s going on? What did I do for all this to happen to me?'' He looked at the sky with a look that showed extreme pain. The young lady was the hope of the entire Smith family, she was the one who has had the highest potential amongst all the children ever born to the family. Although they were a big family, they knew that it wouldn''t last forever. They were wealthy, but they weren''t strong individually. The experts they hired could easily be tempted by an enemy of the family, this would make them betray them, so they weren''t too safe with them. If the young lady were to truly get to the legendary Sage Plane, then they would be able to attract talents to the family, talents they would groom to love and respect the family''s rules. "What?!" The young lady, as well as the remaining elders who were beside Jean exclaimed. The elders all hurried to grab hold of her hand, checking it for themselves. Their expressions all changed when they saw this. Gerald who was looking from the side, couldn''t help but shake his head. ''This boy is just as vicious as his Teacher. All the girl wanted to do was spar, yet he crippled her, and in the presence of an Overlord Plane expert, amazing! He''s just as daring as his Teacher.'' He couldn''t help but wonder what the empire might turn to when Grey grew to the same strength as Chris. Given the personality of both people, it''s most likely even the Emperor wouldn''t want to get on their bad sides. ''No wonder they want to eliminate him as soon as possible.'' He thought. But to be honest, Gerald felt the Emperor was making the wrong decision. If he were the Emperor, then he would''ve tried to befriend Grey, instead of making him feel like a fugitive. Just think of what they could do if they had someone like Grey and Chris behind them. He felt the Qilin empire would be able to easily dominate the other two empires with just those two on their sides. He had done more research on Grey, and found out it had just been three years since he started cultivating, this made him all the more certain he had to build a stable relationship with him even if it meant offending the entire Qilin empire! "Jean Smith, you''re wasting my time," Blazh said coldly. Whatever happened to the Smith family had nothing to do with him, all he wanted to do now was return to the Capital, with Jean Smith. Although Jean Smith might not be executed because Grey escaped, he wouldn''t escape punishment. But if they were to find out that he truly was abducting ladies, then the punishment will not be light. Jean turned to look at Blazh and old man Gerald, the luster in his eyes was gone. He wasn''t even happy he had been able to successfully delay them. Sigh¡­ He sighed heavily, and it was like a aged by at least five years. Gerald looked at him with a pitiful expression, it was like he was witnessing the scene of Chris almost annihilating an entire family again, only this time, he was doing it with the help of others. Chris was brutish, while Grey on the other hand was cunning. But Gerald was sure if Grey was strong enough, then he might''ve done even more than what Chris did. They had spent a considerable time with the young lady, so when they got to where the garden was located at the back of the main building, over five minutes had gone by. Jean was comforted by the fact that Gerald would mislead Blazh, even if they wouldn''t punish him, it would at least make the punishment on him for not being able to provide Grey not as harsh as before. "There''s a secret room here," Gerald said. "That''s the place I keep all the rare flowers," Jean said before leading them to the building in the garden. He opened the door that led inside, after they walked in. "You see, just like I said, where I keep all¡­" He paused mid sentence, in front of him were multiple cages, with ladies chained inside. This time, he didn''t only fall into despair, but he immediately plunged to the depth. His previous black hair started to whiten at an incredible pace, the process was visible to the naked eye. Chapter 392 - According To Plan One hour before Blazh got to Frost City. Smith manor. After Grey was taken to his new room, he didn''t leave immediately, instead, he waited for an hour or so. Jean came to the room to see if he was there, as well as some other elders in the manor. While he was waiting, he was communicating with Alice. Since old man Gerald told him to go outside the city, then he would just take her along. Grey soon disappeared from the room, appearing behind some flowers by the side. He made sure to conceal his aura, while also ensuring he didn''t make the slightest sound or vibration, even when standing on the ground. After leaving the room, he went over to the garden to check if the ladies were still there.. It would be awkward if Jean had moved the girls because of what happened the previous day. Luckily, Jean didn''t think that the person who entered the vault passed through that side because of the expert that was guarding that area. He confirmed the ladies were still in the secret room before leaving the Smith manor. When he got outside, he breathed out heavily. ''Damn it! This thing''s consumption rate is terrifying, and it wears the body and mind simultaneously.'' He complained. Now he understood why Void would always sleep after fighting or using the space element for a long period of time. He was exhausted! If not for the fact that he had to take Alice out, then he would''ve found an Inn to sleep. He quickly maneuvered through the streets of Frost City, getting to the Reiss manor in no time. With a sour expression on his face, he was forced to once again use the space element. Thirty minutes later. Outside Frost City. Grey and Alice could be seen heading towards the forest by the side of the city. Grey was taking her to the cave he created the array, he wanted nothing else than to rest right now. When they got there, he informed old man Gerald he was out of the city, because sitting in a crossed leg position, trying to recover. Even his face had turned pale from the excess usage of the space element. Alice watched on as Grey went into a semi-conscious state. Grey had given her a rough rundown of what was going to happen in the Smith family. When she heard about what Jean had been doing, she was incensed. Three years ago, one of her cousins went missing. Even with the broad network the Reiss family had, they were unable to locate her. It has been three years now, if she wasn''t wrong, then Jean Smith is most likely the one who kidnapped her. She knew her father was not in the city, and she didn''t want the elders in the family to know she was leaving the manor, or else they would not agree to it, even her father would not agree to it. Since there was nothing for her to do, she decided to cultivate instead. It was better than just sitting around doing nothing. Five hours later. Grey opened his eyes, revitalized. His face had regained most of its color, but he still needed rest. He looked around, after seeing Alice was still there, he stood up, heading towards the exit of the cave. Alice noticed his movements, and also opened her eyes. "You''re awake," She said while also standing up. "Yeah," Grey nodded before asking, "How long has it been?" "Around five hours or so," Alice replied. "Hmm, then the Crown Prince must''ve left already," Grey brought out the communication device he got from old man Gerald. He wanted to see how far things had played out. After sending a message to old man Gerald, he was instantly replied, it was almost like old man Gerald had been waiting for his message all this while. ''Grey my boy, how are you doing?'' His enthusiastic voice reverberated in Grey''s head. Grey was forced to look at the device again, to make sure it was the one he usually uses to communicate with old man Gerald. ''I''m fine. I wanted to ask how things went at the Smith manor?'' Grey replied courteously before asking. ''It went according to plan. In fact, it was much better than I expected¡­'' Gerald went on to tell him what happened at the Smith manor. ¡­. Smith manor, a few hours back. "You see, just like I said, this is where I keep all¡­" Jean paused mid-sentence, in front of him were multiple cages with ladies chained inside. Blazh looked at the expression of Jean which displayed horror. He had the expression of a criminal that was caught in the act. Gerald wore a surprised look as well. Although Grey had already told him of this place, he didn''t think it would actually be this big. There were at least fifty cages in the room, and ladies were inside all of them. He had been researching the disappearance of the ladies in Frost City over the years, but he has always come up short, never being able to find who the culprit was. He never expected Grey would be able to discover something like this after he willingly brought himself to the Smith family. Some of the elders of the Smith family had shocked expressions, clearly, they knew nothing of this. "Jean, what is this?" An Elder questioned angrily. Jean hadn''t been able to look away from the cages all around, he still hadn''t been able to comprehend what was happening. "But¡­ but¡­ I crushed it. Then why, why didn''t he clear this place up?" He muttered to himself as he took slow steps towards the first cage in sight. The ladies in the room didn''t even show any reactions, even with the disturbance. It was like their souls had left them. After years of torture, most people breakdown quickly, seeking death. Even if they don''t die physically, they would die mentally. It was better than having to be conscious while going through so much pain. Gerald looked at the ladies trapped in the cages, he didn''t know any of them, but he was sure some of them were from Frost City. Unfortunately, it would be difficult for them to live normal lives even after freeing them. It would take them years before they might be able to recover. Chapter 393 - Ive Missed This! "Cease him," Blazh ordered emotionlessly. "As for the rest of you, you''ll be coming with us to the Capital." He turned to the other elders. This was a big offense, and the punishment was not light. There''s a high chance the Emperor would order Jean Smith''s execution, even if he''s not executed, then his cultivation would be destroyed. Given the number of enemies he had gained for himself due to this heinous act, it would be difficult for him to protect himself. Even the Smith family wouldn''t be able to protect him, that''s if there''s a Smith family after this. "You don''t need to take them along, this is all my doing," Jean spoke, his voice bland. "Hmph! That''s not for you to decide," Blazh snorted coldly. "Thank you for this important information, the empire would reward you accordingly," He bowed to old man Gerald to show his gratitude. Gerald looked at Blazh, his bearing was amazing. If not for the fact that he knew him well, he would''ve thought Blazh had nothing against him from how he was acting. "It''s nothing, since I''m residing in the empire, then it''s my duty to help out with what I can," He waved it off. He didn''t want to be rewarded for something he didn''t discover. It was all thanks to Grey, but unfortunately, he couldn''t tell Blazh that. "Father will get back to you," Blazh said. "Release the ladies and find out which families they''re from. It would be best if this isn''t made public, but given the circumstances of things, I doubt we''ll be able to keep this matter a secret," He added. Gerald didn''t plan on doing anything else, he had already done his part, so now all that was left was to go back to his everyday carefree life. As long as Grey wasn''t caught, and he successfully leaves this area, then nothing would disturb his life again. Once Grey grew to the peak, then he would return valiantly, and beat up the Emperor for seeking his life. Blazh was quick to wrap things up at the Smith manor, after that, they immediately left for the Capital. Given the urgency of the matter when they came to call them, he didn''t come with any extravagant ride or carriage befitting of a Crown Prince. They hurried back to the Capital, and Jean was surprisingly on his best behavior, in fact, he hadn''t said a word since Blazh refused to leave the elders behind. Even the elders that were in seclusion were called out. Seeing their reactions, Blazh knew they had no hand in this, but it was up to the Emperor to decide what to do to the Smith family. With Blazh gone, the few people he left behind quickly released the ladies, trying to get them to their respective homes. Two hours later. The entire city was abuzz, the only thing the citizens were talking about was the act of the Smith family. Those who had ties with the Smith family came out to publicly criticize their evil deed. It was amazing how quickly news spread out, even old man Gerald was astounded by this fact. The businesses of the Smith family in the city were closed down till further notice, even if they were opened, who would want to go and buy things from the current public enemy. ¡­. Present time. On hearing what happened from old man Gerald, Grey felt a little better inside. He wasn''t excited because he saved so many people, although it was something that would make most people feel good, Grey wasn''t one of such people. To be honest, all he wanted to do right now was to find a secret place, and start training peacefully, whenever he''s free, he''d work on his research. Had Void not been injured, then he would search for his parents, after finding them, he would then start working on other things. ''*Sigh* Things never go as planned,'' He shook his head. "You just saved tens of people, you should be happy," Alice said when she saw his dull expression. "Yay¡­" Grey said with a fake smile. "I feel like pummeling you," Alice pouted on seeing Grey''s fake show of happiness. "You''re such a boring person. This is why I enjoy Klaus and Reynolds'' company more," She added. "I''m not, I just don''t indulge in self-exaltation as much as Klaus or Reynolds do. And besides, I have to find a way to heal Void, until then, I don''t really think I can be too happy," Grey explained. "That doesn''t change the fact that you''re boring," Alice said. "Alright fine, it''s nice saving those girls. Are you happy now?" Grey said with a resigned smile. "Come, it''s been a long time since I fought with someone. Let''s spar!" Alice said with much enthusiasm. "I''d rather not," Grey said. Boom! As soon as he finished his statement, he was nearly struck with a lightning bolt. "What''s that for?" Grey couldn''t help but ask. Unfortunately, he was met with another lightning bolt. Alice was still in the Fourth stage of the Origin Plane, but her attack power was between the Sixth and Seventh stage of the Origin Plane. Grey was forced to continue evading her attacks as she didn''t stop attacking. Whenever he tried to speak, he would almost be struck by an attack. Had he not been this fast, then she''d have already struck him with lightning by now. As they continued sparring, his mood was lifted a little bit. The reason he was this sulky was that he recalled the last time he visited Frost City, Void was with him, but now, Void was still sleeping peacefully in his storage ring. He didn''t even know what was going on with him, but he planned to see old man Gerald before leaving so he could check on him to see if the liquid he got from the young man back at the Chimera forest made any improvements to his condition. They sparred for almost one hour, and even Grey was shocked by Alice''s urge to battle. Even after so long, she didn''t want to stop. "Hehe, I''ve missed this so much!" Chapter 394 - I Shouldve Come Here Earlier! The next day. Grey decided it was time to leave Frost City, but before leaving, he wanted to go and meet up with old man Gerald, to check out Void''s condition. The liquid he got from the young man back at the Chimera forest should make some improvements to Void''s condition, well, that''s what he thought. He told Alice the reason he brought her out, and seeing her expression, he could tell she approved of it. Alice enjoyed fighting, so staying in one place for months now must''ve bored her. She didn''t delay and immediately left even before Grey headed to Frost City.. After hearing Reynolds'' current strength, she felt pressured to improve quicker. She didn''t even want to talk about Grey''s crazy growth, he wasn''t someone who they should try to compare themselves with. Grey makes advancing a stage look so easy, while it actually isn''t. With Alice gone, Grey headed to Frost City. Old man Gerald told him to make sure he stayed hidden since there was no guarantee that Blazh wasn''t waiting for him. Thirty minutes later. Lenz manor. In the secret room Grey stayed the previous time. "Hmm, there''s still no improvement to his condition," Gerald said before passing Void over to Grey. Grey sighed with a sour expression, "Thank you for your assistance, I guess I''ll have to get a large amount of that liquid." "What liquid?" Gerald asked curiously. Grey told him of a liquid he used, but he didn''t tell him the name of the liquid. "Oh right, I forgot to ask. The liquid helps to soothe the mind, making one think clearly. I''ve forgotten its name, but I''m sure it''s what I obtained." Grey replied with a thoughtful expression. "Hmm, could it be the Resurgence Liquid?" Gerald questioned. If what Grey was speaking about was this liquid, then there''s a chance that it should be able to heal Void. That''s if he could get a large amount of it. "Yes, that''s it!" Grey replied. He had been racking his brain to try to recall its name, but he was unable to. He had only seen it in a book, and he was only glancing through, after looking at its appearance and what it did, he didn''t really read more about it, nor did he try to find out about it. "Then it should be able to help your cat. I''m not a hundred percent certain about it, but from what it''s usually used for, I believe it would help." Gerald replied after a while. "Okay. I found out from someone that it could be found in the magical beasts'' forest¡­" Grey told him of the location the young man told him, while also asking if it was correct. According to the young man, there''s a bamboo forest in the magical beasts'' forest where there was an entire pond of this Resurgence Liquid. Given the wide network the Lenz organization has, and also how quickly they were able to get hold of information, Grey felt old man Gerald might be able to help him confirm if what the young man said was true. Besides, according to the young man, it was a rumor. "I''ll see what I can find. I haven''t heard of anything about that for now, so I can''t be too sure. You can wait until I get some feedback," Gerald replied after thinking for some time. "I''ll pass. I still have the communication device with me, so you can inform me whenever you get something. Thanks for your help, I''m grateful," Grey bowed to show his appreciation. "You don''t need to be too formal with me, I''m just helping a friend''s student." Gerald chuckled. "Thank you once again, I''ll be leaving the city now. I''ll probably be heading to the magical beasts'' forest from here," Grey bowed again. After that, he left Frost City once again, this time, it would be a long time before he returns, if he ever returns that is. Now, he was heading out to find Klaus. Since Klaus left the Academy, they hadn''t had any type of contact. It was relatively easier to find Alice and Reynolds since they were in one area. But Klaus was constantly moving further away from him. The time he spent in the Chimera forest further increased the distance between them. But amongst the group, he felt less worried about Klaus. The reason for this was simple, the Principal was with him. Given the strength of the Principal, it would be very difficult for anyone to take Klaus from his hands. Not just that, but Instructor Blake was also with them. Klaus was safer than even Alice who was kept in the Reiss manor. There was no way for the Emperor to track them down since the Principal would be wary of that. After he left Frost City, he took out the tracking disc, he looked at the dots. He could see Alice''s dot moving quickly away from where he was currently standing. Reynolds'' light dot was still, this indicated that he wasn''t moving anywhere. Klaus'' light dot was quite a long distance away from where his dot was. And he guessed there were thousands of miles between them. According to his calculation from the time he went to meet Reynolds, then it would take him at least four to five weeks before he got to where Klaus was currently located. And given how Klaus'' dot was still moving, he knew it would take a long time before he could actually meet up with him. ''I wonder how he''s doing? Given his personality, a lot of people would''ve tried to kill him already, maybe even the Principal and Instructor Blake,'' He thought to himself with a rare smile. Klaus was the one he was actually closer to amongst his friends, and thinking about all his antics, he couldn''t help but smile. Klaus was a troublemaker, he''d annoy anyone and everyone, especially now that himself or Reynolds was with him. He would try to find another way to say all the crazy things in his head. ¡­. "How does he move this quickly?" Grey''s annoyed voice rang out from the side of a pathway. He was currently walking out of a small city, well, it should actually be called a town, but since it was called a city, Grey wasn''t going to complain given Red City was just as small but it was still called a city. The device was currently in his hands, and Klaus'' light dot could be seen not too far from his own, but the dot was moving away. It has been over seven weeks since he left Frost City, but he hadn''t been able to find Klaus till now. This was already a week more than what he predicted, but he couldn''t complain since Klaus seemed to always be on the move. His journey has been very boring over the past seven weeks, nothing meaningful happening. In his free time, he had been studying forge mastering very hard. Other than that, he also frequently communicated with Alice and Reynolds, checking how they were doing. Alice had surprisingly broken through to the Fifth stage of the Origin Plane, this came as a huge surprise to Grey since he didn''t expect her to break through this quickly. According to her, she had been going around, fighting. Her method of training seemed strange to say the least, but Grey knew battling was the best and quickest way to grow stronger. Alice also told him of the high number of resources she had refined while she was in the secret room cultivating. It was like the battles brought out the remnant of the resources in her body. The people she had been battling with were surprisingly bandits, she had been going around, searching for bandits to beat up. There were a few times she had been placed in a dangerous situation, but having the lightning element meant that she was faster than most Elementalists, as long as she didn''t get involved with people in the Seventh or Eighth stage of the Origin Plane, then she didn''t have any issues. She could even escape from a Seventh stage Origin Plane expert if they were alone, but if the expert had help, then she would find it difficult to escape. Reynolds was having a great time on his end, he hasn''t faced much of a challenge, but neither had he seen anything that would make him improve. Grey felt he would improve whenever he was placed in a difficult position. Given the strength of the Elemental Warrior, it was difficult for him to have any problems with people in the Origin Plane, so he was pretty safe. ''*Sigh* Klaus would most likely be having fun by now.'' He thought to himself. ¡­. While Grey was thinking of Klaus enjoying himself, some kilometers away, Klaus truly was enjoying himself. "Ah¡­ this place is great! Who would''ve thought that there was such a treasure in this small town. I should''ve come here earlier!" He said while sitting in a small icy pool. Chapter 395 - What Did He Do? Three hours later. Grey stood in front of the small gates leading to a town. He took out the disc, and Klaus'' light dot looked to be in this town. ''Seems like he has finally stopped moving.'' He thought to himself with a sigh of relief. A small plaque was hung on the side of the town''s gate, the words ''Moon Town'' was boldly written on the plaque. After taking a step inside the town, Grey suddenly felt a chill run through his legs into his body. ''Such intense cold energy,'' Grey was dumbfounded by what he felt. Although some parts of the town were covered in snow, Grey didn''t actually think it would radiate such high levels of cold. Even for someone like him who was already in the Eighth stage of the Origin Plane, while also having a physical body that was equivalent to a Fourth stage Origin Plane Elementalist, he still felt the cold was quite strong. He quickly tried to use his fire element to suppress the cold energy that was trying to cause havoc in his body, but to his surprise, even before he could will the fire element, the cold energy calmed down on its own. ''Huh? That''s strange, what happened?'' He couldn''t wrap his head around what just happened. Unknown to Grey, the drop of liquid Aetonth put in his body the previous time was greedily absorbing the cold energy as they charged into his body. Before long, all the cold energy close to Grey had been quickly absorbed into his body. This didn''t go unnoticed by Grey, which left him stumped. This was the first time something like this was happening. ''Could it possibly have to do with the orb in my body?'' He thought inside. That was the only thing he could think of that could cause such a reaction in his body, it was just when Alice''s father tried to suppress him with the aura of an Overlord Plane expert but was unable to. He stood still by the gate to the town for a few seconds, trying to figure out what happened. "Move, you''re blocking the path," An unfriendly voice came from behind him, which brought him out of his thoughts. He turned to look at the person speaking, it was an elderly looking lady, "I''m sorry, I was surprised by the cold energy," After apologizing, he turned and walked into the town. "Did he just say cold energy?" A young man behind the elderly lady asked in surprise. "Seems like he''s a Water Elementalist, one who has a good ice ability," The elderly lady replied. The duo looked at Grey''s back view as he walked deeper into the town. "Forget about him, come let''s go beat up that thief," She said. When speaking about this ''thief'', hatred shone in her eyes. The young man nodded before following behind the elderly lady. ¡­. After walking away from the town''s gate, Grey headed towards the direction where Klaus'' light dot was located. In a small tea shop by the side of the road, three people could be seen sitting inside, one middle-aged man, a younger and handsome-looking man who looked to be in his early thirties, and a delicate-looking young lady who was in her twenties. "Teacher, don''t you think we should help him out?" The handsome-looking man asked. "No, given everything he''s been doing, this seems to be a very light punishment," The middle-aged man replied. The trio sitting around this table enjoying tea was none other than Klaus'' father, Instructor Blake, and lastly, Instructor Delia. The person Blake was speaking about was obviously Klaus. "What''s he doing here?" Delia suddenly spoke out while pointing out the window. Oliver and Blake looked in the direction she was pointing at, and to their surprise, they saw Grey walking outside. "Call him over," Oliver said to Blake. "Yes Teacher," Blake stood up and exited the shop. "Grey," He called out after coming out of the shop. Grey who was leisurely walking around stopped on hearing his name, turning around, he saw Instructor Blake''s surprised face. He wasn''t too shocked to see him here since they were with Klaus. "Hello, Instructor Blake," Grey waved before walking over. "You don''t need to call me Instructor anymore, we''re no longer in the Academy. Just call me un¡­ no uncle will make me seem old, elder brother would do. Besides, your Teacher is a close friend of mine," Blake said. Grey smiled, he was already used to calling him Instructor Blake, and he didn''t think it would be easy to change it. "Is Klaus with you?" He asked while looking behind him. According to where the light dot was, Klaus was around here. "Come with me," Blake said before heading into the tea shop. Grey followed behind them, thinking Klaus was inside. On entering, he only saw Instructor Delia and Klaus'' father. "Hello Principal, Instructor Delia," He bowed to both of them. Delia smiled at Grey, "You seem to have gotten more handsome," Grey scratched his head awkwardly. "Grey, what brings you here?" Oliver asked after taking a sip of his tea. "I came in search of Klaus," Grey replied. "Oh, how did you know he was here?" Oliver asked with a strange look. Grey instinctively wanted to lie, but after recalling that the people here could be trusted, he told them about the tracking device he made. "Fascinating, Chris would be proud," Oliver praised. On hearing how Grey was able to make it from the one he took from the Darkness Elementalist which wasn''t as good as this one, he felt even more astounded. Grey seems to be a genius when it comes to arrays. "Sir, so where can I find Klaus?" Grey asked. Oliver shook his head before looking towards his left. Grey came into the small shop through the right, so when he saw Oliver and the others looking in that direction, he curiously turned to look as well. And behold, Klaus was surrounded by groups of people of all ages, and from their expressions, it was almost like they could kill him anytime. The only thing that surprised Grey was that the person with the highest Plane was actually in the Origin Plane. "Principal, what did he do?" Chapter 396 - Sacrifice! "Principal, what did he do?" Grey asked, shocked. "Hehe, he absorbed the town''s treasure," Blake was the one who replied with a chuckle. "The town''s treasure?" Grey asked, surprised. "Yes, you see¡­" Oliver started to speak of the history of the town to Grey. Hundreds of years ago, this town wasn''t called Moon Town, it had a different name, but suddenly, a strange situation started happening in the town. Usually, in all places, the elements of the residents are always mixed, with common elements like water, wind, fire, and earth being abundant amongst the Elementalists. But in the case of Moon Town, the water element takes up a staggering eighty percent of the people here. According to the people, they were blessed by the Moon God. Well, after experts in the Overlord Plane noticed the strange occurrence in this small town, some started investigating it and found out that there''s an ice vein under the town.. But that was not all, there was a small rock that seemed to be radiating icy energy. Naturally, the rock attracted the greed of some of the Water Elementalist experts, but surprisingly, not only were they unable to obtain it, but they died instead. This reinforced the beliefs of the townspeople, saying it was a blessing from the Moon God. A Sage Plane expert finally decided to step in, and after careful investigation, he found out that the rock was not from their world. With such findings, one would think that the town would''ve grown bigger, but surprisingly, any Water Elementalist that was born from this town can not break through to the Overlord Plane. With the new findings, interest in the town started to dwindle over the years, until it was almost forgotten by most of the experts. The elemental essence in this town was poorer compared to the other sides of the continent, and people thought it had something to do with that rock. Since they couldn''t destroy or move it away, they decided to warn the people of the rock so they would abandon the town, but who would''ve thought that they actually rejected it. What was even stranger about this town though was that the people here usually live more than the normal age. For example, a Collection Plane Elementalist could live up to two hundred years, but if that said person was born in this town, they could live for an added hundred years or so. Over the years, the rock had stored a large amount of ice energy, and Klaus was surprisingly able to absorb over fifty percent of it. What was more shocking was that his stage only increased by two stages. According to his father, before they got here, Klaus was in the Fifth stage of the Origin Plane, but after absorbing the energy from the rock, his stage shot up to the Seventh stage of the Origin Plane. It was getting closer to the Eighth stage before he was seen by one of the townspeople. Klaus could easily defeat most of the people, but seeing that it was their treasure, he couldn''t bring himself to do that. He might be shameless, but he still has his bottom line. ¡­. Hearing the story of the town, Grey was astounded by the mysteries of the world. A small rock that is able to easily kill experts in the Overlord Plane, and change the affinity of people is quite fascinating, to say the least. If not for his cautiousness, Grey would''ve wanted to check it out, and see what it was. But after hearing it could kill people in the Overlord Plane, he decided to wait until he got to the Sage Plane, before coming back here to study the rock. "I''ll go help him out," Grey said, he hadn''t taken a seat all this while, so he walked out of the shop, heading to the other side. He couldn''t sit by and watch Klaus get beaten! Okay, that''s a lie. He only wanted to go closer so that he could gloat at Klaus'' misfortune. ''Even after so long, he''s still causing trouble wherever he goes,'' He thought while laughing inside. Grey didn''t even need to speak to Klaus before his mood lightened up a bit. He even brought out the communication device to inform Alice and Reynolds about Klaus'' unfortunate situation. The trio laughed, with Alice and Reynolds wishing they were there to see Klaus. Grey soon got to where the crowd was gathered. The place was quite wide, he felt it was most likely the town''s square. "Look, I didn''t know it was the town''s sacred treasure. I''m sorry for mistakenly absorbing it," Klaus tried explaining to the crowd before him. "Chief, don''t believe him! When I got there, he was speaking of how he should''ve seen this place sooner." A young man said while pointing at Klaus. "That''s because I didn''t know about it being your town''s treasure you blockhead," Klaus looked at the young man as if he was looking at a moron. "Young man, the essence you absorbed from the moon rock will take years to recover." An old man whose hair had turned completely white spoke up. He was the one who the young man addressed as chief previously. "What can I do to help you people out?" Klaus asked. He had already absorbed it, it wasn''t like there was anything else he could do to stop it. "It''s nice you''re such a considerate young man. Since you want to help recover it, then you don''t mind being sacrificed to the rock, right?" The old man asked with a cold look. "Sacrifice? Me? The rock? You must be crazy!" Klaus immediately cursed out when he heard what the old man said. He had been trying to reason with them civilly, but since they were saying such stupid demands, then there was no use. Although he couldn''t beat all of them present, he was sure he could escape. Although he wasn''t a hundred percent sure about his escape, he was one thousand percent sure his father would help him out! Chapter 397 - Lets Help Them! "Haha," Grey laughed out loud unconsciously, attracting the attention of the people who were around him. Klaus was still the same, cursing at the slightest disagreement. "Hmph! It doesn''t matter what you want, the only way for the rock to regain its lost essence is if you were sacrificed." The old man snorted, he looked at Klaus coldly before adding, "Don''t worry, you wouldn''t die, we''re only going to sacrifice your cultivation." "Heh! Keep spouting nonsense let''s see if I don''t make you lose some teeth," Klaus retorted, not scared. With the increase in his stage, he was confident in being able to hold his own against someone at the Peak of the Origin Plane. This old man looked to be at the peak, so he wasn''t really scared of him. ''Dammit! If only the people who came to call me weren''t that many, I''d have easily escaped!'' He cursed inside. To be honest, he didn''t really come here because he had a bottom line, he''s Klaus, he doesn''t have a bottom line, as long as it''s to his and his loved ones benefit, then he didn''t really care. When the people came to call him while he was still soaking away in the icy pool, there were over twenty of them, this was the real reason he followed them back to the town. Besides that, his father, Instructor Blake and Delia were still in the town, and that''s the only way they could quickly rescue him. "Cease him, we''ll see if he can still keep speaking after we''ve offered him to the rock," The old man said before walking towards a well in the town''s square. After getting to the well, he tapped on the side of the well, and¡­ Rumble! The well shook, not just the well, but even the ground shook as well. Klaus who was watching the old man from the side suddenly felt a familiar icy energy. "It must be the treasure," He muttered to himself. A look of adoration appeared in the eyes of the townspeople, it was like they were awaiting the presence of a god. Some of the younger ones even fell to their knees. Their actions surprised Grey, as well as Klaus. In the tea shop, Oliver and the others'' attention was focused in the town''s square since Grey went over. When they felt the ground shaking, their expressions couldn''t help but change. "Be prepared to take them out of there at any given time," Oliver ordered Blake. "Yes Teacher," Blake nodded. Things aren''t as simple as it previously was, so there was no way they could sit by and watch Klaus and Grey get hurt by something which has been said to kill people at the Peak of the Overlord Plane. Back at the town''s square. Grey felt the same icy energy he felt when he first stepped into the town, and for some weird reasons, he wanted to absorb more of it. ''Strange,'' He thought to himself while distancing himself a little further back from the crowd. After hearing the story about this rock, he couldn''t take the risk of going close to it. Klaus was able to absorb it from some distance away from the village and was able to gain a boost of two stages within an hour or so, this goes to show how powerful it was. One could only imagine how quickly Klaus would''ve advanced if he was absorbing it from such a close distance. Grey suddenly smiled, while looking at the townspeople with a pitiful gaze, knowing Klaus, he would definitely try to absorb it again. A small white rock finally rose up from the well, floating around one meter above the well, while giving off intense icy energy. Some of the people here who weren''t from the town shuddered and quickly started retreating further away from the town''s square. Before long, there were only about fifty people or so in the town''s square, and other than Grey and Klaus, the rest were from the town. "Bring him closer," The old man said. Just as the people who surrounded Klaus were about to push him forward, something strange happened. The white rock emitted a mythical glow, and to the surprise of all the townspeople, the icy energy in it started depleting at an insane pace. The icy energy formed two strands of thick essence that were visible to the human eyes, and each shot into two different people. One of them was the criminal who was surrounded by the townspeople. When they followed the line of the second strand, it went behind them, to a handsome young man. Initially, most of the townspeople were already secretly praising Klaus as the most handsome man they had ever seen, but this young man seems to be in a league of his own. They almost couldn''t believe that someone could be this handsome. Some of the people were in awe, but that awe quickly changed to hatred when they realized what was happening here. "Thief!" The same young man who saw Klaus screamed at the top of his lungs, quickly pulling everyone out of their stupor. "Criminal! How dare you steal our treasure in front of us?!" Someone else yelled while pointing at Grey. "And this one too, he is still trying to steal it after being caught the first time," All the people started pointing fingers at Grey and Klaus. Klaus had a surprised expression on his face when he saw that all too familiar good-looking face. "Haha, buddy! You''re here. Come quick, let''s ste¡­ I mean, let''s help these people resolve their long-time problem," Klaus laughed out loud. Grey''s mouth was currently twitching vigorously, he came here to gloat at Klaus, not join him in stealing the essence energy from the white rock! What was even more annoying was that he wasn''t even actively trying to absorb it, the stupid thing was coming on its own accord. It was almost like there was something inside him that was attracting it. "They know each other? They must''ve been sent here by our enemies to weaken us. Kill them before they empty the icy energy!" The old man ordered with veins bulging out at the side of his head. Only the town''s Chief knew the sacrifice they had to make to get the stone to the current level it was, he could not sit by and watch these two rascals kill off the works of his ancestors. Chapter 398 - Were Not Only Handsome, Were Strong Too! In the tea shop. Oliver and Blake wore puzzled expressions, not expecting what was currently happening. They weren''t surprised by Klaus, in fact, just like Grey, they expected this. What truly surprised them was Grey who was absorbing the icy energy at a crazier speed than Klaus, and from his expression, they could tell he didn''t know how it was happening. Well, either that, or he was pretending not to know how it was happening. But they felt it was the former since Grey wasn''t like Klaus who did things thoughtlessly. "Teacher, should I step in now?" Blake asked. "No, they should be fine. If Klaus were to be alone, then we''d have watched them rough him up a bit before helping him, but with that boy there, it''s impossible for them to be killed. At most, they''ll beat them up a bit, and we''ll step in," Oliver shrugged before focusing on his tea once again.. When Grey came here, he had tried sensing Grey''s cultivation stage, and the result stumped him. He couldn''t! Grey was only an Origin Plane Elementalists the last time he saw him, and he was in the Fifth stage at that time, it had been only around four to five months, and he couldn''t help but wonder how much this prodigy had grown. From Grey''s facial expression, he didn''t sense any sign of fear, this meant that he was confident in his ability to escape even when surrounded by this many people. ''He''s going to be more fearsome than his Teacher. I wonder where Chris is, it''s been almost a year now, and he still hasn''t returned,'' He thought to himself. At the town''s square. Grey still had an incredulous look, with his mouth still twitching occasionally. Klaus on the other hand was excited, he even swaggered away from the group of people, walking towards Grey. After getting to where Grey was standing, he threw his right hand across his shoulder, while looking at the townspeople smugly. What was more surprising was that the essence in the stone was almost used up, over half of it had been absorbed within the short span of a few minutes. "I know this is the first time you people are seeing two handsome guys like us together, but you don''t need to stare so much. Don''t worry, if you people want, we can stand here a few more minutes so that you can ingrain our images in your heads." Klaus said before tilting his head to a forty-five-degree angle, "And ladies, you can fantasize about us all day, don''t worry, we don''t mind." "Unfortunately, as much as it hurts me to say this, we can never be together. It''s not you people, it''s us, we''re just too good-looking for this town." "I can make a statue of us in the town''s square so you people can forever remember us, and tell your kids about us so they can fantasize about us as well. But be warned, men are not allowed to fantasize about us, we only agree with women." Smack! "What bullshit are you spouting? Get away from me, you''re only saying this much so you can rob them of their ice energy," Grey smacked Klaus across the back of his head. What surprised Grey more was the fact that Klaus was actually using him to siphon more ice energy. Since more was coming towards him, Klaus would be able to absorb more if he stayed close to him. Even after not seeing him for so long, he was still as shameless as ever! "Come on buddy, you know I need this, I''m very close to the Eighth stage," Klaus whispered to him. "I''m not even trying to absorb it, it''s coming on its own," Grey said while shaking his head. "But¡­" Grey and Klaus started conversing in front of over fifty angry people, it was almost like these people weren''t there in the first place. "What are you people staring at?! Kill them now!" The old man was the first to regain himself and yell. When people encounter strange things, they tend to get confused by the situation. For example, with the threat of death, Grey and Klaus were supposed to be flustered, and panicky, yet, not only were they not flustered, they were casually talking while still absorbing the town''s treasure. It was like they didn''t feel any sense of threat at all. Boom! The old man was the first to attack, sending multiple ice shards towards Grey and Klaus. Klaus was still greedily stealing the ice energy that was coming towards Grey while also speaking with Grey. Grey easily set up an earth wall that blocked the ice shards. "You see, we''re not only handsome, we''re strong too!" Klaus yelled from behind Grey. Grey''s eyes twitched twice, he also forgot how crazy Klaus was. There were times when he would want to strangle him, but then he would recall that he was his friend. ''I still wonder how he has been able to survive till now?'' He thought to himself. Swoosh! Boom! More attacks came in their direction, but none was able to pass through Grey''s defense. The old man at the Peak of the Origin Plane couldn''t help but take a step back, he never thought these young men would be this strong. "Attack!" He ordered. No matter how powerful they were, as long as they only defended, then they would definitely lose in due time. Grey didn''t want to waste his energy in using another element, while Klaus didn''t want to waste his energy in attacking. He focused on absorbing the ice energy, while also occasionally cursing at the group who were attacking them. The townspeople naturally started to get infuriated. Klaus was just too annoying. "Even if the other one escapes, the one with the loud mouth must stay here!" The young man who caught Klaus yelled angrily. "Shut up you ugly moron, you don''t have the right to speak when it involves handsome people," Klaus snickered. Grey almost facepalmed, while Blake and Delia shook their heads with a pitiful expression. Chapter 399 - It Cant Be! "Grey, beat them up!" Klaus patted Grey''s shoulder while hiding behind him, greedily absorbing the ice energy. Presently, they had absorbed roughly seventy percent of the ice energy in the small rock. Grey could sense Klaus'' aura improving at a rapid pace. ''At this rate, he''ll probably break through to the Eighth stage if he absorbs more of the essence.'' He thought to himself while darting a glance at the group in front of them. Since Klaus needed the energy to break through, then he was going to stand guard for him. Although his earth wall can''t block all the attacks, he would think of ways to stop the other attacks. Boom! Bang! Bam! More attacks hit the wall fiercely, causing it to shake. Bang! Crack! Cracks soon started appearing on different sides of the wall. "That''s it, continue attacking," The young man who was bickering with Klaus exclaimed in excitement. "Shut up you shithead!" Klaus'' annoying voice rang out from the other side of the wall. "Dammit! If I don''t kill you today, then I''m not a man!" The young man said angrily, before attacking more fiercely. "Hehe, bold of you to assume you were a man," Klaus laughed out loud from the other side. Grey shook his head on hearing the young man and Klaus'' bickerings. He still didn''t know how Klaus is able to easily annoy someone, it was almost like it was his talent or something. Crack! Bang! The wall soon crumbled to the ground, and Grey and Klaus was once again visible to the townspeople. "Haha, we have you now you dumbass," The young man laughed out loud. It was almost like he couldn''t see Grey, all his attention was focused on Klaus. "Quick bud, do something, I still need more time," Klaus said to Grey. Grey looked at the attacks that were coming in their direction, looking at Klaus who didn''t want to do anything until he absorbs the rest of the essence in the small rock, he couldn''t help but sigh. ''He''s such a headache!'' With that thought in his head, he spread out both hands, and a sea of blue flames sprang out, surrounding the duo. Since the attacks of the people were ice, Grey''s blue flame was able to quickly melt most of them. Unfortunately, the sheer number of people put him in a disadvantageous position. If he were being attacked by only ten people or so, he was confident in being able to block them, but fifty people? He didn''t even have up to twenty percent confidence. Boom! Bam! He started switching between the earth and fire element to block the attacks of the townspeople. In the tea shop. Oliver and Blake were watching the battle seriously. "The boy''s flame is remarkable," Oliver commented. "Didn''t he only have two elements when he came to the Academy?" Delia couldn''t help but ask. Due to the time Chris told Blake to trick Grey into believing he had a better cultivation technique, she was curious about him and checked his files. So she was aware he only had the earth and lightning element when he joined the Academy. "Yeah, according to Klaus, he inherited the legacy of an old expert in the trial land," Blake explained. "Oh! One can get an element they have no affinity with?" Delia asked, stunned. "Apparently¡­" Blake tried to explain, but he paused since he couldn''t come up with a convincing theory. Even he felt the possibility of that happening was zero! "No need to worry about it. Everyone has their secrets," Oliver said. Delia and Blake nodded. Which genius didn''t have a secret? Even someone as stupid as Klaus had a secret that is able to make him absorb the ice energy from the small rock while the townspeople couldn''t. "Wait, I can understand why Klaus is able to absorb the ice energy, but how''s he able to do it as well?" Blake suddenly thought of something. Grey and Klaus were obviously the only two people absorbing the ice energy, and since Klaus was a Water Elementalists, it was understandable, but Grey absorbing it doesn''t make any sense. What was more alarming was that Grey was absorbing more energy than even Klaus! "Huh?" Oliver turned to look at Grey more intently, his pupils dilated while he muttered to himself, "It can''t be," "Could it be that he also has the water element?" Delia asked stunned. Having three elements was already surprising, if Grey were to have a fourth element, it would be astonishing. But the thing that they all couldn''t wrap their heads around was how the hell did someone who had two elements three years ago suddenly start popping up with more elements. It just doesn''t make sense! "No one else should find out about this, having the fire element can easily be attributed to the trial land since its mysterious, but having the water element would make things more difficult for him if people were to find out," Oliver warned Blake and Delia. Although he knew they wouldn''t divulge this information, it didn''t hurt to remind them again. "Yes Teacher," Blake nodded before adding, "If what I''m thinking is correct, then there''s a chance Grey can acquire other elements," Delia was smart, so even she had thought of this possibility, but neither of the three people here wanted to believe that. How could they believe it? This was something unheard of. Everyone knows the more elements an Elementalist has, the more versatile they are when fighting. They can almost certainly counter any opponent since some elements naturally suppress others. Elementalists don''t usually depend on elemental suppression since in most battles one person would be stronger than the other. But in a case where both Elementalists are of equal strength and elemental grade, elemental suppression would occur, giving one of the fighters a boost. So with Grey having multiple elements, he could easily suppress any of his opponents. Although, none of the people here felt Grey would ever come to such a situation since he was monstrously strong. Whoever he couldn''t defeat given his arsenal, would be far stronger than he was. Chapter 400 - Hes My Friend! Back at the town''s square. "Aren''t you done yet?" Grey asked. "I''m coming, just a little more time," Klaus replied. He was currently sitting in a crossed leg position on the ground, while Grey was making sure none of the attacks got close to him. He even closed his eyes, it was almost like people weren''t attacking them. Grey nodded before once again focusing on the battle. He had created two inscriptions to help fend off some of the attacks of the people. Luckily, none of the people attacking them was an earth element, else they would have been able to easily hurt Klaus since he was sitting carelessly on the ground. The young man looked like he was almost about to cry, he hated Klaus so much, but seeing that they couldn''t even touch him infuriated him. What was more annoying was how carefree Klaus was sitting on the ground. I mean, come on! We''re fighting with you! What the hell are you doing sitting on the fucking ground?! The young man was only in the Arcane Plane, seeing how powerful Grey and Klaus were, he felt jealous of them. He was clearly older than both of them, yet they seem to be able to hold off their own against even the town chief. The town chief couldn''t believe that they had been unable to break through Grey''s defense for over five minutes now. ''How could he be this strong?'' He asked himself, shocked. He wasn''t the only one who was thinking about this, even the other townspeople were also asking themselves this question. Although Grey hadn''t really tried to attack them and was only defending, they knew if they were to fight with him one-on-one, he would be able to defeat them. He could even one shot most of them here. Only the chief and a few others might be able to hold out, but only for a little time. None of the people here felt they could defend themselves if they were in Grey''s position. But Grey wasn''t only defending himself, but he was also making sure Klaus wasn''t disturbed. Some of the townspeople were already starting to give up, when one was fighting against someone who they didn''t see any hopes of beating, they would naturally not want to continue fighting. Only a fool would waste their time doing such things, and seeing that Grey didn''t plan to attack them, they wanted to get away while they still can. They started retreating, just as they were about to leave, they heard an annoying laugh. "Hahaha! Yes! Daddy''s ready. Now, you ugly bastard, start crying!" Klaus laughed out while pointing at the young man. The young man shuddered and quickly took two steps back, looking at Klaus'' facial expression, he was almost certain he was a psychopath. "Fuck!" Grey cursed out unintentionally and looked at Klaus. "What?" Klaus asked. "Why are you jumping? you almost scared me," Grey replied. "That''s because I''m now in the Eighth stage of the Origin Plane, I can beat you up with a flick of my finger," Klaus said proudly. "Oh really? Why don''t you try defending the attacks of over fifty people, we can talk about a battle when you''re done with that," Grey said sarcastically. Klaus looked behind Grey, on seeing the number of people, he looked at Grey again, "You know what, why don''t you continue doing what you were previously doing?" "Then what about you?" Grey asked with a sigh. "I''m coming, I have scores to settle with that moron," Klaus said while pointing at the young man who was taking more steps back. The townspeople had already stopped attacking the duo. One could see the dejection in their faces. It couldn''t be helped, their town''s sacred treasure was completely absorbed in front of them, but because they weren''t strong enough, they couldn''t do anything. The town''s chief had a sour expression while looking at Grey and the smiling Klaus. He could at least accept Grey''s expression since he didn''t seem to show any joy in what happened, and from how he didn''t try to attack them, he knew he wasn''t a bad person. But Klaus, he could see so much joy in his eyes. This was why he wanted him to be sacrificed! He was trying to save the world from the maniac! "Young man, why do you associate yourself with such a bag egg?" He asked Grey, looking at his eyes. "He''s my friend," Grey''s reply was short and simple. He didn''t need to make any explanations, the chief already knew there was no way for them to do anything to Klaus since Grey was present and couldn''t help but feel sad. "Who are you calling a bad egg?!" Klaus asked, annoyed. "Take your friend and leave our town," The chief said with a resigned sigh. They couldn''t beat them, so there was no need to continue fighting. He felt hurt because of the essence that the small rock lost, but if he were to push things with Grey, then there was a chance they might lose their lives if he got serious. And now that the maniac would join in the fight, they clearly don''t stand a chance. "I''m sorry for the disturbance," Grey walked closer to the chief. "Here, this should be able to help, a little," Grey brought out a small pouch from his pocket. He tossed it to the chief. The chief caught it, inside were five high-grade water element essence stones. The chief kept it, after seeing the chief keep it, Grey turned to leave. The chief smiled evilly before attacking Grey. As his attack was about to land on Grey, his pupils enlarged before he was sent flying. Boom! He crashed into the ground, clutching his chest. Grey turned to look at him with cold eyes, "Try that again, and you''re dead," "Klaus, let''s go," He said after getting close to him. "I haven''t even started roughing this bastard up," Klaus complained. Grey didn''t speak any further, he held Klaus by his shirt collar, and dragged him with him. "Let me go! I''ll beat you up!" Klaus immediately started throwing a tantrum. "Chief, are we really going to let them leave like this?" The young man rushed to the chief. "No," Chapter 401 - Sit Still So I Can Smash Your Head! "Hmph! Those guys don''t know who they''re messing with!" The young man snorted coldly as he assisted the town chief back to his feet. "*Sigh* You still don''t get it? I feel ashamed that someone like you is considered the brightest spark of your generation," The chief sighed in disappointment. "Huh? What do you mean, chief?" The young man asked, clearly confused by what the chief was trying to imply. "What can we do to them?" The chief asked the young man. "We¡­ well¡­" The young man tried to reply, but he realized the answer. There was nothing they could do to Klaus and Grey, especially Grey. Even when the town chief tried to sneak attack him, he was able to easily send the chief flying without even looking in his direction. Some people didn''t even know what was happening until the town''s chief was on the ground. Only a few high level people saw what happened, Grey attacked the chief with an earth pillar that sprang out of the ground and went back to the ground within a second.. It was just so fast that not everyone could see it, especially those with lower Planes. Given the strength of both Grey and Klaus, then there''s a high chance that they were from prestigious backgrounds. This small can''t afford to offend such people. If they wanted to attempt killing the duo, then they had to make sure there was no evidence left behind that would inform their families about what happened. This was on the premise that they managed to kill Grey and Klaus which looked to be almost impossible. "But¡­ but¡­ our treasure?" The young man didn''t want to give up that easily. "If you keep this mentality, you won''t last long when you go outside to train. There are battles you don''t give up on, those are battles you know that you have a slim chance against. While there are battles you don''t think about anything and run away from, those are battles that after you''ve thought of every possibility, you still end up losing." The town''s chief explained to the young man. After his sneak attack failed, the chief had already given up on trying anything against Grey and Klaus. He was lucky to still be alive after that error, he wouldn''t stupidly try to provoke such a fellow again. He was weak, not stupid! The young man fell deep into thoughts, his emotions clouded his judgement. All he wanted was to beat Klaus up that he forgot that Grey had single-handedly stopped almost all the top Elementalists from the town combined. Thinking about it, his scalp went numb from fright. How could he dare to ask the chief to try to kill such a monstrous person, wouldn''t they be counterkilled in the process? "You should train harder, try to keep your emotions in check, or else¡­" With a shake of the head, the town chief walked deeper into the town. Some of the crowd were still standing by the side, waiting to see if something exciting would happen, unfortunately, nothing else seemed to happen. The people soon started to disperse from the town''s square. ¡­. In the tea shop. Grey and Klaus were currently sitting on the table close to the one Oliver, Blake, and Delia were sitting. "You''re not in the Overlord Plane yet, but seeing how you''re able to easily defend against them, I can assume you aren''t far from it," Blake said while looking at Grey. One has to know that Delia still hasn''t broken through to the Overlord Plane yet, and she''s one of the top geniuses from the previous set of students in the Lunar Academy. From how things looked, there''s a high chance that Grey would be able to kill her if they got into a life and death battle. It was surprising, thinking that Grey was still an ordinary person when Delia was already close to the Peak of the Origin Plane. Presently, Delia was already at the Peak of the Origin Plane, just a little bit short of breaking through to the Overlord Plane, while Grey seemed to be close to it as well, but his combat strength seemed to be superior. "I''m currently in the Eighth stage, and defending against these people wasn''t much of a challenge since they only use the water element. Anybody with a good sense of battle can defend against them," Grey replied. "Yes, I could''ve done it as well," Klaus chimed in. "Oh¡­ I bet you could," Blake replied in a sarcastic tone. Oliver continued looking at Grey, but he didn''t bring up the topic of him being able to absorb the ice energy. There were a lot of things that could''ve made that happen, but the most viable one was that he also had the water element. But he couldn''t take out other possibilities. "Hey bud, so where''s Void? I have a big job for him," Klaus suddenly asked in excitement, his eyes shining. Grey''s expression turned sour when he heard about Void. He brought Void out of his spatial ring, given his small size, it looked like he brought him from his inner cloth. Since he was wearing a robe, the others didn''t suspect anything. "What happened to him?" Klaus asked surprised while taking Void from Grey''s hand. "His consciousness was damaged, apparently, it would be extremely difficult to heal him," Grey replied in a low voice. "Which bastard hurt him? Quick, tell me and watch me smash the person," Klaus said angrily. Even when sulky, Grey''s eyes twitched when he heard Klaus'' comment. Couldn''t he just react normally like the others did? He didn''t even ask what happened, he straight up jumped into the conclusion that Void was hurt by someone, and was even prepared to beat the person. "Actually¡­ I''m the cause," Grey replied after a while. Klaus paused for a few seconds, not expecting Grey to give that reply, but what happened next stunned Grey, as well as Oliver and the others. Klaus attacked Grey. "Shit! What the hell are you doing?" Grey couldn''t help but complain. "I said I''ll smash the person who did this, now, just sit still so I can smash your head!" Klaus said while jumping straight at Grey. Oliver and Blake were still trying to process what was happening as Grey hurried to dodge Klaus'' flurry of attacks. Chapter 402 - Ill Take That As A Compliment Boom! "Stop moving, I just want to punch you in the face!" Klaus said as he chased after Grey in the shop. There were few people in the shop, and all of them wore the same weird expression. They all saw how Grey helped Klaus out a few moments ago, then why was he chasing after the person who helped him? What was worse was that he was even telling him to stay still so he could punch him in the face. "Stop causing a ruckus," Oliver said. Klaus had managed to get close to Grey and was just about to pounce on him when he heard his father''s voice. Grey naturally stopped since Oliver had spoken, but unsurprisingly, Klaus didn''t stop, instead, he had a grin on his face. ''Thanks, dad!'' He said inside as he dived towards Grey, prepared to land a blow on his head. If Alice and Reynolds were here, they would shake their heads in pity. Klaus seems to always forget that Grey''s physical strength, speed, and anything else that has to do with physique was miles apart from others. Bang! Bam! Klaus slammed into the ground of the tea shop, face first after being knocked down by Grey''s punch to the back of his head. "The Principal said you should stop," He said. He didn''t want to attack him previously because he didn''t have a good excuse, but with such a good one in front of him, of course, he was going to use it. "Ouch! You¡­ you¡­" Klaus yelled out in pain as he looked up, pointing at Grey. His face was currently covered in dust, and the left side of his eyes was black. Grey snickered before heading back to their table victoriously. Blake shook his head when he saw the duo''s expression, they still behaved the same way they did back at the Academy. Klaus seemed to always have an effect on Grey. He recalled that the first time Grey came to this town, he didn''t have such an expression, rather, he looked kind of moody. But now, he was having fun with his friend. Void was currently held by Oliver, he was curiously studying this strange black cat. This was the first time he was seeing this strange cat, and he couldn''t deny the fact that it piqued his interest. Klaus had spoken of the cat during their journey, but he didn''t talk much about it though. All he said was that it was powerful, and had the darkness element. Oliver felt Void''s darkness element was the cause of his pitch-black fur. He soon closed his eyes, trying to check his situation. Grey and Klaus returned to their seats while looking at Oliver anxiously. Although Grey recently asked old man Gerald to check Void''s condition, it had already been over a month now. There might be a possibility that Klaus'' father would notice something old man Gerald missed. "Hmm, it''s just like you said, its consciousness is damaged. There are some natural treasures that can help, but given the damage it received, it would require a lot of it," Oliver explained. ''No wonder that drop didn''t work on it,'' Grey thought to himself. "Okay, Dad, do you know any place where we can get these types of natural treasures?" Klaus asked. "Unfortunately, the person who would''ve been able to easily get you one is Chris, and as you all know, we haven''t heard from him for almost one year now. I don''t go on expeditions, so most of the things I know are actually from him," Oliver replied. "But, there''s a high chance of seeing these types of natural treasures in the Magical Beasts'' forest." He added. "So you know if there are Resurgence Liquids in the Magical Beasts'' forest?" Grey asked curiously. "Hmm, Resurgence Liquid¡­" Oliver thought deeply. "Actually, there are. A few years ago when Chris went out to explore, he spoke of encountering a small pond of Resurgence Liquid deep in the forest. But he said he wasn''t interested in it, so he left without taking even a single drop," Oliver said while shaking, clearly still annoyed by Chris'' decision. "Moron!" He added in a low voice that only he could hear. "Okay, then I''ll have to venture deep into the Magical Beasts'' forest," Grey said. "Hmm, that''s the only place I presume you can get it. But before going into the forest, head to the city before it. An auction is usually held there by explorers who find treasures in the Magical Beasts'' forest, you might be able to find what you want there," Oliver advised. "Okay Principal," Grey nodded. "Hey bud, should I come with you?" Klaus asked. "It''ll be dangerous, and given my speed, it''ll be better for me to escape if I''m alone," Grey explained. "Yeah, I knew you''d reject, that was why I asked," Klaus replied with a chuckle. "What would you have done if I agreed?" Grey couldn''t help but ask. "Heh! I would''ve run away before you woke up the next morning," Klaus replied seriously. Grey couldn''t help but laugh, he knew Klaus was only joking. "I''ve been able to improve the device, and guess what?" He asked while handing one of the devices to Klaus. "What?" Klaus took the device while studying it curiously. "I''ve been able to make the communication device," Grey said while taking out one for the communication devices. Klaus was stunned when he heard this, he didn''t think Grey would really be able to make it this quickly. "Wow! You''re great!" He exclaimed. "Well, I got help from something else¡­" Grey told him of the one he got from old man Gerald and how he used it to make this one. "The fact that you have the idea already shows how strangely your head works," Klaus said. "I''ll take that as a compliment," Grey said. Given how Klaus said it, it almost sounded like he was cursing him, but since that was how Klaus usually speaks, he didn''t want to think of it negatively. Chapter 403 - Why Do You Get Four? "So I can communicate with Rey and Alice with this thing?" Klaus asked again, just to be sure. He hadn''t been in contact with any of his friends for a long time now, and if this thing was just as Grey said it was, then he would be able to communicate with them whenever he wanted. They could even talk every hour! "Pretty much," Grey nodded. Oliver, who was already astounded by the tracking device Grey made, was even more shocked by this communication device. This was something recent, so he still didn''t have any ideas about it, just like most of the people on the continent. With such a device, wouldn''t they be able to quickly locate Chris, and anyone missing if said missing person has one of the tracking devices on them. Of course, this could also be used in a negative way to track down people and assassinate them. "Oh, have you run into people from the Capital lately?" Grey suddenly recalled how the Emperor seemed to want him and his friends. "No. Why do you ask?" Klaus shook his head, diverting his attention from the communication device and focusing on Grey. "Well, the Emperor is searching for us," Grey said. "Us, as in?" asked Klaus. "Me, you, Rey, and Alice," Grey explained. "What?" Klaus, Delia, Blake, as well as Oliver exclaimed, surprised. "Why would he be searching for you four?" Oliver asked, a little worried. Grey looked around, clearly, he didn''t want to share this information with Blake and Delia here. Yes, he trusted them, but some people might not be able to control their greed when benefits were presented in front of them. Oliver looked at the Grey before shaking his head wryly. ''This kid doesn''t trust people so easily, huh?'' He asked himself. After a while, he decided it was best if Grey told only him and Klaus the reason for this. Blake didn''t even bat an eye, and quickly stood up from the table after getting a knowing look from his Teacher. He made sure to take Delia along. This was something that had to do with Grey and Klaus, and since Grey didn''t want others to know about it, then it must be serious. Well, given the fact that the Emperor was searching for them already showed how serious the situation was. After the duo left the table, Klaus and Grey moved to the same table Oliver was sitting on. "The thing is, the Emperor found out about me obtaining the Great Earth Essence Liquid, and he assumed that I might''ve shared it with my friends. So now, he sees us as a threat," Grey went straight to the point. "Hmm, this is a serious matter. But, how did you find out about all this?" Oliver asked calmly. "After you left the Academy, I stayed in my Teacher''s valley, researching that tracking device¡­" Grey went on to tell them of how he was being hunted down in the Academy, as well as the city. He also went on to tell them about how even Reynolds and Alice were also hunted down by the Emperor''s people. If not for him getting there on time, and Alice''s father reacting swiftly, then both Reynolds and Alice would''ve been captured by now. Klaus was most likely safe because he not only had his father with him but because they were constantly on the move which would make it difficult to track them down. "*Sigh* To think the empire has fallen to this level," Oliver shook his head. "Actually, compared to the others, I''m in a far more difficult position. I''m wanted by all four empires," Grey said. "What? How come I''m only wanted by the Qilin empire?" Klaus asked, sulkily. "What do you mean?" Grey couldn''t help but ask. Even Oliver looked at his son in confusion. "I mean, we''re both handsome, so we should be wanted by the same number of empires. Okay, since you''re slightly more handsome than I am, I''m willing to accept being wanted by three, but that''s the least I can take," Klaus explained. "You''re even crazier after not seeing you for so long," Grey was short of words. Who in their right mind would want to be wanted by four empires? They were not some small organization or something, but the legit rulers of the continent. Yet Klaus felt sad because only one empire wanted him while four wanted Grey. "I know, but I mean come on, we were there together, right?" Klaus shrugged. "You do know that they''re trying to kill us, right?" Grey asked with a raised brow. "Yeah, that''s what makes it more hair-raising!" Klaus replied. "Stop messing around, this is a serious matter," Oliver glared at Klaus, who just sheepishly looked in the other direction. Grey shook his head before bringing his attention back to Klaus'' father. "Principal, from what I understand so far, the Emperor certainly doesn''t want us to grow to the point where he can not control us. So I believe he would soon ramp up the manpower in the search very soon, and also, there would be Overlord Plane experts coming after us," Grey deduced. "You''re right about that. I think it''s time to leave the Qilin empire, just for the meantime," Oliver said. He wasn''t as powerful as Chris who could easily stand against the top powerhouses of the empire. It was rumored that when Chris recently broke through to the Peak of the Overlord Plane, he battled against an expert in the Sage Plane, and didn''t lose. Although he didn''t win as well, it was noteworthy to say that he was the only one in the history of the continent that has been able to fight against a Sage Plane expert while still being in the Overlord Plane, and not losing. Oliver believed that Chris might''ve been able to break through to the Sage Plane by now. He was already in the Peak of the Overlord Plane for a long time now, it was not surprising if he really did break through. He on the other hand was also at the Peak of the Overlord Plane, and he felt all he needed was a nudge, and he would be able to break through to the Sage Plane as well. But it was easier said than done. Chapter 404 - Surprised Oliver Grey didn''t find Klaus'' father''s decision to leave the empire surprising, after all, they couldn''t go against the empire. "Wait, you found drops of liquid of the Great Earth Essence Liquid?" Oliver seemed to recall something and asked. This was something that could alter the constitution of an Elementalist, changing their elemental grades. It was so rare that not many people believed it existed. "Yes, back at the trial land," Grey replied. ''No wonder they''ve been advancing so quickly. With that thing, their elemental grades must''ve seen a boost. Could it be that they''ve attained the violet grade?'' Oliver thought to himself, surprised. He never thought that they would acquire something so precious in the trail land. Now he understood why the Emperor was searching for them so fervently, given the miraculousness of the Great Earth Essence Liquid, these youngsters go easily grow to overpower the people at the top.. Take Grey, for example, he was already more powerful than most of the Instructors in the Lunar Academy, even Klaus was more powerful than them. Then there''s Alice and Reynolds as well. Oliver couldn''t wrap his head around what these four friends would be able to accomplish if given the time to grow. He knew about the story of the last person known to have the violet grade in his element. According to the story, he was jointly assassinated by three different empires. They couldn''t stand to see one empire producing such a prodigy. It was just like the cases over the years with the empires as well, trying to kill off any person they find as a potential threat. Although they rarely succeed, there have been times when a once in a hundred years prodigy had been killed by an opposing empire. These things usually happen between the Qilin and Azure empires. Both take themselves as the true leaders of the continent. ¡­. "Oh right, dad, we wanted to give you one," Klaus suddenly spoke up. He asked Grey for one of the drops for his father when they left the trail land, and Grey agreed to give it to him. Due to what happened after they arrived, he couldn''t take the liquid from Grey, so he was unable to give it to his dad. "Yes Principal, I planned to give it to you after we''ve gotten to a safer area." Grey nodded. He naturally didn''t forget about this, even when he used it for his darkness element the previous time, he still remembered one of the remaining drops was for Klaus'' father. Oliver not expecting that he would actually get something like this was a little short of words, but being someone who is already very experienced, he was able to quickly recover. "I''m already old, you should keep it for yourselves," He replied. As much as he wanted this, he felt it would be of much use to the kids. Given their talent, it wouldn''t be hard for them to surpass himself and Chris. "We''ve already refined one each, even Void refined one as well," Grey explained. He didn''t want to take no from the Principal, after all, Klaus'' life rested on his hands, so the stronger he was, the safer Klaus was. "Even the cat?" Oliver asked, stunned. Why would anyone give a cat such a precious treasure? It just didn''t make any sense! Of course, he only thought of this since he didn''t really know Void, nor any of his abilities. To him, Void was just a pet Grey picked up from the trial land. He might be special, but not to the level where he would get such privileges. "Of course, Void could easily whoop Klaus'' ass. Why would he not get one, and Klaus gets one?" Grey asked, not forgetting to use the opportunity to take a dig at Klaus. "What the hell? Why did you have to use me for the example? I mean, there''s Rey," Klaus jumped up, pointing at Grey dramatically. "Yeah, and he can also whoop your ass. So you see?" Grey smirked. "I''d like to see him try that now, hmph!" Klaus snorted. He was very confident in his current strength. If it were the time when they just left the trial land, then he wouldn''t say this, but now, he felt if he really fought against Grey seriously, he wouldn''t lose too badly. "Hehe¡­ I don''t think that would end well for you," Grey chuckled, obviously making fun of Klaus. "Don''t tell me he''s also gotten to the Eighth stage?" Klaus asked with a sour look, just when he thought he would be able to flaunt in front of Reynolds again, Grey was laughing at him mockingly. This only meant Reynolds was stronger than he was. "No, actually, he''s only in the Fifth stage," Grey replied sincerely. "Hmm, if he''s in the Fifth stage, then his Elemental Warrior should be in the Sixth or Seventh stage. I''m sure I can beat it," Klaus muttered. "The thing is, his Elemental Warrior is in the Eighth stage," Grey broke the news to Klaus. "I thought the Elemental Warrior was only a stage or two above him, how did it turn to three stages?" Klaus asked in surprise. "You''re not the only one who''s lucky," Grey replied with a snicker. Of the four friends, Klaus could be said to be the one with the best luck. This could be seen from the competition, as well as from the recent event. Other than the time Grey accidentally teleported into the wall where he acquired his fire element, Void has been the one leading him to where he could find treasures. "Wait, that kid''s a summoner?" Oliver asked. He was just getting more and more surprised from what he was hearing, he almost couldn''t believe what happened to Grey and his friends in the trial land that they were able to acquire so much. "Not just any summoner, but a high-grade summoner," Klaus replied proudly, it was almost like he was the one who was the summoner. One could see the genuine joy and pride on his face when speaking about his friends'' success. He wasn''t really too bothered if they were stronger than him, after all, he wanted all of them to be successful, it didn''t mean he had to be successful first. Chapter 405 - How Did You End Up Like This? Oliver couldn''t believe what he was hearing, Reynolds was not only a summoner but a high-grade one at that. Since the Academy usually runs background checks and all, he knew Reynolds was not a summoner at the time he got into the Academy. And even when he was in the Academy, there was no report of him being a summoner. This meant that he only recently became a summoner. Cases like this are really rare, usually, most summoners are born with it. Only a few lucky ones get to actually become summoners after growing up, and Reynolds was amongst them. "You four are quite something," He praised the friends, unfortunately, only two of them were here.. "It''s nothing, we''re just doing our best to dominate everyone," Klaus replied, making both his father and Grey roll their eyes. "So, when do you plan on leaving?" Klaus asked, turning his attention back to Grey. "Soon, it has already been over two months now since Void has been in this state, I really want to wake him up sooner," Grey replied. "Oh, that''s sad." Klaus said, he suddenly went closer to Grey, whispering in his ear, "So, have you been able to, you know, get a girlfriend yet?" Grey''s expression changed multiple times, they were speaking of something important, and Klaus just had to bring up the topic of a girlfriend. "Answer me, this is important," Klaus continued pestering him. "You¡­ *sigh* No," Grey wanted to complain, but in the end, he answered the question. Klaus would obviously continue disturbing him if he didn''t answer the question, so it was better he told him. "Such a shame," Klaus shook his head in pity. Grey couldn''t believe he was acting this way because he hadn''t gotten a girlfriend yet. It was almost like Klaus was the one who hadn''t gotten one yet. "If you continue in this manner, you''re going to end up like Uncle Chris, a loner who likes food and seeks solace in the company of a Griffin," Klaus said with a serious expression. "Klaus, I''m still very young. And given the lifespan of Teacher, he could marry any time he wants," Grey reminded him. "So you think, but before you know it, you''re already over twenty-five, and will still be a¡­ I don''t even want to say it. You know what, how about I get you hooked up?" Klaus suggested. "I''ll probably break both your legs and arms, if you keep on with this topic," Grey threatened. "Come on, just try it," Klaus started persuading. "Your face included," Grey added to the list of places he wanted to break if Klaus didn''t keep his mouth shut. "See, just once. Nothing more, all I ask for is for you to try it, just once," Klaus begged. Grey pushed Klaus'' face away from him, trying his best not to listen to his nonsense. Klaus of course didn''t plan on stopping, he continued pestering Grey and before he knew it, they started fighting. Well, it couldn''t be called a fight, one was being beaten while spouting all sorts of nonsense, while the other had a sour expression even though he was the one who was beating up the other one. ''At times like this, I really wish Alice was here. Unlike me, she wouldn''t hold back against this blockhead,'' Grey thought as he and Klaus were running around the shop. Oliver watched on with a smile, seeing the close kinship of these youngsters was quite refreshing. Although, not everyone in the shop felt that way given how Klaus was yelling like someone who was about to be killed, and Grey had the expression of a serial killer. Before long, Klaus and Grey left the shop, heading to the outskirts of the town. Blake and Delia saw the two but didn''t do anything to get involved. Since it was Grey, it''s fine, especially if Klaus got beaten. Delia wanted to help at first, but Blake stopped her, saying that this was how young boys usually interact after not seeing each other for so long. Delia looked at him, her expression clearly asking if he thought she was a little girl who would believe such things? But in the end, she didn''t try to intervene since Grey wouldn''t really hurt Klaus. Outside the town. Grey and Klaus had walked out of the town, with Klaus having a black circle under his right eye. "You''re really heavy-handed, you know that?" He asked while massaging his aching head. "You''re foul-mouthed, and crazy," Grey replied casually. "What do you mean crazy? I was trying to help you out!" Klaus exclaimed. "By walking up to a random girl and asking her if she would like to be my girlfriend?" Grey asked with a sneer. "But she didn''t refuse," Klaus replied with a grin, "That was your chance, but you blew it away," He shook his head as if disappointed by Grey''s performance. "I''m not ready for all these just yet," Grey said after a while. "*Sigh* You''re wasting such a handsome face," Klaus continued shaking his head, "If only Rey was the one with this face, I''d have taught him a lot by now," "Since you two are crazy, I wouldn''t be surprised if you were both assassinated for stealing people''s daughters, and maybe wives," Grey said. "We won''t be stealing them, we would be only stealing their hearts," Klaus corrected. Grey shook his head, he wanted to use this to mock Klaus, but after hearing his reply, he quickly gave up. He had already gained the advantage in a physical fight, if he were to start a battle of words, he would lose, woefully, especially now that Klaus was upset that he was beaten up. "*Sigh* How did you end up like this?" He couldn''t help but ask. "Fun, by having fun. You on the other hand are way less charismatic and entertaining," Klaus replied with a smile. "I should speak to Rey and Alice, it''s been so long!" Klaus brought out the communication device from his pocket after the duo took a seat under a tree just outside the town. Chapter 406 - I Approve Of It! Grey watched Klaus and the others speak for a long time without joining in, he was currently planning his next move. Rustle¡­ ''Huh?'' He turned to look behind them, and a smile crept up on his face. "Hey buddy, let''s take a stroll," He tapped Klaus on the shoulder. Klaus also seemed to hear the sound, so he quickly understood what was going on. The duo stood up and started making jokes as they headed further away from the town. Grey couldn''t help but be surprised by the fact that the people from the town actually sent someone after them, what was more surprising was that the person was still in the Mid stages of the Origin Plane. Even their chief who was at the Peak of the Origin Plane stood no chance, much less someone in the Mid stages. After walking for a few minutes, Grey and Klaus walked up to an open field in the forest close to the town, and to their surprise, there were over ten people in the open field. These people were clearly waiting for someone. "Hey bud, I think we just walked right into an ambush," Klaus said, but there wasn''t a hint of fear in his face. "Yeah, so it seems," Grey nodded. While the two were facing the people in front of them, a middle-aged man with a mustache walked out of the bush from behind them. "Heh! It''s just as they said, you brats are really too confident," The man said. "You''re even more confident. I mean, after what happened in your town some minutes ago, I didn''t think you people would have the guts to try to fight us again," Klaus replied. "The chief is a coward, we''ll kill you here and offer you two to the Moon stone," The man said. "Such boldness, I approve of it!" Klaus cheered. Grey looked at Klaus, trying his best to keep a straight face. Klaus was just plain weird and psychotic. The man almost tripped when he heard this statement, it was almost like Klaus was cheering him on, but given the situation of things, it was an obvious mockery. "We''ll see if you can keep running your mouth when we''re done with you," The man said before looking at the group behind them, "Formation!" "Oh¡­ a formation, what are you going to do with¡­ oh shit!" Klaus'' expression which was previously filled with mockery changed when he saw what was in front of him. "Interesting," Grey narrowed his eyes on seeing what was taking place in front of them. The ten people separated into a group of two, both groups started making hand seals, while quickly channeling their essence in a particular manner. Within seconds, an ice monster soon started to form. What was shocking was the aura the thing was radiating. It was at the Peak of the Origin Plane. There were not just one, but two. Each ice monster stood at a shocking twelve meters tall. Only now did Grey and Klaus know that the chief didn''t use the town''s full strength against them. Given the number of people there at that time, it wouldn''t be difficult for them to make at least ten of such monsters, and although most of them would be relatively weak, they couldn''t help but wonder the strength the one made by the town chief and the elders would have. The thought of it stunned the duo. Of course, they weren''t really scared since Klaus'' father and Blake were just a few meters away. Blake could easily kill everyone in the town with a single slap, much less Klaus'' father. "Wow, I didn''t know you people had something like this," Klaus commented. "Hmph! Even if you beg now, we still won''t spare you," The man said. Presently, he was the only one who wasn''t in a formation. He was watching the battle from the side. Of the people here, only four others were in the Mid stages of the Origin Plane, this was why Grey and Klaus were surprised by the aura of the ice monster. But thinking about it properly, since there were five people, two in the Mid stages and three in the Early stages, it didn''t seem strange. Well, someone in the Peak of the Origin Plane would be able to beat up five people of such caliber though. "Do I look like someone scared? I''m only shocked you people have something like this up your sleeves," Klaus looked at the man as if he were looking at a fool. "We''ll see about that. Attack!" The man said, not convinced that the duo wasn''t afraid. Roar! The ice monster roared loudly, before charging at the duo. One for each person. The five people were all in one part of the ice monster''s body. One person was in the head, one in each arm, and one in each leg. Whoosh! The speed of the ice monster was shocking, to say the least. It was at least equal to a Wind Elementalist in the Peak of the Origin Plane. Given its size, neither Grey nor Klaus thought it would be this fast. Swoosh! Boom! The ice monster swung its fist at them. Grey and Klaus each dodged the attacks of the two ice monsters. The ground where they were previously standing was smashed, a small crater forming in it. "Damn! This thing is fast and strong," Klaus said. "It''s just a huge target waiting to be hit," Grey said. "Easy for you to say, you can blast it with your blue fire and all. All I have is the water element, and this freaking thing is made entirely of ice, I don''t see where any of my attacks are going to be doing any damage to it," Klaus retorted. "Hehe, then get ready for another beating!" Grey laughed and pounced at the ice monster that was charging towards him. "Damn it! Why couldn''t they just use any other element? It just had to be the water element," Klaus complained before moving to the side, quickly evading another fist. Chapter 407 - How Do You People Make It? Boom! "Shit! Come on, attack him, he''s stronger!" Klaus yelled as he hurriedly moved to the left, dodging the attack of the ice monster. The ice monster swung its free fist, aiming for the location where Klaus just moved to. "Crap!" On seeing the incoming fist, Klaus couldn''t help but curse out again. He hastily set up an ice wall in front of him since he just landed, there was no way for him to quickly evade this attack. Bam! Crack! The ice wall was able to block the attack of the ice monster but also suffered some cracks. Klaus stretched out his head from behind the ice wall, peeking at the ice monster. Roar! As soon as Klaus brought out his head from the side, the monster roared, sending out a snowstorm that blew fiercely into the ice wall. Klaus'' head was on the side, so it got hit by the outer regions of the snowstorm. After retracting his head, his face was covered in ice, and his hair had turned white from the snow. He opened his mouth, spitting out the bits of snow that entered his mouth. "I hate these people," He said while trying to remove snow from his face. With no other option, he decided to fight against the ice monster, although most of his attacks wouldn''t be effective since they were of the same element, it didn''t mean that it wouldn''t really cause some damage. The ice wall soon broke apart after receiving another blow from the ice monster. After removing the obstacle, it charged towards Klaus, trying to quickly strike him. Klaus had created some distance between himself and the ice wall, so when it was broken apart, he was fairly in a safe position. Seeing the ice monster charge towards him, he drew his left leg back slowly, before facing the ice monster. When the monster got within fifteen meters of him, he smirked and lifted his index finger lightly. Bam! The ice monster''s right foot suddenly collided with something strong, and since it was at full speed, it came tumbling down. Bang! It slammed into the ground, sliding towards Klaus'' direction. Klaus, who was already prepared quickly made a hammer made entirely of ice. Since simple attacks wouldn''t do any damages, then he would use brute force. Ice is naturally very strong, as long as it''s thick enough. And Klaus could be regarded as one of the best ice users, if not the best in the Azure continent thanks to the technique he got from the trial land. Bang! Bang! Bang! The ice hammer came crashing down, slamming into the ice monster repeatedly. "Haha, you think I''m a weakling? Well, you''re so wrong!" Klaus said while hammering away. In a single minute, he slammed the hammer into the ice monster a total of eighty plus times, an astonishing number given he didn''t major in speed. Even Klaus didn''t think he would be able to attack this quickly. The head of the ice monster was completely crushed, and some parts of the chest region were blown away. "Heh! Stupid ass people, daring to mess with me. You people didn''t learn anything from our last en¡­ what the hell is wrong with you people?" Klaus, who was in the middle of bragging, stopped midway and couldn''t help but complain. The ice monster was currently recovering those parts of its body that were destroyed by Klaus'' heavy blow. "Fuck this!" And with that, he started slamming the hammer into it once again. Since the ice monster was recovering, then he wanted to see if it could recover if every single part of it was destroyed. What was worth mentioning was that the person who was in the head of the ice monster wasn''t there anymore. It seemed to have moved somewhere else. Klaus guessed that as long as the people were still in the ice monster, then it would infinitely continue regenerating. Well, until they run out of essence. This time, he planned to make sure the entire monster was completely destroyed! Bang! Bang! Bang! The sound of the hammer continuously hitting the ice monster reverberated throughout the entire field. The man who led them here couldn''t believe what was going on. All Klaus did was trip the ice monster, and without even giving it any chances to stand up, he started hammering away. Klaus'' battle wasn''t what he found depressing, it was Grey''s battle. At least hearing Klaus curse and complain still showed he wasn''t having an easy time, Grey, on the other hand, was systematically dismantling the ice monster, then when it was at its end, he would leave it to recover. ¡­. On Grey''s side of the battle. Grey gained the upper hand from when the battle started till now, given his monstrous physical strength and speed, it wasn''t hard to dodge the blows of the ice monster while attacking with his own. His punches were powerful enough to create holes in the body of the ice monster, so it was easy to see why he had the upper hand. He also coated his fists with his blue flames, making the ice monster all the more vulnerable to him. It couldn''t even be said to be a fair fight. If the monster were smaller, it wouldn''t have been this easy for him. But with this huge target placed in front of him, it was difficult not to hit it. Presently, he was trying to figure out how the people from Moon town were able to come up with such a technique. It could almost be said to be a summon, something like the golem Damian summoned back at the Academy. If he could figure it out, then he might be able to create something like this as well. He had the elemental essence to make it, so he wasn''t bothered if he could sustain it. It wasn''t bad to have an added ace up his sleeves. The shock this would cause his opponents can easily change the tide of a battle. "Tell me, how do you people make it?" He asked one of the people in the ice monster. Chapter 408 - Im Your Friend! Grey held the man on the shirt, but other than the scared expression on the man''s face, he couldn''t get a reply. ''Hmm, this thing works on elemental essence, but other than that, I have no idea how it''s made.'' He thought to himself while releasing the man back into the ice monster. More than half of the ice monster had been blown off, three of the people could be seen sprawling on the ground, not able to stand up. Grey retreated a few steps backward, he wanted them to recover so he could continue studying them. But unfortunately, the three people were unable to join the ice monster once again. The aura of that monster quickly started dwindling, and before long, it got to the Mid stages of the Origin Plane. It didn''t stop there, it continued falling until it almost got to the Early stages. Grey felt a little more and it would truly fall to the Early stages. "Such a shame. Hey Klaus, come on, let''s change opponents," He said while walking towards him. "Go away! I''m having fun here," Klaus refused, not even giving Grey any time to speak up again. "Sheesh! Come on, just a little bit, I want to study something," Grey begged. Klaus looked at the ice monster which could barely recover anymore, and with a shake of his head, he retreated. Since Grey said he wanted to study something, then he couldn''t say no. ''I''ll go smash the other one,'' He consoled himself. The man who was by the side was stunned. He couldn''t believe that Grey and Klaus were changing opponents mid-battle. Who even does that?! ''I can''t sit by anymore.'' Resolve shone on his eyes before he took a step forward. "You two are very powerful, I''ll give you that¡­" "Well, thank you," Klaus interrupted him, claiming the praise with a smile. "But, your journey ends here," The man continued, after being rudely interrupted by Klaus. "Come on out, it''s time to end these boys," He said while looking around the field. Five old men walked out from behind the trees around the field. "Huh? There''s more of you?" Klaus asked with a surprised expression. He was obviously acting, Grey had told him even before the battle started that there were five people hiding on the side. And it was just as Grey said, all of them were in the Late stages of the Origin Plane. Although not at the Peak, if they''re allowed to form this ice monster, it''s strength would be unimaginable. Grey naturally wanted this, Klaus on the other hand, not really. The old men didn''t say anything, they casually walked over to where the other ten people were sitting, some were lying on the ground, exhausted. A look of disappointment washing over their faces. "We''ll take it from here," The man with a mustache said. "Elders, we failed. Punish us," One of the men said. "You''ll receive your punishments after we''ve taken care of these twats. Formation!" The man said, moving his gaze from the men. He joined the five men, making them six. They formed two groups, three people in each group. And they started making the same weird hand seals again, while also channeling their elemental essence in a strange pattern. ''Oh, so there''s a drawback to using this technique,'' Grey thought while looking at the ten men behind the old men. They were currently exhausted, and not even a single ounce of elemental essence could be sensed from them. It was like they had been completely drained. They would probably need about two to four weeks before they could start absorbing elemental essence once again, and would need around two to three months to recover to their original strength. Now he understood why the town chief didn''t want to use this technique. If they were to be weak for so long, then there''s a chance that their enemies might capitalize on it to attack them. ''I''ll study it, just in case. It''s not bad having an extra ace up my sleeve.'' He thought. Watching the process once again, he gained a small knowledge of how they were doing it. Although he didn''t completely get it, he believed once he gets free time to reflect on it, then he would be able to get something. "Hey bud, remember when you asked if I could give you my opponent so you can study something?" Klaus suddenly asked, retreating. "I didn''t ask for your opponent, I only asked if we could switch," Grey corrected. "It''s the same thing. I''m gifting this one to you too, make sure to do your research properly, I''ll watch from this side," Klaus darted away from where the battle would take place. "Where are you running to?" Grey asked with a sour expression. He couldn''t believe Klaus was trying to leave him alone with both ice monsters. Couldn''t he at least have a little shame? With a wave of his hand, Grey turned the ground which Klaus was about to step into to muddy ground. Plop! Klaus immediately sank almost to his knee, "Fuck! Quick, let me go," Grey didn''t even bother to answer him. "Since you''re going to run away, why don''t I just trap you so they can step on your head?" He said with a sneer. "How can you act like this? I''m your friend for fucks sake!" Klaus said. "I don''t think the Principal would mind you being stepped on, he might even reward me," Grey joked. Klaus continued struggling while the ice monster was close to completion, its intimidating aura continued increasing. The reason he couldn''t escape from the mud was that Grey also use the earth element to seal his legs below it. So there was no way for him to get out of there, and since he couldn''t properly attack it, he had no other choice but to beg. "Hey, Grey, how about you let me go, I promise to say you''re the most handsome, how about that?" Klaus asked. "No, stay there for a while. It''s not like they can kill you, they''ll only smash your face," Grey continued. He rarely got opportunities to play tricks on Klaus, so he was enjoying himself. Chapter 409 - Are You Seeing This Shit? "Grey, how can you do this to me? We''ve been friends for so long!" Klaus continued struggling while begging. "Stay still so they can smash your face," Grey said with a smirk. This was exactly what Klaus told him when he wanted to punch him in the face. Although he was unsuccessful, it felt nice saying this to him. "You bastard! I''ll¡­ I''ll tell Alice and Rey that you tried to kill me," Klaus pointed at him in exasperation. "I think they''ll be more inclined to believe it when I say it, you know, given your bad habits," Grey shrugged. Klaus almost fainted when he heard this because he knew Grey was right "Fuck me! Grey quick, it''s already completed the transformation," He said, this time, a little scared. Although he knew Grey wouldn''t let him die, there''s a slim chance that he might let them smash his face for a little bit.. "*Sigh* Fine, but next time you mess with me, I''m definitely going to let them smash your face," Grey sighed before freeing him. "Yes, of course I wouldn''t dare to mess with you again!" Klaus said while putting on a righteous expression. ''Just you wait, my chance will come! Hehehe, I''ll get you then!'' He thought inside while laughing evilly. Of course, Grey naturally knew Klaus would not adhere to this promise of his. Given Klaus'' character, he''s probably planning how he would get back at him. Klaus continued retreating. "Where are you going?" Grey couldn''t help but ask with a strange expression on his face. "I''m taking it that I''m trapped, so you have to fight against them on your own," Klaus said, a shameless smile on his face. Grey almost tripped when he heard this. Klaus didn''t even wait for a long time before he started his revenge. ''Hehe, that will teach him. Hmph! Daring to trap him.'' Klaus thought while grinning from ear to ear. Plop! The sound of something dropping into the water rang out once again. Klaus who was previously grinning had a sour expression, he was currently sunk into the mud, again. This time, it almost got to his waist. "Since you want to pretend like you''re trapped, why don''t I just make your dream come true?" Grey asked with a smile. His smile froze when he saw Klaus jumping out of the mud, quite easily. "Heh! You think I''ll fall for the same trick twice?" Klaus smirked. The two ice monsters had already completed the transformation, but to the surprise of the people inside, and the ones standing outside, Grey and Klaus were arguing with each other. It was almost like they had forgotten that they were in the midst of battle. Are they even normal? This was the question running through the minds of the people there. First of all, the duo were insanely strong, especially Grey. Now, they''re pranking each other in the middle of a battle. This would be funny if it were in another scenario, but in the presence of such opponents who almost rivaled the strength of an Overlord Plane expert, it didn''t look funny. Well, to the group from the town, that is. But it had nothing to do with them. One of the monsters created an ice hammer, charging towards Grey. From the experience of the previous battle, they knew it was a bad idea to get in close contact with Grey due to how strong he was. Klaus on the hand was easy to deal with, as long as they watched their steps and didn''t get tripped, then they were fine. This was all according to what they gathered from the previous fight, unfortunately for them, Klaus and Grey weren''t people who should be judged using common sense. Bang! Bam! "How rude! Can''t you see we''re arguing here? Fuck off!" Klaus turned to the ice monster who almost tried to hit him and immediately attacked with multiple ice spears that made the ice monster retreat, trying to block its vitals. The vitals of the ice monster here referred to the three people that were inside it. Klaus aimed the spears so well that they all shot towards one of the people in the body of the ice monster. The people in the ice monster were stunned. Because they didn''t expect Klaus to get on the offensive immediately, they quickly fell into the back foot, not knowing how to respond. Klaus continued attacking while spouting all sorts of nonsense like he usually does, he would occasionally curse at Grey who was also fighting against a monster. The ice monster continued retreating, and Klaus soon found a weak point of this transformation. He noticed the decision making of the ice monster was slow like it didn''t know which order to take. Obviously, the people inside the ice monster were each giving out their own orders because of the current situation which was making them confused. This in turn was making it look as if the ice monster was hesitating to make a decision, hence making it seem weak in front of Klaus. The only thing that it made sure to do was to block its vitals, it seemed like that was the only thing all the people in the ice monster agreed on. Boom! "Shit!l Klaus cursed and quickly retreated. Ice spikes sprang out from the ground, almost impaling him. "Damn these people!" He whipped away the sweat on his head. Just when he was having fun with his attacks, he was almost caught off guard by these crafty old men. Roar! The ice monster roared loudly. "This is bullshit!" Klaus exclaimed when he saw what was happening in front of him. An even stronger ice was forming an armor around the three people in the ice monster. The thickness of this ice was far above that of the one used to create the ice monster. With the people protected, the ice monster had blocked its main weakness. This simply meant it could run into any of his attacks without having to worry about the people inside it being hurt. "Grey, are you seeing this shit?" Klaus couldn''t help but draw Grey''s attention to what was happening in his side of the battle. Chapter 410 - Klaus Ultimate Ice Technique! "Yes Klaus, very clearly," Grey replied, after being forced back by the ice monster. When the one fighting against Grey saw what the other one was doing, it immediately copied it. Now, both ice monsters were covered in armor, now there was no way for Grey or Klaus to get to the people inside. Grey of course didn''t have any problems, other than being a little bit more difficult, he was confident he could fight against them. Klaus on the other hand was incensed. He had tried to use the ice spears to pierce through the ice monsters, and it was unable to go through. "Come out and fight me like a man you old fogies!" He said when he saw that his attack was futile. ''They couldn''t make an earth element monster, or even a fire element one, they just had to be Water Elementalists.'' He complained inside while dodging the attacks of the ice monster. Now, compared to before, the ice monster wasn''t only using physical attacks, it was also making use of elemental attacks. Although it was only using ice, it made things extremely difficult for Klaus. The strength of each ice monster was well above someone in the Peak of the Origin Plane, but fortunately, it didn''t get to the Overlord Plane. Others in the Eighth stage of the Origin Plane might not be able to survive against the ice monster in the Peak of the Origin Plane for so long, much less this one that is above the Peak in regards to its strength. On Grey''s side of the battle. Things didn''t change much, the ice monster used the same tactics as the first time, trying to keep a good distance from Grey while attacking it with its hammer as well as elemental attacks. Grey didn''t have any problems with dodging most of its attacks, so he was relatively carefree. He would occasionally send out attacks that the ice monster would be able to block with its hammer, but after blocking a single strike, cracks would appear all over the hammer. Grey''s plan was simple, and that was to wear them out. He wasn''t using any essence in dodging due to his high physical speed, while he would occasionally attack to break the hammer or even hit some parts of the monster that wasn''t covered in armor. The ice monster would quickly restore the damaged parts, this would in turn increase the consumption rate for the people in the ice monster. He soon got tired of dodging, since it wasn''t his usual style of fighting. And he soon started his offense, with his superior blue flame, he would naturally be able to cause damage to the ice monster. Presently, he had a simple plan that if it''s successful, he would take the ice monster down. He created a fireball, sending it towards the ice monster. Seeing the fireball coming, the ice monster swung its hammer at it, trying to destroy it. Bang! The fireball crashed into the ice hammer in the hands of the ice monster, exploding upon impact. The force of the explosion forced the ice monster to take a step back, but when its leg touched the ground, it sank. Grey smiled and attacked with another fireball towards the chest region of the ice monster. Boom! Another explosion rang out. The second fireball landed on the chest of the ice monster. Given the unnatural position it was in because of its leg which was stuck in the mud, it fell over very easily. Grey rushed towards it, and soon started his usual brutish way of fighting, punching away at the ice monster with hands covered in blue flames, while also making sure the leg of the ice monster was still stuck in the mud. The ice monster struggled, trying to get Grey off it while attacking it. But Grey''s speed came into play again as he was able to dodge the attacks. Although, it wasn''t as easy as it previously was since the ice monster wasn''t even trying to take precautions against hurting itself, and because of the close distance. With the battle in this state, the victor could be said to already be decided. As long as nothing unforeseen happens, Grey would be able to easily take this ice monster apart given their current situation. Klaus on the other hand was frantic from the attacks of the ice monster fighting against him. He tried tripping it, but it was just like he said to Grey the previous time, he couldn''t be tricked by the same trick twice. The people in this ice monster watched the previous battle, hence they were fighting with the knowledge they acquired from their battle. "You cowards, I''ll beat you to bits, until then, why don''t you go fight with my friend? He''s a really good fighter," Klaus said while pointing at Grey who was simply punching holes in the ice monster. ''Damn! That''s just brutal,'' He thought when he saw how Grey was beating the hell out of the ice monster. Roar! The ice monster roared, and to Klaus'' surprise, it turned and ran towards Grey''s direction. "Crap! Where are you going? I''m not done with you, stay here," Klaus immediately chased after it and started attacking it again. Although he told it to fight with Grey, he wasn''t serious about it. If Grey had defeated the other one, then he wouldn''t mind letting it go, but Grey was still pounding away at that one, so he had to make sure he kept this one here. Bam! "Stop there you overgrown bloke!" Klaus yelled while continuously attacking the ice monster from behind. Luckily, Grey and the other ice monster were quite some distance away. Seeing the ice monster getting closer to Grey, Klaus quickly thought of a plan. Since the people in the ice monster were wary of him tripping them over, then he''s just going to freeze the ground. Creating ice on the ground so the ice monster would slip, and fall on the ground. As soon as the thought came to his head, he quickly implemented it. While doing this, he was also preparing something else. He wanted to also use the ultimate ice technique he acquired from the trial land, sub-zero to hit one of the people in the ice monster. Given how strong the ice needle usually gets, it wouldn''t have any problems with piercing through this thing''s armor, easily immobilizing the target. Chapter 411 - What Do You People Want? Thud! The ice monster charging towards Grey slipped on the ice Klaus created and fell to the ground. Just as it fell to the ground¡­ Pu-chi! A small ice needle broke through the ice armor on the chest of the ice monster, going straight through the forehead of the old man in the middle. The needle was so fast that no one got a good view of it, and due to its small size, the others didn''t even notice that it had pierced through the head of the man in the chest region of the ice monster. If one took a closer look at the forehead of the old man, then one would see a tiny spot covered in ice. The old man was dead, his eyes still open. Klaus naturally had plans of killing the man, even if the man were to sense the needle and move so it wouldn''t hit his vitals, as long as the needle made contact, then it would be enough to immobilize the man. With one person killed, the aura of the ice monster reduced significantly. "How could this be?" The old man on the left leg asked, shocked. They were able to immediately tell that the old man in the chest region was dead because of the change in the power of the ice monster. But they still couldn''t understand how it happened. One second the ice monster was slipping, and just as it got to the ground, the old man was dead. They didn''t see Klaus making any other attacks, so how did it happen? Klaus on the other hand was elated on seeing that the aura of the ice monster had decreased, this meant that he could take care of it. "You old fogies think you can mess with me and go scot-free? Hehe, you''re dead wrong!" He laughed and immediately attacked. Not understanding how the first man died sent the two surviving old men into a panic. Everyone naturally had a fear of the unknown, and they were no exception. Bang! Boom! Bam! Klaus'' attacks were wild and aggressive, he didn''t want Grey to steal all the spotlight in this battle. Grey was currently beating the hell out of the ice monster on his end, and the regeneration rate of the places damaged had reduced significantly. Even the glow on the ice armor that they created around the people in the ice monster had reduced as well. Now, Grey was confident in being able to break apart the armor. The battle went on for another five minutes or so. Grey and Klaus were currently standing in front of sixteen people, well, fifteen since one of them was dead. The men all looked drained, and almost all of them wore looks of horror, not believing that these two youngsters could defeat them, even when they used their ultimate technique. Grey and Klaus weren''t particularly happy that they defeated these people, it wasn''t really something to be happy about. Had the elemental grades of these people been blue grade, then the chances of winning against them when they formed that ice monster would''ve been very slim. Klaus could easily manhandle all of them here on his own due to his superior elemental grade. According to the people here, only two of them had blue elemental grades, while the others were either purple or orange. Grey and Klaus were stunned since they hadn''t seen anyone in the Origin Plane that had an orange elemental grade. Elemental grades are regarded like talent, they would usually determine how far an Elementalist could grow. But these people were clearly born special, or maybe it had something to do with that odd rock in the town. ¡­. "What do we do to them now?" Klaus asked. He had already killed one of them, and honestly, he didn''t mind killing the rest of them. After all, they were enemies who wanted to sacrifice him to their Moon God. Even if he wouldn''t want to kill, just the fact that they said they wanted to sacrifice him meant that they should be killed. Thinking about it properly, there''s a chance that this was not the first time they were doing something like this, sacrificing someone to their imaginary god. "The usual," Grey replied nonchalantly. He had the habit of killing people who tried to kill him, he didn''t care who they were or what their intentions were. Since the person tried to kill him, then the person should naturally be prepared to also die. Just as they prepared to attack. "Stop!" A scream came from behind them. Turning around, they saw a group of people running towards them frantically. At the front of the group was the town chief, behind him were about ten to fifteen people. "What do you people want?" Klaus asked with a cold look. "Please, don''t kill them. If they were to die, then our town would be in danger," The town chief begged as soon as he got close. Some of the people here were the main powers of the town, if they died, then the town would be in grave danger. They had a ton of enemies who were eyeing their sacred rock, if news of almost half of their powerful Elementalists being killed were to spread out, then it would be bad news for them. "Are you involved in this?" Grey asked, still wearing the same nonchalant expression. The fact that the town chief came just as they were about to kill these people looked suspicious. But Grey was sure he wasn''t in this area when they were fighting, so it was a little confusing. "No," The chief replied hastily. "Then how did you know we were here?" Klaus asked with a sneer. Obviously, he didn''t believe what the town chief was saying, and he couldn''t be blamed, even Grey found it hard to believe. "I sensed them using the technique, and from what happened before, I could tell they were coming after you two," The town chief said. "Hmm, since you sensed them using it, why didn''t you come earlier?" Grey asked. "Be¡­" "Simple, he wanted to see if they could kill us.. But when he sensed that the old men used it as well, he knew they were in trouble." Klaus cut the town chief short and answered Grey''s question with a smirk, he turned to look at the chief, "Am I right, chief?" Chapter 412 - Offer Them Up! "Am I right, chief?" Klaus'' question reverberated in the town''s chief ears a few times. "No¡­ no, that''s not it. I rushed here as fast as I could," The chief shook his head, denying Klaus'' claims. "Bullshit! Even I can get here from that town of yours within five minutes, much less ten. Stop playing dumb with us," Klaus cursed out, like usual. Grey looked at Klaus, then at the town chief. He couldn''t deny it, Klaus'' claims seem to be quite viable. It would greatly benefit the town chief if these people were able to defeat them, after all, this was his plan right from the start. But unlike these people, he quickly gave up on it. "I¡­ I¡­" The chief tried explaining, but he knew neither Grey nor Klaus would believe him. "No need to explain, since you weren''t among them from the start I''ll spare you. You can take their bodies with you as you go," Grey said. He was so casual about it that the town chief and the people behind him had a hard time believing he was a young man who was below twenty years of age. Even some of the old men in this group weren''t sure they''d act this casually when killing people. Thud! "Please, spare them," The town chief begged, dropping to his knees. "I''m sorry, but I show no mercy to people who try to make any efforts against my life. If not for the fact that I know a bit of this town''s history, then I''d have killed you people as well," Grey replied while looking at the town chief who was still in a kneeling position. The people behind the town chief unconsciously took a step back. They didn''t think they were looking at a young man, instead, they felt they were staring at a demon in human form. How could he say these things so nonchalantly? Well, they all thought like this since they were the victims. Some minutes back, all they wanted to do was sacrifice Grey and Klaus, at that time, they didn''t see anything wrong with what they wanted to do. But now that the case was reversed, they felt dread. "Please¡­" Thud! Just as the town chief was about to continue begging, one of the people amongst the fifteen people who was still able to barely stand dropped to the ground, a small ice dot could be seen on his forehead. He clearly died from the same thing that killed the first old man. This was naturally Klaus'' doing. He had a grin on his face while staring at the town chief, "You were saying?" His question angered and stunned the town chief and his people at the same time. Due to using the transformation technique, all the people were currently drained, they could barely stand, much less evade an attack. And even if they could, it would be difficult for them to evade this attack from Klaus because of its terrifying speed. Grey looked at Klaus with a wry smile, he was playful yet brutal at the same time. "I beg¡­" Thud! Another figure dropped to the ground with an ice arrow in his head. Klaus turned to the town chief again, "For every time you beg, I''ll kill one person. If you continue begging when the last person is about to be killed, I''ll start dropping people from behind you," Grey sucked in a cold breath, Klaus was way more brutal compared to him. The town chief looked at Klaus with a complex look. Klaus just placed him in a difficult situation, either he watched on silently as all his elders and people were killed in front of him, or he begged and not only watched them die, but also risk the others he brought with him dying as well. ''This kid is terrifying.'' This was the thought running through the head of the town chief and the people behind him. "I¡­" Thud! Another figure dropped again. "Now I''ll drop one person whenever you speak," Klaus said. The town chief grinds his teeth, his eyes red from anger. He couldn''t believe Klaus and Grey wouldn''t even give the people a second chance. He turned to look at Grey with a pleading look, but all he saw was the same emotionless gaze in Grey''s eyes. Grey turned, and within a minute, all surviving thirteen people died. Klaus had previously killed two, and with Grey joining him, it didn''t take long to kill all of them. "Had you come along with them, I''d have killed you as well." Grey said, he looked at the people behind them, "No hard feelings people, you''d do the same in my position, unfortunately, you''re not strong enough." The people stood in the same spot, hands clenched. They couldn''t disagree with what Grey said, had they been stronger, they would have already killed the duo back at the town. But they weren''t strong enough. The town chief didn''t speak any further, with his head dropped, he walked towards the first elder Klaus killed, sealing him in ice before doing it to the other people as well. He couldn''t dare to speak out since Klaus threatened to kill the people behind him every time he said something. "We should leave, staying any further wouldn''t make any difference," Grey said to Klaus. They''ve already killed the people who tried to kill them, since the town chief was well-behaved, there was no need in trying to make things more difficult. Klaus had already placed the chief and the people in a difficult situation, doing any further would give them a mental breakdown. They left the town chief and the townspeople while heading back to the town again. After Grey and Klaus left the field. "Seal them properly, since these fools decided to waste their lives, we''ll offer them to the Moon rock." The town chief said. The people just died so there was still some bit of essence left in them.. The rock could naturally absorb all of them. Chapter 413 - You Dont Believe Me? Grey and Klaus had no idea what the town chief did to the people they just killed, neither did they care. Although this attitude of theirs seemed extreme, it''s pretty common in the world of Elementalists. Only the strong are allowed to walk and do whatever they want freely, status and family background means nothing in front of those who are truly strong. This was exactly why the Emperor didn''t want to take the chance of giving them the opportunity to grow stronger. Once they were stronger than the rest of the people in the continent, then it didn''t matter if the opponent was an Emperor or the Crown Prince, they could do whatever they wanted when offended. They could even forcibly take the throne from the current Emperor and there was nothing he could do. Of course, none of them had such plans. Maybe except for Klaus, given his personality, he''d probably want to be in a very high place. Grey didn''t really enjoy being in the limelight, he preferred the solitary life of his Teacher. He would be like his Teacher, but he wanted such a peaceful life. Even the Emperor can''t do anything to his Teacher who was still in the Overlord Plane. He couldn''t help but imagine what would happen once his Teacher breaks through to the next Plane. According to the few people who had interacted with his Teacher, he was a once in ten thousand years genius. His Teacher was so powerful that it was unbelievable. To be sincere, he would really like to see his Teacher in action. Unfortunately, other than when he slapped that Instructor from the Starlight Academy to death back at the Capital, he hadn''t seen him do anything major again. Grey noticed something in his Teacher at that time, compared to other Elementalists, he seemed to be better physically. Even though it wasn''t up to Grey''s level of physical strength, his Teacher seems to be well above the other Elementalists in that aspect. ¡­. Moon Town. The duo soon returned back to the tea shop, Klaus was joking around with Grey, while also speaking to Alice and Reynolds. Grey could see the excitement in Klaus'' expression when he was speaking with the others. After not seeing and speaking with each other for so long, they had a lot to catch up on, especially Klaus and Reynolds who for some reason soon started a cursing session as they would usually do. Klaus was undoubtedly the winner, as usual. Grey didn''t even consider it a competition between the two, if he was placed in Reynolds'' position, he would try to avoid this as much as possible. Unfortunately, after losing to Klaus'', Reynolds decided to team up with Klaus and focused their attention on him. Alice was constantly laughing from her location. Even saying as much as a single word was difficult for her due to how much she was laughing. All in all, the group had a great time. Klaus always tends to make them all laugh, even in serious situations, this was why he was the most fun to be with. Grey was certain the group would speak more frequently now with Klaus around, but he wouldn''t really be a big part of the conversation since he had to focus on getting to the Magical Beasts'' forest. Klaus'' father had given him a map indicating which direction he should take to the Magical Beasts'' forest. He also marked out the city he would check out for the auction. Who knows, he might actually not need to enter the treacherous forest in search of the Resurgence Liquid, instead, he would be training and searching for his parents. Void''s injury only delayed his search for his parents, it didn''t stop it. He was sure that at some point, he would be able to find them, until then, he wanted to grow as fast as he could. Once he''s gotten to the peak, then he wouldn''t be afraid of losing anyone close to him anymore. The name of the City he was heading to was called Lapis City. This city was just as its name suggests, only a little different. It could be regarded as a treasure city. One could find so many rare treasures in this city that it was astonishing. The city is also famous for having the rare lapis stone, hence its name. It gained popularity because of this stone, and because of the huge quantity it had, some people believed this place was a blessed land of treasure. These stones are used in making all types of weapons, they were very important to all forge masters. And since Grey had been improving his knowledge on forge mastering these few weeks, he planned to get some stones for himself. The group left Moon town together, they were able to surprisingly encounter the town chief and the people on their way out. Seeing the people, the others knew this was clearly the work of the two rascals among them. "Your work?" Blake looked at the duo. "Not one worth showing off about, but yeah, we took care of some trash who wanted to kill us even after the town chief had agreed we could leave. Also, I should enlighten you, these people have a strange transformation technique that turns them into literal gigantic ice monsters with strength greatly improving. Of course, they couldn''t get to the Overlord Plane. But the thought of what they could do if they truly had Elementalists in the Overlord Plane is quite scary," Klaus replied. Blake and Oliver turned to look at Grey, they couldn''t really afford to believe everything that came out of Klaus'' mouth. He tends to spout nonsense sometimes, but, of course they knew he was telling the truth in this scenario because they sensed the auras while they were fighting. The only reason they didn''t come out to intervene was because they didn''t sense any aura surpassing that of an Origin Plane Elementalist. There was one which almost got to the Overlord Plane, but it unfortunately didn''t. Grey nodded to affirm what Klaus was saying. "You don''t believe me?" Klaua asked with an angry expression. Chapter 414 - Im Your Father, Boy "Principal, we''ll be going our separate ways here. Thank you for your help with the map," Grey bowed to Klaus'' father when they got to a two-way junction. He would be taking the path on the right while Klaus and his group would be taking the path on the left. According to the Principal, they wanted to travel the continent, see what each continent holds. That was a plan that Klaus was especially excited about. He had been stuck in the Qilin empire since he was born, well only he would use the term stuck. "It''s okay. Make sure to take care of yourself. Also, in case you encounter Chris, tell Klaus about it." Oliver said to Grey with a soft smile. Grey hadn''t given the Great Earth Essence Liquid to him yet, but he wasn''t really too concerned about it. As long as the youngsters could protect themselves, then he was satisfied. From Grey''s performance back at Moon town''s square, he could tell he didn''t have an opponent in the Origin Plane. This meant that he could walk freely since Overlord Plane experts aren''t as much as those in the Origin Plane. "Hey bud, are you sure you don''t need me with you?" Klaus asked. "No, I feel we''d die if we were together," Grey shook his head with a smile. "What''s the meaning of that?" Klaus asked angrily. "Simple, you''re going to cause so much trouble that people would want us dead," Grey said with a deadpan expression. "What do you mean to cause trouble? I''ve always been an upright person!" Klaus replied righteously. Everyone turned to look at him with a surprised expression, even Delia was no exception. She had been traveling with the group now for months, and she had already tagged Klaus as a once-in-a-lifetime troublemaker. She didn''t think there would be anyone else in this world who can annoy so many people simultaneously, and still be alive. Yet here Klaus was, defying all expectations. "You really believe that?" Grey asked with a sneer. "Nope, not really," Klaus shook his head. His response threw the others into a fit of laughter. Klaus was so shameless about his personality that he didn''t really care if he were annoying or fun, as long as he could do whatever he wanted, then he was fine. He truly was having the best of his life. Of course, having so many enemies wasn''t something people would brag about, except for Klaus. While he was talking to Alice and Reynolds earlier, he told them about the number of people who had tried to kill him and failed. Reynolds also jumped in, and the duo started recounting their encounters on how they were almost killed by people and survived. The surprising thing was how nonchalant and comedic it seemed to the duo. Grey was sure they were the only two people who would find people almost killing them funny. They were clearly psychopaths, with Klaus being of a higher rank. They had just enough sanity and self-awareness not to be regarded as mad people. After speaking to Klaus a little longer, and getting a huge hug from him, Grey was once again forced to travel alone. Something he was still not accustomed to. After Grey left. "Crap! Dad, he forgot to give it to you!" Klaus suddenly said. "It''s okay. I didn''t really want it," Oliver waved it off. "Are you sure?" Klaus asked with a suspicious-looking smile. Oliver wanted to answer the question, but looking at his son''s face, he felt doing that would come back to haunt him. But since Grey really didn''t hand the Great Earth Essence Liquid to him, there wasn''t much he could do. So he nodded after a while. "That means I can sell it then," Klaus spoke out after seeing his father nod. Oliver almost tripped, falling face-first to the ground. "What did you just say?" He asked, wide-eyed. "Since you didn''t want it, I can sell it, right?" Klaus said with a cheeky smile. "Stop playing games boy," Oliver smacked him on the head. Who in their right mind would sell something as precious as the Great Earth Essence Liquid? Well, his son doesn''t seem to be in his right mind. "Why would I play games? He gave it to me to hand it to you, but since you said you don''t want it, I think I''ll sell it. No, I''ll find a girl and use it as a wedding gift. Such extravagance! I''ll surely be regarded as the best husband in the history of the world!" Klaus said, clearly deep in thoughts. Oliver''s expression changed, he couldn''t believe this little rascal who he called his son would play a trick on him. He obviously had the Great Earth Essence Liquid with him, yet he said Grey forgot to give it to him. Knowing that he wouldn''t want them to go after Grey because of it, he would then say he didn''t want it. ''Such a sly move, unfortunately, he has forgotten I am his father!'' He thought inside. "Where did you hear me say I don''t want it?" Oliver looked at Klaus with a stoic expression. "I clearly heard it!" Klaus argued. "Blake," Oliver turned to Blake and Delia. "Yes Teacher," Blake answered. "Did you hear me say I didn''t want it?" Oliver asked in a stern voice. "No Teacher," Blake replied seriously. Oliver nodded before turning to Delia, "And you?" Just like Blake, Delia gave the same answer. "You see, now hand it over," Oliver stretched out his hand in front of Klaus. "This¡­ this¡­ this is cheating! You said it," Klaus continued arguing. "Does that mean that out of everyone here, you''re the only one who heard something different?" Oliver asked with a smile. "But¡­ but¡­" Klaus knew they were messing with him, but he couldn''t do anything. With no other option, he took out a small circular cloth from his chest region, placing it in his father''s outstretched hand. "I''m your father, boy, I''ve been playing these games before you were born.." Oliver chuckled while studying the Great Earth Essence Liquid in his hand. Chapter 415 - Seeing A Familiar Face Five weeks later. Grey could be seen walking on the pathway leading to a big city. Moon town was pretty close to Lapis City, and thanks to the map Klaus'' father gave to him, his journey was quite comfortable. He encountered some bandits, as well as some magical beasts on the way, but given his current strength, and since Overlord Plane Elementalists wouldn''t just start popping up from the ground, he dealt with all of them safely. The case of the bandits was quite different since he captured them and dropped them off at the town not too far from where he fought them. Apparently, these guys had been terrorizing the people of the town, as well as traveling merchants. The bandits were immediately executed because they were very brutal when dealing with people. Whenever they would rob, they tend to rape the ladies, and also kill men as well. Grey didn''t stand by to get the thanks of the people, after tying the bandits up, he left them to their demise. So none of the people from the town knew he was the one who brought the bandits. He would occasionally encounter some groups of travelers, while some would invite him to join them, especially one which was filled with young ladies, others would make sure to stay clear of him. With Klaus having the communication device now, his days hadn''t been as boring as they previously were. Klaus would always disturb him, leaving multiple messages when he doesn''t reply to the first. And the moment he replies, Klaus would immediately start up a conversation, bringing the others into it as well. Other than speaking with the others, he had also been improving his knowledge in arrays and forge mastering. He also started comprehending the elements once again. For a while now, he hadn''t really used the Chaos Space, other than checking the elemental grades of his elements, he didn''t try to comprehend the elements. He had also started training his physical body once again every morning. ¡­. Looking at the huge gate in front of him, Grey calmed his raging heart and entered. If he could find something like the Resurgence Liquid or anything that does the same thing as it in this place, then he would be happy. The sooner he woke Void up, the better. Void is a very important figure to him, not just because he was his companion, but in times of danger, he was among the few people he could truly rely on. The City''s gate was crowded with people trying to exit and enter the city. Just like some places Grey had been to, Lapis City didn''t take entrance fees. There are guards stationed at the gate, but they were only there to ensure peace. Naturally, wherever there are too many people, conflict is always bound to break out. Grey heard shouts coming from the left side, turning to look at the source of the sound, he noticed people gathered around an area. He went over there out of curiosity, this was his first time here after all, and he wanted to know what he could about the place. Klaus'' father didn''t give him much information about this place, only about an auction held towards the end of each month. According to the time he spent coming here, there were three weeks left before the said auction. The organization holding the auction was surprisingly the biggest trade organization in the entire continent, the Lenz Organization. Walking closer to the crowd, he managed to push past the crowd, getting a better view of what they were looking at. ''It''s him. To think I''d see him here,'' He thought while looking at one of the figures in the middle of the crowd. Presently, five people were in the middle of the crowd, one was standing on one side, facing off against the other four people. The four had confident smirks on their faces, the single guy, not so confident. The person facing off against these four people was surprisingly Jonas. After leaving the trial land, Grey hadn''t heard anything about this guy who came from the same city as himself. Jonas inherited the legacy of the expert, so on sensing he was already in the Ninth stage of the Origin Plane, he didn''t find it too shocking. Even though he was in the Ninth stage, the people surrounding him didn''t seem to be pushovers. Of the four people, two were in the same stage as himself, while one was in the Eighth stage, with the last one being in the Seventh stage. They looked to be in their mid thirties. Grey didn''t think that was their real age though, but he didn''t really care about it either. "Hand it over and we''ll settle this thing nicely," One of the men in the Ninth stage said coldly. "Hmph! According to the deal we made, you guys can keep the main prize and I get to keep whatever that was left," Jonas snorted coldly, not intimidated by them. "Heh! Boy, you still haven''t grown enough to survive outside of your Academies. Here, deals can be broken if you''re strong enough," The second man in the Ninth stage said. Compared to the first man, this one was already radiating a malicious aura. Clearly, he didn''t like the idea of them speaking too much, especially with the increasing crowd. Who knows if someone stronger than them would show up and forcibly take the things they were trying to take from Jonas. Fights are not allowed in the City, this was why they made sure to stop Jonas before he entered the city. "Not by the likes of you," Jonas said coldly. He was clearly at a disadvantage, but he didn''t care. He wasn''t the type that would give up easily, since there was a chance that he might make it into the city, he wanted to take it. "Jonas, just give it to them. It''s not worth hurting yourself over it," A young lady who was in the crowd said to him. "No, I almost lost my life getting it. I can''t hand it to them," Jonas turned to the young lady and said. From their small exchange, Grey guessed they were close. He didn''t really know much about Jonas though, so he wasn''t going to jump into any conclusions. He was still thinking if he should help him or not, after all, he did help them in the battle against the Darkness Elementalist and his group. If Jonas was able to make it out, then he wouldn''t need to make a move, but once he notices that he was in a difficult position, he would step in. "Take it, if he refuses, kill him. We can''t afford to delay any further," One of the men in the Ninth stage said. The crowd quickly retreated a bit further, they naturally didn''t want to get hit by the aftereffects of the battle. The two men in the Ninth stage attacked, followed by the other two. One was a Wind Elementalist, while another was an Earth Elementalist. The man in the Eighth stage was a Lightning Elementalist, while the last one was a Water Elementalist. Jonas steadied himself while watching the people charge towards him. They all sent their attacks towards him, with the Wind and Lightning Elementalists'' attacks being the first to get to him. Boom! Jonas made a fire wall in front of him. The wind and lightning attacks smashed into the fire wall, causing a huge explosion. The explosion pushed him back due to the force of the attacks. Two more attacks came right after the explosion, going after Jonas once again. Bam! Bang! Jonas managed to divert one of the attacks, while dodging the other one. The four people charged towards him once again, continuing their attacks. Jonas quickly fell on the defensive. If he were to fight against these people one on one, it was obvious he would win, but against all of them at the same time, it was a little too difficult. The chemistry between the four men was quite high, so they were able to give out rounds of well planned attacks that would put a well seasoned fighter in a difficult position. Jonas had managed to continue dodging and averting some of the attacks. But he was still unable to stop all of them. A few minutes later, Jonas could be seen panting heavily, his hands on his knees trying to catch his breath. "Boy, I must admit, you''re stronger than we thought. Seems like you didn''t show your full strength in the expedition, but unfortunately, this is the end for you," One of the men in the Ninth stage said to Jonas. He was very impressed with Jonas'' performance. But unfortunately, he had to kill him. Grey shook his head and took a step out, he was amazed by Jonas'' show of strength and also the cooperation of the four men. The young lady who previously spoke with Jonas ran out of the crowd, standing in front of Jonas. Chapter 416 - I Can Handle It "Move aside, you''ll only make things worse," Jonas shoved the young lady aside while forcing himself to stand properly. "Just hand it over to them, nothing is worth dying for," The young lady said with tears in her eyes. "I know, but without this, he''ll die," Jonas said, holding onto his shirt tightly, a sad look coming over his face. "Even if you hand it over to us, you''ll still die, boy. I can''t let you live," The Earth Elementalist among the two Ninth stage Origin Plane Elementalists said coldly. Jonas was someone who would be able to definitely break through to the Overlord Plane in the future, they on the other hand didn''t have high hopes in doing so. The thought of a possible Overlord Plane expert holding a grudge against them wasn''t something they could afford to allow. "He already agreed to give it to you, why are you people going so far?" The young lady looked at the four men with an angry look. "You''ll die as well," The Earth Elementalist looked at the girl with an evil look. "This has nothing to do with her," Jonas said, stepping in front of the young lady, "Leave now, I can stop them for a while," "No, I can''t leave you behind," The young lady said. "We''re both going to die if we go with your plan, at least in my plan, one person survives," Jonas said, caressing the young lady''s face gently. "Are you people just going to watch them kill us?!" The young lady turned to the crowd, hoping that someone would step out to intervene. Unfortunately, reality was cruel. In a world like this, it''s much better not to get involved in things that don''t have anything to do with you. Sometimes it might be beneficial, but in most cases, one tends to get in trouble because of their help. The crowd just watched what was happening with folded arms, some were even pointing at Jonas and the young lady while speaking animatedly. Not showing any concerns with if they were about to be killed or not. To them, this was just a show. "Stop it, no one would help," Jonas said to the young lady. "You think they would help you? Heh! People like you should be killed. In your next life, don''t depend on people," The Earth Elementalist said while walking towards them. "It would be a shame to kill them, don''t you think?" A voice stopped the Earth Elementalist on his tracks, trying to find the source of the voice. Jonas stopped dumbstruck, he found the voice familiar, but he couldn''t recall where he had heard it before. He hurriedly turned to look in the direction of the sound, seeing the figure of someone covered in a robe, he couldn''t help but get a slight sense of familiarity. "Where have I seen this person before?" He muttered to himself. "Huh? You know that person?" The young lady asked, hope shining in his eyes. "I think so. I can''t recall where I''ve heard the voice, but I''m sure I recognize it from somewhere," Jonas replied thoughtfully. Grey is currently taller than the last time he saw him, so it wasn''t surprising he didn''t recognize him, and since they weren''t close, there''s no way he would know him from his build. Klaus or Reynolds, and probably Alice would instantly recognize Grey even if he was in a distance. "Who are you? Don''t you know that you shouldn''t involve yourself in things that are not related to you," The Wind Elementalist among the two in the Ninth stage of the Origin Plane said. Grey didn''t stop his movement, he continued walking, heading in Jonas'' direction. "I''m talking to you, stop there," The Wind Elementalist said. The reason they hadn''t attacked Grey was that they were wary of him. First of all, Grey was wearing a robe, so they couldn''t see his face, not just that, but they also couldn''t sense his stage, so they thought he was an expert in the Overlord Plane or something. "It''s been a while, didn''t think I''d see you here," Grey said when he got to where Jonas was standing. "Who are you?" Jonas asked, looking at Grey curiously. "Oh, you wouldn''t recognize me with this on, but given my current situation, I don''t think it will be wise for me to do that." Grey said mysteriously, "But, I think you will recall my name, it''s Grey," Jonas paused, trying to figure out where he had heard that name before. Within a couple of seconds, it struck him. How could he forget such a memorable name, it was a name that he could never forget. This was the person who didn''t have an affinity at the time of his test, then later had an affinity three years later. "You¡­ it''s you?" Jonas asked, stunned. It was almost like he was struck by lightning. How could he not be, this person has been missing for months now. After he left the trial land, he tried to find out about Grey, after all, Grey did let him obtain the inheritance. To be honest, he didn''t think he would actually be able to do the same. After joining Grey fight against the Darkness Elementalist and his group, he left. But after coming out, he was curious about how Grey was doing, so he tried to find out about him. He found out that the new Mayor and Principal of the Lunar Academy was searching for him, possibly with a bad motive given how he was searching for him. ¡­. "Oh you remembered me, how nice," Grey said. "Why wouldn''t I?" Jonas asked. "Jonas, who is this?" The young lady asked curiously. She was one of the few people close to Jonas, so she knew all his friends, except for this mysterious one. "He''s from my hometown, but we aren''t really close. We can''t even be called acquaintances," Jonas replied. He wasn''t close to Grey, so he wouldn''t lie that they were friends. "Hello, I''m Grey," Grey waved to the young lady. He didn''t care if you were to tell the Emperor about him, nor did he care. He would be leaving soon anyway. Also, he didn''t think Jonas would let her do that. "Grey, Grey, Grey¡­ wait, you''re that Grey from the Lunar Academy?" The young lady exclaimed in shock. "The one and only," Grey replied. Most of the people from the Starlight Academy usually remember this name because of what happened during the competition. And since his name wasn''t something popular, people tend to recall it even after a year. "Hey! Who the hell are you and what do you want?" The Earth Elementalist asked angrily. They watched Grey walk from the crowd and suddenly start speaking with the people they wanted to kill. If not for the fact that they didn''t know who he was or how powerful he was, they would''ve attacked already. "I''m a friend, do you mind letting them go?" Grey turned to the four men. It wouldn''t be nice if he just started fighting against them. Although they were strong, he was confident in being able to at least stop them from harming Jonas, and also escaping from them. If he decides to use all his moves, then he would be able to kill them. The space element was an element none of the people knew about, after all, so once he starts disappearing and popping up from different locations, it would be difficult for them to deal with him. "He should hand over the item," The Wind Elementalist stepped forward to speak. They thought Grey was a powerful expert, so he wanted to let Jonas leave for now, then they would kill him once Grey was gone. "Hmm," Grey rubbed his chin as if thinking, he turned to Jonas, "How important is that thing to you?" "It''s worth a friend''s life," Jonas replied. Grey looked at him for a while before sighing, looks like he would have to fight with these people. ''*Sigh* I really hate all these unnecessary hassles.'' He thought to himself. "Uhmm, can you let him keep the item as well? It''s quite important to him," He asked the group. Fortunately, his face was covered, so they couldn''t see his embarrassed look. They had already agreed to allow him to leave, now he was asking them to let him have the item as well? Impossible! "What?!" The Earth Elementalist exclaimed angrily, almost attacking. The Wind Elementalist hastily stepped in front of him, "Sir, we can let him leave, but as for the item, we can''t." Grey shook his head wryly, "A shame," "I appreciate your gesture, but you shouldn''t fight with them because you want to help me," Jonas tried to stop him. He had fought with the group before, and knew how strong they were. He didn''t think Grey would be able to defeat them on his own. He inherited the legacy of an expert, so he grew faster than others. He didn''t feel Grey is currently stronger than him, at most, they were on par. "Don''t worry, I can handle it," Grey waved it off. "You don''t understand, they are very powerful," Jonas said. "It''s just a breeze, I can handle it," Grey waved again. Jonas looked at him, his heart shattering. Just when he thought he was finally stronger than Grey, he suddenly shows up and says the people he couldn''t defeat were a breeze? How annoying was that?! "Tell him to hand it over, or else..." The Wind Elementalist said. Obviously, he was still trying to avoid a fight with someone they didn''t know. Chapter 417 - Take It As It Is "Or else what?" Grey asked while taking some steps forward. He was currently standing between the four men and Jonas, if they wanted to get to Jonas, then they had to go through him. "I''ll help," Jonas moved closer to Grey, standing on his left-hand side. "No need for that, just head to the city while I hold them back. I''ll be able to casually leave them whenever I want, so you don''t need to worry about me," Grey said to him. Jonas looked at him, after a few seconds, he nodded his head. He didn''t like being indebted to people, but this item was something very important to him, so he couldn''t stand to lose it because of his pride. Sometimes, it''s best to let go of one''s pride in some situations. He retreated to where the young lady was standing, holding her by her hand, and they prepared to walk away. "Is it safe to leave him with them?" The young lady asked, concerned about Grey''s well-being. Even though they weren''t friends, she felt since Grey stepped out to help them, she could at least consider him as a friend or an acquaintance. "Yeah, these people wouldn''t be able to harm him," Jonas said in a matter-of-fact tone. "Since you say so, then I won''t worry," The young lady said. "Where do you think you''re going?" The Earth Elementalist asked while moving forward to stop them. Boom! A blue flame exploded out, forcing the Earth Elementalist back. If not for the Wind Elementalist acting quickly, then he might''ve been hurt. "You should focus on what''s in front of you," Grey said calmly. Everyone looked at Grey in surprise, the strength of his blue flames were insane. "Wow, blue flames," The young lady said, clearly awed by it. "Yeah, it''s quite powerful compared to other flames. It truly is a special flame," Jonas commented. ''Hmm, if I recall correctly, he originally had only two elements when he was tested. I didn''t think about it much when I saw him in the trial land because we were fighting then, but¡­'' He thought, confused. Anybody present when Grey did his test would naturally feel amazed and confused at the same time whenever they see him using the fire element. Especially given that it was a special flame, not like the normal one. Jonas recalled Grey didn''t use it in the competition, so it meant he most probably got it in the trial land. Just when he thought he got the greatest thing from the trial land which was the expert''s inheritance, Grey suddenly shows up with blue flames. ''*Sigh* Comparing oneself with others only makes one feel depressed. I''ll just take it as it is.'' He said to himself. People always tend to compare themselves to people they see as a rival, seeing your rival growing faster than you is could be said to be another form of heartbreak. The best thing to do is take things as they are and try to improve yourself without using others to compare yourself with, that makes you grow better, mentally and emotionally. ¡­. The four men looked at Grey in surprise. Even though they felt Grey was powerful, they didn''t think he would actually have such a special flame, this just made things more difficult. "Although that attack is powerful, it''s not on the level of an Overlord Plane expert," The Wind Elementalist deduced. What they were all scared of was Grey being an Overlord Plane expert, but his first attack has inadvertently exposed his strength to them. Although he couldn''t accurately pinpoint it, they knew it wasn''t in the Overlord Plane. "He''s in the Origin Plane?" The Earth Elementalist asked, still a little shaky from the attack that almost caught him a few seconds ago. "If my intuition is correct, then yes. But I can''t say I''m a hundred percent sure since an Overlord Plane expert can control the power of their attacks," The Wind Elementalist replied. One could clearly see that he was the brains of the group, thinking things more thoroughly before jumping into action. "Try to get him to attack once again, if the attack power is still the same then we can confirm he''s in the Origin Plane." He said to the Earth Elementalist. The Earth Elementalist nodded, compared to the first time, this time he was going to be prepared for the attack. He charged at Grey this time, making sure to keep a considerable distance while attacking with an earth spear that surrounded Grey from different angles. With the spears coming towards Grey from all directions, it was difficult to block against it, for some people, not him. He spread out both hands, and an earth wall rose from the ground, surrounding him. The thickness and strength of his earth wall was clearly more superior than the earth spears the Earth Elementalist sent towards them. Bam! Bang! Bam! They all slammed against the earth wall, but they were unable to even penetrate it, much less causing any harm to Grey who was inside. "Attack, he''s only in the Origin Plane," The Wind Elementalist said to the others. Seeing how Grey blocked the attacks showed that he was still in the Origin Plane. There''s a special ability Overlord Plane experts have that sets them high above Origin Plane experts. It''s not just the ability to fly, or the superior strength, instead, it was the special ability known as wrest elemental control. Just as the name implies, it''s the ability to forcibly seize control over the objects or things an Elementalists in the lower Planes uses, then use it against them. Take for example the previous situation, since Grey was also an Earth Elementalist, he wouldn''t need to block that attack, rather, he would''ve forcibly taken control of that attack. Although, this can''t be definite since some people can actually fight against this ability of Overlord Plane experts. Someone like Grey can easily stop this from happening given his strength and what''s in his body. This ability also isn''t that easy to use since it takes a high level of spiritual energy to use it. Some people can use it, but most prefer just easily smashing their weaker opponents to death with their superior strength, hence the lack of use in most cases. ¡­. Swoosh! Bam! Boom! Bang! With the Wind Elementalist giving the others the go-ahead, they instantly went on the attack, throwing attacks upon attack at Grey. Being someone who is very proficient in one against multiple opponents battles, Grey relaxed, focusing mainly on defending. Jonas and the young lady looked back when they heard the attacks sounding out, on seeing how calm and collected Grey was while defending and dodging the attacks, they felt less worried about him. The young lady couldn''t help but admit it, Grey was the most powerful person in her age range she had seen. Even Jonas, who she thought was very powerful, didn''t seem to come close in terms of power. They didn''t stop moving, and within a minute, they had already gotten to the city. Since they would be safe once they entered the city, it was the best place to go. Grey on the other hand was keeping tabs on them, when he noticed that they had gotten to the city, he relaxed even more. ''Time to at least hurt one of these guys then leave,'' He thought to himself. He had too many hidden cards that he could easily change the tide of any battle whenever he felt like it. For starters, he could easily explode out with his insane speed, catching his opponent off guard, easily hurting or even killing them. Then, there are his inscriptions, which could be said to be one of his best trump cards. And then there''s the space element, this element defies the knowledge of the people of the continent, so he could easily use it to kill an entire army as long as he didn''t get exhausted since they couldn''t trap him. He was planning to use his explosive speed against the Wind or Lightning Elementalist since they were the ones who were closer and seemed to pose more of a threat, especially the Wind Elementalist. His attacks always put Grey in a difficult situation, making defending against the other attacks hard. Now Grey understood why they were able to easily defeat Jonas even though he was stronger than them individually. He could even fight against two of them and still might be able to gain the advantage. But this Wind Elementalist was a calculative fellow, not giving him any chances to attack. Boom! Bang! Bam! The battle continued with Grey either using the earth or fire element to block their attacks or dodging their attacks by a narrow margin. After dodging a few more attacks, the opportunity Grey was waiting for presented itself before Grey. The Wind Elementalist had gotten within the range where it would be impossible for him to evade the attack, no matter how fast he was. ''Now,'' He said to himself before disappearing. Chapter 418 - Wrong Direction Swoosh! Bam! Grey, who suddenly disappeared soon appeared in front of the Wind Elementalist, he struck out a blow that was covered with blue flames. Crash! Bang! The Wind Elementalist was unable to block the attack which struck him cleanly on his chest. He was sent flying, crashing into the ground, he bounced off once before hitting a boulder almost one hundred and fifty meters away from his previous location. Grey was still in a punching position, with his right fist outstretched. The battle ceased, neither the people fighting against Grey nor the people watching could figure out what just happened. One minute Grey was barely dodging attacks, the next minute he suddenly vanished and appeared close to the Wind Elementalist. The Wind Elementalist in turn was sent flying, for over a hundred meters! How could that happen in the midst of such coordinated attacks from the group of four? "Wha¡­ what just happened?" The Earth Elementalist asked, stunned. If Grey were to continue his attacks right now, then killing this group would be easy due to them presently losing focus. The Lightning Elementalist charged to where the Wind Elementalist was lying, and on getting there, his expression changed drastically. Blood could be seen gushing out of the mouth of the Wind Elementalist, and his chest seemed to have caved in. The injury on his chest wasn''t bleeding as a result of suffering from burns. Cough! Cough! The Wind Elementalist coughed out heavily, spitting out a mouthful of blood. His eyes soon rolled to the back, fainting from the pain. "Oh, he survived. Looks like he managed to protect his vitals, a shame," Grey shook his head when he noticed the Wind Elementalist was still alive. Given the precision of his attack, he was almost certain that the Wind Elementalist would end up dead. But the Wind Elementalist seemed to have acted quickly, not trying to block the attack but instead, protecting his vitals to make sure he didn''t suffer injuries that might kill him. ''I should take note of this in case I''m ever in a situation like this,'' Grey thought to himself. This showed how quickly the Wind Elementalist is able to access a situation and come up with a good decision. Most people would try to block or evade the attack, but he didn''t since he knew blocking or evading it was impossible from that range. Jonas and the young lady who were watching from the city gate were dumbfounded by Grey''s insane speed. He was literally the fastest person under the Overlord Plane that they had seen. They didn''t even think there was anyone in the Origin Plane who could even catch up to him. With such speed, would anyone at the same stage be able to do anything to him? The answer was no. Jonas shook his head wryly, luckily he quickly killed the thought of comparing himself to Grey, or he might''ve had a breakdown with what just happened. How could anyone compare themselves to such a monster? It was no different than saying they could defeat someone in the Overlord Plane while still being in the Origin Plane. "Is he really in the Origin Plane?" The young lady couldn''t help but ask. She had seen geniuses in the Origin Plane, she was even standing next to one, but compared to Grey, Jonas was like a star in the presence of a moon. How could the difference between people be so huge? What she found more frustrating was that in the presence of others in the Origin Plane, Jonas was above most of them. "Yeah, I don''t think he has broken through to the Overlord Plane yet," Jonas replied while nodding. "He''s fast," The young lady blurted out unconsciously. "Yeah, very fast," Jonas concurred with her. It wasn''t something anyone could argue anyway. They weren''t the only ones speaking about Grey''s speed and strength. Most of the people in the crowd were not only speaking about this, but they were also trying to guess his identity. Numerous people come to Lapis City, and because of the auctions held here, some very famous people tend to come from all over the place. Some people guessed he must be from the Royal Academy, while others thought he was a senior to Jonas, that was why he stepped in to help. All in all, they were all talking about the same person, Grey. ¡­. "You¡­ I''ll kill you!" The Earth Elementalist instantly lost it when he saw the Wind Elementalist lying on the ground, bloodied from Grey''s attack. He charged towards Grey while making multiple earth spears, sending them towards him. Swoosh! Boom! Bam! Grey easily dodged all the attacks while sending out attacks of his own. The Earth Elementalist managed to block the first two, but the third flaming arrow broke through his defense, plunging into his shoulder. "Ah!" He screamed out in pain, holding onto the arm that for some reason the fire arrow didn''t die down, instead, he stayed on as if it was a real arrow. The Earth Elementalist bore the pain and dragged the arrow out of his shoulder, dropping it to the ground. The arrow died down the moment it hit the ground, to the frustration of the Earth Elementalist. "Retreat!" The Lightning Elementalist was the one who gave the order this time. After saying this, he didn''t even stay behind to see if they were following the order, he picked up the Wind Elementalist and charged towards the city gate. He was scared that Grey might target them since the Wind Elementalist was already hurt. Unexpectedly, Grey didn''t even make any attempts to attack them. He focused his attacks on the Earth Elementalist who stupidly tried attacking him even after he was hit by the fire arrow. Boom! Bam! Bang! Grey continued exchanging blows with him easily beating him up. He exploded out with an attack that sent the Earth Elementalist flying. The direction the Earth Elementalist faced was surprisingly the city gate. "Damn it, wrong direction," Grey said before chasing after the Earth Elementalist who was still flying mid-air. Just as the Earth Elementalist was about to get to the city gate, Jonas stepped out from the city and attacked with a huge sea of flames. The flames soon got to where the Earth Elementalist was and just before it engulfed him, a silver light flashed and the Earth Elementalist disappeared, appearing inside the city alongside the Lightning Elementalist. "What are you people doing? He just attacked while in the city!" The Lightning Elementalist turned to the guards at the gate and yelled. "He''s not in the city," The guard answered before turning to look in another direction, not bothering with the Lightning Elementalist anymore. "How¡­" "He''s not in the city, look," The Water Elementalist pointed at where Jonas was standing, and it was just like the guard said, he wasn''t in the city. Jonas was just two steps outside the city gate, so there was no way he broke the rules of the city. Grey quickly appeared before Jonas who had already withdrawn the sea of fire. "*Sigh* I completely forgot about this direction," He said while shaking his head ruefully. "It''s okay, at least two of them are seriously wounded," Jonas replied. "Yeah, that''s a plus I guess," Grey said with a shrug. He would normally want to kill these people, but since they had already entered the city, then he would find a way to do it later. ''I should''ve used the darkness element to corrode their insides.'' Grey thought, still feeling bad that he was unable to kill the group. Seeing how disappointed Grey seemed to be, Jonas didn''t know how to feel. These were the same four people that were on the verge of killing him, against Grey, they had to run for their lives, yet he was disappointed he was unable to kill anyone of them. "Let''s head in," Jonas said, inviting Grey inside the city. "Sure," Grey replied before following behind Jonas. The people who were gathered outside the city gate soon started going in their respective directions, the ones who wanted to enter the city, faced the city gate while the ones who wanted to leave went in the other direction. When Grey got to where the Earth Elementalist was lying, he looked at him for some time while shaking his head repeatedly and muttering the word, ''A Shame''. The Earth Elementalist was still conscious, unlike the Wind Elementalist, so on seeing Grey mocking him in this manner, he lost his temper. But unfortunately, he was unable to stand up since when he was fighting with Grey, Grey used arrows to hit each of his limbs. "I''ll get you next time," He uttered with much difficulty. "Heh! If not for your friends, you''d be dead already," Grey remarked before walking away with Jonas. The Earth Elementalist clenched his fist tightly, but he couldn''t do anything since there was no way he could stand, much less attack Grey. The young lady looked at Grey in awe, his personality was completely different compared to others. She chased after them to catch up with Jonas, holding onto his hand as they walked further into the city. The city was busy, even more so than the Capital City. Grey guessed it had to do with the location of this place, and also the frequent auctions that take place. Most people would be able to find what they''re searching for if they come here.. Some were just like Grey, hoping to find what they were searching for. Chapter 419 - Thanks For The Meal! Lapis City. In an Inn. "So, what brings you to this city?" Jonas asked Grey after they sat down on their table. "Nothing much, I was curious, so I came to play," Grey replied offhandedly. Jonas drew closer to him, "You know that you''re being hunted down, right?" "Oh, how did you know about that?" Grey asked, surprised that Jonas would know of such vital information. According to his understanding, the Emperor is trying to hide this news as much as possible, so the families in the empire wouldn''t be aware of what Grey obtained from the trial land. "I have my ways," Jonas replied. "Well then, since you know about that, I presume others from your Academy do as well?" Grey asked. "I''m not sure. I only got to find out due to a coincidence," Jonas shook his head, he didn''t think others would know about this, but he wasn''t sure, so he couldn''t tell for sure. "Okay. Anyway, I''m not bothered about that though, I''ll leave as soon as I''m done here. And besides, you''re the only one who knows about my appearance here," Grey said nonchalantly. "Oh, and your friend too," He added. "You can be rest assured, I won''t betray you," Jonas said. "I''m not scared about that, if I were, I wouldn''t step out to help you. Even if I do decide to step out, I''ll just conceal my identity," Grey said. The young lady watched the duo as they were speaking. They weren''t talking loudly, only audible enough for them to hear, so she didn''t know what they were speaking about. She only saw Grey raise his head to look at her once. "Hmm, okay then." Jonas nodded after they finished their conversation. "So, what brings you to Lapis City?" Grey was the one who asked this time. "Well, a friend of mine¡­" Jonas told Grey the reason for his coming to this city. According to him, the Academy sent them on a mission. Since he was presently the strongest student in the Academy, he was sent alongside two of his friends to come and clear an area. The young lady was one of the people sent with him, the other one was poisoned after walking into a chasm. Jonas took it upon himself to find a cure for him, and since where they were assigned wasn''t far from Lapis City, he decided to come here and try his luck. He was unable to get anything, so he decided to follow a team that was heading into the Magical Beasts'' forest to search for a treasure that could cure him. The main reason he followed the group was because he heard them speaking of something like that. After following them on the expedition, the group made a deal with him to collect the main items, while he took what was left. When they got to their destination, he helped with fighting against the beasts there and the group managed to acquire what they wanted. He was also fortunate enough to get something that might cure his friend. On his way out of the cave, he sensed something and went deeper into the cave. Lying inside was a twenty-two meters long giant snake, beside it was one of the best plants used for making the highest tier of healing tonic. He decided to risk his life to get the plane since the Giant snake was already in the Overlord Plane. During the first phase of his attempt, he was successful, but on trying to escape with the plant, the Snake woke up. It naturally attacked, almost killing him in the process. The group of four who were outside saw him struggling against the snake, but did nothing to help. When they saw what he acquired, they were overcome by greed and wanted to obtain it. Jonas luckily escaped from the snake, but was met with another problem, the people he came to the expedition with. He tried escaping, but was blocked. The snake came out of the cave and started attacking them, Jonas used the opportunity to escape from the clutches of the group. Unfortunately, he was unable to get to the city before they caught up to him. Apparently, the snake didn''t kill the group. It was just like in his situation as well, the snake didn''t kill him. ¡­. "You should know the story from there," Jonas said after getting to the part where the group held him outside the city. "Yeah," Grey nodded. He looked around, and noticing that the Inn wasn''t filled with people anymore, he decided to take off the robe that was hiding his face. "Ah¡­ finally. I can eat in peace!" Grey exclaimed before digging into the food. When Grey removed his robe, his face appeared in front of Jonas and the young lady for the first time. They both froze, staring at that seemingly otherworldly face. Even Jonas who had seen him before was a little taken aback. Grey was more handsome than he previously was. The young lady on the other hand couldn''t believe that a guy could be this handsome. ''He''s even more handsome than what they said,'' She thought to herself, her mouth opened, forming a small ''o''. But they snapped out of their stunned state when Grey dug into his food. He wasn''t eating particularly fast, but he wasn''t eating slow either. Luckily, he wasn''t talking while eating. Some time passed and Grey finally finished eating. What the young lady found astonishing wasn''t the fact that Grey ate too much, it was the fact that Grey completely forgot about them while he was eating. He didn''t even raise his head once to look at them. If not for his handsome face and his unimaginable strength, she would''ve thought that he was a beggar. "Okay, thanks for treating me to a meal. I haven''t had a good meal since leaving Frost City," Grey said after he was done eating. He stood up immediately, preparing to leave. He wasn''t close to Jonas, so there wasn''t really any reason to stay behind. "Oh okay. Thanks for your help today, I''ll try my best to make it up to you," Jonas thanked him for his help. "It''s nothing. See you next time, I''ll be leaving now," Grey waved at the duo and left the Inn with his robe covering his face once again. He didn''t want to stay in this Inn, it was too far from the city gate. He planned to explore the city, going to the Inn that was closest to the city gate. After finding an Inn, he would think of what to do next. It took him about thirty minutes or so before he found an Inn he was comfortable with. The Inn was around two hundred meters away from the city gate, and around fifty meters away from the city walls. ¡­. Grey''s room. After getting into the room, the first thing Grey did was to take a bath. Although he usually takes baths in the forest, he still preferred this one more. When he was done with his bath, he started thinking of his next move. ''There''s still about three weeks left or so before the month ends. Staying idle wouldn''t work for me, but if i were to go into the Magical Beasts'' forest now, something might come up that would make me miss the auction,'' He thought of every possible action, and before long, he came up with a plan. Since the Lenz Organization were the ones holding the auction, he would try to get old man Gerald to ask if there would be something that has the same effects as the Resurgence Liquid. If by chance they do, then he would use his influence to keep for himself. Of course, he would compensate the person who brought the item to the auction. With a plan in mind, he quickly brought out the communication device that was given to him by old man Gerald and sent him a message. The contents of the message was simple, he should help him find out if there were any items that had effects similar to the Resurgence Liquid. Although he knew it was still too early to ask, since some people might have already dropped the item they wanted to be auctioned off, he felt that there might be a chance. Old man Gerald quickly asked the people at the auction house according to Grey''s request, but unfortunately, there was nothing of such in the place. ''I''ve told them to notify me if anything like that shows up, so you don''t need to worry. Just make yourself available when the time comes,'' Old man Gerald''s voice resounded in Grey''s head. ''Okay, thanks for helping me once again.'' Grey thanked him before keeping the device. Now, he knew he could get the item as long as it appeared in the auction house. ''With that out of the way, I think I should at least explore the outer perimeters of the Magical Beasts'' forest before then..'' He thought to himself. Chapter 420 - Venturing Into The Magical Beasts Forest The next day. Three kilometers west of Lapis City. Grey stood in front of the majestic Magical Beasts'' forest, looking at the lush greenery and overly large trees compared to what was in other forests, he felt nothing but awe. This was the second time he was seeing the Magical Beasts'' forest, and the feeling was just like the first time he saw it. Even when standing outside the forest, he could feel the intimidating aura of the magical beasts that reside in the forest. He could also hear the roars from the magical beasts in the forest. Phew¡­ He took in a deep breath before breathing out, with that, he stepped into the forest. Roar! A cat-like beast which was around the size of a Maine Cat jumped out from the side of a tree as soon as Grey stepped into the forest. "*Sigh* To think it''s a cat," He said after catching the cat with his bare hands. While standing outside, he had already sensed the beast, but he never thought it was a cat. From what he could sense, it was a Wind Elementalist, so it excelled in speed. "I won''t kill you since you''re a cat like Void, although you''re way bigger than he is," Grey said before throwing the cat in the other direction. What he found more amusing was the fact that the cat was actually still in the early stages of the Fusion Plane or using Void''s way of ranking, a Rank two magical beast, yet it dared to try to sneak attack him who was almost at the Peak of the Origin Plane. Two hours later. Grey had ventured almost two kilometers into the Magical Beasts'' forest, and a magical beast would appear within every ten minutes or so. But all of the beasts are still in the Fusion Plane. According to the reports he heard, once he gets past the two kilometers mark, then the strength of the beasts would increase. He had already started to notice it because the beasts he had been encountering are in the Late stages of the Fusion Plane. ''Hmm, I''ll head in a little more.'' Grey doesn''t want to spend too much time here, but his curiosity towards this place is pushing him to go further inside. The space element made it difficult for the beasts to sense him, most of the ones which attacked him, only attacked when he got within their line of view. So far, he hadn''t killed any of them. He would usually avoid the beasts whenever he could, the ones he couldn''t avoid, he would just smack them away, but wouldn''t kill them. Three hours later. Grey had gone over five kilometers into the forest, almost getting to the six kilometers mark. And surprisingly, people still called this place the outer perimeters of the Magical Beasts'' forest. From the map he got from Lapis City, only after going past the six kilometers mark will he leave the outer perimeters of the forest. Not just that, but that''s also when he would start seeing beasts in the Origin Plane. ¡­. Some minutes later. ''If the map is correct, then going further would mean leaving the outer perimeters of the Magical Beasts'' forest.'' Grey brought out the map from his storage ring, looking at the map. ''Forget it, there''s still just over three weeks before the auction. I better go in and see if I can find the bamboo forest that guy spoke of,'' He continued walking further into the forest. In the time he had been here, he had surprisingly not encountered any person. Since this was the outer perimeters, he guessed this was the part he would see people frequently, but he didn''t encounter anyone. After walking for almost an hour, he still didn''t encounter any beasts in the Origin Plane, but he encountered those at the Peak of the Arcane Plane. He decided to rest under a tree since he had been walking nonstop for hours now. Just as he sat down. "Ah!" Roar! He heard the scream of a lady, and a magical beasts'' roar. "Huh?" He turned to look in the direction with a raised brow. After looking in the direction for some seconds, he turned away and closed his eyes to meditate. Although he was bored, he didn''t have the habit of interfering with people that didn''t have anything to do with him. Anyone who entered this place should naturally be prepared for the dangers they would face. They don''t expect that someone would help them whenever they are in danger. Roar! Bang! "Huh? Why is the sound getting louder?" He asked himself while looking in the direction of the noise. Of course he knew the answer to his question, but he just didn''t expect that something like this would happen. He wanted to stand up and go in the other direction, but his curiosity, as well as the boredom of not doing anything since he entered this place, made him stay. Besides, there''s also the possibility of the battle not getting to where he is. Two minutes later. ''Hmm, is it a coincidence, or do they know that someone is here?'' He thought to himself. The sound was already very close, and from his calculations, the person who was being attacked by a magical beast would appear before him within the next minute or so. Just as he calculated, the person soon appeared before him. The person was surprisingly a young man. ''I could swear I heard a young lady''s voice,'' Grey thought to himself, stunned. ''Maybe the beast has killed her,'' He thought again. The young man who was running for help had despair written all over his face, when he looked ahead of him, he saw someone who was wearing a robe. He didn''t even stand to think if the person was good or not, he ran in the direction while screaming for help. "Help! Help! Please!" He yelled at the top of his lungs while charging in Grey''s direction. "This is totally unexpected !" Grey exclaimed in shock. Yes, he heard the young man, but he didn''t even know if he could call him a young man or not.. The young man spoke, but for some reason, he was hearing the voice of a lady. Chapter 421 - Bamboo Forests Whereabouts "Help, help!" The young man continued screaming as he ran frantically in Grey''s direction. ''Weird, but it''s not really unacceptable though,'' Grey thought while looking at the young man who had the voice of a lady. What Grey found more amusing was that the young man clearly had a masculine look with beards and a slightly well-built body, but his voice was feminine which was in contrast with his appearance. This was something that rarely happened, but it doesn''t mean it doesn''t. At first, he found it amusing since he hadn''t really been in contact with someone like this, but after hearing it a few more times, he just shrugged it off. After all, everyone isn''t supposed to be the same. He stood up, took a single step forward, and vanished. "Huh?!" The young man who was running in Grey''s direction instantly freaked out when he saw him disappear. He almost wanted to shed tears, but he had to save his energy for running. Crying while running would just make him expend more energy, well, so he thought. Boom! He suddenly heard a loud explosion behind him, but he didn''t turn around immediately, instead, he advanced forward. "Ehh? He continued running?" Grey couldn''t help but comment with a surprised expression when he looked at the back of the running young man. After running a few more meters and not hearing the sound of the magical beast behind him, the young man halted, turned around sharply to see what was happening. To his surprise, the person who was wearing a robe was standing in the direction he was coming from, and the bear which was chasing after him was lying on the ground, motionless, around twenty meters away from him. "You¡­ you defeated it?" The young man asked anxiously. "Well, do you see anyone else here?" Grey asked before walking back to the tree he was previously sitting under. "Ah¡­ sorry." The young man scratched his head awkwardly, "Thank you for lending me a hand," He bowed to Grey as a sign of gratitude. "It''s okay, the noise was disturbing my peace," Grey waved his hand nonchalantly before sitting down once again under the tree. "Oh, I''m sorry for that." The young man apologized for disturbing him. Grey didn''t reply and closed his eyes once again to meditate. He didn''t really like interacting with people much, especially with people he didn''t know. "Uhmmm, can I sit with you?" The young man asked. Grey didn''t reply, staying in the same position. The young man looked at Grey and felt like he was an old expert who didn''t like speaking much. In fact, the more he interacted with Grey, the more he felt like he was an old expert who wasn''t bothered with things of the outside world. The beast which was chasing after him was in the Early stages of the Origin Plane, yet Grey defeated it with a single attack. Not just that, but Grey''s speed was insane. ''This person is definitely an Overlord Plane expert!'' The young man said in his heart. After standing for a few minutes and not getting any reply, he sat down close to Grey. Grey originally thought the young man would leave, but to his surprise, he sat close to him. "What do you want?" He couldn''t help but ask when the young man sat down. "Hello, I''m Ellis. I traveled into the Magical Beasts'' forest to train¡­" Ellis suddenly started telling Grey of the reason he came into the Magical Beasts'' forest, not forgetting to speak of the ordeals he had gone through. "Wait, wait, wait, what does that have to do with what I asked?" Grey hurriedly tried to stop him from speaking. "Oh, I''m sorry about that." Ellis apologized. "So, what are you doing here?" He asked immediately after apologizing. Grey looked at Ellis, confused. ''Doesn''t he get it that I don''t want him here?'' He thought while looking at him. He didn''t want to outright chase Ellis away, but from how he continued speaking, he felt it wouldn''t really be bad to chase him away. After seeing that Grey didn''t answer his question, Ellis continued speaking again. Telling him of how he encountered this bear that was chasing him. As much as the time Grey had on his hand right now, he didn''t have the time to listen to the story of a complete stranger. Even if he wanted to waste it, this wasn''t what he wanted to waste it on. "The bamboo forest was quite large and¡­" "You''re disturbing me," Grey''s annoyed voice interrupted him. "I''m sorry senior," Ellis quickly apologized. "Senior?" Grey asked, surprised. ''Hmm, looks like senior doesn''t like it when someone calls him a senior,'' Ellis thought to himself. "No, no, what I meant was that I wanted to thank you for your help," Ellis said. Ellis stood up after saying this, just as he was about to leave. "Wait," Grey called out. "Yes, senior?" Ellis turned around quickly, almost bumping into Grey who was still sitting. His enthusiastic reaction stunned the hell out of Grey. ''Who''s he calling senior? This guy is at least five years older than I am!'' Grey thought in annoyance. "First of all, I''m not a senior. Then, what is this bamboo forest you''re speaking of?" Grey said to clear up the confusion. The only reason he wasn''t telling Ellis his name was because he was being hunted down by the Emperor, and from how Ellis interacted with him, he could tell he was someone who liked talking, a lot. There''s a high chance Ellis would speak of this experience to people he didn''t even know. ''How could someone who speaks this much still be alive in a place like this where people betray each other?'' Grey couldn''t help but wonder. "Oh, the bamboo forest, it''s just a few kilometers away from here. I still remember the road there," Ellis replied enthusiastically. "You don''t need to go, just point out its location on the map for me," Grey said, before taking out the map he had of the Magical Beasts'' forest. Chapter 422 - Heading To The Bamboo Forest "Oh, okay," Ellis replied a little downcast. But in the end, he still pointed the spot out for him on the map. Since he could be of assistance to this senior who helped him, he would do it well. ''Hmm, is it the same place?'' Grey thought to himself while looking at the map properly. The Magical Beasts'' forest was huge, so there was no way there would be only one bamboo forest. But hearing about a bamboo forest, he couldn''t help but get his hopes up, even if not by much, but at least he had to check it out. "Thank you. By chance, do you know of any other bamboo forests in the Magical Beasts'' forest?" Grey asked. Since Ellis speaks a lot, then he should be able to know some things about this place. Who knows, he might just know the location of another one. "No senior, I only saw this one by chance. The area the bamboo is growing is not really large, around three to four hundred meters I think. But according to rumors, there tend to be treasures in places like that," Ellis replied. "Okay, thank you for your information. I''ll be going then," Grey said before turning around. "Senior, can¡­ can I come with you?" Ellis asked nervously. "No," Grey replied decisively. "But¡­ but¡­ there''s something there I want," Ellis pleaded. Grey stopped and looked at him, after thinking about it for a while, he decided to let him travel with him. The reason for this was simple, he was clueless about the Magical Beasts'' forest and Ellis seems to know a thing or two. Not just that, but he was also the one who showed him where the bamboo forest was located. ''As long as he isn''t looking for what I need, then we''re okay,'' Grey thought as he gave Ellis a nod of approval. "Thank you senior!" Ellis exclaimed happily. "I''m not a senior, call me Zeke," Grey said. This was the alias he had previously used, since he was in a place where he didn''t want to use his real name, then he didn''t mind using the same name once again. Frost City was hundreds of kilometers away from here, so the chances of people who knew Zeke Hoover appearing here were slim. "Uh, okay senior Zeke," Ellis nodded with a little uncertainty. "This is going to be a long journey," Grey muttered as the duo started the journey to where the bamboo forest was located. As they were walking, Ellis would speak about the different places they pass through, he would also occasionally speak of his travels in the Magical Beasts'' forest. To Grey''s surprise, Ellis had been coming to this place since he was in the Fusion Plane. The fact that Ellis was still alive still surprises him. From some of Ellis'' stories, he spoke of times when he was betrayed by the people he was traveling with. "Then why are you following me this freely?" Grey couldn''t help but ask. People who are betrayed more than once usually find it difficult to trust people close to them, much less a complete stranger. "Maybe I''m just too naive, or maybe I''m stupid. But, for some reason, I''ve never given up on people," Ellis replied after a few seconds of silence. "I''ll take the first two, the third is crap," Grey replied with an apathetic voice. He felt it was more preferable to believe that Ellis was naive and stupid than what he said about not giving up on people. "It''s okay, only a few people have agreed with me," Ellis said with a smile. "Where are they?" Grey asked. "Uhmm¡­ why don''t we forget about that?" Ellis asked after hesitating. "They''re dead, right?" Grey asked, looking straight at Ellis. Ellis sighed softly before nodding. "And you still believe in people? Looks like you''re only alive because you''re lucky," Grey scoffed and walked away. "But, all the times I''ve been saved, the same people you say I shouldn''t believe in are the ones who always come to my rescue whenever I''m in a life and death situation, especially in here," Ellis said while walking after Grey. "Hmm, you do have a point there." Grey replied, before muttering under his breath, "I should''ve let him die," "What?" Ellis asked. "Nothing," Grey said. "I could swear I heard you say you should''ve let me die," Ellis said. "You''re wrong, I didn''t," Grey replied with a straight face. His voice didn''t even waver, if one didn''t know otherwise, they would think he wasn''t lying. "But¡­ but¡­" Ellis didn''t want to accept it, but Grey gave him deaf ears, so he was forced to stop speaking about it. "Wait, all the people who save you, are they men?" Grey suddenly thought of something and asked. "Yeah, why do you ask?" Ellis nodded before asking. "Hmm, no wonder. Don''t believe in people, that''s all I can tell you. Other than close friends, don''t trust anyone else easily," Grey replied. ''Looks like his voice is actually more of a blessing. Heh! Those stupid people who would think he is a lady and would always try to rescue the beauty in distress, unfortunately for them, they will always get the surprise of their lives,'' Grey shook his head as he thought of why Ellis was always saved whenever he was in trouble. When he first heard Ellis'' screaming for help, he also thought he was a young lady. Of course, he wasn''t like those stupid guys who ran towards him. Had Ellis not come in his direction, he wouldn''t have helped him in any way. The duo continued walking with Ellis speaking almost nonstop throughout the time. Grey almost had the urge to block his ears, how could someone talk this much? ''Damn it? This guy''s almost as annoying as Klaus!'' This was the only thing in Grey''s head throughout their journey. Grey was forced to increase his speed so they could get to the bamboo forest, sooner rather than later. Chapter 423 - Attack From Below "We should be getting close, I remember this place!" Ellis said excitedly as they got close to a swamp. "Yeah, according to the map, if we continue heading in this direction, we would get there in about thirty minutes or so," Grey replied after looking at the map. He took a look at the swamp in front of them before shaking his head. "Unfortunately, we''ll be going around it," Grey added. "Huh? Why? Going around would take at least another two hours," Ellis asked, confused. "Did you go through here the last time?" Grey asked. "Yes, senior Zeke," Ellis nodded. "Hmm, it''s because they didn''t perceive you as a threat. Although I can''t be sure they''ll be able to sense me, I don''t like taking unnecessary risks," Grey mumbled. "Who''s they?" Ellis asked nervously. "Oh, there are two Overlord Plane beasts in this swamp. It''s weird since they shouldn''t be in this region," Grey replied nonchalantly. "What?!" Ellis exclaimed, sweating furiously. He passed through this place when he was exploring previously, even when he was running away from the bear, he passed this place as well. Now, Grey was telling him there was an Overlord Plane beast here, and it''s not one but rather, two! ''I¡­ I¡­ I almost died!'' He thought in horror. "Let''s move, there''s unrest in the swamp," Grey retreated, before turning in the other direction. "Yes, Senior!" Ellis yelled before rushing after Grey, fearing to stay even two meters away from him. One has to remember that he was almost killed by a Bear in the Early stages of the Origin Plane, there''s no contest once an Overlord Plane beast appears, it will kill him with a single smack. Grey found the appearance of the Overlord Plane beasts quite strange, although it was impossible, it was quite rare that the beasts would come this far out. According to what he had heard about this place, the essence energy in the Magical Beasts'''' forest increases the deeper one goes in. He could already confirm it since he had already noticed the difference in the essence here compared to the outer perimeters. The Overlord Plane beasts always stay in the deeper parts of the forest or around there since the essence would make them improve faster. One hour later. "Huh? Is something going on?" Grey raised a brow as he stared ahead of them. He could sense the aura of yet another Overlord Plane beast. Finding the first was already strange enough, yet he had sensed another one. "What''s it, senior?" Ellis asked, scared. "I''ve told you to stop calling me senior, my name''s Zeke," Grey said while rubbing his head, a little frustrated. "Okay, senior," Ellis nodded. "Fuck! You know what, suit yourself. There''s an Overlord Plane beast ahead of us," Grey gave up on Ellis, he could call him whatever he liked, he didn''t care anymore. "A¡­ A¡­ Another one?" Ellis asked, visibly shaking. Grey threw a glance in his direction, not expecting he was such an easily frightened person. Usually, all the people who come to the Magical Beasts'' forest are mostly fearless. Ellis was the person with the weakest resolve he had ever seen. "Yes, we''ll have to take a detour again," Grey nodded. ''If there are more Overlord Plane beasts, then something is definitely going on around this place or in the deeper parts of the Magical Beasts'' forest that made them come this far out. No matter what it is, getting involved with this strength of mine isn''t a good idea.'' He thought to himself. It''s just like when they went to the Chimera forest, the increase in beasts of the lightning element increased exponentially as they drew closer to the lightning tree. There might be a chance that there''s something out here that drew the attention of these beasts. The second possibility is that something major is happening in the deeper parts of the Magical Beasts'' forest that scared these beasts away. Sage Plane beasts are rumored to be in the deepest parts of the Magical Beasts'' forest, this is why it''s still under the control of magical beasts even though there are tons of treasures here that are beneficial to humans. ¡­. The duo once again took a detour, and after four hours and taking two more detours, they finally got to their location. Grey stood in front of the bamboo forest, looking at the bamboos. ''Hopefully, it''s here. If not, I''ll have to continue exploring the forest,'' He thought to himself. Just as he took a step inside, he hastily retreated and shoved Ellis to the side. Bang! The ground exploded, sending debris and bamboo shoots everywhere. Grey waved his hand and an earth wall appeared in front of him, blocking the debris and bamboo shoots coming in his direction. Ellis on the other hand had no idea what was going on, but on seeing the bamboo shoots coming towards him, he hastily set a water sphere around him that stopped the bamboo shoots and debris. "What¡­ what was that?" He asked while looking around nervously. Grey looked around before furrowing his brows, he didn''t sense anything, until the last moment when they were attacked. This meant whatever was hiding was very good at concealing itself. There''s also the possibility that it was a person, but he was more inclined to believe it was an attack from a beast. ''Hmm, whatever it is, it will surely attack again.'' He squinted his eyes. He had tried to feel the vibration of the earth since the attack looked like what came from underground, but he was unable to get anything. Grey and Ellis increased their vigilance, awaiting the next time the beast attacked again. Grey was looking around while closely monitoring the vibrations of the ground. He was able to sense the vibration the last time, this was what enabled him to dodge the attack. Ellis scurried over to where Grey was standing, unlike him, he didn''t even sense anything, so standing on his own was no different from inviting death. Just as he was about to get close to Grey. "Get back!" Grey yelled. "Huh!" Ellis panicked and immediately tried retreating. Unfortunately, he was a tad too slow and was caught in the attack. Boom! Chapter 424 - Attack From Below II Boom! "Ah!" Ellis'' feminine voice rang out in all directions. Grey couldn''t confirm if the attack was fatal on him or not, but since they were together, he hurried there to check if he was okay. "I''m¡­ I''m¡­ going to die!" On getting there, Grey was lost for words. Other than the small scratch on his leg, he was perfectly fine, yet he screamed like someone who was not only fatally injured, but it had been confirmed that he wouldn''t make it. "What the hell are you saying?" Grey couldn''t help but ask, his hand massaging his temples. "Wait¡­ I''m still alive? I¡­ I¡­ thought I would die," Ellis said with tears in his eyes. "If you continue lying there, I think you just might be," Grey said in an apathetic voice. Ellis shivered on hearing what Grey said and hastily stood up. On seeing how he stood up with such speed, Grey heaved a sigh. An injured companion is nothing more than dead weight in this place, especially given their current situation and the sudden increase of the Overlord Plane beasts in the area. "Thank you for warning me in time," Ellis said after standing up, although he was still slightly shaking from the fear, he should be fine. "It wouldn''t be nice to see you die, so there''s that." Grey said, he held his chin before continuing, "From the two attacks, we can ascertain that the attacks are coming from underground and that whatever is attacking us is an Earth Elementalist and an expert in concealing themselves," "Is there a way to defeat it?" Ellis asked. "Of course!" Grey replied. "Oh, that''s good." Ellis sighed in relief before asking, "So, how do we defeat it?" "I don''t know," Grey replied with a casual shrug. "What?" Ellis almost fainted. "I don''t know how to defeat it," Grey said with the same nonchalant tone. "But¡­ but¡­ you said there''s a way to defeat it?" Ellis stuttered. "Yes, there''s always a way to defeat any opponent. I just don''t know how to defeat this one," Grey replied while placing his hand on the ground. ''It''s no good, I still can''t sense the vibration.'' He thought to himself. "Doesn''t that mean we''re dead?" Ellis asked with horror. "No, I can probably escape easily from it. You on the other hand, not so sure," Grey replied in a straightforward manner. "Ah¡­ I don''t want to die! You¡­ you can defeat it senior!" Ellis went pale from fright. He fell down and hugged Grey''s legs, begging him with tears flowing from his eyes. "I can defeat it, I think. But I don''t have a way now," Grey said while pushing Ellis away from his legs. Ellis held onto his legs with his life, to him, Grey''s legs were currently the safest place to be. "Damn it! Let go of me and jump to the other side," Grey said before leaping into the air. Ellis looked at his left and right before jumping once again. Unfortunately, he was a bit too slow, again. "Ah!" His scream echoed around once again, but when Grey looked at him, he couldn''t help but be surprised. ''How is he able to always dodge it even when he''s already caught in the attack?'' He asked himself confused. He was still mid-air, so he saw the scene of Ellis being caught in the attack but escaping only by a hair''s breadth. ''Forget about that for now, attack!'' He pushed the thought of how Ellis escaped to the back of his head. Since he was above the attack of the beast, this was the perfect time to counterattack. Swoosh! His blue flames lit up the sky before a large fire snake came crashing into the place where the attack of the beast previously came from. Bang! A larger explosion rang out, scaring the hell out of Ellis. "Ah! I''m going to die! I''m going to die!" Ellis screamed as he ran away from the range of the aftereffect of the attack. Whoosh! A strong wind current suddenly blew around the forest, quickly blowing away the flames from the ground. Grey was still mid-air during this time, when he looked at the place of the explosion, he saw something furry burrowing into the ground. "Huh? A tail?" He mumbled. He saw what looked like the tail of a rat, but he wasn''t too sure since he only saw it within a second. ''I shouldn''t be wrong. We''ll have to draw it out again,'' He thought to himself before descending. "Ah!" Ellis was blown away by the unexpected wind current and he crashed almost twenty meters away. "Senior, you¡­ you¡­ almost killed them," He complained as soon as Grey landed not too far from him. "That was the only chance I had to attack. If I didn''t wait a little further because of you, I would''ve had it," Grey replied. He didn''t attack quickly because there was no way Ellis would''ve been able to escape from the attack range given the short time. "Are¡­ are you sure?" Ellis asked suspiciously. "Yes, now we just need you to act as bait to bring it out once again. I still can''t track it, so the only way to get it is when it comes out to attack," Grey said, smiling mischievously. Unfortunately, Ellis is unable to see his devilish expression. "Oh, that''s easy." Ellis waved it off. "That''s unexpected," Grey''s mumbled to himself, not expecting Ellis to accept immediately. "Wait, what?!" Ellis suddenly screamed after a few seconds. It was as if it was only after a while did he figure out what Grey said. "You, bait, me, hide," Grey said while pointing at Ellis then at himself. "What do you mean you bait me hide? You just want to kill me!" Ellis exclaimed, frightened. "Can you attack it?" Grey asked with a nonchalant tone. "Uhmm¡­ no. But I still won''t accept to be bait!" Ellis said with resolve. "It doesn''t change anything though, since we''re already here, it wouldn''t allow us to leave. Well, I can escape, you, not so sure," Grey said. "You¡­" Ellis'' eyes widened in fright. "Don''t worry, I won''t let you die," Grey reassured. Chapter 425 - Greys Fear "You better be telling the truth, or else my death will be on your head," Ellis finally decided to trust Grey since he said he wouldn''t let him die. Although, he didn''t really agree on his free will. If not for Grey saying the chances of him escaping was low, then he would''ve run away by now. Grey nodded before moving a few meters away. "Walk around, from what I''ve seen, it seems to only attack after sensing movements," He said to Ellis. Ellis gulped in fright, shaking a little from the fear. He looked at the distance between himself and Grey and started moving in his direction. Since the beast would be able to attack when he''s moving, then it didn''t matter what direction he faced. Besides, the closer he is to Grey, the safer he feels. While walking in Grey''s direction, he noticed how serious he was, this reassured him that Grey was throwing his life away. "Now!" Ellis suddenly heard Grey''s voice, but Grey was nowhere to be seen. Without delaying any further, he hastily dived forward, moving away from where he was standing. Boom! Bang! Two attacks rang out in the same place, at almost the same time, but the second one was only a second slower than the first attack. Ellis was sensible enough to create a water sphere to protect him from the aftereffects of the attacks. Swoosh! Bam! Another attack shot into the dust that was still in the process of rising completely. The sound of the attack hitting something rang out. Crash! Bang! A slightly large shadow flew out of the dust, crashing into the ground. A smaller shadow shot out of the dust very quickly, heading in the direction that the first shadow crashed. Boom! Bam! Bang! Grey immediately released a barrage of attacks on the shadow that first came out. He hadn''t gotten a proper view of it, but what was important was immobilizing it. Squeak! Rumble! Boom! A large rumbling sound resonated after the creation squeaked loudly. But it was followed by another attack from Grey. Squeal! The beast squealed in pain. On hearing the squeal, Grey suddenly froze, recalling a treacherous bunny he saw in the trial land. "Crap! I hate these things!" He exclaimed, although he said hate, one could actually sense a little bit of fear in his voice. The dust soon died down, and the beast appeared in Grey and Ellis'' view. "A mole," Ellis said while looking at the mole which was still squealing in pain. Grey heaved a sigh of relief, although he had seen the tail of a rat-like creature previously, he still had a terrible fright when he heard it squealing. For some reason, Grey actually has a built-in fear of bunnies since his last encounter with that particular bunny. It''s surprising how he was afraid of all bunnies because of one. "So, this is what has been trying to kill me? Hmph! I want to see how it can try that with senior around," Ellis walked closer to the mole and kicked it. Squeak! It squeaked loudly. The squeaking sound terrified Ellis since he was very close to it and he quickly retreated to a location he deemed to be safe, which was behind Grey. Grey didn''t speak much, shaking his head as he walked towards the mole. From how the mole was acting, he could tell it was injured since it hadn''t tried to dig back into the ground. There was also a few injuries around its body as well. ''It''s only in the Late stages of the Origin Plane. We were lucky, had it been in the Overlord Plane, then Ellis truly might die,'' He thought inside. This was what he found worrying about the issue previously, since he couldn''t sense the mole, there was no way he knew what stage it was in. If it were to be in the Overlord Plane, then things would''ve been different. ''I have no use for the core,'' He raised his head to look at Ellis. "Do you want its core?" He pointed at the mole. Ellis froze, not expecting Grey to ask him such a question. Most people come to the Magical Beasts'' forest to acquire beast''s cores. Since they were quite valuable, no one would want to give them away. "I can let it go if you don''t want it," Grey when he saw the unresponding Ellis. "No, no. I mean, yes, yes I want it," Ellis hurriedly rushed over. He could tell the beast was at least in the Mid stages of the Origin Plane, if he is able to sell this in Lapis City, he would earn quite a sum. Even if it isn''t as important as the core of an Overlord Plane beast, it was still important. Grey nodded before moving in hand quickly. The mole squealed loudly before it finally stopped moving. He opened the space in its head so Ellis could remove the core. "It''s a Late stage Origin Plane beast, so you should know how much it sells," Grey explained. "Thank you, senior," Ellis said in excitement. "It''s nothing, you were the one who agreed to be the bait, so you deserve it," Grey waved it off. Although he would need the cores of beasts for forgemastering, he didn''t want to start with these ones. He planned to obtain some cores on his way out of here, then he would shut himself out and start practicing his forge mastering. Presently, he only had theoretical knowledge of it, and not enough practical knowledge. Other than the time in the Academy, he hadn''t tried doing anything that had to do with forging again. "We should head in," Grey turned to the bamboo forest. This was the reason he came here, hopefully, he could find the pond here. Only now did he realize he was naive when negotiating with the young man back at the Chimera forest.. He didn''t ask him which part of the Magical Beasts'' forest the pond was located, and neither did the young man bother to tell him. Chapter 426 - Suspicion Grey and Ellis entered the bamboo forest, as soon as they entered, Grey spread out his spiritual sense. ''*Sigh* I don''t think it''s here. But that thing is surprising, hopefully, it''s not what this guy''s searching for.'' Grey thought while staring into the forest. Albeit not finding the pond within his sensory range, he could sense something else close by. He didn''t know what it was exactly, but he could tell it wasn''t simple. When he sensed it, he recalled Ellis telling him there was something here that he wanted. "Do you know the location of what you''re searching for?" Grey turned to look at Ellis. "Yes, senior. Follow me," Ellis replied happily before taking the lead. Grey didn''t speak any further and followed behind him, he kept his spiritual senses out just in case he could find the pond. His senses couldn''t cover the entire bamboo forest, so he didn''t have any idea if it was here or not. As they walked further into the bamboo forest, Grey got a clearer grasp of what he previously sensed. It was radiating the aura of the water element. Even though what he was searching for was a pond, this wasn''t it. ''This is likely what he''s searching for. *Sigh* Why do I always have to get into so much trouble for others'' sake?'' Grey thought when he also sensed the aura of people there as well. The people there had also sensed them, so they were probably expecting them. "Hey, stay vigilant," He warned Ellis. There''s a chance that those people would attack as soon as they got there, so he felt it was better to warn Ellis beforehand. "I know, senior, I can sense them as well," Ellis nodded. Grey didn''t speak any further and continued walking behind him nonchalantly, he would occasionally run his hands across the bamboo leaves. After walking for almost three minutes, they got to where the treasure was located. Unfortunately, Grey didn''t find anything related to the pond he was searching for. In front of them was a cave abode, Grey guessed it was man-made given how it looked. It even had what looked like a door in front of it. "What you''re searching for should be inside this place," Grey said. He had heard of how some experts would live in the Magical Beasts'' forest, and this is the first of such abodes he had seen. According to rumors, such abodes hide lots of treasures. ''The person who stayed here must''ve been a Water Elementalist.'' He looked around. He couldn''t deny it, staying in this bamboo forest would be very peaceful. Other than the occasional beasts which would intrude, it wasn''t bad. As long as the expert sets up some arrays, they could stay here peacefully. After getting involved with arrays and forge mastering, Grey knew how important it was for one to stay in a peaceful environment. The better the environment, the clearer he could think. ¡­. Rumble¡­ The stone door in front of the cave abode rolled to the left side. As soon as it opened up. Swoosh! Boom! Bang! Multiple attacks flew out of the cave abode, heading straight for Grey and Ellis. Since the duo was already expecting this, they didn''t have any problems with moving out of the way. "Hehehe, if it isn''t Miss Ellis," A mocking laughter rang out from the cave. What Grey found surprising was what they called Ellis. Although he thought he was a lady the first time he saw him, he didn''t think of calling him Miss at any time. ''Looks like he is familiar with these people.'' Grey thought inside. Since they were people Ellis was acquainted with, then there''s a chance that he might resolve this without having to fight. But from the way they addressed him, he didn''t think the chances of that happening would be high. A middle-aged man was the first to walk out of the cave abode, followed by four other men and two women. All seven of them were either in the Eighth or Ninth stage of the Origin Plane. "I didn''t think he would make it here," One of the women said, her voice slightly rueful. It was almost like they didn''t wish to see him. "It''s you guys!" Ellis exclaimed in surprise. "Of course it''s us. Now, tell us, how did you escape from the bear?" The middle-aged man asked curiously. "I was helped by this senior," Ellis pointed at Grey, not even offended by the way the group was addressing and speaking to him. "Uh, wait, how did you people find out about the bear?" He suddenly thought of something and asked. When he was first attacked by the bear, the group was nowhere to be found. They got separated when they just got to the bamboo forest, on his way to find them, he was unfortunate and attracted the bear. "How can you be this dumb?" Grey, who was by the side, couldn''t help but ask. Even without interacting with these people, he could tell they didn''t like Ellis. There''s a chance that they were even the ones who caused his attack. ''Wait, how did he survive escaping from the bear for such a long distance?'' He thought, confused. Given the distance from here to where he helped Ellis, it was almost impossible for Ellis to stay alive under the pursuit of the bear unless he had the lightning or wind element which would''ve given him a boost in terms of speed. It was just like the time he was almost hit by the attack of the mole, Grey was certain that given Ellis'' speed, there was no way he could escape it. But for some reason, he managed to escape it by a hair''s breadth. "What do you mean, senior?" Ellis asked, his face showing pure innocence. He didn''t understand why Grey asked him such a question. "These people obviously set you up, yet here you are, smiling in their faces," Grey decided to point it out to him. "No, senior. They would never do such a thing. If not for them, I''d have been dead," Ellis explained. Grey shook his head with a sigh, how in the world is Ellis still alive given his reasoning? To be honest, he had no idea. "And who are you?" The middle-aged man asked, turning his attention to Grey. "A passerby," Grey shrugged and moved to the side. Since Ellis was being stupid, then there was no use helping him, not just that, but he was suspicious of him. If this group were to kill him, it would be to his advantage since he would get the chance to obtain whatever was here. "Good, make sure to act like one, hmph!" The middle-aged man snorted before walking in Ellis'' direction. "Since you''re here, why don''t you help us in collecting the item?" He put his hand across Ellis'' shoulder. "What item?" Ellis asked, confused. "Don''t worry, you''ll find out when we get there," The middle-aged man snickered as he shoved Ellis in the direction of the cave. "Okay, looks like there''s also something there you guys needed. Why didn''t you say so earlier?" Ellis asked as they headed into the cave. Grey was the only one left outside. ''Hmm, is he truly naive, or could this be an act?'' He looked at the cave, suspiciously. Chapter 427 - Its Not Worth It Grey stood outside the cave, after pondering for a while, he decided to walk inside as well. The cave was that big, but there was another passageway that led deeper into the cave. As soon as Grey walked in, he could sense a murderous aura, but it surprisingly wasn''t from the group who came in with Ellis, rather, it''s from the cave itself. ''An array? Most likely a trap array. But, if it is, how did they escape from it?'' He thought while looking at the group. He got his answer after staring around the cave, there were two dead bodies lying on the ground with blood all over them. It''s clear to see that those two were sacrificed so that the group could escape. Now Grey understood why these guys were pushing Ellis forward, since he''s always lucky and is able to dodge all those deadly attacks by a hair''s breadth, then there''s a chance that he might be able to do the same here. The traps in the array will only go off when one steps on it, without a quick reaction, there''s no way these people could dodge it. And since they don''t know where to step on, they can''t advance. This array wasn''t like Grey initially thought it was. An array like this gives one the chance of retreating, but advancing is extremely difficult. ''Looks like whoever stayed here is a kindhearted person. Whoever it is gives the people who would come in here a way out, making sure their cave is not a death ground for many. Only those who are greedy would want to advance no matter what.'' thought Grey. "What are you doing here?" The middle-aged man looked at Grey viciously. "Do you own this place?" Grey asked, apathetically. "Yes," The middle-aged man nodded since he knew what Grey wanted to do. "Oh, is that so? Why don''t you lead the way then?" Grey asked with a smirk. "Captain, should we deal with this guy before advancing?" One of the men in the group asked the middle-aged man while staring at Grey with a vicious gaze. "Let him be," The captain of the group said before turning around. None of the others knew why he didn''t order them to attack, but since he had decided, they didn''t question him. Grey scoffed with speaking any further, while Ellis wiped off his sweat. He thought the duo was about to start fighting. He had been traveling with Grey for a few hours, so he wasn''t really too bothered about him. He was more concerned about the well-being of the group since the chances of Grey killing them were quite high, according to his hypothesis. "Move," The captain shoved Ellis in the back, making him move forward due to the momentum. The passageway was around five meters wide, and from what Grey could tell, there was at least a trap every two feet. This would make advancing extremely difficult. After being shoved forward, Ellis entered the passageway, and the ground he stepped on lit up. ''Crap!'' Grey cursed out cause he knew that Ellis just triggered the array. Boom! "Ah!" An explosion, followed by Ellis'' scared scream rang out almost simultaneously. ''Impossible, he shouldn''t be able to dodge it,'' Grey looked at Ellis with doubt starting to grow in his mind. Given his speed, even he would have a difficult time dodging that. Yet, Ellis dodged it so effortlessly. Although he made it seem like he was only barely able to, Grey was no fool. ''He''s definitely hiding something.'' This was the only conclusion Grey could come to, and what Ellis is hiding is most likely his true strength. Grey wasn''t a hundred percent sure, but he was at least forty percent sure about it. If he were the one who was told to pass through this place, then he would have to rely on his knowledge of arrays to pass through it, either that or he would use his space element to move past it entirely. "Haha, I don''t know how you managed to dodge it, but you''ll be our guide forward. Keep moving, before the array restores its powers," The captain of the group laughed happily before ordering Ellis to continue moving. Grey studied the array, and it was just like the captain said, it was already slowly restoring its strength. If the group didn''t move quickly, then they might be caught up by it. "But¡­ but¡­" "But what? You better start moving or those attacks would be the last of your worries," The captain cut Ellis off while giving him a threatening look. Ellis gulped in fear, before taking a step forward. On dropping his foot, he hastily retreated, but to his surprise, an attack didn''t go off. "Move," The captain took a step forward, making Ellis run into him when he retreated. "Sir, this¡­ I''ll die," Ellis tried explaining. "No, you won''t. I don''t know how you keep doing it, but I''m at least more confident in you passing through this place compared to any of us here," The captain said. "Now, move," He later added while tapping Ellis on the shoulder as if encouraging him. Ellis staggered forward, after clenching his fists with gritted teeth, he advanced forward. Whoosh! Boom! Bam! Bang! The array kept lighting up and sending out attacks, but just like the first time, Ellis managed to dodge them, all by a tiny margin. Grey, who still hadn''t taken a step forward, was staring at Ellis with sharp eyes. ''There''s no denying it, he''s definitely more powerful than what he shows.'' He thought inside. After thinking up to this point, he thought of retreating since he didn''t like being involved with people like this. Since Ellis was hiding his strength, then he naturally had an ulterior motive. Grey wasn''t one hundred percent sure about his conjectures, but he felt it was better safe than sorry. Since he had the space element, then escaping from here wouldn''t be a problem. ''It''s not worth it.'' His curiously urged him to follow them, but thinking about it properly, he felt taking such risks wasn''t worth it. Chapter 428 - People Will Be People "Huh, it''s shut?" Grey stared at the door. After the array lit up the first time, the door closed shut. Grey didn''t take note of it since he was more focused on how Ellis was going to escape, and how the array worked. ''I guess I have no choice.'' He thought. With that thought, he sat down crossed leg. For now, he didn''t plan on following them, once the group gets past the array, he might decide to go then, but for now, he didn''t want to involve himself with them. While Grey was sitting down, the group continued advancing. "Captain, look, he isn''t coming along," One of the ladies in the group informed the captain of Grey''s strange behavior. The captain looked at him but quickly focused on the path ahead of them. "Forget about it, we should focus on what''s more important," He said. "What if he''s only waiting for us to bring the item out before he attacks us?" One of the men asked. "Then, he will have to lose his life," The captain said with confidence. "Hehe, if you say so captain," Another man said while licking his lips. "Sir¡­ can¡­ can I rest?" Ellis'' weak voice came from ahead of them. "Keep moving, the arrays are restoring," The captain said, not even bothering about how haggard Ellis currently looked from the multiple near-death encounters from the array''s attacks. From Grey''s estimate, they were currently almost halfway through the trap array. If not for his suspicion, he would be certain that Ellis would definitely die from the shock of all the residual attacks that were hitting him, but his suspicion is saying otherwise. "If we continue at this rate, I''ll die before we even get to the other side," Ellis begged with tears in his eyes. "Don''t worry, you won''t die, you''ve been surviving till now, haven''t you?" The captain said before taking a step towards Ellis, his murderous gaze sweeping his entire body. Ellis felt chills from the gaze and took a step back. With no choice, he was forced to continue moving forward. Boom! Bang! Bam! The attacks kept ringing out, sometimes they would be followed by Ellis'' pained cries. Grey, who was sitting by the side, opened his eyes to look at the pitiful-looking Ellis. ''Could it be that he only has a knack for escaping at the last moment?'' He asked himself when he saw blood on the body of Ellis. He watched them for a little further, contemplating if he should step in to help Ellis or not. From how Ellis looked, he didn''t think he could endure any further. On the passageway. "Sir, please, any more and I''ll truly die," Ellis burst out crying while holding onto the leg of the captain. His eyes were already starting to close, there are signs of blood in them, he was bleeding from his nose, mouth, and ears. He could still hear the ringing sound of the attacks exploding from the ground. "We''re already close to the end of the passageway, six meters more. You wouldn''t die now when your goal is right in front of you, would you?" The captain asked. "I don''t want to die, but I can''t go any further, or else I might die," Ellis continued begging. "Hmm, I really want you to rest, but you see, the array is already starting to recover, if you don''t move in the next two minutes, then the person standing at the back would die from the attack. You don''t want that right?" The captain asked with a smile. "Damn it, since you say so, then why don''t we all die together?" Ellis let go of his leg, a crazed look appearing on his face. Since the captain wanted to kill him, he wasn''t going to take a step forward. He was certain that at least five or even six of the eight people in the group would die if they want to pass through. Then there''s still the return journey. The captain looked at the crazed Ellis, and he was sure he would not move anymore. Presently, he was caught between two minds, either he sacrifices one of his members at the back so they could wait for Ellis to recover, or he forced Ellis to move forward. Both choices come with a huge disadvantage, especially Ellis dying. If Ellis dies, then there''s no hope for them to return. But if he sacrifices any of his members, then he would lose the trust of his comrades. He turned to look at his group, they all heard the conversation between Ellis and their captain, and the one who was more scared was the guy standing at the back of the group. "Does any of you have any healing tonic?" The captain asked. "No, we used them when we first entered this place, and that time we helped this moron," One of the ladies said, pointing at Ellis at the end of her speech. "*Sigh* Fine, I''ll go to the back, you better recover quickly," The captain decided to be the one to stand at the back. He managed to get to the back without stepping outside the place they used in coming here. Since two people couldn''t stand in the same position, he had to maneuver there at the risk of dying. His comrades all felt warm on seeing the gesture of their captain, especially the guy at the back. A minute later. "Tell the boy to move," The captain said. "I still need to rest," Ellis said. He was not only hurt but he was also exhausted, moving any further is currently impossible for him. "If he doesn''t move, I''m not going to be the only one to die, but everyone else," The captain said. When the group heard this, they felt he was correct since Ellis could decide not to move until all of them dies. "Move!" The man at the front shoved Ellis forward, not bothering about his condition. "No, please!" Ellis screamed, but he couldn''t stop himself from moving forward after being pushed forward. Boom! "Ah!" The explosion was followed by Ellis'' scream, but for some reason, the scream sounded longer than the group thought. When the explosion died down, a look of extreme shock appeared on their faces. "People will be people," Chapter 429 - A Trick "You can stop screaming now, or I might just toss you back in there," Grey said emotionlessly. Ellis was stunned on hearing his voice, looking around, he noticed he wasn''t on the passageway anymore, instead, he was on the safe side of it. "Senior, you¡­ you saved me again," Ellis fell on his knees, tears and snot all over his face as he hugged Grey''s leg. "Don''t make me regret it," Grey said as he dodged Ellis'' attempted hug. Ellis fell on the ground, screaming from the pain that was wracking his body. "Here," Grey passed a bottle to him. Without even looking at the contents, Ellis gulped it down. "Reckless, that was meant for¡­ *Sigh* Forget it, it doesn''t change anything," Grey looked at Ellis, hopelessly. How could he drink the contents of the bottle without even asking what it was or even inspecting it? Isn''t he by any chance scared of being poisoned? The group who were still in the passageway looked at Grey and Ellis in shock, the only question running through their minds was how did Grey get to the other side of the passageway so quickly. He not only got there quickly, but they didn''t even realize when he left his spot. "How did you get there?" The captain of the group was the first to regain himself and ask. "Simple, I walked," Grey replied before turning around, heading deeper into the cave. Grey''s reply stunned the group. "What do you mean you walked? There''s no other way to get there other than this passageway," The captain asked, hoping that Grey might tell them the secret he used. Unfortunately, Grey didn''t give them a glance, neither did he answer them. He headed into the cave and soon disappeared. "Sir, I''ll be going now," Ellis stood up, bowed to the group, and ran after Grey. "Ellis, come back, you''re fine now, why don''t you help us get through the rest part of the passageway?" The captain tried to persuade Ellis with the gentlest voice he could muster. Ellis whistled loudly as he ran after Grey, and the group couldn''t deny it, for someone who had a very feminine voice, his whistling was pretty loud. "Damn it! Captain, what should we do?" The man standing at the front of the group couldn''t help but ask. "What else can we do? We''ll advance of course," The captain said nonchalantly. ''Hehe, why did you think I willingly agreed to come back? I knew the kid was done, there''s no way I''m going to take the risk of being the one who would attempt this piece of shit, I''m not even twenty percent confident in dodging it.'' He thought inside, but his face didn''t betray his true feelings, so no one knew what was on his mind. The man standing at the front of the group shivered in fear, from what he could feel, he wasn''t confident in being able to escape. Now, he regretted not being the one who went to the back of the line. ''The captain had already predicted this, no wonder he went back so freely. I''ve been wondering why such a selfish man would make such a selfless decision.'' It didn''t take long for some of the group to know the captain''s goal of going to the back of the group, but the few people at the back didn''t care, given the way things stand, only the first four people would die. The man standing at the front refused to take a step forward, he was shaking from the fear, now he knew just what Ellis was going through when he was standing in front of them. "Can¡­ can we switch places?" He turned to the man behind him and asked. "I''m good," The man behind him shook his head. "Move! We don''t have all day," The captain ordered. After fidgeting for a few more seconds, the man prepared himself to dodge the attack. As soon as his foot touched the ground, it instantly lit up. Boom! Bang! The sound of a human body hitting the roof of the passageway rang out, the body crashed into the ground, landing in the spot where it stepped on. Deep in the cave. Boom! "Senior, looks like they''ve tried moving forward," Ellis said after hearing the explosion. "No need to think of them, they''re all going to die here anyway," Grey said nonchalantly. The duo continued heading forward before seeing what looked like an exit. Compared to the dark cave, there was light coming from the road ahead of them. Grey didn''t think much about it, because he could sense what they were searching for emanating from this place. He was the first to take a step in, all of a sudden, he disappeared. Bang! An attack rang out from where he was previously standing. Ellis looked ahead of him in surprise before mumbling under his breath, "Impossible." Grey soon appeared behind Ellis, looking at where he was previously standing, multiple ice shards could be seen on the ground. If he didn''t escape in time, then he would''ve been pierced by the ice shards. "This person really doesn''t want anyone obtaining their treasure," Grey said before moving forward once again. Ellis didn''t immediately move forward, instead, he kept staring at Grey in surprise. "Senior, how were you able to dodge that?" He couldn''t help but ask. "A trick," Grey replied offhandedly. He soon disappeared into the light coming out of the other side of the cave. Ellis finally walked forward. When Grey entered the place, he couldn''t help but reminisce about his Teacher. This place was a valley, just like the one his Teacher stayed in, the only difference was that this one was very small compared to his Teacher''s valley. In the center of the valley was a pond that was emanating a high concentration of water essence. "How did you know this was here since you didn''t come in?" Grey asked curiously. "I sensed it, I''m very sensitive towards any treasures that have to do with the water element" Ellis replied proudly. Chapter 430 - Offer ''Could it be that I was wrong about him?'' Grey thought while staring at Ellis. He had some suspicions about Ellis, especially after seeing how he kept dodging fatal strikes at the last minute. But when he was pushed into the array by the group, he watched him, and knew he was too exhausted to move any more. If he were truly hiding his strength, then he would''ve dodged it at the last moment, but he didn''t. Luckily for Ellis, he had already prepared to teleport to the other side of the passageway, all he had to do was to come out of the space tunnel when he got to where Ellis was and dragged him along. He decided maybe Ellis had a skill or a treasure that might be helping him with those last minute escapes, but his suspicion didn''t die though. He had always been a cautious person, so there was no way his suspicion would die just like that. "I guess this is what brought you here, you can have it then." Grey said before walking in another direction. He wanted to explore the place, how these places were made has always intrigued him. ''Is there a way that they create these places or are they natural?'' He thought while studying the small hill in the valley. Unlike his Teacher''s valley, there was no house here. Ellis watched Grey observing the place in shock, he couldn''t believe Grey just let him take the treasure without even taking as much as a glance at it. "People like senior are very rare," He muttered before walking towards the pond. On getting there, he dived inside, traveling over thirty meters in a second, it was almost like he was one with the water. If Grey were to see him, he would be stunned. Even though Ellis was a Water Elementalist, it would be impossible to move with such speed and ease unless he had gotten to the Overlord Plane. After almost twenty seconds, Ellis got to his destination. He was currently standing upright, looking at the glowing blue orb at the bottom of the pond. He stretched his left hand out, grabbing onto the orb. Ellis looked around the pond, as if searching for something, after seeing nothing, he sat down crossed leg, while still at the bottom of the pond. Grey who was in the valley was still studying the valley, hoping to find something that would at least give him a clue about these places. He looked around for about five minutes, but didn''t find anything. ''Huh? How come he''s not out yet?'' He suddenly recalled Ellis had gone into the pond for a while now. He remembered seeing him jumping into the pond, but he hadn''t felt any disturbance from the pond yet which made the situation strange. ''Is there a chance that there might be a beast in the pond?'' After the thought flashed through his head, he quickly disapproved of it since he would have sensed it if a beast were to attack. Besides, he could clearly sense that Ellis was still in the pond, his aura is very close to whatever was emanating the water essence aura. He walked towards the pond, but stopped around five meters from it. The reason for this was that he could sense some people coming towards the valley, radiating intense killing intent. "Oh, four of them survived, how unexpected!" He turned around, looking at the entrance of the valley. He thought at most only two of them would survive, but for four of them to survive meant that they were strong. "Where''s that little brat? I''ll kill him!" The captain''s enraged voice could be heard from outside the valley. Grey prepared an attack while waiting for them, since they were going to fight anyway, why not take one of them out as soon as they stepped into the valley? The array that attacked him when he stepped into the valley hadn''t recovered yet so he had no choice but to do it''s work. "Captain, don''t worry, none of the¡­" Boom! Bang! Grey exploded out with a terrifying attack as soon as the person at the front of the group took a step inside the valley. The figure was sent flying, but Grey frowned when he saw what happened. His attack was blocked. "Such a shameless act, I thought you were bigger than this," The captain''s voice, which was filled with mockery, rang out. The group of four walked into the valley with confident strides, all four of them were the strongest amongst the group of seven. They survivors of the group were two men and two ladies. All four of them were in the Ninth stage of the Origin Plane, and given how the person at the front managed to block Grey''s attack, it showed they were no pushovers. "I was only doing this place a favor, I was also attacked when I walked in here. Since I''m an upright person, I feel we should all be treated equally," Grey replied with a sneer. "That''s¡­ such a great explanation. I like you, why don''t you join us?" The captain laughed before suddenly proposing. "Captain?" The three survivors of the group looked at the captain simultaneously. "What do you say? With your strength and whatever trick you used in passing the passageway, you would be very useful to us. I don''t even mind making you the vice captain of the group," The captain continued. It was like he didn''t hear what the others in his group said. "I''ll have to pass, I''m not interested in traveling with others," Grey replied nonchalantly. "A shame, I truly don''t want somebody like you to die such a worthless death. I know you''re only recently acquainted with that moron, but fighting for him is a bit too much, don''t you think so? Why don''t you give my offer a second thought?" The captain asked. "Like I said the first time, I don''t like traveling with people." Grey said with both hands behind him. "*Sigh* A shame, truly a shame.. I guess you''ll have to die then," The captain shook his head with a rueful expression on his face. Chapter 431 - Warm Up Battle "Kill him," The captain said to the group before walking towards the pond. He could sense the treasure was inside the pond, and close to the pond was Ellis'' aura ''That brat, he''s trying to get his hands on something I''ve set my sights on. Hmph! If not for the fact that we need him to get out of here, I''d have killed him immediately,'' He snorted coldly. Boom! He suddenly retreated two steps back, an attack landing on where he was previously standing. "Are you that tired of living?" He glared at Grey with an angry face. "Do you think the likes of you can kill me?" Grey smirked. "You shouldn''t be so full of yourself, I don''t know who you are, but whoever gets in our way dies," The captain turned around, no longer interested in going into the pond. He wanted to join hands with the others and kill Grey quickly. "Heh! I can say the same for you four," Grey chuckled. "Make sure he suffers before he dies," The captain changed his order. Previously, he just wanted Grey to die, now, he wanted him to die in the slowest possible way. The two ladies were the first to attack, one of them was a Fire Elementalist, while the other was a Wind Elementalist. With the first attack, Grey knew the battle wouldn''t be easy, the coordination between the ladies was insane, what was more terrifying was their ability to amplify each other''s attacks. The wind element increases the intensity of the fire element attacks, making it far superior when compared to a normal Fire Elementalist''s attack in the same stage. Even Grey''s blue fire paled in comparison. Boom! Bam! Bang! Grey managed to block the attack, but the force of the attack pushed him almost ten meters backward. Grey squinted his eyes, and for the first time in a while, he reevaluated his opponents. He took a step forward and exploded out with blue flames. His attacks shot towards the two ladies, but before they got there, an ice wall formed in front of them, blocking the attacks. Just as his attack was blocked by the ice wall, multiple lightning spears shot in his direction. Boom! Bam! He dodged the attacks, but for some reason, the attacks didn''t die down, instead, they kept getting fiercer. Splash! ''Huh? When did water get here?'' Grey, who was focused on dodging the lightning spears didn''t know when the ground he was standing on got covered with water. His pupils dilated when he suddenly recalled something. ''Oh crap!'' Buzz! The lightning current was transferred by the water, and for the first time, he was electrocuted by lightning. The blue vest he was wearing managed to block most of the lightning attacks, but he still felt the last part of the attacks. Immediately after he was electrocuted, he was picked into the air uncontrollably by a rising tornado. The tornado was then fueled by the fire and lightning element, giving off a beautiful red tornado with silvery lines flashing across it. Ice shards appeared mid-air, shooting into the tornado repeatedly. GWhoosh! Bang! A large blue ball of fire exploded out from the middle of the tornado, forcefully blowing the tornado apart. Bam! Boom! The fireball spread out further in all directions, but the group easily dealt with the ones coming in his direction. Grey soon appeared in front of the group, his hair was a mess and his clothes has some burn marks which indicated that he sustained some damages from the fiery tornado. "You look alright, lets see how many more you can take," The captain of the group said with a snicker. Although he was impressed by how Grey was able to forcefully break their attacks, he knew that attack wouldn''t be able to deal with him since he was able to cross the passageway and even save someone in the process. "I was just getting warmed up," Grey replied while looking at his tattered clothes. ''Luckily, I always bring multiple sets of clothes, else, I might''ve started robbing pants again.'' He shook his head when he recalled his experience in the trial land. With the storage ring, he has space for keeping multiple sets of clothes. Presently, he usually keeps most of his clothes in his storage ring. "Oh, we haven''t even started to warm up." The captain said, before turning to the others, "Let''s show this fool how we take care of passersby who poke their noses in other people''s business," "Gladly, captain," The trio said simultaneously. They moved to four different positions, putting Grey in the middle of the formation they made. With opponents in four different locations, Grey didn''t panic. When he sensed the group coming, he made two inscriptions since he knew he would be fighting against a group of four. Swoosh! Boom! He was the first to attack, targeting the Wind Elementalist amongst the group. The lady was able to dodge his attack, before sending out an attack. The others followed suit, attacking Grey from behind, forcing him to block their attacks. Bam! Bang! They kept exchanging moves, but Grey was at a disadvantage from the get-go. Although this wasn''t the first time he was fighting against a group, this was the first time he was fighting against one this well organized and strong. He suddenly thought of what would''ve happened if the others were still alive, he would''ve most likely escaped, or even started using his space element from the start. Bang! Grey was forced back by a lightning attack, and the direction he retreated was where the Fire Elementalist was standing. With Grey''s back turned to the lady, and given that he lost his bearing from the lightning attack, she didn''t hold back when she unleashed a terrifying fire snake towards him. Boom! The fire snake was stopped halfway by a lightning attack. "Huh? Who did that?" The Fire Elementalist looked at the Lightning Elementalist suspiciously, but she knew he wouldn''t block her attack. "There''s no need to think too much about it, look up," The captain of the group said while looking up. The others did the same, and they saw the lightning inscription hanging in the air. "An Inscriber, this will be fun," The captain said. Chapter 432 - Shall We? Boom! All five of them attacked at the same time, Grey using two inscriptions to attack as well. He deflected the attacks of the Fire, Lightning, and Wind Elementalist, while using his superior speed to dodge the attack of the Water Elementalist. Bang! Bam! Although Grey was fighting against four people, he was still able to fight them to a stalemate. There are times where he was affected by their attacks, but he had been able to keep himself fairly safe. Seeing how Grey is able to keep up with them, the group couldn''t help but feel apprehensive. Other than the first time they were able to get a good strike at him, they haven''t been able to replicate it. "Captain." One of the ladies looked at the Water Elementalist a little worriedly. "Don''t worry, just stay calm. We''ll break through his defense eventually," The captain reassured the others. He found Grey''s performance impressive, nothing more. If he were to focus on only defending, then he wouldn''t have a problem with holding out against a group of four. ''What really matters is how long he can hold on for,'' He thought to himself. After getting reassured by the captain, the group calmed down and continued their routine attacks, making sure to always attack with precision. Grey focused fully on defending, with the help of the two inscriptions he made, as well as his insane speed, he was dodging and blocking most of their attacks with his. "Up!" The Wind Elementalist yelled while raising both hands. A strong wind current suddenly sprang up from the ground where Grey was standing. Having experienced this thing before, Grey used the earth element to merge his feet with the ground, making it impossible for the rising tornado to pick him off the ground. "A Multi-Elementalist!" The captain exclaimed when he saw this, surprise evident in his voice. The others also noticed it the same time the captain noticed it, and shock was written all over their faces. This was the first time any of them was seeing a Multi-Elementalist, so their reaction was expected. But like the seasoned veterans they were, they quickly resumed their offense, this time, with more ferocity. Boom! Bang! Bam! The battle started intensifying, the pressure Grey was facing naturally increased with the intensity of the battle. Although he had multiple elements, he couldn''t attack with all of them at the same, at most, four elements. He would train on it on some occasions, this was why he had been able to increase the number of elements to four. While defending, he focused on the captain and turned the ground where he was standing into mud. Being taken unaware, the captain lost his balance, almost falling face first forward. Grey followed up with another attack, but the trio attacked him simultaneously, not just them, even the captain who was falling attacked since he knew Grey would attack him when he lost his balance. His attack was off though since he didn''t know the exact location Grey was standing since his eyes were currently facing the ground. On seeing all three attacks, Grey was stuck between forcibly taking an attack then using the opportunity to kill the captain. It didn''t take him up to a second before he came up with a decision. He suddenly blinked twice, before disappearing to the shock of the trio who attacked him. Boom! An explosion rang out the moment he disappeared, when the trio turned to look, they saw a big dust cloud rising in the position where the captain was previously located. "What?" Grey''s surprised voice could be heard from the dust. Swoosh! Bang! Grey flew out of the dust cloud, crashing into the ground. "Everyone, spread out your spiritual senses. There''s a technique he uses that gives him unparalleled speed," The captain''s voice came out from the dust as it was starting to settle down. When the group looked, they saw the captain covered in ice armor that had cracks all over, and blood could be seen coming out from the side of his mouth. They heaved a sigh of relief when they saw that he was fine, although slightly injured. Grey stood up from the rubble he was in, after dusting his body, he looked straight at the captain of the group. He couldn''t believe his space element was detected. ''He didn''t detect it, he only sensed the ripples in space when I was coming out from the tunnel. I''m still not as good with the space element as I thought,'' he thought while staring in the direction of the captain. From what the captain said, he was able to ascertain that he didn''t know of the space element. Grey could only attribute the captain sensing it to luck. "How unfortunate, but I have to ask, how did you sense me?" Grey asked before walking forward. His robe has long since exposed his face after this attack. Even when he was lifted into the air by the tornado previously, and some parts of his clothes burning, the part covering his face was okay. "Easy, I kept my spiritual senses out while we were fighting. I''ve been wondering how you managed to get past the passageway without touching the array, you not only passed through it, but you also managed to save someone while you were at it," The captain said with a smile, before adding, "I sensed something when the kid disappeared so I wanted to confirm my suspicion," Grey looked at the captain who had a proud expression on his face, he couldn''t deny it, he was surprised that this man was able to sense the space ripples. ''Looks like some people are generally more sensitive to the space element.'' He was a little surprised by this discovery. "I never thought you''d be so young," The captain said. Grey shrugged, not replying. After walking a little closer to the group, he smiled before spreading out his hand, "Shall we?" The captain nodded to his group and they spread out once again, attacking as soon as they spread out. Boom! Bam! Bang! After all four of them attacked, they were surprised to see Grey''s inscriptions attacking him as well. What happened next stunned the group. Chapter 433 - Overwhelming Space Element Grey vanished from where the attacks were about to land, in his place was the unprepared Lightning Elementalist. Boom! "Ah!" An explosion rang out, followed by a scream which didn''t last up to two seconds before dying down. "Ronald!" The Wind Elementalist amongst the two ladies screamed in horror. The captain of the group and the Fire Elementalist had their mouths and eyes wide open after witnessing what just happened. He could at least come up with an explanation when Grey attacked him, but in this scenario, he didn''t know what to think. He turned around, and Grey was leisurely standing in the position the Lightning Elementalist was standing with a smug smile on his face. "How¡­ is that possible? How can you switch places with a person without the person actually moving on his own free will?" The captain asked Grey. Now, he was scared of even trying to attack Grey. After what Grey just displayed, anyone in their right minds would think twice before daring to attack him. "Just a simple trick. Don''t tell me you''re scared of fighting now, I was just getting started," Grey said while playing with a small fireball he summoned in his palm. The captain looked at Grey''s smiling face and couldn''t help but unconsciously take a step back. People always tend to be afraid of the unknown, and this is exactly what is happening to the captain right now. With this trick of Grey, they can''t attack him as a group anymore since if he were to switch places with any of them, it would be an utter nightmare, just like what happened with the LIghtning Elementalist. The explosion soon died down, and the lifeless body of the Lightning Elementalist was laid bare for all to see. What was worth mentioning was how the body was stuck on an earth spike that sprang out from the group, holding the body mid-air. The two ladies looked at the body in horror, before turning to look at Grey. Now, they all regretted the decision of coming in here, had they known, they would''ve left after two from their group died when they first entered this place. Provoking someone like Grey made their decision even worse. Swoosh! Boom! The Fire and Wind Elementalist attacked simultaneously, but Grey dodged the attack easily with the space element. Since he had already started using it, why go through the stress of blocking attacks anymore? Although using the space element was a bit stressful, he wouldn''t have a problem with dealing with these guys until he runs out of the space element essence in his reserve. "Don''t attack him carelessly!" The captain said to the duo. Since it has already gotten to this stage, he knew Grey wouldn''t let them go, so he had to think of a way that they would be able to defeat him. The problem was, with Grey''s supposedly insane speed that makes him literally disappear, how will they be able to attack him? Then, there''s also the problem with that switching thing he did not too long ago. Multiple thoughts were flying through the captain''s head as he watched Grey preparing to attack them. Just as Grey sent out his attack, the attack disappeared, then suddenly appearing within one meter of the Wind Elementalist. Boom! She managed to set up a windscreen just as the attack was about to get to her, but the impact of the blast still sent her flying. The Fire Elementalist looked at the captain in terror, she couldn''t believe what she was seeing. When Grey sent out the attack previously, he was standing in their front, but after the attack disappeared, it suddenly appeared on the left side of the Wind Elementalist. If not for her years of battle awareness, then she would''ve died from that single attack. Even though she managed to block it, it was evident that she wasn''t unscathed from that attack. "Group up!" The captain charged in the direction the WInd Elementalist was going to land, using his water element to cushion her crashing. The Fire Elementalist ran after him. On getting there, she saw the Wind Elementalist was bleeding from the mouth, and given how she was clutching her stomach, there might be a chance that she had some broken ribs. What she found appalling was that Grey''s attack didn''t even hit her, she was only affected by the impact. ''What would''ve been the outcome if his attack had hit her?'' She asked, dumbstruck. "Can you still fight?" The captain asked while supporting the Wind Elementalist. The Wind Elementalist nodded, albeit with some difficulty. "Good, backs against each other," The captain said to the ladies. This was the only thing he could think of doing for now. If they were to spread out, then Grey would be able to kill them all one-by-one, but putting their backs together would give them a better chance at defending those strange attacks of his. When thinking up Grey''s strange attacks, his pupils suddenly dilated when he recalled something. "Move!" The captain said, but before he finished his statement, he realized his view had changed. Instead of seeing only Grey, he was seeing him standing alongside the two ladies. His heart fell when he saw this scene. Boom! Grey exploded out with his blue fire against the unsuspecting ladies, sending both of them flying with severe injuries. The duo could be said to be lucky since they didn''t die on the spot, but the Wind Elementalist shouldn''t be too far from death given her previous injury. ''How? How can this be countered?'' The captain asked in dismay. "Time to quit playing," Grey said while moving towards the ladies who were already unable to move after they crashed to the ground. The captain couldn''t do anything other than to watch as Grey snuffed the life out of his companions. A few minutes later, Grey was the only one left standing in the valley. "Space Elementalists have always been a thorn to deal with. I never expected to see one as well versed in the space element as you are in such a place," A voice said, drawing the attention of Grey who was still standing in front of the corpse of the captain. Chapter 434 - Shocking Information Grey looked around but couldn''t find the source of the voice, raising his head, he saw a familiar figure floating mid-air. "Guess my suspicion was right," He said while looking at Ellis who was mid-air, there was no sign of surprise on his face. It''s generally known that only Overlord Plane Elementalists and above could fly or float mid-air, so when he felt Ellis was hiding his power previously, he was accurate. The only thing that he found strange was the fact that Ellis was aware of the space element, and given how he spoke about it, he must have seen others. ''So, there are others.'' Grey thought to himself. He had always thought there were other Space Elementalists, but not hearing or seeing any other one, he felt a little skeptical about it. "You''re very sharp, had I not stayed in that array a little longer, then you would''ve already found out by now," Ellis said casually while slowly coming down. "What was the use of hiding your strength?" Grey asked, not understanding why someone would go through all this stress. "Fun, it was just for fun," Ellis shrugged after landing opposite Grey. Grey looked at him for a while but refrained from speaking since he knew someone who wouldn''t have any qualms about doing something like this for fun. Not just one, but two. "So, what now?" He asked. "Nothing, I''ve taken what I wanted, thanks to you," Ellis replied with a smile. "You could''ve easily taken it by yourself, so no need to give me any credit," said Grey. "You''re right, but let''s just take it as it is, alright?" Ellis walked closer to Grey, stretching out his right hand. "Sure," Grey replied, not wanting to continue the conversation. "I never thought you were this young though," Ellis took his hand after seeing Grey not reciprocating his attempted shake. "I did tell you I wasn''t a senior," Grey said while walking out of the valley. All he wanted to do now was to exit this place, if not for the fact that he wasn''t sensing any malice from Ellis, he would''ve escaped already. But he still didn''t feel safe around him since he couldn''t sense his accurate strength, this meant that even if he were to use his Fusion State, he probably won''t be a match for Ellis. "Yeah, but in this place, people who are as strong as you tend to be old, and you had that robe that was covering your face. You can''t blame me for misjudging you," Ellis explained. After walking for a while, Grey paused at the front of the passageway where the array had already completely been restored. "Who are you?" He turned to look at Ellis. "I''m Ellis," Ellis replied. "Hmm, I''ve not heard of anyone being an Overlord Plane Elementalist while still being this young," Grey said. He wasn''t too sure if Ellis was young or an old man who refused to grow old, but he felt given how he was acting, he might be young. "Given how little the essence is here, it''s not surprising that there''s no one my age in the Overlord Plane," Ellis replied. "But, you shouldn''t be far from it, right?" He asked. Grey shrugged, blinked twice before disappearing. Ellis chuckled before taking a step into the passageway, but unlike the first time, the arrays didn''t light up. He casually walked to the other side of the passageway within two seconds. Grey, who watched how he walked past the passageway from the other side was stunned by how he nonchalantly did it, he could swear he saw Ellis taking only three steps, yet he appeared on the other side of the passageway. "Where are you from?" He asked curiously. From the little conversation he just had with Ellis, it was safe to say that he''s probably not from the Qilin empire. "Far away," Ellis replied. "The trial land?" Grey asked curiously. That was the only place he knew that had more essence compared to the Qilin empire. "Trial land? What''s that?" asked a confused Ellis. "It''s a strange place. If you''re not from there, then where?" Grey asked. "I''m from the uh¡­ how am I going to put it, let''s just say the main continent. You wouldn''t know about it since you people are stuck in this small place," Ellis replied. "Small place? Main continent?" Grey asked, his expression is clearly one filled with confusion. "Yeah, something like that. I was accidentally transported here during an exploration two years back, finding such a place where the main powerhouses were in the Overlord Plane surprised me. To be honest, the only thing of interest in this place is this Magical Beasts'' forest." Ellis explained. "Just to be clear, don''t try to go deep into this place, there''s a terrifying presence in here that gives me the chills. I feel it can easily wipe out this continent of yours with as little as a sneeze," Ellis added, his voice shaking slightly when speaking about what he sensed in the Magical Beasts'' forest. "Wait, what?" Grey, who was still having a hard time processing what Ellis was saying couldn''t believe what he said about there being a terrifying presence that could wipe out the Azure continent with a sneeze. How strong would the creature or person be to wipe out the entire Azure continent with a sneeze? "This place holds a lot of secrets, I don''t think most of the people in my continent know about it, else, it would''ve already been investigated by those supreme powerhouses," Ellis said. Grey paused for a few minutes, trying to digest the information he just received. He had never read about there being another continent, other than the Azure continent, he knew nothing about there being a main continent. What was more shocking was how weak Ellis actually thought they were, he didn''t even seem to be putting those experts in the Overlord Plane in his eyes. Then, there''s the issue of the inferior elemental essence in their continent. Grey had thought of the possibility of there being another place after visiting the trial land, but after not really finding out about anything, he threw the thought to the back of his head. "Wow!" This was the only word that came out of Grey''s mouth after a few minutes of contemplating. Chapter 435 - Studying Arrays Grey and Ellis stared at each other for a while, each curious about the other. Well, Grey was more curious given he likes to learn new things, and the prospect of finding out about another place that is far better than this place was thrilling. "How did you get to become so good with the space element?" Ellis was the first to break the silence. "Luck I guess. I found a strange, troublesome, cute teacher," Grey replied, thinking about Void when he spoke of this. "Oh, there''s another Space Elementalist here?" Ellis asked, surprised. "Yeah, he''s far better at it than I am," Grey nodded. "That''s surprising!" Ellis exclaimed. "He was the one who introduced me to the space element," Grey said while rubbing his spatial ring. Ellis noticed the sadness in his eyes and voice, as well as when he was rubbing the spatial ring. "Wait, is that a spatial ring?" He asked, hopefully trying to get Grey''s mind away from whatever sad thoughts he was having. "Yeah, I got one by luck again," Grey replied with a soft smile. If not for Void, there was no way he would''ve thought that seemingly useless ring would actually turn out to be a spatial ring. "You sure are lucky. Although where I''m from is far bigger than this place, and has a lot of Space Elementalists, obtaining one of these is quite hard. You''re either from a good family or very strong. And to get a good one costs a fortune!" Ellis said before pointing to the one on his finger. "How come I didn''t sense any space undulations from it?" Grey asked. Well, he saw the ring on Ellis'' finger during their journey, but he didn''t sense anything strange from it. "There''s an array placed on it to make it look ordinary," Ellis replied. "Such a sophisticated array, can I take a look?" Grey asked, a little excited. One of the things he enjoyed learning about was arrays. Whenever he sees something new, he would study it properly, integrating it with his previous knowledge. The reason he still hasn''t left the cave was that he wanted to study how this trap array worked. Ellis didn''t think too much and removed the ring from his finger before tossing it towards him. Grey caught it gently before studying it, his facial expressions changing multiple times. "This is really good, if I can learn how it works, then it would be an amazing breakthrough," He mumbled while fumbling the ring in his hand. On seeing Grey''s expression while he was studying the ring, Ellis knew he must be someone who had a high interest in arrays. After looking at it for a while, Grey reluctantly gave it back to Ellis. Ellis took the ring before placing it back on his finger. There are a lot of things Grey wanted to ask Ellis, but he didn''t feel it was appropriate. "Come with me, I''ll be returning in two days time," Ellis suddenly said. "Huh?" Grey looked at Ellis, confused. "I''ve been searching for a way to leave this place, and I found an array formation that seems to be able to transport me back there. I don''t know which people made it, but if my guess is correct, then they must be from where I''m from," Ellis explained. "As much as I would like to go, I have a lot of things to take care of here," Grey shook his head sadly. Even though Ellis haven''t told him much about this place he was from, he could tell it would help him grow faster, compared to staying in the Azure continent. "What might that be? I could help," Ellis asked. He liked Grey, and making friends with such a genius would be a great thing for him. For Grey to grow this powerful while in a place like this, it was unimaginable what he would achieve if he were to accompany him back to his continent which had superior resources. "I''m searching for a place, it''s a bamboo forest like this one. This was why I spoke with you when I heard you say a bamboo forest," Grey said. Since Ellis was powerful and wanted to help him, then why not. He has never been stupid, so when a good opportunity arises, of course, he was going to take it. "Hmm, a bamboo forest. What are you looking for?" Ellis asked. Grey went on to explain what he was searching for in the bamboo forest, after listening to him, Ellis fell deep in thoughts. "A shame, I''ve used up the one that was with me. I don''t know where this bamboo forest is, but for the next two days, I''ll help you search for it. Hopefully, we can find it before then," Ellis added. Grey nodded, before thanking him for his help. Although he couldn''t say he trusted Ellis, he could tell that he wasn''t a bad person, at least to him. ''Could it be that they are not from this continent?'' Grey suddenly thought of his parents. According to old man Gerald, there is no information about his parents in the Azure continent. He said they appeared all of a sudden and disappeared in the same manner. No one has been able to tell him where they were from. The more he thought about it, the more he felt like this was the most probable explanation. If they didn''t come from the Azure continent, then it made sense how they suddenly disappeared without a trace. After calming his raging thoughts, he started studying the array in the passageway. There was no way he was going to pass up this chance to learn this array formation. Ellis, who was waiting for him, was surprised when he saw him sitting on the ground close to the passageway. ''What is he doing?'' He thought. He soon got his answer when he saw a familiar gleam in Grey''s eyes.. It was exactly the same as the one he saw when Grey was studying his ring. Chapter 436 - Crystal Orb Time flew by, and before long, the day turned to night. Ellis was first stunned, then frustrated, and later on, impressed at Grey''s obsession with trying to figure out how the array in the passageway worked. He had seen people who wanted to learn, but few were at Grey''s level of diligence. He had been studying Grey''s expression over the past five hours, and he could tell that he made some improvements. Well, it''s not from his expression, but from the fact that he walked into the first part of the array and it didn''t light up. It was only after almost a minute did it light up. Presently, Grey was already midway through the entire passageway, and it hasn''t lit up. When he passed it previously, he used his strength to forcibly suppress it, hence the reason he was able to casually walk through it. But Grey was carefully studying and finding the weak links in the array, this is why it wasn''t lightning up even after so long. ''He must be a genius in array formations!'' Ellis exclaimed inside. ''Wait, if I recall correctly, he mainly used three different elements when he was fighting against those guys, adding the space element to it, that makes it four. Wow! What sort of a monster is he? People with three elements aren''t rare back at home, although there are some with four, for one to appear in such a place is truly remarkable.'' He looked at Grey with eyes wide open. If he were to find out that the four he knew of were just half of Grey''s elements, it''s unknown how he would react. Ten more minutes passed and Grey walked out from the array. "I''m done, we should head out," He said to the baffled-looking Ellis. "Oh, okay," Ellis came back to his senses before looking at the array once again, waiting to see if it would light up. "No need to check, it won''t light up. Although, if you were to step on it, the outcome would be different," Grey said with a small smile. Ellis looked at Grey before deciding to test out what he said. With a few steps, he appeared before the array, he placed his left leg on it, and even before his leg touched the array, it lit up, sending out an explosion that was far stronger than what it used to. "I might''ve forgotten to add that I modified it while I was studying it," Grey said while scratching the back of his head. Ellis, who was still in the explosion, came out coughing from the smoke. He was fine, except for his clothes which suffered from some burns. He looked at Grey, and the more he thought about it, the more he felt like Grey was someone who could easily topple the genius in his continent. Well, not with his current strength though. But he believed it would be possible in a few years'' time. "Wouldn''t this kill everyone who is coming in here?" Ellis asked. "No," Grey shook his head before continuing, "Remember when I said I modified it?" Ellis nodded to his question. "Well you see, it needed to let out a powerful explosion, that way, it would stop functioning. It can easily be reactivated. But I set up a trap array to ensure no one activates it," Grey explained. As if to test what Grey said, Ellis stepped on the passageway again, but this time, he set up a powerful defensive armor around his body. Even though he wasn''t hurt by the previous explosion, it still rocked him. Fortunately for him, the array didn''t light up, nor did it explode. "Oh, it''s just like you said," He lowered his guard before turning around. Boom! An explosion rang out from the other side of the passageway, scaring the shit out of Ellis. "Now, the array has been completely nullified." Grey nodded confidently before stepping out of the cave. "You didn''t kill that guy from before?" Ellis asked, shocked. He knew he didn''t sense any sign of life in the captain''s body after Grey killed him. "Well, I wanted to, but then I figured what was better, killing him, or keeping him trapped here. I decided to go with the latter since it might give him an opportunity to survive. He was unfortunate and woke up sooner than expected, since he was already up, I just thought it wasn''t worth it letting someone like him live," Grey shrugged. "What do you mean woke up sooner than expected, you literally stayed in here for over five hours," Ellis looked at Grey stunned. ''This guy''s ruthless. If he were to come with me, hehehe, the peace of the continent would be turned upside down,'' He thought happily. "Five hours? I thought we were only there for a few minutes," Grey asked surprised, on looking up, he realized it was already dark, "Crap! You''re right," "Of course I am, now, where do we begin our search?" Ellis asked while looking around. "I have no idea, I forgot to ask the person where the bamboo forest was located, so¡­" Grey spread out his hands. "Take this, I''ll go out to search for it myself," Ellis threw a crystal orb towards Grey. Grey caught it and looked at it with interest, "What does this do?" The orb wasn''t big, just slightly larger than Grey''s palm. "It''s for communication, see, I have one with me," Ellis brought out another crystal orb, showing it to Grey. Grey looked into the orb on his hand, and to his surprise, it showed the image of Ellis who was a few meters away from him. "Wow! I''ve been hoping to make something like this, to think it has already been created," He exclaimed. "Wait, what?" Ellis asked, surprised. "I wanted to make something like this, but I haven''t been able to figure out how the arrays would work," Grey replied sincerely. ''Are you sure you grew up here?'' Ellis almost wanted to ask but refrained from doing so. From the small time he has chatted with Grey, he could tell he didn''t think like most of the people here. Although, there were always weird people everywhere, Chapter 437 - Speaking With The Crew Grey looked in the sky as Ellis flew off in search of the bamboo forest he wanted. Before Ellis left, he gave him an extra wooden plaque he made, this one was for tracking his movements. That way, he could head out to meet him if he finds the pond. ''Wow, my first day here has been full of surprises.'' He thought while bringing out the communication device he made for himself and his friends. After hanging out with Ellis for a bit, he started missing his friends, Klaus and Reynolds especially since Ellis had their somewhat playful personality. The difference was that, compared to the duo, Ellis still hadn''t gotten to their level yet. ''What would happen if they were to hang out together? Well, I believe Klaus and Rey would forever use his voice to mock him, while Alice would just be excited she has a strong training partner. Not to mention Void, he would want him to follow him on a journey so he could steal all the shiny things, in all, it would be a disaster for others.'' He thought while smiling. On checking the communication device, he almost threw it away from Klaus'' yelling voice. Despite the fact that he was only hearing the voice in his head, he was still stunned by it. What was more annoying was that Klaus wasn''t saying anything, all he did was scream his name all through. ''What?'' He asked, exasperated. ''Oh, you''re finally here. What''s up?'' Klaus'' excited voice soon came back. ''Nothing, I''ve been studying something for the past few hours. Have you done anything that made people want to kill you lately? I feel like you have given how excited you are,'' Grey replied. ''Of course not, I was only chased by an entire town while my dad was supporting them. He even tripped me twice so that I could be beaten by those people. Can you believe him!'' Klaus said. ''What did you do?'' Grey asked, almost facepalming. He had always known that Klaus was a troublemaker, but he just keeps raising the bar each time they meet or talk after a long time. ''You see, there was this girl in the town. Just to be clear, she was the one who approached me, I didn''t make any advances towards her. Who would''ve known that she was betrothed to one guy from a city not too far from there? The town was under the protection¡­'' Klaus went on to tell him about his recent tale. After meeting the girl, Klaus became friends with her, and her future husband saw them together. He rushed towards him and Klaus beat the hell out of him. It caused a huge ruckus and the guy went back to call his family members. On seeing them, Klaus swept the ground with them since even the elders who were called over were still in the Early stages of the Origin Plane. On seeing that they couldn''t beat him, they decided to take it out on the town. Klaus, being respectful towards the elderly in the town, couldn''t fight against them, so he did what he felt was best, he sealed them up in the town and ran away. He never expected his father to not only destroy the ice seal, he even found a way to get them to move faster while telling Blake to distract him. In the end, he was beaten up by a group of old men and women, before being forced to apologize to the young man who wanted to get married to the young lady. The truth was, he didn''t really have any feelings for the young lady, he just found her company to be entertaining. From the start, it was all a misunderstanding, he thought the young man wanted to force himself on the young lady, hence he beat him up. After finding out the truth, it was already too late. He had already beaten up the elders of the young man''s family. ¡­. ''I still find it surprising that all the people you''ve offended haven''t tried to come together to fight you yet. I think you might be able to unite the entire continent just so that they could beat you up,'' Grey shook his head. Klaus will always be Klaus. ''So, have you gone into the Magical Beasts'' forest?'' Klaus asked. ''Yeah, I''m currently there,'' Grey replied. Before telling him of his experience here, he didn''t forget to talk about his new acquaintance, he still hadn''t started considering Ellis as a friend yet. He didn''t know him, nor did he trust him. He didn''t tell Klaus about the new continent he heard of. Even though he was intrigued by this new continent, he wouldn''t go with Ellis. Instead, he planned to ask him where the array was located, and then go on his own after he has confirmed that his parents aren''t here. He would go first before bringing his friends along. Since he knew nothing of this place, he would get Ellis to tell him all he knew before he left. ''Wait, you said he has a lady''s voice?'' Klaus asked. Of everything he heard from Grey, Ellis having a lady''s voice was the only thing he found interesting. ''Yeah, he was saved multiple times by people whenever he was in distress because they thought he was a damsel in distress,'' Grey said. ''Hahaha, if I were in their position, I''d beat the crap out of him after saving him.'' Klaus laughed out loudly. Grey continued speaking with him until Reynolds joined in on the conversation, Grey was not surprised when he found out that he already knew of Klaus'' incident. Alice later joined in the conversation and before the group knew it, they spoke for over three hours, with Grey laughing almost all through because of Klaus and Reynolds. Before they stopped speaking, they all asked about Grey''s well-being and also if he had found what took him there. ''Not yet, but hopefully, soon,'' He replied ''Okay, don''t forget to take care of yourself. If you die, I''ll come and kill you again,'' Klaus said. ''Is that even possible?'' Reynolds asked. ''Shut up, I''m threatening him,'' Klaus scolded from the other side. Grey chuckled before keeping the device, he knew Klaus and Reynolds would continue this for a while before they stop, so he decided to let them be. Chapter 438 - Changes In The Magical Beasts Forest The next day. Ellis was still out searching for the bamboo forest which had the liquid that Grey wanted. Unfortunately, even after searching the entire night, he still hasn''t been able to locate it. He had seen two bamboo forests during this time, but none of them had what Grey wanted. Grey on the other hand decided it was best for him to continue exploring the Magical Beasts'' forest on his own. He specifically chose the direction Ellis was heading, that way if Ellis were to find the place, he wouldn''t have any problems with quickly getting to him. ¡­. ''I think it''ll be best if I were to break through to the Ninth stage while I''m here. The essence here is slowly increasing the further I head in, albeit the change is very small.'' Grey thought while raising his left hand in the air. Since leaving the trial land, he couldn''t really say that he had focused on cultivating. What he mainly did was either improving his knowledge in arrays or trying to comprehend a new element. His cultivation stage only increased after he comprehended a new element. Then there was the time he acquired that small ball or red lightning. After he left the Chimera forest, he hasn''t really tried to use the red lightning. He still found it odd that he could wield two different types of lightning. Although both lightning generally has the same characteristics, there are some changes. ''Will I be able to wield a different color of flame later on?'' He thought to himself. This wouldn''t be impossible since he could presently wield two types of lightning. He threw the thought to the back of his mind, for now, he wanted to focus on how to get stronger. Once he gets to the Ninth stage of the Origin Plane, he would have a difficult task ahead of him, getting to the Overlord Plane. If breaking through to the Origin Plane was difficult, then breaking through to the Overlord Plane was at least fifteen times harder. An Elementalist would have to change their elemental beads into origin beads. This is what gives them unimaginable control over their elements. An Overlord Plane Lightning Elementalist could easily step into a thunderstorm, controlling part of it, as they grow stronger, their control increases. ¡­. Grey was barely able to move freely in the direction he wanted because he noticed the further he headed into the Magical Beasts'' forest, the higher the Overlord Plane magical beasts he encountered. Luckily, he had the space element, so evading their senses wasn''t too difficult. Although, he wasn''t as confident in the space element as he previously did after his encounter with the captain of that group he fought. Since there are people who are sensitive to the space element, then there would also be beasts who would be sensitive to it. On thinking about beasts, he recalled how all the bunnies from that garden were able to hide from Void''s attacks even though he was using the space element. It didn''t take long for Grey''s fear to materialize into reality when he was noticed by an Overlord Plane beast. Boom! Bang! "Crap! It''ll be difficult to escape if it doesn''t stop," Grey complained after barely dodging an attack. He had refilled the essence needed for the blue vest to work, so it helped him block the aftereffect of the attacks that the beast sent towards him. Roar! The lizard-like beast pounced on Grey. Its speed was not something someone in the Origin Plane could deal with, even with Grey''s incredible speed, it was still impossible for him to escape from it. The space element was the only thing that was keeping Grey alive. Now he knew the difference between an Overlord Plane Elementalist who just broke through and one that has been in the Plane for a long time. This lizard was still in the early stages of the Overlord Plane, yet it wouldn''t have any problems with killing that young man Grey fought against who just broke through to the Overlord Plane back at the Chimera forest. Boom! The lizard sent out a fire attack, while swinging it''s tail in Grey''s direction. Grey blinked and disappeared from the attack was going to hit, appearing almost ten meters away from where the lizard attacked. "Huh? Damn it!" Grey''s pupils dilated when he saw the lizard appearing within a few meters away from him. It swung its tail towards him, with no other option, he hastily set up three defensive walls, each made of three elements, the fire, water, and earth element. He also went on to create an earth armor around him just for a little more safety. Bam! Bang! The lizard''s tail didn''t meet any resistance with the first wall which was made of ice, then the one made from fire. It also didn''t meet too much of a resistance with the earth wall as well. Swoosh! Grey was sent flying when the tail made contact with his body which was covered in earth armor, as well as the blue vest''s protection. Crash! Bang! He crashed into the ground, sliding into the ground for almost twenty meters, before slamming into a six meters thick boulder. Crack! Cracks appeared from where Grey''s body crashed with the boulder, before running to the other side of the boulder. It was soon divided into two separate parts. Grey hastily stood up from the rumble, his earth armor cracked on almost every possible place, while the light the blue vest was giving off was starting to fade. "What''s happening, why are the beasts this far out?" He mumbled to himself. Overlord Plane beasts weren''t supposed to be in this area, yet, not only are they in the area but there are seemingly countless Overlord Plane beasts. Even while trying to evade them, he was still noticed by this giant lizard which had legs that were longer than how the legs of a lizard should be. The lizard charged towards him once again, it clearly wanted to kill Grey for stepping into its territory. Chapter 439 - Changes In The Magical Beasts Forest II Boom! Bam! The lizard continued attacking Grey. It couldn''t really be counted as a fight since it was a one-sided trouncing. The space element could do so much, and due to him not having a high mastery of the element, he isn''t able to cover a large area. Bang! Grey crashed through a tree, breaking it in half. His body was sore from the attacks of the lizard, and even after trying to escape, the lizard continued chasing after him relentlessly. ''I''ll have to take it to the area occupied by another Overlord Plane beast or else I''m doomed.'' Grey soon gave up on trying to escape since he knew it was futile. What was worse was that he couldn''t get into the Fusion State since he would need to be undisturbed for at least a minute or so. ''If only Void were here, then I wouldn''t have to worry about who would distract this lizard.'' He shook his head in anger as he followed the path he recalled there being an Overlord Plane beast. He was running hastily while also using the space element to dodge some of the attacks of the lizard. He had tried attacking it with inscriptions that he made during the start of the battle, but the lizard''s scales were stronger than all his defenses combined. None of his attacks could even leave a scratch on it, well, except for the darkness element. Due to the highly corrosive property of the darkness element, it can at least cause the lizard a little bit of damage. This has been the only thing that he had been able to use to at least delay the lizard for a few seconds so he could escape from some situations. The lizard would always try to dodge all his darkness element attacks while tanking the rest of them. He was starting to get exhausted from the constant use of the space element, and it was starting to take its toll on him. If things were to continue in this fashion, then he would be caught by the lizard. ''Ellis,'' The young man with a feminine voice suddenly came to mind when he realized how dire his situation was. Taking out the wooden plaque, his expression turned sour when he saw the distance between them. If Ellis were to start flying towards him even at his maximum speed, it would still take him at the very least, three hours. There was no way he could survive that long. ''Damn it! Damn it! Damn it!'' He complained before bolting towards where the last Overlord Plane beast he sensed was located. He was currently betting everything on this beast while also taking a huge risk. If the second Overlord Plane beast were to join this lizard in attacking him, then he was done for. But since such co-operations were rare among beasts, he was hoping these two would fight it out as soon as they sensed each other. While running there, Grey noticed something that almost made him change his mind. There were multiple corpses on the way, from the wounds on their body, it was evident that they were inflicted by a beast with sharp claws. Boom! Crash! Grey was caught by an attack from the beast once again, crashing forward. But he used the momentum to gain some more distance from the lizard. Blood was already starting to drip from the side of his mouth which indicated that he had sustained some internal injuries from the multiple attacks of the lizard. ''It shouldn''t be fa¡­'' Boom! Grey''s thoughts were disrupted by the explosion that sounded out in front of him. The sound seemed to be coming from a few hundred meters away, but it was very clear to him. Without even thinking, he charged towards where the sound came from. If it were people who were fighting, then he would try to use them to distract the lizard while he escaped. If it''s a magical beast, then it would be better. He would feel a little guilty if he were to use people to escape from the lizard since he didn''t know if the people were good or bad, nor did he know if they had families waiting for them outside the Magical Beasts'' forest. Boom! Bam! The lizard behind him continued attacking wildly, luckily, he dodged this attack with the space element. But with the continuous usage of the space element, he was getting more exhausted. It didn''t take up to a minute before he got to where the sound was coming from. In front of him were three people who were covered in blood, opposite them was a huge ash cat. The cat stood at around three meters tall with a length of almost six meters. ''Wow! That''s big!'' He exclaimed on seeing the size of the cat. Growl! The cat turned its attention to him as soon as he appeared, to the relief of the trio who were almost on the verge of death. It suddenly pounced towards Grey. At the same moment it pounced at him, the lizard appeared and attacked Grey as well. Mustering the little bit of essence he had left of his space element, he vanished. Boom! Bang! The cat was sent flying by the attack of the lizard since it bore the brunt force of the attack. "Run!" Grey appeared almost twenty meters away, sparkling with red lightning, he bolted for safety. Even though he told the trio to run, he didn''t even glance at them while he was escaping. It was none of his business if they ran or not, what mattered to him was that the lizard might be stopped by the cat. He didn''t even turn to look at the outcome of the collision between both beasts. The trio didn''t stand any further and took off in another direction. The lizard which was about to continue chasing after Grey was stopped by the enraged cat. Boom! Bam! They soon started battling against each other, just as Grey hoped. But, the fight didn''t last as long as he thought. Chapter 440 - Just Like Throwing A Stone Thirty minutes later. A few kilometers away from where Grey left the lizard. Grey could be seen sitting on top of a rock that was close to a river. His eyes were closed as he tried his best to replenish his space essence which was almost completely depleted when he was escaping from the lizard. ''Why are the beasts this far out?'' He thought while trying to stabilize himself. Even when he was running here, he still sensed three beasts that were in the Overlord Plane. Luckily, he managed to escape before they attacked him. He knew something huge must be going on in the deeper parts of the forest given how even the Overlord Plane beasts are coming to the outer parts of it. Although he hadn''t encountered anyone that was at the very peak of the Early stages, or in the Mid stages of the Overlord Plane, he knew if he were to continue heading deeper, he would see them in no time. From the device the last time he checked, if he followed Ellis, then he would be going deep into the forest. ''Just how powerful is he?'' He asked himself. Ellis seemed to be in his early twenties, yet he was already this powerful. For him to freely fly deep into the forest is a testament to his confidence in himself. Grey couldn''t help but think about how things were in the continent Ellis came from. Thinking about it, he thought of his parents again. If they were from that continent, then there''s a chance that they were powerful. Even Ellis was this strong, then they too should be at least as strong as Ellis, right? But on second thought, he couldn''t be certain since even in a superior place like that continent, there must be people who couldn''t really cultivate properly, hence stagnating. What if his parents were one of those people? It made sense since they came to this small place and didn''t even tell him about that other continent since they were ashamed. Multiple thoughts were running through Grey''s head as he continued replenishing his space essence, as well as his wind and lightning essence. Physically, he was tired since he sprinted for minutes nonstop. Had it not been for his regular training in the trial land, then he wouldn''t have been able to escape from that lizard. Grey decided to focus on replenishing his essence. He also took out one of those vials which contained the healing tonic they extracted from the blooming viper and drank it. Despite the fact that he could heal himself without it, it would take some time before he recovers fully. In a place like this, especially given the current circumstances, it wasn''t wise to take such risks. One hour later. ''Wow! The essence here is better than it is outside. Why is that?'' Grey exclaimed internally. If he were to be outside the Magical Beasts'' forest, it would take longer for him to replenish the essence he lost during the escape. But here, it took around one hour or so. While Grey was marveling at the mystery of the Magical Beasts'' forest, something was staring at him from deep in the water, waiting for the right time to pounce on the unsuspecting Grey. It slowly swam from the depths of the water, edging closer to Grey by the second. Grey suddenly felt a pair of eyes glued to him, but he didn''t know where the sensation was coming from. He looked at the forest curiously, but he couldn''t find what was staring at him. "Hmm, strange," He muttered. He stood up and moved closer to the river, looking at the other side of it. Splash! The creature sprang out from the river at breakneck speed, spreading its gigantic jaws as it tried to bite the head of Grey. Grey reacted by taking a step forward instead of backing away. He bent down as he took the step, making sure to dodge the jaws of the beast. His simple movement placed him under the creature which had over half its body mid-air. Grey looked at the stomach of the creature, his eyes trailing to the other half that was on its way from springing out of the water. It was surprisingly a crocodile. He didn''t know which element it was attributed to since it hadn''t attacked with an element yet. After missing its target, the crocodile continued going forward, its body fully leaving the water. Bam! It landed heavily on the ground a few meters away before turning around hastily, facing Grey face to face. ''Huge.'' This was the first thing that rang in Grey''s head. The crocodile before him was over nine meters long, and the size of its head was insane. Even Grey felt a little chill from it. If he were bitten by that head, he would be cut in half, no doubt about that. Luckily, the crocodile was at the Peak of the Origin Plane, and it had not yet broken through to the Overlord Plane. "Get back into the water, no need to die unnecessarily," Grey said before moving to the side. He didn''t have the time to fight with this crocodile. He was planning on leaving this place since there''s a chance that the disturbance might attract other beasts. An Overlord Plane beast is something he didn''t wish to encounter presently. The crocodile opened its mouth and sprayed out a stream of water towards him. Grey shook his head before disappearing from sight. He soon appeared behind the crocodile, holding onto the tail, he began spinning, taking the crocodile with him. The nine meters long crocodile was lifted off the ground by Grey easily while it was still spraying out water. After going three full circles, Grey let go of the crocodile. It went in the direction of the river, due to the force of the throw, it skipped on the surface of the water six times, before crashing on the other side of the river. The river was around twenty-six to thirty meters wide, yet Grey threw the crocodile to the other side, well, with the help of the water. Chapter 441 - Another Cave Abode Grey hastily left the area, heading in the direction Ellis was located. Since Ellis has the advantage of flight, then it was preferable to leave the search of the bamboo forest to him. He would explore the forest while heading deeper into it. His present plan was to try to get to the Ninth stage of the Origin Plane, and the best way to do that was through battles or obtaining treasures. If not for the irregularities in the forest recently, then he would''ve been searching for beasts at the Peak of the Origin Plane to fight against. ''Looks like searching for a treasure is my best bet,'' He decided. He started slowly moving through the forest, dodging all the Overlord Plane beasts he sensed on the way while searching for treasures. Whenever he encounters any Origin Plane beasts in areas where he doesn''t sense any Overlord Plane beast, who would go all out in fighting against it. Later that day. The sun had already set and Grey searched for a place to cultivate through the night. He hasn''t seen anything of interest since coming into the Magical Beasts'' forest, and only fought against three beasts during the day since he couldn''t stay for long. He took out the crystal orb Ellis gave to him while sitting in the cave. The orb soon gave off a dim light and Ellis'' face appeared in it. "Can I help you with anything?" Ellis asked. "No, I wanted to see how your search is going," Grey asked. "Well, not so good. I''ve seen three bamboo forests so far, but none has that liquid you''re searching for," Ellis replied hastily. Grey noticed Ellis was occasionally looking behind him while he was talking to him. "Is anything wrong?" He couldn''t help but ask. "Not really, this is a bad time¡­ Shit!" Ellis exclaimed at the end of his statement before freaking out and glowing with blue light. Roar! Boom! "I''ll talk to you later!" Ellis said before the light in the orb died down. The orb went dark and the image of Ellis disappeared from it. Grey couldn''t help but wonder what would make Ellis look that freaked out. But given how Ellis managed to speak with him even before going off, it was safe to say that he wouldn''t die, hopefully. Grey took out the wooden plaque, it was the best way to find out if Ellis died or not. As long as his light dot doesn''t move, then it could mean that he was dead, but if it continues moving, then it means that he''s alive. On looking at the plaque, Grey was stunned at the speed at which Ellis'' light dot was moving. "Okay, he''s alive. Guess I should focus on cultivating then. I''ll check on him later," He mumbled before shutting his eyes. He had already set up arrays around him, and even went as far as setting an array to notify him if anything were to move within five hundred meters of where he was located. That night ended with nothing happening. Grey cultivated all through the night, he would occasionally check the plaque to see where Ellis was located if he was alive or dead. There was a time when Ellis'' light dot didn''t move for over two hours. Just when Grey was thinking of contacting him, he noticed he had started moving again. The next morning. Grey started moving forward once again. He couldn''t stay in one place, and according to Ellis, he would be leaving the next day. If Ellis doesn''t find the bamboo forest before then, he would be forced to continue the search on his own. For some reasons though, he didn''t feel too confident in being able to locate the bamboo forest. The reason he felt this way was because the forest was just too big. Even if he decided to dedicate his time to searching everywhere, it would take him countless years before he could travel around it. ''*Sigh* Void, it would be great if nothing happened to you.'' He thought while walking away from where he passed the night. After walking for a few hours, he encountered people. There was at least a group of six or so, and each group contained a minimum of seven people and a maximum of fifteen people. In front of them was a cave, just like the one he entered with Ellis and that group. The people noticed him and looked in his direction. Luckily, he had his robe on so none of them knew what he looked like. If they knew he was a youngster, some of them might want to attack him or pressure him to leave the place, but now, they let him be. He stared at the cave, although he couldn''t really sense anything inside, he decided to wait here with the others. After all, all these people wouldn''t stay here if there wasn''t the chance of there being a treasure here. This cave was also relatively bigger than the one he entered previously. What he noticed was that of the multiple people here, only two were in the Eighth stage of the Origin Plane, the rest were either in the Ninth stage or at the Peak of the Origin Plane. ''They must be the top people who explore this place, well, below the Overlord Plane.'' He thought. There are also groups in the Overlord Plane who come into the Magical Beasts'' forest, but since Overlord Plane Elementalists aren''t as many as those in the Origin Plane, it''s difficult to encounter them. Even with the beasts coming this far out, those groups would still venture deeper inside the forest. After almost an hour, the first group walked into the cave. The others stood up and followed behind them. Grey also didn''t stay behind, walking at the back of the groups. From their cautious looks, Grey knew none of them had entered the cave before, so they didn''t know what to expect inside it. Chapter 442 - Move Or Die Grey stepped into the cave while keeping his guard up, he didn''t know what to expect here, and there''s also the possibility of the people who had gone in attacking him. On getting inside, he saw the groups all standing cautiously, staring at the path that led deep into the cave. He tried to sense it with his earth element. ''Hmm, it''s not like that one, but just don''t think it''s any less dangerous.'' He thought inside. Unlike the previous one that connected to a valley, this one had a series of underground tunnels that led deeper into the cave. Grey wasn''t the only one who had noticed this, the others have as well. Now, it was all a matter of who went first, not just that, but which tunnel they would choose later on. The first group, which was led by an old man with white beard and hair snorted before taking the first step, followed closely behind by his companions. The first path in the cave led to three more paths that separated once again. The paths kept increasing, while there''s also empty spaces in some paths. Grey guessed if there was anything in the paths, they would be located in these spaces. After the first group took the lead, the others followed right behind them. Grey didn''t go in hurriedly, rather, he waited till all the groups had gone in before sitting down. He closed his eyes, and then spread out his spiritual senses. He wanted to see which of the tunnels was less crowded before picking which one to take. After almost a minute, he realized the one which was chosen by the first group was the one that was less crowded. The reason for that was very simple, the others who weren''t strong enough didn''t want to offend them. Grey smiled and went into the tunnel, on getting to the path where it was separated, he instantly picked the one in the middle. Before long, he had gotten to the end of that path which had five paths. Just like what he did before, he picked the same path the first group did. Some of the groups which followed the first group had started to pick a different path since there wasn''t any use in following the first group when there were opportunities in the other paths as well. Grey didn''t change paths yet, he continued following the first group. He felt compared to the others, the first group seemed to have a clear cut goal in front of them. They didn''t take time when choosing a path, as soon as they got to a path, they would immediately take one of them. ¡­. After almost twenty minutes, Grey was the only one left who was following the same path as the first group. The others have all taken other paths. "Sir, that guy in a robe is still following us," One of the ladies in the first group walked closer to the old man and whispered. "Let him come, he''ll die even if he doesn''t follow us," The old man said nonchalantly. "Okay, sir," The lady bowed before retreating. The expressions of the others in the group changed when they heard what the old man said. His statement meant that whatever path the others took, they would die in the end. "Sir, what are in the other paths?" One man asked. "Heh! Death," The old man smirked as he replied. "What about this path?" Someone asked curiously. "Without me? Death. With me? Treasures," The old man said confidently. The others looked at each other nervously, but after clenching their fists, they decided to follow him. It wasn''t like they had an option anyway. After walking for ten more minutes, the group stopped, not taking a step further. Grey who was behind them knew what they wanted to do but didn''t think about it too much. He couldn''t stop since that might induce the group to attack him. ''Heh! Since they want to play, then we will play.'' He thought inside. On the way here, he had noticed some things in this place, and what he guessed was that this place was nothing more than a deathtrap. Luckily, this group was ahead of him making the journey easy. It didn''t take long before he appeared in front of the group. "Hello," He waved at the group. "Can I ask why you''re following us?" The old man asked. "Following you?" Grey feigned ignorance. "Hmph! Stop playing dumb, you wouldn''t have a second chance," One of the men in the group snorted. "I''m not following you people, there are paths to choose from, and I''m picking the one I feel is safer," Grey said casually. "If that''s the case, then why don''t you go ahead?" The old man showed Grey the way while opening a path for him. "Okay, I see no reason why you''re being fussy about it," Grey nodded and moved forward nonchalantly. The old man and the group behind him were slightly taken aback given how quickly he agreed to it. They almost wanted to believe that he truly wasn''t following them, well, almost. Grey went forward, a smirk on his face. But his expression soon changed when he walked almost six meters away from where the group were standing. He vanished, appearing two meters backward. Boom! The place where he stood blew up, lava sprouting out of the ground. The group behind him burst out laughing when they saw this. Grey looked at the lava, unperturbed by it. He walked forward and quickly walked past the side where the lava was coming out from. After getting past it, he soon disappeared from their view. "Come on, let''s go. He''ll help us clear some of the obstacles, but don''t be in a hurry in case he accidentally evades some," The old man ordered. The others nodded and followed behind Grey. They were the ones doing the dirty work all these while, now, they wanted Grey to do it. ¡­. ''Just as I guessed, this place is a death trap. These people definitely know how to go through it, if I lead the way, I might get hurt,'' Grey thought after dodging another round of attacks. After thinking about it was better for him to find a way and get to the back of this group again. Staying at the front wouldn''t do him any good. What made things worse was that there doesn''t seem to be another path that divided. He continued walking a little further before getting to the place that was spacious. This is usually the place he believed there might be treasures, because he had been following the group from behind, he hadn''t really been able to see anything in the spaces whenever he got there. ''Okay, I''ll take a look first before going to their back.'' He thought. His curiosity towards what he might get here got the better of him. He quickly started searching before the group would get to where he was located. If there''s a treasure here, then the group would try to take it as soon as they came in. The place was around fifty meters wide, given Grey''s speed, it didn''t take long before he completely swept the area. There were multiple herbs in the area, as well as some rocks. He didn''t really look at them and kept them all in his storage ring. After sweeping the place, he started to wait for the group. A minute later, the group arrived. The expression on their faces was one of surprise as well as shock when they didn''t find anything there. They had gotten some rewards from the previous ones, so they felt expectant as to what would be here. "You, where are the treasures?" One of the men pointed at Grey. "Treasures? Which treasures?" Grey asked. "What do you mean what treasures?! There are supposed to be treasures in here!" The man said. "Well, do you see anything in here?" Grey asked with hands spread out wide. "You¡­ you¡­ you must have them," The man pointed at him. "Where would I put them?" Grey asked, while staring at the man as if he was an idiot. "Stop speaking," The old man said. The man kept quiet before retreating. "What are you waiting for then?" The old man asked. "I''m resting, I''ve almost died countless times," Grey replied, before asking, "Also, why are you people following me?" The old man was stunned by Grey''s question. This was the same question they asked Grey, now, he was asking them the question. "This is the only path, why would you think we are following you?" The old man tried to defend his group. "You''re following me, I don''t like it, it''s either you go through, or you take another path," Grey gave them an ultimatum. "You seem to be very confident, move or ydie," A man from the group said. They were tired of the old man''s calm way of doing things. Chapter 443 - Floating Red Bead The area turned tense for a few seconds with both parties staring at each other, well, the group was winning the staring contest since they had more people, and they were all glaring furiously at Grey. If looks could kill someone, then Grey would''ve died a couple of times over already. "Enough, I''ll advise you to keep moving," The old man stepped between the group and Grey before saying. "That''s impossible, either we move together or you guys go on ahead," Grey said. The old man thought about it for a while before nodding his head, "Fine, we don''t have all day," "Sir!" The others in the group called out to the old man, giving him a questioning look. "Don''t worry, he has his use. Either him, or one of you?" The old man whispered to the others. On hearing his question, they could tell whatever uses Grey had wasn''t something that would benefit him. What they found more alarming was when the old man asked either Grey or one of them. This meant that had Grey not come into the picture, then one of them would''ve been used as a sacrificial lamb. They all looked at Grey with gleaming eyes, it was as if they were staring at their savior. On seeing their gazes, Grey couldn''t help but shudder at the thought of why they were looking at him like that. He didn''t think the old man would agree to his request that easily, this made him feel he probably had something planned for him. If not for the fact that fighting against this group would be a little stressful, and that he needed them to guide him to whatever they were targeting, he would''ve killed them already. With the space element, it''s impossible for any of these people in the Azure continent to fight against him. Even Ellis who was familiar with the space element said it was difficult to fight against Space Elementalists. His switch skill made him even more overpowered, compared to other Space Elementalists. ''Whoever made that technique must be a true genius. Luckily, I managed to acquire it.'' He thought. ¡­. Grey and the group soon started walking forward, he moved so nonchalantly that the group couldn''t help but wonder if he was alright upstairs. A normal person wouldn''t try to pick a fight against a group of nine, nor would they travel with the same group he wanted to fight with. They all had the same thoughts when looking at Grey, either he was very confident in his abilities, or he was a complete psycho who didn''t give a damn about his own life. On the way, they soon got to a new divided path. Grey watched the old man, and he saw him taking out something from his clothes. Within a few seconds, he walked towards one of the paths. ''Who the hell even made this place?'' He asked, a little tired of the long walk. He didn''t understand why people would set these death traps if they actually wanted people to obtain what they left in the cave. But he found the first cave he entered to be better since it didn''t take this long to get to where the treasure was located. The old man also easily deactivated all the traps in front of them. He couldn''t help but think if the old man had come here before, or if he got information about this place from whoever made it. Thinking up to this part, Grey couldn''t help but look forward to what might happen. ''It''s definitely a trap!'' He concluded. Given the intricacy of this place, it was impossible to move through it without the help of the person who made it. After almost one hour of moving, they soon got to the end of the cave. A hair-raising chill went through the body of everyone who walked into the final part of the cave. Lava was flowing through the ground, at the center of the open space was what looked to be a temple, chains and skeletons could be seen all around. There was also a red orb suspended in the middle of the temple, giving off an eerie but hot feeling. "We''re here!" The old man said to the others. "What''s that?" One of the ladies in the group stepped forward to ask. "It''s something very special, come on, let''s keep going," The old man said before jumping over the lava, onto the temple. Grey looked at the orb and couldn''t help but find it very familiar. The people in the group exchanged glances before jumping onto the temple as well. Since they''ve already gotten here, what''s the use of hesitating. Just as Grey was about to follow them, he caught sight of something. A thin red line that ran from the walls of the cave, moving into the temple. Looking at it properly, he caught a scent of something he was familiar with, blood. ''A blood sacrifice?'' He asked. He looked at the temple and realized the thin line ended under the floating red orb. ''That''s it, it''s an origin bead!'' He almost lost his footing when he realized what the orb was. Only an Overlord Plane expert can create an origin bead. What''s worth mentioning is that although some experts decide to leave their origin beads when they die, most would prefer it dies with them since they didn''t want others to benefit from their years of cultivation. If an Arcane Plane Elementalists were to absorb this origin bead, then he would most certainly break through to the Overlord Plane in no longer than a year. Some people would break through to the Overlord Plane in three months even. This bead could be said to be a priceless treasure, yet, one is right in front of him. But Grey didn''t get greedy in trying to steal, rather, he sat down crossed legs with eyes glued to the temple. After the others stepped into the temple, they all walked towards the origin bead, after all, other than the skeletons, it was the only thing there. Chapter 444 - Tricked By An Old Man "Old man, what is this?" One of the men in the group stepped forward. The man had short brown hair, his eyes filled with bloodlust. The way he addressed the man has changed completely. He used to address him with utmost respect, but since he had brought them to where they wanted, he wasn''t needed anymore. "Hehe, do you all know about origin beads?" The old man chuckled as he asked. "What?! Origin beads?!" The man who stepped forward exclaimed in shock. He didn''t think that what the old man was leading them to was an origin bead. If he were to absorb it, then he would be able to instantly break through to the Overlord Plane. That would place him at the top of the world. He wasn''t the only one who felt excited about the thought of the origin bead. "Haha, to think there''s such a treasure here. Since I''m a Fire Elementalist, it''s only acceptable that I take it," A fiery looking man stepped forward laughing. "Hmph! You''re not the only Fire Elementalist in this group," Another man stepped forward. The third person who walked out was the lady who was closer to the old man amongst the group during the journey. "You two don''t have any manners, Sir still haven''t spoken," She chided the duo. "What the hell is wrong with you? Sir? Who are you calling Sir, this old man?" The fiery looking man asked with a mocking voice. "Just like what we agreed from the start, I have a share in the treasure," The old man said calmly. "What? You want a share in this? You''re already at death''s door, why don''t I help you?" The fiery looking man asked while licking his lips. The others in the group burst out laughing when they heard this. If not for the old man''s use, they would''ve killed him right from the start. But on hearing there was a great treasure in the cave from the man, they decided to team up with him. They never expected he would actually believe them when they agreed that he would get a share from the treasure. "An origin bead can be absorbed by anyone, irrespective of their base element. Although, it would be better suited for those who have the same element as that of the bead." The old man said. "We all know that," The first man who spoke out said while walking towards the old man with a smirk. "You see, this bead needs a little more blood and it will finally get to the level it needs in order to advance," The old man said calmly. "Blood? What are you saying old man?" The man paused. "Yes, remember when I said that guy was needed for something?" The old man asked. The man nodded. "This is what it''s for. All we need to do is sacrifice him, and the bead will get to its peak!" The old man said fervently. The others looked at the bead, then at the old man, before staring at the entrance to the cave. "Huh? Where did he go?" Someone asked when they didn''t see Grey there, nor in the temple. "He must have run away, it doesn''t matter, he will die eventually," The old man said coldly. "Since he''s gone, what now?" The man asked. "The sacrifice must go on. Also, just in case you''re thinking of sacrificing me, I''m needed to organize the sacrifice," The old man said with a smile. He made sure he would be of use right to the end, there was no way these people could get rid of him. The man paused, and couldn''t help but look at the others. All eight individuals suddenly retreated from each other since they didn''t know who would attack them from behind. "No need for you guys to be this worked up, we already have the perfect sacrifice," The man said before turning to the lady who was close to the old man. The lady took a step back in fear, just as she took a step back, her pupils shrunk. She looked down and an old looking hand could be seen holding onto a heart that was still beating. The hand passed through her chest, which was bloodied. Blood slowly started to flow from her wound, as well as her mouth. The old man who was standing behind her withdrew his hand and the lady''s body fell to the ground with a ''thud''. Her blood moving towards the bead. The group looked at the old man with a strange expression, not expecting him to betray the lady that quickly. The bead suddenly started spinning at a faster rate as it greedily absorbed the lady''s blood. Within a few seconds, the corpse of the lady dried up completely. The others stared at the bead, a little horrified by it. "Is an origin bead supposed to absorb blood?" The fiery looking man couldn''t help but ask. "Hehe, of course not. But you see, I found this technique that would help me advance. All I need to do is feed my origin bead as much blood as I can, hehehe," The old man laughed out as he spoke, a different look appearing on his face. His current expression was that of a predator that was staring at it''s helpless prey. "Your origin bead?" The man with brown hair asked. "Yes. You see, this was all an elaborate plot to get you all here. Although the blood could be acquired from the tunnels, it would be more beneficial when the people were closer to the bead. The reason I picked your group amongst the others was because you people were stronger," The old man answered. His previous demeanor was slowly changing to that of an intimidating person. None of the people here could attribute the present old man to the one who led them here. "I still don''t understand," The fiery man said. He could feel a pressure from the old man that petrified him. "Don''t worry, you will soon," The old man cackled. Boom! The fiery looking man attacked immediately. Chapter 445 - You Think You Can Escape? "Stop," The old man said calmly with hands behind his back. The flaming snake that was rushing towards the old man stopped a few inches away from him. The fiery-looking man who attacked took a step back in horror. What the old man just showcased was an ability only those in the Overlord Plane could have. "You¡­" He tried to speak, but he didn''t know what to say. The others in the group stared at the old man and the flaming snake which was floating docilely in front of him. "The thing about people is that they tend to do desperate things when in difficult situations. Struggling is futile, you all should submit calmly and your deaths will be peaceful," The old man stroked the flaming snake. With a simple wave of his hand, the snake turned around, the fire intensifying as it charged towards the fiery man who created it. The speed and power of the attack were more than five times stronger than when the fiery-looking man used it to attack. It was almost like it wasn''t the same attack. The fiery man hastily retreated, while setting up a series of defenses to counter the flaming snake that was coming towards him. A huge fire wall rose up in front of him, while he created a second fire snake, hoping to use it to stop the first one the old man took control of. Boom! The fire snake that was controlled by the old man slammed into the fire wall, causing a large explosion. The second fire snake also charged into the explosion, trying to stop the first one. The energy caused by the explosion caused waves to appear on the lava pool around the temple. The others in the group retreated, not to be caught by the force of the attack. When the lava pool was disturbed by the force, if any of them looked at the lava under the entrance to the cave, they would see a blue fire orb around the two meters big. The figure of a person could be seen from inside the orb. Although it only appeared once, it was soon covered by the lava again, disappearing from view. Neither the group nor the old man caught sight of this since none of them expected there would be something like that there. ¡­. Grey, who was hiding in the fire orb couldn''t help but wipe the sweat off his head. ''Luckily I reacted quickly, or else I would''ve been toast. This old man is clearly a very powerful Overlord Plane expert, I don''t care what he''s doing, neither do I want to stay here any longer.'' He thought inside, worriedly. He was tempted by the floating origin bead, but he didn''t dare to go out. If someone in the Origin Plane could sense him, there''s a chance this old man could as well. Not just that, the main reason he wasn''t showing too much interest in the bead was that he felt it was contaminated due to the amount of blood it had absorbed. Although he absorbed the lightning orb from below the lightning tree which was basically the same thing as this one. The intensity of blood in this one was far stronger, and he could even sense a feeling of bloodlust from it. There''s a chance that this thing might change him, so he wasn''t willing to take that chance. Grey watched the battle as it went on, he couldn''t care less what happened to the group. He had already prepared himself to enter the Fusion State, so when he sees things have gotten out of hand, he would immediately enter the Fusion State and flee as far as he possibly could. Of course running away from a powerful Overlord Plane expert was not going to be easy, the space element would help him greatly in that aspect. ¡­. Back at the temple. The fiery-looking man smirked when he noticed the attack of the old man didn''t seem to be going through, but his expression soon changed when he noticed an even stronger fire building up. "I don''t know if to call you smart or dumb, even after knowing I can easily take control of your attack, you still use it so confidently. Haha, let''s see how you''ll defend against this attack after you''ve fueled it to be even stronger," The old man laughed while shaking his head. "What are you people standing there for? Are you just going to watch him kill me?!" The fiery man called out to the others. He was a hundred percent sure he couldn''t block the current attack the old man sent towards him. And once he''s dead, the old man would obviously go after the others. "Ah!..." An extended scream which was filled with pain and horror rang out. The old man smiled and turned to look at the bead, a man could be seen in flames, he was trying to hold onto the bead, but the intensity of the flames consumed him. Boom! Bang! While the others were distracted by the man who was being consumed by the flames, an explosion followed by a shriek of pain. "Ah!" The others turned around, and the fiery man had been consumed by his flames. Of the group of eight, three of them were already dead within a short span of time, yet the old man was perfectly fine. "Hehe, another one down," The old man laughed. "Kill him," One of the ladies immediately attacked. Compared to the fiery man, she was not a Fire Elementalist, so there was no way the old man could take control over her attacks. The others attacked as well, except for the last Fire Elementalist. Since attacking was no different from empowering the old man, there was no use. He turned around and fled towards the entrance of the cave. "You four should kill him!" He yelled after getting to the entrance. "Heh! You think you can escape?" The old man smirked. Boom! "Ah!" A lava pool shot out from the ground, covering the man who just landed on the ground at the entrance of the cave. Chapter 446 - How Rude! "Another one down, four more to go. No wait, five, if I add that guy who escaped as soon as they got here," The old man muttered to himself. The bead was spinning continuously while absorbing all the blood that was coming from the people who died. Although all of them died from flames, the old man controlled the flames so well that they didn''t burn the blood. An Elementalist''s control of their elements improves significantly after they get to the Overlord Plane. Breaking through to the Overlord Plane is like shedding to Elementalists, that''s when they get a deeper and more profound understanding of the elements. This is one of the reasons an Overlord Plane Elementalist could easily seize control of the attacks of those in the Origin Plane. The old man waved his hand, and a wall made entirely of lava appeared, blocking all the attacks of the group who attacked him. All the attacks came to a halt, not moving an inch forward. "If there were even fifty of you, I''d still kill you all with the utmost ease," The old man said. He took a step forward and lava appeared around the four people, attacking from all corners. Boom! Bam! The four of them tried to defend against the attack, but the power of the attack was overwhelming. Within a few seconds, all four individuals succumbed to the attack, screaming in pain as they died from the attack. ¡­. Grey who was watching from below the lava pool felt a chill run down his spine. ''So, this is the true power of an Overlord Plane powerhouse?'' He asked himself, in awe of the overpowering strength the old man just displayed. What was more alarming was that the old man didn''t even seem to be putting in any effort. It was like a simple walk in the park for him. ''I wonder if he''s more powerful than Teacher.'' He suddenly recalled his Teacher. From the few things he has heard about his Teacher, he could assume that even amongst Overlord Plane experts, he stood at the very peak. He should be able to single handedly defeat multiple people in the same stage as himself. Doesn''t that mean that his Teacher could kill over two hundred Peak Origin Plane Elementalists on his own? ''This isn''t the time to be thinking about that, I need to get out of here. The best time to leave this place should be when he''s absorbing his origin bead back.'' He planned his escape, still watching the movements of the old man. ''To think he''s this powerful even without his origin bead.'' Grey thought. The disparity in strength between an Overlord Plane expert and an Origin Plane expert shocked Grey greatly. Since fighting against that beast in the Overlord Plane, he had increased his view of those in the Overlord Plane, but it seems like he needed to increase it further. But after thinking about it properly, he felt it was normal since this man looks like he was in the Late stages of the Overlord Plane, compared to that beast that was in the Early stages. ¡­. The old man walked closer to the bead. "Hmm, where could that guy have gone? I can''t seem to sense him anywhere in the tunnels. It''s impossible for him to escape this quickly. Although he''s quite suspicious, I don''t think he can escape this quickly," The old man muttered to himself. After waiting for a few more minutes, he finally gave up. "Forget about it, I''ll absorb the bead now, I can always kill more people later in the future if this isn''t enough," He said before sitting below the bead. The bead slowly descended into his palm, after getting to his palm, he closed his eyes and the bead slowly started to merge with him. ¡­. ''It''s almost time, once it''s halfway through, I''ll jump out and run away as fast as I can,'' Grey thought while staring at the old man. He immediately started to complete the merging process which he stopped midway. Now was the time to get into the Fusion State and escape. On seeing that the merging process was halfway through, he jumped out of the lava pool. ¡­. The old man who had his eyes closed opened it instantly when he noticed a strange movement in the pool, to his surprise, he saw a figure covered in flames bursting out of the lava pool. "You were here all this time? No wonder I¡­" The old man stared wide-eyed as Grey disappeared from view after appearing. He was in the middle of saying a few words to Grey, but he suddenly disappeared. "How rude, hmph!" The old man snorted before standing up. ''Hmm, this will be a challenge since I''m still in the process of merging with the bead. This person is smart, but it wouldn''t be that easy to escape from this place.'' The old man thought before sitting down again. ''Is he on the Overlord Plane?'' He asked himself, he soon shook his head. ''No, I can''t sense the aura of an Overlord from him. But how can he fly then? Is it a special technique that gives him the ability of flight?'' The old man asked again. The more he thought about Grey, the more interest he seemed to have towards him. It was rare to see an Origin Plane Elementalist who can fly. Although there are some techniques that help with that, they are very rare, and only Wind Elementalists get that privilege. ''But that speed, it''s not something someone in the Origin Plane should have.'' He thought about how quickly Grey disappeared from the spot. ¡­. Grey disappeared from the cave entirely, appearing outside it. After appearing there, he brought out the plaque, looked at the direction Ellis was located and charged towards that side at his fastest speed. ¡­. The old man who was expecting to at least attack him while he was trying to escape was stunned when he didn''t sense him in the cave. Chapter 447 - Ellis Departure "He''s gone?" The old man asked himself, stunned. "How could someone just disappear without a trace?" He looked around. He kept searching for Grey in the cave, but to his surprise, he couldn''t find him anywhere. Originally, he thought maybe he hid somewhere just like when he hid in the lava pool, but he couldn''t find him. After looking around for a few more minutes, he gave up. There was no use in making sure he killed Grey. Other than being curious about him, he didn''t really have any other interest in him. Well, he did want to kill him, but that isn''t all that important since he had already killed everyone who entered the cave. ¡­. One hundred and twenty kilometers away from the cave. Grey''s figure could be seen coming out of a space tunnel. After looking around, he quickly burrowed into the ground, making a small cave underground and hiding. He could sense some terrifying presence around this place, and he didn''t dare to cause any disturbances. The beasts were all around the Mid stages of the Overlord Plane. A single one of them could single-handedly kill him, much less two or more. Even if he stayed in the Fusion state, he wasn''t confident in escaping from all of them at the same time. The reason he escaped easily from the old man was that he couldn''t move due to being stuck in the middle of the absorption process. He exited the Fusion State while sitting down crossed legs to calm himself. He brought out the wooden plaque and looked at Ellis'' position again, and he could see he was still a good distance away from him. The deeper he goes into the forest, the stronger the beasts he encounters. Ellis was still around ten the distance he just covered away from him, he couldn''t help but wonder what sort of beasts were in that area. If the ones here were already out of his league, it''s no use speaking about those ones in the area Ellis was located. ''I think it''s best that I do not keep going further. I can barely keep myself alive now, if I were to meet one of these beasts in the Mid stages of the Overlord Plane, then I wouldn''t make it out of here alive.'' He came to a conclusion. If he kept on going deeper, then it was no different than seeking death. Although the rewards he would see are better the deeper he goes, he still cherished his life. ''*Sigh* If only Void could wake up on his own. I still don''t know where to find that thing, and even with the help of Ellis who should at least be at the Peak of the Overlord Plane, I still haven''t found the pond yet.'' He contemplated. The day would soon be over, and according to Ellis, he would be leaving the next day. Grey wasn''t planning on leaving with him now, but he would follow him so that he could show him the array he wanted to use to leave this place. He stayed in the cave he made for the rest of the day, replenishing his essence while also cultivating. The essence here was purer compared to the one on the outer parts of the forest. The next day. Grey brought out the glowing device from his storage ring, Ellis looked completely worn out even though he wasn''t seeing him physically. "Hey, I couldn''t find that pond. And I have to leave now." Ellis said, clearly exhausted after two days of searching nonstop for the pond. He also fought some difficult battles, given how he looked. "Thank you for your help. At least now I have a general idea of where not to look," Grey said. He truly felt impressed by Ellis'' dedication to helping him. Not many people would help someone they just met all because they wanted to be friends with that person. "Yeah, where are you?" Ellis asked. Grey told him about the wooden plaque he gave him and how it worked. On bringing out the plaque, a look of incredulity appeared on his face. "Wow! You made this?" He couldn''t help but ask. From his shocked expression, Grey guessed he probably hadn''t seen something like this before. "Yeah," Grey nodded. "This is amazing!" Ellis exclaimed in shock. Even for someone like him who was from a better continent, he still felt intrigued and stunned by this. "You don''t have something like this in your continent?" Grey asked. Ellis shook his head truthfully, he truly hadn''t seen anything like this before. Grey found it surprising, after seeing this orb, he thought they would have a better form of tracking their close ones or even other people. Grey didn''t speak further about it as Ellis soon started hurriedly moving in his direction. He kept the orb and started to cultivate once again, it would take Ellis some time before he got there, so he wanted to continue cultivating in this area while he still had the chance. One hour later. Bang! The cave Grey was sitting on shook furiously almost scaring the hell out of him. He hastily spread out his spiritual senses and realized the reason for this was because Ellis landed directly above him. He stood up before calmly rising out of the cave, with the help of the wind element. When he saw Ellis physically, he found out that his condition was far worse compared to how he looked in the orb. He had some scratches on his shoulder, although most of the wounds were almost healed up, some still looked fresh. "You must have had a rough time out there?" Grey asked before bringing out a vial from his storage ring. "Yeah, tell me about it," Ellis said with a depressed shrug. "Take this, it should help with your wounds," Grey tossed the vial at him. "My injuries can''t be healed b¡­ Oh¡­ this should do," Ellis, who was about to reject the vial, changed his mind as soon as he sensed the content of the vial. Chapter 448 - Ellis Departure II "Phew¡­ This thing is amazing! I never thought I''d find it here," Ellis took a deep breath before breathing out in pleasure. "Thanks for this, it''s really very useful," Ellis said before giving Grey what was left in the vial. Grey took the vial back, and looking at it, more than half of the healing tonic was left in the vial. "Wait, that''s enough?" He asked with a weird face. "Of course! As much as a small drop should be enough to heal most injuries, if not because my injuries were affected by the elements of the beasts, I wouldn''t dare to use that much," Ellis replied. After speaking out, he realized Grey had a weird expression on his face, and he couldn''t help but feel his heart sink. "You use the entire bottle?" He asked with a small voice. His feminine voice made the situation funny due to how serious his expression was. "Actually, why don''t we change the subject?" Grey asked. Ellis tripped on seeing how Grey dodged the question, his face losing color. "Such a valuable substance and you''re wasting it?" He sat down on the ground in a dejected manner. Even for someone like him, he wouldn''t dare to use the tonic from a Blooming Viper in such a wasteful manner. Even his father wouldn''t dare to use it in such a manner. Seeing Ellis'' expression, Grey couldn''t help but wear an embarrassed smile. He couldn''t be blamed for how they used the tonic since they didn''t know how much would be enough. If not for Void, they wouldn''t have gotten it, and even Void didn''t know the quantity that would be enough to heal them. "Forget about it, so, have you made up your mind about leaving this place with me?" Ellis asked with a depressed look. "I can''t leave with you. As much as I would like to go to that place, there are some things I really need to take care of here first," Grey replied. "A shame," Ellis shook his head before adding, "We would''ve been able to get what you want so easily," Grey felt tempted when he heard this, but he decided he would focus on searching for his parents now, if he couldn''t find them, then he would leave this place and head over to the continent Ellis spoke about. "Can you show me where the array is located? There''s a chance I might leave soon," He asked. "Sure," Ellis nodded before taking flight and moving in one direction. A few seconds later, Ellis appeared once again. "Sorry, I forgot you were still in the Origin Plane," He scratched his head awkwardly. He used an arm made of water to grab hold of Grey before shooting into the sky. They headed towards the deeper parts of the forest. Grey could barely keep a good view of his surroundings. He couldn''t help but wonder how powerful Ellis was. The speed they were currently moving at is faster than when he was using the Great Void technique while in the Fusion State. This confirmed his theory that it would be impossible for him to escape from the old man if he were not busy. Twenty minutes later. Ellis appeared in front of a mansion. Grey stared at the building in shock, he could feel a strong sense of dread from it, almost like the building could instantly kill him. "There''s an array here that will instantly attack beasts. Of course it''s a different thing if the beast is with a person. There are naturally powerful beasts that can''t be bothered with the array if they really want to step in here. Fortunately, there are no treasures in the building, so there''s no use for them to step inside the building," Ellis explained. "How did you know this if you only found out about it?" Grey asked suspiciously. "Oh, it was written somewhere in the building, also, the array is so profound even for me. Please, no matter what you do, don''t try to study it," Ellis warned. He had seen how Grey acts whenever he comes in contact with a new array so he quickly warned before it was too late. Grey suddenly froze when he heard this, the truth was, he had already spread out his spiritual senses, trying to decipher the array. He quickly withdrew his spiritual senses before asking, "Do I look like someone who''s that careless?" "In other things, no, but in arrays you have no clue about, yes, yes you do," Ellis replied with a straight face. Grey shrugged before looking around, he couldn''t believe there was someone who would build something like this in such a place. On their way here, he was surprised they didn''t really go too deep into that forest, rather, they headed more towards the east. The beasts here were still in the Mid stages of the Overlord Plane though, so journeying here on his own would be incredibly difficult. "You said you''ve been here for a while now, are the beasts usually this powerful in this area?" Grey asked. "Powerful? Not really, but from what I found out some days ago, something major is happening deep in the forest, this was why the weaker beasts had to move to the outer perimeters of the forest. It should end in a few days or so, the forest will return to its previous state," Ellis explained with his hand on his chin. "That''s better then, if the beasts are only in the Early stages of the Overlord Plane, although it would be a little difficult, I wouldn''t have any problems with getting here," Grey heaved a sigh of relief. "Hmm, okay. Here''s a map, I marked all the areas I''ve traveled searching for that pond.. I also marked areas where some slightly powerful beasts are located, of course they can kill you with a blink of their eyes, so no matter what you do, do not head in that direction," Ellis passed a map to Grey while telling him about all the places he marked. Chapter 449 - A Small Problem Grey took the map from Ellis while studying it properly. Just as Ellis was about to continue speaking, he paused for a second and looked at the sky. ''Hmm, who''s that, and why is this person following Grey?'' He thought to himself. He could sense that someone has been following him since he met Grey. He initially didn''t think much about it, but now that he was about to leave and Grey wouldn''t have anyone to protect him, it would be better to take care of the problem now. "Hey, can you give me a minute, I want to go take care of a small problem," Ellis said. Grey nodded, he didn''t ask what the problem was, after all, if Ellis wanted to tell him, he would. Ellis smiled before disappearing. Boom! An explosion rang out in the sky that drew Grey''s attention. He couldn''t help but wonder what this problem was. The possibility that this was the problem Ellis was speaking about was very high since the explosion occurred immediately after Ellis disappeared. ''Could it be that the old man was secretly following me?'' Grey thought, a little frightened by the thought. He stood no chance against the old man, so it was understandable why he felt apprehensive towards him. Encountering the old man showed him how weak he still was, now he knew if Alice''s father wanted, he could''ve killed him. Then there was also the Smith family he took a huge risk with. ¡­. In the sky. Boom! After the explosion rang out, two figures shot towards the south at breakneck speed. It was so fast that Grey didn''t even notice it. "Stop right there, old man!" Ellis shouted while going after an old man. The old man looked at Ellis, a little surprised by his strength. After moving a good distance away from where Grey was located, the old man stopped. This was the man who Grey''s mother told to watch him after she left three years ago. He naturally followed Grey into the Magical Beasts'' forest to protect him. When Grey escaped from that old man back at the cave, he was already prepared to kill the man if he decided to give chase or if Grey didn''t have any way to escape. Fortunately, he''s still able to keep his cover since Grey was quite special in these cases. The old man had to admit it, when it came to escaping, he hadn''t seen anyone who was at the level of Grey. "What is a genius such as yourself doing in this place?" The old man asked calmly. On seeing how the old man didn''t seem to be bothered or worried, Ellis heaved a sigh of relief. From that exchange, even though the old man looked like someone who retreated, he knew the old man was stronger than he was. "Accident. The real question is why someone like you will be following after Grey. If I''m correct, you''re not from this small place, right?" Ellis asked. "I''m not, the only reason I''m here is to keep watch over the young lord," The old man replied sincerely. He could tell that Ellis had no ill will towards Grey from the duo''s interactions all these while, so there was no use in hiding Grey''s identity from him. Thanks to Ellis, Grey got to find out about the continent on his own, and he could tell Grey would leave this place soon enough. "Young lord?" Ellis asked with a confused expression. "Yes, there''s no need in me telling you which family we''re from. But he''ll come to the continent with or without your intervention. I''m glad he could make a friend even before going," The old man said with a kind smile. Even though he doesn''t communicate with Grey, he was quite doting towards him. He had been with him for three years now, and given his relationship with his parents, it was normal for him to be doting towards Grey. The only thing he found unfortunate was that he couldn''t speak with Grey much. Although, during Grey''s travels, he would encounter him as a weak old man who would speak with him whenever they met. He would always change his disguise, so Grey hadn''t been able to figure out he has encountered the same old man multiple times now. "Haha, such a coincidence. I knew such a genius couldn''t be born from such a small place," Ellis laughed out. "As much as I''d like to agree with your statement, unfortunately, I can''t. If you''ve encountered his friends here, then you''d know that there are some exceptional geniuses here. If they were to grow in the Middle continent, then they would be at the top amongst others their age," The old man said. He had seen Grey''s friends and what they could do, and he felt impressed by them. There was also that young lady he killed back at the capital who wanted to assassinate Grey. "Hmm, okay. I haven''t really adventured much in the continent since this is the only place I''ve seen which piqued my interest," Ellis didn''t refute the old man since he didn''t know Grey''s friends. Grey was the only person he had met who was this powerful at such a young age in this place, so he felt maybe he was the only one or one of the few. "I guess there''s no use speaking with you anymore, I''m leaving now," Ellis turned around, preparing to leave. "Don''t tell him about me, he''s not to know I exist, for now," The old man said. "It''s okay, I''m not a blabbermouth," Ellis replied before taking flight. "Wait, which family are you from?" The old man chased after him and asked. "The O''Brien family," Ellis replied. The old man paused for a few seconds, staring at Ellis'' back as he went further away from him. "How could this be?" He muttered while staring in Grey''s direction. "Forget it, his parents will sort it out.. At most¡­ *Sigh" Why did he have to be from that family?" He shook his head sadly. Chapter 450 - I Messed Up! Ellis soon returned to the mansion, he almost fell from the sky when he saw Grey sneakily trying to check out the array. "Stop!" He yelled. Grey stumbled when he heard Ellis'' voice, "You scared me. There''s no need to scream or to be afraid. I made a teleportation array some months back, I''m just trying to see how this one was made," "Wait, you made a teleportation array on your own without any prior knowledge of it?" Ellis asked, dumbstruck. "Pretty much. Although I''ve seen something like this in the trial land, I didn''t really get to study how the array worked, so it was extremely difficult for me to make it," Grey replied. Ellis was awed by Grey''s ability in arrays. Even if Grey wasn''t a genius as an Elementalist, he would surely excel with the help of his array skills. It was difficult to find true prodigies in array making or any other arts. "Just don''t mess with it, okay?" Ellis said. Grey nodded before following behind Ellis as he walked into the mansion. After getting into the mansion, Ellis walked straight to the middle of the mansion, he took out some essence stones, tossing them at eight different positions. An array lit up below him, giving off a strong spatial undulation. "The continent is divided into five, the Northern continent, Eastern continent, Western continent, Southwest continent, and the Middle continent. When you come there, head straight to the Southern continent, you will be able to find me there. On getting there, search for the O''Brien family. Although the continent is large, you shouldn''t have any problems with locating the O''Brien family," Ellis explained as the spatial undulations got stronger. "From what I can tell, you can''t predict which continent you will appear in after using it. No matter what happens, if you appear on the Eastern continent, never speak of the O''Brien family there." He warned. "You know what, just don''t speak of the O''Brien family in any other continent other than the Southern continent, alright?" He added. Grey looked at Ellis weirdly, from the warnings, he could tell that the O''Brien family seems to have enemies all over the continent. He couldn''t help but think of what might happen to him if he goes to the Southern continent. What if people tried to kill him because he was friends with someone from the O''Brien family? "No need to make that face, no one will kill you. You''re a little more fortunate than I am, I think," Ellis said when he saw Grey''s expression. "What?" Grey asked, he didn''t understand what Ellis meant by his statement. "It''s nothing, you''ll understand after coming. Goodbye for now. I don''t think the orb will work after I leave due to the distance, but I''ll keep this wooden plaque of yours so you can track me with it. You wouldn''t even need to search for the O''Brien family, all you need to do is find me," Ellis dodged Grey''s question while cursing at himself for almost spilling the beans. Luckily, he noticed quickly, stopping himself in time. Grey looked at him, but since he didn''t want to say anything, he didn''t bother too much about it. The array light continued increasing before Ellis soon disappeared into the bright light. After almost a minute, the light died down. Grey looked at the array with a contemplative expression, he noticed the time it took for the array to start was longer than expected. ''Maybe distance plays a big role in the time it takes before teleporting an individual,'' He thought. With Ellis gone, he looked around the mansion. With nothing to do, he decided to explore the place. Who knows, maybe he might find something here. Twenty minutes later. Grey stepped out of the building, just as he expected, there was nothing in the building. However, he found out that the teleportation array was somehow built with the aid of the building. He still didn''t know why it was done that way. He left the building before his expression changed. "Oh crap! Why didn''t I tell him to take me back before leaving?" He complained. This was the area occupied by the beasts in the Mid stages of the Overlord Plane. It would be extremely difficult to escape from one in the Early stages of the Overlord Plane, much less one in the Mid stages. ''Shit! I messed up, I messed up real bad,'' He thought with a long face. This was the third day he was spending in the Magical Beasts'' forest, and he couldn''t help but say although it had been eventful, he had almost died countless times. What was worse was that he was currently in an area that might make that happen sooner than he would like. He wanted a challenge, but this place was too much for him. He would prefer being in the side that only had beasts in the Early stages of the Overlord Plane since the pressure they would place him in while fighting against them would help him grow faster. With no other option, Grey first started to study the array around the building. Although Ellis warned him not to, he couldn''t stop himself. He wanted to take a peek at it before he started his long, dangerous journey back to the outer perimeters of the forest. ¡­. Three days later. Boom! An explosion rang out, but there was no movement after the explosion. A six meters long Wolf walked out from the side, inspecting the place of the explosion. After looking at it properly, it left the area. One hour later. The rumbles in the place where the explosion occurred shook before the head of a human popped out. The head belonged to none other than Grey. Since leaving the mansion three days ago, he had almost died twelve times. That was an average of almost dying four times a day. And this day wasn''t even over yet, so there''s a chance that he might face more life-threatening dangers before the day ends. ''I really messed up! Damn Ellis! Why was he in such a hurry to leave?!'' Chapter 451 - Insane Luck! ''*Sigh* I should''ve waited till the forest returned to normal before leaving,'' Grey thought with a dejected look as he started walking away from the rubble. He was exhausted from the three days of running away from beasts, and also the multiple heart-racing moments he had. He hasn''t even been able to speak with his friends because he couldn''t afford to split his attention. Roar! A loud roar encouraged Grey to move faster than he previously was. At first, he wanted to move slowly so that he could carefully evade all the beasts at the Mid stages of the Overlord Plane, but now, he couldn''t even move slowly anymore. ¡­. Boom! Bang! Grey encountered two beasts fighting while running away, beside them was something that felt so familiar he couldn''t help but stare at it continuously. ''It''s here! I can''t believe there''s some here. Although it''s not that much, I must get it,'' He looked at the liquid greedily. It was the liquid he had been searching for all this while. He couldn''t believe his luck. Ellis had passed through all these areas, but he didn''t find it. Who would''ve thought that while he was escaping, he would come across two beasts fighting, and the liquid would be beside them? He stared at what the liquid was stored in, and quickly concluded that it was done by a person. It was kept in a flask, but its top was broken and some of the liquid had obviously spilled out. What was left in the flask shouldn''t be up to half of what it originally contained. Without wasting any time, Grey quickly came to a decision. He was going to use the Fusion State once again. It hadn''t been up to a week since the last time he used it, but he couldn''t afford to let this chance slip by. It''s unknown when next he might be opportune to see this liquid again. Sitting down crossed leg, he calmed his mind and slowly started to merge his elemental orbs. He didn''t forget to watch the beasts that were fighting, to make sure he wasn''t in danger if they decided to stop fighting and attack him. A few minutes later. The two beasts which were fighting were a black five meters tall bear, and a large snake. Each had different elements, the bear had the earth element while the snake had the water element. As the battle was going on, Grey realized that the snake was slowly gaining the upper hand, and the body of the bear was slowly being inflicted with different wounds. The snake had tried constricting the bear on multiple occasions, but the brute strength of the bear made it impossible for it to do so. Grey, who just finished merging his elemental orbs, took out a weapon he rarely used since acquiring it. The multi-elemental blade he obtained in the trial land. Due to being in the Fusion State, he could use it to attack at least a few times before being sucked dry of his essence. Of course he didn''t plan on doing that, he only wanted to wound the snake, giving the bear the chance to focus on killing it while he escapes with the liquid. It was a win-win scenario for the duo since the bear would escape with its life, while he would run away with the liquid. "Phew¡­" He breathed out heavily, while taking a fighting stance with the sword held with both hands. Roar! The bear roared in pain after the snake bit it on its neck. It was struggling to push the snake away, but the snake had smartly used its huge body to tie the hands, leaving the bear almost defenseless. Even if the bear could still attack with the earth element, it would be difficult for it to escape from the snake. Despair covered its face as it knew its end was near. The snake slowly started to constrict the upper body of the bear, gradually squeezing the life out of it. Just when the bear had lost all hope, it saw a small figure flashing towards them with a black sword that seemed to be in flames, but the flames were black. The figure was none other than Grey who had decided to jump to the rescue at the perfect time. His blade was fully covered with the darkness element, and the sword enhanced it, causing the black flames that were surrounding the sword. Slash! The blade cleanly cut into the body of the snake which was at the Mid stages of the Overlord Plane. It stopped after going through one-third of the body of the snake. His attack was accurate, cutting the snake close to its head. One has to know that even an attack from someone in the Mid stages of the Overlord Plane will find it difficult to hurt the snake, much less injuring it. Yet, Grey who even with the help of the Fusion State isn''t as powerful as someone in the Mid stages of the Overlord Plane managed to do just that. "Wow! This sword is amazing!" Grey exclaimed unconsciously when he saw the damage it did. The reason he used the darkness element for the attack was so that he would be able to do some damage to the snake, he never expected the damage would be this big. Screech! The snake let go of the bear, screeching in pain while wiggling its body. The bear uses the opportunity to break loose from the snake''s hold, using its claws to slap it away from its body. As soon as the bear got an opening, it launched at the snake again, not bothering with the human who helped it. Grey was more than happy with its response and hastily flew towards the flask, after grabbing hold of it, he was shocked to find that a human body was covered under the flask. He didn''t even bother to dig it and find out who this person was or what else the person had. "Thank you for finding this liquid," He bowed and blinked. He couldn''t stay there for long, in case the bear decides to leave the snake and focus its attention on him. Chapter 452 - Repaying A Favour The outer perimeters of the Magical Beasts'' forest. A figure suddenly appeared from what looked like a crack in the sky, crashing into the ground. Bang! The figure landed heavily on the ground, causing a small crater. A group of five who entered the forest not too long ago stared at the figure in shock. "Isn''t that the guy who helped you previously?" A gentle voice asked. A young man walked closer to the figure, looking at its haggard state. The young man was none other than Jonas, and the lady who spoke was the one Grey saw with him when he came to Lapis City. "What happened to him?" The lady asked, with hands covering her mouth. "I don''t know, we should take him to the camp, just to be safe," Jonas picked Grey up before hurrying to their camp. He didn''t know if Grey was being chased, but given his look, there was bound to be something or someone chasing him. Grey''s condition didn''t look too good. Even Jonas couldn''t help but look at Grey worriedly. ¡­. They soon got to their camp. Where they camped was under a big tree, but since the beasts in this area weren''t too powerful, they didn''t have much to worry about. Jonas placed Grey on the ground, while bringing out the healing tonic they had with them. He fed it to Grey before moving out of the camp. "We''ll have to stay here until he wakes up," Jonas said. "Who is he?" One of the three young men in the group asked. "He''s Gr¡­" "He''s a friend of mine who helped me some time back, I''m only repaying a favour," Jonas cut the young lady short before giving her a look of warning. Due to the bad relationship between The Lunar and the Starlight Academy, some of the students from the Starlight Academy wouldn''t think twice before killing a defenseless student from the Lunar Academy. Even though the management of the Lunar Academy has been changed, the feelings between the students of both Academies was still the same. Of the three young men here, only one of them might consider not killing Grey. It was the one whom he wanted to save with the tonic Grey helped him to protect from that group back at the gate of Lapis City. The other two would kill Grey the moment they find out who he is. "You don''t have many friends," One of the men said suspiciously. "I don''t see where it was written that before I make any friends, I should bring them to you for inspection," Jonas said coldly. "That''s not what I mean," The young man quickly stopped the argument. Jonas was stronger than him, and even with the help of the other guy, they still didn''t stand a chance against him. This was the reason why he was the one tasked with leading the group in the first place. It was said even the Crown Prince had taken notice of Jonas'' abilities, and it was rumored that he would be an important part of his team in the future. They couldn''t afford to offend someone with such a future. The young man looked at his counterpart, before leaving the area with the excuse of going to patrol the area. The second young man followed after him as well since staying with Jonas seemed a little uncomfortable. After the duo left, the third young man walked towards Jonas. "Tell me the truth, who is he?" He asked. "He''s the reason you''re alive and well," Jonas replied, his tone wasn''t as cold as it was when he was speaking with the previous young man. "You mean?" The young man pointed at the tent, looking at Jonas. "Don''t ask too much about it, he''ll leave once he wakes up," Jonas said. Even though he trusted his friend, he didn''t feel too safe with disclosing Grey''s identity to him. The young lady wouldn''t want to do anything to offend him, so she wouldn''t speak about it, but he didn''t really know too much about his friend since he also had a deep hatred towards those from the Lunar Academy. Grey could even be said to be the person he hated the most. The reason for this, his elder brother was the one Grey''s Teacher slapped to death back at the Capital during the competition. It was unknown what he would do once he finds out about this. The young lady sensibly shut her mouth, not speaking about Grey or where he came from. ¡­. The next morning. Grey opened his eyes, looking at his strange surroundings. He hastily tried to stand up, while also getting into a defensive position. Unfortunately, he was unable to do so because of the pain that ran across his entire body as he tried to do so. ''Damn it! I not only stayed in the Fusion State for too long, but I also forced myself to continue escaping through the spatial tunnel. That stupid bear, even with my help it almost killed me,'' He gritted his teeth angrily as he thought. Just when he was about to successfully blink away from the place, the bear sneak attacked him, disrupting the spatial tunnel. Had he not been in the Fusion State, he would''ve lost control of the tunnel and would probably have died from it. He couldn''t help but hate the bear the more he thought about it. "You''re awake?" A gentle voice asked. Grey looked towards the entrance of the tent, and a young lady could be seen looking at him. "Oh, it''s you! Wait, how did I come here?" Grey couldn''t help but ask. "You fell from the sky, luckily, Jonas and I were nearby, so we brought you back here to recover," The young lady replied. She turned outside the tent before saying, "Jonas, he''s awake," "Oh," Grey heard a calm ''oh''.. He knew the voice belonged to Jonas, but he still perked up since he could sense there were other people around. Chapter 453 - Will It Be Enough? Jonas and the three young men outside walked into the tent. Grey stared at them, he could sense animosity from two of the young men. This made him increase his vigilance, he prepared him, waiting to explode with a powerful attack if the two guys made any suspicious moves towards him. "It''s good to see you''re fine," Jonas commented as he walked in. "Yeah, I was lucky I crashed into you guys, if it were to be others, even if they didn''t try to kill me, they''d leave me out there," Grey said. "If he didn''t recognize you, there was no way we would''ve helped a stranger who fell from the sky in such a strange way," The young man close to Jonas said while looking at Grey suspiciously. What he found strange about Grey''s appearance wasn''t that he fell from the sky, but it was how he fell. He came out of what looked like a crack, a dark terrifying crack. Even if the crack didn''t stay for long, they all saw it. Grey squinted his eyes, looking at the young man with his listless eyes. The young man who was about to speak again took a step back unconsciously. Grey''s gaze terrified him, it was like he was staring at the death reaper. Jonas looked at his friend before shaking his head. He couldn''t hide the fact that he was curious about how Grey appeared but asking him immediately after he woke up wasn''t the best choice, especially when two of them were showing such hostility. The duo wasn''t even trying to hide it. "So, when did you come to the Magical Beasts'' forest?" Jonas asked, trying to calm the tension in the tent. "The next day after we met," Grey replied, after a while, he asked, "How long was I out?" "Not long, just a night," The young lady in the group replied. "Hmm, okay," Grey nodded before keeping his mouth shut. He had no more interest in speaking, especially with these two staring at him like predators. It was like they were waiting for him to make a small mistake so that they would be able to attack him with a valid reason. "You should rest a little longer," Jonas said before turning around to leave. His friend followed behind him, as well as the young lady. The duo who were staring at Grey with hostility were the ones left in the tent, still staring at Grey. "You look familiar," One of the duo spoke up while staring at Grey. Grey''s robe was destroyed, and because Jonas picked him up quickly when he crashed into them, they didn''t get a good view of his face, but now that they saw him, they couldn''t help but find him familiar. "Oh really?" Grey asked, compared to his somewhat surprised words, his facial expression and tone remained as apathetic as ever. "Yes, but¡­ that''s not what I''m really concerned about," The young man asked. Grey looked at him, not even bothering to continue to speak with him. He felt if he answered him, then he was entertaining him to continue speaking. If he kept quiet, then the young man would know when to leave. The young man looked unbothered with how Grey stopped speaking with him and asked, "What was that crack you fell from," "Huh?" For the first time, a different expression appeared on Grey''s face, and it was one of confusion. "You fell from a crack that suddenly appeared in the sky. There''s no way you can deny it, every single one of us saw it," The young man said. "A crack?" Grey asked, still wearing the same confused expression. Of course he knew what they were talking about, but there was no way he would agree to it. He would rather argue with the duo than agree to it. If he were to agree to this, then word would definitely spread out. He was already in enough trouble from being hunted down by the emperor, if every single big family out there started to look for him because he could use an unknown form of movement, he didn''t know how to respond to it. "You fell from a crack in the sky!" The young man said, starting to get annoyed by Grey''s feigned ignorance. He felt Grey knew what he was talking about, but he wanted to make him look stupid. "How does a crack appear in the sky?" Grey asked. His question stunned and annoyed the young man at the same time. First of all, the only way they knew a crack could form in the sky is when the attack of an Elementalist is so powerful that even the void would be destroyed by it. But the thing was, in the current era, there haven''t been any cases of there being Elementalists powerful enough to cause a crack in the void. The young man looked at Grey stunned because he couldn''t answer Grey''s question but annoyed because he knew what he saw. Just as the young man was about to continue questioning Grey, Jonas walked back towards them, giving them a stern look. "He needs to rest," He said emotionlessly. The young man clenched his fists before turning around to leave. His companion looked at Jonas coldly before leaving with him. "Your group is quite united," Grey said nonchalantly before sitting down crossed leg. Jonas shrugged at his comment before leaving. He naturally knew the duo didn''t like Grey, but he didn''t think they would outright start questioning him. After Jonas left, Grey hastily checked his storage ring to see if what almost got him killed was safe. He heaved a sigh of relief when he found it sitting calmly in one corner of his storage ring. ''It''s at least five times what that pendant contained. Will it be enough to heal him?'' He thought to himself when he saw the liquid. There was only one way to find out, and that was feeding it to Void. But since he was still here, he didn''t think it was wise to try it given the eyes that were on him. ''I''ll rest for a while then leave,'' Chapter 454 - Waiting For A Reaction Two hours later. Grey stepped out of the tent looking fresh. He didn''t take out a new robe since Jonas'' group would find it suspicious how he took out another robe when he didn''t even have a bag. Jonas was sitting under a tree, accompanied by his friend as well as the young lady. The duo who didn''t like him was nowhere to be seen. He wasn''t really too bothered about them. Even if they were to attack him, then they would just end up dying. The trio who was sitting turned to look at him as he walked towards them. "Looks like you''re fine now," The young lady said. "Yeah, almost as good as new," Grey nodded before taking a seat close to them. Jonas looked at Grey, stunned. He knew how Grey''s condition was since he was the one who carried him back to the tent, yet with just a night''s rest he was fine. ''His recovery speed is insane! Could this be a product of some rare treasure?'' He asked himself while looking at Grey. Grey, who sensed an intense gaze couldn''t help but look in the direction of the gaze, he made eye contact with Jonas who was still staring at him intensely. "Uh¡­ is anything wrong?" He asked. Jonas snapped out of his dazed look with a shake of his head. "No, I just recalled something," He replied. Grey nodded before standing up, "I''ll be leaving now, I have things to attend to. Thank you for your help," "It''s nothing, I''m only repaying a favour from the lady time," Jonas replied. Grey nodded and left. He didn''t stay there for long, he was in a hurry to check if Void would wake up after taking the liquid, so he didn''t have time to spare on other things. A few minutes after Grey left. The duo who weren''t in the group hurried back. "Where''s he?" One of them asked. "Gone. Is anything the matter?" Jonas asked when he saw the expressions of the duo. "Yes, you betrayer. You were helping someone from the Lunar Academy, and to think it''s a person whom we all hate," The young man pointed at Jonas while yelling angrily. "First of all, not everyone hates him. Secondly, the next time you point your hands in my face again, you will lose it," Jonas replied coldly, not bothering to hide Grey''s identity. Since the duo already recognized him, what was the use of trying to hide it? Besides, Grey was already gone. If the duo were stupid enough to go after him, then they are only seeking death since Grey would kill them without even thinking twice. "Wait, what are they saying, who is he?" The young man with Jonas asked. "Do you remember the guy who caused the death of your elder brother?" One of the other two young men asked. "I didn''t get to see him since I didn''t attend the competition," The young man replied. "Well, that guy was the one. When I saw him the first time, I knew he was familiar, but I couldn''t think of where I saw him, and with Jonas shielding him, I didn''t pry any further. But after we left, I thought about it properly, and I recalled where I saw him," The young man explained. The young man who was with Jonas and the young lady turned to look at Jonas with an enraged look. "Did you know about this?" He asked angrily. "Yes, but as I said, I was repaying a favour," Jonas replied casually. "A favour?! He was the one who made that man kill my brother!" The young man yelled. "And he''s the one who made sure you got the tonic that healed you, it''s best you do not offend him," Jonas said. "Bullshit! Come, he went this way," The young man yelled at Jonas before charging towards the direction Grey went. The duo glared at Jonas before following after the young man. Jonas shook his head, not even moving an inch. The young lady looked at Jonas, "Aren''t you going to stop them?" "They chose this, if they survive, they''ll learn a much needed lesson," Jonas replied. "And if they don''t?" The young lady asked. "*Sigh" So be it," Jonas looked at the sky, it was as if he was mourning the death of his friend. If his friend couldn''t let the person who saved his life go because of his anger, then it was his choice. Even though he accepted him as a friend, he wouldn''t support such foolish actions. He clearly told him of how even he couldn''t bring the tonic since people wanted to forcibly collect it, yet the person who fought against that group and won, he wanted to fight against such a person. The young lady knew just how powerful Grey was, so she couldn''t help but feel fearful for the outcome of the battle. "Hopefully, they don''t find him," She said while looking in their direction. ¡­. A few kilometers away from where Jonas'' camp was located. Grey didn''t leave the forest since he wanted to quickly feed the liquid to Void. He hurriedly found a cave, then went in, shutting the entrance to the cave with an earth wall. He didn''t even set up an array. After going in, he carefully brought Void out of his storage ring. He also brought out the liquid. Slowly parting Void''s mouth, he poured what was left in the flask inside his mouth. A soothing aura spread out from the liquid, calmly Grey''s head. His eyes were filled with hope as he emptied the flask completely. "I hope it works this time," He muttered. He waited patiently, hoping to see a reaction from Void. Boom! The earth wall he used to cover the entrance of the cave exploded. He saw three silhouettes charging straight into the cave. "There he is! Kill him!" The young man who was with Jonas yelled when they entered the cave. Grey, who was still waiting for a reaction from Void looked at the trio with infuriated eyes. Chapter 455 - Do You Regret It Now? Grey created a small hole on the ground, promptly hiding Void so the group wouldn''t see him. "What''s the meaning of this?" He asked with a cold voice while releasing an icy aura. "You''re that guy from the Lunar Academy, aren''t you?" The young man who was Jonas'' friend pointed at him. "What does that have to do with you people disturbing my peace?" Grey asked. Even when speaking with the trio, his current focus was on the condition of Void. He was checking to see if there were any reactions from him, but there has been none. "You''re the reason my brother is dead," The young man said angrily. "Who is your brother?" Grey asked, confused. He didn''t recall killing anyone from the Starlight Academy. Seeing Grey''s reaction, the young man was more annoyed. Without even speaking any further, he attacked immediately. Whoosh! Multiple wind blades shot towards Grey''s location. With a simple flick of his hand, an earth wall rose in front of him, blocking all the wind blades. Boom! "I still don''t understand why you people are attacking me, are you dumb or something?" Grey asked after successfully blocking the attack. He still couldn''t understand why people would chase after someone just because he was from the Lunar Academy. At least he could somewhat understand why the young man who attacked him wanted to kill him since he seems to be driven by revenge, but the other two hated him right from the get-go. "Going to the Lunar Academy is the dumbest decision you''ve ever made," One of the other two young men replied. Grey shook his head on hearing the reasoning of the young man. Just because he went to the Lunar Academy automatically made him their enemy? What sort of reasoning was that? "Stop speaking to him, kill him now that he hasn''t completely recovered. According to Jonas, he''s weaker than this guy. You should be aware of how powerful Jonas is," Jonas'' friend turned to the other and said. The other two looked at Grey, they never thought he would grow this powerful after not seeing him for such a short time. But Jonas was an example of how quickly the special training made those who participated in it grow. Thinking about it, they felt jealous of him. Since Jonas returned from the special training, his status in the Academy soared, quickly rising above theirs. They both exploded out with attacks of their own, attacking Grey with the young man. Grey scoffed before setting up an earth wall to block their attacks. Of the three of them, the duo who disliked Grey from the start were still in the Sixth stage of the Origin Plane, while the young man who was friends with Jonas was in the Seventh stage. Grey could easily kill all of them even when he was at the weakest, much less when he was already almost perfectly fine. Boom! All the attacks were easily stopped by the earth wall. The trio who attacked him were shocked at how nonchalantly he was able to block their attacks. "Regret attacking me now?" Grey asked with a sneer. The trio looked at each other, unconsciously nodding to Grey''s question. Of course they regret it now! Given the strength Grey just showed, it meant that he could kill them without any problems. They all started taking a step back. "As much as I''d like not to kill you people, you guys will cause troubles for me in the future," Grey said casually. He was currently fuming, but not because of them though. His attention was still placed on Void, and he realized that the liquid had already stopped radiating its soothing aura, and there still weren''t any reactions from Void. This meant that it didn''t work. This trio were unlucky to provoke him at such an unfortunate time. "You¡­ you¡­ don''t want to kill us, if you do, Jonas will be in trouble," One of the two young men said while retreating. "I don''t see where that''s my problem," Grey shrugged as he walked towards them. The trio were thinking of ways to escape as they retreated. The young man who spoke previously thought the relationship between Grey and Jonas was close, hence he tried using Jonas to threaten him. The young man who was Jonas'' friend was the first to try to escape, charging straight through the entrance of the cave. He was the fastest among the group since he was a Wind Elementalist. The other two were a Water and Earth Elementalist respectively. Grey smirked, "You think you can leave after trying to kill me?" He spread out his hand, closing it, two earth walls popped out from the side of the entrance to the cave, shutting the trio inside with him. The Wind Elementalist was just about to get to the entrance when the wall appeared. He was forced to stop moving, despair appearing on his face. "Since you miss your brother so much and want to take revenge for him, why don''t you join him?" Grey''s voice echoed on the side of the Wind Elementalist''s ear. The Wind Elementalist stood in the same position, terror-stricken. It didn''t even take up to a second before Grey noiselessly appeared behind him. "Please¡­ don''t¡­ don''t kill me, I don''t want to die yet," The Wind Elementalist started begging. "Whoever wants to kill should also be prepared to be killed," Grey said casually. He tapped the Wind Elementalist on his shoulder, and ice started to spread across his entire body at an unimaginable speed. Before he could even react, he was frozen solid. The two young men who were behind them were petrified when they witnessed this scene. Grey didn''t even show any effort, and the Wind Elementalist who was not only the strongest but was also the fastest was dead. Grey turned around, looking at the duo. He clenched his fists, and it was followed by a bang. Bang! The ice statue behind him exploded, breaking into multiple small pieces. "Compared to him, your death will be a little bit more painful," Grey said as he walked towards them with a wicked smile. His handsome face was the only contrast with the murderous aura he was releasing. Chapter 456 - The Auction Grey walked to the small hole he created where Void was still lying down. He couldn''t help but feel sad when he still saw him asleep. Even after venting on the trio, he still didn''t feel good. ''Damn it! I guess I''ll have to head back and wait till the auction. I''ll ask old man Gerald to help me with my parents'' whereabouts while waiting. If he doesn''t find them before then, then I guess I''ll be leaving this continent,'' Grey immediately came to a decision. The more Void stayed in this condition, the more he was annoyed with himself. If Void were to be alright, then he would''ve already left this continent by now. Even he knew the chances of his parents being in the Azure continent was slim. He just wanted to use the time he was waiting for the auction to see if there would be any hope in finding them here. After coming to a decision, he quickly picked Void up, leaving the cave. His current destination was Lapis City, he wanted to cultivate there while waiting. His interest in the Magical Beasts'' forest was dead. If he were to continue staying here, he was sure he would use the array sooner than he expected. The cave returned to its previous calm before Grey came in, other than some ashes, as well as bits of ice on the ground, one wouldn''t know a battle occurred here not too long ago. Some minutes after Grey left. Two silhouettes appeared at the entrance of the cave. It was none other than Jonas and the young lady who was with him. "We were too late," The young lady said with hands covering her mouth. "*Sigh* I knew this would be the outcome," Jonas shook his head. He didn''t feel sad for his friend''s death or angry at Grey for killing him. The short time he spent with Grey in the trial land showed him a little bit of Grey''s personality, so he knew as long as these people tried to kill him, he definitely won''t hold back. "Come on, I think it''s time to leave this place," He turned around. Since the people he was supposed to train in the forest were dead, there was no use in him staying here any further. Besides, he had heard of the current unrest in the Magical Beasts'' forest. He didn''t know what was the cause, neither did he care. The young lady looked at the bits of ice and ashes with a sad look on her face, but she followed after Jonas. The journey to the Magical Beasts'' forest hasn''t been particularly good for her, so she wanted nothing more than to leave right now. ¡­. Two weeks later. Lapis City. Grey was still cooked up in his room in a tavern. There was little over three days before the auction, and he still hadn''t heard of there being any treasures like what he wanted being submitted for the auction. He was sitting on the floor cultivating when he suddenly felt some sort of vibration coming from his storage ring. He opened his eyes, staring at the ring. He brought out the wooden plaque old man Gerald gave to him. Sending his spiritual senses inside, he heard the voice of old man Gerald. ''Grey my boy, how are you doing?'' Old man Gerald asked. ''I''m fine thanks, how are you?'' Grey replied before asking. ''I''m good. So, about the search for your parents, they''re nowhere to be found. There haven''t even been as much as a sighting of them in any other place in the continent other than when they came to Red City. Since they left Red City, they disappeared into thin air. No one even saw them leaving,'' Old man Gerald reported their findings to Grey. ''Oh, thank you for your help. I think they''ll come when they feel it''s time to see me again,'' Grey said. Old man Gerald has been so helpful, even Grey didn''t think he would help him this freely. If only he knew old man Gerald was doing all these to make sure he stayed wherever he was and not accidentally venture to Frost City while searching for his parents. ''It''s okay. Also, there has been no word of anyone submitting what you want for the auction. We will have to wait till the day of the auction to confirm. Anyway, I''ll advise you to go to the auction,'' Old man Gerald said. ''I plan on going as well,'' Grey said. They spoke a little longer before Grey went back to cultivating. With his parents not being found anywhere, he decided it was best to leave the continent and head out to search for them. But what was bothering him was where he was going to start his search. He doesn''t know where his parents were from, nor where they would be. Then, there''s also the possibility that his parents were hiding somewhere in the Azure continent. There are a lot of families like that who will hide in remote places and unless they want to be found, no one would be able to find them. Well, except accidentally stumbling into where the family hid. Although he didn''t want to admit it, the real reason he was leaving the continent was so that he could find a way to quickly heal Void, and also his curiosity towards the continent Ellis spoke of. If the youths were just as powerful as Ellis, then he had a lot of catching up to do. If he were there, he would see more motivation to try to improve faster. Here, he was already close to the very peak, hence cultivating wasn''t as interesting as it used to be when he was still in the Arcane Plane. He had already left most of the people in his generation behind in terms of strength. He needed a new challenge. ¡­. Three days later. The day he had been waiting for finally came, it was the day of the auction. Old man Gerald still hasn''t told him of there being any item like what he wanted, so he wasn''t hopeful in finding it here. Chapter 457 - The Auction II The auction was going to be held in the evening, and old man Gerald had sent someone to give Grey a special vip invitation, which would entitle him to a special area in the auction. These areas are usually left for those powerhouses and people from big families who come to attend the auction. Later that night. Grey wore light blue long sleeves and trousers, while also putting on a mask that covered half of his face, before stepping out of the tavern. A carriage was already waiting for him outside, the insignia of the Lenz organization was drawn boldly on the side of the carriage. Grey couldn''t help but praise old man Gerald for his resourcefulness. Although he wasn''t sure he would acquire anything from the auction, he would still like to see what would be on display. There might be something that might pique his interest. The Lenz organization building. This was the largest building in the whole of Lapis City. It had a large marketplace inside it, while there was a huge hall where the auction would take place. By the time Grey''s carriage got to the building, it was already filled with people who were standing outside in an orderly manner, waiting to go in. When Grey''s carriage got close to the building, the people by the side all turned to look at who it was that was being brought by a carriage. There were a lot of carriages outside, but the individuals all came down from the carriage and walked towards the building''s gate. Grey wasn''t an exception. He stepped down from the carriage when they got close to the building, heading towards the gate with soft steps. The guards at the gate were already waiting for him, even without seeing his invitation, they knew he was very special since he was brought here by the organization''s carriage. "Right this way sir," The guards made way for him to go inside, before closing off the gate once again. Grey didn''t bother to look around, he walked straight into the building through the door the guards showed him. As soon as he walked inside, a beautiful young lady walked up to him. "Hello sir, may I see your invitation?" The young lady asked gently. Grey brought out the invitation given to him by old man Gerald. After taking the letter, the young lady gasped when she saw Grey''s viewing room in the hall was one of the best ones around. From the small part of Grey''s face that was visible, she could tell that he was very young. ''He must be from one of the big families,'' She thought. She didn''t brood over it for long as she returned the letter to Grey before saying, "Right this way sir," Grey nodded and followed behind her. After a few minutes of walking, Grey got to the room he was assigned. At the top of the room''s door, six was boldly written on it. The young lady opened the door for Grey, who stepped in immediately. "If you need anything, tug on that blue rope and I''ll come over. If you want to make a bid for any item, tug on the red rope," The young lady said. "Okay," Grey said before walking towards the window which was covered by a thick glass. He looked through the window and realized there were rooms just like this one around the hall. Each room was protected by an array that would keep the spiritual senses of others out. He tried looking past the other windows, but he realized there was no way to see what was in the room. ''It''s good this way,'' He thought to himself. He walked back to the chair close to the window, before taking a seat. "Huh?" He raised his head curiously. Looking behind him, he realized the young lady still hadn''t closed the door. "Anything?" He asked. "Ah¡­ no, I''ll leave now sir," The young lady said flustered before closing the door hurriedly. "Uh! Odd," Grey muttered. Grey sat down quietly while patiently waiting for the auction to start. People were still flocking into the hall. He guessed it would be completely filled up within the next half hour or so. Given the number of people he saw outside, he was confident that not all of them would be able to get into the hall. One hour later. "Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to this month''s auction. Since there are a few new faces here, we''ll state the rules once again." A deep voice said, attracting the attention of Grey who had his eyes closed. He looked at the platform in the hall, and a sturdy man who was around six foot three inches was standing there, giving a speech. The rules of the auction were very simple, first of all, whoever is making a bid should ensure they have the items they''re offering, secondly, one shouldn''t use their status to intimidate others into not bidding for an item. There were still a few more rules, but Grey didn''t really take them into account. "Now that you all is said, I''ll introduce our host for the day." The burly man said after speaking out the rules. "The beautiful, miss Verla," The burly man said while showing the guests to his left. Grey followed the man''s hand, and a beautiful young lady who wore a silver fitted gown walked onto the platform. He heard from Klaus that the ladies who are always in charge of handling auctions are always beautiful, even though this was his first time attending one, he couldn''t refute Klaus'' words. "Hello everyone, it''s my honor to be your host for today. Hopefully, we all get what we want by the end of the event," The young lady''s soft and clear voice resonated in the entire hall. Given the size of the hall, Grey found it surprising that her soft voice could travel so far, effortlessly. ''Hmm,'' Grey squinted his eyes, looking at the young lady. There was something he found odd about her voice, he just couldn''t figure it out now. "There are a variety of items up for sale today, from how the auction was previously held, after ten regular items, we will bring out one of the few good items we have today," The young lady said. The entire hall was quiet, waiting for her to continue. Seeing their attentiveness, the young lady nodded calmly before she continued. "The first item on the list today is an old technique found in a cave deep in the Magical Beasts'' forest, it''s a fire element technique and the starting price for it will be three hundred and fifty mid-grade essence stones. For every bid made, the price must see an increase of twenty mid-grade essence stones," The young lady took out a shabby-looking scroll that had dust all over it. Grey didn''t show any interest in it, looking away right after it was introduced. He wasn''t interested in learning any techniques for now. "Three hundred and seventy essence stones!" A voice rang out right after the young lady finished speaking. "Four hundred!" "Four hundred and twenty!" The price of the technique quickly shot up to five hundred essence stones before it started slowing down. In the end, it was sold off for six hundred and forty mid-grade essence stones. After the first item was sold, the young lady brought out the next item which was an elemental weapon. The elemental weapon sold for one thousand two hundred mid-grade essence stones. The auction continued, but nothing had been able to draw Grey''s interest. He couldn''t help but feel bored. Throughout the time all these items were being brought out, none of the people in the special rooms had made an offer for any item. Grey guessed they were waiting for the ones which the young lady said were better than these ones. After over thirty minutes, the young lady was done selling off the first ten items on the list, now it was time to bring out one of the good items she spoke about. "Alright, just like I said from the start, after the first ten items, we will bring out one of the good items we have. The item we will be taking out now is something few people have seen, a Griffin''s egg," The young lady said the last sentence slowly, making sure everyone heard it perfectly. "What? A Griffin''s egg? If the first item on their list is this valuable, it''s unimaginable what the last item would be." "Wow! The auction this time is truly amazing!" Different people were voicing their thoughts about the item that was placed for the auction. Grey couldn''t help but sit upright when he heard of the item. He had seen a Griffin before and knew just how majestic they were. He couldn''t believe someone would actually find something like that and be willing to sell it. ''*Sigh* I already have Void, he''ll oppress any other beast I decide to add to our group,'' He shook his head, rejecting the thought of bidding for the egg. Chapter 458 - The Auction III "The starting price for the egg is fifty thousand mid-grade essence stones, for every bid made, the price must see an increase of two thousand mid-grade essence stones." Verla said before staring at the special rooms at the top, "Begin," "Sixty thousand," Just like from the previous items, an offer was made immediately after Verla finished speaking. "Sixty-five thousand," "Eighty thousand," "Ninety thousand," "Ninety-five thousand," "One hundred thousand," The price of the egg continued increasing, and what was shocking was that none of the people in the special rooms had made any offers yet. Verla was all smiles on seeing how quickly the price of the egg was shooting up. Grey stared at the people who were sitting on the regular seats weirdly. They clearly know that items like these will be obtained by those in the special rooms, yet, why were they bidding? "One hundred and¡­" "Two hundred and fifty thousand," A deep distorted voice interrupted the man who was about to make a bid. It was from one of the special rooms. ''Huh? Even their voices are hidden?'' Grey thought surprised. This was his first time coming to an auction, so he found a lot of things going on to be strange. ''Hmm, maybe they don''t want anyone to be attacked after they purchase an item. I don''t think all the people in these special rooms are from big families. Some might even be like me who were just opportune,'' He concluded after a while. This was the only reason he could think of why the identities of the people were hidden. After the person from the special room made an offer, the hall went silent. Given the large amount by which the price of the egg increased, none of the people in the normal area could make another offer. On seeing that no one else was making any offers, Verla smiled before taking a step forward, "Our guest from room two offered two hundred and fifty thousand mid-grade essence stones, is anyone else going to make an offer?" The room remained still for a while, and just as Verla was about to give the item to the guest in room two, a deep voice spoke out once again. This time, Grey saw a small light coming up from the room from which the voice came. The number eight was written on it. "Three hundred thousand," Verla smiled when she saw this, as long as another room had made a bid for the item, then the price of the item would continue increasing. "Three hundred and fifty thousand," The number twelve was written on the room which made this offer. "Four hundred thousand," The person from room two made another offer. "Heh! Four hundred and fifty thousand," The person from room twelve scoffed before saying. "This is Owen from the Cedric family, I''ll be in your debt if you allow me to take this egg," The person from room two said, this time though, his voice wasn''t distorted. "I don''t care who you are or where you''re from, I''ll be the one to obtain this egg," The person from room twelve snorted coldly before replying. "Hmph! We''ll see about that," Cedric said coldly. "Five hundred and fifty thousand," He increased the offer by one hundred thousand, unlike the previous time he made an offer. "Six hundred thousand," The person from room twelve made an offer again. "Seven hundred thousand," Cedric said calmly. "Seven hundred and fifty thousand," The person from room twelve said. "Eight hundred and fifty thousand," Cedric increased the offer by one hundred thousand once again. "Heh! Nine hundred thousand," The person from room number twelve said. Even though his voice was distorted, Grey and the others in the hall could still clearly sense the mockery in his tone. "Hmm, you know what, you can have it," Cedric''s calm voice resounded in the hall. Grey found the exchange between the duo a little confusing, at first, he thought the person from room twelve was the one who was tricking Cedric into buying the egg for an exorbitant amount, who would''ve thought it was the other way round. "Uh! Giving up so easily," The person from room twelve let out a surprised exclamation. He didn''t think Cedric would give up so easily. Cedric didn''t reply. "The guest from room twelve made an offer of nine hundred thousand mid-grade essence stones, is anyone making any other offer?" Verla asked, looking at the crowd. After a few seconds of silence, she opened her mouth again. "And the item is sold to the guest in room twelve! One of our workers will bring the item over to your room, you can make your deposit after clarifying the authenticity of the item," Verla nodded at one of the ladies by the side of the platform who walked over to take the item. "I don''t need to clarify the authenticity, I''m fully confident in what the Lenz organization offers," The guest from room twelve said coolly. "Alright, thank you," Verla bowed towards the room, before turning to the crowd again, "We will continue with the regular items once again, after ten items, one of our main items will be placed on sale just like before," After that, she brought out a regular-looking rock. According to her, it was a special rock used for making elemental weapons. Grey watched on as the auction continued further. Other than the Griffin''s egg, nothing else had piqued his interest. Not just that, but he wasn''t sure he would be able to afford any of the things here. The final amount which the egg was sold for was unbelievable. He didn''t even have up to one-tenth of that number of essence stones in his storage ring, much less even daring to make a bid. ''The people who come for all these auctions are insanely rich, given my poor status, there''s no way I''ll be able to cough up five thousand essence stones, even with the ones I took from Alice''s place,'' Grey thought. "Looks like I need to find a way to make money," He muttered to himself. The auction continued with Verla presenting the next few items. ¡­. "Now, to present the second of our main items," Verla said after she finished selling the tenth item from the regular items. She turned to look at her right, a young lady walked out with an item that was covered by a brown cloth. "This is a rare herb found only in the depths of the Magical Beasts'' forest. You all know how important it is to gain a good understanding of your element before breaking through to the Overlord Plane. This is exactly what this herb has to offer. Unfortunately, this particular species of the herb only helps with the comprehension of two elements, the water, and earth element," "The starting price of this herb is three hundred mid-grade essence stones, for every bid made, the price must see an increase of fifty thousand essence stones," Verla said before removing the piece of cloth that was used to cover up the herb. Strong water and earth essence immediately spread out in the hall, covering the entire hall. Even in the special rooms which were sealed by an array, Grey could still clearly feel the intensity of the water and earth essence in the herb. "Wow, I should note down the appearance of this herb, I don''t know if I might see it again when he heads back into the forest," Grey mumbled to himself. He didn''t have any plans of making a bid for the herb. To be honest, from the number of stones he had with him, he didn''t even have any plans of bidding for anything. Well, unless something like what he was searching for appeared, then he would use every possible method he knew of to get it. "Four hundred essence stones," An offer was made immediately after the herb was placed on sale. Every individual here knew how difficult it was to gain a good understanding of their elements. Without this, there is no way an Origin Plane Elementalists could break through to the Overlord Plane. Compared to these people, Grey had a huge advantage since he had been comprehending the elements from when he started cultivating. Although, he didn''t really know what the requirements would be for him to break through, given the high number of elements he had. "Five hundred thousand," "Five hundred and fifty thousand essence stones," "Six hundred thousand," "Seven hundred thousand," Within a little over a minute, the price of the herb had shot over one million mid-grade essence stones, and it was still increasing at a rapid pace. "One million two hundred thousand," "One million five hundred thousand," The sudden increase in the price drew the attention of everyone in the hall. The window covering room one opened up, and a handsome-looking young man stepped forward. When everyone saw his appearance, they stood up hurriedly. Grey found the behavior of the people in the crowd to be surprising. Verla looked in that direction, on seeing the young man, she bowed, "It''s an honor to be graced by your presence, Your Highness," Chapter 459 - Array Book "It''s nice seeing you again, miss Verla," The young man said with a soft smile. "The pleasure is mine, Your Highness," Verla bowed once again to the young man. Grey looked at the young man once again, he didn''t know the identity of the young man, but from how he was being addressed by Verla, he guessed he must be royalty. ''Is he the Crown Prince?'' He thought curiously. He had heard of the Crown Prince, but he never got the chance to see him. The only time he got close to seeing him was when he allowed the Smith family to detain him. While Grey was trying to guess the identity of the young man, someone from one of the special rooms spoke up. "I never thought the Second Prince would attend such a mediocre auction," A voice said. There was a little hint of mockery in the voice. "I enjoy coming to these places, you may never know what you''ll see here. Even a less popular auction tends to always have something special," The Second Prince said, still wearing a soft smile on his face. "Since your highness wants this herb, it''s only natural we leave it to you," Someone else from another room said. "Hmph!" A cold snort came from the previous room. "Since no one else is bidding for the item, the herb goes to His Highness the Second Prince," Verla immediately concluded the auction. Although she would want to see the herb''s value continue increasing, she knew since the Second Prince has shown his face, no one else would dare to bid. Even though his status isn''t as high as that of the Crown Prince, he was still the Second Prince, someone who had the chance of becoming the next Emperor of the Qilin empire. The Crown Prince is the one most of the people in the palace, big families, as well as the Emperor of the empire. The Second Prince has a few people behind him, however, that meager support isn''t enough to get him the throne. Grey looked at the expression of the Second Prince, and he couldn''t help but commend his bearings. Even the Twelfth Prince he encountered previously also had a unique bearing. ''Looks like it runs in the family. I wonder what the Crown Prince looks like,'' He thought. After Verla sent the item to the Second Prince, she began auctioning off the regular items once again. Just as she got to the seventh item, she brought out an item that roused Grey''s interest. "This book contains an ancient array formation. Usually, this array would be part of the main items in the list, but unfortunately, it''s incomplete as there is only one-third of the methods needed to complete the array written in this book. Furthermore, the specifics of the array isn''t known," Verla said while bringing out a worn-out book that seemed to have some side ripped off. "You mean you do not know what the array is used for, yet you''re going to sell it off?" Someone from the crowd asked. "That''s correct." Verla nodded, "We''ve given the book to our appraisal to verify it, and it is confirmed that it was from ancient times. However, not even the best array masters in the organization can decipher or bring out the use of the array since they don''t know which step to take after the first steps shown in the book," "This book is something from ancient times, and the only reason it is being sold for higher is because we don''t really know what it can do. The starting price for this book will be five thousand mid-grade essence stones, for every bid, the price must see an increase of five hundred essence stones," Verla said. Even she wasn''t too sure the item would sell, after all, she just said they couldn''t find out what it was used for, nor was it complete. It would be a loss if anyone bought something they can''t really use. She stood at the platform nervously, waiting for someone to make a bid. Just as she was about to give up on the item, she heard a calm voice. "Five thousand five hundred essence stones," Looking in the direction of the voice, she found out it was from the room with the number six on it. She never expected that it would be someone from the special rooms that would make the first offer. Not just that, but before taking up the role as the host, she was informed by old man Gerald that the person in room six was a very important figure and he should be given whatever he wanted. The people in the crowd stared at Grey''s room as if they were looking at a fool. Who would want to obtain such an item? If even the best array masters from the Lenz organization couldn''t decipher or use it, what was the use of buying it? One has to know that the Lenz organization had the best array and forge masters in the entire continent. After Grey made his offer, he sat down quietly, hoping that no one else made a higher offer. The stones he had with him were just slightly above six thousand mid-grade essence stones. This is if he adds the low and high-grade stones he had. If he buys this item, there is no way he would be able to activate the teleportation array. "Is anyone willing to make a higher offer? If not, the book will be given to the guest from room six," Verla asked. She naturally knew no one else would make an offer for the book, the fact that someone even made a bid for it was surprising. After waiting for a few seconds, she immediately declared the item sold, telling the young lady by the side to bring it to Grey. ''Looks like there are no array fanatics here, else, they would be infinitely intrigued by something like this. If any of them were to be able to decipher it, it would be a huge honor. Hehe, how lucky,'' Grey chuckled to himself while waiting for the book to be brought to him. If not for the fact that he was a little curious about what the last item would be, he would''ve left immediately he collected the book, so he could start studying it. Knock! Knock! "You can come in," Grey said coolly. The door to the room opened, and the young lady who attended to him when he came to the auction walked in holding a small animal skin bag in which the book was kept. Grey had brought out all the stones he had with him, on seeing the stones beside him, the young lady gasped in surprise. "How is that possible?" She muttered to herself. When Grey came to the auction, she didn''t recall seeing him with anything, so where did all these stones come from? "What?" Grey raised a brow in confusion. "It''s nothing. Here''s the book," The young lady handed the bag to Grey. Grey collected the book before showing the young lady the pile of stones by the side. "It should be accurate if you change them, there are¡­" "You don''t need to pay for the items you purchase," The young lady cut him short. "Huh?" Grey looked at her in confusion. "The lord informed us of your arrival and said whatever you bid for should be given to you, he''ll take care of the bills," The young lady explained. "Oh!" Grey exclaimed, making an ''o'' with his mouth. The young lady looked at Grey, dazed by his appearance. Even though half of his face was covered, it still couldn''t hide his handsome face. "Hello," Grey waved his hand across the face of the young lady. "Are you alright?" He asked. "Uh! Who, what¡­ Ah! I''m fine thank you," The young lady first looked around in confusion before realizing where she was. She exclaimed softly in embarrassment before hurriedly leaving the room. Grey stared at her, confused by her strange behavior. "Hmm, strange," He shook his head before deciding to check out the book. He stretched out his hand and all the stones were kept back in his storage ring. ''I never thought old man Gerald would be so generous. *Sigh* If only I was as shameless as Klaus, then I''d buy something really expensive which I would naturally want to use,'' He thought. From what the young lady said, he could buy whatever he wanted from the auction. But the truth was, given his personality, he couldn''t really bid for something he knew he couldn''t afford. He opened the book, focusing his entire attention on it. Before he knew it, one hour had gone by, he was still very much engrossed in the book. "Ladies and gentlemen, the moment you all have been waiting for has arrived, the last item to be auctioned for today''s event is, the bones of a true dragon," Verla said. The word dragon dragged Grey out of his engrossed state. "A Dragon?" Chapter 460 - Just Like Your Teacher ''Hmm, although it''s shocking that they have the bones of a Dragon, I''d rather buy the egg of the Griffin since it''s alive,'' Grey thought to himself. From his point of view, since the beast isn''t alive, it wasn''t all that important. Yes, everyone knows that Dragons stand at the top of the mountain. When compared to humans and other magical beasts, they are vastly far superior in strength and elemental abilities. The bones here can only be used when creating elemental weapons. It will be superior when compared to other items used in creating elemental weapons due to the high elemental concentration on the bones. According to rumors, the cores of Dragons are so great that one could refine them without purifying them. The intensity of the essence in the core is said to be on another level. Unfortunately, just like Griffins, Dragons are rare. They are even rarer than Griffins, it''s said the birth rate of Dragons is very low, hence they''re very protective of their kind. ¡­. The crowd all spoke animatedly about the bones of the Dragon. Most of the people here had never seen a Dragon, so even if it''s just the bones, they''re very curious about it. "From the elemental particles around it, we were able to confirm that this Dragon was a Dual Elementalist, wielding both the darkness and earth element. The bones also radiate the oppressive aura of a Dragon, bringing fear to those who are weaker than it. It can also be used to make other magical beasts timid," Verla explained. Grey spread out his spiritual senses towards the bones, and he couldn''t deny the part about the pressure the bones were radiating. ''Huh? How come I didn''t feel this from that Ice Dragon?'' He suddenly thought about the Ice Dragon he encountered in the trial land. Aetonth didn''t give off any of its oppressive Dragon aura. At that time, since it was chasing after him, he didn''t really think about it, but on sensing this bone, he suddenly realized that Aetonth didn''t try to use it against him. ''Is there a chance that not all Dragons can use it?'' He contemplated. "The starting price for the Dragon''s bones is five hundred thousand mid-grade essence stones, for every bid made, the price must see an increase of fifty thousand essence stones," Verla said to the crowd. "Six hundred thousand," "Seven hundred thousand," The price of the bones shot past one million mid-grade essence stones within a few seconds, and it was still increasing, not showing any signs of stopping. After almost two minutes, the price had gotten to two million essence stones. Grey watched on as the price had gotten to a mouth-watering two million essence stones. "Where do these people get all these stones?" He mumbled while gulping down. This was a huge amount of essence, enough to train at least two hundred people to the Peak of the Origin Plane, some might even be able to get to the Overlord Plane if they were talented enough. "Two million five hundred thousand essence stones," "Two million five hundred and fifty thousand," "This is the Maverick family leader, if you can do us the honor of leaving this bone to us, I promise to make a high-grade elemental weapon for you, while also assimilating part of the bones in the weapon," A middle-aged man walked forward from room three. He was the one who just made the last offer, he was hoping to plead with the other individual who was making a bid for the bones. Most of the other contestants have given up after the price shot past two million, leaving only two. "Oh, so it''s you, Axel," An old voice came from the opposing room. An old man walked close to the window from room seven, his hair and beard had all turned Grey. "It''s been a while, Senior," Axel bowed when he saw the old man. "Wow! It''s senior Grimwald. I never thought he would be the other person vying for the Dragon bones," An excited voice came from the crowd below the special rooms. Axel and Grimwald didn''t spare the people below them a glance. "Axel, I would like to use this bone in making a weapon for his highness the Crown Prince. The Crown Prince will find you in good light if you leave this to me," Grimwald said slowly. On hearing the Crown Prince being brought into the issue, a look of apprehension appeared on Axel''s face. If Grimwald was the one who wanted it, then he wouldn''t mind struggling with him since they were rivals in forge mastering. The Maverick family is one of the few families who were behind the Second Prince. Axel turned to the first room, waiting for the decision made by the Second Prince. "It''s fine, you can let brother have it," The Second Prince said with the same soft smile he wore from the start. "Two million six hundred thousand essence stones," Grimwald said while looking in the direction of the Second Prince. The Second Prince smiled in response to his subtle provocation. Verla waited for a few seconds, after seeing that Axel had already gone back to his seat, not making any plans of bidding, she concluded the auction, handing the Dragon bones over to Grimwald. Grey was watching everything happen from his room. He could guess from the conversation of Axel and Grimwald that they were forge masters, but each was supporting a different candidate for the throne. He didn''t stay in the auction a moment longer, after Verla concluded the auction, he immediately left his room, heading out of the building. He saw the young lady who attended to him standing outside the room. "Are you leaving now?" The young lady asked hastily. "Yes, is anything the matter?" Grey turned to look at her. "The Lord said I should take you to a room before you leave, he said he prepared something for you there," The young lady replied. "Oh, he didn''t speak of any of that," Grey said with a confused expression. The young lady tried explaining, but she didn''t know what to say since she was only following orders. "Fine, take me there, I''m in a hurry," Grey agreed to go with her after giving it some thought. The young lady heaved a sigh of relief before leading the way. After walking into the deeper parts of the building, the young lady stopped in front of a room. "In here," The young lady said. Grey stared at the door for a while, he could sense someone inside the room. The person inside didn''t try to conceal their presence. ''Oh, he didn''t say he would come,'' He thought before opening the door. "Hello, Grey," Old man Gerald smiled while looking at Grey. "I didn''t think you would come all this way just to see me," Grey said while taking a seat. "Actually, I didn''t want to come, but when I found out the Second Prince was coming, I had to come as well," Old man Gerald replied with a smile. "Oh, is he also searching for me?" Grey asked curiously. "Yes, but for a different reason actually," Old man Gerald said. "He came to me in search of you. As you can tell, the Crown Prince and the Second Prince are both the two who are more favored when speaking about those who will be able to obtain the throne. Unfortunately for the Second Prince, a few years ago the Crown Prince obtained something which made the Emperor give him his full support," "As things stand, the people behind the Second Prince are few. Although my relationship with him is very good, I can''t support him since the organization I represent is seen as a threat," Old man Gerald explained. "Okay, but what does all this have to do with me?" Grey asked. He had no interest in being involved with the royal family, all he wanted was peace. If not for Void being injured and not knowing his parent''s whereabouts, he would just find a simple cave and focus on research. "I would like to introduce you to the Second Prince, your Teacher had a somewhat good relationship with him," Old man Gerald said. "Oh!" Grey raised his head, not expecting old man Gerald to involve his Teacher. Just as old man Gerald was about to continue speaking, Grey spoke up. "I mean no disrespect, but I really have no interest in aligning myself with any of the Princes. If I knew him earlier, I wouldn''t mind befriending him, but now, I have too much I have to worry about, I can''t afford to add the royal family''s struggle to it," Grey said. "I understand, you''re just like your Teacher, only a little nicer when rejecting someone," Old man Gerald shook his head. "Is there anything else? If not, I have something to attend to," Grey said. Old man Gerald shook his head to his question. Grey stood up after seeing his reply, walking out of the room. Chapter 461 - So Unlucky! Old man Gerald shook his head as he watched Grey leave the room. A few minutes after Grey left, the Second Prince walked into the room. "How did it go?" The Second Prince asked while taking a seat. "Since he''s not here, you can guess not too well," Old man Gerald replied. "*Sigh* I would''ve loved to see the person who is able to make father so worked up," The Second Prince said. "He''s just like his Teacher, only more cool-headed. If Chris was the one the Emperor was searching for, he would''ve caused a major uproar in the empire," Old man Gerald said. "Teacher and student, both prodigies from their own generations. A shame I can''t befriend them," The Second Prince shook his head, a little remorseful. ¡­. Grey didn''t use the carriage when going back to the tavern, he had been cooked up in his room since leaving the forest. Now, he wanted to take a stroll around to cool his head before he starts reading the book on array. The streets of Lapis City were filled with people, bustling with activity. Grey calmly walked around. It was a long and uneventful walk back to the tavern. The next day. Grey walked out of his room, prepared for his new adventure. He was busy throughout the night, trying to decipher the array in the book, but he hasn''t been able to. On getting to the city gate, he noticed someone staring at him with hateful eyes. Looking in the direction, he saw a middle-aged man glaring at him. The middle-aged man wasn''t alone, he had three people who were with him. ''Who are they?'' He asked himself. He didn''t recall seeing these people before, so it was strange that they were looking at him so hatefully. After not being able to remember where he saw the men, he threw the thought to the back of his mind, heading out of the city. As soon as he left the city, the men stood up from where they were sitting, heading out of the city. They paused when they walked past the city gate, the reason for this was because Grey was nowhere to be seen. "Damn it! That guy escaped," One of the men said. "Hmph! He''s lucky, after messing with us some weeks back, he hid. Now that he has reappeared, he ran away again," The first man Grey saw said. The group stood outside for a few more minutes, looking around. After not seeing Grey, they walked back into the city. The Magical Beasts'' forest. Grey could be seen dashing through the forest at a fast pace. He realized that the group he saw wanted to make trouble with him, although he could kill them easily, he wasn''t interested in delaying for such unimportant people. It didn''t take long before he got to the six kilometers mark. Looking around, he noticed the stages of the beasts around had dropped, compared to the time he first came here. "Looks like the forest has returned to normal," He mumbled softly. He looked around for a second before bolting straight into the forest. ¡­. Two hours later. Boom! Grey appeared mid-air, staring at the large Boar that was on the ground. He floated down to a nearby tree. Roar! The Boar struggled to stand up, but still confronted Grey. "Hmph! These things never know when to escape," Grey snorted coldly. This Boar was still in the Late stages of the Origin Plane. It couldn''t block a single attack from Grey, yet it was still trying to attack him. Grey had tried leaving it behind, but the beast not only chased after him, but it also caused a commotion that drew the attention of other beasts. Grey stretched out his right hand, pointing at the beast. With a flick of his wrist, the ground beneath the Boar pushed upwards, forcing the Boar into the air. Once the Boar was thrown into the air, an ice spear stabbed towards it from the side. The Boar moved its front leg, slamming its hoof into it. Crack! Bang! The spear cracked as soon as it was hit by the hoof, breaking right after. Grey squinted his eyes, he didn''t want to go all out since he wanted to reserve his strength. ''Guess I''ll have to rest after killing this Boar, it will also make a nice breakfast,'' Grey thought to himself. He disappeared from his spot, appearing by the side of the Boar. He enforced his fist with the fire element, punching the stomach of the Boar. The Boar which was still trying to find where Grey disappeared to was sent flying. Crash! Bang! The Boar slammed into the ground. Just as it landed, Grey appeared in front of it again, punching into its head. The force behind his blow was so powerful that the head of the Boar exploded with a ''bang''. Grey opened his hand, staring at the small core in his hand. He used the water element to wash the blood and gore off the core before tossing it into his mouth. ''Hmm, it has been a while since I did this,'' He thought while crushing the core in his mouth. The core broke apart, turning into a pure form of earth essence, heading towards his earth elemental bead. He quickly set up a grill, after properly gutting the boar, he added the needed ingredients before placing the meat in the grill. Before long, the pleasing aroma of well-garnished meat wafted around the area Grey was cooking. He made sure to release an aggressive aura, to ward off any beast that would be attracted here because of the food. Some minutes later, the meat was completely cooked. Grey quickly took it down, before biting down on it. When he was cooking, he couldn''t help but think of his Teacher. Since leaving his Teacher, he doesn''t cook as often as he did. The flesh of the boar was also filled with essence, so it helped him recover what he had lost. When he was done eating, he realized he didn''t need to rest anymore since his essence energy had completely recovered. "Wow, why didn''t I do this earlier?" He exclaimed. The last time he was here, he was short on essence energy because he was running from beasts almost throughout the time he spent here. If he knew of this then, he wouldn''t have been in a difficult situation. He quickly started his journey once again, since there was no need to rest, he wanted to get there as soon as he could. ¡­. Four hours later. "It should be around here," Grey brought out the map he had with him, staring at it. He was holding onto a small piece of meat with his right hand, occasionally taking a bite from it as he studied the map. Just when he wanted to continue walking forward, his expression changed. "Oh crap," He said softly as he looked in front of him. A large black Jaguar could be seen lying casually on the ground. The aura it was releasing was that of an Overlord Plane expert. Grey slowly retreated, hoping the Jaguar wouldn''t be disturbed by his steps. After taking only eight steps, the eyes of the Jaguar snapped open. "Why the hell am I so unlucky?" He asked with a sad expression. This Jaguar was at the peak of the Early stages of the Overlord Plane, just a little bit away from the Mid stages. There was no way Grey could fight against it. Growl¡­ The Jaguar stood up, still looking at Grey with its black eyes. Grey continued retreating, he didn''t have any plans of being food for a beast here. Roar! The Jaguar pounced towards him. He hastily retreated before vanishing, switching places with the Jaguar. As soon as they switched positions, the Jaguar continued moving forward due to the unexpected switch, it missed its target, crashing into a tree. Grey on the other hand immediately bolted towards where the building was located. The Jaguar didn''t delay, as soon as it crashed into the tree, it turned around, running towards Grey. It opened its mouth, spitting out a ball of black mass towards Grey. When Grey saw the black mass coming towards him quickly, he almost fainted from fright. "Of all the elements, it just had to be the darkness element," He complained out loud while running. The aura the orb was releasing was frightening, luckily, the darkness element wasn''t the fastest. Just as Grey was about to celebrate, he saw something that almost made his eyes pop out. Black lightning was dancing all around the body of the Jaguar, it opened its mouth again and spat out another black orb. But unlike the first one, this one had black lightning dancing around it. The black lightning orb merged with the darkness orb, increasing the speed of the orb to another level. "Shit! Shit! Shit!" Grey yelled as he ran for his dear life. Chapter 462 - I Tried My Best Boom! Bang! Grey''s figure shot through the forest, crashing into a tree. The force was so powerful that the tree broke in half. ''Damn it! There''s no way I can get to the building on time,'' He thought as he struggled to stand up. He couldn''t use the Fusion State since he needed some time to activate it. Unfortunately, the Jaguar didn''t have any plans in giving him. As soon as stood up, the Jaguar appeared before him once again. Roar! Boom! It attacked ferociously once again. On seeing the attack, Grey hastily set up a three defense wall in front of him, hoping to at least block the attack. Bam! Bang! Boom! The walls which were set up by three different elements were easily taken down by the attack. The claw attack continued moving towards Grey, slamming into his chest as it got to him. A blue light glowed around his body, trying to stop the attack from reaching his main body. Shring! Crack! A ringing sound reverberated around Grey, followed by the sound of something cracking. Grey was once again sent flying after only a few seconds. Bang! He crashed into the ground, bouncing off a couple of times before finally stopping almost fifty meters away. Although he was in pains, he hastily stood up. Staying on the ground would mean instant death once the Jaguar caught up with him. At least while standing he could block or even dodge some of its attacks. Blood could be seen slowly dripping from the side of his mouth, a large injury which was caused by the claws of the Jaguar from its previous attack was on his chest. His robe was already almost completely destroyed. The benefits of having a strong body was starting to show itself. Had Grey not had a strong physical body, then there was no way he would be able to stand up so quickly even after being injured strongly by the Jaguar. ''The blue vest is broken,'' Grey thought when he recalled the ringing sound he heard previously. If not for the blue vest, then he would have been more seriously injured, compared to his current state. The Jaguar once again appeared before him, not giving him any time to think before it attacked him once again. Grey hastily dodged to the left, but he was met by the Jaguar which had already appeared in that direction before he was even able to get to the spot he hoped to land. He hastily changed his direction, blinking a few meters to the right, managing to dodge a surprise attack by the Jaguar. The Jaguar didn''t give up, chasing after him once again. Given the speed it had, it was child''s play for it to catch up to Grey. Boom! It attacked again, but Grey was able to narrowly escape the attack this time. He continued running towards where the building was, hoping he would be able to get there before the Jaguar could finish him off. Bam! He felt a stinging pain from his back, before being sent forward with a claw attack from the Jaguar once again. Unlike the first time, there was no blue vest to block the attack for him, so felt the full brunt of the attack. He spat out blood while still in the air. Crash! Boom! His figure slammed heavily into a rock, creating an almost eight meters deep crevice inside it. He tried to get back on his feet like he previously did, but just as he managed to crawl out of the crevice, a black mass orb exploded in front of him, sending him flying once again. Luckily, he reacted quickly, creating an earth armor to protect himself. He made sure to make the armor sturdier on the spots where his vitals were so that they wouldn''t be damaged from the attack. This was the third time he was setting up an earth armor in the fight. And just like the previous times¡­ Crack¡­ Bang! The armor cracked after managing to block only a small portion of the attack. Grey''s figure shot past the rock, coming out of the other end of the almost twenty meters wide rock. Bam! His figure slammed into the ground heavily, bloodied and battered. Grey spat out a mouthful of blood after managing to only get back to his knees. Pain was wracking every single inch of his body. He was certain that a few of his ribs had been broken, and if things continued in this manner, he wasn''t sure how long his body would be able to hold. To get honest, he didn''t think he could withstand another one of the Jaguar''s attacks. ''Damn it! How come this one is this far out. I thought the forest had returned to normal. How unlucky do I have to be to encounter this beast while it was sleeping?'' He questioned himself. He couldn''t help it, he was starting to lose hope. This was a dire situation he rarely found himself in. In most of the times he was in such a situation, he would have a plan to be able to escape, but in this case, he could actually see the light fading. ''Damn it, am I going to die here, not even being able to heal Void?'' He questioned himself, hating his weakness. He hated feeling this way, hopeless. While his thoughts were running rampantly, the Jaguar appeared in front of him again, slowly walking towards its fallen prey. It didn''t immediately attack since it knew Grey wouldn''t be able to escape even if he wanted to. Grey raised his head defiantly, to stare at the eyes of the Jaguar which wanted to kill him. "Screw it! You must be joking if you think this is enough to kill me," He muttered before jumping off the ground. Contrary to his previous actions, he went for the Jaguar this time. Since escaping was impossible, then he would fight. He would fight to the very end. There was no way he would accept defeat so easily. Even if the Jaguar kills him, he wanted to make sure it remembers this day for the rest of its life. Boom! Not expecting it''s fallen prey to attack, the Jaguar didn''t react on time. Grey punched it solidly on its head, pushing it back by a few meters. "Ah¡­" With a burst of powerful fighting spirit, Grey started to rain down punches on the head of the Jaguar. This time, he threw all caution to the wind. Attacking like a mad man. All his punches were enforced with five different elements. The water, earth, fire, lightning, and darkness. Since he didn''t know any attacks from the space element, he didn''t use it, nor did he use the wind element since he felt it was too weak. His bloodshot eyes would send terror into the eyes of anyone who sees them. Unfortunately, this state wouldn''t last for long. Grey, as well as the Jaguar, knew this very well. The Jaguar tried attacking Grey, and although it was able to send him flying, it suffered a deadly attack to its neck. With Grey not bothering to try to defend himself apart from his vitals, he could be regarded as a mad beast. Attacking freely without a care in the world. When the Jaguar attacked him, it stopped defending, which gave Grey the opportunity to rain a few punches at it before he was sent flying. As soon as he landed on the ground, he shot towards the Jaguar once again, chasing after it. The adrenaline rush he was currently going through made him not feel a single pain from the attack of the Jaguar. Seeing the oncoming Grey, the Jaguar decided it was best to play it safe by dodging the attacks. It only dodged and blocked, not daring to attack Grey again after the outcome of the last time he tried it. Grey started slowing down after only a minute of constant attack, pain spread out across his body, wrecking havoc. Splat! He spat out a mouthful of blood when he tried throwing a punch at the Jaguar. His vision was starting to blur, and he was already feeling weak on his knees. It was like his body had given up on him. He was still very much willing to fight mentally, but physically, he was done. He couldn''t even raise his legs anymore, much less throw a punch. Bam! He collapsed to his knees, not able to move forward anymore. ''Is this the end?'' He thought to himself. ''I thought it would be better than this, that I would be better than this,'' He couldn''t even shake his head when he tried to. ''I''m sorry mom, dad, Void, Klaus, Rey, Alice, I really tried,'' He said to himself. To be able to fight against a beast in the Overlord Plane without even using the Fusion State, this was him going far above his league. He wanted to try to slowly merge his elemental beads so that he could heal himself after entering the Fusion State.. But unfortunately, he couldn''t. Chapter 463 - Spatial Distortion The Jaguar walked slowly towards Grey who could barely stand. Unlike the last time, it knew Grey has completely exhausted himself. It didn''t delay this time and attacked instantly. Just as the attack was about to land on Grey, it disappeared. "Huh?" Grey who was expecting an attack to land on him was surprised when nothing hit him. He wanted to stand up to see what it happened, but he couldn''t. He tried looking around as well, but he was exhausted. The Jaguar was stunned when its attack didn''t reach Grey, roaring angrily, it attacked once again. This time, it attacked with the lightning element, hoping to catch Grey unaware since it thought Grey was the one who deflected the attack. The attack got close to Grey before disappearing once again. Grey was once again dumbstruck by this outcome, he didn''t know what was happening, but he could tell that the attacks were being transported. Boom! Two attacks suddenly appeared behind the Jaguar, striking it on its back. The Jaguar roared in pain, after being hit by the same attack that it sent towards Grey. "I go to sleep for a few days and this is what I wake up to?" A small voice asked. Grey who was exhausted perked his ears when he heard this voice. He had a sense of familiarity from the voice, but the strange thing was that he was certain he had never heard this voice before. "Look at you, tsk tsk, a shame. If only Klaus was here, he would laugh you till the end of time," The voice said again, mockingly. On seeing how familiar the voice was with him and his friends, Grey forced himself to open his eyes, trying to see who it was that was speaking. On opening his eyes, a family figure appeared in front of his eyes. Even though his vision was blurry, he was a hundred percent certain of the figure. "Void¡­ is that you?" Grey said weakly. "Who else did you think?" Void said sarcastically. Grey paused, it was as if he was struck by lightning. ''Void, how come you can speak out now?'' He transmitted his voice over to Void. He was too weak to speak out now, but he still felt shocked that Void is able to speak out like humans now. "I just woke up and this is the first question you ask?" Void asked angrily. ''Sorry, how are you?'' Grey apologized before asking. At first, he couldn''t process things properly, so he was more concerned with how Void could speak instead of the fact that he was awake. "I''m doing fine, I really enjoyed my sleep," Void replied, a sense of estacy could be detected from his tone. ''Sleep? What sleep? Your consciousness was injured, that was what everyone told me,'' Grey asked, confused, before telling him what happened. "Pfft, as if? I was only sleeping, although, I was a little bit injured from holding on too long. But after taking the drop of liquid you gave him, I was okay. I just need some rest and I''m good as new, even better," Void said, laughing. ''What?!'' Grey exclaimed in shock. He couldn''t believe Void was only sleeping all this time, and he had been worried sick because of him, even going as far as coming to the dangerous Magical Beasts'' forest to try and find that liquid. He was even almost killed! "I''m fine, I was only sleeping. Stop acting like you don''t sleep as well," Void said. His voice was almost like that of a five year old child, strange, yet soothing to the ears. Other than his arrogant and sarcastic tone, he could totally pass off as a child. Grey wanted to reprimand him, but he couldn''t find the best word to use. He decided it was best to let that matter rest for now, what was important now was that they should escape from this place. ''Void, quick, take us out of here, this Jaguar is in the Overlord Plane,'' He quickly recalled their situation. "Hmph! It''s just a small cat, I can take care of it with my eyes closed. I don''t even need to make a move to suppress it. Unfortunately for it though, I just acquired a new skill I''m dying to use," Void scoffed, not putting the Jaguar in his eyes. It was like the Jaguar wasn''t even in front of him. Grey wanted to speak, but on realizing who Void was, he knew he wouldn''t speak like this if he wasn''t confident in himself. He quickly let go of everything and focused on healing himself, it would be a shame if Void continued mocking him because of this. "Now, you little cat, pay your homage to daddy or suffer," Void said arrogantly while pointing his small paws at the Jaguar. The Jaguar which was still wondering how it was attacked with its own attack looked at the small black cat that was speaking in the human tongue in front of it in confusion. A look of disgust appeared in its eyes, it was as if it didn''t take Void to be anything important. Void was enraged when he saw how the Jaguar was staring at him. Given the contrast in size between the duo, one could confuse him to be the child of the Jaguar since it''s still black in color. "I guess you have chosen to suffer, don''t say I didn''t warn you after you''re dead," Void said coldly. He stood on his hind legs, spreading out both hands. A terrifying aura started radiating from his small body, and for the first time, fear appeared on the face of the Jaguar. The aura Void was radiating was both aggressive and oppressive. He was giving off a special aura that was forcing the Jaguar to stay put. It wanted to run away, but it couldn''t. "You low leveled creature, daring to act wildly in front of your daddy. I''ll teach you some manners," Void said arrogantly. Grey who was by the side was left amused and surprised by how Void was acting, and the aura he could sense from him. If he didn''t know that it was Void, he would''ve thought that there was another beast in the area that was giving off this aura. Suddenly, a deadly aura started to spread across the forest. On sensing it, Grey couldn''t help but tense up. He had sensed this aura before, space turbulence. But he couldn''t see it properly, so he didn''t know the extent of the strength. This was the new attack Void acquired after waking up, spatial distortion. It was just like what happened when Grey was trying to comprehend the space element back at Frost City. The spatial distortions that appeared and wanted to cause havoc in the room. After seeing them, Void was able to get a slight knowledge of how it worked. When he went to sleep, he woke up knowing the skill. It was like it was an innate skill. This was the first space element attack Void was using, and the strength of the attack wasn''t to be joked with. The Jaguar started shaking from fear when it saw the spatial distortions coming it''s way. It tried to move, but it couldn''t move due to the suppressive aura Void was releasing. Void smirked when he saw this. "No need to try, only a Dragon can escape from me, and that''s if I want it to go," He said proudly, puffing out his little chest arrogantly. The Jaguar watched in horror as the spatial distortions came closer, engulfing it. A few seconds later, nothing was left of the Jaguar. Void stood on all fours before nodding in contentment. "It''s just as I expected," He said while walking towards Grey. When he got to where Grey was sitting, he disappeared, appearing a few seconds later with a small vial in his hand. "Open up," He said while floating to where Grey was. Grey opened his mouth, and a drop of liquid was placed in his mouth. It was none other than the healing tonic they got from the Blooming Viper. After swallowing, he focused fully on trying to use it to heal himself. Void flew to the tree by the side, not bothering to disturb him. He just woke up from a long sleep, he had to see what had changed in his body. One hour later. Grey opened his eyes, looking around. Even after so long, he could still sense the undulations of the spatial distortions. He didn''t know what it was, but he was sure it had to do with Void. He quickly located Void, walking towards him. "Hey, what was that attack you used?" He couldn''t help but ask. Void opened his eyes to look at him, after a few seconds he replied, "Spatial distortions, I woke up already familiar with it," "Huh? Spatial distortions? It''s like those turbulences in a spatial tunnel, right?" Grey asked. "Yeah, I gained a little understanding of it when you were comprehending the space element," Void said. Chapter 464 - Little Thieving Cat! "Hey, what was that thing you gave to me when I was sleeping?" Void suddenly asked. "That liquid? If I recall correctly, old man Gerald called it a Resurgence Liquid," Grey replied after a while. "Good, I want that," Void said. Grey tripped when he heard this, not expecting Void to demand for the liquid he had been searching for all this while. "I don''t have any, besides, I gave you some not too long ago," Grey replied. "It''s not enough, don''t you want me to recover completely?" Void asked while staring at Grey with his big black eyes. "I''m not falling for that," Grey said emotionlessly, looking at Void straight in the eyes. "You''re heartless, who can say no to me? I''m such a cute little guy," Void snorted coldly. "I almost died, venturing into the Magical Beasts'' forest to search for that liquid, and I still couldn''t find it. I was only fortunate to see it when I was leaving the forest," Grey said with both hands folded in front of him. "The Magical Beasts'' forest? You went there without me?" Void asked. "You were sleeping, and besides, technically, I did take you along since you were in my ring all this while," Grey replied. Void''s expression suddenly changed when Grey spoke of his storage ring, but he quickly hid it. Unfortunately, Grey sensed that something was wrong when he noticed the slight change in his expression. "Void, what did you do?" Grey asked slowly. "Nothing, so¡­ where are we?" Void quickly changed the topic. Grey''s expression fell when he saw this, without even waiting for anything, he quickly sent his spiritual senses into his storage ring. His eyes widened when he saw the state of the ring. "You thieving cat! Where are they?" Grey asked while pointing at Void. "I have no idea what you''re speaking about," Void said while looking around, clearly avoiding Grey''s eyes. "All the herbs and essence stones are gone. You''re the only one who can enter this place, spit them out!" Grey said. All the herbs he gathered while he was in the Magical Beasts'' forest was nowhere to be seen. Even what was left of the essence stones in his storage ring was gone. Void was obviously the only culprit. "I just woke up, I needed a lot of energy. If I didn''t absorb them then you would''ve been dead," Void hurriedly explained. Grey stared at Void''s small protruding stomach, he suddenly remembered the first time he saw Void. Almost all the fruits he acquired were eaten by the small guy. Now once again, Void had done it again, this time, eating even more than the first time. "You¡­ *Sigh* forget it. Come let''s go back," Grey shook his head. He couldn''t scold Void since he knew he needed the energy, but he only felt upset at how Void didn''t even ask for his permission. "Go back to where? I can sense a treasure here," Void said with glittering eyes before looking around in confusion, "Wait, where are we?" "The Magical Beasts'' forest," Grey replied. "This is the Magical Beasts'' forest? No wonder I can sense treasures around," Void exclaimed. "Wait, how powerful are you now?" Grey asked. He recalled the Jaguar Void killed was at the peak of the Early stages of the Overlord Plane. Since Void could kill it easily, it meant he was at least in the Early stages of the Overlord Plane. "I''m a Rank Five magical beast now. Wait, how come you''re still so weak?" Void declared proudly, before staring at Grey in confusion. Grey threw a glance at Void, not even bothering to answer him. He had been so focused on getting a cure for Void that he completely left cultivation by the side. If not for the red lightning orb he absorbed, then he would''ve still been in the Seventh stage of the Origin Plane. "The Early stages or the Mid stages?" He asked. "I just broke through, so I''m still in the Early stages," Void answered. "How come that Jaguar couldn''t fight back?" Grey asked. Although he didn''t see the fight, he knew Void was the only one who attacked. And he clearly heard Void bragging while he was attacking. "It''s a low leveled beast, of course it would freeze in awe when in the presence of his daddy," Void said proudly, puffing out his chest. Grey rolled his eyes when he saw how Void was acting, even after being asleep for so long, he was still the same. "Wait, you still haven''t answered why you are able to talk," He said. "High leveled magical beasts gain the ability to speak once they get to Rank Five, this is common knowledge, how come you don''t know about it?" Void replied, not forgetting to mock Grey at the end of his statement. Grey almost wanted to punch Void, but he knew he wouldn''t be able to catch him. He had problems catching Void while he was still more powerful than he was, much less now that he was weaker. It''s already a good thing that Void didn''t decide to find problems with him. "Come on, let''s go for the treasure," Void said excitedly. "No, there''s no telling what we will encounter in the deeper parts of the forest. There was a disturbance in the forest a few weeks back, it''s still starting to go back to normal, but we can''t be too sure what the current situation is like," Grey rejected the idea immediately. Since Void was fine now, he wanted to head back to Lapis City. The reason he''s going back is not because he didn''t want to go to the other continent, but because he couldn''t without the essence stones. The only way he can acquire a large amount of essence stones is either he stole it, sold some things, or borrowed from old man Gerald. Old man Gerald was still in the city, he was sure of that. "Come on, stop being a scaredy cat. Let''s go get that treasure! I can sense it, it''s shiny¡­" Void tried convincing Grey fervently. On hearing that it was shiny, Grey was more certain that they weren''t going to go search for whatever the treasure was. Something must definitely be guarding it, something powerful. The only thing that likes shiny things as much as Void are Dragons. Although the chances of seeing Dragons this far out in the Magical Beasts'' forest wasn''t high, it wasn''t zero. Grey couldn''t even start to imagine what the situation would be like if they were surrounded by a pair of Dragons. "Stop being a wussy," Void said. Grey immediately turned around, not bothering to answer him. Now that Void could speak out, there was no end to the troubles he would cause. "Hey, stop there," Void called out. Grey continued walking away. Void turned to look in the direction of where he could sense the treasure, and the direction that Grey was headed. Just as he was about to complain, he sensed something from another direction. Two things, in particular. One was a powerful aura he didn''t want to see, the other was a strong spatial undulations. "Hey, there''s a spatial undulation coming from that side," Void suddenly appeared on Grey''s shoulder, using his small paws to show Grey the direction the spatial undulation was coming from. "Yeah, I''m aware of that. Actually, that was where I was headed, but you''ve unfortunately used up the essence stones," Grey explained. "Oh, where does it lead?" Void asked, curiously. "You wouldn''t believe it," Grey said, refusing to tell Void where it led. "I would, come on, tell me," Void started pestering. "If you behave properly, I might just tell you before we get back to the city," Grey said with a smile. "But¡­ I''m always well behaved. When have I ever behaved improperly?" Void asked. "That time you stole that shiny thing from that Dragon, when you¡­" Grey started to count the problems Void had caused since they knew each other. "Those can''t even be counted as me causing any problems. Did you die?" Void asked. "No, but I nearly died," Grey replied. "So did I, so we''re even," Void said. "You can''t use just one event to write off all the things you''ve done before," Grey said. "Of course I can, I just did. Since I''m the latest victim, I have the upper hand," Void said. "You''re crazy. We''ll be going to a city filled with treasures people suffered to get from the Magical Beasts'' forest, please, try to leave them in peace," Grey warned beforehand. If Void were to head to the city, the chances of him stealing from the entire city is very high. Given his current strength, no one would be able to even sense when he stole their treasure, much less being able to apprehend him. "Come on, I wouldn''t take a thing," Void said. Eight hours later. The duo appeared in Lapis City after casually strolling through the Magical Beasts'' forest.. With Void''s current strength, Grey didn''t need to fear anything as they walked back. Chapter 465 - Turn The City Upside Down! "Treasures, I can sense treasures," Void said slowly. "Void, no stealing," Grey chided. "You''re no fun at all, you''re still so boring," Void complained. "I''m not done speaking yet," Grey said with a mysterious smile. On seeing Grey''s smile, Void immediately became excited, he could tell that Grey had a plan, and it involved stealing. "I have some targets you can steal from," Grey said while staring at a figure afar. Even though he wasn''t close to the figure, he could still recall it since he saw this person earlier today. It was the person he saw earlier this morning when he was leaving the city, the guy who was staring at him maliciously. The sun had already set by the time they got back to the city. Grey has contacted old man Gerald before they got back to the city. It was just as he expected, he was still in the city. Not only him, but even the Second Prince was also still in the city. Grey walked in the direction of the man who was staring at him maliciously. The man was unaware of the duo who were following him. After he got into the city, he started walking around the city, heading towards the southern part of the city. Void had confirmed that the man had some things with him, even without his confirmation, Grey had already gotten the feeling after seeing how full the bag the man was carrying was. They followed the man for almost ten minutes before he walked close to an empty alley. Grey didn''t even wait for him to get to the alley, quickly using the switch skill on him. The man who was walking in the street was stunned when he suddenly appeared in a lonely alley. Fortunately, he wasn''t walking quickly, so he didn''t slam into the walls by the side of the alley. Although it was already evening, it was still quite bright due to the almost full moon. "Who''s there?" The man asked, looking around. Grey walked into the alley, his robe properly covering his face. As soon as the man saw him, he recognized the figure since he was chasing after him this morning. "It''s you! I''ve been waiting for you," The man yelled, pointing at him. He dropped his bag by the side, quickly sending out an attack. He was surprisingly a Water Elementalist. "Hehe, no need to fight, I''m leaving now," Grey chuckled before disappearing into the darkness. Boom! The water arrows the man shot towards him hit the empty ground fiercely. "Huh?" The man said surprised, looking around trying to find Grey who was currently nowhere to be seen. After almost a minute of searching, he affirmed that Grey was no longer in the alley. "Hmph! Coward," He snorted coldly before walking in the direction of the corner he kept his bag. When he got there, his eyes widened. "It should be here," He muttered before checking the other side of the corner. He searched for almost three minutes, yet, he still couldn''t find it. "It''s him, no wonder he ran away so quickly. He''s the thief!" The man said angrily. He rushed towards the street he came from, hoping to catch a glimpse of Grey. Unfortunately, he couldn''t find him. "Damn it! I''ll kill him," He complained while walking in another direction. ¡­. On another alley. Grey and Void could be seen going through the bag of the man. "Hmph! He doesn''t even have anything shiny," Void said coldly before pushing the bag in Grey''s direction. Grey shook his head before taking a look at the bag. It didn''t have many things that are of value, but luckily, there were around five mid-grade essence stones, and also around fifteen low-grade essence stones. There were also a few things that he felt should be of value, but they wouldn''t cost much. With a wave of his hand, he kept all the things he thought were of value before burning the bag to ash. He had no use for the other things, nor did he care about the bag. "Hey, the night is still very young, how about we find some targets?" Grey asked. "Now you''re talking! The next target should have something shiny," Void said happily. "We can''t be certain if there''s anything shiny that will be of value, but we''ll see what we can find. All I need are essence stones, without it there''s no way we can head to the next continent," Grey said. "Hmm, fine," Void nodded. Grey smiled before turning around, leaving the alley. The only reason he was doing this was just for the fun of it. He had been too serious since he thought he hurt Void, so now he needed to vent. Although he wanted to steal, he didn''t plan to wantonly steal from people. He would pick his targets properly. ¡­. The next day. Lapis City is currently in a state of chaos, the reason for this was that there was a guy in robes who was stealing from people. In a single night, a total of twenty-two cases were reported to the guards of the city. The last case was reported only a few minutes before sunrise. Outside Lapis City mayor''s manor. "Please calm down, the guards have already started investigating the issue. We''ll get the culprit before the end of the day. You all shouldn''t worry too much," A chubby man stood in front of the gate, trying to calm the people who were outside the manor. "Mayor, there has never been a case like this in the city before, even when people are robbed, it''s usually one or two people, and it''s never by the same person. Given the description of the person, as well as the time of each attack, it can be assumed that this was an act carried out by the same person," A man stepped forward from the crowd to say. "I think this is the work of a group," Another man stepped forward. "Yeah, a female group!" A young man said. "Why would you suspect ladies?" A young lady amongst the group asked. "Look around, isn''t it obvious, only men were robbed. It must be a very vengeful woman!" The young man said. "You''re dumb, what if it''s a guy who likes ladies too much he couldn''t bear to attack them?" Another lady said. "You know¡­ you do have a point," While some people in the crowd were still quarreling, a lady dressed luxuriously rushed out of the mayor''s manor. "It''s gone! We were robbed!" The lady screamed hysterically. "Hah! That shows the person also robs ladies!" The young man pointed out. Other than the young man, everyone else was quiet, staring at him as if he was a fool. "What? Why are you people staring at me?" The young man asked, a little confused by how he was being stared at. "Arrest him, I think he has a hand in this," One of the men said. "Arrest? What¡­ what are you saying?" The young man immediately turned to the man, shouting at him. "How can someone this weak rob these people?" An old man asked. "I''m a strong man, grandpa," The young man retorted. "Shut up, I''ve told you to always think before you speak, but you never do," The old man said. The chubby man turned his attention back to the lady. "Calm down, what was taken?" He asked. "Every single item that glitters in the treasury is gone, as well as one third of the essence stones," The lady replied. The chubby man staggered, almost tripping over. "One¡­ one-third of the essence stones?" He asked just to be sure he heard correctly. "Yes," The lady nodded. "Guards!" The chubby man yelled. "Yes my lord," Different men dressed in light armors ran up to the chubby man. "Find the thief, turn the city upside down if you have to. I want that animal brought to me!" The chubby man ordered. His change in attitude surprised the crowd. A few minutes ago, he was trying to calm them down, now, he was the one that was beyond furious. "Mayor, you should calm down, yelling wouldn''t change anything," A well-dressed man said. "He''s right, Mayor, you shouldn''t stress yourself too much, I believe the guards will be able to find the culprit," A middle-aged lady said, repeating the words the Mayor spoke a few minutes ago. On hearing their words, the Mayor was further incensed. He couldn''t believe that his treasury, which was supposed to be the most guarded place in the entire city, was robbed. Not just that, but given the number of essence stones he had, it would take a long time for anyone to move them out. In the crowd, Grey could be seen casually standing. He had changed his robe, changing to a simple shirt and trouser.. He also left part of his face open, using a small mask to hide some parts of his face. Chapter 466 - Down Here "Heh! And he said he would only take a few shiny things, he still can''t be allowed to move on his own," Grey chuckled softly when he heard the lady saying that every item that glitters in the treasury was gone. He still hasn''t been able to figure out why Void loved shiny things so much, but there was no use even bothering to ask now. All he could hope for was to be able to keep him under control when they head to the new continent. From his interactions with Ellis, it was easy to deduce that they have knowledge of the space element. Compared to this place where they could run amok without being caught, they will have to walk on a thin line there. While Grey was thinking of ways to keep Void in control, he suddenly heard a scream. "It''s gone! My necklace, it''s the only thing I took from my family, now it''s gone!" The lady ran out of the Mayor''s manor to tell the Mayor of what was stolen screamed with her hand touching her neck, seemingly trying to feel something. "What do you mean g¡­ Impossible! How can it just vanish into thin air?" The Mayor who was about to refute the lady took a step back in shock. He recalled seeing the necklace on the lady earlier today, even when she came out to report the missing items in the treasury, he still saw it. It was just too shiny not to take note of it, especially during the day. "The thief is here, surround them!" The Mayor ordered, pointing at the crowd. The confused crowd stood still as the guards surrounded them. They were still trying to process what happened. "But, we''re the ones who came here to complain about a thief, why are you treating us like the thief instead?" One man asked in indignation. "My treasury was almost wiped clean when you people came here to ''complain''. How am I not sure this was all a ploy by you people to steal from me?" The Mayor said, pointing at the man who just spoke up. "What?!" The crowd started bickering with the Mayor, especially those who were robbed by Grey and Void. They came here to report, but now they were the ones who were being accused of conniving with the thief. Such accusations! There''s no way they would take it lying. ¡­. While all this was happening, Grey had slipped away from the crowd the moment he realized Void had stolen the lady''s necklace. Although he could easily escape, he wasn''t ready to be put in a difficult situation if any of the people were to accidentally recognize him. ''I thought you said you were only going to take some of it?'' Grey transmitted his voice over to Void who was nowhere to be seen. ''I didn''t take all of them, I only took the most important ones. Before I left, I overheard the guards saying they would report that everything was stolen, and keep the rest for themselves,'' Void''s voice echoed in Grey''s head. ''Oh, so that''s what happened,'' Grey said in realization. ''Well, after I heard them say that, I decided to take everything since they were going to put the blame on me. I wouldn''t feel happy if I were to hear that I stole everything when I clearly didn''t even take up to half of the items,'' Void explained. ''You do have a point there. But, why the hell did you steal the lady''s necklace?'' Grey couldn''t help but ask. Void''s reply was within Grey''s expectations, ''It''s shiny,'' ''Fair point, let''s go,'' Grey said while heading towards the city gates. ''Aren''t we going to see that old man again?'' Void asked hurriedly. ''There''s no need, I already have more than what I need. Also, I can''t take you there given your personality,'' Grey replied. ''What personality? I''m such a nice cat! Hmph!'' Void snorted coldly. ''Heh! So you think, ask that lady over there if she''ll agree with you,'' Grey said sarcastically. ''Of course she will!'' Void said confidently. ''Yeah, don''t forget to tell her you''re the one who stole her necklace,'' Grey added. ''As if she''ll believe me,'' Void rolled his eyes. ''You don''t need to say too much, as long as they find out you can talk, you''ll definitely be captured and experimented on,'' Grey said mockingly. ''Bullshit! They''ll love me,'' Void argued. Grey shrugged before pointing at a group of guards by the side of the road, ''Why don''t you try them first and see what happens?'' ''Fine, watch me,'' Void jumped down from Grey''s shoulder, walking majestically towards a group of eight that was talking by the side of the road. ¡­. "I think the person is very powerful, I mean, it''s impossible to rob so many people in a single night," A young lady said with a shrug. "We all know the person is powerful, didn''t you hear that even the Mayor''s treasury was robbed not too long ago?" A young man said. "What?!" The rest of the group exclaimed in shock. On seeing the expression on the faces of the others, the young man smiled since he knew he was the only one with the news. "That''s impossible, isn''t the Mayor''s treasury said to be the most guarded place in the city?" Another young man asked. "It is, but this person stole so easily from them without any of them finding out. Also, I know you guys are doubting me, but this news is one hundred percent true, I can even vouch with my life!" The young man said steadfastly. "That¡­ that¡­" "Hello, what he''s saying is true, I heard about it as well," Just as one of the young ladies in the group was about to say something, she was interrupted by a small voice. The group of eight turned around to look at where the voice was coming from, unfortunately, other than a young man in a mask who was standing some meters away, there was no one else around. But given the distance, they weren''t sure if he was the one who said that. None of them even thought of looking down since. "Who said that?" The young man who was telling the others about the recent news asked. The others raised their shoulders signifying they didn''t have a clue either. "Hey, I''m down here," The small voice said once again. Chapter 467 - Robbed By A Small Black Talking Cat! The group looked at the ground simultaneously, curious to see who was speaking. On seeing a black cat, a surprised look appeared on their faces. "Okay, very funny, who''s talking? You better come out or just get lost!" The young man who was telling the others of the news said in an annoyed tone. He was in the middle of showing off his information-gathering skills, and someone pushed a small black here trying to steal his show. There was no way he was going to believe that a cat could speak. Neither he nor the others believed Void could actually speak, they all felt it was a prank by someone or something. "What do you mean? I''m the one speaking," Void said angrily. The group of eight was stunned when they saw Void''s mouth moving as words came out. "Oh, it''s a talking cat. Now get out!" The young man was the first to speak, turning his attention away from Void as if a talking cat was normal. The others turned around as well, just as they were about to speak, they all paused, staring at each other as if struck by lightning. "A¡­ a¡­ talking cat!" The young man stammered before turning around sharply, staring at Void in shock and horror. "Hehe, yes, now bow before my glory," Void laughed lightly before puffing out his chest, staring at the group like they were inferior beings. "Ah¡­" One of the young ladies yelled before sending a kick towards Void. She was quickly stopped by one of the young men. "What are you doing?" The young man asked. "Killing this thing of course," The young lady replied. "Do you know how much it''ll fetch us if we can sell it?" The young man said, looking at Void with eyes lighting up. "Uh oh," Void said unconsciously. The young man wasn''t the only one who thought of this, after he explained to the others, they all agreed with him. With a swift movement, they all surrounded Void. ¡­. Grey, who was watching from the side couldn''t help but burst out laughing. He was a little surprised by the reactions of the group, he originally expected them to freak out. But who knew that immediately after they freaked out they would start thinking of ways to benefit from a talking cat. ''Haha, you see, captured and sold, then experimented on later in the future,'' He transmitted his voice over to Void, still laughing. ''Damn these people with small brains, even an ant''s brain is bigger than theirs,'' Void cursed at the group. ''Which of the ants, you do know there are some ants that are way bigger than you are, right?'' Grey asked mockingly. ''Damn you!'' Void replied angrily, throwing Grey into a fit of laughter once again. ¡­. On seeing the group trying to capture him, Void improvised instantly. "Meow¡­" "Huh!" The group was taken aback when they heard this. They unconsciously started to doubt if the cat was truly speaking previously. "Just capture it first, we''ll find a way to get it to speak later," The young man who brought the idea of capturing Void said to the others. The others nodded before using their elemental powers to try to trap Void in the encirclement. "Damn you all, a bunch of morons," Void cursed out before vanishing. "Where is it?" The young man who was telling the others of the news was the first to notice that Void was nowhere to be seen. "How could it escape so easily?" One of the young ladies said. "Search for it, it couldn''t have gone far," The young man who brought the idea suggested. The others nodded before rushing off in different directions. Grey who was watching from the side shook his head in pity, he could already see Void''s ploy the moment he didn''t come to him. Since the group wanted to capture Void, Void planned on robbing all of them while they were separated. The most ingenious thing about his plan is that this group would claim to be robbed by a small black talking cat, and they would also say he was the one who robbed the others. Grey couldn''t help but laugh just picturing the way people would look at the group as if they had gone mad. It was one thing believing a cat could talk, and it was another thing saying that a small black talking cat was the culprit of all the robberies that occurred over the night. The group would probably be locked up for saying stupid things, after being robbed by Void. This was them suffering a double punishment just because they wanted to capture Void. Grey didn''t leave his spot, waiting to see the outcome of the group who chased after Void. Five minutes later. One of the young men from the group was the first to appear, he was looking haggard and horrified. What Grey found funny was that he was only in his underwear, and his hair stood straight, probably from suffering from lightning shock. A few minutes later, the others from the group started appearing one by one, all almost in the same state, shocked and in their underwear. Their look soon attracted people towards them. All eight of them had lost looks in their eyes as if finding it impossible to believe what happened. The young ladies had it worse since they were half-naked, luckily Void left them with their underwear. There was one in particular who seemed to be wearing what seemed to be an impromptu underwear, it was a piece of clothing that was used to wrap her chest. From her looks, it was easy to see that she was going through a lot. Grey shook his head while walking away, there was nothing else to see, Void had already exacted revenge on the group even though he was pretty much the cause of it all.. Although, he couldn''t say they didn''t deserve it since they were planning to sell him to people who might do horrible things to him. Chapter 468 - Refining An Overlord Plane Beast Core Lapis City gate. Grey walked out of the city gate but stopped when he saw a carriage waiting by the side. Even though he wasn''t familiar with the royal family, he still knew their family insignia. ''Old man Gerald should be there as well,'' He thought to himself. He originally wanted to see him so he could ask for some essence stones, but since he had already obtained some, he didn''t really see the need in meeting up with him anymore. He turned around, walking in another direction so he wouldn''t be seen by old man Gerald. Void soon appeared on his shoulder, a smug look on his face. "Satisfied?" Grey asked as soon as Void appeared. "Yeah, pretty much," Void nodded. "Where to now?" He asked while looking around. "Back to the Magical Beasts'' forest, we''ll be leaving this place now," Grey replied. "Finally, a new challenge!" Void said happily. "Yeah, just to be clear, they know of the space element, so you can''t do things willy-nilly," Grey warned. "That place must be awesome," Void said excitedly. "Why did you say so?" Grey asked curiously. "Well, since they know about the space element already shows they''re better than this stupid place," Void replied. Grey couldn''t refute him, only the strength Ellis displayed had shown him the huge gap between this continent and that one. Not just the strength, but the knowledge as well as something others his age in this continent didn''t have. "Alright, let''s go, we''ll speak with the others on the way," Grey said before charging into the Magical Beasts'' forest. He wanted to tell the others that he would be out of reach for the meantime since he wasn''t sure the communication device could connect given the distance. He also wanted to make sure the others wouldn''t be too worried about him. Six hours later. It took the duo only six hours to get to the location where the building was located. When Grey was passing by the spot where he was almost killed by the Jaguar the previous day, he couldn''t help but shudder, luckily, Void woke up in time. When thinking of the Jaguar, he recalled its core was inside his storage ring. Void was able to somehow remove the core even though he killed the Jaguar with his attack. Being the good cat he was, Void sold the core to him at the expense of eight shiny things. Grey couldn''t help but shake his head when he thought of how Void initially wanted ten thousand shiny things before he would give him the core. The duo stood outside the area where the building was located. Grey was a little tense since he didn''t know if Void would be able to get through the array that was deterring magical beasts away. But to his surprise, Void didn''t even stop, just walking straight in. ''Oh, there''s that, I really need to stop looking at him as if he''s a normal magical beast,'' He said to himself. Void had proven countless times why Grey shouldn''t put him in the same category as the other magical beasts, yet he still repeats it every time. "Why are you still standing there? Come on, let''s go," Void turned around and looked at Grey curiously when he noticed he wasn''t moving. "Did you feel anything stop you from going in?" Grey couldn''t help but ask. "No, why did you ask?" Void shook his head. "Oh, there''s an array here that deters magical beasts from going in," Grey explained. "That''s for low-leveled beasts, if a Dragon or even a Griffin come here, they can easily pass these things," Void said, his voice oozing with disdain for the array. Grey nodded before walking into the building, he planned to refine the core before heading to the new continent. He was still in the Eighth stage of the Origin Plane. Although, this can be attributed to the fact that he hadn''t really cultivated since leaving the trail land. He had only advanced in his stages because of comprehending a new element and also refining a treasure. ''I''ve used too many treasures for my advancements, although it''s not good since it would make my foundation weak, comprehending new elements has been able to remove that disadvantage,'' He thought to himself while walking into the building. He soon came to a decision that once he gets to the Overlord Plane, he would focus fully on cultivating without using any treasures, although he couldn''t really be too sure. After getting into the building, he instantly sat down in a crossed leg position, taking out the black core, he swallowed it whole. This was the first time he was refining anything that had to do with the Overlord Plane, hence he didn''t carelessly try to refine the core in a single instance as he did with the cores of beasts in the Origin Plane. As soon as the beast core entered his body, a rich and large amount of elemental essence erupted from it, spreading across his entire body. The intensity of the essence was so much that for a few seconds, Grey was scared thinking he bit more than he could chew. Luckily, his elemental beads started spinning quickly, before giving off a strange aura that was able to easily quell the spread of the essence. The wild elemental essence was quickly tamed. It soon started following the right path, not daring to cause any problems in Grey''s body. Since the Jaguar was a Lightning and Darkness Dual Elementalist, it was filled with both elemental essence. The essence separated into two parts, one flowing into his darkness elemental bead while the other headed straight for his lightning elemental bead. ''It''s just like what happened when Alice''s dad tried to suppress me with his Overlord Plane aura,'' Grey thought when he sensed the aura his elemental beads spread out. He knew this had to do with the orb he absorbed, but he still didn''t know anything about it. Since he couldn''t come up with why this was happening, he decided to focus on advancing his stage. Chapter 469 - Peak Of The Origin Plane! Boom! An energy wave exploded out with Grey at the center. His body was covered with eight different elements, giving off a beautiful but dangerous feeling. Void, who was watching from the side gasped when he saw this, taking a few steps back unconsciously. He didn''t dare to go anywhere near Grey. After Grey''s body started to give off the energy, his strength started to increase slowly. Compared to before, Grey noticed the speed of his growth had somewhat decreased. He couldn''t help but think if what the mysterious man who appeared to him when he started cultivating told him was a lie. According to what the man said, his cultivation speed would increase every time he comprehended a new element. Although his speed was faster than that of others, it was a bit below his expectations since he currently had eight elements. The thing he forgot was that with the increase of his elements, the essence he needs would increase as well, so even though his cultivation speed increased, the essence needed for a breakthrough was a huge amount. Ten minutes soon went by, and his stage had finally advanced by a single stage, entering the Ninth stage of the Origin Plane. But it didn''t end there, from Grey''s deduction, there was still about thirty percent left of essence from the beast core. This should be able to push him to the Peak of the Origin Plane if he was lucky. Time continued moving, with his strength increasing with time. Thirty more minutes went by before the energy wave he was giving off slowly started receding. The elements that covered him also started to fade away. Void looked at Grey and muttered the word ''monster'' in a low voice. The aura Grey was currently giving off was something that could rival someone who is in the Early stages of the Overlord Plane. One has to recall that the difference between an Overlord Plane Elementalist and an Origin Plane Elementalist was almost as big as the difference between a pond and a lake. This was something that was usually insurmountable for most people, but just from the aura Grey was giving off, Void was one thousand percent sure he could go toe to toe with an Overlord Plane expert without even using his Fusion State. "Phew¡­" Grey breathed out a black gas. "Hmm, the Peak of the Origin Plane, not bad," He muttered. "Do you always cause this type of commotion whenever you''re breaking through?" Void asked from the side. "Huh? Commotion?" Grey raised a brow, looking at Void weirdly. "Yeah, you were doing a light show, while also giving off energy waves. It was as if you wanted the world to know you''re advancing," Void said sarcastically. "Strange, I don''t think this happened the las¡­ oh¡­" Just as Grey was about to speak, he recalled Reynolds asked him this question as well when he was breaking through to the Eighth stage as well. "I can''t help it, it happens unconsciously, this is why I''ve stopped breaking through in places where there are people," Grey explained. "Okay, but given your array of elements, this would cause a problem if people find out, especially your enemies," Void warned. "Unlike you and Klaus, I don''t go around making enemies, anyone who I think will take me as an enemy will be removed from the picture as quickly as they start hating me," Grey said casually. "You''re such a cold-hearted person," Void said. "It''s called taking precautions, I''d rather wipe out an entire family than to leave someone who would endanger my family and friends," Grey replied. He soon took out the communication device, he still hasn''t spoken with the others. Once he goes through this array, he isn''t sure of when he can return, but he will try his best to come back within six months at most. He planned to take his friends there as well since it would make them grow faster. Increasing his strength wasn''t his only goal, he wanted every single individual close to him to be powerful as well. Klaus was the first person he contacted, the reason for this was that he had left a ton of messages waiting for him, and they barraged him as soon as he sent his spiritual senses into the device. After sending the message, Klaus replied instantly just as he expected. It was almost as if he had been waiting for him. "Where have you been? I''ve been leaving messages since last week," Klaus said, a little exaggeratedly. "Klaus, we spoke two days back, since when has a single day turned into a week?" Grey almost facepalmed. "I thought you were dead, I was about to start heading in your direction," Klaus replied. "You''re still alive, why would I die when you, the one who offends everyone he sees, is still alive?" Grey rolled his eyes. "Forget about that, so, I wanted to ask, how do you escape from an encirclement that consists of two Overlord Plane Elementalists and twenty Origin Plane Elementalists?" Klaus suddenly asked. Grey''s expression changed when he heard this, "Where''s the Principal and Instructor Blake?" "They''re part of the encirclement," Klaus said in a low, embarrassed voice. Grey froze when he heard this, "Part of the encirclement?" "Yeah, I kind of accidentally destroyed his old friend''s mansion when I was training," Klaus coughed a few times while explaining. "You purposely did it, didn''t you?" Grey shook his head, a little worried if this friend of his would live a long life. "He was talking shit to my dad, what did you expect me to do?" Klaus said, angrily. "Hmm, fair enough. But why is the Principal part of the encirclement then?" Grey asked, confused. "Hehe, he was bathing when I destroyed the building," Klaus replied with a chuckle. Grey''s eyes twitched a few times when he heard this, "Alright, you should stay still so that the Principal can teach you a lesson," "Nonsense, I feel I still have a chance to get out of this," Klaus rejected his idea immediately. Who was Grey kidding, his father would beat the hell out of him if he was caught. Chapter 470 - Start Of A New Journey "How good are you at lying?" Void suddenly spoke up. Grey was a little taken aback when he saw Void butting in into the conversation. "Yeah, you have a plan?" Klaus'' reply came shortly after the question. "Of course, since the Principal was bathing, there''s no way he would''ve seen you destroying the building, why don''t you say you were having a battle with someone?" Void suggested. "Oh, that might actually work." Klaus replied, "I don''t know who you are, but I suddenly like you. Wait, who are you again?" Klaus could tell Grey wasn''t the one speaking, so he wanted to confirm who it was. "It''s Void," Void replied. "Come on, stop joking. Void is a magical beast, and besides, he''s still in an unconscious state," Klaus immediately refuted. He hadn''t seen any magical beast speaking before, so there was no way he would believe Void was the one speaking. "It really is Void, Klaus. He woke up yesterday and started talking," Grey said. Even he knew it wouldn''t be easy to convince Klaus since he wasn''t here with them. "Wow! Amazing! Void, quick, say something else," Klaus yelled excitedly. Grey was stunned at how quickly Klaus was able to accept the fact that Void could talk. He was even thinking of ways to convince him, who knew he would immediately accept it? "Uh¡­ hello?" Void said, a little confused. "Good, now, can you come over? I have a mega job, and I can''t do it without you," Klaus said, completely forgetting about the fact that he was surrounded and would be beaten soon. "Aren''t you forgetting your current situation?" Grey asked hopelessly. "Don''t worry, I''m currently hiding deep in an underground tunnel I accidentally found, it would take a few more minutes before they can find me. Void, what do you say? Me, you, a large haul just waiting for us to take it," Klaus continued speaking to Void. "I think this is where we stop the communication, I also need to speak with the others. I''ll be going on a journey to a place where I can''t communicate with you guys, I only wanted to let you know before leaving so you won''t be worried," Grey said, halting any of Klaus'' plans of getting Void to steal something. "But, but¡­ wait, you''re leaving? And there''s no way to communicate with you?" Klaus wanted to argue with Grey before he processed what Grey said. "Correct," Grey nodded. "Where are you going?" Klaus asked hastily. "Well, I don''t really know how to describe it yet, but I think my parents are there. Don''t worry, I won''t stay for long, once I''ve seen the place, I''ll come over to take you guys along," Grey explained. "Damn you! Take me with you if you''re going to someplace new," Klaus yelled. "No, first of all, I have no knowledge of this place, secondly, given your track record, you''re bound to get us in trouble. I''m still thinking of how to keep Void in order, if you''re added to the mix then we''ll die within a few hours," Grey refused, making sure to tell him the reason for his refusal. "Bullshit!" Klaus and Void said simultaneously. "See," Grey said, using this as a confirmation of their behavior. "Fine, but make sure you don''t die," Klaus said after finally deciding to agree with him. "Do I look like someone who walks around causing trouble?" Grey asked. "Of course, have you seen your face? A damsel is bound to fall in love with you, and her suitors are bound to hate you," Klaus said while laughing. "He does have a point," Void replied while scrutinizing Grey''s face. "That''s why I always wear a mask. Alright, that''s all, goodbye," Grey quickly ended the communication. If he didn''t do this, Klaus would continue talking for the rest of the day, and he wouldn''t be able to speak to the others in time. He wanted to make sure he got to the new place before nightfall. After ending the communication with Klaus, he spoke with Alice and then Reynolds, telling them of his journey. He didn''t forget to tell them Void was fine once again which brought a little bit of joy to the duo who were sad after finding out that he was leaving. ¡­.. "Alright, that''s that. We should get going," Grey said while keeping the communication device. Void nodded before jumping onto his shoulder. Grey walked towards the middle of the mansion, carefully distributing the essence stones in the areas Ellis placed them. He was both excited and nervous at the same time. But he felt more excited than nervous. His blood was boiling when he thought of the new challenge he would face there. After seeing Ellis, he was sure that people his age were already in the Overlord Plane there. There''s even a chance of some being above the Overlord Plane. Just the thought of this was sending fire all over his body, he wanted to go there fast, he wanted to start training again. "There''s nothing worth staying here for anymore, if I can''t find my parents there, then I will make sure I train to become the most powerful Elementalist there. I''ll come back and search the entire Azure continent for them, if I still don''t see them, then I''ll turn the world upside down," Grey said resolutely. He didn''t even flinch when saying this, he was oozing with utmost confidence. "That''s the spirit, come on let''s go dominate!" Void said excitedly, he didn''t want peace, he never had. As long as there was something going on, he was satisfied. Grey smirked before placing the last piece of stone in the array and slowly walking back to the middle of the array. The array soon lit up, enveloping both Grey and Void. After a few minutes, the duo was nowhere to be seen. A figure soon appeared from the Void, staring at the array. "*Sigh* The young lord''s journey is about to start, I don''t think I will be of much help there. I need to go back and inform Milady about this before she finds out herself," The figure said. It was none other than the old man who was protecting Grey. Although, he couldn''t really say he did much since he allowed him to go through multiple perilous encounters.. But without those encounters, there was no way Grey would be who he was today. Chapter 471 - Barbarians At the top of a lush mountain. A rift suddenly opened in the sky, spitting out a human figure. Bomb! The figure crashed heavily into the ground. Causing dust to rise up. "Damn it, why didn''t it just open like a space tunnel usually does?" An enraged small voice said. "Stop complaining, it''s not like you''re the one who slammed into the ground," Another voice said from the dust. The dust soon settled, and Grey and Void could be seen. Grey used the wind element to push the dust from his body before he looked around. "Hmm, a mountain," He muttered. "Wow! The essence here is amazing!" Void exclaimed, attracting Grey''s attention. Grey sent out his spiritual senses, and on sensing the intensity of the elemental essence here, he couldn''t help but gasp. It was even higher than that of the trail land, although, they didn''t go deep into the trail land so they can''t be sure the highest intensity of the essence there. But from what they experienced there, the essence here was higher. "Hmm, we''ll have to find a way to ask around to know where we are. According to what Ellis said, this place is divided into five continents, since I''m searching for him, then I should be heading to where he''s located, from what he said, he lives in the Southern Continent. Once I find out which continent I appear in, then I can start searching for him," Grey said to Void as he started descending down the mountain. Since he didn''t know anything about this place, he wanted to make sure he didn''t put himself in any trouble. Fifteen minutes later. Grey and Void were already at the base of the mountain, staring at the road ahead of them. They still haven''t seen anybody yet, so they have to continue walking. Void was staring around with curiosity while Grey on the other hand was staring around vigilantly. Unlike Void, he wasn''t so carefree in a foreign place. It was almost sunset by the time they came out of the space tunnel, by the time they got to the base of the mountain, the sun had already set. "We should hurry up, it wouldn''t be nice if it gets dark when we don''t even know where we are," Grey increased his speed. He couldn''t afford to take any chances in this new place. The only thing he found strange was that other than some small beasts, he hadn''t encountered any magical beasts. This wasn''t a bad thing though since it meant they weren''t in any danger, but there''s also the possibility of this place being the territory of a terrifying beast. Given the intensity of the essence here, there''s no way the magical beast wouldn''t be in the Overlord Plane, it''s most likely going to be higher. Void wasn''t the least bit bothered by this, he was carefreely looking around, hoping to see something that might be able to catch his eyes. After walking for a few minutes, they started hearing voices of people. This brightened the mood of Grey since it meant he would finally be able to find out where he is. "Be careful, I can sense a strange energy coming from that direction," Void spoke up as they got closer to the place. Grey increased his vigilance on hearing this. Void wouldn''t carelessly warn him if his senses weren''t correct. His mood once again took a turn, and he almost wanted to wish he didn''t encounter this particular set of people. He concealed his aura with the help of Void before they walked closer to the direction of where the sound was coming from. ¡­. "Haha! This barbarians are so stupid, they will believe whatever they are told," A hearty laughter rang out from a camp which a fire lit in the middle. "Of course, what else do you expect from them? We''ll be able to make some money once we sell them to the arena," Another man said. In the camp, there were seven people sitting around the fire, drinking wine while wolfing down the meat of a boar. Beside them, there were three cages that were around four meters high and eight meters long. There were people in all of them. These people were covered with beast skin clothes, unlike what the people who were sitting by the camp were wearing. They all had fiery eyes, ready to attack at any time. A collar was around their neck, seemingly impossible for them to remove. "I''ll kill you all!" A large man inside the cave said angrily. "Haha, how? Although you people are strong, but with that collar on your necks, there''s no way you can manipulate your elements," One of the men sitting by the side said with a laugh. The large man tried to remove the collar from his neck, but as soon as his hand got to it, it released a sparkling lightning attack that not only shocked his hands, but also his entire body. "Ah¡­" The pained screams of the man rang out, followed by the smell of charred skin. "Haha, morons," The group of seven were thrown into a fit of laughter when they saw this. One could see the joy on their faces as they watched the man being electrocuted by the collar. "Whoever created this collar must be a devious person," One of the men said while picking out a collar from his bag. These collars were created to block the flow of elemental energy in the body of an Elementalist, stopping them from being able to use their elemental powers. Without their elemental powers, an Elementalist is no different from an ordinary person. There is also a defensive array placed on the collar that would let out a series of lightning that would shock the person wearing the collar. This way, it was almost impossible to take it off once it had been placed on someone. ¡­. Grey and Void watched on from the side as the man was shocked by the collar. "What''s that?" He muttered curiously. Chapter 472 - Thicker Air After staring at the collar curiously for a little longer, he shook his head before turning away. If not for overhearing the men speaking of the properties of the collar, he wouldn''t know the uses of it. Even though he would very much like to study the collar, he couldn''t afford to stay here. From what he could tell, these people were all in the Overlord Plane. Luckily, they were only in the Early stages. Although he felt he could take them on one on one, he wasn''t confident when it comes to fighting against this group. ''We''re leaving?'' Void asked. Grey nodded to his question, this had nothing to do with him so of course he wasn''t going to get involved in it. ''Oh, okay,'' Void replied before turning away as well. The duo walked away from where the group was camping, heading in another direction. Since this group could camp here, then it probably meant it was safe for him to also do the same. He walked at least one kilometer away from where the group was before finding a spot to rest. He set up an array around the place they set up camp before sitting down crossed leg. Since breaking through, he hadn''t properly cultivated to make his stage stable. Even though it really wasn''t necessary, he enjoyed doing this. Void sat down watching him, after staying for almost one hour, he stood up and disappeared into the bushes. Of course, he didn''t forget to tell Grey he was going for a short exploration. Grey was sure to warn him severally before letting him go. He knew Void didn''t like staying idle so he didn''t try to stop him. ¡­. The next morning. Grey opened his eyes before the sun rose. ''The essence here is something else,'' He said with a shake of his head. He couldn''t help but wonder why those men were still in the Overlord Plane. If Alice, Klaus, and Reynolds were to grow up here, they would''ve already broken through to the Overlord Plane by now. ''Void, where are you?'' He transmitted his voice over when he noticed Void wasn''t back yet. After a few seconds, Void''s voice echoed in his head. ''On my way,'' Grey prepared himself for the journey. He planned to follow the group that captured those barbarians out of this place. Since they spoke of an arena, it meant they were headed towards a city. Void soon returned, and the duo headed straight for where the group camped. By the time they got there, the group was just about to begin their journey. Grey and Void didn''t say a word, silently following behind them as they started their journey. ¡­. Five hours later. ''Stop, there''s a magical beast ahead,'' Void said to Grey. ''Oh, how powerful?'' Grey asked. ''They are all Rank Five beasts, all in the early stages,'' Void replied. ''Rank Five?'' Grey thought to himself before counting mentally to figure out the strength of the beasts. ''That''s the Early stages of the Overlord Plane, right?'' He asked just to be sure. Void nodded while staring at him oddly. Grey scratched his head in embarrassment, although Void had told him of what the power system of magical beasts is called, he was still used to using the power system of humans. ''You said they, how many are they?'' He asked after a while. ''I''m not too sure, I can''t sense them properly, but they should be around nine to fifteen,'' Void replied. ''All in the Overlord Plane?'' Grey asked. ''Yeah, all Rank Five beasts,'' Void answered. ''Hmm, this will be interesting. Guess I''ll be able to gauge the strength of these people from this battle,'' Grey thought to himself. He wanted to see if the people here were more powerful than those of the same stage in the Azure continent. To be honest, he was a little pessimistic about it since even the essence here is way better than the one in the Azure continent. The duo followed the group but kept a considerable distance, they didn''t want to be noticed by the beasts. Ten minutes later. "Oh no, where is there a horde of Fire Apes?" One of the men in the group asked angrily. "Damn it, they''ve already noticed us," Another man with a scar on his left wrist said, he turned to the others, "Prepare for battle, no matter what, don''t let them get close to the barbarians," "Yes captain," The others answered in unison. They set up a wall around the cages, protecting the barbarians from the Apes. The collar could be destroyed by an external force, so they couldn''t afford to let the Apes get close to the barbarians. Roar! "They''re here, set up the array," The captain of the group ordered. The group arranged in seven different locations with the barbarians in the middle, forming a hexagram shape when looked from above. They all did a hand seal before a light shot up from their hands, shooting upwards. The lights reached about ten meters before linking together to form a light screen that protected them. ¡­. Grey, who was watching from the side, found something odd, "Why haven''t they tried to fly?" "I don''t know, but I think the intensity of the essence here makes the air heavier than that side, making it difficult for those in the Overlord Plane to take flight here," Void explained after a while. Since he was already a Rank Five magical beast, then he could fly. He tried flying but it was a little difficult. "It''s a little difficult, but I can still fly. Others wouldn''t be able to fly though," Void added after trying to fly once again. "Hmm, okay. Looks like there are a lot of changes here," Grey muttered before staring at the Apes which had flames around their body. ¡­. The Apes attacked as soon as they encountered the group. The attacks of the Apes slammed into the light screen that appeared around the group. Boom! The Apes'' attacks were unable to destroy the defense of the group. "Attack!" The captain of the group ordered. Boom! Bang! Roar! The group''s counterattack dealt major damage to the two Apes at the front, causing them to roar in agony. The array the group set up has the ability to defend and attack, making it almost impossible for the Apes to get to them. Grey and Void couldn''t help but commend the efforts of the group. Although there were arrays like this back at the Azure continent, none of them was this powerful. From Grey''s estimation, the attack of the array was at the very least equal to an attack of a Mid stage Overlord Plane Elementalists, and the defense seems to be around the Late stages of the Overlord Plane. ''This is an interesting array, I wonder if there''s a way I can modify it?'' Grey thought to himself while watching the battle. Just from looking at the array, he has been able to not only decipher it, but he has come up with different ways to immediately break it within the short time of two minutes. Given Grey''s current knowledge of arrays, even Chris would be surprised by how far he has grown. And from Grey''s personality, it was evident that he would not only improve further, but he would also create new arrays. ¡­. Fifteen minutes later. The array made by the group was still standing, while the numbers of the Apes had started to dwindle, with bodies lying on the ground. Of the thirteen Apes that came to attack the group, five of them were dead, and two were seriously wounded. "Haha, this array is amazing! It''s totally worth every stone we spent on it," One of the men in the group laughed out loud happily. Although the array was slowly draining their essence energy, it should be able to last at least one hour more. There was no way the Apes would be able to survive until then. Three minutes later, another one of the Apes fell. On seeing how their numbers were slowly dwindling, the Apes immediately retreated from the battle. Although their knowledge couldn''t be compared to that of an adult human, they were still smart. The group stayed in the array for a few more minutes, waiting for the Apes to completely leave the area before they destroyed the array. "Pack up their bodies, they will fetch us a good sum as well," The captain ordered. The group immediately got to work, first removing the cores of the six Apes, before storing their bodies. One person could only keep a single Ape in their storage ring, this showed how small the space inside was. ¡­. When Void saw the Apes retreating, he couldn''t help but shake his head in disdain, "Stupid things, I could easily destroy that array with a simple attack, yet they all couldn''t," "They only believed in brute strength, unlike you who is smarter than them," Grey said. "Even if they couldn''t break the array, couldn''t they at least escape sooner? *Sigh* I feel ashamed classifying these dumb fools as magical beasts as well," Void shook his head in dejection. Grey chuckled when he saw this.. Void was just too prideful, although he couldn''t say he didn''t have the right to be since he was not only smarter but more powerful as well. Chapter 473 - Eagles City The group once again started their journey after keeping the bodies of the Apes. Grey and Void followed them just like the first time, making sure to keep a good distance from the group. Other than the time they fought against the Apes, the rest of the journey was pretty peaceful, they left the forest after six hours, heading towards the towering city''s figure that was far away. Grey and Void immediately stopped following them the moment they saw the city from afar. There was no use following the group anymore since they had already served their purpose. Grey decided it was best to wait by the side for a few minutes, waiting to make sure the group didn''t notice them before they head towards the city on their own. While sitting down, he suddenly recalled that he gave one of his tracking devices to Ellis. He decided to pick it up so he could find the direction Ellis was located, it would be easier to search for him that way after obtaining a map of the area. Grey took put the device, sending his spiritual energy into it. A small hologram appeared above it, with only two light dots showing. The dots were so tiny that it was almost impossible to see them. One of the dots was at one end of the hologram, while the other was at the other end. "Wow! The distance is frightening! It will take me years if I try to travel this distance by foot," Grey exclaimed while staring at the plaque. When he was still in the Azure continent, he could still perfectly see the light dots of every single individual, while the distance between them in the hologram wasn''t this huge. Just from this, Grey was certain that the distance was huge. "How far is it?" Void asked when he saw Grey''s reaction. "I don''t think it''s wise to think about that since it''ll only dishearten us. I recall Ellis saying there are multiple teleportation arrays in almost every major city, that will be our means of transport here," Grey explained, telling Void all that he knew. Twenty minutes later. The duo left the side of the road, heading towards the large city. From their current distance, Grey guessed the city was around the same size as Frost City. It didn''t take long for them to get to the city gate. At the top of the gate, the word Eagle was boldly written on it. Grey and Void stared at the drawing of an Eagle at the top of the gate for a little longer before heading towards the city. He could see people passing through the gates without being stopped, so it was easy to guess there was no need for paying an entrance fee. Just as he was about to walk in, he was stopped by a young man who was wearing a guard uniform. "Show me your entry permit," The guard said, stretching out his hand. "Entry permit?" Grey asked with confusion written all over his face. The guard nodded with his hand still outstretched. "But, why did you come to only me when there are others going in without showing anyone this so-called ''entry permit''?" Grey asked plainly. Even though he wasn''t the type who liked causing problems, it didn''t mean he would allow others to step on him. He had been watching people go in all this while and was certain that no one showed the guards any sort of permit. "Hmph! No permit, no entry," The guard snorted coldly, not even bothering to explain to Grey. Seeing the guard harassing Grey, some people who were by the side stopped to watch the show. From their expressions, one could tell that this was not the first time this was happening. Some people didn''t even bother to watch, walking into the city and getting on with their usual lives. ''This fool, he''s obviously trying to extort money from you,'' Void transmitted his voice over to Grey. ''Yeah, unfortunately, I can''t really do much since I have no knowledge of how things are here,'' Grey replied calmly. ''Does that mean you''re going to pay?'' Void asked, surprised. ''Of course not, I don''t have any knowledge of this place doesn''t mean I''m a fool,'' Grey replied. ''Heh! So what do you plan to do?'' Void asked. They just got here, but they were already placed in a difficult situation. Although Grey didn''t think much of the young man in front of him, he didn''t have the thought of fighting with him since he was in the Overlord Plane. Compared to the group he encountered, he could sense that this young man was stronger than they were. One other thing that Grey found out was that most of the people here were either in the Origin Plane or the Overlord Plane. The ones in the Origin Plane were the minority, with most being in the Overlord Plane. Luckily, most of them in the Overlord Plane were all around their Late twenties or middle-aged. "Show your entry permit or piss off," The guard said. Grey turned around and left without speaking a word, there was no use in talking to the guard. He could tell the guard only wanted to create trouble for him, and he was not foolish enough to allow it. He could easily agree to offer some essence stones, but that would only create an avenue for these people to continue extorting him. "So, what now?" Void asked. "You''re a Space Elementalist, aren''t you?" Grey asked, sarcastically. "Oh, we''re sneaking in?" Void said in realization. Grey smiled before walking to the side of the city wall. The guard who thought he would be able to bully Grey was stunned when he left without a single word. "Heh! I thought I would have some fun, who knew he was only a scared weakling," He said to himself. He turned around when he noticed the crowd staring at him. "What are you all staring at? Continue walking," He said smugly. "Shut up you reject," Someone from the crowd said, making the expression of the guard contort in annoyance. "Who said that?! Come out and face me!" The guard exclaimed. Seeing his reaction threw the crowd into a fit of laughter. Chapter 474 - Getting A Map By the city wall. Void was the first person to try to teleport into the city. The reason Grey told him to go first was because he was not only better with the space element, but given his size, he would be able to evade any problems in case any arises. ''You can come, there''s a bit of resistance when making a space tunnel, but you should be able to make it through,'' Void''s voice echoed in Grey''s head. ''Alright,'' Grey nodded before trying to create a space tunnel. Surprisingly, he failed in the first attempt which shocked him. Even though Void told him there was a little bit of resistance, he didn''t think it was this strong. He tried opening it again, but the result was just like the first time. He was unable to open it. He didn''t give up immediately, trying it four more times, but the results were the same, he was unable to make it. What was more annoying was that his space essence reserve was draining at an unimaginable rate. ''Uhmm¡­ Void, I think you''ll have to open the space tunnel for me, I can''t seem to do it,'' Grey was left with no choice but to ask for Void''s help. Now he knew the difference between them when it came to manipulating the space element. Void was able to easily create the space tunnel, yet even after multiple tries, he was still unable to. Void soon appeared before him from a small tear in the void, the tear soon increased in size, becoming big enough for Grey to walk through. After Grey entered, the tunnel tear in the void closed, the area returning back to normal. ¡­. Inside the city. Grey appeared on the side of the wall, just behind a building. "Hmm, there''s a detection array in the entire city, people will find us shortly, no wonder the guard was able to confidently ask for an entry permit," Grey commented as soon as he appeared. "No need to worry about that, I can easily hide us from this array," Void replied confidently. "Void, I missed you so much when you were sleeping," Grey said with a shake of his head. Most of the problems he faced while Void was sleeping, he wouldn''t have faced them given how resourceful Void was. He couldn''t even help but wonder where he knew all these things. "Void, is there a chance that there is another type of cat like you in this continent? After all, it seems to be more advanced," Grey asked. "There''s only one way to find out, explore, we''ll explore every single inch of this continent," Void said excitedly. "Yeah, I plan to do just that," Grey replied. He would be exploring this place while searching for his parents, so naturally he would have to go on an adventure around the continent. But for now, getting a map and a general knowledge of this place would be great. Once he has acquired all these, he would start searching for Ellis. Heading to where Ellis is located without prior knowledge of this place is no different from endangering himself. His cautious nature will not allow him to do something like that. "Come on, let''s go before the guards get here," Void said. "Yeah, I forgot they''ve already sensed us the first time we entered this place," Grey said before walking away. A few minutes after they left, three figures appeared in the sky staring at the spot they were standing. "Did you say the aura suddenly disappeared?" One of the figures turned to another one and asked. "Correct, it was like they sensed the array and hastily hid," The figure nodded. "Hmm, fine. Tell the guards to be vigilant, we don''t know who we''re dealing with, it would be best to approach this cautiously," The first figure said. "Noted," The figure said before disappearing. "Do you think it''s a Venerable?" The figure on the left asked. "Very likely, only a Venerable could easily enter the city and hide from us," The other person replied. "What would a Venerable want in a small city like ours?" "We should head back and be on guard, if this person wants anything, given their status, they can easily come to us and ask," After speaking, the duo disappeared. ¡­. While these figures were worried about the arrival of an unknown Venerable, Grey and Void were currently at the marketplace, searching for a map. This was the first thing Grey felt he should obtain, so he went to get it first. "Boy, there''s no way you can get a map which shows the entire continent. Do you even know how big it is?" The seller looked at Grey in disbelief when Grey said he wanted to get a map that showed the entire continent. "Oh, then can I get one that covers the region we''re currently in?" Grey asked, slightly embarrassed. The seller nodded before taking out a map that was almost a meter wide. "That''s three thousand high grade essence stones," The seller said emotionlessly. "That expensive?" Grey asked, stunned. "You can leave it if you don''t want it," The seller replied. Grey dropped the map before walking in another direction, they were in a marketplace, there was no way this was the only place that sells maps. He could easily tell that the man wanted to extort him when he noticed he was new here. After going to three more stalls, he found the map for as low as one hundred high grade essence stones. "So this is the Western Continent, we''ll be heading to the Northern Continent to search for Ellis," Grey muttered to himself. He didn''t look at the map properly, keeping it and asking for where the library was located. He wanted to know more about this place and the library was the best place to get the history of this place. Even though he doesn''t know everything, he should at least know some things. He was soon directed to a large building. Chapter 475 - Tales Of Gods ''This place is amazing!'' Grey exclaimed internally while going through a book in the library. He read some things here that he never knew of in the Azure continent, there was also information of the war that happened thousands of years ago. According to the book, that was the golden age of Elementalists, and there were even stories of fallen gods. After reading the part about gods, Grey couldn''t help but think of the mysterious man who appeared in his consciousness, telling him he was the Chaos God. He read more about it and found out that there was a bridge between this world and the world of gods. Once an Elementalist reaches the peak of this world, they would ascend into a world where gods stay. There wasn''t any knowledge about this realm of gods, only that it existed. But according to the book, even before the great war, no one had ascended to the god realm in thousands of years. ''Hey, do you know about this realm of gods?'' He asked Void who was resting by the side. Void wasn''t a fan of doing boring things like reading, so he naturally couldn''t stay with him. The only reason he was still in the library was because Grey refused to let him leave the building, according to Grey, he would cause too much mayhem. ''Realm of gods? What''s that?'' Void raised his head, staring at Grey curiously. ''It''s written here in the book, according to it, Elementalists grow to a stage and become gods,'' Grey explained. ''Hmm¡­ I have no knowledge of this, do you think I''m a god?'' Void suddenly asked. ''Stop dreaming, you aren''t even as strong as a Sage Plane Elementalist yet,'' Grey sneered. ''That doesn''t mean I can''t be a god. Have you thought of the possibility of me being a god but losing my memory and strength?'' Void asked. ''Hmm, you do have a point there, but I''m not sure you are,'' Grey replied after a moment of silence. He couldn''t help but think about it, Void has so many skills and some knowledge of things even though he hatched from an egg. Void could even be said to be more knowledgeable than Grey when it comes to some aspects. ''You may never know, since there are gods, I''ll start referring to myself as a god then. There''s no way I''m on the same level as you mortals,'' Void said smugly. Grey rolled his eyes when he heard this, they haven''t even been able to confirm if he was a god yet, but he had already started classifying others as mortals. ''There are also secret realms here, places filled with treasures and danger,'' He added. ''Wow, let''s go there!'' Void urged. Grey turned to look at Void with a blank look, he couldn''t help but wonder how his head works, it was almost like he didn''t hear the danger he said. ''As much as I''d like to go, these places are always owned by a family even the entire Azure continent can not fight against,'' He said plainly. ''It doesn''t matter, we''ll dominate them all,'' Void said confidently. ''Yeah, someday, I''m sure of it,'' Grey replied with the same confidence. If others heard a magical beast in the Early stages of the Overlord Plane and an Eighteen year old who was still at the Peak of the Origin Plane were plotting how they would dominate the world, they would laugh their hearts off. Even the youths of Grey''s age were already ahead of him in cultivation stage, yet he was speaking this boldly. Grey continued reading while Void decided to go to sleep since there was nothing for him to do. After staying in the library for almost the entire day, he finally got up and left. The duo went to search for a tavern to sleep, Grey planned on coming back to the library the next day. He was intrigued by the new things he was learning, so he wanted to know more. During the night, Grey tried to recreate a small version of the array he saw that group using. Unlike the one the group used, he was using the power of seven different elements to fuel the array. He naturally wasn''t able to make it immediately, but he was confident in being able to make it before the next morning. He was planning to modify his inscription array, so that he could use all his elements with a single inscription. This hexagram array was the perfect thing he wanted to use in modifying it. Once he gets the best way of creating the array, he would start working on his inscription. After watching Grey try to make the array multiple times, Void begged to leave the room, and to his surprise, Grey allowed him. With a wide grin, he vanished from the room. Grey shook his head before focusing on his array making. ¡­. The next day, Grey once again went to the library. His main focus right now was acquiring knowledge, and he wanted to focus on that. Three days soon went by with Grey spending the entire day in the library while spending the night working on arrays. After three days of reading, he got some knowledge of this place. The continent is generally known as the Aurora continent, and it''s divided into five parts, the Northern, Western, Southern, Eastern, and Middle Continent. There are multiple big families and factions in each of the continents. Unlike the Azure continent which had Academies, the Aurora continent had factions which would recruit talented youngsters each year. There are low, mid, and high grade factions. ¡­. "Grey, you have to check out the arena, there are going to be different battles today," Void said pumped. "What''s this about an arena?" Grey asked curiously. Since leaving the first day, Void has always left him alone when he heads to the library to read. He only decided to walk around the city today and Void was already recommending the arena to him. "I assure you, you''ll like the place," Void said, clearly hyped about the battle that was taking place today. "Alright fine, let''s see the arena," Grey agreed since he didn''t really have a choice anyway. Chapter 476 - The Arena "Yes! Come on, let''s go before all the front seats are taken," Void said happily before taking the lead. Grey followed behind. Since coming here, he had been wearing a mask all the time, hiding his face from people. Although he doesn''t usually admit it, he knew that his face might cause trouble for him. They soon got to a large colosseum-like building. People were flocking into the place, all speaking exaggeratedly. Grey headed towards the entrance, and before he could get there. "There''s the cat, get it!" Someone exclaimed from the side, pointing at Void. "Oh crap, you''re on your own now," Void said before taking off. Two ladies, accompanied by a young man, ran towards them with annoyed looks on their faces. By the time they got there, Void was obviously long gone. One of the young ladies stamped her feet on the ground angrily, before turning to Grey, "You, it was on your shoulder, so you obviously have a connection with it," "Huh?" Grey had a look of confusion on his face, he couldn''t help but look at his back wondering if the young lady was speaking to someone else. "Stop pretending, where''s the cat?" The young lady asked, rudely. "Did he provoke you in any way?" Grey asked helplessly. "That insolent cat laughed at me," The young lady said while gritting her teeth. "Wait, what?" Grey was slightly taken aback. He couldn''t believe the young lady was causing all these issues because Void laughed at her. "It tripped me and started laughing when I fell down," The young lady explained. "Oh, sorry about that. He''s a handful, I''m lucky to still be alive having a partner like that," Grey apologized. Even though the young lady spoke rudely at first, he could tell she didn''t really mean any harm. "Hmph! Fine, since you''ve apologized, I''ll let it go," The young lady said before leaving with her friends. Grey just watched on as they left, he couldn''t help but shake his head, wondering just how many people Void offended while he was in the library. ''To be safe, I should stop walking with him. Who knows if he has offended someone that can kill me with a single slap?'' He thought to himself. Void and Klaus are known for always being troublemakers, this is one of the reasons he had refused to let Void leave on his own. But since he was busy, it didn''t seem right to keep him cooked up with him. After looking around to see if he could spot Void, he walked towards the entrance. He paid the entrance fee which was two hundred mid-grade essence stones before stepping into the place. Following the crowd, he was lucky and actually managed to get a seat in the third row. This was one of the places closer to the arena. The people around all looked at him weirdly when they saw him taking a seat. Every single individual in the first, second and third rows were either in the Late stages of the Overlord Plane, or the Mid stages, except for Grey, who was still at the Peak of the Origin Plane. ''Hey, where are you sitting?'' Void''s voice suddenly resounded in Grey''s head. ''In the fifth row, why do you ask?'' Grey replied. ''Do you want to get killed? Come to the back seats, didn''t you notice people in the Early stages of the Overlord Plane refuse to seat that close?'' Void asked worriedly. ''Oh, I was a little surprised about it, I just thought most of them didn''t like sitting close to the arena which is a strange thing,'' Grey explained. ''There are no protection arrays around the arena, so the aftershocks of their attacks affect the spectators. According to what I heard, they made it like this so that it would be more entertaining, and dangerous of course,'' Void said. ''Oh, all the more reason I should stay here,'' Grey replied. He hadn''t trained his physical body for a while now, if it can go through a series of aftershocks, then it would slowly start improving. If Void were to know the reason Grey didn''t want to leave his seat, he would be flabbergasted. People were running away because it was dangerous, yet Grey wanted to use it to train his physical body. ''Also, why did you trip that girl?'' Grey asked. ''I didn''t, she was running and almost kicked me, I only created a small lightning wall that blocked the kick, of course she was electrocuted by it and fell as well,'' Void said. Grey was short of words when he heard this. The young lady didn''t speak of the lightning attack, only saying he tripped her and started laughing as well. ¡­. While Grey and Void were still discussing, a well-dressed man walked into the arena. "Ladies and gentlemen, welcome. Today we''ll be having a special event by the end of today''s battles, but for now, let the battles begin," The man said gently, but his voice was heard by every individual in the colosseum. "The first battle will be between Gareth and a Barbarian," The man announced, before leaving the arena. When the spectators heard of the Barbarians, they exploded in multiple conversations. "Wow! A Barbarian? I haven''t seen one battle in a long time," "Yeah, but I think Gareth will win easily, don''t forget that he''s been on a fifty match win streak, killing every single opponent," "Yeah, it''s one thing winning here, but it''s another killing all your opponents," "If he wins the next fifty battles, he will be able to regain his freedom," Grey looked around curiously, waiting for the fighters to come. He overheard the conversations of the people around and couldn''t help but be surprised by the record the man called Gareth had. Being able to win fifty battles wasn''t an easy feat. Soon, a figure soon walked towards the arena from the side of the arena, wearing a battle suit. The crowd cheered as soon as they saw the man. Chapter 477 - Like To Train With Them Gareth calmly walked into the arena, unagitated by the cheers of the crowd. Even though he was sort of famous, he was still a prisoner, that was something that won''t change until he wins his freedom once again. ¡­. Grey stared at Gareth, surprised by his somewhat youthful appearance. Gareth seemed to be someone who was around his mid-twenties. ''Hey, do you have some stones?'' Void''s voice echoed in his head. ''Yes, why?'' Grey asked. ''Good, now place a bet on that guy, bet as many stones as you have,'' Void urged. ''Betting? You haven''t even seen his opponent, are you that confident in him?'' Grey couldn''t help but ask. ''Of course, don''t forget that he''s won fifty battles straight, and I''ve watched him fight these past days, he''s really powerful,'' replied Void. ''Hmm, we''ll wait until his opponent appears. I''ll only be sure once I''ve seen them,'' Grey said, not convinced by Void''s words. He wasn''t underestimating Gareth or anything, but he recalled the sight of the Barbarians he saw when he first came to the Aurora continent, and compared to other Elementalists, he could sense they were more powerful. ''Hmm, fine, but no matter what, place your bet on him,'' Void said. ''Why are you so persistent on him?'' Grey stared at Gareth once again. ''The thing is this, I overheard the people hosting this event saying that the battle would be rigged. Although the Barbarian would be stronger than Gareth in terms of cultivation, he would be extremely weak. Most people would naturally bet on the Barbarian once they sense his strength, making these people earn a ton of money,'' Void explained. Grey was shocked by the revelation, he never thought something like this would go on behind the scenes. It was just like what they said, even he would prefer to bet on the Barbarian once he finds out he''s stronger than Gareth in terms of cultivation stage. It would be difficult for Gareth to defeat a Barbarian on the same stage, much less one that would be ahead of him. ''A brilliant plan, most people here would definitely fall for it,'' Grey applauded the smartness of the people organizing the event. Luckily for him, Void overheard them. ''Where''s the betting stand then?'' Grey asked. Although he hadn''t been here for long, he could already tell that essence stone was the major currency here, so when an opportunity to make free stones came up, of course he was going to take it! ''That''s the spirit! Head to the fifth row by your left,'' Void directed. Grey stood up, after following Void''s direction, he easily found the place where the bets were being made. At the same time he got there, a cage was rolled towards the arena, inside the cage was the Barbarian who was going to fight against Gareth. When the crowd saw the Barbarian, they all gasped in shock, not expecting the Barbarian to be this powerful. "Oh no, looks like this is the end for Gareth," "I feel sorry for him, after coming this far," Some people felt a wave of pity for Gareth, while others didn''t care, as long as they were entertained, they were good. Gareth was in the Third stage of the Overlord Plane, while the Barbarian was in the Fifth stage of the Overlord Plane. Most people didn''t even think it was a contest, the Barbarian would be able to easily kill Gareth. Those who wanted to place a bet all moved towards the location where they were making bets, all trying to at least win something from it. The odds of the bet was obviously in the Barbarian''s favor, having an odd of one to two, while Gareth had an odd of one to ten. Grey placed a bet of one thousand high-grade essence stones on Gareth which stunned most of the people there. Some even mocked him while laughing at him. Of the entire people who went to bet, over ninety percent of them bet on the Barbarian while only a small percent of them bet on Gareth. There were even some who placed bets on both fighters. ¡­ After the cage was rolled to the arena, it was opened and the collar on the neck of the Barbarian was removed. To Grey''s surprise, there was also one on Gareth''s neck. ''Oh, they said he was a prisoner,'' He thought in realization. The Barbarian attacked the people around him the moment his collar was removed, but it was easily subdued since the people were stronger than he was. After they subdued him, the people left the arena, leaving only him and Gareth. "Don''t struggle, the only way to leave this place is through battles," Gareth said coldly. The Barbarian turned to look at him, "I''m not interested in fighting against you, I only want to return to my homeland," "We all do, but unfortunately, we can''t. I''m sorry, but I''m attacking now," Gareth bowed before attacking. He was a Fire Elementalist, his attack erupting with unprecedented power. The Barbarian was forced to defend against Gareth''s fire attack, raising an earth wall to block the attacks. The fire attack was easily stopped by the earth wall. The Barbarian didn''t try attacking Gareth after it blocked the attack, rather, he looked around, seemingly searching for something. "Don''t attack boy, we should find a way to leave this predicament," The Barbarian said. "There''s no way to leave this place, there''s a Sage Plane expert watching over here," Gareth said. From his words, one could see that he had given up all plans of trying to escape from this place, he wasn''t even trying. "Boy, this isn''t the time to act like this, the sooner we try to leave this place the better," The Barbarian said. Unfortunately, his words fell into deaf ears as Gareth attacked once again, not even bothering to hold back. Boom! The fire attack slammed into another earth wall that appeared in front of the Barbarian. "Stop this, boy," The Barbarian said. The Barbarian''s behavior surprised people since they were known for their brutal nature. But this Barbarian in front of them didn''t behave in such ways, other than the first time he attacked the people who released him, he hasn''t tried to do anything else. Boom! Gareth continued attacking, not giving the Barbarian a single chance to continue speaking any further. "Alright, I guess I have no choice," The Barbarian said helplessly. Compared to Gareth, he didn''t want to fight since he didn''t want to go ahead with the plans of the people who bought him, but Gareth was forcing his hands. Bang! The earth wall in front of the Barbarian exploded, and he sprang forward, charging quickly towards Gareth. Standing over seven feet, the Barbarian was by no means slow, he was even faster than most people. ¡­. ''Do they train their bodies?'' Grey thought curiously. Given the speed of the Barbarian, it was amazing that he could move this fast without the help of the wind or lightning element, but he''s clearly doing it without any problems. ''And here I was thinking I was the only one. But¡­ since there is something like this, why don''t other Elementalists do it?'' Multiple questions ran through Grey''s head, but he didn''t know the answer to any of it. He once again focused his attention on the battle. The fighting style of the people in the Aurora continent wasn''t different from that of the people in the Azure continent. ¡­. "Ah¡­" Bang! The Barbarian screamed and an earth hammer that had lava running around it appeared, almost smashing into Gareth. Gareth dodged to the side, making sure to escape the range of the smash. Just when he thought he had escaped, his expression changed when the place the hammer smashed spread out, causing debris that was on fire to shoot towards him. He hastily created a fire wall, while taking out a bow from his storage ring. He shot an arrow upwards. Boom! The arrow exploded in the sky, causing a rain of fire arrows to start. A shield appeared in the hand of the Barbarian, and he used it to block the fire rains. After blocking the attack, he stamped on the ground heavily, causing a shockwave to spread out. Gareth lost his footing, staggering back in a hurry. Just as he regained his footing, he saw a large shadow above him. He couldn''t help but raise his head hurriedly, above him was the Barbarian who had already prepared his hammer for a strike. Gareth was a little surprised, but he managed to regain himself, using the fire element as a boost, he leapt off the ground, jumping in another direction. They soon started to exchange moves, with Gareth being completely suppressed by the Barbarian. ¡­. In the stands, most of the people already expected this, so they weren''t surprised. Grey on the other hand was left in awe of the strength the Barbarian was displaying. ''If I have the chance, I''d like to train with them,'' He said to himself. Chapter 478 - Abyss Faction Bang! Boom! Gareth was sent flying by the Barbarian, slamming heavily into the ground. The battle has been ongoing for almost ten minutes now, and the Barbarian has completely suppressed him since the start of the battle. He could barely even dish out an attack. His battle suit is currently unrecognizable, luckily, he is still alive. Other than Grey and a few others who might''ve found out about the plans of the organization, no one else had even as much as a single thought of Gareth winning this battle. "He''s put up a good battle, I hope he isn''t killed," "Yeah, it''s not a must to kill your opponent after defeating them," "Do you think this Barbarian will let him survive, he''ll kill him once the chance presents itself," While the crowd was speaking about the battle, they also noticed something, Grey was still sitting on his seat with a straight face. "Hey, how come he hasn''t run away yet?" Someone pointed at Grey. "Yeah, although this battle has been conservative due to the fighting style of the Barbarian, it''s still very violent. Just the aftershocks of the battle are enough to kill some people in the Origin Plane," Another person said. "Guess he''s not that simple," Someone else pointed out. Since Grey could stay there comfortably, it meant he wasn''t someone weak. There''s also the chance that he was being protected by a treasure or so, but either way, they didn''t want to bother with him. The battle went on, with the Barbarian being the one on top of the battle. After almost twenty-five minutes, Gareth was already bloodied from the fight, barely able to stand properly. ¡­. ''Void, are you sure you heard right?'' Grey asked a little worriedly after seeing the condition of Gareth. ''One hundred percent, the Barbarian will soon start exhibiting signs of weakness while Gareth will slowly start gaining the upper hand in the battle,'' Void explained. While Void was still in the middle of his explanation, something unusual happened in the arena, one of Gareth''s attacks landed on the body of the Barbarian, forcing him back. The crowd cheered in excitement when they saw this. No one enjoys watching a one-sided battering, a battle is only entertaining when both sides are attacking each other. Boom! Bam! Gareth struck again, this time the Barbarian used his earth shield to block the strike. But he was surprisingly pushed back by the impact of the explosion. After noticing he was starting to gain the upper hand, Gareth who was previously looking worn down was immediately revitalized, attacking with new vigor. The Barbarian was left dumbstruck by the sudden increase in Gareth''s strength, he couldn''t believe what was happening. His fighting spirit was provoked, and he started to glow with red and brown lights. His height suddenly saw an increase of almost five inches, to the amazement of Grey who was seeing something like this for the first time. "It''s the special skills of Barbarians, rage, I never thought this one would actually be able to do it," Someone from the crowd exclaimed in shock. When the rest of the crowd heard the statement, they gasped in shock. The skill displayed by the Barbarian came as a surprise to them. "Looks like Gareth''s last-minute counter-attack will be futile," "Yeah, I really had some hopes of him being able to get back from those attacks, who knew it would be meaningless," Grey swallowed heavily when he thought of his essence stones which were about to be lost. He noticed the change in the expression of the man who spoke before the fight started. This only meant that this wasn''t something they planned against, from how things were going, Gareth was supposed to kill the Barbarian, but since the Barbarian is currently in a rage state, it''s impossible for him to do so. ¡­. "What?!" Gareth yelled when he saw the Barbarian entering this special state. "I warned you, boy, but you didn''t listen, now you''ll pay for your foolishness," The Barbarian said emotionlessly as he walked towards Gareth. Gareth took a step back in fear, they didn''t tell him something like this would happen, if he knew, there was no way he would fight this battle. "Stop, don''t move you stupid Barbarian," The man at the side of the arena said while walking into the arena. The Barbarian sent a powerful attack towards the man, but it was stopped by the wave of a hand. The man slowly started to lift off the ground, after reaching just above the Barbarian, he stretched out his hand. A powerful gale suddenly blew across the arena, forcefully suppressing the Barbarian. The gale also reached the first few rows in the stands, almost blowing the people away. Grey was one of the first people to react when he saw this, using the earth element to forcefully implant his leg into the ground, making sure there was no way this gale would take him away. The people around were once again left dumbstruck by his unfazed appearance. This wasn''t something someone in the Origin Plane could withstand, yet there Grey was, sitting calmly. "I''m sorry everyone, but this is a battle I can not allow to take place, special Barbarians like this one here are not allowed in these battles." The man explained, "As for those who made a bet, you can go back and retrieve your essence stones," The man motioned for someone to come with the cage before placing the Barbarian inside, he didn''t forget to put the collar on the neck of the Barbarian. "I''m sorry for the inconvenience everyone, the battles will continue as planned," The man bowed to the crowd before leaving. He looked at Gareth with a disappointed gaze before walking away from the arena, heading towards a special room. Gareth bowed his head but left as well. The crowd watched everything unfold in surprise, those who placed a bet on the Barbarian were left furious since they would''ve been able to at least double their essence stones, but now they had nothing. The few people who placed their bets on Gareth breathed a sigh of relief, especially Grey. None of the people here could refute the man since he was someone in the Sage Plane. The battles went on as usual, and the other participants came forward to fight. Grey got to find out that people other than prisoners could also participate in the battles. He felt a surge of regret since he would''ve tried to test his hand against someone at the Peak of the Origin Plane just like himself. He wanted to see the difference between the Elementalists here and those in the Azure continent, especially now that he found out that he couldn''t use the space element here cause his grade is too low. While Grey was still feeling a wave of regret, the man who spoke at the start of the show stepped forward once again. "Alright, so for the special event today, we have some representatives from the Abyss Faction who are looking to recruit some strong fighters, no matter the stage of the Elementalist, as long as you can show that you''re powerful when compared to others in your stage, you can step forward and take the test," The man announced. The crowd was thrown into an uproar when they heard the man speak of the Abyss Faction. Never in their wildest dreams did they expect that the organizers of the event had ties with the Abyss Faction. "The rules of the battle are simple, anyone from the crowd can step forward, after saying your cultivation stage, you''ll be challenged by someone from the Abyss Faction in the same stage, if you can defeat that person, then you have the chance to become a student of the Faction," The man explained. After hearing this, the crowd was exhilarated by the news. Joining a faction like the Abyss Faction was an honor for them, it would greatly boost their status, as well as their strength since they will have a better cultivation ground. ¡­. Grey was a little taken aback when he heard this, he knew of factions, instead of Academies, the Aurora continent had factions but they play the same role just like the Academies in the Azure continent. ''Hmm, a chance to test my strength against one of the people here. Since it''s a contest of some sort, I shouldn''t be in too much trouble if I win,'' He thought to himself. Although he had not exchanged blows with any of the people here, he was still very confident in his abilities. While he was still in the Azure continent, he didn''t have an opponent in the Origin Plane while he was still in the Seventh stage, much less now that he was at the Peak. ''Hey, will you attempt it?'' Void''s voice echoed in his head. ''Yeah, I''d like to see how powerful the geniuses here are,'' Grey replied confidently. ''Nice! If only I will be able to bet on you,'' Void said sadly. ''Haha, no need, I might lose, you may never know,'' Grey chuckled softly. Although he said this, Void could still sense the total confidence oozing from his voice.. The thought of losing doesn''t even seem to be in Grey''s head. Chapter 479 - Watching The Battles The first person to step into the arena was a young man in the Mid stages of the Origin Plane. He looked to be in his early twenties. After the man announced his cultivation stage, a youth stood up from the special area in the colosseum, wearing what looked like a uniform. Grey stared in the direction the young came from and confirmed that the others there were also wearing the same black dress. The youth was around fourteen to fifteen years, which came as a surprise to Grey who was watching. Back in the Azure continent, a fifteen-year-old should just be breaking through to the Arcane Plane. If they were talented enough, they should be around the Mid or Late stages. Then in his case, he hadn''t even started cultivating at that age! When the youth stepped into the arena, one could slightly sense his arrogance and air of superiority. Those who are members of Factions take non-members to be inferior people. With both participants in the arena, the man who was hosting the event called for the battle to begin. Swoosh! Bam! All it took was a single attack from the youth dressed in black, and his opponent could be seen lying unconscious on the ground. The youth was a Lightning Elementalist, and from what Grey saw, he noticed that he went all out as soon as the battle started, easily defeating his opponent. The youth turned to look at the crowd before walking away with an emotionless expression. "Well, that was fast," The man hosting the event said with a light smile, he motioned for people to come to carry the young man away, and possibly get him some treatment as well. After the young man was taken away, the man hosting the event turned to the crowd once again. "The battle is still on, whoever believes he or she can defeat those in the same stage, step forward and challenge a member of the Abyss Faction, if you win, you will get the chance to join them. And even if you do not win, there''s a chance that you might catch the eye of the representatives here," The man said before walking to the side of the arena, waiting for the next fighter. ¡­. "Wow! So powerful, and he''s only in the Mid stages. How powerful do you think those in the Late stages or at the Peak will be?" "Hmm, don''t forget about the advantages of having a higher elemental grade." "Yeah, according to what I heard, the minimum prerequisite of joining the Abyss Faction was to have at least a blue elemental grade," Discussions broke out amongst the crowd, and Grey perked his ears to listen to all the rumors. Times like these were the best to get to find out more about this place. Although the books were good, they were still lacking some information. ''Hmm, the blue grade. I still haven''t been able to read about how high the cyan grade is from the books,'' He thought to himself. Although he had been reading, he hadn''t seen any book that spoke about elemental grades. Maybe he hadn''t searched enough though. On hearing that the blue grade was the bare minimum if one wanted to enter the Abyss Faction, he couldn''t help but think about the possibility of an elemental grade higher than the cyan grade. Also, now he could understand why these people not only grew quicker than those in the Azure continent but were also stronger. Even in the Azure continent, elemental grades were all that was important. Grey continued contemplating elemental grades before the next person finally summoned enough courage to try his luck. This person was in the Early stages of the Overlord Plane and was already in his late twenties. Even though compared to the geniuses of the Abyss Faction he was a little too old, he still wanted to see the difference in strength. After the man announced his cultivation stage, another youth stood up from the special area and walked towards the arena. The youth was a little older than the first one, but she was around eighteen to twenty years old. She gracefully walked into the arena, staring at the man with a small smile. The man hosting the event quickly called for the battle to begin. Boom! The man was the first to explode out with the water element. Learning from the experience of the first guy, he didn''t dare to wait for his opponent to attack him first. He created what looked like tentacles around him, using them to attack the young lady. The young lady was soon enveloped by the wind element, easily dodging all the attacks of the tentacles. A thin sword appeared in her hands and she slashed it in the direction of the man. Wind blades shot out of the sword, slashing towards the man. The man hastily set up an ice wall in front of him, hoping to use it to block the wind blades. Bang! Boom! Crack! After the first three wind blades hit the wall, cracks started appearing around it. Two more wind blades were able to easily destroy it, before heading towards the man. The man used his tentacles to try to stop the attacks, but he was unable to. With no other option, the man hastily dodged to the side, but his expression changed drastically when he felt a cold sensation on his neck. He froze, not daring to take another step. "I win," The young lady said gracefully before walking back to her seat. The man left the arena a little dejectedly, although he tried to put up a fight, he wasn''t a challenge for the young lady given how she only finished him with a single attack. On going back to his seat, he was encouraged by his friends who sat close to him. They could tell he tried his best. Grey watched the battle properly and couldn''t help but commend the battle awareness of the young lady.. She only attacked once, but she already had everything planned out. Chapter 480 - The Strongest In The Origin Plane The battles went on, and more people started to try out their luck. After almost two hours, only one person has managed to defeat the opponent from the Abyss Faction, and it was a young lady who was in her early twenties and at the Peak of the Origin Plane. Two more people impressed, although they didn''t win their fights, it was a hard-fought victory for the youngsters from the Abyss Faction. Grey was a little skeptical after watching the battles between those at the Peak of the Origin Plane. The thing was, he was confident that he could defeat the two of them if he went all out. So he didn''t know if there was any need to try out his strength against them. ''Looks like this Faction is a small Faction in this continent. I want to fight against real geniuses, not some weaklings.'' He thought to himself. He decided to wait a little longer, maybe he could make a request of wanting to fight against someone in the Overlord Plane. One hour soon went by with seven more battles taking place. One of the fighters from the crowd was able to achieve victory, although it was only by a hair''s breadth, a win''s a win nonetheless. ''Hey, aren''t you going?'' Void''s voice resounded in Grey''s head. Grey stood up, walking towards the arena. As soon as he stood up, he naturally attracted the attention of others since they were waiting for who would go next. "Look, it''s that guy who sat close to the arena. Guess he''s going to try out his hand," "Do you think he can win?" "Against those from the Abyss Faction? Heh! I''m not too sure if he''s lucky to face someone with a low elemental grade, then yes, but someone with an elemental grade higher than violet, then he would be in for a lot of trouble," Some of the people who had taken note of Grey from the time they were watching the fight between Gareth and the Barbarian started speaking about his chances of winning. The only reason he gained this much attention was all because of where he sat down previously. When the man in charge of the event noticed the small commotion that Grey''s appearance in the arena caused, he couldn''t help but glance at him, studying him properly. "Peak of the Origin Plane," Grey said coolly. He was still wearing his mask, but it couldn''t hide his handsome face. After he announced his cultivation stage, a youth from the special area walked forward. When the others in the special area saw the young man who stood up, they shook their heads, looking at Grey with a pitiful gaze. Some of the people in the crowd recognized the young man, and it sparked a discussion. "Isn''t that Euric?" "Yes, according to what I heard, of all the people in the Origin Plane in the Abyss Faction, this young man is the strongest. He is powerful enough to go against someone who just broke through to the Overlord Plane," Grey was a little taken aback when he heard some of the discussions going on, and a smile appeared on his face. ''How lucky, someone worthy, I hope,'' He thought. He studied the young man who was walking towards the arena, the young man looked to be at least a year younger than him. And from what he could tell, he wasn''t far from breaking through to the Overlord Plane. He couldn''t help but sigh at the speed the people here grew. Back in the Azure continent, there are only a few people close to the Overlord Plane who were still below twenty, and they were all helped by the treasures they found in the trial land. Euric soon stood before Grey, also studying him. The man hosting the event didn''t delay and quickly called for the battle to begin. With a simple step, Euric vanished, appearing in Grey''s right, attacking with an earth pillar. Grey took his time, not rushing to defend, with a simple wave, he blocked the pillar with an earth wall of his own. Boom! The pillar slammed into the wall, but after causing some cracks to appear in it, it wasn''t able to break it. Euric didn''t brood over being unable to instantly bring Grey down, he attacked again, this time, with a different element, the lightning element. Grey looked around, a smile on his face as red lightning danced across his body. He soon disappeared from his spot, with a red flash streaking across the arena quickly. Boom! A blue flame erupted from where the red streak passed through, shooting towards Euric. Euric was left stunned when he saw this. He had used three elements in this battle, and just like him, Grey had also used the same number of elements. And from the speed Grey was showing, it was easy to see he was faster than him. ¡­. In the stands, every person watching the battle stood up when they saw the blue flames. It was something to have one special element, but having two is rare. Grey''s lightning was red, and his flame was blue, this significantly increased the speed and attack power of each element. Those in the special area were stunned when they saw the strongest Elementalist in the Origin Plane from the Abyss Faction being on the back foot against someone unknown. The representatives were all watching the fight with serious expressions. Losing to someone like Grey wouldn''t be a disgrace, since it''s normal for those with special elements to be more powerful than those in the same stage. "Wow! He''s also a Multi-Elementalist, I knew he was special," Someone from the crowd said. "Shut up you liar, weren''t you the one saying he will lose within a second?" Another person refuted. "I was only trying to see what you all will say, and none of you had any hope in him," The first person said, refusing to agree to what they were saying. "Hmph! I can''t be bothered with arguing with you now," Someone else said. ¡­. Back in the arena. Euric was pushed back after trying to block the fireball that Grey sent towards him. The expression on his face was one of anger and humiliation. Chapter 481 - Meteor Descent Swoosh! Bang! Euric tried to counter-attack, but he was once again sent flying by Grey''s fire attack. Everyone could see how easy it was for Grey to push him back, it was almost like he wasn''t even trying to fight with him. "We should end this, don''t you think so?" Grey asked calmly. He was expecting a real challenge, but unfortunately, Euric wasn''t up to standards or maybe he was just too monstrous for him. Euric gritted his teeth angrily, he wanted to refute, but even he knew the fight was pointless. Grey could easily block his attacks and also push him back, if he was a little more serious, then he would be unconscious by now. But, he didn''t want to give up so easily. "I know you''re stronger than I am, but I want to see your true strength," Euric said, the air of superiority long gone. "Oh, if you say so," Grey replied. Since Euric wanted to see him at full power, then he would honor him. He could slightly understand what Euric was currently feeling, after always being the one hailed as the strongest in the Origin Plane, his pride took a hit after being suppressed by someone else. Grey inhaled deeply, with a single step, he vanished, appearing a few meters high in the sky, his hands spread apart like a god waiting to give judgment to a mortal. Large fireballs appeared in the sky, each fireball had rocks in them. They started descending toward Euric who was already dumbfounded by what he was witnessing. The fireballs looked like a meteor as they streaked quickly, crashing straight into the arena. Euric managed to regain himself quickly before running as fast as he could, presently, he wanted nothing to do with the arena. He was a hundred percent certain that if he dared to block that attack he would definitely die. "Meteor descent," Grey mumbled gently. Crash! Boom! A huge explosion occurred in the arena, with Grey watching over the arena from the sky. His face didn''t show any expression. The crowd all stared at the young man who was floating mid-air, stunned by his abilities. Never in their wildest dreams did they think they would experience a day when an Origin Plane Elementalist would awe them with his strength. Even those in the Sage Plane were staring at Grey. The explosion soon died down, and the empty arena appeared in front of the crowd. "Huh? Where''s Euric? Don''t tell me he''s dead," "Look!" Someone pointed towards where the man hosting the event was standing, beside him was Euric who was perfectly fine, other than the look of disbelief in his eyes, he was okay. The man hosting the event stared at Grey as he gently landed on the ground. He couldn''t hide the shock in his eyes. ''Could he be one of those geniuses from high-grade Factions who came out to train?'' He asked himself. He wasn''t the only one who thought of this, the representatives from the Abyss Faction, as well as some of the people in the crowd also thought of this. Given the strength Grey displayed, he was too powerful to be in a Faction as low as the Abyss Faction, and the Abyss Faction was one of the few low-grade Factions that wasn''t far from upgrading to a mid-grade Faction. ¡­. Back in the arena. Grey stood in the arena calmly, looking in Euric''s direction. "Guess I win," He said softly. Euric nodded, before walking back to his seat. He didn''t look angered or dejected, only a look of resolution appeared on his face. The representatives from the Abyss Faction nodded in approval when he saw Euric''s reaction to his defeat. This was what it meant if one wanted to be a powerhouse in the future, it''s not about losing, but your reaction towards your loss. Some people would be devastated because of a defeat since they''ve been dominating those in the same stage for so long, but Euric wasn''t like those people. "You should focus on improving yourself, those geniuses at the top are even stronger than he is," An old man in the special area where the Abyss Faction was sitting said to Euric. "Senior, is there a chance he''s from a high-grade faction?" Euric asked as he took his seat. "No, if you fought against one of those geniuses from high-grade Factions, you''d be dead within two moves," The old man replied. Euric turned to look at Grey, shocked that even with the power Grey just displayed, he still wouldn''t be on par with those geniuses from high-grade Factions. "They must be monstrous," He muttered to himself. ¡­. "You can head back to your seat, if the representatives want to speak with you, they''ll send for you," The man hosting the event said to Grey when he realized he wasn''t moving. "Uhmm¡­ sorry, but can I challenge someone in the Overlord Plane?" Grey asked. He still hasn''t gotten the battle he wished for. This was a very valuable opportunity to test his strength and it isn''t a deathmatch, so he wanted to use it properly. The man was slightly taken aback when he heard Grey''s request, he didn''t know what to say. With no choice, he turned to look in the direction of the representatives from the Abyss Faction, they were the ones in charge of this event. A young lady stood up, walking in the direction of the arena. When the crowd saw her, they gasped in shock. This was the same lady who fought against the man in the Overlord Plane previously and won within a short time. "Why''s she walking towards the arena? Could it be that she wants to challenge him?" "Are you dumb? Didn''t you hear him requesting to challenge someone in the Overlord Plane?" ¡­. Grey watched the girl coming, and his expression turned to one of seriousness. He knew he couldn''t take this girl for granted.. From her previous battle, he knew she was someone who liked ending her battles quickly. Chapter 482 - Improved Inscribing "You''re quite powerful," The young lady said gently as she stepped before Grey. "I can say the same about you," Grey replied. "I''m an Overlord Plane Elementalist, you''re still in the Origin Plane, there''s a difference," The young lady said. Grey shrugged, he didn''t have a reply for the young lady''s praises. Since he couldn''t refute it, why reject it? "Ready?" The man at the side of the arena asked the duo. "Yes," The young lady replied. Grey nodded while taking a step behind him, preparing for the battle. "Begin," Swoosh! Bam! Bang! The young lady attacked instantly, using the wind element to the fullest. She also brought out her sword, using it to attack. Grey, who was already prepared for the attacks, set up an earth wall before him, using it to block the attacks. Bam! Crack! ''Oh shit, so powerful,'' Grey exclaimed when he saw the cracks that were running across the entire wall. He knew it would break down in a few seconds. Bang! The earth wall broke apart, sending debris around. Grey retreated from the range of the wind blades, coating himself with the lightning element, he shot towards where the young lady was originally positioned. The young lady had already moved from that direction, hoping to attack Grey as he retreated. She was left a little surprised when he didn''t retreat completely, instead of trying to attack her. Boom! She charged towards him, using her blades to attack. Grey sidestepped before exploding out with flames, making sure to keep the young lady away from him. Boom! Bang! The duo soon started exchanging moves. It was almost like a battle of speed, the young lady replied heavily on her speed, just like Grey. Those in the Origin Plane found it almost impossible to keep up with the movement of the duo, only seeing explosions on different parts of the arena. Three minutes later. Boom! Bang! Grey and the young lady were pushed back, but Grey was on the losing end of the hit. "Where are you from?" The young lady was forced to ask. Grey''s strength has surpassed her expectations. Although she knew it wouldn''t be easy for her to defeat him, she was fairly confident in being able to do it. But presently, other than being slightly faster and stronger, she didn''t have any other advantages. There have been different occasions where she felt she had obtained the victory, but Grey would make a decision that was outside her expectation, making it impossible for her to finish him off. Grey smiled but didn''t reply. He brought his right hand in front of him, with two fingers, he drew a seal in different directions. Buzz! Crackle! The sound of lightning resonated in the arena, and the pupils of the young lady dilated. She could feel a sense of danger, but what was shocking was that the attack hadn''t been unleashed yet. Buzz! Bang! Lightning suddenly appeared from nowhere, streaking around the young lady. The movement of the lightning was in a zigzag form, making it difficult to predict where the attack was coming from. The young lady concentrated fully on the lightning, making sure it wouldn''t be able to hit her. Bang! Bang! The lightning tried hitting her twice, but she managed to dodge it with her fast movement. Grey watched on from the outside with a smile, he continued using his fingers to draw seals in the air. With the young lady occupied with the lightning attack, he had time to make his special improvised inscription he learned from the group who caught the Barbarians. He planned on only using the three elements he showed here, although it wouldn''t be as powerful as the one with seven elements, it was still better than using a single element. Bang! The young lady dashed out from the encirclement of the lightning, attacking Grey with a gust of wind. Grey didn''t try to take the attack head-on, he knew full well that the attack of the young lady was slightly more powerful than his fire attack. He sent a fire orb towards it which exploded, before retreating quickly. The wind increased the intensity of the flame, sending it back to Grey. ''Oh shit! I didn''t think that through,'' Grey''s eyes bulged when he saw his reinforced attack coming towards him. He set up an earth wall, but the attack easily destroyed it. ''Damn it,'' He cursed. The attack increased by almost twenty percent, it was almost as if his fire element was in cohort with the young lady to kill him. He hastily pushed himself, trying to see if he could use the space element to at least move a small distance away from the range of the attack. Just as the attack was about to hit him, he vanished, appearing mid-air, red lightning dancing around his body. Large fireballs appeared in the sky, multiple rocks could be seen inside it, this time, the rocks were larger than the ones he used against Euric. "Meteor descent," He muttered as he pointed downwards. The young lady looked in the sky, this was the attack she had been trying to stop Grey from unleashing. She kept her sword, and two large fans appeared in her hands. These were powerful elemental weapons that would boost the strength of her attacks. With a wave, a large tornado started forming with her in the middle. She planned to use the momentum of the tornado to protect herself since she would be in the middle. Grey''s attacks came raining down on the young lady. The tornado spun faster, adding the rocks and fireballs to itself. It soon started to shoot the rocks in random directions, which put the audience who were below the Overlord Plane in a state of panic. The tornado was able to block almost all the attacks, but unfortunately for the young lady, something completely unexpected happened. A red, brown, and blue light suddenly sprang up from the ground, each sending out attacks, one was a red lightning bolt, one was an earth spear, while the last was a blue flame that was in the shape of a two meters raven. With all her strength focused on the tornado, she was left defenseless against this sudden attack. Chapter 483 - Abyss Token "He won," The old man seated in the same area as the Abyss Faction said. The representatives all nodded in approval, from the positioning of Grey''s next attacks, the young lady couldn''t block them. "It''s over," The man hosting the event said calmly before waving his hand to stop the attacks from reaching the young lady. Grey, who was still mid-air, slowly floated down. He stared at the young lady for a while before bowing to show his appreciation. "Thank you for sparring with me," He said with gratitude evident in his voice. "Why are you thanking me?" The young lady asked with a pout, a little annoyed that she lost to someone who was still in the Origin Plane. "I had some sort of a breakthrough during the fight," Grey replied with a smile. "Oh," The young lady didn''t speak any further, keeping her fans and heading back to the special area. Grey didn''t stay in the arena any longer, he immediately headed towards the exit of the colosseum. He gained some insights on the space element while he was trying to dodge that attack. Although he tried to make it seem like it was the lightning element he used, he could tell that those in the Sage Plane knew he used the space element given the look the man hosting the event gave him. ''Where are you going?'' Void''s voice echoed in Grey''s head. ''I had a little breakthrough in the space element, I''m going back to ensure that I fully capitalize on it,'' Grey replied. ''Okay,'' Void said, but he didn''t leave the colosseum, he stayed behind to watch the battles that would take place later on. ¡­. In the streets of Eagle City, Grey could be seen walking hurriedly towards the tavern he was staying in. He suddenly paused to look behind him, and he saw someone wearing the uniform of the Abyss Faction walking towards him. The person was a young man who looked to be in his early twenties, and he wore a friendly smile on his face. Grey didn''t sense any form of malice from him, so he guessed that he wasn''t here to harm him. But this didn''t stop him from raising his guard. His cautious nature just wouldn''t allow him to be free around people he didn''t know. "Hello, can I have a moment?" The young man asked with a smile. "Sure," Grey nodded. There was no need to be cold towards him since he was asking so politely. Besides, he couldn''t afford to make enemies here. "Thank you, we should head to an Inn," The young man suggested. Grey thought about it for a while before deciding to follow the young man. He could cultivate later. They soon found an Inn not too far from where they met. "I believe you know why I''m here," The young man went straight to the point. He was sent here to try to recruit Grey. Even though they knew there is a high chance that he might be in a better Faction, they couldn''t take the risk of letting such a talent go. "Oh that, I''m not really interested, to be honest, I''ll be leaving this place soon," Grey replied calmly. The only reason he tried the battle was so that he could test his strength. After the battle with the young lady, he knew there were places he needed to improve. And he was lucky enough to improve in his space element, so he was quite satisfied with the result of his battle. "Hmm, I thought as much. Since that''s the case, we won''t disturb you. Here," The young man handed a small token to him. "With this, you can come or request help from the Abyss Faction as long as you''re in this region. Even though you can''t be one of us, we would like to extend a hand of friendship to you," The young man explained after passing the token to Grey. Grey accepted it, studied it properly. After making sure there wasn''t any type of tracking array or something like that inside, he kept it. "It''s an honor to be friends with the Abyss Faction," He said politely. "If you have the chance someday, feel free to come to Abyss Mountain, you can find us there, and with this token, you''ll be able to enter," The young man said. "Alright, I sure will if I have the chance," Grey replied. "I''m Ray, you can say you''re searching for me if you''re stopped at the gate," The young man said. "Ray," Grey muttered. Hearing the name, it sounded identical to how they called Reynolds. He couldn''t help but think of his friends. Seeing Grey looking a little lost, Ray tapped him on his shoulder, "Is everything alright?" "Yeah, I just recalled something. Anyway, I''m Grey, Grey Dawson," Grey stretched out his right hand. The young man shook his hand with a smile. While they were speaking, they ordered a cup of tea. The young man accompanied Grey a little longer, before leaving him. Grey stayed in the Inn for a little longer before leaving with the second door. Although the young man was nice, he didn''t trust him. He felt he was too nice to him. After leaving the Inn, he didn''t head directly to his tavern, instead, he wandered around the city for a little longer, trying to see if anyone was following him. Only after he was certain that no one was following him did he head back to the tavern. He wanted to try to comprehend the space element once again. Not just that, but he also wanted to check the current elemental grade of the space element. The space element had been in the purple grade since he comprehended it, and he hadn''t tried to improve it yet because he had been too focused on trying to heal Void. The thought of trying to improve the elemental grade of the space element came to his mind when he noticed he couldn''t create a spatial tunnel here, unlike in the Azure continent. Chapter 484 - What The Hell?! In the tavern. Grey could be seen sitting in a crossed leg position, his eyes closed. If one looks closely, one will notice the faint lines in the ground around him. He made an array that would protect him in case someone tries to attack him while he was in this state. He also made an array that would notify him if anyone was coming into the room, but he wanted to be extra sure he was safe. His consciousness was currently inside the Chaos Space, he wanted to see the current grade of the space element. When he tried to use the space element the first time, he knew the grade was too low, hence he was unable to create a space tunnel. But during the fight, he was able to use it after trying as with all his might, so he was a little hopeful, feeling his elemental grade saw an increase. ¡­. "I hope it increases," Grey muttered while placing his hand in the stone. After a few seconds of the usual routine, the stone lit up, with seven different colors. Two of them were closely identical, which were the space and darkness elements. The difference was that in the color of the space element, there were little white dots like stars. Grey looked closely at the color of the space element, and an elated expression appeared on his face. His space element''s grade has increased from purple to blue. Of his seven elements, the fire element was in the cyan grade, the lightning element was in the violet grade, the wind, water, and space elements were in the blue grade, while the earth and darkness elements were in the purple grade. ''Yes!'' Grey exclaimed internally, he didn''t think his space element would improve all due to a small insight. He didn''t stay at the temple for long, after checking his elemental grade, he moved towards the side where he comprehended the elements. Initially, he wanted to try to comprehend the space element, but he thought about it and decided it was best to improve the grades of this darkness and earth element. He went straight to the earth space in the Chaos Space. After getting inside, he felt as if an entire house was placed on top of him. The heavy feeling of the earth element enveloped him completely. He struggled to walk further into the earth space, after going a little further, he was unable to go any deeper. He sat down crossed leg and started comprehending the earth element. ¡­. The next day. "Hey, so where are we going today?" Void asked. When he came back the previous day, Grey was still in the Chaos Space, he didn''t disturb him and went to rest in the bed. It was only till this morning did Grey leave the Chaos Space. "I don''t know, do you have any suggestions?" Grey asked. "Yeah, I heard an auction will be taking place today, let''s go over to see what they have," Void said excitedly. "Okay, lead the way," Grey replied. It would be good to see the items that would be up for sale in the auction. Hopefully, he would see things he had never seen before. After coming to a decision, Grey stepped out of the tavern. Following Void''s instructions, he came to the building where the auction would be taking place. ''Void, why didn''t you say it would be happening later in the night?'' Grey asked when he realized they were early, too early. ''Oh, I forgot about that. It would be happening in the night,'' Void replied with an embarrassed look. ''*Sigh* Fine, let''s check out the marketplace, they should have some interesting things there,'' Grey suggested. ''Sure,'' Void nodded. ''Also, if you see any shiny things, please don''t try to take it,'' Grey warned before they got there. Since they were going to the marketplace, there''s a high chance that they would see shiny things, given Void''s nature, he would definitely try to steal it. He couldn''t afford to offend people there. He was lucky the young lady at the arena wasn''t really that angry at Void, or else she would''ve caused a major problem for him at that time. Even though he was stronger than her, he didn''t know if she was from a big family here in Eagle''s City. The duo spent most of their time walking through the marketplace, observing the items that were up for sale. Every single stall in the marketplace traded with essence stones, unlike the Azure continent where there are places that use coins. After spending the entire afternoon in the marketplace, Grey decided to try out the food here. Since coming here, he hasn''t eaten anything, which he finds to be terrible. They quickly found a restaurant, and Grey ordered their best meal. He was served after a few minutes of waiting, and the plate before him was quite alluring, even the aroma of the food was amazing. ''I hope it''s good,'' He said internally. Before Grey could even taste his food, Void was already done with his, staring at his plate with greedy eyes. ''Void, don''t you dare,'' Grey said while staring at Void vigilantly. The meal was a plate of soup with meat scattered in it. Void continued staring at the plate of soup, not responding to Grey''s words. ''Void, there will be no more shiny things for you if you try it,'' Grey threatened. Void finally turned away from the plate after hearing the word ''shiny''. Grey nodded before taking a sip of the soup. A sweet sensation assaulted his taste buds, before going down his throat. He couldn''t help but savor the taste of the soup, now he knew why Void wanted to drink it after finishing his own. He finished the soup with a single gulp, before eating all the meat. "Good, I could get used to eating something like this frequently," He muttered to himself. Grey ordered another soup for himself, not forgetting Void as well. After finishing the soup, he asked for his bill. He almost vomited the soup when he saw the bill. "What the hell?!" He exclaimed unconsciously. Chapter 485 - Leaving Eagles City ''*Sigh* I should never have ordered a second plate,'' Grey complained as they walked out of the restaurant. ''But the food is nice,'' Void said. ''Expensive, it''s nice and expensive, I''m never coming here again!'' Grey said. ''Now, all I need to do is find a way to get the recipe for the soup,'' He added. He didn''t want to come to the restaurant again doesn''t mean he didn''t want to get a taste of the food again. The food was just too good, he wanted to learn how to prepare it so he could eat it whenever he wanted. He knew of some of the ingredients used in the food, but some were things he had never tasted before. They are obviously things found only in the Aurora continent. ''Come on, we still have a few hours before the auction starts, why don''t we sneak into the kitchen?'' Void suggested. ''No, there''s a sophisticated array there, and sneaking in wouldn''t do us any good, we will still need to get the recipe from the cooks. We''ll have to stay behind and follow one of the chefs home,'' Grey said. After the duo came to an agreement, they started plotting how they would kidnap the chef if he didn''t agree to give them the recipe if they asked for it. Void was even coming up with all sorts of torture techniques that actually scared Grey as he listened to them. They asked around and found out that the restaurant usually closed late in the night, and opened early. From what they found out, the chefs were all in the Origin Plane. Grey and Void hung around the restaurant a little longer to get to know the possible routes of the chefs before heading over for the auction. Void was no longer interested in the auction since there was something they wanted to do in the night that was more exciting, Grey was still angry over the stones he was asked to pay for the food, on getting to the place of the auction, his anger increased because the price he paid just to go in was once again high. The price he paid to get into the auction was well over ten times the stones needed to be paid to get into an auction in the Azure continent. He had to pay five hundred high-grade essence stones, and what was surprising was that it was just a regular seat. The auction was held for almost three hours, closing just before midnight. Grey and Void didn''t see anything that caught their attention, well, actually, they did, but the prices were terrifying. Even if Grey emptied the vault of the Mayor of Lapis City, there was no way he would''ve been able to get a single good item. He might be able to get some small items, but those were things he could easily find in the Azure continent, and cheaper as well! After leaving the auction house, Grey felt a tinge of pain when he recalled the stones he paid just to get in. It was even higher than what he was paying in the tavern he''s staying in. They headed straight towards the restaurant. Since things were already like this, at least he would feel a little bit of consolation if he manages to get the recipe for the soup easily. On getting there, they were forced to wait for a while before they saw someone leaving the restaurant from the back door. It wasn''t time to close yet, but the duo was already tired of waiting. With some simple movements, they appeared behind the person, knocking him out. ¡­. In a hidden alley not far from the restaurant. Splash! Water was splashed in the face of the person. "What¡­ where am I?" The man said while scrambling to his feet. "Are you one of the chefs in the restaurant?" Void was the one who asked. Grey used a black material to cover his face, making sure the man wouldn''t be able to see his face. Even his eyes were covered from the man''s view. "Rest¡­ yes, yes, I''m a chef in the restaurant," The man replied after taking a few seconds to process the question. "Good, now, drop the recipe for your best dish," Void requested. "Recipe for the best dish? You mean the soup?" The man asked, clearly very confused by what was going on. From how the people took him, it was obviously a kidnap, yet they were only asking for the recipe of their best dish? What has the world turned into? Now they kidnap people just to get the recipe to a meal? Unfxxkingbeliveable! "Yes, do you have it?" Void answered with Grey nodding his head. "That''s all you want?" The man asked, just to be sure. "Yeah, do you have it? I''m running out of patience," Void asked angrily. "Yes, of course I do, I''m the one who even modified it to make it better," The man answered hurriedly. Since this psycho would let him go if he told him the recipe, of course he would tell him. It wasn''t like people didn''t already know that their restaurant was the first which made it, so even if someone else starts selling it, it wouldn''t gain as much traction as theirs, and this would also make him know who kidnapped him. If only he knew that the reason Grey was doing this was so that he could cook it whenever he wanted, he would be even more astonished by how his head worked. Grey quickly took out a sheet of paper, handing it over to the man and also a brush and some ink. The man hurriedly wrote down the ingredients for the recipe and passed the paper back to Grey. "If I find out you''re lying, I''ll kill you," Void threatened after Grey kept the paper. "I''m not, that is the recipe, if I''m lying you can come to find me in the restaurant, I even wrote down the instructions on how to prepare it," The man said. "Good, now, scram!" Void said, trying to make his voice as big as he possibly could. The man didn''t stay in the alley any longer, running away quickly. "So, can we go now?" asked Void. "Yeah, with this recipe, our journey will be quite fun," Grey replied. He had already gotten the general knowledge he wanted from this city, now, it was time to head in the direction of Ellis. During the course of his journey, he would find out more about this continent. ¡­. The next morning, Grey and Void left the tavern, heading towards the gate. He still wore the mask he wore when he came to the city, and he was also wearing it when he was fighting in the arena, so some of the people who attended the event that day recognized him as he walked past them. On getting to the gate of the city, he encountered a familiar face. It was the guard who blocked him from entering the city when he first came here. "You, when did you get in?" The guard jumped in front of him when he saw him walking out. "Huh?" Grey raised his head, staring at the guard weirdly. He didn''t think this guard will still recognize him. ''I need to start changing my masks now,'' He decided internally. "How did you get in? There''s no way you can enter this city without me being aware of it," The guard said. "But I did, and you were lazying around in the corner," Grey lied without a second thought. His calm voice made it seem as if he was telling the truth. "I never rest," The guard refuted. Just as Grey was about to start arguing with the guard, he suddenly recalled something. A token soon appeared in his hand which he showed the guard. "Do you know what this is?" He asked gently. "It''s¡­ an Abyss token," The guard replied with a long face. "Good, now, be a good boy and move to the side," Grey nodded before tapping him on the shoulder. "Hmph! If you think that would scare me then you must be joking," The guard snorted coldly. "You''re scared by this?" Grey asked, a little confused by the guard''s reaction. Given how the host of the event was towards the Abyss Faction, he felt they must be well respected in this area. "Others might be, but I''m not," The guard said with arms folded in front of him. "Oh really?" A cold voice came from behind the guard. Looking behind the guard, Grey was surprised to see Ray. "Hello," Ray waved at Grey. "Cousin, it''s you!" The guard jumped in fright when he saw Ray. "Why are you stopping him?" Ray asked coldly. "Actually¡­ cousin¡­ you see, he snuck into the city, I was only asking what he had in his bag when he first came, but he ran away, who would''ve known that he would sneak into the city," The guard said with a faked smile. "Heh! With the likes of you here, why would I want to sneak into the city? I could just stroll right through the front gate," Grey scoffed. Chapter 486 - Elemental Venerables "You¡­" "Stop it," Ray cut the guard off just as he was about to scold Grey. "I''m sorry for the way he acted towards you," He apologized after glaring at the guard. "It''s okay, are you leaving as well?" Grey waved it off before asking. "Yes," Ray nodded. "Alright, we should leave together then," Grey suggested. Ray nodded, he gave the guard a little lecture before heading out of the city with Grey. ¡­. Outside the city. "So, where are you headed?" Ray asked. He couldn''t just walk with Grey without knowing where he was going, if they were heading in the same direction then it was okay, but if not, then they would split up here. "The Southern Continent," Grey replied. After hearing Grey''s words, Ray almost tripped, not expecting Grey to speak of the Southern Continent. The distance between this place and the Southern Continent was huge, although teleportation arrays will make the journey easier, it will make it expensive. He couldn''t help but size up Grey once more, trying to figure out if he could afford such movements. "If you really want to go to the Southern Continent, then you''ll have to spend a large number of essence stones, and I''m not joking when I say a large amount, I mean the amount is alarming," He explained. "Oh, how many essence stones do you think it would take for me to get there?" Grey asked curiously. He didn''t know much about this continent, this was why he decided to travel with Ray. In the Eastern Continent alone, there were over two hundred regions, and each region had multiple cities and towns in them. According to the map, he was currently in the vale region, and before he could see a teleportation array, he would need to move to a bigger city. "I can''t really estimate it, since you''re in this region, you can use that token to travel with a seventy percent discount. If you were one of us, then you would''ve been able to travel freely across the cities in this region," Ray explained, he also added this just to see if he could use this to rope in Grey. "Guess I have no choice," Grey muttered. Hearing this, a sense of joy almost jumped into Ray''s heart, well, almost. The reason for this was because he heard Grey asking a question that killed his hopes. "What''s the quickest way to earn money here?" Grey asked. "*Sigh* Selling treasures, if you have high-level techniques as well, they will fetch you a good sum. But that''s all on the premise that you go to a good auction house," Ray explained. Although he was disappointed, it didn''t mean that he wouldn''t try to assist Grey. The old man in the special area told him repeatedly to make sure he put up the best impression he could when he was speaking with Grey. Of all the people who came from the Abyss Faction that day, all of them respected that old man, including all the representatives. Since the old man placed Grey so high, it meant that there was something he saw or noticed that the others didn''t. "Well, one can''t just chance upon treasures, what about beast cores?" Grey asked. The possibility of finding treasures was too low, beast cores on the other hand were pretty high. He even had some in his storage ring, and although they were mostly Origin Plane beast cores, it was still something. "Well, only high staged Rank Five beast cores and above can get you some stones, but you will need a whole lot of them if you are going to depend on beast cores," Ray explained. ''Rank Five?'' Grey started to count mentally. Although this was the same system Void uses, he still hasn''t been able to get used to it. ''Seems they also use this system here,'' He thought. "I''ll think of something else later on, for now, beast cores would do," Grey replied. After a few seconds, he asked, "Where is the nearest city with a teleportation array?" Ray brought out a map, showing Grey the location of the city. "Luckily, I''m also heading in this direction. Unfortunately, we''ll split up halfway since I won''t be going to that city," Ray replied with a smile. Grey nodded, not refusing to travel with him. He still needed to learn some things, and since Ray offered to help, then he would naturally not let the chance go. The duo soon started their journey, with Grey asking about this region and about Factions. Ray did his best to tell him all he knew, although, he kind of found Grey''s questions to be bizarre since almost everyone knew about these things. The city they were heading towards was west of Eagle''s City, and according to Ray, a rival Faction was ruling over that city. This didn''t mean he couldn''t use the teleportation array though since they weren''t under the jurisdiction of small Factions like theirs. In the Vale region, there are over twenty Factions that were just as powerful as the Abyss Faction, and over fifty that were weaker. From what Ray explained, for low-grade Factions, there should be at least two Peak Sage Plane Elementalists before they can actually be referred to as one. There are multiple Factions with Sage Plane Elementalists, but since they don''t have any at the Peak of the Plane, they wouldn''t be referred to as a low-grade Faction. There are even low-grade Factions that have Elementalists above the Sage Plane, but they haven''t advanced to become mid-grade Factions yet since they haven''t met the requirements. Elementalists above the Sage Plane are usually regarded as Venerables by those in lower Planes. In some instances, they are usually called Elemental Venerables. Grey listened intently while they were on the journey, asking about things he was curious about. From what Ray said, the journey would take him at least two weeks, he would be with Ray for the first week, then he would be alone by the second. The first day of their journey went by with Grey getting more knowledge about the Aurora continent. Chapter 487 - Im Not That Careless Three days soon went by while they were on the journey. Grey was mostly listening to Ray''s words about the vale region, while also trying to improve his elemental grade for his earth element. The heavy feeling he was getting from the current place he was sitting in is almost negligible now. He could easily move a couple of meters into the earth''s space now, but he was waiting until he wouldn''t be able to feel any sort of heavy feeling from that area first. The deeper he looked into the earth''s space, the darker the color. He was presently around three hundred meters deep into the space, and the color here was still light brown. From his estimation, he would need to move to at least the five hundred meters mark before he would be able to improve his earth element elemental grade to blue. ¡­. "Wow! This is good! Isn''t this the meal made in Xan''s Restaurant?" Ray asked after drinking what was left of the soup on his plate. "That''s the name of the place?" Grey asked with a confused look. He didn''t really put the name of the restaurant in his head, just casually walking in and eating. If he didn''t enjoy the food, he would''ve completely forgotten about the restaurant. "Yeah, you know how to make their special dish yet you don''t know their name?" Ray was left stunned by Grey''s reaction. The only reason he didn''t call Grey a liar was that he had been traveling with him for the past three days, and from the questions Grey asked, he could tell that he wasn''t from here. Not just that, but it almost seemed like he wasn''t from the Aurora continent. After thinking about it a few times, he concluded Grey must have been from a small tribe or family that was hidden deep in the forest, and they cut off contact from the outside world. There are multiple tribes like that, so he wasn''t too shocked by it. "No, I liked the food so I asked them politely if they could teach me, who knew they were such nice people," Grey replied. Void, who was gulping down his food, coughed when he heard this. He didn''t think Grey was this good at lying, if he wasn''t there when the kidnapping took place, he would''ve thought that the people from the restaurant were really that nice. "Seriously?" A look of incredulity appeared on Ray''s face as he asked. He had heard of how the people from the restaurant protected their special recipe, for them to give it to a complete stranger was beyond belief. "Yeah, the chef was a really nice guy," Grey nodded. Ray looked at him, not sure if he should believe Grey''s words or not, but he couldn''t deny it, this was exactly the meal made in the restaurant, and he personally witnessed Grey cooking it. "Anyway, since you''re heading to the Southern Continent, you''ll have to head to the Polaris region. Teleportation isn''t allowed when crossing between two continents, you''ll have to walk there. But I''m not too sure, after all, I''ve never been there before," Ray decided to let the matter of the soup rest. Since he could enjoy it without going to the restaurant, then it was a win for him. Ray brought out his map, which was more detailed than the one Grey was using. "There are twelve regions between the Vale region and the Polaris region. Since you''re going in a straight line, then you will naturally pass through some of the high-grade regions," He explained while showing Grey the route to the Polaris region. Looking at the map, Grey tried to take a mental note of the route. He planned to also get a better map as well once he gets to a better city. After they were done eating, they started their journey once again. Four more days soon went by and it was time for Grey and Ray to go their separate ways. During the time they were traveling, Ray was the one who mostly dealt with the beasts they were encountering, Grey was mostly focused on trying to improve his earth element elemental grade. He has recently moved to the three hundred and fifty meters mark during the course of these four days, and from what he was feeling from it, he would be able to move to the four hundred meters mark soon. His process was faster than he actually imagined, given how difficult it was when he was still in the Azure continent, he thought it would take him at least three to five months before he gets to the five hundred meters mark, but with his current progress, he could reach it within a month or two. "This is goodbye," Ray said. "Yeah, hopefully, we meet again. If I ever return to this region, I will definitely come to the Abyss mountain," Grey promised with a smile. "Alright, I''ll be waiting for you," Ray nodded. He wasn''t too certain that he would see Grey again, but he was a little hopeful. Maybe the next time they see each other Grey would be more powerful than he is. After saying their goodbyes, they separated. "Ah¡­ finally, I can speak freely," Void said as soon as Ray was out of sight. "I still find it surprising that you can speak and other Rank Five beasts can''t," Grey said. "Others can, you just haven''t seen any high-leveled ones yet. Those oversized lizards can speak once they get to Rank Five as well," Void replied. "Oversized¡­ oh¡­ you mean Dragons?" Grey asked. The fact that Void calls Dragons oversized lizards amazes him. Those were Dragons! Legendary magical beasts and Void calls them oversized lizards. If people heard him, they would be left speechless. "Alright, let''s begin," Void said excitedly. With their two alone, he had the freedom to do whatever he wanted. "Remember to always keep the cores, that''s currently our only source of income," Grey said. "Don''t worry, I''ll keep the cores, I''m not that careless," Void said. Thirty minutes later. "Void, what the hell?! You destroyed the entire head," Grey exclaimed after seeing the headless beast on the ground. "I didn''t know its head would be so soft," Void tried to explain. "You should''ve attacked its body, why would you even think of blasting its head?" Grey complained. "I sent the attack towards its back, it was stupid and tried to block it with its head," Void refuted. Chapter 488 - Battle Between Powerhouses "Void, stop destroying their heads, okay?" Grey said dejectedly. This was their main source of income presently, and Void was busy going around destroying the cores of the beasts. Even with the state he leaves them, it''s almost impossible to sell their corpses. "Why don''t we start a food stand or restaurant, given how good you are at cooking, you''ll naturally attract a whole lot of people. And don''t forget, you''re handsome too," Void suggested. "Guys will want to burn my face if they see me, do you think I''m ready for such a hassle? And besides, I still need to focus on cultivating," Grey replied. He wasn''t the least bit interested in cooking for others. Although, he couldn''t completely rule out the idea since he couldn''t be too sure how desperate they might be for money. "What''s that technique you''re using?" Grey couldn''t help but ask. He could sense that it was a space element attack, but it wasn''t close to the level of the power of spatial distortions, but it was still very destructive. "It''s like sending out a small orb of fragmented space, once it hits a solid object, it will naturally destroy it if the object is not powerful enough to repel it," Void explained. "Oh, how did you come up with that?" Grey was left astonished by Void''s ability. "I''m smart, what do you expect?" Void said, looking at Grey with a look of disdain. Grey was caught between laughing and crying by Void''s reply. "Can you teach me?" He asked. "I don''t think you can, at least not in this continent. You''re still having difficulties with opening a space tunnel, this would be even more difficult," Void replied. Grey thought about it for a while and didn''t think what Void said was wrong. Even though he could barely create spatial tunnels now, he couldn''t use it to travel long distances like he could in the Azure continent. If he could previously travel one hundred meters in the Azure continent, here, he is able to travel around ten or fifteen meters. The difference was insane, and one has to know that his elemental grade increased, which means that the distance he could travel in the Azure continent will be higher than what he previously could. "Come on, let''s continue our journey," Grey said. It was still bright, so they would still be able to see more beasts as they head forward. "Alright," Void nodded before appearing on Grey''s shoulder. The duo started their journey once again, Void was the one in charge of killing the beasts they encounter, while all Grey did was to make sure Void didn''t destroy the beasts cores and to also ensure that the corpse of the beasts were intact. Void''s strength was unbelievable, even in the Aurora continent, he could still easily fight above his stage just like Grey. A few days later. Grey and Void were resting in a cave when an explosion suddenly rang out from some distance away. "What''s that?" Void perked up his ears to ask. "There''s only one way to find out," Grey stood up before walking out of the cave. Void hurriedly ran after him, curious at what caused the explosion. The explosions continued as they got closer to where the sound was coming from. "Looks like there is a battle going on," Grey said after hearing the continuous explosions. They soon saw a ring of fire in the sky, opposite it was a person covered in a lightning cloak. The distance was quite far since they could barely see the figures in the sky. "Oh, strong Elementalists fighting, we should watch!" Void said excitedly. "And what if they just decide to kill us after they are done?" Grey asked, not even thinking about watching the fight. "They won''t, come on, let''s watch. Who knows, you might be able to learn something from it," Void persuaded. Grey thought about it for a while, and felt Void had a point. These powerhouses wouldn''t be bothered with small fries like them, besides, it wasn''t like they were enemies. While Grey and Void were still discussing if they should watch or leave, the battle has continued once again. Lightning and fire were flying everywhere in the sky, just the aftershock from the attacks were destroying the forest below the duo. Even Grey was having a tough time with staying in the same position. He was forced to moved further back when the duo moved closer to where he was. From what he was seeing, it looked like the Lightning Elementalist was having the upper hand, but Grey couldn''t really say he was certain. A sea of fire covered the sky, almost covering a range of over two kilometer, but the man cloaked in lightning didn''t seem fazed by it. With a simple wave, multiple lightning birds appeared and started to dance across the sea of fire, quickly tearing it apart. After they tore it apart, they flocked towards the Fire Elementalist. A sphere covered the Fire Elementalist before it exploded out, destroying all the lightning birds. Grey and Void felt their faces and body dry up from the heat that got to them. All the trees dried up, and from some of the shrieks of beasts, they were certain that some of the lower leveled ones had died. "So powerful," Grey muttered while staring closely at the sky. The distance between where they were and where the battle was going was at least over four kilometers, yet they could still feel the heat this strongly. "Do you by chance know what Plane they are in?" He asked Void. "No clue, but they should be above the Sage Plane," Void replied. Even he wasn''t too sure of the strength of the two Elementalists, but he knew that they were very powerful. Even the people he saw in the arena were not as powerful as these two. Grey stared at the sky in awe of the strength of the people. He couldn''t help but imagine himself being this powerful, even more powerful than they were. ''I''ll be this powerful soon, even stronger,'' He said to himself confidently. They continued watching the exchange between the duo. After almost thirty minutes, but fighters separated, with the Lightning Elementalist clearly on top in the battle. The Fire Elementalist was the first to leave, and was attacked by the Lightning Elementalist while leaving, but the Fire Elementalist made no efforts to fight back, leaving as soon as possible. The Lightning Elementalist stayed a little longer before leaving in the other direction. Grey looked at Void, "Isn''t that last attack a little too shameless? I mean, the opponent was already leaving," "Of course not, as long as you can beat your opponent a little more, why not?" Void replied. To him, it wasn''t a shameless act. "You''re just as crazy as Klaus, I never expected you to find it shameless anyway," Grey said before heading back to the cave. He was still in the middle of comprehending the earth element, so he wanted to continue. On his way back to the cave, he noticed something strange. "Huh? There''s someone here?" He said softly. "Yeah, powerful, very powerful. We should leave immediately," Void replied while turning around. The person inside wasn''t even planning to hide their aura. Just as the duo turned around, an alluring voice came from behind them. "And where do you two think you''re going?" Grey and Void freaked out a little since they didn''t sense anyone coming close to them. "Uhmmm¡­ we''re going back to where we came from," Grey replied calmly. "Come on, I gave you two a show, won''t you, you know, pay me for my services?" The voice of a lady said. "A show? I don''t know what you''re talking about," Grey said. He still haven''t turned around yet. But he could tell from the voice that the person was a lady. "Stop playing dumb, boy, the only reason I fought that long was because I noticed I had some audience, you know, it''s always great to entertain your audience," The voice chided. "We were only passing through, we didn''t have any plans of watching your battle," Grey explained. "Come on, turn around, I don''t bite," The voice said. Grey refused to turn around, even though he knew he was clearly no match for the lady behind him. Buzz! Buzz! The sound of lightning came from behind Grey, and butterflies made of lightning flew around Grey. It was both a beautiful and dangerous sight. Grey''s hairs stood straight, he could sense the tingling feeling of tiny bolts of electricity dancing around his body. Luckily, his lightning element''s grade was high, instead of being shocked by it, he was surprisingly absorbing it. "Such a strange boy, even though this isn''t an attack, it''s strange that someone can absorb another Elementalist''s element," The lady said, clearly shocked by what was going on. "Now I''m even more curious about you, turn around, I''m not here to kill you.. Besides, if I wanted to, you''d be dead by now," The lady said, this time, her voice not as friendly. Chapter 489 - What Did I Get Into? Grey stared at Void, with no option left, he turned around slowly. On turning around, he was surprised to see a lady who looked to be in her late twenties. He couldn''t help but do a double-take just to be sure she was the only one here. The lady had a diamond-shaped face with long blue hair tied into a ponytail, her eyes were blue, just like her hair. She stood at around five foot seven, almost as tall as Grey. Her hourglass figure was brought out by the clothes she wore, a long black shirt, with trousers. Grey couldn''t say she was the prettiest girl he had seen, but she was definitely in the top ten. "What''s with that face?" The lady asked with a curious expression. She isn''t able to see the entirety of Grey''s face, but from the little she could see below the mask, it wasn''t hard to tell that he had a surprised expression. "Oh sorry, I was a little confused," Grey apologized. "Hmm, forget about it. Why were you able to absorb my lightning butterflies?" The lady asked. When she came the first time, she only wanted to play around, but what happened some moments ago piqued her interest, so she naturally wanted to figure out how it was possible. "I have no idea, this is the first time something like this is happening," Grey replied honestly. "You don''t know? That''s strange," The lady replied. She stretched out her hand while staring at Grey. Grey stared back, not sure of what to do. "Give me your right hand, do I have to tell you everything?" The lady asked, unimpressed by how slow Grey was at processing things. ''Void, this is all your fault. If we don''t die, you''re no longer allowed to bring suggestions that might get us in trouble,'' Grey couldn''t help but complain. If he didn''t stay behind to watch the fight, then this lady wouldn''t have come to find him, she would''ve left as soon as she was done with her fight. Although, he couldn''t say he didn''t learn anything from the battle. Grey placed his right hand on the outstretched hand of the lady, and just as she took his hand, she quickly threw it away within a few seconds and retreated. Her reaction surprised Grey. "What happened?" He asked. The lady on the other hand seemed to have her guards up against him, stretching out her left hand, indicating he shouldn''t come closer. Grey paused, not sure of what to do. ''Such a strange lady,'' He thought internally. The lady looked at Grey, confused. ''Why was my senses kicked out? Even someone on my level wouldn''t be able to do it this easily,'' She thought. Just as she sent her spiritual senses into Grey''s body so she could find out why he was able to absorb her lightning, a powerful energy kicked her out, aggressively as well. If she didn''t retract her spiritual senses on time, she would''ve been injured. "Alright, let''s head back," She said before walking back to the cave. Grey stood still, it''s not that he didn''t want to go back to the cave, but staying with someone who seems to have what looks like mood swings might put him in danger, after all, she could suddenly get annoyed. It wasn''t like he was powerful enough to save himself from any of her attacks. Even if he enters the Fusion State, he would still be killed with a single attack. "Why are you standing there? Come on," The voice of the lady came out of the cave. ''*Sigh* What have I gotten myself into?'' A dejected Grey stared at the entrance to the cave, before walking in. Neither he nor Void knew why the lady was staying with them, but they couldn''t chase her away, nor could they run. After walking back into the cave, Grey sat down in the corner, not speaking. He initially planned on trying to comprehend the earth element when he gets back to the cave, but with a suspicious person here, he couldn''t. "Where are you from?" The lady asked after some minutes of silence. "Somewhere remote, I have almost zero knowledge about this place," Grey replied truthfully. He couldn''t lie since other than Eagle''s City, he didn''t know any other place. It wasn''t like lying would do him any good. "Oh, no wonder you were foolish enough to watch the battle," The lady said. "Wait, it''s wrong to watch others battles?" Grey couldn''t help but ask. "Not when you''re this weak. Some people with short tempers have been known to kill people watching their fights. That dumb fellow I was fighting with also does that, has I not attacked him when he was leaving, then you would''ve been dead by now," The lady explained. "I thought it was a cheap shot," Grey almost exclaimed. "Cheap shot? For that fool? I could beat him easily in my worst days, much less now that I''m in a great condition," The lady scoffed in disdain. It was easy to see how little she thought of her opponent. "Oh, okay. I''ll run in the other direction whenever I see people stronger than me fighting now," Grey kept a mental note of what the lady said. Ray didn''t tell him anything about this, so he had no clue. The lady kept asking him questions, he answered the few he could, leaving the rest. He had some questions he also wanted to ask, but he''s too comfortable with the lady, so he decided to let it go. It was soon daybreak, and the lady for some reason didn''t leave. Instead, she followed behind Grey as he prepared to start his journey. "Where are we going?" The lady asked. On hearing how she asked the question, Grey stumbled. ''Since when was there a we? It''s just me and Void!'' He said internally. "This city," Grey showed her their destination on the map. He didn''t know the name of the city, so all he could do was show her where they were headed. "Okay, let''s get going then," The lady replied. ''*Sigh* Can''t I be left alone?'' Chapter 490 - Reaching The City Grey soon started his journey with an unwelcome partner, a very powerful unwelcomed partner at that. "Do you have any other elements other than the lightning element?" The lady asked as they were walking. "Yeah, a few," Grey replied. "Oh, that means it''s not one. Which are they?" The lady asked curiously. "Fire and¡­" Grey paused, not sure if he should say water, earth, wind, darkness, or the space element. He usually mostly uses the fire and lightning element, then he alternates between the wind, earth and water whenever he was in a place where he doesn''t want anyone to find out he has more than three elements. Back in the Azure continent, he didn''t need to hide the space element since none of the people there had knowledge of it. But here, every individual knew of the space element, although he could hide it from those in lower Planes, it was impossible to hide it from those with higher Planes. Given how resourceful the space element was, he wasn''t sure he wouldn''t use it while he was still with her. "Is it more than three?" The lady asked when she saw Grey hesitating. "Yeah, something like that," Grey replied honestly. He planned to reveal he had the space element as well, but he was still contemplating between the earth and water element. "Come on, speak up, although people with more than three elements are very rare, there are a few. There are even cases of people who have more than four, but those almost impossible to see," The lady explained. "I have four elements, and two of them are quite special," Grey finally said after giving it some thoughts. "Okay, which elements then?" The lady asked like an excited little kid who was speaking to their elder brother. Grey stared at her, if not for the fact that he knew that she was powerful, he would''ve thought she was just a little child. "Lightning and fire are both special, while I have the space and water element as well," He said. "You have the space element? Wow! Now that''s a rare element," The lady exclaimed. "Yeah, I don''t usually tell people, but given how powerful you are, you''ll find out eventually," Grey shrugged. "Such a nice boy, I''ve sensed the spatial ripples around you. And that cat you have with you, it''s not common, right?" The lady darted a glance at Void. "First of all, his name''s Void," Grey corrected. He has never liked it when people would refer to Void with ''it''. He didn''t see Void as a magical beast, so he didn''t want others to as well. Not just Void, but since getting close to Void, the way he looked at other magical beasts was different. "Sorry," The lady apologized unconsciously. She never expected Grey would speak to her like this given how scared he seemed to be of her. This showed how protective he was of Void. "And he''s just a regular black cat that is above Dragons," Grey explained. The lady stared at Grey, then at Void, then at Grey again. She was trying to figure out how a cat would be above Dragons, the magical beasts that was declared as the strongest amongst all magical beasts. Just when she was about to refute, she heard something that stunned her. "He''s not lying, those oversized lizards are in no way comparable to me," Void said proudly, sticking out his little chest. Grey facepalmed when he saw this. "Did the cat¡­ I mean Void just speak?" The last asked, pointing at the Void. "Unfortunately, yes," Grey said, he couldn''t lie, after all, the cat was already out of the bag. "Impossible! I mean, there are high leveled magical beasts that can speak after getting to Rank Five, but a cat? That''s simply unheard of," The lady found Void being able to talk at Rank Five impossible. There are high leveled cat type magical beasts, but none of them have the ability to speak while still in Rank Five. "Like I said, a cat that''s above Dragons," Grey said. As much as he didn''t want it to seem like he was hyping Void, he couldn''t really downgrade him. Void was special, and he knew just how prideful he was. "It¡­ he has the space element as well right?" The lady asked. "Yeah," Grey nodded. "Wait, seriously?" The lady asked. "Yeah, I just confirmed that to you," Grey said. ''But, how come I can''t sense spatial ripples around him. It couldn''t be that this cat is above Dragons, right?'' The lady thought, a little confused. "Alright, we should get going now. I still need to get to city," Grey said. The lady nodded, and they soon started their journey once again. With the lady with them, he felt a little more relaxed, after all, it''s not everyday you get to be in the company of someone powerful. After seeing how free the lady was, he started speaking with her, asking her for help with the lightning element. She was already very powerful, so she knew more about it. Grey got to find out from the lady that she was actually a Dual Elementalist, having both the lightning and light element. His interest in the light element was instantly rekindled, and he almost wanted to tell her to use it on him. He refused though since he didn''t know if it would hurt him. He had heard of the healing properties of the light element, but he still haven''t experienced or seen it yet. He didn''t know about Chris using it on him, so he still thought he hadn''t encountered the light element yet. Grey started to comprehend the earth element at night once again, and Void started fighting against beasts again. A few days later. The group soon appeared in front of a large city. The size of the city was shocking, Grey had never seen a city this big, even the capital in the Qilin empire wasn''t this big. "Wow, now that''s a big city," Grey commented. "Yes, and there will be lots of shiny things," Void said with glittering eyes. Chapter 491 - Ernst City Ernst City. Grey and Void stared in wonder at the busy city, with carts going in and out. "Is this like a trade city?" He couldn''t help but ask when he saw how high the number of carts and carriages going in and out were. The lady who was by the side shrugged, "I have no clue, this is my first time here," Grey wanted to complain, but since she was stronger than he was, he kept his mouth shut. Even he hadn''t been to a lot of places in the Qilin empire which was far smaller than the Eastern Continent. The duo stepped into the city with Void being held tightly by Grey. Just looking around gave Grey a headache, the number of shiny things was astronomical, he could literally feel Void shaking from excitement. "What''s wrong with him?" The lady asked. During their journey, she has gotten to know the duo a little. But this was her first time seeing Void like this. "Those," Grey used his eyes to point at a stall filled with shiny things. "Those worthless pieces of trash?" The lady asked with a baffled look. "Yes, he has a weird obsession with shiny things. No matter how useless it was, since it was shiny, then he was good with it," Grey explained. "That''s a weird obsession," The lady remarked. "A treasure," Void suddenly perked up, looking deeper into the city. After saying this, one could see him even more visibly excited compared to before. "Shush!" Grey quickly tried to stop Void from speaking any further. "There''s a treasure in this city," Unfortunately, the overexcited Void didn''t pay any attention, all he had his eyes on was the treasure he could sense in the city. He had even completely forgotten about the shiny things around. The lady who was walking with them was startled, "A treasure? He can sense treasures?" ''Void, stop doing this! Even though she doesn''t seem to have any bad plans for us now, what if she suddenly decides to kidnap you and you use as a treasure-seeking tool?'' Grey chided. He was furious with how careless Void was. There was still the possibility of the lady having bad thoughts towards them, now Void was giving her an opportunity for greed to take over and give her a reason to kill him. Void would be fine since she would need him alive, but he on the other hand might be killed. ''I''m sorry, it''s just that I need this. Very important,'' Void apologized with a lowered head. ''Then why did you speak it out loud? You could''ve at least told me so that we can think of a plan,'' Grey asked. ''We can''t, we''re too weak. But she can, given her bored look, I think she will want the thrill of us stealing something,'' Void explained his reasoning behind his actions. ''It might work, but this is dangerous. Before doing anything like this again, at least try to inform me. You''re basically putting me in danger with this gamble of yours,'' Grey advised. Void could still be said to be very young, so it was natural that he was sometimes controlled by impulses. "*Sigh* Yes, yes he can. But only treasures beneficial to him. Since we share some elements, they are still good for me," Grey replied with a somewhat frustrated look. "Wow! That''s an amazing ability," The lady exclaimed, "Hey, little guy, want to get that treasure?" She turned to look at Void who had already opened his black eyes wide enough that just staring at it made one feel like they were about to get lost in space. He initially wanted to veg the lady to help with stealing the treasure, who knew he didn''t even need to bring it up? Without even blinking, he nodded continuously. The lady burst out laughing, covering her mouth. She found Void''s reaction to be very cute. "Alright, you lead the way, we''ll follow," The lady said. "Wait, you''re planning to steal it?" Grey asked as if this wasn''t what they hoped for. "Yes, I''m bored. This should at least be able to make me feel a little excited," The lady replied. Grey did a double-take on the lady, making sure she wasn''t a teenager who was pretending to be older just because she was powerful. "What''s with that look, come on, let''s go," The lady said. Grey followed behind the lady who took the lead, following Void''s instructions, they soon got deeper into the city. Ernst City was at least five hundred square kilometers, and the lady told Grey there were over three million people in the city. This was not only the largest city Grey had been to but also the most populated. Void was happily showing the lady the way, while Grey was carefully observing the city. Of the three, he was the only one who seemed to care about their safety. Void and the lady were almost the same, carefree and nonchalant towards things that they didn''t find important. After almost three hours of walking, they soon got to a rich district of the city. Surprisingly, it had a wall around it, separating it from the other part of the city. And the reason they knew it was the rich district was that it was boldly written on the top of the gate leading into it. Just as they were about to step in, they were stopped by the guards at the gate. Grey secretly started praying for the safety of the guards. The lady with him might lose it at start beating them up, that''s if she didn''t kill them. "Stop there, you can''t enter this district without permission," The guard said. Grey couldn''t help but recall the guard he met when he went to Eagle''s City who was also demanding something like this. "We are travelers who want to use the teleportation array," He explained. The teleportation array was safely guarded since it generated good revenue for the city.. Not everyone could afford to use it, so whoever said they wanted to use the array would naturally be fully loaded. Chapter 492 - I Just Want To Leave This Place Clara''s sword which was about to stab into Grey''s body passed through thin air as he vanished. The moment she saw this, she quickly set an ice sphere around herself, trying to protect herself from Grey''s possible counter attack. Boom! Crack! Bang! An attack slammed into the ice sphere, and to Clara''s disbelief, the ice sphere shattered with a single attack. Grey''s emotionless eyes stared at her, it was as if he was looking at a dead person. Of all the things he didn''t condone, this was the one he hated the most. As long as a person has made an effort to harm him, that person has automatically been promoted from a stranger to an enemy, and if given the chance, he would wipe out all his enemies. "Clara!" The old man in blue yelled before taking to the air, trying to get close to them. "Where do you think you''re going?" The lady appeared between him and the platform. "Since your granddaughter feels the battle should be more than a spar, why are you trying to stop her?" She asked coldly. "She only attacked on impulse," The old man in blue tried to explain to the lady. "Do you call trying to kill someone when his back is turned an impulsive attack?" The lady scoffed. The old man in black, accompanied by the three middle-aged men took flight as well. One of the two ladies also joined them, the other one was still in the Overlord Plane, so she couldn''t fly. Back on the platform. Grey strolled towards Clara, releasing unrestrained killing intent. The only reason he didn''t kill her instantly was because Void was still busy, and since the lady could take care of the group, he wasn''t too worried. In the end, he was certain that even if he didn''t kill Clara, she wouldn''t go unscathed. "Wha¡­ what¡­ are you trying to do?" Clara retreated one step at a time when she saw Grey approaching. For the first time since she appeared, a hint of fear was in her eyes. She looked around worriedly, and seeing that her grandfather and the rest of her family members were blocked by a single person, she slowly started falling into despair. From Grey''s previous attack, she realized he wasn''t lying when he saw he still hadn''t gone all out. If Grey were to go full power on her, then she would be dead within a few moves. "Nothing, just repaying a favor," Grey replied with a shrug. Clara turned around, trying to escape. But she was forced back by an attack from the sky. She looked up, and a blue inscription could be seen in the sky. The blue inscription wasn''t the only thing present, there were also the lightning and water element inscriptions in the sky, but they were hidden. "An inscriber?" She turned to look at Grey. Grey didn''t reply, with a step, he suddenly vanished. Clara, who had been used to seeing him appear either behind her or by her side, prepared herself for his attack. Her expression changed when Grey''s figure appeared in front of her, an orb made of lightning and fire in his hand. He didn''t even try to hold back, slamming it into the stomach of the unprepared and terrified Clara, sending her flying. "Ah¡­" Clara''s shriek of pain resonated in the entire compound. Boom! Bang! Her body was brutally attacked by a fire and lightning attack that was released from the inscriptions above, and a long ice spear stabbed her. All these happened while she was still mid-air from the previous attack of Grey. The ice spear pinned her into the platform, making sure it was impossible for her to leave the platform and get help from the people around. Presently, every single individual in the mansion was outside, staring at the group who were held back by the lady, and Clara who was being attacked by multiple attacks. Her screamed brought them out from their stunned states. They weren''t the only ones stunned, the group who were mid-air with the lady were shocked, not expecting Grey to attack so decisively and brutally. From the series of attacks he sent out, even if Clara didn''t die from them, she might be crippled. "You rascal! How dare you?!" The middle-aged man who was Clara''s father exclaimed in anger, charging towards the platform. Just as his figure shot towards the platform. Bam! Bang! Crash! His figure crashed heavily into the ground after a heavy collision with an attack he didn''t even see. A huge crater was created after his body slammed into the ground. The two old men''s expressions turned cold, and the middle-aged men were staring at the lady with apprehension. "Don''t look at me like that, do you expect me to allow him to hurt a junior?" The lady said. With her reason laid bare, it was evident that she wouldn''t allow a single person lay their hands on Grey. "Check on him," The old man in blue restrained his anger before telling the lady who was on the ground. Before the lady got there, some of the guards had already rushed there. "I didn''t kill him, he should be fine after a year or so," The lady said nonchalantly. Her words only made the old men furious. "Since you won''t allow a senior to attack him, what about those in his age group?" The old man asked. The lady made a face of someone who was deep in thoughts, she turned to look at Grey, then at the group, then at Grey again. ''He''s powerful, but he still lacks some control over his elements. The way he uses it is also different, it will take some time if I want to impact anything to him.'' She thought while still alternating her gaze between Grey and the group. "Hmm, okay. We''ll be back in a week, gather all the geniuses below twenty years, as long as they are not in the Mid stages of the Overlord Plane, we will accept any challenge. If any of them can kill him, then so be it," The lady finally replied. Grey''s eyes almost popped out when he heard this. ''All I want to do is leave this place, why the hell are you fixing a battle for me? I didn''t even agree to it!'' He thought, on the verge of tears. For someone who always tries to avoid trouble, he tends to make friends with troublemakers. Chapter 493 - Youre Vicious, I Like It! Grey stepped down from the platform, his expression was worse compared to the group from the mansion. The lady just placed him in a difficult position, and what was annoying about everything was that he didn''t even have a say in it. After Grey stepped down, the lady flew down, landing by his side. With no one to stop them anymore, the group who was mid-air all flew towards the platform. Clara''s figure could be seen still shaking from the shock of the lightning element in the attack Grey used. Because there was also fire in the attack, she was barely bleeding. The old man in blue hurriedly covered her with glowing blue water, and Clara''s shaking figure stopped moving altogether. The old man grabbed her hand, and his expression changed drastically. He looked at Grey with furious eyes. "Don''t look at me like that, she''s even lucky I kept her alive," Grey said coldly. "You crippled her! How can you be so vile?" Clara''s father asked angrily. "I''m sorry, I only attacked by impulse," Grey said. This was exactly what the old man said when Clara tried to stab him. Although he was focused on her, he still overheard them. Clara''s father''s eyes turned red from anger, with veins popping out from the side of his head and even his eyes. He gritted his teeth, holding himself back from attacking. "You''re vicious, I like it," The lady by Grey''s side commented, but from her tone, one could tell she wasn''t in any way angry with him, there was even a hint of acknowledgment. "Alright, we''ll be leaving now. I''ll take what I want when we come back in a week. Also, just a reminder, if you by chance call your friends to help you hold me back, then assume your family never existed," The lady said to the old men. Void who had been gone while the battle was going on suddenly appeared, jumping into Grey''s shoulder. He came from the bushes by the side, so no one suspected anything. The old men''s expressions turned even more severe, from the lady''s cultivation stage, they all knew she was someone they couldn''t afford to offend. But this didn''t mean they could let this go. Since she personally set up this challenge for Grey, then they were going to make sure he dies mid-battle. As long as they weren''t the ones who caused his death, the lady would let them go. "Give out the order, I need the strongest genius in the city below twenty years. As long as they can defeat this boy, then they will be rewarded heavily. Head to the Pyro Faction, I''m friends with the Faction Leader, tell him of this incident, he will know what to do," The old man in blue gave out a series of instructions while bringing Clara''s body inside. He had stabilized her condition, but it would be incredibly difficult for her to cultivate again. What was depressing was that her cultivation was completely destroyed, this meant that unlike the people from the Smith family who slowly lost their cultivation, she lost it instantly. ¡­. Outside the compound. "Are we really coming back in a week?" Grey asked. "Of course, we didn''t take much from them this time," The lady replied while looking at Void with a grin. "Aren''t you scared that they will plan an ambush?" Grey asked. ''What is the use of coming back when you''ve already taken some things?'' He thought. "They wouldn''t dare. I can decide to stay here for ten years, living in their house, and they wouldn''t dare to be rude to me. The reason for this is because, I''m stronger, and my background is something they can not contend with," The lady said. "This is bullying, you know that, right?" Grey couldn''t help but say. "This is how the world is Grey, the weak have no right to speak before the strong. Take for instance, I told you to fight against your will, were you able to refuse? No. Why? You''re weak. If you want to dictate your life in this world, then be strong, be the strongest person out there. Only then will you have your life in your hands," The lady spoke as they walked out of the rich district. Grey stared at her, not speaking a word. He couldn''t refute because her words were the truth. Even in the Azure continent, he was forced to run and hide because of the Emperor''s selfish desire. "Where are we going to now?" He asked since he noticed they were walking out of the city. "Remember I told you if you impressed me I''ll show you a thing or two in the lightning element. Well, today''s your lucky day, although you didn''t impress me, I decided to train you so you wouldn''t embarrass me when we come back," The lady replied. Grey looked at her, although he would very much like to improve, it wasn''t like he was the one who made the challenge. If not for the fact that he was scared of the lady, he would''ve taken the fall in the battle, letting Clara defeat him. But alas, if he lost easily, the lady would definitely beat him up. She already threatened him before the battle anyway so he knew she wasn''t lying. A few hours later. They were standing in the forest by the side of the city. "Alright, before we begin training, it''s time to share to loot," The lady said while sitting on the ground. Grey and Void naturally knew what she was talking about, so they sat down close to her. Void was the one in the middle of the group, and with a small shake of his paw, items appeared on the ground. "Oh¡­ this is a good sword. Grey catch, you can use this during the challenge," The lady picked a sword with a blue turtle carved on the hilt. Grey took the sword, studying it, "Wouldn''t they know that it''s from their treasury?" "How''s that any of our concern? It isn''t like this is the only one in the world.. Come on, take some items, you have a lot of drills to go through," The lady said nonchalantly, before urging Grey to take some things. Chapter 494 - Damn It! Im F**ked! Buzz! Bang! A lightning bolt struck a tree, breaking it apart. "You''re doing it wrong. Although this attack seems to have destructive power, it''s only on the surface," The lady said to Grey who was panting, his expression was one of exhaustion. "I''ve tried it over fifty times, can I rest a little?" Grey asked, gasping for breath. "No, if you continue this way, you''re not going to be any good," The lady shook her head. After saying this, Void appeared beside her, with a piece of meat on his paws. "Thank you, I''m starving!" The lady said, caressing Void''s back as she collected the meat from him. Grey swallowed when he saw this. He had been trying to get the technique the lady was teaching him since he woke up, but it was already well over midday, yet he still hadn''t been able to. The lady hasn''t given a single chance to rest, telling him to repeat it continuously. According to her, after striking with the lightning element countless times, one would get attuned to the ways of the element. Grey on the other hand preferred learning at a slow pace. He had never been a fast learner, but persistence and quick thinking has always made training new techniques easy for him. He needed time to think, but the lady isn''t willing to give him any. With no other choice, he was forced to continue practicing the technique. According to what the lady told him, if he could master this technique, it would greatly improve the destructive power of his lightning element. He could even implement the skill on his other elements as well. Not just that, but it also consumed lesser essence as well. This skill required making the lightning''s power go sink into the body of the target, sending out the destructive power from the inside. It would make defending against it extra tasking on the opponent. When the lady gave an example of the skill, Grey was left dumbstruck by its power. The boulder she attacked exploded, literally from the inside out. Unlike his attack which would only do damage from the outside, then maybe barely striking deep, this attack completely destroyed the boulder. To make sure Grey didn''t feel it was because of her strength advantage, she reduced the strength of her attack to be equal to someone at the Peak of the Origin Plane, yet, the attack power was still something Grey couldn''t generate. With no other option, Grey decided to follow the instructions of the lady, attacking continuously with the lightning element. Once, twice, thrice, he continued, before long, he had lost count of how many times he had attacked with the lightning element, all using the same attack. It soon got dark, and to Grey''s fortunes, the lady told him to take a rest for the day, saying he would continue at sunrise the next day. Grey''s exhausted body fell on the ground, he could barely keep himself standing. His essence was sucked dry, and this affected him tremendously. He was soon hit with a wave of dizziness, and soon fell asleep. The next morning. Grey started his routine once again, he had recovered from the exhaustion of the previous day to the amazement of the lady. Normally, even though Elementalists recover quickly from exhaustion, it''s not easy to do so when they empty their essence reserves. If only she knew Grey had what seemed like a double essence bead for his lightning element, this was the reason he was able to last almost throughout the day in the first place. Grey continued the same routine. Before he knew it, four days went by while training. He had started going for early morning physical training before the sun comes up, and during the day he would continue attacking with the lightning element. Compared to the first time, he noticed his control of the attacks was much better, and he could use less essence, yet generate the same amount of power. At nights, he would try comprehending the earth element. Presently, he had been able to get to the four hundred meters mark. The weight he was feeling in that area was already well over eight hundred kilograms. He noticed that the more he stayed in the earth space in the Chaos Space, the stronger his physical body was. He still couldn''t understand how it was possible since his physical body wasn''t entering the Chaos Space. Thanks to this, his physical body''s strength was starting to gradually improve. For a long time now, he hadn''t been able to increase the strength of his physical body. It was still equivalent to an Elementalist in the Early stages of the Origin Plane. But within a few days, it had shot up to the Mid stages of the Origin Plane. He knew that as long as he is able to get to the five hundred meters mark in the earth space, his elemental grade would not only increase, but the strength of his physical body would also shoot to the Late stages of the Origin Plane, this is all on the premise that he continues training his physical body. Three days soon went by, and the one week time Grey was given was up. He was currently standing in the middle of the field, around him were multiple ice statues. He inhaled softly, before opening his closed eyes. A streak of lightning flashed across his eyes, he pointed in the direction of the ice statue in front of him as a lightning bolt shot towards it. Buzz! Bam! The lightning hit the ice statue on the chest, and within a matter of seconds. Bang! It exploded, bursting apart from the inside. More lightning bolts appeared in the sky, shooting towards the rest of the ice statues in the field. Bang! Bang! Bang! One by one, the ice statues started to explode, just like the first one. "Good job, you''re right on time," The lady said from the side. Grey turned to look at her with his calm eyes, with a gentle nod, he indicated that he was ready for the battle. Just as they were about to leave, he recalled a piece of vital information. "Since I''ll be fighting alone, will I have to fight them one by one? And if it''s one by one, how many people would I need to fight?" He asked. "We''ll know the number of people when we get there," The lady shrugged. ''Damn it! I''m f**ked!'' Grey cursed internally. Chapter 495 - Its You! Ernst City. For the past week, the city has been abuzz because of the news of a youth challenging all the youths below twenty years of age. According to what was said, the granddaughter of the Gayle''s family head was defeated by this young man, almost killing her. It was said that he even crippled her. The Gayle family head sent out a request, promising to hefty reward to anyone who can defeat this young man. All the young geniuses in the city were heading towards the arena in the city. This was the place the showdown was going to take place. In a city as big as this, it was unimaginable how many people would turn up to challenge Grey, and there''s also the people who would come to watch the battle. ¡­. The arena. It was already filled to the brim with people. Most of them were already discussing about the identity of this mysterious young man, and why he was able to cripple the daughter of the Gayle family and go unpunished. One has to know that the Gayle family is one of the big families in this city, and no one would dare to be disrespectful towards them. The Pyro Faction had close ties with them, so even if they couldn''t deal with the backers of this young man, the Pyro Faction should be able to. In the special area of the arena. "It''s already noon, where is this person that got us all gathered here?" A middle aged man asked the head of the Gayle family. Clara''s grandfather turned to look at the man, "They should be here soon, if you''re observant enough, you would''ve already sensed the aura of someone powerful entering the city," "Hmph! I can''t believe you two couldn''t deal with a little girl," The middle-aged man mocked. "Why don''t you deal with her when she arrives?" The old man who was beside Clara''s father said. He was the one who was with them when Grey and the lady came. "Stop arguing, I''ll speak to this girl when she arrives. I want to see what gives her the guts to ask willfully in my territory," A man with amber hair said coldly. When the others heard his voice, they kept quiet. This was the leader of the Pyro Faction, Druess Vermilion. He is regarded as the strongest Fire Elementalist in the entire Gale region. While the crowd, and the big families were still speaking, Grey and the lady soon walked into the arena. He wore a black shirt and trouser, his mask still on his face. He had an indifferent expression, making it difficult to predict what he was thinking. Beside him, the lady was walking casually, with Void on her arms. "I thought you wouldn''t come," The head of the Gayle family stood up, walking towards the edge of the special area, staring in the direction of the pathway leading into the arena. His voice was loud, catching the attention of all the people in the arena. The previously noisy arena turned pin drop silent, and one could even hear the breathing of the person close to them. They all looked in the direction where the Gayle''s family head was looking. "Heh! Why wouldn''t we? I was the one who organized this show after all," The lady scoffed. The crowd were left dumbstruck when they saw the person who made this possible. They couldn''t believe that the person hadn''t even gotten to thirty years of age. Without delay, they looked by her side and saw Grey behind her. They didn''t need anyone to tell them who he was. "We''ve been waiting for you, please, shall we begin?" The head of the Gayle family asked. He didn''t want to delay anything, wanting the people to kill Grey as soon as possible. Clara''s condition was worse than what he initially thought. Presently, it was unknown if she would be able to walk again. "What''s the hurry?" The lady said while stepping into the plaftorm in the arena. She turned to look around, impressed by the influence of the Gayle family. "Wow! So many people came. But, since we''re the ones organizing this show, it''s only proper that they pay a gate fee," She said. Her words almost made Grey trip and fall when he heard it. ''Klaus and Reynolds would like traveling with you,'' He said internally. Void was currently having the time of his life. With someone powerful as a backer, he could do almost anything. What was worse was that he had her full support, there are times when she was even the one encouraging him to go out and steal. During the time he was training, Void had come to the city a few times, looting from some of the major families. The reason the problem hasn''t escalated was that the lady told him to only steal a few things, making sure it would be difficult for the people who check the treasury to find out. Void''s ability to bypass any array formation was unbelievable. Even the lady had complimented him severally because of it. According to the lady, today was the final day of their stealing since after the battle, they would leave this place with the teleportation array. Currently, all the powerhouses from each family are here, with no powerful person behind, Void could let loose. Taking as much as his spatial storage could contain. Only now did Grey know the original plan. The lady didn''t make this challenge to help Grey grow stronger, she did it so that they could gather all the powerhouses here and steal from their treasury with no one as strong as them watching. ¡­. The man with amber hair stood up when he heard the lady''s voice. He wanted to confront her. As soon as he walked to the edge of the special area, he paused, his pupils shrunk, and he was fidgeting slightly. "It''s you!" The lady''s voice came from the platform. She was pointing at the leader of the Pyro Faction. Chapter 496 - Start Of The Battle "Fire head," The lady said, looking at the man standing in the special area. The man paused, acted as if he wasn''t the one she was speaking to before turning to the others in the area. "I have something important to attend to. You all should take care of things here," The Faction leader of the Pyro Faction took flight immediately after saying this. "Hey! Where are you going? You won''t even say hello to your friend after not seeing me for so long," The lady vanished. She soon appeared in the sky, blocking the escape of the Faction leader of the Pyro Faction. "I''m sorry but this is a mistake, I have never seen you before in my life. Please, if you''ll excuse me, I have things to attend to," The Faction leader replied calmly. "Grey," The lady called out. Grey, who was on the platform looked in the sky, a little tired of the lady. He was trying to keep a low profile, yet here she was calling out his name willy-nilly. What if these people try to search for him with it? But having no other option, he answered with a resigned sigh, "What?" "Remember that guy I beat up when you first saw me?" The lady asked. Since she was in the sky, her voice was very loud, so every single individual in the arena could clearly hear her. "Yeah, that Fire Elementalist," Grey nodded, he still recalled the battle, the intensity of the flames. It didn''t take long before he was able to connect the dots, "He''s the one?" "Yeah. Now, he''s acting as if he doesn''t know me," The lady replied, firmly blocking the escape of the Faction leader. "Miss, I can assure you that we haven''t seen each other before. How about this, I''ll go and deal with what I want to do and then come back before the end of the battles?" The Faction Leader started negotiating, to the shock of the head of the Gayle family, as well as all the people here. "There''s no need for that, why don''t we watch the battles together?" The lady said, advancing towards the Faction leader. The Faction Leader tried to convince the lady to let him go, unfortunately, he was unsuccessful. After a few minutes in the sky, he was forced to come down and watch the battles. He was even given a special role as a judge. Grey looked at the Faction Leader, he could clearly understand what he was going through. He had been a victim of the oppression of the lady, so he understood how the Faction Leader felt. The head of the Gayle family stared at the currently sitting docile Pyro Faction Leader, his mouth slightly twitching. He recalled how he boasted about dealing with the issue when the lady arrived. But who would''ve thought that the first thing he did when they saw each other was to try to escape? A shame, he has even been beaten by the lady. No wonder he didn''t dare to stay behind when he saw her. This was the thought running through the heads of most of the people in the arena. Those, especially in the special area all, felt as if they were sitting on spikes. Since even the Faction Leader of the Pyro Faction couldn''t deal with her, then they had no chance. The lady took the front seat, close to her was the Faction Leader, followed by the head of the Gayle family. She nodded gently to him, indicating that the battle should begin. While all these were going on, no one noticed a little black cat disappearing from the arena. ¡­. Grey stood on the platform the whole time everything was happening, not moving from his spot. His training with the lady had yielded amazing results. Not just that, but he had also been able to get to the five hundred meters mark in the earth space, increasing his earth elemental grade to blue. His physical strength is already close to the Late stage of the Origin Plane, which was a huge boost for him. "Alright, everyone knows why you''re all gathered here. Anyone below twenty years of age is qualified to engage in this battle. That young man there is the challenger, normally, we would''ve done a selection process to see who''s strong enough to fight against him, but since the time is short, we will give him the benefit of choosing how he wants the battle to happen and how many people he can fight against," The head of the Gayle family stated. Even though he wanted Grey dead, he couldn''t be biased with the lady here. Grey was a single individual, there was no way he could possibly fight against all the youths below twenty years. Not just that, but there''s still the issue of time. "Since we''re short on time, anyone below the Eighth stage of the Origin Plane shouldn''t step into the platform," Grey replied. On hearing his reply, discussions started amongst the crowd. Grey''s confidence was unmatchable. Even if those below the Eighth stage of the Origin Plane do not participate, there would still be at least over five hundred people who are qualified. Does he think he would be able to fight them all on his own? "Since you''ve decided, we''ll begin immediately. The first set of fighters will only consist of those in the Eighth stage of the Origin Plane," The head of the Gayle family said. He knew Grey was too powerful for anyone in the Origin Plane, but he wasn''t concerned. He planned to send as many people out to wear Grey out before the strong individuals would come in. He did a rough estimate and realized there were about one hundred and fifty people in the Eighth stage of the Origin Plane. He called the first person forward, for the battle to begin. But just as he could call for the battle to start, Grey opened his mouth. "Five should come at me at once, we''re short on time," He said calmly. His words sent waves across the entire arena. Chapter 497 - Fighting Against Ernst Citys Geniuses "You heard him, five of you, step up immediately," The head of the Gayle family said. He couldn''t believe his luck, just when he was thinking of how to cajole Grey into doing something like this, he actually did it on his own. Overconfidence really is the downfall of geniuses. Of the over one hundred people in the Eighth stage of the Origin Plane, five of them stepped forward. Three were young men who looked to be around fifteen to sixteen, while the other two were young ladies around the same age. "Hmph! You think you can defeat five of us simultaneously?" One of the young ladies asked coldly. "Are you ready?" Grey didn''t reply, rather, the head of the Gayle family was the one who spoke up. The group of five nodded, after getting confirmation from them, he didn''t even take a glance at Grey to confirm if he was ready before calling for the battle to start. "Begin!" As his voice dropped, a shocking scene appeared on the platform. Bam! Boom! Bang! Crash! Sounds of flesh hitting flesh rang out, followed by the sight of five figures shooting into the air, landing on the ground outside the platform. "Next," Grey''s deadpan voice sounded out. In the space of a few seconds, he had completely destroyed five Elementalists in the Eighth stage of the Origin Plane. One has to recall that he was only at the Peak of said Plane. But defeating the group wasn''t what stunned everyone, it was the method he used. "Did I see wrong or did he just use only his physical body?" One of the family heads sitting in the special area asked, dumbfounded. The Faction Leader of the Pyro Faction nodded his head, staring at Grey with narrowed eyes. There are people with powerful physiques, but he didn''t think there was anyone as powerful as Grey while they were still at the Peak of the Origin Plane. It''s general knowledge that the bodies of Elementalists grow stronger with his breakthrough in Plane. Take them for instance, their physical body is equivalent to that of someone at the Peak of the Origin Plane. But Grey''s elemental Plane was at the Peak of the Origin Plane, and his physical strength seems to shockingly be in the same Plane, although slightly lower than his cultivation stage, it wasn''t that far behind. ¡­. "Next," Grey''s emotionless voice rang out once again. A second set consisting of five young men stepped into the platform. After the head of the Gayle family called for the battle to begin, an almost identical scenario played out. Grey wiped out his opponents even before they could properly think, in the same fashion, using his physical strength. "Next," Grey said after the last figure crashed into the ground. The head of the Gayle family called in the next set, and before everyone knew it, more than ten sets of groups of five had stepped into the platform, and all of them were defeated swiftly by Grey, in the same manner. In the case of the first two groups, one could say maybe they didn''t expect it hence they were taken by surprise. But as for the other eight groups, they all knew this was the method Grey wanted to use, but they still couldn''t stop him. "Ten," Grey turned to look at the head of the Gayle family. He had hardly broken a sweat since the battle started. Considering that he would be fighting against all the people in the Eighth stage, he wanted to get it over with before starting with the next group of fighters. The head of the Gayle family understood his words and increased the number to ten people in the Eighth stage of the Origin Plane. At first, everyone thought there would at least be a little difference in the outcome. But to their greatest shock, it ended the same way, swiftly. After Grey fought against the next group, it was easily determined that those in the Eighth stage of the Origin Plane were no match for him. "Those in the Ninth stage step forward. The rest who are still in the Eighth stage should return to their seats, if you believe you can fight against him you''re free to step forward before the group in the Ninth stage begins. But if you stay behind and can not even put up a fight, then you will be punished for wasting our time," The head of the Gayle family said. He knew there were a few geniuses who would feel they had a chance against Grey since they could fight across stages. Only he and a few others here knew none of the people here in the Origin Plane was a match for Grey. After thinking about the threat from the head of the Gayle family, all the youths in the Eighth stage of the Origin Plane stepped back, heading back to their seats with heads dropped. Grey wasn''t the least bit bothered about their feelings. He was currently preparing himself for the next round of battles. Those in the Ninth stage of the Origin Stage were slightly more than those in the Eighth stage of the Origin Plane. "How many?" The Gayle''s family head asked Grey. "Five, for now," Grey replied in the same cool and collected manner. His expression was one devoid of emotions, so no one could predict what he was thinking about. The Gayle''s family head looked at the group in the Ninth stage, and five young men who seemed to be Grey''s age stepped forward. After stepping into the platform, the Gayle''s family head called for the battle to start. Swoosh! Bang! Boom! All of them attacked simultaneously, making sure they didn''t make the same mistake those in the Eighth stage made. Boom! All their attacks got to a particular location on the platform, before slamming into the ice wall Grey created in front of him. After the explosion died down, the eyes of the group bulged when they saw what was waiting for them. Chapter 498 - The Challenge Begins "Oh crap," One of the young men said. He didn''t have any confidence in being able to block what was before them. In front of the ice wall, three large inscriptions were facing the group, all glowing with different colors of light. As soon as the young man completed his statement, the inscriptions released powerful attacks. The three inscriptions covered a large area, giving each of them the chance to release a large-scale attack. This was exactly what Grey did with them. The lightning inscription sent out multiple lightning bolts, and the fire inscription released flaming birds which exploded as they got close to where the group of five were standing. The water inscription attacked with ice arrows. Boom! Bam! Bang! All the attacks were released so fast that the group didn''t have time to retreat. They were all forced to try to defend them. After only a few seconds, their defenses crumbled, leaving them defenseless against the attacks. Boom! A larger explosion happened, sending all five fighters flying. Crash! Bam! They all landed in different areas, but all outside the platform. "Next," Grey''s apathetic voice resounded once again. The crowd looked at him, all thinking the same thing. They underestimated his strength. Since the fight started, it hasn''t even been up to twenty minutes, yet he had not only removed those in the Eighth stage of the Origin Plane, but he had also shown that those in the Ninth stage wouldn''t be a problem for him as well. The next group of fighters in the Ninth stage of the Origin Plane soon climbed onto the platform, but the result was just like that of the first group. After fighting against five groups, Grey decided to increase the number of people he fought in a single round. With the number increased, he wasn''t able to end the battle as swiftly as he did when he was still fighting against five people. One hour soon went by since the battle started. "He''s quite powerful, I can''t believe he still hasn''t been touched by a single attack yet?" One of the old men in the special area commented. "He''s only fighting against those in the Origin Plane, of course it''s natural that they wouldn''t be able to do anything to him," Clara''s father said. "Have you forgotten he''s still in the Origin Plane?" The old man asked mockingly. Clara''s father wanted to refute, but then he remembered he was correct. Grey was just so powerful that he actually forgot he was still at the Peak of the Origin Plane. He wasn''t the only one who had forgotten Grey was still in the Origin Plane, there were some people in the crowd as well. There are a few who think Grey was lying when he said he was still in the Origin Plane because the power he was showing was something only those in the Overlord Plane would. Not any ordinary Overlord Plane Elementalist, but those who could fight across stages. ¡­. Boom! Bang! Bam! Attacks upon attacks kept ringing out on the platform, with figures being sent flying. It has been over two hours now since the battle started, and Grey was just getting to the group that consisted of those at the Peak of the Origin Plane, just like him. Individually, none of them here was a match for him, but, there might be a chance if he were to fight against ten of them at once. Just like how he had been doing, he fought against five in the first round. The five consisted of two young men who were Water Elementalists, and three young ladies with the lightning, wind, and earth element respectively. The battle started explosively, but Grey was able to withstand the flurry of attacks the group sent at him before he began his counterattack. After only a few moves, he defeated the first group, with relative ease. The next round soon started and he continued his dominant battling, defeating them within a few moves. None of the groups could last up to two minutes against him. It was like they didn''t know how to fight against him. All the groups who had entered the platform have all tried a different approach, but they have all been meant with the same outcome, defeat. It didn''t take long before the people at the Peak of the Origin Plane slowly started to lose hope. It''s one thing knowing you can''t defeat someone, it''s another knowing that even with four more people with you, you''re still no match for the person. After an hour, those at the Peak of the Origin Plane gave up, and surprisingly, no one in the crowd found their choice odd. They could already tell from the first battle that there was no hope for them. What was more shocking was that amongst those at the Peak of the Origin Plane, there were geniuses who could fight against some Elementalists who just broke through to the Overlord Plane. But none of them felt they were strong enough to hold out against Grey. ¡­. "It''s time for those in the First stage of the Overlord Plane to step forward," The head of the Gayle family said, he turned to look at Grey, "Boy, do you need a break?" "I''m good, start the next battle," Grey shook his head. Although he had been fighting for over three hours, he wasn''t really tired. He had barely moved from the spot he stood since he started to attack with his elements, and thanks to the training he had with the lady, he could now greatly maximize the essence spent while bringing out greater attack power. "Alright, since you''ve decided we will continue with the battle," The head of the Gayle family replied. He was already starting to lose hope since he didn''t see anyone who he thought could defeat Grey. But, there are fifteen people in the Third stage of the Overlord Plane, and they''re all from the Pyro Faction. With them around, no matter how monstrous Grey was, he shouldn''t be able to defeat them, right? Grey looked in the direction of those in the Overlord Plane. ''Now the real challenge begins.'' Chapter 499 - Genius Ranking The head of the Gayle family stared at Grey, waiting for him to give him the number of people he wanted to fight. "One," Grey said. His words didn''t surprise anyone since they''ve all noticed he was a cautious person, only after being certain that he could fight against a certain number does he increase it. They all knew he would naturally be able to defeat this person with ease, but they were all still waiting curiously for the battle to begin. This was the most dominant display they''ve ever witnessed, and even though the person wasn''t from their city, they still felt excited by it. A young man with an orange track-suit looking uniform stepped forward. ¡­. The crowd was stirred when they saw the young man who walked onto the platform. "It''s Harry from the Pyro Faction," Someone from the crowd said when they saw the young man walking forward. "Isn''t he the most powerful Elementalist in the First stage of the Overlord Plane and ranked fifty-two in the Early stage Overlord Plane ranking in the region?" Someone asked. "Yes. Now, this should be an entertaining battle. Harry has defeated someone in the Second stage of the Overlord Plane before, so he''s not someone that could be categorized among those in the First stage of the Overlord Plane," Someone else replied. In the Aurora continent, each continent has a ranking where the young geniuses are all ranked according to their strength and stages. There is a rank for those in the Origin Plane, Overlord Plane, and so on. Each ranking is further divided into the Early, Mid, and Late stages. ¡­. Grey turned around, not expecting the young man who walked in to be this famous. "Guess you''re going to be something of a challenge," He said. "You''re impressive, I''ll give you that. But your run of continuous victories ends here," Harry said gently. "Alright, I hope you''ll be able to make me unleash at least fifty percent of my strength," Grey nodded, excited. "The same goes for you," Harry replied confidently. Grey nodded, turning to look at the head of the Gayle family. "Begin!" Swoosh! Bang! Harry was covered by a burning stream of fire as he shot towards Grey like a jet. Grey attacked with a stream of water, but Harry was able to blast a hole through the stream of water while still going towards Grey. "Good! Haha," Grey laughed out when he saw how easily Harry was able to break through the water. He only released it to test Harry''s strength. Had Harry been unable to pass through the water stream, he would''ve been heavily disappointed since he was hyped for the battle. Of course, he knew he would definitely win. Boom! Bam! Harry soon got within a few meters of him, attacking with unbelievable strength. Grey created an ice wall in front of him, blocking the attack. After the first attack was blocked, Harry instantly attacked again, slashing out a fire sword that was over five meters long. Bam! Crack! Cracks soon started to appear in the ice wall, running like webs. Harry didn''t delay, instantly attacking again with the fire sword. Grey didn''t stand there just defending, seeing that his opponent was different compared to others, he instantly created an inscription, attacking Harry with it. Harry dodged to the left just as the attack was about to hit him, while still continuously attacking the ice wall which had started to fall apart after the first three swings from the fire sword. Grey didn''t panic when he saw his ice wall coming down, instead, he attacked Harry again. Ice spikes came out of the ground from where he was standing, quickly going towards Harry. Harry sent out a large fireball towards ice spikes, destroying them as they headed towards him. Unfortunately, it didn''t stop the attack from continuing. He stomped his feet on the ground, and fire exploded out of the ground, propelling him upwards. The ice spikes came out of the ground just after he was sent upwards. Grey pointed his finger at him, and one of the ice spikes turned into water, stretching towards Harry like an elongated arm. It soon grabbed hold of his ankle, before yanking him down. Harry controlled the flames around his body, circling the water arm that was holding onto his ankle like a snake, before destroying it. He landed softly on the ground after this, staring at Grey with a serious expression. Grey smiled before red lightning ran across his body. Buzz! Whoosh! His figure soon disappeared, turning into a streak of lightning. Harry was surprised by Grey''s speed. He covered himself once again with the fire element before spreading his arms in all directions. Tiny flakes of fire spread out, they were just as small as snowflakes. With his eyes closed, he inhaled deeply. His eyes soon snapped open, turning to his left and attacking with a fire raven. The speed and timing of his attack were very precise since it didn''t give Grey any chance to evade it, well, unless he chooses to use the space element of course. Grey was forced to receive the attack head-on. He didn''t want to show his space element yet since he felt the longer he kept it unused the better for him. The consumption of the space element''s essence was very high, and he still had around one hundred more challengers to go, all in the Overlord Plane. Bang! He blocked the attack with his ice and lightning element, but the force of the attack forced him back by a few steps. ¡­. When the crowd witnessed this, they cheered in excitement. For the first time since Grey started fighting, someone actually managed to force him back. Although it was just by a few steps, it was still an achievement. The Faction Leader of the Pyro Faction nodded with a small smile. "What are you happy about, he''ll still lose," The lady by his side said coldly. The Faction Leader''s expression changed a little when he heard this, but he still felt proud. Chapter 500 - Defeating A Genius In The Geniuses Rankings "Oh, looks like I managed to force you back," Harry said gently. "Yeah, looks like it," Grey replied with a slight nod. Given his speed, he didn''t think that Harry would''ve been able to sense him, but when he felt the small flakes of flames touching him, he knew that it was a type of sensory ability. "Other than those guys in the Second stage, you''re the only one who''s given me a tough time. I must admit, for someone in the Origin Plane, you''re quite powerful," Harry complimented. He was someone who was ranked in the genius rankings, for someone who was a Plane behind him to fight him to this extent, it showed just how powerful the person was. He didn''t think there are any other geniuses that''s this monstrous. "You''re not bad yourself, but we should continue, I still have others to fight against," Grey said. "Confident, the next time my attack hits you, you''ll be sent out of the platform," Harry responded. Buzz! Bang! Grey stomped on the ground before shooting into the air, floating gently in the sky, he spread out his hands. "Lightning rain," He muttered, while the lightning attack started, another more powerful attack started to form, "Meteor descent," These were attacks that usually covered large areas making it difficult for the opponent to defend against. The lightning rain can incapacitate his opponent with the paralyzing ability, while meteor descent will crush the opponent with its superior strength. He made sure not to add the earth element, making the attack weaker than when he originally used it with the earth element. Harry squinted his eyes when he saw the attacks raining down on him, he couldn''t help but feel slightly worried. Although these attacks covered large areas, their powers were in no way weak, which was against the norms. With him standing in the middle, a fire started to spread out, before rising. This wasn''t an attack he could evade unless he left the platform, and leaving the platform was the same as admitting defeat. The fire formed a red screen cube, with him standing in the middle. This was his best bet, defending against it. While he was inside the cube, he was making a fire arrow, condensing as much firepower as he possibly could, not forgetting to conceal the aura from Grey. His current plan was simple, even if he was going to lose, he wanted to make sure Grey wouldn''t go unscathed. Crash! Buzz! Bang! Grey''s attacks came crashing down on the fire screen, with cracks soon starting to spread from the first few attacks. Harry didn''t glance at the fire screen that was cracking, focusing his attention on the single arrow in front of him. The aura coming out of the fire arrow was more than any of the attacks he had released so far. It didn''t take long before the screen fell apart, leaving Harry at the mercy of Grey''s attacks. It was at the same time that he released the arrow that he had infused with so much essence. The speed of the arrow was alarming, blasting towards Grey. Grey and Harry''s attacks got to their opponent at the same time. Harry coated himself with flames, exploded out like a volcano trying to fight against the lightning and fire attack from Grey. Grey wasn''t able to sense the arrow in time, only noticing it when it was already within three feet away from him. His hairs stood on end and without even thinking, he vanished. ¡­. The crowd was kept in suspense when they saw Grey''s powerful attacks in the sky, they originally thought that Harry had lost, but just when the light screen broke, they saw a red glow shooting quickly towards Grey who didn''t notice it on time. Caught in two minds, some people didn''t know if to focus their attention on Harry who was going to defend against a powerful large-scale attack, or Grey who was going to be struck by a single powerful attack he didn''t see coming. Some of the audience even stood on their feet, staring at one individual, Grey. Their expressions changed because just when they thought the fire arrow had impaled Grey, it shot straight into the sky as if there was no one there. "He''s a Space Elementalist!" Someone from the crowd exclaimed while pointing at Grey who was currently somewhere else. If one looked closely, one will notice a slight pale blue light around him. "What?! All these while he wasn''t even using all his elements?" Someone else asked in shock. "Yes, just how powerful is he?" This was the question running through the heads of every single individual in the crowd. It''s general knowledge that Space Elementalists are the most difficult to deal with, especially someone like Grey who had other destructive elements. If he had used his space element from the start, then Harry wouldn''t have lasted this long. The crowd wasn''t the only ones who were shocked. Those sitting in the special area, except for the lady who knew he also had the space element, as well as the group from the Gayle family. "He has four elements, with the space element being one of them. It will be difficult for someone in the First or Second stage of the Overlord Plane to deal with him. As long as he sees the attack on time, he can almost always evade it, not just that, but he could also attack from unpredictable angles now. I wonder why he hasn''t shown the space element all this while?" The Faction Leader commented. "Isn''t it simple? No one has been able to make him use it," The lady said mockingly. The Faction Leader couldn''t refute her words since they were right. If not for Harry''s deadly sneak attack, then Grey wouldn''t have shown the space element, keeping it until it was time to use it. A fighter shouldn''t show all his cards from the start, and Grey was living with that code, perfectly. ¡­. With Grey escaping his attack, everyone turned to look at Harry who was still covered by the huge explosion. Chapter 501 - Wiping The Floor With Ernst Citys Geniuses After the explosion died down, Harry''s worn down figure appeared before everyone, he was on his knees, gasping for breath while a red light screen could be seen with cracks around him. He was sweating profusely, but the first thing he did when the explosion died down was to look at the sky to see if his last-minute attack was able to give him the result he wanted. But disappointment soon covered his face when he saw Grey who was still floating mid-air. He gave a self-deprecating chuckle before forcing himself to stand up. "I thought I could take you down with me, I never thought you''d be able to dodge that attack," He said still standing in the same spot. "I was lucky," Grey replied. Harry stared at him for a while before giving him a nod, just as he took another step, he started to fall. Grey''s figure blinked, before appearing beside Harry. Supporting with one arm so he wouldn''t fall. Even though he won, he had nothing but respect for him. After sensing the hand supporting him, he opened his eyes to look at who held him, on seeing that the hand belonged to Grey, he nodded slightly before closing his eyes, passing out. He used up all of his essences while defending against Grey''s attacks, and he still felt a small amount of the effects of the attacks, so he was not only exhausted but injured as well. Someone from the Pyro Faction came to the platform to carry Harry away. It was a young lady who was around Grey''s age, she nodded with a cold look before taking Harry away. Grey kept his deadpan expression before walking back to the center of the platform. "Next," He said. His words shocked everyone in the arena. They all expected him to take a rest of going through such a battle, and they wouldn''t even feel angry since they felt he needed it. But they never expected he was still raring to go. "Are you sure?" The head of the Gayle family asked, slightly taken aback. "Yes," Grey nodded. "Alright, come on stage," The head of the Gayle family turned to look in the direction of those in the First stage of the Overlord Plane. The person who stepped up next was a young lady, but everyone could sense the slight fear in her body language. She was no match for Harry and seeing that Grey had the space element, she knew she wasn''t an opponent for him. "You should give up if you know you''re not confident in at least trying to fight," Grey remarked. "No, I''ll fight," The young lady replied. "Alright," Grey replied. Thanks to his great physical body, he could still continue fighting without getting exhausted. Even when overusing his essence, it wouldn''t make him exhausted, this was the benefit of training one''s physical body! Unfortunately, no other Elementalists do it since they feel their bodies grow stronger after every breakthrough, and unlike Grey, even when some do, they can''t improve this quickly. The reason for his rapid improvement in his physical strength was the orb in his body. "Begin," The head of the Gayle family said without much zeal. It was like he already saw the outcome of the battle. He wasn''t the only one, everyone else could tell that the young lady wasn''t a match for Grey. The young lady was a Lightning Elementalist, so she quickly attacked as soon as the head of the Gayle family said they could begin. Grey didn''t think much, coating his legs with the lightning element, he shot towards the young lady. In terms of speed, red lightning is faster than silver lightning. Whoosh! Buzz! Bang! Within a few moves, the young lady was sent flying. Grey''s strength was not something she could defend against. Not just that, but after the previous fight, he was attacking with the same attack power, so his attacks were stronger. The attacks he used against Harry, if he used them against any other person in the First stage of the Overlord Plane or anyone in the Origin Plane, there was a fifty percent chance that they might die. After defeating the young lady, Grey didn''t take any rest, fighting the next person immediately. The next person was a young man who gave up, not daring to enter the platform. What was the use when he knew he wouldn''t be able to even last a move against him? Although Grey was holding back in his attacks, it didn''t mean that it didn''t hurt when they hit. Grey soon increased the number of people he fought against to two, after defeating three groups, he increased it to four. But the results were the same, especially now that he started using his space element in battles. His opponents couldn''t touch a hair on him, while he was able to easily switch locations, striking them from angles they never expected attacks to come from. Harry was the strongest person in the First stage of the Overlord Plane, and from his battle with these people, he ascertained that he was definitely stronger than them. Although, if he used the space element he would be able to deal with him quicker, with that sensory ability Harry used, it would be difficult to sneak up on him. Thirty minutes later, Grey was done battling those in the First stage of the Overlord Plane. Now, there were around fifty people left, fifteen of them were in the Third stage of the Overlord Plane, while the rest were in the Second stage. Harry was stronger than some of the people in the Second stage who were present here, and given the strength Grey had shown so far, he should be able to deal with most of them. "Are you continuing or taking a rest?" The head of the Gayle family asked. Just before Grey spoke up, the lady stood up. "He''ll be taking a twenty minutes break," She said before heading towards Grey. Before leaving, she made sure to look at the Faction Leader, telling him not to take a step out of the special area. Unknown to everyone here, while they were watching battles, the greatest heist was taking place in the entire city, and it was being done by a cat! Chapter 502 - Poison Specialist Twenty minutes soon went by and Grey walked back to the platform. Everyone has been waiting patiently for the battle to start again, when they saw Grey step into the platform, they looked on excitedly. "How many people are you fighting against?" The head of the Gayle family asked. Just like when Grey fought against those in the First stage of the Overlord Plane, he wanted to fight against one individual. A young lady was the first person to walk out, strutting into the platform confidently. "This is the end of your journey. I commend your effort for coming this far," The young lady said. "We''ll see about that," Grey replied gently. ¡­. When the crowd saw the young lady stepping onto the platform, a discussion broke out. "Petra, she''s the first person to step forward. Yes, we''re in for a show again!" Someone from the crowd exclaimed. "She''s ranked thirty-first in the geniuses rankings right?" Someone asked. "That was the previous ranking, it has been updated and she''s currently ranked twenty-ninth!" Another person said. "Wow! She''s moved up in the rank, amazing!" "Do you think that guy would be able to defeat her?" "We can''t be sure yet, but he definitely hasn''t shown his full strength. What I''m wondering is how he would be ranked in the rankings. He has already defeated Harry, so he should be able to take his spot, the only problem is this, he''s still in the Origin Plane," "Forget about that, the battle is about to start. Let the people who make the rankings worry about it," ¡­. Petra raised her hands slowly, and a streak of darkness danced around her fingers like a snake. "A Darkness Elementalist," Grey muttered to himself. He had only ever fought against one Darkness Elementalist, and that was Quinn. Back at the Azure continent, the darkness element was rare, just like the light element, and it seems like it''s the same here. "Begin!" Grey didn''t immediately attack when he heard the order for the battle to begin, he waited while staring at Petra. "Heh! Cautious," Petra smirked before tapping her foot on the ground. A dark shadow spread around the platform. Grey retreated when he saw this, making sure the darkness didn''t touch him. He didn''t know what it could do, nor did he want to know. The darkness didn''t stop even after going more than halfway through the platform. It moved like a circle before covering the entire platform. Grey was forced to make an ice step that he stood on top. Petra smiled before waving her hand, a spike shot out of the ground, stabbing towards Grey who was still standing on the ice step. Bam! Grey sent a fireball at the spike, destroying it. But as soon as he destroyed this one, another came from his back. He was standing still on the ice step, attacking any of the spikes that came in his direction. The spikes continued attacking from all angles of the platform, keeping Grey in the same position. Grey created an inscription, using it to attack Petra. Since she didn''t want to give him the chance to leave the spot he was standing, he would attack with inscriptions. He could also use the space element if he wanted to. Bang! Petra created a darkness shield that blocked the attacks from the inscription. Grey vanished from where he was standing, appearing beside her with a fire orb in his hand. He quickly sent it towards her, while also making sure to create an ice step that he stood on. He had a bad feeling whenever he looked at the floor, so he didn''t want to stand on it. Petra''s figure suddenly sank into the ground when the fire orb got close to her. It was as if the ground was made of water. Grey''s expression changed slightly when he saw this. Looking around, he tried to find the location Petra was going to surface. Unbeknownst to him, the ice step he was standing on had already sunk into the ground, his legs already going in. He suddenly noticed the ground was getting closer to him, by the time he looked down, he was already knee-deep into the ground. "What the hell?!" He exclaimed before jumping. After he jumped up, he made an ice bridge that ran across the platform, with pillars suspending it in the air outside the platform. Petra soon resurfaced after he landed on the ice bridge, an evil grin on her face. Her expression alarmed Grey which made him look around vigilantly, but he didn''t notice anything. He even checked his body properly in case there was anything inside, but he didn''t find anything. ''Hmm, weird. Why would she have that expression if she didn''t do anything?'' He thought to himself. Petra on the other hand was starting to look at him confused. Usually, all she needed to do was touch the opponent with her darkness attack just once, and she would win the fight. But Grey was alright even after soaking in her darkness swamp. The technique she was practicing made her one of the deadliest Darkness Elementalists since she turned her attacks into something similar to poison. It''s just like how Grey used his darkness element to slowly corrode the cores of the young lady from the Smith family, only much more powerful. ''Why isn''t he showing any signs of reacting to my poison?'' Petra asked while staring at Grey. Grey stood on top of the bridge for a little while before spreading out his hand. Since Petra wasn''t going to make any move, then he was going to destroy what she made on the platform. "Meteor descent," He muttered. Large fireballs appeared in the air like a meteor, before descending down. Petra, seeing the attacks, sank back into the ground, hoping to use the darkness swamp to block the attacks. Bang! Boom! Bam! The attacks started crashing down on the platform, but as soon as they touched the ground, they would sink down. Chapter 503 - Underwhelming Performance In the special area of the arena. "Eh? I thought she was powerful, how come all she''s doing is defending?" One of the old men from the big families said. "She is specialized in using the corrosive ability of the darkness element to full effect. Previously, all she needed to defeat her opponent was nothing but a touch. But as you all saw, that young man is very cautious. Not just that, but he seems to be completely immune to the corrosive ability of the darkness element. Without that, even though Petra can still fight, she isn''t really much of a threat to him," The Faction Leader commented. Petra was very famous in Ernst City because of her abilities with the darkness element. She has a series of ways to make the element touch her opponent, thereby incapacitating them. But presently, Grey wasn''t reacting to this, which meant that she has technically lost more than fifty percent of the advantage she had. If others look at the ongoing battle, some would think she was weaker than Harry, which was not true. "Heh! If sending something into that guy''s body is the only way she can win, then there''s no need to even start this battle in the first place," The lady who came with Grey scoffed. Even someone as powerful as her couldn''t incapacitate Grey by sending elements into his body, much less someone who is just barely stronger than him. ''Hmm, looks like this guy has more secrets than he''s willing to share,'' She thought while looking at Grey. She sent out her spiritual senses when Grey''s body got into the darkness swamp, and she was certain that the darkness element entered his body. But unlike the time she sent lightning towards him, he didn''t absorb it, instead, lightning in his body automatically fought against it, and even Grey was oblivious to this. ¡­. Back at the platform. Bang! Boom! Grey''s attacks kept crashing down, but unfortunately, none of them could do any damages to the swamp-like area Petra made. She hasn''t resurfaced since he started attacking, leaving the duo in a stalemate. ''Hmm, at this rate, I''m just wasting my essence. Since that''s the case, I''ll use that,'' Grey stopped his meteor descent. Before making multiple hand seals, small orbs soon started to form around him. It was a combination of fire and lightning elements. This was the strongest attack he could quickly use without straining himself out. The orbs were five in number, after growing to the size of a fist, he dropped his hand, making them fall straight down. They touched the ground, before slowly sinking into it. Boom! An explosion rocked the entire platform, causing the swamp-like ground to stir up uneasily. It was as if it was boiling after the first explosion. Like a chain reaction, the remaining four orbs started exploding one by one. Boom! Bang! Boom! The swamp-like area churned like a raging sea. Soon, the area started to shrink. ¡­. In the special area. The Faction Leader stared at Grey, a little uncertain of what to feel. But there was one thing he was presently sure of, and that was that he wanted to recruit him so badly. His eyes darted to the figure who was sitting beside him, and his dreams of being able to convince Grey to his Faction died. Let''s face it, with her here, he wouldn''t even dare to take such a bold step in trying to recruit him. ''His elemental grade is quite high. He must be from those high-ranked Families or Faction. But, he''s still a bit lacking in strength when compared to them, and his cultivation stage is even below our geniuses. What happened to him, could it be that he couldn''t break through to the Overlord Plane?'' He pondered while staring at Grey. After this attack of Grey, the winner of the battle had already been shown. ¡­. Bang! Crash! Boom! A human figure was soon blown out of the shrinking swamp which was only around two meters now. The figure crashed hard into the platform. Petra had a look of dread in her eyes, not believing that she lost just like that. She didn''t even last as long as Harry lasted, nor did she bring out any powerful skills. It''s not that she didn''t, it''s just that it was useless against Grey. "Give up, you''re not strong enough to fight against me," Grey said while still standing on his ice bridge. "Hmph!" Petra snorted coldly, but still turned and left the platform. There was no use in staying any longer, the outcome of the battle had already been decided when her special attacks proved useless. She knew any other attack would be futile since it would be difficult for her to touch Grey again with her attacks. The darkness element was powerful, but it had one fatal flaw, it was too slow, especially for someone like Grey with the space element. ¡­. "Well, that''s underwhelming," Someone commented from the crowd. "Yeah, I think her special move was useless against him. This is why she lost so easily," A more observant person in the crowd said. They all started to discuss the battle, but one thing was for sure, it didn''t live up to expectations. Harry''s battle was more blood-boiling and thrilling. "No need to fret, there are still two more people higher up in the rankings, and none of them is a Darkness Elementalist. And if he manages to defeat them, then there''s the lot in the Third stage, and Clovis from the Pyro Faction is there. He''s ranked among the top five in this region amongst those in the Early stages of the Overlord Plane. I don''t think this kid would be able to beat him. ¡­. Back at the platform. Grey had called for the next challenger to step forward. After defeating Harry, no other battle has been worthwhile. Even he couldn''t deny it, if not for the lady''s training, he wouldn''t have been as powerful as this. ''Every bit counts.. I hope she can continue training me though.'' Chapter 504 - Fighting Against A Speedster The next person was also a young lady, but she was a Dual Elementalist, having the fire and wind elements which are greatly beneficial to each other. "Begin!" Swoosh! Bang! Crack! The young lady darted forward and attacked immediately, destroying the ice bridge Grey made. Grey jumped down from the bridge to dodge the attack. But just before his leg could touch the ground. Boom! Bang! The young lady attacked again, forcing him to defend. He was pushed back, sliding almost five meters before he stopped. He raised his head to look at the young lady, but she was nowhere to be seen. Without even thinking, he set up an ice wall around himself to block any unsuspecting attack. Bam! An attack slammed into the ice wall on his right, and he quickly looked in that direction. Swoosh! As Grey was turning to look to his right, a figure appeared in the sky, just above him. ''Crap!'' He suddenly realized the attack to the wall was a feint. Boom! The young lady who was just around four meters above him attacked with full power. Bang! Crack! The ice walls in all corners shattered, and Grey''s figure could be seen shooting out of the place where the explosion occurred. The young lady followed swiftly, not waiting to give him a chance to recuperate. She was far stronger than Clara who he fought against back at the Gayle family. Assisted by her dual elements, she wasn''t an easy opponent. Her attack power was on the level of Harry, and her speed was surprisingly above Grey''s. Swoosh! Boom! Bang! She continued attacking relentlessly, with Grey doing his best to make sure he wasn''t hit by any of the attacks. He was dodging the attacks by a hair''s breadth, making sure to minimize the space essence he uses. Without the space element, she would''ve hit him by now. Bang! An attack which was about to hit him solidly on the back was block by a timely fire orb he sent out. The impact of the attack though forced him back once again. As soon as his foot touched the ground, even before he could regain his footing, he hurriedly made an inscription in the sky. The young lady shot past the place of the explosion which still had smoke around, attempting to attack Grey once again. But she suddenly halted, before dodging to the right. Bang! Grey''s inscription attacked slammed into the ground, missing it''s target. Grey used the small time he got to organize himself before trying to attack the young lady. When the young lady saw Grey''s attack coming towards her, she created a wind screen that blocked the attack, before sending out an attack. They soon started exchanging moves, with the young lady dodging most of Grey''s attacks while also blocking some. Grey decided to play it safe, dodging as much as he can. He noticed from the start that his defense was not strong enough to block the young lady''s attacks, so whenever he tries to block it, he only creates opportunities for his opponent to suppress him. Since the introduction of his inscription, the battle has been slightly balanced, although, the young lady is clearly on top in terms of power and defense. ¡­. The crowd cheered on happily while watching the back and forth battle between both fighters. This has been one of the most even battles since the battles started, and for the first time even, Grey was on the back foot. This made the crowd cheer even more. Although they had been enjoying the battles all this while, it was still somewhat embarrassing to see the geniuses from your city being wiped out by an unknown individual who isn''t even on the same Plane as them. "Hahaha, although Phoebe is ranked lower than Petra, she has her advantages as well. With insane speed and power, she is dominating this brat. Hahaha, I can feel my blood boiling, quick, hold me before I jump onto the platform," An excited laughter came from the crowd. "Hahaha, me too. Unfortunately, we are already too old. I would''ve loved to teach this brat a thing or two," The crowd was very lively in this battle. Some were commending the efforts of Phoebe who was suppressing Grey, while a stark few were unexpectedly rooting for Grey. The reason for this? They didn''t want to battles to end soon. In the special area. "Hmm, Phoebe made the best decision, ceaseless attacks will always suppress your opponents," The Faction Leader commented. Phoebe was a member of the Pyro Faction as well, so he felt quite proud of her. The Pyro Faction only took in Elementalists who had the fire element. "Not against an opponent as cool headed as Grey. Yes, it will place him in a slightly difficult position, but he will find a way to get through this. Don''t forget he''s making minimum use of the space element. And I do believe that he has a few tricks up his sleeves as well," The lady who came with Grey said. The Faction Leader nodded, he too noticed Grey''s amazing composure. Most people his age wouldn''t be this composed when they''re being forced back or suppressed, but he was not only keeping calm, but people could see that he seems to be planning something. ¡­. Back on the platform. Grey has been dodging in a certain movement, moving all over the platform as he dodged and attacked. There was a reason for this though, he was making an array. Not just any array, but a small scale teleportation array. While he was training with the lady on essence consumption, he tried to implement it on his arrays as well, and he managed to come up with something a little unique. Making a small scale teleportation array around a certain region, it would not only make him teleport faster, but the essence consumption rate would be at least forty percent lower. Against a fast opponent like Phoebe, this was the best move. How do you defeat a speedster? By being faster! There''s no way a Wind Elementalist would be able to dominate a Space Elementalist in terms of speed, and Grey was about to show Phoebe exactly this. Chapter 505 - Fighting Against A Speedster II ''That took longer than expected,'' Grey thought as he once again dodged Phoebe''s attack. Bang! The attack slammed into the side of the platform. ''Alright, time to counterattack,'' Grey smiled before vanishing. For the first time since their battle started, Grey used the space element when he was not under any attack. Phoebe tensed up, waiting patiently for where Grey would appear. "Left," She turned to her left quickly while sending out a powerful swirling flame. Boom! The attack missed its target as there was no one there. ''Hmm, he''s gone again. Heh! If he thinks he can defeat me this way then he''s underestimating my capabilities,'' Phoebe scoffed. Grey''s figure soon popped out from behind her, but she was ready once again, attacking quickly while retreating backward. Boom! The attack hit empty air once again as Grey''s figure was nowhere to be seen. Just before Phoebe was able to steady herself after retreating, Grey''s figure popped up once again from her back. Bang! Grey attacked as soon as he came out this time. Phoebe turned around quickly with the help of the wind element, using her powerful flames to block the attack. She was forced to take a single step back because of the impact. Compared to Grey''s fire attack, Phoebe''s was more powerful. And it isn''t really something surprising since she was more powerful. If not for Grey''s array of elements, as well as his strong physical body, he wouldn''t have been able to fight against her for this long. Phoebe''s expression turned serious, not expecting Grey''s speed in teleporting to be this fast. Boom! She managed to block another attack, but this time, she was forced back by two steps because she was slightly distracted. Grey soon started an onslaught of attacks, not giving her any chance to try to counterattack, it''s not that she didn''t have any chances, it was just that before her attacks could get to Grey, he was already gone. Grey started using the inscription that was mid-air in the battle as well, attacking with everything he got. Phoebe was immediately placed in a passive state, barely able to defend properly, much less attacking. Grey''s use of the inscription and timing of his attacks were ingenious. He would attack with the inscription, and while Phoebe was focused on defending against the inscription, he would appear from her blind side and attack. Phoebe might be strong, but fighting against someone like Grey who seems to be two because of the inscription was impossible for her. Although she was fighting against one person, she was technically defending against two attacks from two different angles at the same time, with each attack sent out with unimaginable precision. Boom! Bang! Bam! Phoebe soon started to take hits from the attacks, although it was only the weakened version of the attacks, it was still starting to take a toll on her body. ¡­. The crowd was still watching the battle excitedly, those rooting for Phoebe clenched their fists in worry as they could see she was on the verge of losing. Those who supported Grey were all happy, while the majority of them were just enjoying the beauty of the battle and the craftiness of Grey. With a simple solution, he reversed the situation of the battle, and from the looks of it, this was how the battle was going to end. At the special area. "*Sigh* He''s won again," The Faction Leader shook his head dejectedly. Although he wasn''t too hopeful in Phoebe winning, he still had some hope when Grey was on the back foot. Grey isn''t as powerful as Phoebe, but he was more experienced in battling, knowing when to defend and attack. This was the true strength of a fighter. Battles aren''t always about power, but brains. A smart opponent can easily wipe out an army if given resources and a chance to plan properly. "Isn''t it expected? He might be weaker than those left, but his battle experience is higher. Not just that, but having multiple elements and being smart enough to use it in the most ingenious ways makes him an opponent people wouldn''t want to meet. If he were to be a stage or two lower than me, I wouldn''t dare to fight against him," The lady said. The Faction Leader nodded, he couldn''t refute the fact that Grey was a tad above others his age when it came to battles. He was also very cool and collected when forced into a tough situation, making it difficult to force him to make wrong decisions. ¡­. The battle went on and Phoebe continued getting hit by Grey''s attacks. After almost ten minutes of the constant barrage of attacks, Phoebe was forced to her knees. "It''s over. I win," Grey said, appearing before her. "I guess so," Phoebe replied before standing up. She gave Grey a deep look before turning around, heading back to the area those from the Pyro Faction were sitting. Since she had been defeated, she had turned to one of the audience watching the battle. Grey heaved a sigh of relief, this battle was tougher than he expected, but he was happy with the result. "Will you continue?" The head of the Gayle family asked. To his surprise, Grey shook his head. This battle took a lot from him, he wanted to take a fifteen minutes break to recover. The head of the Gayle family nodded, before taking his seat. None of the people in the arena complained when Grey said he wanted to rest. He had been fighting for almost four hours now, alone, against a large group of people. Not many people could last this long. What was more exciting was that there would be more thrilling battles to come, and the possibility of Grey losing soon is very high. This can be seen in his battle against Phoebe. Although he managed to win in the end, it wasn''t as easy as it used to be. Not everyone in the Second stage was as powerful as Phoebe, there were two or three more just as strong if not stronger than her. Then, there''s the group in the Third stage of the Overlord Plane. If Grey manages to get to that point, then he would most certainly lose. This was what everyone in the crowd was thinking, but they were all impressed by his performance nonetheless. Chapter 506 - Two Left After thirty minutes went by, Grey stood up from his meditative position. "I''m ready," He said to the head of the Gayle. The head of the Gayle family nodded before calling the next challenger. This person was a young man, dressed in the uniform of members of the Pyro Faction. Their battle soon started, with both individuals being locked in a stalemate. Although this person wasn''t as powerful as Phoebe, he wasn''t weak either. Just like Phoebe, he was also a Dual Elementalist, having the fire and earth element. His high defense coupled with the high firepower made him a difficult opponent. Grey was certain that he would be able to go toe to toe with Mid stages Overlord Plane Elementalists who have a purple elemental grade for their elements. The strength of each Elementalist is greatly attributed to how high their elemental grades were. For instance, the only reason Grey could fight against these people was that he had multiple high elemental grades. Some of his opponents had the blue or violet grade, but he had three elements that were in the blue grade, and one was in the violet grade while another was in the cyan grade which he was certain was more powerful than the violet grade. Boom! Bang! Bam! They exchanged moves rapidly, with Grey managing to slowly gain the upper hand when he introduced his inscriptions as well as his space element. With these two in his arsenal, it was difficult for people who were just barely stronger than he is to defeat him. After almost twenty minutes of fighting, he managed to defeat the young man. The crowd didn''t find this unexpected since they had already predicted it from the start. Other than two young men in this group who were slightly stronger than Phoebe and a young lady that was on her level, there was no one else who would be able to threaten Grey. Even with those three, it would be difficult for them to defeat him since once he introduces his inscriptions it would seem like they were fighting against two individuals at the same time. Given the wits and brains Grey had shown so far, he''s good at capitalizing on mistakes. Grey started the next battle immediately since he didn''t use much of his elemental essence during the previous battle. His opponent was weaker than the young man he just fought, so he was able to quickly get the win. One hour thirty minutes later, only three people were left in the group of the Second stage Overlord Plane Elementalists, and they were the three the crowd singled out. "Will you continue?" The head of the Gayle family asked. Grey nodded, not wanting to waste any more time. He could tell these three were just as powerful as Phoebe, if not stronger. She was the only one who had placed him in a difficult situation, and he wanted to see if someone could force him to go the extra mile. "Alright," The head of the Gayle family nodded before turning his gaze to the group of three. He couldn''t believe that of over five hundred people who came for the battle, only eighteen were left. Fifteen were in the Third stage of the Overlord Plane while the remaining three were in the Second stage. If things went as expected, then Grey would certainly defeat these three. He didn''t know what was more embarrassing, calling forth multiple people from their city to be defeated, or the fact that they were being defeated by a single person who was even on a lower Plane. The young lady amongst the three was the one who stepped forward when she noticed none of the two young men were showing any signs of making a move. They both had smug and confident expressions, and she couldn''t help but wonder where it came from. It was important for a fighter to be confident when they''re going into battle, but if who they''re fighting is someone who has defeated someone stronger than they are, confidence alone won''t be enough. "Hello, I''ll be your opponent this time, please go easy on me," The young lady bowed as she got on the platform. "Likewise," Grey bowed as well. "Begin!" The head of the Gayle family called out. Grey and the young lady attacked simultaneously, each not wanting to give the other the time to prepare. Boom! Both attacks crashed into each other, causing an explosion. The young lady was a Lightning Elementalist, so after his attack was blocked by Grey''s attack, she coated her body with the lightning element before rushing towards him. Grey didn''t stand by idle, he also used his lightning element to dash towards the position the young lady was standing. Swoosh! Buzz! Bang! Boom! They quickly started exchanging moves with red and silver lightning streaks running through the entire platform. Some people with lower stages found it difficult to keep up with their speed. Grey didn''t give the young lady any chances, attacking whenever the opportunity arose. The young lady also attacked as well, blasting Grey with her most powerful attacks. The battle didn''t last long as after five minutes, Grey and the young lady stopped moving, red streaks of lightning still dancing around Grey''s body like a snake. Surprisingly, the red streaks weren''t dancing around his body alone, even the young lady was tied by red lightning in the shape of a snake. "I lost," She said softly. Grey retracted the lightning that was holding the young lady. She glanced at Grey before walking down from the platform. Even after going all out, she couldn''t even force Grey to use his space element, although he used it, it was only two or three times. This battle ended with a resounding victory for Grey, and it was also one of his quickest against those in the Second stage of the Overlord Plane. This didn''t mean that the young lady was weaker, it was just her style of fighting. Grey was able to capitalize on a single mistake, hereby quickly defeating her. "Will you continue?" The head of the Gayle family asked. Grey stared at his two opponents left in the group of Second stage Overlord Plane Elementalists. "Yes," He nodded. Chapter 507 - Tough Battle Of the two young men left, one of them was from the Pyro Faction, while the other was from one of the big families in Ernst City. The young man from one of the big families looked at the other from the Pyro Faction, seeing that he wasn''t making any moves, he took a step forward. Walking towards the platform with steadied footsteps, he stared at Grey all the way. He couldn''t hide the fact that he was surprised and impressed by Grey''s performance. He wasn''t sure he would be able to fight this long. If he was to take breaks, then he wouldn''t have any problems, but Grey had barely taken any rest. Not just that, but they all knew how terrifying Petra was, but seeing how Grey was able to easily defeat her, they guessed he was her natural enemy, meaning she was powerless against him. After stepping onto the platform, he didn''t say a word, waiting for the head of the Gayle family to call for the start of the battle. "Ready?" The head of the Gayle family asked both fighters. Grey and the young man nodded simultaneously. "Alright, begin!" With a simple step, the young man suddenly disappeared. Bang! Grey created an ice wall on his right which blocked the attack of the young man. The young man was unexpectedly a Multi Elementalist, having two elements that boosted speed, and the earth element for defense and powerful attacks. The earth hammer that he sent towards Grey was easily blocked by the ice wall, but cracks appeared on the wall. He didn''t stop there, attacking with his lightning element. A streak of thunder shot across the sky before shooting towards Grey''s head. Grey didn''t try to dodge the attack, he gave a small smile, before opening his mouth, and like a Dragon, he spat out flames that blasted towards the lightning coming towards him. Boom! Both attacks clashed, causing an explosion. The young man already prepared his next set of attacks, using the wind element to bolster the speed of the earth arrows he made, shooting them towards Grey at breakneck speed. The arrows quickly created a hole in the ice wall shielding Grey. Grey dodged from side to side, making sure he wasn''t hit by any of the earth arrows. The earth arrows might be small, but they all packed a powerful punch. Bang! Boom! Bam! The battle raged on with both fighters exchanging moves from left to right. The young man was the fastest opponent Grey had met, and he was using his speed to the fullest. He seemed to have learned a thing or two from Grey''s previous battles, so he knew when to retreat and when to constantly attack. He had been able to make sure Grey didn''t have the time to make his inscriptions, while also being aware of Grey''s movements. They''ve all found out that Grey was able to defeat Phoebe because he made a small array that aided his teleportation. Boom! Grey was sent flying by an attack, but while still mid-air, he spread out his hands, sending out a stream of flames to make sure the young man didn''t get the chance to attack him while he was mid-air. After doing that, he vanished, appearing on the platform once again. The moment he appeared, the young man attacked with the lightning element, sending out lightning spears. Grey dodged once again, using the space element to dodge the attack. Other than dodging, he still hadn''t used the space element to its full effect. He still had a very valuable skill he was saving for when he would fight against those in the Third stage of the Overlord Plane, switch. If he were to use it now, then he would definitely be able to quickly defeat this young man. But that would mean showing his remaining opponents the skill and giving them a chance to find a way to counter it. Although it was a difficult skill to counter, it didn''t mean it was impossible. Bang! Boom! They started their brawl once again, each sending the other flying whenever the opportunity came, but none have been able to get the upper hand. Although it was clear to all that the young man was stronger than Grey, he was unable to defeat him. After all, it wasn''t like he was the first person who had shown strength that was more than Grey''s. Yet, Grey has managed to not only fight against them, but he had defeated them as well. "Meteor descent," Grey used one of his most powerful moves. The young man created a tornado that he used to ward off the fire coming his way. He countered by creating a lightning blade he slashed towards Grey. Bang! Grey blocked the attack but was forced to crash down because of the force of the attack. Bam! He landed on the ground but quickly dodged to the left because of the attack the young man sent in his direction. The young man continued attacking with his lightning blade, not giving Grey the chance to rest. Bang! Boom! Grey''s expression was one of utmost seriousness, making sure he didn''t give the young man any chance to hit him properly. "Huh?" A look of surprise appeared on Grey''s face when he was unable to move. He looked down and saw his leg had been clamped by the earth element, reaching his knee. The next lightning blade slash that came his way appeared just as quickly. Since he was stuck, he was forced to either take the blow head-on or use the space element. But given the distance of the attack, he wasn''t too confident in being able to dodge the attack with his space element. Even though the space element was fast, he wasn''t that good with it yet. Void could easily dodge an attack that was already so close that it was touching his fur, Grey on the other hand couldn''t, for now. ''Damn it!'' He infused the fire element in his fist, before sending a punch to the slash that was coming his way. Boom! Chapter 508 - Mission Accomplished! Boom! A figure was sent flying from the place of the explosion. Bang! The figure crashed heavily into the platform. When the crowd stared at the figure, they were stunned when they realized it was unexpectedly the young man. Looking at where the young man was previously standing, they saw Grey standing there, gasping a little for his breath. Before they could process what was happening, Grey had shot towards the young man who was still on the ground. Boom! Bam! Bang! Within a few moves, he sent the young man flying once again. Crash! The young man bounced off the ground, and just before his body could get to the ground again, Grey appeared, slamming a large ice hammer into his body. Bang! The young man was sent flying again, this time, heading towards the crowd, away from the platform. Bang! He slammed into the ground just below the first row of seats. Blood dripping from the side of his mouth, not showing any signs of moving. Those related to him hurried towards where he crashed, after checking and seeing that he was only unconscious, they heaved a sigh of relief. It was only after this did everyone turn to look at Grey in amazement, even the lady who had been with him for a while still had this expression on her face. It was clear that even she didn''t know of this skill. ¡­. In the special area. "What an impressive skill, he switched places with his opponent just before the explosion happened," The lady remarked. The others nodded with a serious expression. This was a skill that would take anyone unaware. What Grey did was simple, the attack he did was only a feint. What he really did was not only causing an explosion, but he improved the force of the young man''s attack, while using the chance to switch places with the young man. There was no way the young man would expect that he would be thrown into such a predicament, hence he was unable to set up a defense against it which caused his defeat. "With such a move, will anyone be able to defeat him?" The Faction Leader asked. "It will be difficult, but they should. Well, as long as he doesn''t have any more surprises," An old lady from one of the big families replied. "From what he''s shown so far, do you think he doesn''t have more surprises?" The Faction Leader asked. Although he hadn''t been in contact with Grey for long, he could tell he was a very cautious person. There was no way someone that cautious would show all his cards. There is definitely something he was still hiding, something more powerful. But the truth was, he didn''t really need it since only this skill was enough to deter anyone from recklessly attacking him. As long as all his opponents were holding back, he could easily dominate some of them. Those in the special area weren''t the only ones who were discussing the skill Grey just showed, the entire arena was abuzz because of it. From thinking Grey was defeated to seeing him miraculously changing positions with the young man, defeating him in the process. The rest of the challengers stared at Grey in trepidation. It wasn''t that they weren''t confident in their abilities, but this ability of Grey''s was just too unpredictable. If they send out a powerful attack and he suddenly switches places with them, then they would be in danger of not only receiving their own moves but also Grey''s attacks. ¡­. The head of the Gayle family lost more hope when he saw Grey''s new skill. Initially, he hosted this event to see who would be able to help him get revenge, but now, he didn''t think anyone would be able to. Even if they could beat Grey, none of them could kill him before the lady intervenes. He asked Grey if he wanted to continue, and Grey shook his head, opting to take a break. He didn''t say anything, taking a seat as well, his expression showed disappointment and anger. Grey was right in front of him, but he couldn''t do anything to him. He even sent some geniuses who he thought might be able to do at least a small amount of damage to Grey, but it was futile. Grey even fought them together, and none of them managed to hit him. Petra was his best hope of harming Grey with her poison-like attacks, but it was even more hopeless. While Grey was still resting, he heard a voice in his head. ''Alright, mission accomplished . You can stop fighting now,'' Void said. ''Oh, alright. I''ll fight two more battles before losing,'' Grey replied. ¡­. In the special area. Void soon appeared from nowhere, jumping into the lap of the lady who was sitting close to the Faction Leader. None of the people there noticed when he appeared. Even the lady, it was only after she felt him on her lap did she realize he was back. A smile formed on her face before she turned to look at Grey, her eyes clearly telling him to give up immediately so they could leave this place. The reason she set up this battle was surprisingly because of this. Initially, she only planned to take what Void wanted, but the idea suddenly came to her when she realized Void could actually sneak through any array set up. This was when she had the grand plan of stealing from all the big families at the same time. Grey on the other hand wanted to see how far he could go. So there was no way he was planning to give up now. "Huh? Such a strange cat, when did it come here?" The Faction Leader was the first to notice Void. "He''s been here for a while now, but how would you notice him when you''re praying your students defeat that kid," The lady replied casually. "Oh, I didn''t take note, don''t mind me," The Faction Leader quickly ended the conversation. Grey had been beating people up for a while now, it would be a shame if the lady decided to continue their battle from before. ¡­. Twenty minutes later. "I''m ready," Grey stood up, walking to the center of the platform. Chapter 509 - Fighting Against An Elemental Warrior "Begin!" Boom! Bam! Grey''s last opponent in the Second stage didn''t hold anything back while attacking. Of course he was aware of Grey''s ability to switch places with his opponent, but he just doesn''t seem to care, or at least that was how it looked given how recklessly he was attacking. He was from the Pyro Faction, which meant he was using the fire element. His attacks were powerful, more than that of any of the people Grey had ever fought against. Seeing the raging flames coming towards him, Grey knew blocking it was completely out of question. With a swift movement, he dodged to the right, making sure he escaped from the range of that attack. His expression soon changed the moment he dodged the attack, the reason for this was because there was a figure made entirely of fire, standing over two meters tall that suddenly appeared before him. He didn''t need anyone to tell him what it was, an Elemental Warrior, and a high-grade one to boot. Bam! The Elemental Warrior sent a punch towards him. Grey crossed his hands in front of him, ice quickly spreading across them to increase his defense. But he was effortlessly sent flying by the Elemental Warrior. Swoosh! Bang! He slammed into the ground heavily, bouncing off a few times. Just as his body bounced off the ground for the fourth time, the Elemental Warrior appeared beside him, giving him a powerful kick on the side of his stomach that sent him shooting into the sky. Bam! Grey was sent well over fifteen meters into the air, giving off a trail of ice as he shot up. He managed to use the water element to create ice around his body that helped block the attack of the Elemental Warrior. Although he was able to block it, he still faced the full brunt of the attack which rocked him. The kick made him feel like his organs had all moved positions, causing him a lot of pain. ''Damn it! I need to find a way to fight back,'' Grey thought while still mid-air. This wasn''t his first time fighting against Elemental Warriors, so he knew just how powerful they could get. The Elemental Warrior appeared in the sky, while Grey was spiraling down, throwing a punch at his chest. This time, instead of using ice, Grey opted to use water instead, trying to soften the punch, while also praying that it slowed it down enough for him to quickly escape. Luckily, the water managed to halt the movement of the punch, just in time to give him the chance to use the space element to dodge. The fist of the Elemental Warrior gave off a huge amount of steam since it was made of flames. Boom! Grey''s figure suddenly appeared behind the Elemental Warrior, adorned in ice armor from head to toe, he punched the head of the Elemental Warrior, infusing all four elements into his attack. Bam! Bang! Crash! The Elemental Warrior came crashing down from the blow, landing heavily on the ground. It created a large dust cloud on the platform as it landed. But before long, its flaming red-figure could be seen shooting towards Grey. Bam! Bang! Boom! They started exchanging blows mid-air. Grey punched as if his life depended on it, dodging as many blows as he could while also delivering some powerful ones. ¡­. The crowd was surprised by Grey''s approach in this battle. Even though they knew from the start that his physical strength was high, none of them actually expected him to fight against an Elemental Warrior with his fist. Naturally, the fight was nothing short of amazing in their eyes. They cheered as Grey and the Elemental Warrior fought across the entire platform, one figure covered in ice, and the other made entirely of flames. It was like a battle of two contrasting elements. Those in the special area watched on seriously as well. Everyone knew just how powerful Elemental Warriors could get, and seeing Grey fighting against it was kind of refreshing to watch. ¡­. Bang! Grey slammed into the ground heavily, but quickly bounced up, coating himself with the lightning element, he dodged to the side, to make sure the Elemental Warrior''s follow-up attack didn''t hit him. Moving his fingers as if drawing multiple seals, he created a lightning attack that covered a span of over five cubic meters, perfectly hitting the Elemental Warrior with the repeated attacks. This attack focused on the speed of the Elementalist since it involved attacking repeatedly with a series of lightning strikes, from different angles, all done by the Elementalist. If the Elementalist is slow, then the attack wouldn''t be able to carry any powerful punch. The Elemental Warrior was forced to take a few steps back, before creating a fire sword that it used to block most of Grey''s attacks. Grey quickly took out a blade from his storage ring, of course it wasn''t the one he acquired from the Gayle family. Although the quality was a little lacking, he felt he could make do with it. Not just that, but while he was attacking a few moments ago, he had also created the array he made when fighting against Phoebe. Bang! Bam! They started exchanging attacks with swords, Grey looking as if he was in every single part of the platform. The attacks were powerful, sending out countless raging flames and lightning in all directions. Luckily, there was a special array that stopped any of the attacks from getting to the crowd. Just when everyone was still engrossed in the battle, it suddenly stopped. The reason for this was because Grey''s sword was currently placed on the neck of the young man from the Pyro Faction, and the Elemental Warrior was a distance away. Grey''s eyes were cold, clearly saying that if the young man didn''t stop his Elemental Warrior, then he would end him. ''Heh!'' A grin formed on the face of the young man. Boom! Grey was pushed back when an explosion suddenly occurred, with him bearing the brunt of the attack. Chapter 510 - Fierce Fight "Heh! How reckless of you, did you think I would be defenseless when my Elemental Warrior was fighting?" The young asked with a smirk. He had been watching Grey since he summoned his Elemental Warrior, and he surprisingly noticed that Grey focused entirely on it, not giving any attention to him. Grey was lucky he actually tried to attack him at the time he did, or else he had been preparing a powerful attack that would''ve been able to kill him. Although the Elemental Warrior took a lot of essences, he could still fight against Grey with his Elemental Warrior active. Bang! Grey crashed into the ground, rolling before quickly standing up. ''Hmm, looks like I miscalculated. Unlike the Azure continent, people here can easily fight with their Elemental Warriors active. I was lucky this time, this is a mistake that could cost a life,'' He thought seriously. If not for his speed in retreating, he would''ve been seriously hurt by the attack. At the time he placed the sword on the neck of the young man, he was completely carefree, not even setting up a defense or anything since he didn''t think the young man was of any threat anymore. Luckily for him, he learned his lesson, although slightly bruised, it wasn''t really anything serious. "My mistake, but I can assure you, you''ve also taken me too lightly," Grey replied to the young man''s words. Snap! With a snap of his hands, a light lit up on the platform, it was in the shape of a hexagon. It was the array he learned from that group who captured the Barbarians. This time, instead of using it in an inscription, he created a large array with it, almost covering the entire platform. The advantage of this was that he could attack the young man and the Elemental Warrior as long as they were standing on the platform with it, not just that, but he could also defend with it. While the array was lighting up, two inscriptions appeared mid-air, one on the left, and one on the right. "This is me taking you seriously," Grey said after everything was set up. "Haha, I must say all these are impressive but do you have the mental capacity to use all of them at the same time?" The young man scoffed. They all looked impressive, but his question was right, it would require a large amount of mental strength to control them while also attacking personally as well. It was like dividing your attention into four separate parts. "Why don''t we check it out?" Grey asked challengingly. ''I''m going all out this time. Although I wouldn''t be using all my elements, it wouldn''t really change much. I''ve improved significantly since the start of the battle, and I need to fight those stronger. Unfortunately, I''m not sure I can defeat any of them without the Fusion State,'' Grey thought to himself. He knew his strength, fighting against this young man was already very taxing for him, it would be almost impossible for him to defeat those powerful individuals in the Third stage. There are of course a few who aren''t as strong as this young man here, but it still didn''t mean he could defeat them easily. "Alright, don''t disappoint me," The young man smiled before attacking. His Elemental Warrior dashed towards Grey while the young man attacked. An ice shield sprouted out of the ground, blocking the attack of the young man while causing steam to rise up into the air. Bang! Grey and the Elemental Warrior got entangled in a fistfight once again. Not just that, but his inscriptions were attacking the young man, keeping him at bay. Whenever he manages to attack, the array would block the attacks, making sure Grey''s battle with the Elemental Warrior wasn''t disturbed. Attacks flew left and right, large explosions occurring at the same time. Not just that, but Grey and the young man were occasionally sent flying by each other''s attacks. The Elemental Warrior was occasionally sent flying, but in the battle against Grey, it clearly had the advantage. ¡­. In the stands. The crowd watched the battle with their bloods boiling. This fight has been nothing short of thrilling, even if Grey wins or loses, they wouldn''t feel bad, some of them were even grateful he was able to give them such exciting battles. Although they didn''t know him, they were unconsciously rooting for him to win. But they were all certain of one thing, if Grey were to break through to the Overlord Plane, then he would dominate the rankings, shooting straight to the top of the Early stages Rankings for Overlord Plane Elementalists. Some of them were even hoping to see him again after he has broken through to the Overlord Plane, he was already this powerful while still in the Origin Plane. To what extent would his strength be when he breaks through to the Overlord Plane? This was something that had everyone here curious. ¡­. While the crowd was watching fervently, the battle raged on, getting more aggressive. Blood could be seen dripping from some parts of Grey''s body, the young man wasn''t any better. The blue vest was completely out of essence since it had been protecting Grey since the start of the battle. Bang! Boom! The young man was sent flying after being attacked by one of the inscriptions. This time, the attack came from nowhere. After he landed on the ground, a wound could be seen on his back. Gritting his teeth, he stood up, when he looked around, he noticed a slight change on the platform. ''Damn these Space Elementalists!'' He cursed internally. Grey had added a space array to the platform, this meant that he could move his attacks to wherever he wanted. Bang! Grey crashed into the ground after suffering from a blow from the Elemental Warrior. Splat! He spat out a mouthful of blood. His clothes were torn, and blood could be seen dripping from the left side of his lips. He cleaned it before staring at the young man. Their gazes met, each seeing the unyielding eyes of each other. Presently, they both knew that the battle would be decided shortly, whoever manages to hold on the longer would be able to win this battle. Due to controlling two arrays and two inscriptions, Grey''s attention was slightly divided, meaning the Elemental Warrior which was originally more powerful than he was is starting to largely gain the upper hand in the battle. Boom! The Elemental Warrior attacked again, forcing Grey to dodge. Grey once again started his battle with the Elemental Warrior, while the young man focused on the inscriptions and arrays. His current motive was to last longer than Grey. Bam! Boom! As time went on, each started getting hit more frequently, crashing into the ground. It was complete chaos since Grey would be sent flying, but the next second, the young man would also be sent flying. Bang! Boom! The attacks didn''t stop ringing on the platform, while the sound of fists hitting each other also rang out. It was a brutal fight, and the crowd knew only one of them would be able to come out on top. Five minutes later. Bang! Bang! Both Grey and the young man slammed into the ground simultaneously, crashing a few meters away from each other. The Elemental Warrior slowly started to fade, but it wasn''t the only thing. The arrays as well as the inscriptions also faded away. The crowd stared at the platform, waiting for who would be the first to stand up.. Whoever stands up first will most likely win the battle. Chapter 511 - Rise Of A Genius Grey, who was lying on the ground, opened his eyes, he raised his hand, dragging his exhausted body up. ¡­. In the stands. "Look, that guy is the first to stand up," Someone said when they saw Grey moving. The young man who was beside him wasn''t showing any signs of standing up, still lying motionless on the ground. The crowd watched on as Grey managed to get in a kneeling position, placing two hands on his laps, trying to catch his breath. ¡­. On the platform. ''*Sigh* I''m wrecked. If only I could use all my elements, I wouldn''t have been this badly beaten.'' Grey thought while gasping for air. He looked around and noticed he was the only one who was up. After resting for a few seconds, he stood up. Clank! As soon as he stood, his mask fell off his face, making a clanking sound as it hit the ground. Grey raised his hand, touching his face. It had been a long time since he was without a mask, so when the mask left his face, it felt like he was missing something. The mask wasn''t the only thing that wasn''t on him, his upper clothes had been completely burned down, leaving his bare upper body. For the first time, the lady, as well as the entire crowd saw the face behind the mask, and they were all taken aback. Grey was unaware of the crowd''s reaction towards seeing his face. He walked towards the young man who had his eyes opened but was unable to stand up. "Looks like¡­ you¡­ won," The young man said in between breaths. "Yeah," Grey nodded before offering him a hand. "It''s of no use, I don''t think I can stand for a while," The young man said. "Huh?" The young man suddenly exclaimed lightly. It was only after calming down did he get a proper look at Grey''s face, and he was surprised since he almost felt he was a girl. Grey noticed this before scratching the back of his head in embarrassment. He waved for the people to come over to help take the young man away. After doing that, he looked up, and he could feel every single eye in the arena was on him, but they weren''t looking at him like someone who won a battle, rather, it was as if they were trying to discern his gender. He shook his head dejectedly, this was one of the reasons he didn''t actually take off the mask after coming to this new continent. Although no one knew him, he knew his face would definitely put him in trouble. ''Such a drag, why do they always have this type of reaction?'' He thought dejectedly. While he was looking around, some people walked into the platform, taking the young man he fought against. "Will you continue?" The head of the Gayle family asked. He clearly knew the answer to the question, but he couldn''t help himself from doing this. He was hoping Grey''s head would be clouded by pride which would make him say yes, given his current state, whoever fights against him next might be able to kill him instantly, not giving him a chance to admit defeat. "I don''t even think I can fight anymore, much less continuing," Grey replied calmly. His body was a wreck, he would need at least a day or two before he would get back in shape. If he uses the healing tonic he got from the Blooming Vipers though, then he should be fine within a day. "Are you admitting defeat?" The head of the Gayle family asked, wanting to confirm his words. Grey nodded, there was no way he could continue fighting in this condition. If he uses the Fusion State, he would be perfectly healed, but in a place where he could barely trust the lady who was traveling with him, it wasn''t wise to show off all of his trump cards. "*Sigh* Alright, the battles have ended," The head of the Gayle family announced with a dejected expression. "Since you managed to defeat all your opponents so far, I''ve decided to reward you with this," A booming voice suddenly from the special area, looking up, the Faction Leader of the Pyro Faction could be seen slowly floating down, accompanied by the lady. A scroll appeared on his hand which he threw in Grey''s direction. Grey caught it, keeping it. He wanted to study it, but this wasn''t the time. Since he was done with the fight, then it was naturally time for them to leave this place. Especially after what happened while they were fighting. Of course, no one would suspect them since they were here all through the time of the theft, but he still didn''t want any questions to be asked. "Why didn''t you tell me you were this handsome? Anyway, it doesn''t matter now, come, we''re leaving. It''s time to get back at those old tramps!" The lady said, dragging Grey''s exhausted body along with her. "What do you mean to get back at those old tramps? Can you please let me off in whatever plan you''re hatching?" Grey begged while being dragged. "Hmph! Stop showing off because you''re handsome, if not that there is no one else who fits the bill for this job, I wouldn''t take you as well," The lady said as they left the arena. "But I don''t want to go," Grey complained. Seeing the departing figure of Grey and the lady, the Faction Leader heaved a sigh of relief, while also feeling a sense of pity for Grey who seems to be bullied by the lady. From their exchange, it was clear to see that she wanted to make use of Grey''s appearance to get revenge on some people. Grey naturally wanted no part in her schemes. He looked in the direction they were headed, after confirming that it was where the teleportation array was located, he took off, flying away quickly. The head of the Gayle family stared around, his eyes filled with anger. Of everyone here, only the Gayle family had angry expressions. Their purpose for organizing the event didn''t happen, instead, they allowed Grey to make a name for himself. Soon, his exploits here is bound to spread across the entire region. It was the rise of a new genius. Chapter 512 - Leaving The Gale Region Grey''s battle in Ernst City quickly spread across the entire Gale region. An Elementalist who was still at the Peak of the Origin Plane, fought against hundreds of people, although not at the same time, but on the same day. He defeated every single person that fought against him. Even though he never fought against those in the Third stage of the Overlord Plane, it didn''t change the fact that in the battle, he never lost. From the group of people he defeated, it was said that some top individuals in the geniuses rankings were among them, and the highest amongst the people he defeated was ranked twenty-ninth. In the geniuses rankings, Petra was higher ranked than the young man Grey fought against last. But the story of Grey''s rise wasn''t the only news that spread from Ernst City that day. All the big families reported that their treasury was raided, and what was more shocking was that the guards didn''t get a single glimpse of the thief. Given the time of the theft, some of the people speculated it might''ve been the work of Grey and the lady, while others felt the thief took advantage of the information of the battle being spread out, striking at the same time. All in all, they was just speculations, no one knew who the thief was, or where Grey and the lady were. ¡­. In a city thousands of kilometers away from Ernst City. Grey and the lady could be seen sitting in an Inn, enjoying the tea they ordered. "You''ve become a celebrity," The lady said when she heard people talking about Grey''s performance, although they didn''t know he was the one there. Grey, who already had his mask back on, scoffed at this. He had never wanted things like this since he didn''t enjoy being surrounded by people. Other than his friends, he didn''t really enjoy the company of others. If Klaus or Reynolds were to be the ones who people are speaking of like this, they would definitely try to find a way to make sure everyone knew they were the ones they were talking about. "Are you like a sadist or something?" The lady asked when she saw Grey''s reaction. Most youngsters would be over the moon if they were this famous, and handsome. Yet Grey seems to see it as nothing more than a disturbance to his peaceful life. If not for the fact that she had confirmed that Grey was truly eighteen years old, she would''ve thought that he was an old monster who had lived thousands of years, so he''s no longer bothered with the things of the mundane world. "How far are we from the Polaris region?" Void asked while tasting the tea, he immediately spat it afterward. Grey shook his head when he saw this, before taking out the map, "We still have a long way to go. Even if we continue using the teleportation array nonstop, it would still take us at least a month before we can get there," "That long?! How big is this place even?" Void asked, shocked. They''ve traveled what seemed to be the equivalent of double the Qilin empire these past two weeks, yet, they would still need a month or so before getting there. And all this was with the help of teleportation arrays which made things easier. Grey shrugged, not knowing what to say. In these past weeks, he had been training diligently, focusing on increasing his elemental grades, as well as the strength of his body. He checked out the scroll the Pyro Faction Leader gave him, and it was a powerful fire attack. He rarely used these types of skills when attacking, but they were more powerful compared to his impromptu attacks. The name of the technique was ''Dragon''s Roar''. When a Fire Elementalist uses the attack, a faint shadow of a Dragon would appear on their back, made entirely of elemental essence, it would open its mouth to spit out a powerful stream of flames that had tremendous destructive power. Grey had been practicing for quite some time now, but he hadn''t been able to fully master it. The lady had been impressed with Grey''s learning speed so far given how quickly he manages to learn new skills. She had also noticed he seemed to be obsessed with arrays, always trying to figure out ways to decipher anyone he sees. Grey had finally managed to summon the confidence to ask her of her name, it was Sylvia. When Grey heard her name, his thoughts were ''For someone who bullies people, you have a nice name''. But of course, these were his thoughts. If he dared to voice it out then Sylvia would most likely beat the crap out of him. ¡­. "This is the border of the Gale region, once we leave this place, then we''ll be entering the Acer region. They''re around the same level as the Gale region," Sylvia said. "Wait, we''re still in the Gale region?" Void asked. "Yes, are you two from a forest hidden somewhere or something?" Sylvia asked, staring at the two suspiciously. "You could say that," Grey replied, not saying anything more. "Hmm," Sylvia put on a thoughtful expression. "We should leave, I still have a long way to go," Grey picked up his tea before taking a sip. Sylvia and Void nodded, after a few minutes sitting in the Inn, the trio left, heading towards the teleportation array in the city. On the way, Grey heard of youths who were speaking of wanting to challenge him, saying the geniuses he defeated were weak. He couldn''t help but do a double-take on them, and most of them were still in the Origin Plane. Even though he wasn''t interested in his newfound fame, he still enjoyed testing out his strength. Especially now that he had improved since the battle. The battle had helped him refine his skills even more, while also giving him better control over his essence.. If he were to fight with the young man who had an Elemental Warrior again, he was confident in winning without being left in a wrecked state. Chapter 513 - Knowledge Of Elemental Grades "The teleportation array is broken, if you want to go across the border, then you''ll have to go on foot," A middle-aged man said to Grey and Sylvia when they got to where the array was located. "Hmm, alright," Grey nodded before turning around. Although it was a bit of a hassle, they had no problems with going on foot. Besides, moving with arrays over the past few days has been very expensive. Luckily, they were super rich from their heist, so it didn''t bother them. Void stole countless essence stones, weapons, treasures, herbs, and lots more. Sylvia had already divided the resources between the three of them. She took forty percent, which came as a surprise to Grey. Given how she was bullying him, he thought she would take at least fifty percent or so. Void took almost every single shiny item from the loot, some were powerful treasures, while others were just antics. Grey mainly took the essence stones which were vital to their travels, as well as books that spoke about arrays, forge mastering, and the rest. Multiple scrolls had some techniques on them, but only a few caught his eye. He hadn''t started practicing them though since he was still learning others. But he felt that the most vital thing he had was the book which spoke on elemental grades. He still didn''t know about all the elemental grades, until now. From his previous knowledge, he was aware of five, adding the cyan grade, which made it six. But he didn''t know how high it was. In the book, he found out there were a total of nine elemental grades, namely; pink, orange, purple, blue, violet, red, cyan, yellow, and emerald elemental grades. There is a rumor about there being a tenth elemental grade, black and white. It was said that there have been cases of people who had either black or white elemental grades over the years, and they always grow to be more powerful compared to others. They were both regarded at the same level since it was unknown which of them was stronger. ¡­. Roar! Boom! A faint roar was accompanied by a stream of fire which sent a group of men flying. "Why are you being so lenient, kill them already," Sylvia said when she saw the power of Grey''s attack. "I''m working on my techniques," Grey replied, before dashing towards the group of five who were trying to get back up. "Please lord, this is all a misunderstanding, we won''t bother you again," One of the men quickly got to his knees when they saw the extent of Grey''s powers. Grey squinted his eyes, studying the group. He had never been the type who would kill others on a whim, this group were people who had malicious intentions towards them. The only reason they were still alive was that he was using them to polish his skills. He didn''t say a word to the group, attacking immediately. The group consisted of five men, three were in the Third stage of the Overlord Plane, while the other two were in the First and Second stage respectively. When they saw Grey and Sylvia, they thought they would be easy targets to rob, hence they didn''t hold back when threatening them. It was only after Grey took action did they know it was the mistake of their lives. Swoosh! Bang! Grey''s figure vanished, appearing beside the man in the First stage. He sent out a punch with his right fist which was covered in flames. Crash! Boom! The man was sent flying, bouncing off the ground, before crashing into a tree. When the others looked at the man, they realized he was twitching, a hole was on his chest. After a few seconds, his figure stopped moving altogether. Their eyes enlarged, before they turned to look at Grey once again, horrified. They still thought they had a chance of escaping alive, only after this attack did they know Grey had no plans of letting them go. "Spread out!" One of the men yelled before taking the lead. The remaining three didn''t delay, all running in different directions. ''Heh! This will only make my work easier,'' Grey''s lips curved upwards to form a smile. With two fingers in front of him, he waved it quickly to draw an array mid-air. The array enlarged, turning into a large lightning bow. An arrow made from fire appeared on the bow, shooting rapidly at the escaping men. Bang! Bang! Bam! The speed of the arrow was unimaginable, attacking swiftly. It didn''t take long before all four men were incapacitated. Although they were not dead, they couldn''t stand up on their own. Grey didn''t waste any more time, killing them quickly. Void and Sylvia watched on from the side, each holding onto a piece of meat. "Great, now we can eat in peace," Sylvia said while chomping down on the meat in her hands. "Yes, make sure to dispose of the bodies. Also, don''t forget to loot the bodies," Void remarked, before pausing and adding, "You know what, why don''t I help you with disposing and looting of the bodies? You know you need to take a break after fighting," Grey looked at the shameless cat in front of him, and couldn''t help but shake his head. In the end, he let Void do whatever he wanted, it wasn''t like he was low on items anyway. The big families from Ernst City were loaded with treasures. If not for the fact that he didn''t want to advance with the help of treasures, then he might''ve broken through some time ago. Presently, he was working on his elemental grades, trying to improve all of them before he tries to break through to the Overlord Plane. Unlike the previous Planes, breaking through to the Overlord Plane was a little more difficult. For the other Planes, what an Elementalist needs to break through was gathering as much elemental essence as they could, but in the aspect of the Overlord Plane, it required the Elementalist to gain a high understanding of their element. The Elementalist would be reborn from their elements when breaking through.. This is what gives them the ability to forcefully gain control of the elemental attacks of those weaker than them. Chapter 514 - Trouble Lurking Three weeks later. Inside a cave behind a waterfall. Grey could be seen sitting in a crossed leg position. "Finally, my darkness element has upgraded to the blue grade. I should be able to break through to the Overlord Plane now," He muttered to himself. Void and Sylvia went out, with the reason of sitting here too boring. They were currently in the Acer region, but according to Sylvia, they should be able to leave within a two more teleportations. During their journey, Grey had spent most of his time training whenever they weren''t using teleportation arrays. Not all cities have teleportation arrays, and some of the arrays surprisingly couldn''t take them to where they wanted, so they had to use another form of transportation to get to a city that could let them teleport. Then there are times when the teleportation arrays were broken, and since they didn''t want to wait, they decided to head to the next city. ¡­. "Hey, are you done?" Sylvia asked before walking into the cave. "Oh, eerie," She said after walking in. Grey looked at her, before picking up his mask. "Yeah, we should get going," He replied. After the increase of his darkness elemental grade, he was giving off an eerie aura. Initially, he thought they would take a while before coming, but who knew they would arrive sooner than expected. "Alright," Sylvia nodded before taking another glance at the cave. They went outside, and Void was standing on top of a carriage. "What''s that?" Grey couldn''t help but ask. They were in the middle of a forest, where the hell did this two go and get a carriage from? "Our ride. We bought it," Void replied. Grey looked at the duo, shaking his head. He could already tell that somewhere in the forest, there is a group of people who would be walking on foot after being robbed. Sylvia wasn''t too interested in robbing things this small, but Void on the other hand wouldn''t mind. Besides, he could see shiny things all around the carriage, so he knew the reason he stole it. "What about him, did you buy him as well?" Grey pointed at the man who was riding the horses. "No, he volunteered to come with us," Void replied. "Alright, we should get going," Grey said, too tired to ask any more questions. He was currently focused on how he would be able to break through to the Overlord Plane. He felt he had gained a good understanding of his elements since he had been comprehending them from when he started cultivating. Later that day. The carriage came out of the forest, in front of them was a large city. "You can head back now," Grey said to the coachman. Sylvia and Void looked at Grey, but came down as well. "Thank you, Young Lord," The coachman said to Grey, before turning the carriage around, heading into the forest. The trio headed towards the city on foot. After getting to the city, they headed straight to where the teleportation array was located. Once they use it, they would arrive at the last city before leaving the Acer region. After the Acer region, there were still around two regions between them and the Polaris region. The journey overall would take the trio at least three months or so. If they were fast, they might arrive before the third month. ¡­. Ernst City. The Gayle family. The head of the Gayle family was currently standing in front of three men who were seated. Two of the men looked to be around their late fifties, while the last one was around his early thirties. "Did you say she passed through here?" One of the men in his late fifties asked gently. "Yes, she was accompanied by a youth who has a black cat," The head of the Gayle family answered quickly. "Hmm, do you know of this boy?" The other man in his fifties turned to the man in his early thirties. "No, Teacher, maybe it is someone she decided to teach on the way," The man in his early thirties replied. The head of the Gayle family went on to tell the trio of what happened when Grey and Sylvia came to the city. "Hmm, she always causes trouble wherever she goes," One of the men in his late fifties said. "We should hurry, those from the Ferra Faction are after her. If they get to her before we do, then *Sigh*" The man in his early thirties said, a little dejected. "Thank you for your help. We''ll be leaving now," The trio stood up, before walking out of the building. The head of the Gayle family had his head bowed till they left. These were people he couldn''t dare to offend, they were from the Middle Continent, and even the smallest family in the Middle Continent could wipe out their family easily. Of all the continents, the Middle Continent is the smallest one, but also the most powerful. That was where all the powerhouses had strongholds. Twenty minutes after the trio left. Another group walked into the hall from inside the building. The group consisted of five individuals, and person in front was a youth around Grey''s age. "You see, I wasn''t lying. I really do not know where they went to," The head of the Gayle family said to the other group who just walked into the building. This group were dressing extravagantly, and arrogant looks were on their faces. "Hmm, fine. The boy you speak of, what does he look like?" A young man who looked to be around eighteen years old asked. "He wears a black mask, covering half of his face. But he''s also very handsome," The head of the Gayle family described Grey to them. "What''s his cultivation stage?" The young man asked. "He''s at the Peak of the Origin Plane, but he managed to defeat geniuses in the Second stage of the Overlord Plane. With the abilities he showed, he should be able to fight against a few in the Third stage as well. Oh, and he''s a Space Elementalist as well," The head of the Gayle family replied. "You call these weaklings geniuses? Truly a village bumpkin.. But since he''s a Space Elementalist, he might be interesting," The young man said. Chapter 515 - Is There A Reason Youre Doing This? Grey, Sylvia, and Void were currently seated in a restaurant, eating a delicious meal, oblivious to the fact that they were being searched for. They were currently in Brook City, the last city before leaving the Ares region. "This is good, we should find a way to learn it," Void said after emptying his bowl of food. "Since when did you start cooking?" Grey asked. "I mean you should learn how to cook it," Void said, trying to convince Grey into waiting to learn it, just like they did previously in Eagle''s City. "Although this is good, it isn''t worth our time. We should focus on getting you stronger," Sylvia butted in. Grey looked at Sylvia, unsure of what to say. "Is there a reason you''re doing this?" He couldn''t help but ask. Sylvia had been helping him with his training for some time now, and given his personality, he didn''t think she was only doing it because she wanted to help. There must be a reason behind this. "No, is it wrong if I want you to grow strong. Besides, it isn''t like it''s a bad thing for you," Sylvia replied. "It''s not, but that''s on the premise that we knew each other. I do not know who you are, nor do you know who I am. To be honest, I find your character a little suspicious," Grey said. "Haha, since I mean you no harm, that should be enough for you, right?" Sylvia laughed. "Well¡­" Grey wanted to speak, but after sensing Sylvia''s threatening gaze, he shut his mouth. ''Why did I even look at the battle in the first place?'' He complained. But he couldn''t deny it, she has been a great help. If not for her setting up that battle, then there was no way they would''ve been able to acquire so many essence stones for traveling. Presently, they''ve only used about one-tenth of the stones they obtained. They shouldn''t have any problems with getting to their destination before the stones run out. "Since we''ve come to terms with this, then let''s get going. You''ll continue training like usual, but this time, you''ll need target practice as well. With me here with you, that shouldn''t be a problem," Sylvia said. "I''m going to spar with you?" Grey asked, slightly terrified of his possible outcome if this was what happened. "Of course not, I would hold back so I won''t kill you, but others won''t. You''ll be challenging all these so-called geniuses, just like you did in the Gale region. This is the quickest way for you to grow stronger, battles," Sylvia said. "Yeah, but fighting continuously like the last time is too taxing. It would be better if I went to a competition where others would also fight," Grey replied. "You''re right, for a single person to fight against hundreds of people is too straining. Let''s see if we can find any competition that would be held soon," Sylvia suggested. Grey looked around. He had been in the Aurora continent for around two months now, and he still hadn''t seen Ellis, who he knew where he was located, much less his parents. He promised his friends he wouldn''t be gone for more than six months, and he knew they would all be worried right now since there was no way to contact him. But, he also needed to grow stronger, this was the only way he would be able to search for his parents, and also live the life he wanted. While Grey spaced out, Sylvia had called a stranger, asking if there were any contests taking place in the city. "The regional annual contest will be taking place in two days'' time. Geniuses from all over the region are flocking here, hoping to get to a good position. They would also be updating the geniuses rankings with it," The lady Sylvia called over said. "Oh, is there a reward or anything?" Sylvia asked. Since it was a contest, it should naturally have a reward in store for the winners. "Yes, the top ten in each ranking will be rewarded, for instance, the top ten for Elementalists in the Early stages of the Origin and Overlord Plane will be rewarded. It will go in that manner till the Peak of each Plane," The lady explained. "Can someone compete with those in the Origin Plane then also in the Overlord Plane if they''re powerful enough?" Sylvia asked. Since there was a reward, it wouldn''t be bad if Grey obtained the first position for those at the Peak of the Origin Plane, then hopefully get into the top ten for the one of those in the Early stages of the Overlord Plane. "Yes, there has been a case when a Peak stage Origin Plane Elementalist fought against those in the Early stages of the Overlord Plane. Unfortunately, he wasn''t able to get far," The lady said, shaking her head in pity. "Alright, thank you for the information," Sylvia said before turning her attention to Grey. "Are you up for it?" She asked. Grey nodded. They finished their meal before heading into the city, in search of a tavern. They soon found one not too far from the restaurant they were previously in. Grey decided he wouldn''t be staying in the tavern, opting to stay in the forest where he could train comfortably without any disturbance. He mercilessly dragged Void along. "Why are you taking me with you?" Void asked while holding onto the table in the tavern. "Because I need company," Grey said, before using lightning to zap the paws of Void, forcing him to let go of the table. "Then go and find one, there''s a comfy room and bed here I can sleep in, why do you think I would want to sleep in the forest?" Void complained. "Shut up and follow me," Grey said, leaving the tavern with Void who was still complaining. Void could easily escape if he wanted to, but he didn''t dare to since he might offend Grey, so he hoped he could convince him with words.. Unfortunately, Grey wasn''t having any of that. Chapter 516 - Lord Cat Is Awesome! "What''s happening?" Grey muttered in the middle of the night, staring at his hands while seated in a crossed leg position. Given how much he had been training lately, he was already long due to breakthrough. With Sylvia with him, he asked all the questions he wasn''t sure of, yet he was still unable to break through to the Overlord Plane. "I should try it again, if I still can''t, then I''ll leave it at that for now," He closed his eyes. After he closed his eyes, seven beads the size of a fist came out of his body, each having different colors with one of them having two colors. These beads were the elemental beads he created when he was breaking through to the Origin Plane. In the Overlord Plane, he would need to first shatter the beads, letting the overflow of elemental essence in them wash over his body. It would first cleanse his outer body, before sipping into his body to cleanse his inners. This would not only make his physical body stronger, but it would give him better control and understanding of his elements. Once the cleansing process was done, a new type of elemental bead would form inside him, but this time, instead of a bead, it would be an orb. The seven beads floated above his head, moving in a circle. He concentrated fully, trying to use his spiritual senses to forcefully break the elemental beads, so the cleansing process could begin. But no matter how hard he tried, he was unable to break it. Thirty minutes soon went by, and Grey was starting to get frustrated from his constant failure. He had been trying the entire night, and it was already almost sunrise, yet he was still unsuccessful. ''I already have a great understanding of my elements, not even some Sage Plane Elementalists can say they have studied the elements as much as I have done. Why isn''t this working?'' He thought in annoyance before keeping the beads back inside his body. "Still unsuccessful?" Void asked when he saw Grey opening his eyes. "Hmm," Grey nodded, a little tired from the continuous attempts. "You shouldn''t feel down because of it, you will get through it. Let''s just assume you''re stuck in a bottleneck," Void encouraged. "Yeah, I''ll be able to break through when the time is right. But for now, I''ll occasionally try it, while also improving my elemental grades," Grey nodded before standing. "Alright, that''s the spirit!" Void jumped enthusiastically. "We still haven''t checked your elemental grade for your elements. I''ll ask Sylvia, since she''s this powerful, then she must definitely have one of those stones," Grey said. "Those stones for checking elemental grades?" Void suddenly paused. "Yeah," Grey nodded. "I acquired one when I raided those families in Ernst City. I only took it on a whim, who knew it would come in handy?!" Void laughed before bringing out one of the stones. Grey looked at the stone on the ground before looking at Void, he almost had a feeling Void didn''t bring out all the items he stole from the families. The stone was around one meter high, it could be easily be mistaken for a pillar. ''Whatever, I have a ton of essence stones, multiple elemental weapons, and even a better defensive elemental armor. There are also a few techniques,'' He said to himself. He had never been stingy, and since he didn''t want to depend too much on treasures to improve himself, he wasn''t too concerned about them. "Alright, place your ha¡­ paw on the stone," Grey instructed. Void did as instructed, and soon started giggling. "What''s funny?" Grey couldn''t help but ask. "Haha, it tickles," Void laughed while replying. Grey looked at the stone before shaking his head with a smile. Void was laughing because of the energy that came out of the stone. A few seconds later, Void stopped laughing which indicated that the energy was out of his body. "You can take off your paw now," Grey said before taking a closer look at the stone. Void did as instructed, while staring at the stone curiously. He too wanted to know the elemental grades of his elements. The results were soon out, and Grey could be seen rubbing his eyes furiously after seeing it, trying to affirm if what he was seeing was true. On the stone were four colors that indicated Void''s current four elements, and at the middle of each of them was a bright white light. The light was almost overshadowing the colors of the elements, making it seem like they were all white in color. "Is this for real?" Grey asked, stunned. "What''s wrong?" Void asked, a little worried by Grey''s response. He didn''t take interest in these things, so he didn''t know what the white light at the center of the colors meant. "Did you take only this stone?" Grey asked. "No, I took one more as well," Void replied before making another stone appear. This one was a few inches higher than the other one and had a milky color. Grey told Void to repeat the same process, and after some time, the result was out. The same results. "Oh shit! Void, what are you?" Grey freaked out. He couldn''t keep calm. When he found out about elemental grades, he was told that the white and black grades are things that rarely occur, and they were regarded as the tenth grade. Something said to be so rare was currently seen on Void, all four of his elements! If that wasn''t shocking, what was? If news of a cat having white elemental grade in four elements were to go out, then the entire Aurora continent would be turned upside down. "What''s wrong?" Void asked, worried from how Grey was staring at him. "No matter what, never do this in front of strangers. If people find out about you, they''ll hunt you down," Grey said with utmost seriousness. "I understand, now tell what this means," Void nodded. Grey rarely spoke in this manner, so Void knew it was something serious. But it didn''t mean he didn''t want to know what it meant though. Grey went on to tell him what it meant, and he couldn''t stop grinning from ear to ear. "Haha, I always knew lord cat was awesome! And you dare compare me to those filthy oversized lizards," He laughed hysterically. Chapter 517 - Necromancy Grey was at a loss for words when he heard Void''s words, but he couldn''t hide the fact that he was shocked by the result. "Come on, let''s head to the city to find out more about this competition," He said while walking in the direction of the city. Void vanished, appearing on his shoulder. Just as they were about to leave, Grey and Void turned to the right at the same time. ''There''s someone there,'' Void said to Grey. ''I know. How come none of us noticed when the person came here?'' Grey asked. ''We were distracted. Whoever is there has noticed that we''ve realized we''re being watched, but isn''t doing anything to leave,'' Void said. ''We were careless, I got carried away by not being able to break through, and you were playing. Luckily, we sensed the person in time,'' Grey said as his expression turned serious. Void''s secret should never leave this place, or else they would be in danger. This place was far more dangerous than the Azure continent, they couldn''t dare to be careless. "Who''s there?" Grey said. "Hehehe, to think you sensed me in the end. But I must say, you have one great cat. If it grows to its full potential, it would be a force to reckon with," A voice laughed from behind the bushes. The figure of a thin man stepped out, his hair was disarranged, and his clothes were loose. "A skeleton?" Void asked unconsciously. "With skin and hair," Grey added, shocked by the state of the man who walked out. He could sense an eerie aura from the man, but his appearance was a little too strange. Grey was almost certain that the man had only skins holding onto his bones. "You can laugh all you want, but after I obtain that cat, the world will know my name," The man declared while walking forward confidently. Grey studied the man, and he relaxed a little when he sensed the man was in the Overlord Plane, the Mid stages. He was not as strong as the man, but if he and Void joined hands, they could take care of him. Not just that, if he uses his Fusion State as well, then their victory would be further guaranteed. "In your dreams," Grey said coldly. "Hand over the cat boy, and maybe I might keep you alive," The man said with a sinister smile. "Heh! With the likes of you? If you leave this forest alive then you should count yourself lucky," Grey scoffed. He had always been confident, showing weakness in front of this man would not do him any good, so why bother. Besides, he had Void with him. He had never seen Void cultivate or train, yet, he was slowly growing stronger. Presently, Void is already a peak Early stage Rank Five magical beast. This was equivalent to a Third stage Overlord Plane Elementalist. "Cocky, hehehe, I like your type. You would make a great specimen in my cabinet," The man laughed before spreading his hands. Poof! A puff of smoke appeared beside the man, and after the smoke died down, three coffins appeared beside him. "Time to play, my toys," The man laughed before the coffins opened wide open. A cold chill spread out from the coffins as they opened. Grey squinted his eyes to look at the coffins, and his expression changed when he realized what was inside. "Corpse?" He muttered silently. A thin dark thread could be seen connecting the corpses in the coffins with the man. Swoosh! All three corpses shot out of the coffins simultaneously, attacking Grey with three different elements. One of them was using the fire element, one was using the water element, and the last of them was using the earth element. "Haha, these are my precious babies. The strongest in my collection," The man laughed in a sinister manner. Bang! Boom! Bam! The attacks came quickly, with terrifying speed. But Void was faster, using his space element, he moved himself and Grey away. ''This is bad, we can''t fight against those things. They''re all at the Peak of the Overlord Plane, and judging from the strength of their previous attacks, they''re not your regular Elementalist when they were alive,'' Void deducted after the first attacks. ''What?! The peak of the Overlord Plane? All three? Damn it! Why are we always unlucky?'' Grey was dumbstruck by Void''s words. Grey and Void appeared a few meters away from where they were previously standing. "Oh, the cat is a Space Elementalist? Now I just want it more," The man said in excitement. "What are you?" Grey questioned while trying to get into the Fusion State. They needed to escape quickly, and Void didn''t know any long distance teleportation techniques, unfortunately. Now, he had to use the Great Void technique, but since he could barely teleport twenty meters, he knew without the Fusion State, there was no way he could travel a long distance when he was in a normal state. "I''m a necromancer, there are few of us in this world, but surely we should be well known. Don''t tell me you''ve been living in the forest?" The man declared proudly. "A necromancer, what''s that?" Grey looked at Void curiously. Void shrugged, signifying that he had no idea what it meant. "What?! You don''t know about necromancers?" The man asked wide-eyed. Grey shook his head, he truly had no idea what they were. "Since you''ll be joining my collection soon, I guess I could tell you a thing or two about us," The man said. However, before he continued speaking, he sent the corpses to three different locations, making sure it would be impossible for Grey and Void to escape if they tried to. Grey looked at the strategic positions of the corpses and couldn''t help but commend the carefulness of the man. He would do the same if he were in the same position as the man. ''As long as I can stall for two more minutes I should be good,'' He thought. Chapter 518 - Hunt You Down For The Rest Of Your Life "We are special people who can reanimate the dead, making them do our bidding," The man stated proudly. "Reanimate the dead, as in bringing them to life?" Grey asked. His curiosity was piqued when the man said they could reanimate the dead. It was common knowledge that once someone dies unless they keep a strand of their consciousness just like what the Chaos God did, they would be gone forever. But if there was a way to tackle death, then it would be an unbelievable discovery. "Not exactly, it''s more like bringing an empty shell, then using them to fight. They would still have the strength they possessed while they were alive, only without a consciousness," The man explained. Grey was stunned by this discovery, this was the first time he was hearing about something like this, so it was natural that he found it somewhat intriguing. But after hearing the proper explanation, he felt it was an evil skill. Personally, he wasn''t the type who judged people on how they gained their strength, but since it involved stealing the corpse of people, he wasn''t interested in learning it. "Such a dishonorable way to live," Grey commented as soon as the man finished speaking. "What? I took my time to tell you about us and this is what you say?" The man asked, irked by Grey''s words. "I might not be the most moral person, but I understand that using the corpses of people to fight is a cowardly method to begin with. Given how you obtained the corpses as well, it is even more dishonorable," Grey said, his expression was one of disgust. "Hmph! What you feel doesn''t matter, it''s not like you''ll live any longer," The man snorted angrily. Grey lips curved upwards, he had already accomplished what he wanted, so there was no need to be scared anymore. "Heh, with the likes of you? Impossible," He scoffed, further irritating the man. Swoosh! The corpses moved, attacking Grey from all sides. Grey smiled when he saw this. Boom! An energy wave shot out in all directions, pushing back the attacks of the corpses. ''It''s been a while I''ve used this, unfortunately, I''m not fighting,'' Grey said to himself before vanishing. As much as he wanted to keep Void''s elemental grade a secret, he knew staying here was no different from a death wish. Even with the Fusion State, he couldn''t go against a single Late stage Overlord Plane Elementalist, much less three Peak stage Overlord Plane Elementalists. Boom! The corpses attacked again, but Grey was long gone. "Damn it! Where did he go?" The man yelled angrily, kicking the rock close to his foot. "He''s also a Space Elementalist, he would make a fine piece in my collection,'''' The man laughed before waving his hand. The corpses flew back to the coffins before the coffins closed shut with a ''bang''. He kept the coffins in his storage ring before moving in the direction of the city. A smile on his face. ''Hehe, this kid thinks he can escape after catching my eyes?'' The man licked his lips as his eyes turned into a slit as he smiled maliciously. ¡­. Liore City. Grey appeared a hundred and fifty meters away from the gate leading to the city. ''*Sigh* We should be fine here. Come, we need to find out more about necromancers,'' He said to Void as they hurried towards the city. As soon as he entered the city, he felt a cold gaze on him. He paused, turning around, his eyes met with the cold eyes of Sylvia. "Where are you going? I was just about to come to find you," Sylvia asked while walking closer to him. "I''m heading to the city library, there''s something I want to find out," Grey replied before realizing something, he turned to look at Sylvia, "Do you know about necromancers?" "Huh?" Sylvia was caught off guard by his question. The crowd around who were walking into the city turned to look at Grey suspiciously. "Necr¡­" Grey was about to say something again before Sylvia closed his mouth. "Not here," She said before dragging him outside the city. ¡­. Outside the city. "How did you find out about necromancers?" Sylvia asked coldly, her expression was different from how she usually looked. "I met one a few minutes ago, I was only able to escape after using a secret technique," Grey explained. "What?!" Sylvia exclaimed, drawing the attention of the people who were walking into the city. Grey told her about his encounter with the skinny man, and also his narrow escape. Of course, he removed the part about Void''s elemental grade. "Where?" Sylvia asked seriously. "In that¡­ ah¡­" Grey exclaimed unconsciously when he noticed he was currently off the ground. He was in the middle of pointing out the location to Sylvia, but she picked him up, taking him along. Swoosh! All Grey could hear was the sound of them breaking through the wind at an unimaginable speed. He could barely see anything on the way. They soon disappeared into the forest, heading in the direction where Grey was previously cultivating. A minute later. Sylvia stopped mid-air, looking below them. The skinny man could be seen moving through the trees quickly. Buzz! Bang! Sylvia attacked the moment she caught sight of him. The trees below them were quickly shattered to pieces. She flew down, with Grey in tow, heading towards where the man was hiding. "Come out, you can not hide from me," Sylvia said before striking the ground ten meters away with her lightning. "Ah!" A scream of pain rang out, and a frail figure was sent flying. Bang! The figure crashed into an already broken tree, shattering it completely. "You foul man, this is your end," Sylvia said, eyes glittering with lightning. "Wait, wait, I have a huge secret to tell you," The man said, coughing out blood as he hurried to speak. "There''s nothing you have to say that I''m interested in," Sylvia replied before sending out an attack. "Damn you! Boy, heed my words, we shall hunt you down for the rest of your life," The man said, and just before Sylvia''s lightning attack could touch him, he exploded, turning into a black mass that shot towards one person, Grey. Chapter 519 - Marked "Oh no!" Sylvia exclaimed, before making a quick hand seal. A lightning seal appeared that she sent towards the black mass that was shooting towards Grey. The seal expanded to cover it completely, but a single dot from the black mass managed to pass through the lightning seal before shooting straight to Grey''s shoulder. Grey and Void, who was on his shoulder, vanished before the black dot managed to get to him, appearing a few meters away, but their expressions changed when the dot appeared in front of them at the same time. They all watched helplessly as the black dot touched Grey on his shoulder. Grey was a little taken aback when he didn''t feel anything after it touched him, and couldn''t help but do a double-take at Sylvia, giving her a questioning look. "Take off your shirt," Sylvia ordered while walking closer to him. Grey did as instructed, and on the upper left of his shoulder was a small black skull tattoo. "Shit! Grey, since when did you get a tattoo?" Void asked, stunned. "What do you mean by that, we''ve literally been together almost all through, how would I get a tattoo without you knowing about it?" Grey asked with a confused expression. He made an ice mirror behind him to help him see what was on his back. When he saw the black skull, he didn''t need anyone to tell him it was a result of the black dot that hit him. Luckily, the tattoo was only around five centimeters big. "What''s this?" He turned to Sylvia. "It''s a mark. This will notify any necromancer around that you''re someone that has something extremely valuable. To create this mark, a necromancer will have to sacrifice their own life force, so others will know you have something that will be beneficial to them," Sylvia explained. "Can''t we remove it?" Grey asked. "No, even someone more powerful than I am wouldn''t be able to. There was an instance when the greatest genius in the Middle Continent was marked. He was from the strongest Faction there, even the Faction Leader who was standing at the top of the world was unable to remove. Twenty years later, the genius was killed and turned into one of the tools these bastards use to fight," Sylvia shook her head. For the first time since Grey knew her, he could tell she was genuinely worried about him. "Now what?" Grey asked. He hated being in this kind of situation, this was exactly why he had to leave the Azure Continent, yet, it was happening all over again. "You''re lucky I was here, although I was unable to stop it, I managed to reduce the marking to the bare minimum. This means only necromancers around one or two kilometers away from you can sense you," Sylvia replied. "Oh, thank you. But what I want to know is if there''s any way to remove it completely," Grey appreciated her help before asking. He was slightly annoyed, had Sylvia not tried to kill the necromancer, or even taken him along, none of this would''ve happened to him. "None that I know of, unfortunately. Although I''ve heard other necromancers can remove this mark, none of them would be willing to help, so¡­ you''re stuck with it for now," Sylvia replied. "Damn it! Again, I''ll have to hide for my life again," Grey punched the tree that was by his side, destroying it to pieces. Sylvia looked at him for a while, feeling a little sad about what happened to him. "The only way for you to escape this is by growing stronger, growing strong enough that no one can threaten you," She said. "Heh! You say it like it''s easy. I tried breaking through to the Overlord Plane throughout the night, but I was unsuccessful. I did as instructed, but the result was the same," Grey said, still annoyed by what happened. "Don''t rush it, there''s a reason you''re unable to break through for now. Come on, we should head back," Sylvia advised. "Fine," Grey sighed in dejection. There was nothing left for him to do, and anger wouldn''t solve the problem. ''I''ll need to think of a way to create an array that can decrease the distance. This is the best thing I can do for now,'' He thought. A genius from the Middle Continent, not only from the Middle Continent but also from the strongest Faction was marked and killed twenty years after. If even that genius couldn''t escape from his fate with the backing that he had, then how would someone like him who didn''t have anyone survive? He would be lucky if he even survived a month, much less twenty years. "Don''t worry too much, necromancers are hated all over, so they''re always in hiding. The odds of meeting one is very low," Sylvia encouraged before they took flight, heading back to the city. Grey didn''t speak for the rest of the day, locking himself in the tavern. He brought out all the books he had on arrays, trying to find the best concealing array. He also tried studying the mark, trying to find out how other necromancers would be able to sense it, so he would know the best way to block it. Sylvia and Void took charge of finding out when the competition would take place, and also signing Grey up. The next day. Loire City was abuzz with the streets filled with people that were walking towards the northern part of the city. They were all heading to where the competition would be held. In a tavern. Knock! Knock! "Grey, come out, we''re going to be late," Sylvia knocked on Grey''s door. Click! Creak... The door opened slightly and Grey peeked out. When Sylvia saw his look, she took a step back unconsciously. "Why are you looking like that?" She asked. "Nothing, I''ve been staring at books since we got back yesterday, what do you expect?" Grey replied grumpily. Dark circles could be seen below his eyes, and his hair was disarranged. "Wash up and let''s go.. I''ll be waiting for you in the hall," Sylvia pushed his head back into the room before shutting the door from the outside and walking away. Chapter 520 - Dont Disturb Me Loire City. In the biggest arena owned by the city. Countless people flocking into the arena, all excited from the battles that would be taking place. Presently, most of the geniuses in the Acer region were gathered here. The competition would last for about a week or so since the number of youths who would be competing was many. The first group who would compete were those in the Origin Plane. There isn''t a ranking for those below the Late stages of the Origin Plane. By the time Grey and his gang got there, the battles had already started, with multiple people fighting in different arenas. Sylvia asked around and luckily for Grey, this wasn''t all the people in the Origin Plane. From what she found out, a total of around seven hundred registered for the Origin Plane ranking matches. With the numbers being that high, they couldn''t fight all the battles one on one. So the hosts of the competition went with the decision of a crowded battle. Fifty people would be placed in a single stage that was around one hundred and fifty square meters, and the last fifteen would go into the next round. There are a total of eight stages in the arena, and people are currently fighting in all of them. The first four hundred people had started fighting by the time Grey got there. Once this set is done, the next set would come on stage. Grey would be going with the next set. "Your luck isn''t that bad," Sylvia commented. "Really? I am marked by some psycho so that whenever his psycho friends are nearby they can kill me, and you''re saying am lucky?" Grey looked at Sylvia, his expression blank. "It could''ve been worse," Sylvia shrugged. Grey wanted to continue speaking but he decided against it. Arguing with Sylvia wasn''t going to change anything. But he couldn''t hide the fact that he was annoyed. Thirty minutes later. The battles on most of the stages had come to an end with only two stages still having more than fifteen people. A few minutes later the battles all stopped, with fifteen people left on each stage. They were each given a plaque before being told to take their seats. The next set of people was called to come on stage. Each person was to bring an insignia given to them when they registered for the competition. Sylvia handed Grey the insignia she was given when she signed him up for the competition. "Don''t disgrace me," She whispered in his ear while giving him the insignia. Grey took the insignia grumpily and walked to the third stage on the right. After showing the man at the front of the stage the insignia, he was allowed to step onto the stage. They waited patiently till the fifty people were complete in all the stages before the battles were allowed to start. As soon as the battle started, almost everyone attacked the people close to them. There were a few people who teamed up to fight against others. Grey retreated to the edge of the stage and watched as others started fighting against each other. Given the size of the stage, it was normal that each fighter''s attack will affect others. Grey stood at the edge, blocking all the aftereffects of the attacks on the stage that was coming towards him. Within a few seconds, the fighters started eliminating each other. As long as one was pushed out of the stage, then they had been eliminated. On the stage Grey was standing, there was a group of fifteen who wore the same clothing, clearly from the same Faction. They started eliminating others at an amazing speed, alarming others. By the time the rest of the people on the stage figured out what was happening, it was already too late, over fifteen people had been eliminated by the group within a short period of a few minutes. Grey had eliminated two unfortunate people who attacked him, knocking them unconscious. While others had also eliminated a few. Presently, there were twenty-eight people left on the stage, and fifteen of them were from the same Faction. Grey was standing silently at the edge of the stage, while the remaining twelve were looking at the group of fifteen and each other cautiously. "Let''s team up and eliminate some of them," Someone suggested since they were currently in a standoff. "Yes," The others nodded, before turning to look at Grey. "You can do whatever you want, just don''t disturb me," Grey said before sitting down. His words stunned everyone on the stage, especially the twelve people who wanted to team up with each other. "What? Who the hell do you think you are?" One of the young men from the group of twelve asked angrily before attacking him. Boom! The attack exploded out, but soon died down as if absorbed by something. To their surprise, Grey was still standing on the same spot, not moving an inch. Bang! An explosion suddenly rang out, and the young man who attacked Grey was sent flying, crashing out of the stage. When the group looked at where the young man was standing, they were surprised to see Grey standing there, red lightning dancing across his body. "Don''t disturb me," Grey repeated, before walking back to his position at the edge of the stage. The young man Grey eliminated with a single attack was at the Peak of the Origin Plane, just like him. But it was easy for all to see the difference in strength between them. The group swallowed in fright, before turning to look at the group of fifteen. Now, their only hope was to find a way to eliminate some of them. The thought of using them to eliminate Grey crossed their minds, but they knew the group of fifteen weren''t foolish enough to fight against Grey while they were still there. The best thing to do was to eliminate them, before ganging up on Grey. Most of the people here were around the Seventh, Eighth, and Ninth stages. Other than Grey, only five others were at the Peak of the Origin Plane. And three of them were in the group of fifteen. This was going to be the quickest match in all the stages, and there was no way for the group of eleven to turn things around. Chapter 521 - Strolling Into The Top Fifty Boom! Bam! Bang! The battle raged on, and the group of eleven fought zealously. The crowd was impressed by their performance, unfortunately, there was no way for them to defeat the group of fifteen who were already very good at working together. Some people complained, feeling this was cheating. But unfortunately, grouping up wasn''t against the rules of this battle, so the hosts didn''t see any reason to stop this battle. After seven minutes, there were sixteen people left on the stage. The group of fifteen, and Grey who was standing by the side, minding his business. It was as if the battle had nothing to do with him. Sensing their gazes, Grey turned to look at them. "What do you want?" He asked grumpily. "You''re very cocky. If you had teamed up with those guys, I''m sure you would''ve been able to grab a spot," One of the trio at the Peak of the Origin Plane said to Grey. "Huh? You guys are done?" Grey opened his eyes to look at the group. He wasn''t really concerned about this fight. While on the stage, he was running through multiple simulations of arrays that he would use to conceal the aura of the mark on his back. His question annoyed the group of fifteen. "Look you weirdo, I admit that you''re strong, but I''ll advise you to walk away if you know what''s good for you," A young lady from the group said to him. "Haven''t you people decided who to kick out yet?" Grey asked with a confused look. "Be fast with it, I''m in a hurry," He added. His attitude not only shocked those on the stage but the crowd watching it were also surprised by his behavior. He not only refused to form a group with others so they could fight against the group of fifteen, he even eliminated one of them because they disturbed him. Now, he was telling the group of fifteen who had been working together since the start of the battle to eliminate one of their group members. How does his head work? This was the question running through the minds of the people who were watching the battle on that stage. "Let''s send him out," One of the young men in the group said. The others nodded before all attacking at the same time. Boom! Grey stood with his hands behind his back, watching the attacks coming his way. He sighed before shaking his head. Buzz! Buzz! Red lightning suddenly flashed across his body and he disappeared, turning into a streak of lightning, he danced around the stage, dodging all the attacks that the group sent towards him. Bam! The sound of someone being hit reverberated on the platform. Crash! Bang! A figure was sent flying from the group, crashing outside the stage. It was none other than the young man who urged the others to attack with him. Grey was standing with one leg on the ground, and the other leg raised, in a position of just kicking someone. He dropped his foot before walking towards the exit of the stage with his hands in his pocket. "We''re fifteen left, can I go now?" He asked the man supervising their stage. "Normally, you should wait till the other battles are done, but I''ll make an exception. Here''s your number, you''ll use this for the next round of battles," The man passed on a small plaque to him. "Thank you," Grey accepted it before walking away, leaving behind a dumbfounded group who still couldn''t comprehend how he managed to move that fast. Grey walked towards the stands, taking a seat close to Sylvia before getting lost in thoughts once again. Sylvia knew the reason he was like this, so she didn''t bother him and continued watching the battles on the stages. One hour later. All the battles had ended, and it was time to announce the sequence for the next round. There are a total of one hundred and five participants left, and they would be having a one on one battle elimination match. The hosts decided to start the next round on the same day since there was still some time before sunset. Grey was among the first few people who were called out to fight against an opponent. He was so distracted that he was almost ruled out, luckily, Sylvia managed to snap him out of it in time. He went on stage, and literally sent his opponent flying with a single kick. No flashy moves, no words, just one kick and he was done with it. This wasn''t a contest for him anyway. Sylvia and Void knew he could easily stroll through the fighters in the Origin Plane without so much as breaking a single sweat. That day soon ended with fifty- two people eliminated from this round. The next round would be taking place the next day. Since the number was still above fifty that was left, a draw would take place for five people to fight in a battle royale of some sort. Three people would be eliminated so that the top fifty could be decided. The next day. Sylvia was the one who called Grey once again, dragging him to the arena. When they got there, the battle royale was just about to start, and Grey was part of it. The reason he was placed here was that he was among the few people who weren''t in the previous top fifty in the geniuses rankings for those in the Origin Plane. Presently, almost everyone from the previous ranking was still here. According to what he found out, this next round would be people trying to challenge those at a higher rank. This means, unlike the previous battles where they were given opponents, they could pick who they wanted to fight. The battle royale soon started, and just like what happened in the fifty-person battle royale, Grey walked to the edge of the stage, sat down, leaving a word for the four others who wanted to fight. "Do not disturb me." Chapter 522 - Challenging One And Two At The Same Time This was the first time the group of four were seeing him, so they found his behavior downright outrageous. "Who the hell does he think he is?" One of the youths on the stage asked. "A proud fool, that''s what he is," Another said. "Let''s kick him out before fighting to see who stays," One of them suggested. The others nodded to this suggestion since they all had a common enemy, Grey. Grey opened his eyes to see all four youths walking towards him, one female and three males. He narrowed his eyes to a slit, before standing up. ''Looks like I should eliminate three of them and challenge the number on the rankings and be done with this,'' Grey said to himself. After coming to a decision, he vanished. Bam! Bang! Crash! With the sounds of flesh hitting flesh, three figures were sent flying from the stage, all landing outside the stage at the same time. A young man was the only one Grey left on the stage, the reason for this was because the young man was the strongest and naturally deserved to go through. He turned to look at the supervisor, and it was unexpectedly the same man from the previous day. "Can I challenge someone now?" He asked after walking close to the man. "Not yet, your names will have to be registered into the geniuses rankings before you can challenge someone ahead of you. Take note, you only have three chances," The supervisor said. "I only need one," Grey replied. He went back to his seat while his name and that of the young man were registered in the geniuses rankings. A huge stone descended from the sky, and at the top of it was the word Origin Plane boldly written on it. Below it were names along with numbers. It went from number one to fifty. Grey''s name appeared at number forty-nine. After this was done, the hosts called for the top fifty to step forward. Grey was naturally the one who caught the most attention. The reason for this was because he was someone unknown in the region, so the majority of the top Factions here were hoping to recruit him. These competitions are held by the Factions of a region. It is done in every region, and it''s what they use to fish out hidden talents. They''ve managed to get multiple from these competitions, and currently, they''re all vying for who would be able to lure Grey to their Faction. Unfortunately for them, Grey was not the least bit interested in joining any Faction right now. Even if he wanted to join one, it would be one that can protect him until he grows strong enough. The top fifty were rewarded with some essence stones and an elemental weapon each. Grey kept his before walking away from the stage. Sylvia told him not to challenge the person in the first position yet since she would like to watch others fight. If Grey challenged the person ranked first and easily defeated them, then the others would lose their will to fight properly since the first place was taken. Grey sat down and closed his eyes, making simulations of arrays once again. Sylvia promised to remind him when it was time for him to challenge the person who was first in the rankings. The geniuses rankings are updated monthly, and the person who is number one for those in the Origin Plane was a young lady who was at the Peak of the Plane. She was said to be a rare Light and Darkness Dual Elementalist. After those in lower ranks challenged each other. It slowly moved to those in higher ranks, with the intensity of battles increasing as the ranks increased. The rankings kept changing with almost every challenge, with many people losing their previous positions, and new people going higher. While the battles were still ongoing, two individuals walked into one of the stages, attracting the attention of everyone in the arena. They were the two currently ranked one and two in the geniuses rankings. Ezra Mason, the young lady ranked number one, and Jesse Hanks, the young man ranked number two. They were both at the Peak of the Origin Plane, and each of them was a Dual Elementalist. One of them had the light and darkness element which was a rare combination, and the other has the space and fire element. "Ezra, looks like you''ll be losing your number one rank today," Jesse said coolly. "You''ve grown stronger after your expedition, but I don''t think you will be able to defeat me," Ezra said with a smile. "Heh, we''ll see about that," Jesse smiled before flames erupted around him. Just as he was about to attack, he heard a voice calling for them to stop. "Stop!" They turned to look at who was speaking, and it was none other than Grey. "What are you doing? Why are you interfering in their match?" The supervisor in charge of that stage questioned coldly. The judges from the different Factions also looked at Grey oddly. They all had an interest in this masked boy, but they didn''t understand why he would stop the most anticipated battle in the Origin Plane. "As much as I''d like to see them fight, I don''t want to fight against a weakened opponent," Grey said. "Meaning?" The supervisor asked with narrowed eyes. "I want to challenge them right now, after I''m done with them, they can fight for the scraps," Grey said nonchalantly. His words invited rage from the crowd, Ezra and Jesse, as well as the judges from the Factions, especially the two Factions Ezra and Jesse belonged to. "Be careful what you wish for, boy. You might have some potential, but don''t forget that others your age are already in the Overlord Plane," One of the judges said coldly. The meaning of his statement was as clear as day for all to see.. If Grey was really talented, then he wouldn''t still be in the Origin Plane. Chapter 523 - Climbing To The Top "What I wish for is none of your business," Grey turned to the judge coldly. "Pestilent child, I hope you do not regret your decision," The judge replied. His impression of Grey just took a big dip down. He was even having thoughts of trying to recruit Grey a few minutes ago, but now, he wanted nothing more than for Ezra and Jesse to beat the living hell out of him. Ezra turned to look at Jesse, "Why don''t I give you the pleasure of satisfying the wish of my Teacher?" Jesse squinted his eyes, looking at Grey. "As you wish, but as soon as I am done with this shrimp, we''ll begin our battle," He nodded. Ezra smiled before turning to look at Grey coldly, since he dared to speak to her Teacher so rudely, he had entered her blacklist. If she were the one who fights against him, she didn''t know if she could hold herself back from killing him. "Where do you think you''re going?" Grey asked as Ezra was about to step down from the stage. Ezra paused, looking at Grey with her icy gaze, "Only after you defeat him do you have the right to speak to me," Her words showed her proud nature. Grey wanted to stop her, but since he decided against it, "Fine, stand by the side, you''ll be coming in shortly," After saying that, he walked onto the stage, staring at the huge stone that was in the sky. He was a little interested in how it worked, but he didn''t have the luxury of checking it out since he had a lot on his hands right now. "Where did a proud monkey like you come from?" Jesse asked after Grey stood in front of him. Grey tilted his head slightly to the side when he heard his words, staring at the youth who was speaking to him. He didn''t say a word, turning to look at the supervisor as if to ask when can I start pummeling this guy? "Begin!" The supervisor called out a few seconds later. As soon as the supervisor called for the start of the battle, Jesse vanished. He was a Space Elementalist, so he wouldn''t attack like others. This was Grey''s first time in dealing with other Space Elementalists aside from Void, and he couldn''t help but shake his head at Jesse''s use of the space element. When the crowd saw Jesse disappear, they all thought this was the end for Grey. "Looks like the battle ended before it even began," Ezra commented. Jesse rarely starts a battle with the space element, unless he has the utmost confidence in being able to come out on top. Just as everyone was waiting for Jesse to appear out of the blue and send Grey flying. They saw something that stunned them. Grey, who was previously standing idly on the stage, took a simple step forward, stretched out his right hand to the left, and to the greatest shock of every person in the arena except for Void and Sylvia, Jesse suddenly appeared, his neck firmly grabbed by Grey. It was like he pulled him out of the space tunnel he was hiding. "What?!" The judges, crowd, supervisor, and other fighters were dumbstruck by what they saw. Grey was slightly taller than Jesse, holding him by the neck, he holstered him up into the air, with just one hand. It was like he was holding a baby. He tilted his head to the side, studying Jesse properly. "You were saying?" He asked mockingly. With a simple motion, he tossed Jesse out of the stage. A small smile on his face. Although he was currently grumpy, he didn''t want to create enemies all around, else he would''ve beaten Jesse to the state that he would find it difficult to walk for a month or so. Crash! Bam! Jesse''s figure first crashed on the stage, before sliding out of it, landing on the ground outside the stage. Ezra, who was still just outside the stage was left shocked and confused. She couldn''t comprehend how it happened. Only those with a much higher cultivation base clearly understood what just happened. Grey being able to accurately pinpoint Jesse''s position and fishing him out of the space tunnel was no easy feat, even for a Space Elementalist. But he did it with such ease that they found it almost difficult to accept. The judge who was speaking to Grey previously was left a little perplexed. "You''re also a Space Elementalist?" He asked with a low voice. Grey didn''t reply, but his silence said the answer everyone wanted to know. He truly was a Space Elementalist. "No wonder he''s this confident," Ezra muttered outside the stage. Doubt was slowly coming into her head since she knew even at her best day and Jesse''s worst, she couldn''t defeat him so easily. If Grey could throw him out of the stage so easily, then the odds of her being able to defeat him was not good. "Please come in, I''m in a hurry," Grey said, taking a step back as if saying if you''re scared, I will give you more room. "Ezra, be careful. He is not as weak as you think," Jesse, who had already stood up from the side said as he walked towards the stage. He was feeling slightly embarrassed after being beaten in such a quick time, and even after he brought out his biggest guns to boot. "Don''t worry, I will help you send him packing. Maybe now you will acknowledge me as the strongest after I defeat him," Ezra''s confidence slowly started to come back as she boldly stepped onto the stage. Jesse nodded, before a step back. What he found surprising was that Grey left him in a perfect state. He was basically still the same way he was before the fight started, it was as if he hadn''t been in a battle a few moments ago. "I will defeat you," Ezra said as she stood before Grey. "Feel free," Grey replied nonchalantly while giving an inviting gesture. He turned to look at the supervisor, waiting for him to call for the battle to begin. "Begin!" Chapter 524 - Number One In The Origin Plane At The Acer Region ''I should take this opportunity to study the light element up close, but I really do not have that time,'' Grey contemplated as the supervisor called for the battle to start. This was his first chance to witness the light element first hand, and if not for his current predicament, he would''ve taken the opportunity to try and see if he could learn a thing or two from it. Unfortunately, he still had multiple array simulations he was running in his head even as he was fighting, so he didn''t want to waste any time here. ''I''ll just observe it a little before defeating her.'' He finally came to a decision. Although he was pressed on time, this was an opportunity for him. He didn''t know when next he might encounter a Light Elementalist he could fight against. Sylvia wasn''t a good choice, and he was sure it wouldn''t be easy to get her to show him the light element as much as he wanted if he wanted to comprehend it. ¡­. After the supervisor called for the battle to begin, white light surrounded Ezra''s body, making her look like a goddess. She was beautiful to begin with, coupled with the light, it was as if she was not from this world. Her figure suddenly vanished from where she was standing, almost as quickly as Jesse did. Swoosh! But compared to Jesse''s, Grey wouldn''t have the privilege of using his advantage of the space element to fish her out. She could easily dodge Grey if he tried to attack her. Boom! Bam! Ezra attacked with the darkness element, but Grey was already prepared for her attacks. With simple side steps, he dodged all her attacks by the tiniest of margins, while studying her movements. Bang! Boom! Ezra continued attacking nonstop, but each attack was hitting empty air. Grey didn''t dodge the attacks with any flashy moves, all he did was to sidestep at the last minute, making sure the attack missed him by a hair''s breadth. The attacks continued for more than a minute, and everyone found it odd that Grey wasn''t making any signs of attacking. ¡­. At the judges'' area. "What is he doing?" The judge, who is Ezra''s Teacher, asked curiously. "He seems to be studying her movement. From his reaction, it''s like he finds the light element to be very intriguing, so he wants to study it more," Another judge said. From all of them here, she was the most observant person. So it wasn''t too difficult for her to discern what Grey was doing. "*Sigh* After he defeated Jesse, I knew Ezra was no match for him," Ezra''s Teacher shook his head sadly. "It''s not something to be sad about. You can clearly tell he''s from a powerful background. Maybe he is stuck at the Origin Plane and seeking ways to break through it. From how he didn''t hurt Jesse when they fought, you can tell that he''s not a bad person," The Lady who was able to discern Grey''s motive for not attacking Ezra said. The other judges nodded to what she said. Grey''s strength wasn''t something that a genius in a region like theirs could have. Even if he was from their region, he must have been recruited from his early ages by big Factions. ¡­. After almost two minutes, Grey shook his head in amazement. The speed of the light element was unbelievable. Even with Ezra''s low Plane, she is easily faster than most First stage Overlord Plane Elementalists, and even some in the Second Plane. Grey was using her help to further hone his space element, so he could dodge faster with it, while also studying the light element. So far, he had gotten nothing from staring at it. But he wasn''t sad since he knew it would only take some time, but he would surely get it. ''Time to end this,'' He said to himself after dodging Ezra''s attack once again. This time, he called upon his lightning element, using it with the help of the space element. He vanished while covered with red lightning, and as soon as his figure appeared again, he was in front of Ezra. Ezra tried to move to the side, but Grey was faster, anticipating her next move. It was as if everywhere was blocked, and she found it difficult to resist. Grey stretched out his hand quickly, and just like Jesse, he grabbed her by the neck, lifting her up easily for all to see before tossing her out of the stage, in the same manner as he did to Jesse. With that, Grey''s name on the stone board suddenly lit up, before quickly jumping from the second place to the first. His name had moved from the forty-ninth to second place after he defeated Jesse, pushing him to third place. But he didn''t really take note of it. He only looked at it after he defeated Ezra. "I left them in perfect condition, so they can still fight against each other," Grey said to Ezra''s Teacher. When the judges found out the reason he didn''t harm either Ezra or Jesse, they were a little taken aback. He left them in perfect fighting conditions so that they could still fight against each other. "His sense of reasoning is definitely not like the rest," The Lady amongst the judges said. "Hmph! But it doesn''t give him the right to be arrogant. His arrogance will lead to his downfall," Ezra''s Teacher snorted coldly. Of everyone here, he was one of the few who found Grey as an eyesore. ¡­. Grey is currently the first amongst all Origin Plane Elementalists in the Acer region, but it wasn''t something he was really proud of. Looking at the name Grey Dawson, Sylvia turned to look at Grey strangely. But she shook her head soon after when she realized how clueless Grey was. She didn''t think he was from the family that came to mind when she saw the name, Dawson. As things are, no one would want to challenge Grey, so it was easy to say that the first position was already secured.. Now, all that was left was for those in lower ranks to fight to try to increase their ranks. Chapter 525 - The Next Round With the first position claimed, Ezra and Jesse still fought fiercely for the second place. Ezra won by the smallest of margins. Their battle was the only battle fought that Grey watched, discarding his thought process for the few minutes the battle was on. The reason he watched it was to get an outer view of the light element. There is a difference between experiencing it up close and looking at it from a distance. When the battles for the rankings of the Origin Plane concluded, the judges called those whose names were in the top ten to step into the stage to receive their rewards. While Grey was outside, he asked Sylvia a question that was bothering him. He wanted to know how the stone worked since it was able to automatically move his name to the first place after he defeated Ezra. According to Sylvia, in the small amulets given to them after they qualified for the top fifty, a small portion of their essences was taken from it. This amulet is made from the same item as the stone board, and it was connected via an array. No matter where Grey or other individuals ranked in it, as long as any of them is defeated by someone on the rankings, that person would take their spot on the rankings, pushing them down. Grey was left surprised when he was asked what item he wanted as a reward, and rather than asking for a technique that everyone thought he would, he requested a book on arrays. It can''t be helped, he really wanted to increase his knowledge of them as quickly as possible. The arrays here are more complex when compared to the one back at the Azure Continent, and since the chance presented Itself, why not take it? After the rewards were given to the top ten, the first stage of the competition was concluded. Now, it was time to start the second stage of the competition, the ranking for Overlord Plane Elementalists. The first set was for the Early stages rankings. Only Elementalists in the First stage of the Overlord Plane to the Third stage are allowed to participate in this set. Before Grey left after collecting his reward, he asked the judges if he could be allowed to also participate in the Early stages rankings for the Overlord Plane. His request threw them off their feet as they didn''t expect he would want to try out his strength against those in the Overlord Plane. After giving it some thought, they didn''t feel it was odd given how strong he was. Even Ezra and Jesse were also planning to take part in it as well, so why couldn''t the person who defeated them easily also take part as well? The Lady amongst the judges gave Grey the go-ahead to participate. With that, he left the arena altogether. The next round would begin the next day, and he wanted to try to study the books on arrays he was given. When he requested a book on array, he was actually given three instead of one. Just like before, Grey stepped into his room and shut his door, before taking out the books on arrays and studying them. Sylvia and Void were left to wander around the city alone. Unlike Grey, they didn''t enjoy solitude. ¡­. The next day. The next round of the competition was about to begin, and a fair few individuals in the Origin Plane were said to be taking part as well. The most notable name was none other than that of the current newly crowned number one genius in the Origin Plane across the entire Acer region, Grey Dawson. It was said that he won the competition without facing any challenges. Not everyone watched the battle take place, so there were fresh faces who came just to see this young genius who managed to sweep the ground with those in his cultivation stage. By the time Grey came to the arena, the battles had started. It was just like the time they came for battles for those in the Origin Plane. In comparison to the number of participants in the Origin Plane. There were fewer people at this stage. According to what was registered, there were around five hundred or so youths who registered for this stage of the competition. Just like the first stage, they would be having a battle royale. Only, twenty people would be going through from each stage instead of fifteen. There would be a total of fifty participants in a single stage as well, making things quicker. But unlike the Origin Plane battles, the previous top ten in the Early stages geniuses rankings wouldn''t participate in this round of battles. ¡­. When Grey stepped into the arena, he quickly attracted the attention of a lot of individuals. It was impossible for him to hide from them. His dressing, appearance, hair, and mask were too distinct from others. People were pointing at him, showing him to those who were unfortunate not to be here the previous day to watch him breeze through his opponents. "We''re late again," Sylvia complained when she realized that the battles had started. "Better late than never, right?" Grey asked with open arms. "We should be done with this and leave soon, we still have other regions to go to," Sylvia replied. "I''ll be doing this again?" Grey asked, concerned. "No, instead, you''ll be challenging those ranked first. This way, you would save yourself the time of going through this long process," Sylvia answered while they headed to their seats. Since Grey was ranked the number one genius in the Origin Plane, he had a special seat designated for him in the arena. Of course he could bring those close to him along! When Grey heard Sylvia''s words, he heaved a sigh of relief. He didn''t have the time to go around for competitions, but challenging a single individual was less time-consuming and more straightforward.. Had he known, he would''ve waited till the winner was announced before challenging them in this competition, but he couldn''t say he didn''t like his reward though. Chapter 526 - Lets Team Up Twenty minutes later, it was time for the next set to get on stage. While walking to the stage, Grey was sensible enough to study the people who were heading towards the stage he wanted to pick. He might be arrogant, but he''s definitely not stupid. Taking Overlord Plane Elementalists like they were Origin Plane Elementalists would be the biggest mistake he''ll ever make in this competition, and since he planned to stay in the competition for a long time, he couldn''t be careless. Before getting to the stage, he had surveyed where all the participants were headed. Thanks to this, he didn''t have any issues with picking a stage to get on. Of the two stages that would be used, the last one was the one least occupied by people in the Third stage of the Overlord Plane, and that was the one he picked. Ezra and Jesse were surprisingly also in this stage as well, and seeing Grey come towards the stage they narrowed their eyes. Everyone here recognized Grey, and there were a few Overlord Plane Elementalists that were eager to show this newly crowned number one genius in the Origin Plane some lessons. While waiting for the battle to begin, Grey took the liberty of approaching Ezra and Jesse. "What do you want?" Ezra asked when she saw him getting close. "As you can see, I''m not particularly welcome in the eyes of many here. So I feel our chances would be great if we were to team up," Grey said with a smile. Ezra and Jesse paused, surprised by Grey''s words. They originally thought he was the arrogant type given his display from the previous day. Only now did they know that he was a totally different person. "Actually, you approaching her has made you even more unwelcomed in the eyes of most of the male Elementalists here. As you can see, a lot of them have a thing for Ezra, and some would feel beating you might be the opportunity they need to get closer to her," Jesse said. Grey turned around, and he couldn''t help but shake his head when he saw the gazes most of the male Elementalists on the stage were giving him. "*Sigh* Great! Just when I thought it wouldn''t get worse," He sighed dejectedly. "Alright, I''ll move away, see you guys in the next round then," He turned around, walking to another side of the stage. Jesse and Ezra nodded, but it was after Grey left did they suddenly recall his last words. "Did he just say see you guys in the next round?" Ezra couldn''t help but ask. "Yeah," Jesse nodded, stumped by Grey''s confidence even after seeing how the situation looked. From the gazes some of the boys here were giving Grey, it was evident that he would be the target of many. All wishing to eliminate him even before the competition goes far. The remaining participants soon got on the other stages, and it was time for the supervisors to call for the start of the battles. Most of the attention from the crowd was placed on the stage where Grey was standing, they all wanted to see how this genius would fare against opponents on another Plane. Would he be able to breeze through like he previously did in the Origin Plane competition, or would he be stopped early on? "Begin!" Boom! Bang! Bam! As soon as the supervisor called for the battle to begin, Grey''s location was instantly flooded with a series of attacks. Each attack coming from a different individuals. When Sylvia and Void made a headcount, there were about eleven people attacking Grey simultaneously. It was a shocking scene as different elements converged on one position. Those who were standing close to Grey had already created some space between them just when the battle was about to begin since they sensed what would happen after the battle started. Ezra and Jesse watched on with Grey interest, waiting for the attacks to die down. Although Grey''s situation was attracting a lot of conditions, other people had started fighting on the stage, as well as the other two. Swoosh! Bang! A blue flame was seen spreading at the center of the attacks, before exploding out in all directions. Sending out a powerful shockwave across the entire stage. Some unlucky individuals who were standing at the edge of the stage were even knocked off, getting eliminated by the power of the shockwave. The others on stage turned to look at the cause of the shockwave, and to their surprise, Grey could be seen standing there, blue flames burning around him as he looked around with cold eyes. This was the first time he was displaying another element other than the lightning and space element, and the power of his flames sent chills down the spines of some of the Overlord Plane Elementalists in the stage as well as the arena. ¡­. At the judges'' area. "Blue flames, he also has red lightning, right?" Ezra''s Teacher asked when he saw Grey''s fire. "Yes, for a single individual to possess two special elements is not something you see every day," Another judge nodded. "This boy is a real talent, if he can get through this stage, I don''t mind recruiting him," A lady said. "Why are you sounding as if you''re giving him a privilege? Given the strength he has shown, do you think we''ll sit idly and watch you snatch him up? None of the geniuses in this region seems to hold a light when placed in front of him," An old man said. "Isn''t that a little bit too exaggerated? Don''t forget that he''s only still at the Peak of the Origin Plane," Ezra''s Teacher said. Of all the people here, he was the only one who didn''t like Grey. One of the reasons for this was because of the manner in which Grey decided his prized pupil. While the judges were arguing on who would recruit Grey, the battle had started once again. ¡­. On the stage. After Grey blocked the attacks with his flames, he didn''t hold back and instantly attacked the group who attacked him in the first place, charging straight right into them. Chapter 527 - Highest Elimination Count Grey''s movement was causing mayhem on the stage as it was difficult for others to touch him, yet he was sending people flying one by one. This time, the crowd got to see some of his strength, and they couldn''t hide the awe in their eyes. Those who watched him yesterday felt like they were currently watching a different person, while the ones who came to see him today felt like it was totally worth it. Bam! Boom! Crash! Grey kept attacking ferociously, not giving his opponents the opportunity to get a strike at him. After the first surprise, the battles had started once again on the stage, and with Grey breaking through the circle of the eleven people, it paved the way for others to eliminate some of them while they were scampering around to block Grey''s attacks. Within the short time of three minutes, Grey managed to eliminate eight people in total, which was the highest for a single individual in all the stages. And the fact that the person with the highest elimination count was still in the Origin Plane was even more fascinating. Boom! Bang! Grey didn''t show any signs of slowing down as he continued attacking. He was like the ultimate filter, picking out all the weak people while leaving the strongest ones on the stage. Ten minutes later. The battle in Grey''s stage had ended all thanks to Grey''s quick actions. There were currently only twenty people left standing on the stage, and of the twenty people, only four of them were in the Origin Plane. Grey, Ezra, Jesse, and the young man who is ranked fifth in the Origin Plane geniuses rankings. Of the thirty people eliminated, Grey single-handedly eliminated fifteen, a staggering figure given the number of people on the stage. There were even a few people in the Third stage of the Overlord Plane in this stage, but none of them was able to eliminate up to five on their own. It took almost ten minutes of waiting before the battles on the other stages showed signs of stopping. After the battles ended, there were a total of two hundred participants left, excluding the top ten who weren''t a part of this stage. The supervisors handed out small plaque-like amulets to Grey and the others who qualified. "Since there are a hundred and ten more people, another elimination match will take place later today. One hundred and thirty people would be randomly selected, and once you see your amulet light up, know you''re part of them. Only twenty of these hundred and thirty people would advance to the next round of the competition¡­" The supervisor explained. Grey and the rest of the people on stage listened closely. When they all heard that only twenty people would advance in a total of a hundred and thirty people, they looked at each other with fiery eyes. There were a few people who threw a glance in Grey''s direction. His performance in the previous round didn''t go unnoticed, and even though most of the people he eliminated were in the First stage of the Overlord Plane, he still eliminated a fair few in the Second stage. Presently, he was one of the few people that others were actually praying not to get selected for this round. Other than him, the only other people they didn''t want to be picked were mostly in the Third stage of the Overlord Plane, with a few in the Second stage. After the supervisor was done with his explanation, the lights on the amulets of the participants started to go off one by one. Before long, the eighty people who would be taking part in the next round of battles had been decided, and Grey was among them. ¡­. Grey stared at the amulet in his hand, it was at times like these that he wished he was as lucky as Klaus in these types of things. If Klaus were to be here, then he would definitely not be part of these people who would be fighting to get into the next round. He didn''t know how he did it, but so long as it involved luck in skipping a battle, he was almost a hundred percent certain that Klaus would get it. While Grey was reminiscing about his friend, the supervisor told them all to head back to their seats to rest, before they started the battle. Since some of them were just involved in a battle, it wouldn''t seem fair for them if they started the battle immediately. "Why did so many people attack you?" Sylvia asked when Grey got back to his seat. Grey went on to explain the whole Ezra dilemma to her. "Heh! Boys will be boys," She scoffed when she heard the story. "They''re just a bunch of stupid foolhardy people," Grey said before taking a seat. He had not been one who would fight others because he liked a girl. He didn''t even like anyone to begin with, other than Alice, he had no other female friend. He could''ve added Aella, but they barely got to know each other. If not for wanting to get to learn about forgemastering from her, he wouldn''t have approached her in the first place. Two hours soon went by, and it was time for them to step on stage again. Ezra and Jesse were lucky enough not to be part of this set, which meant they''d automatically entered the top one hundred. The only thing that bothered Grey a little bit was that there were over fifteen Third stage Overlord Plane Elementalists that were picked, not just that, but there were also some powerful Second stage Overlord Plane Elementalists as well. In a one-on-one scenario, he was at least fifty percent confident since most of them wouldn''t be more powerful than the young man who had an Elemental Warrior in the Gale region. The Third stage Overlord Plane was seventeen in total, and they wisely separated, giving themselves a better chance of qualifying. Since there were one hundred and thirty people, two stages will have fifty people that would be fighting simultaneously and eight qualifying from each, with thirty fighting in the last one stage and only four people qualifying from that one. Chapter 528 - Fighting Confidently Grey didn''t head to the stage with thirty people there, the reason was that there were four Third stage Overlord Plane Elementalists there, and from what he sensed, they wouldn''t be easy to deal with. Not just that, but the four of them seemed to be on good terms, so there''s the possibility of them working together. With that stage out of the list, he was left with the other two. One of these two had seven Third stage Overlord Plane Elementalists, while the other had six. According to the supervisor, eight people would qualify from this set, while only four from the group of thirty. Grey surprisingly picked the stage where seven Third stage Overlord Plane Elementalists were standing. When the fighters saw him walking in, they all hardened their gazes. If they were ever told that an Origin Plane Elementalist would be able to make them this serious while they were in the Overlord Plane, they would never have believed the person. With everything set, all that was left was for the supervisor to call for the start of the battles. The man in charge looked around, after confirming the numbers, he nodded. "Begin!" Boom! Bam! Attacks flew all around as soon as he called out for the fight to start. Everyone here wanted to qualify, especially after managing to pass the first round. The number of Origin Plane Elementalists in this group was three, Grey and two others. When the battle started, one of them was quickly eliminated. He was unfortunate enough to be standing close to the Third stage Overlord Plane Elementalists and was eliminated by one of them. A Second stage Overlord Plane Elementalists attacked Grey since he was the one closest to him. Grey dodged the attack with lightning dancing across his body, and the person behind him was struck by the attack, sending him flying. He countered, shooting a ball of flame towards the youth who attacked him. The young man was a Water Elementalist, seeing the fireballs coming towards him, he quickly raised an ice wall in front of him to block it. Bang! The attack slammed into the ice wall, but it wasn''t the only thing that did. Cracks appeared on both sides of the ice wall. The one on the front was caused by Grey''s fireball, the one on the back was caused when the young man slammed into the wall. He fell to the ground weakly right after, and behind him was Grey who had a nonchalant look. After he saw the young man setting up a defensive wall, he simply teleported to his back, punching him into the ice wall. Grey grabbed the unconscious youth, tossing him out of the stage as if he was weightless. While Grey was tossing the young man out of the stage, he was attacked from behind by a young lady in the First stage of the Overlord Plane. Grey had always been a cautious person, so there was no way he wouldn''t be alert while eliminating the young man. He sidestepped, and the attack of the young lady hit the young man who was still mid-air, inflicting heavy injuries on him while also increasing the speed of his movement. Bang! The young man crashed into the ground, bleeding from different parts of his body. Grey on the other hand had already engaged the young lady who thought she could catch him unaware. Within a few moves, he tossed her out of the stage as well. When he was done with her, he went on to the next target. Boom! Bam! Bang! The battles in the stages raged on, with multiple people being eliminated as time went on. One of the greatest shocks in the battles was the elimination of one of the Third stage Overlord Plane Elementalists, he was eliminated by a young lady in the First stage of the Overlord Plane. A series of misfortunes was what brought about his elimination, but the young lady played a big part in it. The first stage currently had only five Third stage Overlord Plane Elementalists, which boosted the morale of those in that stage. The second stage which Grey was fighting in still had all seven Third stage Overlord Plane Elementalists, the same thing with the last stage which still had all four of them. Grey had eliminated five people since the start of the battle, and other than the young lady in the First stage, the other four had all been Second stage Overlord Plane Elementalists. These people were weaker when compared to those top Second stage Overlord Plane Elementalists Grey fought against at the Gale region, so he didn''t have any problems in dealing with them. After almost ten minutes of fighting, there were only fifteen people left on the stage Grey was standing on. Six of them were in the Third stage of the Overlord Plane, eight were in the Second, and then there is Grey, an Origin Plane Elementalist. The stage was no longer crowded, so they could all pick a fight against an individual without worrying about getting into another fight. Of course, this didn''t mean that they would be careless. One of the Third stage Overlord Plane Elementalists walked in Grey''s direction. He was a Fire Elementalist with amber hair. "I would like to test the strength of the number one genius in the Origin Plane," The young man said humbly. Grey nodded, after all, he wasn''t picky with his opponents. The young man bowed, before attacking Grey with a stream of fire. Grey dodged the stream of fire, before sending out an attack of his own. The young man sent out an attack towards Grey''s attack. Boom! Their attacks collided, causing a huge explosion. After seeing the duo engage in a fight, the others started to fight as well. They couldn''t just sit by and watch. With fifteen people left, seven people had to be eliminated before they could stop fighting.. Grey didn''t care who those seven people were, as long as he qualified for the next round, he was satisfied. Chapter 529 - Qualifying The young man with amber hair attacked again, sending a fire blade at Grey that slashed horizontally. Grey set up a defensive ice wall in front of him. Bam! Crack! Bang! The blade broke through the ice wall easily, heading towards Grey. Grey didn''t panic, as he sent a fist made of flames at the slash. Boom! The attacks collided, causing a huge shockwave that pushed Grey a few steps back. Before he could regain his footing, the young man appeared above him, cutting down vertically this time. Grey sidestepped, but to his surprise, the young man was able to increase the width of the blade slash, covering almost ten meters. With no other choice, Grey used the space element to escape from the range of the attack, escaping by a hair''s breadth. After he appeared, he attacked the young man instantly, sending out a lightning bolt that almost hit the back of the young man. Bang! The young man turned around quickly, slashing his fire blade at the bolt of lightning that was heading towards him. After deflecting the attack, he continued slashing at Grey. Easily breaking the ice wall that Grey tried to use as a defense. ''Crap! I would''ve told her I was an Earth Elementalist. Although, why do I feel like my ice is stronger than it previously was?'' Grey complained when he saw how easily the young man was breaking through his defense. However, he also noticed that compared to before, his ice ability was stronger. Even though it couldn''t hold out against this young man''s attack, it was still able to delay it. From Grey''s estimation, it was at least fifteen percent stronger than it usually was. But it still isn''t as strong as his earth element in terms of defense, yet. Grey bent back, dodging the slash of the blade. Due to the speed of it, it cut a little bit of his hair, almost burning it. Bam! Bang! Boom! The young man with amber hair continued attacking, pushing Grey back. While they were fighting, the others were still fighting, trying their best to eliminate the rest. Of all the battles on the stage though, none of them was as intense and exciting as that of Grey and the young man with amber hair. Grey''s performance was not below everyone''s expectations since he was fighting against a powerful Third stage Overlord Plane Elementalist while still being in the Origin Plane. In fact, they all found it almost difficult to accept since although he has been on the back foot since the battle started, there weren''t any signs that the young man was completely dominating him. Ezra and Jesse got further confirmation from this fight that they were no match for Grey. The judges were also watching the battle with keen eyes. The young man with amber hair was one of the strongest individuals amongst those in the Third stage except from the top ten. From what they recalled, he was in the top twenty of the geniuses rankings. If Grey can hold off against someone in the top twenty in the geniuses rankings for the Early stage Overlord rankings, that meant his strength was unbelievable. ¡­. While everyone felt Grey was already performing more than expected, he made an attack that shocked everyone, especially the young man who was fighting against him, literally. Buzz! The sound of lightning was heard across the arena, as a ten meters radius around Grey was covered entirely in lightning. The young man with amber hair was within that ten meters radius, getting the full brunt of the lightning attack. On the ground, what looked like a seal could be seen. It was what brought about Grey''s quick lightning attack that took the young man by surprise. The young man convulsed for the first few seconds before his defense wasn''t set up, but after that time, he covered his body with the fire element, before shooting out of the ten meters radius. After coming out, he gasped, trying to catch his breath while staring at Grey warily. He had been on the front foot since the start of the battle, yet Grey was not only able to endure, but he found an opportunity to counterattack as well. The young man''s expression changed slightly when Grey, who was still in the curtain of lightning, smiled, and he increased his vigilance. Grey looked around, realizing there were nine of them on the stage, instead of eight. Choosing randomly, he switched positions with another unsuspecting young man in the Third stage of Overlord Plane who was lazing around after defeating his opponent. Buzz! "Ah!" Due to how unexpected it was, he was unable to do anything to defend against this attack. Bam! Crash! The sound of flesh hitting flesh rang across the stage, before the young man''s figure was sent flying outside the stage. This was an unexpected outcome nobody felt would happen. Grey used the first chance he got against the young man with amber hair to force him back while picking a weaker opponent to eliminate. This not only meant that their two were qualified for the next round, but it also showed his impeccable battle awareness. Grey had been taking note of what was happening around him even while he was suppressed by the young man. When the opportunity arose, he took it so well that nobody could find any faults with him. It might be a sneak attack, but it was one that was well executed. Other than the young man who he eliminated, no one else found his attack as an eyesore. ¡­. At the judges'' area. "Clever, taking out two birds with one stone. He used the same attack for not only pushing back that boy but also eliminating someone else. But do any of you find the way he switched positions with him strange?" One of the Ladies amongst the judges asked. "He used the space element, this is something I''ve not seen before.. Hmph! I''ve always hated Space Elementalists, they''re always a headache for everyone else," Ezra''s Teacher replied, clearly still not happy with Grey. Chapter 530 - Eliminating You Is Enough On the stage. The young man with amber hair was taken aback when he saw how Grey was able to quickly eliminate the young man. "Thank you for letting me advance into the next round," He said to him. He knew his strength, and from how Grey switched positions with that young man before stepping into the lightning once again, it would''ve been difficult, even for him to get out of it in time. Also, when he saw the speed at which Grey eliminated the young man, he knew Grey didn''t want to eliminate him, else he could''ve done so after he was struck by the attack the first time. "Compared to him, I am not sure I can eliminate you that easily," Grey replied with a smile. "You animal! How dare you eliminate me?!" While Grey and the young man were exchanging words, they heard a holler from below the stage. Everyone turned to look at the source, and it was none other than the unfortunate young man Grey eliminated. "What''s the meaning of this? Since you''re eliminated, you are no longer allowed onto the stage," Before Grey or the young man with amber hair could respond, the harsh voice of the supervisor was heard from the side. "I¡­ I¡­ this isn''t fair! I challenge him to a deathmatch! If I win, I''ll take his spot," The young man declared aggressively. The supervisor took a glance at the judges, and seeing Ezra''s Teacher nod, he didn''t rebuke the young man, now, it was all in Grey''s hands. If Grey agreed to this, then he would allow it, if not, then he would chase the young man away. Grey narrowed his eyes when he heard the words of the young man. "Come on number one genius, are you scared?" The young man mocked. "Scared? Of an already defeated opponent? Not a chance. But, I am not so evil that I would want you dead, eliminating you is more than enough," Grey replied. His answer to the young man''s challenge was a resounding no. He had other things to worry about, why would he want to waste his time fighting against this young man. Even though it wouldn''t be easy, he knew if he pulled out a few cards, then he would win for sure. He still hadn''t used his inscriptions in the battles, then there was also that space array he learned which would make it impossible for his opponents to touch him. It wasn''t yet time to show his cards, so he wasn''t interested in fighting against this young man. Besides, he had defeated him before, although it was from a sneak attack, a defeat was a defeat. "Damn you, you scoundrel. Fight me if you dare!" The young man wasn''t willing to let this go. "Not a chance," Grey shrugged, before turning to look at the supervisor, waiting for him to chase the young man away. He wasn''t disappointed as the young man was soon chased away by the supervisor. Of course, he continued making a scene, threatening to kill Grey after they left this place. Grey grinned when he heard this, further angering the young man. Of all the things Grey was worried about, being killed by someone while being under the watch of Sylvia wasn''t one of them. With Sylvia around, even the judges wouldn''t dare to attack him, much less a little figure like the young man. ¡­. "You should be careful, he''s from a family of low-leveled moralless people, they might not hold back in trying to kill you," The young man with amber hair warned. "Oh, thank you. But I''m not worried about him," Grey thanked the young man for his concern. The young man nodded, before walking out of the stage. Now, there are one hundred people left in the competition. Ten of them had not been involved in any battles, and they were the people who were in the top ten of the rankings. After this set of battles, the judges called it a day, telling all participants to go back to their places of rest. The competition would continue the next day. Grey and Sylvia walked out of the arena together, heading straight for the tavern. They soon got to the tavern. "Looks like that guy didn''t make an empty threat, some people had been following us, and they aren''t his people alone. How many people did you offend?" Sylvia asked. "I have no idea," Grey shrugged before walking into the tavern. This wasn''t something he should concern himself with. Since Sylvia was the one who made him participate in this competition, then she was the one who would deal with any of the troubles outside the competition. Sylvia looked at Grey''s receding figure before shaking her head and stepping into the tavern as well. It was already almost sunset, and she knew if these people wanted to make a move, they would wait until it was dark. She didn''t really mind killing them now though, but she was sure not all of them wanted to kill Grey, some only wanted to confirm where he was staying. The next day. Grey came out as usual, tired from his constant research of arrays. He truly wanted to stop this and get good sleep, but with the knowledge of there being something on his back that would attract people who would want to kill him, he couldn''t. "How did it go?" He asked Sylvia after coming out of his room. "Just some small fries we won''t be hearing from again," Sylvia replied. "Alright, thank you," Grey said gratefully before stepping out of the tavern. They headed towards the arena, and on the way, he heard about the corpses of eight people which were found in an alley not too far from the tavern he was staying in. ''Hey, Void, how are you?'' Grey started conversing with Void as they headed towards the arena. He hadn''t been able to speak with him for a while, so he felt now was a good time. Chapter 531 - Top Fifty Grey and his group got to the arena a little sooner than they previously did. On getting there, the news of one of the previous participants found dead circulated across the place. It was none other than the young man who threatened to kill Grey the previous day. He wasn''t found alone, according to reports, some other people were found alongside him, all dead. When Grey and Sylvia entered the arena, they drew a lot of attention because of this matter in particular. Before they could sit down, one of the judges flew towards them, giving off a malicious aura. "What did you do to him?" The judge asked coldly. She was one of the few females amongst the judges. Grey looked at her, a little taken aback. "Sorry, but what are you talking about?" He asked, not sure what the lady was referring to. "Kyle, you killed him didn''t you?" The lady said. "I''m sorry, but who''s Kyle?" Grey asked with a confused face. The lady was incensed when she saw this, before sending a powerful pressure with her cultivation base at Grey. But her expression soon changed when she didn''t see any form of distress on Grey''s face. ''Impossible! Even those in the Overlord Plane wouldn''t be able to neglect my pressure. There must be a treasure with him, a powerful one at that,'' The lady thought, looking at Grey with evil intentions brewing. "Stop playing dumb, he said those words out of anger, yet you sent people to kill him," The lady said. "Oh, you''re talking about that guy from yesterday? If I wanted him dead, I would''ve done it myself. I''m not that shameless to send people after him," Grey said, before taking his seat beside Sylvia who was already sitting. The lady was about to press further when she suddenly sensed something, she paused, looked at Sylvia before turning around quickly, not daring to stay any further. The confrontation by the lady further increased the discussions in the arena. Thirty minutes later. The next round of battles started. Since there were only a hundred people left, they did another battle which would see fifty people get eliminated. The battle lasted for about one hour thirty minutes, and Grey was the only Origin Plane Elementalist left. Ezra and Jesse were unfortunately defeated by an Elementalist in the Third stage of the Overlord Plane. With the top fifty confirmed, it was time for the start of the challenge. Just like with the Origin Plane ranking, they would challenge an individual higher than them on the rankings. For the first time in a long time, one of the names in the top fifty was unexpectedly still in the Origin Plane. Grey was surprisingly ranked fiftieth, even when everyone knew he could get a better rank than this. ''Who would you be challenging?'' Void asked Grey. ''I think the person ranked thirtieth. Although I want to get this done quickly so we can leave this place, I can''t be careless and fight against someone too powerful. If I''m able to get into the top twenty, I''ll be satisfied,'' Grey replied. ''Okay,'' Void nodded. ''There''s also something bothering me, although she hasn''t shown any malice towards me, I still don''t know her purpose for staying with me, and why is she so adamant in me getting stronger?'' Grey said, throwing a quick glance at Sylvia. He might not show it, but he was still very cautious towards her. She was someone who forcefully entered his life, although she had been of some help, he wasn''t one to trust people he knew nothing about. ''Yeah, I think you should ask her after this, maybe she will give you a reply this time,'' Void suggested. ''I will, but after we leave this place,'' Grey replied. He wasn''t in a hurry to challenge anyone. He planned on seeing the strength of those in the top thirty, before picking an opponent. If he feels he is powerful enough, he might even challenge those in the top twenty. There''s a possibility that he might only challenge a single individual, so he wanted to make sure he made it count. Two hours later. The rankings had changed drastically within these two hours, and people with lower ranks had shot up. The most notable one was none other than the young man with amber hair who fought against Grey the previous day. He had managed to climb from the fifteenth position to tenth after putting on a solid performance against the previous tenth place genius. Grey was genuinely stunned by the battle. The young man with amber hair was powerful, at least more powerful than what he showed the previous day. There were a few techniques that the young man used that he was certain would give him a difficult time. With everything set in place, Grey decided he would challenge the person ranked eighteenth. The reason for this was that there''s a chance others would advance in their ranks, pushing those above them down. If someone below the top twenty were to defeat the person ranked seventeenth, then the person would take that spot, while the others would move down by a rank. Most of the people below the top twenty had tried challenging those in the top twenty, and only a few managed to improve. Other than a few changes, the rankings were the same, with almost the same names in the top twenty. ¡­. When Grey stood up, he immediately attracted the attention of everyone in the arena. They were all curious as to who this young genius would want to challenge. Being the only one in the Origin Plane, he attracted even more attention than the youth who was ranked first. He slowly walked towards the stage, a nonchalant expression on his face. After getting to the arena, he told the supervisor the person he wanted to challenge. The person ranked eighteenth was a young lady called Catherine, she was a Dual Elementalist, having both the lightning and earth element.. She had been challenged once today, but she obtained a resounding victory, easily defeating her opponent. Chapter 532 - Deathmatch Grey stood on the stage, as he waited for Catherine to walk onto the stage. Just as she was about to step onto the stage, a young man with a black mask covering his face, leaving only his eyes, walked up to block her. "He''s mine," The young man said. "You can do as you wish," Catherine shrugged, before turning around. Grey, who was on the stage saw this and was a little baffled as to why Catherine went back. The young man stepped onto the stage, walking straight in his direction. "I''m Ezel, ranked sixteenth on the geniuses rankings. I have a bone to pick with you," He said, straightforwardly. "I do not know you, nor have I offended you before. And, you''re clearly not the one I challenged, I''ll be happy if you can head out and let her come on stage," Grey said, pointing at Catherine who was outside the stage. He didn''t know this guy, nor did he care what this guy had in mind to do with him. All he wanted to do was to fight for a spot in the top twenty before leaving the Acer region. "You killed my brother, and I want to avenge him." Ezel squinted his barely visible eyes, before adding, "I challenge you to a deathmatch," "This, again?" Grey was stumped by his challenge. Since the competition started, he was the only one who had been challenged to a deathmatch, twice! He didn''t even know what he did to deserve such attention. "You remember now?" Ezel man asked. "That guy from yesterday? If yes, then heads up, I haven''t seen him since leaving the arena yesterday. If he was killed by someone, then it must''ve been as a result of his own stupidity. Go and find out who killed him and stop bothering me," Grey said, not backing down. Technically, he was speaking the truth. Although Sylvia was the one who killed him, he didn''t actually witness the crime, nor did he even see him after leaving the arena. "Hmph! You''re the one he followed, so you must have a hand in it," Ezel snorted, not willing to believe Grey''s words. "You know what? Fine, I accept your challenge," Grey said coldly, an icy aura radiating from him as he said this. ¡­. The entire arena was abuzz when they saw Ezel stepping on the stage. They were further shocked by his challenge. But Grey accepting it was what crowned it all, making them excited when thinking about the prospect of a blood-boiling match. In contrast to the previous battles, this one would definitely be more exciting since both fighters would be going for the kill, instead of just trying to eliminate their opponents. Grey was a young prodigy who shot to fame a few days ago, Ezel had been known for quite a while now. Even though Ezel was in the Third stage of the Overlord Plane, no one here was confident he would be able to obtain victory easily. Grey had shown his strength and perseverance when he fought against the young man previously ranked fifteenth. If Grey could hold his own against him, while also being aware of the happenings around him, then he should have a chance against Ezel. ¡­. Grey turned to look at the supervisor as if saying he had changed his opponent to Ezel. The supervisor didn''t need any more words before asking if both fighters were ready, after getting confirmation from the duo, he called for the start of the battle. Swoosh! A gust of wind blew across the entire stage, as Ezel''s figure moved quickly, charging towards Grey. ''A Wind Elementalist,'' He thought internally before wrapping himself with the lightning element. Buzz! Bang! Bam! He also moved quickly towards Ezel, sending out an attack that was easily dodged by his opponent. Ezel countered after dodging, but Grey was also able to dodge his attack. The duo didn''t stop, raining lightning-quick attacks on each other. Boom! Bam! Bang! A powerful force dragged Grey towards Ezel, before sending him flying. This was one of Ezel''s special moves, sucking the air in front of him with the wind element, forcefully pulling his opponent towards him before sending them flying. The reason he didn''t allow Grey to get close to him was that he was a little wary of him. Grey landed on the ground, feeling slightly woozy from the force that dragged him towards Ezel, and without wasting any time, he dodged to the sides as some wind blades were sent towards him. Swoosh! Bam! Boom! Grey once again wrapped himself with the lightning element, shooting towards Ezel. This time, he learned from his previous lesson and didn''t charge towards him from the front. He sent out fireballs as well as lightning arrows at him, to help distract him while he went close. Ezel, seeing this didn''t panic, spreading out his hands, a powerful repelling wind spread out with him at the center. Grey, who was rushing towards him was once again sent flying by the unexpected wind attack, finding it difficult to retain his footing. Just as his legs were about to touch the ground, he felt a powerful attractive force, pulling him towards Ezel. ''Shit! His control over the wind element is massive!'' Grey exclaimed. He couldn''t deny it, his opponent was well above other Wind Elementalists he had faced. As his body helplessly shot towards Ezel without his control, he hastily created an inscription behind Ezel. He attacked with the inscription when he was around twenty meters away from Ezel. Ezel sensed the attack, dodging to the side. This made Grey heave a sigh since he was no longer in front of him. But his expression turned when he realized his attack was heading straight towards his moving body which he still hadn''t been able to control. ''Damn!'' Bang! The fire attack crashed into his body, stopping it from its rapid movement.. Because the attack was from an inscription, and he wasn''t in the best of states, it was difficult for him to regain control of it. Chapter 533 - Deathmatch II "Hahaha, I never would''ve thought that you would die from your own sneak attack," Ezel laughed when he witnessed Grey being struck by his attack. The explosion covered the area Grey was located, but he was certain of Grey being hit by the attack since he saw Grey''s figure bouncing heavily off the ground from the impact of it. After a few seconds, the explosion died down, and Grey could be seen standing in the position Ezel was previously standing on. His countenance wasn''t the same as before, the mask was broken, his hair was in disarray, and his clothes were ruffled, with burn marks on some parts of it. But one noteworthy thing was that he didn''t seem to suffer from any burns. Grey''s face revealing to the crowd was completely unexpected. Seeing his face which could almost be described as beautiful, most people didn''t think he was the same person from before. A lot of Elementalists who wear masks were mainly to hide scars they suffered on their faces. Who in their right minds would want to hide a face like Grey''s? "It will be a shame that I''ll have to kill you now," Ezel said as he walked towards Grey. "Kill me? Heh! We''re just getting started," Grey said while cracking his knuckles and neck. After doing that, his figure disappeared, appearing almost fifty meters above the platform. "Meteor descent," He muttered. Large balls of fire appeared in the sky, spanning across the entire stage, even slightly going over it. Its strength was unbelievable, for a wide-scale attack. The large fireballs soon started descending at a fast pace, heading towards the stage. Ezel watched them come towards him with a smile, he couldn''t leave the stage, and to be honest, he didn''t plan to. "Ah! Supreme Push!" He yelled, clamping both hands together. A powerful repelling force, just like when he sent Grey flying spread out, with him at the center. The fireballs that got close to him were simply pushed back, moving towards Grey. He could not only repel things back, but he could also control the direction he wishes for them to go. Grey moved across the sky, covered in red lightning as he started shooting lightning bolts at his opponent. Bam! Boom! Bang! The battle intensified, Grey attacking with multiple elements, while Ezel attacked with his wind element. For an element people mostly use to increase their speed and attack, Ezel took it to a whole new level. His control and use of the wind element was something that was beyond Grey''s understanding. For the first time, Grey acknowledged an enemy. Whoosh! Grey was lifted off the ground by the wind, but before Ezel could capitalize on this, he was attacked by two different inscriptions, forcing him back. Even though he had been able to use his control of the wind element to make things extremely difficult for Grey, he had not been able to cause him any major damage since Grey always had a countermeasure once he was in a tight position. The battle had been going on for almost ten minutes now, and Ezel was starting to feel slightly worried. When he saw Grey''s battle with the youth previously ranked fifteenth, he thought he would be able to handle him since the strength difference between him and that young was not much. It was only after the battle started did he realize Grey didn''t really show all his cards. ¡­. The entire arena was quiet, watching the battle attentively. They couldn''t say they weren''t shocked by Grey''s display. His strength wasn''t something someone in the Origin Plane should possess. Ezra and Jesse looked at each other, dread evident in their eyes. It was only now they understood where Grey''s confidence came from when he challenged both of them simultaneously. In front of him, they were nothing but a joke. The crowd was all awed by Grey, not just them, but the judges as well. Even Ezra''s Teacher didn''t have an angry expression like he usually does when Grey was fighting. Grey''s performance was stunning, simply stunning. ¡­. Back on the stage. The battle had hit its peak, with attacks flying around from both sides. Both fighters were already slightly injured from being struck by each others'' attacks. Unfortunately, no one has been able to get the upper hand, yet. ''Lightning rain,'' Grey said internally. Just as the lightning rain started, he slammed both hands on the stage, and water spread across the entire stage. Where he was standing was quickly turned to ice, lifting him off the ground. After getting to a high level, ice shards started appearing beside him as they shot towards Ezel. This sequence of attacks happened within the space of three seconds. Ezel, seeing the lightning that was raining down, was about to dodge to the side, but when he felt water below him, he quickly figured out Grey''s plan. A gust of wind blew below him, as it took him airborne. It was almost like he was being raised by a small tornado, with only his upper body being visible. He escaped from the range of the lightning rain but was still attacked by the ice shards nonetheless. He set up a windscreen before him, using it to block most of the attacks while also sending wind blades towards Grey. He didn''t aim for Grey, instead, he aimed for the ice platform Grey was standing on. When Grey felt the ice breaking below him, he couldn''t help but smile inside, before jumping towards the center of the lightning rain. That was not all, two more inscriptions appeared mid-air, all attacking the location he was about to land on at the same time. Not just that, but ice spikes sprang out from the ground around where he was about to land, leaving only the spot his foot would touch open. His actions stunned Ezel and everyone who was watching the battle. From what he was preparing, even he would find it difficult for him to escape from his attacks since they were just too much. It was only when his foot was about to touch the wet floor did the expression of everyone in the entire arena changed. Some of the viewers even stood on their feet, as they watched the scene unfold before them. Chapter 534 - On To The Next! "Oh, this move," One of the judges said when they saw what happened. It was the same move Grey used in eliminating the young man Ezel was avenging, switch. "This kid is pure evil," Ezra''s Teacher commented. ¡­. Just as Grey''s leg was about to touch the wet stage, his figure was changed with that of Ezel who was not expecting this. Ezel was dumbstruck when he saw multiple attacks only a few inches from him, and before he could use his ''Supreme Push'' to send the attacks flying, he was electrocuted by the lightning since he was standing on water. His body was still in the middle of vibrating when the ice spikes around the side stabbed into him, accompanied by the attacks from four different inscriptions. His eyes widened as he realized what was happening. This was what he had been defending against since the start of the battle. The memory of how his brother was eliminated was still very fresh on his mind, but after the battle climaxed and Grey didn''t use it in any way, he completely forgot about it. He never would''ve thought that Grey was so cunning to wait till now before using it. Remorse, regret, anguish, sorrow, and a multitude of emotions could be seen in his eyes as the attacks came crashing down, engulfing him. The tornado he created soon disappeared, and Grey could be seen standing perfectly fine at the center. He looked in the direction Ezel was standing on as the attacks exploded. He made sure to make the ice spikes powerful so that even with this explosion, Ezel''s body wouldn''t leave that spot. Some seconds later, the explosion died down, and Ezel''s figure appeared before everyone. He was currently stabbed by multiple ice spikes, on different parts of his body. The spikes had turned red from the blood that was flowing from his body. But the main thing in all this was that Ezel was motionless, eyes wide open. He was still in a standing position, just like when he appeared there. Everyone in the arena looked at the gruesome scene, before turning to look at the creator of the scene who was watching his masterpiece with a faint smirk on his face. They felt like he had already planned this right from the get-go, but he had to make sure Ezel didn''t expect this before he used it. ''Such a cunning figure.'' This was one of the descriptions they had of Grey, and it was almost as significant as his monstrous strength. All in all, they had three ways to describe Grey if asked to, first of all, he was extremely handsome, secondly, he was powerful beyond imagination, and the last was his cunning nature. Grey turned to look at the supervisor, waiting for him to announce the results of the battle. But even before the supervisor announced the result, Grey''s name on the stone board was rising up quickly, immediately taking up the sixteenth spot which previously belonged to Ezel. Unlike the previous times, those below him didn''t drop by a rank since Ezel''s name was removed from the board. What drew everyone''s attention to the board though was that Grey''s name was actually inscribed with a different color, compared to that of others. It was written with golden letters, instead of the usual silver. Grey walked away from the stage, just as the supervisor announced the winner. Someone came onto the stage to help remove the body of Ezel. Before Grey left the stage, he dismissed the ice spikes which were keeping the lifeless body standing, and the holes they made on the body were laid bare for all to see. They could literally see through the holes before the body fell on the ground. ¡­. "Impressive," Sylvia commented with a smile when Grey returned. Grey nodded before taking a seat. Although he wanted to leave quickly, it didn''t mean that he would leave without his reward. According to what was said, those in the top twenty will be rewarded. After Grey''s battle, only a few more battles occurred before the Early stage Overlord Plane geniuses ranking was rounded up. Now, it was time for those who were in the Mid stages of the Overlord Plane, but this had nothing to do with Grey. He received his reward, before leaving the arena, with some people from the different Factions who were hot on his heels, trying to recruit him for their respective Factions. Even after rejecting them, some didn''t give up, chasing him with much zeal, it was as if they were told they would be rewarded heavily if they managed to recruit him. Since this was the last city before leaving the region, they would be going through it to the next region. They can''t use the teleportation array since they couldn''t. According to what Grey knew, only those with powerful backgrounds could use them without being stopped. He asked Sylvia why she couldn''t, but he got no reply. To get to the next region, they would have to walk through the city, heading to the back gate. If they didn''t want to go through here, they could also go around it, but one has to know that this is a very big city, and there were guards stationed around the city, to help fight against people who were trying to come in from the next region. They would still need to cross three more regions before they can get to the Polaris region which was their target. With Sylvia''s new plan of making Grey challenge those in the geniuses rankings of the other regions, their journey would take longer than expected since they would have to search for whoever he would be fighting against. Grey planned to top the Origin Plane ranking in the rest regions, becoming the number one person below the Overlord Plane.. So in each region, he would be challenging two people, the person ranked first in the Origin Plane ranking and someone in the top twenty in the Early stage Overlord Plane ranking. Chapter 535 - Sylvias Intention After leaving the city. In the woods. "Can I ask you a question?" Grey stopped, looking at Sylvia. "Yeah sure," Sylvia nodded. "What are your true intentions?" Grey asked. He already decided to ask her after they left the city, so he didn''t delay any longer. "About?" Sylvia raised a brow, staring at Grey. "Why are you so adamant about me getting stronger? It''s odd if you think about it. You have no connections with me, nor did I help you or anything, so why would you go through the stress of trying to make me stronger?" Grey asked, looking at her straight in the eyes. "Also, if you were to be in my position, would you trust you? Someone you knew nothing about just picking you up, deciding to train you?" He added. "Guess there''s no use keeping you in the dark any longer," Sylvia said before walking towards the tree beside them, sitting below it. "Actually, I originally approached you before I had nothing to do, but after you absorbed my lightning attack, I grew interested in you¡­" She began explaining her reason behind wanting to help Grey grow stronger, and just like Grey expected, it wasn''t any simple. According to Sylvia, there''s a Faction her family had an issue with. There''s a secret realm that opened at the border of the two territories, since they couldn''t decide who had it, they agreed to bring their best genius below twenty-five years of age. Whoever won would gain ownership of the realm for ten years. For the past two hundred years, they had been losing constantly to this Faction. Not to forget, the Faction was regarded as the second strongest Faction in the entire Aurora Continent. It was almost time for the competition for the secret realm once again, and she wanted to bring in someone to break their bad luck in the competition. This was why she traveled out of the Middle Continent, searching for the right candidates. She had encountered a few people who she had sent to her family for training, and just when she was about to stop her search, she heard of a treasure appearing somewhere in the Gale region. She encountered the Pyro Faction leader on her way back after obtaining the treasure. He thought she was weaker than him, so he tried attacking her, luckily for him, she was in a good mood, hence she refrained from killing him. When she saw Grey absorbing the lightning, she wanted to test out his strength, and also see his potential. This was why she allowed him to fight against Clara at the Gayle family mansion, and also the reason she was trying to get him to challenge others to quickly boost his strength since there was just around two years left before the competition. ¡­. Grey stood beside her, surprised for the reason she was trying to make him stronger. He couldn''t believe she was actually preparing him for something that important. "Why would you put your trust in a total stranger. If I''m not wrong, you should have powerful geniuses in your family, especially since you''re actually going against the second most powerful Faction in the entire continent, it means you guys aren''t weak either. There are definitely people who are more powerful than I am in your family," Grey said. He couldn''t understand why she would do something like this when she knew nothing about him. "There are. Honestly, there are a few in the Origin Plane who can achieve what you''ve achieved in the competitions that you''ve won in these regions," Sylvia answered honestly. "Then why choose me?" Grey asked. "I have a special feeling about you, and you''re different. Not just that, but there''s a fire in you that gives me confidence in choosing you," Sylvia replied, to the shock of Grey. He did not expect her answer to be something like this. "Hmm, well, I can''t be too sure of that yet. For now, I have a lot of things I need to settle, putting your challenge as one of them is not something I can say I want to do. There''s also the problem of the mark that necromancer placed on my back," Grey voiced out his thoughts. Although fighting against what was regarded as the second strongest Faction in the continent sounded nice, he wouldn''t want to make an enemy of them because he wanted to assist Sylvia. Not just that, but he wasn''t confident he could even be of any help, at least with his present strength, that is. "I know this isn''t something you can just agree to, but let me tell you this. That secret realm was what turned this Faction into the second strongest Faction in the continent, and if they were to continue using it, it would only be a matter of time before they turned into the strongest Faction. Although, there''s still the possibility of them using the entire resources there, so we can''t be too sure," Sylvia said. "Then as for your reward, you can head into the secret realm to train for two years," She added. "I can''t decide if I''ll be participating for now, two years is still a long time for me. I''ll decide when the time comes," Grey said. He couldn''t carelessly make such a decision, after all, he knew nothing of the Middle Continent. He had only been in the Eastern Continent and was currently headed towards the Southern Continent to search for Ellis. If things work out, he might even leave immediately he finds him so that he could bring his friends here. "Alright, I never expected to agree immediately. We''ll go our separate ways once you''re about to head into the Southern Continent. I still have a lot to do," Sylvia nodded to his words, not feeling surprised by his decision. "Alright, since we''ve come to a conclusion with that issue, I want to ask, are you from the Northern Continent?" Sylvia asked after a moment of silence. "Northern Continent? I''ve never been there before," Grey shook his head. "Alright," Sylvia nodded. ''Looks like he''s not from that family.'' Chapter 536 - Hows This Possible? Grey didn''t know why Sylvia asked about the Northern Continent. Since he had already been able to clarify why she was training him, he was satisfied. He still didn''t know if he would be able to participate in the competition, and for now, he wasn''t thinking about it. There are more important things to worry about, like the mark for example. Because of the mark, he knew staying outside a city would endanger him. Since he was still with Sylvia, he could stay in the woods and train, but as soon as he was alone, he would try his best to always stay in cities. He hadn''t been able to create an array that had been able to seal off the aura that the mark released, so he was still worried about it. When Sylvia knew Grey could sense the aura, she was left dumbstruck. This was something that even the head of her family wouldn''t be able to sense, and he was at the top of the world when it came to strength, yet Grey, who has had almost zero interactions with necromancers is able to. Grey just keeps giving her new surprises every day, making her resolve grow stronger in convincing him to participate in the competition. If Grey were to train in that secret realm for two years, it was unimaginable how far his strength would grow. They didn''t stay in the woods for long since they had a mission. There were still three continents before they left the Eastern Continent, and Sylvia not only wanted Grey to fight against the top geniuses, but she also wanted to make sure he broke through to the Overlord Plane within this time frame. According to her estimation, it would take them a month to leave the Eastern Continent. The reason their journey was faster was that she decided to carry Grey, flying from one location to another. Three days later. They located Grey''s first opponent in this new region, it was the Elementalist ranked first in the Origin Plane geniuses rankings. Grey defeated him within two minutes, easily taking the top spot. On the tablets region-wide, a new name appeared on the first spot, Grey Dawson, pushing the previous first place Elementalist to the second spot. When he was done with that challenge, they went to search for his next challenge, the individual ranked Fifteenth in the Early stage Overlord Plane geniuses rankings. They found the person within a day, and just like before, a new name appeared on the rankings tablet region-wide, and to the shock of everyone, it was the same name as the one who was currently holding the first position in the Origin Plane rankings. After they were done with that, they headed straight for the next region. With the help of Sylvia, and teleportation arrays, it took them a little over a week to cross an entire region, while searching for the geniuses to fight against. Their speed was shocking to Grey, given how long they used in crossing the Acer region. Within this time period, Grey had been training furiously, literally. Sylvia was putting him through a series of training that even for someone like him who enjoyed training, he almost broke down. The only issue they had was that he had unexpectedly been unable to break through to the Overlord Plane, even with Sylvia''s help. Grey had also been working on the array, and he hadn''t been able to get anything so far, but he had feeling he wasn''t far from gaining a breakthrough in his research. They soon entered the next continent, and just like before, their first target was the genius ranked first in the Origin Plane rankings, unfortunately, the genius went out on an adventure, seeking to break through to the Overlord Plane. With the first person not available, Grey opted to discard the positions in the Origin Plane ranking, choosing to challenge someone in the top twenty of the Early stage Overlord Plane rankings. This region was above the Gale and Acer region, so the geniuses here were stronger than them. But it didn''t stop Grey from challenging the person ranked fifteenth, and winning. The battle was one of the hardest battles he had gone through for a long time, and he couldn''t say he didn''t enjoy the thrill of it. Twelve days later. Deep in a forest in the middle of the night. "We will enter the Polaris region soon. The geniuses here aren''t like those you''ve been fighting against. Since this is a border region between two continents, it''s far stronger compared to the others. Most of the geniuses here have elemental grade above the violet grade, so even those at the Peak of the Origin Plane would be no pushovers," Sylvia said to Grey who was sitting crossed leg. "Of course, they wouldn''t be much of a problem for you," She added. "Hmm," Grey nodded, staring at the sky. "Why can''t you break through to the Overlord Plane?" Sylvia suddenly asked. She had been helping him for a while now, but he still hadn''t been able to. Grey smiled before looking at her, he shrugged and said, "I have no idea," "Why are you so nonchalant about it?" Sylvia asked, not impressed with his carefree attitude. "Since I can''t break through now, why mull over it for too long?" Grey asked. Sylvia shook her head when she heard his question, deciding to let him be. Grey went deeper into the woods to train after she went to sleep. The next morning. "You got stronger?!" Sylvia exclaimed when Grey came back to their camp site. "Oh, why did you say that?" Grey asked. "Your aura is different from yesterday night. It almost seems like you are in the Overlord Plane, but you aren''t," Sylvia replied with her hands on her chin. "I didn''t take note," Grey said. "But I still don''t understand something, why are you getting stronger when you''ve not broken through?" Sylvia asked, stumped by what she was seeing. She already thought Grey was very powerful in the Origin Plane, and he actually went out for the night to train and got stronger. How could she not be surprised? Grey''s lips curved into a smile, but he didn''t answer her question. Chapter 537 - Polaris Region Grey and Sylvia walked into the first city in the Polaris region with broad strides, especially Void who was actually walking mid-air. Grey and Sylvia found what he was doing quite remarkable, and when asked, his reply was simple. "Lord cat is awesome, what else matters?" Void asked. Sylvia laughed, finding Void''s pride to be something funny. After a while, she recalled something. "Those in the Overlord Plane can not fly, why are you able to do so when you''re just a Rank Five beast, and why are you able to do so when you''re using that attack?" She looked at the duo. Void could walk mid-air, which meant he had the ability of flight while still being a Rank Five beast, while Grey could actually stand mid-air whenever he was using the skill, ''Meteor Descent''. She initially wanted to ask him about it when she first saw it but forgot. It was only after seeing Void fly that she remembered it. "I have no idea, you can tell that I can''t fly yet, only when I use that move am I able to do it," Grey replied with a raise of his shoulder. What was worth mentioning was that he didn''t learn this move from anyone, he created it himself. Of course, he knew there might''ve been others who had used it before, but he hadn''t seen or heard of anyone who used it. "I''m awesome, that''s enough," Void replied when Sylvia turned her gaze to him. "You two should be careful when showing off your skills when I''m gone, especially you, Void. Special magical beasts like you are highly sought after, if anyone were to find out about your treasure sensing ability, even if you explain that it is only treasures beneficial to you, they still won''t listen," Sylvia warned. "Alright," The duo nodded. "Fine, let''s search for your next challenge. I recruited a young lady from this region a few months ago, I don''t know if she''s still here or she has gone to the Middle Continent. I plan to search for her while we''re here," Sylvia said as they walked into the city. The city was bustling with activity, with people walking in and out of it. There were merchants just after the gate that were selling off their products, and people could be seen buying or looking at the items. Sylvia took Grey to the merchant guild building, it was the fastest way to get information. After paying a small sum, one thousand high-grade essence stones to be precise, which almost sent Grey wild, they got the information they were searching for. The genius ranked first was recently crowned, after the previous one broke through to the Overlord Plane. The genius was currently on an expedition at a ruin that opened a few days ago. He wasn''t the only one who went there, a lot of the geniuses ranked in the top fifty of the geniuses rankings of the Origin Plane went as well. The ruin is said to hold an item that helps when breaking through to the Overlord Plane. Although it was rare and valuable, it was only of use to those in the Origin Plane, hence it only attracted those in the Origin Plane. The few in the Overlord Plane who went there were mostly mercenaries hoping to acquire and sell off the item at an auction. While there were a few who were hired to get the item. ¡­. "Will you head to the ruin, or will you challenge someone in the Overlord Plane?" Sylvia asked. "The ruin will be closing in three days time, correct?" Grey asked. The man telling them the information nodded. "And it''s around the edge of the Polaris region, almost close to when you''re leaving the Eastern Continent?" Grey asked. The man nodded again. These were all things he had stated, he didn''t understand why Grey was asking him about these things when he had already told him about them. "Alright, thank you." Grey said, before turning to Sylvia, "I''ll challenge someone in the Overlord Plane first, once I''m done with that, I''ll head to the ruin. You can leave when I get there," "Hmm, alright, that''s not a bad choice. Who knows, you might need this thing to break through to the Overlord Plane," Sylvia said with a sigh. "I won''t, but it wouldn''t hurt having it," Grey replied. Sylvia looked at him, not sure where his confidence was coming from. This was someone who had been trying to break through for a month now, just because he grew stronger over the night, his confidence had shot over the roof. They asked about the whereabouts of those ranked in the top twenty of the Early stage Overlord Plane geniuses rankings and found out he could only challenge the individual ranked fourteenth since he was the only one who wasn''t out on an expedition. The location of this genius coincidentally aligned with the place Sylvia said she was headed to search for the young lady she recruited. Without any delays, the duo headed straight for the teleportation array. A long-distance teleportation cost too much, so they had to break it down. Of course, this was Grey''s idea, he felt spending so much when he could easily use different teleportation arrays that would reduce the price was better. Sylvia didn''t complain, it wasn''t like she was the one paying. Besides, she preferred traveling by flight. There had been cases where the spatial tunnels crumbled while people were using it, other than a few times when a Space Elementalist would be among the group using it, only about forty percent of the other people had managed to survive it unscathed. The city they were currently heading to was called Bruges City. It was home to the best forgemasters family in the entire region. Grey and Sylvia got there within three hours, and without delay, they headed straight to the family where the young man ranked fourteenth was staying.. It was none other than the best forgemasters family. Chapter 538 - Lucan Edinburgh "We''re here to see Lucan," Grey said while standing at the gate that led to the Edinburgh family compound. This was the name of the family of forgemasters, and where the genius ranked fourteenth was from. "Do you have an appointment with him?" The guard asked respectfully. He could tell that Grey and Sylvia weren''t simple people, so he wasn''t foolish enough to annoy or offend them. "No, I''m here to challenge him," Grey stated his reason for coming. "Okay, I''ll send someone to report to the young lord, please, wait for a few minutes," The guard said, bringing them to a small garden just after entering the compound. Grey and Sylvia followed behind him, surprised by his nature and how he treated them. After a few minutes of waiting, a guard and a youth who looked to be a year younger than Grey could be seen walking towards them. He wore simple clothes, with his long hair tied in a ponytail behind him. His sharp facial features were remarkable. When they got to where Grey and Sylvia were sitting, the young man looked at the duo with curious eyes. "I''m Lucan, I believe someone wants to challenge me. But, if I may ask, where''s my opponent?" Lucan asked. Grey was the only youth here, and given that he was still in the Origin Plane, he wasn''t someone who could fight against him. "I''m the one," Grey said, not picking any offense with Lucan''s question. "Oh, you? An Origin Plane Elementalist," Lucan asked, surprised. It wasn''t every day you get to see someone who is in the Origin Plane, confidently coming to the front of a Third stage Overlord Plane Elementalist, someone regarded as a genius for that matter to challenge them. "Yes, I''m the one who came to challenge you," Grey nodded. "If I may ask, are you Grey Dawson?" Lucan asked, staring at Grey. "How did you know?" Grey asked, shocked that Lucan knew his complete name. "Well, you''ve been challenging people from each region, and people predicted that you were headed towards this side from your previous battles. Besides, for a new name to pop up and start appearing in almost every region''s geniuses rankings, it''s bound to attract the attention of the people," Lucan explained. Grey turned to look at Sylvia, and couldn''t help but shake his head. Luckily, he wasn''t being chased by anyone, so even if people knew his name and where he was headed, it was that bad. However, if he was given the chance, he wouldn''t want others to be able to guess where he was headed because of his previous actions. "I had no idea," He said. "Alright, since you''re the one, I''ll make an exception. The truth is, we have been waiting for you for a while now, but it looks like those morons below me went out to train. This is the only reason you challenged me, right?" Lucan asked. Grey nodded, it wasn''t like hiding it would change anything anyway. "Come with me," Lucan said, walking in the direction of the mansion. Grey and Sylvia followed behind him, with Void looking around curiously. ''Don''t you dare touch any shiny thing,'' Grey said to Void. ''Come on, I was only looking at it. How could you be so judgemental?'' Void complained. ''I can see your eyes, it speaks of you stealing,'' Grey looked at Void, with narrowed eyes. ''Sheesh! Give me a break, what do you take me for, a petty thief who steals wherever he goes?'' Void rolled his eyes. ''Yes, yes I do,'' Grey replied. Of course, this was what he thought of Void. If he weren''t here, Void would one hundred percent steal every single shiny thing located in this compound. ''You know what, I''m going to prove you wrong. I won''t speak of obtaining any¡­ oh shit! I have to collect that even if it means offending these people!'' Void, who was just about to say he wouldn''t see anything that he liked, was blown away by a silver sparkling orb that was hanging just above the door to the mansion. ''Crap!'' Grey knew what was about to happen and instantly turned around to grab onto Void who was walking on the ground. Unfortunately, he missed. ''Shit! This cat is going to get me killed!'' He looked around, trying to locate Void. Sylvia and Lucan noticed his weird behavior, and couldn''t help but look at him curiously. Lucan didn''t take note of Void missing, but Sylvia did. Her expression changed to one of interest. She moved closer to Grey before whispering, "Where''s the cat?" "Remember his obsession with shiny things?" Grey asked, a little dejected. "Yeah, don''t tell me he saw something he liked," Sylvia looked surprised. She knew of Void''s obsession, but she still didn''t know to what extent he would be willing to go to get them. "Take a look," Grey used his eyes to point in the direction of the silver orb. Void could be seen floating a few inches away from it, staring at it with shiny eyes. Sylvia giggled when she saw this. They weren''t the only ones who had taken note of Void, even Lucan had seen him as well. "What''s a cat doing there?" He asked one of the guards by the door of the mansion. "Is that thing valuable?" Sylvia asked, pointing at the orb. "Not really, just an ornament my sister brought back from an auction," Lucan replied. "Can you please sell it to me? You see, my cat has an obsession with shiny things, and as you can see¡­" Grey stepped up to explain. "Oh, it''s alright, you can take it if you want," Lucan laughed when he realized what was happening. Now he knew the reason behind Grey''s sudden strange behavior. Just as he finished speaking, Void hugged the orb, which was almost three times his size, and yanked it off the wall. Crack! A crack appeared on the place where the chain holding the orb was previously fixed. "I''ll fix that," Grey said, scratching his head in embarrassment. Lucan''s eyes twitched at the strength of the small cat, but he shrugged it off, "It''s alright, no need to worry," When he was about to take his next step, he jolted, it was as if he suddenly recalled something. ''Oh crap!'' They are a family of forgemasters, so there are bound to be countless shiny things in the building. "Is anything wrong?" Grey asked. "We''re forgemasters, since your cat¡­" "Oh crap!" Grey didn''t need him to complete his sentence before he knew where he was headed. Sylvia on the other hand burst out laughing, finding the two youths'' expressions funny. Chapter 539 - Huge Difference In Strength "Alright, no need to worry about Void, he won''t see anything that will catch his attention," Sylvia said. ''Hey, Void, since you''ve already taken this, you are not allowed to want anything else,'' Grey said to him. ''But¡­ but¡­ they''re shiny,'' Void tried to refute. ''Are they yours?'' Grey asked. ''No,'' Void answered, albeit weakly. ''Fine, I have my eyes on you, if so much as one thing goes missing, you''re toast,'' Grey threatened. ''Fine, hmph! Lord cat doesn''t need their shiny things,'' Void said angrily. Grey felt a little relaxed after hearing this, he couldn''t deny it, Void''s love for shiny things was getting a little out of hand. Although he didn''t stop him most of the time, it didn''t mean he''ll allow him to steal from everyone they encountered. He assured Lucan that Void wouldn''t take anything, before they continued their journey. After going through the first hall in the mansion, they passed through a door that led to the other side of the mansion, a large space was located there. "This is where we''ll be fighting," Lucan said. Grey nodded, before preparing himself. "A word of advice, do not assume that this guy is in the same league as those people you''ve been fighting with all this while. Although he isn''t on the same level as those in the Middle Continent or the top regions in the Eastern Continent, he''s not too far from it," Sylvia advised Grey while he was preparing. "Yeah, I can feel the difference in strength, if I do not push myself to the extreme, heh, there''s no way I can win this," Grey replied. "Good," Sylvia nodded. This was all that she wanted to see from Grey. Others would feel like since their journey so far has gone without a hitch, then they could defeat anyone. But knowing one''s weakness means one can work on it to grow stronger. "Are you ready?" Lucan asked while walking into the platform that was located in the empty space. Grey nodded, walking towards the platform as well. This was going to be one of his toughest challenges so far, and he wanted to see how powerful the geniuses who were ranked at the top are. After the duo stepped on the platform, they gave their greetings, before exploding out with powerful attacks. Lucan was rumored to be a Dual Elementalist, having both the fire and earth element. This is something common in a forgemasters family like this one. Boom! A fire snake was sent towards Grey, blasting into the fireball he sent towards Lucan. Bang! Both attacks collided, causing an explosion. Lucan''s attack was able to quickly overpower Grey''s, shooting towards him. Grey didn''t panic, setting up an ice wall in front of him that the fire snake slammed into. Bam! Crack! Even with the fire snake weakened from Grey''s first attack, it still almost destroyed the ice wall, causing cracks to appear all around it. Bang! Boom! Before Grey could reinforce the ice wall, something strong slammed into the, breaking it to pieces. After breaking the ice wall, the item didn''t stop there, going straight for Grey who was only around two meters away from where the ice wall was located. Grey did a backflip, dodging the attack. When he looked at the object properly, it was a one-meter hammer made from the earth element. The hammer didn''t stop its attack, continuing to chase after Grey as it tried to strike him down. Grey was fast, making it impossible for it to touch him, but the problem was, he couldn''t stay still to attack. He would occasionally send out an attack, but they were easily blocked by Lucan since they weren''t that powerful. Boom! Bang! Whenever Grey was about to escape from the attacks of the hammer, Lucan would attack with the fire element, forcing Grey back to the hammer that was chasing him. ''Hmm, I can''t go on like this,'' Grey thought before using the space element to escape from the range of the hammer or Lucan''s fire attack. As soon as he freed himself. "Meteor Descent," He appeared mid-air with both hands spread apart. This was the first time he was getting the chance to deal a proper attack since the battle started, and he wanted to make good use of it. Lucan already heard of Grey''s space element since he had heard of stories from his previous battles, this was one of the reasons he didn''t want to give Grey any chances. An earth wall sprang out from the ground, blocking the attacks that were coming his way. Bang! Bam! Boom! The attacks continued raging on, but Lucan''s defense stayed strong. Grey, seeing this, didn''t feel down. He stretched out his right hand, and a bolt of lightning started forming on top of it. The concentration of the lightning power was far more powerful than any other one he had done before. Buzz! Swoosh! While the fireballs were still raining down, a single bolt of lightning shot straight at the earth wall that was protecting Lucan. Bam! Crack! Bang! The lightning bolt opened a hole right through the spot where it hit the wall, going straight for Lucan who was behind it. Lucan reacted quickly, using the fire element to block it, but he was pushed back from the aftereffect of the resulting explosion. The earth wall above him started to fall apart after having its defenses breached by the lightning bolt. Lucan scrambled to dodge the attacks that were raining down on him. He would dodge some while blocking most of them. The attack soon died down, and Grey''s figure shot towards Lucan from the sky. He couldn''t afford to give him the chance to start attacking again. Swoosh! Bang! Lucan was already prepared for something like this, attacking Grey from the side. Grey managed to block the attack but was sent flying from the force. Bang! Boom! Crash! They continued exchanging moves, with Grey trying to get close to Lucan, and Lucan being able to not only keep him at bay but also land some powerful blows on him. From the short time the battle had been going on, it was easy to see that Lucan was well above the other geniuses in the Overlord Plane that Grey had fought against. Chapter 540 - Getting Stronger While Fighting! Crash! Boom! Grey''s figure crashed into the ground, bouncing off repeatedly after being hit by the giant hammer Lucan made. Fire could be seen running across the body of the hammer, just like what the Barbarian Grey saw back at Eagle''s City when he just came to the Aurora Continent made. "You see, our family learned the act of combining the earth and fire element from the Barbarians. Although, it isn''t the same thing they do, it is pretty close," Lucan explained as he slowly walked towards where Grey''s body was lying. Grey stood up with a little difficulty, his shirt destroyed from the attack, and his mask was nowhere to be seen. Black marks could be seen on his body and his left cheek. "Oh, still standing, guess there''s a reason you were able to beat people in the Overlord Plane even when you''re still at the Peak of the Origin Plane," Lucan said before raising his hand, slamming the hammer at Grey once again. Buzz! Swoosh! Red lightning danced across Grey''s body as he vanished from the spot, dodging the hammer strike by a few inches, before heading towards Lucan. He appeared a few meters away from him, sending out a powerful lightning and fire orb at him. Lucan hastily raised an earth wall to block the attack. Bang! Boom! The orb slammed into the earth wall before exploding, causing cracks to appear on the wall. Swoosh! Bam! A flash cut across the wall, made of blue flames. Lucan hurriedly retreated, making sure the light didn''t hit him. The wall broke apart, and Grey''s figure came to view, on his right hand was a blue flaming sword, and on his left hand was an orb that was made of lightning and fire. Grey moved the instant the wall broke apart, attacking with full force. Lucan didn''t stay idle, although he could tell that the current Grey wasn''t the same as the one he had gained the upper hand over, he was still confident in his abilities. ¡­. "Huh? He grew stronger again!" Sylvia, who was watching the battle from the side explained in shock. The aura she could sense from Grey was more powerful when compared to the one she sensed earlier in the morning when he came back from his training. What she still found unacceptable was the fact that he was still in the Origin Plane. One has to know that the strength Lucan was displaying was far above that of those geniuses from the Gale or Acer region, or any region they had been to before this one. Lucan can easily beat up two of those geniuses in the same stage as himself without even breaking a sweat. Yet, Grey was exchanging moves with him in what almost looked like a deadlock situation. She was both impressed and shocked by what she was seeing. Grey''s current speed of growth was shocking. The rate at which Grey''s strength had improved from the first she saw him until now was unheard of, especially when looking at the fact that he still hasn''t broken through to the Overlord Plane yet. ¡­. Grey''s sudden increase in strength made him faster, stronger, and deadlier. Unlike the first time, Lucan was having a hard time keeping him at bay, and the battle had increased in intensity. A seal suddenly appeared across the entire platform that was over one hundred cubic meters, and lightning rose up from the ground. This was the array Grey learned from the group who captured the Barbarians. He currently infused it with four elements, this way, he could manifest them at will, while also gaining the privilege of sending out attacks as well. It works almost like an inscription. With this array, he could also move quickly with the space element, so it would be extremely difficult for Lucan to hit him now. When Lucan saw the seal on the ground, an earth pillar appeared that shot him into the air, just before the lightning rose, saving him from the attack. But he wasn''t completely away from Grey''s scope yet, after all, the array wasn''t the only thing that was attacking. Grey appeared in the sky, close to him before sending out a stream of flames. Lucan attacked as well. Boom! The two attacks collided, causing an explosion. Grey shot through the explosion, heading straight for Lucan. Lucan seeing Grey head towards him didn''t panic, rather, he made a swift movement with his finger, drawing an array mid-air. When Grey saw this, he halted his movement, before hastily dodging to his left. Swoosh! Bang! A beam of red light shot out of an array that appeared in front of Lucan, shooting into the sky before exploding. He was from a family that had a long history as forgemasters, he was bound to be a great array master as well. Grey created two inscriptions while being aided with the array that was on the ground of the platform as well. He continued attacking Lucan with powerful strikes. Lucan blocked the ones he could, while also dodging the ones he couldn''t. He was also attacking with the beam, trying to shoot down Grey. The commotion the duo caused had attracted the attention of everyone in the mansion, and the platform was currently filled with viewers. Grey and Lucan were oblivious to this fact though because the battle had entered its most critical stage with both parties going all out, well, this couldn''t really be counted as going all out for Grey. Swoosh! Boom! Bang! The speed of their attacks increased, and Grey who was covered in red lightning could be seen moving quickly across the entire platform. Boom! Bam! Swoosh! Buzz! Attacks continued flying before Grey finally found the opportunity to strike Lucan. Without delay, he shot a lightning arrow towards Lucan who was busy protecting himself from the fire snake in front of him. By the time Lucan noticed the arrow, it was already too late. He soon came up with a decision. With a step, he moved towards the arrow, which was the only way he could get a chance to edge closer to Grey to deliver an attack. Chapter 541 - Rare Talent Pu-chi! The arrow pierced through his left shoulder, but he attacked at the same time as well. Bam! Grey was slammed by the heavy hammer, crashing into the ground once again. Lucan stood still mid-air, looking below him to see if Grey was still able to stand up. His shoulder was feeling numb from the arrow, and he could barely feel his left arm. His expression changed when he didn''t see Grey''s figure on the ground. Without any delay, he knew Grey must''ve used the space element to escape at the last minute. Flame soon surrounded him, before exploding out in all directions. Since Grey was trying to attack him covertly, he would use this to bring him out. Boom! An explosion occurred in his left, and he turned to look at Grey who was standing there, shaking slightly from the previous vicious hammer attack. Blood could be seen coming from the side of his mouth, and head. One has to know that Grey''s physical body was far above that of others in the Origin Plane. Even Elementalists in the Overlord Plane didn''t come close to him when it came to physical defense, yet, he wasn''t only bleeding from internal injuries, but external as well. This goes to show how powerful the hammer attacks were. Grey was breathing heavily after his sneak attack was blocked by Lucan''s quick decision. ''If only I could use a few more elements or the Fusion State, then victory would be guaranteed.'' He thought with a shake of his head. After this, he knew there was no use in fighting anymore, although he could still go on, he knew had been defeated. "I give up, you win," He said before disappearing, appearing on the ground of the platform. As soon as his legs touched the ground, it gave way, and he fell on his ground, luckily, it was in a sitting position. "*Sigh* It will take a while before I can get back to top shape again," He muttered while rubbing his shoulder. Lucan breathed a sigh of relief when he saw Grey admitting defeat. He had to admit, he was starting to get worried when he saw how persistent Grey was, luckily, he noticed that sneak attack, or else he would''ve been the one defeated today. "If you were in the Overlord Plane, I''m certain that you wouldn''t have any problems with defeating me," He said while getting off the rock he was standing on mid-air. He approached the exhausted Grey, making sure to stand upright, not to give away his tiredness. "Yeah, a shame I''m still not there yet," Grey replied while regulating his breathing. "Given your talent, it''s only a matter of time before your name spreads across the entire continent," Lucan said with a smile. "Actually, I wouldn''t want that," Grey replied honestly. If not for Sylvia who made him start this challenge, he wouldn''t want to be known all around. He had always been one who enjoyed solitude, a life of fame wasn''t something he was after. The moment they separate, he''ll continue living like he previously did, when he was unknown to many while searching for Ellis. Once he finds Ellis, he would head back to the Azure Continent to bring his friends here, after that, he would start his search for his parents, while also trying to get to the peak of the world. When Lucan heard his reply, he was taken aback since he thought Grey was someone who liked the limelight. If not, why would he start challenging geniuses all around, topping the rankings for the Origin Plane in every region? From the strength Grey showed, there''s a huge chance that he could be in the top twenty of the Early stages Overlord Plane geniuses rankings, much less topping the rankings of the Origin Plane Elementalists. If Grey had encountered one of the geniuses ranked sixteenth to twentieth, then he had at least a sixty percent chance of winning. This was high, given that the genius ranked fifteenth here could easily stroll into the top five in the rankings of regions like the Gale region. ¡­. Sylvia didn''t feel disappointed in Grey''s performance, she was amazed. If this was the strength Grey displayed at the previous regions, then he would''ve been able to sneak into the top ten in the Early stages Overlord Plane rankings. This was something deemed almost impossible for an Origin Plane Elementalist. Lucan''s family members were all left astounded by the battle, finding it difficult to accept the fact that the genius of their family found it difficult to defeat a youth who is still in the Origin Plane, if they didn''t witness the battle, they would''ve been embarrassed if they heard it. Grey wasn''t your regular Origin Plane Elementalist, and they could all tell from how winded Lucan was after the fight, even though he was trying to hide it, they could see it. "This boy, who is he?" An old man with long white beards asked while staring at Grey. "If I''m not mistaken, he''s the young man who had made a name for himself recently, he had¡­" A man who was in his late twenties stepped forward to tell the old man about Grey''s exploit this past month. "Oh, such a prodigy. It''s a shame he''s only still in the Origin Plane, if he were to break through to the Overlord Plane," The old man didn''t finish his statement, but everyone knew exactly what he meant. This was a genius that even the top Factions in the Middle Continent would fight to get, and it was no exaggeration. "Hmm," The old man squinted his eyes as he stared in Sylvia''s direction. "Hello Senior," Sylvia greeted politely. Unlike her previous unruly nature when she was in the Gale region, she knew even though her family is more powerful than the Edinburgh family, this old man was more powerful than she was. "Oh, where are you from, young lady?" The old man asked. "The Middle Continent, I''m with him," Sylvia replied while pointing at Grey. "Oh, no wonder. He''s a rare talent," The old man nodded in realization. Now it all seemed to make sense. When he heard Sylvia say she was from the Middle Continent, he assumed it was the same for Grey. ''Maybe he couldn''t break through, so he decided to travel and challenge others..'' The old man thought. Chapter 542 - The Burchard Family Lucan told Grey he could rest at his place until he recovered, which he agreed to, he was too tired to even leave the platform, much less the compound. Their next destination was still a good distance away, and the ruin would stay open for a few more days before it closes. Void was left breathless by the countless shiny things he was seeing. When he spoke with Grey, he referred to the Edinburgh mansion as a shiny heaven. Grey didn''t know whether to laugh or cry when he heard how he described the place. If he wasn''t in a hurry, he wouldn''t mind staying behind to learn a thing or two about forge mastering. He hadn''t been able to practice since he left the Azure continent, and he developed quite an interest in it after leaving the trial land. Five hours later. "Thank you for your kindness, we will be leaving now," Grey bowed to the Edinburgh family who accompanied him to the front door of the mansion. "Are you sure you''re feeling alright?" Lucan couldn''t help but ask. Even he hadn''t recovered completely, yet Grey , who was more injured than he was, looked fine. He couldn''t wrap his head around how Grey was able to recover this quickly, even with a good healing tonic, it should still take a day or two for him to recover. "Yeah, my injuries were nothing serious," Grey replied. "Alright, you''re welcome to visit anytime you are around," Lucan said after getting confirmation from Grey. "Thank you," Grey said before turning around. He was currently dressed in blue long sleeves and trousers, and he had taken out another mask. "Oh, before you leave, I have something for your cat," Lucan brought out a shiny large silver plate from his storage ring. "This is a defensive treasure, it can repel the attacks of Elementalists below the Mid stages of the Overlord Plane," He explained while tossing it to Grey. Before Grey could catch it, Void appeared before him, grabbing onto the silver plate and disappearing with it. The plate was over six times his size, but he didn''t care, as long as it''s shiny, it should be heading into his collection, besides, it was meant for him anyway. Grey shook his head when he saw this and lowered his hand, "Thank you for the gift, I don''t have much to offer, you can have this," He didn''t want it to seem as if they were freeloading, after all, Void had already collected one shiny orb, before this silver plate, and unlike the orb, this was a treasure. Since Lucan was trying to create ties with him, he felt he should also show some effort as well. What he offered them was the healing tonic they obtained from the Blooming Viper, from Ellis'' reaction when he used it the last time, he could tell it was also something precious here. Lucan didn''t stand on ceremony and accepted the tonic, he was surprised when he knew the value of it. This was not something you get to see every day. What Grey offered was countless times more valuable than the two items he gave to Void. "Thank you, and goodbye. I hope we meet again," He waved as Grey and Sylvia walked away from the mansion. ¡­. While Grey and Sylvia were leaving the mansion. A group of people entered the Polaris region. It was none other than the group who were with the Gayle family when Sylvia''s family members came searching for her. The young man who was in the lead was sitting on a carriage that was being carried by Griffins. "According to their movements, they should be headed towards the place where the first person in the Origin Plane is located," A middle-aged man in the carriage reported to the young man. "Hmm, ask around to see where this person ranked first is currently located," The young man ordered. "I''ve already done that young lord, a ruin opened up some days ago, and the boy ranked first is there," The middle-aged man said. "Good, we''re heading there," The young man said, giving off a cold aura. "Young lord, do you think Sylvia''s family will let you do as you wish? Since they''re also searching for her, they should be there as well." The middle-aged man said. "Hmph! They wouldn''t want to fight against us over someone who isn''t from their family, and besides, I''m only going to challenge him," The young man said coldly. "You''re right," The middle-aged man nodded before walking out of the carriage. "Hmph! Does she think she can find anyone who can defeat me? Heh! I''ll see just what this candidate of hers has," The young man scoffed coldly. ¡­. Grey and Sylvia were unaware of the people coming after them. If Sylvia knew, she wouldn''t dare to let Grey head out on his own. After the duo left the city, they headed straight for the city where Sylvia said she would be searching for one of the participants she saw in this region. "We''ll be separating here, if you do decide to come, search for the Burchard family, you can find me there," Sylvia said to Grey while handing Void over to him. "The Burchard family, got it," Grey nodded. "Thank you for your help so far," He bowed to her before turning around. "It''s alright, I hope we meet sooner than expected," Sylvia said with a smile. "Goodbye," Grey waved, before walking away. He was currently headed towards the teleportation array in the city, his current destination was Payne City, the last city in the Polaris region before leaving the Eastern Continent. Sylvia watched his figure as he disappeared into the busy streets. "I hope he stays safe, that mark shouldn''t trouble him too much since the range has been reduced," She muttered before turning around, heading into the city. Grey and Void were once again left alone to travel.. This was what the duo preferred since Grey would get a chance to be free and use whatever elements he wanted without having to hide. Chapter 543 - Hes Here Grey left Sylvia, heading towards the teleportation array. When he got there, he had to wait for some time since some people were using it. It soon got to his turn, and he disappeared with Void. ¡­. A few kilometers away from Payne City. Grey appeared in a forest. He was already expecting this, so he wasn''t surprised. "Void, do you sense anyone around?" He asked while looking around. "No, we can advance," Void replied after a while. But just as they were about to move, Grey paused, now he was stuck in a dilemma. He didn''t know which side to face since he didn''t know where the city was located. Even if he brings out the map now, it would be of no use since he didn''t know his current location, all he knew was that he wasn''t far from the city. "We need to find someone, either that or we guess the direction," Grey muttered. "Waiting for someone might take too long," Void said. "You''re right. *Sigh* At times like this, I wish Klaus was here, he would''ve used his gut feeling, although he is not always a hundred percent accurate, it was better than mine. My luck isn''t the best," Grey thought of Klaus while thinking of which way to face. They didn''t stay long before he finally allowed Void to pick the direction, first off, his luck wasn''t good, so who knows what they might encounter if he were the one who made the decision, secondly, he could blame it on Void for picking a bad direction. Void picked the western direction, so they started walking in that direction. Since they were in a forest, they were bound to be attacked by magical beasts. The beasts weren''t too powerful, but they were all in the Overlord Plane. Grey used them to practice while trying to improve his battle prowess. He could feel himself growing stronger, and he knew it was a result of the increase in strength when he was battling with Lucan. When he was trying to break through to the Overlord Plane with Sylvia''s help, he was using the normal method, which was technically the right one, but because he had seven elements and the orb in his body, he was unable to break through with it. The night he went out to train, he tried using a different method, and it was as if a memory sealed in his head opened up, flooding his consciousness with information. It was just like the time he got the knowledge of the Fusion State and Chaos Orb from the orb in his body. The information he received was on how to break through to the Overlord Plane, but it was with a completely different method. Not just that, but before he could breakthrough, he would need to hone his physical body to the peak of the Origin Plane as well. Without this, it would be impossible for him to breakthrough. He allowed some of the attacks from the beasts to hit his physical body, to strengthen it with the process. It was a dangerous move, but it was one of the fastest ways to increase it. Void was lazing around during the journey, occasionally helping Grey out if the beasts were too many. Of course, Grey could fight against multiple beasts with the help of the space element, he was too bored to watch him fight alone, so he joined him. Four hours later. The sun had already set, and Grey and Void were currently sitting in a cave. "I''m not sure this is the right direction," Void said. "Yeah, with the distance we''ve covered, we should''ve seen the visage of the city by now," Grey nodded. "Don''t think about it too much, we''ll find a solution in the morning," He added before closing his eyes to cultivate. He still took his comprehension seriously, trying to further improve the elemental grades of his elements. It would be amazing if he could manage to raise the rest to the violet grade before he breaks through, that would send his strength to a whole new level. The next morning. Grey and Void continued their journey, but this time, they changed their direction. After walking for almost two hours. "Did you notice the sudden increase in strength of the beasts?" Grey asked, with a beast lying dead below his foot. "Yeah, I can also sense people up ahead, lots of people," Void nodded before speaking up. "Hmm, alright, we should continue, but be cautious, we do not know who they are, or what they are doing here," Grey said before they continued moving forward. He sent Void to go ahead of him, since he was better at hiding his aura from people above the Sage Plane, it was best he went ahead first. By the time Grey got close to the place, Void had already filled him in on what was happening there. Surprisingly, it was the place where the ruin opened up. The people outside were those waiting for their family''s young lords and miss to come back from the ruin, while more youths were heading into the ruin. According to what Void found out, the greatest treasure has yet to appear, so Grey still had a chance to get it. As long as there were no Overlord Plane Elementalists in the ruin, then he naturally had no competition who could challenge him. Grey walked out of the forest confidently without any worries since he knew he wouldn''t be stopped by anyone if he headed towards the ruin. Moreover, he wasn''t the only one who was head there. He didn''t attract the attention of anyone as he walked out of the forest. Walking straight, he headed into the ruin without a hitch, with Void on his shoulder. Unknown to him, a pair of eyes had been staring at him since he walked out of the forest, heading into the ruin. ¡­. In the forest. A few meters away from the ruin. The carriage that was carried by Griffins could be seen perched on the ground. A middle-aged man soon descended from the sky. "Young lord, he''s here," Chapter 544 - I Thought They Were Rare? Grey ventured into the ruin, quickly maneuvering through the paths. There were a few places with people gathered, but Void said the treasures were trash and not worth wasting their time, so he didn''t head there. They headed straight for their target which was the treasure that helps Origin Plane Elementalists in breaking through to the Overlord Plane. Most of the geniuses here were already waiting there, waiting for when the seal in front of the cave opened. Grey soon got to the place, and from his rough estimate, there were about thirty people seated here. The moment Grey appeared there, he sensed something that made him look in a particular direction. His gaze met with that of a young man who had burly muscles, the young man had brown hair, with black eyes while wearing a sleeveless shirt that showed his hand muscles. Grey suddenly felt uneasy when their gazes met before he looked away. ''Void, I don''t like that guy,'' He said to Void. He rarely has these feelings towards people he hasn''t seen before. ''Which one?'' Void asked. Grey described the young man to him. ''Oh that one, avoid him, I have a bad feeling about him,'' Void said. After hearing Void''s words, Grey confirmed his feelings towards the young man. There was a certain look he gave him when their eyes met. He picked a spot and sat down, with Void on the lookout. As time went on, more geniuses came to the place, all waiting for the seal to break. Most of them here knew that they didn''t have a chance in obtaining the treasure, but they all felt that there might be a chance to get something else in this cave. Grey was busy comprehending his elements, while Void was trying to see if he could find anything that would interest him. The day soon turned night, and the seal on the cave was weakening as time went on. At this rate, it would break open the next day. ¡­. The next day. Crack! "Look! Cracks are appearing on it," Someone exclaimed while pointing at the seal. Everyone turned their attention to the seal at the same time, discarding whatever they were doing. The cracks continued spreading, and before long. Bang! The seal broke to pieces, leaving the cave open for all to go in. The entrance to the cave was small, so everyone had to go in one person at a time. Grey didn''t go in immediately, waiting for others to walk in before he did. It didn''t take long before everyone walked in, leaving only Grey and the burly youth outside. They exchanged gazes before the young man walked into the cave. Grey narrowed his eyes, but to be on the safer side, he waited outside for a few more minutes before going in. Boom! Grey''s figure shot out of the cave slamming into the wall on the side of the ruin. "Why do you have that mark on you? You should speak out now, either that or I can kill you and make you one of them," The burly youth walked out of the entrance to the cave, two figures walking out from the cave. "Necromancer," Grey muttered when he saw the figures. They were corpses. ''I thought Sylvia said they were rare? How come I''ve encountered one so soon,'' He couldn''t help but curse at his bad luck. Necromancers who some people wouldn''t see throughout their lifetime, he had encountered two of them within the short time of two months. How could people call that rare? "After adding you to their ranks, I can extract the information out of your head," The burly youth said. "You can do that?" Grey asked, shocked. This was the first time he was hearing about something like this, so he found it quite shocking. The means of these necromancers are outrageous, brutal, but outrageous. "Why is that mark placed on you?" The youth asked. "I was playing with a friend, and he accidentally placed it on me," Grey replied. His words seemed to irritate the youth. This was a mark that would cost the caster their life, yet Grey was saying a friend accidentally placed it on him, who did he think he was deceiving?! The young man didn''t speak any further, attacking immediately. The corpse on the right was the first to attack, a Wind Elementalist in the Second stage of the Overlord Plane. Its strength was well below Lucan''s level, so it wasn''t something that could cause him any trouble. Grey dodged the wind blade it sent at him, before attacking with the fire element. The second corpse jumped out, blocking the attack with the earth element. The Wind Elemental corpse attacked once again, trying to use a cyclone to hold onto Grey. Grey forcefully cut open the cyclone with a fire blade, attacking the young man. The Earth Elemental corpse stepped in front of the youth, blocking the attack once again. This time, its earth wall was almost broken by the attack. Grey continued attacking, with the youth blocking and countering at the same time. "No wonder you were marked, you not only have valuable information, but you''re also a genius," The youth commented. Grey didn''t say anything, attacking the corpse while bringing out an inscription. Luckily for him, this necromancer was still in the Origin Plane, so he wasn''t too powerful. If he were like the last one, he would''ve escaped the moment he was attacked. Boom! Bang! Bam! Their battle continued, and the necromancer soon started to notice that he made a mistake in attacking Grey. Even with two corpses, he was obviously no match for him, and he could see that Grey didn''t have any plans of letting him escape since all the escape routes had been blocked by inscriptions. Bam! Grey''s attacks broke the earth wall in front of him, sending him flying. When he landed, he sent his corpses towards him before making a run for it. His target was the entrance to the cave. This was his only hope of escaping. Grey smiled, easily capturing the two corpses since the young man was no longer in sight. "I''ll study these two for now, maybe I can get something from it.." He nodded before walking into the cave. Chapter 545 - A Single Punch Void was currently nowhere to be seen, he followed the young man as he escaped. Grey might''ve not been able to finish him off when they were fighting, but it didn''t mean he would let him escape. There''s a good chance that there might be another way out of the cave once he is in, this was something he didn''t want. Necromancers are interesting but vile people, he wants to make sure he eliminates anyone he finds. If he could learn a few things from them and remove that stupid mark from his back, then he would be grateful to whoever showed him before killing them. The entrance of the cave extended for over two hundred meters before it slowly started opening up. As he got to this part, he understood why no one came out while he was fighting with the young man. ''Void, which way?'' He transmitted his voice over to Void. There are currently six paths in front of him, and he didn''t want to go on a wild goose chase. Void''s ability to locate treasure was something that could help, so why waste it? ''Take the second path on your right, the treasure is at the end of that path. Also, be careful, there are traps, poisons, and other deadly things on the path,'' Void reported back quickly. ''Alright, how''s your victim doing? Any luck yet?'' Grey asked while walking towards the second path on the right. ''He has still refused to say anything, but so long he doesn''t commit suicide, he still has a will to live. I''ll see how things go,'' Void replied. Grey didn''t speak any further before going into the path. Void''s mission is to obtain the method of removing the mark from the young man and then killing him. If he refused to say anything, then he would still kill him nonetheless. Keeping such people alive is too risky, especially for an organization that has few people. It might actually cause more harm than good. From the connection Grey had with Void, he sensed that they were on the first path from your left. Seems the young man didn''t even think of a target before running in, all he cared about was staying alive. After walking into the path, Grey felt a slight tingling sensation on his leg, but it soon stopped. ''Huh? Strange,'' He thought to himself. He sent his spiritual sense into his body to check if anything was wrong, but he couldn''t sense anything. It was only after he walked a few meters forward did he know what was happening. "Poison?" He muttered while staring at the corpse of a youth that had black lines running across their body. For some reason, he seemed to be immune to all forms of poison, which is somewhat unexpected. He still hasn''t been able to find out the cause, but he felt it had to do with the orb. He continued walking further into the path, seeing two more corpses, and a youth that was already on the verge of dying from the poison. When the young man saw Grey, he started pleading with what little strength he had left, tears running down his face. Grey stared at him for a while before shaking his head. Using the healing tonic on someone he didn''t know might put him in danger. People tend to act on their greed more than anything else, this was a chance he wasn''t willing to test. He continued walking, and after leaving the poison-filled side, he soon started facing trap arrays, elemental attacks, and a few traps that were physical attacks. He dodged every single one of these attacks without breaking a sweat, as he continued heading further. After twenty minutes of walking, he entered an open field. In these twenty minutes, Void had reunited with him after killing the necromancer. Unfortunately, he wasn''t able to get any information from him. Grey decided to study the corpse before discarding them after leaving this place. And moving around with a corpse felt strange and weird to him. Six people were already standing on the end of the path, staring at the glowing fruit that was on an eleven meters tall tree. On the tree was a single fruit. All six individuals were exchanging glances between each other. When they heard footsteps, they turned to look at the person who just arrived. "Gentlemen, lady, as you all know, I''m the person ranked first in the Origin Plane in this region, there''s no way any of you can defeat me," A youth dressed in red stepped forward. The four young men and the single lady squinted their gazes when they heard this. The young man in front of them was right, he was the present genius ranked first in the Polaris region for those in the Origin Plane, so defeating him was something none of them could do alone, especially while they were just around the Seventh and Eighth stage of the Origin Plane. When they sensed Grey was also at the Peak of the Origin Plane, they planned to use him to fight against the young man ranked first, before beating him. They simultaneously turned to look at Grey. "Whatever plans you have, dump it, I''m a far bigger threat than he is," Grey walked forward, heading towards the young man ranked first. "You all can either watch from the side or leave this place. If any of you dare to think of stealing the fruit while we''re fighting, then prepare for your death," The young man in red said coldly to the five people who stared at the duo. "Who are you?" He asked when Grey stood in front of him. "No one important, all I want is the fruit," Grey replied casually. "I like your guts, fine since you''re confident enough to say that even after knowing who I am, I''ll entertain you for a while," The young man in red said. Grey smiled, before vanishing from his location. Bam! The sound of flesh hitting flesh reverberated out before the figure of the young man in red was sent flying. Bang! He slammed heavily into the tree, rocking it. The five youths who were watching from the side had their mouths wide open than an entire egg could perfectly fit into it.. They looked at the young man who was lying below the tree, then back at Grey who had his right hand outstretched, in a punching position. Chapter 546 - You Dont Have A Choice "Wow! Did he just defeat him with a single punch?" The young lady in the group asked while pointing at the young man in red. "Seems like it, and he didn''t even use any elemental attacks," A young man in the group said. "That''s incredible!" The young lady and the others exclaimed. They couldn''t believe what they were seeing, at this moment, they recalled when Grey said he was more dangerous than the youth in red. "Are you sure he''s still in the Origin Plane?" One of the young men asked, just to be sure. "Yes, he is," The same young man who answered the young lady''s question nodded. The rest couldn''t help but sigh in frustration. They turned around, not even daring to get near the tree. Grey smiled softly before walking towards the tree. His strength was increasing almost daily, and his physical strength was already close to the Eighth stage of the Origin Plane. It was very easy for him to defeat someone at the Peak of the Origin Plane, even if that person is a genius such as the youth in red. Of course, surprise played an important role in this attack. Grey walked towards the tree before gently plucking it from the tree. The fruit gave off a warmth that made him feel relaxed. "Good stuff!" He exclaimed before keeping it in his storage ring. He used the water element to wake up the youth in red, before turning to leave. "What happened?" The youth in red asked. "Nothing, you lost," Grey shrugged. Just before he walked to the passage, he noticed the tree glowing, before a passage appeared on it. "Oh, a quicker way to go out," He said softly before turning around. The youth in red stood still when he heard Grey''s words. He couldn''t believe he actually lost to a single attack. What was worse was that he was even knocked out! He followed behind Grey, just like the five others who also saw the passage. ¡­. Outside the ruin. Just like Grey, the other youths who entered the place were coming out thanks to the passage that opened up after Grey plucked the fruit. On getting out, they all looked around, trying to find out who took the fruit. Grey and the group who entered the same path as he did soon came out of the ruin, standing casually. He looked around casually, before heading towards the forest. There was nothing here for him to do. Just as he was about to step into the woods. "Grey Dawson, why the hurry?" A voice came from the side, it wasn''t loud, but everyone around heard it perfectly. When they heard the name, they all looked around curiously, they had heard of a certain Grey Dawson that was going around challenging people. They couldn''t believe the figure came to the ruin. Grey, who paused, continued walking. He pretended as if he wasn''t the one the person was talking to. Boom! An explosion occurred in front of Grey, forcing him to stop. Everyone turned to look in the direction, and seeing the youth standing there with a mask on, they all guessed he was the one they were searching for. Grey''s expression turned sour, this was one of the reasons he hated fame. He could swear he had not heard this voice before, yet why was the person trying so hard to get his attention. He turned around, to look at who was the one who tried to attack him. Looking up, he saw a youth standing gently mid-air. The young man looked to be his age, with white long sleeves and trousers, and a white short hair to match, his eyes were blue. "Who are you?" Grey asked coldly. ''Be careful, you''re no match for him,'' Void warned. ''I know,'' Grey replied with a frustrated expression "Someone you''ll know in the future, where''s Sylvia? I thought she was with you," The young man asked while looking around. His sharp eyes easily picked up everyone that were here, and there was no sight of Sylvia. ''Sylvia? Could he be from that Faction she spoke of?'' Grey''s brain went into overdrive when he heard this. He never thought someone would come after him because he associated himself with Sylvia. "She''s gone," He replied. He didn''t like Sylvia that much because she forced him into challenging those geniuses, but it didn''t mean he would tell this guy her location. What if he wanted to kill her? He could tell that those beside the young man weren''t people Sylvia could defeat. "Oh, a shame, and I wanted her to watch how I defeat one of her candidates," The young man said with a shake of his head. When Grey heard this, he knew full well that he was in trouble. "I''m not interested in participating in that competition," Grey said straightforwardly. This was the truth, he might go there, but he was not going to participate in it. It had nothing to do with him. "Huh? Sylvia wouldn''t waste her time on you if you were not going to participate. Forget it, I''m already here, since that''s the case, I''ll leave you alone," The young man said. Grey was about to heave a sigh of relief before he heard the rest of the youth''s statement. "If you can survive a single attack," The young man added. Grey narrowed his eyes to look at the young man, "Not interested, like I said, I will not take part in the competition," "The thing here is this, you don''t have a choice," The young man said with an evil grin. Buzz! Swoosh! As soon as he finished his statement, he attacked. He was a Lightning Elementalist. The lightning bolt moved so fast that Grey was unable to keep up with the movement. Without even thinking, he used the space element to teleport to another location. "Oh, you managed to survive," The young man said with a smile on his face. Grey stood in another position, on his chest, a small two inches hole could be seen. People could literally see the other side through the hole. Blood soon started to gush out of it, staining Grey''s blue shirt, down to his trouser. On the side of his mouth, blood was dripping from both sides. Even with his quick reaction, he was still unable to dodge the attack, luckily, he moved quickly so it missed his heart. Chapter 547 - Setting A Deadline For Revenge Grey looked at the young man with cold eyes. He did his best to keep his situation stable, not trying to do anything rash. "Since you survived, I''ll keep to my words, you can leave," The young man said arrogantly. Grey didn''t say a word, turning around immediately the young man finished his words. Just before he walked into the forest, he turned to take a proper look at the face of the young man, edging his appearance in his head. This was something he would never let go of. The young man watched as Grey walked away. One of the men beside him came close to him, "Young lord, you shouldn''t have let him go," "He''s not someone worth mentioning, since he survived it''s his luck," The young man said before turning around. He left along with his group. The crowd who were outside the ruin watched as the entire event played out. Those who were in the same place as Grey were all stunned when they saw he couldn''t even evade the attack of the young man, especially the young man in red who was ranked first in the Origin Plane rankings. He couldn''t stand a single blow from Grey, yet Grey couldn''t stand a blow from this young man. While they were all looking, discussing the event which just took place, one of the young men who was in the same cave as Grey had sneaked away, rushing towards Grey''s direction with greed evident in his eyes. ¡­. In the forest. A shadow could be seen dashing through the woods. "This is my chance, he''s already weak from that attack," The young man muttered while licking his lips. An opportunity presented itself before him, of course he was going to take it! While running through the forest, he followed the slight trail of blood, heading towards where it led. Further into the forest. Grey was running as fast as he could, trying to get to a place he felt was safe enough before he started healing. He had been trying to stop the bleeding, but whenever his essence goes close to the injury, it seems to increase the damage done to it. His face was already pale, even his body was starting to show signs of lack of blood. Presently, all his hopes are placed on the healing tonic he got from the Blooming Viper. ''Someone''s following you,'' Void said, his expression one of seriousness. ''Strength level?'' Grey asked. He could barely speak, luckily, he didn''t need to speak out when communicating with Void. ''One of those people we met at the cave,'' Void replied. Grey''s initial thought went to the young man he defeated with a single punch, but he quickly threw it to the back of his head. This wasn''t the time to think about it. ''I don''t know the reason they''re coming after me, you''ll deal with it when the time comes. If it''s for a stupid reason, then you can do as you please,'' He said. Void nodded before focusing on the journey in front of them. After around five minutes, they soon found a cave. Grey didn''t even try to set up a protective array, he didn''t have such leisure time. He was losing more blood as time went on, and his vision was already blurry. While he was running here, he had coughed up several mouthfuls of blood. After sitting down, he brought out the vial containing the tonic, gulping the entire thing down instantly. He shut his eyes and focused on healing, a few seconds after he gulped down the tonic, the bleeding stopped. Void lay at the entrance of the cave, keeping watch. A few minutes later. Void heard a rustling sound in the trees, looking up, he saw the figure of a young man dashing towards the cave. Due to Void''s small body, the young man missed him, heading straight into the cave, going towards Grey. "You''re injured, if you know what''s good for you, hand over the fruit," He said as soon as he saw Grey. His request was met with silence from Grey, he didn''t even open his eyes to look at the person speaking. The young man was slightly irritated by this behavior. "Guess I''ll have to take it myself," The young man smiled as he approached Grey. He stretched his hand in Grey''s direction, hoping to collect his spatial ring. "Huh?!" He exclaimed in confusion. No matter how much he stretched his hand, it didn''t seem to get to the target. When he looked at his hand, his face changed drastically. The only part that was visible in his outstretched right hand was from the elbow up, the rest seemed to have disappeared into thin air. The young man hurriedly withdrew his hand, but the result was the same. "A¡­" He was about to scream when Void''s small paws covered his mouth. "Don''t shout, you''ll disturb him. Now, let''s go outside," Void said. The young man was taken out of the cave against his will, his voice, never heard again. Void soon appeared back in the cave as if nothing happened. ¡­. Four hours later. Splat! Grey spat out a mouthful of blood before opening his eyes. His previously pale face had regained its color, the same as his skin. "Are you alright now?" Void asked. Grey nodded, staring at his bloodied shirt. He stood up before changing to something else. His eyes were cold, it was as if he was still experiencing what happened some hours ago. Void told him about the young man who came in, he naturally killed him. Although he could tell that the young man didn''t have any plans of killing Grey, he wasn''t as compassionate as humans, to him, an enemy should be killed, and anyone who tries to steal from him while he''s down is an enemy. "In two years, I''ll repay this favor," Grey said slowly, before walking into the forest, his lonely silhouette looked sturdy, just like a rock. Void knew Grey was definitely going to take his revenge, but he never expected him to set a deadline for himself. The young man who attacked him was already at the Peak of the Overlord Plane, and Grey seems to be older than he is, this showed how powerful and talented he is. There''s no telling how far he would''ve grown in two years. But Void was certain of one thing, Grey would be stronger than him by then. Chapter 548 - Still Having A Rough Time Three months later. Southern Continent, Mostar City. At the city gates, a young man could be seen walking out of the city, some black patches were on his face, and he looked like he hadn''t rested for weeks now. "Damn it! Those stupid elders, I can''t even rest properly before they send me out again. *Sigh* If only father wasn''t ill," The young man complained under his breath continuously as he walked outside the city. The crowd stared at him, with some speaking about him while the others minding their businesses. "Isn''t that the son of the O''Brien family? Why''s he looking so haggard?" A young lady asked. "I heard his father, the current head of the family, is very ill. The elders didn''t want to make it obvious that they wanted him out of the family, so this happened, mission after mission. And from what I heard, the mission increases in difficulty whenever he successfully completes one," A young man explained. "That''s sad, he used to be very vibrant," The young lady shook her head in pity while staring at the sad and lonely back view of the sorry figure who was walking out of the city. This person was none other than Ellis, after coming back from the Azure Continent, he found out things weren''t as they were when he left. His father was ill, and the elders had taken control of the family. They initially thought he was dead, but when they saw him returning out of nowhere, they were left with no choice but to think of something else. The reason for this was simple, amongst all the children of his generation in the family, he was the most talented. His growth speed was on another level when compared to others, so he had been the one tipped to get the position as next in line to be the family head. His disappearance was like a blessing to the others, and some had even started planning with their fathers who were part of the elders. ¡­. While walking with his head down, Ellis soon disappeared into the crowd that was headed towards the forest. Unknown to him, a pair of eyes were looking at him with interest. After three months of constant traveling, and literally exhausting his savings, he finally got to the city where the O''Brien family stayed. He had been here for about a week now, and his cautious personality didn''t allow him to head straight to the O''Brien mansion, and he was grateful he didn''t. When he got here, he started asking about the O''Brien family, and the news he got left him worried for his once jovial friend. Grey soon blended into the crowd and disappeared. ¡­. In the forest. Ellis brought out a map, looking at the spot that was marked, there were three spots, and each represented a location he would have to head to. These were places that had notorious criminals around Mostar City, and some of them were even more powerful than he was. "I should get to work. I''ll take as much time as I can before returning," He kept the map before adding with a depreciating smile, "If I don''t die," Just as he was about to continue walking forward, he paused before looking around. Swoosh! Boom! Ice spikes sprang out of the ground in Ellis'' north, as a figure jumped out of the woods. "We haven''t seen each other for over half a year and this is how you welcome me?" Grey''s voice traveled into the ears of Ellis who was about to attack again. "Huh? Who?" Ellis paused, before looking at the figure in front of him properly. "Grey?" He asked curiously. Grey still had his mask on, and he''s been so tired lately that he forgot a few things about the friend he made in the Azure Continent. Actually, because of his father''s condition, he hadn''t been social lately. "Who else? I can see you''re having a rough time once again," Grey said before taking off his mask. "It''s really you! I never thought you''d be able to come this quickly," Ellis exclaimed before hugging Grey. When Grey heard his feminine voice once again, he couldn''t help but smile unconsciously. He had always found it funny. "Why''s your communication device not with you?" Grey asked while taking out the orb Ellis gave to him back at the Magical Beasts'' forest. "Oh that, I''ve been too busy to care about it. It''s buried somewhere under a pile of other things in my ring," Ellis replied while letting go of Grey and giving out a genuine smile. "Huh? Why are you still at the Peak of the Origin Plane?" He asked when he sensed Grey''s cultivation stage. He thought Grey would''ve at least broken through to the Overlord Plane by now, never in a million years did he think he would still be in the same stage. "Long story, had some difficulties, but I''ve sorted it out," Grey replied. "Oh, okay. But it''s weird seeing someone as old as you are still in the Origin Plane. Well, in lower regions, it''s not that rare though," Ellis said while rubbing his chin. "Have you been able to find that thing you were searching for?" He suddenly recalled the reason Grey sent him to journey across the Magical Beasts'' forest tirelessly. "I didn''t need it anymore," Grey replied. He didn''t think Ellis would still recall the soothing liquid he was searching for to help heal Void. "This is Void, he was the reason I was looking for that liquid," He pointed at Void who was lying on his head. "Oh, a cat. Wow! It''s already a Late stage Rank Five magical beast, amazing! He must have a high bloodline given how small he is," Ellis exclaimed when he saw Void''s cultivation stage. "Of course, did you take me for those petty house and street cats?" Void asked with disdain when he spoke of other cats. "He can talk?" Ellis was once again surprised by the cat that accompanied Grey. "Yes, he''s different," Grey nodded. "I can tell," Ellis replied while studying Void. Chapter 549 - Suyin Canyon Grey and Ellis stayed in the forest, talking about their experiences. Well, it was mainly Ellis who did the talking while Grey listened. He found out about Ellis'' father''s health, and how the elders had been trying to get rid of him. "How come he hasn''t been healed yet, don''t you guys have better healing tonics?" Grey couldn''t help but ask. "Nothing worked, we still don''t understand what''s happening to him. I do not think it''s something physical, if my guess is right, it has to do with a foreign essence that invaded his body some time back," Ellis replied. "Your guess?" Grey raised a brow. "Alright fine, the Grand Elder brought some people who did a thorough check-up. According to what was found, a foreign essence is causing havoc in his body. They''ve tried everything they could, but to no avail," Ellis said truthfully. "Hmm, is there a way I can see him?" Grey suddenly asked after a moment of silence. Ellis placed his hand on his chin, "Difficult, but I can try. But I can''t guarantee we will be given such a chance," "Even if it''s only a few minutes," Grey tried persuading. Since it has to do with a foreign essence invading Ellis'' father''s body, then he might be able to help with the chaos orb that''s inside him. It seems to have a special power against other essences. The only thing that got him thinking is that he had never been able to control it, which means he wasn''t sure it would be able to help. Nevertheless, it was worth trying. "I''ll try," Ellis replied, he suddenly paused, as if finally realizing what Grey was getting at before asking in shock, "Wait, there''s a way you can help?" "Technically, it should be able to help, but I''m not too sure yet. We''ll have to wait until then," Grey replied honestly. He couldn''t lie to Ellis, after all, this had to do with his father''s life. "If truly you can help, I''ll be forever grateful," Ellis said seriously. "It''s nothing, I''m only helping out a friend. And, we still haven''t been able to confirm it yet, so no need for all this," Grey patted Ellis on his right shoulder. Ellis nodded, before turning around. "So, where are we headed?" Grey asked. Ellis was on a mission before he stopped him, since he''s already here, he would naturally follow him on the mission. "I''m heading over to clear out a group of bandits from the canyons. They aren''t too powerful, but their numbers will surely be a bother." Ellis explained, he looked at Grey before adding, "If only you had broken through to the Overlord Plane, then you would''ve been of some use," "Void can help, so there''s no need to worry too much," Grey didn''t find his words offensive. Other than Void, no one else knew the current extent of his strength. He rarely got into battles since being attacked by that young man who was after Sylvia. "Alright, let''s get going then," Ellis nodded, before taking the duo with him. He briefed them about the canyon, as well as the bandits. The leader was in the Sage Plane, just like Ellis. Grey had always had the notion that Ellis wasn''t in the Overlord Plane, and finding out from his mouth was still a little shocking. Even his Teacher wasn''t in the Sage Plane. Just how powerful are those at the peak of this world? The rest of the members were Origin and Overlord Plane Elementalists. Most of them were around the Mid stages of the Overlord Plane. There were around over one hundred people in this group, and for a single person to take all of them on wasn''t going to be easy. If Ellis manages to instantly kill the leader, then it would all be settled, but if not, he would find it difficult with all the disturbance the others can cause. ¡­. Suyin Canyon. "Alright, according to reports, the bandit group stays around here. All we need to do is find their hideout before¡­" "Found it," Void interrupted Ellis'' speech. "What did you find?" Ellis asked. "The bandit''s hideout, you were speaking of locating it, well, I have," Void replied proudly. Ellis was a little short of words, never expecting that they would be able to find the hideout so quickly. What he found more surprising was how quickly it took for Void to locate them. He secretly tried to see if he could sense anything, but he found nothing. He couldn''t help but look at Void doubtfully. "You don''t have to worry about it, he''s always right when it comes to things like this, just follow his lead," Grey reassured when he saw Ellis'' doubtful expression. Void was about to complain when he noticed Ellis was doubting his skills, but Grey already knowing Void''s personality, closed his mouth, making sure he didn''t make a sound. This didn''t stop Void from trying though, leaving a series of muffled noises. A few minutes later. "Which way?" Ellis asked. "Right," Void replied, still a little sulky. Ellis nodded, before heading towards the right path in the canyon. The canyon was a series of maze-like paths, this was why it has always been hard to deal with these bandits. They''ve been accustomed to the road here, so escaping has always been easy for them whenever they''re cornered. "Do the items we find there belong to us?" Grey asked, since they were going to clear out a bandit hideout, there are bound to be treasures. "Of course! Whatever we find is ours," Ellis replied, before turning to ask Void for directions once again. They continued heading deeper into the canyon while going in the northwest direction. This was the area Void said the bandits were located. As they headed deeper into the canyon, Ellis found it hard to believe that Void''s senses could spread this far. It wasn''t his fault though, since entering the canyon, they''ve already walked over one kilometer, and still haven''t located the bandits. This distance was one thing while being able to sense the bandits even with the caution they took was another. ''This cat truly is different,'' He recalled the words Grey said while they were still in the forest. Chapter 550 - The Bandits Hideout "Here," Void said abruptly, stopping the group in their tracks. Ellis looked around, he still hadn''t been able to sense any aura of people being here. "Are you sure?" He couldn''t help but ask. Grey squatted, placing his hand on the ground, trying to use the earth element to sense if anyone was here through the vibrations he got from the ground. "They''re here," He answered before Void could. Ellis turned to look at Grey, and before he could ask any more questions, Grey added, "And they''re not the only things here. Powerful magical beasts are lurking around. There''s a large array here that''s hiding their track, this must''ve been done by the bandits, but they unknowingly made this place a great hunting ground for this beast," "Actually, the beast is theirs as well," Ellis said. "Oh, guess they plan on using it to sense if people are nearby, cause it''s coming our way," Grey said before standing upright, he looked towards his right. Within a few seconds, the ground started shaking, and they could feel something large was moving quickly through the ground. ''How powerful?'' Grey asked Void secretly. ''Not that strong, early Mid stage Rank Five magical beast,'' Void replied quickly. "The beast isn''t too powerful, we should deal with it quickly before the bandits escape. They should''ve already been alerted of our presence since the beast is coming towards us," Grey replied. Rumble! The ground continued shaking vigorously before a giant centipede burst out of the ground. After coming out the centipede screeched loudly, with a sticky substance coming out of its mouth towards where Grey and Ellis were standing. The duo dodged to the side, not daring to allow it to touch them. The thing wasn''t toxic or anything, it just looked irritating. After moving to the side, Grey got a proper look at the beast. The centipede was over twelve meters long, with two long antennae in front of its face that was over a meter long, and a pair of large pincers below the antennae that stuck out from its mouth. A seat was strapped on top of its head, and a figure covered by a cloak could be seen on top of it, seemingly riding the centipede. Grey moved quickly, vanishing from his previous location. The person riding the centipede was only in the Third stage of the Overlord Plane, something he could handle easily with his current strength. Over the past three months since he was attacked by that young man, his strength had grown significantly. It''s already at a stage where he felt if he went back to fight against Lucan, he would have at least a sixty-five percent chance of winning. Not just that, but his physical strength was already almost at the Peak of the Origin Plane. He appeared in front of the figure riding the centipede, and before the person could bring out a device to communicate with the other bandits, he suddenly paused, before looking down. On his chest, a large fist-size hole could be seen there, the spot where his heart was located is currently empty. Grey was standing in front of him, an indifferent look on his face. Blood started dripping from the side of the bandit''s mouth, he tried talking, but he was unfortunately unable to. He let go of the reins he used in holding the centipede, before falling to the ground. Grey stood at the top of the centipede, looking around. Ellis soon appeared close to him, "Well, that was quick. I''ve always known you''re stronger than what your cultivation level tells, but isn''t this a tad too scary?" Grey smiled with a shake of the head, not replying to Ellis'' question, "What now?" "Well, since you''ve effortlessly killed that guy, why don''t we take this thing on a ride back. This way, it would not only bring us there, but the bandits would let their guard down thinking it''s the person that came out," Ellis suggested. Grey nodded, before grabbing the reins, since they were going to ride it, he should be the one to, since technically, Ellis could fly. ¡­. Six hundred meters away from where Ellis and Grey took hold of the centipede. Deep in the canyons. Large spaces had been carved out inside the canyon walls by the bandits. The place was large enough for over a thousand people to stay inside. The bandits could be seen partying after making a windfall from their latest robbery. Drinks were all over the place, with half-naked ladies as well. A middle-aged man with a snake tattoo above his right eye could be seen sitting on the main seat in the hall while the others were seated across the tables in the hall. "Drink my brothers," He said while gobbling the wine in his silver chalice down his throat, with some coming out from the side of his mouth, dripping on his clothes. The crowd cheered before doing the same, all drinking in pleasure. While they were drinking. Rumble! The ground soon started vibrating. "Looks like it was nothing serious, Ezkel is back already," One of the people in the hall laughed out loud as he heard the rumbling sound caused by the centipede. A hole soon appeared and the centipede came into view. But the man with a snake tattoo soon realized something was wrong when he sensed the aura of two people, instead of one. "Who are you, and how dare you intrude into our private grounds?" He yelled angrily while standing up from his seat. He stamped his foot on the ground, causing the entire place to shake. "You''re the leader?" Ellis asked with a serious voice. Grey was left a little shocked because Ellis just made his voice sound like that of a guy, this was the first time he was hearing him speak like this. ''Guess this is how he speaks when taking things seriously,'' He thought while looking around. Since the leader of the bandits was in the Sage Plane, it meant he and Void had to deal with the others. Of course, he couldn''t deal with those in the Late stages of the Overlord Plane yet, but luckily, Void could. The only problem here was that there were at least two hundred people here, that was if he even removed the half-naked ladies. ''How the hell are we going to deal with this many people?'' He couldn''t help but complain slightly. Thinking that Ellis'' family members sent him here, he felt a tinge of pity for him. Chapter 551 - Fighting Against The Bandits "Try to stall them, I''ll deal with the leader as quickly as I can," Ellis said before taking flight, heading towards the leader of the bandits. Grey stared at the heads in front of him, he couldn''t deny it, they were too many for him to handle, luckily, he had Void and the centipede. The reason they were able to control the centipede easily was Void''s doing. For some reason, it listened to everything Void commanded it to do. ''Void, it''s time to work your magic. With this thing''s help, I should be able to at least deal with them for some time, but you''re in charge of all the Late stage Elementalists,'' Grey said to Void. ''Alright, lord cat will help you out. But, if there are any shiny things in our loot, I want first picks,'' Void tried to negotiate a deal. ''Just get to work,'' Grey didn''t even think about his deal. Void grumbled before jumping to the front of the centipede, "Help us kill these guys okay," The centipede nodded docilely. After Ellis went after the leader of the bandits, the rest turned to look at Grey, seemingly waiting for what he wanted to do. There were over twenty Late stage Overlord Plane Elementalists here, and five or so that were at the Peak of the Overlord Plane. Grey was only at the Peak of the Origin Plane, while the centipede was a Mid stage Rank FIve magical beast, there was no way they could even defeat a regular Early stage Overlord Plane Elementalist in the bandit group, much less all of them. They couldn''t sense Void''s stage so they didn''t count him amongst their opponents. On seeing the centipede behave in such a docile manner towards Void, they found it a little strange but ultimately didn''t think much of it. Boom! Rumble! A large explosion and heavy shaking caught the attention of everyone here. Looking in the direction Ellis and the bandit leader faced, they realized they had already started their battle, and from the first attack, they could see that their leader was on the back foot. "You fools, what are you doing? Come here and help me take this brat down!" The bandit leader hollered when he noticed the young man in front of him was stronger than he was. One of the men at the Peak of the Overlord Plane ordered, "You two, kill this brat and that stupid animal, the rest of you, with me," After giving out the order, the man charged in the direction of their leader. Of the two men he sent after Grey, one was in the Late stage, while the other was in the Mid stages. ''Void,'' Grey called out to Void. ''On it,'' Void replied before disappearing. Grey acted as if he didn''t see the two men walking towards him, he stood on the head of the centipede, spreading both hands in the sky, with his eyes closed in total concentration. When he opened them, they glowed with a mesmerizing pattern on them, before inscriptions started to appear mid-air. Swoosh! Bang! Boom! Bam! He attacked fiercely, making sure to stop the group in their tracks before they went after Ellis. The man at the Peak of the Overlord Plane paused when he saw this attack, he turned around to look at the person who caused it, and seeing Grey''s body language, he knew he was the one. "Why''s the brat still alive?" He asked coldly while looking around, trying to find the duo he sent to kill him. His expression changed when he saw them lying in a pool of blood. What terrified him was that he didn''t sense any attack, yet the duo was killed silently in the presence of so many people. "Stay on guard, someone powerful is with the boy," He ordered while stopping his advances towards Ellis. When Grey heard his words, he was a little taken aback, but he felt this was the best outcome. First, they wouldn''t go after Ellis because of the fear of someone powerful killing them off. This would in turn give Ellis all the time he needed to kill the leader before coming after them. Boom! Rumble! The place continued shaking from the attacks of Ellis and the bandit leader, when they looked in that direction, they saw their leader sent flying, crashing deep into the walls. "Come, we must help him," The man at the Peak of the Overlord Plane ordered once again. He couldn''t sit by and watch as their leader was about to be killed, he knew they would be next if he dies. Although there was a risk to turning their backs against a potentially powerful opponent who was hiding, they just couldn''t sit still. Grey attacked with the inscriptions once again, but the attacks were blocked by the men. They hurried forward, trying to distract Ellis. Seeing how things were playing out, Void and Grey started attacking ferociously, they couldn''t allow these guys to disturb Ellis. Grey, riding the centipede charged into the crowd of people. He made sure the area he faced was occupied by those in the Mid stages and below. Void on the other hand started to pick out those in the Late stages one by one. Whenever he appeared, he would kill his unsuspecting victim. Those at the Peak of the Overlord Plane soon realized what was happening, before quickly spreading out and informing the others about the Space Elementalist that was attacking them. They still had no idea that a cat was what had been killing their members. Three of the bandits at The Peak of the Overlord Plane took some bandits with them while heading towards Ellis, while the remaining two stayed behind, accompanied by almost two hundred bandits in the Overlord Plane. A brawl soon started, with a youth, a cat, and a centipede fighting against a large crowd. The arrival of helpers balanced things on the side of the bandit leader and Ellis. Swoosh! Boom! Bang! Attacks were flying around, with the ladies in the hall all running out for safety. Chapter 552 - Killing A Peak Overlord Plane Elementalist Swoosh! Boom! Bang! Grey''s continuous attacks almost always hit one of the bandits. Unlike the bandits, he had no reservations when attacking, so he attacked wildly, making sure he didn''t give them the chance to get close to him. ''Void, stop those guys interfering with Ellis'' battle,'' He said after taking a peek at the battle happening on Ellis'' side. ''Got it,'' Boom! Bang! The battle on Ellis'' side raged on with Ellis having to defend against attacks from different angles. In contrast to Grey''s ability with inscriptions which made it easy for him to take on multiple opponents without being too much at a disadvantage, Ellis had to rely solely on his element. Being a Water Elementalist gives him fluidity with his attacks and incredible defensive prowess thanks to the ice ability of Water Elementalists. Ellis was starting to have a difficult time defending, but he knew he couldn''t complain since Grey''s opponents were just too many, there''s no way he would be able to stop them all, all he could do right now was hang out while taking out any of the bandits when the chance arises. Bam! Thud! One of the bandits at the Peak of the Overlord Plane was suddenly sent flying, crashing into the wall before falling on the ground, dead, a hole could be seen on his forehead. The bandit leader looked around hastily, trying to figure out how one of his best fighters was killed in front of him. But even after looking around, he still wasn''t able to figure out how it happened. Ellis was excited when he saw this, he knew it was Void''s handiwork. The sudden death of the bandit made the others hesitate, no one wanted to die, especially to someone they couldn''t locate. Because of this, they weren''t able to give their all in the battle because they were reserving some energy in case of a sneak attack from whoever it was. On Grey''s side of the battle. Bang! Boom! Bam! With attacks flying, more and more bandits with lower stages continued to fall. They couldn''t block Grey''s attacks, and what they all found terrifying was that Grey''s wide range attacks tend to be very powerful. Bang! An attack slammed into the body of the centipede, increasing the wounds it had gotten from the battle. It screeched in pain before brutally biting off the head of one of the bandits. Swoosh! Boom! Bang! The bandits quickly figured out something, since they couldn''t get Grey, then they would kill the centipede first. In a matter of seconds, the injuries on the body of the centipede increased exponentially until it didn''t have any strength left to even stay upright. Grey soon jumped from the head of the centipede, landing directly into the crowd of people. Bang! Bam! The sound of flesh hitting flesh reverberated across quickly as Grey started to punch his way through, literally. Given the space between them, the bandits couldn''t attack wildly, and their physical body wasn''t on the same level as Grey''s. He made sure to always be in the most congested area, making it hard for the bandits to attack him. "Damn it! Spread out, don''t stand in groups," One of the two men at the Peak of the Overlord Plane yelled out an order. They all could see what Grey was doing, but they couldn''t stop him. When the battle started, they all felt that their numbers gave them the advantage. But now, the reverse is the case, this large number of theirs is making it difficult for them to attack a single person. There''s still the fact that this person was still in the Origin Plane, this was what frustrated and annoyed the bandits even more. How could an Origin Plane Elementalist confidently dare to jump into the midst of over a hundred Overlord Plane Elementalist and still be on the front foot? It was preposterous! Bang! Thud! Bam! Boom! Bodies continued flying around, hitting each other before the bandits followed the order of the man at the Peak of the Overlord Plane. They quickly spread out, moving in different directions. As they started to spread out, the man at the Peak of the Overlord Plane charged at Grey, attacking him with wind blades. The man''s eyes nearly bulged out when he saw the person in front of him wasn''t Grey, but the other Peak Overlord Plane Elementalist. "How?" He asked in shock. The unsuspecting man was sent flying by the attack of his comrade, sustaining terrible injuries from the attack even before he landed. A large gash was on his chest that was at least three inches deep, and blood was constantly pouring out. Bang! His body crashed heavily on the ground, but that wasn''t the thing everyone looked at, they all stared at the figure who suddenly appeared beside the man from out of nowhere. Grey didn''t waste any time as he attacked with the earth element, smashing it fiercely into the man''s chest, further worsening the injury. The man was left defenseless by the sudden attack, now coupled with Grey''s attack, it was easy to tell that his chances of survival were slim. Before anyone could react, Grey continued attacking, while using other elements as well. He sent the darkness element into the injury, making sure it would cause more damage to the man''s body. As soon as the darkness element started ravaging through the man''s body, he screamed in pain, wriggling around while scratching his chest with his fingers, it was as if something was eating him from the inside and he wanted to tear it out of him. His painful shrieks sent chills down the spines of all the people there, even the man at the Peak of the Overlord Plane, he couldn''t help but look at the youth who did this again. What he still couldn''t wrap his head around was how the hell was Grey in the Origin Plane?! With the strength he was displaying, he didn''t dare to believe he was in the Origin Plane. "He''s not in the Origin Plane. Quick, surround him before he escapes," The man said. He was the only Peak Overlord Plane Elementalist left on this side of the battlefield. Chapter 553 - Fierce Fight Against The Bandits Of Suyin Canyon The bandits rushed to encircle Grey, making sure they didn''t get close enough for him to attack them with his insane physical strength. After surrounding him, they didn''t hold back and attacked together. What happened next left them all in shock. Grey also used his inscriptions to attack his position, then he waited for a few seconds, just when the attacks were about to get to him, he vanished, and the last Peak Overlord Plane Elementalist in this side of the battlefield appeared in the center of all the attacks. Boom! Bam! Bang! The attacks rang out as they connected with the man. Unlike the first person Grey used this skill against, he was vigilant, so as soon as he noticed the sudden change in his surroundings, he set up a wind screen around him. Alas, it wasn''t enough to protect him from the multiple attacks. Crack! Bang! The screen cracked, before exploding under the impact of another attack. The attacks continued to rain down, slamming into the defenseless man who screamed in horror. While this was taking place, Grey had started killing those close to the man he switched places with. They never expected someone so close to suddenly attack, so he was able to kill three people instantaneously, with two in the Mid stages of the Overlord Plane, while the last was in the Early stages. The others around soon realized what was happening, and started to attack Grey, forcing him back. Grey vanished from that spot, switching position with someone who was in the midst of at least ten Early stages Overlord Plane Elementalist. When he appeared, he exploded out with blue flames, mixed with red lightning. Boom! It was like he was a bomb, covering a range of over one hundred meters. The blast didn''t only affect those close to him, it almost destroyed the place, causing the walls to crack, and rocks soon started to fall from above. The place would collapse at the rate the battle was going. Swoosh! Boom! Bang! The battle continued fiercely, with Grey moving around like a fish in water. Regrettably, he couldn''t dodge all the attacks of the bandits, after all, they were just too many for a single individual. On Ellis'' end. With Void''s involvement, things started to take a turn once again, in the space of five minutes, he had killed two of the people there. The leader of the bandits couldn''t believe what was happening. This wasn''t the first time they were attacked, but their numbers have always seemed to be able to pull them through. In this case, a single individual in a lower Plane is actually stopping an army of over two hundred from moving. What could be more annoying than that he wondered? Then, from nowhere, a black cat was killing his men who came to aid him, a fucking black cat! When he first saw Void, he thought his eyes were playing tricks on him, only after Void killed the next person did he realize it was really happening. ''A Sage Plane kid, a Peak Origin Plane kid, and a fucking cat, great, just great,'' He lamented while seeking an opportunity to kill Void. Compared to Ellis, he felt Void was more of a threat. Swoosh! Boom! He moved quickly, trying to figure out where Void was going to appear next, while also attacking Ellis who was dealing with the two Peak Overlord Plane and the other Late stage bandits in front of him. The bandit leader ensured that he didn''t get the chance to kill any of them. Ellis couldn''t help but thank the stars that he met up with Grey before he got here, else given the synergy of the bandits, he wouldn''t have been able to kill them. Looking at Grey''s side, he was stunned by the greatness of Grey''s battle prowess. He could clearly see that Grey was at a disadvantage due to not only numbers but cultivation level disadvantage, yet, he was sensibly avoiding those at the Late stage of the Overlord Plane while picking out all the weaker ones. He would occasionally kill one Late stage Overlord Plane bandit whenever the opportunity presented itself. Ellis didn''t watch long since he also had people to deal with. Void was trying his best to distract them while also making sure he didn''t get caught by the sneaky bandit leader. Boom! Bang! Just when he appeared to attack someone, the bandit leader who had already predicted his next appearance attacked with his full strength. Void didn''t see the attack on time because he was just leaving a space tunnel. Before he could disappear, the attack appeared in front of his eyes. Bam! An ice wall rose in front of him, blocking the attack. Void didn''t even think twice, he attacked the person who made him appear here before disappearing once again. Ellis had been studying the bandit leader, so when he saw him attack, he knew he had to help. The battle erupted on both sides, and the cracks on the walls continued spreading, getting wider and wider as larger rocks started to fall from above. As time went on, light started to pass through one of the holes into the dimly lit cave. The battle still hadn''t stopped. Grey and Ellis were already injured, with blood covering their bodies. However, they had done significant damage to the bandit group as the body count had gone over a hundred. Grey was a beast, and Ellis was left short of words concerning his performance. He wasn''t the only one who regarded Grey as a beast, the surviving bandits all see him as a beast, even worse than one. Even though they could see that he was injured from their attacks, they didn''t feel any sense of pride in it, too many of them had fallen to the hands of this youth who is still in the Origin Plane. Crash! Boom! After almost thirty minutes of battle, the place soon gave in, and the top of the place came crumbling down. Grey and Void were the first to escape, followed by Ellis and the bandit leader.. The others rushed as well, with a few unfortunate ones being trapped inside, crushed by the large rocks. Chapter 554 - Im Motivated By Loot! Boom! A huge dust cloud rose into the sky from the place where the bandit''s hideout caved in. Grey and Void were already at a safe location and seeing the men rushing out of the place, they exchanged looks before attacking them viciously. Swoosh! Bam! Bang! Boom! The men who were dashing out of the place found it difficult to block the sudden attacks of Void and Grey. Grey used one of his most powerful wide-range attacks, meteor descent, while Void was changing between the lightning, fire, and darkness element. In a matter of seconds, the duo had killed no less than ten people. After their first flurry of attacks, the other bandits were already aware of their attacks and managed to block them. Although, not all of them were able to successfully do so thanks to the cooperation of Grey and Void. By the time the surviving bandits appeared outside, none of the Peak Overlord Plane bandits were left alive. The remaining two who were on Ellis'' side of the battle had managed to survive under Void''s attacks until now, but they met their unfortunate end thanks to the duo''s viciousness. When Ellis saw what they were doing, he couldn''t help but shake his head in amazement. ''They truly are fit to travel together, truly vicious,'' He thought while staring at the bandit leader with regret. Had he known, he would''ve attacked him when he was escaping as well, this would''ve made killing him easier. "How can you be so shameless?!" The bandit leader yelled in dejection when he saw what Grey and Void did. He wasn''t expecting anyone to make any moves until everyone came out of the collapsing hideout, who would''ve thought that Grey and Void were so vicious? It was one thing for an animal to be this vicious, but for a human as well? That was something people rarely see. "We''re not friends, why would I wait until they come out? I saw my chance, of course I''ll take it," Grey replied coldly. Grey disappeared after he finished his words, attacking the unsuspecting bandits who were watching the exchange between him and their leader. Boom! By the time they realized what was happening, one of their comrades had been sent flying, blood spilling from his mouth. Even before the body touched the ground, he was already dead. "Ah! Kill him! Kill him!" The bandit leader yelled in frustration and rushed towards Grey. Bang! An attack exploded in front of him, pushing him back. "I''m your opponent, don''t worry, you''ll join your underlings soon enough," Ellis said with a smirk before attacking once again. With the bandit leader''s state of mind in disarray, it would be easier to kill him now. The bandit leader attacked frivolously, however, Ellis had no problems with dealing with a distracted and frustrated opponent. Swoosh! Boom! Bam! They continued fighting wildly in the sky with attacks covering some parts of it. Grey and Void were also fighting valiantly on the ground, although pressured by the number of their enemies, they continued fighting. The duo was built differently when it came to fighting against crowds, it was like the number doesn''t even affect them at all. A group of almost two hundred bandits when the battle started had reduced to just over eighty plus people, this showed how clinical the duo was. One has to take note that Ellis hadn''t been given the freedom to attack anyone other than the bandit leader, so the killing of over fifty percent of their opponents was solely done by Grey and Void, and the centipede as well. It did take out a few people before its quick death. The huge canyon walls on the side were destroyed from the battle. Some of the bandits were already making their escape when they saw that victory didn''t seem to favor them today. Especially after seeing their leader sent flying more than once. Ellis already had the upper hand when the battle started, so he used that momentum, as well as Grey''s present dismantling of the bandits which seems to have destabilized the bandit leader. Boom! Bang! Half an hour more went by, and the fighting in the canyon had stopped. Three figures were standing on top of one side of the wall which had been slightly destroyed, staring at the havoc that was on the ground. Multiple corpses were on the ground which had large crevices from the powerful attacks. Void was perched on Grey''s shoulder like usual, while Ellis looked around with a solemn look, by his side, was a man who looked half beaten to death. It was none other than the bandit''s leader. But, he was almost unrecognizable. "*Sigh* How did you two do it?" Ellis sighed before turning to Grey and Void. He just couldn''t believe that two fighters could cause this much chaos on a battlefield. If the duo were thrown into a real battlefield, they are bound to be hated by their opponents. A mission that seemed like a death sentence was cleared just like. Grey and Void looked at the ground before replying simultaneously. "Pressure," "Loot," Although the duo spoke at the same time, Ellis had no issues differentiating what Grey said and what Void said. "I tend to thrive under pressure," Grey added. "I''m motivated by loot," Void didn''t want to be left out so he explained as well. Grey rolled his eyes when he heard Void''s words. He sat down on the ground, winded from the battle. He couldn''t deny it, he truly outdid himself this time. "I think I''ll need to rest for a while before we can continue," He said to Ellis. "Yeah, me too, I''m feeling sleepy already," Void said. "It''s okay, you two can rest up, I''ll keep guard. Also, thank you for your help," Ellis thanked the duo. If not for them, he wasn''t even fifteen percent sure he would make it back alive. Grey nodded before closing his eyes, entering a meditation state, while Void appeared on his crossed legs and started to sleep. "You, what do you want with me?" The bandit''s leader asked Ellis after the duo were out. Chapter 555 - Dragon Insignia "To complete my mission," Ellis replied before knocking out the bandit''s leader. After knocking him out, he removed the spatial ring on his finger. "*Sigh* This collapse has made us lose a lot of things," He sighed while looking at where the hideout was previously located. Thanks to the collapse, there was no way to get in, unless he wanted to destroy the place even more. He waved his hand, and tentacles made of water sprouted out from the ground just in front of him. The tentacles stretched into the battlefield, removing the rings on the corpses of the dead bandits. Although Ellis helped the duo after defeating the bandit leader, he still found their strength astonishing. Later that day. Grey and Void were back to normal. Seeing that they were awake, Ellis handed all the spatial rings to them. "What''s this?" Grey asked with a confused expression. "The loot, this is all the rings I could salvage," Ellis replied, he separated one of the rings, "This is the one the leader wore, so it should have more items in it," Void was about to rush the rings when Grey stopped him, "We did this together, there''s no way we would take all the loot," "That''s nice of you, but I don''t need it, you two can share them," Ellis said, refusing Grey''s offer. "Destroy them then, since you don''t want a share of them, then there''s no use in keeping it," Grey said resolutely. Even though he was slightly interested in the loot since he was already almost out of essence stones, he wouldn''t take all the rewards when Ellis also helped in the battle. "Fine, sheesh! We''ll share them," Ellis gave up, before taking the rings. The best way to share them is by taking out all the items from each storage ring and evaluating their value. Grey was short on stones, so he needed more of that. Void, well, all he wanted were shiny things. Ellis wasn''t interested in the loot, so he wasn''t really expecting to take anything of importance from them. He planned to take the less useful things and give rest to the duo. There was a total of twenty-three rings, and other than the one owned by the bandit''s leader, the rest didn''t have any owners, so it could be easily accessed by anyone. Ellis brought out all the items from those rings, and there were multiple elemental weapons, techniques, a few books about arrays, thousands of essence stones, some herbs, fruits, and plants. There was even a book on forge mastering. Ellis, recalling Grey''s love for arrays, handed him the book about arrays, and forge mastering. Void, as he wanted, got first picks on the shiny things. He picked up a shiny bright pearl which seemed to be able to light up even the darkest nights. Ellis randomly picked up an elemental sword, keeping it in his spatial ring. They continued sharing the loot, with Grey going for the essence stones right after getting the array and forge mastering books. Void like before went for shiny things, but this time, it was an elemental weapon that was in the shape of a star. They continued in this fashion until they picked up all the items from the storage ring, now, it was time to take out the items that were in the spatial ring of the bandit''s leader. Grey and Void looked on expectantly, being someone who had robbed a lot of people, the bandit''s leader is bound to have great items stored in his storage ring. "Come on, open it," Void urged. "It''ll take some time since the owner is still alive, it will take some time to alter it," Ellis explained while closing his eyes, sending his spiritual senses into the ring. He used his spiritual sense to locate where the bandit''s leader''s consciousness was on the ring, before forcibly destroying it. Thud! Splat! The bandit''s leader fell on his knees, before spitting out a mouthful of blood as his face turned paler than it previously was. "Why didn''t you just tell me to remove it myself?!" He yelled in pain while clutching his aching head. "If I did that, we wouldn''t be able to see you in this state, now would we?" Ellis asked with a smirk. The bandit''s leader gritted his teeth angrily, with veins popping up on the side of his head. If looks could kill, then Ellis and the duo would''ve been dead already. "You''re crazy, all of you! You''ll die young!" The bandit''s leader continued swearing at the trio. Grey couldn''t help but wish Klaus were here. With Klaus'' vile tongue, he might curse this man to the stage of wanting to commit suicide. Especially since he couldn''t move. Ellis and Grey didn''t bother to reply to him, as they stared at the items they brought out from the ring. Ellis couldn''t deny it, he was a little tempted by the things he was seeing. There were high-grade elemental weapons, tonics, rare rocks, beast cores, beast corpses, rare techniques, there was even a space and light element technique in the items, thousands of high-grade essence stones, herbs, fruits with powerful effects, plants. The things they were all seeing were worth a fortune. Ellis'' eyes were spread wide open because he couldn''t believe how wealthy the bandit''s leader was. "Who did you rob?" He turned to ask in shock. Even for someone in a big family like his, he still found it difficult not to feel shocked by the items he was seeing. "Go f**k yourself!" The bandit''s leader spat on the ground in disgust. "Fine, since you''re not saying, Void," Ellis sneered while stepping back. On hearing his name, Void knew it was his time to shine. "Hehehe, prepare yourself for a world of pain," He laughed evilly while walking towards the man and swinging his tail from side to side. Grey shook his head as he saw Void''s reaction. ''He just loves torturing people,'' He thought wryly. The bandit''s leader''s scream soon started to echo in the silent Suyin Canyons. Grey and Ellis were watching as Void tortured him. It didn''t take long for him to crack before spilling out everything. "A special carriage?" Ellis asked. "Yes, it had an insignia in the shape of a dragon," The bandit leader nodded obediently. "Crap! When did you rob them?" Ellis asked, evidently worried. "A few days back," The bandit''s leader replied. "We''re leaving, now! " Ellis roared while picking up the bandit''s leader and running. Chapter 556 - The Vaergahl Family "Oh, Grey, destroy the corpses," Ellis'' voice came from afar. Grey sent out a wide-range fire attack that quickly burned the corpses to ashes before running after Ellis. He didn''t know why Ellis reacted the way he did, but he was certain that this family with the dragon insignia wasn''t anything good. The next morning. A group of over thirty people arrived, two old men with white and black hair respectively, a few middle-aged men and some young men and girls in their teens. Looking at the destruction in the area, they knew a battle occurred not too long ago, and seeing how there was no one here, the bandits were most likely wiped out. "Do you know who might''ve done this?" The old man with black hair asked. "No, but I believe if the bandits were wiped out, we''ll hear of it soon enough," A middle-aged man replied. "Okay, send scouts to the towns, villages, and cities nearby, we must get back that vial of blood," The old man said with clenched fists before disappearing. The other one with white hair disappeared as well. "How could you be so careless, didn''t you tell them the name of our family?" The middle-aged man turned to one of the young men in the group. It was a boy who looked to be around fifteen to seventeen years old. He had the same features as the middle-aged man who was scolding him, only younger looking. "I told them, father, but they threatened to kill us, while also saying that we were lying," The young man said apologetically. "*Sigh* Whoever defeated them shouldn''t be too far away. If my guess is correct, this battle took place at least two days ago. Spread out, we must recover the item," The middle-aged man said, turning to look at everyone present. "Yes, My Lord!" Everyone answered in unison before going in different directions, leaving only five people left in the canyon. The middle-aged man, two middle-aged ladies, the young man who was his son, and another youth who was older than the young man. "We should search this place, maybe they might mistake it for something meaningless and leave it in their hideout," The middle-aged man said. With a snap of his hand, all the destroyed rocks flew into the air, floating in the sky as if held by a powerful force. The group walked into the destroyed hideout, combing through every part of it. ¡­. While all these were happening, Ellis and Grey were already at the gate of the Mostar City. "Finally, we''re back," Ellis breathed out a sigh of relief when he saw the gates of the city. "Can you try to at least tell me why we''re running?" Grey asked. They''ve been running since the previous night, well, he was the one who did the running, Ellis could fly so he wasn''t too bothered. "Oh right, the Vaergahl family. They believe they''re a family related to dragons, weird right?" Ellis explained as they walked into the city. Ellis was from a well known family, and being someone who is regarded as one of the most talented individuals to ever grace the city, he had quite a high status here, even amongst his peers. The guards at the city gates welcomed him with smiles, while occasionally waving at him. They didn''t even ask who the man on his shoulder was, it was none of their business. Grey continued to listen to Ellis'' explanation about the Vaergahl family. According to him, the family was said to have come after a human and a Dragon that was able to turn human got together. The child they gave birth to was said to be the greatest genius of his time. But the Dragons didn''t want their bloodline to be contaminated by humans, so they forcibly took the child, but the parents managed to escape later on and start up a family once again. But the purity of the second child''s bloodline wasn''t as strong as the first, and since they were in hiding, the Dragons were unable to locate them. They managed to grow to a powerful extent before finally coming out after hundreds of years in hiding. It didn''t take long before they laid a stronghold for themselves. Some people didn''t believe the story, but because they didn''t want to make the mistake of offending people related to Dragons, they let them be. One thing was also certain though, they were powerful in their own rights as well, and even the biggest families in the continent wouldn''t want to go head to head against them. ¡­. When Ellis made mention of the Vaergahl family name, the bandit leader who he was carrying on his shoulder started to shake uncontrollably from fear. He knew this name, but when the youths told him about it, he thought they were only using it as a means of protection and didn''t think much of it, only now did he understand the severity of his crimes. Now, he was actually grateful that Ellis and Grey defeated them, if not, he would''ve seen far worse things at the hands of the Vaergahl family. "Hmm, well, it has nothing to do with us, it''s not like we were the ones who robbed them," Grey said. Although the story was quite intriguing, he didn''t want to think much about it for now. The main thing is to get to the O''Brien family compound and see if he could help out Ellis'' father. "As long as we''re in my family compound, they can''t do anything to us," Ellis led the group further into the city. They headed towards the eastern part of the city. Given the size of the city, it took them almost one hour before they got to their destination. It was a luxurious-looking mansion that gave off an ancient aura. This goes to show just how old the building was. This was the O''Brien family, one of the oldest and most powerful families in Mostar City and the entire Southern Continent. Chapter 557 - OBrien Mansion "Welcome back, Young Lord," The guards at the mansion''s gate bowed respectfully when they saw Ellis. Ellis smiled at them before walking in with Grey and Void. The bandit''s leader was still on his shoulder. After they went in. The guards looked at each other before sighing in pity. Everyone in the city knew what was going on in the O''Brien family. The guards in particular are aware of the hard tasks the Elders are sending Ellis out to accomplish. Every time they see him head out, they would always pray for his safe return, and it looks like their prayer worked once again. Grey walked into the compound, staring around curiously. Void was the same, only, the moment he sensed some terrifying auras, he hid his aura, making it seem as if he was a regular cat. The people he sensed were people who could kill him with a sneeze. He was certain that even with his elemental mastery of the space element, he still wouldn''t be able to escape before he died. ''Grey, be careful here, there are powerful people here,'' Void warned. ''I know, this is one of the most powerful families in the entire Southern Continent, and in the Aurora Continent as well, you don''t expect them to be weak, do you?'' Grey already knew what he was getting himself into. His only worry is how Ellis would be able to sneak him into his father''s room without being noticed by the people around. From what is happening with Ellis in the family, it is easy to tell that he wasn''t welcomed by the Elders since they''re trying so hard to kill him. They didn''t get too far before a young man around the same age as Ellis walked out from the west wing of the mansion. When he saw Ellis, a look of surprise appeared on his face momentarily, before quickly changing to a smile. "You''re back, I knew you would make it back," The young man flashed a bright smile before walking towards Ellis. "I survived by fluke," Ellis said, putting on a fake smile. "It doesn''t matter, the important thing is that you''re back. Father would be proud," The young man said while approaching Ellis. "Yeah, I bet he will," Ellis said sarcastically. "Come on, don''t be like that, you know Father is only doing this to test your strength, you were gone for so long that everyone thought you were dead. Even the Family Head as well," The young man smiled before staring at Grey and the bandit''s leader curiously. "I suppose this is the bandit leader, but who is he?" He asked while pointing at Grey. "A friend," Ellis said before he continued moving. "Oh, it''s nice to meet you. I''m Keal, Ellis'' cousin," Keal stretched out his hands. "Grey," Grey shook his hand before following Ellis'' lead. "Where''s Uncle?" Ellis stopped to ask. "Father''s in the hall, he''s discussing some matters with the Elders and some guests," Keal replied. Ellis continued moving once again. Grey already sensed the hostility between the two, so he didn''t even bother to ask. All that was important to him in the O''Brien family was Ellis, his friend, nothing else. They walked into the main building, after going through the hallway, they stopped in front of a huge door. "Wait here," Ellis said to Grey before pushing the door open and walking in. After getting in, his facial expression changed when he saw the sitting position of the people gathered here. There were around fifteen people here, three of them were not from his family, but he was familiar with them, while the other twelve were from his family. What he found annoying was that a certain middle-aged man was seated on the middle seat, which was reserved for only the Family Head. "Uncle, my father is still alive," Ellis said coldly, trying to reign in his anger. "Boy, speak with respect when talking to me. I''m the acting Family Head since that terrible illness happened to your father, I have every right to sit here," The middle-aged man said coolly. He didn''t raise his voice or scold Ellis even though Ellis sort of provoked him. "I can see that you''re back from your mission, good. If you want to take over from your father someday, then you have to be the very best of your generation," The middle-aged man said. Everyone in the hall kept quiet, looking at Ellis and his uncle. "Hmph!" Ellis snorted coldly but didn''t say a word. "Here''s the bandit''s leader who terrorized travelers in the Suyin Canyon," He dropped the man on his shoulder. "I''m amazed by your strength since you were able to single-handedly deal with this powerful group. Tell me, how did you do it?" The middle-aged man asked. "I was lucky," Ellis replied, not willing to speak any further. "Hmm, and who''s the young man standing outside?" The middle-aged man let the matter slide before asking about Grey who was standing outside. "A friend," Ellis replied. "And why would you bring a friend of yours into the mansion when you know how things are?" The middle-aged man squinted his eyes. "It''s none of your business," Ellis turned around and left decisively. "Hmm, youths, so feisty," The middle-aged man laughed softly with a cold light flashing through his eyes. He turned to the people in the hall, "Alright, where were we?" "What do you plan to do with me?" The bandit''s leader suddenly spoke up. Swoosh! Thud! "Continue," The middle-aged man didn''t even look at the bandit''s leader. On the head of the bandit''s leader was a hole the size of a finger. He was dead. The people in the hall didn''t take him for much and continued their conversation. A guard was summoned to dispose of the body. After Ellis came out of the hall, he took Grey towards the right-wing of the mansion. "My father is kept in the main building, but my uncle ensured that the security around is very tight. It will be almost impossible to sneak you in. And the use of the space element would be difficult since there''s a powerful Space Elementalist in the building, my third Uncle," Ellis explained the situation of the mansion to Grey. Grey nodded attentively while taking a good note of everywhere in the mansion. Chapter 558 - Dragon Blood "So, how do we get in?" Grey asked after they walked into Ellis'' room. "We''ll walk there. I''ll try to distract the guards there. It shouldn''t be too difficult," Ellis replied, he added after a while, "The only problem now is getting my father to trust you since he doesn''t know you, and I can''t go in with you, well, not immediately though," "Hmm, okay. But can''t you see him whenever you want?" Grey asked, he found all these strange. "My uncle doesn''t allow it, he uses the excuse of my father needing rest to stop me from going," Ellis gritted his teeth angrily. Grey shook his head when he heard this. ''I''ve always hated big families, they always fight against each other for control over the family.'' He thought. For some reason, he felt grateful that he wasn''t from such a big family. He didn''t even know anyone else other than his parents. "Okay, so when are we going?" He asked. "We should wait for a while, I believe my uncle will be leaving the mansion soon to attend to some things. Since those three are here, then there''s a chance that he would leave," Ellis replied. Grey nodded and didn''t say anything more, since there was nothing to do for now, he decided to study the items they got from the bandit leader''s storage ring. It was worth mentioning that there were some good books on arrays, and he still hasn''t been able to remove the mark the necromancer placed on him. Luckily, he hadn''t encountered any other necromancers since the last one he met at the ruin. While he was going through the book on arrays, the O''Brien family had made the announcement of Ellis successfully eliminating the bandits of the Suyin Canyon. These bandits were pretty famous, and given how they''ve terrorized the people who travel through that road, especially merchants, they couldn''t help but be excited and feel grateful towards the O''Brien family. This was all the doing of Ellis'' uncle, according to his words, it would make more people trust them, thereby giving them more power in the region. Ellis wasn''t aware of all this, as he too was going through the items he collected from the bandit leader''s ring. There were some things he was interested in, and Grey willingly gave them to him. Void was mostly interested in shiny things, and one small rock in particular. He even wanted to trade all the items he got for that rock. Grey and Ellis tried to study the rock, but they noticed there was nothing abnormal about it. But Grey knew otherwise, Void wouldn''t be so worked up over something normal. For someone who has a high taste in things, with the exception of shiny things, it was strange to see him wanting an ordinary rock so badly. ¡­. Ellis'' room. ''Oh Void, what''s in that rock that you wanted so badly?'' Grey suddenly recalled it while in the middle of his study and asked. ''Hehehe, blood,'' Void laughed sinisterly as he replied. ''Eh? Blood? What the hell do you need blood for? And who''s blood is in it?'' Grey''s head went blank for a moment as he never expected an answer like this. ''A Dragon''s blood. I shouldn''t be mistaken, this is one hundred percent a Dragon''s blood, and here it is, in my hands. Hehehe,'' Void laughed as he showed off the rock to Grey. Knowing what was inside, Grey was astonished. He couldn''t help but recall a certain Ice Dragon he encountered in the trial land. ''What do you plan to do with it?'' He asked. ''Refine it of course, it''ll help enhance my abilities greatly. Although a Dragon''s bloodline is nowhere near mine, I will manage it,'' Void said proudly. Grey chuckled when he heard this, he still didn''t know what Void truly was. He had never heard of a cat hatching from an egg before, but he saw it with his eyes so he couldn''t deny it. It was also common knowledge that Dragons were at the top of the Magical Beasts'' world, but Void said he was just as powerful as Dragons. ''Are you sure it''s safe for you to use?'' He asked worriedly. ''Of course, I can also lend you some as well. Dragons have one of the strongest bodies and bones in the world, if you can refine even a tiny bit of their blood, then your physical strength will improve tremendously!'' Void said. He knew Grey''s physical strength was not like other Elementalists, he was far stronger than them when it came to this, almost on the same level as Magical Beasts. ''Really? Isn''t this going to be harmful to me?'' Grey asked. If what Void said was true, then he wouldn''t even think twice before using it. ''Would I give you anything that would harm you?'' Void rolled his eyes before keeping the rock. Grey shook his head, ''Since that''s the case, fine.'' ''We can''t use it here, once I remove the seal from this rock, then everyone around will sense it. We''ll have to wait until we get to somewhere safe, alone,'' Void explained. Grey thought about it for a while before nodding. He wasn''t in a hurry anyway. He checked his ring, seeing all the essence stones inside, he thought of how he was going to be able to go back to the Azure Continent. "Hey, how did you go to the Azure Continent?" He turned to Ellis. "It was accidentally, so I can''t really be sure if you can use it as well. But I can take you to the teleportation array I used," Ellis replied. "Alright, once we''re done here, you''ll take me there. I need to go back to the Azure Continent," Grey said. ¡­. Some kilometers away from Mortar City. Outside a small town. A group could be seen walking out of the town. It was the same group who went to the Suyin Canyon after Grey and Ellis left. A figure suddenly appeared before them. "My Lord, there''s news about who wiped out the bandits," The person bowed before speaking. "Where?" The old man asked. "Mortar City, a young genius from the O''Brien family," The person replied. "Fine, it''s been a while since we visited our friends in Mortar City, let''s go," Chapter 559 - Sneaking Around In The OBrien Mansion Mortar City. Later that day. Grey was still going through the book on arrays when Ellis suddenly approached him. "Come on, let''s go," Ellis said. "Hmm," Grey raised his head to stare at the figure of Ellis. He could sense anxiety in his friend''s demeanor, "I''m not fully certain that it will work, so don''t get your hopes up, yet," "I know, but no one has said they could help with this, so even if you''re not successful with what you want to try, I won''t blame you," Ellis nodded. "It''s good you understand," Grey said before following Ellis out of the room. On their way out, Ellis started to tell him about his family and the problem with his uncle. Ellis'' uncle was out of the mansion, just as he predicted, and this was the best time he had to take Grey over to his father. Even though his father and uncle are brothers, because of who would lead the family, they started to drift apart. The drift became more apparent when Ellis was born, he was on a whole new level when compared to his uncle''s son who was a year older. Even as a child, everyone could tell that he would be more talented than his brother. The only consolation he got was Ellis somewhat feminine voice, but it didn''t change anything. In the end, it was just as everyone predicted, Ellis was well ahead of his cousin in terms of strength and talent. Ellis had an elder brother and sister, but they were both killed when they went out for a mission a few years after he was born. It was a strange event in the family, but at that time, they were dealing with an enemy, and they knew the chances of them being killed by the said enemy was very high. The O''Brien family isn''t the most loved family across the Aurora Continent, it was evident from how Ellis told Grey not to ask of them in other continents apart from the Southern. According to Ellis, one of his family''s ancestors made a mistake during the great war of the gods, causing heavy casualties to the other families. Even though he rectified it at the cost of his own life, it still wasn''t enough to dispel the hatred and doubt that grew in the minds of the other families. Some of the families thought it was a plot to weaken their strength, even to this day they still speak ill of the O''Brien family. The Southern Continent is the home of the O''Brien family, but if they go out of the continent, they''re mindful of their actions since they weren''t really on the good side of the other families. ¡­. Grey was both shocked and astounded by what he was hearing, it was only after hearing this did he realize why Ellis told him not to speak of the O''Brien family outside of the Southern Continent. If he had made the mistake, then he might''ve been attacked by some people who still held a grudge against them. They continued speaking as Ellis took him through the long hallway, going through a series of doors before getting to a larger hallway. "Wait," Ellis stopped, peeping ahead of them to see what was ahead of them. Grey could hear at least three voices, but he was still behind so he didn''t know which people were there, nor if they had gotten to where they were going. "Alright, I''ll try to see if I can distract the guards. I''ll take them to the next hallway, but you will only have a timeframe of a few seconds or a minute at least to enter the room," Ellis said. Grey nodded, before preparing himself for his task. "Oh, before I forget, there''s an array that would notify the Elders once someone new enters the room. It''s made to sense the essence of the person going in, so you can''t escape it," Ellis added. Grey paused, staring at Ellis with a long face. "What? I forgot about it since I''m part of the family. You''re lucky I remembered now, what if you went in without knowing this?" Ellis raised a brow. Grey shook his head before dragging Ellis back and taking his position. "I''ll try to study the array from here and see how I can maneuver through it," Grey said. "Okay, but try to be fast. Time''s not something we have right now," Ellis looked behind them warily. Grey gently sent out his spiritual senses, slowly taking it over to where the room was located. He made sure to avoid the guards who were standing at the front of the door. If his spiritual sense was to touch them, they would definitely sense it, given their strength. As soon as his spiritual senses got close to the room, he started to feel the array in the room. The array almost gave off the alarm, luckily, he called back his spiritual senses quickly. ''Hmm, I''ll still need to probe it a few more times before trying to block it,'' Grey thought while running multiple simulations of arrays in his head before he tried to probe the array once again. Just like the first time, the array almost gave off the alarm, but he quickly called back his spiritual senses. After a minute-plus of probing repeatedly, Grey managed to think of a way to slightly escape the array. But only after trying will he know if it would work. "Aren''t you ready yet?" Ellis asked while looking around. "I''m not too confident about it. Although I don''t like doing things I''m not certain of, we have no choice. Come on, let''s go," Grey said. Ellis nodded before jokingly saying, "Even if you were caught, I''ll come out to take the blame. At most my uncle will kick me out of the family, he has been searching for an opportunity since I returned," "Let''s hope it doesn''t get to that stage," Grey said before taking in a deep breath. Seeing that Grey was ready, Ellis walked out, heading towards the three guards at the door. "Three of you, come with me, I noticed something a few rooms away," Ellis ordered. "I''m sorry Young Lord, but we can''t leave our position, you can call the other guards," One of the guards said. "I wonder what my uncle will say when he finds out that because of you three, a thief infiltrated the mansion," Ellis sneered before turning around decisively. Now, it was time to see if his plan will work or not. Chapter 560 - A Visit From The Vaergahl Family The guards exchanged glances, after thinking about it properly, they knew they couldn''t afford to leave the matter as it is. "You two, go with the Young Lord, I''ll stay behind," One of the guards said. Since they were three, it wasn''t really necessary for all three of them to leave the place, two should be enough. "I said all three of you, are you defying my orders now just because my father is ill?" Ellis asked coldly while giving off a chill aura. Chilled smoke started to circulate across the hallway, spreading around. Grey and Void who were at the side felt as if they wanted to freeze to death. The guards gritted their teeth, with no other option, they agreed to follow Ellis. Since Ellis said the place wasn''t far from here, they could come back quickly in case of anything. Then there''s also the array that was set by one of the oldest Elders in the family. He was an array master, so it was almost impossible for anyone to go through it without alarming him. Most people won''t even sense the presence of an array in the room until it''s too late. Ellis took the guards to the other side of the hallway, disappearing in the corner. Grey and Void who were hiding came out from their spot, walking towards the room cautiously. ''Can you hide from it?'' Grey asked. ''No, the sensing system of this one is different from the one in that city, so there''s no way I can,'' Void replied. ''Hmm, alright. Guess I''ll have to take the risk then,'' Grey steeled his mind, praying for the best while preparing for the worst. If things don''t go as planned, he will hastily move towards Ellis'' father and try to see if he could help him before he would be captured by the people in the mansion. He held the doorknob, while preparing an array that he would use to slightly alter the array in the room. His plan wasn''t to disable the array but to create a loophole in it so he can easily access it without being sensed. If it works, then he can stay here for as long as he wants and no one will know he was there. Creak¡­ He opened the door slowly, and soon as a small space opened up, he sent the array he created into the room, hoping it might be able to work. With fingers crossed, and a calm expression, he waited for the outcome of his experiment. ''Hmm,'' He raised his head slightly as a smile appeared on his face. He soon opened the door to the room and disappeared into it. Ellis and the guards came back the same moment he just closed the door, but no one noticed this. "Looks like I made a mistake," Ellis shook his head. The guards smiled awkwardly but didn''t speak any further. Opting to stay in their positions. Ellis didn''t stay any longer, he walked towards the spot Grey and Void were hiding, seeing the place empty, he heaved a sigh of relief. He muttered some words as he walked towards his room. Now, all he had to do was wait for Grey. He felt leaving the room should be easier than going in, but just to be on the safe side, Grey gave him one of the communication devices he made so they could communicate without speaking out, unlike the ones they have here. ¡­. Outside the O''Brien mansion. At the time Grey was stepping into Ellis'' father''s room, an uninvited guest appeared in front of the compound''s gate. With the Dragon insignia boldly crested on their clothes, it was easy for the guards to identify the group. It was the Vaergahl family. The facial expressions of the guards changed slightly. "Is Thoma in?" The old man with white hair asked. The guards nodded. They could feel an oppressive aura radiating from the old man, not just him, but every other person standing here. It was just like the oppressive aura high-ranked magical beasts give off. It was suffocating. "Your Young Lord defeated the bandits in Suyin Canyon, correct?" The old man raised a brow. "Yes," One of the guards nodded. "Alright, tell him and Thoma to come out, we have things to discuss," The old man said. "Sir¡­ you¡­ see¡­ the family¡­" "Whatever you want to discuss with my brother, you can speak with me," A voice suddenly resounded, not too loud, but everyone heard it perfectly. A figure soon appeared close to the Vaergahl family group. It was Ellis'' uncle, he was back. "Claude, it''s been a while," The old man said. "I can say the same for you old man, who would''ve thought that you were still alive," Claude laughed as he spoke. "You''re still alive, why would you think I''ll be dead?" The old man sneered. From their exchange, it was evident that they''ve encountered each other in the past. "Where are my manners, please, come inside. It''s an honor to be visited by the prestigious Vaergahl family," Claude welcomed the group in. "Hmph! Mannerless as always," A middle-aged man in the group snorted coldly. "Still feeling angry about our little bout?" Claude asked with a smirk as he walked into the compound. "You were lucky, nothing more," The middle-aged man said coldly. "A win is a win, take it or leave it," Claude said with a grin as he directed the group into the main building, taking them to the hall. ¡­. In the hall. Everyone took their seats, and Claude sitting in the chair designated for the family head didn''t escape the eyes of the people seated here. "Now, what can my family do for you?" Claude went straight to the point. "Your nephew wiped out the bandits in Suyin Canyon, correct?" The old man asked. "Oh, you''ve heard of his exploits as well, how wonderful," Claude smiled, "Don''t tell me you''re here to congratulate us for raising another prodigy?" "He has something that belongs to us, we want it back," The old man said. "Hmm, something of yours?" Claude''s expression turned serious. "Yes," The old man nodded. Claude looked around the hall for a while before summoning the guard outside, "Tell Ellis he''s needed here," Chapter 561 - Where Is The Ring? Ellis was surprised when a guard came to call him, saying he was summoned by his uncle. He felt a sudden uneasy feeling, but this was only because he was scared. ''Could Grey have been captured?'' He asked himself as he walked towards the hall. ''Hmm, no. If he were, it would''ve caused a big ruckus. Then why is uncle calling me if not that?'' He looked in the direction that led to his father''s room. It hadn''t been up to five minutes since Grey left, yet, he had been summoned by his uncle. To be honest, he found it odd. When he got to the door, he sensed a different presence inside, something he had never felt before. He didn''t think much of it though, after all, this was his family''s compound, one of the most powerful families in the entire Aurora Continent. Creak¡­ The huge door to the hall opened slowly as Ellis'' figure entered the hall. All eyes turned to him, he felt a particular gaze staring at him as if it wanted to look at his soul. "Huh?" He raised a brow while following his senses and staring at one person in particular amongst the guests, the old man with white hair. "Uncle," Ellis called out to his uncle with a soft bow to show respect. Even though he was angry with him, he still didn''t want outsiders to know about the internal conflict in the family. "Do you know these people?" Claude turned his gaze to the people from the Vaergahl family. "No, uncle. This is my first time seeing them," Ellis replied. He turned to stare at the group closer, but none of their faces rang a bell. He wasn''t too focused on their clothing, so he missed the Dragon insignia some of them had on their shirts. "They''re from the Vaergahl family, apparently, they said you have something of theirs, is this true?" Claude introduced the group. Ellis was taken aback when he heard the name and couldn''t help but pause for a bit, "The Vaergahl family? I don''t recall ever crossing paths with them," "You didn''t, but someone you met not too long ago did," Claude said. "Oh? Who''s that?" Ellis asked, showing a slight confusion. Of course he knew what this was about, but there was no way he was going to show that he did. First, before the Vaergahl family could travel this far meant there was something extraordinary among the items that he took from the bandit leader. What was worth mentioning was that he wasn''t the only one who took the items. So if he were to say he has any of the items, and they were to check him and what they wanted wasn''t with him, it would expose Grey. Given Grey''s current position and situation, he couldn''t afford to do that. "The bandit leader of Suyin Canyon. According to rumors, you were the one who cleared the place," The old man from the Vaergahl family spoke up. He was starting to get impatient. "Oh, it''s not a rumor, I killed the leader here not too long ago," Claude intervened, using the opportunity to show off his family''s superiority in young talent. "Then did you acquire his storage ring?" The old man turned to Claude. Since he was the one who killed the bandit leader, then it meant he saw him alive. "I couldn''t care less about what''s in the storage ring of a crappy bandit. Just having such thoughts is like a blemish on my name," Claude replied. Although he was taking every chance he got to annoy the Vaergahl family, he wasn''t lying here. For someone as powerful as he is, things belonging to those weaker than he is can barely catch his eye unless he saw it physically. When he told Ellis to bring the leader, it was only to make sure Ellis returned. "That bandit has something important to my family. Where''s the corpse?" The old man asked while standing from his seat. "I''ve asked the guards to destroy it. But if I may, how did a small-time bandit like that take something important to you people?" Claude couldn''t help but ask. "None of your business, take us to the place where the guard destroyed the body. The ring should still be intact," The old man said. "Hmm, alright," Claude thought about it for a while before nodding. He was curious about what would make the Vaergahl family so frantic. The thought of a top secret treasure of the family being acquired by them made him a little excited. Seeing the current strength of the Vaergahl family, he secretly summoned the Elders of the O''Brien family. If whatever they were searching for was something that could increase the strength of the family, he didn''t mind offending the Vaergahl family. The guard he told to dispose of the bandit leader''s body led them to a space at the back of the compound, behind a large garden. He pointed at the spot where the body was destroyed, and when the group looked closely, they could still see the charred ground. It was evident that the guard used the fire element. Claude asked if he saw any storage ring with him, and his answer left everyone shocked. According to him, there was no ring on the corpse of the bandit leader. "Are you certain?" Claude asked with narrowed eyes. "Yes, My Lord, when I brought him here, there was nothing of value on him. I checked him personally before burning the corpse," The guard answered hastily. He suddenly felt as if the sky had descended on him as a mountain-like pressure started to crush him. "Do not lie to me, where is the ring?" The old man with the Vaergahl family asked, his voice cold and detached. "I¡­ I¡­ didn''t see any ring, Sir," The guard could barely get the words out of his mouth, but everyone could sense his honesty. The second old man in the group waved his hand to dispel the pressure placed on the body of the guard. He turned to look in Ellis'' direction. "Since the ring was not on the bandit leader when he was brought here, it only means that it has been removed before he got here. Now, the question is by who?" He asked while looking at Ellis. He wasn''t the only one who had his eyes on Ellis, everyone from the Vaergahl family, as well as the O''Brien family who was there was staring at him. Chapter 562 - Meeting Ellis Father "What? Why are you all staring at me like that?" Ellis asked after being stared at for almost a minute. It was an uncomfortable feeling. "You''re the one who brought the bandit leader back, since the ring isn''t on him, where is it?" Claude questioned. "I don''t know. I barely managed to survive fighting against so many people, do you think I would be worried about a damn ring?" Ellis asked, raising his voice slightly towards the end of his question. "It did take you a single day to deal with the bandits, I presume you must''ve gone through a lot," Claude said. "Oh, how did you defeat the bandits anyway?" The old man with dark hair asked. "I fought," Ellis'' reply was simple, but everyone knew it had a lot in it. "I must commend your effort, but you see what we''re searching for, we''ll obtain it no matter what. If the storage ring is with you, I''d advise you to give it back now," The old man with dark hair said. "I''m sorry, but I didn''t see any storage rings. There were a lot of bandits, and some of them escaped when they realized they couldn''t beat me," Ellis explained. "Alright. We should get going," The old man with dark hair turned to the others from the Vaergahl family. The O''Brien family weren''t people they could oppress with their strength, so staying here any further wouldn''t change anything. Since Ellis said he didn''t have it they had to leave. Leaving didn''t mean they would let the matter rest though. The Dragon''s blood they acquired took them through hell, they were not going to let it go that easily. One of the reasons why the old man let Ellis go was that he had secretly made a hand seal that would identify if Ellis had been in contact with the blood, and the answer was no. The only thing was that Ellis could pass the blood to someone else without being aware of what it was, he may not even touch it. All in all, Ellis was the only person they could think of who had the bandit leader''s storage ring. ¡­. The Vaergahl family left soon after not being able to get anything from Ellis or Claude. Back at the O''Brien family hall. "Where is it?" Claude placed his hand on Ellis'' shoulder. "Where''s what?" asked Ellis. "Stop playing dumb, the ring. I know others might think you''re speaking the truth, but I know for a fact that you''re lying when you said you didn''t have it," Claude walked away from Ellis'' position, heading in the direction of the middle chair. "Honestly, I don''t. As I said, there were more important things to focus on, like staying alive. You sent me to my end, luckily I survived," Ellis said coldly. "I sent you out to train, nothing more. You can take it however you see it, but without enough pressure, you will not be able to grow to the top. I''m just making sure this pressure is constant," Claude rubbed his hands together as he spoke. Ellis stared at him but didn''t speak anymore. He turned around and left the room, walking steadily towards his room. ¡­. Mortar City. In a tavern. The Vaergahl family were still in the city, not willing to leave so easily. "Find out what you can about the boy, also, I want people who saw him returning to describe how he was when he came back," The old man with dark hair commanded. The middle-aged men in the group nodded before vanishing. "*Sigh* This is really becoming a bother. Why did the O''Brien family send out their Young Lord to fight against those bandits on his own? Given their numbers, and the strength of the leader, the kid shouldn''t have been able to survive it," The old man with white hair said his thoughts of the current situation. "Also, if I remember correctly, the kid said some bandits escaped. Find them and question them," The old man with white hair said. "Yes, grandfather," A young man amongst the group said before leaving the room. "Alright, now all we have to do is wait for reports," The old man with dark hair said. ¡­. O''Brien mansion. ''Grey, what''s the situation?'' Ellis was unable to hold back anymore, so he contacted Grey first. Unfortunately, he didn''t get a reply. "Damn it! Come on, Grey, answer me," ¡­. Ellis'' Father''s room. After Grey closed the door, he placed his back on the door as he stared around. The room was huge, with a large bed on the end of the room. He could sense an eerie aura across the room, an aura that made him feel uncomfortable. "Looks like he''s bedridden," He muttered to himself before slowly approaching the bed. He could see a figure on the bed, one he assumed was Ellis'' father, an obvious assumption. "Who are you, and why are you sneaking about in my room?" A raspy voice asked softly. Grey knew the source of the voice, hearing how weak it was, he was almost certain that Ellis'' father wouldn''t be able to live for long if this persisted. "Hello Sir, I''m a friend of your son," He bowed. Even though Ellis'' father was still lying on the bed, he still had to show some respect. After all, this was once the powerful family head of the O''Brien family. "Ellis'' friend?" Thoma asked, his voice still raspy. "Yes, he told me of your situation and I came to see if I can help," Grey explained. "Haha, foolish boy, even the Elders and the best physicians in the Continent can''t help me," Thoma laughed out lightly but coughed soon after. Grey knew he was referring to Ellis when he was speaking. "Thank you for willing to assist that foolish son of mine, but I don''t think there''s anything you can do. Also, how is he?" Thoma continued speaking after his cough subsided. "Honestly, not good, he''s the same as you, only still walking," Grey said. "*Sigh* I knew it would come to this, this is why I told him to leave the family if anything happens to me," Thoma sighed, he understood perfectly what Grey meant by his words. Chapter 563 - Unwilling Duo "You should go to him," Thoma said. "Can I try? Who knows, I just might be of help," Grey asked. He didn''t want to leave without trying, even though he wasn''t a hundred percent certain that he would be able to help, he still needed to try. "You can''t help me, boy, just let it go," Thoma said. "Believe in me sir, just like your son did. I''m only going to try," Grey persuaded. "I want to, I really do, but the thing is, I was infected by a miasma when searching for Ellis a few years back when he disappeared without a¡­" Thoma explained his condition to Grey. The miasma that infected him was something they have never encountered before, when someone tried to help him, the person was also infected by it. After the miasma entered his body, it turned into horrifying energy that is slowly corroding his innards. The person who was infected by it was far weaker than he was and lost his life soon after. His strength has been the only thing that has been keeping him alive all this time, but even he knew it was only a matter of time before he too succumbed to it. "After hearing this, do you still have any thoughts of trying when you aren''t certain whatever you''re planning to do will work?" Thoma asked after he finished his explanation. "Yes," Grey nodded, it was as if he wasn''t hearing anything Thoma was saying all this while. "*Sigh* Look boy, I''m glad that Ellis managed to make a friend like you who is willing to endanger himself for his friend''s happiness, but u can''t let him lose you as well," Thoma said. "Don''t worry sir, even if it doesn''t work, it won''t infect me," Grey said with a confident smile. "I''m sorry boy, but I can''t allow that," Thoma shook his head. This was a risk he wasn''t willing to accept. "I''m sorry sir, but I''m not leaving until I try," Grey''s eyes shone with determination. He will stay here for as long as he can until he helped out. Thoma and Grey stared at each other, the atmosphere tense. Grey was unwilling to leave until he tried to help, Thoma on the other hand unwilling to put his son''s friend in danger. ¡­. While Grey and Thoma were stuck in a stalemate, a minor conflict seems to be on the verge of erupting in Mortar City. The Vaergahl family are adamant that Ellis had the Dragon''s blood and a report from someone who saw them enter the city with the bandit leader on his shoulder said that the ring was never in the leader''s possession when they came in. A few bandits, as well as the girls who were partying with the bandits at the time Grey and Ellis attacked said before the attack, the leader had his storage ring in his possession. Ellis was in the O''Brien mansion, trying to contact Grey who still hadn''t replied to any of his messages. Claude was trying to figure out what the Vaergahl family were searching for so seriously. A few hours after the Vaergahl family left the O''Brien mansion, they returned. "Old man, why are you here again?" Claude came out of the mansion and asked, beside him were the family''s elders. "Where''s the boy?" The old man asked coldly. The group from the Vaergahl family wasn''t like the way they were the last time they came, this time, they seemed ready to declare war against the O''Brien family. "What do you want with my nephew?" Claude asked. Before the group from the Vaergahl family could reply, he added, "If you''re here for the same reason, then you should leave, my nephew already said he didn''t have the ring," "I''m not speaking of your nephew, he came back with a boy, where is the boy?" The old man from the Vaergahl family said. "A boy?" A look of confusion appeared on Claude''s face. His eyes suddenly widened after recalling sensing the young man who followed Ellis back to the mansion. He didn''t really think much of it since it wasn''t relevant. "I don''t know why you''re searching for that boy, but I''m certain he doesn''t have the ring. Ellis must''ve encountered him when returning back to the city after eliminating the bandits," Claude said. "Looks like you''re unaware, without that boy, your nephew wouldn''t have been able to wipe out the bandits," The old man from the Vaergahl family said. When they found some of the bandits who survived, they spoke of a youth who wore masks. The same thing was said from the people who confirmed not seeing a ring in the hands of the bandit leader. "The boy''s only at the Peak of the Origin Plane, even someone at the Early stages of the Overlord Plane will find it difficult in such a battle," Claude argued. It''s not that he didn''t know of any geniuses, but none of them could help out in such a battle while still being in the Origin Plane. One has to know that almost all the bandits were Overlord Plane Elementalists. "What?" The old man, along with every person in the Vaergahl family exclaimed in disbelief when they heard Claude''s words. They knew too well that he wouldn''t lie for something so little. They all exchanged glances, all seeing the shock in their eyes, especially the people who got the news from the bandits. They heard about a powerful individual who almost single-handedly fought against all the bandits in Overlord Plane on his own. How could such a person be in the Origin Plane? One of them recounted what they heard to Claude and the people from the O''Brien family, and disbelief appeared on their faces. If what they said was true, then it was impossible for Ellis to defeat the bandits without Grey''s help. "A Peak Origin Plane Elementalist holding his own against over a hundred and fifty bandits, killing a lot of them. This is a feat almost unrepeatable. The Young Lord truly found a great friend, geniuses truly do befriend geniuses," An Elder said with emotions. He wasn''t against Ellis, unlike most of the Elders here. Some of them only supported Claude for their own personal objectives.. There are a few who were against what he was doing to Ellis. Chapter 564 - Dragon Blood Essence "Call Ellis over," Claude said with a blank face, no one knew what was running through his head at the moment. Most of the Elders here knew of his attempts to remove Ellis from the family to pave a way for his lineage. Everyone waited for the guard to come back with Ellis. A few minutes later, the guard returned with Ellis in tow. "Uncle, you called," Ellis'' voice could be heard before he came out of the building. He was surprised when he saw the people from the Vaergahl family again. Not expecting to see them this quickly after they left. "Yes, where''s your friend?" Claude went straight to the point. "My friend?" Ellis almost freaked out when he heard this question, but he managed to hold himself back. He initially thought Grey had been captured, but if he were, his uncle wouldn''t ask him about it so calmly. "The boy you came back with, where is he?" Claude asked, taking a step towards Ellis, standing in front of him. "He''s gone," Ellis lied without even blinking. There was no way he could say Grey was in his father''s room. That would cause him too many problems. "You''re lying, he hasn''t left the mansion since coming, actually, he hasn''t left your room since he came." Claude narrowed his eyes, he turned to look at the guard who came with Ellis before nodding. "Uncle, what''s the meaning of this?" Ellis asked, his eyes showing anger. "Your friend has something the Vaergahl family wants, I can''t let someone we aren''t related to cause problems for our family," Claude held onto Ellis, stopping him from going after the guard. Ellis clenched his fist while gritting his teeth. Unfortunately, there was no way he could free himself from the hold of his Uncle. The Vaergahl family watched on silently, waiting for the guard to come back with Grey. The Elders of the O''Brien family watched on as well. This was a very complex matter. If Grey truly has the item the Vaergahl family wanted, then they''ll have to force him to hand it back so they don''t go to war with the Vaergahl family. But if Grey doesn''t have it, it will make things complicated since the Vaergahl family believes strongly that Ellis or Grey who wiped out the bandits had the item. The guard returned within a minute, but Grey was not with him, contrary to the expectations of the crowd waiting outside. "Where''s the boy?" Claude asked the guard. "There''s no one in the room, My Lord," The guard bowed as he reported. "Huh?" Claude raised a brow. "You see, I told you he''s gone," Ellis said as he freed himself from his Uncle''s grasp. "Claude, I need the boy," The old man from the Vaergahl family said. "Hmph! I''m not your servant old man. This is the O''Brien family," Claude snorted coldly. He might want to hand Grey over, but since he couldn''t be found, there was no way he would cower in the face of the Vaergahl family. If he wanted to gain the trust and favor of the Elders, then he had to show them his strength. "Watch your tongue Claude, when I was famous in the continent, you weren''t born," The old man took a step forward, releasing his powerful aura. The shape of a Dragon''s head appeared above him. ''An avatar,'' Ellis thought internally as he stared at the Dragon that seemed to have the strength to topple the world with a single roar. "Zylres, what are you doing?" One of the Elders in the O''Brien family stepped forward. "What the boy has is important to the Vaergahl family, and we will not stop until we get it back," Zylres withdrew his avatar before turning around. The faces of everyone in the O''Brien family turned serious, they knew what Zylres'' words meant. Either they provide Grey, or they would have to contend with the Vaergahl family. "Just what does he have?" Claude took a step forward stopping Zylres from leaving. "Since it''s already gotten to this, I''m not going to hide it. You all know about my family''s connection with the Dragons, since our first ancestor, none of us has been able to get a high purity of dragon blood when born, and over time, the purity of the blood continued dwindling, to stop it, the Elders decided we should start refining a true Dragon''s blood." "Of course it was easier said than done, it''s not like we could capture Dragons since it was forbidden, so we made a pact with a Dragon who''s a friend of our ancestor, every hundred years, he''ll give us a drop of blood essence to give to the most qualified member of the younger generation." "With this, we have been able to produce a genius every hundred years. The only reason I''m willingly telling you this is because other than the Vaergahl family, no one else can refine a Dragon''s blood essence," Zylres explained. "Does that mean¡­" Claude''s eyes widened. "Yes, what the boy has is the Dragon''s blood essence," Zylres said before Claude could finish his statement. Everyone from the O''Brien family took a deep breath when they heard this revelation. Although they''ve all heard of this, it was merely rumors amongst the big families, no one from the Vaergahl family has ever confirmed it. The only reason they didn''t dismiss it was because they followed the saying which was "there wouldn''t be ripples in the water with disturbance". Ellis was currently caught in a dilemma, the Vaergahl family are hellbent on retrieving the blood essence which means they wouldn''t mind getting into a battle with his family. But he couldn''t give up Grey. ''I''ll wait till he finishes with what he''s doing. I''ll think of what to do then. But, I never saw something like that in the ring,'' He thought, still confused about not sensing the blood essence. For something so powerful, it was strange that they didn''t notice it. Chapter 565 - Ellis Vs Gilliard The Vaergahl family left after some time, but the atmosphere in the O''Brien family was a little tense. They might not be afraid of the Vaergahl family, but that doesn''t mean they want to go to war with them as well. The main issue now was this, where is Grey? They''ve asked Ellis multiple times and even done a complete search on the mansion, but they haven''t found him. Of course they didn''t go near Thoma''s room since the thought of Grey being there didn''t cross their minds one bit. But just to be safe, they did ask the Elder who made the array to check on it, and after he verified that it was still normal, they didn''t bother anymore. ¡­. The O''Brien family hall. "Ellis, this is important. Even though we do not know if the kid has it, we have to present him to the Vaergahl family as well. Once they''ve confirmed that it''s not with him, then they will see no reason to fight us, after all, they know they can''t beat us, they might be strong, but we aren''t weaklings either," One of the Elders said coldly. "I''m just as stumped as you all, originally, I thought he left when I didn''t find him in my room. This was why I said he was gone when Uncle asked, but now no one saw him leaving the building, which means he''s still here," Ellis replied, a little worried about the situation. He knew about Grey''s abilities with arrays, but the Elder who made this array was someone that is over two thousand years old, and he had been an array master since he was thirty years old, so it goes to show how long and knowledgeable he is about arrays. If he didn''t sense any changes in the array, it meant two things, either Grey never entered his father''s room, or, Grey somehow found a way to hide from the array. Of the two possibilities, the first one was more believable than the latter. But, he had confidence in his friend and is certain that he will never leave without even informing him. Thinking about this, a third possibility came to his mind. ''Was he kidnapped?'' His expression turned even sourer than that of the Elders and Claude. If Grey was kidnapped, it would make things more difficult. At least now he still had some hope of Grey being able to heal his father. Not just that, but also coming out. Given Grey''s personality, he didn''t feel he would want to put his family in a difficult position, so he would most likely hand over the blood essence if it''s in his possession. "Zylres said they will return at sunrise tomorrow, we have until then to find the boy. We might not know how he left the mansion, but one thing is certain, we have to find him, no matter what," The Elder who stood up to Zylres said. The others all nodded to his words, before leaving the hall, heading in different directions. They all had loyal spies they could count on in times like this. Presently, some are even watching the movements of the Vaergahl family. While all this was taking place, Claude didn''t say a word, his head rested on his chin. He stared at the Elders as they tried to find out Grey''s position. After a while, he stood up, leaving the hall and entering the hallway. He took a few turns and he soon appeared in front of a family door, it was the one that led to Thoma''s room. ''I wonder what brother would do in a situation like this?'' He thought as he walked towards the door. Compared to his brother, he wasn''t the best decision maker. This was one of the reasons why their father gave the position over to him. Even when he was slightly stronger than Thoma, it didn''t change anything. Thoma has always been cool-headed when dealing with conflicts since he was young and possesses the aura of a leader. He took a few steps forward, standing in front of the door. Holding the doorknob, he turned it slowly. Click! It made the sound of it being opened, and just as he was about to push the door open. "My Lord, the Young Lord is fighting with your son," A guard rushed over to report. "Huh?" Claude raised a brow as he turned his head to look at the guard. "Where are they?" He asked. "Behind the garden," The guard replied. "Alright," Claude turned around, closing the door before walking away. ''I''ll handle this myself,'' He thought as he disappeared from the hallway. ¡­. At the back of the garden in the O''Brien mansion. Boom! Bang! "Bring out that friend of yours, a thief will always befriend a thief," A young man said as he attacked Ellis. Ellis dodged calmly to the side as he used the water element to push his cousin a few meters away from him. "Gilliard, I don''t want to fight you," Ellis said after casually brushing off his attack. "But I want to, you''ve made us a laughing stock, bring trouble with you wherever you go," Gilliard said as he attacked with the wind element again. Ellis made a few hand seals, and raindrops started to fall from the sky, "You''re drunk, Gill, you can easily disperse the alcohol, but you choose to let it stay so you can say you''re under its influence when you attacked me, pathetic," The rain began to pour down heavily from the night sky as Ellis started to levitate from the ground. "I will show you what true power is, this time, I won''t hold back," Ellis said as he continued to float higher into the sky, staring at Gilliard from above. Gilliard raised his head to look at Ellis, his expression one of disgust, he spat on the ground before he summoned a small tornado that picked him up. Claude and a few of the Elders were watching from the side, some youths were also watching as well. "Is this who you want to lead the family, a drunk?" An Elder asked. His question was met with silence from Claude, he only narrowed his eyes as he watched the two youths in the sky. "I will settle this with one attack," Ellis said, his demeanor different from the one he always displayed. This was the first time the Elders were seeing this side of him, and they couldn''t deny it, they were impressed. He was just like his father, proud and confident in his abilities. "Heh! Do you think you can trade blows with me?" Gilliard sneered before roaring out. A large lightning snake covered by a tornado appeared before it charged at Ellis. Ellis looked at the attack before shaking his head before muttering softly, "Everything before my domain shall fall," Rumble! Bang! A large rumbling sound was accompanied by the explosion of the lightning snake. It was as if it self-destructed. It didn''t even get close to Ellis before it exploded. The Elders and the youths in the garden stared at Ellis in awe, they couldn''t believe what just happened. "Has he been able to awaken his domain?" One of the Elders asked in shock. "Yes, I never took note of it until now. Even if there are five Gilliards here, they are still not his match, looks like the Young Lord has improved so much, he had been hiding his true strength," Another Elder said, changing the way he had been addressing Ellis. A domain was something only those above the Sage Plane could use, and not all of them could awaken it, only a given few could. After the Sage Plane, the next level was the Elemental Venerable, after that was Elemental Sovereign. Elemental Sovereigns are those who have been able to create their domains. Without a domain, there is no way an Elemental Venerable can get to the next level. Only a few geniuses can awaken their domains before they become Elemental Venerables, most of them awaken it when they are already Elemental Venerables. Ellis was one of the few people in history who has awakened his domain while still in the Sage Plane, his strength has increased drastically, that it could almost be said that he was unbeatable in the Sage Plane, this is the advantage a domain has. One has to know that Ellis was still in the Mid stages of the Sage Plane, yet with a domain, he could go against someone at the Peak of the Sage Plane. The pressure from his father almost losing his life, Grey''s sudden disappearance, and the appearance of the Vaergahl family pushed him so much that he unknowingly awakened a power he shouldn''t have access to now. The greatest disadvantage with awakening a domain quickly was that, he couldn''t support if fully because of the huge amount of essence it needed to operate. "Gill, after today, know your place," Ellis spread out both hands and he shone with a blue light. Chapter 566 - Is This How You Treat The Younger Generation? "Icy rain," Ellis muttered while looking at Gilliard. The raindrops suddenly paused, before turning to small shards of ice as they rained down on Gilliard. Gilliard created a rotating wind that he used to protect himself, but his expression changed when he realized that it wasn''t stopping the attack. "Enough," Claude''s voice resounded just as the ice shards were about to pierce Gilliard. With a single word, the ice shards shattered, and Ellis'' domain was forcefully destroyed. Splat! Ellis spat out a mouthful of blood before falling from the sky. An Elder acted quickly, catching him before he hit the ground. "Claude, why did you forcefully destroy the domain, do you plan on damaging his core?" The Elder asked with an angry expression. "He will be fine, I didn''t use too much power," Claude approached Gilliard. "My boy, you''ve disappointed me," He said as he stood in front of his son, his voice filled with disappointment. With Ellis awakening his domain, the difference between the duo was like day and night. Gilliard will be unable to compete against Ellis anymore. Gilliard clenched his fist so hard that his nails pierced his flesh, making blood drip from it. Claude shook his head before walking past him, going towards Ellis. The Elder who helped Ellis stood in front of him, acting as a shield before the approaching Claude. "Do you think I would kill my nephew?" Claude asked with a serious expression. "At the moment, I do not know what you are capable of," The Elder refused to move. Ellis is a genius that might surpass all the geniuses the family has produced over the last three thousand years, there was no way he would allow anything to happen to him, especially if the person causing the harm was from the family. "I''ve always put the family first in every decision I''ve been making, do you think I will allow someone like him to go to waste?" Claude placed his hand on the shoulder of the Elder. "It''s okay, Uncle wouldn''t harm me, at least not while Father is still alive, and you all are here," Ellis gave the approval for Claude to come close. The Elder finally moved to the side, letting Claude walk through. "Provide the boy you came with, and I''ll forget about your past transgressions," Claude said. "My past transgressions? What have I ever done that harmed the family?" Ellis couldn''t reign in his anger when he heard this. Claude was sounding as if he was taking pity on him. He had never done anything that put the family name in jeopardy, so what was Claude talking about? "You don''t know, do you?" Claude asked. Confusion appeared on Ellis'' face, "Know what?" Claude narrowed his eyes as he whispered into Ellis'' ear, "The reason for Thoma''s illness," "My father?" Ellis'' eyes widened. "Thoma told us not to speak of it to you if you ever returned, but you''re not a child anymore, he was infected by a strange miasma when searching for you," Claude said. The others couldn''t hear what he was saying, but from Ellis'' reaction, they could tell it was nothing good. Tears welled up in Ellis'' eyes when he understood what happened. "Father¡­ is¡­ ill because of me?" His voice went soft as he asked. "No, at this rate, your father will die because of you," Claude said. When he was done with his words, he turned around and walked away, his objective complete. Since Ellis has shown such talents, and he couldn''t do anything to him physically, he would bring him down emotionally and mentally. The Elders watched on as tears continued rolling down from Ellis'' eyes, unaware of the exchange between the two. Ellis turned around and walked away, weak and dejected. In a family he came from, he was alone. "Ellis, what did he tell you?" The Elder who was standing between Ellis and Claude ran after him and asked. "The truth," Ellis replied before walking. The Elder sighed, angered by Claude''s decision to tell Ellis about the reason for his father''s illness. He didn''t need Ellis to tell him what they spoke about. ¡­. The next morning. The Vaergahl family came at the break of dawn. "Claude, we''re back, where is the boy?" Zylres questioned as they entered the compound. They didn''t even get to the building before he released his powerful aura, drawing the attention of everyone in the O''Brien mansion. Before long, everyone in the O''Brien mansion was standing outside, facing the group from the Vaergahl family. "Zylres, the O''Brien family is not somewhere you can act as you want. We''re still searching for the boy, when we find him, we''ll hand him over to you," An Elder from the O''Brien family said. "The boy is nowhere in the city, that means he''s either hiding here, or has left the city. We can''t begin a search since we do not know anything about him," Zylres said, staring coldly at the people from the O''Brien family, especially Ellis and Claude. "Just like you, we do not know the boy. He''s acquainted with Ellis," Claude turned to look at Ellis. "I don''t know where he''s from, we only met by chance when I went missing," Ellis said, his expression blank. He was telling the truth though, he really didn''t know anything about Grey. If Grey didn''t help him when he was still playing weak in the Magical Beasts'' forest, they wouldn''t have become friends. "Then why did you take him with you to the Suyin Canyon?" Claude asked. "He came along, it''s not like I can tell him to go back. After all, I needed all the help I could get," Ellis had the same blank look on his face. It was evident that he was still suffering from the words Claude told him the previous night. The revelation of finding out he was going to be the reason for his father''s death was too much for him to handle. He hadn''t even tried to contact Grey since then. And he had completely forgotten about the tracking device he had with him. "The sooner you provide the boy, the better for you all," Zylres directed his pressure at Ellis. Just when the pressure was getting too much for Ellis, the sound of soft footsteps could be heard from inside the mansion. "Zylres, is this how you treat members of the younger generation?" "That voice, don''t tell me he''s¡­" Chapter 567 - Thomas Return "Claude, you''ve been disappointing,," The voice from inside said. "Father," Ellis turned around, staring at the door that led to the building. Everyone in the family, as well as the Vaergahl family turned to look in that direction as well. The footsteps intensified as two figures appeared, a middle aged man who had the same features as Ellis with a well trimmed beards walked out, accompanied by Grey, Void elegantly standing on his shoulder, like always. "Thoma, how?" Claude asked, shocked, but he soon took note of the person walking beside him, "Isn''t that the kid we have been searching for?" "Father, you''re better now?" Ellis walked towards his father, a little unsure of how to react. "Haha, yes," Thoma laughed as he took Ellis into his hands. Grey smiled softly, his face a little pale from staying awake throughout the night, working on how to make Thoma better. While the duo hugged tightly, Zylres approached Grey. "Boy, where is the bandit leader''s storage ring?" He asked, his imposing figure pressurizing Grey. Grey waved his hand, and the pressure coming his way disappeared, "Huh? What ring?" "Don''t play dumb boy, we know you have the ring with you," Zylres said. He was a little taken aback by how easily Grey was able to disperse his intimidating aura, but he didn''t think too much about it, the blood essence came first. "I have no idea what you''re talking about? Ellis, what''s happening?" Grey turned to Ellis. "Oh, that. Well you see¡­" Ellis gave him a brief summary of what happened the previous day. "Wow! A Dragon''s blood essence! Now that''s impressive, how did you lose it?" Grey exclaimed, before asking a question that infuriated the people from the Vaergahl family, especially the youngsters. "The bandit leader''s storage ring, where is it?" Zylres asked, starting to get annoyed by Grey''s behavior. "I have no idea what you''re talking about. I might not be from a big family like you, but I don''t loot people, that''s disgraceful," Grey said proudly, putting on a dignified expression. Zylres was about to approach Grey when the old man with dark hair walked up to him and whispered in his ears, "Zylres, I can''t sense the aura of the blood essence on him, he doesn''t have it," "What? Impossible! If he doesn''t have it, then where is it?" Zylres'' eyes widened, his eyeballs almost popping out. "I don''t know, but I know for a fact that it''s not on him," The old man said, his eyes showing frustration. They thought the blood essence was with either Ellis or Grey, hence they didn''t worry too much about it. However, things are different now, since it''s not with either of them, it meant that the band leader must have either kept it somewhere or passed it on to someone else. "Damn it, how annoying," Zylres said, almost exploding with anger. Luckily, the second old man was with him so he helped contain the energy that shot out of his body. "Hmm, such a strange cat," The old man with dark hair raised his brow when he saw Void on Grey''s shoulder. He could sense that he was different, but no matter how hard he tried, all he could sense was a normal cat. "Since you''re here, why don''t you all come in for a drink? It''s been a while we encountered each other," Thoma said, standing face to face with Zylres. "I''m sorry, but we don''t have such luxury time, there are more important things we want to handle," Zylres replied. Since they''ve been able to confirm that the blood essence is not with Grey, there was no use in staying here any longer. The sooner they start searching for it, the better. What was more annoying was that the Dragon would not give them a second blood essence because it took too much energy from it. After giving them this one, it would have to recover for a long time before it can give them another one. "*Sigh* Alright, but you''re welcome to come whenever you want, as a guest of course, not an enemy," Thoma said with a smile. The people from the Vaergahl family nodded, the old man with dark hair apologizing for their behavior before they left. Since their assumption was wrong, it was normal for them to apologize. After all, the O''Brien family is not a small family. "How did you enter his room?" Claude turned to Grey after the Vaergahl family left. Since Grey was with Thoma, it meant that Thoma''s recovery has something to do with him. "He helped me," Grey pointed at Ellis. There was no use in hiding it anyway. "So you know where he has been all this while?" Claude turned to Ellis, infuriated. "Yeah, but I wasn''t sure he was there since I couldn''t reach him," Ellis nodded. "And you allowed the Vaergahl family to demean us when you could easily provide him and end all this nonsense," Claude yelled as he approached Ellis. "He said he could help with father, I couldn''t allow you to disturb him," Ellis replied. Thoma stood in front of Ellis, blocking Claude from approaching. "You all have been really disappointing," Thoma turned around, looking at all the Elders. They dropped their heads, not wanting to look Thoma in the eyes. "You in particular, sending my son out on missions that might kill him," He said before turning to Ellis, "And you, why didn''t you speak of this?" "Father, I¡­ I didn''t want to make you worry," Ellis said. "How come I wasn''t able to detect you in the Family Head''s room?" An Elder approached Grey, a curious expression on his face. Ellis whispered in Grey''s ears, "He''s the array master who made the array in father''s room. You don''t need to worry about him, he''s not interested in all this struggle," "Simple, I modified it, I added a small loophole to it," Grey replied after getting confirmation from Ellis. "Impressive, come, tell me what you did," The Elder held onto Grey and disappeared with him. None of the people here made a sound, not even Thoma or Claude.. This Elder was one of the oldest and strongest Elders in the family. Chapter 568 - Thomas Warning With Grey taken away by the Elder, only the important members of the O''Brien family were left. Thoma looked around before walking inside, Ellis behind him, accompanied by everyone else. Claude''s face was portraying an array of mixed emotions, not sure of what to do now that Thoma was actually healthy again. He originally thought the control of the family would rest on him with Thoma out of the way, but now, everything has changed. What''s worse is that he had mistreated Thoma''s last surviving child, almost sending him to his doom a couple of times. Using the excuse of him being the cause of Thoma''s illness as an excuse for the other Elders and also to make him grow stronger. Of course, not all the Elders agreed to this, but he had managed to win the majority of the Elders to his side, so he was successful with his plans. ¡­. O''Brien family hall. Thoma was sitting on the seat in the middle, the Elders and Claude sitting by his side. Discussing the events that occurred in the family since his absence. "Claude, did you really have to go this far?" Thoma asked. "They were reneging from their promise, if we don''t show them who''s boss, they will soon start defying us," Claude replied. "Using force will never get you anywhere, didn''t father teach you that?" Thoma shook his head at his brother''s behavior. "What did you expect me to do? Watch them as they continue expanding and not give us the full payment as usual?" Claude stood up from his seat. "We''ve been allies with them for a while now, even though they''re weaker, it doesn''t mean you should step on them if they fail to make a payment," Thoma explained. "There are times where action is needed for a relationship to hold. Talking can''t fix everything," Claude said. This was what he hated the most about his brother, he was always looking for a peaceful way out of everything. That only shows how weak he actually is. "*Sigh* I know of this too, but you''re always too rash with your decisions. Fine forget about it, I''ll head there to see them personally," Thoma sighed while looking at his brother. They continued speaking about other matters before he brought them all back to the matter of Ellis, his expression was different compared to when he was speaking about the other matters. "Alright, so why did you all try to kill my son?" He asked, his eyes dark. "No one tried to kill him, we only sent him out on missions to help train him," Claude defended himself. "Hmm, I wonder why you didn''t do the same for Gill. Since that''s the case, I''ll be sending Gill out for a little experimental training as well," Thoma narrowed his eyes. Since Claude was trying to hide behind this excuse, then he too would do the same. Claude''s reaction was just as expected, anger was written all over his face, "What do you mean send Gill out for an experimental training?" "Ellis isn''t the only member of the family, Gill is as well. It will be a shame if because of all the training you put Ellis through, he would be far stronger than Gill. I want Gill to be strong as well," Thoma answered nonchalantly. "I''ll not allow it," Claude hit the armrest of the chair he was sitting on. "You have no say in this," Thoma said calmly. "Brother, do not provoke me," Claude threatened. "*Sigh* You''re still not seeing the pattern here?" Thoma shook his head. "Because of you, there''s a rift in the family, brothers fighting brothers. Do you think the family will retain its prestigious name if it takes this road? How many families have fallen due to conflict? Too many to count," He added while standing up. "Together we stand, divided and we will fall. Why do you think the Vaergahl family dared to impose on us? Because they know of the divide in the family. Stop being a moron and think properly. You say you have the family''s best interest at heart, then why are you destroying it?" Thoma walked towards Claude as he asked multiple questions. His words resounded clearly in the entire hall, and most of the Elders who were on Claude''s side bent their heads in shame. It was true, a divided family could be easily taken apart. It has happened in history so many times, and even till now, it''s still happening. Families fighting against each other, slowly dividing the power that once made them great. "You''re my brother, and I will never do anything that will harm you. But this is your last warning, if you ever do anything that will jeopardize the unity of this family again, then I will personally end you," Thoma said, his aura oppressive. He turned to look at everyone in the hall, "This goes to all of you as well, I will not accept this again," The Thoma currently speaking wasn''t the same as the one who was speaking about the issue of some other family, it was the family head of the O''Brien family, one of the largest families in the Southern Continent. He might look weak, but they all knew how scary he was when he was angry. Claude gritted his teeth angrily, but he refrained from speaking back. With heads bowed, he apologized, something that Thoma, nor the Elders expected. "Hmm, it''s good that you know what''s more important. Don''t think too much about it. We''re still one family, together to the end," Thoma patted his brother on the shoulder before walking out of the hall. Ellis quickly followed behind him, impressed by his father''s show of strength. ¡­. Thoma''s room. As soon as Thoma walked into the room, he started coughing seriously, with his hands across his mouth. Ellis suddenly opened the door, "Father you were¡­" He paused mid-sentence, looking at his father''s pale face, and the blood dripping from the side of his mouth. His eyes widened as he rushed towards him, "Father, what''s wrong?" Thoma continued coughing for a few more seconds before he managed to reply with a faint smile, "I pushed myself too hard, don''t worry about it." Chapter 569 - A Way To Hide The Mark "Are you sure?" Ellis asked, worried for his father. "Yes," Thoma nodded, "You see, your friend hasn''t completed the healing process, he was drained, and I could sense the situation outside, so we had to take a pause," After hearing Thoma''s explanation, Ellis finally calmed down. He couldn''t help but feel grateful to Grey for his help. An illness no one has been able to resolve, he managed to heal it, even if it was by a little, it showed how extraordinary he was. "How did he do it?" Ellis asked, excited by the prospect of his father recovering sooner. If the method was something other people could use, then he didn''t mind trying it out as well. "I don''t know, and it''s best if you don''t ask. All I know is that it''s quite draining. If we came out the moment he stopped using it, then you would''ve thought your friend was a walking corpse, he was not only pale, but he dried up too. Luckily, he was able to recover at an amazing speed, seriously, the speed of his recovery is shocking," Thoma shook his head in amazement. Grey''s abilities were shocking. And the fact that he was still at the Peak of the Origin Plane was more terrifying. How amazing would he be once he breaks through to the Sage Plane? "Have you seen him fight? He''s a monster," Ellis told him of how Grey helped him wipe out the bandits in Suyin Canyon. After hearing Grey''s battle capabilities, Thoma was once again left astounded. Grey could miraculously heal him, he had a quick recovery, his battle prowess was on another level, and he was even an array genius. If he isn''t regarded as a genius, who was? The other geniuses he knew didn''t hold a candle in front of Grey. "Hmm, it''s nice you got to befriend someone like him. Which family is he from?" Thoma asked. "He''s from a remote place, the place I was accidentally teleported to," Ellis explained, telling him of how he met Grey. "Such a place where the people at the peak are only at the Early stages of the Sage Plane, and a genius like this was born there? Impossible!" Thoma exclaimed. "I never expected it myself, but it''s the truth. I''ve also encountered a few people, but none of them are on his level. It''s strange that someone like him grew up in such a remote place," Ellis shook his head. "Since he''s a friend, then we don''t have any worries. A genius like him is bound to rise to the top of the world eventually, I wouldn''t be too surprised if he becomes the strongest person in the world at some point," Thoma said. "The strongest? Isn''t that a bit too high?" Ellis was shocked by his father''s words. He accepted the fact that Grey was a genius above most geniuses, but for his father to say he would become the strongest Elementalist in the world was an exaggeration. "Fine, you don''t believe me? Mark my words, someday, your friend will become the most powerful person in the world, if it does happen, you''ll cry in front of me," Thoma said. Ellis almost spat out a mouthful of blood when he heard his father''s request. What sort of an odd request was that? Come cry in front of him if what he said happens? Impossible! "Then what if it doesn''t happen?" Ellis asked. "We''ll have a drink together with you massaging my back," Thoma replied with a smile. "I don''t see how I benefit from either of your statements," Ellis rolled his eyes. "I''m the father, I make the rules of the game," Thoma grinned. Ellis laughed out before hugging his father, "I''ve missed you so much," "Me too, boy," Thoma patted Ellis'' hair as they hugged. ¡­. Later that day. Grey was finally released by the Elder who took him away. And the moment he returned, he fell on Ellis'' bed and fell asleep. He was exhausted from helping Thoma recover, and now he was taken away by a strange old man who wanted to learn some things from him. Although, he couldn''t say he didn''t enjoy the company of the Elder since he learned a lot about arrays from him. Even though he was able to make a loophole in the array the Elder made, it didn''t mean they were on the same level. His creativity and quick thinking were some of the reasons why he managed to do what he did. Grey woke up the next day, almost close to his original state. He still needed to rest, so he didn''t even try to do anything and went to rest soon after eating. He still had to continue healing Ellis'' father, so he needed to ensure that he was in full health before he tried to help him again. Grey stayed in the O''Brien family, and he was treated nicely, especially by the Elder who was an array master. When he was not with Ellis'' father, he would be with the Elder, discussing arrays. His knowledge increased as time went on, and he actually got an idea to cover up the mark on his back. The mark has been with him since his first encounter with a necromancer, and he still hasn''t been able to hide it. No matter what he did, he was unable to. Luckily, other than the guy he met at the ruin, he hadn''t encountered another necromancer. Considering his usual bad luck, he felt happy about how things had been going. First of all, he was still alive, even in a place like this where youngsters were almost as powerful as his Teacher, there were even people like Ellis who were stronger. He recalled his Teacher was at the Peak of the Overlord Plane the last time he heard about him, it''s a shame he hadn''t seen him since leaving the trial land. Thinking of his Teacher, he couldn''t help but wonder how he was fairing. His friends also came to mind as well. Once he was done here, he would head back to the Azure Continent to bring his friends here. Chapter 570 - Return To The Azure Continent Ten days later. "That should be all of it uncle," Grey said with a slightly pale face as he stared at Ellis'' father who was already back to normal. He never expected it would take this long, but after ten long arduous days, he had finally removed the last of the strange energy in Ellis'' father''s body, well, consumed should be the right word. What he found strange was that his body actually attracted the energy from Thoma''s body into his, then the orb in his body will slowly start working, before integrating it into his body. Even he didn''t know how it was possible, but it happened. One thing that was worth mentioning was that his strength had increased significantly, and he was certain of being able to break into the Overlord Plane in no time. Not just that, but he knew he wouldn''t just enter the Overlord Plane, but he might even jump straight to the Mid stages of it. This is because of how long he had been conserving essence energy. He was like a dam waiting to burst open so it could release all the water stored in it. Now that he was done with this, it was time to head back to the Azure continent, but before that, he had to rest up. ¡­. The next morning. Thoma, Ellis, a few of the family''s Elder were standing in front of the teleportation array in Mortar City. This was the array Ellis used when he was accidentally teleported to the Azure Continent. Grey initially wanted to ask for help, but Void told him he knew the coordinates to the Azure Continent, so there was no need in asking anyone for help. Amongst the duo, Void was the one who wanted to leave the most, the reason for this was that he couldn''t hold himself back anymore from refining the Dragon blood essence with him. He also found this place very boring, although, the food was quite pleasing. But Grey was a better cook, so he enjoyed their company. Just as Grey was about to leave, Ellis recalled something. ''Could it be that he''s from a large family? I never got to ask him his last name,'' He thought to himself. He recalled facing an old man the time he was about to leave the Azure Continent, and the old man referred to Grey as Young Lord, this obviously meant that Grey was from a powerful family, only, he was unaware of this. If he could find out Grey''s last name, he just might be able to find out which family Grey was from. With this thought in his head, he approached Grey. "I''ve been meaning to ask, what''s your last name?" He asked when he got close to Grey. "Why are you asking?" Grey raised a brow curiously. "Since you helped my father recover, I recall that you are searching for your parents, maybe I could help with the search," Ellis explained. "Oh, it''s Dawson," Grey said offhandedly. "Dawson?" Ellis asked, his eyes showing shock. If it was the Dawson family he was thinking about, then it would explain why Grey was such an amazing genius. But it was also a problem given the hatred the Dawson family had for them. "Yeah," Grey nodded, he didn''t miss the shock in Ellis'' eyes, but before he could ask any more questions, the array lit up. He didn''t ask any more questions as he waved goodbye to the people from the O''Brien family. The Elder who made arrays had a sad expression on his face, it was like his long time friend was leaving him alone in the world. "Ellis, is everything alright?" Thoma asked when he saw his expression. "Yes, we should head back," Ellis smiled before walking away. The others also left the place as well, heading back to the O''Brien mansion. ¡­. Azure Continent. A few months after Grey left for the Aurora Continent, the war that had been looming around broke out. Grey''s friends have been tagged as wanted criminals and they were all on the run. Alice''s family had it rough since she was the only one who had a big family that could be held by the Emperor. Thousands had died in the battle, and it was still ongoing. The first originally started between the Azure and the Qilin empire, but the other two empires had joined in as well when they saw the severity of the situation. Of course, this was all because of the influence of the two empires. The Blue Wind Empire joined forces with the Azure Empire, while the Stellar empire joined forces with the Qilin empire. This battle had cost each empire thousands of Elementalists, and without a final result, it would be a shame for the dead bunch. None of Grey''s friends has been captured yet, which was good news. But rumors have been circulating about one of them being seen close to the borders of the Azure empire. It was none other than Reynolds. Of the group, he could be regarded as the strongest thanks to his Elemental Warrior, of course this was with the exception of Grey. He had been surrounded multiple times, but he had managed to fight his way out of it, escaping and killing countless warriors. All four of them were wanted by all four empires, and other than Grey, there had been a few times when Alice, Reynolds, or Klaus had been surrounded. Klaus had even been captured once, but he managed to escape before he was transported to the Capital. One thing is for sure though, their lives were in danger, and the longer the war lasted, the smaller their chances of escaping unscathed. ¡­. Grey and Void appeared in the middle of the forest, unaware of what had been happening since their departure. "Finally, we''re back," Grey took in a deep breath as they appeared. He wasn''t familiar with where they appeared. "Come on, first things first, let''s refine this thing," Void urged. "Is it safe here?" Grey asked. If they landed in the Magical Beasts'' forest, then taking this out will only bring more problems to them. "Yes, now let''s go," Void said before going in search of a cave. Grey looked around with a smile before going after him. Chapter 571 - Refining The Dragon Blood Essence "This should be safe," Void said standing in front of a cave. Grey looked around before nodding his head, this place was relatively quiet, and all the beasts he could sense around them were still in the Arcane Plane. It''s been a while since he encountered anything in the Arcane Plane, and it was kind of weird for him. ''Looks like this isn''t the Magical Beasts'' forest,'' He thought before setting up an array around the cave. He made two arrays actually, one to protect them, and the other to not only conceal their aura but the aura of the Dragon''s blood essence as well. A high leveled beast''s blood essence was a great tonic for low leveled beasts, so even if they caught a little whiff of it, they would go crazy trying to consume it. ''*Sigh* If only I could conceal this mark,'' Grey thought to himself while touching his shoulder. Even with his new knowledge of arrays, he had still been unable to hide it. He even asked for help from the Elder in the O''Brien family, but they were unable to bring up something tangible. All their efforts failed in the end, and he couldn''t help but give up. Instead of wasting his time on it, he would take the opportunity to learn other things from the old man. The old man was very nice since he willingly taught him a lot about arrays that he had learned over the years. Grey and Void entered the cave and Void took out the rock. He tapped on it lightly and the rock started to crack. Just from the small crack that appeared on it, an alarming energy leaked out, shocking Grey to his core. He couldn''t believe something like this could be concealed so well. The thought of it amazed him, if the person who concealed this helped him out, then he should be able to conceal the mark. The rock soon disappeared, and a single drop of blood could be seen floating mid-air. "Normally, it shouldn''t be possible for a human to be able to use this, but you''re different, so you shouldn''t have any problems, at most you''ll die," Void said. Grey almost fell on the ground when he heard the last part of Void''s statement. What the hell did he mean by at most he''ll die? Does he look like someone who would want to risk his life unnecessarily? "You should be fine, just try it," Void shared the blood essence into two before taking half to one end of the cave and refining it. Grey stared at the blood essence for a few seconds, unsure of what to do. "Forget it, I''ll take the risk. With the help of the orb, I should be fine," He said before grabbing the other half of the blood essence. As soon as he held onto it, a massive wave of pressure descended on him, but it soon subsided thanks to the orb which started rotating at full speed. This further gave Grey the confidence that he should be fine with absorbing it. With everything set, he sat in a crossed leg position and slowly started to refine the blood essence. He wasn''t transferring the energy to his core, instead, he was using it to improve the strength of his physical body. Dragons are known for their strong body and immense physical strength, if this could help him attain something like that, he would be happy. The blood essence slowly entered his body, before running through his blood vessels. He experienced excruciating pain as the blood entered his blood vessel. The force was so much that it actually destroyed his blood vessel. He healed almost instantly, but it destroyed it once again, not just that, but his skin was also being broken as well from the force of the blood. The speed at which it was moving increased as time went on. The pain continued, but he gritted his teeth and endured it. Time slowly passed and day soon turned night. Even with so many hours going by, he still hadn''t completely absorbed the blood essence. Void''s blood essence was already more than halfway used up. ¡­. The next day. Boom! A powerful aura spread out with Grey in the middle, cracks appeared on the wall of the cave, and the arrays he made outside shattered. "Oh, you''re awake," Void said when sensed the aura Grey was giving off. "Hmm, how long has it been?" Grey asked while looking around. There was a difference in his aura, he was like a Dragon that was concealing itself, waiting to show off its magnificence. "A day, I think," Void replied. "How did it go?" He asked. He already knew the answer, but he also wanted to hear it from Grey''s mouth. "Very well, I''m already almost on the brink of breaking through to the Overlord Plane, all I need is to crack the last bead," Grey replied. Unlike other people who needed to crack their beads once, he had to slowly crack his beads then integrate the power into his body. This was why he had been unable to break through to the Overlord Plane even after trying so hard previously. After finding out the technique, he started breaking his beads. His strength increases every time he breaks a bead. From his estimation, even after breaking through to the Overlord Plane, his strength wouldn''t increase by too much. "You''re like a beast right now. You can easily hide in the midst of beasts and not be noticed, well not if they look at you," Void commented. Grey retracted the aura he was releasing, "It''s not bad. It should come in handy later in the future," "Do you plan on infiltrating a beast''s abode? Cause if you do, I''m up for it too," Void asked excitedly. "No one''s infiltrating anywhere, come on, let''s see how things have been in this place," Grey stepped out of the cave, ready to search for his friends. Locating them wasn''t a problem for him though, thanks to the tracking device they all had with them. Chapter 572 - First Time In The Azure Empire Grey and Void left the woods, heading towards the town close to them. He decided to bring out his communication device to see how many times his friends had tried to contact him, and the moment he sent in his senses, he was flooded with so many messages that he had to remove it immediately. He could barely hear a word. ''Hmm, is it broken?'' He thought to himself as he stared at it. Well, it''s been over seven months since he left, and his friends must have tried to contact him countless times. He recalled the situation before he left wasn''t too friendly since the Emperor was trying to capture them. He still didn''t know the motive of the Emperor, but he didn''t really care. With the world he had been introduced to in the Aurora Continent, staying here was just limiting himself. If his friends weren''t here, he was almost a hundred percent certain he wouldn''t return, unless he didn''t find his parents in the Aurora Continent. They soon got to the town closest to the woods, and Grey was stumped when he found people dressed in warriors'' uniforms mounting the place. He was a little shocked by it, but then again, he didn''t think too much of it. He had forgotten about the war which was said to be looming across the Continent. "This should be a good place to get information, I want to know where we are," Grey muttered as he walked towards the town. Where he was going to appear wasn''t fixed, Void only knew the coordinates back to the Azure Continent. So when they returned, they were transported back randomly. The only thing Void made sure of was that they didn''t appear anywhere near the Magical Beasts'' forest. The only time he''s been there, he sensed some powerful auras that even with his proud personality, he didn''t want to offend, well, for now. Grey and Void got to the gate that led into the town within a few minutes. His mask was still on his face, and since he couldn''t sense the aura of anyone over the Early stages of the Overlord Plane, he didn''t bother to hide Void. Unlike when he left for the Aurora Continent, presently, he could easily kill someone in the Early stages of the Overlord Plane, so he didn''t need to fear. Void was already almost a Peak Rank Five magical beast, that was the same as being at the Peak of the Overlord Plane. There are few people who could threaten him here. On getting to the town''s gate, Grey was surprised by what he saw. Four wanted posters were placed on the wall of the gate, three were images of his friends, while the last one was of him, with a cat on his shoulder. He exchanged looks with Void before turning around, even though he was stronger than the people here, he didn''t want to attract their attention. Unfortunately for him, someone already caught sight of him. "You, stop there!" One of the warriors yelled. They have been staring at the posters for so long that the images of Grey and his friends had already been etched in their heads. "Call the leader, tell him we''ve captured Grey," The warrior said to the one beside him as he rushed towards Grey. "Can I help you?" Grey asked, trying to act normal. "Yes, I have some questions for you," The warrior said, as he and the others surrounded Grey. "Go ahead, I''m all ears," Grey folded his hands when he saw what was happening. "You''re Grey, right?" The warrior asked. "Nope," Grey shook his head. There was no way he was going to answer the question honestly. Besides, there''s a chance that they might let him go if he said no. "Stop lying, we can identify you with that cat on your shoulder," The warrior pointed at Void. "Whoever you''re searching for can''t possibly be the only person with a black cat," Grey refuted. While he was speaking with the warriors, the leader of the group arrived. He was the only person in the Overlord Plane, and he was in the Second stage. "Grey, submit yourself freely or I will have to force you," The leader said, he looked to be in his mid-thirties, an arrogant look on his face. For someone like him, anyone below the Overlord Plane was nothing more than an insect. He could already sense Grey''s stage since Grey wasn''t doing anything to hide it, so he knew he was stronger than he was. Well, so he thought. "Heh? Do you think I''ll be scared by the likes of you?" Grey scoffed, not bothered by what the leader was saying. "Take him down," The leader ordered, his lips curved upwards to form a grin. "Wait, first of all, where is this?" Grey spread out his hands to stop the warriors from coming any closer. He still didn''t know where he was, and since he just returned, he wasn''t too inclined to entertain these people. "This is the Azure empire, haha, who would''ve thought that your Emperor would chase you here. I heard that one of your friends is also on his way here as well. Good, we''ll round up all four of you and extract your cores," The leader of the warriors laughed out as he said. "Hmm, this is my first time visiting the Azure empire, no wonder I couldn''t recognize the insignia on their uniforms," Grey muttered lightly. ''As if you''ll recognize the insignia of the warriors from the Qilin empire,'' Void rolled his eyes when he heard Grey''s words. Grey chuckled before staring at the leader, "Since this is my first time here, and I don''t have any enmity with the Azure empire, I''ll let you all go," The leader, as well as the over one hundred warriors, were at a loss of words when they heard Grey''s words. There were at least fifteen people at the Peak of the Origin Plane here, and none of them had the guts to say something like this. "Such boldness, hahaha, I haven''t seen anyone that made me laugh this much in a long time," The leader of the warriors burst out laughing. Grey shook his head when he saw this, before taking a step. He was around fifty meters away from the leader of the warriors, but with a single step, he arrived in front of him. He raised his right hand and flicked the forehead of the leader. Swoosh! Bang! Chapter 573 - Reynolds Location Swoosh! Bang! The leader of the warriors was sent flying, crashing into the gate to the town, destroying it in the process. Only after he crashed into three buildings did he stop moving. Everything happened so fast that some of the warriors were still in the midst of laughing. From Grey taking a step, to the leader crashing into multiple buildings didn''t take more than three seconds. Given their speed, they should be able to keep up with a Peak Origin Plane Elementalist, but even their leader who was in the Overlord Plane could not. "Hmm, how come he''s so weak?" Grey asked with a thoughtful expression. His words stunned the warriors close to him. What did he mean weak? The leader was a bonafide Overlord Plane Elementalist, and he sent him flying with a flick of his finger and he was calling him weak? He was the one who was freakishly strong! Grey had completely forgotten that the strength of those Overlord Plane Elementalists in the Aurora Continent was well above that of those here. Although not all Overlord Plane Elementalists here were weak, most of them couldn''t fight against someone in the same stage from the Aurora Continent. The warriors all stared at Grey, not daring to take a single step. "Well, looks like it''s time to go. Oh, where did you say my friend was again?" Grey turned to the warrior nearest to him. The warrior wanted to speak out, but he was still too frightened from what just happened. He pointed in the direction of the border. Grey nodded before taking out the tracking device, and just like they said, a light was very close to him. ''I wonder which of them it is,'' He thought to himself before disappearing. Unfortunately for him, he still couldn''t fly. Which was annoying given how powerful he already is. Other than when he''s in the Fusion State, or when he''s using the technique Meteor Descent, he couldn''t keep himself afloat without the help of the wind element. If he uses that, it would slow him down, so he just opted for running away. Of course the warriors didn''t see him running because he used the space element to teleport a good distance away. He just created a powerful image of himself in the heads of these people, how embarrassing would it be that they would have to see him running on foot? After he left. The warriors finally breathed out a sigh of relief, some of them even held their breaths all through the time he was still there after he sent their leader flying, they were afraid that their breaths might provoke him. They hurriedly rushed towards where their leader crashed, and their eyes nearly popped out of their heads. The forehead of their leader caved inside, and there was not a single sign of life in him. They all gulped down their saliva as they stared at each other in fear. The second in command quickly came out, "Quick, send words back to the Capital, Grey has appeared, and his strength is unprecedented," Everyone had been searching for Grey for so long that some people had even concluded that he was dead. Now, he didn''t only appear sound and healthy, but he was powerful beyond words. The second in command didn''t even know how to rate Grey''s strength since all he needed to kill their leader was nothing more than a flick. The warriors nodded before one of them ran towards a horse, after mounting it, he charged towards the Capital. Grey and his friends were said to have refined the Great Earth Essence Liquid, and someone in the Capital had a way of extracting the cores of these geniuses. According to what was said, Grey and his friends were geniuses, with the addition of the Great Earth Essence Liquid, they would be far above their peers. Grey''s performance not too long ago was already a testament to how far he had improved thanks to the Great Earth Essence Liquid. ¡­. At the border of the Azure Empire. Reynolds was currently hiding in a cave, tending to his injuries. He had been on the run for a while now, and a Fifth stage Overlord Plane Elementalist had been after him for a while now. He was just in the First stage of the Overlord Plane, while his Elemental Warrior had reached the Fifth stage as well. It is stronger than the Elementalist that was chasing after him, but the Elementalist wasn''t alone. With the help of two other Overlord Plane Elementalists, it was difficult for him to escape. He was already very lucky since he had managed to run away from their encirclement a few times, but he was injured during the last escape. Because of this, he hadn''t been able to advance. If he had a few weeks, then he would be able to break through to the Second stage of the Overlord Plane, and his Elemental Warrior getting to the Sixth stage of the Overlord Plane. Without his Elemental Warrior, he could take on someone in the Third stage of the Overlord Plane while still being in the First stage. He was regarded as a genius who could fight across stages after all. From the rumors he heard, Alice and Klaus were already in the Second and Third stages of the Overlord Plane. Klaus was the one who had the highest stage, and he could even fight against a Fifth stage Overlord Plane Elementalist. The time he was caught, it was said that he fought against a Sixth stage Overlord Plane Elementalist for hours, before he was finally defeated. But just as he was being transported to the Capital, a powerful Elementalist appeared, wiping out all the people who caught him. Reynolds was certain that this powerful Elementalist was none other than the Principal, but he wasn''t too sure since the person was said to have wiped out the entire group with nothing more than a simple glance. An Overlord Plane Elementalist shouldn''t be able to do that. While Reynolds was still healing, he sensed three auras approaching quickly and his expression turned sour. Chapter 574 - Reynolds Plan "Damn it, can''t they just let me recover?" Reynolds complained while gulping down a bottle of tonic. "Crap! Why don''t they make these things sweet?" He complained before tossing the vial away, irritated by his current situation. He prepared himself while wiping the blood that was on the side of his mouth from the previous battle. He stayed in the cave for as long as he could so he could recover some more before stepping out. Staying inside the cave wouldn''t be good for him. When he stepped outside, he saw three men standing mid-air. "Hmph! Just come with us calmly," The man in the middle said coldly. His hands were behind him. "Why don''t you fight me one on one if you know you''re powerful?" Reynolds demanded coldly, annoyed by the people standing in front of him. "Heh! I''m not a child, boy, surrender peacefully, and I''ll plead with the Emperor to make sure it doesn''t hurt when you''re being killed," The man smirked. He knew the strength of Reynolds'' Elemental Warrior, if he dared to fight against it on his own, he would lose without a shadow of a doubt. Not just that, but he might be killed as well. "This is the Azure Empire''s territory, if you dare make any moves, we''ll kill you," A yell was heard from behind Reynolds. Reynolds heaved a sigh when he heard this. The reason he made sure his escape route wasn''t hidden was so that he could use the people from the Azure Empire to stop the group chasing after him. His relief soon turned to disbelief when he sensed the stages of the people who came forward. Only one of them was in the Overlord Plane, and he was even in the Early stages. "Are you for real? You couldn''t come with someone more powerful?" Reynolds yelled at the group as they came closer. Before they could reply, the group from the Qilin empire attacked, not giving them any chances. Reynolds was forced to help them defend against the group from the Azure Empire. Even though these people came here for the same purpose as those who chased him, he couldn''t let them die, they were currently his only hope of survival. Joining them to fight against this group was better than fighting against the group alone. Boom! Bang! Bam! The battle raged on, with the people in the Origin Plane being quickly killed off from the ranks of the Elementalists from the Azure Empire. Now, only the man in the Overlord Plane was left alive. If not for Reynolds'' intervention, he would''ve been killed on numerous occasions. Reynolds was at a loss for words, he didn''t know if these people came to help him, or if they came to cause him more harm. Technically, they did come to cause him harm, but in the current situation, they were more like a drag to him. In order to keep the man alive, he had been injured again, further weakening him. His Elemental Warrior was keeping the man in the Fifth stage at bay, while he and the man from the Azure Empire were fighting against the two men in the Early stages of the Overlord Plane. He was not at his best, so he couldn''t handle one of them on his own like he previously did, and the man from the Azure Empire was making things a little bit more difficult. However, he still helped on some occasions, else Reynolds would''ve found an opportunity to kill him. "Why are you even here?" Reynolds asked angrily when he saw how things were going. "To take you to our Emperor," The man replied, even though he was being pushed back. "Well you''re doing a really shitty job I must say," Reynolds commented, frustrated by the man''s lack of strength. How could someone in the Overlord Plane be so weak? "Haha, is this the reason you came all this way, to get help from these fools?" The man fighting against the Elemental Warrior soon realized why Reynolds had been running in this direction. They had been on Reynolds'' trail for over a month now, and it was only until recently that he started to move in this direction. And unlike how he previously hid, this time, he came out in the open so people could know his whereabouts. It was only after these people came out did he finally understand his reasoning. "Seems like you''re not so dumb after all," The man commented. "Thank you, I can almost say the same for you," Reynolds replied. The man was stunned by Reynolds'' reply, but he quickly kept his temper in check. He had traded blows with Reynolds for a while now, and he knew just how annoying he could be. According to what he heard, compared to Klaus, Reynolds was a little bit better. Klaus had been said to make one of his pursuers so furious that the man was prepared to forgo the Emperor''s order and kill him there and then. Unfortunately for him, it was the cause of his downfall as Klaus capitalized on it. Boom! Bam! The man focused on the Elemental Warrior once again, not daring to slack. Reynolds was fighting hard, protecting himself, as well as the man from the Azure Empire, but his injuries were worsening as time went on. If things continued like this, then he would truly be captured. Swoosh! A wind blade slashed the man from the Azure Empire, sending him flying. The man crashed into the ground heavily while coughing out a mouthful of blood, on his stomach was a large gash with blood rushing out of it. Reynolds turned to look at the man, but he quickly covered his body with lightning as he tried to dash into the woods. Things had gone from bad to worse, he couldn''t stay there any longer. "Heh! You think you can escape from us?" One of the duo fighting against him smirked as they ran towards him. Reynolds suddenly made a quick turn mid-air, attacking the person closest to him with a powerful lightning spear. Chapter 575 - Monster! Monster! Monster! Buzz! Whoosh! The lightning spear buzzed as it shot through the air, slicing through the wind. The man who just started to give chase after Reynolds was a Wind Elementalist, but even he wasn''t as fast as the lightning spear that was coming at him, and the distance between him and Reynolds was close, so the chances of him escaping were small. He hastily moved to the side, hoping to make sure the spear didn''t hit his vitals. Reynolds could care less about where the spear hit. As soon as sent the spear towards the man, he braced himself because the other man just sent out an attack on him. He couldn''t dodge since he was just turning around, so he was pretty much in the same position as the man he attacked. Boom! Bang! Both attacks struck their targets at the same time, sending them flying. The spear stabbed the man on his chest, pinning him to the ground as he was electrocuted by the lightning. Reynolds on the other hand was slammed into the ground by the brutal attack of the earth hammer his opponent used to strike him down. A pit was created on the ground where he landed, and just like the man his spear hit, he wasn''t moving as well, and blood was running down from his head, ear, as well as his nose, and mouth. He could barely hear what was happening around clearly, and other than a ringing sound, he wasn''t really hearing anything else. The Earth Elementalist who was standing mid-air rushed towards his partner who started to twitch slightly from the shock of the lightning. Since Reynolds wasn''t moving, he thought he was dead, or at least close to it since he was already hurt from their previous battles. The Wind Elementalist slowly opened his eyes, and mustering all the strength he could, he used the wind element to push his partner to the side. Buzz! Bang! A lightning bolt struck from above, hitting the place where the Earth Elementalist was previously standing. The Wind Elementalist was struck by the attack, once again suffering the brunt of a lightning attack. The lightning spear which was on him was still there and acting like a receptor, it absorbed all the lightning that hit the ground, making sure the Wind Elementalist took a hundred percent of the attack. "Ah¡­" The gruesome scream, followed by the charred body of the Wind Elementalist, as well as the smell of burnt scream sent chills down the spine of the Earth Elementalist. He turned to look in the direction Reynolds was lying in, and he saw him standing, although he could see that he was barely standing properly. "You scoundrel! I''ll make sure you feel as much pain as he is feeling right now. First of all, I''ll break all your bones," The Earth Elementalist grinned evilly as he advanced towards Reynolds. "Come on, hit me with your best shot," Reynolds said as he staggered while trying to stand properly. A hammer made from the earth element appeared above Reynolds, but he was too weak to even stand properly, much less defend against this attack. The hammer swung in his direction. But just as it was about to hit him, it disintegrated. "Huh?" Both Reynolds and the Earth Elementalist exclaimed simultaneously. "Hey bud, you''re in such bad shape, I almost didn''t recognize you," A figure appeared beside Reynolds like a ghost. Who else was it if not Grey? "What do you mean? I look great," Reynolds refuted, with blood slowly dripping down the side of his mouth. "Well, that''s not your regular appearance, but since you like it, I can make sure you keep it, we good?" Grey joked as he rested on his friend''s body. Reynolds almost fell when Grey rested on his body, but he forced himself to stand properly. "How I want to look is none of your concern. Besides, where have you been all this while?" Reynolds asked, his expression one of anger. "Here and there, you know, moving around," Grey replied with a nonchalant look. "Nice, nice, prepare for a group beating when we reunite," Reynolds nodded as he announced. "Haha, I don''t think that will be possible," Grey laughed as he poked Reynolds on his shoulder. Reynolds grimaced in pain with his eyes closed. "You, you''re Grey? Haha, looks like the Emperor will reward us richly. You fool, why are you staring at them, take down that brat as well," The man fighting against the Elemental Warrior managed to see Grey and couldn''t contain his happiness. The man who was still standing looked at Grey, a little worried given how Grey not only easily destroyed his attack but also appeared out of thin air. Void appeared on Reynolds'' other shoulder, almost making him faint from the pain. ''Do this two plan on killing me?'' He complained inside. Grey looked at his friend before flashing a smile, "You''re hurt, why don''t I take it from here," After saying that, he took a step forward, but he turned around to hand a vial to Reynolds. It was one of the vials containing a healing tonic they collected from the Blooming Viper. "Don''t drink it all, a drop will be enough," He reminded Reynolds. "You don''t need to make a move, everything is under control," Reynolds took the vial. "Haha, with your current condition, I''m impressed that you''re still standing after I rested on your shoulder," Grey laughed out. Just as he was about to make a move, Reynolds noticed something that stunned him, Grey was still in the Origin Plane. How could he still be in the Origin Plane? This question repeated itself in his head over a hundred times in the space of a second. "Grey, they''re in the Overlord Plane you can''t de¡­" Reynolds paused mid-sentence because something unbelievable happened in front of him. No matter how highly he thought of Grey, never in a thousand years did he think he would be able to easily beat someone in the Second stage of the Overlord Plane, while still being at the Peak stage of the Origin Plane, with nothing more than a finger. But it was happening right before him. The Earth Elementalist was sent flying with a single flick from Grey. ''Monster! Monster! Monster!'' He exclaimed repeatedly in his head. Chapter 576 - Breaking The Norm "Show off," Void muttered when he saw how Grey chose to deal with the Earth Elementalist. He could easily kill him with a powerful attack or even a flashy one, but he picked the simplest method that would leave anyone who didn''t know him in awe. "Hmm, I should do this more often," Grey said to himself as he turned to look at Reynolds. Reynolds continued staring at him, at a loss for words. What did he just see? An Origin Plane Elementalist beating an Overlord Plane Elementalist with a finger. Grey didn''t even use any elemental powers, he just outright bullied the man with his immense monstrous physical strength. What the hell?! Just when Reynolds felt he was a little better than Grey, this happened. He couldn''t help but shake his head, however, he was beyond happy for his friend. With Grey''s current strength, they could run amok in the Azure Empire. If those people in the Sage Plane didn''t show up, then they were good. "You can call back your Elemental Warrior now, I can deal with that guy as well," Grey suggested. Reynolds snorted, but still quickly called back his Elemental Warrior. He was already almost on the verge of running out of elemental essence, he wasn''t going to foolishly keep it active when he could try to recover. "You, you''re not in the Origin Plane," The man who was fighting against the Elemental Warrior said, pointing at Grey. "Oh, I''m very much still in the Origin Plane, but compared to the Overlord Plane Elementalists I''ve fought, you''re not in the top five hundred, that''s plus those in the Early stages," Grey said. His words sent the hysterical with anger. What did Grey mean by he was not in the top five hundred of Overlord Plane Elementalists he had fought against? One has to know that he was a high and respected individual in the Qilin Empire, he was only forced into chasing after a youth by the Emperor, and the greed of obtaining a good reward that might help him advance further. He could already open an Academy in the Empire if he wanted, and it wouldn''t be regarded as a small Academy given his strength. However, he was being undermined by a small brat in the Origin Plane. Even if said brat was powerful, he was afraid of him. Besides, it was unheard of that an Origin Plane Elementalist could defeat an Overlord Plane that is already in the Mid stages. Grey shook his head when he saw the man''s behavior, "Hey Rey, how long do you think he will last?" Reynolds thought for a few seconds before replying with a doubtful expression, "Five minutes?" "If it was a few months ago, yeah, he might even be able to escape with his life. Hehe, but now," Grey grinned as he turned to look at his opponent, "He doesn''t stand a chance," If it was before he fought against Lucan, then this man might have had a chance of escaping, but now, he was certain that he could kill him, very quickly for that matter. He was already far more powerful than he was at the time he fought against Lucan. The man was once again infuriated by Grey''s words, and he attacked without holding back. A stream of fire came crashing down on Grey and Reynolds. Grey''s expression was still its usual nonchalant one, as he threw a fireball that exploded in front of them, blocking the attack of the man easily. The man was mid-air, so striking him was a little difficult for Grey. Unlike the Aurora Continent where only a selected few Overlord Plane Elementalists could fly, here, Overlord Plane Elementalists had the freedom of flight. "*Sigh* Such a headache," Grey muttered as he used the wind element to push himself into the air, rushing towards the man as he attacked aggressively. Boom! Bang! They exchanged blows, with the man being forced back from the impact of the attack. His eyes widened as he stared at Grey who was using the wind element to keep himself afloat. "Impossible! It must be a mistake," He refused to believe that Grey was more powerful than he was. How could an Origin Plane Elementalist be more powerful than he is? It was unacceptable, even in his grave he will never believe it. Bam! Boom! Bang! They continued exchanging blows, and the more blows they traded, the more he was being forced back. Grey was systematically forcing him down since he couldn''t stay mid-air for long. He suddenly disappeared, appearing in front of the man. He covered his right hand with the fire element, before sending out a powerful punch. Although the man was caught by surprise, he still acted accordingly, setting a defensive fire screen in front of him. But to his surprise. It broke apart as soon as Grey''s hand made contact with it. Bam! Crash! He came crashing down, slamming into the ground hard. Blood dripped from the side of his mouth as he hurried to his feet. His hands were shaking as he tried to use them to block Grey''s attack after his fire screen was broken. ''What sort of monster is this?'' He questioned in fear. The appearance of Grey had shaken him to the core. How could an Origin Plane Elementalist be this powerful? No, how could someone so young be this powerful? Multiple questions were running through his head, but he was certain of one thing, he was no match for the youth standing in front of him. He had to escape. Grey threw a fire snake his way, and the man smiled, he suddenly recalled one special ability an Overlord Plane Elementalist has that Origin Plane Elementalists will never have, being able to forcibly take control of a weaker Elementalist''s elemental attack. He raised both hands and tried to take control of Grey''s attack that was only a few meters away from Grey. But he was in for a greater surprise because the moment he tried to take control of the fire snake, something smacked away his connection with it. It was a simple smack, but the backlash made him cough up a mouthful of blood. He was once again forced to defend against Grey''s attack. Chapter 577 - Powerful Fire Elementalist Bang! Boom! The man was once again sent flying, crashing into three trees, breaking through them in the process before finally stopping after hitting a boulder. Grey took a step and appeared in front of the weakened man. The man stared at Grey in dread, it was as if he was looking at his death. "Don''t take it personal, we were just on different sides. You''d do the same if you were in my shoes," Grey said as a ball of darkness appeared above his hand that was raised above him. As he brought his hand down, the ball of darkness engulfed the man. "Ah¡­" The man screamed in horror as the darkness element started to eat away his flesh. Swoosh! Bang! A powerful force suddenly rotated around the man before the darkness element that was covering him was forcefully pushed aside. Grey, who had already turned around, was taken aback before turning to look at the position where the man was standing. ''Gone? Not on my watch,'' He sneered before vanishing. ¡­. Three kilometers away from where the fight was previously ongoing. A dark figure could be seen flying through the air with unprecedented speed. It was the man who was fighting against Grey. He used a special technique that greatly boosted his strength and speed, but he didn''t dare to stay and fight, instead, he opted to escape. To him, this was the best course of action. First of all, he didn''t know the true extent of Grey''s strength, and from what he had experienced, he didn''t want to. While he was flying, a fire covered boulder suddenly appeared in front of him, crashing in his direction. He evaded it easily, but his expression changed when he saw more rain down from the sky. It was then that he heard the voice that he dreaded so much. "You''re quite impressive," Grey said while standing mid-air. Being complimented by a youth he could easily give birth to someone his age infuriated and embarrassed him. "What do you want?" He asked. Presently, he was even willing to beg, as long as Grey let him go alive. "Your life," Grey''s answer was short and concise. "Damn you! If you think you can kill me, then you have something else coming," The man exclaimed angrily before burning in anger. His strength suddenly increased tremendously, and Grey''s expression turned serious for the first time. The man''s current state was different from how he previously was. He was burning his life force to increase his strength. With an increase in his strength, the man quickly destroyed Grey''s Meteor Descent, breaking apart all the rocks as he charged towards Grey. Grey readied himself as he attacked once again with the fire element. Boom! Bang! They traded blows, and it was a tie. Unlike how Grey had been having the upper hand, now, they were standing on equal footing. The man was exhilarated when he noticed this and he quickly increased the intensity of his attacks, attacking more fiercely and widely. Grey was pushed back for the first time, but he was still as calm as usual, not making any careless moves. The man continued attacking fiercely, but unfortunately for him, even with his advantage, he still hasn''t been able to even touch a hair on Grey''s body. His expression suddenly changed when Grey disappeared and he attacked his right, but his eyes widened even further when he didn''t find anyone there. The reason he attacked his right was that after Grey disappeared, he sensed some energy here, however, he was wrong, Grey was standing in front of him. Bam! Grey''s fist connected to his chest, sending him crashing towards the ground as his internal injuries were aggravated once again by the person who caused them. Bang! He slammed into the ground, with the shockwave from when he slammed into the ground spreading across a five hundred meters mark around them, destroying most of the trees. This goes to show how powerful Grey''s punch was. Grey appeared in front of the man, and without even waiting, he attacked with a huge fireball that caused a massive explosion. When the explosion died down, there was no sign of the man. Grey was certain that the man was there when he attacked, so there was almost no chance of him escaping from the attack. With a small nod, he headed back to where Reynolds and Void were resting. ¡­. Boom! Reynolds and Void felt a powerful wind brush against them from the direction Grey and the man were fighting, and they could even see the large explosion Grey''s attack caused. "Wow! I can''t believe he has already grown so powerful. I need to step up," Reynolds commented when he saw the explosion. "No worries, if you went to the place he had been, you would''ve grown stronger than your current state," Void consoled him. "Huh? Where did he go?" Reynolds couldn''t help but ask. "He''ll tell you when he comes back," Void replied. Grey soon appeared before them, "That took longer than expected," "Is he dead?" Reynolds asked. "Most likely," Grey replied. Reynolds was sitting in a crossed leg position, trying to recover from the battle. "Okay, we should find a good spot for you to recover," Grey said before walking into the forest. Reynolds stood up from his sitting position and followed behind him. A few hours after they left. Six men appeared mid-air, staring at the effect of Grey''s battle with the man. "Who do you think did this?" One of the men asked. "It must''ve been someone from the Qilin Empire, to think one of their strongest individuals came out," Another one deduced. "A powerful Fire Elementalist, we need to increase our vigilance," The first man said. The six men went to the first place the battle started and seeing the corpses there, they felt it was most likely done by powerful Elementalists. "I heard one of those youths was coming in this direction, do you think he has been caught?" Someone asked. "With the appearance of a powerful figure like this, that''s most likely the case," One of the men said. Chapter 578 - A Weird One Azure Empire. In a cave in the forest. Grey could be seen making a meal while Reynolds had his eyes closed, trying to recover with the help of the healing tonic Grey gave to him. He forgot Grey''s instructions and drank it all, to the dismay of Grey. Over the months, he had used a lot, and like all consumables, it would naturally run out. If not for Ellis telling him that a small amount will be enough, he would''ve almost finished it by now given how much he had been hurt. The smell of the meat he was cooking wafted through the cave, drawing the attention of Reynolds who couldn''t help but take a peek. He had been resting for a while now, so he was pretty much almost healed up thanks to the healing tonic. "I''ve missed your cooking so much," Reynolds commented as he walked towards Grey. "Oh, I got something for you," Grey recalled he had a gift for his friends before taking out a ring. When they were looting the bandits, he made sure to take at least ten storage rings. He would give them to his friends, his Teacher, and his parents when he finds them. Now that he was with Reynolds, he wanted to give him his own. "Wow! You made one for me?" Reynolds exclaimed. "Well, not exactly. I took one from someone for you," Grey corrected his statement. "Oh, well, I''ve always wanted one. Thanks to whoever gave you this," Reynolds said while taking the ring happily. "You should probably wash that before putting it on," Void commented from the side. "Huh? Why?" Reynolds asked, confused. "It was taken from a dead guy," Void said bluntly. "Oh, not bad. Is there anything inside? I mean the loot inside," Reynolds asked. "Forget what I said, just put it on," Void said before trying to steal a piece of meat. Grey caught him, smacking his paw away before using the water element to wash the ring, "There, you can put it on now," Reynolds sighed at the thought of not being able to get the loot inside the ring, but still wore the ring anyway. He had always wanted one since he knew about it, so getting one was better than not having any. Grey taught him how to use the ring and within a couple of tries he was already good with it. The first thing he did was to contact Klaus with the communication device, to show off, of course. Unfortunately, Klaus was unable to reply immediately. "So, what''s the plan for now?" Reynolds asked after not being able to reach Klaus. "We''ll find the others, I heard you guys have been having it tough since I left," Grey passed a piece of meat to Reynolds. Void rushed over to grab a piece of meat that was at least two times his size before running away with it on his hindlegs. Grey couldn''t help but chuckle when he saw this. Even though food wasn''t too useful to them given their current strength, they still enjoyed eating, Void in particular loved it. There had been occasions where he would give Grey a shiny object so Grey could cook for them to eat. "Yeah, it''s been quite rough. Luckily, we have this so we''ve been in contact with each other. Unlike you who ghosted us for months," Reynolds said after chewing down a big portion of meat. "If I recall correctly, I told you guys I''d be leaving for six months," Grey defended. "Well, it doesn''t mean we weren''t worried. Especially after the order to apprehend us became known by everyone. We were literally hiding," Reynolds said as he bit onto the meat angrily, "We thought you were captured when we tried to contact you," Reynolds spoke with meat in his mouth, and bits flew out. Grey quickly created what seemed like a force field that stopped the bits of meat from getting close to him. Once they were around three inches, they would stop as if they hit something before falling to the ground. "Hmm, I''m sorry for my prolonged absence, but I assure you, it was for our good," Grey finally agreed to apologize for leaving his friends. "I''m not angry, I was just worried. Seeing you now, I''m happy you''re okay, and better," Reynolds said quietly. Grey rarely got to see this emotional side of Reynolds, so he knew he was truly worried about him. "I can see you''ve broken through to the Overlord Plane," He said. "Of course, what do you take me for?" Reynolds said proudly. For someone to break through to the Overlord Plane before reaching twenty was something that rarely happened in the Azure Continent. The number of geniuses who have done this in the history of the continent could be counted by hand. But in this generation, almost that same amount has been recorded. Grey''s friends took up half of the number, with three others being recorded. "A clown?" Grey answered Reynolds'' question with a question. "Haha, not funny," Reynolds said sarcastically. He suddenly thought of something before looking at Grey, " Oh bud," "Hmm," Grey raised his head to look at Reynolds. "Do you remember that guy that came from the same city as you. What''s his name again¡­ uhmm¡­ J¡­ Jo¡­" Reynolds paused, trying to recall the name. "Jonas?" Grey asked. "Yeah, that one. He was the first person amongst those who left the trial land to break through to the Overlord Plane," Reynolds replied. "Oh, it''s not unexpected," Grey shrugged, not surprised by the news. The others still didn''t know that he was the one who inherited the expert''s legacy in the trial land. "Why are you so calm about it?" Reynolds asked, surprised by Grey''s reaction. Grey went on to tell him about how he saw him receiving the expert''s legacy back at the trial land. Reynolds was shocked when he found out that Grey actually encountered the legacy, but left it to someone he wasn''t even friends with. "You''re a weird one," Reynolds replied. To be honest, if he were the one in that position, he would definitely take the power, especially from someone in the Starlight Academy, given the conflict between both Academies at that time. Chapter 579 - Return To Frost City Grey laughed at Reynolds'' words, not offended by it. "Who''s closer to us?" He asked after they finished speaking about the matter. "According to what I know, Klaus is on the other side of the Qilin Empire, so getting to him would take a bit of time, Alice should be closer," Reynolds replied after thinking for a while. "Alright, we''ll head over to the light closer to us then. It should be hers if your deduction is correct," Grey brought out the tracking device, and just as Reynolds said, one light was close to them while the other was a long distance away from their light. Reynolds stared at the device, this was the first time he was seeing it. Unlike the one they had, Grey''s own was different, and it seemed to have more functions too. They stayed in the cave for the rest of the night speaking about their experiences since they separated. Well, it was mostly Reynolds who did most of the talking, Grey just listened. He still hasn''t told him about the Aurora Continent. When Reynolds asked about his whereabouts, he said he would tell him when the others were around. Reynolds was curious, but he decided to wait till they reunited with the others. Given the strength Grey showed, it meant they shouldn''t have too many problems if they were accidentally found. Before leaving, Grey did a rough estimation and he realized that teleporting to Frost City will take them closer to the light closest to them which was most likely Alice''s. Grey actually hoped it was since the Principal was with Klaus, so Klaus had someone powerful to protect him. Alice left her family, so she was pretty much all alone right now. If she was caught, that was it for her. Within a few minutes, Grey finished preparing a teleportation array. He had become quite efficient when making it, and now it even took less essence stones to travel. They took quite a bit of stones from the bandits, and he didn''t get to use anyone in the teleportation array when he was leaving Mortar City thanks to the influence of the O''Brien family. Reynolds happily stepped into the teleportation array, this was the first time he would be using it since the trial land and he was pretty excited about it. "It''s all done, let''s go," Grey said as he placed the last essence stone in the array. ¡­. Frost City. Since the warrant for Alice was publicly announced, the Reiss family had been going through a tough time. They were under the constant supervision of the Emperor, and every inch of the mansion had been checked, even the family''s treasury. According to the Emperor''s order, if the Reiss family were hiding Alice, then they would be regarded as an enemy of the empire and be attacked ruthlessly. Luckily for the Reiss family, thanks to Grey, their greatest rival the Smith family were not in a good position, so they couldn''t capitalize on it. ¡­. In the forest beside Frost City. A silhouette of a young lady could be seen staring at the city from the trees, she was repeatedly punching the tree, and it would shake vigorously after each blow. It was none other than Alice, she heard her family was being oppressed by the Emperor''s people since they came and she rushed here. All she wanted to do right now was to rip apart all of them. Her sister was captured since she was not there, and according to what she heard, she was being forced to marry one of the princes. Her father couldn''t object to it since it might actually be a way for Sasha to escape their current fate. At least if she was married to a prince, she wouldn''t be under so much scrutiny like all of them. Even though they were a big family, there was nothing they could do, after all, they were alone. One family couldn''t go against the entire empire, it was just undoable. The marriage would be taking place today, and she was very certain her sister didn''t approve of it. "I''ll kill him," She muttered repeatedly as she punched the tree fiercely. Just as she was about to lose her control and jump into the city, a familiar voice came from behind. "I don''t think the tree did anything to deserve such beating," She paused when she heard it, it was a voice she had gotten used to for some years now. Even after not hearing it for over six months, she still knew it. "You scoundrel! Where did you go?" She turned around, her face angrier than how it previously was. Grey hurriedly hid behind Reynolds when he saw Alice charging towards him. "Get out of the way! I need to pummel him," She hollered at Reynolds. Reynolds tried to move, he really did, unfortunately, Grey held onto him tightly that it was impossible for him to take a step to the side. "Alice, wait, I can explain," Grey peeked from the side as he said. "Do you know how worried we were about you? You left for months, we couldn''t even contact you," Alice said as she tried to get a hold of Grey. Reynolds was unfortunately the one who got the short end of the stick being stuck in between them. After a few tries and multiple apologies from Grey, Alice finally calmed down. Grey heaved a sigh of relief, but his expression changed when he heard Alice''s next statement. "Don''t think you''re off the hook, I''m just waiting for the best time," Alice snorted coldly. "I''m sorry," Grey apologized again. "Hmph! I''ll deal with you later. And you, why did you show others your whereabouts?" Alice turned to Reynolds. Reynolds quickly explained his situation to Alice before she snapped. When she heard how he was saved by Grey at the last minute, she couldn''t help but heave a sigh of relief. "And you, why are you here?" Grey asked, still hiding behind Reynolds. When Alice heard his question, her face turned sour once again as she explained what was happening. Chapter 580 - Youre Still The Same "Sasha''s getting married? Wow! That''s nice," Grey exclaimed. Alice stared at him with vicious eyes before he tucked his head in. "I mean, such impudence! We will not allow it!" Grey corrected himself. "Getting in there would be a problem since there are definitely multiple Overlord Plane Elementalists there," Reynolds commented. "I know, that''s why I''m still here," Alice lowered her head with fists clenched. "Don''t worry, we''ll definitely stop this marriage," Grey comforted her. "Oh, by chance do you know if any high officials will be coming?" He asked. "A few, and some Teachers from all the Academies. Even though the Fifth Prince''s status isn''t that high, he''s still a prince nonetheless," Alice replied. "Hmm, difficult, but not impossible. The only issue is how your family''s going to get through the disruption of the marriage. From what you said, they''re already facing a lot because of you, if we were to stop this marriage and take Sasha away, how will they cope?" Grey voiced his concerns. With his space element, he had no problems with taking Sasha away from the marriage, but the issue now was how the Emperor was going to treat the Reiss family. They were already in a rough position because of Alice''s whereabouts, if this was added, it would make things more difficult. "Honestly, I don''t know. My father will never agree to run with the family, nor will the Elders. But if we take Sasha away, they will have no other option," Alice speculated. "So, will there be a big battle or not?" Reynolds chimed in. If there was going to be a big battle, then he would definitely like to get involved in it. Beating up a few of the Instructors from the Starlight Academy would be fun. "Unfortunately, no. For the sake of the Reiss family, we can''t afford to cause a scene. If we are taking her out, it will be so fast that none of them notices," Grey replied, sadly. He too would like to teach a few of the Instructors from the Starlight Academy a lesson, especially after what happened the last time he was at the Capital. "A shame, I really wanted to beat some of them up," Reynolds shook his head dejectedly. "Me too," Grey added. "Me three," Void added. "What''s the best course of action now? No matter how I see it, it ends in a bad way for your family," Grey turned to Alice. "What if the Prince goes missing?" Reynolds suggested. "It will end the same way for my family as well. The Emperor could easily accuse us of kidnapping the Prince since most of us didn''t want the marriage to happen in the first place," Alice replied. "Hmm, a big ruckus then. Your father will have to think of what to do, either he takes his family into hiding, or he gets captured by the Emperor, I''m not really too bothered with what happens to him," Grey concluded. He didn''t really have too good of an impression of Alice''s father, so he didn''t care about what happens to him, or the rest of the family. "Yes, we can finally cause some damage!" Void yelled happily. Alice sighed when she heard their conclusions, even though she knew it wasn''t a nice choice, they didn''t have much of a choice, and time wasn''t on their side. The longer they waited, the closer Sasha was to getting married to the Fifth Prince. "Hey, so I have an uhmm¡­ unpopular opinion," Reynolds suddenly raised his hand. "Oh, what''s it?" Alice and Grey turned to look at him. "What if," Reynolds paused while taking a few steps back, after getting to a position he deemed was safe enough he continued, "Sasha isn''t really against this marriage?" "Oh, you do have a point there," Grey nodded after hearing Reynolds'' words. Although the Emperor is a bad person, well, according to their point of view, it didn''t mean everyone related to him was bad. There''s probably a chance that Sasha fell in love with the Fifth Prince, so the feelings between the duo might just be mutual. Alice stared at the duo, a little tongue tied as she tried to speak up. She wanted to rebuke Reynolds'' words, but she couldn''t since she knew there might be a possibility of this actually being possible. "Grey, is there a way you can get me to her without being noticed?" She turned to Grey. "Void can deal with that," Grey said. Void nodded before disappearing, appearing on Alice''s shoulder, "Should I go first, or are we going together?" Alice was about to speak when she paused, "Wait, he can talk?" Grey never told her of Void''s ability to speak after he woke up, only telling her that he was fine and he was going on a long journey. She didn''t even take note of the few times Void spoke because of her anxious state. "Yeah, after he regained consciousness, he started talking, amazing right?" Reynolds said. Klaus was the first amongst the trio to speak with Void, and he forgot to tell them when they spoke. "You''re one hell of a cat. Great, I think you should check out the situation first, then come back to get me," Alice suggested. Void nodded before disappearing. "Wait," Alice called out, unfortunately, Void was gone. "Does he know my place?" She asked Grey. "Yeah, he''s been there a couple of times," Grey nodded. Alice heaved a sigh before turning to Grey. She finally took the time to look at him from top to bottom, "You''ve not changed much," "And you got slightly taller," Grey commented. "Huh? How come you''re still at the Peak of the Origin Plane?" Alice asked, surprised by Grey''s cultivation stage. Given his freakish nature, she expected him to at least be in the Third stage of the Overlord Plane, just like Klaus. "Long story," Grey shook his head. For a while now, he hadn''t been hiding his cultivation stage from others, so they could easily sense it.. Of course, it wasn''t his original strength so he wasn''t too bothered about it. Chapter 581 - Meeting Old Man Gerald Again II The trio stayed in the woods, and Alice spoke of her experiences so far. Grey didn''t speak much, just nodding to her words as he continued communicating with Void on the other side. A few minutes later, Void came back. "All clear, we can go now," He said to Alice. "How is she?" Alice asked. "Well, I can''t really say," Void replied. He did see her, but her expression was blank, so he didn''t know what she was thinking at the moment, and it wasn''t like he could read minds. Alice nodded to Grey and Reynolds before leaving with Void. After the duo left. Grey and Reynolds were left alone. "I''ll be communicating with Void, he''ll give up an update, if we need to crash the party or not," Grey said to Reynolds. Reynolds nodded, hoping deep down that they crashed the party. That would be more exciting, and since Klaus was not here with them, he would have something to brag about in front of him. Klaus loved doing things like this, so if he hears of it, he will be heartbroken since he didn''t take part in it. ¡­. Frost City. The Reiss Family compound. A fissure suddenly appeared behind a bush and Alice walked out, with Void on her shoulder. She looked around with multiple emotions in her eyes, her surroundings soon changed as Void took her into the building. After a few more teleportations, they appeared inside a room. Sasha could be seen sitting alone in the chair, facing the mirror on the table. There was makeup on her face, and it was impossible to hide her beauty. Unfortunately, there was no smile on her face, she just stared at her reflection blankly. Her eyes which were half closed suddenly opened wide when she saw a familiar face in the mirror, she thought she was hallucinating before hurriedly turning around to look behind her, and the face she saw was exactly the one she saw on the mirror. "Alice," She called out softly, her voice a little rough while placing her hand on her cheek. "It''s me, sis," Alice rested her face on her palm. "Why are you here? Quick leave before they see you," Sasha quickly recalled her sister''s situation before grabbing Alice''s hands. "It''s okay sis, they can''t catch me," Alice replied quietly. "No, you should leave now," Sasha said, she didn''t believe Alice''s words. There are multiple Overlord Plane Elementalists outside, and even though Alice was also in the Overlord Plane, there was no way she could contend against them on her own. "It''s okay sis, they can''t capture me. I sneaked in here without being caught, so I can also leave as well," Alice explained. "Oh," Sasha exclaimed softly in realization. "Sis, so you approve of this marriage?" Alice asked. "Do I have a choice? If I refuse, father will be under even more pressure," Sasha lowered her head. "Since you don''t agree to it, then it''s alright. That''s all I wanted to hear," Alice smiled. "What are you planning to do?" Sasha asked. "Don''t worry sis, you won''t be getting married to that stupid prince," Alice smiled. "Alice, don''t do anything rash," Sasha warned. "I''m not, my friends are," Alice said with a light smile. "Father will not be able to fight against the Emperor," Sasha pleaded. "He will have to go into hiding with the family. All this will end soon, so he should just choose to go into hiding for the meantime. I''ll speak to him now, don''t worry about the marriage okay, it will not hold," Alice said. Sasha shook her head, she knew how stubborn she was. She suddenly recalled how Alice and her friends were being hunted down by the Emperor, if they showed up, they would definitely be apprehended. "Take care sis, I''ll go over to explain to father. If he doesn''t pick a decision soon, it''s his problem. I cannot stand by and watch my only sister get married to a moron," Alice smiled. "Alice, stop, don''t do this," Sasha pleaded. "Void, let''s go," Alice tapped Void. Sasha was about to grab Alice but she grabbed thin air. Alice and Void vanished, gone from the room. ¡­. Outside Frost City. Grey and Reynolds were still speaking when Grey heard the news from Void. "Looks like we''re causing a huge ruckus, nice," Grey said. "Haha, yes!" Reynolds exclaimed in happiness. Now, all they needed to do was wait until the time of the wedding before they showed up and sabotage it. Reynolds'' plan was to slap the Instructor from the Starlight Academy closest to him. Of course he wouldn''t just carelessly slap anyone, he would pick an opponent he knew he could defeat without the help of his Elemental Warrior. "Will they be coming out?" Reynolds asked. "No need, we''ll meet them up in the city. Come, let''s go, I have an old acquaintance here," Grey smiled as he held onto Reynolds and disappeared. ¡­. Frost City. Lenz Manor. Old man Gerald has been having the time of his life since Grey disappeared. Especially since he hadn''t heard about Grey being seen, it meant he was doing a good job with hiding. Even though it wasn''t much of a concern to him, he still didn''t want his little friend to die. He was sitting in his office leisurely drinking tea when a figure suddenly appeared. He stood up and tried to attack, but he was greeted with a familiar voice and face. "Hello, it''s been a while," Grey said as he appeared. Old man Gerald who was already on his feet stared at the figure in front of him in shock. The Fifth Prince was about to get married and most of the people coming here were in the Overlord Plane. What the hell was Grey doing here?! "Why are you here?" He asked. "To stop the wedding," Grey said nonchalantly. Old man Gerald''s leg gave way and he fell on his seat, dejected. What the hell did Grey just say? Chapter 582 - The Wedding "You¡­ you''re still at the Peak of the Origin Plane, there''s no way I''m letting you go," Old man said when he sensed Grey''s cultivation stage. "Hmm, understandable. But it''s not going to hinder me much. I don''t think even you can stop me if I want to leave. Did you sense me coming in?" Grey said while taking a seat. Old man Gerald paused, not sure of what to say. The anxiety Grey caused him actually made him forget to ask how Grey miraculously appeared in his office. And given his strength, he should''ve at least sensed Grey when he was coming. ''A freakish Teacher begets an even freakier student,'' He concluded internally. "Will you be going to the ceremony?" Grey asked. "Yeah," Old man Gerald nodded. "Great, I assure you, it''ll be fun," Grey chuckled as he stood up. "Can you not go? I don''t think I can help you if you''re surrounded," Old man Gerald couldn''t help but beg. "Haha, it''s alright, so long as a Sage Plane Elementalist doesn''t appear, I''m good," Grey laughed. Unlike the Aurora Continent where he had to be worried about meeting Sage Plane Elementalists since they were pretty much everywhere, he didn''t have such fears here. "What?" Old man Gerald cleaned his ears properly, he felt like he wasn''t hearing clearly. First Grey said he wanted to stop the wedding between the Fifth Prince and Sasha Reiss, now he said he wasn''t scared of anyone below the Sage Plane. What was arrogance? This was! In Old man Gerald''s over eight hundred years of living, he had not seen anyone more arrogant. Grey was still in the Origin Plane for crying out loud. Old man Gerald sat on his chair, trying to figure out how it was possible for an Origin Plane Elementalist to be so confident in the presence of multiple Peak Overlord Plane Elementalists. "Alright, I''ll be leaving now. I just wanted to check on you," Grey said. He turned around to leave before halting his step, "Oh, did you find out anything about my parents?" "Unfortunately, no. We''ve been searching since you asked me to, but there has been no news of them. I''m sorry to say that they might be dead or trapped somewhere," Old man Gerald replied sadly. "Hmm, thank you for your help," Grey nodded before disappearing. Hearing this news further increased his belief that they were not in the Azure Continent. ''Looks like they are from the Aurora Continent. And to think they hid it from him,'' He thought to himself. With Grey gone, old man Gerald was left alone in his office. "Even Chris hasn''t been seen or heard from in well over a year now. A strange bunch, they just go around disappearing as if it''s nothing," He muttered while trying to take a deep breath. Grey''s appearance has somewhat spoilt his easy lifestyle. To be honest, he was happy Grey was alive and seemed powerful given how he could come and go as he pleases. One has to know that there were at least Three Peak Overlord Plane Elementalists in this mansion, adding him makes it four, and none of them noticed how Grey came and went. Although Grey was standing before him, he still almost didn''t notice him. He stood up and prepared to head to the Mayor''s manor for the wedding ceremony. ¡­. Frost City. The city was bustling with activity, and the cause for this was that the Fifth Prince of the Qilin Empire was getting married to the daughter of the empire''s somewhat outcast family, Sasha Reiss. Everyone is fully aware of the Emperor''s desire to capture Alice and her friends, this has placed the Reiss family in a difficult position. They had not been able to provide Alice nor say anything about her whereabouts either. The Fifth Prince is said to take a liking to Sasha the first day he came to Frost City and after speaking about it to her father, Donald Reiss immediately agreed to it, to his greatest surprise. Originally, he planned to bring the issue to his father if Donald had refused, but since he agreed so readily, he didn''t make a fuss about it. The news of him wanting to get married to Sasha was soon sent back to his father, and they approved of it. Now, the day of the wedding was finally here, and he would be getting married to the lady he fell in love with at first sight. The wedding would be taking place in the Mayor''s manor. It was the best place to hold the ceremony. The Fifth Prince is known for always enjoying watching battles, so according to his wishes, there would be battles taking place on the platforms that would be created as a form of entertainment after they had tied the knot between himself and his new bride. A huge reward will be given to the winners of the battle, so most of the youths in the city were rushing there. Officials from the top Academies will also be present there. A few people who were unfortunate and didn''t get into an Academy while they were younger might be able to obtain a role in these Academies if they performed well. ¡­. The Mayor''s manor. It was already filled to the brim with people, all waiting for the wedding ceremony to begin. The Reiss family were already present, with a few being absent, Donald and Sasha amongst those absent. Some of the officials from the Academies were already here. Due to the Emperor taking charge of all the Academies, there wasn''t any conflict between them anymore. Of course the rivalry was still there, but compared to the time when they were actively trying to kill each other, things were better now. The Instructors from the Starlight, Royal, and Lunar Academy could be seen all sitting in the same area. The students who attended the ceremony were the same. There were a few individuals from the Starlight and Lunar Academy who still hated the other Academy, but they couldn''t fight publicly like before, so they were keeping themselves in check. At the front seat of the students from the Starlight Academy, a familiar figure could be seen sitting quietly.. It was none other than Jonas. Chapter 583 - The Wedding II Reiss manor. A few minutes after Alice left Sasha''s room. A young man who looked to be around his mid-twenties could be seen walking through the hallway, with Donald walking beside him. He was dressed in white long sleeves and trousers that were designed drawings of flowers with golden silk. His long black hair and beady black eyes complimented his handsome face. "She''s here," Donald pointed at the door on their left. "Thank you, uncle," The young man replied with a smile. "It''s okay, Prince Casper," Donald said before turning around. He took a glance at Sasha''s door a little longer, and a hint of sadness could be seen in his eyes. But he closed his eyes resolutely before walking away. To him, this was the best option for Sasha given their current situation. If he were to say no and Sasha decided to run away, she would most likely be caught by the people watching them and might be punished. He might put up a tough front in her presence and make it seem like he liked Alice more, but the truth was that he loved his daughters equally. Knock! Knock! Casper knocked on the door twice, and without even waiting for Sasha to invite him in, he opened the door and walked in with a big smile. Sasha was sitting on the chair, in the same position as when Alice came in, only this time, there was a slight spark in her eyes. It hadn''t been long since Alice left the room, so she was still stunned but thrilled by what she said. Casper noticed the difference in her countenance and couldn''t help but smile, "I guess you''ve already seen that I''ll take good care of you. Do you like the dress I sent you?" He sat down a few meters away from Sasha. "It''s not bad," Sasha replied blandly. "I know you don''t approve of this marriage, but I''m not like the other Princes, I''m a nice person. I can assure you that you''ll come to love me later on," Casper said softly. "If you''re such a nice person like you claim, why are you forcing me into marrying you then?" Sasha asked, her words oozing with sarcasm. "Your family''s situation is not the best right now," Casper replied after a while. "So you decided to take advantage of it. Wow, just wow! I''m amazed by your nice way of thinking," Sasha mocked. Since Alice left, it was like she had finally regained her old self. For some reason, she was certain that the wedding wouldn''t take place just like her sister promised her. "It''s¡­ you will not understand. I came to check on you, I''ll be leaving now. The ceremony has already started and the stars are here talking. I''ll be waiting for you," Casper stood up and walked towards the bed. Sasha snorted after Casper left the room. ¡­. The Mayor''s manor. The Lenz organization soon came in, with old man Gerald at the forefront of his group. He wore a somewhat wary but expectant look. Diluc was by his side as usual, likewise his wife and children. His appearance attracted the attention of everyone in the arena given the status of the Lenz organization. After he made his appearance, a few more people arrived as well. Presently, every notable family in Frost City was already present here. The arrival of the Fifth Prince was soon announced, adorned in his white and golden dress, he walked in elegantly with a bright smile on his face. He walked into the hall, heading towards the two seats that were facing the audience. He stood in front of his seat, seemingly waiting for something. A few seconds after his arrival, the arrival of Donald and Sasha Reiss was announced. With Sasha walking hand in hand with Donald, it was just like a regular wedding ceremony. Everyone stared at the duo, with a few ladies looking at her enviously. Some of them were wishing they were the ones getting married to the Fifth Prince, and a few came here well dressed in hopes of catching the eyes of some of the princes that would attend the ceremony. The Mayor of Frost City would be the one taking charge of the ceremony. And with Sasha present, he started the ceremony the moment she walked close to where Casper was standing. Donald walked to the side, his expression one of shock and worry. Alice came to him a few minutes before he left the manor giving him an ultimatum, either he took the family into hiding for a while until all this was over, or he would be captured by the Emperor. She vowed to stop the wedding, and knowing full well how stubborn she was, he was one hundred and fifty percent certain that she would definitely stop it. The only thing that gave him a sense of relief was that when he tried to stop her, she disappeared without a trace. Since even he couldn''t hold her back, then it meant she shouldn''t have any issues with escaping if she came. But once the wedding was stopped, he would be stuck in a dilemma, fight or flight. The Emperor would not take this lying and would most likely see it as a sign of revolt and will use the opportunity to take down the Reiss family. In the crowd, the Earl family could be seen watching the ceremony. Since the Smith family got into trouble with the Emperor, things had been going smoothly for them, they even received help from the Lenz organization, something they never thought would happen. They were gradually growing, and have mostly recovered all they lost during their friction with the Smith family. The Mayor soon got to the main part of the ceremony. ¡­. Outside the Mayor''s manor. Two figures could be seen strolling into the compound. Due to the ceremony, no one was stopped from going into the manor, especially if the people were well dressed. It was none other than Grey and Reynolds, Alice was already inside the hall, hiding in plain sight thanks to Void. ¡­. Just as the Mayor was about to join Casper and Sasha, the door of the hall which was previously opened suddenly closed shut before it was kicked open again. "I object!" Reynolds yelled after kicking the door open. Grey and everyone else in the hall was at a loss for words. The door was literally wide open, and Reynolds found a way to close them just so he could kick them open again. Chapter 584 - Stepping Into The Overlord Plane Bang! The door to the hall hit the side of the walls, causing a loud noise. Coupled with Reynolds'' shout, everyone in the hall turned to look in that direction. Grey and Reynolds walked into the hall slowly. He didn''t have his mask on, unlike before, nor did he hide his cultivation stage, so everyone around could easily sense it. Alice, who was watching on the side couldn''t help but facepalm when she saw the duo''s entrance. With no other option, she walked out with Void appearing on Grey''s shoulder. The Mayor paused, staring at the trio walking towards them. Old man Gerald grabbed onto the armrest of the chair he was sitting in, almost destroying it due to the strength he used in holding onto it. Donald, Sasha, Jonas, and the Earl sisters recognized Grey easily, while a few of them stared at Reynolds, trying to figure out where they had seen him. It didn''t take long before they remembered the poster that was posted on the walls of the city gate. Prince Casper looked at the trio for a while before speaking, "Aren''t you three part of the fugitives father is searching for?" "You and your father are the fugitives," Reynolds retorted. The Instructors from the Starlight, Lunar, and Royal Academies stood up, as well as a few high officials from the Capital. Prince Casper signaled for them to wait, "I thought you three were hiding, what brought you out?" "We were tired of playing hide and seek, so we decided to take a stroll, you know, to stretch our legs," Grey said nonchalantly. "What are you doing here?" Prince Casper asked gently. "To stop the wedding, what else does it look like?" Reynolds replied. The trio has already walked to the middle of the hall, with all eyes on them. "Hmm, a First and Second stage Overlord Plane Elementalist, and a Peak Origin Plane Elementalist. You three sure are gutsy," Prince Casper mocked. Reynolds smiled as his Elemental Warrior appeared behind him, sending off an intimidating aura. "Okay, I''m impressed with that. But the thing is, there is one Late stage Overlord Plane Elementalist here, and at least ten Mid stages Overlord Plane Elementalists here. If I were to add the Peak Overlord Plane Elementalist that is hiding somewhere in the city, that would be too much for you three." Prince Casper smiled gently, before adding, "Just two Mid stages Overlord Plane Elementalists are enough," He turned to the Instructors and two from the Starlight Academy stepped forward. They all knew Grey and his friends from the competition. Grey, Alice, and Reynolds left quite an impression on them, so they still thought of them once in a while. A middle-aged man and a lady in her mid-thirties walked out with a grin. "I''ve been waiting for this for a long time," The man said with an evil grin. "Me too," The lady added. "Grey, should I?" Void asked. Of the group, he was currently the strongest individual, and taking on a few Mid stages Overlord Plane Elementalists was a breeze. "No need, I''ve been waiting to do this for a while now," Grey shook his head with a smile. "Heh! To think an Origin Plane Elementalist would dare to be so bold to stand against us," The man said mockingly. "Haha, a genius who couldn''t even break through to the Overlord Plane while his friends have," The lady beside him laughed as they approached the trio. Jonas and the Earl sisters who were watching from the audience were at a loss for words when they realized Grey was still in the Origin Plane, especially Jonas. He never expected that Grey would still be in such a low stage. ''What''s he doing?'' He thought to himself as he watched them. The Earl sisters were worried about the safety of Grey, especially Aldreda who had some feelings for him. "Can''t break through to the Overlord Plane, heh!" Grey smirked and took a step forward. Boom! With a single step, his aura suddenly surged. It was like a Dragon was trying to break through a wall. "What?!" Everyone stood on their feet, staring at Grey as his aura started to skyrocket. Grey''s dress was rippling around as he took another step forward. Boom! His aura shot up once again, and a clear sound of something breaking apart was heard aloud. Grey still had his nonchalant expression, but the eyes of everyone in the hall were on the verge of popping out, even his friends behind him were in shock. Wind started to rotate around Grey as he stood in the same position, sensing the new strength that was circulating across his entire body. He took in a deep breath, before exhaling out a white puff of air. ''The Overlord Plane, hmm,'' He thought to himself, not too excited by his breakthrough. His aura slowly started to die down after his breakthrough, and the duo walking towards them heaved a sigh. The man laughed before saying, "All that commotion just for breaking through to the Overlord Plane. Although, I must say you''re quite weird given how strangely you broke through, you¡­" The man paused mid-sentence because something unprecedented was taking place. Grey''s aura which was dwindling suddenly started to pick up once again, shocking everyone present in the hall. Grey took another step forward, and his cultivation stage which was previously in the First stage went up by a stage, getting to the Second stage with nothing more than a step. "How¡­ how¡­ how is this possible?" The man stuttered, trying to comprehend what was going on. Grey just broke through to the Overlord Plane, he hadn''t even tried to stabilize his cultivation stage, yet he just upped it by one, and so easily! When he broke through to the Overlord Plane, it took him well over five years before he managed to get to the Second stage. Although he might look like someone in his late thirties, he was already over one hundred and fifty years old. Grey''s aura started to calm down once again, and a few people present felt relieved. But their expressions changed again when Grey took another step. "Impossible!" Chapter 585 - What Were You Saying? Grey''s aura started to increase once again as he took the third step. "It can''t be that he''s going to break through again," Old man Gerald stood up in disbelief. It was like he was witnessing the most unbelievable thing. If he were to hear about this from someone, he would never believe it, but here he was, witnessing it. He wasn''t the only one who was staring in disbelief, everyone here was feeling the same. Jonas looked at Grey for a while before shaking his head in defeat. The Earl sisters looked at him in awe. Reynolds'' mouth was opened so wide that an egg could fit into it perfectly. Alice shook her head wryly. "Show off," Void said while resting on Alice''s shoulder. He was spooked when Grey''s aura suddenly spiked, so he disappeared, appearing on Alice''s shoulder. "Is¡­ is he really human?" Reynolds couldn''t help but ask. Alice smacked him on his shoulder when she heard his question, "Seriously?" Reynolds rubbed the place he was smacked while replying, "I mean, look at him," "It is quite difficult to believe something like this is possible, but with him, I believe anything is possible," Alice replied. Grey''s aura soon got to the peak of the Second stage of the Overlord Plane before easily crossing the threshold, stepping into the Third stage of the Overlord Plane. With that, his aura started to die down once again, causing huge relief amongst the audience, especially from those in the Royal and the Starlight Academy. Some of the students from the Lunar Academy knew of this senior of theirs, so they naturally felt proud of having such a talented senior. The Instructors of the Academies, as well as the officials from the Capital exchanged glances, all nodding their heads simultaneously. The few princes who were present stood up as well, walking forward. Now, other than the first two Instructors who wanted to fight against Grey and his friends, five more Instructors have stepped forward as well, all in the Mid stages of the Overlord Plane. Just as they prepared to attack, Grey took another step forward. This was his fourth step, and his aura intensified once again. The Instructors sent out some attacks, but as soon as they got close to Grey, they lost control over the elemental attack, and it started to circulate around Grey. "How''s this possible? I lost control of my attack," One of the Instructors yelled in horror. "Me too!" The others exclaimed simultaneously. They looked at Grey as if he was a monster. This was not the first time they had witnessed someone breaking through, and this was also not the first time they had attacked someone who was breaking through. They had killed a few people who were in the middle of breaking through, so there was no way they could explain what just happened. Once an Elementalist gets to the Overlord Plane, they would obtain the ability to forcibly take control of a weaker Elementalist''s elemental attack, but it must be of the same element as the Elementalist. Eight different Elementalists attacked simultaneously, using four different elements, yet they all lost control over them. This meant that someone who had all four elements and was stronger than they were forcibly took control of them, or different powerful individuals did it. They didn''t even think for once that Grey was the one doing it. Grey''s aura soon got to the peak for the Third stage, and with the same sound of something breaking, he easily crossed through to the Fourth stage of the Overlord Plane. This was the fastest advancement anyone present here had seen or even heard of. Never in the entire history of the Azure Continent has there been a case of someone going from the First stage of the Overlord Plane to the Fourth stage in a matter of mere minutes. Since Grey broke through to the Overlord Plane, it hadn''t even been up to three minutes, yet he was already in the Mid stages. It was unheard of! Unlike the last time, Grey''s aura didn''t die down, instead, it continued to surge, and to their horror, he took another step. Bam! Boom! The spot he placed his foot cracked, as his aura spiked once again. It soon started to climb, from the initial stages of the Fourth stage to the intermediate stages, and before long, it got to the late stages and finally the peak of the Fourth stage. Whoosh! Boom! His aura shot up, and he broke through to the Fifth stage of the Overlord Plane. After he got to the Fifth stage, his aura started to drop once again. Everyone didn''t drop their guards since this was not the first time Grey''s aura was acting like this. There is a small possibility that it would come up once again. After waiting for a few seconds, Grey''s aura completely receded, and it was almost like he was a regular person who didn''t cultivate. The contrast between what they sensed a few seconds ago and now was like the sun and moon, completely different. Old man Gerald was shaking so much that it was almost as if he wanted to explode, he couldn''t believe what he just witnessed. "A once in a lifetime genius, even Chris doesn''t hold a candle in his presence," He muttered as he watched Grey''s performance. Prince Casper was staring at Grey as if he was looking at someone else. How was this even possible? Going from the Peak stage of the Origin Plane, all the way to the Fifth stage of the Overlord Plane with nothing more than five steps? Impossible! Reynolds was chuckling excitedly, he already saw how powerful Grey was when he was at the Peak of the Origin Plane, he didn''t even need a word from anyone to guess just how powerful Grey would be now. "Hmm, so what were you saying?" Grey opened his eyes as he glanced at the Instructors who were laughing at him for being at the Peak of the Origin Plane a few minutes ago. Currently, he was even a stage above one of them. Chapter 586 - Stopping The Wedding The first two Instructors took a step back unconsciously, they had an immense sense of danger just by staring at Grey, and they felt if they stared at him for too long, then they might lose their lives without him even lifting a finger. "Scared? Well, it''s natural given what''s about to happen to you," Grey smiled softly, but confidently before taking a step forward. When everyone saw him raising his foot, they paused, as if what happened before was about to continue. But just as Grey''s foot was about to touch the ground, his figure vanished from where he was standing. Bang! It was followed with a loud and, and everyone turned to look at the source of the noise. Lying in front of Prince Casper was the male Instructor from the Starlight Academy who mocked Grey at the start. Other than those at the Late and Peak stages of the Overlord Plane, no one else knew what happened. It happened too fast for them to keep up with. "Hmm, weaker than normal," Grey squinted his eyes while lightly moving the fingers on his right hand. He was standing among the Instructors, but none of them dared to make a move on him. He tilted his head to the side to stare at the female Instructor who mocked him as well, and she started retreating while shaking from fear. Grey vanished once again, but this time, the other Instructors didn''t stand by and watch, they surrounded the female Instructor since they knew she was his target. Bam! Bang! Grey once again appeared in the middle of the encirclement, and the female Instructor crashed at the front of Prince Casper. Even with the protection of six Mid stage Overlord Plane Elementalists, Grey easily attacked who he wanted so freely as if they didn''t exist. "You, surrender now and I''ll forget that you almost ruined my wedding," Prince Casper walked past the motionless bodies of the two Instructors and ordered Grey. "Heh! Still using the almost? The wedding is called off, now take your trashy self and get the hell out of here!" Alice stepped forward, answering before Grey could. "Yeah, you and these weak oldies," Reynolds added while looking at the Instructors in contempt. "I''ll say this once again, surrender now, and I''ll forget that you almost ruined my wedding," Prince Casper said, not taking Alice or Reynolds'' words to heart. "Looks like you have a problem with your hearing. Since it''s like that, I''ll make things clearer for you," Grey nodded to Reynolds before he spread out both hands. Reynolds, already understanding what Grey wanted, sent the Elemental Warrior to stand in front of him, ready to attack at any moment. The Instructors who surrounded Grey went into high alert when they saw him spreading his arms. He had already easily taken down someone who was on the same level as them, so they knew all too well that individually, none of them was a match for him. Their best bet now was to group together. However, their greatest problem was figuring out how to deal with Grey''s mysterious movement. He would disappear without a trace, only to appear at any place he wants with no one being able to stop him. With an ability like that, he could easily stroll anywhere and leave without any fear. Now they all knew why he confidently came here to stop the wedding without any fears. Old man Gerald had set up a defensive field in front of his family, and the crowd behind him to protect them from the battle that would ensue any moment from now. He was quite curious as to the true strength of Grey. The remaining Mid stage Instructors, as well as those in the Early stages of the Overlord Plane from the Academies, stepped forward, numbering around forty-three in total. Alice prepared herself for battle while Void relaxed on her shoulder, no one here could fight against him, so he was the most carefree person here, after him was Grey since he could use the Fusion State to boost his strength to the Peak of the Overlord Plane, easily defeating everyone here. Even if a Peak Overlord Plane Elementalist comes here right now, he still wouldn''t be bothered. The Late stage Overlord Plane Instructor stepped in front of Prince Casper, his motive was clear, to protect the prince from any of Grey''s underhanded attacks. Even though he still didn''t know how Grey was moving, he was confident in his abilities. From his perspective, the only reason Grey was able to easily incapacitate the two Instructors even under the protection of the others was that he took them by surprise. But now that they knew of his strange movement technique, then they could find a way to stop it or defend against it at the very least. "Take them down," The Late stage Overlord Plane Instructor gave the command for the others to attack. Without any more words, attacks soon flew around the hall, heading in Alice, Reynolds, and Grey''s direction. Grey, who was surrounded by six Mid stage Overlord Plane Instructors didn''t panic, with his hands still spread apart, a powerful gale pushed the attacks and the Instructors back, sending two of them flying. Reynolds'' Elemental Warrior raised a lightning shield in front of him, easily blocking most of the attacks while slashing apart the other attacks. Alice used the same method as Grey, sending out a powerful lightning ball that exploded, as well as raising a fire wall in front of her to block the attacks coming her way. Boom! Bang! Grey continued his attack, going after the two Instructors who were mid-air, just as he was about to deal a fatal blow, he realized they seemed familiar. He looked at the insignia on their clothes and noticed it belonged to the Lunar Academy. These two Instructors were some of the ones that stayed even after the Principal left. Grey shook his head before kicking the duo. Bang! Bang! They crashed on the ground, knocked out cold. The only reason they were still alive was that he felt killing them was a tad too cruel, after all, they stayed in the same Academy for a few years. "Anyone from the Lunar Academy, I''ll advise you to stay out of this, if not, I won''t be so lenient on anyone I don''t recognize," Grey said softly, but his voice spread across the entire hall. Chapter 587 - Stopping The Wedding II Grey''s warning made some of the Instructors halt their attacks, especially those from the Lunar Academy. They already saw how powerful Grey was, if he really decided to take them out, then he would kill them quite easily. "Kill him," The Late Stage Overlord Plane Instructor commanded the Instructors who stopped attacking after hearing Grey''s warning. The Instructors continued their attack after a few seconds, they initially stopped due to fear, but with the command from the Late stage Overlord Plane Instructor, they resumed once again. Grey shook his head, he was standing mid-air, a quite wonderful feeling since other than when he was using the Fusion State or using the attack Meteor Descent, he couldn''t really fly. Reynolds'' Elemental Warrior charged into the Early stages Overlord Plane Instructors, using its lightning sword to reap their lives from them. With a snap of Grey''s finger, three inscriptions appeared mid-air, and they started attacking the four more Mid stage Overlord Plane Instructors that surrounded him. They tried to defend against the attack, but with the increase in Grey''s cultivation stage, his inscription attack power increased as well. With every attack, he forced back the Instructors. The Instructors were occupied with the attack from the inscriptions, so they couldn''t afford to turn around. Grey soon vanished, and by the time he reappeared, a figure fell from the air, crashing into the ground, causing a crater. One of the four Instructors was on the ground, motionless. It was unknown if he was alive or dead. The three other Mid stage Overlord Plane Instructors panicked when they saw this and retreated towards the area where the Late stage Overlord Plane Instructor was standing. Alice was fighting against four Early stage Overlord Plane Instructors. She was in the Second stage of the Overlord Plane, but she could easily defeat a Third stage Overlord Plane Elementalist, even going toe to toe against someone in the Fourth stage of the Overlord Plane. Boom! Bang! She moved swiftly, dodging their attacks while attacking them. Reynolds was fighting while his Elemental Warrior was also fighting. After his Elemental Warrior charged into the group of Instructors in the Early stages of the Overlord Plane, the other Mid stage Overlord Plane Instructors who weren''t fighting against Grey went over to hold it down. Before they managed to hold it down, it had cut down over five Instructors in the span of a few seconds. There were some who were from the Lunar Academy, but unlike humans, the Elemental Warrior didn''t have any sentiments towards the Academy. Boom! Bang! The battle continued to intensify as the roof of the building broke apart. Grey, who was charging towards where the Late stage Instructor was standing was attacked by the Instructor, as well as the three others who came his way. Their attacks were deflected by Grey, heading in the direction of the crowd. Grey turned to look in the direction the attack was going to, and on seeing the Earl sisters seated in that area, he hurriedly flew in that direction, going past the attack and sending it towards a more preferable direction. "Sorry for the scare, you all should leave the building," Grey said to the girls with a smile. The attacks were sent in the direction where the Instructors fighting against the Elemental Warrior were gathered. The Instructors were forced to block the attack, leaving the Elemental Warrior. The Elemental Warrior started its attack on them. Slash! A lightning blade was sent in their direction. As time went on, the audience started to leave the building when they realized staying here wasn''t safe for any of them. The only people left were Old man Gerald, the Mayor, Prince Casper, the officials from the Capital, the Elders from the Reiss family, Donald, Sasha, and the Instructors fighting against Grey and his friends. The building was already in ruins, but the battle magnified. The Late stage Overlord Plane Instructor had joined forces with the three Mid stages Overlord Plane Instructors to force Grey back. But with Grey''s speed, he was dodging all their attacks, while sending out powerful attacks in their direction. His inscriptions were helping Alice and Reynolds fight against the other Early stage Instructors since they were too much for them. The Elemental Warrior was held back by three Mid stage Instructors, so it couldn''t help them. Void was the only one from the group who wasn''t fighting, watching the battle with interest. He was keeping an eye out since he recalled Prince Casper spoke of a Peak Overlord Plane Elementalist around. The Mayor was also close to the Peak of the Overlord Plane, so he was also keeping his eyes on him. "You guys are doing great!"He cheered for the trio. Other than Grey and his friends, no one else knew who said this. Void''s voice was like that of a small child, so it distracted the fighters as they tried to find out where the child was watching from. If an Origin Plane Elementalist were to get involved in this battle, they would surely die in a matter of seconds, much less a little child who can''t even do anything against a regular beast. Boom! Bang! Grey spread his hands wide open again while muttering to himself, "Meteor Descent," Compared to before, the power of this attack increased exponentially. Multiple large boulders covered in scorching flames appeared out of thin air and started their descent. The heat was so strong that even the air felt like it was on fire. The Early stage Instructors who were fighting on the ground were scared shirtless when they saw this, and without even thinking, they made a break for it. Alice and Reynolds were slightly taken aback by the attack. This was the first time they were seeing Grey use this attack, and the power was beyond comparison. Grey didn''t stop the attack, even with the Instructors trying to escape, the range of the attack suddenly started to increase, and the speed of the descent increased, moving faster than the Instructors. "This kid''s something else," Old man Gerald commented when he saw the attack. Chapter 588 - Watch Your Tongue Swoosh! Boom! Bang! The attack, seemingly as if it had eyes of its own, started to go after the Early stage Overlord Plane Instructors. With no way of outrunning them, the Instructors were forced to go head to head against them. Alice and Reynolds used the opportunity and started to take out the weaker Instructors. Boom! Bang! Large explosions rang out in the Mayor''s manor, and every single individual around a five hundred meters radius around the manor has either fled for their lives or are powerful enough to survive the aftereffects of the battle. ''Grey, should I?'' Void suddenly asked telepathically. Grey was fighting against four people, but he could still sense the figure that was approaching them. It was none other than the Peak Overlord Plane Elementalist Prince Casper spoke of. ''Try to be as subtle as possible, take it somewhere else. I want to see their reactions when his aura suddenly disappears,'' Grey said with an evil chuckle. They weren''t the only ones who sensed the Peak Overlord Plane Elementalist. The Instructors as well as the officials from the Capital were waiting patiently for this person since he was stronger than they were and from the look of things, his appearance will put an end to the battle. Void nodded before casually walking out of the ruined manor. No one even took note of the small black cat. After all, there was an intense battle ongoing, who would have time to stare at a cute cat? Unbeknownst to them, this little black cat was about to send them into despair. "You can sense that right? He''s coming for you," Prince Casper said. He was in the Early stages of the Overlord Plane, and even with his love for battles, he did not get involved in them. "Heh! If I want you dead, you''ll be long dead before he arrives," Grey retorted while dodging the attack of the Late stage Overlord Plane Instructor. ''Damn it, I need to start taking these guys out one by one,'' He thought to himself. Just as he dodged that attack, he was hit by another from one of the Mid stage Overlord Plane Instructors which pushed him back slightly and rocked his innards. Luckily, his physical strength was above normal, so he wasn''t too affected by it. He continued exchanging blows with them while using the inscriptions to distract them some of the time to make sure they didn''t get the chance to hit him with a powerful attack. His wide-range attack had already died down, and Alice and Reynolds were able to actually take out over ten Instructors, within a couple of seconds. Their efficiency was above the roof. It was quite unexpected that three youngsters who weren''t even twenty years of age yet could cause this much damage. Even though they had taken some hits, it hadn''t been too effective since the attacks that hit them aren''t as powerful as when they were released thanks to Grey''s impressive battle awareness. Whenever he notices that his friends were in a tight spot, he would use his inscriptions to reduce the strength of the attack or even block it for them so they wouldn''t take the full brunt of the attack. It was well known that he was the one doing most of the job here, but without his friends, there is no way he would''ve been able to fight against everyone here. Just as the powerful aura was getting closer, it disappeared without a trace. "What?!" The Late stage Instructor, as well as everyone except Grey and his friends, exclaimed. They perfectly sensed the Peak Overlord Plane Elementalist''s aura, but it disappeared without a trace all of a sudden. This came as a huge shock to the group, especially the ones fighting against Grey. The opportunity Grey had been waiting for finally presented itself, with all four of his opponents in slight disarray, he took the chance. Just like the Peak Overlord Plane Elementalist, he too vanished without a trace, and before anyone could figure out what was going on, he appeared behind the Late stage Overlord Plane Instructor. His hands were covered with blue flames, he punched the Instructor''s head with all the strength he could muster. The Instructor sensed it, but it was a little too late. He hurried to move his head to the side, in a last-ditch effort to dodge the attack. Unfortunately, Grey''s attack was just too quick. Bam! Boom! Grey''s fist brushed through the side of the Instructor''s head, and just as hope was about to appear in the Instructor''s eyes, a large explosion rang out beside him. Thud! The lifeless body of the Instructor fell from the sky, crashing into the ground. When the others looked at it, their expressions were that of horror, and they couldn''t help but exchange glances. The head of the Late stage Instructor was literally blown off his body. His body was currently headless. "He killed him, even under the pressure of fighting against three others while also helping out his friends, he still found a way to kill him," Prince Casper muttered in dread. Staring at Grey, all he could see was a cold and ruthless killer. A young man shouldn''t be this powerful, or this ruthless. Just how many battles has he gone through that turned him into this? This was the question going through some of the audience''s heads. "Mayor, where did my protector go?" Prince Casper turned to the Mayor, starting to get a little worried for his life. Since Grey could take out the Late stages Overlord Plane Instructor, it was only a matter of time before he killed off the Mid stage Instructors as well. Once he was done with that, it was evident that he was the next person in the queue. "He disappeared, I can''t sense him anywhere in the city," The Mayor answered, stumped. "He''s right, that person is not in the city," Old man Gerald added when he saw that Prince Casper was about to ask him. "What are you all staring at?! Stop them now! Kill them if possible!" Prince Casper turned to the officials, as well as the Mayor. He also turned to look at old man Gerald. "Even your father can''t order me around, boy. Watch your tongue," Old man Gerald snorted coldly before taking a seat. He wasn''t even interested in watching the battle standing anymore, he wanted to enjoy it.. It''s not every day one gets to see a battle of this scale. Chapter 589 - A Battle God Most of the officials who came from the Capital were in the Early stages of the Overlord Plane, with a few in the Mid stages. The officials were around eight in total. Jonas was still watching the battle, and to be honest, he had no interest in getting involved. Since the trial land, he had already concluded that he would never fight against Grey. After getting help from him back at Lapis City, he further reaffirmed his will. Grey was someone he looked up to, even though they were of the same age. For someone to willingly allow another person to take a legacy of a powerful expert when he or she was not even friends with the said person was not something everyone could do. Only a few people alive would allow someone they weren''t close to growing when they know they too could take the opportunity. Seeing how things were going, Jonas looked at the few princes who were still present here. They were originally being shielded by the officials, but since the officials were about to get involved in the battle, they would be defenseless. "We should leave this place, it''s already going past my limit," He said to them. "Aren''t you going to help them?" One of the princes asked. "No, I have no interest in this. If you want to leave this place alive, you can either come with me or stand here and hope that your people might win. I mean, they do have a chance, but even if I join in on this battle, the favorites will remain Grey and his friends," Jonas said. The princes looked at each other before following behind Jonas. Altogether, five princes were present here, and according to what was said, three princesses came, but they were no place near the Mayor''s manor, so Jonas knew nothing of where they were currently located. With Jonas'' protection, the princes left the place without being harmed by the aftereffects of the explosions raging on. The Mayor had charged in Grey''s direction, and with his help, Grey was quickly forced on the back foot. The Mayor was already very close to the Peak of the Overlord Plane, and with Grey''s current strength, he can''t fight against him alone, much less when being ganged up on. The Late stage Instructor he killed was only in the Seventh stage of the Overlord Plane, hence he wasn''t too pressured by his strength. However, Grey''s strength should be between the Seventh and the Eighth stage of the Overlord Plane. The Mayor was already in the Ninth stage, already past that stage in respect to his strength. Boom! Bang! Grey was pushed down, slamming into the ground. He quickly stood up, staring at the group standing mid-air. ''Time for the real show to begin,'' Grey mused to himself. With a smile, he suddenly switched places with the Mayor who was beside the three Instructors. As soon as he appeared, a large explosion followed suit. Given the distance, and how sudden it happened, there was no way the Instructors were able to get their defenses up in time. One of them didn''t even try because he didn''t see it coming. Boom! Swoosh! Three figures were sent flying in three different directions, all bruised from the explosion. Luckily, none of them died from it. Grey took action immediately, rushing towards one of the Instructors. Before anyone could react. Bam! Boom! A clean swift lightning strike hit the Instructor on his chest, creating a large hole there. The body of the Instructor fell from the sky, with no signs of life. After killing the first one, Grey vanished, heading towards the second one who was trying to escape. Whoosh! Of the two Instructors, one of them was a Wind Elementalist, so he used the wind element to increase his speed, trying to get as far away from the fight as possible. Grey went after this Instructor in particular. He was confident in being able to catch up to the last Instructor when he was done killing this one. There was no way a Wind Elementalist was faster than a Space Elementalist, and it was soon shown when Grey appeared in front of the Wind Elementalist. With his right fist tightly clenched, he sent out a punch towards the incoming Instructor, before the Instructor could evade, the punch exploded out, sending out flames that covered a wide range. "Ah!..." The Instructor''s scream followed after the explosion, and before his body came into view, he was held tightly by Grey. Lightning danced across Grey''s body, electrocuting the Instructor he held by the neck. After a few seconds, the body of the Instructor stopped moving, he was dead. The Mayor still hadn''t been able to fully take in the sudden change in his environment when he heard the second Instructors scream. He was left aghast when he saw how easily Grey killed him. From Grey switching places with him to killing the two Instructors didn''t take up to thirty seconds, this showed just how quickly Grey reacted to the situation he created for himself. The Mayor was unable to move because something was bothering him. "How did I get here?" He asked while looking around. To be honest, this change terrified him. People are always scared of the unknown. And since he had never heard of anything like this, he couldn''t comprehend how it happened. Especially since he didn''t see Grey immediately appearing on the same spot he was previously standing. Old man Gerald and Prince Casper who were watching the battle were the ones who got an inkling of what just happened. Especially old man Gerald who had a higher cultivation stage. He saw how Grey and the Mayor switched places before Grey exploded out with his immense and monstrous attack prowess. "This kid is like a battle god. You have to admit that," Old man Gerald turned to look at Prince Casper as he remarked. Prince Casper didn''t know if to attack old man Gerald or not. How could he praise his enemy right in front of him? If not for how high old man Gerald''s status was, he would''ve cursed him to die a thousand deaths right now! Chapter 590 - Maniac On The Battlefield Grey didn''t stop after killing the Wind Elementalist, he immediately gave chase. The last Instructor was an Earth Elementalist, and he was a little slower when compared to the other two, this was the main reason Grey left him for last. With the Mayor stunned, and the two Mid stage Overlord Plane Elementalists amongst the officials who still hadn''t joined in the battle, this was his best chance of removing the last guy from the picture. Unfortunately, the Mayor didn''t remain stunned for too long. After seeing Grey going after the last Instructor, he quickly charged forward, sending out attacks. He was a Lightning Elementalist, so he was a tad faster than Grey in regards to speed. Of course, if Grey went full Space Elementalist, there was no way the Mayor would catch up to him. Grey dodged the Mayor''s attacks, but was forced to slow down when he realized what the officials were planning to do. Instead of them joining the battle against him, they all rushed towards Alice and Reynolds. Alice and Reynolds were already in a precarious situation trying to defend against over ten Instructors. And since they weren''t Inscribers like Grey, they aren''t as powerful in a large fight if alone. Of course they were still slowly killing an Instructor from time to time, and Grey''s inscriptions have been of great help. However, things took a turn when the officials started their assault on the duo. One of the Mid stage Overlord Plane officials joined the other three Mid stage Overlord Plane Instructors in trying to take out the Elemental Warrior. They could forcibly destroy it, but only if they were powerful enough. With the Elemental Warrior fighting against four people, it started to receive more damages. In the space of a single minute, its left arm was ripped apart by an attack. Reynolds and Alice were already bleeding as well. Void was not in the area, so there was no way he could help. Grey forgot about the injured Instructor and changed his direction. When the Mayor saw where he was headed, he quickly followed. The Earth Elementalist who was escaping soon noticed what was happening behind him, and stopped. Boom! The Mayor attacked Grey with a lightning bolt. "You think I will let you help your friends? You must be joking," He laughed as he continued attacking, halting Grey''s movement. "Get out of my way," Grey said calmly as he dodged the attacks. Although he was in a hurry to help his friends, he knew they wouldn''t be killed or captured so easily by this group. Even if they were largely outnumbered, they still had a trick or two hidden in their sleeves. Old man Gerald watched with interest, musing over what Grey''s decision would be. Of course he knew that there was a way for Grey to get there quicker. He had been observing the battle closely, mostly watching Grey''s movements. And from what he had seen, there''s a special method Grey uses in moving. It was like he would disappear, and appear wherever he wished. ''If I''m not wrong, that''s what he used to come into my office. Such a strange kid,'' He said to himself. Bang! An explosion suddenly occurred in the area where four Mid stages Overlord Plane Elementalists were fighting against the Elemental Warrior. What accompanied the explosion, was the shrill screams of all four Elementalists, before they died down. Everyone''s attention was brought there, and to the horror of most of them, the four Elementalists were dead, and the Elemental Warrior was nowhere to be seen. One of the people who witnessed what happened was the Earth Elementalist Grey was trying to kill. After noticing that Grey had stopped chasing him, he wanted to make Grey regret what he had been doing so he decided to join in on the battle against the Elemental warrior, he was about to get there when it suddenly exploded. Watching his fellow Instructors being killed so brutally, he couldn''t help but curse aloud. "You maniac! You self-destructed the Elemental Warrior. How can you do such a vile thing?!" He screamed at the top of his lungs while staring daggers at Reynolds. "Hahaha, you''re lucky you didn''t get close. A shame, if I had known, I would''ve waited for a few more seconds before doing it," Reynolds laughed with blood running from the side of his mouth. The self-destruct of the Elemental Warrior naturally had its effect on him, a powerful one. But he didn''t care, as long as he was able to take out those people, he was satisfied. The greatest disadvantage is that it would take him a few days before he could summon it again. Alice looked at Reynolds and couldn''t help but shake her head, "You''re too rash when making decisions," "Haha, that''s why I''m unpredictable!" Reynolds laughed out loud. His present appearance made him look even more like a psychopath. To be honest, he was having a blast. This was the most fun he had experienced since the group came out of the trial land, and he wanted to take full advantage of it. Of course he also did it as a means to stop the group they were fighting against. First of all, the death of four Mid stage Overlord Plane Elementalists would affect their resolve. Not just that, but they also have to be wary of the possibility of Reynolds being able to summon the Elemental Warrior again and repeating the same action. Old man Gerald was laughing at the top of his lungs, enjoying what he was watching so far. "Haha, this group is something else. I should invite them for tea once they''ve settled their problems with the Emperor," He smacked his leg while laughing. Diluc soon returned to his side, "They are safe in the manor," "Okay. You should sit and watch the battle, it''s been something else," Old man Gerald said, still keeping his focus on the battle. Diluc looked around, and the condition of the Mayor''s manor which had been leveled to the ground, as well as the way some of the corpses were shocked him. He couldn''t help taking another look at Grey. He couldn''t believe this was the same boy he had to protect from Donald Reiss. "At this rate, he shouldn''t have any problems with beating you up," He said to Donald who was still present there. Donald raised his head to look at Grey, unsure of his present emotions. Chapter 591 - Its Been So Long Swoosh! Bam! The Mayor attacked, pushing Grey back again. Buzz! Bang! A lightning bolt struck the area Grey was in, covering almost a hundred meters radius. Grey was in the middle of the lightning bolt, scurrying about to protect himself from the lightning strikes. Now, he could see the difference between someone in the Seventh stage of the Overlord Plane, and one who was already very close to the Peak of the Overlord Plane. With a flicker, he escaped from the rain of lightning, going out of the attack range. The Mayor was already expecting this, so as soon as he saw him leaving the attack range, he attacked again, sending out a lightning arrow. Boom! Grey threw a fireball at the arrow when he saw it, and it exploded on impact, pushing him back by a few meters. Before he could regain himself, the Mayor charged at him, sending out attack after attack. Boom! Whoosh! Bam! Bang! Grey blocked, evaded, and was hit by some attacks, although they didn''t have the original strength behind it. On Alice and Reynolds'' side, they were getting pushed back more. After the Elemental Warrior self-destructed, the group they were fighting against finally noticed that Reynolds couldn''t summon the Elemental Warrior for a second time. The Earth Elementalist who was almost killed in the explosion was the one who was attacking more viciously. "You bastard! I''ll kill you all," The Earth Elementalist screamed as he continued attacking excessively. Boom! Bang! Reynolds was sent flying, with Alice protecting herself to ensure she wasn''t hurt by the attacks. Grey''s inscriptions continued attacking as well, but the group was blocking the attacks, making sure Alice and Reynolds were isolated. Bang! Alice was sent flying as well, crashing into the ground. "Oh, hello," Reynolds waved when Alice slammed close to him. "Not funny Rey," Alice stood up, taking into the air once again. "Oh shit! Let''s go!" Reynolds exclaimed. Lightning enveloped his body as he left the ground, shooting into the air with unimaginable speed. He headed straight for an Instructor in the Third stage of the Overlord Plane. Buzz! Bang! "Take that! Haha," Reynolds laughed, with blood slightly running down the side of his mouth and his hair in disarray, he looked like a psychopath. "Lightning punch!" He yelled in front of another Instructor after sending the first one flying. On hearing what Reynolds said, the Instructor prepared himself for a punch coming his way. He was left helpless when Reynolds sent a lightning bolt to hit him on his back. "Ah!.." The Instructor screamed in pain before falling to the ground. The Instructor flying beside the one Reynolds just sent to the ground stared at him angrily, "How can you be so shameless?" "Why was he foolish enough to listen to what I said?" Grey mocked. Bam! The Instructor attacked, accompanied by a few who were around. Reynolds turned tails and ran away. There was no way he was going fight against so many people on his own, especially without the help of his Elemental Warrior. Boom! Bang! Bam! Reynolds and Alice were running from the attacks of the Instructors. On Grey''s side of the battle, he was sent flying, slamming into the ground. Old man Gerald was watching the battle from the side, getting a little worried for Grey and his friends. Prince Casper on the other hand was finally starting to get a sense of safety and relief. Once Grey and his friends were defeated, he wouldn''t need to worry about anything any longer. "Father, are you going to watch Alice hey taken away?" Sasha turned to her father. Donald clenched his fists, stuck in a dilemma. If he attacked now, then the chances of Grey and his friends winning would improve. But what if the disappearance of the Peak stage Overlord Plane Elementalist was a trick by them to see their reactions. "Father?" Sasha grabbed onto her father, looking at him with pleading eyes. Just as Donald was about to make a decision, another change happened on the battlefield. Boom! Powerful energy exploded out in the middle of the battlefield and looking in the direction, it was on the side of Grey''s battle. Grey''s strength was soon starting to surge, increasing so fast that within a few seconds, he was already over the Fifth stage of the Overlord Plane, quickly getting to the Sixth, Seventh, Eighth, and Ninth stage. A few seconds later, his aura was at the Peak of the Overlord Plane, and surging even. The eyes of the Mayor nearly popped out. Old man Gerald stood up, staring at Grey in shock. "How''s that happening?" He asked, stuttering. Diluc opened his mouth, but no words came out of it. He couldn''t explain something he didn''t know. They knew it was a powerful technique that improved his strength, but they have never seen anything like this one. At most the ones they seen or heard of would increase their stages by one or two, but Grey went straight from the Fifth stage to the Peak of the Overlord Plane. "This¡­ this¡­ impossible!" The Mayor retreated back on sensing how powerful Grey currently was. What was worse was that he could still sense that he was going slightly higher. However, a few seconds later, it stopped. Grey''s energy stopped at the Peak of the Overlord Plane. "Get out of here Prince Casper," The Mayor warned immediately. He knew at this rate, he was no match for the current Grey. Prince Casper wanted to move, but he was unable to take a step back. The reason for this was that Grey appeared behind him, staring at him. "Stay here and watch, this will be over soon," Grey patted Prince Casper on the shoulder and all the strength in his body left him. He couldn''t take a single step, nor could he generate any elemental essence in his body. With a simple pat, he couldn''t move anymore. The Mayor was shocked when he saw Grey appearing behind Prince Casper. Without thinking, he charged towards him. "Get away from the Prince," He ordered. Grey smiled, "I''ve always wanted to see how powerful I''ll be in the Fusion State after getting to the Overlord Plane," ''It''s been so long,'' Chapter 592 - Theyre Getting Away Bam! Grey swung his hand, and a giant hand made of earth appeared in the sky and smacked the Mayor into the ground as if he was a fly. Bang! The Mayor crashed into the ground, causing a crater that was almost ten meters deep. The Mayor''s body didn''t stop after crashing into the ground, it created a hole in the shape of his body and went drilled deeper due to the force from the smack. Buzz! The Mayor burst out with lightning surrounding his body as he charged towards Grey. With a few hand seals, a lightning bird appeared and flew towards Grey. The power of the bird was on another level compared to his previous attacks. All this while, he had been fighting with the intent of capturing Grey and his friends, but now, he was fighting to kill. He couldn''t afford to allow Grey to live. "Futile efforts," Grey smiled before raising his right hand. At the tip of his index finger, a small black and blue orb that was around the size of a finger appeared, he stretched his hand above his head, and the size of the orb suddenly swelled. It went from the size of a finger to the size of a human head. It flew off Grey''s hand, charging towards the lightning bird. Boom! The two attacks collided, and a powerful wave spread out in all directions, accompanied by a terrifying blast. Reynolds, Alice, old man Gerald, Donald, Diluc, Sasha, and everyone else on the battlefield were affected by the attack. Some of the weaker ones were even sent flying. "Grey, do you plan on killing us as well? Take this higher!" Reynolds'' voice could be heard from inside the explosion. The bright light from the explosion didn''t die down immediately, and it could be seen from every single inch of Frost City. The other big families who were contemplating if they should join the Mayor to fight against Grey slowly started to retreat. This was a battle they couldn''t win. Grey was showing strength they had never seen before, and it scared them. A few seconds later, the light died down, and the result of the explosion appeared before Grey. Within a one kilometer radius, there was not a single building that was standing. They were all in ruins. ''*Sigh* This is why I don''t like fighting in cities. There just might be collateral damage,'' Grey furrowed his brows when he looked at the result of his attack. The Mayor was standing mid-air, staring at Grey. "Don''t worry, I''ve moved everyone away from this area," A voice suddenly came from the side. It was none other than Jonas. When he saw how intense the battle was getting, he quickly told the others to help him tell everyone around a three kilometers radius to evacuate the area. Before they even got there, some smart people had already started leaving the city in general. "Oh, now I won''t feel too bad," Grey replied with a nod. He was feeling a little sad because of the thought of some innocent bystander getting caught in his attack, but since there was no one, he felt a sense of relief. "Why don''t we take this higher?" He turned to the Mayor. The Mayor looked at the impact caused by the collision between their attacks before nodding his head. He had been the Mayor of Frost City for so long, and he had already grown a little attached to it. It would be a shame that his battle would be the cause of its destruction. "Okay, but before I go," Grey suddenly flickered twice. It was as if his body was going between ethereal and physical form. A moment it was as if he was disappearing, then the next it would seem as if he was in his physical state. But the Mayor knew Grey was no longer there. ''An afterimage,'' The Mayor thought to himself. How fast is he that he could create such an afterimage? This was the thought in the head of the Mayor. He wasn''t the only one who was stunned by this, old man Gerald, Diluc, Donald, and everyone else watching was asking the same question as well. A few seconds later. "Alright, let''s go," Grey said. His body hadn''t dissolved completely when he appeared again. The Mayor''s heart suddenly sank when a thought crossed through his head, with a quick glance, he was able to confirm his thought. All the Early stage Overlord Plane Elementalists that were fighting against Alice and Reynolds were almost completely wiped out. The Mid stage Overlord Plane Instructors were all wiped out. There were around five surviving Early stage Instructors left, and the only reason Grey left them alive was so that Reynolds and Alice could fight. "You¡­" "We''re enemies, there''s no need in being sympathetic towards them. An enemy is an enemy, there''s no way to change it at this point. Although I know they''re only following the Emperor''s orders, it still doesn''t change the fact that they''ve become my enemy. The day they decided to capture me and my friends because of the Emperor''s greedy desires was the day they cemented their deaths," Grey cut short the Mayor and said. The Mayor looked at him for a while before flying higher into the sky. Just as Grey was about to follow behind him, he heard Reynolds'' voice. "What?! Who killed them! It must be Grey. Damn it! And I could''ve taken them on by myself," Reynolds exclaimed when he saw that there were only five surviving Instructors. Alice rolled her eyes when she heard this, "You know what, why don''t you take on these guys on your own since you''re so powerful?" "And have all the fun on my own? Of course not, I want you to train as well," Reynolds replied instantly. "Uhmm, Rey," Alice called. "Yeah?" Reynolds asked. "They''re getting away," Alice pointed at the Instructors flying away. "Shit! Get them," Reynolds went after the Instructors. Alice chuckled before following behind him. But they weren''t under any pressure since they know that all the threats around them have been neutralized.. If they let these Instructors go, it still wouldn''t change how things would end. Chapter 593 - Believe Me Now? "Doing this will only make things worse between you and the Emperor," The Mayor said after Grey caught up to him high up in the sky. "He''s already trying to kill me, things can''t get worse. This is literally the peak right now," Grey shrugged. "You might be using a secret technique to improve your strength, but all I need to do is hang on until the time elapses and you''re finished," The Mayor said. "Do you really think you can last that long?" Grey asked curiously. "I believe in my abilities," The Mayor replied. "Cool," Grey didn''t say anything else. Naturally, he didn''t have all the time in the world, so he had to act quick. Swoosh! Buzz! Bang! A lightning bow appeared, on it was notched a silver lightning bow that shot out instantly. The speed of the arrow was mind blowing. This attack was as fast as the attack the young man who attacked him at that ruin used. Even after breaking through to the Overlord Plane, Grey wasn''t too confident in his ability to dodge that attack. But with the aid of the Fusion State, he didn''t have any problems with dodging it. He soon disappeared from where the attack wanted to hit. Due to his speed, he left an afterimage there which the arrow went through before it started to quickly fade. He appeared on the left side of the Mayor, sending out a stream of fire. Boom! The Mayor retaliated with a large lightning bolt which caused a huge explosion in the sky, blasting the clouds away from where they were fighting. Bang! Boom! Swoosh! Buzz! They continued exchanging blows, and as expected, Grey was on the front foot. The Mayor continued his offensive even though he was on the back foot. With every attack, he was pushed back by Grey''s seemingly insurmountable strength. ¡­. A few kilometers away from Frost City. While Grey and the others were still fighting with the Instructors. A figure suddenly appeared in the sky above an empty field. It was an old lady with white hair and wearing a white gown. "Hmm, how did I get here?" She questioned as she looked around. A small shadow suddenly came to view. ''That cat, what''s it doing here too?'' A look of incredulity appeared on her face. "The prince!" She suddenly exclaimed, recalling what was happening before she appeared here. Even though she found her appearance here odd, she focused on getting back to Prince Casper first. From what she sensed, he must be in trouble since a large-scale battle was taking place where he was getting married. She flew in the direction of the city disappearing from view. Void, who was laying casually on a tree didn''t even try to make any efforts to stop her, he only watched on as she flew away. A few seconds later, a figure appeared above the field again. It was none other than that of the old lady. "What''s going on?" She asked, looking around suspiciously. Other than the small black cat she saw lying on a tree, she couldn''t see or sense anything else. She soon flew off again, heading in the direction of the city. But a few seconds later, she would appear in the field once again. When she appeared for the third time, she decided to take another route. She headed in the opposite direction, away from the city. But in a few seconds time, she once again appeared in the empty field. At exactly the same spot. "What is going on?" She asked again, looking around. This was the strangest technique she had ever witnessed or experienced. She couldn''t sense anything, yet she keeps getting teleported to the same location. She tried once again, but the result was the same. She tried again, and again, and again. However, no matter which direction she faced, she would appear back at the field again. "Who are you? Come out now! I''m Overlord Gale. You must have heard of me," The old lady announced her name in a bid to scare whoever was doing this. She made a name for herself hundreds of years ago, but she was still regarded very highly by the people of the Qilin Empire. Even till this very day, her name still struck fear in the hearts of her opponents. From her perspective, she felt whoever was doing this wasn''t powerful, that was why they resulted to such underhanded tactics in keeping her here. But she had to admit it was quite an impressive feat to create something like this. "Oh, you''re tired of trying? And I thought I could rest a little longer," Void''s childlike voice entered the old lady''s ears. "Who are you? Show yourself," The old lady said calmly. "I''m not hiding now, am I?" Void asked oddly. He was literally lying on the tree closest to the field, and he had sensed the old lady''s gaze a few times. So hearing her say he should show himself, he was taken aback. "I don''t have time for games. The Fifth Prince is in danger, and the Emperor will not take it likely with whoever you are if the prince were to face any danger as a result of your actions," The old lady warned. "Do I look like someone who is scared of the Emperor?" Void asked. "Come out, with this ability of yours the Emperor would like to make you an ally," The old lady offered. "*Sigh* Look down," Void finally gave up and said, when he saw the lady looking in her direction, "Over here," He stood up from his lying position, staring straight in the eyes of the old lady. "Nice try, but there''s no way a cat can speak nor be the one behind something like this," The old lady scoffed when she saw Void. "Old lady, didn''t you see me in the city before you appeared here?" Void asked rudely. The old lady paused when she saw how Void''s lips were moving along with the sound of every word. "Impossible," She muttered when she realized Void was really the one talking. "Believe me now?" Void asked. Chapter 594 - In Here, Im God The old lady stared at Void for a few seconds, trying to comprehend how it was possible. She knew of powerful magical beasts with high bloodlines that could talk after getting to a certain stage but never had she heard of a small cat like this being able to speak. "How¡­ what are you?" She asked slowly. "I''m lord cat, now, kneel before my magnificence. Also, hand over all your shiny things," Void stuck out his chest as he said. The old lady froze when she heard Void''s introduction, unsure of what to do. First, the cat referred to himself as a lord, and now he''s seemingly trying to rob her. ''Such a strange world,'' She said to herself. "Come on lady, I don''t have all the time in the world," Void''s voice interrupted her train of thoughts. "Huh? Oh, little cat, can you let me go so I can help the Prince?" The old lady asked with a meek smile, "If you help me, the Emperor will give you all the shiny things you want," "Oh¡­ shiny things, how big are they?" Void asked wide-eyed. "Very big," The old lady opened her hands wide. "I heard the Emperor has a nice shiny crown, if he can give me that, then I''ll think about letting you go," Void said after a few seconds of silence. "Yes, yes, the crown is very shiny. He has three, and all of them are very shiny. There are valuable gemstones engraved in all of them," The old lady said. She didn''t know anything about Void, but from how he asked for shiny things during his introduction, she guessed he must be obsessed with them. And from his reaction, her guess was on point. ''Hehe, stupid animal, once I get out of here, you''re dead,'' She thought internally. "Nice. Thanks for the information, now I know I don''t have to steal only one crown," Void said with gratitude. "Sorry?" The old lady looked at Void, stunned by his words, "Steal the Emperor''s crown?" "Yeah. I figured you''d know a thing or two about him, so I tricked you into speaking of it," Void explained with a small chuckle. "Little cat, that''s not a wise thing to do. You''re a magical beast that managed to gain intelligence, why don''t you let me out and I''ll give you all the hidden techniques we have on magical beasts, what do you say?" The old lady acted like she didn''t hear Void''s words and tried to coax Void again. "I''m not that dumb lady. If you manage to get out of here alive, then you can thank your stars," Void said coldly. "What do you mean?" The old lady''s expression changed. "In my domain, I''m god," Void replied. With the end of his statement, the space around them began to crack. The old lady could literally see cracks opening up in the sky, and the aura from within it terrified her. "What¡­ what are¡­ wait, a domain?" She asked in shock. "Oh, judging from your reaction, this is not the first time you''re hearing of domains. Looks like you''re wiser than I thought," Void answered. After he finished refining the Dragon blood essence, he awakened his domain. This first domain he awakened was the space domain, and he couldn''t be happier. When he brought the old lady here, he decided to try out the ability of the domain, and he had been impressed by it so far. The distance of the domain was around four to five hundred meters, and with the increase in his strength, the domain will continue to expand. The O''Brien family was already regarding Ellis to be a genius amongst geniuses because of how quickly he was able to awaken his domain. However, if they were to hear of Void''s case, they might faint from the sheer shock. One has to know that Ellis was already in the Sage Plane, so he wasn''t too far from awakening his domain. Void however was still a Rank Five magical beast which was equivalent to the Overlord Plane. This was something unheard of. "The last time a domain was used in this world was during the ancient times, the great war of gods. I never thought I would get to experience one in this lifetime," The old lady muttered, still in shock. "Lady, you must be crazy. This place is too small, so you haven''t been able to see things. Unfortunately, this is the end for you," Void said. The cracks in the sky continued increasing, slowly sucking in anything around them. The old lady looked around and attacked. According to what she read about, a domain could forcibly be destroyed if the creator was weaker than the person trapped inside. Never in a million years does she think that Void was more powerful. Actually, she even felt pity for him because even with such a powerful ability, he was too weak. Bang! Her attack went into one of the cracks, and a powerful shockwave came out from the crack. After a few seconds, it started to flicker before fading. Void wasn''t downhearted when one of the cracks was destroyed by the old lady. He knew she wasn''t someone weak. A tornado rose up from the ground, trying to destroy all the cracks that were close to her. As time went on, the tornado started to send out wind blades, while the old lady moved out on her own, her speed was on another level. She wasn''t called Overlord Gale for no reason. When she rose to fame, she was regarded as one of the fastest Elementalists in the Azure Empire, even Lightning Elementalists paled in comparison to her speed. A few seconds later, she was holding onto Void, with a wind blade in her hand, ready to slice it through the body of Void. "Little cat, I like you, or else you would be dead. Let me go, and come with me freely, maybe then you can join us," The old lady offered. "I''m not interested in becoming allies with the Emperor," Void replied, "Also, over here," The old lady turned in the direction of the voice, and to her surprise, Void was standing in the sky, perfectly fine. She hurriedly looked at her hands, and there was nothing there. "How did¡­" "I already told you, in my domain, I am god," Void replied before his size suddenly started to increase. Chapter 595 - Can You Forgive Me? "What?!" The lady exclaimed when she saw Void''s current size. From being slightly larger than a human''s palm, Void was currently well over three meters tall and over five meters long. He was currently no different from a magical beast found in the forest. Void suddenly disappeared, appearing a few inches away from the old lady. The second he appeared, he swiped his left claw at the lady. Bam! His claw hit a wind screen that the lady placed in front of her just in time to protect herself from his attack. Ka-cha The sound of wind screen breaking sounded out, before the claw attack continued on its track, heading towards the old lady. The old lady was forced to place her hands in front of her as a form of protection, while not only enforcing them but also setting up a wind protection around them. With the powerful wind rotating around her hands, it would be difficult for anything to get through it. At first, they managed to stop Void''s claws, but a few seconds later, she was sent flying from the force of the attack. She couldn''t contend with Void when it came to raw strength, especially with Void''s current size. Before she crashed to the ground, Void appeared behind her, swiping his claws at her back. Bang! It connected, opening a large wound on her back, while also sending her flying in the direction she was coming from. Void disappeared again, appearing in front of her. The old lady who was already injured couldn''t afford to take another direct hit from Void. Without delay, she covered herself with a wind dome that sent wind blades in Void''s direction. Void didn''t panic, and as if flickering, he would disappear and appear in a matter of seconds, dodging the wind blades that were coming his way. He made sure he didn''t get out of the way, so he could continue smacking the old lady. He covered his claws with the darkness element, and as the lady got close, he attacked again. Bang! This time, the impact was so great that the lady crashed directly into the ground, causing a small dust cloud to rise into the air. A few seconds later, the dust cloud settled, but the lady was nowhere to be seen. Void didn''t panic, his domain was still active, and if the old lady tried to leave the area, she would be brought back to the middle once again. After waiting for over twenty seconds, Void paused and looked in the western direction. ''Smart,'' He thought to himself. The old lady had already marked the spot where she would return after getting through, so she stopped there and started attacking it. If the domain wasn''t powerful enough, then it would break apart. This was Void''s first time using it, so he wasn''t a hundred percent used to it. With a thought, he appeared behind the old lady and nudged her past the mark. After she got past the mark, she appeared in the middle of the field once again. Swoosh! She was welcomed by Void''s claw which was already waiting for her. This was Void''s domain, and since he was a Space Elementalist, he could travel faster here compared to others. Bang! The old lady slammed into the ground again, and within a few seconds, she appeared in front of Void who was already prepared. Bam! He attacked again, this time, a huge gash opened up on the old lady''s right shoulder. Boom! She crashed into the ground, but unlike the previous times, she didn''t try to escape. The reason for this was because Void sensibly reduced the range of the domain, so instead of the almost five hundred meters mark, it was around three hundred and fifty meters. Even if she could destroy the domain, there was no way Void would allow her to do so. His recent action is proof of that. But what frustrated her was that Void was clearly more powerful than she was, so there was no way she could fight against him, especially in this form. "Not running anymore?" Void asked when he saw the lady after the dust died down. "Look here lit¡­ I mean black cat, you don''t want to irritate me," The old lady warned while glaring at him. "Actually, I''m done playing with you," Void replied, and the area around the old lady suddenly started to disintegrate. The old lady looked around, terrified by what she was seeing. She sent out an attack, but the attack was easily consumed by what was coming in her direction. She couldn''t see it, but she could sense a powerful attack coming in her direction. This was Void''s space elemental attack, spatial distortion. Since he was in his domain, he could easily hide it from his opponent''s view. The most interesting thing about his domain was that he could easily integrate it into the real world around him and no one would know. The old lady looked around, hesitant of which side she should take. She had previously sent an attack in one direction, so she knew that side wasn''t safe. Coming to a quick decision, she sent an attack in all directions, but her expression changed drastically when she realized all of them had been consumed. "Lo¡­ lord cat, please, can, can you forgive me?" The old lady didn''t know when she changed the way she addressed Void. Even though she had been alive for a long time now, she still didn''t plan on dying yet. Especially being killed by a small cat. Well, Void wasn''t small currently, but it didn''t matter, she just didn''t want to die in the paws of a magical beast. "Now you''re respectful? Unfortunately, it''s too late," Void reverted to his original size grinning wide as the lady''s hands started disintegrating. The old lady screamed as she watched her hands disappear before her, before long, she too vanished. It was like she never existed. "She doesn''t even have any shiny things.. Hmph! Since the Emperor has three crowns, they will do," Void said before turning towards the city. Chapter 596 - Bold Statement "Grey should be done by now," Void said before disappearing. The forest soon regained its silence, looking at the place, it was like nothing happened. ¡­. Frost City. High in the sky above the Mayor''s manor. Grey and the Mayor were just facing off, about to start their battle. Swoosh! Boom! Grey attacked with a lightning ball. The Mayor replied with a lightning bolt, striking Grey''s attack. Grey''s attack was the winner in the struggle, quickly destroying the Mayor''s lightning bolt before it continued moving in the Mayor''s direction. The Mayor evaded to the side, but his expression changed when Grey appeared beside him, attacking with his fist which was covered with blue flames. Bang! Boom! The punch sent the Mayor flying. Before the Mayor managed to regain his composure, Grey appeared beside him and attacked again. Bang! Boom! The Mayor was knocked in the opposite direction, suffering burns on his back, with a few of his ribs broken. Blood was already dripping out from his mouth and nose due to internal injuries. Buzz! He enveloped himself with lightning, and just as Grey was about to attack again. He attacked, punching his opponent with a terrifying blow. Bang! The attacks collided, causing a loud explosion that pushed both fighters back. Grey was the one who had the better of the explosion since he was able to block most of the impact. The Mayor on the other hand was further injured, suffering heavy injuries on his right hand. The sleeves of his shirt had been destroyed, while his flesh was burnt on different parts. He didn''t let it hold him down as he attacked once again. Swoosh! Bang! Buzz! Boom! They continued exchanging blows with Grey mostly sending the Mayor flying. The injuries on the body of the Mayor continued stacking, and before long, he could barely breathe properly. Boom! The Mayor was sent crashing into the ground after trying to block Grey''s mixed attack of fire and lightning. The impact of the explosion destroyed the Mayor''s left hand. Bang! The Mayor crashed into the ground, causing a huge dust cloud to rise into the sky. Unlike before, the Mayor didn''t stand up immediately. Even after the dust cloud died down, the body of the Mayor could be seen on the ground, with blood-stained clothes. He was barely recognizable. Grey slowly flew down from the sky, floating above the Mayor''s presently motionless body. The Mayor opened his eyes, staring At Grey who was above him. He tried to speak, but all he could do was cough out blood on multiple occasions, unable to even pick himself up. "I''ll need a messenger to send to the Emperor, and you''ll be a great one," Grey said while looking at him. ''Void, are you done?'' He communicated with Void telepathically. ''I''m already here,'' Void replied before appearing a few meters away from them. ''Okay,'' Grey nodded when he saw him. ''Did you know the Emperor has three shiny crowns?'' Void suddenly asked. ''No, no I did not,'' Grey paused before answering. ''Well, now you do. And guess what?'' Void spoke excitedly. ''What?'' Grey asked, sensing a headache coming his way. ''I''m going to steal all of them!'' Void declared. ''Nice, but you do know that there are Sage Plane experts hiding inside the palace, right?'' Grey reminded him. ''Damn it! I''ll steal it when he leaves the palace then,'' Void said. ''I don''t think he ever leaves the palace. That''s the safest place for him. But can''t you hide from them?'' Grey asked. ''Hmm, I can, but there are some cases where some people are sensitive to spatial tunnels. I can''t really take that risk,'' Void replied. Grey was left speechless, this was the first time Void was thinking of the consequences of things. ''Looks like he''s not too confident in his abilities to escape from a Sage Plane Elementalist. It''s good that he knows his limits,'' Grey thought to himself. He had always looked at Void as a careless individual, well, given all he had done since he met him, he could be said to be careless. But from his words, the only reason he did those things was that he was confident in his abilities to escape. "What do you want?" The Mayor managed to speak up, albeit his voice was barely audible. Grey, who zoned out while speaking with Void, looked at the Mayor again, "Tell the Emperor that he should stop searching for me and my friends. We have no interest in his empire nor the scuffle with the other empires," "That''s all?" The Mayor asked, after managing to get in a sitting position. "Oh, as a reminder, tell him the princes here will just be a warning, if he persists, then I''ll hunt down every single child of his," Grey''s eyes went cold, sending a chill down the back of Prince Casper. "What do you plan to do with the Prince?" The Mayor asked. "Nothing important. I''ll just destroy his cultivation as a warning to his father," Grey shrugged. "But¡­ I don''t have any problems with you," Prince Casper chimed in when he heard Grey''s words. "Yeah, but your father does. I do not take things out on others, but seeing how your father acts, I felt it would be better to give him a taste of his medicine," Grey said. Alice and Reynolds were back, they were able to successfully hunt down the five Instructors who were trying to escape. When they heard Grey''s words, neither of them showed any signs of stopping him. Alice already hated Prince Casper and if she was the one making the decisions, then she''ll kill all the princes. "You¡­ you can''t do this to me," Prince Casper begged. "You''re lucky he''s sparing you. If it was up to me, you''d already be dead," Alice said coldly. The Mayor struggled to get to his feet, "Please, think this over. Doing this will only infuriate the Emperor," "I''ve already thought about it. Talking nicely with the Emperor will not make things better. I need to show him my resolve, if he messes with me, I''ll raze the entire empire down if I have to," Grey said coldly. His bold statement terrified everyone present here. Chapter 597 - Do You Think Hes Safe? Frost City. Reiss manor. "Father, I think you should hide with the family for now," Alice said to her father who was seated on his seat, staring at the Elders of the family. "The commotion caused today will surely make the Emperor send people here in no time. If we stay here, we''ll definitely be attacked," Sasha said to her father. Donald looked at the Elders before moving his gaze slowly to the cause of problems. Grey was sitting at the side of the hall, not saying anything. He even had his eyes closed, not interested in the decisions of the Reiss family. If not for Alice, he wouldn''t even come here. "Grey, I''m sorry for what happened the last time," Donald apologized for his past actions against Grey. "Huh? Oh, it''s nothing. I''ve already forgotten about it," Grey replied without even opening his eyes. Donald shook his head, "We''ll follow Alice''s words. For now, there''s nothing we can do to go against the Emperor, and given what happened here today, the Emperor will be furious," He was still in shock because of Grey''s actions. Grey was true to his words and he not only crippled Prince Casper''s cultivation but that of all the princes present as well. Even the princesses weren''t left out. He went into the city and searched for every single one of them. The Mayor was a hopeless spectator who could do nothing but watch. He knew going back to the Emperor with what just happened would make him suffer a painful punishment from the Emperor, but since he was almost at the Peak of the Overlord Plane, the Emperor wouldn''t kill him. With the war going on, the Emperor needed all the strength he could find. Donald was stunned by the ruthlessness of Grey. For someone so young, he never thought he would be so cold. "Thank you, father," Alice heaved a sigh of relief when her father finally agreed to her suggestion. She had brought it up before they showed up at the wedding, but given her father''s character, she thought he would never agree to it. But looks like he decided to do what''s best for the family like he always does. Staying here would only put them at a huge risk. "But there''s something I still can''t comprehend, what happened to the Peak stage Overlord Plane expert guarding the prince?" Donald asked, still in shock. He clearly sensed the aura when the old lady was coming, but the aura vanished without a trace, and he never sensed it again, even till this very moment. "She''s been taken care of. Alice, we''ll need to leave now. Given the Mayor''s speed, it shouldn''t take him too long to reach the Capital. It has already been a few hours now," Grey stood up from his seat. Alice hugged Sasha tightly, before hugging her father as well. "We''ll be going now father," She said. "It''s okay. With him around, you should be safe," Donald smiled. Alice nodded before following Grey and Reynolds. Just as they stepped out, she heard one of the Elders of the family asking an important question. "How can we move out our treasury," Grey paused when he heard this before turning to Alice, "I brought a present for you. I didn''t have the time to give it to you since we were fighting," A ring appeared in his hands before he tossed it in her direction. She froze when she saw it and subconsciously caught it. "That''s a storage ring, Rey already has one. I can give you a few more so that your family can use it to move out their items," Grey suggested. "Oh, you finally managed to make one?" Alice asked in shock as she held onto the ring. She was about to put it on when Reynolds'' voice entered her ears. "You should wash that first," He said. "Huh? Why?" Alice asked. "Well, it was taken from the fingers of a dead person. Mine had a small dot of blood on it. Tell him to wash it," Reynolds said. Grey shook his head before taking out all the storage rings in his and covering them with water, he didn''t forget to take the one with Alice. After a few seconds, he tossed five over to Alice. He taught her how to use it, and she managed to get the hang of it on the first try. She thanked him before rushing inside the hall once again. Since she didn''t want everyone to know about it, she called her father to a secret place and passed them to him. She also taught him how to use it. Donald was left shocked and speechless when she saw the ring. Never in his life did he think there would be something like this. He could easily keep his treasures in a ring that would always be with him, and no one would even know about it. With great curiosity in his heart, he asked where it came from. When he heard Grey was the one who gave Alice the rings, he was once again stumped by the young man. He concluded that Grey was a mysterious person he shouldn''t offend. He couldn''t help but feel grateful that his daughter managed to make such a friend. From the strength Grey displayed back at the Mayor''s manor, he was certain that within a few years, he would be unrivaled in the entire Azure Continent. At that time, he wouldn''t need to hide with his family any longer. In fact, they would be at the very peak of the world. Alice stayed with him for a few more minutes before going back to meet up with Grey and Reynolds. ¡­. Outside the Reiss manor. "Where to now?" Reynolds asked. "It''s only right we reunite with Klaus. He must be so lonely," Grey said. "I''m surprised he''s still alive," Alice said. "Yeah, I can attest that the Principal has beaten him up a few times," Grey said. "He still hasn''t replied to any of my messages. Do you think he''s safe?" Reynolds asked, a little worried. "He should be," Grey said, he later added, "We''ll know when we get to where he is," Chapter 598 - Diligent Klaus Five days later. Thousands of kilometers away from Frost City. Grey, Reynolds, and Alice could be seen walking into the small town. "Are you sure he''s here?" Alice questioned doubtfully. "He''s close, if he''s not inside the town, he should be a few meters away from the town," Grey brought out the tracking device to get the location of Klaus. Klaus'' light dot was just beside the trio''s light dots, so he was only a short distance away from them. The trio walked into the town, looking around. Just as they were about to question Grey again, they saw the Principal silently sipping tea from a tea shop. "Look, it''s the Principal," Grey showed the Principal to the others. "Oh, how come Klaus isn''t with him?" Reynolds asked curiously. "Let''s go and ask him," Alice walked towards the tea shop. Before the trio got to the tea shop, the Principal had already noticed them. "Oh, it''s you three. What are you doing here?" The Principal asked when he saw them entering the tea shop. "Good morning sir, we''re here for Klaus," Alice greeted the Principal politely. Grey and Reynolds followed suit as well. "Klaus, he''s training," The Principal replied. "Training?" Grey asked, stunned. "Yeah, he''s been causing too many problems for a while now. If he isn''t kept in check, he will most likely have destroyed this town by now," The Principal said. "Understandable," Grey and the others nodded in agreement. They all knew Klaus'' behavior. "Thank you for giving me that thing the last time," The Principal said to Grey with gratitude. "I can see that the Principal has made a good advancement with its help. You''re already part of the Sage Plane experts," Grey smiled as he replied. "You noticed," The Principal was a little shocked that Grey was able to easily sense he was already in the Sage Plane. What he found more confusing was that he couldn''t sense Grey''s cultivation stage. He could easily sense Alice and Reynolds'' cultivation stage, but Grey who was standing before him was like a normal person. It was very easy to even forget his existence. ''This boy keeps getting mysterious,'' He thought internally. The reason he couldn''t sense Grey''s cultivation stage was that Grey had reverted back to hiding his aura. Given the fact that the Principal was still in the First stage of the Sage Plane, there was no way he could sense his cultivation stage unless he wanted him to. "Yes," Grey nodded. "I can see your cat is back to normal," The Principal said after noticing Void laying on Grey''s shoulder. "Yeah. Where are Instructor Blake and Instructor Delia?" Grey when he couldn''t find them around. "They went out to train. If I''m not mistaken, they should be returning in a few days," The Principal placed his hand on his chin thoughtfully. "Klaus is just outside the town, there is a lake there," The Principal told the trio of Klaus'' location. "Alright, we''ll be going then," Grey and the others bowed before leaving the tea shop. The Principal watched them leave with a slight smile. He was impressed with the kind of friends Klaus was able to make. If not for Grey, he wasn''t sure when he would be able to break through to the Sage Plane, that is if he ever gets the chance to. Alice and Reynolds were two people regarded as geniuses in the Lightning hall back at the Academy, and Blake does speak of them on some occasions. Of the trio, Grey was the most mysterious given his somewhat unknown background. Alice was from a big family, while Reynolds was from a small family that consisted of him, his younger brother, and his parents. ¡­. Outside the town. A river could be seen running from the other side of the town, it ran all the way to the edge of a cliff before going down the waterfall. The river was around one hundred and fifty meters wide, but close to the edge of the cliff, it started to narrow down. Below the cliff, a youth could be seen sitting below the waterfall. Even though the water was falling directly under him, not a drop of water could be seen on his body. With a well-chiseled face and short well-trimmed hair, he was every lady''s dream. The youth was none other than Klaus who had been training for some days now. Although it was involuntary, he still persisted. He was sitting on top of a boulder, with both eyes closed. His eyelashes fluttered a few times before he opened them. He exhaled a white puff of gas before he turned to the three shadows walking in his direction. "How did you three find me?" Klaus asked calmly. It was like he was a completely different person, and it stunned the trio, even Void had his mouth wide open. Given Klaus'' usual personality, he would''ve already tried to attack Grey for ghosting them for months, while he would''ve started cursing at Reynolds by now. "Are you alright?" Reynolds couldn''t help but ask. "Of course, you can come closer, the waterfall isn''t that bad," Klaus invited the trio over. Reynolds was the first to fly over, and just as he got close to the waterfall, a powerful energy sucked him into the river below him, dragging him inside. "Oh, I forgot to warn you about the trap that father placed here, hahaha," Klaus burst out laughing when he saw Reynolds being dragged into the water. When Reynolds brought out his head, he was completely covered in a murky gooey liquid that smelled terrible. He quickly jumped into the boulder Klaus was sitting on. "You bastard! You tricked me," Reynolds held him by the shirt, shaking him. Klaus was laughing at the top of his lungs when he saw Reynolds'' condition. This was the only reason he had been cultivating so diligently. His father somehow managed to trap this sticky, smelly, gooey liquid below the waterfall, while also setting up a small-scale array that would drag anyone who tries to leave into it. He made it in a way that it would take a high-pressure water source before it can be removed. Even with Klaus'' ability with the water element, he was unable to remove it. Grey stared at the water with an interesting look, before looking at Klaus again. Chapter 599 - You Had So Much Fun! "I knew you can never change," Alice said after seeing Reynolds'' condition. "It''s who I am," Klaus replied with a grin. Grey stared at the water for some time, and to Void''s dismay, he appeared above it. Just like Reynolds, he was quickly sucked in by a powerful energy. Even when he tried resisting it, he was still dragged in. Void was on his shoulder, and before he could react, he too was also dragged in. The duo soon came out of the water, covered in the gooey liquid. Grey dragged Void with him as they stepped under the waterfall. Klaus, who was previously blocking the water from hitting him, had already stopped after being touched by Reynolds. Alice facepalmed when she saw this, "How does the brain of boys even work?" Grey was the most serious and thoughtful person amongst the three boys, yet, here he was, jumping in a gooey liquid that stinks. "It works in ways you can not comprehend," Klaus replied while smacking the back of Grey as he burst out laughing. Reynolds joined in as well. Grey shook his head with a light smile. The only reason he tried it was to see what the Principal did. The small time he spent trying to resist the array has given him a small knowledge of the array the Principal made, but he still isn''t aware of what the gooey substance was made of. "Where have you been all this while?" Klaus turned to Grey and questioned. "Alright, since we''re all here now, I guess it''s time I told you all. I went to another continent," Grey said. There was no use in trying to keep it to himself any longer. "Another continent? There''s another continent?" Klaus asked, shocked. Alice perked her ears when she heard this. This was her first time hearing of this, and unlike Klaus, Grey wouldn''t joke with a thing like this. "Yeah, remember when I was trying to heal Void?" Grey asked. The trio nodded. "Well, I encountered someone in the Magical Beasts'' forest. He should be around five years older than us, but he''s already in the Mid stages of the Sage Plane¡­" Grey went on to tell them about his first encounter with Ellis. He also added the part where Ellis pretended he was very weak so he could get help. And just as he expected, he saw Klaus whispering something to Reynolds about keeping notes so they could do this in the future. They were left in awe when Grey told them about his experiences while traveling in the Aurora Continent. When they heard of how he dominated the Origin Plane rankings in the Aurora Continent, they all felt sad since they were unable to partake in it, especially Alice who enjoyed fighting. Klaus and Reynolds enjoyed the part of the story when Grey was traveling with Sylvia. He also told them about Necromancers, and the thought of fighting against corpses freaked Alice out. "We have to go there," Klaus concluded when Grey was done with his story. "Yeah, it will take tons of essence stones. Luckily, I''m not short on that," Grey said, before adding with a smile, "Did I tell you of the part where I helped Ellis fight against a bandit group?" "Damn it! You had so much fun," Klaus said with a sad face. "Yeah, and almost died more times than I can count," Grey added. "I forgot to tell you," Reynolds suddenly stood up. "What?" Klaus'' facial expression turned dull, he could already hear the excitement in Reynolds'' voice, so he knew it was something fun that he missed out on once again. "We barged into a wedding¡­" Reynolds started to talk about the battle at Frost City Mayor''s manor. "Damn it, stop, stop," Klaus tried to close his mouth when he heard of how they stopped the wedding and started fighting against the Instructors. Grey and Alice laughed out loud when they saw his look. They stayed there a little while longer with Grey and the boys sitting under the waterfall and Alice sitting below a tree not far from the water. Grey took them out of the boulder with the space element, he still wasn''t confident in being able to resist the energy from the array the Principal made. Even though he might have more knowledge on arrays compared to the Principal, he had lesser experience. Klaus almost hugged the ground when he finally left the boulder. He had been stuck for so many days that he lost count. The Principal made sure it was impossible to leave the place, well, without the space element that is. Going in was easy, leaving was another case. But with the space element, it was not even a challenge. Grey and the boys were already all dried up. Amongst the trio, Grey was the one who let the water crash into his body more, this was possible due to his strong physique. Void was already out of there, sitting on Alice''s lap after he removed the gooey substance from his body. They didn''t stay close to the waterfall any longer, opting to go over to meet the Principal. Void was able to easily locate him, so they didn''t have to search. "How come your communication device is with the Principal?" Grey couldn''t help but ask. "Well, he didn''t want me distracted, so he took it, as well as the other one," Klaus explained. "Oh, okay. You''re already in the Fourth stage of the Overlord Plane," Grey said. "Yeah, thanks to my diligent training, I broke through two days ago," Klaus said proudly. "Diligent? The Principal had to force you to train," Reynolds mocked from the back. "What do you mean? I trained on my own," Klaus retorted. "You want to fight?" Reynolds poked him at the back, trying to provoke him. "It''s been so long we last saw, if I were to beat you up today it would feel like I''m bullying you," Klaus scoffed. It was like he was stronger than everyone in the group. "Will you die if you don''t brag?" Alice asked with a shake of her head. "Most likely," Klaus and Reynolds replied simultaneously, before bursting into laughter. Chapter 600 - Bad News The group walked towards the town, joking around. Alice suddenly asked the important question, "What now?" "I can''t really say for now. My original plan was to take you three with me to the Aurora Continent, given your present elemental grades, you all wouldn''t have a problem with quickly advancing there," Grey told them his plans. "I have no problems with that," Klaus said. "Same here," Reynolds agreed with Grey''s plan. "You all don''t have any problems with leaving, but I do," Alice said. "Didn''t you say your father agreed to hide with the rest of your family?" Klaus asked. "Yeah, but I can''t freely leave with the present situation. If it were before at least I''ll know the Emperor wouldn''t try to harm them, but now, the case is a little complicated," Alice said, a little worried for her family''s safety. "Hmm, that might be a cause for worry, but they should be fine, right?" Grey asked with uncertainty. "I can''t say for sure. If any of them were to be caught, it will mean the others will most likely come out to help as well," Alice said. "What do we do about it now?" Klaus asked. "The Principal is the only one in the Sage Plane expert on our side, so there''s no way we can fight against them head-on. If the Azure Empire weren''t looking for us as well, we might''ve teamed up with them. But presently, we''re hunted by all, having no allies, not even from our empire. Although I''m acquainted with the Lenz organization, there''s no way they would want to go against the four empires because of me," Grey accessed their options, and to be honest, it wasn''t really good. The expression of the others turn sour, Reynolds and Klaus were especially angry. "Who even found out about you acquiring the Great Earth Essence Liquid?" Klaus complained. "I have no idea, I can ask old man Gerald for help with that though. But that really isn''t our main concern," Grey replied. "Well, I''d like to have a heart-to-heart talk with whoever the person is," Klaus said. "That person is the cause of all our worries, it''s only right we paid whoever it is a visit," Reynolds added. "We''ll talk about that later, for now, settling the issue with Alice''s family comes first," Grey said. "You''re right, but I just want to make sure we put that person at the back of our minds," Klaus said. "We should go back to the Principal for now and hear what he says," Alice suggested. ¡­. Back at the town. "You shouldn''t worry about them, they wouldn''t come out so quickly after just going into hiding," The Principal said. The four youths nodded to the Principal''s words. "So what now?" Klaus asked. Staying under the waterfall alone for days made him extremely bored, if he doesn''t do anything exciting soon, he might go crazy. "We should head over to the location we agreed to rendezvous with Blake and Delia," The Principal said. The four youths stared at each other, helpless. Moving with the Principal will restrict them, well, only Klaus and Reynolds since they wouldn''t be able to do anything crazy. "Alright," Grey and Alice nodded. Klaus and Reynolds agreed begrudgingly. It wasn''t like they had any choice. "Good, we''ll be leaving tomorrow," The Principal smiled. The four of them nodded before getting up, just as they were about to leave, the Principal told Grey to stay behind. "Have you been able to find out anything about Chris?" The Principal asked. "Nothing, I asked old man Gerald to help me with it as well, but he found no traces of him. I think there''s a chance that he must''ve left the continent," Grey said. "Left the continent?" The Principal asked, Grey''s words piqued his interest. This was the first time he was hearing of someone leaving the continent. "Yes, I could be wrong as well. But since he couldn''t be found here, that''s most likely the case¡­" Grey went on to tell the Principal of the Aurora Continent. The Principal was someone he trusted, so there was no need in hiding it from him. "There''s another continent?" The Principal lost his previous calm expression. If what Grey is saying was accurate, then it was an eyeopener. Grey nodded to his question. After getting confirmation from Grey, the Principal couldn''t help but chuckle softly, "To think there''s a bigger world out there, and these fools are fighting for control over here," Grey didn''t go into too many details, but he told the Principal of the higher cultivation stages, as well as the higher elemental grades. Hearing about youngsters who were already at the Mid stages of the Sage Plane, the Principal was beyond stunned. If not for Grey''s help, he wouldn''t have broken through to the Sage Plane by now, yet, there were people who were only a few years older than his son and are already stronger than he was. "If I find out Chris is there, I''ll probably kill him," The Principal said, green with envy. What did all Elementalist desire? To grow stronger! If they were to find a place where they could quickly advance, they would all go there. This is the reason why the trial land was highly sought after. Sending youths with great potential there will give them the chance to bloom. From Grey''s words, the elemental essence in the Aurora Continent was higher and denser than that of the trial land. Grey compared the purity from the areas he had reached in the trial land. According to what was said, the deeper one goes into the trial land, the purer the elemental essence, but from the area he stopped, the Aurora Continent was better than the trial land in respect to elemental essence. Grey went to meet up with his friends after speaking with the Principal a little longer. The Principal asked if he had found his parents as well, and he told him the answer. The Principal suggested there was a possibility they might be in the Aurora Continent which was the same as Grey''s thoughts. That day soon came to an end. ¡­. The next day. The group prepared themselves to travel with the Principal, and just before they left the town, a terrible news got to them.. Instructor Blake and Delia had been caught by warriors from the Blue Wind Empire. Chapter 601 - To The Blue Wind Empire "How did you find out about this?" The Principal turned to Grey anxiously. "Old man Gerald told me about it a few minutes ago. I have a communication device that I use in talking to him," Grey replied. "Damn it!" Klaus clenched his fists angrily. "Can you confirm when they were caught?" The Principal asked calmly. They couldn''t rush into making any decisions since it might be a trap for them. Information is a valuable asset in their current situation, a simple misinformation could easily lead them into a trap. He didn''t doubt the credibility of the Lenz organization, but there''s also a chance that the Blue Wind Empire found a way to spread false information, and old man Gerald only told Grey out of his worry for him. "Alright," Grey nodded before communicating with old man Gerald. After a few minutes of silence, he told the Principal what old man Gerald said. When the Principal heard the location of where the duo was caught, his calm expression changed. If he was previously scared because of misinformation, now he was a hundred percent certain that they were caught. He originally sent the duo on an errand to meet up with a friend of his around the borders of the Blue Wind Empire. That was their destination. "That bastard, to think that he would betray me," The Principal said angrily. "What do we do now?" Grey asked the Principal. "I''m going to save them. They were caught last night, so there''s still hope for us before they are taken to the Capital. And since the Blue Wind Empire aren''t sure if any of you is in possession of the Great Earth Essence Liquid, they wouldn''t be too hard on them. They also know that Blake and Delia aren''t their targets. The only reason they were caught was their connection with me," The Principal said. "You can''t go alone father, we can help," Klaus rejected the idea of his father going alone. "Stay here and keep still, I can''t take the risk of taking you along. You''re the reason they were captured, you going there will put you in danger," The Principal looked at Klaus sternly. "That''s all the more reason I have to go. I can''t just stay here and watch as you head into a trap," Klaus said. "We might be of some use, sir," Grey stepped up as well. "No, you four will stay here and continue your training. Once I''ve settled things there, I''ll come back," The Principal said. "Staying close to you is safer, also, we can also render assistance if you need any. I have a special method of traveling, but I''ll have to set up an array first," Grey tried persuading. The Principal didn''t know of his space element, he could hide it under the guise of an array. The array used in entering the trial land will make things easier for him. After continuous persuasion from the group, the Principal finally agreed to let them come with him, only under the condition that they did exactly as he said. The group agreed to his condition, and they started their journey towards the border of the Qilin Empire, just by the Blue Wind Empire. Before they left, Grey made a teleportation array by the waterfall, so that they could use it in escaping at a desperate time. ¡­. Later that day. The group got to the border separating the Qilin and Blue Wind Empire. Since they could all fly, it didn''t take them too long. After four hours of constant flight, they got to their destination. When they got there, there were warriors from the Qilin Empire, walking around the woods, trying to locate spies from the Blue Wind Empire that were trying to cross into the empire. The Principal was able to easily hide his aura from the warriors, Grey and Void followed suit. The other three had a little difficulty with it, but the Principal waved his hands, and the problem was solved. Grey was in the midst of creating an array to help with hiding their aura, when he saw the Principal had already helped out, he stopped. With everything prepared, the group sneaked through the woods, entering into the Blue Wind Empire with no fuss. The Principal''s plan was for them to kidnap a warrior, then extract information from the said warrior. It didn''t take long before they found their first target, but it was unsuccessful. This person had no clue about Blake and Delia''s capture. The Principal quickly knocked out the warrior, before using his superior spiritual energy to try to manipulate the memories of the warrior. He couldn''t get information from it, he only wanted to erase the meeting between them. Killing the warrior would''ve been the easier option, but if this warrior were to be killed, it would alert the others that there was a threat in the woods. Since this wouldn''t be the only person they would interrogate, they couldn''t kill everyone they encountered. ¡­. Thirty minutes later. "We need to head deeper into the empire, I think only those at the Overlord Plane might have a clue about the whereabouts of the Instructors," Grey suggested after over thirty minutes of fruitless interrogations. The Principal agreed to his suggestion, and they started to head deep into the empire. According to the message they received, Instructor Blake and Delia were caught at the border of the Blue Wind Empire, and the Principal''s friend was also staying around there. The only reason they didn''t head to that spot immediately was the fear of it being crowded with people. Normally, he would have to go and search for Blake and Delia if they didn''t return soon, and his friend''s place was where he would go since that was where he sent them to. The only advantage they currently have is that no one knew he had broken through to the Sage Plane. When he helped Klaus the last time, he made sure to kill the person who captured him.. The only reason the news of the battle spread out was that some passersby were around. Chapter 602 - To The Blue Wind Empire II The group went further into the Blue Wind Empire, and before long, they left the woods, entering the normal road with a town not too far from it. It was naturally occupied by mostly warriors since it was close to the borders. The Principal went close to the town and spread out his spiritual senses, after thoroughly sweeping the place, he found the location of three different Overlord Plane Elementalists. One was in the Late stage, with the other two in the Mid stages. "I''ll take down the one in the Late stage, Grey, you and Klaus will take on one of those in the Mid stages, while Reynolds and Alice will take care of the other one," The Principal quickly divided them. Klaus and Reynolds were about to refute when they heard the Principal''s stern warning. "This is not a joke, it''s a matter of life and death. If any of you is caught, the consequences will be fatal to the rest of us," He said. "Don''t worry, father, I can take care of this person on my own, with Grey''s help, it''s a piece of cake," Klaus said. Alice reassured the Principal that she could keep Reynolds in check. After the Principal finished speaking with them, he left, heading towards the western part of the town. All three Overlord Plane Elementalists were positioned in three different parts of the town, and they were all at the edges. The Principal told the group that if they could, they should take down the warriors without making any fuss. With the element of surprise on their side, they shouldn''t have any problems with taking out someone who doesn''t even know they are coming. ¡­. In the southern part of the town. Grey and Klaus were sneaking through the road, hiding in plain sight. They hid their appearance and aura, so they weren''t recognized by the few townspeople they encountered. A few minutes later, they soon got to a small house that had the biggest courtyard they had seen in the town so far. "The expert should be here," Klaus whispered. "Yeah," Grey nodded while staring at the building, trying to pick out the exact location of the Overlord Plane Elementalist. There were almost six guards or so outside the building, ready to alarm the expert in case someone they couldn''t handle appeared. "Tell me once you get his location, I can immobilize him from here," Klaus said. He wasn''t interested in the four guards standing outside the building. Grey nodded, and a few seconds later, he gave Klaus the exact location and where to hit if he was going to attack. Klaus nodded before taking in a deep breath, "It''s been a while I used this," He placed his hand in front of him and a tiny needle made of ice started to form. The temperature around the ice needle was so low that the air seemed like it wanted to freeze. Even Grey who was standing close to Klaus couldn''t help but take a step back. ''His ice ability is beyond compare,'' Grey praised. He didn''t dare to speak it out loud given Klaus'' personality, he would brag about it for months. The ice needle stayed above Klaus'' palm for almost thirty seconds before it suddenly disappeared from view. Unlike Grey and Void''s space element, the ice needle disappeared as a result of its amazing speed, and it''s small size. Whoosh! The ice needle pierced through a small spot on the wall. It was so tiny that even if someone was standing there, they wouldn''t notice it. "Let''s go, the person''s immobilized," Klaus urged. Grey nodded before flickering, a few seconds later, a middle-aged lady was on his shoulder. Her body was completely white, and one could see chilled smoke coming from her body. With the lady on his shoulder, Grey and Klaus returned to the location they planned to meet up with the Principal. They were the first set to get there. A few minutes later, the Principal appeared with a lady tied on his arms, she was knocked out, but in a better situation compared to Grey and Klaus'' victim. When the Principal saw the duo already waiting for him, he was slightly taken aback. "How long have you been here?" He asked. "A few minutes ago," Grey replied. The Principal didn''t say anything further. Touching the lady on the ground, he realized she was out cold, like literally cold. He didn''t need anyone to tell him it was Klaus'' doing. They stayed for almost five minutes before Alice and Reynolds came back with a short man on their shoulder. The man was slightly black, which indicated that he had been zapped by lightning. "Alright, time to wake them up," The Principal said. After he sealed the cultivation of the trio, he woke them up. When the trio opened their eyes, their initial reaction was to try to move, but unfortunately, they realized they had been bound to a chair. They stared at the group and Grey and his friend''s face soon came into view. They looked at the faces with a sense of familiarity, seemingly trying to recall where they had seen the faces before. It didn''t take long before one of them recalled it. "To think you four would be so bold," The short man said coldly. "Saying this is quite funny when coming from you, have you seen your situation?" Klaus mocked. The Principal stepped forward to take control, "Where are the duo you people caught last night?" "What duo? We''ve captured a lot of people these past days," The man asked, feigning ignorance. "You can''t activate the array if that''s what you''re trying to do," The Principal''s aura went cold. When they went over to catch them, he found out about the array placed around the town. Now he understood why all three individuals were in their given locations, it was so they could activate a powerful killing array.. If a Peak stage Overlord Plane Elementalist were to be caught in it, then that person would surely meet their end. Chapter 603 - Destination, Blue Wind Empires Capital "You have only one option right now, either you talk, or I forcefully read your minds," The Principal said. The trio looked at each other, all knowing the risk that came with what the Principal wanted to do. If there was so little as a simple mistake, then they might lose their minds. "Isn''t that a little too excessive?" The Late stage Overlord Plane Elementalist asked. "Tell me what I want, and I''ll let you three go," The Principal said. "Who are you talking about?" The Late stage Overlord Plane asked in defeat. He just couldn''t take the risk of having the Principal forcibly go through his memories. It was not an easy skill, and he had heard of countless people losing their minds after this was done on them. Some even become brain dead. The Principal nodded after seeing them agree, he told them of Blake and Delia, and the expression of the trio showed that they had a clue of their whereabouts. "So it''s you people from the Qilin Empire, I should''ve guessed," One of the Mid stage Overlord Plane Elementalists said. "Yes, now, tell us where they are if you want to keep your lives," The Principal didn''t hide their identity since asking for the whereabouts of Instructor Blake and Delia had already given them away. "Wait, that means you four are the youngsters the Emperors are all searching for?" The Late stage Overlord Plane Elementalist pointed at Grey and his friends. "Tell us what we need to know," The Principal didn''t allow the youths to speak. It was unnecessary. "They are being taken to the Capital. If I''m not wrong, they should be there by now," The man in the Late stage said. "Alright," The Principal nodded before quickly tapping on the shoulders of all three men. They suddenly felt the strength leave their bodies as they collapsed to the ground. Just as they were about to leave, Grey gave them another piece of information. "The Emperor just sent out Sage Plane Elementalists after us. They have also heard of the capture of the Instructors and are on their way there now," Grey said, expecting this from the Emperor. Since he crippled the princes and princesses, he had been waiting for the reaction of the Emperor, and he finally got it. The only issue they have now is that there is only one Sage Plane Elementalist on their side, and he is only in the First stage whereas the Emperor has people in the Second or even the Third stage. "Hmph! They''re lucky I didn''t kill the princes and princesses," Alice snorted coldly. "This might be to our advantage," Klaus suddenly said. "Huh?" Everyone turned to look at him. He went on to explain, "Since my elder brother has already been taken to the Capital, it would be extremely difficult for us to retrieve him, unless there''s a way Void or Grey can easily sneak in and out. But if the Sage Plane Plane Elementalists from the Qilin Empire were to get in a brawl with the Sage Plane Elementalists from the Blue Wind Empire, it would make things easy for us," "Grey and Void''s ability thrive in chaotic situations, and a battle on that scale is the best thing," He added. The Principal still didn''t know of Grey and Void''s space element, but he knew Klaus wouldn''t carelessly send his friends to die. "Hmm, we should get there first. Once we see the situation, we''ll decide if to use that method or I''ll take the risk of going in," The Principal said. "Alright," The youngsters all nodded in agreement. The Principal stared at the three men, before tying them to a tree. He promised to let them live if they told him the whereabouts of Blake and Delia, but they never told him in what condition. With their cultivation crippled, it would take a miracle for them to untie themselves. They left the woods, heading into the main empire. They quickly got a map to know their destination and hurried there. The Principal hoped the group taking Blake and Delia to the Capital was a little slow, so they could catch up with them. He made a route from his friend''s place, and the path he felt the people would take. Since they were all flying, they traveled thousands of kilometers in a matter of seconds. After what seemed like ages, they finally got to the city before the Capital. From the map, and the Principal''s route, the group taking Blake and Delia to the Capital will most likely go through this city. "I''ll ask around if they stopped by, you four should stay put," The Principal said before vanishing into the crowd that was heading into the city. Unlike Grey and his friends, he didn''t have his poster hung all over. And since he was in the Sage Plane, he had a better chance of escaping. "Damn it, these people are annoying," Klaus complained. "I still don''t understand why they are doing this," Reynolds said. "They see us as potential threats, people who can endanger their present reign. As you can see, they are all trying to take control of all four empires, and we four are an anomaly that can''t be trusted," Alice explained. "Well, I''m not in any way interested in their power scuffle," Reynolds said. "Yeah, but do you think the Emperors will believe you?" Klaus asked. "Even if we vow not to get involved in anything they do, they will always see us as threats. Haven''t you heard of how they kill any person that has elemental grades higher than blue?" Alice rubbed her head. "The Emperor is a moron, he should''ve treated us kindly, I mean, that is what I would''ve done," Reynolds cursed the thinking of the Emperor. "I can''t really say what''s going through the Emperor''s head, but I believe he did this because he felt we''re already at a level he couldn''t control any longer.. Especially given what has been going on with my Teacher," Grey said. Chapter 604 - Preparations For War The group waited for the Principal in the woods for about thirty minutes or so before he returned. "They passed through not too long ago," The Principal said with a resigned look. If it was possible, he wanted to avoid a confrontation with any of the Sage Plane Elementalists, nor did he want to endanger Grey or Void since sneaking into where Blake and Delia were kept would be a little dangerous. "They must''ve already gotten to the Capital by now," Alice said. "Most likely," The Principal said before turning to Grey, "Is there a way we can track the movements of those old bones coming from the empire?" "I''m not too sure, I''ll ask old man Gerald," Grey brought out the communication device old man Gerald gave him and sent a message to him. He waited for almost fifteen minutes before he got a reply, and even though they didn''t get the accurate location, they knew the Sage Plane experts were already close to the Blue Wind Empire, and from what they heard, the Qilin Empire seems to be launching an all-out attack on the Blue Wind Empire. From what old man Gerald said, not just the Qilin Empire, but all four empires were preparing for a major battle, and it seems like the capture of Instructor Blake and Delia was the catalyst. The war has been going on for months now, and the empires are looking to resolve it once and for all. One of the factors pushing this battle was the acquisition of Blake and Delia, whoever has them has a high chance of capturing Klaus or any of the other trio. "What now?" Reynolds asked. "Since they''re preparing for a battle, it means we can''t act rashly. The Azure Empire will most likely be with the Blue Wind Empire on this,"?? The Principal said. "Who do you think will take us if captured, the Blue Wind Empire, or the Azure Empire?" Klaus asked. "What are you saying?" Alice questioned, not happy with Klaus'' question. His question drew the attention of everyone. "I mean, think about it, the Blue Wind Empire is currently allied with the Azure Empire, but we all know there''s a catch to it. If there''s truly a way for them to extract our elemental cores, that means they will want to use it for themselves," Klaus went on to explain. "Given the ambition of the Azure Empire, if they obtain them, then they would also wipe out the Blue Wind Empire as well," Grey completed Klaus'' analysis. "Correct, and the Blue Wind Empire is also aware of this," Klaus said. After hearing Klaus and Grey''s words, the others nodded in agreement. Things will get even more chaotic since the Blue Wind Empire already has the advantage thanks to the capture of Blake and Delia. "We should head to the Capital for now, if there''s an opportunity for us to take back the duo, we will," The Principal said. Just as they were about to leave, Grey''s communication amulet given to him by old man Gerald vibrated. He brought it out of his spatial ring and sent his spiritual senses inside. When he heard the content of the message, he stared at the people in front of him wide-eyed. Seeing his reaction, the others couldn''t help but feel a sense of worry. "What''s wrong?" Alice asked. "The Instructors," Grey said slowly. The hearts of everyone sank when they realized what he wanted to say had to do with the Instructors. "Yes, what happened to Blake and Delia?" The Principal asked anxiously. "They¡­ escaped," Grey said, still unsure of what to feel. "Haha, that''s good news. Why are you acting like this if that''s the news?" Reynolds laughed before lightly hitting Grey on his shoulder for scaring them. "You don''t get it, if the Instructors were captured, it meant people stronger than they were present there. These people will naturally be the ones to take them back to the Capital, so escaping is not going to be easy, especially when they were already within a few hundred meters of the Capital," Grey explained his worries. "Do you think it''s false information?" The Principal asked. "Old man Gerald would not tell me about this if the source isn''t at least seventy percent accurate. Of course I don''t fully trust him, it''s best we head to the Capital to find out for ourselves. According to what he said, a battle broke out just before the Capital and the Instructors used the chance to escape," Grey replied. "Alright, it''s not like we have any other choices anyway," The Principal and the others nodded. Grey found the escape of the Instructors somewhat suspicious. If these people were as valuable as they make them be, there''s no way the people taking them back to the Capital will get careless. ''There''s something fishy about their escape,'' Grey said to Void telepathically. ''What do you plan to do?'' Void asked. ''If possible, we''ll question the Instructors when we find them,'' Grey answered. ''Okay,'' Void replied, ''Oh Grey,'' ''Hmm?'' Grey looked at Void. ''Did you know that I love fish?'' Void asked. ''Uhmmm¡­ no,'' Grey thought for a while before responding. ''Okay, now you do. Once we''re done with this, it''ll be nice if we had fish,'' Void licked his lips as he said. Grey shook his head, at a time like this, Void was still thinking about food. The group soon started their journey to the Capital. That''s the only place they could get confirmation of the Instructors'' escape. The risk has gone up a notch since people would be searching all over for the Instructors. This meant that the chances of them being found were also high. Their only chance of escaping is that the person who finds them is not in the Sage Plane, so the Principal could take care of them. ¡­. Presently, all four empires were preparing for war, and there was unrest in the cities of all empires, especially the Blue Wind Empire. The main battle would be taking place around the Blue Wind Empire due to them having Instructor Blake and Delia. According to reports, the warriors of the Qilin Empire would get to the borders of the Blue Wind Empire in a few hours. Chapter 605 - Locating Blake And Delia Blue Wind Empire. Outside the Capital. The Principal and the group just got there after only about thirty minutes or so. They could''ve gotten here sooner, but the number of Elementalists in the Overlord Plane they encountered was far greater than their expectations. The increase meant that the report of Blake and Delia escaping was accurate. The Principal was beside himself with joy. Now he didn''t have to worry about their well-being. "Should we join in the search for them?" Klaus asked. "I''ll be able to find them soon, I just need to get a general overview of this area. Pass me the map," The Principal said confidently. Klaus gave him the map that was in his possession. The Principal looked at the map for almost five minutes before finally making a move. "I know where they are, follow me," He said to youngsters. Grey and the others exchanged glances before following the Principal. The Principal was currently headed in the other direction, contrary to where most of the Elementalists were searching. They soon got to where the Capital was located, going past it. Just like most of the cities in the Azure Continent, the Capital of the Blue Wind Empire was also surrounded by forests. The Principal headed to the forest behind the Capital, when he got there, he did a quick sweep of the place. "Got them, let''s go," The Principal said before rushing into the forest. The youngsters followed behind him, impressed at how quickly he was able to find the duo. They''ve escaped for over thirty minutes now, and the Blue Wind Empire has called out an array of people to search for them, yet it took the Principal only a few minutes of looking at a map, and he has already found them. There were a few people searching this area, but the group didn''t have any issues with putting them down. They were only in the Early and Mid stages of the Overlord Plane, their job was to signal the others in case the duo was found in this area. Going up against an enraged Sage Plane Elementalist, of course they stood no chance. A cave deep in the forest behind the Capital. The Principal and the group could be seen walking into the cave. After multiple twists and turns, the Principal stopped in front of a dead-end, he lightly tapped on the wall, and it came crashing down. When the wall crashed down, a tunnel was revealed to the group. "Always so cautious," The Principal chuckled as they walked into the tunnel. The group followed behind him and they encountered three more places like this before an attack came crashing in their direction when the fourth wall was destroyed. The Principal was already prepared for this, he stretched out his hands, and clamped onto the lightning spear coming their way. "Is this how you greet your Teacher?" He asked after the dust settled. "Teacher, it''s you!" Blake''s voice could be heard from inside the cave. "Who else?" The Principal asked with a smile finally appearing on his face since hearing about the capture of the duo. "The Principal?" Delia''s soft voice resonated from the cave. "Yes, it''s me, how are you doing?" The Principal stepped into the cave to welcome the sight of the duo in each other''s embrace. "I''m okay, he made sure nothing happened to me," Delia replied. Cough! Cough! Klaus coughed as he walked into the cave, grinning from ear to ear, beside him was Reynolds who was also smiling widely. Alice had a soft smile on her face, while Grey was the only one who had his usual blank expression. When Delia saw Klaus and the others coming in, she quickly left Blake''s embrace, her face red from embarrassment. She was already used to Klaus'' teasing, but this was the first time she was with Blake while other youngsters were present. Of everyone, Grey''s poker face made her feel a little odd. "For someone who has such a handsome face, you rarely smile," Delia commented on Grey''s facial expression. "Hello, Instructors," Grey greeted the duo with a soft smile. Even though he was acquainted with the duo, he still wasn''t a hundred percent free around them. "How are you?" Blake asked. "I''m okay," Grey replied gently. Alice and the others shook their heads when they saw how quiet Grey was. "How did you escape?" The Principal asked after they were done with greetings. "Someone attacked the carriage taking us to the Capital, and we used the opportunity to escape. The binds they used in holding us weren''t strong from the start. Although they sealed our cultivation, I''ve learned a thing or two from you over the years," Blake explained calmly. "Haha, that''s my boy," The Principal laughed happily. "Teacher, how did you find us?" Blake asked. "You''re my student, of course finding you will be easy," The Principal said. Klaus went on to tell Blake of how his father managed to locate them just from looking at the map. Blake wasn''t too surprised since the Principal was the one who taught him almost everything he knew in life. "What''s happening now?" The Principal turned to Grey. Grey brought out the amulet old man Gerald gave to him. After a few minutes, he was given the news of the warriors from the Qilin Empire already getting close to the borders of the Blue Wind Empire. The Emperor of the Blue Wind Empire had already called all the experts from the empire to head to the borders. When the group heard of what was happening, they couldn''t help but gasp in shock, especially Blake and Delia. "What the hell is going on?" Blake asked, stunned. "A war, that''s what''s going on," Klaus replied. "But I never thought it had gotten to that stage yet," Blake said. Klaus used the opportunity to explain to them, telling them how their capture was the cause of the current all-out war. "Are they that desperate?" Delia asked. "So it seems," Grey replied. Chapter 606 - Unknown Danger ''We should head back to the Qilin Empire, it is the safest place for us now," The Principal said. The others agreed to his words, after all, staying in the Blue Wind Empire was a little bit too risky. "Alright, we''ll be going straight to the waterfall in that town," Grey stood up to say. "There''s a way we can get there instantly?" The Principal asked. Even though he heard of Grey and the others speaking about it, he still found it to be absurd. How could one just appear in another location instantaneously? It just doesn''t seem plausible. "Yeah, stand back," Grey nodded before he stepped forward. He soon started to make an array, quickly drawing the lines in the cave. Within a few minutes, he was done. Given their numbers, it would take quite a lot of stones to teleport them back to the Qilin Empire. Grey brought out hundreds of essence stones before placing around fifty in eight different positions in the array? he was done with that, he told the others to stand in the array. Klaus and his friends stepped in without hesitation, the Principal, Blake, and Delia had some doubts in their hearts but still stepped in any way. Grey did some hand seals and the array lit up, the group was covered by a bright white light before they suddenly vanished from the position. The lights of the array died down, as well as the array lines. Whenever Grey makes these arrays, he always makes sure that only when they are under use can they be seen. Qilin Empire. In a town close to the borders. At the waterfall. An array suddenly appeared on the ground, before lighting up. Grey and his friends soon appeared after the light died dowm "Wow! Impressive!" Klaus and Alice exclaimed. This was the first time they were using this array, and seeing how fast it made traveling seem, they couldn''t hide their excitement, The Principal exchanged glances with Blake and Delia, completely blown away. Reynolds was the only one who had a normal expression, he even stared at Klaus as if he was looking at a villager. "How''s this possible?" The Principal couldn''t hold in his curiosity any longer. "It''s the same as the array used in going into the trail land. I picked up a thing or two about it while I was there," Grey hid the existence of the space element from the Principal. "That''s something else, learning something like this just from using the array once. You''re truly a genius," The Principal praised. Grey smiled softly without replying. After staying at the place for a while, they decided to head back to the town. There was an apartment the Principal was staying in when he was here. Blue Wind Empire. The Capital City, in the castle. The moment Grey and the others teleported from the cave to the Qilin Empire, some figures sitting in a dark room stood up in shock, "HoWs this possible?" One of the figures covered with a cloak asked as he stared at the light dot on the table which was on the other end of the table. The dot went from one place to another in a matter of seconds, and given the distance, it was impossible for anyone, even those in the Sage Plane to move that quickly. "Is this for real?" Another person asked. After the sudden quick movement, the current movement of the light dot showed that it was still working perfectly. "There''s a way they moved from our empire to the Qilin Empire in an instant. This will be a problem if they can do it again when surrounded," An old croaked voice said. *''Let''s find a way to get there first," Someone else said. "The Qilin Empire is really pushing it, once we get those boys, they will all be sorry," A young voice said with gritted teeth. The people finally agreed on what to do before leaving the secret room. The light dot they were monitoring was something like a tracking device Grey made, but it was a little bit different. From their conversation, it was easy to see that the person they were tracking was none other than Instructor Blake and Delia. Qilin Empire. Back at the town. The group had gotten to the house the Principal brought them to. According to their plan, they would hide here for now, getting information from old man Gerald. Once things settle down, then they would head to the Aurora Continent. Given the present growth of the youths, in a year or two, they should be able to break through to the Sage Plane. As long as they don''t die, then they would be able to move freely in the continent without fear of being attacked by anyone. If they wanted, they could even get revenge on all the people that caused trouble for them. The next day. Grey and the Principal were still inside the house, getting updates from old man Gerald. According to him, a small-scale battle broke out yesterday, but it was quickly stopped. But from how things were going, a greater battle will take place today or tomorrow. There was no way for them to sit and talk about the situation. The Qilin Empire demanded the Instructors, but the Blue Wind Empire told them they didnt know the whereabouts of the Instructors. Even after getting confirmation, the Qilin Empire refused to accept it. They felt since the Blue Wind Empire could capture them, then of course they could easily keep them hostage. Their escape might just be a pretense to get the others off their backs, making them feel as if they didn''t have them, whereas, they already have them locked in a dungeon. The group all felt relaxed, thankful for Greys splendid work. Being able to take them from the Blue Wind Empire without a hitch, they didn''t even have to worry about encountering anyone. As things stand, all they had to do was wait out the war before going to a more secluded place and living for a few years there. Alice suggested they left now, but the Principal felt given the movements of the troops, they might be noticed. After all, they were at the borders of the empire, not too far away from where the battle would take place. There was no way anyone would believe that they were this close to where the battle was taking place. Two days went by in a flash. The battle had already started, with casualties on all sides. The Stellar Empire had also sent troops to the other side of the Blue Wind Empire, trying to make a pincer attack with the aid of the Qilin Empire. However, the Azure Empire stepped out as welli rushing to the aid of the Blue Wind Empire. The battle was currently in a stalemate, but this was because the Sage Plane Elementalists hadn''t gotten involved yet, In respects to Sage Plane Elementalists, the Azure Empire is said to have more given their old history. The Qilin Empire is said to be on almost the same level as them, but only when the battles start will they know who is stronger. Old man Gerald was constantly giving the group updates on the battlefield which has helped them. The Principal knew old man Gerald, but he wasn''t really close to him. After asking about the relationship between the duo, he found out it was all because of Chris who was still missing The whereabouts of Chris has been giving him a headache for a while now. It has been over a year now since he left, yet there has been no news from him whatsoever. Even with the war going on, there was still no news of him. The thought of Chris actually being in the Aurora Continent started to dawn on him. It would not be a bad idea to go there since according to Grey it was a good place for them to grow stronger. It is said to be even faster than the trial land, and the Principal was tempted by it. The battlefield. The Blue Wind Empire''s camp. In one of the tents. Eight figures could be seen sitting in a round table. Five of them were wearing black cloaks that covered their faces, while the other three wore white clothes. Of the three, one of them was a youth in his early twenties, one was in his mid thirties, while the last was a well built middle-aged man with long beards. "How are things going?" The middle-aged man asked. "We''ve been unable to get into the Qilin Empire. Their Sage Plane Elementalists are vigilant, and we?ve not been given the chance to go through," One of the cloaked men replied. "It''s okay, just keep monitoring their positions. And make sure you don''t alert the others, we can''t have the Azure Empire finding out about this," The middle-aged man ordered. The cloaked men bowed before leaving the tent, leaving the other three alone.. Chapter 607 - The Emperor Of The Blue Wind Empire After the departure of the cloaked men. "Father, do you thinkwe can tr''ust these people?" The youngest amongst the trio asked. "There''s no need to worry. Although they are mysterious, I have a hundred percent confidence in them. Over the past years, they''ve been helping me out with the issues of the kingdom," The middle-aged man replied calmly. understand, it''s just that, I tend to get this eerie feeling just by looking at them," The youngest said. "It''s because this is your first time speaking with them. Take your brother for example, he''s not bothered by their presence. If you''re going to be an important figure in the empire''s future, then you have to know them, their strength is not something to joke with," The middle- aged man advised. "Alright, father," The young man bowed his head before leaving This was the first time he was seeing his father''s special guards, and to be honest, he was quite frightened by them. For someone his age, he never once thought he would be scared of someone he hadn''t even seen fight before. With the young man gone, two people were left in the tent. "Father, do you know where they are from?" The man in his mid-thirties spoke up. "l''ve asked a couple of times, but they''ve never given me a clear answer. The only good news is that since I helped them when they were in danger, they felt indebted to me. With their help, we should be able to take control of this war, even without those youths. Also, they are the people who suggested the method of removing the cores," The middle-aged man said. "Alright father, but they''re a risk factor as well. Given their knowledge, they should have a high cultivation stage, but they are still at the Peak of the Overlord Plane," The man asked suspiciously. "Don''t dwell too much on this, it might cause you more harm than good," The middle-aged man warned. "Alright, father," The man in his thirties bowed before leaving the tent as well. When everyone left, the eyes of the middle-aged man suddenly went dark and it seemed as if he had lost all intelligence. Dark lines started to crawl all across his body. Black smoke rose up from the side before a man who looked exactly like the middle-aged man appeared from the ground, his figure was dried up, and he couldn''t stand straight. This chapter is updated by https://freewebnovel.com "Kekeke, this technique is impressive, who would''ve thought there''s such a miraculous thing in this world?" The man walked around his other self, examining the figure. The five men appeared soon after from a fog of black smoke as well. "You said you''ll give us a large number of Sage Plane Elementalists, where are they?" One of the cloaked men asked. "Don''t be in a hurry my friends, youtve already taken down all the Sage Plane Elementalists from my empire. With your strength, you can also take down the ones from the other three empires," The middle-aged man said.. "IVs not as easy as you think Without your help, the ambush wouldn''t have gone as planned. Also, I think I''ve found out how that person left your empire to the Qilin Empire instantaneously," One of the figures said. "Oh, do tell then," The middle-aged man said. ''There''s a Space Elementalist amongst them who is also good at arrays. You might not know of this, but from where we''re from, these people are the most difficult to deal with. The reason I didn''t think of it at first was that it never crossed my mind that someone like that would also be here," The cloaked figure explained. "A Space Elementalist?" The middle-aged man asked in shock. "Yes, they have the ability to manipulate the space around them and travel thousands of kilometers with nothing more than a blink. If they can create an array, then they can easily travel through all these empires in a matter of minutes," The cloaked figure explained, "That''s extraordinary, how come you don''t have any?" The middle-aged man was impressed by their description of a Space Elementalist. "If they want to escape, then it is almost impossible to hold them back. All Space Elementalists can be said to be first rated escape specialists," The cloaked figure said. The middle-aged man went silent for a while, accessing his options, "Either way, we don''t have to worry too much. I''ll think of a way to draw over one or two of the Sage Plane Elementalists from the Azure Empire, you guys should be able to deal with them then, right?" "That''s easy. We already have over five Sage Plane corpses, they can quickly take down a single person," One of the cloaked figures said. "Alright, that will be all for now. The battle is still ongoing, and I need to feed off the death essence spreading across the battlefield. In a few days, I should be able to break through to the Sage Plane myself," The middle-aged man said with sharp eyes. "It is good that you''ve grown this much," One of the figures placed his hand on the shoulder of the middle-aged man. "It''s all thanks to your help, Teacher," The middle-aged man bowed respectfully. "Alright, we should get going now. I believe the duo should be with their friends right now. The cores of those youths will be very tasty," The middle-aged man bowed respectfully as the group faded into the fog, disappearing, His eyes turned cold after their departure. ''I''ll kill you all for killing uncle, just you wait until I get to the Sage Plane,'' He thought with gritted teeth, With the figures gone, he too started to fade away. The figure that looked exactly like him started to regain life once again, before walking to the bed in the tent to take a nap. In the entire Azure Continent, only a few people have encountered these five cloaked men and survived, this middle-aged man was one of them. Surprisingly, he is also the Emperor of the Blue Wind Empire, taking control after the untimely death of his father.. Chapter 608 - Get Out Of There! Grey and his friends were still staying in the town close to the borders. It has been five days now since the war started, and things had started to heat up. Even though they weren''t too close to the battlefield, they could feel the vibrations from the impact caused by the attacks. "Father, don''t you think it will be best for us if we leave this place? Some of the townspeople are already moving out," Klaus suggested. "No, from what I know, the Qilin Empire has the upper hand and is slowly forcing the forces of the Blue Wind Empire back. If any of us is seen, it would be disastrous for us," The Principal rejected Klaus'' idea. "Hmm, alright father," Klaus replied with a dull expression. Honestly, the more he has to hide, the more hatred he develops for all four empires searching for them. Out of boredom, they"ve even pressured Grey to ask old man Gerald about the identity of the young man who exposed Grey having the Great Earth Essence Liquid. It didn''t take a day before the report was given to them. Klaus and Reynolds planned on giving this person a slow death, making sure he suffers for all their present sufferings. Grey had been working on his arrays lately, for some reason, he had been getting an uneasy feeling, it was as if he could sense something bad wanted to happen, but he didn''t know what it was. He wasn''t the only one getting this feeling, even Void was feeling the same. At first, he thought it might be as a result of their connection, but Void said he could sense an eerie aura, something vile. Grey on the other hand couldn''t sense it. Grey told the others of his feelings, and they brushed it to the side, saying it was a result of the current war going on, and them being so close to it. Even the Principal didn''t think too much of it, only somewhat increasing his vigilance, Grey finally decided it was best to send Void out, this was the best thing to do. With Void''s abilities and his size, it would be impossible for anyone to notice him, As long as no one notices him, he could give Grey all the latest updates happening on the battlefield. With Void gone, Grey decided it would be best to make a teleportation array in the house they were staying in. This will help them in case of any mishaps. There are multiple places they could go within seconds, so it was better to be prepared. more days went by. The vibrations from the battlefield were getting stronger by the day: Void had been keeping Grey updated about the battle while the others were lazing around or training. The Principal was trying to see if he could make any advances in his cultivation while they were here. Klaus and Reynolds were lazing around as expected, with Alice mostly training. ent. A week of constant battle and the Qilin Empire is said to have advanced considerably into the territory of the Blue Wind Empire. From what old man Gerald said, things were not going too well for the Blue Wind Empire. On the same day, Grey got a piece of news that surprised him, and he was forced to call on the others. ''The Azure Empire has joined the Stellar and Qilin Empire in attacking the Blue Wind Empire''s troops," Grey reported to the others. "What?" The Principal and the others exclaimed in disbelief.. "According to Void, the forces of the Blue Wind Empire at the borders close to the Qilin Empire had started retreating the previous day, this was as a result of the Azure Empire suddenly attacking them..." Grey went on to explain the situation to them. There was a misunderstanding between the Azure Empire and the Blue Wind Empire and it caused a rift between the partnership of the two empires. According to old man Gerald, the Azure Empire demanded for the Instructors, but the Blue Wind Empire said they didn''t have them. Of course the Azure Empire thought the Blue Wind Empire only said this because they wanted to be the ones to capture Grey and his friends. "lsntt this a little bit too risky for the Azure Empire? If they were to eliminate the Blue Wind Empire, then they would lose their only ally. The Qilin and Stellar Empires would be able to easily take them down with a pincer attack," Blake said after Grey finished with his report. "That''s what everyone is saying, but the Azure Empire is acting strangely, as if possessed by something," Grey replied. "Hmm, this is getting a little complicated. Do you think it''s a plan from both empires to confuse the others?" The Principal asked. "It might be, but there have been some heavy casualties on the side of the Blue Wind Empire as a result of this. If this truly is a plan between the two empires, then I feel sorry for those pawns who had to die unnecessary deaths," Grey replied. The fighters of the Blue Wind Empire were dying from being overwhelmed by the numbers, there was no way the Emperor of the empire would be that selfish and evil. "You''re right, even the Qilin Empire wouldn''t carelessly fall for this. They will exercise caution as they advance," The Principal said. The group was still in the middle of their conversation when Grey suddenly felt a surge of uneasiness. It was like a dark, eerie feeling overwhelmed him. Everyone sensed his sudden change and turned to him. "Is everything alright?" Klaus was the first to asle ''Grey, get out of there now! Some terrifying people are coming,'' Grey received a panicked message from Void at the same moment. ''What... what are you saying?'' He asked. ''Leave that place, go anywhere else, I''ll find a way to come to you,'' Void urged. Grey didn''t think about it anymore and instantly tried to activate the teleportation array in the building. He had already placed all the stones needed just for a scenario like this. But his expression changed drastically when it didn''t work.. Chapter 609 - Spatial Lockdown Chapter 609 - Spatial Lockdown "It''s not working," Grey muttered as he tried activating the array again. Just like the first time, it didn''t work as well. "Damn it!" Grey exclaimed in frustration. "Grey, what''s going on?" The Principal was the first to notice something was wrong before Grey''s sudden show of annoyance. "The spatial array in the building is not working," Grey answered. "Is that bad?" The Principal asked with a downcast expression. He didn''t really know what Grey was speaking about, but before he reacted this way, it meant it was probably a bad thing. "Very, someone must''ve thought of a way to stop us," Grey as he tried to sense the area around them. He was unable to notice anyone. But he knew for a fact that someone or even some people were around the building. "What do we do now?" Klaus asked. "We''ll have to think of a way to stop whoever blocked this spatial array thingy Grey''s speaking about. Once we''re done, we''ll leave this place since it''s been compromised," The Principal didn''t take long before coming to a decision. "I don''t think things will be that easy since they could successfully stop us from teleporting out of here, it means they''re not people we can take lightly. In fact, I''m at least ninety percent sure that they are from the Aurora Continent since they know of the space element," Grey replied after giving it some thought. The only people who knew of the space element, and ways to counter it are from the Aurora Continent. "Hmm, what do you mean by the space element?" Blake asked. Grey didn''t hide the existence of the space element from the trio any longer. After his explanation, the faces of the Principal, Instructor Blake, and Delia were one of incredible shock. "Wait, what?" The Principal as well as Instructor Blake and Delia asked in surprise. This was their first time hearing of the space element. "I''ll explain more about it later. But all you should know is that it''s the only reason we were able to leave the Blue Wind Empire without any hassle. Naturally, I made another array here in case any unforeseen issues arise," Grey responded. "Let''s go out and see our visitors," The Principal said to the others. They nodded before following the Principal outside. As soon as the Principal stepped outside, he sensed something that made him stop to look around. "There''s an eerie feeling around the entire town," He murmured while staring around. "Something''s wrong," Klaus said when he didn''t hear the voice of any of the townspeople. "Yes, I can''t sense any living thing within a kilometer," The Principal said with furrowed brows. This was a strange situation. Even though the war was happening thousands of kilometers away, there have been a few people who decided to leave early. When the others heard the news that the Qilin Empire had started to enter the territory of the Blue Wine Empire, they felt reassured that the war wouldn''t reach this town, so they decided to stay. But for some reason, no living person could be sensed by anyone from the group. ''Void, where are you?'' Grey asked. ''I''m on my way there, at least in three minutes time or so I should be there,'' Void replied. ''Why did you urge me to leave?'' Grey tried to see if Void knew the people they were about to face. ''Unfortunately, no. I only had a terrible feeling. Also, I sensed an aura that I''ve sensed in the Aurora Continent before, I just can''t figure it out,'' Void replied. ''It''s alright. The spatial zone here has been locked, so there''s no way to use the space element here. I don''t know how far it covers. Try to figure it out before coming,'' Grey said. ''Alright,'' Void replied. They were going against an enemy they knew nothing about, but this enemy seems to have a good technique to stop them from leaving. Now, all they could do was rely on the Principal. "What''s this dark fog circulating around?" Alice asked when she noticed the faint dark fog. "Huh?" Her question brought everyone''s attention to the faint black fog around. If one didn''t look properly, they wouldn''t notice it. The Principal studied it for only a second before his expression changed, "Don''t inhale it. It''s extremely toxic. Luckily, Alice noticed it sooner, if we took in any more, then we would''ve died without even fighting against whoever our opponent is," "Doesn''t that mean all the townspeople are dead?" Delia asked with a sad expression. "Unfortunately, yes. Given the strength of their bodies, it''s impossible for them to survive after inhaling this fog for a minute," The Principal replied. "We should get going," He added. "Sir," Grey called on the Principal to stop. Seeing that he had stopped, he continued, "Can we wait for a minute longer? Void''s trying to see how far this restriction is. Knowing the limitations of this lockdown will at least give us a certain amount of precautionary measure," "Hmm, alright. Once he''s done, we''ll leave," The Principal said. He still didn''t know how Grey was communicating with Void who was nowhere to be seen, but he trusted Grey. Although Grey tends to hide things from him, when he saw the expressions of Grey''s friends when he was speaking of the space element, he could tell that they knew of it. When thinking of this, a thought suddenly came to his head. Since Grey knew so much about this space element, it only means that he has it as well. If he recalled properly, Grey already had three elements he knew of, lightning, earth, and the fire element he somehow managed to acquire back at the trial land. Now with the addition of this space element, it meant Grey had four elements. That was insane! A few minutes later. ''Hey, so I''ve got the exact range of the lockdown. It''s around two and a half kilometers. However, it''s weaker once you go past the one-and-a-half-kilometer mark. You can find a way to escape once you''ve gone past there,'' Void explained. "Okay, we can go now," Grey said. Chapter 611 - He’s One Of Us! "Hmm, okay," The Principal nodded. He still hasn''t been able to get the actual strength of the corpses since they haven''t made any moves yet. "Stay here, I''ll try to see the extent of their strength. If you see things get difficult for me, run," The Principal said before going forward. The others understood what he meant, so they didn''t try to follow him, rather, they even took a few steps back. Lightning could be seen moving across the Principal''s body, with a flash, he suddenly disappeared, appearing in the middle of the corpses. The moment he appeared, he attacked, sending out a powerful bolt of lightning that went in all directions. The impact of the attack forced the corpses back, but three of them only retreated five steps back before keeping their balance once again. They raised their heads to look at the Principal, and their blank eyes suddenly showed with brilliance. Each corpses'' eyes glowed with a different color which represented their elements. One of them was red, the other blue, while the last was green. Swoosh! A wind storm suddenly rose up from nowhere, trying to throw the Principal into the air. ''Three Sage Plane Elementalists, but they''re weaker than I am individually. Five Peak Overlord Plane Elementalists that are still weaker than your average Overlord Plane Elementalist. Blake is the only one close to the Peak of the Overlord Plane, the others wouldn''t be able to keep up with four on their own,'' The Principal accessed their current situation as he kept himself still on the ground, not allowing the wind to take him up. He could barely fight against the three Sage Plane corpses on his own, but other than Blake, there was no one else close to the Peak of the Overlord Plane. Delia was still in the Mid stages of the Overlord Plane being in the Sixth stage. If she and the others teamed up, they would be able to hold out against two at most. The remaining two would be able to cause them a serious problem. Buzz! The Principal covered himself with lightning before disappearing from sight. He appeared in front of the group within a second, and he quickly told them his assessment of the situation. "I''ll hold all of them back, you guys should run. I have a good chance of escaping if I''m alone," He said. The others nodded, this was their only option anyway. Buzz! Bang! The Principal attacked, but the attack was blocked by a fire attack from one of the corpses that was a Fire Elementalist. The other two at the Sage Plane also attacked as well, blocking the escape route of the group. The five corpses at the Overlord Plane also came into the fray, attacking the group. The Principal did his best to protect the others. Instructor Blake didn''t stay idle, attacking one of the corpses at the Peak of the Overlord Plane. Reynolds summoned his Elemental Warrior and attacked one of them as well, Klaus quickly went forward to help him out. Instructor Delia and Alice took on one of the corpses, but they were at a significant disadvantage since Alice was in the Early stages of the Overlord Plane, still in the Second stage. Grey looked at the situation, and there were two Peak Overlord Plane corpses left. ''Guess it''s time to test my experiments so far,'' He thought to himself. When he encountered that young necromancer at the ruins, he collected one of his corpses. He had been studying it for some time now, and although he hadn''t really gotten a lot from it, there was a way he could make them dysfunctional for a few seconds or even a minute. Void was on his way back, and he could take care of them when he got there. All he had to do was to stall them for a few minutes. He could already sense Void. After taking a deep breath, he took a step forward, and black tendrils started to spread from his feet, going towards the corpses. When they got close, they latched onto the two that wanted to attack him, and the moment they touched them, the corpses shrieked loudly as if in pain. Grey also stopped immediately before holding onto his head. He felt a slight headache from what just happened. He turned to look at the west, ''Void, there''s someone¡­'' He gave Void the exact location of the person he just sensed when he tried to mess up with the control of the corpse. Never in his wildest dreams did he think he would be able to get the location of the person controlling the corpse if he did it. When he was trying the experiment, he was only working with an ownerless corpse. All he did was mess with the black strings he found inside the corpse. ¡­. Somewhere outside the town. "What just happened?" A shrill voice muttered. A cloaked figure could be seen hiding in the trees. "What?" Another cloaked figure asked. "Someone just used the corpse puppet to find my location," The first cloaked figure explained. "A necromancer?" The other one asked. "No, it''s a young boy. I can sense something strange about him. He not only used it to find my whereabouts, but he also cut off my connection with them," The cloaked figure said. "He must be one of us. There''s no way someone can just know how to cut off connections from puppets without going through proper training," The other figure said. "I believe so too, we should go closer before they destroy my tools. It took me years to groom them to their current state, and I can''t afford to lose them," The cloaked figure said. The reason they hadn''t been able to sense the mark on Grey''s body was due to the distance. Since it could only be sensed from a one-kilometer radius, they didn''t know. They were around one and a half kilometers away from the town. By the time they got within the one-kilometer radius, their expressions changed and they looked at each other. "Can you sense it as well?" The first cloaked figure asked. "Yes, but how come it''s so faint?" The other one asked. Chapter 610 - The Big Guns The group stepped out of the compound where they were staying, and they got the shock of their lives. Well, everyone except Grey since he has had a somewhat similar experience. In front of them stood a multitude of people, but they all had black lines across their bodies and were all pale. It was evident that there was no life in them, however, they were walking. "What the hell is this?!" Klaus and Reynolds exclaimed simultaneously. "Necromancers," Grey said as he stared at the walking dead. "Necromancers?" The Principal asked. "Yes, they''re a group of people who can basically control dead people. This is a tricky situation," Grey explained. He had already told his friends about necromancers, so when they heard him say the word, they already knew what they could do, but the Principal, Instructor Blake, and Instructor Delia were left stunned. Grey was introducing them to a world they never even knew existed. Almost every single time they speak to him, they are learning or hearing about something entirely new to them. "So you mean after they killed all the townspeople, they started to control them?" The Principal asked. "Yes, but we shouldn''t have too much difficulty in dealing with them since the strength of the townspeople is only meager. Besides, their numbers can''t really affect us," Grey elucidated. "They don''t seem to have noticed us," Blake said. "Yeah, but it wouldn''t be for long. The main thing now is to locate the necromancer behind this. I never thought they would be here as well. Looks like they managed to come here by accident," Grey muttered. ''And since they aren''t the ones ruling the empires, it means they''re not that powerful. At least not stronger than the Sage Plane Elementalists around,'' He thought to himself. It''s easy for him to assume this since he knew if a necromancer was here, and given how they seem to be active, they would naturally want to be well feared. The only thing that might stop them is the lack of strength on their part. Just after Grey finished replying to Instructor Blake''s words, one of the seemingly walking dead noticed them. As soon as it did, it screeched loudly which alerted the others as well. "We''ve been noticed. Try to destroy them, they''re already dead so no need to hold back," Grey said. "How could someone be this evil? Going as far as killing all these innocent people," Alice said with clenched fists. "Necromancers are hated generally, so I can understand how you feel. Just a reminder, they also rob graves as well. If there''s a strong powerhouse who died, they would rob the grave, stealing the corpse," Grey added. "That''s going too far," Klaus said. Everyone present found the act disgusting. The walking dead close to them was the first to attack, charging at the group. Grey sent out a blue fireball that first sent the corpse flying into the other ones around it, before exploding on impact. A single attack destroyed at least ten corpses at a time. "Attack, we don''t have time for any delays," Grey said. The others nodded as they attacked the corpses as well. Destroying over one hundred in a matter of seconds. Bang! Boom! They continued attacking before the Principal suddenly started to notice a change. Due to his strength, he was more sensitive. He could sense that after they started destroying the corpses, they seemed to be getting weaker. He threw an attack at one of the corpses in front of him to verify his thoughts, and after doing so, he studied it properly. He realized that the corpse was releasing a fragrance after it was destroyed. "Don''t destroy the corpse, Klaus, freeze them," The Principal stopped the others from attacking. When the corpses are frozen, they don''t realize the fragrance since they were trapped. "Why?" Reynolds asked. "They''re making us weak," Grey was the one who replied. The Principal nodded when he heard Grey''s words. He was a little shocked that Grey was able to also quickly notice this as well. "Damn these people! How are they even doing it?" Reynolds asked. Grey raised his shoulder, signifying he had no idea. Klaus and Instructor Delia took in a deep breath before placing both hands in front of them. They started to emit ice chills from their bodies that they sprayed in front of them. Within a few seconds, they had started to freeze all the corpses that were coming in their direction. But just when they were halfway through, they noticed the ice around the corpses started to explode. "Of course they wouldn''t make it easy for us," Grey said. He tapped his feet on the ground, and as soon as Klaus or Instructor Delia froze any of the corpses, they would sink into the ground. The process was quick and in a synergy that nobody expected it. The duo freezing the corpses wanted to stop, but the Principal stopped them, telling them it was the work of Grey. Before long, the front of the group was already almost empty, with only eight corpses standing. No matter how they tried to freeze these corpses, the ice would melt even before it got close to them. "These ones are the real problem. We were lucky we didn''t get in a prolonged battle with those cannon fodders, else it would''ve been difficult for us to notice these guys," Grey said. "What are they?" The Principal asked. Grey explained a little more about necromancers. Their abilities to make sure the strength of the corpse they were controlling was around the same stage, or even more powerful than when the person died. "Does that mean if these guys were Sage Plane Elementalists when they were dead, they would also be the same way after these guys start controlling them?" Instructor Blake asked. "I''m not too familiar with their ways, but that''s how it should be. Well, that was what I was told," Grey explained. "How about the real necromancers, how powerful are they?" The Principal asked. "They are not that strong, even when placed in a place like this, they would still be weaker than those in the same stage," Grey said. Chapter 612 - A One In A Million Puppet "That''s because you''re going to die soon," A small child-like voice came from behind the duo. "Huh? Who said that?" The cloaked man Grey disconnected from the corpse was shocked. Necromancers have one of the best perceptions there is, so it was almost impossible for someone to sneak up on them. Yet, they could hear a voice, and it was that of a child as well. "It''s me, your death," Void replied. Before the duo even saw him, he attacked. Boom! He was already a Peak Rank Five Magical Beast, and even amongst others in the same stage, he was well above them. These necromancers who were weaker than an ordinary Eighth stage Overlord Plane Elementalist stood no chance against him. The attack sent the duo flying, crashing into the tree they stood on. They coughed out a mouthful of blood before exchanging glances. After the attack, they saw who attacked them. A small black cat. "You must be connected to that kid, he''s the only one who knows where I''m located," The cloaked man said. "Blah blah blah, just die already," Void mocked before attacking once again. Swoosh! Bang! The duo used a combined effort to block the attack, but it still pushed them back. Without wasting any time, a coffin soon appeared in front of each of them, and a figure walked out. Unlike the rest ones, this corpse had no flesh, it was all bones. But the other coffin was a little more interesting, instead of a human walking out, a Magical Beast was what actually walked out, and it was at the Peak of the Overlord Plane. "Damn! I never knew you guys did it to magical beasts as well. You have desecrated my kind, and it will not end well for you," Void said coldly before attacking. This time, he wasn''t holding anything back. Seeing a magical beast being controlled after its death infuriated him. The dead beast was also from the cat family, a large blue tiger that stood over two meters tall. Bang! Boom! The battle soon intensified with the addition of the skeleton and the magical beast. The two necromancers stood behind them, making sure to protect themselves from Void who seemed hellbent on killing them in the most brutal way, especially the one who was controlling the magical beast''s corpse. "Contact the others, tell them we have a problem," The cloaked man Grey interrupted his control of the corpse said to the other one. "Alright," The man nodded before taking out an item from his storage ring. ¡­. Back in the town. After Grey managed to sever the connection, he was still a little shocked it worked. But since it had already worked out, there was no use in thinking about it, he quickly moved to the one Alice and Instructor Delia were fighting against. Just like before, as soon as his black tendrils wrapped themselves around the corpses, they shrieked loudly before they stopped moving. "I have a way to stop them, but it will be only for a while. However, I don''t know if I can do the same for those in the Sage Plane," Grey told the others about his recent discovery. "Just do it, so you guys can escape," The Principal said. Grey nodded before going after the one that was with Klaus and Reynolds, when he was done with that, he faced the one that was with Instructor Blake. At the time he was done, the first two he severed their connections were starting to regain themselves again. He hurriedly rushed towards them and did the same thing. "Try to destroy them," He said to the others. Boom! "Way ahead of you," Klaus said after he attacked. His attack soon died down and nothing happened to the corpse, not even a scratch. "What''s going on?" He asked, stunned. "I don''t know," Grey replied while trying to once again stop the other corpses from being controlled. They attacked the motionless corpses once again, but they were unable to damage them. "Fine, that''s how you want to play huh?" Grey said before bringing out one of the storage rings in his possession and keeping all five corpses inside. Since he couldn''t destroy them, he would hide them in a storage ring. "Leave," The Principal said after he pushed back one of the Sage Plane corpses. "Okay sir," The group nodded, but just as they were about to leave. "Where do you think you''re going to?" A shrill voice asked, accompanied by a dark fog that raced towards Grey. "Oh no," Everyone''s heart sank. Grey was at the forefront of the group, and before any of them could react, this black fog was already in front of him. Grey, seeing something appearing in front of him out of nowhere, hastily rose a firewall in front of him to block whatever was coming his way. The black fog went past the firewall before a dried hand was stretched out from it, trying to drag Grey inside. Grey''s instincts kicked in, thanks to his heightened senses and physical speed after consuming the Dragon''s blood essence, he dodged the hand. What shocked everyone was that he not only dodged it, but he grabbed onto it with both hands and pulled whoever or whatever was inside. "Ah!" With a powerful yell, he was able to yank the figure out of the black fog. Bam! He slammed the figure to the ground repeatedly, before letting go. "Such a powerful physique, you would be a one in a million puppet once I''m done refining you," The figure stood up as if nothing happened before saying. The figure was standing around five foot five and was covered in a large black cloak. "What are you doing here?" Grey asked coldly. "I can say the same for you. You clearly look like a genius, so you will be well taken care of in one of those big factions. But to come across someone like you here it''s truly a blessing to me," The figure said, chuckling lightly. Now that the figure was out of the fog, the group could distinguish the figure''s voice, and it seemed to be that of a female. Chapter 613 - Chaos Orb "Let us leave and I''ll act like I never saw you," Grey threatened. He was hoping to use the fear of the Factions in the Aurora Continent to scare this person away. Of course, he wasn''t too hopeful it would work out, but he wanted to try. "Hehehe, do you think we''re scared of those stupid Factions? Even in the Middle Continent, we still act as we want, and there''s nothing they can do to us," The figure said. "Them," Grey said. "What?" The figure asked in confusion. "There''s nothing they can do to them. The likes of you can''t really dare to act wildly in the presence of the top Factions, you''ll be killed in the blink of an eye," Grey corrected the figure. Klaus and Reynolds who were by the side understood that Grey was belittling the figure and burst out laughing. Even in a situation like this, it was never a bad time to get a good laugh. The figure started to shake visibly from anger. It was clear to see that Grey''s words triggered a bad memory. "What do you know? I''ll kill you here and now," The figure said before attacking Grey with a powerful attack. The figure didn''t even call out a corpse, which came as a shock to Grey. Instructor Blake rushed in front of Grey to defend him from the attack. "Be careful, this is unlike them. They never physically attack unless they are forced to, or have a hidden motive," Grey warned. Instructor Blake nodded, keeping his distance as he attacked the figure. Buzz! Crackle! Boom! Lightning danced across the entire town. With two great lightning users attacking at the same time without any restraints, it was understandable how the situation in the town would be. The figure continued attacking, and to Grey''s surprise, this person was stronger not only with their elemental attacks but with physical attacks as well. ''No wonder she wasn''t affected when I slammed her into the ground,'' He said to himself as he watched the battle unfold. The Principal was still entangled with the three Sage Plane corpses, even though he had been able to push them back one at a time, they were able to quickly get back together to stop him from moving. ''Void, how are things over there?'' Grey asked. He would feel a lot safer if Void was present here. ''Can you believe these bastards also do these things to my kind as well? I''ll be done with them soon,'' Void replied, still annoyed by what he saw. ''Be fast with it, there''s still more hiding around, but I don''t think we can deal with them now. Escaping should be our top priority,'' Grey said. ''Don''t worry, they''ll get dead soon,'' Void said. Grey looked at the chaotic situation in front of him before shaking his head, "Must people always find ways to cause conflict? Can''t we just live in peace?" "I''m sure you know the answer to that question," Alice said. Grey sighed before looking down, he knew what Alice meant. Even though things were like this, he still wanted to live a peaceful life, but people kept on interfering with it. ''The only way I can have what I want is to be the strongest, so strong that they wouldn''t want to speak about me even when I''m not there,'' He concluded in his heart. Boom! Bang! The figure managed to successfully send Instructor Blake flying, but before she could capitalize on it, Instructor Blake attacked as well, forcing her to retreat. "You all will make nice puppets, hehehe," She cackled evilly as she attacked once again. Grey looked at the situation and the thought of using the Fusion State came to his mind, but he quickly tossed it aside. They still didn''t know what was in the shadows, so showing all their cards now will be dangerous for them. ''I''ll use that to assist the Instructor,'' He said to himself. Opening his palm, three different elemental essences started to gather on top of it. He hadn''t used the chaos orb in a while now, and since he didn''t want to show the Principal and the Instructors all the elements he could control, he only used three. It will not be as powerful as the one with all seven elements in his control, but its power shouldn''t be too bad. Instructor Delia was the first to notice Grey''s movements, followed by his friends. This was also their first time seeing him use it, so they looked at it with curiosity. They could all feel the power that was gathering inside the orb forming above Grey''s palm. While making it, Grey had been searching for an opportunity to contact Instructor Blake so he wouldn''t be caught in the attack. Even though it wouldn''t kill him it would still hurt a little. The energy stirring on top of his hand naturally drew the attention of everyone in the place. Even the Principal turned to look at it. ''How many secrets does this kid have?'' The Principal thought to himself. When Instructor Blake saw this, he knew full well what Grey''s plan was. He soon started to push the figure in a certain direction. Since he mainly used long-range he kept a considerable distance from her. Grey was already fully prepared for the attack, swiftly throwing it in the direction Instructor Blake was pushing the figure. Boom! A white light spread out in all directions, causing a loud explosion that even reached where Grey and his friends were standing. The group hastily retreated. The Principal managed to push one of the corpses inside the range of the blast while also retreating. Instructor Blake was beside Instructor Delia. Protecting her from the impact of the blast. "Since when could you do that?" Klaus asked. "Well, it''s been a while now," Grey replied sincerely. "You never cease to amaze me," Instructor Blake said. "He''s my friend, what do you expect?" Klaus said proudly. Instructor Blake smacked the back of Klaus'' head lightly. Chapter 614 - One More Should Do It "Is she dead?" Reynolds asked since the light from the explosion still hadn''t died down. "Not exactly, but it should at least cause her some damage," Instructor Blake replied. He turned to Grey, "Can you do that again?" Grey nodded before opening his palm to show the one he was already preparing. "Good, we''ll work together to take her out. If there''s a way you can make it more powerful, please do," Instructor Blake added. Just as he finished his words, he almost choked on his saliva when a fourth elemental essence started to circulate with the other three. The orb Grey was currently preparing was still in its early stages, but Instructor Blake could already see the significant increase in its power. ''Is he still human?'' Instructor Blake asked internally. He already guessed Grey had four elements, but seeing it with his eyes was still a little hard to take in. A Multi Elementalist with three elements is already regarded as someone special, and now there''s Grey who had four. The shocking part of Grey''s story was that when they did the test on him, only two elements came up. This meant that he somehow managed to gain control of two more elements. ''No wonder he advanced so quickly. But the essence needed for each improvement in a stage must be tremendous,'' Instructor Blake thought internally. The light soon died down and the figure of the lady came to view. Her black cloak was destroyed by the blast, and some slight injuries could be seen on her arms, but the strange thing was that there was no blood coming out of it. Her body was dried up, just like a corpse, and her hair had completely turned white. Her fingernails were extremely long, her teeth were black, and her eye sockets were empty. "Now, that''s disturbing," Klaus remarked. "It truly is," Grey and the others nodded. "You little brat, once I''m done with him, you''re next!" The old lady screamed angrily. "Let''s go, keep your distance, and inform me just before it''s ready," Instructor Blake said to Grey as he flew in the direction of the old lady. Grey nodded, before taking flight as well. From the last time, he noticed he could control the chaos orb now, compared to the previous times where it would almost explode in his face if he tried to keep it with him for long. Now, he could hold onto it for a few seconds, even up to a minute if he wished to. This would give him considerable time to throw it at the right spot. Also, making the chaos orb was easier now, it only took at most thirty seconds and he was done with it. What he planned to do this time was to reduce the size of the orb, compressing it to the smallest possible size. The smaller it is, the greater the power it holds. He also took note of how it got more difficult as he tried to compress it. By the time Instructor Blake engaged with the old lady, he was already prepared. Presently, the orb was slightly smaller than a table tennis ball. Instructor Blake exchanged a few moves with the lady, and when he was pushed back, Grey came in front of him and sent the orb towards the lady who just gave chase after Instructor Blake. The old lady seeing the small orb coming in her direction hastily stopped, before trying to retreat. Unfortunately¡­ "Burst," Grey muttered slightly as he retreated with Instructor Blake. Boom! An explosion, louder than the first one, occurred. The Principal who had once again started to face three Sage Plane corpses pushed one inside the range of the explosion. The first one he pushed inside came out with some small damage. Since this explosion was larger, and he made sure to send this one towards the core of it, then it would take stronger damage compared to the first one. After sending one of the corpses into the explosion, the pressure on the Principal reduced significantly and he quickly tried to use this period to deal some real damage to the two fighting against him. ¡­. In the woods. Void was still fighting against the two necromancers, he had defeated the corpses they brought out the first time, but after that, they had brought out two more. One of them mainly used Magical Beasts'' corpses, while the other used human corpses. The more beast corpses Void saw, the more he felt annoyed by the man. Bang! He blasted the corpses apart, before charging at the duo. Before they brought out another corpse, he attacked. Easily ripping their cloaks apart while greatly dealing them some damage. The duo retreated after the attack. However, it was already too late for them. Since Void had managed to get close to them, their fate was already decided. Bam! They crashed into a tree, destroying it. Void appeared above them before smashing them into the ground. Their wrinkled bodies were covered in injuries and blood coming out from different sides. "What are you?" One of the men asked while staring at Void in terror. "Just die already," Void blasted a powerful lightning attack at the duo who were on the ground. "Ah¡­" They screamed in pain before their screams died down. After the lightning attack died down, Void''s expression changed and he approached the corpses. "Huh?" A look of confusion appeared on his face. He quickly left the place, heading in Grey''s direction. He could see the large light from Grey''s chaos orb explosion. ''These people are just freaks,'' He thought. ¡­. Back in the town. The explosion soon died down, and the old lady soon came into view. Her body was destroyed, with her left hand missing. "One more should be able to do it," Instructor Blake said to Grey. The Sage Plane corpse in the explosion managed to escape with a minimal amount of damage. It charged toward the Principal once again, joining the other two who were being oppressed by the Principal. "Hehehe, you really are something," The old lady said. Grey was already preparing another chaos orb. Unlike the Fusion State, there wasn''t a limit to how many times he could use this technique. Chapter 615 - A Hidden Figure "Let''s go." Instructor Blake and Grey took to the sky, rushing towards the old lady. "You two think you can kill me? Impossible!" The old lady laughed before spreading out her single hand. A black fog spread out from her body, enveloping her as she tried to flee. Grey was already done with the chaos orb, with help from Instructor Blake, he appeared in front of the lady, in the direction she was escaping to. He tossed the orb in her direction before retreating quickly. The reason he took this risk was that Void was coming from this direction as well. So in case of anything, he could use his help. The space element was still on lock down in this area, so he wasn''t at his fastest any longer. The chaos orb entered the black fog and seemed to vanish. Grey was a little surprised by what happened, but the black fog was soon sucked in by a powerful force, followed by a terrifying explosion. Boom! This time, the old lady was right beside the orb when it exploded, so she took the full brunt of it. Her enraged and pitiful shriek could be heard all across the town. The small delay before the explosion gave Grey the chance to retreat to a safe distance. His friends just stared at him in shock, awed by the power of the chaos orb. "Damn it! He''s amazing!" Klaus said excitedly. "Yeah, I can''t wait for us to go to this new continent," Reynolds said. "Me too," Alice agreed with the two on a rare occasion. She rarely agreed with them on anything, since well, they were nutjobs and rarely said anything good. Instructor Delia was amazed by Grey''s prowess. She still found it hard to believe that this was the same person that came to the Academy three years late compared to those his age. The same person Chris pranked when he just arrived. "How time flies," She muttered with a shake of her head. From what she could see, she knew very well that she stood no chance against him. Just this attack alone is enough to threaten her existence. Grey has done it three times now, which meant he could probably still do it a fourth time. She wasn''t even as fast as he was, so it was almost impossible for her to dodge the attack. In the space of only three years plus, a student who hadn''t even started cultivating has grown stronger than an Instructor, a top-tier Instructor for that matter who was regarded as a genius. It was unbelievable! If Grey were to use this attack on Instructor Blake, it was unknown who would come out on top. But one thing is for sure, this attack was dangerous to anyone who was in the Overlord Plane. It might not kill them, but it will surely cause them some harm. The light from the explosion died down, and a figure could be seen falling straight to the ground. Instructor Blake and Grey hurried over to see the situation of the lady. And their expressions changed when they got there. The frontal part of her body was destroyed, and what looked like a human could be seen inside all squeezed up. The tiny human opened her eyes, and it was green but felt with bloodlust. Small injuries could be seen on the side of the body. "What is that?" Instructor Blake asked in shock. "I don''t know," Grey shook his head. This was the first time he was seeing something like this, and he couldn''t hide his shock. "My shell, you morons destroyed my precious shell!" The small person inside the old lady screamed at Grey and Instructor Blake in agony. The voice was exactly the same as that of the old lady. "Shell?" Instructor Blake and Grey exchanged glances and they quickly understood what was going on, this small person inside the old lady was the real person. The old lady was probably a corpse that they took control of. But how was this possible, and how the hell could they stay inside someone comfortably? Multiple questions ran through the head of Grey and Instructor Blake, but their main priority now was to kill the lady. They don''t want to know how they managed to achieve this feat of theirs. A lightning bolt shot towards the small figure, but the lady disappeared, drilling into the ground as quickly as she could. Grey seeing this rushed to the ground, stomping his foot on the ground. The ground shook, but nothing came out. "She escaped," He said with a downcast look. "It''s okay, we should leave," Instructor Blake said. "What of the Principal?" Grey asked. "He''ll escape once we''re not here," Instructor Blake said. "Okay," Grey nodded. He turned to look at Klaus before saying, "Klaus, give the Principal your communication device, so he can track us easily," "Good idea," Klaus smiled before throwing his communication device at his father. He quickly told him how to make use of it. Void soon caught up with them. ''Were you able to kill them?'' Grey asked telepathically. ''No, there''s a small person inside their bodies,'' Void replied. ''Hmm, I tried stopping the one we fought here from escaping, but even with the help of the earth element, she still escaped,'' Grey told him about their ordeal. ''These guys are a bunch of freaks, I personally don''t want to see them again,'' Void said. ''Me too, but we''ll see them again for sure,'' Grey said before glancing at Instructor Blake and Delia. ''Do you think¡­'' ''Yes, they''re tracking us through them. I''ve not been able to sense anything on them yet, but I''m certain of it. How do you think they managed to lock the space around here without our knowledge, and even found us so easily?'' Grey said. When he heard of the Instructors'' escape, he believed something was wrong, and it looked like his assumption was correct. The Instructors were being tracked, but they had no idea of it. Chapter 616 - A Nice Harvest The group bid farewell to the Principal who was still in the middle of fighting before leaving the area. On their way, Grey told them about his hypothesis. "If what you say is correct, then leaving Teacher''s side wouldn''t be the best option," Instructor Blake said. The Principal was the only one in the Sage Plane amongst the group. If they were to escape without him, it would mean that they would fall into the hands of these people since they could track them. There''s also the possibility of them having a hidden Sage Plane corpse lying in wait. A single one could easily wipe out the team. Grey thought about it and couldn''t refute Instructor Blake''s words. "So what do we do now, return to father?" Klaus asked. "We haven''t gone far from him, so going back wouldn''t be an issue," Instructor Blake replied. They turned to head back, but the sky above them suddenly went dark and a skeletal hand came out from the sky, heading towards the group as they tried escaping. "What the hell?!" Reynolds exclaimed in fright. He wasn''t the only one horrified by what was coming in their direction, every single person there was shaken. "Move, now!" Instructor Blake yelled while dragging Delia with him. Grey snapped out of his shock and followed behind them. Klaus, Reynolds, Alice, and Void went after him. Unfortunately, after getting to a certain stage, a black veil appeared, seemingly blocking them from going through. "I can''t get through," Instructor Blake said after trying to destroy it with his lightning blade. Grey brought out his high-grade elemental weapon and tried using it to slash the veil, after infusing all seven elements in. Clank! The sword bounced off the veil, and Grey almost lost his grip. "This is bad," Grey''s expression changed. The hand was getting closer to the group as they tried to think of a way to break through it. ''This is a domain. According to what I know, humans shouldn''t be able to activate their domain until they at least get to the Sage Plane. And those who do at the Sage Plane are regarded as geniuses among geniuses,'' Void explained to Grey telepathically. ''A domain?'' A confused expression appeared on Grey''s face. But before Void could answer, ''Is there a way you can get us out of here, we''ll speak about this later,'' ''I should be able to if I activate mine,'' Void answered with uncertainty. Just like Grey, he couldn''t access his space element properly, and that''s the only element he had awakened his domain. The only reason he''s attempting this is that they were not at the center of the lock down, so the spatial lock here wasn''t too powerful. With Void in the middle, a powerful energy radiated out. Everyone felt the energy, but there was no change in their situation. ''Void¡­'' Grey called out. ''I''m coming, this is me literally straining myself,'' Void said with difficulty. The group stayed close to the edge of the veil, resting their bodies on it as if the hand wouldn''t be able to get them if they were there. ''Void,'' Grey called out again. Void had his eyes shut, not saying anything. The hand was only about ten meters away from them. If they tried to move in another direction, the hand would get to them before they got there. Eight meters, six meters, four meters. Just when the hand was within inches of the group, almost already touching Instructor Blake''s head, they fell through the veil blocking them, all falling to the ground with hearts pounding. "What¡­ what just happened?" Klaus asked as he saw the hand grabbing the ground where they were previously standing. "Void happened, we should get going," Grey answered before picking up Void. He could see that doing this put a lot of strain on Void, luckily, he was conscious so it meant he wasn''t really hurt. ¡­. Somewhere in the woods. "How did they escape from that?" A figure dressed in a black cloak with a croaky voice asked angrily after smashing a tree to smithereens. "I don''t know," Another person dressed in a black cloak answered. "I thought there was no one that could use domains, and their Sage Plane expert was stuck with fighting your puppets?'' The first speaker said. "There''s a strange cat with them," A voice said from the ground. The ground shook and a small black head stuck out from it. It looked exactly like a human, only the eyes were bigger and teeth were sharp. "A cat? What does a cat have to do with this?" The first person said. "It almost killed us, even with our higher number," The figure said before coming out from the ground. It was around one meter in height, and its entire body was black. Its ears were longer than that of a human, and the tips were pointed. "We came here to hide and regain our strength, eating these kids will be beneficial to us. Send out the puppets, we can not let them escape," The first voice said. "Yes, Supreme One," The last figure in the group nodded before disappearing from the woods. At the time this person was leaving, a third figure came out from the ground. But compared to the first two, it had injuries all around its body with blue blood dripping from the side. "What happened to you?" The person regarded as the Supreme One asked. "I was almost killed by the kid who disconnected our connection with the puppets," The figure said. "What?" The Supreme One asked in shock. The figure went on to tell him of how Grey tried to force her out from the ground with the earth element. She sustained injuries even though she escaped successfully. "We''ll get him soon. I wonder how he managed to achieve that," The Supreme One said thoughtfully. "Also, there''s a mark on him¡­" The lady Grey fought against told them about his prowess and that of the Principal and Instructor Blake. "This is a nice harvest, you''ll get the lightning user once we get them," The Supreme One said. Chapter 617 - Risky Choice Grey and his friends hurried back in the direction of the town. He had tried to locate whatever they used in tracking Instructor Blake and Delia after their last encounter, but it was unsuccessful. The duo tried themselves, but they were unsuccessful as well. Even Void, Klaus, Reynolds, and Alice also tried to see if they could find it, but none of them succeeded. Grey took out the communication device to try and see if the Principal had escaped from the three Sage Plane puppets he was fighting against. ''It hasn''t even been up to five minutes since you left, they''ve not given me the chance yet. But, I''m no longer within the town''s premises¡­'' The Principal told him his current whereabouts after Grey told him about their speculation and what they just encountered. ''Sir, I think the best thing to do now is to alert the troops fighting. If you want to, you can make a big attack that will surely attract the attention of those in the camp,'' Grey said. Their current situation is bad, if there were to be other Sage Plane corpses, then they were toast. Even someone as powerful as the Principal can''t go against five corpses on his own, let alone more than five. ''It has not gotten to that yet, we still haven''t verified if they have more. But either way, ending up with the empire wouldn''t be good for any of us,'' The Principal said. ''We have the space element as a last resort to escape, and none of them know about Void''s abilities, giving us two escape cards. But just as you said, we''ll wait to see if they have more Sage Plane corpses,'' Grey responded. After ending the conversation with the Principal, he told the others of what they spoke about, and his plans to alert the empire if things went wrong. "With Void''s help, we should be able to escape from the empire since they don''t know about the space element. Our options are risky, hopefully, we''re lucky and they don''t have any more Sage Plane corpses," Klaus said. They couldn''t escape on their own, especially given what they just encountered. Void couldn''t continuously help them since the pressure on him would be too much. However, if they happen to be caught by the empire, Void could easily come in and sneak them out of the place. Any way they look at it, the latter plan seemed safer. Well, if they weren''t killed immediately, that is. They rushed towards the area the Principal was fighting, but they didn''t get too close, keeping a good distance. Boom! Bang! They could hear the sounds of the explosions from the Principal''s attacks. They hid somewhere safe, with Void keeping track of what was happening in the area. Grey also made a quick array around where they were hiding to make sure if anything came into that area, he would be alerted. It didn''t take long before his expression changed. ''Something''s coming,'' Void messaged him telepathically. ''Yeah, I''ve sensed it,'' Grey replied. His expression already told the others of their current situation, and they all prepared themselves for what was coming. If it''s in the Overlord Plane, then they still had a chance, but anything in the Sage Plane, then they would turn around and run. Grey placed some trap arrays that would at least slow down whatever it was. He also held the communication device in his hand so that he could tell the Principal to find a way to alert the empire of their current location. A loud eerie screech came from outside the building they were hiding, indicating it was time to leave. ''Sir, a Sage Plane corpse is here, alert the empire,'' Grey said as they ran for it. They all came out of the building, rushing into the sky. Their direction, where the troops from the Qilin Empire were camped. The war was still ongoing, and it had gotten to the point where the strongest fighters from all sides were coming out. If Grey and his friends were to suddenly appear in any of the camps, it would cause an uproar, throwing the battle in a different direction. Every single empire will rush towards them, trying to capture them. Boom! A loud colorful explosion rang out behind them as they quickly escaped. It was from the traps Grey set up. After getting the hang of the chaos orb, he used an array formation to contain it in a trap array. This way, once triggered, it would release the pent-up energy it had been storing. Unlike the previous ones, this chaos orb was made from seven different elements, so the strength was unimaginable. Even the Principal who was a good distance away was dumbstruck by it. "What''s the use of me even trying to alert the empire when he already can?" The Principal asked himself in disbelief. The strength of that explosion was insane. He couldn''t believe it was made by someone who was still in the Fifth stage of the Overlord Plane. It could very well rival an attack from a Peak Overlord Plane Elementalist, and not any Peak Overlord Plane Elementalist but a genius. ¡­. At the borders of the Qilin and Blue Wind Empire. The light from Grey''s attack caught the attention of the people on the battlefield and those in the Qilin Empire camp that was at the back. Seeing that it was coming from the Qilin Empire''s side, the guards at the camp hurried to inform their superiors who were inside the tent. "An explosion from our side?" A young handsome youth asked. Looking closely, it was a face Blake, Delia, and the Principal was familiar with. It was none other than the Crowned Prince of the Qilin Empire, Jason Gale. "Yes, Your Highness," The guard bowed as he reported. "Come, let''s go check it out," Jason walked out of the tent, accompanied by two old men. After coming out, they took to flight, rushing in the direction of the light. Chapter 618 - With Him, Nothing Is Impossible Bang! Grey and Instructor Blake were sent flying. Reynolds'' Elemental Warrior was destroyed by a single attack from the Sage Plane corpse. Alice, Klaus, Reynolds, and Instructor Delia continued flying as Grey and Instructor Blake tried to hold back the corpse. The trap array Grey set up was already exhausted, but it was unable to do any significant damage to the corpse. Other than slowing it down for a few seconds, it didn''t amount to much. This goes to show the strength difference between an Overlord Plane Elementalist and a Sage Plane Elementalist. Even though the corpse wasn''t at the original strength of the person while alive, it was still too much for the group who were still in the Overlord Plane. "Get back, I''ll try to stop it. You are its target," Instructor Blake pushed Grey back after standing up from where they crashed. "You don''t need to take the risk alone. My previous attack should be enough to alert the troops of the empire at the border. Hopefully, they get here soon," Grey refused to leave. Void appeared on his shoulder, sending out an attack toward the corpse. The corpse punched out, destroying Void''s attack. Snow soon started to fall around the area where they were standing. Before long, the snow started to take the shape of humans, just like a snowman. The strength of each snowman was around the Early stages of the Overlord Plane, but there were over twenty that appeared. Buzz! Lightning danced across Grey and Instructor Blake''s body. On Grey''s body, there was red lightning, while Instructor Blake had the regular silver-colored lightning. Surprise appeared on Instructor Blake''s face, as well as that of Grey''s friends since they all knew he previously had regular silver lightning. Grey and Instructor Blake charged into the group of snowmen, quickly destroying them with their power lightning attacks. Grey made three inscriptions as well, using them to help Void distract the corpse that was trying to get close to them. Grey had been impressed with Void''s performance so far against the Sage Plane corpse. Even though he didn''t have the upper hand, he had been dodging most of its attacks, while making sure to pester it. The inscriptions made it almost impossible for the corpse to free itself from the disturbance. The corpse raised its hand, and ice shards appeared in the sky, covering a range of around five hundred meters radius. Luckily, Instructor Delia and the others were not in this area. Grey turned to look at Instructor Blake, and the lightning around their bodies flared up. Buzz! Bang! Boom! They started attacking wildly, especially Grey as soon as the ice shards started to fall in their direction. Given the large number of the ice shards, it was impossible for Instructor Blake to dodge them. Grey was a little lucky thanks to his space element. Since they''ve managed to leave the area where the spatial lockdown was done, he had free access to the space element now. Nevertheless, the duo was still hit by a few of the ice shards. Void was the only one in the area that wasn''t affected by the ice shards. Whenever the ice shards went close to him, they would vanish, before appearing behind the corpse, attacking it. When he was in the trial land with Grey, he used the skill as well. According to what he told Grey, it was an innate skill that would transport any attack directed at him in another direction. He rarely used this skill since it took some effort to use. It was just like when using a domain, it might be flashy and cool, but the consumption was insane. The corpse wasn''t affected by the ice shards that were striking it. Since they were its attacks, all it did was to dissolve them before they even touched him. He still had complete control and connection with each ice shard. Outside the battleground, where Klaus and the others were standing. "Damn! Since when did Grey have red lightning?" Klaus asked. "Red lightning, man I''m jealous!" Reynolds exclaimed. Unknown to him, Grey acquired the ability to use red lightning during their expedition to the Chimera Forest when he wanted the lightning tree. "Wasn''t his lightning silver?" Alice asked dumbstruck. "Well, he had been using silver lightning all these while, guess he had been hiding it," Klaus said. "Wait, isn''t it only possible to have just one color of lightning?" Instructor Delia couldn''t hold herself back from asking. "Well, that''s how it''s supposed to be, but with him, nothing is impossible," Klaus remarked. Reynolds and Alice nodded in agreement to Klaus'' words. They knew all too well what he meant. Others might not know, but they knew of his freakish abilities. As if having a second color of lightning was something major compared to being able to comprehend another element, or even upgrading the elemental grade? So long Grey doesn''t die young, then he will surely become the most powerful individual alive, and it wasn''t even a contest with anyone. They held Grey in high regard, and to be honest, they didn''t feel anything other than joy in being friends with someone who is as freakish as he was. They all knew that it was all thanks to the pressure they felt from being left behind that pushed them to grow this fast. Instructor Delia stared at the friends, almost wishing she had someone like Grey as a friend. Not just that, but the friendship between the four of them was something she rarely saw. If it were others, they would feel envy when one of them was performing so well compared to the others, but in their case, they felt nothing but joy for their friend. She could also tell that they all believed in each other unconditionally. If Grey, Klaus, Alice, or even Reynolds told the group to follow him into hell, the others wouldn''t even ask the reason and would follow him. ''This is what true friendship is,'' She thought. Chapter 619 - Reunion Of Two Friends Boom! Bang! Instructor Blake crashed into a tree, but before the corpse could get to him, Grey and Void appeared in front of it and attacked, forcing it to block their attacks. "How long do you think we can hold out?" Instructor Blake couldn''t help but ask. "I have no idea, but it shouldn''t be for long," Grey replied. For the first time in Instructor Blake''s life, he was actually praying he got captured by an enemy. At least being held captive by the empire meant that he would still be alive, from how this thing was attacking, it looked like it wanted to kill him. Instructor Blake couldn''t help but sigh as he got up from the tree, after dusting himself clean, he rushed into battle once again. By the time he joined them, Grey had already been sent flying by the corpse, while Void disappeared, appearing in another location to dodge the attack of the corpse. ''I really need to work on how fast I can teleport,'' Grey thought while joining the battle once again. Since the time of the explosion, it has been almost five minutes, but it felt like a lifetime already since the corpse was well above them in terms of strength. They hadn''t even been able to put a scratch on its body, while Grey and Instructor Blake had injuries all over their bodies. Reynolds'' Elemental Warrior didn''t even last up to a minute before it was extinguished. Since Reynolds wasn''t the one who called it back, it was impossible to summon it in such a short time. It will take around a day or so before he could summon it again. The only reason it was this early was that he was a high-grade summoner. Swoosh! Bam! Grey''s inscription was destroyed by the corpse in the most overbearing way possible. It literally stretched out its hand, and when it closed its palm, the inscription shattered. This was the first time Grey''s inscriptions were destroyed in such a fashion, and he didn''t know if he should be impressed or worried by the strength of the corpse. ''A Sage Plane Elementalist is truly on a league of their own compared to Overlord Plane Elementalists,'' Grey thought with a shake of his head as he made another inscription. Instructor Blake tried engaging in close combat with the corpse, and it didn''t take up to two moves before he was sent flying. Even with Void''s superior abilities with the space element, just like Grey, he had been sent flying on multiple occasions by the corpse. The group could literally be said to be fighting a losing battle. Their only hope was that the empire''s troops arrived before they were killed. They had tried retreating while the battle was on. Well, it''s not on purpose since it was the corpse sending them flying in that direction, but it was still something. With them going closer to the borders and the troops coming in their direction, it was only a matter of time. Grey estimated it would take an Overlord Plane Elementalist at most eight minutes for them to cross the distance from the border to where they were located if they flew at top speed. ¡­. Not too far from where Grey and Instructor Blake were fighting. While Grey, Void, and Instructor Blake were busy fighting against a single Sage Plane corpse, things weren''t any better with the Principal. The three corpses didn''t feel pain like humans, and nor do they get exhausted. He had been fighting them for over ten minutes now, and he had expended a lot of energy and effort, yet, he still hadn''t been able to take one of them out. Whenever he gets close to taking one out of the picture, another one will come over, helping it. The synergy between the corpses was on another level. The Principal felt only a few groups of people would be able to perform with the same level of cooperation. Boom! Bang! The Principal was pushed back by a combined attack from all three corpses. Just when he was about to attack, he turned to look in the direction of the borders, where the war was taking place. "Finally," He heaved a sigh of relief. Staying close to the borders turned out to be a blessing in disguise. He thought it might''ve been very dangerous staying in this place since it was so close to the borders. But who would''ve thought that the same people they were running away from would turn out to be their helpers later on? ¡­. On Grey''s side of the battle. Instructor Blake and Void were the first to take note of the people from the borders. It didn''t take long before Grey and the others noticed them as well. "Oh finally!" Grey almost collapsed on the ground when he noticed them. He even almost stopped fighting right there and then. Within a few seconds, three figures appeared in front of them. Delia and Blake noticed the one standing in the middle. "Jason, good thing you''re here, go and fight," Blake said before dashing in Jason''s direction. Jason and the Sage Plane experts by his side were dumbfounded by what they were seeing. They could see that they were fighting against a Sage Plane Elementalist, but what surprised them was that the person they were fighting against didn''t seem to be alive. "Blake, what''s going on?" Jason asked with a curious expression. "We''ll explain later, kill that thing first, well, if you can," Blake said. "Take it down," Jason ordered the two men by his side. The two men paused, looking at Grey and Blake suspiciously. "Don''t worry, they won''t do anything to me," Jason assured. He wasn''t a weak person, and he definitely had a trump card that he could use to fend off an attack from Blake. "Alright," They nodded before rushing towards the corpse. With two people fighting against the corpse, it wouldn''t take long before they would take it down. "So, you''re the one who crippled my siblings?" Jason looked at Grey curiously. Void was already out of sight, hiding inside Grey''s storage ring. Chapter 620 - A Famous Expert From Three Hundred Years Ago "If you put it that way, yeah," Grey replied straightforwardly. "You also threatened to cripple all of us," Jason added. "All on the premise that he persists in his needless chase," Grey responded, his expression was the same, calm and collected. Jason looked at him, a little taken aback by his coolheadedness even when facing him. Klaus and the others approached the trio, all staring vigilantly at Jason. Alice in particular had an extremely furious expression, recalling how the Fifth Prince almost married her sister. "It''s been a while, how have you been?" Jason paid no heed to the stares he got from the youngsters as he turned to Delia with a warm smile. "I''ve been alright," Delia replied while moving to Blake''s side. "We''re not enemies, it''s only a misunderstanding that will be settled shortly. If you four had come with the people sent over to the Capital in the first place, none of this would''ve happened," Jason turned to the youngsters who were staring at him disapprovingly. "Given how those people came for us, I don''t think the Emperor is quite welcoming towards us. From what I''ve heard recently, he''s even trying to extract our cores," Klaus said coldly. "All false, we only want to know whose side you''re on. We have no interest in what you obtained, it''s your fortuitous encounter anyway. If it was meant for someone else, then you four wouldn''t have obtained it," Jason said gently. His voice was soothing to hear, and the group almost dropped their guard against him. ''He has a way with words,'' Grey thought internally as he decided to shut out whatever Jason was saying. "I apologize for the way my father handled things, it must have startled you four," Jason continued speaking after a moment of silence. "Enough, Jason, stop sugarcoating the Emperor''s selfish desire," Blake injected before Jason could continue speaking. He knew this friend of his. Jason was a cunning person who could easily deceive people that something was blue when everyone could clearly see that it was white. Jason''s way with words has been something he had since young, this made him the Emperor''s favorite son, and also stamped his place as the Crowned Prince. It''s common knowledge that even the Second Prince who was also fighting for the throne knew he stood little chance of winning against this blessed brother of his. Jason stopped speaking and smiled in response to Blake''s words. He soon turned his attention to the battle that was ongoing. "Hmm, what is that thing?" He finally asked. "A corpse," Everyone replied simultaneously. Jason gazed at them, almost wanting to scream ''Of course I know it''s a corpse!''. "What I mean is, how is it operating?" He rephrased his question. "We''re just as clueless as you are," Blake replied with a shake of his head. His expression showed great curiosity. Jason didn''t doubt him since this was the first time he was seeing or even hearing of a corpse being able to fight. "Fascinating," He muttered as he looked at the corpse that was being suppressed by the two men who came with him. Blake and the others exchanged glances, there was no way to were going to tell Jason about necromancers. It didn''t take long before the corpse was completely suppressed by the duo fighting against it. One of the men was a Fire Elementalist, while the other was a Lightning Elementalist. Individually, they could take down the corpse, together, it didn''t even last three minutes before it was unable to move. Both men returned with knitted brows. Jason couldn''t help but ask, "What''s the matter?" "That thing looks exactly like a famous expert who died three hundred years ago," The Fire Elementalist replied. "It doesn''t just look like him, it can also use his signature moves. I managed to trade blows with this person once, and I''m certain that thing is him. The strength might be a little lacking compared to when he was alive, but at least ninety percent sure that he''s the same as this thing," The Lightning Elementalist said. When Jason heard of this, he gasped in surprise. If this was a powerful expert who died three hundred years ago, how was he revived? They were still in the middle of trying to figure out how it was possible when an explosion caught their attention. Boom! The Principal''s figure retreated quickly as three corpses chased after him. He was currently in a sorry state, and his previous appearance had been destroyed by the continuous attacks of the corpses. Jason and the two men were stunned when they saw three more corpses. The two Sage Plane experts were particularly speechless as their bodies trembled. Grey and the others noticed their reaction, and they were able to deduce that they might have some kind of relationship with one of the corpses. "Mas¡­ master," The Fire Elementalist called out with a croaked voice. "I''ll kill you!" The Lightning Elementalist''s reaction was different from that of the Fire Elementalist. Contrary to the pained expression on the face of the Fire Elementalist, he was completely overwhelmed with anger. Lightning even started to dance around his body. Grey and the others retreated from the area, not wanting to get entangled in the brawl of an enraged Sage Plane expert. The Fire Elementalist charged towards one of the corpses, while the Lightning Elementalist went after another. The Lightning Elementalist drew a brilliant arc in the sky as he flew straight at the corpse. Crackle! Bang! A large lightning bolt struck the corpse from the sky, sending it straight to the ground. Buzz! Boom! The Lightning Elementalist attacked with a ball of lightning which exploded as it made contact with the corpse. Small lightning snakes exploded out of the lightning ball as they wrapped around the body of the corpse. The corpse was still in the middle of chasing after the Principal, so it never saw the Lightning Elementalist''s attack coming until it was too late. One has to know that even for a Sage Plane Elementalist, if ambushed by someone of the same Plane, the chances of being killed were extremely high, especially since the corpse had no consciousness, so it couldn''t react accordingly to the situation. Chapter 621 - Sad Reunion The corpse the Lightning Elementalist attacked stood no chance and was quickly left sprawling on the floor, incapable of moving. The Fire Elementalist on the other hand had stopped the corpse he identified as his Teacher from moving. "Teacher¡­ do¡­ do you still remember me?" He asked, hoping there was a bit of consciousness left in the corpse. The corpse screeched loudly before attacking the human who blocked its path. The Fire Elementalist dodged the attack, before trying to communicate with the corpse once again. The corpse continued attacking, not responding to any of the words spoken by the Fire Elementalist. ¡­. Grey and the other by the side were a little shaken by the scene. Seeing a loved one who is dead seemingly moving again would always affect anyone. Even when the Fire Elementalist knew that person he was referring to as Teacher was already dead, he still didn''t have the mind of attacking the corpse. "He knows it''s useless, right?" Reynolds asked after watching the Fire Elementalist try over and over again. "Of course he does, but I think he''s hoping there might just be a sliver of consciousness or even the soul of his Teacher left in the corpse," Alice replied. "Such a sad reunion," Klaus commented as he watched. Blake threw a glance at Jason, and he saw that he still wore the same calm expression. His lips slightly curved upwards to form a gentle smile. "If I recall correctly, old Mike mentioned burying his Teacher. Could it be that their corpses were dug out?" Jason muttered to himself while staring at the scene unfolding in front of him. A thought suddenly came to his mind and he couldn''t help but look around. All four corpses that appeared were of people in the Sage Plane. Three have been identified as experts from hundreds of years ago. If whoever was behind this had this ability, then they were in serious trouble. All these people had to do was to find the grave of these people, dig out their bodies and they automatically have a Sage Plane expert working for them. Jason could tell that the strength of these corpses seemed to be lacking when compared to when they were alive, but it still didn''t change the fact that these people were dangerous. After all, there were more dead Sage Plane Elementalists than alive. ''I''ll have to relay a message to my father about this. We have to ensure that the previous Emperors'' graves are still intact. And also the grave of every Sage Plane expert of the empire.'' Jason''s mind went into overdrive as he thought of a possible counter to this seemingly unimaginable power. "Huh?" His attention was finally drawn to the third corpse, and who was engaging it. "He''s broken through to the Sage Plane as well?" He looked at Blake. "You didn''t expect him to stay in the same place, did you? My Teacher was regarded as a genius in his generation, it''s only natural that he breaks through," Blake said proudly. "How envious," Jason replied. "The same can''t be said for you. Your Teacher was already in the Sage Plane before you were even born," Blake stated. Jason smiled in response, but a light flashed across his eyes and he turned to look at Grey. Grey felt his gaze and turned to stare at him as well. Jason nodded as if enlightened before turning to look at the battle. ¡­. With the other two corpses stopped by the Fire and the Lightning Elementalist, the pressure on the Principal was greatly reduced. He had been injured from the attacks of the three corpses, but he still had some fight left in him. Sizzle! Bang! The Principal dodged the corpse''s attack before sending out a stream of lightning that sent it flying. He didn''t give it any chance to recover before he started bombarding it with attacks. It was as if he was attacking it for all the past sufferings they had put him through. After a few more attacks, the corpse was taken apart. Of the three corpses, two had been destroyed in little to no time, while the last one was still operational. ¡­. The Fire Elementalist continued to speak with the corpse, trying to see if he could get through to it. His attempts were all to no avail as other than screeching and attacking, the corpse did nothing else. There wasn''t even an atom of hesitation whenever it attacked which showed that it didn''t recall anything from when it was alive. Melancholy washed over the Fire Elementalist as he saw his Teacher, being controlled by some people. "You bastards! I''ll kill all of you!" He roared in anger as he unleashed a sea of flames that enveloped the corpse. The corpse was a Fire Elementalist like him, covering itself with a dome of fire, it tried to protect itself from the attack of the Fire Elementalist. Boom! The attack slammed into the fire dome, bursting out with unprecedented heat. The dome wasn''t able to hold out for long before it was torn apart by the attacks of the Fire Elementalist. The Fire Elementalist attacked once again, his face red from anger, and his eyes bloodshot. If anyone were to put the people who caused this in front of him, there was no telling what he might do to them, however, one thing was for sure, they wouldn''t have a good ending. Two minutes later, the Fire Elementalist had incapacitated the corpse, making sure he didn''t harm it. It was the corpse of his Teacher after all, and given the respect he had for him, he couldn''t bring himself to cause any harm to the corpse. Naturally, there were a few scratches when the battle was going on, but the damage was almost unnoticeable. He wrapped the corpse with fire, which surprisingly didn''t do any harm to it and brought it with him. ¡­. By the time the Fire Elementalist was done with the battle. The Principal had already gone to meet up with Blake and the others. The Lightning Elementalist was the first to return, and they were staring at each other. Chapter 622 - Back To The Capital The atmosphere was tense with both Sage Plane Elementalists staring at each other. Blake, Delia, Grey, and his friends had all gone over to the Principal''s side, staring at Jason and the Lightning Elementalist. "To think that you''ve broken through to the Sage Plane, Oliver," The Lightning Elementalist remarked gently. The relationship between the two wasn''t bad, unfortunately, they were against each other. "I got lucky, senior," The Principal replied. "Hmm, since you''re already in the Sage Plane, I won''t make things difficult for you. I can assure you that your son will not be killed by the Emperor, but you''ll have to fight with us. After all, you were once a member of the empire and still are," The Lightning Elementalist made an offer. "I''m sorry, senior. But you and I know you''re not the one who can make that decision. The Emperor has already set his sights on my son and his friends, all based on a rumor he doesn''t even know if it''s true," Oliver said. Jason froze for a second when he heard this. They never really thought of it this way. It was never confirmed that Grey and his friends had the item, they only heard from the mouth of someone that they did, and since there was no way to confirm, they just assumed they had it. "You have a point there, but until we take them to the Capital to test their elemental grades, we can''t be sure if it''s a rumor or not," Jason said calmly. He thought about the issue for a while before replying. If Grey and his friends truly obtained the Great Earth Essence Liquid, then their elemental grades will naturally increase. The records of their elemental grades were recorded in the Lunar Academy. All they had to do was to test them again, if there was no increase, then they would let them go. Grey and his friends exchanged glances. They all knew their elemental grades were not what they used to be. Grey''s situation was particularly worse. He had seven elements, and of all seven, the lowest grade was purple. He had two that were in the violet grade, and one that was even above that. If people were to find out, they would definitely try to find out how he managed to achieve such a feat. Not only that, but he also had to deal with the issue of being able to actually obtain more elements, since when he entered the Lunar Academy he obviously had two. "I can not allow that," Oliver stepped in front of the group, blocking them from the Sage Plane Elementalist from the Qilin Empire. "You don''t have a choice," An irritated snort came from behind them. Turning around, they saw the Fire Elementalist who had a gloomy expression. Fighting against his dead Teacher infuriated him to no end, and he was currently looking for an outlet to unleash his rage. He prayed Oliver stood with his decision of wanting to fight against them. Then he would kill him without thinking twice. Oliver might be a Sage Plane Elementalist like them, but compared to them, he was still a newbie when it came to unleashing the true potential of a Sage Plane expert. The expression of the group turned dark when they saw this. ''The plan is to be caught in the first place, it''s not like we have a choice.'' Grey thought while staring at the Principal. ¡­. Deep in the woods close to the borders. The figures were almost going berserk in anger. "Relay the message to Vaughn, tell him they have been captured by the Qilin Empire''s Crowned Prince," The cloaked figure regarded as the Supreme One said to the others. One of the small figures brought out an orb, closing her eyes, she communicated with the Emperor of the Blue Wind Empire. Grey and his friends hadn''t even been captured by the Crowned Prince, yet the news had spread in the Blue Wind Empire thanks to the orb owned by the small figures. ¡­. Oliver didn''t stop them for long. Looking in the eyes of Grey and his friends, he could only shake his head as he allowed them to be brought away by the group from the Qilin Empire. Jason thanked him for being so understanding. With the capture of Grey and his friends, there was no use in going to the battlefield any longer. Jason headed straight for the Capital, with the two Sage Plane Elementalists in tow. Oliver, Blake, and Delia followed as well. They couldn''t leave Grey and his friends. Grey told them of his plan to use Void to escape, but they still found it difficult to leave them in the hands of Jason. ¡­. The next day. They arrived at the entrance of the Capital. This was the second time Grey was coming here, and on both occasions, he felt different emotions as he stepped past the gate. When he came the first time, he was filled with excitement, but now, he only felt a little hint of sadness. Coming from an empire that would want to kill a citizen just because of a fortuitous encounter they encountered was sickening. It was like they didn''t want them to advance quickly. What sort of empire wouldn''t want its citizens to grow stronger? This one apparently. The crux of the whole matter lay in the Emperor''s fear of being overthrown when Grey and his friends grew to the stage where they were unrivaled. They didn''t have the chance to form a good relationship with them since they were in the Lunar Academy. During the time Jason was bringing them here, the news of Grey and friends being captured by him had already spread on the battlefield. Even the other empires had found out and they were already mobilizing their forces, rushing in the direction of the Qilin Empire. The Stellar Empire was stuck in a dilemma, unsure if they should assist the Qilin Empire or join the others to pressure them. They also knew that the Qilin Empire had plans of wanting to dominate the entire continent, and Jason, the Crowned Prince was even more ambitious than his father. Chapter 623 - Attacked In The Castle With a piece of simple information, the tides of the battle switched entirely. From the Blue Wind Empire being the ones forced back, it turned to the Qilin Empire. The change happened so fast that before the generals in the camps could figure out what was going on, almost twenty percent of their troops were wiped out. They quickly retreated back into the empire. Bearing the assault of two empires, it was impossible for them to hold out for long. Unlike when they trod with caution when they heard of the Azure Empire attacking the Blue Wind Empire, the two empires attacked with full force. Causing devastating damage in a matter of hours. ¡­. Qilin Empire, The Capital. It was just like the first time Grey came here, busy in every sense. The structures here were on another level compared to that of other cities. Most of the people at the gates of the city were traders and merchants. After getting into the city, Jason and the others took flight once again. There was a defensive array laid in the walls of the city, making it impossible to fly in without an insignia. Jason naturally had that insignia, but since he was moving with others he had to follow them through the gate. It didn''t take long before a flamboyant castle came to view. When they got to the gates of the castle, they had to land once again. It was illegal to fly into or even over the castle. If anyone were to go against this rule, they would be immediately cut down. The Crowned Prince, the Emperor, and a selected few were naturally excepted from this punishment. On the way to the castle, old man Gerald had tried contacting Grey a couple of times. He was one of the first people who heard of the news of their capture. Grey couldn''t take out the communication device, so he naturally couldn''t reply. He had been speaking with Void all through the time, carefully plotting their escape route. He even had the thought of teaching Void the array for long teleportation. Unfortunately, even after repeated teachings, Void was still unable to grasp it. Given Void''s ability to hide from arrays, Grey initially thought he would be a natural born array master. They were all taken to the main hall. The Principal, Instructor Blake, and Delia decided it was best to stay out of this. Jason invited them to come over, but the Principal refused, opting to stay somewhere in the city. He didn''t have any plans of meeting with the Emperor. There was no telling what he might do if he saw him. The Emperor was still an Overlord Plane Elementalist after all, and was no match for him. If Grey were to go full power on him, he would be able to take out the Emperor, albeit not easily. ¡­. Inside the castle. A stout man with a crown sat silently on the throne that was in the middle of the hall, before him were four youths. Jason and the two Sage Plane Elementalists were standing beside him. He was none other than the Emperor of the Qilin Empire. "You''re the one they call Grey?" The Emperor finally opened his mouth to speak. The first person he questioned was Grey. This was the person who not only crippled some of his children, but also threatened to cripple every single child he had. Grey nodded, his demeanor was the same as always, calm and collected. There wasn''t an inch of fear on his face, even when faced against the Emperor of the Qilin Empire. "Haha, bold and haughty, just like your Teacher," The Emperor laughed, but everyone could sense the anger hidden in it. "To be able to defeat the Mayor who is almost at the Peak of the Overlord Plane while still being in the Fifth stage of said Plane is quite impressive. But what I''m more concerned about is how you were able to advance from the Peak of the Origin Plane to the Fifth stage of the Overlord Plane with such ease," The Emperor continued. Just like the first time, Grey didn''t say anything, just taking a glance around the hall. The Emperor felt annoyed after being ignored by Grey in just a blatant manner. "Boy, you''re already in so much trouble already. Do you think your Teacher will be able to save you?" The Emperor asked irritatedly. "No," Grey replied calmly. "It''s a good thing you know." The Emperor snorted coldly before turning to Jason. Jason whispered a few words in his ears and he nodded in agreement. "Take them to the garden, we''ll test their aptitudes there. If any of them were to have a violet elemental grade, then it is settled. We wouldn''t need to wait for the records from the Academy," The Emperor ordered. Jason nodded before leading the group to the garden. This was exactly the same place Grey and his friends came when the Emperor addressed them before leaving for the trail land. There was a stone situated at the center of the garden, and they all knew what it was meant for, testing the elements and elemental grade of youngsters when they come of age. Panic flashed across the eyes of Klaus and the others, even the usually cool and collected Grey wasn''t calm any longer. Of course, they hid their expressions from Jason. "You''ll be the first one taking the test, after all, you were the one who was said to obtain the item," The Emperor pointed at Grey. "I didn''t get the chance to acquire the Great Earth Essence Liquid, no one did. A terrifying foe appeared and almost wiped out everyone who entered the place. If we didn''t retreat decisively, we would''ve died. How could someone who was busy running for his life have the time to collect a treasure?" Grey questioned. "Place your hand on the stone, it''ll determine if you truly obtained it or not," Jason replied with a calm smile. Grey snorted coldly but still did as instructed. As soon as his right palm made contact with the stone, a dark orb covered in lightning and flames shot towards him from a close range, exploding before anyone could even react. Chapter 624 - A New Target Boom! The stone exploded, with Grey sent flying as a result of the explosion. "Grey!" Klaus, Alice, and Reynolds exclaimed simultaneously as they rushed to where Grey crashed into the ground. Jason, the Emperor, and the two Sage Plane Elementalists who were by the side stared at each other in shock. Everything happened so fast that before they could even react, Grey had been sent flying. "So this was your plan all along, to kill him?" Klaus asked icily. One could sense an unbridled rage in him, not just him, but the others as well. "What happened?" The Emperor asked as he turned to the two Sage Plane Elementalists. They were the ones with the highest cultivation stage here, so he expected them to at least give him an explanation. He didn''t sense anything, not until the attack exploded. Even after the attack, he tried to find where the attack was coming from, but he found nothing. "An assassination attempt," The Fire Elementalist said as he surveyed the area. Just before the attack was released, he sensed something, but it was only for a slight moment before he lost track of it. "Whoever this assassin is, they must be very good since they can hide from the senses of you two," Jason stared at Grey and his friends. "Who else knows of you bringing them here?" The Emperor asked. "We fought against some strange people who could use a diabolic technique to control the dead. Either they were the ones who spread the news, or it was Mister Oliver," Jason said. Since the assassin waited here patiently for so long, it meant that they were already aware of their intentions to test the aptitudes of the group. "A technique that allows them to control dead people?" The Emperor asked, stunned by the revelation. Jason went on to explain what he saw to his father. Hearing of how the Fire Elementalist fought against his dead Teacher, he couldn''t help but gasp in disbelief. If any of the empires has such a technique, then they would obviously be the ones that will rule the continent, especially with a war going on. With this technique, their troops will never decline, rather, they will continue increasing. A trace of greed subtly flashed across the eyes of the Emperor. This technique seems to be of more use than Grey and his elemental core, well, so he thought. While the Emperor was thinking about this, he couldn''t help but take a glance at Grey. Grey''s clothes were slightly damaged from the attack, and one could see small burn marks on his skin. What made everyone worried was the seemingly dark lines running across his skin. The Lightning Elementalist approached Grey, on seeing it, he froze before turning to look in the eyes of the Emperor and the others. "The darkness element has found a way to creep into his body. As it stands, he''s not in a good condition," He said to the others. "Darkness element?" The Fire Elementalist raised a brow. "Yes," [ Updated from F r e e w e b n o v e l. c o m ] "Are you sure?" The Lightning Elementalist gave the Fire Elementalist an irritated look before showing him Grey who was lying on the ground. "I sensed the fire element in this attack," The Fire Elementalist said. "I also sensed the lightning element. I originally thought whoever it was is a Dual Elementalist, who would''ve thought that the person hid the darkness element within as well?" The Lightning Elementalist said after hearing the words of the Fire Elementalist. "A Multi Elementalist?" Jason questioned with uncertainty. "It could be, I only sensed one person," The Lightning Elementalist replied. Klaus and the others were on Grey''s side, trying to do their best to get him up. Guards around the castle had charged out after hearing the explosion. "Take them inside, it''s not safe for us or them if we continue standing here," The Emperor ordered. "Yes, father," Jason bowed slightly before calling one of the guards over. They took Grey, taking him inside the castle. "Also, try to find out if he will be alright," The Emperor added. When Grey and the others had gone in, four figures came from the side. They all had Grey hair, and their skins were wrinkled from old age. The Emperor bowed to them respectfully, before reporting the news of the corpses to them. "Such a technique exists?" One of the old men asked, astounded by what he was hearing. The Fire Elementalist who fought against his Teacher went on to bring the corpse of his Teacher. Everyone could sense the leftover aura of elemental essence in the body which confirmed what they were told. "What do we do?" The Emperor asked one of the old men who arrived recently. "Make this your top priority. If you could find out the people who sent these things after them, then it would be easy to get the technique," One of the old men replied. "Alright, father," The Emperor bowed respectfully before leaving with the two Sage Plane Elementalists. It was clear that they all took the technique of the necromancers as more of a threat than Grey and his friends since the Emperor didn''t bother to go on with the test. They could only collect Grey''s core after he was done with the test, and even after taking it, it would take months before they could start reaping the benefits. But in a matter of a few days, with this technique, they would be able to sweep across the continent unchallenged. Of course it was impossible to say the Emperor had forgotten about them. If not for the unknown attacker who was trying to kill Grey and his friends, then they would''ve gone ahead with the test. ¡­. In one of the rooms in the castle. Grey was placed on a bed, with a wet cloth placed on his forehead to help reduce his surging body temperature. Jason looked at Grey, a little skeptical about all these. He found everything a little suspicious, but there was no way for him to confirm his suspicions. Klaus and the others stared at Grey worriedly. Chapter 625 - Void’s Long Awaited Chance "Stay with your friend, I''ll be back shortly," Jason turned around and left the room. The moment he walked out, after confirming that there was no one monitoring them, the worried expression on the faces of the trio vanished. "Wow, Klaus, you''re such a good actor," Reynolds complimented. "Well of course, after traveling with my father these few months, my acting skills improved. If not, I''d have been dead by now," Klaus replied proudly, before adding with a smile, "By his hands if I might add," "You two are no good," Alice shook her head at the sight of her friends. "Alice, I believe you should put in more effort. You almost made the Crowned Prince know we were faking it," Klaus lectured. "I don''t like pretending," Alice''s reply was simple and straightforward, just like her character. "Suit yourself," Reynolds and Klaus exchanged glances, clearly, they weren''t in line with her words. "You can stop acting now, he''s gone," Klaus went over to kick Grey on his leg. "Ouch! Are you made of metal or something?" He complained when he was the one that got hurt after the exchange. The black lines on Grey''s body vanished without a trace, and his body temperature returned to normal. "I thought you no longer wanted to make use of your leg, you know, since you came to kick me," Grey said nonchalantly. "You¡­ Hmph! I can''t be bothered with you." Klaus snorted as he turned to the others, he still felt pain in his right leg, "What''s our next choice of action now? We''ve been captured just as you planned," "This place is under close surveillance, so making a long range array will take a while. From the information Void passed on a few seconds ago, it looks like the Emperor is more focused on finding the necromancers than actually doing the test. Since he already has us, he doesn''t seem to be pressured any longer," Grey replied. "Take Void''s attack head-on was ingenious, however, I feel like the Crowned Prince is suspicious of something," Alice replied. "I can tell, but there''s no way for him to confirm his suspicions, so we shouldn''t be bothered with him. Now, I''ll have to find a way to send a message to old man Gerald. Since we''re already here, the necromancers will come for us. If the other empires were to find out about it, then all hell would break loose," Grey said with a sly grin. "Hehe, pitting all of them together, and escaping in the chaos, I love it!" Klaus said with a smile. Grey took out old man Gerald''s communication device, and the messages he had received from him stunned him. It had only been just a day since their capture, yet from how the message sounded, it seemed like old man Gerald got news of it a few hours after they were caught. ''The speed at which he gets information is terrifying. It''s a good thing that he''s an ally,'' He thought internally. He sent a message to old man Gerald, assuring him that he was fine, and of course he was still under the watch of the Emperor and his people. He got a reply a few seconds later, it was like old man Gerald had been waiting for his message for a while now. He found out from old man Gerald that he was already in the Capital, staying in the Lenz organization''s building there, waiting for the best time to pay a visit to the castle. Hearing how anxious old man Gerald was after his capture, Grey didn''t know what to feel. He had always felt like other than his parents, friends, and Teacher, no one really cared about him. That was how he grew up because of his situation, and he was used to it. Getting to see someone this worked up because of him left a strange feeling in his heart. But he soon tossed his feelings aside before telling old man Gerald he was the one who planned for their capture. In the Lenz organization''s building, old man Gerald spat out the tea he was drinking when he heard this, feeling a wave of headache. They spoke for a few more seconds before Grey asked for his help in decimating the news of them being in the castle to the other empires. Grey was a little taken aback when old man Gerald told him that they were already aware and that their forces were trying to force their way into the Qilin Empire. "That''s great news! All we have to do now is wait for the chaos that will ensue," Klaus said while rubbing his hands together. "Wait, where''s Void?" Alice asked. "He''s still there. Apparently, he''s been trying to get into the castle for a while now," Grey replied with a sigh. Even after he tried calling Void over, he refused. When he asked his reason, Void''s reply was ''What''s an Emperor without a crown?''. "So he''s going to steal the Emperor''s crown?" Reynolds asked, just to be sure. "And everything he can lay his hands on," Grey caressed his temples. The only reason he didn''t try to stop Void was that he knew that Void would be fine. Since he got to the Peak of Rank Five, his concealing abilities improved drastically. For a while now he had been very cautious around these Sage Plane Elementalists, but he couldn''t afford to let a golden opportunity like this go to waste. Since he managed to attack and escape in the presence of two Sage Plane experts a few seconds ago, he felt more confident in being able to elude all the senses of the experts here and looting the entire royal treasury. His first objective though, was the crown of the Emperor. Grey had promised they would steal it anyway. Alice gazed at the excited Klaus and Reynolds before shaking her head. "Dammit! I can''t wait to see the expression on that loser''s face when he can''t find his crown," Reynolds said in glee. "It''s a shame we''re stuck here," Klaus said regretfully. Chapter 626 - Chaos In The Qilin Empire The Qilin Empire descended into chaos after the capture of Grey and his friends. With the news already spreading in the other empires, it didn''t take long before the Qilin Empire was bombarded. The forces of the Qilin Empire have not only been pushed back into their territory but they have been forced to run with their tails between their legs. The Stellar Continent finally made the betrayal that everyone was expecting. It was common knowledge that the unification of both empires was because the Stellar Empire couldn''t afford to see the Qilin Empire wiped out. But in any case, they wouldn''t mind joining forces with the other three empires to wipe it out. At least in that way, they would get a share in their territory. This was all on the premise that none of them got their hands on Grey and his friends. Now that one of the empires had them, the others couldn''t sit still. It was just like the time the Blue Wind Empire caught Instructor Blake and Delia. Even when everyone knew they hadn''t been able to capture Grey or his friends, they couldn''t take the risk of letting them complete their objective. Inside the Qilin Empire castle. "Father, I''ve gotten wind that the Blue Wind Empire are in cohort with those people," Jason rushed into the main hall. It had been a day since he brought Grey and his friends over, and since they couldn''t contain the news, they had to deal with the repercussions that came with holding onto the four friends. What made them incensed was that they still hadn''t been able to do the tests. Grey was still seriously hurt, lying in the bed. Whoever the assassin was, they still hadn''t been captured, which meant even the life of the Emperor and his family were in danger. Almost every single Sage Plane Elementalist in the castle had been called out, trying to find this elusive assassin. "The Blue Wind Empire? That must be why they let Blake and Delia escape," The Emperor said. "Yes, they used some strange technique to track them, finding the targets. Given the reactions of Blake and the others when we got there, they seem to be the ones who caused a huge ruckus to attract our attention when they realized they couldn''t defeat their opponents," Jason replied thoughtfully. "Do you think we have been tricked?" The Emperor asked. "I can''t be sure, but these people aren''t people we should take lightly," Jason replied. He particularly felt Grey and his friends were a bunch of cunning people. Grey was too calm for someone who was captured, he didn''t seem scared, as if everything was under his control. His greatest doubt however was that Grey wouldn''t actively cooperate with the Blue Wind Empire since they also wanted to kill them. "Father, I think it''s best we kill them now. Even if they didn''t consume the Great Earth Essence Liquid, it wouldn''t change anything since their potential is too much. Grey especially went from being a normal person to being in the Mid stages of the Overlord Plane in less than five years, that''s a scary fact. His battle prowess is even more terrifying since he could defeat someone at the Peak of the Overlord Plane," Jason suggested. Keeping Grey and his friends alive was a risky game that might come back to hurt them, so it was best they killed them off as soon as possible. If they did the test, they would still kill them. So there was no use in keeping them alive. "You''re right. They have no use alive, they''ll be executed tomorrow in front of everyone, to send a message to those who oppose us, and also to show the other empires that we don''t have them anymore," The Emperor declared. Jason nodded before walking out of the hall. ¡­. In the room Grey and his friends were staying. "Grey, what''s the plan now? It''s been a day and the forces of the other empires haven''t gotten here yet," Alice asked. "You don''t expect them to appear so quickly do you?" Grey looked at his friend with a composed expression. "No, but staying here will be dangerous. The Crowned Prince wouldn''t want to keep us alive for long," Klaus said his thoughts. He had heard of Jason from Instructor Blake while they were traveling and had heard about his cautious nature. Cunning people tend to be extremely cautious since they don''t want anyone to plan against them. "That''s expected, but with Void causing chaos in the castle, and the pressure from the other empires, it wouldn''t be that easy. If my guess is right, they will keep us for a day or two at most. I can complete the array if we get two days, but if they decide to take us out by tomorrow, it''ll be a little difficult. Then we''ll have to rely on old man Gerald," Grey told them his plan. He had already started preparing the array, but he couldn''t rush it since this place was under heavy scrutiny from the Sage Plane Elementalists in the castle. During the past day, he had planned with old man Gerald, making sure he informed the other empires of what was happening inside the castle. This made the empires move out quickly, causing heavy casualties on the side of the Qilin Empire camp. The Lenz organization was trusted throughout the continent for their information, so finding out from them about the events in the castle meant that the news was at least seventy percent true. Void on the other hand had already started his exploits in the castle, slowly combing through the castle in search of the royal treasury. Over the course of the previous night, a few important items that weren''t in the treasury had gone missing. Some of the Overlord Plane experts in the castle were disappearing mysteriously. The only reason it hadn''t attracted much attention was that the Emperor sent most of them out to help out on the battlefield, but it was only a matter of time before they would find out about the strange situation in the castle. Chapter 627 - Missing Throne Later that day. The disappearance of the Overlord Plane Elementalists in the castle was soon noticed by someone. One of the senior members of the castle''s troop suddenly vanished and the Emperor didn''t send him out for anything. This alarmed the people in the castle, and after doing a rigorous search, they found out that over thirty Overlord Plane Elementalists were missing. And these were people tasked with guarding specific parts of the castle that held at least a treasure or two. One of them was even tasked with guarding the tomb, and he had vanished. This was brought to the notice of the Emperor and Jason. Panicked expressions appeared on the faces of the duo when they heard about the grave being unprotected. The skill Jason spoke about was still very fresh in their minds, if these people were the ones who sneaked into the castle, then they were in deep trouble. There were over ten Sage Plane Elementalists from the Royal family who had died that were buried there. Even the very first Emperor of the Qilin Empire, Constantine Gale was kept there. He was a Sage Plane expert before the time of his death, and to date, he was regarded as one of the most powerful Sage Plane Elementalist to ever grace the Azure Continent as a whole. If a figure of that caliber got into the hands of these people, then it spelled trouble. "Father," Jason called out urgently. "Let''s check it out first. It''s too early to assume anything," The Emperor replied unhurriedly. Jason nodded before following behind the Emperor to the tomb. It was located on the eastern part of the compound, almost eight hundred meters away from the castle. They soon got to the hill, and the entrance to the cave inside was well taken care of. The only thing that gently calmed the Emperor and Jason was that the rock which was used to block the cave was strengthened by an array formation that would attack anyone trying to go in without the specific seals. A small hut was by the side of the cave, and this was where the Overlord Plane Elementalist was staying. Jason went into the building, and after seeing no signs of a battle, he furrowed his brows as he stepped out. ''Only a Sage Plane expert can kill him without even giving him a chance to retaliate. But even with that, they should still be a sign of elemental usage in the building. Yet, there is none,'' He thought while staring at his father who was making the seals to open up the tomb. Rumble! The rock shook vigorously, before slowly moving to the left, creating a path for the duo. After getting into the cave, a wide expanse opened up before them, and tombstones could be seen rising in different places in the cave. They spread out their spiritual senses and found out the corpses were all intact. "Should we destroy them?" The Emperor voiced his thoughts. Doing this might be disrespectful to their ancestors, but it was better than letting them fall into the hands of people. On the occasion that they fell into their hands, it would be even more shameful and embarrassing to fight against their dead ancestors. "What about when we get our hands on the technique?" Jason asked. The thought of also destroying the corpses came to his head, but these corpses could be turned into valuable powerful forces if they manage to get the secret technique. "Hmm, take a look around," The Emperor ordered. Jason nodded before walking around, his pupils dilated when he saw the place. All the treasures that were used to pay homage to their ancestors had been looted. His body vibrated from anger, but he quickly calmed himself. He went back to the entrance to report to his father. Compared to him, the reaction of the Emperor was on a different level. If not for the fact that they were inside the tomb, he would''ve blown the place up with his fluctuating essence. "Father, calm down. This is good news for us," Jason calmed the Emperor down. "What do you mean good news?!" The Emperor flared up with rage. "We thought it was those people, but from what it looks like, we were only robbed. Although the person who did it might still be in the compound, it means it''s not one of those people," Jason explained hurriedly to calm his father down. When the Emperor heard his explanation, he visibly calmed down since their biggest fear didn''t come to pass. "You''re right. Once we get the person who did this, I''ll personally skin them alive, and make sure they suffer a fate worse than death," The Emperor said icily. They left the tomb, heading back to the castle. On getting there, things seemed to go from bad to worse. According to what they found out, every single ornament in the castle was missing or destroyed. The Emperor almost collapsed when he went into the main hall and found that his throne was missing. That was the symbol of his family''s dominance over the years, and every Emperor who had taken the position had sat on that throne, yet it was missing? "Get me whoever did this! Now!" The boiling rage in the Emperor instantly exploded as he yelled out orders in annoyance. Jason was short of words as he saw what was happening in the castle. It was like the chaos that was coming wasn''t enough, and more had to ensue inside the castle as well. The guards were all on edge because they didn''t know how or when someone went into the hall to steal the throne. Who in their right mind would even steal a throne? It was a chair that was just designed luxuriously for seating! What did the person want to use it for? ¡­. The unrest in the castle didn''t escape from Grey and his friends. Klaus was currently seated on a magnificent throne, laughing his heart out. Reynolds was by his side, patiently waiting for his turn to sit on the throne. This was none other than the Emperor''s throne. Chapter 628 - Gathering Of The Previous Emperors "Hey, haven''t you been able to get any of the crowns yet?" Klaus turned to Void after standing up from the throne. Void, who was by Grey''s side, shook his head regretfully. One could see he was deeply saddened by not being able to get the crown yet. "Don''t feel down, you get them soon," Reynolds ascended the throne and sat majestically. Grey and Alice stared at the duo, not knowing whether to laugh or cry. These two were practically taking the Emperor''s throne as theirs. In fact, they''ve already planned how they would rotate using it. Klaus would keep it for the first week, while Reynolds would keep it for the second week. They would rotate it in this manner. If they by chance get another throne, they would compete for who would obtain the best one. With Void and these two staying together, Grey could already predict the sort of chaos they would cause wherever they go. It would be an understatement to say they wouldn''t make an enemy of everyone they encountered. Alice laughed as she saw the duo rotating who got to sit on the throne. Void soon left them, but he didn''t forget to tell them of everything he had found out so far. He still didn''t know of Jason''s plan to kill them the next day, but he knew of the accurate number of Sage Plane Elementalists in the castle. There were fifteen in total, and according to what he heard, there were still around eight independent Sage Plane Elementalists who would willingly assist the empire in times of trouble. This brought the numbers up to a staggering twenty-three. Of course to the Aurora Continent, this was nothing, but in a place like the Azure Continent, it was a huge number. Other than the Azure Continent, it was generally known that the Qilin Empire had the second highest number of Sage Plane Elementalists. If not for the fact that Oliver was at loggerhead with the empire, he would''ve been added to their ranks of Sage Plane Elementalists. There are naturally a few Sage Plane experts that have secluded themselves from the world, living in a secluded mountain and not bothering with whatever happens with any of the empires. Even if one of the empires finally annexed the other empires, it had nothing to do with them. Grey had been in contact with old man Gerald, and according to what he heard, the troops from the other empires would arrive the next day, or maybe the day after. The group hoped they arrived soon, and that a grand battle should follow up so they could be forgotten. Looking at Void''s disappearing figure, Grey couldn''t help but shake his head. If he had as much control as Void did over the space element, he wouldn''t have to worry about anything, and would''ve created the teleportation array almost instantaneously and left with his friends. "All we can do now is wait," Grey said with a sigh as he sat cross-legged on the bed. Since he hadn''t been going out, he decided it was best if he comprehended the elements. He still had an element in the purple grade, and it wouldn''t be bad if he upgraded it. After he came in contact with necromancers, he had been experimenting with the darkness element frequently, and he felt that to get a stronger control over the corpses, he had to get a better understanding of the darkness element. This was his primary objective, his secondary objective though was understanding how domains worked. When they were trapped, and that large hand loomed over them, he felt an abstruse power when Void managed to get them out of it. Yet the power seemed to be out of reach, and no matter how he tried to recall it, he couldn''t accurately remember it. ''I shouldn''t be in a hurry to try to understand it, it''ll take some time,'' Grey said to himself when he couldn''t get it. He knew for a fact that when it came to things like this, all it would take was time, but he would definitely be able to get it. Domains are like a superior form of controlling elements. He understood that much from the small time Void used it. Getting a better understanding of his element would give him a bigger opportunity of using this power sooner. ¡­. The troops of the Qilin Empire were continuously pushed back as the other empires started their all-out assault. Supposing the Emperor decided to send out reinforcement, it would make no difference given the huge disparity in numbers of troops. Being besieged by all three empires was something even the second strongest empire in the Azure Continent couldn''t withstand, even the Azure Empire which was regarded as the strongest couldn''t withstand it. What made matters worse was the constant disappearance of people in the castle. The thought of fighting against an unknown enemy terrified the Emperor, as well as the Sage Plane experts in the castle. They had all tried to sense where this person was, but it was to no avail. A guard that was outside the main hall disappeared right under their noses while they were discussing the matter of what was happening in the castle. The guards and Elementalists below the Sage Plane were all terrified, but because of their fear of the Emperor, they couldn''t escape from the castle. In a matter of a single day, the castle turned from the most secure place in the entire empire to the most dangerous place for these people. Even the Emperor didn''t feel safe staying here. ¡­. Inside the main hall. Three old men could be seen sitting on three make-shift thrones, although they were not as majestic as the throne Void stole, it was not that bad. The current Emperor of the Qilin Empire was sitting by the right-hand side of these three, and Jason was standing by his side. These three were the people with the highest authority in the castle. Even the Emperor and Jason had to pay their respects to them, two of them were the previous Emperors of the Qilin Empire while the last one was the twin brother of one of them. Chapter 629 - Intruder In The Royal Treasury "How incompetent can you people get?" The old man in the middle asked gently. His voice was low but steady. The current Emperor bowed his head, unable to answer. This was the first time something like this had happened in the castle, and being the one in charge, he was naturally the one who would be blamed when his superiors came. "Great Grandfather, if I¡­" "You too, with your intelligence, I expected you to find this person right from when that kid was almost assassinated. But you''ve all disappointed me," The old man interrupted Jason. Jason dropped his head, not daring to speak up again. Unlike his Father, in the face of his Great Grandfather, he didn''t have any courage. The Sage Plane experts in the hall kept quiet, afraid to offend the old man any further. "Brother, scolding them wouldn''t change anything," An old man almost identical to the one Jason referred to as Great Grandfather calmed the old man down. "Father, you should be a little lenient with Robert. We''ve been active for hours now, and we haven''t even been able to locate the perpetrator as well," The last old man spoke up, albeit, respectfully. "This doesn''t mean we can forgive his negligence," The old man in the middle said coldly. "I understand, he''ll be punished once this whole thing is settled." "Since it''s already like this, what do you think we should do? The Azure Empire is using this opportunity to push into our territory, and the other two empires aren''t letting go of the chance as well." The Emperor reported their current situation to them. Just like the Lenz organization, the upper echelons in the castle have been able to get their hands on a communication device. With its aid, they naturally knew what was going on on the battlefield. The faces of the old men turned dark, exchanging glances between themselves. "Where are the kids?" The present Emperor''s father asked. "The one who was almost killed is still bedridden, while his friends are keeping him company. Of all three of them, he''s the one with the most mysterious background, and it could also be said he has the most potential¡­" Jason gave a general rundown of Grey and his friends. When they started to search for Grey, he did a background search and no matter how hard he tried, he was unable to find anything about his parents. Other than how they suddenly appeared and disappeared from Red City, he got nothing else. If Grey wasn''t here, it would''ve been like they never existed. Jason, the old man in the middle gave his verdict. Jason also told them of his suggestion of executing Grey and his friends in front of everyone. "Can we confirm that they consumed the Great Earth Essence Liquid?" The old man in the middle asked. "We''ll take their cores from their bodies once they''re dead. Killing them secretly won''t change our current situation since the others will think we are only lying, but if they are killed in front of everyone in the city, then it wouldn''t be a problem anymore. The other empires will naturally call back their troops, while we will take the chance to eliminate the Azure Empire. After all, this is our empire, we have greater power here," Jason replied calmly. The old man in the middle nodded his head to Jason''s words, just as he was about to make an input, his pupils dilated, before a terrifying elemental essence exploded out. Extreme cold spread in all directions, almost freezing Jason and the current Emperor who were below the Sage Plane. The old man could be seen shaking vigorously, and his eyes were bloodshot. "Find this person now!" He exclaimed at the top of his lungs. "Brother, what happened?" The man identical to the old man in the asked. "The treasury," The old man in the middle didn''t need to say more. Everyone could sense the extreme anger in his voice. After leaving these words, he vanished into thin air. The two old men by his side exchanged gazes before disappearing as well. The face of the Emperor turned sour, while Jason wore a frustrated expression. From the old man''s statement, they knew that someone had entered the royal treasury. If it were to be the same person, then it would be terrible. Luckily, the old man made an array that informed him the instant someone stepped into the treasury. Unlike other arrays that focused on sensing new auras, this one focused more on physical touch. There was no way one could hide from physical touch. As long as anyone stepped into the treasury, even if it was a single step, he would be alerted. The other Sage Plane Elementalists in the hall kept their heads down before going out as well, heading in the direction of the treasury. Since the old man left almost immediately he sensed the intruder, then he would definitely be able to capture the person before they escaped. Jason and the Emperor followed behind as well. The royal treasury wasn''t far from the castle''s building. Just like most treasuries, it was located underground, in a secure location. ¡­. When the old man and his brother got to where the treasury was located, the Sage Plane Elementalist guarding it could be seen sitting cross-legged out with eyes closed. His expression was a serene one. On seeing him, the old man flared up, attacking instantly. "Useless fool!" Extreme cold gushed out of the old man, and the Sage Plane expert opened his eyes when he sensed it. He wanted to retaliate, but on seeing who it was, he stopped instantly, letting the cold rush towards him. He was frozen to the ground, with just his head left out. The old man went straight to the rock blocking the treasury, and when he opened it, his eyeballs nearly fell out. "How could this be possible?" He staggered, almost falling to the ground. His brother who was by his side felt like he wanted to spurt out blood. He couldn''t believe his eyes as well. It hadn''t even been up to a minute, yet the entire royal treasury was empty. This was a royal treasury, not the regular city treasury. "Impossible¡­" He muttered, dumbfounded. Chapter 630 - Sensitive To The Space Element Jason and the Emperor arrived a few seconds late, on seeing the Sage Plane Elementalist who was almost turned into an ice sculpture, an ominous feeling rose in their hearts. "How the hell?" Jason blurted out unconsciously when he saw the empty treasury. The Emperor almost collapsed as well. The other Sage Plane Elementalists who followed behind them were left dumbstruck. The royal treasury had been emptied by a thief, and what was shocking was that they were all present in the castle at the time. They all turned to look at the Sage Plane Elementalist guarding the treasury and pity welled up in their hearts for him. Given how strict the old man was, it was easy to see that this wasn''t his only punishment. Luckily for him, they currently needed all the Sage Plane experts they could get since a battle was coming. So the old man wouldn''t go overboard. "Father, how is this possible?" Jason''s Grandfather turned to the old man. The old man didn''t reply to his son''s question, rather, he spread out his spiritual senses, covering the entire treasury. His expression turned gloomy as he said, "There''s a strange aura here. I''ve only felt it somewhere else." The old man''s twin brother also had a somber expression, just like his brother, he had also sensed this aura before. "Where could that be?" The Emperor asked meekly. "The array that leads to the trial land. This is the aura it emits before the people standing there vanish." The old man closed his eyes, sensing the aura once more, "I can''t be wrong, it is the same aura as it." "How''s that possible? I know for a fact that all the array masters in the entire Continent have been trying to replicate it, but none of them has been able to do so," Jason exclaimed in shock. He had been fascinated by the mechanics of how the array that transported people to the trail land worked since he heard about it. So he had been going to the array masters that had been researching it, but it had been to no avail. They had been researching it for hundreds of years now, however, they''ve not been able to get the slightest clue on how it worked. "Brother," The old man called out to his twin brother. After exchanging a glance, they knew what was on each other''s minds. Disappearing from everyone''s sight, they both appeared in two different spots in the castle compound. Spreading out their spiritual senses, they were able to cover every single spot in the compound. Each took half of the compound, so they could maximize the efficiency of their search. If a single individual decided to spread out their spiritual senses over the entire compound, they might miss the aura since it was very subtle. A few minutes later. Boom! An explosion rang out inside the castle, and one of the rooms in the main wing of the castle was destroyed. The old man could be seen standing there with both hands behind his back. "Whoever you are, come out now, you''ve been surrounded. I can already sense your strange power," He said while looking into the room from outside. When the Emperor and the others arrived, he was stunned when he saw the state of the room. This room was none other than his personal room, and the old man had destroyed it from the outside. ¡­. The explosion alarmed Grey and his friends who were in a room on the left-wing of the castle. Grey cautiously spread out his spiritual senses to find out what was happening. "Has the battle started already?" Reynolds jumped to his feet. "I don''t think so," Klaus furrowed his brows as he stared in Grey''s direction. Alice also glanced at him, and they saw him shake his head. "I''m afraid Void''s actions have incensed the old men in this castle," Grey said calmly. Just when his spiritual sense was about to get to that spot, he received a message from Void. The message was simple, and that was that some old men in the castle could sense the fluctuations whenever he opened a spatial tunnel. ''I''ve always known there are people who are particularly sensitive to spatial tunnels. How are things with you now?'' Grey asked. Since Void was able to report to him, it meant that he was safe. As long as Void didn''t do anything, he could even stroll out of the castle since most people would take him for a normal cat. His small stature could even help him avoid the eyes of the guards in the castle. ''I''m okay. No matter how good these guys are, they still don''t know about the space element. If I were to teleport to three or five locations in the span of a second or two, they would be lost,'' Void replied with a naughty laugh. Grey shook his head when he heard this. He sometimes forgets how clever Void actually was since all he did was cause trouble. ''Guess I shouldn''t worry about you then,'' He thought internally. ''Guess what?'' Void suddenly asked excitedly. Grey knew he must''ve gotten something nice since he was this elated, ''What is it?'' ''I emptied the royal treasury,'' Void replied with a laugh. ''And?'' Grey knew Void hadn''t said everything else. ''I''ve finally gotten my hands on the Emperor''s crowns. Hahaha,'' Void laughed happily as he said. A smile appeared on Grey''s face when he heard this, he couldn''t help but wonder why Void was so obsessed with the Emperor''s crown. Void had been planning to get the crown since he told him about it, and it looks like he had finally achieved his aim. Grey told the others about Void''s recent conquest, and they were elated. One has to know that the royal family could be said to be the richest family in the entire empire, and their treasury certainly contained good treasures. ¡­. Back on Void''s end. He was currently hiding in a small spatial opening he created, staring at the group who were looking at the room. His eyes soon locked on to the crown on the Emperor''s head, and a grin formed on his face. Chapter 631 - The Day Of The Execution Void soon formulated a plan to deal with the two old men. He opened up another space tunnel a few meters away from where he was, and when their attention was attracted to it, he left where he was hiding, opening a spatial tunnel close to the tomb. The second he appeared there, he vanished again, appearing in eight different positions in a matter of a second. At the time he did all this, the two old men just noticed the spatial tunnel he opened up close to where he was hiding. They exchanged glances as a hint of confusion appeared on their faces. If it was like before when Void would only appear in a particular spot, they could track him down, but now, in a matter of a second, over eight auras of a spatial tunnel appeared. There was no way they could know which of them was the real one, all they knew was that the one here was the first one opened up, which meant the person had left already. "This skill is admirable, it allows one to travel so quickly. However, they made an obvious mistake," The old man said coldly. "Underestimating us brothers," The old man''s twin said with a smile. The two brothers started to make a series of rapid hand seals, and before long, they threw what looked like an inscription, but it was on a large scale into the air. The array shot into the sky, before spreading out in all directions, encompassing the entire compound. Void was left stunned by it, not sure of how to react. His initial plan was to steal the crown on the Emperor''s head, but he knew that with this array in the sky, the second he appeared would be the moment he was caught. ''Forget it, I''ll take it later. These two are enough for now,'' He sighed before hiding in the separate space he made there. The two old men exchanged glances before laughing out. "We know you''re still here. If you come out now, we can forgive what you did, as long as you tell us where you learned this skill of yours," The old man said with a cold smile. After setting up this array, they were able to find out that the last place Void teleported to was back here. The fact that he tried to use this to trick them was a little confusing, but since Void didn''t take the chance to escape, they were not going to give him the opportunity any longer. Void sneered when he heard their words. He wasn''t that stupid to believe their words. According to Grey, the troops will be arriving soon, so he could wait patiently here for them. ¡­. Grey and his friends saw the array that shot into the air through the window, luckily, Klaus had already kept the throne in his storage ring when Grey told them of the two old men who could slightly sense the space element. The only reason they didn''t pick up the aura was that unlike Void who was opening up spatial tunnels, theirs was transporting an item to a separate space. But with the array that was presently active, the old men will be able to sense them. "Hehe, looks like Void''s not having a great time," Grey chuckled when he saw the situation. With this thing active, he was certain that Void wouldn''t be able to move freely with the space element. If Void knew a skill like the one Grey got his hands on back in the trial land, the Great Void Technique, then he would''ve been able to escape out of the Capital if he wanted to. Grey still couldn''t use the technique properly, but if he were to enter the Fusion State, then he wouldn''t have any problems with using it. One thing he noticed when he enters the Fusion State is that his mastery over all his elements is heightened to a shocking level that even he couldn''t believe. The thought of trying to comprehend the light element when he uses the Fusion State has crossed his mind, but he couldn''t just carelessly use it since it was a trump card he couldn''t activate willy-nilly. If he were to use it now, and then got into a difficult situation within a week, he couldn''t use it, or else he might risk damaging himself. The only good thing he noticed was that with the increase of his Plane, the interval between when he could use it had been shortened. Not only that, but he could stay in that state a little longer than before. After waiting for over two hours with Void staying inside the separate space, the old men could only leave in dejection to plan out their counterattack against the Azure Empire, and also the Blue Wind Empire. The array was left active, that way, if Void were to step out, he would be instantly noticed by it. The technique the necromancers used was something that these old men were heavily interested in. In fact, they believed there might be a way to upgrade it, that way, they wouldn''t die from old age, instead, they would use it to prolong their lives. Other than them, no one else knew of their plan, well, except for Grey and his friends who found out thanks to Void. That day soon came to an end, and the next day arrived. The news of Grey and his friends being captured had already spread out in the entire Capital. That was not the only news, but their would-be execution was also all around the Capital. Old man Gerald was left worried when he heard of it. The Principal as well as Instructor Blake and Delia also couldn''t help but worry. They were amongst the first people who arrived at the venue where the execution was going to take place. It was the same place where the competition took place almost two years ago, the arena in the Capital. Chapter 632 - The Day Of The Execution II The arena was filled to the brim with people discussing the upcoming event and possible war. Grey and his friends were regarded as betrayers of the empire. Of course the people didn''t know what they did, but since the Emperor declared them fugitives, so it was. The Mayor of Frost City was present, looking around. He was a little excited because he felt greatly humiliated when Grey not only beat him up but sent him to the Emperor as an errand boy. He was over five hundred years old, and he couldn''t even compete with a youth who wasn''t even twenty years of age. When he came back with the crippled royals, the Emperor flew into rage, almost killing him. If not for the fact that he was already close to the Peak of the Overlord Plane, and he had been loyal to the empire for years now, he would''ve been killed instantly. The Starlight Academy was present, as well as the Principals from the other Academies. A few familiar faces showed up as well, such as Jonas who was with the members of the Starlight Academy. There were also a few faces from the Lunar Academy Grey and his friends were acquainted. The first summoner they saw was also present there, Damian. Although the arena was filled up, the stars of the show hadn''t arrived yet. Grey and his friends were still in the castle, waiting to be called upon. Old man Gerald had already told them of his arrival at the arena, waiting for them to show up. Grey told the others of the crowd in the arena, and Klaus couldn''t help but sneer. "Hmph! A bunch of morons. If I''m given the chance, I''ll blow up the place," Reynolds said coldly. "Do you think things will go smoothly for them?" Grey asked. "Not entirely. The other empires must''ve heard of the execution as well. Presently, we could be said to be treasures, very valuable treasures," Klaus replied calmly. "All we have to do is to stall as long as we can. If possible, I can use my special technique and take us to the location where the war is taking place. At least before they could catch up, we should already be close to the other empires," Grey said. "If you can take us for such a long distance, then it''s best you find a way to take us away from the war. It''ll be too risky if we were to get caught again," Alice advised. Klaus and Reynolds nodded their heads, agreeing with Alice. Grey closed his eyes for some time, seemingly thinking of what was the best cause of action. "Fine, I''ll contact the Principal so they could leave beforehand," He said after a moment of deliberation. Due to Void''s havoc the previous day, he had managed to almost complete his teleportation array as well. If he used the Fusion State, he could almost instantaneously complete it while activating it. It will take at most a few seconds. His only prayer is that the old men didn''t catch up to them before they were transported away. When the Principal got the news from Grey that they would be escaping in a few minutes, he was slightly worried. No one knew of the havoc that Void had caused in the castle, so they naturally still felt that was the most secure location in the entire empire. The Principal stood up decisively, along with the two Instructors. Since Grey said he would be teleporting out of there, then he was confident he could. For some reason, he had developed some sort of confidence in Grey, just like Grey''s friends. With the time of the execution drawing nearer, the people in the castle became increasingly active. Occasionally checking on Grey and his friends. ''Void, be prepared, we''ll be leaving soon,'' Grey''s voice rang out in Void''s head. Void who was casually relaxing in the separate space he created opened his eyes and a glint flashed through it. ''Finally, I guess I still have time to take that one,'' He peeked out, staring at the sky. A smirk appeared on his face before disappearing. Grey told him to distract the group of old men, so they wouldn''t be able to sense them until it was too late. Void naturally agreed and planned to use his domain, covering the entire castle. Even though he was not on the same level as the old men in terms of strength, he knew he could use the help of the domain to easily get out of their encirclement or even teleport to hundred positions in a matter of a second. In the main hall. The Emperor turned to look at everyone, "It''s time," He rose from his seat, heading in the direction of the left-wing of the castle. He was followed by his entourage. At the same time he stood up, Grey opened his eyes as well in their room. ''Void, it''s time.'' The moment Void got the command from Grey, he spread out his domain, covering over a six hundred meters radius. The second the domain was spread out, he started teleporting to different positions, this time, he not only appeared, but he would release an attack that would cause a loud explosion. In a second, over ten explosions rang out simultaneously, halting the movements of the Emperor and his people. The old men, as well as the Sage Plane Elementalists in the castle hurriedly came out from their hiding position. Rushing towards where the explosions occurred. The twins were the only ones who managed to get to the last place Void destroyed. It was none other than the tomb of the royals. "Such disrespect! I''ll cut you into a thousand pieces!" The enraged roar of the old man spread out in the entire castle. Void was sending them hysterical, and they almost couldn''t contain their emotions any longer. Just as they were about to move, they sensed something from the left-wing of the castle. And their expressions dropped. "Oh no, someone is taking the prisoners away," The old man rushed in the direction Grey and his friends were staying. Chapter 633 - Surrounded From All Sides While all the commotion was happening, the only person who didn''t retreat to check out the explosions was Jason. To him, he felt getting to Grey and his friends was more important. He opened the door, only to see Grey and his friends standing in the middle of an array that had already been lit up. His eyes bulged when he saw Grey''s perfect condition, and his heart sank. He wanted to turn around, but an eerie voice resounded in his ears, "Since you''re already here, why don''t you come with us?" Jason hastily closed the door, but his expression changed when his scenery changed, and he was held by Grey, and a small black cat could be seen, playing with what seemed to be the Emperor''s crown. This was the same crown the Emperor was wearing, but now it was on Void''s hand. ''Don''t tell me this cat is the cause of all the problems?'' Jason asked internally, stunned by the prospect. Boom! The roof of the room was destroyed, but by the time the twins appeared, Grey and his friends had teleported away from their grasp. The Emperor and his entourage appeared there a few seconds late. On getting there, the first thing he noticed was the disappearance of Jason. "Where''s Jason?" He turned to the Sage Plane experts by his head. One of them wanted to reply, but on looking at the appearance of the Emperor, he was stunned beyond words. "Robert, what''s the meaning of this?" Jason''s Grandfather asked coldly. All three old men were present here, and the current Emperor was wearing a crown made from animal skin. How could he not get upset? "What?" The Emperor asked, confused by his father''s sudden question. An ice mirror appeared in front of him, and he was stunned, before taking the crown off his head. "How¡­ what?" He asked, flabbergasted. If he were the only one who didn''t notice when his crown was changed, it would''ve been his own negligence, but now, even the Sage Plane experts with him didn''t know as well. "Who did this?" He was infuriated. "They''re already gone. Looks like this person took Jason as well," One of the twins said, he was the one who was originally an Emperor. "Brother, what do we do now?" His twin brother asked. "We can''t proceed with the execution any longer, and since¡­ wait, do you sense that?" The old man who was in the middle of speaking froze before looking in the south. His wrinkled face showed glee. His twin brother nodded to his question. "Looks like lady luck is on our side," He burst out laughing before taking flight. "Robert, tell your subjects the location of the execution has been moved. Whoever wants to watch can come, but at their own risk," The Emperor''s father said. The Emperor nodded his head before sending someone to the arena to announce the change of location. ¡­. Some kilometers away from the Qilin Empire''s Capital City. A fissure appeared in the sky and Grey and his friends were forcefully thrown out. "Void, what happened?" Grey asked hurriedly. He had tried teleporting them to a separate location, but the spatial tunnel was destroyed mid-way, if not for Void''s quick reaction, they would''ve been caught in spatial turbulence. This was Grey''s first time experiencing an interruption in teleportation, and it was very risky. "We have company," Void''s reply was gloomy. They turned around, only to see six figures in black cloaks. "It''s them!" Klaus and Reynolds exclaimed simultaneously. Grey hastily contacted the Principal, while cautiously staring at their opponents. But before the six individuals could move forward. The twins'' aura was felt approaching them in a domineering manner. Not just that, but twelve more domineering auras could be felt coming from afar. Jason looked at the people dressed in black cloaks, and a look of apprehension appeared on his face. The eerie feeling he was getting from them sent chills down his spine. Grey quickly sealed Jason''s cultivation before exiting the Fusion State. Since he didn''t use it for long, he could use it again without causing significant damage to his body. Since they have the Crown Prince of the Qilin Empire, they should at least be able to bargain with the Emperor to let them go for Jason''s safety. The twins were the first to arrive, with the other Sage Plane Elementalists as well as the Emperor arriving a few seconds later. They stood opposite the black cloaked group, with Grey and his friends in the middle. But no one said a word, the reason for this was that they could all sense powerful auras arriving from different angles. Before long, the figures arrived, and it was none other than the Emperors of the other three empires, and their own Sage Plane Elementalists. They all stood in four different positions, and Grey and his friends were in the middle of their encirclement. Grey''s expression was bleak. This was not a good outcome for them. Although they wouldn''t be instantly executed like the group from the Qilin Empire originally wanted to do, their outcome didn''t look good either way. "I never thought you two would still be alive?" An old man from the Azure Empire stepped forward and glanced at the twins from the Qilin Empire. "Hehe, old Frost, if even you are still alive, why would we die?" The old man amongst the twins who was the Emperor said with a chuckle. "It''s been a while, old friends," An old man stepped out from the side of the Stellar Empire. He was dressed very modestly, with his hands clapped together. From one look, one would think he was a simple scholar, but everyone who knew him knows that he was a bloodthirsty demon. "Since everyone is here, there is no use in delaying any further. There are four youths who are suspected of consuming the Great Earth Essence Liquid. Coincidentally, there are also four empires here. Why don''t each take an individual, and call it a day?" The Emperor of the Blue Wind Empire suggested. Chapter 634 - Trouble Grey and his friends were a little stunned when they heard this. They never thought someone would come up with a plan like this. It was ingenious given all of them wanted the same thing, and that was to extract the cores of these four individuals. Since there was no way for one of the empires to lay their hands on all four, why not share it amongst themselves. The old men from the Qilin Empire exchanged glances, clearly deliberating the matter. They weren''t the only ones thinking deeply about it. The other two empires were as well. If they shared the individuals, then they wouldn''t need to go on an all-out war. Of course, the Blue Wind and Qilin Empire had suffered from the small time they were pressured for holding Grey and his friends, or someone close to them. "So, what do you all say? This is a good bargain from how I see it." The Emperor of the Blue Wind Empire said. The other three Emperors exchanged glances before nodding their heads. "Good, since we''ve agreed on it, we should take one of them and leave," The Emperor of the Blue Wind Empire said with a smile. "We''ll take Grey," All four Emperors said at the same time. They all turned to look at one another after finding out they said the same thing. Of Grey and his friends, he was the most important one. The reason for this was simple: he was the one reported to have obtained the Great Earth Essence Liquid, and not his friends. There is a possibility that he might''ve shared it with his friends, but they didn''t know if it happened. After all, the person who gave the news said the same thing as Grey, which was that a terrifying power resided in the place where the treasure was and if not for escaping quickly, they would''ve died. So even if Grey managed to acquire the Great Earth Essence Liquid, it might just be one which he had consumed. Besides, of his friends, he was the one who had made the most improvement. Grey''s expression was odd, he didn''t think all four empires would be fighting over him. Klaus and Reynolds on the other hand were feeling a little wronged. If they were given the chance to speak up, they would definitely ask if the Emperors didn''t have eyes, and weren''t seeing them. If Grey and Alice were to find out what was in the mind of Klaus and Reynolds, they would certainly beat them up. In a situation like this, how could they be thinking of wanting to ask the Emperors if they weren''t seeing them? A normal person wouldn''t even want to be seen in a situation like this since it didn''t spell anything good for them, yet these two were upset because they were neglected. ''Void, things aren''t looking good. What happened with the spatial tunnel?'' Grey asked Void telepathically. ''It was forcefully destroyed. Stay close to me, I''ll try to open up another spatial tunnel,'' Void replied. Grey followed his instruction and drew closer to the others. Of course he didn''t forget to hold onto the Crown Prince. Jason might become a useful bargaining chip for him if they couldn''t teleport away. The Emperor of the Qilin Empire will never agree to lose his beloved son. So there might still be a chance for the group to turn this around. Void opened a spatial tunnel just as the Emperors were speaking about who would keep Grey. The group stepped into it, disappearing from view. This scene stunned the Emperors, as well as the other Sage Plane Elementalists to their core. Right in front of their eyes, their targets seemed to have disappeared into thin air. However, just as Grey and his group disappeared, a tear appeared in the sky over five hundred meters away and their figures were forced out of the fissure. A powerful lightning attack exploded after them, but Grey and Void managed to team up to block the attack. But the impact sent them somersaulting through the air. They quickly regained their balance, and hurriedly looked in the direction of the crack. A dried figure slowly stepped out of the crack, staring at Grey and his friends. But they could see that its eyes were empty. This was obviously one of the corpses of the necromancers. ''They have a Sage Plane Space Elementalist,'' Void reported with a solemn look. Grey''s expression turned serious, and even he felt a sense of hopelessness when he took a glance at their adversary. This corpse was not only in the Sage Plane, but it also had the only element they could rely on to escape. It was as if they were bound to be stopped by it. On the side of the Qilin Empire''s group. "Who is that?" The old man who was an Emperor amongst the twins asked, stunned by what he just witnessed. He could slightly sense the aura of space element, so he knew whoever that person was, they had managed to gain the ability he coveted. "That''s not a living person. It''s a corpse," The Fire Elementalist who went with Jason to apprehend Grey and his friends said to the old man. He had fought against these corpses before, so seeing it from a distance, he could tell what it was. The Sage Plane experts from the other empires looked at the crack in the sky in shock. What they found more astonishing was that a human figure actually walked out of it. They would''ve never been able to find Grey and his friends if not for this person. Unsurprisingly, after studying the figure for a while, they realized there was something odd about it. Thinking up to the point, everyone rushed over. The only people who didn''t have any reactions to the appearance of this figure were the black cloaked group, and the Emperor of the Blue Wind Empire. The only thing that gave him a little surprise was the space element he wasn''t aware of, other than that, he already knew the corpses. Chapter 635 - Trouble II The corpse stood in the sky, staring at them without moving. It was clearly following the instructions of the person controlling it. Klaus and Reynolds were a little downcast, they didn''t need Grey to explain to them their current situation. From how they had been tossed out of the turbulent space tunnel, they knew it was the work of this corpse. "What do we do now?" Alice asked. "What else can we do?" Grey turned to look at the Crown Prince who was their hostage. Jason seeing their gaze knew what they were thinking, and even he knew that in a situation like this, he would definitely do the same thing. The only problem with their current plan was that, other than the Qilin Empire, the other three empires didn''t care about him. There was no way the Qilin Empire could fight against all of them alone. But the Emperor wouldn''t want his son to be killed nonetheless, so there was still a little bit of hope for them. They were once again surrounded by the groups from the four empires, and after staring at the corpse for a few seconds, most of the people turned their gazes to them. When they disappeared all of a sudden, it shocked all of them to no end. The group from the Qilin Empire had already witnessed this once, but it wasn''t as clear as this one. Also, the fact that they could use it meant that one of them had grasped this amazing ability as well. They couldn''t help but be amazed at the genius of these youths, and for a small moment, the Emperor of the Qilin Empire actually regretted his choice of action. Had he left the group alone when he heard of the news, and even protected them, then he would''ve been able to nurture four brilliant youths. ''What''s done is done. I can''t rewind time,'' The Emperor thought to himself. Things were already like this, there was nothing he could do to change it. The only thing that had him a little worried was his son who was held captive by Grey and his friends. The twins from the Qilin Empire exchanged glances before the one who was an Emperor spoke up, "The kids are from our empire, so we naturally have the right to pick first," "Although you''re not wrong, that''s not in a situation like this. We can''t let you pick the best out of them and leave the leftovers for us," An old man from the Azure Empire snickered. "Who are you calling leftovers?" Klaus refuted angrily. "Stupid," Alice smacked the back of Klaus'' head. This was not the time to be arguing over who was called leftover or not. They had to think of how to escape from here, alive and intact. Klaus knew this was not the time to be playing around, but seeing people who were distributing them as if they were loot annoyed him. If not that he wasn''t strong enough, he would''ve challenged all of them, and killed them. Reynolds clenched his fists tightly as he gritted his teeth. Grey''s expression had turned back to its usual indifferent look. Of the group, he was the only one who didn''t seem to be panicking. While the Emperors were discussing, he was thinking of ways to escape from their current predicament. He had also been in constant contact with old man Gerald, trying to see if there was a way he could help. Unfortunately, since it involved Sage Plane Elementalists, there was nothing he could do. After all, the Sage Plane was the pinnacle of the Azure Continent, and even though he was acquainted with a few, he couldn''t control them. The only person who could help them now was the Principal, and there''s only so much a single person could do. There are over ten people present here who were stronger than the Principal, after all, it hadn''t been too long he broke through to the Sage Plane. The Principal will naturally not let them take Grey and the others that easily. Before long, the groups had come to a concession. Grey would be left with the Qilin Empire, while Alice would be taken by the Blue Wind Empire. Klaus would be going to the Azure Empire, while Reynolds would be taken by the Stellar Empire. Just as they wanted to take them, Grey moved, creating a lightning blade, he placed it on Jason''s neck. "If anyone comes close I''ll cut off his head," He said slowly. The Emperor of the Qilin Empire froze, as well as his entourage. They naturally didn''t want Jason to die, but that was not the same for the other empires. They progressed as planned. "You think I''m joking?" Grey pushed the lightning blade into Jason''s neck and blood slowly started to drip out. The lightning started to affect him. The Emperor of the Qilin Empire yelled at the other empires to stop their movements, "Stop!" "Heh! Robert, that''s your problem. Besides, you were the one who said you wanted that boy," The Emperor of the Azure Emperor sneered as he continued his movement. The Emperor of the Qilin Empire turned to look at one of the old men in his group, "Father," "Don''t worry," The old man took a step forward, appearing in front of the group, stopping them from moving. Just when hope started to sprout in the minds of Grey and his friends, the old man turned, and before anyone could react, Grey and his friends fell to the ground, incapacitated. Even Grey was stunned by how everything turned quickly. The old man released a mysterious force that overwhelmed them. "In the presence of real power, all schemes and plots are useless," The old man said with both hands behind his back. Grey tried to raise his head, but the pressure was too much for him to bear. Even Void was having a difficult time staying up. Despair appeared on the faces of Grey and his friends. Chapter 636 - Oliver Showcasing His Abilities ''Void¡­'' Grey called out, helplessly. ''There''s nothing I can do,'' Void replied, his voice anxious due to their current situation. He looked around, but he didn''t see anyone coming from anywhere to help them. Even the Principal is basically helpless in a situation like this. ¡­. Somewhere in the void, watching the battle was an old man. He had both hands clasped behind his back, and his eyes revealed a nonchalant look. "The young lord''s situation isn''t good. If things stay like this, I''m afraid I''ll have to show up," He muttered to himself. This was none other than the man tasked with protecting Grey by his mother. After Grey left for the Aurora Continent, he had some difficulties since they weren''t transported to the same location, but he managed to locate him in the end. However, just when he found him, he was about to leave for the Azure Continent again. He hurried back to the Azure Continent after him and found Grey a few days ago. On seeing that Grey had gone from the Peak of the Origin Plane to the Fifth stage of the Overlord Plane, he was left amazed by his speed. Naturally, when he saw him the last time before Grey left the Aurora Continent, Grey was still at the Peak of the Origin Plane, which he found odd given his talent. It was only now that he knew that Grey was simply accumulating his essence for a massive breakthrough. While watching from the void, he realized the people were about to take their respective captives back to their empires. "I guess¡­ oh, this will be interesting," He was about to help out when he sensed two auras, one belonged to the Principal. The other one made him smile a little bit. ¡­. The Principal arrived at the location when they had already sealed the cultivation of the group who were incapacitated. Void was the only one left out, well, simply because he was a cat. Other than the duo he fought against amongst the necromancers, no one else knew of his abilities. He was naturally with Grey. "Stop!" The Principal called out when he arrived. "Oliver, what do you want?" The Emperor of the Qilin Empire asked coldly. "You can''t take the youngsters," Oliver said calmly. His voice was unusually calmer than expected. "This is not a place for you to run your mouth, boy. Even though you''ve broken through to the Sage Plane, you''re still not in the position you can speak to us how you like," The Lightning Elementalist they encountered back at the borders said coldly. "I''m sorry for my behavior senior, but I will not allow you to take them. Not while I''m still alive," Oliver said coolly. Even though he knew this wasn''t a battle he couldn''t win, he didn''t care. If he didn''t do anything, Grey and his friends would be taken. Unlike before when only the Qilin Empire had them, now it would be even more difficult to help them once separated. They might be killed before he even tried to rescue one, much less all four of them. "Hehe, since you said so yourself, then I have no choice but to fulfill your wish," The Lightning Elementalist said with an evil grin. He had gotten the go-ahead from the Emperor, so he wouldn''t hold back in the battle. Oliver was only in the First stage of the Sage Plane, while he had been in the Second stage for hundreds of years now, even before Oliver was born. "Please instruct me, senior," Oliver said with a bow before lightning danced across his body. The Lightning Elementalist scoffed, with lightning also dancing across his body. Buzz! Swoosh! Bam! Both parties moved at the same time, causing a massive explosion as their attacks collided mid-air. Small lightning snakes danced in the sky. They soon started attacking more ferociously. At the start of the battle, Oliver was on the back foot. But as the battle progressed, everyone could see that he was slowly getting into the battle, counterattacking whenever the opportunity presented itself. Boom! Bang! Sizzle! The sky was covered by a sea of lightning, and lightning clouds even started to take form in the sky as their battle intensified. The two old men from the Qilin Empire stared at each other. They could tell that the more the battle lasted, the more Oliver was getting the upper hand in the battle. One has to know that for anyone to break through to the Sage Plane in a place like the Azure Continent, then it meant that their talent for cultivation was top notch. If they even went to the Aurora Continent, they wouldn''t pale in comparison to their peers there. Of course not all of them, but they would at least be above average. The shortage of elemental essence in the Azure Continent made it almost impossible for anyone to break through to the Sage Plane, yet, here these people were. In a battle between geniuses, it was almost impossible for one to fight across stages, and the increase in Plane as well, made it even harder. Only people like Grey could easily do it even with the increase in Plane. Crack! Bam! A figure was sent flying, and to the surprise of everyone present, it was none other than that of the Lightning Elementalist. Bang! He crashed into the ground, causing a long and deep crater to appear on the ground. He didn''t stay down for long, quickly flying back up. He stood before the man in front of him, and his expression was dark, never did he think that he would be defeated by a junior. Oliver stood in the sky, his white shirt dancing in the wind, with lightning arcs circulating around him. It was as if he was the god of thunder. Klaus stared at his father in awe, but also sorrow. He knew no matter how his father tried to salvage the situation, there was no way he could defeat all the Sage Plane Elementalists here on his own. "I''ll say this again, leave the youngsters behind," Oliver said softly. Chapter 637 - Oliver Showcasing His Abilities II "Oliver, stop this and go home. I''ll take it that I underestimated you, but don''t think you can defeat me again," The Lightning Elementalist said coldly. Oliver looked at him but didn''t say a word. His eyes were fixated on the people holding onto each of the youngsters. "Come, let''s settle this quickly," One of the Sage Plane Elementalists from the Azure Empire said to the others with an evil grin. The others nodded their heads, before passing over their captives to others. They wanted to end this arrogant fool who thought he could stop all of them on his own. Oliver stood in the sky with a calm expression, it was unclear what he was thinking about, but one thing everyone knew was that he was steady. While Oliver was battling with the Lightning Elementalist, some Overlord Plane guards arrived at the place. Even Instructor Blake and Delia were currently present. Old man Gerald wasn''t absent as well, he was accompanied by Diluc who was also with him. "Is he going to be alright?" Delia turned to Blake, only to see him clenching his fists tightly. He was grinding his teeth so hard that blood had already started to flow out from the side. He knew that what the Principal was doing was a worthless effort, but he couldn''t sit by and watch his son and his friends be killed. A few people in the Overlord Plane that were in the city were also present here watching the battle from a safe position. The four people surrounded Oliver, each from one of the four empires. It was unbelievable that these four empires who usually butted heads against each other were currently working together. Of course a single individual in the Third stage of the Overlord Plane might be able to easily defeat Oliver, but they felt they were too much of a senior, and they didn''t want it to look like bullying. Swooosh! Boom! They attacked simultaneously. The person from the Qilin Empire was none other than the Fire Elementalist who was with the Lightning Elementalist. The person from the Azure Empire was a Water Elementalist, the one from the Blue Wind Empire was a Wind Elementalist. While the one from the Stellar Empire was a Fire Elementalist. Lightning danced around Oliver''s body as he dodged the attacks while blocking the one he couldn''t dodge. Thanks to his superior speed, only the Wind Elementalist was able to properly keep track of him. Whoosh! Bam! Bang! They exchanged moves, and within a minute, Oliver was pushed back by an attack. It was already assumed that he would lose the battle, after all, he couldn''t fight against all four of them at the same time. So when the people saw him being pushed back, they didn''t find it odd. Only a few people felt sad about his situation, the others were only here for the entertainment. Oliver still had his calm expression even when he was on the brink of being defeated. He didn''t panic, rather, he slowly tried to ensure that he took a few hits as he could from his opponents, while preparing a counter. His first target in the battle was none other than the Wind Elementalist. If he could take him out, then his chances of winning would at least come up. Buzz! Swoosh! They continued fighting with greater intensity, Oliver dodged some of their attacks while intentionally letting a few get to him. He planned to make his opponents drop their guard, then explode out with a powerful attack. And just as he planned, after he was hit three more times, his opponents became increasingly smug. Some even went as far as getting close to him. ''He''s very cautious. Since I can''t take him out, then the one with the most explosive power will do.'' He thought to himself. The Wind Elementalist didn''t come close to him, however, the Fire Elementalist from the Stellar Empire was the one closest to him. She was a woman who looked to be in her mid-fifties. While they were attacking him, Oliver suddenly exploded out with a powerful lightning dome that shot in every direction after it was destroyed. The Fire Elementalist who was closest to him was naturally caught in it. Before she could even retreat, Oliver appeared in front of her, attacking ruthlessly and decisively. Bang! She fell from the sky like a kite, crashing into the ground with a resounding ''Boom!''. Everything happened so fast that the Overlord Plane Elementalists couldn''t keep up, but the Sage Plane Elementalists watching all knew what happened. "That cunning bastard," An old man from the Stellar Empire said with hatred. He knew Oliver acted weak just so he could draw in his opponents, when they let down their guard, he exploded out. Given his speed, it was difficult for these people who were so close to him to escape. Especially the Fire Elementalist from the Stellar Empire. After Oliver took out the Fire Elementalist, he didn''t stop there, chasing after the Water Elementalist from the Azure Empire. Buzz! Crash! A burst of lightning fell from the sky, striking the escaping Water Elementalist. "Ah¡­" His painful shriek sounded out in the ears of everyone. In the span of a few seconds, Oliver just took out two Sage Plane Elementalist. It was shocking, and even the Emperor of the Qilin Empire couldn''t help but do a double-take on him. The three old men however were staring daggers at the present Emperor of the Qilin Empire. How the hell did he make such a decision? Looking at the talent of Grey and his friends, it was not a fluke if one said they would break through to the Sage Plane in the coming years. Oliver could already battle four against one and still look like he would come out on top, and Grey and his friends'' talents were above his. Thinking of how they would''ve been able to easily take out the other empires if they had people like this in their arsenal, they felt like killing the current Emperor. Chapter 638 - Powerful Old Man Chapter 638 - Powerful Old Man The Wind Elementalist from the Blue Wind Empire and the Fire Elementalist from the Qilin Empire exchanged glances, and shock was written on their faces. This was a battle they all felt he would''ve been able to resolve easily, but from how things were turning out, it was already easy to see that Oliver would most likely come out on top, especially now that they''ve lost two of their partners. "I don''t believe he can defeat us," The Fire Elementalist reinforced his will and charged at Oliver. Even with how things were, he was still very confident in himself. The Wind Elementalist looked at him before following suit. He couldn''t be the one that would cower in front of Oliver. The Lightning Elementalist Oliver defeated the first time was a little shaken by what he was witnessing. If he were told to face these four people, he was certain that the most he could do was to defend, and in the end, he would still lose. But Oliver not only defended himself, but he also took out two of the four people in the process. "I underestimated him," He muttered under his breath. The old men from the Qilin Empire looked at him when he heard his statement, before turning his gaze back to Oliver, "We all did," Swoosh! Boom! Bang! The battle started once again, and the Fire Elementalist brought out everything he had, attacking with the intent to kill. The Wind Elementalist decided to act as his support. Rather than attacking Oliver, he would occasionally distract him, giving the Fire Elementalist the chance to deal a fatal blow. Oliver quickly realized their plans, and immediately changed his attack method. If he were a little careless, then he might lose his life. Boom! Oliver''s attack and the Fire Elementalist''s attack collided, causing a large explosion. Buzz! Oliver, who was covered with lightning shot past the explosion, charging at the unsuspecting Fire Elementalist. Just as he was about to get close to his target, a tornado rose from the ground, instantly placing him in the middle. With the tornado stopping him, the Fire Elementalist threw a large ball of fire into the tornado, turning the tornado into a sea of flames. Grey and his friends tried to move forward, however, they were unable to take a step forward. Blake took a step forward, but a strong hand held him, turning around, he saw old man Gerald shaking his head lightly at him. He understood what he meant, but he couldn''t just watch. "Going will only make things difficult for him," Old man Gerald said. Blake clenched his fists so tight that one would think he wanted to destroy his hands. Delia looked at the scene with tears welling up in her eyes, she couldn''t help but hate her weakness. Crack! Boom! A large lightning bolt ran across the sky, before falling down into the tornado that was made of flames. With the addition of the lightning, the tornado''s intensity increased for a few seconds, before it burst apart, and a figure covered in lightning appeared in the view of everyone. As soon as Oliver came into view, he moved instantly. He was so fast that he unconsciously created an afterimage. The lightning figure hadn''t disappeared, but Oliver was already standing in front of the Wind Elementalist, without giving him any chances to move, he attacked once, ruthlessly. With the Wind Elementalist out, he chased after the Fire Elementalist. On seeing how Oliver quickly incapacitated the Wind Elementalist, it finally dawned on everyone here that he could take out all four people who fought against him. The Fire Elementalist didn''t get far before he was stopped by Oliver who attacked without a second thought. The Fire Elementalist scrambled to block his attacks, but the strength and speed of each lightning bolt were just too strong. In a couple of seconds, the Fire Elementalist fell from the sky, slamming into the ground. Oliver moved in the direction of the group holding the youngsters captive. "Let them go," He uttered slowly. "Hmph!" A cold snort came from behind the group from the Azure Empire, and an old man stepped forward. When the twins from the Qilin Empire saw this old man, fear unknowingly appeared on their faces. They had heard of this old man when they were still young. It was said that he was one of the main forces of the Azure Empire, he was also the reason the Constantine family was unable to take over the Azure Empire and resorted to breaking out, forming the Qilin Empire. They would never have thought that such a figure was still alive. Even they themselves were already regarded as old bones, yet this old man was still here. They didn''t know what they would regard him as. "Boy, get down," The old man said gently. His voice was gentle, but to Oliver, it felt like the world was coming down on him. He couldn''t support himself mid-air any longer and fell to the ground. Everyone turned to look at the old man, all short of words. All it took was a simple word from the old man, and Oliver who had been defeating people left and right lost his ability to fly. Grey''s pupils contracted when he saw this. The old man used a strange ability when he spoke those words a few seconds ago, although he didn''t know what it was, he could feel that it had to do with the earth element. Oliver on the other hand was having a difficult time keeping himself standing. He could feel a terrifying gravitational force pushing him down, the more he tried to fight against it, the stronger the force. He looked at the old man who was standing in front of the group from the Azure Empire, and his face distorted. The old man was in the Fourth stage of the Sage Plane. This was the only person he had seen that had gone above the Early stages of the Sage Plane. Not just Oliver, but everyone present here that was in the Sage Plane was stunned by the old man''s cultivation stage. Chapter 639 - This Is The End Chapter 639 - This Is The End "Father," The father of the Emperor of the Qilin Empire turned to one of the twins. "It''s alright. He can''t take on all of us, and his trick is only effective in a small area, if he dared to expand it, then the force would be greatly reduced. However, if he were in the presence of Overlord Plane Elementalists, then no matter how he expands it, they wouldn''t be able to overcome it," One of the twins said. After hearing his explanation, everyone heaved a sigh of relief. Grey was closely listening to their conversation, so after hearing the explanation of the technique the man used, he couldn''t help but contemplate it. This was a mysterious yet powerful technique when battling against multiple opponents, so he wouldn''t mind learning it. If he had this and his inscriptions, he would be a terror to fight against. He focused his entire being on the area surrounding the Principal. This was an opportunity for him to learn, so he naturally wouldn''t waste it. If his friends or even the people around find out that he was actually practicing given his current situation, they would be flabbergasted. How could someone who might die in a few moments have the guts to even try to comprehend a new technique? Oliver looked at the old man defiantly. "Your valiant effort is much appreciated, but it ends here," The old man said calmly while stretching out his hands. Earth particles started to form around Oliver, and before long, they attached themselves to him. He soon looked like a statue made of rock. The old man looked at his work proudly before giving a nod. "The pest has been taken care of, we should get¡­" He paused mid-sentence. He turned to look at the rock statue before muttering nonchalantly, "Oh, how resilient," He made a few hand seals, and the lightning currents that were running rampantly across the rocks were instantly suppressed, even the aura of Oliver was reduced to the bare minimum. If one didn''t study it properly, then they would think this was an actual rock statue. Klaus struggled to go over to where his father was, but the old man who stopped his father glanced at him. A simple glance and Klaus'' entire body slammed into the ground, his bones even started cracking under the pressure of the gravitational force. But his eyes were bloodshot, he could tell that if no one broke the rock statue, then his father would die within a short period of time. Unfortunately, he couldn''t take a step, even if he wanted to. Alice and Reynolds stared at him, tears welling up in their eyes as well. They couldn''t do anything, even if they wanted to. The people holding onto them didn''t even give them the chance Klaus had. Grey on the other hand was tightly held, and unlike the others, he could feel the true nature of what the old man did since his entire focus was on that area. At the moment, every single blood cell of the Principal was slowly solidifying, turning into a rock as well. If things went on, the internal organs of the Principal would turn to rock, and the same would happen to the outer body of the Principal. In an hour or so, the Principal wouldn''t be covered with rocks, he would be the rock itself, dead through and through. "We''ll be leaving now," The Emperor of the Azure Empire said before turning around. The other Emperors did the same, except for those from the Qilin Empire, this was their empire, so there was no need to hurry. However, just as the groups were about to take flight. Bang! The rocks surrounding Oliver shattered, sending bits of rocks in all directions. The old man from the Azure Empire raised a brow, looking at the location Oliver was standing with a slightly different expression. ''There''s no way he could break it. This is definitely the work of someone else,'' He thought to himself. When he looked at the spot, he saw lightning dancing across the body of Oliver. "I said, leave the kids and go," Oliver said, but this time, his voice was relatively lower. Everyone could tell that he had difficulty speaking. Even standing seemed to be an issue for him. "Impressive, now I want to kill you all the more," The old man''s eyes closed to a slit, and intense killing intent spread out. If he didn''t make sure Oliver died, he wouldn''t be settled. The six black cloaked figures exchanged glances, a strange glint flashing in their eyes. To them, this was a great opportunity to acquire a powerhouse. They''ve already seen Oliver''s strength and knew he was above some people, if they could cultivate his body after his death, then there''s a chance they could increase his strength. The old man stretched out his hand once again, and this time, Oliver couldn''t withstand the pressure of the gravitational force and slammed into the ground. His bones shattered from the force, and blood started coming out from his eyes, ears, nose, and mouth. He didn''t have the strength to defend himself against the pressure any longer. Breaking out of the rock took everything he got, but he still didn''t want to give up. He promised Klaus'' mother that he would protect him, and even if it cost him his life, then he would do it. Gritting his teeth, he struggled to get up. But he found out that he couldn''t, it was only now that he realized that the bones on his legs were shattered. Even if he doesn''t die from this, it would take years for him to recover from this injury. He raised his head, and his eyes darted towards Klaus, his stubborn yet playful son. Warmth appeared in his eyes, and he even forced out a smile to him. Klaus was already in tears when he saw this, he knew this was his father preparing to use his last resort, burning his life essence. Powerful energy soon erupted from Oliver''s body, but the gravitational force didn''t disappear, instead, it increased by two folds. ''This is the end.'' This was the only sentence reverberating in everyone''s head. At the moment everyone thought it was over, the energy that erupted from Oliver''s body was retracted, and a figure covered in white light appeared close to him. "It has gotten to this stage," The figure said calmly. Chapter 640 - Chris’ Return Chapter 640 - Chris'' Return "It hasn''t gotten to this stage yet," A calm voice said, and Oliver''s erupting aura dissipated completely. Grey''s pupils dilated when he heard the voice, even though it had been a long time since he heard the voice, he was one hundred percent certain who the voice belonged to. "Teacher¡­" He muttered slowly. "Chris?" Oliver asked, staring at the figure covered by a white light. "Good thing I came in time, if not, things would''ve been a little complicated for you," The white light faded off and Chris'' figure came into view. It had been over a year since he disappeared, and now he was back. When the Emperor of the Qilin Empire saw his face, he almost fell to the ground in shock. Chris originally looked like someone who was in his mid-forties just like Oliver, but now, he looked to be in his early thirties, younger and more vibrant. Everyone could clearly feel that he was brimming with vitality. "Who''s that?" One of the twins asked when he saw the Emperor''s reaction. "It''s Chris." The Emperor said, his expression grave, "He''s the one I told you about," "I remember him," The Emperor''s father said with a glint flashing through his eyes, "He was regarded as the strongest genius of his generation¡­" He spoke of the few rumors he heard about Chris. Coming from a small background, Chris rose to fame when he was still in the Early stages of the Arcane Plane, defeating multiple people at the Mid stage. His most telling battle was the one he had when he was in the Overlord Plane, but that happened a few years after the new Emperor had ascended the throne. Chris'' reputation shot to the peak, after all, Sage Plane Elementalists would rarely come out of seclusion, so Overlord Plane Elementalists were regarded as the top figures. Being able to fight against multiple opponents who were all ahead of him by a stage or two meant that he was something different. In Chris'' story, the only thing that still surprises people is how they never really heard of him until he got to the peak. The only time they heard of him was when he was in the Arcane Plane, and since he was still a junior in the Arcane Plane, people didn''t really take him too seriously. There were countless geniuses who had shown promise in the Arcane Plane, only to end up falling to form their elemental beads, thereby staying in the Arcane Plane forever. "Such a character exists, how come I''m only hearing of him now?" One of the twins asked coldly. His expression was severe. From how Chris was able to stop Oliver from burning his life essence, meant that he was stronger than he was. Not only that, but the gravitational force vanished the second he appeared. "I''m sorry, Grandfather, he had been missing for over a year now, and we thought he was dead," The Emperor bowed to ask for forgiveness. "Hmph!" The old man snorted coldly, but he didn''t reply any longer, rather, he decided to watch the show. Since he wasn''t the one who was attacking Oliver, it had nothing to do with him. "Where have you been all this while?" Oliver asked softly. "Just moving here and there," Chris replied with a shrug before raising his hand in front of Oliver. A white light covered Oliver, and his physical injuries started recovering at a speed visible to human eyes. It was an amazing event that left the spectators stunned. Only a few of them have been able to witness the light element before, and seeing it firsthand left some shaken, especially when they saw the healing ability it has. It was generally known that the dark element destroys, while the light element creates. Now, everyone was seeing the reason behind that saying. Oliver''s pale face gradually regained some color, but not to the previous state. He hadn''t recovered completely, but his life was no longer in any danger. The same can''t be said for his cultivation though. Attempting to burn his life essence naturally has its side effects, even though he just activated it for nothing more than a split second, it didn''t change the fact that the damage had already been done. However, his shattered bones hadn''t recovered yet. Chris squinted his eyes as he looked at the situation of his friend. He knew things were as simple as they looked. "Who are you?" An old voice resounded by Chris'' ear, accompanied by a frightening gravitational force. Chris raised his head to look at the speaker, he didn''t even flinch, it was as if the gravitational force didn''t do anything to him. When he saw the old man, his eyes trailed around the group, stopping on Klaus'' body. He turned to look in the direction of the Blue Wind Empire, then at the Stellar Empire, and then his gaze finally stopped on Grey''s body. "Oh, kid, you''ve grown so much," Chris nodded his head with a smile, clearly proud of his student''s improvement. "It''s thanks to your teachings, Teacher," Grey bowed respectfully. Grey''s statement might sound like an exaggeration given Chris'' didn''t teach him much other than arrays and inscriptions, but since learning about inscriptions and arrays, it had helped Grey in almost all aspects. Without his inscriptions, he wouldn''t have the courage to boldly charge head-on into a crowd of people. Neither would he have been able to create a teleportation array, nor the tracking or communication device. "Haha, good student. When we''re done with this, we''ll have a nice long conversation," Chris laughed out loud, completely disregarding the old man from the Azure Empire. "How insolent," The old man said coldly before pointing at Chris. A large earthen spear formed and shot at Chris at breakneck speed. Chris stared at the spear before raising a finger, and a small flicker of flame appeared before moving to the front of the spear. Boom! The earthen spear was blasted into smithereens. The flame didn''t stop after destroying the spear, it continued on its part, rushing towards the old man. Chapter 641 - Chris’ Return II Chapter 641 - Chris'' Return II The old man raised an earthen wall in front of him to block the attack. The flame came in contact with the wall, and the wall broke apart piece by piece, stunning the old man. Luckily, the intensity of the flame reduced after breaking through the wall. The old man prepared his next defense, blocking the attack with all his might. Bam! The impact of the attack pushed him back a few steps. ''Even after its power has been reduced, it''s still this strong!'' The old man sucked in a deep breath. He didn''t think he would encounter someone like Chris here. Grey and his friends'' expression was one of surprise, even Oliver looked at his friend with shock. Chris had only done two things since his appearance, but it was clear to see that he was stronger than the old man from the Azure Empire. Hope once again appeared in the eyes of the youths. Blake and Delia had smiles of relief, while old man Gerald sighed in relief. ''Luckily, I made sure I protected that little brat. Had I followed what others said about him being dead, then I would''ve been dead by now,'' Old man Gerald thought as he looked at Chris. He had always been afraid of Chris, this was one of the main reasons he tried to keep Grey alive. As time went on, he unknowingly started to view Grey as someone who would be important in the future, so he wanted to create a good relationship with him. The six black cloaked figures exchanged glances, Chris'' appearance had changed the flow of things. A vicious smile appeared on the face of one of them, staring at Chris while licking his lips. "Such a good vessel, I must get him," The figure said slowly. "I see you''ve set your sights on him, Supreme One," The figure closest to the one who just spoke up said. "Yes. I''ll let these fools take care of him then swoop in to take him before they kill him," The figure regarded as the Supreme One replied. They retreated to the back of the group from the Blue Wind Empire, waiting patiently like a predator. Chris naturally had no idea what was going through these people''s heads, and even if he did, he wouldn''t care. "Who are you?" The old man from the Azure Empire asked once again, but this time, he didn''t try to probe Chris'' strength. The first attack he did was to check if Chris was powerful, and Chris'' counter showed him they were not on the same level, so he naturally didn''t want to fight an unnecessary battle. "Let my nephew go and scram," Chris said coldly. He turned his gaze to the Blue Wind Empire and the Stellar Empire as well, "You two as well, leave the kids and get out," Chris was overbearing as usual, not bothered with what the people from the other empires felt. Strength was the thing that reigned supreme, and since he was the strongest, then these people naturally had to listen to him. The faces of everyone from all four empires changed, especially those from the Qilin Empire. Unlike the other empires, Chris didn''t speak to them, it was as if they didn''t exist. "Hmph! You might be powerful, but do you think you can defeat everyone here?" The old man from the Azure Empire asked with a black face. Chris'' reply, however, stunned them all. "Yes, yes I do," Chris replied calmly, but confidently. Other than those from the Qilin Empire, a few people from the other empires had heard a thing about Chris. But they didn''t know he was the person in front of them. His friendship with Oliver was known only to the Qilin Empire after Oliver became the Principal and Mayor of Lunar Academy and City respectively. "Is this the reason Klaus behaves in that manner?" Delia asked. Now that Chris appeared, they all felt relaxed for an unknown reason. It was as if everything was settled. "Yes, uncle Chris spoiled him, unlike Teacher," Blake replied with a shake of his head. Being Oliver''s student meant that he was very familiar with Chris. In fact, he grew up under the guidance of both Chris and Oliver. When Klaus was born, Chris naturally dotted him whenever he was around. In fact, Chris could be said to be one of the main reasons Klaus was such a troublemaker. The old man from the Azure Empire didn''t lose his cool when he heard this, instead, he turned to look at the other Sage Plane experts from the three other empires. His intentions were clear, we have to deal with this threat, or else we will all suffer under his tyranny. The twins from the Qilin Empire could already sense how much of a threat Chris was, but they also thought of not involving themselves in this matter. The reason for this was that the present Emperor told them Chris had zero interest in taking over from them. Well, the only reason he didn''t treat him in the same manner he handled Grey and his friends was because Chris was already out of his control. He couldn''t order the Sage Plane experts carelessly, and seeing how Chris barely got involved with things involving the empire and even said he''ll fight with them in case a war started, he decided to let him be. ''If he can defeat them, then we can capitalize on it to kill them all. At most, we''ll apologize for what happened with his student and nephew. If things get too difficult, we''ll hand Robert over to him,'' The old man who was an Emperor among the twins calculated. From his perspective, he didn''t see any reason why they would help the Azure Empire in this battle. If anything, they would even team up with Chris to kill them now. This was a golden opportunity. The Sage Plane experts from the other three empires came out, encircling Chris. "What''s the meaning of this?" The old man from the Azure Empire asked when he saw that those from the Qilin Empire weren''t showing any signs of stepping forward. Chapter 642 - Just What I Was Waiting For Chapter 642 - Just What I Was Waiting For "This is not our problem," Augustus Gale, the Emperor of the Qilin Empire said calmly. He had the same thoughts as the old men, only, in the scenario he planned out in his mind, he didn''t add the part where he would be sacrificed if Chris decided to pursue the matter. And he didn''t think Chris would since all he said was that they should let go of kids, if not for the old men from the other empires wanting to see if they could defeat him, then he would''ve let them go. "Hmph! Do you think he can defeat us? Hehe, you don''t know what''s good for you." The old men snorted before looking at the other two empires, "You all saw the reaction of the Qilin Empire, once we''re done with this fool, then we can team up once again to deal with them," The Sage Plane experts from the other empires exchanged glances, they could all tell that the old man from the Azure Empire wanted to use this opportunity to deal with the Qilin Empire, but to be honest, they found the behavior of the Qilin Empire shameless, so they nodded in agreement. Chris, who was encircled, sneered when he saw this, and a soft smile crept into his face, he quickly hid the smile. A plan was seemingly brewing in his head. Swoosh! Bang! The group started their attack on him. Chris being a Light Elementalist could already be called too fast, adding his wind element as well, it was impossible for these attacks to touch him. He disappeared with the breeze, appearing thousands of meters away within a second. His current speed was even more terrifying than when Grey uses the Great Void technique. Of course, it''s only because Grey has a lower mastery, as well as being on a lower Plane. If they were on the same Plane, it would be a totally different story. Chris continued dodging the attacks of the group while using his fire element to send out attacks. Being attacked from different angles made things a little difficult for him, but he still managed to completely dodge all the attacks sent his way. Oliver stared at the figure of Chris, and couldn''t help but find something amiss. Chris has always been an aggressive person when battling, the only reason he would focus more on dodging is either because he was not strong enough to defeat his opponent, or he was conjuring up a plan to handle them. In the eyes of the Qilin Empire and the other three empires though, Chris'' current action meant that he didn''t have the strength to fight against all of them. This meant that he was powerful enough to defeat one or two people, but once the number increased to over twenty, he was hopeless. But they didn''t find it odd though, after all, who could fight against over twenty opponents in the same Plane with only a small difference in stage. Augustus Gale turned to look in the direction of the three old men and noticed the expression of the two old men changed. They were most likely thinking of what to do. Initially, with the way Chris appeared, it looked like he wouldn''t have a problem with defeating all of them, but now, things didn''t look too good for him. He might be fast, but he wouldn''t be able to dodge all the attacks forever. The moment he''s hit by one, more would follow. "If we stand idly and watch, then once they kill him, they will have every reason to gang up on us. However, if we decide to join the battle now, we might draw hatred from that guy, but since we''re on our turf, we could still find a way to negotiate with those old guys." The twin brother of the previous Emperor said slowly. "My thoughts as well. Looks like this guy was only putting on ''false bravado''. Let''s watch a little longer," The twin who was an Emperor replied to his brother''s statement. Swoosh! Boom! Bang! The attacks continued raining on Chris, and after being able to dodge for a minute or so, an attack finally landed on his back, sending him crashing into the ground. Bam! A dust cloud rose into the sky from where he landed. When the dust settled, Chris could be seen standing upright, but a large crater was on the ground, and the trees around a six hundred meters radius of where he landed had been blown away by the impact of the crash. Grey and his friends were stunned by what they witnessed, not expecting Chris who they highly respected to be in such a state after a small bout. He hadn''t even been given the chance to take out a single individual, being bombarded from all sides. Chris didn''t show any panicked expressions, he dust himself and took flight once again. Charging into battle with a confident face. "We can''t sit still any longer. If they kill him on his own, then we''ll be in a ton of trouble." Augustus'' father said to the twins. They nodded as well before calling on some of the other Sage Plane Elementalists. The Sage Plane experts currently fighting against Chris were already more than twenty, thirty-five to be precise. With the addition of over ten more from the Qilin Empire, Chris'' defeat looked to be around the corner. While battling with his opponents, Chris saw the group from the Qilin Empire rushing into battle from the corner of his eyes, and a grin formed on his face. But since he was currently moving at a speed impossible to track for the others, they couldn''t see his expression. ''Just what I was waiting for. To think they didn''t even wait for long,'' He thought to himself. With his speed, even if he couldn''t dodge all the attacks, he wouldn''t have a problem with dodging most of them, while blocking the rest with his powerful attacks. But he didn''t do that immediately. "Chris, surrender yourself now, and we will be lenient with you, if not, then you''ll die here and now!" The father of Augustus yelled as they came into the battlefield. Chapter 643 - All-out Brawl Chapter 643 - All-out Brawl The group fighting against Chris already knew this would happen, but they couldn''t stop them. After all, stopping the group from the Qilin Empire might draw their anger. If they joined up with Chris, the result of the battle might be a little different. They''ve all seen how fast Chris was, so getting any help would reduce the pressure on him, and he would have the ability to use his superior speed to the maximum. At that time, even their numbers wouldn''t be able to help against him. "Augustus, I''ve always known you as a weakling," Chris'' voice resonated beside Augustus'' ears. He didn''t join the battle since he was still at the Peak of the Overlord Plane. "There''s no use in begging, you''ve overdone it this time," Augustus said calmly, with no changes in his expression. "Oh really?" Chris'' amused voice stunned Augustus Gale. Augustus squinted his eyes and stopped speaking. All he could do now was focus on the battle. With his strength, he couldn''t make a change on the battlefield even if he decided to enter the fray. "So you people have finally decided to join in as well?" Chris stopped to look at the new group who just joined the battle. "We never wanted to do this, but after thinking about it properly, we can''t let you act as you wish. Since you''re from the Qilin Empire, it''s only right we are part of the people who deal with you," The previous Emperor among the twins said calmly. The old man from the Azure Empire snorted coldly but didn''t say a word. "Are you going to speak all through, or are you going to join the actual battle," The Emperor of the Blue Wind Empire asked. Of all the Emperors present, he was the only one who had broken through to the Sage Plane. And according to what was said, he broke through after the war started. Rumors had it that he had been loitering around the battleground after the battles ended, no one knew for what reason. But in the span of a few days, he went from the Eighth stage of the Overlord Plane to the Peak. As the war continued, he soon broke through to the Sage Plane. With his reminder, everyone started their assault on Chris once again, but this time, things didn''t go as planned. A white sphere covered Chris, and whenever an attack got into it, it would disappear after only causing a ripple. Of course he didn''t stand there waiting to be attacked. He dodged most of the attacks, but the few which got to him didn''t cause any damage whatsoever. "Hehe, now it''s my turn," Chris laughed before spreading out both hands. Over thirty inscriptions lit up the sky, and the energy they were radiating scared those below the Sage Plane. Even some of the people in the First stage of the Overlord Plane felt instantly threatened by it. "He''s an inscriber!" Someone exclaimed from the crowd watching the battle. Klaus looked at the person as if he were a moron. But he didn''t blame the person since only a few people knew about Chris'' abilities. Most people don''t even know him. Inscribers are known for their abilities to take on a large number of opponents. Grey could be used as an example, given how he has no fear when fighting against multiple opponents. Chris'' speed will make him an even more scary opponent now that he could freely attack as well. The faces of the twins from the Qilin Empire changed when they saw this and they couldn''t help but look at Augustus Gale. The only question in their head was; Why didn''t he tell us this guy was an Inscriber? If they knew, they would''ve tried waiting a little longer. Chris was stronger than everyone here in a one-on-one fight since he couldn''t attack everyone at the same time, he was put in a bad spot when the battle first started. The situation has taken a drastic turn with the appearance of so many inscriptions. The faces of the old men from all four empires changed. Each inscription seemed to have the strength of a Second or Third stage Sage Plane Elementalists. This meant that it could threaten most of them here. Even the old man from the Azure Empire who was in the Fourth stage was no exception. On seeing what was happening, the six black cloaked figures exchanged glances before disappearing into the void with the help of the corpse that was a Space Elementalist. The result of this battle was as clear as day with the appearance of these inscriptions, the only thing it would take is time, but Chris will come out on top in the end. All thirty plus inscriptions attacked at the same time, blasting fire elemental attacks toward Chris'' opponents. Swoosh! Boom! Bang! Bam! The attacks landed on a few, while some managed to block or evade them. Explosions rang out in the sky continuously. After Chris'' first attack, the other Sage Plane experts who were watching the battle from the side of the four empires jumped into the fray as well. Oliver and Blake, seeing this, rushed towards the youngsters who were captured. Even though Oliver was in a weakened state, he was still a Sage Plane Elementalist nonetheless. He was blocked by some Peak Overlord Plane Elementalists, but he managed to unseal the cultivation of the youngsters. Grey exploded out with terrifying power that stunned Chris who was in battle. Even Oliver never expected Grey''s power to get to this level. Reynolds called out his Elemental Warrior. He was not going to be the one left out. With all the Sage Plane Elementalists gone, and most of the Peak Overlord Plane Elementalists were entangled with Klaus'' father, he didn''t feel too threatened. Klaus and Alice joined in the battle as well. Even Delia rushed out. The entire place fell into a state of disarray. First, high up in the sky, a major battle between countless Sage Plane Elementalists was taking place, now, on the ground, a battle was taking place as well. To most of the people who had stayed in the Capital all of their lives, they had never felt as excited as they were currently. Chapter 644 - The Fall Of The Royals Chapter 644 - The Fall Of The Royals Boom! Bam! Bang! The battle continued with more vigor, Grey and Blake had gone all-out against their opponents, with Grey even releasing multiple chaos orbs. Since he''s still in the Fusion State, it didn''t require much from him. Klaus and Reynolds on the other hand were dealing with most of the Mid stage Overlord Plane Elementalists. Klaus'' ice abilities were second to none in the Azure Continent, and it was laid bare for all to see. Old man Gerald who was watching the battle signaled to Diluc for him to join in on the battle. Even though Grey and Blake seemed to be fine, the number of opponents they were fighting was just too much for them. Diluc was already at the Peak of the Overlord Plane, and his strength was not something others on his stage could take lightly. Just like the inscriptions that lit up the sky, another set of inscriptions appeared, but this time, the color of the flame was blue. "Like Teacher like student," Old man Gerald said with a chuckle when he saw this. Grey''s inscription made things difficult for their opponents. Presently, all the Sage Plane Elementalists from all four empires were fighting against Chris, while all the Overlord Plane Elementalists were fighting against Oliver, Blake, Delia, and then Grey and his friends. If Oliver was even at fifty percent his strength, then he would have been fighting alongside his friend. Unfortunately, he was heavily injured from the previous battle. Even now, he was having a tough time handling the just over ten Overlord Plane Elementalists fighting against him. Reynolds'' Elemental Warrior was cutting down any Elementalist in its path. Alice and Delia could be said to be the weakest amongst them. But they weren''t weaklings when placed in a battle against someone in the same stage as them. "Haha, my good student, show them what I taught you," Chris'' laughter could be heard from the sky when Grey''s started using his inscriptions as well. Everyone could hear how proud he was of his student. Augustus Gale looked at the situation with a dark expression, he turned to look at Jason, and he could see that his face was also gloomy. Things had spiraled out of their control, and Grey''s strength surpassed their wildest dreams. Grey was disappearing and appearing on the battlefield, wherever he appeared, a figure would crash to the ground. The space element was the most effective in a crowded battle like this one, especially since the people from the Azure Continent had little to no knowledge about it. Klaus was freezing people left and right, Alice was fighting ferociously on her end, Blake was striking people down, Reynolds and his Elemental Warrior were like fishes in the water, beating people left and right, Delia was diligently using the water element to its fullest, assisting her partners in every way she can. Diluc was like a voracious beast, forcefully taking down whoever stood against him. While Grey could be said to be the grim reaper, with his space element and the inscriptions, he took lives wherever he appeared. The crowd from the Capital who came to watch the battle never thought that a group of seven people would be able to take on over a hundred Overlord Plane Elementalists, and still be on the front foot. This was an eye-opener for them. There''s no need to even speak about Oliver since he wasn''t in the Overlord Plane. Then there''s Chris, a single individual that is fighting against the odds, and seems like he''s winning given how he gave Grey instructions from time to time on how to further improve the inscriptions he created. Augustus Gale was on the brink of losing his mind. Just when he sought out a plan to eliminate Grey, his scenery suddenly changed. Grey was in the middle of being bombarded by over ten Late stage Overlord Plane Elementalists from the Azure Empire, and an evil thought went through his head. With a quick dark of his eyes, he picked out the location of Augustus Gale, and with a flicker, he disappeared, but a figure appeared in the position he was previously standing. Augustus Gale watched in horror as multiple attacks rained down on him. He didn''t even have the time to set up a defense before they crashed into his body. "You animals!" Boom! His scream was cut short by a loud explosion, but everyone in the area still heard it clearly. Grey on the other hand was standing behind Jason, the Crown Prince. He shoved him onto the battlefield, and just like his father, he was quickly dealt with by some people from the Blue Wind Empire. Even though Grey was the main instigator, these people all had the time to retract their attacks, but they refused since this was a golden opportunity for them. The Emperor and the Crown Prince of the Qilin Empire were lost in a matter of a few seconds. Grey had an indifferent look as he once again charged into battle. These were people who wanted him dead, so there was no way he was going to go easy on them. The Overlord Plane Elementalists from the Qilin Empire naturally witnessed what happened, and it didn''t take long before a few attacked people from the Blue Wind and Azure Empire. All it took was a single well-thought-out plan from Grey, and comrades became enemies. However, this was easy only because these people never really thought of one another as comrades. The pressure on Grey and his friends reduced significantly, but it didn''t end. Not everyone from the Qilin Empire was fighting against those from the Azure and Blue Wind Empires. They knew this was what Grey wanted. "Deal with him first, we''ll sort out the problem with them later." An old man from the Qilin Empire''s Castle ordered, trying to bring peace back into their camp. Grey snickered when he heard this and set his sights on this old man. The viciousness of Grey and his friends stunned their opponents. They didn''t think that people this young would be this brutal toward their opponents. For the people from the Capital, they didn''t know what to feel because they just watched their Emperor and Crown Prince fall under the hands of rival empires. Chapter 645 - Domain Of Fire Chapter 645 - Domain Of Fire The old man who stopped the people from the Qilin Empire from fighting against the other two empires was the royal advisor to Augustus Gale. He was below only the Emperors, and even the Crown Prince had to treat him with respect. Unsurprisingly, most of the recent decisions made by Augustus have been influenced by him. This man was amongst the strongest Peak stage Overlord Plane Elementalists on the battlefield, and he was one of the people fighting against Oliver. Seeing Grey''s gaze, he didn''t shy away, but he locked his eyes on him. He left Oliver and rushed towards Grey. Grey did the same as well. There were people in his front which he naturally took down on the way. However, just as he was about to get within a hundred meters of the Royal Advisor, he noticed something strange. ''Void,'' He called out. ''Don''t worry, I''ve sensed it as well,'' Void replied. Void had been hiding throughout the battle. He would occasionally drag one or two people into a spatial tunnel and let the space turbulence deal with him. But because Grey and his friends were fighting violently, very few people noticed it. Most of the people who noticed it was also dragged away before they could spill the beans. A Peak Overlord Plane Elementalists could be seen approaching Delia and Alice at breakneck speed. No one expected that two Peak Overlord Plane Elementalists would take the risk of leaving Oliver to deal damage to any of Grey''s friends, but they did. Diluc was fighting against two Late stage Overlord Plane Elementalists, so he didn''t have the time to head there. Blake''s situation was more difficult since over five Late stage Overlord Plane Elementalists crowded him. Grey could easily appear close to them, but he wanted the old man to relax his guard, then he would take him out. Grey stopped and looked in the direction of Alice and Delia, and a smile crept up on the face of the old man. "I''ll take out your friends one by one," The Royal Advisor laughed evilly before he continued his charge in Grey''s direction. Grey acted as if he were distracted by Alice and Delia''s safety, and even turned his back to the old man, seemingly trying to rush in their direction. "In the end, a kid will never be as experienced as an old man," Most of the advanced people in the Qilin Empire who were in the Overlord Plane sighed when they saw Grey''s decision. In a life and death battle, a small mistake can cost one their life, and Grey is about to learn that. The old man didn''t hold back as a powerful lightning spear shot towards Grey''s back. A smile crept up on Grey''s face as he disappeared. The spear shot straight past where he was standing, and an unsuspecting Overlord Plane Elementalists from the Azure Empire was stabbed by it. The spear went through his head, opening a hole in it before it continued moving forward. After it took out the second person, people from the battlefield quickly noticed it. Grey appeared behind the Royal Advisor and the old man''s expression changed drastically. He felt as if he was trapped in an illusion, and he was standing in a sea of fire. Unfortunately for him, it wasn''t an illusion, he truly was standing in a sea of blue flames, and Grey was watching him from above like a god. This was his own domain, the first domain of his multiple elements, The Domain Of Fire. ''I''ve finally gotten it,'' Grey thought to himself. The Peak Overlord Plane Elementalist who was about to reach Alice and Delia was left dumbstruck when he appeared over three hundred meters away from them. Before he could move, he sensed a life-threatening aura, unfortunately, he didn''t have anywhere to go. Void activated his domain at the same time Grey awakened his Domain of Fire. He shot a glance at Grey, not too surprised he awakened it this early. Of all Grey''s elements, he knew that Grey''s mastery of the fire element was far above the others. It was only a matter of time. If the people of the Aurora Continent found out that there were two monsters who awakened their domains while they were still in the Overlord Plane, it was impossible to say what their reactions would be. Two Peak Overlord Plane Elementalists were taken out of the picture at the same time. The scene in particular of the Royal Advisor burning to ashes in an instant was just as frightening as the scene of the Peak Overlord Plane Elementalist who wanted to ambush Alice and Delia disappearing bit by bit. The people from the Royal and Starlight Academy who were present felt hard-pressed by what they were watching. One had to know that Grey and his friends were around the same age as them. Some of them were even older than they were, yet, they could not engage in a battle of this caliber, yet Grey and his friends were doing it. Of course they had been injured in the fight, it was naturally given the overwhelming number of their opponents, but the fact that they are still alive was a testament to how powerful they were. Swoosh! Boom! Bang! The battle raged on, and Grey was increasingly becoming more dominant as time went on. With the awakening of his Domain of Fire, he wreaked havoc on the battlefield. Even Blake and Diluc subconsciously gave him space whenever he got close to them. Klaus and Reynolds were short of words when they saw the Domain of Fire. ''Damn! I want to do something like that as well!'' They both screamed in their heads. Klaus even went as far as envisioning himself as he stood in a field covered with ice and lorded over all inside. Bam! An attack smacked him to the ground, waking him up from his daydreaming. "F*ck! Who did that? Come out now!" He yelled in annoyance from the ground before rushing into the battlefield once again. Chapter 646 - You Can Not Escape Chapter 646 - You Can Not Escape Boom! Bam! Oliver took advantage of the two Overlord Plane Elementalists who had just been killed by Grey and Void and killed one of his opponents since the pressure on him reduced. Grey started an onslaught after he awakened his Domain of Fire. His mastery of the fire element shot up by a notch and his normal elemental attack was on another level. Even when attacking with the inscriptions, as long as he was using the fire element, the attack power increased significantly. Klaus and Reynolds had started mocking their opponents, sending them hysterical. Reynolds was still a little civil about it, Klaus on the other hand made the people almost lose their minds. "Ah! If I don''t kill you then I''m not a man!" A middle-aged man from the Blue Wind Empire screamed crazily. "Haha, what makes you think you are a man in the first place?" Klaus laughed like a maniac as he parried all the attacks the man sent his way. Hearing how Klaus was mocking this man, some people unconsciously started to head in another direction, not wanting to get close to Klaus. He was not only fighting a physical battle, but he seemed as if he wanted to break the mental state of his opponent. This was not something many of them could bear. Sometimes, words are more fatal than physical assault. Boom! Bam! Bang! The battle raged on. While they were fighting, a figure suddenly fell from the sky, crashing into the ground with tremendous force. When everyone looked at who it was, it was one of the Sage Plane Elementalist from the Azure Empire. Before those from the Azure Empire could get over the shock, another figure slammed into the ground. It was followed by two more in quick succession. When they saw the second figure, their eyes nearly bulged out. It was the old man who was in the Fourth stage of the Sage Plane. Looking at all the figures that were falling from the sky, it were surprisingly all those who held power in each of the empires. It was just like what Grey was doing, Chris was also taking out all the heads. If the Emperors and their Advisors were killed, the others fighting would naturally stop their attacks. They didn''t need to take out all the top individuals, but at least most of them should be eliminated to stop this war. Ten more minutes went on, and the battle had gotten to its peak. All four Emperors and their Advisors were dead. The Qilin Empire had it worse since they not only lost their Emperor, but also lost the Crown Prince. The three old men from the Qilin Empire''s Castle were also dead under Chris'' assault. The Sage Plane Elementalists fighting against Chris already knew victory was out of sight. ¡­. A few minutes earlier. When the Qilin Empire joined the assault on Chris. After Chris brought out his inscriptions, the six black cloaked figures escaped into the void when they realized this was a lost battle. In the void. "We''ll clean up when they''re done fighting," The figure regarded as the Supreme One said calmly. "Just what I had in mind, Supreme One," One of the figures said with head bowed. "Tsk! Tsk! To think you vile things managed to sneak into this place?" A voice came from behind them which stunned the six figures. This was a personal space created by the corpse beside them. It would take one with great powers to come in without them noticing. "Who are you?" The figure known as the Supreme One asked coldly. "It''s none of your business. What I''m more interested in is why your kind is here?" The figure of an old man appeared. He couldn''t really be called an old man since other than his white hair, he still had the face of someone who was in their early forties. He was dressed casually, and could easily be mistaken for a normal person, but these figures didn''t dare to take him as such. This was the man Grey''s mother left to guard him. Of course he hadn''t really done much for Grey, but he had been able to help him subtlety a few times. "Hmph! You''re not qualified enough to question us," The figure known as the Supreme One snorted coldly. "Heh! Still so proud?" The old man was a little confused by their proud demeanors. The six figures disappeared into the void, along with the Space Elementalist corpse, but they left another corpse for the man to deal with. The man squinted his eyes and stretched out his hand. He opened his palm wide and closed it instantly, and the corpse before him vanished into thin air. ''Can''t even put up a single resistance,'' The man smirked before tearing open the void and rushing after the six black cloaked figures. A few thousand kilometers away from where the battle was taking place. A tear opened in the sky and seven figures were thrown out of the void. A man casually stepped out of the fissure after them, staring at the figures beneath him. "Don''t force my hand. If I decide to go all-out, countless people here would die," The figure known as the Supreme One amongst the black cloaked figures yelled angrily. "You obviously can''t deal with me. Now, just stay still and die," The man said before attacking. A bright light shot out of his hands, rushing into the bodies of the six black cloaked figures. It was so fast that before the figures could move, it had entered their bodies. The figures shrieked and started squirming around, clearly from discomfort. The man standing in the sky squinted his eyes as he stared at them before muttering, "So it''s true that the bane of necromancers is the light element. No wonder they escaped the moment that guy showed his true strength," While looking at the figures, something caught his eyes and his expression changed drastically. "This is¡­ impossible! It can''t be them," He vanished, appearing on the spot where the figures were still twisting their bodies around and a hole could be seen on their stomach. He waved his hand and the bodies shifted to the side. Below the bodies were holes that ran deep into the ground. "You can not escape, not under my watch," The man''s expression finally turned serious and he pointed at the holes. Six bright lights shot from his finger into the holes. Each light acted like a rope that was alive, drilling into the holes, going after the creatures that escaped from the bodies on the ground. Chapter 647 - He’s Been Marked Chapter 647 - He''s Been Marked Deep underground. The six small figures could be seen burrowing through the ground at an almost impossible speed. Of all the figures, one of them was particularly captivating since it was completely red in color. Each creature had different colors, but they were mostly black and white. Two of them had ash-colored skins. But the red one was bigger than the rest. While they were making their escape, they sensed a white light chasing after them. "Damn it! Can''t he give up?" One of the figures exclaimed in anger. Of the six figures, it was the slowest one, and before long, it was caught by the white light. The light acted like a snake and wrapped itself around it before dragging the figure out of the ground. When the light caught it, it shrieked in pain, and one could see that its body was visibly burning. It was as if the light element was burning it as soon as it made contact with it. After the first one was caught, the other five were caught right after. Above ground. The white-haired man was standing with both hands behind his back as he stared at the six creatures. This was the first time he was seeing them, but he had heard of them before. These were the things that started the great war which was later regarded as the great war of gods. They were things that were said to have been lost, but here they were, in front of him. He was both shocked and scared. These guys could be said to be the founders of necromancy in the Aurora Continent. After coming into this world, they started teaching people their vile ways. They even went as far as catching and training geniuses, only to kill them when they''ve bloomed. Only Darkness Elementalists could learn their skills, so the other Elementalists were useless to them. The white-haired man continued studying the six figures, and they were doing the same to him. Only unlike him, they were also threatening to kill his entire family. "Keep quiet," He waved his hand and the white light covered the mouths of the ones speaking. Only the red one was left to speak. "How are you guys still alive?" He asked. "You want to get information from me?" An amused smile appeared on the face of the Supreme One before it added, "Impossible," "I''m not too obliged to take information from you. I could just kill you. It wouldn''t change anything," The man said calmly. He knew these things wouldn''t give him what he wanted, but there was no harm in trying. He asked a few more questions, but the result was the same, he got nothing. After trying multiple times, he tried to peer into the heads of one of the figures caught, but he was unable to breach through. "Strange," He muttered. Since he couldn''t get anything, he tried to use torture, but he was shocked when he saw that it still had no effect on them. He finally gave up on that idea and decided it would be best to take them back to the Aurora Continent. However, just as he tried to seal them away, he noticed their bodies started to dissolve into smoke. "You''re the one protecting that boy. He''s been marked. I''ll make sure he dies, mark my words," The red figure said with a vicious smile. The white-haired man tried to trap them, but he was unable to. "A part of their soul. How could they separate it?" He looked at the scene in front of him. If this was only a part of the soul of these things, then how powerful would the original body be? "This is bad, I''ll have to go back to the family and report it as soon as possible," He said as the figures dissipated completely. He shook his head with a sigh before disappearing. ¡­. Back on the battlefield. Chris was still fighting against the Sage Plane Elementalists when the Emperor of the Blue Wind Empire started to twist his body in an unusual way. Chris didn''t think about it and instantly covered him with a white ray of light. Even though the light element is known for its speed and healing abilities, it was still a powerful element used for fighting. The Emperor suddenly shrieked as a small creature crawled out of his stomach, trying to escape. Unfortunately, Chris used the light element and it vanished, just like its counterparts that were destroyed by the white-haired man. The battle didn''t take long, with all the leaders killed, the others saw no other reason in fighting. Even Grey had deactivated his Fusion State, going back to his normal strength. Chris appeared behind him, a calm expression on his face. "Student, you''ve awakened your domain?" Chris asked, but one could sense a slight hint of jealousy in his voice, "And, since when did you have the fire element?" "I only awakened it today. As for the fire element, it''s a long story," Grey replied with a calm tone. "Hmm, good, we have a lot to catch up on anyway. We should get going, Oliver''s state doesn''t look so good," Chris nodded his head before looking at the destruction caused by the battle that just took place. With all four Emperors dead, everyone thought Chris would use his strength to unify the continent, but to their greatest shock, after speaking with old man Gerald for a few minutes, he left with his group. It was as if they didn''t care about the empires. But the truth was, why would they? Chris was training in a blessed land, while Grey and others were about to leave for a better place. The Azure Continent was nothing more than a place they were passing through. Old man Gerald was presently the one with the highest authority here, even though he was only at the Peak of the Overlord Plane, most of the Sage Plane Elementalists here respected him. Their respect increased when Chris spoke with him before he left. Chapter 648 - Where Are My Chickens? Chapter 648 - Where Are My Chickens? Lunar Academy. Chris'' abode. "Almost like I left it," Chris said as he walked out of his small cabin. Grey and the others walked out of the cabin, looking around. This was the first time Delia, Reynolds, and Alice had been here, so they were a little curious about it. Klaus had been here a few times with his father, so he wasn''t interested in anything here. Oliver was the only one left in the cabin, he could be seen lying on the bed there. After the battle ended, he entered a weakened state. Chris had helped as much as he could, but this was out of his hand. "How did you four improve so fast?" Chris asked after sitting leisurely on his chair outside the cabin. "The trial land," Grey''s reply was simple. This was the main reason they improved at the pace they did, so he naturally gave it all the credit. Chris looked at the group and nodded his head in approval. Thinking about the trial land, he couldn''t help but shake his head at the thought of his experience there. No one knew he had been in the trial land training for so long. "Uncle, how come you look younger?" Klaus asked curiously. "What do you mean? I''ve always looked like this," Chris raised a brow when he heard Klaus'' question. "Heh!" Klaus didn''t say a word, but his reaction already showed what he wanted to say. Chris waved his hand. Splash! The sound of a figure falling into the water reverberated out, and when the others looked around, Klaus was nowhere to be seen. It was obvious that he was the person who fell into the water. "Boy, now tell me, what happened to my food?" Chris asked, not moving his gaze from Grey. After returning, he had been searching for the bunnies he was training here before he was kidnapped by that old man, and he didn''t find any. He originally wanted to tell Grey to make his special bunny and chicken soup for him, but now, there was no bunny or chicken. How will Grey cook without the main ingredient? "I have no idea, when I came back from the trial land, it was empty," Grey replied. He originally thought maybe Chris let them go before he went for his expedition, but from the looks of it, it seems like he wasn''t the one. Chris turned his gaze to Blake, and Blake quickly looked in another direction, looking around awkwardly. "You, what did you do to my barn?" Chris was a little annoyed that his barn was empty. "You were missing and Grey was in the trial land. There was no one to take care of them, so I gave them out," Blake coughed awkwardly. "My chickens and bunnies¡­" Chris muttered slowly. Void who had been studying Chris all this while was a little taken aback by his behavior. If one didn''t know, they would think he cherished the chickens and bunnies, but the truth was that he only cherished them when he was eating them. Delia and Alice closed their mouths as they laughed silently. Blake scratched his head awkwardly while Klaus came out of the water, all dried up. He was a Water Elementalist, so removing the water from his clothes was an easy feat. Blake finally went to get chickens and bunnies from the city for Chris. When Grey saw a bunny in front of him, a rare image appeared in his head, and it was that of a bunny that was laughing mischievously. He shuddered from the thought of his suffering when he encountered that particular bunny. Void knew what he was thinking about since he had also fallen victim to the bunny''s tricks. Chris stood close to Grey, closely monitoring him as he was busy cooking. They spoke about a few things and Grey told him of his experiences. He didn''t forget to tell him of the Aurora Continent, and to his surprise, Chris didn''t have a change in his expression when he heard of it. "You went there as well?" Grey inquired. "Not exactly, but I do know of it. In fact, I know it''s history as well," Chris replied calmly before they fell into silence. "Teacher," Grey called out to break the silence. "Hmm," Chris looked at his student. "Where''s Brown?" Grey asked. Since Chris appeared, he had been searching for the Griffin for a while now, but he still hadn''t sensed any sign of her. He naturally missed Brown. "Oh, she''s on the verge of breaking through to the Sage Plane and becoming a Rank Six Magical beast," Chris replied, one could sense the relief in his voice. When he was in the Overlord Plane, Brown was still a Rank Four Magical beast, but in the space of almost two years, she had gone from Rank Four to almost becoming a Rank Six beast. Given how things were before he left, he was certain that she would break through before he returned. "Oh, where is she?" Grey asked curiously. "That''s a secret, for now, focus on your job, it''s been so long I ate something," Chris was almost drooling as he stared at the pot. Grey chuckled before going back to cooking. He usually has a large number of ingredients with him, so other than the chickens and bunnies, they didn''t need to buy anything else. When he finished cooking, everyone got a plate of soup. He also made one of the delicacies he learned from the Aurora Continent. During their time there, thanks to Void, he learned a lot of recipes, so he decided to treat his Teacher to a nice meal. He knew just how much his Teacher loved eating, so he made the best for him. Chris also had a spatial ring, which didn''t come as a shock to Grey since he already had knowledge of the Aurora Continent, it was natural that he would have a spatial ring as well. Everyone ate their fill while joking and laughing together. Even Oliver came out from the cabin to join in on the fun. It was hard to believe that a few hours ago, these people were fighting a life and death battle, well, except for Chris. Chapter 649 - lt’s Up To You Chapter 649 - lt''s Up To You "Senior, what''s the plan now?" Blake asked after they finished their meals. Now, Grey and his friends were in no danger, so they were free to do whatever they wanted. The main issue though was that the Emperors of all four empires were dead, and with no one to rule the Continent, it would naturally fall into chaos since different families would start fighting over who would rule each empire. Some would even go as far as thinking they have a shot at unifying the continent. When the Emperors were alive, it was nothing but a pipe dream, but now, it was a whole different story. Each large family that had a single Sage Plane Elementalist or even two would feel like they have a shot at it. "That''s not my problem," Chris waved it off. He had zero interest in being involved with these things. Whoever wanted to rule should rule, it had nothing to do with him. "I know it has nothing to do with you, but more people will most likely die this way. In the tussle for power, so long as they feel there''s a chance, only a few people would give it up," Oliver said. "Old man," Chris said mockingly. Chris'' words almost made Oliver spit out a mouthful of blood. He was around the same age as Chris, he was even younger by two years, yet because Chris miraculously looked younger he called him an old man. Delia was barely able to contain her laughter, now she clearly understood why Klaus acts this way. Chris was almost exactly the same as Klaus. Growing up with such a troublesome and powerful uncle, Delia couldn''t help but imagine just how much of a troublemaker Klaus was when he was younger. "Anyway, Gerald should be able to deal with it. You should know I''m not good with these things. This is one of the reasons I spoke with him before leaving, that way, those people who would want to fight for power would think twice," Chris said after getting a glare from Oliver. "Uncle," Klaus'' voice was lower than usual, and compared to his usual self, he had a somewhat downcast expression. "Yes," Chris turned to Klaus. "What about father, will he be okay?" Klaus clenched his fists, afraid of knowing the answer. He knew that his father must have done some damage to himself when he was about to burn his life essence, and judging from Chris'' expression when he brought him back, he knew it was serious. "Don''t worry about it, I''ll be fine," Oliver placed his hand on Klaus'' head as a warm smile broke out on his face. He didn''t really care about many things, but Klaus was his reason for living. As long as Klaus was okay, he was fine, even if it meant that he would lose his strength or be unable to advance later in his cultivation. "Don''t worry kid, I may not be able to help him, but I think I know someone who can," Chris ruffled Klaus'' hair before turning to look at his friend. Oliver smiled but didn''t say anything. He knew the extent of his injury, and it would be almost impossible if not even impossible for him to recover again. His cultivation may not depreciate, but his strength will. He will gradually lose strength, but he will be unable to gain any. This means that he might be in the Sage Plane, but his strength would slowly fall to the Overlord Plane, and as time goes on, it would fall lower. The group stayed together for that day. Later that night, Chris started to teach Grey what he learned about arrays from the old man. Grey also showed him all he had learned as well. Chris was intrigued mainly with the array that used multiple elements to strengthen it. They stayed all through the night, speaking about arrays. It was only when Klaus and the others came did they realize it was already dawn. "Your knowledge of arrays is amazing, I was right to teach you about it," Chris sighed, satisfied with his student. Grey bowed to show his respect to his Teacher. While they were still speaking, Grey received a message from old man Gerald. The message stated that he wanted to meet up with Chris. Grey didn''t find this unexpected. With the state of the Continent, even though old man Gerald knew that all the decisions lay in his hands right now, he still wanted to get approval from Chris before going on with any plans. While Grey was preparing to go to welcome Old man Gerald, Alice told the group she would be leaving to meet up with her family. She knew where they were hiding, so it wouldn''t be difficult for her to locate them. Reynolds also said the same thing, he had been running for a while now, so he wanted to go and check up on his parents and younger brother. They knew once they came back from this journey, they would be traveling to a new continent, starting a new journey. They didn''t know what the future held, so every moment with their families naturally counted. Grey accompanied them outside the valley, after saying their goodbyes, he went over to the Academy to bring Old man Gerald and Diluc over. To his surprise, there was a third person with them, it was none other than the Second Prince. This was Grey''s second time meeting him personally. He recalled that old man Gerald introduced him to the Second Prince in an effort to get him to support him later when he was fighting for the throne with the Crown Prince. Seeing the Second Prince, Grey was able to discern old man Gerald''s reason for meeting up with his Teacher. It was clear that he wanted to make this person the new Emperor, but he needed the approval of Chris. A few minutes later. "You can do whatever you like, I have no objections to your choice. Even if you want to unify the continent, it''s entirely up to you," Chris replied when he heard old man Gerald''s reason for coming. His nonchalant behavior surprised the Second Prince. Chapter 650 - That’s Unfair! Chapter 650 - That''s Unfair! Grey didn''t stay with them while they were discussing, he decided to hang out with Klaus. This was the first time they were together without having to worry that someone might show up to kill them. He also had to stay with Klaus so he could accompany him. For someone who was usually cheerful, Klaus had been down lately. He might still make some sarcastic remarks from time to time, but everyone knew that his father''s injury was getting to him. "I want to get stronger," Klaus stared at the lake in the valley. "We all do, but we can''t get there instantly, it''ll take some time," Grey replied. When the Principal was being attacked by that Earth Elementalist, he too hated his helplessness. Although he tried to learn the method as to how the old man was increasing the gravitational force, he also wanted to help out. Unfortunately, even if he used the Fusion State, it was of no use. During the previous night, he had offered one of the vials containing the healing tonic gotten from the Blooming Vipers, but it still did nothing. It was just like the time Void was injured, no physical treatment could help him. The Principal''s case was not as severe as Void''s, but it was still a cause for concern for them. "Any news on your family yet?" Klaus asked. Alice and Reynolds went out to meet their families, Klaus was with his father, Chris, and Blake, they were his family, Grey on the other hand had no one with him. Chris could be said to be the closest person to a family he had. "Not yet, but I''m sure I''ll find them soon," Grey replied calmly, his emotions stable. He had been without his father for a long time now, and after almost five years of not seeing his mother, although he missed her, he was starting to get used to not being with them. "Hmm, you know what, since I''m going with you, I''ll help you find your family," Klaus patted Grey on the shoulder. "You don''t even know what the Aurora Continent looks like," Grey scoffed. "I don''t need to know all that. Have you forgotten I have a hidden skill?" Klaus asked with a mysterious smile. "Oh, what''s that?" Grey was a little curious when he saw Klaus'' behavior. Klaus'' reply however made Grey almost choke on his saliva. "My gut feeling. You have to always respect my gut feeling," Klaus said with a laugh. Grey''s lips twitched while he looked at Klaus. Void who was by the side laughed out when he saw this. This was the Klaus they all knew. If Reynolds were here, he would''ve refuted Klaus for the few times that they followed his gut feelings and almost died. "Hey, so, how did you do that thing? I''ve been trying to replicate it for some time now, but I''ve failed in all of my attempts," Klaus suddenly asked. Grey was confused and asked Klaus to clarify. After hearing Klaus'' explanation, he realized he was speaking about his Domain of Fire. Compared to a regular inferno, there''s a special attribute of his Domain of Fire. "It''s a domain¡­" He went on to explain what a domain was to Klaus, and it left him shocked. "Wow! I never knew there was a level like that. Does it have to do with the mastery of your element?" Klaus asked. "Yes, it depends on an Elementalist''s understanding of their said element. For instance, Grey''s mastery of the fire element has reached a very high level, hence he was able to awaken his domain. In a domain, you''re god." Chris walked in at this moment. "Wait, doesn''t that mean that someone with multiple elements could awaken multiple domains?" Klaus suddenly thought of something and asked. "Technically, yes," Chris nodded. "Damn! That''s just unfair. Those with multiple elements get all the advantages in a battle then. Just imagine fighting against someone with three or four elements, and you have only one. How can one domain overpower four?" Klaus couldn''t help but complain. "That''s not exactly true. Haven''t you seen or heard of scenarios where a Single Elementalist defeats a Dual or even Multi Elementalist?" Chris shook his head at Klaus'' reasoning. "Well, yeah. But domains are different from your regular elemental attacks," Klaus replied. "They''re the same. There are grades to domains. Of course, people don''t usually think of it that way, but not all domains are of the same strength. There are cases where a First Stage Elemental Sovereign can defeat a Third or even Fourth stage Elemental Sovereign, they both have domains, but the person in the First stage has a higher elemental mastery, so they naturally get a stronger domain," Chris elucidated. "Oh, it''s like that. Then there''s no need to worry too much," Klaus laughed. The thought of being a Single Elementalist who will most definitely get into a fight with a Dual or even Multi Elementalist scared him. Just imagine fighting against someone like Grey who had seven elements. That will not even be called a battle, it was bullying. "This cat of yours, it''s quite strange," Chris finally took note of Void. He had been trying to see what''s special about Void for some time now, but he hadn''t been able to get anything. Even after multiple efforts, he finally gave up. Void hadn''t spoken a word since he arrived, so he didn''t know much about him. Even when Void attacked while the battle was going on, he was too busy with his opponents to focus on the battle below. Of course he kept an eye on Grey and the others. "Teacher, this is Void, my friend," Grey introduced Void to Chris. When Chris heard of how Void came out of an egg, he was dumbstruck. How can a cat come out of an egg? This was the only question running through his head. He can even speak while only being a Rank Five magical beast. Brown still hasn''t been to speak yet, and they were on the same stage. If Void knew that Chris was comparing him to a Griffin, he would definitely object to it. Chapter 651 - A New Beginning Chapter 651 - A New Beginning Time went by in the blink of an eye and one month went by. Alice and Reynolds were still not back yet, while Blake accompanied Delia to her family. A change could be felt across the entire continent, and even the normal citizens could sense it as well. They were entering a new time, and today was the start of it. This was the day the new Emperor of the entire Azure Continent was going to be crowned, and it was none other than the Second Prince old man Gerald brought over to see Chris the day after the great battle. Old man Gerald was a decisive person, so after getting approval from Chris, he immediately started to arrange for the coronation of the Second Prince. He traveled to the Azure, Stellar, and Blue Wind Empires to speak with the Princes there. Even though he could forcibly unify the entire continent, he didn''t want to do it that way. The Second Prince accompanied him on the journey to speak with the other Princes. Initially, the Second Prince brought the idea that in each generation, an Emperor would be chosen from one of the Royal families of the four empires. But old man Gerald rebutted the idea, the reason was simple, it would cause conflict. They might agree to it now and things might go smoothly, but there is bound to be conflict in the future between the families. Power is an intoxicating thing, once one gets the feeling of it, they wouldn''t want to lose it. Old man Gerald placed all the Princes from the other empires in a counsel. Each of the Crown Prince would be in charge of governing their empire just like before, but the Qilin Empire was the ruler and reports must be given to them. Since it was a new beginning, the name of the continent was changed. It was no longer called the Azure Continent, instead, it was called the Novus Continent. The name was taken from the leading empire which had changed names from the Qilin Empire to Novus Empire which meant ''New''. Chris and the others were all invited to the special occasion. Chris originally rejected the invitation, but Oliver was adamant they went there because they were the reasons the other empires weren''t fighting against the Second Prince and peacefully letting him ascend the throne. Especially Chris since he was publicly recognized as the strongest person on the continent. Blake and Delia would be coming there as well. Then there''s also Alice and her family. Reynolds said he might be coming with his family as well. When they got to the Arena at the Capital, it was already jam-packed, but the second they were recognized, they attracted all the attention in the arena to themselves. They were all famous individuals, so it was natural that they were easily recognized. Klaus wore a lofty expression betraying the indifferent look the others wore. Old man Gerald welcomed them, directing them to their special seats. After a few minutes, the event started. The families of Alice, Reynolds, and even Delia were specially recognized. They were given positions at the top, and even the new Emperor had to respect them. Alice''s family was big, so even though they were overwhelmed by their new status, they managed to control it. Reynolds'' family which consisted of only three individuals, were shaken. This was their first time coming to the Capital, yet they were treated with such respect. When the event ended, old man Gerald announced that he was officially the new leader of the Lenz organization. He was part of the family, so being given the position of leader was not a surprise. It was as if being friends with Chris and Grey was starting to bring its benefits. Reynolds moved his family to the Capital, so he spent a little longer before he returned to the group. Alice''s family didn''t move since they were already used to living in Frost City. The same went for Delia''s family as well. Chris had been teaching Grey all he knew, increasing Grey''s knowledge of arrays. His inscriptions were upgraded to a new form. Now, he could place an attack inside a talisman. It was like getting an already prepared attack. Chris gave tons of stored attacks to Klaus. He knew his nephew''s personality, and he would definitely need this. The thought of visiting the Aurora Continent came to him, but he couldn''t leave Oliver in this state. The old man was the most powerful person he had seen, and he was certain that if anyone could help his friend, it was none other than the old man. Blake and Delia would be coming with him as well, only Grey and his friends would be going to the Aurora Continent on their own. Since Grey had gone there before, he knew how to survive there. Klaus had broken through to the Sixth stage of the Overlord Plane while they had been in the valley. The same as Grey, he broke through a week earlier than Grey did. Reynolds had broken through to the Third stage of the Overlord Plane while Alice had gotten to the Third stage, on her way to breaking through to the Fourth stage. Reynolds was the one with the weakest cultivation stage individually, but they all knew other than Grey, none of the others could fight against him because of his Elemental Warrior. On this particular day. Grey and Klaus were sparring under the watch of Chris and the others. Klaus'' abilities with ice had gone to another level, even Grey had to be watchful of it. Their battle was intense, but Grey was victorious in the end. Seeing Grey use the space element, Chris squinted his eyes. ''Hmm, so this is his secret. I wonder how his friends would react if they found out. He must''ve told them by now,'' He thought to himself. There was no way he didn''t understand what was happening. When Grey took the first test, he was present, and now, Grey suddenly got two more elements. Of course, he knew it must be the result of a rare treasure. Chapter 652 - Too Peaceful? Chapter 652 - Too Peaceful? "I''m bored," Klaus said while sitting on the throne Void stole and swinging his legs around. He even wore one of the crowns as well. Grey was by the side busy writing down some things he had learned from the time he had been with his Teacher on a piece of paper, he raised his head to look at Klaus before focusing on what he was doing again. "Me too, let''s go out," Void said laying on the armrest of the throne. "Even if we go out, I''m already too famous. I don''t want to be disturbed by my fans," Klaus said with a sigh. Grey snickered when he heard this. He didn''t believe with Klaus'' personality he would want to stay hidden if he were famous. Klaus would go around flaunting himself, he might even take an announcer with him that would announce his arrival before he got to any place. "Isn''t there a place we can visit?" Void asked with a secret smile to Klaus. Before Klaus could reply. "You two are not going out to steal anything. The Principal has already warned you two after the last time. If you even take a step out, I''ll ask Alice to beat you up," Grey warned. Some days before the coronation, Klaus and Void vanished from the valley. Grey was training so he didn''t take note of their disappearance. They went out to have ''fun'' and on the way, a young man offended Klaus. This person was from a family that can''t really be regarded as a top family, but since they had six Overlord Plane Elementalists, they were respected around the area. Klaus was naturally irritated by him and he went with Void to ''borrow'' the family''s greatest treasure and flaunted it in front of the young man while standing at the gate to the young man''s family compound. The young man accused Klaus of theft and called for the guards to take him down. Who knew the guards were only in the Early stages of the Origin Plane. Klaus went easy on them, only freezing them. He didn''t kill them, but the scene sent a chill down the spines of the young man and the other guards. Those watching were excited because this particular young man had been oppressing a few people due to his status. Klaus mocked the young man and he went ahead to call the big guns. When Klaus saw the people he called out, he laughed out loud, almost falling to the ground. The strongest person in this family was actually in the Fourth stage of the Overlord Plane. At the time Klaus was in the Second stage of the Overlord Plane, he could take on someone in the Fourth stage, much less now that he was in the Fifth stage. He smacked the old man straight back into the compound, shocking the entire family. It was at this moment that they knew they messed up and they couldn''t help but glare daggers at the young man. Klaus went a little further by leisurely walking into the family compound and summoning the elders of the family to give them some advice. While he was in the middle of punishing the young man, Blake who went to the city to get something for Chris heard the news and rushed there immediately. On seeing the state of the compound, he glared at Klaus who chuckled awkwardly. Even though he knew Klaus wasn''t at fault since the young man was the one who instigated the matter, he felt Klaus went a tad too far. He apologized to the elders of the family before dragging Klaus with him. On their way out, he recalled that Klaus took something from the family, and forced him to return it. What he found amusing was that these people didn''t even dare to ask for it when they were leaving. Had he not remembered it, they would''ve lost it forever. He reported the matter to the Principal and Chris when he returned. Klaus and Void were reprimanded strongly. However, Grey felt the story must be missing a few vital details. First of all, given how their faces were on countless posters across the empire for a long time, there was basically almost no one who didn''t know about them. How the hell did this particular young man didn''t recognize Klaus? Besides, this was Lunar City, the place he had been living for a long time before they left just over a year ago. "Hmph!" Klaus snorted at Grey''s words before picking up a blade of grass from the ground. He flicked the blade of grass in Grey''s direction, and Grey set up a defensive wall in front of him, however, he was stunned when the blade of grass cleanly passed through his earthen wall. One has to know that the defensive ability of this wall had gotten to another level. Yet, this simple blade of grass Klaus threw his way passed through it so easily. He stretched out his hand quickly, and after enforcing his hands with all seven elements, he caught the blade of grass. The blade of grass had turned into a piece of solid thin ice that had terrifying penetrative power. Grey was a little taken aback by how powerful Klaus'' ice abilities were. If he were to fight against him using only the ice ability of the water element, then Klaus would definitely have the advantage. "When are we leaving?" Klaus asked still swinging his legs around. "I have no idea. We''ll have to wait till Teacher and the Principal are about to leave," Grey replied while breaking the blade of grass that had turned to ice. "I miss the days we were being chased," Klaus'' statement stunned Grey. Who would miss something like that? Alice walked in when Klaus said this and almost had the urge to beat him up. "Why don''t we spare since you''re so bored?" She asked with a warm smile. "No, I still have burn marks from the last time. Go find someone else you want to beat up," Klaus immediately rejected the idea. Grey laughed when he recalled Klaus'' pitiful appearance after his sparring session with Alice. Although if it was a true battle he would defeat her, since they were only trying out the mastery of their elements, she managed to strike him twice with lightning. Klaus'' hair stood straight for almost the entire day. Chapter 653 - Food Delivery Chapter 653 - Food Delivery Grey was the one who later agreed to spar with Alice. He wanted to try out a new method of his inscriptions, and it would be best while battling. Buzz! Crash! A lightning bolt struck in Grey''s direction, but he didn''t even glance at it. Just as the lightning bolt was about to touch, a black inscription lit up in front of him, and the lightning bolt disappeared into it. Bang! Alice was lucky she moved away from the spot hastily, else she would''ve been struck with her own attack. "This¡­" Alice wanted to complain, but she was just short of words. Grey just sent her attack back at her, and the distance between when the attack came was so close that if Grey hadn''t told her of this before they started the sparring session, she would''ve been caught off-guard by it. This is just like Void''s ability. Unfortunately, it also has its limitations. If the person attacking was around Blake''s level, then he would have difficulties returning the attack. At most, he can use it to reduce the strength of the attack, but the inscription would fall apart soon after. Klaus who was by the side complained about the overwhelming advantage of the space element. "Why is there even such an element?" He complained while looking at Grey and Void. He has never faced a Space Elementalist, and after watching what Grey and Void were doing to their enemies, he didn''t want to. The space element was like the king of all elements. At first, he thought it was only for escaping and dodging attacks, but when he saw what Void did with it against that Peak Overlord Plane Elementalist, he had a change of heart. He had already concluded that if he were fighting against a Space Elementalist he would immediately surrender. If it were a life and death battle, he would negotiate with the person. Alice continued helping Grey out, and after being unlucky and being struck by her attack, she gave up. Klaus burst out laughing when he saw Alice''s appearance was almost exactly the same as his own. Alice smiled irritatedly before looking at Grey with a mischievous smile. She sent a lightning bolt at Grey, and it disappeared. Bang! "Ah! Damn you Grey!" Klaus yelled after being struck by the lightning Alice sent out. How could he not know that this was to get back at him for laughing at Alice? The group continued hanging out leisurely in the valley as they enjoyed their rare moment of peace. Klaus was keeping the group entertained with his stories. Grey was the group''s chef, understandably. Chris was taking advantage of the times he hadn''t been able to eat anything. He was chunking down whatever Grey brought his way. And seeing this, Grey didn''t know between his Teacher and Void who ate more. Of the entire group, Void was the only one who seemed to come close to his Teacher when it came to eating. One day, Chris walked up to Grey. "I just had a brilliant idea. If this works, I wouldn''t need to worry about food again in that hellish place," Chris chuckled in pleasure. "Oh, what''s that Teacher?" Grey inquired. "We''ll make something like a small-scale teleportation array, but it will be used only for bringing food to me. Give me that paper you used in making the teleportation array," Chris said, a tinge of excitement could be heard in his voice. Grey did as ordered, and after Chris went through it multiple times, he brought out a plaque. He drew a few lines on it before working with Grey to infuse the space element into it. Although he was the one making the array, without a Space Elementalist''s help, there was no way he could get access to the space element. Without the space element, the array was useless. After he completed it, he brought out another plaque and they did the same thing. They immediately tried it, and it was just as Chris said, Grey could teleport food to anywhere the other plaque was located. ''He truly is my Teacher,'' Grey thought internally. The fact that all it took was a single try for Chris to make the teleportation array shocked him. He knew his knowledge of arrays wasn''t on the same level as his Teacher, but this showed how far apart they were. They concluded with that, and time went by. A week later, Reynolds arrived after settling his parents down in the Capital City. Old man Gerald promised to take extra care of them, so he wasn''t too worried about them. With the influence old man Gerald had amassed thanks to Chris, he didn''t have anything to fear about. The new Emperor of the Continent was also taking care of his family as well, and this was more than what he asked for. He couldn''t help but think about the time he thought of actually working for the empire, it seemed like a long time ago, but it hasn''t even been up to two years and now the Emperor of the continent was taking special care of his family that without him, the others couldn''t even be considered as Elementalists. With everyone complete, it was finally time for them to go their separate ways. Chris still had to take Oliver to get help from the old man training him, while Blake opted to stay by Oliver''s side. Delia naturally did the same, so he would be taking them with him as well. They followed the group to the edge of the Magical Beasts'' forest. "I made a few more talismans for you," Chris gave Klaus over fifty talismans that contained one all-out attack each from him. He even made one that was filled with the light element to help boost his speed so he could escape. "I''ll come search for you all after some time," He said to Grey before turning around with his group. Grey''s lips twitched but he didn''t say anything. His Teacher didn''t even give him any form of protection, giving everything to Klaus. Who was his student again? "Come on, let''s go," Grey led the group into the forest. Chapter 654 - A Familiar Tactic Chapter 654 - A Familiar Tactic "We should explore the place before leaving, this is my first time here and from what I''ve heard, there are treasures here." Klaus suggested. Grey looked at the others to see if they approved of it, seeing that no one objected to it, and he agreed as well. But he didn''t forget to warn, "This place is not as easy as it seems. Even Teacher wouldn''t carelessly go too deep inside." The others nodded. He was the only one who had come this deep, so they knew he had some sort of knowledge about the place. With everyone''s approval, they walked into the forest. They restrained their stages and it was difficult for those in a lower stage to know their level. On the way, they saw some people, but they didn''t cross each other''s paths, each taking a different road. In here, everyone was afraid of being attacked for treasures. Grey and his friends were probably the only group who were taking this like a stroll. Before long, they got to a place that was a little familiar to Grey, and he was a little taken aback when he saw someone standing outside the cave. His lips curved into a smile. ''It''s just like before, tricking people in and then killing them.'' He said to himself while looking at a young man that was standing outside, trying to get into a group that wanted to get into the cave. This was the same cave that he entered when he was trying to search for a cure for Void. When an old man was using people for sacrifices, using them to improve his cultivation. Grey was only in the Origin Plane at that time, and the old man was in the Overlord Plane. He was lucky to escape thanks to the space element. Now, it seemed like the old man was trying to swindle people again. "Restrain your cultivation to the Origin Plane. We''ll head in there in as a group." Grey said to the others. They nodded their heads and reduced their levels. The people here weren''t stronger than any of them, so it was impossible for them to figure out that they weren''t in the Origin Plane. Outside the cave, there were four groups, and two of them had an Overlord Plane Elementalist. When they saw Grey''s group coming in their direction one of them smirked when he realized they were only in the Mid stages of the Overlord Plane. "Kids trying to get themselves killed." A scrawny middle-aged man said while licking his lips as he saw Alice. Alice stared at him and grunted coldly. Her reaction made the man and his group all laugh out loud. They could already see these kids losing their lives in the cave. Just like before, the cave was sealed, and they were all waiting for it to open up. Grey and his friends sat some distance away from the cave. The others were curious as to why Grey said they should come here. He didn''t tell them his reason for telling them to come here, but they could tell that he knew something they didn''t. The scrawny middle-aged man approached them with a lewd smile. "Little girl, why don''t you come with us. Those kids can''t protect you." He said while looking at Grey and the boys with contempt. Alice didn''t even look at the man. She pretended as if the man didn''t exist. Klaus on the other hand smiled before replying, "Protect yourself first. I don''t think you¡­" Grey placed his hand on Klaus'' leg and tapped him. He knew Klaus was about to start cussing at the man. Grey didn''t want the old man to find out their strength. If the old man knew that they were powerful, he might run away. "Looks like one of you is sensible. Little girl, I''ll leave you with them for now, but once we get into that cave, you will come begging for our protection." The man laughed before going back to where his group was standing. "Why didn''t you let me teach him a thing or two?" Klaus asked. "We''re hiding our strength remember? There''s an evil person here that I want dead. He almost killed me the last time I came here, and he''s using a vile method to improve his strength. I might not be a saint, but this man in particular, I don''t like him." Grey whispered to the others. He remembered how he had to run. If not for sensibly using the time the man was killing the others to enter the Fusion State, then even with the space element, he would''ve been in a perilous predicament. Klaus and the others finally understood what was happening. "So you wanted revenge, why didn''t you say so?" Klaus slapped Grey on the shoulder lightly. "No, I want to remove a vile person from the world." Grey shook his head. "I understand, since we accidentally encountered this man again, you recalled your previous defeat. I like that, run while you''re weak then come back when you''re stronger and shove it in the face of the person who bullied you." Klaus said. Grey''s lips twitched, he truly didn''t come here for revenge. However, he knew there was no way he could explain it to the others. No matter how he tried to explain, Klaus and Reynolds said he was a vengeful person. After a few minutes, he finally gave up and let them think whatever they wanted to. Alice and Void laughed at his plight. They knew Klaus and Reynolds were purposely doing this to irk off Grey. Three hours went by before the seal on the door gradually weakened. At this time, two more groups had arrived as well. By the time the seal broke, two people arrived. Altogether, there were around forty-eight people. The two groups with the Overlord Plane Elementalists were the first to go inside. Before the group the scrawny middle-aged belonged to entered, he turned to wink at Alice. "Can I beat him up later?" Alice asked with a smile. "Sure, but you''ll have to pray he survives till our destination." Grey said with a smile before walking in with the others. Chapter 655 - A Familiar Tactic ll Chapter 655 - A Familiar Tactic ll They entered the cave, and after walking inside, they soon got to an intersection. This was all too familiar, and followed the path five more groups followed. They didn''t walk far before they heard the scream of a person. It was clear that he was suffering from unimaginable pain. Grey shook his head before spreading out his spiritual senses. He noticed the array in the cave easily, unlike the last time. After looking at it, he realized that he could tamper with it and the old man wouldn''t even be able to realize it. He decided to slightly delay the activation of the traps. This way, the people would get to figure out that an attack was coming. He didn''t want people to die when he could easily kill the old man. Naturally people would die anyway, but he wanted to reduce it as much as possible. After all, everyone here had a family, even those who didn''t might have someone waiting for them. After tampering with the array, he didn''t bother with this group any longer and picked a path randomly. They walked ahead and he was the one who was leading them. He would occasionally activate an array, but he would easily destroy the attack. Before long, they had almost gotten to the end of the cave. Due to the delay in the attacks, over seventy percent of the people present made it to the end. This shocked the old man greatly. He couldn''t help but look around in a confusing manner. If the people he followed got here he could attribute it to the Overlord Plane Elementalists in their ranks, but even Grey and his friends who were in the Mid stages of the Origin Plane still managed to get there unscathed. He snorted coldly before a sly grin appeared on his face. To him, either way, all of them would die. It didn''t change a thing. The two Overlord Plane Elementalists stared at each other and acted at the same time, each trying to first the other collect the floating orb. Grey sat down to watch the show. The scrawny man rushed towards them when he found out they managed to get here successfully. "I''m impressed you four got here successfully, now hand over the treasures you acquired on the way." He stretched out his hand in a demanding way. Grey raised both hands to show that he had nothing with him. The others did the same. The few things they saw when coming didn''t really interest them, but they couldn''t let free things go to waste. They cleaned the place, keeping everything in their spatial ring. Since these people knew nothing of the space element, there was nothing they could do to them. "I forgot, since you all made it here, then you were all trying to survive, how could you get the time to take anything?" The man mocked. "Hey," Klaus called to draw the attention of the man. The man naturally turned to look at him. Klaus put on a questioning look before asking, "Aren''t you a little too old for all this. I mean, you should be around eighty, or even ninety, yet you''re here fooling yourself." "You¡­" "Keep quiet, I''m not done talking yet. Look at you, if you were my son, I''d send you back to hell where you came from the second I see your face. Then, what''s with that face? If I didn''t know, I would''ve thought you were a monkey masquerading as a person. But calling you in the same breath as a monkey seems like an insult." Klaus went on, and the man had his mouth wide open, unable to retort. Klaus'' words were like a knife that dug deep into the heart of the man. The man wanted to speak, but nothing came out of his mouth. "Now, that right there is a violation." Reynolds said before bursting into laughter. Grey chuckled to his words. Alice covered her mouth, while Klaus also burst out laughing. The man stood there, his expression despondent. "You can go back now, your mom is calling." Klaus said when the man couldn''t speak. To their greatest surprise, the man actually turned around, and truthfully, someone was calling him, but it was a man. His face contorted in anger before he angrily turned around. He was just about to attack when a change occurred in the cave. The two Overlord Plane Elementalists who were fighting suddenly started to struggle as if they were held by an invisible hand. When everyone looked below them, they saw the man who looked harmless merging with the orb. "Hehehe, I have a bountiful harvest this time. I''ll finally be able to break through to the Sage Plane." He laughed evilly as he completely merged with the orb. His cultivation shot up to the Peak of the Overlord Plane. But Grey and the others knew his strength was well above those at the Peak of the Overlord Plane. Grey studied the man before nodding his head. It was just as he thought, the man changed. His body blinked occasionally before turning corporal. This was the reason Grey didn''t try to kill him when he saw them outside. There was something strange about what he did, so the body outside couldn''t really be said to be his true body. Grey didn''t understand how it worked, but he felt slightly intrigued by it. The two Overlord Plane Elementalists'' expressions changed drastically when they saw this. "You tricked us?" One of them said angrily. "Hehe, keep quiet and die." The man chuckled coldly. The two Overlord Plane Elementalists naturally wouldn''t give up that easily. They managed to break free from what was holding them and attacked. "Futile effort." The man said before waving his hands and blood red water appeared, blocking the attacks. "Are there still special types of water?" Reynolds asked curiously. "I don''t know." Grey and the others shook their heads. "Is that the person you want to kill?" Alice asked. "Yes. He''ll use a technique to drain the life of everyone here. But he''ll want to deal with those two first." Grey nodded. "Should we save them?" Alice asked. "Not yet, let''s watch for now." Grey smiled. When the scrawny man overheard their conversation, he rolled his eyes. Chapter 656 - The Deeper We Go, The Stronger They Get Chapter 656 - The Deeper We Go, The Stronger They Get The two Overlord Plane Elementalists were unable to put up much of a fight against the old man. At this rate, they would die in a short time. Grey looked at it and felt it was time for them to step in. "Void, he''s all yours." He said to Void. Void was the only one at the Peak of the Overlord Plane amongst them, so he naturally had to be the one who would take out this old man. Grey might be able to defeat him, but he didn''t feel a hundred percent confident without using the Fusion State. After all, he was still in the Sixth stage of the Overlord Plane and this man in particular seems to be above the regular Peak Overlord Plane Elementalists. Void nodded and disappeared. This man wasn''t a big deal for him to handle. He appeared beside the man, and before the man even realized what was happening, he sensed a deadly attack coming from all angles. He tried to escape, but to his dismay, he was unable to move an inch. The scrawny man who was standing beside Grey and his friends was taken aback when he saw this. He overheard Grey telling Void to take care of this, so seeing that the man had a panicky expression, he could tell that he was in trouble. ''They''re only in the Origin Plane, how can they deal with this man?'' He questioned himself. Unfortunately, he was unable to get an answer. He saw something that scared the living daylight out of him. The man who they thought would kill all of them started to disintegrate. It was a fast process, and within thirty seconds, a complete human disappeared from the world. It was so simple that they didn''t even understand what happened. All they knew was that the man disappeared piece by piece. As if something was destroying him. The scrawny man looked at Grey and his friends, and cold sweat ran down his spine. He wasn''t stupid, so he knew this was as a result of them. How did he summon the courage to mock these people? The truth was, if not for Alice, he wouldn''t even give them a glance. But when he saw her, he wanted to take her for himself, so he approached them. Now, he had offended people he shouldn''t. Without even thinking, he fell to his knees. When the others in the place saw him, they were surprised that he would kneel in front of these little kids. "Is he that desperate?" A lady from the group the scrawny man belonged to asked, staring at the man with disdain. He dropped his head to the ground in front of Alice and instantly started apologizing. Seeing this, Alice furrowed her brows. "You''ve ruined all the fun, get out of my sight." She said annoyed. Since the man apologized this quickly, beating him up wouldn''t be any fun. It would feel like she was only bullying him. And unlike Klaus and Reynolds, she wasn''t that shameless. Grey smiled when he saw this. He knew from the second the man got on his knees, Alice would let him go. He squinted his eyes and looked at the man, after a thought, he shook his head. He couldn''t kill the man. Of course it''s not that it was hard, but it''s because there were countless people like him. Should he go around killing all of them? The main reason he let the man go was because he didn''t try to attack them from the start, only demanding their treasure. It was unknown if the man would''ve tried to use force if not for what happened, but since they didn''t know, there was no use in bothering about it. Other than the scrawny man, no one else knew that the death of the man was as a result of Grey and his friends. The two Overlord Plane Elementalists looked around, trying to find who killed the man, but they were unable to. They each returned to their group and hurriedly left the cave. They almost lost their lives, so although they had calmed down, they didn''t want to stay here any longer. Grey and his friends left as well. Since the man was dead, there was nothing left to do there. After coming out, they went deeper into the Magical Beasts'' forest. Grey was unable to head this deep the last time because he was too weak at that time, but now, as long as he didn''t encounter a Rank Six magical beast, he had nothing to fear. He suddenly recalled the state Ellis was in when he tried to find the liquid he wanted to use to heal Void. Ellis was already in the Sage Plane at that time, but he too found it difficult to move freely here. ''What secrets does this place hold?'' He asked himself. If even with Ellis'' strength he couldn''t move freely and he even went as far as to warn Grey, this meant there are most likely beasts in the Seventh Rank here. Just the thought of it sent goosebumps across his entire body. That was equivalent to an Elemental Sovereign. He couldn''t even contest against a Sage Plane Elementalists yet, much less an Elemental Sovereign that''s above the Sage Plane. "I heard there are Dragons deep in the Magical Beasts'' forest." Reynolds suddenly brought up the topic of Dragons. "Yeah, so I heard." The others nodded. "Is there a chance we can run into one?" Reynolds asked curiously. "It''s best we don''t. From what I know, the deeper we go into this forest, the stronger the magical beasts. Don''t think you''ll encounter Rank Four beasts there. Very soon, you''ll start meeting Rank Five beasts, and if we''re unlucky, we might even meet a Rank Six beast in this area." The last thing on Grey''s head right now is meeting a Rank Six beast. There was no way he could fight against it. He didn''t even have the slightest bit of hope in going up against it. So it was for the best that they didn''t encounter one. Chapter 657 - Such An Overpowered Element Shouldn’t Exist! Chapter 657 - Such An Overpowered Element Shouldn''t Exist! The group wandered further into the Magical Beasts'' forest, and just as they predicted, the beasts they encountered started getting stronger. Now, they only encountered Rank Five beasts. Since most of the beasts were still in the Early stages, it was extremely easy for the group to deal with them. Alice was the main figure fighting against them. Since she had the weakest power amongst them, she sorted to fight more. Reynolds also joined her since he didn''t want to solely rely on his Elemental Warrior. His personal strength was not bad when compared to others in the same stage. If he was even placed in the Aurora Continent, he wouldn''t be below most of the people in his stage. His Elemental Warrior made people forget he was still in the Early stages of the Overlord Plane. They''ve also gotten some things on the way. This was the Magical Beasts'' forest after all, a place littered with treasures. As long as one had a little bit of luck and sufficient strength, then they would certainly take back a treasure or two. After spending almost a day in the forest, they had gotten to the part where the beasts were in the Mid stages of the Fifth Rank. The battles got a little more difficult, but Alice enjoyed it even more due to the pressure she was facing. Of course she wasn''t really in any danger since Grey and Klaus were there. Even Void was there as well, so there was nothing to worry about. She fought ferociously, but also made sure she didn''t sustain any injuries. She might be aware that Grey and the others could save her, but it didn''t mean she should forget defending. Reynolds was also having a difficult time with his opponents, but he didn''t back down. Just like Alice, he fought violently. If people were to see them fighting, they would be confused as to who was the beast and who was the human. They fought like savage beasts, even though they were under pressure, they didn''t back down. Grey and Klaus were watching the battles as they munched on the piece of meat on their hand. "Nice move! Now kick it in the head!" Klaus exclaimed. After talking, he used his mouth to hold onto the piece of meat before he started clapping. If Reynolds wasn''t fighting a serious battle, he would''ve left the beast and attacked Klaus. The battle was long, but Alice and Reynolds won in the end. It was expected given they were more calculative than the beasts. All they did was bait the beast, and when it thought it had the advantage, they unleashed a ferocious counter. The beast seemed to be a couple, so their cooperation was quite high. But Alice and Reynolds had better cooperation, and since the beasts were wary of Grey and Klaus, they didn''t use their full strength. "Such a nice battle. But Reynolds, I feel you''re a little lacking. You should''ve kicked the head of the beast when I told you to, that would''ve sent it running." Klaus gave his analysis of the battle with his hands behind his back. Alice and Reynolds were still panting from the fight, so they didn''t attack him immediately. However, after they recovered, Klaus ran away. They were unable to catch up to him, so all they could do was grit their teeth and wait for his turn to battle. Their journey here could also be said to be a form of training. Going to a new place, the others felt a little pressured. Grey had told them how those in the Overlord Plane were around eighteen. And most of them were more powerful than their counterparts in the Azure Continent. The group wanted to boost their strength as much as they could before going there, especially Alice. Unlike Reynolds, she didn''t have an Elemental Warrior, so surprisingly, from being the strongest in the group while they were still at the Arcane Plane, she had fallen to the weakest. She was already close to the Fourth stage of the Overlord Plane, and she felt it would be for the best if she managed to attain it before they left. They camped in the woods since it was already dark. The next day soon came and they started their training once again. Alice tried to fight against a beast that was already on the verge of breaking through to the Late stages of the Fifth Rank, and when ultimately lost. The battle was hard fought, but the beast had the advantage from the start. The group encouraged her, after all, it wasn''t an easy feat. She was still in the Early stages of the Overlord Plane, yet she wanted to go against a beast almost in the Late stages. After that battle, the beasts they encountered were either in the Late stages or were about to enter. Klaus finally started his training. His use of the water element had reached a frightening stage that Grey was sure he hadn''t seen anyone that had a better mastery than Klaus in the same stage. The group walked deeper, and the beasts got stronger. Klaus fought against a beast that should be around the Eighth stage of the Overlord Plane and won. One has to know that he was in the Sixth stage. Once a beast or an Elementalist breaks through to the Late stages, their strengths increases. It''s not like the increase from one stage to another, but a different one entirely. For Klaus to still win when two stages below showed his competence. Grey had also joined in on the battle, but due to the space element, his own couldn''t really be called a battle, more like a one-sided fight. Before the beasts could figure out what was happening, they were already dead. Klaus couldn''t help but look at Grey''s disappearing and appearing silhouettes in envy. He naturally didn''t feel it in a bad way, more like if only I had this as well. Or better still, such an overpowered element shouldn''t exist in the first place! Chapter 658 - Goodbye Azure Continent, Hello Aurora Continent Chapter 658 - Goodbye Azure Continent, Hello Aurora Continent The group continued their journey deeper into the Magical Beasts'' forest, and before long, the beasts they encountered were almost at the Peak of Rank Five. They naturally didn''t dare to go any further since it would mean that they would soon leave the region for Rank Five beasts and enter the one for Rank Six beasts. Even in this place, there is the possibility of encountering a Rank Six beast since it isn''t that far. One thing that made the group less worried is that even the Rank Five beasts rarely come out from their caves. They all preferred staying inside. Other than the appearance of a treasure, most of them might not come out for months or even years. The group stayed in the Magical Beasts'' forest for over a week before they decided it was time to head to where the teleportation array resided. Alice had broken through to the Fourth stage of the Overlord Plane before they were leaving, so their journey wasn''t wasted. When the group got to the building, they were quite surprised, not expecting such a building to be in this place. Who would have the time to build a mansion in the Magical Beasts'' forest? "The teleportation array is inside." Grey said to the group while they were still staring at the building. They nodded before following Grey into the building. Klaus and Reynolds looked around curiously, trying to see if they could find anything that might be of importance. Unfortunately, there was nothing in that building, not even chairs. "Is this the only way to get to the Aurora Continent?" Alice asked. "This is the only one I know of. Since this one is here, there''s a high chance that there is another one somewhere." Grey replied after giving it some thoughts. Alice nodded in understanding. They didn''t waste any more time, all standing in the teleportation array. Grey set the essence stones in their positions and the array soon lit up. "Goodbye Azure Continent." Klaus waved as if there was someone there sending them off. Somewhere in the previous Azure Empire, deep in a forest. Some figures could be seen in a compound, rushing towards a small room. They soon got into the room, staring at the figure sitting behind the table. "What is it?" The figure sitting behind the table in the room asked. "The boy is no longer within range." One of the figures said. "Does that mean he has gone to an independent space?" The figure asked. "I don''t think so Supreme One, you should also know of the main continent. If he were to go there, then there''s no way we can track him there." The figure replied with heads bowed. "There are powerful necromancers there, they will certainly sense the mark. Unlike before, I made sure to place a new mark on his body while we forced them out of the spatial tunnel." The figure regarded as the Supreme One said. Compared to human necromancers, these guys didn''t need to use their lives in exchange for placing a mark. They could easily use it. The person marked wouldn''t even know they were marked. With this mark, as long as Grey was in the Aurora Continent, he was bound to attract the attacks of necromancers all around. "What should we do now, Supreme One?" One of the figures asked. "Hide. This is the best thing to do. Our tracks have already been exposed, and sooner or later more people from the main continent will come searching for us. We still haven''t recovered completely, and it will still take some time before the seal weakens." The figure regarded as the Supreme One said. The others exchanged glances before nodding. They left soon after. Meanwhile, in the Aurora Continent. Grey and his friends appeared in a place not too far from a small town. The moment Klaus and the others appeared here, they could feel the difference in the elemental essence here. It was easily five times better than the Azure Continent. Klaus took a deep breath before saying, "Hello Aurora Continent." Grey looked at him, a little short of words. They decided to head to the town. First of all, he didn''t know where they were, and although he had been here before, he was only familiar with some places. "Hey, so there is a ranking system here. It''s called the genius rankings. Each Plane has its rankings while the Early, Mid, and Late stages also have their levels as well¡­" Grey went on to tell them about the ranking system. "That''s nice, then I don''t mind going for those in the Early stages." Reynolds replied straightforwardly. Without his Elemental Warrior, he was still in the Early stages of the Overlord Plane. "I''ll go for those in the Mid stages then. It''ll be nice if I can become famous." Klaus said with a grin. "Heh! Not while I''m here." Grey scoffed. "Have you participated in this ranking event before?" Alice asked. "I not only participated, but in three or four counties, I was the number one in the Origin Plane. I even went as far as defeating a few people in the Overlord Plane. I''m in the top twenty of those in the Early stages of the Overlord Plane." Grey declared proudly. "Damn, now I want to take on the challenge real bad." Klaus said. "Don''t worry, you''ll get your chance soon. But I want to ask, what''s the plan? Are we staying independent, or are we joining a Faction?" Grey asked the most important question. "For now, let''s watch and see. We can''t hastily join a Faction." Alice replied. "I know, but in a place like this, we naturally need backings. There are powerful forces here that you can not even begin to imagine. With Klaus here, I''m certain we will offend someone with a powerful background, and that might be the end of us." Grey explained. Alice thought of it, and thinking about Klaus'' personality, she couldn''t say that Grey was wrong. Klaus was bound to offend someone sooner or later, without sufficient backing, they would be toast. Chapter 659 - Trapped? Chapter 659 - Trapped? "What do you mean by that?" Klaus questioned coldly. "You offend way too many people." Alice replied. "Well, it''s because I can''t stand stupid people." Klaus said. While they were talking, they got to the town close to where they appeared. After getting inside the town, they noticed strange gazes from the townspeople. Grey pleaded with Klaus not to say anything before he asked someone where they were. The Aurora Continent was divided into five, and the last time he came, he appeared in the Eastern Continent, heading to the Southern Continent to meet up with Ellis. It would be best he was in either of them since he already knew his way around them. He was more familiar with the Eastern Continent, so he would very much prefer they appeared there. However, this wasn''t the case. "The Western Continent." Grey muttered as he returned to where his friends were. He knew nothing of the Western Continent, neither did he have a map. After asking a townsman where the nearest city was, they left the town. The strongest person in the town was surprisingly in the Mid stages of the Origin Plane. In the Azure Continent, a town like this one wouldn''t even have someone in the Arcane Plane, much less the Origin Plane. "Did you find something strange about those people?" Alice asked the others. "Yeah. They were staring at us in a strange way." The others nodded. They too could sense the gazes they were getting. But since there was no one who could threaten them, none of them took it too seriously. They walked for over three hours before the silhouette of a building came to view, however, it was not a city but a single building. "Are you sure this is the direction they pointed at?" Reynolds asked confusedly. "Yes. I should not be wrong." Grey replied as they walked closer to the building. The building was almost like a castle, but not exactly on the same level as a castle. When they got to the gate of the building, they couldn''t sense anyone inside. "Come on, let''s keep going." Grey had no interest in checking out the place. It wasn''t like this was where he wanted to go in the first place. The others nodded, but just as they were about to leave, they heard a cackling laugh from inside the building. "Since you''re here, why leave?" The voice laughed and the gates to the building opened. "Sorry, but we''ll pass." Klaus replied. "Hehe, do you think it''s that easy?" The voice chuckled. "Uhmm, yes, yes I do." Klaus replied and the group continued walking once again. "Fine, come in and you might stand the chance to gain a rare treasure." The voice tried to entice them. Klaus'' voice came from afar, " Keep your treasure, freak." Silence reigned for some time. The person didn''t think Grey or his friends wouldn''t even sit by for a few minutes. They left the second they got there, they didn''t even have an ounce of curiosity. "Hehe, this is my forest, if you think you can leave so easily, it would really be a blemish on my name. But those townspeople really sent a group of strange people over. I''ll teach them a lesson when next I pay them a visit." The voice laughed. Grey and his friends didn''t hear these words. They didn''t have the time to wait to hear what the person wanted to say. Since they decided they weren''t going in from the start, then there was no use in showing any form of interest. Thirty minutes later. "Huh? Haven''t we passed the place before?" Klaus wore a confused expression. "Twice actually." Alice stated. "A maze?" Grey asked as he looked around. Although the place looked like a normal forest, this was the only thing that could come to mind. "Wait, why can''t we fly?" Klaus suddenly asked. He hasn''t tried it since they came, but now that he wanted to, he found out that he was unable to. "Oh right, I forgot to tell you all. Only those in the Sage Plane can fly. With the exception of Void, that is." Grey said. He too had tried it, but he found out that he couldn''t as well. So he left it at that. "Void, fly up to see if we''re in a maze or something like that." Grey turned to Void. Void nodded before flying into the sky. After almost a minute, Void came down with a confused expression. "I can''t really say it''s a maze, it''s more like a really really foresty forest." Void said. "Wait, what?" Klaus asked, clearly confused by Void''s explanation. "There are tons of trees, and each of them are tightly connected to one another. It''s almost impossible to even get to accurate location of where you guys were located. Had I not been connected to Grey, then I would''ve been lost." Void explained. "This means there''s something actually disrupting our senses." Grey said. "Yup, that''s it." Void replied. "Do you think it has something to do with that house?" Alice asked. "Most likely. That''s the only place before this forest." Grey said. "Come on, we just got here and we''re already facing a difficult time already, really?" Klaus turned around, as if questioning the world. "Let''s leave things to mark the places we go through, this way, we will know where we''ve passed." Grey suggested. The group nodded and once again started their journey. One hour later. "We''re lost." Grey said with a dark face. "This isn''t too good for us." Alice said. Presently, a fog had appeared in the forest, making things more difficult for them. "Can''t we teleport out of here?" Reynolds asked. "There''s no other teleportation array I can use as a destination, and the space here is extremely tough so doing a normal teleportation is way harder than usual." Grey replied. "So, what now?" Reynolds asked. "Let''s see if we can go back to where we came from." Alice suggested. "Alright." The others agreed, it wasn''t like they were going forward anyway. Chapter 660 - Natural Formation Chapter 660 - Natural Formation "Hehe, that''s it, come back to me. Without my help, there''s no way you people can go through, even if you''re in the Sage Plane." A voice said after the group started walking back. Surprisingly, they walked back out of the forest with so much ease that they started to doubt if they were truly out. "The building is there, and¡­ we all can''t be seeing the same thing right?" Reynolds pointed at the building as he asked. He wanted to confirm if what he was seeing was accurate or an illusion caused by their extended stay in the forest. "The building is there." The others nodded, which came as a relief to Reynolds. They walked in the direction of the building, and just as they got there, the gates to the compound opened up. The group exchanged glances, and with a cautious expression, they walked past the building, not going inside. "Heh? What''s going on?" A confused voice came from inside the building. Grey and his friends walked past the building and headed back towards the town. What was the use of going into the building when they could easily take another route? First of all, they had zero knowledge of what was inside. From how the voice spoke, it was accurate to say that this wasn''t the first time he was encountering people, and once people got lost in the forest, they would come into the building and speak with whoever it was, but Grey and his friends didn''t have such interests. They could easily use another road, it wasn''t like this was the only way. "Where, where are you going?" A panicked voice came from inside the building. None of them replied, simply walking past without any thoughts of turning around. "Wait, wait! Once you go past here you''ll get to the nearest city, all you have to do is bargain with me." The voice called out from inside. "Oh, bargaining?" Grey asked curiously. "Yes, all you have to do is give me a passing fee and you''re free to pass." The voice replied. Grey looked at the others, trying to see if they approve of the idea of giving this mysterious person a payment or if they should go ahead with their original plan which was passing another road. "We might as well try. It will reduce the time needed to get to where we want to." Alice suggested. Grey looked at the others and they nodded their heads as well. After the group came to a concession, they turned around and headed toward the building. The gate was still wide open, and it closed shut after they went in. Grey, on the other hand, didn''t carelessly come in here, he had calculated everything, and with Void''s help had been able to predict that whoever the mysterious person was, he was only at the Peak of the Overlord Plane. They could still handle him if he tried to attack. Getting to the door of the building, it opened on its own and the group walked in. On getting into the building, they froze at the sight of what stood before them. It was a boar, standing on its hind legs, it was over two meters tall. Although it was a boar, they could see slight signs of it being human, for instance, instead of hooves, it had hands, but its hind legs were hooves. "Visitors, I rarely get them these days." The boar opened its mouth to speak. Klaus rubbed his eyes to confirm if he was seeing properly. Reynolds did the same as well. Grey had a much calmer expression, but he was shocked deep down since this was the first time he was seeing something like this. Alice had a stunned expression, unable to utter a word. "Hmm, what''s with the faces, haven''t you seen a handsome boar before?" The boar said when he saw how the group remained silent. "In your dreams?" Klaus asked with an odd expression. He didn''t even know where to start. "What''s with all the staring, you''re making me shy." The boar said. Klaus almost spat on the floor when he heard this, luckily, he didn''t. Alice was a little amused by the way the boar spoke. Grey didn''t think much of it. "You said you can help us get through the forest, correct?" Grey asked. "Correct. All you have to do is drop something nice." The boar said while licking his lips. "Aren''t you afraid we might rob you?" Grey asked curiously. "You humans are too weak for that." The boar grunted. "What''s with the forest?" Grey asked. He didn''t speak on his previous topic any longer. The only reason he said that was to see the reaction of the boar, and from how confident he was, he was sure that he wasn''t relying on himself alone. ''There''s most likely something that gives him so much confidence. It''s best if we don''t see it.'' Grey thought to himself. The boar was already at the Peak of the Overlord Plane. So it meant what he was relying on must be above the Overlord Plane. A single Sage Plane Elementalist could easily take out all of them. Their only hope of surviving was the talismans given to Klaus. The boar looked at Grey, and after a while, he spoke up, "There''s a natural formation in there. According to what I know, it was made thousands of years ago. You can try if you want, but I know for a fact that an Elemental Sovereign came here once and was unable to get past it. Even flying above it is almost impossible." Listening to the boar''s words, Grey was amazed. An Elemental Sovereign was unable to get past it, then how could they who were only in the Overlord Plane get past it. ''A natural formation.'' Grey fell deep in thoughts. He had read about this from one of the books he read back in the Lunar Academy. There were some natural formations in the Azure Continent as well. One thing he also knew was that, wherever there''s a natural formation, there''s definitely something treasure. In some cases, it will be a rare treasure, while in others, a powerful beast. Chapter 661 - Marsh Rats Chapter 661 - Marsh Rats "How are you possible?" Klaus blurted out while Grey and the boar were speaking about the formation. "What?" The boar turned around. "How''s that possible?" Klaus quickly changed what he said. Even though he was dying of curiosity as to how the boar was in this current state, he felt asking in that manner may offend the boar. Of course he didn''t really care they offended him, but just like Grey, he had presumed the boar had something backing him. "You don''t know about natural formations?" The boar asked, shocked by Klaus'' lack of knowledge. "No, no I do not." Klaus replied. The others however heard what he asked the first time, likewise the boar, but since everyone acted like the question was never asked, it was all for the better. Grey explained how natural formations formed. They come in different ways, some are made in the sea, some in the desert, some in swamps, even mountains make up natural formations. These formations can form almost anywhere, as long as there is nature there. "So, how did you manage to know the way of going through?" Reynolds asked. "Hehe, that''s my secret. Now, what do you have to offer?" The boar asked while rubbing both hands together. "Essence stones?" Grey asked. "Not acceptable. I have way too many essence stones in my possession, rather, I want something good." The boar shook his head. "Hmm, I have an elemental weapon here, do you want that?" Grey asked. The boar shook his head again. "What do you want then?" Klaus asked when the boar was agreeing to anything Grey was offering. "Give me that cat." The boar pointed at Void. Grey''s eyes immediately went cold the moment the boar pointed at Void. On seeing Grey''s cold eyes, a chill ran down the spine of the boar and he took a step back, "I was only joking, essence stones and some elemental weapons would do." Grey took out two mid-grade elemental weapons, before taking out almost twenty high-grade essence stones. The boar''s eyes glittered when he saw this and he said, "It''s not enough." He had already kept these ones before he said this. This way, Grey and his friends wouldn''t step back. "Do you believe that you''ll be dead before whatever you have your hopes on would come?" Grey asked coldly, his disposition one that showed that he wasn''t joking. "Calm down, but I''m only stating the truth, these are not enough." The boar said. "Since they aren''t, return them." Grey was decisive in his decision making. He knew the boar was only trying to take advantage of them since it saw how easily he brought out the items. From how the boar acted, he knew he must''ve done this to countless people. "You do not understand what I''m trying to say..." The boar tried to explain. However, he was cut short by Grey. "Void." Grey said a single statement. The boar who still felt like he had the upper hand felt his scalp go numb, and the cat that was on Grey''s shoulder was no longer there, instead, he was on his shoulder, staring at him playfully, it was like he could kill him anytime. "Wha¡­ what is the meaning of this?" The boar stammered. "Return them or tell me how to pass through the forest." Grey''s voice was as cold as ice. The boar looked at Void, and he knew that this cat could easily kill him which freaked him out. When Grey and his friends came in here, Void hadn''t said a word, lying carelessly on Grey''s shoulder. "Here, it''ll take you to the other side of the forest. It knows the way." The boar waved his hand and a small cage appeared, inside the cat was a small rat. The rat was barely over six inches. "This thing can help us get through?" Klaus asked as he picked up the cage. He didn''t believe what the boar was saying. "Yes, but you''ll have to let it go after you''ve crossed so it can come back to me." The boar replied. "How can it take us there?" Grey asked "This is a Marsh Rat. It''s incredibly difficult to capture, but once you get the right tools, you can easily keep one of them." The boar said. "There''s a female on the other side?" Grey asked. "You know about this as well?" The boar asked, amazed by Grey''s knowledge of things. These types of magical beasts are the least popular type because they have almost zero fighting abilities. They could almost be counted as regular beasts. They are extremely agile and adept at hiding so catching one was difficult, however, all male Marsh Rats have a fatal flaw, and that is they will go to where there''s a female Marsh Rat. If one isn''t close by, then they don''t mind traveling thousands of kilometers to find one. This was the method the boar used in crossing this forest. It might be odd but it''s very effective. These guys don''t rely mainly on their senses when going after their female counterparts, so the formation was useless against them. Grey smiled before nodding to Void who disappeared from the boar''s shoulder and appeared on his own. "See you next time." He turned around and left. When the group got to the entrance of the forest, Grey set up a teleportation array there. In case things didn''t go as planned, they could easily come back here. When they entered the place, they let the rat go, and it immediately started running in a particular direction. Grey placed a leash on it so it wouldn''t go too far away from where they were. Before long, they had gone past where they were stuck the last time. While they were going, Grey suddenly sensed some that made him stop moving. The sensation was coming from deep in the forest. "What''s wrong?" Reynolds asked when he saw him stopping. "Let''s take a quick stop. I feel like there''s something here." Grey said to the others. They nodded and followed behind Grey. Chapter 662 - Strange River Chapter 662 - Strange River "So, what are we looking at here?" Klaus asked as they ventured into the forest. They had been walking for almost one hour now and Grey still hadn''t found what he was searching for. If not for the fact that he could see the Marsh Rat with his eyes, he might''ve fallen into depression when he had to think of how they would leave here once again. "I don''t know, it''s a strange feeling I''m getting." Grey replied with uncertainty, but he didn''t want to give up on this. The last time something like this happened was when he was in the trial land, when he felt something like a calling from a rock which sent him to another space. The feeling was almost identical to that one, so he was a bit hopeful he would get something good. Klaus sighed, but still followed behind him, it wasn''t like there was anything he could do. If this was a normal forest, then they could just wait and let Grey go and his adventure on his own. After another hour, Klaus froze and hastily turned to look in one direction. "Sense something?" Grey asked. He could feel that whatever he was sensing should be around this area, and if Klaus was feeling it as well, it would make things easier. "I think so." Klaus replied, a little uncertain. "Well then, lead the way." Grey said. He couldn''t sense it properly, and since Klaus suddenly started sensing it as well, it might be the same thing, and from Klaus'' expression, what he sensed was close by. Klaus didn''t say anything and took the lead, heading in the direction he was staring at. Grey followed closely behind as he looked in all directions. After a while, they started to hear the sound of running water. The sound was something they hadn''t heard of before. Without a doubt, it was the sound of water, but it felt as if a mountain was moving through it. The sound was louder and seemed very powerful. The group soon caught sight of an unbelievable scene, the running water they could clearly hear from over one hundred meters away was so small they blinked repeatedly. The width of where the water was flowing through wasn''t more than an inch, however, they were unable to determine its length. "Okay, this is just weird." Reynolds said. "How could something so small create such a loud sound? I almost thought it was an ocean." Alice spoke what was on her mind when she saw the tiny river. They thought maybe they were being deceived and a larger river was around somewhere, but unfortunately for them, they didn''t find any. "There''s something strange about this water." Grey squinted his eyes. Klaus also furrowed his brows as he stared at the running river, without a thought, he placed a finger into it. It was at this moment he knew this was by no means a normal river. He hastily retreated, but when he turned around, he realized within two seconds of placing his finger in the water, it dragged him along with the flow of the river. Presently, he was almost three meters away from the others. Grey had a stunned expression when he was what just happened. Klaus'' feet were dragged along the ground by the powerful force. "Stay away from the river." He said to the others. When he turned around, he noticed he was the only one standing close to the river. ''They didn''t even call me along.'' He complained internally. Even Klaus was no where near the water, giving it a considerable distance. He was still trying to analyze what happened a few seconds ago, but staying away from the water for now was the best thing. "Put your hand, you have a tougher body." Klaus suggested while looking from almost thirty meters away. Grey didn''t reply, he focused his gaze on Klaus'' finger, and from how Klaus was holding it, he was sure it didn''t break, but the bone might''ve cracked. ''Just what is this water?'' He questioned curiously before creating an earth wall, trying to block the path of the water. Crack! He heard a cracking sound, and the path of the river opened up, the wall didn''t even form any sort of resistance, it was breached the second the water came in contact with it. Grey was shocked beyond words. He had seen how the water easily moved Klaus, but the earth wall he made a few seconds ago was stronger than Klaus physically, so it would''ve been able to form at least some sort of resistance. Grey created another rock, but stronger this time and he placed it in the water, just like before, the water passed through it, quite easily even. ''This is the strongest defensive rock I can make. Does this mean that this water can easily break my defense?'' Grey was shaken by the thought of this. Grey brought out one of the elemental items he had with him. Surprisingly, he managed to obtain a specially crafted chalice, well, Void did, but it doesn''t matter, it''s with him now. The chalice was extremely tough, Grey had been criticizing the person who created it since he obtained it. Who would make a chalice this tough? It was something that was made for drinking, yet a psychopath turned it into a strange item. Grey had zero knowledge of what it was used for. When Grey brought out the chalice, Void''s eyes bulged out. "I thought you said you lost it?" He questioned. "I did." Grey replied with a blank expression. "Then what''s on your hand?" Void asked while staring at Grey. This was a precious chalice that had jewels embedded on the side. It was made from silver, an amazing and shiny item. Void was the one who found it, but Grey took it when he saw how strange it was. "I made a new one from that one''s remain." Grey walked closer to the river as he replied. Void''s lips twitched repeatedly, and his whiskers were moving in all directions. He almost wanted to strangle Grey at this moment. Grey paid no heed to his expression as he bent down to place the chalice on the river. Chapter 663 - Comprehension Chapter 663 - Comprehension Clang! The second the tip of the chalice entered the small river, it made a clunking sound as if it was hit by another metal. Grey hastily tried to remove the chalice after what seemed like a single drop of water entered. However, his expression changed when he realized he was unable to drag the chalice up. With much difficulty and reinforcement from all his elements, he only managed to raise the top a few inches away, before he dropped it on the ground, beside the river. The stop he placed the chalice sank down from the heaviness. "How''s this possible?" Grey''s brain went into overdrive, trying to think of what could make just a single drop of water possess such heaviness. Klaus and the others saw how difficult it was for Grey to raise the chalice and they couldn''t help but look at the river in awe. They were first astounded by it when it moved Klaus so easily, but Grey had the toughest body here, and he still couldn''t carry a cup full of water? When they took a closer look at the chalice, they felt as if their world was turning around. Initially, they thought it was a cup full of water, who knew it was nothing more than a drop. A tiny drop of water and Grey raised it with so much difficulty. They saw how the ground caved at the moment the chalice was placed on it, so they knew whatever was in the chalice was heavy beyond words. "A drop of water¡­" Reynolds was stunned. He tried to raise the chalice, however, he almost detached himself from his hands after trying too hard. "How could you be trying to raise it? Grey, who has the physique of a magical beast, had such a difficult time just moving it and you think you could?" Klaus asked mockingly before turning to Grey, "No offense bud." Grey stared at Klaus, calming the urge to punch him in the face. ''You could just say I was stronger physically, what the hell is having the physique of a magical beast?!'' He complained inside. Unfortunately, since Klaus had somewhat apologized, he couldn''t beat him up. ''I''ll think of a way to get back at him.'' "Do you think this is like a variant of water?" Klaus asked. "I heard the pressure at the bottom of the ocean is unbearable for most. This might be something like that." Alice said. Grey nodded, he had also read about this. If this was true, then it was a mystery as to how this water was flowing on the surface. One thing about this river was that they didn''t know how deep it was. If the surface is already this heavy, how heavy would it be if they go deeper? Klaus moved closer to the water, since he was a Water Elementalist, he had a close connection with water. Compared to Grey who had multiple elements, his connection with the water element was stronger. He stared at it for some time before sitting down cross-legged close to the river, closing his eyes. His strange behavior surprised the group, but they didn''t disturb him. Grey knew what Klaus was attempting to do, and he couldn''t help but think of the possibility of having something like this in your arsenal. It would be the end of all defenses. He sat down cross-legged a few meters away from Klaus and closed his eyes as well. Klaus was already attempting it, so why not. Alice and Reynolds looked at each other at a loss, Void was laying on Grey''s head, sound asleep. The duo was forced to sit on the side and cultivate as well. Time went by and the day became night. The usual foggy forest was crystal clear at the night. The sounds of beasts were coming from all sides, but Grey and Klaus still had their eyes shut. Alice and Reynolds were already on full alert, prepared to attack. They couldn''t leave the area where the river was located due to the fear of getting lost, but they could ensure that no one got close to the duo training. During that night, four magical beasts attacked. The one that was the most difficult to deal with was a Death Owl. It''s called this because it had what looked like a skull on its back. It also mainly uses the darkness element for attacks. Silent hunters were the most difficult to deal with, especially those that were coming from the sky. It might only be in the Early stages of the Fifth Rank, but it''s a bird, so it naturally could fly. It pestered the duo longer than any of the other beasts they battled. After almost one hour, it left, but its prolonged absence sent the duo into full alertness, they felt maybe it was biding its time. It was only after another hour passed did they finally calm down, knowing it was gone. By dawn, Grey and Klaus still had their eyes closed, there weren''t even any signs of them opening their eyes, however, there''s a change in Klaus'' situation. Around him, there were faint water elemental particles. They could tell this was a sign of progress in whatever he was gaining an understanding of. Time went on and the day turned to night again. Void woke up this time, he went into Grey''s storage ring to bring out the roasted meat that was kept there. He ate it with Alice and Reynolds and helped them fend off the beasts that attacked. The same Death Owl came again, unfortunately for it, Void was around, and unlike the other beasts that managed to escape, it was caught. Reynolds told Void to make sure he caught it alive, he still felt irritated by the previous night they didn''t rest peacefully because of this owl. On seeing the grin on Reynolds'' face as he approached it, the owl struggled, unfortunately, it can''t really escape from Void''s clutches. Reynolds didn''t kill it, but he continued speaking of how they would eat it after it was dead. The owl naturally understood human language, so hearing this, it was shaking from fear. Chapter 664 - Celebratory Owl Soup Chapter 664 - Celebratory Owl Soup In the blink of an eye, five days went by in a flash. Grey and Klaus were still seated at the side of the small river. Initially, Klaus was the first one to have a reaction while they were both trying to comprehend the mystery behind the heavy water, but due to Grey not being a noob to things like this, he quickly caught up. Nevertheless, Klaus was still the one with the most elemental particles around him. Within a one-meter radius, everything around him felt extremely heavy. Klaus'' comprehensive ability was no joke, in a matter of five days, he had gotten a good chunk of what was needed. He could even exit cultivation now, but he wanted to ensure he got the best out of it. Grey had never been one with the best comprehensive ability, but his persistence and determination have always been his helping hand. In these five days, he''s gotten a lot from it. If things continued in this fashion, he was sure that he would be able to create water that even a drop would be heavier than an elephant. Five more days went by, and finally, there was a large commotion on Klaus'' end. Water moved around him, and one could feel like elephants were stampeding on the ground from the small particles that were touching the ground. Grey was forced to exit his cultivation when he felt this. Looking at Klaus, he smiled before retreating from the area. Alice and Reynolds walked up to him but didn''t ask any questions. A few minutes went by before the commotion died down, Klaus whose eyes had been shut all this while finally opened it. A glint flashed through, and he sucked in a deep breath. "How long have I been cultivating?" He asked the others, unsure of the time he used. Actually, he felt he hadn''t been there for more than three days. "Ten days." Alice and Reynolds replied simultaneously. "Ten?" Grey and Klaus were a little taken aback. Grey felt they must''ve been cultivating for at most five days, he didn''t think it was double that figure. He looked at Klaus and couldn''t help but shake his head. Klaus'' luck could be said to be the best in the group. He almost always finds a treasure which makes his cultivation advance faster than the others. After he gained enlightenment on this water, Klaus broke through to the Seventh stage of the Overlord Plane. Of the group, he was the only one who had gotten to the Late stages of the Overlord Plane, with Grey not too far behind. Alice just broke through to the Fourth stage, so she still had a lot of catching up to do. Reynolds was the only one in the Early stages of the Overlord Plane, however, if his Elemental Warrior is brought into the picture, then it was a completely different story. "You''ve broken through again." Grey said with a smile. "Yeah, just a small reward compared to the real gain." Klaus said with a smile before a ball of water formed above his hand. The bluish ball of water above Klaus'' hand was the same as the small river flowing on the ground, however, his own was weaker in comparison to that one. At this stage, it couldn''t even be said to be twenty percent as powerful as the river, but it was a powerful ability to have, and over time, the strength will naturally improve. Just as Klaus was about to show off, he saw Grey opening his palm with a smile on his face, his expression was one of incredulity when he realized Grey made the same waterball as him. Only, slightly weaker. It was only now he recalled Grey had the water element as well, and just like him, he tried seeking enlightenment from the river. Although in the end he was the biggest winner, the fact that Grey managed to do this as well showed how powerful his comprehension ability was. There are Water Elementalists that might be Elemental Sovereigns, yet it does not guarantee that they will be able to understand the secret of this river. Luck and fate played a key role in this. Grey''s situation was his monstrous abilities. The orb in his body might play a part in him getting the water element, but comprehending this was his personal achievement. "When I thought I could finally show off." Klaus sighed in dejection. "Don''t feel too sad." Reynolds consoled him. "I''m not, he''s just too monstrous." Klaus shook his head. Grey smiled, flashing his shiny teeth before playfully hitting Klaus'' on his shoulder. "Oh Grey, I caught us a celebratory food." Reynolds suddenly remembered the Death Owl and brought it out. The poor thing had been frightened almost to death. Reynolds'' words had been taunting it since it was caught. The second it appeared, it saw two people staring at it savagely and it panicked. "Haha, let it go, I still have some meat left in my¡­" Grey paused when he was unable to see any of the leftover meat he kept. "About that, Void brought it out and we ate it." Reynolds said, a bit embarrassed by the situation. "If that''s the case, owl it is." Grey couldn''t nag them for meat, especially when there''s free meat staring at him. The Death Owl''s emotions went from sadness to delight, and then to despair. When it first heard Grey say they should let it go, it almost couldn''t contain its joy, but that joy soon came crashing down when he heard what Grey said. It couldn''t help but look at Void spitefully. This cat was the one who caught it, and now, because of this very cat once again, it was about to meet a cruel end. The worst thing was knowing after its death, it would become food for these humans and one cat. Unfortunately, it couldn''t speak out, or else it would protest against the decision. Before long, a fire was set up and a large pot was well-positioned in it. The owl was already killed and cut into small pieces, Grey could be seen adding the final ingredients to complete the soup he was making. Chapter 665 - Lend Me One! Chapter 665 - Lend Me One! "This is nice. We should open an Inn." Klaus said while gulping down the rest of his soup. "Oh really, who''s going to be there?" Grey scoffed. "You of course. Who else can cook among us?" Klaus asked. "Well, I can." Alice raised her hand. "Yes, but we''re talking about being on Grey''s level, or at least close to it." Klaus'' reply was like cold water, Alice wanted to refute, but she couldn''t. Yes, she could cook, better than the boys. But being on Grey''s level was something else, even being close to it meant that you must be a great cook. Grey was just that good of a cook. Alice pouted but looked away. "Bud, come on, what do you say?" Klaus asked. "I''ll be too busy training. After I have no one who can defeat me, maybe then I''ll open an Inn." Grey replied. "Alright, remember to tell me, I''ll be your manager." Klaus didn''t doubt Grey''s words, he was that confident in his friend''s ability. But the truth was, who wouldn''t? For someone who can not only comprehend new elements but also improve their grade, there was no way he wouldn''t get to the top someday. "And I''ll be your accountant. I''ll be in charge of anything concerning money." Reynolds raised his hand to join in on the plan. "I''ll be the one to test all the foods to ensure they''re safe." Void said. Alice laughed when she heard their replies before she said, "I''ll be the owner of the Inn." The others froze, before bursting out laughing. Of course they knew they were only joking. If Grey truly did open an Inn later in the future, then he would be the one to employ people. They would be too busy to cater for an Inn. "We should get going." Grey suggested after they finished laughing. The others nodded. They''ve been here for ten days now and it was time for them to leave. Since coming to the Aurora Continent, surprisingly, they haven''t been able to go anywhere because of this. ''I still have a lot to do before getting to the Seventh stage. The higher my cultivation, the harder it is to improve. I think I''ll need to focus on the light element for now. Luckily, I saw Teacher using it during the battle. But that wouldn''t be enough.'' Grey was deep in thoughts as they followed the Marsh Rat out of the forest. On the way, he suddenly recalled something. "Klaus, can you lend me one of the talismans Teacher gave you?" Grey turned to Klaus. "Uncle''s talismans, sure." Klaus took out one of the talismans and gave it to Grey. Grey took it and sent his spiritual senses into it, sensing the raging fire inside, he retracted his senses and gave it back to Klaus, "One that boosts your speed." "Oh, okay." Klaus said before taking out another talisman. Grey took it and sent his spiritual senses inside. The second his spiritual senses entered, he was blinded by a white light. ''Yes, this should help.'' He said to himself. Watching his Teacher using the light element alone wouldn''t be able to help him out with his comprehension of the light element, coming in close contact frequently with it will help. This talisman was all he needed. It was just like in the case of the darkness and space elements, he came in frequent contact with them thanks to Void, which accelerated the comprehension process. While they were going out of the forest, he focused mainly on the light element. If he could comprehend it, added with the small gains he made from getting enlightenment from the river, even if he doesn''t break through to the Seventh stage like Klaus, he wouldn''t be far from it. However, unlike the water element, he was starting from scratch. The chances of him breaking through from normal cultivation was way higher than breaking through after comprehending the light element. Even with the talisman, it would be difficult. The light element was a tad rarer than the darkness element, so comprehending it was naturally harder than the other. They walked for almost two hours before they finally left the forest. When Reynolds saw that they were out of the forest, he couldn''t help but heave a sigh of relief, "We''re finally out of that hellish place. The city should be straight ahead right?" Grey nodded before staring at the Marsh Rat. Honestly, he almost didn''t want to let it go, but in the end, he had a deal with the boar so he naturally let it go. Besides, he already placed an array on the other side, so he could go whenever he wanted to. Before the group left, he also created a teleportation array on this side of the forest as well. "If only we can stay here, then we''ll make a fortune." Klaus said when Grey was making the teleportation array. This was no joke, all they needed to do was charge lesser than the boar, and since theirs was quicker, they would attract all the customers, sending the boar out of business. "We can''t, this place is too local for us. I plan to either join the biggest Faction here, or we head to the Middle Continent, that place has the strongest powers." Grey said. "I know, I just thought we''d make quick money here. It wouldn''t be bad sending an underling here later in the future though." Klaus replied. Grey nodded before they continued their journey. He recalled something before saying to the others, "Oh, I forgot to tell you guys. There are Factions that focus only on one element. Most of the ones I''ve seen do that, but I don''t know if that''s how all the Factions are." When he saw their reactions, he added, "There are Dual Elementalists in the Factions, so we shouldn''t really have a problem." By the time he got to this point, he froze before looking at Klaus. Of the four, only Klaus didn''t have the lightning element which meant there was no certainty that he would be able to join the same Faction as the others. Chapter 666 - Dixon Region Chapter 666 - Dixon Region "I''ll join a separate Faction then. If you''re in the same Faction as me, you''ll steal all the glory." Klaus said calmly. He''s not being envious or greedy, but there''s almost no way people will take note of him if there''s a freak like Grey around. Alice and Reynolds looked at each other and nodded in agreement. "We''ll all join separate Factions. This will be better for our growth." Alice said. Seeing Grey''s reaction, she added, "If we''re together, we''ll rely too much on each other, well, mostly on you which isn''t good for us." Grey thought about what they said and nodded. They were right about that, although they didn''t really show it, but when they were together, since he was the strongest, they naturally relied on his and Void''s strength. This is one of the reasons they could get into a fight without any fears. "Alright. We''ll join different Factions. But we should at least try out the geniuses'' rankings before joining. This will not only make a name for us, but we''ll get the needed status before joining any Faction since we wouldn''t be nobodies." Grey suggested. The others nodded. They soon got to the city while speaking. It was a relatively small town, so there wasn''t really anything that caught their attention. They strolled around the market, but there was nothing of interest. After getting a map, they decided to head to the main city of the current Region they were in. There are over twenty Regions in the Western Continent, and only five of them were of a high level. The regions could basically be divided into three; low, mid, and high. Grey visited Mid and High leveled Regions when he was in the Eastern Continent, so he didn''t even take a glance at the low leveled Regions on the map of the Western Region he got. According to the map, they were in a low leveled Region. The others felt it wouldn''t be bad to test out the strength of the geniuses on the same Plane and stage. They traveled for almost a week before getting to where the first person in the Early stages of the Overlord Plane geniuses rankings was located. Reynolds was the only one still in the Early stages of the Overlord Plane, so he was the one who challenged the person. He won with so much ease that the others gave up on the thought of even trying to fight those in their stages. First of all, the person in the Early stages of the Overlord Plane was well over twenty-five. This discovery stunned Grey when he thought of those in other regions. Especially when he recalled the youth who attacked him with a single attack he couldn''t help but shake his head. He guessed the youth should be at the Peak of the Overlord Plane at that time. If his guess was true, then the youth must''ve broken through to the Sage Plane a long time ago. He couldn''t help but grit his teeth. He hated being stepped on by others, there was no way he would let it go. People might call him vengeful, but he didn''t care about it. As long as he got back at the person who embarrassed him. The group decided to head over to at least a mid-level Region before they would start challenging those on the geniuses rankings. One month went by in the flash of an eye, the group was still traveling, but they''ve all made significant progress. Although none of them had broken through to the next stage yet, they had honed their skills from multiple battles and sparring against each other. The heavy water Klaus could create now was superior when compared to what he made the first time. It would take a while before he could become an expert on it, but for now, he could use it to surprise others. In a battle, a single change can alter the previous flow of the battle. If Klaus'' heavy water was to be splashed on someone, the result might be terrifying. The person will not die, but the shift in weight will put them off balance. Grey had been practicing that, as well as the gravitational force the old man from the Azure Empire used to attack the Principal when they were fighting. At the time he saw it, it piqued his interest and he naturally wanted to learn it. There''s also the light element he was trying to comprehend from the talisman. He got so much on right now that, unlike the others, he couldn''t afford to give himself any spare time. His chance of revenge was only less than two years away. There''s no way he could allow himself to be disgraced again. On seeing Grey pushing himself so much, the others were sort of motivated by him and followed suit. It didn''t take long and they got to the first mid-level Region, Dixon Region. "Finally, we''ll get a true challenge." Alice was itching for a fight. Since she came to the Aurora Continent, she hadn''t fought against a genius yet. They encountered some unfortunate bandits, but they couldn''t be compared to young geniuses. "Don''t get your hopes up, you might be disappointed." Grey said calmly as they headed into the first city on their list. This city was called Skyland City. "To be honest, I''ll be disappointed if this City isn''t flying." Klaus said when he heard the name of the city. "Me too." Reynolds said. The duo almost always agree on the same thing, so the others weren''t surprised when they heard this. Klaus and Reynolds started bantering each other as the group walked around. Grey would be dragged in sometimes and he usually suffers from the duo''s hand. He wasn''t as sharp-tongued as them, so he always lost. Alice and Void watched from the side, laughing at Grey''s plight. On the way, the plaque Chris made an array on blinked twice. Grey always keeps it close to him so he will be notified as soon as his Teacher wants something. This wasn''t the first time since they left the Azure Continent. His Teacher requests for food at least once a week. Grey had been doing a lot of cooking lately because of the group. He would keep some so whenever his Teacher wanted something, he could send him one. Chapter 667 - Dixon Region’s Annual Geniuses’ Rankings Chapter 667 - Dixon Region''s Annual Geniuses'' Rankings "A shame." Klaus stood in front of a large city gate as he stared at the city. "Huh?" Grey and Alice were taken aback by his comment. They hadn''t even gotten into the city yet, but they could feel its vibrant aura already. Why would Klaus suddenly say ''A shame''? "It''s on the ground, like every other city." Klaus pointed at the name of the city boldly written above the city gate. "Honestly? You really thought it would''ve been floating in the air?" Grey looked at Klaus oddly. "Not exactly, but I was a little hopeful. This is a new place with powerful people, so why can''t they just make a floating city?" Klaus replied calmly. The group walked into the city, and they were stunned by the number of people moving around. It was already past noon. "Is this place usually this active?" Reynolds asked. "This is my first time here, but I don''t think it should. The other cities I''ve been to are not like this. Maybe something important is taking place." Grey surmised. Klaus stopped a youth walking by and asked if anything was going on. They were surprised when they found out that the annual geniuses'' rankings was taking place today. "Is it over?" Grey asked hurriedly. "Not yet, but it will be soon. They''ve already finished the battles for those in the Origin Plane and the Early stages Overlord Plane rankings have been decided already, likewise the Mid stages. All that''s left is the Late stages rankings." The youth replied. Grey thanked the youth and prepared to leave, however, Alice held onto them before asking the youth nicely, "Where''s it taking place?" The youth told them the direction of the place and they left. Grey and the others felt it was held in the arena, which was normal, but surprisingly, it wasn''t. Other than that arena, there was a special place for fighting competitions in Skyland City. When the group got there, their mouths opened wide in awe. Even Grey who rarely had reactions to things was blown away by what he was seeing. "It surely deserves the name, Skyland City." He remarked while looking at the floating land in front of them. Below the land was nothing but water. They couldn''t help but wonder how this place was formed. "I''m impressed." Klaus said with a nod. Reynolds and Alice nodded. While they were marveling at the view, three figures were rushing behind them. "Get out of the way, I''m late." The voice said hurriedly. Klaus turned around to get a view of the person who just spoke and his eyes trailed longer on the figure in the middle. It was a young lady who looked to be around eighteen years old. With an almost porcelain-like skin, the sun could almost be said to be radiating off her skin. Her face was a sight to behold, with an hourglass figure and long black hair, she looked like an angel who fell from the sky. Grey looked at the young lady as well, but his gaze didn''t last long on her body, his focus was on the old man standing by her side. He couldn''t sense anything from him, and judging from how he was standing beside the young lady, he knew he was protecting her. ''The daughter of a powerful family.'' He thought to himself before moving to the side. Reynolds and Alice also moved to the side, leaving Klaus alone who seemed to be frozen. "Move." The young lady said, slightly irritated by Klaus blocking her path. Klaus came back to his senses soon enough, and replied slightly embarrassed, "Oh, sorry. I blanked out for a moment." He moved to the side and allowed the group to pass. When the group got to the edge of the water, what looked like a stairway appeared and they ascended it to the floating land. "That''s the way to go up, huh? How innovative." Grey said before tapping Klaus on the shoulder. He was still too busy looking at the back view of the young lady that he almost forgot about his friends. "We should go too. We''re already late." Grey smiled before ascending the stairs as well. Each stair felt like they were made of thin ice. They could see through it. Klaus was lost in thoughts as they ascended the stairs. They soon got to the peak and the view before them was massive. A large crowd was gathered, and people could be seen fighting on different platforms. The place was like an open field, but there were buildings around, indicating someone was staying there. "I want something like this." Klaus said. The group approached the platforms, staring at the ongoing battles. Those on each platform were in the Late stages of the Overlord Plane, and all of them were between twenty to twenty-five. Klaus was the only one among the group that was in the Late stage of the Overlord Plane, but it didn''t mean that he was the only one with the strength of someone in the Late stages of the Overlord Plane. About three platforms were empty, but Grey told them to wait and see how things were going. Klaus took them to sit in one of the places, surprisingly, the young lady who passed them not too long ago was sitting in this same area, not too far away from them. "Don''t do anything, please." Grey pleaded with Klaus when he saw his gaze. This wasn''t the Azure Continent, they had to be extra careful here. Naturally, he could speak with the young lady if he wanted to, but he had to make sure he didn''t offend her and cause trouble for the group. If they were in the Southern Continent, Grey could use the influence of the O''Brien family to save them, but here, he had nothing. "Relax, I''m not that stupid." Klaus said coolly. "I trust you." Grey focused on the battles once again. Ten people were currently battling, and all of them were around the Seventh and Ninth stage of the Overlord Plane. Any of them in the Seventh stage could beat any of the Peak Overlord Plane Elementalists from the Azure Continent. The difference in attack power was massive. Chapter 668 - Klaus Taking The Stage Chapter 668 - Klaus Taking The Stage This was the first time Alice and the others were seeing geniuses from the Aurora Continent fight, well, real geniuses that is. From the small battles they were watching, they knew these guys were more powerful than the first one Reynolds fought against. They were all pumped up, thinking about how they would fare against these geniuses. In the Azure Continent, they could easily fight across stages. Here, they hoped to replicate the same thing. "Can we still challenge those in the same stages as us?" Alice asked. "I think so, but it''ll be after the battle for those in the Late stages is complete." Grey answered. He didn''t really know much about these things, but since they could challenge whoever was in the rankings, he was sure they might be able to challenge them here if the people were present. These people would definitely want to watch more battles anyway. "It''s a shame we were late." Reynolds shook his head. Grey smiled while looking at the platforms. He didn''t think each Region had a different time for their annual geniuses'' rankings, but thinking about it now, he realized there was no way all the Regions will host their regional rankings at the same time. Presently, this was currently the stage where they challenged those in the top fifty. "Who would you be challenging?" Grey asked curiously. "This is my first time fighting against them, I don''t want to overdo it. I''ll challenge the person ranked forty-fifth." Klaus said calmly. "Alright, there should be some people in the Mid stages that are in these rankings, so you might encounter some." Grey said. "What about you?" Klaus asked. "I''m going for the thirtieth person. I can naturally go higher, but I don''t want too much attention. I''ll slowly fight into the top twenty then stop there. There''s a reward for those in the top twenty." Grey said. "Void, don''t you want to try?" Reynolds asked. "I''ll defeat all of them with nothing but a shake of my paws, there''s no use trying." Void stated proudly. His voice was small, but those sitting around the group heard him clearly. The funny part was that they didn''t think that the cat was the one who spoke, rather, they felt it was the words of one of them. Some people scoffed at them, irritated by their baseless boasting. The young lady the group encountered on the way here also turned to look behind her to see the cause of the small disturbance in the area. She saw Klaus and Grey talking with calm expressions before turning around. Ten minutes later. The battles on the platform ended, and it was time for others to step forward and challenge whoever they wanted. "I''ll be going first." Klaus stood up before jumping toward the stage. He wasn''t the only one who was moving toward the stage. More people were headed towards the platforms, and surprisingly, the particular platform he picked had three people vying to get on it. All still mid-air, they attacked. Whoever manages to step foot on the platform first wins. This was something they all knew. They also knew that they could easily retreat and wait for the next battles, but they''ve already stepped forward, and going back now without even testing the strength of the other party was a show of weakness. Well, so they thought. The duo sent attacks at Klaus simultaneously. Klaus didn''t panic, on seeing the attacks, he wrapped himself with water, shielding himself from every attack coming his way. The attack delayed him, giving the other two the edge. However, just as they were about to set foot on the platform, they sensed a deadly attack coming their way. It was a thin ice arrow. The arrows were only around ten inches, but the duo could sense a life-threatening aura from them. Without even thinking, they focused their entire being on it. Klaus scoffed before gently landing on the platform with a smile. ''Heh, even Grey couldn''t block it, you two think you can?'' He thought internally. His ice ability was currently on another level. Grey had a powerful defensive element, and with the increase in his strength, he had been able to create a powerful earth that would take a few attacks before it was penetrated, but a single one of Klaus'' attacks easily sneaked through. The duo stared at the ice thin arrows that were in front of their necks, a few more inches and it would penetrate their necks. Cold sweat ran down their backs. Even with their rushed defenses, these arrows passed through so easily. Their small bout attracted the attention of the people around. The fact that only Klaus managed to defeat the duo and step on the platform after being attacked by both showed his strength. Just like him, the duo were still in the Seventh stage. This was not a life or death battle, but he had already shown he was stronger. "Thank you for letting me fight first." Klaus said with a soft smile before turning around. Grey has already told him the usual process taken, and even without him, he could learn from those on the other platforms. Those on the other platforms challenged their opponents, with one challenging the person ranked fiftieth. ''I should''ve challenged that person first.'' Klaus thought jokingly. When the man in charge of the platform he was on asked who he was challenging, he told him his opponent. "I''m sorry, but that person just went through a battle and would need at least a thirty minutes break before fighting again." The man said. "Oh, then whoever is forty then." Klaus said. The man nodded before turning around. He called out for the person ranked fortieth, and a young man walked out from the crowd, stepping onto the platform. "A battle of Water Elementalists, who do you think would win?" A conversation broke out in the stands when they saw this young man. Klaus had showcased a bit of his power, so everyone knew he was a Water Elementalist or at least has the water element. This young man was a Water Elementalist as well. "We''ll find out soon enough." Chapter 669 - First Victory! Chapter 669 - First Victory! "Hello." Klaus waved at the young man as he stepped onto the platform. The young man stared at Klaus calmly, he was in the Eighth stage of the Overlord Plane and felt Klaus wasn''t his opponent. Of course he knew not to underestimate his opponent, but as Elementalists grew, the ability to cross stages and battle was lower. He too felt like he could fight against someone in a higher stage, after all, he was in the geniuses'' rankings so he had the right to be confident. "Hey." The young man nodded at Klaus after studying his opponent carefully. The man in charge asked if both participants were ready, and when he got confirmation from them, he gave them the go-ahead to start the battle. The water element wasn''t the most explosive, so a fight between two Water Elementalists wouldn''t be as flashy as those of Lightning and Fire Elementalists. This didn''t take away its strength though. All elements had their advantages, so everyone knew not to play down the water element. Klaus was the first to attack. Sending out a stream of water in the direction of his opponent. The young man didn''t panic, with a slow wave of his hand, a large water body appeared in front of him, blocking the water coming his way. After he blocked it, he attacked Klaus as well, sending out three water snakes at him. All three moved independently, attacking Klaus from different angles. Klaus was even calmer than him, with a smile, he was covered with a water dome that was able to perfectly block all the attacks of his opponent. This was only them testing out each other''s strengths. The young man continued his offensive, attacking from all angles. The water element was the most flexible element, classy yet destructive. Klaus continued his defensive stance, taking from one attack to another. The young man was by no means weak, so Klaus was fully focused on the battle, making sure he didn''t give his opponent any chance to attack him. At the place he was standing, he had sealed the ground with ice, this way, no attack could come from below him. The battle slowly built up pace with powerful attacks slowly coming forth. Klaus didn''t stay on the defensive, attacking whenever he could. However, it was easy to see that his opponent was slightly stronger than him in terms of elemental power. The strength of his attacks was more powerful than that of Klaus. "His opponent isn''t weak." Alice stated while watching the fight. "I know, but he should win." Grey said confidently. If this wasn''t a competition, Klaus could''ve easily displaced the mindset of his opponent with his words, but here, although it wasn''t against the rules, it would attract way too many enemies. If they had a strong background to rely on, then they would''ve been fine, but now, they had to tread carefully. "He still hasn''t used his ice, that would be the deciding factor in this battle." Reynolds said. "There''s still a second option for him." Grey looked at the battle with a blank expression. The others recalled the ability Klaus and Grey comprehended when they were crossing that forest. During the few times they sparred, defending against the heavy water was extremely hard. Its weight made it hard to block. And Klaus was an ingenious individual who sought out the best time to use it. If used immediately, it would be easy for them to defend against it, but he always waited for the time they least expect it before using it. Even Grey who could still use it had a difficult time defending against it. While the trio were discussing, the battle was getting heated. Klaus and his opponent were showing their cards. When Klaus started using his ice, the young man in front of him immediately fell on the defensive which surprised the people watching. They expected since he was stronger than Klaus, he should have a higher mastery in terms of ice abilities as well, but Klaus was clearly the one on top. Bang! Bam! Klaus'' ice spears were blocked by the ice wall the young man placed in front of him. The wall cracked the moment the second spear impaled it. The young man retreated and the spear hit the place he was previously standing. While he was retreating, ice shards sprang out from the ground, rushing toward him. The young man panicked for an instant, and Klaus didn''t let the opportunity slide. He pressed on with the ice shards while sending ice spears at the young man. The young man scrambled to defend against the ice spears and the ice shards chasing after him. While this was happening, Klaus was preparing his signature move, a thin ice was sent toward the young man. Before the young man could even detect it, it was already at the place between his eyes. He froze while looking at the hovering tiny ice. If this was a life or death battle, he would''ve been dead, without even knowing how he died. With a sigh, he shook his head in dejection. "I give up." He said to the man in charge of their platform. The man announced the result of the battle to the crowd before waiting for both individuals to leave the stage. The young man nodded his head at Klaus before leaving the platform. Klaus replied to the gesture with a nod as well and stepped off the platform. The battle lasted almost ten minutes, but it ended because of a small mistake by the young man. In a case where the difference in strength between both parties wasn''t large, a mistake or a better strategy was what usually determines the winner or loser. Klaus got back to his seat, staring at the large stone in the sky that had his name placed in the fortieth place. "Interesting, such a strange item." He said while taking his seat. "How does it feel to be the person ranked fortieth in the entire Dixon Region?" Reynolds questioned. "Not good. Apparently, I can only get a reward when I get to the top twenty." Klaus shrugged. His aim for this competition was higher. Even if he couldn''t get into the top twenty, he shouldn''t be too far off. Chapter 670 - Grey’s First Battle Chapter 670 - Grey''s First Battle "I''m up next, wish me luck." Grey said as he stood up. He didn''t have his mask on since he didn''t feel the need to anymore. Klaus was handsome, so he naturally attracted the gazes of some of the young ladies in the stands. When they saw the stunningly handsome Grey sitting next to him, they almost wanted to rush towards them. Seeing Grey stand up, they felt excited for some reason, as if they could already see him win against whoever he was fighting against. Grey had a blank expression, walking towards the platform with steady steps. He didn''t jump onto the platform as others did. While he was walking, there was a strange rhythm with the way he walked that made it seem as if he wasn''t moving, whereas, he covered a couple of meters with a single step. It was strange yet appalling. He got to the platform he picked, and unlike Klaus, he didn''t have any opponent vying for the same platform. Standing on the platform, he looked at the man in charge of the platform. "The person ranked thirtieth." Grey stated calmly. The man nodded before calling out for the person ranked thirtieth. The person was a young lady who was in the Seventh stage of the Overlord Plane. Although she was in the Seventh stage doesn''t mean she was weak. One has to remember that the person Klaus fought was in the Eighth stage and he ranked fortieth, this meant this young lady was stronger than he was while being a stage lower. Grey nodded at his opponent before preparing himself for battle. The young lady nodded back as well. The man asked if both participants were ready and after getting confirmation, he announced the start of the battle. Grey didn''t immediately attack, waiting for his opponent to make the first move. The young lady didn''t stand on ceremony, since Grey wanted her to attack first, she didn''t hold back. Boom! Raging flames exploded out, shooting in Grey''s direction. Grey blocked the attack in a cool and collected manner. With a wave of his hand, an earth wall rose in front of him, easily blocking the attack. The earth wall stood firm after the attack, but more attacks followed suit and the wall soon broke down. Grey still had the same expression as before, blocking all the attacks coming his way. Just when people were about to complain that all he did was defend, he suddenly attacked. With a stamp of his feet, he bolted straight at his opponent. Covered entirely in red lightning, he was like a fast red light. His sudden change took his opponent by surprise, but the young lady quickly adjusted herself before creating a sea of flames around her to block the incoming Grey. Grey''s figure shot past the flames but was met by a powerful fire attack. Boom! His figure shook twice after blocking the attack before he continued his charge. Swoosh! Buzz! Bang! He attacked ruthlessly and ferociously. The young lady blocked his first attack, but small bits of lightning touched her hands, making them go numb. Grey brought out a sword from his storage ring, with its help, he continued his assault, sending out lightning strikes. The young lady blocked the attacks before attacking as well. Since Grey''s lightning was red, it made red light dots dance around the entire platform. The young lady didn''t stand back and let Grey assault her without moving. She also fought back valiantly. However, only Grey and his friends knew he wasn''t even putting much of an effort. If he were to use his fire element which had the highest mastery, his attack power would go up by a notch, added to his space element, he could defeat this young lady in a minute or two. The battle continued for almost five minutes and Grey''s momentum continued to rise the second he started attacking. The young lady found it hard to keep up with his relentless attacks, blocking what she could. She tried to attack as well, but Grey effortlessly dodged most of her attacks that she almost gave up hope. Losing this easily wasn''t something she wanted hence she fought on, but after five minutes, she was starting to feel numb all over her body. The bits of lightning that had touched her were by no means small, and those who were observant could tell that Grey was purposely leaving behind tiny lightning across the stage so they could affect his opponent. She managed to hang on for two more minutes before she gave up. At this moment, she could barely stand, and people could see her visibly shaking from the electrocution of the lightning. There were slight burn marks on her body from some attacks she, unfortunately, took after being unable to dodge or block them. Grey was very lenient with his attacks even though he was attacking aggressively. The young lady left the platform after admitting defeat. Grey did the same, his expression still the same, devoid of any emotions. Initially, some people felt he was proud, but seeing that even when he sat down with his friends he still had the same expression, they knew that was how he was. His blank expression didn''t take away the beauty of his face though. "Why did you take so long?" Alice asked. "It''s not nice to show all your cards this early, don''t you think?" Grey replied with a question of his own. "You''re right." Alice nodded before staring at the other platforms where battles were still taking place. Just like Klaus'' case, the stone in the sky appeared again and Grey''s name was placed in the thirtieth position. Klaus'' name was pushed down to the forty-first place which irked him. "What the hell?" He complained when he noticed it. "Oh, once a new name is on the rankings, it pushes those below it down by one." Grey explained to Klaus. "So after all my hard work, someone can just push me down by getting a better ranking and not being on the rankings before?" Klaus didn''t like how the rankings worked. "Well, yeah. You don''t expect them to be lower than you, right? Besides, you pushed the person ranked fiftieth out of the top fifty when you entered as well." Grey said. Klaus scratched his head before focusing on the battles again. Chapter 671 - You Beat People Up Like A Barbarian Chapter 671 - You Beat People Up Like A Barbarian The ongoing battles on the platform continued for a while before a new set of fighters stepped onto the platform. Someone challenged the person ranked first on the rankings, and surprisingly, the challenger was only in the Seventh stage of the Overlord Plane. This made people quite excited as they wanted to see the first person''s strength. A figure stood up from the crowd and calmly walked towards the platform. The figure was a young man with white hair. Everyone turned to look at the youth as he gently stepped onto the stage. He looked to be around twenty-two years or so but was already at the Peak of the Overlord Plane. Grey wasn''t surprised that the person at the top was at the Peak of the Overlord Plane. It was naturally even. If he wasn''t challenged by someone from one of those high leveled Regions, then he should have very few opponents in this Region, and all of them must be in the same stage as he was. Alice shook her head when he recalled the strength of those in the Azure Continent. Her family which was regarded as a big family in the entire Qilin Empire at that time only had about three Peak Overlord Plane Elementalists or so, yet they were treated so highly. Here, any youth below twenty-five could trounce her family''s strongest individuals by themself. It was depressing just thinking of it. The battle started quickly and ended quickly as well. The young man ranked first was a Light Elementalist, fast and dangerous. It didn''t take him long for him to dispatch his opponent. What was worth taking note of was that even though he knew his opponent was weaker, he didn''t go easy on him, attacking with his full strength from the get-go. "What are your chances of defeating him?" Reynolds asked Grey curiously. "In my current state? Zero. But all-out, I think one thousand." Grey replied. He wasn''t bragging or anything, but if he enters the Fusion State and boosts his strength to the Peak of the Overlord Plane, he was a hundred percent confident in defeating anyone, even those from high leveled Regions. "Will you challenge him?" Alice asked. "Nope. I can''t carelessly show my hand here." Grey said. They weren''t trying to join any Faction here, so there was no use in showing his full strength. All he could do was show part of it. When they''ve gone to a better Region, he would think of going all out then. The appeal of joining a Faction that could protect him was something that he found extremely attractive. The battles continued and others challenged people in the top twenty. While the group was watching, the young lady who Klaus and the others encountered when coming here stepped forward, her target was none other than the young man ranked first. She was in the Ninth stage of the Overlord Plane, so she definitely had a change against him. The young man walked into the stage as calmly as ever, and after getting the go-ahead from both participants, the man in charge of that platform called for the start of the battle. When the fight started, it was explosive. First of all, the young man was a Light Elementalist, while the first element the young lady showed was the space element, however, she used the fire element soon after. The battle didn''t go on for long before she displayed a third and fourth element. This came as a surprise to many. Klaus and the others had never met anyone with more than three elements before other than Grey, so seeing this young lady''s display, they were amazed. While the others were focused on the young lady, Grey''s attention however has never left the body of the young man. This was the only element he knew he was missing, he had already started trying to comprehend it, so seeing it physically would mean a whole lot. ''I should''ve challenged him, that would''ve given me a better chance in experiencing the light element.'' He thought while putting his full attention on him. Luckily, the battle didn''t end quickly like the first one the young man had. Since the young lady was strong, not in any way weaker than the young man, the battle lasted for a while. Swoosh! Boom! Bang! The battle had lasted for over fifteen minutes with no clear winner yet. If not for the young man being a Light Elementalist, he would''ve lost a long time ago to the young lady''s endless assault. But his speed gave him an edge when it came to dodging those attacks. "Wow, she''s aggressive, almost on Alice''s level of aggressiveness." Klaus commented. "What do you mean?" Alice raised a brow. "No offense, but you beat people up like a barbarian." Klaus moved from his seat before he made this remark. He knew Alice might attack him once he was done speaking. Reynolds and Grey stifled a laugh when they heard this, but they couldn''t refute it since it was true. Alice did beat people up like a savage, and this was them not being able to find a word stronger than this. Even when sparring, she didn''t go easy on them. Grey was the one who had it better generally because he was not only stronger but had the space element to help him out of difficult positions. Klaus and Reynolds were the two who suffered the most, especially Klaus, because of his mouth. Alice smiled sweetly at him, and Klaus couldn''t help but shiver. He concluded for the next month or two, he would refrain from sparring with her. If she managed to get her hands on him, he was toast, literally! Grey and Reynolds ceased their laughter when they saw this and focused on the battle once again. No one wanted to be on her bad side. The most frustrating thing was that they couldn''t really beat her up. They had no qualms with beating up ladies that were enemies, but once the lady was a friend of theirs, then it was out of the picture. Chapter 672 - Getting A Higher Rank Chapter 672 - Getting A Higher Rank The battle between the young lady and the young man continued for another ten minutes before a winner was finally decided. It was unsurprisingly the young lady. Most people expected after she showed her four elements. Defeating a Space Elementalist on the same level was something that was almost impossible to do, much less when said Space Elementalist has three more elements in their arsenal. With the young lady''s victory, she cemented herself as the number one figure in the Dixon Region''s Overlord Plane Elementalists. The young lady was already in the Ninth stage of the Overlord Plane, so it was only a matter of time before she broke through to the Sage Plane. For someone like her, it wasn''t a matter of if she could, but when. She walked off the platform calmly before going back to her seat. "Can we leave now?" She asked the middle-aged man accompanying her. "You''ll have to wait to see if there are any people who want to challenge you." The middle-aged man explained gently. "Alright." The young lady nodded before sitting peacefully. Grey and his friends observed everything that happened. ''Looks like she''s not from this place.'' Grey thought to himself. He had heard of geniuses from high-level Regions coming to lower leveled Regions to test their strength. When he first came to the Aurora Continent and challenged the geniuses, they thought he was from one of those high leveled Regions due to how powerful he was even with his low Plane. After the young lady and the young man''s battle ended, the other battles in the platforms soon ended as well and it was time for others to challenge who they wanted. Grey stepped forward again, challenging the person ranked twentieth. He wanted a better rank so he could at least get a reward. Even though the reward wasn''t really something he was too interested in, it was still better than nothing. His opponent was a young lady who looked to be younger than he was, he however didn''t have too many problems with defeating her. She was a Dual Elementalist, wielding the earth and lightning element. Grey finally used his space element in the battle, not taking any chances with his opponent. The battle lasted around five minutes or so before he defeated her. When the others saw him using the space element, they knew he was someone they should take seriously. From how he fought, they knew this wasn''t his full strength. One has to know that the young lady was in the Ninth stage of the Overlord Plane while Grey was only in the Sixth stage. Crossing three stages and trouncing his opponent was even more amazing than what the young lady did. Grey walked back to his seat with his usual nonchalant expression, however, the only thing in his head was how to leave this place and start trying to see what he had gotten in the light element. Watching the fight between the young lady and young man had been beneficial to him. It was just like when he watched his Teacher fight, but unfortunately, he didn''t get to watch the battle properly. With Grey defeating his opponent, it was Klaus'' turn. He didn''t want to be the one left out, after all, Grey had already brought too much attention to them. ''He couldn''t challenge someone ranked twenty-fifth.'' He complained as he walked up the stage. The higher the rank, the stronger they are. Even though he had fought against someone in the Eighth stage, if his present opponent were to be in the Eighth stage as well, they would be stronger than his previous opponent since their rank was higher. Klaus challenged the person ranked twenty-fifth. He knew he wasn''t as powerful as Grey, but he couldn''t really be that weak when compared to these geniuses. His opponent was also a young lady, and just like Grey''s opponent, she was a Dual Elementalist wielding both the fire and water elements. When the battle started, she unleashed the fire element immediately. It was known for its explosive power, so she naturally used it instead of the water element. Klaus didn''t panic, using the water element to block the attacks coming his way. Any attack that came close to him was swallowed by the water he conjured. However, he was on the back foot almost all through the battle. His opponent was in the Eighth stage, but she was clearly stronger than the young man he fought against. Klaus was forced to stay on the defensive from when the battle started, but with his patience, he didn''t feel overwhelmed by her. After facing Grey and Alice multiple times, it was almost impossible for him to be pressured by others. Alice was aggressive while Grey was unpredictable because of the space element. Thanks to Grey, the group could fight against a Space Elementalist without too much pressure because he had somewhat assaulted them too much. Void was even worse, the first day Klaus tried sparring with Void, he almost wanted to give up on life in general. But as time went on, things became a little easier, of course they were still beaten black and blue, but it wasn''t that bad. Even Grey wasn''t an exception from Void''s hand if they sparred, so that was a consolation to the others. Unexpectedly, Alice sparred with Void frequently compared to the others. So she stood a better chance when fighting against Space Elementalists. The boys preferred fighting against Grey since he was at least a bit lenient with them. Swoosh! Bang! The young lady attacked Klaus once again, but he was unfazed by it, with a wave of his hand, he blocked it easily. "Are you only going to hide like a tortoise?" The young lady asked, a little annoyed since she was unable to break his defense. "Not necessarily, I''m testing out a new defensive skill." Klaus replied with a smile. The young lady''s expression was a little irritated by his reply. "Hmph! Fine, I''ll destroy you and your defense." The young lady said with a snort. Klaus of course didn''t care about how she felt. Chapter 673 - Getting A Higher Rank II Chapter 673 - Getting A Higher Rank II Boom! A large raging flame exploded out from the ladies direction, heading towards Klaus. Klaus had a casual expression on his face as he defended against the young lady''s attack once again. He didn''t feel embarrassed that he was defending all through. He defended patiently, waiting for the best time to counterattack. Even though he was on the defensive, it didn''t mean he wasn''t attacking. Unfortunately, the young lady was more powerful than he was, so he had to fight with his head. With his current strength, his chances of becoming one of the top twenty was not that large, but he could enter if he used his head. All that needed to happen was for Grey to move higher in rank, then he could fight freely without fear against the person ranked twentieth. The young lady soon lost patience with Klaus'' way of battle and started attacking aggressively. Seeing her way of attacking, Klaus smiled with a shake of his head. He could already see that she had lost. Even some of the old people in the place shook their heads. In this battle, Klaus won just by his wits. He might be slightly weaker than his opponent, but overall, he was the one who had the advantage because of his brain. When the opportunity presented itself before Klaus, he didn''t let it go, with a wave of his hand, he used the water element to send out what looked like a vine, holding onto the leg of the young lady and sending her airborne. When she was airborne, he started attacking with ice shards, almost ending the young lady mid-air, if not for the fact that it was only a competition, he wouldn''t have a problem with killing her since she was almost defenseless after letting down her guard. The man in charge of their battle stepped forward before declaring Klaus as the winner. The young lady looked at Klaus in annoyance, angered by the way she lost. Klaus didn''t say a word, smiling as he left the platform. When walked past the young lady who was presently ranked first and glanced at her a little longer before walking over to where the others were seated. Grey and the others congratulated him while he sat down next to them. "Bud, all you have to do now is go higher then I''ll have a chance of entering the top twenty. I still haven''t used my full strength." Klaus said to Grey the second he sat down. Grey smiled before nodding. Getting into the top ten was easy for him, even becoming number one wasn''t a problem for him. But this wasn''t the place to go all-out. After waiting for this round of battles to end, Grey stepped out once again. This time, his target was the person ranked seventh. His reason for this was so that anyone higher was challenged later on, it wouldn''t really affect him. His opponent was a young man in the Ninth stage of the Overlord Plane. Looking at the Sixth stage Overlord Plane Elementalist standing in front of him, he couldn''t help but scoff. He saw Grey''s previous battles, but he wasn''t really too impressed by him. To him, those were people he could also beat. Grey didn''t feel angry being looked down on by this young man, he was bigger than that. The young man was a Wind Elementalist, and he displayed his speed the moment the battle started. Grey didn''t feel pressured by him, using the space element to dodge most of the attacks that he used. With the help of the lightning and the space element, the young man found it extremely difficult to attack him because he was almost untouchable. Boom! Bang! The young man attacked with a large tornado, but Grey blocked with the fire element, causing a large stream of blue flames to spread in the sky. The crowd looked at the blue flames in awe. They''ve already seen him use red lightning which was a special type of the lightning element, using a special element in the space element as well made the others stunned. For one person to have one was already regarded as rare, but having two was something almost unheard of. If there were people who had two special types of elements present in the Aurora Continent, they could be counted on one hand. Bang! Buzz! Boom! Grey attacked after dodging the Wind Elementalist''s attack. The Wind Elementalist dodged the attack and countered. The battle was thrilling and the crowd couldn''t get their eyes away from it. Other than the battle to decide the first position, this was the most captivating battle yet. Grey and the young man were putting on a show for everyone to see. Grey''s colorful elements, as well as the young man''s nimbleness because of the wind element made them almost on equal footing. In terms of cultivation stage, the young man had the advantage, and when attacks were measured, his were stronger than that of Grey''s, but since Grey didn''t have a single element, it meant he could cover for it. He displayed four elements when fighting against the young man. The crowd thought they had seen something special when the young lady appeared since a Multi Elementalist with four elements was rare to see, but in a single day, they saw two. It was mind-blowing! Grey and the young man''s battle went on for over fifteen minutes with Grey slightly getting the advantage over his opponent. The crowd were kept on the edge as they saw the battle getting more intense. Grey wasn''t holding back as he attacked furiously. Although he wasn''t using all his elements, he made sure to use his elements to the best of their abilities. Boom! Bang! The battle''s intensity was getting higher and the young man was slowly starting to show frustration. Being overpowered by someone in a lower stage was infuriating. Especially given how Grey hadn''t even gotten to the Late stages of the Overlord Plane yet. Chapter 674 - He’s Different Chapter 674 - He''s Different Swoosh! Boom! An explosive attack spread out from Grey''s fire element. The young man blocked it with a wind that was circulating around him. Grey''s attack didn''t stop there, after his first attack, he sent out a bolt of lightning that crashed from above, hitting the rotating wind around the young man. The lightning was added to the wind, just like the fire before it was dissipated. The young man sent out wind blades that shot at Grey. While raising a tornado from below him to throw him off balance. The tornado took Grey by surprise, so he was lifted into the air, directly in the path of the wind blades. He didn''t panic, with a wave of his hand, he created a large fire bird that flew towards the wind blades, blocking them and moving in the direction of the young man as well. While he was still mid-air, he used the skill ''meteor descent''. Since he had used the earth element, he was able to use the skill to its fullest, combining the earth and fire element to their fullest. The young man who was busy defending against the fire bird was taken aback when he saw the meteors falling in his direction. The range of the attack was too wide, so there was no way to dodge it, either he took it head-on, or he stood there and awaited his fate. There was no way he was going with the latter, the former was his only option. He looked at the shy defiantly before charging into the sky with the aid of the wind element. A large wind blade was sent out and it cleanly cut one of the meteors into two. With that, he started blasting all the meteors, moving from one place to another. Grey looked at him with squinted eyes and his lips curved into a smile. He spread out both hands and inscriptions lit up in the sky, five inscriptions to be precise. The young man was already in a difficult spot blocking the attack from Grey''s previous attacks, when he saw the inscriptions in the sky as well, he almost gave up instantly. Fighting against a Multi Elementalist was already difficult to begin with, being an Inscriber made Grey all the more dangerous. In fact, if Grey were to be in the same stage as the young man, he would''ve admitted defeat already, but because of his pride as a genius, he couldn''t give up this easily, especially to someone at a lower stage. With a loud roar, a powerful wind storm started across the entire platform with powerful gales spreading out in all directions. The meteors were soon blasted apart while the attacks from Grey''s inscriptions were not only stopped, but three out of the five inscriptions broke apart. ''It''s not going to be that easy, huh?'' Grey thought to himself as he stared at the wind storm. His body merged into the wind, he had a certain level of understanding of the wind element since it was also one of his elements, so he wasn''t really too bothered by it. He just didn''t want to show his wind element hence he kept it hidden. Moving nimbly with the aid of the space and lightning element, he closed the gap between himself and his opponent. The closer he got to him, the stronger the gale. If not for Grey''s powerful physique, he would''ve been sent flying by now. Boom! Bang! Grey managed to get close and attacked with the fire element. He couldn''t get too close to the young man since he might harm himself in the process, so he stayed at the place where he felt he couldn''t go any further. His attack rattled the young man, shaking him to his core. A large lightning bolt fell from the sky as well, striking the point where the gale was at its strongest. Buzz! Crash! The powerful gale was spread apart and the young man''s figure came into view once again. Grey and his opponent stood opposite each other, both breathing heavily from the intense battle. After only a few seconds of silence, the young man brought out an elemental weapon, a long spear, and attacked. With the aid of the spear, his elemental attack power improved significantly. Grey couldn''t be left behind, he also took out dual blades. The blades were shorter than a sword but longer than a knife. Holding both, he reminisced about the time he started fighting after breaking through to the Arcane Plane. His choice of weapon then was a dual blade, but since he got to the Origin Plane, he barely used weapons. Even when he was in the Arcane Plane, he rarely used them as well. Each blade was crafted to wield one element. Since his lightning and fire element were his major attack elements, he picked these specific blades out from the rest. Boom! Bang! Buzz! The crowd was watching excitedly. All discussing animatedly who would win. Some people wanted the young man to win, while a few new fangirls Grey had unknowingly gained wanted him to win. However, one thing was certain for all to see, and that was if Grey were to be in the same stage as the young man, then they wouldn''t even be opponents, Grey would beat him up within two minutes max. "What do you think of him?" The middle-aged man who was sitting next to the young lady who was currently ranked first asked her. "Him? He''s different." The young lady replied. "If I were to fight against him, who do you think would win?" She asked after making the first remark. "Currently, you would. But if you were in the same stage as he is, then the outcome is unpredictable. I wonder which Faction or family was able to create such a genius." The middle-aged man sighed in amazement. A genius of Grey''s caliber was something they rarely saw. The young lady was by no means any weaker than Grey in the same stage, in his opinion. However, when he added the fact that Grey was an Inscriber, he knew in the same stage, Grey would have the upper hand over her. Chapter 675 - Teacher and Student Chapter 675 - Teacher and Student Boom! Another explosion sounded off on the platform, and this time, even the other battles had ended. The battle between the young lady and the young man previously ranked first surprisingly wasn''t as intense as this one. If people weren''t aware, they would mistake this for the battle for the number one rank. Grey''s attacks were precise and deadly, the young man''s defense was solid while his counterattack was dangerous. The battle almost didn''t look like a competition, rather, it felt like a life and death battle to some. The old powerhouses in the place were all watching the battles with great interest, some even had the thoughts of recruiting Grey. But when they thought of the possibility of him coming from one of those high leveled Regions, they could only shake their heads in defeat. Having someone like Grey in a Faction like theirs could take them to the top of the Continent once he fully matures. Grey''s talent was already laid bare for all to see. With his multiple elements and inscriptions, he wouldn''t have too many difficulties with fighting against multiple opponents. This meant that he could almost be regarded as a one man army. While the crowd were talking about Grey''s potential and talent, the battle got to the peak. This was one of the longest fights Grey had fought with a single opponent, it was already over fifteen minutes already, closing in on twenty minutes. His opponent was no pushover, and Grey was using him to train himself to the max. He wasn''t using his full strength, so it could be said that he was holding back. But with the few elements he was using, he was fighting excitedly. He rarely got to fight to his heart''s content, this was a good opportunity for him. They continued their battle and as soon as they went past twenty minutes, a great opportunity presented itself for Grey, one he would never shy away from. Without delay, he closed in on his opponent who had left a space for him to get close. Just as he was about to attack, the young man turned to him with a smile. He attacked without giving Grey the chance to dodge. His original plan was to give Grey an opportunity to close in on him, then release a powerful attack that would defeat Grey once and for all. His attack came from below, with powerful wind blades slicing into the body of Grey. The wind blades passed through the body of Grey without much resistance. The crowd were shocked when they saw this, thinking that Grey was dead. Most of the experienced people in the stands realized that the young man tricked Grey into coming close before unleashing his ambush. The twist in the situation stunned them. At first, they felt Grey had won the battle, but all of a sudden, he not only lost, but seemed to be in danger. "A shame, he fell for his trick." The young lady said to the middle-aged man by her side. The old man smiled but didn''t reply. Just when everyone was thinking that Grey was dead, something stunning happened. Grey''s figure started to fade, and the eyes of the young man he was fighting against bulged out, almost popping out of his head. He wasn''t the only one with this reaction, everyone in the stands, with the exception of Grey''s friends and the old powerhouses in the crowd. "An afterimage!" Someone exclaimed from the crowd. Afterimages form due to extreme speed, so there was no way it could be replicated with the space element since the space element didn''t really rely on speed. This was to say Grey dodged an almost certain death attack with his speed alone. It was mind-boggling! Grey''s figure materialized at the back of the young man, with one of his blades placed on his neck. "I win." He said with a smile on his face. The young man wanted to make a move, but Grey pressed the blade on his neck, blood slightly coming out from it. When he felt the pain, he knew any movement from him and he would be dead. "I ad...mit defeat." He said begrudgingly. This was a battle he felt he would win from the start. When he saw Grey''s strength, he later devised a plan, only to fail at the very end. He didn''t know of Grey''s speed once he put his legs into it. Grey had explosive speed because of his superior physique, so when he added the lightning element to it, it was unimaginable. If not for the fact that he didn''t want to use his wind element as well, then his speed would''ve been even more frightening. The man in charge of the platform announced the winner, and Grey walked back to his seat with a nonchalant expression. The previous excited expression he wore when fighting was gone and it was like he was another person. "Nice fight, next time, you should punch him in the head." Klaus commented as soon as Grey sat down, giving him a few pointers. Alice and Reynolds felt like beating him up as they overheard what he was saying to Grey. "Alright Teacher, your student will follow your instructions next time." Grey said playfully before looking at the stone in the sky. "Good boy, now, help me fight my battle, I''m still tired from the previous one." Klaus said shamelessly. "Unfortunately, that isn''t allowed." Grey replied The others laughed as they congratulated Grey. "Wouldn''t you go for a higher rank?" Reynolds asked. "Nope, this is enough. I still have some moves hidden. I don''t think I want to show them all here. This Region isn''t our goal." Grey said calmly. The others nodded before looking away. The other battles in the remaining platforms continued after Grey''s battle ended. They couldn''t be blamed since Grey''s battle took all the attention, even theirs as well. Missing such a battle was something they couldn''t stand. Ten more minutes went by before all the battles rounded up. Now, it was time for one more round of challenges before the end of the competition. Chapter 676 - Cheated? Chapter 676 - Cheated? "Klaus, you''re up next." Reynolds tapped Klaus on the shoulder as the next round of battles was about to start. "Don''t worry, I''ll be in the top twenty." Klaus said confidently as he stood up. Grey and the others nodded. Reynolds called out while he was on the way there, "Oh, and ask if we can challenge those in the lower stages here." "Got it." Klaus before walking to the stage. This was the last battle, so he planned to challenge the person currently ranked twentieth. If he could win, then he would be part of the top twenty, for now. Of course he knew he would lose the rank soon if someone came to challenge anyone higher than him, but he didn''t really care. All that mattered now was that he was in it and got the reward. Grey had brought too much attention to their group, so when the crowd saw Klaus standing up, they all spoke animatedly, waiting for who he would challenge. From their previous battles, they knew he was not as powerful as Grey, and unlike Grey, he relied heavily on his head to win his battles. From his last battle, they could tell that even if his opponent was stronger than he was, it didn''t necessarily mean they would win because Klaus was a calculative individual. He soon stepped onto the platform, and different from when he first fought, people weren''t rushing to the platforms anymore. The man in charge walked up to him to ask who he would like to challenge. His reply was well within the expectations of most of the people here. "He only wants to step into the top twenty." This was the only thing going through the heads of everyone around. The current person ranked twentieth had a higher rank before the challenges started. He was ranked fifteenth at that time, but due to people challenging those higher than him and defeating them, he was slowly pushed down. He was already at the Peak of the Overlord Plane and looked to be around twenty-two years old with brown hair and eyes. He was taller than Klaus, standing at six feet three inches tall. Looking at the opponent in front of him, he didn''t feel pressured. He saw Klaus'' last battle and knew that he wasn''t that powerful. "This will be over soon enough." He said coldly. Klaus smiled without replying. He had been waiting patiently for his last battle. Here, he would use his ultimate move to defeat his opponent swiftly. The man asked if both participants were prepared, after getting confirmation from them, he called for the start of the battle. The young man was an Earth Elementalist, with a quick movement, he sent multiple large boulders toward Klaus. Klaus created an ice wall to block the attack before countering with an attack of his own. Sending out a jet stream of water toward his opponent. The water moved rapidly. The young man didn''t panic, raising an earth wall in front of him, he prepared to counterattack once he had stopped the attack. However, his expression changed drastically when the water made contact with the earth wall. There was not even a bit of resistance as the water crashed through it, slamming into the young man. Before he could react, he had been sent flying, out of the platform. The entire crowd stood up, stunned by how fast the battle ended. Overall, the battle only took around one minute or so, yet the victor had been decided, so quickly. It was shocking. Klaus stood on the platform with a grin on his face. Most people still didn''t understand what happened a few seconds ago. How the hell did Klaus'' water pass through the water so easily? Some people even felt it was all staged, but when they saw the condition of the young man, they had second thoughts. Someone in his current condition will not agree to stage something like this, especially since he too was a genius in his own right. His clothes were destroyed, and his hair was messy with blood coming from the side of his mouth. He still had a look of disbelief as he stared at the platform that was almost twenty meters away from him. The only question in his head right now was, ''What happened?''. "You¡­ impossible!" He exclaimed from the side, unable to believe that he lost so easily. "What are you pointing at? You''ve already lost, now step aside." Klaus replied with a mocking smile. If the young man accepted his defeat, he wouldn''t want to rub it in on him, but seeing his present reaction, he felt annoyed by him. ''You''ve lost already, what''s all the fuss?'' He thought inside. "You cheated. Sir, I can assure you that he cheated, let''s have the battle again." The young man turned to the man in charge of the platform. "You''ve lost this battle. He didn''t cheat, he only used a skill you''re unaware of. Even most of the seniors here don''t know of it, but he was the one who used it." The man explained, before turning to Klaus, "However, to confirm if you didn''t cheat, I''d like you to do exactly this same attack while he set up the same defensive wall." The man couldn''t really say he was doubting Klaus since he could feel the intricacy in Klaus'' previous attack. This was something he had not seen before, but he had heard of something like this, hence he wanted to confirm if it was what he read about. Klaus stared at the man before nodding. "I''ll show everyone that you''re a cheater." The young man snorted coldly. "Stop barking, you''re even more annoying than a hungry dog." Klaus mocked before unleashing the same attack once again. The young man was incensed by Klaus'' words before setting up his defensive wall. This time, he put his all into it, making sure it was sturdier than the previous one. To be honest, he didn''t put much into the last defensive wall thinking it would be able to block the attack easily. It was only after it was breached did he know that he made a mistake. Now that he knew the strength of Klaus'' attack, he increased the defensive power of the wall. Chapter 677 - Monstrous Group Of Friends Chapter 677 - Monstrous Group Of Friends Klaus smirked when he saw this. The man in charge of the platform also noticed this but didn''t do anything to stop the young man. He was a little curious about the strength of Klaus'' attack. This was a strange attack that was hard to understand. Klaus had kept it hidden till the very last battle, this showed how cunning he was. Now, he was starting to doubt if the strength Klaus showed all this while was his true strength. Rumble! When the jet stream came in contact with the earth wall, compared to the first time, there was a bit of resistance. When the young man saw this, he smiled in glee, feeling happy that he had been able to show everyone the scam Klaus was. His smile froze when he realized after the first bit of resistance, the water passed through once again, sending him flying for the second time. Crash! Bang! His figure was shot off the platform once again, and this time, the force he used in crashing into the ground was even more powerful than the first time. Just like the young man, Klaus evilly increased the strength of the attack at the last minute. This way, the impact on that young man would be even more terrifying. Grey and the others shook their heads in pity when they saw the condition of the young man. The young man looked like he had lost a tooth or two, although it wasn''t really much since it would grow back in at most a month, it was still kind of embarrassing. "Haha, I knocked the teeth outta him." Klaus laughed when he saw that young man. His words made those in the crowd burst out laughing, making the young man more embarrassed. The old figures sitting in the special area all stared at Klaus in amazement. The skill he just displayed was something that they had only heard of. For someone to be able to do this meant their mastery of the water element was on another level entirely. Klaus might just be the best Water Elementalist in his generation. They couldn''t say this claim though since they haven''t seen all the geniuses of this generation, but what they know is that even if he wasn''t the best, he wouldn''t be far from it. For them to even think of this showed how highly they regarded Klaus. They couldn''t help but turn to look at his friends. Only Grey had fought, and he was clearly someone even more special. Having four elements, and two of said elements were special types. He also had the space element, with terrifying speed as well. Grey was even more monstrous than Klaus, and they didn''t even dare to think the other two were on their level, if they were, then it meant this group of youngsters would cause chaos in this continent in the future. The man finally announced the winner of the battle. Klaus wore a smile on his face, just as he was about to leave, he recalled something and turned to the man. "Sir, can those in the Mid and Early stages be challenged here?" He asked. They couldn''t leave without Reynolds and Alice battling. The man looked at him for a while before telling him to give him a minute. He flew to where the old figures were seated, after getting confirmation from them, he nodded at Klaus, telling him that once this round of battles was over, they could step forward. The reason the old figures agreed to his request was simple; they''ve seen Grey and Klaus show their abilities, and now they wanted to see just how talented the other two were. If they were truly on the same level as Klaus and Grey, then they wouldn''t even mind trying to convince them to join their Factions. That''s all on the premise that they''ve not joined one though. However, they all knew that was nothing but an impossible thought. If they hadn''t joined a Faction only meant that they were from powerful families. Those in the Early and Mid stages were still around, since watching these battles was beneficial to them, they couldn''t afford to miss it. Klaus returned to his seat to give the others the news. Alice and Reynolds were pumped when they heard this. They thought only Grey and Klaus would grab all the fun, but it seems they still had a small chance to show what they were made of. The man announced the next round of things which came as a shock to those in the arena. Some of them were even about to leave since the competition was over, but something that had never happened before happened which surprised them. The young lady who was ranked first wanted to leave, but the middle-aged man who was with her stopped her. His attention had been on Grey''s group since Grey''s last battle. He thought Grey was the only one, but after seeing Klaus'' last battle, he had to reevaluate the group. He overheard when Reynolds told Klaus to ask if they could still battle, so when he heard this, he knew this was done only because the old fogies also wanted to see the talent of the other two. "It wouldn''t be bad to become friends with such figures." He whispered to the young lady. "Them?" The young lady turned to look at Grey''s group. "Yes. I can already see that they will be influential later on. It wouldn''t be bad to be acquaintances, don''t you think?" The middle-aged man said. "Hmm, whatever you say, uncle." The young lady replied. After the man announced that those in the Mid and Early stages could be challenged, the first person to stand up was Reynolds. He couldn''t keep it in any longer, he wanted to see how he would fare against those in the same stage as he is. For this battle, he wasn''t going to summon his Elemental Warrior. He would be fighting on his own. Besides, his Elemental Warrior was already on the Sixth stage of the Overlord Plane. His opponent was the person ranked first in the Early stages rankings. Chapter 678 - Reynolds Battling For First Rank In The Early Stages Rankings Chapter 678 - Reynolds Battling For First Rank In The Early Stages Rankings Reynolds waited patiently on the platform as the person ranked first stepped onto the platform. The person was a young lady who, according to rumors, just took the first position a few days ago. She had been ranked second for a while now, and after a brutal battle, she managed to secure first place for the first time. Now, she hasn''t even gotten to relish her new rank for long and it''s already been threatened. Everyone here could feel the tense atmosphere, for some reason, they all felt Reynolds would be victorious. They''ve seen the battle of his friends, Grey and Klaus to be precise, and given how they could easily fight across stages, they felt he was also the same. So fighting against someone who is in the same stage as he is could already be counted as a victory for him. Some people also stepped forward to challenge those of lower rankings on the other platforms, but all the attention was placed on this platform. Grey and Klaus had already brought all the popularity the group needed. "Hello." Reynolds waved to the young lady. The young lady waved back with a calm expression. She was clearly focused on the upcoming battle. Reynolds on the other hand seemed very relaxed. The man in charge stepped forward to ask if they were prepared, after getting confirmation from the duo, he called for the battle to start. The young lady didn''t hold back and attacked instantly. Boom! A large flaming sword rose into the sky and slashed at Reynolds. She was a Fire Elementalist. Buzz! Lightning danced around Reynolds'' body as a lightning shield appeared in front of him to block the attack of the young lady. After blocking the attack, he unleashed a series of lightning arrows that shot at the young lady with breakneck speed. The young lady didn''t panic as she swung her large flaming sword at the arrows. Destroying them as they came in contact with the sword. Reynolds saw this and also created a large lightning sword like his opponent. Since she wanted to use the size advantage, then two could play that game. Buzz! Bam! Bang! Boom! Their battle quickly picked up pace as attacks flew everywhere. The young lady attacked ferociously, Reynolds wasn''t reserved in his attacks as well. The duo were each fighting for something. The young lady didn''t want to lose her newly acquired rank, while Reynolds didn''t want to be the one looked down on among their group. However, he wasn''t too pressured in winning, but he wanted to make sure that even if he lost, he gave the crowd a great show. Besides, he still had the Mid stages rankings to also fight for. Boom! Bang! Crash! Lightning and fire flew all over the platform. A beautiful yet dangerous sight to behold. Those who had a lower cultivation stage than the duo could feel their spines tingle at the sight of this. The crowd watched in exasperation. They never thought the battle between these two would be to this extent. Of course it was not on the level of Grey and the person ranked Seventh, but it was something special. Those who watched the battle between the young lady and the person previously ranked first knew this battle was miles ahead of that one. They could feel the nervousness in the air. A small mistake and either participant could lose. "Rey''s amazing. If only he agreed to spar with me more, he would''ve won already." Alice commented. "Heh, other than Grey and Void, who else spars with you?" Klaus scoffed when he heard Alice''s words. Whenever Alice brought the idea of sparring, he had always rejected it. Of course there are times he spars with her, but he avoids it whenever he can. She was a relentless attacker, so defending against her was tiring. Grey and Void could keep up with her because of their speed and space element, they on the other hand were not that fast. Luckily for him, he had the advantage in cultivation stage, so he could overpower her. Reynolds was the one who got the brunt of it most of the time. Grey and Void chuckled when they heard this, looking at Alice. Grey couldn''t help but recall when he was weaker than Alice and had to spar with her frequently back at the Lunar Academy. Although he wasn''t really that bad, he was still beaten up by her most of the time. Alice''s way of fighting was direct and fierce, one slip up and she''ll attack continuously. She isn''t the type to give an inch when battling, else you would regret your decision. This however doesn''t mean she isn''t calculative, she just preferred doing things this way. Reynolds'' battle with the young lady soon got to its peak. Reynolds had the advantage in speed, so dodging the attacks of the young lady was something he could do quite easily. The young lady was forced to block almost all his attacks since they were fast. Buzz! Crash! A large bolt of lightning drew a beautiful arc in the sky before striking the young lady. She was forced to block the attack with a firewall. But the wall exploded and the impact pushed her back. The chance Reynolds had been waiting for all this while finally presented itself to him. Without even thinking, he unleashed a series of lightning arrows that shot at his target. He also created a lightning ball that he sent out. While doing all this, he leaped into the air, spreading both hands apart, he called out slowly, ''Lightning Rain''. This was a move Grey frequently used when he was still in the Arcane Plane. When the crowd saw his attacks, their hearts sank for the young lady. Even if she somehow manages to block them miraculously, the advantage was already in Reynolds'' hands and he could choose to attack whenever he wanted. The young lady seeing all these covered herself with a ball of fire that exploded in all directions. Unfortunately, Reynolds'' delayed the attack of the lightning rain a little bit, so her attack which was supposed to block all the attacks faded just before the lightning rain fell down. Bang! The sound of a figure slamming into the ground resounded out, accompanied by a scream of pain from the young lady. When Reynolds heard it, he immediately stopped his attack. The dust died down on the spot where the young lady landed and her shaking figure came in full view to all. This was a result of the electrocution from the lightning element. "I''m sorry." Reynolds rushed over to help her. However, a sly grin appeared on the face of the young lady, and just as Reynolds came within ten meters of her, a large fireball was sent in his direction, meeting him at a point-blank range. The attack came unexpectedly, even the crowd didn''t expect the young lady would use such a method. Most people found it evil, but in truth, it was all part of a strategy. She realized she wasn''t on the same level as Reynolds, so she used the natural sympathy men had towards women to make him drop his guard, and then she attacked. It was a smart plan that was worth praising, after all, it might save her in times of danger, and might just help her retain her first position. Chapter 679 - Glimpse Of The Light Element Chapter 679 - Glimpse Of The Light Element Klaus stood on his feet when he saw this, he could tell that the young lady was only tricking Reynolds when he saw her reaction. There was no way she would''ve been that hurt from the attack. Yes, she would be injured, but not to the level she was playing it out to be. Even if the attack came unexpectedly, she was still an Overlord Plane Elementalist who was on the same stage as Reynolds, so she would at least be able to set up a few defensive measures to help limit the danger. "B*tch." He cursed when he saw her attacking Reynolds at such a close distance, however, what happened next made him laugh in delight. Reynolds had sparred with him too often, and he had done countless tricks like this. All of them naturally made Reynolds lose his guard, but they''ve naturally molded him for battles with others. Reynolds, who everyone thought had lost due to the sneak attack, had a wide grin on his face, his legs were coated with lightning as he dodged to the left. At the same time he was dodging, a large lightning bolt fell from the sky, crashing into the body of the young lady. This time, she didn''t even have a chance to create any defensive measures as she took the full effect of the attack. She shrieked in pain, convulsing a few seconds after the lightning fell on her. What was worth noting was that the lightning attack didn''t stop immediately, rather, it stayed for almost five seconds, penetrating her body fully. "Ruthless! Cunning!" This was the view most of the people here had of Reynolds. That attack of his was something that he had been preparing for a while since it needed time to garner that much power. The lightning rain was a cover, this attack was his main final assault. He knew that the lightning rain wouldn''t be able to defeat his opponent, so he made this attack as well. All those above the Overlord Plane saw this perfectly, even some of the people at the Peak of the Overlord Plane noticed it. Void told Grey about it when he sensed it. The sneak attack happened too fast hence they were unable to alert Klaus of Reynolds'' hidden attack. Alice calmed down when she saw Reynolds dodging the attack and nodded her head when his lightning bolt rained on the young lady, she felt the young lady deserved it. Not just her, but almost every single person here felt she deserved it as well. If Reynolds didn''t have a countermeasure prepared, then he would''ve ultimately lost because he tried to show care for his opponent. The man in charge of the platform rushed to where the young lady was and covered her with a white light. He was unexpectedly a Light Elementalist. Grey watched the scene intently, anything related to the light element was all he focused on. When his Teacher was using the light element to heal Klaus'' father the last time, he was unable to witness it, but now, he was seeing it for the first time. As he watched it, he felt something in him resonate with what was happening and his eyes glowed with a white light. His body was about to do the same before he noticed and he quickly suppressed the feeling. In his mind, however, he felt like running out of this place. He was on the verge of comprehending the light element, but because of the possible commotion he would cause in the process, he had to forcibly suppress the feeling. It felt like he was pushing himself into a well. If he missed this chance, it would take him some time to comprehend the light element. But if he went with the flow, then he would be able to instantly comprehend the light element and create a light space in the Chaos Space. This was the only thing he was missing in the light element, seeing how it was used to heal. Once he creates the light space in the Chaos Space, then he could be said to have comprehended the light element. Reynolds'' win was a win for him also, so he was extremely happy when Reynolds walked back to where they were seated, he even gave him a high-five. This was the last element he was missing, according to his knowledge, so he naturally felt excited after getting a glimpse of it. If he focused on it for now, in at most a week he would be able to create a light space. Then everything would be set. "Good job, you see, sparring with me has its advantages." Klaus commented when Reynolds took his seat. "Haha, of course. I knew from the start that she was pretending, but I had to make her lower her guard." Reynolds laughed as he looked at the stone plaque in the sky that currently had his name written as the number one genius in the Early stages of the Overlord Plane. "You did good. But if you sparred with me more, you wouldn''t have needed trickery to win." Alice said. Reynolds'' smiling face froze when he thought about the hellish sparring session with Alice and he couldn''t help but shiver. Grey laughed before looking at the other platforms. All he wanted right now was for this round of battles to end so Alice could step forward and challenge whoever she wanted to. Since she was in the Fourth stage of the Overlord Plane, they all knew she wouldn''t challenge the person ranked first, but she would definitely aim for the top ten. Reynolds was the one who had the first rank in sight thanks to his Elemental Warrior. He was about to become the first person to be ranked first in both the Early and Mid stages of the geniuses rankings. The thought of it was exhilarating. Ten minutes later the battles ended and Alice stood up. It was finally time for the last person in this group of freakish friends to show her strength. If Alice was on the same level as the others, then it meant this set of friends were insanely talented. She walked to the platform calmly. If one looked at it properly, one would realize that all four of them had fought on the same platform. All the times Klaus and Reynolds fought, they did it on this particular platform. Those in the stands watched on in excitement as they watched Alice step onto the platform. The man in charge of the platform was already waiting for her, when she stepped forward, he asked her who she would like to battle when hearing her say the person ranked Fifth, he felt a little disappointed for some reason. The truth was, he wanted her to challenge the person ranked first, defeat him and solidify her group''s status as freakish. Alice smiled when she saw this, looking at Reynolds, she shook her head before challenging the person ranked fourth. The reason for this was simple. Once Reynolds stepped forward, then the first position was his. She didn''t want to overdo it, after all, these people were also geniuses as well. Getting into a tough battle with the person ranked first would be difficult for her, and her chances of winning weren''t over fifty percent. Chapter 680 - Alice’s Battle Chapter 680 - Alice''s Battle The person ranked fourth was a young lady like Alice, only slightly taller than her, and chubbier. She walked onto the platform, staring at Alice vigilantly. She has already seen the others in the group fight, so she knew she was up for a tough fight. Winning was her aim, and she wouldn''t let herself be distracted. ''They might be talented, but so am I.'' She reassured herself. Saying this however did not change her mindset. Stepping into a battle with this mindset has already shown a weakness in her character, so even if she were stronger than Alice, her chances of winning have reduced drastically. Alice nodded to her opponent, who did the same. After getting confirmation from both fighters, the man in charge of the platform declared the start of the battle. Alice attacked immediately, using the lightning element to boost her speed as she sent out multiple lightning orbs that exploded around her opponent. Her opponent used the water element to fight against the lightning arcs that were rushing toward her. She created an ice wall that sufficiently blocked them. Alice didn''t feel bothered by this as she continued her assault. She was known for her relentless attacks, and she displayed it in full here. After her first lightning attack didn''t work out, she used the fire element to send a flaming bird at the young lady. The bird spat out bits of flaming balls that exploded as they came in contact with the ice wall. Seeing Alice use a second element, everyone in the arena couldn''t help but sigh. Of the four friends, two had more than one element, while the other two had a single element. From the current looks of things, Reynolds was the only one who didn''t seem special. Klaus defeated someone of a higher stage, which meant he could fight across stages. Alice''s current opponent was in the Sixth stage of the Overlord Plane, and she was currently having a great battle with her. Grey was even more freakish. Reynolds'' opponent however was in the same stage as he was. Even though he won convincingly, it still didn''t show his dominance like that of his friends. While they were thinking of the group of friends, Alice''s battle was slowly heating up. Just like her, her opponent was also a Dual Elementalist, having the water and darkness element. She attacked with the darkness element, creating a large shadow beneath Alice that seemed to slow her down. Not only that, but the darkness element started to eat away the essence around her, disrupting her ability to control the elements. The darkness element has multiple uses, but its best ability is none other than corrosiveness. It could corrode anything, even as far as the air they breathe. If a Darkness Elementalist is fighting someone stronger, the darkness element can come as a trump card. Using it at the best time will give them an advantage. Alice shook her body before lightning started to dance around her. A ten meters radius around her was covered with lightning. She used it to fight against the corrosive ability of the darkness element. After gaining her proper control of the elements, she started attacking once again. Her opponent was no pushover, so she knew she had to dig deep. Boom! Bang! Attacks flew left and right, with the young lady using the water element to both defend and attack. She used the darkness element for sneak attacks, but the lightning surrounding Alice made her sense them and dodge them before they touched her. Alice was using the lightning as a type of sensory ability, making it almost impossible to sneak attack her. A large streak of water was sent towards her, but she used the fire element to counter it, before using the lightning element to send out a large bolt which cut through the streak of water and headed towards her opponent. The young lady she was fighting against blocked the attack with an ice wall, but the wall cracked after successfully blocking it. Crash! Bang! Before the young lady could reinforce the wall, another lightning bolt struck it, blasting it apart and rushing towards her. With no time to think, she threw a dark orb the size of a human head at the lightning bolt. When the lightning came in contact with the orb, it caused a large explosion. The young lady was able to escape before the explosion, surviving a potentially dangerous situation. Alice didn''t let her have any time to rest as she flew into the air, and just like Reynolds, a lightning rain was summoned by her. The young lady had already seen Reynolds use this skill before, so when she saw that Alice was also a Lightning Elementalist, she prepared for it. With a wave of her hand, she formed a water sphere around her. Due to the wide range of the attack, each lightning wasn''t powerful enough to breach her defense. Alice didn''t feel down when she saw this, instead, she smiled before reducing the range of the lightning rain, taking it to only a small area. From covering over half of the platform, it covered only about half a meter or so. This increased the strength of the attack dramatically. While doing this, she created walls made of fire around the young lady and they slowly started to close in. They were sending out attacks at the same time. Her barrage of attacks was on another level and even Grey and the others couldn''t help but shake their heads. Once Alice was given the initiative in a battle, then it was decided. Unless her opponent could overpower her, they would be nothing but sitting ducks. Alice''s assault continued, and the young lady knew she messed up when she gave her the chance to attack freely. With a yell, she forced the water sphere wide, trying to use it to push the approaching fire walls. Doing this, however, gave the lightning rain the chance to penetrate it. When she saw this, she covered her skin with ice, forming something like an ice armor to defend against it. Alice had an intrigued look, before attacking with a lightning spear. The spear shot past the fire wall before slamming into the body of the young lady. It made a ringing sound as it managed to defend against the attack. The young lady was pushed back by the impact of the attack. Seeing this, Alice smiled and her attacks continued. The lightning rain had stopped, instead, large lightning bolts started crashing down from the sky. The young lady who was on the defensive found it hard to regain any sort of advantage since Alice didn''t give her that opportunity. Everyone watching the battle knew that the victor had already been decided, it was only a matter of time before the young lady gave up on her own, or she was hurt from the constant attacks. "She''s ferocious!" This was the appraisal they had of Alice. Unlike the boys, she had a more aggressive battle style, and once she took the initiative in a battle, her victory was within sight. Even with all the plans the young lady made, Alice was able to counter them. Five minutes later, the young lady finally gave up. She managed to hold out against the previous attack and even managed to counterattack at one time, unfortunately, Alice didn''t give her too many chances after that. Chapter 681 - Shameless Reynolds Chapter 681 - Shameless Reynolds Alice walked back to her seat after being announced as the winner of the battle. She looked up at the stone plaque and her name was written in the fourth place. After her battle, the other battles on the platforms lasted for another five minutes before they ended. As soon as they ended, the man was about to call for the end of the event when they saw Reynolds getting up once again, walking in the direction of the platform. "What''s he trying to do?" Discussions broke out in the arena. This was the round for those in the Mid stages of the Overlord Plane. Reynolds had already defeated the person ranked first in the Early stages rankings, so they felt he was done with the competition. Who would''ve thought he would step up once again? And it was even for the Mid stages rankings. On getting to the platform, Reynolds didn''t hide his intentions as he challenged the person ranked first. The man in charge of the platform was a little taken aback, he felt obligated to remind Reynolds that this was the Mid stages and not the Early stages. He felt maybe Reynolds had forgotten he fought against the person ranked first and won already. "I know, I''d like to see if I can at least put up a fight against the first person." Reynolds replied with a humble smile. When the crowd overheard him, they felt his pride had gotten to his head. Even the old men who held the group in high esteem felt annoyed by this. The man looked back and after getting a nod from the old men in charge of the event, he finally called the person ranked first in the Mid stages rankings forward. This person was a young man with a calm demeanor. When he stepped onto the stage, he didn''t show the usual proud air geniuses ranked first usually have, instead, he looked at his opponent with a confident, yet friendly smile. "Hello." Reynolds waved at him. "Hello, I''m Kyle." The young man introduced himself with a smile. "It''s nice meeting you, Kyle. I''m Reynolds." Reynolds approached Kyle and stretched out his hand. After shaking hands, both fighters distanced themselves. The man in charge of the platform looked at the duo, after getting confirmation from them, he gave the go-ahead for the battle to start. As soon as the battle started, the young man standing opposite Reynolds was covered with blazing green flames. Seeing this, Grey and his friends couldn''t help but exchange glances. They rarely saw people with special types of their elements, so seeing this young man, they were somewhat surprised. Reynolds laughed out in delight before a figure made of lightning formed above him. The figure held onto a sword and shield, with a bow on its back. It was none other than his Elemental Warrior. The crowd who were still marveling at the sight of green flames were once again astounded by the surprise of seeing an Elemental Warrior. Even in the Aurora Continent, high-level summoners were rare. Reynolds, who most of the people felt was the weakest amongst the group and thought he was too proud when he stepped forward to challenge someone three stages ahead of him, seemed to be as special as his friends. As it stands, Grey and Klaus seem to be the only ones stronger than him in their group. What was also worth mentioning was that if not for Klaus'' special water attack, they would rate him lower than Reynolds. "Just where did these freaks come from?" This was the only question running through the minds of everyone. Grey and Klaus were already special in their own rights, Alice was stronger than your regular genius, and other than her aggressive fighting style, there was nothing special about her. The rest, however, were freaks. Being in such a group of friends, one would feel intimidated. If they were to find out that Grey and Void the seemingly useless cat had awakened their domains, it was unknown what their reactions would be like. Even the old powerhouses here could only tell that Void was special other than that, they didn''t know anything about him. The only reason they even spared him a look was because he was on Grey''s shoulder most of the time. Kyle, who was covered in green fire, was just as surprised as the crowd, but after his initial shock, he laughed out loud. "Haha, you didn''t disappoint." He charged at the Elemental Warrior and attacked wildly. The previous calm demeanor was gone, now, he looked and acted like a warlord. Reynolds fought alongside the Elemental Warrior, making the pressure on Kyle high. Boom! Bang! Bam! The battle didn''t start off slow like the other battles, it went straight to the peak. Kyle was known around for being a battle maniac and seeing how he was doing against Reynolds and the Elemental Warrior, showed his strength. Most Seventh stage Overlord Plane Elementalists would not be able to cope under the combined assault of Reynolds and the Elemental Warrior. Even though Reynolds was weaker, it didn''t mean that he could neglect his attacks. Kyle''s plan from the get-go was simple: take out Reynolds and he wins. This is what everyone thought of as well. Unfortunately, with the Elemental Warrior there, and Reynolds being a cunning individual, it was impossible to take him out. He hid under the attack range of the Elemental Warrior. If Kyle tried to attack, he would be sneak attacked by the Elemental Warrior. At this pace, he risked losing the fight, or even ending it as a tie. There''s also the chance that he might not even get Reynolds and might just lose altogether. Klaus and Void were laughing at Reynolds'' cunning nature. He was using the Elemental Warrior to full effect. Kyle was unable to get close to him, and the Elemental Warrior even had the advantage in their battles. Whenever he focused fully on the Elemental Warrior, Reynolds would attack from behind. It got to the extent that even the calm Kyle was starting to get frustrated by what was happening. Reynolds was out of his reach, while he was very much within Reynolds'' grasp. This meant that he couldn''t attack Reynolds, but Reynolds could attack him whenever he wanted. A cruel situation to be in, even a good person will go nuts whenever they are in such a position. The crowd watched the battle a little taken aback. Reynolds was being shameless to the core, but they couldn''t complain since the Elemental Warrior was his and this was a viable battle strategy. Many people here would do the same if they were in his place. "Haha, yes, be shameless." Klaus laughed loudly, attracting the gaze of those around. Grey shook his head, while Alice glared at him. Their great reputation had been thrown in the mud by these two crazy guys. One was acting shamelessly on the platform, while the other had a proud look. It was like he was a proud Teacher. Reynolds continued irritating his opponent, making him make mistakes which gives the Elemental Warrior a chance to overwhelm him. The man in charge had a weird smile on his face. It was evident that Reynolds had won this as well. Chapter 682 - The Light Element Chapter 682 - The Light Element Swoosh! Bang! The Elemental Warrior sent Kyle flying. "I admit defeat." Kyle didn''t fight any longer before giving up. Fighting against Reynolds and his Elemental Warrior was a pain to fight against. Reynolds made things worse, almost making it impossible for him to concentrate. "Haha, thank you for letting me win." Reynolds laughed as he approached Kyle. Kyle didn''t feel too downcast after his loss, shaking hands with Reynolds. He even went back with him to where Grey and the others were seated. His easy-going nature made it easy for him and the group to become friends. Making friends with a group like theirs was a bonus to anybody, so he naturally took advantage of it. He was surprisingly not from Dixon Region. Just like the group, he was traveling, trying to gain experience. While the group was speaking, the man on the platform called for the end of the competition. The young lady who was ranked first in the Late stages Overlord Plane rankings and the middle-aged man approached them. Introducing herself, her name was Avril Cassidy. The group introduced themselves to her and Kyle, when Grey introduced himself, a look of realization dawned on the middle-aged man accompanying Avril. ''So, he''s from that Dawson family. To think they''ve produced another genius of this caliber.'' He thought to himself. If Grey knew of his thoughts, he would''ve refuted them since he didn''t know any Dawson Family from the Aurora Continent. Honestly, other than his parents, he knew no other person from the Dawson Family. He didn''t even know if he had any Uncles or Aunties. They spoke for a while before Grey and his group decided to leave. Grey in particular was in a hurry since he wanted to try to create the light space as soon as possible. The group left alongside Kyle and Avril. Before they left, a few youngsters approached them, trying to create some ties with them. The group welcomed them, making more friends was better than making enemies. These friends might be useful later in the future. There was nothing left for the group to do in Dixon Region, so they left the city immediately. Grey went straight to the woods, finding a cave, he immediately sat down cross-legged before trying to comprehend what he got from the light element today. The others didn''t know what was up with him, but they knew it must be important, so they let him be. They stayed outside the cave, talking about the competition and how the battles were. Each reflected on their battles and where they could improve. In the blink of an eye, two days went by in a flash. Grey was still cooked up in the cave, not showing any signs of coming out. The group were bored, even as far as going to the city to get some things, leaving Void to protect Grey. He was the strongest, and anyone he couldn''t fight against, they couldn''t either. They met a few people who approached them to join their Factions, however, rejected it. Grey told them not to let others know they were not in any Faction since it might put them in danger. Geniuses were coveted everywhere, so it was best to be cautious. People might be scared of their background and not attack them. This is their best protection right now, so they had to use it properly. Five more days went by before Grey finally made some movements. Opening his eyes, it was covered entirely with a bright white light. "Haha, things were better than expected." He laughed lightly to himself. He not only used this opportunity to create the light space, but he also entered the Chaos Space and started comprehending the light element immediately. Due to his past efforts, things were a little easier for him. He couldn''t help but breathe out a sigh of relief. It was like he had finally achieved the first step in becoming the strongest. He presently had every element he knew. Eight elements, that was something that would send the world into chaos if they found out. ''It''s a shame I still wasn''t able to break through to the Seventh stage of the Overlord Plane.'' He shook his head. He originally thought comprehending a new element would''ve made him advance to the next stage, but unfortunately, it seems that things were starting to become difficult for him. Now he understood why it was difficult to advance as Elementalists grew stronger. His own was even worse due to his multiple elements. This made his requirements even higher. He had been advancing quite quickly before, but now, it seems as if things will be a little slow for now. He threw everything to the back of his mind and stood up. When Grey stepped out, he saw the tired looks from his friends. "What''s with the faces?" He asked with a smile. "You better have a good reason for keeping us waiting." Klaus said. "Of course." Grey smiled before opening his hand as a white ball of light appeared. "You''ve comprehended the light element?!" Reynolds exclaimed. "Yes. Why did you think I came here straight away? I gained some insights at the competition when I saw people using it, this helped me a lot." Grey grinned as he explained. "Haha, nice. Now you can heal us." Klaus laughed. "Hehe, no. My mastery is still too low. And like usual, the elemental grade is extremely low. Pink to be precise. It will take a while before I can increase it." Grey shook his head, killing Klaus'' wishful thinking. "A shame. That means for now it''s useless?" Reynolds asked with a sad smile. "Not exactly. It can heal minor injuries, and it will boost my speed. I''m happy with my gains." Grey replied. "Congratulations." Alice congratulated him, unlike the two boys. "Thank you." Grey smiled in response. "Can we get going now?" Void finally spoke up. Staying in one place was not in accordance with his style. He had to be on the move constantly so that he could see new things. Grey looked at the others, and seeing their expressions, he knew they were tired of this place as well. He had no objections with leaving since there was nothing he had to do here. With that, the group finally continued their journey. Other than when Grey and Klaus were trying to understand that heavy water, this was the longest they have stayed in a place. While they were walking, they spoke about their experiences so far when Grey was still in closed doors training. About eight Factions approached them, but they refused all of them. They were even invited to meet an old lady who was quite powerful. She spoke with them in a kind manner, in the end, she also wanted them to join her Faction, which they also refused. Some days later, they were getting close to leaving Dixon Region. On the way, Grey trained with his light element. He was also very close to breaking through. Even though he didn''t break through immediately, it helped him get very close to his target. So he didn''t feel too down about it. They opted to travel by foot instead of using the teleportation arrays. This made their journey longer, but they gained considerable experience from it. Encountering new things on the way, while also facing some life-threatening moments. The strength of the group continued improving as they traveled. Klaus was getting better at his new water, Grey had too many focuses, so his progress with it was a little slower than Klaus''. Alice was fighting more, honing her skills with every battle. Reynolds was also pushing to advance to the Fourth stage of the Overlord Plane. He was very close to it. Doing this would undoubtedly push the stage of his Elemental Warrior to the Seventh stage, making it stronger. Void was the only one who was carefree. He didn''t think too much, he didn''t train the way the others did. Some days went by and they finally left the Dixon Region, entering the next region. Just like the Dixon Region, this was also a mid-level region. So the geniuses here were around the same level as those in Dixon Region. They fell into contemplation. Fighting against the geniuses here would be beneficial, but would also take time if they were on the same level as those in Dixon Region. "Should we skip this place, or¡­" Grey looked at the others. "I want to see how far I''ve improved." Alice said. She enjoyed fighting, so it was natural that she would agree to them staying and challenging the geniuses here. Klaus and Reynolds had no issues with them staying for a few days, and neither did Grey. They started searching for those in the geniuses rankings. They weren''t as lucky as the last time when they encountered the geniuses rankings competition, so they had to search for each individual personally. It took them a while, but they managed to locate the person ranked fourth in this Region''s Mid stages Overlord Plane rankings. Chapter 683 - Collective Growth Chapter 683 - Collective Growth Buzz! Bang! Boom! The sound of lightning crashing into something strong resonated out. "Wow! She''s definitely gotten more powerful." Reynolds commented from the side. Beside him were Grey and Klaus. They were watching Alice''s battle with the person ranked fourth in this Region''s Mid stages Overlord Plane geniuses rankings. The person was a young man who was a Wind Elementalist. They''ve been fighting for almost ten minutes now, and even though Alice was two stages lower than him, she was able to go toe to toe with him. Swoosh! Boom! Bang! A large tornado sprang up from the ground, lifting Alice into the sky. While in the sky, red and silver lights flashed in the tornado. Before long, the tornado was forcefully destroyed. Alice was seen standing mid-air, covered in lightning and flames. She used the attack lightning rain while mid-air, before throwing multiple fireballs at her opponent. She almost tried to replicate Grey''s ''Meteor Descent'', however, she was unable to get it accurately. The young man created a storm to fight against the attacks coming his way. The battle continued as they exchanged blows in a tight and heated battle. In terms of power, this person was stronger than the one she fought against in the Dixon Region, so it was difficult for her to overwhelm him. If she were still on the same power level as when she fought in Dixon Region, then she would''ve lost long ago. But thanks to her slight improvement, she managed to last long. As the battle raged on, the young man slowly started to gain the upper hand. He had a higher cultivation stage than Alice, so it was understandable that he was stronger. They fought for five more minutes. Bang! Alice''s figure was sent flying, crashing into a rock by the side. At the moment Alice crashed into the rock, another loud explosion was heard from the other side. Just like Alice, the young man was sent flying, his condition was slightly better than Alice''s, which showed he had the edge in their brawl. Alice stood up before cleaning the dust off her body, "You win." She didn''t feel sad with this loss. From the start, she knew this person was much stronger than the person ranked fourth in Dixon Region. Not just that, but he was also a very experienced fighter. Unlike most youngsters, he didn''t make moves carelessly. Alice and the others usually used their experiences to their advantage in battles. Compared to them, most of the geniuses here haven''t gone through deadly training. Their battle knowledge was low. They might be powerful, but they didn''t know when and how to attack properly. "It was a close battle. If you were a stage higher, then I would''ve lost." The young man replied sincerely. He wasn''t trying to make her feel better or anything, it was the truth. Alice was only in the Fourth stage of the Overlord Plane, while he was in the Sixth stage, two stages higher, yet he fought her for this long. With a small upgrade in her stage, she would be able to beat him. "Thank you for agreeing to spar with me. I''ll be leaving now." Alice showed her gratitude before turning to her friends. The young man stared at the group, looking at them strangely. He guessed they were from one of those high leveled Regions, but he couldn''t ascertain it. A thought came to his head, but just as he was about to, he stopped himself. ''If she''s already this powerful, how powerful would he be?'' He looked at Grey. Grey didn''t hide his cultivation stage, so he was able to find out that he was in the same stage as himself. Alice was already this powerful, and she was two stages below him, challenging Grey might come as a humiliation for him, so he stopped himself. Grey and the others left while discussing the battle. They all saw how much Alice had improved. She was the only one who wanted to test out her strength, so they didn''t stay any longer. Grey even suggested they used the teleportation array, so they could get to the other Regions quicker. According to the map they had, he still had to travel through at least five Regions before they would leave these mid level Regions. Their plan was to get to a high level Region and join a powerful Faction. They all didn''t want to join the same Faction, only the ones beneficial to them. Of course all Factions could help with every element, but most Factions focused on improving a single element. This would make training faster and more efficient. Two months went by in the blink of an eye. The group had been in the Aurora Continent for a while now, and they were starting to get used to things here. In these two months, Grey and Reynolds had made breakthroughs, getting to the Seventh and the Fourth stage respectively. Reynolds'' Elemental Warrior was currently in the Seventh stage as well, which meant he couldn''t compete in the Mid stages geniuses rankings any longer. They''ve gone through five Regions in this time and battled through all of them. Although they used the teleportation arrays on some occasions, they mostly traveled by foot. They encountered more things this way, increasing their knowledge and experience. On one occasion, Klaus found a strange treasure, while he was trying to claim it, they found out that it belonged to a tribe of Barbarians who were staying in the forest. The Barbarians chased them for days, and after a brutal battle, they finally let them go. They were lucky the tribe leader was not around. According to what the Barbarians said, the tribe leader was in the Sage Plane. He would''ve beaten the hell out of the group if he caught them. This was Grey''s first time battling with Barbarians, and he took advantage of it. They were the only people who trained their bodies, so he tried to see which was stronger, unfortunately for him, he lost in that regard. Chapter 684 - Latchram Region Chapter 684 - Latchram Region Their encounter with the Barbarians taught them a lesson. Of course it didn''t stop Void and Klaus from causing trouble. Void could sense treasures, so whenever they were close to anyone, he would naturally sense them. Going through the forest meant they would encounter treasures, and with treasures came danger. The battles helped the group grow, but they also showed them that the dangers here were not on the same level as the Azure Continent. Had Grey not comprehended the light element, they would''ve completely used up the remaining vials of healing tonic. The items they''ve managed to acquire were only raw items, not usable to them. They could only sell them whenever they got to a city or town. Grey''s light element however could only do so much. He doesn''t have a high mastery of it, neither is the elemental grade high. They had to get healing tonics from the cities since the one they got from the Blooming Viper was too valuable. Klaus and Alice were still in the same stage as before, but their strength had seen a significant increase. Klaus in particular had been focusing on his ice ability and his heavy water, making them more powerful. The heaviness of the water has almost doubled, now, without even a sneak attack, he could use it to break through Grey''s earth wall. Alice had been practicing as well. Unlike the others, she didn''t really have anything special other than being a Dual Elementalist. So she trained more than they did. They had challenged the geniuses from the Regions they''ve gone through, and she had lost one, drawn one, and won the other three. Klaus also fought as well, he only managed to defeat the person ranked fifteenth. When he tried to challenge someone higher, he lost, quite woefully at that. Grey had been conservative, not challenging those in the Late stages. He only watched the others. Reynolds had started challenging those in the Mid stages, and without the help of the Elemental Warrior, he was unable to get into the top fifteen. In the same stage, Alice was stronger than him. They were currently in Latchram Region, the last region before moving to the high leveled Regions in the Western Continent. They''ve been traveling for a while now, and the group felt it would be best if they joined one of these Factions sooner. Grey and the others had heard of people going into secret realms, and without joining a Faction or being from a powerful family, then there was no way for him to join them. Grey had a score to settle, so unlike the others, he was short on time. The quicker he improved, the better for him. His opponent wasn''t an ordinary person. The humiliation and life-threatening attack he experienced that day, he wanted to return back to the young man. He hasn''t told his friends of this, so they had no idea of it. Alive suggested they search for those in the geniuses rankings like usual and challenge them. Since Klaus and Reynolds agreed, Grey didn''t really have much of a choice. It took them almost a week to find who they were searching for. They had to travel through multiple cities. From their numerous travels, Grey''s essence stones were already halved, and at this rate, it would finish in no time. The plan of making a long range teleportation array came to his mind, but when he tried it, he realized he couldn''t pinpoint the location of the one he made back at the strange forest. The space here was too strong for him, so he gave up on that idea. Although he gave up on the idea, it didn''t stop him from making the arrays though. He would get powerful enough to use it one day. The target of their search was a young lady who went on an expedition, and according to what the group found out, a treasure was forming there. It would form completely, and most of the geniuses in the Overlord Plane had gone there. The treasure was only beneficial to those in the Overlord Plane, so people in the Sage Plane didn''t come over. When the group got to the location, they were stunned by the barren land in front of them. Not a single vegetation was in sight, only dried rocks which looked like they would crumble from a single touch. "What the hell is this?" Klaus commented when he saw the state of the place. "This was caused by the darkness element." Void remarked after getting a feel of the place. "The darkness element?" Alice and the others asked, stunned. Grey closed his eyes and tried to feel the darkness element in the area. It took a while, but he was able to sense it later on. "He''s right. It must''ve been done a long time ago, but it''s still affecting this place." He looked at the place, a little shaken by how powerful the person who did this was. Even after so long, it still had such an effect. It showed the Elementalist was by no means weak. "Actually, this was caused well over three hundred years ago, I''m surprised you sensed it." A voice came from the side. The voice sounded a bit familiar. When the group turned around, they were surprised to see Kyle, the young man Reynolds fought against back at Dixon Region. "Kyle, you came as well." Reynolds was the first to speak up. "I heard of a treasure while passing by a small tribe, so I decided to come check it out. Who would''ve thought I would see you four here. Now my chances of getting it are as good as gone." Kyle replied with a shake of his head. "You know what happened to this place?" Grey asked. "Rumors had it that around three hundred years ago, a powerful Darkness Elementalist fought against the current ruler of the Western Continent. Their battle lasted over three days, and this place was reduced to this state." Kyle gave them a rough description of what he knew. "Oh, and this is just the outer perimeters. The closer you go, the more powerful the effect. There''s a miasma in the center." He added. Chapter 685 - A Crazy Group Of Friends Chapter 685 - A Crazy Group Of Friends "A miasma?" Grey''s expression changed slightly. He recalled the last time he heard about this was with Ellis'' father. Apparently, he was corroded by one, almost losing his life in the process. If he hadn''t gone by, then it might have been a different story. "Yeah. Very dangerous." Kyle nodded, before adding, "However, there are times where the miasma retracts, or should I say, lessen. This gives people the chance to go deeper into this place. This is one of those times, and the birth of this treasure couldn''t come at a better time." Hearing Kyle''s words, the others nodded in understanding. This place was probably a deadly place, but since people had explored it for many years, they had found out some secrets about it. Such places are usually filled with treasures since before people tend to go in it is long, giving it enough time to groom these treasures. This wasn''t the first time Klaus and the other two were hearing of miasma, so they knew the dangers of it. There are places that are filled with excessive fire or even wind element, causing them to have a miasma, but as usual, the darkness element tends to be more dangerous thanks to its corroding ability. "Are we just going to stand here? Come on, let''s go in." Kyle was the first to take a step into the place. Compared to before, the group could tell that he had improved. First of all, his aura was slightly different, and he had broken through to the Seventh stage of the Overlord Plane. But they could tell it hadn''t been long since he did it. With Kyle taking the lead, Grey and his friends followed behind him. Void looked at Kyle curiously. He naturally sensed him when he was approaching the group, but since he found his aura familiar, he didn''t really feel too bothered. As they went deeper into the place, the darkness element''s aura started to grow stronger. It was even to a stage that those in the Origin Plane would feel extremely uncomfortable when placed in this place. Every individual in the group was in the Overlord Plane, so it was nothing for them to worry about, for now. They soon started to sense the presence of others in this place which was expected, after all, they heard of this place from the mouth of the public, so the birth of this treasure was pretty much made known to all. "What do you think it would be?" Klaus asked curiously as they walked further in. "A natural treasure, I guess." Reynolds replied. Klaus almost wanted to facepalm when he heard his reply, "I know it''s a natural treasure, I''m asking what type of treasure it would be? A rock, fruit, weapon, stuff like that. Moron." Grey and Alice initially thought Klaus wasn''t going to curse at Reynolds when they heard the starting part of his statement. Given his usual self, he would''ve started his statement with a curse. He, however, didn''t disappoint them in the end. "You''re the one who asked a stupid question. Creep." Reynolds naturally retorted. And before long, the duo started a cursing session. Grey and Alice were already used to it, this has been the highlight of their journey so far, so they were completely cool with it. Kyle on the other hand was experiencing this for the first and felt quite strange. From how seriously the duo were cursing at each other, he almost wanted to step in and play peacemaker, but seeing that Grey and Alice didn''t even try to step in, he sensibly stopped himself. "Hey, is it alright for them to be like this?" Kyle approached Grey and asked with a whisper. "Yeah, it''s totally fine. I''ll be more worried about them if they haven''t quarreled in a day." Grey replied nonchalantly. His expression showed this was a normal occurrence. "Oh, and a word of advice, don''t look at them too much, you''ll only draw their attention." Grey wasn''t even finished before he noticed both Klaus and Reynolds were staring at them, "And... it''s too late." Kyle was about to ask why Grey said that, but he found out a few seconds later when the duo who seemed as if they could kill each other a few seconds ago started cursing at Grey, he was almost exempted, well, almost. Grey was forced to join the two man cursing squad, which came as a huge shock to Kyle who had always taken him for a serious minded person who wouldn''t indulge in such things. Grey didn''t speak much with people, so they rarely got to see this side of him. Kyle was unfortunately the target of the trio, and after a few minutes, he was lost for words. Klaus and Reynolds were frightening opponents when it came to this. It was like they were experienced, well-seasoned fighters, but just at cursing. Grey was that bad as well. He, on the other hand, was woeful when compared to the trio. "Don''t let it get to you, they''ve had years of training." Alice comforted him when she saw his downcast expression. Kyle nodded his head but still felt frightened by the trio. They weren''t the least bit reserved with their words. If not for the fact that he knew they didn''t mean it in that way, he would''ve fought them with his life on the line even though he knew he would lose. The group continued in this manner, and before long, they got to where the rest of the people were waiting. As soon as they got close, Void started acting strange. "I want it." He said to the group. Kyle looked around, trying to find the source of the voice. It was childlike, so he knew it wasn''t from any of them. "You want whatever''s forming?" Grey asked curiously while staring at the people around. Presently, there were at least two hundred people here, all in the Overlord Plane. They were in different stages of the Overlord Plane, however, none was in the Early stages. What was shocking was that none of them seemed to be over twenty-five years of age. This showed that most of the people here were geniuses. If such a group went to the Azure Continent, then they might be able to sweep through the entire continent in a matter of days, as long as those in the Sage Plane didn''t show their faces. One other thing was worth mentioning, there are youngsters in the Sage Plane as well. Ellis was an example. He was barely twenty-five years old, but he had already gotten to the Mid stages of the Overlord Plane. In the same stage, he would be more powerful than those old fogies from the Azure Continent. In the entire continent, other than Grey''s Teacher, there was only one person known to be in the Mid stages, and he was only in the Fourth stage of the Sage Plane after hundreds of years. The appearance of the group naturally attracted the attention of some of the people around, but after sensing the person with the highest cultivation stage was only in the Seventh stage, they retracted their gazes. They naturally couldn''t be too worried about such a group. Chapter 686 - Advancing Deeper Chapter 686 - Advancing Deeper "Yes. This thing will be very good for me." Void nodded his head vigorously, "And you as well." Kyle finally managed to confirm that Void was the one speaking, and was a little lost for words. He originally thought this was a normal cat and had almost asked why Grey kept such a cat on his shoulder, now he understood that it was his wishful thinking. How could such a group of freaks be accompanied by something ordinary? "Then we''ll get it." Grey said with confidence. He didn''t care who was here, so long as there was no one in the Sage Plane, then he was certain that with him using the Fusion State and Void''s help, they could overwhelm anyone here. They still had a trump card hidden under their sleeves, their domains. From the time they had spent here, they''ve found out that it was quite abnormal for someone to awaken their domains this early. The earliest was usually in the Sage Plane, but these two freaks awakened theirs in the Overlord Plane. Klaus, Reynolds, and Alice looked at the duo as if they weren''t normal when they realized this. Originally, they also had the thought of awakening theirs this early as well, but it seems as if that might not be possible anytime soon. Maybe after breaking through to the Sage Plane will they be able to do so. Kyle was once again shocked by Grey. The confidence with which he said he would obtain the treasure was not something someone on his stage should have. After all, there were people at the Peak of the Overlord Plane here. Grey might be powerful, and since he had advanced by a stage, he would be even stronger than the last time he saw him, but he didn''t think he would be able to overpower all the Peak Overlord Plane geniuses here alone. Even though he knew Void was special, he didn''t really know how powerful he was, so he couldn''t add him to the equation, for now. ''I''ll see how things go first. Maybe traveling with them might be fun, and dangerous.'' Kyle thought as he looked at the group. The miasma was slowly receding deeper, but everyone here knew not to rush in now. They had to give the atmosphere time to get rid of most of the corrosiveness in the air. Grey and his group decided to stay put while watching the other groups. Some of the people here were acquainted with each other, so they were speaking as they waited. Fights broke out here and there, but it was nothing serious. They still haven''t found the person they came here searching for. This has become their priority while they wait. They also spoke with Kyle and found out that he was from one of the high leveled Regions, which was expected given his strength. If not for Reynolds'' Elemental Warrior, it would''ve been impossible for even Alice who was two stages lower than him to fight him. Even at that time, if Reynolds hadn''t been shameless with his tactic, Kyle might have gotten a chance against the Elemental Warrior. He was from one of the big families and came out only to grow stronger. Unlike the young lady who was accompanied by someone, he didn''t like such things, opting to move alone. This would make him grow stronger faster. With someone to always protect him, he wouldn''t feel any sense of pressure. The others also agreed with this reasoning, pressure was the only thing that could make them grow stronger at a faster rate. If one was always under protection, one wouldn''t feel the need to grow stronger. They might advance in cultivation stage, but they wouldn''t really grow strong. In time to come, they would become one of those people who only had high cultivation stages but insufficient strength. Time went on in the blink of an eye and a day went by quickly. The miasma had disappeared from their view, and the shape of a building was starting to appear. Void confirmed to them that the treasure was inside this building, and it was not the only treasure inside. He was also able to get a vague feeling of danger inside the place. This sense of danger threatened him, and he warned the others about it. When the group saw how serious his expression was, they knew it was not a matter to joke about, and they might encounter life-threatening dangers inside. Their expressions became solemn. Two more days went by before the building came into view for everyone to see. It was a large mansion, well, it was in a large compound to be precise. Only around half of the compound was accessible to them now, but they all knew that this building in front of them held treasures, and this was what they came here for. Without even delaying, most of the groups rushed into the compound. They knew treasures came with danger, but no one wanted to be the last to step into a potential treasure hoard like this building. Grey and his friends were among the few people who weren''t making any moves. Void''s warning was still sounding in their heads. Rushing in would only mean putting themselves in the face of danger. They waited to see if there were any traps outside the building. Seeing that a considerable number of people had gone in, Grey told the group to advance. In a place like this, it wasn''t wise to go in first, and neither was it wise to go in last. It was best to be among the group, in the middle to be precise. They followed the crowd, giving those in front and behind them a considerable distance to ensure safety. In a place like this, except for the people you came with, no one else should and could be trusted. This was a dog eat dog world, where the strongest reigned supreme. They soon passed through the gates of the compound, and just like most of this place, it looked like it would be broken with nothing but a touch. But they knew it was very sturdy, and touching it might be dangerous for them. It has accumulated so much miasma that it has become deadly. Chapter 687 - Monsters Made From Miasma Chapter 687 - Monsters Made From Miasma The group cautiously stepped into the compound, staring at the large building. It had three parts, the main building which was located in the middle section, then the east and west wings. Most of the people here picked the main building since naturally it was expected to have more treasures. "Void." Grey turned to Void, waiting for his decision on which part they would pick. Void could almost accurately pinpoint where a treasure was located, so they mostly relied on him in instances like this. "Wait, let me check." Void closed his eyes and spread out his spiritual senses, a few seconds later, he looked around in confusion. "It''s vague, I can''t pick it up. We''ll have to rely on luck." He said. "Well, my luck is pretty much shit when it comes to things like this." Grey shook his head, before turning his attention to Klaus. Of every single person he had met in his life, he had never seen anyone as lucky as Klaus. His massive growth wasn''t a fluke, it was mainly attributed to his insane luck. Klaus could walk into an ordinary town and his chances of finding a treasure were very high. If there were tiers for luck, then Klaus definitely had at least god-tier luck. This was how highly Grey regarded his luck. Grey wasn''t the only one, even Alice and Reynolds knew Klaus was the luckiest among them. Making a decision in such a place, he was the obvious person to ask. "Why are you all staring at me?" Klaus asked when he saw his friends'' gaze. "Come on, use your gut feeling." Grey said straightforwardly. "It doesn''t work that way. I can''t just pick a time to use it as if it''s something I can use whenever I want¡­" Klaus froze before turning to the left-wing, "Oh, I have a nice feeling about that part." When the group heard this, they turned to the east wing, and it was the one that had fewer people. The reason for this was understandable, they could still sense a bit of miasma in it. For some strange reason, it accumulated more miasma than the other parts. This meant it wasn''t ordinary. Other people have noticed this as well, but many of them refrained from going there since it would be dangerous. "Alright, then let''s get going." Grey and the others started walking the moment Klaus picked a part. Kyle was stunned, he literally froze in the same spot. Almost unsure of what he just witnessed. Grey first asked Void to find the treasure, and Void said he was unable to locate it, then he turned to Klaus, asking him to use his ''gut feeling''. Klaus first tried to refute them, then in the process, he said he felt something strange from the east wing. Kyle almost wanted to yell, ''Of course there''s something strange about it, there''s still miasma there! You think miasma would remain there if it wasn''t strange?!''. He, however, refrained from doing so. This was a group of strange people, and all he could do was to deal with it. With no option, he followed them. When they got close to the door leading to the east wing, they sensed the dangerous miasma around it. Without being told anything, they each used their respective elements to form a translucent coat around them to block out the miasma. The miasma here was something they could still deal with, but if they didn''t protect themselves, it would accumulate and cause them harm later in the future. Opening the door to the place, they heard the sounds of fighting. They were taken aback since they never thought people would fight so quickly, the only thing that could make them fight was a treasure. Only after they entered did they see what was happening, people were fighting, yes, but not themselves. This place was bigger than what it seemed. From the outside, it looked only to be around one hundred meters or so, but after going in, they realized it was around four hundred meters, or even higher. "What are those?" Alice asked, alarmed. What these people were fighting were like phantoms, made entirely from darkness. They had never seen anything like this before. "It''s made from the darkness element. If I''m not mistaken, they are beasts, corrupted by the miasma here. Now, they look like spirits." Kyle was the one who explained. He had more knowledge of this world, so it was only natural that he had an idea of what these things were. The group didn''t stay idle, well, they wanted to but were attacked. These things could move like smoke, forming in front of them. Each of them was around the Fifth to the Ninth stage of the Overlord Plane. They were five, adding Void, they were six in number, while the phantoms that appeared before them were eight. Grey and Void. Took on two each, leaving the rest for the others. Reynolds didn''t immediately summon his Elemental Warrior, after all, their potential rivals were here. It would be bad if they knew all their trump cards. Grey and Void used two elements each, the fire and lightning elements respectively. Kyle''s green flames and Grey''s blue flames were the stars of the show. They attracted too much attention from those here. Grey stood out even more when he used his red lightning. The lightning element seemed to be effective against these miasmatic monsters. Alice used the fire and lightning element as well, while Klaus decided to outright freeze his opponent. As soon as they took out one, another would form before them. At first, they were fighting in the same place, but they finally realized that as long as they remained there, their opponents would not end. They started to advance as they fought. They weren''t the only ones who had realized this, the other geniuses here had also figured it out as well. Some had done so even sooner. Boom! Buzz! Bang! Attacks rang out in the hall as they continued moving forward. Chapter 688 - Strange Methods Chapter 688 - Strange Methods Grey''s group advanced quickly. The synergy between the group was breathtaking, making them defeat the monsters before them quicker than most. According to what they''ve noticed, it takes around ten seconds or so before another monster would form. Grey had tried sensing if this was the work of an array, and to his surprise, he got nothing. This meant that either it was natural, or whoever made it was on a level he didn''t dare to imagine. They soon got to a flight of stairs, ascending it as they got there. When they got to the top, there were three paths, and on each path, there were multiple rooms. It was up to them to choose a path. "Klaus." The group turned to Klaus, and he had a lost look on his face. "I''ve told you guys that it doesn''t work that way." He complained when he saw their gazes, it was almost pressurizing on him. "Well, it has worked so far." Grey encouraged. "I was only lucky." Klaus shook his head wryly. "That luck is what we want, to be precise." Alice joined in. Reynolds also joined in after a few seconds, and Klaus could only close his eyes and make an ice sword. The sword floated in front of him with the tip pointing straight. He made it move quickly, and the tip was facing from one path to another. While he was doing this, another set of monsters appeared and the group was forced to fight against them. Grey brought out his inscriptions, using only the lightning and fire element like before. They soon took out their opponents once again. By the time they were done, the sword had already stopped moving, and it was facing the path on the right. "Well, this was the only thing I could think of. If I''m really that ''lucky'', then we shouldn''t have any problems with finding treasures here, well, good treasures." Klaus said with a shrug of his shoulder. Grey and the others didn''t even discuss it with him, they immediately took the path the sword pointed to, and Kyle seemed to be on the verge of breaking down. ''Anyone could do this!'' He yelled in his heart, but he could only follow them. He had already asked to travel with them here, so he had no choice. As they moved, they soon got to the first door in the hallway, but they were forced to fight against the monsters before going in. After defeating the monsters, they opened the door and entered. Entering the door, they were covered by a bright light, and when they opened their eyes, they were transported to another place. "Strange, the darkness element here is very thin. In fact, it''s almost nonexistent." Void commented when they appeared on the place. Looking around, they seemed to have been transported to an underground cave. They could hear rushing water from the side of the wall. "Could we be underwater?" Klaus couldn''t help but ask. "We are underwater. But it''s best if we don''t spread out our spiritual senses." Grey advised. "Why?" Reynolds asked. Roar! A loud roar came from behind them, followed by heavy footsteps. "That''s why." Grey replied before running in the other direction. The aura he could sense from whatever the creature is was at the very peak of Rank Five. Its aura was stronger than that of Void''s, which meant that it was very close to breaking through to Rank Six. There might even be a chance that its current battle power was around Early Rank Six. This wasn''t something they could take on, yet. It was best they left it behind and ran away. Luckily for the group, the phantoms they had been fighting against didn''t appear here, so they could travel quickly. The sound of the beast chasing after them was slowly getting louder, and they knew at this rate, it would catch up to them. They ran for almost a minute before encountering an intersection. "I can sense it, it''s on the left one." Void said excitedly before rushing towards the left path. Kyle was once again dumbstruck. First of all, Void was unable to sense anything, but after following Klaus'' lucky guess, they managed to not only pick the right path, but the first room they opened led them straight to where they wanted. ''They can''t be regarded as normal any longer.'' He concluded in his mind before rushing after the group. Whenever they made a decision like this, he was always the last one to move because he found their method strange and unbelievable. In fact, it was also insane. The group rushed into the left path, and as they continued deeper, the atmosphere started to emit extreme cold. Even for Elementalists of their level, they felt chills. Klaus and Grey were the only ones who didn''t seem to have any reactions to this. Klaus in particular had a delighted expression. Alice and Kyle used the fire element to warm themselves while Reynolds was shaking from the cold, which prompted laughter from Klaus. Reynolds almost wanted to fight with him, but he was unable to. He however had no problems with summoning his Elemental Warrior which sent Klaus flying. Klaus didn''t see it coming, so he was taken by surprise. Grey and the others burst out laughing when they saw this. Kyle for one was having a good time. Being with the group was fun and odd. They all behaved like psychopaths, well, Klaus seems to be one. Grey and Void were mysterious, Alice seemed ordinary, but he knew not to look down on her, after all, being with such people meant she had something special about her as well. He had also seen her ferocity when fighting, which was something even most men didn''t have. Klaus picked himself up and glared at Reynolds, he almost wanted to attack, but seeing the Elemental Warrior floating beside him, he stopped himself. Reynolds snorted when he saw this, annoying Klaus in the process. The group was forced to hurry up when they heard the fast-approaching footsteps of the beast chasing after them. Chapter 689 - You Gotta Be Kidding Me! Chapter 689 - You Gotta Be Kidding Me! They walked for around one more minute or so before reaching what seemed like the entrance to a cave. The front of this cave was sealed with ice. Grey was a little confused, Void didn''t have the water element, so there was nothing he had to do with ice or anything related to water. But he decided to believe in him, after all, every time he had said there was something beneficial to him, he was always correct. "Void, you and the others should keep whatever''s following us busy, Kyle and I will try to burn a hole in this ice for us to go through." Grey said. They''ve both tried to use the space element, but there seems to be a restriction inside, or maybe it was a special feature of the ice that stopped people from getting past it with the space element. Kyle had a special flame just like him, and he had sensed the intensity of the flame, it was just below his own. The group agreed with his plan and went forward to confront the beast. Void was the main attacker, the others were there to distract the beast. Seeing the group leave, Grey turned to Kyle, "We should get to work as well. I don''t think they''ll have a good time with that thing." Grey snickered when said this which made Kyle chuckle. They increased the heat of their flames to the highest, before unleashing it on the ice wall. A few seconds after they started, they overheard the sound of battle. The others had intercepted the beast and had started a battle with it. The duo used the fire element to its peak, however, they were unable to create a hole in the ice wall, even after over two minutes of constant burning. Whenever the flame got close to the ice wall, it would seem as if it was about to be frozen by the ice wall. At first, the reaction was minimal, but as time went on, the ice wall actively started to attack the moment it sensed the flames. "Our flames are too weak for it." Grey said with a grim expression. "I''ve heard of this ice before. It''s a rare treasure, it can counterattack on its own. If I''m not wrong, there''s a magical beast inside of the Ice attribute." Kyle''s expression was the same as Grey''s. At this rate, it would almost be impossible for them to break through this ice seal. Grey looked at Kyle. ''He seems to know a lot.'' He thought to himself. He knew about magical beasts having only the ice attribute. It was just like the Ice Dragon they encountered in the trial land. Unlike humans, they couldn''t gain the ability of ice from the water element alone. If a Dragon or any other magical beast can use both ice and water, then it would be regarded as a Dual Elementalist. "Is there a way to counter it?" Grey asked. They were running low on time, he could hear from the battle that the beast the others were fighting was by no means an easy foe. "The darkness element should do the trick." Kyle replied. "Oh, easy then. We''ll go over to the battle and switch places with Void." Grey said. He didn''t want Kyle to know he had more than the four elements he had shown. Even in the Aurora Continent, having four elements was already something rare, if he displayed five, then it would send waves throughout the continent. "Alright." Kyle nodded before heading in the direction the others were. Grey took a look at the ice with an intrigued expression, but he didn''t stay for long. When they got there, Klaus'' figure was sent flying by the beast. Bang! He crashed into the wall close to the duo. "Ouch! That''s going to hurt." Grey said with a mocking smile. Klaus stood up, looking rattled from the attack. He soon caught sight of Grey, "Have you opened up a hole? Even if it''s small enough just to crawl through, I won''t mind." Grey laughed when he saw Klaus'' condition. The fact that Klaus didn''t even reply him when he mocked him showed how difficult the battle was. "Nope, you''ll have to continue fighting that beast for now." Grey said with a laugh. "What are you doing here then?" Klaus almost wanted to punch Grey in the head. They were fighting their butts off against a seemingly impossible opponent, and Grey came to laugh at them? He was incensed! "Oh, I came to see how you guys were coping. From the look of things, you don''t seem to be doing fine." Grey continued poking fun at Klaus. Kyle stifled a laugh, he wanted to tell Klaus that they were unable to break it, but he didn''t want to spoil Grey''s fun. "You¡­ you''ll get it from us when we leave this place." Klaus threatened. "Why are you here bickering with me? You''re using this as an excuse not to go back, right?" Grey said with a cunning laugh, he made sure his voice was loud enough so the others who were fighting would hear him. Klaus almost felt like crying, the truth was, he truly was using this as an excuse. The beast was too powerful, and for some reason, it seemed to hate ice. It started targeting him the second he used ice. When he saw Grey, he thought he would use the chance to at least catch his breath. For the first time in his life, his ice ability he was so proud of almost wanted to kill him. Kyle was unable to hold in his life when he saw Klaus'' wronged expression. "Klaus, what are you doing?" Reynolds'' voice came from the other side. Klaus glared at Grey before rushing back. Grey laughed before following behind him. He was still laughing after getting the better of Klaus for the first time in a while, but on seeing the beast they were fighting against, he froze with his eyes twitching. "You gotta be kidding me!" Chapter 690 - Can We Crawl Through It? Chapter 690 - Can We Crawl Through It? "You gotta be kidding me!" Grey''s eyelids twitched as he looked at the magical beast. It was a gigantic bunny, with blue fluffy fur, cute big round eyes, and long ears. However, all Grey saw was a sadistic bunny, and it creeped him out. He hated to admit it, but he had a fear of bunnies. The bunny he saw in the trial land made him have an inbuilt fear for them, he felt like behind all those cuteness and fluffiness, there was a sadistic maniac waiting to haunt someone. If people were to find out he thought this way about bunnies, it would be strange how they would react. "What are you doing here?" Alice asked when she saw Grey. "We were unable to break through the ice seal." Grey told them what Kyle told him. After hearing his explanation, they initially wanted to question him why he didn''t break it, but they quickly figured out that he probably didn''t want Kyle to know he had other elements. "Void, I''ll take it from here. We''ll leave the opening to you." Grey switched places with Void the second he finished speaking. Kyle was shocked when he saw this. He had seen other Space Elementalists before, but none has been able to do what Grey just did. ''It must be a secret technique from his Faction or Family.'' Kyle thought to himself. After switching places with Void, Grey didn''t dally, he might be scared of bunnies, but it didn''t mean he couldn''t attack. With a wave of his hand, two inscriptions lit up in the air, unleashing powerful attacks at the bunny. The bunny shook its body and its fur stood straight. To the surprise of Grey, his attacks were easily absorbed by the bunny. The bunny attacked while doing this. Grey was caught by surprise since he thought the bunny would at least take some time to defend against his attack. "F*ck!" He exclaimed. Before he could escape with the space element, the paw of the bunny slammed into his body, sending him flying like a kite. He was previously standing mid-air with the help of the wind element. This made the attack of the bunny even more effective. Bang! Boom! Grey slammed into the wall, causing a large and deep crater to form. The force almost created a hole in the wall. Had that happened, they would''ve been in trouble since they were underwater. They didn''t know how deep it was, so they couldn''t take any chances. It was common knowledge that the pressure at the depth of the ocean was terrifying. Klaus laughed at Grey when he saw his situation. But he soon ran for his life when the bunny tried to attack him again. Kyle attacked as well. With Void gone, none of them could possibly keep the Bunny in check. Unless Grey used the Fusion State, he was no match from Void, much less this bunny. Grey managed to crawl out of the crater, cursing his bad luck for encountering a bunny before he rushed over. Boom! Bang! They attacked ferociously, but cautiously as well. They couldn''t afford to break the walls. Luckily, they were all in the Overlord Plane, so they had control over the attacks even though they''ve already unleashed them. Most of the attacks that missed the bunny were dissolved by the person who used it. Grey and Klaus were the main people who suffered at the hands of the Bunny, Klaus especially. Now Grey understood why Klaus said the Bunny hated ice. It couldn''t use its fur to absorb it like the other elemental attacks, so they deal a good amount of damage to it. Grey was stuck between using his water element or not. In the end, he decided against it. Since he didn''t use his darkness element to unseal the ice wall, there was no use showing Kyle any other element. They fought with the Bunny, trying to defend Klaus as he used his ice to harm the Bunny. Grey was the main person distracting the Bunny. With his space element, it was difficult for the Bunny to catch him, although there have been quite a few times he was unlucky, he mostly escapes from its attacks. Kyle and Reynolds'' Elemental Warrior were behind Grey, then lastly was Alice. She was sensible with her positioning, so she rarely got in the attack range of the Bunny. Reynolds was also trying to attack, but he mostly ran whenever targeted by the Bunny. After almost five minutes. "Haven''t Void opened it yet?" Klaus asked. His face was slightly swollen from the attacks, same as Grey. The others were in the same state as when they started the battle. For some reason, the Bunny placed its focus on Grey and Klaus. It targeted Klaus because of his ice, and Grey because it felt his space element was a pain to deal with. ''Void.'' Grey communicated with Void telepathically. After a few seconds, Void replied. ''Almost done. The hole isn''t big enough for you guys. I''ll still need a little more time.'' replied Void. "He said the hole isn''t big enough for us, and he''ll need more time." Grey reported the news to the others. Bam! Klaus was once again sent flying. This time, he didn''t even get the chance to step into the battle before the Bunny sent him flying. "Can we crawl through it?" Klaus asked, almost on the verge of tears. "Just wait till it''s big enough." Alice said. Boom! Bang! Grey was sent flying, crashing next to Klaus. ''Can we crawl through it?'' He asked Void the moment he regained himself. He hated the Bunny, it was almost as if it was impenetrable. No matter how he attacked, it would shake its body and its fur would stand straight, absorbing the attacks. ''Well, yeah. But I can get it to the size you guys can walk through in a few minutes.'' Void replied strangely. He never expected Grey to ask such a question. The only reason Grey didn''t use this option was that if they wanted to crawl through it, it would take some time before each person entered, making the Bunny take advantage of that to beat up the others, the last person would suffer the most, and he was certain that he would be the last person if they went with this choice. Chapter 691 - Large Shadow Under The Water Chapter 691 - Large Shadow Under The Water Grey could only grit his teeth as he jumped back into the battle. Klaus followed behind him as well. Boom! Bang! Bam! They continued fighting against the Bunny, and as usual, Grey and Klaus were beaten brutally by it. Two minutes later. Thud! Grey and Klaus could barely stand after crashing into the wall once again. They''ve created so many craters in the wall that it almost looked like they were following a certain pattern. One thing that was worth mentioning was that they never slammed into any position twice. The Bunny also knew the dangers of causing a hole in the tunnel, so it made sure not to send them flying in the same direction. Grey and Klaus were on their knees panting for air. They exchanged looks and they could see the frustration and terror in each others'' eyes. They''ve managed to at least cause the Bunny some harm, but compared to their current state, it didn''t seem worth it. ''I hate bunnies.'' Grey said hatefully in his head. Just as he was about to stand up, he heard Void''s voice in his head. It felt like he was listening to his savior. ''You guys can come now.'' Void said. "We can finally leave." Grey said with much difficulty. When Klaus heard this, he didn''t even think twice before sprinting in that direction. He didn''t want to stay here any longer. This was the first time he had been beaten this seriously. What was annoying was that almost all their attacks were useless against the Bunny. Grey told the others about the news and just like Klaus, he ran. He had a greater fear of staying here than Klaus. If not for the fact that he needed to tell the others, he would''ve run the second he heard the news. The Bunny, seeing them trying to run away, ditched the others it was fighting against and gave chase after the duo. Reynolds, Alice, and Kyle heaved a sigh of relief as they also ran in the same direction. When they got there, Klaus and Grey were nowhere to be seen. It was obvious that they had gone past the hole. "Hurry, it''s gradually sealing." Void''s voice came from inside the small tunnel he made in the ice. The others exchanged glances before rushing into it. The Bunny was preoccupied with defending against the ice wall. When it tried to stop Grey and Klaus, it caused a reaction from the ice wall and it retaliated. This was also one of the causes that hastened the resealing of the ice. They successfully went into the tunnel, finally escaping from the paws of the hateful Bunny. Walking through the ice tunnel, the group were amazed. They could see that on the sides of the ice, was water. The ice tunnel surprisingly took them through the water, taking them to another cave. While walking, they saw a large shadow move past the water. Even while being in the ice tunnel, the aura they sensed from the shadow sent a chill down their spines. They all froze momentarily from fear. "What was that?" Klaus asked. "Something we shouldn''t concern ourselves with. Void, hurry, please." Grey urged Void. The Bunny was a small fry compared to the shadow they just saw. One has to know that this ice was extremely thick and tough, yet the shadow''s aura still not only seeped through, but it also terrified them. This showed just how powerful the creature was. From the looks of it, it might just be able to kill them with its aura alone. Void nodded his head aggressively before hurrying with the corrosion. Grey switched places with Klaus, secretly using his darkness element as well. He couldn''t take the risk of staying here anymore. What if the shadow saw them and took interest in them? For it to survive at this depth showed it was extremely powerful. It could probably smack the ice into smithereens. After a few more minutes, they managed to step out of another cave. This one had what seemed like an oasis, with a floating dark item in the middle. "That''s it!" Void exclaimed when he saw the dark item. He was the first to step out, so the others naturally didn''t see it until they stepped out as well. When they caught sight of the floating item, they knew it was definitely something special. Kyle looked at Void, dumbfounded by the fact that he was actually able to accurately locate the treasure after getting close. His attention quickly switched from Void to Klaus, the reason was that without Klaus, this might not have been possible. Void said he couldn''t sense the precise location of the treasure when they entered the compound. And the group forced Klaus to use his ''gut feeling'', he somehow brought them here, relying purely on luck! That was unheard of! Klaus'' level of luck was on another level entirely. Kyle didn''t think he had seen anyone as lucky as Klaus. If anyone was luckier than Klaus, then that person wouldn''t even need to cultivate before they got to the top of the world. "Whatever made this ice should be here, correct?" Grey shifted his gaze from the treasure to Kyle. "Should be. There''s a possibility it was made years ago as well. I can''t be too certain. But since it can regenerate this quickly, the beast should be here." Kyle replied. He hadn''t sensed any living thing here, hence he was a little skeptical. This was why he told Grey there''s a chance that the beast wasn''t here. "Alright." Grey nodded. Collecting the treasure was entirely up to when Void wanted to. He was more interested in this ice. If he could catch the beast that made it, then it would be easier, he could just learn from it. Klaus would benefit from it as well. Void didn''t rush in approaching the treasure. He knew it wouldn''t be that easy to take the treasure, there would definitely be an obstacle. If he rushed, then he might harm himself needlessly. Chapter 692 - Encountering A Near Extinct Magical Creature Chapter 692 - Encountering A Near Extinct Magical Creature Void examined the place a little longer, only after he was sure there was no danger did he finally step forward. Klaus on the other hand went towards the water. There might be something special in it, after all, a treasure formed here. He wasn''t too optimistic about finding any though. When he got close to the water, he, unfortunately, found nothing good. With no choice, he went to the side to watch the others. He didn''t have the energy to explore the place. The beating he received from the Bunny made him depressed. His face was back to normal thanks to Grey''s light element, but the light element couldn''t heal his emotions which were almost destroyed by the Bunny. ''Hateful creature.'' He thought spitefully. Unknown to Grey, he was gaining a new Bunny hater. Well, it can''t really be called hate, more like fear. This encounter made Grey''s fear of bunnies increase to a new height. Presently, he felt all bunnies were psychotic things that should be avoided at all costs! Void was about to cross the small lake before hastily retreating. Boom! The water exploded out from below, causing a large amount of water to spray in all directions. Seeing the water, Klaus'' expression changed drastically. "Don''t allow the water to touch you." He yelled while covering himself within an ice dome. Grey teleported out of the range of the attack, same as Void. Kyle and Alice used the fire element to create a fire wall to protect themselves. Reynolds'' Elemental Warrior was still by his side, so he didn''t have any problems with blocking the water. When the water landed on the ground, it gave off a black gas before fading. "It''s contaminated." Klaus said with a grim expression. "The darkness element truly is something else." Reynolds commented. "I''m afraid this isn''t a result of the darkness element alone. Look at the lake, and you''ll know it''s either set to attack once someone wants to pass over it or, there''s something inside or around controlling it." Kyle stated. Void looked at the lake, and with a snort, he blinked and appeared beside the object floating in the air. The moment he appeared close to it, a powerful repulsion force pushed him away, and when he got to the top of the lake, the force stopped and the water below him shot up. This time it was different from the first time. It shot at only Void, minimizing the area to increase speed. Klaus was the closest to the lake, and he reacted accordingly. With Void caught off guard, it was up to him to protect him. He created a thin ice veil that stopped the water from touching Void. Void hurriedly left the place, appearing beside Grey. He was clearly shaken from his close encounter. "There''s something here." Grey said with squinted eyes. What Void just experienced was caused by the wind element. This place must have been created a long time ago to train people, but now it was no longer what it was. Different types of creatures have occupied the place, and with the aid of the trials set here, they were incredibly dangerous. The attack from the lake seemed natural, but the repulsion Void felt when he appeared close to the treasure wasn''t natural. Even though it was faint, Grey sensed elemental particles. This could only be possible when someone or something was using elemental attacks. "What now?" Klaus asked. They couldn''t advance since there was an unknown enemy, but they couldn''t stay here either. His greatest worry was leaving this place altogether. There was no way to return the way they came, which meant there was another way to leave this place, and it should be connected to this place. "We should find our opponent first. Then we''ll think of what action to take next." Grey said while looking around. He still hadn''t been able to sense what was attacking, but whatever it is was protecting the treasure. ''Void, try approaching it again. You already know of its attack, so you wouldn''t be caught off guard again.'' Grey said to Void. This was the quickest way to find what was attacking. All he had to do was track where the elemental particles were coming from. Only extremely sensitive Elementalists could attempt what he wanted to do. This is the reason the others didn''t know it was an elemental attack but he did. Having multiple elements gave him extra sensitivity to elemental particles. He concentrated fully on the area where the treasure was floating. After Void disappeared, he appeared there within a second. Like the first time, a powerful repulsion force pushed him to the top of the lake. Void wouldn''t fall for this the second time, so he vanished before his figure got to the lake. Grey traced the elemental particles and realized it was coming from the ground, around a place that had flowers around. After tracking it, he went over to where it was coming from, and without warning, he sliced a large lump from the ground. Taking out at least a meter worth of soil. Looking at the ground, he found nothing. "Huh? Strange, I could''ve sworn it was coming from here." He muttered to himself. While he was looking at the ground, the lump of soil he sliced out started to move. Something small was wiggling around in it. The others who were standing around Grey noticed this and retreated back subconsciously. A few seconds later, a creature popped out of the lump of soil. It was around six inches tall and had a face of a child, with eyes, and a mouth but no nose or ears. It was translucent with a mixture of blue and green colors. It had arms but no legs. The group stared at the somewhat cute yet strange creature with interest. Grey had been alerted to this, so he saw the creature when it was leaving the lump of soil. His gaze was fixated on the creature, before looking at Kyle who looked like someone who had seen a ghost. "A Seelie, but how?" He muttered in shock. Grey had read about a Seelie before, so hearing Kyle say the name, he was a little taken aback. From what he knew, they were almost extinct in the world. He never thought they''d encounter one here. Chapter 693 - The Perfect Bait Chapter 693 - The Perfect Bait "A Seelie? I thought they were extinct?" Alice asked, surprised. "Apparently not, there''s one right here." Klaus replied while looking at the Seelie with interest. This little guy was behind that troublesome ice. Seelies form from a place of concentrated elemental essence. It usually takes years for them to form and gain intelligence, from the looks of it, it hasn''t been long since this one formed, hence its somewhat low intelligence. A smarter Seelie would know not to come out in the presence of people. These magical creatures were highly coveted by people because if absorbed, they could help improve one''s elemental grade and mastery of their element. This Seelie was special in the sense that it had two elements, a Dual Elemental Seelie was rare to see, even when they weren''t almost extinct. The Seelie looked at the group with interest. It hadn''t left this place since it formed, so this was the first time it was encountering something different from magical beasts or phantoms. It couldn''t speak, so other than staring at the group, it did nothing else. Alice was drawn to it immediately, and she thought of capturing it as a partner. "It''s extremely difficult to gain the trust of a Seelie." Kyle saw through her intentions and said. "Whoever manages to acquire its trust will be its partner, deal?" Klaus asked. There was only one Seelie, and there were five people here. Void was excluded, since well, he was already a partner to Grey, and magical beasts don''t usually have other magical creatures as partners. Grey nodded, having no issues with Klaus'' suggestion. The same goes for the others. Kyle never thought they''d use such a method. This was Seelie, something that even relatives would fight over to get, yet these people said whoever could gain its trust would acquire it. What if the first person who stepped forward gained its trust immediately, what would happen to the others? While Kyle was thinking of how carefree the group were, Klaus was the first to step forward. The moment he approached the Seelie, it attacked instinctively. With the aid of the wind element, it pushed him back, while ice spikes sprang out from the ground, almost impaling Klaus. Klaus reacted quickly and evaded the attack. "What''s wrong with the world? Now cute things only have murderous intentions towards me?" He complained while cleaning the sweat off his forehead. If he didn''t react fast, he would''ve been injured. In the space of thirty minutes, two cute creatures had threatened his life. This was unacceptable! "Next." He said grumpily. He couldn''t try again for now. Reynolds was the next to step forward. He raised his hand above his head as if to show he didn''t have any dangerous intentions toward the Seelie. He managed to get close to the Seelie unlike Klaus, but it attacked as well. His Elemental Warrior blocked the attack, but its appearance frightened the Seelie and it continued attacking. Reynolds was forced to retreat. "Wanna try?" Grey looked at Kyle, who shook his head. As tempting as this looked, it was also very dangerous. This Seelie hasn''t used its full strength yet. From what he could tell, it should be at the First stage of the Sage Plane. Once it''s frightened to a certain stage it would attack with its full strength, and the group would be in danger at that time. Grey turned to Alice, and she was already walking toward the Seelie with a calm smile. She didn''t make any movements, after getting to within ten meters of the Seelie, a smile broke out on her face as she whipped out her secret weapon. It was none other than a piece of meat she kept from Grey''s last cooking. She used her fire element to warm it up, and its rich aroma wafted through the entire place. The Seelie wanted to attack, but the second it perceived the aroma of the meat, it froze. Its previous noseless face saw a change, and a nose magically appeared on it as it took in a deep breath. The others saw it drooling as it stared at the piece of meat in Alice''s hand. Grey and the others were stumped. They never thought Alice would use a method like this. She was obviously baiting the Seelie. Once the Seelie got a taste of this, it would definitely want more, and the only way to get it is by following the person who gave the food to it first. ''My chance is gone. A shame. I would''ve liked to have one of these. I read that they form a bond with their partners, and once it''s formed, even if people tried to steal the Seelie, it would be useless. And they can also merge with their partners during battles, aiding their partners with their elements.'' Grey communicated with Void telepathically. Once a Seelie creates this bond with their partners, they transfer their essence to them. This would have no effect whatsoever on the Seelie, but if people were to steal it later in the future for its essence, it would be worthless. Then the aspect of merging would give the Elementalist an added element. Unfortunately, this can only be possible when merged. Alice for instance already has two elements, if she manages to form a bond with this Seelie, she would gain two more if they merge. Unfortunately, it was extremely difficult for people to create these bonds since only the Seelie can initiate them. ''You don''t need this thing, I''m more than enough.'' Void replied proudly. ''Hehe.'' Grey laughed without making any comments. Void was annoyed by the laugh, but let him be and focused his attention on the Seelie. Alice had been able to get within three meters of the Seelie, and the closer she got to it, the more it drooled, fixing its gaze on the piece of meat throughout. Before long, Alice was standing in front of it. She still had her amiable smile, squatting down, she took the meat closer to the Seelie. At first, the Seelie didn''t make any movements, but after a while it was unable to hold itself back anymore and pounced on the meat, devouring it. Alice didn''t let go of the meat throughout the time, only when it got to the last part of it did she give it to the Seelie. Chapter 694 - Creating A Bond With The Seelie Chapter 694 - Creating A Bond With The Seelie The Seelie finished the entire piece of meat while looking at Alice. Although there wasn''t any sort of intimacy in its eyes, it didn''t seem to feel threatened by her any longer. Alice was still in the same squatting position, bringing out another piece of meat, she saw a delighted expression on the face of the Seelie which made her smile. She used the fire element to heat up the meal but made sure it was not too hot. This time, she gave the entire piece to the Seelie before it started eating. It seemed to gain a small amount of trust in her since it let her touch it. But after a while, it retreated. Alice didn''t feel down by this, she knew it wasn''t going to happen so easily, but at least this was a start. ''Can I get the treasure now?'' Void asked Grey. ''No, only after she''s managed to at least become friends with it. If not, it might think she''s only trying to deceive it.'' Grey shook his head. With nothing left to do, the group could only sit by the side and watch. It would take a while before Alice would be able to form a relationship with the Seelie, and they weren''t really in a hurry. According to what they know, it would take at least one week before the miasma will cover the parts it has exposed, so they still had some time. In the blink of an eye, two days went by. During these two days, Alice was constantly with the Seelie, trying to communicate with it. At first, it had difficulties understanding her, but as time went on, it started to show it could understand some of the words she was saying. "When do you think we''ll be able to leave this place?" Klaus asked bored. "Very soon. I think she''s made considerable progress with the Seelie." Reynolds was the one who replied. "How lucky." Klaus shook his head wryly. When he brought up the suggestion, he felt he had a chance in creating a relationship with the Seelie, who would''ve thought that Alice would be the one to benefit from it in the end. Had he known, he would have said they should fight for it. Thinking about it, he knew that would''ve been worse since Grey would beat them up. ''It''s better if Alice gets it. Grey already has so much, adding this to his power would just be unfair to the world.'' Klaus thought while looking at Grey. Grey noticed his gaze and smiled as if he could hear what he was saying in his head. Klaus shook his head to dispel those thoughts, before hoping that things would move quicker between Alice and the Seelie. Luckily for them, Alice told them they could take the treasure later that day. Void was excited when he heard this and before Alice completed her statement, he had already appeared there. "Wait! If you take the treasure, a portal will open, transporting us back to the mansion. It will only stay open for five seconds." Alice stopped Void just before he managed to take the treasure. The others felt a cold chill run down their spines. Without becoming acquainted with the Seelie, they would''ve been trapped here for who knows how long. Klaus and Reynolds glared at Void who gave them an embarrassed smile as he returned to his original position. "You can communicate with it?" Grey pointed at the Seelie. "Yes, it can transmit its voice to my head. It took a while, but I finally managed to learn how to speak with me." Alice nodded while caressing the head of the Seelie, which laughed in return. "Since you can, have you asked if it wants to come with you?" Kyle asked curiously. This was the most vital part. If Alice could create a bond with the Seelie, it would ward off lurking eyes. It would be impossible for them to keep the Seelie a secret since people would see it. The only way it can hide is if it merges with whoever it forms a bond with. If people see that it''s already formed a bond with Alice, they would lose interest in it. But if they noticed it hadn''t, they would immediately try to capture it. "Yes. She agreed to leave with me. I''ve already told her the dangers and she agreed to form a bond with me." Alice replied with a smile. "So easily?" Kyle was taken aback. It usually takes people years before they can make a Seelie trust them, yet, in the space of two days, Alice not only got the Seelie to trust her, but she even convinced it to form a bond with her? It was unbelievable! If Kyle wasn''t present here, he would never have believed something like this. "Great, now do your thing. I want to leave here as soon as possible." Klaus urged. Alice laughed before communicating with the Seelie. A few seconds later, a light thread came out from the head of the Seelie and shot at Alice''s forehead. After connecting with her forehead, the thread tightened, before both parties were covered with a bright light. Alice had two elements, the fire, and lightning element, so she gave off red and silver lights, the Seelie had two elements, ice, and wind, so it gave off light blue and green colors respectively. The lights increased before becoming a cocoon that covered both Alice and the Seelie. The group waited for almost ten hours before the cocoon showed signs of breaking. When it broke, Alice was the only one inside. Her aura had changed slightly, she broke through to the Fifth stage of the Overlord Plane after forming a bond with the Seelie. She was already very close to the Fifth stage, so after getting the essence of the Seelie, she advanced to the Fifth stage. This was just the beginning, with the aid of the Seelie''s essence, she would advance quicker until she catches up with it. The group congratulated her when she came out. "It''s time to head out." Void rushed towards the treasure once again. Chapter 695 - Strip Her If She Disagrees! Chapter 695 - Strip Her If She Disagrees! In the west wing. At one of the halls, a portal opened and five humans and a cat rushed out of it. When they stepped out, there were four people in that hall, and all of them were either in the Eighth stage of the Overlord Plane or the Ninth stage. After Void took the treasure, everyone in the place sensed it. It was what brought people here, so the second it was acquired, its aura disappeared completely. There are a few people who have ways of searching for these sorts of things. These four were part of those people. Seeing Grey and his friends come out from a portal meant that they got something powerful, and the aura of the treasure disappeared almost at the same time the portal appeared. "Hand it over." A young lady who looked to be around twenty years old asked coldly. She was wearing purple clothes, with long gold hair. "Hand what over?" Klaus asked haughtily. He had always hated people like this. They didn''t even know them yet they were asking them to hand something over. "The treasure. If you still enjoy living, I''d suggest you do so quietly." The young lady spoke again. "What treasure?" Klaus decided the best choice of action was to feign ignorance. No matter what, he would deny this till the end. The young lady was starting to lose her patience when they heard the footsteps of others. Hearing the footsteps, a grin formed on Grey''s face and he threw something in their direction. He waited for the time the new arrivals would step in, that way, they would see the item being given to them, but they wouldn''t know what it was. The most annoying part was that he was going to use the space element to keep the item back in his storage ring. Besides, the treasure wasn''t with him, he only threw a shabby black plaque at the group. The young lady stretched out her hand, trying to catch the item, but it disappeared soon after. However, to the group that just arrived, she hid it in her storage ring the second it touched her hand. "We''ve given it to you, and let us pass." Klaus quickly caught what Grey was trying to do and said, making sure the people who came in just now heard of it. "What are you talking about?" The young lady asked, annoyed. Grey threw something in her direction, and just as she was about to catch it, it vanished. She was still trying to understand the reason behind that before Klaus spoke. The group that just arrived had eight people in it, and three of them were in the Ninth stage of the Overlord Plane. "Please, let us pass, we''ve already given the treasure to you." Reynolds joined in on the act as well. The leader of the new group walked over, standing behind the group of four. "What are you people talking about?" He asked with a raised brow. "Hmph! This is none of your business." The young lady snorted coldly. From how she responded, it was obvious that she was acquainted with this young man, and their relationship was by no means good. "Care to explain?" The young man didn''t bother with her and turned to Grey''s group. Klaus told them what happened. According to him, they accidentally entered a room that took them to another space. They saw an item lying on the ground, after picking it up, they were transported here. These people saw them when they came out and took it from them. The young lady looked at Klaus with bulging eyes. "Shut up you liar!" She scolded angrily. "You see, she''s trying to silence us so she could take the treasure for herself." Klaus pointed out. Even the three people with the young lady had confused expressions. They didn''t know what Grey threw at her, but they knew she caught something and hid it immediately. There was no way they were going to know if Grey''s group was lying or not. And the young lady had no way to justify herself since they saw her catching the item. ''Is she trying to trick us as well?'' This was the only question in the heads of the young lady''s companions. A treasure of this caliber was something that would make friends betray each other, so it was not unexpected that they started to doubt the young lady. When she saw the looks from the others, she felt irritated. "Can''t you see they''re trying to frame me?" She questioned in anger. "Bullshit! You''re obviously trying to keep the treasure for yourself." Klaus retorted before anyone could even speak up. "I''ll kill you!" The young lady was finding it difficult to keep her cool. "Search her and you''ll know that we''re not lying." Klaus suggested, irritating the young lady even further. She was from a major family in a high leveled Region. She was traveling when she heard about this treasure, hence she came. She would obviously have some rare treasures with her, so it was unwise for her to allow others to search her storage ring. "Come on, just let us have a look at the treasure." The young man from the new group said with a smile. "What treasure? I don''t have any treasure." The young lady said angrily. "That''s exactly what we said, but what happened when you threatened us? We handed what we saw over to you. Threaten her, I''m sure she''ll confess if you do so." Klaus interjected. The young lady looked at Klaus with hateful eyes. But for some reason, the person she hated the most was Grey. If he hadn''t thrown that strange item at her, no one would''ve been able to pressure her. "Camille, just hand it over and move on. There are other treasures here. With your strength, you''ll get something good." The young man said. "I don''t have any treasure." The young lady referred to as Camille replied. She was still trying to calm herself down when she heard Klaus'' next statement, she almost spat out a mouthful of blood. "Strip her if she doesn''t agree." Klaus said with a menacing smile. Camille looked at Klaus, and she was sure she would never hate anyone as much as she presently hated him. Chapter 696 - What Have I Gotten Myself Into? Chapter 696 - What Have I Gotten Myself Into? Grey looked at Klaus with an odd expression, while Reynolds held in his laugh. Alice on the other hand looked like she wanted to beat him up. Kyle looked at the group, terrified of their evil ways. He knew Grey had the space element, and the treasure was not with him to start with, so whatever he threw at the young lady was crap. He took it back with the space element, but most people would think it was the young lady hiding it in her spatial ring. An ingenious plan, with Klaus there to escalate things, it was nothing short of brilliant. The fact that they didn''t even need to speak to each other to understand their plans made them even more frightening. He crossed his heart never to offend them. If he knew anyone that tried to offend them, he would caution the person against it while apologizing in their stead. Klaus was an evil maniac, Grey was silent and deadly. Camille flew into rage and attacked Klaus when she heard his statement. "More evidence!" Klaus yelled as he dodged the attack. Even though Camille was in the Ninth stage, and was stronger, it didn''t mean that she could beat him up with him being unable to retaliate. He was in the Seventh stage of the Overlord Plane, after all. However, when they felt the power of her attack, they knew the difference in strength between geniuses in the mid and high leveled Regions. Grey could fight against a genius in mid level Regions that were in the Ninth stage of the Overlord Plane without much difficulty, but those in high leveled Regions were a different story. Although they didn''t know she was from a high leveled Region, they were able to guess when they noticed her cultivation stage. Most of the people her age in mid level Regions were still in the Early or Mid stages of the Overlord Plane, but she was already very close to the Peak of the Overlord Plane. Boom! Her attack slammed into the wall, destroying it. Klaus breathed a sigh of relief when he saw the state of the wall. ''I can''t believe I irritated such a demon.'' He thought internally. The young man stopped Camille from attacking. They were here for this treasure, and if he had to cross blows with Camille to get it, he would. They were from the same Region, and both families didn''t take each other as allies, so they could fight against each other. "Hand it over." He motioned to the rest of his companions and four of them came forward to surround Camille and her group. The other three went to block off the escape route of Grey and his friends. The people who came were in the Seventh stage, all three of them. Grey knew this young man wouldn''t believe them completely, but this was all they needed. Once he shifts all his focus to Camille, they could easily deal with these guys. With him, Klaus, and Reynolds'' Elemental Warrior, they would be able to deal with these guys. Then there''s also Void and Kyle as well. This meant that before the young man and Camille could figure out what was happening, they would be able to escape with ease. All they had to do was to wait till the battle between Camille and the young man became heated. "Just wait here, once he''s confirmed that the treasure is with her, then you can leave. Since we''re here, why don''t you people hand over your treasures, you can''t tell me that was the only treasure you''ve found." One of the three young men who surrounded the group said with a smirk. "Oh, doesn''t that mean you guys have also gotten treasures along the way as well?" Grey asked curiously. "Why are you asking, you want to take them from us?" One of the young men mocked. They felt Grey and his group wouldn''t fare to attack since they had a Ninth stage Overlord Plane genius with them, and not only one for that matter. "You know what, that''s exactly what we want to do." Grey looked at his friends before flashing a bright smile at the three young men. Camille had already started to fight with the young man and his group. She was irritated by Klaus, so she could barely keep herself in check. Their fight was already getting to a heated state. This was enough time for Grey and his friends to take out these three. They didn''t plan on killing them, robbing them was enough. With Void with him, he didn''t need to be scared of not being able to access the storage rings since their owners are still alive. Void could easily go in and out of his storage ring, these ones would be no different. When the others heard Grey''s words, they smiled and attacked simultaneously. The trio never expected that Grey and his friends would truly attack them, hence they were caught off guard even after Grey told them they wanted to rob them. Kyle was once again dumbfounded by how the head of these four worked. He wasn''t sure there would be anyone who would have the guts to attack in a situation like this, but Grey and his friends obviously didn''t care about being hunted down by Camille and the young man. ''What have I gotten myself into?'' He asked himself. But there was one thing he couldn''t deny, moving around with them was exciting. He hadn''t felt this agitated in a long time. His blood was pumping and he joined the group in their attack. Before Camille and the young man''s groups figured out what was wrong, Grey and his friends were gone. The three young men who were supposed to block them were on the floor, with only their underwear, the rest of their clothes were stripped from their bodies. Without even asking, everyone knew who the culprit behind that particular act was. If not Klaus, who else? In another hallway. Klaus was laughing like a psychopath as he threw the clothes of the young men outside the building. Chapter 697 - Powerful People Have The Right To Rob People! Chapter 697 - Powerful People Have The Right To Rob People! Kyle looked at the laughing Klaus, he couldn''t help but feel a chill run down his spine. The speed at which Klaus was able to strip the men was shocking. From how he did it so quickly, he knew this was not Klaus'' first rodeo. ''Why would someone derive joy in something like this?'' He thought to himself. The group rushed out of the hallway and entered another one. This place was massive, so as long as they ran, it would be impossible for these people to find them. Well, unless they were unlucky and met them again. "You''re a psycho." Alice looked at Klaus with disgust. "Hehe, they deserved it." Klaus laughed menacingly. Reynolds laughed as well, Grey shook his head when he saw their proud expressions. They obviously had no shame in what they did. Alice scoffed and continued walking down the hallway. Even though they had gotten the main treasure they came here for, and even got a bonus in the Seelie, they couldn''t leave the place without searching for any other thing. They didn''t stay in that section of the mansion, opting to head to the main building. Even though it was populated, they would be able to find some things there. Thirty minutes later. Grey and the group appeared in the one of the rooms, and there were people there fighting for something. Klaus suggested that they waited till they finished fighting, if the treasure was something valuable, then they would snatch it. Unfortunately, the people who were fighting there didn''t let them. Seeing them entering the place, the two groups stopped fighting and looked at them. No one wanted to be taken advantage of. "Leave." The two groups said simultaneously. "What are you fighting for?" Klaus asked with a playful smile. "It''s none of your business, leave." A young man in the Eighth stage of the Overlord Plane stepped forward. He was the one with the highest cultivation stage in the room, so he felt he had the right to speak to the group. "Sorry? What did you say?" Klaus made a face. "I sai¡­" "I can''t hear you, because I don''t listen to bullshit. In fact, leave now and you''ll keep the things you''ve already acquired." Klaus interrupted the young man when he was about to speak again. Klaus'' words annoyed him and he attacked. Since he was stronger, so he thought, he felt Klaus had no right to speak to him as he wanted. Unfortunately for him, this was the worse decision he could make. Klaus didn''t even think twice and retaliated, with a wave of his hand, a stream of water appeared and rushed towards the young man''s attack. He also made his special heavy water, hiding it inside the attack. Due to the effect of the water, his attack easily destroyed the attack of the young man and rushed toward him. The young man was taken aback, but he prepared himself to defend against the attack. He was in for the surprise of his life. The Seventh stage Overlord Plane Elementalist he was looking down on trounced him brutally. Klaus didn''t even hold his hand, attacking viciously. After his first attack caught the young man off guard, he continued his assault. The rest of the people in the young man''s group were in the Seventh and Sixth stage. When they tried to join in on the battle, Reynolds summoned his Elemental Warrior, while Grey stepped in as well. Kyle couldn''t stay still as well and attacked. Alice tried her new strength. She broke through to the Fifth stage of the Overlord Plane recently and she hadn''t tested her strength yet. She picked the person in the Seventh stage and attacked. The other group that was previously fighting against the young man''s group decided to watch from the side. Now, instead of Grey''s group to be the spectators, they were now the ones fighting. "They might be strong, after their battle with these people, they would be tired. We can get them then." One of the Seventh stage Overlord Plane Elementalist in the group said. Of the two groups, the one with an Overlord Plane in the Eighth stage had six people, while the other group had seven people. Their battle was in a stalemate, hence the reason they couldn''t afford to allow Grey''s group to watch from the side. Even though Grey and his friends were five, they had no issues with fighting against these six people. Void didn''t even join in, he was waiting till these people were defeated before he snatched their spatial rings. That was his task. He would only fight when the opponent is in the Ninth stage or at the Peak of the Overlord Plane. Boom! Bang! Bam! After almost five minutes, Grey and his friends defeated their opponents. "I''m still raring to go." Klaus cracked his knuckles and turned to the other group. They''ve already robbed this group and chased them out, now, it was the turn of the other group. "We''ll leave on our own." The leader of this group said. He already knew they were no match from these psychos, and they not only beat their opponents, but they robbed them as well. "Hand over your spatial rings and get lost." Klaus demanded. "What?" One of the ladies in the group asked with an annoyed face. "Why are you looking at me? If you were stronger, wouldn''t you do the same?" Klaus mocked. This was the truth though. It was just like the time they encountered Camille, had she not felt she was stronger than them, she wouldn''t have tried to force them to hand over the treasure. It was the rule of the world, the powerful had the right to rob others! With an annoyed expression, the group handed over their storage rings and left. All their savings were in there, and even the treasures they were given by their families were taken as well. "What a bargain. We should do this often." Klaus laughed. "You do know this will bring in a lot of enemies your way, right?" Kyle couldn''t help but ask. "Of course, but how can your life be fun without enemies? Who would feel sad when they see you make it?" Klaus said. "Learn to create enemies, they spice up your life." Klaus went on to advise. Grey shook his head before looking at what the group were originally fighting for. It was surprisingly a small orb, but he could feel a powerful force residing in it. "If this thing is destroyed, it would definitely cause a large explosion. Good stuff." Klaus nodded while caressing his chin. When they left the room, they started to move from room to room. The next few rooms didn''t produce anything, but they met a few people. Klaus was disappointed when they didn''t try to engage them. He didn''t want to be the one who initiates the battles, all he wanted was for someone to make an error and he''ll use it as an excuse to fight and rob them. Robbing people was fun! Void certainly agreed with him. They soon got to an intersection and they decided to split up to maximize the treasures they would find. Reynolds and Klaus took one path, and to Grey''s surprise, Void voted to go with them. Grey couldn''t stop him, so he let him go with them. Alice and Kyle took another path while Grey picked the last path. He wanted to be alone. Moving this way would be more efficient for him. Within a day, news of two people and a cat robbing people started to circulate in the mansion. They managed to attract so many haters in the place in the space of a day. If these people had the chance, they would''ve killed them already. Grey heard of it, and knew who it was. If not Klaus, Reynolds, and Void, who else could it be? ''These people will attract so many enemies that I would have to avoid them when leaving this place. If not, they might kill me.'' Grey thought. Kyle and Alice also had this thought. If they grouped up with Klaus and Reynolds now, they would be in trouble. "What is wrong with those friends of yours?" Kyle asked. "I honestly think you''re abnormal, but this is why I enjoy staying with them. They make life interesting." Alice said with a smile. She honestly didn''t feel strange after hearing the news. She had heard far worse. When they were in the trial land, Klaus and Reynolds robbed people of their pants! What the hell were they going to do with it? She told Kyle of this and he finally didn''t bother with this issue. Klaus and Reynolds were crazy from the get-go, so trying to comprehend what they did or why they did whatever they did is impossible. "I''ll just take them as they are. The truth is, they''re not bad company. Other than causing too much trouble, they''re fun to be with." Kyle remarked. Chapter 698 - This Would Be Fun Chapter 698 - This Would Be Fun The group stayed their separate ways for almost three days, even when Grey accidentally encountered them, he pretended as if he didn''t see them and went the other way. Klaus and Reynolds wanted to go after him, but since people were there, he attacked the duo which came as a surprise for them, before telling them via the communication device that they''ve made too many enemies and he was still too young to die. Klaus and Reynolds naturally didn''t take it lying, but when they were ambushed by almost twenty people, they realized maybe they had gone too far. They anonymously decided it was high time they left the mansion. Most people would be trying to recover what they''ve lost, and since there were possible treasures in some rooms, it was safe to assume that there would be people still inside the mansion. Grey was surprised when he heard their decision since he didn''t expect this to happen. At most, he thought maybe they would hide inside the building for a while, who would''ve known they would outright leave. ''This is for the better.'' He thought to himself. He wanted to recall Void, but then he remembered that everyone who had been robbed knew about this mysterious black cat, so he decided against it. However, leaving the mansion wouldn''t be enough, they would have to leave this Region as soon as possible. Most of the people they robbed were from this Region, so, it would be dangerous if they were caught by them after leaving this place. Alice laughed when she heard Klaus and Reynolds'' decision. "To think they still know when to use their brains." She chuckled. Kyle felt this was the best decision for the group as well. Most of the people they robbed will stay here for a few more days, so as long as they weren''t heard from for the next few days, it would at least help lessen their current fame. The duo left the moment they agreed on the decision. Grey continued exploring this place. There wasn''t really much he wanted here. All he found were strange fruits or elemental weapons that were too old. He still hadn''t found an elemental weapon on the same level as the multi-elemental weapon he got from that hidden underground in the trial land. Even with his current cultivation stage, the consumption was still too high for him. There had been times when he tried using it, but the amount of essence it uses was too terrifying. While walking in one of the hallways, Grey encountered a familiar face. "You!" A spiteful voice came from ahead of him. It was that of a young lady, and looking at the face, he tried recalling where he had seen her. Camille who had hated the group since encountering them could never forget their faces. Well, Grey and Klaus were especially handsome, so it was quite difficult to forget about them so quickly. When she saw Grey''s expression, she knew he didn''t recognize her, which irritated her even further. "I''ll kill you!" She yelled and attacked. "Oh, now I know you. You''re that girl who tried to rob us." Grey smacked his lips as he finally recollected who Camille was. Boom! Camille was a Lightning Elementalist, so her attacks were not something to joke with. Luckily for Grey, she was alone. ''Let''s see how powerful those in high leveled Regions really are. Please don''t disappoint me.'' He thought to himself. He had faced a few geniuses from high leveled Regions when he was traveling to the Southern Continent, but that was then. Besides, there was a difference in strength between most geniuses. Swoosh! Bang! He gathered energy in his legs, and with the aid of the lightning and wind element, he exploded with frightening speed as he dodged the attack. After dodging, he retaliated with an attack of his own. Camille was two stages ahead of him, and to his surprise, fighting against her, he felt a slight pressure from her. Boom! Bang! Bam! They continued exchanging blows, and Camille was obviously on top when it came to strength level. She was on a different level when compared to the geniuses from those mid level Regions. Grey couldn''t help but wonder just how different the strengths of geniuses from the high leveled Regions and those in the mid level Regions are. This was exactly why he refused the idea of them joining a Faction here, if not in the high leveled Region, then they wouldn''t join any Faction. Boom! Bang! Their battle was intense, but even with Camille''s advantage in strength, she still couldn''t defeat Grey. Now she understood how Grey played that trick on her. ''He''s not only a Multi Elementalist, but he also has the space element, and two of his elements are special. Where did such a freak come from?'' She was internally shocked, but it didn''t mean she had a good impression of Grey. They were already enemies, so there was no use in thinking about his talent or not. Bang! Grey was struck by one of her attacks, and it sent him crashing into one of the rooms, bursting through the door. ''Wow!'' Grey was impressed by her strength. If he could use all his elements, he naturally wouldn''t be at a disadvantage even with the stage difference, but presently, even with four elements, and one of them being the space element, he still couldn''t keep up with Camille. He decided it was time he brought out his inscriptions, they would be beneficial in distracting her. To his surprise, more inscriptions lit up, and he realized three of the five in the sky had silver colors. He only created two, one for his fire, and the other for his lightning. Both were blue and red respectively. He was still wondering where the other three inscriptions came from until they attacked him. ''An Inscriber. I never thought she was also like me.'' Grey was once again amazed by Camille. "Oh, you''re also an Inscriber? This would be fun." Camille''s eyes glittered. Chapter 699 - Stuck In The Mansion Chapter 699 - Stuck In The Mansion Boom! Bang! Bam! Both Inscribers attacked continuously without giving the other party any chance to breathe. Grey had only two inscriptions up, but he was able to keep up with Camille who had three inscriptions set up thanks to his added advantage of having multiple elements. Camille was stronger, and being born in the Aurora Continent meant that she was used to fighting against Space Elementalists. She could defend against them. Space Elementalists were troublesome to deal with, but they were not omnipotent. With sufficient experience, people could deal with them. Boom! Bang! Camille attacked with a lightning bolt which Grey was able to deflect easily. Grey countered her attack with the fire element. They continued exchanging blows for a few more minutes with no one being able to gain the upper hand. Camille was shocked by Grey''s strength. She was two stages ahead of him, yet he was able to fight against her on equal footing. If this was a life and death battle, it was unknown who would win. Well, she still had confidence since she had a few trump cards that she didn''t want to show against someone weaker. "It''s a shame you''re in a lower stage, else I would''ve loved beating you up. Playtime is over, hand over the treasure and I''ll consider letting you go peacefully." Camille said. "What treasure? We don''t have anything, the only reason I did what I did was to put you in trouble for annoying us, nothing else." Grey replied nonchalantly. When Camille heard Grey saying that he purposely did what he did, her facial expression turned distorted. She knew that he purposely did it, but the fact that he was saying it in front of her meant that he didn''t fear her. It was like a kid playing a prank against their elder and laughing about it to their face. "I don''t believe you. Hand it over peacefully." Camille said. The duo had stopped fighting, just watching each other. "I can''t continue explaining myself. This is something that I don''t have. Do you expect me to give you something I don''t have?" Grey asked. Camille looked at Grey for a few seconds, contemplating about the possibility of using any of her trump cards, after thinking thoroughly, she decided against it. It was a waste of time. "We''ll meet again, hopefully you''ll be more entertaining." Camille said. With that she left Grey alone. Grey didn''t try to stop her. Fighting against another Inscriber was fun, but he had other things to do. With no one to block him, he continued his journey. There was one thing he was sure of, he would encounter Camille or her companions here again. They still had a few days left to stay in the mansion, so he had to make the best of it. Klaus and Reynolds were already outside waiting for the others. Kyle and Alice were still inside, hoping to find another fortuitous encounter. Alice didn''t really have too many expectations, the Seelie she managed to get was enough for her. It not only increased her fighting power, but it also gave her two added options in fighting. It was like a double bonus. Three days went by in a flash, and everyone in the mansion started to rush out of the building. Grey''s friends included. The miasma would be returning in a few days'' time, and only a few people who still wanted to risk it were inside the mansion. There are a few people who were unable to get anything good while the place was open, so now they felt that with lesser people, they would have a better chance of getting something amazing. "Where''s Grey?" Alice asked Klaus and Reynolds when they came out. "He''s still inside." Klaus replied. Void was standing on his shoulder, looking at the mansion with interest. They could already see the miasma slowly returning to the mansion. "Don''t tell me he got greedy?" Kyle asked. Although he hadn''t been with the group for long, he knew they weren''t greedy people, well, other than Klaus, Reynolds, and the surprisingly talking cat. He was at least fifty percent sure that Grey wasn''t the greedy type. "He''s not that type. For one thing, he''s the most cautious person among us. If he''s still in there, either he found something really good, or he''s trapped." Alice explained. When they were in the trial land, Grey was the one who urged them to start heading back to the portal even before the time was up. "Hopefully, he found something good." Reynolds commented. Alice was still worried so she tried contacting him. However, he did not respond. "Let''s wait for a while." Klaus suggested. It wasn''t like there was anything they could do anyway. The group nodded and went to a hidden place. Klaus and Reynolds had too many enemies, so staying here where people could see them was too dangerous. Inside the mansion. Grey was rushing through one hallway, behind him was a large beast. The beast was at the Peak of the Overlord Plane, and no matter how he tried to attack it, it seemed almost insurmountable. He even tried using the chaos orb, but it was inefficient. That was his strongest attack, even when in the Fusion State. If even that was not effective, then he didn''t know what to do. While he was running, he recalled he could still use his fire domain. Without wasting any time, he tried using his domain. In a split second, the hallway was shrouded with hot blazing flames. However, the beast continued chasing him, it was as if it was oblivious to it. ''What the hell is this?'' Grey looked at the orb in his hand. This was the reason this beast had been chasing him relentlessly. He had tried everything in his power to lose it, even pushing his space element to the limit, but it was still not enough. On the way, he saw a figure rushing in his direction. It was none other than the young man who fought with Camille. "I knew I''d see you again, hand it over." The young man said. Chapter 700 - I’ve Been Scammed! Chapter 700 - I''ve Been Scammed! "I knew I''d see you again, hand it over." The young man said while blocking Grey''s path. Grey, who was still thinking of ways to avoid the beast chasing after him, was a little taken aback when he saw the young man. "Oh, sure. Here." He didn''t even think about it twice before tossing the orb in his hand to the young man. At first, he originally didn''t want to give up the item since it was difficult to obtain, but he wasn''t going to get himself killed because of it. Since this young man showed up, it was best to hand it over to him. He had already stayed here for too long and it was time to leave. The young man was stunned, but he still took the item. When he tried to keep it in his storage ring, he was astounded when he realized he couldn''t. "Bye." Grey said as he ran past him. The young man was still thinking about why the orb didn''t enter his storage ring when he sensed a powerful aura rushing toward him. He raised his head only to see a large beast that stood around two and a half meters galloping at him. ''Could this thing be chasing that guy?'' This was his initial thought, so he tried to move to the side to give the beast a chance to chase Grey. However, he realized the beast moved as well, aiming at him. "F*ck off!" He unleashed a powerful attack on the beast. His eyes nearly bulged out when the beast didn''t even flinch. "What''s this?" He couldn''t sit still any longer. The beast roared and attacked when it got close. Bang! Its large claws slashed at the young man who dodged hastily. The attack hit the wall, creating a large claw mark on the wall. "What the? Damn it, I''ve been scammed!" The young man looked in the direction Grey went with hatred. Whatever Grey gave to him was obviously the reason this beast was attacking him, however, for the beast to attack meant that it was something special. He gritted his teeth and contemplated if he should use his trump cards or not. Just like Klaus, he had a talisman that had the attack power of a Sage Plane expert, even an Elemental Sovereign talisman as well. He was from a powerful family, so it was natural for him to have these for protection. Bang! Boom! The beast didn''t think unlike the young man, it attacked continuously without rest. The young man evaded and blocked the attacks. But as time went on, the pressure started to increase. "Damn it! I''ll take the risk. It better be worth it." He said with gritted teeth while taking out a red talisman. Crushing it, he tossed it at the beast. Boom! A powerful energy exploded out of it, followed by a raging fire. The strength of the attack was on a different level. Even this powerful beast was left almost helpless against the attack of a Sage Plane Elementalist. From the second it felt the strength of the attack, it quickly started to prepare its defenses. Unfortunately, it still wasn''t enough to protect it. With a painful roar, the beast was sent flying, slamming into the wall before being hit by the leftover attack. Its previously impenetrable body was filled with wounds and its blood was flowing from them. The young man took advantage of the opportunity and attacked. Bang! Boom! With the beast''s injuries, it was only a matter of time before it gave up. When the beast realized that staying here would be its end, it gave up on the orb and ran away. The young man tried to stop it from running, but unless he used one of his talismans, there was no way he could keep it here. "What is that beast?" The young man looked in the direction the beast ran towards. He couldn''t help but think about it. Its defense was on another level completely. He looked at the orb and his expression softened a little, this was the reason he sacrificed one of his precious talismans. Making them wasn''t easy, so naturally they couldn''t use them wantonly, unless absolutely necessary. ''Heh, better be worth it.'' He thought to himself. He tossed it up, however, to his greatest surprise, the orb didn''t come down. "Hello again, thanks for helping me hold on to this, I''ll take it now if you don''t mind." Grey''s voice came from behind the young man, before he could even react, Grey''s had bolted out of the place. "Wait, what?!" The young man exclaimed. He was too shocked to react immediately, only after Grey''s figure disappeared into the hallway did he finally react. Without wasting any time, he rushed after him. How could he let Grey go with the orb like that? He had expended a lot of effort just to ward off the beast, now Grey appeared again and took it so casually. He even had the guts to say thanks! "I''ll kill you!" The young man''s enraged voice could be heard across the hallway. Unfortunately, no matter how much he screamed, Grey was not going to stop and wait for him. If the space element was left out, Grey still had a large array of elements to help with his speed. If he added his physical speed as well, then it was basically impossible for anyone in the Overlord Plane to catch up with him if he wanted to escape. On hearing the young man''s scream, Grey chuckled as he ran away. When he passed the item to the young man, he originally ran away, but after hearing the sounds of fighting, he came back. He was about to give up on it when the young man brought out the talisman. Only after seeing it did he start to plan on how to recollect the orb. Taking it from the hands of the young man would''ve been difficult, but it wasn''t impossible. Who knew the young man would throw the orb into the air, presenting him with a heavenly opportunity. He didn''t think twice before swiping the orb away. Chapter 701 - Why Wait Till Next Time? Chapter 701 - Why Wait Till Next Time? "Damn it! Damn it! Damn it!" The young man cursed as he chased after Grey. Even though he couldn''t see Grey''s figure, he didn''t want to give up. "You assh*ole! I''ll kill your entire family! F*ck!" The young man yelled in frustration when he was unable to locate Grey any more, punching the wall by the side. He couldn''t accept the fact that someone in a lower stage took advantage of him. This was unacceptable! Grey was currently laughing in one of the rooms. He wasn''t even close to the hallway the young man was in. He had not only left that part of the mansion, but he was on another wing entirely. ''This thing is not bad. I''ll try to see if I can get something out of it.'' Thinking up to this point, he tried to destroy it. But it didn''t budge, even after attacking it multiple times. ''Damn, I can''t hold onto it like this throughout.'' He felt a little disappointed about it. Just as he was about to give up, he felt a reaction in his body. It was coming from the orb inside him. "Huh? What''s this?" He was a little scared. The orb in his body is usually dormant, so seeing it have a reaction towards this orb alarmed him. The orb inside his body started vibrating, and the one in his hand followed suit, shaking to the same rhythm as the orb inside him. As the orb started to vibrate, a strange aura spread out from it, the second Grey sensed the aura, it was as if his consciousness went out of his body, entering a place filled with nothing but miasma. ''What''s this?'' He asked himself, shocked by the sudden development. He tried recalling his consciousness back to his body, but to his shock, he was unable to. After trying multiple times, he gave up on it and decided to explore the place. The place was dimly lit, and other than miasma, he couldn''t see anything else. He couldn''t even see from his knee down since it was covered by the miasma. "This thing isn''t trying to kill me, right?" He asked himself, a little afraid. One of the main reasons he hated the orb inside him was that he had zero control over it. This meant that it could react however it wanted without him being able to do anything. It rarely reacted to anything, and since he got it, this was the first time it was doing something like this. ''I''ll need to find a way around this thing. I can''t take any chances.'' He concluded. While exploring the place, he was oblivious to time. Outside the mansion. Two more days had gone by and the miasma had returned. Every person inside had left the place, and the miasma had already covered the mansion. "What''s Grey doing?" Alice felt something was wrong. "I don''t know. But he''s still inside, apparently." Klaus'' expression was gloomy. This was not something any of them expected, Grey still being in the mansion even after the miasma returned. Kyle wore a glum expression. The consequences of staying in this miasma was terrifying. Even if Grey came out in a few hours'' time, he would''ve already been infected by the miasma, and it would only be a matter of time before he died. Of all of them, only Void had a nonchalant expression. He had seen Grey healing Ellis'' father who was plagued by these miasmas, so he knew Grey would be alright. His only concern was that it took Grey a while to do this, and he was drained after every session. He didn''t know if Grey was immune to the miasma, but if he relied on a special power to heal Ellis'' father, then he would be in trouble once he stays in here for too long. "Void, how come you''re so nonchalant?" Reynolds'' noticed Void''s behavior and asked. "I still don''t get the reason why you people take him for a ''normal'' person, when he''s obviously not." Void''s reply stunned the group. Klaus thought about it for sometime before smacking his head lightly, "Haha, I totally forgot about his weird abilities. But it''s still difficult not to worry about him. I don''t think he''s encountered something like this before." Alice and Reynolds nodded their heads, they knew Grey was special, but this was a miasma they''ve not seen in the Azure Continent, so they didn''t think Grey would have a way around it. "He has, well, not personally." Void recapped the event in Ellis'' house to the group. The group''s expression lightened up a little, with the exception of Kyle who felt his head was about to explode. ''How is that even possible? If he healed him a few hours or days after the miasma infected him, then it would''ve been believable, but months after the infection, is that even possible?'' Kyle thought to himself. This was something even those powerful figures at the top wouldn''t be able to do, yet Grey, who was still in the Origin Plane at that time was able to do it. Other than feeling tired, he was fine. This was something that could transfer to someone else if they come in contact with anyone infected, yet he healed him. Kyle was finally blown away by Grey. He had known he was different from the time they first met, but now, he didn''t even know what to think anymore. If people were unique, then Grey was unique even when placed amongst other unique people. "He''s still alive, so don''t worry." Void said to the group. He could sense Grey''s life-force, so he knew he was perfectly fine. The group calmed down and started looking at their gains in this place. Void and Alice were the biggest beneficiaries, while Klaus and Reynolds were also part of those who earned a lot of items from robbing people, along with tons of enemies. They were still discussing when they saw the young man speaking with Camille. "That animal used me, I''ll kill him the next time I see him." The young man said in annoyance. "Heh! Why didn''t you kill him when you saw him the last time?" Camille mocked. Chapter 702 - Miasma Chapter 702 - Miasma Klaus and the others overheard the conversations between Camille and the young man and couldn''t help but chuckle. Although Grey rarely did things like this, it didn''t mean he didn''t do them. In the group, only Klaus had a talisman that belonged to a Sage Plane expert, so he could be said to have the highest security among them. Grey couldn''t defeat the beast chasing him, so he placed the load on the young man''s head. After the young man dealt with the beast, he came back and collected the item he left with him. Kyle shook his head when he heard this story. He never thought that Grey would do something like this. From how annoyed the young man looked, he was sure that if the young man saw him now, he would try everything in his power to kill him. Unfortunately for everyone, Grey hadn''t even made any movement in the mansion. He was still seated in a cross-legged position with the orb in his hand. Unknown to him, he was slowly absorbing the orb. He was still stuck in the strange space, and even after walking for who knows how long, he managed to locate a hill. With nothing left to do, he tried comprehending the elements, but he was unable to sense them. Even with his high cultivation stage, he still wasn''t able to sense any element, except for the space element. Grey managed to sense the space element after a few hours of trying, but he was still unable to leave the space his consciousness was stranded in. With nothing left to do, he tried comprehending the space element since it was the only thing he could do. While he was stuck in the mansion, his body was being ravaged by the miasma as soon as it returned to the mansion. Normally, it wouldn''t really affect him, but since the orb was working on the strange orb he got, it couldn''t help him. After the mansion was covered by the miasma, those around it started retreating. Grey''s friends weren''t an exception. They couldn''t take the risk of being touched by the miasma since it was extremely dangerous. Grey, who was the only one who could help them, was currently stuck in a mansion filled with miasma. The group could only retreat along with the others. Most of the people around started to leave. Since the group was hidden, most of Klaus and Reynolds'' enemies left without finding them. A few tried to locate them when they left the mansion, but after multiple days, they gave up, thinking the duo had left the surrounding area. One week later. "We should stay in the city not too far from here. Once he returns, then he''ll search for us." Klaus suggested. Staying here would be boring and tiring. It was best if they went to the city where they could experience things. Even if they didn''t experience something new, it wouldn''t change much. Grey continued sitting cross-legged in the strange space, trying to see if there was a way he could connect to the space element. In the blink of an eye, two more weeks went by with Grey still stuck in the mansion. If not for Void reassuring the group that he was still alive, they would''ve thought maybe something bad had happened to him. They stayed in the city close to the mansion. Kyle felt leaving would make the group take him in a bad light, so he didn''t leave. Since the group trusted Void''s words, then he would wait as well. Two more weeks went by before Grey''s motionless figure opened his eyes. After staying in the mansion for a month without any protection against the miasma, his body dried, almost to the same level as a dead person. When he saw his appearance, he was shocked. Only after he realized that he was slowly healing did he calm down. ''I can''t leave this place like this.'' He thought as he entered the miasma. He waited for a few days to recover from being infected by the miasma. After almost a week, he returned back to his original state. If it were before, it would''ve taken him at least a month or so before he recovered, but for some reason, he was able to heal quickly. ''Miasma. Who would''ve thought that someone would be able to wield it without these places.'' Grey thought as he looked around him. The strange place his consciousness was stuck in was actually where he could understand miasma. With this, he didn''t need to fear any miasma in the Azure or Aurora Continent. Miasmas were extremely dangerous, and would only form in places filled with the darkness element. This was all on the premise that the Darkness Elementalist uses his power in the same place. This would increase the chances of a miasma forming, and also increase the strength of said miasma. In the instances of such cases, even people without the space or darkness element could escape from this place. Although it was a little difficult, it was not impossible. A few days later. Grey left the mansion and walked deeper into the miasma. He had managed to recover his strength and didn''t look to be in danger of exposure to the miasma any longer, so he tried to explore this place. Maybe he could obtain some rare treasures deep in this place. After walking for almost four hours, he left the compound without finding anything. He continued his search, and after three more hours, he was unable to get anything. This place wasn''t like other places. Because of the excess darkness element in the air, it was impossible to sense time, and those affected by it couldn''t sense that they had ventured this deep into the place. Grey was busy searching for the center of the place, while his friends were enjoying their time in the city close to this place. There were a few people who wanted to try and see if they could acquire the technique about miasmas, but they were unable to meet the requirements. Chapter 703 - A Strange Person Chapter 703 - A Strange Person "Don''t tell me there''s nothing here." Grey said as he walked through the somewhat empty place. He had been searching for almost a week now, but even after leaving the compound where the mansion was located, he was still unable to locate any item. When he woke up, he realized that the orb in his hand was nowhere to be seen. He guessed that he had absorbed the entire orb, but since he wasn''t sure of what happened, he didn''t think too much about it. Besides, he already benefited from it. Even though he was still in the miasma, he knew that presently, he could make a sort of miasma. It wasn''t as strong as this one, but it was enough to incapacitate an Origin Plane Elementalist. This was a start for him, he knew that as time went on, the strength of his miasma would improve. At that time, with a simple puff of smoke, he would be able to corrode the essence of those around him, making it difficult for them to use their elements. Two days later, he got to the center of the place. The miasma here was so strong that even he had a problem with dealing with it. The longer he stayed in the place, the more his body became corroded. Staying an hour here was the same as spending an entire week in the mansion. ''The darkness essence here is well above that of other places. I should be able to improve my darkness elemental grade if I stay for a few days.'' He thought as he looked around. The appeal of increasing his elemental grade was high, but thinking of the risk, he decided against it. His body had already dried up, and if stayed here for a day longer, then his bones would be corroded as well, and his body would start to fall apart. Grey turned around, since he had come to a decision, there was no use in staying here any longer. Leaving was the best choice. It took him almost two days before he managed to leave the area infected by the darkness element. When he left the place, his body was already all dried up, and only his bones were visible. If his friends saw him, they wouldn''t believe it was him since he was completely different. When he saw his appearance, he knew that he had to at least try to recover some of his body before going in search of his friends. He could already sense that Void was not far away, so he found a safe cave before trying to heal up. The moment he came out of the miasma, Void who was with Klaus sensed it. "He''s out of that place." Void said. "Is he coming?" Klaus asked excitedly. "No, he seems to be staying close to the miasma." Void replied after trying to sense Grey''s location. "Alright, that''s enough for us." Klaus replied. He went back to inform the group of what Void said, and they were visibly excited when they heard this. They went straight towards the place the moment they heard Grey was no longer there. With Void directing them, they managed to locate Grey in a matter of a few hours. When they saw Grey, Klaus'' eyes nearly bulged out. This was the same reaction for the others. Although Grey wasn''t fat or chubby, he couldn''t be said to be thin as well. Presently, even after recovering, his bones were still visible. This showed just how much his body dried up when he was stuck in the miasma. "Damn! This place really isn''t a nice place." Klaus commented when he saw his condition. "Well, I''m alive, that''s good enough, right?" Grey replied as he looked at his condition. He knew they were coming toward him, but even after using the light element, this was the best he could heal himself to. It would still take him at least a week or so before he completely recovers. "You look like crap." Reynolds said. "The skeleton of a dead person." Klaus added. "You know how those corpses look like, they are better than your current appearance." Reynolds added. "Oh, and when you''re¡­" Klaus was in the middle of saying something when Grey interrupted him. "Enough, I already know I look shitty, no need to rub it in. I''ll be fine in a few days at most." Grey said. "Well, since I''m better looking now, why don''t we go out and ask people who''s better looking?" Klaus asked with a grin. Bang! Klaus'' figure was sent flying. It was unknown when Grey attacked, but everyone knew he was the one who did it. Klaus'' figure shot out of the cave, crashing a few inches away from the miasma. When he saw the miasma so close to him, Klaus freaked out and hastily retreated even though he was crawling. He already saw how Grey looked, if he allowed this thing to touch him, then he was done, his handsome face he was so proud of would be gone for a while. ''Such a petty person. If I didn''t land a few inches away from this thing, my pretty face would''ve been destroyed.'' Klaus thought as he looked at the cave Grey was located in. Of course he didn''t dare to say this in Grey''s present. He naturally knew that Grey purposely made him land a few inches away from the miasma when he could easily send him into the miasma. If he were to annoy Grey, then he would land in the miasma the next time. Kyle looked at Grey, a little taken aback that he was still alive after being stuck in the miasma for so long. Even Elementalists above the Elemental Sovereign Plane can''t stay alive after being infected for so long, yet, all that happened to Grey was that his body dried up. This was insane! "You''re a strange person." Kyle commented. "I''m just a normal person." Grey replied. He didn''t really feel strange. "That''s unacceptable, I don''t think even you believe that." Kyle replied. Chapter 704 - A New Ability Chapter 704 - A New Ability Grey didn''t continue his conversation with Kyle since there was no use in doing so. He asked how long he had been stuck there, his facial expression changed slightly when he realized how long it was. ''Hmm, I never thought it took so long. Well, my gains aren''t that bad.'' He thought to himself as he stared inside his body. His body was slowly creating miasma. Unlike other things, he couldn''t just create it, rather, it would slowly form. This means that it was expendable. Once he uses up his reserves, then he would have to wait for some time before his body made more miasma. It was quite a strange situation. "What happened?" Alice asked. She was a little curious as to why Grey stayed in the miasma, even risking his life because of it. She wasn''t the only one who was curious, the others were as well, especially Kyle. He wanted to know what made Grey stay. "A long story, and it was completely accidental." Grey dodged the question, but he also told them he had no plans of staying there for so long, and that it was an accident. "Okay." The group nodded. They all knew that the only reason Grey wasn''t going into details was because of Kyle. He still didn''t trust him enough to speak out his secrets. It took him years before he told his friends about it, much less Kyle who they''ve known for less than a few months. Kyle knew Grey didn''t speak because of him, but he didn''t try to pry any longer. All he knew was that whatever kept Grey in that place must''ve been special. "Oh, that guy is searching for you." Klaus recalled something and said. "What guy?" A look of confusion appeared on Grey''s face. "The one you tricked into fighting a beast." Klaus told him of the young man''s intentions after he came out. "Haha, he was stupid. Did he think I''ll give him something I got that easily?" Grey laughed when he heard how incensed the young man was when he left the mansion. The fact that he brought the issue out meant that he was infuriated. Grey didn''t really care how the young man felt, as long as he didn''t try to cause any trouble for him, then he wouldn''t be bothered with him. "Can we get going now?" Klaus asked. "You really want to see how bad the miasma will affect you, don''t you?" Grey looked at him, his words were clearly a threat. Klaus gulped in fear before retreating out of the cave, "Why don''t you recover first, I''ll keep guard outside." Alice and Reynolds burst into laughter when they saw this. Klaus loved his face too much to let something like this happen to him. He couldn''t even fathom the possibility of it happening. Kyle watched the friends, and for a split second, he actually felt envious of their relationship. They bicker with each other, help each other, understand each other, and of course, fight against each other. They each had personalities that helped the others. For instance, Grey was kind of antisocial, Klaus, Alice, and Reynolds on the other hand were very friendly. The only issue with Klaus and Reynolds was that they were troublemakers. Alice has helped resolve most of the issues they caused while they were staying in the city waiting for Grey to come out. The group stayed with Grey as he recovered. ''Have you been able to use it?'' Grey asked Void telepathically. Void got the item they came here for, so he wanted to know if Void had used it yet. ''No, I''m waiting for you. We''ll have to use it simultaneously, or else if it''s separated, it would lose more than half of its essence which would make the effects decrease substantially.'' Void explained. ''Hmm, okay. We''ll use it when I''m done healing. It should be able to improve your Rank, right?'' Grey asked. Void had been at the Peak of Rank Five for a while now, and it was around time he improved his Rank. It wasn''t as easy as it sounded, but Void shouldn''t really have any problems with the help of this treasure. ''I''ll break through once I absorb this thing. The only thing is that I''ll not be able to help you for some time.'' Void replied. ''Oh, why''s that?'' Grey asked. ''I''ll be sleeping.'' Void''s reply almost made Grey choke on his saliva. He finally remembered that most of the times that Void has advanced a Rank, he was asleep. ''What sort of training method is that?'' Grey complained internally as his eyes twitched. He stopped speaking with Void about it since it would only make him depressed. People trained hard just to advance a stage, while there are the likes of Void that slept and advanced their Ranks. Things like this make people question the fairness of life. Yes, we know life''s not fair, but can you stop favoring people so much? You''re making it seem as if living is so easy when it''s not! ''What did you get in that place?'' Void asked when Grey stopped speaking about the treasure. Just like the others, he also wanted to know what Grey got from the place. ''Hehe, miasma.'' Grey replied with an evil chuckle. ''Miasma? I don''t understand.'' Void wore a confused look. ''My body can create and store miasma for some reason now. It''s strange, but it''s not a bad ability to have. I can easily corrode the surrounding elemental particles, making it difficult for others to use their elemental powers.'' Grey explained in glee. Gaining new abilities like these naturally made him excited. He hated how it happened, but it didn''t mean that he''ll not cherish his new strength. This could be used as a trump card, even against those more powerful than he is. As long as he''s able to store a large amount, then he should be able to use it to at least scare off these people. The effect wouldn''t be as powerful as these natural miasmas, but it should still be enough to cause them some worry. ''That''s insane! Is it even possible?'' Void asked. ''Apparently, it is. I think it has something to do with the orb I obtained in the mansion.'' Grey said, he didn''t add the fact that he also had another orb in his body which reacted to it to make this strange ability possible. ''You''re one mysterious person. I don''t think people will believe this was possible.'' Void commented. He was genuinely surprised by Grey''s new ability. It wasn''t something that was supposed to be possible. Grey started his healing once he was done speaking with Void. The others were waiting for him to recover before they left. Their current target was the high leveled Regions. They''ve already spent so much time and still haven''t been able to get into any Faction since they didn''t feel like they would be enough for them. Even if they weren''t on the same level as those in those high leveled Regions, they wouldn''t have a problem with getting into a Faction with their strength and talent. Two days went by in the blink of an eye. Grey had almost completely recovered from his previous state. Although he wasn''t back to his normal state, he wasn''t far from it. Walking around wouldn''t be embarrassing any longer since there were tons of people thinner than he was. "I liked how you previously looked." Klaus remarked as they stepped into the city. Grey threw a glance his way, and Klaus laughed mischievously. They were already out of where the miasma was located, so he didn''t have any reasons to be afraid that Grey would send him into it. "What are your plans?" Grey turned his attention to Kyle. They only accidentally met when they went after the treasure. Since they''ve already left the place, and were already planning to leave this Region entirely, he felt it was right to ask Kyle what he wanted. If he still wanted to accompany them, he had no issues with it. But if he wanted to go his separate way, then it was best. "I think I''ll hang around with you guys for a while, if it''s okay with you all." Kyle looked at the group. "You''re more than welcome. We rarely get to meet new people, and you seem to know a lot." Reynolds replied. Alice and Klaus nodded and Kyle turned his attention back to Grey. He was the one left to agree to his request. "I have no issues with you traveling with us." Grey nodded as well. Since they''ve already come to an agreement, it was time to leave. Alice didn''t even challenge who she wanted any more since they had already spent so much time waiting for Grey. They headed straight for the teleportation array and prepared to leave this Region. With an added figure to their group, the spirit stone expenses increased exponentially. On the way to the teleportation array, Grey felt something heating up in his storage ring. Chapter 705 - Link To Another World Chapter 705 - Link To Another World ''Teacher''s been requesting a meal for a while now.'' Grey chuckled when he sensed how hot the plaque was. It was evident that his Teacher had been signaling him for a long time now, and since he couldn''t really feel it, he was unaware. ''I''ll make something once we get to the woods.'' They used the teleportation array and were transported to a small town close to the borders. Teleportation from one Region to another was prohibited, so they''ll naturally have to cross on foot. Grey asked Kyle what he knew about those secret realms. He remembered Sylvia speaking about it, but he still didn''t have a clue about it. She told him some details, but not much thinking he already knew. "Secret realms? Well, as the name implies, they''re a secret for a reason. But since I''ve been to one before, I know a thing or two about it. They are a link to another world." Kyle''s reply stunned Grey and the group. "Another world?" Grey and his friends'' looked at Kyle curiously. Hearing the word ''Another world'' piqued their interest. "Yes, actually, only those who''ve been to it know about this. Most people think it''s just a place that will transport you to a secret pocket dimension created by a powerful expert from old times, but the truth is, it actually takes you to another world completely where you encounter another race." Kyle explained. "The only good thing is that these worlds seem to have restrictions, so it''s impossible for the race there to grow past the Sage Plane. If they want to grow past that stage, then they will have to leave their world and come to ours. Unfortunately, that''s unacceptable. The last time another race was allowed into our world, it caused a huge war after some years¡­" Kyle added. Grey and the others exchanged glances. Void had a strange look when he recalled those small guys they fought back at the Azure Continent. ''Those guys must have been the ''other race''.'' He said to Grey. ''Most likely.'' Grey replied. Kyle told them what he knew. Of course he didn''t speak of everything since he wasn''t allowed to say everything he saw there. Most of what he was saying was general knowledge to powerful Families or Factions. He could already guess that Grey and his friends seem to be either from a powerful family that was hidden away, or they were geniuses traveling to join a powerful Faction. He still couldn''t grasp how they weren''t from a powerful Family or Faction. They were talented, almost on the same stage as those from high-leveled Factions. Grey in particular didn''t seem to lose out against those in the same stage from high-leveled Faction. If Reynolds were to fight against someone on the same stage as himself and brought out the Elemental Warrior, then he would almost certainly obtain the victory. They were still traveling in the woods when Grey finally caught a wild boar that he used to prepare a meal for his Teacher who had been requesting it for some time now. "How are things with your little companion?" He asked Alice as they started eating their part of the food. "She''s good." Alice responded as the little Seelie came out from her body and glanced at the meal, with drool almost coming out from its little mouth. Alice cut a small piece for it and it started eating happily. Even though Alice had to rely on Grey''s cooking to get it, it couldn''t really be said to be the only reason it agreed to follow them, so it wasn''t really too bothered after not getting a piece of meat from Grey''s personal cooked meal. Apparently, it enjoyed every meal. While they were waiting for Grey, she bought food from multiple Inns, and the Seelie ate them with the same glee as when eating Grey''s meals. "That''s nice to know." Grey nodded his head before sharply turning his head in another direction. He could sense a strange aura coming from that direction. "We should get going." He said to the group and stood up immediately. "What''s the problem?" The others asked. They knew that since Grey moved this quickly meant that whatever he sensed wasn''t good for them. "Necromancers." Grey''s eyes were focused on where he was sensing the necromancer from. He didn''t know the strength of the person, but he knew it was a necromancer. What he found appalling was that this necromancer seemed to have been able to sense him from over a one kilometer meter radius. When he tried to check himself, his expression changed drastically. It was only now that he realized that compared to before, the mark on his body had grown stronger. This meant that instead of the small range that it previously had, its distance had increased. ''Could it be that what she did has worn out, or is this the work of someone else?'' He racked his brain as he tried to come up with an answer. While thinking up to this point, he recalled those small black creatures. They were the only powerful necromancers he had encountered since being marked. This meant that they were the most likely culprit. ''Damn it! Why must they choose to worry me?'' He complained internally as he increased his speed. "Are you sure? Those people are very secretive and rarely come out to chase anyone." Kyle tried to get confirmation from Grey. He knew all about necromancers, and from how they were hunted down, they would prefer hiding in a cave to actively searching for someone. "One hundred percent." Grey replied. He didn''t tell him why he was able to sense them, or why he started to run the second he did, and honestly, he didn''t need to tell him. "Alright. The best thing to do now is to head for the nearest city. They wouldn''t dare to go within the territories of these powerful cities." Kyle advised. With the group''s strength, their speed shot up when they focused fully on running. The journey which was originally supposed to take them at least two hours took them lesser than thirty minutes. Chapter 706 - Are You A Real Necromancer? Chapter 706 - Are You A Real Necromancer? The visage of a large building soon came into view. When the group saw this place, they calmed down since it meant that they wouldn''t need to worry about the necromancers any longer. "We''re saved." Reynolds laughed in joy. "For now." Kyle looked at Grey suspiciously. The only reason Grey would know about necromancers and be cautious of them is probably because he had encountered them before. The only way necromancers would be able to track him is if he were marked. This was common knowledge to most of the large Families and Factions in the Aurora Continent. Grey''s gaze clashed with Kyle, and gave him an understanding nod. He knew Kyle understood what was happening. The only reason he didn''t want to tell his friends about it is because no good news has come out from anyone marked by necromancers from the past. If they research, they would be able to know what he would experience. Kyle looked at Grey with a complicated look, he knew all that usually happens to geniuses marked by necromancers. Once the news of Grey being marked spreads across the necromancers organization, then he would be in danger. But he felt things might be a little different with Grey. After all, he couldn''t classify Grey with other geniuses. There''s a chance that Grey might be able to survive this ordeal. If he does, then he would be the first person who has been able to survive this. Even the genius who was protected by the strongest Faction in the Middle Continent was killed after a few years of being marked. Necromancers were powerful figures in the Aurora Continent, even though they''re hiding, it doesn''t mean that they were weak. The group entered the city, and walked straight for the teleportation array. The first thing they needed to do was to find if there were any competitions that they could participate in. This was their only way of easily joining a Faction. Either this, or maybe if any of them were recruiting. On the way to the teleportation array, they asked if there were any competitions going on in the Region, but they didn''t get any good information. After a few turns, they got to the teleportation array. Using it, they moved to the city closest to this city. Three days went by and they had moved the entire Region, and were already at the end of this Region, preparing to move to the next Region. They heard that there was a competition taking place in the next Region, so they wanted to meet up before the competition started. It would take them a few days or so before they got there. And the competition would start in a week''s time. On the way, they encountered an obstacle. It was none other than a necromancer, who was in the Early stages of the Sage Plane. "Hehe, to think that you would escape this far. You made me chase after you for so long." The necromancer laughed as he stared at Grey and his group. "Why are you following us?" Alice asked. "Hehe, you don''t need to know. You''ll be a good specimen for my new experiment." The necromancer laughed evilly. Unlike most of the necromancers the group had met, this was actually chubby. "Are you sure you''re a real necromancer?" Klaus asked when he saw his figure. Although he hadn''t really seen other necromancers, he heard from Grey and Kyle that most of them were very thin. "What are you saying?" The man asked angrily. "Not to be rude, but I heard necromancers are usually, you know, life deprived." Klaus explained with a shrug. "You¡­ I''ll kill you." The necromancer said angrily. "Hehe, you can''t." Klaus laughed. The reason he was still this courageous was none other than the talismans Chris gave to him. This was why he wasn''t scared of speaking to the necromancer. If things got too hard, he would use them. "Why are you so confident? Do you think you can survive?" The necromancer asked. "Yes, yes I do." Klaus replied before taking out a talisman. When the necromancer sensed the power in the talisman, he froze and thought about his choices. If he were to engage with them, he wasn''t certain of being able to instantly kill them, which meant that they would have the opportunity to use these talismans which would place his life in danger. "All I want is him, you all don''t need to endanger yourselves." The necromancer decided to bargain with them. "He''s with us, there''s no way we can leave him for you." Klaus stood in front of Grey. "One talisman will not be able to kill me, what would you do after using it?" The necromancer asked. "Use more." Klaus brought out another talisman. He gave one to Grey, Reynolds, Alice, and even Kyle. The necromancer almost tripped when he saw this. These things were very difficult to make, why did Klaus have so many? ''They must be from one of those large Families. This is why I hate these geniuses.'' The necromancer thought while looking at the group hatefully. "Are you sure you want to do this?" The necromancer asked Klaus. "Of course, do I look like I''m joking? I can give you one if you want." Klaus played with one of them, pretending as if he wanted to throw it in the necromancer''s direction. The necromancer was scared, and retreated a few steps. "Haha, to think you''re afraid." Klaus laughed and held onto the talisman. "Let''s go." Klaus said to the others and started walking forward. To the dismay of the necromancer, Grey and his friends walked past him without being able to do anything. He was even embarrassed by Klaus in the process. "No matter how you run, we''ll find you." The necromancer said to Grey as he walked past him. "I''m not afraid of your kind." Grey said coldly. It was only a matter of time before he would be able to move freely in the Aurora Continent. Chapter 707 - Asking For A Talisman Chapter 707 - Asking For A Talisman "What''s going on?" Klaus asked after they left the woods. There was no way this person would chase them for no reason, especially given the distance they moved. Also, his statement to Grey when they were leaving meant that there was something between them. Grey sighed wryly, he knew he wouldn''t be able to hide it any longer, "I''m marked." "Marked?" Alice asked with a curious expression. "Yes, a necromancer used his life force to place a mark on me. Now I''m being hunted down by all necromancers." Grey shook his head wryly. "All necromancers?" Klaus asked. "Yes. They can sense the mark in my body if they''re close to me. Initially, when I was marked there was an expert with me, and she managed to reduce the effect to only a one kilometer radius, but after encountering those creatures back home, they seemed to have increased the distance." Grey explained, a wry smile on his face. He hated his current situation. When it was a one kilometer radius, he could still cope with it, but now, things have become incredibly difficult. If he were to go on an adventure on his own and he encountered these people, he might lose his life if they were stronger than he is. "That''s messed up. Isn''t there a way to remove the mark?" Klaus asked. "No, not even the most powerful expert in the Continent can help him remove it." Kyle told them the story of the genius from the number one Faction in the Middle Continent. The group''s expression changed when they heard about this. They didn''t think it was this bad. "No need to worry, necromancers are very rare. Since they''re only Darkness Elementalists, they''re population is low." Grey said, "And besides, they don''t enter cities like this one. Even if they do, they wouldn''t be able to show that they''re necromancers since it will make everyone hunt them down." The others knew that Grey was only trying to reassure them, but they still found it difficult to accept things as they are. If even the most powerful Faction couldn''t protect their genius, then who could protect Grey? "Come on, the competition will be starting soon. They''ll be suitable Factions for us." Grey said to the others, trying to rouse their spirits. "Sure, let''s get going." Alice nodded. She believed Grey would be able to survive this. Just like Kyle thought, she knew Grey was different when compared to other people. Maybe he would be able to create a miracle once again. The others nodded and followed Grey as he led the way. "Wait, you guys are trying to join a Faction?" Kyle asked as they walked forward. "Yes." Reynolds replied. "Wait, you''re saying you guys weren''t in a Faction or any of the large Families?" Kyle was dumbfounded. How could geniuses like these not be part of any powerful Faction or Family? It was unbelievable. "Nope." Klaus shook his head. Kyle was lost for words. He wanted to speak, but he paused. This was a shocking discovery. He never thought this was even possible. When he was traveling with the group, he originally thought they were from large Families and their Families had ties with each other, hence the close friendship between the four. "Where are you from?" He couldn''t help but ask. "Somewhere far away, even if we tell you, you still wouldn''t know it." Grey was the one who answered him this time. "Hmm." Kyle still didn''t know how to take this news. "Do any of you wish to join my Faction?" He suddenly asked. He was a Fire Elementalist, so his Faction focused more on the fire element. But they wouldn''t mind taking in geniuses of this caliber even if they were of other elements. And besides, Grey and Alice had the fire element. "We plan to join different Factions." Reynolds replied. "Why?" Kyle asked. To him, it didn''t make sense. Why would they actively separate? With their chemistry, if they stayed in the same Faction, they would be the most feared group. "This would give us more of a challenge since we''d like to see how far we''ve grown after separating for months or even years. We all know Grey''s stronger, and being with him isn''t good for us." Klaus replied. "It still doesn''t make sense." Kyle said. "Haha, don''t worry about it. You can join in our little competition as well. The person with the highest cultivation stage and the most powerful person will be the leader of the group!" Klaus said. "Do you think you can actually lead us?" Reynolds asked with a mocking smile. Amongst the group, Klaus was the one who advanced the quickest thanks to his insane luck, so they knew he would definitely be the one with the highest cultivation stage. Grey was the strongest, even if they were two or three stages ahead of him, it would still be almost impossible to defeat him. "What are you saying? I''ve been doing a great job all this while, haven''t I?" Klaus turned to Void. "I support you." Void said. The group continued bickering as they entered the city. In the end, they decided that no matter what happened, Klaus wouldn''t lead the group. What Kyle found strange was that since he was following the group, they didn''t seem to have a leader. Whatever decisions they wanted to make, they needed the permission of the others before deciding on it. ''They''re just¡­'' He sighed with a shake of his head. "Looks like we managed to make it." Grey said as they entered the city. The city was bustling with activity due to the competition that would be taking place. They got here two days before the competition, so they still had time to explore the city before the competition began. They would take their time to access all the Factions that will be present in the competition before picking the one to join. Kyle told them all the information he knew about the Factions. Alice and Reynolds picked two different Factions that focused on the Lightning element, while Klaus picked a Faction that was based on the water element. "Which Faction are you joining?" Klaus asked Grey. The competition would be starting that day, and the others had already picked a Faction they wanted to join. "None." Grey replied. "Huh?!" Everyone exclaimed in shock. "There''s no one I''m interested in. Well, to be precise, I would like to move to another Region." Grey replied. Although joining a Faction was good, he didn''t feel this was the Region for him, so he planned to check out other Regions first. "Hmm, okay. But wouldn''t traveling alone put you in danger?" Klaus asked. After hearing about the necromancers hunting him down, the group felt he would be in danger if he moved alone. If not for the talisman Klaus had, then things would''ve been dangerous for him during his last encounter. "I''ve begged Teacher for some talismans, besides, Void would be breaking through soon." Grey said. After the last incident, he asked his Teacher for a talisman. The plaque his Teacher made was extremely useful, instead of sending a meal over, he wrote a letter and sent it over. He knew his Teacher would throw a tantrum after seeing it, but since the talisman was important to him, he had to. Chris didn''t agree to make a talisman for him since he still hadn''t recovered from the last ones he made for Klaus, but after being blackmailed and begged by Grey, he decided to take the risk. The reason he agreed was that he couldn''t afford to stop eating his delicious meals, nor could he let his cook die. "Uncle? He agreed?" Klaus asked, surprised. "Of course. I''m his student after all." Grey shrugged. Not telling them of how he had to blackmail him. When Kyle heard their conversation, he finally knew the relationship between Klaus and Grey. This explained why the duo were so close and understood each other so well. But he still didn''t know the relationship of Alice and Reynolds to the group. "We should get going, the competition will start soon and you four need to register." He said to them. "What about you?" Reynolds asked. "I have no interest in joining the competition. I''m part of a Faction, and the rewards aren''t important to me." Kyle said. "I''m also not joining, but I only want to test out my strength." Grey said, trying to convince Kyle to join. "Actually, I have a few enemies here. Going on stage will only show them that I''m around." Kyle said. "Oh, why didn''t you say that earlier?" Reynolds patted him on the shoulder. The others didn''t pressure him any longer and headed to the arena. Almost everyone in the city was heading towards the arena, so it was pretty busy. When they got there, they were amongst the first few who made it there. Without delay, they headed towards where they would register for the competition. Chapter 708 - Start Of The Competition Chapter 708 - Start Of The Competition On the way to the arena, Kyle used a piece of cloth to cover from his nose down, leaving only his eyes visible. This would keep the people he had a fued with from recognizing him. He knew Grey and his friends were bound to attract the attention of most of the people here, and since he was sitting with them, they would notice him as well. As long as he didn''t fight, he would be safe. Very few people had green flames, and his enemies would definitely try to see if he was the one even if he covered his face. ''Void, how long will you be asleep once you use that item?'' Grey asked Void telepathically as they registered for the competition. ''At least two weeks, then at most, a month.'' Void replied. Grey thought about the issue for a while, before deciding that once his friends joined a Faction, he would stay in a city and absorb the treasure with Void. He had gained some things during their travels, so there''s a chance that he might advance to the Eighth stage of the Overlord Plane after using this treasure. His advancement has been quite fast since coming to the Aurora Continent. This was all thanks to the things he had acquired. Of the group, the next person who would see a breakthrough soon was Reynolds. He was already in the Fourth stage of the Overlord Plane for a while now. Once Void breaks through to the Sage Plane, things will be safer. Of course he still had to worry about being chased by Elemental Venerables. But the good news was that Elemental Venerables and above rarely travel. They mostly stay in closed door cultivation, trying to advance their stage. When an Elementalist grows to this stage, most of them don''t like moving frequently. Necromancers for one are people who did tons of research, so they would mostly be hiding somewhere. His only prayer was not to accidentally pass through this sort of area, because no matter what a necromancer was doing, unless they would die if they left it, they would definitely try to seek out who was marked. The group completed their registration and went over to get their seats. Since they came early, they picked a seat in the front row. They spoke as they waited for the start of the competition. As time went on, people started flooding the arena. A few minutes before the start of the competition, a commotion broke out which drew the groups attention. A large shadow covered the sky, looking up, it was that of a gigantic bird that was flying in the sky. It flew to the platform and landed there. As soon as this bird came into sight, five more came. They were filled with people, both old and young. In one of them in particular, it was filled with only girls, and they were all in blue clothing, with the insignia of ice on their back. "That''s the Faction I''m joining." Klaus pointed at the group with girls. "You do know that''s an all girls Faction, right?" Kyle asked, with a weird expression. "All the more reason I want to join. I''m a handsome guy, who would perfectly fit in there." Klaus said with a proud expression. "Do they take Lightning Elementalists as well?" Reynolds asked. "No, and besides, you''re too ugly." Klaus said. "What do you mean too ugly?" Reynolds snapped at Klaus. "Look at me, then take a look at you. I don''t even want to talk about Grey since that will send you straight to depression." Klaus said mockingly. "Don''t drag me into this." Grey said from the side. "But you have to admit, you have a beautiful face." Klaus said, pointing at Grey''s face. "You''re crazy." Grey said. Kyle watched the group with a smile on his face. He still found the group amusing even after staying with them for so long. He never thought that they would bicker this much. "I don''t think they will allow you to join them though." Kyle stated. "You don''t need to bother about that, I''ll figure out a way myself. Getting their attention is easy." Klaus said confidently. Kyle didn''t pursue the matter any longer. He knew they weren''t from this side, so if Klaus refused to accept what he told him, it was up to him. Maybe after he was rejected, he would learn to listen. "Besides, I have a plan b." Klaus added. While the group were discussing, the members of the Factions that came all went to their seats. After a few more minutes, an Elder from one of the Factions stepped forward. He stood on the platform in the middle and started addressing the crowd. The Elder spoke about the rules and the potential of joining one of them if they could get a good position in the competition. Just like the geniuses rankings, the battles are shared in the Early, Mid and Late stages of each Plane. But the battles start from the Origin Plane. Most of the people in the Origin Plane are around fourteen to seventeen years old. Back in the Azure Continent, around that age, Elementalists were still in the Arcane Plane. This showed the difference between both places. The number of people who registered for the competition were enormous, so it would take some time before it even got to the Overlord Plane. "Should we watch or leave?" Grey asked. "Of course we''re staying. How will I build a connection in getting into that Faction if I leave?" Klaus asked. "You¡­" Kyle shook his head and gave up. He never thought Klaus'' plan was to befriend the girls from the Faction. "I''m a friendly person, you don''t need to worry about me not being able to befriend them." Klaus said. Alice looked at him with disgust, if not for the fact that they were in a public place, she would''ve beat him up. "Make sure you take me along. I''m also very friendly." Reynolds said. "You''re too ugly. Even after walking with us for so long, you''ve not been able to improve." Klaus smirked, irritating Reynolds. "You should stop talking, the competition is about to start." Grey said to Klaus, giving him a threatening look. Klaus glared at Grey and moved closer to Reynolds as they continued their conversation. Alice looked at the duo acting like kids. Well, to be fair, they were all still very young, but Klaus and Reynolds seem to take it to another level. There are times when they do things without even thinking about the repercussions. Just take the time they robbed those people at the mansion for instance, although it was fun and all, they created a whole legion of enemies for themselves. These people wouldn''t even mind coming together just to take them down. Klaus and Reynolds could not be bothered with this, all they thought about was having fun. Not just that, but they acquired a lot of essence stones from their robbery. The stones have been useful since they used the teleportation device a lot during their travels. The stones Grey had were almost used up due to the travels. Before long, the competition started. Seeing people who were around fifteen years being in the Origin Plane amazed Klaus, Reynolds, and Alice. They never thought that they would see people this young being in the Origin Plane. Given the numbers of the people who registered, around fifty people were placed in one platform. They would brawl, and the ten people who were left would advance to the next round. Once they advance to the next round, they would then draw lots for the other rounds. The top two hundred people had a chance of joining one of the Factions. They also have the chance of challenging a member of any of the Faction in the same stage as them, if they could defeat the person, then they could join said Faction. But if they can not defeat said genius, then they couldn''t join that Faction, unless the Faction willingly picks them. Alice and Reynolds were excited by the news since they would be able to pick the particular Faction they wanted because of this rule. All they had to do was defeat the person in the same stage as them. They decided to keep all their trump cards until that battle. Once they got to the top two hundred, then they would challenge them immediately. Klaus looked at the Faction that had only ladies, his eyes brimming with confidence. He was certain that he would join this Faction. With his talent, it would be difficult for them to refuse him. Maybe he would become the first male to join this all female Faction. Even if he didn''t join them, he wanted to create a good relationship with them. Grey didn''t have any Faction in mind, all he wanted to do was to test out his strength. And this was the best opportunity for him to do so. Chapter 709 - Start Of The Competition II Chapter 709 - Start Of The Competition II The competition progressed in an organized manner. With these powerful Factions hosting the competition, these people taking part wouldn''t dare to act unrestrained. It took almost three days before the top two hundred for the Origin Plane was picked. The numbers that registered were just too many, so they had to divide the number of battles taking place. According to what was said, those in the Overlord Plane that registered were actually higher than those who registered on the Origin Plane. When the top two hundred were picked, it was time to either continue the competition and see if they could get a good ranking in their respective stages. Other than challenging members of a Faction, there is another way in getting into a Faction of your choice, getting to the top ten. Any Elementalist who manages to enter the top ten can pick whichever Faction they desire. Only ten people challenged a member of a Faction immediately, and all ten were defeated within two minutes at most. Some were taken out with a single blow. Seeing this sent chills down the spines of the others he had the thought of challenging them. They all decided it was best to wait and try to see if they could sneak into the top ten. "Aren''t they a little too powerful?" Klaus couldn''t help but comment. He didn''t feel too confident in defeating anyone from the Faction any longer. The strength showed by those in the Origin Plane was already beyond his expectations, and he rated them very highly to begin with, if even that isn''t enough, then getting his wish was going to be more difficult than he thought. "These aren''t even the cream of the crops. They''re just those close to them." Kyle said. Klaus, Alice, and Reynolds were shocked by his words. If these people weren''t the strongest, then how powerful would those at the top be? "Well, I can''t wait to find out how powerful they are when I join their Faction." Klaus said, looking at the same Faction fervently. The main reason Klaus picked this particular Faction wasn''t mainly because it was an all-girls Faction, but because they had the best ice techniques according to what he found out and what Kyle told him. They were also said to be the best water Faction in this Region. If he wanted to join a Faction, then it had to be the best, at least then he would know that he could grow quickly. Being a all-girls Faction was just a bonus for him. He naturally didn''t have any lewd intentions towards them, getting entangled with any of them will only sully his name. But he still enjoyed seeing beauties. Who wouldn''t want to see beauties? "By any chance, do you know what the secret realm they go to is like?" Klaus pointed at the all-girls Faction. "Other people rarely know what the secret realm of another Faction looks like. Although, there are times that some Factions or Families will actively invite people over to explore one of their secret realms. Most big Factions and Families have more than one secret realm. These are like the backbone of a Faction since it''s what makes their geniuses grow stronger faster." Kyle explained. "Hmm, so that''s a no?" Klaus asked. Kyle shook his head with a soft smile. He knew Klaus understood the meaning of his words, but he still wanted to confirm if he knew what it looked like. "You''ll find out once you join one, no need to be too bothered." Grey stated. This was obvious, but Klaus had his full attention on this particular Faction. They even had a catchy name, Moonlight . It was as if they weren''t a Faction but a nation. Who wouldn''t want to join a Faction with a catchy name? While the group were discussing, the top two hundred had started their battles. Those who challenged the members from a Faction and lost still had the chance to redeem themselves if they could get to the top ten. Of course, they could still catch the eyes of those powerful figures in the Factions as well. So they had to put up their best. A few representatives from smaller Factions were still around, they could snap up all those who were rejected by the top Factions. It was shocking that an Origin Plane Elementalist who was still around fifteen years or so would be rejected. In the Azure Continent, such figures would be lauded by all. But here, some would become rejects, joining a lesser Faction. Grey didn''t watch the battles with much interest. He was more interested in absorbing that treasure. Thinking about it, they would spend some time here. If those in the Origin Plane took three days just to get to the battle of the top two hundred, then it would take longer for those in the Overlord Plane since they had a higher number. ''Void, why don''t you absorb it when we get back to the Inn?'' He asked Void telepathically. ''Oh, in this city?'' Void asked. ''Yes, or is there a problem with that?'' Grey asked. ''It''s quite special, so there''s a huge chance that its aura would leak out. If that happens, then we would only be inviting trouble.'' Void explained. ''What about if I used a concealing array?'' Grey asked. ''I''m talking about after you use it. If you don''t use it, then the second we take it out, the entire city will know, even those in the Origin Plane will sense it. But with the array, only people above the Overlord Plane will stand a chance of sensing it.'' Void elucidated. ''You mean?'' Grey was shocked. ''This is something that people sensed even when hidden in a special place under that mansion covered in miasma, do you think your small concealing array could help?'' Void asked with a raise of his brow. Although this sounded somewhat hurtful to Grey''s pride as an array specialist, he couldn''t deny the fact that what Void said was the truth. Before the aura of the treasure managed to sip out even in such a place, how could he conceal it? Chapter 710 Start Of The Competition III ''How come it''s safe in your spatial storage?'' Grey asked when he thought of the fact that the item was kept in Void''s spatial storage all this while and it hasn''t been sensed by others. ''Simple, I cut off every access it has to elemental essence. Without it, it''s basically ordinary. Once it comes out the amount of essence it would absorb would alarm the entire city, and they would be able to easily track it here.'' Void explained. ''Oh, that''s why. So what do we do about it now?'' Grey asked. ''We''ll have to leave the city, at least a five kilometers distance away. That wouldn''t even guarantee our safety. Then, there''s also the possibility of an expert above the Sage Plane going past that place, putting us in even greater danger.'' Void said. Grey felt a headache coming when he thought of this. If what Void said is true, which it most likely is, then he couldn''t afford to absorb the treasure now, which meant Void would have to seek other methods to break through. ''I guess we''ll have to wait till we join a Faction, and even that wouldn''t guarantee our safety. All I need to do is try to get into one of those secret realms, no one below the Sage Plane can defeat me, so I wouldn''t have anything to fear there.'' Grey came to a decision in a short time. He was already under the danger of being found by the necromancers after his head, if he were to take out such a treasure, then it would make others search for him as well. ''This is like a ticking time bomb.'' Grey thought to himself. It took two more days before the competition for those in the Origin Plane ended, now, it was time for those in the Overlord Plane to begin. The next day. Grey and his friends looked at each other confidently. They all registered at the same time, so according to their calculations, they would be able to enter the same platform. If they were grouped among fifty people, they wouldn''t have any problems with qualifying for the next round. Only when the competition was about to start did they realize a piece of vital information, two of them were in the Mid stages, Alice and Reynolds, while the other two were in the Late stages. Since it was done stage by stage, those in the Early stages of the Overlord Plane were the ones who started the brawl. "Damn, and it thought we would''ve been able to run rampant here." Klaus said with a disappointed look. "I honestly forgot about this as well." Grey said. It took almost two days before those in the Early stages of the Overlord Plane completed their brawl. They also continued to the next round which was drawing lots. Two more days went by and those in the Early stages finally completed their part of the competition. Surprisingly, two people managed to defeat members of the Factions they wished to join and didn''t participate any longer in that competition. Those who managed to enter the top ten picked the Factions they wished to join. It was time for those in the Mid stages of the Overlord Plane. Alice and Reynolds stepped forward. Since they registered at the same time, they were placed in the same platform. This didn''t come as a surprise to the group. "You two shouldn''t embarrass me, remember I have people to impress. When they consider if I''m qualified, they would also look at the people I came with. It would be a shame if none of you manages to get into any Faction." Klaus encouraged the duo. Well, it couldn''t really be called encouragement, it was more like him pleading with them to perform exceptionally well so the Faction he wanted to join would know he was friends with geniuses as well. "Heh!" Reynolds smirked as they walked towards the platform. Alice couldn''t even be bothered with Klaus and his words. All her attention was placed on a particular Faction, Asterope. This was one of the best lightning Factions in this Region. Reynolds wouldn''t be joining the same Faction as her, opting to join another one. They made sure to look at the relationship between both, and only after confirming that both Factions weren''t enemies did they decide. On the platform they were placed, there were multiple youths in the Sixth stage of the Overlord Plane. Reynolds was still in the Fourth stage of the Overlord Plane while Alice was in the Fifth stage, but Reynolds could be said to be the most powerful person if he brought out his Elemental Warrior. He didn''t plan on bringing it out now though, his aim was to get into the top two hundred and challenge someone from the Faction he wanted to join. Once he defeats his opponent, he wouldn''t take any part in the competition any longer. This wasn''t Alice''s plan however, unlike Reynolds, she loved fighting, so after challenging a member of the Asterope Faction, she would still take part in the competition. When everyone was on the platform, the competition began. With fifty people placed on one platform, they were a lot. The battles were disorganized since the people were too much and only a few of them grouped up. Alice and Reynolds stayed together, fighting off any person who came close to them. They eliminated any of the people who tried to attack them while also making sure they were on their guard. As time went on, the number of people on the platform started to dwindle, and before long, there were only ten people left on their platform. With ten people left, the place was spacious and they could take their time fighting. The remaining participants looked at each other, all wary of their strength. Reynolds was the only one in the Fourth stage of the Overlord Plane that was left on this platform. This naturally brought a lot of attention to him. A few of the people here with a higher stage couldn''t afford to see someone in a lower stage advance when they couldn''t. Chapter 711 Advancing To The Next Round "I think you''re their target." Alice whispered to Reynolds. "It''s understandable, I''m the only one below the Fifth stage." Reynolds shrugged, not feeling pressured by the gazes he was getting. At most if things go out of hand, he''ll summon his Elemental Warrior and send these guys packing. "Leave the platform peacefully." A youth walked up to Reynolds and said. He didn''t say it in a haughty manner, it was more like an advice. "If I didn''t want to take part in the competition, I would''ve registered for the competition in the first place, don''t you think so?" Reynolds asked. The youth sighed before attacking. It was a competition, he didn''t know Reynolds, so there was no use in trying to force him to accept his advice, the best thing was the eliminate him from the platform. The youth was in the Fifth stage of the Overlord Plane, just like Alice, and he was a Water Elementalist. Boom! Alice stepped in front of Reynolds and blocked the attack with a fire attack. Steam rose into the air after the attacks collided. "You don''t need to worry about him, your opponent is me." A young lady in the Sixth stage walked forward and said to Alice. With four people already engaged, the remaining sixteen people picked an opponent and started battling. They couldn''t sit and watch as the others fought. Boom! Bam! Bang! Attacks moved from left to right with twenty people focused on trying to eliminate each other. This was the first time Alice was fighting against someone above her stage since they came to these high leveled Regions, and after the first few attacks, she was left gasping for air. Her opponent was powerful, definitely well above her. If she were to bring out her Seelie, then she would be able to get an advantage since she would be attacking from two places. Reynolds was also having a tough time with his opponent. The young man who attacked him didn''t give him any chances to recover as he attacked continuously. Reynolds'' body was coated with lightning as he dodged the attacks coming his way. The few he was unable to dodge, we blocked with his elemental attacks. ''These people are on a different level!'' Reynolds exclaimed internally. Even after the warning from Grey and Kyle, he never thought the difference would be this big. His current opponent wouldn''t have a problem with fighting against someone in the Eighth or Ninth stage back in the Azure Continent. "Wow¡­" Klaus was stunned. Seeing both Alice and Reynolds being suppressed by people who were only a stage above them was a sight he never thought he would see. Of course, if the duo went all out, then they wouldn''t really have any issues with fighting against their opponent. "Shocked?" Kyle asked. "Not really, I just didn''t expect I''ll see them suppressed this much." Klaus smiled wryly. Now he was starting to worry for himself and his chances of getting into the Faction he wanted. ''Why am I bothered, at most I''ll trick my opponents.'' He thought to himself. If he couldn''t beat them, then he would annoy them till they give up. All is fair in war. "This really isn''t surprising, they haven''t gone all-out." Kyle said. He had seen the duo in full power, so he knew they were stronger than this. Furthermore, there are also the trump cards they might have hidden from him. "How are you sure their opponents have gone all-out?" Klaus asked. "Simple." Kyle pointed at the young lady fighting against Alice, "From her expression, you can easily tell that she wants to make sure she eliminates Alice. She would want to do it in a domineering fashion." "Alice wouldn''t lose to her even with her hiding most of her strength." Grey commented. "Naturally, but I want them to win in style. Well, they would do it when they challenge members of the Faction." Klaus said. While the group were talking about the battle, the battle raged on. Alice was slowly started to get used to fighting against the young lady. Just like Alice, the young lady was a Dual Elementalist, wielding both the fire and earth element. Powerful attack, complemented with powerful defense. She was a tough opponent. When the young lady saw that she couldn''t take care of Alice as easily as she thought, she slowed her pace of attacking. Since Alice focused on defending, it was impossible for her to force her way through. The best option was to think of a plan. Reynolds was exchanging attacks with his opponent, but he was still suppressed by his opponent. Luckily, he was faster than his opponent, so he could dodge most of the attacks. The young man fighting against Reynolds created multiple ice shards that shot at Reynolds with incredible speed. Seeing the ice shards, Reynolds, who was covered with lightning, moved around quickly. To those in a lower stage, all they could see was a flash of lightning moving around in the platform. The young man gritted his teeth in frustration, Reynolds barely traded blows with him. Once he counters once, he would turn tails and run. Then whenever the opportunity presents itself, he would counter once again. The young man has been able to block all of the attacks so far, but he knew there is a possibility of him being unable to block one. The second he was hit by an attack, then he was defeated. Reynolds would take advantage of it and send him out of the platform, eliminating him. Bam! A lightning bolt struck the ice wall that the young man made in front of him. Cracks started to appear on the wall, and with another attack, the ice wall shattered to pieces. The young man''s pupils dilated when he realized that immediately the ice wall was destroyed when another attack came at him. This meant that Reynolds had already predicted that the previous attack would be able to destroy the ice wall, so he hid an attack behind it. The young man didn''t panic, a water dome appeared before him as he tried to use the water to slow down the lightning bolt, giving him the time he needed to evade the attack. After sending out the stream of water, the speed of the lightning slowed down significantly. Seeing this, he moved to the left, away from the lightning and also the water stream. When Reynolds saw this, he smiled before moving two steps back. Crash! Bang! A lightning bolt fell from the sky at breakneck speed, before the young man could even sense the attack, it had struck him in the head. Reynolds had been preparing this attack for some time now. He had already guessed that the young man would move to the left. He had been watching the young man since they were fighting and realized for some reason, the young man prefered dodging to the left most of the time. ''All according to plan.'' He thought to himself with a chuckle. Before the young man could recover from that attack, Reynolds charged towards him and sent him flying, sending him off the stage. The young man had been eliminated. This was someone who was a stage above him and powerful, yet Reynolds managed to eliminate him with careful planning. "Smart." Kyle commented when he saw the final outcome of the battle. "Of course, do you think that he''s dumb? He may act dumb sometimes, but he''s pretty smart." Klaus said. "He studied his opponent and planned accordingly." Grey said. They all saw the fight, and every single person in the arena knew that Reynolds took a gamble with that attack. The speed at which the attack came meant that he had already prepared it. If the young man had moved to the right instead of the left, then his plan would have been thwarted. This would''ve made him feel disorientated, giving his opponent the chance to get at him. Alice was still fighting against her opponent. Unlike Reynolds'' opponent, the young lady didn''t give her the chance for her to counter. Even though she was still on the back foot, she was still able to hold on. The duo were still fighting when they heard the voice of the man in charge of their platform. "You can stop fighting now." The voice said. They paused and turned to look at the man, before looking around, only to realize that they were the only two fighting. Counting with their eyes, they noticed that including them, they were ten people left in the platform. This meant that the others had been eliminated. "Good battle." The young lady said. "I enjoyed myself." Alice replied. She walked over to Reynolds and they walked back to their seats. Reynolds was the only one who drew some attention due to his careful planning. There are also a few people who watched Alice''s fight with the young lady and found her impressive. "We made it to the next round." Chapter 712 Next Round "Nice fight, but you should''ve beaten him sooner." Klaus commented when Reynolds walked closer to them. "I''d like to see how you would fair." Reynolds replied, his tone implying the obvious. ''Let''s see what you will be able to do against these monsters while holding back.'' "To be honest, I''d do just fine. Unlike you two, I need to make a grand scene." Klaus chuckled. Kyle shook his head, still baffled by the fact that Klaus still hasn''t given up the idea of joining this all-girls Faction. No matter how one looked at it, it seemed pretty much like Klaus wanting to join was mainly because he found out that it was an all-girls Faction. Grey didn''t have any issues with hiding his strength, it wasn''t like he was going all-out in the first place whenever he fought in competitions like this. Having eight elements and using only four meant that he couldn''t fight to his full potential. "My opponent isn''t bad." Alice said. "Yeah, but you would take her out if you went all-out." Kyle said. Alice smiled without replying. She knew Kyle was right. With the Seelie on her side, she wouldn''t have any problems. It was just like Grey''s inscriptions, she gained another means of attacking. She could either merge with the Seelie and be in control of all the elements, or she could let it out and it would attack independently. The best way to utilize this is to battle with it frequently, to improve their synergy together. Luckily, since getting the Seelie, she had been sparring with the group while they were traveling, so they had a good understanding of each other. The group continued speaking as they watched the others battles. The number of people was too much so one more round took place. After this round was completed, the remaining participants had to draw lots before fighting. Overall, in the Mid stages competition, there were around four hundred people left. Whoever manages to get into the top two hundred would get a chance of challenging anyone from the Factions they wanted to join. While getting to the top one hundred would guarantee joining a Faction, only the top ten had the best chances of joining whichever Faction they wished. There have been cases where some Factions fight over a genius. It rarely happens, but said genius must be extremely talented before they could get these people to make a move. By the end of the day, they were done with the brawl and it was time for the draw lots. Reynolds and Alice had opponents in the Sixth stage of the Overlord Plane. Alice didn''t have an issue with dealing with someone in the Sixth stage, but without Reynolds'' Elemental Warrior, then he was as good as eliminated. "What are you going to do now?" Klaus asked. "Show off, of course." Reynolds said with a smile. "Going all out now would mean that the Faction will know of your strength and send someone who can deal with you." Kyle warned. "Don''t worry, I have a plan to deal with them." Reynolds reassured. Grey didn''t have any fears for his friends. He had complete confidence in them. "We should rest tonight, tomorrow is a big day for you two. Advancing means you can join whichever Faction you want to." Grey said to the group. They all agreed with Grey and left the arena, heading home. Time went by and the next day came. The group went to the arena. Reynolds and Alice prepared themselves for the competition of the day. When they got there, they had to wait an hour before it got to their turn. Reynolds was the first person called up. His opponent was an Earth Elementalist in the Sixth stage of the Overlord Plane. When Reynolds stepped on stage, he drew a few attention. After confirming from both participants that they were ready, the man in charge of their platform called for the start of the battle. "You should just leave, I saw your battle with that guy, you''re not my opponent." The Earth Elementalist said. "You don''t need to bother about that, we''ll see when the battle starts." Reynolds replied. "Hmph! Better not waste my time." The Earth Elementalist said. From their short conversation, Reynolds knew he was a proud person. Defeating people like this gave him some sort of satisfaction. "Hehe, I won''t." Reynolds laughed in response. The Earth Elementalist didn''t waste any time and attacked immediately. Being an Earth Elementalist meant lesser speed but higher attack power. Reynolds dodged the attack coming his way before rushing to counter. The Earth Elementalist already knew Reynolds would take advantage of any mistakes, so he didn''t even try to make any. With his earth element, he made sure his attack was effective and his defense was even better. Boom! Reynolds blocked his attack before countering his attack. The speed of his attack was above that of this opponent, but unfortunately, his opponent was already prepared for it which made it ineffective. Boom! Bang! The battle was intense, and no matter how Reynolds tried, he was unable to break the defense of the Earth Elementalist. The Earth Elementalist however didn''t have any problems with his attacks. The strength of his attacks was on a level above Reynolds, while he only attacked when he knew it was necessary. Grey and the others watching the match knew that if things continued in this fashion, then it meant that Reynolds would be eliminated. But they knew he had a trump card which could keep him safe in this competition. If he summoned his Elemental Warrior, then he wouldn''t have any issues with defeating those in the Mid stages of the Overlord Plane without any issues. "When do you think he would call out his Elemental Warrior?" Klaus asked, patiently waiting for Reynolds to show off. "When he knows there''s no way for him to defeat his opponent without it." Grey replied, before adding, "If I were him, I''d do the same." Alice and Kyle agreed with Grey''s reasoning. They too would want to keep their trump card for when it was needed. Using it willfully wasn''t really a good thing for them. "You think so? Why don''t he just blow his opponent away, that would be showing off!" Klaus said. Reynolds spoke of showing off, so he naturally wanted that. "Give him some time, and he will." Kyle said. "Okay." Klaus nodded while focusing on the battle once again. The Earth Elementalist Reynolds was fighting against didn''t give him any chance to take advantage, slowly increasing the advantage he had. Reynolds had the advantage in speed, but his opponent still had the upper hand. The Earth Elementalist had been able to send him flying a few times, luckily, he had been able to keep himself on the platform without being eliminated. The Earth Elementalist didn''t seem to be worried about this, making sure he hid all the chances Reynolds would get to attack him. "Just give up, you''re only wasting our time." The Earth Elementalist said when he saw that Reynolds refused to give up after being sent flying for the fifth time. At this rate, it was only a matter of time before Reynolds was sent out of the platform. "You think so?" Reynolds asked. The Earth Elementalist nodded his head when he heard this. He didn''t really mean this in an undermining manner, but the truth was that the present Reynolds wasn''t his opponent. "I have one surprise for you, if you can block this surprise, then I have no problems with giving up." Reynolds said with a smile. "Alright, be fast with it." The Earth Elementalist said. "Here I come." Reynolds said and rushed towards the Earth Elementalist. Seeing Reynolds coming at him, he raised an earth wall. While waiting for Reynolds'' attack. Boom! The earth wall shook vigorously. His expression changed. He knew Reynolds'' attack wasn''t as powerful as this. The Earth Elementalist was stunned. Just when he was thinking about what was making the wall shake so much, he saw it vibrate again. Boom! Boom! Something powerful continued hitting it, and in the matter of a few seconds, it shattered into pieces. With the destruction of the wall, he saw something that shook him visibly. ''A Summoner!'' He exclaimed internally. This wasn''t his first time seeing a Summoner, but he didn''t think Reynolds was one since he didn''t use it the last time. The thing in front of the Earth Elementalist was made entirely of lightning, but it was different from Reynolds'' usual Elemental Warrior. This summon was like a normal summon. It was Reynolds secret weapon. Keeping his trump card would be useless if he doesn''t even qualify. Being a high grade summoner gave him an advantage.There''s something few people knew about high grade summoners, and that is they could lower the grade of their Elemental Warrior at will. This means that Reynolds could actually call out a normal low grade summon. High grade summoners rarely do this because what''s the need of doing so. This is the reason most people don''t know that there''s such a skill. Even Reynolds'' friends are unaware of this because Reynolds forgot to tell them. Chapter 713 Making It To The Top Two Hundred "You''re a summoner?" The Earth Elementalist was a little surprised. Summoners were also rare, even in the Aurora Continent. Reynolds stared at him without replying, without any delays, he ordered the summon to attack the Earth Elementalist. Unlike his Elemental Warrior, this summon looked crude. It was like a monster made entirely of clumps of lightning. Bang! The summon continued its assault on the Earth Elementalist. The Earth Elementalist scurried to defend against the summon. Buzz! Crash! A lightning bolt shot from the sky, aiming at the head of the Earth Elementalist. The Earth Elementalist retreated back to dodge the strike, while creating a large earth hammer that he used to slam the summon. Boom! Bam! Bang! They exchanged blows in a heated fight. "Wait, since when did it look like that?" Klaus asked, shocked. "I don''t think it has ever looked like that since he acquired it." Grey replied, confused. They didn''t understand why the Elemental Warrior didn''t have its previous appearance. They turned to Kyle, hoping to get an explanation. However, Kyle still had a perplexed expression which showed that he had no idea what was going on. "Looks like high grade summoners have a secret ability we have no idea of." Alice commented. "So it seems." The others agreed with her. "But you have to admit, this is a terrific plan." Klaus said after a moment of silence. "Yes, even when showing his trump card, he still kept most of it. The strength of this summon is only at the Fifth stage of the Overlord Plane, while the Elemental Warrior is at the Seventh stage." Kyle stated. Thinking about it, the difference in strength between both summons was shocking. Bringing out this summon will deceive his future opponent, giving them the feeling that he couldn''t fight against them. Then when he calls out the Elemental Warrior, his opponent would be too shocked to even fight back properly. While the group were discussing this, the crowd were excited when they saw Reynolds'' summon. Most of the people here rarely see summons, so they found it worthwhile just being able to see it in this competition. Discussions broke out in different places, and even a few of the lower ranked Factions had their eyes on Reynolds. A summoner was a good asset if well groomed. The higher ranked Factions couldn''t really see Reynolds as someone special since the summon was this type. Only a high grade summoner could interest them. The Earth Elementalist Reynolds was fighting against was being pushed back as the battle continued. He had lost the advantage he had, and fighting against two fighters was not something he could do, especially given how Reynolds was shamelessly taking advantage of this fact and putting more pressure on the Earth Elementalist. "Stop attacking me from behind!" The Earth Elementalist complained when he was unable to take it any longer. "What do you mean? Whenever I attack, you''re the one who foolishly turns your back to me, how''s that my fault?" Reynolds said, irritating the Earth Elementalist even more. At this rate, it was only a matter of time before Reynolds would defeat him. "He''s getting better at this." Kyle said with a wry smile. Seeing Reynolds'' current fighting tactic, he recalled the first time they fought against each other. Reynolds shamelessly used this particular strategy on him. Even someone as coolheaded as him lost his cool. He gave up since he couldn''t continue taking the assault. The Earth Elementalist seemed to be going down the same road as well. Reynolds was continuously assaulting him, almost driving him crazy. He couldn''t attack Reynolds because of the summon, but once he faced the summon, Reynolds would attack from his blind side. "Of course, I taught him all he knows." Klaus declared proudly. "I don''t think you''re on his level." Kyle said. "You have no idea what he''s capable of." Grey said. "Hehehe." Klaus laughed mischievously, sending chills down the spine of Kyle. Kyle knew Klaus was shameless and loved to cause trouble from the small time they''ve been together, but when he battled Reynolds, he was frustrated to the extreme by him, so he concluded that there was no one who would be as shameless as Reynolds. "You''re just pure evil." Alice said when she heard his laughter. "It''s a gift. The world is a boring place without me, I can assure you that." Klaus laughed before placing his focus back to the fight. The others also turned their attention to the fight. Boom! Bam! The Earth Elementalist was pushed back by the summon, and just as he was about to retaliate, Reynolds attacked as well, sending a lightning orb that exploded when it got close to him. Bang! Reynolds'' attack connected with the Earth Elementalist, sending him flying. Seeing this chance, Reynolds sent the summon after him while also preparing for another attack. The Earth Elementalist managed to set up a good defense before crashing to the ground. So Reynolds was unable to eliminate him with the advantage. But the pressure on the Earth Elementalist increased greatly since the slip up. After a few more minutes, the Earth Elementalist finally gave up. "I admit defeat." He said after blocking an attack coming his way. Reynolds stopped attacking the second he heard this, and the man in charge of the platform stepped forward to declare the winner. From the second Reynolds brought out his summon and seeing his ingenious way of fighting, everyone knew without any other changes, it was certain that Reynolds would win. The only reason the Earth Elementalist tried to hang on for this long was because losing now meant he wouldn''t be able to qualify for the next round. He was in the Sixth stage of the Overlord Plane, so he had a chance at advancing to the top one hundred. Unfortunately for himhe met a opponent who he thought he would defeat from the start, only to get the shocked, literally. Reynolds'' lightning electrocuted him a few times. "Thank you for letting me win." Reynolds smiled to the Earth Elementalist as he was leaving the stage. The Earth Elementalist on the other hand frowned but nodded at him. He had no grudges against him, after all, Reynolds won fair and square. On getting back to his seat, the group congratulated him on advancing to the next round. "A piece of cake." Reynolds replied with a smile. "How did you do that?" Alice asked. "Do what?" Reynolds asked a little confused. "Stop playing dumb. The summon. Since when could you do that?" Klaus smacked him on the shoulder. "Oh that, I forgot to tell you guys. I can lower the grade of my summon at will." Reynolds said, after seeing the looks he was getting from his friends, he added, "I originally didn''t think I''ll use it, so it was basically worthless information." "This is my first time hearing this." Kyle said. "Like I said, it wasn''t really any useful information. Which summoner would send out a low grade summon when they have an Elemental Warrior?" Reynolds asked. Hearing his question, it finally dawned on them. Bringing out your summon means you''re in a battle. No one would want to reduce their strength in battle. Even if your opponent was weaker, they would still fight at full strength. "What else can you do?" Klaus moved closer to him and asked, before adding, "In case I fight against high grade summoners I wouldn''t be too surprised." "Nothing special." Reynolds replied. "Come on Rey, you can tell me." Klaus started to pester him. In the end, Reynolds still had nothing to tell him. Other than this recent discovery, the group knew everything else. If there was something else they were unaware of, then he also wasn''t aware of it as well. The group continued watching the next battles, and after almost two hours, it got to Alice''s turn. "Wish me luck." Alice said as she walked towards the platform. "Good luck." All the boys raised their fists to show support to her. She laughed lightly and stepped on the arena. Her opponent was also in the Sixth stage of the Overlord Plane, just like Reynolds'' opponent. But she was in the Fifth stage, which meant she wouldn''t be suppressed by her opponent. When her opponent stepped into the platform, it was a young lady. "Hello." They waved at each other. The man in charge of the platform confirmed from both participants if they were prepared, after getting confirmation, he called for the start of the battle. Alice attacked the second the battle started. Buzz! Bam! A lightning bolt shot towards her opponent. The young lady didn''t panic, with a wave of her hand, a tornado sprang up, blocking the lightning attack. After blocking the attack, she sent wind blades towards Alice. A wall of fire rose in front of Alice, trying to block the wind blades. The strength of the wind blades was stronger than Alice''s fire wall, so they shot past it, heading straight for Alice. Chapter 714 Both Showing Their Hidden Cards Swoosh! Boom! Bang! The wind blades shot past the fire wall and landed on the spot Alice was previously standing. A few meters away from where the attacks landed, Alice could be seen with lightning enveloping her legs. The young lady knew this attack wouldn''t be able to deal with Alice, so she prepared a second wave of attack. Wind bows appeared in the air, with arrows notched on them. Each arrow accumulated energy before shooting straight at Alice. There were at least twenty arrows, and all shot at her almost simultaneously. Alice, who had lightning covering her legs, moved swiftly, dodging the attacks she could while using a large flaming sword to block some of the attacks she was unable to evade. Boom! Bang! The battle slowly started to pick up pace. With both Alice and the young lady attacking ferociously. Being a stage lower didn''t put Alice at a disadvantage. Her attack method made it impossible for her to allow her opponent to fully suppress her. Whenever she got an opportunity, she attacked fiercely. The crowd watched the battle animatedly. With other battles ongoing on other platforms, a lot of neutral people were torn between which one they wanted to watch. Only those who had some sort of relationship with one of the participants would focus fully on a particular platform. "Her opponent is quite fearsome." Klaus commented on seeing the battle taking place. "Yeah, but she''s below Alice. Alice''s ferocity makes it difficult for people to deal with her. Even when her opponent is a stage ahead of her, she wouldn''t be too pressured." Kyle said. "Don''t forget she''s also smart. Adding that to her list makes her a dangerous opponent." Reynolds said. Grey didn''t make any comments on the battle, watching intently. Although it didn''t look like it, if things continued in this fashion, Alice might lose. Her opponent was slowly getting the upper hand on a larger scale, once it got to a particular point, then Alice wouldn''t even have the chance to counterattack any longer. Grey wasn''t the only one who had noticed this. Most of the advanced people here had also taken note of this. ''Hmm, if she uses one of the Seelie''s elements, then she should be able to salvage the situation to a certain extent.'' Void commented. ''She would, I feel she''s waiting for the perfect time before using it. It would be wasteful to use it so early. What I''m more concerned about is her opponent''s hidden card.'' Grey replied. Alice definitely isn''t the only one who had a trump card, her opponent would naturally have a hidden card that she would fall to once she was in a difficult position. In the case of Reynolds'' situation, his opponent was unable to use his hidden card because Reynolds was just too shameless, harassing him without giving him the time to even use it. Bam! A powerful bird made entirely of wind collided with the fireball Alice sent at her opponent. The impact of the explosion pushed her two steps back. Her opponent didn''t let this chance go, attacking her once again with multiple birds made of the wind element shooting toward her. Seeing that her situation was getting dire, Alice started brainstorming. She had two choices, bring out the Seelie and win, or use one or two more elements. The former would give her the ability to attack from two different locations, while the latter will give her an upgraded arsenal, but everything relied on her. Bringing out the Seelie was the best choice, but she decided against it. Just as the wind birds were about three meters away from her, a thick ice wall appeared in front of her. Bang! Bang! The wind birds slammed into the ice wall. What happened next shocked most of the audience. The ice, just like the one the group encountered in the mansion, retaliated. This was the special ability of this particular ice. Even after being with the Seelie for some time now, Grey and Klaus had been unable to understand how it worked. Klaus was the most frustrated when he was unable to get it. Ice shards shot toward the young lady. "Did the ice just retaliate?" A shocked voice from the crowd asked. "It seems so. But there''s a possibility that she''s the one doing this." Someone said, doubt evident in his voice. This was a strange situation, and most of the people here were either on the Origin Plane or above. They were able to sense it when the ice attacked. The young lady dodged the ice shards. And when everyone thought the attacks would continue, they stopped. The young lady didn''t think too much about what just happened and sent out a powerful wind blade, hoping to slice through this thick ice wall. Boom! The wind blade crashed into the ice wall, it managed to cut deep into it. However, it was unable to break through it. The ice wall attacked more aggressively since the attack power it received was stronger than the previous time. Ice shards sprang out from the floor, rushing towards the young lady. She flew into the air with the aid of the wind element, dodging the attack. This time, people were able to confirm that Alice wasn''t the one doing it. Buzz! Crash! A large lightning bolt struck from the sky, heading straight for the head of the young lady who was still afloat with the help of the wind element. When she saw the lightning coming her way, she quickly moved to the side to evade the attack. While she was dodging that attack, large fireballs appeared before her. The fireballs shot toward her. The young lady dodged the attacks while also using the wind element to create a tornado that swept Alice into the air. The second Alice realized she was airborne, she quickly covered herself with an ice sphere. After doing this, she started to attack with the lightning element. The young lady tried to use the tornado to send Alice off the stage. Other than defeating your opponent, they could also send them off the stage. Alice noticed this and made sure the young lady didn''t get the chance to. A piece of large ice came out from the ice sphere and shot towards the platform, it planted itself on the platform, making it impossible for the tornado to move the ice sphere. The young lady tried to break the ice pillar, but there was no way Alice was going to let her do so. Under her absolute ice defense, she could attack her opponent freely without fear of being attacked. Although the ice couldn''t block every attack, it would give her sufficient time to attack and at least gain an advantage over her opponent. They continued fighting in a stalemate. As time went on, people started to notice something strange. Alice was using the ice ability of Water Elementalists, yet surprisingly, she still hasn''t used the water element, not even once. No matter how powerful her ice ability was, she should still be able to use the water element a few times. "I hate that ice." Klaus said, his eyes green with envy. Everyone knew the only reason he said this was because he still hadn''t been able to gain it. Once he manages to comprehend it, then he wouldn''t hate it any longer. "It''s amazing, given its thickness and overall strength, it should be able to help fight against someone even two stages ahead of Alice." Kyle said. Since he wasn''t the one fighting against Alice, he had no issues with her special ice. They sparred a few times and Alice was very calculative on when to bring out this ice. From the small time he had spent with her, he was certain that this battle was already in the bag. Five more minutes went by, and Alice''s attacks had not decreased, instead, it increased exponentially. The young lady was unable to break through her defense, and because of the self-healing and retaliation abilities of the ice, it was almost like a second opponent. Whenever the young lady attacked it, it would retaliate, adding Alice''s attack to this made defending hell. She had almost been able to break through the ice sphere two times, but unfortunately, Alice has been able to foil her attempts both times. She almost lost in the last attempt. As things stand, she couldn''t attack freely because of the special ability of the ice, however, Alice had all the freedom in the world to attack. The young lady had been running around on the platform, trying to dodge Alice''s attacks. "It''s now or never." The young lady muttered as she clapped both hands together. Her aura suddenly started to skyrocket. In the space of ten seconds, she went from the Sixth stage to the Seventh stage. "I originally wanted to keep this hidden until my next battle, but it would be useless if I don''t manage to go to the next round." She said to Alice. The aura of the young lady wasn''t the only thing that increased, even her size increased as well. Chapter 715 - Shocking The Arena Chapter 715 - Shocking The Arena "A secret technique to boost her strength." Grey muttered as he looked at the young lady whose cultivation went up by a stage. "Not just her strength, but I feel like there''s a difference in the elemental particles revolving around her, it seems like her cultivation stage isn''t the only thing that saw an increase." Kyle said. "Isn''t it obvious, just take a look at her size, she''s massive!" Klaus said animatedly. The battle that they previously thought Alice had won seems to be uncertain all of a sudden. The young lady showing her hidden card meant that she was ready to risk it all. Alice looked at the current appearance of her opponent. Her gaze unwavering, it was as if she couldn''t feel the difference in size and aura. Just the size of the young lady would intimidate most people, but not her. "You finally showed your true strength, I thought you were going to hide forever." Alice said, fierce fighting intent showing in her eyes. "You forced my hand, I hope you''re not disappointed after I defeat you." The young lady said. "I wanted to say the same thing." Alice attacked the second she finished speaking. Her ice was still active, and the best time to extinguish the young lady''s momentum is now. Since she just used her trump card, she would be extremely confident. Boom! Buzz! Lightning bolts and fireballs were sent toward the young lady. Seeing the attacks coming her way, the young lady created a windscreen that blocked the attacks. After being hit by all the attacks simultaneously, it only received a slight crack. After blocking Alice''s attacks, she attacked as well. She formed two tornadoes that merged before covering the ice sphere Alice was hiding in. Of the two tornadoes, one was spinning clockwise, while the other was spinning anti-clockwise. Merging the two tornadoes together created something like a grater. With both spinning in different directions, the force would shred anything in its path apart. From the moment the merged tornado covered the ice sphere, cracks started to form across it. Alice was stunned, she couldn''t believe this was the same ice sphere that had blocked every single attack that the young lady had sent her way. If the ice sphere fell apart, then she would undoubtedly die from the shredding force of the tornado. Her friends were worried when they saw this. The sudden change was unexpected. ''This technique is powerful. Using the spinning force of the wind element to create something this terrifying, looks like I have another technique to learn.'' Grey thought internally. The strength of this technique was something none of the people here could deny. This was Grey''s first time seeing something like this done with the wind element, and he couldn''t deny the fact that he was impressed by it. This showed that the number of techniques owned by these people was massive. The young lady wasn''t even in a Faction, yet she had access to such techniques. Grey was sure that not all Wind Elementalists would be able to achieve this control over the tornado given both are going in different directions. It would take immaculate control as well as full focus before they would be able to pull off something like this. Then there''s also the aspect of elemental grades. Over time, he had come to know that there are some powerful techniques they can''t use without getting to an appropriate level. The young lady used her most powerful skill right off the bat, planning to crush Alice immediately. The question on everybody''s heads now for Alice was, ''What would you do now?''. Alice had a slightly panicked expression, the ice sphere was breaking faster than it was recovering, this meant that in due time, it would surely fall apart. ''I guess I have no choice.'' She thought to herself. It was time to use the full extent of her abilities. "Come on out." Alice muttered. A bright light shone on her forehead and a small figure covered in light rushed out. It passed through the tornado and charged at the young lady. When everyone saw this, they thought it was Alice''s last attempt in putting the young lady off. Only a few people above the Sage Plane looked at the light with an unreal expression. The young lady waved her hand and a powerful wind blade slashed at the light rushing towards her. To her surprise, the light seemed to phase through the wind blade as it continued rushing toward her. She was stunned, and without delay, retreated back. On no account could she afford to let this thing close to her. Bang! Her back slammed into an ice wall that was behind her. To her greatest surprise. She didn''t even know when this ice wall appeared there. The moment this happened, an intense cold spread out from the ice wall, trying to engulf her. One had to remember that at the time the group saw the Seelie, it was already on the Sage Plane. It only didn''t show its full strength when fighting against the group because it was still very young. Even at this moment, it wasn''t able to use its full strength due to some restrictions. After merging with Alice, its strength was restricted to a certain level so that the merging process would go on without a hitch. If it didn''t do so, then Alice would''ve been in danger. But even with its restricted strength, it didn''t mean that it would have any problems when dealing with someone in the Seventh stage or the Overlord Plane. With the appearance of the ice wall, the Seelie stopped moving and everyone in the arena was able to get a good view of it. The second they saw it, gasps of shock spread out. Even the young lady fighting against Alice had a dumbfounded look as she struggled to move away from the ice. "A Seelie!" A dumbstruck voice came from the audience. This was a shocking revelation by Alice. Never did any of the people who came for the competition think that they would see a Seelie in this event. Even the host Factions looked at Alice with shock. Chapter 716 -Let Him Dream! Chapter 716 -Let Him Dream! "I see why she only used ice and not the water element. She wasn''t a Water Elementalist to begin with, it was from that little fellow." A middle-aged lady from one of the top Factions said as she looked at Alice with a smile. This was a surprise for her, nothing more. "I never thought someone would actually be able to merge with a Seelie, especially one that is unknown." Another figure spoke from the special area. "It''s not the first time I''m seeing this or even hearing of it, so I''m not too shocked. Being able to convince a Seelie to merge with her is amazing, to say the least. And this Seelie seems to be on the Sage Plane." A lady from the Faction Klaus was eyeing said. If Klaus heard this, he would be kicking himself for being unable to get the Seelie. If he had managed to get it, then he would''ve gotten an increased chance of being able to convince them that he wanted to join them. After all, he had a cute Seelie with him. "Isn''t she friends with that young summoner?" One of the men in another Faction pointed at Reynolds. They didn''t see Reynolds as anything special since even though summoners were rare, only those high-grade summoners had a high appeal to them. "I think so. I wonder if the other three plan on participating as well." Someone else said. Grey''s group was slowly garnering attention from the top Factions. This was exactly what Klaus hoped to happen. With this much attention placed on them, the Faction he wanted to join would surely take notice of him. Then once he puts in a mouth-watering performance, he would garner even more hopes of joining them. While all the conversations were going on, the young lady fighting against Alice managed to free herself from the ice that was sealing her. The Seelie attacked, sending out a blizzard. As the blizzard went closer to the young lady, she could feel a frightening sense of danger from it. If she was stuck in this blizzard, then she would undoubtedly fall into peril. She hastily retreated, but to her dismay, she realized retreating any further would mean leaving the platform which counted as a sign of admitting defeat. Presently, in the few seconds the Seelie was out, only half of the ice sphere had been destroyed. At this pace, if she could manage to hold on for only thirty seconds or so, then she would be the winner. Looking at the blizzard, she steeled her mind and covered herself with a tornado. However, the second the blizzard came in contact with the tornado, it destroyed it, before sending a bone-chilling cold into her body. In a matter of five seconds, she had started to suffer from hypothermia. Then within the next five seconds, ice had started to form around her body. It was only a matter of a few seconds before she would be turned into a complete ice sculpture. At that time, even a god might not be able to rescue her. "Stop the fight, the winner is already known." An aged voice said to the man in charge of the platform. The voice was calm and breezy as if it was moving with the wind. One moment it was there, the next it was gone. The man in charge of the platform nodded before stepping into the platform. With his strength being above the Sage Plane, it was a piece of cake for him to stop these attacks. The first person he helped was the young lady, this was obviously the best choice since she was in the most danger. The Seelie wanted to attack, but Alice communicated with it not to. After the man helped stop the blizzard, he turned to Alice. The tornado that was causing so much damage had already started to dwindle in strength. Clearly, the young lady wasn''t able to properly fuel it with her elemental essence any longer. The cold from the blizzard must''ve frozen her elemental essence. Alice stepped out of her protective sphere as she looked at the almost unconscious lady. The Seelie flew back to her side, gazing around curiously. It could see its surroundings while inside Alice, but it wasn''t the same as when it was outside. Alice caressed its cheeks while waiting for the man to announce the winner of the battle. The man declared Alice the winner which came as no surprise to the audience. Alice smiled, she had finally made it to the top two hundred, and with another card hidden up her sleeves. Although she showed the Seelie, she warned it against using the wind element. This meant that when her opponent would think that they were ready for all her attacks, she would be able to bring out another surprise. Just like Reynolds did, she showed only half of her trump card. After getting back to her seat, the Seelie went back into her body. "Congratulations." The group celebrated her victory. They were genuinely worried, even knowing that Alice wasn''t really in danger since if anything happened the man would step in at the last moment. What they were more concerned about was her chances of winning. The second they saw the Seelie, their worries disappeared since they knew she was already victorious. "You did a good job. Even though I can''t see them, I''m one thousand percent certain that you''ve drawn their attention." Klaus laughed happily. It was almost as if he could see the Faction taking him without even contemplating it. "You really don''t need to have such high hopes for that specific Faction." Kyle couldn''t help but warn. "Let him dream, it''s not always you get to see him like this." Grey said. "All that''s needed now is for me to show them my amazing strength." Klaus started plotting his battle in advance. Kyle started to pity whoever would be matched against Klaus. This fellow seemed hellbent on getting into that Faction. ''It would be funny if they actually gave him an opponent in the Ninth stage.'' Kyle thought with a laugh. Chapter 717 - Reappearance Of Klaus’ Book Chapter 717 - Reappearance Of Klaus¡¯ Book Both Alice and Reynolds had qualified for the top two hundred. This meant they could challenge someone from the Faction they wanted to join, or they could attempt to go for the top ten, thereby joining the Faction they wished. They both agreed on challenging those in the Factions they wanted to join. First off, this would make things easier for them. Fighting too many battles wasn''t something they wanted. Alice planned on continuing even after successfully joining a Faction. Reynolds was against that idea. Even if he had a good chance of becoming number one with his Elemental Warrior, he didn''t want to waste his time. "Come on Rey, it would be fun." Klaus advised. If Alice and Reynolds managed to get into the top ten even after joining a Faction, it would make things even more interesting. This would make them more eye-catching. "Don''t you think it would be a waste? I mean, once we manage to get into a Faction, we''ll be opening two spots for others." Reynolds voiced his thoughts. "Look, if they''re powerful, then they would definitely draw the attention of those top Factions. Besides, it''s stated that becoming part of the top one hundred would guarantee a participant a chance of joining a Faction." Klaus advised. "He''s right. The more battles you fight, the stronger you get. You''ll naturally learn a thing or two from it." Grey commented. He planned to fight to the very end. If he could get the number one spot, then he didn''t mind. After the others urged him, he finally agreed. Klaus was very persistent, and he even went as far as threatening him. In Kyle''s entire life, this was the first time he was seeing something like this, and to be honest, he found it very funny. Alice and Grey laughed when they saw how Klaus was persuading Reynolds to fight. All Klaus wanted was for their group to shine in this competition, this way, he wouldn''t have any issues with joining the Faction he wanted. The day soon came to an end, and the top two hundred had been verified, now, it was time for the next round. Fighting for a spot in the top one hundred, or challenging someone from a Faction. Only battle maniacs like Alice would want to do all. The next day. [ Updated from. c o m ] "Remember, don''t disappoint me." Klaus encouraged the duo, before promising to give them a treat once they returned victorious. Alice didn''t take it to heart, Reynolds on the other hand took interest in it. The reason for this was because Klaus promised to give him a copy of his book, ''How to get and keep a woman''. When Kyle heard of the book, he looked at Klaus, a little surprised that he actually wrote a book. Given Klaus'' nature, he didn''t think he would be able to do something like this. "How come you''re single since you know how to get a woman?" Kyle asked cheekily. "Hanging with him is bad luck. Believe me, once you stay with him for too long, his bad luck will start to rub off on you." Klaus shook his head and started reminiscing about his glorious days. Since he became friends with Grey, it was as if he wasn''t able to get a woman, much less keep one. Well, it''s not as if he didn''t want to, but either he was busy training, or traveling. There was no chance to stay in one place, so he had no option but to be alone. But once he gets into the Faction he wanted, he would search for a pretty damsel to make his wife! Kyle looked at Grey. The truth was, given Grey''s facial appearance, he thought women would be flocking around him. The few days they''ve been here, he had seen how many ladies had been trying to get Grey''s attention. Some even went as far as going straight to the point with him. Klaus had also gotten a few interests, but compared to Grey, he was miles behind. Kyle was relatively handsome, but looking at the faces of Grey and Klaus, he felt a tinge of envy. "He hates women?" Kyle asked as he moved closer to Klaus. "People in general." Klaus replied. His response prompted a chuckle from Kyle. Saying Grey hated people in general seemed a bit too extreme, but from the time he had been with them, he could tell that Grey didn''t like socializing with people. Klaus and Reynolds were very social, making tons of friends in the few days they were here. "Is there any reason for this?" Kyle asked with a whisper. "Yes, well, you see, unlike normal people, he wasn''t able to awaken his elements when he was twelve¡­" Klaus recounted how Grey couldn''t awaken any element at twelve, then managed to become a Multi Elementalist when he finally did. He couldn''t tell Kyle that Grey awakened only two, so he lied that he awakened multiple elements. Hearing the story, Kyle was a little shocked. Although he had heard of a few stories, these type of people were very rare. They tend to be very determined and focused on training. He could already tell from Grey''s demeanor that he was that type of person. Being mocked by everyone because he was unable to awaken an element at a young age will naturally make one withdraw from associating with others. ''No wonder.'' Kyle said as he looked at Grey. Alice and Reynolds were presently standing on the platform, along with the other participants in the top two hundred. Grey had his full focus on them. An old man flew down from the special seating area. His hair and beards were completely white, and his face was filled with wrinkles, but from his eyes, one could sense a certain power hiding in wait, seemingly waiting to explode out. "Congratulations on making it to the top two hundred. You all already know the rules, but just in case, if anyone uses any forbidden technique, then they would be eliminated. Is that clear?" The old man asked as he looked at the group. They all nodded. After saying a few more words of encouragement, he flew back to his seat so the competition can continue. Chapter 718 The Raiden Faction Chapter 718 The Raiden Faction After the old man left the arena, the men in charge of the platforms came forward. "Whoever wishes to challenge anyone from the Faction they desire to join should stay on the platform, the rest can go back to their seats." One of the men said. Most of the people on the platform decided against it. They saw the outcome of those who tried it in the Origin Plane. Those who were defeated lost their will, and only a few managed to even get into the top one hundred. In the end, only eight people were left on the platforms, Alice and Reynolds included. When they saw Alice and Reynolds standing on the platform, a few of the people who they''ve managed to gain their attention looked on with interest, wondering which Faction they would want to join. Since there were ten platforms present, then all eight battles could take place simultaneously without any need of waiting. Grey and his friends found it unfortunate since they wouldn''t be able to watch the fight of both their friends. They would have to split their attention, watching one for some time before moving their gaze to the other one. "I would like to challenge a member of the Asterope Faction." Alice was the first person amongst the eight people to state her wish. When the crowd heard this, they chatted animatedly. The Asterope Faction was a powerful lightning Faction. It was regarded as the joint strongest lightning Faction alongside four others in this Region. The Faction Reynolds wanted to join was also one of them. The audience thought Reynolds would challenge someone from the Asterope Faction as well since he was a Lightning Elementalist. Being friends with Alice also meant they would want to join the same Faction. The other people on the platform stepped forward to declare the Faction they would like to challenge. Reynolds was the last person, "I would like to challenge a member of the Raiden Faction." The group already knew their choices so this didn''t come as a surprise to them. The audience was however stunned when they realized the duo didn''t plan on joining the same Faction. They couldn''t wrap their heads around why they picked two different Factions. The Factions that had been challenged each sent out a genius to battle the participants. Being a top Faction, each member was a powerful genius. The fighters that came out were all in the same stage as the challengers. The Factions couldn''t afford to send someone a stage above. Reynolds'' opponent was a young man in the Fourth stage of the Overlord Plane just like him. The same for Alice, her opponent was in the Fifth stage of the Overlord Plane, just like her. These people were people who wouldn''t have any problems with challenging those a stage above them or even two stages above them. All the platforms were occupied, and after getting confirmation from both fighters of each platform, the battle began. Buzz! Bang! Reynolds'' opponent attacked with a powerful lightning attack. Small butterflies made of lightning flew toward Reynolds. Their numbers were massive. Reynolds created a large lightning sword that he used to counter the attack, causing an explosion. After that attack, his opponent didn''t stop there, rather, he took a step forward, and when his foot touched the ground, a large symbol appeared on the ground. It was in the shape of a four-leaf clover. Lightning started to dance around the platform and lightning arrows accumulated. With a wave of his hands, the lightning arrows shot toward Reynolds. The strength of the attack was something that shocked Reynolds. He originally thought he might have a fighting chance against this person since they were in the same stage, but the reality was different. As the fight went on, he was pushed back even more. The young man''s attacks were consistent. Reynolds has been able to counter attack a few times, but the skill level of the young man was on another level. It was easy to see that the young man had an advantage when it came to techniques. Most of Reynolds'' attacks were normal attacks almost every Lightning Elementalist could use. The young man used one of the special attacks of the Raiden Faction. A circle made entirely of four-leaf clovers appeared behind him, and powerful lightning attacks shot out from it. Unlike normal lightning, there was a certain difference in this one, it was as if a certain hint of darkness was within. This was a skill that could draw a bit of the darkness particles in the air to aid the destructiveness of the lightning attack. This skill was best suited for Dual Elementalists who had both the lightning and the darkness element since they could use it to its fullest. When Grey saw the attack, he was astounded. This was like merging two elements together. It might be different from his own, but it was almost the same thing. The only difference was that even an Elementalist who doesn''t have the darkness element could use it since the technique could will the darkness element on its own. ''The creator of this technique is a freak.'' Grey concluded. This was something he didn''t think was possible for others, however, he could see it right in front of him. Reynolds, seeing the lightning attack coming toward him knew that if he tried to block this attack as he had done with the previous ones, then he would lose. He clapped both hands together to create a tense atmosphere, and from his expression, everyone knew he was about to call out his summon. The expression of everyone however changed when they saw a humanoid figure made out of lightning appearing. When Reynolds'' Elemental Warrior appeared, it raised its sword, faced the lightning coming its way fearlessly, and charged forward. Its speed was well above that of a normal Seventh stage Overlord Plane Elementalist. All everyone saw was a lightning figure rushing through the platform, and the special attack of the Raiden Faction was successfully blocked. "An Elemental Warrior, so you''re a high-grade summoner after all." The young man commented when he saw this. Chapter 719 Defeating A Member Of The Raiden Faction Chapter 719 Defeating A Member Of The Raiden Faction The appearance of Reynolds'' Elemental Warrior came as a shock to the young man he was fighting, as well as most of the people watching his battle. They never thought he was actually a high-grade summoner but pretended to be a low-grade summoner. It was all for this moment, trick everyone into believing you''re weak before showing them your true strength. Although it might be regarded as an underhanded tactic by some people, it was actually a very well thought out plan for those at the top. It was common knowledge to never let your enemies know your full strength before a fight. Discussions broke out in the camp of the Raiden Faction. There were a few students who thought Reynolds was a shameless individual because of this move, however, all the older students, as well as the Elders of the Faction knew that individuals like Reynolds would be able to live long in a world like this. Presently, they even felt maybe this wasn''t his entire strength. It was easy to assume since he waited this long. "Congratulations on acquiring a good candidate." An Elder from the Asterope Faction said to one of the Elders of the Raiden Faction. "The battle isn''t over yet, it''s undecided if he''ll be able to win or not." The Elder replied. "If he loses, can we have him?" An Elder from one of the other top lightning Factions said with a blank expression. "It will be up to him." The Elder from the Raiden Faction replied. His voice didn''t have any changes. But the other Factions knew there was no way the Raiden Faction would let go of such a good budding talent. Reynolds also seemed to be very sensible and talented, so it was not a mistake to say he would grow by leaps and bounds once he joins a powerful Faction. "Your camp also seems to have acquired a good talent as well." The Elder from the Raiden Faction said as he looked at Alice''s platform. "She''s not that bad." The Elder from the Asterope Faction replied. While their conversations were ongoing, the battles didn''t stop. The intensity increased. With Reynolds bringing out his Elemental Warrior, it meant that he was finally going all out, to the joy of Klaus. "Yes, Rey, show him what you got!" Klaus yelled from the side. Kyle smiled when he saw this, Grey had zero change in his expression. ''These Factions have a lot of powerful techniques, it wouldn''t be bad if I were able to learn a thing or two from them.'' He thought to himself. "Pretending to be a sheep when you''re actually a wolf. Nice move." The young man fighting against Reynolds complimented him with a thumbs up. "Thank you, but this is just the beginning." Reynolds said before rushing ahead with the Elemental Warrior. There was no time to waste, he had to take out his opponent as soon as possible. The young man''s expression turned serious as he attacked Reynolds. Multiple lightning lotuses came out from the ground. It was an attack he had been accumulating since he created the symbol of the lotus on the ground. It was made especially for the sake of Reynolds'' summon. Buzz! Boom! Bang! The lotuses exploded upon contact. Nevertheless, none of them were able to make contact with the Elemental Warrior due to its superior speed. A streak of lightning moved quickly through the platform and attacks flew in all directions. Reynolds also turned into a streak of lightning, charging at the young man. Seeing this, the young man didn''t shy away and also turned into a streak of lightning. Lightning Elementalists were all known for their speed and destructive power. This was a showdown of who was faster and who had better destructive power. The battle excited a lot of people, especially Lightning Elementalists since a few of them were able to get a thing or two from the fight. Boom! Bang! Bam! They continued exchanging blows and lightning bolts would occasionally drop from the sky. Reynolds had used the special technique lightning rain, while the young man used another special technique that created what seemed like an eye made entirely of lightning. This eye attacks at an extreme speed, even the Elemental Warrior found it difficult dodging them. The young man showed brilliant skills that would dazzle any person fighting against him. But in the end, he came up short against Reynolds and his Elemental Warrior. The difference in strength between the duo wasn''t much, what gave the young man the advantage from the start was his higher skill set. In a battle of equals, the quality of your techniques matters a lot. Take for instance, Grey''s space technique, the Great Void technique. It was a skill that even those in the Aurora Continent found hard to counter due to its spontaneousness. It was almost impossible to defend against, and once you start to show a slight crack in your thoughts because of it, you''re as good as defeated. This was one of the skills that have helped Grey in cases of fighting against multiple opponents. He would use this to make the others wary of him, before attacking freely. Buzz! Crash! Once Reynolds took the upper hand, he didn''t let it slip up. The young man was hard-pressed in dealing with the duo. And Reynolds was as before, shameless with his tactics. With the Elemental Warrior in his front, he made life a living hell for his opponent. It took him over seven minutes before he was able to send the young man flying. Although the young man was beaten, he put up a great fight which showed the immense strength of the Raiden Faction. Losing didn''t make him weak, it only showed that his opponent was a notch ahead of him. Boom! Bang! He was finally sent out of the platform, and Reynolds and his Elemental Warrior stood victoriously on the platform, their opponent, defeated. With this victory, Reynolds had officially become a member of the Raiden Faction, one of the top Lightning Factions in this Region. This was something to be proud of, and he truly did raise his head up high. Chapter 720 - Wishing For A Pair Of Extra Eyes Chapter 720 - Wishing For A Pair Of Extra Eyes "I never thought I would battle someone who has merged with a Seelie." The young man standing opposite Alice said. "If I may?" Alice didn''t have the time for a conversation, she came here for a battle. The man in charge of their platform had already announced the start of the battle and she was ready to fight. The young man didn''t take Alice''s lack to engage in a conversation with him to be anything disrespectful. He nodded to her question and prepared himself for the battle. Alice attacked with the lightning element, sending out a bolt of lightning. The young man stood straight, and just when the attack was about to hit him, his figure vanished, appearing some distance away from Alice before attacking with a powerful lightning strike. Boom! The attack hit the ice wall that sprang out of the ground in front of Alice. ''A Dual Elementalist, and he has the space element as well.'' She frowned when she saw this. The young man the Faction sent out was a Dual Elementalist, well, so the thought from the first attack he made. This would make things difficult for her. Space Elementalists are known to be terrible opponents to fight against, and it was most likely the plan of the Faction to send someone like him here so he could counter the Seelie''s advantage. The young man smiled when he saw that his attack didn''t pass through, instead, the ice wall countered him as expected. He dodged the attack quite easily, before attacking Alice once again. Alice looked at her opponent and knew that she had to go all-out from the get-go. Luckily for her, she had been sparring with Grey and Void for a while now, so she had a fair share of experience when it came to tackling Space Elementalists. The first thing was to ensure she didn''t give him the chance to build his momentum. Swoosh! Bang! Boom! The Seelie rushed out and attacked. This time, its speed was higher than before. It was using the wind element to boost itself as it attacked with the ice element. Alice was aiding it from behind as well, with both the wind and lightning elements combined, the speed of the Seelie increased exponentially. The young man was slightly taken aback when he saw how Alice attacked. It was almost as if she wasn''t wary of him being able to appear wherever he wanted on the platform. He dodged the attack coming his way and countered. His counter was blocked by the ice wall, and he had to move in another direction to escape from the retaliation of the ice wall. While he appeared in a new location, he was met with an attack from the Seelie which seemed to have been able to pinpoint where he would come out from the void. He didn''t feel pressured by this, with a calm expression, he blocked the attack. Since he was weaker than the Seelie, he naturally was forced a few steps back. Alice attacked at this moment as well. The young man blinked and appeared on the side. He moved his hand in a slashing motion, and to the shock of Alice, a powerful attack appeared from nowhere and her ice wall which was almost impenetrable was slashed in two. Grey, who was watching, almost stood on his feet when he saw this attack. It was a space element attack. The young man just slashed the space where the ice wall was located. If not for the ice wall, Alice might''ve not been able to dodge such a fatal attack. Of course, this attack had a flaw. The opponent could predict where it was going from the direction of the young man''s hand and act accordingly. Alice sensed the shocking power behind the previous attack of the young man, and even though she was confident in being able to dodge it, she honestly didn''t want something like that to get close to her. The Seelie tried to fix the ice wall while attacking the young man once again. Alice also joined in on the attack as well. The synergy between Alice and the Seelie was top-notch, so it made things hard for the young man. Alice didn''t want to give him the chance to use that attack any longer. But she also placed it in the back of her head that she had to prepare for any unforeseen events. Space Elementalists weren''t people to be taken lightly, especially those that have an array of powerful techniques on their hands. Boom! Bam! Bang! The fight continued intensely. The audience was watching the battle with all seriousness. "You really sent him out, how evil." An old man from one of the top lightning Factions said to the Elder of the Asterope Faction. "Of course, he''s the only one who can deal with the Seelie easily. And as you can see, even he isn''t having an easy time." The Elder from the Asterope Faction replied. "What do you think of the girl?" Another Elder from the Asterope Faction asked. "Honestly, not bad. She lacks powerful techniques, that''s all. It''s the same with her friend there, he might be powerful, but it''s obvious he lacks a technique on our Faction''s level." The Elder said as he glanced at Reynolds'' battle with the young man. "They will grow to be powerful figures in the years to come." An old voice muttered. Grey and Klaus were torn between which battle to focus on. They had been moving their heads left and right since both battles began. When they first realized that Alice''s opponent was a Space Elementalist, they were surprised. But before they could even watch the battle for a minute, something would happen on the other platform that would draw their attention away. "Damn! I wish I had two extra eyes." Klaus said while rubbing his neck which he felt had started to ache from moving from side to side too often in such a short time. "Me too." Grey said. Kyle was the only one who focused more on Alice''s battle. He would occasionally take a glance at Reynolds'' battle as well. Chapter 721 - Human Nature Chapter 721 - Human Nature "Her opponent isn''t going to go down easily." Klaus commented as he watched Alice''s battle. "Well, does it matter? He''ll lose in the end." Grey stated. No matter how long it took, the result was the most important thing. This is one of the reasons people do whatever they can to get the results they want. Nobody would ask how they did all, all people found interest in was the result. "I agree with you. Winning here would make her a member of the Asterope Faction. Once she gets there, her strength is bound to increase. Especially if she manages to make enough contributions and enters one of those realms." Kyle complied with Grey''s reasoning. The battle on the platform raged on. Alice was an aggressive attacker, while the young man was a calm defender. Seeing that his space element was only able to stump Alice the first time, he didn''t rush into making decisions. Fighting against someone like Alice, a single slip up would be detrimental to him since Alice would most likely take full advantage of it. Boom! Bang! Lightning attacks raged on, accompanied with fire, ice, and wind. ''I never thought this little fellow had the wind element as well. She did well to hide it from everyone the first time.'' The young man complained internally. Although he was astounded by the fact that this was a Dual Elemental Seelie, this wasn''t the best time to marvel at it. If he manages to survive first, then he would speak about it. The audience had already taken note of the Seelie and the crowd was shaken. Getting a Seelie was already extremely difficult given their rarity, but not only did Alice manage to get and merge with one, but it was also a Dual Elemental Seelie. Her luck was insane! They looked at Reynolds who had already called out his Elemental Warrior, and then at Alice whose Seelie had two elements, and sighed in depression. It was like they got all the blessings in the world. Everyone knew they were friends, which made them even more envious. How could two friends be freaks? They couldn''t help but take a peek at the trio sitting in the crowd. Whenever Alice and Reynolds finished fighting, they would sit with those three. Is it possible that they were also freaks as well? This was the question going through the head of the crowd. Having someone like Alice or Reynolds in a friend circle could already be counted as a blessing, having both was luck, but if there was someone else special among their group, then they were an impressive bunch. If Klaus knew what people were thinking, he would be joyous. He wouldn''t mind answering most of their questions as well. Alas, it was impossible. Buzz! Crash! Bang! every loss, he had learned a lesson that has helped him grow stronger. This was why he didn''t take a loss to be something detrimental to himself. The young man left the platform, and Alice was declared the winner. She looked around, feeling slightly proud of her achievement. It was not an easy feat, but she managed to defeat someone who had far superior battle techniques. Alice was the first person to end her battle, and looking to the side, she realized Reynolds had already started assaulting his opponent with the aid of his Elemental Warrior. It was only a matter of time before he achieved victory as well. On the other six platforms, only two people seemed to have the chance of obtaining victory from how the current battle looked, but Alice knew not to come to a conclusion so soon since a simple thing could change the outcome of a battle. She walked back to her seat with multiple eyes fixated on her. Making it into one of the strongest lightning Factions meant that she just acquired a powerful backer. If manages to show exceptional talent, then it would be difficult for anyone to come close to her. A few people around Grey and his friend''s seat started to throw smiles their way, hoping to create a good impression and maybe become friends. Grey had zero interest in these petty people who only came close to you because of success. This was one of the reasons he didn''t like people to begin with. They would celebrate with you, but they would never be around to help you weather your storms. ''It was human nature.'' Chapter 722 - Top One Hundred Chapter 722 - Top One Hundred Some minutes later, Reynolds won his battle as well, becoming a member of the Faction he picked. Surprisingly, Grey was the first to come here, however, from how things were progressing, his friends would join a Faction before he did. "Nice performance!" Klaus gave the duo a thumbs up before they sat down. "We only wanted to ensure that we became members of a Faction, we didn''t do it for you." Reynolds said. "It doesn''t matter, at least now we have all the attention in this place. What''s next is for you two to go out there and claim the first and second place. This would make us even more dominant!" Klaus urged. "I plan to." Alice said with confidence. "You''ll have to go through me, Hehehe." Reynolds chuckled cheekily. "I''ve always wanted to see the strength of your Elemental Warrior, it seems the time has finally come." Alice replied. Kyle looked at the duo speaking confident, and if not for something, he would''ve thought there were no other participants here. These two were speaking like they already had the first and second place in the bag, all they had to do was to battle it out and see who would come out on top. While the group was discussing, a young lady, accompanied by a young man walked up to them. The young lady was dressed in a purple dress, and on her back was a golden lightning insignia, it was none other than the symbol of the Asterope Faction. The young man was dressed in blue, and on his back was a purple lightning insignia shaped like a human wearing a hat. This was the symbol of the Raiden Faction. "Welcome to the Asterope Faction, I was told to come and invite you over to your new seat." The young lady said to Alice with a friendly smile. The young man on the side did the same to Reynolds, the only difference was the change in name of the Faction. "Can we stay here a little longer, we plan to continue the contest." Alice said calmly. The young lady was quite friendly, so she spoke to her in a friendly manner as well. These Factions are very smart, they know the people they send out to receive people. Sending out a haughty person will ruin the image of the Faction, but sending out a person who was too friendly would make them seem desperate. "I see, but a word of reminder, you''re now part of the Asterope Faction, don''t disappoint our name." The young lady replied. The meaning of her words was simple, if you know you''re going to continue the competition, then you better come out with an exceptional rank. In fact, they expected her to win the competition. The same thing went for Reynolds, since he was staying, then he had to make sure he won it as well, or at the very least, is part of the top three. "Don''t worry, I wouldn''t give others the chance to look down on us." Alice reassured the young lady before she went back to her seat. Reynolds also reassured the young man from the Raiden Faction as well. They didn''t plan to go for the top ten anyway, their objective was to get first and second. "You two are now part of a big Faction. All that''s left now is for me to join the Moonlight Faction, and we''ll be alright." Klaus said. "What about Grey?" Reynolds asked. "What about him?" Klaus asked in confusion. "He still hasn''t thought of joining any of them?" Reynolds asked. "He has other plans." Klaus shook his head in pity. It would''ve been nice if they were all in the same Region. While the duo was having this conversation, Grey, Alice, and Kyle were looking at the duo, all taken aback. The reason for this was because Grey was sitting right in front of the duo, yet they were speaking as if he wasn''t. Grey''s eyelids twitched as he looked at them, he couldn''t even bring himself to ask if they were normal, because the answer was easy for all of them, they weren''t. Thirty minutes later, the other battles stopped. Of all eight people that challenged members of a Faction, four people won. This was the highest number since the start of the competition. Half of the people who challenged a member of their desired Faction, won. Alice and Reynolds used the time the other battles were still ongoing to try to recover some strength. The other two people who qualified didn''t continue the competition since their aim had been achieved. This removed two people from the list of participants, leaving a total of a hundred and ninety-eight people. If they battled with the usual method, they would be short of one participant. The hosts decided to make the strongest loser the last person who would make up the top hundred. This meant that of the other ninety-nine people who would lose, one of them would be given the chance to advance as long as they showed sufficient strength. When the crowd saw Alice and Reynolds were part of the participants fighting, they were excited. How would the new members of these powerful lightning Factions fare? There are a few people who might be able to give them some trouble, but the duo had the highest chance of grabbing the number one and two spots since their victory over the members of the Factions was very convincing. Just like before, they would draw lots for their battles. Alice''s opponent was a Fire Elementalist in the Fifth stage, while Reynolds'' opponent was a Dual Elementalist in the Sixth stage. It was the duo''s turn to fight, they didn''t hide their strength like they had been doing all this while. Showcasing their full strength, they crushed their opponents in a swift battle. Their opponents were quite unfortunate since they couldn''t grab the last spot. They weren''t even able to put up much of a fight against the duo. The young lady who fought against Alice during the first round of the competition was dumbfounded. She didn''t think this was the same person who could barely keep up with her. If they were to have a rematch now, Alice would most definitely defeat her. Chapter 723 - A Powerful Opponent Chapter 723 - A Powerful Opponent The top one hundred was decided later that day. With all the battles completed, it was time for them to draw lots once again in preparation for the next day. Alice and Reynolds got opponents in the Sixth stage of the Overlord Plane. Their opponents wore long expressions when they found out who they had to fight in the next round. From the start, the battle was as good as lost. They were not opponents who could fight against the two. Reynolds'' opponent even thought of giving up instantly. He had seen the method Reynolds used in fighting, and to be honest, he didn''t want to be subject to such torture. Yes, he felt it was torture. Alice''s opponent was even more disheartened. Alice wasn''t someone who went easy on people, she gave them a complete trouncing even when they were weaker than her. Alice and Reynolds were already favorites to grab the top spots. Time went by and the next day came. Getting to the arena, it was packed. Compared to the previous day, the number of people seemed to have increased. It was expected, qsince as the day goes by, more people flock to the city just because of this competition. There are a few who wanted to participate in it, but due to some unforeseen events, they didn''t make it in time. All they could do now was to watch those fighting. "You two have become famous." Klaus said as they walked into the arena. The previous night, he went out with Reynolds, and he was shocked by the number of people that wanted to help them because of him. Reynolds was already part of a powerful Faction, so many people wouldn''t want to offend him. Although he hadn''t officially joined them, he was already regarded as one of them. In the tavern they went to the previous night, they were given free drinks and food, which was kind of unexpected. But Klaus didn''t mind and gobbled down everything, he even took some back home for Grey, Alice, and Kyle who refused to go out with them. Alice shrugged, not bothered with it. Reynolds on the other hand smiled sheepishly. Klaus poured cold water on Reynolds'' mood with his next words, "Don''t let it get to your head, focus on getting a good position." Grey chuckled when he heard this. "What do you plan to do once we''ve all successfully joined a Faction?" Klaus asked. "I''ll travel to the next Region, maybe that would be the place for me." Grey replied. "And what if you don''t like that place as well?" Klaus asked, "You''ll keep traveling?" "I didn''t think about it that way, but I don''t think so. There would definitely be a place for me there. If not, I''ll just come back and join a Faction here." Grey replied after falling silent for a while. "Alright, I believe you know what you''re doing." Klaus said as they took their seats. The group waited for the start of the battles. Alice and Reynolds'' battles were the shortest ones so far; in the space of thirty seconds, their opponents gave up. It''s not that they didn''t want to show some effort, but they were outright beaten out of the platform. Even they had a baffled look on their face when they realized they had lost. They knew they would lose from the start, but never did they think they wouldn''t be able to even put up a fight. This was a disgrace for them. Even though they were guaranteed a chance to join a Faction since they managed to get into the top one hundred, this battle would reduce their ratings in the eyes of the top Factions. Now, only the weaker ones would take them in, and it might be unwilling since they couldn''t let the duo not join a Faction after promising the top hundred a spot. "You two are just evil." Kyle said as the duo came back. "It''s not my fault. He had already given up before the battle started." Alice sat down to look at the other battles taking place in the arena. Just like Alice''s opponent, Reynolds'' opponent also gave up when he saw the lot the previous day, so defeating him was too easy. After two hours, the top fifty spots were occupied. Now, it was time for the battle of the top twenty-five. Of all the fighters left, one person had shocked the entire arena. It was none other than the best loser from the top one hundred battles. She was an Earth Elementalist in the Sixth stage of the Overlord Plane. She lost by a small margin, and after careful deliberation by the hosts, they gave her the last spot. Her last battle was against a Dual Elementalist in the Sixth stage which she won convincingly. From not being able to make it into the top hundred on her own, she fought her way into the top fifty. It was quite a remarkable thing. Since there was still time, the battle for the top twenty-five would take place the next day. The participants were given two hours to recover their strength before they came out to draw lots once again. Alice''s opponent was ironically the young lady she fought against during the brawl. Reynolds'' opponent is said to be one of the favorites to get into the top ten by a lot of people here. From her previous battles, everyone could tell that she was well ahead of others at the same stage. If she were to challenge someone from the Faction she wished to join, her chances of winning were at least forty percent. "Take care while fighting against her, her darkness element is not something you should take lightly." Grey warned. Unlike his friends, he had been watching most of the battles, carefully picking out the top participants. One of the reasons he was doing this was to learn a thing or two from them, while the other was to warn his friends in case they encountered them. "Alright." Reynolds nodded. Chapter 724 - A Powerful Opponent II Chapter 724 - A Powerful Opponent II Alice was the first among the duo to step forward. "It''s nice seeing you again." She said to the young lady. "Yeah, not really for me." The young lady shook her head with a self-deprecating smile. She knew she was no match for Alice, but it didn''t mean she would give up before the battle even started. Alice didn''t reply since she knew what her opponent was thinking. After getting confirmation from both participants, the man in charge gave them the go-ahead to start the battle. "Use your full strength." The young lady said after the man called for the start of the battle. "I plan to." Alice said as the Seelie came out of her, floating by her side. "Thank you." The young lady said before attacking. The attack was met with Alice''s attack. While Alice blocked the attack, the Seelie attacked. The young lady instantly fell on the defensive, blocking the attacks of the Seelie, while making sure to be wary of Alice who was also attacking from the side. They exchanged blows for some time with Alice being on top from the start of the battle. Unlike her previous opponent, the young lady didn''t give up, even after being in a passive situation since the start of the battle, she still tried to come up with a way to block and counter Alice and the Seelie. Things got worse for her when the Seelie made a defensive ice wall in front of Alice. All her attacks made the ice retaliate, while she also had to block off Alice and the Seelie''s attacks as well. With a three-pronged attack, it was only a matter of time before she started to get hit by the attacks. The young lady managed to hang on in this state for almost five minutes, but in the end, she was sent flying out of the platform after Alice saw an opening. "Thank you for going all-out this time." The young lady said to Alice before walking away. Alice nodded at her before walking back to her seat after being declared the winner. She has made it to the top twenty-five, a few more battles and she''ll be in the top ten. The group already expected her to win, but they still congratulated her when she came back to her seat. With her battle over, it was time for Reynolds to step into the platform. His opponent was a young lady who others felt had a great chance of making it to the top ten. "Remember, don''t get dragged into a close range battle. Also, be mindful of the platform." Grey advised. "Don''t worry, I''ll be fine. With my Elemental Warrior, I will be able to keep a good distance away from her, and I''ll observe the platform carefully." Reynolds nodded. "Alright." Grey said before moving his gaze to the seat of the young lady, he saw her looking in their direction and their eyes clashed. She moved her gaze away after only a second. Reynolds walked up to the platform, waiting for his opponent. The young lady stepped in a few seconds after he entered. "Hello." Reynolds waved. "Hey." The young lady''s voice was cold, just like her expression. Reynolds originally wanted to start a conversation to lighten up the mood since the young lady was acting as if they were in a life and death battle, but the man in charge of their platform didn''t have the time to wait. After confirming that the duo was ready, he called for the start of the battle. The young lady was a Multi Elementalist, having the lightning, wind, and darkness elements. The element she seems to be proficient in was the darkness element. When the battle started, she raised her hands and a small black orb made of black mass floated into the air, when it got to around fifteen meters into the air, it exploded and spread out little particles of dark matter across the entire platform. There was no way anyone on the platform would be able to dodge it. When Reynolds saw this, he covered his body with a lightning coat. He listened closely to Grey''s warnings, so he couldn''t afford to let these things touch him. The young lady didn''t bother herself about this as she used another attack. A large lightning bolt shot toward Reynolds, but it was blocked by a figure made of lightning. The Elemental Warrior attacked after it blocked the lightning bolt. The young lady used the wind element to boost her speed as she moved to the left swiftly, dodging the attack of the Elemental Warrior. Reynolds didn''t give her a chance to rest, attacking her the second she stopped moving. The young lady blocked the attack with a windscreen, before sending out multiple wind blades. After sending out the wind blades, she made a bird made entirely of the darkness element and used the wind element to quicken its speed as it shot at Reynolds. Reynolds let the Elemental Warrior deal with the darkness bird while he blocked the wind blades. Boom! Bang! Bam! The battle was just as the audience expected, thrilling right from the start. "Why did she do that?" Klaus asked curiously. The darkness elemental particles in the platform were still too much. "She''s making the place more conducive for the darkness element while trying to weaken the elemental essence of the other elements." Void explained. Of the group, he had the highest sensitivity, so he could sense what was happening around the platform better than the others. "The longer the battle drags on, the greater her advantage." Grey added. "Wouldn''t that mean she might be able to defeat Rey?" Klaus asked. "Not entirely, but her chances will be higher then. Reynolds will soon notice this and would try to end the battle quickly, if he gets close to her, then she would be able to do even more damage." Grey replied. "She''s powerful." Alice''s gaze turned serious. "And clever. If she had waited any longer before using the attack she first used, Reynolds would''ve been able to stop it." Kyle said. Chapter 725 - A Powerful Opponent III Chapter 725 - A Powerful Opponent III Boom! Bam! Bang! Reynolds and the young lady continued their heated battle. As time went on, Reynolds started to notice a peculiarity, he was having difficulties with his lightning element. Not just him, but even the strength of the Elemental Warrior seemed to have waned a little compared to the first time he summoned it. ''It must be these particles. I''ll need to end the battle sooner than I thought.'' He thought to himself. Once he gets to a certain point, then no matter how powerful he or his Elemental Warrior was, they would ultimately be defeated since their strength would have reduced to the level where it wouldn''t be able to threaten the young lady. Reynolds rushed forward, using the attack, lightning rain. With the lightning rain attacking a wide area, the Elemental Warrior moved closer to the young lady. Although Reynolds was in a haste, he didn''t forget Grey''s warning about getting close to the young lady. After Grey warned him about her, he only planned on letting his Elemental Warrior get close to her while he would attack from a distance. The young lady used the lightning and wind element to boost her speed as she hurriedly retreated from the Elemental Warrior. She couldn''t afford to fight a close-range battle with it since it was not human. Her darkness element might be able to affect it, but it wouldn''t be on the same level as humans. Besides, the Elemental Warrior was a stage above her, making it even more difficult to deal with. The Elemental Warrior didn''t let her leave easily as it chased after her and attacked her. The young lady blocked as she retreated. Reynolds used the opportunity to continue his assault. This was his usual strategy, letting the Elemental Warrior be in front while he attacked from behind. It might be underhanded for some people, but the Elemental Warrior was part of his strength, so he didn''t really have to think about what they said. The young lady tried countering, but the Elemental Warrior blocked every possible chance of that happening. If not for its strength reduction, it wouldn''t have any problems with defeating the young lady. Everyone soon started to notice what was taking place on the platform. Even those in the Origin Plane noticed the drop in strength of the Elemental Warrior. That was not the only thing that changed, the darkness elemental attacks of the young lady saw a spike, increasing to a new level. This was the longest battle she had fought so far, so they haven''t been able to see this part of her strength. Gasps of shock resonated across the arena as they started to realize what was happening. Reynolds was on the verge of losing. Presently, his Elemental Warrior could barely suppress the young lady. Reynolds was also having a difficult time manipulating his element. The darkness element had corroded the air, destroying any elemental essence that wasn''t the darkness element. The lightning coat Reynolds used in enveloping his body started to flicker, a sign that it would be fading away any time soon. "Rey is in trouble." Alice said with a severe expression. This was the first time any of them had been caught in such a difficult predicament since they were battling in the competition. Reynolds'' opponent was not someone to be taken lightly, and they''re seeing her in a different state. Just like Reynolds, this was the young lady''s most powerful opponent so far, and she planned to take him out. If she eliminated Reynolds, then she would solidify her position as being one of the favorites to win, not just that, but whichever Faction she joined, she would be able to get a good reputation before even joining. "Yeah, this is troublesome. Unless Rey leaves the platform, it would be difficult for him to use the lightning element to its full strength." Grey said with a shake of the head. But he didn''t lose hope in his friend''s chance of winning. He knew Reynolds would not give up so easily. Only when he knew there was no hope would he give up, but in this situation, he still had a chance of turning it around. "He won''t lose." Klaus said confidently. "I know." Grey and Alice replied. Kyle looked at the trio amazed, Reynolds was clearly on the verge of losing, yet these three were saying so confidently that he won''t lose. ''Could it be that they''re not seeing the current condition of the battle?'' This was the question he wanted to ask, but he refrained from doing so since he didn''t want to offend them. Since they were so confident in their friend, he wanted to see the reason for their confidence. Reynolds watched as the battle slowly started to get out of his hands. From having the initiative, he fell into a passive state. Luckily, the Elemental Warrior was able to take most of the pressure. The young lady was no doubt very powerful. One has to know that fighting against Reynolds and his Elemental Warrior was almost the same as fighting against two people, one in the Seventh stage of the Overlord Plane while the other in the Fourth stage, yet she was able to gain the upper hand. This might not be the result if she fought two people at this stage, but since Reynolds was the only one operating both sides, it meant she was fighting against one brain. Boom! Bang! Bam! ?????? ???? ????????????.???. She attacked ferociously with the lightning and wind element. The darkness element was mainly used for sneak attacks. Boom! One of the attacks hit Reynolds head-on, and he was sent flying. He maneuvered and managed to stay on the platform, but his lightning coat was eroded. It flickered once and went off. With the lightning coat out of the picture, he was standing unprotected against the darkness particles that were on the platform. Within a matter of a few seconds, he started to feel the effects of them as they touched his body. If he had about seventy percent control over the lightning element before, present, he had only around fifty percent. And as time goes on, he would continue losing his ability to manipulate it. Chapter 726 Rumbling Thunder Crash! Bang! Reynolds was sent flying by another attack from the young lady once again. This time, crashing into his Elemental Warrior. The light the Elemental Warrior gave was weaker than usual, this showed it would disappear soon. "Just give up, the longer you stay here, the more you''ll lose your strength. Unless you''re a Darkness Elementalist, you''re as good as defeated in here." The young lady said calmly. She wasn''t haughty, only speaking what she felt was the truth. Reynolds raised his head to look at her, this wasn''t the first time he was getting in a situation like this, and time and time again, he had been able to come out victorious, all he had to do was persevere for now, his chance would come sooner or later. "You''ve not won, not yet." Reynolds replied as he stood up once again. He could feel his strength slowly leaving his body. This wasn''t how he planned things to go, but he was also aware things don''t always go as planned. This was why there was a contingency plan. ''I''ve never heard of anyone doing this before, but it should be possible.'' Reynolds thought to himself as he prepared himself for what was next. The young lady snorted and attacked once again. Reynolds sent the Elemental Warrior forward to fight against the young lady as he mapped out his plan in his head. If things work well, he would create a unique technique never before seen, if not, then he would lose without a doubt and might be harmed in that process as well. Boom! Bam! Bang! The Elemental Warrior was once again sent flying. This time, in Reynolds'' direction. Reynolds, seeing the Elemental Warrior coming his way, dodged to the left. Given the speed it was coming at, it was unknown if it wouldn''t knock him out of the platform, so he couldn''t take any chances. He knew this would present a chance for the young lady to attack him, but he had no other options. Just as he predicted, after dodging the attack, he saw the young lady approaching him with a dark orb in her hands. She created a tornado which she used to keep Reynolds in place as she approached. Reynolds used the lightning element to the maximum, but because of the decrease in the lightning elemental essence on the platform, he was unable to bring forth seventy percent of his original strength. The reason the young lady preferred close-range battle was all because of the speed of the darkness element. It was just too slow. She could boost its speed with the wind or lightning element, but due to the specialty of her attacks, it wouldn''t be as powerful as when used alone. This was a strange method since getting a boost from other elements would usually increase the speed and even the attack power of the element. Reynolds struggled as the young lady got within striking distance. Buzz! Crash! Bang! The young lady dodged to the right with a smirk on her face. "I expected that." She chuckled before throwing the dark orb into the tornado. Reynolds watched on as the dark orb got into the tornado and exploded. The tornado soon turned completely black and Reynolds'' figure disappeared from view. The young lady stood alone on the platform, looking at the black tornado rotating on the platform. Everyone watched the tornado, waiting for her to stop it, or for Reynolds to somehow miraculously escape from it. They knew the chance of the latter was very minimal, but people enjoyed seeing the unexpected. Grey and his friends exchanged views, while Kyle shook his head. He already knew this would be the result from the second the young lady took the upper hand. "Rey is not defeated yet." Klaus clenched his fist. "You should just for¡­" Kyle was in the middle of speaking when Grey interrupted him. "He has not given up yet, we''ll only accept his defeat when he has accepted it." Grey pointed at the black tornado, and signs of silver light were visible in the tornado. Although very faint, it was visible. Grey wasn''t the only one who noticed the silver lights, people gradually started to notice them around the arena, and they started pointing at them while speaking animatedly. Some felt it was a last-ditch effort from Reynolds, while others felt Reynolds was about to do the impossible. The silver lights started to move faster and started getting brighter. In the dark tornado, the light started to shine brightly. The young lady seeing this raised her hand and a second darkness orb appeared on it, she sent it into the tornado. With a second orb entering, the strength of the tornado almost multiplied. The silver lights which were running rampant a few moments ago slowly started to lose their light. At this point, other than Grey and his friends, no one else felt Reynolds had a chance of making a comeback. The young lady didn''t stop with one orb, she created two more and sent them into the tornado. With the current boost the tornado got, its strength increased significantly. At this rate, it would even be able to trouble someone in the Ninth stage of the Overlord Plane. The only reason this was possible was all because of the time the young lady was afforded. With her current strength, she naturally was no match for a Ninth stage Overlord Plane genius. The man in charge of the platform was about to step in and announce the winner, but just as he was about to step into the platform¡­ Rumble! The sound of heavy thunder reverberated across the entire arena. Lightning clouds gathered above the platform, and the dark tornado once again had silver light shining in it. This time, it was brighter than the previous time. "What?" The young lady, as well as the crowd, was shocked. They never thought Reynolds would not give up just yet, and from the sound of the thunder, they could all tell something was about to happen. Chapter 727 - Rumbling Thunder II Chapter 727 - Rumbling Thunder II Rumble! The sound of the thunder increased as the platform shook vigorously from the sound of the thunder. Inside the tornado, the silver light was getting brighter with time. It was as if a lightning storm was taking place inside the tornado. The young lady couldn''t let her victory slip away. Without caring for Reynolds'' safety, she created more orbs and sent them into the tornado. In five seconds, she sent in over ten darkness orbs. At this rate, this tornado would kill an Elementalist in the Ninth stage of the Overlord Plane easily. And even a Peak Overlord Plane Elementalist would think twice before entangling themselves with it. To the dismay of the young lady, the lightning storm that seemed to be brewing inside the tornado didn''t stop, instead, it increased, fighting against the darkness. Everyone in the arena were off their seats as they watched the scene that was taking place. Reynolds was fighting back, against all odds, he was fighting back. He would not take defeat so easily. Grey and Klaus exchanged glances and a smile flashed across their faces. They knew Reynolds wouldn''t lose so easily. But deep down, they could both sense their nervousness after the young lady started adding darkness orbs to the tornado. "I told you, he has not been defeated yet." Grey said to Kyle. Now Kyle understood why the trio had so much confidence in him, even without seeing his figure, he could tell that the second Reynolds came out of the tornado, he would be a different person. ''Looks like he benefited from this.'' Kyle thought to himself. Rumble! Buzz! Crash! The sound of the thunder reverberated one more time before a large bolt of lightning fell from the thundercloud above the platform, falling straight into the tornado. Swoosh! Bang! The tornado contracted before exploding out in all directions. The force of the explosion sent the young lady flying, but she made sure to stay on the platform. With the tornado gone, and the lightning bolt slowly fading away, a figure soon started to appear in the view of everyone. "Where''s his Elemental Warrior?" Grey asked after noticing only Reynolds was barely visible. "I haven''t seen it since it was sent flying." Klaus replied. Grey turned to Alice and Kyle, but their response was a shake of their heads. They too had no idea where the Elemental Warrior was located. As time went on, the lightning faded off completely, and the figure before them came into full view. It was a humanoid figure with lightning formed around the body like armor. "I can see the Elemental Warrior, but where''s Rey?" Klaus said. "That is Rey." Void replied. "Huh?" Everyone around him, including Grey, turned to look at Void in shock. "That is Rey. He seems to have merged with the Elemental Warrior." Void replied. Just as Void said, after getting a good view of the figure, they realized it was Reynolds clothed with lightning armor. His present appearance was the same as the Elemental Warrior. The only difference was that he had facial features. Then there were a few places that didn''t have lightning covering them, so the clothes he was previously wearing were visible. "Is this even possible?" Alice asked, stunned. "Shouldn''t be, but as you can see with a lot of your friends, nothing is impossible." Void replied. Alice looked at Grey and then at Klaus. Void was right, for her friends, nothing was impossible. Grey had a freakish ability to comprehend any element and even improve the elemental grade, while Klaus had virtually unreal luck. Klaus'' luck would make the entire continent envious. Even those sitting at the top would feel jealous of his luck. Now, Reynolds just did something that shouldn''t be possible. At the moment, she felt like the only normal person among these freaks. If people in the arena could hear her thoughts, they would riot. If she was normal, then what were they? At least she had a Seelie, what did they have? Just being friends with these people already made her abnormal to begin with! Reynolds was currently floating in the air, laughing like a maniac which almost ruined the impressive image he just created in the eyes of everyone. The truth was, no matter what he did, it would be difficult for those in the arena to forget this scene. Even if Reynolds were to go on and lose this battle, they would still remember this scene. "It worked! Hahaha!" Reynolds laughed in delight in the sky with both hands spread apart. When he had the idea of merging with the Elemental Warrior some time ago, he never thought it would be possible. He had been experimenting with it a few times while also playing out a few scenarios in his head, but he was a bit skeptical about it. Now that he tried it, he got the surprise of his life. He had officially made something unique only to him. There might be other high-grade summoners, but none of them would be able to merge their bodies with that of their Elemental Warriors. The young lady looked at the figure above her, almost losing hope in the battle. The darkness particles she created on the platform were gone with the explosion of the tornado. This meant that for her to win, she had to start all over again. And compared to the first time, Reynolds seemed stronger. She gritted her teeth and since Reynolds was still distracted by his success, she created another darkness orb like the beginning of the battle and sent it up. Reynolds noticed this, and before the darkness orb got over ten meters into the air, he created a lightning sword and cut it in two. "It will not work against me for a second time, don''t mistake me for a fool." Reynolds said coolly after destroying the darkness orb. The young lady wore an annoyed expression when she saw that her plan was thwarted. She still didn''t give up, after all, maybe all this was false bravado. Chapter 728 - You Did Your Best Chapter 728 - You Did Your Best Boom! Bam! Bang! Reynolds started his attack on the young lady. The young lady blocked most of the attack as she countered as well. Reynolds didn''t let the attacks disturb him, with a few movements, he dodged most of her attacks while blocking the few he couldn''t. His current attack power seemed to be on the Eighth stage of the Overlord Plane. The young lady stood no chance against the current him, and from the small interchange they had, she knew. But she didn''t want to give up so easily. She has already missed her chance on getting into the Faction of her choice, so the best way she could get into the Faction of her choice was by getting into the top ten, losing now means she wouldn''t be able to get that. "I can''t lose, I won''t lose." She encouraged herself as she persisted through the attacks. Reynolds didn''t hold back, after all, when the young lady was attacking a few minutes ago, she didn''t give him a chance. Bam! Bang! The young lady was pushed back by Reynolds'' attack, but she retaliated soon after she got her footing. The audience shook their heads. They all thought the young lady would be victorious in this battle a few minutes ago, but presently, it was clear for all to see that Reynolds would defeat her. She didn''t want to give up, however, she was only delaying the inevitable. Against the current Reynolds, she would undoubtedly lose. "Do you think she might create a miracle as well?" Klaus asked. "Not a chance. She knows she has lost, she just doesn''t want to accept it because it would mean losing the chance of getting into the Faction of her choice." Alice replied. Everyone could read the young lady''s intent. It was clear she had a specific Faction in mind, and the only way she could get in was by getting into the top ten. However, there''s a chance that she might still get her wish. Forgetting the fact that she was about to lose to Reynolds, she was a powerful figure. If she didn''t encounter Reynolds, then she would have at least an eighty percent chance of getting into the top five. There has been no participant that has been able to pull off such a performance other than Alice and Reynolds. The other two who did this refused to continue the competition. Other than this young lady, there are a few others who might still be able to show such strength. But they hadn''t gotten an opponent that made them go all-out yet. "This is the disadvantage of not taking the chance the first time. Had she challenged the Faction she wanted, she had a good chance of getting into it." Kyle felt pity for the young lady who was giving her all on the platform. Boom! Thud! The young lady was sent flying once again by Reynolds, falling onto the platform with a loud sound. She struggled to get to her feet, unwilling to give up. "You should give up, you can''t win." Reynolds floated in the air as he looked down on his opponent. The young lady raised her head to look at him defiantly, "I said these words to you previously, but you managed to turn it around." "We''re not the same." Reynolds said in a straightforward manner. If the young lady thought acting like him would give her the chance of turning the battle around, then she was a fool. "I know." The young lady gritted her teeth angrily and a hand made of black mass rushed toward Reynolds. ''It''s time to end this.'' Reynolds thought to himself. He looked at that hand coming his way, not a single fear in his eyes. Buzz! Swoosh! He shot past the hand, creating a gaping hole in it. After going through the hand, his next target was the young lady. Boom! Bam! He attacked continuously, and after almost thirty seconds, he once again sent the young lady flying. This time, he didn''t leave her alone like before, rather, he continued attacking. The young lady didn''t get the chance to stabilize herself before Reynolds came rushing in once again. She was sent flying once again, crashing into the ground. Rumble! Crash! A powerful thunderbolt fell from the sky, striking the young lady who was on the ground of the platform. The crowd looked at Reynolds, not expecting such brutality from him. They felt he would''ve been lenient with the young lady, but after thinking of how the young lady attacked him, they decided she deserved it. The sorry figure of the young lady came into view once again. She had blood on the side of her mouth, however, she still refused to admit defeat. "Fine, I''ll send you out of the platform myself." Reynolds said coldly. Attacking the young lady once again. The young lady managed to put up a fight for a few more minutes, but she was ultimately knocked out of the platform, falling unconscious in the end after straining herself too much. After defeating his opponent, Reynolds left his current form, and the lightning armor around his body faded off. He slowly fell to the ground, exhausted. Merging with the Elemental Warrior was taxing. If he stayed in this form for too long, he might fall unconscious as well. Luckily, he managed to defeat the young lady in the space of around five minutes. The man in charge of the platform walked forward to announce the winner, while a middle-aged man flew from the special seating area and enveloped the young lady with a white light. It was the use of the light element, aiding the healing of the young lady. The young lady opened her eyes a few seconds later, disappointment visible in her eyes. "No need to feel disappointed, you did your best." The middle-aged man smiled softly at her before going back to his seat. His words were correct, the young lady indeed did her best, she was just unfortunate in encountering the likes of Reynolds who was a powerful opponent in his own right as well. ??? ????? ???????s ??? ?????s??? ?? ????????????.??? Chapter 729 Top Twenty-Five "Surprised?" Reynolds asked with a smirk when he got back to his seat. "A little." Grey replied. "What do you mean a little? He literally just merged with his Elemental Warrior, how could you not be mega surprised?" Klaus questioned. The shocked expression when he found out Reynolds merged with the Elemental Warrior was out of this world. He was so happy for him that people would think he was the one who made such advancement. pan da-novel,co m "You''re something else." Kyle complimented as he looked at Reynolds. If Reynolds used this to fight against him, he wasn''t confident he would be able to win. When they fought at the competition the last time, he only gave up because he was getting frustrated by Reynolds'' tactics, and wasting so much time because of a number one spot wasn''t worth it. He was a carefree person who didn''t really care about all these things. P anda-novel,c.om "Thanks." Reynolds grinned before taking his seat. This time, even more people flocked to their area. Reynolds'' performance was outstanding, so he naturally made a lot of fans. There were a few ladies who wouldn''t mind getting married to him right there and then. Klaus acted like his manager, dealing with everything. In no time, he had arranged a party in one of the Inns in the city. ????? N ovel Kyle was once again astounded by Klaus'' socializing ability. He was on another level. While he was speaking, a young man walked forward. He was dressed luxuriously in ash and blue, and the air of a rich family was circulating around him. He was accompanied by a few others. "Hello, I''m Joyner Crane." The young man introduced himself. ?? ???? ???? ???????s, ????s? ??s?? ?????-?????,??.? "I''m Klaus, this is Reynolds, Alice, Grey, and Kyle." Klaus was the one who stepped forward and spoke. ?a?da ?o??l He hit it off with that young man and before long, the party was moved from an Inn to the garden at the Mayor''s manor. Surprise, Joyner was the son of the Mayor of this city. It wasn''t unexpected that he came over to create ties with this group of geniuses. ? ???? ? ???? If he was having second thoughts before, Reynolds'' last performance had shattered it. Joyner introduced the people following him, and they were all from one of the big families in the city. Although most of the families were fighting hidden battles, in places like this, they had to show a unified front. Grey and the group were moved over to a special sitting area, closer to the big families geniuses as well as the Factions as well. When they got there, the young man from the Raiden Faction Reynolds fought against, as well as the one who came over to invite him approached them. The person from the Asterope Faction also came over. Their sitting area was surprisingly the star of the place, and Klaus didn''t let the chance go. A few of the ladies from the Moonlight Faction came over and he tried befriending them. Being a handsome young man, as well as having a friendly and vibrant personality, he made friends with two of them in a jiffy. This was one of the few times Grey had been in a situation like this. As much as he wanted to escape, he knew he couldn''t. Luckily, he had been traveling with Klaus for some time, so he was able to speak with the people who came over. The battle for that day ended and the top twenty-five were picked. Now, it was time for the difficult situation. With twenty-five people present, they could only have twelve battles, making it twenty-four fighters, which would leave one person without an opponent. Even after they get this, there would be around twelve or thirteen people, meaning three would have to be eliminated for the top ten to be decided. Lots were drawn, and contrary to everyone''s assumption, the hosts did something different. Instead of having someone not fight and automatically advance, one of the battles will have three participants and only one would qualify. This would leave twelve participants left on for the competition. The last three winners from the battles except for the three-way battle will fight against each other, and only one will advance to the next round. This means there''s currently a time for all the fighters, if your battle takes too long, you stand a chance of being part of the three. This might seem unfair for some, but not everyone could make it into the top ten. Only the very best can get to the top ten. Most of the participants prayed that either Alice or Reynolds got to fight in the first three-way battle. The reason for this was that only the duo could fight against two people simultaneously easily. Alice had her Seelie while Reynolds had his Elemental Warrior. This made the duo almost two. There were a few people who were actually praying that both of them were part of the three-way battle so that one of them would be eliminated, or hopefully both of them. When they drew lots, Alice and Reynolds were not part of the three-way battle to the dismay of some people. Their opponents were powerful, but not on the level where they could trouble them. As things stand, it was already certain that Reynolds and Alice would be able to occupy two spots in the top ten. Those who wanted to join a particular Faction felt frustrated. It was normal, the reason for this was that both Alice and Reynolds already got into the Faction they wanted. Taking two spots in the top ten would be meaningless to them. But since they wanted to participate in the competition, there was nothing they could do. A young lady who was one of the favorites was the one who unfortunately got into the three-way battle. Being one of the favorites meant that her opponents would most likely team up to take her out of the platform, giving themselves a chance. The young lady felt hatred as she looked at Alice and Reynolds after they finished drawing lots. She couldn''t hide her anger. The others kept their distance, since they weren''t the unfortunate ones, it had nothing to do with them. Chapter 730 - A Gamble Chapter 730 - A Gamble Later that day. Tallinn City''s Mayor manor. Joyner got permission from his father to host Grey and his friends, and since they were already here, the geniuses from all the Factions present were invited as well. The participants who managed to get into the top one hundred were also invited. Given the current number of people present, the party was held on an open field. Grey and his friends sat at the front, alongside members of the top Factions, while Joyner, being the host of the party, sat facing the crowd. There was music, drinks, food, and other forms of entertainment and the place was lively as expected. This party was held with the sole purpose of creating ties with each other. Everyone present were all well dressed. Grey wore a light blue overcoat with black trousers, Reynolds and Klaus both wore red and green overcoats respectively with black trousers as well. Alice wore white trousers with a peach long-sleeved shirt. Kyle was dressed in a simple short-sleeved shirt and blue trousers. The group was part of the focus of the show. A few geniuses came over to toast with them, while Klaus was very active, one minute he was here, the next he was somewhere else. People didn''t take it as him trying to bootlick them since all he did was share a glass of wine with them before leaving. Unknown to them, the only reason Klaus even went to other tables was that he didn''t want the girls from the Moonlight Faction to think they were his aim. That was the only table he wanted to go to, and following his plan, that was the last table he went to. He stayed there longer and managed to build some sort of relationship with the girls. Not all the girls were welcoming, nor did he try to befriend all of them. Going back to his seat, he realized a young lady was staring at Reynolds and Alice angrily. "What''s going on here?" He asked as he took his seat. "Tell them to step down from the competition. They are already part of a Faction, doing this will only reduce the chances of others." The young lady said. "Don''t you think your request is a bit, I don''t know, odd. It''s none of your business if we decide to continue fighting or not." Alice replied coldly. "Odd? You two are hoarding all the spots even after achieving your aim and you call my request odd?" The young lady said angrily. She knew her battle the next day would be difficult, now she was looking for a way to vent her current anger. If she lost tomorrow, she would be incensed. "Strength is all that matters, nothing else. Let your strength speak. If you''re worth it, then the Faction you want will surely seek you. Doing this only shows that you''re unsure of yourself.l" Grey spoke up. "Say whatever you want, but what they are doing is pathetic." The young lady said. The exchange between the young lady and Grey''s group naturally caught the attention of those around. Some of the participants felt her claim was right. Alice and Reynolds had already gotten into a Faction of their choice, what was the use in taking part in the competition any longer. One of the people who felt even more irritated with the duo was the young lady Reynolds eliminated. She walked over as well and joined the young lady to stir up trouble for the group. The others watched on with interest, there was nothing as entertaining as watching two parties fight, especially when the battle had nothing to do with you nor would it affect you in any way. "You said strength was all that matters, right?" The young lady Reynolds eliminated asked Grey. "Correct." Grey didn''t back away. It wasn''t like they could beat him. "Fine, then I have an offer for you, since you''re friends with them, I believe you would be able to take the gamble." The young lady who was eliminated pointed at Grey. "I''m not interested in gambling with desperate people." Grey didn''t mince his words, and the young ladies were irritated even further. "I thought you said strength was all that matters?" The young lady asked. "It is." Grey nodded. ??? ????? ???????s ??? ?????s??? ?? ????????????.??? "Then if you''re not afraid, take the gamble." The young lady said. "If I may ask, what''s the gamble?" Klaus asked. "He would fight against the two of us, if he manages to win, we won''t speak of this issue again. But if we win, they would have to step down from the competition." The young lady said. "Hahaha, you must be joking, right?" Klaus laughed in amusement. "No, I''m not." The young lady said. The young lady who was still in the competition thought about it and felt this was an achievable thing, so she supported the young lady Reynolds eliminated. "You must be stupid if you think we would agree to your words." Klaus said. The facial expression of the young ladies turned distorted, clearly infuriated with Klaus'' words. "You''re placing a gamble that you will only gain and not lose, where have you seen something like that happening before?" Klaus asked with a mocking smile, before adding, "If you so much as dare to take a gamble, then you must be ready to lose as well." Everyone listening to the conversation nodded in agreement with Klaus'' words. There was no way they would gamble and not risk losing anything important. The two young ladies exchanged glances, and the issue ultimately fell on the shoulders of the young lady who was still part of the competition. They all knew what Klaus wanted, since you want them to step down if you win, then you would step down as well. If you lose. The young lady looked at Grey, thinking of her strength, then recalling how powerful the young lady Reynolds defeated was, she was over a hundred percent confident they would defeat Grey. Reynolds and Alice might be powerful, but they couldn''t fight the two ladies. They didn''t want it to look like they were bullying them, this was why they picked Grey who had a higher cultivation stage. "I''ll step down from the competition if we lose." The young lady said decisively. "Hahaha, they''re two, only you can''t match up to our offer." Klaus laughed, annoying the young ladies even more, "This is what will happen, she''ll step down. Then since you''ve already been eliminated, you''ll drop five hundred thousand high-grade essence stones as compensation." Chapter 731 - A Gamble II Chapter 731 - A Gamble II "What?!" The young lady exclaimed in shock, she didn''t think Klaus would call such an amount. She might be from a well-off family, but she couldn''t afford something like this. Even if she managed to find a way to get it, it would mean emptying her savings and also borrowing from people as well. "You can''t take part in a free gamble now, can you?" Klaus asked with an evil grin, "Two of my friends might lose their chances of gaining the number one spot, while only her would lose her chance. That doesn''t seem fair in my honest opinion." "We''ll pay it." The young lady who was still part of the competition said coolly. "I¡­" The young lady eliminated wanted to speak but the other one whispered to her. "Do you think we would both lose against a single person?" The young lady who was part of the competition asked in a soft voice. The young lady who was eliminated shook her head, now she understood why her partner didn''t think much about it. They would win anyway, so there was no use in thinking about the stones. The truth was, normally, one of them could hold their own against a Seventh stage Overlord Plane Elementalists, much less now that they were combining their strength. To them, they had already won the battle. After getting confirmation from them, Klaus gave out a mischievous smile. "Bud, it''s up to you now. Those stones are all yours. You know you''ll be doing a lot of traveling once you leave here." Klaus whispered to Grey. Grey was taken aback when he realized the reason Klaus agreed to this gamble was just so he could get him essence stones. They''ve seen the cost of traveling, so they all knew it was extremely expensive. Grey had the idea of selling some of the items he had but now he wouldn''t need to. Klaus walked to the front of the place, facing everyone. Being someone who had gone to a lot of parties with his father, and even hosted a few, he was very good with this. He greeted everyone present before asking them to bear witness to the wager. With these geniuses from the top Factions here, the young ladies would be unable to renege from it. The crowd agreed to it. They would get to watch a free battle. Not just that, but they''ve been waiting to see how powerful Grey or Klaus was. Since Alice and Reynolds were already this powerful, then the other two would be even more powerful. If they were not more powerful, they shouldn''t be weaker. This was what the crowd felt. Joyner agreed with the battle and called one of the guards in the Sage Plane to set up a platform for them, and also raise a force field to ensure that none of the battle ripples spread out. In no time, the platform was set. The young ladies were the first to step onto the platform, they were eager to defeat Grey. The young lady who was eliminated by Reynolds would not be able to join the competition again, but she wanted to make sure Reynolds didn''t get the first or second position he desired. This might be petty, but she was annoyed by her defeat. Grey calmly walked to the platform. All eyes were on him. His facial features were well shown by the moonlight, and it was breathtaking. Klaus was handsome, but he paled in comparison with Grey. There were a few ladies who inadvertently started supporting Grey. Some were speaking about Grey''s appearance. Being already used to this, Grey didn''t let it distract him. This was one of the reasons he preferred wearing a mask. Keeping his face hidden would save him some trouble. Klaus still got glances from ladies, and since Klaus wasn''t as cold towards strangers as Grey, things were easy for him. Grey didn''t speak when he entered the platform, there was nothing to say to these ladies. Although, he had to say he pitied them since they fell into Klaus'' evil hands, but he needed the stones, so there was no going back. Joyner was the one in charge of the battle. He walked into the platform, "There''s still time to back away from the bet. Once I call for the start of the battle, then it''s certain." The platform remained silent, none of the people there spoke about stopping the bet. Since they wanted this, he had no right to stop it. "Begin!" He called for the start of the battle and left the platform. He didn''t forget to warn them about endangering each other''s lives. It was normal that in battles like this, people get hurt, but if any of them actively tried to kill anyone, then they would be punished accordingly. Kyle had seen Grey fight before, so he knew he was a powerful Elementalist, but he still felt a little pessimistic about his chances of winning easily. "Are you two sure about this?" Kyle asked Alice and Reynolds. "Of course, Grey needs the stones. Besides, they can''t defeat him." Alice said with a confident smile. Kyle looked at them, he felt the same confidence as the time they said Reynolds would win. ''Could he really defeat these two?'' He asked himself. Grey was powerful, this was something he didn''t dare to doubt, but the fact that he was fighting against two powerful geniuses made him question his ability. Of the two ladies, one was a Multi Elementalist, while the other was a Dual Elementalist. Both surprisingly had the darkness element. The Multi Elementalist was the one Reynolds defeated while the other was the one who was still in the competition. The Dual Elementalist had the darkness and fire element. She was the first to attack Grey, giving the Multi Elementalist the chance to create the darkness ball she used to weaken Reynolds. Grey saw this and smiled. He naturally couldn''t be affected by this. For someone who stayed in a poison miasma for days, this was a joke to him. He didn''t even bother with stopping her. ?? ??? ???? ?? ???? ?? ?? ???????s, ????s? ??s?? ????????????.??? ?? ?x???????? ??s??? ?????? s????. Chapter 732 - Two On One Battle Chapter 732 - Two On One Battle Boom! The Dual Elementalist''s fire attack was blocked easily by Grey who didn''t give her any other chance to attack him. With a flicker, he disappeared from his current spot, appearing behind the Multi Elementalist who just finished completing her darkness orb attack. "Are you done?" Grey''s indifferent voice came from behind her, and before she could turn around to see what was happening, Grey unleashed a fireball at her. The Multi Elementalist managed to set up a windscreen in time, but she was sent flying by the impact of the attack. "A Space Elementalist, and he also has a special fire. This will be difficult." The Dual Elementalist rushed over and used her hand to support the Multi Elementalist from falling. Her current expression was one of distrust. The space element was known for its tricky nature. Grey could fight against the duo with this since he could easily move his location. Grey''s space element was not their only issue, the strength of his fire elemental attack was not something a regular Seventh stage Overlord Plane Elementalist should wield. For a second, she started to doubt their strength. "It will only take a matter of time before he''s unable to use them. Don''t worry, victory is ours." The Multi Elementalist said, confident in the skill she just used. "Hmm." The Dual Elementalist nodded, this wasn''t the time to feel disheartened. ''How could I lose confidence so easily? He''s just one person.'' She motivated herself before attacking once again. She created a large flaming bird that shot towards Grey. While the bird was going, the Multi Elementalist used the wind element to create whirlwinds, also using a powerful breeze to hasten the movement of the bird. Grey didn''t panic when he saw this, he motioned with his hand and an earth wall appeared in front of him, blocking the attack that was shooting at him. Boom! The wall shook, and cracks appeared on its body of it, but it didn''t fall apart. "He''s also an Earth Elementalist." The Dual Elementalist was shocked by this discovery. As if the space element wasn''t enough, Grey was equipped with the earth element as well. This would make attacking him even more difficult. The battle just started, but Grey showcased a dominant momentum that stumped the two ladies. The crowd watching the battle was just as surprised. They never thought Grey would not only have more than one element, but he would wield three, also having the rare space element as well. His fire was also special which made him unique. The crowd felt a little satisfied since they had been waiting to watch someone other than Reynolds and Alice battle in the group. If Grey was powerful, it meant the same could be said for Klaus and Kyle. The geniuses from the top Factions all watched Grey with serious expressions. Those in the Seventh stage of the Overlord Plane were itching to get a chance to fight against him. They knew that their chances of fighting against the two ladies alone were minimal, so they felt an urge to challenge Grey who seemed to be doing fine. While the crowd was speaking animatedly about the battles, Grey was holding his own against the young ladies. The Dual Elementalist was the main attacker while the Multi Elementalist acted as the support. The duo was surprisingly very good with their cooperation. After the first time they panicked, they had slowly grown into the battle and since this was their first time fighting, they needed some time to get a bit of understanding about each other. Swoosh! Boom! Bang! Bam! They exchanged blows. Grey was repeatedly going from one spot to another, dodging the attacks of his opponents while also countering. The girls once again regained hope when they started to hold Grey down. The Multi Elementalist was quite sensitive to the space element, so after the initial surprise she got from the first time Grey used the space element, she had been able to predict where he would appear. Even though she could do this, it didn''t mean she could stop or harm him when he did. The time needed was very short, and Grey seemed to be moving in a certain pattern. This made tracking him hard while getting to hold him down was difficult. Bang! Bam! Grey''s attacks collided with the attack of the Dual Elementalist. Behind him, a darkness orb exploded. He raised a wall behind him to block the attack, but the wall was broken. Grey wasn''t shocked by this since he could also feel the darkness element in him slowly starting to get stronger than the first time he entered the platform. ''Such an amazing technique, however, it''s not really beneficial to me.'' Grey thought when he sensed the change in him. The Dual Elementalist felt her darkness element getting stronger and her confidence was over the roof. Now, she was certain they would win. Grey blocked their attacks, disappearing to safety whenever he couldn''t block the attacks. ''Meteor Descent.'' Grey''s figure went airborne and the combination skill of the earth and fire element took place. Seeing the large boulders covered by fire, the ladies prepared themselves to block the attack. Bam! Bang! Boom! The platform shook vigorously from the multiple explosions. The Multi Elementalist was opportuned to sneak up on him and attack. Grey sensed this on time and spread both hands together. He was covered with a powerful fire dome that shot in different directions. The Multi Elementalist was forced to block. While Grey was dealing with the Multi Elementalist, The Dual Elementalist had started attacking Grey once again. Their current method was something Reynolds was very familiar with. They were using their advantage in numbers to divide Grey''s focus. Even though Grey was powerful, there was no way he could defeat the duo so easily. The only thing that the Multi Elementalist found odd was that Grey''s strength didn''t seem to be reducing. Swoosh! Boom! They continued fighting. Grey was simultaneously blocking and countering their attacks. To those watching the battle, Grey was doing something that he shouldn''t be able to do. Only a few of the Seventh stage Overlord Plane Elementalists here had the confidence in being able to defeat the young ladies. Chapter 733 - Playing Around Chapter 733 - Playing Around Bang! The Dual Elementalist was pushed back by Grey, but before Grey could capitalize on the situation, the Multi Elementalist moved in to block him. Swoosh! Boom! A powerful thunderbolt shot towards Grey. Grey dodged it by a hair''s breadth before using a large earth hammer to slam the Multi Elementalist from the side, sending her flying. The Multi Elementalist managed to ensure she wasn''t hurt by the attack, but the force of the attack still rocked her internal organs. Grey never went easy on ladies, to him, every opponent is an enemy, whether male or female. He does not discriminate! The Dual Elementalist stepped forward to block Grey while the Multi Elementalist tried to recover from the shake she got from the previous attack. Grey didn''t give them the chance to combine their strength. The small time they combined their strength, he felt a little pressured. It wasn''t really something he couldn''t deal with, but it was better he had them separated. Boom! Bam! Bang! Grey and the Dual Elementalist exchanged blows, but it was evident who was the stronger person. With every attack, Grey was able to push her back. The Multi Elementalist rushed in a few seconds later, attacking Grey from behind. Caught in a pincer attack, Grey didn''t panic, with a flicker, he switched places with the Dual Elementalist, sending out his own attack as well. The Dual Elementalist appeared in the middle of three attacks, she was able to change the direction of her attack, using it to block the attack of the Multi Elementalist, but Grey''s attack had the freedom it needed to strike her cleanly. The Multi Elementalist reacted quickly, sending out a gust of wind which pushed the Dual Elementalist away from the position. Bam! Grey''s attack missed the Dual Elementalist. He was surprised by the quick reaction of the Dual Elementalist. Most people he had switched places with usually tend to be confused since their position was changed. This showed the high battle sense of the young lady. The main reason he didn''t switch places with the Multi Elementalist was because she had a high sensitivity to the space element. The crowd on the other hand were going nuts when they witnessed Grey''s switch skill. It was a unique technique that they had not seen before. It was a tricky skill to defend against, and experiencing this once would make one wary of attacking. The fact that Grey could easily switch places with his opponent made him almost undefeatable. Most of the Space Elementalists in the place were thinking deeply about how Grey managed to do the switch. They were also Space Elementalists like him, but they''ve never been able to think of this, much less try it. Now they finally knew that this group of friends were not to be joked with. They previously thought Reynolds and Alice were freaks, Grey had only shown a sliver of his strength, but they already rated him higher than the other two. The reason for this was very simple, the strength he was displaying was uncommon. Not just that, but his battle strategy as well as his techniques made it an opponent no one wanted to fight. A few of the Late stage Overlord Plane Elementalists who registered for the competition had looks of wariness. Encountering Grey early on in the competition would be a nightmare, especially for those in the Seventh and Eighth stages. As things stand, they all knew that only those in the Ninth stage could keep up with him. From Alice and Reynolds'' previous battles, they knew Grey hadn''t shown his real strength yet he was still able to not only fight the ladies but was completely suppressing them as well. What they were all wondering was why he wasn''t having any reactions to the darkness particles on the platform. The battle had been ongoing for over three minutes now, but Grey''s strength didn''t seem to reduce the slightest. "How long do you think he''ll keep playing?" Klaus asked Reynolds. "One or two more minutes. He must be trying something out." Reynolds replied. "Hmm, I think the same as well." Klaus nodded. Alice joined in on the conversation as they spoke about the battle. They weren''t the least bit bothered about Grey, he was clearly capable of taking care of himself against the young ladies. Some of the people from the top Factions who were close to them were dumbstruck by their conversation. How could they say Grey was playing? He was obviously having an intense battle with the young ladies, yet his friends said he was playing? Could this mean that he''s even stronger than we think? This was the question on their minds. Everyone watching the battle were dumbfounded by how things were going. They originally thought Grey would no doubt lose, or even if he would win, it wouldn''t be by a large margin. But the reality of things is a little different. Grey seemed to be strolling to victory, comfortably. Bang! Boom! Bam! Grey''s figure flashed through the platform as he attacked repeatedly. An earth pillar rose from the ground where the Multi Elementalist was standing, and before she could react to it, she was already over ten meters in the air, looking at her side, she saw Grey looking at her with a smile. Her heart sank, and she tried to attack, but Grey''s figure flickered and he was nowhere to be seen. The Dual Elementalist, as well as the crowd, witnessed a jaw-dropping scene soon after. Grey''s figure flashed and it was as if he was five people, attacking at the same time from different positions. This was only an illusion due to how fast he was changing positions. The Multi Elementalist was sandwiched by the attack, unable to block any attack. "Ah¡­" Her screams of pain reverberated across the place. The Dual Elementalist wanted to retreat, she knew since the Multi Elementalist had been taken out, she stood no chance against Grey on her own. "You¡­ you tried to kill her." She said, trying to distract Grey. "Heh! She''s sleeping over there, you''ll join her soon." Grey used his eyes to show the Dual Elementalist where the Multi Elementalist was located. To her surprise, she didn''t have any injuries on her body, and just as Grey said, she was only unconscious. Chapter 734 - I Believe We Can Work Something Out! Chapter 734 - I Believe We Can Work Something Out! Crash! Bang! The Dual Elementalist was sent flying, and before she could get to the ground, Grey was already waiting for her. With a wave of his hand, an earth pillar hit her, sending her into the air. After being hit by the first earth pillar, five more appeared in the sky, all creating a circle. She was hit by another earth pillar which sent her in the direction of another pillar. This went on for a few seconds longer, and the crowd watched on in pity. Grey was merciless in his battle, and from what he was doing, everyone knew the reason he was doing this was that the young ladies troubled his friends. From the small time they had seen him, he rarely spoke with others. "I never knew he was evil." Kyle said. "You have no idea what he''s capable of. He''s not really evil like Klaus, but whenever someone close to him is threatened, he becomes this. If not for the fact that this was only a bet, things would''ve been worse for them. Honestly, I''d rather face Klaus than face an annoyed Grey." Alice clarified things to Kyle who was starting to look at Grey in a new light. "Oh, the overprotective type." Kyle understood what Alice meant. Grey was among the type of people who were very protective of their close friends and family. The battle ended a few seconds later since Grey didn''t want the young lady to suffer for too long. Although she was being hit by the earth pillars, they didn''t really cause any physical injuries to her. Her innards might be rocked, but it was nothing serious. Grey made sure she didn''t pass out since someone had to honor the bet. "Aren''t you going to announce the winner?" He turned to Joyner. Joyner still had his mouth wide open as he watched how Grey brutally beat up the young ladies. He gulped in fear, thinking of what Grey might do to someone if it was a true life and death battle. The fact that he could do this in a spar showed that he was a ruthless individual. He walked over to the platform to declare Grey the winner. It wasn''t as if everyone didn''t know, but to make it seem official. The young lady who was conscious looked at Grey with hatred, then his eyes turned to Klaus who was already on the platform, looking at him with a mischievous smile. "The stones, hand them over." Klaus stretched out his hand. The young lady was still in a kneeling position, trying to catch her breath. Klaus didn''t even give her any time before he came to draw his debt. Since they won the bet, it meant the stones were his, so he had every right to ask for them. The stones weren''t a problem for that young lady, she could afford them, but for some reason, she felt a knot in her heart. Losing to Grey was something she still couldn''t believe actually happened. What she found more unbelievable was the manner of their loss. Grey beat them like they weren''t even able to use their elements. They were two geniuses, Grey was only a stage ahead of them, how did he do it? "What are you?" She didn''t answer Klaus'' question, instead, she questioned Grey. "I''m me." Grey said before stretching out his hand, "Now, pay up." The young lady almost went crazy when she saw this. She thought Klaus was crazy, but it seemed like Grey was even crazier. "I can''t give up my chance in the competition." The young lady said through gritted teeth. "Even better, come, I believe we can work something out." Klaus said with a friendly smile. Reynolds and Alice looked at the young lady with pity, whenever Klaus made such a face, he was about to rip someone off. This was Klaus'' plan from the start. The five hundred thousand essence stones were only the appetizers. Requesting for this would show the young lady that he was a greedy or money-hungry type, which meant she would try to buy her way back into the competition. Since she made the bet with Klaus and his friends, they could naturally change the stakes as long as both parties agreed to it. Grey shook his head and let Klaus take care of things there. He went back to their seat. He was barely exhausted from the battle. "Just how strong are you?" Kyle asked. Some youths from the Raiden and Asterope Faction were currently seated close to them. "I''m not sure." Grey replied. This was the truth, his strength couldn''t be estimated with these types of battles. Only when he''s using all eight elements would he be able to show his full strength. At the moment, he was unaware of his real strength. ''I can''t wait till I get to a stage where I wouldn''t need to fear showing all my elements. That will be the time I''ll be at my peak.'' Grey sighed internally. Sometimes, he thought of ways to show all his elements. But he hasn''t been able to come up with a good excuse yet. He planned to start using five elements soon enough. Since four elements were the rarity here, there must''ve been times in history when someone would come out with five elements. He wasn''t sure if there were any people with five elements currently, but he planned to use them. This would give him more versatility when fighting, and he could use more elements as well, increasing his strength. The youths from the Factions felt Grey was arrogant with his words. Everyone knew the extent of their strength, so saying this only made it look as if he wanted to look mysterious. Kyle also felt maybe Grey didn''t want to tell him how powerful he is, so he didn''t ask about it any longer. Klaus and the young lady walked back some minutes later, and to the shock of everyone, she apologized. Not just her, but the Multi Elementalist had regained consciousness and also accompanied them. The discussion between Klaus and the young lady was unknown to the others, but she didn''t seem to be as angry as she used to be. Of course, there was a pained expression which meant Klaus had ripped her off of essence stones. Chapter 735 - Just A Few Words Of Advice Chapter 735 - Just A Few Words Of Advice Grey''s battle opened the ceremony and others started to spar as well. There were a few rival Factions around, so they took this opportunity to show which Faction was stronger. The party lasted till midnight before everyone went back to their places. Joyner invited Grey and his friends to sleep over at the Mayor''s manor, but Klaus surprisingly turned him down. It was unexpected since Klaus had always been the one who preferred comfort. Staying in the Mayor''s manor is obviously more comfortable than staying in an Inn. When Reynolds asked Klaus why he refused, he said something along the lines of, ''People aren''t always what they seem. It''s best not to let them get too comfortable with you.'' The next day came soon enough, and the news of Grey''s battle had naturally spread across the city. When the group arrived at the arena, they got all the attention once again. This time, Klaus and Grey who hadn''t fought any battles were the ones who were getting all the spotlight. Reynolds and Alice might be strong, but they were undoubtedly weaker than Klaus and Grey. In times of danger, the duo would be the ones who would shoulder the burden. They went to the special seating area since Klaus felt returning to their previous seats would look strange. Time went by and it was Reynolds'' turn to fight. Of the duo, he was the first person called up. His opponent was a young lady in the Sixth stage of the Overlord Plane. She knew she wasn''t his opponent, but she still tried her best. Reynolds wasn''t forced to the extent of merging with his Elemental Warrior, but the young lady managed to put up a good fight. After defeating her, Reynolds secured a spot in the top ten. This didn''t surprise the crowd since they felt other than Alice and at most two others, he didn''t have anyone who could force his hand any longer. Alice was called up a few minutes later, and just like Reynolds, she won her battle convincingly. Her opponent couldn''t last up to five minutes on the platform. She showcased her ferocious fighting style once again. Only those who watched Grey''s battle the previous night felt Alice was actually very lenient. Grey literally played a game with a human, hitting the young lady from one side to another. That was just pure evil. ??? ????? ???????s ??? ?????s??? ?? ????????????.??? The most anticipated battle of this round was none other than the three-way battle. Although it was a three-way battle, everyone knew that the young lady Grey fought against the previous night would be ganged up on. She was the favorite to win a singles battle, but against two people, unless she went above her limit, or came up with an ingenious fighting strategy, it would be difficult for her to win. When the battle started, she didn''t give her opponents the chance they needed, attacking straight away. Fighting against Grey the previous day opened her eyes to new things, and surprisingly she made a small advancement after her defeat. Grey was the first to notice the increase in her strength. The others also managed to sense it a few moments later. The young lady shocked the entire arena when she defeated one of her opponents in the opening exchange. Unlike what others expected, she went all-out, catching the young man by surprise. Before the young man managed to regain himself, the young lady had already sent him out of the platform. There were a few people who found it strange, but those powerful individuals knew this was all the young lady''s doing. Everyone expected her to stay on the defensive once the battle started, her opponents included. But she took the initiative, and it benefited her since her opponent was caught unaware by her aggressiveness. With one person eliminated, her victory was as good as certain. The overall battle lasted just over five minutes, but she won comfortably. She surprisingly looked at Klaus and mouthed the words, ''Thank you''. Only a few people caught sight of it, Grey and his friends part of them. "What did you tell her?" Alice asked curiously. "Just a few words of advice." Klaus said with a mysterious smile. "Are you sure she didn''t do this because she felt like killing someone and you''re not available?" Grey joked. "Possibly, but she learned some things from her battle with you. So I did contribute to her victory. Also, I told her the best way to win against her opponents who had already seen her show her weakness during the battle last night was to take the initiative and eliminate one of the duo as soon as the fight started." Klaus chuckled before explaining, he also added, "Had she missed her chance, things wouldn''t be this smooth." "Is that all?" Reynolds asked with a cunning smile. "Of course not. I told her the only way to get married to Grey was if she took the first place. So, be prepared, she will be coming for the first position with her life." Klaus winked at Grey. Grey''s eyes twitched a few times when he heard this, while those around burst out laughing. Klaus was a fun person to be with, and it was already evident. Kyle had already started to miss Klaus even though he hadn''t joined a Faction yet. With the top ten people now confirmed, the remaining eight who hadn''t gotten into a Faction of their choice were given the chance to choose a Faction before continuing the competition. They refused, opting to wait after the competition ended or maybe when they were eliminated. The reason they did this was simple. Once they get into a Faction now, they will feel pressured to perform exceptionally well because they were part of a top Faction. Losing against Reynolds and Alice would then be slightly disappointing. Since they''ve decided on doing it this way, they drew lots for the start of the next round. There was still time to not only decide the top five but probably the number one and two spots. Chapter 736 - A Hidden Genius Chapter 736 - A Hidden Genius The top ten participants stood on the platform, each staring at their would-be opponents. Alice got a Dual Elementalist in the Sixth stage of the Overlord Plane, who just like her, had both the lightning and fire element. Reynolds'' opponent was also in the Sixth stage, a Water Elementalist. Presently, Reynolds and Alice were the only participants left that weren''t in the Sixth stage of the Overlord Plane. Of the remaining eight people, one of them, in particular, seemed to be stopping himself from breaking through to the Seventh stage. Other than Alice and Reynolds, he was the one who had the highest chance of getting the top spot. The young lady Grey beat up was just below him. The participants were all given a two hours break to recover their strength. None of the people in the arena left, rather, they stayed and spoke of the previous battles. What excited everyone was the fact that this wasn''t the end of the competition, there was still the highly anticipated Late stage Overlord Plane battle that would start the next day. There, they would see the geniuses at the top of the Overlord Plane. These were the people who had the highest attraction in the competition. Two hours went by in the blink of an eye, and the competition continued. Alice was the first person to step up. Being in the Fifth stage, she was slightly weaker than her opponent. Although, even without using the Seelie, her opponent couldn''t guarantee defeating her. Since there were only five battles taking place, the Factions felt it was better to watch them one at a time. This would let them focus on the person they want to. When the battle started, Alice didn''t immediately call upon her Seelie. She didn''t want to always rely on it, so she preferred fighting on her own, then when things went beyond her, she would summon it. Nevertheless, this didn''t mean that she wasn''t making use of the ice attribute of the Seelie. It was a great defensive element, not using it seemed like a waste. When the fight started, Alice as usual took the initiative of attacking first. Knowing she would do this, her opponent didn''t rush into attacking, wary of her troublesome ice. He blocked the attack before countering. Alice evaded the attack before attacking. They exchanged moves for a while, and no one seemed to have a clear advantage. But with time, the young man soon started to attack with more intensity. Alice held on against the young man since she had a powerful defense. Breaking the ice was extremely difficult since it has self-healing properties. And the most troublesome thing about it was its ability to fight back. This almost made it an opponent since once it was attacked, it would fight back. Alice used the ice to shield herself, balancing the battle. The young man couldn''t take a clear advantage, while she wouldn''t be defeated at this rate. They continued fighting and after almost five minutes, Alice decided it was time to call out the Seelie. The young man was a tricky opponent, and he was extremely cautious. When the Seelie came out, the young man suddenly exploded out with frightening attacks. It almost looked like he had been waiting for it to come out all this while. He managed to break through the ice wall Alice used to protect herself from his attacks in the span of three seconds, not giving the ice any time to heal. The crowd watched excitedly as the battle peaked. Alice brought out the Seelie, only to see another side of her opponent. The young man managed to send her flying, but the Seelie made it impossible for him to capitalize on it. Alice almost fell off the platform, luckily, the Seelie created an ice wall that stopped her from moving. The impact of the attack from the young man made her slam into the wall, causing cracks to form on it. She looked at the young man, a little surprised by his present strength. Grey and his friends watched the battle as usual. They guessed the young man was wary of the Seelie, so he waited until Alice called it out before trying to take her out with one swift blow. His plan was almost successful. Unfortunately, Alice was able to reduce the impact of the attack just before it reached her. Alice prepared herself for the young man''s attacks. While fighting, she was surprisingly not able to get the advantage, even with her Seelie. This was the first time this young man was showing such strength. He had never been a favorite to win, but with the strength he was displaying, he was in no way weaker than those viewed highly by the others. Alice and the young man continued fighting, she blocked, evaded, and countered. The young man also did the same. The only reason he had been unable to defeat Alice was the Seelie. It had been able to help her fight against him. Not just that, but its attacks were very powerful, so he had to be extra careful when attacking. "He hid well." Grey commented. "Too well. To think there''s someone this powerful among them." Kyle added. Alice''s opponent was slowly gaining the upper hand, even with the Seelie helping Alice. Currently, it was unknown if Alice would be able to win this battle. If Alice won, it wouldn''t bring down the young man since he showed great strength. If the young man were to win, it still wouldn''t affect Alice''s image. The young man was very good, so losing to him was not unexpected. "Who do you think would win?" Kyle asked. "Alice." Grey and the other two replied before he even finished the question. They were all very confident in themselves and their friends. If it was a battle they couldn''t win, they had no qualms with admitting it, but this was not a battle Alice couldn''t win. The only thing was that her chances weren''t as high as it would be if she were fighting against someone weaker than this young man. Chapter 737 - Powerful Competition Chapter 737 - Powerful Competition Boom! Bang! Bam! Alice''s battle raged on. It was already over ten minutes now, and both fighters had gotten chances to end the fight, however, they always managed to find a way to escape. The young man in particular had gotten more chances, but the Seelie made sure it was impossible for him to capitalize on it. The times he''s gotten the chances were all when the Seelie was distracted with an attack. Alice was not a weak opponent either, so she was able to hold her own against him. Alice has had fewer chances to end the battle, but the young man was ingenious in his way of using the lightning element, this has helped him avoid catastrophe. The battle went on for three more minutes and a great chance finally presented itself to the young man. As usual, the Seelie was focused on an attack he sent out, Alice was also trying to evade an attack. Before Alice started moving, he had already predicted the direction she would face, so after sending out an attack that would stop the Seelie from intervening once again, he rushed after Alice and started an onslaught of attacks. Alice felt immense pressure from the attacks, but she didn''t let it get to her. The pressure made her push herself to go further. Boom! Bam! Bang! She was sent flying, but before the young man released another attack, she dished out an attack of her own. The young man evaded the attack before he continued his attack on Alice who was mid-air. Alice used the lightning element to its fullest, moving around on the platform. Behind her was the young man. The exchange became very fast. To ensure that he had to fight only Alice, the young man occasionally attacked the Seelie before it broke through an attack. Both fighters were moving at an insane speed. To those with lower levels, all they could see were two lightning streaks clashing with each other. The Seelie wasn''t held back for long, and it soon joined in on the attack. The young man had already placed his all on this particular attack, and he was pretty confident he would be able to deal with Alice before the Seelie was free. He never thought Alice would be able to hold on. From the time he attacked the Seelie till now, it was only around twenty to thirty seconds, however, he had exchanged multiple blows with Alice. This was the chance he had to eliminate her, but he failed. Alice, knowing that the Seelie was free once again and the young man would most likely try to think of a way to disengage, stopped running and rushed toward the young man. She attacked him head-on. With no choice, the young man was forced to block the attack, making him pause for a second. The Seelie caught up with them at this time and attacked from behind. Alice continued her frontal assault while the Seelie attacked from behind. A pincer attack. The young man''s opportunity turned into Alice''s in the end. If not for her personal strength, then she would''ve lost the battle already. Two minutes later. The young man was unable to hold on any longer, and after getting repeatedly hit by Alice and the Seelie''s attacks, he fell on one knee and gave up on the fight. Fighting any longer was useless since he would only bring harm to himself. With him admitting defeat, Alice stopped attacking and just like him, started gasping for air. The battle was on another level. It was one of the most intense battles so far. Reynolds'' battle with that Multi Elementalist was the best in the opinion of the crowd. "You almost got me." Alice said as she looked at the young man. "Almost, but you won in the end." The young man shook his head with a sigh of disappointment. "I was lucky. Without my Seelie, you would win." Alice said. She was clearly relieved and happy by the fact that she won. Fighting against powerful opponents like this made it entertaining. The pressure would be able to push her to grow stronger. The young man smiled, turned to the special sitting area where the Elders from the top Factions were seated and announced the Faction he wanted to join. It was a fire based Faction. Although he had two elements which were lightning and fire, his fire element was the strongest, so he naturally wanted to focus more on that. Alice returned to her seat with a calm expression. "Good thing you didn''t lose." Klaus gave her a thumbs up. "If I lost against someone as powerful as him, I don''t think I''d feel bad about it." Alice said. "No one would. It''s just, I prefer that you won. This will make me get a better ranking in their eyes." Klaus said with a smile. "All you think about is joining an all-girls Faction." Alice looked at him with disgust. "Because they have the best ice skills in the Region." Klaus explained before continuing, "You two already joined the best Factions for the lightning element, why should I settle for less?" "You do have a point. However, it would be extremely difficult to get into an all-girls Faction. There''s a reason it''s an all-girls Faction, and that''s because they don''t accept males." Alice took a seat as the next fighters got ready to enter the platform. It was the young man who was on the verge of breaking through to the Seventh stage. His opponent was someone in the Sixth stage like him, but when the battle started, it took him only five minutes to dispatch his opponent. "You two have a powerful competition." Klaus said with a grin. Alice and Reynolds knew he was doing this to annoy them, so they tried not to think about it. The young lady Grey beat the previous night was the next fighter. Her opponent was a Wind Elementalist, but he lost in the end. Three battles were already fought and decided, now it was left for the remaining two battles, then the top five would be decided. Chapter 738 - Go Easy On Me Chapter 738 - Go Easy On Me According to the order of the lots drawn, Reynolds would be the last person to fight. The duo fighting before him were two ladies. One was a Fire Elementalist while the other was a Light Elementalist. When the battle started, the Light Elementalist got the advantage in speed giving her a slight edge over her opponent. Her opponent however had greater destructive power. After a hard-fought battle, the Light Elementalist won by a slight margin. With her victory, it was time for Reynolds'' battle. Reynolds'' opponent was a Water Elementalist in the Sixth stage of the Overlord Plane. Standing in front of the young man, Reynolds wore a calm expression. He didn''t feel pressured in any way, nor did he show any proud expression. "Go easy on me." The young man said with a smile. Reynolds nodded and didn''t reply. The young man''s words actually made him cautious. There might be a reason behind his words, and from what he knew, people who say things like this tend to be very powerful later on. ''I''ll beat the crap out of him from the start, just to be sure.'' He thought to himself. If the young man was going to show an unseen strength like Alice''s opponent, he didn''t want to give him the chance to. Beating him up as soon as the fight started was the best choice. As soon as the man in charge called for the start of the battle. Reynolds merged with his Elemental Warrior and attacked. The young man was stunned. Not just him, but everyone around the arena as well. Reynolds had only merged with the Elemental Warrior once. Since then, he hasn''t done it again. The reason was because he hadn''t encountered anyone that could force him to that length. What he had been doing since was to call out the Elemental Warrior and attack with it. Even at those times, he would first test out his strength, only after seeing the difference in strength would he call out his Elemental Warrior. This battle was different, he not only called out the Elemental Warrior right off the bat, but he even merged with it, entering his most powerful state. Isn''t this bullying? The young man screamed in his heart. His face was twitching from the shock he was receiving, literally. Reynolds was a Lightning Elementalist, so his attacks packed quite a punch. It also have a high chance of electrocuting his opponents. The young man was unfortunate to be subject to multiple lightning attacks in the space of a few seconds. The battle ended even before it started. The shortest battle ever recorded in the history of the competition. It took Reynolds less than a minute to defeat the young man. That was beyond embarrassing. This was someone who made it into the top ten, yet he couldn''t last a minute. The ultimate disgrace. As the young man was leaving the platform, a question was repeatedly ringing in his head. ''What did I do to deserve this?'' He couldn''t even pick a Faction due to the shame he felt. Being defeated in such a short time, even if the opponent is way more powerful than he is, was still embarrassing. He was even two stages ahead of Reynolds. How could he raise his head in society again? If the young man knew the reason behind Reynolds'' action, he might probably challenge him to a battle to the death. Who had a hidden strength?! I was only begging you not to beat me up too much! What underlying meaning was there? In fact, F**k You! The young man left the arena entirely, eighty percent of the people here were certain he didn''t even know how he left the stage. His eyes were listless, clearly still dazed from the incident. The entire arena was deathly silent. They still couldn''t believe what just happened. From when the man declared the start of the battle till when it ended was just too short. Some people didn''t even manage to witness it because they were distracted by one thing or the other. Reynolds on the other hand had an awkward expression on his face. He didn''t think the young man wouldn''t be able to fight back. When the young man made that statement, he thought maybe the young man was just like Alice''s opponent, a hidden genius, he didn''t know the young man had already shown all his cards to get into the top ten. Now, he kind of felt sorry for him. No matter what, the young man would be unable to forget the incident of this day, especially given the fact that he was going to join a Faction because of it. "I hope I didn''t ruin his life." Reynolds muttered as he walked back to his seat. "What happened?" Klaus couldn''t help but ask. Reynolds recounted what the young man said, and the underlying meaning he felt was behind his words. "Hahaha, he might die of anger if he found out this was why you beat him up so quickly." Klaus was unable to hold back his laughter. The incident was just too funny to him. Reynolds'' reason was even funnier. Grey smiled when he heard it as well. It was ultimately a misunderstanding, but it will take a lot before the young man would be able to get himself back together. Losing in this manner is mind-shattering, especially for someone who regards himself as a genius. He even entered the top ten, which showed that he truly was a genius. "You should''ve gone easy on him." Klaus said and started laughing once again. "It''s not funny." Reynolds said, making Klaus laugh even more. After laughing to his full, he shook his head with a sigh. The sigh is clearly not of pity. The man in charge of the battle finally managed to regain himself and stepped forward. Since the top five had been decided, it was time to get the first and second person. There were five people present, and only two of them could get the first or second position. Everyone waited patiently on how the last round would be fought. ?? ??? ???? ?? ???? ?? ?? ???????s, ????s? ??s?? ????????????.??? ?? ?x???????? ??s??? ?????? s????. Chapter 739 Two Vs Three Updating Chapter 740 A Mental Attack Boom! Bam! Reynolds was pushed back by the young lady. She was a tough opponent to begin with, having the Light Elementalist by her side made things worse for Reynolds. Alice was having a slightly better time since the Light Elementalist had been focused on Reynolds'' end of the battle. She coordinated with the Seelie and managed to gain the upper hand. However, just as she was about to gain the advantage, the Light Elementalist rushed over to intervene. When she arrived, Alice was forced to block her attacks. This gave the young man the chance he needed to regain himself. He had a natural good defensive ability just like Alice. Alice had more elements which gave her the advantage when it came to attacking. The Seelie was slowly getting better after getting involved in so many battles over the past few days. Previously, it mostly relied on Alice''s orders, but now, it could actually make good decisions of its own. It was only a child when Alice got it, and it hadn''t really been a long time since she got it. The Light Elementalist managed to distract Alice once again. Now, Alice was fighting against two, while Reynolds was on his own. He was fighting with his Elemental Warrior, so he was able to gain the upper hand in the battle. The young lady was by no means a weak opponent as well. Even though he had the upper hand, it would take him a while before he could defeat her. Merging with the Elemental Warrior would give him a boost in strength, but he still wouldn''t be able to defeat the young lady in a short time. Reynolds contemplated if he should merge with the Elemental Warrior now and try to eliminate the young lady or wait for the best time. Since the Light Elementalist was not here, he might get the chance if he merged with it. The only issue was that, given the speed of the Light Elementalist, she would be able to return in the blink of an eye. With this in mind, he decided against it and opted to wait for the best time. Taking out the Light Elementalist was still the plan, but since she didn''t give them any chance to attack her, the thought of changing the plan came to mind. Swoosh! Bam! Bang! Lightning attacks flew around, with wind blades slashing at Alice. The ice made by the Seelie blocked most of the attacks, but the attack power of the young man was above that of others, so he was able to destroy the ice wall with a few attacks. After breaking the wall, light arrows shot straight past the ice wall that was still in the midst of falling down, rushing towards Alice. Alice, seeing the attack, covered her legs with the lightning element and dodged to the right. Bang! Bam! Boom! The light attacks hit the ground and a small dust cloud rose up. Alice created a mixture of lightning and fire rain. The young man raised an earthen wall that blocked the attack, while the Light Elementalist swiftly capitalized on her speed and ran out of the range of the attack.panda novel The intensity of the battle was currently getting to its peak. It was only a matter of time before one person would be eliminated. Whoever is eliminated first might determine the outcome of the battle. If Reynolds and Alice managed to eliminate one of the trio, then their chances of winning would be over fifty percent. But if any of them were to be eliminated, it was clear that the other would follow. This would put the duo in fourth and fifth place. Reynolds focused on the young lady. The young lady''s eyes started to glow with red light as if a fire was burning in them. A small fire attack that was as thin as a needle shot out of her eyes and went straight for Reynolds. Reynolds didn''t see the attack on time, but his Elemental Warrior appeared in front of him. The fire needles hit the empty face of the Elemental Warrior and for a second, it froze, incapable of moving. Reynolds also felt some distress from what happened to the Elemental Warrior. ? ??? ? ? ???? Grey was shaken when he saw this attack. It reminded him of a particular attack Sylvia used. She killed someone with nothing more than a look. Grey had always thought she used her powerful cultivation stage to pressure the man to death, only now did he know it wasn''t. "What was that?" He asked curiously. "A mental attack. It''s very rare since very few people can cultivate it. Also, as long as the opponent notices it before you use it, then he could be avoided." Kyle explained. He already knew Grey and his friends weren''t knowledgeable about the world, so whenever they inquired anything from him, as long as he knew what it was, he didn''t mind telling them. "A mental attack?" Klaus asked. "Yes, basically, it''s usually used to incapacitate opponents. But if cultivated to a very high level, then it would become a deadly hidden weapon. According to legends, there was an expert who cultivated it to the very peak, all she needed was a glance and an entire army would die." Kyle said. "So powerful." Klaus sucked in a cold breath. Grey had witnessed Sylvia use it, so he guessed she could kill an entire army with just a look. But he didn''t know what it was then. ''A mental attack. I''ll research about it later on.'' He said to himself. He had to be prepared for anything, in cases like this where they would be attacked by techniques they had no idea how to counter. If this were a life or death battle, Reynolds might lose his life due to his lack of knowledge. Reynolds paused for only a few seconds, but the young lady didn''t let the chance go to waste, attacking instantly. Bam! Bang! Reynolds'' figure was sent flying, crashing into the ground. When the crowd saw this, they felt Reynolds would be eliminated in this process. Even the Elemental Warrior was still frozen. It was unknown when it might be able to move again. Chapter 741 Well Coordinated Attack Alice, who was fighting against two people, was stunned when she saw Reynolds'' situation. She tried to rush over to help. "We''re your opponent." The young man naturally wouldn''t let her have her way. This is what they had been waiting for all this while. Thankfully, he saw the young lady''s trump card now, so he could prepare accordingly when they were the only two people left on the platform. "Get out of my way!" Alice yelled and used the lightning element to its fullest, attacking the young man. The ferocity of her attack made the young man pause for a while. However, the Light Elementalist took the chance to attack her, halting her movement. "I''m sorry, but you''re going nowhere." The Light Elementalist said. Alice was starting to get agitated. The young lady was already very close to Reynolds. Reynolds still hadn''t been able to get himself together. Even though he woke up early from the attack. He was struck by an attack without even using any sort of defensive measures. He groaned in pain as he held his stomach. When he realized the young lady was already very close to him, he slapped his hand on the ground, and light streaks shot out from the ground in a straight line before getting to where the young lady was. The young lady dodged to the left. This was a desperate attack from Reynolds, which made it impossible for him to be accurate. Boom! Reynolds was attacked by a fire bird which exploded when it came close to him. This time he managed to use the lightning element to block the attack. He was sent flying by the impact of the attack anyway. Bang! Thud! He bounced off the ground repeatedly, but since the size of the platform was increased, he managed to stay on. The young lady didn''t give him any chance to get himself together before she attacked again Seeing the attack coming at him, Reynolds knew if he was hit, he would be eliminated. Forcing the lightning element, he concentrated it on his legs and shot straight at another location. He couldn''t afford to fight head-on against the young lady at this moment. The young lady knew he wanted to escape and rushed after him, but Reynolds was faster since he had the lightning element. Reynolds'' current target was surprisingly the Light Elementalist. Even in a state like this, he didn''t forget their plan. If he could take out the Light Elementalist, then it would make things easier for them. The Light Elementalist was in the middle of attacking Alice. She suddenly froze, turning around, she saw a streak of lightning rushing straight for her. Without delay, she turned into a light streak and ran away. The lightning streak didn''t follow her, instead, it changed its direction to the young man. This was Reynolds'' plan from when he rushed here. He knew everyone would think his target was the young lady. Once he manages to get the young man to drop his guard, then he would attack him. Alice made sure the young man was unable to move away, keeping him in the same spot with her attacks. The young man was a sensible fighter. Realizing how things were going, he didn''t panic, rather, he focused on his defense.panda novel The young lady was rushing over, and the Light Elementalist also wasn''t far away. Given his personal strength, if Alice and Reynolds teamed up, it would still take them at the very least over one minute before they defeated him. This was something he was confident in. Buzz! Bang! A bolt of lightning struck the earth wall he made in front of him. The wall cracked but held on. Reynolds didn''t give him any chance, attacking the next second as well. Boom! Bam! Bang! The earth wall shattered after receiving three attacks from both Alice and Reynolds. ? ??? ? ? ???? With the wall broken, Alice''s Seelie attacked with a large heavy ice sword. The Light Elementalist was already back, seeing the attack going toward the young man, she sent out an attack, trying to slow down the attack. The young lady also caught up to them at this moment. Reynolds didn''t stay any longer and fought with the young lady, dragging her away from this location. The Elemental Warrior could move once again, so he wasn''t scared. The young lady was annoyed with the fact that Reynolds not only escaped from her grasp, but almost eliminated the young man with the opportunity. This was the first time she was fighting against someone who did follow the norms when fighting. Most people would try to escape just to ensure their safety, Reynolds on the other hand used the opportunity to attack one of his opponents. This was something she didn''t even think he would try. The Light Elementalist rushed over to their side of the battle since Reynolds didn''t attack softly any longer. It was as if almost being eliminated triggered him. When the Light Elementalist arrived, she joined hands with the young lady to suppress Reynolds. While she was here, Alice was taking advantage of the opportunity, fiercely attacking the young man. The attack by Reynolds destabilized the young man, and he hadn''t been able to recover. The Light Elementalist was soon forced to head back after they had been able to suppress Reynolds. Buzz! Crash! Bang! Alice had been preparing an attack for the Light Elementalist while fighting with the young man. As soon as she got close, a lightning bolt fell from the sky, aiming at her head. The accuracy of the attack was impeccable. The young lady was forced to stop and retreat. Moving forward or sideways wouldn''t be able to save her from the attack. With no other choice, she retreated. It was at this time she realized she messed up. The reason for this was because, while she was retreating, Reynolds'' figure was shooting in her direction. There was no way to dodge the attack because that was the only side she could face. Alice made sure the young man was occupied, while before attacking, Reynolds made sure to push the young lady back after merging with the Elemental Warrior. A well-coordinated attack! Chapter 742 - The Top Faction True Geniuses Chapter 742 - The Top Faction True Geniuses Boom! Bang! Reynolds hit her accurately on the back, sending her flying. Before she even hit the ground, Reynolds continued attacking her and before long, she passed out. The man in charge of the platform rushed over to take her out of the platform. One person had been eliminated, currently, it was two against two. "Damn it." The young man said in annoyance. The battle had stopped, and they were looking at each other. Reynolds had separated from his Elemental Warrior, standing close to Alice as they stared daggers at their opponents. "What do you plan to do now?" Reynolds asked with a smile. "Do you think we can''t take on you two one on one?" The young man asked, annoyed. "No, no I do not." Reynolds said, still wearing a smile. They faced off, but none of them were attacking. While the two groups were facing off, the crowd were chatting excitedly. With the elimination of the Light Elementalist, Reynolds and Alice had even the field. The only issue was that Reynolds had taken a good beating during the time the young lady used the mental attack. So, there might be a chance that he was not at a hundred percent. "That was impressive." Kyle commented after witnessing the attack of Alice and Reynolds. He had always found the synergy among the group to be very good, but given how Alice and Reynolds successfully used such an attack without even needing to speak or look at each other was just out of this world. This showed they''ve been watching each other for a while now and had planned this for a long time. Grey nodded his head to Kyle''s words, the attack truly was impressive. Most of the people in the arena definitely felt the same thing. "Good work Rey." Klaus applauded in delight. His genuine happiness surprised the geniuses sitting close to them. Although they would be happy if their friend performed well in a competition like this, they wouldn''t show this much passion. They looked at Grey, and to their surprise, his usual listless face had a soft smile on it. "Your friends are something else." Joyner, the son of the City Mayor, praised. "Haha, of course, they''re my friends." Klaus laughed in delight. His expression almost made people feel like he was bootlicking the duo. But when they recalled Grey''s strength, they knew all five of them weren''t people to be messed up. Since Kyle was with them, he was naturally counted among them. They concluded that Klaus was just a happy person, and they decided to leave it at that. The Elders from the top Factions present all had a look of appreciation. They all felt the duo had unimaginable potential. They might even be on the level of those freaks in the Faction. The geniuses brought out by these top Factions were the best. They were only the minimum requirements the Faction wanted in their Faction. One has to remember that at the time Alice, Reynolds, and Klaus left the Azure Continent, their elemental grades were violet. Elemental grades contributed to the strength of an Elementalist. The least elemental grade these top Factions took in was the violet grade. After the violet grade, there were still the red, cyan, yellow, and emerald grade. The black and white grades were not included because they were too rare. Of the group, Grey was the only one with a high enough elemental grade to at least fight against a few of the top geniuses. And even with his cyan elemental grade for his fire element, he would still get bodied by someone with the emerald elemental grade. The only advantage Grey had was his versatility of having multiple elements. Elemental grades only made the attack power of an Elementalist higher, it didn''t attribute to the overall strength of an Elementalist. The only consolation the group had was that since they were in the Aurora Continent, there would be tons of opportunities to get treasures that would be able to increase their elemental grades. Back at the platform. . The group were still facing off. A spark soon went off and they started fighting. Without the Light Elementalist to hold them back, Alice and Reynolds were berserk on them. Reynolds in particular was infuriated. The Light Elementalist made the battle a hell for him, and the times he was sent flying by the young lady annoyed him. His innards were still rocked and he was at least sixty percent sure he had internal injuries. The young lady immediately fell on the defensive under Reynolds'' attacks. She could tell that Reynolds wanted to end the battle as soon as possible, so all she planned to do was to hold out for as long as she could. If Reynolds started to lose strength, she would start her counterattack. This was not a good strategy since it would give her opponent the chance of attacking her at will, however, if she tried to fight against Reynolds head-on, then she would lose in a very short time. With a good enough defense, she stood a chance against him. Alice and her opponent''s battle was not as one-sided as Reynolds''. They exchanged blows, with each having a good defensive ability, they were on equal footing, for now. Boom! Bang! Bam! The fight continued intensely, both groups didn''t want to lose an individual because doing so meant losing the battle. The young man occasionally sent attacks Reynolds'' way, all in hopes of stopping him from his constant attacks. Alice blocked most of the attacks, but a few had managed to creep through. The young lady used the chances to counter, but Reynolds and his Elemental Warrior were able to block and start attacking once again. The young lady couldn''t help but feel frustrated by how things were going. What she found even worse was that Reynolds had used his full strength yet. If she could defend herself against this round of attacks, and when he merges with his Elemental Warrior, then she would be victorious. Chapter 743 - The Last Two Chapter 743 - The Last Two Boom! Bang! Bam! The young lady was pushed back by Reynolds'' attack. Being on the defensive constantly made it extremely difficult to fight against Reynolds. If not for the young man''s help on some occasions, she might''ve lost already. The young man knew the second she was eliminated, he would be the next person to follow, so he couldn''t allow her to be eliminated. The young man was the stronger of the duo, and Alice hadn''t been able to break down his defenses. They both had strong defenses, but the young man had a slight edge when it came to attacking power. However, Alice''s Seelie was able to balance the scale with its strength. Boom! Bam! Bang! Reynolds, seeing that his advantage over the young lady was increasing, started to attack fiercely. He didn''t give the young lady any time to even think before he attacked. He pushed her back repeatedly. The young lady finally realized it was better to at least try fighting against Reynolds than to fully stay on the defensive. If she stayed on the defensive, it was only a matter of time before Reynolds defeated her. What made it harder for her was that, unlike the young man and Alice, she didn''t have the greatest defensive elements. Her elements were purely for destructive purposes. Boom! A red pattern appeared on the ground, and fire attacks came out from it. Reynolds was standing beneath the pattern, on seeing the powerful fire elemental attacks, he jumped into the sky and merged with his Elemental Warrior. Since the young lady had started fighting back meant it was time to go all-out. After merging with his elemental warrior, Reynolds'' strength increased by a lot. He wasn''t planning to hold back at all. Boom! Bang! A lightning orb appeared in the sky and continuously released attacks. The young lady scrambled to dodge the attacks while attacking as well. She had given up on defending, it wasn''t her style of fighting. While Reynolds was entangled with the young lady, Alice was still in a heated battle with the young man. They had each broken through their defenses, but none had been able to deal a telling blow. The final battle of the Mid stages was just as expected, thrilling. The audience hadn''t seen a dull moment so far. From the trio first pressuring Alice and Reynolds, to Reynolds almost being eliminated by a hidden attack, to the point where Reynolds almost eliminated the young man, and then the coordinated attack of the duo. Grey and Klaus finally felt relieved knowing that their friends would definitely win the battle at this rate. Reynolds was the most likely one to defeat his opponent first, then he would join hands with Alice to defeat the young man. Once he was done doing that, they would fight against each other for the number one and two. Klaus was speaking more animatedly, Grey also joined in on the conversation sometimes, but he mainly spoke with Kyle. Joyner was also very friendly, so they spoke for some time as well. Boom! Bam! Crash! The young lady was sent flying by one of Reynolds'' attacks, and unfortunately, she was electrocuted to the point where she was temporarily paralyzed. Being in this state made the lightning effect increase by almost double. This made the burn and shock increase. Reynolds didn''t let the chance go as he dashed toward the young lady. The young man noticed this and tried to intercept him, but he was stopped by Alice who was already prepared for this. Frustration showed on the young man''s face as he tried everything he could to help the young lady, unfortunately, Reynolds had already appeared in front of her, placing a lightning sword on her neck. The man in charge of the platform appeared beside the young lady and took her out of the platform. He knew Reynolds wouldn''t attack her, but he had to take her out so the others could continue their battle. Two people had been eliminated, and there were only three people left. The top three individuals in the Mid stages rankings. With that young lady eliminated, everyone already knew who would be third. Reynolds was still in his merged state and he rushed after the young man. With Alice also attacking, it was impossible for him to fight against the duo and succeed. He was already having difficulties fighting against Alice on her own, now that Reynolds joined in on the battle, he was eliminated in the space of three minutes. Reynolds focused on breaking down his defenses while Alice kept him busy. In the end, Reynolds was the one who eliminated him. Of the three people eliminated, although Alice had helped out in two, Reynolds could be said to be the one who did all the eliminations. Some of the people in the crowds felt he deserved to win the fight. But Alice was no walkover. The two friends stood opposite each other, both preparing to fight. Alice was in a better condition compared to Reynolds who had been hit by a few attacks over the course of the battle. "Who do you think would win?" Kyle asked. "On a good day, Reynolds would win every time. But presently, he''s not at his peak, so Alice has the edge." Grey said, after a moment of silence, he added, "Reynolds would win anyway." "You." Kyle turned to Klaus. "I''m going with whoever wins. I personally feel Alice has a better chance, but since that moron doesn''t know when to give up, he will most likely win by a small margin." Klaus replied. Reynolds was the most persistent individual among all of them. Although Grey had been in a few dangerous situations, Reynolds had more willpower compared to him. As long as Reynolds decides not to give up, the person who had the highest chance of defeating him in the group was Grey, other than him, no one else would be able to do so. Klaus might be able to do so when he breaks through, but Reynolds would also breakthrough as well. Without the Seelie, Alice had the lowest chance of defeating him. Chapter 744 - Unexpected Change Chapter 744 - Unexpected Change Reynolds attacked, he couldn''t stay in his merged state for too long, so the sooner he started the battle, the better for him. Alice was aware of this, so she would naturally take advantage of it. Her Seelie''s ice ability could protect her from some of Reynolds'' attacks which would mean that the few it couldn''t, she would have to deal with it herself. Boom! A lightning blade slashed through the ice wall with the first attempt. This was the first time Alice''s defense was broken through on the first try. Alice was taken aback by this and quickly retreated. The Seelie blocked Reynolds'' path, ensuring he couldn''t continue his attack. Reynolds exchanged some blows with the Seelie before Alice joined the battle once again. Being a Lightning Elementalist like Reynolds, she was very fast, and with the aid of the Seelie''s wind element, she became faster. However, Reynolds in this form was faster than her. Only a few people below the Seventh stage of the Overlord Plane could move faster than him presently. Boom! Bang! The Seelie was pushed back by Reynolds as he charged at Alice. "I''ve been a master of this art, there''s no way you can use it better than me." Reynolds said as he attacked Alice. He got his Elemental Warrior sooner than Alice, so when it came to hiding behind his fighting companion, he knew almost all the methods. Alice was forced back since she couldn''t afford to fight against Reynolds head-on. Reynolds naturally wouldn''t give her the chance she wanted. Bam! Reynolds'' attack was stopped by an ice dome that protected Alice. This time, he was unable to break through it on the first try. Just like before, the ice retaliated. Reynolds was forced to retreat and the ice dome used the process to heal. Protected by the ice dome, Alice started coordinating with her Seelie, attacking Reynolds from two angles. Reynolds blocked and evaded the attacks. Given the advantage in numbers Alice had, a few managed to hit him, but his lightning armor blocked most of them. He barely felt the blows. Reynolds and Alice were fighting at breakneck speed. In the matter of a few seconds, they exchanged over a hundred blows. They were stuck in a stalemate, with no one having the advantage. Reynolds would''ve been able to end the battle, but the Seelie was in his way most of the time. Alice also made sure not to leave the protective cover of the ice dome. Reynolds had been able to break through the ice dome a few times, but the Seelie had stopped him. He had been able to send Alice flying a few times, but he had been unable to defeat her because she was helped by the Seelie. Alice on the other hand had been able to hit him repeatedly, but Reynolds seemed to have forsaken his defenses and focused mainly on attacking. He evaded most of the attacks while blocking the others. Although he left some attacks to hit him, he made sure it wasn''t the powerful ones. The final battle had been enthralling. The audience were all watching the battle excitedly. They didn''t think the two friends would fight this fiercely. If not for the fact that they knew the duo were friends, they would''ve thought that the duo were long-time enemies given how they were fighting. Most of the ladies supported Alice while most of the young men supported Reynolds. They each wanted their gender to win the first place. Grey and Klaus felt Reynolds had the greatest chance of winning the fight, but Alice was sensibly delaying the battle. Reynolds was already close to his limit, a few more minutes and he would exit this form. Once Reynolds exits this form, Alice would be able to gain the upper hand easily. Reynolds was also aware of this as well. The duo fought for three more minutes, and to the shock of Alice, Reynolds separated from the Elemental Warrior. He might not be the strongest in this state, but he would be able to last longer. Not just that, he also had a chance of entering the merged state once again. "Hehe, you thought I''d stay in this state and let you win once I''m exhausted, think again!" Reynolds said and started attacking. The Elemental Warrior and the Seelie exchanged moves, but the Seelie managed to gain the slight edge over it. Alice was also able to suppress Reynolds when they fought against each other without their companions. Alice was a stage above Reynolds, so it was natural that she had the advantage. Reynolds on the other hand was already aware of this, so he didn''t rush when fighting. He took his time, waiting for an opportunity. They had sparred a lot of time, so they each knew what they would do. Alice was unable to defeat him, while Reynolds was unable to gain the upper hand. If the battle continued like this, it was unknown who would win. One more minute went by and something unexpected happened, in the middle of the fight, Reynolds broke through. He was already getting close to the Fifth stage of the Overlord Plane. The lightning that bathed him when he merged with the Elemental Warrior made this possible. He would''ve needed a few months or so before he could''ve broken through, but after bathing in lightning and involving in so many battles, he edged closer to breaking through by the second. Alice''s expression changed when she saw this, and for a second, she almost gave up. "He''s crazy, don''t you think so?" Klaus laughed. "I never expected him to win this way." Grey shook his head. Reynolds was a talented individual, and this displayed it even more. The Raiden Faction Elders couldn''t help but smile in delight. Bringing a talent like this to the Faction was a win for them. In the years to come, Reynolds'' name will shake the entire continent, increasing the fame and status of the Faction. Presently, they even wanted to compare him with those monsters with cyan elemental grade and above. Chapter 745 - Reynolds Grabbing First Spot Chapter 745 - Reynolds Grabbing First Spot Alice was helpless as Reynolds'' strength saw an increase. What she was worried about wasn''t Reynolds advancing, instead, it was the Elemental Warrior. She knew every time Reynolds broke through, the Elemental Warrior did the same. It was previously in the Seventh stage of the Overlord Plane, with Reynolds'' breakthrough, it had moved to the Eighth stage. What was worse was that its strength was above a regular Eighth stage Overlord Plane Elementalist. Reynolds grinned and looked at Alice, "I''ve won." "Don''t get cocky." Alice said before attacking. Reynolds blocked the attack and retaliated. He was on the same stage as Alice, so she wouldn''t be able to suppress him any longer. Even if there was a difference in their strength, he wouldn''t be too far behind her. On the side of the Elemental Warrior and the Seelie, the Elemental Warrior''s increase in strength allowed it to instantly suppress the Seelie. Alice didn''t let this get to her, she knew a chance might present itself for her to take advantage of. Reynolds however didn''t plan on giving her that chance. With a leap, he merged with the Elemental Warrior, and his strength shot straight to the Ninth stage of the Overlord Plane. Alice instantly felt pressured just from his aura. Reynolds was flying in the sky as he looked down at Alice, "It is time to end this." With that statement, he launched an unbelievable attack. The surrounding area was filled with lightning and arcs of crisscrossing lightning flashed through the platform. His figure merged into the lightning as he attacked. When he used this attack, all the Elders of the top Factions stood on their feet, even Grey stood up as well. "Grey, isn''t this the same thing as that thing you did with your fire element?" Klaus asked in shock. "It should be." Grey said with a dumbstruck expression. "This is not a complete domain. At least not yet. It''s more like a semi-domain. He would still need some time before he can make one like ours. If he''s lucky, he might get it before breaking through to the Sage Plane. But I doubt that would be possible." Void said to the duo. Kyle overheard their conversation and turned to look at Grey, then at Void. He knew of domains and also felt this was a lightning domain. Only after hearing Void''s words did he sense the slight difference in it. This wasn''t the main issue, what made him have a flabbergasted look was Klaus'' words. If he recalled correctly, what Klaus said meant that Grey had already awakened his fire domain. ''He''s only in the Seventh stage of the Overlord Plane, how the hell is that possible?!'' Kyle was screaming in his head. He looked at Grey, then at Void, then at Reynolds. Although Reynolds hadn''t completely awakened his domain, he had already set the foundation for it. If he is unable to awaken it while in the Overlord Plane, he wouldn''t have any issues with awakening it while in the Sage Plane. One has to know that most geniuses from top Families and Factions only awaken it at the Sage Plane, or even when they become Elemental Venerables. The fact that Reynolds would be able to awaken his own in the Sage Plane was already shocking. If the news of Grey being able to awaken his own in the Overlord Plane spreads out, it would cause an uproar in the entire continent. There were some Elemental Venerables who still haven''t been able to awaken their domains, yet Grey had already awakened his, and he was still two Planes below this stage. Kyle couldn''t help but imagine just how many domains he would awaken before he becomes an Elemental Venerable. Now Kyle understood the meaning behind Grey''s words the previous night. When he asked Grey how powerful he was, Grey said he had no idea. At that time, he felt Grey was arrogant, now he knew he was just stupid. Grey was practically unmatched in the Overlord Plane. In fact, fighting against Overlord Plane Elementalists was bullying from Kyle''s point of view. The Elders from the Factions also noticed the abnormalities in Reynolds'' semi-domain, but it couldn''t hide their shock. The Elders from the Raiden Faction felt like crying tears of joy. Even those geniuses with cyan elemental grade and above don''t have guarantees of being able to awaken theirs while they were still in the Sage Plane, but Reynolds already did. "We''ve found a gem." One of the Elders said, laughing in delight. The Elder was chubby, so his cheeks vibrated from excitement as he laughed. "The Faction Leader will be impressed." Another Elder said, looking at the platform with a warm expression. As things stand, if anyone tried to harm Reynolds, he was prepared to kill the person, even at the cost of his life! Alice was left standing on the platform with a dumbfounded expression, she couldn''t make heads or tails of where Reynolds was located. Bam! Bang! Bam! Attacks hit her from different angles, and before long, she was on her knees, barely able to keep herself standing. Reynolds'' figure which was covered in lightning appeared above her with a lightning sword pointing at her. "You''ve lost." He said softly. "I know." Alice said with a wry smile before standing up. Reynolds separated from his Elemental Warrior and it disappeared. The Seelie also went back into Alice''s body. She needed to recover from the battle. It had been an exhausting battle, but she still lost. Although she was disappointed, she didn''t feel down. Seeing Reynolds increase in strength had motivated her to work even harder to attain the strength she needed. The man in charge of the platform walked forward to announce the winner. Reynolds was the number one figure below the Late stages of the Overlord Plane, while he was closely followed by Alice who was second. The Multi Elementalist Reynolds defeated when he first merged with the Elemental Warrior looked at Reynolds in trepidation. She was thankful it wasn''t during their fight he managed to do what he just did. Chapter 746 - Run Riot Chapter 746 - Run Riot "You two were amazing." Kyle said when Reynolds and Alice came back to their seats. "I''m exhausted." Reynolds said with a tired expression. "Me too. Thanks, we did our best not to let Klaus down." Alice replied before taking a seat. "Nice job, you will be rewarded well." Klaus said. Reynolds and Alice rolled their eyes at him when they heard his words. Kyle on the other hand thought Klaus promised to reward the duo if they performed well. Although he knew they wouldn''t do it, it still felt kind of odd. Grey on the other hand knew Klaus was just bullshiting like he usually does. Only those who don''t know him will believe whatever he says. With the end of the Mid stages Overlord Plane rankings, it was time for the Late stages Overlord Plane rankings. Grey and Klaus would be taking part in it. "It''s finally time for you to show your strength, you better not let us down." Reynolds said with a mysterious smile. "Of course not. You should be saying that to Grey, not me." Klaus snorted coldly. The duo looked at Grey, and for the first time in a while, Grey flexed his strength with his words. "How could you doubt me? I''ve always delivered." Grey''s flex was low-key cool. Klaus and the others were surprised when they heard Grey say this. Grey wasn''t the type who usually does things like this. He only occasionally finds trouble with Klaus while also playing with the group, flexing around when there were people was not something he usually does. Some of those who were seated at the same table as Grey the previous night when he battled against the young ladies felt he was bragging once again. He was powerful, they weren''t denying that, but the fact that he was this proud made them dislike him. Adding the fact that he rarely spoke with people made it worse. "Show off." Klaus snickered. Grey shrugged as if saying, ''It''s not my fault I''m this awesome''. Reynolds and Alice burst out laughing. Kyle had seen Grey in a playful state once in a while, so he didn''t find this strange. Other than Grey showing off for the first time, he was used to seeing him occasionally joking around. The day came to an end, and with it, the excitement for the start of the Late stage rankings shot up. This round would be more thrilling than the previous round. Not just that, but since Reynolds and Alice managed to snatch the first and second place, the audience was curious about what position their friends in the Late stages would take. Not just the crowd, but the Elders, as well as the geniuses from the top Factions, were also curious as well. Everyone couldn''t wait for the next day to arrive. The night went by very slowly for those waiting for the day to break. But in the end, the sun rose and everyone left whatever they wanted to do and rushed to the arena. The rumors of Reynolds and Alice''s spectacular battle had spread across the entire city that even without introduction, the duo were known all around. For some reason, Klaus was even more famous than them. What was surprising was that he hadn''t fought any battles, yet, he was famous. This is attributed to his great socializing skill. When the group arrived at the arena, they attracted a lot of attention. An hour after getting to the arena, all the participants were asked to step forward. Seeing both Grey and Klaus stand up, the crowd was hyped. Reynolds and Alice had already set the bar, now the crowd wanted to see if Grey and Klaus would be able to meet it or even better, exceed it. "What did you do?" Grey couldn''t help but ask Klaus. "Nothing, I only paid some people to spread the news of their victory." Klaus said with a smile. "Well, now we''ve become their target." Grey said as he looked around. "Are you worried?" Klaus asked with a surprised expression. "Why would I be?" Grey replied with a question. In a group fight like these brawls, Grey feared nothing. He had been in so many brawls to count. If these people went to the Continent he first came to when he came to the Aurora Continent, then they would know that he was not a person who was scared of crowds. "Hehe, better. We''re entering the next round with a high profile." Klaus chuckled. "We came here very high profile, I don''t know what would be more high profile than being looked at by everyone, even your opponents as well." Grey said. The duo were still speaking when a middle-aged woman flew down from the special area to announce the rules of the battles. The lady was from the Moonlight Faction, the Faction Klaus wanted to join at all costs. The lady gave the rules and it wasn''t different from the rules of the Mid stages. The first round would be a brawl with fifty participants on a single platform. The Mid stages rankings had the highest number of people. Participants in the Late stages were a few numbers below them. The participants would be arranged with their registration numbers. Klaus and Grey had numbers that were separated by just one figure. Reynolds was the person with the number in the middle. When they were registering, Alice was the first, followed by Klaus, Reynolds, and lastly Grey. With the closeness of their numbers, they would be placed on the same platform just like the case of Reynolds and Alice. And when the numbers were called out, they were placed on the same platform as the duo expected. The lady from the Moonlight Faction glanced at Grey and Klaus before heading back to the special seating area. "It''s time to show them what I''m capable of." Klaus clenched his fists, ready to fight. "What is the plan?" Grey asked. "Run riot." Klaus said slowly. "Gladly." Grey replied with a cool and collected expression. When the duo stepped on the platform they would be participating on, they garnered all the attention there, with everyone staring at them. Chapter 747 - Run Riot II Chapter 747 - Run Riot II Boom! Bang! As soon as the battle started, Grey and Klaus exploded out with powerful attacks. Over ten people rushed toward the duo when the battle started, and there were two Ninth stage Overlord Plane Elementalists in the group that came after them. Of the forty-eight more people on the platform, ten attacked Grey and Klaus. This showed just how highly they all thought of the duo. To these people, being able to eliminate them would be an amazing achievement. The reason for this was that the duo were already lauded to get into the top ten after the incredible performance of their friends. Grey had also shown some of his strength during the party Joyner and Klaus hosted at the Mayor''s manor, so they knew he was powerful. Grey blinked repeatedly as he attacked everyone close to him. He didn''t even bother using his elemental attacks, these people were stupid enough to get too close, with a single punch, he sent them flying. A few of the people passed out the second his fist connected with their chests. While Grey was fighting in a brutish manner, Klaus was using his water element to cause havoc. He swept three people off their feet with a single attack before using his superior ice abilities to attack. He had to show how powerful his water and ice abilities were if he wanted to truly impress the Moonlight Faction, so he was going all-out right from the get-go. He kept some cards hidden, but he wanted to advance in an overbearing manner. Grey was already doing this, and he followed suit. "They are literally eliminating everyone." Reynolds'' eyes twitched. During their time, he teamed up with Alice to fight against those who came after them, but Klaus and Grey didn''t team up, instead, they separated. Klaus wasn''t as powerful as Grey, but he was very smart. He ensured that other than those in the Seventh stage, he avoided those in the Eighth and Ninth stage. If any of them came after him, he would sensibly send the person Grey''s way. In this manner, he had been able to appear powerful while only fighting those he knew he could easily deal with. Klaus was a cunning figure, and only a few people noticed this in this round of battle. Only ten people would qualify from this platform, and of the fifty people, Grey had eliminated ten on his own within five minutes, Klaus was just behind him with eight eliminations. This was a shocking number given the fact that there were fifty people on the platform. With two people eliminating almost half of the number on their own, it showed how powerful they were. Grey and Klaus shook the entire arena. This was by far the most chaotic battle ever since the competition started, and it was caused by only two figures. Grey could be mistaken for a Barbarian because of his fighting method, while Klaus was a sophisticated young master who seemed to be using his bare minimum but getting the best results. The entire arena was abuzz, all excited that the two friends didn''t disappoint them. Three more minutes went by and there were only twenty people left on the platform. Grey and Klaus had eliminated two more people each, increasing their count to twelve and ten respectively. This meant that of the thirty people eliminated, they eliminated over sixty percent of them. The twenty people left all exchanged glances. It would be better if they all picked an opponent and fought. Klaus and Grey were the only ones left that were in the Seventh stage. The others were either in the Eighth or Ninth stage of the Overlord Plane. Klaus picked an Eighth stage Overlord Plane Fire Elementalist, while Grey picked a Ninth stage Dual Elementalist who had the lightning and water element. The rest of the participants all picked an opponent and started battling with them. Grey''s opponent was by no means weak, if placed with others of the same stage, he would win, but facing Grey, he was left frustrated. Klaus and his opponent were stuck in a stalemate after the first exchange, but Klaus quickly created an opportunity for himself and capitalized on it. He wanted to advance in an overbearing manner, so there was no way he would allow someone to get the better of him or even make him seem weak. Unless the said person was in the Ninth stage of the Overlord Plane. Boom! Bang! Bam! The battles on the platform intensified, Klaus and Grey were the ones who had completely suppressed the opponents they picked. In no time, Grey defeated his opponent, and Klaus did the same as well. When the duo were done, they did something that amused the entire arena. They walked to the side, and Klaus, well, being Klaus took out the throne Void stole from the Emperor back at the Qilin Empire and sat down, Grey wasn''t as eye-catching as him, he saw on the ground with both legs crossed. Reynolds'' felt like crying, "Why didn''t I think of that?" "You''re jealous they''re showing off?" Kyle asked. "Aren''t you? I should''ve registered for the Late stages rankings. Even if I don''t get into a Faction, I would be able to show off in this round." Reynolds said with deep regret. Kyle didn''t know what to say as he looked at Reynolds. Klaus had already attracted too many people, so doing this was just increasing the numbers. Grey and Klaus sat down on the platform for almost ten minutes, doing nothing other than chatting with each other and watching the other battles. It was almost like they were part of the audience, the only difference was that they were on the platform. Since they had defeated their opponents, they naturally didn''t need to help the others in the battle. But seeing the duo sitting so comfortably irritated the others fighting. A few of them had the thought of launching a sneak attack on the duo, but they refrained from it in the end. Grey''s space element would mean that he could dodge the attack. Klaus had used his ice ability, and they had seen just how powerful it was. Leaving the duo alone was the best choice. Chapter 748 - Top Two Hundred Battle Chapter 748 - Top Two Hundred Battle Ten minutes later the remaining eight people won their battles. The platform with Grey and Klaus was the fastest to eliminate forty people. Most of the other platforms still had around twenty-five plus participants still battling, while the ten people on the platform had been decided. The man in charge of the platform stepped into the platform, he looked at Klaus for a long time before telling them the rules of the next round. Just like the Mid stages, this round was done in a way that would leave only four hundred people. Once the four hundred people were decided, then they would fight to get into the top two hundred where they would be able to challenge a member of any Faction. Defeating that member will make them part of the Faction. Grey and Klaus went back to their seats to watch the rest of the battles. There would still be others fighting after this round. "You really took out a throne there." Alice couldn''t believe Klaus was so shameless. "I missed the crown, if not, I would''ve worn it as well." Klaus chuckled. "It''s with me, Hehehe." Reynolds laughed as he brought out the crown. "I''ll be taking it back next week." Klaus said. They had been sharing the crown and throne since getting it. What was amusing was that the throne had zero value, they could make something like it if they wanted to, but the two said this one brought back memories. Grey and Alice let them be since it was none of their business. The group continued speaking as they watched the other battles. Grey studied most of the geniuses in the Ninth stage of the Overlord Plane. They were his potential opponents, so he had to learn a thing or two about them. He wouldn''t be able to learn about all of them, but at least knowing some would not be bad. There were also things to learn from watching the battles. Klaus continued speaking with people, not too bothered with the participants fighting. He would occasionally look at the platforms and if anyone caught his eye, he would focus on the person. Time went by and before they knew it, it was already sunset. The first round had ended with the four hundred people confirmed. When they return the next day, they would have to fight a singles battle. This would show just how powerful the participants were. In the brawl, other than Grey, Klaus, and a few other individuals, no other person had a performance worth remembering. Everyone knew these people might be hiding their strength, waiting for when they challenge someone from the Faction they want to join. This was common among all the participants. Even in the previous competitions, things like this also happened. Klaus stayed at the Inn today. He didn''t go out for his usual evening stroll, nor did he leave his room. Grey was also in his room all through. Alice, Reynolds, and Kyle were left alone. With nothing to do, they decided to take a stroll around the city. The next day. Grey and Klaus came out of their rooms early, waiting for the others. "How did things go?" Grey asked Klaus. "Okay, I shouldn''t have a problem now." Klaus replied. "Why didn''t you do it before leaving?" Grey asked. "Hehe, I have a plan." Klaus chuckled. Grey didn''t bother with him any longer, he focused on the hallway as the others stepped out of their rooms. Thanks to the stones they received from the young lady, they had no issues with staying at an expensive Inn. Kyle offered to pay for the rooms, but Klaus refused, saying they already had sponsors. The group knew the sponsors he was talking about were the young ladies. Now they understood why he always gets expensive things in the Inn. "Come on, we should get going. I have a lot to do today." Klaus said before walking out of the Inn. The others followed. Currently, unlike before, they now had a carriage that took them wherever they wanted. One hour later. The group were already seated on their seats, waiting for the competition to continue. After the Elders of the top Factions arrived, the competition continued. The top four hundred participants stepped forward to draw lots. After getting their opposition, they stepped out so the first group could start their battle. Grey and Klaus would be fighting in the next round. Their opponents were in the Seventh and Eighth stage respectively. Grey''s opponent was the one in the Seventh stage, while Klaus'' opponent was the one in the Eighth stage. The duo''s opponents glanced at them with a pale expression. Their performance in the first round was just too spectacular, so everyone knew they were very powerful. The person who felt the most pain was Grey''s opponent. According to what he heard, Grey beat up someone in the Ninth stage Overlord Plane Elementalist. If he were to fight against that Ninth stage Overlord Plane Elementalist, he was almost certain he would lose. Klaus'' opponent had also heard of how he suppressed his opponent who was in the Eighth stage like him. However, he felt he wasn''t as weak as Klaus'' previous opponent, so he had a chance of making it to the top two hundred. He was a genius after all. Other than Grey and Klaus, there were three people who were also greatly feared. Two young ladies and a young man. They were all in the Ninth stage of the Overlord Plane. Grey and Klaus also looked in the eyes of their opponents, they nodded at them before heading back to their seats. "I feel sorry for your opponent." Kyle said to Grey. "He should be fine. Klaus'' opponent will be in more trouble." Grey replied. The group watched the first rounds of battles as they waited for Grey and Klaus'' turn. One of the young ladies among the three other people fought in this round. Her opponent was a young lady in the Ninth stage as well. From the start of the battle to the end, she completely dominated her opponent. Chapter 749 - Monstrous Talent Chapter 749 - Monstrous Talent "She''s not bad." Grey commented lightly. "My thoughts as well." Klaus said with a serious expression. "Stop acting as if you can defeat everyone Grey can." Reynolds mocked. "Mind your business, bloated chicken." Klaus replied with a bland expression. Reynolds naturally didn''t take this lying, so, while seated in the midst of other geniuses, Klaus and Reynolds started one of their famous cursing sessions. "What I find strange about them is that they don''t care about how other people see them, it''s truly impressive." Kyle said with a sigh. Given how much Klaus was trying to get into the Moonlight Faction, he expected him to conduct himself properly. But from how he had been acting, he didn''t put much hope in that being possible. Being too high profile might be good, but some Factions didn''t like it. Klaus having a throne with him was something even he found shocking, much less those who were not close to him. He knew Klaus and Reynolds shared the throne, as well as a crown. The duo would occasionally bring it out and flaunt it around. Kyle had curiously asked about the story of the throne and crown, when he found out it was from an empire that tried to hunt down the group but was later defeated by the group as well as a few external helpers, he couldn''t help but suck in a cold breath. Of course he knew that the empire was small given how Grey and his friends were still in the Overlord Plane when he knew them. What was mind-blowing was the fact that the group not only escaped from the hands of the empire, but they defeated it in the end. The first round ended and it was time for Grey''s round. He was among the first people to step on stage. When he walked over, he naturally drew a lot of attention. Standing in front of his opponent, his handsome face had zero expressions. "How unlucky." The young man Grey was fighting against muttered, a little annoyed. Grey overheard him, but pretended as if he didn''t. It wasn''t nice to make others feel down just because they were weak. Everyone had the opportunity to grow stronger in the future. The man in charge of their platform asked the duo if they were ready, and after getting confirmation from them, he called for the start of the battle. As soon as the battle started, the young man charged at him. He didn''t give Grey the chance to defeat him without even being able to release an attack. Grey naturally knew the intentions of the young man, so he played along. Giving him the chance to show his skills. The young man was a Water Elementalist who was surprisingly very adept in manipulating the water element. If he were to be in the Ninth stage, he wouldn''t be any weaker than those three feared in this round. Unfortunately, he was only in the Seventh stage. After giving him the chance to show his skills, Grey finally took the battle seriously. With a blink, he appeared behind his opponent, sending out a powerful attack. When the fire exploded behind the young man, he tried to use his water element to shield himself, but the attack pushed him back. He looked at Grey in horror. Only when fighting against Grey did he finally understand that he actually underestimated Grey. Although he rated Grey very high, he realized it wasn''t high enough. Grey continued his attacks and the young man focused fully on defense. He didn''t even have the chance to counterattack, much less try to change the course of the battle. ''He''s a monster!'' This was the only thought in the young man''s head. Grey was a terrifying opponent to fight against, and he wouldn''t want to fight against him again in his life. After hanging on for two minutes, he actively gave up on the battle. Holding on was a stupid choice. One should only hold on when they knew they had a chance of winning. Against an opponent like Grey, it was just meaningless. "Thanks." The young man said before leaving the platform. He knew Grey gave him the opportunity to show the Factions his ability which might get him into one if they felt he was good enough. Most people on Grey''s level wouldn''t even consider the feelings of their opponents, so he felt grateful to him. Grey nodded before heading back to his seat. He had made it into the top two hundred, and everyone in the arena was curious about which Faction he would choose to join. At this point, it was already evident that he would win whoever the Factions brought his way. Even amongst the top Factions, everyone present in the Seventh stage knew they stood almost zero chances against him. The Elders of all the Factions were exchanging glances, the reason for this was very evident, Grey was at least on the same level as those monsters with cyan elemental grade and higher. Not just that, but Grey had used three different elements so far, earth, space, and fire element. He also had a special powerful flame. All the Faction''s Elders could currently see the competitive spirit in each other''s eyes. They all wanted to recruit such a figure. Having someone like this was beyond exceptional. One Grey was far more valuable than a hundred regular geniuses. Reynolds and the others were well above regular geniuses but were just below exceptional. Once they get good training from a top Faction, they might get into the exceptional league. Grey was already above the exceptional league. And this was without being in a Faction. It was only a matter of time before he shook the world. When Grey returned, he noticed the glances he was getting. Not just that, but some Elders were outrightly using their spiritual senses to check him out. He knew the reason for this but pretended as if he couldn''t sense them. Someone in the Overlord Plane shouldn''t be able to sense their spiritual senses in the first place. They already held him very high, if he were to let them know he could sense them as well, it might make them go hysterical wanting to get him at all costs. Chapter 750 - Snowing Chapter 750 - Snowing "Show off." Klaus said the second Grey returned. "You''re just envious you can''t perform that well." Reynolds snickered. Klaus had the advantage when they were in the cursing session a few moments ago, so now that an opportunity presented itself, Reynolds didn''t plan to let it go. Klaus glared at him, not bothering to quarrel with him any further, "Just watch my performance. I promise to stun you speechless." Klaus stood up and was about to walk to the platform. "Where are you going?" Grey asked with an odd expression. "I''m going for my¡­ oh." Klaus paused, realizing it wasn''t his time to head to the platform yet. The other battles that started along with Grey''s were still ongoing. Due to his argument with Reynolds, he actually forgot about this. "What a nice performance, I''m speechless." Reynolds took advantage of the opportunity and mocked Klaus once again. Grey chuckled, Alice tried to hide her laugh, but Klaus'' expression made it impossible to do so. With her laughing, Kyle and Reynolds joined in as well. Klaus walked back to his seat, looking at the group with a grumpy expression. He promised to get his revenge on Reynolds, which made him shudder. They waited for almost thirty minutes before this round ended. Just as Klaus was about to stand up once again, Grey tapped him on the shoulder and shook his head. The others saw this and burst out laughing once again. It still wasn''t Klaus'' turn yet, but because he was anxious to show his skills, he forgot once again. Klaus gave an embarrassed laugh before watching the battles taking place on the platform. The second young lady who was lauded to be among the top ten took part in this round. Her opponent was a Lightning Elementalist in the Ninth stage like her. Unlike the first young lady''s opponent, hers was stronger. It took her almost ten minutes before she defeated him comfortably. Grey was taking note of all the people he felt might be able to give him a good fight. He still hadn''t used all his strength yet, but he was already ranked among the few who would definitely get into the top ten. The fire based Factions were the ones who had their hopes high, the reason for this was because of his special flames. And seeing how frequently he uses it, they were certain it was the element he liked using. What they also found enticing was his unnaturally strong physique. Elementalists weren''t supposed to have such powerful bodies, but Grey defied their norm. Some space based Factions also had hopes, while the earth based Factions were the ones with the lowest confidence. The only bargaining chip they had was that there were a few earth elemental techniques that might be able to improve Grey''s physique. They noticed he was someone who for some reason trained his body, and the earth element was the best in body improvement. While the Factions were plotting on how to get Grey, it finally got to Klaus'' turn to fight. He sat down a few seconds longer just to be sure. Only after the man in charge looked at him did he stand up in a flamboyant manner. Others thought he was trying to get everyone''s attention when the truth was that he wasn''t sure if it was his turn yet. Reynolds laughed at him as he swaggered to the platform. Klaus had a handsome face, if not for Grey, he would''ve been the most handsome person here. His hair was well combed back, with a small strand hanging in front of his face, making him look even dashing. Klaus stepped on the platform and looked at his opponent. "Don''t think this will be an easy battle. I''ll defeat you." The young man said with a serious expression. "I''m looking forward to it." Klaus replied in a cool and collected manner. The man in charge of the platform nodded when he heard the exchange between the two, and after confirming that they were ready, he announced the start of the battle. Swoosh! Bang! The young man was a Wind Elementalist. And the second the battle started, he created a pattern on the ground and a powerful gale surged from the ground. His plan was to send Klaus airborne. Klaus was taken by surprise, but he managed to react quickly. Ice formed on his legs, pinning him to the ground. With this, it was impossible for him to be lifted into the air by the young man''s attack. Seeing that his attempt was a failure, the young man didn''t dismiss the technique, instead, he left it active and attacked with multiple wind blades. Klaus was stuck in the same spot, so all he could do was block the attack with an ice wall. The young man continued attacking, moving around, hoping to catch Klaus off guard. If Klaus tried to move, he would have to remove the ice which would give the wind the chance it needed to send him into the sky. Grey shook his head when he saw this. The young man was taking a risk, but Klaus wasn''t someone who had zero fighting experience. This would work on people who didn''t have sufficient experience, but on someone like Klaus who had engaged in multiple battles, even going as far as fighting against an empire, this was child''s play to him. "He''s making a mistake." Alice said. Kyle nodded. Anyone who was experienced wouldn''t be worried about this attack. "He couldn''t even beat him up a little. Damn it." Reynolds shook his head. He knew Klaus would win, but he hoped the young man would at least give him a tough challenge, this way, he would be able to get another chance at mocking him. While the group were discussing, a change occurred on the platform. Klaus, who had been stationary since the start of the battle moved. Ice grew all the way to his knee, and to the surprise of the young man, Klaus exploded forth with a terrifying speed. His expression changed as he hastily tried to block Klaus'' incoming attack. However, he was taken aback when he saw the snow around the platform. The attack he wanted to use was frozen. Chapter 751 - My Luck Shall Prevail! Chapter 751 - My Luck Shall Prevail! Boom! Bang! Klaus'' attack connected with the young man and sent him flying out of the platform. ''Watching the Seelie has been very beneficial.'' Klaus thought to himself. This was an attack he created after watching the Seelie''s battles the previous round. It was still in its early phase, but he could already see how powerful it was. Being able to even stop the attack of the young man showed its power. The man in charge of the platform came over to declare Klaus the winner of the battle. Klaus walked back to his seat in a collected manner. He didn''t put in any airs as he would usually do. "You see that?" He asked Reynolds when he got back to his seat. "It''s nothing I can''t do." Reynolds retorted. "Heh! In the same fashion? Not a chance." Klaus sat down, not looking at Reynolds. Klaus'' performance wasn''t on Grey''s level, but he was at least among the top people there. Everyone could see he was very adept at using the ice ability of the water element. Only water based Factions were thinking of taking him in since he was a Water Elementalist. The other Factions had water elemental skills, but they mainly focused on a specific element. Grey, Alice, and Kyle congratulated Klaus on his victory, while Reynolds complained about how weak his opponent was. Klaus and Reynolds soon started bickering once again and the others hastily gave them some space. The reason for this was that they wanted to avoid being dragged into this at all costs. Klaus and Reynolds might not have any shame in doing this in front of so many people, but the others did. They watched the battle for that day, and not all the battles were fought. Around one hundred battles were fought that day. There would be two hundred battles in total, so the next one hundred would be fought the next day. Grey and Klaus had already made it to the top two hundred, so they could decide not to watch the battles of the next day. Of course they chose to watch it since it would be beneficial to know their opponents. Grey and Klaus hadn''t fought the really powerful participants yet, so it was better to see every battle. That day came to an end and the next day soon came. Since the group weren''t participating in any of the battles, they only watched and left. Some people caught their eye, while Grey''s interest was piqued by a young man. He was certain that this person was hiding his true strength. The reason for this was that when the battle started, the young man was fighting within a certain power range, but when he noticed he was on the verge of losing, he exploded out with some powerful attacks. From the way he used it, Grey knew this wasn''t his full strength. The young man was in the Eighth stage of the Overlord Plane. Klaus mainly socialized throughout that day, making new friends as the day went on. The next day came in the blink of an eye, and the top two hundred had been concluded. The participants were all called to step on stage, and the lady from the Moonlight Faction flew down once again to give a speech and tell them some things that were unacceptable. When she was done speaking, she returned to her seat. "Those who wish to challenge anyone from the Faction they desire to join should stay on the platform, while the rest can go back to their seats." One of the men in charge of the platforms said. To his surprise, over thirty stayed behind to challenge someone from the Faction they wanted to get into. Klaus was naturally part of this group. Grey wished him good luck before leaving the platform. He had no interest in joining any of these Factions, so there was no need in staying behind. "How come so many stayed behind." Reynolds asked. This is the highest number of people wishing to challenge someone from a Faction that they''ve seen. Even the Origin Plane rounds didn''t have this much. "It''s because of you two, obviously. Take that Multi Elementalist you defeated, she''s powerful enough to get into a Faction of her choice, but since she didn''t challenge anyone, and didn''t make it to the top ten, she had to settle for less." Kyle explained. "Oh, I see now. They don''t want to take any chances." Reynolds nodded thoughtfully. A few people approached Grey while he was sitting, trying to start up a conversation with him. He didn''t want to be rude or arrogant, so he entertained them for now. He naturally didn''t speak much. Most of the people who came were sent over by the Elders of their Faction, all in a bid to get information about which Faction he wanted to join. From the strength he displayed, everyone found it extremely difficult to accept that he didn''t even challenge anyone from the Factions. He had at least an eighty percent chance of winning, easily. They all wanted to know why he didn''t even attempt it. Klaus was still on the platform which meant he would be challenging someone. Grey didn''t spill any information to them. He didn''t want them to know that he didn''t want to join any Faction here. He might only consider it when he doesn''t find what he''s searching for in the other Regions. The challenges soon began. Klaus was part of the second group that would battle, so he went back to his seat. Seeing so many people around Grey, even as far as one of the ladies from the Moonlight Faction, he couldn''t help but be taken aback. He soon realized what was happening, all these Factions were trying to rope Grey in. ''This might work in my favor. According to what I''ve heard from my sources, there have been cases in the history of the Moonlight Faction where male members have been accepted. As long as they have exceptional ice abilities.'' He thought to himself. His thoughts were simple, use his friendship with Grey to get into the Faction. The Faction would normally not want to accept his challenge since he''s male, but since they would want to please Grey, they wouldn''t mind taking him in. ''Hehehe, my luck shall prevail once again!'' Chapter 752 - We Accept Your Challenge Chapter 752 - We Accept Your Challenge "Oh, there he is." Grey used his head to point at Klaus as he returned. "Hey bud, they''re looking for you." Grey said to Klaus as he walked over. "Huh? Me?" Klaus asked, a little taken aback. Grey and the others nodded. Amongst the people who were with Grey, seven of them moved closer to Klaus to speak with him. To his surprise, the young lady who was from the Moonlight Faction was part of them. Klaus, who had been planning to use Grey''s fame to get into the Moonlight Faction, was shocked, but he hid it well. Since he was acquainted with the young lady from the Moonlight Faction, he was free with her. When the others saw this, they almost wanted to beat themselves up. Klaus had been talking with the ladies from the Moonlight Faction for some time now. Well, he had been speaking with everyone, so he was quite acquainted with them. However, this group of people from the water based Factions weren''t part of the people he frequently spoke with. The group stayed with him for a few minutes, and after trying to fish out which Faction he wanted to join. He told them they would find out when it was his turn to challenge someone. After they left, Klaus smiled proudly. To be honest, he wasn''t really feeling bad or sad that Grey gained most of the attention, he was his friend so he was quite happy for him. But being approached by the Factions, especially the Moonlight Faction made him realize he was also a genius. Being with someone like Grey made him forget about this on some occasions. This gave him a wake-up call. However, he still didn''t think much about it. Being himself, he still joked with the group about how he was going to use Grey''s fame to get into the Moonlight Faction. "How come they didn''t treat us like this?" Reynolds couldn''t help but ask. "Because they know what a true genius is." Klaus mocked. This was a chance for him to get at Reynolds, of course he was not going to let it go. Reynolds almost wanted to fight with him, but when Klaus saw Alice''s eyes, he shuddered before saying, "It''s because they''ve seen that you two are so talented, and seeing how we performed as well, they thought it was best to recruit us sooner rather than later." Klaus'' explanation was very plausible. The Factions knew that they wouldn''t really have a problem with getting into a Faction, so they tried to see which Faction they had in mind before trying to recruit them. Since both Grey and Klaus kept silent about it, they didn''t try to recruit them. Their motive had already been seen. ''Guess my luck did prevail.'' Klaus chuckled to himself. Seeing Klaus chuckling to himself, Reynolds looked at him as if he had gone mad. Klaus naturally didn''t bother with this. Kyle on the other hand was flabbergasted. He had been the one who had been telling Klaus it was impossible for him to get into the Moonlight Faction since they only took in girls. But Klaus hadn''t even tried to challenge someone from the Moonlight Faction, yet they actively extended a hand of invitation. ''Are they even humans?'' Kyle felt his brain twitch, and he couldn''t help but shake his head. Grey and his friends had opened him to a world he never thought was possible. First, there was Grey, the monstrous genius, then there was Void, his talking cat, there''s Klaus who could be crowned the king of luck, there''s Reynolds who was also a terrifying genius, and lastly, there was Alice who managed to make a pact with a Seelie which was almost extinct. He felt a little downhearted when he thought about himself. Other than his special flame, he had nothing else. Traveling with Grey and his friends made him feel depressed. However, it also gave him the motivation to grow stronger. This was the main reason he traveled with them. The small time he spent with the group when they entered the mansion piqued his interest. Only after traveling with them did he understand why they were the way they are. Time went by and it was finally Klaus'' turn to challenge his opponent. All the water based Factions hoped he would pick them. The audience also waited for his response. They all knew the Moonlight Faction was regarded as the number one Faction when it came to ice ability, and seeing how Klaus had been fighting all this while, they knew he would prefer a Faction that had a great history when it came to their ice abilities. They however ruled out the possibility of him getting into the Moonlight Faction since they don''t accept males. Klaus stood on the platform with a confident smile, before saying slowly, "I''d like to challenge a member of the Moonlight Faction." The audience were stunned when they heard his words. "Is he dumb or something, hasn''t he heard the Moonlight Faction only accepts female members?" Someone from the crowd asked. "He must be a pervert since he even has plans of joining an all-girls Faction in the first place." A young lady said. "Aren''t you the same person who said you''ll marry him even if he has ten wives? Just say you''re jealous rather than making him look bad. As you know, he prefers a Faction that has a great ice ability, and the Moonlight Faction is the best." Another young lady defended Klaus. Conversations broke out in different parts of the crowd as some people felt Klaus was only making a fool of himself, while a few felt if the Moonlight Faction didn''t take him it would be their loss. While the crowd were speaking, a gentle voice came from the special seating area. "We accept your challenge." This was the only time a Faction had spoken since being challenged. The rest time, a member would walk out and fight against the challenger, but due to how delicate the situation was, the lady from the Moonlight Faction felt it was better to voice out their acceptance to the challenge. "Wait what?!" Chapter 753 - Suppressing An Ice User Chapter 753 - Suppressing An Ice User The entire arena was sent into an uproar when they heard the voice coming from the special seating area. They never thought the Moonlight Faction would actually accept Klaus'' challenge. Even those who were in support of Klaus didn''t have much hope in him being accepted into the Faction even though they felt that it was the best Faction for him. Klaus, who had been waiting for them to accept his challenge sighed in relief. He knew they would accept it since they sent someone over to him, but he was still a little nervous at the thought that they might not actually accept his challenge. The other water based Factions all felt a little disappointed since they lost a talent like Klaus. They could only hope of getting someone that was at least close to his level. A young lady from the Moonlight Faction stepped forward. She was someone Klaus was also acquainted with. To be frank, he had built a good relationship with most of the people from almost all the top Factions, so he knew a few of them. "Diana, you were the one picked." He said with a smile. "Don''t think I''ll go easy on you." The young lady Klaus referred to as Diana replied. "Haha, I didn''t expect you to." Klaus rubbed his nose stylishly. The man in charge of the platform was still a little taken aback by the fact that the Moonlight Faction actually agreed to Klaus'' challenge, when he saw the relationship between Klaus and Diana, he shook his head. This was the most shocked he had been in a while. After confirming with both participants if they were ready, he called for the start of the battle. Diana was the first to attack, sending out multiple ice arrows. Klaus created a water ball that he used to stop the ice arrows. The arrows started to melt the second they entered the water ball. He added his special heavy water into it, hence it was able to quickly counter the ice. Diana was a little taken aback when she saw that her ice attack was stopped so easily. Unknown to her, Klaus'' special water had a great effect on the ice. It could easily melt ice compared to normal water. It also had the effect of improving the thickness of the ice. It mainly involves how Klaus chooses to use it. Presently, against a Faction that had great ice users, he could be said to be their greatest enemy. Diana attacked once again, and Klaus blocked, using almost the same method. Klaus didn''t let her take the initiative, after blocking a few attacks, he started attacking with his ice ability. Although Diana was part of a top Faction, Klaus surprisingly had a higher and stronger ice ability. The only disadvantage was that Diana had more techniques than him. They exchanged moves with Klaus getting the edge in the exchange. With his heavy water, he could easily deal with Diana''s ice attacks. Diana was stumped as to how Klaus was able to deal with her ice attacks. Not just her, but everyone from the Moonlight Faction were shocked. Only those above the Overlord Plane could sense the difference in Klaus'' water. The reason those in the Overlord Plane couldn''t sense it was because he was only using a small amount of it, disguising it with the usual water. The Elders of the Moonlight Faction all exchanged glances. They couldn''t believe there was something like this. It was a strange thing. "Good thing we extended an invitation to him. There''s something odd about his water." The lady who spoke to them after they made it to the top two hundred said with furrowed brows. "Yes, he''s trying to hide it. Very smart." Another lady said. They weren''t the only ones discussing this, most of the Elders from other Factions also spoke about it. Since it was something that most of them had no clue about, they were naturally curious about it. Grey and his friends knew Klaus was using his special water, so they weren''t really too bothered. Grey also had it, although it wasn''t on the same level as Klaus'', it still wasn''t something that could be overlooked. The audience all felt stunned when they saw that in a battle between two Water Elementalists who preferred using their ice abilities, Klaus who wasn''t part of a top Faction was actually the one with the upper hand. What does this mean? It meant that Klaus was already on a very high level when it came to using his ice ability. If he joins the Moonlight Faction, he would grow to become one of the greatest ice users in the world. The people who supported him from the start all felt excited about how he would grow after joining the Moonlight Faction. With the way the battle was going, it was already evident that Klaus would win the battle. Just as expected, Klaus started to increase the aggressiveness of his attacks. He didn''t give Diana any chance to block his attacks, gradually forcing her back. He finally got the chance to send her off the platform with a water stream. Diana created an ice wall in front of her to block it, but Klaus'' water stream breezed through it easily, before sending her out of the platform. Klaus stood on the platform with a calm expression. He had finally joined the Moonlight Faction. This was his goal from the start, and he achieved it thanks to a series of events. If Alice and Reynolds didn''t fight before them, it would''ve been a little difficult to get the attention of the Moonlight Faction. But after Alice and Reynolds managed to create a huge popularity for the group, all he had to do was to show his talent. Although in the end, it was his talent that got him into the Moonlight Faction, he wouldn''t have been able to without his friend''s help. He walked back to his seat since another battle would be taking place immediately after this one. When he got back, to the surprise of his friends, he actually told them thank you. "Klaus, are you alright?" Reynolds couldn''t help but ask. Chpater 754 - All Vying For The Top Spot Chpater 754 - All Vying For The Top Spot Klaus looked at Reynolds and refused to respond. Grey and Alice looked at Klaus oddly. He doesn''t usually do things like this, they knew it was most likely after getting into the Moonlight Faction. "Are you going to continue to get a higher rank in the competition?" Alice asked. "Of course! You two already took the first and second position, do you think I wouldn''t want that as well?" Klaus replied immediately. This wasn''t even a question, he naturally knew Grey would defeat him, but he didn''t mind getting the second position. The group continued speaking about the battles before Diana and a few other girls came over to where Klaus was seated. Since he was already part of their Faction, there was nothing wrong with them speaking with him. "How did you do it?" Diana asked. "What?" Klaus feigned ignorance. "Stop playing dumb, you know what I''m talking about." Diana said. She didn''t mean this in an angry way, she was just genuinely curious as to how Klaus was able to break through her ice so easily. "Oh that, you see, it''s quite easy." Klaus opened his palm and his special water appeared on his palm. This time, he didn''t do anything to hide it, so it was very clear for them to notice. "How''s that possible?!" The girls all exclaimed in shock. This was the first time they were seeing something like this. They all knew the water at the bottom of the ocean was extremely heavy, and they could sense such heaviness in Klaus'' water. What they found shocking was how Klaus managed to do it. They had never heard of a Water Elementalist having something like this before. "Nothing is impossible." Klaus said with a vague smile. Grey and the others rolled their eyes when they saw his acting. Klaus was a genius no doubt, but he was also a crazy guy, so there''s that. The ladies asked Klaus if he could teach them. He naturally disagreed with it. This was his specialty, although Grey also had it, Grey wasn''t as proficient in it as he was. Not just that, but he knew it would be almost impossible for the young ladies to learn it. They disturb him about learning it, and he gave them a small orb of water that he placed in an ice crystal. It was up to them if they could understand the intricacy of it. He also gave them some tips. But after almost two hours, the young ladies got nothing. They could only give up and keep the crystal for now. The challengers had finished battling with the members of the Factions that they challenged. Other than Klaus, five others were successful in their challenge. Of a total of over thirty people, only six managed to achieve their goal. The participants were all called into the platform once again, and to the surprise of everyone, none of the people who were successful in their challenge decided to leave. Their current goal was simple: get the first position. Alice and Reynolds had already taken first and second in the round for those in the Mid stages, if Grey and Klaus were to take this one as well, then it would be an embarrassment to the other geniuses. Those who were unsuccessful in their attempt all looked at each other in frustration. These people had already entered a Faction, yet, they didn''t want to give up on the top ten spots. Since all two hundred participants were correct, everything went according to the original plan. They drew lots for the battles. There would be a total of hundred battles, and the top one hundred would be confirmed. When they drew lots, Grey''s opponent was surprisingly one of the few people who had successfully gotten into a Faction. His opponent was a Dual Elementalist in the Ninth stage of the Overlord Plane. She had both the fire and the earth element. Klaus'' opponent was also in the Ninth stage of the Overlord Plane. However, he wasn''t part of those who challenged members of the Factions. Klaus didn''t really know much about him, other than the fact that he was a Space Elementalist. ''Luckily I''ve been fighting against Grey and Void for some time, although I''ve run away most of the time, this guy shouldn''t be on the same level as they are.'' Klaus accessed the situation in his head as he looked at his opponent. Just like the first time, Grey would be fighting before him once again. It was barely noon, so there was time to complete one hundred battles before the end of the day. Grey and Klaus would be having their battles today since they registered very early. The only reason Klaus'' battle would take longer than Grey''s was because of how the lots were drawn. The first sets of battles started and it took almost thirty minutes before the first set of battles finished. It was finally Grey''s turn to step into the platform. Since he didn''t fight while people were challenging members of Factions, he attracted a lot of attention. Most of the audience felt Grey would finally show his true strength against this young lady. She was not as weak as the young man he fought against the last time that was in the Ninth stage of the Overlord Plane. By the time Grey stepped on the platform, the young lady was already standing there. "You''re one of the few people I look forward to fighting against." The young lady said when Grey stood before her. "Oh." Grey''s reply was short. Although the young lady was strong, she wasn''t the person Grey was waiting to fight against. She wasn''t part of the trio he noticed during the brawl. He watched her battle and knew that she was below them. Grey''s reply irritated the young lady since she expected he would say something else. Having ''oh'' as a reply was annoying. "I''ll make you regret looking down on me." The young lady said. "I didn''t mean it like that." Grey was taken aback when he saw her angry expression and explained. "Begin!" The man in charge of the platform didn''t even bother to ask if both participants were ready. He could already see that the young lady wanted to attack, and Grey had a cool and collected expression. Chapter 755 - Is He Favored By The Gods? Chapter 755 - Is He Favored By The Gods? Boom! The young lady attacked with a large fireball that exploded in the sky to cause a fire rain. The rains exploded when they came in contact with anything. The attack was difficult to evade. The only way to defend against it was to block or face it head-on. Grey had been using the earth element, so he had no issues with using it. Also, he still had the lightning element that he had been keeping for some time. With a wave of his hand, a thick earth wall appeared in front of him, blocking him from the raining flames. When the young lady saw this, she didn''t panic. Her plan was to make Grey focus on this attack then she would start using other attacks. While Grey was behind the earth wall, he felt the ground rumble and an earth pillar rose from the ground and sent him straight into the air. Grey went airborne for a short second, but the flames made contact with him the second he left the coverage of the earth wall. However, before the attack could explode, Grey''s figure blinked, and to the surprise of most of the people there, Grey changed places with the young lady. The rain was already on the verge of exploding, so when the young lady appeared before it, she couldn''t do anything to stop it. Luckily, it was her attack, so she managed to regulate its attack power to the bare minimum. Even though she couldn''t cancel the explosion, she could still reduce the impact of it. The attack sent her crashing to the ground, but she was already prepared for this and made an earth dome around her to block any of Grey''s potential attacks. Just as she was covered by the earth dome, she felt it vibrate. Outside the earth dome, Grey was punching it with his fists covered with blue flames. With each punch, a crack would appear on the earth dome. The young lady was stunned. Her earth defense was very powerful, yet Grey was on the verge of breaking through it in a matter of seconds. Being inside the dome, she didn''t know Grey was using his fists. Instead, she felt he was using his fire attacks. The earth wall cracked and fell apart piece by piece. Just as Grey created a hole in the dome, the young lady exploded out with an attack. Her fire rain had already stopped. Grey already expected this, so he blinked to safety after breaking the earth dome. The stream of fire that shot out of the hole in the earth dome missed its target. Grey saw a large earth hammer coming from his left hand side. Without even blinking, he covered his right hand with flames and punched at the hammer. As soon as his fist connected with the hammer, it started to shatter. The hammer was completely destroyed by Grey''s fist. The young lady, as well as the crowd all had a dumbstruck expression. Not neglecting the fact that Grey covered his fist with blue flames, this was still something anyone in the Overlord Plane could achieve. Even Barbarians that had the strongest bodies, would not be able to do this if they were in the same stage as Grey, fighting against someone who was two stages above them. Kyle was a little surprised by Grey''s insane physique. In the entire arena, the only ones who had normal expressions were his friends. This was something normal. They even expected these people not to be surprised since Grey showed some signs of his terrifying physique during the first round. The young lady was only shocked for a few seconds, as she continued her attacks. Grey blinked, dodging most of her attacks while blocking the rest. Whenever he attacked, the young lady was forced back by the force of the impact. What made everyone dumbfounded by Grey was the fact that he was only in the Seventh stage of the Overlord Plane. If he was already this powerful at this stage, how powerful would he be if he were to get into the Eighth or Ninth stage? Presently, the crowd felt he barely had an opponent in the Ninth stage of the Overlord Plane. If anyone wanted to trouble him, then said person must be one of the top geniuses from the top Factions, or the person should at least be at the Peak of the Overlord Plane. Grey''s battle with the young lady continued and he gradually forced her to the edge of the platform. The young lady didn''t want to give up in such a short time, so she took a gamble. With a scream, she yelled and her strength increased. This was a secret technique that would improve her strength for a short time. It was a little from those that would increase the strength of the user for a short time at the cost of something else. This one would only give her a short burst of strength. If used properly, she would be able to turn the tides of the battle. The speed of the young lady increased and she shot at Grey. Grey didn''t expect this and was a little late to move. If he used the space element now, he might be unable to escape from the hands of the young lady. Lightning danced around his body and his figure retreated quickly. Even though he had a strong defense, he knew this wasn''t the time to block the young lady''s attack head-on. He had zero clue about what was happening. With the appearance of Grey''s lightning element, the crowd went into an uproar. They already felt Grey was powerful with three elements, now he added the lightning element as well. The most frightening thing was the fact that the lightning was red. Grey already had blue flames, which was a special type of flame. Now, he had red lightning as well, which was also a special type of lightning. Of his four elements, two of them were special types. The crowd almost couldn''t believe this was possible. If they were not witnessing it, they would''ve never believed someone was this blessed. Is he favored by the gods? This was what everyone thought at this moment. Chapter 756 - Give Me A Minute Chapter 756 - Give Me A Minute "He has a fourth element." One of the Elders from a top Faction said in surprise. "So it seems. He had been hiding it all this while, guess he didn''t really see a need to use it then." Another Elder said. "This young man is full of surprises. It would be a shame if we couldn''t get him to join us." An Elder from a water based Faction said. "Get him in your dreams. He doesn''t even have the water element, and you''re speaking." An Elder from a lightning based Faction retorted. For a talent like Grey, he didn''t mind offending the other Factions. When the others were plotting on how to get Grey the last time, he was dejected because Grey didn''t have the lightning element, so he kept shut. But now that he knew Grey had the lightning element, and it was even a special type, he would vie for him as well. While all the Elders were arguing about who would get Grey, the young lady felt a tinge of depression when she saw that Grey was able to dodge the attack. This was her biggest chance to defeat him, yet, he brought out another element to evade the attack. ''He''s using me as a stepping stone.'' She complained inside as she gritted her teeth. Unfortunately for her, Grey didn''t even have such thoughts. All he wanted to do was battle. Besides, he was already at the top, what would he need a stepping stone for? The young lady refused to believe she couldn''t get him. She attacked once again while the short burst of strength was still active. Grey didn''t panic, after dodging the attack the first time, he knew it was something he could deal with. He opened his palm, and as the young lady got closer, a powerful burst of explosive lightning and fire attack shot out of his hand. The young lady tried to block it, but the earth that she created in front of her didn''t even complete forming before it was destroyed. The attack sent her flying, and she crashed on the edge of the platform, unable to move. The force of the attack was just too powerful. It was above what she could handle. Grey calmly walked over to where the young lady was lying. She turned to look at him, anger burning in her eyes. Grey stood in front of her and looked at the man in charge of the platform, seeing that the man wasn''t making any moves, he created an orb on the tip of his finger. When the man in charge of the platform sensed the power gathering in Grey''s finger, he knew it was finally time to take the young lady off the platform. The orb hadn''t completely formed, but he already sensed that it was more powerful than Grey''s last attack. After getting the young lady out of the platform, he declared Grey the winner of the battle. Grey had successfully gotten into the top hundred and had secured a spot in getting into a Faction. This was something everyone knew was not a challenge. With Grey''s talent, even if he chooses not to participate anymore, he would still be able to join a top Faction. They all saw his talent, and would naturally want him to be one of them. Grey had his usual indifferent expression and walked back to his seat. Klaus and the others wanted to congratulate him, but thinking about his strength, they felt it was useless. They decided to save their congratulations until he took the first spot. "Hey bud, I think you''ve got some people who want you." Klaus said. "I know. I''m wondering how they would react when I refuse to join them." Grey said thoughtfully. "They would be upset, but they wouldn''t do anything to you. This is not the first time something like this is happening." Kyle reassured him not to be worried about the top Factions. He was from a big Family, so he knew about all these. Although the Factions wanted him, they wouldn''t force him to join them. At most, they would try to persuade him and even invite him over. "Oh, I feel better knowing this." Grey heaved a sigh of relief. Getting in trouble with these Factions wasn''t something he wanted to do. He couldn''t even beat the top geniuses of the Factions who were already in the Sage Plane, much less these Elders who were here. The group watched the other battles before it got to Klaus'' turn. "Wish me luck." Klaus said before walking to the platform. His opponent was someone in the Ninth stage of the Overlord Plane. This was a battle he had to win if he wanted to get into the top one hundred. However, he knew it wouldn''t be an easy battle. Klaus stepped into the platform before his opponent did. A Space Elementalist was one of the most difficult people to deal with, and this young man was by no means weak as well. When the young man stepped on the platform, the man in charge of the platform confirmed if both participants were ready. "Give me a minute." Klaus said and sat down cross-legged. His movements alerted the crowd and they looked at him curiously, watching to see what he wanted to do. After sitting down for a minute, he stood up and opened his eyes. "Alright, I''m ready." He said with a serious expression. The Space Elementalist, the man in charge of the platform, as well as the crowd were a little surprised. All Klaus did was sit down and close his eyes for a minute, but there was no change in his body. Could he be planning something in secret, or did he just want attention, again? Klaus naturally wasn''t bothered with how people took his action. He only did things he wanted to do. "Why did he sit down?" Alice asked curiously. "He wanted to break through, but he decided against it. He''s refining his essence to the maximum. This would make him stronger when he breaks through." Grey said. He was the one who told Klaus about it. The reason he did this was because of Klaus'' heavy water. It would''ve been impossible without it. He only noticed it after he acquired it as well. Chapter 757 - Manipulating Space Chapter 757 - Manipulating Space The Space Elementalist didn''t think too much about Klaus'' antics and attacked as soon as the man in charge of the platform gave the go-ahead for the battle. Klaus felt a strong repulsive force from the place he was standing, and before he knew it, the space exploded out with a powerful force that forced him back. Luckily, he was already prepared for these types of attacks and retreated before the attack was able to send him flying. Although the space element was powerful in its own right, it was more effective when used with another element. As long as an Elementalist is frequent with the space element, the only way he could be defeated by a Space Elementalist is when said Space Elementalist has unbelievable control over the space element, or is well above their opponent in terms of cultivation stage. Klaus was already prepared for the space elemental attacks, so he made precautions. He spread out both hands and snow started falling around him. With this, he has increased his sensitivity to the area around him. Just like the strong repulsive force the space element has, it could also pull in anything from a certain space. Klaus felt that a few seconds after he created the snow around him. But he used his ice ability to glue himself to the ground while sending out attacks. The Space Elementalist blocked the attack while retaliating. With a slice of his hand, the space in front of Klaus was ripped apart. Sensing the threatening force, Klaus quickly made an ice wall in front of him, while also causing a blizzard. His plan was to see if he could use the blizzard to freeze the space around the platform. If he was successful, then the Space Elementalist was as good as defeated. He added the heavy water into it to make the space around even heavier and harder to manipulate. The Space Elementalist felt the strong resistance from the space around when he tried to dodge Klaus'' attack. However, he managed to do so in the end. Klaus continued attacking, but to his surprise, he realized the attacks seemed to take almost forever to get to the Space Elementalist. The Space Elementalist would change the direction of the attacks once they get close. No matter how Klaus tried to attack, either it would take too long to get to his opponent, or it would deflect to another direction. It was as if the Space Elementalist changed the space of the platform. Klaus was stuck in a quagmire. His attacks couldn''t come close to the Space Elementalist, while on some occasions, the Space Elementalist has actually returned them back at a speed faster than it previously was. Klaus had only been able to block them due to his high reflexes. "What''s happening?" Alice asked. "He''s manipulating the space around the platform. Unless Klaus increases the power of his attacks, to the extent that they would be enough to shatter this young man''s control over space, it would be hard for him to win." Grey explained. He was also a Space Elementalist, but because he had other elements, he didn''t get the chance to do things like this. Since the young man had only the space element, he was very adept at using it. To be honest, this was one of the best space users Grey had seen. Grey didn''t let this opportunity go to waste as his brain went into overdrive as he simulated the moves the young man was making in his head. This was a good ability to have. Although the young man couldn''t switch places with his opponent like Grey, he had abilities Grey knew nothing about. Of course, all this can be attributed to the fact that the young man was in a place where the space element is well known, and there are hundreds of techniques for it. The only space element technique Grey had was the Great Void technique, and it was purely by accident that he got it. Without it, he would''ve mainly been using the space element as a means of teleportation alone. "A Space Elementalist is a pain in the a**." Reynolds said. "Not entirely, you can work your way around them if you''re powerful. I believe Klaus would get a way through this soon." Grey said with a smile. He could guess how frustrated Klaus was at the moment. Whenever he sparred with Void before he got his space element, he would almost drag out his hair in frustration. Void was on another level when it came to the space element. Grey hadn''t seen him manipulate the space this much, and he knew it was because he had other elements as well. So he didn''t need to rely solely on the space element. Klaus saw the situation of things and knew that without a good move, he would be unable to defeat this young man. ''I guess I''ll have to go almost all-out.'' He said to himself. He still didn''t want to break through yet since it would mean losing a hidden card. But with this troublesome opponent, he planned to use the heavy water to its fullest. He had been hiding most of it for some time now, but it was time to let the entire arena see his special water. Klaus snapped his finger and the heaviness of the blizzard increased by almost four times the weight of the previous time. The sudden change caught the Space Elementalist off guard, and Klaus naturally attacked as well. The attack was so precise that the young man had difficulties blocking it. He tried to use his space manipulation abilities to increase the distance of the attack. But to his surprise, the attack tore through the space with each. This was an ice needle made entirely of Klaus'' heavy water. It was not something that could be stopped so easily. What made things worse was that, after the ice needle tore through space, its speed doubled for some reason and it struck the young man before he could move away. Chapter 758 - We Got A Good One Chapter 758 - We Got A Good One The ice needle struck the young man cleanly on his chest, and compared to the reaction everyone expected, things were a little different. The young man didn''t move from the impact of the attack, rather, he stood on the same spot, unable to move. He was currently suffering from hypothermia the second the attack hit him. The sudden change on the platform alarmed everyone. A few seconds ago, Klaus was the one who was being oppressed, but with a snap of his finger, the entire course of the battle changed. What was more amusing was the fact that the battle truly did change with a snap of Klaus'' finger. This had got to be one of Klaus'' biggest flexes in his entire life. Changing the tide of the battle with a snap of his finger. Just thinking about it was already thrilling. The Elders from the other Factions all looked at Klaus with an apprehensive look. They all noticed what happened after Klaus snapped his finger, the blizzard he released on the platform got almost four times heavier and it was difficult for the young man to adapt to the sudden change in such a short amount of time. The ice needle attack he also used was different from his previous attacks. This one was more powerful, and it even tore apart space just to ensure it got to its target. "What freakish abilities. I really wouldn''t want to fight against someone like him." A Space Elementalist said. Even though he was already well above the Overlord Plane, he felt a slight sense of fear just looking at Klaus. If he were to battle someone who had Klaus'' abilities on the same stage as he is, then he would be in for a difficult time. "We got a good one this time." A lady from the Moonlight Faction chuckled. They still hadn''t completely accepted Klaus because he was male. The reason they accepted only females was because females are more sensitive to cold compared to males. Klaus was a unique protege since he had a greater sensitivity to ice when compared to most of the females in the Moonlight Faction. The Elders took all these into account before agreeing to let him join them. If not for all these factors, then no matter how powerful Klaus was, they would not have given him the chance to join them. While the crowd were discussing the change on the platform, something else started to occur. The young man who hadn''t had any reaction for a while suddenly started to freeze. This was the effect of Klaus'' attack. The freezing power of his ice ability had well over doubled in terms of power because of him using the special water, so this was not unexpected. He even reduced the amount of ice he usually concentrates on the attack in fear of not killing his opponent. Klaus walked over to him and looked at the young man who was unable to move. He placed his hand on his shoulder to stop the ice from completely engulfing him. With a smile on his face, "I win." The young man wanted to speak, but he was unable to. All he could do was watch Klaus. If the change in the blizzard was only around two times or so, he might''ve been able to resist it and even fight properly. But with a change of almost four times, he didn''t even have time to adapt before Klaus ended the battle. This was a battle he felt he had total control over. But everything changed in the blink of an eye. From being the one with the advantage, he almost lost his life. From what happened, he could tell Klaus regulated the strength of the attack. This meant he could easily deal a blow deadlier than what he just used. Klaus was a horrifying opponent. The man in charge of the platform entered and when he noticed the temperature of the young man, he couldn''t help but look at Klaus before calling in a Fire Elementalist. "I reduced the effect, if not, it would''ve been worse." Klaus explained when he saw the way the man looked at him. "I know." The man said. The reason he looked at him was that even after reducing the effect, the young man was still left in such a condition. Klaus was announced as the winner of the battle and he walked back to his seat under the gaze of everyone in the arena. Even though there were other battles taking place, Klaus and Grey were the two most popular figures because of their friend''s performance in the previous battle. "Good job." Grey gave him a high-five when he came back. The others on the seat gave him a high-five as well. Klaus shrugged as if it was an easy battle. Just like Grey, Klaus had made it to the top hundred geniuses. From Klaus'' last battle, everyone knew he was a tough battle to fight against. Even those who were favorites started to take him seriously. Initially, they only felt Grey was the difficult one to deal with, but now they knew not to exclude Klaus. Everyone from this group were all powerful geniuses, and the crowd couldn''t help but wonder how powerful the young man who had a mask on was. Kyle didn''t participate in the competition, and nor had he tried to fight. But since he was with Grey and his friends, they had already tagged him as a genius on their level as well. The other battles went on as expected, and by the end of the day, they managed to complete the hundred battles. With the top one hundred confirmed, the next round would feature fifty battles. It was already late so they couldn''t draw lots again. Most of the audience felt it was a shame that all the battles couldn''t take place immediately. They didn''t have any problems with watching battles all through the night. But in the end, they weren''t the ones making the rules, so they went home. Klaus didn''t go out like expected, he stayed indoors throughout, training. Grey had a lot of items from the first time he came to the Aurora Continent, so he finally decided to give him some to improve his strength before the competition ends. With them entering the top hundred, the battles would get fiercer now. Chapter 759 - Klaus Improvement Chapter 759 - Klaus'' Improvement The next day came quickly. Grey and Klaus were the last to leave their rooms. Void had been exploring the city alone for some time now, he found some interesting things, but after Grey''s repeated warnings, he managed to abstain from taking any of them. This was a big city in a high leveled Region, so it was natural that he would find a lot of strange things. When Klaus and Grey stepped out, the others were already waiting for them, so they headed for the arena. Void was sitting leisurely on Alice''s shoulder, bored to the extreme. He preferred the times they were traveling. To him, they had stayed here for too long. He was also very close to breaking through, and he needed a good place for that. According to him, he would need to consume something that had a good amount of elemental essence. The treasure they got from the mansion was excluded since it would put them in danger if used here. Getting to the arena, it was already packed to the brim. People were already discussing who they felt would get into the top ten from the upcoming battles. There would be fifty battles to decide who makes it to the top fifty. After that, they would have to partake in another twenty-five battles to get to the top twenty-five. An hour later, all the participants were called on stage to draw lots for the next battles. Grey and Klaus were fortunate, having to fight against two Eighth stage Overlord Plane Elementalists. Klaus was able to defeat someone in the Ninth stage, although he suppressed most of the time during that battle, all he needed to do was to change the heaviness of his water and he got the advantage and even defeated his opponent instantly. The only downside to this was that the others now knew of this. They had sensed there was something odd about his water, but they hadn''t seen it properly since he had been using the normal water to hide it, only using some of the special water. Grey and Klaus were surprisingly among the first group of people to fight this time. The others who weren''t fighting felt a little sad since they wouldn''t be able to focus on a battle. The good thing was that Grey would definitely defeat his opponent in a short time, giving them the chance to watch Klaus'' battle. Grey and Klaus walked up to their platforms, staring at their opponents. Grey''s opponent could already feel her hopes shattered, but she didn''t want to lose quickly. Klaus'' opponent felt as long as he could be alert against Klaus'' special water, then he had a chance of winning. The man in charge of the platform where Klaus was located confirmed from both participants if they were ready before calling for the start of the battle. Klaus'' opponent was a Lightning Elementalist, so the second the battle started, he used a series of lightning moves against Klaus. Klaus didn''t panic as he used an ice wall to block the attacks before countering. When the young man tried to block the attack, Klaus sent out multiple ice arrows, while ice shards started sprouting from the ground, heading in the Lightning Elementalist''s direction. The Lightning Elementalist sent a lightning strike at the shards coming his way, destroying them, while he covered himself with the lightning element to dodge the ice arrows. He countered after getting to a safe spot, well, a place where he felt was safe. Klaus stepped on the ground and the entire platform turned into ice. Instead of standing on the earthen platform, it was currently made of ice. The Lightning Elementalist was alarmed by this and a bolt of lightning fell from the sky, aiming at Klaus'' head. Klaus waved his hand above him and a shield made of ice appeared above him and blocked the attack. The lightning struck the ice shield and spread in different directions. The Lightning Elementalist was taken aback when he saw this. He could tell that Klaus hadn''t used his special water yet, but his ice ability was already this powerful. He had been preparing this lightning attack since the start of the battle, so it had gathered a good amount of strength, yet Klaus was able to block it with only an ice shield that wasn''t even made from his special water. This could mean only one thing, Klaus had gotten stronger. He wasn''t the only one who noticed this, the rest of the audience who had been watching Klaus'' battle all this while noticed it as well. "Looks like his all night training brought some improvements." Kyle commented. "Grey gave him some things, I never knew they would be this effective." Alice said. "And I really wanted him to be beaten a little before he gets into the top ten." Reynolds sighed. He was beaten on some occasions, so he naturally wanted Klaus to go through that as well. It wasn''t from ill will, he just didn''t want Klaus to use this to mock him in the future. "I still don''t know how you guys became friends, and are still friends." Kyle shook his head. Given the rate Klaus and Reynolds bicker, he was certain if it were some others, they would''ve become enemies by now. What was worse is that the duo laughed at each other''s misfortune. However, he also knew that they wouldn''t hesitate to fight to the death against anyone who harms one of them. Maybe this was what true friendship was, fighting, arguing, laughing at each other before helping out, but in the end, they each cared deeply for each other. While they were speaking, there was a change on Klaus'' platform. The ice on the platform turned into water, and the Lightning Elementalist standing on it felt something hold onto his leg from the side. He looked down only to see tentacles made of water grabbing his legs. Lightning sparked around him and cut off the tentacles. But they returned soon after. When the Lightning Elementalist was focused on this, a large ice sword appeared above him and struck down immediately. Boom! Chapter 760 - Unfavorable Draw Chapter 760 - Unfavorable Draw The ice sword struck the location the Lightning Elementalist was standing, and although he managed to dodge to the right, the impact still forced him back. Klaus didn''t give him the chance to recover and started bombarding him with multiple attacks. A minute later, he was able to capitalize on the pressure and sent the Lightning Elementalist out of the platform. Putting water on the platform gave him an advantage over his opponent. The Lightning Elementalist complained about it, however, the man in charge of the platform said it wasn''t against the rules. Klaus defeated his opponent in the space of three minutes, a proud smile appeared on his face as he turned to look at Grey''s platform, hoping he was the first. ''I should''ve known.'' He thought with a sigh before looking at where they usually seat, Grey was seated there as if he wasn''t even involved in a battle. ''Did he even fight or did his opponent give up immediately?'' Klaus asked himself as he walked to their seat. Other than the duo, no one else had gotten the victory. This was an astonishing accomplishment since the duo had the lowest stage currently in the competition. Other than them, the others were either in the Eighth stage or the Ninth stage of the Overlord Plane. Grey and Klaus had successfully made it to the top twenty-five, just like their friends did. Seeing them advance so easily made the others look at them with apprehension. If the two friends took the first and second spot once again, they would feel embarrassed. In the presence of thousands of geniuses, only four friends managed to dominate the entire competition. The others couldn''t help but wonder if this would also happen if they had any friends in the Early stages of the Overlord Plane or even the Origin Plane. Would they also be able to dominate the battles? Some minutes went by, and the others started to win one by one. After almost twenty minutes, all the battles finished. The first round was completed, now it was time for the remaining forty battles. Three hours later, the battle for the top twenty-five ended. In the current top twenty-five, two people were in the Seventh stage, five were in the Eighth stage, while the rest were in the Ninth stage of the Overlord Plane. The fact that Grey and Klaus who were the ones with the lowest stage were among the favorites to take the first and second spot was beyond comprehension to most of the people here. They could see that they were powerful, but why would people in the Seventh stage be this powerful in the first place? The participants were called out to draw lots once again. Since there were twenty-five people left, it would be arranged in the same fashion as the Mid stages rankings. There would be twelve battles with one of the battles being a three-way battle. When they drew lots, the person who would be taking place in a three-way battle was, Grey. Klaus wasn''t that lucky either, he would be fighting against one of the young ladies who was lauded to be one of the people who could rival them for the top spot. This young lady was already in the Ninth stage of the Overlord Plane, and her strength was nothing to joke about. Klaus was certain that if he wanted to win this battle, then he would have to go all-out. The lots were not in the favor of Grey and Klaus who were tagged as one of the favorites. Grey''s opponents would naturally not give him the chance to fight against them one on one, so they would immediately team up to take him out. Klaus fighting against a powerful Ninth stage Overlord Plane Elementalist would be his toughest battle so far. The participants were given a two hours break. Grey had his usual indifferent look, even after realizing both his opponents were powerful Ninth stage Overlord Plane Elementalists who had managed to get into one of the Factions. If not for the fact that people knew there was no way to rig the lots, they would''ve said these people wanted the downfall of Grey and Klaus. Most of the people in the crowd were hoping Grey and Klaus would replicate what Alice and Reynolds did. But with their current opponents, they didn''t have much hope. "How do you think they will perform in this round?" "I don''t know, but it will be very difficult for them to advance now. If they manage to do so, then they would become the favorites to get the two top spots." The crowd were all engaged in conversations as they spoke about what Grey and Klaus'' chances of advancing were. Some felt this might be the end of the road for the duo, while there were a few who felt Grey and Klaus would pull off a miracle and advance against all odds. Since the battles weren''t many, there would be one battle each. So everyone could watch all the battles without worrying about which battle to watch. Grey was once again going to fight first before Klaus. Two battles took place before it got to Grey''s turn. In the two battles, one lady in the Eighth stage managed to advance, defeating an opponent in the Ninth stage. She was one of the surprises so far. Grey stepped on the platform, looking at the two people before him. Kyle looked at the battle and asked, "How confident are you guys that he would win?" "One thousand percent." The trio replied without hesitation. In a battle against multiple opponents, Grey was even more dangerous than when fighting against one person. He would be able to use his space element to its fullest, and also use his inscriptions as well. To be honest, putting Grey in such a position was no different from giving him the victory. He would win in a position like this nine times out of ten. The man in charge of the platform looked at Grey and the two others, and after confirming with them, he called for the start of the battle. Chapter 761 - Dividing The Duo Chapter 761 - Dividing The Duo Grey stood and watched his opponents seemingly plotting how they would defeat him. A smirk appeared on his face as he looked at them, amused. He didn''t even try to attack them, letting them plot however they wanted. When the young men saw Grey''s facial expressions, they laughed. They knew that they were no match for Grey one on one, but if it was two against one, then they were certain that they would obtain the victory. They have heard of how Grey defeated the two young ladies back at the party. However, that was something they were capable of as well. The young ladies were only in the Sixth stage of the Overlord Plane, so to them, it wasn''t much of an achievement. Of the two young men, one was a Water Elementalist, while the other was a Dual Elementalist, having both the light and earth elements. He was the most troublesome among the duo. They moved after they finished their plans. They had no time to waste since they wanted to defeat Grey as soon as possible to show everyone that he was not invincible. Grey didn''t panic when he saw the duo coming his way, he prepared himself and with a blink, he changed positions with the Dual Elementalist, appearing on the side of the Water Elementalist. He sent out a fireball that exploded out, sending the figure of the Water Elementalist flying. The Dual Elementalist was stunned, but he quickly came back to his senses and used the superior speed of the light element to rush over to help the Water Elementalist. Grey was about to continue his assault, but the Dual Elementalist appeared in front of him and earth spikes sprouted from the ground and forced Grey back. The Water Elementalist''s figure crashed into the ground. He managed to create an ice dome to protect himself on time before he crashed to the ground. Not just that, but before Grey''s attack connected with him, he made ice on his body to improve his defenses. The duo stood beside each other with serious expressions. "This is a troublesome skill. We need to find a way to maneuver through it." The Water Elementalist said, rubbing his chest. Even though he used ice, he still felt the impact of Grey''s attack. Grey attacked once again. With a blink, he appeared in another location and threw multiple fireballs at them. Before the fireballs got to them, lightning rain started. The duo blocked the attacks, before attacking Grey with a coordinated attack. The Dual Elementalist was the person Grey was most wary of. This didn''t reduce the threat of the Water Elementalist, but with the speed of the light element, it would be hard to hold him down. They exchanged moves, with none being able to get the advantage. Seeing Grey hold his own against the duo, the audience were once again stunned by Grey''s abilities. How could someone be this powerful? This was the question on their heads. They knew Grey was powerful, but fighting against two people who were also regarded as powerful was something else. While watching the battle, they noticed Grey wasn''t having a difficult time as they all expected when the draw came out. In fact, he was fighting easier than previously. The only thing was that he hadn''t been able to defeat any of his opponents because of the intervention of the other Elementalist on the platform. "He''s doing better than expected." Kyle said. "His opponents are wary of his switch skill, so they naturally wouldn''t attack carelessly. This in turn is giving Grey the opportunity he needed to attack at will." Klaus spoke his thoughts. This was one of the reasons Grey was very dangerous in these situations. Because of the space element, he was unpredictable, so his opponents would attack with caution, while he on the other hand would attack freely. "That skill is something else. I wouldn''t want to fight against someone with such a skill." Reynolds sighed, thankful that he was friends with Grey, and not an enemy. He couldn''t even imagine what life would be like if he was Grey''s enemy. He might die without even knowing how it happened. Back on the platform. Grey and his opponents were still caught in a tough battle. They hadn''t been able to hit Grey, but they were gradually growing into the battle. The Dual Elementalist acted as support while the Water Elementalist was the main attacker. Grey had no problems with defending against the Water Elementalist, but the Dual Elementalist was starting to give him some trouble. Thinking to this point, he decided it was time to bring out his inscriptions. The Water Elementalist just released an attack when he felt danger, without hesitation, he moved to the left. Boom! A powerful thunderbolt struck the place he was previously standing. It missed him by only a few inches. If he didn''t move the time he felt the sensation, then he would''ve been hit by it. The Water Elementalist looked at the sky and his pupils constricted when he saw another attack coming his way, this one was made of the fire element. Multiple fire arrows were falling from a large array in the sky. He didn''t need anyone to tell him what this was, it was an inscription. He created a large ice seal above him which expanded and shot towards the fire arrows. With the appearance of the inscription, the crowd were once again blown away by Grey. As if he wasn''t overpowered enough, he just had to be an inscriber as well. Now they understood why he didn''t seem to be bothered about his predicament. With all these in his arsenal, why should he be? The Water Elementalist was preoccupied with the inscription, so Grey used the opportunity to focus fully on the Dual Elementalist. The shift in the way of the battle wasn''t something the Dual Elementalist could handle. Grey taking complete control meant that they would lose in a very short time. He hastily retreated and went in the direction of the Water Elementalist, even though the inscriptions attacks were there, he would be able to help the Water Elementalist deal with it, and in turn, be able to join him and fight against Grey. Chapter 762 - Its Too Easy Chapter 762 - It''s Too Easy Grey naturally wouldn''t allow this to happen. With a blink, he blocked the path of the Dual Elementalist as he was heading in the direction of the Water Elementalist. Well, so he thought. Unfortunately, before he appeared to block the path, the Dual Elementalist had already gone through. ''I hate this speed.'' Grey complained when he realized he was a bit too late. Although the space element made traveling fast, in such a short place, the speed of the Dual Elementalist who had the light element was actually superior to Grey''s. The reason for this was that the Dual Elementalist has a high elemental grade for his light element. So when Grey was creating and entering a portal, the young man could easily move through the length of the entire platform. Of course this was only in the case of a short range movement like this. And if Void were to be the one in Grey''s place, then he would be able to block the Dual Elementalist''s path. Grey didn''t take this to heart. Since they wanted to team up, then he would beat them up together. Three smaller inscriptions appeared in the sky, with two unleashing lightning attacks, the large one, and the remaining smaller one unleashed fire attacks. The Dual Elementalist and the Water Elementalist felt like they were the ones fighting a one against two battle. With the inscriptions and Grey''s continuous attacks, they were unable to even get the chance to catch their breaths. The audience couldn''t believe what they were witnessing. Even though they were seeing it, it was still hard to believe. Grey, who was two stages below both of his opponents, was actually suppressing them in a two on one battle. If not for the Dual Elementalist, this battle would''ve ended before it even started. Boom! An explosion rang out, and the figure of the Water Elementalist was pushed back. Before the Water Elementalist could regain his footing, Grey appeared close to him and attacked again. His attack hit a wall that appeared in front of the Water Elementalist. It was the work of the Dual Elementalist. Grey didn''t feel frustrated by this and continued his attack. The Dual Elementalist was blocked by Grey''s inscriptions, so for him to come over to where the Water Elementalist was located was extremely difficult. The Water Elementalist used the time that Grey''s attack was blocked by the earth wall to regain himself. However, he noticed there was presently a large array on the ground and his scalp went numb. ''What the hell?!'' He almost fainted from fear. He had no idea what this area was for, but he had a bad feeling about it. Grey smiled when he saw that he had completed his array. Now, he didn''t need to worry about the Dual Elementalist any longer. This was an array that would boost his teleportation speed by almost double. That would be enough to counter the speed of the light element in such a short distance. Grey''s figure faded from its original position, and when everyone looked around, they were stunned when they saw over ten Grey. "What''s going on?" Those in lower stages asked in fear. "He''s moving faster than he previously was. At this speed, before we can even register that he''s in a location, he has already moved to another." A man in the Sage Plane in the crowd explained with a sigh. He could already see Grey winning this battle after this. There might''ve been some hope for the duo when the Dual Elementalist still had the advantage in speed, but now, everything is over. Grey was stronger, and now he has become faster. The Dual Elementalist saw Grey''s movement speed and his jaw dropped. "How?" He muttered to himself. Before he could even get himself together, the figure of the Water Elementalist was sent airborne, and a lightning bolt, accompanied by an earth hammer struck him solidly, sending him out of the platform. The Water Elementalist crashed outside the platform and passed out. Now, the only two left on the platform were Grey and the Dual Elementalist. The Dual Elementalist gritted his teeth and attacked. He would never give up. "Let''s see who''s faster." He said. "I am." Before he finished his statement, Grey was already behind him. He tried to run, but Grey blocked his path easily and forced him to defend. Grey''s array had given him the chance to nullify the speed of the Dual Elementalist. With this gone, the Dual Elementalist was no longer a threat to him. After defeating the Water Elementalist, the Dual Elementalist was sent out of the platform as well in the space of one minute. Even after a second or two after the Dual Elementalist''s defeat, the afterimages of both Grey and the Dual Elementalist were still on the platform. Grey has made it to the top ten. Although there would be twelve participants after this, the three who took more time to win their battles would take part in another three-way battle and the winner would take the final spot in the top ten. After being declared the winner, Grey walked back to his seat, with an indifferent look on his face. This was one of the most traumatizing experiences in the life of the Dual Elementalist. The speed he had been so proud of was useless against Grey. It had some uses at first, but after the array appeared on the ground, it became useless. "You see, it''s too easy for him." Klaus said to Kyle. Kyle was once again impressed by Grey''s prowess. At this point, he doesn''t feel there would be anything that would stop Grey from taking the first spot. Well, unless Klaus loses and he has to fight four against one during the battle of the final five. As much as Kyle wanted to see how Grey would cope in a situation like this, he also didn''t want to see Klaus lose just because of that, so he discarded the possibility of something like that happening. Chapter 763 - Klaus Famous Strategy Chapter 763 - Klaus'' Famous Strategy "It''s my turn, wish me luck." Klaus stood up and walked over to the platform. The others didn''t even get the time to wish him luck before he left the seating area. They could tell he was very serious with this battle. If he loses, then he would be annoyed with himself. He wanted this ranking to end the same way the Mid stages rankings did, with two friends taking first and second place. Alice and Reynolds had already done it, so why couldn''t they do it. It was already almost certain that Grey would take the first place, while Klaus had to fight very hard if he wanted to get the second spot since there would be people who wanted to snatch that position from him. Klaus stood on the platform and looked ahead of him as the young lady who was his opponent slowly walked into the platform. Compared to his usual carefree expression, everyone could sense the seriousness in his eyes. He had to win this. "You''re not my opponent." The young lady said when she stood in front of Klaus. "Haven''t you heard that you shouldn''t talk too much before a fight? Talk only after you win, then, your words would be valid." Klaus replied casually. "I agree. I will say these words to you again, after I win." The young lady nodded in agreement with Klaus'' words. "You''re still talking too much." Klaus shook his head, before adding, "Well, since you''ve already started it, I guess I should join in as well. I will repeat your words to you, after you''re on the ground, defeated by me." The young lady wanted to continue speaking, but Klaus interrupted her because the man in charge of the platform was already waiting to start the battle. The young lady was a little annoyed by this. After confirming if both participants were ready, the man called for the start of the battle. "I already won the first round, and I will also win this round." Klaus said when the young lady was about to attack. The young lady froze, taken aback by Klaus'' words, "Which first round?" "Oh, the talking phase. I won that easily, I''m going to do the same in the fighting phase as well." Klaus said as he retreated a few steps away from the advancing young lady. "Is that¡­" The young lady wanted to speak but was interrupted by Klaus once again. "Fight, don''t tell me you fight with your mouth." Klaus said snarkily. The young lady was annoyed by Klaus'' words because Klaus was the one who was fighting with words, not her, yet he was accusing her of doing it. "You''re the one¡­" She wanted to speak, but Klaus interrupted her once again. "I win again. Just give up, you''re not my opponent." Klaus snickered. The young lady was fuming! Everyone could see her eyes turning red from anger. Boom! She exploded out with a powerful attack. She was a Darkness Elementalist. "Ah!" Klaus screamed and ran away from the attack range. He made a water armor that covered his body. He didn''t turn it to ice since he wanted it to be flexible. The young lady had lost all reasoning and only wanted to get her hands on Klaus. Klaus on the other hand was keeping a good distance from her. Darkness Elementalists weren''t the fastest, but their attacks packed a powerful punch. If Klaus was hit by any of the attacks flying his way, then things would become very hard for him. While Klaus was running away from the young lady''s attacks, he felt his hair standing on edge. "Eh?" He exclaimed softly in confusion, when he turned around, his eyes nearly bulged out of his head. A large array was on his back, and it was already about to release a powerful attack. "Oh crap!" Klaus was covered by a large black light. The audience were stunned by this. They all thought the young lady was attacking in a fit of rage, never did they think that she was actually plotting something. Klaus might''ve successfully angered her, but she didn''t let her emotions cloud her judgment. Grey and his group looked at the black light, a little startled by the turn of events. A blue light shone in the black light and a large dark blue ice spread out of the black light. Klaus'' figure was seen inside the ice. The ice managed to block the array, stopping it from attacking as it spread across the platform. The young lady attacked the ice coming her way. While dodging to the side. She had already seen how powerful this ice of Klaus was, so she didn''t dare to let it touch her. Klaus popped his head out of the safety of the ice and looked around, "Damn! Did you plan to kill me or something?!" The young lady refused to reply and charged at him, destroying the ice on her path. "I know you have a crush on me, but I don''t accept ladies like you. You''re almost like Reynolds, and he''s a boy." Klaus said before hiding inside the safety of his ice once again. The young lady hearing Klaus comparing her to a boy felt even irritated. This was even more annoying than when Klaus said she had a crush on him. Klaus on the other hand didn''t let the young lady have her way. But the corrosiveness of the darkness element was not something to be taken lightly. Even with the upgrade from the heavy water, the darkness elemental attacks are still managing to find a way to break through the defense. If not for the fact that the young lady couldn''t focus fully on attacking since Klaus was also attacking her, she would''ve been able to break through the ice by now. Grey and his friends chuckled as they saw Klaus irritating the young lady. This had been one of Klaus'' strategies for a long time, whenever his opponent was stronger than he was, he would find a way to irritate them until they attacked carelessly. The young lady almost fell for it the first time, but she was smart and used it against Klaus. However, with the level of Klaus'' foul mouth, it was only a matter of time before she lost all reasoning. Chapter 764 Repeating Her Words Boom! Bang! The young lady managed to open a hole in the ice Klaus was hiding in and sent him crashing out of it. Klaus slammed into the ground of the platform, but the water armor he made at the start of the battle became useful. With its flexibility, it was able to take over eighty percent of the impact. Klaus also used it to get back on his feet in a matter of milliseconds. He didn''t want the young lady to get the advantage of being able to attack him while he was on the ground. He could tell that he had already infuriated her to the level she wanted him dead, but he didn''t care. According to an old saying, "All''s fair in love and war". The young lady was already angered from the start of the battle, the longer the fight lasted, the more infuriated she became. "Your mouth should be cut off!" The young lady screamed in agony and attacked with brutality that showed she wanted Klaus dead. "I already told you to stop speaking too much, see now, you''re bleeding and I haven''t even tried to attack you yet." Klaus pointed at the lips of the young lady which already had blood on it. The young lady bit her lips in annoyance and accidentally injured them. Klaus picked this and used it against her. The young lady was on the verge of going mad. The man in charge of the platform was lost. He didn''t know what to do. If the battle continued in this manner, the young lady might lose her sanity. This was the first time he was witnessing a battle like this. He couldn''t say it was against the rules since all Klaus did was talk. But to him, Klaus'' mouth was even more dangerous than his elemental attacks. "You see, he''s evil." Reynolds laughed as he said to Kyle. Kyle felt a little fear as he watched Klaus send the young lady into a frenzy with a few words. Even with his calm attitude, he was a hundred percent certain that he would try to kill Klaus if he was on the platform fighting against him right now. The Elders from the Factions looked at each other, amused. They couldn''t say they found Klaus'' tactic underhanded. In a real battle, a plan like this could help a person escape certain death. Of course you would get an enemy of a lifetime, but it didn''t matter. In this case, Klaus knew he was at a disadvantage from the start, so he prepared his defensive measures and started to rile the young lady up. The young lady would certainly slip up at this rate, and Klaus would take full advantage of it to defeat his opponent. The young lady didn''t know how to control her emotions, and Klaus was taking full advantage of that. If Klaus tried this against someone like Grey who rarely showed his emotions, it would most likely fail, but against people who find it difficult to control their emotions, they would fall for this most of the time. The Elder or the Faction the young lady joined took note of this and was prepared to recommend a special training for her that would help her keep her emotions in check. Klaus was slowly getting the chance he was waiting for. The young lady had been able to block most of his fatal attacks, but a few had made contact. Presently, there was ice on some parts of the young lady''s body. The ice was unable to cover her entire body because she used the darkness element to corrode them. If not for the fact that it was made from the heavy water, it would''ve already been completely destroyed by now. Klaus continued his words as he didn''t want the young lady to gain the advantage again. As time went on, the young lady started to make more and more mistakes. Klaus didn''t let the chances go as he attacked with every opportunity he got. Three minutes later, the young lady was lying on the ground, exhausted and almost completely frozen by deep blue ice. Klaus walked up to her and said, "I told you this would happen." He turned around and walked away from the platform, however, just as he was about to leave the platform he paused and turned to look at the young lady. "You''re not my opponent." He repeated the same words the young lady said to him at the start of the battle. The difference was that the battle had ended, and he was the victorious one. The man in charge of the platform stepped forward to remove the ice, and just like Klaus'' previous opponents, the young lady was almost freezing inside and was suffering from a severe cold. "Such a dirty move." Reynolds said as Klaus returned. "All''s fair in love and war. I saw a chance and took it." Klaus didn''t feel annoyed by Reynolds'' statement. "How did you know she would react that way?" Kyle asked. "Oh, from the way she spoke the first time she stepped on the platform, I knew she was proud. So I took a gamble, guess I was lucky." Klaus replied. "Hmm, the only issue is that although your strategy gave you the victory, it also took too long." Grey joined in on the conversation. "Yeah, but you already saw how things were, I can''t beat her without advancing to the next stage." Klaus sighed, "I''ll think of what to do if I am one of the people in the three-way battle for the last spot in the top ten." Grey nodded and they watched the other battles that took place. Klaus was the fifth person that battled, and he currently had the longest battle, lasting over ten minutes. In these ten minutes, he mostly defended while the young lady attacked. In the blink of an eye, the remaining seven battles were completed and the last three people were identified. Klaus was unfortunately part of the trio involved in the three-way battle. "Such a bad day." Klaus sighed in dejection. Chapter 765 Klaus’ Breakthrough "Don''t worry bud, at least Grey will take first place, and you''ll be close to the top ten." Reynolds gloated at Klaus'' misfortune. "I''m still going to qualify." Klaus retorted. "All beat up, right?" Reynolds asked with a smile. "Not at all. I''ll be in my best condition!" Klaus stated. "Okay, I''d like to see how that would be possible." Reynolds didn''t believe Klaus would make it to the top ten unscathed. He knew Klaus would win, but there was no way his opponents were not going to make things difficult for him. Grey shook his head when he saw Reynolds taking advantage of Klaus'' misfortune. He was also in line with Reynolds'' words, there was no way Klaus would make it to the top ten in peak conditions. Unless he received treatment after the three-way battle. With his light element, he should be able to help him out. But there''s an extent he could use it to since the elemental grade is still low. ''I should take out time to check my elemental grades.'' Grey thought to himself as he looked at the arena which was starting to look empty. It was already sunset, and the three-way battle would be taking place first thing in the morning. So there was no use in staying at the arena any longer. The group stayed at the arena a little longer since Klaus decided to speak with a few of his Faction members. When Grey got back to his room, the first thing he did was enter the Chaos space. He hadn''t tried improving his comprehension of any elements for some time now. Although during their journey he had been doing it a few times, he mostly just focused on his space element. When he appeared in the Chaos Space, he appeared at the mountain peak where the testing device was located. Without any delay, he placed his right hand on the device and it came to life. A strange energy entered his body and after going through a circle, it returned to the stone. A few seconds later, the stone lit up with eight colors. The most eye-catching one was still the fire element which had changed from the cyan to the yellow grade. After that, his next element with the highest elemental grade was his lightning which was violet, but surprisingly, he realized he had another element with the violet elemental grade, the water element. It was previously in the blue grade, but it had managed to improve to the violet grade. His wind element was in the blue grade as well as his space element which had also seen an increase, his earth and darkness element were in the purple grade, while the light element was in the orange grade. When Grey saw the result, he fell deep in thought. ''Since I managed to awaken my domain, I guess my fire elemental grade saw an increase. Comprehending that water helped in improving my grade it seems, while it''s natural for the space elemental grade to improve since I use it so much. But why hasn''t my earth element improved at all?'' He was stumped by this fact. It had been months now, even years since his earth element got to the purple grade, but it was still there, not improving in the slightest bit. Even his space element had come from behind to top it. It was a shocking thing to him. ''I''ll have to focus on it next. No wonder I still haven''t been able to learn that thing yet.'' He concluded. He had been trying to learn that move the Earth Elementalist from the Azure Empire used when battling against Klaus'' father, but no matter how hard he tried, he still hadn''t been able to. Now he understood the reason, his elemental grade was still too low. After he finished checking his elemental grade, he decided to head to the earth space in the Chaos Space. Since he wanted to improve the elemental grade, then the best thing to do was to start now. The next day soon came. When they stepped out, Klaus was the first among them to come out of his room. Compared to before, he had a different aura to him. "You''ve gotten stronger." Grey commented when he saw him. "Of course, thanks to the water, my breakthrough was smooth." Klaus flashed a grin at the group. "This is still not going to change the fact that you''re going to be trounced at the battle today. In fact, I can already picture you on the ground, almost out cold." Reynolds continued from where he stopped the previous day. ? ?? ??-?? ???. ??? "Hmph! At least I''m not going to be like you who was placed in a difficult position against a single opponent. I''m fighting against two people, it''s natural if they beat me up." Klaus retorted with a proud smile. Reynolds froze when he heard Klaus'' reply. Klaus would be fighting against two people, so it was natural that he was beaten up, if he won against them even if he was beat up, it would still be an amazing achievement. Klaus smirked when he saw that he had silenced Reynolds. The group joked as they went to the arena in high spirits. Klaus had broken through to the Eighth stage of the Overlord Plane, and thanks to refining his orb before breaking through, he grew even stronger after his breakthrough. Now, he had more confidence in being able to challenge his opponents. They would not want him to advance, especially after Grey had managed to win the first three-way battle. If Klaus won this as well, then things would be a little strange. The geniuses had come together to ensure that Grey and Klaus did not take the first and second place. It was a matter of their pride as geniuses. However, they all knew this was their only chance to stop that. If Klaus manages to win this round, then the duo would most certainly get into the top five, and from Grey''s last battle, they knew he had no problems with dealing with two or more opponents. Chapter 766 Klaus’ Mind Games When the group got to the arena, they sat in their seats with serious expressions. Those around them also noticed the difference in Klaus'' aura and realized he broke through the previous night. Some felt he forced the breakthrough when he saw the people he would be fighting against. Others who had taken note of him for a while now knew he was holding himself back from breaking through all this while, so he only did it when he knew he needed the strength. This was a good thing for him since his opponent would come with the mindset of him still being in the same stage as before, only to be shocked once they saw him. The top Factions arrived earlier than usual. Today was the last day of the competition, so they wanted to ensure all the battles took place soon since they wanted to head back to their Factions with their new members. The man in charge called for Klaus and the two others who would be taking part in the three-way battle. Klaus took in a deep breath before walking in the direction of the platform. He didn''t say a word even when his friends were wishing him luck, his eyes were focused solely on the platform. This was a battle he wanted to win. His movement was slow but steady. In no time, he arrived on the platform. He stood straight while facing where his opponents were coming from. The man in charge saw the difference in Klaus and nodded his head in approval. He was the same person who was in charge of Klaus'' battle when he said he should be given a minute. He noticed Klaus wanted to break through then but refrained from doing so. Now he knew Klaus was keeping it from the right time. Klaus'' opponents soon appeared on the platform, both staring at him with terrifying gazes. Both of them were in the Ninth stage of the Overlord Plane, and one of them was a Dual Elementalist who had the wind and the fire element. The other person was an Earth Elementalist. From their elements, Klaus had already predicted how their battle plan would be, the Dual Elementalist would be the main figure attacking, while the Earth Elementalist would act as support. The man confirmed from the trio if they were ready before calling for the start of the battle. Just as the battle started, Klaus tried to see if he could play some mind tricks. "Are you two really going to team up against me?" He asked with a blank face. The duo didn''t reply to him as they moved closer to him. "I know you''re geniuses, but you two have got to be the most gutless geniuses I''ve ever seen. How can two Ninth stage Overlord Plane Elementalist team up against a newly ascended Eighth stage Overlord Plane Elementalists and still call themselves geniuses?" Klaus asked with a smile, he could see the change in the expression of the duo when he said this word. "Pathetic, even a pig will have more decency than you two. Even if I were to lose against the two of you, I''d still not take you people as geniuses, because deep down, you''re nothing more than a gutless swine who would need to team up just to fight against those who are a stage or two below you." Klaus continued talking to them. His words seemed to be hitting the duo since there was a visible change in their countenance. Even their movements stopped, it was clear that they were thinking about what Klaus was saying. "Do you think everyone here would take you two as a genius if you team up to defeat me? The answer is a resounding No!" Klaus stood in the same position as he spoke, "You would be looked down on in the Factions you joined. Even those at a lower Plane will feel you two are nothing by trash." "Do you want people to call you trash?" Klaus asked the duo. "No." They answered in unison. They were geniuses, so it was normal that they were prideful. Before the battle, they also felt it was beneath them to team up against someone they felt was weaker. But they didn''t want to let Klaus win, so they felt it was what was necessary. However, Klaus'' words had shaken their resolve. Even if they still managed to try to team up, they wouldn''t be at their peak since their minds were shaken. The Elders from the top Factions stared at Klaus in awe. They couldn''t help but commend his brains. He knew his chances of winning against the duo were slim, so he tried to shake their will or even break them up. This was a terrific strategy that would definitely help him out in the battle. His opponents wouldn''t want to be looked down upon and called trash by those in the Factions they wished to enter. Of the duo, only one of them was successful in his attempt to challenge someone from the Faction he wanted, the other one was unsuccessful. He had managed to get to this point, now Klaus was telling him even if he won, he wouldn''t be able to amount to much since everyone would take him for a gutless genius. Grey smiled when he saw the change on the platform. "He''s a genius, you have to give him credit for that." He said with a light laugh. ? ?? ??-??? ??, ??? "No, he''s evil." Reynolds said. He could already see that those morons would want to fight against Klaus alone and he didn''t want that. He wanted Klaus to be beaten up a little, how would he be able to laugh at him now? Kyle looked at Klaus and he felt a chill down his spine. Klaus was a calculative and horrifying opponent. He was using the pride of these geniuses against them. What was worse was that given the number of people here, they wouldn''t want to be looked down on. Most of the people in the crowd were already discussing the issue and the duo could hear them properly. ''Hehe, now, what will you do?'' Klaus sneered internally. Chapter 767 Something You Two Dont Have Chapter 767 - Something You Two Don''t Have The young men stared at each other and nodded. "I''m confident in my abilities, I''ll defeat you myself." The Dual Elementalist among the duo said. "Of all the people here today, you two are one of the few I respect. You''re not like those swines who would forget their pride as a genius and attack together. Honestly, I would make the same decision as you." Klaus said with respect. When Grey and his friends heard him, they almost ran over to the platform to give him a good beating. "Hehehe, he''s always the same." Reynolds laughed when he heard this. Grey''s eyes twitched, but he decided not to think about it. Alice also refrained from saying anything as she looked away when those sitting around them looked in their direction. Even Kyle who hadn''t been with the group for a long time knew Klaus was lying. Unfortunately for the two young men on the platform, they thought he was speaking with the dignity of a genius. "Since it''s like this, I will defeat you personally. Please, stay out of the way, we''ll face off after I eliminate him." The Dual Elementalist said. The Earth Elementalist nodded and moved to the side, close to the edge of the platform. Klaus bowed in the direction of the Earth Elementalist as if he was thanking him for his willingness to let him battle against the Dual Elementalist alone. While Klaus'' face was out of sight, an evil grin was pasted all over his face. A tiny ice needle was dropped on the floor and it was snaking its way toward the Earth Elementalist. It was moving in a concealed and silent pattern that even some of the Elders with superior cultivation Planes didn''t sense it. The Earth Elementalist felt even better when he saw Klaus thanking him and nodded. "I couldn''t believe I almost teamed up against someone weaker than¡­" The Earth Elementalist was still in the midst of speaking when he sensed an anomaly. "Huh?" He looked around, and to his greatest shock, he was currently standing on ice. Before he could even react, the ice had sent him out of the platform. One person had been eliminated without Klaus even getting to go through the stress of fighting against him. "Haha, one out, one to go!" Klaus laughed before rushing after the Dual Elementalist who still wore a flabbergasted expression. He still didn''t know how the Earth Elementalist was eliminated. A few seconds ago, the Earth Elementalist was standing on the platform, but now, he was no longer on the platform. He saw the ice which sent the Earth Elementalist off the platform, so he knew it was Klaus'' doing, but he still didn''t see Klaus attacking in any way. When he heard Klaus'' evil laughter, he felt a wave of burning anger in his chest. "You tricked¡­" "Shut up and fight!" Klaus didn''t let him finish his statement before he launched an attack on him. The Dual Elementalist used the wind element to bolster his speed and tried to dodge the attack. There was no way Klaus was going to give him that chance. Klaus'' attacks were vicious and relentless. The Dual Elementalist was instantly placed on the defensive. The crowd were just as stumped as the Earth Elementalist who had been eliminated and the Dual Elementalist who was currently fighting against Klaus. They didn''t see Klaus attack, but since he was the only Water Elementalist on the platform, they knew it was all his handiwork. "Is it just me, or has he become even eviler?" Alice couldn''t help but ask. None of them saw this coming. Even Grey didn''t notice when Klaus released the attack, it was only after the attack activated did he sense it, like almost everyone here. The few Elders who sensed the attack earlier looked at each other and couldn''t help but shudder at the thought of how ingenious Klaus was. They could already see that his name will command fear in the hearts of his enemies in the future. Klaus was a cunning individual, too cunning for his age even. Most of them wouldn''t have thought of solving Klaus'' current problem in this manner. As things stand, Klaus made sure that once he started showcasing his strength, no one else could interfere in the battle. If the Earth Elementalist stayed on the platform, there would''ve been a possibility of him joining the battle once he notices Klaus had the upper hand against the Dual Elementalist, but now, there was nothing he could do. Ultimately, this battle was mainly decided by experience. It was evident that Klaus had the experience of an old cunning fox, while the young men were geniuses who only recently started traveling. The Earth Elementalist tried to get back into the platform, but he was stopped by the man in charge of the battle. "Sir, the battle hasn''t started." The Earth Elementalist said. "I already called for the start of the battle before you started speaking with him." The man said with a blank look. "But¡­ but¡­ he cheated!" The Earth Elementalist pointed at Klaus. "No, I used my brain, something you two seem to be lacking. Hahaha!" Klaus replied. Even in the heat of battle, he still had time to mock his opponents. The reason for this was simple, since he had already defeated the Earth Elementalist, he needed a quick way to break down the Dual Elementalist, and what was better than a mental breakdown? The Earth Elementalist gritted his teeth in annoyance. However, he knew there was nothing he could do. The Elders from the Moonlight Faction looked at each other, a little scared. Klaus was a genius, no doubt, but he had the habit of making enemies. "This might be beneficial for him, more enemies means he would have to grow stronger quicker or else he would be killed." One of the Elders said. "Yes, and given the skills he has displayed, I think he is used to such a life. What I''m just confused about is why we haven''t heard of someone like him. Not just him, but his friends as well. With their talents, they could easily get into the best Factions in the Middle Continent easily from a young age." Another Elder said. Chapter 768 The Top Five Chapter 768 - The Top Five The Elders continued speaking about them and they decided to do some research on their identities when they got back to their Factions. These were geniuses they would want to groom to be pillars of their Factions, so they naturally had to make sure they were people who would take them seriously as well. During the time they were speaking, Klaus had forced the Dual Elementalist into a difficult situation. Even with his superior speed, he still couldn''t break through Klaus'' defense, while Klaus had no issues with doing the same to him. The Dual Elementalist was also slowly getting frustrated as the battle went on. He vowed to never fight against Klaus again, or if he wanted to, then he would have to ensure for the time period, he would block his ears at all cost. As if Klaus could hear what he was thinking, he flashed a brilliant smile at him which infuriated him even more. Grey and the others were certain the Dual Elementalist would have nightmares whenever he thought about this day. The battle was slowly coming to a conclusion, and after the young man exploded with a terrifying attack that he used to push Klaus back, he was unable to take advantage thanks to Klaus'' impeccable defense. Klaus took the initiative back and switched entirely to the heavy water. When the heavy water came into play, the Dual Elementalist could barely defend against it. Klaus'' strength had increased since his breakthrough, so he was not the same as before. The Dual Elementalist was finally eliminated after almost ten minutes of fighting. Klaus stood on the platform, he was officially the last person to make up the top ten spots. The audience all sucked in a cold breath when they realized Klaus was able to make it into the top ten. When he eliminated the Earth Elementalist, they felt he would be able to get into the top ten, but seeing it actually happen still shocked them. Against all odds, Klaus qualified thanks to his wits. The man in charge of the platform declared Klaus the winner of the three-way battle. The other nine participants were called up to the platform. And of the people who successfully got into a Faction during the time of challenging members of the Factions, only Klaus and a young man were left. The others in the top ten were people who were unsuccessful. Two of them didn''t even try challenging anyone, and they were Grey and a young lady. The man asked them if they would choose their Factions now or later. The ones who were unsuccessful with their challenges picked their Factions, even the young lady did the same as well. Everyone turned to look at Grey and he still had the same indifferent expression. They all knew he probably didn''t want to pick a Faction yet. They were told to draw lots, and since Klaus just finished fighting, they were given one hour to rest. Klaus'' opponent was the young lady who recently just picked a Faction after getting into the top ten. Grey''s opponent was a young man who was unsuccessful in his first attempt to get into a Faction. Grey and Klaus went back to their seats, and the group congratulated Klaus for his stunning victory. "Rey, you see, winning with style." Klaus started to brag. "You cheated." Reynolds retorted. "Look, my friend, I''ve said this, and I''ll say it again, all is fair in love and war. Did you think I would win this easily if I didn''t use my brains?" Klaus didn''t think too much about Reynolds'' words. "Definitely not." Reynolds replied. "You see, but I won anyway. And I didn''t even get to fight two people, one of them willingly left the platform." Klaus chuckled. "I didn''t even sense the attack, how did you do it?" Grey was curious about this, so he asked. "You see, it''s like this¡­" Klaus explained it to them. Initially, his plan was to defeat the Dual Elementalist before fighting against the Earth Elementalist as agreed. But when he saw the Earth Elementalist stupidly standing on the edge of the platform, the thought of eliminating him crossed his mind. It was a difficult move because if they sensed it, then the duo would know he was only tricking them, so he was extra careful. Luckily, he was successful in his attempt. In a battle against the Dual Elementalist, he was at least over sixty percent confident in defeating him with his new strength. "All in all, I guess I was lucky to get opponents Rey is even smarter than." Klaus used the opportunity to bicker with Reynolds. Reynolds naturally wouldn''t let him have the advantage. Kyle looked at Reynolds and shook his head. Since he had been traveling with the group, no one has been able to defeat Klaus in a war of words. The only time Grey and Reynolds had been able to do so was when they had something to use against him, but with nothing, they were simply asking for it. Just as expected, Klaus won the war of words once again. It was not even a challenge. Klaus was naturally gifted when it came to sarcasm, so it was easy for him to always have a greater comeback whenever Reynolds said something to him. Time went on and the one hour soon elapsed. Grey was the first to fight once again, and he didn''t even give his opponent any chances. He had shown his four elements as well as his inscriptions, so he used everything to quickly deal with the young man. He was victorious in less than five minutes. Klaus'' battle was a little longer, but in the end, he won just as everyone expected. Now, both Grey and Klaus have made it into the top five, just like their friends did during the last round. The other three who made it to the top five were two young ladies and a young man. Klaus almost wanted to advise them to give up even before the battle, but Grey closed his mouth when he saw that he was about to speak to them. He didn''t even need to know what he wanted to say, but he was one hundred percent certain that it was nothing good. Chapter 769 A Fallout ? Chapter 769 - A Fallout ? They were all given a two hours break before the start of the final battle. "You two better not disgrace me." Reynolds said. "You''re saying that to us? Even without Grey I can take them on my own, much less now that I know I have him by my side. Unlike you who was beaten up, I don''t think I''ll ever get into a situation like that." Klaus snickered. Reynolds wanted to speak but he gave up in frustration. Klaus had been using this to hold him down whenever they argued since the start of this round. Since Klaus hadn''t really taken a good beating, he had the upper hand. "Hey, bud, why don''t you let them beat him up for a while. Just for a small while, that''s all I''m asking for." Reynolds whispered to Grey. Klaus and the others heard him clearly and Alice couldn''t help but laugh. "I heard you. But did I tell anyone to beat you up? No! You went there to get beat up on your own. Hehe, genius." Klaus continued mocking. "Don''t worry, I''ll beat him up myself." Grey said with a soft smile. "Hehe, you think you''re my opponent? I can beat you with my eyes closed. Even in your dreams, I can still beat you up." Klaus bragged. "Don''t forget, I''m now in the Eighth stage and you''re still in the Seventh stage, show me some respect." He added. "I really want to beat you up even more now." Grey said slowly. "You, my friend, don''t stand a chance against me." Klaus poked Grey on the shoulder. Before the group knew it, the two hours they were given elapsed in the blink of an eye. Klaus and Reynolds spent the entire time bickering, while Grey was unfortunately dragged into it by Klaus who said even if he was crippled, he would still beat Grey up. While the duo walked toward the platform, Klaus leaned closer to Grey and whispered. "Hey bud, you know I''m joking right. Don''t forget the days you just joined the Academy, I was the one who protected you from those bad guys who wanted to bully you." Klaus said. "Which bad guys?" Grey couldn''t help but ask. "Of course you wouldn''t know of them, that''s because I took them out before they could even get close to you. I was protecting you from the shadows so that you can grow strong and protect me in the future." Klaus continued cooking up things he knew never happened. He naturally knew Grey wouldn''t buy it in the first place. "Alright, look here, young man, no matter what you do, keep my face out when you want to fight against me. Okay?" Klaus finally accepted his fate of being beaten up by Grey. "Noted, any other special requests?" Grey asked. "Can you forfeit the fight once we''ve eliminated them?" Klaus asked with a smile. Grey looked at him with an odd expression. "What? I said I should try, who knows, maybe you will let me win since I''m such a great guy." Klaus defended himself when he saw Grey''s expression. They soon stepped onto the platform and their opponents were already there. It was just like the case of Alice and Reynolds, it was two against three. The three teamed up, even though they were aware that they stood no chance against Grey and Klaus. Both Grey and Klaus had fought in a three-way battle and won comfortably. Klaus'' battle might be a fluke since he used trickery, but he won nonetheless. Grey''s battle was more convincing. However, even if two of them held Grey back, the last person wouldn''t necessarily be able to defeat Klaus. Klaus had shown his strength since the start of the competition, and it was evident that he was no pushover. Other than Grey, there were very few people here who could trouble him. And those people weren''t part of the competition. The trio stared at the duo, their gazes were fixated on Grey in particular. Klaus, seeing this couldn''t help but cough out softly to draw their attention. It worked as expected, and he got them looking at him for a while. Whenever they looked at Grey, he would make another sound to draw their attention once again. Grey almost facepalmed as he saw this. Klaus was just a typical crazy person. In fact, a crazy person might not be as bad as he was. The man in charge of the battle stepped forward and after confirming if all five participants were ready, he called for the start of the battle. Grey and Klaus didn''t make any moves after the man called for the start of the battle, rather, they watched their opponents. "I advise you to make your move first, it wouldn''t be good if I grab all the spotlight, again." Klaus said to Grey. "What are you even saying?" Grey rolled his eyes. "I''m saying you should show some of your moves so that people will at least know you''re powerful. I don''t want you to say I hoarded the spotlight." Klaus spoke confidently. The trio looked at the duo in confusion, they initially thought Klaus was speaking to them, only to realize he was arguing with Grey. "What''s going on?" One of the young ladies asked, a little confused. "I think they''re having a fallout." The young man said. "Do you think they''re playing around?" The other lady asked. "Let''s continue watching." The young man wasn''t in a hurry. He was currently thinking of how they would eliminate Klaus first, then Grey would have to face three of them alone. Just as they were still contemplating if Klaus and Grey were truly having a fallout, Grey sent Klaus flying in their direction. Klaus landed in front of them and cleaned his body. "Fine, we''ll beat you up together." Klaus said in annoyance and turned to the dumbstruck trio. "Don''t even think you three can fight him alone. I''ve been friends with him for some time now, I know some of his secrets, so what do you say we beat him up together?" Klaus started to rile up the trio. "Really?" The young man asked, he was still very cautious of Klaus. Klaus was standing around five meters away from them. "Of course, he''s very annoying." Klaus said as he walked closer to the group. "In fact, I know a skill of his that once he''s within ten meters of you, you''re done." Klaus said in a matter of fact manner. "Please tell us." The young man said. Klaus was currently standing around two meters away from them. "Tell? Why don''t you see for yourself." Klaus chuckled, "Bye." "Hi!" As soon as Klaus finished his statement, his figure changed to that of Grey''s. Chapter 770 Shocking The Arena Into Silence Chapter 770 - Shocking The Arena Into Silence "Bye." "Hi." The transition was so smooth that even before Klaus'' words entered their ears, Grey was already in sight. Before they could move, they felt a stinging pain, looking around, it was as if they were standing in an inferno. Grey was standing in the middle of the inferno like a god as he watched them silently. The crowd, who were still in shock due to the small conflict between Grey and Klaus, were stunned by the turn of events, but they couldn''t even speak about it because they were witnessing the shock of their lives. Since the start of the competition, Reynolds was the only one who had done something almost similar to a domain. It only missed a few details or else it would''ve been a complete domain. However, right in front of them was a true domain, made by someone who is still in the Overlord Plane. This person was only in the Seventh stage of the Overlord Plane. If that wasn''t shocking, they didn''t know what was. All the Elders from the top Factions were on their feet. They were already astounded by Reynolds'' ability to make a semi-domain, but Grey didn''t just make a domain, he used it to perfection. This showed that this was not the first time he was using it. "Where did such a genius come from?" One of the Elders from a top fire-based Faction asked in shock. Now, he was a little afraid of trying to take in Grey. If Grey has such abilities, it meant he was definitely under the tutelage of someone powerful. If he wasn''t, there was no way he would understand things about the elements by this much. Whoever was teaching him must also be an Array Grandmaster. "He''s definitely from one of the big Families. It''s impossible that such a genius would come from nowhere. He must''ve been training in secret, but now they finally let him loose." Another Elder said. Thinking about it properly, they finally understood why Klaus and others were such powerful figures. They must''ve also been training in secret. The only reason they agreed to join a Faction was probably because they needed more training. Grey didn''t need anyone since he was already this powerful. Without his domain, the only people who could rival him in the Overlord Plane were those geniuses with cyan and above elemental grade. And the Elders knew for a fact that the geniuses must either be in the Ninth stage or at the Peak. Now, with his domain, he was basically invincible in the Overlord Plane. The strength of a domain lies in its dominant power. Without sufficient strength, even some Early Sage Plane Elementalists would find it difficult to break out of the domain''s hold. A domain was like a cage, giving the owner absolute power. Those trapped inside a domain would not be able to bring out one-third of their original strength. Just looking at Grey, they could already see him dominating the world even at this young age. "It''s best to see if he would want to join any of us like his friends did. If he agrees, then we will all congratulate the Faction he joins. But if not, just ensure we make a good impression on him." An Elder from another top fire-based Faction advised. "This boy is a genius. I would like to invite him over to my Faction." An Elder from one of the top space-based Factions said. He wasn''t even interested in Grey joining them, all he wanted to do was to create a good relationship with him. As much as the top of trying to convince Grey to join them was high, they also didn''t want to force him into making any decisions. A genius like Grey couldn''t grow in a place where he was held captive. Even if he grows, it would be for the sole purpose of revenge. The thought of training your killer was something none of them wanted to have. Not just that, but the power behind him might be powerful enough to wipe out their Faction. Although they are among the top Factions in this Region, there are levels among the top Factions. There are some individuals that can easily wipe out a Faction like theirs on this Continent. Of all the people in the entire Western Continent, there''s a terrifying figure in the Dawson Family that can even turn the Middle Continent upside down. Unless the old monsters decide to intervene, very few people in the Aurora Continent as a whole can challenge him. They all came to the decision as the man from the space-based Faction. They would invite Grey over to their Faction, and if he agrees to come, they would try to build a solid relationship with him. Of all the Factions present, three of them in particular smiled at each other. With one of Grey''s friends joining them, it was already evident that they had formed a tie with him. As long as they do not do anything bad to his friends, they would be in a good relationship with him. Besides, it wasn''t as if they tortured their members in the first place. "A shame he doesn''t have the water element, but I''ll give him a special technique anyway." One of the Elders from the Moonlight Faction said. Her words opened the door for the others and they all agreed to give him a special technique. Even the smaller Factions felt compelled to give him some kind of gift as well. While the Elders were speaking about Grey and how to get on his good side. Kyle had his mouth wide open. When he heard them speak of Grey awakening his domain, he still felt a little doubtful. However, seeing it with his own eyes, he couldn''t contain his shock. Kyle who already knew of this information was already this shocked, it was easy to predict the state of the others who knew nothing about this. All the youths, as well as the old people were staring at Grey, all standing still as if they were frozen. Grey just shocked the entire arena into silence. Chapter 771 - Number One "I really want this." Klaus sighed as he saw Grey''s domain. The trio who were caught in the domain were unable to break out of it, Grey''s attacks increased by almost threefold. The trio were unable to defend for long before they were all knocked out cold. In the space of not more than thirty seconds, Grey had defeated three Ninth stage Overlord Plane Elementalists with ease. Klaus was standing on the other side of the platform, staring at his fingernails as if he wasn''t even involved in the battle. This was by far the shortest last battle since the start of the competition. It was the shortest last battle in the history of the competition. The crowd were sure no one would be able to replicate this in a short time. Especially when being two stages below your opponents. From this, the crowd all knew that even if Klaus was eliminated and Grey fought against four people, he would still win easily. "Is he still human?" Someone from the crowd asked. "Basically, yes. But I don''t want to accept that he''s like us. Maybe he''s truly favored by the gods." Another person answered. "Why is the world unfair?" Someone asked. There were different reactions in the crowd, but the main thing was that they were all stunned and amazed by Grey''s domain. Klaus looked at the trio who were knocked out and walked over with a shake of his head. "Hmm, how do we rank them now?" He spoke with a thoughtful expression. "That''s not something we should concern ourselves with." Grey said. "Oh, I know." Klaus smacked his lips lightly and he used water to gently pick up the young man and dropped him outside the platform. "Now, he''s fifth. Up next is you." He pointed at one of the young ladies and did the same act. He was very gentle when dropping each of them. They were already beaten by Grey, there was no use in causing them more harm. After sending them out, he turned to Grey. "Now, your turn." He used his water to pick up Grey and was about to send him off the platform. Grey looked at Klaus as if he was staring at a moron. "Klaus." He called out to him gently. Klaus acted as if he wasn''t hearing his words since Grey was already close to the edge of the platform. Grey shook his head and teleported out of the water that held him. "Wait, oh it''s you. I totally forgot about that." Klaus scratched his head awkwardly. Grey looked at Klaus feigning ignorance and felt like beating him up. Just as Grey wanted to attack. "Hold up!" Klaus placed both hands in front of him, signifying for Grey to wait. "I''m not done cleaning the platform yet, sheesh, always in a hurry." Klaus said as he walked towards the edge of the platform and jumped off. Who was he kidding, why would he try to fight against Grey. Grey already promised to beat him up, things would be especially worse for him given the stunt he tried to pull some moments ago. "I''m just letting you win since I don''t want to hoard all the spotlight. I''m such a nice person. You should make sure to pay your respects later, alright." Klaus continued speaking as he walked back to their seats. He didn''t even feel strange about the way he was eliminated. In the entire competition, Klaus was the only person who walked off the platform on his own. He didn''t even try to fight against Grey. But the truth was, no one felt he made a wrong decision. Why would he fight against such a beast in the first place? Fighting against Grey was the same as asking for a beating. Everyone has already seen how Klaus speaks, so they were certain Grey would beat him up, especially after he tried to send Grey out of the platform after he removed the trio. Grey looked at Klaus'' back view with a weird expression before he shook his head with a smile. He never thought Klaus would actually jump off the platform. ''I should''ve used the space element to keep him inside. That cunning bastard.'' He complained internally. This was one of the few opportunities he would get to beat up Klaus, but Klaus being Klaus was a step ahead of him, so he escaped easily. "Why didn''t you try to fight for your dignity?" Reynolds asked when Klaus returned. "Do I look like someone who cares about that?" Klaus replied nonchalantly. Alice almost facepalmed, but she knew Klaus was correct. For someone as shameless as Klaus, he had zero care about his dignity. He wouldn''t even mind tricking the entire world. Grey was declared the winner of the competition, but when he was asked which Faction he wanted to join, his reply was. "None." His reply sent the crowd hysterical. They never thought he would actually refuse to join any of the Factions. But they soon calmed down. Thinking about Grey''s talent, he must''ve been from one of the very best Faction or Family in the entire Aurora Continent, so there was no need in bothering about him joining a Faction or not. However, what happened next sent the crowd hysterical once again. Bright lights shot out from the special sitting area where the Elders from each Faction were seated and it was accompanied by a voice that said it was a gift from each Faction present there. Grey had a strange expression as he looked at the gifts he was getting. He never thought the Elders would give him gifts even after he refused to join any of them. He originally thought he would''ve been in trouble after rejecting them. Kyle, who was seated, had a dumbfounded expression. This was one of the strangest things he had seen. Grey''s talent was immense, and these people didn''t want to offend him. He could feel that they were scared of his background. Even he had a fear of Grey''s mysterious background. Chapter 772 - Next Time, I Wont Be So Lenient Chapter 772 - Next Time, I Won''t Be So Lenient Grey walked back to his seat, and Klaus moved close to him with a smile. "You know I was the one who let you win." He said. "Huh?" Grey raised a brow curiously. "What did they give to you?" Klaus asked curiously. Grey paused and sent his spiritual senses into his storage ring, before replying, "Elemental techniques." "All?" Klaus asked. "Yeah, all are elemental techniques." Grey nodded. "How generous." Alice said. She never thought these people would give Grey so many gifts. "Truly generous indeed." Kyle commented. "So, what now?" Reynolds asked. "We''re still here, let''s have some fun. It''s not like we''re following them back to the Faction." Klaus said. "Actually, you are. Since you friends will be splitting up, you have two days to catch up." A beautiful lady who looked to be in her late twenties walked up to them. The group turned their attention to the lady. She was someone from the Moonlight Faction. By her side, two men in their early thirties walked beside her. They were from the Raiden and Asterope Faction. They also came to inform Alice and Reynolds that they would be leaving in two days. "So quick?" Klaus asked with a sigh. "Normally, we would''ve left tomorrow, but in consideration of you four, we decided to wait another day." The lady said. She didn''t hide the fact that they only agreed to extend their stay because of Grey and his friends. It was quite shocking when Kyle heard of it. These Factions were part of the top Factions in this Region, even in the Western Continent, they were respected. Doing this showed how highly they regarded their new proteges. Grey''s influence could not be neglected as well. ''Being a terrifying genius has its perks.'' Kyle sighed to himself. The other Factions would be leaving the next day, only three Factions would be staying longer. "Thank you for giving us this chance, we''ll make good use of it." Grey thanked the lady and the two men. They nodded their heads before inviting the geniuses from their Factions. A few of them wanted to test out their strength against Grey. Grey, however, rejected the challenge. The geniuses felt a little disappointed, but they didn''t take it to heart. They knew Grey wasn''t proud from the small contact they''ve had with him. The group left the arena, and headed for the Inn they were staying in. Klaus suggested that they went out to celebrate their success in the competition, Grey wanted to stay in his room, but after Klaus, Reynolds, and Alice joined hands in convincing him, he finally agreed begrudgingly. Klaus plotted that they beat him up, they were almost successful, but having the space element meant Grey could easily escape from their encirclement. ''I miss the days when we could beat him.'' The group went out and started reminiscing about the first time they met. Kyle sat by and listened to their stories. Grey''s story was particularly captivating. In the space of five years, he went from a normal person to a genius respected by even the top Factions in the Western Continent. Overhearing how they grew, Kyle wished he was with them at that time. Watching Grey grow in strength was something that was amazing. He was sure that if he was with Grey, he would''ve grown stronger than his current strength. Grey''s growth was motivational, helping those close to him grow stronger. They stayed out almost all through the night. On their way back, they encountered some familiar faces. It was the trio who fought against Grey and Klaus in the final battle. They still found their defeat shocking, but they knew there was nothing they could do about it. "Hello." The young man amongst the trio walked up to them and looked at Klaus in particular. He heard Klaus was the one who eliminated them from the arena. All he wanted to know was why Klaus eliminated him first. He was stronger than the ladies, so he should''ve gotten the third position, but Klaus didn''t give him that chance. "Hey, you look very familiar." Klaus said with a thoughtful expression. The young man was about to lose it when Klaus smiled. "I''m just messing with you. How are you?" Klaus said with a soft laugh. The young man who came with the intent of arguing with Klaus was a little taken aback. Klaus was very carefree and didn''t act as if they were strangers. "I''m okay, I guess." The young man replied after a short silence. "Good to know. We''re heading back home now, is anything wrong?" Klaus asked with a casual smile. "No, nothing. I only wanted to congratulate you two." The young man shook his head. He decided to let the matter go since asking wouldn''t do him any good. "Oh, thank you. Congratulations on joining a good Faction." Klaus shook the young man''s hand before the group continued their journey. The young man looked at Klaus, and seeing the contrast between the current Klaus and the evil Klaus they fought against, he shook his head. "How come he''s so friendly?" One of the young ladies asked. "Honestly, I don''t know." The young man replied with a wry smile. They expected Klaus to talk in the same manner he did back in the competition. That way they would have a conflict with them, then in the process, one of their Sage Plane Elementalists who was hiding in the cover of the darkness would come out and attack Grey and his friends. But Klaus was able to speak to them in such a manner that they couldn''t do anything. "I guess it''s best if we let this matter go. I don''t think clashing with them will be good for us." The last young lady said. The young man and the young lady looked at her before nodding their heads. When they walked back to where their Sage Plane Elementalists were hiding, they were stunned to see all of them lying on the ground out cold. "What happened?" The young man panicked. "You''re lucky you didn''t continue with your plan. Next time, I won''t be so lenient." A cold voice came from the shadows, sending chills down the spines of the trio. Chapter 773 - Going Through The Gifts Chapter 773 - Going Through The Gifts ''Did you sense them?'' Grey asked Void telepathically. ''Yes. Looks like they were out to cause trouble for you guys, but Klaus managed to evade it.'' Void replied. Grey''s eyes were cold, but he didn''t say anything to the others. When they were stopped by the trio, he sensed some Sage Plane Elementalists. He originally planned to head over to where they were, but he hastily stopped when he noticed they weren''t in the Early stages of the Sage Plane. The trio must''ve been wary of his domain, so they brought people who were powerful. However, when they were leaving, Grey sensed a familiar yet strange aura appear for a brief moment. After the aura appeared, he noticed he couldn''t sense the Sage Plane Elementalists anymore. ''How come the aura is so familiar?'' He wondered to himself. With the increase in his strength, his sensory ability naturally improved as well. This was not the first time he was sensing this particular aura. Back at the Azure Continent, when they were captured, and Klaus'' father was fighting against the others, he also sensed this aura for a brief moment. Due to the situation, he didn''t take note of it. But now, he was sensing this same aura again. There was no way two people would have the same aura. Grey didn''t show any odd signs after sensing the aura, he continued acting as if nothing was wrong. ''Void, can you try to track the person?'' He asked Void. ''No, whoever you''re talking about is either not here, or is too powerful that he can easily hide from my senses.'' Void replied. ''Hmm.'' Other than Grey and Void, none of the others sensed the people who were hiding in wait for them. Had Klaus not avoided having any conflict with the trio, things might have been a little different. They got back to the Inn and each went to their rooms. Grey decided since he had nothing to do, he should go through the techniques given to him by the Factions. One of the skills he acquired was the technique to manipulate space. Other than his skill switch, he didn''t really have any great space elemental skills. ''This will be useful in the future.'' He said in glee. This was the main reason he wanted to join a Faction. Compared to the Azure Continent, the Aurora Continent had a better variety of elemental techniques. The techniques in the Azure Continent could be said to be the basics, while these ones were the advanced ones. He showed the skill to Void, and in a matter of seconds, Void was able to comprehend it. "It''s a shame the person who did that move was evil." Void still regretted the fact that he couldn''t learn the Great Void technique. What he found more annoying was that the skill even had his name on it. And he couldn''t learn it. How frustrating! Grey laughed when he heard this, he knew Void was talking about the skill he got from the trial land. "Don''t worry, you''ll find a way to learn something different." Grey comforted him, "Hey, why don''t you teach me that distortion thing you do. It''s a powerful attack." "No. I''ll just take it that since I can''t learn that skill, you won''t learn my special skill as well." Void refused. Grey continued begging, and after bargaining with seven shiny things, and promising to cook his favorite meals for a week, he finally agreed to teach him only part of it. According to Void, Grey shouldn''t be in a hurry to learn this skill since it was dangerous. When Grey attempted it, he realized Void was right. The skill required a high control of space, and with Grey''s current elemental grade, he wouldn''t be able to do so. He might risk trapping himself in a dangerous situation. The Moonlight Faction gave him a powerful ice skill. It involved creating an ice cube in the air and it will continuously attack a particular target. It involves using his spiritual energy to mark the target, and within a five hundred meters radius, the ice cube will continuously dish out attacks. Grey went through a lot of techniques, and he couldn''t help but feel gratitude towards the Elders who gave him the gifts. This was one of the reasons he wanted to get into a Faction, the second reason was those secret realms. According to what he knew, all top Factions have realms they send their geniuses into the train. These domains are rich with treasures, so he would see things that would make him grow stronger, and faster. He still hasn''t forgotten about his two years deal. Months have already passed, so he had less than two years. The quicker he grew, the better for him. The last time he saw the young man, he was already at the Peak of the Overlord Plane. Grey was certain the young man had broken through to the Sage Plane a long time ago, so even with his insane speed of leveling up, he still wouldn''t be a match for the young man if they encountered each other right now. By the time he finished going through the skills and picking out which ones he would focus on, it was already daybreak. Klaus and the others came once again to drag him out with them. They would be separating soon, so it was best to spend every minute together. They walked around the entire town, going to every place they could possibly go. They even attended an auction later that night. Joyner was the one who invited them to the auction. The group only went there for the fun of it. After the auction ended, Joyner invited them for a small party at his place. The Mayor even appeared this time, speaking with the group. Klaus continued socializing with everyone. The person who hated him the most was the Earth Elementalist he eliminated from the three-way battle. When they crossed paths, the Earth Elementalist snorted coldly. Klaus smiled awkwardly before walking away. Chapter 774 - Chased Into Space Chapter 774 - Chased Into Space Three days went by in the blink of an eye. It was finally time for the group to part ways once again. Just like before, each would be going their separate ways. However, this time, things were different. They weren''t being chased, well, except for Klaus who had amassed a huge number of enemies during the competition, and Grey who was being chased by necromancers. "So, we''re separating once again." Alice said with a sad expression. "Yeah." The boys nodded, all sad that they were leaving their friends. "At least we''re not being hunted this time." Klaus joked to break the silence. "Technically, I''m still hunted." Grey shook his head with a wry laugh. He never thought his days in the Aurora Continent would be this perilous. Other than his strength, he basically had nothing to rely on. "Oh, I forgot about that. Well, I guess some things never change." Klaus smiled. The others laughed at his subtle jeer. Even Grey laughed to it as well. The group said their goodbyes, before heading towards the people of the Factions they joined. Grey and Kyle looked on as the groups left with their Elders. Grey gave them some of the treasures he had with him. "What now? Where are you going?" Kyle asked. They were the only ones left with the departure of the others. "I have no idea, where are you going?" Grey replied with a shrug. The truth was that he didn''t know his next destination. His plan was to travel across the Regions and see if he would find what he was looking for. "I''ll be going back to my Family. I only came out to stretch my legs." Kyle replied after a moment of silence. "Alright, hear''s a communication device I made. You can use it to interact with the others." Grey passed one of the plaques he made to Kyle. "Oh, how convenient." Kyle studied the plaque Grey gave to him. Grey turned in the other direction, preparing to leave. "Why don''t we travel together since we''re both going the same way?" Kyle asked. "Oh, sure." Grey nodded before waiting for him. They left this city after spending days there. Grey''s current destination was the next Region on the map, while Kyle would be stopping at the next Region as well. "How do you plan to cope with the mark on you?" Kyle asked the important question he had in mind. "I''m still thinking about it, but I guess all I can do for now is to be cautious." Grey replied. He was still working on the array he wanted to use in hiding the mark on his body. But he still haven''t been able to get any good result. Kyle looked at Grey''s carefree attitude. He couldn''t help but wonder if he wasn''t afraid of the threat of the necromancers. One week later. Grey and Kyle had been traveling through multiple cities, and they were finally at the last city before entering the next Region. Gillar City. Grey and Kyle were sitting in an Inn, listening to what has been happening in the Region to see if they might get news about any treasure, just like the time they got news of the treasure Void wanted back at the mansion. "We''re being followed." Kyle said to Grey. "You''ve noticed too?" Grey asked. "Yes, for some time now. I only waited to confirm my senses." Kyle nodded. "My bets on necromancers, they are the only ones who would follow us." Kyle added. "We had a squabble with some people some days back, so it might also them." Grey said his thoughts. "Whoever it is, they''re really bad at hiding their tracks." He added. "Confront or pretend?" Kyle asked for Grey''s choice. He was stuck in confronting the person, or continue pretending to see what these people were up to. "Let''s pretend for a while. Since the person isn''t concealing their aura, it means there''s a motive behind it." Grey replied after giving it some thoughts. "Okay." The duo continued walking in the city, and they still sensed the person following them. Grey brought the idea of them going to a secret alley to confront whoever it was. Kyle agreed to it, and they headed for the nearest alley. When they got there, the person going after them hid not too far from them, trying to see what they were up to. ''Void.'' Grey called out in his mind. Void vanished from his shoulder. A few seconds later, he returned with the figure of a chubby lady. "Who are you?" Grey asked in a straightforward manner. "Hehe, they knew you would do this." The lady laughed in an odd manner before she started inflating in size. "Oh no." Grey''s expression changed before he grabbed Kyle''s hand and activated a talisman he took from his Teacher. The light element wrapped him and sent them flying in the other direction. The chubby lady''s figure burst apart and a ray of light shot at them. While escaping, Grey instantly entered the Fusion State and tried to use the Great Void technique. He tore through space and dove in with Kyle in tow. The ray of light chased after him. It entered space along with Grey, chasing after him as he tried to escape from the ray of light. This wasn''t the first time he was sensing this ray of light. It is usually placed in a puppet, belonging to the necromancers. When he was experimenting with one of the corpses, he saw this thing inside. It was extremely dangerous, and he could tell that if that thing hits him, he would be in danger. That lady was surprisingly a puppet belonging to a necromancer. This was however one of the most lifelike puppets he had seen, other than the ones made by those creatures. ''Damn it!'' Grey complained as he saw the ray of light entering the spatial tunnel with him. He never thought something like this would happen. A spatial tunnel opened in another location and Grey shot out of it, behind him was a ray of light. Chapter 775 - Youll Have Your Answers Soon Enough Chapter 775 - You''ll Have Your Answers Soon Enough Grey''s figure was covered with a bright light as he flew as fast as he could. Even with help of his Teacher''s talisman, he still wasn''t able to escape from the ray of light. ''What do we do now?'' Void asked telepathically. ''What can we do?'' Grey asked with a wry smile. He knew his chances of escaping from this thing with his current strength were zero. Even a Sage Plane Elementalist would not be able to escape from it, much less him who is still in the Overlord Plane. He wasn''t even at the Peak yet. Just when the ray of light was about to hit him, he sensed a familiar aura. ''It''s that person again.'' He thought internally. He turned around, only to see a man he found familiar standing in front of him, the ray of light which was about to hit him was blocked by the man''s outstretched arm. "Troublesome." The man muttered as he squeezed the light. The ray of light started to fade, before completely fading off. The man turned to look at Grey with a smile. "How are you doing?" The man asked with a shake of his head. "It''s you!" Grey exclaimed. He had seen this man a couple of times in the Azure Continent. At that time, the man was a regular person, but he knew the person standing before him was above the Sage Plane. He might even be above an Elemental Venerable. "Yes, how have you been?" The man nodded while placing both hands behind him. "Fine." Grey replied with a confused expression. "I believe you have a lot of questions, correct?" The man asked. Grey nodded, he still had Kyle on his hand since they were still mid-air. "Well, you''ll have your answers soon enough, but for now, take care." The man said and disappeared out of view. "Wait." Grey tried to stop him, but he was a little too slow. The man was far stronger than him, so there was no way he could stop him from leaving. Grey was frustrated because he wanted to know why the man was following him, but the man didn''t give him the chance to. ''Void, do you know where he is?'' He asked Void. ''No, he''s too powerful.'' Void replied after a few seconds of silence. He tried to block the space when the man tried to leave, but he was unable to. Even with the help of his domain, he still wasn''t able to stop him. Kyle looked at the entire encounter with an odd expression. He hadn''t seen the man before, but he knew he was a very powerful figure. But from what he could tell, he knew the man was protecting Grey. ''I knew his identity was not simple.'' He thought internally. He had always thought that Grey was from a big Family or Faction. However, the fact that Grey didn''t know that the man was protecting him was what he found surprising. For such a talent, any big Family or Faction would protect him at all costs. Grey should be aware that he was being protected from the shadows, but his behavior showed that he doesn''t. Grey flew down and dropped Kyle with a confused expression. ''Why is he protecting me?'' He fell deep in thoughts. Anytime he sensed this aura, it was when he was in danger. The aura would arrive in time to protect him secretly. This time, due to the complex situation, the man was forced to come out from the shadows once again. ''Teacher''s in the Sage Plane, so there is no way he would be able to send someone above the Sage Plane to watch over me.'' Grey''s head went into overdrive as he thought of who could possibly send someone to protect him. With his Teacher out of the picture, there were only three people left on his list. The first was his parents, the next was Ellis'' family, and the last was Sylvia. ''It shouldn''t be either Ellis'' family or Miss Sylvia since I''ve seen him before even heading to the Aurora Continent.'' Sylvia and Ellis'' family couldn''t possibly be able to send someone to watch over him even before knowing him, so they were out of the list as well. He knew nothing of his background, and given how mysterious his parents were, he had his suspicions about them being very powerful. The fact that they could appear from nowhere, and disappear at will showed that. But, if they were powerful, then why did they keep it hidden from him. Not just that, but why would they leave him in such a place? Just like the man said, he had a lot of questions, however, there was no one to answer them. The only person who could answer them was the man or his parents, but none of them were present at the moment. "Are you okay?" Kyle asked. He noticed Grey hasn''t been saying anything since he landed, he seemed to be deep in thoughts. So he felt compelled to ask if he was alright. "Oh, yes. I''m good." Grey replied. "Where are we now? I didn''t even get the chance to head in the direction we wanted to." He looked around before asking Kyle. "We should be a few thousand kilometers away from the borders." Kyle replied after taking a good look around. "Hmm, okay. I guess we should find a way to get back on track then." Grey said with a serious expression. "Alright." Kyle nodded before leading the way. Grey was silent as they walked through the woods. Someone was protecting him, and he didn''t know who, or why. He had no issues with the fact that he was being protected, if not for this person, he might''ve died from the last sneak attack. But he hated not being in control of things. This man might be a potential threat who only wanted to ensure he was the one who killed him. ''Void, can we use that thing now?'' Grey asked. ''No, it''s too dangerous.'' Void rejected the idea of using the treasure they got from the mansion. Chapter 776 - Strange Occurrence Chapter 776 - Strange Occurrence ''Then what do we do?'' Grey asked Void, a little frustrated. ''There''s nothing we can do.'' Void replied with a bland expression. Grey felt a little frustrated, but there was nothing he could do about it. He kept quiet and increased his cautiousness as they traveled. With their last experience, Kyle knew they would always have to be cautious. He also noticed the change in Grey''s behavior since the encounter. Especially when the man appeared. Time went by and after three days, they had entered the next Region. "We''ll be going our separate ways soon." Kyle said to Grey as they walked into a town. "Okay." Grey nodded. Kyle had been speaking more with Klaus and the others with the communication device, more than he had been doing with Grey who was present. Grey was almost always training whenever they were not moving, so there was almost no chance to speak with him. Klaus and the others had been doing well in their Factions. Klaus was the one who seemed the happiest. According to him, he was training in the most conducive place for him. Surrounded by beauties made his training easier. Kyle still hasn''t been able to believe that Klaus was actually able to join the Moonlight Faction. It was still a surprising event. One of the things he enjoyed about traveling with Grey was his cooking. He couldn''t help but admit that Grey was one of the best cooks he had met in his life. Grey had been cooking frequently because of his Teacher, so Kyle and Void got to eat a lot of delicacies. The duo stayed together for a few more days before finally going their separate ways. Grey was heading towards the northern part of the Region, while Kyle was going towards the eastern part of the Region. "What''s the plan now?" Void asked as they watched Kyle''s disappearing figure. "I guess I should look for a Faction to join." Grey replied. "Alright. We should get going then." Void said. He still hasn''t been able to achieve a breakthrough. If Grey were to join a Faction, given how they would treat him, he would be able to use the treasure there without any problems. Grey and Void started their journey once again. They were used to traveling together, so there were no issues with them. Grey focused entirely on cultivating. He had been trying to increase the elemental grade of his earth element, while also practicing the new elemental skills he acquired. The earth elemental skills with him were a bit helpful, but he still hadn''t been able to increase his elemental grade yet. Void had been a little bored since nothing interesting was happening. Grey had been extremely cautious with how he handled things. There was a time he even avoided clashing with people in the Origin Plane, just because of the fear of being ambushed by others who were more powerful. His research in arrays had been stagnant for some time now. He even asked his Teacher for help with it. But his Teacher hadn''t been able to provide anything tangible as well. When he told his Teacher about the mark and necromancers, he noticed his Teacher reacted in a strange manner. He tried to ask his Teacher what was wrong, but his Teacher didn''t tell him anything. Some days later. Grey walked into a small town. He noticed there was a strange aura circulating around the place. ''Void.'' ''On it.'' Void disappeared from his shoulder, and after a few minutes, he returned. "There''s no one here." Void said. "Huh?" Grey looked around, he could tell there was human activity in this town. Thinking about it, he felt it was best to leave the town and continue his search for a Faction. Before he could leave, he sensed some people rushing over. "You, stop there!" A voice came from above. Grey looked in the sky and saw a group of youths being carried by a large bird. After studying them, he continued walking. They were all in the Overlord Plane, so he had no reason to obey them. "Are you deaf? I said stop there." The voice ordered overbearingly before the bird flew over to where Grey was headed, blocking his path. On the bird were eight youths, three young ladies, and five young men. The person who spoke to Grey was the young man in the Ninth stage of the Overlord Plane. From how he was standing in front of the others, Grey guessed he was the leader of the group. "What do you want?" Grey asked with a blank expression. "What happened here?" The young man asked in a commanding tone. "Why are you asking me?" Grey asked in annoyance. He hated people like this who felt they were on top of the world. The young man didn''t even show any courtesy. The young man''s expression changed slightly when he saw Grey''s reaction, he was about to continue speaking when one of the young ladies stepped forward. "Sorry for the way he spoke to you. We were sent here to investigate the strange events that had been happening in the area. This is the most recent event, so we rushed here, seeing you here, we felt maybe you would know what happened." The young lady apologized for the young man''s behavior before telling Grey their reason for stopping him. "I only came here a few minutes ago. But I can tell you that there''s no one here, that''s all I know." Grey replied. "Alright, thank you for your help." The young lady said before turning to the others. "We should continue our investigation. Whoever is doing this shouldn''t have gone far." She said to the others. The young man who Grey thought was the leader of the group snorted coldly as he looked at Grey before he followed the others into the bird as they flew away. "Hmm, strange occurrences. What do you think of it?" Grey asked Void. This was the first time they were seeing this. They had been traveling in this area for some days now, and they hadn''t seen a situation like this before. "Maybe it started recently. There might be a treasure involved, do you want to investigate it as well?" Void asked with sparkling eyes. "No, I have no interest in wasting my time on these things." Grey went in the other direction the bird flew. Chapter 777 - People From Another Race? Chapter 777 - People From Another Race? Grey wanted to avoid any conflict as much as he could. He was already entangled with the necromancers, and for some reason, he could tell he was already well known among them. The fact that the corpse puppet was able to say what it said indicated that. The sooner he got into a suitable Faction, the better for him. Unfortunately, his search has not yielded anything of value yet. He had been going from one city to another since entering this Region, but no news of any Faction recruiting people. He naturally knew he wouldn''t be as lucky as the previous Faction where there was a competition going on at the time they got there. Some days later. "Huh? Again?" Grey looked at the deserted village in front of him with an odd look. This was the fourth village he was seeing since the last town, and all of them were empty. Just like in that town, there was a strange aura circulating around. However, this time, he felt a sense of unease about the situation. "Void, can you sense anything?" He asked while standing on the same spot, looking around. "Nothing, for now. But I feel whoever did this is still here." Void replied while looking around vigilantly. "Hmm, me too." Grey nodded. The aura here was thicker than when he passed those villages. It was as if the act was just being carried out a few minutes before he arrived. ''Search the place, we''ll think of what next to do after that.'' He said to Void before disappearing. Void nodded and disappeared as well. Somewhere underground, a group of people were looking at the light on the map with playful grins. "I think it''s high time we take this one too, don''t you think?" A man asked with a chuckle. "He might be one of them as well." Another man pointed at a group of youths tied on the ground, helpless and injured. It was none other than the group Grey saw in the first town he saw this situation. "Hmm, he''s a Space Elementalist, so we have to be very careful when dealing with him. We can''t afford to let our tracks be leaked by a kid." A more advanced man said. The strange thing about these people was that, although all of them looked like humans, there was a slight difference in their eyes. Unlike humans who mostly had, black, brown, blue, and golden eyes, with a few having amber eyes, these people mostly had purple, red, and some other colors. There was also a horn on their heads, each person''s horn was the same color as their eyes, so it was safe to say they were not humans. Grey, who was above ground, knew nothing of the people watching him from below. All he wanted to do was to see if he could at least figure out what was happening. Even though there wasn''t much he could do, since he had already passed through multiple villages, he felt compelled to at least know the cause of all this. While he was searching for any clues in the village, he felt his hair standing on edge. Without even thinking, he blinked out of his present location, appearing in another place. Bang! An explosion rang out from where he was previously standing as a ten meters wide stone appeared from nowhere. ''Void.'' ''Almost there.'' Grey first thought whenever in a battle like this was to call out to Void first. After that, his next objective was to find out who attacked him. His expression changed when he sensed someone staring at him, looking in that direction, he saw a man who looked to be in his late thirties staring at him aggressively. What drew his attention was the horn on the man''s head. ''Someone from another race?'' He thought to himself. He had heard of these people before. Most realms had people like these in them. Some are very troublesome and tend to cause a lot of harm to humans, while others prefer isolation. This race is clearly part of the former. "What are you doing with the people in these villages?" Grey asked in a straightforward manner. He was no saint, but he still wanted to know. As a human, he couldn''t just let the matter go since he had already seen it. Humans might be greedy and selfish, but once they have a common enemy from a different race or world entirely, they tend to be able to unite against them. Of course, there are a few people who would cause conflicts in a situation like that, but people mostly prefer being the cause of other people''s problems, rather than letting a foreign race do that for them. "It''s none of your business. Now, surrender quietly, and we might let you live." The man said. When he finished his statement, three more men came from the ground ''All are capable of using the earth element, I wonder where they came from.'' Grey thought as he looked at the four people in front of him. He wasn''t scared of them, what bothered him was where the people captured were taken to. "I guess I''ll have to make you tell me yourself." Grey said before launching an attack. He was still in the Seventh stage of the Overlord Plane, but he could sense that his earth elemental grade was on the verge of having a breakthrough. Adding that with his cultivation, he was sure he would be able to break through to the Eighth stage of the Overlord Plane. The four men exchanged glances before spreading out in different directions. After they got in formation, they said something in a strange language before a powerful force field appeared from nowhere. Grey felt stuck, unable to advance nor retreat. This was something he had been trying to comprehend for some time now, but he still hadn''t been able to. He could feel the weight of the air increasing, and his bones shook from the force. ''I knew they wouldn''t be easy to deal with.'' He thought to himself as he started to think of a way to escape his current predicament. Chapter 778 Tough Physical Battle Grey''s figure moved slowly, even after trying to open up a space tunnel, he sensed that the second the space tunnel opened up, it collapsed immediately. If he had gone into it, he would have been in great danger. This shocked him greatly. The space element had been one of his most trusted methods of escaping, but these people had been able to counter him without giving him the chance to escape. This was one of the dangers of fighting against people he knew nothing about. ''Void, try not to enter this place. They have a way of locking down the space, and it''s not pretty.'' He advised Void who was rushing over. ''Got it.'' Void''s reply echoed in his head. Grey started to use his elements to boost his physical strength before rushing in one direction. His plan was to attack one of the men, this would surely be able to put them off. The men realized this in time and retreated along with Grey''s movements. Even though they found the fact that Grey could still move to be very baffling, they didn''t let it stop their coordinated attack. Grey dodged the attacks they sent his way as he moved around. This force field was a great way to train his physical body, unfortunately, he didn''t have it. He soon managed to get close to one of the men, and he threw a punch in his direction. The man blocked the punch by crossing both arms in front of him. For the first time since Grey was fighting, someone he attacked with his physical strength didn''t even flinch. "Huh?" He was taken aback by it. He naturally expected the man to at least move back a little. "My turn." The man said with a smile as he threw a punch in Grey''s direction. Grey naturally wouldn''t sit still and watch this man''s blow connect with him. He evaded the blow, before dishing out one of his own. Before he knew it, he was entangled in a fist fight against the man. Bang! Boom! Bam! The speed of their punches were quick and accurate, making sure to deliver a powerful blow to the opponent. This was Grey''s first time engaging in this since breaking through to the Arcane Plane. And to be honest, he found it extremely thrilling, to say the least. A fist fight was miles apart from a regular elemental battle. This gave him more room to show his physical strength, while also training it as well. The man was stunned by the fact that Grey was able to keep up with his speed. "Fascinating, I didn''t know there were people like this in this world." One of the other three men commented. The other men nodded, astounded by Grey''s performance so far. Grey and the man continued fighting. Void was already in the area, but Grey told him to hide his presence since he still didn''t know what they were dealing with. There might be more of these people, and it would be best if they knew that he was the only one here. This way, in times of danger, he would be able to escape without too much of a hassle. Void agreed with his plan and stayed hidden, watching the battle closely. Grey didn''t let his opponent get the upper hand as he fought fiercely. Bang! Grey''s figure was forced back by a punch from the man. After sliding on his feet for a few meters, he stopped and looked at the man. The man had barely broken a sweat, but Grey was already starting to pant, albeit very slowly. ''Hmm.'' His eyes were sharp. While fighting with the man, he could sense a strange vibration coming from the man''s body. If not for the help of his multiple elements, he knew he would''ve been defeated long ago. "Your strength is commendable, but you''re still not on my level." The man said. "Oh, I was only getting warmed up." Grey replied in an indifferent tone. The man looked at Grey, before saying, "If so, I would like to see your true strength." Grey didn''t say anything as he tried to keep his figure standing. The pressure from the force field started increasing the second he started to fight. He could feel his physical body was growing stronger by the moment, but he knew he couldn''t keep up with this for long. The force field will eventually get to a stage where his elements wouldn''t be able to help him. In respect to the man''s words, he laughed on the inside. Who was he kidding? He had shown his full physical strength, but this man was obviously stronger than him. And from what he could tell, the man hasn''t gone all-out yet. The man took the initiative to attack this time, and the rest of the formation moved with him as he attacked. Grey struggled to defend against the continuous attacks of the man. He could barely keep up with the increased speed and strength of the man. As time went on, he slowly started to receive punches on his body. His figure was sent flying, but the force field ensured that he didn''t go airborne. Grey''s face crashed into the ground before bouncing off. ''Damn! That must''ve hurt.'' Void thought as he watched Grey''s figure bouncing on the ground, before finally coming to a stop some few meters away. Grey stood up and looked at his body, he could already feel the pains from the blows that hit him, and bruises were all over his body. ''This guy is ruthless.'' He spat out a bit of blood before wiping his mouth. ''Void, disrupt the formation.'' Grey said. Now, he couldn''t care about the others. As long as he could leave this formation, he would be able to deal with the people that would come. But for now, the most important thing was leaving this godforsaken formation. The formation made it hard for him to use his elements outside of his body. This meant that he could only fight with his physical body at this moment. He had tried using elemental attacks a few times, but he had failed to even produce a spark. The only thing he didn''t try was his domain. He was sure it would work, but he wanted to keep it hidden for now. Chapter 779 Valuable Horns Chapter 779 - Valuable Horns Void appeared behind one of the men and attacked decisively. He didn''t hold back, and the man was almost ripped apart by his attack. The formation broke apart instantly. And Grey got access to his elements once again. Without even waiting for anything, he blinked to where the man he was fighting against and attacked. The man was able to block Grey''s attack, but he was sent flying in the process. Grey continued his attack on the man, not giving him any chance to recover. Void left the man who was already on the verge of death and attacked the next person. Since Grey and the people were already fighting, there was no use in letting them go. Grey soon defeated the man, before taking on the last one. In the space of a few minutes, the duo had completely incapacitated the four men. The ones attacked by Void were both on the verge of death. If they were left unattended, they would most definitely die. "You evil beings." One of the men Grey beat up said through gritted teeth. "You''re calling us evil? Really?" Grey asked with an odd expression. These were the same people who had been taking people away from towns, now they were calling him evil. "If you know what''s good for you, you would let us go and leave this place now." The man threatened. "Actually, I''m quite interested in a few things. What''s with the different color of horns?" Grey pointed at the horns of one of the injured ones. "If they die, then you will have to live a life worse than death." The man continued threatening. Grey looked at the man coldly before nodding to Void. To the surprise of the man, he saw one of his comrades disappearing bit by bit. This was Void''s special attack, spatial distortions. Since the man was already in this state, there was no way he could fight against it. He could only watch as his body disintegrated bit by bit. What was worse was that he couldn''t even feel the pain of it. "I don''t like being threatened." Grey said after the man was completely disintegrated. The man still couldn''t believe what he saw, Grey killed one of them with such ease and calmness. It was as if Grey didn''t feel anything. "How could a child like you be this evil?" The man asked in horror. "The world is not a friendly place, I understood this at a very young age." Grey replied casually before pointing at the horns once again. "Our horns are sacred to us, we can not tell you about it." The man said. Grey looked at Void and nodded at him once again. Void smiled and walked over to the last man on the verge of death. In the presence of the other two, he used his small paws to grab hold of the horns, and with a powerful tug, he dragged the horn out of the head of the man. Even at death''s door, the man screamed from the excruciating pain he was going through as Void pulled out his horn. Grey and Void were probably one of the most brutal people, and this group were unfortunate to have met them. Grey was even more annoyed after being stuck in that formation. The man died after Void pulled out his horn. Void''s eyes glittered as he stared at the horns, "Good stuff." "Oh, it''s something valuable?" Grey''s interest was piqued when he heard Void''s comment. "Yeah, it can be used to make elemental weapons. You know there are grades for the weapons, with this, you can get the highest tier of elemental weapons." Void explained as he looked at the horns on the head of the other two. Seeing Grey and Void''s gaze, the last two men shivered in fear. "Where are you guys from?" Grey asked curiously. "Why are you asking?" One of the men asked in fear. They were afraid Grey would greedily attack their home and kill everyone there for their horns. "I''m not a greedy person, I''m just curious, nothing more." Grey replied casually. "Well, our world is far from here." The man answered after a few seconds of silence. He was afraid Grey would kill him if he didn''t answer, and from how the other man was shaking, he knew he would say everything if he died, so what was the use of keeping silent and falling in the hands of these beasts. "Interesting. Why are you abducting people?" Grey nodded after hearing his words. He didn''t know if it was the truth or a lie, but he didn''t ask any further. "This¡­" The man answering the questions froze. He was afraid of Grey''s reaction once he told him the reason for their actions. "As I said, I''m more curious than interested in whatever you''re doing." Grey said, he looked at the men before adding, "I can still kill you and ask that guy, I believe he''ll respond to my questions quicker." "Unlike humans, we can not create elemental orbs since most of our essence lies in our horns, so we extract the elemental orbs from humans to aid the growth of our young geniuses." The man explained with much difficulty, "But I can assure you that this is the only time we''ve done it." "Oh wow!" Grey exclaimed unconsciously. He never thought humans would be used in the same manner they use the Seelies. If not for questioning these guys, he wouldn''t have known about it. His only concern was how much of the truth they were hiding in their lies. From the man''s expression, he was a hundred percent certain that not everything he was saying was the truth, but he couldn''t be bothered with him. He had other things to worry about. "Where are the people from this village then?" Grey continued his questioning. "They¡­" The man''s eyes darted in different directions. "I see, you''re only doing this to distract me to give the others the chance to escape, correct?" Grey quickly caught up with his plan. Chapter 780 Insights Chapter 780 - Insights When the man heard Grey''s question, he froze. He had been trying to ensure that he stayed as calm as possible, but Grey was already onto them. "Hmph! So what? Even if you know, what can you do?" He snorted coldly. The cat was already out of the bag, so there was no use in pretending any longer. He was not scared of death, since they had the guts to come out from their world into the Aurora Continent, they were already prepared to risk it all. With the elemental orbs they were collecting, they needed at most two hundred years, then they would be able to produce a few people that might be able to break through the barriers of their world. If one person can do this, then the shackles of their world would be broken and the others would have no problems with doing so as well. If the person however breaks through outside their world, then it changes nothing. This is one of the reasons why the people from other worlds were strictly monitored by the top Factions. Humans didn''t want to give them the chance they needed to grow to the stage where they would be a cause of worry for them. Most of the worlds had limitations of the Overlord Plane, while there are a few that had limitations set on the Sage Plane. Grey still found these things strange since he still couldn''t comprehend how an entire world would be unable to break through to the Sage Plane or become Elemental Venerables. ''Could our world be a small world to a bigger world as well?'' This question has been lingering in his mind for some time now. If there were smaller realms, then there is also a chance that there is a bigger realm, one that is higher than theirs. It was only a matter of time before they would realize they were just in as much danger as the people from these realms they use for training. "You''re going to die regardless, but before you do, you will definitely tell me where they are located." Grey''s eyes were cold. Grey''s figure slowly moved closer to the man. The silence of the village was soon broken by the dreadful screams of the man as Grey and Void went to work. Grey alone was already very dangerous when it came to torturing people, adding Void''s somewhat psychotic nature to it, things went wild, extremely wild. The man screamed in pain, wishing for death that never came. Grey and Void took their time on him, making sure he felt every single pain. The man passed out so many times that they lost count in the space of a few minutes. After almost five minutes, and what could be said to be a successful operation, Grey turned to the other man who was already shivering before they started the torture. "Now, where are they?" He asked coldly. He never had the thought of getting the answers from the first man, his plan was simple. Set fear in the mind of this one who doesn''t seem to be as mentally strong as the other one. The man looked at the two bodies on his side. One of them was still alive, while he could still hear the shrill screams of the other while his horns were being pulled out. "They are taken to our hideout some kilometers away from here, I can take you there if you want." The man replied while sweating buckets. Grey tapped him on the shoulder with a smile, "See, I''m not such a bad person if you cooperate, am I?" The man shook his head, "You''re a good human." Grey nodded in agreement before getting the accurate position of the hideout and then knocking out the man. "Void, what do you think?" He asked. "The others would definitely be long gone. I''m sure one person would be left behind to see how things turn out here. This means, we currently have only a few minutes to react, given the information we just acquired." Void replied calmly. "I''m not talking about that, what I''m asking is if we should head there or not?" Grey asked. He already knew the others had escaped from the second he killed the first man. What he wanted to know now was if they should get involved or not. It would be best if he went on his way as planned, but since he was already here, he knew there would be no harm in checking things out. "Of course, there are more horns to be taken." Void nodded, he had zero interest in the people abducted, what he was concerned about was the horns and how valuable they were. "Alright, let''s get going then." Grey nodded before keeping the body of the two unconscious men and burning the last one. When he burnt it, he noticed a strange light left the man''s body and shot in a certain direction. The light was faint, and its speed was unfathomable. He didn''t notice it when Void killed the first man, but watching this one, he was stunned. ''Could this be a way to track where their world is located?'' He thought to himself. He felt maybe the essence of the men was returning back to their realm, and it was most likely possible since there were a lot of strange things going on in the world. After taking the two men, he headed in the direction of the hideout, moving as fast as he could. He had to get there before whoever was left to scout the area got there. It was a race between them, and he was certain he would win. ''The battle wasn''t that bad, thanks to their formation, I''ve gotten some insights on the gravitational field. I just need a few more things and I''ll be able to make one of my own.'' Grey thought to himself. The force field these people made was similar to the one he had been trying to comprehend, so it was really helpful staying in it for so long. As long as he focused on training now, he was certain that he would advance in his training soon enough. Chapter 781 Talented Geniuses Chapter 781 - Talented Geniuses Five days later. Grey was standing outside a gorge, looking at the surrounding, he brought out the man he tortured, and seeing his reaction the moment he saw the place, he was certain they were in the right place. All he needed to do was to play a few psychological games and he would be able to win this man over. If he could get someone reliable on the other side, it would be a huge win for him. On his way here, he had been training for a while now. He could almost sense the increase in his earth elemental grade. He was also very close to comprehending the gravitational field that had escaped him for so long. His other focuses were the elemental skills he acquired as gifts from the top Factions back at the competition. He had learned a few of them, but most of them were very difficult to practice without targets. The beasts he encountered couldn''t really be counted as targets since they were easy to kill. Void had been training hard as well, trying to break through to the Sage Plane. He still hadn''t been able to, even after being at the Peak of the Overlord Plane for a while now. This showed Grey that it was no easy feat to break through to the Sage Plane from the Overlord Plane. Even for a magical beast as talented as Void, he still hadn''t been able to do so. Thinking about it, he was a little scared. He spent too long at the Peak of the Origin Plane, if the same happened once he gets to the Peak of the Overlord Plane, then he wouldn''t know what to do. The fear of not repeating the same thing, he had been training his physical body to move at almost the same speed as his cultivation stage. Of course it was slower, but he was making considerable progress. He was currently close to the Fourth stage of the Overlord Plane from just his physical body alone, so he knew he still had a long way to go. However, one of the instigators of his quick advancement was his battle under the formation. If he could create his own gravitational field, then he would be able to boost his physical training speed by a lot. After keeping the man he tortured, Grey brought the other one. He asked all the important questions he needed. There were definitely some places he had to avoid so he wouldn''t be noticed as he sneaked into the hideout. The man told him all he needed before he knocked him out and kept him back in his storage ring. He still found it odd that whenever the people were conscious, they could not be kept in the spatial ring, but the second they were unconscious, they could be kept inside. After making sure he was set, Grey ventured into the gorge. This was a place he knew nothing about, so he was very cautious. Since his last encounter with necromancers, he hadn''t seen any other one, and he hoped things stayed that way. As they traveled through the gorge, Grey moved with caution. He couldn''t afford to give himself away to these people. Some hours later. He soon got to one of the checkpoints the man told him about, and just like the man said, he saw three men hiding in three different locations. According to the man, these men were only there for precautions, the true thing that would detect people was a device. It was like an array, but it was different. Grey knew nothing about it, but the man told him how to go through it without having to fear he would be sensed by it. Following the instructions, while also preparing to escape in case he was tricked, he managed to go through it. ''Guess he didn''t lie." Grey thought as he looked at his three new captives. He wasn''t foolish enough to trust the man, so he captured these three as well. After being kept in the same place as Void for a few minutes, they naturally spilled the beans. These men were weaker than the ones he encountered, being in the Origin Stage. Only one of them was at the Peak of the Origin Plane. He continued going deeper, and with every checkpoint he got to, he acquired new captives. In the space of a few hours, he had swept most of the northern part of the gorge since he came in through that area. ''Hmm, if I''m not mistaken, then that light came in this direction as well. Is there a chance that this is where the entrance to their world is?'' He thought to himself. It would be the best hideout for these people since they would be in the safety of their realm. No one above the Overlord Plane could get in, which meant they could still fight against the people who came in. Grey continued his journey with a serious expression, as he got closer to the middle, he noticed a strange occurrence. "Void." He whispered. "I can sense them as well." Void replied. There were people in the gorge, and just like Grey, they were heading to the middle of the gorge. Not just that, but they had also sensed Grey as well. They headed straight for Grey''s location, while Grey decided it was best to stay in the same location. If they were to clash against each other, then it would be to the benefit of the horned men. A few minutes later. A group of six youths appeared in front of Grey. The group was led by a young man who looked to be around Grey''s age, but he was already at the Peak of the Overlord Plane. Every single member of the group of six were youths around Grey''s age, but they were all at the Peak of the Overlord Plane. Grey could sense that compared to the Overlord Plane Elementalists he had encountered, these ones were vastly different. He could sense a slight pressure from them, this showed they were not people that he could deal with easily. If he doesn''t use his Fusion State, he might lose against each of them. Chapter 782 Portal To Another Realm Chapter 782 - Portal To Another Realm The group of youths stared at Grey, studying him for a while. When they realized he was in a lower stage, they were taken aback since he managed to get here with such a stage. "How did you get here?" The young man leading the group asked coolly. Grey looked at them for a few seconds before telling them about the strange occurrence and how he saw some of the horned men and followed them here. The group looked at him, they naturally didn''t believe him, but they couldn''t say he was lying either. They knew how difficult it was to fight against these horned people, getting information from them was even harder. But with their strength, they were able to do so in the end. ''Maybe he encountered those in lower stages.'' They concluded internally. "You shouldn''t advance any further. From here on out, things will start to get dangerous." The young man leading the group of six advised. "Thanks for your concern, but I think I can manage." Grey replied with a calm expression. The young man looked at him for a few seconds, before nodding, "Alright, but try not to get in our way." Grey nodded before heading in the other direction. He sensed the pride of a genius in everyone in the group, but unlike most of the people he encountered, their pride was ingrained in them, not something forced. They didn''t need to show off to others or undermine people just to feel at the top. They already knew they were at the top, so what was the use of trying to get people to know or see that. After Grey left. The group of six exchanged glances. "Doesn''t he look a little like that man?" One of the ladies in the group asked. "Oh, you thought the same as well?" The young man leading the group asked. "Yes." The young lady nodded. "We should complete this mission and head back soon. It''s only a small resemblance, we can''t assume things." Another young man said. His eyes were colder compared to the others. "We know, Gil, but we just couldn''t help ourselves from speaking about it." The young lady who spoke the first time said. After they finished speaking, they continued their journey. Grey took another path because of the group, so his trip became a little longer than his usual expectations, but he could tell he was getting closer. The reason for this was that the horned people he was seeing now were all around the Early stages of the Overlord Plane. Not just that, but he could sense a heaviness in the surrounding as well. ''It''s just like the formation they made.'' He thought to himself. With the faintness of the force field, once it gets to a certain level, then he would find it difficult to use his elements. ''This is going to be very dangerous.'' He said to Void. ''Coat yourself with the darkness element, it can help for now. But I don''t think it would help once you get to a region where the strength of the force field increases to the level of the one they made when you fought against them.'' Void replied. Grey nodded and did as Void advised. He realized the pressure from the force field reduced significantly. He gave Void a thumbs up before removing it. This was a rare opportunity for him to train his physical body, why would he waste it? When Void saw this, he shook his head. He knew the reason Grey was doing this was to enhance his physical strength. ''Such a weird person.'' He thought internally. Grey was not bothered with what Void was thinking. Now, taking out these people were starting to become hard. Due to the force field, any spatial disturbance was easily noticed, even by those with low space sensitivity. If Grey tried to sneak up on them, they would sense him. Void, however, had no such fears. He had the legendary black elemental grade, so his space control was way ahead of Grey''s. He focused on taking out the scouts, while Grey focused on training his physical body. Time went by, and in three more hours, the duo got to the middle, and before them was a spiraling portal. ''This should be the passage to their realm. The most difficult part of our challenge.'' Grey said to Void. The place was guarded by ten Peak Overlord Plane Elementalists. This showed how important it was. ''We should watch for now.'' Grey said. Void had no issues with Grey''s decision. Grey sat down and started training his physical body with the pressure he was feeling from the powerful force field. In a place like this, he would advance by leaps and bounds. He could already notice the increase in his physical strength. Void shut his eyes and started cultivating. Grey had always viewed Void''s method of cultivation with envy. Unlike others, Void actually used sleep as a method of cultivation. Humans couldn''t take this risk because of the fear of their elemental essence passing through the wrong channels and causing severe damages. But Void didn''t seem to have such fears as he slept away. Two hours later. Grey was still cultivating when he heard a noise. Opening his eyes, he looked in the direction of the portal and saw a group of horned men walking over with large cages that were floating behind them. There were over ten people in each cage. What surprised Grey was the familiar face he saw in them. ''Aren''t those the guys we saw in the first town?'' He asked Void. He still recalled the face of the man who acted arrogantly just because he was from a Faction. He never thought the group would be caught by the people they seemingly thought they were hunting. ''That arrogant guy on a bird?'' Void asked to confirm. Grey pointed at the cage holding the group. ''It''s truly him. What a shame, his arrogance couldn''t help him in the battle.'' Void mocked. Grey chuckled when he heard this. The young man tried to look down on Grey when they last saw, never in his life would he think that he would be the one in a cage, while Grey would be watching from the side. Chapter 783 Appearance Of A Powerful Expert Chapter 783 - Appearance Of A Powerful Expert Grey accessed his options as he watched the people transported into the portal. His chances of getting in and leaving without being noticed were too low. ''Guess that''s it for these guys.'' He came to the conclusion that he couldn''t save the group that were being sent into the portal. If he had companions, powerful companions, then he could take the risk, but heading into a place he had basically no knowledge of, was too dangerous for people he had no connections with. As much as he would like to enter, he still didn''t dare to. While he was still thinking of the possibilities, he noticed the group of six he encountered in the gorge. They were standing in another direction, but they hadn''t noticed him yet. He could also see that they were contemplating the matter as well. This realm would definitely have countless Peak Overlord Plane fighters, if they carelessly charged in there, they would not only risk being caught, but death would also not be too far away. The group continued discussions on the matter, and after a while, Grey saw them bring out a talisman and crush it. After doing this, they sat down calmly and started to talk. ''Void.'' Grey called out to Void telepathically. He wanted to know what they had just done. Void nodded and vanished. On the other side. The group of six were conversing casually. "How long do you think these people have before they are killed?" A young lady asked. "I don''t know, two or three days. There''s also the possibility of being killed instantly. I mainly rely on their luck." A young man replied. They were still speaking when one of them paused and looked in a certain direction. "Gil, what''s wrong?" The young man Grey spoke with asked curiously. "I sensed a ripple in space a few seconds ago. It''s very faint, but I''m sure of it." The young man referred to as Gil answered. "I guess we have to be extra careful from now on." The young man nodded before giving the others a knowing look and heading in another direction. Void appeared on Grey''s shoulder once again before reporting what he heard. Unfortunately, he didn''t hear anything good enough. ''Why did you come back so quickly?'' Grey asked after hearing the small part of the conversation Void heard. ''There''s a Space Elementalist in their midst, and his elemental grade is quite high. He sensed me the moment I appeared. I had to leave when he was starting to investigate further.'' Void replied. ''Oh, okay.'' Grey nodded in understanding before deciding it was best to wait for some time to see what these youths were up to. There is definitely something going on, and since they were waiting, it meant they hadn''t given up on the idea of heading into this realm. Six hours later. Grey finally understood what the youths were up to. He sensed a powerful aura rushing here, and it appeared in the blink of an eye. With the appearance of the figure, all the horned people that were in the place froze, and before they could even move, they were dead. Grey sucked in a cold breath as he stood in shock. He tried to hide his presence, but against someone this powerful, it was nothing more than a joke. The figure looked in his direction, squinting his eyes with a bit of surprise in it. The figure was about to head in his direction when a bright light shot at him. The figure vanished, along with the light. A few minutes later, the figure appeared, but he didn''t bother with Grey any longer. With a wave of his hand, he tore through space and a group of youngsters came through it. ''How powerful is he?'' Grey could feel his heart beating faster and faster as he watched this mysterious man. ''Powerful enough to tear through space even when he''s not a Space Elementalist.'' Void replied. He had no idea what the strength of this man was, but one thing was for sure, this was one of the most powerful figures they had encountered. This man looked to be in his early thirties, but Grey knew not to trust looks. He had dark brown hair with brown eyes. He was well over six feet in height, and with a handsome face as well. The youngsters who passed through the space were all in the Overlord Plane. The majority of them were in the Late stages, with a few in the Early stages. The group of six he encountered in the gorge came out as well, standing in front of these youngsters. They were clearly the leader of this group. The man said a few words to them before letting them enter the portal. After the group entered the portal, the man stayed for a few minutes before setting up a concealing array around the place to hide its aura from outsiders and then taking his leave. Grey waited for a little over thirty minutes, just to be sure that the man was gone before he headed in the direction of the portal. The force field coming from the portal had reduced significantly thanks to the appearance of the expert. Then he noticed the expert made some changes to the portal. This way, the geniuses sent in wouldn''t appear in the location where the horned people would be too much for them. Grey looked around, and after confirming that no one was there, he entered the portal and disappeared. The second he left, the man appeared once again. This time, a familiar face was with him. It was none other than the man who protected him from the necromancer''s attack some time ago. "Why are you protecting him?" The man asked. "Nothing of any importance. Why are you asking?" The man protecting Grey asked. "He looks somewhat familiar. I''m just curious. With you by his side, I''m sure it has something to do with him, right?" The man asked. "It''s best to pretend you didn''t see me, for the both of us." The man protecting Grey sighed before looking in the portal. Chapter 784 A Gift For Earth Elementalists Chapter 784 - A Gift For Earth Elementalists "This place is a gift for Earth Elementalists!" Grey exclaimed when he felt the abundance of earth elemental particles in the air. Even the sky was somewhat brownish in color. The force field he was feeling back at the gorge was in no way close to this one. The gravitational power was over four times that of the one he felt when he was fighting against the four horned men. "Staying here would benefit my earth element a lot. Unfortunately, it''s too risky." Grey said. "This is a good place for us to absorb that treasure. The only risk is attracting too many of them. You can absorb faster than I do, so you could fight against them while I absorb the rest. What do you think?" Void asked. He could already feel the limitations of this realm, which meant that there was no one above the Overlord Plane, but he knew it didn''t mean they should underestimate these horned people. There would be powerful experts with strength exceeding the Overlord Plane. Grey thought about Void''s suggestion for some time before replying, "Let''s check out the place for now. We''ll see what happens later on." After coming to a decision, they left their current location. The group brought by the expert were nowhere to be seen. They had left a long time ago. Grey was cautious as he moved around the place. This was the first time he was entering a realm like this. The place he appeared was an empty field. He headed in the eastern direction. He didn''t forget to take note of this place, and also placed one of the plaques he made. This way, he could use it to locate this place when he wanted to leave. The portal here vanished after he appeared, but he could still sense it, so he knew he could leave with it if he wanted to. A few hours later. He encountered the first city in this world. The scenery stunned him, just like humans, these horned people lived in well-built houses. However, that was not what caught his attention. Looking at the front gate to the city, he could see piles of bodies on the side, they were humans. It was as if these people took joy in killing them. He saw kids running over to the place, looking at the dead bodies of the humans with a joyful expression. "Well, this is strange." Void commented. "Looks like humans aren''t the only crazy ones." Grey looked at the scene oddly. He didn''t really know what to feel since he never expected to see something like this. Although he already knew that the orbs of humans were extracted, he never knew that the humans were killed right after. While he was watching from the side, he saw some group of people bringing a cart full of dead bodies and dumping them there. These bodies were fresh, it was evident that they were killed not too long ago. "Can''t they just burn or bury the bodies?" Grey found the scene a little disturbing. He wasn''t uncomfortable because of the dead bodies, but some of them had started to rot. "I have no idea." Void replied. Grey couldn''t use the space element fully since the gravity here was different from the Aurora Continent, but he sensed that using his earth element brought double the usual result. He sent Void to go and investigate what was happening inside the place. Void nodded before disappearing. Grey stayed in the same location and started to train his physical body. Void''s investigation would take some time, so he had to make sure that he used this opportunity well. Just being here was no different from training his physical body. So when he started training as well, he could feel himself growing stronger as time went on. After some time, he switched to trying to comprehend the gravity in this realm. He had been trying to comprehend it for some time now. When he fought against the four horned men, he felt he had gained some insights, staying here was the push he needed to comprehend it sooner. Later that day. Void appeared beside him with a chubby-horned man. Grey opened his eyes and stared at the man in front of him. "Who''s this?" He asked curiously. He noticed the man was only in the Origin Plane, so he knew he wouldn''t be anyone of much importance. "The chief of this city." Void replied while smacking the head of the man. The man wanted to speak out, but Void glared at him and he shut his mouth up. "What are you doing with the people brought here?" Grey went straight to the point. He already knew this, but he wanted to be sure of it. "What are you talking about?" The horned man asked, shivering in fright. Grey didn''t reply, he moved the bush close to them, and the man saw the pile of bodies heaped on the side of the city gate. The man saw this and looked at Grey once again. "You''re one of them!" The man exclaimed. "Answer my question." Grey squinted his eyes and released his superior cultivation base on the man. The pressure the man felt made it almost impossible for him to even breathe. "My¡­ my Lord, they are goods transported over for entertainment." The chubby man replied. "Entertainment?" Grey was a little confused, he looked at the man, hoping for further explanation. "They fight against the beasts in the arena." The man explained after sensing Grey''s gaze. "I thought you guys only extract their orbs once they were caught?" Grey asked. "Well, they have a lot of uses. Some of them are bought on the market and used as slaves. Some are turned into deadly weapons that can wipe out other cities..." The man continued his explanation. Listening to the man''s explanation, Grey was a little surprised. This had been going on for years now, and surprisingly, humans hadn''t been able to locate them until now. Grey asked how the people were transported there, and the man said they were sent from the Capital. According to him, all the people captured were taken to the Capital, and then those that were weak would be sent to weaker cities. Chapter 785 A Tourist Chapter 785 - A Tourist Grey listened carefully to the man''s words before deciding on what to do. "What are you going to do now?" Void asked. "Well, training is the best thing to do. If I can, I will save some people, but I''m not too interested in doing that." Grey replied, not hiding his intentions, even from the horned man. "Wait, why?" Void was a little confused, he knew Grey wasn''t a saint who would go around saving people, but he felt since he was here, he would at least try to. "Have you seen what humans do to each other because of greed? This is nothing compared to it. The only thing that would make humans annoyed is the fact that another race is the one oppressing them, other than that, this is pretty normal." Grey explained. This was something everyone knew, humans were not kind to each other. Even brothers tend to harm themselves because of personal gains, so it''s no surprise other races are doing this to humans. Grey was also sure that these horned people also do the same. Greed is something common in every race, they all want to grow stronger. From the words of the horned man, he could tell that he was annoyed that those with weaker cultivation Planes were sent there. This was also a sign of greed. If the horned man was powerful, he wouldn''t mind forcefully taking the powerful humans brought to their realm. The horned man looked at Grey, a little stunned by his plainness. Most people would pretend that they wanted to save every member of their race, but Grey wanted to focus on his training while he was here. He was unique, which made the horned man view him in a new light. However, he still knew that his chances of escaping from Grey''s hands were minimal. Grey waved his hand and one of the horned men he captured appeared in front of him. This was a horned man in the Overlord Plane, his rank was definitely above that of this man. When the chubby horned man saw the man Grey brought out, he hastily dropped to his knees and placed his head on the ground, even though the man was still unconscious. "Oh, looks like they take hierarchy here very seriously." Grey muttered as he splashed water in the face of the horned man. When he woke up, he was stunned. He never thought that he would be able to come back to his home, but here he is. He almost felt like being captured by Grey was all a dream, but when he saw the evil face of Void, he threw that thought to the back of his head. His eyes darted to the chubby man kneeling on the ground. "You may rise." He said in a commanding tone. "I dare not, my Lord." The chubby man shivered. "Hmph! This is not the time to take these things to the extreme." The man snorted coldly before using his legs to raise the head of the chubby man. Grey watched everything from the side. "Alright, since you two are done, I need someone to point me in the direction of the capital." Grey said coolly. "What do you plan to do?" The man he just brought out asked. "Nothing, I''m just here for a tour." Grey answered. The man looked at Grey. He was the one who had been tortured by Grey. Although he didn''t say anything, Grey still managed to find his way to this place. He was certain that the last surviving man with him was the one who gave out their location. The man sighed helplessly before looking at the chubby man to ask for their current location. The chubby man told him where they were located, and after making a rough calculation, he pointed Grey in the direction of the capital. According to him, it would take Grey at least five days to get there. Grey nodded before looking at the chubby man, "What do I do with you now?" "My¡­ my¡­ Lord¡­ ple¡­ please spare me. I¡­ I won''t¡­" The chubby man was still in the middle of speaking when he froze as he felt a stinging pain in his chest. He looked down, only to find a hand piercing through his chest. It was none other than the hand of the horned man Grey just brought out. "You''re of no use alive." The man stated coldly before ripping out his heart. ''You see, for personal gains, he didn''t mind killing someone from his race.'' Grey said to Void telepathically. He knew the reason the horned man did this, he wanted to gain a bit of Grey''s trust. One thing he knew was that leaving this man alive was not really a threat. The people of this realm would definitely know that humans had managed to enter their world in no time, so even if this chubby man gave him away, it still wasn''t all that of a big deal. Grey looked at the horned man for a while, contemplating what to do. He didn''t want to kill him now, since the man still had some uses. First of all, there were bound to be abundant earth elemental treasures here. And being someone with such a high rank, the horned man would know the best locations for it. This was his main objective in coming to this place, saving the humans captured was more like a side quest that he could choose not to do. If he crosses paths with them, he wouldn''t mind helping them, but for now, he was going to check out the capital first. He was one person, he couldn''t fight against an entire world. The number of Peak Overlord Plane horned men was not something he can take on alone. The fact that they could send so many Late stage Overlord Plane horned men out proved that. Also, if he were to be trapped in that formation once again, while in this realm, he was almost certain that his Fusion State would be his only way out, and he wasn''t even confident about that. Chapter 786 Increase In Physical Strength Chapter 786 - Increase In Physical Strength Grey knocked out the horned man before he continued the journey. He was not stupid enough to let the man travel with him. Even if the man was under his constant supervision, he didn''t know if there was a way they could communicate with others without him knowing. They could easily ambush him, and that would be deadly, even for someone like him. Void was his greatest help here, and he couldn''t afford to let Void absorb the treasure since he would sleep after absorbing it. That would leave only him here, which would be very dangerous for him. He didn''t know if the restrictions of this realm would stop him from using the talismans he got from his Teacher, so the best plan was to avoid encirclement as much as possible. Three days later. Grey had surprisingly encountered some humans, and their condition was a little saddening, well, to others. He wasn''t too bothered with them. Just like what the chubby horned man said, almost all the humans he saw had lost their cultivation, and they were all used as slaves. There were even a few that were being killed by kids. The few that still had their cultivation were all dumped in the arena for a battle against beasts. Winning meant that they could keep their lives. In these three days, Grey had infiltrated four cities, since he was stronger than almost everyone there, it was impossible for them to sense him. He studied how they lived and what they did. One of the things that piqued his interest was a training mechanism they had in a room. It enhanced the gravity in the room. When he tried to remove it, he realized it was part of the ground. It also alerted people around. "I wonder how those guys are doing?" Void asked as they chewed on the flesh of meat. They were currently eating a new delicacy Grey learned in this realm. Surprisingly, the food here was top-notch. He kidnapped the best cook in all the cities he visited and learned from them. He killed them afterward since he couldn''t afford to give away his position. When he sent the first meal to his Teacher, the feedback he got was somewhat funny since his Teacher said he should prepare only this type of meal for him. According to him, this was the best thing he had tasted in his life, and he had tasted a whole lot of food. Grey informed him about his current location, and his Teacher surprisingly only spoke about food. Only telling him to take care of himself after receiving the second round of food. "Which of them?" Grey asked. "The ones we came in here with." Void replied. "They should be okay I guess. I noticed some unrest in the last city we entered, if I''m correct, it should be their doing. They should be searching for the Capital, just like us." Grey said his thoughts. "Hmm, maybe." Void said before emptying the content in his bowl into his mouth. Grey didn''t say anything and finished his meal as well. In the space of three days, his physical body had improved to the Fifth stage of the Overlord Plane. The speed of his growth was insane. He was also very close to comprehending the gravitational field. His earth elemental grade had increased to the blue grade, after years of staying stagnant in the purple grade. ''This place is great!'' He thought internally after sensing his growth in only three days. He continued his training while Void slept. In the blink of an eye, three more days went by. Grey was hiding behind a tree as he stared at the city gate. This city was larger than the previous ones he had seen, and the gravitational force here was way higher than it was in the other cities. ''The Capital.'' Void said telepathically. Grey nodded before looking in the other direction. He squinted his eyes as he could see some familiar faces. A cart was heading out, in it was a cage that had tens of people inside. The group of geniuses he encountered in the first town he sensed the attack of the horned people were here. ''Oh, to think they weren''t killed. How lucky.'' He said to himself before hiding in the bushes. The cart was being escorted by six horned men in the Ninth stage of the Overlord Plane, while there were five Seventh, and Sixth stage Overlord Plane horned men. Altogether, there were twenty people, but the others were of no importance to Grey. ''You finally want to save some people?'' Void couldn''t help but ask. ''They''re lucky their orbs hadn''t been extracted yet, or I would''ve left them alone. Going back to the Aurora Continent without their cultivation base would only send them into depression, wishing for nothing else but death.'' Grey explained. Void nodded in understanding. These geniuses were already at the top, if they were reduced to normal people, then they might lose their minds. Of course some would be grateful that they kept their lives. Grey followed the cart for some time, and after almost five hours, he deemed it was time for him to attack. This place was far enough, so they wouldn''t be able to call for reinforcement. Just as he was about to step out, he sensed something odd and stopped. Inside the cage was another familiar face. It was one of the geniuses he met at the gorge, and the young lady was preparing an attack. He paused and decided to wait by the side. Watching what would happen was the best thing to do, for now. Boom! A loud explosion rang out, but it wasn''t from the cage. But from the side of the cart. The cart fell on its side, and the young lady managed to keep everyone from injuries since she was already prepared for it. The horned men never expected an attack, so they were thrown off guard. After this attack, five youths jumped out from the woods by the side and attacked. Grey recalled one of them as the young man who seemed to be the leader of the group. Chapter 787 A Twist Chapter 787 - A Twist Bang! The group of geniuses attacked the horned men. One of them rushed over to the cage to free their companion that was inside the cage. Other than the young lady, the rest of the people in the cage were all powerless. Even though their orbs hadn''t been extracted, the horned men used a secret technique to seal their cultivation. The young lady immediately joined the attack the second she was released. Although they were short on fighters, each of them was powerful. Grey was astounded by the strength they were portraying. If not for the fact that the horned men were fighting in their realm which had an increased gravity, these youngsters would have wiped them out within a few minutes. Even with the suppression of the gravity, each of them was still fighting against two or more fighters. ''They''re good.'' Void complimented, a little dazzled by their performance. If he were pitched against any of them one on one, he would be able to defeat them, but it wouldn''t be as convincing as his previous battles against people at the Peak of the Overlord Plane. Grey nodded to his words. The only time he had seen a youth show strength like this, was when he was attacked by that young man. The young man suppressed him so much that he could barely move before the attack struck him. Since these people had already stepped out, he decided to stay hidden. If they could defeat them, then he wouldn''t need to stress himself about helping. He would only help when he knew it was necessary. The group fought fearlessly. The horned men managed to create their formation, and from then on out, the tide of the battle slowly started to change. The increase in gravity was something that the youths could resist, so it made fighting difficult for them, even with a high elemental grade, they still had problems using elemental attacks. ''They''re in trouble now.'' Grey muttered to himself, but he didn''t step out now, since he felt the ground definitely had a way around this. Time went on, and the horned men slowly took the initiative in the battle and started to push the group of five back. What Grey noticed was that their expressions were calm. They seemed to be thinking of ways to counter the gravity. Void watched closely and he noticed that no matter how the horned men tried, they still hadn''t been able to cause any casualties on the side of the humans, unlike their case where four horned men were already dead. Of the four dead people, one was in the Ninth stage of the Overlord Plane, while two were in the Sixth stage. The last one was in the Third stage of the Overlord Plane. The horned man in the Ninth stage was killed by the young man who was the leader of the group. ''Who do you think is more powerful?'' Grey asked. Void was there on the day the young man attacked him, so he was certain that he should be able to grade them on their strength. Void didn''t need Grey to explain to him since he already knew who he was talking about. ''That guy is on another level.'' He replied truthfully. ''I thought the same as well. Anyway, he''ll be defeated by me the next time we cross blows.'' Grey declared confidently. He was sure of his strength, with sufficient time, he would get to the top of the world, and look down on everyone else. This was something that was possible not only because he had the special orb in his body, but because of his determination and belief. Void felt Grey''s confidence and nodded, he also knew this would happen. They continued watching, and just when Grey felt it was time for him to step in, he noticed a change on the battleground. The group who had been defending all this while suddenly exploded out with a powerful attack that pushed one of the horned men back. This gave the young man who was the leader of the group the chance to escape from the formation. The second he came out of the formation, he attacked the weak link in the formation, destroying it in the process. With the formation broken, the others attacked as well. The horned men tried to fight back, but given how ferociously the group attacked, they started to suffer casualties once again. ''Guess I''m not needed.'' Grey looked at the battle, he could already predict how it would end. Void however shook his head before saying, ''Not exactly.'' ''Oh, why''d you say that?'' Grey asked curiously. ''Just watch. The twist is coming soon.'' Void chuckled. Grey continued watching the battle. From what Void said, he could already guess that someone powerful was coming, and that person was not on the side of humans. In the space of three minutes, only eight horned men were left, and of the eight, four were in the Ninth stage of the Overlord Plane, and the other four were in the Seventh stage. The young man who was the leader of the geniuses continued fighting at the front, and just as he was about to kill another horned man in the Ninth stage of the Overlord Plane, his expression changed and he retreated quickly. The others followed suit as well. Boom! An explosion came from the ground, and a large beast sprang out, on its head was a horned man who had his hands behind his back. The beast was like a beetle, only, it looked more ferocious with its large red eyes. The horned man looked different when compared to the other ones Grey had seen. He looked a little more like humans with a smaller horn on his head. ''That''s the problem.'' Void pointed at the young horned man. This horned man was already at the Peak of the Overlord Plane, and Grey was certain that he wasn''t as old as these people in the Fifth stage. If his guess was correct, then this young horned man should be in his late twenties. Grey could sense a pressure from the young horned man who just arrived. He never thought that such a figure would be present here. ''He must be one of the people groomed with the orbs extracted from humans.'' Grey contemplated. While he was still thinking of the matter, he saw the group of horned men bow to the young horned man who just arrived. "Hmph! To think these insects managed to sneak into our world. I guess it''s time for you all to die." The young horned man didn''t even bother with the group who bowed to him, his entire focus was on the group of five. ''Isn''t he a little too proud? I mean, they don''t even have a Sage Plane Elementalist here.'' Void was taken aback by the pride the young horned man was showing. ''Geniuses, guess they''re all the same in any race. Believing they''re above everyone else.'' Grey shook his head. ''But you believe you''re above others as well.'' Void couldn''t help but say. ''I do, but you don''t see me saying it whenever I want to fight, do you?'' Grey asked with a shrug. Void rolled his eyes before focusing on the battle. His eyes twitched before turning to Grey. They vanished from their location as another explosion rang out. Another beast appeared from the ground, and on top it was a young lady, just like the young horned man, she was also different from the others. "Why are you hiding, kid?" The young lady said. Grey''s figure appeared a few meters away as he stared at the young horned lady. He never thought that they would sense them, if not for Void''s quick reaction, he would''ve been caught in that attack. Grey didn''t reply, he only directed his gaze in another direction. He could sense four more auras that were on the same level as this duo. The group of five he met back at the gorge looked at him, stunned. "How did you get in here?" The young man who was the leader of the group asked. "The same way you did." Grey replied. The young man was about to continue his questioning when one of the young ladies in the group stopped him. "This is not the time for these, we have more important things to deal with." She pointed at the group of six. There were three horned men and ladies respectively. Each was at the Peak of the Overlord Plane, and they all looked to be around the same age. "Well, we can take on one each, but can he fight against one on his own?" The young man called Gil in the group pointed at Grey. Grey was still in the Seventh stage of the Overlord Plane, and he felt Grey couldn''t even take a blow from him, much less these guys. "You don''t need to worry about me." Grey replied casually. "Alright, try not to get in our way." Gil nodded before walking forward. "Noted." Chapter 788 Mistake In The Script! Chapter 788 Mistake In The Script! The six horned people looked at each other before bursting out laughing. "You think you can defeat us? I get it when the others want to try, but even you? Haha, please, don''t make us laugh." One of the horned ladies found Grey''s involvement in the battle somewhat funny. Grey didn''t say anything since he didn''t like explaining himself to stuck up people. Gil was the first to pick an opponent, and his opponent was none other than the first horned young man who appeared earlier. Gil was a Lightning Elementalist, and a powerful one at that. His attack speed was on a different level. With Gil being the first to attack, the others joined as well. They all picked an opponent and started fighting against them. The horned young lady who mocked Grey ensured that she would have to be the one who fought against him. ''Void, keep an eye on those guys, make sure they don''t capture the people that have already been saved.'' Grey said to Void as he rushed forward. Void nodded before jumping off his shoulder. He was Grey''s secret weapon, so he had to keep his strength hidden, for now. Bam! FREE WEB NOVEL Grey''s fist connected with the fist of the young lady. "Nice, but you''re still not on my level." The horned lady smiled and increased the force of her punch, which sent Grey flying back. Grey did a backflip mid-air and landed on the ground. The moment his feet touched the ground, his pupils constricted as he saw an arm coming toward his face. He placed both arms around him, and the young horned lady''s fist hit them, pushing him back. When he regained his footing, the young horned lady was already in front of him, preparing to attack once again. Grey was placed in a defensive situation from the start of the battle. He was forced to show his space element since without it, the young lady would completely overwhelm him. After appearing behind the horned lady, he punched her solidly on her back, and his fist exploded out with blue flames when his hand connected with her. The force of the attack pushed the horned lady back, but she was able to quickly position herself in a way that she didn''t leave an opening for Grey. Grey vanished once again, but since the horned lady was already aware of this ability of his, she was wary and very sensitive to it. She threw her left fist at the empty space behind her, and Grey appeared there the moment the fist was extended fully, receiving the full brunt of the attack. The attack forced him back once again, but he managed to regain himself quickly. ''Damn!'' He complained as he looked at the hand he used in blocking the attack. This was the first time he was engaging in a fist battle with someone who had a better physique than he did, so he didn''t have the advantage like he usually does. Also, the horned lady seemed to be very sensitive to the space element, or maybe it had something to do with the gravity here. Grey was certain that if Void used the space element, he wouldn''t be easily noticed compared to him. The young horned lady didn''t give Grey time and she continued attacking. They exchanged blows for some minutes, and although Grey was mostly on the back foot, he was quite impressive. The others were also in a heated battle and compared to Grey, their strength was around the same level as that of their opponents, so they were fairing pretty well. The main reason the horned people had the advantage was because this was their home ground, and the increase in gravity was something that affected the general strength of those from a foreign realm. The group that was in the cage had already regained consciousness, and they were watching the battle intently. "Why does that guy look familiar?" One of the young ladies in the group asked, a little bit surprised. She was part of the geniuses Grey met in the first town. With her pointing him out, the others looked as well. Grey had a face that very few would forget after seeing him once, especially when they meet him so quickly again. "Do you remember the guy we met while we were tracking down these people?" The young lady who spoke with Grey at that time asked. The others nodded. "He''s the one." She said after seeing that they all recalled their encounter with Grey. When she finished speaking, the others didn''t have too much of a change in their reaction, except for the young man who felt he was on top and tried to order Grey around. This wasn''t how he expected things to go. Grey was supposed to be the one captured, while he was supposed to be the one fighting to rescue him. ''There must''ve been an error in how things were supposed to work.'' He complained internally. Grey naturally had no idea what was in the head of these people, he was more concerned about how he was going to stay alive. The young horned lady was not an easy foe, and when she noticed that Grey wasn''t as weak as she initially thought, she started attacking more viciously. He was forced to start using elemental attacks since his physical strength wasn''t enough for him to go toe to toe with the horned lady. Grey''s performance astounded the five geniuses, especially the one called Gil. They never expected that Grey would be able to hold out against the young horned lady. They could all see her strength and knew she was just as powerful as they were, so the fact that Grey is able to keep up even when he''s only on the Seventh stage of the Overlord Plane showed his talent. The group finally stopped looking down on him and decided it was best to take him seriously. Grey might not be on their level in terms of strength, but he was someone that, if placed on the same stage as them, he might be on the same level, if not even stronger than they currently were. Chapter 789 Is This The Same Person? Chapter 789 Is This The Same Person? Bang! Grey used the ice technique he was given by the people from the Moonlight Faction. An ice cube appeared in the sky and started attacking the young lady he was fighting against. He also attacked with his fire element, while making an inscription made of the lightning element. He was going all out now. The young horned lady was a little shaken given the fact that she had to deal with multiple attacks simultaneously. Even someone as powerful as her had to tread carefully. Grey knew this was his chance, so he made a second inscription that used the fire element while gradually making a large array in the area. The young lady might be powerful, but unlike Grey, she had primarily one means of attack, that was physical attacks. They rarely used their elemental attacks. Seeing that someone she regarded as a pest was getting the better of her, the young horned lady started to feel a little frustrated. To the surprise of Grey, she started using her elemental attack. She was surprisingly a Wind Elementalist. With the aid of the wind element, her speed shot up by almost double. She started dodging most of Grey''s attacks, even with the high number of attacking means Grey had, she still managed to dodge most of them. However, she was still hit by a few. "What are you staring at? Distract him!" The young horned lady was forced to call on the horned men that were watching from the side. There were still a few in the Ninth stage of the Overlord Plane. The horned men immediately rushed over and joined in on the battle. The five geniuses were stunned by the fact that Grey was able to use so many methods in attacking. Even though he was weaker, he could use all this to complement his weaknesses. They were still in a stalemate with their opponents, yet Grey had forced his opponent into calling for reinforcement. Fighting against Grey was a little unfair since it felt like he was more than one person. Grey''s space element already made him a difficult opponent, having all this as well made him overpowered. The group of horned men joined the battle. Grey didn''t feel any pressure with them joining the battle because he had already completed his array at the time they joined the battle. Now, he could move freely as much as he wanted. One of the men rushed towards him, and he didn''t escape, instead, he raised his hand, and the man rushing over felt a suction force, and before he knew it, he flew off the ground, heading in Grey''s direction. Bam! Grey''s fist connected solidly with the head of the man. The force of the blow sent the horned man flying, crashing into two more men. They were still in the midst of trying to understand what happened when Grey appeared in their midst and spread out his hands. All three horned men were sent flying by a mysterious force. Grey vanished once again and he appeared behind one of the men that was still mid-air. A fireball that had bits of lightning in it hit the body of the horned man. An explosion rang out and the body of the horned man''s figure slammed into the ground. Grey was already gone by the time the attack connected. He appeared close to another horned man and grabbed his leg, with a powerful tug, he dragged him and slammed him into the ground. Just as the body of the man slammed into the ground, Grey vanished once again and appeared close to the third horned man he sent flying. A black orb appeared on the tip of his finger. This orb was no bigger than the size of a human eyeball. He dropped the orb on the body of the man, and the most shocking thing happened. The body of the man started to distort in a strange pattern, and before long, the man disappeared from view, other than his horn, there was no evidence that he was there in the first place. In the space of barely five seconds, Grey just took out three horned men. Two of those three horned men killed were in the Ninth stage of the Overlord Plane. The young horned lady sucked in a deep breath of air. She couldn''t believe what she just witnessed. ''Is this the same person that was having a hard time fighting against me?'' She couldn''t help but ask. The speed of Grey''s attacks, and how everything flowed was amazing to watch. The five geniuses he met in the gorge were speechless. Their mouths were wide open, astonished. Grey''s strength stunned them all. It was as if Grey went from a normal person to a master in the space of a few seconds. The contrast was just too much. Even the horned men froze and stared at Grey, trying to figure out if he was the one attacking or not. His speed was on another level, and his attacks were more terrifying. Of all the attacks he used, the last one sent chills down the spines of everyone present, even the humans who were on his side were a little afraid just thinking of the possibility of being hit by such an attack. "How?" Gil asked in shock. "There''s an array on the ground. He used it to increase his teleportation speed. In that array, even we would have a difficult time fighting against him." One of the young ladies in the group who was proficient in arrays was quick to sense the array Grey was using. "Oh, he''s even good at arrays?" Gil asked, confused. "He''s an Inscriber, what do you expect?" The young lady rolled her eyes. She already knew Grey was good at arrays when she saw him using the inscriptions, but she never knew he would be able to use it in this manner. Grey truly was a talent. If well groomed, they knew he would be above them in terms of strength. At this moment, they couldn''t help but wonder which Faction he was from, or which Family was able to produce such a monster. Chapter 790 Incredible! Chapter 790 Incredible! During all the silence, Grey moved once again. This was an opportunity for him, he wasn''t going to waste it. Initially, only five horned men came forth after the young horned lady''s call, but after he took out three, two were left, and the three who were by the side were forced to rush in, even though they were a little afraid. The young horned lady came to her senses and attacked Grey as well. She couldn''t give him the chance to build on his momentum. She blocked Grey from attacking the horned men so they could prepare a formation. But with the array in place, Grey had no problems with going wherever he wanted around this area. He vanished and appeared behind one of the horned men. The man turned around to block the attack, but he was still sent flying by the impact of the attack. Grey followed him and continued his assault. Unfortunately, he was unable to take him out since the young horned lady intercepted. Grey didn''t fight against her, he moved to the side to evade her attack before targeting another horned man from the five alive. His speed in teleportation made him such a difficult foe. When he was fighting against only the young horned lady, he mainly focused on fighting, but with more people available, he thrived from his unpredictability. The others had continued their fighting as well, but they still took quick glances at Grey''s situation from time to time. As things stand, that battle seemed to hold the key in on how long the fight would last in general. If Grey is able to defeat his opponent, then he could lend a helping hand to the others to make things easier, if his opponent won, then she would do the same. The young horned lady raced after Grey, but her speed was not on the same level as Grey''s teleportation speed. "Don''t come close, he created a formation that''s helping him." She finally sensed the array and warned the five horned men that were being attacked by Grey. Even with the young horned lady rushing to their rescue, Grey had been able to hit all of them more than once. Some of them were already injured, but they could still fight. The horned men left the region where Grey''s array covered, leaving only the young horned lady there. Grey could only shake his head in pity before focusing on the young horned lady. However, he realized that the group of horned men spread out in a formation he was familiar with, and before he could even stop them, they had unleashed their formation. In this place, the effect of the formation was on a whole different level. He could feel the weight on his body increase significantly, and even the use of his elements started to become a little harder. The inscription he had set up vanished the second the formation was set. ''I really hate this thing.'' He couldn''t help but complain. This was what he had been trying to avoid, but now, the horned men got the chance they were waiting for. ????????????.??? The young horned lady used the opportunity and charged at Grey. All she wanted to do right now was to beat the hell out of him. She felt embarrassed by the fact that she had to struggle against Grey, who seemed to be the weakest out of the six people present. She even took the initiative to force him out of his hiding place. Never did she imagine Grey would place her in such a position. Grey, seeing the young horned lady charging towards him didn''t panic, he knew he wasn''t her match physically, so he didn''t try to fight her head-on. He blinked and appeared on the left side of the young horned lady and threw out a fist. The young horned lady reacted promptly and blocked before countering with a blow of her own. Grey''s figure blurred once again as he vanished from his spot. Even though he could still switch positions quickly, the young horned lady was able to sense the ripples in space now, thanks to the help of the array. Time went on and Grey and the young lady had exchanged countless blows. He didn''t have the advantage, but neither did the young lady. The young horned lady finally got an opportunity and unleashed a barrage of attacks on Grey. Grey was a little shaken on the inside after suffering from the powerful attacks, but he secretly used his darkness element to block his pain receptors, so even though his innards were rocked, he didn''t show it out. After surviving the barrage of attacks, Grey knew staying in the formation was dangerous. While he was in the formation, the five geniuses had tried to free themselves so they could help him disrupt the formation, but they were unable to since their opponents knew Grey played a vital role in the battle. Seeing the young horned lady''s assault on Grey, and the bit of blood on the side of his mouth, they felt it was only a matter of time before he would be defeated. They were still trying to push their opponents back so they could help out. The young man who was the leader of the group finally managed to do so, and just before he got to where one of the horned men that made the formation was, he witnessed something unbelievable. Grey''s figure blinked, and compared to before where he would appear in another location, his figure actually changed to that of one of the horned men. The young horned lady was attacking at that moment, so she attacked the horned man that appeared there. The young man looked around and noticed that the formation had been broken, and Grey was standing in the position of one of the horned men. ''He switched places with one of them. Incredible!'' The young man couldn''t help but comment. Since Grey was fine, he rushed back to his battle. His opponent was already on the verge of attacking, so he couldn''t be bothered with Grey''s safety any longer. The battle raged on, and it entered its final stages. Of the geniuses on the human side, Grey and the young man who was the leader were the only two who had a clear advantage over their opponents. Grey''s opponent was stronger than he was, but Grey was too technical for her. Chapter 791 Intentionally Letting Them Escape Chapter 791 Intentionally Letting Them Escape Bang! Grey''s fire and lightning orb attack exploded out and encompassed the remaining four horned men, as well as the horned lady. The man he switched places with was already on the ground since the young horned lady was unable to retract her attack on time. He used this opportunity to attack the four horned men that made up the rest of the formation. The formation was already on the verge of breaking, so his attack did the trick. The four horned men were quickly taken care of before the young horned lady could regain herself. Void was still watching the battle from the side, with no plans of stepping in to help. He wasn''t needed anyway, so there was no need for him to step in. After Grey took out the four horned men, he was left with only the young horned lady. With the help of his array, he blinked so much that the young horned lady couldn''t keep up with his speed. She soon gave up and attacked wildly with her wind element, in hopes of hitting Grey with one of the attacks. Grey dodged the attack and slowly started to attack her. Since she had a very tough defense, Grey turned to the darkness element. He would slowly use it to corrode her without her knowledge, as time went on, she would start to lose her strength and before long, she would die as long as she didn''t escape. Two minutes later. He had infected her with enough darkness element that she started to feel tired. He didn''t stop there. With the young horned lady sensing her decrease in strength, she quickly realized something was wrong, and without even thinking, she turned around and fled. The beast she brought with her was already long dead, so she had to run on her own. Grey didn''t try to stop her since he knew he had done just enough to at least cripple her for life. That''s if she escaped death, that is. The darkness element was an evil element when placed in the hands of a mad genius. After coming in contact with so many necromancers, and doing a bit of research for himself with the puppet corpses he acquired, he got to know a thing or two about the body. He knew where to infuse more darkness element that would make it fatal. Even if a Sage Plane Elementalist were to come to the aid of the young horned lady, there was very little they could do to help her. Keeping her alive would already be a good result. Grey watched her leave before turning to the battle closest to him. He couldn''t stand by and watch the others get beaten. Of the five geniuses, only two now had a clear advantage over their opponents, the young man who seemed to be the leader of the group, and the young man named Gil. The person fighting close to him was a young lady, she was still in a stalemate with her opponent, but she knew if not for the suppression of the gravity, she would''ve been able to take him out. The young horned lady''s escape alerted all of them, and they knew the battle had taken a turn for the worse for them. They tried escaping, but the geniuses didn''t give them the chance to. Grey quickly joined in on the attack and he was able to injure the horned young man within a few seconds of involvement. He didn''t forget to send in tendrils of darkness element to tweak the body of the young man, ensuring that he wouldn''t be able to survive this. ''Void, follow them, with can''t allow such valuable horns to go wasted now, can we?'' Grey said as he moved to the next target. The young horned man fled when he noticed his strength was leaving his body from his injury. Ten minutes later. The last horned young lady was unable to escape, the reason being that since the others were already free, there was no way they could let her escape. "Why are you intentionally letting them escape?" The first young lady among the geniuses he helped questioned. They would''ve been able to kill them, but for some reason, once the horned man is wounded by Grey, he would present an opportunity for him to escape. "Relax, they wouldn''t go too far." Grey''s reply was casual. His real motive though was to ensure that he got all the horns to himself. And he didn''t want to use too much of his strength since he knew that there would be more battles to be fought. Besides, he still had to be cautious of this group. "You¡­" "You don''t have to worry about that, we now know the abilities of the people groomed with the orbs. If I''m not mistaken, there would be others stronger than these guys." The young man who was the leader of the group interrupted the young lady as she was about to continue her questioning. "Thank you for your help." He turned to Grey. "I only fought because they forced me out." Grey didn''t hide his intentions. If he wasn''t forced out by the young horned lady, he wouldn''t mind watching the battle from the side. He was certain that these geniuses wouldn''t lose so easily, even though only two of them were able to gain the advantage in the fight. He felt, just like him, they were also hiding their strength. Grey''s words took them by surprise since they felt that he would try to say something along the lines of fighting for humanity. The fact that he stated his mind made this group look at him in a new light. "It doesn''t matter, you still helped us, and we''re grateful for that." The young man said. "You would''ve been fine anyway." Grey muttered, although in a low voice, the group heard it clearly. Gil laughed before saying, "I like this guy." Grey''s honesty made him different from many geniuses their age. They could tell that when he said this, he wasn''t trying to bootlick them or anything, he just stated what he felt was the truth. Chapter 792 A Nice Haul Chapter 792 A Nice Haul "You saved us." The young lady in the cage that was with the group who crossed paths with Grey at the town he first noticed the activity of the horned race approached him. She had seen him, so she felt it would be better to meet him first before thanking the others. "They did, I was only watching from the side." Grey pointed at Gil and his group. Even though he wanted to try to save them from the start, he still wasn''t the one who did it in the end, he only offered some assistance after he was forced out. The young lady didn''t know how to respond after Grey said these words. She only wanted to thank him, but she never thought he wouldn''t accept her gratitude. She could only awkwardly bow and say, "You lent a helping hand, so you contributed to it. Thanks for doing that." After saying this, she turned to the group of five and thanked them wholeheartedly. Grey didn''t want this, and she knew it would be wrong not to appreciate these people since they were the main instigators of their rescue. "It''s okay, we were only fighting for humanity." The young man who was the leader of the group said. While they were still speaking, Grey used the opportunity to leave. He didn''t like being around new people, well, people in general, except for a selected few. "Hey." Gil was the first person who noticed Grey was leaving. He drew the attention of the others to it. Grey paused and looked at them, "Is there anything I can help you with?" "We plan on raiding the Capital, and we would need someone like you. With your space element, you would be of great use." The young man who was the leader of the group told Grey their plans. "The Capital?" Grey asked with a raised brow. The young man nodded. Grey thought about it before asking, "What about the top level experts there?" "We have our means of going undetected. How do you think we were able to sneak her in?" The young man pointed at the young lady who was part of those kept in the cage that was being transported out. "Hmm, fair point. Anyway, I''m not interested in that. There''s a reason I came here, and although I''m quite tempted by the offer of raiding the Capital, I don''t really trust you people enough to team up with you on a potentially dangerous mission." Grey didn''t mince his words, he didn''t trust them, so why would he go on a mission with them. What if after acquiring the treasures, they decide to attack him and take his share of the treasure? These geniuses weren''t people he could deal with alone. Fighting against one might be something he could still do, but once two or more are involved, fleeing would be his only option. "If I recall correctly, more of your people came in here as well, you can team up with them." He added before leaving decisively. There was no use in staying behind. He knew they understood the meaning of his words. "Such a cautious figure. A shame he couldn''t help us though, and I really liked him." Gil shook his head in pity. They naturally understood what he meant by his words. Grey was alone, and they were already five. If they added the others who came here with them, their numbers would go up by ten. No matter how powerful Grey was, he wouldn''t be able to fight against them. If they were regular geniuses like the type caught by the horned men, then Grey would have a good chance, but against them, he didn''t fancy his chances at all. "Huh? Where''s the corpse?" One of the five noticed the corpse of the horned young lady they killed was no longer there. They looked around and noticed it was the same for the other corpses as well. Every single corpse from the horned race was nowhere to be seen. They couldn''t help but turn to look in the direction Grey headed. He was their biggest suspect. "They were here when he left." Someone spoke out from the group saved. It was surprisingly the young man who wanted to order Grey when they met in the town. Never would he think that he would stand up for Grey, but he naturally couldn''t let these people accuse him while he''s innocent. "Then who took them?" The young lady who noticed the disappearance of the corpses asked. "Look closely, and you''ll see they all went underground." The young man responded. When they looked at it, they couldn''t help but notice the slight change in the ground. While fighting, Grey avoided using the earth element, and substituted it with the water element, so none of them knew he had the earth element as part of his arsenal. He had already shown four elements, so they would never expect that he had five. When he used the darkness element, he made sure to be as subtle as possible, so they wouldn''t notice it. Before leaving, he marked all the spots where the corpses were. So after getting to around five hundred meters, he used the earth element to swoop them away. Compared to when he''s in the Aurora Continent, his reach with the earth element here was insane. It could travel almost one kilometer. A few kilometers away, Grey and Void were staring at all the horns they had gotten from the horned men killed. "This is a nice haul. I still don''t know where we can sell them though." Grey commented with a pleased smile. "Didn''t you learn forgemastering?" Void asked. "Well, I''m still in the basics. And I haven''t even attempted anything relating to it in a long time now." Grey explained. "You still have those books I took from the Academy for you?" Void inquired. "Yeah, they''re somewhere in my ring." Grey nodded. The duo continued their conversation as they headed back towards the Capital once again. He still had plans of searching for treasures there. He wouldn''t be the one going. With Void''s strength, it would be very difficult for anyone here to sense him. So he could basically go in and out at will. Chapter 793 The Capital Chapter 793 The Capital Outside the horned race capital. Grey hid behind a bush close to the capital gates. ''Void, try to see if there are any valuable treasures here.'' Void nodded and vanished. With Void gone, Grey started his training once again, this time, he focused on comprehending the earth element. Since he was in a great place like this, there was no use in trying any other element. Time went by, and after half a day, Void came back with a broad smile. "What did you get?" Grey couldn''t help but ask. "Nothing." Void replied, still smiling. "Then why the hell are you smiling?" Grey looked at him suspiciously. There was no way Void would be happy if he didn''t get anything. "Because I got vital information about a treasure. We can head there right now." Void said excitedly. This was one of the things he enjoyed doing, treasure hunting. "Okay, where is it located?" Grey asked. "About that, I think they said something about a white desert, don''t know where it is." Void replied with a thoughtful expression. "White desert?" Grey was a little curious. He didn''t waste any time and brought out the horned man he captured. "Where''s the white desert located?" He questioned. "How do you know about that place?" The horned man asked, stunned. He never expected that Grey would''ve been able to find out so many things about their race already. "Answer the question, I don''t have time for all this." Grey''s expression went cold, as killing intent seeped out of his body. "Where are we?" The horned man asked, a little fearful of Grey''s terrifying killing intent. "What does that have to do with what I asked you?" Grey studied the horned man closely. "There''s no way I can point you in the direction if I have no clue about where we are." The horned man explained. "Fair point. Void, knock him out and get a map." Grey said. "Wait, wait." Bang! The horned man was still in the middle of trying to plead with Grey before Void brought out a large mace and knocked him out. "Where did you even get that?" Grey asked since this was his first time seeing it with Void. "Pretty handy right?" Void asked with a smile as he swung the mace which was bigger than his body. "I got it some time ago, before leaving the Azure Continent. I''ve used it a few times as well." He added. Grey shook his head before keeping the body of the horned man back in his storage ring. Void soon went back into the city and took a map from one of the stores. No one even noticed when he got in and out. After bringing the map, Grey brought out the horned man once again and woke him. "Here, point it out." Grey tossed the map at the horned man. The horned man grabbed the map and a glint flashed through his eyes. Without wasting any time, and the fear of Void who held the mace behind him, he pointed at the position where the white desert was located on the map. Grey nodded at Void, and before the horned man could even say a word, the mace landed on his head, and he was out cold once again. "I love this." Void laughed as he played with the mace. Grey chuckled before facing the direction the horned man showed him. If by any chance the horned man tricked him, he would kill him on the spot. He was sure that the horned man knew this as well. Void appeared on his shoulder and they started their journey once again, leaving the capital. From the map, the location the horned man pointed out was quite some distance away from their current location. If they moved in the same manner they did when coming to the capital, then they would take around one week or so. However, Grey was already getting used to the place, so they moved quickly. The journey took them around three days, almost four days to be precise. Grey looked at the map, before looking at their current location. He didn''t rush to the place the horned man pointed at him because he didn''t trust him entirely. He gave Void a knowing glance and Void disappeared. Thirty minutes later, he came back with an odd expression. "Apparently, the white desert isn''t white." He said. He captured one of the people there and found out the white desert was actually a secret organization. Only the top powerhouses in the race knew of it. This was the place where they kept all their treasures, including the orbs extracted from humans. After extracting the orb, they would go through multiple refining before the selected geniuses would get to use it. "How did you know of this white desert anyway?" Grey couldn''t help but ask. Void brought out his mace once again, before taking out a horned man who looked to be on the verge of death. The horned man didn''t even have the usual look horned men had. "What did you do to him?" Grey was forced to ask, even he found the look of the man to be horrendous. "Interrogation." Void replied before hitting the horned man with the mace once again. "He isn''t even conscious yet." Grey felt pity for the horned man. "I know, I''m just making sure he''s out." Void grinned. "You''re almost no different from Klaus." Grey shook his head. "I wish he were here, things would''ve been better." Void sighed, a little sad that the group separated before they found this place. "Are there any powerful experts there?" Grey turned his attention to the matter that brought him here. According to what Void found out, there were treasures here. He naturally had no use for the orbs that were extracted from humans, but there would definitely be things of value to him there. Void gave him a detailed overview of the place. It was a secret base underground with multiple levels. This place was a secluded place to begin with, so no one would know there was a large tunnel underground. Chapter 794 White Desert Chapter 794 White Desert Grey and Void camped outside the place for some time while Void told Grey what he knew of the place. From what he was able to sense, there were about twenty Peak Overlord Plane experts in the place. Not just that, but the gravity there was almost four times what it was outside. This was done probably to ward off intruders, and also as a surveillance system. Void didn''t really know too much about it. "It will be hard, but it''s not impossible. If I use my Fusion State, I can take on a few and also escape unscathed. However, that will give my trump card away." Grey contemplated after Void filled him in on the information of the place. "Why don''t I go alone, grab what I can then leave?" Void suggested. "Hmm, that''s not a bad idea, but I would like to see the facility there. Maybe there might be something I can learn from them." Grey replied. Grey didn''t mind learning from even an ant, so it was not a surprise that he wanted to learn a thing or two from this race. He had studied some of the techniques of necromancers, although he hasn''t been able to go deep since there are things that he would need to know. Some hours later, they finally came up with a plan. Void would go in and cause a ruckus. Once he has attracted the attention of those inside, Grey would then go in and try to see what he could find. After coming to a conclusion, they acted on their plan immediately. Void went in, and within a few seconds, the sounds of explosions started ringing from the ground. Grey waited for Void''s order before going in. A minute later, Void told him he could go in. Grey vanished from his spot and appeared inside the tunnel underground. The place was brightly lit with luminous stones embedded on the walls. He followed the path Void directed and he soon appeared in an empty space. There were multiple horned men there, and inside some large tubes, there were some horned youths who seemed to be sleeping. ''So this is how they put the orbs in them.'' He thought as he looked at what was happening. He didn''t stay there for long since he had other things to do. Moving through the tunnel quickly, he avoided all the horned men he encountered. Luckily, they were all around the Origin Plane, so none of them could sense him. Void had successfully dragged away all the Overlord Plane horned experts there. Grey didn''t put his full trust in this since the horned people could leave some people behind. In fact, this was well within his expectations. He moved through the corridors quickly, spreading out his spiritual senses to cover as much as he could. Wherever he sensed any abnormalities, he would go in to investigate it. Time slowly went by, and in five minutes, other than the orbs extracted from humans, some humans who were captured, and the horned youths he saw who were in the middle of assimilating with the orbs, he hadn''t found anything of interest to him. He soon got to the deepest part of the underground organization, and he noticed the gravity there was increasingly getting stronger. ''Something must definitely be here.'' His eyes sparkled as he rushed down. He increased his cautiousness to the peak since he knew this would be the most guarded place in the entire underground. Before he traveled within twenty meters, he noticed a change, and his expression couldn''t help but change. "We''ve been waiting for you." Grey heard a voice and quickly retreated. When he saw the people in front of him, his pupils shrunk. ¡­. A few hours back. After Grey brought out the horned man to question him about the white desert and left. Two figures appeared on the spot Grey and Void were hiding. The two figures had the same appearance as that of the horned man Grey brought out from questioning. The only difference was that they had different horn colors. "Brother was here." One of the figures said. "Hmm, he left a secret message. Looks like he was captured." The other figure replied. One of the two figures had blue horns, while the other one had black horns. "A Space Elementalist has him." The figure with black horns said. "Tricky. Can you track him?" The one with blue horns asked. The figure with black horns closed his eyes for a few seconds, and after opening his eyes, he looked in the direction Grey and Void headed. "If we had come a little later, then I wouldn''t have been able to find him." The one with black horns replied with a smile. "You were the one who said we should wait a little longer." The one with blue horns couldn''t help but complain. "Coming too soon will put brother in danger. Don''t worry, if my guess is correct, then they should be headed towards the white desert." The black-horned man said. "Alright. But we should be sure of this before we make our move." The blue-horned man nodded. He didn''t doubt his brother since they had gone on countless missions together. "I wonder if it''s one of those humans who sneaked in, or maybe it''s one of our people." The black-horned man said with a chuckle. "We''ll find out soon enough." The blue-horned man said before the duo vanished. They tracked Grey and Void, without the knowledge of the duo. They didn''t get close to them since they didn''t want to alert them. Even though this meant that they wouldn''t know if the person or people they were chasing was human or not. After three days, they finally confirmed that the people they were chasing were heading to the white desert. They immediately removed humans from their suspect list since there was no way they would be able to know of this. According to what they know, the humans hadn''t been there for long. They went ahead of Grey and Void and entered the white desert, preparing for the people coming. Chapter 795 White Desert II Chapter 795 White Desert II After the blue and black-horned men went underground, the black-horned man infused the space element into the formation they made in the place. This would enable him to sense any slight ripple in the space. When Void entered for the first time, he managed to sense it. But he opted to wait and see what they wanted to do. After Void left the place, he knew this person who entered only came to scout the place. They waited for some time before he sensed Void entering the place once again. This time, Void caused a ruckus which attracted the attention of everyone there. They quickly picked up on what they were trying to do. ¡­. Grey looked at the two figures in front of him in shock. They looked completely identical to the horned man he had in his possession. "A human boy, how interesting." The black-horned man said with a smile. "Hand brother over, now." The blue-horned man ordered. "Oh, so he was the one who gave us away. I never trusted him." Grey muttered. He didn''t have any signs of panic contrary to the expectations of the horned men, in fact, he was extremely calm. It was as if he knew something like this would happen. "You knew we sensed you people?" The black-horned man asked curiously. "Not entirely, but I''ve always been the cautious type. I assumed there must be a way he would contact his people without me knowing, so since I brought him out, I''ve been expecting people as well." Grey replied truthfully. "You knew yet you walked in here. You must have a death wish or something." The blue-horned man scoffed. "Nope, I have a bargaining chip. If you come this far just for him, then it means he''s important to you¡­" Grey was still speaking when he recalled something and he couldn''t help but smack his head with a grin, "He''s even your brother, this makes things even easier." The horned men never thought that Grey would think of something like that. "Listen here boy, I don''t know how you managed to capture our brother, but if you want to leave here alive, you will hand him over." The black-horned man said coldly. "I can leave here alive, with or without your help. What I want to know is what is down there." Grey pointed down the tunnel. "It''s not something a little brat like yourself should concern yourself with. Hand him over and we will let you go." The blue-horned man started to emit intense killing intent, hoping to frighten Grey with it, after all, Grey still had their brother in his custody. "Alright, I guess I''ll have to go on my own." Grey smiled and took a step forward, to the bewilderment of the horned men. Grey''s confidence scared them. For someone who looked so young, they didn''t expect him to be this bold. "I''m done playing." The blue-horned man charged at Grey and attacked. Grey was already prepared for this and took a defensive position. Just as the blue-horned man''s fist was about to hit Grey, he vanished. Grey was a little taken aback, but within a split second, the blue-horned man appeared on his right, and his fist connected with Grey''s body. The force of the blow sent Grey crashing into the wall by the side, causing a deep crater in it. The two brothers looked at each other with a smile. ???s ??????? ?s ?????? ?? ????????????.???. "I never thought I would fall for something like this. A trick I use frequently, a shame." They heard Grey''s voice from the crater with a sigh. They could tell that he didn''t sound hurt at all. Grey crawled out of the crater before looking at himself. "Damn, you broke it." He couldn''t help but complain. Over time, he had managed to acquire another defensive artifact. It was just like the blue vest, only it was stronger and very small. This was what helped him out in receiving the blow just now. Unfortunately, it was already weakened, and this blow broke it in two. "I see you have some ways to protect yourself." The black-horned man said. Grey didn''t reply, instead, he took on an attacking pose and launched at the blue-horned man who was closest to him. The blue-horned man wasn''t the least bit afraid of Grey. He was already in the Ninth stage of the Overlord Plane, and he was very close to the Peak. With his brother by his side, they could even defeat a Peak Overlord Plane Elementalists, much less Grey who was still in the Seventh stage. They engaged in a fist fight, and the black-horned man didn''t do anything to intervene since he didn''t see a need to. His brother had the advantage from the start of the fist fight. Although, he was quite impressed with Grey''s performance. For someone in the Seventh stage to match up to his brother was nothing short of impressive. The battle continued and Grey started to get hit by the blue-horned man more frequently. He couldn''t help but start to use his elemental attacks. With the addition of his elemental attacks, he managed to force back the blue-horned man. However, it wasn''t for long since the blue-horned man started to use his element as well. He was a Water Elementalist as his horn color showed. Unlike humans, the horned race didn''t have too many great techniques for their elements since they mainly focus on physical battle. But the horned man was able to use his elements fairly well. When the black-horned man sensed that Grey was starting to take the upper hand in the battle, he joined in on the battle as well. Now, he finally knew why Grey was able to capture their brother. Individually, Grey was stronger than they were. This meant that if he fought any of them alone, he would win. The black-horned man started to use the space element to its full effect. Grey naturally didn''t let him get the full advantage since he was also a Space Elementalist. Chapter 796 Conjoined Twin? Chapter 796 Conjoined Twin? Grey fought against the duo for some time and he wasn''t at a disadvantage. The black-horned man might have good spatial prowess, but there were not enough techniques for him to properly utilize it. Ultimately, it all came down to the fact that they mostly used their physical strength for battle. When the duo noticed that Grey was not at a disadvantage against them, their shock started to turn to fear. Grey was still in the Seventh stage of the Overlord Plane, if he managed to get to the Peak of the Overlord Plane, then he could move unhindered in this place. Someone like Grey was a catastrophe for their race, especially given how they treated humans. Unknown to them, Grey didn''t really care about how they treated humans, as long as they didn''t bother him, he wouldn''t be too concerned about them. The duo exchanged glances and finally knew it was time to seek help from others. They initially didn''t want to since it would put the life of their brother at risk, but if they didn''t, their brother wouldn''t be the only one at risk, the entire race would also be at risk. While they were fighting, Grey was already making contingency plans in case more people from the horned race came. Seeing that no one was coming even after their fight had lasted over three minutes, he knew the brothers didn''t want others to find out he was here. ''I don''t know if I should thank them or laugh at them.'' He snickered internally. Void was still running rampant on the other side, so he was safe here. Grey''s eyes darted around, and when he sensed the slight hesitation in the eyes of the horned men, he knew they were already thinking of ways to stop him. ''Heh! I would be stupid to let such an opportunity go.'' He sneered before unleashing his full strength. In the blink of an eye, Grey''s aura shot from the Seventh stage to the Peak of the Overlord Plane. It was suffocating for the duo. The pressure Grey gave them wasn''t something a Peak Overlord Plane Elementalist should have. They were forced to retreat at that moment. Grey utilized the Fusion State for two purposes, one, to take out the duo quickly, two, he really wanted to see how strong he was now. From his aura alone, he could feel immense strength brimming in his body. Even his physical strength saw a boost as well. The black-horned man was the first to try to escape. However, Grey stretched his hand and dragged the black-horned man right out of the space tunnel he was using to escape. The blue-horned man stared at the scene in shock. His brother could escape from anyone as long as he had entered his space tunnels, yet, Grey was able to force him out so easily. When they noticed that there was no way for them to escape from the current Grey, they decided to go all-out as well. The duo started to merge in a weird yet interesting way. Grey watched since he found the merger to be interesting. He didn''t try to stop them or anything. A few seconds later, the duo merged and their strength shot to the Peak of the Overlord Plane. Grey could tell just from looking at them that there was something missing. ''Their brother. I see, if all three are present, they would combine their strength and have terrifying power. Interesting.'' He narrowed his eyes as his brain went into overdrive. The three brothers piqued his interest. From the moment he saw this, he eliminated the idea of killing them. He wanted to study what made this possible. The only times he had seen something like this was when people made an array that would add their strength together. Never had he actually seen two humans merged together to become one before. After the brothers merged, Grey noticed the change in their aura. The horned man in front of him was currently well over two meters tall, and the horns were a mixture of both blue and black. On the chin of the man, there was a line that seemed to indicate that there was a merger there. Grey rushed at them, he didn''t have all the time in the world to begin with. The horned man attacked when he saw Grey coming. The strength of his attack had reached new heights, far exceeding that of the previous duo individually. Even in the Fusion State, Grey''s physical strength was not on the same level as the horned man. However, he used his elemental abilities to complement this. They quickly exchanged blows and the tunnel vibrated continuously. At this rate, Grey was certain that others at the Peak of the Overlord Plane who were chasing Void would sense their battle and rush over. An orb appeared in his hand, it was made of three different elements, fire, lightning, and space. Since he learned space elemental attacks, it had been one of his most deadly means of attacking. He threw the orb at the horned man. When the horned man saw the orb, he could already feel how powerful it was. He knew he couldn''t afford to be careless. "I wonder who is in charge, the space guy, or the water guy." Grey muttered, a little curious. Since they combined, he found this to be an issue for some time now. They were obviously two different people, so their thought processes would also be different, well, so he thought. He was taken aback when he saw how they calmly dealt with the orb. The Space Elementalist was definitely the one who took care of it. ''Their understanding is already on this level. I see.'' Grey watched his attack being destroyed by the effort of the duo. "It''s time to end this." He muttered as an ice cube appeared above him. This was the attack he got from the Moonlight Faction. After the ice cube appeared, he also created two inscriptions before charging at the horned man. A three-pronged attack, deadly, and very effective, especially against a single opponent. Chapter 797 This Will Be A Problem Chapter 797 This Will Be A Problem Grey stood alone in the tunnel, below him were the two horned men who had been beaten out cold. Their current appearance was a shadow of their former self. "Not bad, but two minds will always be different." He said before grabbing them and just like the first horned man, he kept them in his storage ring. What he found interesting was that he naturally couldn''t keep living things in his storage ring. Void could, but he couldn''t. However, concerning the horned race, there seemed to be different anatomy that made this possible. He planned to look deep into this after leaving this realm. This could also be the reason why they were able to merge together and form a stronger individual. After keeping the duo, he headed deeper into the place. His target was still the same thing, whatever was sending out such powerful fluctuations. Void had already alerted him that some experts at the Peak of the Overlord Plane were rushing in his direction. He had tried everything he could to stop them, but they realized it was all a ruse to get their attention. Grey didn''t feel too bothered by this. Since he was in his Fusion State, he could leave this place in the blink of an eye. He soon got to where the aura was coming from, and in front of him was a brown sphere that was pulsating like a human heart. The amount of earth elemental essence it was emitting was frightening. Even someone as calm as Grey couldn''t help but salivate at the thought of acquiring it. ''Jackpot! I''ve struck gold!'' He exclaimed internally before rushing over. This wasn''t something he should waste his time on. He grabbed it and shoved it in his storage ring, the entirety of it. He didn''t even try to be cautious with it. After doing this, he sensed that the gravity in the place dropped significantly. It was almost at the same level as the one above ground. ''So this is what increased the gravity here.'' He vanished right after. If the experts rushing here manage to meet him here, they wouldn''t mind risking their lives just to stop him. Grey on the other hand didn''t care if this was all he got, all he knew was that it would be worth it. Void was already out by the time he came out, so the duo fled as far as they could for the time being before searching for a place to rest. After resting, they continued their journey. Grey wasn''t in a hurry to take out his loot. This was because he felt they were still too close to the underground facility, even though they had gone thousands of kilometers away from it. After two days, he finally got to a place he felt was safe enough for him to use the sphere. ?????? ???? ???? ??? ?????. ???. Void felt a little tinge of sadness because he also had a treasure he wanted to absorb, but since they couldn''t use it for now, he had to wait. Grey created some arrays to hide his presence before he started his cultivation. According to his usual absorption speed, this would take him nothing less than a day to completely absorb. Void went outside to stand guard while Grey focused fully on cultivating. Time went by and the next day came. Void was relaxing when he sensed a strong aura coming from the cave Grey used in cultivating. "Must he always cause a fuss when breaking through?" He complained internally, but he felt genuinely happy that Grey''s strength had improved. The stronger Grey grew, the better for them. Grey walked out of the cave, radiating a different type of pressure. This was pure gravitational force. He was subconsciously radiating it. ''He learned something new as well. How am I not surprised." Void shook his head. He was already used to Grey''s freakishness, so he didn''t find it surprising that Grey acquired a new ability this time around. It was something he usually did from time to time. As long as they didn''t think about it too much, it wouldn''t really be a concern or anything. Others wouldn''t be this calm about it however since Grey was already too powerful to begin with, if he added new powers to it, then he would be a force to be reckoned with. "You finally learned it." Void commented. "Oh, this. It''s just the beginning." Grey stretched his body, and Void could hear his bones and muscles roaring, as if wanting to come to life. "The Dragon blood essence?" He was a little confused. "Yap. It triggered when my physical strength improved. I still don''t know why, but I can tell that I''m stronger than before." Grey nodded while moving his fingers. "Lucky." Void clicked his tongue. This was all he could say about this. Grey was extremely lucky for him to be able to actually get the Dragon blood in his body to resonate with him. This would be beneficial to him in the long run. If they were lucky, they might even get to acquire more Dragon blood essence and this would help further increase Grey''s strength. "This will be a problem." Grey muttered when he sensed his body. He had finally left the Seventh stage of the Overlord Plane, entering the Eighth stage. But he noticed since he got to the Late stages of the Overlord Plane that advancing seemed to become harder. The essence required was too large. Even with his multiple elements which had increased his cultivation speed, this was about to become a hindrance to him. At this rate, he would grow even slower when compared to before. If his friends heard this, they would gang up on him and beat him up. Grey had always been advancing faster than the others. Klaus was the only one who had been able to move at a faster pace, and it was all thanks to his freakish luck of acquiring good things. If Grey felt he was advancing at a snail''s speed, then the others aren''t even moving in the first place. Chapter 798 Unable To Leave Chapter 798 Unable To Leave The biggest improvement Grey made wasn''t comprehending gravity, rather, it was the huge boost in his earth elemental grade and his physical strength. His physical strength went from around the Fifth stage of the Overlord Plane to the Eighth stage. It was currently tied with his cultivation stage. Then for his earth elemental grade, it shot past the violet grade and settled at the red grade. Of all his elements, the earth element currently had the second highest grade, from being among the lowest to becoming the second highest. Grey felt a tinge of satisfaction from his upgrade. This would help in his advancement here. "What now?" Void asked. Grey''s strength has gone up, which meant that he had achieved his purpose of coming here. There is a chance to improve further, but it will take too long. Grey wanted to join a Faction, so he didn''t have all the time in the world. "Let''s check out the capital once again. Maybe those guys aren''t done with their mission yet." Grey speculated. The group told him they wanted to raid the capital, he knew they couldn''t rush in carelessly since the danger would be high. If they wanted to do anything, it would take some time and careful planning. "Alright, let''s go then." Void nodded. Grey and Void left the cave he was cultivating in and headed for the capital. It took them a little over two days to get to their destination. They stayed in their usual spot, with Void sneaking in to see if he could find any juicy news. Grey thought of bringing out the brothers, but when he thought about it, he left them alone. He didn''t know if there was a way they could call others. Void came back two hours later to inform him there had been no unusual activities in the capital of late. "Could they have given up on the idea of their raid?" Grey fell into thoughts. He didn''t really know much about the group, and since he wasn''t all that interested in the raid from the start, he didn''t bother to find out why they weren''t there. The journey here had given him a lot of improvement, so he was satisfied. He had never been the greedy type. "Let''s get going." He turned around decisively. There were multiple opportunities for him here, but he didn''t want to rely on treasures for his upgrading. This was enough for him for now. Maybe after consolidating his cultivation when he broke through to the Sage Plane he would attempt using a treasure once again. As things stand, even if he shared that treasure with Void, he wouldn''t try to use it to improve his cultivation, instead, he would focus it on his elemental grade. Grey brought out his tracking device, and after getting the direction of the one he hid after entering this place, he headed in that direction. Void didn''t have any problems with them leaving this place now since there was nothing of interest to him here. He hadn''t sensed anything that he liked, and the few times he entered the capital, he took some souvenirs. Two days later, Grey and Void got to where the portal they used in coming in was, and they couldn''t help but watch from afar. He could see multiple horned men standing there, and all of them were at the Peak of the Overlord Plane. Their auras were different from that of the horned youths he fought against the last time. They were far more powerful than those youths. "Crap, they managed to locate it." He couldn''t help but complain. This was his only way of leaving this place freely. The idea of using the Fusion State came to his mind, and just as he was about to use it, he saw a scene that made his heart sink. The group of horned men created a formation that made the portal shake vigorously. "Damn it! They''re destroying it." Grey gritted his teeth angrily. If this portal was closed, then he had no way of leaving. However, he couldn''t rush into it now even with the Fusion State since the space was unstable. Rushing in would mean he had to risk being trapped in space, or even worse, the spatial tunnel back to the Aurora Continent breaks apart and he enters the turbulent space. ''Why do these things always happen to me?'' He felt a tinge of frustration. He could only watch as the portal back to the Aurora Continent was destroyed. "What now?" Void asked. Even he had no way of going back to the Aurora Continent. His control over space wasn''t at that level yet. Besides, he didn''t even know how far they were from the Aurora Continent. The main reason that expert was able to create this portal was that he already had a link, which was the portal the horned race used in entering the Aurora Continent. "What else can we do? We will have to use the portal they are using." Grey sighed in exhaustion. Just the thought of how they were going to pass through a large number of horned men to reach the portal annoyed him. "We should wait a little longer, maybe twenty can work something out." Void suggested. "Is there a way you can connect this portal to the one in the Aurora Continent?" Grey asked, a little pessimistic. "I could try. But they would have to leave after destroying the portal. And if the time is too long, it would be difficult." Void explained. Grey nodded and sat down. Since they wouldn''t be leaving now, there was no use to worry. Ten minutes later, the portal Grey used in coming here was destroyed by the horned men. When they destroyed it, they stood in the same position for some time. Waiting to see if the person on the other side would open another portal. After almost one hour, they decided it was time to leave since the person on the other side didn''t open another portal. For all they knew, the person or people on the other side could''ve even opened another portal somewhere they aren''t aware of. Chapter 799 Why Are You So Evil? Chapter 799 Why Are You So Evil? The group of horned men left after thirty more minutes. Grey and Void had to wait an extra thirty minutes just to be sure they were gone. Luckily, they decided to wait. The horned men came back fifteen minutes after they left to check out the place once again. "We''ll have to be quick." Grey suggested. Void nodded and vanished from where they were. Grey didn''t come out since it would be better if Void was alone. He was prepared in case Void is able to open the portal so he could move at a moment''s notice. When Void appeared at the spot where the portal was previously located, he unleashed his domain so he could get the best control over the space in that area. He tried to sense the link that was created there when the previous portal was created. After over two minutes, he couldn''t help but open his eyes, a little disappointed. The time they took before coming was too much. Had he been able to come here around thirty minutes or even one hour after the portal was destroyed, he would''ve been able to sense it easily. But now, the link was shattered. Unless he was in the Sage Plane, or above, he wouldn''t be able to connect it again. "We can''t use this place any longer." Void reported after going back. "Hmm, okay. I guess it''s time to interrogate the brothers." Grey said with a cold smile. Void quickly brought out his mace with an excited expression. ???? ??? ????? "We''re interrogating them, we have no plans of killing them." Grey couldn''t help but remind Void when he saw his expression. Void nodded vigorously as he waited for Grey to take out the brothers. Grey first brought out the horned man he had in his possession before entering this realm. "My brothers have finally¡­" The horned man paused and looked around a little confused that he couldn''t find anyone. He thought after giving his brothers a hint of where Grey was going, the next time he would be taken out would be after Grey was defeated by them. "Oh, they''re here too. You can talk as much as you want later in the future." Grey brought out the duo who were still unconscious. The eyes of the horned man nearly bulged out of his head. He never expected his brothers would also be defeated by Grey. This was a shocking discovery. Grey smiled when he saw this and didn''t try to wake the other two horned men, rather, he waited for the horned man to sink this in. "What do you want?" The horned man asked. "Where is the portal you used in entering my world?" Grey asked. "I don''t¡­" A small ice needle appeared in the air and started to pierce into the body of the black-horned man. The horned man who was conscious felt a pain in his chest as he saw what Grey was doing to his brother and paused. "Why are you so evil?" He couldn''t help but ask. "Are you going to answer my question, or do you want him to lose an arm?" Grey created a fire blade that hung above the right arm of the black-horned man. The horned man looked at his brother and could only shake his head with a sigh. What was the use of even going against Grey in the first place? He told Grey what he knew, and before he could follow up with any request, Void appeared behind him and hit him with the mace. This was the part he hated the most about being captured by Grey. Void''s brutality knows no bounds. "Should we confirm from the other one?" Grey asked Void. "There''s no harm in trying." Void raised his shoulder to indicate it wasn''t a bad idea. Grey woke up the blue-horned man and questioned him as well. Just like the first horned man, he refused to speak, but after Grey threatened to cut off the head of the black-horned man, he told them what they needed to hear. His words were almost identical to that of his brother Grey questioned first, but a few details were missing from his words, and also some that the first horned man didn''t add. Grey compared both words and mainly picked out the words that were identical, which was the security there was very tight. The horned race protected the portal since it was very important to them. They didn''t have the thought of destroying it because it gave them hope of being able to break the shackles of their realm. The place the portal was located is a few thousand kilometers away from the Capital. Most of the experts in the horned race stayed around the place where they felt was the center between the Capital and where the portal was located so they would be able to rush to either place in case of any issues. Grey and Void could only head back to the Capital. They guessed that maybe the group was quickly found and they had to rush out of the place, or if there was a chance that they were still there since they still haven''t carried out the raid they said they wanted to do. When they got back to the capital, Grey sent Void out once again for any information while also moving around the outskirts of the capital. He saw a familiar figure after walking for almost thirty minutes, it was from the group of geniuses he met in the town he first noticed the activities of the horned race. Without delay, he followed the person and was stunned when he found the group staying at a hidden cave just outside the capital. He finally went inside the cave after confirming that it was safe, and that it was not a trap set by the horned race. "How did you find this place?" A young man questioned Grey the moment he entered the place. Looking around, there were over twenty people present, all in the Overlord Plane, and young as well. Chapter 800 Preparing To Raid The Capital Chapter 800 Preparing To Raid The Capital Grey was about to speak when he heard a familiar voice from inside. "Let him in, he''s a friend." Grey took a peek at the person who spoke and it was the young man who was the leader of the group he met at the gorge. "I thought you wanted to leave?" The young man asked. "I never said that, I only said I don''t trust you people. And yes, I did want to leave." Grey replied as he looked around. He was a little familiar with a few faces, while most of them were faces he wasn''t sure he had seen before. Even if he had, he must''ve forgotten their faces. "Then why are you here?" One of the young men from the side asked coldly. Grey threw a glance at the young man but didn''t give a reply to his question. The young man glanced at the person who spoke before moving his gaze back to Grey, "Then, what made you change your mind?" "I couldn''t leave." Grey''s reply surprised the others, especially those who fought with him when they were fighting against the geniuses of the horned race. They knew from then that he wasn''t someone who placed humanity on a high pedestal, so they never for once thought he would be unable to leave after seeing what humans were going through in this realm. "Looks like you changed after seeing some things." One of the young ladies said. It was the young lady he met in the first town. "No, I literally couldn''t leave. They managed to find the location where the portal was located. When I got there, they were already trying to destroy it." Grey answered. The others exchanged glances and couldn''t help but look at a particular figure. It was a young man among them. "You''re the cause of this." Gil said coldly. ????w???ov??.co? "I only told them to leave, how is it my fault that they would give away the location of the portal?" The young man asked with a grunt. "Hmph! I''ll deal with you later. The problem now is how do we leave this place?" The leader of the group snorted. "The only way we can. There''s another portal, the one they use in entering our world." Grey stated. "It would be protected, and we don''t even know the location." The leader of the group replied. "Don''t worry, I''ve helped out with the location of the portal, all I need is support when heading there." Grey answered. "So, in short, you want to use us?" A young lady asked. "Not entirely, it''s more of a mutual benefit. I show you the way to leave, and you help me deal with some problems. You can say we''re using each other." Grey''s reply was straightforward, and it made a few of the youths have a change in expressions. They looked at Grey with an annoyed expression. Even if you want to use us, do you have to be so plain about it? This was the question in the heads of the youths, even the leader of the group was a little taken aback. Gil was the only one with a smile, he was even laughing softly. "I like straightforward people." Gil laughed. "We still haven''t raided the capital yet. If you agree to render your help for this mission, we''ll naturally assist you in this." The leader of the group didn''t feel annoyed with Grey''s words, it was the truth to begin with. It was just like the time they asked Grey to join them in the raid, they only asked him because they knew he was powerful, if he wasn''t, they wouldn''t be bothered with him. Grey stayed quiet for some time, looking around. He contemplated the matter for some time before nodding. Although he could leave on his own, it would be difficult for him, especially since his opponents would be too many. He has no problem when fighting against a crowd, but not a crowd of people whose strength was almost on his level when he goes all-out. "Great, we''ll be heading out in three days time, we are on the final stage of our plans." The leader nodded before walking deeper into the cave. Grey didn''t say anything else and went to sit down at a secluded corner, away from the people. Void was still in the capital, trying to snoop for any information. He didn''t forget to tell Void about seeing this group since this was one of the reasons he told Void to sneak into the city. Grey had his eyes closed, speaking with Void when a figure walked up to him. It was the young lady from the Faction he encountered in the town. "You came." The young lady said, a happy smile on her face. "I had no choice." Grey replied. The young lady heard Grey''s explanation the first time, so she didn''t bother to ask any further. She sat close to him and started to engage him in small talk. Grey decided to entertain. He listened to her words, while occasionally saying some things. He found out from the young lady that her name was Margaret, and she was from a Faction that can''t really be called a top Faction in the Region like the ones Klaus and the others joined, but it wasn''t a small one as well. It was a wind-based Faction. She and her companions were captured when they saw the horned race. They blindly charged into the formation the horned men did, and their strength was reduced by a lot. Before they could think of how to break free, they were quickly taken down by the group of horned men. Grey shook his head before asking how their experience here was. Margaret told him they were being transferred to a place called the white desert when the group of five intervened. ''Guess the top-level geniuses are sent to the white desert for proper extraction and refining.'' Grey thought to himself. Time slowly went by and other than Margaret, he spoke with a few more people. The day they planned to raid the capital finally arrived. Chapter 801 Raiding The Capital Chapter 801 Raiding The Capital Grey looked at the group as they prepared for the raid. "So, how do you plan to deal with the experts in the capital?" He asked. This was a question he asked the first time they asked him to join them, he refused because they didn''t give him any tangible reply. "According to what we''ve found out, the top experts are not in the capital. But they aren''t far from the capital as well. Since you''re good with arrays, you will work with her to create a large array that will block every single distress signal from going out." The leader of the group pointed at one of the young ladies in the group. She was among the five geniuses he fought with. "Have you seen the size of the city?" Grey looked at the leader of the group as if he was a clown. He didn''t expect them to create an array that would stop any signal from going out in such a short time. The capital was huge, it would take them a long time to complete, and the task was exhausting as well. "I''ve been working on it for some time now, I just need a few more details." The young lady stepped forward. "Oh, if that''s the case, then no problem." Grey nodded. He wasn''t someone who would shy away from things like this raid, but if these people wanted to stress him because of his skill, then he didn''t mind leaving them now. It wasn''t like he couldn''t escape on his own after all. The leader of the group continued assigning positions and gave out orders. He wasn''t a bad leader given how everyone seemed to listen to him. After almost thirty minutes of continuous speech, it was time to leave. When Grey heard their target, he couldn''t help but shake his head. He originally thought they wanted to raid the capital for treasures, only now did he know that they were doing this to save the humans inside the capital. They wanted to save every human they could find. ''How amusing.'' He said to himself as he followed the group. There was a reason they were doing this, and honestly, he does not care. He would only do something like this when someone he''s close with is captured. If not, he preferred not to involve himself in any squabbles that might be dangerous. A group of over twenty-five people walked out. Grey and the young lady were the first to leave the group since they had the job of securing their time there. The young lady had told Grey a few things about the array, but he would only know if to modify it after seeing it. The young lady made the array outside of the capital, linking small arrays together to form a large one that would cover the capital completely. What was left was to create the array at the front gate to ensure that the array will be complete. While the young lady was thinking of a plan. Grey strolled right to the front gate in a leisurely manner and before anyone could say a word, he used the fire and water element to create some sort of mist that spread out. In the blink of an eye, the vision of everyone there had been impaired. There was no way anyone would know he was not from the horned race with this much mist around. The guards at the front gate were alerted by this and quickly rushed forward. Before the few Wind Elementalists could use their wind element to blow the mist away, Grey was gone. Simple and effective. The young lady never thought that what she had been thinking about would be solved in such an easy way. Grey didn''t even act like someone who was making an effort, he only walked there and back within a few seconds and he not only created the array, but he did it unnoticed. This was the front gate of an enemy race! Grey''s boldness and quick thinking were something that astounded the young lady. "Having multiple elements has its perks." She couldn''t help but mutter when Grey returned. "Naturally." Grey nodded while looking at the alarmed horned people. He knew that the sudden mist would make them a little unsettled, but it wouldn''t really change anything. The group of five geniuses was the only Peak Overlord Plane Elementalists they had in their group. Even if most of the top level experts were not in the capital, there are bound to be some there. Grey had always been the cautious type, so whenever he made plans, he would think of every possible scenario that might happen. Void was still hidden from them, so they knew nothing of his hidden card. He also had his domain which he could use against even those top level experts here. The group got to where Grey and the young lady were located and the leader asked why they were still there. The young lady told him how Grey was able to easily complete the array. "Alright, we''ll continue as planned." The leader nodded, pleased at how Grey made things easier for them. "You will ensure that the array isn''t destroyed." The leader pointed at the young lady before turning his attention to Grey, "Your services are still needed inside." Grey nodded with a blank expression. The young man asked Grey if he could use his mist to hide them as they entered the city. Grey nodded and did as told. He asked if there were any other Dual Elementalists that had the water and fire element. Making mist was an easy trick, so it wasn''t something he had to teach them. Only one person had both the fire and water elements. They created a larger mist this time and even did what looked like a rainstorm above them with lightning dancing in the clouds. Seeing the lightning storm coming closer to the front gate, the guards were cautious, and a little confused. They didn''t know what to do, but seeing the mist below it, they knew this was not ordinary. Chapter 802 Raiding The Capital II Chapter 802 Raiding The Capital II Grey stood at the back of the group as they advanced forward. He didn''t want to draw any attention to himself. When the group got to where the gate to the capital was located, they attacked immediately. The second they attacked, the young lady who was in charge of the array activated it to ensure that there would be no way any news would be sent to the experts that weren''t in the city. The guards at the gate were only in the Origin Plane, so they were basically useless against these youths. Each of the people present in the group was already in the Late stages of the Overlord Plane. Other than the five who were at the Peak of the Overlord Plane, ten were in the Ninth stage of the Overlord Plane, right were in the Eighth stage of the Overlord Plane, and the rest were in the Seventh stage of the Overlord Plane. The array they set outside would ensure that no signals were sent out from the city. They closed the gates to ensure that everyone stayed inside. The array was also solid, this way it would stop anyone that wanted to escape from the encirclement. Grey looked at the lightning cloud above him and shook his hand gently. Tiny particles made from the darkness element flew into the sky, spreading in the entire city. Due to the size of the city, it was impossible for him to use it to poison everyone. That was never his plan in the first place. He had done a few types of research on the horned race and surprisingly, he noticed they were weak against the darkness element. Once it manages to get into their body, it would be able to cause great harm to them. It would decrease their fighting capabilities first off. Presently, this was what Grey wanted. Since he was part of the group, he naturally had to make sure things went smoothly. Void had already mapped out all the places that had humans as either slaves or captives. Not just that, but there were also a few places where he sensed treasures. Grey planned on visiting those places while the others saved the humans there. The moment the group entered the city, they spread into groups of three. Grey didn''t group up with anyone. He preferred moving alone. He wasn''t the only one who moved alone, all those at the Peak of the Overlord Plane did the same. Each group had at least one Ninth stage Overlord Plane Elementalist, and a distress signal to alert the others in case they encountered a situation they couldn''t deal with. Grey''s target was none other than the treasures Void sensed, and unsurprisingly, it was in the center of the city. The place where the largest building was located. While he was rushing there, he noticed powerful auras rushing from different parts of the city and heading in the direction of the city gate. He could already hear the sounds of battles ongoing in different places. He made sure to evade all of them. It would be best if he could get to the building without being noticed. Unfortunately, things never go to plan. A young horned man blocked his path. The horned man had two colored horns, and even his eyes were two different colors. He was already at the Peak of the Overlord Plane. "I can''t go unnoticed, huh?" Grey looked at the horned man before him with a cold gaze. ???s ??????? ?s ?????? ?? ????w???ov??.co? "I never expected your kind would fight back." The horned man said in a cool and collected manner. It was like he didn''t think of Grey as an opponent. Grey didn''t even bother to speak, with a wave of his hand, he sent a fireball at the young horned man. The horned man snorted coldly before summoning a large bird made of ice. The bird looked so lifelike that it had Grey a little surprised. The bird screeched before charging at Grey''s fireball. It collided with the fireball and shot past it as if it didn''t even exist. Grey''s fire element was his strongest element, so the fact that this bird could ignore the attack showed how powerful it was. He didn''t feel any sense of pressure from it, rather, a smirk appeared on his face. Just as the bird was within a few meters of him, it opened its mouth and spat out an icy wind in Grey''s direction. An earth wall appeared in front of Grey, easily blocking the icy wind. The strength of Grey''s earth defense was on another level presently. The bird didn''t stop its attack there, ice shards appeared on its large feathers as they shot at Grey. The ice shards continuously slammed into the earth wall, but it stood steadfast. A light flashed through the eyes of the horned man and a lightning bolt struck the earth wall. The wall shook and cracks started to appear on it. The ice bird continued its attack and the wall finally broke down. The bird charged past the wall, hoping to use its sharp ice claws to slash Grey. Grey chuckled and his eyes glowed with a mysterious light. The ice bird which was flying in his direction suddenly slammed into the ground when it got within five meters of Grey. The sudden change in gravity took it unaware and before it could even react it was shattered. ''Nice.'' Grey was pleased with the result of his test. This was the first time he was using his newly acquired power, and it was quite impressive. He charged at the young horned man, but to his surprise, the horned man retreated, not wanting to engage in a physical battle with him. The horned man continued attacking with his elements alone. Grey evaded and countered as their battle raged on. The capital city of the horned race was thrown into chaos with explosions ringing out from different locations as a result of the battles going on. The children and the weak all rushed to hide so they wouldn''t be caught in the battle. This was a battle that even those in the Early stages of the Overlord Plane would be able to impact, much less people that weren''t even in the Overlord Plane. Chapter 803 Dreadful Attack Chapter 803 Dreadful Attack Boom! The battles in the city raged on. On the side of the four Peak Overlord Plane geniuses who entered the city, they were engaged in a tough battle with multiple opponents. Luckily, no one at the Peak had attacked them yet. Of all the people present, Grey was the only one fighting against a Peak Overlord Plane Elementalist. As his battle with his opponent raged on, more horned men rushed over, all in the Mid stages of the Overlord Plane. ''These guys are going to lose a lot of fighters.'' Void commented from the side as he watched the battle from a rooftop. He was swinging his tail from left to right, not bothered with the fact that Grey was outnumbered. When Grey saw over fifty people rushing toward him, he couldn''t help but curse his bad luck. Opening both arms, multiple inscriptions appeared in the sky. The reason he preferred using two or three inscriptions when fighting was because he could maximize the strength of his attacks then. But with over five inscriptions, the strength of each attack would reduce significantly. He had no choice in a situation like this. Being the only person who was heading towards the palace, he was bound to attract all the attention in the city. He didn''t feel bothered by so many people rushing toward him. His hair blew in the wind as he rushed into the crowd of horned men. His physical strength was on the Eighth stage of the Overlord Plane as well, if he reinforced it with his elements, then his attack power would be a force to be reckoned with. What made things even better was that with that light element, he could heal from all the hits he would eventually take while fighting against these people. Grey''s figure moved like a shadow within the crowd while his inscriptions attacked as well. He threw blows, used his legs, even headbutted one of the men who got too close to him. The young horned man at the Peak of the Overlord Plane marveled at the performance of Grey and was forced to rush in as well. He initially wanted to watch the crowd overpower Grey, but he knew from the way things were going, that they wouldn''t even be able to cause him any harm, much less overpower him. Grey was hit while fighting against the crowd, but his light element was in full throttle as it worked to heal all the places he was hit while he fought. In two minutes, Grey had taken out over thirty-five percent of the crowd. The young horned man''s intervention in the battle slowed him down since he knew he couldn''t neglect the attacks of the young horned man. While fighting, he had been utilizing the gravitational force field, this had helped in putting his opponents off. He would disappear from a spot, and when he appeared in another location, he would immediately increase the gravity. Even for these people from the horned race who were used to such gravitational powers, the sudden change still affected them. Grey also utilized his space element, manipulating it to the extreme. The young horned man managed to force him out of the crowd, and he slammed into a building, destroying the entire building from the crash. Before the crowd could even relax, Grey''s figure shot into the sky and he opened both hands. Large boulders covered in powerful blue flames appeared in the sky. "Meteor descent." The large boulders fell from the sky, landing on different buildings as well as where the crowd was located. Grey minimized the size of the attack so as not to cause too many collateral damages. He was sure that their battles had already killed a few innocent citizens in this area. Although they weren''t humans, it didn''t mean that he condoned killing innocent people. The horned men rushed to block the boulders in the sky, as they tried to protect themselves. The young horned man at the Peak of the Overlord Plane created a lightning and ice sword and rushed at the boulders, slicing them apart. When they finished dealing with the boulders, Grey''s figure vanished from the sky and appeared in their midst. He opened both hands and a powerful repelling force spread out from the middle where he was standing, pushing everyone and everyone away from him. The power of the move was on another level that even the young horned man at the Peak of the Overlord Plane didn''t dare to take it head-on. He covered himself with ice and tried to block the mysterious repelling force from advancing. Unfortunately, his strength was not enough to stop it from advancing. This attack created a large empty space within a seven hundred meters radius. Everything and everyone within that range was either wiped out or forced out. The repercussion of such an attack was something that was dreadful. Even the four geniuses at the Peak of the Overlord Plane couldn''t help but look in the direction of the attack. They sensed it even though they were well over five hundred meters away from where the attack ended. The soldiers fighting against them also looked in that direction. Every single individual in the city had their attention in the same direction. The place where the attack originated from. At the center of the rubble, Grey could be seen standing leisurely. He looked a little exhausted after the attack. "I never thought it would be this powerful if I used my entire strength." He muttered as he looked at his hands. This was a powerful attack that scared even him. There was no building left standing around him, they were all in rubbles. He scratched his head awkwardly and looked in a particular direction. The ground shook and a figure crawled out from the ground. It was none other than the young horned man at the Peak of the Overlord Plane. His current appearance was a far cry from what he looked like when he arrived. He turned around slowly, looking at the aftermath of Grey''s attack. Seeing debris and the dead bodies of the soldiers that attacked Grey, he flew into rage and his horns lit up. "You animal!" Chapter 804 Upheaval In The Capital Chapter 804 Upheaval In The Capital "What? You''re allowed to kill my kind and I''m not allowed to do the same?" Grey looked at the furious young horned man. He''s encountered people like this since the start of his cultivation journey. To people like this, he didn''t even have an ounce of strength to explain himself or any of his actions. "No, you''re not." The young man said through gritted teeth and attacked Grey. There was a significant boost in the strength of the young man, evidently, the glowing of his horns seemed to improve his strength. Grey couldn''t be bothered with the strength the young horned man was displaying. "I hate hypocrites the most." His eyes went cold and he vanished. When he appeared, he was standing beside the young horned man. The horned man was already prepared for this and he attacked with his lightning element. However, he felt the air grow heavier and he fell from the sky, heading to the ground. Just as his figure hit the ground, he felt an intense heat, looking around, all he could see was a sea of blue flames. Grey unleashed his domain. Even though he planned to keep it till the end, he wanted to kill this young horned man so badly that he didn''t even care about it. Besides, it wasn''t as if there were others here in the first place. The horned man covered himself with ice in hopes to shield himself from the fire. Unfortunately, once caught in this inferno, very few in the Overlord Plane would be able to escape from it alive. Grey watched as the ice melted away and the young man tried all he could to escape, but he was unable to leave the range of the domain. He shrieked in pain as his eyes turned red. All he could see at this point was his death. He was just about to beat Grey up for killing people of his race, now, he was about to be killed by the same person he thought he would beat up. "Damn it! I''ll take you down with me!" He roared and his horns glowed even brighter. Grey knew he was about to explode all the essence in his horns. "Futile efforts." He muttered. He looked around and saw one of the soldiers that managed to survive his attack and switched places with him. The young man had already initiated the self-destruct, so even after Grey was nowhere to be seen, he was still unable to stop it. "No¡­ no¡­" He dragged his horns, trying to rip them off. He noticed that the second Grey left, the flaming inferno he was caged in faded off, this meant that he still had a chance to survive. Sadly, he had already initiated the self-destruct in hopes of taking Grey with him. He looked at Grey, and the last thing he saw before dying was Grey''s smiling face as he waved him goodbye. Grey looked on as a large explosion rang out. The effect of the explosion was almost on the same level as Grey''s last attack. Being prepared for it, Grey was able to easily deal with the attack. When the explosion died down, the earth wall around him fell to the ground. "Not bad. I guess the horns in my possession have another use." He chuckled before he continued moving forward. He knew this wouldn''t be the last battle he would have to fight since more opponents would be coming. But he wasn''t afraid, as long as he didn''t face someone in the Sage Plane, he felt confident in his abilities. If his opponent was too powerful, he would enter the Fusion State and beat the crap out of the person. The second explosion from Grey''s side of the battle stunned everyone. It hadn''t even been more than two minutes since the first explosion, yet there was a second explosion almost on the same level. "Who headed in that direction?" Gil looked in that direction curiously. He had already defeated all the people in front of him, and the cages in front of him were destroyed. The place he was standing looked like an arena. This was one of the places where humans were forced to fight for their lives against beasts, or even each other. Gil told the men to join them in their plan to rescue all the people that were captured in the capital. The rescued people had no option other than to agree. The reason for this was that most of them held deep-seated hatred for the horned race. A few of them had been here for over fifty years, fighting for survival frequently. After being put through such difficult situations, all they wanted to do was to rip the people from the horned race apart. Gil nodded and rushed in another direction. He was curious as to who went in that direction, but he didn''t change their plans. The leader of the group gave him orders, and he wanted to carry them out. Thinking about all the people that were given orders, his mind went to a particular figure, Grey. He was the only one who was given the freedom to move as he pleased. The chances that Grey was the one behind all the ruckus were very high. He wasn''t the only one with this thought, the others felt the same as well. They were each given an area to deal with. And none of those places had anything to do with the center of the city. They were told to meet at the center of the city after they were done with their objectives. The reason they spread out was so as to ensure that the forces of the horned race would have to separate as well. They were at a disadvantage when it came to numbers. Minimizing their strength was the best thing they could do. The upheaval Grey caused at the center of the city helped them even more since everyone from the horned race was rushing in that direction, giving the others the freedom to act more quickly. In fact, Grey was unconsciously making the mission easier than they expected. Chapter 805 Massacre In The Capital Chapter 805 Massacre In The Capital Boom! Grey continued his onward movement, not phased by anything that tried to block his path. He hadn''t fought against any other Peak Overlord Plane Elementalists, but he had defeated countless people from the horned race who tried to stop him. When he was around one thousand meters or so from the palace, he felt the gravity suddenly increase. ''I see, they planned an ambush. Unfortunately, you''re not the only ones who can play with gravity.'' He smirked internally and tried to fight gravity with gravity. He sensed friction in space when he sent out his gravitational force field. Luckily, the force field was on a small scale, so the friction wasn''t that high. ''Hmm, I see.'' He squinted his eyes. The situation was a little dangerous, but he managed to escape from any problems. The clash of two opposing gravitational force fields was something that even the tough space here was almost unable to handle. Grey acted as if he was impeded by the force field and stopped advancing momentarily. He only continued after much difficulty. Everyone could sense that his movement isn''t as easy as it previously was. When those from the horned race saw this, they sighed in relief. Grey had been a huge problem for them. Even though they were well aware that there were others in different parts of the city, none of them had caused as much damage as Grey had done. Grey didn''t fly because he was also using the opportunity to monitor things. Void told him there were two Peak Overlord Plane Elementalists hiding in wait. Not just that, but there are over five in the palace. If he rushed inside the palace, he risked doing all the tough tasks in this raid. This wasn''t how he planned it from the start. ''Void, you''ll deal with one while I deal with the other one.'' He said to Void who was nowhere to be seen. ''Got it.'' Void''s voice echoed in his head. Grey didn''t head in the direction of the Peak Overlord Plane horned race member, instead, he focused on the multiple horned men rushing at him. The soldiers numbered in hundreds, and he was sure this was not all. If he fought against them all, he would be exhausted. ''You guys gave me a powerful weapon and think I won''t use it?'' An evil grin appeared on Grey''s face as he rushed into the crowd. When he got into the crowd, a breathtaking scene followed soon after. Wherever Grey passed, the horned man would scream in pain and burst apart. Grey didn''t forget to grab the horns before they were destroyed as well. The fact that this could cause friction in space was already evidence enough to show how powerful it was, now that he was using it as a means of attack, these people wouldn''t be able to even defend against it, much less survive it. The soldiers started to retreat in fear. All they heard were screams from their comrades wherever Grey passed through. It was as if Grey was a death god. What made things worse was that they didn''t see him attacking, yet he was killing those close to him. All those he had killed were still in the Mid stages of the Overlord Plane. When he got close to where those in the Late stages of the Overlord Plane were, they noticed the anomaly. "He''s using gravity against us. Break the formation!" One of the men in the horned race screamed before his head burst apart. They gave Grey a deadly weapon, and he was using it to full effect. If not for the fact that this man was able to sense it, then the others wouldn''t know what killed them. Hearing the scream of the man before he died, those who created the formation couldn''t help but exchange glances. This was something they hadn''t heard of before, so they found it quite difficult to believe. A few felt the man yelled this because he was on the verge of dying and wasn''t thinking properly. It was only after ten more Late stage Overlord Plane Elementalists who managed to survive long before dying yelled the same thing did they finally believe it. Even the two Peak Overlord Plane Elementalists in the group were stunned. Other than using the effect of the gravitational force field as a means of slowing and weakening their opponents, they had never seen any other way of using it to attack. Yet, Grey was using it so easily. They hastily broke the formation, and when Grey got to where the next horned man was, the man fell to the ground from the sudden powerful gravitational force field around Grey. This opened the eyes of all those watching. "He made a force field around him. Doesn''t that mean that both are clashing all this while?" One of the men that made the formation asked. "This is what he had been using to kill our people. Such an evil individual, he shouldn''t be allowed to live past today." One of the two Peak Overlord Plane horned men said through gritted teeth. In the history of the horned race, Grey was probably the only person who had killed the highest number of their people with their own technique. What was worse was that they had a hand in helping him in his actions. The thought alone infuriated all those that made up the formation. "They figured it out already? A shame, I was already getting the hang of this." Grey shook his head as he looked at the horned men that were on the ground around him. Multiple black orbs appeared on his palm that rotated before each heading for a horned man. The horned men could only watch as the orb touched them. The second it touched them, those watching saw their comrades disappearing from view as if they were never there. Grey was a frightening figure, and he killed without even blinking. This was what scared the members of the horned race even more. His methods of killing were numerous. ''Is he part of the same humans we have been capturing for years now?'' This was the thought that entered the head of almost every single member of the horned race as they watched Grey''s horrifying methods. Chapter 806 Disappear Chapter 806 Disappear Grey stood in the middle of multiple horned soldiers, but none of them dared to get close to him. A smile appeared on his face as he took a step forward. He realized that these guys were already too scared to even block his path any longer. "Move aside, you will only die if you try blocking my path." He stated calmly. He didn''t seem like someone who was in another realm, encircled by people from another race. Rather, he looked like someone who was taking a stroll in his backyard. This was one of the things that the soldiers found annoying, unfortunately, they knew they were no match for him. What Grey did with the gravity already terrified them, seeing how he made those horned men vanish made things worse. Unknown to them, all Grey did was to use the logic from the wind element. If two opposing forces spinned in different directions, it would form something like a grater where they meet. He noticed this when he tried to use his gravitational force field against the one those from the horned race created. When he sensed the potential of the skill, he hid from the powerful figures. Only after killing many horned men did they finally find out. Now, with the gravitational field around him, anyone who got within five meters of him would feel a powerful pressure that would force them to the ground. This was the reason all these soldiers stared at him but didn''t attack. While Grey was moving forward, he saw a figure standing in front of his path. "Your journey ends here." The horned man said coldly. He was in the Ninth stage of the Overlord Plane, and Grey could tell his strength was well above ordinary people at the Ninth stage. "I can say the same for you." Grey replied. The horned man gave a nod and all the soldiers beside him created a space for them to engage in battle. ???? ????s? ???????s ?? ????. "The general would teach him who''s boss. Once the general beats him up, we will have the fun of tearing him piece by piece." Some of the soldiers engaged in a battle. Grey overheard them but didn''t feel much from it. He had defeated a genius at the Peak of the Overlord Plane, so he didn''t feel threatened by someone who still hadn''t even entered the Peak of the Overlord Plane yet. When the general saw Grey''s calm expression, he took a step forward and entered the five meters mark. He didn''t flinch even after the pressure descended on him. Grey was a little taken aback, but he didn''t feel pressured. He didn''t underestimate the horned man, even though he was confident he would beat him, he still didn''t underestimate him. The man charged at him after getting accustomed to the pressure. Grey blocked the attack of the horned man, but he was pushed back from the first blow. He shook off the slight discomfort he felt in his hands and continued his fight with the horned man. They engaged purely in a fist fight, and Grey finally started to understand that a well-trained general of an army shouldn''t be compared to a genius. The general''s skill and decision-making in battle were well ahead of Grey''s. Even though Grey had superior elemental power, the general was more technical. Grey was forced to start using his elemental powers just after two minutes of constant battle. He was on the back foot all through the time. The general attacked sensibly, not giving Grey the chance he wanted to use his flashy moves. While Grey was still having difficulties dealing with him, the general brought out a weapon. A spear that had five different colors, blue, red, brown, silver, and black. Grey felt genuine pressure from the sword. ''Hey, take the spear, it''s good.'' Void''s voice echoed in his head. ''I can tell.'' Grey brought out one of the elemental weapons he had in his storage ring. He engaged in combat with the general, and he wasn''t able to take the advantage. However, he wasn''t at a disadvantage as well. He fought sensibly now and gave the general very little opportunities to hit him. The duo paused after fighting for over five minutes. "You''re a powerful opponent, I must give you that." The general commented and looked at Grey in a new light. "I can say the same for you. You''re not on the same level as those geniuses from your race I''ve fought against." Grey replied. "Sadly, everything has an end. This will be the end of you. I hope you lived a good life till now." The general said and took an attacking pose with the spear stretched in front of him, aiming at Grey. "I''ve been living a good life, and I will continue living a good life." Grey held his sword and prepared to attack as well. Both parties looked at each other and vanished from their spots. All those in a lower stage saw was a bright light flashing. A minute later, Grey and the general''s figure stopped moving and they stared at each other. "Goodbye." Grey said and kept his sword. Even though the general was powerful, against Grey''s array of elements, he still fell in the end. Grey walked over to him and tapped him on the shoulder, "I will take this now. You don''t know how to fully utilize it." He took the spear from the hands of the general who stood still, not able to move. His eyes were placed on Grey''s figure. He tried to speak and blood came out of his mouth. "Let me show you the magnificent power of this spear of yours before you pass on." Grey held the spear in the sky and an orb started to appear on the tip. The orb had five colors, identical to the one around the spear. All those from the horned race sensed a powerful energy converging on the tip of the general''s spear and they couldn''t help but look at Grey. This was an attack the general had only been able to use once in battle, yet Grey was using it with such freedom. "Disappear." Chapter 807 Appearance Of An Old Expert Chapter 807 Appearance Of An Old Expert "Disappear." Right after Grey''s voice died down, a large explosion followed suit. The orb sitting at the tip of the spear shone with a bright light before spreading out in all directions. "Fast, stop it." The Peak Overlord Plane horned man by the side yelled and jumped out from where he was hiding. He wasn''t the only one who came out, three more Peak Overlord Plane horned men jumped out as well as they tried to contain the explosion. If they allowed this explosion to happen, then at least eighty percent of the soldiers left alive would die, not just that, but the destruction that would happen was too large. Grey had already destroyed some parts of the city, this explosion was going to have a larger impact compared to the last one. All four Peak Overlord Plane horned men joined hands together to stop the explosion, after expending most of their strength, they managed to contain it. "That''s nice, I wonder how you plan to deal with the second one." Grey said with a slight smile on his face. The four men looked at each other horrified, when they saw a second orb on the tip of the spear, their pupils shrunk. "Run!" They turned to the soldiers and fled as well. They could protect themselves, but they couldn''t protect those soldiers. Luckily, they started evacuating the citizens to a protected area close to the palace. Even though not everyone had moved yet, the casualties wouldn''t be too high. Grey flew into the sky and looked on as the second orb exploded. The first orb which was contained by the Peak Overlord Plane horned men escaped and exploded as well. With both explosions combining, the effect would be almost double what one would cause. This explosion drew the attention of everyone once again. The four youths at the Peak of the Overlord Plane looked in that direction once again. "What the hell is going on?" The leader of the group was stunned. It hadn''t even been up to ten minutes since the last explosion, yet a larger one had happened. He knew for a fact that Grey was the only one who went in that direction, but he never expected him to cause this much of a ruckus. While they were trying to rescue all the humans, Grey was causing havoc in the city. They didn''t know if they should be happy since this drew all the attention of the top horned men to him leaving them to carry out their mission peacefully, or they should be worried since the explosions are bound to harm the humans that were in that area. Grey naturally didn''t care about all this, all that mattered to him was getting the treasure inside the palace. Even if he had to tear this place apart piece by piece, he would. Well, unless the experts that weren''t in the capital rushed over, then he would escape without a second thought. Once he was done with this mission, his target was leaving this place, he was sure that was the plan of the five geniuses as well. They couldn''t rescue every human here since they didn''t even know how big this place was. From the map Grey had, he knew this place was by no means small. It was even bigger than the Azure Continent with multiple cities. The only reason they appeared this close to the capital was all because where the portal appeared was not too far from the capital. ''This should show more of an effect.'' Grey thought as he looked at the explosion. He added the darkness element into the orb to ensure once it exploded, it would send out darkness particles across the place. Given the size of the place, the first one barely showed its effect. Once he added this to it, then the effect would be seen more clearly. As long as these Peak Overlord Plane horned men were weakened by a bit, then he wouldn''t have to fear them. They would still be a problem, but at least it wouldn''t be too much for him to handle. A minute later, the explosion died down and the horned men rushed back. "You evil thing, I will kill you personally." One of the men said. The man had red horns which indicated the fire element. "Fiery." Grey commented casually. He didn''t feel pressured by the men. He knew they were all slowly getting weaker, so he didn''t have to fear them. The horned men rushed at him, not giving him any chance to think. Grey smirked and his figure blinked, when he appeared again, he was standing between two of the Peak Overlord Plane horned men. In his previous spot was the horned man that was standing where he was currently standing. The second he appeared, he attacked, sending the two horned men flying. They never expected this, but they still reacted accordingly. They hurriedly tried to block the attack, but it still sent them flying. Grey rushed after them as he tried to take one of them out before the others would be able to join in on the battle. Unfortunately, the red horned man rushed over and blocked him. "You slippery brat, I will kill you." The man yelled and attacked. Grey didn''t panic as he blocked the attack that the man sent his way. They noticed that he preferred elemental attacks, so they did the same as well. The battle flared quickly and Grey was crowded by all four men. The men were well organized, and after fighting with each other for so long, they understood each other perfectly. Grey was placed at a disadvantage, and he couldn''t even block their attacks perfectly. ''This is them in a weakened state? How powerful will they be in their full strength?'' He was stunned. The horned men were stronger than he predicted. It was just like when he was fighting against the general, even though he was confident in his abilities, he never thought that the general would be that powerful. It was only after exchanging blows with him did he know that he was powerful. ''Void, I thought you were supposed to deal with one of them?'' Grey couldn''t help but ask. ''I did, he''s here, unable to leave. Guess a few of them hid too well.'' Void replied. Grey was forced to continue fighting against the four men. He slowly started to emit darkness particles to ensure that they started to grow weaker as time went on. Bang! Grey slammed into the ground after receiving an attack from one of the men. The red horned man was the one who was attacking aggressively. It was almost as if he wanted to ensure that Grey died. ''Damn it! These people are too troublesome.'' Grey complained. He created a fusion orb that exploded when the men came close to him. The strength of the attack pushed them back as they tried to attack him. Grey rushed at the man who was weaker amongst the four of them and started bombarding him with attacks. When he saw the others coming his way, he sent out a second fusion orb that pushed them back. The horned men knew his plan so they tried to ensure that he wouldn''t be able to kill the man he picked. If Grey succeeded, then he would be take out all the others as well. Five minutes later. Bang! One of the horned men slammed into the ground. It was surprisingly the red horned man. Grey was able to target him and hit him with a powerful attack. The red horned man started to bleed as the attack hit him. ''They''re getting weaker.'' Grey noticed a change. Previously, he wouldn''t have been able to hit them with this attack, but this time, he managed to break through his defense and hit him solidly. "You still think you can defeat me?" Grey looked at the red horned man and threw a fusion orb at him. The benefit of the fusion orb was that he could use it as much as he wanted to. His essence capacity was too high, so even if he used the attack continuously for hours, he wouldn''t run out of elemental essence. The red horned man watched on as the orb got to his body. Just as it was about to explode, another horned man appeared. This man was older with wrinkles on his body. His hair was white and his beard was long, almost on his chest. "Kid, you''re powerful, I will give you that. But you''re not on our level. If not for your ingenious plan, you wouldn''t have been able to even hit them." The old man said with both hands behind him. "I don''t know what you''re saying." Grey replied with a calm face. "You''re smart, but attacking this place was your biggest mistake." The old man said. Grey looked at the man but didn''t say anything, he could feel some sort of pressure from the man. This man was not ordinary. Chapter 808 Voids Involvement Chapter 808 Void''s Involvement Grey looked on as the old man dealt with the fusion orb easily. It was as if the orb wasn''t even a challenge for him. ''The darkness element. No wonder he noticed what I did.'' He thought to himself. The old man looked at Grey with a calm expression. He wasn''t bothered by him, with a tap, the red horned man that was on the ground started to heal up. ''Hmm, he has the light element as well.'' Grey''s eyes narrowed as he looked at the old horned man. Only after seeing this did he take his time to look at his horns. Now he understood why he missed the horn, they were very small. Compared to the horns of others, this old man''s horn was very small. "Kid, I''ll let you live if you agree to give us your elemental core. This is a good deal for you since you get to keep your life." The old man said. To him, he was already being lenient with Grey, given the number of people Grey had killed, he was supposed to be executed in front of the entire kingdom, but since he could tell that Grey was extremely talented, he wanted his core. "Actually, I can say the same for you. Remove your horns, and you just might not get to feel the pain when I do it myself." Grey smiled. This old man might be powerful, but he was still in the Overlord Plane. Only someone in the Sage Plane can threaten him at this moment, and unfortunately for the horned race, there was no one in said Plane. "Don''t underestimate me kid, I''m not someone you can deal with." The old man didn''t feel annoyed with Grey''s statement. He also knew that their horns were valuable to people from other races. It was just like the way they were capturing humans for their cores. "You might be powerful, but you''re not enough to threaten me." Grey''s eyes went cold. ''Void, deal with him. And make it quick.'' He said to Void telepathically. Void quickly killed the Overlord Plane horned man he kept captive and appeared behind the old man. The old man sensed the vibration in the space behind him and turned around to attack. He knew Grey had the space element, so he felt Grey was trying to attack him from behind. He threw a fist in that direction, but what he met was a large claw that sent him flying. Void''s current size was well over two meters in length and over one meter tall. He wasn''t like the cute little cat he always portrayed anymore. Grey attacked the red horned man with the opportunity that presented itself from Void''s attack. His fusion orb struck the red horned man who was still in the midst of recovery after the old man healed him. The other three horned men rushed over to block Grey. But he used his inscriptions to ward them off and focused on dealing with the red horned man. The old man was infuriated by Grey''s complete disregard for him and tried to get involved in the battle. However, he was blocked by Void. "Get out of my way!" He threw a palm that was covered with a black light in Void''s direction. Void opened his mouth and spat out a fireball that crashed with the palm and destroyed the black light. Void''s strength was not something the old man could take lightly. When he realized this, he knew that there was no hope for him to be able to intervene in the battle. What was worse was that he hadn''t cleansed the other horned men who were fighting with Grey. He only cleansed the red horned man since he was the one closest to him. "You impudent creature, I''ll skin you in the presence of your master." The old man stated coldly and attacked Void. "He''s not my master." Void replied and vanished. He appeared behind the man and attacked. The old man was able to block the attack, but he was pushed back by the attack. Void and the old man continued exchanging blows while Grey focused on the red horned man. With the weakening of the three horned men at the Peak of the Overlord Plane, they found it difficult to fight against the inscriptions. Grey created six inscriptions to ensure that the attacks on the horned men will be sufficient to stop them. Nonetheless, they still managed to stop him from killing the red horned man. They were, after all, at the Peak of the Overlord Plane, and they were very experienced fighters. The battle raged on with Grey fighting against four opponents while Void was dealing with the old man. The few soldiers who returned could only watch from the side. If they tried to get involved, they would only make things difficult for their superiors. They couldn''t even make use of their famed formation since Grey would just counter it with his own, putting their superiors in danger in the process. Although Grey had the upper hand, he still got hit a few times by his opponents. It couldn''t be helped, they were very powerful. Just when the four were starting to feel they still had a chance, a change occurred on Void''s side of the battle. The old man who was being pushed back by Void suddenly froze, unable to dodge Void''s claw attack. The claw hit him solidly on the chest and he slammed to the ground. Before he could even move once again, Void appeared almost at the same time he slammed into the ground and continued his vicious assault. Seeing the old man in trouble, the four horned men discarded their battle with Grey and rushed in that direction. When they were twenty meters away from Void, they felt a powerful repulsion that pushed them back. Grey appeared behind one of the horned men and the spear he took from the general pierced through his chest. "You should focus on your battle." Grey whispered in the ears of the horned man. He knew Void had used his domain, so he was more or less certain that the four horned men wouldn''t be able to get close to Void. He quickly capitalized on the situation and injured one of them. Chapter 809 Retreat Chapter 809 Retreat Twisting the spear, Grey removed the spear and just as it got to the tip, it exploded out destroying the body of the man to bits. The three horned men were stunned when they saw this. Void was assaulting the old horned man, while Grey on the other hand didn''t spare the opportunity presented to him. The three horned men were forced to fight against him since there was no way to get to Void. Their plan was to apprehend Grey and use him as a bargaining chip. They could tell that Void was here because of Grey, so if he saw Grey captured, he would most definitely let the old horned man go. They fought desperately, but Grey held his own against them. His inscription and the space element made it difficult for the horned men to surround him. While they were still fighting, they heard a scream coming from where Void and the old man were fighting. Looking in that direction, they saw Void plucking out the horns of the old man. It was just like Grey said, if the old man didn''t offer up his horns by himself, then he would have to go through the pains of watching them being plucked out. Void didn''t go easy on him as he removed the horns either. In the most ruthless and savage way, he removed the horns. The shrieks of the old man sent chills down the spines of every horned man present. Every member of the horned race would never want to experience this event. Removing the horns of a member of the horned race was not only a sign of embarrassment, it was the most gruesome thing that could happen to them. Grey didn''t really care about all this, and neither did Void. He removed the horns and moved them in the face of the old man. The man held his face as he screamed in pain. He could feel his strength slowly receding. Their essence was stored in their horns, so losing it meant that they would gradually lose their strength. It was evident from the second the horns were removed. "Now, die." Void said coldly and the space around the old man started to distort. It was his special space attack. The old man tried to fight against it, but he was already beaten by Void, adding the fact that his horns were ripped off, and his strength was not even close to someone in the Ninth stage of the Overlord Plane. He could only watch on as his body disintegrated into nothing. Grey was the more focused fighter on his side. The death of the old man alarmed the three horned men he was fighting. They were unable to fight properly which gave him the chance to fight without pressure. "What are you all doing? Attack them!" The red horned man was forced to call on the strength of the soldiers. They couldn''t fight like this, especially with Void watching from the side. The soldiers nodded and rushed into the scene. Grey was forced to divide his attention to the soldiers. Void also joined in on the battle as well. Boom! Bang! Bam! The explosions from the attacks were massive, and as time passed, more and more soldiers started to flood the place. Grey might be powerful when fighting against a large crowd, but thousands of people were a little too much for him, especially when there are hundreds of Ninth stage Overlord Plane Elementalists and over ten at the Peak of the Overlord Plane. The three horned men at the Peak of the Overlord Plane managed to call over more people at the Peak. Even though they were not on their level, they could still hold Grey and Void back. ''Grey, they''re too much. Should we retreat?'' Void asked. The numbers were increasing as time went on, it was as if the soldiers were infinite. Grey assessed the situation, and after realizing that it would be impossible for him to advance any further, he decided it was best for them to retreat. He was almost certain that his involvement had dragged all the powerful figures to this part of the city. He knew from the start that if he created a large scene, this would happen. ''Well, I''ve got a good number of horns, let''s retreat then.'' Grey said and turned around decisively. He wasn''t someone who would risk his life for a treasure. Besides, if not for the leader of the geniuses who wanted his help, he wouldn''t have come here in the first place. The battles he fought here had taught him a few things, so he was satisfied. When the horned men noticed that he was escaping, they were infuriated. Grey wanted to leave like that after what he did to them, impossible! Those at the Peak of the Overlord Plane chased after him with everything they had. ''They''re chasing us.'' Void said when he saw them. ''Guess it''s time to give them some parting gifts.'' Grey smiled and two horns appeared in his hands. These were horns he took from the people of the horned race. After playing with it for a while, he threw them in the direction of the horned men chasing him. "Insolence!" The red horned man yelled in annoyance, if he had the chance, he would rip Grey to pieces. This was the first time he was seeing someone attack them with their horns. What was worse was that they knew how powerful an explosion from the horns would cause. Just looking at the horns showed that it was taken from a Late stage Overlord Plane Elementalists. The horns exploded, but the horned men were already out of its range. This action made them want to capture Grey all the more. Grey, noticing that they dodged the first one, smiled. "I can play all day." With that, he brought out another pair of horns and tossed them at the horned men chasing after him. The horned men were red from anger. They had never been this angry in their lives. Grey was throwing horns at them, horns from their race. Most of the horns were from the soldiers Grey killed not too long ago. They noticed him taking the horns, but they couldn''t stop him. Chapter 810 Drag Them All Here Chapter 810 Drag Them All Here Grey and Void rushed through the city, heading for the exit. He had been going in circles trying to stall for time for the others, but he felt he had already done enough. They had been in the city for over thirty minutes now, if the others still hadn''t completed their mission, it had nothing to do with him. If they still couldn''t easily rescue the humans after he dragged out all the top experts in the city, then they were incompetent and slow. While Grey was escaping, he saw Gil and the leader of the group heading in his direction. "Done?" He asked. The duo nodded. "Thanks to you, things were smoother than we planned." The leader of the group replied. "Nice." Grey didn''t stop while speaking to them, he rushed past them and continued heading in the direction of the exit of the city. Gil and the leader of the group wanted to ask what was wrong, but after sensing the infuriated roars from the horned men chasing after Grey, they decided it was best to run away for now. The auras they were sensing were not something they could deal with, especially given the number of people rushing there. They turned in Grey''s direction, fleeing as well. "Duck!" Grey''s voice came from ahead of them. A confused look appeared on their faces, but seeing the shining horns that were coming their way, they didn''t need anyone to tell them what to do. The horns exploded in front of the horned men chasing after them, sending the horned men into rage once again. "Ah¡­ I''ll kill you, I''ll kill you all!" The red horned man yelled. He was literally on the verge of going mad. Grey was insulting them with his antics. What was worse was that Grey had been going in circles, trying to buy time for the others, and he had also expended tons of horns in a bid to slow the horned men down. "Isn''t that one of the horns of those guys?" Gil asked as they caught up to Grey. "Yap, it''s quite handy, don''t you think?" Grey took out another one and with a chuckle, he tossed it in the direction of the horned men chasing after him. Gil and the leader of the group exchanged glances, they didn''t think Grey would use the horns for such purposes. The thought of even taking the horns didn''t even cross their minds, yet Grey not only took it, he even started to use it as a form of attack. "No wonder those guys are upset." The leader of the group said with a knowing look on his face. Gil laughed and rushed after Grey, he was just about to beg him for some horns when he saw some horned men fighting with the youths who came with them. The youths were escorting the humans they rescued from the city. He rushed in that direction, leaving Grey and the leader of the group alone. "You should lend a hand, I will be fine." Grey said to the leader of the group. "Thank you, can you keep them busy a little longer?" The leader of the group asked. "Two more minutes, no longer." Grey said to the leader of the group. The leader of the group could only give a wry smile before nodding, "You''ve been helpful." Two minutes later. Grey rushed out of the city, with the horned men hot on his trail. The numbers of the Peak Overlord Plane Elementalist had increased to over twenty. At this rate, he was sure that over forty percent of the Peak Overlord Plane Elementalists in the city were already out. He wanted to say fifty percent, but he didn''t really know how many were left protecting the palace. The formation that they used in blocking the city was easily broken as he fleed. The horned men didn''t even take a glance at the others since Grey was their main target. The King had ordered for Grey''s head since he was the one who killed the highest number of his people. Forgetting the people he killed, just the soldiers alone was enough to cause an issue for any kingdom. ''Those guys are coming?'' Void said to Grey as escaped. ''So quick?'' Grey didn''t expect the experts that weren''t in the city to return so fast. It hadn''t even been close to a minute since the array was destroyed, yet they were already here. ''They must have alerted them some other way.'' Void said. They didn''t know everything about the horned race, so there might be a way they could communicate with the experts outside the city without them knowing. The brothers were an example, so Void wasn''t too surprised they came here so quickly. However, it took a long time since the experts didn''t come quickly. ''Looks like the array only delayed the transmission, but couldn''t stop it.'' Void said to Grey. ''My thoughts as well. But why are they only focused on me?'' Grey was still trying to shake off the Peak Overlord Plane Elementalists chasing him yet more were coming. If not for the fact that he wanted to ensure that the others who came with him on the mission had escaped, he would''ve been nowhere to be seen. Even without using the Fusion State, he could still use the Great Void technique to leave these guys in the dust. Six hours later. The humans'' hideout. Grey walked into the cave only to be welcomed by a large crowd. He looked around before heading in the direction the leader of the group and the other geniuses were located. "You made it back." Margaret exclaimed as she saw Grey. "Hello." Grey waved at them before looking at the leader of the group. "We''ll leave in two days." The leader of the group knew the reason for Grey''s coming. Grey squinted his eyes and looked around, "Too long. Tomorrow, they should''ve recovered by then." "They are not the issue, since we will be leaving in such a large group, we have to ensure that we draw as many experts here, to make things easier when leaving." The leader explained. "What is your plan?" Grey thought about what he said and realized he was making sense. Given their current number, it would take them a long time for everyone to use the portal. And since they couldn''t go there twice, they had to ensure that they all used it. Chapter 811 lmproved Space Abilities Chapter 811 lmproved Space Abilities Two days later. Boom! A large explosion sounded out in the southern part of the capital city. Grey''s figure appeared standing in the sky as he looked at the large group of horned men rushing in his direction. He looked at them with a haughty expression, it was as if he was looking down on lesser beings. The horned men saw Grey''s face and the red horned man''s facial expression turned distorted. "You again! Don''t think you will be able to escape this time." He screamed at Grey and threw an object into the sky. The second the object left his hand, an old man appeared in the sky and a large formation covered the entire city. "Let me see how you escape now." The red horned man laughed. Grey had been tormenting them for the past two days now. Every time that they were about to catch him, he would escape from their grasp. They even brought out the faster Elementalists in the capital, but none of them had been able to catch up to Grey. ''Void, gotten it yet?'' Grey looked at the Of everyone in the group, he was the fastest, so he was the only one who could cause chaos in the city. According to the plan of the leader of the group, he would distract the experts while they traveled to where the portal was located. Normally, Grey would never agree to something like this since he didn''t trust them. But when they were escaping after the mission, Void sensed a treasure entering the capital. It presumed one of the experts who came back brought it to the capital. This was not the only thing that gave him the confidence in taking this task, the main reason was that he made a breakthrough in one of his space element skills, the Great Void technique. Now, he could tag someone, and even when the person was not close to him, he could still appear there. He had experimented with Void and noticed the distance was unbelievable. Even after Void went over thirty kilometers away, he was still able to appear on the spot. The only thing was that with the increase in distance, it became harder. Other than that, they had not seen any other limitations for it. He was sure there were limitations, but he would try to find them later on. Before the group left, he tagged Gil when he shook him. One of the most mysterious things about the mark was that he could tag anyone without them even noticing it. He was sure that the place the portal was located was not any further than sixty kilometers from the capital. Once Void successfully takes the treasure, then he would instantly teleport there. Before these experts rushed there, he would be long gone. ''I need a little more time. There''s a troublesome figure here.'' Void replied. ''Even with all the commotion I caused, they still kept the powerful ones there. Hmm.'' Grey thought to himself. He was sure that there was something valuable in the palace other than the life of the ruler. However, he wasn''t too interested in this, the most important thing to him right now was leaving this place. The horned man and the others attacked Grey after they had successfully sealed the place. Grey didn''t even try to fight with them, he turned around and fled, dodging the attack slightly. The horned men continued chasing him, with the help of an old man. This old horned man was on the same level as the one Void killed before they retreated during the raid. He had been the only one who had been able to not only catch up to Grey but even successfully attack him, however, in the final moments before he could apprehend him, he would vanish without a trace. Grey''s use of the horns as a weapon was one of the things he hated the most about him. He wasn''t even bothered with the fact that Grey had to kill hundreds of his kind to get their horns. While Grey was running away from the old man, Void was entangled with three old men in the palace. Even with his domain, these horned men were each stronger than the old man he fought the last time. In a large mountain range, a portal could be seen spinning. Around it were multiple horned men standing guard. They built a camp close to the portal, this way they would be able to monitor the people who used the portal. Gil and the others were looking at the camp vigilantly. They had been staring for minutes now. "What do we do?" One of the people they rescued asked. "What else can we do?" The leader of the group shrugged before stepping out. While hiding, he had been able to ascertain that there were only six Peak Overlord Plane horned men in the camp. With their numbers, they could deal with them. The leader of the group was the first to step out, walking confidently into the camp. When the horned men noticed him, they were first taken aback, but after a moment of realization, they rushed out to surround him. The six Peak Overlord Plane Elementalists all came out as well. They looked at the leader of the group with an annoyed expression. They''ve all heard of the deaths that occurred in the capital a few days ago, so they naturally hated humans even more now. "Kid, where are your accomplices?" One of the horned men at the Peak of the Overlord Plane asked coldly. "Look around." The leader of the group spread out his hands and attacked. The others rushed out from the side and joined the attack. With their numbers, they were able to quickly overpower the soldiers. Other than the Peak Overlord Plane horned men, the others were on the verge of being subdued. Gil and the others were fighting against the horned men at the Peak of the Overlord Plane. With the help of five Ninth stage Overlord Planes Elementalists, they were on the front foot in the battle. Chapter 812 Parting Gift Chapter 812 Parting Gift Gil and the group were able to easily subdue all the horned men in that area. Given their large numbers, it wasn''t a surprise that they did. Even the Peak Overlord Plane Elementalists who were the most difficult to deal with had been defeated. "You all should start going, there should be people on the other side of the portal to protect you. But be prepared for anything just in case." The leader of the group said to the people they rescued. To be safe, he sent one Peak Overlord Plane Elementalist to lead the way. "Connor, are we going to have to wait for him?" One of the ladies in the group asked the leader of the group. Connor looked at her, "Of course. Without his help, we wouldn''t have been able to easily rescue these people, nor would we have been able to get to this place. Besides, he''s not here because he''s trying to ensure we don''t face any issues when leaving." When they were fighting against the Peak Overlord Plane horned men, they suddenly realized that had their numbers been many, then they wouldn''t have been able to even breach this place, much less escape. These horned men at the Peak of the Overlord Plane were very difficult to deal with, even for them. They couldn''t help but wonder how Grey had been dealing with them for the past two days. "I know, I just wanted to confirm if we have to wait for him, even if more experts come." The young lady said. "Hmm, we''ll have to wait till then, but for now, we''re waiting. With his speed, he would get here in a few minutes." Connor replied before sitting down. The people they rescued were already gradually using the portal and teleporting to the Aurora Continent. It would take a while before they left since the people numbered in hundreds. They couldn''t flood the portal since there was the fear that it might collapse. On Grey''s end. Grey was still fighting with the old men as he ran through the city, ensuring that he was not caught in an encirclement. If he allowed that to happen, then he would have to suffer from being hit. No matter how powerful his body was, it was not indestructible, so he would feel pain when hit. Five more Peak Overlord Plane horned men had joined in on the battle, each on the same level as the old man. With the speed of the first old man, he was able to catch up to him for some time, giving the others the chance to get close to him and attack. ''Void, aren''t you done yet?'' Grey could barely hold on against these men. Even after using multiple horns, they were still able to not only catch up, but they attacked in a well-coordinated manner, giving him almost zero chances of dodging. ''More are coming, but I will get it soon, don''t worry. Just hang on a little longer.'' Void''s voice resounded in his head. ''Damn it!'' Grey couldn''t help but complain. Bang! He slammed into the ground after receiving a blow from one of the old men. He tried entangling them in a close ranged battle, but their physical prowess was above any of the horned men he had fought against before. After standing up from the rubble, he turned around and fled in the other direction. "You think we would let you leave?" One of the old men sneered and raised his hand, pointing at Grey. As Grey was fleeing, he felt his body suddenly start to become heavier. "Crap! What the hell is this?" He was shocked. His speed was reduced by almost twenty percent. In a chase like this, twenty percent was a lot. He could barely escape from them in the first place, with his body becoming heavier, it would make things even more difficult. The old man laughed when he saw this. When he punched Grey a few moments ago, he marked him. This mark enabled him to increase the weight of whatever it was on. Just when they thought they finally had Grey, a strange black cat appeared on his shoulder. ''I''m done.'' Grey''s figure blurred and he vanished without a trace. "It''s that skill again, he shouldn''t be able¡­" The red horned man was on the verge of speaking when he saw the formation they created had a crack on it. "He passed through it, just like that?" He was dumbfounded. The space tunnel Grey created was something that they couldn''t counter since it was completely different from other space tunnels. "That direction¡­ The portal!" One of the old men looked in the direction where the crack appeared, and without even having to think about it, they knew his destination. "Come on!" The old man said to the others and rushed in that direction. A few minutes later. The old horned men appeared at the place where the portal was located, and to their anguish, all the horned men that they left there were dead, and their horns had been removed. Grey was the only one who understood the chemistry of their horns, so he was definitely the one who took them. They''ve also seen him use it multiple times. "How could he take care of them in such a short time?" One of the men asked as he looked around. The portal was currently shaking, clearly on the verge of collapsing. "He baited us, this wasn''t something he did alone. Looks like the reason they attacked the city from the start was never because they wanted the humans, they only wanted to draw us out. With the portal they used already destroyed, this was their only hope of leaving." One of the old men replied. Not all of them knew about the appearance of another portal. The horned man clenched his fists in anger. While they were talking, he heard two pieces of news that sent him into rage. The white desert had been infiltrated, and the next batch of geniuses who were being groomed were all killed. Even the cores that were kept in the storage were destroyed. Not just that, but the palace was also infiltrated and a large black beast not only killed three of the top experts in the kingdom, but he also stole the treasure they acquired not too long ago. Chapter 813 Trial Chapter 813 Trial The Aurora Continent. Grey looked at the portal once again. He stayed in a strange world for weeks, and he couldn''t help but feel his gains were very good. His earth elemental grade saw a huge boost, and he comprehended gravity as well. He also broke through to the Eighth stage of the Overlord Plane in both his cultivation stage and his physical body. What else could he ask for? Connor walked up to Grey, "Thank you for your help, it wouldn''t have been this easy without you." "It''s okay." Grey replied with a smile. Grey spoke with them for some time before leaving. Connor invited him to travel with them, but he refused. His current objective was to get into a Faction and cultivate patiently until the time for the battle. Once he enters a Faction, getting to the Sage Plane was his first aim. He didn''t really care too much about other things. After leaving, he started his journey once again. Three weeks later. Grey was standing in front of a large gate, a huge crowd were standing outside the building as well, all the youths below twenty years of age with only a few above twenty. He heard a top Faction was recruiting members, and all they had to do was to challenge someone from the Faction, if they won they would get a chance to join them. The Faction was on the decline according to what he heard, but it was still a powerful Faction nonetheless. The Faction was mass recruiting members, so many youths naturally came to try their luck. ''The people are too much, it would take forever if they have to fight one by one.'' Void said. ''They will most likely change the plans.'' Grey nodded. While he was speaking with Void, an old man came out to welcome the people who came over for the recruitment program. Seeing the size of the crowd, he couldn''t help but chuckle. "I see that we still have some appeal. Unfortunately, we naturally can''t take in everyone, and with your numbers, the task to get into the Faction has changed¡­" The old man told them about their new task. They would be taken a special place where they would have to survive for one week, those who survived would be taken into the Faction. There was a side quest that would give them a better position when entering the Faction, the place where they would be kept had magical beasts running rampant, the person with the highest number of beast cores and best qualities would get a good position. The thought of endangering themselves just to get into a Faction made a few of the people who came for the recruitment have second thoughts. Factions rarely used this method since it caused too many deaths. A few people even gave up immediately and left the place. Not everyone would want to put their lives at risk just to get into a top Faction, especially when it was one that was dying. In the blink of an eye, over thirty percent of the people present left the place. The old man didn''t seem fazed by this, it was within his expectations. "Anyone else leaving?" He asked after noticing no one else was moving. A few more people left the crowd, reducing its size once again. When the old man confirmed that no one else was leaving the crowd, he nodded before addressing those present. The place they would be sent to had different zones, for each of the three stages, Early, Mid, and Late stages of the Overall and Origin Plane. The magical beasts in each zone was within said stage, if anyone went to a stage above them and died, it had nothing to do with the Faction. Not just that, but if any of them died from the beast''s attack, it showed they were not competent. When the crowd heard his words, a few more took a step back. They were all thinking if trying out was a good idea or not. "You still have the chance to leave if you want." The man looked at all the people present. Many more people left when they heard this. In no time, the place which was previously crowded with thousands of people had reduced to a bare just over eight hundred people. The old man looked at those present and nodded, "Courageous, each individual will be given a talisman that can help them if they are in danger. The talisman would teleport you out, this will however mean that you have been eliminated from the trial." When the youths heard of the talisman, they couldn''t help but heave a sigh of relief. ''He wanted to see if those who came are brave. Interesting.'' Grey thought. This was the fifth Faction he had come to since leaving the horned race''s world. None of them had been able to attract him, so he hadn''t joined any one yet. When he heard about this Faction and it''s history, he was a little interested in it so he decided to come over and see how the trial would be. At first, he was disappointed when they said all they had to do was to fight against someone from the Faction, but with this change, he felt a little intrigued by them. The old man used a simple method to weed out those who weren''t brave. If he had said that there was a talisman from the start that would teleport them out of danger, then everyone who came would take part in the trial, but he excluded it, making the youths think they were going to endanger their lives. After the man finished telling them about all the rules, he told them to get into a line for their respective stages. The gates opened up and thick elemental essence sipped out. Grey''s expression changed slightly when he sensed this. He never expected that the elemental essence here would be this thick. People dressed the same way came over to lead them into the place. They would be undergoing the trial in the Faction grounds. Chapter 814 Golden Fur Panther Chapter 814 Golden Fur Panther Grey followed the crowd as they entered the Faction ground. After entering, he felt just how thick the elemental essence here was. Cultivating in a place like this would boost his speed. With the increase of his elemental grades, he would need a lot of essence to break through. The men in front of them led them to a place that led to a forest. This place was fenced round, and a powerful array was surrounding it. ''This is probably where they keep the beasts.'' Grey thought as he looked at the place. After they got to the place, the gate was opened and each person was allowed inside, a talisman was given to them. The men also told them of the rules once again. They didn''t forget to advise them to use the talisman whenever they sensed a threat since there are beasts in the place that had abilities to kill some of them with a single blow. It soon got to Grey''s turn and he was given the talisman. After taking the talisman, he stepped into the forest. From the moment he stepped into the place, he heard the roars of beasts coming from deep in the forest. He also sensed the powerful auras of the beasts, however, none of them exceeded the Overlord Plane, so he didn''t feel too bothered. All he had to do was to survive for seven days in a place where only Overlord Plane magical beasts occupied, he had no problems with staying there for a year, much less seven days. ''What do we do first?'' Void asked. ''We''ll scout the place for now.'' Grey said as he walked into the forest. Some of the youths who came inside were creating groups with people they were familiar with. There were also some people who formed a group even though they were not familiar with each other. Most of the people who decided to move alone were either in the Ninth stage of the Overlord Plane or at the Peak. Grey and a few others in the Seventh stage were the ones who didn''t join a group, deciding to move on their own. Time passed by quickly and before they knew it, a day had passed. Grey was still moving around, the place was quite big, and since he wasn''t in any hurry, he took his time. He had avoided all the beasts in his path. As things stand, he was probably the only one who hadn''t engaged any beast in a battle since entering the place. While moving, he encountered a young man who was at the Peak of the Overlord Plane fighting against a beast in the Ninth stage of the Overlord Plane. ''Let''s watch.'' Void suggested, he was bored of just moving, so seeing someone fighting against a beast, he wanted to at least use it as a means of entertainment. ''Hmm, okay.'' Grey nodded. He knew his presence would alert the young man, so he tried to ensure that he stayed unnoticed. The young man was a Dual Elementalist, having the fire and water elements. It was a powerful combination, and the young man was good at using the two elements. Grey watched the young man slowly gain the edge in the battle. After almost five minutes of gruesome battle, the young man was able to finally kill the beast. He extracted the core and kept it in his storage ring. The body of the beast wasn''t too important to him, so he left it lying and continued on his path. Just as he was about to leave, a large panther jumped out from the side, with golden fur. The panther charged at the young man. The young man didn''t notice the panther early, so he was hit by the first strike of the panther even though he tried dodging. Luckily, he only got a scratch. The young man looked at the panther and his pupils dilated when he saw the color of the panther. This panther was already at the Peak of the Overlord Plane, but that was not worried the young man, what he was scared of was the specie of the panther. Golden fur panthers are regarded among the top-leveled cats, having a very high bloodline. Their strength was also something to take note of. A Golden fur panther can easily defeat a normal panther on the same stage as itself. Presently, this panther was not something this young man could deal with on his own. Without delay, the young man sent out an attack and ran in the other direction. The panther spat out a golden light that destroyed the attack the young man sent his way and rushed after him. Around the body of the panther was a golden hue that made it move faster than normal. ''A beast with a high bloodline, nice.'' Grey commented and rushed after the panther. Other than Dragons and Griffins, this was probably the magical beast with the highest bloodline he had encountered. He wasn''t adding Void to this category since Void was a little different. The panther quickly caught up to the young man and started attacking it. From its eyes, Grey discerned that its intelligence was nothing like other magical beasts. This was a trait common in beasts with high bloodlines, they all had improved intelligence which helped them in surviving. The panther was able to hurt the young man within two minutes of attacking. The young man was frightened, and he was already thinking of using the talisman to escape. The only reason he was waiting was because he didn''t want to give up so easily, but if he sees there was no hope of escaping from this beast, then he would use it. Grey''s figure flashed and he appeared in front of the panther. With a fireball, he forced it back. His appearance startled the panther, but it didn''t worry when it sensed Grey''s strength. To it, Grey was another victim it would kill in no time. The young man heaved a sigh of relief when he saw Grey and quickly rushed forward. "We can fight it together." He offered. "Don''t worry, I''ll be fine on my own. You can heal up on the side." Grey turned to look at the young man, but he quickly gazed back at the panther. Chapter 815 Golden Fur Panther ll Chapter 815 Golden Fur Panther ll "That''s a Golden fur panther, I couldn''t deal with it on my own and you think you can?" The young man had noticed that Grey was only in the Eighth stage of the Overlord Plane. This panther was not something that they could take lightly. It was powerful. He was already lucky to be able to fight against it till now. If not for the talisman, he was not certain if he would be able to escape from the panther. "I know, don''t worry, just watch from the side, if you notice I can''t deal with it alone, you''re free to join me then." Grey said with a smile. The young man looked at him and retreated. Since Grey wanted to show off, then he would leave him alone. To him, Grey was making a wrong decision since the two of them had a high chance of killing the panther, if only Grey fought against it and was killed by the panther, he would instantly use his talisman to escape. Grey knew the young man didn''t feel he could deal with the panther alone. Thinking of this, he couldn''t help but chuckle. Although this panther was powerful, it couldn''t be compared to those old men from the horned race that were at the Peak of the Overlord Plane. This panther''s strength should be below them. The panther didn''t attack immediately because it thought Grey and the young man would team up, when it saw the young man heading back, it couldn''t help but look at Grey as if it was looking at a moron. Its eyes showed it so well even Grey and the young man noticed it. ''Haha, that guy is looking down on you.'' Void''s laughter echoed in Grey''s head. A soft smile appeared on Grey''s face. ''It''ll regret it soon enough.'' The panther attacked, hoping to kill Grey in the shortest time possible. Although it found how Grey appeared without its knowledge, it didn''t feel Grey was its match. Grey threw a blow at the claw strike of the panther. When the young man saw this, he couldn''t help but facepalm. "Moron." He brought out the talisman, preparing to use it at a moment''s notice. To him, Grey wanted to commit suicide. The next moment, he saw a scene that sent chills down his spine, his mouth opened wide while his eyes nearly bulged out. Grey''s fist collided with the panther''s claw, and the panther was sent flying. There was a flash of bluish light which indicated the usage of an elemental skill. But the fact that Grey was the one standing while the panther crashed into a tree was something the young man''s brain found unbelievable. "How?" After a moment of silence, this was the only word that came out of the young man''s mouth. He looked at the panther that was standing up after breaking through two trees from Grey''s attack, then he looked at Grey once again. Grey smiled when he saw the increase in his physical strength. He used his fire element to make the impact of the blow heavier, but the result was something that made him proud. His current prowess was on another level. The panther roared and looked at Grey in disbelief. It rushed at him once again. Grey was prepared for it and they started exchanging blows. The panther was quick, but with the help of the space element, Grey was faster. The young man watched in disbelief as Grey was holding his own against the panther. This was the same panther that he couldn''t fight against. Just like the panther, he was at the Peak of the Overlord Plane while Grey was in the Eighth stage. Grey hadn''t even gotten to the Ninth stage yet, but he was already this powerful. Boom! Bam! Bang! Grey and the panther continued fighting, destroying most of the trees around them. When the panther realized it couldn''t gain the upper hand, it spat out a golden light from its mouth. Grey dodged the attack, but just barely. ''Hmm, such a strange attack.'' Grey thought as he sensed the attack. The properties of the attack the panther used were something he had not sensed in other elements before. The battle raged on and the panther realized it was not able to harm Grey. It had hit him a few times, but other than superficial wounds, Grey seemed perfectly fine. Thinking up to this point, it felt a bit of fear and quickly turned around to escape after using an attack to force Grey back. When it started the battle, it didn''t think Grey was a match for it, so it didn''t really feel any burden when attacking. But now that it realized it might actually be the one who was in danger, it escaped decisively. Grey naturally wouldn''t let this beast escape from his grasp. With a blink, he appeared close to the panther and the gravity in the area increased. The sudden change caught the panther off guard and it fell to the ground. But being a magical beast meant that it had powerful physical abilities. It managed to stand up almost immediately and attacked Grey. Grey blocked the attack and retreated, but he made sure to stay within the region of his gravitational force field. This would help him in slowing down the panther. They continued fighting, destroying the trees around them. Even the hill by the side had suffered from the battle as well. Two minutes later, Grey stood in front of the Golden fur panther, which was panting heavily. It had wounds on its body from Grey''s attacks. Grey wasn''t free from wounds as well, there was a large claw mark on his back and blood was flowing from it. ''A magical beast at death''s door is truly not to be taken lightly.'' He thought as he looked at his state. When the panther finally came to terms that Grey was not going to let it leave, it put its life on the line in the battle. Grey was not prepared for this, so the panther managed to wound him, and not on one occasion. Chapter 816 Always In Danger Chapter 816 Always In Danger ''Unfortunately, I have to kill it. It will be a nice specimen to study.'' Grey said to Void as he looked at the Golden fur panther. ''We should try cooking it, its meat would be very nice.'' Void drooled as he looked at the Golden fur panther. If the panther knew Void''s plans for it, it would most definitely do all it could to make sure it took Void with it. Fortunately, it couldn''t hear what Grey and Void were saying. The young man was standing not too far from them. He was still in a state of shock that Grey was able to defeat the Golden fur panther. This was a magical beast with a good bloodline which made it powerful in its stage, yet Grey, who was below it, managed to defeat it. Although he sustained some injuries, it wasn''t something that was fatal. He watched on as Grey not only killed the Golden fur panther but also extracted the core. To be honest, he couldn''t say he didn''t want it, but he knew he couldn''t defeat the Golden fur panther, so he didn''t deserve it. "You defeated it." He walked up to Grey after Grey kept the corpse of the Golden fur panther. "I was lucky." Grey replied with a smile. The young man looked at him, he didn''t believe Grey''s words. This wasn''t luck, he watched him beat up the Golden fur panther with his two eyes yet Grey was saying it was luck. To him, Grey was either trying to be humble, or very proud. He didn''t know which of the two Grey was trying to be. "For someone in the Eighth stage, you''re quite powerful." He tried to continue the conversation. Grey smiled without replying, he didn''t really know what to reply to the young man''s statement, so he stayed quiet. "Do you mind traveling with me?" The young man asked. Although he didn''t want a companion, Grey was a powerful individual, so he didn''t mind teaming up with him. "I''m still surveying the place, if you don''t mind traveling with me doing nothing, then okay." Grey replied with a shrug. The young man thought about it for some time and decided to go on his own for now. He still needed to collect beast cores. The thought of traveling with Grey was enticing, but since Grey said he was not hunting for beast cores now, he couldn''t travel with him. They all wanted to get a good position in the Faction, and these beast cores were the key to that. "I''m Keith, if we cross paths again, then I''ll accompany you, but for now, I guess I have to continue on my own." Keith said with an honest expression. "Alright then, I''m Grey." Grey replied and kept the corpse of the Golden fur panther in his storage ring. Keith stretched out a hand and after shaking Grey''s hand, he turned around and left. The main reason he wanted to travel with Grey mainly lied on the fact that their mission here was to survive for a week. Forming an alliance with a powerful figure like Grey means he could guarantee his safety till then. However, the side quest didn''t give him such luxury. He could tell that Grey had a certain confidence in himself, and didn''t seem too interested in getting a high number of beast cores. But he on the other hand wanted to get as many beast cores as he could to ensure he acquired a very high level when he joined the Faction. According to what he knew, each member of the Faction is ranked. The higher the rank, the better the treatment. Grey watched Keith leave with an interesting look. "Interesting guy, don''t you think?" Void asked while staring in the direction Keith faced. "Yeah, we should continue. This place is big." Grey nodded before focusing on his main mission. "Aren''t you forgetting something?" Void looked at Grey. "What?" Grey was a little confused. "We just acquired a good meat, aren''t we going to eat it?" Void couldn''t wait to taste the meat of the Golden fur panther. "Oh, I forgot about that." Grey soon got to work with the corpse of the Golden fur panther, and after some minutes, the sweet aroma of well cooked meat started to spread across the forest. Grey''s cooking skill seemed to be improving according to Void, and his Teacher. He felt they were only praising him so they could eat more food. Void happily ate the meat of the Golden fur panther with a wide smile plastered on his face. When Grey tasted the meat of the panther, he knew it was top notch meat. "I wonder what a Dragon would taste like." He suddenly said after tasting the meat of the Golden fur panther. If the panther tasted this good, he couldn''t even imagine just how great a Dragon''s meat would taste. "You also have this fantasy as well? We''ll definitely find out in due time." Void replied with a mouth full of meat. He could barely speak properly, but he didn''t care. They continued eating, Grey didn''t forget to send some to his Teacher. After they were done eating, they continued surveying the place. One more day went by and he was pretty much clear on how the place looked. He even tagged all the places that had powerful beasts in his head. As long as he wanted to, he could battle all the magical beasts at the Peak of the Overlord Plane. There were over thirty Peak Overlord Plane beasts, but only five of them were above the Golden fur panther. If he rated them, then they would be on the same level as those old men from the horned race. Unless he uses the Fusion State against those men, it would be difficult for him to defeat them. "Alright, so what now?" Void asked. They were done with what Grey wanted, and they still had five more days to stay in the place. "I''m going to find a secluded place to train." Grey already knew this place like the back of his palm, so it didn''t take him long before he found a secluded cave. Four days went by in the blink of an eye. Inside the cave. Grey hadn''t taken a step out of the cave since he entered. He had been diligently cultivating. He focused mainly on comprehending his elements. Since there was nothing to do, he wanted to see if he could improve his elemental grade. "You''re a nutjob!" Grey''s shut eyes opened and he looked at the entrance to the cave. Outside the cave, he could hear people fighting. "Hmm, a familiar voice." He muttered before disappearing from where he was sitting. Void raised his head, but went back to sleep since he couldn''t be bothered with others. Outside the cave. A young man was being chased by three others. The young man was at the Peak of the Overlord Plane, while those chasing him were in the Eighth and Ninth stage of the Overlord Plane. "We''ve been searching for you all this while, do you think joining this Faction will save you? You''ve always been a failure, and you will fail here as well." One of the young men chasing the young man said with an evil grin. The young man being chased was surprisingly Keith, the youth Grey saved from the Golden fur panther. Keith looked at the face of the trio as they surrounded him. "You''re spineless fools, if you have guts why don''t you fight me one on one." Keith gritted his teeth angrily. "Hehe, that''s a trick that only works on brainless morons. Individually, we''re obviously no match for you, why do you think I teamed up with them?" The youth in the Ninth stage of the Overlord Plane scoffed. Keith looked at them with an angry expression. He had collected enough beast cores to get a good position when entering the Faction, now, he risked losing everything. "Hey." He heard a voice behind him and he couldn''t help but shake from shock. He hurriedly turned around, only to see a familiar face. "It''s you!" He exclaimed when he saw Grey''s face. He still recalled the abnormally strong Grey. "Yeah, you seem to always be in a certain type of predicament whenever we meet." Grey looked past Keith''s shoulder to see the faces of his pursuers. Kieth chuckled awkwardly when he heard this. The first time he saw Grey, he was being chased by the Golden fur panther and he was already thinking of using his talisman to escape. Now, he was being chased once again, and the thought of using his talisman came back to his mind once again. The trio chasing Keith paused and looked at Grey. "Who''s that?" One of them asked. "I have no idea, but they seem to be acquainted." The one in the Ninth stage replied. Looking at Keith, he noticed something which made him a little confused, Keith seemed to be more relaxed the moment Grey appeared. Chapter 817 Wise People Live Longer Chapter 817 Wise People Live Longer "Hello." Grey waved at the group behind Keith. The young man in the Ninth stage of the Overlord Plane was a little taken aback that Grey took the initiative to speak to them. He nodded as a form of greeting. "Can you just forget whatever he did to you and let him go?" Grey asked with a smile. This was completely out of his character since he rarely spoke with people, much less even begging on someone''s behalf. Normally, he would''ve attacked these people since he was already acquainted with Keith. But he felt he had been too detached from people for some time now, although he wouldn''t become like Klaus who befriended everyone, he didn''t mind making a new friend now and then. And these people might probably join the same Faction as himself, so he didn''t want to complicate things. The other reason he hadn''t attacked was that he didn''t know why they were chasing Keith, nor the relationship they had. What if he attacked them and Keith turned on him? He wanted to clarify things first before coming to a conclusion on what to do. Keith looked at Grey, never expecting him to be someone this humble. He had seen Grey fight, and knew for a fact that Grey could take on two of these guys, so their two had no problem with defeating this trio, but Grey wanted to settle the issue in a way that wouldn''t involve any conflict. The young man in the Ninth stage looked at his companions and fell deep in thoughts. He was trying to figure out Grey''s intentions. On a normal day, he would feel like Grey was weak so he was trying to find a way to safely resolve the conflict, but from Keith''s expression, he knew that wasn''t the most likely case. "Since you''re asking on his behalf, I will let him go for now. Take care." The young man said before turning around and leaving with his group. "Alright, take care." Grey waved at them with an amiable smile. "Well, that went better than I imagined." He turned to Keith. "Robert is a wise person, he could tell there was something off about you, so he decided to retreat instead of pushing on." Keith shook his head with a sigh. "I see, sensible people like that tend to live longer." Grey commented before walking back to the cave. Keith looked behind him with cold eyes, before walking after Grey. "So, what have you been doing?" Kieth asked as he caught up with Grey. "I''ve been resting here." Grey replied nonchalantly as he entered the cave. When Keith entered the cave, he knew for a fact that Grey wasn''t lying. From how the place looked, it seemed like he had been staying here since he came for the trial. "You''re probably the only one who doesn''t seem to care about the trial." He said with a wry smile. His contact with Grey had been short, but he couldn''t hide his interest in him. Grey seemed to have a certain mysterious halo around him that makes people want to know more about him. "Not really." Grey shrugged and took a seat. Keith had gotten a good number of beast cores, so he didn''t mind staying with Grey. If he went out on his own, he might risk being attacked once again. It was best he stayed with Grey for the last two days to ensure that he passed the trial successfully. In another part of the forest. The trio who just left paused and started discussing. "Robert, why did you let them go?" One of the young men with him asked, confused with Robert''s decision making. "Do you think that guy who appeared is simple?" Robert asked the young man. "He''s only in the Eighth stage like me, I can take care of him." The young man replied. "You need to learn to be more observant, if not, you''ll die without even knowing how." Robert said calmly before looking back in the direction Grey and Keith headed. "What now?" The second youth asked. "We''ll have to join the Faction, what else can we do? The young lady ordered us not to return without the news of his death, do you want to go back while he''s still alive?" Keith said before walking away. "I wonder why these people can''t mind their own business." The youth in the Eighth stage of the Overlord Plane said angrily. To him, Grey''s involvement was the main reason they were unable to complete their objective. Even if they couldn''t kill Keith now, they would get the chance to once he was eliminated from the trial. Now they had to risk joining the Faction, which would mean spending more time on the mission. Time went by and it was finally the last day of the seven days trial. Grey had been living a pretty comfortable life, eating the meat of the Golden fur panther while also discussing with Keith. He found out that Keith was a small figure in his family and he somehow managed to offend the young family head, and now he wanted him dead. The reason for their dispute was all because of a young lady who fell in love with Keith. Keith was a handsome figure with sparkling blue eyes and white hair, although he was not on Grey and Klaus'' level, he wasn''t too far behind. Grey found the story to be absurd. How would someone want to kill another person all because the person he liked likes someone else? "Something is definitely wrong with whoever that guy is." Grey stated after he heard the complete story. "Is that the reason you joined this Faction?" He asked after a moment of silence. Keith nodded, "Honestly, I would''ve never joined this Faction. It is on the verge of falling, and there are more powerful Factions that I can join, but I don''t have enough time, so I had to join them. Although they''re on the decline, they''re still a powerful Faction." "Interesting." Grey said before looking at the entrance of the cave with a thoughtful expression. "How about you, why did you join this Faction? I''m sure someone of your talent wouldn''t have a problem joining the very best Factions around." Keith asked when he saw Grey''s expression. "I find them interesting, so I decided to check them out." Grey said nonchalantly. Chapter 818 Can We Stop Them? Chapter 818 Can We Stop Them? Keith looked at Grey, unsure of how to reply. Grey came because he found the Faction interesting, this confirmed his thought of Grey being from a powerful background. Now he understood why Grey didn''t seem so bothered with getting beast cores. This was the last day, and Grey was still sitting here nonchalantly. The urge of asking Grey if he wanted to get beast cores came to his mind, but he decided to let it go. It was Grey''s choice after all. Grey naturally didn''t know what he was thinking about. He stayed in the cave almost all through the day. A few hours before sunset, Grey finally stood up from his sitting position. ''Is it time?'' Void asked. Grey nodded before walking towards the exit of the cave. Keith was standing outside, looking at the scenery. He had gotten bored of staying in the same place for two days, so he decided to stretch his legs. "Where are you going?" He asked when he saw Grey coming out from the cave. "Hunting." Grey''s reply was simple and short. "Finally." Keith said and followed behind him. This was what he had been bothered about, but since Grey was finally taking the step, he felt a little excited. He wanted to see just how powerful Grey was. Although he saw him act the last time against the Golden fur panther, he felt that wasn''t Grey''s full strength. After leaving the cave, Grey maneuvered through the forest like a beast who had stayed there all his life. From where he was headed, Keith guessed Grey wasn''t moving blindly, he most probably had a target. A few minutes later, he found Grey''s target. A large Raven that stood over three meters tall was resting on a small hill. The Raven was at the Peak of the Overlord Plane, and the aura it released was on par with the Golden fur panther. ''To think he wants to fight against that.'' Keith clucked his tongue, amazed by Grey''s choice. Ten minutes later. Grey was standing victoriously over the fallen Raven. It took him no longer than ten minutes to kill a beast at the Peak of the Overlord Plane, while still being in the Eighth stage of the Overlord Plane. Grey''s talent was something Keith didn''t even dare to dream of having. "Let''s go." Grey said to Keith before keeping the core and corpse of the Raven. Their next target was a Fire Lion that was located deep within the forest. This Lion was stronger than the Raven, but Grey still managed to defeat it within fifteen minutes without sustaining any major injuries. He had some injuries, but they were only superficial ones, things that he couldn''t really be concerned with. They soon went for the third beast. At this moment, Keith finally recalled what Grey said to him when he invited him to join him, Grey told him he was surveying the place, now he knew why. Grey planned to take out all the beasts at the very Peak of the Overlord Plane. A bold yet insane plan. While others were thinking of killing the weaker ones, he didn''t even put them in their eyes. This was what being a true genius was, he didn''t need to bother with the small fries, he attacked the big ones from the start. While Grey was on his hunt, something was happening outside the trial ground. In a room outside the trail ground. A group of young men dressed in loose clothes were staring at a map that seemed like a hologram, and right before their eyes, they watched as one of the brightest lights went out one by one. At first, there were over thirty bright lights, but in the space of two hours, fifteen went out. What shocked them even more was that of the five which shone the brightest, one of them was down as well. This was something they never expected to happen. If the lights were dying out with a difference of hours, then they wouldn''t be too concerned, but the speed at which they were dying down was alarming. "Call the Elder." One of the young men said to another. The young man nodded and went away. A few minutes later, he returned with the man who welcomed Grey and those who came for the recruitment over. "Why are you calling me?" The old man asked with a calm expression. "Elder, look." One of the young men pointed at the light dots. At the time the Elder arrived, one of the lights was dying down, so he witnessed it as the man showed him the map. "Oh, there''s a good budding among them." The Elder said with a smile. Even if the person who defeated this special beast was also at the Peak of the Overlord Plane, they must be powerful to be able to do this. "That''s not the problem Elder, the problem is that over fifteen has gone down in the space of two hours." The young man explained with a wry smile. "Huh! Are you sure of what you''re saying?" The Elder asked, stunned. "Yes, if you can wait a little while, then you will see what I''m talking about." The young man said. The Elder stroked his beard before nodding, if what they said was truly happening, then there''s a chance that there might be a figure in that Sage Plane in there, or the top figures amongst the recruits teamed up to take out these beasts. The thought of one person being the cause of this didn''t come to his mind unless the person somehow broke through to the Sage Plane inside the trial ground. If they knew an Eighth stage Overlord Plane Elementalist was the cause of this, it was unknown how they would feel. The Elder was still waiting when he saw the scene right before his eyes. In twenty minutes, another bright light had died down, and this one was among the top ones. "I wonder which people are behind this. Defeating these beasts is an impressive feat." The Elder commented. "Should we do anything to stop it?" One of the young men asked with a pained expression. "Why would you?" The Elder asked. "Elder, it took so much effort to groom these beasts." One of the young men blurted out. "You can always groom more, bringing a good talent to the Faction is the objective now." The Elder said before walking out of the room. The young men exchanged glances, a little frustrated since they have to watch their efforts go down the drain. They couldn''t help but curse at the person or people who were behind this. Chapter 819 Getting Eliminated On The LastDay? Chapter 819 Getting Eliminated On The LastDay? Keith was having one of the greatest shocks of his life. He was watching Grey hunting all the beasts that were at the Peak of the Overlord Plane, alone. Grey had been fighting the beasts on his own without even having to ask for help any time. What was worse was that Grey''s attacks were too swift, and he seems to have a certain ability that increases the weight of the things around him. He didn''t really know what this ability was, but he was sure that it was what makes the beasts he fights against fall over when he gets close to them. It has been six hours since Grey decided to hunt for beast cores, and he couldn''t say he wasn''t amazed. Grey''s abilities were definitely on par with those geniuses with Cyan elemental grades and higher. He had been fortunate to witness a genius with Cyan elemental grade, and the genius was just like Grey, too powerful for those in the same stage as himself. Keith could most certainly bet with his life that Grey had a Cyan elemental grade. There''s no way Grey was going to tell him it was lower and he would believe it. Another shocking thing he found out was that Grey''s healing speed was unbelievable. While Keith was still thinking about Grey''s ability, Grey was focused on the last beast on his list. There were countless beasts here, and Grey was sure most of the people here collected at least fifty beast cores, even Kieth had over sixty. According to what he found out, most of the people here aren''t too bothered about the stage of the beast, opting to go for quantity instead of quality. For someone like Keith, killing magical beasts in the Early stages of the Overlord Plane was too easy. He could easily kill ten to twenty a single day. If Grey wanted to, he could kill over one hundred in a single day. Thud! The corpse of a giant snake slammed into the ground, it was dead. This snake had white scales which sparkled even at night. Grey was panting slightly from the battle, of all the beasts he had fought against, this snake was the trickiest one. But in the end, he still managed to kill it with a decisive blow. He was still resting when he noticed a group walking out from the left. They were ten in total, and they were staring at Grey in shock. They had been targeting this snake for some time now, and after finally coming up with a good plan after multiple failures, they saw Grey fighting against it. They initially wanted to help out and then force Grey to leave it to them, but on seeing that Grey was not doing badly against it, they decided to wait by the side and after the battle was over, they would step up. Even if the snake won, it would be injured by Grey''s attacks and grow weak. If Grey were to kill it, he would not be a hundred percent since he went through a tough battle with the snake. All in all, they would be the winners. Keith noticed them and moved closer to Grey, looking at the group approaching them. "Impressive." A young lady in the Ninth stage said as she walked over. She seemed to be the leader of this group. Grey didn''t reply as he stared at her, he could see her eyes trailed on the corpse of the snake, seemingly checking to see if the core was still in place. "What do you want?" Keith asked calmly. He could already sense that they were up to no good, but he didn''t want to jump to conclusions. Besides, he knew Grey would have a way to fight against these people. With him here as well, he would never let them harm Grey. "You watched him fight alone, how cowardly." The young lady said with a hateful tone. She felt Keith was a coward who was only hanging around Grey because he was powerful. The thought of Grey wanting to fight against the beast on his own didn''t even cross her mind. Who would want to fight against such a beast alone? Keith wanted to speak but he held back, even if he told them it was Grey''s wish, they wouldn''t believe him. The young lady looked at him in a demeaning manner before moving her gaze to Grey, her eyes paused on his face for some time, a little stunned by his handsomeness. She didn''t want to admit it, but Grey was the most handsome guy she had ever seen. "Since you took such an effort in killing this snake, we''ll let you keep the corpse, all we want is the core." She said with a soft smile. The corpse of this snake was quite expensive, and it could be used to exchange for things in the Faction after joining. According to what they know, they wouldn''t be given the freedom to use all the techniques in the Faction, instead, they would have to earn points to exchange for a technique. Corpses of beasts like this could be used to exchange for a fair amount of points. "Not interested, move aside." Grey replied coldly. He had never been friendly with people who wanted to take advantage of him. To him, this group was his enemies. The fact that they waited until he had killed the snake showed their nature. "Come on, you already made it to the last day, even successful at that. It would be a shame if you have to use your talisman in the end." A young man walked out from the group and said. Why would anyone risk getting himself eliminated because of a single beast core? To them, it wasn''t worth it. Grey knew this as well, but there was no way he would let people ride on him. Given the effort he put in to defeat this snake, he wasn''t even interested in leaving a scale for anyone, much less it''s core. When he heard the young man''s threat, he smirked. ''I won''t be the one using the talisman.'' He thought to himself. Chapter 820 Not To Be Bullied Chapter 820 Not To Be Bullied The group stared at Grey menacingly, waiting for him to move aside so they could extract the core of the snake. Grey naturally had no plans of letting others steal his things, especially people like this who feel they can bully others with their numbers. "Move." The young lady said, her expression turning cold. "You''re not getting this, I''ll advise you to leave at once. I can tell you already have enough cores to get a good position when you join the Faction." Grey said, not budging even by a little. Even people at the Peak of the Overlord Plane couldn''t threaten him, much less this group who only had four people in the Ninth stage. "I guess you''ll be getting eliminated then." The young lady said and prepared to attack. "Heh! With the likes of you? I doubt that." Grey smirked and his figure vanished. "He''s a Space Elementalist, be careful everyone." Someone from the group yelled. They were currently all standing close to each other, preparing to attack Grey, when he vanished, they all took a defensive stance, waiting for him to appear. Grey''s figure appeared in the midst of four of the ten people in the group, and the second he appeared, he used his gravitational force field. Being unaware of this, the four youths fell face first on the ground. Grey didn''t hold back and straight up attacked them with a powerful move. The other six people were stunned, still confused as to why the four youths fell on the ground when Grey appeared. Boom! Grey''s attack exploded out, and a bright light soon followed after. All four youths used their talismans to escape what would''ve been a fatal attack for them. Luckily, they were able to move even in the gravitational force field. Grey hadn''t gotten to the level where he could make those in the Late stages of the Overlord Plane become immobile, what he could do was to slow down their speed. "Lucky." Grey clicked his tongue before turning to the other six, he tilted his head to the side to get a good view of their faces. "Wha¡­ what just happened?" A young lady among the remaining six asked, confused. "He took out four of them simultaneously, and you guys are next." Kieth said coldly. He was currently standing on the other side of the group, prepared to attack the moment Grey moves. After using the gravitational force field in the presence of the others, it would be difficult for him to use it to catch them off guard immediately, so Grey didn''t plan on using it now. "You are going to pay for this." The young lady who was the leader of the group said slowly and coldly. One of the people eliminated was a close friend of hers, so she would never forgive Grey for this. "I''m only doing to you what you wanted to do to me. I see no wrong in that." Grey stated and attacked ruthlessly. Keith, seeing this, attacked as well. He had been raring to go for a long time now, so when this chance came, he attacked excitedly. Grey had been the one doing all the fighting, so he was getting a little bored of only watching. The group of six were taken aback, they were the ones who had more numbers, yet Grey and Keith were the ones who took the initiative in attacking. This was one of the weirdest things they had experienced. They attacked as well. Keith fought against two while Grey was fighting against the other four. Keith''s opponents were in the Eighth and Seventh stage respectively. Grey had two people in the Ninth stage, and the other two were in the Seventh stage. Of the four people he eliminated during the first attack, two were in the Ninth stage, while the other two were in the Seventh stage. A few minutes after the start of the battle, the group realized something horrible, Grey was not someone they could mess with. Unfortunately, it was too late for them. "Hey, why don''t we just end this amicably and leave?" One of the young men in the group asked. Grey''s strength was terrifying, it scared them. At this moment, they knew the chances of them being eliminated was very high. Grey wasn''t giving them any chance to even escape. One has to know that he was fighting against four people, and he still had the upper hand. After going through a tough battle against such a powerful snake as well. Grey didn''t even bother to listen to the pleas of the young man, and continued his attack on them. As time went on, he was forced to use his talisman. With the young man gone, the pressure on the others increased. Grey''s strength was above theirs, but what made him this horrifying was his versatility. Having more elements made him a complete fighter. Adding his physique to it made things worse for others. They could barely keep up with his speed, yet he''s even faster if he used his physical body enhanced with his elements. Ten minutes later. Only the young lady who was the leader of the group was left. Keith had also dealt with his opponents. Although he was fighting against two people, he was able to deal with them. Grey taking out most of their companions gave him a helping hand since it distracted them for him to take the advantage. "Why are you so powerful?" The young lady asked with gritted teeth. "Because I don''t want to be bullied by the likes of you." Grey said and opened his palm which had a fireball on it. He sent it her way and she was covered by a bright light after using the talisman. She was already at the end of the trial, but making the mistake of attacking Grey cost her a spot in the Faction. Keith looked at the freakish Grey, even though he knew he would be victorious, he still found it amazing. Grey was too powerful to still be in the Overlord Plane. Chapter 821 Accused Chapter 821 Accused Outside the trial ground. People were walking out through the gate with a proud smile, except for a selected few, Grey included. He didn''t see the test as anything of a challenge in the first place, so he naturally didn''t have to celebrate it. When they stepped out, they saw some people gathered, all with gloomy faces. Looking at the crowd, Grey saw a familiar face. It was the young lady he eliminated the previous night. ''Oh, they''re still here. Amusing.'' He thought to himself. He didn''t even bother to look in their direction for a second time as he followed the group, heading in the direction of where those who successfully passed the trial were. When the young lady noticed the people coming out, she was staring intently at the crowd, seemingly searching for someone. She first saw Keith''s figure, before her eyes trailed to the person standing close to him. "You!" She pointed at Grey angrily and tried to rush after him. Grey, just like everyone turned to look in the direction the voice came from in curiosity. The young lady''s voice drew the attention of everyone. "You sneaky bastard! I can''t accept the fact that a backstabber like you can get into this honorable Faction and I can''t." The young lady said through gritted teeth. Grey looked behind him, trying to see who the young lady was talking to. ''She can''t be about me, right?'' He couldn''t help but ask Void. ''It seems like it. What did you do to her?'' Void asked. Grey had the urge of picking Void and kicking him into oblivion when he heard this question. Void was with him when he fought against the young lady, how could he ask what he did to her. He decided to let the matter go and not bother about it, he had already gotten into the Faction anyway. "Grey, I think she''s talking to you." Keith moved closer to Grey and whispered. "When she''s done making a fool of herself, she''ll keep quiet." Grey replied nonchalantly. The young lady continued yelling, and the Elder who addressed them at the start took notice of it. He approached her, "Young lady, what seems to be the problem?" "There''s a sneaky backstabber among your ranks. I have no problem with people passing the trial and me failing it, but my conscience can not let me allow someone like that to join your prestigious Faction and sully its name." The young lady said with hatred. The Elder looked at her and asked, "Oh, what happened?" If what the young lady was saying was true, then he wanted to weed out such a figure. Although the person had successfully passed the trial, people like this might bring destruction to the Faction in the future. "We were fighting against a powerful Peak Rank Five, and when I was on the verge of defeating it, he attacked us from nowhere, forcing us to use our talismans." The young lady pointed at the others from her group. They nodded to her words. Grey didn''t have any visible change in his expression when he heard this, Keith however was irritated as he heard her speak. A glint flashed through the eyes of the Elder. ''They were the ones who took down all the Peak Rank Five beasts.'' He thought in realization. He originally felt a group would be the ones who could take out the beasts in such a short time. "Can you bring out the individual who did this?" He asked. The young lady nodded and pointed at Grey, who was looking at them with a bland look, making it difficult for them to know what he was thinking. Keith gritted his teeth and retorted, "Lying bitch! You wanted to take something you didn''t work for, you deserved getting eliminated." "Sir, he was also involved as well." The young lady pointed at Keith. Everyone in the crowd looked at Grey and Keith. Among the crowd of those who passed the trail, the trio who were chasing after Keith was watching what was happening with interest. "You two, come forward." The Elder called Grey and Keith over. Grey walked forward, Keith was behind him as well. "Is what they''re saying true?" The Elder asked. "No, they''re lying." Keith was the one who replied. The Elder looked at Grey with a serious expression, "I want your answer." Grey was the one the young lady accused at first, so he wanted to hear Grey''s reply. "No." Grey replied with a calm expression. "Shut up you deceiver." The young lady said coldly. The Elder looked at the duo, a little unsure of who to believe. Grey didn''t even try to defend himself, only giving a single reply. The young lady gave a good explanation, and when he thought of what happened with the top beasts, he felt the young lady was correct. "Stop disturbing, you''re making a fool of yourself." Grey said with a blank expression. The young lady looked at Grey and felt annoyed, but she wanted to ensure that Grey didn''t get into the Faction. "Why don''t you tell me your side of the story?" The Elder thought for a while before looking at Grey. Being a big Faction, he naturally wouldn''t make a decision based on a one-sided story. As long as Grey could give him a good explanation, he naturally would know what to do. "What do you believe?" Grey asked the Elder. "I''ve heard her side, so I can''t make a decision for now without hearing yours." The Elder replied. He didn''t feel annoyed because of Grey''s question. "I don''t need to ambush someone like them. I can defeat them alone, why would I bother to ambush them?" Grey''s words stunned the Elder, as well as everyone present there. He was still in the Eighth stage of the Overlord Plane, yet he said with such confidence that he could defeat ten people. Of the ten people, there were four people in the Ninth stage of the Overlord Plane, and others in the Eighth and Seventh stage. "You, defeat us?" The young lady laughed in mockery. If Grey thought he could defeat all ten of them, then there must be something wrong in his head. Chapter 822 A Complete Package Chapter 822 A Complete Package The Elder looked at Grey, amazed. He didn''t expect Grey to use such an extreme method to justify himself. Other than the top geniuses in the Faction, he didn''t think there would be anyone who could achieve such a feat. "Proud fool, you''re going to expose yourself with this. Four of us is enough to show the fraud you are." The young lady said. Grey chuckled when he heard this. The young lady''s words had already given her away. The fact that she didn''t say she could defeat him alone showed that Grey was stronger than her. The Elder didn''t need to see Grey fight against them before he knew the young lady was lying. However, he wanted to see Grey''s strength with his eyes. "Come with me, the others should continue with the normal procedure." He signaled to Grey and Keith, along with the group of ten. If Grey managed to beat them alone, then he was the one who was killing all the beasts at the Peak of Rank Five. Grey was still on the Eighth stage of the Overlord Plane, this was the most significant factor about everything. A lot of people feel there isn''t much of a difference between the Ninth and the Eighth stage, but for geniuses, there was a massive difference. Any genius who could not only defeat another genius in the Ninth stage but multiple geniuses was someone that was on a different level entirely. One has to know that the beasts Grey defeated were not normal Peak Rank Five beasts, rather, they could be grouped among the elites in that stage. Only those geniuses at the Peak of the Overlord Plane from these top Factions and Families could achieve such a feat. The fact that the young lady''s group of ten couldn''t kill the snake showed just how powerful it was. Yet, Grey did it all by himself. After taking them to a separate place with a platform, the Elder told them to wait and vanished. He appeared a few minutes later, accompanied by two other Elders, an old man wearing white loose clothes, and a middle-aged man. "They will stand as judges for the battle." The first Elder said. "As long as we defeat him, we win, right?" The young lady asked, to confirm if Grey''s words were taken seriously. "Yes, as long as all ten of you can defeat him, then you''re the winner. Not just that, but he will be kicked out and you will join the Faction." The Elder said. "All ten of us?" The young lady asked. The Elder nodded. The young lady looked at the others with a smile and they quickly prepared themselves for the battle. Grey on the other hand was staring at them with an amused smile. He felt like he was staring at a group of fools. From the Elder''s expression and words, he could discern the Elder had already come to a conclusion, he only wanted to test him out, after all, he was the one who brought the suggestion in the first place. "Are you really going through with this?" Keith asked Grey, a little worried. He knew Grey was powerful, and he was confident if it was only four people, but against ten people, his confidence wasn''t high. "Relax, they can''t beat me, even if I decide not to attack." Grey said calmly before walking forward. He knew the group already knew some of his attacks, so they must have thought of a way to counter it, especially his gravitational force field. However, he had a few tricks up his sleeve that he hadn''t shown yet. "Are you ready?" The Elder asked Grey and the group. Grey nodded, likewise the group. The young lady decided all ten of them would fight against Grey. Since the Elder said they would get into the Faction if they managed to defeat Grey, she wanted to be certain of their qualification. "Alright, begin." The Elder declared the start of the battle. Grey took the initiative in the attack and vanished. The eyes of the Elders brightened when they saw this. Space Elementalists are one of the few Elementalists who can fight with multiple opponents thanks to their quick movement. This gave them a little confidence in Grey''s ability. "Spread out." The young lady said as soon as Grey vanished. The group separated, ensuring that what happened during their first encounter didn''t repeat itself. Grey appeared close to one of them in the Eighth stage and attacked. He didn''t plan on using the same strategy to begin with. The Eighth stage Overlord Plane Elementalist blocked the attack, but he was sent flying from the impact. The others rushed over to assist him. One on one, they were no match for Grey, so they didn''t want that to happen. Grey resisted the urge of trying to continue his attack. He knew it was impossible, with a spread of his arms, three inscriptions lit up in the sky and attacked those around. One of the inscriptions sent an attack at the Eighth stage Overlord Plane Elementalist he attacked. He also sent out attacks as well. The Elders watched the battle with a smile of approval, just Grey''s first moves showed he was a well-seasoned fighter, unlike most geniuses. He displayed three elements already, fire, lightning, and space element, which already made him good. The fact that both his lightning and fire element were special types made things even better. Being an Inscriber also amazed them. A Space Elementalist was also great against a large group, being an Inscriber made Grey even more overpowered. Grey and the group continued fighting, and even when fighting against so many people, he was able to protect himself from any sneak attack. Grey''s battle awareness was something unlike others his age. Three minutes into the battle. Grey was finally able to take out one of the group. At this moment, he showed his fourth element, the earth element. The Elders looked at Grey, and all they could say was¡­ ''He''s a complete package.'' Chapter 823 Joining A Faction Chapter 823 Joining A Faction Grey was standing on the platform, on the ground were the young lady and her group. He was panting slightly from the battle, and he sustained some injuries from their attacks, but he successfully defeated them. The young lady raised her head to look at Grey in fear, she never expected him to be this powerful. Even when fighting against ten people, he still showed strength that surpassed what he did before. However, that wasn''t the most shocking thing in the entire battle. "A domain, at such a young age." The Elder dressed in white said, visibly shocked. "Such talent, I have not seen anyone able to awaken their domain before the Sage Plane." The middle-aged man added in shock. During the last phase of the battle, Grey used his domain to trounce the young lady and her friends. They were unable to defend against its strength. Having a domain in the Overlord Plane made him invincible in said Plane. Even after breaking through to the Sage Plane, he would be a force to be reckoned with. "You lose." Grey said emotionlessly. He didn''t hold back when beating them up, the only thing he restrained himself from doing was killing, other than that, he beat them up badly. At least for the next two months, they wouldn''t be able to function properly, unless they get a top Light Elementalist to heal them. Keith on the other hand had his mouth wide open. Void was in his hand, and he couldn''t help but push his mouth close. "You''re drooling on me." He said sarcastically. "Oh, sorry." Keith apologized, but he was still stunned by what he just witnessed. Grey''s abilities were mind-blowing. He thought he had seen Grey in his full strength, but the domain blew him off his feet. How could a single person be this talented? ''It should be illegal for him to be this powerful, right?'' He asked himself. Even those geniuses at the Peak of the Overlord Plane are no match for Grey. This was a fact that he almost didn''t want to believe. The young lady wanted to speak when Grey said they lost, but she soon lost consciousness. Not just her, but the others as well. "Can we go back now?" Grey turned to the Elders. Had the Elder taken the side of the young lady after hearing her statement, he would''ve lost interest in the Faction and left. However, the Elder handled the matter with wisdom, and this gave him the confidence to show more of his strength. Beating this group should place him in a high place in the Faction, showing his domain would take it even further. Looking at the Elders, he could tell that they were impressed. "No need, show us the cores you acquired." The Elder who brought them here waved his hand. Grey and Keith nodded and did as ordered. They each brought out their beast cores and Keith had more, but Grey''s cores radiated more power. "I thought as much." The Elder said with an understanding look. "You were the one who killed all the strongest beasts?" He asked Grey. Grey nodded to his words. "Alone?" Grey nodded once again. Since Keith was with him, it was easy to assume that he helped him when he was fighting against the beast. "I see. According to the rules, you can either keep the cores or exchange them for points." The Elder said to the duo, he looked at them before asking, "What do you plan to do?" "I have no use for the cores, I''ll exchange them for points." Grey replied. He had multiple cores with him, besides, he didn''t drop all the cores. The core belonging to the Golden fur panther was kept. The Golden fur panther used a weird move he wanted to understand, so he planned on checking the core. He hadn''t seen anything on it for now, but he was certain that over time he would make a breakthrough. Keith made the same decision as him. Grey got more points even though he had lesser cores due to the quality of the cores. Grey asked what he could get with the points, and the Elder told him about the rules of the Faction. The members of the Faction are ranked, from rank one to nine. Grey and Keith skipped rank one and were immediately admitted to rank two since they managed to get a good number of cores. Members in rank two are eligible to get certain techniques and go to a few places those in rank one couldn''t. Once one gets to rank seven, they are eligible to become an Elder in the Faction. Of course, they had to become an Elemental Sovereign first. The Elder took Grey and Keith into the Faction. After taking them inside, the Elder called a young lady walking by and told her to take them to get registered, he also instructed her to tell the person giving the duo their badges something, but Grey didn''t hear what he told her. The young lady bowed to the Elder and took Grey and Keith to a large building to get them registered. They were both given badges and on their badges, the place they would be staying was written on it. The duo would be staying in the same area, with Keith staying in the house before Grey''s. The Faction was huge. From the gates to the main part, there was a distance of over one thousand five hundred meters, and just like when Grey got admitted to the Lunar Academy, each person is entitled to a personal house. The young lady left them after showing them where they would be staying. Grey looked at the place, and it was, well, empty. ''The essence here is great. I wonder how the library here is¡­'' With that thought in mind, he left his apartment and headed out. Keith saw him leaving and ran up to him. "Where are you going?" He asked when he caught up to him. "Library." Grey replied. "Oh, alright." Keith nodded and followed him. They asked someone for the direction, and after a few minutes of walking, they got to the place. "That''s encouraging." Grey muttered when he saw the size of the library. Compared to the libraries he had gone to, this one was the smallest Free?ebnovel.c?m. He walked into the library but was stopped by a young man just after he walked in. "Badge." The young man inquired. Grey brought out his badge and gave it to the young man. "Okay, two points for every twenty minutes you stay here. If you go to a higher level, the points deducted will increase." The young man placed the badge on a stone that lit up and a strange symbol appeared on the badge. "You can go in now." He passed the badge back to Grey. Grey took the badge and looked at it curiously. He recalled that he was given a total of one hundred and thirty points for the beast cores he handed over, but he forgot to ask how he would get the points. Keith had lesser than a hundred points. Walking past the entrance of the library, Grey knew not to judge a book by its cover. The inside of the library was gigantic, with multiple bookshelves, and there were even stairs, taking them to a higher place. "Looks like this place is allocated to those in rank one." Keith said as they looked at the place. "Okay." Grey nodded and walked toward a bookshelf. ''You sense it too, right?'' Grey asked Void telepathically. ''Yes, this is a separate space.'' Void replied. The space inside the library was created by a powerful Space Elementalist. Grey never thought he would witness something like this here. After walking for a few minutes, he saw a book titled, ''The rules''. ''Guess you''re first.'' He said to himself before picking it up. When he picked it up, he felt a buzz from his badge, and looking at the place where the book was previously sitting, he saw a number there, one point every one hour he had the book. ''Looks like without points then staying here will be useless.'' He said to himself before taking a seat. Initially, he thought he would be given special treatment after showing his talent. Even though he didn''t want that, he felt all Factions would do things like that, but to his surprise, other than appreciating his strength, this Faction didn''t give him any special treatment. What they were doing was simple, if you want something, get points and acquire them. Most Factions will want to give Grey special treatments for his talent, however, this Faction was different. After taking the rule book, he started reading it. Since he just joined the Faction, this was the first thing he felt he should know. He didn''t want to get involved in any issues later on. Keith also picked a rule book and opened it as well. The duo read the book for over an hour. By the time they were done with it, they had already spent two hours in the library. Chapter 824 Are You Sure About This One? Chapter 824 Are You Sure About This One? Pyrmond Faction. A young man could be seen sitting under a tree, in a crossed leg position and both eyes closed. Beside him was a black cat that seemed to be asleep. It had been one month since Grey got into the Pyrmond Faction, and in this one month, he had taken his time to get used to the place and also ensure he didn''t do anything that would get him in trouble. He had used up all his points in the library, unfortunately, he hasn''t even been able to learn any new techniques. This library contained more information about the continent compared to the previous one. It even had some details concerning the war of gods which he found amazing. He read about it for long before switching to books on arrays, given his love for arrays, it was natural he would want to learn more. Not just that, but he still had to worry about being marked. He might not have been attacked in a while by necromancers, but he still didn''t forget about it. This was an issue he wanted to sort out as soon as possible. He also read about forgemastering and other things. All in all, he was flooding his head with information. He opened his eyes to look at his badge, "I''m out of points." "What did you expect?" Void asked sarcastically. "Fortunately I got info about a nice place to cultivate privately here, so it wasn''t wasted." Grey said with a smile. "You spent all the points on reading stuff, if I didn''t ask Keith about it, you wouldn''t have been able to find it so soon." Void said with an annoyed expression. "Fine, but my points wouldn''t be enough anyway. At the time we found out about it, I had less than fifty points. A session there cost sixty points, if I recall correctly." Grey tried to shift the blame. "You''ll have to go to the mission hall if you want points. You can also trade the beast cores you have with you." Void suggested. Over time, they''ve found out how points were earned, and that was through missions. The higher the rank of a member, the better the missions. For instance, the young man he met at the library the first time he went there was on a mission. After completing the mission, he would be assigned a specific amount of points. Grey naturally wouldn''t do something so trivial. There should be missions that would take him outside the Faction. He had gotten the uniform of the Faction, and surprisingly, it was not free. The Faction was very strict in upholding its rules, but what he liked about the Faction was its unity. It reminded him of his time back at the Lunar Academy. There are higher ranked Faction members that occasionally give out lessons to lower ranked members, and it costs points as well. There are a few who do it for free. Grey had attended one of the classes, and it was not bad. Since joining the Faction, almost everything he had to do revolved around points. Now he understood why he rarely saw people when he entered the Faction for the first time, they were all out on missions. He found this better since the members would go out more for experience. Grey got up from where he was sitting and headed straight for the mission hall. On getting there, he quickly went to the place for rank two members. Without a badge, he wouldn''t be able to enter this place. Likewise, if his rank was lower, he wouldn''t be able to get in as well. He looked at the mission board and all sorts of missions were placed there, from escorting a carriage, to being bodyguards for special events, there were even missions that dealt with helping search for lost pets. The points allocated to each mission mainly relied on the difficulty of the mission. Grey looked through the missions and quickly picked out the one he felt was right for him. It involved clearing out a group of bandits disturbing a certain town within the territory of the Faction. Just as he was about to register it, he saw it go blank. ''Huh?'' He looked at it curiously, and looking at the side, he saw a young lady registering the same mission. As long as a mission is registered by one person, a second person can not take on the same mission. The time limit for the mission was a week and it gave out forty-eight points. If after a week the young lady is unable to complete the mission, then it would reappear on the board. Once the mission was registered, the array on the board as well as the badge would react, as long as its success isn''t reported within that time frame, the mission would reappear. Each member''s badge also had something like a tracking device to pinpoint their accurate position. There''s also a way to send a distress signal back to the Faction if any of the members were to be in danger. Grey could only look for another mission. He focused on the ones that gave out high points. His gaze soon landed on a particular mission, he had to search for a particular herb, and the location of the herb was stated on the board. The reward was around sixty points. "This one then." He muttered before heading to the place where he could register the mission. "I would like to take the floating clover mission." He said politely to the young lady sitting on the other side of the table. "The floating clover?" The young lady asked, a slight shock appeared on her face but she quickly hid it. "Yes." Grey nodded. "Are you new here?" The young lady suddenly asked. "Yes." Grey nodded, he noticed the change on the young lady''s face when he picked this mission. "I guessed as much. This mission is extremely deadly. Even a Peak Overlord Plane Elementalist has gone and he was unsuccessful, in fact, he''s still bedridden after almost three years." The young lady said slowly, she looked at Grey and asked, "Are you sure you want to take this particular mission?" Chapter 825 lve offended A Lot Of People Chapter 825 l''ve offended A Lot Of People Grey walked out of the Faction gate, heading in the direction of his mission. He appreciated the young lady''s goodwill in warning him about the dangers of the mission, but since he needed the points, and knew he would be safe, he took it anyway, against her will. One of the things that gave him confidence in this mission was that the greatest issue with the mission was poison miasma. Of all the things, this was one of the few things he was not afraid of. He could even send out miasma. Since gaining the ability, he had only tried it out once. When he recalled this, he felt a bit regretful not using it on the horned race. The timeframe for the mission was around two weeks, and the young lady said she would stay there till Grey returned. She felt Grey was being too proud, so she wanted to see him when he returned as not only a failure, but also injured. The main reason she warned him was due to the unity of the Faction, since Grey wanted to be an ungrateful person, then she would let him suffer. It was his choice to begin with. "I think you irritated her." Void chuckled. "It''s her choice." Grey replied. On his way out, he saw Keith returning to the Faction. "Heading out?" Keith walked up to Grey. "Yeah, I''m out of points." Grey replied. "I figured. See you when you return." Keith patted his shoulder before walking into the Faction. He was just returning from a mission, and he wanted to report it before his time was up. Grey nodded before he continued his journey. According to the map, it would take him around three days to get to the location of the herb. Three days went by in the blink of an eye. Grey was currently seated in a town close to where the floating clover was located. Grey had read about this floating cover from one of the books he read, it was a powerful medicinal plant, however, it only grew on places with thick miasma. Getting it was extremely difficult. ''Do you sense it as well?'' Grey asked Void telepathically as he took a sip of the wine he was drinking. Since leaving Klaus, he rarely drank wine. When he got here, they only sold wine, so he had no other option. ''Yeah, however I can''t tell how powerful they are.'' Void replied. Grey continued drinking his wine, when he was done, he paid for it and left. After leaving the Tavern, he headed toward the west, the floating clover was located in that direction. While he was in the Tavern, he heard that this was the worst time to venture into that place because the strength of the miasma increased during this period. He would need to wait for one week if he wanted to enter. For Grey, he didn''t care if the miasma was on its highest point, it wouldn''t cause him any harm. After leaving the town, he sensed some people rushing toward him, however, they were hiding their presence. He already sensed them the previous day, so he wasn''t too bothered. The fact that he could sense them showed that they were at most in the Overlord Plane. Well, so he hoped. After walking for over one thousand kilometer, the people came out. It consisted of seven people, each at the Peak of the Overlord Plane. "Who are you people?" Grey asked calmly. He wasn''t feeling threatened by them, after all they were all in the Overlord Plane. He could tell these people were stronger than a regular Peak Overlord Plane Elementalist, each of them was almost on the same level as those beasts he fought against, so fighting against seven of them would be difficult for him. "You offended someone you shouldn''t." One of them said. "I''ve offended a lot of people, do you mind telling me which one? At least that way I''ll know who to kill." Grey said coldly. "You don''t deserve to know." The man stated and rushed at Grey. The other six rushed after him as well. Grey smirked when he saw this and nodded his head while making a strange hand symbol. The gravity suddenly increased and the people rushing at him felt their bodies grow heavier. "What''s happening, I thought she said he could only do this within five meters of himself?" One of the men panicked. "Maybe he hid his true ability, but we will still kill him." The man leading them said. "Hehe, you''re dead." Grey chuckled and Void appeared beside him. Void was not the only person that appeared by his side, three more figures appeared by him as well, they were identical, with their eye colors being different. It was none other than the horned men he captured when he entered their realm. He managed to subdue them, and they agreed to work with him. Of course he took some precautions before agreeing to it. He placed an array in their hearts and horns, the moment they tried anything funny, they would die immediately. At first, they refused, but when they realized Grey didn''t mind killing them, they finally agreed. Besides, this was better than dying. Grey was stunned when he found out that they could hide their horns from people. He placed the trio on different sides and with the help of Void and a new array he created, he could use the gravitational field without them powering it. The short time the horned men had spent with him had been nothing but shocking. They were amazed by his abilities. The appearance of the trio stunned the group who wanted to attack Grey. After sensing that they were at the Peak of the Overlord Plane like them, they felt they could defeat them. They also felt the array had an effect on all of them. Grey and the horned men exchanged glances before charging at the men. The horned men prefered physical battles, and Grey was also a fan of it as well, so they started a brawl with these seven men. Chapter 826 Keeping To His word Chapter 826 Keeping To His word Grey and the horned men fought like savages, according to the seven men, anyway. Elementalists usually fight with elements, Grey and the horned men were a bit different, fighting with their fists. With the help of the gravitational force field, the men were unable to move at their peak. "Escape." The leader of the seven men said and rushed in another direction after he managed to free himself from one of the horned men. The others did the same and tried to escape. "Don''t chase after them, prepare to attack." Grey said to the horned men as they were about to rush after them. They nodded and prepared to attack. To their surprise, all seven men appeared on the same spot they were previously standing. "Amazing." The horned men were once again shocked by Grey''s ability. Unknown to them, this was all Void''s doing. With his domain, only those in the Sage Plane could escape from his clutches. The seven were shocked by the familiar scenery before them, before they could even react, Grey and the horned men pounced on them. With Void''s help, the horned men, and Grey working together, it was only a matter of time before all seven men were beaten to a pulp. Grey looked at the seven men, he got an idea of who sent them after him, but he wanted to be sure. "Now, who sent you here?" He asked with a cold voice. "You won''t get anything from me." The leader of the group answered, he could barely talk, but he was reluctant to say the name of the person who sent them after Grey. "I see. Do any of you know who sent you?" Grey looked at the others. They shook their heads and he smiled in return. He turned to one of the horned men and nodded. The man walked close to one of the men sitting on the ground, he placed his palm on his shoulder, and the facial expression of the man started to change. As time went on, the man started to scream in pain, shaking from severe pain. Grey didn''t speak, neither did any of the horned men, they watched the scene unfold before the eyes of the others. A few minutes later, the man stopped moving completely, he was dead. "I''ll ask again, who sent you?" Grey asked with a calm look. The men exchanged glances and the leader of the group shook his head to the others, indicating none of them should give Grey the answer he was searching for. "Hmm, stubborn." Grey shook his head before pointing his hand at one of the men. Black mist left his hand and shot toward the man. The man tried to dodge it, but he was too slow and it entered his body. Everyone looked on with curiosity, even the horned men. They didn''t know what Grey sent out, but they all knew for sure that it was a dangerous substance. A minute went by and nothing happened, this surprised the men, even the horned men. "You can''t even do anything, without your helpers, you''re nothing." The leader of the group mocked. "Oh, really." Grey raised a brow before looking at the man once again. The man still had a composed expression, but everyone soon started to see a change. His eyes were turning black, and blood started coming from his ears and nose. "What, why are you people staring at me?" The man asked as he saw everyone''s gaze. One of the men pointed at his face. The man couldn''t help but raise his hand, when he touched it, he saw black blood. He was stunned because he couldn''t feel anything. Just as he was about to ask where the blood came from, he shivered uncontrollably and started to have a seizure. He bled slowly, shaking from the pain. However, unlike the first man who was killed, he didn''t die even after over five minutes. Grey didn''t rush things, he watched on curiously as well. This was the first time he was using the miasma, so he knew nothing of its effect. Astonishingly, it didn''t work like the normal miasma, instead, it seemed more brutal, causing a higher harm. The man continued suffering under the gaze of everyone. "Please¡­ end¡­ this¡­" The man begged. When the others heard this, they looked at Grey with a scared expression. They didn''t know what Grey did to the man, but they could tell he was suffering given the fact that he was pleading for death. "What did you do to him?" The leader of the men asked. "He''s wishing for death, but can''t have it. This worse kind of torture. I wonder if you will still keep your mouth shut after experiencing this." Grey turned to the other men and added, ". As for you guys, you either speak, or I kill you one after the other and he still tells me what I want in the end." The men exchanged glances, they all knew he was correct, after they were dead, the man would most likely speak the truth after they were dead. "It''s¡­" One of the men quickly spoke up with the hope of keeping his life. "You traitorous bastard!" The leader of the group yelled at the man who told Grey of the lady''s identity. It was just as Grey suspected, it was the young lady he eliminated from the Faction. "Looks like I have to settle her later on. I don''t want any disturbance whenever I''m traveling." Grey said. He didn''t expect the young lady would hold a grudge about the matter and even sent people to wait for him. Luckily, she didn''t send people in the Sage Plane, or he would''ve been in trouble. "You can go, I won''t kill you, as for the rest." Grey''s eyes went cold and he sent a black orb at the other men. The man who told him about the identity of the young lady stood up and ran as fast as he could. ''Void, end him.'' ''I thought you said you wouldn''t kill him.'' ''You''re the one killing him, not me.'' Chapter 827 Hiding In Poison Miasma Chapter 827 Hiding In Poison Miasma Just when Grey finished killing the others, he sensed something and his expression changed. Boom! A large explosion resounded out and Void''s domain was forcefully broken. "A Sage Plane Elementalist." Grey didn''t need any confirmation to know of this. Without even thinking, he brought out one of his Teacher''s talisman and crushed it. The horned men flashed and disappeared. Grey still didn''t know how they were able to remain alive on his storage ring, even after researching it countless times. Covered by a bright light, he rushed in the direction of the location of the floating herb. According to what he knew, these people wouldn''t be able to get into the place. A middle-aged man appeared and chased after him. The man had a skinny build, and he exuded an eerie aura. Grey didn''t need to speak to the person to know that he was a necromancer. The man chuckled and rushed after him, laughing. To him, Grey''s escape was a futile effort. He chased after Grey and his expression soon changed when he saw where Grey was entering. He paused and looked at Grey with a stunned expression. "Fool, you''ll die if you enter there." The necromancer said. He wanted to kill Grey and make him one of his puppets. From the previous battle, he could already tell Grey was a talented individual. The domain made him even more astonished. "Chase me in here if you can." Grey''s voice echoed into his ears as he watched Grey charge into the miasma without fear. "Fool!" The necromancer stopped and looked at Grey with an annoyed look. He had been tracking the aura of the mark for thousands of meters, only to get here and lose the target. He felt irritated because his journey was a waste of time. To him, the second Grey walked into the place, he was dead. The thought of even trying to retrieve his corpse didn''t cross his mind. He wasn''t that desperate. If Grey wanted to die, then he would let him be. He decided to wait for some time, once Grey tries to come out, he would capture him. Grey on the other hand was speeding through the miasma. He wasn''t even affected by it, rather, he could feel some sort of resonation and the miasma in his body started to churn. Void was currently hidden in his storage ring since he couldn''t risk staying in the miasma. On the way, he saw some beasts that had adapted to the miasma and lived there peacefully. After a few turns, he found a cave and hid there. ''Damn it! This stupid mark, I need to get rid of it as soon as possible.'' He complained as he sat down cross-legged. He closed his eyes and meditated. Two hours later he calmed down. ''He''s gone.'' He couldn''t sense any sign of the man, so he felt a little settled. From what he guessed, he felt the man thought he was dead, so he left the place. ''Time to search for this herb. It shouldn''t be hard.'' He thought as he walked out of the cave. According to the books he read, the herb Grey in places with high concentration of miasma. As long as he followed the energy of the miasma, then he would get it quickly. When he started exploring the place, he saw corspes of people who had died while venturing into the place. Not just that, but even that of beasts as well. "This place isn''t simple." He muttered. One hour later. He was standing in front of a cliff side, and beside the cliff was a floating flower. It was none other than the floating clover. "So easy?" He was a little taken aback since he felt it should''ve been a little harder than this. He was about to collect it when he heard a rustling sound. The sound was followed by a roar. A large boar charged at him. The boar was radiating black energy from its body. ''This must be the work of the miasma. To think magical beasts were able to adapt to this.'' He thought as he dodged the charge of the boar. After dodging the charge, he released a powerful flame attack that sent the boar flying. With three more moves, he was able to kill the boar. "Strange, it''s weaker than a magical beast outside." Grey said as he acquired the floating clover. He couldn''t leave now since it was still too early. The risk of encountering the necromancer was too high. Staying here for a day or two will be enough to ward off any attempt of the man to wait. By then, once he leaves, he could safely return to the Faction and hide for some time. This was one of the things he hated the most, yet he was forced to do it once again. ''Just you wait, once Void gets to the Sage Plane, he will kill you all.'' Grey thought to himself. With that he went back to the cave to hide. He decided to cultivate with the time he was in the cave. When cultivating, time moves by quickly. Before he knew it, three days went by in a flash. "He should be long gone by now." Grey said as he started to venture out of the miasma. When he got to the peripheral of the miasma, he waited to see if he could sense anything. After not sensing anything, he crushed another talisman and rushed in the direction of the Faction. All he wanted right now was to get to a city and use the teleportation array. He couldn''t make any teleportation arrays since he was still too weak. But he was sure that once he gets to the Sage Plane, he should be able to do it. At that time, he would make arrays wherever he goes to make his return journey easier. Thousands of meters away from the poison miasma. In a hidden cave. The necromancer was seated, tending to his injuries. By his side was the corpse of an old man. He was still recovering when his eyes snapped open. "Impossible." Chapter 828 Continuous Pursuit Chapter 828 Continuous Pursuit Grey''s figure flashed through the sky as he hurried to the city close to the miasma. Even though he couldn''t sense the necromancer, he still didn''t want to take the risk of moving at a slow pace. At this point, all his points would be dedicated to learning more about arrays. He couldn''t even take the risk of trying to gather the points and use them for a cultivation ground where Void would break through to the Sage Plane. If things didn''t go as planned, then he would use the treasure in his place, besides, it wasn''t like those from the Faction were going to steal it from him. His only fear was that the powerful experts and some of the people in the Sage Plane would be able to peek into his house and find out that a cat was actually absorbing such a valuable treasure. This was one of the main reasons he wanted to use a cultivation ground since it was extremely secretive. According to what he heard, no one could peek into the place. He didn''t believe it completely since he didn''t know about the old experts hidden in the Faction grounds. While Grey was rushing to the next city, the necromancer was moving through the sky at breakneck speed. He could tell that Grey was moving at a speed faster than his cultivation Plane. This was not what he found confusing, Grey should be dead, but all evidence indicates that he was alive which should be impossible since he entered the poison miasma. After Grey entered the miasma, it was able to block out the connection with the mark. The miasma also had the ability to disrupt the sense of direction of an Elementalist after staying for too long. The thought of this mark belonging to someone else came to his mind, but Grey was the only one he sensed within the past few days, and the direction of the mark was the same as the one where the miasma was located. This meant it was most likely the same person. "I''ll enjoy killing that little brat." He muttered as he shot through the sky. Grey, who was on the verge of escaping suddenly sensed a powerful aura rushing in his direction. He couldn''t help but twitch from fright. ''How could he return so early?'' He was irritated, but he still continued rushing toward the city. He was already close to the city, and from what he knew, there was a teleportation array there. All he needed was to get there and he would be safe. Luckily he didn''t encounter this man when he was coming here without any teleportation array, he would''ve been in danger of being killed when caught. Even his Fusion State will not be able to save him from the hands of a Sage Plane Elementalist, especially one that doesn''t seem to be in the Early stages. Those in the Early stages will find it difficult to break through Void''s domain, yet this necromancer did it with a single attack. If he was in the Mid or Late stages, Grey couldn''t even dare to imagine the strength of the puppets he had with him. There would most definitely be a puppet in the Late stages or even the Peak of the Sage Plane. A single slap from that corpse would easily kill him, not even leaving any part of him. Thinking up to this point, Grey brought out a second talisman and crushed it. He didn''t care how difficult it was for his Teacher to make them, its use had come. His speed increased substantially after using a second talisman and he rushed toward the city. A few minutes later, the visage of a city appeared before him. Without even pausing, he flew straight into the city. This was prohibited, but he should be able to escape punishment since he was part of the Pyrmond, and this area was within the jurisdiction of the Faction. The second he flew into the city, he sensed the auras of some powerful figures in the Sage Plane. An idea soon came to him and he headed in that direction. An old man appeared before him. "Stop, flying in the skies of this city is prohibited." He said as he stared at Grey coldly. "I''m a member of the Pyrmond Faction." Grey showed them his badge before heading to the ground. The men followed him as well. "I''m sorry, I was being chased by an Elementalist in the Sage Plane, I had no other choice but to fly over here." He apologized in a calm and collected manner. The men looked at Grey, and looking in the direction he was coming from, they could sense a faint aura rushing in the direction of the city. Looking at these men, Grey was able to quickly figure out that the strongest looked to be in the Mid stages of the Overlord Plane, he wasn''t a hundred percent sure of this, but he felt a sense of confidence in his judgment. "Alright, we''ll confront whoever it is." The man said. "I would like to use the teleportation array now." Grey said. The men exchanged glances before replying, "You have to wait until we get verification of your story." "That isn''t a good idea, I don''t want to complicate things for you." Grey said, still calm. "I''m sorry, but you''ll have to wait." Grey honestly didn''t want to bring any trouble to them, but since they wanted him to wait, he didn''t mind waiting. He knew these people felt he stole the badge and was running. One thing most people outside the Faction didn''t know was that if the badge of a member of the Faction is not in a Faction member''s hand, it will automatically explode. Grey could hand his badge to another Faction member that has a badge with him, but he couldn''t hand it to others. However, if the badge was placed on the ground, maybe during an attack or something, then it would stay in that spot until it was retrieved by the Faction or it explodes from another person touching it. This is a fail-safe placed on the badges to ensure others wouldn''t be able to use it to access the Faction in any case where the original owner dies. Chapter 829 lcy Flames Chapter 829 lcy Flames This was a city where its strongest individuals were in the Sage Plane. Had Grey been one of the famous geniuses from the Faction, they would''ve at least known of him, but they knew nothing about him. And from the way Grey was in a haste, they felt he probably stole the badge, and the original owner was chasing after him. Grey naturally wasn''t bothered with them, if they could deal with the necromancer chasing him, he wouldn''t be bothered, but if they can''t, he would use the teleportation array while they were fighting. The men stood guard and watched as the necromancer got closer. When they sensed the eerie aura he was radiating, they knew he was trouble. They turned to Grey and he shrugged as if telling them, ''I told you before''. "Who''s he?" The oldest man in the group asked Grey. "A necromancer who wants to kill me. See why I''m in a hurry now?" Grey said plainly before asking, "Can I go now? If I leave, he will leave this place alone." The man nodded. From the necromancer''s aura, they knew they were not his match, so fighting against it was not something they dared to attempt. Being in the city made things even worse. The casualty would be on another level. "You little brat! You can''t escape." The necromancer yelled and a ball of light shot straight into the city. Crash! Bang! The light landed in the city, causing a large explosion. It was followed by the appearance of a pale-looking figure, standing in the wreckage. The pupils of the old man in the Sage Plane dilated. This was a Sage Plane corpse, and it was at the Peak. "Run." He said to Grey and he told the others to activate the city''s protection arrays before charging at the corpse. He couldn''t take the risk of letting the necromancer send in another Sage Plane puppet into the city since it would be detrimental to them. Grey nodded before rushing in the direction of the teleportation array. The corpse moved its head and looked in the direction of Grey. A pale blue flame lit up in its eyes and it rushed after Grey. The old man stood in front of it as he tried to block it from advancing. It waved its hand and a pale blue flame appeared that sent the old man flying. Grey who was on the verge of escaping sensed the flame and his eyes widened in shock. This was the same flame he had, however, there seemed to be a different energy in this corpse''s flames, it was chilling. ''An icy flame?'' He was taken aback by this, but this didn''t stop him from running anyway. His life was more important to him. There seemed to be a glint of intelligence in the corpse, contrary to how corpses usually act. The corpse avoided fighting with the men in the Sage Plane, its target was clear, Grey. ''Void, what do you think about this guy''s flames?'' Grey asked as he ran away. After leaving the poison miasma, Void rushed out of the storage ring. He was bored there, so he quickly exited. Seeing that Grey was on the run, he couldn''t help but mock his predicament. To think all this stemmed from Void having a black elemental grade. Had they not taken the test in the forest, Grey would''ve never crossed paths with necromancers. The corpse dodged all the attacks of the men as it rushed after Grey. The attacks however slowed it down, so Grey was able to get to the teleportation array before it was able to get close to him. Grey instantly activated the array and waited for it to start up. The other men delayed the corpse, but their attempts were futile since at the last minute when Grey was about to be sent out, the corpse got close and attacked the teleportation array. Grey quickly countered with blue flames of his own. Both flames crashed, and although it didn''t destroy the teleportation array, it seemed to disrupt the teleportation tunnel, and Grey was already in it, unable to exit. When the corpse sensed Grey''s blue flames, it paused for barely a second and looked at Grey in shock. Its eyes shone bright and a blue light shot straight into the spatial tunnel which had completely enveloped Grey, sending him in another direction. Grey and Void were thrown into a chaotic spatial tunnel that didn''t seem to have a definite destination. "This is bad, this is bad." Grey panicked. He watched the tunnel in front of them slowly break apart from the front. As long as the path they were currently on breaks as well, they would fall into space, even though they didn''t die, leaving this place would be almost impossible, even for two Space Elementalist like Void and himself. Their abilities were not at that level yet. "Void, what do you do?" Grey asked in panic as the spatial tunnel continued breaking apart. Presently, they couldn''t even head to their destination, much less exit the tunnel. "What can we do?" Void replied with a wry smile. For the first time, Grey realized Void didn''t have a solution to their current predicament. Their hopes were on the brink of getting shattered when a bright blue light shot straight into Grey''s head, he couldn''t even react before the light entered his body. ¡­. While Grey was trying to escape from the necromancer, a figure was hidden in the void, watching him as he was held back by the old men from the city. "The young lord surely does have a knack for getting the attention of these guys. Could it have something to those guys? They must''ve marked him, so troublesome." A voice muttered as he watched the scene before him unfold. This was the man protecting Grey from the shadows, he had been with him all this while, even when he went to the Faction. He was naturally sensed by the old figures in the Faction, but after speaking with them, he was allowed to wait outside for Grey whenever he wanted to head out. When Grey entered the poison miasma, he wanted to rush in and bring him out, but after careful observation, he realized Grey didn''t seem to be affected by it. He also saw Grey using his miasma, as well as those horned men he subdued. Grey seemed to bring him surprises whenever he wasn''t with him. Even if it was only a month or two, Grey would grow by leaps and bounds, amazing him every time he sees him again. Even after following Grey for so long, he didn''t dare to say he knew all of Grey''s moves. He had seen how secretive Grey was, so he was sure there must be a move he was keeping hidden, waiting for the right time to use it. He watched on as the necromancer sent the corpse inside the city and how the corpse chased after Grey. Seeing the corpse almost destroying the array, his eyes flashed a little, but he didn''t panic. After Grey''s figure had entered the spatial tunnel, he waved his hand, and the man as well as the corpse disappeared. He also appeared on the teleportation array momentarily before disappearing once again. ''Looks like I can''t get him to his desired destination, but I can ensure he isn''t in any form of danger, and also appears on the Continent, as for where he appears, that has to do with his luck.'' He thought as he forcefully tore into space. When he arrived, the spatial tunnel was on the last part, he focused his energy and tried to bring out a destination for Grey and Void. While doing this, he brought out the necromancer and dumped him into the turbulent space. The spatial tunnel with Grey and Void stabilized after some time, to the ecstasy of Grey who had truly lost all hopes. ¡­. "What happened?" Grey asked as he realized that the spatial tunnel suddenly stabilized. "Luck?" Void replied, unsure. He knew for a fact that the spatial tunnel was breaking apart, and it would take a powerful individual to fix it. Or maybe they were just that lucky. "My luck is not that good." Grey replied. He could tell that their current destination was different from where he was supposed to appear. ''Did someone help me?'' He thought, a little bit confused. Chapter 830 Strange volcano Chapter 830 Strange volcano On an island somewhere far from the Pyrmond Faction. A rip appeared in space and a figure shot out of it, crashing into the ground. The figure was of course Grey who had an issue with his teleportation array. When he landed on the island, he looked around, trying to figure out his current location. "How lucky, I got to appear in a place with an active volcano, yeah¡­" He said sarcastically as he looked at the large volcano that had smoke coming out of it. They appeared close to the volcano. Looking around, he noticed he couldn''t see anything other than a large sea of water. He didn''t even know where he was, which was worse. "At least you''re alive, stop complaining." Void replied after climbing onto Grey''s shoulder. "How come I look like a wreck and you''re fine?" Grey couldn''t help but ask. They were both thrown out of the spatial tunnel, yet he was the only one who seemed to have crashed. "I landed on my feet, unlike you who crashed into the sand with your face." Void mocked as he looked around. Other than a few beasts, he couldn''t sense anything else in this place. "There''s food, I think we''re pretty lucky." He muttered. Grey cleaned his face before grabbing Void and tossing him to the ground, to his dismay, Void landed on his feet and stuck out his tongue mockingly. After the duo played around for some time, with Void being the victor in their small battle they finally decided to tackle the issue at hand. Grey brought out the horned men and sent them out to scout the island and see what they could find. After being with them, he finally knew their names. The first guy he captured outside the trial land was called Birch, the two he captured inside were, Braden and Basil. All three brothers had different elements, one was a Water Elementalist, the other was a Space Elementalist, and the last was a Wind Elementalist. "What do we do now?" Void asked, his expression more serious this time. "I have no idea." Grey replied. This was what happened to Ellis when he appeared in the Azure Continent. What he felt was worse was that he had no clue where he appeared. If he was still in the Aurora Continent, he would be delighted since going back to the Faction would be easy, but if not, then he would have to think of a way to leave the place. This was his greatest fear. The duo stayed on the island, waiting for the return of the horned men. A few minutes later, they returned with what they could find. Other than magical beasts, there were no other things living in the place. They also sensed the presence of a beast that should be above the Overlord Plane, which frightened them. The island was around three kilometers or so, so Grey ticked out the area where the beast was located. Other than that, the volcano seemed to be on the verge of erupting. ''Where will these beasts go to if the volcano erupts?'' Grey started to brainstorm. From how the volcano looked, he felt if it were to erupt, it would most definitely affect this place which was only around three thousand square meters. If that is the case, then the entire island would be affected by the eruption. The beasts living here would naturally have to flee for their lives. While thinking about all this, he also thought of the possibility of the volcano not being too violent when it erupts. There''s a chance that it might only cover a small area. In conclusion, he didn''t want to leave his fate to chance. "Leaving this place should be our priority. Void, you can fly, so all the work in finding the next patch of land lies on you. If you can find a boat, that will be even better." Grey started to give out orders. Void nodded to his words and immediately took to the sky. With the connection between the duo, he could find him even after moving thousands of kilometers. Grey was still speaking with the horned men when a thought suddenly struck him. ''Come back.'' He called Void telepathically. After doing that, he brought out a plaque-like item. It was the tracking device he made when he was still in the Azure Continent. As long as he was in the Aurora Continent, then the light dots of his friends will most definitely appear. He prayed in his heart as he activated the device, joy appeared on his face when he realized there wasn''t only one dot on the device. "Yes!" His expression changed when he saw the distance between the lights. ''This should still be the Western Continent, but I''m in no way close to the Faction. Hmm, getting back before the mission''s time runs out will be difficult.'' Grey sighed when he thought of his wasted points. He couldn''t help but curse at the necromancer, wishing for him to die. The points he worked hard to get would be gone, just like that. He was still cursing at the necromancer when he felt a strange sensation coming from his body. ''Huh?'' A confused expression appeared on his face and he turned to look in the direction of the volcano. One of the things he suddenly realized was that even with the smoke coming out from the volcano, the island was still chilly. He didn''t get to think about it before since he was preoccupied with the thought of leaving this place, but after calming down, he was amazed by the temperature of this place. "Why''s it cold?" He blurted out. He looked in the direction of the volcano, wondering if it was the cause of the chilling air. For some reason, he also felt a strange connection with the volcano as well. Void had returned, and hearing Grey''s question, he couldn''t help but think about it. "Strange." He muttered, looking at the volcano as well. In a place with an active volcano, it was quite odd that it was this cold. Chapter ?831 Pale-blue Eyes Chapter ?831 Pale-blue Eyes Grey and Void decided to check out the volcano. There was nothing left for them to do anyway. Knowing that they were on the same Continent made them calm down relatively quickly, with Grey''s tracking device, they knew the general direction they had to go. As they ascended the volcano, the temperature started to drop at an alarming rate. The amusing thing was that there was no ice on the volcano as they climbed it, yet they could feel the air getting cold, even their breaths were visible. "What is this place?" Basil asked. Of the trio, he was the Water Elementalist, so he was fascinated by the prospect of seeing something that might help him advance in his cultivation. "A volcano, obviously." Birch replied, rubbing his hands together because of the cold. "I know, but have you seen a volcano like this before?" Basil said. "This should be a special type of fire." Braden pondered. Of the trio, he was the one recognized to be the smartest, he was also the Space Elementalist. Not just that, but according to what Grey found out from them, he was also the eldest of the triplet. "Correct, it''s clearly a flame, but it gives off icy chills. It''s even colder than most of the ice users I''ve encountered, excluding that Ice Dragon." Grey joined in on the conversation. After getting them to be his lackeys, he built a good relationship with them. Although the way they started was a little on the wrong foot, he''s building a relationship where they could trust each other. They wouldn''t be equals, but they wouldn''t be his slaves as well. They were here to help him out on some things, and they had the right to give out their suggestions. Even the triplet was a little surprised at how Grey was treating them. They were one hundred percent certain that if they were in Grey''s position, then they would naturally maltreat him. He wasn''t from their race, so they did not need to sympathize with him. They continued speaking as they ascended the volcano, the triplets soon brought out their horns, and it gave off a glow that covered their bodies, keeping the cold away from them. While this was going on, Grey''s eyes were shining with a pale blue light, identical to that of the corpse he encountered while escaping. "Mas¡­ Grey¡­" Braden called out to Grey when he noticed the color of his eyes. He had never seen Grey''s eyes emit pale blue glows before, so he was a little curious. "Huh?" Grey looked at him, a little puzzled. "Your eyes, they''re blue." Braden pointed out. "Wait, what?" Grey was taken aback, he quickly used his water element to create a piece of thin ice that made something like a mirror for him. Looking at it, he was stunned. It was as if he was staring into the eyes of the corpse. It hadn''t been long since he saw the corpse, so he still recalled how its eyes looked. "What''s happening?" He muttered, flabbergasted by what was happening. Due to the panic of the spatial tunnel breaking apart, he panicked, so he didn''t notice when the light entered his body. Even if he did, the panic of the spatial tunnel wouldn''t make him think much about it. "Aren''t these the same eyes that the corpse had?" Void asked after staring at the eyes for some time. Grey nodded, trying to compose himself. While he was thinking of how it happened, he recalled what happened after he entered the spatial tunnel. He saw a flash of blue light, but he didn''t see where it went. Originally, he thought it was from the space around, but now he understood it wasn''t. He didn''t know what to do because he was unsure of his next course of action. There was no way he could pick out the cause of the light, nor could he expel it from his body. He didn''t know if it would be harmful to him or not. ''This is getting a bit too complicated.'' He thought to himself, ''Could the corpse have been what helped out with the teleportation array, also sending me here to acquire something, or is it just a coincidence?'' Multiple questions ran through his head. It was a little odd that as soon as the blue light flashed by, the tunnel stabilized and they were sent here. It would''ve been okay if they were just sent here, but for some reason, he felt some resonance with a volcano he had never seen before, and also from how it seemed to activate on his own as he ascended the mountain, there must''ve been a connection between the two. The more he thought about it, the more he felt this was the most likely explanation. It made sense if for some reason the corpse sensed his blue flames and the remnant consciousness in the body helped send him to acquire its legacy or something like that. ''But with my luck, will something like that really be possible?'' He asked himself another question. Unknown to him, his hypothesis was a little off, the blue light affected the destination, but without his protector helping to stabilize the tunnel, it would''ve been impossible for him to land here. His luck also played a role in this, because, in the case that his protector managed to send him to his original destination, he would''ve missed the chance of appearing here. When Grey appeared here, his protector also appeared as well. He hid in the void as he watched Grey think of how to leave the place. He was still contemplating why Grey appeared in such a desolate place when Grey''s eyes started to glow as they ascended the mountain. ''Don''t tell me it''s because of that¡­'' He was a little unsure. He noticed the light, but he wasn''t able to stop it. However, he knew it was harmless since he checked Grey''s body and saw it resting in his nebula quietly. He would''ve been able to force it out, but he could feel that it was meant to help Grey, so he let it be. ''How lucky, looks like he''s not always unlucky.'' He chuckled at the thought of Grey''s bad luck all this while. Chapter 832 Voids Plan Chapter 832 Void''s Plan Grey tried to search for the blue light multiple times, but he was unable to. He didn''t know it was resting in his head, and even the thought of that never crossed his mind. With no way to examine it, and given the connection it seemed to have with this volcano, he decided to find out about it after entering the volcano. From what he could tell, only a few people could go in. He was exempted from any form of cold it was emitting, the others were not so lucky, minus Void. Other than the poison miasma, Void seemed to be invincible to other things. ''I wonder what type of magical beast he is.'' He mused as they got to the peak of the volcano. At this time, the horned men paused at a particular spot past the middle when ascending the volcano. They were unable to go any further, so only Grey and Void continued the ascent. Standing at the peak, they felt a chilly breeze gush out of the volcano. "That''s not encouraging." Grey said as he tried to move closer. Even with the pale blue light, he still felt this chilly wind. He was a hundred percent certain that if anyone else tried to come in here, they would turn into an ice statue. Void''s expression also turned serious as they exchanged glances. Nodding to each other, they walked to the entrance of the volcano, looking inside, Grey saw something that caught his eye. "Isn''t that the same flame?" He almost exclaimed. He had seen something like this before, it was when he added the fire element to his elements. There was a floating blue lotus sitting at the top of the lava, giving off intense chills. Even from so far off, he could feel it. His heart started to beat faster from excitement. He felt an unbelievable sense of joy just staring at this lotus. "Hey, it''s like that plant when I was just born." Void commented when he saw the lotus. "It is, but unlike that one, this is a complete one. It seemed to have formed not too long ago." Grey said excitedly. "Nice, looks like we were lucky this time." Void laughed, he could see the joy in Grey''s eyes. "Guess so. But do you think I can obtain it so easily?" Grey asked with a wry smile. Void wanted to ask about something when Grey pointed at a moving figure in the volcano. Yes, there was a living creature inside the volcano, resting at the side. It was breathing slowly. "Rank Six, you have work to do." Void grinned at him The beast resting on the side was a giant double-headed snake in Rank Six. Grey wasn''t too shocked by it having two heads, what made him almost lose hope was its stage. If it were to be in Rank Five, then he could deal with it in the Fusion State, but now, he couldn''t even dare to fight against it. "I have a plan." Void said, to take Grey out of the depth of depression. Grey nodded for Void to tell him his plan and after he was done listening to it, his eyes brightened, before going dark once again. "It won''t work. It would sense it." Grey said after hearing Void''s plan. "Trust me, this thing can perfectly hide the aura of the treasure. Without having a powerful sensory ability, it will never sense it. Why do you think it hasn''t moved since we came here? It can only sense us when we get close to it." Void explained. Grey looked at the sleeping snake once again. Void''s plan would be able to help him get what he wanted, but it was also very. They would enter the volcano, find a safe spot inside and use the treasure. This would help boost Void''s Rank to the next one, while also giving them a good chance of acquiring the lotus after he does. The volcano could hide the aura of the treasure, so it would not leak out, attracting other magical beasts. Grey had his doubts about the plan since it involved them putting their hopes on a probability. If it didn''t work and the snake sensed them, it would be alert, and could even consume the lotus if they escaped. He stood on the same spot for a while, brooding over the matter seriously. This was not something he could take lightly, any mistake and his life would be in danger. He started to regret why he didn''t use his points to get a teleportation talisman from the Faction. There are talismans that are on sale in the Faction, it has those made by Sage Plane Elementalists and Elemental Venerables. Had he been able to acquire one made by an Elemental Venerable, he would''ve been able to take out the necromancer at first. ''Teacher''s talismans are almost up, I have only two left for escaping, and five for attacking.'' He thought out everything that could possibly happen, and after making sure that with his Teacher''s talisman, they could escape, he finally agreed to it. The reason he agreed was simple: if Void manages to break through to the Sage Plane, they could go back to the Faction within the week, this way, he would submit his mission and take his points. He wouldn''t need a cultivation room any longer since Void had already broken through. In addition, he would get his personal Sage Plane guard with him. It was a win-win every way he looked at it. The duo entered the volcano as quietly as they could and Void used his sharp claws to break a part of the volcano, creating a cave inside. Grey ensured that none of the rock pebbles fell to the ground when Void was making the cave. The second the duo entered the cave, they closed it once again, and their auras completely disappeared from the place. Of course, Grey waited outside first and handed the treasure to Void, and after he didn''t sense Void or the treasure, he was finally reassured. After so long, Void was finally going to break through to the Sage Plane. Chapter ?833 Fighting A Rank Six Magical Beast Chapter ?833 Fighting A Rank Six Magical Beast Two days went by in a flash. Grey and Void were still hiding inside the cave they made in the volcano. The treasure was already exhausted and Grey was currently giving off the aura of a Ninth stage Overlord Plane Elementalist. His eyes were still shut as he tried to get used to his new cultivation stage, as well as to figure out what the blue light was. After some time, he managed to locate the blue light. He had tried communicating with it, but he was unable to make it budge in the slightest. While Grey was busy trying to figure out what the pale blue light was and what it was used for, he noticed a change in the surrounding. The essence around the place was converging at a particular spot. Void was on the verge of breaking through to the Sage Plane. Grey opened his eyes and saw Void floating in the air. His eyes shone with a black light that seemed somewhat demonic. His fur fluttered from the wind circulating around due to the excess essence in the area. Even the essence in the volcano rushed there, alerting the double-headed snake. It raised its heads to look in the direction of the commotion. Void lifted into the air and he started to grow larger. This wasn''t Grey''s first time seeing him in this size, although he was still a little amazed every time he saw it. "This will alert the beast. Unfortunately, there''s nothing I can do. Hopefully, he breaks through in a short time." Grey muttered as he looked at Void. The converging of the essence started to make the lava in the volcano unsettled as it started to move from side to side. Outside the volcano. The sky was getting darker as the essence circulated in the air. After getting to a particular point, it shot out a single drop of essence that was in a liquid form. Whenever a Magical beast or an Elementalist gets to the Sage Plane, they would all get this. This is like a blessing from the world, giving them the purest essence it could offer, as well as offering the profoundness of each element. If one was lucky, they could awaken their domains from this. Void already had his space domain, if he could get a second domain, it would boost his strength to another level. Grey hoped this was what happened. The drop of essence dropped into the cave. When the snake saw it, its eyes lit up and it charged straight to the cave. Grey was astounded by the essence, just staring at it alone gave him a sense of oneness with the world. If he got the chance to observe this thing more, then he would be able to advance his elemental grades faster. ''If only.'' He thought as he stared at it. He had heard of people stealing this essence just as the person or beast breaking through assimilates with it. ''I wonder if those guys will get some things from it.'' He thought about the triplet. After some time, he found a way to send them inside the cave. Surprisingly, the temperature was okay in the cave. After telling them to try to gain whatever they can before Void completely assimilated with the essence, he stepped into the void and vanished. He could already sense the aura of the snake as it was rushing in their direction. He appeared outside, blocking the path of the snake. He was already in his Fusion State, three fusion orbs were in his hands, and it brought out two of the attacking talismans he got from his Teacher. No matter what, he would make sure Void broke through successfully. The double-headed snake saw Grey and it naturally paused, when it sensed his aura, it attacked without a second thought. Grey was still in the Overlord Plane, and he was no match for it. Grey already knew this would happen, so he didn''t panic. With a wave of his hand, the orbs shot at the snake. The snake opened its mouths and spat out two streams of fire. One headed in Grey''s direction while the other collided with the fusion orbs. The orbs broke apart and the impact forced Grey back. He managed to block the second attack, but he still slammed into the wall of the volcano. ''So this is the difference in strength eh?'' He struggled to crawl out of the hole he made on the wall. He knew from the start that he was no match for the snake, but he didn''t think the difference in strength was this huge. The Sage Plane and the Overlord Plane are miles apart. ''Luckily, all I need to do is delay it.'' Grey shot out from the hole and used one of his Teacher''s talismans. The moment the talisman''s attack collided with the snake, it smacked Grey with its tail, sending him crashing into the wall once again. The snake was unable to dodge the attack since it didn''t think anything of it. It was after it was hit by the attack it knew it was not something it could neglect. However, with Grey gone, it rushed in the direction of its target. Whatever was breaking through to the Sage Plane would be gone soon, so it had to ensure it got there before it happened. Boom! The snake retreated when it noticed Grey''s presence in front of it. And even before Grey was able to come out of the spatial tunnel, it spat a large fireball at it, pushing Grey back into the spatial tunnel. Grey''s figure appeared behind it and it swung its tail at him once again. Grey was getting trounced, but he couldn''t let the snake have its way. He was on the verge of crying, the snake was literally forcing him back into the spatial tunnel, making him unable to attack it. If he appeared too far from the snake, then it would be able to dodge the attack easily. The snake wanted to get to Void, but it was apprehensive of the talisman Grey had with him, so it couldn''t neglect him. It planned to squash the human pestering it before getting what was left of the essence. It turned around, facing Grey. Chapter 834 Void’s Second Domain Chapter 834 Void¡¯s Second Domain Grey was startled when the two-headed snake turned to his direction. Without being told, he knew the snake wanted to get serious with him now. He hastily retreated, but the snake chased after him and sent out a powerful stream of flames that almost knocked Grey to the ground. Grey was in the Fusion State, but he had no choice than to use his Teacher''s talisman to help boost his speed so he could escape from the snake''s attack''s. When Grey got a good distance away, in hopes of drawing the snake away, he was left disappointed when the snake quickly turned around and headed in Void''s direction. It was already a Rank Six Magical beast, so it was very smart. It quickly picked up what Grey wanted to do, so it played along and when Grey moved further away, it rushed in Void''s direction. ''This thing is too smart for my liking.'' Grey complained before rushing back to where Void was located. With his space element and his Teacher''s talisman, he was a little bit faster than the snake. Appearing in front of the snake, he attacked with his Fusion orbs, but it didn''t have any impact on the snake. The scales of the snake were stronger than Grey''s attacks. The snake attacked Grey, but missed. Grey on the other hand continued attacking the snake, making sure it didn''t get to Void. Once the snake decides to leave him since he was only using his Fusion orbs, he would bring out his Teacher''s talisman to attack. The strength of a Sage Plane Elementalist would burst out from it, threatening the snake. The snake would instantly turn its attention to Grey once again. Grey knew he was no match for the snake, so all he did was to repeat this process until Void broke through. He had to use his talismans sparingly since it wasn''t much. Ten minutes later. Grey''s figure was sent flying and he slammed into the wall of the volcano. There were presently too many holes like this around, and they were all made when Grey slammed into the wall. It couldn''t be helped, the snake was just too powerful for him. If not for his light element, he would''ve sustained too many injuries to even count. Even with the light element, he still had some injuries that hadn''t healed up yet. ''What''s holding Void up, shouldn''t he be done by now?'' Grey was on his last foot. He just used up his last attack talisman, and he was getting beat up by the snake. For some reason the snake attacked more aggressively, Grey guessed it had something to do with not sensing the essence any longer. This meant that Void had already assimilated with it. Even if the snake killed him now, it still wouldn''t be able to get it. Grey was sent in different directions as the snake attacked, and as he tried to escape, he was sent crashing down. ''Oh shit!'' He exclaimed in his head as he saw the direction he was headed. He hastily opened a teleportation tunnel that made him appear on the side. He slammed into the ground, where the snake was previously resting on. If not for this tunnel, he would''ve crashed into the lava, and although he had the fire element, he would still be in danger from freezing. This fire didn''t burn, rather, it froze anything close to it. Standing so close to it, Grey started to shiver from the intense cold. His eyes glowed even brighter and the lotus which had been dormant all this while suddenly started spinning. "What the hell!" Grey blurted out uncontrollably. The snake rushed down when it saw this, from how it tried to get to Grey frantically, Grey was certain it was panicking. ''Void¡­'' Grey called out as he tried escaping from the snake which was coming down. The snake appeared on the ground within some seconds, before Grey could even open up a space tunnel, it swung its massive tail at him, sending him flying away from the lotus. Grey crashed into the ground, almost getting into the lava. Luckily, he stopped only a few feets away from it. The snake didn''t stop its attack, it rushed after him, attacking brutally. Grey managed to finally get some distance between himself and the snake. However, the glow in his eyes intensified and the lotus started spinning faster. He knew he had to leave here quickly, or else the snake would try to kill him. The glow from his eyes resonated with the glow the lotus started giving off, alarming the snake. ''If that crazy cat doesn''t come down soon I''ll kill him!'' Grey complained as he ran from the snake. He could feel a sort of closeness with the lotus, but he didn''t even dare to look in that direction now. The thought of acquiring the lotus did not even cross his mind at the moment, surviving was his only goal. Initially, he thought Void would be done with his breakthrough soon, but things aren''t going as expected. The snake soon caught up with him, and sent him flying once again. All the talismans he got from his Teacher were used up, so he had to deal with running on his own. There was no way an Overlord Plane Elementalist would be able to outrun a Sage Plane Elementalist. Grey''s body was about to slam into the wall by the side when he felt a soft paw on his back. ''Great! You''re here, deal with it.'' Grey didn''t need to turn before knowing it was Void, he hastily ran in another direction, rushing back to the cave they made at the top of the volcano. He was bleeding all round, and he was certain the internal injuries he sustained were more than what his current mastery of the light element could deal with. His only hope of a quick recovery now was the healing tonic they got from the blooming viper, and even that was almost used up as well. Void stood around three meters tall, with an odd look on his face. He wanted to show off his new appearance to Grey, but Grey didn''t even give him a glance. He currently had a golden fur around his neck, making him look majestic. The fur was around the same length as his normal fur. "Did the beating affect his head?" Void muttered before staring at the two-headed snake. The snake was still an Early stage Rank Six Magical beast, just like Void. Void looked at the snake with a demeaning look, it was as if he was looking at an inferior beast. "Leave now and you''ll live." He said offhandedly. The snake looked at him and snarkled. It looked at Void like it was staring at a moron. It knew Void''s bloodline was superior to its, but it also knew that Void broke through only a few minutes ago, he wouldn''t even be accustomed to his new strength yet, much less being able to fight against it. "You made a wrong choice. I wonder what you would taste like." Void said cockily as he charged at the snake. Inside the cave. Grey quickly took out the healing tonic and gulped it down. He was going through a lot of pains, and his body was bruised all over. When he stepped into the cave, the three horned men were seated in a meditating position, clearly they had benefited from watching Void''s breakthrough. This was the first time they were watching anyone break through to the Sage Plane, so it was bound to be beneficial for them. Grey didn''t bother with them since he had to worry about his health. He had red marks all over his body from the times the snake''s tail hit him, and his clothes were completely ruined. At this point, he was even sure more than fifty percent of his ribs were broken. After he gulped down the tonic, he focused on healing himself. However, his eyes continued giving off the pale blue glow. Back in the volcano. The snake was running for its life. In the space of only a few seconds, Void already showed that they were not on equal footing. The snake was currently stuck in what seemed to be a sea of darkness. This was Void''s second domain, the domain of darkness. He used a special darkness treasure to break through, so while he was still getting used to the darkness essence from the treasure, he got an insight while he was assimilating with the essence. If people heard of a newly ascended Rank Six Magical beast already having two domains, they would probably go crazy. However, it can''t be helped, Void had the fabled black elemental grade for all his elements, so this was totally natural for him. The snake spat out streams of fire, trying to break away from Void''s clutches. "I told you to leave the first time, you mocked me. Now, I want to cook you and eat you, be a good snake and let me kill you, okay?" Void said with an evil laugh. The snake panicked when it heard this and hastily increased the intensity of its flames, it didn''t even mind about its health any longer and started to burn its life essence to increase its strength. "It''s futile, against me, all your efforts are worthless. I''ll show you what it means to be a great Magical beast." Void commented and waved his paws. After waving his paws, he went back to his previous small state. The snake fell to the ground, dead. If it was told from the start that Void would be able to kill it, it would never have believed it. Chapter ?835 Emerald! Chapter ?835 Emerald! Void looked at the beast sprawling on the ground, unable to move. The snake was pleading for its life, but Void didn''t seem to even care. He was about to kill it when Grey came out from the cave. "Leave it, we can use it later." Grey said as he descended down. He was better than when he ran back. It had been only a few minutes since he used the healing tonic, but he was already almost back to full health. "You''re lucky he didn''t kill you." Void snorted and smacked one of the heads of the snake. Grey landed by the side, placing his entire focus on the lotus. This was what had most of his interest, since the snake was already defeated, he didn''t need to worry about it any longer. His eyes glowed as he walked close to the lotus. The lava under the lotus churned and gave off intense chills. Void shivered before shaking his head, "I can''t stay here while you''re doing this. I''m outside." He was about to leave when he noticed the snake''s eyes glued to Grey and the lotus. He smacked the snake''s head before saying, "If you keep looking I''ll make sure you can''t see anything any more. Now, move." He dragged the snake with him as they stepped out of the volcano. They didn''t go to the cave since they would disturb the trio who were training there. Grey didn''t bother with Void as his entire focus was on the lotus. He stretched out his hand and the lotus floated in his direction before rotating above his palms. It gave off a cold yet comforting feeling. He touched the bottom part of it and the top opened, revealing a small pale blue flame, dancing in the middle. Compared to the one he absorbed, this one was larger. A strange thing occurred just as he was about to begin the process of absorption. The flame flew on its own and drilled itself into Grey''s head, without his approval. Before Grey could move, it was already inside his body. Due to the distance, he couldn''t even dodge it. He was forced to sit down cross-legged and start cultivating. This wasn''t something he could completely absorb in a single sitting, and he originally planned to start using it after he was fully healed, however, things changed. He sat down close to the lava, with the lotus increasing in size. Before Grey knew it, he was unknowingly sitting under the lotus and it floated above the lava. The essence when cultivating in the lotus was almost double the normal essence. Grey noticed this change, but he couldn''t open his eyes to check the cause of it as he focused on getting the best of this experience. Time flew by and two days went by in a flash. Void was having fun outside the volcano, playing with the snake. Although the snake was a little too big, he didn''t have any issues with playing with it. Besides, he didn''t have anything to do. They''ve gone through the entire island, and the only Rank Six Magical beast had been bullied by the duo, it was lucky to get away thanks to some distraction. The triplet were done with their training and they were currently sitting under a tree, watching Void and the snake. Boom! The volcano vibrated, accompanied by a loud explosion. Grey''s figure shot out from the top of the volcano, he was currently sitting on a large lotus. "Run! It''s going to blow!" He yelled at the others. Void got on the snake and tapped it twice, it immediately flew into the air, preparing to leave. The triplet appeared on its second head with the help of the Space Elementalist among them. Void vanished from the head of the snake and appeared on the lotus Grey was using to escape. "Fancy, and shiny, I like it." He commented. Grey looked at him with his eyes, and for a brief second, his eyes turned pale blue, sending chills down Void''s spine. "Stop that, it''s freaking me out." Void complained. Grey chuckled before looking away. His eyes returned to normal and smiled happily. His gains from this trip was immense. To begin with, he still had the floating clover which brought him out, in addition, Void broke through to the Sage Plane and he also got to the Peak of the Overlord Plane after acquiring an insane ability. He started to feel that his luck wasn''t as bad as he thought it was. Klaus had always been the lucky one, but looks like spending some time with them recently gave him some luck. If he was fast enough on his return, he could get his points, which he wouldn''t need to waste on a cultivation room any longer.? Given how the lotus was, he decided it was best to keep it hidden. So he went to the other head of the snake, sitting down with Void by his side. "What did that thing give you?" Void asked curiously. "Want to try it out?" Grey asked with a cunning smile. "We''ll get opponents soon enough, you''ll use it against them." Void sensed something was wrong, so he immediately declined. Grey laughed before looking away. He decided to check out what his current elemental grade were. His main focus was his fire and darkness elemental grades since they were the ones he got things for. Unfortunately, he couldn''t sit down and try to understand the profoundness from the essence Void absorbed. Had he been able to watch it for some time, he was confident in being able to increase at least one of his other elemental grades. He quickly entered the chaos space and went straight to check his elemental grade. After placing his hand on the stone and it followed the same routine, the result was out. Grey focused on only two, since the others had the same result. His darkness elemental grade shot up to the cyan elemental grade. As for his fire elemental grade, it was currently giving off a bright emerald color. After this elemental grade, was the black or white elemental grade. This means that Grey''s current fire elemental grade was already at the peak of what everyone knew. His darkness element was not too far behind. When he came out of the chaos space, his eyes shone with brilliance. He didn''t think that things will go this well. In fact, he was elated. If not for the danger, he wouldn''t mind getting in this situation more often. Three days later. Pyrmond Faction. Mission hall. The young lady in charge was currently sitting down, bored. She was tired since there was nothing to do here. Originally, she would''ve left already and let someone else take up the task of commissioning the missions, but a certain arrogant young man took up a dangerous mission, and she wanted to see where his arrogance would lead him. The time frame for the mission was two weeks, this was the last day, if the young man didn''t come to report the success of the mission, or even his status, someone would head out to locate him with his badge, then the mission would also be regarded as failed. It was already almost sunset. "Arrogant people never last." She said with a shake of her head. There was a hint of pity in her eyes, Grey was part of her Faction, so she naturally didn''t want him to die so young. While she was still thinking about how Grey died. She noticed a shadow walk up to her. "I''m done with the mission." A soft voice said, a little emotionlessly. "Huh?" She raised her head to look at the figure. When her eyes met with the face of the speaker, she stood up from her seat, eyes wide open from disbelief. "Impossible." She muttered. "Hello, the mission." Grey waved his hand in front of the young lady who didn''t seem to be in her right state of mind. The young lady stayed silent, still in shock. Grey tapped on her shoulder, trying to wake her up from whatever thought she was stuck in. "The mission, I''d like my points now." He handed his badge as well as the floating clover to the young lady. She took the item and after confirming it was what was stated in the mission, she transferred the points over to Grey''s badge. She remained quiet even after Grey walked out of the mission hall. Only after she couldn''t see Grey''s figure did she finally come back to her senses. "He actually completed the mission. But how?" She questioned. As long as Grey walked over to the poison miasma, he would meet certain death. However, this particular plant only grows in a place like that. "Unless¡­" She opened her eyes wide, "He already had it." She smacked the table, as if she caught a thief. "Such a sneaky move. He waited till the last day to make it seem like he truly went for the mission." She snorted with a sense of comfort. To her, she just saw through Grey''s ruse. If Grey knew what she was thinking, he wouldn''t even bother telling her she was wrong. He preferred when people think whatever they wanted about him. Chapter 836 Keiths Trouble Chapter 836 Keith''s Trouble Getting back to the Faction, Grey didn''t have much to do. His elemental grade increased, he was at the Peak of the Overlord Plane, Void was in the Sage Plane, he got a new Sage Plane Magical beast pet, and there were also signs from the triplet that they would be breaking through to the Sage Plane as well. All in all, his current target was getting to the Sage Plane as well. With the points he got from the mission, he read as many books as he could on arrays to improve his knowledge of arrays. He currently had an issue he couldn''t neglect. Void has gotten to the Sage Plane, but what if he was accidentally found by an Elemental Venerable necromancer, he would lose his life without even being able to blink. Void was no different as well. They might stand a chance against a Sage Plane Elementalist, but against an Elemental Venerable, they were no match for them. His best choice right now is to improve himself, also, most of the people his age here were already on the Sage Plane. Those who were not in the Sage Plane were considered fairly talented, but they can''t be compared with those on a higher Plane. In Grey''s house. ''I should try speaking with the others. It''s been so long.'' He thought before bringing out his communication device. Since they separated, he had only spoken with them on one occasion, that was a few weeks before he entered the realm of the horned race. They didn''t even know he was part of a Faction at present. The second he sent his consciousness into the communication device, his head was flooded with messages. He almost fainted from the inflow of messages. Most of them were from Klaus and Reynolds, naturally, while Alice and Kyle occasionally checked up on him. He first replied to Kyle and Alice since they had fewer messages, he started replying to Reynolds and Klaus after he was done with that. It didn''t even take long before Reynolds sent another message, yelling at him for not replying sooner. Klaus and Alice did the same as well. Grey chuckled when he heard their worried voices. They continued speaking and when they found out he was officially part of a Faction, they were elated. Thinking of Grey''s mark, they all wanted him to stay inside the Faction and train. With Grey''s talent, they were more than a hundred percent certain that he would be able to break through to the Sage Plane in at most six months. They all spoke of their journeys so far. Klaus was already at the Peak of the Overlord Plane as well. While Alice and Reynolds were in the Late stages. Their speed stunned Grey. He was the one with a higher elemental grade, yet his friends were advancing almost at the same pace as he was. Klaus was even more freakish, he was advancing quicker than the rest of them. ''Could their elemental grades be increasing as well?'' A thought came to Grey, but he didn''t know how to confirm how accurate it was. This was the only reason he could think of. Either that or the stalled growth in the Azure Continent was currently exploding from them. Either way, they were advancing faster than normal. Grey didn''t forget to mention his adventure to the horned race''s realm, and also Void''s breakthrough to the Sage Plane. Before he knew it, they had been speaking for hours. He just decided to spend the day speaking with his friends, since after this, he wouldn''t be able to talk to them for a while once he focuses on his array training.? According to what he found out recently, an expert array master in the Faction usually trains others once a month, and thankfully, it was free. The class would be taking place in two days, so he wanted to continue growing his knowledge before then. When he was done speaking with his friends, he went over to Keith''s place, and he didn''t find him inside. He guessed he must''ve left for a mission or something. He found a way to make sure he knew he had returned before going back to his place. Two days later. Grey came out of his place, heading in the direction of the array class. He still hadn''t seen Kieth yet, but he wasn''t really worried. Getting to the array class, he found around fifty youths present. Most youths don''t have an interest in arrays since it requires a large amount of time to get an actual good result from it. The Elder soon came along, she was middle-aged, with her blonde hair falling almost to her waist. She quickly started the class, and Grey made sure not to get distracted. He was still in the class when he got a message from Void, Keith had returned, and his condition was not the best. According to what Void told him, Keith was attacked, and he even had to expend a lot of effort to escape with his life, but he sustained serious injuries. Grey was forced to leave the class and head back to his place. At Keith''s house. "What happened?" Grey asked the moment he entered, tossing one of the remaining two healing tonics he had with him. Kieth took it, and without checking it, gulped half of it and returned the rest. Grey motioned for him to keep it. "Remember those guys from the trial?" Keith asked. "The three that wanted you dead?" Grey tried to confirm if they were speaking of the same people. Keith nodded before narrating what happened to Grey. Apparently, they followed him out of the Faction when he was completing a mission and tried to end his life. He was fortunate to get help from a stranger walking by, hence he managed to escape. Grey thought about the issue and felt Keith was stuck in a difficult position. Since the trio were part of the Faction, and given the unity policy in the Faction, he couldn''t walk up to them for a fight. After thinking about it for some time, he decided it would be best to send the triplet after them. He would track them down, and when next they leave the Faction, the triplet will take care of them. Unfortunately, if he released them in the Faction, the old monsters would sense it since they were unauthorized people. Chapter ?837 Youre Not My Type Chapter ?837 You''re Not My Type Grey and Keith decided to work out a plan, Void brought the idea of beating them up in the Faction, but Grey and Keith were against it mainly because of the fact that conflict was forbidden in the Faction grounds. There are places where they spar, but the Faction ensures that no one dies from these. After coming up with multiple plans, the best option they could come up with was simple: Keith would head out for a mission, and Void would go along, accompanied by the two-headed snake. Once they were outside, the snake would kill them. Keith thought it was a good plan, so did Void. Although he was a little downcast that he didn''t get the chance to kill them, he was happy as long as they were dead. Grey wanted to go back for his array class, unfortunately, it was over. He couldn''t help but curse at the trio who attacked Keith. When thinking about it, he suddenly recalled the young lady who sent people after him. He managed to get the location of where she stays from the men she sent after her. She was from a mid level family, and the strongest person from her family was in an Elemental Venerable. Now Grey understood why she could only send Overlord Plane Elementalists after him. She must''ve had a lot of potential, hence the family agreed to this. Unfortunately, they miscalculated. Grey decided to make more communication devices and handed them over to the triplet. He sent them out to gather information about the young lady. When next he was traveling, he didn''t mind paying her a visit. Well, if it was along the path he''s taking, then he would, if not, then he would focus on his mission. He also gave one to Keith, this way they could speak more frequently whenever they were not in the Faction. Although Grey doesn''t use his often, it''s still better than not speaking at all. Bringing out his tracking device, he looked at the light dots before fixing his gaze on one that was further away from the rest. ''I wonder how he''s doing?'' He thought as he stared at Ellis'' light dot. Since going back to the Azure Continent, he hadn''t been in contact with Ellis. Even after coming back, he still couldn''t get to him. The distance between them was massive, so it was natural. After going back, he checked up on Keith before going back to his place to focus on his arrays. He knew as long as he continued trying, there''s a chance that he might just come up with a good idea to help seal the mark on him. Three days later. Keith was back to normal, and he took up another mission. Grey originally wanted to accompany him since he was bored, but thinking about the fact that the young man leading them would retreat once he saw him, he decided against it. Void on the other hand was very enthusiastic about the mission. He had been bored for some time now. Other than when he played with the snake, he hadn''t been able to have any fun. He preferred when they were traveling. Keith took up the mission and left the Faction as planned. Void was with him the whole time. When they got to a forest some kilometers away from the Faction, the trio stepped out once again. This time, there was a man with them. ''Sage Plane.'' Void noticed the Plane of the man the moment he appeared. The man was in the Early stages of the Sage Plane, the second stage to be precise. The snake had no issues with dealing with him, much less Void. "What is the meaning of this? You attacked me last time, now you''re here again." Keith pretended to be afraid. "You managed to survive, yet you foolishly came out again even after knowing we are after your life. I never knew you were this dumb." The leader of the trip mocked. The man who stepped forward looked at them before saying, "End this quickly, I have matters to attend to." "Yes." The trio nodded before attacking Keith. Void stepped forward when this happened. "You three never know when to take a break, do you?" He waved his paws and sent all three of them flying with a single attack. The man reacted quickly and managed to stop them from getting hurt. He looked at Void with a surprised gaze. "A Rank Six beast, and since you can speak, I guess you''re one with a high bloodline. Come with us, this kid has nothing." The man said slowly. "Will you be able to take care of me? Even your family can''t take care of me." Void mocked. The man was irritated by Void''s words, but he calmed himself. If he could bring back such a Magical beast back, it would be a good thing for their family. "A beast of your caliber deserves the best, we will naturally treat you the best we can. I know my family is lowly, but we can assure your continuous growth." The man tried convincing Void. "I''m not interested in small fries like you people. If you can defeat me, I might consider it." Void said with a proud smile. The man nodded with a smile, "Alright, I appreciate the opportunity. I won''t waste it." Void chuckled before saying, "You''re not my type. Also, you''re not my match." He waved his hand and the gigantic two-headed snake appeared. Keith was frozen solid from fright as he saw the snake. He was scared shitless. From the aura the snake was emanating, he could tell it was on the same level as the man in front of him. ''Where the hell did they get this from?'' He couldn''t help but ask. Void was chuckling when he saw the expression of the man. He knew the man never expected something like this to happen. ''This is why I love going out!'' The man gulped down, and before he could even say anything, the snake attacked. Chapter ?838 Why Are You Here? Chapter ?838 Why Are You Here? Boom! Bam! The snake and the man exchanged blows, but within a few minutes, the man was on the back foot. He was no match for the snake, at this moment, he realized the best thing to do was to escape. Void would naturally not allow this to happen. He used his space domain to block the space around them, making it impossible for the man to escape. The snake continued its assault on it. After almost ten minutes, the man was finally defeated with Void''s help. Although the snake was stronger than the man, it was unable to kill the man on its own, if not for Void, the man wouldn''t have any issues with escaping. "Killing me will only make matters worse for him." The man said as he struggled to get on his feet. "Will you be affected by it?" Void turned to Keith. "They''re already trying to kill me, what else is worse than that?" Keith shrugged, giving Void the go ahead to kill the man. "You little runt, after everything I''ve done for you, this is how you choose to repay me?" The man questioned Keith angrily. "You came trying to kill me, I see no reason in feeling sad that you''ll die. This will mean one enemy out." Keith didn''t feel bothered by the man''s words. The man wanted to continue pleading, but Void had seen and heard enough. A black orb appeared on the back of the man, and he started to break apart. This was his spatial distortion skill. The attack had grown stronger with the increase in his Rank. The trio watched on as the man disappeared from existence. Their eyes wide open from disbelief, the man followed them to ensure that Keith was killed, however, he was the first person to die. How ironic. Void turned to look at the trio when the man disappeared completely, "Now, back to you three." They shivered from his gaze, clearly afraid he would kill them. "Please, we are only following instructions, don''t kill us." The leader of the trio fell on his knees and started begging. The others followed his lead and also started to beg as well. They couldn''t be bothered with their pride, as long as they lived, they would do anything. Void turned to look at Keith, and he could feel an intense killing intent coming from him. "My hands are tied, I really wanted to let you guys live, but as you can see, I''m only following orders as well." Void said with a chuckle. Anyone would know he was only saying this for fun. The trio could only watch as their bodies started to disintegrate. Void''s method of killing people was quite unique, there is not even a speck of dust from the person to indicate that he was there in the first place. Keith watched on as the trio vanished. If he wasn''t with Void, he wouldn''t have known that they were dead. "What now?" Void asked after killing the trio. It hadn''t even been up to two hours they left the Faction, he didn''t want to go back so early. "You can accompany me to complete my mission." Keith suggested. Having a powerful backup like Void with him was reassuring, at least he wouldn''t need to be too scared about losing his life on the mission. Void thought about it for some time before nodding his head. He didn''t want to go back anyway. He communicated with Grey about his intentions to accompany Keith, not forgetting to tell him that he had already killed the trio who wanted to harm Keith. Grey didn''t object to him leaving with Keith, he needed some alone time to focus on his arrays anyway. Void would be bored if he returned. This mission would take at least a week, so he wanted to focus all his time and attention on arrays for now. Two months went by in the blink of an eye. Grey had been part of the Faction for over three months now, his progress had stalled after his last double breakthrough. Now, he was focused on getting his physical strength to the Peak of the Overlord Plane. After two months, he had managed to get it to the Ninth stage, but he hadn''t been able to advance again. With the help of his gravitational force field, training his physical body was easier than before. But it still took time nonetheless. Void has been accompanying Keith whenever he''s going out on a mission. Grey had been in the Faction all this while, not bothering to go out for any missions. He was already out of points, but he was still able to research arrays with the knowledge he acquired from the books he read, as well as the class he had been going to. "Hey, the Faction is holding a sparring contest, will you take part?" Keith asked Grey as he walked into the place. "I''m not interested." Grey shook his head. He didn''t want to do anything that will make him stand out at the moment. Keeping a low profile was his objective now. "This contest will bring out those who will participate in a competition held every decade between our Faction and the Syphilis Faction." Keith told Grey what he knew about the competition. This competition will decide who would have rights to a particular realm. It was just like what Sylvia was recruiting him for. After thinking about it, Grey still didn''t want to go since he wasn''t interested in those things. The only thing that tempted him was the possibility of going into the realm to cultivate. Since he was already at the Peak of the Overlord Plane, it would be beneficial for him to go out more often to seek a breakthrough to the next Plane. "I''ll think about it, maybe I''ll partake in it." He said after careful consideration, "Oh, by the way, when''s the sparring contest?" "Next month." Keith replied. Grey nodded and they continued speaking about something else. Keith had already decided to partake in the contest. He couldn''t miss any chance to grow stronger. A month soon went by. It was the day the sparring contest was taking place. Grey was sitting in his place leisurely when he suddenly saw a figure standing in front of him. He raised his brow to look at the figure properly, it was the Elder who brought him into the Faction. "Hello." He stood up to greet the Elder. The Elder nodded before looking at him, it was as if he was trying to gaze into his soul. "I see you''ve made good advancements." The Elder nodded. When Grey joined the Faction, he was still in the Eighth stage of three Overlord Plane, now in the space of four months, he had broken through to the Peak of the Overlord Plane. In fact, he knew that Grey had already broken through three months back since he had been monitoring him all this while. "I was lucky." Grey replied with a collected expression. "I see." The Elder nodded before looking at Grey again, "Why are you here?" "Huh?" Grey was taken aback by this question. "Why are you here?" The Elder asked again. Grey paused and quickly understood what the Elder was implying. The Elder wanted to know why he wasn''t taking part in this contest. "I..." He was about to explain when the Elder stopped him. "I don''t need to know your reason. Normally, I wouldn''t be bothered with who decide to take part in a sparring contest, but this competition is very important to the Faction. Of the ten people who would be taking part in the competition, six has been chosen, the reason we are doing this contest is to pick out the other four." The Elder looked at Grey and continued. "With your talent, I know you''re by no way weaker than the six people already picked out. In the Overlord Plane, you have very few opponents, added with your domain, you''re almost invincible. I''ve recommended you to the Faction Leader, however, as you can already tell, no member of the Faction is given special treatment, so you will still need to prove to everyone that you can partake in the competition through this contest." Grey didn''t say anything and looked at the Elder, unsure of what to say. He knew the Elder was pleading with him to take part of the contest. The Faction''s Training Ground. It was filled to the brim with people standing around. There were platforms raised around the place for battles, and a few people could be seen fighting. Keith was currently seated some distance away from the platform, staring at the battles taking place. All the fighters were at the Peak of the Overlord Plane, and most of them looked to be younger than Grey. "Do you think he''ll come?" He asked Void who was with him. "I have no idea what goes through his head. He might, he might not come. It mainly depends on his mood." Void replied with a shrug. They were still speaking when he sensed Grey''s presence, he looked in the direction and saw him walking over with the Elder who welcomed them into the Faction. "Isn''t that the Elder who brought us into the Faction?" He drew Keith''s attention to them. "Yeah, why is he with Grey. Don''t tell me he went to bring Grey himself?" Keith was shocked. If this was what happened, he didn''t know what to think. The fact that an Elder went to bring Grey himself showed how much they valued him. "It just might be." Void commented. Chapter ?839 Easily Taking A Spot Chapter ?839 Easily Taking A Spot Grey walking over with the Elder drew the attention of some of the people in the area. Especially among those in the Elders side, they all turned to look at Grey. There were two familiar faces there when Grey looked in that direction, it was the duo that witnessed his battle with the young lady and her group. He noticed a few Elders looked at him with malice. From what he could guess, they were probably upset that an Elder had to bring him over. There were also a few people at the Peak of the Overlord Plane that also looked at him. Their auras showed that they were almost on the same level as the geniuses Grey met at the gorge when he wanted to enter the horned race''s realm. Of all the people there, he found five which he felt were on the same level as the leader of that group. He later finds out from the Elder that they were part of the six people who would be taking part in the competition. Grey nodded to his words before walking over to where Keith and Void were sitting. "Why is he with you?" Keith wanted to settle his curiosity. "He came over to bring me here." Grey didn''t need to hide this from him, so he told him. Keith already guessed this, but he still found it almost unbelievable coming out from Grey''s mouth. Grey was currently one of the few people that could draw the attention of these Elders. He didn''t find it odd, especially after getting to know just how powerful Grey was to begin with. Since Grey broke through, he hadn''t seen him fight. But when Grey was still in the Eighth stage of the Overlord Plane, he could already defeat Magical beasts at the Peak of the Overlord Plane, not any regular Magical beast, but those that were regarded among the cream of the crops in their species. Grey sat down beside Keith and they continued watching the battles. The one on the platforms finished and another one started. Keith was part of this group that fought. His opponent was a Peak Overlord Plane Wind and Fire Elementalist, but he was able to win in the end. When this round ended, Grey decided to step in after getting a look from the Elder. He had no choice, besides, the reward offered was quite tempting. He presently needed all the help he could get so his breakthrough would be quick. He didn''t want to stay at the Peak of the Overlord Plane just as long as he did when he was at the Peak of the Origin Plane. When Grey stepped onto the platform, he naturally attracted some attention. One of the reasons was that he came alongside an Elder, the second reason was that he was handsome. His opponent was a Fire Elementalist at the Peak of the Overlord Plane. But in the space of three minutes, he defeated him. It wasn''t even seen as a battle, it was more like a thrashing. If not for Grey going easy, he would''ve beaten his opponent out cold. After that battle, he quickly drew the attention of most of the people in the training ground, the Elders were the most focused. An Elder had recommended Grey for this particular competition, so they wanted to see what he was capable of. His first battle already showed them what they wanted, he was powerful. The fact that he could defeat someone in the same Plane and stage in such a short time proved this. Grey naturally couldn''t be bothered with them. When he was done with his opponent, he went back to his seat. They stayed for some time before he stepped onto the platform again, and the result was the same, he dominated his opponent from the start of the battle to the end. The time was still the same, nothing more than three minutes. At some point, a few people had the notion of Grey bribing the others. How could someone in the same stage as them beat them so easily? It looked fake, especially since Grey was not one of the famous members at the Peak of the Overlord Plane. Till the end of the day, Grey continued dominating his battles, not interested with the side talks from the side. He could hear what most of the people were saying, but there was nothing he wanted to show them. The main round of the sparring contest would be taking place the next day. Only those who performed exceedingly well could take part in this stage. Keith managed to be part of this group. The Elders spoke about Grey''s battles, and each gave their opinions of him. Given his talent, most of them liked him. Nevertheless, they all felt he was too proud, due to the fact that he waited till an Elder invited him over before taking part in the sparring contest. The next day soon came. Only forty people made it to this round. Each participant will fight a total of eight battles, each battle would be against four others. After all the battles are done, the four with the highest rank will get the spot in joining the other six for the competition. There were more than eight platforms in total. If all eight battles take place, this would mean all forty participants are fighting in a group of five. From the arrangement, one participant will not battle against someone they''ve fought before. Grey felt it was a good plan. Even though there would be people with advantages of teaming up, they wouldn''t be together forever. After one fight, they would change opponents. His first involved two others who were considered powerful from the previous battle. Once again, Grey dominated his battle, making him one of the most powerful people fighting. By the time Grey was done with the battles, he had already defeated all his opponents, taking first place in all eight battles. He was the only one who managed to achieve such a feat. Chapter 840 Promising Batch Chapter 840 Promising Batch Grey''s performance stunned the Elders, as well as the youths watching the battles. They never thought Grey was actually that powerful. The Elder who recommended Grey had a calm expression since this was not his first time seeing Grey battle, the others didn''t have the same expression. Each had a look of surprise on their faces. With the completion of the sparring contest, the competition would follow right after. Grey and three others secured the other four spots. Keith was unsuccessful in his attempt to fight for a good position. This was within his expectations, so he wasn''t feeling too disappointed by the result. Since Grey would be taking part in the competition, he started to encourage him as much as he could. Grey was his friend, so he naturally wanted the best for him. To him, Grey had a better chance of taking a good position compared to the other geniuses at the Peak of the Overlord Plane. When they were done with the sparring contest, they all went back to their houses. According to what Keith and the Elder told Grey, the competition would be taking place in a week time, so they would be transported to the place in a few days. On Grey''s way back to his place, he was approached by the five geniuses who were already part of the initial six that would be taking place in the competition. They invited him over for a meeting, which he accepted. He met up with the group later that day, and he was greeted with a group of around twenty people, all youths were at the Peak of the Overlord Plane. He searched for the people who invited him over, and sat down by their side. They spoke for the rest of the day, and Grey got to know the others who would be taking part in the competition, except for a certain talented genius. The genius was regarded as the number one figure under the Sage Plane in the Pyrmond Faction. Unlike the others, they would be meeting him at the place of the competition. There were rumors of him having the Emerald elemental grade, but people didn''t know what his real elemental grade was. He was a Dual Elementalist, having the fire and space elements. Grey was a little interested in this figure who had the Emerald elemental grade, since there were rumors about this, the chances of it being true was quite high. Not just that, but even if he doesn''t have it, he shouldn''t be too far from it. Grey for instance currently had an Emerald elemental grade for his fire element, and he knew his current strength was above what it used to be. It was also said that this young man had gotten entangled with a Sage Plane Elementalist, and although he didn''t win, he didn''t lose either. This was not an easy feat. The current Grey could naturally achieve this, but he never thought there would be people who could achieve this as well. This mainly has to do with him not encountering those geniuses that were top tier regularly. He left the gathering and went back to his place. To his surprise he saw the Elder waiting for him there. "I see you have an interest in arrays?" The Elder muttered as he looked at the few marks Grey drew around the place. He was a little impressed by it, but Grey''s mastery was not on his level. Grey nodded before bowing as a sign of showing his respect to the Elder. The Elder nodded before taking a seat. The Elder spoke with him a little while, giving Void a long look. He felt there was something odd about him, but he didn''t want to speak about it. Void was Grey''s pet, and there was no need to ask about it. After staying for a little while, he told Grey to follow him. With a wave of his hand, they disappeared. They appeared in a hidden cave. Grey could tell that they were still at the Faction ground. He looked around curiously, and sitting in front of them was a man who looked to be ordinary. He couldn''t even sense any signs of elemental fluctuations around him which he found a little suspicious. There were a few people at the side as well, from men to women. Their age range varied, some looked to be in their late twenties, while others were middle-aged, with the rest being a little old-looking. Grey kept his mouth shut and followed the Elder. "Grey Dawson, that''s your name right?" The ordinary looking man in the middle asked when Grey walked into the place. He saw that there were a few people on the side as well. All youths, they were obviously the others who would be taking part in the competition. Seeing the others made him calm down a little. "Yes." Grey replied with a calm expression. "Hmm, I see." The man replied after some time. He kept quiet before speaking again, this time, addressing all the youths present. "As you all know, the Faction is on the decline. This realm has been one of the most vital parts in grooming talents for us. Losing it has pretty much shown on the Faction. We not only lost it, but we also lost one of our strongest appeals to take in members..." The man continued speaking. Grey got to find out that the realm they were fighting for originally belonged to three Pyrmond Faction, but after the Faction suffered a calamity, the Syphilis Faction used the opportunity to come into play. The Pyrmond Faction was not at its peak, so it was no match for them. They came up with the plan of fighting for the rights to the realm every decade. Still suffering from the effect of the calamity, the Pyrmond Faction lost the first battle, naturally. It has been well over a hundred years now, but they still haven''t been able to take it back. The man encouraged the youths who would be taking part in the competition before telling them to leave. "This batch has the most potential so far. Hopefully, they can win it." Chapter ?841 Not The Same? Chapter ?841 Not The Same? Pyrmond Faction gate. Grey was standing beside Keith. "With those guys gone, you shouldn''t have any problems in the Faction. But just in case, you can keep this guy, he''s pretty useful." Grey said as he passed on the two-headed snake over to Keith. He spoke with Void about it, and Void said he had completely tamed the two-headed snake. It still had all its freedom, but it wouldn''t harm nor disobey Void or his friends. The snake was acquainted with Keith from the times they''ve traveled together, this made it easier for them to leave it with him. "Thank you." Keith said in gratitude. That group was his greatest fear, but he also knew that there was a chance that they would send others after him once they realized this group was dead. Leaving the snake with him was a means of helping him fight against those people who might come later on. Grey nodded before turning to look at the people stepping out of the gate. The group consisted of fifteen people, eight youths and seven Elders. He walked up to them since they would be heading to the place of the competition together. The competition usually takes place outside the realm, and there is a third party who always mediates the competition. An Elder dressed in black robes made a headcount, and after confirming that they were correct, he waved his hand and a powerful force sucked everyone into space and they disappeared from view. One hour later. They appeared in a forest, on the side of a mountain was a youth dressed in blue, sitting in a cross-legged position. His eyes were closed and it seemed as if he blended into nature itself. Grey was taken aback when he saw this youth, the aura the young man was radiating was almost identical to that of an ordinary person. But he knew otherwise. "Alec, we''re leaving." The Elder in black robes walked forward and said. The young man referred to as Alec opened his eyes to look around. Grey looked into the eyes of the young man and it felt as if his soul was set ablaze, however, his eyes started to glow with a pale blue flame, and the feeling stopped. ''Such an odd feeling. Mental attacks.'' He thought as he looked at Alec. Alec looked at Grey, surprised by their small exchange. He didn''t attack them on purpose, it was a result of his training, but the fact that of all the youths present, Grey was the only one who didn''t feel affected by it showed that he was not someone to take lightly. "Alright, Elder." He bowed to the Elder. "So, you didn''t want to come back?" Asked an irritated voice from the group of youngsters. It was a young lady who looked to be around eighteen. She was also at the Peak of the Overlord Plane, just like the others. "I was held back by a small issue, but it''s done now." Alec replied with a smile. He turned to the others and exchanged greetings with them. From what Grey could see, he was pretty friendly with those around. Of all the people present, Grey was the only new member of the Faction that got a spot in this competition. "Hello, I''m Alec Baldwin, you are?" Alec stretched out his hand. "Grey Dawson." Grey shook his hand as he introduced himself. "Oh, you''re from the Dawson Family?" Alec asked with a surprised look. The Dawson Family was famous across this Region, so whenever someone spoke of the Dawson Family, everyone thought of the same family, the one who produced an unimaginable genius. "I don''t think we''re speaking of the same Dawson Family, but I''m from a Dawson Family." Grey replied with a melancholic smile. However, he quickly hid his feelings. His family was one of the few things he had not thought about for some time now. The truth was, he couldn''t really say he had given up, but given the size of the Aurora Continent, it would take him years to sweep the entire Continent in search of his family. Without sufficient strength, he couldn''t complete it quickly. ''I should visit this ''Dawson Family'' they speak of.'' Grey added this to the list of things he would do later on. "Oh, not that Dawson Family. Anyway, it''s nice meeting you." Alec said before focusing on the others. Visit Free?ebnovel.c?m for the best novel reading experience. The eyes of the Elders which lit up when Grey spoke of being from the Dawson Family died down when he said he wasn''t from that Dawson Family. The Dawson Family are well respected in this Region, and they had every right to be. "The mediators for this competition are actually from the Dawson Family." The Elder who brought Grey into the Faction whispered to the other Elders. "Do you think he would be the one?" The black-robed Elder asked. "I doubt that. He''s not that free." The Elder shook his head. After everyone settled down, the black-robed Elder took them into space once again, transporting them to the place of the competition. Time went by, and a few hours later, they appeared on an open field. On getting there, an Elder brought out an odd glowing rock, and the space in front of them distorted. To Grey''s surprise, there was a passageway that led to somewhere else in the open field. They all stepped into the passageway and appeared close to a lake, looking behind him, all he could see was a vast mountain range. There were already people waiting for them there. "Huh?" Grey was a little taken aback when he saw some familiar faces. ''Isn''t that the guy who opened that portal?'' Void asked when he saw the middle-aged man. ''Yes.'' Grey nodded. Beside the middle-aged man was Conor, the leader of that group. He has surprisingly broken through to the Sage Plane. This wasn''t much of a surprise to Grey since he expected geniuses like Conor to have no problems with breaking through. "Late again." A cold snort came from the side. "It''s not noon yet, so I see no reason why you''re grumpy." The Elder who took Grey into the Faction replied coldly. It was easy to see that the relationship between both Factions was not good. Conor and the middle-aged man turned to look at the new arrivals. Chapter 842 Conor Dawson Chapter 842 Conor Dawson The middle-aged man looked at the new arrivals and did a double take when his eyes went past Grey, but he didn''t dwell on it. Conor on the other hand walked over to the group and stood in front of Grey. "You''re part of the Pyrmond Faction." He said after greeting the Elders of the Faction. Grey nodded before asking, "What are you doing here?" "I followed my Uncle here, we''re mediating the competition. I''m here to learn." Conor replied. "You broke through to the Sage Plane already?" Alec''s voice came from the side. "I see you''re still at the Peak of the Overlord Plane." Conor turned to Alec. Alec nodded with an awkward smile, "Unfortunately, yes." "I know you''re stopping yourself from breaking through because of this competition. If I knew he was part of your Faction, I would''ve advised you to break through months ago." Conor pointed at Grey. "Are you two close?" Alec asked curiously. "Well, we had an encounter and helped each other out." Conor didn''t go into details. "I see. I guess I shouldn''t be too worried about this competition then." Alec heaved a sigh of relief. He already felt Grey was different from the rest, but after hearing Conor''s words, he could tell that Grey was either as powerful as they were, if not even stronger. Conor was a very proud figure, he might be nice to people, but he wouldn''t acknowledge someone who isn''t as powerful as he is as a friend of his. Grey didn''t join them in their conversation, he looked around, trying to see their potential opponents. This was a competition between their Faction and an opposing Faction. He had never encountered anyone from this Syphilis Faction, so he knew nothing about them. ''The darkness element.'' He felt a large amount of darkness elemental particles around them. This could only mean that all the techniques they mostly practiced was a darkness elemental technique. Thinking of the darkness element, he thought of necromancers once again. ''They wouldn''t have any problems infiltrating such a Faction.'' He thought to himself. While he was looking at the people from the Syphilis Faction, they were also staring in their direction. A few of them had menacing eyes, and even their auras were eerie. "We should head to our seats." An Elder from the group said. She led the group to their seats before settling down. The middle-aged man from the Dawson Family stepped forward and addressed both sides. He told them the rules of the battles and what were prohibited, death was natural one of them. While listening to the rules, Grey couldn''t help but find a problem with it, there were no rules stating that people couldn''t use special techniques to increase their strengths. This was always stated in every single competition he had participated in. He spoke with Alec concerning it, and he found out the reason for this. According to what was agreed between both Factions, the winner of the last round could add a rule as long as it was not too excessive. Letting them use a technique that would increase their strengths was something that would also be beneficial to the Pyrmond Faction, so they didn''t stand against it. However, this has been the cause of their losses all this while. Since they''ve not been able to win, they weren''t able to remove this rule. This has been the only rule the Syphilis Faction had been using so far. Grey couldn''t help but chuckle when he heard this. This just gave him freedom to use his Fusion State, with that, he could easily wipe out the entire group from the Syphilis Faction. When the man was done with the rules, Grey heard a second rule that surprised him. Once a member of a Faction was eliminated, the Faction would have to fight with fewer numbers. The first round of the battles was a one on one battle. The next round however consisted of a general group battle. If the Pyrmond Faction or the Syphilis Faction loses more than half of their people from the first round, it is easy to see who the winner is. There had been a time when the Pyrmond Faction managed to eliminate six of the ten fighters from the Syphilis Faction. But the remaining four members who fought against the six from the Pyrmond Faction were able to win quite easily. ''This is the weirdest competition I''ve ever taken part in.'' Grey said to Void. ''But they''ve given you a better chance to shine. It''s not that bad.'' Void chuckled. With the rules set in place, Grey was pretty much the winner. He could easily take out all ten people from the Syphilis Faction with the Fusion State, much less when they would have lesser numbers. Although using the Fusion State wouldn''t let his Plane jump to the Sage Plane, his strength would be well over the Overlord Plane. When the man was done addressing both parties, he called for the start of the battles. Alec was the first person to step on the platform. He wanted to get the first win to ensure that their Faction''s morale was high going into the next battle. His opponent was a Dual Elementalist who had the darkness and space elements. Alec was purely a Fire Elementalist, and he was one of the strongest Fire Elementalist in the Overlord Plane Grey had seen in his life. Alec''s powers were something that stunned Grey. He never thought that there was someone in the Overlord Plane that was actually this powerful. ''If he really has the Emerald elemental grade, it should be expected.'' He thought to himself as he watched Alec beat his opponent. A few minutes later he was victorious. Alec returned to their seats, and he was congratulated by the others. Grey felt he made the wrong decision in stepping out too early. He was famous, so the Syphilis Faction would send someone who wasn''t powerful among their group to fight against him. The next person from the Syphilis Faction stepped out, and someone from the Pyrmond Faction stepped out to fight against him. In the end, the person from the Syphilis Faction won the battle, quite easily. Chapter ?843 Mistake? Chapter ?843 Mistake? "This is bad." An Elder from the Pyrmond Faction muttered when they watched their sixth member lose to a member of the Syphilis Faction. The other Elders nodded with a sour expression. The geniuses the Syphilis Faction brought out this time were a notch better than theirs. In fact, if not for Alec''s impressive strength, he might''ve lost, but since he dominated his opponent, they never got to see his opponent''s power. There had been seven battles so far and the Pyrmond Faction had won just one of them. This was not something that any of them felt was possible. The middle-aged man from the Dawson Family looked at the members of the Pyrmond Faction, before looking at those from the Syphilis Faction once again, it was unknown what was going through his mind. Conor was sitting with Grey, Alec was beside them, his expression was just as sour as that of the Elders. Grey was the only one who didn''t have a change of expression. "How do you guys plan to win now?" Conor asked Alec. "We will win." Alec said confidently. "You do know you''re the only one who has won, right?" Conor knew Alec had very little confidence at this moment. "Yes, but we''ll win the rest." Alec nodded. "Even if you win the rest, you''ll have only four members, against six of them. The odds are not in your favor." Conor replied. He was closer with the Pyrmond Faction and naturally wanted them to win, but he couldn''t deny the fact that the Syphilis Faction''s geniuses were above those from the Pyrmond Faction. "We still have him, he would be helpful." Alec turned to Grey. Since Conor thought highly of Grey, then Grey was definitely not a weakling. He should be able to handle two people on his own. They turned to look at Grey and they realized his facial expression was the same as when they arrived. He didn''t seem angry or excited, he just wore a blank face. "Hey, Grey, why don''t you go up next?" Alec suggested. "Alright." Grey stood up and walked to the platform. His steps were steady but fast, before long, he was standing on the platform. A young lady jumped onto the platform with a smirk on her face. She looked at Grey with a demeaning look. "Give up now, and I''ll spare you." She said coldly. Grey looked into her eyes and turned to look at the middle-aged man from the Dawson Family, waiting for him to start the battle. While Grey and the young lady were about to face off, the crowd from the Pyrmond Faction had a worried expression. "Isn''t that Lydia?" One of the youths asked. "It''s her. I never thought she would hold back as well." Alec''s expression turned even worse when he saw this young lady. He hadn''t seen her all this while, but seeing her now made him realize how bad things were for him. Lydia was a famous young genius in the Region. Everyone thought she had broken through to the Sage Plane some months back, well, this was the news the Syphilis Faction spread out. "Will your friend be able to cope with her?" Alec turned to look at Conor. "He will win." Conor replied. He had seen Grey''s strength, so he knew for a fact that even though Lydia was powerful, he wouldn''t take anything away from Grey. "So confident. We''ll see how things go." Alec turned to the battle that was about to start. Conor wasn''t the only person who felt Grey would win, the Elder who took Grey into the Faction was also very confident in him. He watched Grey fight against ten people on his own, so he was sure Grey wouldn''t have any problems with fighting against Lydia on his own. This Elder knew that as long as Grey progressed to the next round, then they would win. Grey and Alec combining would be a force the Syphilis Faction aren''t prepared for. "Begin!" Grey''s figure moved the moment he heard this, but he wasn''t attacking, rather, he was dodging an attack that sprouted out from the ground. As his figure shot into the air, black tendrils like tentacles chased after him and one managed to get a hold of his leg. Just as it was dragging him to the ground, Grey made a fire sword that he used to cut the tendril. After cutting that one, the others tried to wrap themselves around him, but he exploded out with a powerful fire outburst that broke all the tendrils. He looked at Lydia and attacked, using ''meteor descent''. Lydia created a thin veil made entirely from the darkness element, and used it to block the attack that was coming her way. The veil surprisingly didn''t have any issues with blocking Grey''s attacks. Grey didn''t feel bothered by this, he used his lightning element to send out a powerful thunderbolt bolt that struck the veil, causing cracks on it. The second thunderbolt managed to break through the defense of the veil. Lydia retreated to ensure she wasn''t hit by the thunderbolt. "Four elements, no wonder you''re so confident." She said before preparing for another attack. Grey didn''t say anything, instead, he moved his hands quickly and created an array in the sky. The array was made entirely from fire elemental particles, and it started spitting out powerful fireballs, as well as fire arrows and spears. Grey continued attacking with his lightning element. He hadn''t used the space element so far. The battle continued, Lydia was not able to gain the upper hand, contrary to what most of the people there expected. Things were the other way around, Grey was actually the one dominating the battle since it started. Grey was just like Lydia, at the Peak of the Overlord Plane, however, Grey was more powerful. This was something none of those from the Syphilis Faction expected. Lydia was their strongest member at the Peak of the Overlord Plane, the reason they brought her out to fight against Grey was because they''ve heard about him. During the contest, he was the brightest, so they planned to take him out, making sure Alec was isolated in the final round. Chapter 844 Syphilis Factions Ultimate Technique Chapter 844 Syphilis Faction''s Ultimate Technique "Did we make a mistake in sending her out now?" An Elder from the Syphilis Faction looked at his comrades when he saw Grey dominating their strongest member in the Overlord Plane. "Lydia hasn''t gone all-out yet, I believe she''s waiting for the right time." A lady among the Elders replied softly. "I know, but this isn''t good for the others." The Elder said. "What matters is that she wins, not how long it takes for her to win." The lady replied, her voice still soft. The others looked at the platform and they noticed something, a look of realization appeared on their faces. "I see." The Elder nodded with squinted eyes before focusing fully on the battle. The youths from the Syphilis Faction were watching the battle with a surprised expression, the look of disbelief in their eyes was too evident. They never thought that someone who was unknown would be able to dominate their strongest member. While the morale for those from the Syphilis Faction was a little shaken, that of the Pyrmond Faction slowly started to pick up. Losing six battles in a row naturally took its toll on the mental strength of the group. However, watching Grey beat the strongest person in the Overlord Plane from the Syphilis Faction was satisfying, and also very encouraging. Now they knew Alec was not the only powerful figure in their ranks, Grey was also in that category, if not even higher. The Elders were impressed with Grey''s performance as they watched him battle. Grey and Lydia were still exchanging blows, Grey managed to send her flying, and she crashed into the ground, almost leaving the platform. Before she could get back up, Grey attacked once again, forcing her back. She sensibly got away from the edge of the platform, she couldn''t afford to let Grey defeat her. Grey wanted to continue his assault, but he sensed something and backed away instantly. A black orb exploded and spread black particles across the entire platform. Even though Grey succeeded in retreating, he was still pushed back by the explosion. He looked at the black particles around and his expression changed slightly. When it dropped on his body, it started to wreak havoc in his body. ''What is this?'' He was stunned. Even a poison miasma would not affect him, yet he was being affected by an attack from this young lady. It was a darkness element attack, so he felt he wouldn''t be troubled by it, but things aren''t always what they seem. He used his darkness elemental essence in his body to try to control it, but the moment it touched it, he felt a stinging pain all over his body and he jolted from it. ''Damn it.'' He looked at his opponent, and he could see her smiling evilly. "You''re mine now." Lydia licked her lips with a flirtatious smile before attacking. This time, she used the water element to attack. Grey prepared to attack, but the moment he mobilized his elemental essence, he felt a stinging pain in his head and he couldn''t help but hold his head from the pain. Lydia''s attack hit Grey who wasn''t even able to set up a defensive wall. It sent him flying, crashing into the ground. ''I can''t use my elemental essence.'' Grey hurriedly stood up and dodged the ice spikes that came out from the ground. This was one of the most difficult positions he had been in. The technique Lydia used made it difficult for him to even try to block using his elemental powers. Lydia continued attacking, not giving Grey an opportunity to think. Grey was forced to move around, dodging all the attacks. Luckily, his physical speed was still very fast, so he could still barely keep up with Lydia''s attacks. He tried to shorten the gap between them so he could send her out of the platform, but unfortunately, Lydia didn''t give him that chance. Those from the Pyrmond Faction looked at Grey''s current plight in worry. They originally thought Grey would lose, but after watching him battle Lydia, they started to feel hopeful, especially when Grey almost knocked Lydia out of the platform. But now, things were different, Grey wasn''t scrambling around the platform trying to keep himself in the platform, he was even unable to defend. "What''s happening?" One of the geniuses who had been defeated asked, worried. They didn''t know why Grey was unable to even block the attacks. They saw him holding his head all of a sudden, but they didn''t know why. "It''s the Syphilis Faction''s technique. Once one was inflicted by it, they would be unable to mobilize their elemental powers, or they risk suffering from a severe backlash." An Elder explained to the others. "Isn''t there a way to counter it?" Alec asked. "There is, but none of you have gotten to that level yet. Normally, An Elementalist below the Sage Plane shouldn''t be able to learn that technique, I guess Lydia is a generational genius." The Elder shook his head with a sigh. Grey and Alec were their strongest members, now Grey was about to be eliminated from the competition. "This is a little difficult, but you don''t think that he doesn''t have any hidden cards, do you?" Conor still had some faith in Grey''s ability. "Even if he does, without his elemental essence, he can''t possibly win against her. I mean¡­ wait a minute¡­ how come he''s that fast without using elemental essence?" Alec was in the middle of speaking when he realized something odd, Grey''s speed didn''t see a considerable reduction after being unable to use his elements. Grey was moving almost as fast as a Wind Elementalist at the Ninth stage of the Overlord Plane, and it wasn''t something normal. After Alec brought this observation to light, the others also realized it as well. Grey was dodging the attacks and even trying to close the gap between himself and Lydia, this was not supposed to be possible without his elements. "I knew he had a hidden card. Still so fast without an element." Conor said. He saw Grey fight against one of the members of the horned race with his fists, so he knew of his monstrous physical prowess, but he didn''t know it was on this level. Chapter 845 Falling For A Familiar Trick Chapter 845 Falling For A Familiar Trick Boom! Grey''s figure crashed into the ground, almost sliding off the platform. He managed to keep himself on the platform with his hands and forcefully used his elemental essence, suffering a backlash from the technique Lydia used. When he stood on the platform, he was breathing heavily, trying to catch his breath. Lydia was a difficult opponent, and this was a challenge he had been waiting for a long time now. ''Her elemental grade shouldn''t be below Cyan.'' He thought internally as he looked at her. "You''re quite amazing, most people would''ve been eliminated by now." Lydia wasn''t feeling pressured by Grey any longer, so she didn''t mind speaking with him for some time before she defeats him. Even if Grey had impressed her so far, she was still a hundred percent confident that she would be able to defeat him. Since she had used this technique, she felt she was already the victor of the battle. Grey looked at her, "You''re not bad yourself." "Haha, I''d like to see how long you''ll be able to keep that calm expression on your face." Lydia chuckled before attacking once again. Grey retreated quickly, dodging the attack that Lydia sent his way. After dodging, he tried to close the gap, but Lydia didn''t give him the chance. ''I can still use my elemental essence two more times, that''s my limit. Either I take her out or I lose, either way, I have no choice.'' He thought after dodging the attack When he used his elemental essence previously, he realized he could use it two more times, so he started to plan on how to use it to defeat Lydia. After careful consideration, he could only think of one plan: he would use his space element to appear beside her and attack her with his physical strength. If he failed, he would wait for another chance to use his last effort. This was his best bet, if he tried to attack her with an elemental attack and failed on the first try, then he would''ve wasted his chance to defeat her. Lydia continued her attack, dominating the battle, she didn''t feel any pressure from fighting against Grey. To her, this was nothing more than a spar with an inanimate object. She was still in the process of assaulting Grey when his figure suddenly flashed, before she knew it, he was standing in front of her and he threw a fist at her. She quickly used the water element to create an ice wall in front of her to block the attack. Grey''s fist broke through the ice wall and almost hit her, but she prepared another defensive wall made from the darkness element. Even though it managed to stop Grey''s fist, she was still pushed back by it. She slid back and looked at Grey with a surprised expression. "Impossible!" She exclaimed, unable to believe that Grey was able to actually mobilize his elemental essence, neglecting the backlash. She wasn''t the only one who was surprised by this turn of events, all the Elders from the Syphilis Faction, as well as the Pyrmond Faction Elders couldn''t believe that Grey managed to use his elemental essence after Lydia used that ultimate technique. The Elders from the Pyrmond Faction couldn''t help but feel a hint of hope. Grey shocked them, and they hoped he could continue shocking them. Lydia was still trying to regain her footing when Grey''s figure appeared beside her, throwing a fist at her. She was unable to set up a defensive wall, so she used her elemental essence to enhance the strength in her hand and tried to block Grey punch by crossing her hands in front of her. When Grey''s fist connected with her hands, she realized she made a terrible mistake. She was sent flying, like a kite. Grey rushed after her once again, not wanting to give her the chance to separate them with her elemental attacks. Lydia''s figure didn''t even get to the platform before Grey appeared in front of her once again. He continued attacking, but this time, she used something Grey hadn''t seen before. The space element. She vanished from where Grey appeared and arrived on another side of the platform, keeping a good distance from Grey. When Grey saw her use the space element, he almost couldn''t believe his eyes. The fact that she hid her space element this long showed how cunning she was. This has spoiled his plans of being able to defeat her with this particular assault. ''Three elements, what else is she hiding?'' Grey looked at Lydia, now, he knew to be cautious around her. At this rate, he didn''t know how many elements she had. If he made a wrong decision when using his second chance, then he would lose his opportunity of a surprise attack, leaving him in a difficult position. At the camp of the Pyrmond Faction, the members who were getting excited when Grey managed to get close to Lydia were also shocked by her using another element. Even the Elders from the Faction didn''t see this coming. "She has a fourth element?" One of the Elders asked in shock. "I''m just as amazed as you. I never thought she had this element as well." The Elder shook his head with a wry smile. They''ve always known Lydia had three elements, darkness, water, and wind element, this was their first time knowing of her fourth element, so it was a surprise to them. The Elders from the Syphilis Faction didn''t find this as a surprise since they already knew, the younger members however felt shocked. They thought they knew Lydia, only now did they realize they didn''t know much about her. Lydia chuckled and looked at Grey, "You just can''t seize to amaze me, can you?" "I can say the same about you." Grey looked at her with a serious expression. He couldn''t take this battle lightly any longer. From not being able to use his elemental essence, to not being able to predict the next action of his opponent. If Lydia had the elements he felt she had, he would''ve won by now, but unfortunately, she used a trick he was very familiar with. Chapter ?846 How Come?! Chapter ?846 How Come?! Grey dodged an attack, but he was still pushed back by the impact of the attack. Lydia on the other hand knew that she couldn''t afford to play with Grey any longer, a small slip up and Grey would capitalize on it. She had seen it from Grey''s effort of almost eliminating her a few minutes ago. As the battle progressed, she started to feel a little annoyed. She didn''t let it cloud her judgment, but she was irritated at the sight of Grey. No matter what she tried to do, she had been unable to send him out of the platform or knock him out. At first, she thought after using the ultimate technique, she woud be the winner, but Grey was a tough nut to crack. "I like opponents like you." She muttered under her breath, her expression was one of anger. She continued attacking Grey, but whenever she was close to eliminating him, he would find a way to survive. Grey was very technical when defending and attacking, he made sure to plan how he would defend very precisely, this way, even if she managed to force him back, he still escaped. She tried to calm her mind, after all, she had the upper hand in the battle. Grey on the other hand decided to employ Klaus'' tactics, since he couldn''t use his elements, and Lydia wasn''t giving him the chance to get close to her, he wanted to annoy her so she would make a bad decision. He dodged an attack and mocked, "You can''t even beat someone who isn''t using his elements, some genius you are." When Lydia heard his words, she was infuriated and increased the intensity of her attacks. Grey focused mainly on dodging and blocking, although he was pushed back by the attacks whenever he tried to block them, he made sure he wasn''t anywhere near the edge of the platform. He used this to continue mocking Lydia while also trying to shorten the gap between them. When he saw that she was at her peak when it came to being angry, he decided it was time to use the last chance he got in using his elemental essence. He still didn''t know why this worked on him, but he was going to make sure he thought of a way to not make this happen a second time. His figure blinked, and even though Lydia was able to sense the ripples in space, it was still too late. Grey attacked the moment he appeared, even though he was using his physical strength, it wasn''t something Lydia could neglect. She managed to set up a defensive wall, but it was useless against Grey, since he broke it quite easily. She made a second wall, but she was still sent flying. Grey didn''t let the chance go and rushed after her. His figure was about to reach her when he noticed a slight change in her body. Before he could move back, he was picked up by a tornado and thrown into the air. If he had his elements, he could easily stop this, but without his elements, he was unable to stop it. He was picked up into the air, and while trying to keep himself protected, he felt a sharp pain in his back. He winced as he tried to open his eyes, before him was a smiling Lydia. "You know, I feel you''re more dangerous than Alec, so if I can, I want to end you here." She smiled as she looked into Grey''s eyes. Grey didn''t let her words get to him, he had never been afraid of anyone before, well, except his mother. Even when fighting against those in a Plane above him, he was not scared, much less someone in the same Plane. He continued protecting himself, as he tried to force his body down. With his body mid-air, he couldn''t move it properly, since he didn''t have his elements at the moment, he was almost a sitting duck. Lydia attacked his back since he wasn''t able to protect that part of his body. Grey felt immense pain from the attacks, unfortunately, there was nothing he could do about it. The Elders, as well as the members from the Pyrmond Faction looked on with worried expressions. Grey opened his eyes and they glowed with a pale blue light. When Lydia looked into his eyes, she froze, unable to move. The attacks stopped and Grey''s figure came crashing down, along with hers. The audience were shocked by this, they didn''t know what happened all of a sudden. Lydia was obviously ahead, however she fell down, along with Grey. What could have happened? The Elders from both Factions were shocked, never expecting a change to occur in the battle. They looked at both fighters with a strange expression before they all looked at Grey as if staring at a monster. "Mental attacks, he could use mental attacks as well?" An Elder from the Syphilis Faction couldn''t help but ask. "There was no information of him being able to use mental attacks. What the hell is going on?" The Elder exclaimed. "I guess we aren''t the only ones with secrets." Another Elder said. "Look at them, do they look like they know as well?" An Elder pointed at the Elders from the Pyrmond Faction. The Elders all have a shocked expression, just like the Elders from the Syphilis Faction. This meant that they had no idea of Grey''s mental attack ability. If this was what they felt it was, then Grey kept his trump cards hidden from even those at his Faction. With this thought, they couldn''t help but wonder where Grey came from. They did their research on Grey, but nothing spoke of him having a mental attack. Grey was becoming a problem for them. The Elders from the Pyrmond Faction looked at Grey with surprised and shocked expression. "Did you know he had mental attacks as well?" They turned to the Elder who brought him into the Faction. "I had no idea." The Elder replied. Chapter ?847 Vicious Beating Chapter ?847 Vicious Beating Both fighters were currently sprawled on the ground, none of them moving. The onlookers were anxious and a little excited, well, just those from the Pyrmond Faction. Grey''s ability to attack Lydia when all hope was lost is something they never expected. There had been too many twists in the battle, and they didn''t think Grey would get any chances of ever winning again after he was affected by Lydia''s special attack. Grey opened his eyes to look around, he was dead exhausted from taking too many attacks from Lydia, even when he tried to defend to his fullest, he was still hit by many of her attacks. ''This girl is something.'' He commented before trying to stand up. He could feel all his body ache from the pain of the battle. It would take him some time before he recovered, and this would affect the next round of battles. ''I still have some of the liquid left, guess I have no choice but to use it.'' He thought as he tried to stand up. While he was on his knees, he saw Lydia looking at him. His eyes glowed instantly and Lydia screamed in pain. She was still trying to recover from the previous attack, Grey attacking once again made the pain unbearable for her. Grey knew she was defeated yet since the effect of her special attack was still on. The moment the effect stops, he would be assured that he had defeated her. He got to his feet and walked over to her, looking down at her while she tried to stand up once again. "You''re powerful, but not my match." He said calmly. Lydia gritted her teeth as she looked at him. When she saw Grey''s eyes starting to glow once again, she hastily shut her eyes. Grey smiled when he saw this and kicked her. She was still on the ground, so when he kicked her, she was sent sliding on the ground. The kick took her from one side of the platform to the other side. She screamed in pain once again. Grey didn''t hold back when he kicked her, so she felt a sharp pain in her stomach. The onlookers looked at Grey, a little appalled. Lydia was a lady, however, Grey didn''t seem to be treating her as one. He walked over to her once again, and tried to kick her. She placed a defensive wall around her body, but Grey kicked it twice, and it started to shatter. The strength of Grey''s blow or kick is not something that should be taken gently. The audience were in a state of shock as they watched Grey literally kicking Lydia around like a rag doll. He wasn''t even holding back in the slightest. All the young men from the Syphilis Faction stood up in anger, never expecting Grey to be so cruel. The young ladies from the Pyrmond Faction were a little taken aback, not knowing if to applaud Grey or not. They felt he was a little too aggressive and cruel. "This guy is really something." Alec said with an awkward smile. To be honest, he wouldn''t do something like this. "She''s his opponent, what do you expect him to do?" Conor didn''t see anything wrong with what Grey was doing. He wasn''t the only one with this view, all the Elders also felt this was normal. Grey and Lydia were enemies, so he didn''t have to go easy on her. When she had the upper hand, she was still beating Grey up as well. While they were all speaking about the matter, Grey continued his vicious assault. Lydia was already bleeding from her head, mouth, and even her nose and ears. Her current appearance was miles apart from how she looked like when she stepped onto the platform. After a few more kicks, she tried to use the space element to create some distance between herself and Grey. But before she could escape into the spatial tunnel, Grey threw a punch into the spatial tunnel. One punch, laced with destructive power. The spatial tunnel started to shake vigorously, Lydia was forced to close it. Entering that would endanger her life. At this point, she didn''t know how to fight against Grey. She couldn''t create a space between them, and if she tried to open her eyes, Grey would use his mental attacks. For Grey''s attacks, he needed eye contact before he could employ it. As long as she closed her eyes, she was safe from it. However, doing that would mean she couldn''t fight against him. She had tried using her spiritual senses, but it was affected when Grey attacked her the first time. Presently, she was blind. "Aren''t you ashamed? You''re fighting a blind opponent!" A young man from the Syphilis Faction yelled from the other side. "When she fought against a defenseless opponent, why didn''t you speak out?" A young lady from the Pyrmond Faction retorted with a smile. The young man paused when he heard her words. What she said was true, after Lydia used the special technique, Grey was a sitting duck. If not for Grey having such an impressive physique, he would''ve been defeated long ago. Now that the case was reversed, they felt it was not fair. They tried to abuse Grey, in hopes that he would stop his assault. Unfortunately, Grey had never been bothered with what others said about him, moving with Klaus made him even more shameful. Lydia struggled, but she still couldn''t help herself, she was only able to keep herself on the platform, other than that, she couldn''t do anything else. "Aren''t you tired of getting beat up?" Grey asked him slowly. He was purposely not eliminating her because he wanted to dampen the morale of those from the Syphilis Faction. The Elders from both Factions already saw through this, and most of the Elders from the Syphilis Faction already tagged Grey as a terrifying opponent. Alec wasn''t this evil when doing things, he was smart, but he still had a bit of conscience, Grey didn''t. "Are you tired of beating me up?" Lydia asked with a smirk. "I know you can''t defeat me, so you''re searching for a way to make me give up." She added. "Hehe, you think so?" Grey asked with an amused smile. Lydia felt staying on the platform was her doing, she didn''t know Grey was ensuring he didn''t send her out of the platform too quickly. "Alright, enough playing." With that, Grey prepared to kick her out of the platform once again, this time, he was dead serious. His leg stayed behind him a little longer, as if he was accumulating his energy. Dust started to gather around his feet. At this moment, the Elders from the Syphilis Faction stood up. "We give up." An Elder hurriedly said. Bang! Crack! Grey''s feet connected with Lydia''s stomach once again, and a clear cracking sound resonated in the entire space. Lydia''s body coiled, before shooting out at a terrifying speed. She opened her mouth to scream, but only blood came out. She fell on the ground, outside the platform, knocked out cold. "You little monster, didn''t you hear me admit defeat?" The Elder asked angrily. "No." Grey''s voice was blank of any emotions as he turned to look at the middle-aged man from the Dawson Family. The man announced him as the winner and turned to look at Lydia who wasn''t able to move. An Elder from the Syphilis Faction had rushed over to her and tried feeding her a tonic. "You animal, you''ll pay for this!" The Elder screamed when he saw the state of Lydia. She wasn''t on death''s door, but from all the injuries, she would wish she was dead from the pain. What he found more annoying was that her core was almost cracked, he could sense it. "I didn''t kill her, I only gave her a taste of her own medicine. Also, don''t threaten me." Grey said as he walked back to his seat. He was presently suffering from severe pains. After the effects of Lydia''s technique wore off, he felt an influx of elemental essence across his entire body, along with intense pain. The effects of the attack were still on. ''Such a troubling move.'' He thought in annoyance before taking a seat. "Good job." Conor gave him a thumbs up. Alec also congratulated him, as well as the others from the Faction. The Elders looked at each other before heaving a sigh of relief. With Grey defeating Lydia, they had two powerful geniuses in the last round. Although it wasn''t what they planned from the start, it was better having just one. There were still two more battles to be fought, if they managed to win them, then they would get four people in the last round, however, the possibility of that happening was not high. Those from the Syphilis Faction were on another level, and everyone from the Pyrmond Faction could sense it. Only Grey and Alec could defeat them. Chapter 848 Two Monsters Chapter 848 Two Monsters After taking a seat, Grey brought out the healing tonic and gulped it down. When the others saw him down a bottle of healing tonic, they decided to leave him alone and focus on the other battles. A member of the Syphilis Faction had stepped on the platform, waiting for the next person from the Pyrmond Faction to come up. The two people who were left were a young lady and a young man. The young lady stepped on the platform and fought against the member of Syphilis Faction who was standing. Ten minutes later, she was defeated by the member of the Syphilis Faction. The faces of those from the Pyrmond Faction turned sour when they saw this. With this defeat, they had only one chance left to get another member into the next round. Fifteen minutes later, the last member of the Pyrmond Faction returned in defeat. The Elders were all staring at each other with loss in their eyes. One of the things they still couldn''t understand was how the youths from the Syphilis Faction became so powerful. This wasn''t the first time something like this was happening in the history of the competition. A few competitions back, the Syphilis Faction defeated them with a glamourous victory, they weren''t even able to get past the first round. This has always been a source of concern for them. "Ten minutes later, the next round will begin." The middle-aged man from the Dawson Family announced. Everyone from the Pyrmond Faction turned to look at one particular figure, Grey. Alec was in a good condition and his battle wasn''t that tough, Grey''s battle on the other hand was the toughest, and he was also injured from the fight. It was unknown if he would be in a good state to even fight. They all saw him drinking the healing tonic, but they didn''t feel that he would be able to heal off in such a short time. Time minutes passed in the blink of an eye. "Grey." Alec walked up to Grey. Grey opened his eyes and nodded his head. He stood up and followed behind Alec. There was no use in waiting for those from the Syphilis Faction to step out. Two figures stood lonely on the platform, in front of them were the eight members of the Syphilis Faction that qualified for the next round. "Are you ready to get beat up?" One of the youths pointed at Grey. Grey looked at him with his deadpan eyes. Alec couldn''t help but give a wry smile. He knew Grey beating Lydia up would incur the wrath of the people from the Syphilis Faction, even the Elders would want to beat Grey up, unfortunately they couldn''t. The middle-aged man from the Dawson Family chuckled when he saw this, "Begin!" He looked at Grey and Alec, a little curious how they would be able to solve their current problem. After the middle-aged man declared the beginning of the battle, those from the Syphilis Faction rushed forward and sent out their attacks, three of them went after Alec, while the rest of them went after Grey, all with angry eyes. "Try not to die." Alec said before attacking his opponents. Grey nodded before attacking as well. He instantly brought out his inscriptions. While doing this, he was preparing an array that would boost his teleportation speed on the platform. His figure shot into the air and with hands spread apart, large boulders covered blue flames appeared and started falling at an insane speed in the direction of the members of the Syphilis Faction that came his way. Different attacks shot out and they managed to block and destroy the boulders that were coming their way. Grey continued his assault with his inscriptions, while also sending out more attacks. The youths separated, making it difficult for Grey to get them with a large area of effect attack. They started an intense battle with Grey. On Alec''s side of the platform, he was also fighting a tough battle against a lesser number of opponents. The platform was covered with a series of attacks, lighting up the entire platform. Grey''s part was particularly flashy. His inscriptions gave the air a different kind of scenery. The battle continued with greater intensity. Grey and Alec had not only managed to fight against multiple opponents, they were on the verge of taking out one of them. Grey''s figure flashed and appeared close to one of the young men fighting against him. The young man predicted this and managed to dodge Grey''s attack. The person close to the young man attacked Grey''s figure when he appeared. Grey didn''t look at the attack coming his way, rather, he continued going after the young man. When the attack was about to hit his figure, he blinked, and there was a change in the clothing of the person standing on where Grey''s was previously standing. It was surprisingly one of the young ladies who were standing on a different part of the platform. She was from the group fighting against Alec. The attack hit her and she was sent flying. Grey''s figure appeared on the spot where the young lady was previously standing. Beside him was a young man who was fighting against Alec. He attacked the moment he appeared on the spot, sending the young man crashing into the platform. The pressure on Alec dropped relevantly and he capitalized on it and attacked the last young lady attacking him. With a simple switch, Grey was able to create an opportunity to take out three members of the Syphilis Faction. It was an incredible sight that the Elders were even stunned at. Grey''s move first of all was very difficult to predict, and it also gave Grey a huge opportunity to lower the number of their opponents. "That move, where did he learn that?" An Elder from the Syphilis Faction exclaimed, astonished by the ability of Grey. The other Elders were also stunned by the move Grey used. While they were still speaking, Alec managed to send the young lady fighting against him flying. He stood beside Grey as they looked at the remaining five members standing. The other three were lying on the ground, all grimacing from pain. The five standing members from the Syphilis Faction were stunned by the sudden turn of events. Grey''s figure changed with that of one of their own, and she was attacked. They didn''t understand how Grey managed to switch places with that of their comrades. They rushed to pick up their comrades lying on the ground, they quickly tried to help them up, saving them from a quick elimination. After they helped them up, they hastily regrouped, a little flustered, but they kept a good shape, keeping those who were possibly injured safe. When they were done with that, they started to give off a strong aura that started to merge together. Grey and Alec looked at each other. "I guess you have a way to increase your strength as well?" Alec said to Grey. Grey nodded and looked at Alec, waiting for him to use his technique. Alec didn''t waste any time and with a soft flicker of his body, his aura surged up. Grey didn''t say anything and taking a foot forward, his aura surged as well. From one side of the platform, a powerful energy was gathering, and on the other side, two auras were shooting up. Alec and Grey''s auras shot higher than that of those from the Syphilis Faction, however, their numbers gave them a massive boost. Alec and Grey rushed into the group from the Syphilis Faction. The battle intensified and Grey''s figure was flashing through the air, attacking one person after another. He was also using his inscriptions as well. Alec has a powerful attack power, with the help of the space element, he appeared and disappeared at will. "Those two are impressive." Conor muttered as he looked at Grey and Alec fighting against multiple opponents. He has some knowledge about both figures, so he knew that they could handle themselves against multiple opponents. The Elders from the Pyrmond Faction were impressed by Grey and Alec''s abilities. The Elders from the Syphilis Faction looked at the two monsters on the platform with a worried expression. At this rate, Grey and Alec have a chance of winning. The fact that Grey has this much strength left is insane. He was injured by Lydia, yet he was still able to fight against multiple opponents. He was even more impressive than Alec who was well known. They started to regret the decision to let Lydia fight against Grey. It was a wrong move on their path. Lydia was the only person that could at least make things difficult for Grey and Alec. The members from the Pyrmond Faction. Things were more than what they expected. Alec and Grey were surprising them, and if they could pull off the battle, it would go down in record for the Faction. Chapter ?849 Wanting To Win At All Costs Chapter ?849 Wanting To Win At All Costs Bang! Boom! Two figures shot out from the ongoing battle, crashing on the ground. One of the figures was Grey, he quickly picked himself up and rushed into the battle once again. He was a little careless and was hit by an attack, luckily, it wasn''t without its gain. When he got hit by an attack, he also sent one of the members of the Syphilis Faction flying, and that person was in a far worse state than he was. The young man who Grey sent flying was currently lying on the ground. Surprisingly, he was one of the three injured some time ago, so this increased the pain he was feeling from his previous injury. Before he could even stand up, Alec appeared from nowhere and sent him flying off the platform. "One down." He said before turning to look at Grey who was holding back the others to ensure that Alec was not disturbed. "That guy, sheesh!" Alec didn''t even know what to say about Grey. From his guess, he felt maybe Grey would be on his level, or even below him. After Grey managed to ward off Lydia, he took him to his level, but now, he felt he was the one below Grey. Well, he knew in terms of strength, he was below Grey. First off, Grey had a higher number of attack options given his multiple elements, and the fire and lightning elements he had shown were actually two special types. It was insane just thinking about it. ''I''m glad he''s actually one of us.'' He thought internally before joining Grey on the platform. The members from the Pyrmond Faction cheered when they saw Alec and Grey eliminating one person. Fighting against eight people and actually eliminating one of them was an impressive feat. The Elders all had a hint of smiles on their faces. Conor on the other hand felt his blood boiling from the excitement, he almost wanted to rush onto the platform and join Grey and Alec''s fight against those from the Syphilis Faction. Just watching the battle was exciting, he couldn''t help but wonder how it felt like participating in such a battle. ''A shame I broke through early. I know we''ll team up when they break through to the Sage Plane, until then, I can only wait.'' Conor sighed in dejection. For the first time, he wanted to actually team up with people who were not part of his family. He had fought alongside Grey, but that couldn''t really be compared to this. When they were fighting at that time, they didn''t have a disadvantage in numbers, and when they raided the capital, they separated. While those from the Pyrmond Faction were feeling elated, the atmosphere in the Syphilis Faction''s camp was the opposite. Grey and Alec eliminated one person, this meant that the pressure on them had dropped as well. Since they could eliminate one while they were fighting against eight, then they could definitely do it again when fighting against seven. "Where did that boy come from?" An Elder from the Syphilis Faction asked in annoyance. They only prepared for Alec, and now that was gone thanks to Grey. "No idea. There are no records of his family history in the Pyrmond Faction. I don''t think they know about it. However, there''s something about his family name." An Elder replied. "Oh, what''s it?" The first Elder turned to look at the Elder who just finished speaking. "His last name''s Dawson. I have no idea if he''s from that Dawson Family, but given the talent he''s showing, there shouldn''t be any Dawson Family that can produce such a talent." The Elder explained, and after some time he added, "There''s also the possibility that he''s from a random low level family. As you can see, he''s only acquainted with the kid from the Dawson Family, but they don''t seem close." After listening to the Elder''s words, the others started to think about the matter. The Dawson Family were well known, if they had a talent like Grey, they would not hide him. Take Conor for instance, he was well known among the younger and even the older generation in this Region because of his talent. Grey is above Conor in terms of talent and strength, so he would gain more fame if he were from the Dawson Family. And even if the Dawson Family decided to hide him, it made no sense in letting him leave now to join the Pyrmond Faction which was on the decline. A lot of possibilities flashed through the heads of the Elders, but they also didn''t rule out the chance that he might be from the Dawson Family. It might be slim, but since it was a possibility, they couldn''t remove it from their list. While the Elders were thinking about Grey''s background, changes were happening on the platform. After Alec knocked out the young man from the platform, he joined Grey in fighting against the group once again. They wanted to use the same strategy, but it failed. They had been hit by multiple attacks and had been sent flying a few times in the space of some minutes, but they had ensured to keep themselves on the platform. Presently, the aura of those from the Syphilis Faction started to increase once again. This was unexpected since after the first increase, doing this would do more harm to them than good. Their strengths might increase, but they risked damaging their cores. "You''re destroying yourselves you fools!" Alec screamed at them when he saw this. Even though they were not from the same Faction, he couldn''t stand them doing this just because they wanted to win so badly. "Shut your mouth and lose." A young lady from the group said with a low growl before attacking. The others joined in on the attack as well. The Elders from the Pyrmond Faction looked at the scene with a change of expression. This was the same thing that happened during the last competition. The strength of the members of the Syphilis Faction continued increasing, and they didn''t stop, even when they knew it would be detrimental to them. Chapter ?850 Irreparable Damage Chapter ?850 Irreparable Damage Boom! Bam! The pressure on Grey and Alec increased and for the first time since the start of the battle, the duo weren''t looking comfortable. Even when fighting against eight people, they weren''t this flustered. The duo were sent flying, crashing into the ground. They hastily jumped up and moved in two directions. Grey flew into the air and unleashed a powerful lightning rain on those from the Syphilis Faction. The members separated when the attack was about to hit them. Two of them were unfortunately hit by the attack. The impact of the attack sent them slamming into the ground. While in the air, Grey created a large space array on the platform to boost the teleportation speed of the Space Elementalists on the platform. He didn''t restrict it to himself because of Alec, he only made sure to inform only him about it. There were two Space Elementalists in the ranks of those from the Syphilis Faction, so if they managed to find out about it, it would be a little bit of an issue for them. Grey would destroy the array once they start using it, but for now, he would use it to his advantage. With the help of the space array, Grey and Alec moved faster than their opponents. They were faster than their opponents to begin with, but now, it was increasingly difficult for them to even hit either of them. Their figures flashed across the platform, dodging the attacks of those from the Syphilis Faction while also attacking as well. As time went on, the Space Elementalists from the Syphilis Faction noticed the sharp boost in the speed of Grey and Alec''s teleportation, they quickly traced it to the array and also used it as well. The sudden boost from two people was a little too sudden for Grey and Alec, but they had been preparing for this from the time they started using the array. They evaded the attacks of the two Space Elementalists, but they ran into an attack from the remaining five figures. Two attacked Alec, while the other three attacked Grey. They tried to block the attack, but the impact forced the duo back. Grey''s figure flashed as he retreated from the impact of the attack and he hastily destroyed the array. The three people who attacked him chased after him as he retreated. One of the Space Elementalists appeared close to Grey and attacked. Grey was forced to block the attack, but it delayed him, giving the trio the chance to shorten the gap between them. With them already so close, Grey couldn''t turn his back to them. He faced them head-on. The trio attacked, with the Space Elementalist by the side making things difficult. On Alec''s side of the battle, things were not too different from Grey''s side. He was also stuck in a battle against multiple opponents. He noticed one of them was particularly more powerful than the others. From what he deduced, this person increased his strength higher than that of the others. This made him stronger, but it also started to show immediate signs of causing him harm. ''This fools, to think they would be willing to sacrifice themselves for the Faction.'' He complained as he fought. Since they were willing to do this, it meant that victory would not come as easy as he thought. Two minutes later. Of the seven people left from the Syphilis Faction, five of them had increased their strength to a higher level. Grey and Alec were finding it very difficult keeping up with all of them. Everyone was starting to feel like the Pyrmond Faction was on the verge of a loss when a change started to occur on the platform. Grey and Alec''s aura started to rise as well, but Alec''s aura stopped after a small increase. He didn''t boost it to the highest at the start since he was trying to avoid endangering himself, this was the limit he could get to without endangering himself. When Grey used the Fusion State the first time, he didn''t even show an increase of up to thirty percent of his strength. But now, he has increased it to over sixty percent. The Fusion State usually gives him an increase in stages, but once he gets to the Peak of a Plane, the increase would be a little different. It couldn''t take him across Planes, but he would be able to show strength that could rival that stage. It was just like the time he was at the Peak of the Origin Plane, he could fight against people in the Overlord Plane with the help of the Fusion State. Now that he had eight elements, he would normally see an increase of eight stages, but now, it would transform into a greater strength, pushing his power above the Overlord Plane. A powerful energy force exploded out with Grey standing in the middle. Alec retreated, giving him some space. The members of the Syphilis Faction who were on the verge of attacking him were also forced back, unable to attack him. "How''s that possible?" One of the Elders from the Pyrmond Faction stood up worriedly. The increase in Grey''s current aura was far above what an Overlord Plane could show. "How that''s possible is not my worry, what the hell is he doing?" The Elder who brought Grey into the Faction screamed in annoyance. "His core wouldn''t be able to sustain this. He would lose everything." Another Elder understood what the Elder meant and said with a sigh. "Unfortunately, we can''t stop it any longer." Another Elder said with a dejected voice. It was common knowledge that using special techniques like this to increase one''s strength came with a repercussion. Even a small boost came at a price, the increase in Grey''s strength was by no means small. They felt this would cause him irreparable damage. Grey on the other hand smiled when he reached the peak of the Fusion State. "Welcome, to my domain of fire." Chapter ?851 Sheer Dominance Chapter ?851 Sheer Dominance The entire platform was covered with blue raging flames. From outside the platform, it looked like the fighters were standing in an inferno, and Grey was looking down on them like a god. The only place that was covered by flames on the entire platform was where Alec was standing. "A domain!" Alec exclaimed unconsciously. He never expected that Grey had a domain. Without being told, he already knew this was not the effect of a special attack, rather, it was a true domain activated by someone on the platform, since he was safe, it meant it was Grey''s doing. He wasn''t the only one who was stunned by the sudden appearance of the domain, the members of both Faction present were stunned as well. The only person who had a calm expression was the Elder who brought Grey to the Faction. The other Elders had a dumbstruck expression, they were already aware of Grey awakening his domain thanks to the three Elders present on the day Grey fought against that young lady and her group. But seeing it with their eyes was still shocking. The middle-aged man from the Dawson Family stood up from where he was sitting, he couldn''t help but let out a surprised sigh. ''What the hell is this kid made of?'' He asked internally. Grey''s abilities were nothing short of overwhelming when placed in the midst of Overlord Plane Elementalists. To begin with, he has displayed four elements, and two of them were special types, then having the space element as well made him a difficult opponent to handle. Adding his insane physique, as well as his inscriptions to it, he was already miles ahead of the others on the same Plane. Now, he not only has a technique that can improve his strength well above the Overlord Plane, but he has also awakened his domain as well. And from the looks of things, it was something even those First stage Sage Plane Elementalists would have difficulties handling. Using that in a battle against Peak Overlord Plane Elementalists is almost like a cheat. The Elders from the Syphilis Faction stood up on their feet when they saw Grey use his domain. He hadn''t even started attacking properly, but the fact that he had it already placed his opponents at a disadvantage. "Are you sure he''s in the Overlord Plane?" One of the Elders looked around and asked. He just couldn''t believe something like this was possible. Grey awakening his domain at such an early stage was a shocking discovery, not just to them, but to the entire Continent as well. There are people who awaken theirs in the Sage Plane, and they''re already called geniuses. If those people were called geniuses, what was Grey then? The discussions about Grey''s domain continued, and so did the ongoing battle. With the activation of Grey''s domain, and using his Fusion State to the peak, his aura was unstoppable. His figure flashed and he appeared in front of one of the young men from the Syphilis Faction. With a wave of his hand, a powerful stream of fire gushed out and sent him flying. The young man tried to block the attack, but he was barely able to set up a defensive wall before he was sent into the air. While he was mid-air, Grey''s figure appeared close to him and he threw a punch in his direction. The punch resounded out with a sonic boom. Crash! Bang! The young man''s figure crashed straight through the platform and landed on the ground. He didn''t fall from the platform, rather, the force created a hole on the platform that his figure passed through and crashed on the ground, ten meters away from the platform. Everyone watching the battle froze in shock. Grey''s last attack was vicious and very powerful. He didn''t hold back when he attacked, and a platform that had kept its condition from the start of the battle was broken from just one attack. Alec stood on the same spot, unsure of what to do. His mouth was wide open, and his eyes continued to twitch excessively. ''Since when has someone of this caliber ever appeared?'' A question floated through his head. The answer to the question was obvious, he had never heard of anyone who possessed such unimaginable powers. Grey wasn''t only powerful when it came to elemental attacks, but he also seemed to have an outrageous physical strength. It was evident in the battle against Lydia, as well as his last attack. While everyone was in a state of shock, Grey continued his attack. He flew straight to one of the young ladies injured when he used his switch skill some time ago. The group were all fighting against the heat from the domain of fire, and Grey was also simultaneously using the domain to attack them. In a bid to fend off the attacks, they had no time to even help each other, much less fight against Grey or Alec. Grey appeared in front of her and the domain seemed to contract, with that, the power of the fire level increased by a few times. The young lady screamed in sheer pain and tears started to drop from her eyes, unfortunately, they didn''t even get out of her eyes before they dried off. Grey threw a blow and the young lady was sent out of the platform, her appearance was one others wouldn''t want to look at. The remaining five members from the Syphilis Faction grouped together, they stared at Grey, terror-stricken. Grey was single-handedly taking them apart, and he wasn''t even being strategic about it, he was forcefully doing it. This was what it meant to be powerful. Even in the midst of multiple opponents, he could do whatever he wanted, eliminate or even kill whoever he wanted, and the rest couldn''t stop him. Alec stood on the side, presently, he was a bystander in the battle. The truth was that he was still finding it hard to believe there was actually someone like Grey. How is it possible to train to this level? What was worse was that this wasn''t Grey''s full strength, he still hadn''t displayed the mental attack he used against Lydia. Chapter 852 A Genius Like None Chapter 852 A Genius Like None Conor looked at Grey, shaking his head wryly. He didn''t dare to say Grey was a genius on his level, while at the Peak of the Overlord Plane, two of him can''t fight against the current Grey, much less fight against him alone. Initially, he had felt Grey''s strength mainly lay in his speed. Only after watching Grey go all-out did he understand that he had misunderstood everything all this while, Grey''s strength was far more than what he could imagine. ''Can I defeat the present him?'' He couldn''t help but ask himself. Thinking of the question, he didn''t feel confident in being able to defeat Grey as things stand. One has to know that he has already broken through to the Sage Plane, and is a well-known genius among the youths. If even someone like him couldn''t beat Grey, it goes to show just how powerful Grey was at the moment. The Elders from the Pyrmond Faction exchanged glances and the same thought flashed through their heads. ''We have to protect him at all costs!'' It was at this moment they realized something and their facial expressions changed drastically. "Stupid brat! If he harms his core I''ll personally kill him." An Elder said, infuriated at the thought of Grey damaging his core to get this powerful because of the battle. The others looked at the Elder, and it was surprisingly the most quiet amongst those sent out. He had barely said anything since they left the Faction, but he was forced to speak just thinking of the harm that would most likely befall Grey after using this technique to increase his strength. "The Syphilis Faction is to be blamed for this." Another Elder said. The other Elders turned to look in the direction of the members of the Syphilis Faction, and their anger shot to its peak. The Elders from the Syphilis Faction had also thought of this, they were already thinking of ways to eliminate Grey. Yes, it was forbidden, but it wasn''t as if something like this hadn''t happened before. It was even happening at the present time, so long as they were not caught, it was fine. Grey''s talent made him a threat to any Faction that''s not on the good side of the Pyrmond Faction. It was natural for each Faction to compete against each other, but lately, the Pyrmond Faction had been getting the short end of the stick for some time now due to their decline. They couldn''t fight since it would cause a possible war between two Factions. War was not something they wanted. "Haha, he''s damaged his core. Even if they manage to win this, it wouldn''t matter, we''ll get it next time." An Elder from the Syphilis Faction chuckled and looked in the direction of the Elders from the Pyrmond Faction with a mocking smile. She could sense the rage boiling in the eyes of the Elders from the Pyrmond Faction. She knew it had to do with Grey using a special ability to increase his strength, thereby damaging his core. "Oh right, I forgot about that." A skinny Elder muttered while staring at Grey with dark eyes. The others nodded to his words. Back on the platform. All five members were currently standing beside each other, trying to protect themselves from the inferno. Grey''s figure flashed and his appearance suddenly changed. When the audience looked at his appearance, they realized he wasn''t the one standing there, instead, it was one of the members from the Syphilis Faction. They looked at where the five were previously standing and Grey''s figure was currently there. The five also noticed this as well, and just as they were about to leave, they felt a terrifying weight on their bodies and they crashed into the ground. "Stay." Grey''s voice was low, but everyone on the platform, as well as outside the platform heard it clearly. It was like the voice of a monarch, telling his subordinates not to move an inch. The figures of the four members of the Syphilis Faction stopped and slammed into the ground, they weren''t even able to get themselves to stand up. They hastily used their elemental essence to create a defensive force field around them, to ensure the fire doesn''t harm them in the same way it did to the young lady a few minutes ago. As the bodies of the youths touched the ground, Grey sent out quick kicks, sending them flying. Once their bodies left the area of his gravitational force field, they felt relieved and hastily tried to regain their bearings, unfortunately, Grey would never give them that chance. He raised his hand into the sky and an orb made of four different colors appeared in his hand, the strength of the orb was something that once again took the Elders off their seats. "What the hell is that?!" An Elder from the Syphilis Faction exclaimed. "He merged his four elements into one attack. That¡­ that¡­" The next Elder was short of words. They''ve seen and heard of people boosting their attacks with a second element, but Grey''s current attack was a complete merger. This wasn''t using one element to boost the attack, rather, it was actually merging them into one. The orb exploded out with a colorful but deadly light. The four figures who were mid-air tried to block the attack, but they were sent crashing out of the platform. They slammed to the ground, and passed out. The last member of the Syphilis Faction looked at everything with disbelief in his eyes. Grey just knocked out six out of seven people. They were all at the Peak of the Overlord Plane, yet in the presence of Grey, they were like Origin Plane Elementalists. They couldn''t even resist. Grey''s figure soon appeared in front of the young man. He wanted to speak, but no words came from his mouth. With a loud scream, he tried to fight against Grey. He would never give up without a battle. "Foolish." Grey said and the domain contracted once again. It gave the same result as when he did it against the young lady. Chapter ?853 Bittersweet Victory? Chapter ?853 Bittersweet Victory? Grey stood on the platform, the young man''s figure shooting out of the platform like a broken kite. His state was no different from that of the young lady who Grey attacked the first time as well. Alec still had his mouth wide open. He had already stopped using his special technique to boost his strength for some time now since it was pretty much useless. Grey''s abilities made it look like he had no issues with defeating the entire team there. Well, honestly, he didn''t have an issue with doing that. He could easily defeat them all, Alec included, and this was Alec being sincere with his feelings. For the first time in his life, he was admitting defeat wholeheartedly, he didn''t even want to fight against Grey, much less be his enemy. Grey was still in his Fusion State. He realized that those from the Syphilis Faction were staring at him with a mocking smile and his mind quickly went into overdrive, it didn''t take him long to figure out what they were all thinking. He has crippled himself. ''Why not go along with their thoughts?'' He pondered. His aura started to weaken, and before long, it went back to its previous Peak Overlord Plane state, however, they could all obviously see the considerable change in it. "Haha, I told you, he has damaged his core." The Elder from the Syphilis Faction who spoke about this previously laughed when she saw this. To them, this was a bigger victory compared to what they were supposed to get from the secret realm. Yes, the place would help them nurture more talent, however, there''s no secret realm that could help them create a monster like Grey. As long as Grey didn''t die, or foolishly ruined himself which he just did, they knew there was no way he wouldn''t be a force to be reckoned with in the future. But now, that danger was eliminated. Alec was the first person to rush over to Grey, "Are you alright?" Grey nodded, before taking slow steps back to his seat. Everyone could tell that he was exhausted. Void couldn''t help but roll his eyes when he saw Grey walking back in such a state. He knew for a fact that Grey was in a perfect condition, yet he was trying to make these people feel like the battle took a toll on him. ''Drama queen.'' He said to Grey. Grey almost tripped when Void said this. When Alec who was behind him saw this, he quickly went over to assist him. Grey didn''t reject it since it would make him seem a bit too proud. ''They think I ruined myself, I want to keep it that way. Even though they will eventually find out later in the future, I believe this would keep me from their view for now.'' Grey explained to Void. ''Oh, now I see.'' Void nodded in realization. At first, he thought Grey was doing this to draw sympathy from the Elders in the Pyrmond Faction so he could be rewarded more, but now that he thought about it, he recalled hearing even the Elders from the Pyrmond Faction speaking of Grey damaging his core. ''Not bad. But try to milk them as well, they have some shiny things I want.'' Void suggested. Grey didn''t bother to reply to Void''s statement, he already knew Void was a shameless figure, so he wasn''t surprised by his words. When he got back to his seat, all the members of the Faction, including the Elders looked at him with a different expression. The youths looked at him with glowing eyes, all they had for him was respect. He was the one who single-handedly brought victory to the Faction. After beating Lydia up, he was able to fight against seven opponents on his own. They weren''t even adding Alec to the scenario since they''ve forgotten about him after he eliminated the first of the eight members from the Syphilis Faction. Grey stole the entire show, and this battle was one they would speak of for years to come. Conor looked at Grey, "You really overdid it, didn''t you?" "A little." Grey replied weakly. "You shouldn''t have gone this far." Conor said softly. Grey''s talent was shocking, it would be a shame if it ended here. "I''ll be fine, don''t worry about it." Grey reassured him. He didn''t even bother to take a healing tonic since it was useless. Entering the Fusion State had already healed up all the injuries and exhaustion he was feeling from the start of the battle. The middle-aged man from the Dawson Family stepped on the platform to announce the winner of the battle. The Pyrmond Faction won naturally, and they were given the right to the secret realm. The Elders from the Syphilis Faction walked over to the side of the Pyrmond Faction. "Congratulations, you produced a great seed this time." The Lady said with a smile. The facial expressions of the Elders from the Pyrmond Faction didn''t show the smile they would''ve worn after gaining this victory, instead, they looked a little downcast. If Grey has truly damaged his core, then it was a terrible blow for them. Even the Faction Leader will feel devastated by the news. The Elders from the Syphilis Faction laughed and left the place with a smile. With the members of the Syphilis Faction gone, only those from the Pyrmond Faction were left, as well as the middle-aged man and Conor who were from the Dawson Family. "We''ll be taking our leave now." The middle-aged man from the Dawson Family said before disappearing. "Goodbye." Conor waved at Grey and Alec before his figure disappeared as well. Now, only those from the Pyrmond Faction were left in the place. The Elders still had a sour expression. "Come with us." The Elder who brought Grey into the Faction held his hand and they disappeared. The youths looked at each other with a lost expression, they could guess the reason the Elders took Grey with them. Chapter 854 We All Have Secrets Chapter 854 We All Have Secrets In a separate space. Grey and the Elders from the Pyrmond Faction were standing in the sky. "Why did you do it?" The Elder who brought Grey into the Faction asked with a straight face. "What?" Grey asked, trying to feign not knowing what they were talking about. "You know what I''m talking about. You damaged your core, why did you do it? There was no use taking it to that extent." The Elder said. "Oh, that¡­ Well¡­" Grey was about to speak when an Elder tried to grab his hand. He knew what the Elder wanted to do and instinctively let out all his defensive measures, the gravitational field included. He used the space element to retreat before saying, "I''m fine." The Elder who tried to grab his hand froze, for less than a second before looking at Grey in shock. He didn''t expect such timely response from Grey, he only wanted to see the extent of Grey''s injury. What he found shocking was not only Grey''s quick reaction, but the fact that it managed to stop him for that split second when he retreated. He was above an Elemental Venerable, and already an Elemental Sovereign, yet, Grey who was still an Overlord Plane Elementalist was able to stop him. Even if it was for a split second, it was still something that was deemed impossible. "I mean no harm, I only want to check the extent of your injury." The Elder explained. "Honestly, I''m fine. The only reason I pretended to be injured is to make them think that I''m not a threat." Grey didn''t hide his intentions from the Elders and told them the truth. Since he was part of the Faction, he had to show them his loyalty. Besides, he had been gaining a few things from the Faction lately, things he didn''t want to stop now. "So, you''re saying you pretended to be injured?" The Elder who brought him to the Faction asked. Grey nodded and used a hint of the Fusion State once again, this was the only way he could show them that he was fine. He didn''t dare to let them touch him to inspect his condition. That would be deadly to him if they were to sense the orb in his body. Not just the orb, but his eight other elements as well. The Elders froze when they saw Grey using signs of his special technique to increase his strength again. They calmed down when they realized Grey was fine, but then it hit them. There was no technique for increasing strength that didn''t have any repercussions. If Grey was fine after using his special technique, then it meant it must be top tier, even higher than the one they had in the Faction. That was not the only thought in their heads, normally, after using a special technique to boost one''s strength, it was suicidal to use it again within a short time. Grey used it to prove that he was fine, even if he didn''t use it to the peak, he still used an ounce of it. ''Just what type of technique does he have?'' This was the thought going through the heads of most of the Elders. "Nice move, you''re smarter than most people your age." A voice interrupted the other Elders who were thinking about Grey''s special technique. It was none other than the voice of the man who brought Grey to the Faction. The other Elders realized they were thinking too much. Grey''s technique was very tempting, but not as tempting as having Grey in their ranks. Now they started to think of what Grey said. He tricked their enemies into thinking he was injured, this showed that he was very experienced and cool headed when making decisions. "Haha, good kid, you tricked them into thinking you were wasted. Even though they will find out later in the future, it''s still amazing. It would be nice to see their expressions when they do." The Elder who rarely spoke laughed out loud. He was happy that Grey was not injured, the rest things didn''t matter to him. If any of the Elders tried to even question Grey about his technique, he was one of the few who would attack them. "You can go back." The Space Elementalist among the Elders sent Grey back. With Grey gone, only the Elders were left in the separate space. "What do you all think about the kid?" An Elder asked. "I like him, he''s smart." The Elder who rarely spoke said with a smile. "We know nothing about him, do you think we can trust him?" The Elder who tried to touch Grey said. "He told us his motive behind feigning his injury, this showed he placed a little trust in us." The Elder who brought Grey to the Faction said. "Did you see how he retreated when I tried to touch him?" The Elder asked. "We all have secrets Micah, don''t worry too much about his." The Space Elementalist among the Elders said. The others nodded, they all had secrets as well, so it was natural for a genius like Grey to have secrets, multiple secrets even. Even Alec has secrets as well, so it was not an issue to them. As long as Grey didn''t show any signs of betraying them, then they were fine with him, whoever he was. They left the separate space after speaking for a few more minutes. Grey and the others were speaking, he wasn''t really saying much, just listening to them tell him thank you. They stayed there for a few more minutes and the Elders gave each of them a healing tonic, and after taking it, they were taken back to the Faction. Two Elders were left behind to keep guard over the portal to the secret realm. Grey and the others would be heading back to take their rewards for winning the competition. To be honest, Grey was looking forward to the points he would be receiving from the Faction. He still had a lot of books to read on arrays. Chapter ?855 Meeting The Faction Leader Chapter ?855 Meeting The Faction Leader Pyrmond Faction. Grey and the others returned a few hours later. The Faction had already been informed of the result of the battle, so most of the members who were in the Faction were waiting outside for them to return. When the spatial tunnel opened up and the figures of Grey and the Elders appeared, the youths in the crowd cheered loudly. They''ve known of how the Faction has lost each of the previous competitions in a row. In fact, it was almost common knowledge that they would always lose whenever they fought against the Syphilis Faction in this particular competition. The reason for it was because of the special technique they used in increasing their strength. Unlike the Pyrmond Faction, the members of the Syphilis Faction seemingly weren''t scared of ruining their cores, which was a shocking thing. The group was welcomed by all the youths, some Elders were also present, and they were all smiles since this was something they had been waiting for a long time. Grey and Alec were the main stars of the show, with Grey being the main person who took all the spotlight. Most of the youths tried to speak with the Grey, but since he wasn''t that social, he spoke with them a little before heading over to meet Keith. He didn''t stay long before he was summoned by the Faction Leader. The entire group, as well as the Elders who went for the competition, went along as well. The Elders led the group to the largest mountain in the Faction, and they entered the Faction''s Hall where the Faction Leader was waiting for them. This was different from the first time Grey met the Faction Leader, at that time, they didn''t meet in the Faction''s Hall, rather, they were taken to a secret cave. Grey looked at the man sitting on the middle seat in the Hall. Just like the first time, he wasn''t emitting any aura, but Grey could sense an incredible aura around him. "Well done." The man said in a calm voice, but everyone could see the joy on his face. He looked at all the participants in the competition, without giving any of them any special attention. The youths, as well as the Elders, greeted him before taking a seat. "I''m proud of you all for not only participating in this competition but also bringing victory to the Faction. As promised, everyone will be rewarded with two thousand points, as well as the right to train in the secret realm. As you all know, the limit for this particular realm is the Sage Plane, this is why it''s so valuable to us¡­" The man continued after everyone sat down. Those in the Sage Plane could enter this realm, unlike most realms that don''t accept people over the Overlord Plane. He didn''t speak about Grey or Alec''s performance, instead, he praised everyone who participated in the competition. The other members were elated when they heard the rewards they would be getting. They all knew they didn''t do anything, although they tried their best, they were defeated nonetheless, leaving only two people to fight against eight people. If not for Grey and Alec''s abilities, the story would''ve been the same as the previous competitions. After speaking with them, he told them to leave and accept their rewards. There would be a ceremony later that day to celebrate the victory of the group. Also, a few people would be chosen to go into the secret realm as well. Grey had zero interest in the ceremony, all he wanted to do right now was to use his points and improve his knowledge. When Grey was leaving, he received a secret message to stay behind from the Faction Leader. He already expected this in the first place, so he didn''t rush out. "Grey Dawson." The man called his full name. "Yes, Faction Leader." Grey looked up to stare into the eyes of the man. "Can I trust you?" The man straightforwardly asked him. Grey paused for some time, not expecting a question like this. After some time, "You can." The Faction Leader looked at Grey for some time before nodding, "You can leave. Also, for your good work, you can bring anyone you want with you to the secret realm." Grey thanked the Faction Leader before leaving. He originally thought the Faction Leader would want to speak about other things, but after asking if he could trust him, he didn''t say anything thing other than giving him extra rewards. Going back to his place, he went over to Keith''s place. By the time he left the Faction''s Hall, the tales of Grey''s performance has already started to spread across the Faction. Grey already knew something like this would happen from the start, so he tried to hide from people while going back. It was very easy for people to recognize him, the reason for this was simple, there was no one as handsome as he was in the entire Faction. He was very famous even before this event, now that the stories of his phenomenal performance started to spread, his fame in the Faction spread even more, especially among the ladies. With a mask and a cloak, he was able to get to his place without much disturbance. He was only stopped when he first left the Faction''s Hall, this was how he knew about what was happening in the Faction. Keith''s place. "You''re very famous now." Keith said with a chuckle when he saw Grey coming into his place. He knew Grey was not social, so he found his present situation a little funny. "I really wished it wasn''t like this." Grey said with a wry smile as he kept his mask and cloak. "You''re powerful, what did you expect? It''s just like that Alec guy, he''s also very famous, even though he rarely stays in the Faction." Keith replied. They continued speaking for some time before Grey asked him a question that stunned him. "Would you like to enter the secret realm to train?" Grey asked. "I can''t afford to go." Keith replied with a shake of his head. This wasn''t the only secret realm the Pyrmond Faction owned. To enter the secret realm, either they won a competition that would be held, or they used their points for it. To enter a secret realm cost a whooping eight hundred points. Although it was very difficult to accumulate such a large amount of points, as long as one wanted to enter, they would have to go out more for points. The Faction made everything all about points for a single reason, if the members don''t go out for missions, there was no way they would grow stronger. Since they would always need points for things, they had to head out for missions, and these missions were things that would make them grow stronger. Of course, there have been a few members who had died on these missions, but it mainly has to do with their judgments. The level of every mission was stated there, so they all knew what to expect when going out for a particular mission. If any of them overestimated their abilities, then they didn''t deserve to be geniuses. Chapter 856 Celebratory Occasion Chapter 856 Celebratory Occasion Later that day. Grey''s house. Grey was sitting down, reading a book he just took from the Faction''s Library on arrays. He didn''t have time to waste, he still had to think of a way to remove the mark on his back. He was still reading when he sensed someone coming into his place, before long, he heard a knock on his door. Dropping the book, he walked over to the door. Opening it, he saw Alec standing outside with a smile. "You''re not going?" Alec asked when he saw Grey''s state. "Going where?" Grey asked with a confused expression. "The ceremony the Faction Leader spoke of." Alec couldn''t believe Grey had forgotten about the ceremony they spoke about earlier that day. It hadn''t even been up to three hours yet, and Grey has forgotten about it. "Ceremony¡­" Grey paused and tried to think, he soon recalled the Faction Leader speaking of a ceremony to celebrate the victory. "Oh that, I completely forgot about it." He said with an awkward smile, he invited Alec into his place. When Alec entered his place, he stood frozen stiff. He couldn''t believe what he was seeing. ''Are there still any books left in the library?'' His eyes twitched multiple times when he saw the amount of books on the side of Grey''s chair. Grey brought out all the books since he wanted them for reference. After the competition, his rank in the Faction increased. From rank two, he was currently a rank five member. He was the only member in rank five that was in the Overlord Plane. With his new rank, he went to higher ranks to acquire as many books on arrays as he could find. When the young lady in charge of the library saw the number of books he was taking home, she couldn''t help but take a double look at Grey''s badge. "Sorry about this." Grey said before keeping all the books in his storage ring. He went inside to get dressed and came out with new clothings. He was currently wearing a white long sleeve shirt, and blue trousers. His hair was well combed, and he gave off an aura of fresh air. When he came out, Alec couldn''t help but click his tongue. He had to admit, Grey was not only stronger than he was, but he was also far more handsome. He had never seen anyone that was as handsome as Grey. Dressing up made Grey even more handsome. They left Grey''s place, and on the way, they met up with Keith who was with Void. "You finally left your place?" Void mocked when he saw Grey. After the journey, he couldn''t believe that all Grey did was to collect books from the library, with more than half of his points. He didn''t even get him anything shiny! He decided to hang out with Keith since Grey would be too busy reading the books he took from the library. "The cat can talk?" Alec was a little taken aback. He saw Void with Grey when he first met him, but he never thought Void could speak. He only concluded that Void was Grey''s pet. "Yes, and my name''s Void." Void was the one who replied. There was no use in hiding the fact that he could speak any more. It wasn''t like it would change much if people knew he could. "Oh, sorry. It''s nice meeting you Void." Alec apologized for his manner of addressing Void. "It''s okay. Do you have any shiny objects?" Void asked, almost like a criminal who wanted to rob someone. Grey almost facepalmed when he heard this and dragged Void by the tail before holding him in his hands. "We should get going." He said to Alec and Keith. Keith had already used the Void''s ways since they had traveled together a few times when he was going out for missions. There was a time Void robbed people of all their shiny treasures. Luckily, he only robbed those who were bad people, well, those he deemed were bad people. They got to the place where the ceremony was held and it was already filled up. When Grey and Alec made their appearance, they drew all the attention. Keith, who was walking with them, was barely noticed by anyone. Grey''s appearance dumbstruck most of the young ladies in the place. They almost couldn''t take their eyes off him. ''Every single time, this is why I hate occasions.'' Grey complained internally. ''In times like this, I miss Klaus.'' He thought as they walked over to their seats. "You''re Grey." A young lady who was close to their seats asked. Grey didn''t need to check before knowing she was in the Sage Plane. The young lady should be around his age, if not younger with a year. "Yes, you are?" Grey tried to be as courteous as possible. "Eva." The young lady replied with a smile. She was genuinely curious about Grey. The story of how he was able to get his strength above the Overlord Plane, and using a strength that could rival a Sage Plane Elementalist has gone around the Faction, so even the geniuses in the Sage Plane had taken note of Grey. For someone who could show such strength against other geniuses, it meant that once he gets to the Sage Plane, he would show even greater strength. Eva wasn''t the only one who approached Grey, a few others, as well as some young men also came over to him. They all knew of Alec, so they didn''t need to make any introductions with him. They all spoke and enjoyed the ceremony until it was finally time for the Faction Leader to address them. Grey didn''t think the Faction Leader would take the time to come to such an occasion. But he not only came from the start, but he also wanted to address them. When the Faction Leader stood up, everywhere became quiet, and everyone placed their attention on him. Chapter ?857 Unexpected Situation Chapter ?857 Unexpected Situation "First of all, I''d like to thank everyone who participated in the sparring contest as well as those who participated in the competition and gave us the victory¡­" The Faction Leader spoke calmly, but his voice was audible for all to hear. He addressed the issue of the importance of the secret realm since it was one of the few places that allowed those in the Sage Plane entry. Most secret realms had a limit of the Overlord Plane, so the geniuses above the Overlord Plane couldn''t go in, but this particular one allowed those in the Sage Plane. This was why it was coveted by other Factions when the Pyrmond Faction started to decline. The Syphilis Faction was the only one that managed to succeed. This is one of the reasons why they could produce more Sage Plane Elementalists faster than the Pyrmond Faction. Although the Aurora Faction was superior to these smaller realms, those realms were very beneficial to youths who were still growing. In the case of Grey and the other geniuses, they would be able to grow at an even faster speed if they were sent to these special realms. "Now that we''ve gained control over the secret realm once again, we''ll be holding a competition for those who would want to enter for a training trip. The competition will start in two days. As a special reward for being victorious, each of the ten individuals who went for the competition are given free access to the domain." The Leader said. None of the other youths felt envious of the privilege given to those who participated in the competition. They all tried to gain a spot, but they lost in the contest, so all they can do is place their hopes in the competition that will be taking place in two days. The Leader spoke a little longer, encouraging those who wanted to take part in the competition. When he was done, he left the occasion. There was no use in him staying there any further. Grey asked Alec if he could leave since the occasion was as good as finished. "What do you mean? It just got to the fun part." Alec said with an excited smile. "Fun part?" Grey raised a brow. "Just watch." Alec nudged him to look ahead. Grey looked forward and saw all the youths below the Elemental Venerable Plane stepping out. "What''s going on?" He asked curiously. "There''s always a special session after each ceremony hosted in the Faction. The strongest geniuses from each Plane would step out, well, more like each stage in said Plane. For instance, you see that guy over there?" Alec pointed at a young man who looked to be around twenty-five years old or so. Grey followed his hands to a young man with blue spiky hair. He stood just over six feet tall and had a well-built body. He has a short beard and mustache. "That''s Kevin, he''s the strongest individual in the Late stages of the Sage Plane. He''s already been at the Peak for some time now, and it''s said he will be breaking through very soon." Alec explained. He started to point out the other geniuses regarded as the strongest in the Mid and Early stages of the Sage Plane. Grey listened to his words carefully while taking note of the people he called. He tried to memorize their faces and names in case of future purposes. Before Kevin started off the special session, he turned to look at Grey. "I heard you''ve already awakened your domain. If it''s not a problem, we all would like to see it." Kevin said in a booming voice. Everyone turned to look at Grey. It was said that he used his domain during the competition, this was something that the other youths found shocking. Grey was still in the Overlord Plane, after all. Kevin who was already at the Peak of the Sage Plane still hadn''t awakened his domain. He couldn''t say he was jealous of Grey, but deep down, he wished he had awakened his domain. "Don''t worry, he doesn''t mean any trouble." Alec reassured Grey. Grey nodded before standing up and walking over to the platform that had been raised on the ground. When Grey got to the platform, he bowed to the geniuses on the Sage Plane as a form of respect. They were all his seniors, and although there were a few individuals he was older than, he didn''t really care about it. To him, only the strong had the right to be above others. Since he was still weaker than they were, then he was their junior. Eva, who was a year older than him, was among those on the platform. "I''m Grey." He introduced himself before taking a deep breath. His eyes glowed with pale blue light and the platform was covered with a blue inferno, however, there was a difference between this flame and the one he used previously, it gave off intense icy chills. Those at the Early stages of the Sage Plane felt a cold chill run down their bodies and they quickly used their elemental essence to block the effects of the cold. "Eh?" Grey let out a surprised exclamation. He didn''t expect the sudden change in the temperature of his flames. Each of the Elders who were present when he used his domain in the competition stood up in shock. They exchanged glances and even the Faction Leader who was gone suddenly appeared. Grey deactivated the domain quickly, a little shocked by what just happened. He hurriedly sent his spiritual senses into his body and saw the pale blue flame inside him rotating slowly. ''Damn it! This thing couldn''t pick a better time to react?'' He couldn''t help but complain, but he still wore the same casual expression. Only those who were present at the competition found his domain strange. It had the same color as when he used it back then, but the effect was completely different, which was very abnormal. Grey looked in the direction of the Elders and could also see the shock in their eyes. He almost wanted to facepalm, but he had to keep a straight face. "Icy fire, you truly are special." Kevin praised. Chapter ?858 Extra Protection Chapter ?858 Extra Protection "Thanks." Grey replied before stepping down from the platform. Alec kept his eyes on Grey all through the time he was walking back to his seat. "How is this possible?" The Faction Leader muttered while standing close to the Elders. The Elders all had shocked faces as well, stunned by what they just witnessed. They all knew of Grey''s domain, and the fact that it mainly gave off heat. They weren''t new to seeing an icy fire, so it wasn''t a surprise to them. However, if a Fire Elementalist has icy flames, there''s no way they would be able to use flames that gave off heat. However, Grey seemed to be able to use both icy and regular heat flames which was something usually seen as impossible. Grey''s figure suddenly blinked and before Alec could even speak with him, he vanished. He appeared in a secret cave in the Faction. Looking around, he had a sense of familiarity with the place. It was where they came to meet with the Faction Leader before heading for the competition. "Kid, what''s up with your body?" The Faction Leader asked the moment Grey placed his eyes on him. Beside him were a few Elders, and all of them were present at the competition where Grey used his domain. These were the Elders the Faction Leader had complete trust in. Grey looked at the Faction Leader for some time and kept quiet. "You don''t have to be afraid, I have no intention of harming you. Nonetheless, this is a very important matter. If others were to find out about this, then you would be in for a whole lot of trouble. I can''t help you if you don''t tell me how to." The Faction Leader told Grey his intentions. Grey looked at him for some time and couldn''t help but curse at the flame that was still in his body. The reason it reacted on its own was that Grey still hadn''t completely absorbed it, and given the strength it had, it could react on its own sometimes. These special flames tend to grow a certain type of consciousness when they get to a certain level. Grey thought about the situation a little longer before finally telling them about what happened when he went out for a mission. He also told them of the part where he was chased by a necromancer. Not forgetting to mention the corpse that used icy flames and how the teleportation tunnel almost broke apart before it miraculously fixed itself and he was transported to an island where he acquired the icy flame. The Elders, as well as the Faction Leader, were a little stunned by the story. A mixture of coincidences helped Grey obtain a very powerful treasure. The part they were more worried about was the bit with the necromancer. For a necromancer to chase him that much meant two things, either he had something of theirs, or he was marked. The former had the highest possibility while the latter with the lowest chance, but it still couldn''t be ruled out. The Faction Leader thought about Grey''s story and couldn''t help but think of a certain person he found when Grey joined the Faction. If his guess was accurate, then the man was the one who helped Grey fix the broken spatial tunnel. "Hmm, come." He stretched out his hand. Grey froze for a few seconds, unsure of what to do. "Don''t worry, I won''t pry more than what you allow." The Faction Leader reassured Grey, he could already tell that Grey had an issue with trusting people, and he didn''t find it odd or bad. Anyone who has been in the world for long knows not to trust people they''re not familiar with. Even when you''re familiar with a person, trusting them is also not something that is advised. Grey nodded before approaching the Faction Leader. The reason he agreed to do this was simple, given the strength of the Faction Leader, he could easily hold him down and search his entire body, but he didn''t, giving Grey the choice to allow it or not. This was something that was not common in such powerful people. Grey''s respect for the Faction Leader saw an increase because of this. He gave him his hand and heard the Faction Leader''s voice in his head, ''lead the way.'' Grey let his spiritual senses lead the way for the Faction Leader, taking him to only the place where the place was located. He was particularly happy since the flame was located in his head. If it were close to his core where the orb was also located, things would''ve been a little difficult for him. The Faction Leader studied the flame for some time before withdrawing his spiritual senses from Grey''s body. He didn''t even try to check on other places in Grey''s body. To be honest, he wasn''t really interested in doing that. "You''re lucky it acted out now." The Faction Leader spoke when he opened his eyes. "Oh, is there something wrong?" Grey asked. "It''s starting to gain consciousness. If it had reacted another time, you would''ve left it alone. Had it gained consciousness completely, you would''ve been in serious danger." The Faction Leader explained. Grey sucked in a deep breath when he heard this. He couldn''t believe that the flame he absorbed was on the verge of gaining consciousness. This was a very serious issue. He already had the orb in his body which had a very dominating personality, the chances of both of them starting a battle in his body would''ve been bad for him. The orb would win, no doubt about that, but he might be injured since they would be contesting for his body. "I''ll subdue it so you can slowly absorb the rest of it. Only after you get to the Sage Plane will you be able to absorb the rest of it, so take your time." The Faction Leader made a few hand seals and an array appeared mid-air and sank into Grey''s body. "I know you''re very adept in arrays, you can work on it as well so you can use the flames abilities at will." He added with a smile. He had been keeping his eyes on Grey, when he found out Grey used more than half of his points in exchange for books on arrays, he couldn''t help but shudder at the obsession of Grey and arrays. He took Grey for someone who always wanted to learn, hence he placed this array in his head as a means of letting him learn. Grey bowed to thank the Faction Leader for his help. "Wait." The Elder who brought Grey into the Faction stopped him before he could leave. Grey turned to look at him. "Take these, you''ll need them when next you head out." The Elder threw over twenty talismans to Grey. Each of the talismans gave off an aura that was superior to the one his Teacher gave him. ''These should be talismans with an Elemental Venerable power. This Elder should be above that Plane, right?'' Grey thought internally. "Thank you, Elder." Grey bowed and gladly accepted them before turning to leave. He soon left the Elders and the Faction Leader alone. Chapter 859 Hows He So Lucky? Chapter 859 How''s He So Lucky? After leaving, Grey didn''t see a need to head back to the ceremony, however, he couldn''t leave like that as well. ''I hate these things.'' He couldn''t help but complain. When he got back to the ceremony, the geniuses on the Sage Plane were still performing on the platform. He didn''t say anything and sat down close to Alec who was still looking at him suspiciously. Alec sensible didn''t speak of what happened nor did he ask why Grey suddenly disappeared. He noticed Grey wasn''t the only one who disappeared, and that some of the Elders were gone as well. ''Hey, what happened?'' Void asked when Grey came back. He tried to follow them, but he was knocked back by the person who created the spatial tunnel that sucked Grey in. Grey told Void about everything that occurred after he disappeared. ''Oh wow! The flame is gaining sentience? That''s amazing!'' Void exclaimed. With a sentient flame, Grey would have another means of attacking, just like Alice''s Seelie, the only difference is that this flame is completely different. If Grey could nurture it and ensure that he had full control over it, then it would be very beneficial to him. ''Yeah, the Faction Leader sealed it to ensure that it doesn''t grow to the stage where it will cause me any harm before I can control it.'' Grey said to Void as he watched the ongoing battles. ''That''s nice of him.'' Void commented. They continued speaking and before they knew it, the geniuses on the Sage Plane were done displaying their moves, it was time for those in the Overlord Plane to show their skills. Grey was forced to step out since he was currently considered invincible in the Overlord Plane. In fact, those in the Pyrmond Faction were almost on the verge of tears that the usual competition between all Factions and Families in the Region was still a few years away, had it been now that they had a genius such as Grey, then he would''ve completely dominated the entire Overlord Plane battles. With his domain, who would dare to go against him while still being in the Overlord Plane? Grey didn''t do too much though, after sparing with another Peak Overlord Plane Elementalist who didn''t go for the competition, he returned to his seat. Everyone was impressed as they watched him battle. It was natural, with his present fame in the Faction, he could barely do any wrongs. In fact, just walking alone seems like a good thing in the eyes of the youths. Unknown to Grey, he had grown a huge fanbase. And the fanbase didn''t consist of only those weaker than him, even a few people in the Sage Plane were part of those who were his fans. Grey left the occasion as soon as it ended. The Faction was pretty united, so even though he wasn''t acquainted with most of the people, he didn''t put on any airs whenever he was approached. This made those around him even more impressed by him. Grey was approachable, his only issue is his lack of communication skills. Time flew by slowly and it was already almost a month since Grey came back from winning the competition. Most of those who went with him had already gone into the secret realm in search of an opportunity to break through, Grey on the other hand was still studying arrays. His love for arrays soon became well known across the entire Faction. He had barely gone out for this past month, and the few times he went out was to attend an array class. Void had been traveling with Keith all this while. He didn''t know what to do with Void. Keith unfortunately couldn''t enter the place now since he would need to go with Grey when entering. He still hadn''t found a chance to break through to the Sage Plane and he felt like adventuring into the secret realm would be very beneficial for him. Grey was currently sitting in his place, on his hand was his communication device. He was listening to the messages he had from his friends, while also sending them one as well. By the time he was done speaking with them, he couldn''t help but shake his head when. ''How is he so lucky?'' He asked internally. Klaus had broken through to the Sage Plane, not only that, but he also managed to awaken his domain as well. Of all of them, Klaus was the one who had the lowest stage, but now, things were always different. He would get one lucky encounter after another that would make him advance at a speed that even Grey was envious of. Alice and Reynolds were still on the Eighth stage, but Reynolds had nothing to worry about thanks to his Elemental Warrior which had gotten to the strength of a Sage Plane Elementalists. Alice''s Seelie was in the Sage Plane to begin with, so she still had methods of dealing with Sage Plane opponents. Grey had both Void and the talismans his Teacher gave to him. If he used his Fusion State, then he didn''t have any problems with going against an Early stage Sage Plane Elementalist, well, one without a domain. One thing that was worth mentioning is that Keith had broken through to the Sage Plane as well. After sending some of the things he had learned about arrays to his Teacher for study, he decided it was finally time for him to head to the secret realm. When Keith heard of this, he was excited beyond belief. He was currently out of points, and there was a mission that required him to enter the secret realm. Void was also very excited since they would get to experience new things. This was a secret realm he had been trying to get into from the start, so it was a great opportunity for him now that Grey had decided they should head into the secret realm. Grey walked to the teleportation array in the Faction, with Keith and Void in tow. Chapter ?860 Tremble At The Mention Of My Name Chapter ?860 Tremble At The Mention Of My Name Grey appeared in a place he was slightly familiar with. It was where they came for the competition. ''I need to break through to the Sage Plane on this trip. The time for my revenge is getting closer. If my guess is accurate, that guy should''ve broken through to the Sage Plane a long time ago.'' He thought internally. There was just over a year before the competition, and he still hadn''t broken through to the Sage Plane. If he were to stay at the Peak of the Overlord Plane as long as he stayed at the Peak of the Origin Plane, then things would be extremely difficult for him. "Come on, let''s get going." Grey walked forward, Keith following behind him. Keith was a little nervous since unlike others who had to take part in a competition, he was going without doing that. According to what Grey told him, he could go with him. He didn''t know how true it was, but he knew for a fact that Grey wasn''t the type to lie to others, especially for something like this. When they got to the portal to the secret realm, the Elder in charge looked at Grey, seeing Keith beside him, he didn''t say anything other than telling them the time limit they would be spending there. Since resources are not infinite, each person who enters the secret realm can only spend a limited time inside. There was also a limit to the number of people that could go into the secret realm. If the place was flooded with too many people, then it would disrupt the balance there. Grey wasn''t too bothered about the time limit. He wanted to stay till the time limit, besides, he couldn''t stay in the Aurora Continent since he was still being chased by necromancers. ''Once I''m done with this trip and going for the competition for Sylvia, I''ll start searching for my parents.'' He concluded. He planned to even head to the Dawson Family where Conor was from before even going over to meet up with Sylvia. Since it was in this Region, why wait till later. Besides, even if he finds out his parents were not from that Dawson Family, he would just take it as visiting a friend of his. He also wanted to visit Kyle as well. Since they separated, he hadn''t really heard from him, the few times he spoke with his friends, he only spoke with Klaus, Alice, and Reynolds. He had a lot of plans, but those will only be possible after he comes out of this secret realm. The Elder removed the seal from the portal and the duo walked into it. When Grey and Keith''s figure disappeared, a man appeared beside the Elder. It was none other than the man secretly protecting Grey. "You know you can''t go in, right?" The Elder looked at the man. He was one of the few people who knew of this man''s presence. "I know, I''m just bored being alone for too long so I decided to speak with you for some time." The man said with a soft smile. The Elder nodded and they both took their seats and started to speak about life and their journeys in cultivation. Sometimes, casual talks like this can help an Elementalist open a new realm they knew nothing about when it came to understanding their elements. Once an Elementalist becomes an Elemental Venerable or higher, they rely mainly on their understanding of their elements to grow stronger. Battles mainly involved the use of domains, and a domain will not be powerful if the Elementalist didn''t have sufficient knowledge of his elements. In the secret realm. Grey and Keith appeared together and some youths were there. They gave them all the information they needed on the place. This realm had humanoid figures as well, just like the horned race, however, unlike humans and the horned race, this race was a little different. Their skin color varied from green to red, and brown. Basically, each individual''s skin showed their elemental affinity. From the start, they all knew what elements they were attuned to without having to have a test like humans. Those of the horned race had things a little different. Grey summoned the triplet he captured from the horned race. They were still at the Peak of the Overlord Plane and this was a good opportunity for them to advance. After watching Void break through the last time, they gained some enlightenment, a few more things and they would be able to break through. Grey handed the two-headed snake to Keith since it was already in the Sage Plane, it would be able to protect him in such a place. "We should go our separate ways here. I wish you all the best on your journey. We''ll meet in six months." Grey said to Keith, before leaving he turned around once again, "Also, take this, you can communicate with me with this. If you''re in any trouble that guy can''t deal with, just send a distress signal and I''ll be able to find you." He tossed a communication device at Keith. This one was special, compared to the others he had made, he can use this to track down Keith. He also gave the triplets one each and told them it would be better for them to move out separately. But everything ultimately lied on their decision. When he was done with everyone, he turned around and left decisively, Void sitting proudly on his shoulder. "Hehe, finally, time for chaos." Void laughed playfully. "We''re only here to train, no one is causing any chaos." Grey said with an apathetic voice. "You''re no fun. However, I can already see the people here trembling at the mention of my name." Void said with a majestic voice. "You''re not going anywhere on your own, now sit tight, our journey starts now." After saying this, Grey''s figure flashed and he disappeared from the spot he was standing on. Keith and the triplet exchanged glances. The triplet couldn''t help but remember when Grey came to their world. They looked at this world, and pity flashed through their eyes. Chapter ?861 Snatch And Vanish Chapter ?861 Snatch And Vanish The Secret Realm. In one of the numerous towns. A youth could be seen with a black cat sitting on his shoulder. This youth had blue skin and was speaking with one of the townspeople. The youth was Grey and Void. They had been here for a week now, and Grey had actually not only learned the language spoken here, but he had found a way to make his skin color change as well. Presently, he was pretending to be a Water Elementalist. He heard of a treasure appearing not too far from this particular town, so he wanted to get information about it. A few minutes later and after asking more people, he managed to get the news of where the treasure was located. If he headed southeast from the town, he would find a huge tree. According to what he heard, the treasure was being born in this tree. He thanked the people there and rushed toward where the treasure was located. Although he found the fact that these people weren''t bothered with the treasure, he wasn''t too worried. With Void with him, he didn''t need to fear anyone. If things became too difficult, he would escape. He had even created some teleportation arrays around. "What do you think the treasure is?" Void asked curiously. "I have no idea, I only heard about it not too long ago. I''m short on the details." Grey replied as they walked in the direction the townspeople pointed. A few minutes later, Grey saw the shape of the large tree. Before even getting there, he could already sense the aura of the people there. By the time he got there, he saw different people there, each had a different color to signify their elements. Grey didn''t talk much and sat down some distance away. He looked around carefully and found out that he was the only human there, the rest of the people were from the Lutra race. After staying and learning their language, he found out that the people here were part of the Lutra race. Apparently, there were other secret realms that had other members of the Lutra race. Of all the people that came into this realm, Grey was one of the few people who had incorporated himself with the race almost perfectly. Others could barely notice the difference between him and those from the Lutra race. The people he met there were all in the Overlord Plane, so he was one hundred percent confident in being able to obtain the treasure. He reduced his aura to around the Mid stages of the Overlord Plane so he wouldn''t attract too much attention. Some hours later, the tree started to glow with a blinding green light. Green usually represented the wind element, so those who had the wind elements amongst the people present were excited. The light shows that the treasure was of the wind element. ''The wind element. Not bad.'' Grey said to Void. ''I''m no longer interested in it. You can keep whatever comes out.'' Void said with a sad voice. New novel chapters are published on Free?ebn?vel.c?m. He originally thought it might be something that would benefit him, unfortunately, it was for Wind Elementalists, and there was nothing he could do with it. When the light got to its peak, a flower sprang out from the tree and it slowly opened up. Grey felt an intense amount of wind elemental essence and he couldn''t help but feel refreshed just from breathing in the essence. ''Nice, I''m getting this.'' He was happy with what appeared. The other Wind Elementalists were all excited about the prospect of the treasure. First off, those on the Overlord Plane here were all middle-aged or old people. This was just like the situation in the Azure Continent. Since the Sage Plane was the last Plane, it was extremely difficult for them to break through to it. Getting to the Overlord Plane was easy, crossing it, not so much. As soon as the flower bloomed, Grey''s figure vanished. He wasn''t the only one who made a move at that time. There were a few Wind and Space Elementalists around. Even the Lightning Elementalists made a move as well. They were the only ones who were confident in their speed. But Grey got there before any of them. When he appeared, he had to spend a little time to make sure he didn''t handle the treasure recklessly. The small time he spent there gave the others the chance to appear before him. He didn''t get flustered by the number of people that were coming at him. He carefully took out the treasure and with a blink, his figure was changed with that of another man. The man was a Fire Elementalist and standing close to the flower, he was taken aback when he saw multiple people rushing at him. He couldn''t even say a word before he was attacked by the first few who got there. Grey did the switch at the time when they were about to unleash their attacks, so they couldn''t stop it. The Fire Elementalist fell to the ground, injured. All those who wanted to take the treasure turned around and they saw Grey''s figure bolting away from where they were gathered. "After him!" One of the Wind Elementalists screamed. The others started to chase Grey. Grey looked behind him and gave a mocking smile. He had already prepared for a scenario like this. He created a teleportation array under a lake. When he got there, he dived into the water and when he got to the bottom, he vanished in a flash. The lake was not too big, but others couldn''t see the bottom part of it since it was pretty deep. They surrounded the lake, in hopes of getting Grey when he came out. While they were surrounding the place, one of the people dived in a few seconds after Grey entered. Some seconds later, he came out with a baffled look. "He''s not there." He said to the others who were waiting outside. "What do you mean he''s not there?" A Wind Elementalist asked with an irritated voice. "I couldn''t find him." The man said again. He came out of the lake to prove to them that he didn''t find Grey. The reason Grey picked this particular lake was that it concealed the aura of the space element, so only a Space Elementalist would be able to sense that he used a teleportation array, and that person had to go into the water to find out. Chapter 862 Spreading Across The Continent Chapter 862 Spreading Across The Continent Aurora Continent. It has been over six months since the Pyrmond Faction and the Syphilis Faction competed for the secret realm. Grey''s name had started to spread across the Region as one of the new geniuses who sprang out from the Pyrmond Faction. He was regarded as undefeatable under the Sage Plane. According to what was said, it was said that he could even fight against a newly ascended Sage Plane Elementalist and come out on top. People felt like the Pyrmond Faction was just saying this for the fame, however, it was confirmed by one of the members of the Syphilis Faction who participated in the competition, it was none other than the genius, Lydia. She told them of his battle with her, but she didn''t forget to add the fact that he crippled himself as well in the end just to ensure he was victorious. The members of the Pyrmond Faction came out to rebuke the story, saying it was false and that Grey was perfectly fine. To prove that she was right, Lydia challenged Grey to a battle. Grey was seemingly nowhere to be seen, she used this as proof to others that Grey was crippled and that the Pyrmond Faction was only using his name to try to lure in more geniuses to their Faction. The story lasted for some time before it started to die down, after all, Grey was nowhere to be seen, and the members of the Pyrmond Faction weren''t even doing anything to show that he was still fine since they couldn''t bring him out. More geniuses rose over time, and Grey''s name soon started to fade off. Only in the Pyrmond Faction was his name still very much heard. The reason for this was that they all witnessed him show his strength during the day of the celebratory ceremony. The Dawson Family. Conor was staring at a particular figure with all his focus. ''Strange, why is there some sort of resemblance?'' He couldn''t help but wonder. The man he was looking at was a figure respected by not just everyone from the Dawson Family, but the entire Western Continent, Lucas Dawson. He was the genius who rose to fame twenty-odd years ago. He went to the peak of the world in the fastest time ever recorded, in less than thirty years, he went from a normal human to a powerhouse even the strongest Faction in the Aurora Continent as a whole wouldn''t want to mess with. This man was currently sitting leisurely, eating fruits with a beautiful lady beside him. Conor was staring at this figure for a single reason, there was a youth he encountered not too long ago that has some sort of resemblance to this man. The only difference was that this youth was a little more handsome and younger than this man. They both had the same sparkling eyes. The youth in question was Grey. In fact, looking at both figures, Lucas and the lady beside him, he could actually find some resemblance between them and Grey. He couldn''t help but have a wild thought. ''Impossible! They would''ve brought him to the Family if he was their kid.'' He dismissed the thought quickly. No one would want their child to suffer alone. Not just that, but from what he knew, Grey''s background was very mysterious. He appeared from nowhere and quickly rose to fame. After coming to know Grey, he recalled on one of his travels when he went to the Northern Continent and heard of a genius named Grey who was dominating all the Regions'' geniuses rankings while in the Origin Plane. Connecting the dots, he guessed it was most likely this Grey as well. Grey''s name also spread to other Regions close to the Region the Pyrmond Faction was located. In the Faction his friends joined, they all heard of his tales. They couldn''t help but smile at the news. They all knew Grey would become very famous in a short time, and in less than a year he was already well known as a genius that would go on to become a monstrous powerhouse. They didn''t believe the news of him crippling himself since they all knew Grey would never do something like that. Doing anything that would harm himself was the last thing Grey would do, so they knew it was only a plot by others who didn''t like him. Kyle also heard of Grey''s news from his Family and couldn''t help but shake his head. He had always believed that as long as Grey was around, he would most definitely make a name for himself. However, he didn''t think that Grey would join the Pyrmond Faction which was on the decline. Most people felt the Pyrmond Faction drop from the top Factions in a short time. Two more months went by in a flash and the stories of Grey started to die down. Many people thought he was nothing more than a fallen genius, while others felt pity for him. While all this was happening, Grey was still inside the secret realm, training seriously. In the secret realm. Grey''s figure could be seen sitting beside a lake. He was eating fruits leisurely. Void was sitting beside him, unbothered by anything. They were enjoying their time when Grey felt something vibrate in his storage ring. He brought out the communication device and realized it was a distress signal from Keith. ''What could be going on.'' He thought. After checking for his location, he turned to look at Void. "Keith''s in trouble, let''s go check it out." He stepped on the rock beside him and it lit up. Over the past months he had been here, he had created multiple teleportation arrays across this realm. He couldn''t say he had traveled the entire place, but he was almost certain that no one aside from those from the Lutra race knew this place as much as he did. Their figures vanished soon after. In another location. In a city. Keith was currently trapped in an encirclement, over ten people from the Lutra race surrounded him with malicious intentions. ''Damn it! I shouldn''t have come here.'' He complained internally. ''I hope Grey comes soon.'' All he could do was pray for Grey''s quick arrival. Chapter ?863 Lutra Race Seeking Revenge Chapter ?863 Lutra Race Seeking Revenge Grey and Void appeared not too far from the city where Keith was captured. He didn''t know what happened, but from the number of people he saw gathered outside, he was certain that something major must have happened. They were about to move when Void suddenly paused and looked in a certain direction. "What''s up?" Grey asked curiously when he saw Void looking in another direction. "That two-headed snake is there." Void replied. "Isn''t it supposed to be with Keith?" Grey asked with a confused look. "Yeah, that''s why I''m surprised it''s there." Void answered. "Let''s see what''s up with it before meeting up with Keith." Grey suggested. "Wouldn''t he be dead before we come back?" Void was a little worried about Keith''s safety. "He should be fine. If I wasn''t here, what would he have done?" Grey didn''t feel too worried about it. The main reason he came over was that since coming here, this was the only time Keith has asked for his help. If not, he wouldn''t have come over to help him out. Void could only agree with him and go over to meet up with the two-headed snake. It took them a few minutes before they got there. Void traced the snake to a small cave that had some water inside. Looking around, they saw the snake lying on the ground, injured. "I see, no wonder they got that guy." Grey commented when he saw the state of the snake. Void went over to speak with the snake. He was a magical beast, so he could naturally communicate with the snake. After talking for some time, he found out that Keith was ambushed by people from the Lutra race. Actually, Keith wasn''t the only one, every human around this area was ambushed. Grey gave the snake a healing tonic he got from this realm. It was not as effective as the tonic he got from the blooming viper, but it was still good. This snake had been very useful since he got it, so he didn''t mind keeping it alive. The snake was already in the Mid stages of Rank Six, so it meant whoever attacked them would be either in the Mid stages or the Sage Plane, or the Late stages. Grey and Void left the snake so it could heal up before heading to the city. Since Grey could change the color of his skin, he didn''t need to worry about anything. He walked into the city through the city gates and even greeted the guards as well. The fact that he could speak their language made things easier for him. He asked around and found out a few things. Those from the Lutra race had always known of humans coming into their world. However, lately, their city had been attacked repeatedly, and their cargoes were stolen. This sent them into an outrage and they decided to take out every human they found. They would track them, and after getting a good enough chance, they would ambush them. In total, they had captured over ten humans during the past few days, and they would be executing them in a few hours. "I guess there will always be a bunch of troublemakers." Grey said softly. The Pyrmond Faction were the only ones who had access to this realm, from what they knew. He couldn''t be a hundred percent certain that only the Pyrmond Faction had access to this realm. If other Factions accidentally found a spatial node that connects this place to the Aurora Continent, there was no way those from the Pyrmond Faction would be aware of this. Grey didn''t have any problems with getting to the place where the execution would be held, it was a public place, after all. When he looked at all those captured, he noticed they were from the Pyrmond Faction. Most of them wore the Faction''s uniform since it had defensive properties. Grey wasn''t wearing his since he was wearing clothes he stole from one of the members of the Lutra race. He had to fit in, and he couldn''t do that with his normal clothes. His gaze soon rested on Keith''s body. Keith''s state was not as bad as the two-headed snake, other than a few bruises, he was fine. ''What do we do now?'' Void asked. ''Stop the execution, of course.'' Grey replied casually. ''But there are a few Late stage Sage Plane Elementalists around.'' Void warned. ''Not a problem, it''s not like I want to fight. I''m just taking some people and leaving.'' Grey replied, still not bothered about the people in the Late stages of the Sage Plane. ''Besides, I have you here, why should I be afraid?'' He added with a grin. ''I''m not going to get myself beat up because of these people.'' Void showed his stance from the start. ''Come on, you''ll get some good shiny things from them as a reward.'' Grey persuaded. ''I''m not going to fall for that again.'' Void snorted and refused to listen to whatever Grey had to say. Grey continued pestering Void, he wasn''t interested in what the man on the stage was talking about. The man was talking about how humans came to their world and started to steal their resources and use them as objects of training. He planned to revolt against this, but the humans hadn''t come this close to their high rank cities. When Grey heard about what they had been going through in the past years, he couldn''t help but shake his head at the cruelty of the members of the Syphilis Faction. They had been using these people for experiments, causing all sorts of diseases and disasters. The people of the Lutra race had been searching for a way to make humans pay for their crimes. After the attacks on the city, they realized a group of humans was around. They sent out their strongest warriors, and after a few days, they captured this group of people. ''So Keith was unlucky and came to this area. No wonder even the snake couldn''t do anything against them. They were ready for them.'' Grey thought in realization. Chapter ?864 Not Coming Out Chapter ?864 Not Coming Out The man finished his speech before calling out the first person that would be executed. It was a young man who Grey recognized, just barely though. If his guess was correct, then the young man was part of the group who followed them to the competition against the Syphilis Faction. The young man was visibly afraid, he struggled as he tried to escape from the hands of the people who held him tight. Unfortunately, his cultivation was sealed and he was unable to move an inch. He pleaded as they took him to the front of the stage, forcing him to his knees, the man who gave the speech summoned a dark sword that hung high in the air, waiting to drop. The young man pleaded with them, but no matter what he said, the people of the Lutra race didn''t understand a word he said. ''How did you even learn their language?'' Void couldn''t help but ask. Grey managed to learn another language after only staying for over a month. He was very fluent with it now that they wouldn''t know the difference between him and a native speaker. ''I don''t know, studying them I guess.'' Grey shrugged. During his first month here, he spent his entire time studying the people of the Lutra race. He even went as far as capturing one of them to try to learn their language. It took him a long time, but after putting his entire focus on it, he managed to get some ideas on it. He continued learning even after the first month, and when he entered a city, he took some books from the library. Reading was one of the best ways to learn the language more quickly. He still had someone with him who he tried to communicate with frequently. Their writing was completely different from what humans wrote, and he had to learn that as well. To be honest, Void didn''t even know if Grey came here to train or learn about this civilization. When the man was about to drop the sword¡­. "Wait!" He heard a voice come from the crowd, pausing, he looked at the crowd, curious as to who would dare to ask him to wait. The crowd parted apart so the speaker would be visible. The young man who was about to be executed noticed the man pause and breathed a sigh of relief. Even though he didn''t know what was happening, all he knew was that he was not going to die, well, for now. Maybe he could die in the next few minutes. When the crowd spread apart, Grey''s figure could be seen standing alone, with Void hiding in his storage ring. "What do you think you''re doing?" The man asked with a cold tone. This chapter is updated by Freewebn?vel.com. "Nothing, I just don''t think it''s ideal to kill them." Grey replied. When his words left his mouth, all those around him gasped in shock. They couldn''t believe one of their own was siding with the humans. "Seize him! We''ll execute him first." The crowd was thrown into outrage. They rushed at Grey and tried to apprehend him. "Hear me out. You know fully well that these humans aren''t the set that caused the deaths." Grey tried to explain, but unfortunately, they had no plans in listening to what he was saying. All they wanted to do right now was to kill him, along with the humans. Keith looked at the people and he couldn''t help but take a double look at Grey''s figure. He had hung out with Grey for a while, so he knew how he looked. This person had the same features as Grey, their only difference was color. Even the voice was the same, if not for the fact that he couldn''t understand a word Grey was saying, he would''ve been a thousand percent sure that this person was Grey. ''I''ll wait and see.'' The people surrounding Grey tried to capture him, but he easily snuck away from their encirclement. He appeared a few meters away from the stage where the young man was to be executed. The man who wanted to execute him was slightly taken aback, but he hastily realized Grey wasn''t the weak person he took him for. "Stand back, he''s mine." The man told the others. Grey smiled before stepping back, "Void..." ''I''m not coming out, fight yourself.'' Void replied coldly. ''Seriously, you want to let me down now?'' Grey didn''t believe Void wouldn''t answer him. ''You''re the one who picked a fight with them. Deal with it yourself.'' Void replied. The duo continued arguing while the man dismissed the dark sword he wanted to use in executing the young man. He was a Space Elementalist, so with a blink, he appeared before Grey. Grey forcefully ejected Void out of his storage ring. Unfortunately for him, Void disappeared the instant he appeared. ''Damn it Void! I''ll give you five shiny things!'' He negotiated. ''Ten.'' Void''s voice sounded in his head. ''Deal, now stop this guy while I save the others.'' Grey replied hurriedly. Void soon appeared in front of the man and he attacked him without warning. The man didn''t expect a beast to appear in front of him, so he was caught off guard. Grey rushed over to where the young man was kneeling and freed him. "Okay?" He asked. The young man looked at him weirdly, unable to reply. Only after a few seconds of silence did Grey realize he used the Lutra race''s language. "Are you okay?" He asked in their language. "Yeah, I''m fine." The young man nodded. Grey waved his hand and those from the Lutra race who were running toward them were frozen solid. He didn''t kill them, only making sure they couldn''t move. He didn''t forget to free the others as well. ''Void, we''re leaving.'' He said internally. Just as he was about to teleport along with the others, he sensed a powerful aura rushing over. This aura was stronger than that of the man fighting against Void. ''Couldn''t they just let me leave without causing too much trouble?'' He complained internally. With no other choice, he could only send the others away and stay behind. If he followed as well, then this person coming could easily break the spatial tunnel. Chapter ?865 The Sage Plane Chapter ?865 The Sage Plane The second the group vanished, an Old man who had two different colors appeared before Grey. He looked around and snorted coldly, before stretching out his hand towards the empty space, clenching it, Grey felt a powerful spatial vibration. ''Crap! He wants to break the spatial tunnel and force them back.'' He rushed into action and stood in front of the man. He couldn''t allow the man to do as he pleased. After making such a difficult effort to rescue the group, the man was going to bring them back just like that. He activated his gravitational force field. Since the man was close to him, he was instantly affected by it. This man in question was already on the Eighth stage of the Sage Plane. Grey on the other hand had broken through to the Second stage of the Sage Plane. He was the fastest amongst all the people who came in here while at the Peak of the Overlord Plane. When he studied Kieth and the others, he noticed most of them were still in the Overlord Plane. Kieth was fortunate to be among the few who had broken through to the Sage Plane. Grey''s strength was not something this man could take lightly. When the man sensed the gravitational force field, it was already too late and he had lost focus on his task. The group escaped with him being unable to stop them. He looked at Grey with an odd and angry expression. The season for this was because, from Grey''s blue color, it showed that he was a Water Elementalist, yet, he had not only used the space element, but he had also used something related to the earth element. "Who are you?" The man paused to ask. He wanted to ensure Grey was not a genius from their race. If such a genius existed, then they had a good chance of breaking the barrier and going over the Sage Plane. "An unknown figure who will be leaving now." Grey replied in the Lutra race''s language before turning around. The man chased after him. He didn''t even think Grey was human because not only did he have their color which showed their elemental affinity, but he could also speak their language perfectly. It was almost impossible for his mind to go to that side. "Stop!" The man appeared in front of Grey. Grey couldn''t continue his movement so he had to stop and listen to what the man had to say. "I''ll forgive the fact that you saved those humans, what I want to know is who are you, and how come you''re only coming out now?" The man said calmly. He wanted to reason with Grey calmly since he saw a lot of potential in him. Also, if he could recruit someone like Grey under his wings, he wouldn''t have to fear his opponents and could fight for what he wanted in the kingdom. Grey didn''t say anything, he only looked in Void''s direction, Void was still fighting against the man. He was at the disadvantage, and honestly, he wasn''t really a match for the man he was fighting against. However, because of his space element, the man couldn''t kill him. Void''s mastery of the space element was miles ahead of Grey, and even if Grey manages to break through to the Mid stages of the Sage Plane, he still wouldn''t have a better mastery of the space element. The man looked at Void, intrigued by the ingenuity of the beast. He never thought there would be a beast that was this powerful around. Seeing how Grey looked at Void, his eyes lit up. "You want the beast? I believe it came here with the humans, but I can subdue it for you." The man tried to use Void to coerce Grey into becoming friends with him. Grey didn''t expect the man to ask him a question like this, so he froze in surprise. ''He still doesn''t understand I''m from the human world?'' He thought internally. Grey didn''t understand how high the allure of breaking the shackles of their world was to these people. If one person could break through and become an Elemental Venerable, then they would pave the way for the others. This was something they all wanted badly, so seeing someone of Grey''s talent and understanding he was just barely over twenty years old, the man wanted to find a way to recruit him and make him his successor. He didn''t even mind going against the entire race for him. Unfortunately for the man, he had no idea that Grey wasn''t from their race, rather, he was also one of those hateful humans. The man assumed that since Grey didn''t speak and continued looking at Void''s meant that he wanted him. He decided to take action and stepped into the battle. ''What the hell, Grey?! What are you doing?'' Void couldn''t help but complain when he saw Grey standing aside and the man he was supposed to fight against had teamed up with the man fighting him. He could barely hang on against this opponent, yet a stronger one was getting involved as well. Grey chuckled and after Void was beaten for a few seconds, he stepped in. With his gravitational force field fully active, and also his elements in place, he attacked. His aura suddenly started to increase at a fast pace. The man who wanted to recruit him froze when he sensed this. Grey''s aura which was around the Second stage of the Sage Plane moved upwards to the Third stage, within a second, it had reached the Fourth stage. With the Fusion State, he could increase his stage by the number of elements he had. Since he had eight elements at the moment, he could increase his stage by eight elements. He was already in the Second stage, so if he added eight more stages, he would go straight to the Peak of the Sage Plane. The only thing at the moment was that he wasn''t as powerful as a Peak Sage Plane Elementalist, but he could at least hold his own against them. Chapter ?866 Two Domains Chapter ?866 Two Domains The old man, along with the man fighting against Void paused and looked at Grey with bulging eyes. They turned to look at each other and they could see the shock in their eyes. They never thought they would witness something like this. Grey just went from the Second stage of the Sage Plane to the Peak in a matter of seconds. They also had special techniques to increase their strengths, but none of them was at this level. In fact, there was none that could improve their strength for more than two stages. Once it gets over that, it is no different from crippling themselves. "Everyone, leave now!" The old man warned the crowd who were watching the battle for fun. It had been entertaining so far, but now, it had gotten to a stage where even the bystanders would get affected by the battle. Grey didn''t attack after using the Fusion State. Although he wasn''t too bothered about the safety of these people, he wasn''t a maniac that would cause thousands of deaths without remorse, so he not only let them leave, but he decided to take the battle higher into the sky. Since breaking through to the Sage Plane, this was the first time he was about to fight a real battle, and he was also using the Fusion State as well. He wanted to see just how powerful he had become. ''I forgot about this, and I let you trick me into fighting.'' Void said with a hint of annoyance. ''Well, you needed some exercise as well. Don''t act like you didn''t enjoy the battle. Come on, let''s go beat these guys up.'' Grey replied with a smirk. Void stuck out his tongue and they flew into the air. The old man who wanted to capture Void for Grey was a little taken aback when he saw them together, although he didn''t know of their conversation since they spoke telepathically, he could tell that they were acquainted with each other. When he thought about this, his breathing seized for a second as a frightening thought came to his head. ''He can''t possibly be a human, right?'' Just the thought of this alone was more than enough to send shivers down the spines of every single member of his race. Grey being able to not only speak their language but also pretend like he was part of them by changing the color of his skin was terrifying information for them. If humans could do this, then there was no way the people of the Lutra race would be able to know who was human or a member of their race. In the sky. "What are you?" The old man asked with a serious expression. "What do you think I am?" Grey asked with a smile. "A human." The man replied. He didn''t want to say it, but from what he could tell at the moment, this was all he could think about. "Correct." Grey didn''t deny it since there was no use in doing so. The old man''s expression changed drastically, his expression was very severe. ''I''ll have to kill him no matter what!'' The man came to a conclusion quickly. If Grey went out to teach other humans about this, then they would be in deep trouble. Humans would be able to not only infiltrate into their world with ease, but they could even grow to start making decisions for them. For instance, Grey being a human and so powerful could easily vie for a high position in the world. Once he becomes undefeatable, then he would start bringing in more humans and endanger the safety of those from the Lutra race. ''He probably wants to kill you now.'' Void said when he saw the eyes of the man. It wasn''t hard to predict what the man was thinking since he suddenly started to emit bone-chilling killing intent. ''Yeah, I''d want to kill me as well.'' Grey said nonchalantly, he wasn''t even bothered by this. He had made countermeasures, and that was to ensure that those who knew of his abilities to understand and look like them. Other than both men who were with him right now, there was no one else who knew about this, so he wanted to eliminate them and keep this secret safe. The old man looked at the other man and told him of his plan in Grey''s presence, he didn''t think Grey was on his level, even with the help of a special technique to drastically improve his strength. Grey chuckled and looked at Void, "Want to see my second domain?" "Oh, you really did awaken a second domain while breaking through. For the lightning element, right?" Void tried to recall which element Grey told him of awakening a new domain. "Yup. I plan to use both simultaneously, well, not now." Grey said before spreading out his hands. Looking at the duo in front of him as I''d they were mere insects, the sound of lightning started to reverberate across the sky. The duo originally thought Grey wanted to attack them so they prepared to defend, but the sound of lightning told them otherwise. Before long, the entire place was covered with lightning arcs that were shooting across the sky. Every inch within a fifty meters radius was fully covered with lightning arcs going through the sky. The old man and his companion scrambled to get their protection up, in a bid to block the attacks from the lighting domain. They were still in the process when one of Grey''s eyes turned pale blue. Each of his eyes currently had a different color, one of them was giving off a red glow which represented his red lightning, while his other eye was giving off a pale blue glow, which indicated his special flame. He planned to use the icy flames here. This fire was stronger than the flame he was previously using. ''You''re just showing off now, aren''t you?'' Void was forced to say when he saw how the sky looked. The blue ice inferno was designed with arcs of red lightning and it gave off a majestic aura. Chapter ?867 A Deal Chapter ?867 A Deal The old man and the man previously fighting against Void were engulfed by the icy inferno. Grey contracted the size of the domain to make it more powerful. He wanted to use it to its full potential. The men quickly started to feel the cold from the icy flames, and the lightning arcs flashing through the inferno made life a living hell for them. The old man tried to block the attacks, but he found it almost impossible to do so. With the help of the other man, they managed to fend it off. Grey had not attacked yet, rather, he was staring at the duo struggling against the domain. If only the domain was this troublesome to deal with, then they couldn''t help but shiver at the thought of Grey joining in on the battle. An orb appeared on Grey''s hand and he released it into the inferno. It exploded and caused a large explosion. The old man used his space element to try to escape from the inferno, but there was no way Grey was going to allow that. Presently, he had a higher cultivation stage than the old man, this gave him the advantage when it came to using his elemental powers. The spatial tunnel the man opened was forcefully closed by Grey and the man was sent flying by the impact of Grey''s attack. The attack was something that they couldn''t defend against, its power was above their level. Grey didn''t give them the chance they wanted to regain their bearings, he instantly attacked once again. He used the domain to hold back the other man while focusing on the old man. Symbols lit up beside the inferno and the man who was trying to escape from the inferno was forced back by the powerful attacks that came out from the inscriptions. The old man was getting beat up by Grey''s immense strength. Whenever he tried to use the space element to escape, Grey would always use his superior strength to break the tunnel, making sure it was impossible for the man to escape. Grey was single-handedly beating two Sage Plane Elementalists. Both of them were in the Late stages, which showed how strong he was. Void didn''t bother with the fight any longer and just watched from the side. He almost wanted to beat Grey up for making him fight against the man when he had the strength to suppress him by this much. A minute later, Grey sent the old man crashing to the ground, outside the city. He appeared close to the man and released his gravitational force field. The old man tried to stand up but he was forced to the ground by the sheer strength of the gravitational force field. Grey''s figure blinked, and when he appeared again, he had the other man in his hands. He dropped him close to the old man. "Normally, I''d kill you, but I see no use in doing that. Not all humans are what you think they are." He said with a calm voice. He was not a righteous person, but he wasn''t as brutal as those from the Syphilis Faction. Honestly, he had no reason to kill these men, so he decided against it. If they attacked them without reason and might be a danger to him later on, then he would''ve killed them, but presently, there was no use in doing that. He faced no danger here with his current strength. Both men exchanged glances before looking at Grey, they both clenched their fists angrily. "How about this¡­" Grey thought of the idea of striking a deal with them. It would be good if they could get people in this realm, but if not, it was also okay. Grey spoke with them and after some time, they came to an agreement. They didn''t accept Grey''s deal since it was of no significant benefit to them, but they would speak with the others about it. Also, if Grey could give them something that could help them, then they didn''t mind working something out with them. Grey accepted since it wasn''t a bad idea. He would speak with the Elder at the portal, and after hearing what they have to say, he would give them feedback. He let them go but gave them something to track them with when he''s coming back. Void appeared beside him with a nonchalant look, "You let them go?" "There are things here that are useless to them but very useful to us. It''s best if we can change these things with them." Grey told Void his plan. "Oh, I never thought you were this thoughtful." Void commented. Grey tried to smack Void on his back but he changed it with a simple blink. Since Grey had exited the Fusion State, he was no match for Void. "Crazy¡­" He muttered before heading in the direction of the cave where the two-headed snake was resting. When they got there, the group he saved was all there, waiting for him. "I see you''re all okay." He commented when he appeared. "Senior Grey!" Someone from the crowds shouted. "Huh?" Grey raised a brow, surprised by the way he was addressed. He was currently back to his original skin, and he even wore his uniform, so it was natural that he was recognized. What he didn''t expect was being addressed in such a manner. The others gasped in shock when they heard how the young man addressed Grey. They had all heard of Grey''s famous name, but he was very reserved. After the celebratory ceremony, they hadn''t seen or even heard from him again. One of the things that made others recognize him easily was his handsome face. In the entire Faction, there was no one who could match Grey in terms of handsomeness, so seeing such a handsome guy, they linked it to him. Keith walked over to Grey. "Thank goodness you came early, they would''ve killed us before you arrived." He shook his head with a sigh. He hated the fact that he had to depend on Grey to get over this, but he knew his chances of escaping from a Late stage Sage Plane expert were very slim. In fact, it was zero. "It''s a good thing you''re alright." Grey said to Keith. He looked at the others before asking if they were the ones attacking the caravans of those from the Lutra race. Only two groups agreed to this. Grey warned them against the idea of robbing them since he was trying to strike a deal with them. When they heard this, they were all stunned by the idea. "Senior Grey¡­" A young lady walked up to Grey with a somewhat shy expression. "Yes?" Grey turned to look at her. "How did you learn to speak their language, and also, change your skin color." The young lady asked. "Oh that, it''s not really hard, for me. You guys, almost impossible." Grey was blunt with his words. He changed his skin color when speaking so they would know what he was talking about. "As for the language, it will take you all some time, but you can learn it." He added. The group was not too surprised by this. Changing their color was something they didn''t even think of, yet Grey managed to not only do it, but he was very good at it. He spiked with them a little longer before giving them the healing tonic he had with him. Given his reputation in the Faction currently, he was a figure most people looked up to. After they left, only Keith and the two-headed snake were left in the cave with Grey and Void. "What now?" Keith asked him. "I''m leaving, there''s nothing left for me to do here." Grey said to Keith. "Oh, I''ll stay a little longer. I want to grow stronger." Keith said with determination. "Alright." Grey replied, after speaking with Keith a little longer, his figure blurred and he disappeared, leaving Keith alone with the snake. Both parties exchanged glances before resting. Aurora Continent. Outside the Lutra Portal. The portal vibrated and a figure stepped out of it. It was none other than Grey who had Void on his shoulder. When he came out, he turned to look at the Elder who was alone. He looked around suspiciously. At the time he was coming out, he was almost certain that there was someone with the Elder, however, the Elder was all alone now. "You''re out, I see you made some improvements." The Elder commented. "Yes, Elder." Grey bowed to greet the Elder. When he was done with pleasantries, he immediately told the Elder of his deal with the people from the Lutra race. "Are you sure about this?" The Elder asked. This was not a simple matter and it would be very beneficial to the Faction if it was true. "Yes, Elder." Grey nodded. "Come, we''re going to meet the Faction Leader." The Elder tapped Grey''s shoulder and they vanished. Chapter ?868 A Deal II Chapter ?868 A Deal II Pyrmond Faction. Grey and the Elder appeared in the secret cave where he met with the Faction Leader the last time. The Faction Leader had already gotten the news of the duo''s arrival, so he wasn''t surprised to see them. They both bowed to greet the Faction Leader. "What brings you here?" The Faction Leader asked, waving at the duo not to bother with greetings. They naturally didn''t do as they were told. After they were done with greetings, the Elder looked at Grey before turning to the Faction Leader. "He has a very important piece of information." He pointed at Grey. "Oh really, what''s that?" The Faction Leader asked with curiosity. Grey went on to tell him about the potential deal he struck with the members of the Lutra race. "Wait, you managed to learn their language?" The Faction Leader couldn''t help but ask. This had been a major stumbling block for them while they were still in full control of the portal to the secret realm. They had not been able to break through the language barrier for years, and in only six months or so when Grey entered he had not only broken it but he also managed to strike a deal with them. Amazing! "Yeah, it was pretty difficult, but it wasn''t impossible to begin with." Grey said. "Do you think they''ll agree to your deal?" The Faction Leader asked. "They were the ones who brought up the terms for this deal, so hopefully, yeah." Grey replied. "Alright, there are some things we can offer them." The Faction Leader nodded after hearing Grey''s words. He brought out a few items and gave them to Grey. He knew all about the Lutra realm and what they lacked, so he brought out a variety of items that were impossible to find in the Lutra realm and handed them over to Grey. Grey was the only one who could communicate with them, so he passed everything to him. After taking them, Grey and the Elder disappeared from the secret cave. After they left, three figures appeared beside the Faction Leader. They were all old men, and the Faction Leader looked at them with respect. "What do you think of him?" The Faction Leader asked. "He seems to have the Faction''s best interest in mind." One of the men said. "He''s that kid''s child, right?" An old man asked. "Yes, Lucas produced a child even more monstrous than himself. But from the look of things, the boy has no knowledge he''s from the Dawson Family." The Faction Leader replied. He could still remember how Lucas rose to fame after a famous battle he had with an old ancestor of a rival Family. That battle took him straight to the top, and he was regarded as a peer amongst those figures who were at the very top. "He has some secrets in his body. I presume that''s one of the reasons Lucas kept him hidden." The Faction Leader added. "It''s natural, why do you think he''s this powerful? As long as he has the Faction in mind, that''s all that matters. Also, I think he has some feud with necromancers. If not for the guy protecting him, he would''ve been dead by now." He added as well. "Necromancers? Hmph! They are becoming more brazen now. Try to exterminate the few you find around. Also, there should be a base around our Region, search for it and remove it." One of the old men said. They continued speaking about Grey''s prospects, and after some minutes, they decided to leave Grey alone. It would be best if he grows on his own. Even his family was letting him experience life on his own, why should they interfere? Lutra Realm. Grey''s figure appeared in the realm once again. It hadn''t even been close to twenty minutes since he left the realm. The member standing guard there was surprised to see Grey once again. He hurriedly welcomed him. Grey nodded as a greeting before vanishing. When he appeared once again, he was already standing outside the city. With the device in hand, he changed his color and blended into the city with ease. He found a way to hide his face since even his skin color couldn''t change his facial appearance, so it would be easy for the few who saw him the last time to recognize him. He stopped in front of a building that had purple flowers designing it. It was a story building with guards standing at the gate. Grey blinked and appeared in the compound. Walking around, he found the old man he beat up talking with another man. He appeared inside the office where they were speaking. "I''m back." He said as soon as he appeared. Both men were taken by shock when they saw Grey''s figure. If not for him speaking, they wouldn''t have been able to sense him. Grey was currently in his Fusion State. Even though he felt they would accept his proposal, he didn''t trust them. They could easily plan an ambush, waiting to take him out. "How did you get in here?" The middle-aged man sitting on the chair asked with a cold voice. "I walked in." Grey replied nonchalantly. "I assume he already told you of my proposal, correct?" Grey asked. "Yes. We''re not interested." The man replied almost instantly. "Calm down, this is not the only part of the deal. There are other kingdoms in this realm, and I can easily strike a deal with the others as well. You don''t want them to be the ones to collaborate with us, do you?" Grey looked at the man with a blank expression. The man froze when he heard this. Thinking about it, he couldn''t help but feel apprehensive. If the other kingdoms allied with humans, then they could easily take control of the entire realm. "This is a win-win scenario for us. We give you what you want, and you give us what we want. This will not only reduce the number of humans who come here, but it will also give you guys the chance to break the barrier." Grey continued. He had never been the best negotiator, and if they still refused this proposal, he would leave immediately. Chapter ?869 Increase In Elemental Grades Chapter ?869 Increase In Elemental Grades Grey left the city with a satisfied smile. He was able to convince the man to agree to the proposal. ''The thought of us helping the other kingdoms is more appealing than us exchanging resources.'' He thought with a chuckle. "What now?" Void asked Grey when they left the city. Now that they were out of the city, and already created a connection between this kingdom and the Faction, it was time for him to leave. "I have to teach someone the language, I''ve written most of it down when learning, so it should be easier for them. Also, I have to introduce them to who would be exchanging the items with them." Grey said. The only person Grey was close to that was currently in the realm was Keith, so he planned to use Keith. Since Keith was still in the First stage of the Sage Plane, it would be a good thing for him if he could stay here for an extended time since their time here was already up. When he looked at the tracking device, he saw that Keith was still in the same cave where the snake was located. He vanished and appeared there within a second. "Hey." He waved at Keith. "Huh! I thought you were leaving?" Keith was shocked by Grey''s sudden appearance, he was even prepared to attack. "I did, but I struck a deal with these guys and after speaking with the Faction Leader about it, he approved it. Now we need someone who would be the link. I can''t stay here since there''s a place I need to be in a few months'' time." Grey went straight to the point. "You want me to do it?" Keith understood what Grey was getting at. "Yeah, you''ll be the one communicating with the Lutra race. If you don''t want to, you can as well reject it, you''re not obligated to do it." Grey said. "I want to. This is a chance for me to stay here a little longer, so of course I want to stay and do it." Keith accepted immediately. "Good, here." Grey tossed some scrolls at him. "What are these?" Keith asked with a confused expression. The scrolls were over twenty, and opening one of them he couldn''t understand a single word on it. All he saw were weird symbols. "You''ll have to learn the language of the race if you want to speak with them. That''s it, take these as well, it''s more like a rough translation of those words." Grey gave him another set of scrolls. Keith almost wanted to regret his decision, but he forced himself to study the scrolls. "I''ll teach you how to speak the language once you''re done with reading that. It will make things easier." Grey said after some time. With that, he left Keith alone. Since he was still here, he decided to explore the place a little more. Maybe he could find something interesting. Since breaking through to the Sage Plane, he hadn''t been able to do many things. If not for the battle he had with those men, he wouldn''t even know how powerful he is. Well, that was while he was in the Fusion State. Once an Elementalist breaks through from the Overlord Plane to the Sage Plane, they undergo a considerable change. When breaking through to the Overlord Plane, he had to crack his cores and integrate the powers into his body, now, he had to make compress those powers into different spots in his body. This was different from cores. In this case, the spots where the powers were gathered would be on different parts of his body. Unfortunately for Grey, he was different from others, so he couldn''t do it the conventional way. Instead of compressing the powers to different spots, they were all attracted to the orb in his body. With this, the orb gave off a stronger glow, and Grey could feel his connection with it grow significantly. He could feel he had some sort of control over it now. That was not the only thing, the blue flame in his head had grown stronger and he could also send it out of his body. However, it still hadn''t gained consciousness, although it was on the verge of doing so, it stopped. Grey was still contemplating if he should allow it to gain consciousness or not. He was the one who had stopped it with the array the Faction Leader used in stopping it from advancing. The thought of having something with a thought of its own in his body was a little too scary for him, so he planned to wait until he was sure he had complete control over it. When he started his exploration, he would occasionally bring out the flame and try to loosen the hold on it. After watching how it reacted, he would keep it back. The flame was very dominant, and it didn''t want to be under any control, this was Grey''s greatest issue with it. While strolling through the realm, he sensed something interesting. "An earth elemental treasure. Let''s check it out." He said to Void. He didn''t like missing the chance of acquiring a treasure that could improve his elemental grade for his elements. At the point, he was a little certain that either his earth or darkness element would be the next to have a domain. There''s also the possibility of his water element. The grade for his water element was improving without him even doing anything. Of all his elements, only his light element was still below the blue grade. He hadn''t been able to improve it since it was very difficult to work with. Other than using it to heal himself, he couldn''t rely on its speed mainly because of his space and lightning element which had high elemental grades. Even his wind elemental grade was already cyan after he acquired the treasure he found in this realm during the second month he entered the realm. If his earth element sees another upgrade, then it would be in poll position to become the next domain awakened. Chapter ?870 A Genius From The Pyrmond Faction Chapter ?870 A Genius From The Pyrmond Faction Grey''s figure shot through the sky and before long, he appeared in a desert. On getting there, he saw multiple people, some of them were from the Pyrmond Faction, while there were also people from the Lutra race. It was like there was an unwritten rule that they should wait until the treasure was ready before they started fighting. The treasure got to its peak when Grey arrived. Everyone rushed after it at the time it was prepared. A pyramid-like sand dome was where it was radiating from. Grey didn''t wait for anything and rushed into the place as well. He couldn''t be the last person that got into the dome. There was an entrance underneath it. They could all sense the treasure was at the top of the dome. But there was no way to get into the place, this was why everyone waited until now. Grey used his wind and lightning element to breeze through most of the people that entered the place before him. He didn''t even look at them and rushed straight for the top. On his way, he could sense powerful auras of people in the Late stages of the Sage Plane. Some of them were from the Pyrmond Faction, while the others were from the Lutra race. When Grey got to the top, he saw the humans facing off against those from the Lutra race. The humans were at a disadvantage in numbers, this was the Lutra realm, after all, so it was normal for them to have the number advantage. Grey used the Fusion State once again, and unlike the people who wanted to fight for the treasure, he went straight for it. He didn''t care about what anyone thought about this move, all that mattered was getting the treasure. He needed to improve his strength with every chance he got, so he was not concerned about making some enemies from even the Pyrmond Faction. Those from the Pyrmond Faction were taken aback when they saw a human figure rush past them, trying to acquire the treasure they were all fighting for. "Isn''t that Grey?" One of the youths in the group asked. It was a young lady who Grey was a little familiar with. He had seen her once, during the day of the celebratory ceremony, Eva. "Stop there!" A young man said coldly. He was in the Late stages of the Sage Plane and felt he was senior to Grey. Given the normal circumstance when they left the Faction, Grey was still in the Overlord Plane. So even if Grey manages to break through to the Sage Plane when he came here to train, he should still be around the First or Second stage of the Sage Plane. Grey didn''t even bother with answering them. Not even the Elders could tell him to stop from taking this treasure, unless they used their strength to stop him. The people from the Lutra race who were at the Late stages of the Sage Plane charged after Grey, along with the people from the Pyrmond Faction. Grey didn''t stop and when he was a few meters away from the glowing brown orb, he released his domain of fire. He used the icy flames since it was stronger. When the people chasing after him saw the domain, they instantly tried to block it with their elemental powers, but Grey was currently at the Peak of the Sage Plane, so it was safe to say he was way stronger than them individually. He also only made it to cover a small area to make it stronger than normal. While the group paused to deal with the domain, he was standing in front of the floating orb. ''A large concentration of earth elemental essence, how rare.'' He thought internally. He didn''t waste any time and took the orb away. After taking it, he turned to look at the people who were already out of the domain''s area. He was surrounded by both humans and the people from the Lutra race. "You guys really aren''t going to ally with these guys just to fight me, right?" He asked with a smile. He didn''t show any signs of fear since he could easily escape from the encirclement. "You''re Grey?" The young man with the highest cultivation stage amongst the members of the Pyrmond Faction who came asked. Grey hadn''t seen this young man before, so he didn''t really know him. Also, he didn''t like the way the young man spoke with him. "Hello." He waved at Eva. "You''re already this powerful?" Eva asked with a wry smile. "Not really, I''m using a special technique." Grey replied. "I''m talking to you." The young man said coldly. "You are?" Grey glanced at the young man with raised brow. "Don''t get cocky because you managed to obtain a technique that increased your strength by this much." The young man said coldly. Grey turned his gaze away from the young man. He didn''t have the time to speak with cocky people. He focused his attention on the people from the Lutra race. "Are you people from the Slyth Kingdom?" He asked them in their language. "You speak our language?" One of the men asked in shock. "Yes, but you haven''t answered my question." Grey replied. "Yes." The man nodded. "Alright, since you''re from that kingdom, we can all go our separate ways. I presume you have a way to communicate with others from your race. I''ve agreed a deal with them to bring resources that you people don''t have here, in exchange, you also give us the resources we don''t have in our world. They''ve agreed to it, so we can be said to be allies." Grey explained the current situation to the man. The man froze, not sure what to believe. He wasn''t the only one in shock, the others from his race, as well as all the humans present had shocked expressions. Those from the Lutra race were shocked because of the information Grey just gave them, while those from the human race were stunned by the fact that Grey could communicate with these people. They had never heard of anyone being able to understand and even speak the language of this race. Grey being able to do it was the first time they saw something like this. Not just that, but he was also speaking so calmly with them. From how the people from the Lutra race were acting, they were sure he told them something shocking. "Grey..." Eva called out softly. "Hmm." Grey turned to her. "You can speak their language?" She asked, still not sure of what she heard. "Yeah, it''s pretty easy actually." Grey reply. There was no use in hiding this fact since others had seen him do it. It was only a matter of time before the entire Faction knew of it. "But, how did you learn it?" Eva asked. "It took a long time, but it was worth it. It made finding treasures pretty easy." Grey replied. The young man who was trying to speak to Grey but was snubbed was getting increasingly annoyed with Grey. "Hand it over." He said coldly. Grey stared at him coldly, "Why?" The young man froze when he heard Grey''s question, "Well, because I''m your senior in the Faction." "I don''t think so, you can''t last a minute against me, so tell me, how are you my senior?" Grey shook his head before looking away, he couldn''t be bothered with self-centered people like these. Even with the unity in the Faction, it was natural that there were a few people who were greedy, so he wasn''t too concerned with this. All he did was to speak with those from the Lutra race and they didn''t even try to attack him or even threaten him, yet the young man wanted to forcefully take the treasure away from him. "Don''t think you''re the only one with a domain." The young man said coldly. "Nathan, stop it." Eva said to Nathan. "Shut up and watch me beat this unruly fool up." Nathan pushed Eva to the side. Grey''s eyes went cold when he saw this. People like this would cause harm to the name of their presporous Faction. He didn''t mind helping the Faction weed out these craps. He looked at the people from the Lutra race, "Have you been able to confirm?" The man leading the group nodded. "Alright, since I took this from you, I''ll exchange something else for it." Grey said, before facing Nathan once again, "If you don''t mind, I''d like to take out the trash." The men from the Lutra race nodded and moved back. They could tell that there was a dispute between Grey and Nathan, and they were about to settle things out. Eva looked at Grey, "Hey, don''t do this." "I''m not doing anything, I''m just trying to defend myself against him." Grey replied nonchalantly. "I''ll put you in your place, proud fool." Nathan said coldly before walking forward, standing in front of Grey. "You just might regret this choice of yours, hopefully, it''s not too late." Grey said calmly. He didn''t feel any pressure from Nathan, and this was because of the complete confidence he had in his strength. Against someone who was still in the Late stages of the Sage Plane, he was certain that he could defeat him. There was no way someone in the Late stages of the Sage Plane could defeat him while he was at the Peak of said Plane. It was absolutely impossible. Standing in front of Nathan, he prepared himself for his opponent''s attack. Chapter ?871 Judgement Of The Lightning God Chapter ?871 Judgement Of The Lightning God "Nathan, you can still back down." Eva tried to stop Nathan from fighting with Grey. She saw Grey''s talent when he was still at the Peak of the Overlord Plane. Now that he used a special technique to boost his strength to the Peak of the Sage Plane, it was impossible for another genius at the Peak of the Sage Plane to even fight against him, much less one that''s in the Seventh stage of the Sage Plane. All Nathan was asking for at the moment was a thrashing. Nathan glared at Eva coldly, he felt annoyed by the fact that Grey and Eva were looking down on him. He heard of Grey''s fight against those from the Syphilis Faction and was a bit impressed, but he didn''t feel Grey was his match in any way. Even if Grey was currently ahead of him in terms of cultivation stage, it was with the help of a special technique, he believed Grey''s strength wouldn''t be on that level. "He''s looking for a good beating, and I''m very willing on my path. Since I''m in a good mood, I won''t kill you." Grey said coldly. He didn''t hide the disdain in his eyes when looking at Nathan. This infuriated Nathan even more and he instantly attacked. He was a pure Fire Elementalist, and Grey couldn''t deny the fact that he had a good talent from the first move he displayed. But in the presence of the current Grey, he was not even an opponent for him. Grey had fought against old experts in the Seventh and Ninth stages of the Sage Plane, simultaneously, and still came out well on top. A single Seventh stage Sage Plane Elementalist was not worth mentioning. With a wave of his hand, he dismissed the attack that was coming his way. Nathan didn''t let this affect him, without a second thought, he hurriedly attacked once again. Grey didn''t move an inch from where he was standing, he was casually blocking the attacks. He had a nonchalant expression which showed that he wasn''t even taking the battle seriously. Eva couldn''t help but shake her head. She already knew that Grey would defeat Nathan, but she didn''t think the power difference would be this much. Nathan had fought against a Ninth stage Sage Plane Elementalist from the Lutra race and won, this was one of the things that gave him this confidence. Not only that, but he was also a great genius who had immense strength. But against a genius of Grey''s level, it wasn''t worth mentioning. Grey awakened his domain while he was still in the Overlord Plane. This was something that hadn''t happened before, so it showed the level of Grey''s competence. If even this didn''t stop Nathan from fighting against him, obviously none of her words would. Seeing how easily Grey was repelling his attacks, Nathan started to lose his cool. He attacked more aggressively, but Grey still didn''t move an inch. His foot had been in the same place since the start of the battle, and he hadn''t even attacked yet, just blocking all of Nathan''s attacks. Nathan felt insulted by this, Grey was purposely looking down on him. This was not something that had happened to him before. Grey suddenly took a step forward, "I''ve given you enough time to shine, my turn." After saying this, Grey''s figure blurred and he appeared close to Nathan. Before Nathan could react, Grey sent a palm his way. The palm connected with his chest and it sent him flying. His body crashed into the walls by the side, creating a crater on it. When he opened his eyes, he saw Grey standing before him with a smile. Grey clenched his fists and threw a punch his way. The strength of the punch was well above his previous attack. He hastily tried to set up a defensive wall around him. The blow connected with the defensive fire screen he prepared, but within a second it shattered and Grey''s fist connected with him. Grey''s physical strength was already in the Sage Plane, and with the boosted strength he received from the Fusion State while also using his elements to increase his strength, his attack power was almost on the same level as a fusion orb at the moment. Nathan was Grey''s first test subject, and he was very satisfied with the results of the test. The crater Nathan was on caved in deeper. Outside the dome. A few people were still trying to rush in when they heard a loud sound coming from the top of the dome. They looked above them and they saw a figure shooting out from a hole created in the dome. The figure flew for over two hundred meters before crashing into some of the sand domes in the desert, destroying them in the process. Of all the sand domes in the area, only this one had something like an entrance. Grey walked past the hole and flew into the air, shooting after Nathan who was still lying on the pit he caused on the ground. Eva and the others could only follow behind Grey who appeared above Nathan. The people from the Lutra race also followed them as well. The man Grey spoke with was shocked by Grey''s strength. Now, he was grateful that he didn''t carelessly charge at Grey, had he done that, Grey would''ve killed him without a second thought. Grey could beat someone from his race so ruthlessly, it was unimaginable what he would do to others. Unknown to him, Grey didn''t care what race his opponents came from, he beat them up the same way. The only reason he was refraining from killing Nathan was that they were from the same Faction. Well, mainly because there were others here. Had they been alone, he would''ve killed him long ago. Standing in the air, he looked down on Nathan who was struggling to get back on his feet. "The only reason I''m not going to kill you is because we''re from the same Faction. If you dare to act in this manner again, I won''t be so merciful." Grey said coldly. When he was done saying that, he activated his lightning domain. It was like Nathan was being judged by the god of lightning as they looked at the present scene. Grey stood in the sky above him, while Nathan was covered by a sea of lightning. Chapter ?872 A Star High Above Chapter ?872 A Star High Above Nathan''s cry of pain resonated in the entire desert. Grey''s lightning domain was not to be joked with. If his icy flame domain was cold to the extreme, then the lightning domain not only burns, but it also electrocutes his victims as well. Nathan was shaking vigorously in the domain and had fallen to the ground once again. Eva looked at Grey with disbelief in her eyes. She knew about Grey''s fire domain, but this was the first time she was seeing him using another domain. Grey was still in the Sage Plane, but he had awakened two domains already. And each of them was very powerful. Some Multi Elementalists who had become Elemental Venerables still only awakened just one domain, yet Grey was already on his second one. ''Just how powerful will he be when he becomes an Elemental Venerable?'' The question flashed through Eva''s mind. All those who had seen Grey use his fire domain some moment ago when he stole the earth elemental treasure right in front of them were stunned. Now they knew why Grey was the most talked about talent in the Faction. Not only did he awaken one domain when he was in the Overlord Plane, but he also awakened another just after getting to the Sage Plane. His future was limitless at this moment. "Grey, it''s enough." Eva pleaded with Grey. She didn''t have any other choice. Nathan was a genius from their Faction, and the fact that Grey was beating him up this badly won''t go well with some of the Elders Nathan was close with. Grey looked at her before waving his hand. The lightning stopped and Nathan''s figure was still vibrating on the ground. "Here, this should help in his recovery." Grey passed a healing tonic to Eva before turning around. "You''re leaving?" Eva asked, stunned by the fact that Grey was leaving just like that. "Anything?" Grey turned around to look at her. Eva dropped her head before looking away, "Nothing." Grey turned around and looked at the men from the Lutra race, "Let''s go." With that Grey vanished with the men in tow. Eva and the others from the Pyrmond Faction looked at where Grey was standing before he vanished. They still found it hard to believe that Grey beat up Nathan by this much. What was worse was that Logan couldn''t even defend himself against Grey. The difference in strength was just too great. Eva flew down to see Nathan''s condition, he was still shaking slightly, but she noticed Grey didn''t overdo it. She used the healing tonic Grey gave to her to help him heal up. After taking the healing tonic, Nathan looked around in search of Grey. "Where''s he?" He asked with clenched fists. "Gone." Eva replied. "Look, I''ll suggest you let this matter go." She advised. Nathan kept his head down while biting his lips. He bit them so hard that they started to bleed. To him, Grey disgraced him. This was something he was never going to let go of. He couldn''t even raise a hand to Grey. To him, there was nothing more disgraceful than this. Not being able to even lay a finger on your opponent while he beats you up without any stress. Eva knew that Nathan''s pride would not let him take this lying, but there was nothing she could do. Grey was a monster they obviously couldn''t beat, and since they were from the same Faction, they couldn''t gang up against him. Thinking of this fact she recalled something and couldn''t help but think of the odds of them being able to even defeat him under such a condition. Grey was able to single-handedly beat the group from the Syphilis Faction, even though they were all in the same stage. If he could do that, then fighting against them wouldn''t be an issue for him. ''Such a terrifying figure. I''m glad he joined us. This fool better not irritate him.'' She thought. From Grey''s actions, she could already guess that he was a ruthless figure. She was still thinking of ways to convince Nathan against fighting with Grey when Grey suddenly appeared once again. "I forgot to tell you." Grey brought out a map and marked it to them. "We''re allied with this kingdom, so do well not to attack them." After dropping this information, Grey vanished once again. He left the map with them so they could use it to mark theirs. He didn''t give them any details, only telling them that they were allied. Nathan wanted to speak to him, but before he could say anything, Grey was nowhere to be seen. "Just you wait, I''ll get my revenge for sure." He muttered. "Don''t even think about it." Eva''s voice turned cold when she heard Nathan speak of having his revenge. Nathan didn''t think Eva would speak to him in such a manner because of someone else. "Eva¡­" He called out. "Grey''s not someone we want to have a conflict with. He''s favored in the Faction for being the one who brought this place to us. Now, he has even struck a deal with the people from this realm. Just let it go." Eva advised softly. Nathan dropped his head in frustration, he didn''t want to let it go. He couldn''t. Grey shattered his pride as a genius, and the only way he could get it back was by fighting against him once again. "I want to fight against him once more." He said softly. "No matter how many times you fight against him, you can not win." Eva told him the bitter truth he didn''t want to accept. Grey was above his league, and the more he thought about it, the more he was making things difficult for himself. On the day of the celebratory ceremony, Eva was well above Grey, but now, she knew she couldn''t even take a single blow from him. Grey who was once below her was now high up in the sky, and all she could do was to watch him shine. Chapter 873 Leaving The Lutra Realm Chapter 873 Leaving The Lutra Realm While Eva and Nathan were speaking about Grey. He was currently standing beside Keith. Introducing the men he brought with him from the desert to him. Keith was still busy reading the scrolls Grey gave to him. Seeing Grey suddenly appear with these men and then disappear almost instantly stunned him. He was still trying to figure out what to say to the men when Grey returned. After introducing him to them, he vanished once again. He didn''t even have the chance to try out the little he had learned. What was worse was that Grey took him with him to the place he was headed. They soon appeared in the city where Keith was supposed to be executed. He couldn''t believe he was back in this place once again. They were standing in front of a large building. The guards at the gate didn''t try to stop them as they walked inside. The men who came with Grey were stunned when they saw this. Even after confirming that Grey made a deal with their ruler, they still found it hard to believe. Now that they saw Grey walking in so freely, they knew it was accurate. They appeared before the ruler of the kingdom. Grey introduced Keith to them as the person who would be making the exchanges from now on since he would be busy with some other things. The King looked at Keith, trying to access him. "You don''t need to do that, I won''t recommend someone that isn''t deserving of it." Grey noticed the King''s actions and said. The King stopped trying to access Keith and turned to Grey, "Since you''re the one who recommended him, I''ll trust him." Grey nodded at the man before looking at Keith and telling him about what just occurred. Of course, he removed the part where the King tried to see his strength. When Grey was done with the introductions, he left with Keith. Since he had to teach Keith the language, he couldn''t leave the Lutra realm for now. Before leaving, Grey gave the leader of the group from the Lutra race he brought from the desert a treasure as in exchange for what he took from them. Back in the cave. "I''ll be going for a seclusion cultivation, it will take about a week or so." Grey said to Keith before his figure vanished. Keith didn''t even have a chance to say anything before Grey vanished. Grey appeared at the place he had been doing his seclusion cultivation since entering the Lutra realm. It was a serene place with a waterfall and a cave. There was not even a single magical beast in the area, much less a single person. He found this place a few months after entering the Lutra realm. This was the place he broke through to the Sage Plane, and he didn''t experience any problems with people wanting the essence coming to him as he broke through. Standing in the same spot once again, he couldn''t help but shake his head slightly. "I''ll be increasing my earth elemental grade, please watch over me." He said to Void. "Alright." Void replied. The moment Grey started his cultivation, Void disappeared. He wanted to ensure there was nothing in that forest to threaten Grey before going out to see if he could find anything interesting. Not finding anything, he left the place without a second thought. Grey used an array as well. Not just that, but before leaving, Void placed some sort of array in the place to make sure he would be notified if anything went near Grey. He wanted to make sure he took care of anything before Grey was finished with his cultivation. A week later. Grey woke up to Void sleeping beside him. He knew Void had been gone for some days now, but since he couldn''t exit his cultivation, he let him be. It wasn''t like anything bothered his cultivation throughout the time Void was absent. When he opened his eyes, a brownish glow flashed through. He hastily entered his chaos space to check the elemental grade of his earth element, and it was currently giving off a bright yellow color. Just behind the emerald grade. Of all his elements, the earth element had managed to become the second of all his elements. "Where did you go to?" He looked at Grey the moment he woke up. "Nowhere." Void replied. "I knew you were gone, Void." Grey looked at Void with a bland look. "Were you disturbed?" Void asked. "You''re avoiding the question." Grey said. "Were you disturbed?" Void asked again. "No." Grey shook his head. "Okay, then where I went doesn''t really matter now, does it?" Void looked away. Grey was certain Void was up to no good but there was nothing he could say since he wasn''t disturbed during his training. "Fine. Let''s go over to see how Keith is doing." He said and vanished with Void on his shoulder. When he appeared in the cave, Keith was still busy reading through the scrolls. Grey could tell that he hadn''t left the cave since he left. "You should''ve learned some things by now." Grey said when he appeared. Keith nodded to his question. Other than speaking the language, he was a little good with writing the Lutra language now. "Alright." Grey nodded. He took his time and started to teach Keith about the Lutra language. It would naturally take some time so he took his time. It wasn''t like he was in a hurry to leave the place. Other than the places he had to be, he didn''t bother about any other thing. The days went by and it took Grey just over a month before Keith learned the language. He couldn''t believe this was the same thing he learned within that time, alone. "Alright, I''m done here, so I better get going." Grey said to Keith when he was done teaching him. "Thank you for your help." Keith appreciated Grey''s help so far. Without Grey, he wouldn''t have been able to get into the Lutra realm, now, Grey was helping him stay longer than others. "It''s okay." Chapter ?874 A Midget? Chapter ?874 A Midget? Before leaving the Lutra realm, Grey decided to check on the three brothers he took from the horned race. He hadn''t checked on them since they separated, and now he was about to leave. There is no guarantee that they have been able to break through yet since it was a realm that has eluded those from their realm for a long time now. However, Grey had heard of people from other realms coming to the Aurora Continent to break through the barrier of their cultivation. Unlike the Horned race''s realm, the Lutra realm was a little better since they could get to the Sage Plane. If the brothers could break through, Grey would be elated for them, if not, they would have to break through in the Aurora Continent. Having helpers had made some of his work easier, so he couldn''t possibly leave without them. Taking out the tracking device, he noticed they were all in the same location. ''It''ll be easier this way.'' He thought before disappearing. When he appeared again, he was standing on a piece of ice floating in the vast ocean. ''This is unexpected.'' He thought before looking around. He couldn''t find any of the brothers around. "Haha, they ditched you." Void laughed when he saw this. "They''re around, you just don''t know where." Grey didn''t get annoyed with Void before tapping his foot on the ice, a stairway opened up to the amazement of Void. "Told you." Grey chuckled and went inside. Void accompanied him into the place as well. They walked down the stairs carefully. "Isn''t the ice above floating around?" Void asked when they started descending the stairs. "Yeah, strange." Grey nodded with furrowed brows. He soon felt the movement when the stairs suddenly changed. It turned into a slide and they started to slide down the place. The change took him by surprise, so before she could react, he was already falling down the place. Bam! He crashed into hard rocks at the bottom of the slide. "Don''t tell me this is the bottom of the ocean¡­" Void commented as they landed. Unlike Grey, he landed on his feet. "It''s not, obviously." Grey replied before looking around. They seemed to be in a city, well, sort of. He took out his tracking device and noticed there had been a change in the location of the brothers. They were currently in three different positions. "How did you even do it?" Void couldn''t help but ask. Whenever Grey enters a labyrinth or canyon, or in this case an abandoned city, the view on the tracking device changes. Now, it was only showing the map around the city. "Easy, when making it, I used an array that would draw power from the world. In turn, it would also give me a good map of any small area I''m in. It''s very difficult, and developing the array took a while." Grey replied with a proud smile. "You''re a freak." Void blurted out. He couldn''t bear to use the word genius since Grey''s thinking was above that. A freak was better and suited Grey even more. The fact that he could not only come up with something like that but also made it as well showed just how freakish his mind was. "Thank you." Grey chuckled, "You''ll be going in this direction while I go in the other." Grey wanted them to leave as soon as they could. He received a message from Klaus not too long ago, seeking his assistance on something. So he wanted to go check it out once he leaves this place. Void nodded and disappeared. Grey went in another direction, opposite Void''s. Some minutes later, he noticed some figures running around the place. They were not humans, well, he couldn''t say they weren''t humans, it was a confusing mix. One of them had the face of a man but was not even up to a meter tall. It ''Where have I seen someone like this?'' He fell deep in thoughts as he saw the figure. The figure was staring at him as well. His expression was one of malice. ''Yes, those things that control corpses!'' A memory flashed through his head and he recalled fighting against them while he was in the Azure Continent. He almost killed them but they escaped underground. He didn''t think there were more, and here as well. The people from this race were so small, that it wasn''t wrong for them to be referred to as midgets. ''Void¡­ you''re not going to believe what I just saw.'' He communicated with Void instantly. ''Those things we fought in the Azure Continent?'' Void asked. ''Eh! You''ve seen them as well?'' Grey was taken aback when he heard Void''s question. ''Hehe, one of them is lying here, bowing to his master, me.'' Void replied with a playful laugh. ''Nice. I have a score to settle with them as well. I don''t mind beating this one up.'' Grey said. ''If I recall correctly, these things are the ones that taught necromancers, so they should have a way to remove that mark from my body.'' He thought while staring at the man. "Human, you have our mark." The man said. "Yes, and I''d like it taken away." Grey replied. He didn''t expect the man to be the first to speak to him. "Whoever is marked should be killed, that''s the rule. You''re marked, that means you''re a threat to us, and also a special tool as well." The man licked his lips. If not for the beards on the man''s face, Grey would''ve called the man a baby when he saw him doing this. "How long have you been here?" Grey asked curiously. "You''ll die soon, there is no need to tell you." The man replied before rushing at Grey. Only when he attacked did Grey realize the man was not as simple as he looked. He was already at the Peak of the Sage Plane, and it was easy to see that his strength was not that of a regular Peak Sage Plane Elementalist. ''He''s suppressing his cultivation Plane.'' Chapter ?875 A Powerful Foe Chapter ?875 A Powerful Foe ''Hehe, unfortunately for you, I''m already undefeatable in the Sage Plane.'' Grey snickered internally and his aura surged. Boom! The attack of the man and Grey collided and the man was forced back a few steps. When he looked at Grey, his eyes opened wide and his mouth dropped. "How?" He blurted out unconsciously. Grey just went from the Second stage of the Sage Plane to the Peak in less than a second. This was something that shouldn''t be possible. ''Unless¡­ he was hiding his cultivation. That''s it!'' The man thought in realization. This was the only explanation he could come up with. He accessed Grey once again before nodding, "No wonder you were marked. So young but already so powerful. You''ll fit nicely into my collection." "I was about to say the same to you." Grey commented offhandedly. He didn''t feel any pressure from this man. The man might have strength above the Sage Plane, but since it was reduced because of the realm, he didn''t have anything to fear. Grey''s figure blurred as he charged at the man. Given the small size of the man, he found it difficult to hit him with straightforward attacks, so he switched to attacks that covered a large range. The attack power might be lesser, but it still didn''t change the fact that it would still cause the man some harm. The man used the wind element, but Grey could sense a slight difference between when he was using the wind element and when this guy was using it. They exchanged multiple moves in a short time and Grey was the one who had the advantage. The man couldn''t believe his eyes. He was an expert that had gotten close to the very top. If not for an unfortunate situation, he wouldn''t have come to this stupid place to hide. The man''s eyes glowed with a green light and a large tornado formed up in the spot where Grey was standing. The speed at which the tornado formed was so great that it caught Grey unaware. It picked Grey into the air and wind blades started to slice his body while he was spinning in the air. Grey used the earth element to form a force field around him. The force field was like a transparent screen that was very strong. None of the wind blade attacks managed to touch him when he did this. Grey tried to teleport out of the area, but he felt something restraining him. Now, he understood that experience was way more important in a battle. This man had been wary of his space element, so he used the tornado to tear the space apart. Apparently, if Grey dared to create a spatial tunnel to escape, it would instantly fall apart, not giving him the opportunity he wanted to escape. He was currently forcing Grey to stay in the tornado. Grey naturally wouldn''t allow something like this to happen for too long. His earth screen was on the verge of breaking with multiple line cracks already on it. He waved his hand and an inscription lit up in the air. It was made from fire essence. However, there was something different about this inscription, there was a smaller one in the middle. A large flame shot out of the inscription with unbridled speed. The man was taken aback when he saw this and hastily tried to dodge. Doing this meant that he was distracted from attacking Grey with the wind blades. Grey took the opportunity and escaped from the range of the tornado into a safer place. He looked at the inscription with a smile. This was something he worked on during the time he was teaching Keith the Lutra language. He was trying out how he would be able to boost the strength of his elements with the other elements when the idea struck him. The wind element was very good when it came to increasing the attack speed of his other elemental attacks, so he tried to make a wind inscription in the center of the fire or lightning inscription. At first, both inscriptions were clashing since each wanted to be the dominant force when taking in the elemental essence from the world. It took Grey sometime before he managed to navigate through this. Now, the result of his hard work has come forth. He couldn''t hide the fact that he was pretty excited about what the future held for this new discovery of his. The man seeing that Grey had escaped didn''t rush over once again. He could already tell that Grey was no easy opponent, and he didn''t want to make any mistakes against him. Two coffins suddenly appeared beside him and they opened up. Grey saw the figures of two dried corpses, one of them belonged to a human, while the other seemed like a beast-like creature. It was in a humanoid form, but there were scales and bumps on its body. "I''ll have to take you seriously if I want you dead." The man said and pointed at Grey. The corpses rushed at Grey when they received the order. Both corpses were at the Peak of the Sage Plane. Grey created more inscriptions as he started to fight against the corpses. The man joined in on the battle as well when he saw Grey was able to hold his own against the corpses. The entire area they were located shook heavily from their battle. Grey had been very cautious and made sure none of his attacks were unnecessary. Cracks started to appear on the side of the walls around them, and some of them fell to the ground. Grey paused to look at the man, but to his surprise, the man didn''t have any plans of stopping. ''Is this natural? Shouldn''t he be afraid this place might collapse?'' He thought internally. Since the man wasn''t showing any signs of stopping, then he would not stop as well. ''I wonder if Void''s opponent was this powerful? Nah¡­ I doubt that.'' He shook his head at this thought. Void was only in the Mid stages, so it was impossible for him to fight against someone at the Peak. Chapter ?876 Someone From The Era Of The War Of Gods Chapter ?876 Someone From The Era Of The War Of Gods Boom! The place shook once again, this time, affecting the entire underground city. ''Grey, did you feel that?'' Void''s voice echoed in Grey''s head. ''I''m part of the cause.'' Grey replied as he dodged an attack. The man and his corpses were making things difficult for Grey. Even with his inscriptions, Grey was finding it hard to fight against the man. ''Well, stop it, you''re going to sink the entire place.'' Void said. ''Do you think I haven''t tried to? This guy''s trying to kill me.'' Grey replied as he brushed through one of the corpses. He activated his gravitational force field and the corpse fell to the ground. Without wasting any time, he created an earth dome to seal it. The corpse tried to break free from the earth dome, but it was unable to. Grey hadn''t been able to calm down before the man continued his attacks on him. Now, only one of the corpses was left, and with the man, he had to fight against two people. But he was very certain that this was not the man''s full array of attacking options. He was still contemplating how to eliminate the second corpse when he saw another coffin appearing beside the man. ''Crap!'' He complained and attacked. He didn''t want to instantly bring out his domains, the time wasn''t right yet, and he wanted to ensure that when he brings it out, it will take out the man once and for all. The other coffin contained a corpse from the Lutra race. Grey rushed into the battle with the man and his corpses while trying to ensure that he dodged as many attacks as he could. One of the things that Grey found a little worrying was that all the corpses the man had been bringing out for some time now are all at the Peak of the Sage Plane. He couldn''t help but ponder over how many more corpses the man had. The time he could stay in the Fusion State had increased after his breakthrough into the Sage Plane. Not just that, but he could also use it more frequently without having to fear any backlashes. A fusion orb exploded, sending the corpses around him flying. The man was able to block the attack, but he was forced back by it. Grey released his gravitational field to the limit which was currently around sixty meters. He shortened the gap between him and the man and once caught in the gravitational field, Grey used the wind element to bolster the speed of his attack. Sending out multiple tendrils of darkness element into the body of the corpses that were still trying to recover from his previous attacks. Not just that, but he sent a lightning bolt in the direction of the man, striking him with it. The tendrils entered the body of the corpses, but Grey felt a sharp pain in his head. He gritted his teeth and his eyes glowed with a pale blue flame and he looked into the listless eyes of the corpses. The man screamed in pain this time and grabbed his head. ''I see.'' Grey thought internally. The man set a mental connection with his corpses, he was able to attack Grey''s mind when he tried to mess around with them. When Grey noticed this, he quickly withdrew his spiritual sense from the tendrils he sent into the body of the corpses and attacked with a mental attack as well. The blue flame gave him a mental attack ability, and it had grown stronger now that he was in the Sage Plane. "You little¡­ Ah!" The man was in the middle of saying something when he screamed in pain once again. This time, after Grey hit him with a mental attack, he struck him with a bolt of lightning as well. Smoke started to come out of his body. "Hehe, now these guys are pretty much useless." Grey chuckled as he looked at the corpses which were no longer able to move. ''I should be able to modify them and control them.'' Grey thought about it for some time and decided against it. He respected the dead and preferred they stayed dead, with no one controlling them against their will. The man gritted his teeth as he looked at Grey with hateful eyes. "You wiped off my imprint, you''re quite something, kid. Now I know why you were marked." The man commented when he didn''t feel any connection with the corpses any longer. He wanted to bring out another corpse, but the thought of Grey using it to attack him made him think twice about it. "I dabble into a lot of things when researching." Grey said offhandedly. "I can see that. But your knowledge will only bring you trouble." The man shook his body. He started to increase in his body size and his skin got darker. After some time, he was standing over two and a half meters with dark red skin color. Grey could feel a strange demonic aura coming out from the man''s body. "During the Great War, if not for that moron, I would''ve been invincible. Now, I have to fight against a small kid using my secret strength, heh, how low I''ve fallen." The man started to speak. Grey looked at the man as he spoke. He could barely relate to what he was saying, all he knew about was the Great War Of Gods. From his guess, the man was probably referring to that. "Are you referring to the War of Gods?" He asked to be sure. "That''s what you call it? It''s quite normal given how weak humans were, if not for that fool, we would''ve won the war without too many casualties." The man said with a reminiscing look. Grey''s words made him recall the years of war. Grey listened to the man''s words. He never thought he would actually see someone that was from the time of the War of Gods. He knew there might be people still alive given the lifespan of those powerful Elementalists, but seeing one was still a little shocking. Chapter ?877 Old Monster Chapter ?877 Old Monster "You should be grateful that you''re dying while I''m in this form. Not many people got to see my legendary form." The man snarled at Grey. Grey didn''t say anything to the man as he tried to let the man''s words sink in. He already guessed the man was from the Era of the War Of Gods, but from the small time the man was speaking, he heard about a human who managed to end the war, almost single-handedly forcing this race back. The stories he had read didn''t have this many details on them, so he was very focused when listening to the man. The man suddenly stopped talking about it and attacked. Grey almost wanted to complain, but he refrained from saying anything and prepared to block the attack. When he saw the man charging into the range of his gravitational field, he released it, but his pupils shrank when he realized that the man didn''t even flinch and continued charging straight at him. "Huh?" He was slightly taken aback. Bang! The man threw a punch in Grey''s direction, and when Grey tried to block the attack, he was sent flying, crashing into one of the buildings and destroying it. His fingers were broken. ''Oh crap! Void! Get those guys let''s get going!'' Grey didn''t dare to even stay any further. From the first exchange, he could already tell the strength of the man exceeded the Sage Plane at the moment. Even in his Fusion State, there was no way he was a match for the man. If he were at the Peak of the Sage Plane, then using the Fusion State, he might have a chance against the man. Before Grey could stand up from the rubble, he saw the man standing before him and he exploded out with his elements. The man blocked the attack with his physical body and attacked once again. Grey didn''t try to block the attack with his body this time, rather, he used the earth and water element to create thick ice and earth walls. The man''s fist connected with the walls and they broke apart in an instant. Grey scrambled to get away from the man''s attack range, but his strength was something terrifying. His strength wasn''t the only thing that increased, his speed also saw a significant increase. Even with Grey''s space element, he still had no problems with keeping up with him. Grey''s eyes glowed and he used his lightning domain. He noticed the lightning element seemed to have an impact on those from this race. The man stopped when he saw Grey using the lightning domain, not going into it. This confirmed Grey''s hypothesis. With the small chance he got, his eyes glowed with pale blue light and he sent a mental attack at the man. The man froze when his eyes connected with Grey, and ice started to form around his body. Grey''s mental attack not only attacks the mind, but it also has the ability to freeze his opponents. This was one of the greatest abilities of his pale blue flame. Seeing that it had some sort of effect on the man, he couldn''t help but thank his stars that he encountered that necromancer who sent out that corpse to attack him. The man''s body shook and he started to glow with a dark red glow as reddish smoke started to come out from his body. The ice on his body started to melt and he regained consciousness once again. "You''re troublesome, kid. I''d like to kill you before you grow too powerful." He stated his feelings towards Grey blatantly. "Can''t you let me go? I mean, we don''t have any previous resentments." Grey said with a fake smile. Honestly, he didn''t want someone like this man chasing after him. For the first time, he didn''t have the courage to actually fight against someone on the same Plane. Well, this man''s not on the Sage Plane, he only reduced it so he could stay here. "Let you go? Never." The man sneered and attacked again. Grey released the lightning domain around him and used the fire domain to attack the man. ''Void! Do you want me dead?!'' Grey asked internally, he was literally fighting a battle he couldn''t win. If not for wanting to take out the triplet, he would''ve escaped already. If he wanted to run, not even this old monster could stop him. ''Is he that powerful?'' Void''s voice echoed in his head. ''Void!'' Grey screamed his name once again. ''Fine, fine, I''m on the last guy. Those guys really used this chance well.'' Void said. ''I''ll kill you!'' Grey yelled and Void finally stopped talking. Grey continued his battle against the man. This was a tough battle for him, he couldn''t use his physical strength which he was very proud of, and neither were his elemental attacks very effective. Only his lightning element seems to have some impact. The man didn''t stop when attacking, he only avoided Grey''s lightning attacks as well as the lightning domain. Grey created a fire orb and hid some lightning inside. When the man grabbed the fire orb and crushed it, he was met with lightning inside and he couldn''t help but curse at Grey. The more he fought against Grey, the more he wanted to kill him. At first, he only wanted him dead because of the mark on him, but now, he truly wanted him dead. Grey was a huge threat to their resurgence. "Can you at least teach me how to remove the mark? At least I would like to learn something new before dying." Grey tried to get the man to speak. "Shut it and die." The man said coldly. "Come on, be nice for once. You''ve been trying to kill me since we met. You didn''t even give me the chance to tell my side of the story." Grey blabbered on. The man felt like genuinely killing Grey at the moment. He didn''t even want his corpse, he just wanted him dead. ''Void, I can''t hold on much longer.'' Chapter 878 You Cant Kill Me Chapter 878 You Can''t Kill Me Boom! The underground city shook once again. This time, the seal protecting it from water started to loosen and water slowly started to enter the place. Grey''s figure was currently under the rubble. He had crashed into almost every building in the place. The man wasn''t giving him any chances of fighting back, nor did he want him to escape. ''Void¡­'' Grey called out softly. ''Got the last one, we can leave now.'' Void replied after some time. ''Good.'' Grey felt relief and hastily rushed out of the rubble. He saw the man once again, but this time, he didn''t try to fight against him. With the help of his two domains, he managed to force the man back for a second. This was more than enough time for him to make his getaway. The lightning domain was the real threat to the man and he didn''t want to get caught in it. When he saw Grey trying to escape, he gritted his teeth and tried to pass the sides. Grey already anticipated this and he quickly expanded the range of the domain. Although its strength would reduce because of this, it would still cause the man some harm. The man was forced to pause once again and Grey rushed to the stairs he used in coming here. The man chased after him, not wanting him to leave the place. On his way out, he saw multiple corpses of his race on the ground, they were dead. He didn''t fail to notice the lightning in the bodies of all of them. Grey was killing anyone he saw on his way out. It infuriated the man even more and he burst out of the place. The moment Grey got to the ice floating in the water, he used his space element and tried to escape. Crash! Bang! The space was forcefully torn and Grey''s figure fell into the water from the sky. Even though the man was not a Space Elementalist, given his knowledge and strength, he had countless ways to stop a Space Elementalist from running away. Grey''s figure bounced multiple times on the water before he sank down. He burst out within a second and stared at the man with an irritated look. "Let me go, you can''t defeat me." He said coldly. "Hmm, in this state, I can''t, but if I decide to use strength above the Sage Plane, I probably will be able to kill you before the world ejects me." The man stated. Grey''s eyes narrowed when he heard this. The man was right, according to what Grey had heard, if someone above the Sage Plane enters this place with lowered level since the person is not from this realm, they would be ejected if they used strength above the Sage Plane. Ejection comes with a risk since you wouldn''t know where exactly you would be thrown. There are even cases of people thrown into other realms entirely. There''s no guarantee that this man would appear in the Aurora Continent if he tried to do this, and he knew of this as well. "You can''t kill me." Grey said confidently. The higher the strength used, the quicker the ejection. If the man used strength just at the First stage of the Elemental Venerable Plane, then Grey had ninety percent confidence in being able to survive it. On the other hand, if the man used strength above the Early stages, he might be ejected before even laying a finger on Grey. "Hmm, I don''t believe I can''t kill you." The man chuckled before charging at Grey once again. ''Void, can you help with this battle?'' Grey couldn''t help but ask for help. Even though Void is still in the Mid stages, he was very powerful. He could still cause the man some harm. ''Alright.'' Void appeared on his shoulder and nodded. Grey felt the pressure mounting up as he looked at the man''s figure. ''Lightning is effective against them. Use your lightning element.'' He advised Void as he exchanged blows with the man. Void nodded and shot out a lightning bolt. The man dodged the attack and punched Grey a couple of meters back. Grey steadied himself and used the light element to heal himself, when the man saw Grey using the light element, he instinctively retreated. Grey didn''t notice this, but Void did. ''Did you see that?'' Void asked. ''See what?'' Grey asked, a little confused. ''He''s afraid of the light element.'' Void replied. ''Really?'' Grey didn''t think the man would be afraid of the light element. ''Yes, try using it again.'' Void nodded. The man was still in the middle of retreating while the duo finished their communication. Grey made an arrow that was from the light element. He had never used the light element for attacking, so he was a little hesitant. When he released the arrow, it was a stunning sight. The speed of the arrow was above any attack he had ever used. The arrow pierced through the shoulder of the man and a horrifying scream escaped from the lips of the man. Grey saw smoke coming out from the place where the man was injured, and unlike his previous injuries, this one wasn''t healing up. "Nice!" Grey exclaimed when he saw this. The man had always had a freakish defense and healing ability, but now, a single attack not only injured him easily, but it was difficult for him to even heal it. The man looked at Grey with squinted eyes. ''How many elements does he have?'' He thought internally. Grey had used the fire, space, lightning, water, and earth element previously. That was already a shocking five, now Grey used the light element, making it six. When he was thinking about this, he recalled something shocking. Grey used the darkness element as well when he tried to control the corpses. At first, he didn''t really think of it, but now, he was stunned by that prospect. ''The kid has seven elements¡­'' This discovery was shocking, to say the least. He couldn''t believe his eyes. Chapter ?879 Fatal Attack Chapter ?879 Fatal Attack ''I must kill him.'' The man concluded instantly. He couldn''t allow Grey to leave this place alive. Grey on the other hand was contemplating some things. Before leaving, he took an Elemental Venerable talisman from the Faction, the talisman surprisingly had the light element infused in it, but it was only for healing purposes. He exchanged for it in case of any chances he got injured by someone above his Plane. Never did he think he would want to use it for attack purposes. ''Will it be able to hurt him?'' He thought internally as he looked at the man. Although the usage of an attack power higher than the Sage Plane would cause some problems, since it was made with a talisman, the world would automatically send the talisman out, not bothering with Grey since he wasn''t the one capable of the attack. The man charged at Grey once again. He wanted to try and see if he wouldn''t have to take the risk of getting thrown to another realm because of Grey. Since he was stronger, as long as he persisted, he would be able to kill Grey. Also, he noticed Grey was using a secret technique to boost his strength. Although he didn''t know the actual strength of Grey, he would find out once the time of the secret technique elapsed. Grey continued fighting against him, using the light element in almost every attack. He didn''t forget to create an inscription with the light element, and also make use of the lightning domain. Void used the lightning element to distract the man as he fought against Grey. Boom! Bang! The waters churned as the battle intensified. Grey and the man were going all-out, while Void was making sure the man didn''t beat Grey up too much. The strength difference between Grey and the man was shocking. Given Grey''s talent, he shouldn''t have been dominated by the man since they were still in the Sage Plane, especially with the elements he had in his arsenal. However, the man had a clear edge over him. Grey''s figure was already bruised, but the light element has been able to help him recover quickly. One hour went by in this fashion as the battle continued. Grey and Void were being beaten up, but they were very resilient. The man was shaken to see that Grey was still in the Fusion State, even after so long. ''There''s no technique that can boost strength for this long. It''s impossible!'' He screamed internally. This was not supposed to be possible. He hadn''t been able to take Grey down, and neither had Grey been able to cause him any significant damage. Other than a few places where Grey had managed to use the light element to hurt him, he had been able to dodge most of the attacks. Void was also trying to make sure he was making an impact in the battle, but the man was able to fight against the duo comfortably. The man quickly came to the conclusion of killing Grey at the risk of being sent to another realm. He didn''t care if he was thrown into the hands of his enemies, he had to ensure that the threat Grey was going to pose in the future didn''t come to pass. After doing some calculations, he estimated that he had around a quarter of a second before he was thrown out of the realm if he used the strength of an Elemental Venerable. ''That should be enough, right?'' He questioned himself in doubt. Grey''s performance so far showed that he was not someone he could group with normal people. Grey was abnormal, in fact, he was beyond abnormal. If he made a wrong choice, he might regret it later on. While the man was thinking of this, Grey was also thinking of using the talisman with him to good effect. He had already baited the man into thinking he didn''t have anything of such a level, so if he allowed the man to come closer once again to attack, he would use it then. The effect of the attack would be greater if the man was closer to him. Both fighters'' eyes gleamed with determination as they prepared to risk it all. Void quickly understood what Grey wanted and retreated, he was already badly beaten, to begin with, so he was quite happy with retreating and healing up. When he looked at the man, he could tell the man wanted to do something, but he didn''t really know what. Grey and the man charged at each other simultaneously, and the man had the advantage in speed. When he got close to Grey, Grey''s pupils changed drastically when he sensed the sudden increase in the strength of the man. Boom! A large explosion followed suit with a large bright light. Void was pushed back by the impact of the attack. Everything happened so fast that he didn''t even get the chance to see what transpired. All he knew was that the attack the man used was something way above Grey''s current level. It was most likely at the Peak of the Elemental Venerable Plane. ''This is bad.'' Void didn''t need to see the end result to know the outcome of such an explosion would be detrimental to Grey. He looked at the explosion with worried eyes. He could feel his connection with Grey weakening just from when the attack was unleashed. A bright light shot out from the sky into the area of the explosion and forcefully took out a portion of the area. It was seemingly the place where the man was previously located. Void saw the man''s figure trying to escape, but he was trapped by the light and dragged away with it. Void didn''t see any signs of Grey since he was still in the range of the explosion, and he could feel their connection weakening as well. It hadn''t even been up to a second after the attack. ''Crap!'' All Void could do was wait till the explosion died down. Chapter ?880 Search For Grey Chapter ?880 Search For Grey Time slowly passed by and Void felt like days had gone by. The explosion finally died down after some seconds and Void rushed into the area. His pupils enlarged when he couldn''t find any traces of Grey. He couldn''t even sense Grey''s aura, and the connection he had with him was currently useless. He couldn''t even sense it at all. Hurriedly, he brought out the triplets from his spatial storage. "Find him." He ordered in a hoarse voice. The trio sensing the elemental energy in the air knew who Void was talking about and spread out, in search of Grey. Void vanished as well as he searched for Grey. The only way he could find Grey easily was through their connection, but that was gone. It died completely two seconds after the attack. This was not something that would''ve been possible, unless, Grey was dead. He didn''t even want to think of this possibility, there is no way he would believe that Grey died just like that. Given the situations he had been with Grey, he didn''t feel this would take Grey down. Outside the portal to the Lutra realm. The Elder standing guard was speaking with Grey''s guardian when the duo suddenly paused and looked at the portal with eyes of disbelief. "Someone above the Sage Plane is in there." Grey''s guardian said with squinted eyes. "Do you think?" The Elder from the Pyrmond Faction asked with eyes of shock. "No one broke through from the Lutra race, it must be someone who lowered their Plane to stay in there. I wonder what would make them take the risk of being ejected out of the world?" Grey''s guardian asked thoughtfully. "Given the personality of that little boy, do you think he''s involved?" The Elder couldn''t help but ask. Although he hadn''t known Grey for long, from some of the stories the guardian had spoken of, Grey seemed to be quite the trouble magnet. "It''s a possibility, but I hope he''s not involved. An Elemental Venerable is above his level." The man shook his head. However, his expression changed drastically as he felt something in his storage ring, bringing it out, it was an insignia that had a lion carved on it. It was cracked. "Impossible¡­" He muttered as he looked at the insignia. The man could barely stand properly as he tried to rush into the portal, but he was pushed out. The Elder seeing the insignia understood what was happening. That insignia was linked to Grey''s life, and the fact that it''s cracked showed that Grey was currently on the verge of dying. "You can''t go in." The Elder said calmly. "He''s in danger." The man said coldly, his voice completely different from its previous friendly state. "But he''s still alive. Just hanging on by a thread, I''ll send the word inside and the others will be able to find him with the Faction''s badge that''s with him. As long as it''s with him, that is." The Elder tried to calm the man down. Grey was a very important figure to the Faction, so he naturally wouldn''t want their hopes for the future to die so carelessly. ''How did he even get in a battle with someone above the Sage Plane? I know there are some old monsters hiding in there, but still, he only went in there for just over half a year and he got entangled with one, that the person didn''t mind taking the risk of being thrown to another realm?'' The Elder complained internally. He contacted the youth standing on the other side of the portal, and when the youth came out, he gave out the order for them to search for Grey. Since Grey was the only member in the Lutra realm with the highest rank in the Faction, he made it possible to distinguish him from the other members of the Faction. The Elder gave the youth something that would help him in finding Grey. Once the youth goes back into the Lutra realm, the others would also be able to locate Grey''s whereabouts. When the youth returned to the Lutra realm, the order was passed on to every member of the Pyrmond Faction that was in the Lutra realm, search for Grey. They all felt the energy from the time the world ejected the man from the world and all knew what it meant, someone used strength that was well above the Sage Plane. When the members heard that they were to search for Grey, they all knew it was somehow connected to him since it hadn''t been up to ten minutes since the event before the order came. They all got the rough direction of where Grey was located but not the accurate position. They would have to find out about that on their own. The entire Lutra realm was in a state of chaos, first off from the man being ejected, to the sudden movement of the humans. They were all headed in the same direction. Somewhere in the Lutra realm. Nathan and Eva exchanged glances when they heard the news of searching for Grey. "He''s never up to any good, I wonder what he has gotten himself into now?" Nathan asked with a cold expression. He didn''t have a good impression of Grey, so he naturally didn''t like him. "He must''ve been the one fighting against the person who used strength above the Sage Plane." Eva replied. "Why is the Faction even bothered with him? If any of us were the ones involved in this, they wouldn''t care." Nathan looked outside coldly, jealousy evident in his eyes. "You''ve seen his talent. If you are the Elders of the Faction, will you let such a genius be treated in the same way as the others? Let''s go, stop whining." Eva said and walked in the direction of the direction Grey was located according to the map on their badge. ''If he isn''t dead, I''ll end him myself.'' Nathan thought coldly. In different places, most of the top geniuses went out in search of Grey. "Oh, it''s been a while since I saw him. I never thought he would encounter such misfortunes." A youth said before disappearing from the tree branch he was standing on. Below the tree branch were corpses of people from the Lutra realm. A shocking number of corpses. Chapter ?881 Search For Grey II Chapter ?881 Search For Grey II In a cave not too far from the city where Grey formed an alliance with the people from the Lutra race. A youth accompanied by a snake could be seen sitting down quietly. Keith raised his head to look outside the cave. He hadn''t left this place since Grey took him to meet the King of this kingdom. "Let''s go." He stood up and patted the head of the two-headed snake. They''ve come to grow a bond with each other since traveling together in the Lutra realm. Keith wouldn''t dare to touch the snake the first time Void passed it to him, but now, he could freely ride on it. The snake nodded with both heads and they stepped out of the cave. Their destination was the same as that of almost every member of the Pyrmond Faction that was in the Lutra realm. Back at the sea. Void and the triplets from the horned race had searched everywhere close to this sea, but there was no sign of Grey, nor even a body. It was like Grey disappeared altogether. "Where could he have gone to?" One of the triplets asked. "By any chance, was he ejected from the realm as well? There''s a high chance something like that happened given the fact that he was close to the man." The Space Elementalist amongst the trio said. They''ve all successfully broken through to the Sage Plane, and he was the one with the highest stage, being in the Third stage. He was already very close to breaking through to the Fourth stage as well. After being stuck at the Peak of the Overlord Plane for so long, it was not surprising that they broke through with such ease and are advancing faster than even Grey. The other two of the triplet were in the Second stage respectively, but they were not far from getting to the Third stage. "No, he''s still in this realm, we just don''t know where." Void replied with a downcast expression. He had been trying to track Grey down with their connection, but it was futile. He couldn''t even sense a bit of Grey''s energy which frightened him. He feared for the worse, but he was still hopeful for the best. "The Lord is alive, let''s spread out once again. We''ll search the cities around this place. Even if we have to turn this entire realm upside down, we will find him." The first of the brothers Grey caught declared. They were forever indebted to him for giving them this opportunity to break through their boundaries, even though they still felt some sort of hostility towards him, their gratitude to him for this chance overshadowed it. Void nodded and vanished. The triplet nodded and spread out in different directions, this time, they were determined to locate Grey. Somewhere in the Lutra realm. Far away from the sea the battle occurred. A figure could be seen dragging himself along the ground. The current condition of the figure was beyond horrifying. Part of this figure''s face was disfigured, leaving only bones that were covered in blood. More than half of the figure''s body was missing. This figure was none other than Grey who Void and the entire members of the Pyrmond Faction were searching for. After crawling to a certain point, he stayed in the same position for some time. ''Crap! This is bad.'' His head was fuzzy and he couldn''t even speak. He tried to reach out to Void, but it was impossible. He could barely see anything, and with a few more struggled breaths, he fell on the ground, motionless. Unable to sustain his body with just one hand any longer. Some minutes earlier. When Grey and the man were still fighting in the sea. After they charged at each other with Grey deciding to use the talisman in his hand. The man exploded out with a terrifying attack that made Grey feel fear. He didn''t need anyone to tell him that the attack was that of someone above the Sage Plane. Even the Early stages of the Elemental Venerable Plane wasn''t this powerful. The talisman he originally wanted to use as a means of attack, he quickly changed its uses. Not just that, but he also took out another talisman he had with him, it was an Elemental Venerable defensive talisman. Everything happened in a split second, and he acted accordingly. After using the defensive talisman to try to stop the attack, he waited until just after the attack hit him and used the healing talisman on himself. Even with the high level of the talisman, it was almost useless. The force that ejected the man from the world threw Grey to an unknown location in the Lutra realm. His current condition was unpredictable, and if he doesn''t recover fast, he might most likely die from the injury. Grey''s body remained motionless as time slowly went by, in the blink of an eye, three days went by, and he was still lying motionless in the same place. There was no movement from him the entire time, not even the sign of breathing. Three more days went by and there were finally signs of movement, but it wasn''t from Grey''s motionless body, it was from the side. A figure could be seen walking close to Grey''s body, two actually. "To think we would be the one to find him." A young man''s voice said slowly. "Is this even him? The last time we saw him, he was well, alive." Another young man said with a shrug. "It''s definitely him, take a look at the signals from the badge." The other young man pointed at their badges which glowed. This was a feature programmed on the badges in case of a situation like this. "Do you think he''s alive?" The other youth asked. "He doesn''t seem to be. Let''s check him out to confirm." The young man replied. Just as he was about to touch Grey''s figure, another person appeared beside them. "Leave, pretend you never saw him. Even if you did, he''s dead." The figure said coldly. Both youths looked at the figure, and after realizing who it was, they nodded and left without a word. Chapter ?882 Unconscious Chapter ?882 Unconscious "Nathan, what are you planning to do?" A female''s voice came from the side of the figure standing close to Grey''s body. The figure was Nathan, and beside him was Eva who had been with him since they entered the Lutra realm. "Nothing, I only want to enjoy the moment of seeing him in such a state." Nathan replied with a blank expression. Eva sighed when she heard his reply. Nathan was slowly sinking into despair because of Grey''s superiority over him. He still didn''t want to accept the fact that Grey was stronger than he was. "This will do you no good. We should take him out of here." Eva approached Grey''s body. Nathan moved slightly and blocked her. "What is the meaning of this?" Eva asked coldly. "Don''t go close to him. I''ll take care of him." Nathan didn''t look at her as his eyes were placed on Grey. "I wonder how he was able to survive such a disastrous attack. He''s an annoying pest that just wouldn''t go away." He muttered. Eva looked at him, surprised at where his hatred for Grey came from. It was obviously his jealousy, but she never thought it would be this high. "Is he still alive?" She asked with a disappointed look. Nathan paused for a while before nodding, "He has a breath left. But he should be dead in another two days, luckily, we found him." Eva sighed in relief when she heard this. Without going close to Grey, there was no way to confirm if he was alive or dead. "Hurry, use the healing tonic with you. It''s better and will make his injury recover sooner." Eva urged. "No." Nathan replied plainly. He didn''t hide his intention, he wanted Grey dead. "What?!" Eva exclaimed in shock. "No." Nathan repeated with the same deadpan expression. He didn''t want to help Grey, and neither did he want anyone to help him. He wouldn''t kill him, nor would he let anyone heal him. He wanted Grey to suffer before drying. "I''m disappointed in you." Eva tried to push Nathan away, but he forced her back. "Don''t you want to regain your dignity? How would you do so if he''s dead?" She asked with anger in her voice. "I do, but it''ll be better if he dies. Witnessing it is a better satisfaction than defeating him. It''s not like I can kill him if I defeat him anyway." Nathan said with an evil grin. "You''re crazy!" Eva couldn''t believe what Nathan was saying. The duo were still arguing when a figure walked into the scene. "Nathan, I''m quite amazed you didn''t kill him, given your personality." The figure said with a smile. "Alec, when did you enter the Lutra realm?" Nathan asked with a cold voice. "Some months back after breaking through." Alec replied with a smile. He took a glance at Grey''s body before looking at Eva, he nodded as a sign of greeting. "What do you want here?" Nathan asked, standing in front of Grey. "You know why I''m here, hand him over. I''ll pretend I didn''t see you trying to wait for his death." Alec said calmly. He wanted Grey, nothing else. Most of the top youths in the Pyrmond Faction know of Nathan''s personality, so he didn''t bother to try to ask why he wanted to stop anyone from healing Grey. "No." Nathan stuck with his initial decision. "Do you think you want to make an enemy of the entire Faction?" Alec asked calmly. He was not afraid of Nathan. Even though he was weaker, he knew for a fact that Nathan couldn''t kill him. Nathan looked at Alec. Unlike Eva and the two youths who found Grey first, there was no way for him to get Alec to shut his mouth about this. He thought about the issue for some time before moving to the side. "Leave, I''m not that stupid to get so close to you." Alec said with a smile still on his face. Nathan scoffed before moving away from where he was standing, Eva felt some relief when she saw Alec was able to come to Grey''s aid. If it were someone else, then Nathan would''ve found a way to convince them, but with the close relationship Alec and Grey shared, well, that''s how they see it, she felt Alec wouldn''t let him die. "How did you get to this point?" Alec shook his head before bringing out the healing tonic he had with him. It was the best healing tonic he had with him, and it started to show some signs very early on. Some of Grey''s injuries started to show signs of healing. Alec nodded when he saw this and picked Grey up before taking him away. A few minutes after Alec left, Nathan came back to the spot once again. He looked in the direction Alec went with a cold look. After some time, he vanished. Keith appeared in the spot some minutes later. It didn''t take long before he was able to ascertain that Grey was here. He exchanged glances with the snake before heading in the direction Alec went. Somewhere in the Lutra realm. Void was in the middle of searching for Grey when he suddenly paused, he looked in a particular direction. It was short, but he sensed Grey. He found a way to communicate with the triplet before rushing in the direction he sensed Grey. In a cave, three days later. Grey was lying motionless on the ground, still showing no signs of waking up. His injuries, however, were healing, albeit slow, it was healing which was a good sign. Alec had been standing guard in the cave, waiting for Grey to wake up. He was a little skeptical about it, but since Grey was healing, it meant he was still alive. Once Grey''s injuries heal to a certain level, then he would take him out of the Lutra realm so a high leveled Light Elementalist could help heal him up. "You''re here, why?" Alec looked outside the cave. "Just want to check on him, no harm." The figure outside shrugged. Alec looked at the figure coldly. Chapter ?883 Who Took Him? Chapter ?883 Who Took Him? The figure standing outside was a close friend of Nathan''s, and he was there when Grey embarrassed him. If Nathan had any ill will towards Grey, then this young man also did the same. And unlike Nathan, had he been the one who found Grey, he would''ve killed him without a second thought. Alec was not only protecting Grey, but he was also putting himself in harm''s way. He was still in the Third stage of the Sage Plane, and these people were all in the Mid or Late stages of the Sage Plane. If Nathan really wanted to, he could force him to leave Grey alone and kill him, but knowing that he couldn''t kill Alec, he didn''t take the risk. This guy, on the other hand, had a very powerful figure amongst the top Elders, and there was a chance that he might be able to get them to help him out if he caused any trouble. Besides, it is common knowledge that a dead genius was useless. As long as Grey was dead, he was useless, and the Faction might only punish this young man, but they wouldn''t want to lose another genius after losing Grey. Well, all these were merely Alec''s speculations. If the Faction Leader took Grey as importantly as he felt he should take him, then killing this young man, as well as his backer, was very possible in anger. The young man looked at Alec with cold eyes, "Can I see him?" "No, leave." Alec replied with a calm expression. "Hmph! Move aside." The young man moved closer to Alec. And just as Alec was prepared to attack, he sensed a powerful attack surging his way. It was from the young man. He tried to block the attack, but he was pushed into the cave by the impact of the attack. This young man was already in the Sixth stage of the Sage Plane, three stages above him, and he was a genius in his own right. Alec''s chances of defeating him were very slim. Inside the cave, Grey was still unconscious, unable to open his eyes. His beating heart was still very slow, which signified his unconscious state. He still hadn''t recovered enough to even heal on his own. "Foudre, what''s the meaning of this?" Alec asked coldly. "I''m only testing how powerful the previous strongest Overlord Plane Elementalist from the Faction is, I''m quite impressed." The young man referred to as Foudre replied nonchalantly before looking at Grey. "How''s he still alive?" He was slightly taken aback when he saw Grey''s condition. Grey hadn''t recovered much from how he was when Nathan found him, so he still had the same horrendous look. "It''s none of your business. Leave." Alec stood in front of Grey. His intentions were clear, if you want to get to him, then you have to pass through me. Foudre smiled before looking at Alec, "There''s no use bothering with him, he''ll die soon enough anyway." Alec heaved a sigh when he saw this, but he was still vigilant. He couldn''t let his guard down. However, if Foudre wanted to leave Grey alone, then he would be happy since he wouldn''t have to bother about fighting him. Foudre turned around and walked to the exit of the cave, just as he got there, he turned around and unleashed a powerful fire attack. "Why not bury him here? It''s not that bad." He snickered as he attacked. Alec was prepared for something like this and tried to block the attack. With his quick reaction, he was able to block most of the attack, but his pupils enlarged when he saw another attack heading over to Grey''s unguarded body. Foudre only used this attack to distract him while his true intention was still to take out Grey. Alec screamed in anger as he tried to rush over to where Grey''s body was located, but it was too late. The attack struck the place and exploded. Given Grey''s previous injuries, even an Overlord Plane Elementalist would be able to kill him with an attack, much less a Sage Plane Elementalist like Foudre. "You coward, why didn''t you attack him when he was in a good condition?" Alec yelled angrily. "I like using underhanded tactics, not everyone should be noble, the sooner you get that into your head, the better for you." Foudre laughed as he said. He wasn''t even scared of what he might face once he leaves this place. To him, Grey''s death wasn''t enough to get him in trouble. Besides, Grey was already very close to death''s door. He could just say Grey died from the attack and Alec was trying to pin the blame on him since they had a misunderstanding some time ago. Some people witnessed their conflict, so it was very easy for him to get witnesses to defend his claim. Alec stared at him coldly, "I''ll kill you if he dies, put that at the back of your head." "Hehe, do you think I''ll take a threat from you seriously?" Foudre laughed. The explosion from the attack died down, but Grey''s figure was not in the place it previously was. "Eh?" Both Alec and Foudre exclaimed in surprise. ?? ??? ???? ?? ???? ???? ???????s, ????s? ??s?? ???? ??? ?????. ??? ?? ?x???????? ??s??? ?????? s????. Even though Grey didn''t block the attack, it wasn''t enough to burn him to ash. "What did you do?" Foudre looked at Alec coldly, he recalled Alec was also a Space Elementalist and could easily teleport Grey out of there. Alec looked at Foudre but didn''t respond, he was just as surprised as Foudre. He tried teleporting there, but Foudre''s attack destabilized the space element. If he tried to teleport, then he risked being thrown into the chaotic space, or even worse, dying. "I was the one who took him out. Don''t worry, he''ll kill you once he wakes up." They heard a small voice from outside the cave, it was almost like that of a child. Alec had heard this voice before and was able to guess who it belonged to, Void. He couldn''t help but heave a sigh of relief. Void was very close to Grey, and although he didn''t know how powerful Void was, he knew he wasn''t ordinary. Chapter ?884 Theres Something Odd With The Boy Chapter ?884 There''s Something Odd With The Boy Foudre stared at the black cat in amazement, he couldn''t believe the small cat which was always with Grey to be this powerful. "Hmph! You can''t stop me from killing him, no one can." He snorted unimpressed. With a wave of his hand, he sent out a sea of flames in Void''s direction. Void looked at the incoming flames and blinked away. "You just made a terrifying enemy for yourself." Alec shook his head as he heard Void''s threat. "They can''t escape." Foudre said confidently and threw a talisman into the air. The talisman exploded, but before its effect could spread, a large frame appeared behind Foudre and covered the explosion that was just about to set off from the talisman. The talisman was made useless. Foudre turned around and saw a large figure. It was the triplet after merging. Their current height was over two and a half meters. And they gave off an aura of a Sixth stage Sage Plane Elementalist, the same stage as Foudre. Alec, seeing this figure, retreated some meters back. He didn''t know who the triplet were, but he was confident they were here to stop Foudre. Foudre attacked the triplet, but they shrugged off the attack and sent out a powerful combined attack that pushed Foudre back. They were each powerful on their own, now that they were merged, their joint attack power was on another level. Even a genius Seventh stage Sage Plane Elementalist will find it hard to defeat the trio in this state. The triplet and Foudre exchanged blows for some time and they overwhelmed Foudre. He escaped some minutes later when he finally realized they were not on the same level. The trio didn''t bother to chase after him since Grey was more important. They left with the help of the Space Elementalist amongst them. Alec tried to track them down, tracing the spatial nodes they used, but he only met a dead-end and could only give up. A lake in the Lutra realm. Keith could be seen standing beside the water, a large snake moving in the lake. A spatial tunnel opened and Void and the triplets appeared. He looked at them hopefully, and seeing one of the triplets nod made him heave a sigh of relief. They saw each other in this area so they set up a meeting point. Since Void said he sensed Grey, Keith left the search to him. "How''s his condition?" Keith asked. "Alive, for now." Void replied with a low voice. "Hmm." Keith looked on, waiting to see Grey''s present condition. When he saw Grey''s appearance, he almost coughed up his intestines. "That''s not good. How''s he still alive?" He couldn''t help but ask in shock. He wanted Grey alive, but seeing his condition was shocking, to say the least. Most Elementalist would be dead if they had such an injury, yet, Grey was still alive, although barely, he was alive. "Beats me, but since he''s alive, he might survive this. I''m taking him over to the Faction, only they can save him." Void said. Just like Grey, he was able to access all the teleportation arrays Grey set up around the realm. Keith nodded since this was the best course of action. He followed them since he could come to the Lutra realm whenever he wanted, he didn''t need to bother about not being allowed inside again without points. Outside the Lutra realm. The Elder was still standing guard beside the portal. When he saw it light up, he turned around. Seeing Keith, he recalled Grey entered this place with Keith, and also recommended him for future dealings as well with the people from the Lutra race. Grey was carefully placed on a soft bed where he was sleeping, well, unconscious with no one aware of when he might wake up. When the Elder saw him, he hastily took him and they vanished to the Faction. There''s a Light Elementalist above the Elemental Sovereign Plane, if Grey had any chances of waking up soon, then this expert can help him out. Getting to the Faction, Keith was dropped off at his place and when the Elder wanted to leave, Void blocked him. He knew this cat was always with Grey, so he decided to take him along. It wasn''t like the cat was going to harm Grey in any way. In an underground building in the Pyrmond Faction. The Faction Leader was currently looking at an old man standing in front of Grey. The Elder who brought Grey was also standing there. "How are his chances of survival?" The Elder asked. "It''s already a miracle he''s alive, and also slowly healing up. His healing should be a good sign, but with the severity of the injury, it''s not something I can confirm." The Light Elementalist replied. He knew how important Grey was to the Faction, so he did his best to heal him up. "We can only wait." The Faction Leader said. Grey''s previous injuries were all healed up and even his missing arm and leg were restored. The healing capabilities of a Light Elementalist were not to be undermined. Grey''s personal healing ability also made this easier. The Light Elementalist looked at Grey for some time before turning to the Faction Leader, "Can I have a word, alone?" The Faction Leader looked at the Light Elementalist before turning to the other Elders around, he gave a nod and they vanished. Now, only the Light Elementalist and the Faction Leader were left, along with Grey and Void. "What did you find out?" The Faction Leader knew this had something to do with Grey. "There''s something odd about the boy. When I was healing him, I could sense elemental energy radiating from his cores, but when I tried to heal it up, some strange energy pushed my spiritual senses away, I was even injured." The Light Elementalist said with a serious expression. Grey was a Sage Plane Elementalist, being able to force out the spiritual sense of an expert above the Elemental Sovereign Plane was something that shouldn''t be possible. Chapter 885 We Have Scores To Settle Chapter 885 We Have Scores To Settle The Faction Leader turned to look at Grey''s figure. Void pretended as if he didn''t hear anything and continued lying close to Grey. "Will he be fine?" He asked. The Light Elementalist looked at Grey, "I''m not sure. But I believe whatever pushed my senses away should be able to help him heal his leaking cores. "Then there''s no need to worry about it. You will tell no one else of this, also, seal this place up, you and I are the only ones allowed in."?? The Faction Leader said. He didn''t want to risk Grey''s safety for anything. "Oh, and that guy as well." He gave the Light Elementalist a knowing glance. The Light Elementalist nodded and started to draw different inscriptions in the air before sending out a seal that blocked the area. When they came out, a figure stepped out of the Void. "You can go in." The Faction Leader said to the figure. The man nodded and went inside, but made sure to hide from Void''s senses. The figure was the third person the Faction Leader permitted to enter the place, Grey''s guardian. Of all the people present, he was probably the one who was more worried about Grey''s safety. The Faction Leader and the Light Elementalist disappeared from the place. Letting a stranger enter this deep into their Faction was very dangerous, but they wanted to show this person how much they value Grey. Besides, a Family that can groom such a genius and sends a powerful guardian with him would not be weak. The Faction Leader placed someone outside so they could track the guardian''s movements if he steps out of the place where Grey was kept. Two weeks went by in the blink of an eye. Grey was still lying unconscious, but his current state was different from the time he was brought here. Now, his breathing had returned to normal which gave the others hope. One more thing was the leaking essence energy in Grey''s body had stopped. Not just that, but it seemed to be accumulating as well. Void was still lying next to Grey. The Light Elementalist as well as the Faction Leader checks up on Grey every day, and his improved condition pleased them. While Grey was recovering slowly. The news of Grey being taken to the Faction spread quickly, not just that, but it also stated that he was already receiving treatment and will be fine soon enough. When Alec heard this, he smiled in joy. Thinking about it, he couldn''t help but think about the fate of Foudre and Nathan. Grey will eventually find out what they did, and Alec doesn''t think Grey was the type who would forgive his enemies. From the short battle during the competition, he knew Grey was a ruthless individual. "I wonder what''s running through the head of those two now." He snickered before disappearing into the woods. Somewhere in the Lutra realm. Nathan and Foudre were standing together with irritated expressions. "Why didn''t he just die?" Foudre spat on the ground in disgust. "He will, maybe not now, but he will." Nathan replied coldly. "You should''ve killed him when you got the chance." Foudre turned his attention to Nathan. Nathan didn''t respond to Foudre''s words. He looked to the side and saw Eva standing by the side. "It doesn''t matter, it''s not like he can kill us. Besides, we didn''t do anything to him. If he attacks us, we can use it against him." Nathan said, unbothered with Grey. Now, he wanted to complete his training and leave this place. He had been here for some time and it was almost time to head back to their realm. One week later. There was finally movement from Grey''s body, his eyes and fingers twitched occasionally, and after some time, his eyes snapped open. The moment they opened, he hastily shut them once again, squinting his eyes from the pain, he slowly opened them. It had been quite a while since he saw light, so opening his eyes so quickly affected him. He looked around, and after not seeing anything he knew, he hastily tried to stand up, but he felt numb all over and stayed put. He was still thinking when Void appeared in his vision, standing on his chest. "Huh?" A confused expression appeared on his face, after a second his eyes brightened, "Void." "You''re finally awake, good." Void replied, clearly relieved. Grey''s last memories flashed through his head and he recalled what happened. He was fighting with an old expert from another race, and after suffering from a deadly attack, he was sent to another location, away from Void and the rest. When thinking about it, he remembered one of his hands was missing. He slowly started to feel his body again, raising the previously missing hand, he looked at it for some time before dropping it. "How did you even survive that attack?" Void asked. "Lucky I guess." Grey smiled, before recounting what he recalled. "Where are we?" Grey asked when he was done speaking. "The Faction. I took you to the Elder standing guard outside." Void replied, he paused for some time before adding, "Also, I think they found out something about you when they wanted to heal you." Grey raised a brow before sitting down, "What?" "Your core was injured, one of them tried to pry but he was forced out¡­" Void told Grey what he heard. "It''s okay, the Faction Leader doesn''t seem interested in my secrets. He''s curious, naturally, but I don''t think he would want to force me to tell him if I don''t want to." Grey said. Void nodded before his eyes turned cold, "Right, we have some scores to settle." "With who?" Grey asked. From Void''s present reaction, Grey could tell Void was incensed. Void told him about Foudre and how he wanted to kill him. "Oh wow, we really do have a score to settle." Grey exclaimed as an evil smile appeared on his face. He would never let people who wanted him dead go. Since they wanted him dead, then he didn''t mind repaying the favor. Chapter ?886 Kangs City Chapter ?886 Kangs City Pyrmond Faction. Grey was still in the underground building even though it had been over a week since he woke up. The Faction Leader as well as the Elder treating him come to check up on him frequently. The Faction Leader inquired about the person Grey fought against and hearing Grey recount everything stunned him. The figure Grey fought against was someone from the Era of God''s, it was a shocking discovery. But this alarmed the Faction Leader even more. "Things won''t be as calm as they are anymore." He muttered under his breath. One more week went by and Grey was almost good as new, even the Light Elementalist treating him was amazed by Grey''s quick healing abilities, it could almost rival an Elemental Sovereign. One has to know that the healing capabilities of each Elementalist vary, but it mainly depends on their Planes as well. For instance, the speed of an Elemental Venerable is above that of a Sage Plane Elementalist, yet, Grey, who was in the Sage Plane, had a higher healing ability than an Elemental Venerable. It was shocking to see. "What do you plan to do now?" The Faction Leader asked when Grey told him of his intention to leave. "I have some scores to settle in the Lutra realm, I''ll go on a trip once I come out." Grey replied, not hiding his killing intent. The Faction Leader looked at him for some time before saying, "Try to avoid trouble. Also, take this, it can teleport you back to the Faction, from any location in the Aurora Continent." He tossed an insignia over to Grey, it had the logo of the Pyrmond Faction. "Thank you." Grey bowed as he happily accepted the insignia. He didn''t mind keeping it since it was very important to him. It would come in handy whenever he is in some tough situations. Also, the thought of tweaking it a little came to his mind, he planned to work on it after leaving the Faction. He soon stepped out of the underground building, and seeing the sight of the Faction, he shook his head. Some of the people here were just snakes hiding in disguise. However, he knew this was a natural scenario since no place was perfect. He also didn''t bother with such snakes, but if anyone dares to mess with him, he wouldn''t hold back. ''Let''s go, did you mark the location?'' Grey asked Void telepathically. Void nodded and both figures vanished into space. Outside the portal.p???? ?(O)??l Grey''s figure appeared once again, he looked at the familiar portal before the thought of almost dying there some weeks ago flashed through his head. "You''re here, again." The Elder looked at him with furrowed brows. He knew a thing or two about what''s been happening in the Lutra realm, and from what he heard, someone from the Faction tried to kill Grey, a genius from the Faction. "Yeah, I haven''t completed a certain mission before I was attacked." Grey replied with a soft smile. For some reason, the Elder felt the usual nonchalant Grey was more friendly than his current smiling self. "If I may, can you tell me what the mission is?" The Elder asked. "I found a nice treasure in a ruin, I was about to take it before being attacked." Grey answered gently. "You''ve just recovered from a fatal injury, I don''t even know how you''re okay, but you should take some rest." The Elder advised. "Don''t worry, I won''t take long inside. Thank you for taking my safety into consideration." Grey said with the same soft smile on his face. The Elder couldn''t stop him from going in, so he let him in. After Grey went in, he shook his head. "Hopefully he doesn''t do anything rash. I planned to punish that brat when he comes out, but¡­" He sighed in helplessness. Lutra realm. Grey appeared in the Lutra realm once again. Looking around, he felt a sense of apprehension. ''I''ll have to be careful this time. I don''t know if there are any more people at that guy''s level.'' He thought with a shiver. After getting the location of Keith, he vanished. Keith had already come back to the Lutra realm since he couldn''t see Grey who was being treated. Being the representative of the Pyrmond Faction meant he had to be in the Lutra realm frequently. Deep in the Lutra realm, in a forest. Keith was seated on one of the heads of the two-headed snake as they moved through the forest. Grey''s figure suddenly appeared in front of them, scaring the snake. It attacked instinctively, but Void easily blocked the attack. "You''ve become very bold." He snorted when he felt a tinge of pain on his paw. The snake shivered when it heard Void''s voice. "Stop it, Void, you know it''s instinctive, you''ll do the same if placed in his position." Grey tapped Void lightly on the head. "Grey, you''re out already?" Keith asked in surprise. "Yeah, I''d like to ask you something." Grey nodded and stood on the head of the snake. "I''m listening." Keith''s ears perked. "Do you know where Alec is?" Grey asked. Keith paused for some seconds before replying, "I heard he was heading towards Kangs City two days ago. Apparently, someone from the Faction was captured." "Thank you, next time." Grey said and vanished instantly. p?n?a (n??)??l? Keith wanted to stop him but before he could say anything, Grey was nowhere to be seen. He gave a wry smile before patting the head of the snake, "Let''s go." Kangs City. This was a very famous city in the Lutra realm simply because of the vast number of experts who come to this place. It''s also the place with the highest number of criminals in the Lutra realm. Basically, it was a place where there were no rules. Grey''s figure appeared outside the city and with a quick shake, his color changed, and he was like the people of the Lutra race. Asking around, he found out about the young lady that was captured. Chapter ?887 Did You Come Alone? Chapter ?887 Did You Come Alone? Grey easily maneuvered into the city and after walking around for a while, he saw people gathered. It was just like the time Keith and the others wanted to be executed. A platform was already set up and the youths captured were there, with a man with blue skin which signified the water element. ''They tend to enjoy watching executions, don''t you think so?'' Void asked curiously as he looked at the number of people gathered there. ''After suffering under the hands of those people from the Syphilis Faction for so long, it''s normal for them to enjoy watching the death of their presumed mortal enemies.'' Grey replied casually. It didn''t take long before they saw the people who were about to be executed. ''She looks familiar.'' Void said. ''Eva, since she''s here, that moron should be too.'' Grey answered while looking at the people who were to be executed. He didn''t see anyone else he recognized, which meant Nathan was not captured along with Eva. He was a little surprised since they were always together. ''We''ll split up here, try to search for Alec. I''ll stop this execution.'' Grey instructed. Void nodded before disappearing from his shoulder. Grey was wearing a dark robe, and he also had a black skin color which signified either the space or darkness element, so it was almost impossible for others to see Void when he was with him given his small figure. Time passed by slowly, and after a long speech, the Mayor of the city declared the start of the execution. Unlike the previous city, there were over ten experts at the Peak of the Sage Plane currently present, including the Mayor, who was about to execute the members of the Pyrmond Faction. With such a number, it would be difficult for Grey to rescue everyone. The Mayor raised his hand and an ice sword appeared in the air, he slashed it down instantly. A young lady was the first who was about to be executed. Just as the ice sword was about to hit the young lady, a figure appeared beside her and a stream of fire exploded out. ''Found Alec.'' Void''s voice echoed in Grey''s head. ''I can see him.'' Grey replied while staring at Alec who just blocked the attack. He was about to make a move when he sensed a ripple in the space close to the young lady. Although stopping was a risk considering he had no idea if the person who wanted to appear was a friend or foe, he couldn''t rush there as well. The Mayor retreated when the stream of fire exploded out and blocked it. Sensing the strength of the attack, he chuckled. Grey also noticed this as well. He knew Alec wasn''t even in the Late stages of the Sage Plane, much less the Peak. ''Taking such a risk.'' He shook his head but decided to watch on. Either Alec had a plan of rescuing these people, or he foolishly jumped to his death, either way, Grey would find out as the event unfolds. "You weak human dare to stand before me?" The Mayor asked coldly. This chapter is updated by Freewebn(o)vel.c?m. Alec didn''t understand a thing the Mayor said, but he felt it wasn''t anything good, for him. Grey had the urge of translating, but he stayed put. Alec stood in front of the young lady who was about to be executed. "Let them go." Alec pointed at the people captured while trying to convey his message through motions. When the Mayor saw his movements, he didn''t need anyone to translate since he knew Alec wanted him to let go of his prisoners. His reply, was an attack. Ice shards sprouted out of the ground, and almost stabbed the people who were captured. Alec tapped his foot on the ground and most of the ice that were coming from the ground turned to water after melting from the heat. Grey was impressed by Alec''s performance, one had to know that Alec was in the Third stage of the Sage Plane, while the Mayor was at the Peak. The difference in strength was not something that could be cut short with just talent alone. ''The Mayor''s going easy on him. If my guess is correct, he''s waiting for the main attacker.'' Grey thought while looking around. His thoughts were the same as the Mayor''s, there must be someone stronger than Alec watching from the side. ''It could be that guy.'' Nathan was the only one Grey could think of due to his close relationship with Eva. The Mayor continued his attacks, and as time went on, he started to increase the force behind his attacks. A blizzard started in the area where Alec and the captured members of the Pyrmond Faction were located. Other than Alec, the rest started to freeze from the cold within a matter of seconds. Alec was having a hard time keeping himself safe, he didn''t have time to thaw the ice that had started to cover the others. Grey frowned when he saw this, he was waiting for the other person, but no one had made any moves yet. ''Is this part of their plan, or did he really jump to his death?'' He was confused by what was happening. ''Void, make contact with him, try to stay out of sight. If not, just appear beside him, it''s not like the Mayor would focus on you and leave him alone.'' Grey contacted Void. Void complained for some time but still did as he was told. He made Grey promise to make him a meal, and Grey had no issues with doing that. While Grey and Void were talking, the Mayor increased his attack intensity. With a wave, multiple ice arrows shot at Alec and the other members of the Faction. Alec created a fire screen, but it was easily broken through by the arrows as they pierced the bodies of the youths that were captured. Alec on the other hand was pushed a few meters away from the spot he was standing. He was about to move forward when he heard a small voice beside his way. "Did you come alone?" Chapter ?888 Taking Action Chapter ?888 Taking Action Alec''s ears perked up when he heard this and he hurriedly looked around to find the owner of the voice, when he saw a small black cat beside him, his eyes opened wide, almost bulging out of his head. He couldn''t hide the shock in his eyes. This cat is only present wherever Grey was, Void coming back to the Lutra realm meant that Grey was there as well. Not just that, but Grey was currently here. ''How lucky.'' He clicked his tongue before nodding to Void. Grey seeing this already knew the answer. He couldn''t help but facepalm at Alec''s wrong decision. Alec''s sense of comradeship was respectable, but putting himself in death''s grasp was stupid to Grey. ''I guess it''s time for me to act. He''ll take the people away while I stop the Mayor and others.'' Grey communicated his intentions to Void so he would relay them to Alec. When Alec heard this, he paused for some time, thinking about how Grey would be able to stop these people. He wanted to ask, but Void told him to focus on his mission and leave the rest to Grey. He nodded and turned to look at the Mayor who had a gloomy look when he saw Void standing beside Alec. Alec''s mouth moved, and although he didn''t hear any words coming out of his mouth, he was certain Alec was communicating with someone else with the strange beast. The Mayor unleashed his full strength and tried to execute the youths before anyone else would intervene. Not just that, but just as he attacked, twelve powerful auras exploded out from different sides of the crowd and rushed out, standing beside the Mayor. Their intentions were clear, to protect the Mayor and make sure the execution went as planned. Grey prepared himself, and just as the attack was about to hit the already injured youths, Grey blinked. A shocking scene followed up, the Mayor was no longer standing in his previous spot, rather, a figure who had a robe on was the one standing there. The attack which was also prepared for the captured youths died the moment the Mayor switched positions. Without enough power, it was easy for Grey to push it away. Grey entered the Fusion State the moment he appeared and a powerful fusion orb exploded out, sending the twelve experts who were previously standing beside the Mayor flying. After doing this, he removed the bonds on all seven youths who were captured. Eva stared at Grey as if she had seen a ghost. She couldn''t believe Grey was already back in the Lutra realm. From her experience, she knew Grey only came back for one reason, revenge. However, she had some doubts considering the fact that Grey was unconscious at the time Nathan wanted him dead. Grey saw the shock in her eyes but didn''t think much of it, he had to focus on the mission at hand, getting these people to safety. Alec moved closer to them and with a blink, he took them with him. Time was of the essence, and he didn''t want to waste any. Void also took the other three with him. Leaving Grey alone with the thirteen Peak Sage Plane experts, including the Mayor. Grey targeted the Space Elementalists amongst them, taking them out in a short time. Everything happened so fast that before any could react, Alec and Void had not only escaped with the people but the only two people who could chase them down had been attacked by Grey. Although they weren''t dead, it was almost impossible for them to track down Void and Alec in their present condition, especially with Grey watching. "Who are you?" The Mayor asked. "No one, I''ll see myself out now." Grey replied casually before turning around. When the Mayor saw this, he was incensed. How could Grey stop their execution and leave just like that, what did he take them for, some sort of cowards who would allow him to do as he pleased? The Mayor and the other ten experts charged at Grey. The two Space Elementalists hurriedly joined the battle as well. Grey didn''t feel any pressure from the onrushing people, taking a steady step forward, he released his gravitational field which sent every single member of the Lutra race within a hundred meters radius of him falling to the ground, the Peak Sage Plane experts were no exceptions. The sudden change in gravity was something none of them were prepared for. Grey had free reign to do whatever he wanted with the small time he had, and he made full use of it. New novel chapters are published on ????????????.?o?. With a blink, he appeared in the sky and large boulders covered with blue flames started to fall to the ground. Not just that, but he also unleashed his fire and lightning domain on the experts. According to what he knew, the Kingdom he formed an alliance with had some issues with these experts, they had been terrorizing them for some time. And with the amount of criminals present here, as well as top experts, the Kingdom didn''t dare to act rashly. Given the opportunity, Grey didn''t mind helping them to take out a few of their enemies. The Peak Sage Plane experts were the first to break free from the bondage of the force field, seeing the large boulders falling from the sky, they scrambled to stop them. But the fire and lightning domain incapacitated them for another second, and the boulders crashed into the city. ''I think I just made the relationship between them and humans even worse. Well, they still don''t know I''m human, why not cause some trouble with another Kingdom?'' Grey thought internally. He was speaking the language of the Lutra race, so these men didn''t know he was a human. The only thing that might give him away is his skin color, having just one color and displaying over one element was not possible, never before had something like this happened in the history of the Lutra race. A large explosion followed after the boulders started to crash in the city. Alec, who was over one thousand five hundred meters away, saw the impact of the attack and couldn''t help but suck in a cold breath. Chapter 889 Leave After Destroying Chapter 889 Leave After Destroying "That guy''s a freak." Alec sighed before looking at the people they rescued. "Honestly though, did you go alone?" Void asked. "Well, Nathan was around, but since he didn''t come out after so long, I guess I was alone." Alec replied with a shake of his head. Eva raised her head on hearing Nathan''s name being called up. She couldn''t believe he didn''t try to do anything. There''s also the possibility that he was waiting for her execution before stepping out. Nathan had never been the good type of person, he rarely cared about people who weren''t close to him, so he wouldn''t mind watching the others die, and only step out to save Eva. "He''s not alone, there''s also someone with him you''ve seen before." Alec said with a low voice. "Who?" Void probed. His guess was Foudre, but he couldn''t be too sure since he had seen multiple people from the Pyrmond Faction here in the Lutra realm. "Foudre." Alec didn''t hide the identity of the person. "Good, he''s the reason we came here." Void replied with a cold voice, oozing with killing intent. Alec thought about it for a while before saying, "It''ll be best if you settle this amicably, but if you can''t, make sure the Faction Leader is on your side." "Don''t worry, Grey''s not going to do anything that will put him in a bad position with the Faction Leader." Void replied. They were speaking in a low voice when it came to this matter, so the others couldn''t hear what they were saying. "I still can''t believe Grey caused such a huge impact. I mean, isn''t he at the Second stage of the Sage Plane?" Alec couldn''t help but ask when he saw the explosion. "Third stage, he''s at the Third stage now." Void corrected. "He broke through, after almost being killed? Is he even human?" Alec found this discovery to be shocking. Most people would try to recover their previous strength after almost being killed, Grey on the other hand broke through with it. Is this something even possible? "Honestly, I doubt that myself." Void replied with a wry shake of his head. Grey''s improvement so far has been quite fast. Since halting at the Peak of the Origin Plane for so long, he had been advancing faster than he previously did while in lower Planes. One has to know that the higher the Plane, the harder it was for an Elementalist to break through, but the same didn''t apply to Grey. Alec was already on the verge of breaking through when they went for the competition, and if not for holding back, he would''ve broken through months before the competition. After the competition, he broke through immediately. He consolidated his cultivation stage and entered the Lutra realm. To him, his improvement had been fast, but Grey on the other hand had caught up to him, despite being a few months behind when he broke through to the Sage Plane. While Void and Alec were talking about Grey''s freakish improvement, he was currently in a heated battle in Kangs City. His meteor descent caused great destruction to the city, and most of the inhabitants had either gone out of the city or were in the process of leaving. There were two people in particular who were currently fleeing the city. If Alec was here, he would recognize them with ease, they were Foudre and Nathan. Grey''s strength alarmed them. They know for a fact that even together, they can''t beat him. When Grey stepped up, they watched him fight against the experts from the city, and the fact that he was fighting against over ten Peak Sage Plane experts alone showed that he wouldn''t have any problems dealing with the two of them. Thinking of the fact that they nearly killed him when he was injured, they started to sweat buckets. Grey on the other hand had no idea they were in the city. He had to focus fully on the battle if he didn''t want to sustain any injuries. The Mayor brought out a large halberd which was covered with spikes and he slammed it in Grey''s direction. An earth wall appeared in front of Grey to block the attack, but cracks appeared on the wall since the strength of the attack was too much. The Mayor slammed it down again, hitting the wall repeatedly. The others used their elemental attacks to force Grey back. Grey didn''t panic as he focused on blocking or evading their attacks. He already had his inscriptions out and was using them as a means of attacking. New novel chapters are published on ????????????.?o?. The Mayor and his entourage were enraged, following the fact that Grey destroyed their city right in front of them. It would cost a lot to fix the city, and even more to get it back to its previous level. Attacks of different elements flooded the sky, all aiming at a single individual. Grey, seeing that things were getting serious decided it was time to leave. As much as he enjoyed fighting, the number of top opponents was too much for him. Even if he occasionally sends some of them flying, he won''t be able to kill anyone. In a short battle, he seemed to have a certain advantage, but as the battle continues, he would be on the losing end for sure. The Space Elementalists amongst the group noticed Grey was working on a long teleportation tunnel and quickly tried to intercept it. "Move aside, you can''t stop me from leaving." Grey said coldly before unleashing his fire domain at the two Space Elementalists. This time, he used the extreme cold of the domain, freezing the Space Elementalists for just over a second. The Mayor and the others rushed over to where he was, but before they could get to him, he was gone. His original plan was simple, stall them, and after some time, leave. He wanted to kill a few when they were fighting, but the chance didn''t present itself, unfortunately, so he left. Besides, his target had been met. Chapter ?890 How Does His Brain Work? Chapter ?890 How Does His Brain Work? Grey soon appeared close to Alec, he was already out of the Fusion State, so he was back to the Third stage of the Sage Plane. Alec stared at him for some time as if he was a monster, technically, he did see him as one. Just like Grey, he was also in the Third stage of the Sage Plane, however, Grey managed to fight against multiple Peak Sage Plane experts on his own, he didn''t even dare to call himself a genius in front of Grey. "You''re here, unharmed." He said while examining Grey. "Yeah, it was quite a hassle, but I managed to escape." Grey replied casually. Alec knew for a fact that Grey didn''t ''manage'' to escape, he left after causing massive destruction to the city. From the explosion he saw, half of the city is most likely destroyed by that attack. The experts wouldn''t want to cause such damage to their city, so Grey was the only person that came to mind. "It''s good that you''re fine. Thank you for helping out today, I don''t know what I''d have done." Alec thanked Grey for his help. "It''s alright, you were lucky I came on time." Grey replied. He wasn''t being proud or anything, had he not been around, Alec would most likely have been part of the people executed today for his seemingly foolish act of bravery. Alec scratched his head awkwardly but didn''t feel downcast by Grey''s words. The youths who were captured all walked up to Grey to thank him, Eva included. When she approached him, he sensed that she was a little nervous. From all the contacts they have had, she had never been nervous before and had always been confident, being a smart individual, Grey guessed something was wrong. "If you have anything to say, say it now." He said with an intimidating aura. Eva froze, not expecting Grey to say this, and also act in such a way. ''Did he tell him about it?'' She turned to look at Alec. Alec shrugged, signifying that this was none of his business. Eva knew that Grey was unconscious at the time she and Nathan arrived, so there was no way he would''ve known about what happened. The only person who saw them was Alec, and the relationship between Alec and Nathan wasn''t all that good, but she did have a good relationship with him, so she assumed he wouldn''t tell Grey. Grey walked closer when he saw her reaction, his aura as intimidating as ever, and his eyes oozing a shocking killing intent, "Speak." His voice was calm, but it sent shivers down the spine of Eva. "I''m sorry about what happened, I tried to give you a healing tonic when we found you, but I didn''t have any." Eva apologized, trying to cover up for Nathan. "You''re lying." Grey said coldly, his eyes half opened and his expression bland. The other youths were not close to them, but seeing how Eva acted, they knew something was wrong. But after seeing what Grey did, even though they were not present, they decided to stay away from whatever was going on, even Alec was far from them, why should they go close? Eva didn''t speak a word when Grey said this, and paused, trying not to say anything else. "Who was with you?" Grey asked. He could already guess who it was, but he wanted to hear from her. Seeing that she was responding, he continued, "If I''m correct, Nathan. I never thought he would be such a coward, to be honest." Grey''s head went into overdrive as he started to think out multiple scenarios, after some time, and putting together everything he knew and some guesses, he came up with a conclusion. He didn''t know if he was correct, but he felt he shouldn''t be far off. Nathan and Eva were the first people to find him since he heard the Faction gave an order for everyone to search for him, but he refused to help him. He most likely wanted him dead, but didn''t want to do it himself so he stopped others from helping him. According to Void, he was with Alec when he found him, so this meant Alec intervened and helped him out of the place. While thinking about everything, something struck him. ''Wait, how did they know I was severely injured?'' This was a troubling matter, he was alone in the Lutra realm, and there was no way people outside would know what was happening in the Lutra realm. At most, they would feel it when the realm forcefully ejected the man, but they shouldn''t be able to know why. The Elder outside the portal was the one that gave the order for Grey to be found. He was even specific that he fought a tough battle with someone very powerful. Thinking about everything made his head hurt, but he decided to keep that at the back of his head for now. He would ask the Elder once he leaves this place. "Nathan didn''t want anyone to help me, you tried, but he stopped you, Alec found me and he knew he couldn''t kill him so he let him take me. He later sent someone who doesn''t seem to be afraid of the rules of the Faction to kill me, correct?" Grey said with a mild smile on his face. Eva opened her mouth in shock when she heard Grey''s words, it was so accurate that she couldn''t even deny it. She was with Nathan when Foudre came over, he overheard him telling him of Alec''s whereabouts. "How did you know?" She asked. She didn''t even have the courage to deny it since she feared it might anger Grey. "Simple, you." Grey answered, still with a smile on his face. "Me?" Eva was confused, but then it hit her. Because of guilt, she became nervous when walking over to Grey. He used that to pressure her and she spoke, even though she didn''t say much, he was able to guess what happened. ''How does his brain work?!'' Chapter 891 Cripple Yourself And Ill Let You Live Chapter 891 Cripple Yourself And I''ll Let You Live Eva stared at Grey, unsure of what to say. Grey took a glance at her but moved away, walking in Alec''s direction. "Did you say Nathan was in Kangs City?" He asked. Alec nodded, he didn''t know what transpired between Grey and Eva, but from her present facial expression, she could tell that it wasn''t anything good. "I''ll be leaving soon. We''ll see some other time." Grey didn''t dally any longer and left with Void. Alec walked up to Eva to ask her what was wrong. She told him about what happened, and how Grey was able to guess everything that happened. If not for the fact that she was certain that he was unconscious at that time, she would''ve never believed he wasn''t present at the time. His guess was spot on, other than the fact that some people saw Grey first before she and Nathan arrived, everything else was accurate. "I warned him. If he let it go, things would''ve been easy. When the cat came, he saw me fighting with Foudre, and even witnessed Foudre trying to kill Grey while he was unconscious. If he didn''t arrive on time, Grey might''ve died from the attack. He told Foudre that Grey would have his revenge, looks like he''s here because of that. Now, he has added Nathan to that list as well." Alec shook his head as he told Eva about what happened the last time he saw Grey and Void. "Do you think he''ll not kill them?" Eva asked, worried about the safety of her friends. She didn''t support them trying to kill Grey while he was down, but she still didn''t want Grey to kill them. "From his past actions, I doubt that. If they survive, then they should count themselves lucky." Alec replied casually. The issue had nothing to do with him, he didn''t have a good relationship with Nathan and Foudre, to begin with, so even if Grey killed both of them, he didn''t find anything wrong with it. They were the ones who wanted to kill him, he''s only giving them a taste of their own medicine. Eva gazed at the ground, gripping the side of her shirt while biting her bottom lip. Alec didn''t stay there for long and left soon after, there was nothing left for him there. He was glad he managed to succeed in rescuing these people, thanks to Grey. Grey appeared outside Kangs City, this time, he had a different color, looking around, he saw countless people rushing out of the City. ''I don''t think they''re still inside. Unfortunately, we don''t know which direction they faced when leaving.'' Grey transmitted his voice to Void. Void and the Space Elementalist among the triplet were presently out, searching for Nathan and Foudre. They had searched the area within a kilometer of the city, but they hadn''t seen any signs of Nathan or Foudre. Naturally, they would be in disguise since they wouldn''t want to be captured by these infuriated experts, this would make searching for them even more difficult. ''Why don''t we go back to the girl? Nathan will search for a way to locate her.'' Void suggested. Grey thought about it and felt it was the best choice, but he decided to leave the Space Elementalist out in case there were any traces of Nathan around. He went back with Void, hiding in the void. Eva was still in the same location in the forest, seemingly waiting for someone. Of all the people captured, only two more people were still there with her. And they didn''t stay long as well, they left after almost one hour. After almost three hours, Nathan and Foudre arrived. When Eva saw them, still alive and well, she heaved a sigh of relief. ''Looks like he didn''t find them.'' She thought internally. "Where''s Grey?" Nathan asked when he arrived. "He left, searching for you two." Eva replied. "Us, why?" Foudre asked. "Revenge, obviously." Nathan answered. "What does he take us for, does he think he can beat us, together?" Foudre snorted coldly. "You saw his fight with those old guys, do you think we can defeat him?" Nathan asked. He had already fought with Grey before, and he lost woefully. Even though he was confident in his abilities, he knew for a fact that he was no match for Grey. Even though it was evident that Grey uses some sort of special technique that boosts his strength to the Peak of the Sage Plane, he still didn''t dare to undermine Grey''s talent. Foudre wanted to reply, but he paused and thought about Grey''s battle before his expression turned dark. He already knew the answer, they couldn''t fight against two such experts, even if they used a special technique to increase their strengths. Of course they didn''t have one that was as absurd as Grey''s technique, so they couldn''t even get to the Peak of the Sage Plane despite not being far from it. They were still speaking when Grey stepped out of the void. They didn''t notice his presence for a few seconds, Eva was the first to see him and she froze in fear. "Wha¡­ wha¡­ what are you doing here?" She stammered. "Don''t get involved in this." Grey said gently. Nathan and Foudre turned to look at Grey, their expressions sour. They couldn''t believe a single individual would actually put pressure on them. One that was even below them in terms of cultivation stage. If not for Grey''s secret technique, they wouldn''t need to fear him, and he wouldn''t have the courage to act as he does. "Grey, you''re all healed up." Nathan said with a friendly smile. "Yeah, thanks to you, I guess." Grey replied with a smile. Foudre snorted, he wasn''t like Nathan, "Why are you here?" "I came for you in particular, Nathan, I''ll give you a chance, cripple yourself and I''ll let you live. You can even do it in a way that you can start cultivating again from scratch." Grey said casually. Nathan and Foudre flew into rage when they heard Grey''s words, his words clearly showed that he held both individuals in contempt, he simply didn''t think much of them. Chapter ?892 I Dont Do Well With Accepting Apologies Chapter ?892 I Don''t Do Well With Accepting Apologies "Who do you think you are?" Nathan asked, trying to contain his anger. He was visibly shaking from Grey''s words. "I''m Grey, and presently, your fate lies in my hands. I''m killing him, there''s no way he''s surviving. Normally, I''d kill you as well, but on account of my relationship with Eva, although we''re not close, I''ll give you a chance." Grey said with a calm expression. He didn''t wear his smile and his expression was once again bland. Foudre was the one who exploded in anger when he saw Grey pointing at him and declaring his fate like some god. "Come at me if you dare." He motioned at Grey, trying to get him to fight him. "Do you really want that?" Grey tilted his head to the side and looked at Foudre in disdain. He didn''t even hide the fact that he was looking down at him. Foudre almost went mad when he saw Grey looking at him in this manner, he was about to charge out when Nathan grabbed his hand. "Grey, I agree that what we did was wrong, but aren''t you being a little too excessive?" Nathan tried to resolve the matter calmly. "Excessive? I''m amazed such words can come out of your mouth. If I were dead, would you say that I am being excessive?" Grey scoffed at the hypocritical nature of Nathan. He was already used to this, so he wasn''t surprised. "I already apologized for it." Nathan said. "Sorry, I don''t do well with accepting apologies. Anyone who wants me dead will die." Grey said with an intimidating aura, he took a step forward and exploded out with a powerful aura. He was done talking, since Nathan refused to cripple himself, then he would kill him as well. He only wanted to leave him alive because of Eva, but there was no need. Nathan and Foudre prepared to attack while Eva stood between Grey and the duo, her intentions were clear, she wanted to protect them. Grey paused when he saw her standing in front of him, "Move." "Please, don''t do this." Eva begged, tears already in her eyes. Boom! A powerful fire attack exploded out from Grey and it sent Eva flying. Nathan and Foudre didn''t expect Grey would attack her, so they were unable to react quickly. Even Eva didn''t think Grey would attack her, so she wasn''t able to put up a defense, and was hit by the full force of the attack. After sending Eva flying, Grey rushed at the duo. Nathan and Foudre stood beside each other and attacked simultaneously. Grey didn''t even feel bothered by their attacks, with a wave, a brownish screen appeared in front of him. It was just like a wind or fire screen, but this one was made from the earth element. The screen was hit by the two attacks and it shook, however, it didn''t have any signs of cracks. A fireball appeared above Nathan and Foudre and came crashing down. The duo blocked the attack. While blocking the attack, earth spikes sprouted out of the ground, sending the duo into the air. They quickly balanced themselves, but they were met with Grey who appeared within a few meters of them. Grey released his gravitational force field that sent the duo down. Just like most of Grey''s victims, they weren''t prepared for the sudden change and fell to the ground. Grey used his lightning domain next, sending streaks of lightning to attack the duo. They were zapped by the lightning at first, but they quickly created a fire dome to protect themselves from the lightning before sending out fire spears in Grey''s direction. Grey was still mid-air, moving from one side to another, he dodged and blocked the spears. Nathan and Foudre jumped out from the range of the lightning domain and attacked Grey from two different angles. Grey spread out his hands and he was covered by a sea of flames. The attacks of both Nathan and Foudre entered the sea of flames and vanished, becoming part of it. This was an ability of Grey''s fire domain, with it, he could swallow up any fire elemental attack sent at him, well, within his strength level that is, and add it to the power of the fire domain. Fighting against two Fire Elementalists, he had the absolute advantage, especially now that he had the higher cultivation stage. Nathan and Foudre exchanged glances when they saw this, they didn''t stop after the first try, and with a flash, they unleashed one of their strongest attacks. Foudre sent out a stream of fire which seemed to have special flames mixed with it. There were some places that had different colors in the stream of fire. Nathan on the other hand used something that amazed Grey, a fire domain. The fire domain covered a large area and Foudre''s attack power was increased with the help of Nathan''s domain. The strength of this attack was presently at the Peak of the Sage Plane. ''Finally, I thought they would bore me all through.'' Grey smiled internally and increased the intensity of his domain. He turned it to his icy flame domain, trying to freeze the attack that was coming his way. His domain and Nathan''s domain clashed, before the stream of fire entered his domain. Like receiving a double attack, his domain wavered, and the impact forced him back some meters. Nathan and Foudre continued their attack, not holding back. Eva opened her eyes at this moment, when she saw the duo forcing Grey back, she tried to stand up and stop them from fighting, but she noticed that she was drained, it would take a few minutes before she would be able to recover. This was thanks to Void using the darkness element to corrode her elemental essence. She was almost the same as a regular human at the moment, only far stronger. Boom! Bang! Bam! The fight started to intensify, Grey was using the lightning and fire element as his main attack options while using the space and earth elements to dodge and block most of the attacks. The duo were pure Fire Elementalists, so unlike Grey, they couldn''t use other elements, but they were holding their own against Grey at the moment. Chapter ?893 Separating The Duo Chapter ?893 Separating The Duo Boom! Nathan and Foudre were sent crashing to the ground, destroying a large boulder by the side. Grey appeared beside them and attacked once again. He struck Foudre with a light sword that sent him flying. Nathan was about to move but his legs were sealed to the ground with the earth that came out of the ground. He destroyed it with fire but was sent flying after receiving a blow from Grey. Given the disparity in terms of physique, the punch was something that hurt him. Foudre rushed back into the scene but was met with Grey''s attacks. He was holding off Grey when Nathan attacked with his domain once again. Grey had to use his inscriptions to fight against Foudre while he turned to Nathan. Foudre refused to give him the opportunity he wanted, quickly dealing with the inscriptions and rushing into the fray. Nathan, with the help of his domain, had managed to block two lightning attacks, but he was hit by a large earth pillar that smacked him into the ground. Foudre saw two large palms made from earth attempting to clap, with him in the middle. He exploded out with a powerful sea of flames that stopped the hands, only for a few seconds, giving him the opportunity he needed to escape from the attack range. Unfortunately for him, after dodging that, Grey welcomed him with a large lightning hand that smacked him to the ground. He landed close to Nathan. Grey, currently covered in lightning fell to the ground with full force. When he landed on the ground, the entire area was covered with lightning and both Nathan and Foudre were thrown up by the lightning that zapped them from the ground. Grey''s figure blurred and he moved once again. Nathan hurriedly used his domain while Foudre brought out a talisman, placing it on his body, he felt lighter and moved with incredible speed. It was a Peak Sage Plane Light Elementalist talisman that boosted the speed of its user. Grey didn''t want to let any of them escape, so he chased after Foudre who was fleeing, Nathan tried to use the opportunity to attack Grey from behind, only to realize Grey saw through their plans when Grey turned to look at him with his current pale blue eyes. Nathan froze, and ice started to surface on his body, he was freezing. Grey''s mental attack has the ability to freeze his victims thanks to the superior ability of the pale blue flame. Of course there are ice users that had a better freezing ability, but Grey''s ability with the pale blue freezing flame was among the top-notch ice users, and he wasn''t even using ice. Nathan''s eyes glowed red and the ice surrounding him started to melt off. Grey continued chasing after Foudre, he knew this attack was not going to stop Nathan, and he didn''t do it to stop him he only needed to make sure his surprise attack didn''t work. Foudre took a sharp turn and attacked Grey. Grey was already expecting something like this, his body was covered with earth armor. When Foudre''s attack struck him, it forced him back, and he swayed in the air. Nathan had broken free at this time, so he joined in on the attack as well. When their attacks were about to reach Grey, they seemingly vanished into thin air. Grey smirked and moved forward. Nathan and Foudre know better than to let him near them after experiencing his gravitational force field for the first time, they didn''t dare to let him get close to them nor within a hundred meters from them. They didn''t know the limitations of the gravitational force field, so they had to be extra cautious. Eva watched the battle from the side, hoping to recover quickly so she could stop them. Just when she was about to recover, she noticed all her elemental essence vanished once again. She looked around only to see Void waving at her. "Stay put. If you move, I''ll kill you." Void said. His small stature and voice were a complete contrast to what just came out of his mouth. He was threatening Eva, and from the terrifying killing intent he was releasing, she knew he wasn''t bluffing. Void knew Grey wouldn''t kill Eva, but he didn''t mind. Unlike Grey, he didn''t have any pity for her. "You''re the one doing this to me?" Eva asked. Void didn''t bother to reply, but his stance was clear, he would not allow anyone else to interfere in the battle. He raised a brow to look in the direction of Kangs City, some powerful auras were rushing over from that direction. ''Grey.'' ''Already sensed them. I''m taking the fight elsewhere, take the girl somewhere else.'' Void nodded and jumped on Eva''s shoulder, before she could say anything, they vanished. Nathan and Foudre were on the attack, Grey decided to use this to his advantage and rushed in another direction, however, the duo refused to follow him. He came back and realized the duo were trying to stall him so that the experts from Kangs City could arrive. He smiled and with a blink, he exchanged positions with Nathan, placing his hands on the shoulder of Foudre who didn''t expect him to appear beside him, they vanished. However, before leaving, he tagged Nathan. ''I''ll deal with this one first.'' Nathan was stunned when he saw this. He suddenly recalled Grey used this ability when fighting with the experts from Kangs City. Before he could react, Grey and Foudre were gone. His greatest fear was coming to pass, as long as they were not together, then Grey would be able to easily kill them off. "It''s better he picked him, he''s in for some surprises. I should leave, Foudre should be able to keep him busy." Nathan muttered before rushing off. Foudre had some powerful figures in the Faction, so he had multiple top-tier talismans and techniques to use whenever he was in danger. Nathan''s plan right now was to leave the Lutra realm and hide in the Faction. No matter how talented Grey was, there was no way he would be able to kill him in the Faction. Chapter ?894 You Can Not Escape Chapter ?894 You Can Not Escape Grey and Foudre appeared close to the sea where Grey fought against the man. Looking at the place now, he couldn''t be this was where he almost died. Foudre looked around, not seeing Nathan, he knew Grey had separated them. When they were together, they could barely keep up with Grey, now that he was alone, he knew for sure that he was no match for Grey. Without wasting time, he brought out multiple talismans and placed them on his body, increasing his defense, attack, and speed. His current power wasn''t far off from those at the very Peak of the Sage Plane. Grey didn''t rush him, letting him do what he wanted. "Are you done?" He asked calmly. Foudre didn''t respond as he snorted coldly, Grey''s words were like a mockery to him. The fact that Grey even let him complete his actions showed how little Grey thought of him which he found to be infuriating. With a yell, he charged at Grey. Grey prepared for an attack, as Foudre got close, he sent out a powerful lightning orb in his direction. Foudre used the fire element to block the attack, countering with a fire rain. Grey covered himself with an earth dome, protecting himself from the fire rain. A lightning bolt struck from the sky, hitting Foudre. Foudre tried dodging the attack, but the attack was too fast, even with his increased speed, he was no match for Grey''s attack speed. He fell from the sky into the water. Grey waited for him but he didn''t see any signs of him coming out, looking to his left, he saw Foudre''s figure darting through the water, trying to escape. ''Smart.'' He sneered before disappearing. Boom! The water exploded after Grey struck it and Foudre was forced out by his attack. "You can''t escape your fate. This time next year will be your anniversary, well, death anniversary." Grey chuckled and attacked. Foudre was more infuriated with Grey''s overconfidence than the fact that he wanted to kill him. Grey was almost certain he would kill him, Foudre didn''t believe this. ''With all the talismans I have, he can''t kill me.'' He calmed his head and started to take rational actions. From his current perspective, he knew falling for Grey''s trick would mean the end of him. Once he lets his emotions get the better of him, then Grey would capitalize on that and kill him. Foudre settling his emotions didn''t escape Grey''s eyes, but he wasn''t worried. He would still kill him, even if he broke through. ''Since we''re alone, there''s no use in hiding my other elements.'' He thought. But after a while, he decided to use only the wind element. The darkness element will be used discreetly. He stretched out his right hand and a powerful suction force dragged Foudre towards him. Foudre didn''t expect this and was taken by surprise. Just as he was about to get close to Grey, he attacked. Grey unleashed his gravitational force field after dragging Foudre close to him. The force field pushed Foudre down, making him miss his target. Grey continued his attack with the wind element, trapping Foudre in a twister. He fueled it with the fire element while sending earth shards into it as well. Foudre destroyed one of the talismans with him, and an earth armor appeared on his body, blocking most of the attacks. Another talisman was used, but this one was an attack talisman. Forcefully breaking the twister. Grey unleashed his inscriptions while using his space element to the fullest. He went on a full assault. Foudre had enough talisman to fight for a long time, but since they weren''t part of his personal strength, there was no way he could utilize them well. Grey on the other hand was using all his elements, and with the help of his domains and inscriptions, Foudre found it difficult to defend himself even with so many talismans. Boom! His figure was sent flying, crashing into the water. When he landed on the water, his figure was shrouded by a spatial force and he vanished. Grey noticed the space element and knew Foudre had used a spatial talisman to teleport from there. He had marked him, so when this happened, he vanished immediately as well. Over eighty kilometers away, Foudre appeared, breathing heavily. Blood was on the side of his mouth, and his hair was disarranged. He was still catching his breath when Grey grabbed him by the neck, lifting him up. "I told you, I''ll kill you." Grey tightened his grip, but Foudre used another talisman, an attack talisman that sent Grey flying. Grey''s figure crashed into a mountain by the side, causing a deep crater in the mountain. Grey crawled out of the crater, but Foudre was already nowhere to be seen. He knew he had used another teleportation talisman, and with a blink, he followed right after. Foudre appeared in a bustling city filled with people from the Lutra race. Grey appeared close to him, unfortunately, there was a Peak Sage Plane expert, seeing Grey and Foudre appear simultaneously, he attacked instantly. Grey blocked the attack while Foudre used another talisman to escape from the scene. The Lutra race expert wanted to keep Grey from leaving, but it was impossible. Grey used his lightning domain to keep the expert from moving before leaving. He used his gravitational force field as well as a twister fueled with lightning and fire to attack the expert. He didn''t know the end result of the attack, but he knew it would most definitely cause him some harm. Foudre appeared outside the city, but Grey followed right after. Attacking the moment he saw him. Bang! Bam! Foudre''s figure crashed into the ground, breaking the trees on his path. "I told you, you can not escape." Grey walked over to Foudre. Foudre stood up, looking at Grey with hateful eyes. "Why are you so persistent?" He asked angrily. "I told you, anyone who wants me dead, will die. There are no exceptions." Grey replied casually. Foudre gritted his teeth angrily, he couldn''t accept his current predicament. Chapter 895 Regrets Chapter 895 Regrets Boom! Foudre''s figure slammed into the rocks by the side of a mountain range. He had lost count of how many times Grey had slammed him into the ground. After repeated attempts to escape with a teleportation talisman, he had almost given up entirely. No matter where he vanishes to, Grey always appears right next to him, it was as if they were teleporting simultaneously on the same spatial tunnel. He had tried going to different places, but Grey always finds him. There was a time he used the teleportation talisman twice, disappearing the moment he appeared in a particular spot, but Grey still found him in less than a few seconds. Grey was like a really bad headache that just wouldn''t go away, the only difference is that he was here to kill him. There wasn''t any shred of pity whenever Grey attacked, and he seems to want to make sure he kills him quickly. "Why don''t you go after Nathan, he was the one who sent me to kill you." Foudre tried to change Grey''s mind. "He won''t escape, don''t worry, you''ll have so much time on the other side." Grey replied casually. "Are you sure you want to do this? If I die, my uncles will kill you." Foudre tried to threaten Grey with his background. "Even if your father is the Faction Leader, I''ll still kill you." Grey''s reply was resolute. Foudre tossed multiple attack talismans at Grey, but he dodged and attacked once again, sending Foudre flying. Foudre hit the ground, bouncing off it multiple times before finally coming to a stop. His body was a wreck, blood dripping from different parts of his body. "Please, it doesn''t have to be this way. We can work things out." Foudre finally resorted to begging. As time went on, he realized there was no escaping Grey. Even if he wanted to, Grey wouldn''t allow him. His only choice was to beg. "As I said, I don''t do well with apologies. Besides, if you were stronger, or you knew I can''t kill you, you wouldn''t be begging me." Grey walked over, eyes blazing with killing intent. Foudre attacked, but it was useless. Grey easily blocked it, attacking Foudre. With a powerful kick, he sent Foudre flying into the air. He vanished, appearing in the sky. He kicked Foudre to the ground. Boom! Foudre''s figure slammed into the ground, creating a crater, while also creating a dust cloud. Grey appeared in front of the crater as Foudre tried to crawl out, hoping to escape. He froze both Foudre''s arms and legs, making it impossible for him to move. Foudre was unable to move, defenseless in front of Grey. It was almost the same as Grey''s condition at that time, the only difference was that he was conscious. Grey created a fusion orb, it was still his strongest attack. When the fusion orb came in contact with Foudre, Foudre was unable to defend against it and it disintegrated him to nothingness. It was as if he was never there. Grey''s facial expression was still the same, even though he just killed one of his companions from the Faction. ''Next, Nathan.'' Grey''s figure blurred and he vanished from his current location. Close to the portal that leads to the Aurora Continent. Nathan was currently standing around two kilometers away from the portal. With his speed, he would get there in a few seconds. ''Grey should still be occupied with Foudre, I''ll leave before he finishes him off.'' He knew Grey would defeat Foudre in the end, so he wanted to leave as soon as possible. He increased his speed, and just when he could see the portal, his heart throbbed, and he started to get an uneasy feeling. His heart sank when he sensed an attack coming his way. He didn''t need any words, he knew it was from Grey. ''How could he be so fast? It hasn''t even been up to thirty minutes.'' He was left aghast. He blocked the attack, trying to move forward as well. Grey appeared in front of him, blocking his path. "Did you think you can escape?" He asked with an apathetic glance. "You''re making a mistake. Doing this will only make you hated in the Faction." Nathan tried to reason with him. "Don''t worry, I''m cool with people hating me. But hating me because of you, I''m not so sure, you don''t have the best reputation in the Faction to start with." Grey answered. Nathan was a proud figure who looked down on multiple people, so it was normal that he had a fairly bad reputation in the Faction. The only reason he was famous was that he was talented, and came from a fairly powerful Family. Nathan gulped down, at this point, he started to regret his decision of wanting revenge against Grey. The latest_epi_sodes are on_the ???????.???. website. From the start, he was the one who tried to attack Grey when Grey took the treasure. After being defeated, he didn''t accept it and tried to fight again, but didn''t get a chance. The matter had been troubling him for some time, so when he saw Grey in his unconscious state, he just wanted him dead. ''I should''ve killed him myself.'' He regretted holding back. Had he killed him then, he wouldn''t have had to face a vengeful Grey. Grey looked at him coldly, and just as he prepared to attack, the young man who was standing guard at the portal walked over. The young man was at the Peak of the Sage Plane. He couldn''t guard the portal without sufficient strength, so even though he was a genius, he had to make sacrifices, besides, this would give him the points he needed. He was around twenty-six years or so and was older than both Grey and Nathan. "What''s going on?" He asked as he looked at both individuals. "Oh good, you''re here. This psychopath is trying to kill me." Nathan pointed at Grey with a relieved look on his face. The appearance of this youth might just save his life. "Aren''t you the guy who almost died?" The youth turned to Grey. Grey nodded, studying the youth. Chapter 896 I Was Never Here Chapter 896 I Was Never Here Grey looked at the youth, he saw him when he was coming back, but he didn''t really speak with him. "You want to kill him, correct?" The young man asked. Grey nodded, not hiding his intentions, "I only came for him." "If I may ask, why?" The young man asked. Grey told him what happened when he was unconscious, and also what led to Nathan having ill will towards him. "So, you''re saying he wanted to kill you because you beat him up. So now you''re here for revenge, right?" The young man asked. "Yes." Grey nodded gently. If the young man tried to stop him, he had already decided to fight against him as well. He didn''t care who stepped forward, as long as it wasn''t an Elemental Venerable, he wasn''t afraid of anyone. "Why are you asking him so many questions? He wants to break the rule of the Faction. And him saying I wanted to kill him was a lie, I never attempted to attack him while he was unconscious." Nathan tried to justify himself. The youth turned to look at Nathan, his expression blank, he turned around, and to the surprise of both Grey and Nathan, he walked back. "I was never here." His words stunned the duo. Nathan stood still, it was as if he had been struck by lightning. Grey on the other hand laughed out loudly, he couldn''t hide the fact that he actually liked what the young man did. Most people would want to find a way to resolve the issue, but the young man knew what was best and left them alone. What was more amusing was him saying he was never there. "You bastard, you''ll pay for this!" Nathan screamed. "How? You''ll be dead soon." The young man''s voice came from afar. With that, he left Nathan to his fate. He was certain Grey could defeat Nathan. To be honest, he wasn''t very confident in being able to stop Grey, hence there was no need in making an enemy of the fastest-rising genius in the Faction. From the time the Elder gave the order for Grey to be found, it was evident to everyone that Grey was very important to the Faction, and the Faction Leader would definitely protect him at all costs. Even if it meant weeding out a few bad eggs who were no doubt geniuses. Nathan stood opposite Grey, gritting his teeth with both hands clenched. "If you think you can kill me, you''re deceiving yourself." He spat out coldly. "Don''t fool yourself, you will definitely die." Grey said calmly. Nathan yelled and attacked with his domain. Grey also spread out his domain. ''Void, seal the area.'' He had called Void over, leaving Eva alone. He wanted Void''s help with sealing the area with his space domain. This will ensure that Nathan would be unable to escape, while he would also not have to worry about people intervening. The duo exploded out with powerful fire elemental attacks. Both displaying techniques from the Pyrmond Faction. Grey decided to take out his other elements as well, just like what he did with Foudre. The young man couldn''t see the battle any longer after Void sealed the area, and he didn''t attempt to try. Grey was free to use all his elements, without fear. A water cube appeared in the sky, along with three inscriptions. They all attacked Nathan simultaneously, not giving him any chance to counter. Grey drew closer to him and spreading out both of his hands, a powerful repulsion force sent Nathan flying. This was his wind element, while Nathan was mid-air, the cube and inscriptions continued attacking. The cube was made by his water element, while his inscriptions made use of the fire, lightning, and wind element. He released a small black orb into the air that broke apart, sending out small particles of darkness. It slowly started to corrode Nathan as the battle progressed. Nathan was getting desperate after being overwhelmed by Grey. He didn''t even have the chance to use any of his powers. Just like their first encounter, Grey was dominating him. Boom! Bang! Bam! He had crashed into the ground countless times, causing multiple craters on the ground. Void was watching the battle from the side, with a satisfied smile. Nathan brought out a teleportation talisman and tried to escape with it. However, Void''s space domain sealed the entire area, the space included. Using the space talisman had little to no effect. All it did was take him to the edge of the domain, but it was unable to take him out of the domain. Grey appeared beside him and attacked once again. Nathan fell to the ground once again, mouth bleeding, and a large injury on his back that was inflicted by a lightning attack. His eyes raged with madness, he could not accept his death without fighting back. He brought out a talisman that made Grey pause, it was an Elemental Venerable attack talisman. The latest_epi_sodes are on_the ???????.???. website. "Come closer if you dare!" Nathan roared. "Do you think I''m afraid of that?" Grey looked at him coldly. "Even if you might survive it, you''ll be injured once again, on the brink of death." Nathan threatened. "I''m not afraid. I have experience with this." Grey didn''t flinch in front of a possible deadly attack. He had done his calculations, even though Nathan had an Elemental Venerable attack talisman, he couldn''t use it like an Elemental Venerable attacking personally. From using the Light Elementalist Elemental Venerable talisman the last time, he already knew the time limit. All he had to do was react accordingly, and he would be uninjured. Of course, there were risks, but he was confident with his calculations. Nathan hadn''t used this before here, so he wouldn''t know how long it would take before the realm snuffs out the attack of anything above the Sage Plane. Grey approached Nathan with a look of disdain. Nathan felt like Grey was looking down on him for using a power that wasn''t his, and it infuriated him. With a powerful roar, he unleashed the talisman''s attack on Grey. Chapter ?897 I Want You Dead Chapter ?897 I Want You Dead Boom! The attack talisman exploded, rocking the entire place. Void''s space domain shattered instantly and he was also sent flying from the impact of the attack. Grey on the other hand was also sent flying, in the direction of the portal. The moment the attack was released, the realm reacted accordingly and quickly rushed to snuff it out. Nevertheless, the impact had been released and Grey and Void were nowhere close to Nathan any longer. Since he was the user, he wasn''t affected by the attack. The young man who was standing guard by the portal looked in the direction when he heard the explosion, he sucked in a cold breath when he saw the reaction from the world. He knew one of the duo had used an attack exceeding the Sage Plane, and since Grey was the one with the advantage, Nathan was the only one who would resort to such methods. "Hmm, disgraceful." He shook his head. He saw a figure shooting through the air at an unprecedented pace, banging into the ground. The figure slid on the ground before hitting a large rock and breaking through it. Only after hitting two trees did the figure stop. This figure was Grey, Void flew in another direction. Thinking of the fact that Nathan would most likely report him to the Faction for leaving them alone, he wanted to involve himself, but he stopped. The outcome of the battle had nothing to do with him. If Nathan came and wanted to pass through the portal, he would let him pass. Nathan was standing in the same location, looking at the result of his attack. He couldn''t say he wasn''t impressed by it. "Haha, cocky fool. I want to see how you can survive that." Nathan laughed in exhilaration. He didn''t even bother to leave the Lutra realm as he flew over to where Grey crashed. To him, even if Grey survived the attack, he would be brutally injured, there was no way he would be able to sustain his special technique. Once that happens, he would kill Grey with his hands. When he got to the place Grey crashed, he saw Grey''s figure, motionless. "Hehe, repeat your last words." Nathan mocked. Grey opened his eyes, blood dripping from the side of his mouth. He was still covered by the dust in the area, so he couldn''t get a good view of Nathan, nor did Nathan have a good view of him. Nathan walked closer, and seeing Grey''s condition, his pupils shrank. "Impo¡­" Boom! His figure was sent flying, even before he could finish his statement. While mid-air, he forcefully stabilized his body and shot straight for the portal. There was no time to think, he had to leave the Lutra realm immediately. Grey''s figure appeared in front of the portal and he released his gravitational force field. Both his domains were utilized as well. He would not let Nathan leave this place, as long as Nathan left, the Elder outside would save him, Grey didn''t want that. "Are you mad?!" Nathan screamed when he saw Grey blocking his path. This was unacceptable to him. Grey on the other hand smiled and shot at him. Before he could react, Grey was standing in front of him and he punched him to the ground. The power behind Grey''s blows was far superior to Nathan''s physique. He felt a few of his ribs break when the blow connected. His body bounced off the ground, and he was met with Grey''s attack once again. Sending him crashing in another direction. ''Void, are you alright?'' Grey asked telepathically after sending Nathan flying. ''I''m good. I retreated quickly, but was still impacted by the attack.'' Void replied, he added after some time, ''A meal will fix me.'' ''Alright.'' Grey didn''t argue with him, as long as he was fine, he could eat all he wanted. It wasn''t like Grey gets tired of cooking. He still cooked frequently for his Teacher. Void was elated when he heard this and felt it was worth it. Although he was hurting all over, he would be fine soon. His healing capabilities were in no way inferior to Grey''s. When Grey arrived, Nathan was already on both feet, staring at Grey with hateful eyes. He spat out a mouthful of blood before yelling at the top of his lungs. His essence started to increase, and before long, his cultivation shot from the Eighth stage of the Sage Plane to the Peak of the Sage Plane. He was ready to risk it all. Using this technique would cause him harm, hence he had been refraining from using it, but now, he had no choice, either he uses it, or he dies. All that mattered to him right now was surviving, nothing else. "Getting serious? I thought you''d accept death easily." Grey raised a brow when he saw this, but he still didn''t think too much of it. He would still overpower Nathan. As long as Nathan was not an Elemental Venerable, he would defeat him. "I want you dead." Nathan replied with a low growl. "Same here." Grey said and attacked. Nathan rushed at him as well. The duo exchanged multiple blows in a matter of seconds. The young man who was standing guard at the portal looked at them, stunned by their strength. Of course he was powerful in his own right, but these two were quite something, especially Grey. Against the current Nathan, he had confidence in coming out victorious, but against Grey, he wasn''t so sure. What was more shocking about Grey was that he actually survived that attack. From the impact alone, the young man already knew he wouldn''t be able to survive it, yet Grey not only survived, but he was still fighting with such intensity. He wasn''t on anyone''s side, whoever won had nothing to do with him. He sat down and decided to enjoy the battle, after all, it''s not every day he got to witness a battle of such caliber, and from young geniuses like himself as well. Chapter 898 I Made A Promise Chapter 898 I Made A Promise Boom! Bang! The fight continued with greater intensity. Nathan was putting up a great fight against Grey, even Grey was a little taken aback that he could fight this much, given his somewhat cowardly nature. Void was by the side, watching with the young man. They even occasionally spoke about the fight. Grey was fighting with five elements, six if his darkness element was added, but only he and Void knew of its involvement, so Nathan felt he was using five. ''I thought he had only four, how can he have four? It''s unheard of!'' Nathan was freaking out. Grey''s abilities were getting more ahead of his comprehension. If things continued like this, he was sure to lose. What was worse was that he couldn''t keep this technique forever, the moment he exited it, he would enter a weakened state. At that time, even someone who just broke through to the Sage Plane could kill him, much less a freak like Grey. His death was almost certain, hence he tried to escape multiple times, Grey however always finds a way to stop him from leaving, blocking his path of escape. The portal was becoming less and less a good option since Grey placed himself between him and the portal. If he wanted to get there, he had to get through Grey, something that was impossible for him. Thinking up to this point, he quickly changed his mind. Since he couldn''t get to the portal, he would head into the Lutra realm. Maybe he could find a means of escaping there. As long as he survived, he didn''t care what he did. Also, if other members of their Faction came up, then he had some hope of getting them to threaten Grey. All they needed to do was to tell him they would report him to the Faction, which should stop Grey from killing. Grey on the other hand had no idea what was going through Nathan''s head, he continued his attack, while stopping him from getting to the portal. Nathan suddenly made a quick turn and bolted into the Lutra realm, to Grey''s surprise. "Eh?" Grey was a little confused when he saw this. His initial thought was that Nathan was trying to draw him forward and then try to get to the portal, only after he didn''t see any signs of Nathan turning around did he realize what was happening. Nathan had given up on the portal and decided to seek refuge in the Lutra realm. Grey gave chase and Void had to leave the young man by the portal alone. The young man almost wanted to follow them as well since he was being entertained by the battle, but he couldn''t leave this place, so he had to stay, unfortunately. Grey was faster than Nathan, so he quickly caught up with him and they continued fighting. However, Nathan found an opportunity to run once again. He started using Peak Sage Plane light talismans to increase his speed, taking it above his present level. Against any other Peak Sage Plane Elementalist, he would escape without any problems, since Grey was hellbent on killing him, his fate was sealed. His speed exceeded that of Grey by some margin, but that was all he needed to escape from him. Grey didn''t feel bothered by this, with a blink, he appeared in the location Nathan was. It didn''t take long before Nathan realized something was wrong, he couldn''t get away from Grey, no matter how fast he was. He even used a teleportation talisman as well, but it was useless. Grey still found him, to his dismay. This was something he never thought would be possible. "Give up, you can''t escape." Grey said, like the death reaper he currently is.F "What are you?" Nathan asked with a horrified look. "Death''s shadow." Grey replied sincerely. Nathan didn''t even doubt it at this moment. To him, Grey was death itself, not even its shadow. "You''re a maniac!" He complained before using another teleportation talisman. He couldn''t resign to his fate. "No matter how much you run, I will find you." Grey''s voice echoed in Nathan''s ear when he appeared in another location. Looking behind him, he saw Grey staring at him with an apathetic look. Grey''s eyes glowed pale blue and Nathan froze for a quarter of a second. This short time was more than enough for Grey, he shortened the gap between them and punched him in the chest. His blow exploded with a fiery blue flame that spread out an icy wind with it. Nathan slowly started to freeze from the cold. Using his fire element, he dealt with the ice and tried to run away, but Grey stopped him. The blow he received at point-blank range had caused him severe internal injuries, and his present actions were a bit clouded. Even though his vision was blurry at the moment, he still attempted to run. "You can''t run away, not from my hands." Grey said casually as he smacked Nathan out of a spatial tunnel. With him having the power to stop him from escaping into the spatial tunnel created by those talismans, Nathan''s hope of escaping was as good as gone. Nathan breathed heavily, presently on his knees in a condition he never thought he would be in. "Please, all this can be resolved." He begged. After realizing there was no hope of escaping, he tried to beg. "It can''t." Grey''s reply was cold. "Alright, how about I cripple myself? You offered to let me go if I crippled myself. I want to." Nathan begged. "That will be unfair to your friend. Besides, I already promised him that I''ll send you over." Grey said with a playful smile. "We''re not friends, I can assure you that, We were only using each other. Now that he''s dead, no one is as glad as I am. Please, let me go, I won''t even resist you crippling me yourself." Nathan begged with tears already in his eyes. Grey looked at the pitiful Nathan, "A shame a genius is reduced to such a level." "How dare I call myself in the presence of a true genius?" Chapter ?899 Arent You Forgetting Something? Chapter ?899 Aren''t You Forgetting Something? Grey continued staring down at Nathan and shook his head. People will always resort to anything when faced with death. He knew from the start that Nathan was not someone who had resolve. As long as things weren''t going his way, he would change. From being a respectful genius, he tried to stop people from helping Grey because he was beaten up. Now that he knew there was no way for him to win the fight, instead of going down with his honor, he wanted to cripple himself to ensure he didn''t die. Grey was the one who gave him this choice from the start, but since he refused then, it was already over. There was no way he was going to give him the chance again. When he thought about it sincerely, he realized he made a mistake, as long as he wanted to kill Foudre, then he had to kill Nathan since he was the one who sent Foudre after him. It was like wanting to kill an assassin, but forgiving the person who sent the assassin to kill you. Nathan continued pleading, he was currently on his knees, grabbing onto Grey''s legs. When he saw that Grey looked distracted, he released an attack. However, he noticed Grey''s figure didn''t move. "I already know your type, and will naturally make moves to stop things of this sort. You can not defeat me." Grey''s cold voice entered his ear. Grey used the darkness element to eat off all the attacks, he had also been pumping the darkness element into his body. This was the reason his attack power dwindled exponentially, unknown to him, hence it became very easy for Grey to block the attack. Nathan fell to the ground in despair, he was desperate, and he wanted to live. "I can''t accept this." He muttered repeatedly. Grey bent down to his level, "You don''t have to." Nathan''s eyes glowed with madness and he grabbed onto Grey. "Since you want me dead, I''ll take you with me." He roared. Before Grey could push him off, he exploded with terrifying power. Grey didn''t think Nathan would actually destroy his core in hopes of taking Grey down with him. Given the short distance, Grey felt the full force of the attack. He was sent flying, crashing through an entire mountain that was almost a kilometer wide. Nathan was dead, but Grey''s condition wasn''t good. He was injured in different places, and a large hole was in his stomach. ''Damn it, I''m injured again.'' He complained. This injury was not on the same level as the previous one, but it was serious. He brought out the best healing tonic he had with him and gulped it down. The light element residuals in his body from the healing session he had from his last injury also went to work as well. He used his own light element to try to heal the injury. The bleeding soon stopped, and he started to recover, slowly, but he was recovering. Void appeared beside him with a smile, "That doesn''t look good." "I know." Grey said, still lying in the rubble. He vanished to the cave where Keith and the snake stayed, entering the water there. It took some time, but the hole in his stomach started to cover. After almost three days, he managed to step out of the cave. His previous clothes were a mess, so he changed his clothes. "That moron killed himself just to take me down with him." Grey shook his head as they headed back to the portal. There was nothing left for him to do in the Lutra realm. He had exerted revenge on the people who wanted him dead, and Klaus'' call for help had been over a month. He hadn''t even been able to speak with him since he had been unconscious. While he was healing up, he didn''t try to communicate with them since he wanted to focus on his health. He soon appeared close to the portal. To his surprise, he saw a familiar figure there, Eva. "You''re here." He looked at her. "Where''s he?" Eva asked. "Dead." Grey replied. There was no use hiding it, he already told Eva of his plans of killing them from the start, so even if he lied, she would find out sooner or later when the duo doesn''t return from the Lutra realm. Eva bit her bottom lips, "Why did you have to?" Grey looked at her for some time, but he didn''t answer her question. He didn''t have to explain his actions. She knew Nathan wanted to kill him, and for him, that was enough for her to come up with a reason why he killed them. Grey turned to the young man guarding the portal, and after nodding, he left without saying a word. Eva turned to the young man, "You let him kill him?" "I didn''t see anything." The young man replied. Eva wanted to continue speaking, but the young man continued his words. "You saw him just arriving, he was never here. Other than seeing him enter and leave the realm, I don''t know him." He added. Eva nodded and left the portal. Grey was standing with the Elder outside the portal when Eva arrived, she went straight to the Elder. Grey looked at her, not even bothering to stop her from speaking. When the Elder heard of what Grey did, he turned to Grey who still had the same nonchalant expression. He knew a thing or two about what happened in the Lutra, especially the part where Grey was almost killed by Foudre, but he didn''t really know much about Nathan being involved. "Grey, is what she said true?" He turned to Grey. "Aren''t you forgetting something?" Grey nodded to the Elder''s question, before turning his attention to Eva who kept out the part where Nathan stopped her from helping him. The Elder turned to look at Eva and saw her disgruntled expression. He inquired about what Grey was talking about, and she told him everything, including how Nathan stopped her from helping Grey. Chapter 900 Swept Under The Rug Chapter 900 Swept Under The Rug The Elder turned to look at Grey, a little tired from the issue. He didn''t know what to do since all Grey did was take revenge against people who wanted to kill him, however, it was against the Faction''s rules for one member to kill another. In a way, he couldn''t say he felt any pity for Nathan and Foudre after Grey killed them, but with the background of Foudre, things would be a little difficult for them to push it aside. Nathan''s background was slightly negligible, but Foudre had uncles who were part of the higher-ups in the Faction. "You''ll return back to the Faction, the Faction Leader will deal with this issue." The Elder was glad he wasn''t the Faction Leader, with a simple wave of his hand, he transferred the matter to the Faction Leader. He didn''t need to worry or even think about how it would be resolved. He took Grey and Eva back to the Faction Leader who was alone. After telling him everything he heard, he left them alone since he still had to guard the portal. The Faction Leader saw the facial expression of the Elder and knew he wanted to leave the place as soon as possible. He couldn''t help but shake his head. Being the Faction Leader was a huge responsibility since he had to take care of multiple issues. He looked at Eva and Grey, "You''ll not speak of this to anyone else, I''ll settle it." The duo nodded, and with a wave, Eva was sent to the Faction, leaving only Grey. "You could''ve reported them to the Faction, it would''ve been easier to deal with them that way." The Faction Leader looked at Grey with a somewhat dejected look. "No, since I wasn''t dead, at most the Faction would expel them. I''ve read the rule books, it''ll favor them." Grey told the Faction Leader his reason for dealing with the matter on his own. "Foudre''s background is a little complicated, his family members will not let this matter slide. Of course, that''s if they hear about it." The Faction Leader caressed his temples. Grey could already guess what he wanted to do from his words, the Faction Leader planned to keep it from the other Elders. Now Grey understood why the Faction Leader warned them not to speak of it to anyone else. "Thank you." Grey bowed, he knew this wasn''t easy for the Faction Leader since he had to face the repercussions if word of what Grey did came out. But given the chance, he would take the same step. "You can leave. Please, try to stay out of trouble." The Faction Leader felt a headache. He knew the members of Foudre''s family already knew of his death, likewise that of Nathan''s, they would try to seek out why they died and news of what happened would eventually come out. ''I''ll protect him, no matter what.'' He concluded internally. There was no way he was going to allow anything to happen to Grey. To him, not just him, but most of the Elders, Grey was their future, they couldn''t afford to lose him. Keeping him in the Faction would keep him safe, but it would also bar his growth, so they had to take the difficult choice of letting him explore the world. Pyrmond Faction. Grey appeared in his house, it was the same way he left it. Looking around, he brought out his communication device, it was time to answer his friends. When he sent his spiritual consciousness inside, his head was flooded with messages and he almost had a headache. "What''s happening with Klaus?" He couldn''t help but wonder. He sent a message to Klaus and had almost an instant reply, classic Klaus. ''Where the hell have you been?!'' Klaus'' voice echoed in Grey''s head. Grey chuckled awkwardly but told him of his trip to the Lutra realm and how he almost died. ''It''s nice that you''re alright.'' Klaus heaved a sigh of relief. While the duo were still speaking, Alice and Reynolds joined in on the conversation thanks to Klaus notifying them of Grey''s presence. After apologizing to the group and promising to cook them a good meal when they next meet, he asked Klaus what he needed help with. According to Klaus, there was this girl he met when he went out for a trip, they became friends after some time and he started to like her. After confessing his love, he found out the feeling was mutual. A few months later, he found out the girl''s family wanted to marry her off to another family in hopes of creating ties. The girl refused since she didn''t like the guy they wanted to marry her off to, but her parents didn''t listen to her. Klaus charged over when he heard this, but he was unable to convince them not to marry her off to another family, after all, he wasn''t from a powerful family. Other than being a genius who managed to join the Moonlight Faction despite only accepting girls, there was nothing else in his r¨¦sum¨¦. He tried to get the guy who wanted to marry her into giving up, but the guy told him to ''stop the marriage if he dared''. And he planned to do just that, with Grey''s help, of course. ''So what''s the plan?'' Grey asked. ''I''ll get him to compete with me in front of everyone present. If I win, I get to marry her.'' Klaus replied. With such a large crowd, the young man would not want to refuse since it would affect the reputation of his family. ''You''ll need some protection from your Faction. This will definitely make the guy''s family hate you.'' Grey said. ''I already spoke with an Elder, she agreed to follow me there. She wouldn''t appear, unless necessary.'' Klaus replied. ''Alright, I''ll make a stop at your place before leaving. When''s the marriage?'' Grey agreed to go with him. ''In two days.'' Klaus replied with a burst of sheepish laughter. Grey almost facepalmed, ''What would you have done if I didn''t respond?'' ''I''d still go.'' Klaus replied with determination. Chapter ?901 Lets Go Break Up A Marriage Chapter ?901 Let''s Go Break Up A Marriage Grey left the Faction immediately after they finished speaking. Since it was in two days, and Klaus was in another Region, he had to head over to assist him. His plan of visiting Kyle had been placed on hold and he would only meet him when he was done with Klaus'' issue. If things go well, Klaus would get a new enemy who would want to kill him, but he will be able to keep the girl he likes. Actually, thinking about Klaus'' playboy nature, Grey had to ask him multiple times if he were serious. It would be embarrassing if after doing all this, Klaus and the girl end up separating after some months. Klaus reassured him that this was the one, he couldn''t say no to his friend''s plea for help, but he warned him on behalf of the girl, if he breaks up with her, he would beat the crap out of him, and he meant every word. Klaus told him he didn''t have any plans of leaving her, and of course, he wouldn''t get married now as well. There were still things he had to do, but he liked the girl and since she also didn''t want to get married to the young man, and liked him as well, he didn''t mind breaking up the supposed marriage. ''I hope I don''t regret this.'' These were Grey''s final words before leaving the Faction. Grey used up tons of essence stones since he was in a hurry, and after almost two days of continuous teleportation, he got to where Klaus told him they would meet. Arriving early, he decided to do a background check on the young lady Klaus was in love with, and also the family of the young man. With the reputation of the two families, it didn''t take long for him to hear a thing or two about them. The name of the young lady was Jehanne, she''s the last daughter of the Braun Family Head, one of the most reputable families in this City. The young man she was getting married off to was called Gregory, and he was twenty-six with two wives. He was in the Sage Plane and wasn''t a part of any Faction. His Family wasn''t a top-tier Family, but it was above the Braun Family. He developed an interest in Jehanne after seeing her some years back, and now that she was around nineteen years old, he wanted to marry her. When the Braun Family heard of his interest, although they didn''t like his conduct, it was still a good idea to them since it would help their Family grow further. A connection with the Robertson Family would be beneficial to both families. With each other''s help, they could grow further. The story of Jehanne circulated as well, but it wasn''t really dominant. People didn''t even take it seriously. Later that night, Klaus contacted him, telling him of his arrival. Grey left the tavern he was staying at and went over to meet up with Klaus and the Elder from the Moonlight Faction. "Why didn''t you ask the others to come as well?" Grey asked when the duo met. The Elder who came with him was one of the few Elders who went to the competition, seeing Grey, she couldn''t help but take a deep glance at him. She was stunned when she sensed his cultivation stage. ''The Third stage of the Sage Plane already? He''s even faster than him.'' Her eyes darted to look at Klaus who was in the Second stage of the Sage Plane. One thing worth mentioning was that at the time Grey competed against the Syphilis Faction, Klaus broke through to the Sage Plane some time after that. Grey was still at the Peak of the Overlord Plane when Klaus broke through to the Sage Plane, but now, Grey was in the Third stage while Klaus was in the Second. She already thought Klaus'' growth was unprecedented, looking at Grey she didn''t know what to say. Grey was simply flying, and to think it was harder to advance every Plane, these guys were making it look like child''s play. Grey bowed to her as a sign of respect and she nodded. "I must say, I''m pretty impressed you managed to get an Elder to follow you over such a matter." Grey was impressed by Klaus'' ability to convince an Elder to come with him. "You have no idea what I''ll have to face after this." Klaus gave a wry laugh. Grey could see a bit of pain in his eyes. It was as if he would suffer for this. "That''s your problem. What now?" Grey didn''t bother to ask. Knowing Klaus, he didn''t want to ask any further since Klaus might trick him. The Elder watched the two youngsters talk before leaving them alone. She had a few friends around, so she decided to entertain herself there, she''ll keep an eye on them just to ensure they were safe. Grey was someone she wouldn''t want anything to happen to, even if he wasn''t part of her Faction, she wouldn''t want anything to happen to him. Klaus'' adventures were fun to listen to, as always. Grey was still in awe of Klaus'' luck. He tends to find the best things without even trying. Take for instance, during one of his travels, he saw a rare plant that could make a healing tonic, one of the best healing tonics in the world. How did he find it? He went to take a leak. This was one of the most absurd stories Grey had heard. It was almost unbelievable. A rare plant that always grows in the most dangerous places, and takes multiple rare circumstances, yet Klaus found it because he went to take a leak. "Are you even human?" Grey couldn''t help but ask. "You really shouldn''t be the one to say that." Klaus laughed as they went into a tavern for some drinks. Time went by and before the duo knew it, it was already daybreak. "Let''s go break up a marriage." Klaus said as the sun rose. Chapter 902 Go Play With Your Fellow Girls Chapter 902 Go Play With Your Fellow Girls Grey looked at Klaus'' smiling face, he couldn''t help but chuckle. Void had an exhilarated expression, it was evident that he was excited about the upcoming trouble they were about to cause. Disrupting a marriage is seen as a sign of disrespect and trouble-seeking by most people, Gregory''s family members will definitely see it this way. "Are you sure you want to go through with this?" Grey asked once again. "Having second thoughts?" Klaus asked, he had never known Grey to be someone afraid of people. Grey shook his head, "I just want to ensure you are aware doing this will put you on the bad side of the Robertson Family." "I have too many enemies, adding one more isn''t much of an issue." Klaus shrugged, not bothered by the prospect of having new enemies. Grey didn''t try to stop him, since Klaus had the thought of doing this from the start, he knew he couldn''t stop him. And given Klaus'' personality, he was bound to make thousands of enemies as he grows. Even if he tried not to, his mouth will most likely give him away. The duo had to wait a little longer, to ensure they weren''t the first to show up there. Klaus wanted them to enter the ceremony in a grand style. Grey didn''t have any preferences, so he went with Klaus'' idea. He released the triplet, giving each of them different orders. He also gave them some items, with this, if things went south, he could escape, taking Klaus with him. He planned to keep his space element hidden throughout their time there, and only when he was certain that they wouldn''t be in any trouble would he use it. Three hours later. The ceremony had started and all the guests were present. It was held in the Braun Family compound, and they were currently seated in the open garden. The Robertson Family was already present, speaking animatedly to each other. Gregory could be seen with a bright smile on his face, he was dressed elegantly, and his handsome face with golden hair and eyes were sparkling. Most of the people around were speaking of the marriage as they joked and laughed. Luthera was escorted into the place, and just when they were about to start the rights, Grey and Klaus arrived. "Stop this wedding!" Klaus said as he walked into the place. His voice attracted everyone''s attention as they turned to look at the owner. When the head of the Braun Family saw Klaus walking over with a confident demeanor, his expression changed. "What are you doing here?" He asked with a dark expression. "To stop this wedding, Luthera doesn''t want this, you should know this." Klaus said. His words not only angered Luthera''s father, but those from the Robertson Family frowned as well. They didn''t think there would be such a scene here. "Lothar, what''s the meaning of this?" An old man from the Robertson Family asked with a cold expression. Lothar, the head of the Braun Family, and Luthera''s father turned to look at the man. "I will handle it, don''t worry about it." He said coolly before turning to Klaus. "Leave, before I run out of patience." He said coldly. "No, I''ll not allow you to marry Luthera off to someone who doesn''t even deserve her." Klaus refused, to the surprise of most of the people there. His words angered Gregory who stood up. As a proud individual, how could he not be deserving of Luthera? "What nonsense are you spouting, rat?" Gregory asked with an irritated voice. "You''re not worthy of her, and you know it. You don''t love her, you only want her because she''s beautiful." Klaus stepped forward and said. In terms of facial appearance, he had the edge. However, with Grey standing next to him, his handsome face didn''t really show that much. But compared to anyone else present, he was superior. "What did you say?" Gregory asked, walking over. He was in the Fifth stage of the Sage Plane, and Klaus was in the Second stage. The difference in strength between the duo was quite large given how hard it was to advance in the Sage Plane. "You''re not worthy of her." Klaus replied. "And you are?" Gregory asked. "Naturally." Klaus nodded without a second thought. Lothar wanted to walk over, but Luthera''s mother held onto him, shaking her head. She wanted to see how far Klaus was willing to go for her daughter. Although she knew from the start that Luthera opposed the marriage, she couldn''t stop her husband. However, with an opportunity arising, she didn''t want to let it slip. Grey hadn''t said a word since he came, only watching beside Klaus. He would only speak if the need arises. Klaus has been doing a good job so far, so he wasn''t bothered. "Haha, a lady want to be, dares to speak in front of me. You should be in your Faction, playing with your fellow girls." Gregory mocked. Being in a Faction designed only for girls has made Klaus the subject of mockery, however, he knew full well that most of them were mocking him because they were jealous of him. He had the opportunity of seeing beauties every single day, a dream of most young men, so it was natural that they would envy his position. "Nice one." Klaus said sarcastically. He didn''t even show any signs of anger when he heard his words. Klaus had been shameless for so long, and this wasn''t even close to any of the things that could aggravate him. Gregory and his entourage laughed when they saw this, five youths in the Sage Plane were standing beside him. Grey was in the Third stage of the Sage Plane, with Klaus with him, if a fight broke out, they might be able to overpower Gregory with numbers. "Why don''t we fight for her, what do you say? You have the higher cultivation stage, so you should be confident in defeating me." Klaus said with a mischievous smile. Gregory knew Klaus was trying to gourd him into challenging for Luthera. "Why would I fight you over what''s mine?" He asked with mocking laughter. Chapter ?903 I Am Enough Chapter ?903 I Am Enough Klaus was taken aback when he heard this, he thought Gregory would let his pride take over and he would agree to fight with him for Luthera. He didn''t give up after this setback, another chance would present itself, and all he needed to do was to be patient. "Now, if you don''t mind, I have a marriage to complete." Gregory said as he turned around. Klaus chuckled, "As expected, refusing a challenge. The real geniuses don''t refuse such. But what can I say, after staying under the protection of your family for so long, it is normal. I wonder what the condition of your home would be without your family''s support." Gregory paused when he heard this, he turned to look at Klaus with an annoyed expression. He looked around and noticed the crowd were all staring, whispering among themselves. When his gaze met his father''s, he saw the disappointment in his eyes. Although his father was annoyed by Klaus coming to disrupt the wedding, he felt embarrassed for having such a disgrace of a son. Klaus was only in the Second stage of the Sage Plane while he was in the Fifth, he didn''t even use the excuse of having a higher stage and not wanting to bully Klaus, instead, he outright refused the challenge. Against a powerful opponent, it would be deemed wise, but against one weaker, it was only cowardice, except he gave the right excuses. "You want to challenge me, for her?" Gregory turned around with resolution. Seeing his father''s expression gave him a change of heart. Besides, he was confident in his abilities. Klaus nodded, not showing any signs of backing down. Just as Gregory was about to step forward, Lothar, Luthera''s father, stepped forward. "Hold on, since you two want to fight for my daughter''s hand, it''s only right I approve of it." He said calmly. If both youths fought on their own without him saying anything and then gave out his daughter to the winner, it would mean he didn''t have a say in this. Even if he wanted to create a good bond with the Robertson Family, he was not going to bring down the dignity of his family in the process. Since Gregory has agreed to fight, then he would be the one in charge, not Gregory or Klaus. "It''s only right you do this, uncle." Klaus was the first to speak up, wearing a bright smile on his face. The first part of his plan had been achieved, with this, the rest will fall perfectly into place. Well, so he hoped. From when Klaus and Grey stepped into the Braun Family compound till now, Luthera hadn''t taken her eyes off Klaus'' figure, other than taking a glance at Grey who was standing beside him when he came in, she kept her full focus on him. He was the only shining light in this dark world of hers. Lothar gave the order for the place to be adjusted so a battle could take place. An Earth Elementalist stepped forward to set up a platform for the battle. He stepped on the platform and gave out the rule, there would be two rounds of battles, and each individual would give whatever stipulations they wanted, so long as it was not out of line. The winner of both rounds will be the victor, but if it ends in a tie, then he would be the one to state the rules for the final battle. Klaus and Gregory accepted this. "Who would go first?" Lothar looked at the duo. Gregory threw a glance at Klaus, "He''ll go first, I don''t want to take advantage of him." Lothar nodded and turned to Klaus. ''The person with the most handsome friend wins.'' Klaus almost blurted this out, but seeing how serious the situation was, he swallowed back his words. He couldn''t afford to annoy Luthera''s father. The fact that he agreed to this already seemed to be his limit. "I challenge you to a duel." He stood facing Gregory. Being three stages below his opponent didn''t make him give up, he was confident in his ability. The thought of putting Grey against him came to mind, but this was his battle, and he had to be the one to fight it. This was one of the few times Grey saw Klaus this serious. ''Could it be that he''s really in love?'' He took a long hard look at Klaus, before moving his gaze to the person making his friend take such a risk. Luthera was a beautiful girl with black hair and brown eyes. Her oval face and still somewhat chubby chick from baby fat made her look cute. She was not the most beautiful girl Grey had seen, but she was still beautiful, at least on the same level as Alice, if not above her. Gregory laughed when he heard Klaus challenging him. "You weakling, you think you can beat me?" He mocked, "Okay, to be fair, why don''t the two of you fight me?" Klaus almost burst out laughing when he heard this. It wasn''t even certain if Gregory could beat him, yet he wanted Grey to join him. If that wasn''t suicide, he didn''t know what is. "Only I am enough." Klaus said coolly. Fighting against Gregory was a huge risk for him. He knew Gregory was a talented figure, and he had heard of some of his battles as well, so he knew he wasn''t weak. If he lost this round, all Gregory had to do was come up with some insane stipulation in the next round, and he would win. Klaus had to win this battle, it was a must for him. Losing it would be detrimental to his cause. Lothar looked at Klaus, he shook his head before stepping off the platform. He called an Elder from the family to preside over the battle. "This is a friendly battle, no deaths allowed. Of course, injuries can''t be avoided, but no life-threatening attacks should be used. Once you can''t fight anymore, admit defeat." The Elder said to the two. They nodded, prepared for battle. Chapter ?904 Klaus vs Gregory Chapter ?904 Klaus vs Gregory Gregory locked his eyes on Klaus, staring at him coldly. Klaus stared at him, he felt a little pressured since the distance in strength was by no means small. Fighting above stages in the Sage Plane was not the same as when he was in the Overlord Plane. With the increase in Plane, it became harder for geniuses to transcend stages when fighting. When in the Origin Plane, he could easily transcend three stages, especially against an individual with a lower elemental grade, but as he got to the Overlord Plane, things started to become harder. The Sage Plane was even harder than the Overlord Plane. ''Should I have allowed Grey to fight this battle?'' Doubt flashed through his head. To be honest, he was more confident in Grey''s abilities compared to his own. He couldn''t be blamed, Grey had proved times without number that he had no problems transcending stages, and from how freakish Grey was, he knew for a fact that Grey had complete confidence in defeating Gregory. He hastily threw the doubt out of his head. This was his battle, he was going to fight it, win or lose, he would deal with the consequences. Grey respected Klaus'' decision and watched from the side. Everyone from the side waited patiently for the battle to start. After both fighters told the Elder they were ready, he called for the start of the battle. Klaus released water arrows the moment the battle started. Gregory was a Dual Elementalist, having the earth and lightning element. An earth wall appeared in front of him to block the attack, after blocking, he sent a lightning bolt at Klaus. Klaus used his ice ability to create an ice screen that blocked the attack. He retaliated with his water element, not waiting for Gregory to take the upper hand. Gregory had a higher explosive power thanks to the lightning element. They quickly exchanged moves with no one getting the advantage. It was still early on, but Grey noticed Klaus had improved compared to the way he last saw him. Gregory looked at Klaus, a little surprised. He didn''t think Klaus would be able to put up with him. Not just him, everyone from the crowd was surprised. Klaus was three stages below Gregory, yet he was going toe to toe with him, it was quite something to watch, and it already showed who was more talented. "You''re impressive, but if this is what you''re depending on, then I''m sorry, you will lose." Gregory said. Klaus had always been one to talk whenever fighting, but this time, he remained silent, he placed his full focus on the battle ahead of him, this was a battle he couldn''t afford to take lightly. Gregory shrouded himself with lightning as he bolted towards Klaus. Klaus raised a water wall in front of him. It didn''t stop Gregory, as expected, but he didn''t do it to stop him in the first place. As Gregory got close to him, he blew out an icy wind from his mouth. Gregory, who was covered with droplets of water when he breezed through the water wall felt his body get heavier, and before he knew it, he started to freeze. The lightning coat around him started to fall off. Klaus sent ice spikes at him during this period. Gregory hurriedly protected himself with an earth dome as he hastily broke free from the ice. It took some time, but he managed to break free from it. Klaus broke apart the earth dome, but just as it was falling apart, a lightning bolt shot at him. Ice armor covered his body from head to toe when he saw this. Bang! The lightning bolt struck him in the chest, sending him flying. However, he wasn''t injured since the ice armor took most of the attack. It didn''t even crack, only showing a black spot from the burn from the lightning strike. It quickly faded off after the ice recovered. He used the special ice ability of the Seelie to create the ice armor, but he only used the recovery part of it. After getting to the Sage Plane, his knowledge and control over his ice ability increased. In the entire Moonlight Faction, he was one of the best ice users, he had mastered most of the difficult techniques, even some that Elemental Venerables find hard to master. As long as it had to do with ice, he had it under his grasp. One of the reasons the Elder agreed to come with him was because of how highly talented Klaus was. They had been trying to get him to learn a technique, but he had been running from it. The condition for following him here was that he would have to learn this technique. When Klaus accepted, they were elated and this Elder followed him without many squabbles. Klaus tapped his right foot on the platform and it started to freeze. Gregory, seeing this, raised multiple earth pillars on the platform. A large earth orb glowing with a brownish light appeared in the air and fell to the platform. Klaus created a large hand made from water, when the glowing orb entered the water, it continued descending, but a few meters before touching the platform, it stopped. Gregory struck the water with a lightning bolt, hitting the orb in the process. The orb exploded out, and earth spikes sprouted from the ground while the air around the platform started to get heavier. Klaus noticed this and knitted his brow. Fighting in such a condition was no good for him, once the battle got too long, his physical body would be exhausted from the increased weight it had to sustain. Grey watching from the side was amazed that Gregory could use the gravitational force field, although it wasn''t as powerful as his own, it would become more effective as time went on. Grey''s own on the other hand had an instant impact and could easily turn the tides of a battle. This one, on the other hand, will only work against people without strong physical bodies. Most Elementalists had weak physiques, so it was quite useful. Chapter ?905 Klaus vs Gregory II Chapter ?905 Klaus vs Gregory II Grey wasn''t the only one watching the battle with interest, every single individual there was watching the battle. The Robertson Family had a dark expression. Yes, Gregory had a slight advantage, but Klaus was three stages below him, this shouldn''t have been a battle that would last so long. His father snorted coldly as he watched the fight. The crowds were entertained, not expecting to watch such a thrilling battle on a day like this. They couldn''t ask for anything more. Luthera was shaking from anxiety, it was normal since her future depended on the outcome of the battle. Some people from her family hope Klaus wins, while others were on the side of Gregory, there were a few neutral people who didn''t care about the outcome of the battle. "Who do you think will win?" Luthera''s mother asked Lothar. "Gregory. That kid is more talented, but Gregory will win, barring there are no mishaps." Lothar replied without thinking. He had already seen both of them use their skills, Klaus was more skilled, but the difference in strength was just too much. If there were no mistakes, then Gregory would be victorious. "I think that kid has a surprise in store." Luthera''s mother picked Klaus to win the fight. They weren''t the only ones discussing, people in the crowd did the same as well. Grey sat down as he listened to their suggestions. ''Void, what do you think?'' He asked. ''I''m not sure yet. Klaus seems to be hiding some of his strength, he will only use it when necessary. That guy hasn''t gone all-out as well, so it''s hard to call. Of course, I want Klaus to be victorious.'' Void replied. Grey agreed with Void''s words, he also felt the battle was very close and it was unknown who would win now. Only after the battle reached its peak will they know who would win. Klaus and Gregory continued their battle, exchanging moves. They were still testing each other out even though each had displayed some powerful attacks, none of them had tried to take an advanced attack. It didn''t take long before Gregory used a large-scale attack. The gravity of the platform was already affecting Klaus'' movement, so he felt it was time for him to use his bigger attacks. Multiple lightning bolts fell from the sky, while he moved, covered with lightning, he paced across the platform, causing a spectacle. Klaus didn''t let the pressure of the gravitational force field affect his reasoning. He created an ice dome that blocked the lightning bolts while preparing an ice needle for Gregory. If this attack connects, then he might win the fight sooner than he thought. Of course, it wasn''t definite since Gregory might be able to fight off the cold. After all, he does have the advantage in cultivation stage. Klaus locked on to Gregory and released the needle. Its small size made it Klaus'' fastest attack. Gregory, who was moving quickly across the entire platform, suddenly stopped. He started to show signs of freezing. Most of the people below the Sage Plane were stunned by the sudden turn of events, but those at the Sage Plane or above saw Klaus'' attack. Although those in the Sage Plane barely saw it, they sensed it, only after it hit Gregory. Seeing Gregory''s current condition, Klaus created a large snow shape-looking ice that he released into the air. It exploded and snow started to fall. The effects of the gravitational force field died down instantly as the temperature of the platform dropped. Gregory was fighting against Klaus'' attack, and with the sudden decrease in the temperature, he started to freeze at a faster pace. Klaus sent out a water orb in his direction. When the orb got to him, it started to spread across him, and he was soon covered by ice, turning into an ice statue. "He won?" Someone from the crowd asked. Staring at Gregory''s present condition, it was easy to assume that Klaus had defeated him, but those at the Peak knew the battle was far from over. A lightning bolt fell from the sky and slammed into the ice statue. Cracks appeared on the ice statue, and they started to run down the entire statue. Before long, Gregory appeared before everyone once again. ''It was worth the shot.'' Klaus shrugged internally. He knew this wasn''t going to stop Gregory, but it didn''t stop him. At least he knew for a fact that he could slow him down with the ice needle. "You''re a hateful fellow." Gregory gritted his teeth, anger showing in his eyes. Klaus was the one who seemed to have the first major blow, and this impacted his pride. He was already feeling infuriated by the fact that he couldn''t beat Klaus up easily, now he suffered from Klaus'' attack as well. It was annoying to him, to say the least. "You''re not impressive, at all." Klaus finally spoke, and his words sent Gregory hysterical. Grey and Void chuckled when they saw this. Klaus could be said to have mastered the act of infuriating his opponents, even when he doesn''t want to, he seems to annoy them. Making people more upset was a gift Klaus had honed over the years, it had proven to be useful on some occasions. Gregory rushed at Klaus, but Klaus used an ice dome to protect himself. When Gregory got close, he unleashed an attack. To his surprise, the attack didn''t break the ice dome, however, he saw something shocking, the ice retaliated, sending an attack almost at the same power as his attack his way. Not expecting it, and being in such close range, he was forced back. While he was trying to get his footing, Klaus jumped out of the ice dome and attacked with a large ice sword that connected with Gregory on his ribs. Gregory''s face distorted from the pain and he spat out a mouthful of blood. His figure was sent flying, crashing into the platform. Klaus rushed over, hoping to continue his assault, but Gregory popped back up with a stronger aura, sending a lightning spear at Klaus. Klaus blocked it, but he was pushed a few meters back. Standing, both fighters faced off, the battle was starting to pick up intensity. Chapter ?906 Klaus vs Gregory III Chapter ?906 Klaus vs Gregory III The crowd noticed the change in the demeanor of both fighters and knew that things were about to reach its peak. It didn''t take long before attacks started to fly across the platform from one end to another. Klaus used his ice ability to the fullest, creating multiple attacks simultaneously. He used one of the Moonlight Faction''s top techniques, and a moon seemingly seemed to appear behind him, giving off a dazzling glow. He looked like a god in this appearance. With the moon behind him, his ice abilities power would see a ten percent increase. It might not look like much, but in a battle such as this, it might be what he needed to turn the tide in his favor. Gregory used a long lightning sword, trying to slash apart the ice moon behind Klaus. Klaus naturally wouldn''t give him the chance to do that. He blocked it with his ice wall, but to his surprise, the wall cracked from the attack. ''His attack power increased.'' He was shocked. However, Gregory''s attack power didn''t see an increase, but the technique he used was superior to his previous attacks, hence the increase in his attack power. Klaus'' ice ability increased by ten percent, so a defensive ice wall he set up was stronger than what he previously did. Gregory had not been able to break through the ice wall before, yet, he cracked this one which was stronger. Boom! Bang! Bam! The fight continued, and even those from the Robertson Family couldn''t hide their shock at Klaus'' strength. Klaus was fighting against Gregory, and they were almost equals after he created that ice moon behind him. Even his attack power saw an increase, something all the experts from the Sage Plane and above noticed. "The Moonlight Faction is frightening." Lothar commented when he saw it. "Of course, they are a top Faction, what did you expect?" Luthera''s mother remarked. Lothar didn''t comment any further as he focused on the fight. Klaus created a large ice pillar that tried to smack Gregory, but Gregory countered, using the long lightning sword to cut the ice pillar into two. The lightning sword extended, continuing its assault in Klaus'' direction. The ice wall in front of Klaus finally gave way and he was sent flying. He crashed into the platform, bouncing off it twice. But he quickly picked himself up before sending a series of ice shards at Gregory who was coming at him. Gregory was forced to stop and defend. He couldn''t rush at Klaus since he would risk harming himself. He was fending off against the ice shards when he noticed something glow, moving his head to the side, he was scratched by something moving fast on his cheek, and he started to bleed. This time, he managed to dodge Klaus'' ice needle. Klaus hid it in the ice shards, making him lose focus before sending it. Unfortunately, Gregory was alert and dodged it. The place he was injured soon froze, but since the attack didn''t penetrate, the freezing stopped after a while. The lightning sword he was holding suddenly increased in size and he swung it at Klaus. The sword destroyed all the ice shards, before getting to Klaus. Klaus created a sword of his own. It was made from ice, and with the help of the moon behind him, it was one of his strongest ice swords yet. Both swords collided, and a powerful wind spread across the platform due to the impact of the attack. They swung it at each other repeatedly. Gregory suddenly created an earth hammer that slammed the ground. The platform shook from the attack and it started to take a different shape. Klaus, seeing this didn''t want to be outdone, so he spread out his hand and water started to fill up the platform. ''Two can play this game.'' He said internally. Gregory knew Klaus wouldn''t allow him to do what he wanted, so he gave up on the ideas and continued attacking with his lightning and earth element. Klaus didn''t ease up even though Gregory stopped his plan, he felt maybe he would continue later on. While trying to block one attack, he was hit on the back by an earth pillar that appeared from the side. He coughed up a mouthful of blood, aching from the pain. This was one of the longest one on one battles he had fought, and things were looking too good for him at the moment. Even though he pushed Gregory to the limit, he was still coming up short. Gregory was capitalizing on his advantage perfectly. As the battle continued, Grey finally knew Klaus would lose. ''A shame, he fought well.'' He said to Void. Void nodded. The experts from the Robertson and Braun families felt some sort of pity for Klaus. Even after trying so hard, he came off short. If he were to be in the Third stage of the Sage Plane, the outcome of the battle would''ve been different. The chances of him winning would''ve been higher than that of Gregory''s. A few minutes later, Klaus fell to the ground, defeated. Gregory wasn''t in any better condition, but he was still standing. The battle lasted for over twenty-five minutes, and both fighters fought to their heart''s content. The Elder from the Braun Family appeared on the platform and stopped Gregory from attacking any further. "Gregory wins." Only after announcing the results did everyone come back to their senses. Most of the people felt pity for Klaus who fell short after putting on such a display. Gregory might''ve won, but Klaus was the one who would be remembered whenever people spoke of this battle. Grey climbed up the platform and picked Klaus up, "You did good, buddy." "I still lost." Klaus said with a dejected expression. "You''ll win the next, I''m sure of it." Grey consoled him. He was about to take Klaus off the platform when Gregory stopped them. "My turn." His voice echoed across the place. "Huh? What do you mean?" Grey turned around. "It''s my turn to speak about the stipulations of the battle." Gregory said with a grin on his face. Chapter ?907 My Round, My Rules Chapter ?907 My Round, My Rules Grey raised his brow when he heard this. He didn''t believe Gregory would want to start the next round almost immediately, he didn''t even want to give Klaus the chance of resting. Klaus looked at Grey and let out a self-deprecating laugh. "Go ahead, speak." He said with difficulty. Gregory chuckled when he saw Klaus in this condition, he was vexed that it took him so long and he had to exert almost all his strength to take out Klaus, but he was satisfied when he saw Klaus'' present look. ''He''s already beaten, why don''t I beat up his friend as well.'' He thought internally as he looked at Grey with an evil smile. "Since I''ve already beaten you to such a state, why don''t we allow others to fight the last battle? The geniuses from my camp, against those from yours." He said with a sly grin. When the crowd heard his terms, they turned to take a look at the Robertson Family camp, and after a rough count, there were seventeen geniuses in the Sage Plane. One of them was in the Seventh stage of the Sage Plane. The crowd couldn''t help but suck in a deep breath. Gregory''s stipulation wasn''t giving Klaus any way out, what was worse was that he was dragging Grey with him. Klaus and Grey exchanged glances, and with a nod from Grey, he calmed down significantly. Since Grey nodded, it meant that he had confidence in defeating these people, no matter their numbers. Klaus knew of Grey''s ability with multiple opponents, but he was still a little afraid, hence he turned to look at Grey. "I have only one person, isn''t it a bit unfair to fight against so many people from your side?" Klaus tried to get Gregory to reduce the numbers. "My round, my rules." Gregory didn''t leave any leeway for Klaus to get away. Klaus gritted his teeth before nodding, "Fine." "Grey, it''s all up to you know. I''m sorry I placed all my worries on your head." Klaus said with a forced smile. "Don''t worry, rest up, there''s still the third round." Grey said softly. When the top experts overheard Grey''s words, they were stunned. The confidence in his words was evident. The fact that he said there''s still the third round meant that he felt he could win this round. Gregory laughed when he heard Grey''s words, "Haha, confident fool. You''re even more arrogant than that bastard." "Since I''m fighting so many people alone, can I use a special technique that improves strength?" Grey asked. Gregory thought about it for less than a second before nodding, "You can." Even if Grey exhausted his core, he didn''t feel that he would be able to bring out strength above the Fifth stage of the Sage Plane. Against his brother who was in the Seventh stage, Grey was as good as defeated. "Thank you." Grey said before standing in the spot Klaus stood. When Klaus left the platform, Luthera approached him. "Why are you taking such risks?" She asked softly, her voice cracked from trying to keep in her tears. "I can''t let you get married to such a moron. Don''t worry, we''ll be fine." Klaus consoled her with a smile. Luthera looked at him, she saw a confident smile on his face, one that she had seen way too often. She didn''t know if he was trying to console her, but she decided to have confidence in him. "I truth you." She said with a smile. Grey was more focused on the battle at hand, so he didn''t have the time to look at Klaus and Luthera. When Gregory stepped off the platform, only two people from the Robertson Family climbed on. They were both in the Second stage of the Sage Plane. Gregory wanted to object, but his father''s stern glance warded him off. His father was embarrassed that his family would have to send out so many young geniuses to fight against one, so he decided to send two of lower cultivation stages. This would make it seem like he was trying to go easy on Grey, while also making sure they would get the victory. Killing two birds with one stone. Grey looked at the duo in front of him, he moved his head to the side to look behind them, seemingly waiting for more of them to step forward. To his surprise, only two of them were out. His actions didn''t escape the eyes of the experts in the area. "Is he waiting for the others to come out as well?" Luthera asked Klaus when she saw this. She was also in the Sage Plane, the First stage. "He can beat them all, and I''m not joking when I say this." Klaus said with utmost confidence. "Huh?" A confused expression appeared on Luthera''s face. One person beating so many geniuses, alone. It was hard to believe. "What are you looking for?" The duo standing on the platform asked Grey. "Nothing, come, I want to deal with you two quick, I have places to be." Grey invited the duo to attack. They exchanged glances and attacked. Grey was looking down on them, and they were going to make him regret his actions. The duo were Water Elementalists. With a wave of their hands, a jetstream of water shot at Grey, being enforced by two people, its power was above the Third stage of the Sage Plane. Grey raised a single finger and a small blue fireball appeared on it, he sent it into the jetstream of water coming his way. When the fireball connected to the stream, it heated it up and before everyone''s shocked eyes, the stream dried up before it got to him. What was more amazing was that the fireball didn''t stop after this, it continued in the duo''s direction. The duo were shocked, but they reacted accordingly, creating an ice wall before them. They were boosting the strength of each other, so the defensive power was more than when they used it separately. Grey''s little fireball touched it and the eyes of everyone in the place almost popped out. Chapter ?908 Letting Him Win? Chapter ?908 Letting Him Win? "Incredible." Luthera muttered, unable to hold in her shock. She wasn''t the only one who was shocked, the entire crowd were stunned. Grey''s attack flashed through the ice wall like it was transparent and went straight for the duo. It exploded, sending them off the platform. With a single attack, Grey not only neutralized their attacks, but he also defeated them. One had to know they were two people, and Grey was one. Even if he was a stage above them, achieving such a feat was still something that shouldn''t be this easy. Lothar and Luthera''s mother exchanged glances. The people from the Robertson Family were alarmed when they saw this. The top experts stared at Grey in amazement. What Grey did there was a very unique skill, he compressed the fire orb to the limit. It might look small, but its power was far above a normal fireball Grey would use. From how easily Grey made it look, the experts knew Grey was not a simple individual. If he were the one who fought against Gregory, they could already tell that he would win. "See, I told you. He''s a freak." Klaus said with a shrug. The higher they go, the further Grey leaves them behind. Even when they were trying their best to catch up, it was still impossible. Grey couldn''t be classified among geniuses, he was a genius among geniuses, an abnormal genius to be precise. "Isn''t he too overpowered?" Luthera asked. "He''s just getting started." Klaus said. The Robertson Family could still send out the rest of their youths. Either they did that, or they admitted defeat, giving Klaus this round. Doing that would look disgraceful to them. This was the round they were certain to win, yet they lost it. Although the battle was between Gregory and Klaus, Gregory represented their family, so they were still a part of it. The Family Head could never accept such a disgraceful act. With two out, there were only fifteen young geniuses left. He looked at three youths, two were in the Second stage of the Sage Plane while the last was in the Third stage. All three stood up and walked over to the platform. According to Gregory''s stipulation, Grey would have to fight against all of their geniuses, they were already being kind, not sending all of them to fight him at once. Grey looked at the three figures standing before him. He turned to look at Lothar, contemplating if it was safe to use his space element. ''I still have those high-grade space talismans, if things get worse, I''ll use them while Klaus'' Elder stalls.'' He thought internally. In the presence of experts above the Sage Plane, he didn''t have confidence in his spatial ability. They could easily fish him out of any spatial tunnel he creates. Only one made by a top expert would be able to help him. When the trio appeared on the platform, they were just about to attack when Grey suddenly vanished. He appeared beside them and attacked with the fire element. The person in the Third stage of the Sage Plane was a young lady. She was the only one who noticed Grey and acted accordingly. She tried to help the other two, but Grey didn''t give them the chance as he sent them flying, crashing off the platform. They weren''t eliminated since technically, it wasn''t said in any place that they would be defeated if thrown out of the platform, but they didn''t have the strength to step back on the platform. When sending them flying, Grey always uses a certain force, to ensure they were left either unconscious or close to losing consciousness. "A Space Elementalist." The young lady muttered. "You have a keen eye." Grey said sarcastically. The young lady attacked. She was a Wind Elementalist. The wind blades she sent At Grey were easily evaded by Grey as he blinked, appearing a few meters away from her. He attacked, but she was fast and quickly dodged the attack. Grey didn''t give her any chance of attacking as he continued his assault on her. In the space of one minute, he had attacked her over twenty times. She had blocked a few but had been hit by most. She was soon sent out of the platform by Grey, unconscious. The entire place was flabbergasted, except for Klaus and Void who already knew of Grey''s abilities. "How''s he this powerful?" Someone from the crowd asked. The experts from the Robertson Family had sour expressions as they looked at Grey. Those from the Braun Family were stunned, Grey was even more freakish than Klaus. They weren''t even on the same level. Yes, Klaus would defeat the people he just defeated, but there was no way he would be able to make it look this easy. In fact, Grey was making it seem like they were going easy on him. If not for the fact that they knew the Robertson Family wouldn''t want to bring such humiliation to themselves, they would''ve believed they were letting Grey win on purpose. "Wow! Just wow! How did you know him?" Luthera was not able to contain her surprise. Grey''s abilities were something she hadn''t seen before. He was only in the Third stage of the Sage Plane, but he beat someone in the same stage as if they were not in the same Plane, much less stage. "A long story. I''ll tell you after this." Klaus said, a proud smile plastered on his face. He was throwing glances at the Robertson camp. Of their seventeen geniuses, Grey had defeated five, leaving only twelve left. The fact that he beat five so easily meant that he could continue in such a manner if they didn''t send out more people. Three people were no match for Grey, and four obviously wouldn''t. The Family Head of the Robertson Family had the darkest face in the place, even after tactfully sending out opponents, Grey was sweeping the ground with such ease. He looked at five people, all five were in the Fourth stage of the Sage Plane. Chapter ?909 With Him, Anything Is Possible Chapter ?909 With Him, Anything Is Possible The Five individuals walked into the platform. They knew the plan, and it was to make sure they beat the hell out of Grey. There was no plan of even going easy on him, the Family Head of the Robertson Family wanted to make sure Grey was beaten down for humiliating the geniuses of their family. When they stepped on the platform, a few of them were recognized by some of the people in the crowd. They were famous geniuses of the Robertson Family. Of the five, the two young ladies were the most troublesome. Both were Dual Elementalists, and each of them had the space element with another element. One of them had amber hair, she had the space and darkness element, while the other one with golden hair had the space and the lightning element. The other three young men were single Elementalists, each having the wind, earth, and lightning element. Grey stared at his incoming opponents. He didn''t feel any pressure from them since he knew he could still defeat them. He had used his space element, so he naturally couldn''t use it to surprise them any longer. All he needed to do now was to fight them without using any surprises, well, he still had a few he could use. The young ladies went to the side, and the three young men were the first to rush at him. Grey attacked them with his fire element, blasting two away, the Lightning Elementalist managed to dodge his attack and retaliate. Grey blocked the lightning bolt coming his way, after blocking it with his earth wall, he countered. The Lightning Elementalist was still changing blows with Grey when the two young ladies moved. They both vanished simultaneously. Grey''s eyes darted around as he tried to predict where they would appear. He also focused his full attention on the space around him, he planned to attack whenever he felt any spatial ripples. He soon sensed it and attacked his right, but it was a feint by the girls. The Lightning Elementalist was assisted by the Earth and Wind Elementalist who appeared from the side. They started their attacks on Grey who was fighting against the Lightning Elementalist while trying to locate where the two young ladies would reappear. Grey was forced to stop attacking since he couldn''t be careless without knowing where the young ladies would reappear. He had sensed some ripples in the space around him, but the young ladies seem to only appear and disappear almost instantly, making it hard for Grey to attack them. However, their current motive was simple, distract Grey, and they were doing a good job so far. While Grey was trying to locate them, the Lightning and Wind Elementalist were unleashing a series of attacks on Grey. The Earth Elementalist wasn''t out of the picture as well. He also joined the others on the attacking spree as well. Grey quickly figured out what the young ladies were doing and decided to leave them alone and focus his attention on those before him. With a blink, he disappeared from where he was standing, and just as he appeared, he sensed a lightning attack heading in his direction. It was almost impossible for him to dodge. The attack came from the void. Grey knew this was one of the young ladies'' attacks. He braced himself for the attack and was pushed back by it. When the attack hit him, the Lightning Elementalist and the Wind Elementalist did a combined attack that pushed Grey further back. This made those from the Robertson Family nod in approval. Since Grey stepped on the platform, this was the first time he was being hit and it gave those fighting against him the hope that they could defeat him. Luthera, who was beside Klaus, looked at him, "Will he be okay?" Klaus looked at her worried expression and laughed lightly, "That''s nothing. He''ll beat them up. Even if they all attack simultaneously, he will beat them." Klaus'' absolute confidence in Grey amazed Luthera, she didn''t even think Klaus was this confident in himself, yet he was so certain about another person. "How can you be so certain?" She couldn''t help but ask. "After hanging out with Grey, I''m already used to him performing unbelievable feats. At this point, I''m numb to it. If he even says he can defeat an Elemental Venerable at this point, I wouldn''t doubt him, that''s how much confidence I have in him." Klaus replied with a serious expression. Luthera looked at Klaus, before turning to look at Grey who had steadied himself on the platform once again and blocked all the attacks that were sent his way. The young ladies were troublesome to deal with. They made it hard for him to use the space element. Of course he could still use it occasionally, but they had managed to restrict his movements thanks to their well-planned attacks that always forced him out of the spatial tunnels he creates. Grey hastily switched strategies. Since they wanted to stop him from using the space element, then he would use his unparalleled speed. His physical speed was not something they could mess with. He released his gravitational force field and everyone on the platform felt a powerful tug that dragged them down. Even the two young ladies who were going through the space fell to the ground. Grey''s body was covered with red lightning and he vanished. He had been using the normal silver lightning, and the sudden appearance of the red lightning stunned everyone. "How can he use two types of lightning?" Luthera asked in shock. "Try to contain yourself, you might die from too much shock when he''s done. Be like me, I''m no longer impressed with whatever he does, for him, anything that shouldn''t be possible to others is possible to him." Klaus consoled her. While they were speaking, Grey''s figure exploded out with insane speed and before those on the platform could regain their bearings, he attacked. With a kick, he sent the Lightning Elementalist off the platform and turned to the Wind Elementalist. Chapter ?910 Abnormal Genius Chapter ?910 Abnormal Genius The Wind Elementalist hurriedly moved away, although it was difficult for him, he managed to get away from Grey''s attack range. The Earth Elementalist was the one who felt the littlest pressure, so he hurriedly protected the two young ladies since they were their hope in winning this battle. He also used the same technique as Gregory as he tried to forcefully counter Grey''s gravitational force field. This caused a reaction, just like the time Grey used it in the horned race and he hurriedly stopped it. However, it managed to put Grey off as well, making him stop using his gravitational force field. The two young ladies stood up, standing beside the Earth Elementalist. The Wind Elementalist walked over to them. "This guy is trouble." He said when he arrived. The Lightning Elementalist had been sent out of the platform by Grey''s kick, and they could all see the power in the attack and were sure that he was injured from the kick. There was no way he could fight again in this battle. The two young ladies exchanged glances and nodded with serious expressions. Watching Grey from the side and fighting against him were two different feelings. From the side, it felt like Grey wasn''t all that powerful and that the people they sent out weren''t all that competent, but now that they were facing Grey, they felt like they were standing in front of a beast. Grey stared at them once again, his eyes darting around, seemingly planning something. Those watching the battle were staring at Grey like a freak. The scene of him using the red lightning flashed through their heads. To some of the people around, this was the first time they were hearing of or even seen something like this, but to the old experts present, they knew that there were some special people who could actually use two varieties of the same element. They were quite rare, rarer than an Elementalist with four or more elements. "This kid is going to be terrifying in the future. To think he has such a frightening ability after having multiple elements." An Elder from the Braun Family commented. Lothar nodded, he couldn''t deny Grey''s strength. Seeing Grey, he knew his background couldn''t be ordinary. He turned to look at Klaus once again. Could someone who was friends with such a figure be ordinary as well? His guess was no, but he had done a thorough check on Klaus and found out he only appeared out of nowhere some months back. Before then, it was like he never existed. This was the reason he took him for one of those geniuses who only came to light after a lucky encounter. But now that he saw Grey, he started to have a change of heart. If Grey were to be the one who came to him from the start because of his daughter, then he might''ve considered not accepting the proposal from the Robertson Family. "This boy is something else." Luthera''s mother exclaimed. "He can''t be categorized as a normal genius." Lothar commented. The crowd were pumped as they watched Grey, even though he was only standing at the moment, they were excited and could feel their blood boiling, especially the youths. Some wished they could be as cool and talented as Grey was. They didn''t wish to be as handsome as him since there was no hope, but a few ladies had some ideas about him. If they could marry him and bear a child for him, then the child would most definitely have his amazing facial features. Those from the Robertson Family went over to pick up the Lightning Elementalist, he joined the list of people Grey knocked unconscious in the battle so far. The two young ladies vanished once again, leaving the Earth and Wind Elementalist. Grey attacked the duo. He already knew the strategy of the duo, and he was currently working on a way to stop them. It involved doing a large array that would seal the space element on the platform. This would affect him as well, but with his speed, he wasn''t bothered. He created two inscriptions in the air, leaving the crowd flabbergasted once again. "Just how many things is he capable of doing?" Luthera was starting to feel like her life was a joke. She previously thought she was a genius, seeing someone like Grey put a heavy burden on her chest, and she couldn''t even comprehend how someone this talented could be alive. The inscriptions reduced the pressure on Grey as the two of them focused on the young ladies, once they stepped out of the spatial tunnel, it would attack them. This forced them to always stay in the spatial tunnel, making it impossible for them to assist the Earth and Wind Elementalist. Having all the time he needed, Grey moved closer to the Earth Elementalist, and he created an earth dome to protect himself from Grey who was approaching him. Grey smirked and clenched his fists, arcing his hand back, he unleashed a powerful blow, and cracks ran down the earth dome. With his physical strength alone, he destroyed an earth dome set up by a Fourth stage Sage Plane Earth Elementalist. Grey couldn''t stop surprising everyone in the crowd, Klaus was laughing his heart out when he saw Luthera''s expression. Even after warning her against it, and repeatedly telling her not to be surprised by Grey''s abilities, she couldn''t hide it, Grey was a freak of nature. His inscriptions and his physical strength helped him overwhelm the people on the platform. He didn''t have to rely on his array any longer since the two young ladies had to worry about the inscriptions. Grey punched the earth dome again, and the cracks spread faster. With a third blow, it fell apart, showing Grey the Earth Elementalist who was hiding behind it. The Earth Elementalist sent out an earth spike, trying to catch Grey off-guard, but Grey dodged it and grabbed him in the neck. He lifted him into the air, noticing the Wind Elementalist that was rushing over to stop him, he threw the Earth Elementalist at him. Chapter 911 Dimensional Slash Chapter 911 Dimensional Slash The Earth Elementalist crashed into the incoming Wind Elementalist who was unable to avoid him. With both figures down, Grey acted out quickly. The young ladies managed to step out of the spatial tunnel and blocked the attacks of the inscriptions. They knew if they continued dodging, then they would be giving Grey the freedom he wanted to win the battle easily. When they stepped out, Grey just got to where the Wind and Earth Elementalist were lying. The young lady who had the lightning element attacked, but Grey didn''t feel bothered by it. His inscriptions shot out an attack that blocked the attack of the young lady. He kicked forward, trying to eliminate the duo on the ground with a single attack. The Earth Elementalist acted quickly and an arm made from earth appeared and blocked the attack by opening its palm. Grey didn''t fuss over this as he continued his assault, a lightning bolt fell from the sky, trying to hit Grey. He dodged to the left, and threw a fireball, mixed with lightning at the Earth Elementalist who had gotten up. The Earth Elementalist blocked it, but he was forced back by the impact. The Wind Elementalist had gotten to his feet, but Grey managed to close the gap and unleashed his gravitational force field. He reduced the distance it could cover and the effects of it increased. The Wind Elementalist tried to create some distance between them, but the gravitational force field impeded his movement speed and he was slower than usual. Just as Grey''s attack was about to connect with him, he felt his hair standing on edge. Without even thinking too much, he vanished. A spear made of black shot past where Grey was previously standing. Grey looked at the spear after appearing and noticed it had spatial fluctuations. The spear was helped by the space element, this was why he didn''t sense it quickly. He looked back and saw the young lady who had both the space and darkness element smirk. She was the only Darkness Elementalist on the platform. Grey shook his head before accessing his options once again. Originally, he wanted to eliminate the others, leaving only the Space Elementalists, but they were too much of a problem, so now, he wanted to change his focus to them. The two inscriptions he created had been destroyed by the duo as well. Now he understood why they were able to attack him. He rushed over, still acting as if he wanted to take out the Earth Elementalist. When the Earth Elementalist saw him coming, he prepared to defend against him. Grey glanced at the two Space Elementalists and noticed they were standing around three meters from each other. After making a rough calculation, he was certain that even if they could react, he would have enough time to take out one of them. Coming to such a conclusion, he took action immediately. Just as he sent an attack the way of the Earth Elementalist, the Wind Elementalist attacked him, sending multiple wind arrows his way. Each arrow had a small twister at the tip, making them very dangerous if they got to hit a person unguarded. The arrow was about to hit Grey when his figure suddenly blinked and changed in an instant. He appeared where one of the Dual Elementalist was previously standing and attacked immediately. An earth pillar rose from where the other Dual Elementalist was standing, raising her into the air. She was met with Grey''s lightning attack that sent her flying out of the platform. At the same time this was happening, the other Dual Elementalist was hit by the Wind Elementalist''s arrows and screamed in pain since she didn''t try to block the attack in any way. She didn''t expect it in the first place. Grey moved out quickly, since she was injured, this was his chance to take her out of the battle. When he appeared beside her, she threw a lightning orb at him, but he evaded it easily and grabbed her hand, but she disappeared into the void. Grey smirked and a black sword appeared in his hand, he swung it, and a tear appeared in space, forcing the young lady out of the spatial tunnel she just entered. She couldn''t continue through it since it had been cut in two. This was a new technique Grey learned some time ago. It was a combination of the darkness and space element, he called it, ''Dimensional Slash''. It was still in the early stages, but he knew it would become a powerful move in the future once he had perfected it. The Dual Elementalist appeared before him once again, and he attacked, this time, a little more freely. The Wind and Earth Elementalists were unable to react quickly due to Grey''s switch skill, and were caught off-guard when Grey not only sent out the first Dual Elementalist, but when the Wind Elementalist''s attack hit the second Dual Elementalist. Grey forcing her out of space was even more shocking. Before they could react, Grey had used the earth element to create a pole that he swung at the defenseless Dual Elementalist who was still stunned by the sudden spatial tear in the tunnel. The pole hit her cleanly and she was sent crashing out of the platform. She landed some meters away from the other Dual Elementalist Grey sent flying the other time. In the space of a few seconds, Grey had turned the entire outcome of the battle once again. His victory was already confirmed against the remaining two people. If he defeats them, then he would''ve defeated a total of ten people from the seventeen people present in the camp of the Robertson Family, even if he were to lose later, this feat alone was worth remembering. Most geniuses would''ve failed, especially with the two Space Elementalists, but Grey managed to skillfully eliminate them. After removing the Space Elementalists, Grey placed his focus on the duo on the platform. It was easy to say they were not his match from the start. Within a few minutes, he eliminated both of them. Chapter ?912 Create Another Miracle Chapter ?912 Create Another Miracle Luthera''s eyes were currently opened wide, not just her eyes, but her mouth as well. This made Klaus laugh as he found her current appearance to be very funny. "Did he just switch places with one of them?" She asked, still shocked by the outcome of the battle. "Oh, yeah. It''s a move I taught him some time ago." Klaus said, flexing his muscles. Luthera rolled her eyes, she knew full well that Klaus didn''t know even the simplest move of the space element, so how could he teach Grey? This was something that was possible since he might have an insight on the space element and tell Grey who''s a Space Elementalist about it, helping him create a skill, but this was something that only a few people could do. Most Elementalists focus on their elements, so even when they tend to gain insights on other elements, they wouldn''t want to speak about it with said Elementalists, unless they were close to them. After all, who would want to empower their enemies? Klaus saying something like this was very possible, but from the short time she had known Klaus, she knew he played with everything. When Klaus was on the platform fighting for her was the only time she had seen him very serious. While thinking of Grey''s battle, she recalled something, all five people Grey fought against were in the Fourth stage of the Sage Plane, while he was in the Third. Technically, each of his opponents was ahead of him with a single stage, yet it seemed like they were below him by two or more. Grey dominated five people who each had a higher cultivation stage than himself. This was a story that was hard to believe. If most of the people here weren''t present today, they wouldn''t believe it if they were told about it. Klaus felt a little better after seeing Grey dominating his opponents. His only concern from the Robertson Family was the young man who was in the Seventh stage of the Sage Plane. He was a famous genius that even Klaus had heard of, Tyris Robertson. A pure Earth Elementalist who had one of the strongest defenses and attacks among his peers in this Region. Grey didn''t think too much about them since he could boost his strength to the Peak of the Sage Plane and dominate whoever they sent to the platform. The Head of the Robertson Family looked at the defeated group, before taking a deep glance at Grey. For the first time in his life, he was impressed by a figure that wasn''t from his family. It was hard not to be impressed with Grey. He was a generational talent, in fact, a historical talent. He had not seen anyone dominate so many people while being on a lower stage compared to his opponents. However, thinking of the humiliation of his Family''s geniuses, he couldn''t help but shake his head. If they managed to groom someone of Grey''s level, he would''ve been the proudest person alive. Alas, there can''t be two people of such talent alive. He didn''t even believe there was anyone else on Grey''s level. Thinking about this, he felt a little better since this meant that Grey would also dominate other Family geniuses in the same manner he was doing to his. He might be more biased toward his family members, but it didn''t mean that he didn''t know the truth. He looked around, and only seven figures were left. The Seventh stage Sage Plane Elementalist was out of the picture since he felt sending him out would look like bullying. Yes, he accepted Grey''s talent, but he didn''t think for one minute that Grey would be able to defeat Tyris. The gap in cultivation stage was just too much for even someone of Grey''s level of talent to close. There were only six people present, four were in the Fifth stage of the Sage Plane, while the other two were in the Sixth stage. He thought about it for some time before giving a nod to the four in the Fifth stage. He felt a bit embarrassed he had to send so many figures in the Fifth stage, but sending only two out was a bit dangerous since Grey was somewhat unpredictable. Grey hadn''t used his full strength since the start of the battle. This was something he knew too well, so he couldn''t take the risk of sending out only two and having to watch them lose. If two lose, the other two would lose as well if he sent them over. When the crowd saw the figures that were walking over from the Robertson Family, they couldn''t help but shake their heads. However, they understood the reasoning behind this as well. Grey had defeated all the people sent to him, including five Fourth stage Sage Plane Elementalists. The Head of the Robertson Family was only taking a precautionary step. As long as they won, that was all that mattered. Losing to Grey would leave the bet wide open again and Klaus might actually end up winning. Leaving here without being able to marry Luthera would be a bigger disgrace and embarrassment to them, than actually sending out all seventeen people at once. Of course, the only thing that could topple that is if Grey defeated all seventeen people simultaneously. Defeating them in groups gave the Robertson Family a small chance to cover their shame. They could easily say they underestimated Grey, or maybe Grey hid his true strength. There were even a few people in the crowd who felt Grey was above the Stage Plane, but he used a special technique to reduce his strength that even these experts above the Elemental Venerable Plane couldn''t notice. The strongest experts here were at the Peak of the Elemental Sovereign Plane. If Grey could hide from them, then he was even more of a freak than people were thinking he was. Luthera was a little worried, but seeing Klaus'' nonchalant expression, she also decided to put her faith in Grey. ''Maybe he will produce another miracle.'' Chapter 913 It Phased Through? Chapter 913 It Phased Through? Grey stood on the platform, still as calm and poised as when he first stepped on the platform. It was as if he hadn''t gone through any battles yet and was waiting for his first fight. When the four geniuses at the Fifth stage of the Sage Plane stepped onto the platform, they looked at Grey, a bit of awe was evident in their eyes, but more hate. Grey was a genius that invoked awe from other geniuses, they didn''t even have the guts to be jealous of him, he was just too far ahead of them. From his battles so far, a one-on-one battle against either of these geniuses would most definitely result in a victory for him, this was something that everyone there knew, including the geniuses that were facing him right now. They didn''t dare to underestimate him, so they planned to attack together. Not wanting to give Grey the chance he wanted to do as he willed. Of the Four Elementalists, two were Fire Elementalists, a young man, and a young lady. The others were young men, one being a Water Elementalist, while the last was a Dual Elementalist, having the darkness and earth element. They all attacked simultaneously, sending out multiple attacks at Grey who was standing in the same spot. Grey, seeing all the attacks coming his way, didn''t panic, with a wave of his hand, he used the space element to dispel the attacks coming his way. Given the strength of each attack, it took a lot of effort from Grey''s end to dispel them with his space element. The Water Elementalist sent out ice arrows at Grey, while the Dual Elementalist used the earth element to send Grey into the air by creating a pillar that rose from the ground quickly. The Fire Elementalists attacked as well. Their sync and coordination were top-notch, and it was applauded by everyone around. If not for the fact that they were fighting against someone who was two stages below them, it would''ve been a beautiful scene. Grey, who was mid-air flipped, and with a spin, he covered himself with a fire dome that protected him from all the attacks that were coming his way. When the fire dome died down, Grey''s figure was nowhere to be seen. He was fighting against a group that didn''t have a Space Elementalist, if he didn''t take advantage of being the only Space Elementalist on the platform, then he must be insane. The Four Elementalists were alert as they looked around in search of Grey. Even though they were not Space Elementalists, they could still sense the ripples in space, so they could easily track Grey down whenever he came out of the spatial tunnel, as long as they focused. Unfortunately, Grey didn''t plan on giving them an easy time. Two inscriptions appeared mid-air and attacked. While they were busy dealing with the attacks, he appeared close to where the Dual Elementalist was standing and attacked. Whenever he fought against multiple opponents, he preferred taking out the person he felt was the most threat. The Dual Elementalist employed the darkness element to attack Grey when he sensed him. Grey used the lightning element to counter before drawing closer to the Dual Elementalist who was on a retreat, trying to keep a good distance away from Grey. From Grey''s previous battles, he knew Grey was very dangerous once he gets too close, so he didn''t want to repeat the same mistake others did. The young lady who was a Fire Elementalist managed to free herself from the assault of the inscriptions within a short time and attacked Grey who was trying to shorten the gap between himself and the Dual Elementalist. Grey was forced to block the attack which was coming his way. The other Fire Elementalist attacked as well, forcing Grey to dodge to the side, further increasing the space between him and the Dual Elementalist who used the chance to also attack him with a large boulder that fell from the sky. Grey used a fire blade to slice the boulder into two, before disappearing, when he reappeared, he was not too far from the Water Elementalist. He unleashed his gravitational force field which slowed down the reaction of the Water Elementalist. Even though they were warned against this move, and they had been preparing to neutralize the attack, it was still very difficult for the Water Elementalist since Grey made sure he used the smallest area possible, that way the strength of the gravitational force was increased by a lot. After doing this, Grey attacked the Water Elementalist. Just as his attack was about to hit, the Fire Elementalist who was a young man attacked, trying to stop him. Grey''s figure seemed to blink and it was as if the attack phased through him. When those from the stands saw this, they opened their mouths in shock. The old experts from the two Families all looked at Grey as if he was a monster. The skill he just utilized was one of the hardest moves a Space Elementalist could utilize. Grey was still so young, yet he was already able to use it so well. The skill involved entering and coming out of space almost instantaneously, however, there would be a small gap so the attack that was sent his way would pass through. First off, it was very dangerous because if timed wrong, the Space Elementalist might actually appear in the middle of the attack, defenseless. That was far worse compared to taking the attack head-on. After doing this, while the entire place was still in shock, those on the platform included, Grey continued toward the Water Elementalist. A large hammer made from the earth element appeared and he used it to smash the Water Elementalist from the side. The Water Elementalist was sent flying, Grey moved along as well. With his body covered with red lightning, his speed almost doubled and he shot after the young man who was hit. He wanted to make sure he took him out. Chapter ?914 A Complete Package Chapter ?914 A Complete Package Grey soon caught up with the Water Elementalist who was mid-air and attacked him once again. This time, the Water Elementalist managed to put up some form of resistance, covering himself with ice. Grey used the space element to cut through the ice with a precise attack, slicing through the space where the ice formed, creating an opening for himself. The next attack was a lightning bolt that passed through the opening and struck the young man who was still inside the dome. Grey made sure the place he opened up wasn''t large, so it was almost impossible for the young man to dodge the attack without removing the dome. If he did this however, he would be at Grey''s mercy since he wouldn''t be able to stop Grey from attacking any further. Grey used a perfect attack to put the Water Elementalist in a dilemma where whatever option he chooses, he would still lose. In the end, the Water Elementalist dispelled the ice dome, hoping to block Grey''s incoming attack with everything he got. Unfortunately for him, he felt a tug and was dragged towards Grey by an unknown force. Before he could even react, Grey slammed him into the ground. The Water Elementalist passed out cold the next instant. Everything happened so fast, from Grey appearing and using his gravitational force field, to phasing through an attack, then to sending the Water Elementalist flying and finally knocking him out. It didn''t take over five seconds, which showed just how fast and decisive Grey was at making decisions. Grey accessed everything and made the best decision he felt was worth a shot, and surprisingly, with the help of his shock factor, he succeeded. In a match against four opponents who were all two stages ahead of him, Grey shockingly had the advantage. The Head of the Robertson Family didn''t know if he should be impressed at Grey''s insane abilities, or if he should be disappointed at the incompetence of his Family''s geniuses, but one thing was for sure, he wished someone like Grey was from his Family. Grey was a little over twenty years of age from what he could tell, yet he was already so powerful, and from the fight, he knew Grey was a seasoned fighter. Compared to the geniuses from his Family, Grey was miles ahead of them. In fact, he didn''t mind adopting Grey at the moment and making him the future Family Head. Lothar looked at Grey and felt a tinge of pain in his chest. ''Why isn''t he the one who likes her?'' He honestly wished Grey was the person his daughter liked. If he were the one, he would''ve given her to him from the start of the battle and called off everything. He knew for a fact that after this battle today, Grey''s name would spread far across the entire Region. Luthera was once again flabbergasted by Grey''s abilities. Even Klaus showed a bit of surprise when he saw Grey phase through the attack. This was the first time he was seeing this as well. He shook his head with a wry smile. "Freak." He muttered under his breath, but Luthera heard him. "I''m afraid he''s more than a freak." She replied in a low voice. She hadn''t seen anyone on Grey''s level, nor had she heard of anyone like Grey. He was just too special. How could there be someone this talented? Tyris took a deep glance at Grey, but after some time, he shook his head with a rueful smile. "Unfortunately, he''s still too weak. I would''ve loved to fight against him." He said with a rueful smile on his face. Just like the Family Head, he also felt he was too strong for Grey. Of course he would have some difficulties when fighting against the people Grey was currently fighting against, but he would still come out victorious, comfortably. He wouldn''t take as long as Grey while fighting against them. He looked at the platform and scoffed when he saw the body of the young man who passed out. After beating the young man out cold, Grey retreated to the side so his comrades could take him out of the platform and he would be attended to. ''One down, three to go.'' He looked at his opponents with his usual nonchalant eyes. Looking into his eyes, his opponents were a little afraid, for some reason, they couldn''t help but wish they weren''t fighting against him. Even with their numerical advantage, they still felt a bit inferior to him. Due to their strength, their attacks are more effective on Grey which was normal, but Grey was very smart and had managed to always dodge a head-on confrontation with them. His wits had given him the edge he needed against them. At this rate, he wouldn''t even need to boost his strength or anything to fight with them. Having multiple elements was also very useful to him since it made him versatile when fighting. He wouldn''t need to fear when defending, attacking, and even dodging. He had it all. From the standpoint of others, Grey was actually the complete package. He had the space and lightning element for dodging or using skillful movement skills to close down on his opponents. Then the earth element was there to help him defend against attacks. As for firepower, his fire and lightning elements were there. Then there''s also the uniqueness of the space element. Take for instance when he cut through the ice dome of the Water Elementalist. This wasn''t something he could do with the other elements since the defense of the Water Elementalist was on par with them. But the space element was a different issue. The remaining three figures exchanged glances. When they started the battle, they were confident that they could take Grey out, after all, with their numbers, they didn''t need to fear him. But as it stands, they felt they made a mistake. Their demeanors changed and Grey could sense an aura of seriousness, they wanted to take the battle to its peak from now and eliminate Grey quickly. If they waited for too long, then Grey would most definitely defeat them one by one. Chapter ?915 Bringing Back Fun Memories Chapter ?915 Bringing Back Fun Memories All three figures attacked Grey simultaneously, not wanting to give him the chance he wanted to take them out. The Dual Elementalist used the earth element to create a cube that vibrated, giving off a large amount of essence. The cube was floating behind him, and Grey guessed it was some type of skill similar to what Klaus did with the ice moon to increase his strength. The Dual Elementalist didn''t stop there, with a wave of his hand, black tendrils shot at Grey, all made from the darkness element. Grey would naturally not want this to hit him. He wanted to dodge, but the two Fire Elementalists attacked at this point. One from the left, and the other from the right. The Dual Elementalist was attacking from the front, in a pincer attack, Grey was forced to either retreat back or take the attacks head-on. Most people felt he would want to dodge the attack since he had the space element, but Grey had another plan. He created a small inscription, hidden from the view of everyone. He stood above the inscription which was inscribed on the floor of the platform. With a smile on his face, he prepared to face the attacks head-on. When everyone saw the decision he made, they couldn''t help but wonder if he was normal or not. A sensible decision would be to retreat to the back or even move forward, that way, all he had to focus on was to deal with the black tendrils coming his way. Standing in the same spot was making things difficult for him. Grey naturally didn''t care what people thought of him. Luthera was a little worried when she saw this and her hold on Klaus'' hand grew tighter, but looking at him, she gained some sort of confidence once again. Klaus, noticing her hold turned to look at her and smiled. He already knew what Grey wanted to do. After watching Grey fight for so long, he knew this was the perfect time for him to use his special space element technique, switch. As long as Grey picked the right person, then he would be able to take out another person in a short time. And just as Klaus thought, Grey''s figure blinked just when the attack was about to hit him, and the figure there changed to the young man who was a Fire Elementalist. Even though Grey had used this technique once before, they still didn''t expect it, and the young man was hit by all three attacks, luckily, his attack didn''t do him much harm. He was tied by the black tendrils which started to corrode his elemental essence, while the attack of the other Fire Elementalist struck him. Just when he thought it was over, he felt a lightning bolt shoot out from the place where he was standing. It hit him in the nether region and sent him flying into the air as he screamed in pain. Everyone heard his horrific scream and the men in the area could help but feel a chill run down their spines. The area Grey''s inscription attack hit was one of the most sensitive parts in a man''s body, so it was natural that the pain the Fire Elementalist felt at the moment was beyond words. A burst of laughter came from the side, it was from none other than Klaus. Seeing this, he recalled his technique that became famous in the trial land, the nutcracker. Although this was different from it, it had almost the same effect. This one could be said to be even more powerful since it was from an elemental attack. When the young man crashed to the ground, he couldn''t even move, with both hands on his crotch, he started to shake and before long, passed out with foam coming out from his mouth. Grey had an awkward expression on his face since he never planned for something like this to happen. Hearing Klaus'' peal of laughter made it even worse and he couldn''t help but look down, a bit embarrassed. The eyes of the Head of the Robertson Family twitched when he saw the condition of the Fire Elementalist. Even for someone of his strength, that was a place he wouldn''t want to be attacked. Grey had taken out another person, although it was with an odd tactic, it was successful. The other Fire Elementalist was a young lady, when she saw the condition of her companion, she looked at Grey with hateful eyes. The Dual Elementalist on the other hand couldn''t help but look at the ground, afraid Grey set another inscription on the floor. What was even worse was that none of them knew when Grey created the inscription, so it made him even more fearful. Without even thinking twice, he made pants with the earth element. When Grey saw this, his mouth twitched slightly. He only wanted to eliminate one of them, he never thought the Fire Elementalist would keep his legs wide open when he stood there. And with the way Grey was previously standing, the attack would''ve run through his leg, electrocuting him. Klaus, seeing the Dual Elementalist making pants with the earth element couldn''t contain his laughter and burst out laughing once again. This time, he wasn''t the only one who found this funny, a few people chuckled at it, but because of the fear of not wanting to offend the Robertson Family, they hid it quickly. Grey glanced at Klaus, and all he wanted to do at the moment was to pummel him. The Fire Elementalist who was still on the platform attacked Grey who still had an awkward expression on. Grey turned his attention back to the fight in front of him, with a swift movement, he dodged the attack and moved closer to the young lady. She turned around and attacked, Grey could tell that she was clearly infuriated. He blocked her next attack with the help of a hand made from the earth element, before attacking with the fire element. The Dual Elementalist joined in on the battle as well, with his earth pants, of course. Everyone soon started to forget about what happened some time ago and focused on the fight, everyone except Klaus who was laughing his head off at the Dual Elementalist fighting with earth pants. Chapter ?916 New Motivation To Grow Stronger Chapter ?916 New Motivation To Grow Stronger Grey''s figure flashed through the platform as his body was covered with red lightning while he attacked. The Dual Elementalist and Fire Elementalist were keeping him at bay. The ferocity of their attacks was currently above the last time. They attacked intending to take Grey out. When Grey tried to block an attack, he was forced back by it, this showed just how high the current attack power of the duo was. Luckily, with the help of his space and lightning element, he didn''t really need to face all of their attacks. He could dispel any attack that came within a certain area of him with his space element. The Dual Elementalist acted as the support, while the Fire Elementalist was the main attacker. She was like a dormant beast that was released into the world to cause havoc. Everyone felt chills as they watched the battle. Even Klaus had stopped laughing. The battle was currently at its peak, and in a few minutes, the winner would be announced. He felt confident that Grey would win, but watching the Fire Elementalist''s relentless attacks, he felt a bit worried. This was normal since nothing was set in stone. Just as Grey had multiple trump cards and shock factors, so did other geniuses. They couldn''t underestimate anyone. Of course, it would be almost impossible to see someone as special as Grey, but there are a few who were above normal geniuses as well. While fighting, Grey didn''t dare to lose focus. He created an inscription, and after so long, he finally created an array to bolster his speed with the space element. Now, he could teleport at a faster pace. The Dual Elementalist was the calmest of the duo, and he assessed the situation with precision. He made sure the Fire Elementalist was never left alone with Grey. They knew for a fact that alone, Grey would beat them up within a matter of seconds. The two people who had been eliminated were a result of Grey''s ingeniousness and strength. If they made a single mistake, they knew Grey would capitalize on it. Thinking up to this stage, the Dual Elementalist tried to make sure they were the ones in control of the battle. And since they started attacking him again, they had gotten a good hold on the battle. There had been a few times when Grey countered, but they made sure they didn''t give him the chance to utilize his skills before forcing him to defend. The Head of the Robertson Family was impressed with their performance after they lost the Fire Elementalist. At this rate, he felt maybe they had some chance of defeating Grey. If they won, then he would be relieved since he managed to keep the reputation of his family. When Grey saw how difficult things were starting to get, even with his space element, the Dual Elementalist was making it hard for him to use it properly. The Fire Elementalist also attacked continuously, not stopping for a second. ''Looks like I''ll have to use it now.'' He thought internally. He still hadn''t used his domains, so he could still use them to change the tides of the battle. After coming to a conclusion, he decided to use his lightning domain first, his fire domain was stronger, so he wanted to keep it for later. When the Dual Elementalist was about to attack, he suddenly felt a sizzling sensation, looking around, he noticed he was shrouded with lightning. It was as if he was standing in a sea of lightning, everywhere he looked, all he saw was lightning. He didn''t even have the time to react before he was zapped and hit by multiple lightning. With a yell, he tried to break free from the lightning domain. "Don''t bother." He heard a voice behind him, and before he knew it, everything went black and his body fell to the ground. The sea of lightning went off and the unconscious body of the Dual Elementalist was on the ground. Everyone, including the top experts, stood up in shock when they saw the lightning sea. "A domain, at such a young age, how?" The Head of the Robertson Family couldn''t keep calm. Grey had given him far too many surprises. Even after thinking highly of Grey, he realized he was still underestimating him. Grey was still in the Third stage of the Sage Plane, yet he already had a domain. This was a shocking fact. If he were to know that Grey awakened his domain while he was still in the Overlord Plane, it was unknown what his reaction would be. Those from the Braun Family looked at Grey, they sucked in a deep cold breath, bamboozled by Grey''s abilities once again. Grey had awakened a domain, and he had been keeping it to himself all this while. Using it now showed how far the Dual and Fire Elementalists pushed him. Luthera turned to look at Klaus, and to her surprise, she noticed that he had a stunned expression. "You don''t know about him awakening his domain?" She couldn''t help but ask. According to Klaus, he was very close with Grey, so if he didn''t know of Grey''s domain, it would be a shocking thing. "I know he has awakened a domain, even while he was still in the Overlord Plane, but it''s not with his lightning element." Klaus replied with a low voice. "What?!" Luthera exclaimed, attracting attention since she couldn''t keep her voice down. Klaus shook his head with a wry smile. He only recently awakened his a few months ago, Reynolds who was the closest to doing so was still very close but hadn''t, Alice was the only one who wasn''t showing any signs of awakening hers anytime soon, yet, Grey had awakened another. Even though they were friends, it was still a bit frustrating thinking about how far Grey was leaving them behind. This was one of the reasons he had been training with all seriousness. He even forgoes his usual playful lifestyle to make sure he grew faster, yet, even with his high luck, he still was behind Grey. "Such a headache." He chuckled. He was happy for Grey, and now, he gained a new motivation to grow stronger, and faster. He knew he would never catch up to Grey, but he wanted to make sure that Grey didn''t leave him too far behind. Chapter ?917 Three Left Chapter ?917 Three Left The Fire Elementalist was shocked, before she could react, Grey was already standing before her. He wanted to use the opportunity that presented itself after he used his domain to take out the Dual Elementalist. Seeing Grey standing in front of her, she hastily reacted, attacking him. Grey blocked the attack coming his way, before countering. The Fire Elementalist tried to block the attack, but she was left open from her back, and Grey''s inscription appeared behind her and attack. The fire attack slammed into her back, sending her flying in Grey''s direction. Grey, who was already prepared for this, didn''t delay as he attacked her with a lightning orb. The lightning orb exploded, sending her flying off the platform. Victory, Grey had gotten victory against four opponents that were each two stages above him. A shocking feat! At this rate, the crowd were all wondering where such a genius came from. Even the parents of Luthera were no longer calm. Yes, Grey wasn''t the one who wanted to marry their daughter, but he was friends with the person who wanted to, and the fact that he was willing to fight against so many people alone for Klaus showed how close they were. Klaus and Luthera celebrated Grey''s victory, a little relieved that they were getting closer to their aim. Looking at the people left in the queue, they couldn''t help but gulp down their saliva, a little excited about what other surprises Grey had in store. They already knew of him having the fire domain, something that most of the people here weren''t aware of. As long as Grey played his cards well, then victory wasn''t out of sight. Klaus wasn''t even bothered, since Grey already told him he would defeat everyone, then he would. There was no use thinking of how he could use it, as long as he defeated everyone, he was okay with the result. The Head of the Robertson Family nodded to the two Sixth stage Sage Plane Elementalists, he never thought it would get to this. When Grey first stepped on the platform, he thought maybe the first two people would be able to defeat him, but since the start of the battle till now, Grey had been giving him one surprise after another. The duo stood before Grey, accessing him, they still found it odd that he managed to defeat the others, all by himself. "Your impressive run ends here." One of them with long black hair said coolly. Grey didn''t reply, only setting his sight on the duo. They moved instantly, and he noticed one of them was surprisingly a Light Elementalist, and the other wTas a Water Elementalist. The Light Elementalist was naturally the faster one, so he was the first to attack Grey. Grey knew he couldn''t compare to speed with a Light Elementalist in his current state, so he didn''t even try to dodge since it might leave a way for the Light Elementalist to attack him, instead, he utilized his gravitational force field, in hopes of slowing down the Light Elementalist. The Light Elementalist was taken by surprise, but he managed to quickly neutralize the effect in a matter of seconds and continued his attack on Grey. The time he slowed down gave Grey the opportunity he needed to set up a defensive wall, and also think of a counter. While the Light Elementalist was attacking, the Water Elementalist also attacked, but he didn''t close the gap between them, he created a large octopus made of water, with multiple tentacles, and he sent the legs in Grey''s direction. Just as the Light Elementalist attacked Grey, one of the tentacles grabbed Grey by the leg and with a tug, Grey was taken off his feet. Bang! The Light Elementalist attacked at this moment. The defensive wall Grey set up was basically useless since he had been dragged out of the place by the tentacle. Grey''s figure slammed into the ground and bounced off. Before he could regain himself, the Light Elementalist was already beside him as he tried to kick him away. However, just as he was about to kick him, he felt a powerful repulsion force and it sent him flying, away from where Grey was located. Even with the repulsive force that sent the Light Elementalist flying, the tentacle didn''t leave him alone. Grey used the opportunity to stand on his feet before using a lightning sword to cut off the tentacle holding onto his leg. A second tentacle came his way after he cut off the first one which had regenerated at this point. The Light Elementalist also attacked once again. Since the Water Elementalist was focused on controlling the octopus, he didn''t bother to send another attack. Grey welcomed the incoming attacks with zeal and fervor. He had always been a battle lover, so now that a tough battle presented itself before him, he was a little bit excited. Boom! Bam! Bang! The battle quickly intensified. The duo fighting against him had good chemistry, so they were able to force him into a tight spot. Although he was fighting against two people, he had to admit that this battle was tougher than the previous one. The Light Elementalist was using his speed to cancel his space element which was his fastest means of movement. Not just that, but he was also ensuring that he was not in the space area with the Water Elementalist. This way, Grey would not be able to use his switch skill. After watching Grey fight, they started to create some preventive measures before they stepped on the platform. The only reason the Light Elementalist was getting close to Grey was that he didn''t want him to set his eyes on the Water Elementalist. With the manner in which he was attacking Grey, it would be almost impossible for Grey to get close to the Water Elementalist. Things were going smooth for them, but his facial expression suddenly changed when he noticed a change in Grey''s attack pattern. Grey, who had been fighting with his elements all these while suddenly brought out a short sword and threw it in the direction of the Water Elementalist. If it was any other person, he would''ve said it was due to frustration, but Grey was different. While thinking of this, his pupils shrunk when Grey''s figure suddenly vanished, appearing on the spot where the sword was, with the sword in his hand and a powerful orb at the tip of the sword which was pointed at the Water Elementalist. Chapter ?918 One More Chapter ?918 One More Grey appearing in front of the Water Elementalist, holding onto the sword he threw came as a shock to the crowd. What they didn''t know was that Grey marked the sword before throwing it. It looked like an act of desperation on the outside, but it was a well-thought-out plan he came up with when he couldn''t find a way through the Light Elementalist who was making life difficult for him. When he appeared, he instantly used his lightning domain. Before releasing the orb that was compressed to a very tiny orb. It contained shocking power, even though it was around one-third of its normal size. The orb that was made from the fire element, exploded in the lightning domain, with the Water Elementalist in it. The blue and silver color of the two elements gave the crowd a beautiful sight to behold. It was beautifully dangerous. The Light Elementalist tried to come into the scene, but he was a tad too slow in reacting, and Grey had already used both attacks. Grey turned to look at him with a smile. When the explosion died down, an ice dome stood in front of everyone, proudly and untouched. Grey''s smile froze when he saw this, but he didn''t think too much of it. With a wave of the sword in his hand, the ice dome, which stood proudly a few moments ago, came crashing down, and the body of the Water Elementalist was inside. Everyone could tell that he was suffering from burns, and he was currently vibrating, an effect of electrocution. Grey hastily covered his body with the earth element, this way, there was no way the Light Elementalist would be able to rescue him. After Grey took the body of the Water Elementalist who was still shaking, the Light Elementalist arrived and attacked. Grey was naturally never going to let him heal the Water Elementalist. Without the Water Elementalist, Grey could focus on the Light Elementalist. He retreated, moving away from where the Light Elementalist was standing. He brought out five more swords and threw them in five different directions. Each sword sank into the edge of the platform, while he stuck the last one in his hand in the middle of the platform. All six swords were marked, so at the moment, he could change his location almost instantaneously. With the body of the Water Elementalist still with him, he teleported to where one of the swords was implanted on the platform and struck the body of the Water Elementalist with a lightning attack. The Water Elementalist shook before his eyes rolled back and he passed out. Grey had eliminated one of the two Sixth stage Elementalists, while still in the Third stage of the Sage Plane. The move he used was a unique skill since it was something most of the people there had never seen. Only a few had heard of it. It was also a very difficult move to pull off with the space element and could be regarded on the same level as the move he used previously to phase through an attack. Learning one of these moves could already make a Space Elementalist a fearsome individual, the fact that Grey had managed to learn both at such a young age was shocking to them. The top experts there knew each of the swords Grey threw out carried the aura of the space element. Only the person who marked it could teleport to where it was located. The Light Elementalist seeing Grey take out the Water Elementalist paused, he knew fighting against Grey on his own would be difficult. Grey had been using his inscriptions so far, and even then, the duo had been able to fight against him, but now that he had to fight against only one of them, he wouldn''t have any problems with attacking and defending against the Light Elementalist. The Light Elementalist rushed after Grey and tried to attack. Grey didn''t waste any time standing in one spot, he teleported to where one of the swords was and attacked the Light Elementalist from where he was standing. He also created two inscriptions made from his fire and lightning elements. He released his gravitational force field across the entire platform. Although the larger the distance it had to cover, the lower its effect, he didn''t really mind. The Light Elementalist and Grey exchanged blows with none of them coming out on top. Grey was faster now, so he dodged every single attack that the Light Elementalist sent his way. The same can''t be said for the Light Elementalist since Grey was attacking with both his inscriptions and also sending out attacks on his own. The Light Elementalist soon noticed Grey was teleporting at such speed with the help of the swords. After thinking about it, he rushed over to the sword in the middle of the platform and kicked it off. Just as the sword went airborne, Grey appeared beside him with a wide smile. The gravitational force field drew closer, and the force in it increased with it. The Light Elementalist tried to escape, but it was impossible, given Grey''s speed of action. Grey used the lightning domain once again. The gravitational force field and the lightning domain were what he needed to complete the battle. It took him almost ten minutes to fight against the two Sixth stage Sage Plane Elementalists, but he succeeded, against all odds. Everyone already felt Grey had lost when the duo in the Sixth stage of the Sage Plane stepped on the platform. And when they started to dominate him at the start of the battle, they all felt their assumptions were right. However, Grey turned the tides of the battle with another shocking skill. The crowd didn''t know how many times he had shocked them since the start of the battle, but they knew they were almost starting to go numb from it. They all turned to look at Tyris, who had a stunned expression on his face. Everyone from the Robertson Family couldn''t believe Grey was single-handedly beating their geniuses, and he wasn''t even resting after each fight. Chapter ?919 Battling With Tyris Chapter ?919 Battling With Tyris "Is he really going to succeed?" Luthera held onto Klaus'' hand, nervous from the fact that Grey had fought off everyone, with the exception of Tyris. After Klaus lost, and they all heard Gregory''s request, she gave up all hope. The fact that Klaus didn''t allow Grey to join him when Gregory asked him annoyed her a little. She felt if Grey was with him during that battle, they would''ve won the first round. If they won the first round, then they would''ve been able to put the pressure on those from the Robertson Family. However, Klaus let his pride get the better of him and he didn''t allow Grey to fight, opting to fight alone. After he lost, he placed so much pressure on Grey''s shoulder, and now Grey has to fight off against so many people alone. When Klaus told her that Grey would be successful, she didn''t think much of it since she didn''t believe it. She just felt Klaus was saying that to make her feel better. Grey went on to win his first battle quite easily, to her surprise, the second and third as well. After he defeated the duo in the Sixth stage of the Sage Plane, she started to see some glimpses of light. Maybe Klaus wasn''t wrong from the start and truly believed his friend will be able to defeat them on his own. Now that he was about to fight against Tyris who was the greatest genius in the Robertson Family under the Elemental Venerable Plane, she didn''t feel as pressured as before. In fact, she was excited, waiting to see the reactions on the faces of those from the Robertson Family when Grey beat up Tyris. Klaus looked at her with a smile, "I told you didn''t I? He will defeat them all. He''s Grey, and I can''t put my life in his hands, he will never disappoint me." "But honestly though, is he really human? I find that hard to accept." Luthera couldn''t help but say. "Haha, I said that the first time he started to show this monstrous ability of his." Klaus laughed when he heard her question. Everyone close to Grey always felt like this, so it was quite normal. Tyris didn''t wait to get the nod from the Head of the Robertson Family as he stood up and walked over to the platform alone. His figure was quite big. He was around twenty-six years old. When he stepped on the platform, his eyes didn''t leave Grey for one bit. Looking into the eyes of the youth who had seemingly demolished the pride of his Family, he couldn''t keep calm. Tyris was a pure Earth Elementalist, and he used his earth element from the start of the battle. He covered himself with earth armor before charging at Grey who was prepared for his fight against him. Grey knew from the start that he was not his match with his current strength, but he wanted to see how far he could go against someone in the Seventh stage of the Sage Plane without boosting his strength. When he tried to block Tyris'' attack, he was stunned when he was pushed back. From the very first attack, the difference in strength was clear for all to see. The two of them were not on equal footing. Grey''s battle with the duo in the Sixth stage already showed that in terms of attack power, he was behind them, however, he made up for that with his versatility. Even when his strength wasn''t on the same level as the duo, he managed to fight them off with his brain and experience. Tyris had the advantage, and after pushing Grey back, he continued his attack with a large earth hammer. Grey dodged the attack, but the impact of the attack after slamming into the platform sent off a vibration across the entire platform. Grey, who was hiding in his spatial tunnel was forced out, crashing into the ground. Tyris continued his attack, not giving him any chance. He wanted to dominate Grey in his victory and return the glory of the Robertson Family in grand style. Yes, defeating Grey wasn''t any major achievement for him, but it would help his Family, so he had to do it. Klaus and Luthera watched on, a little worried. To be honest, they had every reason to. Tyris was dominating Grey, not even giving him the chance to even attack. Since Tyris stepped on the platform, Grey hadn''t been able to send out one attack. The battle continued, and in one minute, Tyris completely dominated Grey. Grey tried to use his inscriptions, but Tyris found a way to almost extinguish them almost instantaneously. His domain didn''t do much work against Tyris. After some time, he decided to use the fire domain. It was stronger and might be his only hope of defeating Tyris at the moment. When the opportunity presented itself, the platform was soon covered with a sea of blue flames. Tyris never expected this, and the heat from the flame was above Grey''s previous attacks. "Huh? He has another domain?" This was his first reaction, and when he studied it properly, he knew he was right. Grey had a second domain. The entire crowd was thrown into an uproar when they saw this. Even some Multi Elementalists at the Elemental Venerable Plane didn''t have two domains, yet, Grey already had two, and he was still in the Sage Plane. No doubt he was the greatest genius they had seen or even heard of. Lothar was once again thrown off his feet. He couldn''t believe what he was seeing. A genius in the Sage Plane having two domains already. It was a piece of shocking news for them. Luthera looked at it in awe. Klaus already told her of this, but she still found it shocking when she saw it. This was not something she could believe, even when seeing it with her two eyes. The Head of the Robertson Family felt his head ache, Grey was just too much. At this point, he didn''t feel too relaxed. There''s a big chance that Grey might be able to create another miracle once again. Just seeing him use two domains in one day was a miracle on its own, if he managed to defeat Tyris, it wouldn''t be too shocking. Tyris'' earth armor started to show signs of breaking off for the first time since he stepped on the platform. He couldn''t believe Grey was actually able to use two domains. He reinforced his armor and attacked Grey. Grey, with the help of his fire domain, started to attack. For the first time, he had a short period where he attacked Tyris without fear. Tyris'' earth armor soon fell apart after Grey sent a fireball slamming into it. When the earth armor fell to the ground, Tyris felt the full brunt of the heat. Without hesitation, he used an earth technique that not only covered where he was standing but the entire platform. The effect of Grey''s domain was almost completely put to an end. The power difference between the duo was massive, so even if Grey had a domain, he could still use his pure overpowering strength to stop it. When Grey saw this, he couldn''t help but shake his head. With his current strength, he was not a match for a genius in the Seventh stage of the Sage Plane. One like Tyris was even harder to fight against since he had a terrifying defense. When Tyris put a stop to his fire domain, he looked at Grey with an apprehensive look, he wasn''t afraid, but he didn''t dare to be careless any longer. If not for his ability, he would''ve lost the battle in a matter of seconds after dominating it for so long. His offense increased in intensity and he started to show why he was one of the strongest among his peers. Grey found it hard to defend when fighting against him and was bashed from left to right. However, he didn''t give up. He still had a trump card to use, to boost his strength. Luckily, before the battles started, he asked Gregory if he could use a special technique to boost his strength, and Gregory nodded. Seeing that things were going out of hand, Luthera couldn''t help but look at Klaus who was gritting his teeth. She could see anger in his eyes. "Tell him to give up, it''s okay." She encouraged. "I''m not upset that he''s being beaten up, I''m upset that the moron hasn''t used his trump card to end this battle." Klaus said angrily. "Eh?" Luthera was taken aback by Klaus'' statement. "He can boost his strength, he asked Gregory about it before. I''m annoyed he hadn''t used it till now. Such a moron." Klaus complained as he watched Grey get beat up. Honestly, he was annoyed that Grey had to go through this, but what made him more annoyed was the fact that he wasn''t the one beating Grey up. Chapter 920 Disqualified? Chapter 920 Disqualified? "So there''s a chance he can win?" Luthera asked, slightly hopeful. "He will win, it''s not a matter of probability." Klaus said with confidence. Luthera heaved a sigh of relief and turned to look at Grey who was standing on the edge of the platform, breathing heavily. Grey looked at Tyris who was looking at him from the middle of the platform. Tyris hadn''t given him any chance to attack properly, even with his insane battle experience and techniques, he was completely overwhelmed by Tyris'' strength. ''Looks like I have no other option.'' He thought to himself. After coming to the conclusion, he took a deep breath to stabilize himself before his aura started to increase before everyone''s eyes. It shot past the Third stage to the Fourth, Fifth, and finally halted in the Sixth stage. Grey originally wanted to take it to the Peak of the Sage Plane, but after giving it some thought, he decided against it. Doing so would show these people his greatest trump card. In the Sixth stage, he was confident in his abilities to defeat Tyris. When Tyris sensed Grey''s aura increasing, his expression changed and he couldn''t help but look at the Elder in charge of the battle. He knew for a fact that if Grey was only a single stage below him, his chances of winning would reduce by a lot, and Grey might just be the favorite to win. Grey attacked with renewed vigor. All his wounds from the battering he took from Tyris were healed up. He unleashed a fireball, mixed with the lightning element at Tyris. Tyris set up a defensive wall to block the attack, but to his surprise, after one hit, the wall crumbled to the ground. He took some steps back from the impact and took a quick look at Grey, clearly shocked by the strength of his attack. However, his vision blurred as a figure rushed up to him and attacked. Grey threw his fist which was covered in flames at Tyris'' chest. The earth armor Tyris had on protected him from the attack, but he felt his innards shake from the impact of the punch and was sent flying back. From the spot where Grey punched, the armor started to fall piece by piece. The Head of the Robertson Family stood up when he saw this and looked in the direction of the Elder in charge of the battle, "Use of special techniques to boost strength is prohibited from these battles. For that, he should be disqualified." "Actually, it isn''t." The Elder from the Braun Family presiding over the battle stepped forward. "Your son placed the rules, and he agreed to this as well." The Elder explained, glancing at Gregory. Sensing everyone''s gaze on him, Gregory wished the ground should open up and swallow him. When Grey asked him at the start, he agreed to it offhandedly since he didn''t feel Grey would come this far, even with increased strength. They could all see that Grey took the advantage in the battle from his very first move after increasing his strength, this was something that could''ve been avoided if he wasn''t allowed to boost his strength. The Head of the Robertson Family turned to look at Gregory, disappointment, evident in his eyes. While all these were going on, Grey didn''t bother to stop the battle. His figure flashed through the platform as he attacked with his lightning element. Tyris focused on defending, whenever one of his defenses was broken down, he would set up another one. Two inscriptions appeared in the sky and started to attack Tyris, alongside Grey. Boom! One of the attacks finally landed on Tyris and sent him flying, he crashed on the platform, bouncing off a couple of times before finally coming to a stop. Grey moved closer to finish off the battle, but when he placed his leg on the ground around two meters away from Tyris, a large earth spike sprang up from the ground, forcing him back. Before he could regain himself, Tyris was already on his feet, prepared for Grey''s next onslaught of attacks. Grey vanished, and when he appeared on Tyris'' left, he attacked. After attacking, he vanished once again, appearing in front of him and attacking. His transition was so smooth and fast that before the first attack hit, the next one was already on its way. Tyris blocked the attacks but was pushed back. While staggering back, he suddenly felt a sense of danger. Without waiting, he jumped to the left and an attack shot out from the ground. Grey used the earth element to create a hammer that he tried to use to slam Tyris to the ground while he was mid-air. Tyris was fast and covered himself with an earth dome. This not only protected him, but it also gave him a little time to adjust his head. The hammer hit the dome, sending it to the ground. Grey moved close and used the fire element to try to burn away the earth protecting Tyris. However, no matter how hard he tried, he was unsuccessful. A lightning bolt fell from the sky and struck the dome, but it still didn''t budge, to the annoyance of Grey. When he was about to attack again, he noticed a spear made from the earth element coming his way. The distance between himself and the dome. Just when the spear was about to hit him, it suddenly passed through. It was just like when he was attacked the previous time, he phased through the attack effortlessly. After going through the attack, he created a small lightning and fire orb and sent it at Tyris who was still covered with the earth dome. The attack crashed into the earth dome, causing a large explosion in the process. From the moment Grey increased his strength till now, he had overpowered Tyris. One has to know that he was still a stage below Tyris, yet he was beating him up with such ease. Chapter ?921 Victory Chapter ?921 Victory Klaus and Luthera were the only ones with relieved expressions as they watched Grey take the upper hand in the battle. Those from the Robertson Family had a sour expression. What was worse was that Gregory was the reason all this was happening. There was no way to stop Grey from using this technique since it wasn''t against the rules set up by Gregory. The Head of the Robertson Family didn''t lose hope, since Grey was able to use this special technique to boost his strength, then Tyris could as well. He muttered softly, but Tyris heard the words clearly. Tyris managed to dodge Grey''s incoming attack when he heard the order from the Head of the Robertson Family. After seeing Grey do this, he also had the thought of doing it, but he felt since he was already a stage ahead, he should still be able to defeat Grey. Things didn''t go to plan for him and he was the one who was getting beat up by Grey. He couldn''t even defend himself properly, his defensive ability which he was most proud of was almost useless in front of the current Grey and he felt frustrated because of it. Even those in the same stage as himself find it difficult to breach through his defense, yet, Grey was doing it so effortlessly. After getting the order, he didn''t hold back, and with a yell, his aura exploded out. Within the blink of an eye, he went from the Seventh stage of the Sage Plane, to the Ninth stage. Although just barely, his aura was well above the Eighth stage. Grey, seeing this turned serious. He knew Tyris wouldn''t just let him win. He thought about it and decided it would be better if he pushed his strength to the Seventh stage. This way, he would secure his position as the dominant one, while also making sure the distance between them was shortened. Tyris was four stages above him from the start of the battle, and now, he was three stages above him. If he could take it to just two stages, his victory would be certain. The crowd were getting pumped up as they watched the battle reach its peak. Grey had given them the greatest shock of their lives, and they couldn''t say they weren''t entertained by the battles so far. The thrill of having to watch Grey go from being the underdog to going toe to toe with Tyris was exhilarating. There had been a few who supported Grey from the start of the battle, so seeing him so close to victory, they were excited. Tyris attacked the moment he was at his peak. Grey didn''t increase his strength immediately, he wanted to see how powerful Tyris was before making the decision. He created a defensive wall to block the attack Tyris sent his way. When the attack hit the wall, cracks appeared on it, but the wall stood firm. Seeing this, Grey knew he could still cope with the current Tyris and didn''t really need to increase his strength anymore. The inscriptions that were mid-air attacked once again, sending a bunch of fire arrows and lightning bolts at Tyris. Grey on the hand compressed a fireball to the smallest. And while Tyris was still dealing with the attacks from the inscriptions, he sent the fireball in his direction. He also made use of his fire domain, trying to conceal the fireball from Tyris until the last moment. Tyris tried to remove the domain just like the last time, but before he could even do that, he sensed something coming his way. He was already covered with earth armor, but to be on the safer side, he created an earth wall around him. The direction the attack was from was unknown to him because of the sea of fire surrounding him, so he made the best option, protecting himself from every angle. Grey, seeing this, moved closer to him and waved his hand. The earth wall on the right part was slashed open by his dimensional slash, giving the fireball the opportunity to go through. The explosive power in the fireball was evident for all to see, and when it hit Tyris, it sent him flying. Tyris slammed into the earth wall, breaking through it and crashing to the ground of the platform. The armor on his body fell off immediately after the attack hit him. While he was still bouncing off the ground, a lightning arrow struck him with unprecedented speed. The arrow was followed by an earth hammer that hit him from above, planting him to the ground. Grey''s offensive didn''t end there, with this opportunity, he wanted to end the battle in one swift move. He stretched out his hand, and Tyris felt a strange force dragging him to where Grey was standing. He tried to attack Grey, but Grey dodged the attack and countered. Grey had the advantage here, with him being the one standing, his attack was very precise, hitting Tyris on the chest. Tyris coughed up a mouthful of blood from the attack, but still didn''t pass out. When his feet touched the ground, he tried to turn around since Grey was no longer in front of him, but to his shock, he noticed that his feet were covered with earth, making it impossible for him to turn around. He forcefully removed his leg, but Grey was already standing behind him and attacked him. This pushed him forward once again. He tried to balance himself, but he was met by another attack. Grey used his inscriptions to help fight against him at this point. He couldn''t even defend against one attack, much less three. In a few seconds, he fell to the ground, panting heavily, battered from Grey''s attacks. He was unable to stand up any longer. Grey had defeated him, against all odds, in a battle where everyone felt that he would lose. He managed to come up with a way to win every one of them, shocking his doubters. Chapter ?922 Hell Win Chapter ?922 He''ll Win Everyone stared at the lonely figure standing victorious on the platform, his opponent lying on the ground, defeated. Grey''s figure was etched into everyone''s memory at this moment, to most of them, this was a figure that would go on to become extremely famous in the future as long as he didn''t meet an untimely death. Luthera and Klaus were all smiles as they watched Grey stand alone on the platform. It was a good sight for them since it meant that they still had hope of canceling the marriage and being together. No one knows what the future holds for the duo, but at the moment, they knew that they wanted each other. The Elder presiding over the battle walked over to the platform, he gave Grey a deep long-lasting glance before taking a look at Tyris, he shook his head, still in shock at the result of the battle, before announcing the winner of the round. In two rounds fought, Gregory won one, and Klaus won one, which meant that they were tied, which means they would have to go for a third round. According to what was said from the start, Lothar would be the one to set up the rule for the last battle. From how things were from the start, it was known that Lothar wasn''t against his daughter getting married to Gregory, if not he wouldn''t have agreed to the marriage proposal at first. The crowd was still in a state of shock after Grey won, so they didn''t notice when he walked off the platform, heading over to where Klaus and Luthera were seated. "You did good, buddy." Klaus hugged him, he was extremely grateful to Grey. "Don''t screw up." Grey didn''t say much, but his intention was clear, Klaus had to win this. If Klaus doesn''t win, they already have another plan in store. Escape with the bride. Even though it would be difficult, Grey made sure his countermeasures had a high chance of working. The only thing was that he didn''t really know the exact strength of someone above the Elemental Venerable Plane, so there was that. If things went according to his plan, they could escape. But he knew all too well that things don''t always go to plan. Klaus nodded before walking over to the platform, Gregory was already standing on the platform, waiting for him. "Thank you." Luthera thanked Grey for his help. "It''s nothing much, he''ll do the same for me." Grey replied with a soft smile. Luthera nodded, grateful for the fact that Klaus, despite his somewhat hateful mouth, managed to make such a great friend. From what Klaus told her about his friends, she knew they were close, seeing Grey go to such lengths for Klaus already proved that he wasn''t lying when he said his friends would go to any length to help him. Grey and Luthera turned their attention to the platform, waiting for Lothar to give the stipulations for the last round. Klaus looked at Gregory, a grin evident on his face. To be honest, he didn''t think Gregory would use such a stipulation for his round, he guessed it, but he didn''t really think it would happen. "A shame, I thought you''d fight as well, after all, you''re one of your Family''s geniuses, aren''t you?" He mocked with a smile. Now that Grey won, he wanted to rub it in Gregory''s face. Gregory snorted coldly, he still felt annoyed by the fact that he caused such a humiliation to his Family. Of course, it wasn''t his fault since no one knew Grey was actually this powerful, but it was still partly his fault since he agreed to Grey boosting his strength with a special technique. If Grey didn''t boost his strength, then Tyris would''ve won the battle, but after Grey increased his strength, Tyris stood little chance against him. What was worse was that even when Tyris increased his strength, he still wasn''t able to beat Grey, a somewhat shameful thing given he was a genius. "Don''t get cocky, it''s not like you''ve won." Gregory said coldly. "Actually, I have. My mission today was to humiliate you, and I think I did that. You barely managed to defeat me, even though you''re three stages above me." Klaus said with a smug smile. Gregory''s eyes twitched when he heard this, and he gritted his teeth in anger. He hated to admit it, but Klaus was right. Being three stages above him meant that he should''ve won the battle quite easily, but he didn''t. While the duo were still exchanging words, with Klaus annoying him even more, Lothar finally stepped on the platform. He looked at both Klaus and Gregory, to be honest, he knew Klaus would be the one who could take good care of his daughter, but for the benefit of the Family, he accepted the proposal of the Robertson Family. "Since it''s a tie, I''ll state my stipulations now. You two have one shot at this." Lothar said as his expression turned serious while looking at the duo. Klaus'' playful expression died as he looked at Lothar, waiting for what he wanted to say. "You''ll both attack each other, with only one attack, you have thirty seconds to use whatever you can to increase your strength, except external items. The winner will be decided after the attack." Lothar said slowly. When the crowd heard his words, they looked at Klaus with a sad look. It was almost evident that Lothar was favoring Gregory. The duo had already fought before and the one who was stronger was already known by all. Klaus might be more talented, but he still wasn''t on Gregory''s level. If Grey was the one placed in this situation, he would win it, no doubt. Klaus on the other hand had a very slim chance of winning this. Grey stared at Klaus, then at Gregory. "Congratulations, he''ll win." He said to Luthera who had her hands clenched, infuriated by her father''s words. "Huh?" She was a little confused. "He will win." Grey said with confidence. "You believe so?" Luthera asked, still unsure. "I know so." Grey''s reply was swift, he didn''t even think about it. He was very certain that Klaus would be victorious in this round. Chapter ?923 Klaus Domain Of Water Chapter ?923 Klaus'' Domain Of Water Luthera looked at Grey, and Klaus'' face came to her mind. Just like Klaus, Grey spoke with the same confidence as Klaus when he was fighting. Klaus said confidently that Grey would win, and Grey did. Now, Grey was doing the same, and he was also very confident. There wasn''t a shroud of doubt in Grey''s eyes or words, it was as if he had seen the results of the battle. She decided to believe in the friends. Since Grey was this confident, then she believed Klaus would win this round. Gregory burst out laughing when he heard this, "See that? That''s a sign that you will lose. Without any external items, you''ll never be able to beat me." Klaus didn''t say much, he only gave Gregory a nonchalant look. He threw a glance at Luthera and flashed her a bright smile before turning to Lothar. "When do we start?" His expression turned serious once again. "When you''re ready." Lothar looked at the two of them. "I''m ready whenever he is." Klaus said. Gregory didn''t take this round too seriously since he knew for a fact that he would defeat Klaus. He had already defeated him once, how hard could beating him again be? It wasn''t even up to two hours after he beat him up, now he had the chance to beat him up again. Lothar looked at Gregory and Gregory gave him a nod, signifying that he was ready. "Alright, start." With that, Lothar disappeared from the platform. Klaus'' aura immediately started to shoot upwards. Gregory did the same as Klaus, first increasing his strength with a special technique. In ten seconds, his strength had shot to the Sixth stage from the Fifth stage. Klaus'' strength went from the Second to the peak of the Third stage, getting close to the border of the Fourth stage. After doing that, an ice moon appeared behind Klaus. It was just like the time they were fighting when he used this particular technique to increase his strength. Gregory on the other hand used the earth orb he used the last time to increase the gravity on the platform. This will not only increase his strength, but it would weaken Klaus as well. Klaus focused on himself, he wanted to win this, and he knew he could. There was something he didn''t use when fighting against Gregory, now, he wanted to use it. Time slowly went by, and thirty seconds passed in the blink of an eye. "Attack!" Lothar''s voice came from above the platform. Just as Klaus was about to attack, a shocking scene happened on the platform. Small drops of water started to form on the platform, these weren''t ordinary water, it was from Klaus'' domain. His domain of water, and he awakened this domain with his heavy water. Each drop of water weighed over one hundred kilograms. The drops of water formed into a large sea of water in no time, and Gregory who already released his attack was stunned. His attack was swallowed up by the sea which exuded an aura that suffocated him. He was unable to believe his eyes, this wasn''t the same person he fought against the first time. When Klaus'' domain appeared, the Head of the Robertson Family stood up, unable to believe his eyes. He already felt Grey was the only one, now, Klaus also had a domain. With the stipulations Lothar used for this round, he already felt that Gregory had this round in the bag. After all, he had already defeated Klaus. He also knew that Lothar did this to give them the chance to win, however, Klaus hid his greatest strength. With this domain, Klaus had no issues with defeating Gregory in the first round. But not using it made Gregory underestimate him in this round. Not just Gregory, but everyone felt Klaus would lose as well. Seeing him use such a move shocked them to the core. Lothar was just as stunned as everyone else. He couldn''t believe Klaus was also this talented. He might not be on Grey''s level, but he was above most of his peers which was a shocking thing to him. Gregory''s attack was easily swallowed by the sea of heavy water, and small water arrows shot out of the sea with unbelievable speed. Before Gregory could react, it had already gotten to him. He tried to block the attack, but the earth wall he placed in front of him was shattered after getting hit by the first three arrows. He was cleanly hit by the other arrows and he immediately passed out. The entire place went silent, it was so quiet that they could hear each other''s breaths. "He won?" Someone in the crowd muttered, voice shaking from disbelief. "He has a domain as well." Another person pointed out. From the time Lothar told them to attack to when Klaus defeated Gregory didn''t take up to five seconds. The crowd were still trying to take in Klaus'' domain before he defeated Gregory, so they were all in a state of disbelief. Klaus stood on the platform, alone, standing proudly with his opponent passed out on the ground. Just like Grey at the end of the last round, his figure was etched into everyone''s memory. The sea of water had turned back to small droplets of water around Klaus, giving him an unearthly aura. It was like a water god was standing before everyone. Luthera was somewhat struck with disbelief, she couldn''t believe Klaus actually won the battle, quite easily at that. He didn''t even seem to put in too much effort. "He passed out, so¡­ I win." Klaus looked at Lothar who was still standing above them. Lothar hadn''t announced the result, so he wanted to remind him. Lothar nodded before stepping on the platform. A bright light enveloped Gregory and he woke up, looking around in confusion. "What happened?" He asked, still unsure of what happened. "You lost." Klaus'' irritating voice sounded in his ears. "Lost? How? The battle hasn''t¡­" Gregory paused mid-sentence as a memory flashed through his head. "Oh, looks like you''ve recalled how you lost." Klaus said with a teasing smile. Chapter ?924 Leaving With Their Heads Down Chapter ?924 Leaving With Their Heads Down Gregory looked at Klaus with disbelief in his eyes, yes, he recalled how Klaus managed to defeat him with a single attack. If Klaus had used this during their fight, then he would''ve won that battle as well. However, he could tell that this single attack took a lot from Klaus, not just that, but unlike the stipulations for this battle, he wouldn''t necessarily give Klaus the chance to accumulate so much energy and would stop him from attacking with such power. It mainly depended on the stipulations stated by Lothar. From the onset, it was obvious Lothar was on their side, hence he gave such a stipulation that favored this. In a good sense, this was the same as Lothar giving them face, however, no one expected Gregory to still lose even after being given such a good opportunity. This showed how incompetent he was. Klaus defeating him even when they were both given the same time to accumulate strength was an embarrassing event. Even the Head of the Robertson Family had a dark expression on. He couldn''t bear to take the shame. According to the bet, they would have to leave today with Luthera since Klaus won. This meant that the marriage was off. His Family not only got embarrassed by two youngsters, but they also couldn''t get what brought them here, especially after inviting so many people over. The Head of the Robertson Family naturally couldn''t renege on the bet since it was already witnessed by so many people. For a moment, a hint of killing intent flashed through his eyes as he looked at Klaus and Grey, but when he thought about it, he knew he couldn''t carelessly kill a genius from the Moonlight Faction, nor could he kill Grey. With Grey''s talent, whatever Faction or Family he came from would value him very highly. They wouldn''t mind going to an all-out war with the Robertson Family if they touched a single hair on his body, much less kill him. Looking at the bigger picture, he knew he couldn''t touch any of them. In the end, it was all his stupid son''s willingness to agree to Klaus'' challenge from the start. If he had refused to take part in the competition, all this wouldn''t have happened, and the marriage would''ve already finished by now. Lothar looked at him and sighed, he could almost tell what was going through the mind of the Head of the Robertson Family. Honestly, the reason he gave such a stipulation from the start was to favor them, unknown to everyone, Klaus kept his true strength hidden. "I lost¡­" Gregory said with a low disappointed voice. "Yes, you can leave now." Klaus wasn''t trying to even show any signs of pity, straight up rubbing it in his face. One has to know that Klaus had never been a friendly person to people he considered enemies, now that he defeated Gregory in the challenge, he would annoy him even more. Gregory looked at Klaus and gritted his teeth, "You''ll regret this." "No, I won''t. Run along, loser." Klaus said. His voice wasn''t loud, and even though he wanted to annoy Gregory, he knew not to overdo it. First off, he didn''t want the entire Robertson Family to have a life and death enmity with him. He could still handle Gregory, but once those in the Elemental Venerable Plane decided to get involved due to the humiliation, then he would be done for. Gregory left the platform with an irritated expression, his face was bright red from anger. When he heard Lothar announcing Klaus as the winner, he felt so annoyed that he almost spat out blood. It became even worse when he saw his father''s expression and heard Lothar''s next words. "According to the bet between Klaus and Gregory, the marriage between my daughter and Gregory is called off." Lothar said, a bit dejected. The fact that this was the way his daughter''s marriage matter was settled was some sort of humiliation to him as well. If he were the one who set up the competition, then it would''ve been fine since he could use the excuse of searching for a suitable partner for his daughter. But he had already agreed to the marriage proposal of the Robertson Family, and then Klaus came from nowhere to challenge Gregory. Gregory accepted and lost in front of so many witnesses. Since Gregory, the one who wanted to marry his daughter, agreed to the challenge, he didn''t have any say in the matter, which was a bit frustrating. He was an Elemental Sovereign powerhouse, but he still had to go with the arrangements of two Sage Plane Elementalists. How infuriating! Just like the Head of the Robertson Family, he threw a deadly gaze at Klaus and Grey, but after seeing the excitement in his daughter''s eyes, he could only shake his head in dejection. "Since everyone is already here, please stay since there are still other things for you all." He said to the crowd. It was a marriage ceremony, and food and drinks were made available to all. Even though the marriage had been called off, it didn''t mean these people had to return without anything. Since they were already here, he didn''t mind distributing the food and drinks. The Robertson Family left immediately after the winner was announced. It was normal since they couldn''t bear the shame of staying. Those affiliated with the Robertson Family left as well, leaving only around fifty percent of the people who came for the occasion. These people didn''t stay too long as well before leaving. Grey and Klaus were the main superstars of the ceremony, Grey in particular had many youths flocking around him, especially young ladies. Klaus was already taken, so they felt the more handsome and more talented Grey might be a better option. Grey was cold and detached, only speaking a few words and barely showing any interest in the ladies. In the end, they could only give up and leave. Some who were friends with Luthera stayed a little longer in hopes of building a good relationship with Grey. But just like the first attempt, they were unsuccessful. Chapter ?925 Heading To The Middle Continent Chapter ?925 Heading To The Middle Continent Later that night, Klaus, Grey, and Luthera were talking casually outside the Braun Family building when Lothar stepped out. His expression was not the same as before, but they could still tell that he was a bit annoyed. He walked up to the trio before calling Luthera over. Since the marriage was called off, he hadn''t spoken with his daughter, and to be honest, he felt a bit guilty sending her off like that. In the end, it didn''t happen which was a form of embarrassment to him. "I know you''re upset with me for the decision I made. But you also know everything I did, I did it for the benefit of the Family. I don''t want to use that as an excuse to hide the fact that I was a bad father, but I do hope you forgive me." He said softly. Luthera was a little taken aback when she heard her father apologizing to her. It was a bit strange since she had never seen this side of him before. Tears ran down her eyes as she hugged her father. Lothar grabbed her and patted her head softly. If things worked out according to his plan, maybe he wouldn''t have been apologizing since the deed had already been done, but now, even though he knew he wasn''t obligated to apologize, he still felt it would be better to do so, and Luthera''s mother urged him to do so. Grey and Klaus watched the duo from the side, they didn''t try to eavesdrop so they had no idea what they were talking about, but they felt the duo were probably reconciling. Some minutes later, they walked back. "Klaus, if you ever hurt her, I''ll hunt you down." Lothar said before walking off. "No need to worry about her uncle, besides, she''s still here." Klaus said with a smile. He had no plans of getting married now, this was something he had already spoken with Luthera about, and he believed she accepted it too. They were both still young, and Elementalists have a long lifespan ahead of them. There was no use in rushing things. Lothar didn''t speak any further, he gave Grey a deep long-lasting glance as if etching his face to memory, "What''s your name?" "Grey Dawson." Grey replied calmly. "I see." Lothar nodded with a bit of understanding before walking off. Grey was a little taken aback, then he suddenly recalled something. There was a Dawson Family that was pretty famous on this Continent. Whenever he called his full name to anyone, they always confused him for one of the geniuses from that Dawson Family. Lothar was already gone, so he couldn''t clear up the confusion. ''I really need to head to this Dawson Family.'' He thought to himself. The trio stayed out all night to talk, Grey didn''t talk much, as usual, gazing at the stars and wondering what it would be like to ever fall in love. This was a feeling he felt was a drawback. From what he knew, love might be a good thing, but it might also be a bad thing. It mainly depends on how you use it. For instance, love could be a great motivation for an Elementalist to grow stronger, but it can also make them lose their way. To his own understanding, love is a double-edged sword. It brought about benefits, but it could also hinder an Elementalist. All in all, he still wanted to focus on himself for the time being. Maybe after he was strong enough and didn''t have to fear that he would lose anyone, maybe then he would let himself fall in love. He knew however that these things couldn''t be controlled or predicted. Take Klaus for example, he had always had an unserious personality and never stayed in a relationship for long. Alice even regarded him as some sort of playboy, not just Alice, but the entire crew. But now, he even took the risk of offending the Robertson Family, not just that, but also dragging Grey with him all for the sake of Luthera. The Klaus they all knew most definitely wouldn''t do something like this. Given his talent and handsome face, he would say, ''I can easily get other girls''. And he was not wrong, his talent might not be the same as Grey''s, but he was not too far behind when compared to those geniuses from the top Factions and Families with Cyan and above elemental grade. One has to know that he still had the blue elemental grade, yet he was advancing almost as fast as Grey. His insane luck was one of the main reasons for this, but without sufficient effort and talent, he wouldn''t have grown by this much. Time went by in the blink of an eye before they knew it, two days had gone by. Grey had already helped Klaus with what he wanted, so it was time for him to leave. He still had a few things he needed to settle, and there was also the deadline for his revenge. He had less than a year before the competition, and given the distance from here to the Middle Continent, it was best if he started to move out as soon as possible. He also had to be wary of the necromancers. Growing stronger was his main goal, but if he advanced too quickly, then it might be a bit of an issue for him. Klaus was a little sad Grey had to leave. He still had a place he wanted to take Void to, unfortunately, they couldn''t go because Grey had to leave so soon. "Where are you headed now?" He asked with a sad expression. "I''m going to the Middle Continent. When I came last time, I made a friend that wanted my help with something." Grey explained. "Fine. Remember to be safe. Always watch out for those maggots. When I get stronger, I''ll help you wipe them out." Klaus warned. He knew a thing or two about necromancers now that he had joined a Faction. Grey nodded. It was time for him to leave. Chapter ?926 Meeting Kyle Once Again Chapter ?926 Meeting Kyle Once Again Grey and Void said their goodbyes to Klaus and Luthera, even the Elder who came with Klaus was there when Grey wanted to leave. Honestly, she would''ve liked it if Klaus left as well. She could see that Grey had a clear goal ahead of him and wasn''t getting distracted by other things. After Grey and Void left, she turned her attention to Klaus. "We should get going now. Remember your promise to the Faction Leader?" The Elder raised a brow. Klaus shivered when he heard this, what he hated the most was being isolated from the world. He preferred the type of training that would allow him to move freely, but this particular skill the Faction wanted him to learn didn''t allow for this. If he knew he wouldn''t need the help of the Elder, he wouldn''t have made such a deal with the Faction. Only now did he start to regret it. The Robertson Family didn''t attempt to even attack him, which was a little within his expectations. But since he couldn''t put Grey and his life in danger due to assumptions, he had to make the deal with the Faction. Luthera overheard the conversation between the duo and couldn''t help but take a look at Klaus. Klaus explained the situation to her, and she chuckled slightly, with a blissful smile on her face. She was happy Klaus made such a deal because of her, this showed just how important she was to him. Klaus on the other hand was showing a dissatisfied look. She cheered him up and told him he could come to visit her when he was out. According to what Klaus told her, the training would take at least six months. To Elementalists, this was not a long time. A single adventure could take over two years. Even when some top experts try to seek enlightenment in their respective elements, they could spend over a decade in isolation, trying to get a better understanding of their elements. Klaus left the same day as Grey, the only difference was that he was almost dragged away, while Grey left of his own free will. However, he knew Grey would most likely have an epic adventure, while he had to go and sit down staring at water and ice for the next six months plus. At this moment, he was indignant. ''I''ll learn it in two months, let''s see how you can keep me here after I do so!'' He complained internally as they flew back to the Moonlight Faction. Grey, on the other hand, was already far away from the city. His current destination was surprisingly not the Middle Continent. He wanted to meet up with Kyle before leaving, and he also had to go to the Dawson Family as well. Other than Ellis and Keith, Kyle was the other friend he had here. He had been with Kieth since joining the Pyrmond Faction, and he hadn''t even gotten a glimpse of Ellis since he came back. Kyle wasn''t too far from his current location, in at most two days, he would''ve gotten to the Region where Kyle''s Family was located. Kyle''s Family wasn''t as powerful as the Dawson Family, on the contrary, even the Braun Family seemed to be even more powerful. However, this didn''t mean that they lacked geniuses. They also had ties with some major Faction, so they were not to be messed with in the Harp Region which they were from. Two days later. This chapter is updated by Lib read.com. Grey appeared in the Harp Region. His journey so far had been very quiet. He had been using teleportation arrays from different cities, so it was pretty fast and stress free. Once he appeared, he contacted Kyle. When Kyle heard that he was coming to visit, he was excited beyond words. He even personally came over to pick him up when he got to their city. Just like Grey and Klaus, Kyle had broken through to the Sage Plane, but he was still in the First stage, and it hadn''t even been more than a month since he broke through. When he saw Grey standing before him with his Third stage Sage Plane aura radiating from his body, he almost gave up. Comparing with Grey was frustrating. Grey shook his hand when he saw him, "I was passing by so I decided to drop by, I won''t stay long." Kyle was accompanied by a young man in the Sage Plane as well, this young man looked at Grey with an interested gaze. It was clear that he was sizing Grey up. Kyle saw this and hastily introduced him to Grey, "This is Andrew, he''s the son of our Family Head." "Andrew, this is Grey, you must have heard of his name from his battle with those from the Syphilis Faction." Andrew accessed Grey once again, the battle with the Syphilis Faction hadn''t been up to a year, but Grey had gone from the Peak of the Overlord Plane to the Third stage of the Sage Plane. And from his aura, it was evident that he wasn''t far from the Fourth stage as well. He nodded to Grey as a sign of respect. Grey nodded as well, he didn''t think too much of Andrew. Andrew was only in the Fifth stage of the Sage Plane. Even the current Klaus might be able to beat him up, much less him. Of course he didn''t look down on this genius from Kyle''s Family, after all, Kyle was a genius in his own right. The son of the Family Head shouldn''t be too bad, right? "Since you''ll not be staying for long, I''ll only be able to show you around my Family compound." Kyle said and they headed straight to his Family compound. Flying was prohibited, so they used the carriage Kyle brought along with him. They chatted on the way, and Kyle heard of Klaus'' recent issue from Grey. When he heard how Klaus was able to defeat Gregory, he couldn''t help but shake his head. Grey was already too much, now Klaus had also awakened his domain, and what was worse was that Klaus was already in the Second stage of the Sage Plane. ''These two make me feel like I''m not putting in any effort.'' He felt dejected inside. Chapter ?927 Thousand Honing Fruit Chapter ?927 Thousand Honing Fruit Grey spent a day in Harp City, the Region was named after this city. Kyle was a good host, taking him around. Originally, he didn''t want to stay more than a few hours since he didn''t have much to say, but after Kyle persuaded him for some time, he agreed to stay for only a day. His time was quite fun, he didn''t do anything other than go to different places. Void was the one who had the most fun since after Kyle found out that he liked shiny things, he took him to a special place in the City. The place only had antiques, and they were all shiny things. Most of the items were useless to Elementalists, but Void''s obsession with shiny things preceded if the items had any use or not. By the end of their trip, Kyle was forced to buy a few things for him. Void had a keen perception of items that would be of some use, so he was able to get a few. After that, his next stop was the restaurants in the City. Grey enjoyed this bit since each City tends to have a certain specialty. Seven restaurants later, Grey and Void almost had plans to kidnap one of the cooks, however, Kyle was able to get them the recipes with his influence. The next day. "Thank you for your hospitality, I enjoyed my time here and wouldn''t mind coming again." Grey said with a smile. "It''s great that you had a great time." Kyle said with a smile, he paused before saying, "I heard those from the Syphilis Faction are searching. According to what I know, those in the Late stages of the Sage Plane want to challenge you now that they know that you''re alright." "Eh? There''s something like that? Interesting." Grey was a little taken aback, but he didn''t take it too seriously. These were people he could beat up, and if any of them dared to attack him, he didn''t even mind killing them. "Thanks for the heads up, I''ll be careful. Besides, it''s not like they can beat me anyway." He nodded to Kyle. After saying his goodbyes, he left. Kyle and Andrew were the duo who saw him off. Andrew looked at Grey''s disappearing figure, "Isn''t he a little too proud?" He was disapproving of Grey''s proud nature. Defeat Late stage Sage Plane Elementalists while still in the Third stage of the Sage Plane? Only a fool would believe that! Andrew, who was in the Fifth stage didn''t dare to say that he could beat any of the geniuses in the Seventh stage, yet Grey had the guts to say it. "For others, it is not possible, but for him, it just might be possible." Kyle said with a shake of his head, he was the one who had traveled with Grey and his crew, so he knew never to underestimate Grey. In the entire crew, Grey was the one who rarely spoke, and he was not the proud type as well. If he said he could beat those people, then Kyle was sure that he had confidence in being able to beat them. Andrew looked at his brother as if he had gone mad, he decided not to talk about it again since there was no need to. ¡­ Grey left Harp Region in a very short time. Now that he had seen Kyle, his next stop was the Dawson Family. He was moving when he felt something vibrate in his storage ring. Bringing it out, it was the item he usually used to send food over to his Teacher. When he recovered, he didn''t forget to send food over. He also asked for some light elemental talismans. His Teacher gave him some, naturally. With these, he had been trying to improve his light elemental grade. Of all his elements, the light element was the weakest. Not just that, but just like the space element, finding treasures related to the light element was extremely difficult. Since Grey had been in the Aurora Continent till now, he had never heard of the appearance of one. His other elements were able to move this fast because other than trying to comprehend them, he also used elemental treasures on them. To his surprise, when he brought out the item, he received a letter. According to the letter, his Teacher was coming to the Aurora Continent in search of something. ''Teacher''s coming here? That should be nice, I''ll get him to beat some of those necromancers.'' Grey thought internally. However, after some thought, he paused. There''s a chance that his Teacher might still be in the Sage Plane. If that was true, then he might even be able to beat him now. If he used the Fusion State, he could get to the Peak of the Sage Plane, how hard could beating his Teacher be if they were in the same stage? He didn''t let this get to his head though. The letter didn''t state what his Teacher was in search of, so he wrote a reply, asking for what his Teacher was in search of. He had been in the Aurora Continent for some time now, maybe he might''ve come across the item before. Some minutes later, his Teacher replied. The letter only had three words, Thousand Honing Fruit. ''Eh?'' Grey didn''t know of the fruit at first, he browsed through his memory, trying to recall where he had read about this fruit before. He soon got the answer. The Thousand Honing Fruit was a rare treasure that was beneficial in healing a damaged core. If an Elementalists damages their core, this fruit can not only help fix it, but it would also make it better. This was one of its major uses, it was also great for Elementalists above the Sage Plane. If those below the Sage Plane try to consume it, the energy in it will cause more harm than good. At the thought of the fruit, Grey was a little excited. If his Teacher could get one for him, then it would help boost his strength. Chapter ?928 The Dawson Family Chapter ?928 The Dawson Family Grey didn''t dwell too much on his Teacher coming, there was a chance that he might not even be able to see him since he might appear on the other side of the Continent. He continued with his initial plan, head to the Dawson Family, and then go in search of Sylvia''s Family in the Middle Continent. The Dawson Family was located in the Upoya Region. That was almost on the far end of the northern part of the Continent Grey was currently in. It would take him a few weeks before he gets to that Region from where he currently is. He didn''t waste any more time and continued on his journey. Six weeks went by pretty fast and Grey finally appeared in the Upoya Region. This part of the Continent was said to be in a state of war, two Families had been fighting for some years now, and the war was still ongoing. From what Grey had found out when he was on his way here, a peerless genius appeared in the Dawson Family some decades back, he rose to fame while he was still very young. He went on to become one of the youngest top experts in the Region. After a thrilling battle with an old expert from another Family, his name spread across the entire Aurora Continent. Presently, no one knew his current strength, but it was said that he was feared by most of the top Factions and even Families. The reason this battle was still ongoing was all because of his influence in stopping the other Family''s army from advancing. Even when two Families joined forces, they still were not able to take the Dawson Family down, after so many years. When Grey arrived in the City where the Dawson Family was situated, the place wasn''t as bustling as the other Cities as a result of the war. Of course, it didn''t mean there weren''t people, it just meant there were fewer people compared to other parts of the Region. It didn''t take long before he found the Dawson Family compound, they were famous so after asking a few people, he located the place. Standing in front of the large gates to enter the Dawson Family compound, he was stopped by the guards. "State your business." One of the guards said while blocking his path. "I''m a friend of Conor, is he around?" Grey told them his purpose. "Young Lord Conor is not in the City at the moment, you can come back when he returns." The guard said calmly. "Oh, okay." Grey replied with a blank expression. He didn''t know if Conor was around in the first place, and now that he found out that he wasn''t, he was a little dejected since it was more like a waste of time. "Who should we tell him came over when he returns?" One of the guards asked when Grey was about to leave. "Grey Dawson." Grey replied calmly. The two guards paused when they heard Grey''s last name. They knew that this wasn''t the only Grey Family. Looking at Grey, they didn''t recall seeing him in the Family beforehand. They nodded and just as Grey was about to leave, a young man who seemed to be around twenty-five years old stepped out of the Family compound. "You''re Grey Dawson?" He asked as he inspected Grey from head to toe. "Yes, and you are?" Grey raised a brow as he looked at the figure standing before him. This young man was already at the Peak of the Sage Plane. Even though Grey was cultivating very fast at the moment, it was still rare to see people at the Peak so young. The young man looked at Grey once again, his eyes showing disdain. "Henceforth, you''re not allowed to bear the Dawson Family name." He said coldly. "Huh?" Grey was taken aback by his words. ''Arrogant and foolish. I like people like this, they suffer the most.'' Void chuckled as he communicated with Grey telepathically. ''He does have the right to be arrogant, and foolish as well.'' Grey replied. Thinking about it, Grey felt it was best not to clash with this young man, especially when he was in the territory of the Dawson Family. Even the Pyrmond Faction wouldn''t want to get on the bad side of the Dawson Family. This, he knew after investigating them. "You heard me." The young man said coldly. Grey looked at him for a while, nodding his head, he turned around and planned to leave. However, Conor arrived just at the time Grey was about to leave. "Grey¡­ What are you doing here?" He asked even before his figure reached the gate. "I was heading to the Middle Continent, I thought I''d stop by and have a little chat with you." Grey replied, completely forgetting the fact that the young man was still behind him. Honestly, he had always hated egotistical people like this young man, but he didn''t want to clash with him since it would not be good for him. "It''s a good thing I came back in time then. Come, let''s go in." Conor laughed when he appeared in front of Grey. The young man stood in front of them, "Conor, this Dawson wants to be is not allowed in the Family compound." "Eldris, even if you''re going to be the next Family Head, you''re still part of the younger generation like me, and you don''t have that power, yet." Conor said with a cold expression. The two guards didn''t say anything and pretended as if they couldn''t hear them. Grey looked on with interest. Eldris, the young man in concern smirked and walked away. He wasn''t heading into the Family compound, rather, he was going out. Conor turned to Grey with a smile before walking into the compound. Grey followed behind him, not speaking a word. When they stepped into the family compound, he was stunned by the sheer size of it. Not just that, but he noticed there seemed to be a thin veil protecting the compound. It not only protected it, but it also attracted the elemental essence around to this place. This place could be said to be a holy ground for Elementalists. ''The essence here is even better than in the Faction.'' Grey thought internally as they walked into the place. The scenery was serene and there was even a lake in the compound. ''Such a nice place. It must be great coming from a big Family. Grey, why are you so poor?'' Void asked with a mocking smile. ''You do know the strongest experts in the Azure Continent is regarded as a young genius here. Even some of the young geniuses here are stronger than those old folks from the Azure Continent.'' Grey retorted with a sneer. There was a large difference between the Azure Continent and the Aurora Continent. "How have you been? I thought you damaged your core while fighting against those guys from the Syphilis Faction. Well, I didn''t believe it, but they really tried to make others believe it since you kind of disappeared after that and didn''t respond to their challenge." Conor said in one breath. "Well, I was lucky. Besides, even if I wasn''t in that realm, I still wouldn''t have accepted their challenge. I''m not so free to be fighting against people willy-nilly." Grey brushed it off. "You''re already in the Third stage of the Sage Plane, wow!" Conor finally took the time to study Grey, and seeing that Grey was already on the same stage as himself, he couldn''t help but shake his head. While Grey was still at the Peak of the Overlord Plane, he had already broken through to the Sage Plane. Now, they were in the same stage. Grey''s advancement speed was out of this world. With Grey''s speed, complemented with his talent, it wouldn''t take long before he gets to the Peak of the Sage Plane. At this thought, he couldn''t help but shiver at the thought of an Elemental Venerable below twenty-five years of age. If Grey truly became an Elemental Venerable before he got to twenty-five, it would be record breaking. Conor spoke with him for a while before excusing himself. ''I wonder if uncle and aunty are around?'' He thought as he walked into the inner part of the compound. If they were around, he wanted to bring them here and introduce them to Grey. Well, his uncle was pretty famous, so it wasn''t bad if Grey could talk to him. Who knows, he might even teach him a thing or two. After Conor left, Grey was left with Void, who wanted to explore. ''If you take as much as a single step, I''ll kill you.'' He threatened. Void was too gutsy, if he let him go, he might steal something shiny. It was okay while they were still in the Azure Continent, but here, he couldn''t allow it. ''I''m not going far, I only want to check out a few things.'' Void begged. ''No.'' Chapter 929 Trouble Brewing Chapter 929 Trouble Brewing Grey and Void continued arguing before Conor returned a few minutes later, he had a little disappointed look on his face. "Anything the matter?" Grey asked when he saw his expression. "Oh, it''s nothing. I wanted to introduce you to my Uncle and Aunty, but they''re not at home at the moment." Conor explained. "Okay." Grey nodded. He guessed the Uncle Conor was speaking about was most likely the peerless expert who rose to fame some decades ago. As much as he would like to see such a powerful expert, it didn''t really mean much if he didn''t see them. There was always another time to see him. "I''ll see him some other time." Grey said with a smile. "Yeah, I guess." Conor nodded. They spoke for a little longer before Grey opted to leave early. Unlike Kyle, he wasn''t really too close to Conor, the main reason he came here was out of curiosity. Although he didn''t feel he was from this Family, there was no harm in coming here to find out. Now that he didn''t find anything relating to him, there was no use staying further. Void wanted to stay a little longer, but he naturally didn''t agree to it. Given Void''s personality, he would most definitely cause him some troubles. Eldris, who was regarded as the next Family Head didn''t seem to like him, if he were to cause any troubles here, he was sure Eldris wouldn''t let it go. Conor wanted to stall him for a little longer, but Grey told him he had some important things to take care of. The next day after Grey left. Conor was sitting casually in the garden when he saw his Uncle''s figure. The number one person in the Dawson Family, Lucas Dawson. He looked at the figure walking casually into the compound. At first, he wanted to approach him, but then he paused. After some time, he walked up to him. "Uncle¡­" He called out. "Yes." Lucas turned to Conor. "There''s something I''ve been wanting to ask you." Conor finally summoned the courage to ask him the question that had been bugging him since he saw Grey. "Oh, what''s that?" Lucas asked. He didn''t have the air of a peerless expert, rather, he seemed like a normal person one would see around. In fact, most people didn''t know him if he didn''t introduce himself. Only those who had seen him knows who he is. He had never been the proud type, nor did he throw his weight around. "There''s this friend I made some months back. He seems to have some resemblance to you and Aunt Martha." Conor replied. "Oh, a boy?" Lucas raised his brow, his interest piqued. "Yes." Conor nodded. "What might his name be?" Lucas asked calmly. "Grey Dawson." Conor replied. When he spoke the name, he looked at Lucas'' facial expression to see if there was any change, however, his facial expression was the same as when they started talking. "Oh, he''s also from a Dawson Family, how interesting." Lucas replied with a soft smile. "Do you by chance know him?" Conor asked. From Lucas'' reply, he felt there was no connection with them, but he still asked anyway since it had been at the back of his mind for so long. "Yes." Lucas nodded. Conor was stunned when he heard this. Hearing Lucas affirm it was a little shocking, he originally thought maybe they weren''t related, especially after Lucas acted like he didn''t know who Grey was. "Don''t tell me that he''s¡­" "My son? Yes, actually, a few of the older guys know of him. Don''t speak about him, okay? His identity is to be kept a secret." Lucas interrupted Conor. "That''s how it is. Okay Uncle, I only wanted to clear my doubts." Conor nodded, he knew his Uncle had a reason for hiding Grey''s identity. However, he didn''t really see any reason why he was doing so. Grey was currently one of the hottest prospects in the entire Continent that he knew of, if they took him into the Dawson Family, it would be beneficial to both Grey and the Family. For one, they could help protect Grey from possible enemies, while Grey on the other hand will have a great place for cultivation and grow faster. It was a win-win scenario for them. Lucas looked at Conor for some time before disappearing into the compound. In his room. "Grey''s here, did you know about it?" Lucas asked Martha who was lying close to him. "Yes, Dean told me about it." Martha replied with a faint but sad smile on her face. "Are we really making the best decision for him?" Lucas asked, a little sad. "He''s already grown this much on his own. Even if we go and get him now, he still wouldn''t stay with us. He''s a grown boy now, I''m just sad we didn''t get to watch him grow because of you and your stupid family disputes." Martha said, slightly annoyed. "It''s best he doesn''t get involved in all this struggle. You already know what it cost me, I don''t want him to go through the same thing." Lucas wore a downcast expression. Coming from a big Family brought about a few responsibilities, as well as a lot of enemies, both internal and external. The ones they got to more worried about were those who were in the Family, close to them. When Lucas was younger, he was almost assassinated by a Family member, this was one of the reasons he decided to leave the Family and hide in the Azure Continent to live a peaceful life with his family. Things naturally didn''t go as planned and he had to return here after his location was exposed when he came in search of a way to cure Grey after his birth. "For someone so strong, you don''t seem confident enough when it gets to do with your family. With us by his side, who would dare to cause him any trouble?" Martha asked, a fiery expression on her face. "There are a few who can. Let''s just leave him alone for some time. I''ll personally go out and bring him back once I''ve taken care of a few things." Lucas promised. "How long will that take?" Martha asked. "Not long. At most a year." Lucas replied confidently. "I expect to see him within the next year, you better not break your promise." Martha said, a little threatening. "Of course I won''t." Lucas wiped off the invisible sweat on his face. He knew her personality all too well, so he knew not to go back on his promise, if not, he''ll suffer. ¡­ While Lucas and Martha were speaking on how to bring Grey back to the Dawson Family, Grey was already almost out of the Region. He brought the map he had with him to look at the best route to take. If he wanted to get to the Middle Continent fast, then he had to go through five Regions, one of them in particular was quite dangerous at this moment. Just like the Region the Dawson Family was situated in, this Region was also in a state of war, and compared to the Dawson Family, it wasn''t as peaceful. Battles were ongoing in different parts of the Region, and innocent bystanders had been accidentally caught up in it. ''Going around would take at least one or two months. But going through will be faster, however, it holds the highest risk.'' Grey and Void slowly accessed their options. ''We should go through it, there might be some useful things we could find. Besides, we can also fish in troubled waters.'' Void replied. ''You never want a peaceful journey.'' Grey shook his head with a chuckle. ''Peace is no fun.'' Void replied, to the amusement of Grey. Grey decided to go with Void''s suggestion. They still had some time before they got to that Region, so maybe he could change his mind before they got there. As long as he saw that it was too dangerous to go through the Region, he would not go through it. They soon started their journey. While Grey was on his journey, his friends were all training, trying to boost their strength. ¡­ In the Pyrmond Faction. Things were starting to heat up. The news of Grey killing the duo had spread out. In the Faction Leaders private cave. "You kept this hidden?" An Elder looked at the Faction Leader coldly. "I have no idea what you''re talking about." The Faction Leader looked at them with a calm expression. "Grey, he killed Nathan and Foudre." The Elder spoke up. He was a relative of Foudre, and wanted to find out why Foudre hasn''t come out of the Lutra realm after so long. After investigating, he found out that he was dead. He heard of Grey''s dispute with Eva, and from what some of the youths said, they overheard him speaking of taking revenge on Nathan and Foudre. Now, both of them were nowhere to be seen. Chapter ?930 Im Your Ancestor! Chapter ?930 I''m Your Ancestor! "How are you so sure they''re dead?" The Faction Leader looked at the Elder with a calm expression. "Their life crystals are broken." The Elder brought out two life crystals. This was different from the talisman Grey''s guardian used. Unlike Grey who''s life was connected to the talisman without his knowledge by his guardian, these life crystals were used by most average Families and above. The owners will infuse a bit of their life force into them. The Elders only found out that the duo were dead after going to check the life crystals. "Oh." The Faction Leader said without changing his expression. "So, how does that concern Grey?" He asked when they were still looking at him. "He''s the one who has some disagreements with them." Foudre''s Uncle spoke up. "As you''re all aware, Grey''s not in the Faction right now. Besides that, the fact that he had some squabbles with them doesn''t mean he''ll kill them. There''s a high chance that they were killed by those from the Lutra race, you''re also aware of this." The Faction Leader said coolly, looking around, he added, "When Grey gets back to the Faction, I''ll ask him about this." Foudre''s Uncle looked at the Faction Leader with a somewhat cold expression. He knew how highly the Faction Leader valued Grey, so it was impossible for them to even touch a hair on him. Of course, they still weren''t a hundred percent sure he was the one who killed them. But they felt he was the one who would most likely do it. "Are you going to protect him?" Foudre''s Uncle asked coldly. "Carl, know your place. Until I get to the bottom of the matter, no one is allowed to take any action." The Faction Leader snorted coldly. Even though Carl was older than he was, he was still the Faction Leader, and he had the final say concerning every matter involving the Faction. Since he had made the decision, then they had to deal with it. Grey killing Foudre and Nathan was not a big issue for him to resolve, the evidence was too small, and other than Eva, there were no other witnesses. With only one witness, did these old men think they could get anything on him? Foudre''s Uncle wanted to continue speaking, but was stopped by another Elder who was sitting close to him. After exchanging a glance, they stood up and left. The Faction Leader was naturally not concerned with them. He looked at the disappearing shadows with a meaningful glance. ''Sigh, I knew it would be difficult to keep this under wraps. However, I pity them if they try to use any underhanded means to get back at Grey.'' He sighed with a shake of his head. Not all the Elders from the Faction knew of the individual watching over Grey. The Faction Leader questioned the guardian extensively and got to find out who Grey''s parents were. Even for someone like him, he wouldn''t dare to offend Grey''s father, much less an Elder from an above average Family. Foudre''s Family might be strong, but compared to the Dawson Family, they were still a far cry away. Grey''s father could exterminate the entire Family alone, and this wasn''t an exaggeration. If these morons went ahead and offended such a figure, then they would suffer the consequences alone. The Pyrmond Faction. In one of the houses. The two Elders were conversing on how they would deal with Grey. "Do you know of any way to track him?" One of the Elders asked. "It shouldn''t be an issue. From what I know, he has a friend here. We can''t approach Alec due to his background, that kid called Keith isn''t an issue." Foudre''s Uncle replied with a cold glint flashing through his eyes. "Hmm, that kid''s current use to the Faction is quite high. He''s the only one who can communicate with those from the Lutra race, it''ll be hard to do anything to him without incurring the wrath of those old ancestors." Another Elder said. They all knew of Grey''s feat in understanding and striking a deal with some of the people from the Lutra realm. He specifically thought only Keith, and from what they knew, no one else knew of the method to understand the Lutra race''s language. "We''re only going to question him about a few things. Once we get what we want, we will naturally leave him be." Foudre''s Uncle replied. He also knew of the importance of the resources they were changing with those from the Lutra realm. If they cut off that connection, it would be catastrophic for them. After coming to a decision, they decided to go in search of Keith. They wouldn''t be the ones going in. With their status, as long as any of the members of the Faction passes the news to them calling Keith, then Keith would surely come to them. Two weeks later. Keith left the Lutra realm, in search of Foudre''s Uncle. When he got the news of one of the Elders from the Faction calling for him, he had to honor the call. There was no way he would not answer it. The Pyrmond Faction. The Elders quickly got the news of Keith coming back to the Faction and immediately moved out to meet up with him. They questioned him, and after not getting much from him, they could only leave him alone. The only thing they managed to get from him was his friends being in other Factions. He didn''t tell them of Grey''s tracking device since there was no use in doing so. After they left, he knew this had something to do with Grey being almost killed since he saw Grey when Void brought him in before they left. ¡­ While all these were happening, Grey was currently going through one of the Regions. He was met with a challenging situation. A necromancer had tracked him down, and this necromancer was in the Sage Plane. Presently, they were the only enemies Grey had, and since they could track him with the mark on him, it was almost impossible for him to escape from their radar as long as he was within the range. He still hadn''t been able to fix it, and it was infuriating. "Why are you people so hateful?" Grey asked with an annoyed look. These guys had been hunting him down for some time now, and he hated this feeling. Of course he wasn''t pressured by the necromancer in front of him. The necromancer was only in the Fifth stage of the Sage Plane. "Kid, you must have something important on you, the mark on you is quite amazing, it''s superior to the ones we use. If I''m not mistaken, you got it from our ancestors." The necromancer said with an evil grin. "You''re related to those hateful things?" Grey asked with a look of disgust. Necromancers were hated all round, and after being hunted by not only them, but the creators of necromancy, he hated it even more. "How dare you insult our ancestors in such a manner. Tell me where you find them, and I''ll make sure you keep your consciousness." The necromancer scolded. "Aren''t you a little surprised they weren''t able to capture me and only marked me?" Grey asked with a mocking smile. "Huh?" The necromancer paused. Yes, the thought went through his head, but he thought maybe he would kill Grey and find what he had first. Thinking of it now, it was a little shocking. Their ancestors were said to be from another realm and were extremely powerful. Grey was only a Sage Plane Elementalist, so they should be able to stop him. "What are you getting at, kid?" He asked. "Nothing, I only marked myself since I want to see how competent you guys are. It would be a shame that we revive and only get to meet people like yourself, with such low strength, and honestly, I''ve been disappointed with the results so far." Grey said with a deep look. His current expression was different from what it previously was. "What are you saying?" The necromancer asked, a little confused. "Do I still need to spell it out?" Grey raised his hand and a thin dark thread appeared, it was made from the darkness element. It oozed the aura of death, and even the necromancer was stunned by it. "You¡­ you''re one of us?" The necromancer asked in shock. "Not one of you, I''m one of your ancestors." Grey replied with an indifferent look. His eyes glowed with a strange light, like that of an old expert who had seen the world. The necromancer was conflicted, not sure what to do. On one hand, Grey does seem to know a thing about necromancer from just that tendril he displayed, it was even more powerful than the one he had! On the other hand, he was a little skeptical about Grey''s identity. Why would an old expert play such games? Chapter ?931 Weakening Seal Chapter ?931 Weakening Seal "You¡­ our ancestor? You don''t seem like it. I can tell you''re only just over twenty years old." The necromancer sneered. He wouldn''t be fooled by Grey''s words. Even though he was in the Sage Plane just like Grey, he was still older and more experienced. Of course, he also didn''t know much about their ancestors, so he was a little doubtful. But being a Sage Plane Elementalists meant that he could at least tell the age of a lower ranked Elementalist from their bones. Grey''s bone age was around twenty, so there was no way he was one of their ancestors. If his guess was right, Grey was bluffing. ''You thought it would work?'' Void asked Grey mockingly. ''It''s worth the shot. Besides, if I was able to trick him, I might get my hands on that technique of theirs. Since I can''t remove the mark on my own, maybe there''s a way I can figure it out from the original technique.'' Grey replied. ''Doable, but I don''t think someone as low ranked as him would have it with him.'' Void said. The issue of the necromancers was starting to become a pain for them. They always had to look out for any necromancer whenever they were out of the Faction. "I can easily confuse your senses." Grey replied with the same expression, he didn''t even blink even though the necromancer had seen through his facade. "I''m certain that you''re not one of us, nor are you one of our ancestors. I wonder how you managed to learn such a complex and hard technique." The necromancer said, referring to the tendril Grey did some time ago. The tendril might look normal to other Elementalists, but a necromancer knew just how powerful it was. It was the main ingredient for making their corpse puppets. It was also what they use in controlling it. For Grey to have his hands on it meant that he must have seen a necromancer who had it. Unknown to the necromancer, Grey only got this from his little experiments. Two coffins appeared on the side of the necromancer. He was done talking with Grey. Grey raised his brows when he saw this, he didn''t think the man wouldn''t want to play along any further. He smiled before sending a tendril at the coffins, before the necromancer opened the coffins, Grey''s tendrils had sneaked into it and into the body of the corpses, taking control over it. Just as the necromancer was about to take control of the corpses to attack Grey, his expression changed and he hastily removed his consciousness from them with a sharp pain in his head. Gritting his teeth, he turned to Grey, "What did you do?" "You''re asking about this?" Grey smiled and the corpses walked out of the coffins. With a playful smirk, Grey turned to look at the necromancer, "I already told you I''m one of your so called ancestors, it''s a shame you didn''t believe me." After the corpses walked out, they fell to the ground with a ''Thud''. Even though Grey wanted to scare the man into telling him what he wanted, there was no way he would control corpses. The dead are to be respected. The necromancer was stunned when he saw Grey easily decapitating the corpses. What he found more shocking was how Grey took control of them and forced him out. One has to know that since he was the one who refined the corpses, it was almost impossible for another person to take control over them, unless said person was at least a Plane ahead of him. But Grey was only in the Third stage of the Sage Plane, two stages below him, so it was a shocking scene to behold. At this moment, doubt started to creep into his mind, not just doubt, but other thoughts as well. If what Grey said was correct and he was truly one of their ancestors, then he could curry favor from him. With such a figure behind him, he would advance by leaps and bounds. Although, he was still skeptical since Grey was only in the Sage Plane. Given how old their ancestors were supposed to be, Grey should be at the very peak by now. ''Could it be that the portal has been damaged and he slipped through? He might be a genius from the other side who came here to train.'' When this train of thoughts entered his head, it all started to make sense. According to what he heard from their Patriarch, the seal was weakening, and their ancestors would soon be free to step into this world once again. It is common knowledge that the creators of necromancy were not humans, and their knowledge in the act far exceeded humans. Even the current Patriarch of the necromancers might not be on the same level as a genius from that realm. Thinking of all this, excitement started to brew in the heart of the necromancer. If what Grey said was true, then he might be able to learn a lot from him. Grey could notice the change in the man after he took control of the corpses. ''Don''t tell me he fell for it?'' Void looked at the necromancer as if he was staring at an idiot. How could he believe Grey was actually on their side? All he had to do was to tell Grey to remove the mark on him and it''ll solve everything, yet, he wanted to attack him. ''Hehe, of course. As you can see, he''s a weakling, and his status among necromancers isn''t high. First off, you can see that he''s already over thirty, yet he''s still in the Fifth stage of the Sage Plane. Poor talent, means lower status. However, if he were to meet with someone from the origins of necromancy, then his status and strength would skyrocket.'' Grey explained. Void naturally understood this, but he still found it shocking that the man believed so easily. All Grey did was to take control over his corpses, how hard was that? "How can I be sure that you''re truly among our ancestors?" The necromancer asked, his voice a little softer now. Grey naturally expected such a stance from him after he showed him some of his tricks. But he knew that would not be enough to convince the necromancer. He nodded and his eyes glowed with a blue light, the corpses that were on the ground suddenly stood up, their eyes turning blue as well. In fact, the necromancer could swear he saw a bit of emotion in their eyes. A few seconds later, they fell to the ground once again. ''Huh? What did you do?'' Even Void was shocked. ''Nothing, I only wiped off what little bit of consciousness they still had left. Remember that corpse that used the blue flames?'' Grey said casually. Void nodded. It was thanks to the corpse that the duo appeared on that mountain. Void broke through to the Sage Plane there, and Grey got the icy flames from there as well. ''I noticed that some of the corpses still have a bit of their consciousness left, this flame can help in not only preserving it, but also extinguishing it as well. After that corpse, I''ve done some research on other corpses and noticed they had a bit of consciousness left. Not all, but some do. I believe the ones who have it are those killed by these necromancers. When I took control over these guys, I noticed it as well.'' Grey explained to Void in detail. ''Oh wow, you really don''t mind taking extra effort just to get what you want.'' Void was a little flabbergasted by Grey''s diligence. ''I''m a curious person. Even though I don''t plan on using corpse puppets to fight, I still need to learn how to disable them.'' Grey shrugged. The necromancer was won over after Grey''s last act and hastily bowed, "My Lord, it''s an honor to be in your presence." Grey nodded, acting as casual as he could be, "Rise." The necromancer stood straight, nervous to be in the presence of Grey, "Is there anything I can help you with, My Lord? Grey knew asking about the mark would give him away, so he didn''t try to ask about it, "Nothing, for now." The necromancer was a little despondent when he heard this. He was in high spirits, waiting to serve Grey with all his heart, but Grey didn''t give him any tasks. ''I still don''t know much about necromancers, maybe he could fill me in.'' He thought to himself. "How are things in this Continent?" Grey asked after some time. ''I knew it, he''s a genius so he doesn''t know much about this place.'' The necromancer confirmed his guess and quickly started to brief Grey in on everything he knew. Grey listened attentively, not that he didn''t know some of the things the necromancer was speaking of, but because there were a lot he had no idea of. The most important thing was that the seal was weakening. Chapter ?932 In Search Of Sacrifices Chapter ?932 In Search Of Sacrifices ''What seal is he talking about?'' Void couldn''t help but ask. ''Remember the War of Gods I spoke of?'' Grey asked. Void nodded. ''It was a battle between humans and another race. After years of fighting, a peerless expert appeared amongst humans. It was said that he almost single-handedly stopped the battle. From the look of things, he only sealed the portal.'' Grey explained. With the portal sealed, no more people from the other race could come into the Aurora Continent, this meant that their opponents will increasingly start to grow weaker with each death. More than eighty percent of those from the other race was wiped out after the seal was closed, and the other twenty percent had to hide from the world. Initially, Grey didn''t know this much information, until he listened to the necromancer speak. This was a piece of shocking news since it was kept hidden. From Grey''s guess, the top experts all knew about the true story, but they knew if the information was to leak to the public, it would cause unrest. ''So, you''re saying just as you guys are invading another realm, there are people doing that to you as well?'' Void clarified. ''Pretty much. However, we aren''t a hundred percent certain if what he''s saying is true. These people will obviously say it in a way to benefit them. But if the seal truly is weakening, then another is upon us in the coming years.'' Grey''s expression was grave. A war would be detrimental to humans. Even top experts died, most of the budding youths will most likely die in such a battle. At the moment, he felt even more pressure to grow stronger at a faster pace. If the war started and he wasn''t even close to the Peak of the world, he would only become one of the cannon fodders. The necromancer continued speaking, but Grey was unable to learn where their base was. The necromancer also didn''t know of it, he was taught by an Elemental Sovereign who saw his talent some years back. This Sovereign was the one who gave him all the books concerning the history of necromancy. Grey signified to him so he could stop talking. It had been over twenty minutes now, and the necromancer still hadn''t stopped talking. When he saw Grey''s signal, he stopped immediately. He didn''t want to offend this Young Lord who he believed was from another race. Grey thought for some time and asked for the techniques he had with him. The necromancer paused, but after some time, he brought out the scrolls that were in his storage ring. There wasn''t much, only about ten, all of them had the methods of refining and controlling corpses, there were even some that talked about how to improve the strength of a corpse after or during refining. Grey wasn''t interested in these as he glanced through, his target was the one that taught the technique on how to mark someone. To his disappointment, it wasn''t among them. ''It''s not here.'' He shook his head lightly. ''What to do now?'' Void asked. This necromancer should know the technique since it was something all necromancers know, well, so they thought. When the necromancer saw Grey''s expression, he was a little apprehensive and asked, "My Lord, is something wrong with the techniques?" "They''re just so-so. Don''t you have any top tier techniques, these aren''t even taught to newborns where I''m from." Grey said in disappointment. His eyes showed that he didn''t expect their techniques to be so low graded. When the necromancer heard him say these techniques were low tiers, he was more convinced about Grey. "My Lord, the thing is, I don''t have the access to better techniques, I was only given these by my Teacher when he wanted to leave." He explained with a downcast expression. "Just these?" Grey raised his brow, he shook his head when he didn''t get a reply from the necromancer, "I''m disappointed at how low you humans truly are. Even after so long, no top tier technique. Looks like it was a waste of time to teach you all necromancy." The necromancer kept his head to the ground, embarrassed with the way Grey was speaking about humans. ''You''re getting good with your act. He doesn''t even suspect a thing.'' Void was quite impressed at how Grey was handling the whole thing. "What secret techniques were you taught? Maybe I''ll see something that might interest me." Grey asked. He didn''t want to go straight, so he had to go through different means. After almost one hour, he finally lost his patience and asked about the method of marking someone with the guise that his method was a little different and he wanted to see how humans managed to do it. "My¡­ my Lord, I can''t do that?" The face of the necromancer was ashen. How could he show Grey the technique? He would die if he dared to initiate it. "Why?" Grey pretended as if he didn''t know that they would die if they wanted to mark an individual. "Our method is very complex. We aren''t built the same way, so to mark someone, we have to exchange our lives." The necromancer explained. "Huh? That''s a little stupid? Why waste your life just to mark someone? I can do that while sleeping." Grey replied offhandedly. He wasn''t bothered that the necromancer would see through his lies. The necromancer didn''t know much about those from the other race, so Grey was still very much safe. "I''m sorry My Lord, I will do whatever request you have for me, but this is out of my control." The necromancer said with a sad look on his face, disappointed he couldn''t meet up to Grey''s request. "It''s alright, can you explain to me in detail how it works?" Grey asked. This was the most important thing, as long as the necromancer could tell him how it works, then he could be able to figure out a thing or two about it on his own. The necromancer paused for some time, thinking about the procedure. "It''s like this¡­" Grey listened to what the man was saying and got a rough idea. Unfortunately, it still wasn''t enough for him. If he wanted to lift this mark, then he would need to try some experiments. The mark was created by sacrificing the life force of humans, it was a very taxing issue and took a whole lot. From what Grey could tell, those above the Elemental Sovereign Plane wouldn''t necessarily die when doing this, but it would take its toll on them. Only those in the Elemental Venerable Plane and below risk losing their lives. ''Do you think it will be nice to have such an individual on my side? One one hand, he''s very useful to me since I''ll have an informant on the side of the necromancers, but on the other hand, I might risk exposing myself to them?'' Grey asked Void who was on his shoulder. Void thought about it and replied, ''It wouldn''t be bad. From the look of things, he seems pretty respectful. I don''t know how he was stupid enough to believe you, but it''s not that bad to have someone on the other side. I believe there''s a way other necromancers meet up.'' Grey ingrained the information of how necromancers marked people. To try this, he would need to use the same method, sacrificing life force in return for it. This was the only way he could think of. He didn''t stay with the necromancer for long and told him to leave. Before the necromancer left, he handed him a communication device, this one was made exclusively for those under his command. The triplets were the first to have it, now, the necromancer was given one as well. He also asked for the name of the necromancer and found out that it was, Sega. Grey left, to test his experiments, he needed to think of a way to sacrifice life force. ''Whenever I meet a group of bandits, I''ll use them. It''s not like they''re helping the world or anything.'' ¡­ Two days later. It didn''t take long before Grey encountered bandits who tried to rob him. The strongest person amongst them was a Third stage Sage Plane Elementalist, and there were also two more people in the First stage of the Sage Plane. The bandits numbered at around twelve, enough for Grey''s experiment. ''Void, why don''t you help me out on this?'' He asked with a playful smile. Void has been too free lately, not even bothering to fight whenever there was a battle. Grey was the one doing all the work. ''Okay.'' To Grey''s surprise, the always lazy Void agreed to his request. ''Don''t kill them, I need them alive.'' He reminded Void. Void nodded before going off. When the bandits saw the small cat jumping off Grey''s shoulder, they all laughed, however, their expressions changed when Void released his Rank Six aura. He was already in the Mid stages, so he had nothing to fear. Void was fast and ruthless, even though he was told not to kill them, it didn''t mean he couldn''t wound them. In the space of a few minutes, all twelve bandits were on the ground, unconscious. Grey was a little stupefied by Void ability. It had been a while since he watched Void fight, so he forgot how powerful he was. And compared to the last time, Void had improved, so his strength was above what it previously was. Presently, Void shouldn''t have any problems with fighting against someone in the Seventh stage of the Sage Plane if he went all out. Void was only in the Fifth stage of the Sage Plane, but his battle strength was far above it. Chapter 933 Fighting For Rewards "It still didn''t work." Grey muttered as the body of one of the bandits dropped to the ground, lifeless. Presently, there are eight corpses on the ground. Of the twelve bandits, only four were left alive after Grey''s continuous experiments. Although it was a little brutal for him to kill them in such a manner. He didn''t have much of a choice. Necromancers are few and far between, he didn''t know when he would meet another necromancer. And there''s also the possibility that the next necromancer he meets will be stronger than he was. So he had to do with these bandits. They were terrorizing the world anyway. After justifying himself, he continued with his experiments. According to what Sega told him, he would need to carefully use the life force of people and slowly use it to wipe off the mark. The method in putting the mark was quite easier, however, he needed to create a method for himself since he didn''t have much of a choice. Void watched from the side, staring at Grey with a bland expression. He didn''t have any problems with what Grey was doing, they would kill the bandits anyway. Grey proceeded onto the next person who was staring at him with hateful eyes. They were all conscious and could see how Grey was slowly killing them. It was a painful thing watching their comrades die in front of them, but what was more painful was the fact that they knew they would meet the same fate in a short time. Other than hatred, there was also deep fear in their eyes. They didn''t want to die in such a manner. Unfortunately, they were powerless against Grey. Taking the next person, Grey sent his spiritual consciousness into the body of the man, and before long, the life essence of the man slowly seeped out before forming a spiral seal in the air. After the seal was completed, it shot into Grey''s back, entering the upper right shoulder. Grey focused entirely on the mark on his back, waiting for any changes. After some time, he shook his head with a sigh. "Still not this way." pan-da-n0vel.com Whenever he said this word, the others who were alive would feel untold fear since they knew one of them would be next. At the moment, the remaining three people were praying that Grey was successful on the next person, this way, at least two of them would make it. Grey didn''t continue immediately, rather, he walked to the side and sat down with his eyes closed. He started to analyze the technique once again. Time slowly went by and that day ended. Grey was unable to get the technique. Only one of the bandits was left alive and he was scared out of his wits, he couldn''t even open his eyes. He watched his comrades die, and now he was the only one left. The killer was staring at him with his unforgiving eyes. They had all begged, it was to no avail. He didn''t know what else he could do. Just like the others, he met with the same fate, dying under Grey''s hands. "A shame, they''re all dead. I feel I''m getting closer now." Grey shook his head in disappointment before turning his eyes to Void. When Void heard his words and met Grey''s eyes, he hastily said, "Don''t even think about it." "What? Scared? Grey asked with a smirk. Void didn''t respond, but he created a larger distance between them. He wouldn''t give Grey the chance to use him for his experiments. "Why would you even think that I would want to use you?" Grey was a little surprised by Void''s attitude. Just like the last time, Void didn''t bother to answer him. Grey laughed before walking out with Void carefully keeping his distance. "Stop playing around, we need to get moving. I''ve already wasted a day trying to create this technique." He turned to Void with a serious expression. Now he understood why no one had been able to remove the mark from anyone marked. There had been multiple cases of powerful experts trying to remove this, but it has proven to be impossible. The duo continued their journey, they still had to pass through the Region which was currently at war. Maybe he would see people he would use for his experiments there. In such a chaotic place, there were bound to see people who would want to cause troubles. All he had to do was to take care of them and use them for his experiment. His greatest concern at the moment was how to get rid of this mark on his body that had made him a beacon for necromancers within a specific range. What was worse was that he didn''t know the range of the current mark. ¡­ One month later. Grey and Void were standing in front of a city gate. They had gotten to the Laurel Region which was in chaos due to the ongoing war. With their skills, they naturally didn''t need to fear too many people. In the Aurora Continent, the Sage Plane had the majority of the people. Those in the Elemental Venerable and Sovereign Plane didn''t get too involved. In this current battle, the higher ranks not involved, only those from the Peak of the Sage Plane below. They entered the city after much difficulties, after roaming around, Grey got the major scoop of what was happening and what the current battlefield looked like. Since he was staying in the territory of one of the Families they was at war, he could be safe there as long as he didn''t go against the rules set there. "What do we do now?" Void asked after the duo entered the room they were staying in the Inn. "Nothing. I don''t want to cause any trouble, it''ll not be good if I were to have a clash with these people over something like this. I''ll continue after we get to the other Regions. Of course, if the opportunity arises here, I''ll definitely take it." Grey replied. ¡­ The next day. The opportunity Grey hoped for arose in a surprising manner. The city he was staying in was one of the major strongholds for the battle, but since it was also a route to leave this area, a few people were allowed inside. The city was on the verge of being attacked, and from what Grey heard, the residents are told to either evacuate, or join them in the battle. Thinking of the possibility that no one above the Sage Plane would be involved, he didn''t mind fighting alongside those from this city. Also, there would be rewards according to their accomplishments! It was an odd occurrence since most places that were at war wouldn''t want to depend on others for their battles. It would be a catastrophic if these people were to double-crossed. Grey went on to register for the battle, on getting there, he noticed that the people who came to register were very small. When the general in charge noticed Grey''s cultivation stage, he knew he was a genius from a top Faction, after seeing his badge, he confirmed that he was from the Pyrmond Faction. Although the Pyrmond Faction was far away, it was still pretty famous some decades back, so it''s name spread all the way to this Region. The general was also in the Sage Plane, the only difference was that he was at the Peak, while Grey was in the Early stages. The general didn''t forget to warn them about the danger of getting involved. Everyone knew what was at stake, they might lose their lives, this was also one of the reasons why most of the residents there didn''t apply for the battle. With his strength, he was one of the few people who was given the green light to fight in the forefront of the battle, as per his request. Grey followed the general since they would be in the same group. Outside the city gate, hundreds of people could be seen dressed in armors, prepared to fight. The warriors from the city stood on the city wall, staring down at their opponents. They all had fiery eyes as they were prepared to explode with all their might in a short moments notice. The general flew into the air, along with all those in the Sage Plane. When they took off, those in the Overlord Plane and below charged down, their opponents were on the ground. Grey picked an opponent in the Third stage of the Sage Plane just like himself. ''Void, try and see what you can get from these people''s camp. Capture as many people as you can.'' He instructed while fighting against the lady in front of him. Void nodded and disappeared from sight. The lady Grey was fighting against was a little shocked and looked around vigilantly, fearful that Void wanted to sneak behind her and attack. Grey kept his abilities below par, only using the fire element for now. Chapter ?934 Shiny Crystal Chapter ?934 Shiny Crystal Boom! Grey forced the lady back with a fireball. The lady was a Water Elementalist but against Grey, she was powerless. Grey wasn''t even using close to sixty percent of his usual attack power, yet he was still comfortably overpowering her. ''Isn''t she a little too weak?'' This thought flashed through Grey''s head as he pushed her back once again. After fighting against geniuses for most of his time in the Aurora Continent, he forgot that there were still normal people who didn''t have strength exceeding their stages. So even when he wanted to go easy on her, he still overwhelmed her. Grey continued his onslaught of attacks, since he already had the advantage, there was no need in holding back. A blade made from fire appeared and he slashed it at the lady. The lady tried to block the attack with an ice wall, but Grey''s fire was just too powerful for her. It easily broke through the defense and sent the lady flying once again. Bang! The lady crashed into the ground. Since the start of the battle, Grey was the only one who managed to almost defeat his opponent. It hadn''t even been up to three minutes, yet his strength was already made known to the others. He naturally attracted the attention of those fighting beside him. A middle-aged man who looked to be around his late thirties rushed over to block Grey so he would not be able to attack the lady who was trying to stand up. The man was in the Third stage of the Sage Plane just like the lady, but his aura was much stronger and it was clear that they were not on the same level. With a powerful roar, the man charged at Grey. He was an Earth Elementalist and he wanted to use his superior physique to overpower Grey. When Grey saw him charging towards him, he smiled and waited for the man. The man threw a punch in his direction, and even before the punch got to where he was, he could feel the overbearing strength of the earth element. Grey reciprocated the attack with a punch of his own. His punch was filled with the fire element and it gave off intense heat. The two fists clashed and to the surprise of the man, he was sent flying while Grey stayed in the same spot. The man stabilized himself mid-air and looked at Grey in shock. He was a little taken aback by Grey''s strength. Even after using most of his strength, Grey not only managed to block the attack, but he even repelled him quite easily. The lady flew into the air, floating beside the man. They nodded at each other and with a tacit understanding, they charged at Grey. Grey stood alone in the air, waiting for the duo to attack. Just as they got close to him, he unleashed a sea of flames that started to spread out with terrifying power. Fire arrows shot out of the flame, aiming at the duo who were rushing his way. The man and the lady blocked the attacks as they drew closer to Grey, attacking him with their respective elements. Grey dodged their attacks and countered. While Grey was fighting against two people, the battles around had started to heat up. Their task at the moment was to stop the people who wanted to invade the city. Those above the Sage Plane didn''t take part in the battle since just the ripples from their clash would destroy the city. If not for an array covering the city, it would''ve been destroyed by the ripples from these Sage Plane experts already. Grey was not the only youngster there. Close to him, there was another youth who was in the Sage Plane, his cultivation was a little lower than Grey''s since he was in the First stage, but his attack power was far above the First stage. He was holding his own against a Third stage Sage Plane Elementalist. Even though he didn''t have the advantage, he wasn''t being subdued by the other. There were two more who stood out, while in the battle of those in the Overlord Plane, there were multiple youths. Some of them came here to gain experience from these battles. It was quite valuable, however, it was also dangerous. Grey didn''t think too much about others. He naturally wouldn''t let those around him die since it would put him under pressure, but he also didn''t want to show too much strength. He sent the man flying while holding off an attack from the lady. The lady grabbed his leg with a tentacle made from water and dragged him closer to the man. Before Grey could cut off the tentacle, the man was already prepared and slammed him with a large earth hammer. Grey didn''t bother with the tentacle any longer and slashed his fire blade at the hammer, tearing it into two. After doing this, he was tugged to the side once again, but he managed to resist the pull, attacking the lady with a rain of fire. The lady created a water dome to block the attack, but Grey slashed his fire sword at it and created an opening for the fire rain. The attack was just about to hit the lady when the man stepped forward once again and blocked it on her behalf. Grey was a little irked by this. Normally, if he used his space element as well, he would''ve taken them out a long time ago. ''Void, how are things going?'' He tried to see what Void had gotten so far. ¡­ Thousands of meters away from the battleground. Void was going through a camp silently. There were Elemental Venerables here, and he knew any mishap, he would be found out. He didn''t need to hurry, but now was the best time to raid this place. Well, it couldn''t really be called a raid, more like taking when they were not around. He had searched through almost all the tents around, and other than a few things, he hadn''t seen anything useful. He strolled into one of the tents and his eyes lit up, there were weapons here. Although Elementalists rarely used weapons, the same can''t be said for when they were fighting a war. In wars, weapons can not only be used to increase strength, but also defense. Grey''s voice rang in his head at the time he appeared there. ''I just got to the place where they keep their weapons. It''s pretty nice, and shiny.'' He replied while licking his lips. ''Take everything, we might need to sell them later in the future.'' Grey said. ''You don''t need to tell me twice.'' Void said while emptying the entire place. Even before talking to Grey, he had started to take the weapons, so when Grey told him to take them, he was already almost done with the things. After taking it, he walked to the next tent. There were still some more tents he hadn''t checked out, so he didn''t mind taking a look around. While moving, he saw a crystal in one of the tents. There were over seven people inside, and all of them were in the Elemental Venerable Plane and above. However, they didn''t enter Void''s eyes since all he could see at the moment was the shiny crystal. ''I need to get it.'' He said to himself. He decided to wait for the men to leave the place and steal the crystal. He didn''t know what it was used for, nor did he care at the moment. ¡­ Back on the battlefield. Grey had taken down his opponents as he looked at them from above. Turning around, he noticed the First stage Sage Plane genius was in trouble with his opponent as he was being overwhelmed at the moment. Grey rushed over to help him out. It would be a shame if a genius died in such a battle. With a smack, he sent the Third stage Sage Plane Elementalists fighting against him flying. The young man looked at him with grateful eyes. "Thank you." "It''s okay. We should help each other." Grey replied casually. He turned to go after the man who was beating the youth some moment ago. He continued attacking while the man blocked with his life. From the first attack, he knew he was not on Grey''s level, so he tried to drag another person to help him out. Grey was not bothered by multiple opponents, he could easily fight against them. It was time for him to bring out his space element. When the two people stood facing him, he vanished. Their pupils constricted since they didn''t think Grey was a Space Elementalist as well. Grey appeared beside them and exploded with a fire element burst attack. The duo tried to block the attack but were sent flying. Grey vanished once again, appearing beside one of them and sending him off. Chapter ?935 Youre Not Part Of The Army Chapter 935 You''re Not Part Of The Army In the blink of an eye, Grey had killed the two men. Grey''s strength was well above them so he had no problems with quickly disposing of them. The young man in the First stage of the Sage Plane was awed by Grey''s strength. Even though he had seen his seniors who had the same ability, he still didn''t expect Grey to be so powerful. Grey looked around and decided to look for his next opponent. Although he wasn''t really in need of too many things, he could ask for books on arrays as his reward for his service. The young man didn''t expect Grey to leave just like that. Time went by slowly and before they knew it, it was already over two hours since the battle started. Grey had started to attract the attention of most of the people there. His fame in the battle grew when he defeated an opponent in the Fifth stage of the Sage Plane. These people knew that there were geniuses who could easily fight above their stages, but Grey was doing it with such ease that they started to doubt their own strengths. In the span of two hours, he had single-handedly taken down over ten Sage Plane Elementalists, and three of those ten Elementalists were in the Fifth stage! The tide of the battle slowly started to change, not just on the Sage Plane side, but on the Overlord Plane side as well. A few of the youths who registered were geniuses, and their strength was almost comparable to two people in the same stage of these warriors. The only difference between them and these warriors was experience. As long as they had enough experience, they could easily fight against three to five of these warriors in the same stage as them without any fears. When those from the other side saw how the battle was going, the Peak Sage Plane general from the other side locked his eyes on Grey. Presently, even if they lost the battle of the Overlord Plane, they couldn''t afford to lose the one for the Sage Plane Elementalists. Grey was the main catalyst to the battle at the moment. He was the one making the momentum for those in the city increase, and if things continued in this manner, it was only a matter of them before they became undefeatable. The general gave a loud roar and forced the Peak Sage Plane general fighting against him from the city. He shot after Grey. With his speed, sonic booms resonated in the air as he shot through the air trying to take out Grey. Grey noticed the man coming from the start, he wasn''t bothered since he could easily take care of himself. However, those from the city freaked out when they saw this. They were scared out of their wits. Grey had been one of the standout fighters, and he had also helped a few of them from tough positions. Now, he was in danger. A Sixth stage Sage Plane expert from the city he helped out some time ago rushed forward, blocking the path of the general. When the general saw that a Sixth stage Sage Plane Elementalist was trying to block his path, he snorted coldly and threw a fist at him. The fist turned into a large flame that engulfed the man. The man''s scream resonated across the battlefield, and he fell from the sky. He wasn''t dead, it was almost impossible for a Peak Sage Plane Elementalist to kill an Elementalist in the Sixth stage with a single strike, but it was quite easy for them to injure them. Grey shook his head when he saw this, he didn''t want anyone to die a meaningless death trying to protect him. If he wanted to, he could easily kill this Sage Plane Elementalist coming his way. But since he wanted to keep his true strength hidden, he smiled and brought out a talisman. The moment the Peak Sage Plane general saw this, he quickly retreated, not daring to get close to him. The talisman with Grey was an attack talisman of an Elemental Venerable. If the general was foolish enough to stand in front of him, then he would die from the attack. The difference between a Sage Plane Elementalist and an Elemental Venerable was miles apart. If an Elemental Venerable were to step forward, then it was impossible for all those present to stop him. Just as Grey predicted, the general wasn''t the only one who stepped back, all those in the Sage Plane from the attacking army retreated as well. With a blank expression, he flew down to help the man who was injured up. "You''re not part of this army, why take the risk of offending us?" The general of the opposing army asked coldly. His eyes were on Grey. With the talisman in hand, Grey was presently the strongest individual there. However, even though the general would want to kill Grey, he couldn''t take the risk. If Grey were to fall in this battle, those from wherever he was from wouldn''t hold them accountable since Grey was the one who registered for the battle. "This is nothing, I only brought it out to help him." Grey activated the talisman, and to the surprise of the general, a blinding light shot out from it and shot into the body of the Sixth stage Elementalist he injured some moment ago. "I know the rules which states that no Elemental Venerable should be involved, but I''m not an Elemental Venerable." "Using a talisman that is made by an Elemental Venerable is the same." The general said. "You don''t expect him to watch and die. You''re a Peak Sage Plane expert, yet you want to attack a Third stage Sage Plane youth, don''t you have any shame?" The general from the city stood in front of Grey. He would naturally not allow such acts of bullying. The only reason the general had the chance to even think of attacking Grey was because he exploded out with his full strength, taking the general from the city unaware. 936 I Must Take It! Both sides were at a stand still. The general from the other side wanted to move when Grey brought out another talisman, playing with it in his hands. The general gritted his teeth before saying to the others, ¡°We¡¯re retreating for now.¡± The battle in the Overlord Plane had also stopped, they were all waiting for the verdict from those at the top. After getting the order from the general, the warriors retreated. Those from the city cheered when they saw this. None of them tried to attack the opponent as they left. The reason the battle was still ongoing was due to the rules followed. As long as a side agreed to retreat, the other party was not allowed to attack them. Grey and the others watched them leave. He was a little sad since he wasn¡¯t able to delay them for longer. Void was still there, trying to get the shiny crystal he spoke of. Even when he told him to forget about it, Void refused. All he could do was to try to delay them so Void could get the chance he wanted. Even after two hours, he was unsuccessful. According to him, when everyone was about to leave, an Elemental Venerable was left behind to keep guard of the item. The Elemental Venerable was already at the Peak, so his strength was not something Void could gamble on. Grey couldn¡¯t be bothered with Void any longer. Since he wanted to stay there a little longer, then it was up to him. ¡°Thank you for your help, tonight you¡¯re all invited to the City Lord¡¯s manor for a feast!¡± The general said to those in the Sage Plane who helped them out in the battle. Grey didn¡¯t say anything, if not for Void who still loitered around the enemy¡¯s camp, he would¡¯ve left after this battle. He already had a good number of people he could use for his experiments on his way. The rest of the battle had nothing to do with him. If the army returned, it was up to those in the city to defend it. When he was about to leave, the general walked up to him. ¡°What may I address you as, young friend?¡± The general spoke humbly. He was already over fifty, and it was evident that advancing to the next Plane was almost out of sight for him. His talent was low to begin with and he had to depend on countless dangers before he managed to get to the level he was currently at. For someone like Grey, it was evident that the Sage Plane would not be considered much in his journey. He could easily go to the top of the world with his talent. From how strong he was, and his decision making, he could also tell that Grey was a very decisive person who had gone through multiple trials that forged him. The reason Grey brought out the talisman was to stop the battle. Even though the general would want to win the battle, watching his warriors drop to the ground one by one was unbearable. Most of these people were really close to him. ¡°I¡¯m Grey, general.¡± Grey replied. He didn¡¯t put on any arrogant air which immediately increased his worth in the eyes of the general and most of the warriors around. Most geniuses were proud, they had already gotten used to it. But Grey was different, he didn¡¯t speak to them like they were some lowly figures. ¡°Haha, Grey, such a good name. I hope to still be alive by the time your name spreads across the entire Continent.¡± The general laughed. ¡°You overestimate my abilities, general.¡± Grey replied humbly as they moved into the city. He was behind the general, not staying in the same position as him. Walking beside the general meant that they were equals, and Grey didn¡¯t see them as equals. Since they fought together, he would give him all the respect he deserved. The general laughed and conversed with him as they walked inside. The other geniuses who fought in the battle also tried to establish a relationship with Grey. They didn¡¯t see anything wrong with trying to befriend Grey. In the end, Grey promised a few people that he would visit them if the opportunity arises. Stepping into the city, he looked around. With Void still in the enemy¡¯s camp, he had to be alone for the meantime. ¡®Aren¡¯t you done yet?¡¯ He asked telepathically. ¡®No. Can you come over to cause some chaos?¡¯ Void asked. Grey accessed his options before shaking his head, ¡®It¡¯s too dangerous. Is there any Rank Right Magical Beast around?¡¯ ¡®I didn¡¯t sense the aura of any.¡¯ Void replied. ¡®Then there¡¯s nothing I can do about it. If I even manage to draw Rank six beasts over, those Elemental Venerables and Sovereigns would easily kill them.¡¯ Grey replied. They spoke a little longer before he went to his room in the Inn. It was time to focus on the technique he was trying to come up with. He couldn¡¯t bring the people he captured out now, but he wanted to try and look through the technique in his head. ¡­ In the enemy¡¯s camp. Void was still searching for the opportunity he needed. The army isn¡¯t back yet, once they do, they would alert these people to the disappearance of the weapons. That would make them even more vigilant and his chance to get the crystal would slip away. Looking around, he gritted his teeth and headed to the next tent. He would try to cause a commotion to draw the attention of the man. Once the man was there, he would head to the next room and take away the crystal. Void immediately put his plan to motion, making small noises to draw the attention of the man. The man stepped out, trying to see what was wrong. On seeing the small black cat, he was slightly taken aback. Void didn¡¯t radiate any aura, so he didn¡¯t think he was the owner of the aura he felt. 937 Battle Credits Score Board Void licked his paws and walked away to the side, the man stayed outside the tent since he was still trying to figure out what brought out the aura some minutes ago. The aura was very faint, and it only radiated for only a quarter of a second. Even though it belonged to someone in the Sage Plane, the fact that a Sage Plane Elementalist could get this close to him before he sensed it was shocking, hence he was a little alert to it. After standing outside the tent for around a minute or so, he walked back inside. However, he froze mid-step and his pupils constricted. ¡°Where¡¯s it?¡± He looked at the table where the crystal was previously laying but it was empty. He moved closer to it and looked around, trying to see if it fell to the ground. But it wasn¡¯t there. He picked the table up and looked below it, but the crystal was not there. ¡°This¡­ who took it?¡± He was short of words. He was standing right outside, how could someone take it away under his nose? It was impossible. Unless¡­ it was the doing of an Elemental Sovereign. There was no way the aura he felt the first time belonged to a Sage Plane Elementalist, it was an Elemental Sovereign¡¯s doing. Without any words, he vanished. He had to tell the others that the crystal was gone. When he left the place, Void walked out from the side of the tent where he was hiding. He was afraid to use the space element to escape since it might give him away. He could hide his aura completely, but the moment he used an elemental skill, the man would most definitely sense it and that would give him away. The crystal was still in his hands, but he was able to hide its aura from the man, so the man didn¡¯t sense it. ¡®Looks like it¡¯s quite valuable, I¡¯ll keep it for them.¡¯ He thought with a snicker before disappearing. The man was gone so there was no need for him to be afraid any more. ¡®Grey, I¡¯m done.¡¯ He reported while leaving the place. On his way, he saw the troops returning. He couldn¡¯t help but laugh when he thought about their reactions when they find out that their weaponry was empty. Making so many weapons costs a lot, so they would feel depressed when they notice that it¡¯s gone. ¡­ Back in the city. Grey was still resting when Void appeared beside him. He opened his eyes to look at Void. ¡°What did you get?¡± He asked nonchalantly. He wasn¡¯t too concerned with the crystal since he knew it was Void¡¯s item. Unless it was very important, he wouldn¡¯t want to take it from him. ¡°Just a shiny antique.¡± Void replied protectively, ¡°When are we leaving?¡± Grey looked at him for some time when he saw his reaction, ¡°Tomorrow, I still have some things I¡¯d like to take from them.¡± His contribution in the battle was huge, he wanted to take as many books on inscriptions as he could. If he didn¡¯t, it would be a waste of his time. Void nodded and went to sleep on the side, not wanting to bother with Grey who was researching the technique. ¡°Oh, I also got around ten people.¡± He said. ¡°I have around twenty.¡± The room fell silent and time went on. Before long, night fell. It was time to head to the City Lord¡¯s manor. The general invited him over, so he would naturally go. The reward was very important to him. He left his place and headed there in no time. On getting to the City Lord¡¯s manor, he was ushered in by the guards who were already told of his arrival. The moment he mentioned his name, they brought him in. When he made his appearance, the others in the area all turned to look at him. Some of them even got up from their seats to look at him. Grey didn¡¯t like too much attention, but he was already used to it since he had participated in multiple tournaments. The general walked over to him with a glass of wine in his hand. He took him over to where the Elemental Venerables were. Although he was a junior, these experts in the Elemental Venerable Plane didn¡¯t look down on him. They already heard of his battle credits and knew he would grow up to become someone that even them might have to respect. The City Lord was an old man whose hairs had turned gray. He looked at Grey with a soft smile. ¡°Thank you all for your help today¡­¡± The City addressed those who came to help them. Grey was currently seated with those in the Elemental Venerable Plane, he didn¡¯t say much, only conversing with them whenever they spoke to him. When the City Lord was done talking, he told them to head to army camp for their rewards. Grey only waited till the event was finished before he walked over to the army camp. ¡®Do they do this every time people help them out?¡¯ He couldn¡¯t help but wonder. Even though these battles were not frequent, it was quite odd that the City Lord would have to host everyone who helped them out every time. Grey would¡¯ve preferred to take his rewards and leave. Heading to the army camp, he met with the general once again since he was in charge of this as well. ¡°What would you like to take, young friend?¡± He asked Grey with a smile. ¡°What can I get?¡± Grey asked. He didn¡¯t know his battle credits nor did he know how the exchange takes place. ¡°For every Sage Plane expert you take down, you have two hundred battle credits. Since you took out twelve Sage Plane Elementalists, you have two thousand four hundred battle credits.¡± The general explained. When the warriors around heard this, they sucked in a cold breath. They walked over to a board that was hung on the side. Multiple names were hung on it, and their battle credits were written on it. Since the start of the battle, the number one person on the Sage Plane board only had around fifteen thousand battle credits, one has to know that this battle has been ongoing for years now. And the number one person on the Sage Plane had been fighting since he was in the Early stages of the Sage Plane. 938 Search For The Crystal Grey¡¯s name was placed in thirty with two thousand four hundred battle credits. He was only involved in one battle which didn¡¯t even last as long as the others usually last, and he was already in the top thirty. ¡°For helping your comrades in the battle field and also helping stop the battle momentarily, you¡¯re awarded five hundred battle credits each, taking your total to three thousand four hundred battle credits.¡± The general continued. Grey didn¡¯t think too much of this. He only helped them with the mindset of not wanting to be on the back foot. He didn¡¯t expect they would also give him battle credits for it. His name rose three more ranks and was placed twenty-seventh. The warriors were stunned. ¡°He moved again¡­¡± They couldn¡¯t believe their eyes. Grey only participated in one battle, yet he was already ranked twenty-seventh. Where would he be ranked if he were to participate in two more battles? It was unknown, and since battles didn¡¯t happen as frequently as before, they knew he would be leaving before the next battle took place. Grey walked over to the exchange panel and when he saw the prices for books, he was a little taken aback. Each book, depending on their values, ranged from around fifteen battle credits to two hundred battle credits. ¡°Can I get books on arrays?¡± He turned to the general. The general turned to a youth standing beside him, ¡°Take him to the City Library, the park where the top books on arrays are kept.¡± The youth nodded and said to Grey, ¡°Follow me.¡± Grey walked behind the young lady. She was around Grey¡¯s age, but she was still in the Overlord Plane, although, she was already at the Peak. Grey didn¡¯t really know her and didn¡¯t really bother to talk to her. He focused on getting to the library. Once he took the books, he would keep himself locked away for some time to absorb the new knowledge he was about to gain. The young lady didn¡¯t speak a word since Grey wasn¡¯t saying anything. She only escorted him to the library, and after helping him get past a few people there, they arrived at a secret part in the city library. Grey was shocked, he didn¡¯t think these city libraries would have these types of places. ¡®Could they be connected to the City Lord¡¯s manor?¡¯ He didn¡¯t think too much and started to pick the books he saw on arrays. In a short time, his three thousand battle credits were used up. Even the young lady was stunned by Grey¡¯s wanton spending. These battle credits could be used to obtain valuable items in the city, he could even buy a mansion with it. Yet, Grey spent it all on books? She looked at Grey weirdly but didn¡¯t say anything. After they left the place, Grey thanked her and left immediately. She could tell that he was in a hurry to start reading the books he picked. When Grey got to the Inn, he looked himself up and started reading immediately. ¡­ While Grey was reading books, the enemy¡¯s camp was in turmoil. The crystal Void stole was very important to them. It was an item helping them seal a Magical Beast. Once it¡¯s lost, the Magical Beast would be unleashed. The main thing was that, the Magical Beast was kept in an hidden space in the crystal, however, once it¡¯s released, it would appear in their camp. It was connected to one of them. They originally wanted to use it against their opponents, but now, it is gone. This beast was only following their command because of this crystal, now that the crystal was gone, it would not listen to a word from them and even attack them. Void had no idea he was holding onto a powerful beast since, all he cared about was the crystal. ¡°Whoever stole it is still around this area. Find the person and return the crystal here.¡± A Peak Elemental Sovereign yelled angrily. The others vanished, in search of the crystal. The man who was in charge of keeping watch was on the verge of going insane. He couldn¡¯t believe it was lost on his watch. He was the one who took finding the crystal more upon himself. If he didn¡¯t find it, the consequences would be dire. Especially when the beast was released. The beast was a Peak Rank Eight Magical Beast, and it¡¯s strength was far above an Elemental Sovereign even though they were on the same stage. An expert above the Elemental Sovereign Plane was the one who caught it after much difficulties. They went out in search of the item. They headed in the direction of the city, but after thinking about what might happen if they got close to the city, they took another path and moved around. They had to find it, no matter what! ¡­ The days went by and Grey was locked up in his room. The agitation of the experts was noticed by the experts in the city. They told the others to be ready since they¡¯ve noticed the movements of almost all the Elemental Venerables and Sovereigns in the other camp. They¡¯ve never seen something like this before. Even if the enemy¡¯s camp suffered a heavy loss, they wouldn¡¯t be this agitated. It didn¡¯t take long before they realized that something was wrong. Something that wasn¡¯t their doing. Void was having the time of his life in the city, going from restaurant to restaurant to eat the foods. He wasn¡¯t disappointed by the meals around. At first, it was difficult for him to get meals, but after time went on, the tales of a small talking black cat started to spread across the entire city. He even went as far as kidnapping some cooks to take their recipes. The guards started to hunt for this cat, but it seemingly disappeared without a trace after a few days. No matter where they searched, they couldn¡¯t find him anywhere. 939 Leaving The City One month went by in a flash. Grey finally left his room for the first time since he came back. He was a little surprised to see Void hanging around. Given Void¡¯s love for chaos, he thought he would be somewhere causing havoc. ¡°You¡¯re done, good! Let¡¯s go.¡± Void urged. Grey raised a brow to look at Void, ¡°What did you do?¡± The fact that Void told him they should leave so soon showed that he was either bored here, or he was in trouble and wanted to leave as soon as possible. ¡°Nothing, I¡¯m bored. There¡¯s nothing fun around here.¡± Void replied coolly. ¡°Oh, do you know why the Elemental Venerables and Sovereigns have been moving out frequently?¡± Grey asked. Even though he was in seclusion, he didn¡¯t forget to keep an eye out on things. This was a stronghold in war afterall, if the enemy broke in, he would need to leave as soon as possible. ¡°Nope. But since the last battle, they¡¯ve been moving around more lately. I think those from the other side are somewhat agitated.¡± Void replied after some time. Grey squinted his eyes to look in the direction of the camp, ¡°We should leave.¡± He didn¡¯t know why these people were agitated, nor did he want to know. It was above his level. He was only in the Sage Plane, he hadn¡¯t even gotten to the Peak yet, so it would only be him courting death if he were to involve himself in this matter. Void nodded happily and walked away with him. Just as they were about to step out, Void suddenly vanished. Grey paused, ¡®What?¡¯ ¡®I forgot something, go ahead without me.¡¯ Void¡¯s voice rang in his head. Grey didn¡¯t think too much about it and walked away. When he stepped out of the Inn, the City was still the same, but he noticed guards were moving around. After walking for some time, he saw a poster, on it was a black small cat. The description of the fit perfectly fit a certain someone that had been with him for years now. Grey finally understood why Void didn¡¯t come out with him, he must¡¯ve sensed the guards and went into hiding. ¡®That guy, what did he do now?¡¯ He couldn¡¯t help but complain. However, he continued walking. Void¡¯s actions had nothing to do with him so he wasn¡¯t too bothered with it. All he wanted to do now was to leave this place and try out his newly improved technique. He wanted to use the help of arrays to extract the life force of the Elementalists and use them to wipe off the mark. From the start, he wasn¡¯t too confident, but now, he felt there was a bit of a chance that he could really wipe off the mark. While he was focused thinking about how to remove the mark, he suddenly felt something in his ring. Bringing it out, it was a message from his Teacher. His Teacher had been in the Aurora Continent for around two weeks now. Grey was a little ecstatic, but when he found out his Teacher was in another Continent, he couldn¡¯t help but shake his head. There was no way he could meet up with his Teacher with his current speed. Not just that, but he couldn¡¯t afford to sidetrack at the moment, the time for the competition for Sylvia¡¯s family was almost up, he had just over six months or so, he had to get there as soon as possible. On his way out of the City, he encountered the general who was at the Peak of the Sage Plane. ¡°Young friend, you¡¯re still here?¡± The general asked. ¡°Yes, but I¡¯m on my way out.¡± Grey replied with a nod. ¡°Be safe out there. From what I heard, those guys from the other side are searching for something and they¡¯re stopping everyone outside the city.¡± The general warned. ¡°Oh, by chance do you know what they¡¯re searching for?¡± Grey asked. Moving out now was a little risky since he had to face the risk of being attacked by those Elemental Venerables or even Sovereigns. However, he didn¡¯t think they would attack him so wantonly. At most, they would only question him. After leaving the city, he waited on the side. Void soon appeared on his shoulder. ¡°I got it, let¡¯s go.¡± Void said with a calm expression. ¡°What did you do when I was in seclusion?¡± Grey grabbed him before he could escape. ¡°Nothing, I only got some recipes for you.¡± Void replied with a wronged expression. He thought Grey would praise him for his hard work, but Grey was handling him in such a rough manner. ¡°Recipes?¡± Grey paused. Void went on to tell him all that happened, of course he excluded some parts, but Grey got the general gist from him. Grey shook his head and started to leave the place. As long as Void didn¡¯t kill anyone, it wasn¡¯t really a big issue. The only reason these people were hunting for him was because he was causing unrest in the already agitated city, if not, they wouldn¡¯t even be bothered with a thieving cat. They continued on their way, this was the main part of the Region where the war was the most intense. As long as they left the city, they would go into a relatively safer part of the Region and they could start using teleportation arrays once again. ¡­ Three thousand kilometers away from the city. Grey and Void stopped as there was an ongoing battle in front of them. From what they could tell, it was between people above the Sage Plane. The thought of watching came to Grey¡¯s head, but when he recalled what happened to him the last time he watched high ranks battles, he couldn¡¯t help but shirk away. He would just maneuver through the side. As he was turning around, he heard the voices of the people. Even though they were hundreds of meters away from him, he still heard them clearly. ¡°I already told you I don¡¯t have it. Why don¡¯t you ask that incompetent moron who couldn¡¯t keep it safe?¡± 940 You Wanted Them Alive? ¡°You¡¯re the one who has always wanted the crystal, stop pushing the blame away. I know you have it. Even if you don¡¯t, you must be involved in its disappearance.¡± ¡°How many times will I tell you, I don¡¯t have it! If the beast is released, we will all suffer from its wrath. I¡¯m one of the people it hates the most, do you think I¡¯m that stupid?¡± While the duo were arguing, Grey and Void exchange glances. ¡®Don¡¯t tell me it¡¯s the crystal you stole from them.¡¯ Dark lines appeared on Grey¡¯s head. If what these people said was correct, then the crystal Void stole had a beast that even these people were afraid of. These were people that were possibly Elemental Sovereigns, yet, Grey could hear the fear in their voices. A single Magical beast being able to strike fear in them meant that it was at least a Rank Eight Magical beast, equivalent to an Elemental Sovereign. ¡®I think it is.¡¯ Void replied with a stunned look. He didn¡¯t think the crystal he took just because it was shiny actually possessed such a thing inside. Now that he thought of it, he recalled hearing those people speaking of releasing their hidden weapon on the city. He didn¡¯t really attach too much importance to it since all that mattered to him was getting the crystal, now that he got it and overheard these people, he knew how valuable, and dangerous the item he had with him is. ¡®Throw it away.¡¯ Grey said straightforwardly. They couldn¡¯t take the risk of having something like that with them. Yes, it was sealed in the crystal, but if it were the break out of it, just it¡¯s aura alone was enough to kill the duo. They wouldn¡¯t even have the time to pick up the crystal before it killed them. It was just too risky. ¡®No, we¡¯ll release the beast and let it do as it wills. I¡¯ll keep the crystal.¡¯ Void refused. After going through so much trouble to get it, how did Grey expect him to discard of it so easily. It was impossible. ¡®Are you nuts?! What do you think it will do once it¡¯s no longer trapped in the crystal?¡¯ Grey felt like skinning Void alive. ¡®Find us to thank us?¡¯ Void asked with a forced smile on his face. ¡®It¡¯ll find us to kill us! Do you think it doesn¡¯t know that we can keep it back into the crystal? Only when it holds the crystal is it truly free.¡¯ Grey knew Void was aware of all this, but he was being stubborn about it because of the crystal. ¡®Stop being so negative. Do you even know if it¡¯s a nice guy? It might even be related to Lord cat.¡¯ Void replied. Grey couldn¡¯t help but furrow his brows. He tried to grab Void, but Void was quicker and he escaped quite easily. Grey gritted his teeth and went after Void. He had to speak with him. This cat was too much! The ripples from the battle continued and spread to the area the duo were. It didn¡¯t take long before one of the experts fighting sensed the presence of some people in the forest. Without saying anything, they went after the person. Grey and Void were still running around when the experts appeared, seeing a young man and a cat seemingly chasing after each other, they lost interest in the duo. They could tell that they were coming from the city, but they weren¡¯t in the mood to speak with them. With a cold snort, one of the experts left without wasting any time. Grey and Void sensed them, but they pretended like they didn¡¯t. First off, 5hese were people in the Elemental Venerable Plane or above, if they knew that these two Sage Plane Elementalists could sense their presence even when they didn¡¯t show themselves, then they might gain some interest in them. The other man left as well, he couldn¡¯t be bothered with a kid and a cat. Grey heaved a sigh of relief when they left. ¡®Void, seriously, we can¡¯t keep it.¡¯ Grey said with a serious expression. ¡®Fine, but we can¡¯t take it out now. These guys knows it¡¯s aura. The moment I bring it out of my spatial storage, they will sense it and we will be in trouble.¡¯ Void finally agreed. Grey thought about it and knew Void was right. Since it was like this, then they would leave. Once they¡¯re no longer in this Region, they would throw the crystal away. What he feared the most was that Void might not throw away the real crystal. Void had hundreds of crystals with him, and since Grey didn¡¯t see this particular crystal, he wouldn¡¯t know what it looked like. They continued on their way. With the experts not blocking their way, they increased this speed. Knowing what they had with them put some pressure on Grey and he wanted to leave as soon as he could. ¡­ Three days later. Grey and Void were already on the edge of the Laurel Region. They were safe here and didn¡¯t need to fear for their lives any longer. Grey finally decided it was time to stop and try out his research. When he spoke with Void after the battle, he didn¡¯t really have anyone in his storage ring. Humans couldn¡¯t be kept in his storage ring as long as they were alive. Void on the other hand was a different story. Hiding in a cave hidden by a waterfall, he asked Void to bring out the people he caught. Grey was stunned when the people appeared, they were all¡­ dead. ¡®What the hell?! I thought you said they were alive?¡¯ Grey glared at Void. ¡®Oh, you wanted them alive? Sorry, I couldn¡¯t stay there for too long without attracting those in the Sage Plane.¡¯ Void apologized. ¡®I¡¯ll go out and bring you some Magical beasts around, they should be of use, right?¡¯ He asked with an apologetic tone. ¡®I don¡¯t know. Forget about it, we¡¯ll see how things go later.¡¯ 941 Arya Grey and Void left the Laurel Region after some days. After leaving the Region, Grey finally started to feel the sense of safety now. Not being in the Region meant that he would not have to worry about those Elemental Venerables or Sovereigns. The necromancers were already giving him enough headache, if more people joined, he might probably not be able to make it. ¡­ Two weeks later. Grey and Void were staring at a group of beasts that was looking menacingly at them. Behind them was a young girl who was around ten years old. ¡°Don¡¯t worry, you¡¯ll be fine.¡± Grey said with a soft smile. They were currently in the next Region after the Laurel Region, the Quavers Region. According to the history of the Region, a powerful Earth Elementalist rose from the Quavering Mountains which was famous all round in the Region. The name of the Region came from this particular mountain. The mountain is said to be a holy land for Earth Elementalists across the entire Continent. Grey and Void planned to visit the place before leaving this Region. Even though they were in a hurry, it didn¡¯t mean they couldn¡¯t see such a famous place. Besides, it was around the place they were going to pass through, so they weren¡¯t really sidetracking. On the way to the Quavering mountains, they went through a small town and went on to see this young girl surrounded by beasts. All the beasts were in the Origin Plane. For someone of Grey¡¯s current level, he wouldn¡¯t even glance at an Overlord Plane Elementalist, much less these beasts at the Origin Plane. He released his aura and the beasts immediately showed fears in their eyes. Without a second thought, they fled in all directions. The young girl looked at Grey with awe in her eyes. Grey smiled at her, ¡°You¡¯re fine. You shouldn¡¯t venture out on your own next time.¡± ¡°I know, but my brother left five days ago, and he isn¡¯t back yet¡­¡± The young girl explained the reason for her coming out of the town alone. According to her, her brother left the town five days ago in search of a treasure which was reportedly sighted deep in the forest. Her brother was still in an Arcane Plane and he was already regarded as the top genius in the town. At the age of twenty-five, he was the fastest to reach the Arcane Plane before thirty. Grey and Void exchanged glances when they heard this. Even the case in the Azure Continent wasn¡¯t this bad. When Grey was fifteen, Klaus and the rest were already in the Arcane Plane, Alice and Reynolds were in the Late stages. Yet, a twenty-five year old Arcane Plane Elementalist was regarded as a genius. He couldn¡¯t help but shake his head, ¡®So there are even places like this here.¡¯ ¡®It¡¯s normal. Not everyone is lucky enough to train in a good place.¡¯ Void replied. They had sensed the elemental essence in the area and it was pretty poor. It was even quite impressive that this young girl¡¯s brother was able to get to the Arcane Plane in this place. ¡°Are you sure he came here?¡± Grey couldn¡¯t help but ask the young girl. The young girl nodded. Grey furrowed his brows, the reason for this was because he just scared off a number of Origin Plane Magical beasts. If this young girl¡¯s brother were to encounter them, he would die without even having the chance to move. The strength difference was just too large. After some time, Grey said with a soft smile, ¡°I¡¯ll go and search for your brother, you should go back to the town, okay?¡± ¡°Can I go along with you, big brother?¡± The girl asked with large eyes. ¡°As much as I¡¯d want you to follow me, it¡¯s too risky. I can sense some powerful beasts here. I might not be able to protect you if you come with me.¡± Grey explained calmly. He treated the girl with care since there¡¯s a high chance that her brother was dead. ¡°Big brother, if I go back to the town, I¡¯ll be all alone again. My brother is the only family I have.¡± The young girl replied with tears welling up in her eyes. Grey paused when he heard this, ¡°What about your parents?¡± ? ¡°They died when I was two. According to my Big brother, they were killed during a beast tide.¡± The young girl replied. Grey felt a slight headache. He couldn¡¯t send the young girl back since it was a little heartless. However, he knew this was the best choice, but he couldn¡¯t bear to send the girl back. ¡°Alright, you¡¯ll come with me to bring back your Big Brother, happy?¡± He said with a smile. The young girl smiled when she heard this, and jumped happily. Grey¡¯s eyes flashed. He knew there might be a chance that her brother was dead, but there was nothing he could do. ¡®Void, her safety will be your top priority.¡¯ He communicated with Void. Since he was taking the young girl with them, he had to make sure he was a hundred percent certain that he could save her. He also marked her, this way, he could appear close to her within the blink of an eye. Void nodded to his words. Grey was never a good person, since he decided to help this little girl, it must mean something. They continued on the path the young girl said. Grey could sense the aura of a Sage Plane Magical beast in the forest. From what he could tell, the strongest beast in the forest is a Sage Plane Magical Beast. Even if an Elemental Venerable Magical Beast were to be in the forest, he had things he could use to fight against it. Time went by and before long, they were already in the depths of the forest. Grey didn¡¯t need to fight against any of the beasts that came his way, all he needed was to release his aura and the beasts would run away. The journey so far had been quite enjoyable, the young girl¡¯s name was Arya, and she was quite the talkative. Grey didn¡¯t know what to say, she bombarded him with questions that he couldn¡¯t even answer them all. While they were walking, Void suggested he made something for them to eat. Arya agreed to it immediately. She hasn¡¯t started cultivating yet, so it was normal that she would grow hungry after some time. Grey didn¡¯t object to it and easily caught a beast that he used to make some soup. When Arya took a spoon, her eyes opened wide, she looked at Grey with wide eyes. ¡°Big brother, this is the best food I¡¯ve ever eaten!¡± Grey laughed lightly when he heard this, ¡°Oh really, doesn¡¯t your Big brother cook for you?¡± ¡°Meh¡­ he¡¯s a terrible cook. I¡¯m even better than him.¡± Arya said while sticking out her tongue. Grey and Void laughed when they heard this. Arya had come to know that Void could talk, and when she first found out, she literally freaked out. Grey soon pushed her to Void¡¯s side, it was normal that she would like the little small black talking cat. After they finished eating, they continued their journey. When they were just about to enter the depths of the forest, Grey encountered the first Sage Plane Magical Beast. It was a Fox that was around three meters tall and over five meters long. The Magical Beast was in the Early stages of Rank Six. It stared down at Grey with annoyed eyes. Grey was naturally not too bothered with this Fox. He turned to Arya, ¡°I¡¯m coming, I¡¯ll go play with the Fox for a short time.¡± ¡°Be safe, Big brother.¡± Grey nodded and walked over to the Fox that was looking down on him. It was evident that the Fox didn¡¯t think much of him. It was normal since most beasts were stronger than their human counterparts. ¡°You should scurry away now, if not, you¡¯ll turn to dinner.¡± Grey said with a playful tone. The Fox was enraged by Grey¡¯s words. It was already infuriated that a human dared to trespass into its territory, now the human dared to say that he wanted to turn it into dinner. Insolence! The Fox moved immediately and tried to bite Grey. Grey¡¯s figure blinked and he vanished from view. The Fox paused, and turned to release an ice beam towards its back. Grey¡¯s figure appeared behind it and with a wave of his hand, he blocked the attack. He smirked and shot out a slash of fire blade. The eyes of the Fox changed when it saw this. The attack power was beyond its expectation. It hurriedly set up a defensive wall and blocked the attack. However, Grey¡¯s attack easily passed through it and sent the Fox flying. The Fox roared in pain and turned around. ¡°Too late.¡± Grey¡¯s voice sounded beside its ear. It¡¯s vision soon turned black. An hour later, Grey was cooking Fox meat. 942 Not Worth My Time The group continued their journey after they finished eating. Of course, they weren¡¯t able to finish the entire meat. Void kept the leftovers in his spatial storage. Grey encountered two more Rank Six Magical beasts, but he didn¡¯t spend too much time with them. With an easy attack, he was able to quickly frighten them away. He didn¡¯t want Arya to see too much blood, so he made sure when making the kill, it was as smooth as possible. Thirty minutes later. Grey, Void, and Arya had gotten to the depths of the forest, and there were signs of other people around. This gave Grey a little hope that they could find Arya¡¯s Big brother. As long as there were people who made it to this place, then there¡¯s definitely a good chance that her brother made it as well. However, he didn¡¯t get his hopes too high. For an Arcane Plane Elementalists to go through the tough journey of traversing through the forest to this place was no easy feat. When Grey finally saw people, he realized that most of them were either in the Origin or Overlord Plane. Looking through the group, three people caught his eye. All three of them were old men, and the auras they radiated were at the Peak of the Overlord Plane. But Grey knew this was not their true strength. Each of these old men was in the Sage Plane. Although he was unaware of their true strength, he knew it wasn¡¯t above the Sage Plane. When he arrived with Arya, he naturally attracted the attention of those there. He reduced his aura to the Origin Plane, this was the lowest he could take it. Seeing such a young man in the Origin Plane surprised those present. It should be known that in Arya¡¯s town, her Big brother is regarded as a generational talent, and he was only in the Arcane Plane at twenty-five. Grey looked to be around twenty, yet his Plane was higher than all those his age. Seeing little Arya with him, most of the people looked at him with confused eyes. Bringing a child with him to cross through the forest was even more dangerous than coming alone. If he¡¯s alone, he could easily escape, but since he brought a liability, then he would have to not only look out for himself, but he also had to look out for Arya as well. After glancing at him, they all turned away. They were not acquainted with Grey, to begin with, so after the first few seconds, they all turned their attention to the matter in front of them. There was a passageway in front of them, but it seemed to only allow a certain number of people inside at a time. Presently, there was a thin veil in front of it. If touched, it would immediately attack the person. ¡®Void, check it out.¡¯ Grey didn¡¯t want to make any moves since he didn¡¯t want to draw more attention to himself. Seeing the number of people present, it was only a matter of time before more arrived. He had asked Arya if she had seen her brother, but she shook her head. He wanted to know if they would head in or not. Void vanished from sight, and some minutes later, he returned. ¡®The barrier is set up by a Peak Sage Plane Elementalist. If my guess is correct, this must be where the Elementalist cultivated. Also, I smell the aura of death, although it¡¯s faint, it¡¯s not hidden. Grey nodded before deciding to stay on the side. He could force his way through, but since these two Sage Plane Elementalists were biding their time, he would do the same. Time went on, and every hour, the barrier would open up and people would rush in. Some of them were a little unfortunate and when the barrier closed back up, it cut them in half. This made the others apprehensive. The same scene occurred the next time the barrier opened up. Grey couldn¡¯t help but shake his head. These people knew all too well how risky it was, but they still wanted to make sure they had a head start ahead of those who were still outside. The scene of the Elementalists being cut apart by the barrier was seen by Arya, she clenched her fists in fear. ¡°Do you think my Big brother is among the corpses there?¡± She asked after summoning enough courage. ¡°I doubt that.¡± Grey didn¡¯t give a clear answer. Although he wanted to give Arya hope, it¡¯ll be stupid to assure her of the safety of her brother when he hadn¡¯t even set his eyes on him. From what he knew, it had been a while he came here. There¡¯s a chance that he even left after seeing too many experts. The only way he could find out is if he entered the place. He waited for two more hours before going in with Arya and Void. They were part of the last group to enter the place and he wasn¡¯t too bothered. If there were any good things here, it wouldn¡¯t be of much use to him anyway. The owner of this abode was a Sage Plane Elementalist who was either dead or already broken through and left this place in hopes to help others. With Grey¡¯s current strength, anything below the Elemental Venerable Plane didn¡¯t catch his eyes. When he entered the passageway, he saw an almost unending path that stretched as far as the eyes could see. Grey spread out his spiritual senses and easily found the loopholes in this place. There were traps, but to him, it didn¡¯t mean anything. He walked ahead with Arya and Void without bothering about anything. While others trod carefully, he walked in a carefree manner. Screams soon started to resonate across the place. People were being killed by the traps. Grey set up a mental barrier around himself and Arya. Since she was not an Elementalist, there was no way she would be able to sense it. 943 Is He Really Dead? Arya was oblivious to the painful screams around her as she spoke enthusiastically with Grey. Grey even went on to tell her some jokes he picked up from Klaus. Arya was pretty much the first person outside his friends he had taken a liking to. She was more like a younger sister he never had. At first, he only wanted to save her when he saw she was surrounded by Magical beasts, but after traveling with her for some time, he had grown to enjoy her company. She was a young enthusiastic and curious little girl. Grey felt a little sorry for her when he heard her parents were dead. With the current flow of things, there¡¯s also a high chance that her brother was dead as well. He was optimistic, but he didn¡¯t feel too confident in being able to find her brother alive. They could be said to be in almost the same situation. His father left when he was still very young, and after that, his mother left as well. Although he didn¡¯t know their current state, he felt that they were still alive. The mystery about his family was quite complicated that even he knew nothing about it. Other than his Family name, he had nothing else. He had even forgotten the name of his father! His mother¡¯s memory was still very fresh in his mind, so he knew that as long as he got to sense her aura, he would be able to locate her. After being alone for over five years, he didn¡¯t really have much hope in his parents. To be honest, he was a little disappointed in his parents. If there were secrets, he felt they ought to tell him. He only found out about the orb in his body after fifteen years, he went through humiliation for three years because of it. ¡­ His mind wandered as they traveled. He was still a little worried about the situation of his parents, but there was nothing he could do at the moment. ¡®Strength, that¡¯s all that matters.¡¯ He thought to himself. He made sure to cover the corpses ahead of them so that Arya would be unable to see them. As they went on, he noticed that there were over one hundred corpses, this was after moving only around eight hundred meters. They walked another two hundred meters before he saw the end of the tunnel. While walking, he made sure to look around for anyone that matched the description of Arya¡¯s brother. He looked at the corpses on the ground specifically. One of the things he noticed along the way was that over ninety-five percent of the corpses belonged to Arcane Plane Elementalists. This meant that the survival rate of those in the Arcane Plane here was really low. He had seen only a few Origin Plane Elementalist corpses which seemed to prove his hypothesis. They walked out into an open space. It was an underground cave that spanned over two kilometers. Grey looked around and saw everyone rushing in a single direction. He didn¡¯t hurry over like the rest, slowly following behind while trying to see if he could find Arya¡¯s Big brother. He also spoke with Arya along the way. Before long, he got to the place everyone was heading to. Even before getting there, he noticed that everyone seemed to be standing some distance away from a figure sitting crossed legs. His eyes changed when he noticed something about the figure, ¡®He¡¯s¡­ dead.¡¯ The figure didn¡¯t make any movements, and even though he was over two hundred meters away from the figure, he could tell that he was dead. ¡®Is this the owner of this place?¡¯ He questioned himself. He felt the answer was most likely yes. The figure was that of an old man. Grey wasn¡¯t too intrigued by the man since he was also in the Sage Plane, but there was something that threw him off his feet. He could sense a slight aura of the darkness element circulating around the man. Even though it was very faint, he could still sense it. ¡®Do you sense that?¡¯ He asked Void. Void nodded, his expression was grave. ¡®I have a bad feeling about this place.¡¯ Void said. Grey also had an ominous feeling about the place, but he didn¡¯t let it stop him from moving ahead. His current task was to locate Arya¡¯s brother and leave this place. ¡°Stay here with Void, he¡¯ll take care of you. I¡¯ll go find your Big brother real quick.¡± Grey bent down to Arya¡¯s level and said with a soft smile. Arya nodded before staying behind the boulder they were standing. Grey nodded at Void before moving out. He had to get the gist of what was happening, and without examining the place, there was no way he would be able to do so. He already decided to scout for Arya¡¯s brother while doing this. Ten minutes later, he looked at the corpse sitting crossed leg. ¡®Is he really dead?¡¯ Confusion flashed through Grey¡¯s eyes. There was a large array in this place that seemed to siphon all the essence in this cave in the direction of the dead man. Grey wouldn¡¯t be bothered if that was the only thing, but the essence of those who were dead was also being sucked out and moving in the corpse¡¯s direction. The real reason he was worried was that he had seen something almost identical to this back in the Magical Beast¡¯s forest in the Azure Continent. Although it was a little different, it was almost the same case. He decided to search for Arya¡¯s brother first. There¡¯s a chance that this old man did this while he was still alive in hopes to break through, but he failed in the end and after coming to the end of his lifespan, he died. Even though Sage Plane Elementalists could easily live over a thousand years, there were still a few things that could shorten their overall lifespan. A serious injury could take out over five hundred years from their lifespan. 944 Transported To Another Location Grey didn¡¯t go close to the corpse since it was best to stay away from it. What everyone was staring at presently was the box beside the corpse, as well as the storage ring in his hands. Being an expert who was around the Peak of the Sage Plane, even if he wasn¡¯t rich amongst Sage Plane Elementalists, he was definitely more wealthy than these Origin and Overlord Plane Elementalists who came from small towns around. Any small treasure from the man could easily help boost the strength of an Arcane Plane Elementalist in a matter of days While standing far from the corpse, he tried to see if he could locate Arya¡¯s brother once again, but it was to no avail. It was almost like he didn¡¯t come here in the first place. The possibility of this happening was also very high. Thinking up to this point, Grey decided to wait a little longer, if they can¡¯t find him, they would head back to Arya¡¯s town. Staying in this place might not be good for them. Time went by in the blink of an eye, and before long, people started to approach the corpse of the man. Only when they got close did Grey suddenly notice something. His eyes showed shock as he saw people disappearing from view. He could sense it clearly, it was the work of the space element. ¡®Where are they being taken to?¡¯ He raised a brow as he looked on curiously. The number of people started to reduce faster, and before long, there were only around twenty plus people there. The two old men in the Sage Plane were still waiting outside. They exchanged glances and walked closer to the corpse before disappearing. A glimmer flashed through Grey¡¯s eyes. ¡®Could he be there?¡¯ With this new revelation, there¡¯s a good chance that Arya¡¯s brother was part of the first people who had entered this place. He came days ago, so it¡¯s normal if he had gone through. Without thinking too much, he instructed Void to keep an eye on Arya and make sure she was safe before walking closer to the corpse. When he got to around ten meters away, he was sucked in by the space element. He didn¡¯t struggle with it and allowed it to take him freely. While being teleported away, he studied how he was being taken away and noticed it also had to do with the array in the place. He marked this place, so he could leave where he was being taken to at any time he wanted. Not just that, but he could also easily counter the array. He studied all this while he was searching for Arya¡¯s brother. His vision went dark, and when he finally saw light again, he was standing on a hillside. He took his time to access the scenery. After taking note of the place, he moved out. He had to ascend the hill. From where he was standing, he could sense the aura of multiple Magical beasts, and most of them were in the Sage Plane. He didn¡¯t think a Sage Plane Elementalist would have the time to do all this. He appeared on the top of the hill and looking forward, he saw different people standing on other hilltops around. ¡°This is going to take a while.¡± He muttered to himself. After saying this, he came down and started to search for the aura of an Arcane Plane Elementalists. He spread his spiritual senses as far as he could, and wherever he sensed the aura of an Arcane Plane Elementalist, he would rush there within some seconds. Thirty minutes later. Grey had run over to almost twenty Arcane Plane Elementalists, but he hadn¡¯t seen anyone that fit Arya¡¯s Big brother¡¯s description. The little hope he had in finding him soon started to fade. When he was already thinking of giving up, he sensed the aura of another Arcane Plane Elementalists. He rushed there and saw that this person was being beaten by an Origin Plane Magical beast. Grey didn¡¯t waste any time and instantly sent the Magical beast flying. When the young man fighting against the Magical beast turned, he was shocked to see such a young and powerful youth. From his perspective, he could tell that the young man standing in front of him was younger than he was. While the young man was studying Grey, Grey was doing the same. Grey¡¯s eyes soon showed disappointment. This was not the person he was searching for. Even though he hadn¡¯t seen Arya¡¯s Big brother, given how much she spoke of him and how detailed her description was, he could tell that this person in front of him was not who he was searching for. Before the young man could even thank him, he vanished. ¡®I guess he¡¯s not here.¡¯ Grey thought to himself when he reappeared on a tree branch. He shook his head before looking in a particular direction. There, he could sense an odd aura. It was a little identical to what he sensed in the cave. He decided to check it out before leaving, it wasn¡¯t like he was in a hurry, to begin with. On his way there, he encountered another Arcane Plane Elementalist who he decided to help. A single attack without even showing his face was all that he needed to scare the Magical Beast away. The young man in the Arcane Plane didn¡¯t even know when Grey appeared, much less when he disappeared. When Grey got to the place where he could sense the aura. He noticed those two old men in the Sage Plane were already present there. Not just them, but some Overlord Plane Elementalists were also standing there. Grey decided to hide in the corner. When he was about to hide, he saw a figure from the side of his eyes. He couldn¡¯t help but turn in that direction. When he saw the condition of the person, he was a little taken aback. ¡®Arya¡¯s brother?¡¯ Confusion flashed through his eyes. This person perfectly fits the person Arya described to him. 945 Good Stuff? The person in front of him fitted Arya¡¯s brother, other than for the fact that he looked like someone who was already tethering between life and death, his other features met Arya¡¯s description. He was a little bit pessimistic since the current look of the young man wasn¡¯t the best. He walked closer to him and once again looked at him. The young man was breathing weakly, his eyes were hazy. ¡°Hey, are you Arya¡¯s brother?¡± Grey asked when he got to where the young man was resting. ¡°Ar¡­ya?¡± The young man spoke, albeit very weak. Grey noticed the young man seemed to be struggling with someone. Without thinking too much, he used his light element in hopes of healing him. Even though his light element was the one with the lowest elemental grade, it was no problem for him to heal the injuries of an Arcane Plane Elementalist. Things however, didn¡¯t go as he hoped. The physical injuries on the body of the young man healed at a speed visible to the eyes, but his eyes were still lackluster. ¡°Hey, are you okay now?¡± Grey asked. ¡°Who¡­ who are you?¡± The young man asked as he looked at Grey vigilantly, he suddenly paused before saying, ¡°You mentioned Arya, where¡¯s she?¡± ¡°Not here. Are you her brother?¡± Grey asked once again. ¡°Yes. How do you know her?¡± The young man asked. ¡°Nothing to be bothered about. We¡¯re leaving, you¡¯ll speak with her when you meet her.¡± Grey didn¡¯t want to stay here any longer. ¡°I¡¯ve tried, but I can¡¯t leave. Not just me, but most of us who came have been unable to leave.¡± The young man replied with a flash going through his eyes. ¡°Don¡¯t worry about that, we¡¯re leaving.¡± Greu grabbed onto the man¡¯s hand, but the man withdrew his hand. ¡°I don¡¯t think you understand the seriousness of this place. We can¡¯t leave.¡± Arya¡¯s brother said once again. Grey didn¡¯t say anything and vanished, however, he soon returned once again with an odd expression. ¡®Strange.¡¯ He thought to himself. After trying two more times, he finally understood how this place worked. They can only leave this place with the help of the array, and it was in the cave. Grey didn¡¯t think too much about it and tried to contact Void. At this moment, he noticed something that shocked him, the second he tried to use his spiritual senses, he noticed something was absorbing it here. This was terrible considering how useful an Elementalist¡¯s spiritual senses was. Now he understood why Arya¡¯s brother had listless eyes, he had been here for a long time and his spiritual senses must have been drained a lot. If it gets to a certain stage, he would face the risk of turning into a walking dead. He wouldn¡¯t be dead, but he wouldn¡¯t really be alive either. If he¡¯s lucky, he might fall into a coma, if he¡¯s unlucky, he would lose his mind. Grey immediately started to draw an array mid-air, before long, it enveloped the duo, blocking whatever was draining their spiritual senses. After doing this, Grey decided it was time to check out what was wrong with this place. Setting up something to drain the spiritual senses of Elementalists was a devious move. Only a few people would notice, some might not even notice this until it was too late. ¡®I wonder if they¡¯re aware of this?¡¯ Grey turned to look at the two old men. He soon discarded them. They weren¡¯t his concern. Now, he wanted to break this array and leave this place. He had always been a master when it came to arrays, seeing his knowledge being challenged, he was excited to show this dead expert what he was made of. He sat down and started to browse through the arrays he was familiar with that could break through a sealing array. As long as he found it, it would be easy. The array on the outside was much more easy and full of loopholes when compared to this one. He didn¡¯t even notice there was an array here until he tried to leave. Using the space element within this area was allowed, but as soon as he tried to leave, he would be knocked back by the space. What was worse was that as far as the eyes could see, the only thing visible were mountains and hills. Arya¡¯s brother looked at the young man beside him. He still couldn¡¯t understand how Grey knew Arya. Since Grey came to him, it meant it was most likely because of Arya. He could tell that Grey was by no means weak. ¡®Where did she find such a genius?¡¯ He thought to himself. While Grey and Arya¡¯s brother were by the side, the two old men moved out. Before them was a tree that was covered with a veil. Inside the tree was what brought them here. It was a rare fruit that could help boost the chances of these old men breaking through to the Elemental Venerable Plane and even the Elemental Sovereign Plane. They heard this old expert was grooming it, but before it was mature enough, he died. Now, they had come to take the harvest of the man¡¯s hard work. They attacked the veil, but it retaliated with an attack that was almost double of theirs. Not just that, but it also sent out a large-scale mental attack. This attack affected Grey who was trying to think of a way to break through this task in front of him. Luckily, he set up a barrier that not only blocked what was draining their spiritual consciousness, but it also blocked this mental attack. Unfortunately, it broke apart after blocking the first attack. Grey¡¯s eyes snapped open and he looked at the direction the attack came from. It was none other than the tree. The tree was almost conscious, attacking on its own. ¡®This thing is good. I wonder what¡¯s inside?¡¯ He thought to himself. Originally, he didn¡¯t think there would be anything that could pique his interest, only now did he know that he was wrong. 946 Dangerous Situation Grey moved closer to the tree as he studied it. The fact that this tree could release mental attacks was a surprising discovery for him. Before leaving, he told Arya¡¯s brother to stay put. The two old men managed to block most of the attacks coming their way, the mental attack was a little troublesome, but after unveiling their true strength, it was easy for them to deal with it. When the others around sensed their auras, they all had a change of expression. With the appearance of two Sage Plane Elementalists, it was almost impossible for them to gain anything from this. After going through such a gruesome challenge to get here, they still had to watch others take the reward. They were all indignant, but there was nothing they could do. The strength difference between them was just too massive. However, they still didn¡¯t attempt to leave. There was still some hope. Since the tree and the veil could unleash counterattacks that even gave these Sage Plane Elementalists troubles, there¡¯s a chance that they could wait for them to be exhausted from it and then swoop in to take the reward. Ordinarily, an Overlord Plane Elementalist stood no chance against a Sage Plane Elementalist who was not in the First stage, but once a Sage Plane Elementalist was injured, their strength would naturally decline and present an opportunity for those here. The two old men in the Sage Plane exchange glances before striking out with a palm attack each. The strength of the attack frightened those Origin and a few Arcane Plane Elementalists around. Bang! The attack struck the veil protecting the tree and it shook rapidly, after shaking for some time, it attacked just like the first time. The two old men were already prepared for this and blocked it. The only reason the first attack managed to rattle them was due to their lack of knowledge about the tree. Now that they knew it would send out mental attacks, they were ready for it. Not just them, Grey was prepared for it as well. He set up sufficient protection for Arya¡¯s brother before leaving, so he wasn¡¯t too bothered about him. Those below the Sage Plane had already retreated far away from the place. It wasn¡¯t worth the risk of staying close to the place. Even after moving over five hundred meters, some of those in the Overlord Plane started to bleed from their eyes, nose, mouth, and ears. This frightened the Origin and Arcane Plane Elementalists who had taken further steps, they rushed to retreat even further. During the first attack, although the old men didn¡¯t attack with this much power, five people still died from it. It almost caused an uproar, but when they sensed the aura of the men, they all stopped and retreated from the area without a second thought. The two old men continued their assault on the tree, and soon enough, the veil protecting it started to show signs of cracks. This was what they had been waiting for. After seeing this, they increased the intensity of their attacks. Grey was watching from the side, he had completely withdrawn his aura so he wasn¡¯t bothered by them finding him. His eyes were currently glowing with a blue light. With this, he didn¡¯t need to bother about the mental attack. Whatever mental attack gets close to him is immediately frozen by his icy flame mental attack. He wanted to wait till the duo did all the work and then he would swoop in and take the rewards. The old men continued attacking, and before long, the veil broke apart. Just when the veil broke, a powerful spiritual force spread out across the entire place. This was completely out of the expectations of Grey and the old men. They didn¡¯t think the veil was actually holding in such a large amount of spiritual force. This turned into a terrifying mental attack that even Grey didn¡¯t dare to take slightly. He instantly vanished and appeared beside Arya¡¯s brother. Before he could even react, they were no longer standing in the same spot. They appeared in the first location Grey appeared when he came here. Grey¡¯s eyes showed fear and without hesitation, he tried to forcefully teleport away from this place. Whatever was sealed in that tree was beyond his power as of present. Even protecting himself against it was difficult. He had been doing some research, and being very good with arrays, he was able to find a loophole in this place. As long as he went back to the same spot where he appeared, then he could leave this place. The question was, who would actually know the exact spot they appeared? But unlike most people, Grey was different. His cautious nature made it so that he would leave spatial marks in multiple places. When he first appeared here, the first thing he did was mark this place. He never thought this would be his hope of escaping. His only problem now was if he could take Arya¡¯s brother with him since this wasn¡¯t the same place he used to come in. They were all teleported to different locations. After tearing a hole in the space across the place, he dragged Arya¡¯s brother with him as they tried to leave. The mental energy attack was still spreading across the place. If it got to them, it would be problematic. Just as Grey suspected, it was a little difficult for him to take Arya¡¯s brother with him. When he first took him, the space forced him out, but Grey acted quickly and created an array that managed to rectify the problem. However, unknown to him, Arya¡¯s brother¡¯s body appeared for a quarter of a second on the mountain hill before he dragged him back into the spatial tunnel. ¡­ Back in the cave. Void and Arya were still playing around while more people were entering the place and being teleported to the other side. Void¡¯s expression suddenly changed, he sensed a dangerous energy for a split second. 947 The Allure Of Treasures ¡°We¡¯re leaving.¡± Void grabbed Arya¡¯s hand with his paws and vanished immediately. He couldn¡¯t take the risk of staying there any longer. Even though the aura he sensed was very faint, he was a hundred percent certain that it came from the supposedly dead figure. Not just that, but when he tried to reach out to Grey, he was unable to. Grey told him to ensure that he left the place with Arya at the slightest hint of danger. Before Arya could even say anything, her view changed and they were already outside the cave. ¡°What of Big brother Grey and my Big brother?¡± She asked worriedly. ¡°If your brother is there, Grey will find him and bring him out. Don¡¯t worry about them for now.¡± Void explained slowly. Arya nodded, but still looked in the direction of the passageway with a worried look. She might be young, but she already knew some things about the world. For instance, she feared that her Big brother might be dead. What she feared the most now was that Grey might be in danger because of her asking him to search for her Big brother. They stood by the side, and Void couldn¡¯t help but shake his head as he saw more people rushing into the place when the seal opened up. ¡®The allure of treasures¡­¡¯ Looking at things, he decided to reduce his greed for treasures. Well, mainly shiny things. The crystal was still with them and they still didn¡¯t know what was best to do. Tossing it away looked like the best option, but it might not really be. If whatever was sealed inside were to be unleashed in a Region, it might cause the death of countless people. ¡­ Back in the cave. Grey soon appeared in the cave. Looking at the person he was holding, his expression changed a little. With furrowed brows, he looked at Arya¡¯s brother. ¡°Are you alright?¡± He asked. However, he received no response. Arya¡¯s brother¡¯s eyes had gone dim and it seemed like he was falling unconscious. Grey¡¯s expression changed drastically, and he hurriedly checked out his condition. When his spiritual senses entered his body, he felt a stinging pain in his head. ¡®Crap!¡¯ Arya¡¯s brother was in a critical condition at the moment, his consciousness was about to fade away. Only now did Grey recall that he was forced into the world when he was trying to leave. At first, he didn¡¯t think much about it, but now that he remembered that Arya¡¯s brother¡¯s spiritual senses had been drained for days by the place, it made it even easier for him to be affected by it. Grey searched through all the treasures he had with him, but he couldn¡¯t find anyone that could help with spiritual senses or consciousness. He looked around and soon came to a decision, the only thing he could think of now to use to help him was the fruit from the tree. Since it had such an ability, it should also be able to help bolster the consciousness of an Elementalist. He couldn¡¯t keep the body since he was still alive, only in a coma. He opened a hole in the ground and dropped him inside. This was the safest method he could think of. Before heading in once again, he decided to take control of the array outside. He couldn¡¯t afford to make the same mistake as the first time. ¡®Huh, where¡¯s Void and Arya?¡¯ He didn¡¯t sense Void nor Arya around, even after walking over to where he told them to wait, they were no longer there. ¡®Where are you?¡¯ Grey communicated with Void telepathically. ¡®Outside¡­¡¯ Void explained the situation to Grey. Grey looked at the corpse after he finished listening to Void. ¡®Things don¡¯t seem as easy as they look.¡¯ With squinted eyes, he walked over to the corpse. Since he had taken control of the array in the cave, he had no problems with getting close to the corpse. After he passed through the mark where he should¡¯ve been teleported away, his vision changed. ¡®An illusion?¡¯ Grey found the situation strange. The supposed corpse wasn¡¯t actually in front of him at the moment, rather, there was a small cave that he could swear there was an aura of a living person inside. After taking some time to prepare himself for any mishaps, he walked inside the place. To his surprise, he saw an old man sitting crossed leg. This cave was small and it was obviously made by the old man. The old man opened his eyes to look at the intruder. Surprise flashed through his eyes when he saw such a youth walking into the cave. He tried to access the array but realized his imprint had been wiped out. ¡°Kid, what are you doing here?¡± The old man asked with a calm voice. ¡°Nothing, I only stumbled upon this place by accident.¡± Grey replied. The old man didn¡¯t feel annoyed by Grey¡¯s words, rather, he looked outside. ¡°You¡¯re the only one who has been able to reach this place for years. You¡¯re quite capable.¡± The old man was in the same sitting position. He didn¡¯t seem agitated as Grey presumed, instead, he was unusually calm. ¡°Are you the owner of that tree?¡± Grey asked. The old man nodded. ¡°It has caused severe damage to my friend¡¯s consciousness, I¡¯ll need the fruit it bore.¡± Grey said coolly. The old man raised a brow when he heard Grey¡¯s words. ¡°You want the fruit I¡¯ve been nurturing for years?¡± He couldn¡¯t help but ask. For the first time, there was a slight change in his expression. What he found more amusing was Grey¡¯s audacity. He didn¡¯t even want to pursue the matter of Grey wiping off his imprint from the array since it was a small matter, but the fruit that his entire life depended on, Grey wanted it? He couldn¡¯t keep calm any longer. ¡°Correct.¡± Grey nodded. ¡°Hehe, I¡¯ve never heard a joke in years. Kid, don¡¯t joke around, I might get annoyed.¡± The old man laughed, to him, he just heard the funniest joke in years. 948 Overwhelmed By An Old Man ¡°Do I look like someone who tells jokes?¡± Grey asked with a serious expression. Even if this old man was in the Peak of the Sage Plane, Grey didn¡¯t feel he would lose out against him, at most, it¡¯ll be a tie. He knew not to underestimate this old man since the old man must¡¯ve been at the Peak of the Sage Plane for years now and his strength would not be the same as those at the Peak of the Sage Plane. But he didn¡¯t worry too much about the man. ¡°Kid, I¡¯ll give you this chance, walk away now, and let you leave peacefully.¡± The old man said slowly, standing up from his sitting position. It was evident that he was no longer playing around. ¡°I can¡¯t do that. I need the fruit.¡± Grey replied, staring into the eyes of the old man, after waiting for some time, he added, ¡°However, if you have anything that might help his damaged consciousness, then I wouldn¡¯t mind trading for it. If not, I¡¯ll have no choice but to take the fruit.¡± As much as he was confident in his abilities, it wasn¡¯t good for him to create enemies for himself wherever he went. He had always tried to avoid scenarios like these, but most of the time, those around him bring trouble to him. The old man squinted his eyes, putting on a thoughtful expression, he replied some moments later, ¡°I don¡¯t have any. Injuries to the consciousness are one of the most complicated injuries, it¡¯s extremely difficult to deal with. If one tries to do it himself, they might cause more harm than good.¡± Listening to the old man¡¯s explanation, Grey nodded his head. He also knew of this, hence he wanted the fruit so bad. That was the only thing he could think of that might be able to help Arya¡¯s brother. To be honest, he wasn¡¯t a hundred percent sure it would be able to help. He came to the conclusion of using the fruit since the tree had the ability of mental attacks. Grey could only shake his head, ¡°Then I have no choice. You have to hand over the fruit.¡± He didn¡¯t want to speak of the evil doings of the man of sucking out the essence of those who came in here. He didn¡¯t really care too much about it, there were just too many cases like this. He couldn¡¯t help everyone. Even if he were to save most of the people here, some of them would still die for other treasures. It was best to leave them to their fate. ¡°Kid, I¡¯ll tell you again, leave, and I¡¯ll not cause you any trouble.¡± The old man¡¯s expression was no longer friendly, and his aura changed completely. Grey stood facing him, not taking an inch. His intention was clear, he was not leaving until he got what he wanted. The old man chuckled all of a sudden. Before Grey knew what was happening, the man disappeared. Grey¡¯s pupils contracted and he hastily set up a defensive wall around himself. Even with his strength, he couldn¡¯t see the man which showed that the speed the old man was moving at was much faster than his speed. Boom! The defensive wall broke apart and Grey¡¯s figure was sent flying. Grey did flip mid-air and landed on his foot, sliding almost three meters before slamming his back on the side of the cave. ¡°You want to take my fruit, and you¡¯re this weak? Please, don¡¯t amuse me.¡± The old man was slightly disappointed when he sent Grey flying with a single attack. He didn¡¯t sense Grey¡¯s cultivation stage at first since Grey hid it, so he felt at least Grey might be a genius who had already broken through to the Late stages of the Sage Plane at such a young age. Only after he attacked did he find out Grey¡¯s true strength. ¡°I will get the fruit.¡± Grey replied calmly. He dusts himself before disappearing from view. ¡°Oh, a Space Elementalist. How bothersome. Fortunately, that is not a problem for me.¡± The old man said when he saw Grey vanish. He punched into the air, and ripples appeared in the air. Before long, a figure shot out of thin air. Bang! The figure crashed into the side of the cave with tremendous force. It was none other than Grey who was forced out of the spatial tunnel he was using. Grey stood up to look at the man with stunned eyes. He couldn¡¯t believe the man sent him out of the void with nothing more than a punch. ¡®He¡¯s not as simple as I thought.¡¯ Even after thinking highly of the old man, Grey suddenly realized he still thought too low of this old man. Without saying anything, his aura shot up and he went to the Peak of the Sage Plane in an instant. The old man sensing the sudden increase in Grey¡¯s aura couldn¡¯t help but shake his head. ¡°These tricks only work on those weaklings. Against a true expert at the Peak, you¡¯re nothing.¡± Grey moved, but the man moved at the same time as well. Grey used the space element, while the man exploded out with a speed that would put Grey¡¯s supreme speed to shame. Bang! The old man forcibly stopped Grey from entering the spatial tunnel which would¡¯ve taken Grey away in an instant. Grey was once again shocked, he was forced to block the attack, making sure he didn¡¯t get hit by the man. If a single punch can send him out of the spatial tunnel, there was no need to speak of what it would do to him if it hit him unprotected. Grey crossed his arms in front of him and used the earth element to create an armor around his hands. When the old man¡¯s fist connected with Grey¡¯s hand, Grey was sent flying back, slamming into the wall behind him and falling down, but he made sure to stand on his feet. He was dumbstruck! This was the first time he was being overpowered in a physical battle. 949 Power Of Decay ¡°Oh, you¡¯re quite strong.¡± The old man said with a surprised voice. Most Elementalists wouldn¡¯t have been able to still stand after taking his blow, but Grey was still standing which showed that he was different from others. He couldn¡¯t help but look at him with different eyes. ¡°Kid.¡± He suddenly called out. Grey raised his head to look at him. ¡°Did you train your physical body?¡± The old man asked abruptly. ¡°Huh?¡± Grey was a little taken aback by his question, but he still gave a nod in the end. There was no use in hiding it, it was quite evident that this old man had also done the same. If the old man was depending on his elements alone, he wouldn¡¯t have been able to send Grey flying with just one blow. ¡°Haha, I thought as much. Alright kid, since you¡¯re just like me who trained his body, I¡¯ll give you another chance.¡± The old man laughed before saying with serious eyes, ¡°Leave.¡± ¡°I¡¯m sorry, but I can¡¯t agree to that. I need the fruit.¡± Grey replied without hesitation. ¡°I tried, but I guess there¡¯s nothing more I can do. Since I like you, I¡¯ll not kill you.¡± The old man said before walking over to Grey. Grey prepared himself once again. He had underestimated the old man more than once within the span of a few minutes, now, he wanted to fight against him with everything he had, well, not everything, but he will be more serious with the battle now. He moved instantly, charging at the old man. The old man laughed out loud and readied himself for Grey¡¯s incoming attack. When Grey got to where he was, they started fighting a brutish battle, something that Elementalists rarely do. It had been a long time since Grey fought against someone who used their physical strength. After leaving the horned race¡¯s realm, he hadn¡¯t really fought with his physique. They threw punches at each other, Grey didn¡¯t forget to use his elements even though he wanted to fight a physical battle. He occasionally used his fire, earth and space element to block, attack, and dodge the old man¡¯s attacks. One thing he soon found out within less than two minutes of fighting was that the old man had insane physical strength. Even he wouldn¡¯t dare to say his physique would be this powerful when he gets to the Peak of the Sage Plane. The old man was currently fighting without the aid of his element, it was unknown what his full strength would be once he unleashes his element as well. Grey blocked a punch coming from his right and threw a punch with his left, aiming for the face of the old man. The old man grabbed a hold of his hand. Seeing this, Grey opened his palm which was held by the old man and unleashed a terrifying explosive flame attack. The old man was forced to retreat, not wanting to be caught by the attack. Even though his physique was strong, it wasn¡¯t to the level where he was immune to these types of attacks. Grey used the momentum to follow up with another attack. The old man staggered back as he tried to block Grey¡¯s incoming attacks. But Grey didn¡¯t give him the chance to steady himself, he continued with a period of relentless attacks. The old man didn¡¯t panic, he carefully blocked and evaded Grey¡¯s attack. He occasionally countered, but Grey had the momentum and he knew he couldn¡¯t try to force or else he would give Grey the advantage in the battle. Grey didn¡¯t hold back as he tried to take down the old man now that he had the upper hand. Unfortunately, after over five minutes, he noticed he still wasn¡¯t able to take down the man, nor had he been able to cause him any major injuries. Other than the few superficial ones on the old man¡¯s body, there were no other ones. The old man suddenly exploded at the time when Grey was getting a little frustrated in his inability to take out the man even after using so many moves. The old man pushed forward at the moment Grey was distracted and unleashed a punch, just like before. Grey tried to block the attack, however, his expression changed instantly and he hastily retreated. The attack seemed to manifest and a large fist made completely from a black substance appeared. It reeked of the aura of decay. It was none other than the effect of the darkness element. The black fist hit the wall and Grey saw the wall decaying right before his eyes and he couldn¡¯t help but shiver in fear. If that attack were to hit him, even though it wouldn¡¯t kill him, it would be a painful experience. The old man finally got the chance to attack for the first time in a while, without wasting any time, he started to attack Grey. Grey wanted to use the same strategy as the old man, blocking and evading before countering, however, he noticed it wasn¡¯t as easy as he thought. The old man was an old cunning fox, each of his attacks carried the power to cause destructive damage, and if Grey were to sit out until the chance presented itself, he would be harmed by the attack. Boom! Bang! Grey evaded the old man¡¯s attack before sending out a fireball, mixed with lightning. The attack exploded out, but the old man covered the attack with a dome made from the darkness element and it suppressed the explosion. ¡®You can use it like that?¡¯ Grey was once again stumped by the old man¡¯s ability. He just learned a new thing from the old man. Not just that, but he noticed compared to other Darkness Elementalists he had seen, the decay ability of the old man¡¯s darkness attacks was on another level. If he could get this as well, it would be a good hidden arsenal since he would use it to open defensive walls. Using his dimensional slash was not as simple as it looks, it took a large toll on him, so he couldn¡¯t repeat it frequently, this on the other hand was different. 950 Intense Battle Grey stared at the old man, and he noticed he was staring back at him. He could also sense that there was a bit of surprise in the eyes of the old man. ¡°Kid, you have four elements?¡± The old man asked. When they started fighting, Grey used three elements and he already thought that was impressive. However, the last attack Grey used contained lightning, and even though he managed to suppress it in the end, it was still a little troublesome. The lightning element and the light element were the natural counter to the darkness element. Grey didn¡¯t reply, but he let lightning flash across his body. When the old man saw this, his expression changed a little. Even though he sensed it already, he was still a little surprised. It was not every day he got the chance to see an Elementalist with four elements. ¡°I¡¯ll take you more seriously now, kid.¡± He said with a serious expression. Grey was a little taken aback, they had been fighting for some time now, and the old man said he would take him more seriously now. Does that mean that he had been holding back all this while? Just thinking about it amused Grey. Of course he had been doing the same as well, but hearing the old man say it sounded funny to him. If he were to use all his elements, as well as the other things he had in his arsenal, he was almost certain that the old man wouldn¡¯t last more than five minutes against him. The old man¡¯s body suddenly buffed up, and the loose clothing he was wearing started to tear up. He was left with only his shorts. Seeing the well-built body of such an old man, Grey was a little envious. He also trained his body, but compared to the physique of this old man, he was a little lacking. The old man planted his feet on the ground, and¡­ Boom! He shot at Grey. He was so fast that a sonic boom resounded when he made a move. Bang! His fists clashed with Grey¡¯s fist. Grey took some steps back to recover as he stared at the man. There was suddenly almost a thirty percent increase in the strength of the old man. Now he understood what the old man meant when he said he wanted to take him seriously. He didn¡¯t think too much about this, since the old man was stronger physically, then he would use his elements to increase his own strength and attack the old man with it. He threw a punch, and lightning and fire flashed in front of his fist as it roared in the air, heading towards the old man. The speed of their attacks was insane that the air made sounds as their fists broke through it. The old man threw a fist, meeting Grey¡¯s first with his own. Seeing Grey using his elements, he also did the same as well. A dark veil appeared in front of his fist as it descended on Grey. Bam! Their fists collided and sent sparks in the air. They started throwing punches after punches at each other. Grey would use the lightning element, as well as the fire element on some occasions, while the old man only used the darkness element. Their battle shook the entire cave to the extent that even the array was having a hard time keeping the illusion stable. Some of the people who entered the main cave could hear the sounds of the battle and also the rumbling in the cave. It was an intense battle, but it was one Grey was enjoying to the max. This was the first time he was fighting against an Elementalists who specialized in physical battles, so he started to learn some things from the old man. One thing he couldn¡¯t deny was the vast experience of the old man. If not for his overpowered abilities, he was a hundred percent certain that he would be defeated by this old man. As the battle continued, the old man was left dumbstruck by Grey¡¯s abilities. Honestly, he didn¡¯t think Grey would have so many tricks up his sleeves. Whenever he felt he had gotten the chance to suppress Grey, the other party would use a move that would repel him. Bang! Grey¡¯s figure crashed into the wall by the side, causing an almost ten meters deep crater. He crawled out of it easily and attacked the incoming old man who was already prepared for another attack. Grey didn¡¯t dare to take the old man lightly. His eyes glowed with a blue light and he shot out a mental attack. The old man who was coming his way flinched, although it didn¡¯t take up to a second before he regained himself, that was more than enough time for Grey to attack him. Grey punched the unprotected body of the old man with lightning covering his fists. When the attack hit the body of the old man, Grey¡¯s eyes changed, and he saw the cold eyes of the old man staring down at him. This was the first time he was getting the chance to get a clean hit, however, things were not as he thought. The body of the old man seemed to start to absorb the essence of Grey¡¯s attack. Not just that, but it went on to absorb the essence in his body as well. Grey was alarmed and backed up quickly. ¡°Foolish child, you think that a mental attack would work on me? Even though I didn¡¯t see it coming, I¡¯ve trained my consciousness long enough to resist these attacks.¡± The old man said with a smile. Only now did Grey realize the small time the old man flinched was only an act. Looking at the old man, he was about to speak when he suddenly noticed a foreign movement inside his body. ¡°What did you do?¡± He asked coldly. This was not something he could feel before, so he knew it was after coming in contact with the old man that it enter his body. 951 Phantom ¡°You¡¯re quite sharp, kid, but it¡¯s too late for you.¡± The old man said calmly. He put up a relaxed expression as he looked at Grey, this was a secret technique that he had used to win countless battles, there were even times when he would be on the verge of death, but once he uses this technique, he would be able to turn the tides of the battle and defeat his opponent. As long as that energy was inside Grey¡¯s body, it would continuously corrode Grey¡¯s essence, and the moment Grey get within a few meters of him, he would be able to even absorb the essence directly from Grey¡¯s body. While the old man wore a calm expression, he suddenly noticed that nothing was happening to Grey. All the things he expected to happen weren¡¯t happening. ¡°Huh?¡± He looked at Grey weirdly. ¡®One of the things these two dominant things in my body hates the most is intruders.¡¯ Grey thought to himself, not too worried about the foreign energy in his body. As soon as he noticed the foreign energy, the blue flames in his body, as well as the orb he got his powers from started to react to it. It was already a miracle that the orb tolerated the flicker of blue flame, now that another one wanted to enter, and it wasn¡¯t even beneficial to Grey, it was incensed! Within a second, the energy was wiped out without a trace. Grey chuckled at the overbearing nature of the orb, then he turned to the old man. ¡°What other tricks do you have?¡± His question shocked the old man. It was obvious that his special technique had no effect on Grey whatsoever. ¡®It entered his body. How come he is able to deal with it so easily?¡¯ The old man was confused. He had grown to become confident in this technique, hence seeing how easy it was for Grey to deal with it, he couldn¡¯t accept it. However, he didn¡¯t let this change his mindset, he still knew that he had to take the battle seriously. Especially now that Grey was able to deal with his special technique. He charged at Grey once again, using his darkness element with every attack. Grey defended himself while his inscriptions lit up in the air. He created two inscriptions, one made from the fire element, while the other was made from the lightning element. The two inscriptions attacked the old man, making him retreat from Grey¡¯s area. This gave Grey the chance he needed to get himself back before attacking him once again. Grey wasn¡¯t one to shy away from a physical battle, even though the old man seemed to be stronger, it didn¡¯t mean that he would not face him head-on. He drew closer to the old man, and just as the old man was prepared to attack, the gravity in the area suddenly increased and he found it difficult to move as fast as he was previously moving. Grey being the creator of the gravitational force field didn¡¯t feel any and his speed remained the same. With a blink, he was standing beside the man and he unleashed an attack. The old man hastily tried to dodge, but after realizing it was impossible, he could only struggle to block it. Grey¡¯s fist which gave off the aura of the fire and the lightning element struck the man, sending him flying. The old man slammed into the wall and bounced off, just as his body was falling to the ground, he felt his body being dragged by a mysterious force. When he raised his head, he saw Grey¡¯s outstretched hand, and he realized he was being drawn in Grey¡¯s direction, with no way to control his body. With a powerful roar, he exploded out with a black substance that covered his entire body. Tentacles shot out from the black substance and shot at Grey. Grey evaded the attacks, but he lost the chance of dragging the old man to himself. However, he wasn¡¯t pressured by this. He used his dimensional slash, while already preparing a lightning bolt that shot behind the space elemental attack. When the attack hit the black substance, it easily created an opening, showing Grey a glimpse of the old man. The lightning bolt shot through the opening and struck the man. The old man screamed from pain, but gritting his teeth, he used the darkness element to remove the rest of the lightning bolt, trying to recover. However, his pupils shrunk when he suddenly saw an orb inside the small space he created with the darkness element to protect himself from Grey¡¯s attacks. The orb exploded in the confined space, making the power stronger than normal. Grey watched all this with cold eyes. Even though the old man was powerful and experienced, in front of Grey who had too many tricks, it was still not enough to have these. The only hope for the old man was if he broke through and became an Elemental Venerable. The explosion soon died down and Grey saw the body of the old man, standing in the same position, but his shorts were burnt in some places and there were burn marks all over his body. It was evident that the attack hit him cleanly. The old man spat out a mouthful of blood before looking at Grey coldly, he wasn¡¯t even in the mood to say anything this time. Grey also prepared for the old man¡¯s attacks. He knew that this time, the attack power would go to its peak. A dark shadow appeared behind the old man, with bright golden eyes. Seeing this, Grey was taken aback. ¡®What the hell is that?¡¯ He felt chills run down his spine. He could sense a deadly aura coming from the body of the shadow. If he was touched by it, it wouldn¡¯t be a good experience. The shadow seemed to sense Grey¡¯s fear and looked into Grey¡¯s eyes. The second their eyes made contact, Grey froze. ¡®Crap!¡¯ 952 Self-destruct Grey¡¯s eyes lit up with blue flames as he fought against the mental attack the phantom behind the old man sent at him. He didn¡¯t even know when the attack struck him, all he knew was that he was unable to move, as if terrified by something. The old man moved closer at this moment, attacking Grey with powerful attacks. Grey was still fighting against the mental attack, so he saw the attack of the old man a little late. He scrambled to block the attack, but he didn¡¯t block it properly and was pierced through on his shoulder by the sharp short spear the old man made from the darkness element. Blood started to flow out of the wound, but Grey was more concerned about the second attack of the old man. He used his inscriptions to try to stop the old man. But when the attacks almost hit the old man, the phantom behind him opened its mouth and spat out a black beam that destroyed the attacks as well as the two inscriptions. Grey couldn¡¯t help but curse when he saw this. The phantom behind the man was a little too overpowered. He used the light element secretly as he healed up his injury. While doing this, he unleashed another attack at the old man who was already almost in front of him. The old man created a darkness screen, blocking the attack before slicing the large heavy sword he made in Grey¡¯s direction. Grey made a cutting motion with his right hand, and the heavy sword was cut in two by a strange force. It was none other than his space elemental attack. The old man didn¡¯t let this stop him, since he had gotten this close to Grey, he tried to punch him on his shoulder where he was injured from his last attack. However, just as his fist was about to make contact, he felt a powerful repulsion force that sent him flying from where Grey was standing. Before the old man could balance himself, Grey appeared in the air beside him and unleashed an orb made from the lightning and fire element. He added a bit of the earth element as well, unleashing a catastrophic attack on the old man. The old man covered himself with a darkness dome, hoping it would protect him from the attack. When the orb made contact with the darkness dome, it exploded and the earth dome started to have cracks within a second. After the cracks, it broke apart and the figure of the old man shot to the ground with unprecedented speed. Bang! The body slammed into the ground heavily, causing dust to rise up in the small cave. Grey steadied himself, waiting for the next attack of the old man. He was certain that this would not be enough to keep the old man down. Just as he predicted, he saw something coming fast at him from where the old man crashed. He created a large hammer from the earth element and slammed it in the direction of the figure coming his direction. When the hammer was about to land on the figure, the size of the figure suddenly inflated. The old man grabbed onto the hammer with one hand before tearing it apart with his hands. Grey¡¯s expression changed lightly. The old man wasn¡¯t the only one who increased in size, even the phantom behind him saw an increase as well. With the increase, Grey could sense the increment of their strengths. He was already having a tough time dealing with them the way they were previously, now, they increased their strength in his presence. It was a little infuriating. With all this, he decided not to hold back any longer. Just as the old man got close to him, Grey¡¯s eyes shone with a blue light and his fire domain appeared. Having two types of fire domain, he used the one he felt was the strongest, the icy flame. The old man as well as his phantom froze momentarily when the domain appeared. Just as they were about to continue, Grey used his lightning domain as well. He would not let the old man get any chance. Since he had already come to the decision of not holding back, the result of the battle was naturally decided. The lightning from the lightning domain electrocuted the old man, and he was unfortunate enough to suffer from a seizure. The icy flame started to freeze the old man as his phantom alongside him. Grey appeared in his front, a long sword made from the lightning element in hand. Without wasting any time, he drove it into the body of the old man. The eyes of the old man showed reluctance and disbelief. He didn¡¯t want to believe that he was defeated by Grey, neither did he want to die. Struggling, he managed to open his mouth. ¡°Wait¡­¡± Grey, who had already driven more than half of the long sword made from the lightning element in the body of the old man paused to take a look at the old man. ¡°What?¡± He asked with a straight face. ¡°You¡­ you can have it.¡± The old man said in defeat. He was already defeated by Grey, instead of waiting to be killed by the other party, it was best he preserved his life and thought of another way to advance. Even though his current lifespan was not great, it might be enough for him to search for another solution. After all, when there¡¯s life, there¡¯s hope. This was what he felt at this moment. Grey thought about it for a bit, but after thinking of what the old man did with the excuse of wanting to break through, he decided against letting him live. Originally, he planned to leave the old man alone as long as he gave him what he wanted, but now that they fought such an intense battle, he didn¡¯t want to let him live. If the old man was the stronger one, it was unknown if he would let him go. Being a decisive person, he didn¡¯t waste any time and continued on his attack. When the old man saw that Grey was not stopping his attack, his eyes turned red. ¡®Since you want it that way, fine.¡¯ The old man¡¯s aura suddenly started to change. The moment Grey noticed this, his expression changed. He couldn¡¯t stay here and witness what the old man wanted to do. The old man wanted to self-destruct his essence orb. The self-destruction of a Peak Sage Plane Elementalist was not something even the current Grey could deal with. ¡®Damn it!¡¯ Grey cursed and fled immediately. ¡®Void, run away with Arya now!¡¯ He said to Void as he brought out the body of Arya¡¯s brother and left the cave. ¡°Hahaha, how far can you run, kid? Since you want it so bad, I¡¯ll take you and it with me.¡± The old man laughed with a crazed look. He already knew what Grey wanted to do after Grey left, but he couldn¡¯t stop the self-destruct. Even if he did, Grey would most likely come back to finish him off. Since that¡¯s the case, he would take Grey with him. He already made his calculations, even though Grey had the space element, he couldn¡¯t go too far with just his teleportation ability. As long as he exploded on time, he would be able to take our Grey. Also, the link to the place where the tree was located would be severed as well, so there would be no way for Grey to locate it even if he were to survive the explosion. With the strength of a Sage Plane Elementalist, the self-destruction could cover a range of over one kilometers. ¡­ Outside the cave, more people were rushing in while Grey was coming out. Void and Arya were nowhere to be seen. Taking his time, he located the mark he placed and Arya and disappeared from where he was standing. If he tried to escape on his own, it would take longer for him to cover such large distance, but with the help of the mark, he could cover over a thousand kilometer with ease. This was the main reason he told Void to leave immediately. This way, he could cover a larger range without having any issues. Over two kilometers away, Grey appeared beside Void and Arya, with Arya¡¯s brother on his shoulder. Arya wanted to scream when she saw him but what followed was a resounding explosion that came from where they left. Boom! A bright light shot out from the cave, and it gradually started to expand. Grey¡¯s expression changed as he saw this. ¡°What did you do?¡± Void couldn¡¯t help but ask. ¡°Move, talk later.¡± Grey said with a dark expression. Void could only shut up and run away. Even at this distance, he was scared out of his wits. This explosion might still affect them. He didn¡¯t want to take any chances. 953 No Way To Go Back Grey and Void rushed away from the area, followed by the echoing sound of the explosion. Some seconds later. They were finally out of the range of the explosion, and they turned to take a breath as they looked at the destruction caused by the old man¡¯s self-destruct. ¡°What happened?¡± Void asked with a long face. He was truly scared. ¡°The old man self-destructed.¡± Grey replied with a green face. ¡°That serious?¡± Void was taken aback. He didn¡¯t think the old man would actually self-destruct. What the hell did Grey do to him that would make him take such a decisive step? ¡°I planned to kill him, but he wanted to drag me down with him. ¡± Grey still felt some fear in his heart. If not for Void being around and him telling him to move out first, then he would¡¯ve been in a difficult position. Maybe he might survive it, but his situation might be the same as when he was attacked by that man in the Lutra realm when even when he tried escaping, he was still heavily affected by it. Grey and Void watched on from a far distance. Arya on the other hand was more focused on her brother who was on the ground. Grey naturally couldn¡¯t be too bothered with Arya¡¯s brother, so he dropped him on the ground when they stopped running. ¡°Big brother¡­¡± She shook her brother who was lying motionless on the ground. She could tell that he was still breathing, and he didn¡¯t seem to have suffered any physical injuries, but his eyes were shut. Grey¡¯s attention soon turned to them, his expression changed slightly when he saw Arya¡¯s face. ¡®What happened to him?¡¯ Void asked Grey telepathically since he didn¡¯t want Arya to hear them. ¡®His consciousness is injured.¡¯ Grey replied. ¡®Oh, that¡¯s not good.¡¯ Void said. Injuries to the consciousness were very difficult to heal. Even those experts at the Peak would find it difficult to heal them. ¡®So, what¡¯s the plan now?¡¯ Void asked. ¡®Can¡¯t say. There¡¯s something there that might be able to help him, but unfortunately, the old man was greedy and refused to give it to me. I¡¯ll try to see if I can enter the place once the explosion dies down.¡¯ Grey explained. This was his only hope at the moment. Arya¡¯s brother was currently in a coma, and there was no saying if he would be able to recover on his own. There are cases where injuries to the consciousness heal on their own, just like the situation of Void. But it was quite rare, and Arya¡¯s brother couldn¡¯t be compared to Void, so he wasn¡¯t putting his hope on that. ¡®Okay. So¡­ what do you tell her?¡¯ ¡®The truth, I guess. Her brother is injured, and although she¡¯s still young, I presume she should know some things. Lying to her will only make it difficult.¡¯ Grey and Void were still talking about the matter when Arya turned to them. ¡°Big brother Grey, why¡¯s my big brother not waking up?¡± Arya asked with a somewhat tearful expression. ¡°He¡¯s injured.¡± Grey went straight to the point. He didn¡¯t explain much to Arya, only saying that he was injured. She didn¡¯t need to know the details. ¡°Will he be fine?¡± Arya asked. ¡°Yes, but it¡¯ll take some time. Don¡¯t worry, I¡¯ll make sure your elder brother gets healed.¡± Grey said with a soft smile. ¡®Hopefully.¡¯ He added internally. This was by no means an easy thing to achieve, so he wasn¡¯t too optimistic about it. First, he would head back to the place of the explosion and try to find the spatial tunnel that connected to where the tree was located. After they waited a little while, they headed back to the place. Grey marked it before leaving, but when he tried to sense his mark, he was stunned when he didn¡¯t find it. He expected it, but he was still irritated by it since he would have to journey there once again. On the way, when they entered the place where the explosion impacted, they couldn¡¯t help but suck in a deep cold breath. The previously buoyant forest was completely destroyed. From above, it was an empty patch of land with nothing on it. Looking into the distance, there was a particular place that had a huge crater on the empty patch of land. That was the place where the explosion started. Since Arya¡¯s brother was still alive, there was no way they could keep him in their spatial storage. Even Void attempted it, but he was unable to. So they had to carry him all the way there. Getting to the place, Grey looked at the spot where the cave was previously located and couldn¡¯t help but frown. ¡®It¡¯s not here.¡¯ Void spread out his spiritual senses, and after some time, he nodded. ¡®It has been wiped out. Only those Space Elementalists above the Elemental Venerable Plane can still locate it at this moment.¡¯ Grey sighed heavily. This was the only thing he placed his hopes on. Now that he couldn¡¯t get it, he had to look for other ways. Of course he could also postpone this matter for a little while. Traveling with an injured individual would slow him down. Thinking about it for some time, he summoned the triplets. They were the people he usually used for getting some information and other things. ¡°My Lord, what can we do for you?¡± The Space Elementalist amongst the trio asked with a bowed head as soon as they appeared. They rarely came out and knew since Grey brought them out, it meant he had a mission for them. ¡°You¡¯ll have to take this two to the next town. Also, one or possibly two of you will have to go out in search of anything that can help with healing an injured consciousness.¡± Grey explained to the trio. He had something to meet up to, so he didn¡¯t want to waste too long searching for a way to heal Arya¡¯s brother. If not for the fact that he had already taken in Arya as someone like a younger sister, he wouldn¡¯t be this bothered by their matter. 954 The Middle Continent Grey handed Arya and her brother to the triplet before he continued on his journey. He explained to Arya that the trio would take care of her while he went in search of what he would use to heal her brother. She could only follow the triplet reluctantly, after bidding farewell to Grey and Void. ¡°Aren¡¯t you going to tell her it might take a long time?¡± Void asked as they watched the triplet take Arya and her brother away. ¡°It¡¯s not necessary. She¡¯s still young, it wouldn¡¯t be good if her hopes are crushed. I¡¯ll try to fish out for news on items like this whenever I pass through a city. If possible, then I¡¯ll get it for him. If not, he¡¯ll have to wait till I¡¯m stronger, then I can travel far in search of it. Void agreed with Grey¡¯s reasoning before they started their journey once again. ¡­ The days went by quickly, and before the duo knew it, two months had already passed. After traveling for months now, they were already in the Middle Continent. They¡¯ve been in the Middle Continent for around two week now. Just before they entered the Middle Continent, Grey broke through from the Third to the Fourth stage of the Sage Plane, thereby increasing his strength once again. Now that he was in the Fourth stage of the Sage Plane, he was a hundred and ten percent confident in winning the battle. Well, that was if the person he wanted to fight against hadn¡¯t broken through to the Elemental Venerable Plane. At the time when he was still in the Origin Plane, the young man was already in the Overlord Plane. It has been almost two years now, and it could be said that no one matched Grey in terms of advancement speed. He felt that even if the young man who arrogantly attacked him that time had gone far in his cultivation, he would be at the Peak of the Sage Plane. This was him giving him the benefit of being from a powerful family. ¡®Why haven¡¯t you started to search for that lady by now?¡¯ Void asked. Compared to the other Continents, the Middle Continent was not even half the size of the other Continents. So Grey could easily find the Family Sylvia was from by asking anyone he saw. According to Sylvia, her Family was a top Family, so they were pretty famous. ¡°I don¡¯t want to meet up with her now. She¡¯s too troublesome.¡± Grey replied. The small time he spent with her the last time was a little hellish, he went from tournament to tournament, and it was exhausting. Even though he gained a lot from it, it was still tiring to fight. All he did was train and fight, even for the normal Grey who was a training addict, he felt mentally exhausted from all the battles. Now that he came a little earlier, he wanted to spend some time alone. Besides, he was still working on his arrays, when he digested everything he learned from the Laurel Region, he was certain he would make significant progress in his training in the art of arrays. The stronger his knowledge in arrays, the better his inscriptions would be. He could even unleash power that is at least a hundred percent of his power, even going as far as a hundred and fifty percent attack power. Not just that, but when fighting, he could easily draw arrays faster and use it to bolster his strength while weakening his opponents. Currently, he had been thinking of a way to intricate his gravitational force field into arrays. If he could do that, then it would be a significant boost for his strength. He could even create a large area where he would use it. Take for instance he was fighting against a large army, he could use the gravitational force field to slow them down and release a barrage of large scale attacks on them. ¡®A shame I wasn¡¯t able to get that phantom technique from that old man.¡¯ He thought when he recalled the phantom he fought when fighting against the old man. In his journey so far however, the greatest gain Grey had seen so far was not his , but it was that he had finally seen a way to clean the mark off his body! With the help of Sega, as well as his own ability in arrays, he was able to remove some of the mark. Unfortunately, the price paid was a little over the top. Just to clean around three percent of the mark, he actually used the life force of over a hundred people. These were people who were bandits that he decided against killing and instead using for his experiments. It was a little overboard, but since he would kill most of these bandits and experts who tried to kill him, it wasn¡¯t really too different. In the end, they still died under his hands. Thinking of this, he couldn¡¯t help but think of a way to get more bandits and criminals. As long as he used these types of people, he wouldn¡¯t be too worried since it wasn¡¯t against his morals. Only when he used innocent people would he feel guilty. ¡°So, what do we do with our time here?¡± Void couldn¡¯t help but ask. He wasn¡¯t one who liked idling, if Grey wanted to sit alone, he didn¡¯t want to entertain him. ¡°We should travel around. Even though this place is small, it¡¯s still quite large. We might find some interesting things before the time of the battle.¡± Grey replied. They still had around two months left, well, not up to two months, but it was very close. He wanted to travel around for a month or so, before going in search of Sylvia¡¯s Family. It shouldn¡¯t take more than a week for him to locate her. Void was elated with Grey¡¯s decision since he wanted that as well. The duo soon walked out from the forest they were in and a city appeared in their line of vision. 955 The Burchard Family Grey and Void entered the city which was quite lively as they walked around, they searched for news of any item that might be able to help with Arya¡¯s brother¡¯s injury. This was the Middle Continent, after all, it was regarded as the best place in the entire Aurora Continent, so it was natural that he was a little hopeful about being able to find it. Entering the city this time, they only wanted to explore this place for the time being. They weren¡¯t there to cause any trouble. Grey even made sure to warn Void multiple times that he was not allowed to cause any trouble or else he would be punished. Void could only agree to this since he had no choice. Even if he wanted chaos, he knew this was not the place to do so. They just entered the city, but he was already seeing people in the Elemental Venerable Plane. ¡®This place really has what it takes to be ranked first amongst the other Continents.¡¯ Grey and Void concluded in their heads. They moved around for a little while and Grey was a little upset that he didn¡¯t know where the young man who attacked him was from. He didn¡¯t ask much about them since at the time, he wasn¡¯t too interested in joining the competition for the Burchard Family, only after he was attacked and almost killed did the thought of revenge flash through his head. He was almost killed with a single blow, this was something he would never let go of, not for anything in this world! ¡®I recall Sylvia saying they are the second strongest Faction. It shouldn¡¯t be too hard to find him then.¡¯ Grey thought to himself. And truly, after asking around, he got to know the name of the second strongest Faction in the Aurora Continent, the Nether Faction. It wasn¡¯t that hard to get information on the young man who attacked him at that time as well. Actually, he found out that the young man, although strong, was not the strongest genius below twenty-five years of age from the Nether Faction, rather, it was a youth called Bill. Bill is said to be the strongest below the Elemental Venerable Plane. It was even publicly acclaimed that he had exchanged blows with an Elemental Venerable and lived to tell the tale. Of course it was unknown if it was fabricated or not. Presently, Bill was already at the Peak of the Sage Plane, preparing for his breakthrough to become an Elemental Venerable, while the young man who attacked Grey was only in the Seventh stage of the Sage Plane. Finding out that the young man was still in the Seventh stage disappointed Grey. With his current strength, even without using the Fusion State, he had confidence in being able to defeat the young man. How did he know that the person who attacked him was not Bill? He just had the feeling. From the description of the duo, he felt Bill wasn¡¯t as arrogant as the other figure who attacked him. The person who attacked him was clearly arrogant to his bones, hence, he wouldn¡¯t have attacked him, a nobody. The only reason this young man did it was to scare him away from the competition. Grey and Void stayed a little while longer before Grey finally decided to ask about the Burchard Family. He got to find out that they were staying in three cities from his current location. Thinking up to this point, he decided to head in that direction, while also searching for interesting things to do. ¡­ Two weeks later. Cale City. This was the city under the jurisdiction of the Burchard Family. Just like the first city Grey entered when he came to the Middle Continent, this one was also busy, filled with activities, as well as gossip. Before going to search for Sylvia, Grey decided it was best to get the latest gist around as well. Two days passed in this fashion. Unfortunately, Grey didn¡¯t get any news about the Burchard Family. Apparently, they were very mysterious and secretive. However, Grey got to find out that Sylvia was not in the city which came as a shock to him. Given the fact that the time for the competition was almost upon them, it was shocking that she was not in the city. ¡®Could she have returned and no one knows about it?¡¯ He thought to himself. The possibility of this happening was quite high. He didn¡¯t dilly-dally any longer and headed in the direction of the Burchard Mansion, he would only find out if she was around when he got there. ¡­ Grey and Void soon appeared in front of a large building, staring at the mansion, they couldn¡¯t help but nod their heads. It might not be as big as the other ones they had been to, but its design was one of the best. Not just that, but just by standing outside, Grey could feel the abundant essence inside. They walked to the big gate and Grey was about to knock when someone walked out. The figure was dressed in guards¡¯ clothing, so it was easy to guess his identity. ¡°Who are you?¡± The guard asked softly. ¡°My name¡¯s Grey¡­¡± After saying this, Grey paused, he didn¡¯t know how to address Sylvia. Although she was quite powerful, she was still relatively young. If Grey¡¯s guess was correct, then she should be above twenty-seven, but not above thirty-two. ¡°You¡¯re Grey?¡± The guard asked with a hint of surprise. Seeing the guard¡¯s expression, Grey was a little taken aback, but he still gave a nod. ¡°Alright, come in. The Lady had already told us of your arrival. She¡¯s not around now, but she will be coming back soon.¡± The guard was already aware of Grey¡¯s identity from the moment he saw him, he only wanted to confirm. According to Sylvia¡¯s instructions, a youth who could almost be called beautiful would come looking for her before the competition and his name was Grey. Seeing Grey¡¯s appearance from the start already reminded the guard of Sylvia¡¯s words, after Grey introduced himself and paused, the guard didn¡¯t need any more words from him. Grey on the other hand didn¡¯t think he would be allowed in just like that. Sylvia wasn¡¯t even around! 956 Impeccable Judgment ¡®They didn¡¯t even try to confirm if I was the one.¡¯ Grey wore a somewhat odd expression on his face as he followed the guard inside. The guard looked at him and smiled, it was as if he could tell what Grey was thinking as he mumbled, ¡°The Lady told us at the time that you should be around the First stage of the Sage Plane or so when you come looking for her, and if anyone below the Sage Plane showed up with the same name, we should not allow them in.¡± ¡°Oh, so it¡¯s like that.¡± Grey nodded in understanding. However, he didn¡¯t think that Sylvia would have so much confidence in him. When they separated, it was just barely around two years, Grey was only at the Peak of the Origin Plane at that time. The fact that Sylvia believed that he would break through to the Sage Plane in the short space of two years was quite stunning. She might be a brute in some way, but her judgment was absolutely spot on. ¡°Did she say anything else?¡± He couldn¡¯t help but ask. ¡°Yes, you¡¯re not allowed to cause trouble.¡± The guard replied with a smile. ¡°Huh?¡± Grey was a little surprised, he wasn¡¯t the type that caused trouble wherever he went. Seeing Grey¡¯s expression, the guard clarified with a smile, ¡°I¡¯m talking to the cat.¡± Only now did Grey recall that Sylvia was familiar with Void. She even dropped this warning because from the small time she spent with Void, she knew he was a troublemaker. Void snorted coldly, while Grey chuckled when he saw this. Sylvia knew them, and it was quite rare that she was able to know their personalities from the short time they spent together. Grey and Void followed the guard and were led to their quarters. On getting there, Grey saw that there were other youths there as well. Seeing Grey¡¯s gaze, the guard explained, ¡°They are just like you, geniuses recruited by the Family for the battle. There would be a small screening and only five of you can make it to the competition.¡± The guard looked at Grey with an apologetic expression as he explained. Although Grey was stronger than Sylvia said, he was still a little too weak compared to the others. Of all the people present, he was the only one in the Middle stages of the Sage Plane. Including Grey, there were ten youths in total. And the rest were either at the Peak of the Sage Plane or were in the Late stages. Just as Grey was studying the others, they were doing the same to him as well. When they sensed that he was in the Middle stages of the Sage Plane, they lost interest in him. Each one of them was a young genius who took pride in their ability, seeing that someone like Grey who was in such a low stage appeared and would actually compete for a place with them, they were dissatisfied. ¡°I¡¯m sorry.¡± The guard apologized to Grey when he saw how the others treated Grey before taking him to his room. Grey nodded, this wasn¡¯t the first time he was being looked down on, so he wasn¡¯t annoyed by it. After getting to his room, he once again started his research on arrays. Due to this, he hadn¡¯t been able to focus on increasing his cultivation stage. Even though it wouldn¡¯t add much to his strength since the Fusion State could easily take him to the Peak, he still wanted to break through and become an Elemental Venerable as soon as he possibly could. There was still around a month before the competition. He would use this time to try and see if he could increase his cultivation stage to the Fifth stage of the Sage Plane. The essence here was more than double what it was outside, so his cultivation would naturally be faster here. The guard left, promising Grey he would notify him the moment Sylvia returned. Grey thanked him for his help before shutting himself inside. He didn¡¯t want to associate with these geniuses now, they had the capital to look down on him since his cultivation stage was at least two stages lower than the others. Although strength was the most important, without a good cultivation stage, he would still fall behind others. ¡­ Two weeks after Grey¡¯s arrival, Sylvia returned. When she heard of Grey¡¯s arrival, she rushed there the moment she arrived. Standing outside Grey¡¯s door, she was about to knock when she sensed something. ¡®Oh, still breaking through? Such a freak.¡¯ She shook her head as she decided to leave Grey alone. Grey wasn¡¯t breaking through at the moment, but he was already very close. If she were to disturb him now, it might distract him, which wasn¡¯t good. Before the other geniuses could step out to welcome Sylvia, she was gone. It was almost as if she never arrived. If not for the fact that they sensed her aura, they would¡¯ve thought she was never there. They all turned to look in one direction simultaneously, Grey¡¯s door. Since Grey came to this place, the door hadn¡¯t opened, not even once. Even today when Sylvia came to personally see him, he still didn¡¯t come out. ¡°Who does he think he is?¡± One of the youths snorted coldly before going back into his room. He couldn¡¯t be bothered with the others. Sylvia wasn¡¯t the only one who went out to pick geniuses, others from the Family also did the same. However, she was the one who found the most, three, including Grey. Those who weren¡¯t brought over by her didn¡¯t have as much respect as those who she brought over had for her. They all went back, waiting for the day of their selection round. Since they would have to compete against each other, they were all trying their best to see who would be able to make any last-minute breakthroughs, and who was stronger. ¡­ Three days before the competition, it was time for the group of ten to compete against each other. The others were already out, but one figure was missing, Grey. 957 Getting A Spot Sylvia looked around, waiting for Grey. There was no way she was going to agree to the competition starting without Grey. ¡°It¡¯s already over ten minutes, we should start.¡± An Elder from the Burchard Family said with a cold expression. Just like Sylvia, he was also one of the people who went out to recruit geniuses for the competition. When he heard that Grey was only in the Fourth stage of the Sage Plane, he lost all interest in him. To him, even if Grey were to participate in the competition, he would still lose. ¡°He will be here in five minutes, if he¡¯s not, then start without him.¡± Sylvia said. Even though she would like for Grey to participate, if he was too late, there was nothing she could do about it. Just as they were still speaking, Grey stepped out of his room. He knew what was happening outside thanks to Void. As soon as he stepped out, he walked straight to where the competition was being held. ¡­ ¡°It¡¯s time, we should start.¡± The Elder said. Sylvia sighed in disappointment, originally, she wanted Grey to be part of the competition, but since Grey was nowhere to be seen, there was no way she could delay them any further. Just as they were about to start, Grey walked into the place. ¡°He¡¯s here.¡± Sylvia said, ecstasy evident in her voice. The Elder seeing Grey snorted coldly, but didn¡¯t say anything. They hadn¡¯t started, so Grey had every right to still be part of the competition. The other Elders, as well as the Family Head of the Burchard Family nodded. He was very confident in Sylvia¡¯s judgment. Since she recommended Grey, then there must be something special about him. Grey stepping in changed the entire event. There were originally nine people, with him, there were ten people. He walked over to where the others were standing. When they sensed his aura, they still felt a little better. He was in the Fourth stage when he arrived. Although he managed to break through to the Fifth stage in little over a month or so, it wasn¡¯t really anything compared to the others. The weakest amongst them was in the Seventh stage of the Sage Plane and Grey only recently reached the Fifth stage. ¡°The battle for a spot will start now. Try to get a spot so you can get to the competition¡­¡± The Family Head told them the rules of the battle. Since there were ten of them, all each of them needed to do was to challenge someone else. Once they won, they already got a spot in the competition. The competition would be according to those with a higher stage. The person with the highest realm would have the right to challenge first. When Grey heard the rules, his expression was the same. Naturally, having the lowest realm, he would be the one targeted by others. Even if those at the Peak didn¡¯t challenge him, others in the Seventh or Eighth stage would try to challenge him. Those at the Peak didn¡¯t try to challenge him since they knew it wouldn¡¯t show their strength. Of the other seven, two of them were at the Peak. Challenging a Fifth stage Grey was beyond them, so they set their eyes on those in the Seventh stage. The two at the Peak naturally won their battles against those in the Seventh and Eighth stage of the Sage Plane. Of the ten, two were at the Peak, three were in the Ninth stage, three were in the Eighth stage, one was in the Seventh stage, while Grey was the only one below the Seventh stage. The two Peak Sage Plane Elementalists defeated a Seventh and an Eighth stage Sage Plane Elementalist. Currently, there were no Seventh stage Sage Plane Elementalist present in the contest. Grey was the only one below the Late stages, and he was ignored by those at the Peak. When those in the Ninth stage stepped on, one of them challenged him. Naturally, they wouldn¡¯t want a Fifth stage Sage Plane Elementalist to progress. They wanted the easiest way in. If five of them were defeated, only those who were stronger would advance. Two had passed, only three more people would advance to the competition. The three in the Ninth stage had the advantage since they would challenge whoever they wanted. One of them who wanted to advance easily was the one who challenged Grey. He was a young man who was around Grey¡¯s age. ¡­ The first two battles soon passed without any hitch. The Ninth stage Elementalists won their battles easily, now, it was the turn of Grey and the last Ninth stage Elementalist. So long as the Ninth stage Elementalist won, there would be two Peak Sage Plane Elementalists, and three Ninth stage Elementalists. Grey and the young man stepped onto the platform. ¡°I suggest you give up, rather than hurting yourself.¡± The young man said as soon as he stepped onto the platform. Naturally, being a genius, he was very confident in his abilities. He felt that he wouldn¡¯t have to expend much effort to deal with Grey. Grey on the other hand smiled before saying, ¡°I want to test my abilities, if I¡¯m not your match, I¡¯ll naturally give up.¡± ¡°Fine, I wouldn¡¯t want to injure you since we¡¯re on the same side.¡± The young man replied. Grey nodded, not too bothered with the young man. He had fought with old fogies who had been at the Peak of the Sage Plane for a long time, and some of them were even above the Sage Plane and he survived, fighting against a Ninth stage Sage Plane Elementalist was not a problem for him. The youth nodded. He felt Grey only wanted to see the strength of a Ninth stage Sage Plane Elementalist, and he would give him just that. When the Elder in charge gave the go-ahead for the battle to start, the young man moved out. Surprisingly, he was a Multi-Elementalist, having both the space and the lightning element. When he vanished, he appeared beside Grey and attacked with his lightning element. Already expecting such an attack, Grey blocked the attack. But he was pushed back by the impact of the attack. The young man looked at Grey before sneering, ¡°Want to give up now?¡± ¡°I¡¯m just getting started. Don¡¯t bother me about too much.¡± Grey replied. The young man already forced Greg back with only the first attack, so he felt that he would win easily. He attacked once again, disappearing from view. Grey didn¡¯t show any signs of pressure, seeing that the young an vanished, he smiled, and to the surprise of everyone, he attacked his right hand side. Boom! His attack exploded, and the young man appeared in everyone¡¯s sight, his eyes showing surprise. ¡°You¡¯re not the only Space Elementalist here.¡± Grey chuckled playfully. The young man looked at him with a surprised expression, ¡°Oh, looks like I took you too lightly.¡± Grey didn¡¯t reply as he vanished. The young man, being a Space Elementalist as well, was able to sense where Grey was going to appear. He attacked the place where he felt a ripple in space. Unfortunately, his attack passed through. He was taken aback as he looked in another direction. However, Grey appeared in the place he predicted, but he used the space element to phase through the attack. He didn¡¯t know Grey would be able to use this technique, so he didn¡¯t think Grey would be able to phase through this. Grey appeared and looked at the young man with a smirk as he countered. The young man already placed his focus on another direction, so when an attack came from the same direction he was previously facing, he was dumbstruck. However, he managed to act quickly as he vanished from the spot. Grey sensed where he was going to appear in and attacked. The young man was forced to block the attack since he couldn¡¯t use the space element once again in such short notice. He was pushed back, and Grey didn¡¯t give him the chance he needed to escape from his hands. When Sylvia saw this, she heaved a sigh, also, she was a little stunned that Grey managed to actually learn such a comprehensive ability. Phasing through attacks was an ability Space Elementalists had, but not all of them could learn it. Grey being able to learn it showed his level of ability. The young man who was forced to block Grey¡¯s attack fell into Grey¡¯s hands and he was forced to continue blocking. Grey was a very offensive individual, since the opportunity presented itself, he would not let his opponent off. He continued his attack as he made sure his opponent was forced to only block and not have the chance to attack. In the space of a few seconds, he had unleashed multiple attacks, and his opponent was finding it difficult to block the attack. The Elders, as well as the Head of the Burchard Family watched the battle closely. 958 Troublesome Skill Grey was one of the talents Sylvia brought back, not just that, but he was the one with the weakest cultivation stage amongst all of them. Generally speaking, fighting across stages amongst geniuses was rare, after all, they were all geniuses who could fight across stages themselves. If Grey managed to actually defeat his opponent even after being in such a lower stage, then his talent was top-notch and far above others. While the Elders were still making their conclusions about Grey, the battle got to its peak. Actually, there was no need for it to be this long. They were only challenging for a spot, so when one of them realized they were not a match for the other, they would naturally give up, but Grey¡¯s opponent didn¡¯t want to give up. He felt this was a battle he would¡¯ve won easily. But Grey was not only beating him, but he was also completely subduing him which was out of his expectations. He couldn¡¯t accept this result! He decided to fight with Grey to the end. ¡®I don¡¯t believe I won¡¯t get the chance to counter.¡¯ He thought to himself. As if Grey could tell what was in his mind. ¡°There¡¯s no need for you to hang on for so long. You can not beat me. Even if you plan to exhaust me, I¡¯m afraid that won¡¯t work as well.¡± While saying this, Grey didn¡¯t stop attacking. Forget the fact that the young man was in the Ninth stage of the Sage Plane, even those at the Peak of the Sage Plane would not last as long as Grey when it came to the elemental essence reserve in their bodies. Grey had eight elements, this alone meant that he needed a large amount of essence just for cultivation alone. He can save as much as eight times what a normal Fifth stage Sage Elementalist could save up. If this wasn¡¯t even enough to outlast a Ninth stage Sage Plane Elementalist, then Grey could just give up his spot. Of course, even if he didn¡¯t fight a war of attrition, he was still confident in his abilities to defeat the other party. There was no need in fighting a war of attrition with the young man. Hearing Grey¡¯s words, the young man sneered. There was no way he was going to believe it. His eyes moved anxiously, as things were, he would lose if he didn¡¯t change the tide of the battle. With a powerful roar, his aura exploded out and spatial distortions started to appear all over the platform. Even if Grey was freakish, there was no way he could neglect such an attack. He retreated back as he made sure none of the attacks hit him. This gave the young man the chance he had been waiting for. Without saying anything, he charged at Grey, his intentions clear. This time, ruthlessness flashed across his eyes. If Grey didn¡¯t give up, then he shouldn¡¯t blame him for killing or even fatally injuring him. The young man unleashed a lightning attack on Grey. Grey, expecting this, moved to the side to dodge the attack. However, he noticed the spatial distortion closing in on him so he was forced to block the attack head-on. With the spatial distortions in the platform, using the space element to teleport away was very risky, hence he didn¡¯t dare to do it. With no other option, he threw a fireball at the incoming lightning bolt. The two attacks collided, and caused a small explosion. The spatial distortions close to the area of the explosion seemed to roar out and greedily absorbed the explosion. Grey¡¯s expression changed when he saw this. The spatial distortions increased in size, and Grey could actually sense a destructive aura around it. ¡®Is it possible that it can release attacks?¡¯ He looked at the spatial distortions with an inquisitive look. This one was different from Void¡¯s spatial distortions which were purely destructive, at least he hadn¡¯t seen it absorb other attacks before. All it did was wipe out all existence of the opponent. The young man, finally gaining the advantage, didn¡¯t want to let it go. He had already concluded that he would best Grey until he begged for mercy, well, that¡¯s if he did not admit defeat first. Being subdued by a Fifth stage Sage Plane Elementalist infuriated him. The other party had stepped on his pride as a genius. Even the other Ninth stage Elementalists in the place seemed to be looking down on him at the moment. When they fought against the Eighth stage Elementalists, although the battle was long, they weren¡¯t overpowered at any time. It was mostly their opponents who were trying to hang on. Grey didn¡¯t know what was going through the head of the young man, and honestly, he didn¡¯t care. His interest was piqued when the spatial distortions started to absorb these attacks and seem to be preparing one themselves. Void taught him how to use this spatial distortion attack, so he wanted to see if he could learn how the young man did his. The young man unleashed a wide-range lightning attack that covered the entire platform. Grey raised his head to look at the sea of lightning before creating an earth dome to block the attack. He had only used two elements since the start of the battle, so the young man thought he only had the space and fire elements, seeing Grey use the earth element, he was a little surprised, but it wasn¡¯t uncommon to see Elementalists with more than two elements. Grey blocked the attack with the help of his earth element before he shot out a fire arrow at his opponent. The speed of the arrow was beyond words and even the young man who was already in the Ninth stage didn¡¯t see it on time. However, he didn¡¯t get to the Ninth stage just by cultivating alone, he had also gone through multiple battles. With a wave of his hand, a powerful destructive force shot out of one of the spatial distortions close to him and destroyed the fire arrow that was sent in his direction. Grey didn¡¯t stop here, he continued attacking, but the young man did the same thing, blocking the attacks with the spatial distortions. He even started to willingly let the spatial distortions swallow up the attacks. As Grey continued attacking, the strength of the spatial distortions continued to increase. Grey¡¯s expression became ugly as he saw this. It was okay if it was only for a few spatial distortions, but more than ten which were previously the size of a fist had grown even larger than his head. The auras they emitted were not something he could dare to joke with. ¡®Looks like I underestimated this guy¡¯s ability.¡¯ He shook his head. He had been too confident and felt that he would be able to forcefully break each of the spatial distortions with his attacks. But things were not as he thought they were. These people weren¡¯t regarded as geniuses for nothing. They each had special techniques that made them different from others. He was witnessing it now. Just when Grey was still thinking of how he underestimated his opponent, the young laughed out loudly. ¡°Admit defeat now, if not, you¡¯ll not get the chance again even if you want to.¡± He said arrogantly. Grey didn¡¯t bat him an eye, instead, his focus was on these spatial distortions. Things are a little more complicated now. He could even sense a thread of danger from each of them. These few things could take his life if he was not careful. ¡­ On the side of the Burchard Family. An Elder laughed, ¡°Sylvia, you should tell that kid to admit defeat now. Even those Peak Sage Plane Elementalists over there don¡¯t have any confidence against Aldrin at the moment.¡± Sylvia didn¡¯t say anything as she watched. Of the people she brought over, one of them had gotten a spot. It was already a good thing, but she had high hopes for Grey. Unfortunately, his opponent was Aldrin. Without sufficient information about this particular young man, it was very difficult to defeat him, especially with this technique of his. ¡®I¡¯ll admit defeat on his behalf if he can¡¯t hold on anymore.¡¯ She didn¡¯t want to give up now, even though she knew the chances of Grey winning were slim, she felt it was best to give Grey a chance. ¡°Don¡¯t worry, he can still hold on.¡± She turned to the Elder. The Elder didn¡¯t pressure her into making a decision, Grey would lose sooner or later, so it didn¡¯t matter if it was now, or if it was later. ¡­ Back on the platform. Things were not going well for Grey. With so many spatial distortions on the platform, he had to be sensible with the way he moved around as he tried to dodge Aldrin¡¯s attacks. Also, he had stopped attacking for the time being, he needed to come up with a plan to destroy these things. 959 Victory ¡®The only way you can destroy these things is if you use a strong attack.¡¯ Void¡¯s voice sounded in Grey¡¯s head. ¡®I know. But it seems like my current attack power will not be able to destroy them.¡¯ Grey replied with a downcast expression. Even though he wanted to destroy these things, there was nothing he could do at the moment. He truly wasn¡¯t a match for a Ninth stage Sage Plane Elementalist if he didn¡¯t use the Fusion State. Having so many elements naturally gave him some advantages, but now that Aldrin had used such a troublesome technique, it has almost wiped away Grey¡¯s advantage of having multiple elements. So what if he had multiple elements, if he couldn¡¯t even attack then they were useless. Aldrin became more confident as the battle progressed, Grey was already backed into a corner, if he couldn¡¯t even beat up such an opponent then he was useless. He wasn¡¯t the only one who felt like he had won the battle, everyone watching, except for Void and Sylvia felt that Grey had already lost. What Grey was doing was only trying to delay the inevitable. ¡®Why don¡¯t you try combining two elements? The attack power should be good.¡¯ Void suggested. Grey also had this thought, but he was waiting for a chance to use the attack. Even if he wanted to attack, he couldn¡¯t attack carelessly. He had already fed these spatial distortions so much, if he continued, he would only bring about his own defeat. ¡®Such a hateful technique! I have to learn it!¡¯ Grey concluded in his mind. Fighting against this was terrible, but being the user would make his battles somewhat easier. Of course he knew a technique of this caliber would be one of three secret techniques of a powerful family. Even if Aldrin isn¡¯t from a top Family like the Burchard Family, he was still from an above average Family, and he joined a top space elemental Faction. Grey quickly implemented his plan, an orb formed on his hand, and it was made up of two destructive elements, the fire and the lightning element. When the attack was sent out, Aldrin used the spatial distortion in front of him to block and gobble up the attack. However, things were a little different this time. The spatial distortion shook after the attack entered, but it soon stabilized. Grey¡¯s expression turned a little ugly when he saw this. ¡®I¡¯ll have to put in more effort.¡¯ He thought as he looked at the spatial distortions around. Aldrin was a little shocked, but seeing that the spatial distortion stabilized, he laughed heartily, ¡°Haha, even someone in the same stage as myself can¡¯t destroy it, and you think you can?¡± Grey didn¡¯t bother with the mocking words of Aldrin, he once again dodged the attack sent in his direction before preparing another attack. This time, the orb had three elements in it, the fire, lightning, and the space element. Although Grey didn¡¯t know too many space elemental attack techniques, he didn¡¯t have any problems with adding it to this orb to increase its power. The orb shot out once again, this time, Grey aimed for the spatial distortion that swallowed the previous attack. After unleashing that attack, he sent out another one, and another one, and another one. In the space of a few seconds, over five orbs shot at the same spatial distortion. When the first orb touched it, the spatial distortion continued its dominant attitude and gobbled it up. It shook after the first attack was swallowed, just as it was about to stabilize, the second attack entered, then the third, then the fourth. Aldrin, who had a smug smile on his face had a change of expression when he realized what Grey wanted to do. It was already too late for him to stop it. Moreover, Grey was still sending attacks at it. After the eighth orb entered, the spatial distortion started to tremble as a powerful aura started to circulate. At this moment, even Aldrin who was standing close to it had retreated. He knew what was about to happen, and he couldn¡¯t stop it. Boom! The spatial distortion exploded out. With it, a chain reaction followed suit. The other spatial distortions started to explode one by one. Aldrin¡¯s face was ashen at the moment. Grey wasn¡¯t the only one who would be affected by this explosion, he would be affected as well. He gritted his teeth as he prepared to block the attack. Just as he set up a defensive wall with the space element, he saw a bright light shooting towards him, the next moment, his expression changed. ¡®Dammit!¡¯ Grey attacked him at this vital time. He thought Grey would be too focused on defending, but who knew that Grey not only defended, but he even attacked him as well. The defensive wall was broken through by Grey¡¯s attack. From the strength of the attack, it was easy to deduce that Grey had been preparing this attack for a while now. ¡­ Those watching the battle from outside were stunned by Grey¡¯s boldness. Most people would be flustered by the explosion and think of only how to defend, but Grey didn¡¯t only block, but he also unleashed an explosive attack as well. This was a true battle veteran¡¯s move. Even some of the old guys here didn¡¯t think they would be able to make such a move at a time like this. The face of the Elder who brought Aldrin over was dark. It was evident that he didn¡¯t expect this to happen. He already felt that Aldrin had defeated Grey, but everything changed so quickly. ¡®Useless.¡¯ He complained internally. ¡­ Aldrin could only block the attack and rush back. However, he was affected by the explosion and his clothes were torn. His hands were injured and bleeding, while he also spat out a mouthful of blood. On Grey¡¯s end, he was relatively safer. Compared to Aldrin who had to face two attacks, he only focused on defending against the explosion. Even though the explosion was powerful, since it was covering a large area, its strength was limited. Grey didn¡¯t expend too much effort to block it, and he even used an ability almost similar to Aldrin¡¯s spatial distortions to block the effect of the explosion. When the explosion died down, the two figures appeared in the line of sight of everyone. Grey was still looking the same since he didn¡¯t have to go through much. But Aldrin on the other hand was in a sorry state, his hands were bloodied, and his clothes were torn. It was easy to see who suffered more. Some people didn¡¯t catch the sight of Grey¡¯s attack, so they were taken aback by Aldrin¡¯s appearance. ¡®Hehe, you¡¯re really vicious.¡¯ Void¡¯s voice rang in Grey¡¯s ears. ¡®Of course, after making me go through such a stressful situation, do you think I¡¯ll let him off easily?¡¯ Grey sneered. His facial expression was the same, he only looked at Aldrin who no longer had a smug smile on his face. ¡°You¡¯re¡­¡± ¡°No need to talk too much. Only admit defeat or continue fighting.¡± Grey interrupted Aldrin who was about to talk. He had already spent too long on the platform. He originally wanted to end the battle quickly, but this guy was a little stronger than what he predicted. Aldrin¡¯s face showed anger before he launched an attack on Grey once again. Grey knew the effect of his provocation would be strong on this genius. Without delay, he instantly used the Fusion State and his aura shot to the Seventh stage of the Sage Plane. He didn¡¯t want to go further than this. Boom! Bang! They started to exchange attacks. This time, the attack power of Aldrin was higher, and so was Grey¡¯s. This was by far the most intense battle of the entire five battles. The others were more stunned by Grey¡¯s abilities. They didn¡¯t think that Aldrin was weak, rather, they felt that Grey was just too strong. Boom! Bam! Grey drew closer and unleashed a fire attack, while Aldrin used the lightning element to counter. Grey vanished as he evaded the attack, before attacking. Aldrin was also a Space Elementalist, so he dodged with ease as well. Having a higher cultivation stage, his control over the space element was actually stronger than Grey¡¯s. Three inscriptions soon lit up in the sky as they started to attack Aldrin as well. With Grey also attacking, Aldrin was soon put in a passive situation. Being attacked from four different sides, he was unable to hold on against Grey. The fight continued, but Aldrin was continuously forced back. Before long, Grey soon gained the complete advantage. He exploded out with a fire blade that broke through Aldrin¡¯s attack and shot at him. He tried to block it but was sent flying. Before he could recover, Grey was standing close to him as he unleashed a punch. The punch sent Aldrin flying, sending him crashing into the platform. 960 Information About The Secret Realm Bang! Aldrin¡¯s figure slammed into the ground, he couldn¡¯t fight against Grey any longer. If the battle continued in this manner, there was a huge possibility that he would not only lose, but he would die as well. However, being a Ninth stage Sage Plane Elementalist, he didn¡¯t want to give up to someone weaker than he was. He felt that if Grey didn¡¯t attack him at the crucial moment when he was trying to block off the explosion, he wouldn¡¯t have lost. His eyes were bloodshot as he was continuously suppressed. ¡°I admit defeat.¡± A sigh came from the area where the members of the Burchard Family were sitting. The Elder who brought Aldrin over could only admit defeat on his behalf. Everyone present could see that Aldrin didn¡¯t plan on giving up. Grey instantly stopped his attacks and looked at Aldrin who was bloodied. He retreated to the side, taking a glance at Sylvia who gave him a nod of approval, he walked off the platform. His expression was the same as always, blank and indifferent. Aldrin was disappointed, but he couldn¡¯t hide the shock in his eyes. Grey was a freakish talent. He was not the only one who thought of this, others did as well. The Elder from the Burchard Family stepped onto the platform to tell them the rules of the competition they were going to engage in. It was a battle between twenty participants. Both Families can only bring in five external participants, while the remaining members must be from the Family. Grey and the others were the external participants the Burchard Family was bringing over. Of all twenty people, they were all below twenty-five years of age, and unsurprisingly, none of them had broken through to the Elemental Venerable Plane. Going from the Sage Plane to the Elemental Venerable Plane was not easy by any means. Of course, for someone like Grey who had awakened multiple domains, it wouldn¡¯t be too difficult. From the Elemental Venerable Plane and above, it didn¡¯t completely rely on one¡¯s ability or talent to absorb treasures and essence, rather, it had to do with one¡¯s comprehension of their said elements. Awakening a domain already shows that an Elementalist has an amazing grasp over their elements. Of course, having a great comprehension of their elements wasn¡¯t the only thing, but it was more or less the most important. Without sufficient essence, it was still useless even if one has the greatest comprehension of their elements. While speaking, the Elder told them the benefits of entering this particular secret realm, it had a great ability to improve one¡¯s understanding of their elements. In short, it was the best place to go for youths who were on the verge of breaking through to the Elemental Venerable Plane. It¡¯s quite common for those who went in to come out awakening a domain. Sylvia felt that with Grey¡¯s uniqueness and talent, he shouldn¡¯t have any problems with awakening a domain or two if he spent some months there. When the Elder was done speaking about the place and the rules, those who advanced to the next round were sent back to their residence. They would be setting out soon. ¡­ ¡°I didn¡¯t think you¡¯d have advanced this much.¡± Sylvia said as she sipped a cup of tea. Grey was sitting opposite her. ¡°I was a little fortunate.¡± Grey replied calmly. They couldn¡¯t be said to be close since they only traveled for some time, but they were still acquaintances at the very least. Grey was here, which meant that he honored her invitation. ¡°How have you been able to cope with that thing?¡± Sylvia asked. Although she didn¡¯t mention the thing, Grey knew she was referring to the mark he had on him. ¡°Not so good. I can barely travel. And you know about the ancestors of those necromancers?¡± Grey answered truthfully. ¡°Yes, they¡¯re from another realm.¡± Sylvia replied. Everyone from the top Families knew a thing or two about these guys. ¡°I¡¯ve encountered them quite a few times, also, they¡¯ve tried to kill me repeatedly, and one of them increased the scope of the mark¡¯s range.¡± Grey said dejectedly. ¡°If that¡¯s the case, then you shouldn¡¯t go to this realm.¡± Sylvia replied. ¡°Huh? Why?¡± Grey asked, confused. ¡°It¡¯s connected to the realm those guys are from. To put it bluntly, it¡¯s actually a war zone between us and their race. Well, there are two more races that are able to enter that place as well. Once an Elementalist gets to the Elemental Venerable Plane, they would be moved to the area for Elemental Venerables¡­¡± Sylvia told Grey what she knew about the secret realm. It was a place filled with opportunities, and also danger. Having a link with three other realms other than their own meant that people from other races would enter the place as well. Having such a feud with those guys, it¡¯s natural that they would fight whenever they encounter each other. As for those in the other races, they were usually spectators. Grey listened attentively, not cutting off Sylvia as she explained. ¡°How does the place work? And is there a way an Elementalists can hide their true strength from it and stay at a lower level?¡± Grey found this issue to be more important. Sylvia said those at the Sage Plane were all in a specific area while those in the Elemental Venerable Plane are moved to another one. Even if someone were to be in the area for the Sage Plane, once they breakthrough, they would automatically be transported to the area for Elemental Venerables. ¡°The thing is, there are places where those from the Elemental Venerable Plane can actually enter into the area for those in the Sage Plane. There is naturally a flaw in this thing.¡± Sylvia explained, she paused to let Grey digest what she said before continuing, ¡°I think this realm was created by our ancestors thousands of years ago, of course they would be in that God Plane to be able to do that.¡± ¡°Actually, thinking about it, it¡¯s not only created by our ancestors alone, but multiple races¡¯ God Plane experts. It was generally a place to grow. No one was allowed to go from one realm to another. Meaning, if we humans try to use that place as a link to enter the other realm, we would be killed by the experts there in an instant.¡± 961 The Nether Faction Grey listened attentively, this was the first time he was hearing anything about the God Plane since he started cultivating. He had read some things about it, but there wasn¡¯t much in the books. ¡°If this place has such opportunities, why is it only in the hands of your Family or that Faction? If I¡¯m correct, given its value, it should be a place where geniuses from other Factions and Families get to enter and train.¡± He said after some time. He didn¡¯t want to speak of the God Plane for now because there was nothing to be said. As much as he would want to learn about it, it¡¯s still too far away from him. ¡°In older times, it was, but there was a conflict and it fell into my Family¡¯s hands. Of course we still have to let some geniuses from other Families and Factions enter, but their quotas are quite low. The same can be said for the Nether Faction, but they reduced the quota compared to when it was in our control.¡± Sylvia explained. ¡°Can¡¯t the other Factions and Families just decide to get it back for your Family? After all, it¡¯s more beneficial that way.¡± Grey didn¡¯t see the sense in leaving such a valuable Holy Land for cultivation in the hands of people who didn¡¯t want to help others with it. Yes, he felt it was a Holy Land for cultivation if what Sylvia said was true. ¡°That place is a double-edged sword, having it means that you have to not only fight against those from other races, but you have to make sure the survival of those geniuses from other Factions and Families is also high. Even though everyone knows the survival of an individual rests solely in the hands of said individual, some Families and Factions might use that as an excuse to find fault with the guardians. The more people who go in, the more dangerous it is. But if too few people go in, then it would be dangerous for them against those from that race.¡± ¡°And each Family and Faction have its Holy Land for cultivation, so even if this place was enticing, it wasn¡¯t to the level of going to war with a powerful opponent. Although no one is afraid of the Nether Faction, it was better not to offend them.¡± Sylvia explained carefully to Grey. ¡°Is there anything worth taking note of when I go there?¡± Grey asked. ¡°You¡¯ll know after we get the right to the place. But for now, this is all I can tell you.¡± Sylvia replied. Grey nodded before asking about the other participants, as well as the geniuses he would have to fight against from the Nether Faction. Sylvia did her best to tell him all he needed to know. After hearing about them, Grey asked about a particular person. From the way Grey was able to describe this person, Sylvia was left astonished. ¡°Have you seen him before?¡± She couldn¡¯t help but ask. ¡°Yeah, once.¡± Grey didn¡¯t hide it and told her of when he was attacked by a certain young man after they parted ways. ¡°The audacity.¡± Sylvia was incensed when she heard this. ¡°To be honest, he¡¯s the reason I came for this competition.¡± Grey said after Sylvia calmed down. Sylvia¡¯s expression was a little strange, she didn¡¯t know if she should be happy that Grey was attacked or not. She had high hopes for Grey and wanted him to take part in the competition, but finding out that he only decided to come after being attacked was out of her expectations. She soon threw the thought of how Grey came here to the back of her mind. Since Grey was here, that was all that mattered. From Grey¡¯s last battle, she was still a little pessimistic, but after thinking about it, she knew that Grey didn¡¯t show his full strength. There was no way he was going to struggle against an opponent who was only two stages or so above him. She had seen him fighting while at the Peak of the Origin Plane and knew at least to some extent, what he was capable of. After growing by so much, it was not odd if he was even stronger than what she expected. He already passed the level she thought he would be in, that was already one surprise. They spoke a while longer before she left. She couldn¡¯t spend too much time with him, he wasn¡¯t the only one she brought over. Of the five external people, two of the people she brought got in. It was quite a remarkable feat. This showed that she had a good eye for talent. She spoke with the young lady before leaving the courtyard they were staying in. Grey, just like when he first came, went inside to study. He didn¡¯t bother to cultivate since he knew he wouldn¡¯t make any improvements in the short time. He focused his attention on comprehending the elements and also testing out his knowledge of arrays. ¡­ Time went by in a flash and it was soon time for them to head off to the place where the competition was going to be held. ¡°Remember, you¡¯re not to say a word. You will all follow Scott¡¯s command, he¡¯ll tell you all how you will head into battle¡­¡± The Elder who came to the courtyard where Grey and the others were staying gave them a series of orders as they walked. He didn¡¯t even bother about what they felt since he didn¡¯t think much of them. He also looked at Grey and the young lady in the group with cold eyes. Seeing his gaze, Grey didn¡¯t even bother to think of the reason why this Elder had an issue with him. Once he was done with the battle, he would get into the secret realm and train. That was all that was important to him. The young lady on the other hand was a little frightened by the gaze and moved closer to Grey and whispered, ¡°Did you see how he looked at us?¡± ¡°Huh? Oh, I wasn¡¯t paying attention.¡± Grey looked at her with a blank look, stunning her. She didn¡¯t think that he wouldn¡¯t be paying attention to what the Elder was saying. 962 The Nether Faction II The young lady tried communicating with Grey as they walked, she felt since they were brought over by the same person, it was best if they formed a team or something. Grey entertained her conversation, but he didn¡¯t really input much as they walked to an open field in the Burchard Manor. When they got there, they saw a group of youths around their age. All of them were in the Sage Plane. ¡®The age limit is twenty-five.¡¯ Grey thought as he looked at the youths in front of him. In total, there were fifteen youths, and of them, there were two who were already at the Peak of the Sage Plane. To get to the Peak of the Sage Plane before hitting twenty-five was an amazing thing. Grey felt he wouldn¡¯t need that long to do it since he was already in the Fifth stage, but he couldn¡¯t be compared to others. Normally, it would take at least four to ten years to go through the entire Sage Plane. But for people like Grey and some other special people, it wouldn¡¯t even take more than two years. There are some who even go through the entire Plane in as little as a year. Sylvia nodded at Grey and the young lady. She felt a little relieved seeing that the two of them were talking to each other. The group walked over and the Elder introduced them to their leader, Scott. He was one of the youths who were at the Peak of the Sage Plane. He had a short beard and narrow eyes which almost seemed like they were shut. His hair was around Grey¡¯s hair length, with brown eyes. Scott looked at the group of youths walking in their direction. Seeing that there was someone amongst the externals who was below the Late stages of the Sage Plane, he couldn¡¯t help but raise his brow. ¡°Fifth Elder, why would someone below the Late stages be with the group?¡± He asked. His tone was one of arrogance, but he was genuinely curious about the matter. Normally, they would go for a genius who was around the Late stages or even the Peak of the Sage Plane, however, there was someone in the Fifth stage of the Sage Plane in the group, and it was quite surprising. ¡°He was brought here by your sister, you can ask her about it.¡± The Fifth Elder replied, clearly not happy with Grey¡¯s being able to join in. Scott turned to look at Sylvia. ¡°Do you want a beating?¡± Sylvia asked with a snicker when she saw Scott giving her an inquisitive look. Scott withdrew his head like a turtle and didn¡¯t ask about it any longer. He knew his sister¡¯s personality. Also, from what he knew, there was no way his sister would do something that would bring shame to the Family. Although he didn¡¯t chase the matter any longer, it didn¡¯t stop the others from looking at Grey. Having the lowest stage, Grey knew he would attract a lot of attention, so seeing how they were all studying him, he couldn¡¯t help but feel a headache. If even the people he was going with were already looking down on him, then what would happen when he gets to the place of the competition? ¡®Hehe, she¡¯s fiery.¡¯ Void laughed when he saw how Sylvia handled Scott. ¡®I wonder how much she bullies him.¡¯ Grey could help but say. From how fast Scott retracted his head when Sylvia asked the question showed how much he feared her. The entourage waited a little longer, and five more people appeared. A middle-aged man who had the same appearance as Scott alongside two old men and old women. ¡°Let¡¯s go.¡± As soon as he arrived, he said, before casually waving his hand. Grey felt a powerful suction force coming his way, and before he knew it, his vision went blank. Time slowly went by, and Grey didn¡¯t know how long it took before he saw light again. He noticed they were standing in another place at the moment, looking around, he realized they were standing at the top of a mountain. ¡°You¡¯re early once again. Looks like the results will be the same as the last time.¡± A mocking voice came from the surrounding before a figure stepped out of the void, behind him was a group of youths as well. Just like the group Grey was in, there were twenty youths below the age of twenty-five, all in the Late stages of the Sage Plane. Grey¡¯s eyes trailed from each of them before stopping at a familiar figure. The young man who attacked him the last time. His gaze changed a little when he realized the young man was unexpectedly in the Ninth stage of the Sage Plane. ¡®Thought they said he was in the Seventh stage?¡¯ Grey asked Void to confirm. When he first came and asked around about the young man, it was said that he was in the Seventh stage of the Sage Plane. How long has it been since then? Yet he was already in the Ninth stage. ¡®Yeah, you didn¡¯t hear wrong. Either our informant is a little behind in getting news, or he didn¡¯t know his true stage and assumed.¡¯ Void replied. Sensing a gaze, the young man looked in Grey¡¯s direction. He was originally looking at the youths, his Faction¡¯s opponents, but sensing a strange gaze he turned to look at the source. When his eyes met with Grey, he paused for some time, seemingly trying to recall where he had seen his face before. After some time, his eyes enlarged and it was evident that he remembered something. His gaze towards Grey turned murderous for only a quarter of a second. He smiled before moving his gaze away. Grey didn¡¯t miss the intent to kill that flashed through the eyes of the young man, but he wasn¡¯t bothered, he looked around and his vision fell on one of the six youths who were at the Peak of the Sage Plane. The Burchard Family had only four people at the Peak of the Sage Plane while the Nether Faction had six people at the Peak. Unlike the Burchard Family, they didn¡¯t have any external helpers, all twenty members were from the Nether Faction. This showed the strength of the Nether Faction. 963 One Battle, One Death Grey¡¯s eyes trailed on the body of the six Peak Sage Plane Elementalists from the Nether Faction. Of the six, four were young men while the other two were young ladies. He was still trying to figure out who Bill was when Sylvia leaned over and whispered, ¡°You see that guy with the bushy eyebrows?¡± Grey looked at the figure Sylvia spoke of and nodded. ¡°That¡¯s Bill. No matter what happens, if you come up against him, give up.¡± Sylvia warned. Grey raised his brow but didn¡¯t say anything. If he really decided to put his all, he didn¡¯t feel he would lose against Bill. ¡°The competition has not started yet, but just as usual, you¡¯re trying to dampen the spirit of my group.¡± The leader of the Burchard Family group replied with a straight face, his expression didn¡¯t change one bit. The leader of the group from the Nether Faction laughed out loud before turning to his group, ¡°Remember to go easy on them, we don¡¯t want any accidents, like the last time.¡± When saying this, his voice wasn¡¯t particularly loud, but since everyone here was either in the Sage Plane or above, they had no issues hearing his words. The faces of the Elders from the Burchard Family changed when they heard this. During the last competition, five people died, two from their Family and three externals. Not just that, but two more people were crippled. Although they hated to admit it, those from the Burchard Family knew that their chances of winning this competition weren¡¯t up to thirty percent. Some of them even felt their chances had reduced since there was actually someone below the Late stages of the Sage Plane in their ranks. The few Elders who watched Grey¡¯s battle felt that he won by luck. Grey and those geniuses from the Burchard Family were not the only ones studying their opponents, those from the Nether Faction were doing the same, and as expected, Grey was the one who caught the most attention, the reason for this was simple, his realm was just too low. ¡°They even brought someone in the Fifth stage, how badly do they want to lose?¡± Bill smirked when he saw Grey as he commented. ¡°It¡¯s natural. Instead of wasting too much time, they should give up early.¡± The geniuses from the Nether Faction were brewing with confidence, and it was clear they didn¡¯t think much of their opponents. To them, they had already won the competition and all they wanted to do at the moment was to step into the secret realm and train, breaking through to the Elemental Venerable Plane as fast as they could. Both groups separated, each heading to their sides. Just like in the case of the Pyrmond and Syphilis Factions battle, there was a third party here as well to make sure the situation was kept under control. A single individual appeared, but the faces of the leaders of both groups changed, and respect appeared in their eyes. In this world, strength reigned supreme, and the figure who stepped out of the Void was an old expert from the number one Faction in the Aurora Continent. His eyes were hollow, and his hair white. He wore a white robe, with both hands placed behind him. When he appeared, he didn¡¯t speak a word, nodding to both leaders before going to take a seat on the highest seat set up. After he took his seat, both groups took their positions. The rules were quickly stated and Grey¡¯s expression couldn¡¯t help but change. ¡®Why do they always make it hard for the weaker side?¡¯ He couldn¡¯t help but complain. ¡®It¡¯s life, the strong are always favored.¡¯ Void said calmly. The rule of the contest was simple, there would be a one-on-one battle, and whichever side has more people wins. Given the advantage the other side has in terms of cultivation stage, it means that they have a higher chance of winning more battles. Take for instance, of the twenty people on the other side, fifteen were to win, which means fifteen people who fight against the remaining five people from the other side. When both sides are on the same level, it was a fair rule, but with as much as a small difference in strength, the stronger side had a higher chance of winning. Those from the Burchard Family already knew the rules, and so did most of those participating. Since it was two sides against each other, it was almost always like this. After the rule was stated, it was time for the battle to start. Since the Nether Faction is the previous winner, they had the privilege of challenging first. Bill was the first to step on stage. His eyes trailed on the body of those at the Peak of the Sage Plane before looking away. He knew the plan, and he had to follow it. His eyes moved to those in the Seventh and Eighth stages, after some time, he picked a young lady in the Eighth stage of the Sage Plane. He didn¡¯t even bat an eye for Grey since he felt it was beneath him. The young lady stepped on the platform. In such a battle, life and death could be decided in seconds. As long as the other party does not give up, one could continue attacking. The only time they were not allowed to attack was when they saw that the other party couldn¡¯t defend any longer. If they attacked after that, they risked getting killed by the old man at the side. With both fighters on the platform, the battle started. Bill moved like a lightning bolt, before the young lady could make a sound he was already standing before her. Boom! With a reverberating explosion, the young lady was sent flying. The figure of the young lady crashed into the ground, lifeless. Insta-kill. Bill killed his opponent with a single, ruthless strike. Grey sucked in a cold breath when he saw this. It was almost impossible for a Peak Sage Plane Elementalist to insta-kill someone in the Eighth stage, but Bill pulled it off with ease. ¡®He¡¯s strong.¡¯ 964 Brutal Battle Grey had to admit it, Bill was stronger than he anticipated. If he were to fight against Bill without using the full power of the Fusion State, he would stand zero chances of winning. He had a few things that could help him survive his first attack, but winning was out of the picture. The only way he could win was if he was also at the Peak of the Sage Plane. ¡®Maybe he only has explosive power.¡¯ Void commented on the side. Grey thought about it and nodded. This might be the case. There are some people with terrifying explosive force, once they explode out, their attack power would be frightening, however, in the long run, they were not that powerful. Nevertheless, he didn¡¯t dare to underestimate Bill at the moment. No matter what, he would have to go all-out from the start if he were to fight against such an opponent. The faces of those from the Burchard Family turned dark, only the leader of the group still had a blank face. On the side of the Nether Faction, there were smiles all around. The person killed was from the Burchard Family, not an external member, so those youths from the Burchard Family were angered by this, and this boosted the morale of those from the Nether Faction. Bill left the platform and walked back to his seat. It was soon the turn of the Burchard Family. Scott, the leader of the youths stepped forward and glanced coldly at those from the Nether Faction. His eyes rested on the body of a young man in the Ninth stage of the Sage Plane. The young man shivered slightly, but Bill tapped him on the shoulder as if to tell him he would be fine. ¡°Resist the first attacks and you can admit defeat.¡± This was his order, he knew he stood no chance against an infuriated Scott, but he had to step on the platform first, and only after the battle had started could he give up. The battle started and Scott immediately went on the offensive. The young man was already prepared for this and had already taken his defensive pose, preparing everything he could to survive the first series of attacks from Scott. Boom! Bang! Bam! Scott¡¯s first attack destroyed his entire defense, before he could prepare for the next set of attacks, it had already gotten to him. Striking him cleanly, he was cut into two by the shocking fire blade. The glow in his eyes faded off and he died instantly. Another instant-kill. The first two battles showed the stance of both sides, kill from my side, and I¡¯ll kill from your side. Grey took a glance at Scott, before taking in a deep breath. ¡®It seems like those I¡¯ve been encountering are not the true geniuses of this Continent.¡¯ Scott¡¯s display of strength was even more domineering than that of Bill. Bill killed an Eighth stage Sage Plane Elementalist, while Scott directly killed someone in the Ninth stage. Grey couldn¡¯t help but wonder who would be victorious if the duo fought against each other. They were both top fighters at the Peak and there might be a chance that they were not equal in terms of strength. Scott walked back to his seat, even though he had killed someone from the other side, he didn¡¯t feel good. One of his relatives was dead, and if things continued in this manner, more would follow suit. What was worse was that compared to them, the Nether Faction had two more Peak Sage Plane Elementalists, which meant having two extra chances of killing their opponents. Of course, not everyone was as strong as he and Bill. But the chances of them killing those in the Seventh stage were not low. His eyes trailed to the handsome youth sitting on the side who had a comparably calm demeanor even after witnessing how brutal the battle was. Of everyone here, he should be the weakest, yet, he was the calmest, there didn¡¯t seem to be any ripple in his eyes. He had studied Grey from Bill¡¯s first attack, and he noticed his blank expression hadn¡¯t changed. ¡®Could his face be deformed or something?¡¯ He thought to himself. Even the Elders have had a change in expression, but Grey¡¯s face has been the same from the first time he saw him. One person from the Nether Faction stepped forward and challenged someone in the Seventh stage of the Sage Plane. Their plan was simple: kill them before they could give up. The result of this battle was just like the rest, it ended with the weaker person dying even before they could admit defeat. The battle continued in this order and before long, all the Peak Sage Plane Elementalists from the Burchard Family had fought a battle, and they had killed their opponents. The same could be said for the Nether Faction, the only difference was that they had two more people at the Peak. So they could challenge two more times. They both stepped out and only one of them managed to kill his opponent, the other was unsuccessful. In this battle, there had been nine deaths, five from the Burchard Family side and four from the Nether Faction. However, of the Burchard Family¡¯s original twenty participants, six had been eliminated, leaving only fourteen, while the other side had two more people. With those at the Peak done, it was time for those in the Ninth stage to step onto the platform and challenge an opponent. Originally, the Nether Faction had seven people in the Ninth stage, but now they had one less. The Burchard Family had only five people in the Ninth stage of the Sage Plane, so once again, they were on the weaker side in terms of numbers. The first person who stepped on stage was none other than the young man who attacked Grey the last time. When he stood on the platform, his eyes stopped on Grey¡¯s body for a while before letting out a smirk. ¡°Come out.¡± 965 Not Allowed To Kill Everyone turned to look in the direction the young man was looking and their eyes fell on the body of the young man sitting close to Grey. The young man was among the externals, he was one of the few Eighth stage Sage Plane Elementalists on the side of the Burchard Family. The young man stood up and walked straight to the platform, he knew what was coming and he had to prepare himself to survive the young man¡¯s first attacks. As long as he successfully defends, he could give up later. ¡°Look around properly, this will be the last time you see anyone.¡± The young man said, while saying that, his eyes didn¡¯t leave Grey¡¯s body. He felt after his attack, Grey wouldn¡¯t show up, he didn¡¯t think he would even when his realm was still so low. ¡®I¡¯ll let someone else kill him. If he survives till the next round, I¡¯ll personally kill him.¡¯ He thought internally. The only reason he didn¡¯t pick Grey was that there were weaker people in his group, even though the Nether Faction was strong, there were still a few Seventh stage Sage Plane Elementalists who came, so he was leaving Grey for them. However, he knew Grey was no pushover, especially after Grey managed to survive his attack even though he was in the Origin Plane, a Plane lower than him at that time. Now Grey had advanced at a speed that shocked him to the core. Although he hid it, he was astounded when he realized Grey was already in the Fifth stage of the Sage Plane. When they last saw each other, there was a gap of almost an entire Plane. However, the gap was only four stages now, and he only broke through to the Ninth stage of the Sage Plane a week ago. If Grey can successfully defeat his opponent, then he wouldn¡¯t mind fighting against him next. He threw the thought of fighting against Grey to the back of his mind and focused on the figure in front of him. He wanted to assert his dominance, and killing his opponent with a quick move was the best choice. The start of the battle was announced, and he moved with the fastest speed possible. His body was covered with the lightning element as he charged at a terrifying speed toward his opponent. The young man he challenged was already prepared for a relentless first assault so he prepared all the defensive skills he had. When the young man got close to him, he unleashed them, trying to fight for his life. The young man attacking didn¡¯t see his defenses as anything, without even blinking, he blazed through it with an attack. Seeing the attack, Grey recalled what he was attacked with. It was the same technique, a single strike, but holding unimaginable power. After getting to the Sage Plane, the young man¡¯s strength and mastery of these attacks were on another level. The attack cleanly struck the young man from the Burchard Family and he was sent flying. Before his body could touch the ground, the young man from the Nether Faction who was on a move from the start was already upon him. Boom! He attacked once again. Against an opponent who couldn¡¯t fight back, it was easy to see who the clear winner was. Just as the figure of the young man was about to hit the ground, it was covered by a light and it flew away from the platform, landing beside those from the Burchard Family. ¡°You¡¯re not allowed to kill a defenseless opponent. ¡° An aged voice sounded in the area, and everyone turned to where the old man was sitting. The old man had a nonchalant expression, but it was obvious that he was the one who saved the life of the young man a few seconds ago. ¡°I¡¯m sorry Elder, I didn¡¯t know he couldn¡¯t defend any longer.¡± The young man from the Nether Faction apologized with a soft expression. He felt a bit indignant inside, but against such an old figure, he didn¡¯t dare to show it. Originally, he thought his first strike would be enough, but the young man was able to survive it, even though it caused horrific injuries to him. The old man snorted coldly before looking away as if uninterested in the whole event. Grey on the other hand looked at the young man from the Nether Faction with a serious expression. From his assessment, he wasn¡¯t that far off from those at the Peak of the Sage Plane. If Grey were to know that he only broke through to the Ninth stage a week ago, he would also be astounded at the talent of the young man. Nevertheless, no matter how high the young man¡¯s talent was, it didn¡¯t change the fact that he tried to kill Grey once, and Grey would never let that slide. Even if he showed most of his cards here, he wouldn¡¯t mind it as long as he took down someone he perceived as an enemy. The young man glanced at Grey before walking away, heading back to the side of the Nether Faction. Of the twenty people the Burchard Family brought over, four had advanced to the next round while six had been eliminated, adding this young man who managed to escape with his life thanks to the old man, seven had been, leaving only nine left. From those on the side of the Nether Faction, seven had advanced to the next round while only four had been eliminated. In contrast to the numbers on the side of the Burchard Family, they had a clearer advantage. The other five at the Ninth stage of the Sage Plane naturally challenged those of lower stages, and only two of them had to challenge those in the Ninth stage since they all felt that they had to leave Grey for someone in a lower stages. One of those from the Burchard Family managed to defeat the person who challenged her, and she moved on to the next round without having to challenge anyone. Only four of them won, and in total, eleven of those from the Burchard Family were eliminated, leaving only five who had advanced, and four who hadn¡¯t challenged anyone. 966 Odd Thoughts The faces of those from the Burchard Family weren¡¯t pretty. Looking at the options they had left, they felt a tinge of sadness. Of only four people left, two were in the Ninth stage, one was in the Eighth stage, and the last person was Grey, the young man who was in the Fifth stage of the Sage Plane. Although he managed to qualify for this, his opponent was merely in the Seventh stage of the Sage Plane. In a battle of high ranks, they had little to no faith in him. On the side of the Nether Faction, they still had the same number of people left, and three of them were in the Eighth stage of the Sage Plane, while the last one was in the Seventh stage. As things stand, they felt there was a chance that Grey might win his battle since he had defeated someone in the Seventh stage once, but that wouldn¡¯t be relevant once he advances to the next round. From that round onwards, there would only be people in the Eighth stage and above. The Ninth stage Sage Plane Elementalist from the Burchard Family stepped out and challenged someone in the Eighth stage. He won easily. The next person won easily as well. With both Ninth stage fighters from the Burchard Family winning their battles, it was time for those in the Eighth stage, and just like before, the Nether Faction was the first to challenge. They had one person left in the Eighth stage of the Sage Plane, and one in the Seventh stage. Both parties had the same number of fighters, one in the Eighth stage each, while the others were in the Seventh and Fifth stages respectively. ¡°How confident are you in fighting against someone in the Ninth stage?¡± Bill walked up to the young lady in the Eighth stage and asked. This was the last person in the Eighth stage for them. She was quite powerful, and if he had a choice, he would prefer she didn¡¯t take the risk of fighting the person in the Eighth stage from the Burchard Family. ¡°About eighty percent. I can¡¯t fight against someone on his level though.¡± She pointed at the young man who attacked Grey the last time. ¡°That¡¯s enough. Challenge the guy in the Fifth stage.¡± Bill said before walking away. It would be right for her to challenge the other person in the Eighth stage since she was more powerful, but Bill didn¡¯t want any complications and felt this was the best choice. Although doing this will mean an Eighth stage Elementalist from the Burchard Family would advance easily, he wasn¡¯t bothered about him. The young lady nodded and walked to the platform. Stepping on the platform, she pointed at Grey. ¡°You, come out.¡± ? Grey was a little taken aback, and the faces of the old men from the Burchard Family changed once again before most of them sighed in defeat. The only chance of Grey advancing had been cut off. Actually, they didn¡¯t have too much hope for him, what they wanted was for the young lady to challenge their Eighth stage Sage Plane Elementalist and if she was defeated, and Grey manages to defeat the other, it would make things easier for them. Grey didn¡¯t say anything, taking a small glance at the young lady, he walked to the platform nonchalantly. His expression, the same as usual, blank. Standing before the young lady, he didn¡¯t show a shred of emotion, simply waiting for the battle to start. When the old man saw that they were ready, he announced the start of the battle. The young lady moved immediately, she was a Lightning Elementalist, like most from the Nether Faction. Grey was already prepared for her attacks. Just as she was about to get close to him, he vanished. The young lady only paused for a quarter of a second before charging in another direction. Boom! She attacked, and Grey¡¯s figure was sent sliding back. Although he managed to block, he was pushed to the edge of the platform. His hands felt numb from blocking the attack, and small cuts could be seen on them. He moved his hands as if to get the blood flowing on them once again before taking a glance at his opponent. The young lady looked at Grey with a little smile before attacking once again. Grey didn¡¯t waste any time and used the Fusion State without hesitation. It was acceptable to use this technique as long as it was not help from any outside individual. Boosting his stage to the Seventh stage of the Sage Plane, he took the young lady¡¯s attack head-on. Boom! An explosion louder than the first one rang out, and they were actually tied. Those from the Burchard Family were stunned, while the eyes of the young lady showed doubt. Although this wasn¡¯t her full strength, even a regular Seventh stage Elementalist would not be able to block it. ¡®He¡¯s not simple.¡¯ Her heart skipped a beat. For some reason, she started to have a bad feeling. If she were told she would ever have such a feeling from challenging someone at a lower stage, she would never believe it. Bill¡¯s expression changed slightly, but it soon went back to the same. ¡®It¡¯s just petty tricks. He won¡¯t be able to keep it up for long.¡¯ He was not the only one with this thought in his head. Most of the Elders from the Nether Faction felt the same. As long as the young lady manages to hold him off, then she would win. For some reason, they all suddenly accepted the fact that Grey had the advantage. What was worse was that none of them felt that it was odd that they felt that way. One has to know that this was more like their first exchange, and Grey was still a stage lower. Yet, they had all placed him higher than his opponent. Amongst those from the Nether Faction, only one person felt that things might not actually go the way they think it would. It was none other than the young man who attacked him. He had attacked Grey with almost a complete Plane difference, and Grey survived. Someone like that would definitely have his ways of dealing with an opponent just a stage above him. 967 What Can One Man Do? Grey took the initiative to attack this time, after he blocked the young lady¡¯s attack, he started his attacks. The young lady covered herself with lightning before sending out a powerful bolt of lightning Grey¡¯s way. Grey dodged the attack before closing in on his opponent and using the fire element to attack. The young lady blocked with the lightning element but was pushed back from the impact of the attack. This lifted the spirits of those from the Burchard Family, while the eyes of those from the Nether Faction showed shock. The young lady prepared herself when she saw Grey coming closer once again. This attack showed her that she should not take him lightly. Grey attacked with a fireball, but she retreated. ¡®Explode.¡¯ Grey said internally as she retreated. An explosion erupted from the position the young lady was retreating to. Not prepared for the attack, the impact pushed her forward, into the attack in front of her. She was still covered in lightning, so it helped block most of the attacks. She bolt through the fireball explosion in front of her and shortened the gap between herself and Grey, just as she was about to attack, she suddenly felt a strong pressure on her body. Bam! She slammed into the ground. Grey had unleashed his gravitational force field when the young lady got within its coverage. This was something that as long as she had never seen him use before would always work as a surprise attack. Taking advantage of the opportunity the gravitational force field brought about, he appeared beside the young lady and sent her flying with a kick, packed with the strength of his fire element. The young lady was still trying to adjust to what just happened when she saw Grey¡¯s incoming kick, she used all her strength to set up a lightning defensive wall that covered her, but she was still sent flying by the kick. She slammed on the platform before rolling a few times. Grey stood on the same spot, staring at her with his blank eyes. The young lady stood up and stared at Grey with furious eyes. Even though she felt Grey wasn¡¯t ordinary, she didn¡¯t think he would be able to overpower her so easily. ¡°I¡¯m done playing.¡± She spat out the small bits of blood in her mouth before the clouds started to change, it was as if a storm was brewing. Grey raised his head to look at the sky, a smirk appeared on his lips before lightning started to dance across his body. The young lady who prepared to attack almost stumbled to the ground when she saw this. Grey had already used three elements, now, he was showing the lightning element which meant he had four. Elementalists with more than three elements were quite rare. ¡®We¡¯ll see whose lightning is stronger.¡± With a cold snort, she moved her hands to perform some seals and the storm suddenly roared fiercely. A bolt of lightning shot out from the storm, heading in Grey¡¯s direction. Not just that, but multiple lightning danced around the body of the young lady that took the shape of a lightning snake and they shot at Grey as well. Grey took in a deep breath before fire and lightning started to dance around him. Lightning on his left, while fire on his right. Boom! The bolt of lightning falling from the sky struck within a moment¡¯s notice, but Grey¡¯s figure started to fade. ¡°An afterimage!¡± The young lady exclaimed softly. The appearance of an afterimage showed that Grey didn¡¯t use the space element to escape, instead, he moved with unprecedented speed. The young lady hurriedly looked around and tried to find his location. She soon spotted his movements, but he was already almost in front of her. He unleashed both his fire and lightning attacks at the same time. With the aid of the lightning element, the young lady dodged the attack, but she was soon met with another attack from Grey. Scrambling, she dodged again, and again. Before she knew it, she was finding it difficult to keep up with Grey¡¯s attacks. She couldn¡¯t even defend properly, much less counterattack. ¡­ In the seating area of the Burchard Family, everyone turned to look at Sylvia with dazzled eyes. They had seen Grey fight against someone in the Seventh stage and win, so even though they had hopes for him fighting against someone, the person must be in the Seventh stage. Grey was currently doing something out of their expectations. Suppressing this young lady showed that he was not in any way weaker than a typical Ninth stage Sage Plane Elementalist. Even if he used a secret technique to boost his strength, it was only to the Seventh stage. ¡°Where did you get such a figure from?¡± An Elder couldn¡¯t help but ask. ¡°I saw him on the way during one of my travels, I didn¡¯t think he would be this good, to be honest.¡± Sylvia replied. Although she didn¡¯t give them too much information, they could already tell that she knew he was powerful, but not on this level. They continued speaking about Grey. Scott looked at Grey with surprised eyes. Those from the Nether Faction were just as shocked. Bill¡¯s expression was even worse since he was the one who told the young lady to challenge Grey since he was weaker. His seemingly foolproof plan seemed to be on the verge of crumbling. ¡®Even if he wins, we still have the advantage.¡¯ He consoled himself. Yes, so what if Grey won this battle? It doesn¡¯t change the fact that they had two more Peak Sage Plane Elementalists, and three more Ninth stage Elementalists as well. ¡®What can one man do?¡¯ This was what he concluded in his head and he gave up on the thought of the young lady winning. From how Grey was suppressing her, it would take a lot from her to come back into the battle. ¡­ While all these thoughts were running through the heads of multiple people, Grey¡¯s attacks were getting fiercer by the second. He didn¡¯t want to give his opponent the chance to fight back. 968 The Older, The More Experienced The young lady was sent flying once again, slamming into the platform. She was still capable of fighting, so the old man didn¡¯t try to interfere in the battle since he didn¡¯t see a need to. Grey¡¯s figure shot toward the young lady as he wanted to continue his attack. But a lightning bolt shot at him. The attack forced him to stop for a moment since he had to deal with it. The young lady used the opportunity to get back on her feet and used a secret technique to boost her strength. Before Grey could even react, her strength had shot to the Ninth stage. Boom! A powerful explosive attack shot out from her body and crashed at Grey. An earth wall rose from the ground and blocked the attack as it was about to hit Grey. The earth wall soon had cracks running down across it. Grey was in the middle of reinforcing the earth wall when the young lady attacked once again. Boom! Another attack struck the earth wall, and the already crumbling earth wall fell apart, revealing Grey. The impact of the attack didn¡¯t die down and almost fifty percent of the attack was still there. It shot at Grey, who was still trying to find his bearings. The attack struck him, and although he managed to move to the side, he was still grazed by it and pushed to the side. The young lady attacked once again, but this time, to her surprise, she didn¡¯t overwhelm Grey. Grey steadied himself when he saw her coming, with a tap of his foot, the gravity around him dropped once again. Even though the young lady already knew of this skill of his, she was still taken by surprise. Grey¡¯s timing for using his gravitational force field could be said to be top-notch. He only uses it at the best opportune time, so even if his opponent could defend against it, it would definitely provide the opening he needs to escape, or in this case, attack. Grey unleashed an orb mixed with the fire and lightning elements. The young lady had freed herself from the impact of the gravitational force field, but she was directly hit by Grey¡¯s attack, even though she managed to set up a defensive wall at the last second, she was still sent flying. She crashed to the ground and rolled a few times before coming to a stop. Those from the Burchard Family cheered when they saw this. Grey had once again shocked them. Even when his opponent had increased her strength to the Ninth stage of the Sage Plane, going ahead of him with two stages, he still managed to overpower her. This spoke volumes of his talent. Of everyone in the Burchard Family group, only a few didn¡¯t have excited expressions. The leader had a shocked expression, while two Elders had dark faces. Sylvia was dumbstruck, she didn¡¯t even know what to say. Just when she felt Grey was impressive while fighting against an Eighth stage opponent, he started to do even better by overpowering a Ninth stage opponent. Grey didn¡¯t continue his attack as he waited for the young lady to get back to her feet. The young lady struggled, but she managed to stand up after almost a minute. She looked at Grey, and her eyes couldn¡¯t hide the shock. Just like everyone present, she was dumbstruck. Originally, she felt she would be able to defeat him from the start after he started to show his terrifying power, she felt once she used her secret technique to increase her strength just like him, then she would beat him up, unfortunately, reality proved to be different. Even with her upgrade, she was still on the losing end. ¡®I can¡¯t lose to an opponent in a lower stage.¡¯ This was the only thing going through her head. She clenched her fists and with gritted teeth, she started to draw a symbol with lightning that converged on her fingertip. Grey, seeing this moved out immediately. He could sense a powerful force converging on the symbol the young lady was drawing. The young lady naturally saw his movements and used her other hand to send out attacks his way. Grey dodged the attacks as he shortened the gap between them. When he got within twenty meters of her, he unleashed a lightning rain. His motive was to disrupt whatever she was planning to do. The young lady created a powerful protective screen above her to block the attack of the lightning rain. Seeing this, Grey¡¯s figure shot to the sky, with both hands spread apart he muttered to himself. ¡°Meteor descent¡­¡± Large boulders, covered with flames appeared in the sky. Their appearance amazed those watching. ¡°She¡¯s lost.¡± The leader of the Nether Faction shook his head. ¡°Not necessarily.¡± Bill commented. The leader of the Nether Faction looked at Bill but didn¡¯t say anything. Compared to Bill, he was more experienced. He knew why Bill said what he said, the young lady was done with the symbol she was making, however, he knew for a fact that Grey¡¯s main attack was far stronger than hers. Only those above the Elemental Venerable Plane could tell what Grey wanted to do, behind this attack of his lies an even more powerful attack. The symbol the young lady drew sent out a powerful lightning strike in Grey¡¯s direction. It clashed with the boulders shooting down. And it was able to disintegrate the first few boulders with ease. Just as the attack was about to hit Grey, the young lady felt her heart skip a beat, however, it was too late. ¡°Dimensional slash.¡± Grey¡¯s somewhat eerie voice resounded softly on the platform. The lightning attack that was shooting at Grey was cut in two by an almost invisible force that soon turned into a black slash. The young lady felt a chill run down her spine as she felt an intense threat to her life. No, she knew her life was in danger. If she doesn¡¯t block or dodge this attack, she will die. She wouldn¡¯t even have the time to admit defeat. 969 Difficult Situation For The Burchard Family With a powerful yell, the young lady summoned all the strength she had left and attacked. Since she couldn¡¯t dodge the attack, and the possibility of being able to defend it was very small, she decided to attack. The impact of the attack might be able to push her away from the jaws of death. This was her only hope at the moment. Boom! Both attacks clashed and the impact successfully forced her back, however, she suddenly felt a powerful pull. Before she knew it, instead of leaving the area, she was actually being dragged into the zone of the attacks. With both attacks exploding at the same time, even a Peak Sage Plane Elementalist would have to tread carefully or they might lose their lives, much less an Eighth stage Sage Plane Elementalist like herself. Even if she boosted her strength, it still didn¡¯t change the fact that she was still in the Eighth stage. ¡°No¡­ I¡­¡± Her shriek was heard from the explosion, it died down some moments later. Grey stood on the same spot, staring emotionlessly at the place where the explosion occurred. The explosion died down and the result was evident for all to see. The young lady was dead. Her figure was so badly mutilated by the explosion that it was almost impossible to associate her with the figure who stood proudly on the platform some minutes ago. ¡°Elder Brook, you let him kill her on purpose.¡± A voice filled with displeasure rang out. It was the leader of the Nether Faction. When the young man who attacked Grey wanted to kill his opponent, the old man stopped him, but in Grey¡¯s case, he let him stop his opponent from escaping. The old man referred to as Elder Brook turned to look at the leader of the Nether Faction. ¡°Both cases are not the same.¡± He didn¡¯t explain any further and gave the nod for Grey to step down from the platform. Grey left the platform and headed back to his seat. He had successfully shocked those from the Burchard Family as the surprise was still evident on their faces. ¡°He¡¯s strong.¡± Scott said with a serious expression. He didn¡¯t think Grey had shown his full strength yet. The fact that Grey hasn¡¯t shown his full strength while fighting against an opponent three stages ahead of him showed that he was on another level. Even with the help of the Fusion State, Grey was still two stages below the young lady, but he not only won, but he killed his opponent as well. ¡°Such a terrifying figure, where did Sylvia find such a freak?¡± An Elder commented. While those from the Burchard Family had nothing but praise for Grey, the feelings of those from the Nether Faction were different. Two figures had remorse written all over their faces, Bill and the young man who attacked Grey. ¡°I made a mistake.¡± ¡°I should¡¯ve killed him when I got the chance.¡± One regretted sending the young lady to her death, while the other wished he could go back in time and kill Grey. The last battle soon started and just as everyone expected, the person from the Burchard Family won easily against his opponent, but he was unable to kill him, unlike what Grey did some time ago. With that battle completed, the first round was over, and even with Grey, the anomaly, the Nether Faction still had more people which made them confident. On the side of the Burchard Family, they had nine people who advanced to the next round, four Peak Sage Plane Elementalists, three Ninth stage Sage Plane Elementalists, one Eighth stage, and Grey who was in the Fifth stage. The Nether Faction had six Peak Sage Plane Elementalists and five in the Ninth stage. With just this alone, they were the clear favorites to win the competition. The old man quickly called for the start of the next round. Just like before, those at the Peak would be the first to challenge an opponent, then followed by those in the Ninth stage. The Nether Faction was the first to go once again. Bill stepped forward, he gave Grey a long hard look before moving his eyes away. Those from the Burchard Family heaved a sigh of relief since they wanted Grey to fight someone in the Ninth stage of the Sage Plane. Bill¡¯s eyes rested on a young lady in the Ninth stage. The young lady didn¡¯t waste any time and stepped on the platform. The battle didn¡¯t last up to three minutes as Bill was able to bulldoze past his opponent with ease. Luckily for the young lady, she survived his attacks and admitted defeat on her own. Bill snorted coldly before turning away. The next person from the Nether Faction stepped out, just like Bill, he challenged someone in the Ninth stage and won. Before long, there were only two Peak Sage Plane Elementalists from the Nether Faction. The previous four who fought had won their battles. This meant that four people had been eliminated from the side of the Burchard Family, all three Ninth stage Elementalists were gone, and the young lady in the Eighth stage was also eliminated as well. She almost lost her life if not for a timely decision she made, although she lost her right hand, it didn¡¯t matter as long as she survived. Now, there were only five people left on the side of the Burchard Family, and of the five people, all but Grey were at the Peak of the Sage Plane. At this moment, the result of the battle was almost fixed. The Nether Faction still had seven people who hadn¡¯t stepped on stage, and they already had four who had advanced to the next round. If things went this way, they might win with ease. The next person at the Peak stepped on the platform, he looked at Grey before letting out a smirk. There was no one else below the Peak of the Sage Plane except Grey. Even if Grey defeated someone in the Ninth stage, no one felt he would be a match for someone at the Peak. ¡°Come.¡± 970 Why Do You Look Familiar? ¡°He¡¯s lost.¡± Those from the Burchard Family gave up when they saw Grey being challenged. Once Grey was defeated, they would have only four people left, and all of them were at the Peak. Even if all four were victorious, it still won¡¯t put them in a favorable position. Sylvia and those from the Burchard Family had dull faces. This competition seemed to be taking the same path as the previous ones, ending in their defeat. Grey walked to the platform, he knew everyone felt he had lost, but he wasn¡¯t too concerned, until the battle was fought, no one knew who would win. ¡®Personally, I¡¯d like to fight against that guy, but unfortunately, I have to show my hand now.¡¯ Grey thought, a little sad he didn¡¯t get to fight the young man who made him come. ¡°Are you sure you want to fight this battle? Since you¡¯re weaker, you can give up.¡± The old man¡¯s voice rang on the platform. Those from the Burchard Family and the Nether Faction turned to look at the old man. Even Grey was a little confused. Clearly, the old man seemed to be favoring him for some reason unknown to him. He was certain he had never seen this old man named Brook before, yet the old man was making things easy for him. He even said he could give up. ¡°Thank you for your concern Elder, I¡¯ll go ahead with the battle, if I can¡¯t, I¡¯ll give up. There¡¯s no harm in trying.¡± Grey replied respectfully. ¡°If you say so.¡± The old man nodded before giving the go ahead for the battle. On the side of the Burchard Family. ¡°Are you sure he¡¯s just a common person?¡± The leader of the Burchard Family turned to Sylvia. ¡°Yes, he confirmed it to me himself. At first, I thought he was associated with the Dawson Family, but when I asked him about it, he told me he had never been to the Western Continent at that time, much less come in contact with them.¡± Sylvia replied. ¡°What if he was lying?¡± An Elder asked. ¡°When I met him, he was still at the Peak of the Origin Plane. Do you think someone of that low realm can lie to me and I won¡¯t know? I¡¯ve also done my research, there¡¯s no one in the Dawson Family with his name, and neither was there in the extended family. Do you think the Dawson Family will have such a genius and let him roam this freely without any protection?¡± Sylvia confirmed to them. She had her ways of figuring out if someone in a lower realm was lying, so when she said this, none of the Elders tried to argue with her any longer. ¡°Hmm, do you think there¡¯s any chance of him joining us then?¡± The leader asked. ¡°Not likely. He only agreed to participate in this competition for a funny reason, revenge.¡± Sylvia said with a wry smile. Although she hated to admit it, she still felt a bit sad that Grey only came because he wanted revenge and not because she wanted him to come. ¡°Such a foolish reason. He¡¯ll only die then.¡± An Elder who seemed to not be on Grey¡¯s side from the start in the Burchard Family snorted coldly. ¡°I know his character, he¡¯s not someone who wouldn¡¯t do something he¡¯s not sure of. Since he came for revenge, he has his ways of getting it.¡± Sylvia said, she fully believed in Grey. Well, not when he¡¯s fighting against someone at the Peak of the Sage Plane though. Back on the platform. Grey was staring at the young man standing in front of him. ¡°You should¡¯ve taken the lifeline you were offered.¡± The young man said coldly. His eyes were red, it was clear that he seemed to have a certain hatred toward Grey. ¡°Don¡¯t worry, the likes of you can¡¯t kill me.¡± Grey replied nonchalantly. ¡°Arrogant, I¡¯ll make you beg for death. After that, I¡¯ll kill you.¡± The young man said with hate. ¡°Huh? Why do you look familiar?¡± Grey suddenly realized something and looked at the young man with a curious expression. He seemed to fall deep in thoughts, seemingly trying to recall where he saw the young man before and why he felt he was familiar. ¡°You killed my sister.¡± The young man said through gritted teeth. ¡°Ha! No wonder you looked so familiar. I¡¯ve forgotten her face so soon. I¡¯m sorry I didn¡¯t think she would not be able to escape from the attack.¡± Grey smacked his thighs in realization. When the young man heard Grey say, he didn¡¯t think she would not be able to escape. ¡°You dragged her into the explosion, you fiend!¡± The young man exploded with anger. Everyone clearly saw the impact of the explosion pushing the young lady away, but Grey used the space element to drag her back into the explosion, killing her in the process. Only a fool would believe Grey¡¯s words. ¡°I did that? Well, let¡¯s forget about her. She¡¯s in the past now.¡± Grey waved offhandedly. This infuriated the young man even more. ¡°Don¡¯t worry, you¡¯ll also be part of the party soon enough.¡± He said in anger. Grey shrugged his shoulders as if he was not bothered by the young man¡¯s threat. Seeing this made the young man even more annoyed. The old man called for the start of the battle and the young man charged at Grey. Grey, already expecting a violent attack from the young man, retreated. Even though he was confident, if he didn¡¯t enter the Fusion State, he would undoubtedly lose against such a powerful opponent. The young man was still a Peak Sage Plane Elementalist, as soon as Grey was retreating, he closed the gap and attacked with the fire element. Grey vanished from where he was standing, dodging the attack. However, another attack was sent out by the young man, a lightning attack this time. Grey blocked but was pushed back by the attack. His hands went numb when the attack broke through his earth wall. ¡®Damn it, this guy is tough.¡¯ 971 Fearsome Strength The young man continued his attack on Grey, not wanting to give him the chance he was looking for. He knew Grey would need a small chance to use his special technique that could boost his strength, but he didn¡¯t want that. The weaker Grey was, the easier it was to kill him. Grey dodged the attacks as he retreated, making sure he didn¡¯t get into the attack range of the young man. ¡°Die! Die! Die!¡± The young man screamed repeatedly as he attacked Grey viciously. Grey kept a cool head as he studied the situation. As things stand, he wouldn¡¯t be able to use the Fusion State as he wanted, so he had to go for the next best thing, inscriptions. Two symbols lit up in the sky and they attacked the young man who was focused on chasing after Grey. The young man sensed the attack at the last moment and dodged to the right. This presented the opportunity Grey had been waiting for, seeing that he finally had the chance, he hastily used the Fusion State. He boosted it to the Eighth stage, unlike the previous time when he only stopped on the Seventh stage. The sudden boost of Grey¡¯s strength shocked everyone. They already thought that the Seventh stage was the limit Grey could get to, but now, he actually forced it to the Eighth stage. Had he used this when fighting against the young lady the last time, he would¡¯ve been able to finish her off in a shorter time. The young man looked at Grey with a little shock, but he still didn¡¯t think much of it. ¡°So you still have some hidden cards? I¡¯ll kill you regardless of whatever you show.¡± He snorted coldly. Grey might¡¯ve boosted his strength, but nevertheless, he was still only in the Eighth stage of the Sage Plane. Compared to a Peak Sage Plane Elementalist, he was still a little lacking, well, this was what everyone thought. ¡°You¡¯re not on my level.¡± Grey replied with a smirk. After saying this, he attacked. The young man was already prepared for this and used the lightning element to boost his speed before leaving an afterimage. Grey¡¯s eyes widened a bit, this was the first time he was fighting against someone who could actually leave behind an afterimage. Boom! Bang! Bam! They started to exchange attacks. Grey mainly used the fire element, while the young man used the lightning element. A fire bird attacked Grey, but it was blown to bits by a lightning bolt that shot out from one of the inscriptions. Grey tried to use the space element to send a quick attack with his fire element, teleporting the attack right in front of the young man, but the young man managed to react quickly, blocking it with hands covered in lightning. The attack forced him back, but he was fine, not affected by it. Grey followed up with an earth pillar that he smashed in the direction of the young man. The young man slashed a large lightning sword to cut the pillar into two before attacking Grey once again with the lightning sword. Grey created an earth wall, but it was sliced apart. He vanished, hoping to dodge the attack. But the young man was already prepared for this and a lightning arrow shot at Grey, even faster than he could teleport. Grey caught sight of the lightning arrow a little late and it hit him squarely on his chest, sending him flying. The young man¡¯s eyes brightened when he saw this. ¡°Hehe, I told you, I¡¯ll kill you.¡± He snickered hatefully. Just as he moved closer to Grey, he suddenly felt a powerful pressure descend on him and his figure almost dropped to the ground. Boom! A large fire rose from Grey¡¯s body, shooting in all directions. The young man tried to retreat, but he was caught by the attack and sent flying. He did a backflip mid-air and landed on his feet. Just as his feet touched the ground, a beam shot at it. It was made up of the fire and the lightning element. The beam exuded a shocking aura. Seeing the beam, the young man knew he shouldn¡¯t dare to be negligent. Preparing himself, he unleashed an even scarier attack that collided with the beam. The strength of both attacks colliding was on another scale. Those watching the battle were all on the edge of their seats. This was the most heated battle so far, and to think that it was between a Fifth stage Sage Plane Elementalist who used some special technique to boost his strength and a Peak Sage Plane Elementalist was even more shocking. Those from the Burchard Family looked at each other with stunned eyes, Grey had shocked them once again. Even if he doesn¡¯t win the battle in the end, he had already proven to them that compared to most of the geniuses here, he was miles ahead. An Eighth stage fighting against a Peak Sage Plane Elementalist was something they wouldn¡¯t really think of being possible before. Only a few people in the history of the continent might be able to achieve such a feat. Even those from the Nether Faction were looking at Grey with different eyes. The young man who attacked Grey felt a chill run down his spine. Yes, he could fight against someone at the Peak of the Sage Plane, but the main problem was that he didn¡¯t think this was Grey¡¯s full strength. If there was a way for Grey to actually use a strength that was superior to this, then it would shock the entire world. A Fifth stage Sage Plane Elementalist fighting those over three stages ahead of him was already shocking enough. One has to know that the gap between a Peak Sage Plane Elementalist was quite large, only a selected few could cross that gap while still in the Ninth stage and fight on equal footing. Grey, even though he boosted his strength, was still in the Eighth stage, so he was technically still not on the level where he should be able to fight a Peak Sage Plane Elementalist to this stage. 972 He Tried Boom! The attack died down and both Grey and the young man came into view. They were both standing in the same spot as before, staring dead at each other. Now, the young man didn¡¯t exude the level of confidence he did at the start of the battle. From their short exchange, he knew there was no way he would be able to kill Grey. He had to defeat Grey first before he should even think of killing him. Grey was also staring at the young man, multiple thoughts running through his head. He knew this was not the full strength of the young man standing before him, but he was also confident that he would be able to defeat him. Also, he didn¡¯t want to show his full card, he still had to think of a way to kill the young man who attacked him the last time. If he were to go up against that young man, he wanted to use his full strength to kill him in a single attack. The young man calmed himself and instead of his previous rushed state, he started slowly this time. He threw a fireball at Grey, knowing fully well that it wouldn¡¯t do anything to him. Grey didn¡¯t bother with the attack as he retreated back. The young man followed up with a shot of lightning bolt that sped through the fireball which just exploded. Grey saw the attack a little late, but he still managed to dodge to the side, leaving behind an afterimage. After dodging, he unleashed an attack of his own, with earth spikes shooting out of the ground, aiming for the young man. The young man dodged the attack, but he sensed another attack from behind him, it was a fire attack. This attack was released by the inscription that appeared behind him. Although he blocked the attack, he was still pushed forward, heading in Grey¡¯s direction. When he noticed this, he hastily forced his body to come to a halt since he knew going too close to Grey would be dangerous. The gravitational force field was something even though he knew he could fight against it, it would still be able to slow him down for a second. Just as his body was about to come to a stop, he felt a powerful suction force, and his figure was dragged toward Grey. This time, he had zero control over his body. All he could do was watch himself shoot toward Grey. When his figure got close to Grey¡¯s, he exploded with the lightning element, sending off lightning sparks in all directions. A rain of lightning fell from the sky, aiming at where they were. Grey was forced to leave him and move back, canceling his technique. The moment the young man gained control over his body, he attacked. Grey blocked the attack, but his earth wall was broken to pieces. The young man followed the attack with his fire element. Grey was kept under constant attacks from him. He didn¡¯t want to give Grey any opportunities to attack again, he already knew how deadly Grey was. The fight soon started to peak with the young man seemingly having the upper hand. It couldn¡¯t be helped, even though Grey had a variety of attacks and tricks, when it came to raw attack power, he was still slightly off compared to his opponent. The young man was more aggressive, and his attack power was stronger than at the start of the battle. On the side of the Burchard Family. Worry started to show on the faces of those watching the battle. They were quite hopeful when Grey started to dominate the battle at one point, but since then, it had been the young man who was controlling the battle. Grey has been forced to dance to his tunes so far. ¡°Do you think he will be able to win?¡± Sylvia turned to the leader of their group. ¡°It¡¯s hard to say, he¡¯s already done so much but he¡¯s still being suppressed. In the end, he¡¯s not a true Eighth stage Sage Plane Elementalist.¡± The leader shook his head wryly. Given Grey¡¯s talent, if he were to truly be in the Eighth stage, the leader of this group was confident that Grey would be able to beat his opponent and win comfortably. But since he only used external means to boost his strength to this level, then there was no way he could fully use the strength of a true Eighth stage Elementalist. Of course, he wasn¡¯t saying that Grey wouldn¡¯t be able to beat an Eighth stage Elementalist, he only meant that if Grey met someone like Grey himself that was in the Eighth stage, he would lose. ¡°He tried, no one expected he would do this much, to be honest.¡± An Elder complimented Grey¡¯s effort so far. The other Elders nodded to his words when they heard it. The youths in the group were all awed by Grey¡¯s strength. It was out of their expectations that he was this powerful. There were a few people who looked down on him when they first met, there were even some who didn¡¯t really think much of him even after he killed that young lady in the Eighth stage. Now, however, the case was different. Grey was fighting against someone who could be said to be on the same level as some of them. He could even be stronger than a few of them, and he was not losing. Even though he was being suppressed, he hadn¡¯t lost yet and had even had flashes of brilliance where he suppressed his opponent. Unbeknownst to all of them present, Grey was hiding most of his cards because he wanted to make sure the young man would challenge him so he could insta-kill him. If he were to really use most of his cards, even without increasing his strength to the Ninth stage, he would be able to fight the young man in a much better state and not be suppressed by this much. 973 Cunning Move The young man continued attacking, it had been over five minutes now, and without the inscriptions, Grey hadn¡¯t been able to attack the young man. The young man had neutralized him. An attack soon came flying in that sent Grey in another direction. Grey¡¯s figure slammed into the ground and the aura of an Eighth stage Elementalist started to fade from his body, before long, he was back to the Fifth stage. ¡°Admit¡­¡± ¡°Not yet.¡± Grey interrupted the young man through ragged breath. It was obvious he was already at his limit. The old man didn¡¯t interfere any longer. He was trying to help Grey, but Grey seemed to be foolish for some reason. He even went as far as somewhat disrespecting him. ¡°Haha, I like your type. Now I can kill you with pleasure.¡± The young man laughed. Grey stood up and looked at the young man, ¡°You really think you can kill me?¡± The young man laughed before releasing an attack that sent Grey flying again. Grey spat out a mouthful of blood as he slammed into the ground. ¡°To think I was starting to get worried.¡± The young man scoffed when he saw Grey lying on the ground. He walked closer to Grey, to him, Grey was finished. He was a bit cautious, but he also didn¡¯t think Grey would be able to hold on much. Everyone could tell that this last attack took a lot out of Grey, who was bleeding from his mouth, nose, and in multiple places on his body. When he was around five meters away from Grey, his expression changed drastically. Not just him, but everyone watching the battle noticed something off as well and their eyes turned to Grey who was previously lying on the ground. He was no longer there. ¡®A trap!¡¯ This was the only thing that ran through the heads of everyone. The young man tried to move but he noticed his movements were a bit sluggish. Grey appeared behind him, a smirk on his face. ¡°You really think you could kill me?¡± Before his voice died down, he had already thrown a punch that connected cleanly on the back of the young man. This punch was enforced with his fire, lightning, and earth element, so the strength it packed was on another level. Being struck so closely by the attack, the young man spat out a mouthful of blood. When everyone looked at Grey, they noticed that he was back to the Eighth stage of the Sage Plane, and he looked to be as strong as before, if not stronger. Just as the audience were still thinking of something, Grey moved again. This time, he was faster than he previously was. A fire orb shot at the young man. As he tried to block it, he was sent flying by it. Everyone noticed the visible change in Grey¡¯s attack power. It was on another level. Only after inspection did those above the Sage Plane realize what was going on. ¡°He has been creating an array. Such a cunning fellow. Even I didn¡¯t notice it.¡± The old man muttered to himself. For Grey to hide something like this from the eyes of so many experts, showed how cunning he was. Not just that, but his skill in terms of array creation was on another level. ¡°Such a young and talented individual. He¡¯s¡­¡± The leader of the Burchard Family sighed as he looked at those youngsters from his Family. He couldn¡¯t even compare them to Grey. Not just them, even most of the Elders couldn¡¯t be compared to this youth. Grey was only around twenty to twenty-two years old, yet he was already a master at arrays, had great judgment when it came to battles, and he made the best decisions. From his inscriptions, everyone knew he must be good with arrays, but none of them expected him to do something like this. The young man who attacked Grey on the side of the Nether Faction felt the deepest regret he had ever felt. Had he killed Grey at that time, then he wouldn¡¯t have had to face such an opponent in the future. ¡®I¡¯ll have to kill him, no matter what.¡¯ Now, he felt Grey had shown if not all his cards, he must have used his important ones. They all felt Grey wouldn¡¯t be able to keep this state up for long. It was common knowledge that using a technique to boost your strength was the same as causing self-harm, especially one of Grey¡¯s level. Most of these techniques only boost an Elementalist¡¯s strength by a stage or so, but Grey¡¯s own gave him a three stage boost which was unheard of. Back on the platform. Grey was still attacking the young man. He wasn¡¯t giving him any chance to even recover. He moved close after sending him flying with a punch and kicked him into the air. His figure vanished and appeared above the young man. A large earth mace appeared and he grabbed it by the hilt and slammed it into the body of the young man. When it connected with the body of the young man, the young man crashed straight to the platform, and for the first time since the competition started, the platform shook. The impact of the attack exceeded everyone¡¯s expectations. Grey didn¡¯t stop there, this young man wanted to kill him, and of course, he would return the favor. Large boulders covered with blue flames appeared in the sky and crashed toward the ground. The young man was just getting to his feet when he saw them raining down on him. He was about to move when he felt his body slow down, not just that, but a figure appeared in front of him, holding onto a large lightning sword that he used to stab him in the chest. After Grey stabbed him, he vanished, letting him face the attacks of the boulders. Despair appeared in the eyes of the young man as he could only watch the boulders slam into his body. He didn¡¯t even have the time to admit defeat. From when Grey used his array till now was not more than a minute. In the space of one minute, the battle seemed to be decided. 974 They Know Each Other? ¡°He won¡­¡± Someone said after a moment of silence. They were all in shock after watching Grey¡¯s stunning performance. No one knew what to feel as they saw Grey defeat an opponent at the Peak of the Sage Plane while still in the Eighth stage. The most shocking thing about this was that not only did Grey win, but he also killed his opponent. It wasn¡¯t easy since it took a lot of planning from him, but it was still by no means an easy feat to achieve. An Eighth stage Sage Plane Elementalist killing a Peak Sage Plane Elementalist was unheard of. If it was by ambush or if the Peak Sage Plane Elementalist was injured, then it was understandable, but Grey killed this person in a one-on-one fight, fair and square. The people from both sides stared at the lone figure standing on the platform. It was evident that he was tired and injured, but none of that mattered right now. Grey looked at the corpse of the young man lying on the ground, after a shake of his head, he turned to the old man in charge of the battle, waiting for him to announce the result of the battle. Of course, everyone knew who the winner was, but they still had to wait for the old man¡¯s verdict. The old man only spoke after only a minute, giving Grey the go-ahead to leave the platform and return to his seat. When he walked back, everyone from the Burchard Family could only look at him, they didn¡¯t even have a word to say to him. They were too shaken to even say a word. He had advanced to the next round, the only person from the Burchard Family who has done that. There were still four people, but all of them were at the Peak of the Sage Plane. On the side of the Nether Faction, there was a look of disbelief in their eyes, none of them expected Grey to win. At this point, they all regarded him as a threat, and none of them thought of him as just a regular Fifth stage Elementalist, in fact, they all felt he was on the same level as those at the Peak. ¡®How strong would he be when he¡¯s at the Peak? Will he be able to defy the heavens and fight against an Elemental Venerable while still in the Sage Plane?¡¯ This thought flashed through the heads of everyone present. A Sage Plane Elementalist fighting against an Elemental Venerable was something they would never have thought of, but seeing Grey showcase his unfathomable talent and strength, they started to feel maybe it was possible if he was the one. The young man who tried to kill Grey was currently staring at the corpse on the platform which was currently being removed. That was the corpse of a Peak Sage Plane Elementalist, he was only in the Ninth stage, would he be a match for Grey? ¡®I¡¯ll use a special technique to boost my strength and kill him the moment the battle starts.¡¯ He thought to himself. He won¡¯t rest until Grey is dead. The Nether Faction still had a Peak Sage Plane Elementalist who hadn¡¯t challenged anyone. On the side of the Burchard Family, other than the four at the Peak, there was no one else for them to challenge. The last Peak Sage Plane Elementalist from the Nether Faction stepped forward and challenged the only young lady amongst the Peak Sage Plane Elementalists from the Burchard Family. After a hard battle, he won by a tiny margin. Unlike Grey, he was unable to kill his opponent. Now, the Burchard Family had only three people left, adding Grey who had already advanced made it four. The other three Peak Sage Plane Elementalists challenged one of those in the Ninth stage from the Nether Faction and won, none of them challenged the young man who attacked Grey. According to the way things usually went, after those at the Peak were done challenging, it would be the turn of those in the Ninth stage. Everyone turned to the old man, waiting for what he planned to do. ¡°Everything will go as planned.¡± The old man¡¯s voice echoed across the place. Those from the Ninth stage could only shake their heads with a wry smile, who could they challenge? Those at the Peak? Or the monstrous genius called Grey? One of them stepped forward, it was none other than the young man who tried to attack Grey. Standing on the platform, he turned to look in the direction of the old man, ¡°I can challenge any of them, correct?¡± ¡°Yes, since they¡¯ve all advanced, then yes, you can challenge whoever you see fit.¡± The old man replied. ¡°Alright.¡± The young man bowed before turning in Grey¡¯s direction, ¡°Come, we have some unfinished business.¡± Grey stood up and walked in the direction of the platform, his steps were steady, not too fast, not too slow. Everyone from the Burchard Family watched his back view as he climbed onto the platform. It hadn¡¯t been more than a minute since his last battle, and although he won, no one felt he had rested enough to be a hundred percent. ¡°I should¡¯ve killed you the other time.¡± The young man said when Grey stood opposite him. ¡°Regret it now?¡± Grey asked softly. ¡°I never regret any decision.¡± The young man snorted coldly. ¡°You will regret this one, I can assure you of that.¡± Grey spoke in a soft tone. It was clear that he wasn¡¯t putting in as much emotion as the young man. ¡°I can see your little performance has gotten to your head, you seem to have forgotten what happened the last time.¡± The young man raised a brow, he didn¡¯t attack Grey immediately. While the duo were exchanging words, everyone was watching them. ¡°They know each other?¡± Someone from the Nether Faction asked. ¡°Looks like it, and Lucien held back from killing him.¡± Bill said, not happy with Lucien¡¯s choice. The name of the young man who attacked Grey was Lucien. 975 Trampling A Genius Pride ¡°To think he wasn¡¯t lying when he said he came because of revenge.¡± Sylvia muttered to herself. The Elders by her side also felt the same way. When Sylvia told them that Grey only came because of revenge, they thought he was lying and only came because of the benefits, but now, it seemed to be another case. From the conversation between the two, they could guess that they have clashed in the past, and Lucien let Grey go. Well, although they didn¡¯t know the full story, they felt it was within that range. The old man looked at Grey and Lucien before telling them to start the battle. Neither of the duo made a move, they squared off, staring at each other before Lucien burst out chuckling. ¡°How about we follow the same rules as the last time?¡± He asked. ¡°With a little tweak.¡± Grey added. ¡°Yes, this time, instead of you trying to survive my blow, we¡¯ll decide the battle within a single attack.¡± Lucien said. ¡°If we dodge?¡± Grey asked. ¡°Then we fight!¡± Lucien said with his blood raging. It was evident that he had been holding it in for some time now, after seeing someone he beat up like a dead dog fighting so valiantly, he wanted to see if this was the same person as the last time they encountered each other. Grey smiled and nodded, ¡°Fine. I wouldn¡¯t mind exchanging a blow or two with you. But personally, I think one attack will be more than enough.¡± Seeing Grey oozing with confidence, Lucien chuckled, ¡°I feel the same too.¡± They both prepared themselves for the attack. Lucien used a special technique just like Grey to increase his strength to the Peak of the Sage Plane, while Grey on the other hand went to the Eighth stage once again. ¡°How many times can he use this technique?¡± Someone from the crowd couldn¡¯t help but ask. It was okay if he used it once since there would be a drawback after using such techniques, but Grey is using it for the fourth time now, it was unbelievable. ¡°It must be a technique from ancient times.¡± An Elder commented. When both parties were done charging up their attacks, they moved. Lucien was covered in lightning, looking like a lightning god as he shot toward Grey. Grey, on the other hand, looked like a normal person with a serene appearance, it was as if he was standing beside a still lake and had become one with it. There was no sign of movement from him. Only after Lucien had gotten closer did he finally make a move. His figure flashed and he also shot at his opponent. With the duo almost getting close to each other, they unleashed their attacks. Grey was a little slower, and Lucien attacked first. Those on the side of the Burchard Family stood up from their seats when they saw this. They all knew that in a battle between experts, a single second could decide life or death. Grey hesitating before he attacked had already given Lucien the advantage he needed. ¡°He¡¯s lost¡­¡± Some of the Elders were sad by the thought of this. Grey had been a wildcard since the start of the competition, but it seemed like his time was up. While those from the Burchard Family were feeling depressed, joy rose on the faces of those from the Nether Faction. Grey was the only anomaly, once he was taken out, then they had nothing to fear. However, the expression of everyone changed. The expected explosion they were waiting for never came, instead, to the shock of everyone, the attack phased right through the body of Grey who still continued his movement and closed in on Lucien. Everything happened within a second, so most people hadn¡¯t even finished expressing their previous emotions when this happened. With Grey phasing through the attack, he unleashed a fusion orb. It wasn¡¯t the original one, but a weaker version since it contained only three elements, lightning, fire, and space elements. The orb hit Lucien¡¯s body and exploded. This time, the expected explosion came, and its power exceeded their imaginations. Lucien¡¯s figure was sent flying before crashing on the ground of the platform. The entire place was silent, not even the sound of breathing could be heard, it was like a graveyard. Time went by and the explosion died down, Grey¡¯s figure soon came into view. Blood was dripping from the side of his mouth, but other than that, he was fine. He walked toward the body of Lucien who was still moving. ¡°Admit defeat.¡± The old man¡¯s voice came from the side. ¡°Ne¡­ver¡­ not¡­ to¡­ him. I¡¯d rather die.¡± Lucien struggled to speak as he dragged his body up weakly. ¡°Resilient.¡± Grey remarked. He didn¡¯t expect anything less from a genius though, for him to grow this strong meant that he was not only talented, but he had also gone through countless dangers. ¡°I can never lose to an opponent that I beat like a dead dog only two years ago.¡± Lucien spat out a mouthful of blood before steadying himself once again. Grey chuckled when he saw this. He could¡¯ve easily killed him, but he wanted to make sure that before the young man died, he accepted the fact that they were not on the same level. ¡°It¡¯s funny how things can change in only two years. From almost killing me to barely being able to survive a single attack from me.¡± Grey said with a smile. ¡°Two years, what can happen within two years?¡± Lucien asked with a lost look. ¡°Come, I¡¯ll show you what it means to be a true genius.¡± Grey¡¯s figure vanished and he appeared in the sky. ¡°Only when you can achieve half of what I can, then you can call yourself a genius.¡± Grey¡¯s arrogant voice echoed in the sky before everywhere changed. A roaring sea of flames appeared in the sky, and above the sea of flames was what seemed to be a lightning storm. ¡°Damn, he¡¯s trampling on his pride.¡± Everyone looked at the sky in awe, even the old man was shaken. Grey¡¯s talent was something he had never seen before. A twenty-two years old Sage Plane Elementalist has actually awoken two domains? And he could use them so freely! 976 Keep On Challenging Him Lucien stood motionless as he watched the colorful scene in the sky, he lost all hope at this moment. He was already in the Ninth stage of the Sage Plane, but he had not awakened his domain yet, but Grey who was only in the Fifth stage had awoken not just one but two. Just staring at the two told him they were not ordinary but top tier. Thinking about it, he couldn¡¯t help but shiver at the thought of Grey awakening another. Grey has used four elements; if he successfully awakens all of them before he becomes an Elemental Sovereign, then his name would surely shake the entire continent. All the geniuses in the area were staring at the sky in awe. Even some of the Elemental Sovereigns were still shocked by this. Some of them who had multiple elements had only awakened one, but Grey who was still in the Sage Plane had awoken two. If they knew that he awakened one of them when he was still in the Overlord Plane, then they would freak out even more. The domains moved down, enveloping Lucien who had dropped all defenses, he knew that against something like this, there was nothing he could do against it. Even if he used all his strength to create a defensive wall, he would still not be able to block it. Just as the attack was about to eliminate Lucien, he was covered by a protective wall. ¡°He¡¯s defenseless, you win.¡± The old man who had seemed to be on Grey¡¯s side said. Grey extinguished the attack before landing on the ground. He looked at the dazed eyes of Lucien. ¡°Tch.¡± He walked back to his seat. Since he was already victorious, there was no need to stand there. He knew that since he had defeated him, there was no need in killing him. Of course it would be better if he killed him, but since he can¡¯t kill him with the interference of the old man, he wouldn¡¯t force it. ¡°Thank you, Elder.¡± Lucien bowed to the old man before walking down the platform with a dull look in his eyes. It was evident that this ordeal broke him. Grey got back to his seat and didn¡¯t say a word to anyone, he shut his eyes and entered a state of meditation. The next person to step on the platform was from the Nether Faction. After the Burchard Family eliminated three of those in the Ninth stage, only two of them were left. Lucien had challenged Grey, and he was defeated. Now, it was the turn of the last person in the Ninth stage. The young man walked onto the platform, with a broad smile on his face, he pointed at a figure in the crowd of the Burchard Family, ¡°You, step out.¡± When everyone looked in the direction he was pointing at, only one figure was there, and this figure had his eyes closed. It was none other than Grey. Grey¡¯s last battles had exhausted him, although he had won these battles, everyone could see that he was slowly getting exhausted. Grey opened his eyes to look at the smug face of the young man. ¡°Elder, what¡¯s this, they can¡¯t challenge a single person over and over again.¡± The leader of the Burchard Family finally stood up. ¡°Actually, they can.¡± The old man replied. This hadn¡¯t happened before, but technically, it was not against the rules. The leader of the Burchard Family was about to speak when he noticed Grey was walking towards the platform. ¡®This kid.¡¯ He stopped himself before taking his seat. Since Grey had already stepped forward, then he would let him settle this himself. ¡°How long can you last in your current state?¡± The young man asked with a smile. Grey didn¡¯t reply to his words as he took a deep breath. He looked at the old man, waiting for him to give the go-ahead for the battle. The moment the old man gave the nod, Grey exploded out with terrifying power. This time, even those from the Nether Family couldn¡¯t sit still any longer. Even with all that Grey has been through, the fact that he could still use this much strength was beyond their expectations. Not just that, but Grey¡¯s explosive power was on another level. With every battle, the shock Grey gives them is larger than the last one. The young man seeing Grey use a stronger attack power than what he used before shocked him. He tried to block the orb coming his way, but he was sent flying by the impact of the attack. He couldn¡¯t even block it since the power was more than his own. Before he could hit the ground, Grey was already standing behind him, grabbing him with one hand, he slammed him into the ground, which already had both domains active. The young man was covered by the domain, he managed to resist for a little while, but he was soon unable to resist. The old man snapped his finger and Grey¡¯s domain was contained. He didn¡¯t forcefully extinguish it since it would cause a backlash on Grey. Grey seeing this knew it was his cue to stop fighting. He stopped and looked at the young man who barely had his eyes open. ¡°Longer than you, I presume.¡± He finally answered the young man¡¯s question before walking off. In the space of one hour, this was his third battle. He first fought against someone at the Peak, before fighting against Lucien, and now, he was fighting against another person. He darted a look at the old man as he was walking off and the old man shook his head at him. ¡®He doesn¡¯t want me to kill people anymore?¡¯ He thought to himself as he walked back. When he first started to fight, the old man allowed him to freely kill his opponents, but after killing two, the old man seemingly didn¡¯t want him to kill anyone else. ¡®Fine, winning is all that¡¯s important anyway. I don¡¯t think that moron would want to find trouble with me after beating him so much.¡¯ 977 Why Didnt I Think Of That Sooner?! The Nether Faction was looking at Grey with a look of shock and hatred. Of eleven people left, Grey had single-handedly eliminated three people. Adding the young lady in the Eighth stage, he had eliminated four people, which was almost one-fourth of all the people from the Nether Faction. Those at the Peak had only eliminated two people each, but Grey had eliminated double their figures. It was staggering when one realizes he is the one with the lowest level. He was still in the Fifth stage, well, no one believes that anyway. Grey was already in his seat, his eyes closed. This time, the leader of the Burchard Family approached him. ¡°Kid, are you okay?¡± He asked. ¡°I¡¯m good.¡± Grey opened his eyes to look at the man standing in front of him. ¡°Take this, it should help with healing your injuries and help you recover your elemental essence.¡± The leader tossed a small orb to him. The orb was only the size of a finger, but Grey could sense the powerful elemental essence stored in it, as well as the healing power it contained. Grey took it without hesitation, he needed this. Using the Fusion State so many times in such a short amount of time was a little tiring, it was already starting to take its toll on him, but he was trying his best to hide it from the view of people. Not just that, but he had been injured on some occasions, and even with the Fusion State, these injuries added to his exhaustion. He swallowed the orb that looked like a small pill before thanking the leader of the Burchard Family and shutting his eyes once again. He needed to make the most of the time he had right now. Currently, the Nether Faction had only five people, while the Burchard Family had four people. This was a large contrast when compared to the start of the second round when they had two more people. Now, they had only one extra person. According to the rules, Grey was the next person to challenge someone. When the old man turned to him, Grey shook his head. ¡°I¡¯ll pass.¡± The old man nodded. He turned to the Nether Faction¡¯s camp, signaling them that it was their turn once again. Bill wasn¡¯t the one to step out this time, rather, it was a young lady who was at the Peak. When she finished climbing the platform, her eyes trailed on the bodies of those at the Peak on the side of the Burchard Family before stopping on Grey¡¯s figure. Once again, he had been challenged. It was clear that those from the Nether Faction already saw him as a threat and wanted to eliminate him as soon as possible. The strength he had shown so far meant that he was no weaker than a Peak Sage Plane Elementalist, so they wanted to use the exhaustion strategy to eliminate him. Everyone could tell that he was already exhausted, so fighting against someone at the Peak should be out of bounds for him. ¡°Such a shameless group, if you know you¡¯re strong enough, why don¡¯t you challenge me?¡± Scott scolded. ¡°What do you mean? I only want a real challenge, and he¡¯s the strongest in your group. Do you think I want to lower my standards by fighting you? Dream on.¡± The young lady chuckled. Her words hit those geniuses from the Burchard Family heavily, however, they couldn¡¯t refute it. Grey does seem to be the strongest person in their group, so technically, she wasn¡¯t wrong. ¡°Fight me, let him rest.¡± Scott didn¡¯t want to give up. ¡°Do you have two domains?¡± The young lady asked with a mocking tone. ¡°I¡­¡± Scott wanted to say something but words couldn¡¯t leave his mouth. Yes, he had awakened his domain, but compared to a freakish entity like Grey, he only had one. ¡°Stay by the side and learn from him, it¡¯ll help you.¡± The young lady mocked. Grey was already on the platform at this time. His body language was the same as when he first stepped on the platform, and his expression, the same. ¡°You¡¯re something.¡± The young lady tried to start up a conversation with him. Grey looked at her for a second before turning his eyes to the old man. It was obvious that he didn¡¯t want to talk to the young lady, not just that, but he also wanted to leave this place as soon as he could. Seeing Grey¡¯s arrogant manner, the young lady snorted coldly. The old man gave the nod for the battle to start. The young lady attacked the moment the old man gave the nod for the start of the battle. Grey was already prepared for something like this as he blocked the attack but was pushed back. The young lady attacked once again with the lightning element. Grey used the Fusion State once again before dodging the attacks of the young lady. The young lady didn¡¯t want to give him the time he wanted since they already knew how dangerous he was. From his first battle with the young man at the Peak, they all could tell that he was an experienced fighter. The only thing the young lady felt gave her the advantage right now was that Grey was tired. Grey didn¡¯t start attacking immediately, he only focused on evading and blocking attacks. He was biding his time. ¡®The array I placed the last time has been wiped out. That cunning man.¡¯ Grey was thinking about how to fight against this person. He knew he could win, but with his current state, exploding out as he did against the young man in the Ninth stage was not a good idea since it will only exhaust him further. ¡®I¡¯ll take her out with a single attack.¡¯ Grey planned his next move as he waited patiently. He was waiting for an opening, one that he could use to take down his opponent without wasting too much energy. He suddenly recalled something and couldn¡¯t help but want to smack his head. ¡®Why didn¡¯t I think of that sooner?!¡¯ 978 Resorting To Devious Methods A clear thought out plan appeared in Grey¡¯s mind as he planned to implement it as soon as possible. He needed to make sure he eliminated the young lady with the shortest effort. Everyone watching the battle could tell that he was being suppressed, but for some reason, no one felt that he had lost. Given the surprises he had given them since the start of the competition, they couldn¡¯t rule him out from anything, if anything, some of them, especially those from the Burchard Family felt that he would once again produce a miracle. The battle continued, with the young lady attacking with multiple lightning attacks. Grey evaded and blocked the attacks he could while occasionally countering as well. He had been hit by a few attacks which had caused him a few injuries. Just when the young lady was starting to get the confidence that she would be able to take him out, something happened that shocked everyone in the area. Grey¡¯s eyes glowed with a pale blue light as a light beam shot out from his eyes into the eyes of the young lady. It happened so fast that no one expected it. The young lady froze, seemingly unable to move. Ice crystals started to form around her body as she visibly started to freeze. Grey used the opportunity he had presented himself and attacked. Three inscriptions appeared in the sky while his domains also appeared. An orb appeared on his fingertip that he sent in the direction of the young lady. Boom! Just as the young lady was about to regain some clarity, she saw the attacks coming her way and tried to block them, but it knocked her flying. Grey¡¯s figure appeared beside her and she felt a powerful repulsion force that sent her in the direction of the explosion. Grey¡¯s plan was clear, he wanted to make sure she suffered from the attack. The young lady slammed into the area of the explosion and her scream resonated in the area. The old man sighed with a shake of his head, even he was starting to fear Grey at the moment. With a wave of his hand, he removed the young lady from harm¡¯s way. ¡°You win.¡± Grey nodded before walking back to his seat. ¡®Just how many trump cards does he have?¡¯ This was what was going through every single individual¡¯s mind. Grey had come up with a trump card in each of his battles to defeat his opponents. What was worse was that he never showed all of them at once. Whenever people thought he had used everything, he would use another one that no one knew of, making life hell for his opponents. ¡®Icy flames, is that even possible?¡¯ The old man looked at Grey. Grey had used his blue flames which were clearly special flames, but from this mental attack he did just now, everyone saw the ice crystals forming on the body of the young lady. This meant only one thing, Grey had two special flames. He was the first person they had heard of having such an ability. ¡®This kid, he¡¯s going to shake the world very soon.¡¯ The old man kept giving Grey a long look before looking away. Those from the Burchard Family watched Grey return to his seat with shock on their faces. Every single time he had returned from a battle, shock had appeared on the faces of those from the Burchard Family, it was almost like they didn¡¯t know what else to feel. They couldn¡¯t be blamed since every time Grey fought, he shocked them with his abilities. Now, they were all looking at Sylvia, seemingly wondering how she managed to get such a monster to fight for them. On the side of the Nether Faction, the faces of everyone, including the youths, were sour. Grey had single-handedly changed the tides of the competition. Even though the competition had not ended, the advantage the Nether Faction had over the Burchard Family was gone. Now, both sides had four members left, and each person stepping out to challenge someone had only one chance. If one of them lost and someone from the Burchard Family won, that would put them at the disadvantage. From having a large advantage to being equal and even risking being at the disadvantage. Before coming here, if they were told they would face a situation like this, they wouldn¡¯t believe it, especially since the person changing everything was a young man in the Fifth stage. Scott recalled when he mocked those from the Burchard Family when he sensed Grey¡¯s aura at that time. From what has happened, he felt embarrassed at the thought of it. Now he understood why those from the Burchard Family didn¡¯t bother with him when he mocked them. ¡°You¡¯re going next, he¡¯s exhausted, this is your chance. Eliminate him, use that technique.¡± Scott said to the young man standing close to him. This young man could be regarded as the second strongest individual from the Nether Faction in the Sage Plane, only below Scott, however, Scott was even telling him to use a secret technique to increase his strength so he could defeat Grey. The young man nodded his head before walking to the platform. When he stood there, unlike others, he looked at Grey, his intentions were clear, and he wanted to challenge Grey. Grey, who hadn¡¯t even gotten up to three minutes of rest, saw that he was being challenged once again. ¡°That¡¯s not fair, this is too much.¡± This time, everyone from the Burchard Family stood up. They couldn¡¯t afford to allow Grey to lose. They could tell that as long as he rested, then he had a good chance of even challenging Scott. Why would they want their lucky star to risk being eliminated by such devious methods of the Nether Faction? The last three people who had stepped forward from the Burchard Family had challenged Grey. Adding this young man made it four. If Grey fought four intense battles, they didn¡¯t think he would be able to create another miracle after the previous three. 979 Can He Still Fight? ¡°It¡¯s not against the rules, unless he¡¯s willing to forfeit this round which means he would be eliminated.¡± The old man said. Although he hated to admit it, this seemed a little too much, but there was nothing he could do about it. It was something that had been agreed upon from the start, and he was sure even the Burchard Family would resort to such means if there was someone of Grey¡¯s caliber on the other side that would destroy their chances of winning the competition. Everyone knew how valuable that place was to the Nether Faction. ¡°Why are you clowns jumping? The person being challenged is walking to the platform.¡± The leader of the Nether Faction said coldly. When everyone looked, they saw Grey walking to the platform. Anger rose in the faces of those from the Burchard Family. They all knew that there was no way Grey would want to give up his chance of entering the secret realm after spending so much effort. But fighting against this young man was very dangerous, especially given his current state. When Grey stepped on the platform, unlike the previous people, this young man didn¡¯t say a word, he turned to look at the old man, waiting for the start of the battle. Grey took in a deep breath and his aura changed instantly. The old man gave the go-ahead for the start of the battle. Grey didn¡¯t want to use the top level of the Fusion State since he didn¡¯t want to expose all his cards, but these people were forcing him. ¡®If only there was a way I could get Void to help me. Damn these people, if not for this old man, I would be killing all of them to deter them from challenging me next time.¡¯ Grey felt aggrieved internally. This was not what he wanted from the start. He thought he would fight a few battles and then win the competition. Now, he had already eliminated five people, that was one-fourth of everyone from the Nether Faction. He had already gotten more than double the eliminations of each person still here. If he were to defeat this young man as well, that would make it six. The fact that a single person could achieve such a feat in a competition of twenty individuals each was more than remarkable. Grey¡¯s battle record at the moment was already regarded as heaven-defying, adding more wins to it would just make him a genius like no other. Well, he¡¯s already seen as a genius like no other from what he had done so far. The young man was a Dual Elementalist. He had both the lightning and darkness element. He used the lightning element to unleash a thunderbolt at Grey who dodged. However, Grey noticed where he stepped on was covered by total darkness. ¡®Crap, a domain!¡¯ The first person who had awakened his domain amongst those at the Peak had appeared, and he wasn¡¯t holding back one bit. Grey was a dangerous opponent, and he didn¡¯t want to take any chances. In the midst of the darkness, Grey¡¯s blue flames exploded out, forcing the darkness back. However, the darkness started to consume the flames and it seemed to start to grow stronger than it previously was. ¡®Seriously?!¡¯ Grey felt annoyed. He had always hated the darkness element, now, being trapped in a darkness domain was infuriating. He had tried to use the space element to escape, but whenever he opened a spatial tunnel, it would corrode it, making it unstable. ¡®Damn it!¡¯ He complained when he noticed the darkness energy was trying to enter his body to cause damage. However, it was soon swallowed up by the miasma in his body. ¡®Oh, I totally forgot about this guy.¡¯ After this, he calmed down and soon prepared for his next attack. He took one step back with his right leg and a sword appeared in his hand, it was none other than that sword he got from the trial land that could use all the elements. He infused it with the space element, he moved the hand back and slashed forward. ¡°Dimensional slash!¡± A large part of the darkness was cut open and the young man coughed up a mouthful of blood. After using dimensional slash, Grey followed up with a fire attack that exploded out, disintegrating the rest of the darkness. Grey¡¯s figure who was holding a sword in his hand appeared in view of everyone once again. Grey¡¯s figure flashed and he moved closer to the young man with the sword in his hand. He unleashed another fire attack on the young man. This time, the attack power was more than what it previously was. The young man tried to block the attack with a darkness screen that appeared in front of him. The attacks slashed open a hole in the shield as Grey used the lightning attack to pass through the hole he opened. The young man moved to the left to avoid the attack. However, he was met with a fire beam that shot out from one of the inscriptions in the sky. The young man blocked it. Since the attack power wasn¡¯t on the same level as Grey¡¯s usual attack, it didn¡¯t cause him any problems. He continued to move from side to side as he dodged Grey¡¯s attack. Seeing what the young man was planning to do, Grey kept the sword. Just like before, the consumption in the long run was too much for him, so he didn¡¯t want to waste his essence. The young man had noticed that Grey was using the sword sparingly, so he knew there was definitely something wrong with it. Now that he saw Grey keeping it, he confirmed his guess. He attacked when after Grey kept it, and with his attack power, Grey was once again put on the defensive. With the help of the lightning element, the young man moved closer to Grey, but just as he was about to get close, he sensed something and retreated. ¡°You want to use that thing against me? Heh, do I look like those inexperienced fools?¡± The young man smirked. 980 Who The Hell Is This Kid? Grey didn¡¯t reply to the young man¡¯s words. When the young man tried to come close to him, he unleashed the gravitational force trying to catch the young man off guard, but the young man seemed to have been monitoring him for a while, so when he noticed this, he retreated without hesitation. He stood and looked at the young man who was standing opposite him. The darkness domain the young man had made him one of Grey¡¯s toughest opponents so far. Other than that man from another realm who almost killed Grey, this young man was the strongest. The young man smiled when he saw Grey¡¯s expression before sending out a series of lightning bolt attacks at Grey. Grey dodged the attacks as he countered as well. With a fireball and fire beams, then there were the inscriptions that were also sending out attacks. The young man was quite stronger than Grey, and it was evident from his attacks since whenever they collided head-on, Grey would always be pushed back by the impact of the attack. He couldn¡¯t fight against it since he was still in the Eighth stage, after all. Grey¡¯s eyes glowed with a pale blue light, but the moment the attack hit the young man, even before the ice started to form on his body, he exploded out with lightning, covering himself with it. Grey¡¯s attack was made futile since it didn¡¯t even stop the young man for even a second. The young man soon released an orb into the sky that exploded. It was made from the darkness element, and as soon as it exploded, it released tiny particles of darkness essence across the platform. Seeing this, Grey knew his plan, but he wasn¡¯t worried about it. The darkness element had little to no effect on him, so he wasn¡¯t too bothered with what effects it would have. He focused his efforts on trying to get more chances in attacking, but the young man¡¯s darkness element attack power saw an increase of almost twenty percent. Grey¡¯s earth wall was corroded through, and he was open to attacks. The darkness element was already causing a problem for Grey, with the addition of this darkness essence on the platform, made things worse. Just as the battle was about to get past the five minutes mark, the platform lit up. Grey had been preparing an array just like before, and just in the same manner, no one noticed him when he was doing this. The platform lit up and Grey¡¯s figure started to move around the platform at an insane speed. The only thing that those below the Ninth stage of the Sage Plane could see were multiple afterimages. They didn¡¯t know which one was the real one. The young man he was fighting against didn¡¯t have this problem, although he has been able to keep track, he was a little slower compared to Grey when it came to speed and he wasn¡¯t able to attack Grey even when he wanted to. Grey started to attack with three elements, he focused the space element on moving while he used the others, as well as the earth element to attack the young man. Seeing that Grey was starting to get the upper hand for the first time in the battle, those from the Burchard Family cheered while those from the Nether Faction had worried looks. If Grey were to defeat this young man as well, that would put the number of people he had defeated to six, a staggering number. This was not the main issue, the main issue was that the Burchard Family will have four members, while the Nether Faction would have only three left. Of course they were the ones challenging now, but these numbers would not make things easy. If for one thing, Grey had substantially shattered their morale, so even when they want to fight, they wouldn¡¯t be on the level they were at first. ¡°Who the hell is this kid?¡± The leader of the Nether Faction was fuming. No one answered his question since none of them knew the answer to it. Grey seemed to appear out of nowhere, and now, he was looking to be the downfall of the Nether Faction. They couldn¡¯t afford to lose the secret realm, unfortunately, their only chance of taking out Grey seems to be on the verge of being wiped out. If Grey wins this, they could not risk sending out someone else to fight against him. However, if they didn¡¯t send someone else to fight him, then they would give him the time he needed to rest, so even if one or two gets to the next round, it wouldn¡¯t matter. ¡°Don¡¯t worry, he knows what to do. I¡¯ve told him to use that technique.¡± Bill said when he saw the leader of the Faction losing it. ¡°That? Hmm, it¡¯s not a loss if both are taken out. Scott has never been your opponent.¡± The leader calmed down visibly. Back on the platform. The young man had changed from attack to defense. He knew in terms of speed, he was lacking compared to a Space Elementalist who got a boost from an array. Grey was using as many techniques as he could, but the young man was standing strong. With every attack Grey sent his way, he would either block or evade. He didn¡¯t dare to allow Grey to get close to him since he knew how impactful the gravitational force field was. Grey sent out a stream of fire, but it was cut open by a lightning blade. He tried to use an earth hammer to slam the young man into the ground, but he dodged to the left, barely escaping the attack. He used the space element to get close to him so he could use the gravitational force field, but the moment Grey appeared beside him, the young man moved away. After watching Grey fight for some time, he was using the experience to fight against him. ¡®Sneaky guy, unfortunately, you¡¯re falling into my trap.¡¯ Grey thought internally, not bothered by the young man¡¯s movement. 981 Somethings Wrong Grey was secretly preparing another array with each attack he unleashes. As long as the young man continued dodging in this manner, Grey would complete a terrifying attack array that might have the power to one-shot this young man. With every attack he sends out, he would take out a portion of it and infuse it with the array he was creating. Once the array was finished, the attack power might even exceed the Sage Plane realm. This was all on the premise that the young man continues dodging and blocking which he is currently doing. The young man didn¡¯t want Grey to hit him with any attack since it would be dangerous for him. Grey didn¡¯t give him any chance as he continued his onslaught of attacks. Since the young man wanted to keep up with this, he didn¡¯t mind entertaining him. The young man continued defending as Grey continued attacking. As time went on, the young man soon noticed that something was wrong. Grey didn¡¯t seem to be going for the killer blow, rather, he was only just attacking willfully. Whenever the young man tried to relieve the pressure, Grey didn¡¯t even mind using his domain. ¡°What¡¯s he doing?¡± This was the question running through the head of everyone in the place as they saw Grey. It was only after another minute did they understand what was happening ¡°Another array.¡± The old man was the first to notice it. ¡°You¡¯re¡­¡± ¡°Correct, and you fell for it.¡± Grey smirked as a large inscription, different from what he had been doing ever since appeared. This time, the young man felt the threat of death. If a single attack from this inscription connected with him, he was done for. The young man¡¯s aura suddenly exploded, his strength going almost past the Sage Plane. This wasn¡¯t the time to keep any of his strength hidden. Grey, seeing this, knew that things had started to get serious. He didn¡¯t hold back and unleashed an attack from the inscription he just made. The speed and power of the attack were shocking. Just as the attack was about to hit the young man, he used the darkness element to counter, trying to use the corroding properties to block the attack. The two attacks collided and caused an explosion. The young man attacked, while Grey also continued his attacks. He didn¡¯t use the inscription in every attack since it would be a waste. Every attack now was deadly and if any of them were to slip up even for a second, then they would lose this battle. The young man used the lightning element to attack, but Grey dodged before using his earth element to send the young man up into the air. The young man took flight, stabilizing himself before attacking Grey who was below him. Grey vanished and appeared in the sky as well, facing off against the young man as they fought fiercely. Not being on the ground gave away one of Grey¡¯s flaws, the array he made on the platform which was boosting his speed and attack power didn¡¯t have a hundred percent effect in the air. Previously, he had an increase of about fifteen percent, but now, he had only around seven to eight percent increase. In such a battle, a drop of strength of this level was very dangerous since it would give his opponent the opportunity he needed. The young man noticed this and started a fierce counter. Grey didn¡¯t back down either, he continued attacking. Boulders covered in scorching flames appeared in the sky and each of them shot at the young man. The young man confidently maneuvered through them while also destroying the few he couldn¡¯t dodge. Grey unleashed an attack from the inscription, while also using his domain to try to hold the young man in one place. The young man dodged and rushed out of the area. He used his darkness domain to help himself against Grey¡¯s domain. Grey called on his lightning domain as well, making sure the power could suppress the darkness domain of the young man. The young man didn¡¯t want to be defeated, so for the first time since the battle started, he took the initiative to move closer to Grey. Seeing this, Grey¡¯s eyes lit up. Of course he was not going to let this chance slip by. However, contrary to what the young man expected, the gravitational force field didn¡¯t come, and neither did Grey go close to him, rather, he felt a repulsive force that sent him flying back. Behind him, the inscription had already been loaded up, ready to attack. ¡®Damn it!¡¯ He complained internally. He covered himself with his darkness domain while also using an attack, trying to see if he could break apart the inscription. Unfortunately, he was unsuccessful and the attack from the inscription shot out, cleanly striking the body of the young man which was not only covered by the darkness domain, it was also covered in double armor of the darkness and lightning element. These were the last resort of the young man, if even these were unable to block this attack from Grey, then he was done for. The attack hit him cleanly, knocking him back in the direction he was coming from. Grey was waiting for him, just as the figure shot out of the explosion, heading in Grey¡¯s direction, Grey¡¯s expression changed drastically, without even thinking, he turned around and tried to bolt away. The young man¡¯s domain had been destroyed, his darkness and lightning armor were shattered and he was bleeding from all seven orifices. His clothes were a mess, but he was headed toward Grey with a deadly aura revolving around him. Grey felt a threat, hence he didn¡¯t think twice before trying to escape. Teleportation might not be able to help him at the moment, so he wanted to use his speed to escape from the young man¡¯s grasp. The young man¡¯s eyes were red as he rushed after Grey. 982 A Cut Above The Rest Grey rushed across the platform with the young man behind him, frantically trying to get a hold of him. Everyone could see the crazed look in the eyes of the young man. No one could say anything since the battle wasn¡¯t over yet, and if anything, he was the one in a bad state, so those from the Burchard Family were a little helpless. They could feel their hearts throbbing from anxiety. The young man¡¯s plan was as clear as day, Grey moved as fast as lightning, but the young man was right behind him. Given their small space, it was a little harder to maneuver from such a race. Thinking hard, Grey flew down, landing on the platform. This was the place he had the highest advantage. With the help of his arrays, he could move faster and probably might be able to even knock the young man away. The young man attacked with the lightning element, his attack power seemingly seeing an almost thirty percent increase. Grey dodged the attack, but was met with another fierce attack from his opponent. He couldn¡¯t dodge this one, so he blocked it, but it pushed him back. Before he could retain his footing, the young man was already getting close to him. Without even thinking, he used the gravitational force field, while also using the repulsive force from the space element to push the young man away from where he was standing. The young man took on everything, discarding his safety as he tried to shorten the gap between them. ¡®Does he want to sacrifice his life?¡¯ Grey almost freaked out when he saw this. The young man¡¯s flesh was starting to peel off from the pressure of both the gravitational force field and the space element attack he used, but the young man refused to budge, edging closer to Grey. An orb appeared in Grey¡¯s hand as he sent it at the young man. Since he wanted to take on attacks this much, then he would entertain him. Just as the attack was about to hit the young man, he moved. ¡®Got you.¡¯ Grey smiled and the inscription lit up, firing an attack to the right side of the young man even before he moved. When he released the first attack, he studied the young man¡¯s body language, he predicted the side he would move to when he wanted to dodge the attack, so he used the inscription which had a higher attack power to attack that area. As long as the young man landed there, he would find it almost impossible to dodge this attack. The young man saw Grey¡¯s attack coming, but he couldn¡¯t stop his body since he had already taken the step. Stopping now would be even more dangerous. Gritting his teeth, he shot a beam of darkness at the attack coming his way. The two attacks collided and an explosion followed suit. Grey and the young man were relatively close to where the explosion took place, so both of them were affected by the attack. The young man was closer to it, so he felt the full brunt of it. Grey was forced back, but with the help of the earth armor he created, he was safe. The young man on the other hand was caught up in the explosion. His figure soon vanished from everyone¡¯s line of view. Grey squinted his eyes to look at the explosion, and his eyes changed when he saw something coming at him. ¡®Damn it! What the hell is wrong with this guy?¡¯ He was visibly getting upset by the young man. The young man¡¯s figure shot out of the place where the explosion took place, bloodied, but he was still rushing after Grey. This time, his speed was faster than before. Grey tried to dodge, but the young man moved too fast, and he never expected he would attack him even after being hit by such an attack. The young man soon got to where Grey was standing, and just as he was about to grab a hold of Grey, something else happened. Grey suddenly exploded out with an explosive punch. The force and speed behind the punch was out of the world. No one expected Grey to use his physical strength to attack, but the result of it stunned everyone. The punch connected cleanly with the chest of the young man, and he spat out a mouthful of blood before slamming into the ground, bouncing off a couple of times. This time, unlike before, he didn¡¯t stand up immediately. His figure was already very close to being disfigured from the previous attacks, now, his chest was caved in, and it was evident that some of his ribs were broken. ¡°Give up, you¡¯re powerful, but you can not defeat me.¡± Grey couldn¡¯t help but say. The young man was breathing heavily, but he still forced himself to stand up. ¡°if you continue, you will die.¡± Grey¡¯s eyes turned cold as he looked at the young man, after not getting any response, he added, ¡°I have no problems with ending you though.¡± The young man raised his head as he looked at Grey. ¡°Do¡­ you think you can kill me?¡± The young man paused mid-sentence to spit out the blood in his mouth. Even after being battered, he still didn¡¯t want to give up. Grey¡¯s breath wasn¡¯t that relaxed, it was clear that the battle had been very taxing for him. If the battle continued at the same intensity, he might not be able to hold on. Gritting his teeth, the young man moved out once again. ¡®Fuck!¡¯ Grey cursed internally. Now he knew how it felt to fight against an opponent who refuses to give up. It was irritating. Even after everything the young man had gone through, he still wanted to fight against him. ¡®Fine, I¡¯ll kill you. I¡¯m done playing.¡¯ Grey¡¯s eyes changed, and he entered a different mode. Everyone noticed the sudden change in Grey¡¯s aura and they couldn¡¯t help but shiver at the sight of it. ¡°Such bloodlust, is he even a kid?¡± The Elders from the Burchard Family looked at Grey in shock. For him to have this high level of bloodlust meant that he had killed countless people. Grey was out to kill now, he wouldn¡¯t hold back anymore. Boom! With Grey at the center, a powerful energy spread out and Grey¡¯s aura which was on the Eighth stage moved up by a stage, entering the Ninth stage. ¡°What?!¡± The old man stood up from his seat, he was dumbstruck. Grey being able to increase his strength by three stages was already shocking enough, now, he could actually increase by a stage further? What does that mean? An increase of four stages! ¡°Impossible!¡± Those from the Nether Faction all stood up as they saw Grey. Lucien in particular already felt Grey was too strong when they fought, but seeing him still have such a trump card hidden, he couldn¡¯t help but shake his head in defeat. Grey held back when fighting against him, and he still almost killed him. This meant that Grey never took him seriously from the start. And he thought their battle was a close one. While everyone was still in a state of shock, Grey¡¯s aura didn¡¯t stop there, it edged very close to the Peak of the Sage Plane before coming to a stop. Everyone noticed that it took a toll on Grey since he looked skinnier compared to how he was before. ¡®As expected, it¡¯s not free. No wonder he had never used this stage before. His body can¡¯t take more than this.¡¯ This was what everyone thought. However, they didn¡¯t know this was Grey¡¯s doing since he didn¡¯t want them to think that he was using such a technique without any repercussions. If they knew, they might want to kill him just to get the technique. That was a risk he was not willing to take. The young man attacked, but he was met with a strong defensive wall set up by Grey. Grey stepped out from the wall and attacked with the fire element. Lightning butterflies soon appeared on the platform. Each of them were made from silver lightning. Not just these butterflies, but there were mixes of pale blue butterflies as well. Grey was using his icy flames now. His icy flame domain appeared at this moment as well. The young man unleashed his darkness domain once again as he tried to fight off Grey¡¯s attacks. The moment Grey increased his cultivation stage, his power saw another increase and he started to overwhelm the young man. The young man could barely block any of Grey¡¯s attacks since they were more than what it previously was. With the addition of the array, Grey¡¯s attack power was on the level of those at the Peak of the Sage Plane. ¡°This kid¡­¡± No one knew how to rate Grey any longer. He had already gone above all their previous ratings. 983 Lets Make It More Interesting Grey walked closer to the young man with a confident smile on his face. He was not flustered by the pressure he was getting from those watching, he knew this was a battle he could¡¯ve won easily if not for the fact that he was trying to hide his true strength. The young man was being forced back with every attack. He had to also make sure that he wasn¡¯t touched by any of the butterflies. There was a time he accidentally got hit by it and the explosion sent him flying. He slammed into more of the butterflies which caused his injuries to further increase. On the side of the Nether Faction, Bill and the leader of the Faction had sour faces. From the way things were going, there was no way the young man could use the technique they wanted him to use. If he couldn¡¯t use it, then Grey would win. Bill looked at the Faction leader worriedly. If Grey won this, they couldn¡¯t take the risk of fighting against him, but letting him recover was the worst since he would get all the time he needed to recover most of his strength. ¡°This time, the increase definitely affected him. All he needs to do is to hang in there for a little longer, even if he can¡¯t win, let him force that kid to stay in this state for a little longer so the havoc that would be caused by the use of such a technique would be too much for him to bear in his next battle.¡± The leader said with a grin. Even if the young man would lose this round, it was already obvious that he had forced Grey beyond his limit. As long as Grey stayed in such a state for too long, it would definitely affect him. This way, the next person who would step on stage would challenge him immediately and end him. He could even kill him, making the two sides tally on the same numbers. If the young man can¡¯t force Grey to even the level where he couldn¡¯t fight again, then he would be a disappointment. On the side of the Burchard Family. ¡°Do you think he can fight again?¡± Scott asked. ¡°I don¡¯t think so, his condition doesn¡¯t look too good. The fact that he can still stand after what his body is going through is already testament of his incredible will and persistence. I¡¯m afraid he would need months to recover from this.¡± An Elder replied with the shake of his head. No one argued with him since they all felt he was correct. Everyone could see how dried up Grey had become. As the battle went longer, Grey seemed to be reducing in size as well. If this were to go on for ten more minutes, Grey might die even before the young man gave up. Back on the platform. Grey was attacking the young man who was frantically trying to escape. He wasn¡¯t even trying to defend since he knew it was of no use. If he dared to block, the attack power would push him back. The butterflies on the platform were still there, so was the array as well as the inscription. Grey completely dominated this young man, and he was not trying to hold back. He wanted to unleash a dimensional slash, but thinking about the fact that the young man might dodge it, he halted and used another attack. He used a fire blade, trying to cut the young man apart. The young man dodged the attack, retreating to the left. But he was met with an attack from the inscription which sent him flying even after he set up a defensive wall. His injuries worsened and he spat out a mouthful of blood. At the moment, he barely looked like a person. He was badly mutilated, and his skin had been burnt by the flames of Grey. He has not only suffered from burns in this battle, but he had also been attacked by extreme cold, and also shocked by lightning. In short, he had taken a lot of attacks, but he was not one to give up so early. Grey looked at the young man with an irritated look. ¡°Give up or die.¡± He raised his hand and a pulling force dragged the young man in his direction. As the young man was getting close to him, he attacked. Since he didn¡¯t have control over his body, he wanted to force Grey to leave him, so that he could escape. The attack was strong and deadly, if it hit Grey, even with his improvement, he would still be badly injured by it. Seeing that Grey was not moving, a smirk appeared on the face of the young man. ¡®You¡¯re too confident.¡¯ He wanted to speak this out but he couldn¡¯t. Grey didn¡¯t move and inch as his hand was still outstretched. Just when everyone thought the attack was about to hit him, it passed through him. ¡®An afterimage?¡¯ Surprise appeared on the face of the young man, but he soon noticed something was wrong. If this was an afterimage, he shouldn¡¯t be heading in the same direction. Grey¡¯s technique should¡¯ve been broken by now with the change in his location. ¡®Crap!¡¯ Grey¡¯s figure soon appeared again, it was like he was stuck between the physical and spiritual worlds. The young man¡¯s vision soon went black, this time, Grey¡¯s attack came crashing down on him like a tidal wave. Grey¡¯s fist also came slamming down on his head, he wanted to take him out. But just as Grey¡¯s fist was about to hit the young man, he felt a protective shield guarding the young man. He turned his head to where the old man was sitting once again. The old man shrugged before waving his hand, sending the young man back to the Nether Faction so he could receive treatment. If he was left unattended, he might risk suffering heavily from this. Grey walked off the platform as fast as he could. He had already exited the Fusion State, and he also made sure to look as downtrodden as he could. He dragged himself back to his seat, and this time, before he even got to his seat, he felt a strange energy entering his body. He naturally wanted to force it out, but then a voice sounded out from the crowd. ¡°I¡¯m trying to help, don¡¯t worry, I won¡¯t pry.¡± Grey didn¡¯t say anything as he sat down, took a healing tonic and sat down in a crossed leg position. He started recovering and a speed visible to the human eyes. The reason he did this was simple, if he didn¡¯t do it and was slow in recovering, he might be challenged again, and fighting in that state was not good for him. Bill soon stepped on the platform. ¡°Since everyone is challenging you, I want to try my hand as well.¡± Everyone understood what the Nether Faction was trying to do. ¡°I never took you for a coward.¡± Scott¡¯s mocking voice came from the side of the Burchard Family. ¡°Me, a coward?¡± Bill raised a brow. ¡°Yes, you¡¯re a coward. Everyone from the Nether Faction is a coward. What can you do about it?¡± Scott said coldly. ¡°I¡¯ll handle you later, but for now, I have a target in sight. Besides, I only want to exchange views on cultivation with him. I like geniuses like him.¡± Bill chuckled. He knew Scott¡¯s plan, and there was no way he would fall for it. ¡°Fight me then, if you have the guts.¡± Scott stood up. ¡°Sit down, I¡¯ll deal with you later. I challenged him, let him come.¡± Bill wasn¡¯t bothered. As long as Grey doesn¡¯t step up within the next minute, it would mean he forfeited the battle and that meant that he won. All they wanted was to take out Grey, no matter the method used. Grey opened his eyes and looked at Bill who was staring at him. ¡°You¡¯ve done enough already, forfeit this battle.¡± The leader of the Burchard Family said. Grey turned to look at him, before staring at Sylvia who also nodded her head. They could all see how much his last battle cost him, if he dared to fight again, then the result for him might not be good. As much as they wanted to win, they didn¡¯t want to ruin such a genius. With Grey still sitting down, Bill turned to the old man. ¡°Elder, as you can see, he¡¯s obviously not stepping up. That means¡­¡± Bill was still speaking when he heard the footsteps of Grey. ¡°Since you dared to challenge me, of course I¡¯ll date to accept it.¡± Grey said with a smile. ¡°Haha, I like you.¡± Bill laughed. p-n0ve1¡¢com ¡°Why don¡¯t we make this a little more interesting.¡± Grey chuckled. ¡°Oh, you have a wish?¡± Bill asked. ¡°A deathmatch. How about that?¡± Grey asked with a smile. ¡°Oh.¡± Everyone gasped when they heard Grey¡¯s statement. 984 Bills Strength ¡°You want a deathmatch with me?¡± Bill was a little taken aback by Grey¡¯s demand. He originally thought Grey wanted to bet something valuable, he never thought he would want to throw his life away. Yes, he would not deny it, Grey was as powerful as he was, but not in his current state. After Grey¡¯s last battle, it was evident that he was not even seventy percent, much less a hundred percent. If Grey fought against the young man he fought against previously in his current state, everyone felt he would lose. ¡°Yes, are you afraid?¡± Grey nodded as he looked at Bill with a mocking smile. ¡°To think you would want to throw your life away.¡± Bill laughed with a shake of his head. ¡°Grey, you don¡¯t have to do this.¡± Sylvia spoke up. ¡°Don¡¯t worry, I¡¯ll be fine.¡± Grey turned to Sylvia. Sylvia saw his face and nodded before taking a seat. ¡°Won¡¯t you try to discourage him?¡± Scott asked. ¡°I tried, he refused.¡± Sylvia replied. ¡°You only tried once.¡± Scott looked at her with an odd look. ¡°Once is enough. If he doesn¡¯t listen to me once, then he wouldn¡¯t listen to me even if I say it a hundred times.¡± Sylvia shrugged. ¡°You¡­¡± Scott sighed before shaking his head, ¡°He¡¯s overestimating himself. Sometimes, overconfidence isn¡¯t a good thing. Geniuses like him fall too early.¡± The Elders by the side all nodded to his words. It¡¯s good to be confident, but one should also know when to give up. On the side of the Nether Faction. The Faction leader had a smirk on his face. Grey had been a torn on their side, if they could kill him, then it was worth it. Bill was powerful, to them, he was more powerful than Scott. As long as he took out Grey, Scott would not be a problem. Back on the platform. ¡°You know, you should listen to them.¡± Bill said slowly. He wasn¡¯t in a hurry. Although he was also confident in his strength, he was no fool. There was no way Grey would want to throw his life away. ¡®He must have something that gives him confidence. If I can find it before we start the battle, then I can make things easier.¡¯ He thought as he tried to run through everything Grey had done since the start of the battle. For each battle, Grey has been known to bring one or two surprises. This meant that before making such a request, he already had something that gave him the confidence that he could kill Bill. Bill was not the only one thinking about all these. While Bill was still in thought, everyone looked at the two quiet figures on the platform. No one expected Grey would bring up such a request, nor did they think Bill would take this long against an opponent who wasn¡¯t a hundred percent and was still in a lower stage than himself. Grey chuckled, ¡°Are you afraid?¡± Bill didn¡¯t respond to him but looked around, ¡°Tell me, what gives you so much confidence?¡± ¡°My strength, what else?¡± Grey replied with confidence. ¡°Hehe, your strength? You call that your strength?¡± Bill laughed out loud, ¡°If you want to use your strength, then don¡¯t use any techniques to increase it to the Ninth stage of the Sage Plane, that is your true strength.¡± Grey shrugged, ¡°It can¡¯t be helped. You¡¯re in the Peak, and I¡¯m only in the Fifth stage. I don¡¯t even take my strength to the Peak, the Ninth stage is more than enough for the likes of you.¡± Bill looked at Grey, he couldn¡¯t refute. If Grey really were to somehow get his strength to the Peak of the Sage Plane, then even he had little confidence in being able to fight against such a beast. ¡°I¡­¡± Bill paused and looked at Grey, ¡°decline your request. I¡¯m not interested in killing you, defeating you is enough. We¡¯re all geniuses, killing each other wantonly is just stupidity.¡± When everyone heard his answer, the entire place went silent. No one expected such an answer from Bill. His refusal meant only one thing, he was afraid. Even if Grey was not fit, it was obvious that in all the battles he had fought so far, he had almost killed his opponents. If not for the old man, they would all have been killed. If Grey brought this up, then he truly might have a way. When everyone thought more clearly, none of them felt disappointed by Bill. Although those from the Nether Faction were a little annoyed since this was a little embarrassing, it was not too bad. When your opponent was this powerful, then it was okay to take a step back. Being a genius means one has to have great judgement of things as well. No one wanted to die. ¡°To think you¡¯re afraid of me. An injured opponent.¡± Grey mocked. Bill didn¡¯t buy Grey¡¯s mocking, instead he turned to the old man, ¡°Can we start now?¡± The old man looked at Bill, smiled before nodding his head. He approved of Bill¡¯s choice. Even he felt Grey might really be able to kill his opponent if they were fighting a death battle. Grey¡¯s killing intent was already very strong, that showed how brutal he was. His previous battles had also told everyone of his personality. So long as the opportunity presented itself, he didn¡¯t mind killing his opponents. If they agree to a deathmatch, then the old man wouldn¡¯t be able to interfere. The truth was, he was more worried about Grey than Bill. p Anda nOve1.cO,m Grey was strong, but he wasn¡¯t at his best now. He didn¡¯t want such a genius to die over such a stupid competition. He was already annoyed by the people who had been killed, if someone of Grey¡¯s caliber were to die, it would be too much of a blow to take for humans. Bill moved the moment the old man told them they could start the battle. Grey immediately used the Fusion State, getting to the Ninth stage from the start. He couldn¡¯t dare to be negligent against someone of Bill¡¯s level. Bill used the lightning element to attack, but Grey dodged to the left. Before Grey¡¯s legs could touch the ground, Bill was already close to him as he attacked again with the lightning element. Grey blocked the attack, but was sent flying by the impact. He flipped mid-air to stabilize himself before trying to counter. However, Bill had already attacked again. Grey¡¯s figure shot to the ground after Bill¡¯s attack hit him on the back. The speed of Bill was on another level. He was even faster than the young man he just fought against. ¡®Damn it. I still need to rest.¡¯ He thought to himself. He stood up after landing on the ground, blood slowly dripping from the side of his lips. He cleaned it before taking flight since Bill was still in the sky. He unleashed a stream of fire, but Bill cut it open with lightning. Grey tried to use the earth element to use a hammer to slam him down, but Bill dodged it before attacking Grey with a lightning arrow. The arrow shot at Grey with insane speed, Grey created a fire screen to block it, but the arrow broke through it easily. But it was finally blocked by an attack from Grey. The impact of both attacks pushed Grey back. When Grey retreated, he saw Bill standing close to him. He used the gravitational force field, but to his surprise, it had little to no effect on Bill. ¡°Haha, I¡¯ve already prepared a precaution for this thing of yours.¡± Bill chuckled as he engaged Grey in a close combat battle. Grey¡¯s eyes lit up. Close combat would make things easier for him. Bang! Bam! Their fists collided multiple times at an unimaginable speed. Blows were thrown as they tried to overpower each other. Grey had a powerful physical body so he was not in any way weaker than his opponent. Bill was using the help of his elements to improve his strength as they fought. As the battle progressed, Bill¡¯s strength increased. At first, it was obvious that Grey was stronger, however, now, they were almost on the same level. Grey soon noticed this as well as his blows weren¡¯t pushing Bill back any longer. ¡®What¡¯s happening?¡¯ He thought in confusion. Boom! Grey¡¯s fist exploded with fire. The force was stronger than his previous attacks, sending Bill flying. ¡°Haha, I never thought you would also be so proficient in hand to hand combat. Come, again.¡± Bill said excitedly. It was evident he was both stunned and excited at the same time. Grey didn¡¯t say anything as he rushed after Bill who was standing in the same place. He had already stopped using the gravitational force field since it seemed to be ineffective against Bill. Unlike him, Bill didn¡¯t have a strong physical body, he however had a technique that could help boost his physical strength as he battled on. This was one of the reasons why he enjoyed engaging in physical battles. Not just that, but since most Elementalists have weak physiques, he tends to almost always overpower them as they fight. 985 Side-effects Of The Fusion State Grey was not surprised at Bill¡¯s reactions, most geniuses who practice an odd method of fighting tend to be more excited when they see someone like them. In this case, even though Bill seemed to hate him, he couldn¡¯t hide the joy on his face after they exchanged blows some time ago. ¡°If you say so, I won¡¯t hold back any longer.¡± Grey said before charging at Bill. Just as he was about to arrive in front of Bill, he vanished and appeared on his left side as he threw a punch at him. Bill didn¡¯t expect Grey to use a method like this, but he still blocked the attack, but was pushed back. Grey attacked once again, his fist exploding with fire. Bill threw a punch of his own, his hand covered with lightning. Both fists collided and sparks flew everywhere. They soon started to move at lightning speed as they each tried to overpower the other. Grey¡¯s attack power was massive from the start, and with the addition of the explosive power of the fire element, he was too powerful for anyone in the Sage Plane. Bill could barely keep up with him, but as time went on, he soon started to grow in strength. This was something Grey noticed when they started to fight, now, he was noticing it again. Bill threw a punch, but Grey disappeared before appearing behind him. Expecting this, Bill swung his fist sideways, sweeping behind him with his fist. Grey didn¡¯t move and the fist phased through him. When the fist was just passing him, he attacked Bill with a punch. A lightning screen appeared where his fist was about to hit on Bill¡¯s chest as he used it to block against Grey¡¯s attack. Bill returned the favor to Grey as he tried to kick him off the ground. Grey jumped up to dodge the kick before doing a spinning kick mid-air. Bill¡¯s hands were always covered in lightning as he raised them above him to block the attack. The force of the attack almost forced him to his knees, but he managed to hold on and pushed Grey off. While Grey was mid-air, a lightning bolt dropped from the sky as it crashed into his body. Grey was hit by the lightning bolt as he was unable to dodge it. However, he was always covered with earth armor, so other than rocking his innards, the attack didn¡¯t do much to him. Just as he was about to hit the ground, Bill appeared below him, throwing a fist into the sky that transformed into a large lightning fist that crashed into Grey, sending him into the air once more. Grey stabilized himself in the sky before large boulders appeared in the sky, wrapped in flames and lightning. The boulders came crashing down, but Bill moved through the platform before shooting into the sky, punching a hole through the boulders coming his way. He soon came face to face with Grey as he attacked with his fists. Grey blocked and countered. The sound of the two fists clashing was the only thing reverberating in the entire platform. Everyone watched the duo in the sky as they fought fiercely against each other, punching almost every part of the opponent¡¯s bodies. They both fought widely and brutally. But people soon started to notice something odd, Bill was starting to gain the advantage. Since the start of the battle, Grey had always had the advantage when it came to physical strength, but now, it didn¡¯t seem to be the case. Bill was starting to grow stronger with time, and his physical strength seemed to be an edge stronger than Grey¡¯s. This came as a surprise not only to the crowd from the Burchard Family, but to Grey as well. ¡®What is he using?¡¯ He thought to himself. He already knew it was a technique that increased physical strength, but he didn¡¯t know how it worked. Bill was getting more excited as they fought. He didn¡¯t even try to engage in a conversation with Grey any longer, all he wanted to do was to fight to his heart¡¯s content. Grey gave up on the idea of asking him what he was using as he tried to ensure that he didn¡¯t lose this battle. Bang! A fire orb exploded as Bill tried to get close to him. This halted his movement, giving Grey time to move close to attack. However, the moment Grey got within two meters of Bill, the area was covered with lightning. Small lightning arcs shot through the air, moving like snakes. Bill has made use of his domain. Grey was forced out of the domain as he suffered burns from the lightning. Bill¡¯s domain strength exceeded Grey¡¯s expectations. He was almost certain that this domain could destroy his own, and he didn¡¯t want to try it out. Now he understood why Bill was the number one person in the Sage Plane from a Faction as big as the Nether Faction. If Bill couldn¡¯t achieve this much, then he would¡¯ve been disappointed. p¡¢A,nd A-n¡¢o¡¢ve,1 Grey¡¯s body had some injuries already, and blood was dripping from the side of his lips. After going through multiple body wrecking battles, he still engaged in such an intensifying battle, especially after not having enough time to heal. What was worse was that cracks were forming on his body. Very tiny cracks. Even Grey didn¡¯t notice it as he fought with Bill. Bill laughed as he charged at Grey after using his domain to force him back. Grey stretched out his hand as a repulsive force tried to push Bill away. Bill stopped moving and tried to hold out against the repulsive force. He managed to hold out for a while, but he was still forced back, although the distance was almost negligible. ¡®Damn!¡¯ Grey couldn¡¯t help but complain. His facial expression changed and he moved his hand closer to his face. ¡®What the hell?!¡¯ He freaked out when he noticed the crack on his hand. While Grey was in a state of shock, Bill had already gained himself and rushed over, sending a punch Grey¡¯s way. Grey snapped out of the shocked state as he barely dodged the fist coming at his face. Bill¡¯s fist brushed through the side of his face, but it wasn¡¯t much. Seeing that he missed, Bill tried to use his elbow to continue his attack. Grey noticed this quickly and used his right hand to stop the elbow from hitting his face before kicking at Bill¡¯s stomach. Bill blocked the attack with his hand. Both fighters stopped in the same position. Bill was grabbing hold of Grey¡¯s right leg with his left hand, while Grey was using his left hand to block Bill¡¯s elbow. The duo retreated simultaneously as they stood some meters apart, staring at each other in the eyes. ¡°You¡¯re my toughest opponent yet. You should be excited since I¡¯m rating you this high.¡± Bill said respectfully. ¡°I could say the same, but¡­¡± Grey paused mid-sentence as he recalled the old monster who tried to kill him back at the Lutra realm, before shaking his head, ¡°I¡¯ve met a stronger opponent.¡± Bill¡¯s expression changed when he heard this. Him acknowledging Grey was already unexpected for most people there, but the fact that Grey said he was not the strongest person he had fought against irritated him. ¡°Anyone stronger than me in the Sage Plane is definitely not in the Sage Plane.¡± Bill said angrily. He would never accept that there was anyone stronger than he was in the Sage Plane. ¡°Well, I¡¯m an exception, don¡¯t you think?¡± Grey asked with a smirk. Bill didn¡¯t respond, but he snorted coldly. Everyone could tell that he couldn¡¯t reply since that would mean he was not correct with his statement. However, no one could refute Grey. If Grey were to be at the Peak of the Sage Plane, he might¡¯ve defeated Bill already. Grey was studying his body as they spoke and he soon started to notice multiple things, his body was not the only thing that was cracking, even his innards, bones, organs, and even his cores seemed to be cracking. ¡®I need to end this.¡¯ He was losing it. He had gotten a general idea of what was happening. Even with the increase in his strength, he couldn¡¯t use the Fusion State infinitely. Now, he wasn¡¯t strong enough to use the Fusion State for this long, so it was starting to have an effect on his body. If he didn¡¯t stop soon, he might die before even completing the battle. ¡°I¡¯ll defeat you, so you can know you¡¯re not a match for me.¡± Bill said with a cold expression. ¡°You don¡¯t have to take me too seriously, I¡¯m still in the Fifth stage, why don¡¯t you wait till I get to the Peak before you say that?¡± Grey said with a smile. Bill snorted coldly once again, he acknowledged Grey¡¯s strength, but he felt Grey was too proud. 986 Continuous Use Of The Fusion State Bill moved closer to Grey, wanting to attack once again. However, this time, Grey didn¡¯t try to engage in hand t o hand combat with him, rather, he retreated and used his fire element to unleash an attack. Pm Bill was forced to receive the attack since he never expected Grey to suddenly switch to elemental attacks. Blocking the attack, he was pushed back by the impact of the attack. Grey used his fire and lightning domain simultaneously, while inscriptions lit up in the sky. He was done with playing, although he enjoyed the hand to hand combat, he couldn¡¯t keep up with it for too long. When Bill noticed that Grey had switched to using elemental attacks, he felt a little downcast as he switched as well. He would¡¯ve preferred fighting with their physical strength, but since Grey wanted to switch, then he would as well. In a battle of physical strength, Grey was the strongest person he had fought against. No matter how he improved, Grey¡¯s strength seemed almost limitless. For someone like him who got stronger as time went on, he wanted to see how far he could go against someone like Grey. Bill used a lightning blade, trying to cut Grey down with it. Grey created an earth wall, but the lightning blade cut through it. But its power reduced, although not significantly, but it wasn¡¯t on the level it was at first. Grey used a fire blade to deflect the attack. Bill rushed forward and used the lightning element once again to attack Grey. Grey unleashed the inscription had he been preparing. He used the attack to block off the attack Bill sent his way. Bill being the stronger person got the advantage as his attack burst through the inscription and its attack and shot at Grey. Grey already used the opportunity the attack slowed down and moved away, dodging it by a hair¡¯s breadth. He sent a stream of fire at Bill, the stream of fire had some spots that seemed to have a difference. Monitoring it closely, the Elders noticed those spots had icy flames hidden in them. Bill tried to block the stream of flames coming his way, but the special parts managed to go through and hit him. The icy flames soon started getting to work. Ice started to form across Bill¡¯s body, even with his strength, Grey¡¯s ice was too powerful. He used lightning to coat himself as he tried to block the attack from getting to him. The ice started to thaw almost immediately they touched Bill¡¯s body, but since it was not immediate, it meant Bill couldn¡¯t move for a very short time. This was all Grey needed to create the array he wanted. He created the same inscription he used when fighting against his last opponent, the young man who was also at the Peak of the Sage Plane. From when he started his battle with Bill, he already thought of this, but he was only forced to use it early due to his situation. Grey not only prepared this inscription, but also the array he would use to boost his strength, speed, and every other thing when fighting with Bill. Bill wasn¡¯t fast enough, so even though the ice was thawing, he didn¡¯t have time to prepare for Grey¡¯s attack. The attack hit him head-on and sent him flying. pAn,da n<0,>v,e1 Grey used the opportunity to move closer to him as he tried to attack once again. However, the moment Grey was about to attack, something strange happened. Boom! Grey felt a powerful force coming from where Bill was lying. Bill raised his head to look at Grey, ¡°Looks like I¡¯ll have to use it then.¡± The strong pressure Grey felt sent chills down his spine as he retreated from where Bill was lying. He threw an attack Bill¡¯s way, but it was useless. ¡°You can¡¯t defeat me.¡± Bill stated confidently as he stood up. Everyone on the side of the Burchard Family looked on with great interest. One has to know that Grey was currently their greatest asset in this competition, they couldn¡¯t afford to neglect anything regarding him. They all watched the battle going on with extreme focus, Sylvia was even prepared to intervene in case Grey was not Bill¡¯s match. A figure soon seemed to tear open a portal and step on the platform. ¡®A summoner?¡¯ Grey was taken aback when he saw the figure. The figure was big, made entirely of lightning. It wasn¡¯t hard for him to discern that it was not a human. He never expected Bill would be a summoner. Although Reynolds¡¯ summon was superior to this, it didn¡¯t change the fact that Grey was in an extremely difficult situation now. Either he upgrades to the Peak of the Sage Plane, or he risks losing against Bill. Bill sent the summon after him while he still seemed distracted. Grey quickly snapped out of his thoughts since he knew switching off at a time like this was deadly. The summon rushed after Grey and attacked with a long spear. Grey managed to move out of the way, but barely. However, the spot Grey appeared on was soon covered by lightning. Bill, sensing Grey would appear there, utilized his domain. The moment Grey appeared, he was hit by the lightning. Since he was not expecting it, it hurt him. Adding to his already cracked skin, his eyes turned red from the pain. He quickly tried to block the lightning from touching him with the space element. Forcing everything close to him to leave the space opened the chance for him. Bill attacked when he saw this. But Grey was prepared, using the help of his Fusion State, he increased his strength once more. He forgot about those watching. The time to show his strength had come. Even if he couldn¡¯t use all his elements he wanted to make sure he used the Fusion State to the peak, and make sure he was victorious. The crowd watching were once again stunned. Grey had given them one more thing to be shocked about. Even Bill, who was fighting Grey was dumbfounded. 987 Can I? Grey¡¯s figure dried up once again, this time, his situation seemed worse compared to the first time. Now, he looked to be all bones covered by skin. Bill retreated as he sent the Summon after Grey. His biggest chance of winning now was with the Summon. He already tested Grey¡¯s strength, on the same level, even he was a little lacking compared to the monster known as Grey. Seeing the Summon charging at him, Grey didn¡¯t shirk away, he did a slashing motion with his hand and the Summon was cut in two by an invisible attack. Only after the attack passed through and was heading in Bill¡¯s direction did it come to light, it was his spatial slash. Bill scurried away from where he was standing as he could feel a frightening power coming off the attack. While Bill was dodging, the Summon which was cut in two merged back and became one. It continued its charge at Grey. Grey paused and sent a fireball at the Summon. Boom! The fireball exploded on impact and the Summon staggered back. It couldn¡¯t keep its footing and fell on its back. Grey set his sights on Bill since he was his target from the start. Bill sent a lightning strike at Grey. But Grey didn¡¯t move and the attack phased through him. He continued closing in on Bill who was a little startled. This was not the first time he was fighting against someone on the same level, but Grey was a freak. It was as if he was fighting against a skeleton which terrified him. Grey stretched out his dried up hand and pointed at Bill. A small orb started to form at the tip of his finger. Before long, a light beam shot out from the finger. Bill rushed to dodge the attack. He managed to dodge it at a hair¡¯s breadth, but he couldn¡¯t help but feel a chill down his spine. The aura from the attack was something that he had only felt from those above the Sage Plane. One has to know that the difference between a Sage Plane Elementalist and an Elemental Venerable was by no means small, yet Grey seemed to jump that gap with nothing but a single attack. Bill started to thank his stars that he didn¡¯t agree to Grey¡¯s request of fighting a death match. In a normal battle he was already like this, how far would Grey go to kill him in a death match? He didn¡¯t even want to find out about that. Grey didn¡¯t stop after that attack. Four inscriptions appeared mid-air and attacked Bill from four different directions. He was trying to force Bill to take one of the attacks head-on if he wanted to escape from it. However, just as the attack was about to get to where Bill was standing, a large figure appeared in front of him and blocked all four attacks simultaneously. Roar! The Summon roared loudly as lightning sparks flew mid-air. Grey squinted his eyes as he looked at the Summon which had recovered. As long as Bill could continuously feed it, then this thing was practically immortal. ¡®I¡¯ll see how long you can last.¡¯ He thought with a smirk as he attacked once again. This time, he used a fire blade to cut apart the Summon. But before the Summon even tore in two places, it already started to merge as a lightning orb shot at Grey with insane speed. Grey blocked the attack with an earth wall, but he was forced to take a step back. Bill used the opportunity to move forward with the Summon in front of him. The Summon was the one taking all of Grey¡¯s attack while Bill focused on attacking Grey. Grey blocked the attacks coming his way, but he was soon covered in lightning. pAnda (nov)e1? Grey felt his entire body go numb from the lightning strikes and also, his clothes were slowly ripping apart. He moved a step forward and his figure vanished. He appeared behind the Summon, where Bill was unprotected and struck. A large lightning bolt shot from the sky and struck where Grey was standing. The force of the lightning was far stronger than anything Bill had used since the start of the battle. ¡°I¡¯ve been waiting for you to do that.¡± Bill said with a proud smile. ¡°And you think that would stop me?¡± Grey¡¯s voice came from the place where he was supposedly engulfed by lightning. Bill was shocked and took a step back, moving closer to the Summon. He looked at the place and noticed a pale blue light glowing within the lightning. Without even thinking twice, he rushed to the side, making sure the Summon was in between himself and Grey. Boom! The Summon standing behind him exploded. Bill was shaken when he saw this as he pumped essence into the body of the Summon so it would rematerialize. Grey¡¯s attack destroyed the Summon, and the only way to bring it back was through either summoning it again or making sure before it was completely destroyed he could pump enough essence into it. He couldn¡¯t take the risk of the former since it would take some time before the Summon would be ready, the latter was the choice that was best. Grey strolled out of the lightning covering him as he walked over to where Bill was standing. He raised his head to look at the Summon that was slowly fading off. He stretched out his hand and a repulsive force spread out. Bill was pushed back by the force as he looked at Grey with serious eyes. He couldn¡¯t believe this was the same person that struggled against the young man at the Peak. ¡®I just need to make sure I outlast him.¡¯ He soon came up with a new plan. He could already see that he was not a match for Grey, so he wanted to see if he could fight Grey till he couldn¡¯t use the technique he was using to increase his strength. ¡®Can I?¡¯ Doubt flashed through the eyes of the always confident Bill. 988 Help From Outside ¡°He can go even further?¡± Everyone was shocked by Grey¡¯s sudden increase in strength. Of course they could see the price he was paying, but the fact that he could actually increase his strength above what they already assumed from his previous battles was shocking. ¡°Why¡¯s he risking his life for people that are not related to him?¡± Those from the Nether Faction felt anger and hatred for Grey. At the rate Grey was currently going, he was going to single-handedly defeat them. If even after this battle he doesn¡¯t fight any longer, it doesn¡¯t matter, he has already taken out all the strong people from their group. Scott and the other two should be able to deal with the remaining two people. From being the clear favorites to being the ones that are very likely to lose. ¡®It doesn¡¯t matter, his body can¡¯t last any longer than five minutes, as long as Bill can struggle for that time, then he would win.¡¯ p¡¢A,nd A-n¡¢o¡¢ve,1 Those powerhouses in the place could already tell that the energy was too much for Grey¡¯s body and it was already wreaking havoc in his body. Some of them could even tell that Grey¡¯s core was also being damaged by this excess energy. On the side of the Burchard Family. ¡°Is this kid stupid? He wants to damage his future for something like this?¡± An Elder couldn¡¯t help but ask. They all felt that Grey seemed to have taken things overboard. Instead of being happy, some of them were infuriated at the fact that Grey was going to destroy himself because of this. ¡°He should give up while he still has the chance. Anything more than this and I¡¯m afraid he¡¯ll become crippled.¡± Another Elder said. He didn¡¯t seem to be happy with Grey¡¯s performance so far. For some reason, he didn¡¯t like Grey. Seeing Grey¡¯s current situation, he felt a bit happy. Sylvia wanted to say something, but she didn¡¯t know what to say. Grey did seem to have taken things way too far. All she felt at the moment was remorse. If she knew he was this crazy, she wouldn¡¯t have invited him over for the competition. Well, technically, he didn¡¯t come because of her invite, rather, he came because of revenge. Even after getting his revenge, he still didn¡¯t want to lose. She clenched her fists as she watched on. Back on the platform. Bill was going from one place to another, not of his own will. Grey had completely suppressed him and he couldn¡¯t even counter any longer. He could barely block any of Grey¡¯s attacks. He was bleeding from all seven orifices while his clothes were a wreck. Bam! His figure slammed into the platform. Even before he could regain himself, Grey was already standing close to him, with his foot raised, he tried to step on his chest. Bill threw a punch out that was covered with lightning. His punch collided with Grey¡¯s foot, but Grey didn¡¯t shake while he felt the bones on his hand wanting to fall apart. ¡®Is he still human?¡¯ Bill freaked out even more. He knew he was fighting a race against time with Grey, but from how things had gone within a minute, he knew it was actually impossible for him to win this.please visit panda(-)N0ve1.co)m Grey kicked out, but Bill crossed his hands in front of his body to block Grey¡¯s kick. The force of the kick sent him sliding on the ground. His body stopped at the edge of the platform. Crack! Lightning crackled in the sky and a large bolt fell from the sky, covering Grey. In the lightning bolt, a large figure formed attacking Grey. Bill had finally managed to force out his Summon once again. He used his domain to increase the strength of his lightning attack as well as the strength of his Summon. Bang! Bam! Boom! Grey started to fight against the Summon with his fists while inscriptions started to attack Bill who was by the side. The large figure of the Summon was sent to the stands by Grey¡¯s punch. A whole opened on the head of the Summon as it crashed on the ground. With the old man as well as the leaders of both groups present, dealing with the Summon was very easy. The leader of the Nether Faction contained it and sent it back to the platform as fast as he could. The leader of the Burchard Family sent him a glance but he pretended like he didn¡¯t see anything. Grey was about to attack Bill when the Summon came back to the platform. It was all healed up and it seemed to have received some boost. Grey tried to punch it, but the Summon dodged it and threw a kick at him. The Summon¡¯s kick went through Grey¡¯s body, and Grey attacked it once again. A lightning arrow shot at Grey with breakneck speed from an unpredictable angle. Grey noticed the attack very late, and after just using his space element to allow the Summon¡¯s attack to phase through, he couldn¡¯t use it again on such short notice. He turned around, and blocked the attack of Bill, but the Summon which was under Bill¡¯s complete control attacked Grey¡¯s back at this moment. A lightning sword formed on its hand and it swung it at Grey¡¯s undefended back. The attack was about to hit Grey¡¯s back when a brownish glow appeared. The sword attack seemed to slow down considerably, giving Grey the time he needed to block the attack in front of him and behind him. After blocking Bill¡¯s attack, he moved forward in a bid to dodge the attack behind him. He knew he couldn¡¯t slow down the attack any more. Bill attacked once again. He could feel the increase in the strength of the Summon, so he wanted to take the initiative to attack. After all, to people like him, the best form of defense was attack. And against someone like Grey, if he allowed him to have all the chances he wanted, then he would punish him. 989 Attack? ¡°Hmph! Help from those old fellows. I¡¯ll still beat you up.¡± Grey snorted coldly. The slight increase in the strength of the Summon had changed how things were going. Although he was annoyed by this, he knew he didn¡¯t have the time to argue. ¡®Should I use another element? My time is very short now. I can feel my cores losing essence like a broken dam. The longer this takes, the more harm I do to myself.¡¯ He was caught in a dilemma. Showing another element would mean having to publicly use five elements. Having four elements was already very rare, five was over the charts rare, but it wasn¡¯t impossible. There were still people alive who had five elements. Once in a while, the rumors of a Multi Elementalist with five elements would spread across the Continent, it wasn¡¯t impossible for this to happen. After thinking about it for a while, he decided that if he couldn¡¯t change the tides within the next few seconds, then he would use another element. If he were fighting against Bill alone, then he would¡¯ve been able to subtly use other elements without his knowledge, but with those old powerhouses present, even the slightest sign of another element would not go unnoticed. The Summon¡¯s speed had seen an increase, so had its strength and defense. It rushed at Grey once again, trying to attack. Grey moved through the platform like a phantom, before anyone could react he had already created an array. He sent out a dark orb at Bill. When Bill sensed the orb, he shivered in fear. He could tell that this would immediately kill him on impact. The array Grey made this time was solely for his space element. All it would do was to increase his attack power, speed and everything involving the space element. Without even thinking, Bill called back the Summon and it disappeared, immediately materializing in front of him. The Summon appeared the moment the orb was about to hit him. The orb hit the Summon and it exploded out before suddenly contracting. The body of the Summon that broke apart started to come back together, but it started to shrink. Bill shuddered when he saw this happening. Even those watching the battle couldn¡¯t help but feel a chill run down their spines. This was an attack that was terrifying to look at. Before long, the body of the Summon disappeared from view. It was as if it was never there. ¡°I¡¯ll kill you with my next attack if you do not give up.¡± Grey¡¯s voice was already croaked from how he looked. This time, he was pretending any longer, the Fusion State was truly having shocking effects on his body. He could almost even feel his life essence slowly sipping away from his body and being absorbed by the orb in his body. His entire body was so dried up that if he stood motionless, people would think he was dead. ¡°I¡¯m not admitting defeat to a skeleton.¡± Bill stated coldly. ¡°I guess you¡¯ll die before this skeleton then.¡± Grey remarked, not offended by how Bill addressed him. ¡®Good thing Klaus is not here, I¡¯d never see the end of his mockery.¡¯ Grey thought internally. If Klaus were to see him in this state, he would surely mock him till the end of the world. Grey rushed at Bill. Without the Summon, Bill can barely keep up with him. pA(nD)A no ve1 A fire orb exploded, forcing Bill back. Bill tried to counter, but his attack seemed to disappear into nothingness. Grey attacked once again. This time, completely suppressing Bill. A long spear appeared on Bill¡¯s hand and it flew into the sky. It seemed to have a mind of its own. A large array appeared at the tip of the spear and a light beam shot at Grey.please visit panda(-)N0ve1.co)m Grey¡¯s body fluttered and he vanished from where he was standing. Before long, he was standing close to Bill. A punch was thrown out by him and Bill¡¯s figure was sent into the air. Bill was already bleeding from different places. With this attack, he coughed out a large amount of blood. Grey tried to get closer to him, but Bill shouted out loudly and lightning exploded out, from his body. Grey didn¡¯t seem phased by the attack, with a wave of his hand, the attack coming his way was dispensed. Bang! Bill¡¯s body crashed on the ground, he tried to stand up, but he was unable to. Grey walked over to him, ¡°In the end, you couldn¡¯t outlast me.¡± Bill wanted to speak out but only blood came out from his mouth. Grey raised his head, and a shocking amount of energy gathered there. If this connects with Bill, then he would most definitely die. Just as the attack was about to hit him. ¡°I give up.¡± Bill¡¯s voice was almost inaudible, but everyone heard it. Grey, who was about to kick out, stopped, ¡°You fell for it.¡± Grey tried to smile, but with his current appearance, it didn¡¯t look Grey. Bill¡¯s eyes widened when he realized the meaning behind Grey¡¯s words. He was about to say something when Grey¡¯s figure fell backward. Boom! His figure landed on the ground, seemingly lifeless. The entire platform was quiet, no one spoke a word as they looked at the figure on the ground. The figure looked to be dead. ¡°He won?¡± Someone from the Burchard Family asked with a confused expression. ¡°Did he really win?¡± An Elder asked with a wry smile. To him, this couldn¡¯t really be counted as a victory for Grey. He had literally destroyed himself just to get this. Sylvia was the first to move out as she tried to take Grey¡¯s body. However, at the time she was about to get there, she felt a powerful energy push her back. An attack came from the side of the Nether Faction. It was done by the leader of the Faction. All he had towards Grey at the moment was nothing but hate. ¡°Oh no.¡± The old man moved out as he tried to block the attack. Not just the old man, but those from the Burchard Family as well. 990 Unexpected Guest With all top powerhouses moving at the same time, the scene was a sight to behold. However, they were all a bit too slow. Since that leader of the Nether Faction made a move first, it was natural that he would have the advantage over the others. Boom! p¡¢A,nd A-n¡¢o¡¢ve,1 The attack hit where Grey was lying. And Grey was soon covered by a bright light. ¡°Huh?!¡± Someone exclaimed as they looked at the explosion. The explosion which was expanding contracted in the blink of an eye. Those who were rushing there paused as they looked at the sight in shock. While everyone was staring at the scene, a figure stepped out of the void, standing close to Grey. The figure looked at Grey lovingly before turning around to throw a glance at the leader of the Nether Faction. ¡°Quite bold of you to attack a weak child.¡± The figure looked at the leader of the Nether Faction with a nonchalant expression. Those from the Burchard Family paused when they saw the face of the figure. Not just those from the Burchard Family, but the old man, as well as those from the Nether Faction. The figure standing there was someone well reputable across the entire Continent. ¡°Lucas?¡± The old man was the first to speak out. ¡°Elder, it¡¯s been a while.¡± The figure referred to as Lucas bowed in the direction of the old man. ¡°What are you doing here?¡± The old man asked calmly. Lucas¡¯ appearance here should be no coincidence. ¡°My son¡¯s fighting, I came to see how he was fairing.¡± Lucas said softly before turning around to look at Grey¡¯s current condition. Presently, Grey was the only one lying there. Before the leader of the Nether Faction attacked, he made sure to remove Bill from the picture so he wouldn¡¯t be hurt by the attack. ¡°He¡¯s your son?¡± The old man was shocked beyond words. Not just the old man, but every single person in the place was quiet. They had no words at the moment. ¡°Vin, mind telling me why you attacked my defenseless son?¡± Lucas didn¡¯t bother with the reaction of those around as he turned to look at the leader of the Nether Faction. The leader of the Nether Faction paused, he really didn¡¯t know what to say. If Grey were dead, then he would¡¯ve been able to find a simple way to navigate through this. Although, Grey being alive was better than him dying at this moment. The figure before him was someone he knew he stood no chance against.please visit panda(-)N0ve1.co)m Not just this figure, but the person¡¯s wife was almost as fearsome as he was, only, more brutal. If she is the mother of Grey, then he could already guess that she would be fuming the moment she gets here. ¡°It was all accidental, I thought she wanted to attack my student, so I only attacked in retaliation.¡± Vin, the leader of the Nether Faction explained. ¡°Do I look like a fool, I can see the blatant killing intent in your eyes when you attacked.¡± Lucas said calmly. ¡°I¡¯ll let you go since my son¡¯s not harmed. I don¡¯t know about Martha though, you¡¯ll have to deal with her yourself.¡± He added, not even waiting for Vin¡¯s response. The second Vin heard the name Martha, he freaked out. Just like Lucas, Martha was a genius, she could almost be said in the same breath as Lucas. If not for Lucas¡¯ freakish talent, she might just be the strongest person from the last hundred years. Two people generally regarded as peerless geniuses went on to get married, and even give birth to a child who seems to be even more freakish than the duo combined. If this isn¡¯t cheating from nature, they don¡¯t know what was. ¡°Lucas, I admit to my errors and I¡¯ll personally apologize to your son. I don¡¯t mind taking the responsibility of healing him.¡± Vin hastily tried to make peace. He might be the leader of the Nether Faction, but he knew that offending the Dawson Family was not something the other Elders from the Faction would want. Fighting powerhouses like the Dawson Family was not something they could bear to do. ¡°I already told you, I¡¯m letting you go. Whatever business you have is with his mother, it¡¯s none of my concern.¡± Lucas didn¡¯t even bother with him any longer and took Grey back to where those from the Burchard Family were seated. The sudden appearance of such a powerhouse stunned everyone present. Those from the Burchard Family were still finding it hard to believe. It was common knowledge that Lucas and Martha were married. What people didn¡¯t know was if they had a child together. Even if some people might¡¯ve suspected Grey was from the Dawson Family, no one would¡¯ve thought he was actually the child of these two monsters. Sylvia found it hard to put words together as she looked at the legendary figure who just barged into the competition. Seeing that he was getting all the attention, Lucas waved his hand. ¡°Please, continue.¡± He took Grey to the side. With all the powerful people from the Nether Faction defeated by Grey, everyone knew the outcome of the competition had been settled. Grey had undoubtedly won this competition for the Burchard Family. Of course, they still had to fight since there was no certainty if the Nether Faction didn¡¯t have a secret weapon kept in store for this competition. The next person to step up was from the Nether Faction. They had two people left, while the Burchard Family had four, if Grey was excluded due to his current state, then there were only three left. But of those three, Scott, someone who could be said to be on the same level as Bill was still present. Having an extra person made the morale of those from the Nether Faction diminish. ¡°Take out those two. That would leave only Scott, he can¡¯t beat the two of you.¡± The leader of the Nether Faction said to the duo left. As long as they could remove the other two, they still had a chance of winning this. 991 Scotts Rage The duo nodded to the words of the leader of the Faction as one of them stepped on the platform. His eyes trailed to the body of one of those from the Burchard Family who was at the Peak. He didn¡¯t waste any time and challenged the person. Their battle started off very slow before it started to pick up speed. After almost twenty minutes, the young man from the Nether Faction won. He fought as safe as he possibly could so as to ensure he doesn¡¯t get hurt. He needed to preserve his strength for Scott. The next person soon stepped on stage. pAnDa (nov)e1? Before the person from the Burchard Family went up, he heard the voice of the Family Head. ¡°If you can¡¯t defeat him, make sure he doesn¡¯t have an easy time winning.¡± The Family Head, as well as the Elders from the Burchard Family already knew the plan of the Nether Faction, defeat the duo, then try to use the advantage of numbers against Scott. Scott might be powerful, but no one felt he would be able to replicate what Grey had done. This was not them looking down at Scott, but if these two from the Nether Faction fought with their lives on the line, which they believed they would, then things might not be that easy for Scott, even though he was stronger. The next battle was not as dull as the previous one. Of course it was not on the level of Grey and Bill¡¯s battle, it was still amongst the top battles, excluding Grey¡¯s battles. Both fighters fought like their lives depended on it. The youth from the Nether Faction had the slight edge, but that didn¡¯t mean he would be able to breeze through the battle. The young man from the Burchard Family was cunning to the extreme. He traded blow for blow with the youth from the Nether Faction. His intentions were obvious, do as much damage as he possibly could. And he truly was getting it done. Although he was injured in that process, the youth from the Nether Faction was unscathed. Both fighters were bleeding, and the battle lasted for almost thirty minutes. The young man from the Burchard Family seemingly wanted to drag the youth from the Nether Faction down with him. Even after losing, he still dragged his body off the platform with a wide smile on his face. His bleeding face didn¡¯t make his smile look good, but he didn¡¯t care. He strodded off and went to his seat to recover. The youth from the Nether Faction clenched his fists tightly, he was incensed. This young man had ruined their plans. With his current state, he couldn¡¯t hold out against Scott for long. And everyone present knew that the first person Scott would pick was him. He hurried back to his seat and the Faction Leader covered him with a white light while giving him something that looked like a pill. ¡°Stay for as long as you can before stepping up. You need to heal¡­¡± The Faction Leader had not even finished his statement when Scott¡¯s voice resounded from the platform. ¡°You, come up.¡± Scott had an aggressive look. It was evident that he was annoyed. After watching his comrades die at the start of the competition, then seeing how those from the Nether Faction were bullying Grey, he had been itching to give someone a beating for a long time. Now, he finally had the chance. The youth from the Nether Faction pretended he wasn¡¯t the one Scott was talking to as he continued to heal. Greedily absorbing what was inside the pill, as well as the light that still enveloped him.please visit panda(-)N0ve1.co)m ¡°Elder.¡± Scott turned to the old man. The old man knew what those from the Nether Faction were trying to do, he could only shake his head. The Burchard Family did something like this as well when Grey was being challenged nonstop. With a sigh, he said, ¡°If he doesn¡¯t come up within the next thirty seconds, he will be eliminated.¡± The youth from the Nether Faction stayed till the time was almost up before stepping on stage against Scott. ¡°I thought you were strong?¡± He asked with a smirk. He wanted to engage Scott in a conversation so he could get more time. Scott didn¡¯t reply to him, he only turned his head to the old man, waiting for him to give the go-ahead for the start of the battle. The old man didn¡¯t say anything more and nodded for the battle to begin. Scott attacked the moment it started. The youth from the Nether Faction knew that he was not on Scott¡¯s level, nor was he in the best condition to even try to fight against him. He hastily retreated as he dodged and blocked Scott¡¯s attacks. Scott attacked aggressively, but against someone who was hellbent on defending and dodging, even if the platform was small, he could barely do much. Especially given the speed advantage his opponent had over him. As the youth dodged, he tried to rile Scott up by abusing him. Scott stayed collected as he didn¡¯t rush into anything. Attacking in the same manner as the first time. Each attack was deadly and precise. The youth was forced to take an attack head-on after falling for Scott¡¯s scheme. The force of the attack forced him back, and before he could regain his balance, Scott was all over him. An attack came from almost all angles, and Scott was not even done. The youth scrambled to block the attacks with all his might. Unleashing lightning attacks. This youth was proficient in arrays, but he was not an Inscriber like Grey. While he was running, he set up an array on the platform. Just when everything was going Scott¡¯s way, the array lit up on the platform. Scott was about to attack when he sensed danger, he hurriedly retreated. The young man from the Nether Faction laughed in excitement as he coughed up a mouthful of blood in the process. Scott had done some serious damages to his body, but he could still fight. 992 Do You Think Im A Fool? p¡¢A,nd A-n¡¢o¡¢ve,1 Scott looked at the array that was on the ground, it was dangerous, he could tell. This wasn¡¯t something that could kill him, but if he was careless, then it would make winning this competition too difficult. Grey was still unconscious, well, he was still all bones. Although he was already slightly recovering, he didn¡¯t think Grey could fight again. ¡®He has done enough, I¡¯ll end this. His efforts must not be in vain.¡¯ Scott repeated in his head. His driving force at the moment was not just winning the competition, but seeing how far Grey was willing to go made his blood boil. If Grey, someone who was not from their Family could go this hard, then he didn¡¯t mind risking his life just to make sure they were victorious. What was worse was that Grey had even removed the toughest obstacles, leaving the weaker ones for him. If he couldn¡¯t complete the task in this state, then he was more than useless. Taking big strides, he stopped restraining himself. He would use his full strength now. Boom! The battle heated up immediately. On the side of the Burchard Family, Lucas was not even paying attention to Scott or anything that was not Grey. His brows were furrowed as he studied the extent of Grey¡¯s injuries. ¡®It¡¯s healing, that should be a good sign¡­¡¯ He felt a headache as he looked at his son. Grey¡¯s cracked cores were healing, but for some reason, they were shrinking in size. On another person, it would be a miracle that he was already healing his cracked cores, and shrinking means that he was consolidating them. This would make the person grow stronger. However, Grey wasn¡¯t normal, not just that, but Grey¡¯s cores were being filled with a black substance. When he used his spiritual senses to try to investigate it, he felt the thing almost eat away that part of his spiritual senses. He didn¡¯t need to take a second look before he knew what it was¡­ poison miasma. ¡®How did this thing enter his body?¡¯ He felt his head banging from these things. He didn¡¯t know how to solve this since miasma was something that was dangerous even to powerhouses like himself. The miasma in Grey¡¯s body was even stronger than some of the ones he had encountered. With his strength, unless he stayed in a place filled with miasma for too long, then he wouldn¡¯t have any problems with it. But the one in Grey¡¯s body almost harmed him with the first contact. He looked around, he could sense the eyes of the old man, the Family Head of the Burchard Family, the Leader of the Nether Faction, as well as some of the Elders. The main reason he showed himself was Grey, if these people had been the one to take him after he fell unconscious, they would¡¯ve known his secret. This was something that would definitely endanger Grey¡¯s life, so he didn¡¯t want to take the risk. Not just that, but he missed his son. The figure guarding Grey told them of Grey¡¯s plan to attend this competition, so he left immediately, leaving his wife behind.please visit panda(-)N0ve1.co)m When he got here, Grey had already started to fight. So he watched pretty much all of Grey¡¯s battles. He couldn¡¯t hide the shock in his eyes when he saw how powerful Grey was. The truth was, he didn¡¯t really know the extent of the orb he put in Grey¡¯s body, he only knew it would give him all the elements, well, that was what it said. Seeing Grey only use four elements, he was a bit skeptical. It was only after he checked Grey¡¯s body did he notice the other four cores. This means that Grey was hiding his true strength. He was impressed by Grey¡¯s foresight. ¡®Thank you, Martha. He has grown up so much because of you.¡¯ He smiled softly. Although he hated to admit it, he knew he didn¡¯t have much of a say in Grey¡¯s upbringing, hence he appreciated Martha for her hard work. Of course Martha still left Grey alone after he passed fifteen, but some of her teachings must have already been inbuilt into Grey¡¯s mind. He studied Grey some more and noticed Grey¡¯s shriveled body was his own doing. Other than the cracks which were healing up, Grey should be fine after some rest. Calming his mind, he looked at the Head of the Burchard Family and gave him a nod. The Head of the Burchard Family heaved a sigh of relief before focusing on Scott¡¯s battle. He had been so worried about Grey¡¯s well-being that he barely glanced at Scott who was fighting. Now that he knew that Grey was fine, he faced the battle again. The battle was already getting very heated. Scott had taken some hits, but not enough to cause him any serious issues. The youth from the Nether Faction wasn¡¯t doing any better. He still hadn¡¯t recovered from his previous battle, and after being struck multiple times by Scott¡¯s attacks, he was bleeding all over. A large chunk of the flesh on his back was missing as a result of taking an attack from Scott. He was hanging on by a thread, he knew he hadn¡¯t done any significant damage to Scott, so leaving now would not help the young man who was left. He had to make sure that Scott was at least injured, not any superficial injuries, but a serious one that would affect his combat power. He soon came to a decision and decided to take the risk of getting another hit just to ensure he manages to harm Scott. Gritting his teeth and hoping he doesn¡¯t die from the attack, he charged at Scott, neglecting everything else. Scott noticed the menacing look in his eyes and he soon understood what he wanted to do. ¡®Do you think I¡¯m a fool?¡¯ He thought internally with a grin. There was something he had been hiding all this while. Seeing the young man charge at him, he didn¡¯t hold back and attacked. Boom! The attack connected with the young man, but the young man forced himself through the pain, and after getting within striking distance, he attacked. 993 Reunited The young man rushed after Scott, and just as he was about to attack, Scott¡¯s body was covered with a ray of light. Before the young man could react, Scott was nowhere to be seen. ¡®Huh?¡¯ Confusion appeared on his face as he looked around, visibly confused as to what just happened. If his guess was right, then Scott just used the light element. But there had not been reports of Scott using his light element before. Those from the Nether Faction had shocked expressions, but looking at the faces of those from the Burchard Family, they knew this was not something unknown to them. The leader of the Nether Faction felt a tinge of annoyance. This young man¡¯s effort had gone to waste all because of their lack of information. ¡°Those morons can¡¯t do anything right.¡± He cursed under his breath. He naturally had people watching the Burchard Family hence giving them most of the information they needed. He never thought that the person had never come across Scott or even heard of him having the light element. Now the young man was going to suffer because of it. Back on the platform. After dodging the young man¡¯s attack, Scott appeared behind him and attacked once again. The young man was already bleeding heavily from the previous attack which he took head-on just to get a chance to attack Scott, now, he was unable to protect himself once again and his back was hit by Scott¡¯s attack. He crashed to the ground and immediately went unconscious on the platform. Scott didn¡¯t attack any further, since his attack couldn¡¯t kill the young man, there was no use attacking again since it would be against the rules of the competition. After defeating his first opponent, it was time to move on to the next. He didn¡¯t really need to rest since he preserved most of his strength during the first battle. The leader of the Burchard Family clenched his fists angrily as he looked at the young man left. Seeing how energetic Scott was, he couldn¡¯t help but shake his head. He knew this competition was over from the moment Grey defeated Bill. In fact, Grey¡¯s appearance threw the competition off its feet and the predicted winners didn¡¯t win because of a single anomaly on the other side. Just as expected, the young man stepped on stage with Scott and undoubtedly lost after almost ten minutes. The battle wasn¡¯t too intense since the young man was trying his best to ensure he didn¡¯t get injured too early. With the competition coming to an end, Scott and those from the Burchard Family fixed their attention back on Grey who was still unconscious, although his appearance was not the same as before. He had visibly added flesh and was not all bones and skin anymore. ¡°Lucas¡­¡± The Head of the Burchard Family spoke up. Lucas, who had his eyes on Grey, raised his head to look at the Head of the Burchard Family. ¡°How¡¯s he doing now?¡± ¡°Fine, he¡¯ll be good in no time.¡± p AndD nOve1.cO,m ¡°Alright. Thanks to him we defeated the Nether Faction. Naturally, he has every right in entering the secret realm whenever he wants to. Also, since he¡¯s from the Dawson Family, you can send ten youngsters over to train in this secret realm.¡± The Head of the Burchard Family said. He was truly grateful to Grey, not just him, but the entire Burchard Family. ¡°I¡¯ll think about it. Since the competition is over, I¡¯ll be leaving with my son now. I¡¯ll send him over once he recovers so he can train there.¡± Lucas stood up with Grey. He couldn¡¯t leave him here since they would probably try to check for the abnormalities with Grey.please visit panda(-)N0ve1.co)m Before anyone else could say a word, Lucas vanished with Grey. Those from the Burchard Family exchanged glances before shaking their heads wryly. Lucas was known for not being much of a socialist. He rarely communicated with people, and although very modest, he was a genius, so he wasn¡¯t without pride. ¡­ The days went by in a flash and before long, two weeks had gone by in the blink of an eye. The Western Continent, in the Upoya Region. This was the place where the Dawson Family was located. In a cave, three figures could be seen speaking, while a youth could be seen lying on an ice bed. ¡°How could you be so careless and allow him to hurt himself to this extent?¡± The voice of an enraged lady sounded out in the cave. ¡°It¡¯s not that I allowed him to hurt himself to this extent. If I stopped him, he would¡¯ve lost the battle.¡± A man tried to explain with an apologetic tone. ¡°Is winning more important than my son¡¯s health?¡± The lady asked again, this time, clearly more infuriated by the man¡¯s response. ¡°Martha¡­¡± The man called out softly. The trio in the cave were none other than Lucas Dawson, Martha, and the man guarding Grey. Grey was the one lying on the ice bed. When Lucas returned to the Western Continent, he stayed for a while and finally decided to call Martha over. When she arrived, she naturally exploded when she saw Grey¡¯s situation. Lucas has been trying to calm her down for almost an hour now, but he hasn¡¯t really been successful. ¡°He¡¯ll be fine.¡± ¡°I know, I just hate the fact that he¡¯s in such a situation when I meet him.¡± Martha replied with a downcast expression. ¡°What did you say about necromancers?¡± She suddenly recalled something and turned to Grey¡¯s guardian. ¡°Yes, he was marked. Not just by a necromancer, but one of those guys increased the range of the mark.¡± Grey¡¯s guardian replied. ¡°Hmph! Those filthy things, they should pray I don¡¯t get my hands on them.¡± Martha snorted coldly. ¡°I¡¯ll advise he doesn¡¯t go to the secret realm of the Burchard Family, we all know that place has a portal connecting to the realm of that race. If they sense the mark on him, he will be in danger.¡± Grey¡¯s guardian said. Martha and Lucas exchanged glances, before turning to look at Grey. ¡°That will be his decision to make.¡± Lucas said. He would never interfere with Grey¡¯s decisions, this was the reason he allowed Grey to fight with Bill even when he was harming himself. This doesn¡¯t mean he would let him do as he pleases in a situation that might take his life. 994 Reunited II One more week went by in a flash. Lucas and Martha frequented where Grey was being kept while his guardian was always there. p-A- n-d-A-n-0-v-e-1¡¢(c)om Grey¡¯s condition was relatively better now compared to before and there even seemed to be an improvement in his cultivation. Void had been hiding in Grey¡¯s storage ring all this while. He naturally would not let them take Grey away without him. Some time went by and Grey finally made some movements. His eyes twitched repeatedly before snapping open. He stared at the same position for some time. After about a minute or so, he turned his head to properly see the place he was located. Seeing the unfamiliar scenery, he tried to get up hastily, but he was shocked when he noticed he couldn¡¯t freely move his body. ¡®Void¡­¡¯ He called out to Void. This was the only one he could count on at times like these. ¡®You¡¯re awake!¡¯ Void¡¯s voice sounded in his ears after some time. ¡®Yeah, and I don¡¯t feel so good.¡¯ Grey replied as he finally managed to get to a seating position. ¡®You won¡¯t believe what happened¡­¡¯ Void was still in the middle of speaking when a figure stepped into the cave where Grey was being kept. It was a middle-aged man with a handsome face that had an uncanny resemblance to Grey. The man stood just over two meters tall and had a well-built body. ¡°Oh, you¡¯re awake.¡± The man said. Grey looked at the man in front of him who was very familiar, yet quite distant to him. It took him some time, neglecting Void¡¯s voice in his head, he murmured in a somewhat confused voice, ¡°Dad?¡± ¡°Grey.¡± Lucas nodded with a smile before sending out his spiritual senses to check on Grey¡¯s condition. However, he didn¡¯t try to move closer to Grey since he felt guilty for leaving him alone with his wife for so long. Grey was a bit apprehensive when the spiritual sense was about to touch him, but after thinking about it, he let it be. ¡°You¡¯re alive?¡± Grey blurted out unconsciously. Although he hoped for this, he was also a bit shocked by their reunion. To be honest, he didn¡¯t think that when he would eventually meet his father, it would be after waking up from a coma. According to his plan, he would search for his parents and find them somewhere. ¡°Your mother didn¡¯t tell you I was fine?¡± Lucas asked, stunned by Grey¡¯s question. ¡°Well¡­¡± Grey paused. He didn¡¯t really know how to communicate with his father who he hadn¡¯t seen for over ten years. If he recalled correctly, his father left when he was around eight or so, now he was almost twenty-two. If not for the resemblance he had with his father, he wouldn¡¯t have even recalled the figure standing in front of him.please visit panda(-)N0ve1.co)m ¡°I know you have a lot of questions, you¡¯ll get your answer.¡± Lucas said when he noticed Grey wasn¡¯t saying anything. ¡°You left me and mom alone, for years.¡± Grey finally spoke after some time. ¡°I¡¯m sorry for that, but I was powerless.¡± Lucas apologized, he knew multiple things were running through Grey¡¯s head at the moment, so he wasn¡¯t in a hurry to speak much. He wanted to hear everything Grey had to say first. ¡°Why?¡± Grey asked, this was the only question that had been going through his head for so long. Lucas looked Grey in the eyes, ¡°You see, it all started before your birth¡­¡± Lucas went on to explain the reason for his departure and why he couldn¡¯t go back to his wife and son even after so long. He was avoiding one of the major issues that came with coming from a top Family, and that was fighting for the position of the Family Head. Given his talent, he would be the one to get it undoubtedly, but he didn¡¯t want it. His parents as well as the Elders though, thought otherwise. Even when one of his brothers wanted the position, they refused him, saying it was only right for Lucas to take up the position. This caused hatred to grow in the mind of his brother and he decided to leave with his wife and go into hiding. The truth was, he wanted peace. All his life, he had been fighting. Even when he didn¡¯t want to fight, he had been forced to fight due to some circumstances. After getting married, he didn¡¯t want that life for his family. He wanted a peaceful and happy life, unfortunately, that was not the case. Grey¡¯s birth changed everything. While Lucas explained everything, Grey listened attentively, making sure he digested all the things his father was saying. Lucas just finished explaining when Martha walked into the cave. ¡°Mom¡­¡± Grey called out, a little more affectionately compared to when he spoke with his father. The truth was, after staying with his mother for a longer time, especially during the period after his first test, he was closer to her than his father. Martha looked at Grey with teary eyes as she walked closer to him and gave him a tight hug, gently caressing his hair. Grey was already slightly taller than her at the moment, but it didn¡¯t stop her from giving him the same treatment as she usually did when he was younger. ¡°How are you feeling now?¡± Martha disregarded Lucas¡¯ presence as she studied her son. It had been so long since she saw him and had been worried about his well-being. ¡°Better, I guess.¡± Grey replied after his mother finally let go of him. ¡°Where am I?¡± He asked soon after. ¡°Close to the Dawson Family.¡± Martha replied before casting a glance at Lucas, ¡°Someone is afraid of taking you to the Family Manor.¡± Grey chuckled slightly when he saw his father¡¯s helpless expression. Surprisingly, they hadn¡¯t changed much. Other than his father being a little distant, he was still as close to his mother as always. ¡°Martha, you know the situation there more than I do. Taking him there will not do him any good.¡± Lucas explained wearily. 995 Reunited III It took a while but Grey finally started speaking with his father once again. He wasn¡¯t really too annoyed with him, especially after he gave him a detailed explanation. When stepping out of the cave, Grey saw a familiar figure standing outside. ¡°It¡¯s you!¡± He exclaimed softly. ¡°Hello, Young Lord.¡± The man standing outside bowed to Grey with a smile. ¡°Allow me to formally introduce myself, my name is Arlys Orvyn.¡± ¡°Guardian?¡± Grey asked with a raise of his brows. ¡°I guessed you already knew. But yes, I was tasked to make sure you don¡¯t die.¡± Arlys replied. ¡°To think I had such a powerful guardian with me all this while and I was chased across the entire Azure Continent.¡± Grey shook his head with a wry smile. He had tried to sense the cultivation of Arlys, but he couldn¡¯t sense it. He was currently in the Sage Plane, almost in the late stages. With his current strength, he could run riot in the Azure Continent, as long as he doesn¡¯t go to the depths of the Magical Beasts¡¯ Forest, then he was good. Yet he couldn¡¯t sense the cultivation of his guardian, which should put Arlys in the Elemental Venerable Plane at the very least. ¡°Why do you think you never came across an opponent above your strength?¡± Arlys asked with a smile. He took care of a lot of Grey¡¯s enemies, and even if Grey doesn¡¯t know how many people he took care of, he still wanted to make sure Grey knew he did well. ¡°You were chased across the continent?¡± Martha asked as she stepped out, overhearing the duo¡¯s conversation. ¡°Yeah, they were looking for Teacher, since I was his only student, I pretty much became their enemy. Not just that, but the news of me getting the Great Earth Essence Liquid from the Trial Land spread out as well.¡± Grey explained. ¡°Wait, you have a Teacher?¡± Martha was a little shocked. ¡°Remember that senior that came to take me to the Lunar Faction?¡± Grey asked. ¡°Good, you have great eyes.¡± Martha nodded. In the Azure Continent, Chris was one of the few people she thought highly of. ¡®Actually, he wanted me to become his student because of my cooking skills.¡¯ Grey said internally. He didn¡¯t say this out loud since it would make his parents think otherwise of Chris. From the start, he knew Chris only wanted him for his cooking skill, he wasn¡¯t that dumb not to realize it. With nothing to do, Chris taught him most of the things he knew, including inscribing and being a great array master. They spoke a little longer before Grey turned to his parents. ¡®Oh! Void, come out, why are you hiding?¡¯ After getting the go-ahead from Grey, Void appeared on his shoulder. ¡°I¡¯ve been wondering where you went.¡± Arlys spoke up when Void appeared. ¡°Your pet?¡± Martha asked, staring at the cute-looking Void. ¡°Partner, actually. He¡¯s quite resourceful.¡± Grey replied. ¡°Hello, Grey¡¯s parents.¡± Void spoke out with his small voice. Neither of the duo showed a strange expression. This was not their first time encountering a Magical Beast that could speak. The only thing that caught their attention was that they knew nothing of Void¡¯s breed. From a glance, they could tell he was different. ¡°Where did you get him?¡± Lucas asked as he tried to grab Void, but before his eyes, Void tried to escape with the space element. He smiled but didn¡¯t retract his hand.please visit panda(-)N0ve1.co)m Void, who thought he had vanished from Grey¡¯s shoulder, was stunned when he felt a large hand grabbing him. He tried to struggle, but it was futile. ¡®Don¡¯t resist, he won¡¯t harm you.¡¯ Grey calmed Void down. ¡°An egg.¡± Grey replied to his father¡¯s question. ¡°Oh, odd.¡± Lucas said as he continued staring at Void with his curious eyes. ¡°Such a strange cat. It¡¯s like the void.¡± He muttered. ¡°His name¡¯s surprising, Void.¡± Grey said with a chuckle. ¡°I can see why.¡± Lucas replied. He tried to peer into Void¡¯s body, but all he could sense was an endless void. No matter where he looked, all he saw was nothingness. He let go of Void, who hurriedly went back to Grey¡¯s shoulder. p¡¢A,nd A-n¡¢o¡¢ve,1 Staring at his parents, Grey had a sense of loss. Originally, this had been one of his tasks, growing strong enough to sweep the entire Aurora Continent in search of his parents, now, he found out that they had been aware of his movements for some time now, and he was a little lost. ¡®What now?¡¯ He questioned himself internally. ¡°Grey, are you alright?¡± Martha noticed Grey had gone silent and seemed to be lost in his thoughts. ¡°I¡¯m fine, I guess¡­¡± Grey told them his plan to search for them after growing stronger. Finding them now seemed to change some of his plans. ¡°That¡¯s not really a problem. Oh, I forgot to ask, I heard you¡¯ve had dealings with necromancers.¡± Lucas brought the matter of necromancers up. ¡°Not just them, there are these short guys that they call their ancestors, those guys seem to want me dead. Well, one of them was almost successful some time ago.¡± Grey replied. ¡°Hmm¡­¡± Lucas fell deep in thought. ¡°Is anything wrong?¡± Grey asked. ¡°The secret realm you want to enter has a portal that leads to that race. So you would be seeing those guys there. Given the mark on you, you¡¯re technically a magnet to them.¡± Martha explained. ¡°Eh?¡± Grey looked at them, confused. Only after some seconds did he recall he was fighting in a competition before passing out. ¡°Oh¡­ that. Did they win?¡± He asked. ¡°Yes, with you taking out that young man, the rest was pretty much easy.¡± Lucas replied. ¡°Good, had my efforts been wasted, I wouldn¡¯t have forgiven them.¡± Grey heaved a sigh. ¡°You should be careful next time. The secret your body holds will bring calamity to you if it spreads. Don¡¯t give people the chance to check your body.¡± Lucas warned. ¡°I didn¡¯t think it would be this bad.¡± Grey replied with a wry smile. This was the first time he used the Fusion State to this level, so he didn¡¯t think he would go unconscious for so long. 996 Ill Introduce You Next Time ¡°I can see you grew stronger.¡± Lucas commented as he studied Grey. From being in the Fifth stage of the Sage Plane, Grey had gone to the Sixth, getting really close to the Seventh stage. If Lucas knew that Grey was only in the Fourth stage a few weeks ago, he would be stumped. ¡°Can you tell me what it¡¯s like?¡± Lucas suddenly asked. ¡°Huh?¡± Grey looked at him, a little confused. ¡°The orb in your body, what¡¯s it like?¡± Lucas asked. Martha looked at Lucas, before giving a glance at Arlys. ¡°I should go check on my wife.¡± Arlys knew that was the cue to leave, without waiting for anything else, he vanished. ¡°There¡¯s no need to chase him, he probably knows more about it than we do.¡± Lucas said. Arlys had been with Grey for so long, so he should pretty much have found out about almost everything. This was the reason he didn¡¯t bother about him, since there was no need to. ¡°It¡¯s still better to be on the safer side.¡± Martha replied. ¡°You¡¯re right.¡± Lucas nodded. ¡°Well, there¡¯s this senior I saw in my consciousness after it activated¡­¡± Grey went on to tell them pretty much everything about the orb. His father was the one who placed it in his body in the first place, so hiding it from him was not really useful. Seeing the shocked expression on their faces as he told him about the secrets of the orb, he was a little amazed they knew pretty much nothing about it. Originally, even though his mother told him his father found it in an underground cave, he still didn¡¯t think they would have pretty much no knowledge of it. ¡®Aren¡¯t they a little too careless?¡¯ He asked Void, feeling a bit sad. There was a probability that the orb would have a dangerous side effect on him, and his father placed it on his body without even knowing. ¡®In their defense, you were already dying. It wasn¡¯t like there was anything else they could do.¡¯ Void replied. ¡®Yeah, you have a point.¡¯ Grey nodded to Void¡¯s words. Void was in the storage ring, so he heard everything Lucas said when speaking with Grey. ¡°There¡¯s a space inside the orb?¡± Lucas asked again when Grey told him how he could enter the place to check his elemental grades. ¡°Yeah, it¡¯s pretty big actually. I¡¯ve explored it a few times, but only saw a vast expanse of land with nothing else. Other than mountains and trees, there is also water inside, it¡¯s quite incredible. But I¡¯ve not seen a living thing inside though¡­¡± Grey explained. During one of the days he was free, he decided to explore the place. Apparently, the higher his cultivation grew, the more lifelike the place seemed to be. When he first explored it, there were only mountains and trees, but now, he saw water during his last trip. ¡°Definitely a God Plane Elementalist.¡± Lucas muttered. ¡°Not any ordinary God Plane Elementalist. It takes great power to create such a place. It¡¯s almost equivalent to those secret realms.¡± Martha added.please visit panda(-)N0ve1.co)m ¡°Yes. Did you say it looked more lifelike the stronger you get?¡± Lucas asked. Grey nodded. Lucas fell deep in thought, after a while he asked again, ¡°What did this senior you saw say to you?¡± Grey didn¡¯t remember word for word what he said, but he pretty much got the crux of what he said and told that to his parents. ¡°Just that?¡± Lucas asked to be sure. ¡°Yes.¡± Grey nodded. ¡°Alright. Keep this a secret, I heard you have some incredible friends, I¡¯d like to meet them someday.¡± Martha said with a smile. ¡°Alright mom, they are around the same location. I can invite them over if you want.¡± Grey suggested. Honestly, he wanted to celebrate finding his parents with his friends. Well, technically, he didn¡¯t find his parents since they came to him, but it was the same thing. They were finally reunited. ¡°I¡¯ll have to go now. You still have to decide if you want to go into that secret realm.¡± Lucas said after some time. ¡°I¡¯m definitely going.¡± Grey said. He fought that hard because he wanted to make it into that secret realm. He had already exerted his revenge on the person he wanted to fight, for the rest of the battle, it was purely his desire to win and also go into the secret realm. pAn,Da-n0v e1,c,m ¡°You already know the dangers there, if you still want to go, then I won¡¯t stop you.¡± Lucas nodded, not arguing with his son¡¯s decision. It might be difficult for Grey to move there, but with his strength, and also his head, he should be fine. Grey is a scheming individual, even though he hadn¡¯t been with him, from how he tricked Bill into admitting defeat even when he couldn¡¯t fight any longer showed it. If those guys thought they would be able to easily get him, then they were in for a surprise. ¡°Arlys will take you back to the Burchard Family, they should be waiting for your arrival.¡± Lucas said as he turned around, preparing to walk away. ¡°Okay.¡± Grey nodded, not too surprised his father didn¡¯t suggest they headed to the Dawson Family. ¡°I¡¯ll introduce you to the Family when you return. Try to get to the Elemental Venerable Plane before you return.¡± Lucas vanished after saying this. ¡°Don¡¯t mind your father, he¡¯s just paranoid.¡± Martha gently caressed his cheek before following in her husband¡¯s footsteps, leaving Grey alone to his thoughts. ¡°I can¡¯t believe my parents are actually this powerful.¡± Grey muttered to himself. This was out of his expectations. He knew they were Elementalists from their time in Red City, but it was still a shock to him that they were this strong. His father is literally someone that was respected across the entire Aurora Continent, someone tagged as a generational talent. ¡°It¡¯s better than them being weaker than you if you ask me.¡± Void commented. Grey and Void continued speaking before Arlys arrived. ¡°Let¡¯s go.¡± 997 Dark Gnomes Arlys took Grey back to the Middle Continent, heading to the Burchard Family. Compared to when Grey was traveling on his own, their speed was much faster. The cultivation level of the person taking him was much higher than his own. While they were going, they encountered three necromancers, all in the Early stages of the Elemental Venerable Plane, but Arlys easily took care of them. Some days later, Grey and Arlys arrived in the Burchard Family manor. When the guard outside saw Grey, they welcomed him inside and hurriedly went over to inform the Family Head of the Burchard Family. ¡°You¡¯re back. I didn¡¯t think you would recover so early.¡± The Family Head said as he approached Grey. ¡°I¡¯m stronger than I look.¡± Grey chuckled. ¡°I can see that.¡± The Family Head said. ¡°I guess you¡¯re here to enter the secret realm, correct?¡± He asked. Grey nodded. This was his plan from the start, he wanted to enter the secret realm, especially since it¡¯s said to be one of the best in the Aurora Continent. ¡°You came just in time. The first batch of people are about to head in, you can go with them. Some of those who went with you to the competition are heading in now.¡± The Family Head said. ¡°Oh.¡± Grey didn¡¯t say much, he followed them over to where the group was gathered. Sylvia was with the group, when she saw Grey walking over with the Family Head, she couldn¡¯t help but smile. She was genuinely happy that Grey recovered so early and would even follow the first batch of people inside the secret realm. ¡°You shouldn¡¯t have pushed yourself so hard.¡± She said when Grey walked up to them. ¡°At least it was worth it, right?¡± Grey asked with a grin. p AndD nOve1.cO,m ¡°I can¡¯t say it wasn¡¯t, it is. And everyone is grateful for your sacrifice.¡± Sylvia thanked Grey for his hard work. The fact that Grey made things too easy for them could not be denied, so she had to thank him. Scott walked over to Grey, ¡°Thank you. But how come you¡¯re okay already?¡± Even though he was happy Grey had recovered, it was quite shocking that Grey recovered from such an injury within the space of three weeks or so. Getting help from the Dawson Family was taken into account, but Grey recovered way too fast. Grey smiled but didn¡¯t respond to that question. Well, he couldn¡¯t really tell them that his cores were cracked, and then they not only recovered but they seemed way better than they were. ¡°You only noticed that?¡± Sylvia rolled her eyes. ¡°Huh?¡± Scott looked at her with a confused expression. ¡°He¡¯s already in the Sixth stage of the Sage Plane. When he came here, he was in the Fourth stage, and that was a week before the competition.¡± Sylvia replied. When everyone heard this, they looked at Grey, stunned, then unbelief washed over their faces.please visit panda(-)N0ve1.co)m In the space of just around a month or two, Grey moved from the Fourth stage to the Sixth stage, and he was injured for around three weeks or so. That meant he broke through when he was unconscious. ¡°What the hell?!¡± Scott couldn¡¯t help but exclaim. Grey was already so strong in the Fifth stage, they couldn¡¯t help but imagine how strong he would be now. Grey smiled but didn¡¯t say anything to them. ¡°We should get going.¡± He suggested when he noticed none of them were making any effort in leaving. ¡°Oh, right.¡± Sylvia said. ¡°I already told them about the place, but since you¡¯re just coming, I guess I¡¯ll have to tell you about it. The place is a realm that has portals leading to three different races¡­¡± Sylvia went on to tell Grey about the place as they headed out. The secret realm is very special due to the fact that it was separated into three different stages or Planes. There is a place for those in the Overlord Plane, Sage Plane, and Elemental Venerables. Once an Elementalist breaks through to a higher Plane, he would have to leave the lower realm else their core would be corrupted if they stay there for too long. There are times when people from a higher Plane head to a lower realm to kill someone from another race. In fact, it¡¯s quite common in this secret realm. If an unparalleled genius appears in a lower realm from another race, those from other races try to kill them. Given the enmity between humans and the Dark Gnomes, it was quite natural that they would want to eliminate those geniuses that might stand a chance to go against them once again. The name of the race that brought necromancy to humans, and also invaded the human realm thousands of years ago was the Dark Gnomes. The only way for someone in a higher realm to go to a lower realm is through a weak point in the seal differentiating the lower and higher realms. These weak points are very hard to find, and after finding them, breaking them was also not easy to achieve. Grey listened attentively to Sylvia¡¯s explanation. After getting a clear understanding of the place, he knew he had to tread carefully. Given his mark, he would be targeted by the Dark Gnomes. What was worse was that hiding from them was not going to be easy. ¡®I need to remove this darn mark.¡¯ He complained internally. He already had a method to remove it, but since it involved killing people, he couldn¡¯t wantonly kill people for his benefit. ¡°Oh, I forgot to tell you. You¡¯ll be in danger the moment you enter, you know, with the mark.¡± Sylvia recalled this and said to Grey. ¡°Yeah, I already have a plan in mind.¡± Grey replied. ¡°Good.¡± They soon got to the place where the portal to the secret realm was located. ¡°Alright, we will part ways here for now. When you all step inside, remember to watch out for each other, take care.¡± The Head of the Burchard Family didn¡¯t say much. After some pleasantries with those keeping guard at the portal, the youths were allowed entry. 998 Whoever Kills Him Gets A Reward Grey stepped into the portal with the others, a flash covered them and before long, they vanished from everyone¡¯s view. ¡°I hope they all make it back alive.¡± The Head of the Burchard Family commented. Even though it has been a long time, there was a universal rule in the realm that allowed only a given number of people from each race inside the place. Presently, only twenty people in the Sage Plane could go inside. This was the number those from the Burchard Family could allow inside, other Factions and Families would still send their geniuses inside, so the number would increase over time. Some people tend to stay there until they break through to the next major realm. There are people in the Early stages of the Sage Plane that the Burchard Family sent inside, some of them will come out before breaking through, while others will leave even before they break through. The unfortunate ones will meet their demise in this land of opportunity. ¡°I don¡¯t think it will be good if any of them stick with Grey.¡± Sylvia suddenly said with a dark expression. ¡°Why?¡± The Head of the Burchard Family asked, the Elders close to him also had confused expressions. ¡°He¡¯s marked by a necromancer. So, generally, he¡¯s a magnet to trouble there.¡± Sylvia explained. pA n,dan(-)0ve1.c0m The expressions of the Elders as well as the Head of the Burchard Family changed. When they thought of the time since Sylvia arrived, they couldn¡¯t help but be shocked. If Grey traveled alone for such a long time, then he would naturally be in trouble with the necromancers. Although they are few, they are well divided in the Continent, so it would be hard for Grey to travel peacefully in the Continent. After thinking for a while, they recalled who Grey was. Being the son of someone regarded as a once-in-a-hundred-years genius, he would naturally be protected. Sylvia couldn¡¯t help but wonder how lucky she was when she forcefully followed Grey and forced him into competitions. At first, she was just having fun whilst also accessing Grey¡¯s talent and strength. Only after the first few battles did she stop taking it as a means of entertainment, and tried to help him. But thinking at the possibility that Lucas was following Grey and he decided to attack her then, she couldn¡¯t help but shiver. Even her father dared not to claim that he was stronger than Lucas, much less her, who wasn¡¯t even a match for her father. ¡°Going down there is suicidal, why didn¡¯t you stop him?¡± An Elder couldn¡¯t help but ask. ¡°He already knows the danger, but since he wants to go, who am I to stop him?¡± Sylvia replied with a shrug. It was Grey¡¯s choice, it had nothing to do with her. Even after knowing the dangers of entering the secret realm, he still decided to go, there was nothing she could do. The Elders exchanged glances with each other. ¡°Staying with the group would be better for him.¡± ¡­. In the secret realm. The group just appeared in a forest area. ¡°I¡¯ll be leaving on my own, it will be best if we don¡¯t travel together.¡± Grey said after taking in the new scenery. ¡°Huh?¡± Scott was a little confused. ¡°I don¡¯t like traveling in groups.¡± Grey responded in a direct manner.please visit panda(-)N0ve1.co)m He wasn¡¯t obligated to travel with them in the first place, and since he has that mark, he felt he would have a greater chance at survival if he was on his own. If he traveled in a group and they were ambushed, he would not be able to escape until he was certain those with him were safe. He didn¡¯t want that type of responsibility in this place. His aim here was simple, breakthrough to the Elemental Venerable Plane. Some of those traveling with the group looked at Grey with annoyed expressions, especially those who didn¡¯t watch him in the competition. They felt he was being too arrogant. ¡°Since you want that, then I hope you stay safe.¡± Scott replied. He would also travel on his own eventually, so he wasn¡¯t really against Grey¡¯s decision. Besides, it¡¯s natural for people like Grey to adventure alone. The only reason he was still with the group was that this was their first time entering this place in a while, so they needed time to get to know the place. Taking a peek at the black cat on Grey¡¯s shoulder, he couldn¡¯t help but wonder what its use was. Grey nodded to the group before walking off. ¡®So, what¡¯s the plan?¡¯ Void asked as the duo ventured off alone. ¡®Well, first thing first, I need to get this mark off me. I¡¯m certain they are already aware of my presence here, so trouble would be coming soon.¡¯ Grey replied. His only problem now was how to remove the mark. The method he devised had to do with using human life force as its core, but since there are few people here, it meant he couldn¡¯t kill the humans here. Void agreed to Grey¡¯s words. ¡­ Somewhere in the secret realm. At the time Grey and the others appeared, a group of youths could be seen walking. They were all short, with black skins. ¡°Did anyone sense that?¡± One of them asked. ¡°You sensed it as well?¡± Another asked in shock. ¡°Yes.¡± The others nodded. ¡°It must be a human.¡± Another said. Of the three races entering this place, humans were the only ones the people of the Dark Gnome race would take the effort of marking. Compared to necromancers who have to sacrifice their lives, although it looked easier for Dark Gnomes, it wasn¡¯t entirely the case. ¡°Whoever it is must be a threat, since the mark is this potent.¡± Another one of them said. ¡°Fine, since this person dared to come here, they are willing to die. Whoever kills this person gets a reward.¡± With that, they separated, but they were all headed in the same direction, the place where they sensed the mark coming from. 999 What If I Was Marked By Mistake? Boom! ¡°Damn it! How did they find me so fast?¡± Grey complained as he tried to escape from the pursuit of the person chasing after him. It hadn¡¯t been more than twenty-four hours since he entered the secret realm, but he had already encountered the first person from the Dark Gnome race. It was a young lady at the Peak of the Sage Plane. She was surprisingly very strong. p¡¢A,nd A-n¡¢o¡¢ve,1 Since he was just recovering from excessively using the Fusion State, he didn¡¯t want to carelessly use it. ¡°You¡¯re marked, remember?¡± Void mocked. It was obvious he was enjoying Grey¡¯s plight. At the moment, if the duo decided to go all-out without Grey using the Fusion State, they stood a small chance of winning. Void had already gotten to the Late stages of being a Rank Six Magical Beast, and his strength was by no means any weaker than an Eighth or even a Ninth stage Sage Plane human Elementalists. With Grey helping out, they stood a good chance of fighting against this young lady. Unfortunately, they could tell that since this young lady found them so fast, others would not be far behind. ¡®I hate this.¡¯ Grey couldn¡¯t help but complain. What was worse at the moment was that no matter how he ran, the young lady would still be able to track him down. His only hope right now was getting into another dimension. He could only do that if there was a small space in this place. ¡®That¡¯s it!¡¯ Grey¡¯s eyes lit up. He recalled that when Sylvia was talking about this place, she spoke of some hidden spaces that had special treasures in them. Some of these places are like buildings, once an Elementalist enters the place, they would be cut off from the rest of the world and there would be almost no way to contact them. He told Void of his plan. Luckily for him, during the past twenty-four hours, he had been scouting the place, trying to get a general idea of the place, so he had naturally encountered a few buildings. His only prayer now was that one of them was like such buildings that could cut him off from the world. Without wasting any more time, he bolted straight for the closest building. It was around six to ten thousand kilometers away from where he was currently located. As he ran through the forest, he encountered some beasts, but he didn¡¯t even bat an eye for them, going past them in a flash. As he was running, something caught the side of his eyes. ¡®Is that¡­ Damn it!¡¯ He didn¡¯t even get the time to think before sensing an attack coming from behind him. He hurriedly dodged it and used the Great Void technique to escape into the void, appearing a thousand kilometers away. This had been the reason he hadn¡¯t been entangled with the young lady from the Gnome race by now. Whenever she gets too close, he would use it and escape a far distance away. ¡°Stop running you shrimp!¡± The young lady from the Gnome race gnawed her teeth angrily. She had been chasing Grey for almost thirty minutes now. Some people would have given up since they knew they couldn¡¯t outrun her, but Grey was different, he was running, and he was doing it in a somewhat carefree manner.please visit panda(-)N0ve1.co)m Unknown to her, Grey was already very used to running away. While he was in the Trial Land, he did it often. Even after coming out, he still continued running for his life, so he could be said to be a pro when it came to running away from people. While the young lady angrily chased after Grey, others from the Gnome race were also headed in his direction. ¡­. Thousands of kilometers away. Scott was still with those who followed him into the secret realm. ¡°Strange, I thought we would encounter the Gnome race right after we entered, but even after an entire day, we haven¡¯t seen a glimpse of them. Do you think they are here?¡± Scott looked around curiously. The main reason the group stayed together without each heading out for a fortuitous encounter of their own was because of the danger of being ganged up on by those from the Gnome race. But apparently, not a single person from the Gnome race had been spotted which was quite surprising. ¡°Maybe they are busy searching for treasures.¡± Someone commented. Forgetting their rivalry, one of the main reasons this place was created was so that youths from each race would get the chance to encounter a great opportunity to boost their strength. Even after so many years, this secret realm still held treasures that could not be seen in the Aurora Continent or the world of the Gnome race. ¡°Probably, we¡¯ll travel together for a while longer, if we still don¡¯t encounter any of them then we can go different ways.¡± Scott said. The others agreed to his words and continued venturing further into the secret realm. ¡­ While those from the Burchard Family were still searching for the people of the Gnome race, another figure had joined the pursuit. A young man and the previous young lady were chasing after Grey now. Luckily, the new person was only in the Eighth stage of the Sage Plane, but the figure felt he had a good chance against Grey who was only in the Sixth stage. ¡®The number of your fans will continuously increase, it¡¯s been a while since I saw you in such a state.¡¯ Void gloated when he saw that someone else had joined in on the chase. ¡®I get the fact that I¡¯m marked, but does having this mark mean that they would only try to kill me? I mean, what if I was marked by mistake, do they even think about this possibility?¡¯ Grey asked, a little annoyed. ¡®Why don¡¯t you stop and ask them?¡¯ Void said with a grin. ¡®No need, a building is already in sight.¡¯ In front of the duo, a large building could be seen. 1000 Short Exchange The building in front of them had an archaic look, well, all of them felt this way as well. When he got close to the building, it felt like he was standing in front of something as old as time. For a moment, he didn¡¯t take a step, a little shocked by what was in front of him, this was the first time he was getting close to one of these buildings. The building looked exceptionally strong, even with its ancient look. Grey soon snapped out of his reverie and rushed into the building. ¡®It better have a small dimension I can hide in, or else I¡¯ll be in a whole lot of trouble. Grey knew entering this building would give his pursuers a chance to get closer to him, but it presented a chance for him to escape from their pursuit, so he couldn¡¯t afford to miss the chance. After all, the life of Elementalists was a risk in itself. The large double doors closed shut after he went in, giving him a small sense of hope that this place might have what he wanted. He continued moving forward, the inside of the building was extremely large, compared to how it looked from the outside, it was easily twice the size of the building outside. Even though he was in a hurry, he wouldn¡¯t be so careless that he would rush through this place. There might be dangers in the building. He left the large hall and stepped into the passageway, seeing the doors leading to rooms, he was very cautious. He was not the least bit tempted to open any of the doors since it might bring more trouble for him. Just as he was walking, he heard the door slam shut behind him. ¡®Guess this place isn¡¯t it.¡¯ He thought to himself. pA n,dan(-)0ve1.c0m ¡®Void, check which of them came in.¡¯ Void vanished from Grey¡¯s shoulder and appeared in the large hall, he saw a young man. ¡®It¡¯s the guy in the Eighth stage.¡¯ Void reported. ¡®How long do you think it would take before we take him out?¡¯ Grey asked. ¡®Two minutes tops.¡¯ Void replied confidently. He could defeat the young man on his own, adding Grey to the mix would make things faster. ¡®Alright, the sooner the better.¡¯ Grey soon started to prepare arrays, he wanted to ambush the young man. With Void hiding behind the young man, there was no way he could escape from their pincer attack. The young man soon chased after Grey, but he was just as careful as Grey since he knew how dangerous such buildings were. He followed the mark and soon got to where Grey was standing, waiting for him. ¡°Where¡¯s your comrade?¡± Grey asked curiously. He was very calm, staring at the young man as if he was staring into his soul. ¡°I¡¯m more than enough to kill you. Before she comes, your corpse will be on the ground.¡± The young man said confidently. Grey chuckled before shaking his head, ¡°Well, here I am.¡±please visit panda(-)N0ve1.co)m He spread his arms, waiting for the young man to attack. The young man took a step forward, then paused. The thought of Grey setting up an ambush crossed his mind, but then again, he looked at Grey and felt they were not on the same level. He was in the Eighth stage while Grey was only in the Sixth stage. Although he was confident, he didn¡¯t dare to underestimate Grey, he cautiously advanced while preparing to defend with full force. He was covered by a black mist as he advanced. ¡°So cautious.¡± Grey chuckled before snapping his finger. The walls, floor, as well as ceiling lit up with array lines. The young man allowed the mist surrounding him to spread out, and with a powerful roar, the mist started to thicken, going into a somewhat liquid state. Grey took a step forward and the passageway was covered by a large stream of fire. He used his fire domain. Since he wanted to make sure he was on the safer side, he used the icy flames. Ice started to form in the mist covering the young man. However, before it could get through, the mist not only blocked it but also started to devour it. ¡®Void¡­¡¯ Grey called out to Void while doing a slashing motion with his hand. Void appeared behind the young man and also attacked. He used spatial distortions to break through the defensive mist set up by the young man. The mist started to show signs of breaking apart, a worried expression appeared on the face of the young man when he noticed this. Just as he was about to reinforce the part where Void¡¯s attack came from, Grey¡¯s dimensional slash attack hit the mist from the other side. A large hole opened up in the mist, giving Grey the opportunity he was waiting for. Stretching his hand forward, a lightning bolt shot through the hole. When the lightning entered the mist, it quickly spread apart, forming Grey¡¯s lightning domain. The young man screamed when the lightning started to rampage all over his body. An item appeared on his hand and he crushed it. ¡°Stop him!¡± Grey and Void moved out simultaneously, and just as they were about to attack, the young man vanished. ¡°Damn it, I didn¡¯t get the chance to mark him.¡± Grey complained as he felt a bit annoyed that the young man escaped. The reason he was feeling annoyed was that after exchanging blows with the young man, he already knew some of his techniques, so he would be able to inform the others from the Gnome race about Grey and his strength. ¡°We should get going too, I think I heard the door slamming shut.¡± Void said when Grey was still rueing his wasted chance. Grey nodded and followed after Void, heading in another direction. There were other doors to leave this place, so they wanted to take it. As the duo was leaving, the young lady at the Peak of the Sage Plane had just entered the building. She soon sensed where Grey was located and chased after them. 1001 Chased Around The secret realm. It has been a week since Grey and those from the Burchard Family stepped into the place, and other than Grey, only a few people had seen those from the Gnome race. Grey had been chased from the moment he stepped foot in this place, making his life a little miserable. While Grey was going through hell, those from the Burchard Family were having a great time since they didn¡¯t have to worry too much about being attacked by the Gnome race, they focused heavily on searching for treasures. There had been a few people who had even broken through. ¡­ In a cave near a waterfall. ¡®How can I be so unlucky?¡¯ Grey questioned as he looked around. He had seen over twenty buildings in the space of a week now, but none of them had the space he was searching for. What was worse was that he had been engaged in combat multiple times since the chase started, and he hadn¡¯t been able to get the advantage since whenever he was on the verge of being victorious, someone else would step into the fray and make things hard for him. ¡®You¡¯ve always been a little unlucky. I bet Klaus would¡¯ve accidentally stumbled on one by one.¡¯ Void commented. Grey looked at him but didn¡¯t refute it, in terms of luck, Klaus seemed to be highly favored by the world. ¡®I hate this. Who would¡¯ve thought that I¡¯d have to run for my life the entire time I¡¯m here? I haven¡¯t even had the time to train. Isn¡¯t it best I just go back to the Aurora Continent?¡¯ He was getting a little frustrated. ¡®Not really, the constant battle is good for you.¡¯ Void replied. ¡®I know, I just hate that I have to be the one running. Why don¡¯t we reverse the situation and I become the one hunting them?¡¯ Grey said as he was getting ready to head out once again. He could already sense the aura of people nearby. Without any doubt, he knew it was the people from the Gnome race. Void went out to check on it and confirmed it. The duo had no choice but to leave once again. While they were running, Grey caught sight of a large figure. This figure was larger than even those Barbarians he saw in the Aurora Continent when he first went there. He could sense the frightening strength hidden in their muscular body. ¡®The third race in this place?¡¯ He was a little confused. Due to being chased around, he forgot there was actually a third race that entered this place as well. ¡®I think Sylvia called them giants. Well, they¡¯re not much of a giant if you ask me.¡¯ Void remarked, studying the figure in front of him. ¡®They can regulate their body size. Walking around with such a large body would make them an easy target for people.¡¯ Grey said. Even though he was being chased, he still took his time to study the figure ahead of him. Not just him, but the figure ahead was staring at him vigilantly. This giant was already in the Ninth stage of the Sage Plane, and it was clear that he wasn¡¯t far from the Peak. Grey, unfortunately, didn¡¯t have the luxury of time to stare at the giant for too long. After running for a few minutes, another building soon appeared before him. ¡®This place better have it!¡¯ Five minutes later. Boom! Grey¡¯s figure bounced off the ground as he shot out of the building.please visit panda(-)N0ve1.co)m ¡°Damn it! You cowards! Why don¡¯t you come at me one on one and see if you can last ten moves.¡± He cursed out loud before running away once again. He was unfortunate as the building had no secret space, instead, there was someone from the Gnome race there. This person was actually very close to breaking through to the Elemental Sovereign Plane. Cursing his bad luck, Grey continued his escape. He dashed through the woods and as he was running, Void sensed something. ¡®There.¡¯ Grey looked in the direction Void was pointing and there was a cave entrance there. ¡®Treasure? You know I don¡¯t have time for that.¡¯ ¡®I can sense strong spatial fluctuations there.¡¯ ¡®Oh, why didn¡¯t you say so from the start?¡¯ p-n0ve1¡¢com Grey changed his direction and headed straight for the cave. ¡®If this place is what I¡¯m searching for, I¡¯ll need to lure one of those bastards in as well.¡¯ Coming up with a plan, Grey stepped into the cave. The first thing that he was was a dried-up skeleton. ¡®Well that¡¯s not encouraging.¡¯ He thought internally. However, the fear of being captured didn¡¯t allow him to stay outside. The cave had an eerie aura, and he could sense that there was something deadly lurking within the cave. He followed Void¡¯s directions and soon came to the place where the spatial fluctuation was coming from. When he confirmed that the place could indeed send him to another secret space, he calmed himself and sat down cross-legged in front of it. He was waiting for the first person from the Gnome race that would get to him. It didn¡¯t take long before the first person arrived. It was a young lady in the Ninth stage of the Sage Plane. ¡°You¡¯re pretty good at running, human.¡± The young lady mocked. ¡°And you¡¯re pretty bad at chasing. I¡¯m weaker than you are, yet you haven¡¯t been able to capture me. If I were in your position, I¡¯d have already killed you by now.¡± Grey didn¡¯t feel bothered by her words. The young lady felt irritated by Grey¡¯s words, and just as she was about to attack, Grey entered the spatial rift and disappeared. She gritted her teeth, looked around, and charged in as well. These spatial rifts that transport them to a secret place tend to be quite dangerous, hence her hesitation. However, due to the strong mark on Grey¡¯s body, they could tell that he was most likely a threat to them. Just the fact that he managed to escape all this while had already proven that he was not ordinary. 1002 Secret Space Grey appeared in a red world. The sky was dyed red, giving off an eerie aura. He could almost perceive the stench of blood in the air. ¡®Be on guard, we don¡¯t know what¡¯s in this place.¡¯ He said to Void. pAn,Da n<0,>v,e1 Void nodded, he was not careless and was already trying to sense what dangers lay ahead of their path. While they were looking around, a figure covered in light appeared. The light died down almost immediately and the young lady from the Gnome race appeared. ¡°Tell me, where do you intend to run to now?¡± She asked with a playful smile. To her, Grey jumping into this place was the same as cutting his escape route. She felt maybe he was desperate and wanted to get the help of whatever creature was hiding in this place. ¡°Who says I¡¯m running?¡± Grey raised a brow playfully. The young lady looked at Grey before bursting out laughing. She already knew what he had in mind, but she was amused by the fact that Grey genuinely felt he could win against her. ¡°You want to fight against me?¡± She asked, just to clarify her assumption. Grey took a step forward, his intention was clear. The young lady looked at him with a mocking smile before moving forward with frightening speed. Grey didn¡¯t stand idle, seeing the young lady coming his way, he created an earth dome that protected him from any attacks. The young lady appeared in front of the earth dome and started attacking it. Grey, who was well protected on the inside sensed the location of the young lady before unleashing an unusual attack. It was something he hadn¡¯t used in a long time. ¡°Uh?¡± The young lady¡¯s shocked exclamation rang out in the place. Grey soon came out of the earth dome and attacked with the fire element, sending the young lady flying. He turned the ground the young lady was standing on as she attacked into mud, giving himself the opportunity to attack while the young lady was shocked by the sudden change in the environment. The young lady flipped mid-air and tried to land on her feet. However, the second her feet touched the ground, she sank once again. Grey appeared on her side and attacked with the lightning element. A sharp shrill left the young lady¡¯s mouth as she screamed, clearly in pain. Grey noticed her reaction towards the lightning element was different compared to the fire element. ¡®There¡¯s a chance that the lightning element is quite effective against them¡­¡¯ He contemplated before attacking with the fire element once again. The young lady was able to block the attack this time, making sure Grey didn¡¯t get the advantage.please visit panda(-)N0ve1.co)m Blocking the attack left her back open and Grey had already prepared a lightning inscription behind her. It attacked her from a hidden angle and before she noticed it, it struck her back and sent her flying. She screamed in pain once again as she looked at Grey with hatred. Although the attack power was not enough to kill her, the pain she was getting from the burns was sending her hysterical. ¡°I¡¯ll kill you!¡± She shouted out in anger. ¡°You¡¯ll have to be alive to do that.¡± Grey said coolly. The young lady gnawed her teeth as she looked at the injury inflicted on her by the lightning element. After calming herself down, she attacked once again, this time, careful not to fall for any of Grey¡¯s tricks. Unfortunately for her, Grey was just getting started. Against an opponent in the Ninth stage, Grey would definitely need the Fusion State to at least boost his stage to the Seventh or Eighth stage to be able to comfortably defeat his opponent. But without the Fusion State, he could easily use his space element and other elements to make life a living hell for whoever he¡¯s fighting against. There¡¯s still Void who hasn¡¯t gotten into the mix, so she basically has no chance against the duo. Of course, she knew nothing of this. Grey dodged her attack with the help of the space element, before attacking. The young lady blocked the attack with ease before attacking once again. Grey tried to block the attack but was pushed back. The attack power of the young lady was more than what Grey could take, so it opened an opportunity for the young lady who took it without blinking. Seeing that Grey was forced back, she unleashed another attack with the darkness element and compared to how humans used it, there was a difference in how the people from the Gnome race used it. Grey was once again forced back by the attack of the young lady, as he blocked the attack, he was pushed back. Before he could position himself, the young lady was already close to him. She refused to give him the chance he wanted to attack. And for someone who was always attack minded, it was best to keep him restricted. The young lady attacked with a sword made out of darkness. The sword sliced through the defensive wall Grey created and tried to cut Grey¡¯s flesh, but Grey sensibly retreated in time, making sure he was not hit by the sword. The young lady continued attacking relentlessly, while Grey dodged calmly. He tried blocking it, but whatever defense he sets up, the sword cuts through it like a hot knife through butter. ¡®Void.¡¯ Grey called out to Void as he saw how things were going. Void finally made a move, disappearing from where he was watching the battle. The young lady who was invested in attacking Grey never expected another attack to come from behind her, worse of all, it was a lightning element attack. Void got within five meters of her before attacking, giving her little to no time to react to the attack. Just like Grey¡¯s attack, the lightning bolt struck her back and sent her flying. She crashed into the ground, bouncing off repeatedly. ¡®Easy.¡¯ Void said with a smirk. Grey rolled his eyes before boosting his strength to the Ninth stage, the same stage as the young lady. Now, he was taking the battle seriously. 1003 Lure Them In With a step, Grey vanished. The young lady who was just recovering from Void¡¯s sneak attack rushed to her feet as she tried to get a good view of what attacked her. Looking around, she saw no one, not even Grey. ¡°Where¡¯s he?¡± She panicked as she went on guard. From the last attack, she already knew Grey was not alone. Only a fool would think he was the one who did that attack. Unfortunately for her, even if she felt Grey was not alone, she couldn¡¯t confirm her assumptions since there was no one in sight. She was still looking around when she sensed the space by her right ripple, and without even blinking, she attacked that spot. Her attack missed since it didn¡¯t hit anyone. ¡°If you waited for a little longer you would¡¯ve been able to hit it.¡± Grey¡¯s voice came from behind her. Her entire body tensed up because she didn¡¯t know when Grey appeared behind her. She turned around with flailing arms as she attacked, trying to catch Grey unaware. Her hands, which were covered with a black mist, were caught by a strong hand. She smiled since she knew the effect the black mist had on others, especially humans. ¡°You¡¯re dead.¡± She said hatefully. ¡°That may or may not be correct.¡± Grey replied nonchalantly as he threw a punch her way, sending her flying. His fist was covered with the lightning element, so the attack caused greater harm to the young lady. The young lady screamed in horror as she landed on the ground. The young lady coughed out black blood as she looked at Grey, she wiped the little bit of blood that was left on her lips. ¡®I just have to delay a little while, the effect will start soon.¡¯ She thought to herself as she stared at Grey¡¯s hands which were still covered with the black mist. He shook his hand casually, and to the shock of the young lady, the black mist died down. ¡°Impo¡­¡± ¡°Nothing¡¯s impossible if you have the right methods.¡± Grey interrupted her as he walked closer to where she was standing. The young lady paused for some time, unsure of what to do. Grey¡¯s simple act seemed to have dampened her spirit, she almost lost all will to fight. But she soon snapped out of it as she roared angrily, and two figures soon appeared beside her. They were obviously dead, and Grey needed no information on what they were human puppets. The two figures were both young ladies, and each was in the Eighth stage of the Sage Plane.please visit panda(-)N0ve1.co)m Grey studied the duo with a shake of his head. They were part of the unfortunate few who would not make it out of this place. The duo attacked the moment they appeared. One of them was a Lightning Elementalist, while the other was a Water Elementalist. Grey didn¡¯t shy away from the fight as he entangled himself with the duo. He dodged a lightning bolt by a hair¡¯s breadth before facing a stream of water that pushed him back. pA(nD)A no ve1 The young lady from the Gnome race didn¡¯t sit by idly as Grey was being overpowered, she rushed in to join in on the fight as well. She could already tell that Grey would be a good puppet for her, so she wanted to claim him. If Grey knew what was going through her mind, he would laugh his head off at the thought of being a puppet to someone else. Just as the young lady joined in on the battle and went within a certain range, Grey, who had been defending, suddenly changed his strategy. He unleashed his gravitational force field which not only pushed the puppets to the ground but their owner as well. The ground on which they were standing lit up as a large array appeared. The red-colored sky above shook vigorously as a thunderstorm appeared from nowhere. The young lady was about to move when a large and powerful lightning bolt fell from the sky at an insane speed, crashing into her and her puppets. Her shrill screams echoed as she was harmed by the lightning attack. Void appeared on Grey¡¯s shoulder as he looked at their opponent. ¡°You should have at least given her some hope.¡± He commented. ¡°She doesn¡¯t need it. I wonder what state she¡¯ll be in after this attack.¡± Grey replied playfully. The lightning storm died down, and the seemingly never-ending lightning strike disappeared without a trace. Three figures came into the duo¡¯s view, two of them were burnt to crisp, while the last one was charred from the burns, still shaking from the electrocution, and was clearly gasping for air. The young lady survived, but it was easy to see that she would not be alive for long. She was struggling for breath as she lay on the ground. Grey watched her for some time, and just as he was about to end her suffering, an idea popped up in his head. ¡®There¡¯s no harm in trying.¡¯ He thought to himself. Walking closer, he used an array to seal the young lady¡¯s elemental powers before bending down almost to her level. His hand was covered with the light element as he tried to heal her, but to his shock, the moment his hands got close, the reaction of the young lady intensified, and before he could react, she died. ¡°What the hell?! I didn¡¯t even get a chance to try it.¡± Grey looked at the dead body in dejection. He wanted to try to see if he could use the life force of this young lady, or anyone from the Gnome race to erase the mark. Since the Gnome race was basically the ones who created this vile method, it was only right that they would be able to remove it. Grey stayed in the space for a while longer before heading out, he needed to drag another person from the Gnome race here so he could try out his theory. 1004 In Search Of Victims Grey soon located the way out of the secret space, although it was a little harder than he thought, it wasn¡¯t beyond his capabilities. His only concern was that he could sense that there was something inside the place, but even after searching around, he still hadn¡¯t found anything yet. He left the place and walked around, hoping to attract the attention of any member of the Gnome race. After staying for over one hour, he decided to head out and search for someone on his own. He felt maybe after not sensing the mark, some might have felt that he died. He didn¡¯t journey far before the first member of the Gnome race appeared. The person was a young man who was at the Peak of the Sage Plane. Grey had no issues with dealing with people at the peak, hence he quickly turned around and made a break for it. His plan was still the same, take this person into the secret space and kill him. The young man was elated when he realized Grey was still alive and immediately gave chase, in hopes of being the one to kill him. Getting to the cave, Grey jumped straight into the secret space. When the young man from the Gnome race got there, instead of rushing in carelessly, he paused and looked at the place carefully before turning around. For some reason, he didn¡¯t head into the place. Grey stayed in the secret space for around ten minutes or so, when he didn¡¯t see the young man entering, he was forced to step out once again. As soon as he appeared outside, he was attacked by the young man who had been waiting for him. Grey already expected something like this, so before stepping out, he had four defensive layers around him, even three Peak Sage Plane Elementalists would not be able to break through it with just one attack. But it wouldn¡¯t last more than that. p¡¢A,nd A-n¡¢o¡¢ve,1 Grey didn¡¯t need it to since all he wanted was to make sure he was protected from the initial attack of the young man outside. When the young man noticed that Grey was still standing after his attack, he looked at him with a mocking smile. ¡°What tricks could you possibly have up your sleeve that would make you risk your life by coming out again?¡± Grey looked at the young man, noticing his calmness, he didn¡¯t panic. Whoever this is, he was a smart person, so he would naturally not be careless with him. ¡°I never thought I would see the day when a Peak Sage Plane expert would be scared of a Sixth stage weakling.¡± Grey remarked. ¡°Only a fool would look down on his opponent.¡± The young man replied casually, not embarrassed by Grey¡¯s words. He wasn¡¯t the type that would fall for such cheap trickery. If Grey felt that his words would make him chase after him relentlessly, then he was a fool. With his mind made up, to the utmost surprise of Grey, the young man from the Gnome race turned around and left, he didn¡¯t even try to fight against Grey. His exchange with Grey already showed that Grey was a hard nut to crack, and in the process of cracking him, he might end up harming himself, so he gave up even before trying. Grey was stunned when he saw the young man leave.please visit panda(-)N0ve1.co)m ¡°He left?¡± He couldn¡¯t help but ask with a dumbfounded expression. ¡°So it seems.¡± Void replied after sensing the area for a while. ¡°He¡¯s smart, not everyone is as decisive as he is.¡± Grey couldn¡¯t help but commend the young man. The only reason he didn¡¯t try to engage him in a fight was the fear of destroying the cave, and maybe someone else managed to get here before he killed the young man and joined hands with his opponent. As much as he wanted to try out his theory, it wasn¡¯t worth the risk of getting himself caught or even worse¡­ killed. With the young man gone, Grey had to go in search of another potential victim for his experiment. It took him close to two hours before he finally found another member of the Gnome race, a young man who was in the Eighth stage of the Sage Plane. This guy didn¡¯t even think twice and immediately went after Grey the moment they made contact. Grey rushed off, running in the direction of the cave. Just as he was a kilometer or so away from the cave, he saw a familiar figure. It was the young man at the Peak who refused to follow him into the cave the last time, he was waiting for him, blocking his path back to be exact. Grey¡¯s expression changed slightly since he never expected this young man to appear again. ¡®Really smart.¡¯ He cursed as he looked at the young man. The move made by the young man was ingenious, he didn¡¯t follow Grey into the secret space, rather, he waited on the side and started to track him, when he sensed the guy from his race heading in Grey¡¯s direction, he rushed back so Grey wouldn¡¯t notice him. ¡°Where are you going to go now?¡± The young man asked as he spread his hands apart. Grey was about to reply when the other young man in the Eighth stage showed up. He looked at Grey, then at the young man standing after Grey. ¡°He¡¯s mine.¡± He declared coldly. ¡°You can¡¯t beat him without my help, you can¡¯t even catch him. Pipe down and maybe I¡¯ll give you some credit.¡± The young man at the Peak of the Sage Plane said. His expression and voice were still the same, but his aura was completely different. It was clear that if the young man in the Eighth stage said anything else, he would kill him even before fighting Grey. The young man swallowed his saliva as he nodded his head. He didn¡¯t retreat though, he knew he couldn¡¯t since that would mean opening an escape route for Grey. 1005 Shameless Grey Grey stared at the duo, his greatest problem was the young man at the Peak. Not just because he was the strongest, but because he was blocking his escape path. If he were to use the Great Void technique to escape, then he would only be giving up on his chances with either of these young men. ¡°Unlike you, I don¡¯t run from a battle.¡± Grey stated confidently as he looked at the young man at the Peak. The other young man looked at the duo, only after Grey spoke did he realize the duo had crossed paths, and from Grey¡¯s statement, the young man at the Peak actually retreated. The view he had of the young man changed, but he still didn¡¯t dare to attack him. ¡°Heh.¡± The young man scoffed but didn¡¯t respond any longer, without waiting for Grey to make a move, he attacked. Grey, seeing the incoming attack from the young man steadied himself, dodged the attack, and before anyone could realize what was happening, he bolted for it. Why would he waste his strength to fight against the duo here, when he could easily be attacked by more of the people from the Gnome race if he stayed for too long? Both young men from the Gnome race paused in confusion. Originally, they felt after Grey dodged the attack, he would counter, but Grey did not even spare them a glance as he ran off. It was clear that his objective from the start was to escape. ¡°Shameless.¡± The young man at the Peak cursed under his breath. The other young man looked at him. ¡°What are you looking at? After him.¡± The young man at the Peak gave the order as he rushed after Grey. As they chased, he soon noticed something strange about Grey¡¯s movement. Just when he was about to give them a clear distance, he would slow down, seemingly waiting for them to catch up. The young man at the Peak had so many questions in his head, but he couldn¡¯t ask them. Unlike him, the other young man didn¡¯t care about all these, all that mattered was defeating Grey. The young man at the Peak took a glance at the other young man before smiling to himself. He would taste the waters with this guy, if he doesn¡¯t come out after five minutes, then he would leave Grey and focus on his training and breaking through. If Grey could kill someone in the Eighth stage, even if it was with the help of an external helper, it wouldn¡¯t change the fact that he was a formidable foe. Time went by and the familiar cave came into view once again, the young man at the Peak paused outside the cave, while the other young man didn¡¯t waste any time waiting. He headed right into the cave and jumped into the secret space with Grey already waiting for him to appear. pAnD a(-)n0ve1.com ¡­ In the secret space. After Grey entered, he didn¡¯t head far from the place he appeared, he hid somewhere as he waited for his victim. Seeing only the young man in the Eighth stage entering, he heaved a sigh of relief. Although he might be able to kill both of them had they come in together with Void¡¯s assistance, this was still a good option since they would be able to take out the young man faster.please visit panda(-)N0ve1.co)m The young man looked in the direction Grey was hiding, since he still had the mark, it was very easy for the young man to locate him. ¡°Come out and face your owner.¡± The young man said coldly. Grey stepped out with an expressionless face. He studied the young man from every angle before nodding his head. ¡°You¡¯ll do.¡± The young man was taken aback by Grey¡¯s statement, unsure of what he meant by that. Grey didn¡¯t say anything else as he charged forward, his body covered with red lightning as he boosted his strength to the Ninth stage of the Sage Plane. The reason for this was that he wanted to end things as soon as he could. The young man from the Gnome race was flabbergasted when he sensed the sudden spike in Grey¡¯s level. He couldn¡¯t even say a word as he hurriedly set up a defensive shield to block Grey¡¯s incoming attack. Boom! The attack hit the shield and it broke apart, the young man on the other hand was sent flying, crashing into the ground with an open wound on his chest. He stood up and looked at the injury on his chest. He grimaced in pain before he quickly tried to counter. Grey was already standing close to him, so his attack missed by a lot. Unfortunately for him, his back was clawed by Grey¡¯s hand which had lightning claws on it. Each claw dug deep into his flesh, letting the lightning roam freely in his body, causing havoc and unimaginable pain to the young man¡¯s body. The young man screamed in terror, he could see his life flashing through his eyes. With blood dripping from his mouth, he made a last-ditch effort to try to reverse everything. Rushing to his feet, he threw different attacks at Grey, even bringing out his puppets. The puppets didn¡¯t move before they were both destroyed by a powerful attack. It was Void¡¯s spatial distortion. ¡°Give up, you can¡¯t win.¡± At the moment, Grey¡¯s voice was like a God¡¯s voice, and the young man almost gave up fighting, but he soon snapped out of it as he attacked once again. Grey had little problem with dealing with the attacks before slowly incapacitating his opponent. Before long, the young man could barely move his body, although he was still alive, it was safe to say that he was wishing for death at the moment. Both hands and legs were missing, and he was bleeding profusely from almost every single part of his body. His face was unrecognizable. Thinking that everything happened in the span of just over three minutes was shocking. The young man soon started to regret his decision in chasing after Grey. He chased after him only to end up being tortured to death by him. 1006 Switching Roles Grey smiled and looked at the young man in front of him who was close to death. ¡°Don¡¯t worry, I don¡¯t play on killing you¡­¡± pAnDa (nov)e1? A smile of relief formed on the young man¡¯s face as he heard Grey¡¯s words, until the last word. ¡°¡­yet.¡± Grey finished his statement and shook his head at the loom of despair in the eyes of the young man. Of course he wasn¡¯t bothered by him since he didn¡¯t really care, he had killed humans while trying to remove the mark, and there was no way he was going to hold back now. Time slowly went by and Grey started to try out his experiment. It was tedious work that required his focus since a slight mistake would mean that his attempt would fail. Extracting life force from a living thing was by no means easy. Settling down, he placed his entire attention on his work. ¡­ Outside the cave. Another figure was standing by the young man at the Peak of the Sage Plane, this figure was a young lady that was almost at the Peak of the Sage Plane. ¡°You came here tracking the mark as well?¡± The young lady asked. ¡°I¡¯ve found the person, he¡¯s hiding in there.¡± The young man pointed at the cave. ¡°Why did the mark suddenly disappear? This is the third time it¡¯s disappearing.¡± The young lady asked curiously. ¡°He¡¯s hiding in a separate space in that cave.¡± The young lady soon understood what was going on. She took a glance at the young man standing beside her. ¡°How strong is he?¡± She asked curiously. The fact that this young man knew where he was hiding yet he did nothing to fight him showed that he was a bit apprehensive of this marked person. ¡°He¡¯s only in the Sixth stage of the Sage Plane.¡± The young man replied casually. The expression of the young lady changed a little and she looked at the young man, ¡°Are you sure?¡± The young man nodded while staying in the same position. He didn¡¯t show any signs of making a move. His actions confused the young lady since she felt he would¡¯ve at least killed Grey by now, yet, he was just standing there, with no signs of making a move. ¡®There must be something he¡¯s hiding.¡¯ The girl thought to herself, and instead of heading into the cave, she stayed outside. She was not stupid, as long as this young man didn¡¯t go in, there was no way she was going to take the risk of entering the place. It must hold some dangers, dangers that would make a Peak Sage Plane Elementalist think twice is not something she was certain she could face. The duo continued their stay in silence. ¡­ In a separate space. Grey was laughing maniacally. ¡°Finally, it¡¯s done!¡± He was ecstatic. The mark that had been bothering him for a long time was gone in a flash. Surprisingly, using the life force of people from the Gnome race was the perfect antidote for it. The young man wasn¡¯t even dead yet, but Grey was already cured of the mark.please visit panda(-)N0ve1.co)m He took a glance at the astonished look on the face of the young man who was still alive, but barely breathing. ¡°Ho¡­how?¡± The young man¡¯s voice was very faint at the moment, but he was vetoing stunned as to how Grey was able to remove the mark from his body. This was something unheard of. ¡°Hehe, it¡¯s none of your business. Since you¡¯ve become useless, there¡¯s no need to keep you alive anymore.¡± Grey grinned as he was about to kill him. ¡°W¡­ wait, I have something to tell you.¡± The young man panicked, although he was already close to death, he could still survive this if treated. ¡°Oh, what¡¯s that?¡± Grey paused. ¡°The son of the Emperor is here, and I can take you to him.¡± The young man gathered himself before saying. ¡°The son of the Emperor?¡± Grey raised a brow. ¡°Yes, he¡¯s the Emperor¡¯s favorite son.¡± The young man nodded slowly. Grey fell deep in thought, and with a flick of his hand, a lightning bolt hit the forehead of the young man. ¡°I don¡¯t need your help with this. Anyway, thanks for the information.¡± He chuckled before burning the body to a crisp. ¡®I wonder what stays here.¡¯ He looked around curiously. After some time he shook his head, declining the idea of searching for anything. Hiding his aura, he left the separate space. ¡­ Inside the cave. When Grey appeared, he noticed something shocking. ¡®Oh¡­ nice.¡¯ He smiled all of a sudden. He could track people, not just anyone, but those from the Gnome race. Apparently, using the life force of someone from the Gnome race gave him this ability. ¡®The hunted has become the hunter.¡¯ He noticed that two people were standing outside the cave, and since he hid his aura before stepping out, there was no way they were going to know that he was out already. ¡®They should continue standing outside, I¡¯ll just go hunt others.¡¯ Grey vanished as he headed for the side he sensed the least number of people from the Gnome race. He could peacefully travel now, while occasionally taking out those from the Gnome race. ¡­ Two weeks went by in the blink of an eye. In the space of two weeks, the entire secret realm fell into pandemonium. The reason for this was simple, someone was waging war against those from the Gnome race. Of the over one hundred people that entered this place, more than half of them were dead in the space of two weeks. What was worse was that the person killing them seemed to always know where they were. They had set traps for him on multiple occasions, but sometimes, he would not even show. Whenever he did show up, he would kill all those who were supposedly hiding in wait for the ambush, leaving the bait alone. He would then beat the bait up and tell him that his friends had run away. He usually leaves the bait, possibly to spread the news and put fear in the hearts of those from the Gnome race. 1007 Five Elements In a building, a young man could be seen sitting on a throne while the others stood before him. This was a prince from the Gnome race, the son of the Emperor of the Gnome race. p AndD nOve1.cO,m ¡°Does anyone know his location?¡± He asked the crowd standing in front of him. Those from the Gnome race didn¡¯t dare to venture out alone any longer, they all grouped up and rushed over to this place since they knew the Prince would always be there. ¡°No, he has an ability that can perfectly hide his aura from others. Only a few have seen him.¡± Someone from the crowd replied. They didn¡¯t know what to do about Grey anymore. They wanted him dead, but they were all afraid to go out. Grey was like the perfect assassin, especially given how he always knows where they were always hiding. He was also very efficient, killing people with as little noise as possible so others wouldn¡¯t be spooked. They were all speaking when a rift opened up and a figure was thrown on the ground. It was a figure of a member of the Gnome race that had been killed. They all stared at the rift, but no one else came out. The son of the Emperor smashed his fist on the throne he was sitting on as he stood up with an angered expression. ¡°He¡¯s somewhere close, search for him.¡± He ordered angrily. Giving them orders, they all left the building, leaving only the son of the Emperor and three others. ¡°You three should head out as well. Kill any human you find around this place.¡± He said to the three people standing beside him. They were all at the Peak of the Sage Plane, so they could easily move in this place unhindered. Well, unless they were ambushed. The trio bowed to the son of the Emperor and vanished from their location. Grey was hiding somewhere in the building as he watched them all leave. He saw the young man at the Peak who chased him to the cave but didn¡¯t enter was among the crowd. ¡®What would they say if they returned and their leader was dead?¡¯ He thought to himself with a chuckle. His plan was simple: kill the Prince before they returned. However, he wanted to wait a little longer so that he would have the chance to kill his opponent before the others could return. Ten minutes later. Grey finally stepped out of his hiding spot and swaggered to where the Prince was seated. ¡°Hi.¡± He waved at the Prince. The Prince looked at him, but there was nothing like surprise on his face, it was like he predicted something like this would happen. ¡°You took long enough, I guess you were waiting for them to be far away before you stepped out.¡± The Prince said. ¡°I had to be sure, at least with this range, I can kill you before any of them returns.¡± Grey replied.please visit panda(-)N0ve1.co)m He could already tell the Prince had a plan of fighting him alone with the way he chased the others away. With how Grey had been operating, it was safe to say being alone almost meant that he would be attacked. ¡°You¡¯re proud, for someone still in the Sixth stage of the Sage Plane.¡± The Prince commented. ¡°I¡¯ve killed a few of your people at the Peak, I shouldn¡¯t have any problems dealing with you.¡± Grey said as his aura spiked, and before the Prince knew it, Grey¡¯s aura was at the Peak of the Sage Plane, even stronger than his aura. ¡°I see, no wonder you¡¯re this confident.¡± The Prince still wore a calm expression, it was as if he didn¡¯t see what Grey just did. ¡°If you think you can defeat with such petty tricks, then you¡¯re a fool.¡± Grey moved out, appearing beside the Prince as he attacked with the lightning element. He noticed the light element had more effect, but his elemental grade for his light element wasn¡¯t as high as the lightning element, so he used the lightning element more. Grey¡¯s attack was about to hit the Prince when he finally made a move, the attack which was already at his face passed through him, literally. Grey was shocked when he saw this, he knew which element had this ability. It was the space element, but most people couldn¡¯t do this particular technique until they got to at least the Elemental Venerable Plane. ¡°Surprised?¡± The Prince asked with a smirk. Grey didn¡¯t reply as he attacked again, this time, he was preparing an inscription. The Prince moved to the left with shocking speed as he dodged the attack before attacking Grey. When the Prince moved to dodge the attack, Grey noticed he used the wind element, the attack he did just now contained the fire element. Adding that to their natural darkness element meant that the Prince had four elements. Grey was a little shocked since this was the first time he was seeing someone from the Gnome race who had more than two elements. The young man looked at Grey, it was obvious he found joy in his expression. Without any further delay, he attacked Grey once again, even before his last attack had connected. Grey dodged the first attack by teleporting to another location. The Prince controlled the other attack to head in Grey¡¯s direction. Grey on the other hand used the inscription he was preparing to attack the Prince from behind. The Prince sensed the attack coming from his back and vanished from his location, appearing close to Grey as he attacked with a wind blade that shot at Grey. Seeing the attack coming, Grey created an earth wall to block the attack. The wall cracked when the attack hit it but didn¡¯t fall apart. The Prince appeared above Grey and attacked with a fifth element. Large boulders appeared above Grey and instantly came crashing down. Grey was shocked beyond belief, but he still dodged the attack first since he knew taking such an attack would hurt¡­ a lot. 1008 An Opponent Unlike The Rest Grey hurriedly dodged the Prince¡¯s attack as he drilled into the ground with the earth element, completely escaping from the attack range before popping out once again. This time, he had a look of shock on his face, he never expected to encounter someone from the Gnome race who had five elements. The Prince looked at Grey¡¯s face with a smile on his face, he could tell that Grey was shocked by his strength. ¡°I¡¯m not done yet.¡± Hearing the Prince¡¯s words, Grey¡¯s eyes widened. ¡®Don¡¯t tell me he has another element¡­¡¯ pA n,dan(-)0ve1.c0m Grey stared at the Prince before hurriedly rushing back, preparing to both defend and attack. His initial shock was gone now, he was prepared to fight against the Prince now, without holding back. The Prince attacked once again with the earth element, and just as it was about to hit Grey, it was boosted by the wind element, then a powerful fire attack appeared in front of it all of a sudden. Grey was already prepared for an attack, so seeing the attacks coming his way, he blocked with the earth and water elements. With both enforcing each other, especially with the heavy water, he was able to block the Prince¡¯s attacks with some ease as he countered with an inscription that was prepared beforehand. The Prince, as if expecting the attack, was able to dodge it and destroy the inscription as well. Grey moved forward, and without hesitation, he used the gravitational force field. The Prince hadn¡¯t experienced it before, so he was dragged down by the attack. He hastily tried to get control over his body as he made sure he was not caught unaware by Grey¡¯s next attack. Grey unleashed a lightning bolt that struck where the Prince was standing. Since the Prince found it hard to move due to the gravitational force field, he was forced to take the attack head-on. He created an earth wall in front of him, but the wall was shattered by an attack that came even before the lightning bolt. Grey used both his dimensional slash as well as the lightning attack at almost the same time, expecting the Prince to do something like this. The dimensional slash destroyed the wall, leaving the Prince wide open for the lightning attack. Just as the attack was about to hit the Prince, he released a dark mist all around him. The lightning bolt slowed down significantly the moment it entered the dark mist. Grey¡¯s eyes opened wide, a little surprised. ¡®A domain.¡¯ This was the first time he was seeing a member of the Gnome race using a domain. With the help of the dark mist, the Prince used the fire element to attack the lightning bolt, barely managing to block it. Both attacks collided and the impact pushed the Prince back a few steps. ¡®How¡¯s his attack power so strong?¡¯ Grey was astounded. With the exception of when he fought that old monster from the Gnome race who reduced his level, this was the first time he was fighting against someone in the Sage Plane that was actually not being oppressed by his usually strong attack power. In fact, the Prince¡¯s attack power seemed to not only equal his, but even seemed slightly stronger than his own. Seeing the shock on Grey¡¯s face, the Prince chuckled.please visit panda(-)N0ve1.co)m ¡°You think you can beat a true genius with such strength? Dream on. What¡¯s not yours, will forever not be yours. You might be able to defeat those fools from your realm, but against me, you don¡¯t stand a chance.¡± He commented, it was like he could see through Grey. He couldn¡¯t deny the fact that Grey was powerful, however, this wasn¡¯t Grey¡¯s real strength, it was more like borrowed strength, so against someone like him who was already at the pinnacle of the Sage Plane and had multiple elements, he didn¡¯t have that much of an advantage. The Prince was also extraordinarily stronger compared to others in the Sage Plane. ¡°We¡¯ll see about it.¡± Grey replied, he was still quite confident in his abilities, so he didn¡¯t really feel he would lose against the Prince. The Prince chuckled but didn¡¯t reply, he already knew he had the higher attack power, the only issue was that Grey had a variety of elements, and he seemed to know how to use them quite well. The Prince moved out, not wanting to give Grey the chance to attack. Grey also moved out almost at the same time. Both fighters attacked each other with the fire element, dodging with the space element. Grey used the lightning element to send out an attack that forced the Prince to retreat. The Prince would occasionally send out attacks which would force Grey to move back. Boom! Bam! Grey focused on using the lightning element, while the Prince used all his elements. The Prince was the first to bring out his domain, Grey decided it was time for the Prince to see his domain as well. Without hesitation, lightning started to dance across the hall of the building. Grey made sure it covered a large area, making it difficult for the Prince to defend against it. Although the attack power was reduced considerably, it was still enough to cause the Prince some issues. The Prince released his darkness domain as well to counter Grey¡¯s lightning domain. But it was clear that Grey¡¯s domain was gaining the advantage over the Prince¡¯s domain. Grey was about to smirk when he saw something else, a spark of flame rose up in the middle of the darkness domain. The flame soon started to spread out everywhere. ¡®Another domain.¡¯ Grey was once again shocked by the Prince. Most of the time, he was the one who shocked his enemies, but this time, he was the one shocked by his opponent. With the help of the fire domain, he was able to defend himself against the lightning domain. Seeing that it was useless, Grey reduced the size of the domain and also attacked with multiple inscriptions. The Prince was blocking each of his attacks with some ease. Grey raised a finger and an orb started to form on it. It had been a while since he used the Fusion Orb. 1009 Frustrated Prince The orb forming on Grey¡¯s finger was small, but it contained powers that frightened the Prince. For the first time since their battle started, the Prince showed an expression of shock and apprehension. His facial expression was more serious when compared to how carefree it had been all this while. ¡®This guy is a threat to our race. How come he hasn¡¯t been marked yet?¡¯ He thought to himself. The thought of Grey being marked and removing the mark himself never crossed his mind. Most of the people even felt Grey was dead since he hadn¡¯t appeared again. Although the young man who followed him there felt that there was something strange about Grey¡¯s disappearance, he didn¡¯t dare to enter the secret space to confirm it. The Prince didn¡¯t think too much since he felt he would be able to kill him in their battle. He rushed forward, not wanting Grey to unleash the attack. He felt an attack of this caliber would need time to complete, so it hadn¡¯t been completely prepared yet. As long as he could interrupt Grey, then he wouldn¡¯t need to fear the attack. Just as he got within a few meters of Grey and attacked, his eyes enlarged by the sight before him. The orb in Grey¡¯s finger was quite small compared to the ones that appeared around Grey. Each orb was at least triple the size of the orb on his finger, and they each contained almost the same attack power. The Prince paused as he rushed to retreat, hoping Grey would not attack him before he gets to safety. Grey smirked as he unleashed the orbs at him. Each orb had enough power to take out an Eighth stage Sage Plane Elementalist. The Prince was threatened by the attack that was coming his way, so he scrambled to safety as he tried to dodge it. Grey didn¡¯t use all of them to attack simultaneously since he knew it would be useless that way. He sent them out after each other, whenever the Prince managed to escape from one of them, he would attack with the other one. The Prince was placed in a tough spot for the first time since the start of the battle. While he was dodging the orbs, a lightning bolt appeared behind him and struck him cleanly on his back. However, contrary to Grey¡¯s expectation, the Prince didn¡¯t yell in pain or anything, instead, he noticed a bright light around the body of the Prince as it protected him from it. However, the light dimmed down considerably after taking the attack. ¡®Damn it.¡¯ Grey couldn¡¯t help but complain. He thought he had finally gotten the chance to sneak attack him, unfortunately, the Prince was able to block it since he had a protective vest. The Prince got on high alert after Grey¡¯s failed sneak attack. Well, it couldn¡¯t really be called a failed attempt since it hit his target, he just didn¡¯t think the Prince would have a protective vest on. p-A- n-d-A-n-0-v-e-1¡¢(c)om The Prince dodged the orbs as he also dodged the lightning attacks that were coming his way from the inscriptions. The Prince calmed himself down as he dodged Grey¡¯s attacks. Being the one with the initiative, Grey flew into the air as he unleashed his ¡®Meteor Descent¡¯. The Prince was still dodging the orbs which seemed endless, seeing the large fire-covered boulders dropping from the air, he couldn¡¯t help but feel a tinge of hate for Grey.please visit panda(-)N0ve1.co)m ¡®How¡¯s he able to attack with so many powerful attacks? Isn¡¯t he afraid his essence will dry up?¡¯ Although this was something that rarely happened since most Elementalists don¡¯t dare to fight till that stage, it was something that could still happen. Once an Elementalist starts using extraordinarily powerful attacks, they tend to lose essence quicker than others which would mean that they risked running out of essence if the battle lasted for a long time. The Prince yelled out before exploding with frightening powers. This time, even the boulders coming from the sky were blown to smithereens by the surge of power from the Prince. Grey was forced to take a step back, but he started his attack once again. With a single step, the ground lit up with a symbol as multiple lightning shot into the air. It was as if there was a rain of lightning, but it was coming from the ground. The Prince was within the range, and his protective vest lit up once again, this time it stayed longer than usual. The light around the vest quickly started to lose its brightness. ¡®Fuck!¡¯ The Prince¡¯s facial expression turned extremely ugly. Grey was a terrifying opponent. He had way too many ways to get what he wanted in a battle. If this method fails to work, he would switch to another method. What was worse was that these were things that even if the Prince was aware of, he wouldn¡¯t be able to defend himself against it. ¡®I¡¯ll kill him.¡¯ The Prince concluded in his heart. The protective vest soon lost its light, but it managed to do what it was brought in for since it managed to get the Prince out of the range of the array that Grey used in attacking. The Prince didn¡¯t leave the place unscathed though, his flesh was burned by the attack of the lightning. Luckily, he left the place quite early. Grey turned around as he looked in a particular direction. ¡®Hmm, my time here is limited. I don¡¯t think I will be able to kill this guy before they return.¡¯ The burst of attack that the Prince used some time ago had finally alerted those who left the place not so long ago, so they were rushing back to this place. Grey had been trying to avoid using attacks that would be that explosive since it would bring others over. ¡®Since it¡¯s already like this, then no need.¡¯ He thought to himself. Grey burst out with fearsome elemental powers. When the Prince saw this version of Grey, he started to hate him to the core. Even when he felt he already knew Grey¡¯s power, he came out with yet another one. It was quite clear that if Grey were to face another person from the Gnome race, he would kill them without too much of a hassle. 1010 Snatching The Princes Puppets Like Grey, the Prince could also sense that his subordinates who left some time ago were rushing back. He took a glance at Grey, and two coffins appeared behind him. Two humans stepped out of the coffins, both were already at the Peak of Sage Plane. The two people were young ladies who were both naked. From how they looked, Grey could tell that they didn¡¯t die a good death. The Prince looked at Grey, hoping that his puppets would influence his mind, but to his greatest surprise, he didn¡¯t even have a reaction, not even one of disgust. It was as if he was a calm sea, nothing could shake him. Both of these young ladies were stunning beauties with amazingly great bodies. One of the reasons he made them his puppets was because whenever he was fighting a tough opponent from the human race who was a young man, he could bring them out to rattle their states of mind. Grey was one of the few people who hadn¡¯t shown any visible reactions to seeing the naked ladies. Most of the people who didn¡¯t have the reaction he was expecting tend to show disgust towards him, but Grey didn¡¯t do any of this. It was like he couldn¡¯t see the young ladies. The state of the young ladies, although they were dead, seemed to be very much alive. Other than their sad eyes, and the few scars on the side of their necks, they looked like living people. Grey continued his attack, this time, his fire element came to life as it exploded out, destroying the building they were fighting in. The two puppets, along with the Prince, moved out as they attacked. The two puppets were both Water Elementalists. Ice shards appeared in the sky as they shot towards Grey with lightning speed like arrows. Grey covered himself with a water dome that easily stopped the ice shards from getting to him. While he was still blocking the attack, the Prince used the darkness element to corrode the water dome and mist started to form inside the dome. If Grey didn¡¯t step out of it, he would be affected by it. The water dome exploded under Grey¡¯s control before turning to tentacles that grabbed the legs of both the Prince and his puppets. The puppets struggled to free themselves, but the Prince cut the tentacle with the fire element. Grey already got what he wanted since he wanted to delay them for some time. He prepared multiple orbs that struck both the puppets and the Prince. The Prince dodged the attack, while the puppets both created an ice shield around them to block the attack that was coming their way. When the fusion orb hit the ice shield, an explosion rang out. The shield managed to last for some time before it shattered. The impact of the attack still hit the puppets with quite some force left as it sent them crashing to the ground. The Prince looked at his priceless puppets before looking at Grey angrily. He rushed forward and attacked. Grey knew he couldn¡¯t take the Prince¡¯s attack head-on, so he dodged to the left before taking to the sky.please visit panda(-)N0ve1.co)m The Prince rushed after him, his puppets were already engaged with Grey in the air. Grey didn¡¯t have too much of a problem with fighting against the two puppets since they were not as strong as when they were alive. The Prince joining the battle made it tougher for Grey to fight. He focused mainly on blocking and evading since he knew that he was no match for all of them. The Prince managed to hit Grey on his back with the fire element, sending him flying to the ground. When Grey¡¯s back hit the ground, the Prince and the puppets rushed after him as they attacked him while he was down. Grey unleashed his fire domain when they got close to him. He didn¡¯t use his normal fire, rather, he used the icy flames since he knew it was stronger than the usual one. pA n,dan(-)0ve1.c0m The Prince, as well as his puppets, were caught unaware, and with Grey¡¯s increasing strength, the power of the domain grew stronger. Now the icing ability of the domain was on another level. The Prince quickly used the fire element to free himself and escaped from the range of the domain. The two puppets were not as lucky as he was. ¡®Time to leave.¡¯ Grey could sense that those returning were not far away any longer. If even one more person were to join the Prince, he didn¡¯t know if he would be able to escape unscathed. He rushed to where the puppets were and tapped them on the back. Black tendrils left his hand and entered their bodies. The Prince felt a sharp ache in his head, but before he could react properly, Grey vanished, along with his puppets. He looked at the spot Grey was previously standing on. His eyes still showed shock. The reason for this was that before Grey left, he cut off the Prince¡¯s control and connection over his puppets. This was something that only masters of their arts could do, yet Grey did it with only a tap. Unknown to him, Grey had studied human puppets and with the increase in his darkness elemental grade, he had an easier time breaking their links. One of the advantages of this was that breaking the link would affect the owner of the puppets. This scenario for instance showed the importance of that. The Prince would never have allowed him to leave so easily, but because the link was forcefully broken, he was affected by it and Grey was able to escape with such ease. All this also lay with Grey¡¯s impeccable planning. He was able to outsmart his opponent on multiple occasions during the battle, unfortunately, he wasn¡¯t able to defeat him since the Prince was clearly on another level. However, the Prince knew if Grey were to truly be at the Peak of the Sage Plane, then the result of the battle would not be the same. 1011 Spreading Fame Some seconds after Grey left. Two figures appeared in the sky above the building, seeing the Prince, they rushed over. ¡°Your Highness, what happened?¡± One of them asked. ¡°I was attacked.¡± The Prince replied casually as he walked back to his seat. ¡°Who would dare to attack the Prince? It must be that gutsy giant.¡± One of them said coldly. ¡°It¡¯s a human.¡± The Prince replied coolly. ¡°A human?¡± Surprise appeared on the faces of the two people who just arrived. Although they were at the Peak of the Sage Plane, they knew they were not on the same level as the Prince. However, they could still defeat around seventy to eighty percent of humans at the Peak of the Sage Plane like them. This showed the difference in strength between humans and those from the Gnome race. On the same level, the Gnome race had an undeniable advantage. ¡°Yes, he¡¯s not like the rest. If my guess is correct, he¡¯s the one killing our people.¡± The Prince replied. ¡°How arrogant. He dared to come here and fight with you, he really doesn¡¯t know what fear is. He¡¯ll die soon.¡± One of the figures said. pAn,Da n<0,>v,e1 ¡°It won¡¯t be that easy.¡± The Prince¡¯s reply shocked the duo. They all knew how proud the Prince was, the fact that he said this about a human, a race that he had always felt was beneath him was shocking, to say the least. They even felt the Prince had something wrong with his head. ¡°In case you encounter him, run. He will kill you before any backup arrives.¡± The Prince warned them. Now he understood why Grey had been able to kill so many of them. His strength was far too shocking. ¡°Oh, don¡¯t try to use your puppets against him. He can cut off your links with it. He ran away with my beauties.¡± The Prince added. When the duo heard this, they were once again shocked. The Prince didn¡¯t tell them of the details of their battle, but the ripples they felt, as well as the current state of the building, showed that it was anything but casual. The fact that this human could run away with the Prince¡¯s puppets showed that he was not one to be messed with. The Prince sat down on his chair which stayed intact, even after such a battle as he fell deep in thoughts. He described how Grey looked before he sent them away, not to search for Grey, but to call the others back. One thing that had been bugging him was that this place was very secretive, yet Grey managed to find it. Each race has a hideout in this secret realm. Grey literally strolled into their hideout, fought against their leader, and left with his items, unscathed. As hard as it was to believe, even to those from the Gnome race, it really did happen. The duo left the Prince alone after almost thirty minutes as they rushed out to call back those who went in search of Grey. If what the Prince said was correct, then even they themselves stood no chance against this person. ¡­ On another part of the secret realm.please visit panda(-)N0ve1.co)m Grey dug two graves where he placed the bodies of the young ladies before closing them. He made sure there was no way the Prince would be able to track them. He originally wanted to burn their bodies, but he felt that had gone through enough already, so he buried their frozen bodies. He didn¡¯t go too far from where the Gnome race¡¯s hideout was located, so he sensed the movements inside. ¡®They are gone. Should we take them out?¡¯ He asked Void. ¡®I can¡¯t fight against a Peak Sage Elementalist, you¡¯re on your own.¡¯ Void didn¡¯t even think about it before he replied. As proud as he was, he knew his limits. Fighting against a Peak Sage Elementalist was no different from a suicide mission. ¡®Fine, help me separate them. I¡¯ll kill them one at a time.¡¯ Grey said before getting to his feet. He made sure to hide the graves well before going out. According to what he knew, the Gnome race invaded their world and started a fierce war. They were stronger and had more experts, so they had the advantage. Even here, those from the Gnome race generally hunted down humans. Now, he wanted to repay the favor. He would make sure he hunted every single member of the Gnome race that was staying in here for training. The good thing about this was that he could feel that with each battle, he was getting stronger. He could already feel that he was on the verge of breaking through to the Seventh stage of the Sage Plane. ¡­ While Grey was hunting down those from the Gnome race, the story of a human hunting down the members of the Gnome race had gotten to the ears of the third race that was in the secret realm. ¡°Are you sure about this?¡± A large voice asked the small figure that was standing before him. The owner of this voice was over six meters tall, and he was currently sitting down. It was evident that he would be at least ten meters tall once he stands up. The figure before him was small, just like a human. ¡°Yes, My Lord. A human boy is hunting them down, he even went as far as invading their hideout and having a battle with the Prince.¡± The person replied. ¡°Astonishing. This human must be quite brave, and powerful. Do you know the winner of their battle?¡± The giant figure asked. ¡°No, I couldn¡¯t stay any longer since the ripples from their battle started to affect the space I was hiding in.¡± The figure replied. It hadn¡¯t even been up to an hour since the battle, but the news of it had gotten to the giant race. ¡°Amusing, I guess the peace here wouldn¡¯t last for long. I would like to see this gutsy human.¡± The giant sitting laughed. The small figure reporting to him stood up and his figure also enlarged to well over ten meters. 1012 Hunt Them Down Grey soon caught up with the duo who left the Prince a while ago. They just met with a group of three and were telling them to return back to the hideout. After speaking with them, they continued their journey forward as they wanted to make sure they called the rest of them back to the hideout. Grey looked at the trio, only one of them was in the Late stages of the Sage Plane, being in the Eighth stage, and the others were in the Mid stages, Sixth and Fifth stages respectively. ¡®Void, don¡¯t tell me you can¡¯t handle even one of them this time.¡¯ Grey said. ¡®I can kill all three, not to mention one.¡¯ Void said smugly. ¡®Oh, then I shall leave them to you.¡¯ Grey¡¯s reply threw Void off his feet and he almost fell from his shoulder. pAn,Da-n0v e1,c,m ¡®Can¡¯t you tell that I¡¯m bragging?¡¯ Void thought internally, but his pride couldn¡¯t make him say it out loud. ¡®It will take too long, you know we still have to follow those guys.¡¯ Void said coolly, making Grey chuckle. Grey knew Void didn¡¯t want to fight against them on his own. He didn¡¯t say much as he followed him. The duo made quick work of their opponents since they weren¡¯t on the same level in the first place. Grey could take care of them on his own, and with Void¡¯s help, it became easier. After killing the trio, Grey and Void went after the duo once again. To make their work easier, they just tracked them from afar. Once they¡¯ve contacted a group and told them to return, they would intercept the group and then kill them. Time went by and before they knew it, they spent an entire day killing people from the Gnome race. Two days later. The duo who were sent out to call back those from the Gnome race returned. On getting to their hideout, they were a little surprised by how empty it was. Other than the Prince, there was no one else inside. ¡°Where are the others?¡± The Prince asked when he saw them looking around suspiciously. ¡°They are not back yet?¡± One of them couldn¡¯t help but ask. The Prince looked at him with a confused expression, not sure what the young man was talking about. ¡°None of them has returned?¡± The other asked when he saw the expression of the Prince. ¡°What are you talking about?¡± The Prince couldn¡¯t help but ask when he saw the faces of the young men. ¡°We told them to come back, each of them. Other than a few of them at the Peak, the others returned immediately after we spoke to them.¡± One of the young men explained. The Prince quickly understood why they were like that before saying, ¡°No one has returned yet.¡±please visit panda(-)N0ve1.co)m The duo exchanged glances after hearing what the Prince said, they couldn¡¯t help but put on confused expressions. ¡°But¡­ we didn¡¯t see anyone on our way back.¡± One of the young men said, a little shaky. Currently, there is only one explanation, well, technically two, but they didn¡¯t want to think of the other probability. The first probability was that none of them returned, the other probability they didn¡¯t want to think of was that they were all dead. The chances of that happening were very low, but with someone like Grey who had been hunting them down being around, it made such low possibilities very high. The Prince¡¯s expression changed slightly, ¡°Don¡¯t tell me¡­¡± ¡°Impossible, he can¡¯t kill so many of them on his own.¡± One of the young men said. ¡°They are not together, and with what he has in his arsenal, there¡¯s a high chance that he can take on all of them on his own. I shouldn¡¯t have too many problems with doing the same, so I can¡¯t rule out that possibility.¡± The Prince said after some analysis. Although he hated to admit it, Grey was someone he acknowledged for his strength. Even if Grey was using a special method to increase his strength, it still didn¡¯t change the fact that he was a formidable opponent. ¡°But¡­ if¡­ if he truly kills all of them, then what about Lady Kira?¡± One of them asked with a fearful expression. ¡°She was not in the hideout in the first place, hopefully she¡¯s safe. If not¡­¡± The Prince didn¡¯t know what to say since there was a high chance that Grey might have killed her even before coming to fight against him. The duo dropped their heads and clenched their fists. ¡°That lousy human. Since when did they get so proud?¡± One of them asked, it was clear that he was boiling with anger. ¡°He¡¯s not like the rest, pray you don¡¯t meet him. If you do meet him, run.¡± The Prince said to the duo. The duo exchanged glances before letting out a scoff. They are always together, and even the Prince has a hard time dealing with them, yet he was warning them against someone who couldn¡¯t even defeat him. As long as Grey couldn¡¯t defeat the Prince, they felt that he was not their match. ¡°I¡¯m serious, he¡¯s not like others I¡¯ve fought. He might not be able to beat me, but he can defeat you two.¡± The Prince said. This time, the duo¡¯s faces changed. ¡°Don¡¯t worry, we¡¯ll leave as soon as we see him.¡± They replied simultaneously. Of course they didn¡¯t believe Grey would be able to defeat them, but they didn¡¯t want it to look like they were disobeying the Prince. ¡°If you¡¯re leaving, remember, kill any human you see. Since he has waged a war against us, we should return the favor.¡± The Prince said with a cold glint flashing through his eyes. Since Grey started it, he would hunt down every human in this secret realm and kill them. He didn¡¯t believe there was anyone else that had Grey¡¯s strength. An individual like Grey is someone that only appears once in thousands of years, so there was no way humans would have two at the same time. 1013 Whats The Situation? The duo left the hideout under the Prince¡¯s watch as they stepped out with one sole purpose, to kill all humans. ¡­. While the duo went on their journey to kill humans, Grey decided it was time he left those of the Gnome race alone and focused on training here. One of the reasons he killed so many of them was because he was annoyed by the fact that he was pestered for being marked, now, he had vented his anger. Training was the reason he entered this place, and there might also be some fortuitous encounters waiting for him. With Void around, he wouldn¡¯t have too many problems with getting some good things since he could quickly sense which places have secret spaces. Grey started to explore the place with Void in tow as they ventured across the lands. He soon started to regret not bringing the triplet with him. If they came here, they would¡¯ve been able to advance quicker. Having helping hands like them was very useful at times since they help him with little things. While Grey was busy going from place to place in search of treasures, the duo, as well as the Prince from the Gnome race had started their hunt for humans. ¡­. Three weeks went by in a flash. Grey and Void were currently standing close to a waterfall as they studied the corpse in front of them. Grey had gotten to the Seventh stage of the Sage Plane, and his aura was not very far from the Eighth stage. Void on the other hand was almost at the Peak of the Sixth Rank. This placed Void on almost the same level as a Peak Sage Plane Elementalist. ¡°Who do you think did it?¡± Void asked since Grey had been staring at the corpse for over five minutes now. ¡°I¡¯m not sure. I can¡¯t say it¡¯s those guys from the Gnome race, even though they are the ones who have a good reason to kill humans, there¡¯s a good chance another human might¡¯ve killed him for a treasure.¡± Grey replied after contemplating it for some time. ¡°There¡¯s also the Giant race. We haven¡¯t seen much of them during our time here. And it¡¯s quite odd.¡± He added with his hands placed on his chin. Void nodded before asking, ¡°So¡­ what now?¡± ¡°We should head to the hideout, we¡¯ll get a general idea of what¡¯s happening when we get there.¡± Grey replied. With that, the duo left. Grey buried the body before leaving. He recognized the young man, he was one of the people who followed him inside the secret realm. ¡­ A few hours later.please visit panda(-)N0ve1.co)m In a building hidden in the mountains. A group of people could be seen gathered. If Grey were here, he would recognize some of them since they came in together. The number compared to when they came in had reduced drastically, and even a few notable faces were not there. For instance, Sylvia¡¯s brother who was the leader of the group was nowhere to be seen. Not just him, but most of the people at the Peak of the Sage Plane when they were entering the realm were gone. Those gathered in the building all had worried expressions. It was evident that something major was happening. ¡°What do we do? We can¡¯t fight against them, especially now that they¡¯ve turned them into puppets.¡± A young lady said with a worried expression. ¡°What can we do? I¡¯m afraid we¡¯ll have to leave sooner than expected. I heard they killed us, but I never thought it was to this extent that they would hunt us down.¡± Another person said. They¡¯ve all heard of how brutal this place was, but honestly, none of the stories they heard said anything of them being hunted down. At most, whenever they encountered those from the Gnome race a fierce battle would take place. But now, the case was different, those from the Gnome race were hunting them down and killing them. Those who are strong are turned into puppets while those who are weak are discarded after being killed. Presently, only three people were present who were at the Peak of the Sage Plane, they were the leaders of the group since there was no one else. Each of them had a sour expression. They were still staring at each other when they sensed an unfamiliar aura approaching. Everyone went on guard, only after Grey walked in did they calm down. One of the three at the Peak of the Sage Plane recognized Grey since he was part of the group that participated in the competition. His eyes showed a bit of excitement when he saw Grey. He knew how powerful Grey was, and at that time he was still in the Fifth stage of the Sage Plane. Sensing that Grey had broken through to the Seventh stage put his mind at ease. pAn,Da n<0,>v,e1 Almost everyone present disregarded Grey, after all, he was only in the Seventh stage of the Sage Plane, and there wasn¡¯t much he could do. ¡°You¡¯re here.¡± The young man who participated in the competition with Grey stood up. Grey turned to look at him, he was lost at first, but Void recognized the person and reminded him, ¡°Yes.¡± He walked over to the young man. The others turned to look at the young man in shock since they didn¡¯t think he would act in such a way toward a Seventh stage Sage Elementalist. From Grey¡¯s reaction, it was clear that he was trying to recall where he had seen the young man. The young man stood up from where he was sitting and walked over to Grey, ushering him towards his seat. The eyes of everyone present bulged, including those at the Peak of the Sage Plane who was sitting beside the young man. Since he was one of the few who participated in the competition, he was given the role of leader. Now, their leader was seemingly bowing to someone they wouldn¡¯t even spare a glance. Grey didn¡¯t stand on ceremony and immediately sat down where the young man directed him to. ¡°What¡¯s the situation?¡± He asked after seating. 1014 Ill Squash You ¡°Not good, those from both the Gnome and the Giant race are hunting us down. Usually, only those from the Gnome race attack us, unless we have a conflict with the Giant race, but we haven¡¯t even crossed paths yet they started attacking us.¡± The young man replied. ¡°Where¡¯s Scott?¡± Grey asked as he couldn¡¯t find Scott anywhere around. ¡°He has broken through, he was taken to the other side.¡± The young man replied. ¡°Oh, I thought as much.¡± Grey nodded. He expected Scott to break through early, but he thought it would take a month or two before he broke through. It has been only just after a month or so, but he had already broken through and gone to the other realm. ¡°I¡¯m Liam. We have an issue, those from the Gnome Race are hunting us. Not just them, but the Giant race is in collaboration with them, making things harder for us. We can¡¯t even step out of this place.¡± Liam reported to Grey. The other two at the Peak of the Sage Plane looked at Liam as if he was a moron. To them, they didn¡¯t think there was any use in explaining to a Seventh stage Sage Plane Elementalist. ¡°What are you doing, it¡¯s not like he can help us.¡± One of the duo couldn¡¯t help but say. ¡°Do you remember the person I said made us win the competition?¡± Liam turned to the duo. They nodded their heads to his question. ¡°He¡¯s the one.¡± When Liam said this, everyone, not just the duo, but those standing on the side turned to look at Grey. They have heard of Grey¡¯s exploits in the battle and knew of everything he did. So they all knew that even Scott was no match for him. ¡°I can¡¯t believe he¡¯s the one?¡± Someone said from the crowd. ¡°He looks so young.¡± They continued talking about Grey. Grey on the other hand didn¡¯t even take a glance at them as his eyes were focused on Liam. p-n0ve1¡¢com ¡°When did this start?¡± Grey asked. Liam told him about everything and Grey soon understood that his action caused all this. Luckily, at least fifty percent of the people that followed him inside the realm were safe. ¡°When did the Giant race start to attack us?¡± Grey asked. ¡°Almost the same time, at least a week later.¡± Liam replied. Grey thought about the issue and felt those from the Gnome race must have probably allied with those from the Giant race to attack them. ¡°I¡¯ll take care of it. Are you sure they attack you guys whenever you try to leave this place?¡± Grey asked, a little confused. He passed the normal road here, but no one attacked him, nor did he sense anyone. ¡°Yes.¡± Liam nodded. ¡°Alright. I¡¯ll try to take care of it. In the meantime, you guys should stay here.¡± Grey advised. Liam nodded and conveyed the message. No one wanted to leave in the first place, so they all stayed in the same place. Grey tried to mask his aura and step out, just as he was about to leave the area, he heard a roar and retreated hastily.please visit panda(-)N0ve1.co)m A figure appeared before him as he looked at the human figure standing before him. Although the figure looked human, he could tell the figure wasn¡¯t human. ¡°Who are you?¡± He asked after standing opposite the figure. He was currently in disguise and his face was different from what it looked like when he was coming here. ¡°No one, I¡¯m just here to kill you.¡± The figure said with a mocking smile. ¡°You don¡¯t look like someone from the Gnome race, nor the human race, so you¡¯re definitely from the Giant race.¡± Grey said after some time. The other time he had seen someone from the Giant race, the person was larger than this, but he could tell that the person in front of him was from the Giant race. The person smiled, but didn¡¯t respond. ¡°You don¡¯t need to know where I¡¯m from, it¡¯s not like it will make any difference when you¡¯re dead.¡± The young man replied. This young man from the Giant race was already in the Ninth stage of the Sage Plane, so he didn¡¯t see anything with fighting against Grey who was still in the Seventh stage. Grey smiled, without saying a word, his face changed and he could see the change in the expression of the young man. ¡®I see, they¡¯ve been warned about fighting me.¡¯ He said to Void who was on his shoulder. The young man tried to escape the moment he saw Grey¡¯s true face. This was the person he had been warned not to fight, so he knew otherwise. ¡®Make sure he doesn¡¯t leave this place.¡¯ The young man was running when he suddenly appeared in the same spot he tried escaping from. His brain blanked for a second as he tried to process things. He looked at his front and Grey was standing in the sky like usual. He shook his head as he tried to escape once again. He ran to an extent and appeared in the same location once again, Grey was still there, waiting for him. After trying to escape three times, Grey asked, ¡°Aren¡¯t you tired yet?¡± The young man looked at Grey with a worried expression. ¡°Is this your doing?¡± He asked. ¡°Of course, why do you think I didn¡¯t chase after you?¡± Grey lied. There was no way he was going to say that this was Void¡¯s doing, it was good to have a secret ability. The young man started to panic and his side started to grow increasingly, before long, he was already around ten meters tall. Standing before Grey, there was a large difference since Grey was just around a meter tall or so. ¡°I¡¯ll squash you, little human.¡± He said with a loud voice as he tried to step on Grey. Grey smirked as he saw the large feet coming his way, he blinked and vanished from the spot the foot was landing on. 1015 Missed Some? Grey appeared above the Giant, his lips curved upwards slightly and without hesitation, he attacked. A large fist made with a combination of lightning, fire, and earth element landed at the back of the head of the Giant, sending it crashing into the ground. The ground shook as the body of the Giant slammed into it. Grey didn¡¯t stop his attack there, two inscriptions lit up in the sky, and fire and lightning arrows started to rain from them, landing on the body of the Giant. A small orb appeared on his fingertip as he sent it toward the Giant. All attacks exploded and the painful scream of the Giant rang afterward. It was clear that he was hurt by the attacks. What was worse was that he couldn¡¯t properly protect himself because of Grey¡¯s first attack. The attack soon died down and the sorry state of the Giant came into view. His back was cut in multiple places and he was bleeding. ¡®I wonder how they manage to grow to that size?¡¯ Grey thought as he stared at the Giant¡¯s body. The first time he saw this person, he was a normal human size. He went from just around two meters to over ten meters which was quite a fascinating sight to see. Grey¡¯s curious eyes wandered to the body of the Giant. The Giant turned, and the sight of Grey¡¯s eyes made him shiver in fright. For some reason, he could tell that Grey was thinking about something, and it would not end well for him. ¡°How do you change your size?¡± Grey suddenly asked. The Giant didn¡¯t say a word as he threw his large hand at Grey. Grey dodged the hand with some ease. The Giant¡¯s eyes glowed and ice arrows started to rain on Grey¡¯s location. The ice arrows didn¡¯t even get within three meters of Grey before they vanished, turning into vapor. The eyes of the Giant enlarged. Grey didn¡¯t block the attack, rather, he directly used the heat from his fire element to melt the ice, not just that, but he also changed the state of the water. Grey didn¡¯t waste time any further, since the Giant was not going to say anything, he would just kill him. Maybe he could try to study his body and see what secrets it holds. His eyes glowed when he thought of this. The Giant tried to put up a fight, but against Grey, he couldn¡¯t even defend himself, much less fight against him. The large body of the Giant fell to the ground with a resounding thud. ¡°I don¡¯t think this is the only person here.¡± Grey commented. ¡°He might be a scout.¡± He added. Void tried to sense if there was anyone around, but he didn¡¯t find anyone. There¡¯s a high chance that someone might be hiding from his senses, and so long the person doesn¡¯t come out, he wouldn¡¯t know. Grey sent his senses inside the body of the Giant as he tried to study how they change their sizes. He stayed for a while before leaving. The bodies of Giant were completely different from humans, even the arrangements of the organs were different. When Grey returned, the result of his battle had already been known since the ripples of the battle attracted most of the youths there. There are a few who were still looking at him in shock, especially those in the Seventh stage just like him. ¡°There should be more, but I didn¡¯t sense any of them.¡± Grey said to Liam and the other two.please visit panda(-)N0ve1.co)m The two at the Peak looked at Grey, although they were impressed by his strength, they still didn¡¯t think he would be a match for them. Grey wasn¡¯t bothered by the way they were staring at him, he left soon after he finished talking with Liam. ¡°We should go out and attack them.¡± One of the two at the Peak beside Liam suggested after Grey left. ¡°No. It¡¯s too dangerous. We don¡¯t know how many of them are hiding.¡± Liam rejected the idea immediately. ¡°So what now? Wait for that guy to decide?¡± The other guy at the Peak asked. ¡°Not necessarily. I¡¯ll discuss this with him, if he agrees to come with us, then the chances of us winning would greatly be boosted.¡± Liam replied. ¡­ p AndD nOve1.cO,m Later that night. Liam walked up to Grey where he was seated, ¡°Can I sit?¡± Grey glanced at him before nodding. ¡°We were planning on going out in a group, I don¡¯t know if you want to join us.¡± Liam went straight to the point after taking his seat. ¡°When?¡± ¡°An hour from now, just four of us.¡± ¡°Okay.¡± Liam stood up and left after hearing Grey¡¯s reply. One hour went by in the blink of an eye. Grey walked up to the trio and they set off. Once again, he disguised himself. He didn¡¯t want a scenario where their opponents would run away even before coming out to attack them. The group ventured around one kilometer away from their hideout before a group of six walked out from the shadows. Each person in the group was at the Peak of the Sage Plane. Three of them were from the Gnome race, while the other three were from the Giant race. Grey had sensed the trio from the Gnome race before they even came out. ¡®Looks like they¡¯ve gone out to call more. Either that, or I missed some.¡¯ He squinted his eyes as he stared at them. The group of six surrounded them while one of them chuckled. ¡°I was already planning on giving up, who knew the fun would arrive so soon.¡± ¡°Once we kill these four, there would be no way for them to call reinforcements.¡± One of the strange things about this place is that the portal was not in the place where the hideout was built. However, it wasn¡¯t far from it. To these six, they thought Liam and the other two were protecting Grey so he would be able to go out and call reinforcements. 1016 Mind-blowing Battle Prowess The six of them charged at Grey and the others. ¡®Void, none of them are leaving.¡¯ Void nodded before disappearing from Grey¡¯s shoulder. Grey didn¡¯t take off his mask, afraid that some of them might want to escape. If more than one tries to escape, Void wouldn¡¯t be able to hold them back. If only one tries to run on the other hand, Void wouldn¡¯t have a problem blocking the person. The Giants didn¡¯t increase their sizes as they attacked in their somewhat human form. Beside each of the trio from the Gnome race, a coffin appeared and humans stepped out of it. Grey looked at the puppets, and each of them was at the Peak of the Sage Plane. Adding that to the numbers of their opponents placed them in a bad position. ¡°I¡¯ll deal with the Gnomes, I leave the Giants to you three.¡± Grey said as he stepped out of the group. The easiest people for him to deal with were the Gnomes. The reason for this was simple. As he charged at the trio from the Gnome race, his aura spiked and before they knew it, he was at the Peak of the Sage Plane. ¡°Is he dumb, what would raising his level do against six people?¡± One of the duo asked as he looked at Grey oddly. Even Liam was a little confused by Grey¡¯s decision. He knew for a fact that Grey was powerful, but he didn¡¯t think it was to a level where he would fight six people on the same stage as himself. ¡°Too proud, people like this don¡¯t live long, no matter how talented they are.¡± The other one said. They couldn¡¯t fight since they were worried about Grey. Fighting against one Giant was okay for them, but if Grey was killed and they had to fight against the Gnomes and their puppets as well, it would be almost impossible to even escape, much less winning. ¡°Let¡¯s try to kill them fast and help him.¡± Liam rushed at one of the Giants. The duo did the same as they started to fight. Grey had already gotten in front of one of the puppets, and just as the puppet was about to attack him, a black tendril left his shadow and entered the bodies of the puppets. While this was taking place, Grey shot into the sky before the puppet¡¯s attack could touch him and three lightning orbs started to form in front of him. The Gnomes were about to make their next moves when they suddenly felt a sharp pain in their heads. They screamed in pain and hastily tried to cut off their links with the puppets. Unfortunately, it was too late. Blood started to drip from their eyes and nose. Grey released the three lightning orbs at the defenseless Gnomes.please visit panda(-)N0ve1.co)m Just when they managed to break the link and try to block the attack. Grey¡¯s eyes were glowing, he unleashed a mental attack as well. The mental attack reached them first, and they froze. All three Gnomes were unable to block the attacks and they were each struck by the lightning. Grey didn¡¯t end there as he rushed after them. He wanted to kill them in the shortest time he could. When he appeared beside any of them, he used his space element attack, dimensional slash, cutting each of them in half, killing them in the process. In less than a minute, Grey had successfully killed three Gnomes at the Peak of the Sage Plane. The fact that he killed them was not the only shocking part, he also had to go through three puppets at the Peak of the Sage Plane to achieve this. Yet, he still killed them in less than a minute. The other battle had already paused from the first time the Gnomes screamed in pain. Both humans and Giants were staring at Grey with their mouths wide open. They couldn¡¯t understand what just happened. pAn,Da n<0,>v,e1 They hadn¡¯t even had the time to exchange three blows themselves, yet Grey had killed three people, well, adding the puppets, six people at the Peak of the Sage Plane. The Giants didn¡¯t think twice as they each separated and tried to escape. This wasn¡¯t a battle they could survive if they dared to fight. All they had towards Grey at the moment was dread, just his presence was like a huge mountain pressing down on them. ¡°What are you staring at? They are getting away!¡± Grey yelled at the trio as he saw the Giants trying to escape. To be honest, he didn¡¯t think he would be able to kill them this easily. He predicted them to at least put up a fight, but after realizing they didn¡¯t cut off their links immediately, he knew for a fact that he would be able to kill them with ease. To be on the safer side, he prepared his mental attack just in case. His moves were fluid and well organized, he didn¡¯t hesitate in making any moves. With a shake of his head, he rushed after one of the Giants, the one who was a good distance away. That Giant was the one Liam was chasing after, but Grey was faster as he blocked the Giant and attacked. ¡°Help others.¡± He attacked the moment he appeared. He knew this battle was not going to be as easy as that with the Gnomes, but it was almost impossible for the Giant to escape from him. It would be better if Liam helped either of the duo against the Giant they were fighting. The Giant was a young lady and fear and panic filled her eyes when Grey suddenly appeared before her. She quickly increased her size and tried to smack Grey into the ground. Grey¡¯s figure blinked and he vanished, he soon appeared by the side of the Giant and threw a fireball at her. A brownish screen appeared on the body of the Giant, and Grey¡¯s attack was blocked. She didn¡¯t attack again, rather, she turned to escape. 1017 Attack vs Defense Grey smirked, expecting such a reaction from her. His figure blinked and he appeared in front of her. The Giant stomped on the ground and rocks sprouted out of the ground where Grey was standing and sent him into the sky. The Giant was already waiting as her hand was swinging in that direction. Her plan was simple, as soon as the rocks shot Grey into the air, she would slap his figure away. This would present the chance she needed to escape. To her surprise, she was able to smack him with ease, without any retaliation or him trying to dodge. ¡®Huh!¡¯ She felt something was off since she didn¡¯t get the feeling of hitting anything. She looked again and to her surprise, Grey was still in the same position, however, her hand passed through him. ¡°How¡¯s this possible?¡± She exclaimed in shock. Grey just smiled as he attacked. She tried to block it but was sent falling to the ground by the impact of the attack. While still on the ground, Grey moved above her and attacked once again. She hastily reduced her size in a bid to dodge the attack. Grey, who was prepared for something like this had an inscription that sprang up immediately after she reverted to her human size which attacked her. The Giant blocked the attack with the earth element and quickly retreated. It was clear that she wanted nothing to do with Grey. Anyone who could kill three people at the Peak of the Sage Plane in such a short time was no one that she should be fighting against. Grey knew she had no intentions of fighting against him, this made his work easier. All he had to do was to fight against someone who only had escape in their head. The young lady focused fully on defense while searching for a route to escape, and Grey on the other hand focused fully on attacking, bringing out his full potential. He was someone who was always offensive when it came to battles, so being given such freedom was not a good thing for his opponent. Three inscriptions lit up in the sky, and the ground the young lady was standing on was lit with strange symbols. It was easy to see that the symbols were from an array that had been made in the area. In the space of a minute, Grey created an array. A Giant focused only on defending was no easy target, even though they weren¡¯t attacking. Grey continued attacking freely while the Giant focused on defending.please visit panda(-)N0ve1.co)m Boom! Bam! Bang! Explosions rang out from their battle. While they were busy fighting, the others were fighting against the other two Giants. They had the number advantage at this time, nevertheless, they still didn¡¯t have the advantage when it came to the general battle situation. For instance, other than the one Liam was helping with, the other Giant had the advantage in his battle. It was even clear to see that all the young man fighting against him was doing was trying to stop him from escaping, other than that, he was taking a trouncing. Liam was helping the other one as they tried to make the battle ended quickly. After witnessing Grey¡¯s strength, they didn¡¯t doubt him any longer and knew that he would be able to take care of the Giant he was fighting against. To some extent, they were actually waiting for him to come to help them with this one. While the battles were ongoing, Void was standing on the side, watching, a little bored. His mission was to make sure none of the ambushers escaped, and Grey taking out three of the six people in a minute or so made things easier for him. If not for the fact that he didn¡¯t want any mishaps, he would¡¯ve even taken a nap. On Grey¡¯s end, his battle was getting easier. The Giant was injured all over and she couldn¡¯t block his attacks properly any longer. With her injuries increasing, she was having a harder time blocking his attacks. Grey was using both the lightning and fire element for attack while he used the space element to make sure his opponent couldn¡¯t dodge his attacks. The Giant was soon forced to increase her size, returning to the original size of Giants. Grey had an easier time targeting her, but her defense was stronger when compared to when she was the size of a human. Grey used the fusion orb to attack. When the attack hit her on the back, she was sent flying. Even with her huge size, the impact of the attack still threw her into the air. She crashed into the ground unable to block Grey any longer. pAnD a(-)n0ve1.com Grey continued attacking, killing his opponent within the next minute. The large figure of the Giant lay on the ground, lifeless. Grey knew he wouldn¡¯t have a tough time defeating his opponent since she already gave him the lead right from the start. After killing her, he didn¡¯t stay any longer and went after the others. Of the two Giants, one of them was fighting against two people while the other was having an easier time, but hadn¡¯t been able to escape. Grey went for the one fighting with only one person. The moment he arrived, the Giant started to panic. Grey attacked almost immediately, throwing the Giant off his feet. The young man who was fighting against the Giant heaved a sigh of relief, and to Grey¡¯s surprise, he left him alone and went over to join Liam and the others. He couldn¡¯t help but shake his head. He started to fight against the Giant, and before the trio could kill the Giant they were fighting, he had already killed the one he was fighting. This made the others have more respect for him. Even with three people, they couldn¡¯t kill a Giant, yet Grey was able to do it with such ease. Unknown to them, everything happened so easily for Grey because each of the Giant he tried fighting against didn¡¯t want to fight him after he killed three Gnomes in such a short time. They weren¡¯t able to put up much of a fight because of this. 1018 An Ambush? ¡°What do we do now?¡± Liam asked after they took down the last Giant. ¡°I can¡¯t sense others, so we can only go back.¡± Grey said. He couldn¡¯t sense the aura of any member of the Gnome race, so he knew no one else was in front of them. With such a group stationed here, there was no way the Gnome and Giant race would set up another ambush for them. They would feel that humans would not be able to pass through this group. The other nodded, and without even arguing, they headed back to the hideout. When they got there, Grey had no plans of staying any longer. The duo who had zero respect for him some time ago were staring at him as if he was a god. What was worse was that they were spreading his battle with the Gnomes and Giants, making the others there try to bootlick him. Grey had never been one who liked attention, especially at this level. Without even thinking about it, he decided to leave. With that group dead, humans could leave the hideout and try to get their fortuitous encounters. The few who wanted to leave could leave without any issues. Liam and the duo tried to convince him to stay, but he left. ¡­ A week later. Grey and Void had been here for over a month and the place could be said to be very helpful to them. Although Grey was still in the Seventh stage of the Sage Plane, his strength had increased significantly since entering the realm. Not just him, but Void as well. Scott and a few others had broken through to the Elemental Venerable Plane and had gone to the higher realm. According to what Grey knew, if he could break through to the Elemental Venerable Plane, he would automatically be transported to the other side that was for those in the Elemental Venerable Plane. To be honest, it was a confusing concept, but he didn¡¯t think too much about it, it wasn¡¯t like he would be breaking through any time soon. While traveling, whenever he came across anyone from the Giant or Gnome race, he would kill the person. In no time, the Giant race started to notice the reduction in their numbers. Whenever anyone broke through, they would know of it, so they knew the people seemingly missing did not break through. They started researching and soon found out the cause, it was none other than the doing of a human. When they compared his strength and appearance to that of the person who was terrorizing the Gnome race, it was no different. The Prince from the Gnome race hadn¡¯t broken through, so when he heard the news, he was angered and filled with revenge. Grey was also killing people from the Gnome race, and since he was here, he had the responsibility of protecting his people. He rushed over to where the Giant race was situated. No one dared to stop him, even though the Giant and Gnome race were in collaboration, it was not acceptable that someone from another race goes to the hideout of an opposing race. ¡­. In a secret chamber in the mountains belonging to the Giants. ¡°We must put a stop to his rampage.¡± The Prince from the Gnome race said, his eyes filled with hate.please visit panda(-)N0ve1.co)m ¡°I agree with you, but can you track him down?¡± The leader of the Giant race asked. ¡°That¡¯s the problem, we can¡¯t, but he can. Do you think we should try to lure him out?¡± The Prince asked. ¡°That would be best. Catch some humans and spread the word of their execution. I don¡¯t believe he wouldn¡¯t come to their aid.¡± The leader of the Giant race suggested. The Prince of the Gnome race thought about it for some time before agreeing to it. He left to convey the news to others. Two days later, they had not only caught some humans, but one Peak Sage Plane Elementalist was part of the group. If Grey didn¡¯t try to stop this execution, then it would affect the morale of humans. Grey naturally heard the news, and without even thinking too much, he knew it was a plot to capture him. He was the only one who was killing people from both the Giant and Gnome race rampantly. If they were plotting against anyone, then it was definitely him. ¡®Void, what do you say? They only have five people. It¡¯s not like everyone would survive this place.¡¯ He said to Void. pAn,D a-n0ve1,c-o-m ¡®Let¡¯s go, there¡¯s nothing fun here.¡¯ Void replied. Grey already knew his answer from the start. Void loved drama and chaos, nothing relevant had been happening for some time so he was bored, now that there was something taking place, of course he wanted to see it. ¡­ The time of the supposed ¡®execution¡¯ soon came and Gnomes and Giants alike were gathered in the place, all excited. They wanted to see if their plan would work, or if they would be able to execute these people. Before coming here, Grey found out about this from a Giant he captured. He didn¡¯t let the Giant go since there was no use in letting them know that he would be coming. The Gnomes and Giants in the area were discussing animatedly as they waited for the execution. This was a famous location in the realm, being the only unique place that possessed a chasm. It was quite dangerous, well, if someone ventured into the place. Everyone was wise enough not to enter the place, and the few who tried to enter had never been able to return. They all died inside. The Prince of the Gnome race and the leader of the Giant race started the ceremony as they prepared to execute the prisoners. Each of them was protected by someone at the Peak of the Sage Plane, there was no way Grey would be able to rescue them from their hands. Not just that, but they were all kept in different locations. 1019 Taking Them Away In Their Presence Outside the place where the execution was to be held. Grey¡¯s figure could be seen hiding by the side. He knew coming here with others would not do them any good, so he came alone. ¡®Grey, what¡¯s the plan?¡¯ Void asked. ¡®Rescue them, well if I can¡¯t rescue them I¡¯ll have to leave them. I can¡¯t take the risk of dying because of others.¡¯ Grey replied. ¡®I already know that, I mean how do you plan on rescuing them?¡¯ Void almost facepalmed when he heard Grey¡¯s reply. Even a moron would know the reason Grey came here. Grey scratched his head awkwardly before telling Void his plan. He wanted to cause a disturbance in another area, drawing the attention of the Prince of the Gnome race as well as the leader of the Giants. He would mark Void with his space imprint. All Void needed to do was to search for each of the people captured and notify Grey, who would in turn rush there and take them to another location. He originally wanted to use Void¡¯s space domain to cut them off from the world, but he was able to find out that they were not kept in the same location, so doing that was out of the question. ¡®What are you waiting for then, until they¡¯ve been killed?¡¯ Void asked with a teasing expression. Grey shook his head before stepping out. ¡®Wait, what are you doing?¡¯ Void was shocked when he saw Grey walking out. ¡®Distracting them, make sure you find them as soon as you can.¡¯ Grey spread his arms apart and walked straight into the crowd without even hiding his aura. When they sensed the aura of a human, every single individual in the place turned to look at him. ¡°You¡¯re bold and gutsy, I admire that.¡± The Prince of the Gnome race commented. ¡°Haha, of course, I dared to go to your hideout alone, do you think I¡¯d refuse your invitation?¡± Grey laughed as he took a seat. ¡°I¡¯m surprised you came, I didn¡¯t think you would. Most people would not walk right into a trap willingly.¡± The Prince replied. ¡°I¡¯m not like them. I don¡¯t do things without confidence.¡± Grey said. Even in the presence of so many enemies, he was still calm and collected. He didn¡¯t speak like someone afraid because he had no reason to be, he already had multiple contingency plans for when he would escape if things don¡¯t go as planned. The only reason he hadn¡¯t started to fight with them now was that he was stalling for Void to locate all the imprisoned people. Once Void finds them, he would attack immediately. ¡°I presume you didn¡¯t come alone.¡± The Prince said as he tried to sense if there was anyone else in the area. ¡°You don¡¯t have to bother, I¡¯m not foolish enough to endanger the lives of multiple people for just six people.¡± Grey said with a chuckle. Void had given him news of finding three of the six people which made him happy, but since there were still three people left, he wanted to stall for longer.please visit panda(-)N0ve1.co)m The Prince gave the signal for others to go and check if people were hiding. Grey sat quietly as he looked at them with a playful expression, there was even a bit of a mocking smile on his face. The Prince stood up and tried to attack, but Grey spoke before he could. ¡°You¡¯re in a hurry, don¡¯t even want to chat before fighting?¡± Grey¡¯s words made the Prince pause for a moment and he felt something was wrong. ¡°Just so you know, this place is sealed, so even if you try to use the space element, you wouldn¡¯t be able to.¡± The Prince didn¡¯t attack and said. p-n0ve1¡¢com When Grey heard this, his face turned stiff and the smile on his face quickly disappeared. The Prince laughed in ecstasy when he saw this, he knew Grey relied heavily on his space element and was confident that this was the reason he dared to venture here alone, but now that no one could use the space element, there was no escape for Grey. He was still laughing when he saw a slight change in Grey¡¯s face. ¡°You¡¯re talking about the array you set up here? You think such a weak array can stop me?¡± Grey chuckled, and before the eyes of everyone present, he vanished. He had already sensed the array before coming here and had even modified it. He could easily teleport out of the area, but the Prince could not. This array had even made things easier for him. He knew the Prince would be somewhat reliant on the array and would think he wouldn¡¯t be able to run away, that was why he first showed that expression. However, he was unable to keep up with his facade because Void had reported finding the last person. He immediately took action. Just as the Prince was still in the middle of panicking, Grey appeared once again. ¡°Come on, don¡¯t tell me this is all you have.¡± Grey said mockingly. The Prince looked at him with an angered expression. ¡°Wait, I¡¯ll be right back.¡± Grey vanished again for a few seconds and reappeared. He did it repeatedly, as if he was seemingly mocking the Prince. After about three times, the Prince noticed something was wrong. Whenever Grey vanished, he would sense that there was a change in the environment. Although it was quite faint, he was sure of it. After Grey appeared two more times, he was able to ascertain what was happening. ¡°To the prisoners!¡± He roared even before Grey could reappear. Grey was silently rescuing the prisoners, and it was even in their presence. This was the greatest humiliation the Prince had ever gone through. Not just the Prince, but the leader of the Giant race was fuming with anger. If what they guessed was correct, he didn¡¯t even know how to react. They rushed to where the first prisoner which was closest to the place was kept and not just the prisoner, even the person guarding him was nowhere to be seen. 1020 Visiting The Giants They kept on going from one place to another but they couldn¡¯t find any of the people that they captured, not just them, but those at the Peak were missing as well. When they got to the last location, they saw a figure standing there with a broad smile on his face. ¡°I can¡¯t believe it took you so long to figure it out.¡± Grey chuckled as they arrived. A group of over fifty people was tricked by one person and they were all green from embarrassment. Not even one of them was able to figure it out. What made things harder for them was that Grey didn¡¯t try to fight with the people guarding the place, after all, they were at the Peak of the Sage Plane. He directly transported them with their supposed prisoners together. Other than the sudden disappearance of their auras, it would be difficult for others to know what was happening. ¡°Since you all took the time to come see me off, it¡¯s only right I give you a goodbye gift before I leave.¡± Grey said. The ground the people were standing on soon lit up, not just the ground, but the sky was suddenly filled with orbs that radiated a shocking yet frightening aura. Other than the Prince, the leader of the Giants, and a few who were at the Peak, the others felt a threat, a threat to their lives. Without hesitation, they hurriedly tried to escape. They were trying to escape when they realized the painful reality of their predicament, they couldn¡¯t leave the area. Something kept taking them back to the place. Boom! A large explosion soon followed right after, along with a bright light, enveloping everyone in the place. Grey and the now captured members of the Gnome and Giant race who were guarding the captured humans stared at the large explosion from a distance. ¡°It¡¯s quite beautiful, don¡¯t you think?¡± Grey asked all six of them. The humans who were captured were still there and they stared at Grey like he was no human. Grey¡¯s strength was shocking, and not only did he rescue them, but it turned out that he used the opportunity to kill or injure others from the other races as well. ¡°You filthy human, the Prince would make a puppet of you sooner or later.¡± One of the Gnomes cursed hatefully. They all looked at Grey with hatred in their eyes. ¡°You don¡¯t have to worry about that, no matter what happens, you wouldn¡¯t know about it.¡± Grey¡¯s eyes turned cold and he casually killed them. He had always been a decisive person. From the start, while planning on how to rescue the people, he also prepared his gift when leaving. Originally, those items were to aid him in battle, but who would¡¯ve thought that he wouldn¡¯t even have to fight. From what he could tell, the Prince already felt that they would kill him no matter what, hence he entertained him for so long. If he had known about Grey¡¯s plans, he would¡¯ve attacked Grey the moment he saw him. After killing them, he turned to the humans with him.please visit panda(-)N0ve1.co)m ¡°You guys should hide for some time, I don¡¯t think these guys will let this go easily. They¡¯re after me, so I¡¯ll make more appearances to draw their attention away from others.¡± Grey said. He just realized his slaughter of the people from the Gnome race was a mistake since it would affect the rest of the humans that were in the realm. Well, originally, it wouldn¡¯t be much of a problem, but the Giants joining the battle was out of his expectations. ¡®I¡¯ll have to pay them a visit.¡¯ He thought internally. Void soon appeared on his shoulder, his face somewhat pale. pAn,Da n<0,>v,e1 ¡®How¡¯s the situation?¡¯ He asked as soon as he felt him. ¡®Most of those below the Seventh stage is dead. A few in the Seventh and Eighth stages died as well while the others were injured. The injuries vary¡­¡¯ Void gave him a quick report of the situation. Things turned out better than what Grey expected since he managed to take out over twenty-five people in such a short time. The Prince and the leader of the Giants would be more than infuriated after this. According to Void, the leader of the Giant didn¡¯t seem to take his anger at Grey, rather, he was having a quarrel with the Prince of the Gnome race. The Prince was the one who got him involved in this in the first place, so he was annoyed by it. Hearing this reaffirmed Grey¡¯s desire to visit the Giant race. He didn¡¯t want anything from them, all he needed was for them to remain neutral, just like before. As long as they didn¡¯t join in, then humans would be fine. This was not the first time that this place had been built, so it was natural for humans and Gnomes to engage in battles. There have even been times when all-out wars take place here. Some wars lasted for years, while others lasted days. Grey knew he wouldn¡¯t be able to visit the Giants now, given that he just killed a few, so he waited for a week before he decided to head there. Within that week, he heard a piece of news that came out as good for humans, the Prince of the Gnome race had broken through to the Elemental Venerable Plane and as such has been transported to the other side. ¡­ The hideout of the Giants. Grey swaggered in, just like when the Prince came here the last time. The Giants felt insulted once again, but thinking of Grey¡¯s strength, they shut up and let him in. ¡°Human, what do you want?¡± The leader of the Giants asked. Since Grey killed some of his people the last time, he had been very gloomy. ¡°I came to talk to you.¡± Grey went straight to business. ¡°I¡¯m listening.¡± The leader held in his anger and waited. He knew attacking Grey carelessly was a bad idea, he had already seen some of the things Grey was capable of, and not many people here would survive if Grey attacked. 1021 Someones Breaking In Grey didn¡¯t stay for too long, after he told him his request, he left. To his surprise, the leader of the Giants agreed to it without any hesitation, it was almost as if he had been praying for this. With the Prince gone, Grey knew things will be calmer in the realm now, even if humans and members of the Gnome race would occasionally fight against each other, it was something that was normal here. ¡­ Three months passed in a flash. Grey was still in the secret realm fully focused on cultivation, each of his friends were also doing their best as they tried to increase their cultivation level. Although they were all in the Sage Plane now, they knew that such strength didn¡¯t matter much in a place like the Aurora Continent. If they wanted anything, they would have to be strong, even staying alive needed strength. Grey¡¯s parents were still focused on their battle. The war was intensifying, and even with Lucas¡¯ name, their opponents were still pushing forward. Lucas couldn¡¯t kill those in lower levels since it was against the rules. Against those in the same Plane as Lucas, the Dawson Family had the advantage because of Lucas, but against those in lower Planes, they were lacking a bit. Take for instance, they had lost some areas in their territory due to the battle, two strategic locations had been occupied by their opponents and they were getting closer to them. He hated to admit it, but he alone could not do everything. ¡­. The Dawson Family Hall. A group of people were seated here, all with gloomy expressions. ¡°Why don¡¯t we just stop these unnecessary losses and attack them straight up?¡± Someone suggested. They had lost some family members due to the battles, and a few of them were starting to get tired of it. ¡°Losing a few Overlord Plane Elementalists isn¡¯t really that bad, but it¡¯s not good either. Even if we¡¯re at war with them, we still have to take the overall situation into account. Humans are not the enemies, the Gnomes are. Many don¡¯t want to admit it, but there have been more frequent attacks from them.¡± Lucas said softly. ¡°Correct, the Gnomes are the enemies. However, why are those morons attacking us because of a secret realm we found?¡± Martha joined in on the conversation. p AndD nOve1.cO,m ¡°Greed. That secret realm is not ordinary, and you can see the improvements it has had on our ranks. Unfortunately, the time has been short so it isn¡¯t too obvious yet.¡± An old man sitting by the side said. Everyone nodded to his statement, Martha on the other hand snorted coldly when the man spoke. This man was the reason Lucas had to return, he was none other than his father, Grey¡¯s grandfather, Roche Dawson. Roche took a glance at Martha but didn¡¯t say a word. Lucas tapped her on her leg as if to tell her to mind her manners. ¡°Has anyone heard of a certain Grey Dawson?¡± An Elder suddenly asked. Lucas and Martha turned to look at this Elder, along with the others in the hall. ¡°We¡¯ve heard a few of his exploits, what about him?¡± Roche nodded. Given Grey¡¯s talent, it was natural that they would¡¯ve heard of him. What made it more appealing was his last name, bearing the same name as them, and also having such a great talent made most people think of him as a member of this Dawson Family. ¡°Sage Plane members just started to fight, I heard his a talent, and even Conor has said many great things about him. If we can get Conor to bring him here, he would not only be a good addition to the Family, but he would also be vital in this battle of the Sage Plane.¡± The Elder explained his reason for mentioning Grey¡¯s name. Lucas and Martha didn¡¯t say a word as they listened attentively. This man was close to Conor, so there might be a time when he might¡¯ve rambled about Grey to him. ¡°There¡¯s no need, he¡¯ll come here when the time is right.¡± Lucas suddenly said. The room fell silent when they heard this, some of them a little confused while others had already gotten a guess on the matter. ¡°Care to share the reason behind your statement?¡± Roche asked, staring at Lucas¡¯ eyes. ¡°He¡¯s my son.¡± Lucas¡¯ reply was simple and concise, but it shocked the entire room.please visit panda(-)N0ve1.co)m Of all the people present, only a few didn¡¯t have shocked expressions. One of such people was a middle-aged man. He was the one who was guarding the portal to the horned race the last time. He already knew of Grey¡¯s identity. ¡°You have a son?¡± Another middle-aged man asked with a strange look. Lucas nodded. The middle-aged man smiled but didn¡¯t say anything else. He was Lucas¡¯ brother, and also the current leader of the Dawson Family. After Lucas vanished, he had no contenders and was easily given the position of the Family Head after some time. Martha looked at him, her expression was colder than when she was staring at Roche. Of all the people they had to be wary of, this was the most dangerous figure in the family. He was not as powerful as Lucas, but he was a cunning and intelligent man. He would go to any lengths to get what he wants. His only good side was that he made sure whatever he was doing was for the good of the family. Lucas telling his family about Grey was a little unexpected since he planned to wait a little longer, but he knew there was no difference. Besides, other than himself and those of the Burchard Family, only a few people knew of Grey¡¯s current whereabouts. No harm would come to Grey as long as he was in that secret realm, even when he comes out, he would be safe. The Dawson Family started to plan their strategies on the next round of battles which would be taking place soon. Once those in the Sage Plane started an all-out fight, it would soon be the turn of the Elemental Venerables. What they all wanted to do was to make sure the most powerful figures didn¡¯t die. This was why they were mainly using those of weaker Planes. In such battles, very few geniuses go there since they might be targeted by those in higher Planes from the enemy side. ¡­. Back in the secret realm. Grey knew nothing of his father telling others of his identity. He was still in training, trying to get to a higher Plane. His plan when entering this place was to break through to the Elemental Venerable Plane before leaving. He was already in the Ninth stage after spending over four months here. His gains had been good since he had finally removed the mark from his body and also wiped out a large number of geniuses from the Gnome race. In the past three months, he had also killed a few more, well, a hundred plus people can¡¯t really be called few, but compared to the overall number of those in the realm where the Gnomes were from, it wasn¡¯t much. One night while sitting with Void, Grey stood up and looked in the direction of the east. ¡°Looks like our peaceful days are coming to an end.¡± He commented. ¡°You sensed it too?¡± Void also stared in the same direction. ¡°Someone is trying to break in from the higher realm.¡± Grey¡¯s eyes were serious. There was only one reason why this was happening, whoever was coming wanted to kill a person here at all costs. Of all the people here, Grey didn¡¯t think there was anyone else who had offended people to this extent other than himself. There was a time when he camped outside the portal for the Gnome race, whenever people stepped in, he would kill them. The people from the Gnome race didn¡¯t send anyone in for a month because of it and it caused a huge uproar. Grey naturally had zero worries about it, it was not like their higher ranks could charge in here. Well, except for those in the Elemental Venerable Plane, no one else could. One of the good things was that the higher the stage of the Elemental Venerable, the harder it was for them to stay in this lower realm. Since whoever is coming would have to find him, then he guessed it was most likely a First stage Elemental Venerable. ¡°Should we wait it out or check it out?¡± He asked Void. He had never tried to fight against an Elemental Venerable before, and although he would like to try, he knew it was going to be risky. ¡°Let¡¯s check it out, I¡¯m bored.¡± Void replied. Void was already at the Peak of the Sixth Rank a few months ago, the only reason he hadn¡¯t broken through was because he was waiting for Grey. This place was not like any other place, so he had to be careful as well. 1022 A Familiar Figure Grey and Void didn¡¯t try to hide their whereabouts, since the person might be from the Gnome race and was probably after Grey, then they would kill a bunch of Sage Plane Elementalists from the Gnome race and try to lead the Elemental Venerable their way. This would give them the chance to assess the strength of the person before trying to engage such a person. With Void around, it would be almost impossible for someone to sneak up on the duo. Not just that, but Grey could easily sense those from the Gnome race, so as long as this person was from the Gnome race, he would be able to sense them. The duo soon started their killing spree, killing every member of the Gnome race they encountered, while also heading in the direction of the hideout of the Gnomes. While Grey was killing his way through, another person was killing any human that crossed his path. If Grey was here, he would recognize the figure. It was none other than the Prince who broke through some time ago. The Prince hated Grey to his bones, so now that he had consolidated his realm, he wanted to kill Grey. After the news of someone camping outside the portal and killing everyone, those from the Gnome race made it a priority to kill Grey, and someone in the upper realm was asked to go down. The Prince volunteered because he wanted to make sure Grey died by his hands. He had fought against Grey before and knew his strength. ¡°Where¡¯s he?¡± He asked the person that was sprawled on the ground, bleeding. ¡°Who?¡± The person didn¡¯t know who the Prince was talking about. Even after being beaten to such a state, he didn¡¯t know what the Prince was talking about. pA n,dan(-)0ve1.c0m ¡°Your leader.¡± The Prince said. ¡°He has broken through some time ago and is in the upper realm.¡± The person replied with a tearful expression. He knew his chances of survival were very slim. Even if he told this person the whereabouts of the person he was searching for, the Prince would still kill him. The Prince felt irritated by the young man¡¯s refusal to tell him where Grey was hiding and killed him in a blink. This was the sixth person they had encountered, but none of them knew of Grey¡¯s whereabouts. All of them had been giving him the same answer, their leader had broken through, but there was no way he would believe such a thing. Grey was in the Sixth or Seventh stage the last time they fought. It had only been three months, and even if Grey was an unparalleled genius, there was no way he would¡¯ve broken through to the Elemental Venerable Plane, at most, he would still be in the Eighth stage by now. Crack! A crack appeared on his arm. Looking at it, his expression changed, ¡°My time is limited. I should go to the human hideout.¡± He soon came to a conclusion. On his way, he sensed something strange. ¡°Your Highness, he¡¯s here.¡± He received a voice transmission from the Gnome hideout.please visit panda(-)N0ve1.co)m Before he set out, he told them of his plans. Grey directly killed his way into the Gnome¡¯s hideouts. The Prince was first stunned, then his expression changed to one of anger. Grey¡¯s arrogance was beyond him, but the fact that he didn¡¯t fear anything and killed his way into the Gnome¡¯s hideout showed how little he thought of them. ¡®Once I kill him, I¡¯ll deal with that stupid Giant.¡¯ He thought to himself. The leader of the Giants hadn¡¯t been able to break through to the Elemental Venerable Plane, so he was still here. Unlike most people, he was only in the Eighth stage when he entered this place. At the time he became leader, he just broke through to the Peak of the Sage Plane. The leader went against his request and allowed Grey to do as he pleases with Gnomes. The Prince didn¡¯t think too much about it as he rushed back to the hideout. Even if Grey was strong, there was no way he would be able to fight against an Elemental Venerable while still being in the Sage Plane. With his speed, it took him only a few minutes to cover thousands of kilometers. Appearing close to the hideout, he paused and tried to observe the situation. His expression changed when he noticed all the corpses that were on the ground. Even he wouldn¡¯t dare to kill this many humans, yet Grey did it without thinking twice. The Prince didn¡¯t try to find out anything else and rushed inside, Grey must die. When he entered the place, he saw Grey sitting on the chair that was meant for the leader of the Gnome race while in the secret realm. What annoyed him was not where Grey was seated, but the hall was littered with corpses, even the sides of the seat had two deformed corpses. ¡°You¡¯re here, I thought you would take longer, I¡¯m not done preparing my surprise yet.¡± Grey said when the Prince stepped in. ¡°Oh, it¡¯s you!¡± He exclaimed when he saw the face of the Prince. He never thought the Prince would be the one who would come in. This made things even more interesting. The Prince studied Grey and surprise appeared on his face, he would never think that Grey had actually been able to get to the Ninth stage of the Sage Plane. It had only been how long, three months or so. His motivation to make sure Grey died increased at this moment. He had already tagged Grey as a must-kill to Gnomes, but now, Grey was advancing at unprecedented speed. One has to know that the main reason Gnomes were more powerful than humans was their ability to control human corpses. If they managed to kill a human powerhouse, they could convert the strength of the powerhouse to theirs, but against Grey, this was useless. In fact, it placed them in even greater trouble since he could use it to attack their minds. 1023 Messing With The Prince ¡°You¡¯re already in the Ninth stage, now I have to make sure you die.¡± The Prince commented. ¡°Haha, is this how you speak to an old friend?¡± Grey laughed as if he was speaking with a friend. The Prince was annoyed by his words. ¡°We are not friends.¡± The Prince said. ¡°Come on, we could be, given how many times we¡¯ve seen.¡± Grey joked. The Prince could tell that he was trying to annoy him. Without a second word, he attacked. Throwing his palm forward, a large palm made of pure elemental essence appeared and struck Grey¡¯s direction. Unlike Elementalists below the Elemental Venerable Plane, Elemental Venerable could directly control the elemental essence around. Even without trying, they could easily kill multiple Sage Plane Elementalists. Seeing the palm coming his way, Grey¡¯s aura spiked, unable to break through past the Sage Plane, but it was obvious that he was currently above the Sage Plane. He also threw a first made of the fire element. The palm and fist collided and it was followed by a large explosion. The impact of the explosion made Grey take a step back to balance himself, the Prince on the other hand was standing in the same position, unperturbed. The Prince squinted his eyes. His attack just now was testing the waters, he hadn¡¯t even made any effort. ¡®He¡¯s strong, but not undefeatable.¡¯ He concluded after his test. ¡°If this is all you can do, then you should head back before the restrictions here kills you.¡± Grey laughed. The Prince smiled but didn¡¯t say a word. He threw another palm, this time, the palm wasn¡¯t just pure elemental essence, rather, it seemed to be filled with the fire elemental essence. Pure essence was different from fire or any other elemental essence. It was powerful, but the Prince didn¡¯t know how to use it yet, so it wasn¡¯t as strong as his fire elemental essence. Grey threw another fist. This time, he also increased the strength and the fist had multiple colors, unlike the first one which was made from just the fire element. When both palm and fist collided, the impact directly destroyed the hall, and all the bodies there disintegrated. Grey was forced to take multiple steps back this time before he was able to regain his footing. The Prince on the other hand didn¡¯t take a step back, rather, he took a step forward and directly shot through the explosion, charging at Grey. pAnDa (nov)e1? Grey had just regained his footing when he sensed the Prince appearing in front of him. He attacked his front, not daring to waste any time. He knew fighting against the Prince was a huge gamble, but he wanted to see the strength of Elemental Venerable firsthand, so he came out. Of course he had multiple trump cards that he would use to escape. When he fought against the Prince the last time, he made sure he hid a few things, so that if things got out of his control, he would have to use them to escape. He never expected the Prince to be the one who would arrive, with the Prince here, it would be difficult for him to use the space element to escape, which was his original plan. But being Grey, he made sure he created a few more escape plans, just to be safe.please visit panda(-)N0ve1.co)m Boom! Grey¡¯s attack was about to hit the Prince when he struck forward once again, instantly blasting Grey¡¯s attack apart and sending his figure flying. Grey spat out a mouthful of blood since he never expected this to happen in the first place. The Prince moved out almost immediately. Grey didn¡¯t let his figure hit the ground, with the help of the space element, he maneuvered and appeared mid-air. Multiple inscriptions appeared, as well as chaos orbs. These orbs were different from the one he used the last time he walked into the Prince¡¯s ambush. The Prince looked at the orbs and subconsciously didn¡¯t dare to charge at Grey, he still recalled how powerful they were the last time. If not for his strength and a few lifesaving treasures, he would¡¯ve been seriously injured by it. Grey chuckled when he saw this and couldn¡¯t help but mock a few times. Whenever he was fighting against an opponent stronger than himself, he knew his best bet was to make sure his opponent¡¯s state of mind was not fine. Hanging out with Klaus had honed this skill of his, so could be called a professional. Of course Klaus was still the master. The Prince was irritated by his expression, but there was nothing he could do. Other than his previous experience, he could also tell that these orbs could cause him some damage, as unbelievable as it sounded, he felt threatened by these orbs. What was worse was that Grey actually had so many of them. ¡®I can¡¯t kill him.¡¯ The Prince soon knew that he had overestimated himself and underestimated Grey¡¯s strength. This was beyond humiliation, if he were to go back and say he couldn¡¯t kill a Sage Plane Elementalist, the entire Gnome race might mock him till his death. Gritting his teeth, he charged forward. He had to try, no matter what, he had to try. Grey unleashed the inscriptions first at him. Each attack from the inscription was something that wouldn¡¯t be able to harm the Prince. Grey knew this as well. The Prince was on guard as he blocked the attacks, just when he was still prepared to block against an inscription attack, he was stunned when the inscription attack switched places with three chaos orbs. The switch was just too fast, and it happened just when the inscription attack was about to hit him. Boom! The attack pushed the Prince down, and before he could find his footing mid-air, multiple inscription attacks hit him. ¡°Ah! I¡¯ll kill you!¡± He roared in anger. Just now, he wasted his energy trying to block the attacks since he was scared that it was one of the chaos orbs, but to his shock, it was one of those useless attacks. 1024 Not As Strong, Not A Problem The Prince was placed in a difficult position as he tried to block Grey¡¯s attack. However, Grey uses his space element to make life a living hell for the Prince. Even though the Prince also had the space element, he had difficulties blocking this particular attack. The sudden switch of attack from regular inscription attacks to the chaos orbs was just too fast, before he could even sense the space element coming to play, the attack was already in front of him. He soon gave up the thought of blocking and started dodging the attacks. This way, there was no way Grey would be able to catch him off guard. His only problem was that he couldn¡¯t get close to Grey. The reason for this was that Grey covered himself with multiple chaos orbs. It was almost impossible for anyone to get close to him without being blasted by these orbs. ¡°If you know you¡¯re strong, come, fight me head-on.¡± The Prince tried to draw Grey out of the encirclement of chaos orbs. Grey laughed before sending an orb out. The Prince instantly vanished when he saw this, thinking Grey wanted to attack him, however, he soon realized that the orb only moved a few meters away from Grey before heading back. pA(nD)A no ve1 Grey burst out laughing, while the Prince gritted his teeth in annoyance. Grey was messing with him, he knew this, but with Grey¡¯s defenses, there was nothing he could do about it. Of all the humans he had met, not just humans, but people from both his race and the Giant race, Grey was the most detestable person he had seen. If given the chance, he would not only kill Grey, but he would also kill his parents and entire family members. Grey had no idea of what was going through the head of the Prince. He was currently thinking of what to do to the Prince. One of the reasons he was hiding in his chaos orbs was because although he was strong, from the few exchanges he has had with the Prince, he knew that he was not the Prince¡¯s match in a battle. He was not one who would overestimate his capabilities, since he was not as strong as his opponent, he would resolve to trickery. With all the things he had up his sleeves, it was almost impossible to be killed by the Prince. The Prince attacked, but Grey sent an orb at the attack, causing a loud explosion. ¡°Fine! I¡¯ll see how long these orbs will last you.¡± The Prince snorted coldly and started to attack Grey randomly. He didn¡¯t even bother about anything else and just attacked. The only attack Grey could use that would be able to block the Prince¡¯s attacks was his chaos orb, and even with that, he was still continuously pushed back by the impact of the explosion. Once the chaos orbs around him were exhausted, the Prince would be able to kill him with ease. Well, so he thought. After sending out more than fifty attacks, he noticed something odd, the orbs didn¡¯t seem to have an end. In the space of a minute he had released over fifty attacks, and Grey had blocked all of them with a chaos orb. It would be normal for the ones around him to reduce, but they were still the same number, if his eyes weren¡¯t failing him, there even seemed to be a slight increase in their size. ¡®This shouldn¡¯t be possible¡­ right?¡¯ The Prince was confused. From each chaos orb, he could sense a large amount of elemental essence. Even with the essence in the surrounding, Grey couldn¡¯t directly take from it like an Elemental Venerable. So Grey was using from his essence reserves. But, his reserves shouldn¡¯t be able to keep up with his current use of his attacks. Any normal Elementalist would already realize this problem and would stop using this attack. Once an Elementalist runs out of elemental essence when fighting then they were as good as dead, especially against an opponent that was way stronger than they were.please visit panda(-)N0ve1.co)m Grey didn¡¯t seem to be worrying about this as he attacked wantonly. He even seemed to be enjoying it. ¡°What are you?¡± The Prince couldn¡¯t help but ask. ¡°I¡¯m the greatest genius of all time.¡± Grey replied loudly, his voice oozing with unbridled confidence. The Prince paused for a moment, and it was as if he was starting to believe it. But his eyes soon changed. ¡°Before me, you¡¯re nothing.¡± He said coldly and started attacking once again. ¡®We¡¯ll see who has a greater essence reserve.¡¯ He thought to himself. Grey wanted to fight against him in terms of this, he was only digging his own grave. One was an Elemental Venerable, while the other was a Sage Plane Elementalist, the difference should be clear. Just when the Prince was about to attack again, his vision suddenly changed. ¡®Huh?¡¯ His expression changed for a slight moment before he sprang to action. A defensive wall soon covered his body as he roared out with explosive power. The power pushed everything around him. Originally, the thought of Grey being able to switch places with another figure crossed his mind when he first saw Grey use the switch skill, but after Grey didn¡¯t use it, he felt maybe he could only move small things. Luckily, he still didn¡¯t bring his guard down and was able to react accordingly. Unfortunately, the orbs were just too many. The orbs started bombarding the defensive wall and a crack soon appeared. The Prince wanted to try to use the space element to escape, but the moment a spatial tunnel was opened up, it became chaotic, putting the Prince in even bigger danger. With his full strength, he didn¡¯t try to only block Grey¡¯s attack, but he also forcefully closed down the spatial tunnel. By the time he was done with this, the defensive screen had already broken apart and an orb hit him on the back, sending him flying. During this short time, the number of chaos orbs had gone down by more than half its original number. From around fifty, it was around fifteen now. The rest chased after the Prince as he was thrown to the ground. 1025 Ill Come Back For You Grey watched this scene while breathing heavily, although he had been hiding it, blocking so many of the Prince¡¯s attacks had taken a large toll on him. He had no issues with his essence reserves, what was troubling him was the impact of each attack after he blocked it. Even with his strong physique, he still had problems with taking such powerful impacts. This showed the large difference between an Elemental Venerable and a Sage Plane Elementalist. It was almost unheard of that a Sage Plane Elementalist would be able to exchange blows with an Elemental Venerable, but Grey was doing it with ease. Even though the Prince was only in the First stage, he was one of the people that would be classified as a strong First stage Elemental Venerable. Most people in the same stage would have problems fighting against him. If Grey were to fight against a weak Elemental Venerable at the First stage, he wouldn¡¯t have too many problems dealing with them, he might even be able to win against them. The Prince slammed into the ground and the other chaos orbs crashed into the ground, exploding as well. Grey started to make other orbs around him as well, just in case the Prince rushed out to attack him. Before the explosion died down, he sensed an anomaly behind him and without thinking, he tossed three chaos orbs in that direction. A figure who had cracks all over his body stepped out of a spatial tunnel and was once again hit by multiple chaos orbs. The figure was the Prince who was able to escape from the attack. Although he was still alright, Grey didn¡¯t miss the cracks that were on his body. ¡®Those are not the injuries caused by my attack.¡¯ He was no fool. With a single glance, he knew what was happening. pAn,Da-n0v e1,c,m The realm was slowly taking effect on the body of the Prince. Since he came to a lower realm, he would naturally start to suffer. Things only started to move faster due to his battle with Grey. The Prince was pushed back by the orbs, but he wasn¡¯t too affected by them. He looked at Grey with infuriated eyes, ¡°I¡¯ll kill you before I go back.¡± ¡°You meant to say you will die before you can kill me.¡± Grey corrected him with a matter-of-fact tone. They had both been fighting for some time, the Prince already knew he couldn¡¯t kill Grey, and Grey also knew he could at most cause some slight injuries to the Prince, but nothing too serious. His greatest asset right now was the realm. As long as the realm exists, all he needed to do was to delay the Prince and the realm would do the rest. The Prince snorted coldly after Grey¡¯s statement before charging forward once again. He was about to attack when he suddenly felt a powerful pull, with his strength, he stood his ground and looked at Grey with a menacing look. Grey gave him a mischievous smile as he tossed some chaos orbs in his direction and fled. Grey didn¡¯t want to exchange blows with the Prince any longer, he was already starting to feel the brunt of his internal injuries. The Prince chased after him, dodging the orbs that were sent in his direction. Grey continued running as he tossed a few orbs in his direction.please visit panda(-)N0ve1.co)m Grey was extremely fast, exceeding the expectations of the Prince. Having both the lightning and wind elements that could boost his strength, it was not even a joke to say that he was faster than a few First stage Elemental Venerables. The Prince was once again shocked by Grey¡¯s abilities. ¡°Damn it! Where did someone like him come from?¡± He cursed as he gave chase. What was worse was that whenever he was getting closer to Grey, Grey would suddenly teleport a large distance, once again creating a gap. He was agitated because he could see that the realm¡¯s effect on him was increasing. If things stayed this way, he would not be able to catch Grey. Just when he was thinking of giving up, he heard Grey¡¯s mocking words, followed by him tossing three things at him. At first, he thought they were chaos orbs, but only after he got close to them did he realize what they were. ¡°You animal! If I don¡¯t kill you I¡¯ll never have peace!¡± The Prince roared in anger and once again gave chase with rejuvenated motivation. The three items fell to the ground, each of them was the head of someone from the Gnome race. Killing them was not enough, Grey went on to remove their heads and use them as he pleases. The Prince was incensed, the Gnome race would not take this lying! Of course, he had to catch Grey first before he could exert revenge. Grey was very fast, too fast for someone in the Sage Plane. Grey didn¡¯t bother with the Prince, all he did was run, say a few curse words, toss a few heads, and occasionally a few chaos orbs. The Prince had been able to catch up to him on two occasions, but after just two blows, Grey would instantly flee. The Prince knew Grey¡¯s plan, but he was helpless against him. After a few more minutes, the Prince was forced to stop. He couldn¡¯t stay here any longer. His entire body had cracks all over, but he hadn¡¯t even been able to do anything to Grey. He had been chasing for almost ten minutes, yet nothing. He felt regretful and humiliated. How can an Elemental Venerable be bested by a Sage Plane Elementalist, it was simply unheard of. If news of this were to spread, he would be mocked by everyone. His chances of even ascending the throne might even be destroyed. ¡°Damn it! I¡¯ll come back for you.¡± He said and turned around. Grey tried to mock him a few times, but the Prince didn¡¯t stay. A few seconds after the Prince left, he spat out a mouthful of blood before floating to the ground. His innards were a mess, and he was bleeding from even his ears. He had been hiding it all this while, the moment the Prince left, he let everything out. 1026 Running For His Life ¡°An Elemental Venerable truly is powerful.¡± Grey said with a sigh. If not for his chaos orb, he wouldn¡¯t have been able to contend with the Prince and would most likely have had to flee the moment he exchanged moves with the Prince. His strong physique also made things somewhat easier for him since he was able to hide his injuries from the knowledge of the Prince. Had the Prince found out about his injuries, he might have taken the risk of trying to stay a little longer, and even attacking him more instead of letting him run with such ease. He might even try to take a few blows just to make sure that he would shorten the distance and cause even greater damage to Grey. ¡°You survived, I¡¯m impressed.¡± A voice came from the void before a figure appeared in front of Grey. Grey¡¯s expression changed drastically, the person standing in front of him was an Elemental Venerable from the Gnome race. This person has obviously been hiding for some time now, watching from the shadows. ¡®Void.¡¯ Grey called out. ¡®I didn¡¯t sense him, he¡¯s very good at hiding.¡¯ Void replied The only time Grey was able to sense this person was after the person stepped out of the void. It was just like that time he was being chased and ran into a secret realm. ¡°Shocked? After so many years, you think we haven¡¯t found a way to bypass this stupid realm and search for a way to stay a little longer.¡± The figure chuckled. His strength was definitely higher than the Prince¡¯s strength, but the difference wasn¡¯t too much. ¡°You¡¯re here to kill me as well, looks like you Gnomes really think highly of me, too highly I fear.¡± Grey said, his expression cold once again. p¡¢A,nd A-n¡¢o¡¢ve,1 This was not the time to dwell on his injuries, he had to be prepared for anything. ¡°It can¡¯t be helped, you killed too many of our people, what did you expect?¡± The figure asked. ¡°A banquet?¡± Grey replied jokingly. The figure¡¯s mouth twitched repeatedly. ¡°Unlike that useless Prince, I¡¯ll kill you and take your head back to the capital. I don¡¯t think you know the reward that has been placed on your head.¡± He said as he stared at Grey menacingly. Grey took a step back, and without even thinking, his figure shot straight in the direction of the portal of humans. His injuries were not something that would hold him down, the small time he was talking with the figure, he was making sure he healed to the fullest. Although he was not completely healed up, it wasn¡¯t a problem for him to escape.please visit panda(-)N0ve1.co)m The figure rushed after him, trying to make sure Grey didn¡¯t escape from his hands. Grey created chaos orbs as he rushed forward, occasionally tossing one or two at the figure that was chasing after him. Just when he thought he was free, another person was lying in wait. ¡®I thought I wouldn¡¯t have to run again? I hate this life.¡¯ He complained internally, cursing at the young man as well as he ran through the realm. ¡®Once you notice a secret space, notify me.¡¯ Grey said to Void. The young man from the Gnome race chasing after him was faster than the Prince, so he was able to catch up with Grey before he even managed to get to a good distance. Grey tried to block his attack but was sent flying, crashing into the ground, causing a large crater. Grey didn¡¯t dare to stay there as he rushed out of the place and continued his escape. Fighting against this person was out of the question, he didn¡¯t even dare to try to exchange blows with him. The young man was stronger than the Prince, if his guess was correct, this person should be in the Second or Third stage of the Elemental Venerable Plane. His attack power and control over his strength were miles ahead of the Prince. ¡°Damn it! Damn it! Damn it!¡± Grey cursed repeatedly as he was escaping. Once again, he lacked strength, so he was being chased around. However, he knew this person couldn¡¯t stay here for too long, just like the Prince, the realm would soon start to take its effect on him, at that time, he would have no choice but to leave Grey alone. ¡°I¡¯m not that useless, before I go, I¡¯ll be leaving with your corpse.¡± The young man snorted coldly. He knew Grey¡¯s plan, and he didn¡¯t have any plans of going with it. His time here was limited, if Grey thought that he would be able to use the same technique as when he was being chased by the Prince, he was hugely mistaken. Compared to the Prince, he had seen Grey¡¯s hidden moves and knew what to do against them. Of course he naturally wouldn¡¯t be able to block against all of them, but he should be able to block against most of them. Grey originally faced the human race¡¯s hideout, but thinking of the danger that might inflict the others, he changed his direction. The young man blocked him and attacked, Grey sent out a chaos orb to block the attack, but he was unable to block it as the impact forced him back. He didn¡¯t have the luxury to check any of his injuries, escaping was his main priority. Void was occasionally helping with his space element, but against a Second or Third stage Elemental Venerable, he didn¡¯t really have much say. In the Sage Plane, except for Grey, he basically had no equal, but fighting across an entire Plane was out of reach. While in lower Planes, it would¡¯ve been possible, but now, it was almost impossible. What Grey was doing was outright ridiculous. If others heard of him exchanging blows with a Second or Third stage Elemental Venerable, they would be shocked. It was still acceptable if it was an Elemental Venerable that had just broken through, but a Second stage Elemental Venerable was just too powerful for a Sage Plane Elementalist. 1027 Who Is This Grey? ¡°Stop running!¡± The young man from the Gnome race yelled in frustration. Yes, he was stronger, he knew Grey¡¯s hidden moves, yet, he had not been able to capture Grey. It was even harder trying to get him to stay in one location. Grey might not be as strong as he was, but in terms of escaping, he felt Grey was unmatched. With the number of times he had smacked and sent Grey crashing, he shouldn¡¯t be able to still move, yet Grey was still running at full speed, even taking time to curse at him and also throw attacks his way. What was frustrating was Grey¡¯s ability to switch places, when he was watching Grey use it, he felt it wouldn¡¯t be a problem for him to guard against it since he already knew of it, but Grey was a cunning individual, only using it when the young man never expected. He would use it at the most unpredictable times that even when the young man was on guard against it, he would be unable to do anything against it. Frustration was starting to set in, not just frustration, but the realm had also started to show its hand as cracks had started to appear on the body of the young man. Grey had noticed this and knew that all he had to do was to hang on a little while. As long as he persisted, then this young man would be forced to leave the realm just as the Prince did. The young man roared in desperation and rushed after Grey. Some minutes ago he called the Prince useless, but now, he would be the more useless one since the Prince was weaker than he was. ¡°Damn it! Stop running you rat!¡± The young man cursed. p-n0ve1¡¢com ¡°You¡¯re the rat, your entire family are rats!¡± Grey cursed. He didn¡¯t forget to anger the young man as he escaped, there was nothing better than making his opponent agitated. Although this would make things difficult for him, it would also make the young man make more mistakes and give him a chance to even harm him. The young man attacked wildly, trying to make sure he injured Grey. Grey on the other hand was dodging the few he could, the ones he couldn¡¯t he would try his best to block it, even if the impact was deadly to him, he had no choice but to cope with it. As time went on, the young man started to get more desperate, his attacks were wilder now and his eyes were red. His mind was racing, thinking of how he mocked the Prince, yet he was unable to do anything to Grey. Grey was successfully escaping, although his body was riddled with injuries, he was alive, and that was all that was important. The young man from the Gnome race looked at his current condition, then at Grey. ¡®I can¡¯t kill him.¡¯ He thought in depression. Just like the Prince, he finally realized that he couldn¡¯t kill Grey. The only thing was that he figured it out too late. Grey had already dragged him here for so long, even going as far as hurting him. Some of Grey¡¯s ingenious attacks had been able to cause him some superficial injuries which infuriated him. ¡°Stop! You¡¯re powerful right? Stop and fight me like a man!¡± The young man was going crazy.please visit panda(-)N0ve1.co)m ¡°You¡¯re crazy, why don¡¯t you wait till I¡¯m in the Elemental Venerable Plane before attacking me? Hypocrite!¡± Grey cursed as he continued running like a scared chicken. What he said made perfect sense that the young man didn¡¯t even have anything to retort with. If he was truly powerful, why was he bullying him with his superior strength? The fact that he couldn¡¯t even get Grey to exchange more than two moves before he ran away showed that they were not on the same level. If they truly fought while on the same stage, Grey would beat him up no doubt, even he knew this as well. He tried to make sure he caught up with Grey, but in the end, it was useless. His time here was up, he had to leave before his body was destroyed. The cracks on his body had already started to spread all over his body and he could barely use his original strength. One of the things placed here was to slowly weaken the strength of those above the Sage Plane. If the young man stayed any longer, he would die under Grey¡¯s hands, he knew of this. This was also the reason the Prince escaped as well. Grey laughed when he saw the look of hesitation in the eyes of the young man. ¡°Haha, you¡¯re thinking of escaping, why, are you afraid of me?¡± He mocked. The young man snorted coldly but didn¡¯t respond. Without a second word, he rushed out of the place, heading towards the weak link he could use to go back to the higher realm. Grey thought of chasing after him, but he knew it wasn¡¯t worth it, so he decided to stay put. Besides, he was bleeding all over and his internal organs were almost destroyed. The impact of this young man¡¯s attacks was more powerful than the Prince¡¯s and caused even greater damage to his already injured organs. ¡°Fuck! I¡¯ll kill them once I get to the Venerable Plane.¡± Grey declared before rushing back to the human race¡¯s hideout. He had to tell the others to lay low for some time, it was best if they didn¡¯t stay in the secret realm. With so many Elemental Venerables coming here, the others would definitely face some dangers. ¡®I need to recuperate first, I can¡¯t go back like this.¡¯ He thought to himself and went in search of a secret space to hide while he recuperated. The Prince just left the lower realm when the young man left as well. The weak link suddenly disappeared, impossible for them to see again. ¡­ In the higher realm, a meeting was being held amongst the humans. ¡°Who is this Grey that they want to kill?¡± 1028 Each With Their Plans ¡°He¡¯s the person that helped us win the tournament, the second I heard they were trying to kill someone, I knew it had to be him. He¡¯s the only person that I can say for a fact is invincible in the Sage Plane.¡± A young man said. If Grey was here, he would¡¯ve recognized the young man. It was none other than Scott, Sylvia¡¯s younger brother. When he heard the news of someone slaughtering the people of the Gnome race, he knew it was none other than Grey. Only Grey was strong enough to do as he pleases in a place where there were no Elemental Venerables. When the Prince went to the lower realm, they knew of it as well. Someone rushed to the lower realm as well, but the person had returned, and he didn¡¯t find Grey, nor did he see the Prince. According to the person, Grey should be alive, well, it was a guess. The people in the hall turned to look at Scott, some of them chuckling. Saying Grey was invincible in the Sage Plane was an exaggeration. There were some of them here who felt they were also invincible while they were at the Peak of the Sage Plane. A few of them felt maybe Grey was talented, after all, Scott was someone they all knew as a genius, and if he acknowledges Grey, that meant Grey was better than he is. ¡°I don¡¯t think you all understand, at the time of the competition, he was only in the Fifth stage of the Sage Plane, but he could go toe to toe with me even though I was at the Peak of the Sage Plane.¡± Scott could tell what most of the people were thinking and explained. Surprise showed on the faces of some of the people in the hall, they never thought Grey was that talented. Although they had all heard of him, they didn¡¯t take their time to listen to the stories. Most of the people here were already in the Elemental Venerable Plane before coming here, a Sage Plane Elementalist wouldn¡¯t catch their eye unless said person is a genius. ¡°I see. Someone like him will be valuable here, he can help with the battles. Send words to the Elder guarding the portal, Grey must be found and taken out for his safety.¡± ¡°Also, track the movements of the Gnomes, we must do our part to protect him.¡± ¡­ While the humans were having a meeting, on another side of the higher realm, another group was having a meeting, they were all members of the Gnome race. ¡°You didn¡¯t find him?¡± Someone turned to the Prince. Although they had a higher cultivation level, they still had to be respectful to the Prince. ¡°No, and the realm was already starting to affect me. I guess we¡¯ll have to search for a way to go in with a large number.¡± The Prince replied. When he said this, a figure from the crowd looked at him, but this figure didn¡¯t say a word. This person was the young man who attacked Grey immediately after the Prince left. He knew that the Prince couldn¡¯t dare to announce the result of his encounter with Grey, and neither could he. For two Elemental Venerables to be unable to kill a Peak Sage Plane Elementalist was a disgrace. The young man knew that he wouldn¡¯t be able to raise his head again if the others heard about it.please visit panda(-)N0ve1.co)m ¡°Is he that important?¡± Someone asked. ¡°At the Sixth stage, he can fight against me when I was at the Peak. In the space of three months, I heard he¡¯s currently in the Ninth stage of the Sage Plane, not just that, but he seems to be able to track us down.¡± The Prince paused and looked at everyone present, ¡°Now tell me, do you think he¡¯s important?¡± The others didn¡¯t say a word, but they could tell that this human was unlike any other. Being able to advance from the Sixth to the Ninth stage in three months was an insane speed. Not just that, but he was also able to fight against someone as talented as the Prince with such a large difference in the cultivation stage. Grey was a danger to all of them. They all knew that the portal would soon be open and they could enter the human world in large numbers, the great war was coming, and such a talent shouldn¡¯t be allowed to grow. The fact that he grew this much was a shocking thing. ¡°Send words out, if he doesn¡¯t come to the higher realm and leaves before he breaks through, we have to make sure that our people in the human world would take the appropriate actions.¡± The Prince said. Since he was here, he was the leader of the group. He might be the one with one of the lowest cultivation levels, but his status was higher than everyone present. Someone nodded and stood up, heading out. The Prince wanted Grey dead at all costs, and from what he has said, so did all these people. ¡­ In the lower realm. Grey had no idea of what these people were planning, all he wanted to do now was to leave this place. He was already very close to the Peak of the Sage Plane, but staying was a little too dangerous now. If someone with a higher level comes again, he might not be able to escape or hang on. ¡°Why don¡¯t you just hide in a secret space and cultivate?¡± Void suggested. ¡°Staying here will only put others in danger. I¡¯m not that selfish. I can easily hide my aura and cultivate, but with the trouble I¡¯ve caused, I¡¯m afraid I can¡¯t.¡± Grey shook his head with a self-deprecating laugh. As much as he wanted to stay here, he couldn¡¯t. p-A- n-d-A-n-0-v-e-1¡¢(c)om ¡°A shame. Let¡¯s leave then, I¡¯ve been waiting for so long to break through.¡± Void didn¡¯t argue any longer. Grey had his reasons for wanting to leave, and he didn¡¯t want to force him to stay, besides, he had been holding back from breaking through for a long time now. 1029 Origin Source Aurora Continent, somewhere in the Middle Continent. Grey stepped out of the portal with a relieved expression on his face. Void was on his shoulder, clearly excited. He was about to break through and become a Rank Seven Magical Beast. When a Magical Beast breaks through to the Seventh Rank or the Elemental Venerable Plane is slightly different from a human. Both Magical Beasts and humans develop origin sources, but Magical Beasts awaken a new innate skill. These skills are unique to a Magical Beast and each Magical Beast, even if they are of the same species, has different skills. These skills coincide with the origin source they develop, making them stronger. This was why the more powerful a Magical Beast, the harder it was for a human powerhouse to beat it at the same stage. Originally, Magical Beasts are stronger, adding this to their arsenal made them even more powerful. The origin source on the other hand draws an Elementalist closer to the world, they control and knowledge of their elements becomes better, not just that, but the origin source also acts as an amplifier. Take for instance, an Elementalist¡¯s attack power is calculated with numbers, the attack power of a Peak Sage Plane Elementalist would be around one thousand. For an Elemental Venerable to unleash the same attack with that number, instead of using one thousand, they would use two hundred, but they can amplify the attack with their origin source. An Elementalist¡¯s control and knowledge over his elements would determine how their amplifiers work. Some people can get ten times amplification while others don¡¯t even get up to two times the amplification. This all falls down to latent talent. It has nothing to do with an Elementalist¡¯s elemental grade. Originally, before the Elemental Venerable Plane, elemental grades were very important, but with the increase of Planes, its role starts to decrease. Of course this doesn¡¯t mean that it would become useless. Elemental grades play small parts with amplification, giving around half of the original from the start. But as an Elemental Venerable advances, their strength and control increases, making the amplification better. In this stage, an Elementalist¡¯s domain power sees a significant increase. The amplification here has double effects, this is also the place where elemental grades play important roles. ¡­ ¡°You¡¯re out.¡± The Elder on the side said with relief in his voice. Grey looked at the Elder, a little confused. He didn¡¯t know the Elder, so seeing him with such a reaction was a little odd, but he still nodded. ¡°It¡¯s good. The news of someone heading from the higher realm to the lower realm to kill you has reached us¡­¡± The Elder explained. They had even sent people inside to search for Grey, but they couldn¡¯t find him. Some of them thought he was dead, while others felt maybe he was hiding. But now that the Elder had seen Grey, he was relieved. They all knew of Grey single-handedly causing a massive headache for the Gnome race. The story of him camping outside their portals even made these Elders who were already old feel their bloods boil. Grey was powerful, and brave. His type was rare. Due to Grey¡¯s presence, the death toll of the people who entered reduced significantly. The Gnomes were the ones who always hunted them down, now, the case was reversed, and it was all done by a single person. After hearing the Elder¡¯s words, Grey finally understood the reason for his reaction. ¡®To think that they¡¯ve been bullying us for so long.¡¯ He said to Void. ¡®The people who entered in the past were all weak, they can¡¯t be blamed for bullying the weak.¡¯ Void said nonchalantly. If the Elder were to hear Void¡¯s statement, he might flip out and even try to kill him that instant. p-n0ve1¡¢com Grey didn¡¯t stay with the Elder for too long, after exchanging some words with him, he left. Void wanted to break through, so he wanted to find a good spot for him to break through.please visit panda(-)N0ve1.co)m After leaving, Grey headed to the Burchard Family, he wanted to inform Sylvia that he was out and would be leaving soon. When he got there, Sylvia was not alone, she was accompanied by some Elders. ¡°Grey, you¡¯re out.¡± She smiled when she saw him. ¡°Yes.¡± Grey nodded. He knew that she wasn¡¯t alone, but he didn¡¯t want to waste too much time. ¡°We were just talking about you. The Gnomes want you dead, do you know that?¡± The Head of the Burchard Family said to Grey. ¡°I¡¯m aware, they even sent Elemental Venerables after me, I was lucky.¡± He replied. ¡°In the realm?¡± The Head of the Burchard Family couldn¡¯t help but raise a brow. Grey told them of how the Prince as well as the young man attacked him. The faces of Sylvia and the rest showed disbelief. If not for the fact that Grey was the one telling them, they would never believe it if someone else said it. Fighting against an Elemental Venerables and not only did he not die, but he managed to escape from two attacks. They all had a hard time believing it, but they also knew how powerful Grey was. If he could fight against a Peak Sage Plane Elementalist with a difference of five stages, then he should also be able to achieve this. ¡°This is unbelievable!¡± An Elder said with a shocked face. Grey didn¡¯t try to convince them to believe him, it wasn¡¯t like it would change anything. ¡°You should be careful when moving, there¡¯s a kill order for you, all the necromancers are after you.¡± The Head of the Burchard Family said. ¡°Huh?¡± Grey was stunned. Why was a kill order for him, what did he do? Even the necromancers were after him, could it be that something he didn¡¯t know happened? Seeing his face, they knew that he had no idea of what was happening. ¡°Our spies told us about your death warrant. Apparently, you angered the Gnomes so much that they took the risk of contacting some people here.¡± The Head of the Burchard Family said with a chuckle. 1030 Voids Breakthrough Grey was stunned by the news, he never thought that the Gnomes would actually bring out a death warrant for him, they didn¡¯t even want to keep him alive or even turn him into a puppet, they wanted to outright kill him. Void couldn¡¯t help but mock Grey for his current situation. He had just managed to remove the mark, yet he was being hunted down. With his easily recognizable face, it wouldn¡¯t be hard for people to find him. What was worse was that he didn¡¯t know who was a spy and who was not, so at the moment, he was in danger of being killed by people close to him. ¡°Do you know who are possible spies for them?¡± He asked the Head of the Burchard Family. ¡°There are a few suspects, but we don¡¯t have any concrete evidence so we can¡¯t say for now. But everyone is aware that necromancers are one of them. Not just that, but there are also people from multiple Factions who are under their command¡­¡± The Head of the Burchard Family explained to Grey. Normally, a Sage Plane Elementalist didn¡¯t have the right to know of these, but given Grey¡¯s position, and also being the son of someone as powerful as Lucas, there was no need in hiding it from him, besides, his life was also in danger. Grey listened attentively and his expression changed slightly when he heard of a familiar Faction, the Nether Faction. Being a Darkness Elemental Faction, and given their horrible behavior, it was quite easy to suspect them. It would be dangerous if the Gnomes managed to build such a powerful and large Faction. ¡®Damn it, when I thought I would be free.¡¯ He complained internally. Once again, he wouldn¡¯t be able to travel freely for the fear of being hunted down. ¡°Thank you for telling me this, I won¡¯t be staying long.¡± Grey bowed to show his appreciation, but he was not going to stay here. Someone like him could never be idle. The Head of the Burchard Family shook his head with a sigh, he knew Grey would never want to stay there. ¡°Alright, I¡¯ll send someone to escort you till you get to the teleportation array.¡± He said. As long as Grey didn¡¯t die within their territory, it was fine. If Grey were to die here, Lucas would definitely turn the place upside down. ¡®I believe he already knows of this, he should rush over to help him.¡¯ He thought to himself. Grey left the city in no time and before he knew it, he was already thousands of kilometers away from the city. Being transported by an expert above the Elemental Venerable Plane was faster than when he was moving on his own. The scenery changed and sometime later, Grey was already close to the edge of the Middle Continent, about to head back to the Western Continent. ¡­. ¡°Take care of yourself, and try to stay out of crowded places.¡± The man who escorted him till the end of the Middle Continent advised before heading back. Grey nodded before walking away, there was no need to stay there any longer. His next stop was the Dawson Family compound. As much as he would want to go back to the Faction, he knew that with his Father being the one known as the strongest, he would be safer there for now. He didn¡¯t have any plans of staying there for too long, he only wanted to tell his Father the current situation before heading back to the Faction. ¡°Void, looks like you¡¯ll have to break through now. It¡¯s too dangerous to hold back now.¡± He turned his attention to Void. Getting stronger was their best bet now. He couldn¡¯t break through in a short time, so he had to rely on Void if he wanted protection. Void was stronger than most geniuses in the same stage, so they shouldn¡¯t have any issues with those in the Early stages of the Elemental Venerable Plane, only those in the Mid stages and above would pose a threat to them, but it didn¡¯t mean they would be able to defeat him easily. ¡°Hehe, I¡¯ll train you once I¡¯ve broken through so that you can get used to the strength of an Elemental Venerable.¡± Void said with a mischievous smile. Grey knew Void¡¯s plan, but he didn¡¯t try to stop him. It would be nice for him to test the strength of those Elemental Venerables to make sure he was acquainted with the strength. Void was stronger than others, so it would make things better. They soon found a good location, after Grey set up multiple arrays, Void began his breakthrough, he had been holding himself back, so now that the opportunity was presented to him, he didn¡¯t delay. Within a few seconds, Void¡¯s appearance soon started to change, from his usual small size, his body grew larger, and his dark fur started to sprout a few golden spots on it. It was mesmerizing. Grey watched on as Void¡¯s aura started to shoot up. A light shot from the sky with a flash and entered Void¡¯s head, his aura started to see a change. He spat out his cores and they all started to absorb essence at a crazy pace, while doing this, they were also forming the link with each element¡¯s origin source. Grey could literally see the cores forming some sort of tentacle that started to search for something, before long, as if it was connected to something, the tentacles stopped moving and massive energy started to rush into the cores. The speed was faster than it previously was.please visit panda(-)N0ve1.co)m Grey watched the scene attentively, he knew that although Magical Beasts were different from humans, there wasn¡¯t much difference when they were breaking through. Some time passed and Void¡¯s size returned to its previous state, even the golden spots disappeared, it was as if they never appeared. Grey was watching Void curiously, trying to figure out what was different with him. ¡°Hey, how do you feel?¡± He couldn¡¯t help but ask when Void kept his eyes closed. ¡°I feel great! Haha!¡± Void laughed in delight as he opened his eyes. His eyes, which were usually pitch black had a faint golden glow in them. The glow would appear and disappear, only after some time did it stop. ¡°Haha, I¡¯m the king!¡± Void declared. ¡°You only broke through to the Elemental Venerable Plane, there¡¯s no need to be too excited over it.¡± Grey said with dark lines on his face. ¡°What do you know? Do you think I¡¯m a regular Seventh Rank Magical Beast?¡± Void chided, his head held up high with pride. Grey felt a bit of a headache and decided to stop answering him. Void was like Klaus, very proud and arrogant, the more he tried to want to know what he was feeling, the more arrogance Void would display, so it was best to leave him alone, maybe he would finally come to his senses after being ignored. pAnDa (nov)e1? Just as Grey expected, after not bothering him and focusing on himself, Void soon got bored of showing off. Well, since there was no one to show off to, it was a waste of his time. Grey scoffed as he looked at Void, ¡°Ready to talk now?¡± ¡°You¡¯re no fun.¡± Void said grumpily. Grey couldn¡¯t be bothered with him as he asked the important question, ¡°What innate skill did you awaken?¡± He was quite curious. There was a possibility that the change in Void¡¯s appearance had to do with the awakening of his innate skill. Of course he wasn¡¯t a hundred percent certain of this, it was just his speculation. ¡°It¡¯s nothing serious.¡± Void said with a dull look. ¡°Seriously?¡± Grey was taken aback, ¡°Show me.¡± Void nodded and did as he said. Grey¡¯s vision soon changed and it was like he was thrown into boundless space, this time, there were stars. These stars were golden spots that were shining brightly. With curiosity in his heart, he stretched his hand forward, trying to touch one of them. ¡°Don¡¯t!¡± Void exclaimed and hastily withdrew the skill. ¡°What?¡± Grey was alarmed. Void¡¯s reaction was unusual, could something be wrong with the golden spots? ¡°I don¡¯t know if you can handle the impact of the attack.¡± Void said. ¡°Those golden spots are attacks?¡± Grey was stunned. He didn¡¯t sense a single aura from the golden spots. Naturally, he knew they were not for fancy, but he didn¡¯t really think they would be dangerous, after all, there were hundreds of them in there. ¡°Yeah.¡± Void nodded his head. ¡°Impressive, I¡¯d like to test it out though.¡± Grey said. He was confident in his abilities, so even if the attack was dangerous, there was no way it would be able to kill him. ¡°No, you will see it when I use it against someone else.¡± Void refused. ¡°What are you being agitated over, it¡¯s just an attack. Is it stronger than that Gnome race¡¯s genius¡¯ attack?¡± Grey felt like Void was looking down on him and asked, a little irritated. ¡°Probably.¡± 1031 Quaver Region Grey scoffed and decided not to ask about it any longer, since Void didn¡¯t want to let him feel the attack, he would not bother with it, besides, it might actually be for his own good. They soon started their journey once again, since Grey could sense Gnomes, he was not scared of encountering any of them, his only fear now was the possible traitors they didn¡¯t know, and also necromancers. Since the Burchard Family were able to get the news, then they definitely knew some things, they just didn¡¯t want to tell Grey. pAnDa (nov)e1? ¡®I should visit the others while I¡¯m at it, they would be surprised by how far I¡¯ve grown.¡¯ He thought to himself. He still had a friend he hadn¡¯t seen for a long time, but the thought of traveling there hadn¡¯t come to his mind. Klaus, Reynolds, and Alice were relatively around the same Region, so meeting up with them shouldn¡¯t be an issue. ¡­. Two weeks went by in a flash. In a restaurant, Grey and Void were seated, eating. They were currently in the Quaver Region, on their way, Grey recalled he left the triplets here to take care of Arya and her older brother who was injured. With his Father¡¯s strength, he felt maybe he would be able to help Arya¡¯s brother recover. It had been a while, so after contacting the triplets, they told him of the trouble that was brewing in the town. Some weeks back, a group took residence in the town, given it was a small town, there weren¡¯t any top experts there, at the time the triplets started to stay in the place, they were the strongest, and at that time, they were around the Early stages of the Sage Plane or so. They hid their strength and started to live like ordinary people. While two took care of Arya and her brother, one of them started to travel around to search for a healing method. The new group of people who arrived were over fifteen, and more than half of them were in the Sage Plane, although the brothers were also in the Sage Plane, they couldn¡¯t compare to them. The group started to rule over the town, and since the triplets were their only equal, they started to bully them, attacking them on some occasions. The brothers couldn¡¯t leave since one of them went out and there was no way to track him. Grey wanted to survey the area before deciding on what to do, it wasn¡¯t up to him to save the world, he would only do the ones he could and leave the rest. While he was busy eating, a figure walked into the restaurant. Grey noticed the countenance of those living in the town changed. The figure was that of a young man who was around the Late stages of the Overlord Plane. With a haughty face, he walked past Grey, not even sparing him a glance. Grey hid his aura, so he looked like a person in the Origin Plane. With such strength, it was normal to be neglected. The young man walked over to a particular table that hosted a group of three, a young lady with amazing features was among the group.please visit panda(-)N0ve1.co)m The young man licked his lips before taking a seat, ¡°If you don¡¯t mind, I would like to share a table with you three.¡± Even though he was already seated, he still asked, trying to show some courtesy. Grey shook his head when he saw this, the group of three was only in the Early stages of the Overlord Plane, so there was no way they were a match for the young man. The young lady felt a bit uncomfortable with the lecherous looks the young man was giving her, and she stood up, trying to walk away from the restaurant. She was naturally accompanied by her friends, a young man, and another young lady whose looks were not on par with hers. The young man stood up and followed them, ¡°Wait, aren¡¯t you going to pay before leaving?¡± He blocked their paths. ¡°Please, move aside, we¡¯ve already paid for our meal.¡± The young lady spoke when the young man blocked their paths. ¡°I didn¡¯t see you paying, so how can I believe you?¡± It was clear that the young man was only searching for a reason to keep them there. ¡°We¡¯re from the Quill Faction, you should keep your distance if you know what¡¯s good for you.¡± The young man in the group said coldly. He could see the way the young man was staring at the young lady, and even though he could tell that the young man was stronger than they were, he wasn¡¯t afraid. The Quill Faction was a powerful Faction, although it was not on the same level as the Factions Grey and his friends joined, it was a Mid level Faction. In a place like this, such a Faction was powerful enough to scare people. ¡°Oh, this makes things even better. We have someone there that we would like you to deliver a message to.¡± The young man¡¯s gaze suddenly went cold, and before the group knew it, he attacked. The young man stepped forward and tried to block the attack, but he was sent flying, crashing out of the building. ¡®Why don¡¯t you help?¡¯ Void asked. ¡®Should I help everyone I see on the way?¡¯ Grey replied to Void¡¯s question with a question of his own. He didn¡¯t have the time to save everyone, of course he planned to help this group, but he wouldn¡¯t rush over. Since they were from a Faction, and would be regarded as geniuses there, then there¡¯s a high chance that they had some life-saving items, it would be best if they had gotten to the stage where they wanted to use it before he helped. Some people needed such encounters if they were to ever grow strong. Void looked at Grey but didn¡¯t say a word, although he was the strongest, Grey was still the one in charge. 1032 Evil Methods Grey didn¡¯t interfere with their battle, and the young man from the town easily beat the trio up before dragging them to a particular building in the town. This building looked inauspicious and was quite ordinary-looking. Grey followed them, hidden in the shadows, he wanted to see what was happening there. With his strength, it was impossible for this young man to notice that he was following him, with Void in tow, he was able to sense if there was anyone who was inside the building. ¡®Huh?¡¯ Grey looked at the building a little surprised. ¡®What¡¯s wrong?¡¯ Void asked when he saw Grey¡¯s facial expression. ¡®There¡¯s an array here, a really powerful array.¡¯ Grey said to Void. With his knowledge of things, he was able to quickly sense the array, luckily, he sensed it before stepping into the building, if not, he would¡¯ve been sensed after entering the building. He stayed outside for some time as he tried to search for a weak link that he would use to enter the place. His expression changed multiple times as he found it difficult. ¡®This array is quite strange, each weak link is complemented with something that makes it even harder. Whoever made this array is ingenious!¡¯ Grey complimented the person internally. If he wasn¡¯t careful, he would¡¯ve carelessly tried to break through the array with one of the supposed weak links, only to find out it was a trap. These weak links are called dummy weak links, he had read about them in his Teacher¡¯s book. Grey continued studying the array, and after over ten minutes, he managed to find a way through the array. Surprisingly, the way to get into the array was quite easy, but it was kept in the most obvious place that one would think of. After breaking through the array, he easily found the place where the young man headed and also sensed that there were more people present, and some of them were even in the Sage Plane. ¡°What should we do with them?¡± A voice came from the depths of the building. ¡°Just use them for the sacrifice, I will be done soon, you four shouldn¡¯t draw any attention to us, I¡¯ve warned you guys repeatedly.¡± A hoarse voice said. ¡°We know Elder, but staying in such a small town makes us irritated, this is the only way we can entertain ourselves.¡± ¡°Do as you please, but don¡¯t bring any problems here.¡± ¡°What about those two, what should we do with them?¡± ¡°They¡¯re not bothering us, it¡¯s best we leave them alone.¡± ¡°Elder Nate! Aren¡¯t you supposed to be dead?¡± The young lady¡¯s shocked exclamation came from the depths of the building. ¡°Hehe, you think your father can kill me? I¡¯ll keep you alive to watch as I kill my father, besides, my student has taken a fancy of you, you should count yourself lucky.¡±please visit panda(-)N0ve1.co)m ¡°Throw the other two inside, I¡¯ll recover soon.¡± Grey exchanged glances with Void, he couldn¡¯t help but feel things weren¡¯t as easy as they seemed. From the looks of it, these people were from the same Faction, well, just the trio and the old man referred to as Elder Nate. He decided to investigate what was happening in the depths before making a move, it would be dangerous if this person was an expert who was hiding his strength. He recalled that the voice said he would recover soon, if the person were to be an Elemental Sovereign, then he would be in trouble, even if he were to be in the Elemental Venerable Plane, he wouldn¡¯t be able to compete with an Elemental Sovereign. Grey was stuck between allowing these people to be sacrificed or helping, if he tried to help, then he would probably be exposed. Of course they might not be able to catch him, but they would know that he had broken into the building without their knowledge, and they would be on guard against him. He sneaked deeper into the building and soon came into a large empty space, an old figure was seen sitting in the air, and below him was a large array. Grey looked around and saw three people standing by the old man, each of them was at the Peak of the Sage Plane. ¡®I thought they said none of them was at the Peak?¡¯ Grey almost felt like the triplets were unreliable, but he thought about how hard it would be for the triplet who was still only in the Early stages of the Sage Plane to sense these people at the Peak. ¡®Void, the old man¡¯s stage.¡¯ He asked. ¡®Second stage Elemental Venerable.¡¯ Void replied after some time. ¡®Are you sure he isn¡¯t hiding his strength?¡¯ Grey asked. ¡®Yes, he should be injured, so his current strength is only in the Second stage, but he seems to be absorbing a large amount of energy from the array, he wouldn¡¯t be in the Second stage for too long.¡¯ Void explained. ¡®How long?¡¯ ¡®Two days.¡¯ Grey decided to first rescue the two who were sent to become part of the sacrifices, while also thinking of ways to deal with the aftermath of being discovered. Grey sneaked past the old man and went underground, his expression changed when he saw what was below the array. Under the array the old man was sitting on top were bodies, some of them had even dried up. ¡®Why would people resolve to such means to advance?¡¯ He asked, dejected. Some of these people had families, but they were killed for the selfish gains of a particular person. Just so he could advance his realm, the old man was killing people. Grey looked around and saw the young man and lady who were brought in some minutes ago, other than the duo, a few of them were still alive. pA(nD)A no ve1 ¡®Hmm, I should save that girl from the hands of that moron before anything.¡¯ He thought to himself. Once any of these people were taken out, the old man would sense the shortage of energy and would know that someone was there. 1033 You Didnt Leave Any For Me? Grey tracked the aura of the young man, and before long he soon appeared in front of a room. The door was shut tight and the screams of the young lady could be heard from inside. ¡°As long as you¡¯re mine, I promise, Teacher will not harm you. Of course, the same can¡¯t be said for your father.¡± The young man¡¯s voice came from inside the room. ¡°My father knows we came here, if I don¡¯t report back within a day, he would know something is wrong and come looking.¡± The young lady¡¯s words were a clear warning, if anything happens to me, my father will come and kill you all. ¡°Heh! You¡¯ll be dead before then, so what if he comes, it¡¯s not like you will be able to see him.¡± The young man sneered. The young lady¡¯s threat only seemed to anger him. ¡°The same can be said for you.¡± Another voice was heard in the room. The young man who was pressing the young lady on the bed hurriedly stood up and looked around, ¡°Who¡¯s there?¡± He didn¡¯t hear anyone open the door to the room, and neither did he sense anyone entering, so he was alert. ¡°You don¡¯t have to panic, just stand still, let me kill you.¡± Grey¡¯s voice was like from the underworld. He appeared behind the young man, and as soon as he turned, Grey¡¯s eyes glowed with a blue light. The young man froze the moment he saw Grey¡¯s eyes, standing still. The young lady panicked when she saw this and hurriedly dragged the bed sheet to cover herself, looking at the masked man, alarmed. ¡°You don¡¯t have to worry, he¡¯s dead. Wait for my signal before you try to leave.¡± Grey¡¯s figure vanished the next second after he finished talking. The young lady looked at the young man, shocked. She couldn¡¯t believe that without even making a move, Grey managed to kill him. She was already in the Overlord Plane, so it was easy for her to sense if the young man was still alive or not. ¡®Isn¡¯t he the one I saw in the restaurant?¡¯ She was a little confused, Grey¡¯s clothing resembled the one an Origin Plane Elementalist she saw at the restaurant was wearing. She didn¡¯t get a good view of him, but she recalled that she saw someone with exactly the same clothing. The memory of an Overlord Plane Elementalist was very good. While she was still thinking if Grey and the person she saw at the restaurant were the same people, Grey had already sneaked back underground, he still had to save the young lady¡¯s companions, as well as the few people who were still alive. Two people were there, guarding the place. They were both in the Sage Plane, but only in the Early stages. They were not worth mentioning in front of Grey, if he were to truly attack, they might not be able to survive a single attack, much less buy time to be rescued. ¡°Void, I¡¯ll deal with these guys, make sure the old man doesn¡¯t escape.¡± Grey whispered to Void. Void nodded his head and vanished.please visit panda(-)N0ve1.co)m Grey knew that the moment he took anyone from here, the old man would know, so he didn¡¯t plan to hide any longer. He moved closer to one of the Sage Plane Elementalists and attacked. With one attack, the Sage Plane Elementalist fell to the ground with a thud. He didn¡¯t even know how he died, his eyes were still wide open. The other Sage Plane Elementalist turned around to see what was going on, but Grey appeared in front of him and unleashed a fist that had three elements covering it. The moment the attack hit the man, it was followed by an explosion. The man managed to survive the original attack, but he was barely alive, he couldn¡¯t move and all his ribs were broken, most of his internal organs had been punctured by the broken ribs. Grey walked over to him and he did a closing motion with his fist, a large arm made of that earth element sprouted out from the ground and squeezed the man till he died. Grey then turned to the people in the place, looking at the barely over twenty people who were still alive, he couldn¡¯t help but shake his head before taking them out of the place. The young lady was already dressed, so the moment Grey returned, he took all of them out of the compound before disappearing once again. He wanted to make sure Void wasn¡¯t interrupted as he held back the old man. When he returned, the old man was squaring off against Void. ¡°You filthy beast, did you kill them?¡± The old man asked with an angered expression. ¡°I did, so what, what can you do about it? Lousy old man, come, let master cat teach you some manners.¡± Void laughed haughtily as he attacked. The two Sage Plane Elementalists at the side of the old man were on the ground, dead. Void came here, and with a sneak attack, he was able to kill both men before the old man could even react. He killed them almost at the same time Grey took those people out, so the old man couldn¡¯t be bothered with them. pAnDa (nov)e1? ¡®You didn¡¯t leave any for me?¡¯ Grey asked, annoyed. Void threw a glance his way before saying, ¡®They¡¯re in the courtyard outside, they will come soon, enjoy.¡¯ Grey nodded before disappearing. He could sense the people rushing over, and among them, the three at the Peak were with them. Other than the three who were at the Peak, three more of them were in the Late stages of the Sage Plane, then the other four were in the Mid stages. Against any other Peak Sage Plane Elementalist, they were almost guaranteed to win, but against Grey, their numerical advantage was basically useless. ¡°Stop, I¡¯m your opponent.¡± Grey appeared in front of them and stretched his hand in front of him, stopping them in their tracks. ¡°He¡¯s only in the Ninth stage, take care of him.¡± One of the trio at the Peak pointed at another one of them. The man nodded and walked towards Grey, the others continued their journey. 1034 I Didnt Think Of That ¡°I said stay.¡± Grey attacked the group, but the man who was told to stop him snorted and jumped in front of the attack. ¡°Stop overestimating your¡­ eh!¡± The man was in the middle of saying something when he paused, to the surprise of everyone, his figure shot straight at the group. The other two at the Peak of the Sage Plane hurriedly tried to block him. They were forced back, but they managed to stop him. The man stood upright, but blood started to drip from the side of his mouth. He cleaned it and looked at Grey with a shocked expression. pAn,Da-n0v e1,c,m ¡°Do you still think I¡¯m overestimating myself?¡± Grey asked with a mocking tone. The man who was attacked didn¡¯t reply, neither did the other two at the Peak. They knew they had made an error in their judgement and Grey wasn¡¯t someone that one of them could defeat, only when they teamed up would they be able to fight against him. ¡°You seven should go ahead, we¡¯ll take care of him.¡± The leader of the group said to the others. They nodded their heads and tried to take a step forward. Just as the foot of the first person was about to touch the ground, Grey attacked once again. ¡°I admit that you¡¯re strong, but do you really think you can keep all of us here?¡± The leader of the group moved out with the other two as they blocked Grey¡¯s attack. Even though they did, they were still pushed back. Compared to young geniuses at the Peak of the Sage Plane, these men were still lacking. However, what they lacked in strength, they made up for it in experience. Noticing that Grey¡¯s attack was well over their level, all three of them didn¡¯t try to block the attack head-on, rather, they tried to deflect it. With this, the impact on them was reduced significantly. Grey didn¡¯t say anything, but he still made sure that no one left the place. ¡°Fine, since you want to fight against all of us, then you¡¯ll get your wish.¡± The leader said. All it took was a single attack, and he knew even three of them might not be Grey¡¯s match, even if they were, it was safer with more people around. The others stood behind the three men, waiting for orders. ¡°It¡¯s nice that you¡¯re quite obedient. Alright, we should begin.¡± Grey was a little talkative, unlike his usual self. The men exchanged glances before rushing at Grey. Of the three, two were Water Elementalists while the last one was a Fire Elementalist. Grey stood on the same spot, prepared to attack. He took a step forward, but he noticed that the ground opened up and his leg fell down. He didn¡¯t let this stop him, with a quick movement, he vanished and appeared in another location, attacking them with his space element. The two Water Elementalists blocked his attacks while the Fire Elementalist focused on attacking.please visit panda(-)N0ve1.co)m Grey was not bothered by the attack, given the people he had fought with in the secret realm, an attack of this strength was not even enough to make him panic. The others in the Late stages also attacked, two of them were Fire Elementalists as well, and they added their attacks to the Fire Elementalist at the Peak¡¯s attack, making its strength increase. At this moment, Grey started to feel some pressure from the attack. The other two blocked each of his attacks, their ice abilities were strong, and they always enforced each others¡¯ defenses, making it harder for Grey¡¯s attack to break through. Grey stopped attacking with only his fire element, with a simple flick of his hand, a terrifying orb shot at them. The ice that had been standing strong against his previous attacks instantly broke apart and the building exploded out, forcing the group back. Grey moved forward and they all appeared in the courtyard where they were previously situated. He spread his hands and inscriptions appeared in the sky, attacking those on the ground. The trio at the Peak had an easy time blocking the attack, those in the Late stages struggled, but they still managed to block it, however, those in the Mid stages found it difficult to block it, and with each attack, the impact on them was getting stronger and stronger. The trio at the Peak attacked simultaneously. Grey dodged the attack before sending out a lightning bolt. The lightning bolt was not targeted at the trio, instead, it was aimed at those who were in the Mid stages. The trio at the Peak knew what Grey wanted to do, so they rushed to block it. While they were doing this, the trio in the Late stages started to attack Grey. Grey acted like he didn¡¯t see the attack and his figure flew into the sky. His large-scale attack lightning rain descended on them, not just that, but meteor descent as well. ¡­. Outside the compound, the loud explosions rang across the entire town, but none of the impact passed the compound, Grey made sure of this. It was quite easy for two Sage Plane Elementalists to destroy a small town like this when fighting, so he made an array, well, modified the array that was placed in the building to help take most of the impact. ¡°They¡¯re so strong.¡± ¡°Who do you think is fighting?¡± ¡°How would I know, that place was occupied by those guys, so it¡¯s most likely an enemy of theirs.¡± ¡°I wish I was this powerful, I would¡¯ve kicked them out of the town a long time ago.¡± ¡°Shut up! Don¡¯t let them hear you, what if they win?¡± ¡°Oh, I forgot about that. I assumed they would lose since the person dared to attack them, then they would be as powerful as they are, or even more powerful.¡± Different conversations broke out due to the fight, luckily, none of the impacts of the battle had managed to escape the place. 1035 Cat Got Your Tongue? In the building. While Grey and the others were fighting outside, Void and the old man were still squaring off. ¡°You see, they are going to die, the same can be said for you.¡± Void said with a mocking smile. pAnD a(-)n0ve1.com The old man¡¯s expression changed slightly, he couldn¡¯t sense anything, but from how confidently the young man who came in to see Void acted, it was clear to see that he wasn¡¯t a pushover. ¡°Hmm, even after exchanging two attacks, this place is still fine, is this your doing?¡± The old man asked as he looked around. They had exchanged two moves, explosive moves, yet, the place hadn¡¯t been destroyed. Just after Grey left, Void used his space element to seal the place, so there was no way the old man would be able to sense anything. With Void¡¯s new innate skill, the strength of his domain was on another level. His innate skill also worked with the space element, so they were in a completely different space. The old man looked around and soon sensed the difference, without wasting any time, he attacked instantly. He wanted to leave this place as soon as possible. Even if the others were dead, it didn¡¯t really matter to him, all he wanted to make sure of was that he kept his life. The old man was a Wind Elementalist, his speed was frightening, but against an experienced Space Elementalist like Void, it was impossible for him to be faster than he was. Void used the lightning element to attack, but the old man dodged it, attacking with a cyclone that had wind blades inside. Void used the fire element to block the attack, before countering with the darkness element. The old man didn¡¯t dare to let the darkness element touch him, he took some steps back, his body covered with the wind element, and he charged at Void. Void vanished, and the old man didn¡¯t even stop. The reason for this was that Void was originally standing in front of the door, blocking his path. He was confident that as long as he managed to get to the barrier Void setup, he would be able to block it. Void smiled and a golden spot appeared in front of the door. The old man was in a hurry, seeing the golden spot, he didn¡¯t even dodge it, he threw a wind blade at it, but his expression changed slightly and he was forced to halt, the explosion that followed suit was out of his expectations. Although it was not as powerful as Void¡¯s normal attacks, it was still something that would cause him some harm. The old man looked at Void, his expression cold. ¡°Haha, I thought you were running, come on, go ahead.¡± Void laughed in delight. The strength of the spot exceeded his expectations, of course the old man was not on the same level as those geniuses from the Gnome race who attacked Grey, but he was still a powerhouse in the Elemental Venerable Plane nonetheless. The old man didn¡¯t say anything, with a wave of his hand, a wind gale started in the room. Void¡¯s body was covered with the lightning element and he shot forward, his size increased and golden spots appeared on his dark fur. He slammed into the old man, sending him flying into the wall. The old man used the wind element to push the wall that fell on his body.please visit panda(-)N0ve1.co)m Void was pushed back by the wind pressure, he sent golden spots to the place where the man was located. The place exploded out, and the old man¡¯s figure appeared on the other side of the room. Void attacked the second the man stood on his feet. Given the size of the room, it was impossible for the old man to fly freely. With flight taken away, his movement was limited, Void on the other hand was not constrained by this, with the space element, he could appear wherever he wanted. The old man dodged Void¡¯s attack and attacked with a wind blade, raising a tornado from the spot where Void was standing. Void tried to use the space element, but the old man sensed it and attacked the space which Void was stepping out from. Void was just coming out of the spatial tunnel when the attack arrived in front of him, he was unable to dodge it and was forced to block the attack. The impact of the attack pushed him back, giving the old man the chance he needed to attack. The old man¡¯s strength has gone from the Second to the Third stage as the battle went on. He was forcefully increasing his stage, although it would be harmful to him, it was better than dying. Void has noticed this as well, and knew that if he delayed, then the old man would get to the stage where he wouldn¡¯t be a match for him. The old man continued his attack, since he had pushed Void back, he didn¡¯t want him to be relaxed. Void used the darkness element to cover his body, making it hard for any attack to hit him. With any attack coming his way, the darkness element would help him to reduce the strength of it, and he would then use his elemental attack to destroy it. The old man continued to mount pressure on Void, ¡°What, cat got your tongue? Oh wait, you¡¯re a cat, did you bite your tongue? Haha.¡± The old man laughed in delight. Void¡¯s expression turned unsightly, ¡°Play time¡¯s over.¡± The old man laughed, he didn¡¯t feel Void could do anything to him, if he could, he would¡¯ve already done it. With how Void spoke the first time, it was easy to see that he was still too inexperienced. The old man was still feeling proud when his expression changed slightly, his eyes twitched repeatedly. ¡°Damn.¡± He shook his head. Multiple golden spots appeared in the air, and the old man could sense the change in Void¡¯s aura. ¡®Don¡¯t tell me he was playing.¡¯ 1036 Did I Say You Can Leave? The old man continued fighting with Void, but with the golden spots, he found it hard to maneuver. Void on the other hand was having an easy time, he could go anywhere he wanted and attack at will. The old man was not able to dodge the attacks as easily and he was getting hit by attacks more often. Void was smiling at this moment, ¡°Laugh now old man, what, cat got your tongue?¡± ¡­. While Void and the old man were in a heated battle, Grey was still fighting against the group. He had already killed all those in the Mid stages, leaving only those at the Peak and in the Late stages. The expressions of these people were disturbing, they knew Grey not only had the ability to keep them there, but there was a high probability that he would be able to kill some of them. Only those in the Late stages felt threatened, the other three at the Peak were confident in at least being able to escape. The Fire Elementalist among them attacked Grey, but he blocked it and countered. He hadn¡¯t used his elements to the fullest, but he was already able to make life difficult for them. All of them gathered in one place as the two Water Elementalists at the Peak were able to protect them well there. Grey sent out three orbs, and the two Water Elementalists hurriedly created a water dome to cover all of them. When Grey saw this, he chuckled and his figure blinked, with that, the Fire Elementalist appeared in the position Grey was previously standing on. With the disappearance of Grey, the orbs disappeared as well. Grey appeared in the middle of the others, and with an evil grin, he unleashed the orbs inside before disappearing. pAn,D a-n0ve1,c-o-m The two Water Elementalists at the Peak¡¯s expressions changed, they couldn¡¯t believe what just happened. The time with which everything happened was very short and they couldn¡¯t even react before the orbs exploded. All three orbs exploded on the defenseless Late stage Elementalists as well as the two Water Elementalists. The Water Elementalists were able to react in time, covering themselves with ice armor, the other three were not as lucky and they felt the full brunt of the attack. Boom! The ice dome cracked, and just as it shattered, another ice dome appeared, this one was far stronger than the one that was previously standing. This was Grey¡¯s ice ability, he didn¡¯t even use normal ice, rather he used the ice that could counterattack. He wanted to make sure the attack fully hit them, not giving them any chance to escape. The Fire Elementalist standing outside was stunned, Grey was staring at him with a smile. ¡°What, not impressed?¡± He asked with a chuckle.please visit panda(-)N0ve1.co)m The Fire Elementalist didn¡¯t respond, he knew Grey was strong and cunning, with the array of attacks and elements he could use, Grey was not an opponent he would want to fight. He knew for a fact that even two of him were not a match for Grey. There were three Peak stage Elementalists in the area and none of them had been able to stop Grey, in fact, the more they seemed to be, the stronger Grey was. The explosion died down, but the counterattack of the ice was still there, only after it died down did Grey remove it. The two Peak Sage Elementalists appeared, their bodies were covered with bruises, and the ice armor on their body was broken on different parts. On the ground, all three Late stages Sage Plane Elementalists were on the ground, although they were not dead, they were not far from it. ¡®I¡¯ve mostly fought with geniuses, so whenever I fight with people like this, they always seem to be too weak.¡¯ Grey thought to himself. Geniuses were stronger than those in the same stage, and Grey had been defeating these geniuses who could easily defeat those on the same stage as themselves, these made him a genius among geniuses. There was no way an ordinary person in the same stage as himself would be a match for him. The Fire Elementalist turned to look at the two Water Elementalists, he rushed to where they were and sent an attack toward Grey. Without even waiting, he grabbed them and turned to leave. His plan was simple, escape. ¡°Hey, why are you dragging me?¡± The Fire Elementalist heard a voice that felt like it came straight out of hell. When he looked at his hand, he noticed that he was dragging Grey with him and the other Water Elementalist was lying in the position Grey previously was. Before he could let go of Grey, Grey grabbed his hand and said, ¡°Since it has already gotten to this, don¡¯t leave.¡± The Fire Elementalist tried to push Grey away, spitting out a stream of fire from his mouth like a dragon. Grey laughed and the place was covered with lightning, this was his lightning domain. He didn¡¯t even use it when they were previously fighting, now that he knew the Fire Elementalist wanted to escape, he wanted to make sure he kept the men here. The Water Elementalist turned around and didn¡¯t even think of others as he rushed out of the building, he didn¡¯t want to stay there any longer. Grey dismissed the attack of the Fire Elementalist and managed to get them down, ¡°Hmph! Did I say you can leave?¡± He vanished from where he was standing, appearing in front of the Water Elementalist and sending out a palm strike that forced him back. The Water Elementalist coughed out a mouthful of blood as he fell not too far from where the others were located. The facial expression of the Fire Elementalist was extremely ugly. ¡®If I knew, I would¡¯ve escaped when he was attacking them.¡¯ He regretted his decision to save them, if he didn¡¯t try to save them, he might¡¯ve gotten a chance to escape. Now because he wanted to save his comrades, he might die as well. 1037 Tricked? Grey stared at all three of them, they were the only ones who might still be able to put up a fight. The other three at the Late stages of the Sage Plane were still lying on the ground, even if they could move, it was impossible for them to leave with Grey around unless Grey wanted them to leave. Unfortunately, there was no way he would allow that, the fact that they had been capturing people and killing them for such evil practices made him hate them. One of the reasons he hated necromancers was not only the fact that they marked and tried to kill him, but it was because they would kill people and use them as puppets. It was a disgusting act that he felt should never be practiced. The trio at the Peak of the Sage Plane looked at Grey with depressed expressions, they exchanged glances before turning to look at the building. As things stand, their only hope of escaping was if the old man came out, however, they hadn¡¯t even heard a noise from the place, nor could they sense any aura. It was clear that something was also happening on the old man¡¯s end. They gritted their teeth and without a second thought, their auras spiked. They wanted to fight with their lives on the line, it was already in danger from the start, so it was best to try and see if they could at least injure Grey and maybe one or two of them use the opportunity to escape, or even kill him. Grey laughed when he saw their desperate act. His figure blinked, and before the eyes of the two Water Elementalists, the Fire Elementalist appeared in the same spot as Grey. They quickly recalled what happened some moments ago, and reacted accordingly, striking the position the Fire Elementalist was previously standing on which was currently occupied by Grey. However, their eyes changed expression when their attacks passed through Grey¡¯s body and simultaneously landed on each other¡¯s bodies. The Fire Elementalist was standing in the middle of the two, so when Grey switched places with him, he was also standing in their middle. He knew with the short distance, it would be difficult for him to dodge their attacks, but he didn¡¯t mind, with one of his space element¡¯s ultimate techniques, he didn¡¯t need to fear any attack as long as it was not of the space element or had enough power to affect the space around him. The two Water Elementalists were sent flying by each other¡¯s attacks. Of the two, one of them was more affected by Grey¡¯s orb when it exploded the last time, and he was also the one attacked by Grey when he tried to escape, so against this attack, he was the one who was more affected, dying on the spot the second his back hit the ground. ¡°Oh, you killed your friend.¡± Grey said, a little hint of playfulness in his tone. The faces of the Fire and Water Elementalists changed, even though the other Water Elementalist was injured, he could still put up a fight. ¡°What do you want?¡± The Fire Elementalist asked, angered by their lack of strength. They couldn¡¯t tell Grey¡¯s age since his face was covered, but from his voice, they guessed he wasn¡¯t too old, they felt he shouldn¡¯t be over thirty years old. ¡°Me? Nothing, I want to give you guys a taste of your own medicine.¡± Grey replied, staring at them. pAnD a(-)n0ve1.com They can¡¯t escape at this point, so he was more relaxed. The other three Late stage Sage Plane Elementalists were still sprawled on the ground, groaning in pain.please visit panda(-)N0ve1.co)m The Fire Elementalist was trying to speak with Grey, but they were disturbing him, and out of anger, he killed them as well. It wasn¡¯t like they were going to make it anyway. ¡°Look, we have nothing to do with this. If my guess is correct, you already have the Lord, he¡¯s the one giving the orders, and we just follow them for our own benefit. If you let us go, we¡­¡± ¡°I expected you to push the blame on him, besides, it¡¯s not like what you said is wrong. However, you participated in it, this can¡¯t be changed.¡± Grey interrupted the Fire Elementalist. The hands of the Fire Elementalist shook repeatedly, he was examining his options. Attacking Grey seemed to be out of it since he already knew how strong the other party was, and from what Grey said, it didn¡¯t seem like he wanted to let them go even if they were just pawns. He soon fell to his knees, ¡°My Lord, please, spare me, I have a family that needs me.¡± The Fire Elementalist had stopped pleading on behalf of the two of them, instead, he focused on his own safety. Maybe Grey would be magnanimous and allow him to leave if he pleaded. ¡°What about him?¡± Grey asked, an evil grin on his face. However, it was covered so they couldn¡¯t see it. ¡°Him¡­ if¡­ if you can My Lord, spare him too.¡± The Fire Elementalist kept his head down all through the time. Never bringing his head up once, with his current position, he was at the mercy of Grey. Grey looked at him for a long time, and just when he was about to take a step, he felt a chill run down his spine, without a second thought, he retreated as fast as he could. Boom! A loud explosion came from where Grey was standing. ¡°Run!¡± The voice of the Fire Elementalist sounded out and he rushed out of the building. Grey took some steps back and quickly stabilized himself, looking at the spot the explosion came from, his eyes turned cold. That was the place where the three Late stage Sage Plane Elementalists were lying. The Fire Elementalist had killed them when they were disturbing him, only now did Grey understand why he did that, and also the reason he was pleading, he was buying time for his secret attack to be unleashed. Grey never expected that at the time the Fire Elementalist killed them, he planted something in them as well. 1038 This Is My Domain! Grey didn¡¯t stand idle, after a few seconds, he picked his target. Of the two, the Fire Elementalist was the one who had the highest probability of escaping if left unattended, so he chased after him first. While fighting, he had already marked them, just in case of things like this. Now that he had to chase them down, he picked the Fire Elementalist. The speed of a Peak Sage Plane Elementalist should not be undermined, a regular Peak Sage Plane Elementalist can travel over a thousand meters in the space of two to three seconds, and a Wind or Lightning Peak Sage Plane Elementalist can travel even further with the same time. Grey¡¯s body was covered with both the lightning and wind element and he shot after the Fire Elementalist. Within three minutes, he caught up with the Fire Elementalist, and he sent a lightning bolt at the fiery figure blazing through the sky. The lightning bolt hit the Fire Elementalist, striking him down. He rushed to the spot where the Fire Elementalist crashed and soon found an empty crater. Behind him, the figure of the Fire Elementalist shot out from the ground and continued his escape. ¡°Running is futile, stand still so I can kill you.¡± Grey chased after him. ¡®This is nice, I should chase people more often.¡¯ He thought to himself. He had always been the one who had to escape from the chase of others. Now, he was the one chasing, and he couldn¡¯t help but feel thrilled, it was a new feeling for him. The Fire Elementalist didn¡¯t fly up to fifteen seconds before he was once again struck by Grey¡¯s lightning bolt. This time, when Grey got to the place, he unleashed his domain, covering a large area. When the Fire Elementalist tried to use the same tactic, he was swiftly knocked down. Grey attacked at the same time, killing him with a sword blade. The Fire Elementalist was only prepared to escape, so he couldn¡¯t defend against Grey properly. After killing him, Grey sensed the area the Water Elementalist ran towards, his expression changed slightly when he sensed where the aura of the mark was coming from. ¡®Eh?¡¯ ¡­ Back in the town. Under a building that was housed by a family. The Water Elementalist could be seen resting. There was a large flowing water here. This was a place he found by accident during his time here, and he had been using it to hide. pAnDa (nov)e1? When the Fire Elementalist told him to run, he guessed that Grey would most likely chase after the Fire Elementalist, so he ran into the town and hid there. It was a huge gamble, but after not sensing Grey¡¯s aura behind him, or any person monitoring him, he knew his gamble had paid off. He took a deep breath before looking around, wondering if he should stay there or leave. ¡®It¡¯s best I stay here. No one knows of this place and I can recover properly before leaving.¡¯ He thought to himself. He didn¡¯t even think of the fact that he might be caught. Even he wouldn¡¯t search for someone he wanted to kill in the same city, he would naturally feel that the person had escaped outside the town.please visit panda(-)N0ve1.co)m ¡°Looks like you have a lot of time on your hand.¡± A voice that seemed to be from the underworld sounded beside him. He turned around and it was as if he saw a ghost, he froze, unable to react. ¡°What, I¡¯ve been watching for a while, I must say, this place is quite nice. It¡¯s cozy for recuperating, and no one would even be able to find you here. Well, except for me.¡± Grey didn¡¯t have his mask on any longer and his face was open to the Water Elementalist. ¡°You¡­ you¡­ how¡­ did¡­¡± The Water Elementalist tried to speak, but he couldn¡¯t. ¡°Find you? Easy, I marked you, now, I can track you no matter where you go. This information is useless to you since you have no use for it.¡± Grey said calmly, tossing a slim rock into the water and watching it skip on the water¡¯s surface before finally sinking. The Water Elementalist acted and tried to jump into the water. He was a Water Elementalist, and in such a place, he would be stronger than usual. Just as his foot was about to touch the water, he noticed that he landed on the ground and Grey was standing on top of the water. ¡°Come on, you don¡¯t think I¡¯d allow you to leave like that, did you?¡± ¡°Plea¡­¡± ¡­. Back in the compound. Void and the Old man were still entangled, after Void used his innate skill, he gained the advantage, the old man was unable to move freely and after some time, he was already hurt repeatedly by Void¡¯s attacks. Void didn¡¯t stop attacking, with the freedom to do whatever he wanted, of course he would not give the old man any chances. The Old man¡¯s expression was ugly, he wanted to leave, but Void was forcing him to stay. He hadn¡¯t been able to increase his strength any longer due to Void¡¯s interference. He gritted his teeth and decided to take the risk of forcing his way out of this place. He already knew that this was Void¡¯s domain, breaking it won¡¯t be easy, but it was not impossible. Void continued to attack with his elements, the darkness element would corrode the old man¡¯s attacks, while the lightning, fire, and space elements would attack. The old man was blocking, but that was pushing him into the paths of the golden spots, and each of them was causing him unimaginable pain. After being hit by it repeatedly, he was already able to bear the pain, so he wanted to try and use that to his advantage and breakthrough Void¡¯s domain. The old man blocked Void¡¯s fire element attack and shot upwards. He wanted to break it from above. Void sneered, he knew what the old man wanted to do and made all the golden spots gather in that area. ¡®This is my domain!¡¯ 1039 I Want To See Him Fight Some time later. Void came out of the building and after sensing Grey¡¯s aura, he disappeared. ¡­. In a building in the town. Grey was seated, beside him were the duo among the triplet, Arya was playing with an ice animal Grey made for her. ¡°Still nothing?¡± He asked as he looked in the direction of one of the rooms. Arya¡¯s elder brother was in this room. ¡°No, Lord. Courtney is the one searching now, there has been no news from him, yet.¡± One of the triplet said. Grey nodded and thought for a while before saying, ¡°Stay here, I¡¯ll try to see if I can get someone to help, if I can, I¡¯ll come back with him.¡± The duo nodded. Grey looked at Arya who was still playing, on his way to meet her, Void appeared on his shoulder, a proud expression on his face. ¡°You beat him?¡± Grey asked. ¡°Of course, with master cat¡¯s strength, it was a piece of cake.¡± Void said proudly. Grey was impressed, but he didn¡¯t say anything further. Unknown to him, Void used his new ability to its fullest and frustrated the old man. No matter where the old man wanted to go, hundreds of golden spots would appear there, forcing the man to go back. He used that method to torture the man until his death. Void felt a bit annoyed when he saw Grey shrugging off his battle with the old man. Grey stayed with Arya a while longer, playing with her and after Arya and Void¡¯s pestering, he cooked a meal for all of them. He didn¡¯t stay for too long and after an hour or so, they left. He still needed to head to the Dawson Family and ask if his Father could help. ¡­. A few weeks later. Grey and Void appeared in the Upoya Region, the place where the Dawson Family was situated. He didn¡¯t head to the Dawson compound, instead, he walked to the place he was kept the last time. It was located in a very secluded area in the forest close to the City the Dawson manor was located. ¡­. ¡°I wonder if they still come here?¡± Grey thought as he looked around in the cave. ¡°Why don¡¯t you just head to the Dawson manor, they should be there.¡± Void suggested with a sharp glint flashing through his eyes. Since Grey was the only son of the Family¡¯s strongest expert, his status would be high, and with a high status, no one would bother with his cat after he took a few things. Void was planning about these while Grey on the other hand had zero interest in his status in the family. Originally, he thought he only had his parents, but now, he had cousins. They didn¡¯t stay for too long before a figure appeared beside him. ¡°You¡¯re back.¡± The figure said slowly. ¡°Yes, Father.¡± Grey turned to look at the man standing behind him, Lucas Dawson. This was the second time he was seeing his father. Lucas stared at him for a while before nodding, ¡°Peak, not bad.¡± On the way here, Grey was able to successfully break through to the Peak of the Sage Plane, now all he needed was to meet the certain requirements and break through to the Elemental Venerable Plane. What Lucas found the most impressive was the fact that it only took Grey a little over five months to go from the Sixth stage to the Peak of the Sage Plane, it was almost like he was breaking through a stage every two months. In lower Planes like Arcane, Fusion, and Collection Plane, all these were possible, but after getting to the Origin Plane, cultivation speed reduces. With the increase of Planes, it was harder for an Elementalist to break through. But Grey was cultivating with a speed that was even insane for some in the Arcane Plane. ¡®He¡¯s only twenty-three, and since he started cultivating after he was fifteen, it means it took him eight years to go from a normal person to the Peak of the Sage Plane, this was shocking. It must be the result of that orb, I wonder who made such a cultivation style.¡¯ Lucas thought to himself as he looked at Grey. Grey on the other hand didn¡¯t know what was going through his head as he looked around, searching for his mother. Lucas noticed him before smiling, ¡°She won¡¯t be able to come right now.¡± ¡°Oh.¡±please visit panda(-)N0ve1.co)m Grey stopped trying to look for his mother and turned to look at his father curiously. Lucas chuckled and asked, ¡°How did your trip in the secret realm go? I can see you¡¯ve improved a lot.¡± Seeing his father show some interest in the secret realm, he told him of what happened. Lucas heard that Grey exchanged blows with a genius from the Gnome race who was in the Elemental Venerable Plane, he couldn¡¯t hide his shock. Even though Grey didn¡¯t beat up his opponent, he still won in the end. In that situation, Grey didn¡¯t really need to win, he just had to make sure that he survived the attack, and after some time, he would naturally win. ¡°Do you know of the kill order?¡± Lucas asked after some time. Grey nodded his head, he was made aware of it by the Head of the Burchard Family when he went there the last time. Lucas squinted his eyes and asked, ¡°What do you plan to do?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know for now. As long we the person who comes isn¡¯t in the Late stages of the Elemental Venerable Plane, I have no issues.¡± Grey replied. With Void beside him, he was safe. It would be almost impossible for the necromancers or those in the cohootd with the Gnome race to send an Elemental Sovereign after him. Elemental Sovereigns aren¡¯t people that would move so easily. Against a Sage Plane Elementalist, they wouldn¡¯t even spare him a glance. Very few Elemental Venerables could enter their eye. p-A- n-d-A-n-0-v-e-1¡¢(c)om Lucas looked at him for some time before staring at Void, ¡°Hmm, there¡¯s something strange about you cat, it¡¯s different from before.¡± He squinted his eyes to take a closer look at Void, ¡°Seventh Rank.¡± Grey and Void were both stunned, Void could hide his aura from those far stronger than himself, but his father was able to easily sense it. Grey nodded. Lucas seemed to fall into thoughts, after some time he said, ¡°You¡¯ll have to continue training, I¡¯ll send you to the Dawson Family¡¯s secret realm to break through to the Elemental Venerable Plane. Once you step out, you can leave.¡± Grey nodded, he also knew that he couldn¡¯t be too certain that they wouldn¡¯t send a Peak Elemental Venerable or even a Sovereign might take action. Against an Elemental Sovereign, he stood no chance. He also wanted to increase his strength. Lucas was satisfied with Grey¡¯s decision making. They stayed there for a while longer before Grey¡¯s mother appeared. After hugging Grey, she turned to look at Lucas, ¡°He¡¯s dead.¡± ¡°Hmm, did they notice you?¡± Lucas asked. Martha shook her head before saying, ¡°Even if they did, so what? Their Family guardian was working with the Gnomes, a traitor to humanity, of course he deserved to die.¡± Lucas didn¡¯t say anything else about it, ¡°I¡¯ll take him to father later.¡± ¡°Fine.¡± The trio stayed there for a while before they left, heading to the Dawson manor. ¡­. In the Dawson manor. In one of the buildings in the manor, Lucas, Martha, Grey, and an old man could be seen in a room. ¡°Peak, I¡¯m impressed.¡± The old man said. After speaking with Grey for some time he said, ¡°Send him to the battlefield.¡± Grey froze when he heard this, not just him, Martha and Lucas had a surprised expression on their faces. ¡®Your grandfather is something.¡¯ Void commented with a laugh. Grey didn¡¯t know what to say. ¡°Father, he just arrived, wouldn¡¯t it be strange if he headed to the battlefield?¡± Lucas tried to speak with his father. ¡°No, I have my reasons. There¡¯s a battle going on now. Send him there, I want to see his performance.¡± The old man said. Lucas nodded, turned to Martha seemingly seeking her approval, she nodded, and when they turned to Grey he nodded as well. Since his grandfather wanted him to help the family in the war, he would. Besides, he enjoyed fighting. The old man smiled when he saw this, Grey agreeing to this showed that he was bold and confident of his strength. He had heard of Grey, but he hadn¡¯t seen him fight. If he was on the same level or even better than his father when his father was his stage, then he would be more than impressed. They soon got to the battlefield, when Grey arrived, he didn¡¯t wait and rushed to the battlefield. Grey immediately started to fight and before anyone even noticed the new arrival, a Peak Sage Plane general from the warriors fell. They were stunned, shocked by the person who just arrived. 1040 That Grey Dawson? ¡°Oh, he¡¯s powerful. Come, let¡¯s go watch from the side.¡± The old man was a little surprised by Grey¡¯s strength. He had already heard of him, but seeing him in action was different. Lucas and Martha nodded and left. As long as an Elemental Venerable doesn¡¯t fight against Grey, then he had no problems. ¡°It¡¯s good he¡¯s here, we¡¯re short in terms of numbers.¡± Lucas muttered as they went back to the city wall. The place where the battle was taking place was located some kilometers away from the Dawson manor. They already placed a camp there since a town was located at the place. Even walls were built there, with high-leveled Earth Elementalists, it was very easy to make these. They stood on the wall and watched Grey. Previously, their opponents had the complete advantage when it came to the Sage Plane battlefield, but with Grey¡¯s sudden involvement, the pressure on the other Peak Sage Plane Elementalists from the Dawson Family was reduced. Those fighting against two people or more felt even more relieved since most of those they were fighting against rushed to where Grey was located. The fact that Grey could kill someone in such a short time showed that he was not someone that two people would be able to deal with. In no time, Grey was surrounded by eight Peak stage Sage Plane Elementalists. ¡­. On the city wall. Martha looked on, a little worried, ¡°Will he be able to deal with them?¡± They knew against a single opponent, Grey was terrifying, but they didn¡¯t know how he would fare against multiple people. Although his guardian had told them of how Grey was even more fearsome against multiple opponents, it was still hard when he was fighting against multiple people in the same stage, well, they were even a level higher than him. Grey¡¯s aura soon spiked and his aura was well above the Peak of the Sage Plane, but it wasn¡¯t in the Elemental Venerable Plane. ¡°What technique is that?¡± The old man couldn¡¯t help but ask, a little curious. Grey¡¯s strength was definitely above the Sage Plane, and from the looks of it, against a weaker First stage Elemental Venerable, he might even stand a chance to kill his opponent. ¡°I don¡¯t know.¡± Lucas replied with a shake of his head. He truly didn¡¯t know the technique, other than Grey, no one else knew of it. He took a glance at Martha, but she also shook her head. The old man looked on, intrigued, ¡°He¡¯s quite powerful.¡± Even when besieged by eight Peak Sage Plane Elementalists, he was not showing any signs of losing, he even seemed to have the edge. He fell deep in thought as he watched Grey fight. ¡­.please visit panda(-)N0ve1.co)m On the battlefield, Grey was not surprised by the sudden besiegement, if anything, he was even excited by it. It had been a while since he got to fight to his heart¡¯s content. All eight Peak Sage Plane Elementalists attacked, he vanished from where he was standing, appearing beside one of them, attacking ruthlessly. The person he appeared close to reacted quickly, blocking Grey¡¯s attack. Only after being hit by the attack did he understand that he had underestimated Grey¡¯s strength. The attack sent the Peak Sage Plane Elementalist flying. Unfortunately, Grey couldn¡¯t capitalize on it since there were others attacking him the moment he attacked the general. Grey was blocked by one of the generals as he wanted to move forward. Of all eight people, he had already accessed their strength and knew which of them was stronger. He decided to pick out the weaker ones first, once they were out, he would focus on the stronger ones. The general who blocked his path was one of the stronger ones, so he didn¡¯t want to engage in a battle with him. This general was not only stronger than the others, but he also had two elements. He moved on to another one, dodging the Dual Elementalist general, his next target was a man who had a scar on his right arm. The man was frightened when he saw Grey appearing in front of him and quickly retreated. Grey didn¡¯t let him go, with a step, he shot through the air and appeared behind the man, throwing a punch at his back. The punch connected cleanly with the man¡¯s back and he was sent crashing to the ground. Of eight Peak Sage Plane Elementalists, two of them had been injured with only one attack, although they could still fight, their strength was no longer a hundred percent. Grey short performance was starting to draw the attention of others on the battlefield, even though he killed a Peak Sage Elementalist the first time he attacked, they felt it was thanks to the other Peak Sage Elementalist from the Dawson Family that was fighting against the man, but now that Grey was fighting against eight people and managed to not only escape their encirclement but also injured two of them, they knew that he was not someone that should be neglected. ¡­ On the enemy camp. ¡°Who¡¯s that?¡± A middle-aged man asked the person on his side. ¡°I think that¡¯s Lucas¡¯ son, Grey Dawson. He¡¯s a genius who rose to fame some time ago, it wasn¡¯t even confirmed that he was part of the Dawson Family until only recently when Lucas announced it.¡± The man on the side said. ¡°That Grey Dawson?¡± The man seemed to recall hearing something about a kill order from the Gnome race. Most powerhouses at the top of the Continent knew of the kill order. The man on the side nodded his head. He couldn¡¯t help but look at Grey with a deep look, he smiled, but stopped speaking. p AndD nOve1.cO,m ¡°Tell them to kill him, it¡¯s not bad if we can get some benefits from the Gnomes while we try to take this territory.¡± The middle-aged man said after a while. The man nodded and disappeared. He relayed the order to the battlefield, Grey should be killed. Of course they wouldn¡¯t try to send Elemental Venerables after him since that would provoke Lucas. 1041 What Did You Feed Him? These people didn¡¯t only want the secret realm, they wouldn¡¯t go to an all-out war against the Dawson Family just because of this, there was something else they wanted, something very precious in the territory. The Dawson Family didn¡¯t know of it yet, but they on the other hand had discovered it and wanted to use the excuse of the secret realm to enter the Dawson Family. Originally, their plan was going well, then some years ago, Lucas who hadn¡¯t been seen for years suddenly returned. They stopped high-ranked battles after Lucas killed four of their strongest fighters, so they resolved to a battle of the lower ranks. At least, there was no way there would be another Lucas in the low ranks. However, although Lucas was strong, he was not invincible, at a critical time, with some sacrifices, they would be able to kill him, their only problem was that if he escaped, then they would be done for. ¡­ Back on the battlefield. The order had gotten to those there and more Peak Sage Plane Elementalists rushed in Grey¡¯s direction. They¡¯ve received the order to kill Grey, and some of them who had been holding back rushed after Grey, wanting to kill him. They were all promised enticing rewards, some of them were people who had almost no hope of breaking through to the Elemental Venerable Plane, but with the help of supreme experts, there was hope. Once they get to the Elemental Venerable Plane, they might even be able to break through to the Elemental Sovereign Plane as well. With so many people going after Grey, there was a clear distinction on the battlefield. Some Peak Sage Plane Elementalists on the side of the Dawson Family tried to rush over to help Grey, but they were unable to free themselves from their opponents. The few people who were still fighting against two people were left with only one as the others rushed in Grey¡¯s direction. ¡°Stay back, I¡¯ll be fine.¡± Grey said to the others. He didn¡¯t want them to rush over and make things difficult for him. He was freer when he was fighting alone, once he had to help others, he wouldn¡¯t be focused any longer. The few who were trying to rush over hesitated, but they still focused on defeating their opponents, if they were able to defeat them in time, then they would rush over to help him, regardless of what he wanted. Grey looked at the over fifteen Peak Sage Plane Elementalists that were currently chasing after him. He took them outside the original battlefield to ensure that the impact of their battle doesn¡¯t affect others. ¡°One, two, three¡­¡± He counted them as if he wasn¡¯t even bothered with them, when he was done counting, he said, ¡°Fifteen, I thought there would be more.¡± They looked at Grey before one of them said, ¡°Aren¡¯t you a bit too arrogant, even if you¡¯re stronger than one of us, do you think you stand a chance against all fifteen of us?¡± Grey smiled before nodding his head, ¡°Yes, yes I do.¡± The men scoffed and attacked. Only three of them attacked first, the others were waiting for when Grey would try to dodge the attack and then attack him at that time.please visit panda(-)N0ve1.co)m Grey already knew the strongest one, so without further delay, he switched places with him. This old man was standing close to five Peak Sage Plane Elementalists, so the moment Grey appeared there, he attacked. They didn¡¯t notice the switch, so when Grey attacked, they were unable to block. The old man was unable to defend himself, so he was bombarded by attacks from the three Peak Sage Elementalists. Of the five people Grey attacked, two died instantly since they were the ones closest to him, and the other three were injured, of three of them, only one of them had a light injury, and the others had heavy injuries. Within a brief second, Grey had taken six people out of the fifteen people that attacked him. pAnD a(-)n0ve1.com When those watching saw this, their eyes expanded. They had all underestimated Grey, even those who felt they had a good understanding of Grey were shocked. Grey¡¯s strength was beyond belief. The difference between two Peak Sage Plane Elementalists shouldn¡¯t be this large. They should¡¯ve at least had a chance to block or even counterattack, but they were being killed like they were not even Sage Plane Elementalists. Grey didn¡¯t stop, he immediately continued his attack, directly killing one of the trio who attacked him. He was faster than they were, and with the old man who was killed by the attack of the trio, he had no one else to be scared of. Some of them could still put up a fight, but none of them would be able to exchange more than ten moves with him if he went all out. Presently, only eight of them had their complete fighting strength, in the space of about a minute, Grey had killed four Peak Sage Plane Elementalists, and three of them were injured. Now the other understood why he said they were not enough. ¡­. On the wall. Lucas, Martha, and the old man were all stunned. They didn¡¯t expect anything in this manner. There was no way they would believe it if they heard that there was someone who could do something like this. It wasn¡¯t the fact that Grey was able to defeat them that shocked them, it was the speed at which he did it. If a genius fought for a long time, some of them might be able to achieve this, even Lucas could when he was at the Peak of the Sage Plane, but there was no way he would be able to do so in such a short time. ¡°This kid, what did you feed him?¡± The old man looked at Martha, she was the one who took care of Grey till he got to fifteen or so he heard, so seeing him display such strength amazed him. 1042 An Assassin ¡°So strong!¡± Martha exclaimed. She didn¡¯t have any time to answer the old man¡¯s words, she herself was stunned beyond words. Not just her, even Lucas was speechless. ¡°Isn¡¯t this a bit too much?¡± He muttered to himself. Even though he knew having all elements would make Grey powerful, this was beyond his expectations. At most, he felt maybe Grey would be able to fight against five people on the same stage as himself. Although having more elements meant he was more versatile, it didn¡¯t change the fact that the people he was fighting against were all at the Peak of the Sage Plane, the same stage he had forcefully increased his strength to. The old man looked at the shocked expressions of his son and Martha and knew they had no idea Grey was this powerful. He paused for some time before saying, ¡°Stay on guard, don¡¯t let them act against him.¡± The more brilliant Grey was, the more he would attract the ire of their enemies. At this moment, he started to regret his decision in sending Grey here. Such a genius should be hidden and only a few people should be aware of his combat strength. If too many people knew, it wouldn¡¯t be too good for him. The Dawson Family had too many enemies, but with Lucas around, they didn¡¯t have anything to fear. If their enemies were to find out that Grey was even more monstrous than Lucas, they wouldn¡¯t be able to sleep in peace. They would definitely search for a way to kill Grey. The threat should be removed while it was still young. ¡°I know, Father.¡± Lucas replied in a serious tone. Since Grey started to fight, he was keeping a close watch on those from the enemy camp, if an Elemental Venerable were to step into the battlefield, he would instantly attack them, disregarding everything else. Others could die, but his son could not. ¡­. On the enemy camp. The middle-aged man was short of words, he didn¡¯t know what to say. At present, from Grey¡¯s performance he already knew no matter how many people he sent forward, as long as they were still in the Sage Plane, Grey would be undefeatable, much less being killed by any of them. ¡°This is bad. Now I know why the Gnomes wanted him dead.¡± He muttered to himself. He looked around and his gaze fell on a young man, ¡°Do you think you¡¯re capable?¡± The young man his gaze fell on was at the Peak of the Sage Plane, he looked at the battlefield for a long time before saying, ¡°In a one-on-one battle, I¡¯m not his match, but as long as they can delay him, I¡¯ll assassinate him without a doubt.¡± ¡°Go, try to hide your face, you must kill him before ¡®he¡¯ can make a move.¡± The middle-aged man said. p-n0ve1¡¢com The ¡®he¡¯ the middle-aged man was referring to was none other than Lucas. If another Peak Sage Plane Elementalist were to enter the battlefield, Lucas might not give it any thought since he felt they wouldn¡¯t be able to kill Grey.please visit panda(-)N0ve1.co)m The young man stood up and bowed, ¡°Yes, My Lord.¡± With that, he stepped out and charged towards the battlefield. The direction he was headed was the place where Grey and the others were fighting. He had a mission to carry out, and he would complete it no matter what. When he got there, he didn¡¯t make a move the instant he got close, rather, he started to lie in wait. ¡­. Grey sensed the new arrival even though the young man tried to hide his aura, and after noticing that the person didn¡¯t make a move he focused on the people before him. After killing a few of them at the start, the others were wary and didn¡¯t group together, nor did they carelessly attack. They were all trying to present an opportunity for themselves, as well as the others. According to what they were told, no matter who killed this person, as long as they were all involved, they would be rewarded. Grey couldn¡¯t help but shake his head when he saw how cowardly they were all acting. At this rate, as long as he willed, he would be able to kill a few of them. All he needed to do was to explode out at a time they didn¡¯t expect and he would be able to kill one of them. Grey continued blocking their attacks while also counterattacking. He wasn¡¯t attacking as ferociously as the first time, deciding it was best to save energy. When the group noticed that Grey wasn¡¯t too bothered with them any longer and seemed to be only trying to delay them, they felt he was creating an opportunity for those fighting against one opponent from the Dawson Family. If these people could kill their opponents, then they would be able to help him. Originally, they were powerful, so these people didn¡¯t dare to fight against them one on one, even when fighting three against one, these people from the Dawson Family didn¡¯t fall to the disadvantage, although they were being pushed back, it wasn¡¯t like they were on the verge of death. Now that they had to fight one on one, even though they were injured from the previous battle, they were still more powerful than their opponents. Thinking about this, they all started to get anxious. If one or two of them came over, then they would not be able to kill Grey, instead, they would be the ones who risked getting killed. ¡°Don¡¯t hold back any longer, kill him.¡± One of the older men amongst them yelled. The others exchanged glances before gritting their teeth. Some of them regretted coming to fight Grey, but they didn¡¯t have any option as things stand. Grey chuckled when he saw this, initially, that was his plan. Void was secretly interfering with the battle. With him being the main focus, others wouldn¡¯t take note of the slight changes in the battle as Void stepped in. ¡®I thought they would stay back a little longer.¡¯ He shook his head in regret. 1043 Divine General Grey blocked the attacks coming his way and inscriptions lit up in the sky. Since they wanted to fight now, then he would fight them with all his might. Three inscriptions appeared in the sky, all of them were made up of the fire element. This was his strongest element, hence he didn¡¯t hesitate to use it. After bringing out his inscriptions, an array lit up in a large area, covering a three hundred meters radius around him. This array was there to increase the strength of each of his elements and it was rapidly absorbing elemental essence. While the others rushed him, his earth elemental essence spread out and the gravitational force field appeared, taking down the unsuspected Peak Sage Plane Elementalists who were rushing him. Of the eight who were left, five of them fell to the ground, and three of them were Earth Elementalists, so they managed to hold out for a while. pA n,dan(-)0ve1.c0m Grey couldn¡¯t be bothered with these three, he vanished and appeared where one of the Peak Sage Plane Elementalists fell and attacked. The person hadn¡¯t been able to get a grip of himself, even before he fell to the ground, he was already dead due to Grey¡¯s attack. Grey vanished, but the time he spent killing the previous person gave the others the opportunity they needed to adjust themselves and run to where the others were. They couldn¡¯t take the risk. Just as they were rushing to where the other three Earth Elementalists were, the old man who told them to attack previously seemed to recall something and yelled, ¡°F*ck! Don¡¯t gather, scatter!¡± The others were already within ten meters of them when he said this, before he could even complete his statement, one of them blinked and in the blink of an eye, Grey was the one standing in the position of this person. The second Grey appeared, he attacked. His target was the old man, he might not be as old as the first Peak Sage Elementalist he killed after they surrounded him, but he seemed to be the next person. The old man¡¯s pupils constricted, and with a powerful shout, his entire body was covered with earthen armor, even his eyes were not exempted. He didn¡¯t dare to underestimate Grey¡¯s ability. Grey, who was already rushing towards him, quickly changed his target. He was a decisive person, he knew for a fact that with the defense the old man just set, it would be impossible to kill him, but the others were different, they didn¡¯t react as fast as the old man. The Earth Elementalist by the right side of the old man was the one he targeted, and without taking a long time, he managed to strike. The Earth Elementalist tried to defend himself, but with the help of the array, Grey¡¯s attack was on another level. After Grey¡¯s attack died down, the laughter of the Earth Elementalist came out, ¡°Hahaha, you can¡¯t kill this old man.¡± He was still laughing when he suddenly went silent. Behind him, an array appeared and struck him. He was already injured from Grey¡¯s initial attack, so being attacked again when he wasn¡¯t even able to set up a defense was the last straw and he died without even knowing how he died.please visit panda(-)N0ve1.co)m The old man who protected himself stared at the corpse of the Earth Elementalist that was falling to the ground, he made up his mind and to the shock of the others, he turned around to flee. There was no aim in fighting Grey, although he wanted the benefits since they might help him break through, only those who were alive could break through. It was better he waited for a chance to break through on his own than to die in Grey¡¯s hands. Grey was ruthless, too ruthless for his age, and he had the power to back himself, as long as an Elemental Venerable didn¡¯t come, Grey was invincible, this, he was certain of after the short exchange. With fifteen people, they couldn¡¯t kill one Peak Sage Plane Elementalist, what was worse was that these fifteen people were all at the Peak of the Sage Plane as well. He couldn¡¯t believe his eyes, even though he was present, he still had a hard time believing it. A Peak Sage Plane Elementalist? Who were they deceiving?! Grey was definitely someone in the Elemental Venerable Plane, at the thought of this, he felt deep hatred for the generals. If they didn¡¯t order them to try to kill Grey, he wouldn¡¯t be in such a sorry state. Although he wasn¡¯t the target of any of Grey¡¯s attacks, he knew if he were to fight against Grey, he would die. Just when he was escaping, he heard a voice in his ear, not just him, but all the Peak Sage Plane Elementalists fighting against Grey. ¡°If any of you dare to run, then don¡¯t blame this Sovereign for taking action.¡± A cold snort followed the words. The old man shivered, he couldn¡¯t help but turn to look at their camp with a helpless expression. The voice he just heard was from their divine general, an Elementalist at the Peak of the Elemental Sovereign Plane, even normal Elemental Sovereigns wouldn¡¯t dare to go against his words, much less mere Sage Plane Elementalists like themselves. With gritted teeth, he turned around. At least against Grey, he still had a chance to fight, but against the divine general, he wouldn¡¯t even be able to lift a finger before he died. When Grey saw the old man returning, he knew something must have happened. He happened to see the change in the faces of the people against him, and although everything happened in an instant after he killed the Earth Elementalist, he still noticed it. The old man was about to attack when he suddenly froze for a brief moment before smiling, he rushed at Grey, this time, he didn¡¯t have any fear. The others also seemed to have been invigorated and attacked. 1044 To Take The Risk Or Not Grey was taken aback by their sudden action, but he didn¡¯t hold back and attacked as well. With his strength, what did he have to be afraid of? Not just that, his father was watching from the side, with someone regarded as one of the strongest experts in the Aurora Continent, it was impossible for someone in a higher Plane to attack Grey without him interfering. With a punch, the old man who was charging at Grey was forced back, the others were forced back by a fire ring that surrounded Grey and started to expand. They couldn¡¯t get close, but the fire ring was occasionally sending out fireballs. The inscriptions were also attacking at this time, making things difficult for them. The old man who was pushed back by a punch rushed back once again. Grey suddenly noticed the change in the eyes of the old man and couldn¡¯t help but wonder what gave him such confidence. From wanting to run away to wanting to kill him at all costs, even if he risked dying. ¡®Something¡¯s wrong.¡¯ It didn¡¯t take long for Grey to understand that things were not as they seemed. He was alerted and he made sure he didn¡¯t make any rash moves, even when an opportunity presented itself in front of him to kill the old man, he didn¡¯t attack, instead, he continued to attack the others. On the ground, hidden amongst the corpses around was a young man whose face was closed. He opened his eyes and looked at Grey and couldn¡¯t help but curse. ¡®Why isn¡¯t he trying to kill him, is there something wrong with his brain?¡¯ He thought to himself. He had been trying to search for an opportunity to kill Grey, and the best chance was when he was attacking, trying to kill someone. He had communicated with the old man to give Grey such an opportunity, not just the old man, but the others as well, but to his surprise, Grey placed a ring of fire around him and hadn¡¯t left the center of the ring of fire. Compared to his previous fearless self, he seemed to be holding back. ¡®Could it be that he sensed me?¡¯ He felt a bit confused. For a moment, he wanted to escape, but then his eyes opened wide, an opportunity had presented itself right before him. Even though Grey didn¡¯t leave the ring of fire, he had been forced to get close to him, and he was flying above him. As long as he waited for the perfect time, even with Grey¡¯s space element, it would be impossible for Grey to dodge the attack. After waiting, Grey was flying directly above him and he couldn¡¯t bear to hold back any longer, shooting out with unbelievable speed. He was using both the lightning and the wind elements to boost his speed. Within a split second, he was already behind Grey, and with his hand covered with lightning, he stabbed it at Grey¡¯s head. He was still moving, so after stabbing Grey¡¯s head, his figure would pass through. However, he felt no resistance. ¡°Uh?¡± He was confused by how smooth things were. His figure passed through Grey¡¯s body, appearing in front of him. Just when he was about to escape, Grey¡¯s hand grabbed him on the neck, and with a vicious tug, he dragged him back.please visit panda(-)N0ve1.co)m The young man screamed in pain as a large fire blade passed through his chest, opening a large wound. The young man fell to the ground, before his figure hit the ground, he shot forward with his last strength, he wanted to escape. Grey was stronger and sharper. Even some Elemental Venerables might not be able to react that fast, Grey not only dodged the attack, but he also counterattacked. This was a shocking thing, and he knew against such an opponent, he stood no chance. For someone that was trained in assassination, once the attempted assassination failed, he would escape, especially after being injured by the other party. The old man saw this as his cue, so when Grey was attacking the young man, he attacked Grey from behind. The attack reached Grey the moment Grey¡¯s fire blade pierced the young man¡¯s chest. Grey was forced to turn around, unable to chase after the young man. Originally, the old man was the one who was supposed to be attacked by Grey, but now the situation was reversed, it still didn¡¯t change anything, as long as Grey died, it was fine. Grey blocked the attack, but he was met with other attacks from behind. He covered himself with an earth dome, blocking all the attacks simultaneously. The earth dome soon shattered, revealing Grey who was hidden inside. The old man was the main attacker as he joined forces with the others, trying to kill Grey. They all had a tacit understanding of what they were doing, so Grey was forced into the defensive for the first time since the start of the battle. Grey didn¡¯t panic as he blocked each attack sent his way, even when some of them pushed him back, he didn¡¯t make any rushed moves, he didn¡¯t attack, only focusing on defending. As long as he defended well, he wouldn¡¯t have to fear that they would be able to defeat him. The old man sensed how things were, but there was nothing he could do, Grey¡¯s defense was just too strong. He wanted to run away, but he knew he couldn¡¯t. ¡®If we group together and he uses that move again, it¡¯ll be difficult to predict who he would switch positions with. It will most likely be me. To take the risk or not?¡¯ The old man was in a dilemma, one of the Peak Sage Plane Elementalists from the Dawson Family was on the verge of freeing himself from his already injured opponent, once he was free, all Grey needed was a slight distraction and he would take control of the battle again. pA n,dan(-)0ve1.c0m ¡°Gather!¡± The old man gritted his teeth and said. He transmitted his voice to the others, telling them his plan. They had to take the risk or they would all die in the end. 1045 Too Cunning There were still six people left, and the old man was an Earth Elementalist. If they were able to plan carefully, then there was a large chance that they would be able to defeat Grey. The old man¡¯s plan was to guess who Grey would change positions with and attack the person just when Grey was changing positions with them. Before they gathered, he placed earth particles on each of them and gave them all access to it. The second they sense the slightest sensation of one of the earth particles disappearing, then they should attack that place. When they all grouped up, they started to attack Grey. Their combined attack was powerful so Grey was careful, but seeing all of them gather, he couldn¡¯t help but start to think. If he were to change positions with one of them, he would be able to kill one more person, or even two people. But from his understanding, he knew that the old man knew of this skill of his, especially after the last when Grey tried to kill him. He was the one who told them not to gather in one area, now, he was saying the opposite. ¡®Hmm¡­ could they be plotting against me?¡¯ He thought to himself. Taking the risk to appear there might be worth it if he killed some people, but if he was injured in the process, it wouldn¡¯t really be worth it. ¡®Delay, I¡¯ll delay them.¡¯ He concluded. Since they wanted to plot against him, then he would wait until one of the Peak Sage Plane Elementalist is free and come to assist me. He stayed in his passive position, only blocking. He even stopped attacking. pAn,Da n<0,>v,e1 ¡®I thought youths are hot-blooded? What the hell is wrong with this one?! You¡¯re a young man, right? Why the hell are you acting like a thousand-year-old man?!¡¯ The old man was on the verge of going mad. If Grey didn¡¯t attack impulsively, then his plan would fail, and they will undoubtedly die when another Sage Plane Elementalist comes. ¡°I thought you were powerful, or could it be that your strength has started decreasing?¡± The old man said. This was a very valid point, they all knew that Grey¡¯s strength increased with the help of a secret technique, so there might be a chance that he was weakening. If that was the case, then there was a chance that they could kill him now. He couldn¡¯t wait for another Sage Plane Elementalist to get in on the battle or they would die. ¡°Forget everything else and kill him, I¡¯ll take the first blow, just make sure my sacrifice isn¡¯t in vain, and rescue me in time.¡± The old man changed his plan and charged forward. Of all of them, he was the strongest, and even though there was another Earth Elementalist, he still had the strongest defense. If he was entangled with Grey at a close range, he would not die from a single attack, that was enough for the others to attack and even injure Grey. Grey, seeing the old man charging at him didn¡¯t panic, with a smile on his face, his position changed with the other Earth Elementalist, leaving only the four Elementalists who didn¡¯t have any strong defensive elements. The four only had attacking elements. The old man¡¯s expression changed when he saw this.please visit panda(-)N0ve1.co)m ¡°Damn it! Stand and fight like a man!¡± The old man was virtually on the verge of crying. Grey was cunning for such a young man. Even such an old man who was very experienced couldn¡¯t trick him, rather, he used their situation to his advantage. The old man and the other Earth Elementalist looked at each other, ruthlessness flashing through their eyes and they turned, rushing to where they were previously located. Grey didn¡¯t waste any time, the moment he appeared he attacked. The person closest to him was a middle-aged lady who was a Lightning Elementalist. The lady covered herself with lightning and tried to run away. Grey didn¡¯t give her the chance she wanted. His gravitational force field spread out and the speed of the lady reduced drastically. He moved closer and he made a slashing movement with his hand. All four of them were standing in a straight line, so when he made the slashing motion, he hoped to kill all of them with a single attack. The lady sensed the danger and with a powerful scream, she exploded out with lightning shooting out. Even if she was not Grey¡¯s match, she wouldn¡¯t die without putting up a fight. The other three did the same as well. One of them was a Darkness Elementalist, he covered all of them with his darkness element, trying to corrode whatever attack Grey sent their way. A large gash opened up in the darkness-filled area, followed by blood-curdling screams. ¡­. On the wall. ¡°He¡¯s cunning and ruthless. Lucas, you¡¯re no match for him.¡± The old man said after some time in a matter-of-fact tone. With their strength, they could tell what was happening on the battlefield. When the young man who wanted to assassinate Grey appeared, they originally felt maybe Grey would be injured, but to their surprise, from when the young man appeared till he attacked, Grey was aware of his arrival. When the old man wanted to group up and place elemental particles on the body of the others to sense Grey, they also noticed it. The old man was curious as to what Grey would do, but to his surprise, Grey didn¡¯t rush out. He was certain that Grey didn¡¯t sense the earth particles, so he obviously made his decision based on some assessments. Lucas couldn¡¯t refute it, instead, he laughed in delight. Having such a son was something to be proud of. Grey was not strong because of the orb, but because of himself. There were people who were geniuses, but they were not on the same level as the current Grey. His thinking and the way he fought were miles ahead of others his age. Even some old men might not be smarter than he was. 1046 Where Are They? They had been watching Grey since the start of the battle, and when the young man who wanted to assassinate him appeared, they felt he would make a mistake, but to their surprise, he didn¡¯t. Sensing the young man wasn¡¯t as hard as sensing the elemental particle the old man placed on the body of the others. The fact that Grey would be cautious in such a state showed that he was not a newbie. He must be used to planning, and his decision-making was also top-notch. ¡­. While Lucas and Martha were shocked by Grey¡¯s insane abilities, Grey was taking advantage of his chances. After killing all four at the Peak, he was left with only the two Earth Elementalists. The old man was beyond depressed, he was devastated. From what has happened, he knew his chances of surviving this were below five percent. Grey was just too strong. The old man looked at the other Earth Elementalist, ¡°We¡¯ll have to fight with our lives on the line, technically, it is on the line.¡± pAn,D a-n0ve1,c-o-m Grey would kill them, and the Sovereign would also kill them, against Grey, there¡¯s a chance of survival, against the Sovereign, there were zero chances of survival. Even an Elemental Venerable was at the mercy of a Peak Elemental Sovereign, much less a Peak Sage Plane Elementalist. Grey didn¡¯t know that they were threatened by an Elemental Sovereign, nor did he care. The people he killed were people who had killed multiple people from the Dawson Family, some had even killed Peak Sage Plane Elementalists, so even if they died, it had nothing to do with him. Seeing the two Earth Elementalist, he said, ¡°Just give up, you¡¯re no match for me.¡± The Earth Elementalists gritted their teeth but still tried to attack Grey. They were on a sure-death path, so why not try to live a little longer? Those at the Peak of the Sage Plane tend to always want to live longer, especially when said person was as old as the old man. They attacked Grey, their life and death on the line. ¡­. Some minutes later. ¡°Kid, you¡¯re stronger than I thought.¡± The old man from the Dawson Family said. Grey, his father, his mother, and his grandfather were standing on the city wall. With Grey¡¯s appearance, any battle below the Elemental Venerable Plane was futile. The leader of the war soon told his people to hold back, if they hadn¡¯t, then humanity would¡¯ve wiped them out. Well, more like Grey single-handedly taking care of it, but it wasn¡¯t appropriate. The Sovereign in charge of the battle called for his army to withdraw after Grey killed all his opponents. The old men at the Peak of the Sage Plane didn¡¯t give him an easy time, nor did the other Earth Elementalist, but he managed to kill them even before the other Peak Sage Plane Elementalists from the Dawson Family could free themselves, going out to help them. ¡°I was lucky.¡± Grey said humbly.please visit panda(-)N0ve1.co)m He wouldn¡¯t try to act all high and mighty in front of his parents and grandfather. ¡°No need to be too modest, at your age, you¡¯re unparalleled.¡± The old man said. Grey smiled but didn¡¯t reply. To him, he felt he was only so-so. If he encountered an Elemental Venerable in the Mid or Late stages, he would die without a doubt. This was why he didn¡¯t feel happy about his achievement. ¡°Let¡¯s head back. It¡¯s best if you go to the realm, I have some plans for you.¡± The old man said. ¡°Father, he¡¯s not going to take the position of the Family Head.¡± Lucas said straightforwardly. ¡°Do you think we have that time? It¡¯ll be a good thing if he can get to the Sovereign Plane, much less become the Family Head.¡± The old man said. Lucas paused, not expecting this from his father, ¡°Oh that. You don¡¯t have to worry about him. He¡¯ll be fine.¡± ¡°He¡¯s my grandson, don¡¯t think you have all the say about what he feels like doing.¡± The old man snorted. ¡°Kid, I have some opportunities for you, I wonder if you wish to accept this old man¡¯s proposal.¡± The old man turned to Grey. ¡°Grandfather, of course I will accept your request, but I¡¯ll have to meet up with my friends first.¡± Grey replied. The old man paused for some time, he knew of Grey¡¯s friends, and so did Lucas and Martha. ¡°Alright, I¡¯ll be waiting for you in the Family manor. Don¡¯t come here any longer, it¡¯s too dangerous. Not just them, but others are still looking to take care of you.¡± The old man said. ¡°The Gnome race?¡± Grey asked, shocking the old man, Lucas, and Martha. ¡°How did you know about this?¡± The old man asked. ¡°I killed them, of course I¡¯ll know what they want to do.¡± Grey said. The old man couldn¡¯t help but shake his head with a chuckle. Grey was more intelligent than he thought. Not just that, but he was also well-informed and knew the subsequent actions to take. If others knew that an entire race that seemed stronger than humans were trying to kill him, they would most definitely freak out, but Grey was fine. In fact, he didn¡¯t seem to care about that. ¡°Your friends, where are they?¡± The old man asked. They didn¡¯t know too much about Grey¡¯s friends and wanted Grey to tell them about them. If their strength were not up to the task, then he would send Grey to the secret realm, regardless of his decision. He had heard of Klaus, Reynolds, and Alice, but he didn¡¯t know much about them. After all, just like Grey, they appeared from nowhere. So they didn¡¯t know too much about them. 1047 What Did You Hear? Going out alone would be dangerous, especially after the kill order. But Lucas and Martha didn¡¯t object to it, nor did Grey¡¯s grandfather, so he left soon after he returned. His only friend in the Dawson Family was not around, so he didn¡¯t stay for long. ¡­. Time went by and before Grey knew it, days had gone by. He was currently waiting in Klaus¡¯ manor in the Faction Klaus joined. He wasn¡¯t allowed to roam since it was an all-girls Faction, so he was teleported there. When Klaus came out to see Grey, he was shocked when he tried to sense Grey¡¯s stage. Even though he couldn¡¯t pinpoint it, he sensed that it was at least in the Late stages of the Sage Plane. ¡°What the hell man, how are you advancing so fast?¡± Klaus cursed and looked at Grey. ¡°I miss you too, Klaus.¡± Grey replied. He was already used to the way Klaus spoke, so even when he insulted new people, Grey didn¡¯t bother about it. At most, he would let them beat him up. According to what Lucas told him about Klaus, he was a thorn in the necks of the Moonlight Faction, but for some reason, the Faction Leader valued him a lot. According to what Grey¡¯s father told him, he was their lucky star. ¡°It¡¯s been so long!¡± Klaus exclaimed and hugged Grey. It had been a while since he spoke or even saw Grey. Not just Grey, but the others seemed to have been occupied recently, so they didn¡¯t have much of his time. Even when he was free, he didn¡¯t cultivate much. After so many months, he had shot to the Eighth stage of the Sage Plane. Grey was powerful and also lucky, Klaus on the other hand seemed to be the child of lady luck. He had risen to the Eighth stage of the Sage Plane and he didn¡¯t even go to a secret realm like Grey. Had he done that, then he would already be at the Peak of the Sage Plane, if not higher. ¡°Yes, you seem to be enjoying life.¡± Grey said as he looked at the living environment here. Even though he wasn¡¯t allowed into the main part of the Faction, they still sent him to Klaus¡¯ manor. It was quite large and had all the things he needed to live comfortably. ¡°Here? It¡¯s boring as hell. I want to go out and have fun with you and the others.¡± Klaus couldn¡¯t help but say. Joining a faction was both a blessing and a curse. He advanced faster, but he was also forced to stay in the same place. He couldn¡¯t even hassle over it. Being the only boy in an all-girls Faction meant that he was the one who had to occasionally go out for missions. With his status, he couldn¡¯t let those weaker than him take on these dangerous missions, so he was the one who took it. It wasn¡¯t just because they were weaker, but because they were all young ladies. When Grey took a good look at Klaus, he noticed that his skin was glowing, and it looked somewhat pale. ¡°What the hell have you been doing?¡± He couldn¡¯t help but ask. ¡°Missions.¡± Klaus replied. After seeing Grey¡¯s eyes, he knew that Grey was speaking about his skin. He laughed before explaining the reason for it. Staying in the snow and a cold environment for too long affected his skin and it turned paler. This wasn¡¯t useless, whenever he used the ice attribute, his body would increase the strength of the ice, making it stronger. His flesh stored a large amount of ice, and whenever he was fighting, it would start to show its use. ¡°All the missions?¡± Grey couldn¡¯t help but ask. ¡°Yes, all missions.¡± Klaus replied. Before Grey could say a word, Klaus sank into the ground.please visit panda(-)N0ve1.co)m ¡°So I¡¯ll take that as not all the missions?¡± Grey laughed. ¡°Yes, only a few of the missions.¡± Klaus replied with a gloomy expression. ¡°Let¡¯s go outside, these seniors have a bad habit of keeping an eye, and ears on me.¡± Klaus said. Just when Grey wanted to stand up, Klaus¡¯ entire body sank into the ground. He couldn¡¯t help but thank the heavens that he didn¡¯t say a thing about them. Klaus seemed to be suffering a lot. Well, given his mouth, it wasn¡¯t surprising. Grey didn¡¯t even try to help Void and stood up walking outside. Some minutes later, Klaus came out with an even gloomier expression. ¡®They are bullying me. One of the seniors approached me and I refused her.¡¯ Klaus sent a telepathic message to Grey. At their current level, they didn¡¯t need to speak out, and could easily send telepathic messages to each other as long as they were within a specific range. Grey raised a brow but didn¡¯t respond. He knew if an Elementalist was strong, they could even intercept telepathic messages, even when the people were so close. Before Klaus could say anything, he was once again struck into the ground. pA n,dan(-)0ve1.c0m ¡°Damn it! How can a senior have such a habit of trying to get gossip?¡± Klaus complained. Grey laughed before saying, ¡°Let¡¯s head out.¡± He knew it wasn¡¯t safe to say anything here. Of all the people they encountered that day, the Moonlight Faction also had their eyes on him, so if he were to tell Klaus any secrets now, it would get to them. ¡­. ¡°Wait, what?!¡± Klaus almost spat out the wine he was drinking. The duo were currently in a city not too far from where the Moonlight Faction was situated. ¡°Yes, you don¡¯t have to overreact.¡± Grey said. ¡°What do you mean not to overreact? If you¡¯ve heard of Lucas Dawson as much as I¡¯ve heard about him, then you¡¯ll know that I have every right to overreact.¡± Klaus said. ¡°Oh really, what did you hear about him?¡± Klaus asked curiously. ¡°A lot¡­¡± Klaus started to speak about all the things he had heard about Grey¡¯s father. Apparently, the current Faction Leader of the Moonlight Faction was in love with him, but he didn¡¯t spare her a glance, instead, he went for the more aggressive Martha Reile. 1048 Exactly! Grey listened to everything Klaus was saying, he didn¡¯t interrupt him since he was also curious about his parents. He had heard a thing or two about them as well. ¡­. ¡®Mom¡¯s always been domineering.¡¯ He thought to himself when he heard about his mother. From the time he spent with her, he knew she was not a soft person. But hearing of how she was able to fight against over ten people on the same stage and still didn¡¯t lose out, he couldn¡¯t help but shake his head. His parents were freaks of their generation. ¡°No wonder you¡¯re such a freakish monstrosity.¡± Klaus sighed as he said. Grey didn¡¯t know if Klaus was complimenting him or insulting him, he couldn¡¯t be bothered with it and decided to just take it as a compliment. ¡°I heard there¡¯s a kill order on your head.¡± Klaus said. ¡°You heard of that as well?¡± Grey was a bit depressed. Almost everyone knew of his kill order and he was getting tired of it. ¡®That hateful race.¡¯ He cursed internally. ¡°Everyone knows.¡± Klaus replied, before muttering, ¡°The rewards are tempting, I wonder if I can get them.¡± Grey shook his head when he heard Klaus¡¯ first statement, on hearing the other part, he glanced at him. ¡°Hey, do you think there¡¯s a way we can trick them that you¡¯re dead? I mean, you know how to hide your aura, all we need to do is to put a scar on your face or something, and you¡¯re as good as unrecognizable.¡± Klaus suggested. He continued, ¡°We¡¯ll give them someone else and say it¡¯s you. That way, you wouldn¡¯t have to bother about the people who want to kill you any longer.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t think they will fall for a trick like that. Besides, I want them to know that they can¡¯t kill me.¡± Grey said. ¡°Wait, what did you do to attract such hatred anyway?¡± Klaus couldn¡¯t help but ask. Grey went on to tell him about his time in the secret realm. ¡°Damn! You should¡¯ve taken me along! The Mistress wouldn¡¯t mind if I went to a place like that, at least there I would improve faster.¡± Klaus said with a regretful expression on his face. If he had gone there with Grey, he would¡¯ve not only attacked the Gnomes, he would¡¯ve messed with the Giant race as well. Given his personality, even humans might also want to kill him there. Grey took a glance at Klaus and could already tell what was on his mind, ¡°It¡¯s a dangerous place, but there are opportunities, it wouldn¡¯t be bad if you go. But as things stand, you¡¯re not far from the Ninth stage, before you know it, you¡¯ll enter the peak and naturally breakthrough.¡± ¡°What stage are you now?¡± Klaus asked Grey. ¡°Ninth stage. Will get to the Peak soon enough. I¡¯m not in a hurry.¡± Grey replied. Klaus closed his eyes for some time. For some time, he had almost always been ahead of Grey, especially whenever he managed to get some fortuitous encounters, but this time, Grey was ahead of him. ¡°I really need to go out. Staying in a single place isn¡¯t for me. It¡¯s too boring to only focus on cultivating. The Mistress doesn¡¯t even allow me to enter the secret realm.¡± Klaus complained. Grey laughed when he heard this. Klaus was just like Void, they hated peace. Whenever they were stuck in a place where nothing was happening, they would want to leave at all costs. Klaus was unlucky, Grey knew of his agreement with his Faction leader when he went to save the girl he was in love with. The Faction Leader seemed to be taking advantage of this. Even after so long, although Klaus had advanced by a lot, he hadn¡¯t gotten the chance to go out as often any longer. ¡°Hey Void, what Rank are you now?¡± Klaus turned to Void who hadn¡¯t spoken a word and asked. ¡°Seven.¡± Void said proudly. ¡°Rank Seven? That¡¯s the Elemental Venerable Plane, correct?¡± Klaus raised a brow. Grey nodded. Klaus¡¯ expression changed lightly. He couldn¡¯t believe that Void would be the first one to become an Elemental Venerable. He shook his head with a sigh, ¡°Forget it.¡± He paused for a moment and asked, ¡°Do you know of the seal?¡± ¡°What seal?¡± Grey asked. ¡°When the Gnomes attacked the first time, a senior from the True Dawn Faction sacrificed himself to seal the portal that the Gnome race used in entering our world.¡± Klaus explained.please visit panda(-)N0ve1.co)m ¡°True Dawn Faction.¡± Grey seemed to be lost in thoughts, ¡°Why does it sound so familiar?¡± Grey felt like he had heard of this Faction before, not from a book, but he didn¡¯t know where. ¡°It¡¯s because you¡¯ve been there.¡± Klaus answered. Grey¡¯s face changed, ¡°Been there? Where is it located?¡± ¡°Azure Continent. The trial lands.¡± Klaus¡¯ reply shocked Grey. The highly respected True Dawn Faction was located somewhere as small as the Azure Continent. He had read about the True Dawn Faction. Even though there wasn¡¯t much information about them in a public library, a top faction was different. When he joined the Lunar Faction, he read about the history of the continent and got to know about the war with the Gnome race. He didn¡¯t put the True Dawn Faction name to heart, and his mind didn¡¯t go to the trial land, so he didn¡¯t find anything to associate the two together. Only after Klaus spoke of it did he recall it. ¡°What about the seal?¡± Grey asked after some time. ¡°According to what I heard from the Mistress and the Elders, it¡¯s weakening.¡± Klaus replied. Grey squinted his eyes and didn¡¯t say anything else. The famous war of Gods in the Azure Continent was referring to the battle with the Gnome race thousands of years ago. Those in the Azure Continent weren¡¯t too informed about this, or they were purposely led astray by the information they got. Only after coming here did Grey know that their world was invaded by people from another world, a different race. These people brought necromancy to the Aurora Continent, such a hateful method. ¡°Did you find out how much time we have?¡± Grey asked. ¡°No, but I don¡¯t think it¡¯s long.¡± Klaus said with a somewhat sad expression. The risk of the Gnomes invading them was not something to be joked with. Grey¡¯s expression was even more gloomy when he heard of this, ¡°I¡¯ll kill them all. I¡¯m their greatest nightmare.¡± ¡°Huh? Why did you say that?¡± Klaus asked, when he heard Grey¡¯s words. ¡°I¡¯ve been in contact with them, and I know a thing or two about necromancy. You should know I¡¯m very curious, and tend to study a lot.¡± Grey didn¡¯t go too deep in details, only telling him that he had a way that he could directly interfere with a Gnome¡¯s link with their puppets. When Klaus heard this, he couldn¡¯t help but chuckle, ¡°No wonder they want you dead.¡± Grey shrugged. Compared to others, the Gnomes felt he was more of a threat, hence they treated him like one. From what his father told him, some Gnomes in the Elemental Venerable Plane had even managed to sneak into the Aurora Continent thanks to the help of some of the top powerhouses in the Gnome race distracting the people guarding the portal. The portal that was sealed was not the only portal that led to the Aurora Continent from the Gnome race, but it was the only one that could allow those in the Elemental Sovereign Plane and above to enter. If those below the Elemental Sovereign Plane came to the Aurora Continent, it was no different from a death wish. This was also the reason why although there had been times when a few Gnomes managed to sneak in, humans didn¡¯t think too much about it. Besides, they¡¯ve almost always managed to kill anyone that steps out of the portal. Just as humans were protecting their portal, the Gnomes were also doing the same. It would be a disgrace if a human came to their world and caused havoc. They¡¯ve always felt that humans were below them, so they looked at them with disdain. ¡®Elemental Venerable. I wonder when I¡¯ll get to that level.¡¯ Grey thought to himself. ¡­. pAn,Da-n0v e1,c,m When the next day came, Klaus suggested they went over to meet up with Reynolds and Alice. It had been a long time since all four of them were together, and he missed it. Grey had no objections to it, as long as Klaus was given the freedom to leave. Klaus was surprisingly allowed to leave, Grey couldn¡¯t help but give him a meaningful look. ¡°What did you say?¡± He asked as they walked away from the city. ¡°I told them my sister is sick.¡± Klaus replied with a grin. ¡°But you don¡¯t have a sister.¡± Grey rubbed his head. ¡°Exactly.¡± 1049 Unreliable Information Grey and Klaus set out from the Moonlight Faction, heading in the direction of the Faction Reynolds was part of. It didn¡¯t take them long, after a few days of traveling, they got to the Faction. ¡­. Just like Klaus, Reynolds was highly valued in the Raiden Faction. ¡°You¡¯re lucky you came this time, I was about to head out for a mission.¡± Reynolds said while taking a sip of his tea. He encountered the duo on their way here and took them with him back to the Faction. Unlike Klaus¡¯ situation, he was more free and didn¡¯t have to bother too much about his friends who came to visit. His status was quite high, and he was already in the Sixth stage of the Sage Plane, but that was not where his true strength lies. His true strength lay in his Elemental Warrior that was already close to the Peak of the Sage Plane. The moment he breaks through to the Seventh stage, his Elemental Warrior would be at the Peak of the Sage Plane. Its strength would not be comparable to an ordinary Peak Sage Plane, rather, it would be on par with those unrivaled geniuses. Not on Grey¡¯s level, but close to the Prince of the Gnome¡¯s race level. ¡°You¡¯ve improved, no wonder you rarely have time to talk anymore.¡± Klaus said with a cold expression. Of all of them, other than Grey who was almost out of reach, the others were still somewhat reliable. However, some time back, Klaus and even Alice hadn¡¯t been able to speak to him as much as they did from the start. He already knew this would happen since they were all in different Factions, but he still felt a bit annoyed that he couldn¡¯t speak with his friends, just like before. ¡°When we reach the Elemental Sovereign Plane, then we can have all the time in the world, for now, we¡¯re still too weak.¡± Grey commented. ¡°It¡¯s easy for you to say, you don¡¯t have to worry about not being able to step out of your own manor. I, on the other hand, can¡¯t even leave the cultivation ground. I don¡¯t know if this is a blessing or a curse.¡± Klaus sighed in dejection. Reynolds couldn¡¯t help but ask, ¡°That bad?¡± ¡°He made a deal with his Faction Leader, he¡¯s only fulfilling his part of the deal.¡± Grey said with a nonchalant expression. Klaus felt even more aggrieved when he heard this, ¡°It¡¯s already been so long. The Mistress is just taking advantage of me. If I was strong enough, I would¡¯ve beaten her up.¡± ¡°Stop whining. You¡¯re already advancing so quickly, what is there to complain about? Do you know how many people are praying for an opportunity like yours?¡± Grey looked at Klaus, speechless. ¡°Let them come and have it then, I prefer my freedom.¡± Klaus replied. Grey almost wanted to beat the crap out of Klaus. If others heard this, they would beat him up as well. How could someone say that staying in a top Faction and being valued so much was a problem? He was even advancing at a fast pace, yet he was complaining because he couldn¡¯t go out. Grey had encountered people who didn¡¯t think twice and directly killed people, using their blood and life essence in a bid to advance, yet Klaus had so many resources and was complaining. ¡°Forget about him.¡± Reynolds didn¡¯t bother with Klaus anymore and turned to Grey with a serious expression, ¡°There¡¯s something I need to talk to you about.¡± ¡°Kill order?¡± Grey guessed what was on his mind. ¡°You know about it already?¡± Reynolds was surprised when he heard Grey ask about this. Grey nodded and told him the general situation of things. Reynolds couldn¡¯t help but feel regretful that he didn¡¯t go with Grey. If he had gone as well, he would¡¯ve been able to advance faster and even enjoy his time there. Grey sighed when he saw Reynolds¡¯ expression, it was just like that of Klaus, they all wanted to have fun. Although training was important, they felt that there was an opportunity to have fun in the process, so they didn¡¯t mind entertaining themselves. Of all of them, Alice was the only one who liked training almost as much as Grey, although she couldn¡¯t compare to him, in front of Reynolds and Klaus, she was still better off. Void was even worse, all he did was sleep and he would advance his stages. He rarely even trained elemental attacks. He seemed to wake up to new abilities every day, just like Grey. ¡°Where are you headed this time?¡± Grey asked Reynolds. Since Reynolds wanted to go on a mission, he didn¡¯t mind tagging along. It¡¯s been a while since they fought as a group. ¡°Yeah, where are you going?¡± Klaus also asked.please visit panda(-)N0ve1.co)m ¡°Well, there¡¯s a group of Magical Beasts destroying some towns and villages. According to what I know, the leader of these beasts is at the Peak of the Sage Plane¡­¡± Reynolds explained the situation to them. ¡°Let¡¯s go then. I don¡¯t have anything to do in the meantime.¡± Grey said. Klaus nodded in agreement as well. He was just like Grey, a little different since he lied to come here, but he was free for now. Reynolds didn¡¯t object to their proposal and readily agreed. He also wanted to spend some time with his friends. ¡­. Two weeks later. ¡°I thought you said only the leader was at the Peak?¡± Klaus complained as he was sent flying by a flying Magical Beast. This was no ordinary Magical Beast, it was a Winged Tiger. These beasts were not only powerful, but they were extremely difficult to deal with. That was not all, it was at the Peak of the Sixth Rank. Klaus was only in the Eighth stage of the Sage Plane. How could he fight against a Magical Beast at the Peak of the Sixth Rank? He was not the only one in a tough situation, even Reynolds was in a bad position as well. His expression didn¡¯t look too good. ¡®When I get back, I¡¯ll speak with the Elders. How can the information be so unreliable?!¡¯ He complained internally. Luckily, he met up with Grey and Klaus, if not, he would¡¯ve been in danger once he was crowded by these Magical Beasts. He was fighting against two Rank Six Magical Beasts, one at the Peak, and another in the Ninth stage. Fighting against one at the Peak was already his limit, yet he had to fight against another one in the Ninth stage as well. p AndD nOve1.cO,m Grey was the one who was relatively more relaxed, although he was surrounded by two Peak Sixth Rank Magical Beasts and others who were also in the Late stages. He didn¡¯t lose out, but he couldn¡¯t gain the advantage in a short time. One has to know that in terms of strength, a Peak Sixth Rank Magical Beast was stronger than its human counterpart in the same stage. If not for Grey¡¯s strength, he would¡¯ve already died. ¡°Stop complaining and fight. Aren¡¯t you the one who said you haven¡¯t tested your strength yet, well, here¡¯s your chance.¡± Grey said calmly. ¡°I didn¡¯t mean it against these guys. A Ninth stage Sixth Rank Magical Beast wouldn¡¯t be too bad.¡± Klaus replied, he soon thought of something and said, ¡°Why don¡¯t I bring this guy to you and handle one of those in the Late stages?¡± ¡°Dream on, I can still deal with two, three would be too much.¡± Grey replied. ¡°Why are you holding back, do you want to see us dead?¡± Klaus couldn¡¯t help but complain. They all knew how terrifying Grey was when fighting against multiple opponents, however, Grey was fighting against the Magical Beasts with his bare hands, not even using any elemental skill. This was the reason he was still entangled with them. ¡°What do you know?¡± Grey snorted, ¡°I don¡¯t want to expose myself. What if someone¡¯s watching from the side?¡± ¡°You know there¡¯s no one¡­ F*ck! I¡¯ll beat¡­¡± Klaus paused mid-sentence to curse when the Winged Tiger almost bit his head off. He was scared silly. Even after fighting for so long, he was scared of death. It can¡¯t be helped, he didn¡¯t want to die this young. ¡°Stop complaining and fight, it¡¯s not like you¡¯re not able to hold on for long, you¡¯re just being lazy.¡± Grey laughed when he saw Klaus¡¯ plight. The Winged Tiger seemed to be stronger than the other two Peak Sixth Rank Magical Beasts he was fighting against, this made life difficult for Klaus. Reynolds didn¡¯t even have the time to talk, focusing on the battle in front of him. He couldn¡¯t be careless like Klaus who was fighting against a single opponent. Klaus felt like beating Reynolds up. 1050 Unreliable Information II Klaus continued complaining as the battle raged on. Grey and Reynolds stopped speaking to him and focused on the battle in front of them. They couldn¡¯t be bothered with Klaus, this was his normal habit and they had gotten used to it. Void was watching the battle with interest on the side. He didn¡¯t want to get involved with battles of those in lower Ranks. His head was held high as he looked at the others smugly. I¡¯m already a Rank Seven Magical Beast, I can not be bothered with the likes of you. If not for Grey, he wouldn¡¯t even watch the battle. The only thing that piqued his interest was Reynolds¡¯ Elemental Warrior. It seemed to have grown stronger compared to the way it usually was. ¡®Hey, did that guy use any treasures for his Elemental Warrior?¡¯ He asked Grey telepathically as Grey fought. ¡®Most likely, it¡¯s strong. Fighting against a Peak Sixth Rank Magical Beast isn¡¯t something most geniuses in the Ninth stage can do.¡¯ Grey replied, after some time he added, ¡®It has always had the ability of fighting against those in higher stages. I just didn¡¯t think it would continue even in the Sage Plane.¡¯ Void didn¡¯t speak any further and looked at them as they fought. Reynolds was vicious, trading blows with the other Magical Beast, even though he was getting injured, he didn¡¯t seem to care about it. Klaus was fighting cunningly. He knew he was no match for his opponent, and started to retreat as he fought. A Peak Rank Six Magical Beast was already considered very smart, so it could understand all the curses Klaus was raining on it. It fought even more aggressively, trying to kill the hateful human in front of it. Klaus was very slippery, he would use his ice ability to the extreme, making sure even a Peak Sixth Rank Magical Beast had difficulties dealing with him. His defense had increased a lot compared to before and it wasn¡¯t weak when compared to a Peak Sage Plane Earth Elementalist¡¯s defense. If he really wanted to, he could hold on for a long time and the Beast would be unable to harm him. Unfortunately, his consumption was great. The heavy water was just too strong and it required a lot of essence. Klaus was fighting and cursing, Grey was using his fists to fight against his opponents. Unlike the others, he was the one who had more opponents to fight against. There were two Peak Rank Six Magical Beasts, and multiple Late stage Magical Beasts. If he was slightly careless, then he would be injured. An inscription lit up in the sky and one of the Peak Rank Six Magical Beasts was sent flying. It didn¡¯t expect Grey to do something like this, so it was caught off-guard. Grey wanted to capitalize on this and attack it, but the other one blocked his path, not giving him the chance he wanted. Grey smirked and to the surprise of the Magical Beast, he moved to the side and directly blasted one of the Late stage Sixth Rank Magical Beasts to death. The Magical Beast he killed didn¡¯t even know how it died. Grey hadn¡¯t used his elements to attack and only focused on his physical strength, but seeing how things were, he knew that if he delayed for too long, his friends might be injured. Klaus¡¯ eyes lit up when he saw this and he condensed a thin ice that he shot another Late stage Rank Six Magical Beast in Grey¡¯s circle. Before the beast could react, the ice pierced through its head and it died, instantly turning to ice.please visit panda(-)N0ve1.co)m Roar! Boom! The Winged Tiger that was fighting with Klaus was infuriated. The puny human it had been beating up dared to launch a sneak attack against one of its subordinates and even killed it in its presence. This was a disgrace to its title and it wanted to kill Klaus even more. Its aura spiked and the void shook as it moved. Its speed had exceeded what it was at the start of the battle as it charged at Klaus. Klaus was frightened when he saw this, he tossed an ice orb behind him which started to make ice rain before running. He didn¡¯t forget to curse at the Winged Tiger as well. Grey was impressed when he saw how Klaus was able to kill one of his opponents even when he was being oppressed by the Winged Tiger. ¡®He¡¯s grown fast, although he can¡¯t use his full strength, he¡¯s not to be trifled with.¡¯ Grey accessed internally. p-A- n-d-A-n-0-v-e-1¡¢(c)om One of the most frightening thing about this attack was its speed. Even a Peak Sage Plane Elementalist might not be able to outclass it. Reynolds was invigorated when he saw this. ¡®Damn it! They¡¯ve killed a Magical Beast, and I¡¯m still here.¡¯ He wanted to kill one of the Magical Beasts he was fighting against, but he knew that if he acted carelessly, then he would be in danger. Klaus laughed in delight and continued taunting the Winged Tiger. This time, he was going to make sure it suffered a loss if it dared to attack him again. The Winged Tiger was already furious, seeing that Klaus was taunting it, it roared in fury and attacked. Wind blades shot at Klaus. Klaus hastily raised an ice wall, but after being struck by so many wind blades, it started to fall apart. ¡®Damn! So powerful!¡¯ He exclaimed in his heart. He was not a match for the Winged Tiger, all he could do now was to hope that Grey or Reynolds took care of their opponents in time and rush over to help him. 1051 Youre Too Strong Klaus kept running in circles, making sure he wasn¡¯t captured by the Winged Tiger. Grey saw his situation and decided to hurry with the Beasts he was fighting against. It wouldn¡¯t be nice if Klaus were to be injured or killed due to his delay. He switched places with one of the Beasts that was in a crowded place about twenty meters away from him. The Beasts were shocked when they saw that the person they were fighting against suddenly changed to one of their companions. One of the Beasts at the Peak of the Sixth Rank was the first to notice that Grey was now standing among them in the sky. The Beast Grey switched places with is one of the few close to the Peak, and it was also stationed close to the two Peak Rank Six Magical Beasts. After appearing, Grey exploded with a powerful attack, sending out three different elemental attacks. He first used the darkness element to shoot a stream of dark essence in the direction of the two Peak Rank Six beasts, before using the fire element to attack them. He ended the attack with the water element. Since the darkness elemental attack was the first to reach there, it quickly corroded the defenses of the two Peak Rank Six and the others close to him. The fire elemental attack hit them the same time the darkness elemental attack touched them, the only difference was that there was a slight delay. After being hit by the fire elemental attack, the water elemental attack followed suit. It encased the beasts in a bubble and ice shards formed on the bubble and attacked the Beasts inside. Other than the two at the Peak, the others were quickly injured by the attack since not only had the darkness element corroded their tough skins, the fire element had also done some damage. With the sharp attack of the ice shards, they could only beg for their lives. They roared in pain as the ice shards pierced through their flesh. Within a second, their bodies were covered with blood. The two at the were fortunate and managed to escape from the bubble. The others were not as strong as they were, so they couldn¡¯t react as fast. The two at the Peak looked at Grey with hate in their eyes. Not just hate, but there was a hint of fear. Within two seconds, Grey had defeated such a large group. If they weren¡¯t afraid before, they were now. When the attack died down, other than one Magical Beast, the others died from the attack. Just when the Magical Beast was about to heave a sigh of relief, an array appeared before it and blasted a bolt of lightning at its head. It didn¡¯t even have the chance to move before its head was blasted off. The two at the Peak exchanged glances and without a word, they fled in two different directions. The Magical Beast at the Ninth stage that Grey switched positions with looked at everything in dread. Just when it wanted to ask for orders, it noticed the two Peak Magical Beasts had made a run for it. It fled the moment it saw this. Grey didn¡¯t bother with the two Magical Beasts that were trying to escape, and attacked the Ninth stage Magical Beast in front of him. The Magical Beast felt a powerful attack coming towards it and it tried to increase its speed. Unfortunately, it was unable to and dropped to the ground after the attack disappeared. The two Peak Sixth Rank Magical Beasts that escaped from Grey suddenly reappeared in the position they were previously standing on. With Void here, these Beasts should forget about leaving this area. After they reappeared, a confused look appeared on their faces, they looked around, a little lost. They were snapped back to reality when they sensed a threat coming towards them. Grey shot through the sky, aiming for one of the two Beasts at the Peak. He attacked the one who was a Fire Elemental Magical Beast. The other one had a tough defense since it was an Earth Elemental Magical Beast. The other one didn¡¯t try to help its compatriot and immediately tried to flee. Now that it noticed that they appeared in front of the fiend that wanted to kill them, it didn¡¯t hesitate to try to escape. The other Magical Beast knew it was not faster than Grey¡¯s attack, so it attacked as well. This was the only way it could defend itself. Boom! A large explosion rang out and the Beast fell to the ground. Grey took advantage of this and appeared close to it, striking its head with a powerful attack. The Beast died instantly. When Grey attacked it, he directly destroyed its core, so it died instantly. The other Magical Beast appeared once again, when it saw this, its eyes were filled with despair and unwillingness. Its eyes soon turned cold and it charged at Grey. It knew it couldn¡¯t escape, so it would fight with all its might. ¡­. While this Beast was fighting for its life with Grey, Klaus was still being pursued.please visit panda(-)N0ve1.co)m Seeing Grey kill one of the two Peak Rank Six Magical Beasts he was fighting with, he yelled at the Beast chasing after him, ¡°Go and attack him, can¡¯t you see that he¡¯s stronger than I am?¡± The Winged Tiger didn¡¯t even move its head, it hated Klaus and wanted to kill him, but fear was slowly coming. Grey had killed one of the two Peak Rank Six Magical Beasts, although they were not as strong as it was, it knew that if he fought against the two of them, it would be difficult for it to kill any of them, yet Grey did it so quickly. It hesitated for a slight second before continuing his charge towards Klaus. It would try to kill this human in front of it, and escape. ¡°Stupid Tiger, go fight someone else!¡± Klaus cursed when he saw the Winged Tiger chasing after him with an increased speed. He tossed a ball of ice that exploded behind him as he fled for his life. Just when he was getting happy that he was getting away from the Tiger, he was returned to his initial position. Void¡¯s domain covered a large area and it was also effective against his friends. So when Klaus ran past the edge of the domain, he was sent back. The Winged Tiger that was behind him also experienced the same thing, but it used the momentum to charge at the stunned Klaus. Void sensed this and changed Klaus¡¯ position, helping him dodge the attack of the Winged Tiger. When Klaus regained himself, he was frightened, ¡°F*ck you Rey!¡± If not for the wrong information Reynolds received, they wouldn¡¯t be in this plight. He couldn¡¯t help but sigh when he saw Grey had only one opponent left. Grey was just too strong. ¡°Thanks Void!¡± He yelled before running away again. He knew that Void was the one who helped him to dodge the attack. ¡­. On Reynolds¡¯ end when he heard Klaus curse at him, his expression darkened. He was also finding this mission difficult. ¡°Those hateful people!¡± He complained and fought. Time passed and some minutes later, Grey had killed the other Peak Magical He helped the others and they killed all the Magical Beasts within a few more minutes. ¡°Rey, what the hell!¡± Klaus complained when they got back. ¡°What? I¡¯m not the one who issued the mission, how would I know that the information is not correct?¡± Reynolds complained. Grey looked at them and said, ¡°We¡¯ve already completed it, there¡¯s no need to fight over the false information.¡± p AndD nOve1.cO,m Grey laughed and replied, ¡°I have a large variety of attacking options, with multiple elements, I can easily adjust when fighting, taking full advantage of it.¡± Klaus nodded when he heard this, although Grey¡¯s attack power was strong, it wasn¡¯t to the extent where he could kill these Beasts so easily. It all lied on his elements. ¡°I wish I had more elements though, it would¡¯ve been crazy.¡± Klaus sighed while staring at Grey. ¡°Aren¡¯t we taking the beasts and their cores back?¡± Klaus asked when he saw that Reynolds was about to leave them. ¡°They¡¯re useless.¡± While saying this, Reynolds took a glance at Grey. Grey attacked the cores of the Magical Beasts, shattering it. Without the core, the beast was not that important. ¡°Let¡¯s cook one of the beasts, it¡¯s been a while since I ate your food.¡± Reynolds suggested. Klaus had no objections to this and neither did Grey. Grey soon got to work and before long, the nice aroma of well cooked and garnished meat spread out. After some time, the delighted voices of Klaus and Reynolds spread out. They could never get tired of eating Grey¡¯s food. 1052 Heading Over To See Alice Grey, Klaus and Reynolds used the opportunity to catch up. Grey used this time to hear more about how they¡¯ve been living since they separated, he listened to Reynolds more since he had met up with Klaus before heading to the Middle Continent. Unlike Klaus, Reynolds had been very busy, going from one mission to another. Even though he had an Elemental Warrior that could help him fight above his regular stage, he wasn¡¯t as fortunate as Klaus who was overly valued in the Moonlight Faction. In fact, in the Raiden Faction, he wasn¡¯t the only one who was a high grade summoner. Of the members of the Raiden Faction, a new recruit in the Arcane Plane was also a high grade summoner. Reynolds had always been hardworking, especially after he became friends with Grey and the supremely lucky Klaus. Alice was also hardworking, just like Grey. With the pressure of how quickly Grey advanced, all three of them seemed to have entered a period of rapid growth as well. Of all four friends, Grey was the one who trained the most, after Grey, the next person was surprisingly not Alice or Reynolds, rather, it was the always carefree looking Klaus who trained the most. When he first became friends with Grey and the others, he was soon influenced, especially with how fast Grey started to advance. He felt pressured when Grey inched closer to him in terms of strength each day and trained harder than he previously did. ¡­. ¡°You guys have good stories.¡± Klaus sighed in depression. All he had been doing was sit and cultivate in a garden. ¡°Good stories? We¡¯ve almost died multiple times!¡± Reynolds snapped when he heard Klaus say good stories. In some of his missions, he was beaten until he fell into a coma. If not for a life-saving treasure he managed to obtain, he would¡¯ve died as well. ¡°Those are thrilling, all I¡¯ve done is sit and cultivate. If not for the occasional spars I have with some of my friends in the Faction, I don¡¯t think I would¡¯ve been able to remember what it means to fight.¡± Klaus looked a bit dejected when he said this. Grey laughed while Reynolds sneered and said, ¡°As if you¡¯re not enjoying your time there?¡± Klaus shook his head, at first when he thought of joining an all-girls Faction, he thought he would enjoy his time there while also getting stronger. But now, seeing so many beauties, he got a bit numb to it. Grey burst out laughing when he heard this, he could see the pains in Klaus¡¯ eyes. ¡°How do you guys think Alice is doing?¡± Klaus suddenly asked. Reynolds and Grey stared at him. ¡°I don¡¯t think she¡¯ll be doing bad. Remember she has a Seelie with her.¡± Reynolds replied. Grey also nodded, with a Seelie, she would advance faster and quickly improve her strength as well. ¡°Let¡¯s go see her.¡± Klaus suggested, it had been a while since they saw Alice. Grey nodded when he heard this. Reynolds paused for a while before saying, ¡°I¡¯ll have to report my mission first.¡± They didn¡¯t disagree with this and before long, Reynolds reported his mission and they all headed out. Alice joined the Asterope Faction, so that was their destination. ¡­. Some days later. The group were in a town, they were getting closer to the Asterope Faction. Just like the Moonlight Faction and the Raiden Faction, the Asterope Faction was also located in this Region, but the distance was not small. ¡°Do you think she¡¯ll be there as well?¡± Klaus asked Reynolds who was sitting down close to him. ¡°Probably.¡± Reynolds replied. Grey also nodded as well. Just when they were about to head to the area of the Asterope Faction, they heard that the Asterope Faction was having a friendly spar with an opposing Faction. Alice enjoyed battles, so she would want to participate in such a friendly spar. Since both Factions were rivals, there have been times where some people were killed. Such a spar was not a normal spar, but deadly to the extreme. Grey knew that with Alice¡¯s personality, she would definitely appear there. ¡°Then let¡¯s go, we¡¯ve been here for too long.¡± Klaus stood up. Grey and Reynolds laughed but stood up and followed as well. Klaus hated the town the moment they stepped in and had been urging them to leave. ¡­. Kilometers away from the town the trio stopped by. At the top of a mountain. ¡°Hmph! It¡¯s just a small scratch, she will definitely win.¡± A voice said. The voice belonged to an Old man who was staring at the platform below him. He was a member of the Asterope Faction. In the platform, Alice could be seen fighting against an Eighth stage Sage Plane Elementalist. She was still in the Sixth stage, but she was holding her own against someone in the Eighth stage.please visit panda(-)N0ve1.co)m The young man in front of her was a Wind Elementalist. ¡°You should give up, I don¡¯t know why they would send such a weakling to fight against me.¡± the Wind Elementalist said in an arrogant manner. Alice looked at the arrogant figure before her and stared at the slash in her left arm. If she reacted a second slower, she might¡¯ve been killed with a single attack. ¡°You think you¡¯re special because of that stupid thing?¡± The Wind Elementalist sneered and attacked again. p-n0ve1¡¢com A lightning struck after Alice was covered by the Wind Elemementalist¡¯s attack. The twister shattered while Alice¡¯s figure shot out, dodging the wind blades. The lightning strike didn¡¯t stop there as it shot toward the young man. The Wind Elementalist dodged the attack and also attacked. Alice blocked the attack with an ice dome and countered with fire arrows almost at the same time the Wind Elementalist attacked. The fire arrows shot at the Wind Elementalist. The Wind Elementalist just finished attacking and the fire arrows appeared within a short time he attacked. A wind screen appeared on the body of the Wind Elementalist, but it cracked and he was sent flying. The Wind Elementalist stabilized himself and looked at Alice, a little shocked. He never expected that she would be able to hit him. ¡°Interesting, I¡¯ll stop playing now.¡± He snorted and attacked again. The suction force dragged Alice into a twister that was formed in front of her. Alice didn¡¯t dare to enter like that and covered her body with both the ice and a lightning defensive wall. When she entered the twister, multiple slashes appeared on the body of the defensive walls she set up, even the first one was starting to crack. She gritted her teeth and suddenly stopped struggling with the twister, instead, she shot to the center, following the suction force. Her defensive walls could hold out for some time, but it wouldn¡¯t be able to help her if she stayed in the place for too long. She was trying to go against the suction force, but now, she went with it and with her speed, she managed to get to the other side before her second defensive wall broke apart. After leaving the twister, she appeared in front of the Wind Elementalist and attacked. The Wind Elementalist dodged to the side and attacked. Alice retreated and before people knew it, they had exchanged a few hundred moves. Alice was fast, just like the Wind Elementalist, but she was a little lacking in terms of strength. The Wind Elementalist had the upper hand in this exchange. Alice managed to hold out against him, but she was forced back repeatedly. ¡°You¡¯re wasting your time, go back and save yourself the humiliation.¡± He sneered. Alice didn¡¯t bother with his taunts and attacked once again. She was not one who liked speaking when fighting. The Wind Elementalist snorted and attacked again. The Seelie appeared behind the Wind Elementalist and attacked. The Wind Elementalist sensed the attack a little late and was sent flying. His original attack just collided with Alice¡¯s attack and it destroyed it. ¡®Damned thing!¡¯ He cursed internally. Alice took advantage of the opportunity and attacked again. The Wind Elementalist was sent flying in his direction, so wouldn¡¯t be able to dodge the attack coming his way. The lightning bolt struck the head of the Wind Elementalist and he crashed to the ground. Before his figure hit the ground, a tornado sprang up and covered him. Alice wanted to continue attacking, but she paused. A long spear made of the wind element shot at Grey. This wind spear looked solidified. Alice recalled the Seelie to help with its ice ability. Boom! The ice spear hit the ice dome that cracks spread out with frightening speed. The ice dome shattered within a second. Alice¡¯s body was covered with lightning and she inched to the side. The ice spear missed her head by a slight margin. 1053 Everyones Adventuring Except Me! p-n0ve1¡¢com The Wind Elementalist was forced a few steps back, but he managed to shrug off the attack and once again charged at Alice. ¡­ While Alice and the Wind Elementalist were still facing off, three figures walked to the top of the mountain. ¡°She¡¯s here.¡± Grey said while they were still ascending the mountain. ¡°How did you know?¡± Klaus asked curiously. He tried sensing, but he didn¡¯t sense the aura of Alice, and the mountaintop was still a long way away. ¡°Remember this?¡± Grey flipped his palm and a wooden plaque appeared on his palm. It was the communication device he created the last time. Originally, he had forgotten about this feature, but after they got to this place, he recalled it and used it. Klaus and Reynolds showed a look of realization on their faces, they had also forgotten that Grey had this thing with him. ¡°That¡¯s quite useful. Why don¡¯t you make some for me?¡± Klaus asked with a smile. ¡°It¡¯s too tiring, I can¡¯t make more for now.¡± Grey shook his head. He knew how long it took him to make this one. Although he already knew the method to create this thing, it wasn¡¯t easy. It took a large toll on his spiritual energy. Whenever he makes it, he would be exhausted from the long work. Klaus shook his head in disappointment, ¡°Just remember to make one for me later. You can use that thing you use to send uncle Chris meals to send it to me.¡± Grey thought about it for some time and nodded. With his current situation, he didn¡¯t want to waste too much of his energy in case he was ambushed. He had a kill order on his head, and with the rewards that were offered, some humans wouldn¡¯t mind killing him. Humans might not be on good terms with the Gnomes, but it didn¡¯t mean they wouldn¡¯t do business together. Before long, they appeared at the top of the mountain. When they got there, they were stopped by two youths that were standing guard. ¡°Outsiders are not allowed to enter at the moment.¡± One of the youths said with a cold snort. ¡°Who says we¡¯re outsiders?¡± Klaus snorted. ¡°You¡¯re not wearing either uniform of both Factions, leave now, we won¡¯t tell you again.¡± The other youth said with a cold expression. Klaus was about to talk back when Grey placed his hand on his shoulder, ¡°Our friend is part of the Asterope Faction, we only came to see her.¡±please visit panda(-)N0ve1.co)m ¡°Oh, your friend is part of us. What¡¯s her name?¡± One of the youths said, his voice wasn¡¯t as cold as before. ¡°Who cares if she¡¯s a member of your Faction? No one other than the people from the two Factions is allowed to enter.¡± The other youth said, his tone firm. Klaus glanced at him coldly. ¡®I¡¯d like to beat him up.¡¯ He thought to himself, but he didn¡¯t speak. Grey didn¡¯t even spare the youth a glance, he was only focused on the member of the Asterope Faction. ¡°Her name¡¯s Alice, she has a Seelie.¡± He replied. ¡°You¡¯re friends with Alice?¡± The youth asked, a little surprised. ¡°Yes.¡± Grey nodded with a smile. ¡°I¡¯m sorry, but according to the rules, others are not allowed inside. Luckily, the sparring contest is almost over. She will be out soon.¡± The youth said. In the Asterope Faction, almost every single person knew Alice. Having a Seelie made her unique. Not just the Seelie, but when she fought against someone on the same stage as herself, without the help of the Seelie, she was still able to completely dominate her opponent. Originally, some people felt dissatisfied thinking that she was getting special treatments because of her Seelie, only after they tested her strength did they know that she was not just special because of her Seelie, she was naturally a genius. She was also known for her crazy speed in advancing and training. While the youth thought about these, he couldn¡¯t help but take a glance at Grey and the others. When he sensed that other than Reynolds, the others were already in the Late stages of the Sage Plane he couldn¡¯t help but shake his head. Geniuses always befriend geniuses. He was currently almost thirty and only broke through to the Fifth stage of the Sage Plane not long ago, but Grey and the others didn¡¯t seem to be over twenty-five, but they were already in the Late stages. He looked at Reynolds and felt that he shouldn¡¯t take him for granted as well. Even though he was in the Sixth stage, there might be something special about him. Grey nodded, he knew Factions didn¡¯t allow outsiders to watch them when they were sparring, especially against a rival. He motioned to the others and they went to the side. Klaus soon started to speak with the young man from the Asterope Faction. The reason he didn¡¯t speak at first was due to the fact that he was annoyed with the tone that they spoke to him, after finding out that he was someone from Alice¡¯s Faction, he spoke with him, asking him how Alice was doing in the Faction. The young man spoke with him, telling him all about Alice¡¯s time in the Faction. Although she rarely appeared and only focused on training, she was one of the most outstanding members in the younger generation. She had been advancing so quickly that the Faction Leader had even started to pay close attention to her. She had also completed a series of difficult missions as well. ¡®Everyone¡¯s going out for missions, except for me.¡¯ Klaus was once again depressed when he heard that Alice had gone out a few times. Even though he wasn¡¯t told the details of the missions, he was certain that she would¡¯ve at least experienced an amazing adventure just like Grey and Reynolds. 1054 Trade Center Klaus spoke with the young man for a while, and before they knew it, an hour went by. ¡°They are done.¡± The young man said with a smile when he saw people walking out from the place behind him. Just when Klaus was about to speak, his mouth opened wide. The large arena behind them floated into the air and started to shrink before disappearing in the blink of an eye. ¡®A treasure!¡¯ He exclaimed internally. He was not the only one whose attention was drawn to this, Grey and Reynolds also turned to look at it in awe, Void¡¯s eyes glowed, but he didn¡¯t make a move. There were people here who were standing than he was, if he dared to try to snatch their treasure, then he would be courting death. They stayed in the same spot, and when others from the Asterope and the other Faction came closer, they didn¡¯t spare them a glance. Alice noticed them early and walked over. ¡°Alice, I can see you¡¯re doing well.¡± Grey said with a smile. ¡°It¡¯s nice to see you too, Grey.¡± Alice hugged him before turning to Klaus and Reynolds. Void who was previously sitting on Grey¡¯s head vanished and appeared in Alice¡¯s arms. ¡°Void, it¡¯s been a while.¡± She chuckled. Void preferred it when she carried him rather than being with Grey. Grey didn¡¯t say anything about Void ditching him for Alice, he was already used to it. For some reason, he noticed that Void seemed to like it when he was carried by girls more. ¡°Your essence seems to be unstable.¡± Grey said while giving Alice a deep look. ¡°I overexerted myself in the competition just now, I¡¯ll be fine once I get some rest.¡± Alice replied, a little shocked. One of the Elders had also told her this after her battle some time ago, but that was a figure in the Elemental Sovereign Plane, the fact that Grey noticed it was out of her expectations. Just as they were still talking, the Wind Elementalist Alice was previously fighting against walked over. ¡°Planning your revenge with some weaklings?¡± The Wind Elementalist asked arrogantly. He defeated Alice in the battle and even managed to injure her, she was fortunate and managed to escape with her life. Of course, he wasn¡¯t unscathed, but his condition was far better than hers. ¡°You are?¡± Klaus raised a brow. ¡°I¡¯m K¡­¡± ¡°I don¡¯t care who you are, now get lost.¡± Klaus scolded, not even giving the Wind Elementalist to introduce himself. Alice and the others burst out laughing, even some of the members of the Asterope Faction laughed when they saw this. The face of the Wind Elementalist changed when he heard this. He wanted to spoil Alice¡¯s mood since he saw her laughing with her friends after he beat her, but who would¡¯ve thought that Klaus would humiliate him? ¡°Hmph!¡± He snorted and left. pAnD a(-)n0ve1.com Staying here would only bring more humiliation, since the competition was over, there was no need in trying to provoke those from the Asterope Faction. ¡°Hey, you said revenge, why would she want to take revenge against you?¡± Grey asked with a thoughtful expression.please visit panda(-)N0ve1.co)m The Wind Elementalist paused and turned to look at Grey, ¡°I beat her up, that¡¯s why.¡± His voice was loud and arrogant. They won the sparring contest, so they had the right to be proud. ¡°Oh okay. You can go now.¡± Grey didn¡¯t bother with him anymore. He thought it was something serious, but since it was a competition, it was normal for him to beat Alice if he was stronger. The young man paused, he didn¡¯t expect they wouldn¡¯t retaliate. With a shake of his head, he threw a disdainful look at them, and after muttering to himself, he left. Grey focused on Alice and they continued speaking as they left. ¡°Who has that treasure?¡± Klaus couldn¡¯t help himself, he wanted to know who had the arena. ¡°The arena?¡± Alice asked. Klaus nodded, Grey and Reynolds also showed some interest in it. ¡°It¡¯s the Faction Leader.¡± Alice replied after seeing them stare at her. When she said this, she could see the disappointment in their eyes. Klaus even muttered ¡®a shame¡¯. She couldn¡¯t help but laugh. It can¡¯t be that these guys were thinking of stealing it. Grey might not have such thoughts, and Reynolds might find it interesting, but Klaus and Void were different, Klaus liked things like this. One thing about the treasure was that it could take on different shapes, even a house. If Klaus had something like this, he would show it off to the world. ¡°We should go back to the city.¡± She suggested. ¡­. ¡°You all have been having a great time.¡± Klaus said, his tone sounding like someone who was complaining. Alice had heard of how he was locked up in the Moonlight Faction from Grey, so she knew why he was aggrieved. They continued speaking for a while before Alice suggested they went on a trip. It had been a while since they all traveled together. They knew that after this gathering, it might take a long time before they see each other again, so they wanted to take advantage of this. The others agreed readily and after Alice reported to the Faction, she came back and they left the city that night. According to Alice, there was an interesting place close to the edge of the region. This place was connected to a small world, and it was open to everyone. There were trades that went on there and it can be chaotic at times. ¡­. A week later. The group appeared in front of a busy town. They saw almost Planes of Elementalists, except for Elemental Sovereigns, they even saw Elemental Venerables occasionally flashing past. ¡°This place must have a lot of things.¡± Grey commented. ¡°It¡¯s a trade center, you can get all kinds of stuff there.¡± Alice said. Only now did the others understand why it was so occupied. With a trade center that was connected to a small world, it was bound to attract people. 1055 You Cant Refuse Grey and his friends didn¡¯t spend any time in the town, they quickly entered the portal leading to the small world. When they got there, Grey looked around before saying. ¡°Is there an auction or something?¡± This was his first time here, so he naturally didn¡¯t know anything about the place. Alice nodded and replied, ¡°Yes, they occasionally host auctions. I believe an auction should be held tonight.¡± Hearing Alice¡¯s reply, Grey nodded. He forgot to ask his father for help with the matter of Arya¡¯s brother, so he decided to try to see if he could get a treasure that helped with spiritual damage. As long as he managed to get something like this, he wouldn¡¯t need his father¡¯s help any more. When they entered the place, there was two days before the next auction would be taking place. Since Grey was interested in the auction, the others waited for him. Alice felt they might need something, hence she introduced the place to them. Klaus and Reynolds showed little to no interest, Grey on the other hand asked if he could find what he was looking for. It didn¡¯t take long to confirm that there would be an appearance of such an item in a few hours during the auction. The group waited for two days and the auction started as usual. Alice took Grey and the others to the place reserved for the Asterope Faction. Before long, the auction was about to start. The person who stepped on stage first was a middle-aged man who was in the Elemental Venerable Plane. ¡°Laidies and gentlemen, welcome to this month¡¯s monthly auction. As usual, the items will be given to the highest bidders.¡± The middle-aged man said a few words and the auction started officially. The first item to appear was a pill that helped those in the Overlord Plane get enlightenment and break through to the Sage Plane. Some people are unable to break through on their own and require help from external forces. A pill like this was exactly what they needed to aid their breakthrough to the Sage Plane. Grey and his friends didn¡¯t need such an item, so they didn¡¯t bother too much with it. After this item, the next item to appear was a legendary item, but it was only useful for those in the Elemental Venerable Plane. The few Elemental Venerables that were in the hall bid for it and after a long hassling, one female Elemental Sovereign managed to obtain it. The other Elemental Venerables were a bit annoyed, but there was nothing they could do. The item was already overpriced, and going any higher would put them in a tough position. The item that was up for sale next were the bones of a Peak Sage Plane Magical Beast. If the bones of such a beast was made into an elemental weapon, then it¡¯s strength would be improved. If used by a Sage Plane Elementalist, the overall power of the person would increase by at least five percent. The compatability of the weapon depends on the element of the beast and the human using it as a weapon. If both were of the same element, then the attack power would increase and see an increase that was at most half of the original attack power. Those who didn¡¯t have a good connection with the weapon would see a twenty or sixty percent increase. It mainly depends on the comparability of the Elementalist. The item sold for a staggering ten thousand elemental stones. Elemental stones were stones that had managed to accumulate a large amount of elemental essence. Elemental stones are divided into three grade, low, mid, and high grade. The level of these elemental stones were all top notch, meaning they were all in the high grade. Staring at his storage ring, they found out that there were treasures that could only be used in the Elemental Sovereign Plane. What they found annoying was what such a secret was doing in the body of a security personnel. They soon found out that the man was part of the few people who received Elemental Venerables. Seeing that this person received an important customer, he took his place after taking him out, he served the Elemental Venerable and made sure they were in good health. He used the opportunity to take a good spot and see the area. This was a golden opportunity for him, so he also got a good spot and also managed to get a good place amongst all the places. Seeing the treasures, Grey didn¡¯t make any moves. Just as the auction was still going on, Alice made a move for an item. It was an ice elemental them. As long as the Seelie took it, it would help it advance, increasing her own stage as well. When she was about to get the item, another secret room made a move for the item. Something originally valued at five thousand essence stones shot to well over fifty thousand because of this person. Alice gritted her teeth and decided to make one last bid. ¡°Don¡¯t worry, fold.¡± Before she could make it, she heard Grey¡¯s voice in her ear. With an annoyed expression on her face, she didn¡¯t try to make any other bid for the item. In the secret room, the figure there was a little stunned. ¡°I thought she needed this urgently? What the hell?!¡± The figure complained when he saw that Alice gave up on it. He only wanted to make sure Alice bought the item at an exorbitant amount. With Grey¡¯s involvement, Alice didn¡¯t need to pay that amount, but would still get the item.please visit panda(-)N0ve1.co)m Some time passed and the item Grey wanted appeared. It was something that helped spiritual senses. It was originally valued at ten thousand elemental stones. Within the space of a minute, it shot up to over one hundred thousand elemental stones. Even if all Grey had been doing was accumulating wealth all this while, there was no way he had that amount. Thinking of this, he gave up on this and tried to see where the person who bought the item from was located. It was surprisingly another person, not the person they managed to trick for the item Alice wanted. They were soon caught in a dilemma, which of the people they would go after. Since Alice needed the item that boosted ice abilities, it was alright to take the item from the person who bought it. But with Arya¡¯s brother in a coma, Grey¡¯s item seemed to be more important. Alice agreed to them heading in the direction of the person who kept Grey¡¯s item, the reason was because she knew she could grow stronger even without that. The only reason she felt pressured was due to the fact that Grey and Reynolds¡¯ Elemental Warrior were already at the Peak. Klaus wasn¡¯t at the Peak, and so long as she cultivated diligently, she would get there. Of course, using such treasures weren¡¯t condemned. ¡­. ¡°Leave the item behind and you can leave.¡± Grey¡¯s cold voice rang out. They had managed to stop the person who bought the item for spiritual senses, but the person didn¡¯t have any plans of cooperating. ¡°In your dreams.¡± The person sneered. Even if Grey wanted to exchange something for it, this young man had no plans in exchanging for it. Grey¡¯s expression was cold as he looked at the young man, ¡°Then you will die.¡± ¡°You haven¡¯t been able to kill me, do I look like I¡¯m afraid of you?¡± The young man snorted and attacked. This was the second time Grey attacked him, but he was able to escape from Grey¡¯s first attack unscathed. This time, he knew that it would be almost impossible to repeat the same feat. But he was already at the Peak of the Sage Plane, Grey was not his match, or so he thought. Before he could attack, Grey¡¯s aura spiked and it not only rivaled his, but it also overwhelmed it. pA n,dan(-)0ve1.c0m The expression of the young man changed drastically when he sensed this. He was covered in the lightning and wind element and escaped. Grey¡¯s figure started to fade, he had already teleported from the spot, but the speed made it seem like he was still standing there. Grey blocked the path of the young man, making sure he wasn¡¯t able to escape. Boom! They exchanged a blow and the young man was forced to take a step back. ¡°What do you want?¡± He asked coldly. ¡°You already know. Hand it over, and I¡¯ll be nice.¡± Grey said. ¡°I paid for it.¡± The young man replied, unwilling to let Grey have it so easily. ¡°I know. I¡¯ll hand you some treasures as well.¡± Grey said. The young man asked for the treasures, but when he heard them, his face turned dark. ¡°No deal.¡± He said coldly. ¡°Do you think you¡¯re in a position to refuse?¡± Grey was amused. If not for the fact that he didn¡¯t want it to seem like he was bullying the other party, he would¡¯ve already attacked. 1056 He Can, But You Cant ¡°This¡­ I can¡¯t give it to you. You might be stronger than me, but don¡¯t think you can kill me.¡± The young man¡¯s expression was unsightly. ¡°Look, I¡¯m not a fan of doing this as well, if not, I¡¯d try to kill you and take it. I have some things here that I wouldn¡¯t mind exchanging it for.¡± Grey said coolly. If the young man didn¡¯t agree to his request, then he would forcefully take it. This was something that might be able to help Arya¡¯s brother, he still didn¡¯t know if his father would be able to help yet, so he had to be prepared for the worst. The young man looked at Grey, his expression was cold. Just when he was about to give the item up, he froze and looked in a particular direction. ¡°Hehe, looks like you¡¯re not the only one who wants the item.¡± He laughed when he sensed the aura of three more people, all of them were at the Peak of the Sage Plane. He felt that as long as they joined their strength, they would be able to defeat Grey. When appearing here, Grey told the others to wait for him, and that he would go alone. Alice suggested that they went after the person who got the item she wanted. The others agreed to it, they also wanted to have some fun. ¡°Even if ten more people come, I¡¯ll still defeat them. While I¡¯m still in a good mood, you should hand it over.¡± Grey¡¯s eyes turned cold when he said this. The young man wanted to use others against him. In his dreams! Three figures appeared, wearing black cloaks and their faces were covered. Seeing Grey and the young man, one of them said coldly, ¡°You two, drop your storage ring and buzz off.¡± They had the number advantage, and other than Grey who looked to be a threat, the other young man doesn¡¯t seem to be a problem. They felt they could deal with him easily. Grey snorted but didn¡¯t say anything. The young man laughed and said, ¡°He¡¯s trying to kill me, take him out, and I¡¯ll give it to you.¡± ¡°Do we look like your servants? Drop your storage ring or I¡¯ll take it, along with your life.¡± The leader of the group said coldly. The face of the young man changed drastically, he thought he would be able to use these people to deter Grey. Only now did he understand that it was just his wishful thinking. Grey chuckled mockingly, darting a glance at the young man, ¡°Do you agree to my deal or theirs?¡± The young man was conflicted for a while before saying, ¡°I need it for my father, I¡¯d rather die than lose it. This thing cost me everything I have, I will not give it up so easily.¡± ¡°You do know that dying is not going to make your father any better, right?¡± Grey asked with a weird look. Where the hell did this young man get his understanding of things from, why would he rather die than lose something he could probably get again? The young man wanted to respond but froze, thinking about it, if he died, he wouldn¡¯t get any chance to save his father anymore. ¡°If I give it to you, will you help me?¡± He said through gritted teeth. Grey thought about it for some time before sighing, ¡°Don¡¯t worry, you can keep it.¡± p-n0ve1¡¢com The face of the young man changed drastically, if Grey didn¡¯t agree to help him, then he would not only lose the item, but he might also die as well. ¡°Please, I don¡¯t mind giving it to you, honestly.¡± The young man said in panic.please visit panda(-)N0ve1.co)m The group were already advancing toward him with killing intent around them, it was clear that they wanted to kill him. Grey shook his head with a sigh then said, ¡°You can keep it, I¡¯ll help you. I was the one who delayed you in the first place.¡± After leaving the auction house, the young man ran quickly, disappearing from view, but with Grey¡¯s speed, it was impossible for the young man to escape from him. The young man was surprised when he heard this, Grey wanted to rob him from the start, yet he changed his mind all of a sudden. ¡®Could it be because I said that it was for my father?¡¯ The young man thought to himself. When he said this, he wasn¡¯t lying, but he didn¡¯t believe Grey would believe so easily. The fact that Grey didn¡¯t try to kill him already told him of Grey¡¯s character. ¡°Thank you.¡± He hurriedly thanked him. ¡°Don¡¯t thank me, can you handle one of them?¡± Grey asked. He didn¡¯t have a problem with fighting all three of them, but he didn¡¯t want to show too much of his strength. Besides, the young man should fight since he was the one who got the item in the end. ¡°Piece of cake.¡± The young man replied. ¡°Alright, then I shall leave the leader to you. I¡¯ll take care of the other two.¡± Grey said. ¡°Will you be¡­¡± The young man didn¡¯t finish his sentence before Grey¡¯s figure vanished. Boom! A blinding light burst out in front of him, followed by an explosion. ¡°You dare?!¡± An enraged roar was heard. ¡°Of course, what can you do about it?¡± Grey¡¯s arrogant voice came from where the explosion rang out. The owner of the voice who asked Grey the question was about to attack when his expression changed. Grey had vanished with two of his comrades, leaving him with only the young man. ¡°I¡¯m your opponent.¡± The young man said with a smile. ¡°You¡¯ll die, after I¡¯m done killing you, I¡¯ll kill that stupid friend of yours.¡± The leader of the group said coldly. ¡°You think you can beat me? In your dreams. He might be able to, but you, you¡¯re still a little lacking.¡± Compared to the way the young man acted when he was speaking with Grey, his arrogance had come back. The black-cloaked man attacked, but his expression changed when he noticed something strange. ¡°What¡¯s that?!¡± He exclaimed in shock. 1057 Domain Of Metal The attack the black cloaked man sent at the young man didn¡¯t make give him the required results, rather, after the initial explosion, it died down. It was as if there was no impact from the attack. ¡°Just this? And here I was thinking that you would give me a challenge.¡± The young man sneered. Compared to Grey, this black cloaked man¡¯s attack power was really lacking. When Grey attacked him, he didn¡¯t dare to use this move since he knew the stronger the attack power, the harder it was for him to use the skill. This was an earth elemental skill he learned from a secret scroll his father passed to him. When fighting against Grey, he didn¡¯t even have the chance to use it given the short time, but against this man, he was very confident that he was stronger than the other party. The black cloaked man looked at the young man with a stunned expression. He snorted coldly and attacked again. This time, he increased the attack power. Just when the attack reached where the young man was standing, a strange thing occurred, a powerful force shot out from the space around the young man and forcefully destroyed the attack of the black cloaked man. The eyes of the man widened, he didn¡¯t see the young man make a move, yet he destroyed his attack. ¡®It must be from what he did earlier.¡¯ He thought to himself. The young man on the other hand smiled in satisfaction. ¡°The result isn¡¯t bad.¡± He muttered. The black cloaked man looked at him for some time, he was a Fire Elementalist and focused on explosive attacks, seeing what the young man did, he chuckled and said, ¡°What did you just do?¡± ¡°Oh that? It¡¯s nothing. How come you can¡¯t do it?¡± The young man asked, showing an innocent look. pAnD a(-)n0ve1.com His expression showed that of a person that thought everyone could do what he just achieved. This annoyed the black cloaked man even more and he attacked. With a fiery temper like his, he couldn¡¯t stand it when someone mocks him, especially a person he felt he could defeat. A large bird made of fire attacked the young man, but the young man used the lightning element to counter, sending out multiple lightning bolts. The lightning bolts struck the fire bird and exploded, the impact of the explosion coming in his direction was instantly absorbed. The black cloaked man on the other hand was forced a few steps back. The young man took a step forward and earth elemental particles spread across the area. This was his earth domain, however, if one took their time to sense the particles, they would sense that there was a slight difference between these elemental particles and the normal earth elemental particles. This was the young man¡¯s special earth domain, his domain of metal. An ear piercing sound resounded out and as if being forged, swords and arrows started to appear. These weapons were by no means weak, and they each shot at the black cloaked man. The eyes of the black cloaked man showed disbelief, he couldn¡¯t believe what he was seeing.please visit panda(-)N0ve1.co)m Without any delay, he was covered with fire, trying to block the attacks from reaching him. Some of the swords started to melt before getting to him, but that was when the black cloaked man realized he made a mistake. The swords started to explode the second they came in contact with the fire. The impact was not something to joke about. The young man looked at the place with a look of realization, ¡°If only I had the fire element.¡± He was a little dejected, but he soon threw it to the back of his head. He didn¡¯t think that there would be anyone who would be blessed with everything. His domain of metal was already one of a kind, if he had the fire element to make his domain stronger, then it would not be fair to others. The young man continued his attack on the black cloaked man who was trying to defend against the attack. The impact of the attack was just too strong, and he couldn¡¯t let the swords hit him, so he was forced to still watch them explode under his fire. When the swords were finished, the black cloaked man appeared once again. His appearance was that of a pitiful person, he couldn¡¯t even cover his face any longer. ¡°It¡¯s you!¡± The young man exclaimed in shock. ¡°Hand it over now, Gilbert.¡± The man said coldly. It was evident that they knew each other. ¡°In your dreams, stupid fool!¡± The young man referred to as Gilbert was enraged, his expression changed drastically and he seemed like someone who went mad. He attacked instantly using all his elements. The man was soon on the back foot. The young man was enraged, but that was not a bad thing. As long as he couldn¡¯t think properly, then he wouldn¡¯t be able to get the advantage in this battle. The young man even stopped using his domain, using only his elements. The lightning element shot out a lightning bolt, while his wind element shot out wind blades. Earth shards sprouted out from the ground, trying to pierce the man to death. The man laughed in delight, exploded out with his attacks. The young man was enraged, with red eyes, he would not be able to make a good decision any longer. Attacking wildly would only put him in a situation where he would easily be defeated, Gilbert knew this, but the person standing in front of him was a relative, someone he never expected to betray him. This person even contributed to the elemental essence stones he used in the auction, now he was trying to ambush and take it from him. The man laughed and looked at Gilbert, ¡°Haha, I¡¯ll kill you, and then that stupid father of yours.¡± ¡°Why?¡± Gilbert asked with an annoyed expression. ¡°Clash of interest, nothing more.¡± 1058 Nothing To Be Impressed About Gilbert looked at the man in front of him with red eyes, he was on the verge of going mad with anger. ¡®Calm down, you¡¯re giving yourself away.¡¯ A nonchalant voice sounded in his ears and he suddenly calmed down. He recognized the voice, it belonged to Grey. He hurriedly looked around, but he couldn¡¯t find Grey anywhere. ¡®He defeated them already?¡¯ He thought to himself. He knew that Grey took his opponents away so that he would not have to worry about them, but it hadn¡¯t even been more than five minutes, and he seemed to have returned. Even though he couldn¡¯t sense him, the fact that he spoke to him meant that he knew the situation here. ¡­. When the battle started. Grey took the duo and teleported to a safer place. He didn¡¯t want Gilbert to know some of his secrets, so he wanted to play it safe. Although he was helping him, they couldn¡¯t really be called friends since he tried to rob him some minutes ago. The duo he brought with him had a lost look in their eyes before staring at him, clearly shocked by his strength. They were unable to even resist when he took them with him. ¡°Kid, stay away from this and we¡¯ll leave you alone.¡± One of them said. Although Grey was wearing a mask, they could tell that he wasn¡¯t old. Grey tilted his head to the side, giving them a deep look before chuckling. He attacked soon after. ¡°Foolish, do you think you can beat both of us?¡± The man felt insulted and threw a blow in the direction Grey was coming from. His attack was shattered by Grey¡¯s fist, Grey not only destroyed the attack, but he continued on his way, appearing in front of the man and attacking him as well. The fire element exploded out and the man was forced back, he was lucky to have reacted quickly, so the attack didn¡¯t affect him too much. The other man who was standing on the side used the opportunity to attack Grey. Grey turned to him and an ice wall appeared in front of him, blocking the attack of the man. The man was a Lightning Elementalist, having a powerful destructive attack power. When the attack hit the ice wall, cracks appeared on the wall, but it didn¡¯t fall apart. ¡°That¡¯s all?¡± Grey¡¯s mocking voice was heard from the side. The man snorted and attacked once again. This time, the scale of the attack was larger, and he was also assisted by the other man. The other man was a Darkness Elementalist, so he was the first to attack, hoping to corrode Grey¡¯s ice wall. When the darkness elemental attack hit the wall, the wall slowly started to show signs of falling apart, the lightning bolt struck at this moment and the wall fell apart. Grey smiled and retreated. The two men advanced, trying to shorten the distance between them. Just when they stepped on the place Grey was previously standing on, an explosion sounded off from the ground, sending them flying into the sky. ¡°Noobs.¡± Grey laughed and attacked. With so many things in his arsenal, did these people think he was only standing there and only defending? He had been preparing an attack array while he was waiting for their attacks. Although he wasn¡¯t certain, he felt the chances of them getting closer to him were high if they managed to break his defense. Things went according to his prediction, even though this attack wouldn¡¯t be able to kill them, it would disrupt their flow for some time. Grey¡¯s figure flashed and a bolt of red lightning shot at the Darkness Elementalist. While this lightning was going after the Darkness Elementalist, an ice shard shot at the Lightning Elementalist. Both of them were in mid-air, but they quickly adjusted their bodies and blocked the attacks. They managed to block the array¡¯s attack, only affected by the impact. This attack was faster than the array¡¯s attack, but they still managed to block it, but the impact of the attack rocked their innards. Grey laughed when he saw them, he knew they were shaken. He didn¡¯t stop, rather, he attacked. Two wind blades shot at the duo. Just as they were prepared to block them, inscriptions appeared behind them. The inscriptions attacked at the moment they were blocking against the wind blades. The timing was so perfect that if they wanted to block one of the attacks, they risked getting hit by the other one, defenseless. The Darkness Elementalist roared and his body was covered with dark particles. A mist-like substance appeared around him and it slowly started to solidify. Boom! The attacks hit the solidified mist and soon started to destroy it. It soon died down, showing the unscathed Darkness Elementalist. His face was pale and there was slight blood on the side of his face, even though his mouth was covered with a cloth, the blood was still evident. Just like the Darkness Elementalist, the Lightning Elementalist decided to block both attacks at the same time.please visit panda(-)N0ve1.co)m The impact of the attack rocked his innards once again, and his head as well. He could barely hear a sound and his figure fell to the ground from the sky. The Darkness Elementalist was in a better condition when compared to him. Grey¡¯s eyes lit up and he shot toward the man. The Darkness Elementalist¡¯s expression changed, he could tell that he was not as fast as Grey, so escaping was not a good choice. With the Lightning Elementalist¡¯s current state, he wouldn¡¯t be able to block Grey¡¯s attack and would most likely be killed within ten seconds or so, that was not enough time to escape from Grey. He soon came to a decision and attacked Grey. Just when the attack was about to hit Grey¡¯s back, Grey smiled and his figure blinked, the eyes of the Darkness Elementalist almost shot out of his head. ¡°Wha¡­ how¡¯s that possible?!¡± He exclaimed in shock. ¡°Don¡¯t be shocked, it¡¯s just a petty trick, nothing to be impressed about.¡± Grey laughed. The Lightning Elementalist screamed in pain and the life in his eyes quickly dimmed and his figure fell to the ground. The Darkness Elementalist looked at Grey, his eyes showing disbelief. The battle hadn¡¯t been on for two minutes, but one of them had fallen to the ground, dead. How could Grey be this powerful? ¡°Kid, let me go, I can give you some treasures.¡± The Darkness Elementalist started to beg for his life. He had given up on any thought of fighting against Grey. He couldn¡¯t win, even if he risked his life, he would still lose. Grey laughed and said, ¡°I don¡¯t need them. I have everything I need.¡± ¡°Kid, we don¡¯t have a life or death enmity, we should just let it end here.¡± The Darkness Elementalist said. ¡°You threatened me the last time, now that you see that I¡¯m stronger, you¡¯re trying to wave that off like it never happened?¡± Grey asked with a cold expression. The Darkness Elementalist paused, he recalled that they wanted to kill Grey and Gilbert simultaneously, now that he realized that Grey was stronger, he was begging him to let him leave. ¡°I know, but I wasn¡¯t the one who made the decision.¡± He said in his defense. The man Gilbert was fighting against was the one who wanted to kill the two of them, they were only following his orders. Grey thought about it for some time, ¡°But one of you is dead, it¡¯ll cause me some trouble if you leave alive.¡± ¡°You don¡¯t have to worry, I don¡¯t know how you look, and I wouldn¡¯t even speak about this.¡± The Darkness Elementalist said when he saw that Grey was showing some signs of wanting to let him go. pAnDa (nov)e1? Grey froze for a while and his figure flashed through the sky. The Darkness Elementalist was terrified and it rushed in another direction, he was scared. Before long, the figure of the Darkness Elementalist fell from the sky. Grey said in dissatisfaction, ¡°He couldn¡¯t even put up a fight.¡± After looking around, he decided to rush back to see how Gilbert was doing. If he was having a tough time, he would help him out. ¡­. When he got there, he was stunned to see Gilbert using the earth element. ¡®He hid his strength when fighting me.¡¯ He thought to himself. When he saw Gilbert use his domain, he was stunned. ¡®There¡¯s something like this as well?¡¯ He was stunned. This was the first time he was seeing this. He couldn¡¯t believe his eyes. When he saw how Gilbert was absorbing the impact of attacks, he couldn¡¯t help but feel shocked once again. ¡®He¡¯s doing it with the earth element.¡¯ He quickly sensed how he was doing it, however, he still couldn¡¯t figure out how he did it. He was still thinking when he saw Gilbert losing control. ¡®I see, family issues.¡¯ 1059 Shouldve Thrown You Out! Gilbert¡¯s mood changed after listening to Grey¡¯s words, and he didn¡¯t angrily charge recklessly at the man in front of him any longer. The man seemed to notice the change and tried to rile him up once again. To his surprise, it didn¡¯t work, Gilbert didn¡¯t seem to have any sort of reaction to whatever he was saying. The man gave up and started to fight against him fiercely. He was a well-known Fire Elementalist, and with his strength, although Gilbert was in the same stage as himself, he had more experience compared to him. He knew Gilbert since he was born and had never seen him use the earth element before, which was why he was rattled. ¡®To think that fool hid him so deeply.¡¯ He thought to himself as a fire snake was sent at Gilbert. Gilbert sent out a lightning arrow, but the fire snake dodged it before attacking him. Gilbert¡¯s body was covered with the wind element as he dodged the attack. After dodging, he wanted to use the wind element to suck the man in his direction. However, the man didn¡¯t move an inch and attacked with a powerful fire attack. He was forced to stop trying to get the man close to him and blocked the attack coming his way. Gilbert and the man exchanged moves for a couple more minutes before the man decided it was time to leave. Although he was not as strong as Gilbert, it was impossible for Gilbert to kill him. The man was very cautious when fighting and didn¡¯t expose any openings for Gilbert to get a complete advantage over him. Gilbert was unable to use his metal domain to his advantage anymore since the man already understood how it worked. ¡°Where do you think you¡¯re going?¡± Grey blocked the path of the man. p-A- n-d-A-n-0-v-e-1¡¢(c)om ¡°Step aside.¡± The man attacked. Grey spread out his gravitational force field. The unsuspecting man was dragged to the ground by the pull, and before he could get himself Grey had already sent him flying with a punch, making him appear in front of Gilbert once again. ¡°What are you doing here?!¡± Only now did the man recall that he had seen Grey taking his subordinates away some minutes back. He didn¡¯t expect Grey would interfere with his battle while fighting against two people at the Peak of the Sage Plane. Although those people weren¡¯t as strong as himself, they were still genuine Peak Sage Plane Elementalists. He sensed Grey¡¯s strength and Grey was only in the Ninth stage at the time he came over. ¡®How can a Ninth stage Sage Plane Elementalist defeat them? Impossible!¡¯ He was in disbelief. Grey couldn¡¯t be bothered with him, after sending him in Gilbert¡¯s direction, he sat by the side to watch the show. Gilbert attacked the man the moment he saw him. He knew Grey was the one who sent him back so he made sure that he killed the man. Some minutes later, Gilbert walked over to where Grey was currently sitting down, he had some injuries, and blood was on some parts of his body, his face was also slightly pale, but the man was dead. ¡°Thank you.¡± He said to Grey. Grey looked at him for a long time before asking, ¡°I¡¯m curious, how did you do that thing?¡± Gilbert froze for some time, he knew what Grey was talking about but didn¡¯t reply. Seeing his hesitation to speak, Grey didn¡¯t dwell on the matter any longer, ¡°You can leave, whatever happens from here on out has nothing to do with me.¡± After saying this, before Gilbert could say a word, Grey vanished. Gilbert looked in the direction Grey headed and couldn¡¯t help but shake his head, a small crystal orb appeared on his hand and disappeared soon after. Without saying anything else, he vanished from his position as well. There was no use in staying there. ¡­. While Grey and Gilbert were facing off against the group, Alice, Reynolds, and Klaus had managed to catch up with the person who got the treasure Alice wanted. Unlike Grey who wanted to trade for it at first, the trio attacked the person the moment they caught up to her. The person was surprisingly a young lady who was at the Peak of the Sage Plane. She was a Darkness Elementalist and seeing that she was besieged by three powerful people, she gritted her teeth and said, ¡°I¡¯ll kill you people!¡± To the shock of the trio, three coffins appeared and corpses came out of them. Each of the corpses released an aura at the Peak of the Sage Plane. One of them seemed to release an aura identical to Klaus¡¯s. After staying in the Moonlight Faction and studying their techniques, there was a unique aura that only those from the Moonlight Faction had, one of the corpses which was that of a female radiated such aura. Klaus¡¯ eyes shone with an icy glow as he looked at the figure that radiated the aura of the Moonlight Faction. ¡°I¡¯ll deal with that one, you two deal with the rest.¡± He said.please visit panda(-)N0ve1.co)m They already knew of necromancers, and they never expected that the Darkness Elementalist in front of them was one. Thinking of their evil acts, and how they wanted to get rid of Grey, they wanted to make sure she was eliminated. Alice and Reynolds nodded before charging at the two, as well as the young lady. With the help of her Seelie, Alice started to fight against one of the corpses, Reynolds¡¯ Elemental Warrior fought against one while Reynolds himself started to fight against the young lady. Although he was not her match, with the help of his Elemental Warrior that would occasionally interfere, he was able to fight against her for some time. Klaus was using almost the same techniques as the corpse in front of him. However, he was conscious, unlike the corpse, so he managed to gain the advantage. Cultivating the same techniques meant that he knew their weaknesses and was using them to his advantage. The corpses don¡¯t have the strength of a normal Peak Sage Plane Elementalist, so the gap in strength was made up for by him knowing the weakness of the corpse¡¯s technique. Before long, he started to overwhelm the corpse. Not just that, but he was seeing an increase in his strength as well. Compared to when he sparred with his fellow Faction members, he didn¡¯t have to enter the state of life or death battle so it wasn¡¯t serious, now that he was in such a state, he was starting to improve at an unprecedented pace. ¡®I¡¯ll break through after this fight.¡¯ Without even checking, he already knew that once he started to digest his gains from the battle, it wouldn¡¯t take more than a few days before he broke through to the Ninth stage of the Sage Plane. His entire body was covered in ice as he skillfully dodged the attack coming his way, ice spread out from his body and the corpse was covered in it. Before the corpse could make any moves, Klaus¡¯ eyes shone once again and the intensity of the ice increased greatly. Crack! The ice covering the body of the corpse started to crack, but new ice would reappear with each crack. Klaus¡¯ domain spread out, covering the corpse as well. A minute later, Klaus looked at the frozen corpse in satisfaction. He was even faster than Reynolds¡¯ Elemental Warrior in dealing with one of the corpses. Alice wasn¡¯t having an easy time, so he rushed over to help her out. ¡­. ¡°Hand it over.¡± Klaus said coldly. All three corpses had been immobilized, and against them, the young lady didn¡¯t stand a chance. ¡°In your dreams.¡± The young lady snorted. The corpses suddenly glowed with a bright light. ¡°F*ck! They¡¯re going to self-destruct!¡± Klaus released a thick ice mist from his body which covered all three of them. He couldn¡¯t be bothered with the young lady at the moment. The self-destruction of three Peak Sage Plane Elementalists was not something to be taken lightly. The young lady used the opportunity to try to escape. Just as she was running away, Grey¡¯s figure appeared. At the same time Grey¡¯s figure appeared, Reynolds¡¯ Elemental Warrior also appeared in front of the young lady, accompanied by Alice¡¯s Seelie. Looking at how Klaus was protecting them and they were attacking, he decided to stay away from the fight. He would only take action if the young lady managed to escape. Boom! The explosion sounded out and the sound of Klaus¡¯ ice shell cracking rang out. Even with that, the Elemental Warrior and the Seelie were still fighting against the young lady, making sure to hold her back. After the explosion died down, the ice shell Klaus created to protect himself and his friends appeared in view, some parts of it had been broken, but the inner part remained intact. Klaus came out with the others with an arrogant expression, ¡°You think you can hurt us? Not on my watch.¡± ¡°Shut up, I literally saw you shaking from the pressure as you reinforced the wall.¡± Reynolds mocked. ¡°I should¡¯ve thrown you out.¡± Klaus said with a dark face. 1060 The Path Is Broken ¡°We wanted to just take it and let you leave, but since you¡¯re a necromancer, we¡¯ll have to kill you.¡± Alice didn¡¯t bother with Klaus and Reynolds who had started to argue with each other and said to the young lady. ¡°What do you know?¡± The young lady sneered, ¡°You people think that necromancy is an evil act, but you¡¯re all wrong.¡± ¡°How¡¯s it not evil?¡± Klaus interjected, ¡°You literally take the corpse of someone and make them your puppet. That¡¯s defiling their corpse and it¡¯s outright disrespectful. Would you like it if your corpse is used in such a manner?¡± ¡°If I¡¯m dead then I¡¯m dead, what happens if my corpse is no longer my concern.¡± The young lady said calmly. ¡°To think you¡¯ve been hypnotized to such a level.¡± Klaus shook his head, ¡°If I die and anyone dares to touch my corpse, I¡¯ll wake up and kill them!¡± The young lady looked at Klaus oddly. Who would be worried with what they would do with their corpses when dead? ¡°You people are evil and should be obliterated. For power you don¡¯t mind working for the Gnomes who wanted to kill our race.¡± Alice said. ¡°Looks like you guys are well informed. To put it bluntly, necromancy is the only way. Unlike those blind fools, the Patriarch saw a way out and took it.¡± The young lady said. ¡°A way out? A way out of where?¡± Confusion appeared on the faces of everyone, even Grey who was hiding by the side also had a confused expression on his face. ¡°You don¡¯t know? No wonder you people act so willfully. The path to Godhood was destroyed years ago, necromancy isn¡¯t just something to use for fighting, but it was a means the Patriarch could use to break through the shackles. How would you people know, you¡¯re all just frogs at the bottom of a well, following whatever you¡¯re told.¡± The young lady said with a matter of fact tone. ¡°The path to Godhood is broken? But the war of Gods¡­¡± ¡°What nonsense Gods! They were only Demi Gods or Half Gods, whichever way you want to put it.¡± The young lady said in disdain. She also believed this as well, only after some time did she understand it. The higher ups in the human race didn¡¯t like to spread this information among the lower ranks, the reason for this was most likely that they didn¡¯t want to destroy the spirit of these youths. But amongst the necromancers, it was common knowledge. Klaus and the others¡¯ eyes widened at the information. They already knew from the books that the war that happened years ago with the Gnomes wasn¡¯t generally the war of Gods, but they didn¡¯t know that the path to Godhood was broken. Doesn¡¯t that mean that no matter how one cultivated, they would never be able to break through that shackle? They all exchanged glances as they stared at the young lady. ¡°Why are you telling us this?¡± Klaus asked. ¡°Just like the Patriarch, I¡¯m also looking for a way. Let me go, or you can even join us. You don¡¯t necessarily need to be a Darkness Elementalist before you can join us.¡± The young lady revealed her intentions. ¡°And what if you¡¯re lying?¡± Klaus asked. ¡°This is common knowledge, there¡¯s a necromancer camp some miles outside this place, I can take you there and you¡¯ll be able to confirm from them as well. You will also see some people who aren¡¯t Darkness Elementalists.¡± The young lady said. The trio exchanged glances, they didn¡¯t really know much about necromancers, nor did they know about the path to Godhood. ¡®We can¡¯t take the risk, I say we kill her now.¡¯ Reynolds transmitted his voice to Alice and Klaus. ¡®I also feel like she can¡¯t be trusted, but with a necromancer¡¯s camp not far away, they might have some good things.¡¯ Klaus¡¯ eyes glowed. ¡®Stop being greedy, if an Elemental Venerable is stationed there, can you take anything from there? You¡¯ll only be waiting for death.¡¯ Alice doused Klaus¡¯ hopes of getting anything from the camp. ¡®Fine, just kill her then.¡¯ While they were communicating with each other, they made sure to keep their eyes fixed on the young lady, if she made any moves, they would attack instantly. The Seelie and Elemental Warrior were also standing beside her. ¡°Have you come to a conclusion?¡± She asked. She felt that her words might be able to help her since Klaus and the others seemed to show signs of wavering. If they dared to follow her, she wouldn¡¯t mind letting them join the necromancers. Of course she didn¡¯t have the final say and each person would have to go through a rigorous test before they could join in. ¡°Tell us the location of the camp, one of us will check it out to make sure it¡¯s not a trap, only then can we follow you back.¡± Klaus spoke after some time.please visit panda(-)N0ve1.co)m Even though they couldn¡¯t join, he wanted to see if he could still get some benefits. ¡°I¡¯m sorry, but I can¡¯t. I¡¯ve already told you about the path to Godhood, that has shown my sincerity.¡± The young lady said, after some time, she seemed to struggle for some time, after a long sigh she brought out something, it was what Alice wanted, a lotus that was pure white. Klaus¡¯ eyes shone brilliantly but he shook his head, this was for Alice. The young lady tossed it in their direction and said, ¡°This should tell you that I¡¯m serious, right?¡± What she wanted to use it for was already destroyed, so she didn¡¯t have much use for it now. Alice caught it and kept it before asking, ¡°What did you want it for?¡± The young lady froze for some time, she seemed to be hesitating, after some time she finally said, ¡°It¡¯s to level up my fighter. Once it breaks through, I¡¯ll automatically break through as well.¡± ¡°That simple?¡± Klaus couldn¡¯t help but ask. Just by leveling up their puppet they would be able to break through to the next Plane. The young lady was already at the Peak of the Sage Plane, and so were three of her puppets. If she manages to level up one of them, then she would be able to break through as well. That seemed surreal! ¡°Appealing, right?¡± The young lady seemed to relax a bit when she saw Klaus¡¯ reaction. People like this would be easy to deal with, as long as Klaus felt that was impressive, then there was a chance that he would want to join them. ¡°It is.¡± Klaus nodded, but after some time he added, ¡°But I can advance faster than that and I don¡¯t think I¡¯ll be truly strong if I advance with that thing. Take you for instance, you can¡¯t even beat that piece of crap, and that other one as well, but if I were the one at the Peak of the Sage Plane, I would be able to do so.¡± The face of the young lady changed when she heard this and she felt insulted. Yes, her strength couldn¡¯t be compared to that of a genius Peak Sage Plane Elementalist, but it didn¡¯t mean that someone as weak as Klaus could insult her. pAn,Da n<0,>v,e1 She snorted coldly and turned to Klaus, ¡°What do you want then?¡± ¡°To kill you.¡± Klaus said nonchalantly, ¡°You defiled the corpse of a Faction member of mine, if the Mistress hears that I let you go, she might beat me to death.¡± ¡°How will she know if you don¡¯t tell her? Do you think there aren¡¯t members of necromancers in your Faction?¡± The young lady asked. After hearing Klaus¡¯ words, she knew he was from the Moonlight Faction. There were people in the necromancers group who were part of the top Factions in the continent, so it wasn¡¯t strange to draw these geniuses into their group. ¡°Oh, do you know them?¡± Klaus asked. ¡°No, even if I did, I won¡¯t tell you about it.¡± The young lady said. She already knew from the way Klaus spoke that they didn¡¯t have any plans of joining the necromancers, even after she had assured them that no one would find out, they still didn¡¯t want to join. It was clear that they detested their methods. ¡®I still need some time, they are already close.¡¯ She thought to herself. The reason she was speaking with Klaus and the others was because she was waiting for reinforcement. ¡°Then you¡¯re of no use.¡± Klaus said and attacked. ¡°Wait!¡± The young lady retreated and said, ¡°Don¡¯t you want to know about what will happen soon?¡± ¡°No, I¡¯m not bothered with the path to Godhood. I¡¯ve not gotten to that stage yet so I can¡¯t be bothered with it for now.¡± Klaus shrugged and continued attacking. The young lady blocked her attacks, but the Elemental Warrior attacked her as well. The Seelie, Alice, and Reynolds attacked as well. The young lady¡¯s face was unsightly and she gritted her teeth, trying to hold on. 1061 Necromancers Camp Grey chuckled when he saw how Klaus was dealing with the young lady. He raised his brow and looked at the side, he could sense a few auras quickly approaching this area. ¡®Necromancers, there¡¯s something they know that we don¡¯t.¡¯ He thought to himself. He knew there were secrets that were being kept from them, most likely because they were not strong enough now. If a Sage Plane Elementalist found out about a top secret, what could they do about it? Even those at the Peak haven¡¯t been able to solve the issue, what could weaklings like them do. It¡¯s just as Klaus said, he hadn¡¯t gotten to that level yet, so he didn¡¯t want to bother with it. Those at the top will think of it, only when he gets there would he think of it. Grey¡¯s eyes flashed with a cold light and he flashed through the dark forest. Before long, three people appeared in sight, they were all rushing in the direction where Klaus and the others were fighting. He didn¡¯t block them, carefully hiding his aura, he waited for them to get past where he was and sneak attacked them. With his strength, even if he couldn¡¯t kill them with one move, he could injure them. If he focused on just one person, he had at least seventy percent confidence in killing the person, but against three people, he wasn¡¯t confident. He wanted to severely injure them first and then slowly kill them off. ¡­. Some minutes later. The young lady fighting against Klaus and the others finally got to her limit and without saying a word, she exploded. The moment she exploded, Grey appeared as well, and he did a grabbing motion. A small hand made of the darkness element shot out and caught a black light that shot at Klaus. Although the thing moved fast, Grey moved faster. The young lady wanted to mark Klaus, he was the one she hated the most, so she wanted to make sure necromancers around would be able to kill him when he encountered them. Klaus¡¯ expression was ugly when he saw this, he wanted to kick at the body of the young lady, but since she exploded, there was nothing left. Grey looked at the small thing that seemed to have a mind of its own with curiosity. This was the thing that put him in danger some time ago, now it was reappearing again, wanting to mark Klaus. He sensed the energy in the body of the young lady gathering and guessed what she wanted to do, so he reacted abruptly. He was someone who could be said to have some experience with it, and after coming in contact with necromancers and Gnomes, he had devised a few things to defend against it in the future. ¡°She wanted to mark me?!¡± Klaus felt a bit fearful. He knew how dangerous it was, especially when they were chased by that necromancer. If not for the talismans with him, Grey might¡¯ve been captured and killed. ¡°It¡¯s nothing, I know how to deal with it.¡± Grey shrugged it off. ¡°Now that you mention it, how did you figure it out?¡± Klaus asked curiously. He had forgotten to ask about this, now that Grey brought the topic up, he was quite curious. ¡°This thing has to do with life force. Those old guys who had not been able to remove had been using the wrong method. They all feel that it uses spiritual energy, but they were wrong¡­¡± Grey explained to them. When the necromancer decides to self-destruct, they would gather a large amount of elemental energy, as well as spiritual energy. The use for that was to hide the life force that was hidden in the middle. With the speed or the attack, it was almost impossible for the target to dodge it. Klaus wouldn¡¯t have been able to dodge it had Grey not come in time. ¡°So it¡¯s like that.¡± Klaus nodded. ¡°You have to know that I¡¯ve studied their practices for some time. Although it¡¯s quite detestable, with my situation at that time, I had no choice. I also have an inside man in their ranks.¡± Grey said with a laugh. He suddenly recalled the man he managed to fool into believing he was a Gnome. When he told the others of it, they couldn¡¯t help but laugh out loud. They didn¡¯t know that Grey was this deceitful. ¡°Come on, we have what we want, we should go.¡± Grey said to the others. ¡°You got it?¡± Alice asked. ¡°No, we¡¯ll continue as we leave.¡± Grey wanted to leave this place soon, there might be hopes in finding the location of the necromancers camp with that thing in hand. The others followed. Grey was like their leader so they didn¡¯t object. Alice tossed the lotus at the Seelie, after swallowing the lotus, the Seelie flew into her body and disappeared. They could tell within such a short time that its strength had started to improve. ¡­. Outside the small world. In a cave hidden in a forest. ¡°Did you sense that?¡± A voice asked, before continuing, ¡°Their life force disappeared almost at the same time.¡± ¡°Not just theirs, but your student seemed to have self-destructed, however, she couldn¡¯t mark the person who killed her.¡± Another eerie voice said.please visit panda(-)N0ve1.co)m ¡°Hmm, what do you think we should do?¡± The first voice who spoke asked. ¡°Only a Peak Elemental Venerable can achieve the feat of stopping the mark from hitting its target. We¡¯re no match for such a figure.¡± The other voice said. ¡°These people?¡± The first voice asked. ¡°Abandon them. We can always gather more people. The good seeds have been sent back to the headquarters, these ones are of no use anyway.¡± With that the place fell silent. Other than the place where these two people were speaking, there was a large hall that had over a hundred people of different strength. The strongest was at the Peak of the Sage Plane, while the weakest only had the strength of an Arcane Plane Elementalist. They had no idea that they had been abandoned by the emissaries. ¡­. Grey and his group left the small world. Grey squinted his eyes and turned to Void, ¡°I can¡¯t pinpoint it, what about you?¡± ¡°It¡¯s not far from here. Hehe, the strong guys are running away. Looks like I¡¯ll sit and watch once again.¡± Void laughed when he sensed the aura of the two Emissaries leaving. The Emissaries left at the same time they came out, so although he sensed it, he didn¡¯t really know if they were part of the necromancers. Only after he tracked the mark to the place did he know. ¡°We should go then, this thing is starting to fade. Since it can¡¯t find a host, it¡¯s useless.¡± Grey looked at the fading entity in his hand. Unlike Gnomes, he couldn¡¯t track necromancers, but with the help of this thing, he could, but only for a short time and if they were close to him. ¡°Then let¡¯s go. We¡¯ll wipe them out today.¡± Grey laughed. ¡°It¡¯s you!¡± A surprised voice came from their front. ¡°Huh?¡± Grey looked over in confusion, only after looking did he recognize the person. It was Gilbert. ¡°I thought you left.¡± He said. ¡°I was waiting for you.¡± Gilbert replied. ¡°Why?¡± Grey asked, his tone a bit distant. ¡°I couldn¡¯t thank you for your help the last time.¡± Gilbert shook his head. Grey¡¯s tone wasn¡¯t welcoming, and he knew he should leave soon. ¡°Thank?¡± Klaus raised a brow, staring at Grey. ¡°He was the one who had the item I wanted.¡± Grey explained. ¡°Oh, he¡¯s the one.¡± Klaus recalled what Grey told them when they were leaving. pAnDa (nov)e1? ¡°Hi, I¡¯m Klaus, he¡¯s Grey, that meathead over there is Reynolds, and that¡¯s Alice.¡± He introduced everyone in a welcoming manner. He could tell that Gilbert didn¡¯t have any ill intent towards them, so there was no use in chasing him away. Besides, he could tell the other party was at the Peak of the Sage Plane, and they were a bit short on manpower right now. Although Grey was powerful, they didn¡¯t know how many people they would have to fight. ¡°I¡¯m Gilbert.¡± Gilbert replied, since the other party didn¡¯t say their last names, he felt it was best to stay that way. ¡°Klaus, we don¡¯t have time for this.¡± Grey said. ¡°Are you going somewhere?¡± Gilbert asked, curious. ¡°Yes, you see¡­¡± Klaus spilled everything. Grey and the others were stunned. ¡®He didn¡¯t even think of the possibility that he might be a necromancer himself?¡¯ Grey was lost for words. Klaus just told him about how they were going to wipe out a necromancers camp. What if Gilbert was a necromancer and he decided to inform them? Wouldn¡¯t they be in trouble then? ¡°I¡¯ll help you.¡± Gilbert¡¯s eyes showed ferocity when he heard of necromancers. From the looks of it, it seemed like he has had some dealings with them in the past. 1062 Overbearing Friends In the forest, the necromancers hideout. Grey and the others arrived within five minutes, the mark had completely faded off, luckily, Void found the place earlier on. Sensing the amount of people inside, they couldn¡¯t help but exchange glances. ¡°Do we really have to kill all of them?¡± Reynolds couldn¡¯t help but ask. ¡°Some might not have the intention of joining from the start, but since they are already part of it there¡¯s no way we would know what thoughts they have.¡± Klaus said. He also thought of the possibility that there might be some people who didn¡¯t want to become necromancers, only joining in hopes of getting some benefits. Not every necromancer had a puppet. ¡°We can¡¯t take any chances, that would be too dangerous. Kill all.¡± Gilbert said. Grey nodded, he was more inclined with killing all of them than leaving behind some problems. ¡°Bunch of evil people, we¡¯ll kill them then.¡± Klaus made up his mind. ¡°Or, should we send their location to my Faction?¡± Alice suggested. There are possibilities of them not being able to kill all of them. If some escaped, they would feel regretful. ¡°With Void here, who can escape?¡± Grey didn¡¯t bother with anyone trying to escape. Only now did the others realize that Void was with them and he seemed to have a special ability that could help them trap their enemies. That means they wouldn¡¯t have to worry about anyone fleeing and focus on killing. They made some preparations and soon set off. p¡¢A,nd A-n¡¢o¡¢ve,1 Boom! A loud explosion rang out. The others moved just as quickly as Grey. The place where they were previously standing exploded with a powerful burst of energy. ¡°What was that?¡± Klaus looked at the place with apprehension. ¡°A trap array. I can¡¯t believe I didn¡¯t sense it.¡± Grey¡¯s face was dark. Among all of them, he was the one who had some achievements when it came to arrays, and given his high level, he felt he should¡¯ve sensed it. Although he sensed it at the time the explosion was about to set off, it was still shocking to him. ¡°Even Void didn¡¯t sense it.¡± Alice commented when she saw Grey¡¯s face. Grey took a glance at Void before saying, ¡°We should be careful. They already know we¡¯re here. Use the air, there¡¯s no need sneaking around any more.¡± Void vanished and appeared some meters away, he was not going to partake in the battle, so he wanted to watch from a good place. When the five of them flew up, the people from the cave had sensed the commotion and rushed out as well. ¡°Who dares to come here?¡± A furious roar was heard. Grey could not be bothered with this person, the reason for that was because he had almost been blasted by an attack that appeared all of a sudden. Just like the first array, this one was hidden in space as well. ¡°Be careful, once you sense any spatial fluctuations, retreat.¡± He said to the others. These attacks were hidden in small space pockets all around the place, if they were not careful, they might not be able to even fight against these necromancers before they met their end. Klaus and the others nodded and were extra careful. While they were heading over carefully, those from the cave had come out. In front of them was a middle-aged man who was at the Peak of the Sage Plane. Seeing Grey and the others, he looked at them oddly. ¡°Who are you people, and what are you doing here?¡± He didn¡¯t feel threatened after sensing their auras, so he wanted to confirm their identities and what they were doing there. ¡°It¡¯s none of your business. Just stand there and wait, we¡¯re coming.¡± Klaus just finished speaking when an explosion rang out. He retreated with a dark expression on his face. He was in the middle of trash talking his opponents but he was silenced by a hidden array. ¡°F*ck! If you know you¡¯re powerful, remove these things and watch me beat you up.¡± He cursed in annoyance. Grey felt a headache, their situation was a bit comical. They wanted to kill the people in front of them, but they couldn¡¯t carelessly charge forward or they would be attacked and probably suffer sever injuries if they didn¡¯t die. Void was on the side laughing his heart out. Grey and the others could clearly hear him laughing, and this made them feel even more embarrassed.please visit panda(-)N0ve1.co)m ¡°What should we do with them?¡± One of the men by the side of the middle-aged man asked coldly. Klaus was rude, and they would naturally want to kill him. ¡°Kill them, they are not important people. I thought they were people worth taking seriously.¡± The middle-aged man said. The others nodded and coffins appeared on the side of five people. Each person had two coffins. These five people were all in the Late stages of the Sage Plane. They sent their puppets at Grey and his friends. Since they were in such a position, fighting back was difficult, retreating was even harder since they didn¡¯t know where the next hidden array was located. The puppets didn¡¯t bother with the arrays and attacked. Boom! Boom! Bam! Grey wanted to block the attack, but he was forced back. Looking at how the faces of his group changed, he used his darkness element to create small tendrils that shot into the body of the puppets. Originally, he didn¡¯t want to use more elements in front of Gilbert, but at this time, he didn¡¯t have a choice. The small tendrils dug into the body of the puppets and before long, the painful screams of the five people who owned each puppet was heard. Blood started to drip from their nose, ears, and eyes. Grey had forcefully cut off their connection with the puppets, directly injuring their spiritual senses. Of the five, two of them showed dullness in their eyes, it was clear that they were more affected. It was only after some time did their eyes regain their old glow. ¡°Who¡¯s that?¡± One of the three who was still conscious asked in fear. They could tell what the other party did, and they found it unbelievable. Forcibly cutting off their links with their puppets was not something an ordinary person could do. Only those proficient in necromancy could do it. Even those Emissaries couldn¡¯t. Grey didn¡¯t say a word, he didn¡¯t want to expose himself. What he wanted to do right now was the leave this place. The distance between them and the necromancers in front was barely five hundred meters, from his calculations when the puppets barged in, the end of this trap was around one hundred meters more or so. Thinking of this, he gritted his teeth and decided to move faster. He used the wind and lightning element to boost his strength and shot out. His body was covered in layers of earth armor. He would try to see if he could run past before the explosions When the others saw Grey, they stilled their hearts and followed suit. Boom! Boom! Boom! Explosions rang out one after another. The middle-aged man leading the group still didn¡¯t leave, he was staring at Grey and his group like they were already dead. There was no way five people in the Sage Plane could threaten him. With their current numbers, even twenty Peak Sage Plane Elementalists wouldn¡¯t dare to attack them. Some seconds later. The explosion died down and Grey appeared in front of them. His earth armor was almost destroyed, and there were signs of blood on his body. Behind him, the others appeared as well. Of all of them, Klaus was the one who was most well off. His defensive ability was above the others, but it didn¡¯t mean he was unscathed. ¡°Haha, we¡¯re out. You bunch of evil maggots, prepare for retribution!¡± Klaus yelled with all sense of righteousness. Grey, Alice and Reynolds couldn¡¯t help but take a glance at him. Yes, they also hated necromancers and their methods, but they felt like Klaus was being a little too dramatic. Thinking about it, this was his natural character, so they stopped thinking about it and attacked. Gilbert on the other hand was amazed by Klaus¡¯ righteousness and attacked with a vigorous yell as well. Even Klaus who was only in the Eighth stage dared to initiate the battle, then why was he still standing. When he saw the crowd, he wasn¡¯t confident that they would be able to beat them. He originally thought that the group was delusional. But thinking of Grey¡¯s strength, and the fact that there was a cat in the Elemental Venerable Plane, he felt they still had a chance to at least escape. They would kill the few they could and let Void take care of the rest. Only after the battle started did his expression change. Reynolds¡¯ Elemental Warrior appeared and attacked those in the Mid stages, killing over ten people with a single attack. Alice¡¯s Seelie also appeared and attacked as well. Grey¡¯s act was even more shocking, he directly switched places with the middle-aged man and attacked the three Peak Sage Plane Elementalists close to him, two died on the spot. ¡®A group of overbearing friends.¡¯ This was the thought in his head. 1063 Im One Of You In the blink of an eye, the battle broke out and some people died without even knowing how they died. One has to know that Grey¡¯s group contained only five people, while the other party had over a hundred people. Even if most of them were in the Mid stages of the Sage Plane or lower, there were still around five people at the Peak of the Sage Plane, two were dead, that made it three people at the Peak of the Sage Plane, over ten people in the Late stages of the Sage Plane. Such a number would be able to threaten over ten Peak Sage Plane Elementalists, much less just five people. However, Grey and his friends charged into the crowd as if they were possessed and not afraid of being killed. Inscriptions lit up in the sky, sending out attacks. p AndD nOve1.cO,m The middle-aged man who was the leader was rushing back when Gilbert blocked his path. If he didn¡¯t make a move now, he knew Grey and the others might take him as an enemy. Boom! ¡°Help us! Emissaries!¡± The screams of those in the Origin and Arcane Plane could be heard. Just the ripples from the battle was enough to kill them, they couldn¡¯t defend against Grey¡¯s inscriptions attacks. ¡°Insolent! You dare to kill them in my presence?¡± The middle-aged man was turning red from anger. In his exchange with Gilbert, he had the upper hand, however, he couldn¡¯t easily leave. ¡°Why wouldn¡¯t I?¡± Grey was arrogant at this moment. Below the Elemental Venerable Plane he dared to say he was invincible, no one could beat him, even if he was besieged by a large number of experts, as long as they were in the same stage, he would at least be able to escape, he was that confident. He could tell that the middle-aged man was strong, but that didn¡¯t mean that he was afraid of him. Once he uses the Fusion State, then he would definitely be stronger than the middle-aged man. Even if he couldn¡¯t kill him instantly, he wasn¡¯t afraid. The middle-aged almost vomited blood from anger. Looking around, he saw Klaus fighting against three people simultaneously, they were all in the Late stages of the Sage Plane, and although Klaus was at a disadvantage, he was laughing loudly as he fought. Even though he was being suppressed, he still had the time to kill some weaker people, cursing at the trio fighting with him as well. Alice was fighting against three people in the Late stage as well. Compared to Klaus¡¯ opponents, hers were a bit weaker. She was still able to hang on, but it was clear that she was at a disadvantage. Reynolds¡¯ Elemental Warrior was also fighting against a group in the Late stages, fighting against five at a time. Reynolds himself was massacring those in the Mid stages of the Sage. Other than Gilbert who was holding back the middle-aged man, the others were not only fighting against multiple opponents, but they were also killing those in the weaker stages. When the group told Gilbert they wanted to wipe out the camp, he thought they were only going to kill those at the top. He never expected that they would kill all those, even those in the Arcane Plane were not spared. Screams filled with pain and despair resounded in the area and blood flowed like a river. The middle-aged man¡¯s eyes flashed and he quickly roared. After forcing Gilbert back with a punch, he yelled, ¡°Great Venerables, please, help us.¡±please visit panda(-)N0ve1.co)m ¡°Haha, you¡¯re calling those cowards? Don¡¯t tell me you don¡¯t know that they¡¯ve run away.¡± Grey laughed. Klaus chimed in as well, ¡°The moment they sensed their daddy¡¯s aura, they ran faster than a dog.¡± Compared to Grey, Klaus¡¯ words infuriated the middle-aged man more. Even those fighting against Klaus seemed to have been enraged. Among necromancers, hierarchy was taken very seriously. Those stronger are all respected. Even though some of these people were at the Peak of the Sage Plane, they knew they had no chances of advancing to the Elemental Venerable Plane. Their Venerables was actually being looked down at by someone as young as Klaus. They were infuriated! Grey couldn¡¯t be bothered with Klaus and sneered, ¡°Do you think they would¡¯ve allowed us kill this much people if they were around?¡± The middle-aged man didn¡¯t speak for some time. ¡®Who was it?¡¯ The reason he hadn¡¯t brought out his puppet was because he was afraid. He saw what happened to the others when they sent their puppets to attack them while they were crossing the array. Before Grey and the others attacked, he had told the others not to carelessly bring out their puppets or else they might risk getting killed. He eyes flashed with a dark glow and he tossed a coffin at Gilbert. Grey¡¯s eyes flashed and he smiled, however, just as he was about to intercept it with his spiritual senses, he quickly retreated and roared in Gilbert¡¯s direction, ¡°Retreat!¡± He was a bit too late and a loud explosion rang out close to Gilbert, sending him flying. ¡°Damn it! I miscalculated.¡± Grey¡¯s expression was cold. He forgot these corpses could self-destruct. As long as he didn¡¯t get the chance to hack into them, there was no way he could stop them. ¡°It¡¯s you!¡± The eyes of the middle-aged man revealed shock. How did Grey do it? Since Grey could cut off their links from their puppets, it meant that he could also control it. As simple as it sounds, it was something that was almost impossible. Even Elemental Venerables could not forcibly take control of puppets of those weaker than them. An Elemental Sovereign might be able to do this, but it was not an easy task. ¡°How did you manage to learn this? Don¡¯t tell me you¡¯re one of us.¡± 1064 Im One Of You II ¡°I ran away from the headquarters, what did you expect?¡± Grey¡¯s voice was cold. ¡°Impossible! I heard the Patriarch captured the traitor who ran away the last time.¡± The middle-aged man looked at Grey, he didn¡¯t believe Grey¡¯s words, but he didn¡¯t know much about the headquarters. He was someone who was nothing more than a servant. ¡°What do you know? The Patriarch can¡¯t kill me. Now I¡¯m hunting you people down. I¡¯ll kill all of you to drive him crazy.¡± Grey continued his words. Gilbert, who was blasted down, had managed to get back up, but his expression was odd. ¡®He escaped from their headquarters? Doesn¡¯t that mean that he¡¯s also a necromancer?¡¯ His head was filled with questions. He couldn¡¯t help but look at Grey and the others. Grey on the other hand was laughing inside, he only wanted to trick the middle-aged man, who would¡¯ve expected that something like that really happened. ¡°We have no enmity, I don¡¯t know why you escaped, but if you leave now, I won¡¯t speak of this matter.¡± The middle-aged man calmed the storm in his heart and said. Although he didn¡¯t want to believe Grey, he couldn¡¯t dispel his words as well. There might really be a possibility that Grey was speaking the truth. ¡°Are you deaf? I told you I¡¯m going to kill all of you to drive him crazy. Do you think I don¡¯t dare to do this?¡± Grey¡¯s face was incomparably arrogant. He was still fighting against two people as he spoke with the middle-aged man. Even when fighting against two people, he didn¡¯t seem to be pressured. Of the two people he was fighting, one of them had been injured by him at the start of the battle, so this person¡¯s strength had declined. Although he was still strong, he wasn¡¯t a threat to Grey. At the moment, the battle had been on for around three minutes or so, and almost all those below the Mid stages of the Sage Plane had been killed. The efficiency of Grey and his friends was frightening. Even when fighting with others, they still managed to achieve such a feat. The middle-aged man looked at Grey before letting out a sigh, ¡°Do you have to force my hand?¡± ¡°The weak should compromise. Why struggle?¡± Grey snorted. The middle-aged man nodded before turning to the others fighting, ¡°Once you take out your puppets, send it to one of them and self-destruct it. This is your only hope.¡± Grey didn¡¯t say anything, he was a little worried about this and after a while, he transmitted his voice to the others, ¡®Stay close to them. Let¡¯s see if they dare to harm themselves.¡¯ Klaus laughed and quickly covered his body with ice and hugged one of the people he was fighting with. His actions made the necromancers annoyed. With Klaus getting so close, there was no way they could self-destruct their puppets. Doesn¡¯t that mean that their strength had been cut off. Originally, they couldn¡¯t use the puppets and felt annoyed since they weren¡¯t that strong, now that an opportunity presented itself, Klaus ruined it with a simple action. Klaus wasn¡¯t the only one who made this move, Alice and Reynolds also drew closer to their opponents. The middle-aged man cursed internally, this was the disadvantage of talking out loud. He forgot something like this could happen, so he didn¡¯t care. Grey had always been in close range with the two people he was fighting against, so there was no way they could do anything to him.please visit panda(-)N0ve1.co)m Thinking of all this, the eyes of the middle-aged man turned to Gilbert. Once he kills this person, he would be free. Gilbert calmed himself and attacked. Previously, he had held back a little, but now, he knew that was out of the question. The middle-aged man wanted to kill him! ¡­. While they were fighting, Void was watching from the side. He soon got bored and decided to take a nap. Before closing his eyes, he unleashed his domain to cover the area. This way, no one would be able to escape even if he slept off. ¡­. Grey had no idea that Void had gone to sleep and was still fighting valiantly. He was pushed back by an attack, and surprisingly, he flew in the direction of a Ninth stage Sage Plane Elementalist fighting against the Elemental Warrior. Before the other party could tell what was happening, a big hand appeared in front of his head and crushed it. Grey had killed this Elementalist with a single attack. The other four was scared when they saw this, but Grey didn¡¯t have the time to stay there. He noticed the moment he left, the two people he was fighting against charged at Gilbert. Just when they were about to attack Gilbert, Grey¡¯s figure appeared in the position Gilbert was previously standing and he sent out a sea of flames, forcing the duo, including the middle-aged man to retreat. ¡°Kill him!¡± The middle-aged man sent a coffin at Grey. Grey had given them the chance to attack him, so they used it. All three of them sent out puppets that self-destructed the second they got close to Grey. Although they just saw Grey switch places with Gilbert, they didn¡¯t think that he would be able to replicate the same move within such a short time. From the time Grey killed the Ninth stage Sage Plane Elementalist to when he switched places with Gilbert to now didn¡¯t take more than two seconds. Everything happened in a flash. Boom! p-A- n-d-A-n-0-v-e-1¡¢(c)om All three men didn¡¯t hold back as they all sent out puppets at the Peak of the Sage Plane. The impact of the explosion would be stronger and definitely affect Grey. Even a newly advanced Elemental Venerable would get seriously injured from such an explosion. The eyes of all three focused on where Grey was previously standing. Alice and the others didn¡¯t stop their battles, they were the ones least concerned about Grey. Void was here, there was no way he would let him die. 1065 Have You Seen His Face? The middle-aged man and the other two looked at the place of the explosion, just when they were about to heave a sigh of relief, they sensed something behind them. The middle-aged man was the first to turn around, his eyes widened and he hastily dodged to the side. The other two were a bit slower. Behind them, a large inscription lit up the sky, and a rain of lightning burst out from it. Just as they were about to move, they were covered by a sea of icy flames. This was Grey¡¯s icy domain. The movements of both men slowed down, and the lightning struck them. Given the high number of lightning, their bodies were soon covered with burn marks, as well as some frozen parts. There was a slight contrast on their bodies since they were both affected by both lightning and the icy flame. The middle-aged man looked at the place of the explosion and saw Grey moving out with a calm expression. His eyes were filled with disbelief. ¡°How?¡± He muttered. Grey couldn¡¯t be bothered with him, if not for the luck of having the space element, he would¡¯ve been screwed. Just when the corpses exploded, he used the space element to help him phase through the attacks. Only when the impact of the explosion started to die down did he move forward, with the help of his earth and water element, blocking the rest of the impact. He looked at the middle-aged man, his face revealing a sneer. Without speaking, he attacked. Although a large number of people was quite troublesome, it wasn¡¯t an issue for the group. They were all covered with blood, but they still continued fighting. ¡­. Twenty minutes later. The group could be seen, all panting heavily. ¡°Damn! That was fun! This is why I like traveling with you!¡± Klaus exclaimed. All he had been doing was cultivating inside a secret room in the Moonlight Faction, he had almost missed the thrill of having to fight a life-and-death battle. The mission they helped Reynolds with wasn¡¯t as dangerous as this one. They were fighting against beasts then, and although there were a few powerful beasts, they were not as smart as humans. In this battle, he was injured, but he could also feel the increase in his strength. Even his mastery of the techniques he was learning back at the Faction had seen an increase, which was unexpected to him. Reynolds and Alice were also a little excited, a battle like this was something they¡¯ve been craving for a long time now. Grey had cleaned all the blood that was on his body, changing his clothes within the blink of an eye. He turned to them and smiled, ¡°It¡¯s nothing. In the secret realm I visited, it was a bit more fun. I blocked the entrance of the Gnome race, killing anyone who dared to step out.¡± Gilbert was stunned when he heard this, he knew of the Gnomes and how powerful they were. He never thought that Grey would¡¯ve not only encountered them, but he seemed to have bullied them as well. This was an entire race!please visit panda(-)N0ve1.co)m Forget the fact that he could not have faced anyone in the Elemental Venerable Plane, but just setting up camp at the front of their portal was beyond bold. ¡®This guy¡¯s crazy!¡¯ He exclaimed internally. Since coming in contact with Grey, all he had gotten was shock after shock. First Grey attacked him, then he helped him with his opponents, then he fought against the necromancers which he seemed to be part of in the past. Unlike the others who knew Grey, he didn¡¯t, so he felt when Grey was talking about escaping from the necromancer¡¯s organization, he felt he was being honest. Unknown to him, Grey was only bluffing. pAn,Da n<0,>v,e1 Gilbert¡¯s expression changed when he heard the word ¡®kill order¡¯. He heard of the kill order that the Gnomes released for a certain Grey Dawson, although he felt Grey¡¯s name sounded familiar, he didn¡¯t associate him with the person who the kill order was released for. ¡°You¡¯re Grey Dawson?¡± He asked, just to be sure. Grey looked at him, a little surprised that he knew his last name, but he still nodded. ¡°The one the kill order was released for?¡± Gilbert asked once again. Grey nodded again. Gilbert was shocked, he couldn¡¯t even hide the shock on his face. He couldn¡¯t believe he was fighting with such a figure. Among his age range, Grey was almost seen as a legendary figure. Someone who dared to block the portal of the Gnomes and successfully killed them was not on the same level as the others. In such a situation, there was no way he didn¡¯t kill multiple people at the Peak of the Sage Plane. Gilbert was also at the Peak, which meant that Grey could kill him in a short period. He sensed Grey¡¯s strength and it was only in the Ninth stage. When they fought, it didn¡¯t seem like Grey went all out, if not, he would¡¯ve defeated him before those people appeared. ¡°You¡­ you¡­¡± ¡°You don¡¯t have to be shocked, have you seen his face?¡± Klaus asked. Gilbert shook his head. Klaus chuckled, he knew that if Gilbert saw Grey¡¯s face, he would be more shocked. Grey could almost be termed as beautiful, even someone as handsome as himself didn¡¯t dare to say he was on the same level as Grey. Gilbert was only so-so, he was on Reynolds¡¯ level when it came to handsomeness. Grey glared at Klaus but didn¡¯t say anything. ¡°Since we¡¯re done here, we should get going.¡± Alice suggested. The others had no objections to it and they all headed to the town close to the realm they entered for the auction. Gilbert stayed with them for a while longer before leaving. His father needed the item he bought, so he had to rush back home. Grey and the others only asked a few things about where he was from, and where to find him. 1066 Are You Going To Protect Him? After Klaus¡¯ plea, he decided to give Gilbert one of the communication devices. He still had a few with him, so he didn¡¯t mind. It wasn¡¯t like he was using them anyway. ¡°What do you think about his abilities?¡± Grey asked the others after Gilbert left. ¡°Average.¡± Klaus replied. ¡°It¡¯s because he didn¡¯t show everything.¡± Grey said. When they were fighting, the group were the main fighters, Gilbert was a little passive. They didn¡¯t blame him for this since he didn¡¯t really have to fight any powerful opponent except the middle-aged man who suppressed him. Only after Grey took over did he have an easier time. Grey went on to tell them some of the things he saw Gilbert doing and their expressions changed. ¡°Did you figure it out?¡± Klaus asked. He knew how obsessed Grey was with things like this, so he couldn¡¯t help but ask. ¡°I¡¯ve been thinking about it for some time, but I¡¯ve not gotten anything yet. Even Void is lost.¡± Grey answered, ¡°The only way is if we go to him.¡± ¡°I¡¯m not sure he learned it himself, there must be someone who helped him. As long as they can give me a tip or anything, I¡¯ll be good.¡± He added. ¡°A technique that can absorb the impact of attacks and use it against the opponent. That would be a good skill to have. Of course, it would have its limitations, but it¡¯s not bad.¡± Alice was a bit interested in the technique as well. ¡°You said his domain was special?¡± Reynolds asked. ¡°Yes, he has the earth element, but his domain is actually one of metal.¡± Grey explained, ¡°These metals aren¡¯t your average ones, each one is almost as powerful as a high-grade elemental weapon.¡± ¡°So powerful?!¡± Klaus exclaimed. ¡°I feel it can be stronger. Also, they can be ignited with fire. It¡¯s a strange domain. If I had that, my strength would increase further.¡± Grey said with a sigh. ¡°You¡¯re already so freakish, yet you want to have all the powers in the world?¡± Klaus sneered. Grey had grown too fast, and he was still growing. What was frightening about him was that his strength didn¡¯t tally with his cultivation stage at all. Klaus and the others could fight across stages and they were already tagged geniuses by most people. Grey on the other hand can¡¯t only fight across stages, he could fight against multiple opponents who are a stage or two above him. They all knew that this was the advantage he had with having multiple opponents, but it still made people frustrated just thinking about it. Grey chuckled before saying, ¡°You all know my abilities. Although I¡¯m powerful, against a single powerful opponent, I might not be able to win. Take the Prince of the Gnome race for instance, I couldn¡¯t kill after fighting for a while.¡± He paused before adding, ¡°But against multiple opponents on his level, it might be a different story. With all the things I have, there¡¯s no telling what the result would be.¡± Grey¡¯s confidence was unbridled. For someone who just said against the Gnome race¡¯s prince he couldn¡¯t defeat him alone, he still dared to say he could fight against two of him and the result might be different. His words contradict each other, but his friends knew that might actually be possible.please visit panda(-)N0ve1.co)m Grey could switch places with his opponent, against one person he generally wouldn¡¯t use this skill, but when fighting multiple people, this skill was frightening. ¡°I wish I had the space element.¡± Klaus muttered. p-n0ve1¡¢com ¡°I¡¯m not sure.¡± Grey shook his head, this wasn¡¯t something he could answer. There was a possibility that there is someone who could do this as well. He didn¡¯t know if such a figure was in the Aurora Continent, but if there was such a person, he wouldn¡¯t mind sparring with them. The group continued speaking for a while and Klaus suggested they went to bigger cities to have fun. It had been a long time since they went out together, and once they were separated again, there was a high possibility that they wouldn¡¯t be able to meet up for months, possibly years. ¡­. Pyrmond Faction. The Faction Leader was currently staring at the people in front of him with a cold expression. ¡°You still haven¡¯t given me an answer, where did the boy go?¡± An old man asked, his expression was calm. ¡°I think the Middle Continent, I can¡¯t be sure. But that should be the only way for him to enter that secret realm.¡± The Faction Leader replied. ¡°He killed my descendant, I need an explanation from him.¡± The old man said slowly. ¡°Elder¡­¡± The Faction Leader wanted to speak, but was cut short by the Old man in front of him. ¡°Are you still going to protect him? He dared to kill a fellow Faction member and you are protecting him?¡± The Old man scolded, his eyes turning cold, ¡°If not for my relationship with your Teacher, I¡¯d have punished you for your actions.¡± Hearing the Old man¡¯s words, the Faction Leader shook his head. He never thought that these guys would call this Old man over because of Grey¡¯s matter. Originally, they had stopped pestering him over the matter. However, they seemed to have been reinvigorated when the kill order for Grey was released. Although the Faction was in decline lately, it was still a top Faction and managed to obtain the information. They all knew of Grey¡¯s strength, if what the rumors said were the truth, then he was most likely the one. The Faction Leader was both happy and sad when he heard this. Grey was growing fast, it hadn¡¯t even been more than a year or so since Grey joined the Faction, but he had advanced so quickly. Such a genius was worth protecting, but Grey¡¯s temper was not good. As long as he felt threatened by anyone, he wouldn¡¯t sit back and wait, rather, he would attack first, eliminating the other party. Even though it was a good mentality to have, for someone without sufficient backing, it was dangerous, too dangerous. 1067 Evil Friends ¡°Senior, you remember there¡¯s an Elemental Sovereign watching after him, right?¡± The Faction Leader looked at the Old man. p AndD nOve1.cO,m ¡°What does that have to do with this old man?¡± The Old man didn¡¯t feel bothered by Grey¡¯s background. Even if Grey had a strong background, so what? There was no way they would want to fight against a powerful opponent like himself. ¡°I¡¯ve been quiet for too long, it seems like you¡¯ve forgotten who I truly am.¡± The Old man snorted, he felt insulted by the Faction Leader¡¯s words. When he was famous across the entire Continent, the Faction Leader¡¯s father was not born yet, much less the Faction Leader. The Faction Leader didn¡¯t say anything and looked at the Old man. ¡°Senior, did you really advance?¡± The Faction Leader asked curiously. After the Elemental Sovereign Plane, was the Half God Plane. The Half God Plane was not necessarily different from the Peak of the Elemental Sovereign Plane, but there was a qualitative change in strength once one got to this stage. Of course there were also different levels in the Half God Plane. As for the True God Plane, that had already become a myth. It had been so long, yet no one had been able to break through to the True God Plane. The strength level division in the Half God Plane is divided into weak, average, and strong. A weak Half God could easily kill a Peak Elemental Sovereign. Those who had average strength in the Half God Plane could kill a weak Half God, of course, they wouldn¡¯t be able to kill the other party without suffering some injuries. ¡­. ¡°What do you think?¡± The Old man asked with a mysterious smile. This old man was over one thousand years old! Over the years, he barely got involved with things involving the Faction, he didn¡¯t even get involved when some of his descendants met some troubles, however, for a distant descendant, the Old man had stepped out. ¡°I want to see which Family he¡¯s from that gave him the courage to kill my descendants.¡± The Old man snorted. The Faction Leader felt a headache as he looked at the Old man. Previously, he could still talk things out with the Old man since they were both Peak Elemental Sovereigns, although he didn¡¯t dare to be arrogant, he still spoke with the air of the Faction Leader, but with the current strength of the Old man, he knew he stood no chance. A weak Half God had appeared before him, this was someone that could be regarded as a God to those below the Elemental Sovereign Plane. How could he fight against him? However, he was still not going to allow the Old man have his way with Grey. Grey was someone he placed a lot of hopes on. Since he could advance this fast meant that he was very talented, exceeding their previous assessment of him. As long as they groomed Grey, a powerhouse would be born within thirty years at most. And this powerhouse might not be any weaker than this Old man in front of him. One has to know that this old man had used over a thousand years to get to this level, but with the speed Grey was advancing, he would take only around forty or fifty years. The only person who has had a shorter time was Lucas Dawson, the unparalleled genius from the Dawson Family who appeared some years ago. It took him less than forty years to get to the Peak of the Elemental Sovereign Plane. It is said that he has already broken through to the Half God Plane over a decade ago before he went missing. At that time, he fought with an old antique that was regarded as an average Half God at the time he broke through and won. Now, it was rumored that his strength was already on the same level as the top experts in the Continent. With Grey¡¯s talent and the strength he had shown so far, there¡¯s a high chance that he might get to that level as well, defeating those in higher stages even in the Half God Plane. This was a true genius! Once an Elementalist gets to the Elemental Sovereign Plane, it becomes even harder to fight across stages, it was not impossible, but not everyone could repeat the feat they did while in lower Planes. Some geniuses might be able to fight across one or two Planes in the Sage Plane, but once they get to the Elemental Venerable Plane, that gap shortens, and in the Elemental Sovereign Plane, the gap was almost nonexistent to some. But for people like Grey, they were not constricted by this rule. This made them even more frightening. The eyes of the Faction Leader flashed, no one knew what he was thinking. ¡­. In a city far from the Pyrmond Faction. Grey had no idea what was waiting for him in the Pyrmond Faction, even if he did, he wouldn¡¯t care too much about it. His father was Lucas Dawson, who would dare to seek trouble with the only son of such an expert. Even though he was not one that relied on influence, he knew there were times when he would have to rely on this terrifying background of his. They were all seated, taking sips of wine. With their strength, unless they wanted to, they wouldn¡¯t get drunk. ¡°This place isn¡¯t bad, I should stay a bit longer.¡± Klaus said as he looked around. ¡°What about Luthera, didn¡¯t you say you would visit her?¡± Reynolds raised a brow with a cheeky smile.please visit panda(-)N0ve1.co)m ¡°Yes, then I¡¯ll bring her here. Her father is so protective of her, if we¡¯re together in their family manor, his spiritual sense is always lurking around. Such a hateful fellow.¡± Klaus said in dissatisfaction. ¡°You¡¯re talking bad about your father-in-law, I wonder how he would react when he finds out.¡± Grey said with a playful smile. ¡°He¡¯s always trying to peek or eavesdrop on whatever we¡¯re doing or saying. Do you like it when you¡¯re under the vigilance of someone all through?¡± Klaus asked. ¡°Aren¡¯t you under the same situation in your Faction?¡± Grey continued to poke fun at Klaus. Klaus¡¯ expression darkened as he looked at Grey, it was as if he was prepared to fight with him at any minute. ¡°Don¡¯t look at me like that, I was present when you sank into the ground for speaking ill of your Faction Leader and the Elders.¡± Grey laughed. ¡°You¡¯re lucky you¡¯re stronger than me. But I don¡¯t believe you can take on the three of us.¡± Klaus snorted. ¡°Are you sure?¡± Grey asked playfully. ¡°Idiot.¡± Reynolds couldn¡¯t help but curse. If Klaus wanted to get beaten up by Grey then he should fight alone, why did he want to involve them in the battle. ¡°I¡¯m also curious as to how we would fare against the invincible Grey.¡± Alice added. ¡°You coward, what are you scared of? Aren¡¯t you also searching for an opportunity to beat him up?¡± Klaus said, mocking Reynolds. ¡°You want to beat me up?¡± Grey looked at his friends. ¡°Do you have what it takes?¡± He added with a sneer. ¡°You see, he¡¯s looking down on us. If we don¡¯t beat him now, I don¡¯t think we will have the chance again.¡± Klaus said, he was prepared to go to war with Grey. ¡°Fine, let¡¯s go to a decent place to have fun.¡± Grey said. ¡°Void, you will be the judge in this battle. Remember, Grey is not allowed to use his space element.¡± Klaus said hastily. Void nodded, while Grey¡¯s expression on the other hand changed. ¡°What do you mean I can¡¯t use my space element?¡± He asked, staring at Klaus icily. ¡°And his lightning, light, and maybe his wind element as well.¡± Klaus laughed, ¡°You already have four elements, if you still can¡¯t beat us with those elements, then you¡¯re trash!¡± Reynolds and Alice laughed when they saw Grey¡¯s expression. One has to know that the space element was Grey¡¯s greatest asset when it came to battling against multiple opponents. When he couldn¡¯t switch places with people, he depended heavily on his speed. However, Klaus was saying he had to fight without his space, lightning, wind, and light element. Each of these elements had the ability to enhance an Elementalist¡¯s speed. Without them, Grey won¡¯t have the explosive speed he usually has. Although he could still fight with his darkness, earth, water, and his powerful fire element. He wasn¡¯t used to fighting with such style. ¡°What, are you afraid?¡± Klaus laughed before adding, ¡°I¡¯ll beat you up today. After today, you¡¯re not allowed to make a move on me, Hehehe.¡± Grey looked at Klaus before turning to the others and sneered, ¡°Are you guys with him in this madness?¡± ¡°Actually, you¡¯re not allowed to use your icy flames as well.¡± Reynolds said with an embarrassed smile. Klaus burst out laughing when he heard this. Grey¡¯s expression on the other hand turned even more ugly compared to before. ¡®They were ganging up against him!¡¯ He turned to Void, only to see him wearing a bright smile. ¡®F*ck! I¡¯m doomed.¡¯ 1068 All Geniuses Grey looked at those in front of him with a gloomy expression. They were currently in a forest, and although they weren¡¯t really going all out, he was currently in a sorry state. Klaus had an evil grin on his face as he saw Grey¡¯s condition, he laughed, ¡°Weren¡¯t you smug earlier?¡± ¡°Why don¡¯t you take me one on one since you¡¯re so powerful?¡± Grey mocked. Klaus didn¡¯t seem fazed by his words and said shamelessly, ¡°I also want the others to enjoy beating you up as well. If not, I¡¯d have beaten you up alone. Don¡¯t worry, after today, I won¡¯t beat you up again.¡± Grey wanted to convince the others but Klaus didn¡¯t give him the opportunity to say anything, ¡°Why are you guys staring, do you want him to complete his array?¡± ¡°F*ck! Bastard!¡± Grey cursed. When talking to them, he was secretly preparing an array, he never thought that Klaus would be the one to sense it. Although his physique was powerful, he couldn¡¯t take a beating for too long. Besides, it was very embarrassing. ¡°Hehe, what do you think I¡¯ve been doing in the Faction all this while?¡± Klaus sneered. Although he didn¡¯t want to admit it, his strength had increased tremendously thanks to all the training he was forced to do. The battles they fought the last time also helped him improve faster. He wasn¡¯t far from the Ninth stage, and there was a feeling he could break through at any moment. The special training he was doing surprisingly improved his spiritual energy as well. Compared to before, his spiritual energy was stronger than usual. Even a Peak Sage Plane Elementalist might not have a stronger spiritual energy compared to him. This was why he managed to sense what Grey was doing. Grey on the other hand couldn¡¯t help but curse, Klaus was starting to become frightening. ¡°Hmph! I¡¯m done playing.¡± He snorted and released his fire element domain. Although he couldn¡¯t use the icy flame domain, his original fire domain was not to be trifled with. The second he released his domain, Klaus laughed and unleashed his domain as well. A bone-chilling cold spread out in all directions. Even Void who was staring from the side was shocked. ¡®Extreme cold. This isn¡¯t a normal domain.¡¯ He thought to himself. Grey was so much of a freak that he almost always overshadows his friends, but whenever he¡¯s not there, each of his friends are shocking geniuses as well. When Grey saw Klaus¡¯ domain rivaling his domain, he couldn¡¯t help but show a shocked expression. This was not the same domain he saw when Klaus used it the last time. ¡®What sort of training has he been undergoing?¡¯ He was shocked. Personally, Grey had never done such training, all he had done was comprehend the elements, and then figure out some things. But Klaus was being taught by a top powerhouse, and there were some secrets that such powerhouses knew that he didn¡¯t. ¡®I¡¯ll need to go through rigorous training when I go back to the Faction.¡¯ He concluded internally.please visit panda(-)N0ve1.co)m Reynolds also laughed and his domain was unleashed, lightning spread across the entire place, enveloping everyone. The aura of the Elemental Warrior improved at this time. ¡°Awesome!¡± Klaus praised when he saw this. He didn¡¯t expect Reynolds would be able to use the power of the domain to increase the strength of the Elemental Warrior. ¡°Since everyone has shown their hands, I guess it¡¯s time for me to do the same.¡± Alice smiled and a surprising scene occurred. Fire and ice appeared simultaneously, there was no sense of rejection from both as they quickly integrated with each other, showing a powerful domain. Even during the competition when she was fighting previously, she didn¡¯t show this domain. ¡°You awakened your fire domain first?¡± The others looked at her in shock. Alice was a Dual Elementalist, but they all knew that her fire element was inferior to her lightning element. However, the fire element was surprisingly the first domain she managed to awaken. It was unexpected. Adding the fact that the Seelie was an Ice Elementalist, it was a big contrast. At least the lightning element might¡¯ve been somewhat acceptable, but fire and water were two polar opposites, yet there was no rejection and they were even integrated together. The ice domain belonged to the Seelie, while the fire domain belonged to Alice, yet, even though they were not in a combined state, the Seelie was still able to borrow her its power. pAnD a(-)n0ve1.com Alice and Reynolds also attacked. With the help of the Elemental Warrior and the Seelie, they managed to not only knock Grey back, but he was at a complete disadvantage. Presently, Grey even felt that if he used his Fusion State, he wouldn¡¯t be able to defeat the trio. Of course, it would be a different scenario if he was allowed to use his space element. Even if they didn¡¯t let him use his other elements, his space element was all he needed to reverse the situation. Grey quickly used the Fusion State to increase his strength to the Peak of the Sage Plane, but before his friends, it was useless. Klaus¡¯ ice was almost dominating his fire domain. Against the other two domains, he had to depend on his water and earth elements for defense. After two minutes, he gave up and admitted defeat. He couldn¡¯t beat them. Yes, he had a higher attack power, but Klaus¡¯ defense was frightening as well. His full attack, even when using the chaos orb powered with four elements, he was unable to break through it. An Earth Elementalist at the Peak of three Sage Plane might not necessarily be able to replicate what Klaus just did with his ice. ¡°Turtle.¡± Grey cursed after they stopped fighting. ¡°What do you mean turtle, if you have the ability, replicate it as well. Besides, you¡¯re one to talk. You used both the water and earth element for defense.¡± Klaus refuted. ¡°I¡¯m being attacked by you three, what did you expect from me?¡± Grey argued. ¡°Fight back.¡± Klaus¡¯ eyes were filled with mockery. 1069 Separating Once Again Klaus and Grey continued arguing as they walked back to the city, on the way Klaus paused before looking at Grey with a smirk. ¡°I¡¯ll have to plead with you guys to wait for a while longer, I can¡¯t stop it.¡± He said and directly sat down on the ground, closing his eyes and entering a meditative state. Grey noticed the abnormalities in his aura and nodded to the others. Without delay, he told Void to help seal the area, although there was no danger around, they couldn¡¯t be too sure. Besides, the moment Klaus sat down on the ground, the area started to freeze. If things continued like this, then he would freeze the forest, and that might attract attention. The Sage Plane might be powerful, but an Elemental Venerable would be able to defeat them. So they had to be careful. Void sealed the area and they all watched as Klaus broke through. It didn¡¯t take too long, but all of them felt chills in their bodies. Klaus¡¯ ice seemed to be different from others. pAnDa (nov)e1? Unlike others, he didn¡¯t need to put in too much effort and he would encounter something good. Minutes later, Klaus opened his eyes and a horrifying cold light flashed past his eyes. The others felt as if their spiritual senses were being frozen when they made eye contact with him. ¡°What the hell Klaus!¡± Reynolds showed his dissatisfaction when this happened. ¡°I¡¯m sorry, I can¡¯t control it yet.¡± Klaus apologized as he looked around, breathing out cold air. ¡°Alright, let¡¯s go. I¡¯m in a good mood.¡± He laughed as they walked. The others congratulated him and went on to enjoy the rest of their night. ¡­. Time went by and before they knew it, a week had gone by. Nothing interesting had happened, so they had been quiet lately, enjoying the company of each other. It was now time for them to go their separate ways. They didn¡¯t know when next they would meet up again, but they all knew that at that time, they would all be stronger, that was their plan. Become stronger, faster. They could all sense that there was a strange sense of panic in the Aurora Continent. They¡¯ve all heard of the weakening of the seal, if it¡¯s as they said, then war was coming. They had to be strong before then, if not, they would just be cannon fodders who would not be able to make an impact in the war. Given their personalities, this was unacceptable! After separating from the group, Grey and Void exchanged glances. ¡°What now?¡± Void couldn¡¯t help but ask. ¡°I¡¯ll go back to the Faction. I¡¯m not used to the Dawson Family, so I don¡¯t really want to stay there.¡± Grey replied. ¡°Your parents?¡± Void asked.please visit panda(-)N0ve1.co)m ¡°I gave them the communication device, I can speak with them. It might take a while to go through, but it¡¯s not that hard.¡± ¡°And the guy protecting you?¡± ¡°He should continue. Since the Uncle doesn¡¯t want to show himself, what can I do?¡± Grey replied. Over the days, he had been trying to speak with the man protecting him, but all his attempts had been futile. Apparently, the man didn¡¯t want to speak to him. Either that, he was not following him any longer. The probability of him not following him was quite low, so he went with the former. ¡°Do you have any plans before I return? Mind you, I¡¯ll be staying for a while in the Faction. You should know I¡¯ve been neglecting a few things in my cultivation over the years, I need to sort them out.¡± Grey asked. During his spar with his friends, when he saw Klaus¡¯ abilities, he felt he had forgotten a few things. He was strong, so he didn¡¯t really get much training from the Faction. Not just that, but whenever he was not out fighting, he would either be focused on arrays or trying to comprehend the elements. With his current strength, he could get a better understanding of how to use his strength, so he wanted to go back and see if he could learn some things from the Faction. Techniques were different from what Klaus showed. What Klaus did was not just a technique, but there was a qualitative change in how he used his elemental essence. Void thought for a while before suggesting they traveled around for a week or so before returning to the Faction. Grey had only one friend in the Faction, and he wasn¡¯t that powerful. Even though Void could leave the Faction with him, he didn¡¯t find it amusing since the gap in strength had increased by a lot. Even if Keith had broken through, he would still most likely be in the Early stages of the Sage Plane. Void wanted to fight powerful people, and Grey was the only one who could offend such people. The reason he said they should travel around was that he could sense something in front, but it was very faint, so he felt it would not be close by. With the increase in his strength, his ability to sense treasures also increased as well. Grey didn¡¯t know of Void¡¯s plan as he readily followed him. It wasn¡¯t bad to see the world for a while longer. They didn¡¯t know when the seal would be completely broken, so he wanted to enjoy these somewhat peaceful times. ¡­. Somewhere far away. ¡°Are you sure he¡¯s the one who fought against us?¡± A voice asked in a dark room. ¡°Yes. He¡¯s growing too fast, sooner or later he would become a problem to us.¡± ¡°Hmm, I¡¯ve not seen him since that time. Looks like it¡¯s time for me to show my face again. If I can kill him, we can get the rewards placed on his head.¡± ¡°His whereabouts are currently unknown, how are you going to get him?¡± ¡°Don¡¯t worry, I still have some means.¡± 1070 Heading Back To The Pyrmond Faction ¡°Damn it! Void, what did you do?¡± Grey¡¯s voice was heard, he was panting heavily as he ran through the woods. His clothes were tattered and he was looking like a beggar on the street. Void also had a worried expression on his face. ¡°I didn¡¯t do anything, you were the one who took their treasure.¡± He replied. ¡°You said there was no powerful person present.¡± Grey almost exploded with anger. It had been so long, yet Void still had this habit of bringing trouble to him. The treasure was good, but the owners were very powerful. There were even two Elemental Venerables among them and multiple Peak Sage Plane Elementalists. They didn¡¯t listen to Grey¡¯s explanation and tried to kill him the moment they saw it with him. Grey even wanted to return it but these people were adamant on killing him. ¡°Keep running, they¡¯re catching up.¡± Void said. Grey grabbed Void by the head and tossed him to the side with all his strength, ¡°You¡¯re the stronger one, why should I be the one to carry you?¡± He was pissed, it had been a long time since he was beaten up this much. Void was also beaten up by the two Elemental Venerables, but Grey¡¯s situation was worse, even his space element couldn¡¯t help him much in this situation. The people found a way to seal the space in the area, making it difficult for him to use the space element. Only after Void¡¯s outburst did he manage to escape from the place. Void quickly appeared before him, ¡°Stop quarreling and let¡¯s go.¡± This time, Void took charge, grabbing him by the hand, he teleported a great distance. Boom! The second they disappeared, a powerful attack exploded out in the place they were standing on. ¡°Chase after them, they can¡¯t escape this place.¡± A lady¡¯s voice was heard. The others spread out and continued chasing, the lady turned to look at the man beside her and frowned. Void was strong, even against two people in the Third stage of the Elemental Venerable Plane, he still managed to injure one of them with his outburst. She stared at the left hand of the man that was ripped off. ¡°Can you still fight?¡± She asked. ¡°It¡¯s nothing, I¡¯ll be able to heal as long as we take the treasure back.¡± The man replied. The lady nodded and they rushed after Void once again. ¡­. On Void¡¯s end, his expression changed when he noticed something. ¡°Damn it! It¡¯s like my domain, we can¡¯t leave unless we find the weak and destroy it.¡± He complained. Grey¡¯s face turned uglier when he heard this. They could enter but they can¡¯t go out? What sort of logic was that?! From the looks of it, these people planned for people to come and snatch their treasure. ¡°Then find the weak spot.¡± He said angrily. ¡°I¡¯m searching, but it will take a¡­¡± Void paused before cursing, ¡°Damn it! They¡¯re here.¡± He hastily disappeared once again, dodging the attacks of the man and woman. They were the fastest, but Void¡¯s speed was not something to be trifled with. Before they even appeared, Void vanished once again. Even if he couldn¡¯t leave the area for now, it didn¡¯t mean that these people could hurt him. At most he¡¯ll use them to run in circles for the meantime. Grey and Void appeared over two kilometers away from where they were previously standing. ¡°Hide your aura and search for the weak spot, I¡¯ll attract those two with me.¡± Void tossed him to the ground before disappearing again. Grey cursed but did as he was told. This wasn¡¯t the time to argue with Void. ¡®Sigh, I should¡¯ve just gone back to the Faction.¡¯ He soon got to work, his spiritual sense wasn¡¯t as powerful as Void¡¯s, but it wasn¡¯t weak either. He soon started to search for the places around what seemed like a thin veil. He tried moving past it, but found that it was harder than a rock. ¡°Hmm, there should be something supporting it. If broken, then this thing will naturally fall apart.¡± He muttered to himself before rushing off. He could sense some people rushing to where he was standing, the small time he came in contact with the veil exposed his aura, luckily he managed to hide it again.please visit panda(-)N0ve1.co)m He continued running around the edge of the veil, and before long, he saw an abnormality. ¡°This should be it.¡± He followed the energy flow and soon saw a cave. At the cave entrance, there were five people standing guard, all of them were at the Peak of the Sage Plane. Grey didn¡¯t want to fight, but he knew sneaking in would not be easy. He had tried using the space element, but he noticed that the space inside was restricted. ¡®I¡¯ll blow it up!¡¯ He soon came to a decision and started to condense a fusion orb. This orb contained all eight elements he had in his arsenal. Once it got to the peak, he would run there and throw it inside, it was all up to the people guarding the place if they wanted to stay there or not. Some seconds later, he had condensed the orb till the highest state. This was the first time he was using an orb this powerful. He licked his lips before jumping out from where he was hidden and dashing in the direction of the cave. Just when he got there, the five people exploded out with frightening speed, wanting to stop the intruder. They knew that some people had entered their village and stolen their treasure. Since these people had come, they would be unable to leave. The only way to leave was by destroying this formation. Grey dodged all their attacks with ease before tossing the orb inside the cave and running away. pAn,Da-n0v e1,c,m When the orb flew past the five guards, they felt a chill in their spine and without speaking, they fled in all directions. That orb could kill them. It wasn¡¯t something a Sage Plane Elementalist could do, it was on par with a First or even Second stage Elemental Venerable. These men were scared. Grey had also felt the power of the orb, he didn¡¯t think it would be this strong. Boom! A loud explosion rang out and even Void and the two Elemental Venerables fighting paused to look in the direction of the explosion. ¡°Bastard!¡± The lady roared. She had been searching for Grey all this while, but Void had made sure they were preoccupied with him. He didn¡¯t even allow them to use their spiritual senses to probe the area. A faint ¡®Ka-cha¡¯ sound was heard and the veil fell apart. ¡°Hahaha,¡± Void laughed happily and soon vanished. ¡°Stop there!¡± The Lady was incensed. They couldn¡¯t allow Grey and Void to do as they pleased. These two thieves barged into their village and stole their treasure, now, they¡¯ve even destroyed their array. This array took years for it to get to this level, now it is broken. Of course they were furious. Void was able to quickly sense where Grey was hiding and rushed over to pick him up. When he saw Grey, he couldn¡¯t help but burst out laughing. Grey¡¯s appearance had worsened compared to before, presently, he barely had clothes on, and his face and body was covered in black dust. Even though he managed to run fast, he was still caught up by the explosion. He wasn¡¯t injured, but he felt pain all over his body. He covered himself with the light element as he tried to heal the small wounds on his body from the previous battle. Void didn¡¯t say anything and took him with him, disappearing from the area. Those people couldn¡¯t catch up with them and gave up after a few hours of chasing. ¡­. ¡°We¡¯re going back to the Faction. I shouldn¡¯t have listened to you the first time.¡± Grey complained. ¡°What do you mean, didn¡¯t you say you enjoyed fighting?¡± Void mocked. ¡°Fighting and getting beaten up are two different things.¡± Grey mumbled, before adding, ¡°How come you didn¡¯t sense their existence?¡± ¡°They must have hid under the array. Originally, I sensed only one Elemental Venerable, and that person¡¯s strength was only in the First stage.¡± Void explained. Even after entering the village, he didn¡¯t sense the aura of too many Peak Sage Plane Elementalists, only four or so. In the end, Grey had to fight against over fifteen Peak Sage Plane Elementalists. There were also other Sage Plane Elementalists in the village, so they joined hands with the others to beat up Grey. Grey held back from killing since he knew he was the one in the wrong. But even if he wanted to kill, he might not have been able to kill too many of them. These people had a strange fighting style. They spoke for a while before Grey told Void it was time to head back to the Faction. 1071 Do As You See Fit Grey stood in front of the large gates leading to the Pyrmond Faction with some mixed feelings. Since joining the Faction, he rarely stayed there and has been going from one secret realm to another. Each realm had helped him advance by leaps and bounds, but he still needed to learn some things. With a heavy breath, he walked towards the gates. After showing his ID, he was allowed to pass through the gates. He soon headed to his residence. ¡­. The moment Grey entered the Faction group, the news got to a few people. One of these people was the Old man from the same family as Foudre. ¡°Bring him here. I¡¯d like to see the person who dared to kill Foudre.¡± The Old man snorted. The person who came to report rushed out of the building, heading straight for Grey¡¯s living area. ¡­. In another place. The Faction Leader opened his eyes with a long sigh. ¡°He¡¯s returned.¡± He muttered to himself and vanished. No one told him of Grey¡¯s return, he sensed it the second Grey entered the Faction. ¡­. Unknown to Grey, his return had destroyed the peace of the Faction. He soon got to Keith¡¯s living quarters, and to his surprise, Keith was not around. He shook his head with a self-deprecating smile, ¡°I tend to forget about this thing lately.¡± He brought out the communication device and soon found out where Keith was located. It didn¡¯t seem far from the Faction, but it wasn¡¯t close either. ¡®Maybe he¡¯s out on a mission, I¡¯ll go search for him when he returns.¡¯ He thought to himself as he went back to his place. On getting to his place, he noticed something strange and turned around. ¡°Huh?¡± He looked at the person standing behind him, a little confused. ¡°Come with me.¡± The Faction Leader grabbed him and disappeared. Grey didn¡¯t even have the time to ask any questions before he appeared in the cave where he first met the Faction Leader. pAnDa (nov)e1? ¡°Bertram, what are you doing?¡± The Old man looked at the Faction Leader, before staring at Grey. ¡°Elder Archibald.¡± The Faction Leader didn¡¯t expect him to move this fast. ¡°You must be Grey?¡± Elder Archibald looked at Grey curiously. More Elders had already appeared at this time. Grey was a little confused as to what was going on, but he still nodded. He didn¡¯t show any signs of fear, just staring at the old man in front of him. He could sense a great pressure from the man, even higher than the one the Faction Leader gave. But he wasn¡¯t afraid. ¡°Admit to your crime and cripple your cultivation.¡± Elder Archibald said calmly. ¡°Crime? What crime?¡± Grey looked at the Elder in surprise. He didn¡¯t know which crime they were talking about. ¡°You killed your fellow Faction members, a crime punishable by death. Since I¡¯m in a good mood, I¡¯ll just cripple you and send you to the dungeon till the end of your life.¡± Elder Archibald spoke coolly. He didn¡¯t even want to hear anything from Grey¡¯s side. Grey¡¯s eyes showed a hint of understanding, he finally recalled that he had such an issue before leaving. Originally, he thought the Faction Leader would be able to help him sort it out, but from the looks of things, he can¡¯t. ¡®This Elder Archibald seems to be powerful.¡¯ He thought internally. ¡°I only killed the malignant tumors in the Faction.¡± Grey replied coldly. Elder Archibald raised a brow and looked at Grey, surprised he was able to talk back. Although no one noticed it, he used his aura to lock onto Grey. A normal Sage Plane Elementalist would not be able to breathe properly, much less speak. But Grey didn¡¯t seem to have any problems whatsoever. ¡®A treasure?¡¯ His eyes shone with a strange light. ¡°The rules of the Faction states that you¡¯re not allowed to kill anyone from the Faction. Much less the descendants of one of the Grand Elders.¡± A middle-aged man on the side spoke up. Looking at him, Grey noticed he was a little familiar. After connecting the dots, he realized Foudre had some resemblance to this man.please visit panda(-)N0ve1.co)m ¡®They must be from the same family. Maybe he¡¯s his father.¡¯ He thought as he stared at the man curiously. ¡°He broke the rules first, I didn¡¯t see anyone trying to do anything to him at that time.¡± Grey replied coldly. ¡°It¡¯s not your place to punish a descendant of mine.¡± Elder Archibald snorted coldly. ¡°If he was stronger, I¡¯d be dead by now. I¡¯m stronger, so instead of him killing me, I killed him. What¡¯s wrong with killing someone who¡¯s a threat to your life?¡± Grey spoke unhurriedly. ¡°Grand Elder, he only did what anyone else would do. Foudre tried to kill him, but failed. Doing that alone already meant that he had broken the rules and should be punished accordingly. Grey can be said to be exerting this punishment on him.¡± The Faction Leader replied. ¡°Bertram, it¡¯s not your place to tell this old man what is what in the Faction.¡± Elder Archibald snorted. ¡°Looks like you¡¯ve all forgotten who the Faction Leader is. I¡¯ve made the decision, and I want to see who can touch him.¡± The Faction Leader stood in front of Grey. His motive was clear, I will protect him, what can you do? ¡°Bertram, don¡¯t force my hand. Hand over the boy.¡± The aura of Elder Archibald soared. This time, Grey felt a huge pressure. The first time, Elder Archibald was only trying to secretly intimidate him with the pressure, now, he was releasing his aura out. Even with the pressure, Grey didn¡¯t lower his head as he stared at the Grand Elder. A Grand Elder was trying to bully him because they felt he didn¡¯t have a background. ¡®I wonder if you¡¯ll still be this proud if my father was here.¡¯ He thought to himself. He wasn¡¯t afraid that the Grand Elder would kill him. All he needed to do was to tell them his identity and they wouldn¡¯t dare to kill him. Punishing him was even out of the picture. ¡°Elder Archibald, I¡¯ve already made my intentions obvious, you can not have him.¡± The Faction Leader stood firmly in front of Grey. His previous ordinary aura had changed completely. Grand Elder Archibald was irritated by the fact that the Faction Leader was actually going against him because of Grey. One has to know that although the Faction Leader was the leader of the Faction, the Grand Elders could be said to have a higher position. As long as he spoke with the other Grand Elders, they could strip Bertram of his position as the Faction Leader. ¡°Archibald, enough! We¡¯re already in this state, internal strife isn¡¯t something we want.¡± A powerful voice spoke out. ¡°Bertram, come with the boy. Archibald, come along with your people. We¡¯ll settle this now.¡± Bertram¡¯s expression changed slightly when he heard this, while Grand Elder Archibald snorted coldly. They soon vanished from the place. ¡­. Deep in the Faction ground. Three sage-like old men could be seen standing quietly. If one focused on them, they would think they were both real and ethereal at the same time. Figures soon started to appear in the hall. When Grey arrived, he looked around curiously. This was the first time he was seeing this hall. Bertram stood in front of Grey once again, shielding him. ¡°Speak.¡± The figures in the middle said. ¡°This boy killed my descendant, his fellow Faction member in the Lutra realm. According to the rules, he should be killed.¡± Elder Archibald replied respectfully. The old man in the middle turned to Grey, seemingly waiting for an explanation from him. Bertram was about to speak up when the eyes of the old man turned cold. He knew he wasn¡¯t the one the old man wanted to speak so he kept quiet, looked at Grey and nodded. Grey didn¡¯t shy away, he stepped forward and told him how everything played out. From his battle with the man from the Gnome race, to when he was unconscious and found by Nathan who didn¡¯t want to help him out. After being taken away, Nathan instigated Foudre to try to kill him with the aim of him being shielded by his background. In the end they failed, and after waking up, he searched for them and took his revenge. ¡°So you admit to the fact that you killed your fellow Faction members?¡± The old man in the middle asked. Grey nodded. The old man looked at him for a while before turning to Grand Elder Archibald, ¡°What do you want?¡± ¡°He should cripple himself and head to the dungeon for the rest of his life. I¡¯m being lenient since he¡¯s a Faction member, and I heard of how he helped us win the competition. If not, I would¡¯ve killed him on the spot.¡± Grand Elder Archibald said. ¡°Grand Elders, it¡¯s clear that Grand Elder Archibald is only favoring his family in this case. If words go out, who would dare to join our Faction again. Oppressing others because you¡¯re from one of the Grand Elders¡¯ lineage.¡± Bertram said. The man in the middle thought for a while before staring at Grand Elder Archibald, ¡°Do as you see fit.¡± Elder Archibald smiled and threw a fist at Grey. The second the fist was about to hit Grey, a cold snort resonated in the area. 1072 Did You Kill Him? ¡°Bertram, are you going to go against me?¡± Grand Elder Archibald sneered. When his attack was about to hit Grey, Bertram blocked it, although, he was pushed back in the process. ¡°I see no reason why an elderly like yourself would want to bully a junior.¡± Bertram replied. He was prepared to go against Elder Archibald. ¡°If it were before, you would¡¯ve had some right to speak to me, but now, you¡¯re still lacking. The boy dared to kill someone from my lineage, I¡¯m already showing mercy by not killing him.¡± Grand Elder Archibald looked calm. He was an expert in the Half God Plane, what right did Bertram, someone who was still an Elemental Sovereign have to go against him? ¡°So he can be killed but those from your lineage can¡¯t be killed?¡± Bertram said coldly, ¡°You should know the rules of the world, those who dare to kill someone should be ready to be killed as well. Since Foudre couldn¡¯t kill him, then he¡¯s dead. So what? He¡¯s weak. The Faction doesn¡¯t need biased people.¡± While Bertram was speaking, he glanced at the three Grand Elders as well. He wasn¡¯t only speaking about Grand Elder Archibald¡¯s lineage, but those from the other Grand Elders and Elders¡¯ lineage in the Faction were also taking advantage of their background to bully some people in the Faction. Bertram has been looking for a way to settle this issue for a while now, but he hasn¡¯t been able to get an audience with these Grand Elders. They¡¯ve always been in seclusion, cultivating. ¡°As I said, it¡¯s not your place to teach this Old man the rules, neither is it his place to punish those from my lineage.¡± Grand Elder Archibald snorted. The area was dead silent as the Grand Elder faced off with the Faction Leader. Although the Faction Leader was weaker, he was still standing proudly. It was clear that he valued Grey greatly. Grey looked at the figure standing in front of him, feeling a little touched. ¡®How can a Grand Elder be so petty?¡¯ Void asked internally. ¡®Some of these Old men put a lot of significance to their reputation. He feels me killing Foudre or whatever he¡¯s called is a blemish to his reputation.¡¯ Grey understood this. He also knew that the only reason the Grand Elder was doing this was that he felt he didn¡¯t have an overly strong background. Grand Elder Archibald looked at Grey, seeing his expression, he felt annoyed and attacked once again. This time, he didn¡¯t hold back. Bertram tried to block the attack but he was sent flying this time. Bang! He slammed into the ground, but quickly rushed forward, in a bid to stop Grand Elder Archibald from attacking Grey. But to someone as powerful as Grand Elder Archibald, he didn¡¯t need a lot of time to take care of someone as weak as Grey. After sending Bertram flying, he stretched his hand at Grey. Grey wanted to move, but his body was rooted to the ground, and he saw the hand of Grand Elder Archibald enlarge and cover his entire body. He looked at Grand Elder Archibald defiantly, and to the shock of everyone, he exploded out with a powerful attack. pA n,dan(-)0ve1.c0m The Grand Elder¡¯s hand didn¡¯t even shake as he grabbed at Grey. Just when he was about to hold Grey, a shocking scene took place. His hand was pushed back by a gentle force before a figure appeared before Grey. The figure didn¡¯t look to be real and seemed to be made of spiritual energy. ¡°Huh? It hasn¡¯t even been long and he¡¯s already in danger?¡± The figure muttered. He looked around and saw Grey¡¯s face and smiled, before turning around. ¡°Pyrmond Faction?¡± He raised a brow. The figure who appeared was none other than the legendary figure in the Aurora Continent, Lucas Dawson, Grey¡¯s father. ¡°You¡¯re Lucas?¡± The Old man in the middle of the three other Grand Elders asked. ¡°I¡¯m Lucas Dawson, Senior. Can I ask what crime my son committed that warranted a Half God attacking him?¡± Lucas¡¯ voice was soft, he didn¡¯t even glance at Grand Elder Archibald since he appeared, only focusing his gaze on the three Grand Elders. The other Grand Elders were stronger than Grand Elder Archibald, and they were older as well. When the others heard the name Lucas Dawson, their heads almost exploded, a few people contemplated if Grey was truly from the Dawson Family, but after they encountered Conor, their thoughts died. Some of them secretly asked if Grey was from the Dawson Family, but Conor denied it. Not just that, but given Grey¡¯s talent, the Dawson Family wouldn¡¯t risk sending him out alone to gain experience. But now, they found out that Grey wasn¡¯t just from the Dawson Family, but he was the son of the legendary genius, Lucas Dawson. One has to know that although Lucas was powerful, he was also very easy to talk to, the person they are more afraid of is his wife, Martha. She was known to be overbearing and unreasonable. Her strength however was there for all to see, she was weaker than Lucas, but she might not lose out against Grand Elder Archibald. ¡°He¡¯s your son?¡± The Grand Elder asked again, pointing at Grey. Lucas looked at the Old man but nodded. ¡°This is between them.¡± The Old man pushed the blame on Grand Elder Archibald. They¡¯ve been curious about Grey¡¯s identity when they sensed the strength of the person guarding him. This could be said to be an opportunity to know his identity, hence they left Grey to Grand Elder Archibald. If he wasn¡¯t from a top force, then he could die. He was a genius, but he wasn¡¯t the only genius. Grand Elder Archibald¡¯s expression changed and he looked at Lucas, his expression changing repeatedly, but being an expert in the Half God Plane, he spoke up, ¡°He killed someone from my lineage, I¡¯m only punishing him.¡± ¡°Did you kill him?¡± Lucas turned to Grey. ¡°Yes, he wanted to kill me, but he was not capable, I killed him in return.¡± Grey didn¡¯t hide it and spoke up. ¡°Good.¡± Lucas nodded in satisfaction. ¡°You can see who¡¯s right and wrong, what do you plan to do now?¡± Lucas looked at Grand Elder Archibald, his eyes still calm. 1073 Settled With A Few Words Grand Elder Archibald was caught in a dilemma, he didn¡¯t know what to say. He wanted to cripple Grey, but with such a powerful father, he didn¡¯t dare to even voice it out. Grand Elder Archibald might be older than Lucas, but in terms of strength, he knew he was not a match. He couldn¡¯t even exchange a few rounds with him, much less fight against him. If he said he wanted to cripple Grey, Lucas and Martha might flip out and charge here. They dared to do so, he knew all too well how bold the duo were. Martha was even more brutal, so he didn¡¯t want to offend such a figure. Seeing the hesitation from Grand Elder Archibald, Bertram revealed a mocking look. It was clear that the Grand Elder only knew how to bully the weak and feared the strong. ¡°Alright, since you¡¯re offended by his behavior. I¡¯ll apologize on his behalf. You can send those in the same Plane as himself to try to kill him. If they succeed then I¡¯ll accept that my son is incapable, but if the person is more than three stages above him, I¡¯ll come here, and you will give me an explanation.¡± Lucas looked at the Grand Elders, his words domineering. He didn¡¯t stop them from trying to get revenge on Grey, but as long as the person was three stages above Grey, he would come there and seek an explanation. Grand Elder Archibald¡¯s facial expression was complicated, even though Lucas gave them the go-ahead to try to get revenge on Grey, did he dare to try it? He didn¡¯t, even if he was forced he wouldn¡¯t dare to make a move on Grey. pAn,Da n<0,>v,e1 At this moment, Bertram looked at Lucas, a little shocked. Lucas just threatened the Grand Elders subtly, and even forced them to take Grey¡¯s safety into account at all times. The meaning to his words were simple, if anything happens to my son, I¡¯ll come for you people. I said you can take revenge, but do you dare? No one would want to enrage this frightening genius. He might be younger than most of the people present, but he used a few words to put a few in their places. In the end, strength was all that mattered. The strong were feared, while the weak can only cower before them. Take Grand Elder Archibald for example, he wouldn¡¯t have gone against Bertram previously, even though he was stronger, the difference wasn¡¯t large. But the moment he broke through, he directly came to look for trouble with him. ¡°Alright, cultivate well kid, I¡¯ll come pick you up if I need you.¡± Lucas smiled at Grey, after giving the Grand Elders a meaningful look, he nodded at Bertram and drilled into Grey¡¯s body. Grey was shocked, he didn¡¯t even know when his father placed a spiritual clone in his body. This was something only top experts can do. One has to know that the Grand Elder was stronger than the Faction Leader which should make him a Half God, yet his father¡¯s spiritual clone managed to push his hand away. Of course, that wasn¡¯t the full strength of Grand Elder Archibald, but this still showed that Lucas was terrifyingly powerful. The Grand Elders looked at each other before one of them chuckled, ¡°I never expected you to be his son.¡± ¡°Dismissed.¡± The Old man in the middle said and they vanished. Bertram grabbed Grey and vanished. Grand Elder Archibald stood on the same spot, embarrassed and flustered. He never expected that after breaking through to the Half God Plane, he would be treated in this manner. Half Gods were those at the top of the world, of course there was a difference in their strength, it didn¡¯t mean that he would be treated in this manner. He stood in the same position for a long time before disappearing. ¡­.please visit panda(-)N0ve1.co)m ¡°Haha, I never expected that he was your father.¡± Bertram laughed in spite of himself, he was given a huge shock today. ¡°I only found out recently as well.¡± Grey replied. ¡°I see, looks like he was planning to keep you hidden for a while.¡± Bertram said. Grey didn¡¯t explain anything to him, after staying for a while he left. He was excited that his father was so powerful, he couldn¡¯t help but curse internally. If he had grown with his father, his life would¡¯ve been easier. But after some thought, he knew that wouldn¡¯t be good for him. If he stayed in such an environment, he would¡¯ve grown faster, but he wouldn¡¯t be the way he currently is. ¡°Come, your father is powerful, why don¡¯t we go and cause some trouble?¡± Void suggested. ¡°Do you believe me if I tell you my mother will beat me up?¡± Grey said. Void shook his head, he had heard of how fearsome Grey¡¯s mother was, but he didn¡¯t really think that she would beat him up. Grey couldn¡¯t be bothered with him. His issue in the Faction could be said to be settled as it stands. ¡®Alright, time to cultivate.¡¯ He thought internally. ¡®What do you want to focus on?¡¯ Void asked. ¡®I guess I¡¯ll learn to control my strength.¡¯ Grey said. When his father¡¯s spiritual clone appeared, the attack he used to block the attack of Grand Elder Archibald was shocking. He didn¡¯t sense any ripples from it, but it still possessed powerful strength. He felt like if he could get that kind of control over his strength, his attack power would increase. He would also gain a better understanding of his strength. ¡®That? It¡¯s not easy.¡¯ Void replied. ¡®I know, that¡¯s why I want to train it.¡¯ ¡®I guess I¡¯ll train with you as well.¡¯ 1074 Caught After Some Years Two months went by in a flash. Grey was still focused on training to control his power. He had improved during this time, reaching the Peak of the Sage Plane at the time. Void had left, training was too boring, so he left when Keith returned. Keith was already in the Mid stages of the Sage Plane, and he had been going out for multiple missions lately. ¡­. Grey wasn¡¯t the only one who was in seclusion, all his friends were also in seclusion. Klaus was once again trapped in the Moonlight Faction. Alice and Reynolds both decided to increase their cultivation stages since that was what they lacked at this moment. ¡­. While this was happening, two figure entered the Western Continent. If Grey were to see this person, he would be surprised. ¡°Do you think he¡¯s the one?¡± A feminine voice asked. ¡®Definitely. He¡¯s the only one I can think of being able to cause so much trouble.¡¯ Another feminine voice replied. Looking at the two figures, one of them was female, while the other was surprisingly male. The male was none other than Ellis, the young man Grey became friends with back at the Azure Continent. Grey had the intention of wanting to visit him, but thinking of the distance, he gave up midway. He planned to go after he was stronger. ¡°He helped father the last time, father gave us a gift for him.¡± The young lady beside Ellis said. The young lady looked to be around twenty years old and had a porcelain face, which jade like skin. She was stunningly beautiful. ¡°Hehe, to think that he provoked one of the strongest forces in the world. Well, they aren¡¯t even from our world. How did he even do it?¡± Ellis felt a headache. Grey seemed to have a knack for troubles. For someone who was avoiding trouble, he always seems to get in trouble anyway. ¡°I heard he joined the Pyrmond Faction, it will take a long time to get there. Let¡¯s continue our journey.¡± Ellis said calmly. Coming here, he wanted to warn Grey about the death order, and also hand over a gift to them. His father found out that Grey and Void took the dragon¡¯s blood, so he wanted to give him something that would compliment it and allow it grow well. Ellis didn¡¯t know how his father found out, and how his father even thought that it would be possible for Grey to absorb it, nor did he ask about it. He only wanted to carry out this task. With his current strength, it would take them a while to get to the Pyrmond Faction. Of course, he got essence stones that he would use whenever he got to a teleportation array. ¡­. A month and two weeks went by in a flash. Unlike when Grey was heading back from the Middle Continent, Ellis was much faster. He didn¡¯t take any detours, nor did he get into any troubles. He went straight and before long he was standing in front of the Pyrmond Faction gates. Ellis was stopped outside the Faction gate, after telling them of his purpose, he was told to wait outside and someone went over to inform Grey. Ellis was someone they didn¡¯t know, so they couldn¡¯t allow him enter the Faction grounds. ¡­. ¡°Ellis O¡¯Brien?¡± Grey asked, raising his brow. He recalled Ellis, but he never thought that he would come in search of him. This was beyond his expectations. The person who came over nodded respectfully, he was only in the Origin Plane, in front of an expert like Grey, he had to be respectful. ¡°Send him in.¡± Grey said. ¡°Is¡­ is it appropriate to allow a stranger in?¡± The young man hesitated, but still asked. Grey thought about it and felt that he had a point. If he allowed Ellis into the Faction ground, some people might cause trouble with him. Grand Elder Archibald¡¯s lineage seemed to have targeted him, while he was in seclusion, they¡¯ve sent people over to question why he hadn¡¯t done any missions. Thinking about it, when he journeyed to the Middle Continent, he didn¡¯t do too many missions. ¡®I¡¯ll just use this opportunity to complete some missions.¡¯ He thought to himself. Void was currently nowhere to be seen, but he could still sense him. ¡°Tell him I¡¯ll arrive soon.¡± He stood up and headed to the mission hall. He wanted to accept three or four missions. Over the past months, he had always been busy. So now that he stayed indoors for over three months, he was starting to get a little restless. ¡®I can¡¯t believe I¡¯m starting to feel like them.¡¯ He chuckled to himself.please visit panda(-)N0ve1.co)m He had always felt that Void and Klaus were psychopaths for not wanting to live in peace, but lately, he had been involved in too many battles, and had come to like the idea of always being involved in something. Sitting and doing nothing was not his style anymore. Besides, he had been cultivating for a while, it was time to try out his new skills, practically. After going to the mission hall, he picked three missions that required strength of a Peak Sage Plane Elementalist before heading out. ¡­. p AndD nOve1.cO,m Grey soon stepped out of the Faction, he was wearing a leather long sleeve with black trousers. His hair was neatly combed and he wore his usual look. If not for his stunningly beautiful face, he wouldn¡¯t be different from normal people. ¡°Ellis, I never expected to see you here.¡± He smiled as he approached them. ¡°It been a while.¡± Ellis shook his hand before turning to the person by his side. ¡°This is Aelia, my sister.¡± He introduced. ¡°You have a sister?¡± Grey was taken aback. ¡°I have multiple family members.¡± Ellis replied. Grey guessed what he meant, Aelia was not the child of Ellis¡¯ parents, but she was someone from a relative. ¡®Guess they¡¯re close.¡¯ He thought to himself. After exchanging greetings with Aelia, he turned to Ellis, ¡°How¡¯s Uncle?¡± ¡°He¡¯s doing great now, thanks to you.¡± Ellis replied, he couldn¡¯t hide the admiration and gratitude in his eyes. Even though he was older and stronger than Grey, he still somewhat looked up to him. Grey was a freakish existence. ¡°Huh! You¡¯re already at the Peak of the Sage Plane?¡± He was shocked. When Grey left the last time, he was still at the Peak of the Origin Plane, how long has it been? And Grey had already gotten to the Peak of the Sage Plane. It shouldn¡¯t even be up to three years now. How did Grey cultivate? This was the only question in his head right now. He was already in the Elemental Venerable Plane, and in the Mid stages. But he was close to the Peak of the Sage Plane at the time Grey left, now, he was in the Fifth stage of the Elemental Venerable Plane and it was already seen as being very fast, yet Grey seemed to be shattering his logic. Seeing his reaction, Grey laughed. ¡®I wonder how he would react if he sees Void.¡¯ He thought to himself. Void was already in the Second stage of the Elemental Venerable Plane. To Grey, Void, and even his friends, they were all advancing at unimaginable paces. If not for Grey, the other three would¡¯ve been regarded as once in a thousand years geniuses, but Grey trumpled them, so there wasn¡¯t much to say. ¡°You¡¯re in the Elemental Venerable Plane, the Peak of the Sage Plane can¡¯t be compared to that.¡± Grey said nonchalantly. Ellis felt like beating Grey up when he saw how he was acting nonchalant. ¡®Why are you showing off in front of me?¡¯ He thought to himself. ¡°What brought you here?¡± Grey asked. He knew Ellis wouldn¡¯t come without any reason. ¡°Father said I should ask if you absorbed the Dragon blood successfully.¡± Ellis looked at Grey, scrutinizing him. When Grey heard of this, his expression changed slightly. ¡°So you really took it?¡± Ellis was stunned. He couldn¡¯t believe the Dragon blood that made the Vaergahl Family almost fall out with theirs was actually with Grey at that time. ¡°It¡¯s not my fault, it was in one of the storage rings.¡± Grey replied, scratching his head in embarrassment. Ellis was stunned, but he still proceeded to ask, ¡°Did you absorb it?¡± Grey nodded. He had already absorbed it, so there was no use in hiding it. ¡°Father guessed you would. He said even if others can¡¯t, you can. He gave him something to pass on to you. He said it would help you completely assimilate with it and bring out its true power.¡± Ellis explained. ¡°Uncle¡¯s awesome! He even knew I could absorb it.¡± Grey sighed, shaking his head. 1075 Innate Ability? Grey never expected that Ellis¡¯ father would send something like this to him, so he was pleasantly surprised. Of course, he was a little embarrassed that he had to cause small trouble for the O¡¯Brien Family, but it wasn¡¯t really a big problem. After some time, he couldn¡¯t help but think that other than making his physique stronger at that time, he didn¡¯t really get anything much from it. Originally, he couldn¡¯t be bothered with it, but now that Ellis¡¯ father brought something to help with it, of course he would see if he could add it to his strength. At the moment, he wanted to grow stronger. If this would help, then he would definitely use it without a second thought. ¡°Well, the only issue is that it might cause a clash between you and the Vaergahl Family. They would sense the Dragon blood in your body, so it would be best if you restrain it whenever you¡¯re in their presence.¡± Ellis said, with an embarrassed smile. Although it would help Grey, it might also cause some trouble for him in the future. ¡°Oh, are you from that Dawson Family?¡± He asked. ¡°Yes, Lucas Dawson is actually my father.¡± Grey replied. When he saw Ellis¡¯ expression, he couldn¡¯t help but smile. ¡°No wonder. In that case, you don¡¯t have much to worry about.¡± Ellis replied. He was scared that the Vaergahl Family might find trouble with him, but with Grey¡¯s background, it wouldn¡¯t be a problem if he said his father forcefully took the blood essence of a Dragon. Even in the Continent Ellis was from, Lucas Dawson was a popular figure. After all, a genius of his caliber rarely appears. The Vaergahl Family might be overbearing, but they wouldn¡¯t want to offend such a figure just because of the small amount of blood essence Grey absorbed. Grey understood what he meant when he said that he shouldn¡¯t be worried and laughed. It was just like the case of Grand Elder Archibald, he wanted to bully him, but when he realized who his father was, he restrained himself. Although he still occasionally sent people to trouble him, he couldn¡¯t do anything personally to him. Even the Faction wouldn¡¯t want to offend Grey at the moment. Grey took the item from Ellis before asking, ¡°What does it do?¡± ¡°Oh, you¡¯ll be able to use some special powers of the Dragon race. Exude their aura, and if you¡¯re lucky, you might even be able to obtain one of their innate abilities when you break through to the Elemental Venerable Plane.¡± Ellis replied. Grey¡¯s eyes widened when he heard this. He was stunned. Thinking of the innate ability Void gained after breaking through, he couldn¡¯t help but be excited. Ellis¡¯ next words though, made him frown slightly. ¡°Remember, if you¡¯re lucky. In the Vaergahl Family, even with their long connections with the Dragons, only a few of them have been able to get this. It¡¯s a matter of luck.¡± Ellis felt he should remind Grey, when he saw his excited face. ¡°It¡¯s nothing. Hopefully, I¡¯ll be lucky enough to get it.¡± Grey said optimistically. Even though he said this, he didn¡¯t put his mind in it. It was better not to expect anything than to be disappointed in the end. He would deny the fact that he wanted it, but if he didn¡¯t get it, he wouldn¡¯t want it to affect him. Being able to release a true Dragon¡¯s aura was already a good thing. One has to know that Dragons are generally related to royalties and their auras always have this royal feel to it. It makes one want to prostrate before it. If he could have this, then he wouldn¡¯t need to fear Magical Beasts.please visit panda(-)N0ve1.co)m Dragons were at the very top when it came to Magical Beasts, except for a selected few, and the abnormal Void, the others wouldn¡¯t dare to attack him, even when they have a higher Plane than himself. ¡°It¡¯s good, the few things it can give him isn¡¯t bad. I can scare people with the aura whenever I¡¯m fighting. That will give me some time to attack them while they are confused.¡± Grey smiled, showing a happy expression. ¡°I¡¯m glad you like the gift.¡± Ellis replied. ¡°I¡¯m going out for some missions, it¡¯s not really in your league, but you can tag along.¡± Grey said. Fighting against Sage Plane Elementalists was below Ellis¡¯ current standards, hence the reason he said it wasn¡¯t in his league, it was below him. Ellis smiled and nodded, ¡°I can¡¯t go back immediately after delivering this, so it¡¯s best I hang out with you.¡± ¡°Since you¡¯re here, I believe you already know of the kill order?¡± He looked at Grey with a strange expression. pAn,Da n<0,>v,e1 ¡°What did you really do?¡± Ellis was curious. ¡°Are you sure you want to know?¡± Grey asked, amused. Ellis nodded. ¡°I learned their secrets, and now, I know their weaknesses.¡± Grey didn¡¯t say much, but Ellis¡¯ expression changed drastically. He couldn¡¯t believe his ears. Grey learned the secrets of the Gnome race and necromancers and knew their weaknesses. That was a huge thing! Most people at the Peak can¡¯t even deal with necromancers, yet Grey could not only deal with necromancers, but he could deal with Gnomes as well. Almost everyone from a top Family knew of the battle that happened years ago. So they knew the Gnomes were the ones who introduced necromancy. Doesn¡¯t this mean that Grey could kill most of them? ¡°Just that?¡± Ellis didn¡¯t believe the Gnomes would want to kill him at all costs just because of this. ¡°There¡¯s a secret realm in the Middle Continent that Gnome and the Giant Race enters with us, I blocked the portal to the Sage Plane realm and killed whoever stepped in.¡± Grey said nonchalantly. Ellis knew of the portal Grey was speaking of and he couldn¡¯t hide his shock. One man stood at the portal that led to the Sage Plane realm, and killed anyone who dared to step in. Overbearing, domineering, bold, maniac. These were the only words he could use to describe Grey. Who would dare to do something like this? Probably only Grey! 1076 Necromancers, Again Aelia who was walking with them couldn¡¯t help but feel shocked. Grey was more amazing than how Ellis described him. He was carefree, but from his words, it was easy to see that he was a ruthless and cunning character as well. Not just that, but his father was none other than the legendary Lucas Dawson. Who didn¡¯t know of Lucas Dawson? Literally no one! Unless they had been staying in a cave for over a hundred years. ¡°I¡¯ve been staying in the Faction for a while, I need to see if I¡¯ve improved in my abilities.¡± Grey commented casually. ¡°Why did you stay in the Faction? You have a top Family who are strong and can groom you.¡± Ellis was confused. Take him for example, with the strength of his Family, they weren¡¯t necessarily any weaker than these top Factions, much less one that was on the decline. The Dawson Family was stronger than the Pyrmond Faction, so why would Grey want to join the Pyrmond Faction? It just didn¡¯t make sense. ¡°Remember I was searching for my parents? I really didn¡¯t expect that they were from that Dawson Family. A lot of people had confused me for someone from that Dawson Family, but I¡¯ve always said I¡¯m not.¡± Grey explained. ¡°I see.¡± Ellis nodded. Looks like only after joining the Pyrmond Faction did he find his parents. And after being independent for so long, he wouldn¡¯t be comfortable in the Dawson Family. ¡­. Three days later. Boom! A figure fell on the ground, dead. ¡°Trash.¡± Grey muttered in disappointment before turning around. A group had been kidnapping some people lately. He took the mission and found out that the leader was just in the Mid stages of the Sage Plane. He didn¡¯t even use much of his strength and the man died instantly. Grey turned to look at the others, since the leader was dead, then the group could be said to be destroyed. He didn¡¯t waste any time and handed the others to the guards in the nearest city. ¡°We should head to the next place. Luckily, I picked places that are close. We¡¯ll meet up with Void after I¡¯m done with the missions.¡± Grey sighed. From the looks of it, there would be nothing exciting in this trip. Ellis¡¯ mouth was twitching as he saw how Grey casually dealt with the man. Even though Grey had a higher stage, it didn¡¯t mean that he should be able to kill the other party with nothing more than a casual attack. He knew Grey was stronger than most of the people in the same stage, but he felt that would¡¯ve reduced after Grey broke through to the Sage Plane, who would¡¯ve thought that it didn¡¯t change much. Aelie on the other hand was stunned. He couldn¡¯t believe that Grey was this strong. She was close to the Late stages of the Sage Plane, but she was still in the Sixth stage. This meant that Grey would still be able to casually kill her as well. Ellis and Aelie followed Grey and before their shocked gazes, he killed Sage Plane Elementalists like he was killing chickens. None of them could fight back, the difference in strength was beyond their expectations. Even during the last mission, Grey was fighting against two Peak Sage Plane Elementalists and overpowered them. He killed them in a short time after that. ¡­. ¡®Void, where are you?¡¯ Grey asked. ¡®Underground.¡¯ Void replied. Grey currently had the tracking device with him and noticed they were in the same place, but he couldn¡¯t see the others. ¡®Is there a passage around?¡¯ Grey asked. He didn¡¯t see the place leading to this place. ¡®Just teleport here, why are you searching for a passage?¡¯ Void said disdainfully. Grey was a little embarrassed, but he grabbed Ellis and Aelie and vanished. They soon appeared underground. ¡°Keith, what¡¯s the situation?¡± Grey asked when he appeared. ¡°There¡¯s an array blocking the entrance. It took us a long time to track it. But Void can¡¯t open it.¡± Keith said. Void glared at him with an annoyed expression. ¡®Why didn¡¯t you open it yourself?¡¯ He thought, irritated. Grey looked at the array for some time before frowning. ¡°Even you can¡¯t open it?¡± Keith was a little surprised. He knew how obsessed Grey was with arrays. Even Ellis was surprised. ¡°Who says I can¡¯t, I¡¯m just staring at it for some time.¡± Grey walked closer to it, after observing it a while longer he opened his mouth, ¡°It¡¯s a decoy, this array doesn¡¯t lead anywhere.¡± After saying this, Grey tapped on the array before making some hand seals. The array broke apart and they saw the empty wall. Grey made another hand seal and the array appeared again. ¡°What are you doing?¡± Ellis asked curiously. ¡°Once this array is broken, they will sense it. It¡¯s connected to another array. That¡¯s the real one. If I didn¡¯t sense it on time, we would¡¯ve messed up.¡± Grey said. The others couldn¡¯t help but sigh. Grey truly was an array genius. Even some of the old grandmasters might not necessarily be better than him. Grey¡¯s expression soon changed, ¡°Crap!¡± With that, he grabbed Ellis and Aelie and vanished. Void reacted even faster and disappeared with Keith.please visit panda(-)N0ve1.co)m ¡°F*ck! I thought you said you stopped it?¡± Void cursed when they appeared outside. ¡°I was a little late. I didn¡¯t sense it early.¡± Grey rubbed his nose. He was a tad late, but at least he still sensed it. ¡°What now? They¡¯ll escape.¡± Keith was a little anxious. pAn,Da n<0,>v,e1 ¡°Don¡¯t worry, I sensed them. I can track them.¡± Ellis said. Grey and Void turned to Ellis. Ellis looked at Void for a while. ¡°You can?¡± Keith turned to Ellis. Ellis turned his voice to a deeper one since he couldn¡¯t speak with his usual voice, it was a bit embarrassing. ¡°Yeah, let¡¯s go.¡± Ellis nodded and heading towards the west. Grey and Void followed suit, seeing that he was going in a slow speed, they urged, ¡°You can move faster, you don¡¯t have to worry about us. We¡¯ll catch up.¡± After hearing this, Ellis sped up and soon vanished. Void followed suit, before Grey disappeared as well. He would appear in front of Ellis each time, shocking him. ¡®How¡¯s he so fast?¡¯ He thought. Most Elemental Venerables in the same stage as himself wouldn¡¯t be able to catch up to him, yet Grey was doing it with such ease. Unknown to him, Grey marked him the last time. Since the distance was not too great, he would be able to catch up to him within a second. After almost one hour. They stopped in front of a mountain. Looking at the mountain, Grey¡¯s expression changed slightly. ¡°Do you sense it?¡± He turned to the others. They shook their heads. ¡°Necromancers.¡± He uttered slowly. ¡°Necromancers?¡± ¡°Yes, necromancers. Even though I can¡¯t sense it clearly, I¡¯m sure of it.¡± Grey affirmed. ¡°Do you know if there are any strong people?¡± Ellis asked, his expression was serious. If there were necromancers here, then they couldn¡¯t take the risk of heading inside. Or else they would endanger themselves. ¡°There¡¯s a large array here. Void, I can open up a small hole so you can sneak in. But I¡¯ll close it immediately so they won¡¯t sense anything.¡± Grey turned to Void. Void could easily hide his aura just like Grey, so it would be easy for him to sneak in. Void nodded and Grey went to work. Before Grey came in contact with necromancers, he didn¡¯t even know of them. After he was marked, he was consoled by Sylvia who said necromancers were quite rare and rarely made moves. But since then, he had been seeing necromancers multiple times. It was shocking how many times he has come in contact with them. After opening the hole, Void sneaked in. Some seconds later he reported. ¡®Four Elemental Venerables, six Peak Sage Plane Elementalists, and multiple in the Late and Mid stages.¡¯ Grey turned to Ellis and reported the news to them. When they heard of how many people were there, they felt a bit dispirited. ¡°How many can you handle?¡± Grey asked. Ellis replied, ¡°I don¡¯t know their stages¡­¡± ¡°Of the Four, two are in the Fifth stage, that¡¯s their highest stage. The others are in Second stage. Void can deal with them.¡± Grey interrupted. ¡°I¡¯ll deal with all the Peak Sage Plane Elementalists and the others in the Late stages. I can also assist Keith and Aelie while they fight against the others.¡± He added. When Aelie heard Grey¡¯s words, she was stunned. Grey wanted to hold off over twenty people alone, that was shocking. Keith wasn¡¯t too surprised, nor was Ellis. But Aelie didn¡¯t know much about Grey, so she didn¡¯t know if he could do something like that. ¡°Alright, let¡¯s go. I¡¯ll be able to hold them off.¡± Ellis replied. Keith gritted his teeth and nodded. Now they all turned to Aelie, if she didn¡¯t agree to it, they would leave her here and go and fight without her. It wouldn¡¯t change much even if she disagreed. 1077 Five Against The Necromancers Camp ¡°I can manage, but I¡¯m not that strong.¡± Aelie replied after a while. ¡°Good, let¡¯s go.¡± Grey nodded before turning to Void. ¡®Seal this place, I¡¯ll be making an array that will also help, in case your domain isn¡¯t enough.¡¯ ¡°Guys, later on, you¡¯ll be getting a boost from my array, don¡¯t resist.¡± Grey said and soon got to work. They needed to act fast before they were noticed. ¡­.. p-n0ve1¡¢com The necromancer¡¯s camp was built inside the mountain, a large space was opened up inside. Two Elemental Venerables looked at the person who just rushed over to tell them that the array that was placed in the town some kilometers away had been destroyed. This was one of their ways of entering the place. But they made a false one, once touched, the other will explode immediately, destroying the main one. ¡°Should we move out?¡± The Sage Plane Elementalist asked respectfully. ¡°Since it¡¯s destroyed it means they don¡¯t know where we are. Just lay low in the meantime. We¡¯ll go check it out in a while.¡± One of the Elemental Venerables said nonchalantly. The Sage Plane Elementalist bowed and then left. ¡°What do you think?¡± The other Elemental Venerable asked. ¡°Those morons made a mistake. They must¡¯ve allowed someone to know of the entrance. Luckily, we made plans for this long ago.¡± The First Elemental Venerable replied. Just as they were speaking, he froze and looked off. ¡°Huh? Did I sense it wrong?¡± He muttered while staring outside. He sensed a ripple from the array, but it was so faint that it was almost negligible. There had been times he had sensed ripples like this, but since this happened a few minutes after the other teleportation array was located, he still decided to check it out. ¡­. Outside the mountain. ¡°I¡¯m done. We should¡­ crap! They found out already.¡± Grey said before getting into battle state. Although he tried to hide it, they still sensed it when Void entered. Luckily, there was a slight delay. Since he had successfully made an array around the place, there was no need to hide any longer. Void was the first to explode out, he wanted to kill as many low-ranked Sage Plane Elementalists as he could.please visit panda(-)N0ve1.co)m After exploding out with his fire and space element large-scale attacks, Void also used his second domain. His domain of darkness. This was something he rarely used since he favored the space element more and whenever he was fighting, he rarely fought those weaker than himself. Now that the domain of darkness spread out, all those with weaker strength started to feel their bodies corroded by the darkness domain. Some of them died on the spot while a few of them managed to struggle. Since he had to cover a large area, those with strength in the Mid stages of the Sage Plane and above weren¡¯t too affected. Everything happened within a second, not just the Elemental Venerables from the necromancer camps, even Ellis and the others couldn¡¯t react to what they were seeing. It was a massacre, and Void still had a nonchalant expression on. He was a Magical Beast, so he naturally didn¡¯t feel too bothered with killing so many people with weaker strength. ¡°You animal!¡± One of the Elemental Venerables finally reacted and roared in anger, before attacking Void. All the Elemental Venerables¡¯ puppets stepped out of their coffins as well, as well as those in the Sage Plane. After Void¡¯s massacre, there were still close to fifty people present. Four Elemental Venerables, six Peak stage Sage Plane Elementalists, over fifteen Late stage Sage Plane Elementalists, and the rest were in the Mid stages. ¡°Time to play.¡± Grey laughed and rushed over. He didn¡¯t destroy the links now since there were just too many of them. What he wanted to do now was to sneak attack them. Whoever he was fighting against, he would sneakily cut off the link and kill them before the others would realize what was wrong. After charging into battle, Grey didn¡¯t use the Fusion State since his strength had already gotten to the Peak of the Sage Plane. Using the Fusion State against these people was more or less a waste. He attacked all six at the Peak of the Sage Plane simultaneously, using the lightning element to attack. ¡®Void, remember, lightning is very effective against them.¡¯ He reminded Void as he fought. The fifteen in the Late stage of the Sage Plane wanted to attack Keith and Aelie when Grey suddenly turned to them, attacking them as well. ¡°Hmph! Overconfident. Five of you come so we can kill him soon, the others, kill those two.¡± One of the Peak Sage Plane Elementalist said. From their first exchange, Grey easily sent their puppets flying, while also attacking their physical bodies with the lightning element. There were six, yet they didn¡¯t seem to be the other party¡¯s match. It was shocking. Unknown to them, Grey was silently messing up with the puppets so they weren¡¯t as strong as they usually were. The only puppets he didn¡¯t dare to touch were those that belonged to Elemental Venerables, he knew they would be able to sense it. The six at the Peak were already sensing some threat from him, so they wanted to kill him soon. Void and Ellis were doing their best, holding back two people at the same time. They didn¡¯t fall to a disadvantage even though they were outnumbered. Although they were not as freakish as Grey who could fight against many opponents, against two or three people in the same stage, they wouldn¡¯t have a problem with it. They could even find the chance to win. Void was even more fearsome since with the space element, he was able to shorten the distance at any time when fighting. Not just that, but he also had fearsome attacks as well. When he unleashed his large-scale space element attack, it was like the space there was broken and space cracks appeared all over. Those who were too weak were instantly dragged in and their bodies were destroyed in a matter of seconds. 1078 Necromancers Nemesis Roar! An earth-shaking roar sounded out and a large figure appeared. The two-headed snake that had been with Keith appeared out of thin air and directly crushed a few people that were in front of it. It opened its mouth and swallowed a few people as well. Keith also continued attacking, at this time, he couldn¡¯t be careless. He could feel the increase in his strength and knew it was from the array Grey spoke about. Aelie was also fighting fiercely, she didn¡¯t dare to be careless. This was the first time she was fighting such a battle, and she had been injured a few times, and if not for Grey¡¯s timely assistance, she would¡¯ve been severely injured. She was a Dual Elementalist, having the wind and fire elements, so she was using both to complement each other, making each of her attacks stronger. When Grey saw things, he decided it was time for him to attack with all his strength. He hadn¡¯t used his inscriptions yet since he was waiting for the best time, but as it stands, there was no use in waiting. Five inscriptions lit up in the sky, all of them of the lightning element. And they struck the backs of the Peak Sage Plane Elementalists he was fighting against, leaving just one. That one was about to attack when he was suddenly dazed. Before he could react, Grey was standing before him and he slapped down. Grey¡¯s palm enlarged, and before long, it crashed down, destroying the body of the Necromancer. The other five were attacked by the inscriptions from behind, so they were unable to stop Grey. After killing one, Grey vanished and appeared close to Aelie. A Late stage Sage Plane Elementalist that was about to attack her was sent flying. After doing this, Grey secretly attacked those in the Mid stages, against the powerful Grey¡¯s attack, they were helpless and could only watch as his attack struck them. The speed was beyond their expectations. Aelie used the opportunity to kill three of the people who were injured by Grey¡¯s attack. This wasn¡¯t her fight time killing people, so she didn¡¯t feel strange about it. After doing this, she looked in Grey¡¯s direction, admiration in her eyes. Even when fighting against so many opponents, he still had the time to not only come to help her, but he seriously wounded five people, giving her the chance to kill three, and he also killed the Seventh stage Sage Plane Elementalist that he previously sent flying. Grey appeared in the presence of all those Peak Sage Plane Elementalists and attacked once again. This time, he transmitted his voice to Void and Ellis. ¡®I¡¯ll cut off their links with their puppets, putting them in a dazed state, take advantage and kill them if possible. If not, injure them. We must kill all of them!¡¯ Ellis was shocked when he heard this, this was the first time he was going to see how Grey can deal with necromancers. To be honest, he was quite curious about this.please visit panda(-)N0ve1.co)m Grey was fighting when he suddenly sent out five tendrils made from the darkness element from his body, and they all shot into the bodies of the puppets of the necromancers, he also sent one at one of the Peak Sage Plane Elementalists in front of him. Bam! He was hit by an attack, and blood dripped from the place. Luckily, his defense was strong, if not, this attack would¡¯ve been troublesome. Just when he was calming down, he sensed the darkness element trying to wreak havoc in his body and snorted. The miasma in his body spread out and covered the darkness element, directly consuming it. At the same time, he forcefully cut off the link of those Elemental Venerables puppets, giving Void and Ellis a chance to attack. Void slashed out with a powerful attack, and a large spatial crack appeared, enveloping one of the necromancers. ¡°Ah¡­ He¡¯s Grey! Run!¡± The Necromancer regained himself shortly and screamed in pain. He knew that after entering this place, it would be difficult for him to escape alive. But he wanted to warn the others. They¡¯ve done their research on Grey and found out that he could cut off their links to their puppets. Well, they only found out from the Gnomes since almost anyone who faced Grey when he used this is dead. Ellis attacked as well. He was a Water Elementalist, and after Void attacked and directly killed one of them, he didn¡¯t want to lose out. A blizzard started and a long ice arrow congealed in the sky, before long, it shot into the body of one of the Necromancers. The Necromancers was just about to regain himself when he froze, before he knew it, an ice arrow entered his head, bursting it apart. The headless frozen body fell to the ground. Ellis heaved a sigh of relief before facing his last opponent. When fighting against two he was not facing a disadvantage, now that one of them is dead and the other couldn¡¯t use his puppet because of Grey, he would be able to kill the other in a matter of time. While the duo killed one person each, Grey also attacked another Peak Sage Plane Elementalist. He had cut off this person¡¯s link with his puppet, so he used the opportunity to kill him. The second he killed him, he spat out a mouthful of blood. He was attacked from behind while he was attacking this person. He couldn¡¯t stop, so he forcefully took the attack head-on. In the space of merely two to three seconds, two Elemental Venerables were dead, and one Peak Sage Plane Elementalist died as well. pAnD a(-)n0ve1.com ¡°Grey? That Grey?¡± The second they thought of this, they lost the spirit to fight and immediately turned around to escape. Against someone who their puppets were useless against and were even turned into a weapon against them, they didn¡¯t dare to fight against him. 1079 A Plot In a secret hideout. An ordinary-looking middle-aged man frowned after receiving news of one of their camps getting attacked by Grey, someone who the Gnomes released a death order for. ¡°Necromancer¡¯s nemesis, no wonder the Gnomes attached so much importance to him.¡± He said after some time. ¡°What do we do now?¡± Another person asked. Although some necromancers are strong on their own, most of them depended on their puppets to grow and fight. If they can¡¯t even use their puppets any longer, then they would be in trouble. ¡°No need to worry too much. We just need to know the method he uses to cut off the link. Once we can get it, we can deal with him.¡± The middle-aged man replied calmly. ¡°The problem here is that we don¡¯t know the method, and other than the Gnomes who survived, the others he has faced have not been able to survive. How are we going to fight against something we know nothing about?¡± The other person said. ¡°Hmm, troublesome. We can¡¯t go out in full force since that would expose our whereabouts. I¡¯ll get someone to test him. He¡¯s from the Pyrmond Faction right?¡± The middle-aged man asked. The person standing beside him nodded. ¡°Looks like we¡¯ll have to use one of our spies.¡± The middle-aged man said. ¡°He doesn¡¯t make friends easily.¡± The person beside the man understood what he wanted to do and said. The fact that they knew of Grey¡¯s personality already shows how much research they¡¯ve done on him. ¡°That will be a problem. We¡¯ll think of a way to sort it out. If not, we¡¯ll have to sacrifice a few more people.¡± The middle-aged man was calm. The only good thing about Grey¡¯s current ability was that he was the only one who could use it, so they didn¡¯t have to worry too much about it. ¡°If we can kill him it¡¯ll be better. But I don¡¯t think it will be easy to kill the son of Lucas and Martha. If he were to die in the hands of someone in the same stage, it¡¯ll be possible, but who can defeat him in the same stage?¡± The middle-aged man contemplated. They also knew that Grey was Lucas¡¯ son. Being the son of such a powerhouse, if anyone that was far stronger than him were to attack him, then there will definitely be something or someone who will be protecting him. The main problem with Grey now was that he can forcefully raise his stage to shocking levels, that makes it even harder to kill him in a fight if the person fighting against him didn¡¯t completely overwhelm him. ¡°We can try to impersonate one of his friends.¡± The person beside the man suggested. ¡°Hmm, we can try.¡± The middle-aged man nodded. If things don¡¯t go as planned, then he wouldn¡¯t mind sacrificing an Elemental Venerable or even Sovereign to kill Grey. If Grey was allowed to grow, it would put them in danger. This wasn¡¯t something they wanted. The fact that he was already attacking a necromancer¡¯s camp already shows that he has some sort of hatred toward them. The Gnomes handed out a death order for him, maybe it¡¯s time they took it seriously. They didn¡¯t take it too seriously since they didn¡¯t really believe it, and neither had they been able to confirm it. Although the Gnomes seemed like their leaders, that was not the case, they are just working together for mutual benefit. ¡­.please visit panda(-)N0ve1.co)m While these people were thinking of how to deal with Grey, Grey just killed the last person on the Sage Plane. Void and Ellis had also fully suppressed their opponents. When Grey wanted to help, Void chased him away, telling him to search the rubbles, there was someone still alive. The mountain had been destroyed by their battle, even the large array couldn¡¯t protect it. Grey grumpily went back to check it out. To his surprise, there truly was someone, not just one person, but a few people. They seemed to be protecting one person. ¡®He¡¯s communicating with the higher-ups?¡¯ Grey looked at them curiously. ¡°Hmph! Hateful!¡± Grey attacked. Before long, they were all dead. Unfortunately, the second the person communicating with the higher-ups died, the device fell apart as well. pAnD a(-)n0ve1.com He didn¡¯t think too much about it. By the time he was done, Ellis and Void had already killed their opponents. ¡°Nice, it¡¯s been a while since I fought such a battle.¡± Ellis sighed. He rarely got to fight such battles. Most of the time, he was always only sparring with geniuses of his level. Of course, he knew that they were stronger than these people on the same stage, but these people were regular fighters, so they were more experienced. Although they won, they were all injured. Aelie was the one who suffered more injuries, she wasn¡¯t familiar with such battles, fighting against people who risked their lives, and she was caught off-guard most of the time and suffered injuries. But she managed to survive, largely thanks to Grey¡¯s timely help and her strength. ¡°We really won, against such a large group, we won.¡± She said in disbelief. It¡¯s not that she didn¡¯t believe she can¡¯t fight against multiple opponents, but the number of people they were fighting against was staggering. The fact that they won such a battle with only some not too severe injuries was beyond her expectations. Grey chuckled and said, ¡°Of course, if I don¡¯t have confidence, I wouldn¡¯t have started a battle.¡± ¡°My mission can be said to be accomplished. I¡¯ll have to tell those people in the mission hall that there was more to the mission than what was written.¡± Keith said angrily. If not for Grey and Ellis¡¯ help, they wouldn¡¯t have been able to complete the mission. Void was strong, but against such a large group, all they could do was run away. Grey nodded before turning around. His control over his strength had increased, this not only made him stronger, but he could also maximize his energy when fighting. This was something only top notch experts could do. He was naturally nowhere near the level of his father, but he still had a lot of time to continue improving, so he wasn¡¯t worried. 1080 Preparing To Breakthrough The group headed back to the Faction. Grey decided he would use the treasure given to him by Ellis¡¯ father when he starts his seclusion once again. He had completed some missions, so he would have some time to himself and not have to worry about Grand Elder Archibald making trouble with him. They soon got back to the Faction and Ellis told him of his plan to stay on this Continent for a while. There was nothing interesting going on in his Family, so he wanted to take some time out. Also, he wanted to train Aelie as well. Grey had no issues with that and after sorting out a few things, he headed into the Faction with Keith and Void. They both went to report the completion of their missions. Grey left immediately after he was done, heading straight for his place. He wanted to focus on cultivating now. ¡­. Time flew by and the region was quite settled. Grey was cultivating and hadn¡¯t been seen in months, other than a few battles, there wasn¡¯t anything important going on. Klaus and the others were all focused on cultivating as well. They couldn¡¯t be bothered by what was happening outside at the moment, they wanted to grow stronger, and fast. Three months into his seclusion cultivation, Grey was preparing to break through to the Elemental Venerable Plane when he got a piece of information. Every fifty years, a competition will be held across the entire Aurora Continent to determine the top geniuses in the Continent. They would all be separated into different parts, the Elemental Venerable Plane was the highest, and then the Sage Plane. Those in the Overlord Plane would also get a chance to compete, but the real main characters of the competition are those in the Sage and Elemental Venerable Plane. The news quickly spread across the entire Continent. Youths started to cultivate so they could show their might in the competition, while others went out to train their practical combat skills. The competition would take place in another five months, enough time for all of them to see some major improvements in their abilities. ¡­. Pyrmond Faction. Grey decided to step out for a bit. He wanted to break through to the Elemental Venerable Plane and he knew doing that in the Faction might not be a good thing for him. He knew how often he tended to cause commotions when breaking through, there have been times when he even caused a commotion while breaking through to a minor stage, much less a major Plane like this time. When he came out, he saw Keith preparing to go out as well. Keith could be said to be advancing pretty quickly as well. ¡°Did you hear about the competition?¡± Keith asked when he saw Grey. ¡°Yeah.¡± Grey nodded. ¡°Will you take part in it?¡± Keith looked at him curiously, given Grey¡¯s strength, it wouldn¡¯t be a problem for him to dominate whichever part he joins in the competition. There¡¯s a high chance that he might be able to break through to the Elemental Venerable Plane before then, at that time, he would only battle with others in the Early stages of the Elemental Venerable Plane. ¡°We¡¯ll see.¡± Grey didn¡¯t show too much optimism. Over the course of a few years, he had participated in way too many competitions. He had won so many that he was starting to get numb to the feeling. To be honest, he wasn¡¯t too interested in the so-called title of the greatest genius of the current generation.please visit panda(-)N0ve1.co)m This doesn¡¯t mean that he would not like to attend the competition, if something were to come up at that same time, he would most likely opt not to go for the competition. ¡°Alright. Headed out?¡± Keith asked. Grey nodded and continued walking forward. Void appeared on his shoulder lazily. p AndD nOve1.cO,m Grey had used the treasure given to him by Ellis, and his strength increased once again. Originally, his physical strength had not gotten to the Peak of the Sage Plane. But after he absorbed that treasure, his physique saw a boost and now he was at the Peak with both his cultivation stage and his physical body. Void found the treasure quite mysterious, how could something be able to bring out the true potential of the Dragon blood essence so easily? It must be something rare, if not, there would¡¯ve been more people like this. ¡®Yeah. I¡¯ll be going to see if I can temper my body a little bit before breaking through.¡¯ Grey replied. Grey¡¯s body was at a limit, but he felt he could still increase it a little further. Unlike most people, he didn¡¯t really feel too much of a bottleneck. There are some people who have stayed at the Peak of the Sage Plane their whole lives. Other than the time he stayed at the Peak of the Origin Plane for so long, he had been breaking through without a hitch so far. Before he got to the Peak of the Origin Plane, he was also breaking through quite easily as well. The duo continued chatting as they headed out of the Faction. ¡­. Some days later. Grey decided to go far away from where the Faction was located just to be safe. After leaving, he also used his space element to teleport a few times, while also using some of the teleportation arrays he had set up in multiple places. He didn¡¯t dare to be careless. If others find out the secret hidden in his body, he would be in danger. ¡°This should be safe.¡± He muttered as they appeared in a mountain range filled with Magical Beasts. ¡°Not entirely, there are multiple powerful auras here.¡± Void said as he looked around. His senses were sharper than Grey¡¯s, so he could tell if there was danger. ¡°Should we leave then?¡± Grey asked. ¡°No need, none of them are in the Elemental Venerable Plane. My domain should protect you for some time. The only thing is that after you break through, it wouldn¡¯t be of any use. But during your breakthrough, you should be fine.¡± Void reassured. 1081 A Demon! Grey felt reassured after Void¡¯s words and started to prepare. He still needed to make sure he created an array to complement Void¡¯s domain, this would make it safer for him. When he completed this, he looked at his body once again. ¡®My body has gotten to the Peak, so has my cultivation stage. I should be the only one who cultivates both and still cultivate this fast.¡¯ He sighed with emotions. It hadn¡¯t even been up to ten years since he started cultivating, yet he was already getting closer to the Peak of the world. The Elemental Venerable Plane, and then the Elemental Sovereign Plane. Once he breaks through now, he would become a Venerable. Venerables are highly regarded in any place. Even his Faction would have to start treating him in a different manner. He could even vie for an Elder¡¯s position in the Faction, and with his strength, he has a high chance of winning. Of course, he didn¡¯t have such plans. Being an Elder means he would have to teach some of the lower ranked members of the Faction. He didn¡¯t think he had such spare time. ¡®It¡¯s like a dream.¡¯ He pinched himself. After getting lost in thoughts for a while, he snapped back to reality and focused on the matter at hand, breaking through to the Elemental Venerable Plane. Just like the other Planes, it has to do with the transformation of his elemental cores. When he broke through to the Sage Plane, his cores entered a somewhat chaotic state. Now, as he advances in Planes, there would be divisions and each elemental core would have its own part in his body. He would also develop his origin source as well. Grey closed his eyes and soon entered a cultivation state. His consciousness drifted into the Chaos Space. As time went on, he rarely spent time here. He had been too busy with so many things that he started to forget this place, the place where his journey started. Even though he occasionally came here to comprehend the elements, it was once in a while. He walked around with mixed feelings. After getting to the peak of the mountain, he sat down cross-legged, just like what he was doing with his real body, he closed his eyes and started to meditate. Inside his body, his chaotic essence started to separate. While this was happening, Grey noticed something odd. His chaotic essence that started to separate all seeped into the Chaos Space and started to merge with it. It was a shocking scene. His previously closed eyes opened wide as he looked at the scene before him. He couldn¡¯t believe what was happening. Naturally, with the advancement, his separated essence would all be in his body. There was no way he would be able to connect with the origin source if his essence entered this place. Thinking of this, he decided to check things out to confirm if he wasn¡¯t sensing it wrong. When he sensed the situation with his body, he couldn¡¯t help but give a wry smile. It was really happening. But it didn¡¯t make sense to him. His essence was supposed to be in his body, not this consciousness space. ¡®Will I be able to access it if it enters here?¡¯ He panicked. But the process had already started, so there was nothing he could do. ¡­. While Grey was freaking out. In the outside world. Void was staring at Grey so hard that his eyes bulged. ¡®What¡¯s wrong with him?¡¯ He was worried. Naturally, as an Elementalist breaks through, their aura is supposed to increase. But in Grey¡¯s case, his aura was declining, at a rapid speed at that. If not for the fact that he could tell that Grey was alive, he would¡¯ve thought that he was dying. ¡®What the hell is wrong with him?¡¯ He complained. He watched Grey vigilantly, seriously observing his situation. If he notices that there¡¯s any issues with his life force, he would forcefully wake him up. He couldn¡¯t take any gambles, not with Grey. Time went on and Grey¡¯s aura soon vanished. Other than the fact that he was alive, it was almost like he wasn¡¯t there. It was a strange situation. Some moment later, a lightning struck from the sky, aiming for Grey¡¯s head. Grey, whose eyes had been previously closed opened and he jumped into the air. Void was startled but he still looked shocked. ¡®Humans don¡¯t need to face a test from the Origins. Only Magical Beasts who want to defy nature are tested.¡¯ Void was once again thrown off his feet. He didn¡¯t even see Grey form a link with the origin source, yet, he seemed to have successfully broken through to the Elemental Venerable Plane. His only worry was that Grey seemed to have attracted the attention of the Origin. The Origin here refers to the start of all things. All elements are birthed from the Origin. It could be said to be their heavens.please visit panda(-)N0ve1.co)m When he was also breaking through, he experienced something like this as well. But the reaction to Grey¡¯s breakthrough was stronger than his own. After Grey leapt into the air, he threw a punch at the lightning that was falling down. And the lightning fell apart. Void watched as Grey was soon bathed in lightning. Before long, Grey¡¯s figure appeared, another shocking scene followed suit. Looking at Grey¡¯s figure, Void¡¯s mouth opened wide. ¡®Scales? Why the hell does he have scales?!¡¯ He exclaimed internally. ¡®Dragon scales.¡¯ Void soon came to a realization when he saw Grey. He could sense the slight Dragon pressure that was coming out of Grey¡¯s body. ¡®No wonder there¡¯s such a reaction.¡¯ While he was still lost in thoughts, Grey¡¯s excited laughter rang through the place. ¡°Haha, so this is how it feels!¡± He laughed in pleasure and vanished. Void was still confused when he heard a loud ¡®boom!¡¯ Turning his head to look, he realized Grey had started fighting with one of the Magical Beasts in the forest. This Magical Beast was already in the Third stage of the Seventh Rank, but it was quickly suppressed by Grey as the battle started. The Dragon¡¯s aura was showing its effect now. With his superior bloodline, he could suppress the Magical Beasts in the same stage without any worry. Void was also the same. Boom! Bang! He punched the large body of the Lion, and it crashed into the ground. The Lion¡¯s thick defensive skin was broken, and injuries were all over its body. Grey wasn¡¯t unscathed, he was bleeding and a large claw mark was on his back. But he was laughing in exhilaration. ¡°Come again!¡± He screamed and charged at the Lion. It had been a long time since he felt this way while fighting. With every injury, he would use the light element to heal himself as he rushed after the Lion. He didn¡¯t need any origin source, the origin source was within his body. It was a shocking thing. He never expected such a development. Unlike others who would need to link with the origin source of the world, he didn¡¯t do that. It was like in the Chaos Space, there was already an origin source, and from how it quickly absorbed his essence, it was clear to see that it didn¡¯t want it to be diluted with the origin source of the Aurora Continent. This was not the only reason why Grey was excited, the main reason was because of this¡­. Grey opened his mouth wide and a large stream of ice shot out. It was like a blizzard as it was released from his mouth. ¡°Haha, an Ice Dragon¡¯s innate ability.¡± He laughed as he spread out his hands. A snow storm started as well. With the blizzard that seemed to come out of his mouth, adding the snow storm to it, it released a shocking cold. The Lion roared in fear and spat out a core. The core rotated before a cyclone started. It used the cyclone to protect itself from Grey¡¯s blizzard attack and with a shake of its body, it shot out from the range. Without even thinking twice, it ran away without looking back. It was frightened! It couldn¡¯t believe that the person it was fighting against was a human. There was no way a human would be so demonic. pA n,dan(-)0ve1.c0m A demon! This was the only thing on the Lion¡¯s mind, Grey was a demon! ¡°You¡¯re lucky I¡¯m in a good mood.¡± Grey laughed and went back to where Void¡¯s was located. The other powerful Magical Beasts in the area sent their spiritual senses to check on what was happening, seeing how Grey was able to beat up the Lion, they retracted their senses and didn¡¯t dare to offend the human. Only a few who were in the Late stages of the Seventh Rank didn¡¯t show fear. No matter how strong Grey was, he just broke through, and wouldn¡¯t be their match. 1082 Greys Third Domain ¡°Three domains?¡± Void muttered as Grey came over. ¡°Yeah, I didn¡¯t expect it either.¡± Grey laughed in delight. He didn¡¯t expect that he would actually awaken the innate ability of an Ice Dragon. One has to know that since he awakens this ability, it would improve his domain. Since he hadn¡¯t awakened his water domain yet, he directly awoke it after breaking through. He even gained a special Dragon form as well. It could be said that his luck when it came to this was beyond frightening. ¡°That¡¯s just oppressing.¡± Void couldn¡¯t help but complain. Grey gained so many abilities from a top Magical Beast bloodline, even Void was jealous of him. He didn¡¯t think there would be such a freak among humans. Even with how freakish Grey was before, he was still a human. But now, he didn¡¯t even know how to classify him. Grey laughed when he saw Void¡¯s dissatisfied expression. ¡°Let¡¯s go search for a few people.¡± He suggested. He wanted to train more, but there was no use in rushing back to the Faction so soon. He still had a few people he wanted to see. For instance, he hadn¡¯t seen Kyle since he came back, since they were around the same region, there was no harm in paying him a visit. Besides, Klaus and the others were probably busy cultivating. Even if Kyle was cultivating, he could still call him out without any remorse. Void didn¡¯t argue with him as they left. ¡°I didn¡¯t see you form any connection with the Origin Source.¡± He brought up the issue that he found most confusing with Grey¡¯s breakthrough. ¡°Oh that, it¡¯s actually quite complicated. But I did form a connection with the Origin Source. Well, another Origin Source.¡± Grey paused and explained. He didn¡¯t really know how to explain it, but he could only say this. Even he didn¡¯t have any understanding of what happened. The core in his body was a mysterious item, and there was nothing he could do about it. It had dominantly absorbed his cores and essence into a somewhat spiritual world and it created a link to the Origin Source from that place. Even if Grey wanted to, there was nothing he could do. The only good thing was that he could still access his powers. There seems to be a little difference when he uses elemental skills now. Each of his elements seemed to have an archaic feeling, he couldn¡¯t put his hands on it, but that was just the feeling he got whenever using them since his breakthrough. He noticed it when fighting with the Lion, and even now that he used the space element, he noticed that the spatial tunnel he opened up was far stronger than what he previously opened. At first, he felt it was due to the increase in his strength, but recalling the spatial tunnels some Elemental Sovereigns had opened up that he had used before, he knew there was a large difference. ¡®Hmm, I wonder where this orb came from. The God Plane?¡¯ He was lost in thoughts. With the increase in his strength, he was starting to understand a few things. First off, there were no Gods in the Aurora Continent. In the history of the Continent, there are records of Gods, but thousands of years ago, there doesn¡¯t seem to be any record of Gods. Although he hadn¡¯t spoken much with his parents, he asked a few things about the Elemental Planes. He also knew that in the Elemental Sovereign Plane, there was a large difference in the strength of everyone. According to his father, it was largely related to an Elementalist¡¯s understanding of his elements. Void looked at Grey strangely, but stopped asking about it. Since Grey couldn¡¯t explain it, it meant that he really didn¡¯t know. Of everyone, it could be said that Void was the one Grey trusted the most, and he would rarely keep secrets from him. Since Grey didn¡¯t speak of it, he didn¡¯t know about it. They continued their journey.please visit panda(-)N0ve1.co)m ¡­. Some days later. Grey and Void appeared outside the Family Manor of Kyle. Grey made sure to use the tracking device, so he knew that Kyle was inside the manor. He went to the guard and requested to see Kyle. When Kyle heard of his arrival, he rushed over to meet him. When he sensed Grey¡¯s aura, he couldn¡¯t help but give a wry smile. Grey didn¡¯t hide his aura, there was no need to. ¡°A Venerable?¡± Kyle clicked his tongue. Grey laughed before greeting him. ¡°How have you been?¡± He asked as they walked into the manor. ¡°Okay I guess. What have you been doing?¡± Kyle couldn¡¯t help but ask. Grey was growing too fast. He still recalled that it hadn¡¯t been more than two or three years since he knew Grey, yet the other party had gone from the Overlord Plane to the Elemental Venerable Plane. Such a speed was frightening. pAnD a(-)n0ve1.com Kyle was a little taken aback by Grey¡¯s words, he couldn¡¯t help but look at Grey, ¡°You¡¯re quite talkative today.¡± Grey chuckled but didn¡¯t say anything. After heading to Kyle¡¯s place. They spoke for a while before Grey asked about the general situation of the region. He hadn¡¯t really taken his time to know much about the region. All he had done was travel, cultivate, fight, and repeat. He had been pretty much doing exactly the same thing since he came to the Aurora Continent. Now that he had gotten to the Elemental Venerable Plane, he wanted to know more things. He had come in contact with a few people, but he still didn¡¯t know too much. Kyle was someone who knew a lot since he had been here since he was born. Kyle was surprised, but he still told him about the things he knew. All the forces in the Region, the ones he should be wary of, and all the basic things. 1083 Ruins Of The Last True God ¡°You¡¯re saying there are some Factions that are hidden?¡± Grey asked after listening to Kyle¡¯s words. Kyle nodded, ¡°Actually, after the great war, most of the top powerhouses were seriously injured. So they¡¯re currently slumbering, recuperating. Some of them have woken up, while others are still keeping their strength. If you hadn¡¯t been running around all this while, you would¡¯ve known of all this.¡± ¡°The Pyrmond Faction was one of the top forces who fought against the invasion at that time. They were also one of the ones who suffered serious damages.¡± ¡°According to what my father told me, they were almost annihilated. The current top faction really isn¡¯t the strongest, it¡¯s only called that in name.¡± Grey listened attentively. He didn¡¯t expect Kyle would know this much about the history. Although he had also read some things, most of the information was vague and he didn¡¯t really get much from it. Other than knowing the general things that were allowed to the public, he didn¡¯t know too much. ¡°Have you heard of the Heavenly Fate Faction?¡± Kyle asked out of the blue. ¡°I¡¯ve heard of it, but I don¡¯t really know much about it.¡± Grey nodded. Although he didn¡¯t know much, the Heavenly Fate Faction could be said to be one of the top Factions not just in the Western Continent, but in the entire Aurora Continent. ¡°I was preparing to make a trip there. According to what I heard, something happened and since my Family has some connections with them, they said the younger generations could be sent over.¡± Kyle said. Hearing this, Grey knew that the reason Kyle was telling him was most likely so he would go with him. Kyle was still in the Sage Plane. ¡°Would they allow a stranger to go with you?¡± Grey raised the question in his head. He wouldn¡¯t mind going there, it wasn¡¯t like he wasn¡¯t interested in things like this. ¡°I can think of a way.¡± Kyle said. Grey gave it some thought and nodded, if they allowed him to go with them. Then he wouldn¡¯t mind going. If not, he would just take it that his time outside was up and he would head back to the Faction. p¡¢A,nd A-n¡¢o¡¢ve,1 Grey didn¡¯t say much. He was quite curious as to why they would allow a stranger to go with them. ¡­. The days went by and it was soon time to leave. While Grey had been staying here, he was consolidating his realm and didn¡¯t go out. He came to Kyle¡¯s place after breaking through, so he didn¡¯t really have any time to consolidate his realm. Since the opportunity presented itself, he didn¡¯t mind doing it here. Void hadn¡¯t been doing anything lately and had been bored. Now that they wanted to go out, he was a little excited. When they got to the place where the people were gathered, a middle-aged man looked at Grey, after glancing at them he didn¡¯t say anything else before teleporting everyone away.please visit panda(-)N0ve1.co)m When they entered the spatial tunnel, Grey sensed it and noticed that it was different from his own. He still didn¡¯t understand why there was a difference. During the time he was in Kyle¡¯s place, he had been experimenting with a few things as he consolidated his realm. He even noticed that there was a difference in his domain as well, it was stronger than usual. ¡­. While Grey and Kyle were headed to the Heavenly Fate Faction. Somewhere in the Western Continent, another figure was preparing to head there as well. ¡°Father, your injuries aren¡¯t fully healed yet. Do you think it¡¯s safe to head there?¡± The figure looked at the frail man standing before him. ¡°I need to head there. There¡¯s something I need there.¡± The frail man said firmly. Even though he looked like he might die at any moment, he didn¡¯t want to let such an opportunity slip by. ¡°Alright, I¡¯ll accompany you, Father. I just broke through to the Elemental Venerable Plane, I should be able to assist you.¡± The figure said. If Grey were here, he would¡¯ve recognized this person, the figure was none other than Gilbert. Gilbert was preparing to head to the Heavenly Fate Faction with his father. According to the information they received, a secret realm opened, well, it¡¯s more like the ruins of the last Faction that produced a True God Plane Elementalist. Since that expert, there had not been any other True God Plane Elementalist in the Aurora Continent. This expert ascended a few hundred years before the invasion. After the invasion, the Faction which was hidden in a secret space was destroyed. All the members were killed by an unfortunate turn of events during the war. It hadn¡¯t been found in years, but now, it seemed to have reappeared. However, there was a limit to the people who could go in. According to the information, the Origin Source there was chaotic and anyone above the Elemental Venerable Plane couldn¡¯t enter. Even those at the Elemental Venerable Plane are also at a risk, they¡¯ve also created a link with the Origin Source, if they were to use it to amplify their strength too much, then they might risk being killed by the chaotic Origin Source in the secret realm. ¡­. There were movements all over the Aurora Continent, and even the Middle Continent had movements as well. This was the ruins of the Faction of the last God Plane Elementalist to appear in the Aurora Continent, it was very appealing to everyone. Even the Pyrmond Faction sent people over. Grey had been in seclusion, and the moment he came out of seclusion, he left the Faction to break through. The news of the ruins was only circulated amongst those top experts, other than the news of the competition which those youths knew of, only the top geniuses were aware of these ruins. The Faction Leader wanted to send Grey over, but he was a little disappointed when he couldn¡¯t find him. Unknown to the Faction Leader, Grey was already on his way to the Heavenly Fate Faction. 1084 Gathering In The Fate Region Heavenly Fate Faction. In the Faction Hall. ¡°Do you think it¡¯s safe to send them in?¡± An Elder asked. ¡°We don¡¯t have a choice. Our losses are already incredible. If we continue exploring it on our own, we will suffer more losses.¡± The person sitting on the main seat replied. The Faction Leader of the Heavenly Fate Faction was an old man who looked almost ethereal. He gave off a strange aura that seemed to put one at peace. The Heavenly Fate Faction is one of the few Light Elemental Factions, and it was regarded as the strongest in the present Aurora Continent. When they discovered the ruin of the True God¡¯s Faction, they naturally wanted to explore it on their own. Some of the news they brought back was due to the sacrifice of some people who dared to venture into the place. Now, they wanted to go deep into the place, but they knew the danger would increase as well. Since that was the case, it was best if they could get others to go in as well. Although this meant that they would have to share the benefits, it was better than losing more than half of their younger generation. ¡°Do you think they don¡¯t know that we¡¯re only bringing them in because of the dangers?¡± The Faction Leader asked, looking around the Hall. Seeing their silence he continued, ¡°They know! But they can¡¯t deny the fact that there might be some terrifying secrets there. Everyone wants to see what they can get.¡± ¡°We¡¯ve already told them of the dangers in that place, if they were careless, then it has nothing to do with us.¡± The Faction Leader added. The others thought about it and nodded, the death rate of the people who had gone in your explore the place was frighteningly high, over eighty percent of the people who went in died. This was a shocking discovery to them. The Elders and the Faction Leaders continued talking while more and more youngsters started to appear in the Fate Region. With the large influence of the Heavenly Fate Faction, it was only natural that the region their Faction was situated was named after them. ¡­. Those from the top families started to arrive one by one. All the families that Grey had encountered came this time, the same could be said for the top Factions. As the days went by, the number of people who had entered the Region surpassed over a hundred thousand people. Since there was a restriction in place, the numbers weren¡¯t that high. There are billions of people in the Aurora Continent. Each Continent in the Aurora Continent easily has over five billion people. So for only around a hundred thousand people to appear so far, showed how difficult it was to enter the Elemental Venerable Plane. The number would¡¯ve been even smaller if it were only those in the Elemental Venerable Plane. Most of the people present were in the Late stages of the Sage Plane. Although more people wanted to enter, it would be a waste for those in the Mid stages of the Sage Plane to enter. Grey soon arrived with Kyle¡¯s family. On his way here, he had already communicated with Klaus and the others. They were naturally coming as well. Each of them was already in the Late stages, and Klaus was even at the Peak of the Sage Plane. This was an opportunity for him to break through to the Elemental Venerable Plane. Alice, with the help of the Seelie, could fight against a Peak Sage Plane expert. Reynolds on the other hand was even more freakish, he could already fight with a weak First stage Elemental Venerable, thanks to his Elemental Warrior. The Dawson Family, Burchard Family, Vaergahl Family, and all the top Families that Grey had been in contact with were all in the Region at the moment. With the arrival of friends, some of his foes were also present as well. Those from the Syphilis Faction who seemed to hate him were present, and the Nether Faction was as well. The last time, he humiliated the young man during the competition, he was sure he would be present here. Thinking about this, Grey knew he wouldn¡¯t have a good time here. He had made too many enemies, and although he had some friends, he didn¡¯t want them to be in trouble because of him.please visit panda(-)N0ve1.co)m ¡®This trip wouldn¡¯t go so smoothly.¡¯ He thought to himself while resting. He barely communicated with the other youths from Kyle¡¯s family. And amongst all the people present, he was the youngest in the Elemental Venerable Plane. When Klaus and the others got here, he went over to meet up with them. Kyle followed along since it¡¯s been a while since he saw the others. He spoke with them from time to time, but it was on some occasions. According to Klaus, since they were all present, they should get some drinks. While they were in Pavilion, Grey noticed Ellis was present in the city and called him over. It was very easy to introduce Ellis to his friends, Ellis was a powerhouse in the Elemental Venerable Plane and had a carefree personality, knowing that the others were Grey¡¯s friends, he was very open with them. They all got along smoothly. ¡°You¡¯ve broken through to the Elemental Venerable Plane, congratulations.¡± Ellis said after some drinks. ¡°Yeah, it hasn¡¯t been long.¡± Grey nodded with a smile. ¡°I¡¯m curious, did you get it?¡± Ellis looked around and asked. All the people present were those close to Grey, so he didn¡¯t think it was bad to talk about it. Grey smiled and nodded, he stretched out his palm and it was covered in scales. ¡°F*ck!¡± Klaus and Reynolds both exclaimed. pA(nD)A no ve1 Grey was lucky. ¡°Only that?¡± He raised his brows. ¡°I actually awoke an Ice Dragon¡¯s innate ice breathing technique. It helped with my water domain as well.¡± Grey chuckled. Ellis clicked his tongue, he was defeated. Grey was too much of a freak. ¡°Doesn¡¯t that mean that you have three domains now?¡± Klaus looked at him, dumbfounded. ¡°More or less.¡± Grey said nonchalantly. When the others saw his expression, they all had the urge to drag him out and beat him up. Even Void, who could be said to be a freakish entity only had two domains, yet Grey already has three. 1085 Gathering In The Fate Region II ¡°Hey bud, do you think it would be like that place?¡± Klaus asked after some time. ¡°The trial land?¡± Grey looked at him. ¡°Yes. That place should also be part of the people who fought against the Gnomes in the war. Now that I think about it, I feel there¡¯s something strange about that place.¡± Klaus nodded. At the time they went to the trial land, they didn¡¯t know about any and only saw it as a land of opportunity. Now that they¡¯ve come to the Aurora Continent, they¡¯ve not only read about some things, but they¡¯ve also seen some. It was safe to say that they were not the same people who entered the trial land years ago. If this place is just like the trial land, then there are bound to be countless opportunities. Especially given the fact that it was the last Faction to produce a True God. What was a True God? This was a Supreme being that could destroy the Aurora Continent with a snap of the finger. Grey couldn¡¯t be bothered with these things for now, entering the place was his main priority. He would get stronger there and see how things are later on. pAn,Da n<0,>v,e1 Grey nodded, ¡°Actually, as long as there are no Late stage Elemental Venerables there, I don¡¯t have too much to worry about. At most I¡¯ll run away.¡± ¡°I have a thick skin, so it will be wishful thinking if they think they can kill me with one shot.¡± He added. The others have all seen his scales, it was quite powerful. And they all knew that he was also someone who had a strong physical body as well. Most Elementalists were quite light in terms of weight, Grey, on the other hand, weighed as much as a six meter tall large Magical Beast. It was a strange thing. Most of the time, after each breakthrough, he would quickly get used to his new weight, so as not to break the ground with each step. Very few people noticed this about him since he almost always breaks through alone. The group continued chatting for a while and they felt it was safer to be in a group. Grey had enemies, but they were not united. This would mean even if they want to attack Grey, they would have to come alone or with their fellow Faction members. With this group together, it would be difficult to attack Grey. Ellis was the strongest in the group, while Aelie was the weakest. They all stayed together throughout that night, laughing and talking about their experiences ¡­. Three days later. Those who needed to be present were already present, and the few who weren¡¯t there could be counted as unlucky. Besides, it wouldn¡¯t be too late to send them in later.please visit panda(-)N0ve1.co)m Grey was standing with his friends. Each of them left where their Factions were located and walked over to stand with Grey. Grey wasn¡¯t standing with the Dawson Family either, he didn¡¯t see his father around, and the only familiar face he saw was Conor Dawson. After exchanging a few words with him, he left them alone. He had also gone to pay his respects to Ellis¡¯ father. He was part of the people who sent the O¡¯Brien Family over. Seeing Grey, he was full of smiles. When he heard that Lucas Dawson was Grey¡¯s father, he muttered the same words as Ellis. ¡®No wonder.¡¯ Lucas was a monstrous genius, it wasn¡¯t weird if his son was more monstrous than himself. Not just Lucas, but his wife, Martha, was also a top genius as well. Their son couldn¡¯t be lacking when it came to this. Grey also went over to the Burchard Family, he was quite acquainted with them, and Sylvia was also present. Seeing that Grey had already advanced to the Elemental Venerable Plane, she couldn¡¯t help but give a wry smile. Before long, Grey would catch up to her. She didn¡¯t know if she should be happy or not. When they met the first time, it could be said that she somewhat bullied Grey. ¡®He wouldn¡¯t want revenge, would he? He shouldn¡¯t be that petty, right?¡¯ She felt a bit fearful. According to her understanding of Grey¡¯s character, he would seek revenge if threatened. He didn¡¯t care about anything else, so long as he deemed the other party a threat, he would want to eliminate them. Luckily, she didn¡¯t do anything bad to him. Other than forcing him to fight and unknowingly almost getting him killed, she didn¡¯t do anything bad. Grey met up with a few people before heading back to stand on his own. His friends all stood by him. Grey¡¯s appearance was very catching, he was well known by the younger generations, so some of them were introducing him to the older generation who brought them over. The son of the famous Lucas and Martha Dawson. A youngster that the Gnomes released a kill order, someone who had attended multiple competitions and won all of them. From their research, Grey appeared out of thin air, before conquering all the youths in the same stage as himself as he traveled. They¡¯ve also done some research on his friends as well. They were all powerful in the same stage. Each of them seemed to be special as well. One of them was a high grade summoner, another had a Seelie, an Elemental lifeform that rarely made bonds with people, and the last one could be said to be the ordinary one amongst all of them, but he was advancing even faster than the others, almost on par with Grey. Each of them could be regarded as a genius in any place, now they were all together. 1086 Its Dangerous To Travel With Me ¡°Since everyone is gathered, I¡¯ll go straight to the point. This ruin appeared a few days ago. We¡¯ve tried exploring it and have found a few things, we hope that this will be a chance for us¡­¡± The Leader of the Heavenly Fate Faction started to address the people. He didn¡¯t hide the fact that they¡¯ve already started exploring it and knew some things about it. This was why they were able to know the restrictions that were in place. He also told them of the dangers that lay in the place. This place was not ordinary, and they all naturally knew of it. He told the youths that he hoped they didn¡¯t have any conflicts inside since they didn¡¯t know what dangers lay in the deeper parts of the ruin. While addressing them, he could see some of the older generations¡¯ expressions. Most of them had sneers, but he didn¡¯t care. All that mattered now was to explore the place. If the secret to becoming a True God was discovered, it would be to the benefit of everyone present. The Aurora Continent was in danger of being invaded by the Gnomes mainly because of this issue, they didn¡¯t have a True God. Luckily for them, the True Gods from the Gnome World couldn¡¯t come in as well. But with True Gods present there, they would naturally have more people in the Half God Plane as well. The Leader of the Heavenly Fate Faction spoke for over five minutes, everyone listening to his words. After advising the youths, he directly opened the passage into the ruins. He didn¡¯t want to give the others any chance to know the method of opening. His intentions were clear, even if I allow your people to enter, the Heavenly Fate Faction will maintain monopoly of this ruin. One of the most important things was that this place was located in the core area of the Fate Region, close to the location of the Heavenly Fate Faction. Even if others coveted it, none of them dared to have a conflict with the Heavenly Fate Faction. They might be only Light Elementalists, but they had terrifying combat strength. The light element was not used only for healing, it could also deal great damage to the body as well. Grey couldn¡¯t be bothered with all this. He watched as the youths present rushed into the place. He didn¡¯t rush in since he didn¡¯t feel it would be good to enter among the first batch. But he also knew that staying out for too long was not in their best interest. So after over a thousand people entered, he turned to the others, ¡°Let¡¯s go.¡± The moment Grey made his move, he attracted the attention of some people. Those from the Pyrmond Faction hadn¡¯t gone in as of now, they seemed to be waiting for him. Not just the Pyrmond Faction, but those from the Burchard Family as well. p-A- n-d-A-n-0-v-e-1¡¢(c)om Internally he was complaining, but there was nothing he could do. He had a good relationship with these people. Even if he didn¡¯t want them to come with him, as long as their Family Head or Faction Leader said they should follow him, they would naturally follow him. Of course, it doesn¡¯t mean that they didn¡¯t have any plans of their own. They just felt it was safer going with Grey. When Grey and his group entered, some groups who had been waiting entered as well. For instance, the Syphilis Faction, who had a clash with the Pyrmond Faction entered, the Nether Faction entered at this time as well. Almost every person that had a conflict with Grey entered at this moment as well. Some minutes after Grey entered, two figures entered silently. It was Gilbert and his father. Although his father looked frail, he didn¡¯t show any signs of weakness. His face was open so people didn¡¯t really know what he looked like. As time went on, more people entered the place. One has to know that tens of thousands of people came for this event. Even if not all of them entered, there would be no way that more than ten thousand people wouldn¡¯t enter. Each of the people who entered were either in the Late stages of the Sage Plane, or the Mid stages of the Elemental Venerable Plane. With the restrictions set, those above the Mid stages of the Elemental Venerable Plane couldn¡¯t enter, and it was too dangerous for those below the Late stages of the Sage Plane to enter. There were a few who didn¡¯t fear the danger of death and entered, but it had nothing to do with the Leader of the Heavenly Faction. Since more people wanted to go in, he would satisfy their greed. Besides, with more people, they would be able to go far. Don¡¯t take it that since more than ten thousand people entered the place it would be congested, this was a secret realm that was as big as the Azure Continent. Even at the time Grey and his friends were still in the Azure Continent, there were more than a billion people staying there, and there was still the huge territory of the Magical Beasts¡¯ forest. If that place was enough to contain over a billion people, it was not an issue for this place to have more than ten thousand people. Even if a hundred thousand people entered, it still wouldn¡¯t be overcrowded. ¡°I hope more than twenty percent returns alive.¡± The Leader of the Heavenly Fate Faction muttered with a sigh. Although his voice was low, the others heard him. Their expressions changed drastically when they heard this.please visit panda(-)N0ve1.co)m The fact that someone as powerful as Heavenly Fate said this without confidence showed how dangerous it was. Ten thousand people, twenty percent surviving, that was a shockingly low number given the number who entered. A few people started to pray for their descendants who went in. After everyone who wanted to enter the place entered, the Leader of the Heavenly Fate Faction turned to the others, ¡°Do you plan on waiting till they return, if so, I humbly invite you to the Heavenly Pavilion for the time being.¡± A few people accepted his invitation, while others decided to leave. Staying here was not worth it. But they didn¡¯t plan on going far, they had to make sure they returned at the time these people came out. When Heavenly Fate was speaking to the youths, he told them to come out within a month. No one else knew what would happen after a month. So they all wanted to wait, but not everyone was on good terms with Heavenly Fate. ¡°Seal the portal, no one is allowed to leave until the time limit.¡± Heavenly Fate said to a figure that was standing close to the portal. This person looked ordinary, but many people present knew of him. He was an old Half God expert. With him here, no one would dare to attack the place. ¡­.. After stepping through the portal, Grey¡¯s vision turned black and before long, he was introduced into a new world. The energy here was chaotic, although it was abundant, he knew absorbing it would do more harm than good. ¡®No wonder they said we shouldn¡¯t stay more than a month.¡¯ He thought to himself as he looked around. Seeing that his group was complete, he strode forward. They were currently standing on a lush mountain top, looking around, this place seemed to be thriving. Yes, thriving. They could hear the roars of Magical Beasts coming from different places. Looking around, he could see multiple figures running down from the mountain top. He also heard a few screams, looking up, he noticed a few people tried to fly in the sky and were directly sucked in by a space crack. ¡°Be careful everyone, this place is dangerous.¡± He reminded the others. ¡°We don¡¯t need you to tell us.¡± Klaus said as he looked in the distance. Without anyone saying it, they all knew it was quite dangerous. The journey would not be smooth. Unlike most people, Grey didn¡¯t make any movements after stepping into the place, rather, he started to study the place. Although Heavenly Fate had done a rough introduction to the place, Grey still wanted to see and observe some things for himself. While he was studying the place, he made sure that he was not standing in front of the portal. If some people appeared from behind and attacked, it wouldn¡¯t be a good thing for them. While he was studying the place, he saw as more and more people entered. Seeing some familiar faces, he maintained his indifferent face as they all rushed by. The Nether Faction, as well as the Syphilis Faction but gave him a long look before leaving. When those from the Pyrmond Faction saw how these people were staring at Grey, they couldn¡¯t help but feel like traveling with him was dangerous. 1087 Trouble That Comes With Being Too Outstanding Grey smiled coldly when he saw how these people were staring at him. His friends couldn¡¯t care less about these people, they were hunted by an entire Continent while they were in the Azure Continent. Did these people think that they would be afraid of a mere bunch of people? Yes, it can¡¯t be denied that these people were stronger, but taking everything into account, the group wasn¡¯t strong at the time they were being chased, so it was very dangerous for them any mishap and they might¡¯ve died. Ellis saw the expressions of Klaus, Alice, and Reynolds, and he couldn¡¯t help but feel shocked, from how calm they looked, it was clear that this was not the first time they were in such a situation. ¡®They¡¯re already accustomed to it. F*ck!¡¯ He thought internally. The feeling of being watched by over fifty people was chilling, it was obvious that these people didn¡¯t have any good plans for them, yet they were still so calm. He wasn¡¯t the only one who was staring at them, Kyle, and even Keith was staring at them. Keith came with the group from the Pyrmond Faction, seeing Grey, he naturally went over to meet up with him. Grey opened his mouth after some time, ¡°Everyone, as you all can see, I¡¯m a target of a lot of people. Don¡¯t think these are the only people who want to kill me, there are a few hidden in the large crowd as well, waiting for the chance. Traveling with me would only bring danger to you all. It would be best if we split up.¡± He wanted to split up with them. From the start, he had never been one who liked traveling with too many people. Even his small group of four looked to be a lot at some time. Everyone thought about it after he finished speaking, other than his friends who were not swayed by the danger, the others were all thinking of it. If a large-scale battle broke out, some of them would undoubtedly die. They all know of the dangers here, dying for Grey¡¯s personal grudges with a few people didn¡¯t seem worth it at this time. The leaders of some of the groups stepped forward, and after exchanging a few words with Grey, he left with his group. If they saw Grey in danger later on, it was up to them to decide if they wanted to help or not. Grey might be strong, but no one felt he could fight against so many people. ¡°Grey, I¡¯ll have to leave with them as well. Eldris is already starting to get impatient.¡± Conor spoke up as he approached Grey with a smile, his voice wasn¡¯t low, so Eldris heard it and snorted. For this expedition, he wasn¡¯t made the leader, instead, Conor was the one who was told to lead the group. After finding out that Grey was the son of his Uncle, he felt a little envious. Grey¡¯s talent was already well known before his background was found out. Having such powerful parents while being a genius that didn¡¯t depend on the Dawson Family to rise was an amazing feat. Eldris for one knew that without the Dawson Family, he wouldn¡¯t be who he is today. p-n0ve1¡¢com ¡®If an opportunity arises, I¡¯ll kill him.¡¯ He made up his mind.please visit panda(-)N0ve1.co)m He was already in the Third stage of the Elemental Venerable Plane, so he didn¡¯t think that he would lose out to Grey. Eldris was one of the shining stars of the younger generation, in their current batch, very few people could compare to him. He wasn¡¯t as old as Ellis, but he was already close to the Mid stages of the Elemental Venerable Plane. Conor, who was assigned as the leader of the group, was not even in the Elemental Venerable Plane yet, this was something that he found as an eyesore. Unfortunately, there was nothing he could do to him. If anything happened to Conor, he would not have a good time in the Family. Grey waved goodbye to them, and before long, only the people of the Pyrmond Faction were left. Apparently, they didn¡¯t show any signs of leaving. Grey turned to look at them, ¡°You¡¯re not leaving?¡± ¡°The Faction Leader said you¡¯re the leader of the group.¡± One of the Elemental Venerables said softly. Others could leave, but they couldn¡¯t leave Grey. He had a conflict with the Syphilis Faction, but it was also the same for the others in the Faction. They all hated the people from the Syphilis Faction, so that battle could be said to be against the two Factions, not just Grey¡¯s personal battle. ¡°Me, the leader?¡± Grey was lost. He saw the Faction Leader before entering this place, and he didn¡¯t even mention this to him. Now the Faction Leader was dumping these people on him, and going against the Faction Leader¡¯s words were a bit disrespectful. Grey felt a headache when he saw this, he was grateful that the Faction Leader thought highly of him and even protected him, even at the cost of fighting against someone stronger than himself, but doing this seemed a little inappropriate to Grey. ¡°Can I reject?¡± He turned to look at the person who spoke earlier. ¡°The Faction Leader said your contribution in the Lutra realm is unmatched, so he wants us to follow you.¡± The person gave Grey a wry smile. They¡¯ve all heard of Grey¡¯s stunning performance there. Whenever people were captured, he would rush there and save these people. Although he had a conflict with someone from the Faction later on, it was said that he saved a lot of people. He even managed to initiate a deal with some people from the Lutra realm. ¡°Being too outstanding is troublesome.¡± Grey sighed, defeated by the Faction Leader¡¯s way of doing things. When the others heard his words, their eyes twitched. Klaus and the others felt like beating him up. Since Grey broke through to the Elemental Venerable Plane, they¡¯ve noticed that he started bragging occasionally. Grey made sure those from the Pyrmond Faction didn¡¯t hear his words, only his friends who were by his side. 1088 That Person Shouldnt Be Allowed To Live ¡°I can¡¯t lead the group. I¡¯m honored by the Faction Leader¡¯s confidence in me, but I prefer moving with a smaller group. This is safer for me, and in case of any complications, I can escape easily. With too many people, escaping will be difficult. You already see my current predicament.¡± Grey explained. No matter what, he couldn¡¯t travel with such a large group. He had never been one who liked moving with too many people. If he saw these people later, he might stay with them for a while, but he didn¡¯t have any plans of exploring this place with them. If anyone was in danger, and he managed to see the person, he would help. When the people from the Pyrmond Faction heard his words, they couldn¡¯t help but shake their heads. It was clear that Grey didn¡¯t want to travel with them. Other than one person, the others weren¡¯t too familiar with Grey. But since the Faction Leader thought highly of him, and given what they¡¯ve heard about him, they didn¡¯t mind traveling with him, but since he was rejecting the idea, it was okay. Thinking of his predicament, they knew that it would be easier for him to escape when the group is not large. With too many people, he would naturally have to think of the safety of these people, especially when he¡¯s the leader of the group. Being the leader came with a lot of responsibility, even some of the Elemental Venerables present didn¡¯t want to take the responsibility. In a ruin like this that is dangerous, it was normal that many people would die on the way and they would have to take responsibility for it when they go back to the Faction. After thinking about it, they decided to leave. Although there was safety in numbers, a large group would also easily attract people. Grey heaved a sigh of relief when he saw them leave. ¡°You didn¡¯t need to brag, you know that, right?¡± Klaus said with an annoyed expression. ¡°It¡¯s not bragging, it¡¯s straight facts.¡± Grey laughed, seeing the annoyed look on the faces of Klaus and Reynolds, he laughed even harder. Alice laughed, she was already used to it. Although Grey rarely did things like this, there have been a few occasions when he would brag about things, angering Klaus and Reynolds. After messing with the duo for a while, Grey decided to speak on the matter at hand, ¡°Move together or separate?¡± ¡°Together.¡± ¡°Separate.¡± ¡°We¡¯ll be safer together.¡± ¡°But we can¡¯t gain more opportunities together. If we go different ways, we can get more things.¡± Not all of them had the same agreement. Klaus, Reynolds, and Alice wanted to move separately, this was how they usually moved when in such a place. Ellis, Kyle, and Keith felt it was safer to be together. They soon turned to Grey. Three people wanted them to be together, while the other three wanted them to go their separate ways. Grey was the last one who hadn¡¯t said his mind. He gave the matter some thought, before bringing out the communication device. Seeing that he could locate the others with it, he smiled. ¡°We move separately. Each of you has the communication device, so you can communicate with us. If there are any opportunities that you feel are too dangerous for one person, you can call on the others. It¡¯s the same if you¡¯re in danger.¡± Grey said before taking out a new pair of communication devices. With these, the others would be able to get the accurate location of each person present. ¡°No matter what, don¡¯t lose this, if not, we¡¯ll all be in danger.¡± He warned after passing it to them. The others took it and after injecting their spiritual senses inside, they realized that they could see the location of the others. It was just like Grey¡¯s own, but they are only connected to these pieces here. Grey¡¯s communication device is connected to every single device he has ever made. After the group came to a decision, they left decisively.please visit panda(-)N0ve1.co)m Grey was finally alone. ¡°Which direction did the people from the Vaergahl Family head?¡± He asked Void who was on his shoulder. ¡°That way.¡± Void pointed toward the east. ¡°Alright, we¡¯ll go in the other direction.¡± Grey took off. He didn¡¯t want to encounter them, in case of any issues coming up. He had absorbed the blood essence of a Dragon, and since these people usually did this, he didn¡¯t know if there was a way they would be able to sense it. He already had too many enemies, adding these people to it was not a good idea. ¡­. After Grey and the others left. The father and son duo entered the place. While Grey was discussing with the others, people were still entering the realm. Even now that they had left, there were still people rushing in. Gilbert¡¯s eyes flashed and he wanted to fly into the air, but his father placed his hand on his shoulder before shaking his head. ¡°Let¡¯s walk.¡± Gilbert looked at his father before nodding. When his father heard of the appearance of this ruin, he seemed to be agitated. He didn¡¯t know if there was a secret he didn¡¯t know. But since he was here with his father, he would find out. The father and son duo headed in the same direction as Grey. ¡­. After they left, a figure covered with a black cloak entered, he looked around and frowned. After some time he rushed in the direction Grey headed. ¡­. Somewhere in the Aurora Continent. ¡°Have they gone in?¡± A voice asked in the dark hall. p-A- n-d-A-n-0-v-e-1¡¢(c)om ¡°Hmm, do you think they will be successful this time?¡± The voice asked again. ¡°With the people we mobilized, we should be able to kill him.¡± ¡°It¡¯s best if he dies. I¡¯ve encountered him once, a shame I was unable to kill him. He was just too lucky.¡± ¡°Lord, if I may, what¡¯s so special about him?¡± ¡°Special, we don¡¯t know, but that person shouldn¡¯t be allowed to live. He¡¯s an anomaly.¡± 1089 A Setback? Grey and Void were carefully exploring the place. They couldn¡¯t be bothered with the people who had entered the place. Grey knew for a fact that some necromancers would¡¯ve sneaked in and would most likely want to kill him. Since the people would only have the strength of, at most, a Sixth stage Elemental Venerable, he was confident in being able to escape. ¡®Oh, I haven¡¯t even tried using the Fusion State since breaking through.¡¯ He thought to himself. Since breaking through to the Elemental Venerable Plane, he hadn¡¯t fought against someone with far superior strength, so he didn¡¯t even bother to test it out. He couldn¡¯t help but lick his lips in delight. With the Fusion State, if it followed the previous rule, then he would be able to increase his strength to the Ninth stage of the Elemental Venerable Plane. With such a strength here, he would be unrivaled. ¡°Hehe, we can go on a rampage.¡± He muttered. He didn¡¯t need to fear anyone. If anyone messed with him, he would beat the hell out of the person, if he was annoyed, he might even kill them. ¡°Uh?¡± Confusion appeared on Grey¡¯s face as he looked around. ¡®What¡¯s going on?¡¯ He was stunned. He tried to see if he could use the Fusion State, he only wanted to increase it by a few stages, but he realized something strange, his essence was in the Chaos Space, and he couldn¡¯t access it. Yes, he could use it to fight, but noticed that he couldn¡¯t merge it. If he couldn¡¯t merge it, that means that there was no way for him to use the Fusion State. Without the Fusion State, he didn¡¯t have any confidence in being able to fight against those above the Third stage of the Elemental Venerable Plane. ¡®This shouldn¡¯t be happening, right?¡¯ He was frightened. Over the past years, he had relied heavily on the Fusion State in most of his battles. Without it, then he would¡¯ve died a long time ago. Now, his greatest asset seemed to have vanished. What was worse was that it was due to his breakthrough. Breaking through caused the change, and now with the change, he had no way to fuse his essence. Without being able to fuse them, he would just be a regular genius. ¡°F*ck!¡± Grey suddenly cursed out loud in frustration, he almost had the thought of just going out of this place. The reason he was confident and told the others to leave was because he was relying on the increase of his strength after using the Fusion State. He didn¡¯t want too many people to see it. He was still in the First stage of the Elemental Venerable Plane, if his stage suddenly shot to the Ninth stage, it would alarm the others. Now, he didn¡¯t have that, and he was all alone. Well, Void was still with him, so that¡¯s a good thing. ¡®I should¡¯ve gone with Ellis.¡¯ He sighed, but he quickly came back to his senses. For some time now, he had also felt it, he had been relying too much on the Fusion State that he rarely does any good training. With the Fusion State, he could get treasures and advance faster. To be honest, he knew that he had advanced too quickly which was generally not a good thing. Klaus and the others already had three years to learn all the basics, but he was different. He was three years behind them, so during his time in the Lunar Academy, he focused mainly on increasing his strength. Although he went for classes, he didn¡¯t take in too much knowledge. While Grey was showing frustration, Void was staring at him, a little shocked. Grey had always been calm and collected, seeing him curse out all of a sudden was strange. ¡°What¡¯s wrong?¡± He couldn¡¯t help but ask. ¡°Nothing, I¡¯m just annoyed.¡± Grey answered before looking at his front. He would use this opportunity to get well accustomed with his realm. The Fusion State had always been making him fight against people stronger than himself. Most of the times he engaged in life and death battles, it was always with people who were at least three stages above him. Now, he wouldn¡¯t dare to do such a thing since he didn¡¯t know if he would be able to survive it. ¡°Let¡¯s get going. This trip might not be as smooth as I thought.¡± Grey said. Luckily, he gained some new abilities, if not, he wouldn¡¯t know what to do. It can be said that the item Ellis¡¯ father brought over could not have come at any time better than the time he brought it. At least he had a stronger physical body now compared to others, once he used the Dragon scales, as well as his other defensive abilities, he was certain that he would be able to survive even an all-out attack from someone in the Fourth stage of the Elemental Venerable Plane. ¡®So this is how it feels to be normal?¡¯ If others knew of his thoughts, they would beat him up. How could a normal person have eight elements, three domains already awakened while still in the First stage of the Elemental Venerable Plane, can use spiritual sense attacks, and also has two special elements. Not just that, but Grey had a variety of items that could help him if he were in danger. It¡¯s safe to say that even some Elemental Sovereigns are not as well equipped as Grey is. This was even removing the fact that Grey was an Inscriber and had shocking physical prowess. In a life and death battle, it¡¯s not generally the strongest that wins. If the difference in strength isn¡¯t much, a person with too many hidden cards can kill someone that is even three stages above them. ¡­. Grey traveled the ruin like a depressed figure, he didn¡¯t open his face since he didn¡¯t want to bring any troubles to himself. He also told Void to walk on his own, too many people knew that he always had a cat that was sitting on his shoulder. So even with his face covered, as long as Void was with him, people would know it¡¯s him.please visit panda(-)N0ve1.co)m ¡®Grey, there¡¯s something ahead. People seem to be fighting for something.¡¯ Void¡¯s voice rang in Grey¡¯s head. ¡®Their strength?¡¯ He asked. ¡®Early stage Elemental Venerables.¡¯ Void replied. ¡®I¡¯m on my way.¡¯ Grey rushed toward the place. If there was anything good there, he would take it. It didn¡¯t matter if it was useful to him or not. This place is a treasure trove, there might be some good things that he could obtain here. Some time later, Grey appeared at where the people were gathered. Looking at the item they were fighting over, he couldn¡¯t help but look at them sheepishly. ¡°A robe?¡± He was a little taken aback. Why would people be fighting over a robe? He was still wondering when he witnessed an interesting scene, while the people were fighting, just as someone was about to snatch the robe, it flew away on its own, dodging the lunge of the person. ¡®Clothes could do that?¡¯ He was stunned. How could a robe move on its own, it didn¡¯t make sense. ¡®Good stuff, good stuff.¡¯ He thought internally. No matter what, he was going to get this robe. It wasn¡¯t a simple item. If he could have it, he would study it properly. ¡®Does it have a consciousness or what?¡¯ He thought. There were a lot of magical things in the world, so there might be a chance that this item had developed consciousness. Of course, the possibility of that happening was very low, but it was not impossible. This was a place that was said to house a True God! pAnDa (nov)e1? Void did the same as they watched the battle go on. While they were still fighting, Grey frowned and looked to the right. A figure was rushing in that direction. When he sensed the aura of that person, his facial expression changed slightly. The new arrival was in the Fourth stage of the Elemental Venerable Plane. ¡®It¡¯ll be difficult to get this item. But with me and Void, we should be able to get it.¡¯ He watched the battle become fiercer. When this person came over, he originally wanted to use his superior strength to overwhelm the others, but he received a backlash as everyone grouped up and fought against him. He was soon injured, sensing how things were going, he couldn¡¯t care less, after exploding with a powerful attack, he grabbed at the robe. A large essence hand appeared, covering the robe. The robe wanted to escape but it couldn¡¯t move from the spot. The space was confined The young man in the Fourth stage smiled and beckoned. The robe flew in his direction, just as he was about to hold it, a fissure appeared and a hand came out, grabbed the robe and vanished. Everything happened so fast that no one reacted on time. Even Grey who was about to make a move was stunned. ¡®F*ck!¡¯ 1090 Not Calling Help ¡®Who stole my robe?¡¯ Grey was dumbfounded. He already set his eyes on it. How could someone steal something right in front of him and Void? Without further delay, he rushed over with the space element. He had to make sure he caught the person who dared to steal something he had set his sights on. For someone who had always got what he wanted, it was a rare sight that he was outsmarted by someone else. Other than a few occasions, he had almost always obtained anything he had to fight for. Not just Grey, but the few people who were hiding in the shadows all chased after the person that stole the robe. The person was a Space Elementalist, and was definitely in the Elemental Venerable Plane, hence the speed. But with Void and Grey working together, they were certain that they would be able to get the person. There were also one or two people in the Fifth stage of the Elemental Venerable Plane that was also giving chase. Only after over five minutes did Grey and the others give up in dejection, they couldn¡¯t find the person. The person not only used the space element to run away but also hid away from others. Even Void and Grey were not able to locate the person. Just like Grey and Void, the others were frustrated when they couldn¡¯t find the person. They didn¡¯t know if the person was hidden, or if the person had come out and was standing among them. Since there was no way to find the person, they could only give up. ¡°We suffered a loss.¡± Void was at loss. This was something that rarely happened. As long as both him and Grey made a move, then the item was most definitely theirs. Even when there were people who were far stronger than they were, they had still been able to get the item. Yet, someone in the Elemental Venerable Plane bested them. It was an unfamiliar feeling to them. After so many successes, they didn¡¯t know how it felt to be defeated. Grey was a little better with taking the result of what happened, he only looked around for a while and moved away. It hadn¡¯t been long, but someone had already found something good. If this was the case, then this place definitely had a lot of good things. He was curious about the robe, but since he couldn¡¯t get it, there was no use in thinking too much about it. Void complained as they didn¡¯t get the item, but he still followed after Grey. They were just around the periphery of the ruin, this meant that there would definitely be good things in the deeper parts of it. All they had to do was to make sure that they reached the deeper parts. ¡®It¡¯s not too dangerous.¡¯ Recalling what the Leader of the Heavenly Fate Faction said, Void felt this place was not as dangerous as they made it out to be. Of course, this was just the starting part of it, but he hadn¡¯t sensed any dangers up until now. Not even Magical Beasts have attacked. Other than the sky which was already determined as a dangerous place, no other place seemed to have any dangers. Grey had a different opinion compared to Void. With opportunity came danger, this was something he was aware of, there was a huge chance that the danger that came with the robe might not be too strong, so the combined effort of everyone was able to take care of it, but there was a probability that if they were alone, the danger might be stronger than what they faced together. The duo continued walking around, they occasionally saw people, but as they ventured deeper, they started to see Magical Beasts, well, he didn¡¯t know if they could still be called. Magical Beasts. These beasts seemed to be maniacal, it was almost like they had gone crazy. They would attack anyone they saw, regardless of the person¡¯s strength. Even when the person was a Plane above them, they still attacked.please visit panda(-)N0ve1.co)m Whenever they came close to Grey and Void, all the duo did was release their aura and the beasts would make way. ¡®This bloodline suppression thing of Magical Beasts is strange. I wonder if humans have it as well.¡¯ Grey thought to himself. If humans had such a thing, it would make things complicated. One has to know that even when Void was weak, he could still suppress Magical Beasts stronger than himself due to his superior bloodline. If humans had these as well, then some people at the Early stages of a Plane could suppress those in a higher stage. Wherever the duo sensed people fighting, they would head over to check it out. Other than the robe, Grey hadn¡¯t seen anything that piqued his interest, so he hadn¡¯t fought for anything as of now. They¡¯d been in the ruin for over three hours now, and other than traveling deeper, Grey and Void hadn¡¯t done anything else. ¡­. While Grey and Void were just taking a stroll in the ruin, Klaus had already found an opportunity. He was not alone, Reynolds was there with him as well. pAnD a(-)n0ve1.com ¡°Can we get it?¡± Reynolds asked as they looked at the building in front. The building was old, giving off the feeling that it had been standing since the beginning of time. They could sense a strong chilling essence coming from the place. Whatever was inside definitely had to do with the water element, or at least there was ice in there. ¡°I have to get it. I might be able to break through to the Elemental Venerable Plane if I get this.¡± Klaus¡¯ eyes were glowing, he didn¡¯t want to miss this opportunity, but he knew it wouldn¡¯t be easy. He had seen a few Elemental Venerables around the place, luckily, they were in the Early stages of the Elemental Venerable Plane. ¡°Should we call Grey?¡± Reynolds asked. If Grey were to be with them, the chances of them getting the item would be higher. ¡°No, we¡¯ve not even separated for up to a day and we¡¯re already calling him for help.¡± Klaus didn¡¯t agree to it. They had grown to depend on Grey when it came to things like this. Thinking about it, it wasn¡¯t a good thing for them. 1091 Its Not Mine pAnDa (nov)e1? In the crowd, there were already four Elemental Venerables, but the Sage Plane Elementalists had the higher number, as long as they worked together, they would be able to fight against these Elemental Venerables. The Elemental Venerables are aware of this, hence they didn¡¯t move rashly. They were all in the Early stages of the Elemental Venerable Plane, so they didn¡¯t have an overwhelming strength over their opponents. Against one person or two, they could win, but with the numbers of Sage Plane Elementalists present, it would be difficult for them. After some time passed, the Elemental Venerables decided to step forward. If they continued like this, more people would come and their chance of getting the item would be greatly reduced. They didn¡¯t want that, since they were still the strongest power present, they had to take advantage of it. ¡°We¡¯re going to attack the seal, if any of you think that you would not join in but want to reap rewards after we¡¯ve broken the seal, then don¡¯t blame us for attacking the person first.¡± One of the Elemental Venerables snorted coldly. His intention was clear, everyone would attack the seal together, if those in the weaker stages wanted to leave everything to them, then they would attack the person first before fighting for the treasure. ¡°Naturally, whoever doesn¡¯t attack to break the seal has no right to fight for the treasure.¡± Klaus was already at the Peak of the Sage Plane, so he had the right to speak up as well. The others at the Peak of the Sage Plane also stepped forward and agreed to their words. They wanted the opportunity to fight as well, but thinking that they would not do anything was just a wishful thought. With everyone coming to an agreement, they soon started to bombard the seal in the place. During the first attack, the seal flickered but with a strange vibration it was able to block the attack. Klaus¡¯ eyes changed slightly when he saw this. He didn¡¯t know what it was, but if Grey were to be here, he would¡¯ve recognized it. Gilbert used something like this when he was fighting against the men that attacked him. Grey inquired about it, but he didn¡¯t say anything. If he were here, he might¡¯ve been able to deduce some things from it. The others didn¡¯t take note of the vibrations as they continued attacking the seal. It piqued Klaus¡¯ interest so while they were attacking it, he was carefully studying it. He was even attacking it with greater vigor compared to the others. He wanted to see the limit of this thing and how helpful it would be to him. The others felt maybe he wanted the seal to break sooner so they didn¡¯t bother with him. Reynolds looked at him with a strange glance but he didn¡¯t say anything. After attacking for a few minutes, the seal shattered. The Elemental Venerables were the first to move, after all, they were stronger. But as they moved, those in the Sage Plane weren¡¯t any slower. Of all the people present, a figure shrouded with lightning was the fastest, it was even faster than the Elemental Venerables. Just as the fastest Elemental Venerable was about to reach the place where the treasure was located, he saw a figure breeze past him, before he could even react, the figure was already inside the room and the item that was exuding the cold had been taken. He was fortunate to see it and realized it was a thin sword. It was so thin that if not for the handle, he wouldn¡¯t have realized that it was a sword.please visit panda(-)N0ve1.co)m ¡°A true treasure!¡± He exclaimed. With this in hand, although Elementalists rarely used weapons, it didn¡¯t mean they wouldn¡¯t use them. In some cases, some weapons are so strong that Elementalists can cross stages just because of them. A sword that was radiating such intense cold would be greatly beneficial to Water Elementalists whenever they were using their ice abilities. The young man couldn¡¯t be bothered with anything and attacked the figure covered in lightning. Even if the figure was fast, he would have to face the brunt of this attack. Boom! The attack shook the place as the building showed signs of cracks. Some arrays lit up around the building, strengthening it. The lightning figure was forced to stop and block the attack. Only then did it reveal itself to the others. ¡°An Elemental Warrior!¡± Someone exclaimed. Seeing the figure, they were stunned at first. But then again, when they sensed its strength, they were relieved. They could fight against it. Their only fear now was that they didn¡¯t know who it belonged to, so there was a high chance that they might be fighting with the summoner. If the person who summons the Elemental Warrior were to attack them from behind, then they would be in trouble. For a moment, they were in a stalemate. ¡®Damn it! Still too slow.¡¯ Reynolds cursed, but seeing the people, he more or less guessed what they were thinking. They were apprehensive! This was also a good thing, if they didn¡¯t know who summoned the Elemental Warrior, they wouldn¡¯t carelessly attack. Klaus smiled when he saw this as well and couldn¡¯t help but throw a satisfied glance at Reynolds. The Elemental Warrior was fast, with the treasure in hand, it would be difficult for this group to take it, especially given the fact that they could not be united. Trusting anyone at this moment could lead to death. ¡°Who summoned it?¡± One of the Elemental Venerables asked, looking at the crowd. Everyone kept mute. ¡°F*ck!¡± He couldn¡¯t help but curse out loud. An Elemental Warrior was something all summoners were proud of, now, no one wanted to claim this one. It was beyond depressing! 1092 Escaping With The Sword While the people were thinking of who summoned the Elemental Warrior, Klaus and Reynolds were communicating with their spiritual senses. ¡®It will be difficult to get it out of here with it.¡¯ Reynolds frowned. Although the sword was in their hands now, it was difficult for them to take it, they were too weak. If they were to step forward and take it now, it would attract the attention of everyone and they would attack them. However, they didn¡¯t want to lose it, not when it was already in their hands. Originally, Klaus thought it was something that could help with boosting his cultivation stage, but he never expected it was a weapon. It couldn¡¯t be said to be a bad thing as well, with this sword, his attack power would increase tremendously. Not just his attack, but his defensive capabilities would also increase as well. The sword would amplify his ice abilities and he would be able to use it to make up for his lack of connection with the origin source as of now. ¡®We¡¯re still too weak. Can it run away with us?¡¯ Klaus asked. Reynolds nodded but said, ¡®As long as we can block their initial attacks, with its speed, we can escape. Once we¡¯re out of sight, all we need to do is to hide our auras and send the Elemental Warrior in another direction to draw them away.¡¯ Reynolds wanted to sacrifice the Elemental Warrior, well, it¡¯s not a sacrifice per se. Given the fact that he could make it appear and disappear at will, it wouldn¡¯t really be in any tough spot. Besides, even if it is, it would just be destroyed and he would have to wait for some time before he could summon it again. He wouldn¡¯t really lose much. ¡®With the sword, I should be able to create a defensive wall that would block even an Elemental Venerable. But it wouldn¡¯t be for long, if we¡¯re lucky, three seconds, if not, one second. You should know that the number of people present isn¡¯t small.¡¯ Klaus said after some time. For experts, a second was a long time. It was enough to determine life and death. If they have a second head start, there was also another possibility that Klaus would be able to unleash another defensive technique. ¡®Alright, we¡¯ll take an opportunity to draw close to the Elemental Warrior and you¡¯ll block the attacks while we run away.¡¯ Reynolds said. The duo came to a conclusion very quickly, since they were communicating with their spiritual senses their conversation didn¡¯t take more than a second. ¡°Let¡¯s destroy it first. What¡¯s the use of asking who summoned it.¡± Another Elemental Venerable spoke out. They all knew that a summon could only take a certain amount of damage, once the damage was too much, it would dissipate. Everyone nodded, but the first Elemental Venerable still warned, ¡°Whoever dares to attack us from behind while we¡¯re attacking this thing will have to face all of us.¡± He was very cautious, most of the people present were Eater Elementalists, and the Elemental Warrior clearly belonged to a Lightning Elementalist. They might be stronger, but a Lightning Elementalist was definitely faster than they were, especially this Elemental Warrior. ¡°Seal the place, to make sure it doesn¡¯t run away.¡± The young man spoke up. He was the one who stopped the Elemental Warrior in the first place, so he felt he had the right to say these. The others also saw a good reason behind his words and didn¡¯t argue. Working together, they started to seal the place.please visit panda(-)N0ve1.co)m From the time they broke the seal until now, it hadn¡¯t been more than a minute. The Elemental Warrior hadn¡¯t made a move since it was blocked, it was clear that the person who summoned it had some ideas. p AndD nOve1.cO,m He exchanged glances with Klaus and nodded. They had to move now, if they allowed them to seal the area, escaping would be difficult. The Elemental Warrior suddenly exploded out with a powerful lightning attack. The Elemental Venerables who were trying to seal the area were forced to block the attack. While they were blocking the attack, two figures shot past them and appeared close to the Elemental Warrior. The second they appeared, one person took the sword from the hand of the Elemental Warrior and slashed out. ¡°Stop them!¡± The Elemental Venerables yelled and attacked together. When they saw Klaus slash out, they all thought it was an attack, so they all used their full strength to attack it as well. Only when the attacks collided did they see the shockingly thick ice wall that appeared in front of them. Klaus and Reynolds used the sword to break through the array in the building and rush out of the place, escaping as fast as they could. The ice wall started to crack under the attack of the crowd. Klaus and Reynolds couldn¡¯t help but thank their stars that the Elemental Warrior was still in the room where the sword was kept. This made it impossible for the others to surround it. Crack! Bang! The ice wall fell apart after only just over a second. Klaus and Reynolds were however nowhere to be seen. The Elemental Venerables followed the movement of the elemental essence in the air and chased after them. The Sage Plane Elementalists followed suit as well. They couldn¡¯t afford to sit back. They were mostly Water Elementalists, but a few were Dual Elementalists, and some luckily had the space, light, wind, and lightning element, so they were quite fast. Some seconds after these people were gone, the ground just after the building shook and a human head popped out, the head looked around before disappearing once again. 1093 Encountering Someone From The Vaergahl Family pAn,D a-n0ve1,c-o-m An ice dome could be seen, two figures were squeezed inside the dome. ¡°F*ck! I can¡¯t believe we have to hide like this.¡± Reynolds complained, annoyed, he looked at Klaus and said, ¡°Didn¡¯t you say you could hold them back for three seconds?¡± ¡°Shut up! Didn¡¯t you see that they were too strong? I¡¯m only at the Peak of the Sage Plane, why didn¡¯t you try fighting against them alone? Moron.¡± Klaus retorted angrily. When he set up the defensive wall, he made a quick decision. The moment he sensed the aura of their attacks, he knew that there was no way the wall would hold up, so after breaking through the building, he used the help of the sword, drilled a hole into the ground and they hid there, hiding their auras. Although Reynolds was complaining, he was also sweating. He could sense that the people had caught up with the Elemental Warrior. The moment they noticed the sword was not with it, they attacked it instantly. Given their current predicament, he didn¡¯t dare to allow them to extinguish the Elemental Warrior and quickly whisked it away from them. The duo quickly came out of the ground and ran away. They couldn¡¯t wait for the others to come back. Since they¡¯ve realized that the sword and the duo were not with the Elemental Warrior, they were certain that they had hidden on the way. Klaus and Reynolds ran as fast as their legs could take them. Although flying here was dangerous, as long as they didn¡¯t go a certain height, they would be fine. But if they took the sky, then they would be easily tracked, hence they decided to run on the ground. ¡­. While Klaus and Reynolds were running for their lives, on another side of the ruin, a familiar figure was in a tight spot. ¡°Don¡¯t go too far, I already left it to you.¡± Gilbert said coldly. His father was standing behind him, and they were confronted by three figures. They were fortunate to see a treasure, but just as he obtained it, these three appeared and told him to give it to them. Although he was in the First stage of the Elemental Venerable Plane, his opponents were also in the Elemental Venerable Plane, and only one of them was still at the Peak of the Sage Plane. He couldn¡¯t fight all three of them simultaneously, so he compromised and gave the treasure to them. But now, they were threatening him to give them his storage ring as well, unless they would kill him. ¡°Little girl, don¡¯t be too greedy, it will not do you any good.¡± Gilbert¡¯s father stepped forward and said with a calm voice. ¡°Who are you to tell me what to do?¡± The young lady in the First stage of the Elemental Venerable Plane asked coldly as he looked at the figure covered with a cloak. Gilbert wanted to speak but his father raised his hand for him to stop. He looked at the young lady and when she stared at his eyes, she froze for a moment and a sense of danger welled up in her heart for a brief moment. ¡®What¡¯s this feeling? He¡¯s clearly injured.¡¯ She thought to herself as she looked at Gilbert¡¯s father.please visit panda(-)N0ve1.co)m A second later she concluded and turned around, ¡°Let¡¯s go.¡± She gave up on wanting to rob them. She didn¡¯t know if what she felt was real since it all happened within a quarter of a second, but she didn¡¯t want to take the risk. What if she died? She didn¡¯t know who the man who stepped up was, but since Gilbert was with him, he shouldn¡¯t be too weak too. Although they could sense that he was injured, they couldn¡¯t sense his cultivation stage. If he was strong, they felt Gilbert wouldn¡¯t need to hand over the treasure, the fact that he handed it over proved that the person was not strong. But now, she was having second thoughts. Thinking of the fact that powerful people couldn¡¯t make a move here made her apprehended, maybe this person was a powerful figure and didn¡¯t want to receive a backlash from the place. Gilbert looked at his father, ¡°You didn¡¯t have to step forward, I would¡¯ve handled it.¡± ¡°We don¡¯t have the time to waste on these things. If not for the fact that that thing piqued my interest, I wouldn¡¯t have allowed you to waste time on it. Since they¡¯ve taken it, let it be. Let¡¯s go.¡± Gilbert¡¯s father said Gilbert nodded, looked at the back of his father, and followed behind. He didn¡¯t know why his father told him to come here, but he felt it must be very important. He was also curious, how did his father know about the thing he wanted to take in this place? His father said there was something here he needed, and this place was only discovered recently. He speculated that his father might¡¯ve been here before, if not, he wouldn¡¯t come, especially when he was injured. ¡­. On another side of the ruin. Alice was heading to the deeper parts of the ruin. Not everyone was as lucky as Klaus who managed to see something beneficial to them. Although she had seen a few things, none of them were of any use to her, so she didn¡¯t bother with them. From how good the things she saw were, she knew that going deeper was the best choice. However, as she went deeper, the danger increased. There were still Magical Beasts here, and they were all attacking any human they came across. While moving through the woods, she encountered a group of people fighting against the Magical Beasts in the forest, and all of them were fighting with their physical bodies. One of them was particularly eye-catching, his body was covered with scales. When Alice saw this person, she couldn¡¯t help but stare. This person was strong and was even using his physical body to dominate the Magical Beast that was on the same level as himself. It was a rare sight, but seeing a human with scales was even rarer. 1094 Cruel Fate ¡®So this is where Grey got it from.¡¯ Alice thought to herself as she looked at the young man with scales. He didn¡¯t seem to have as much as a powerful body as Grey, but his physical strength was definitely far better than a regular Elemental Venerable. This person was an Elemental Venerable, so she didn¡¯t dare to go close to where the battle was taking place. When she arrived, the people from the Vaergahl Family who were fighting sensed her, but after sensing her cultivation stage, they didn¡¯t bother with her. She was alone in the first place, and she was not as strong as they were. Other than looking from the side, there was nothing she could do to them. Alice didn¡¯t stay any longer, she knew some people might not be comfortable with a third party watching when they were fighting, and she didn¡¯t want any misunderstandings, even if she had strong friends, she might be dead before anyone would come to her rescue. After leaving, she headed further into the ruin. ¡­ Ellis was also heading deeper into the ruin. Even though they all took different paths, their destination was pretty much the same, go as deep as they could. They all knew the deeper they went, the better the things they might obtain. Ellis was powerful, he could be counted among the top ten strongest people who entered this place, so he was moving more freely compared to the others. Unfortunately, he hadn¡¯t seen anything good all this while. pA(nD)A no ve1 While they were moving, they soon caught sight of a large building. They saw a few people around the building and went closer to investigate. When they got closer, Ellis noticed it was like a library. ¡°This place should be interesting.¡± He moved closer to the building and entered. Some people wanted to stop him when he got close to the door, but when they sensed his cultivation stage, their expressions changed and they let him be. They couldn¡¯t afford to fight against such a figure. ¡­. Inside the building, rows of bookshelves lined up. But compared to Ellis¡¯ expectations, they weren¡¯t filled with books. There were some books in some places, but most of the bookshelves were empty. ¡­. On Grey¡¯s end. He had no idea what the others were doing at the moment, he was more concerned about himself and Void. Presently, they still hadn¡¯t been able to get anything good as well. After encountering the robe, he felt that this place would be loitered with treasures, but the reality of things were different. Even after traveling for hours, other than Magical Beasts, he hadn¡¯t seen anything good again. Not even a single good herb. ¡°I thought they said this place was filled with treasures?¡± He couldn¡¯t help but complain. ¡°That doesn¡¯t seem to be the case. I can¡¯t sense anything.¡± Void replied.please visit panda(-)N0ve1.co)m He was very sensitive to treasures, but he still couldn¡¯t sense anyone. At the moment, he was feeling a little bored in this place. He had even taken the initiative to fight a Magical Beast to try to eliminate his boredom, unfortunately, it wasn¡¯t enough. ¡°Since there¡¯s nothing, let¡¯s go deeper. I don¡¯t believe that this place will not give us anything.¡± Grey said and increased his speed. He even started to fly in the sky, but he made sure not to go close to the place where the space cracks appears. He wasn¡¯t sure he would be able to survive that, and he didn¡¯t want to test it out. Void didn¡¯t say anything and rushed after him. ¡­. Time went by, and before long, the people had spent over a week in the ruin. With a week gone, most of the treasures that were in the outer perimeters of the ruin had been salvaged, so everyone was now rushing deeper into the ruin. People encountered each other more frequently now and fights broke out as well. Even with the reminder of the leader of the Heavenly Fate Faction, some people who came into this place were enemies, so whenever they encountered each other, they would fight. The Syphilis Faction hated the Pyrmond Faction, especially this generation of their members since they were the ones who lost the secret realm to the Pyrmond Faction. They were all searching for Grey, hoping to find and kill him. Grey was their greatest threat, so they wanted him dead. ¡°Tell me where he is and I¡¯ll let you live.¡± A cold voice said as a figure could be seen lying on the ground. ¡°I¡¯ve told you repeatedly, I don¡¯t know.¡± The figure on the ground managed to look at the person standing before him, his eyes filled with despair, as well as hatred. He naturally didn¡¯t want to die, but against this person, he stood no chance, he could already feel his life force slipping away from him. ¡°Then die, trash.¡± The figure said coldly and attacked. ¡°Haha, I¡¯ll wait for you. The moment you meet him will be the time of your death.¡± The young man from the Pyrmond Faction died while laughing, he had given up, and they had already decided to kill him, so why let them see him in despair? He laughed, laughed at himself for being too weak, laughed at his cruel fate. In the end of his laughter, one could sense unwillingness and regret. His voice soon faded away, it was as if he never existed in this world. ¡°Where do you think he¡¯s hiding?¡± Another person from the Syphilis Faction asked the young lady who just killed the young man. ¡°I can¡¯t tell, but I¡¯m sure we will find him before we get to the deeper parts of the ruin. I wonder how he would react.¡± The young lady said. If Grey were here, he might recognize this young lady. She was one of the strong people he fought against during the competition with the Syphilis Faction. 1095 A Familiar Foe! As people traveled deeper into the ruin, friends encountered friends, while others encountered foes. Within a short period, a lot of people had died in this place, not in the hands of the beasts or traps here, but by the hands of the people that came here with them. It had been two weeks now since the people entered, and they were already close to the center of the ruin. They encountered buildings more now and saw some things. Grey hadn¡¯t been paying too much attention to these things, he was more focused on learning some things. He had also been opportune and got some books. Unfortunately, it had nothing to do with cultivation techniques but spoke about the lives of the people who stayed there, basically, they were more like gossip. ¡­.. Entering a building, he saw chairs and then a table, on the table, there was a single crystal laying on it. Grey picked it up and felt a chill, he tried to study it and soon realized it was actually a form of a book. Unlike the other books that were written down, this one was created with spiritual energy and could be read by people with powerful spiritual senses. Generally, anyone above the Elemental Venerable Plane could read it. ¡°Looks like the battle broke out abruptly, if not, I see no reason why they would be reading such things in their leisure time.¡± Grey commented after going through the content of the energy crystal. It was just another piece of gossip. All the books he had found yet hadn¡¯t given him anything important, other than hearing about what some Elders in the Faction did, he didn¡¯t find out anything else. He was hoping to get something that would help with the arrays in this place. He searched the building for a while longer before giving up and leaving the place. ¡°There¡¯s something good up ahead.¡± Void said while resting on his shoulder. Grey pushed him away from his shoulder before looking around, ¡°Let¡¯s check it out. We¡¯ve already been here for two weeks or so, and I haven¡¯t gotten anything good.¡± Void didn¡¯t mind Grey¡¯s act and came back as he led Grey in the direction of the place where he sensed the treasure. ¡­. A group of people could be seen in a large compound, they were all staring at the large garden in front of them. Different herbs were planted there and each one of them gave out a strong elemental energy. The elemental essence in this place was very thick, almost liquefied. The group consisted of eight members, one of them was in the Fourth stage of the Elemental Venerable Plane, while of the other seven, three were in the Early stages of the Elemental Venerable Plane while the other four were in the Sage Plane. They were first stunned by the sight in front of them before inexplicable joy appeared on their faces. They were about to grab them when they sensed someone walking in their direction. They paused, and only after sensing the aura of the person coming did they rush forward. When Grey entered the place, seeing the people pillaging the place, he frowned. It was common knowledge that any place that had treasures in this place was heavily guarded. He had heard of a group who were attacked, and almost all of them were killed by some constructs. One of the things he found interesting about the story was that these constructs were made of the light element.please visit panda(-)N0ve1.co)m Grey didn¡¯t join them as he watched from the side. pAnDa (nov)e1? Not just him, but Void had a sense of familiarity with the place. Well, not the place, but the setup. They were still thinking when they noticed something on the ground. Looking down, Grey¡¯s expression changed drastically. ¡°F*ck! How could this be?¡± He was stunned beyond words, other than that, he was slightly frightened. Now he understood why it felt so familiar¡­ bunnies! He encountered a place like this years ago when he entered the trial land; that was one of the most frustrating encounters he had ever had. He was chased around by bunnies. ¡°It shouldn¡¯t be the same, right?¡± Even Void was a little apprehensive. He knew how frustrating this place was. After it hatched, when Grey grew stronger, he came back to attack the bunnies, but he suffered a crushing defeat. He almost had a mental breakdown at that time. He was tricked, tricked by a cute bunny! ¡°Are you blind, can¡¯t you see the smirk on its face?¡± Grey saw a familiar expression on the face of the bunny and he almost freaked out. ¡°F*ck this, I¡¯m leaving.¡± He didn¡¯t want to stay here any longer. Just as he turned around, he heard a familiar squeal that sent chills down his spine. That was not the only thing, with the squeal came a powerful aura. An energy wall rose and trapped them in the compound. Grey felt like crying, but no tears came out. He was already an Elementalist Venerable, yet he was still instinctively frightened of the bunny. ¡°F*ck! F*ck! F*ck!¡± He was no longer calm. He had already sensed the power of the energy wall, it was not something he could break in a short time. He had tried the space element and he couldn¡¯t pass through it, not just him, but Void as well. Without even wasting any time, he took out his communication device, he was asking for help. He was in danger. That hateful bunny would never let him go. ¡­. When the others received Grey¡¯s call for help, they were flabbergasted. Grey wasn¡¯t calling them because he found a treasure and couldn¡¯t take it on his own, rather, he was calling them because he was in danger. They all stopped whatever they were doing and rushed toward where Grey was located. This was the first time Grey was asking for help, they couldn¡¯t sit still. Given how resourceful Grey was, the fact that he asked for help meant that he didn¡¯t have any way out of his predicament, and from how he sounded, they could tell that it was urgent. 1096 I Want To Make Bunny Soup! ¡°Who do you think he¡¯s facing?¡± Klaus asked Reynolds who was beside him. They were currently rushing toward where Grey was located. ¡°Probably the necromancers. They are no good. We¡¯ll wipe them out sooner or later.¡± Reynolds replied. Klaus squinted his eyes, they were currently flying in the sky, and as they moved closer to where Grey was located, they could see an energy beam from afar, at least over ten kilometers away. With their current speed, they would be able to get there in at least three minutes or so. ¡°Maybe it¡¯s people from those Factions he has issues with, if you recall, he said he had a lot of enemies, even a powerful Faction from the Middle Continent seems to want to find trouble with him.¡± Klaus speculated. ¡°There¡¯s no need to think too much, we¡¯ll find out when we get there. Hopefully, he holds on till then.¡± Klaus and Reynolds were the ones closer to Grey, so they might be the first to get there. The only person that might be faster than them was Ellis, and it was because he was already in the Mid stages of the Elemental Venerable Plane. ¡­. Back in the compound. Grey was trying to attack the energy wall, but he soon gave up. He was calmer now compared to before, and after multiple attacks, he could tell that the energy wall could be broken if attacked from both the inside and the outside simultaneously. As long as they attacked the same place, they could create an opening to escape. While Grey was attacking the energy beam, the bunny that just appeared seemed to look at Grey and an odd look flashed across its eyes. The people who were digging up herbs didn¡¯t sense the movement of the bunnies as they continued digging the herbs. Only after a while did they sense something odd and looked up. p-A- n-d-A-n-0-v-e-1¡¢(c)om The Fourth stage Elemental Venerable had a sour expression as he looked around. He was the strongest person present, but he still wasn¡¯t able to sense when this energy wall was created. This meant that whoever did it was far stronger than they were. ¡°Stay together.¡± He ordered and stopped picking up herbs. This wasn¡¯t the time to pick up herbs, they were in danger. The others followed his orders and slowly looked in the direction of where Grey was standing, they could see that he was staring at something, following his view, they saw a cute bunny with large eyes staring at them. It even used its small paws to rub its ears while its nose twitched. It was such a cute scene that they were all stunned for a moment. However, their expressions changed the next moment. Squeak! Squeak! The bunny showed an aggressive expression and its aura exploded out. A Rank Seven Magical Beast. However, it was only in the early stages, what frightened them was the multiple auras that rose from different places. They turned around and saw multiple bunnies, all of them were at the Peak of the Sage Plane.please visit panda(-)N0ve1.co)m When Grey saw this, he couldn¡¯t help but curse out. This was too terrifying, even with his ability to fight against multiple opponents, he wouldn¡¯t be able to fight against them. There were too many. He was still staring at the small ones when he felt a hair raising sensation, he looked at the building and his eyes nearly bulged out. ¡°F*ck!¡± He lost his cool. The large bunnies that helped the small bunny the last time came out, and all of them were in the Mid stages of Rank Seven, they were very close to the Late stages. ¡°Damn it! How am I this unlucky?¡± He was on the verge of breaking down. He didn¡¯t want to fight against these bunnies. Presently, he was praying that the bunnies would neglect him and focus on the group of eight. His hope was crushed when the leader of the bunnies looked at him with a smug look. Grey could almost swear that the bunny recognized him. From how it was staring at him, and the mocking look it was occasionally giving him, he was almost a hundred percent certain that the bunny recognized him. ¡®Where are they?¡¯ He brought out the communication device and saw that three dots were very close to him. He couldn¡¯t help but heave a sigh of relief. As long as he got out of this place, he was satisfied. He didn¡¯t even want to take anything at the moment. ¡°We should fight them together.¡± The Fourth stage Elemental Venerable said to Grey. The bunnies hadn¡¯t attacked yet, so they wanted to team up with Grey. If Grey was able to fight with them, there was a chance. Other than himself and the other three, the remaining four were in the Sage Plane. They wouldn¡¯t be able to hold their own against these beasts. The only fortunate thing was that there were only two large bunnies that were in the Peak of the Mid stage in the Seventh Rank. As long as he could fight against one and the others teamed up against the others, they might be able to win. Grey was about to speak when the bunny leader squealed. It was threatening him. Grey¡¯s expression turned dark, he was being threatened by a bunny. A small bunny that was only in the Early stages of the Seventh Rank. ¡®F*ck! Void, we¡¯re kidnapping it when we¡¯re leaving.¡¯ He made up his mind. ¡®I¡¯ll use this thing to make bunny soup to wash away my shame.¡¯ He was incensed. But he naturally didn¡¯t dare to say these words out loud, the bunny might attack him the moment he said it. The group were still staring when a bunny pounced on one of them. They were forced to attack it. ¡°If we die, don¡¯t think you can escape from this place alive.¡± The young man in the Fourth stage of the Elemental Venerable Plane said coldly as he attacked. 1097 Taking The Bunny Grey didn¡¯t bother with these people, his eyes were glued to the bunny leader. He couldn¡¯t help but think. ¡®Is this place connected to that place? If it is, then I should be able to communicate with Teacher.¡¯ Since leaving the Azure Continent, he hadn¡¯t seen his Teacher, and there was also the Principal. During the battle that day, he was severely injured, he didn¡¯t know if he had recovered now or not. And there were also the two Instructors from the Lunar Academy. He couldn¡¯t help but reminisce about the old times. In just a few years, he had grown so strong that he alone could destroy the Azure Continent, well, excluding the Magical Beasts¡¯ Forest. He quickly decided that once he escapes from his current predicament, he would try to see if he could reach his Teacher. It would be better if he could, if he couldn¡¯t, then he would just let it be. ¡®Teacher will probably beat me up if he sees me, I haven¡¯t sent him any meal in a long time.¡¯ He sighed. He usually occasionally sends meals to his Teacher, but since he was injured, he stopped. After coming out, he was focused on revenge and didn¡¯t have the time to cook that often. He had been too busy lately, now it seemed he didn¡¯t have the time to even cook. The bunnies were currently fighting against the people, and after experiencing the fighting method of the bunnies in the trial land, he wasn¡¯t surprised when he saw how they were mauling all eight people in the group. Those in the Sage Plane were the ones who were more pitiful. ¡®Do you think we might be able to suppress them with our superior bloodline?¡¯ Void asked Grey. ¡®The others, most likely, but against that little fellow, I can¡¯t be sure.¡¯ Grey said. In his entire life, this bunny was actually the only Magical Beast he was truly terrified of. He couldn¡¯t hide it, the bunny was just too hateful. It was also unique in a certain way and doesn¡¯t follow the normal rules. This made it abnormal. ¡®Are we going to watch them die?¡¯ Void asked. p-n0ve1¡¢com They stood no chance against these bunnies, the bunnies not only had the number advantage, but they also had superior strength. The bunny leader seemed to sense Grey¡¯s gaze and a smug expression appeared on its face. Grey¡¯s expression changed when he saw this and he couldn¡¯t help but feel irritated, but he didn¡¯t have any time to complain because he saw the bunny leader pointing at him while giving orders to some bunnies. It then looked at Grey with a threatening gaze before showing a body language of if Grey dared to kill any of its subordinates, it would have a death feud with Grey. Grey¡¯s eyes twitched when he saw this, and when the bunnies came close to him, he pushed them away. The bunny leader looked at him annoyed and made some squeaking sounds, to Grey¡¯s surprise, one of the larger bunnies that had the strength of the Seventh Rank rushed in his direction. ¡°F*ck! I didn¡¯t even hurt them.¡± Grey¡¯s face was dark. He was being bullied by a bunny. He couldn¡¯t be bothered with all these, Void who hadn¡¯t showed any strength all this while immediately attacked the bunny along with Grey. They managed to hold back the bunny, but seeing the bunny leader staring at him coldly, he almost spat out blood. The way the bunny leader was staring at him, it was as if it was planning to give up on the group of eight and attack Grey with all its might. The crazy thing about this was that he didn¡¯t even get involved in the battle, yet the bunny leader wanted to cause trouble for him. ¡®We¡¯ll beat it up sooner or later.¡¯ He thought internally. Suppressing the turmoil in his heart, he gave the bunny a chance to send him flying. He needed to show a weak front so that the bunny leader wouldn¡¯t send more people after him. He quickly transmitted his voice to the group of eight, ¡®I¡¯ll be able to create a hole in the energy wall in some time, but it wouldn¡¯t last long. It¡¯s all up to your luck if you can escape or not.¡¯ After saying that, he just let the bunny send him flying from one side to another. He had a strong physical body, and if he were to use his Dragon scales, then his defense would be stronger, but he didn¡¯t show it out, rather, the scales were under his skin. So although it looked like he was being beaten like a ragdoll, he wasn¡¯t really getting hurt. Two minutes went by in a flash and he sensed Klaus, Reynolds, and Ellis on the other side of the energy wall. He took out the communication device and instructed them on where to attack.please visit panda(-)N0ve1.co)m Looking at the group of eight, he couldn¡¯t help but sigh. He was sure that not all of them would be able to escape from this place. That was not something he could change. Even if he were to help them fight against the bunnies, they would be exhausted eventually. He had sensed something strange after the energy wall rose, they were unable to replenish their elemental essence. At their level, they rarely suffered from lack of essence, but if they stayed in a place like this and fought constantly, then their¡¯s a high chance that they would die from exhaustion. Not just that, but Grey felt like there was an even more frightening existence in this place. The bunny leader should not be the one who activated the energy wall. Grey got his thoughts together before suddenly exploding out, sending the bunny flying, ¡°Now!¡± He yell was not only to tell Klaus and the others to attack the wall, but to also inform the eight people that he was making his move now. The group of eight all exploded, this was their chance to escape. If they were unable to go now, they would definitely die in a short time. At the risk of some injuries, they broke through the encirclement of the bunnies and rushed in Grey¡¯s direction. The bunny leader was stunned by the sudden change, it stomped its foot on the ground and squealed angrily. It¡¯s playmates were leaving! Who would he beat up now with them gone? With the angry squeal of the bunny, Grey sensed a shocking aura awakening in the place. Sweat covered his face when he realized his guess was right. If he had joined in on the fight and showed signs of turning the tables, then this figure would definitely come out. He couldn¡¯t fight against such a figure. Boom! He attacked a particular point in the energy wall. At the same time, Klaus, Reynolds, and Ellis all attacked the same place as well. A small gap opened up, enough for Grey to leave. His figure blinked and he switched places with one of the bunnies standing close to the bunny leader. While doing this, he threw a sword out of the gap, marking it with his space element. He picked up the bunny leader and vanished in the blink of an eye. Everything happened so fast that before the bunny leader could react, not only had the eight people escaped, but it¡¯s surrounding suddenly changed. A blank look appeared on the face of the bunny as it looked at the energy wall that had closed up. In the space of around two seconds, Grey attacked the energy wall, picked it, and escaped as well. Even with the powerful figure in the garden, there was no way for it to escape. The figure couldn¡¯t leave the garden due to the energy wall. It was not only a cage to their enemies, but to them as well. It could break it, but it would take a while. Klaus, Reynolds, and Ellis stared at Grey, and then looked at the bunny in his hands. They sensed Grey going back into the garden after opening up a hole, but they didn¡¯t know it was because of the bunny. The group of eight who were injured stared at Grey, they didn¡¯t say anything for some time. After a while, the leader of the group stepped forward and bowed, ¡°Thank you for saving our lives.¡± The others bowed as well. Although they were angered when Grey didn¡¯t help out previously, now that he helped them escape from that place, they had to show him their gratitude. ¡°It¡¯s nothing. We were in the same place, leaving you guys behind isn¡¯t really the right thing.¡± Grey waved it off. He was not a saint, but he wouldn¡¯t really leave these people to die when he could give them a chance. For one, he was stunned that all of them managed to make it out. Other than one of the Sage Plane Elementalist who seemed to be severely injured, the others only had some injuries that weren¡¯t too serious. As long as they went into seclusion for some time, they would be alright. They thanked Klaus and the others and left. They needed to treat the wounded. 1098 Bullied By A Bunny? The group of eight soon left, leaving only Grey and his friends behind. The others were still rushing over, so Grey decided to stay put. They had been separated since they entered this place, so it wasn¡¯t bad for them to head to the inner area together. The inner part of the ruin held far greater danger than this side, so they would need to help each other. Klaus and Reynolds looked at the bunny Grey was holding curiously. ¡°Bud, do you want to make bunny soup?¡± Klaus couldn¡¯t help but ask. Grey rushed back in to take this bunny, it was definitely very dangerous since they didn¡¯t know how long the opening would last, yet he risked it. When the bunny heard Klaus¡¯ words, it started to shake repeatedly while shaking its head. It didn¡¯t want to be bunny soup! Other than Grey and Void, the others were somewhat shocked by the bunny¡¯s reaction. They didn¡¯t think it would react this smartly, this meant that its intelligence was definitely high compared to other Magical Beasts. Grey chuckled when he saw the bunny¡¯s reaction and nodded, ¡°This guy was the one who put me in danger.¡± Of course, he didn¡¯t tell them of his past encounters with the bunny, it was too embarrassing. But there was no harm in telling them that the bunny was what put him in danger now. ¡°This little guy is dangerous?¡± Reynolds looked at the bunny, not sure of what to believe. Although he could sense a powerful aura from it, it didn¡¯t look like something that could hurt anyone. ¡°Not it, but its minions. It¡¯s the leader of a large group of bunnies. They even have large ones.¡± Grey explained. ¡°Oh, it¡¯s like that.¡± Klaus looked at the bunny leader. ¡°Why did you take it then?¡± He asked. He didn¡¯t understand why Grey would carry this bunny. Even though it was what put him in danger, since he could escape, there was no need to go back for it. He didn¡¯t know Grey to be so petty, especially towards Magical Beasts he wouldn¡¯t see again. Grey replied after some time, ¡°I feel it¡¯s the same bunny I saw in the trial land.¡± ¡°Really?¡± Klaus looked at the bunny. He didn¡¯t encounter it then, so he didn¡¯t really know. But since Grey said it, it was most likely through. Grey nodded, ¡°Do you know what this means?¡± ¡°I can meet my father again.¡± Klaus said after some silence. ¡°We shouldn¡¯t put our hopes too high. But yes, I¡¯m certain I saw this bunny in the trial land.¡± Grey had to warn Klaus first. If his hopes were too high, the chances of him being devastated if they eventually do not meet the Principal were very high. ¡°I know.¡± Klaus replied. Grey didn¡¯t speak too much but focused on the bunny. Since the others were here, he didn¡¯t bother to kill it now. He tried to seal the essence of the bunny, but his expression changed when he realized he couldn¡¯t. ¡®Interesting.¡¯ He thought to himself. There was a force in the bunny that was actually fighting back against sealing its essence. ¡®It has some secrets.¡¯ Grey wasn¡¯t interested in killing the bunny any longer. The bunny however showed a fearful expression when Grey tried to seal its essence. After seeing that Grey was unable to, a look of relief appeared on its face. ¡°Let¡¯s wait for the others and continue together.¡± Grey suggested, the others nodded.please visit panda(-)N0ve1.co)m The young lady accompanying Ellis soon arrived and sat by the side. Seeing the bunny in Grey¡¯s hands, she looked at it with interest. It was just too cute with its large beady eyes and pure white fur. It was larger than Void, but everyone knew if Void wanted to, he could expand his size. Apparently, he liked his small size since it could comfortably lay on Grey¡¯s shoulder without any issues. Some minutes later, Alice, Keith, and Kyle appeared. Seeing the others present, they heaved a sigh of relief. Since Grey was alive, that was all that was important. They looked at the energy wall, they were not the only ones who were attracted here due to the energy wall. Others who were heading in this direction rushed over as well. When they saw Grey¡¯s group, they all felt the group was waiting for the energy wall to calm down and then head in to search for treasures. When Grey saw the high number of people coming over, he didn¡¯t want to stay there any longer. If some of his enemies were to appear, it would not be good for them if they grouped together. He presently didn¡¯t have the help of the Fusion State any longer, so he had to be careful. If he were alone, he might be able to escape from them, but with his friends with him, he couldn¡¯t leave them behind. ¡­. ¡°Such a cute bunny, where did you get it?¡± Alice asked when she saw the bunny. She was not the only one interested in the bunny, Kyle and the others who arrived were also curious about it. They all noticed that Grey hadn¡¯t let go of it since they came over. It was a little strange seeing Grey carry the bunny around. ¡°From that place.¡± Grey pointed at the energy wall. ¡°You entered?¡± Kyle was surprised. He had seen it, and although he didn¡¯t test it out, he knew that going in was not going to be easy. ¡°I was there before the energy wall rose.¡± Grey replied. ¡°Oh, what was inside?¡± Keith asked. ¡°A garden. Guess what the garden¡¯s guardians are.¡± Grey replied while holding onto the bunny with a playful smile. ¡°Bunnies¡­¡± Alice answered. Grey nodded. ¡°But why did you carry this one?¡± Alice couldn¡¯t help but ask. pAn,Da-n0v e1,c,m ¡°And¡­¡± Alice asked. ¡°I¡¯ve seen it in the trial land before.¡± Grey added. ¡°And¡­¡± Alice didn¡¯t understand why he would take it out. ¡°Bud, you said you were in danger because of this bunny, and you¡¯ve seen it in the trial land before. Could it be that it attacked you there as well?¡± Klaus suddenly thought of something and asked. From how panicky Grey sounded when he contacted them, they knew that he was frightened. But¡­ How could Grey be frightened by a bunny? 1099 Not The Same Place Grey¡¯s expression turned dark when Klaus asked this question. ¡°Nothing.¡± He replied and stopped looking at them as he looked ahead of them with all seriousness. Klaus burst out laughing when he heard this. Grey¡¯s reaction also confirmed some things, he had definitely seen this bunny leader before, and he most likely suffered a loss at its hand, well, paws. If they knew that the bunny leader had made Grey run for his life two times already, adding this encounter which made it three, they would be shocked. Grey was actually bested by a small bunny that didn¡¯t look like it could hurt a fly. Of course, they all knew that looks can be deceiving, especially given how powerful Magical Beasts were. But seeing that this cute bunny got the better of Grey was funny. Grey acted like he didn¡¯t see them and continued walking forward. He tried to see if he could communicate with the bunny, but he didn¡¯t get any response. ¡®Try to speak with it.¡¯ He said to Void Void nodded and tried, but to his surprise, the bunny didn¡¯t show any reactions. ¡®If you don¡¯t speak, you¡¯ll end up in my pot.¡¯ Grey transmitted his voice over angrily. ¡®Maybe it can¡¯t communicate, you should know not every Magical Beast is on my level.¡¯ Void said, a little proud. But his expression changed when he heard the small voice of the bunny. ¡®Human, don¡¯t turn me into soup. This little Lord isn¡¯t ready to die yet.¡¯ The bunny¡¯s fearful voice resounded in Grey¡¯s head. Grey and Void were communicating at this time, and given the link between them, Void was also able to hear the voice of the bunny leader. He was stunned. ¡®This¡­little¡­ Lord?¡¯ That was the only thing that resounded in his head. Other than occasionally,he didn¡¯t even call himself a Lord, yet this small bunny was calling itself a Lord. Grey on the other hand didn¡¯t think too much about this. He had known the bunny leader for a long time. It was leading the bunnies in the trial land, and so was it here. He didn¡¯t see anything with it referring to itself as a Lord. He couldn¡¯t help but be shocked. During the time he went back for his revenge and was forced to run away again, he was stronger than the bunny at that time, but presently, they were on the same stage. ¡®This little guy cultivates really fast.¡¯ He couldn¡¯t help but sigh. ¡®I thought you were tough?¡¯ Grey said to the bunny. ¡®No, I¡¯m just a weak bunny.¡¯ The bunny leader said with a pitiful gaze. When the others saw its gaze, they felt Grey was probably secretly attacking it since it had done something to him in the past. ¡°Don¡¯t bully the little bunny.¡± Alice said to Grey softly.please visit panda(-)N0ve1.co)m Grey threw a glance in her direction but didn¡¯t say anything and continued with what he was doing. ¡®Are we still in the same place as last time?¡¯ He asked the important question. pAn,Da-n0v e1,c,m ¡®No. This is a different space. Although it¡¯s not as rich as the previous place I was staying. I had to leave. Those old guys chased me out!¡¯ The bunny showed a depressed look. It really liked where it was previously staying, but who would¡¯ve thought that it would be chased out. If not for the fact that It wasn¡¯t strong enough, it would¡¯ve beaten those old guys to death. ¡®So it¡¯s not the trial land.¡¯ Grey came to a realization. He didn¡¯t have too much hope in this place being the same place as the trial land, but he didn¡¯t really mind if it were. Since the bunny had confirmed it, he turned to Klaus and shook his head. Klaus quickly understood what he meant and didn¡¯t speak any further, a little downcast. ¡®Which old guys?¡¯ Grey continued his conversation with the bunny leader. The bunny leader spoke about an old man with white hair and an ethereal body, it also spoke of a Dragon. When Grey heard of the Dragon, he couldn¡¯t help but recall about the Ice Dragon that chased him when he was about to leave the trial land. That was not a good memory for him, and if not for his luck, he would¡¯ve died during the chase. He spoke with the bunny for a while and soon confirmed that there were still people living in the trial land. He couldn¡¯t help but be shocked. The Dragon that almost killed him was actually under that person¡¯s control. His Teacher told him he was in the trial land, but he didn¡¯t know if his Teacher knew about the people there. His Teacher might be in trouble, if the person was a bad person. If the person isn¡¯t, he wouldn¡¯t be in any trouble. He didn¡¯t know how his Teacher went there. If he knew that his Teacher was forcefully taken as a student by the old man there and was trained, he would be shocked. During the time he was in the trial land, his Teacher was also there. He spoke with the bunny and soon realized it had three elements and the space element was one of them. When the bunny leader told him of how it traveled through space before entering this place, he was stunned. Even Void couldn¡¯t stay in space for that long. One has to know that it was extremely dangerous to do this. Whenever they created spatial tunnels, they always created protective walls to block the spatial turbulence so that they wouldn¡¯t be in danger. But the bunny didn¡¯t do that and directly traveled through it. It was shocking just listening to it. The bunny was an even more frightening existence than Void when it came to the space element. ¡®Why didn¡¯t you escape when I captured you?¡¯ He couldn¡¯t help but ask. 1100 To The Rescue Grey walked with the bunny and before long, the group could see a large building not too far away. Void and the bunny¡¯s ears perked up and they couldn¡¯t help but look toward the right. Ellis and Grey also sensed it and looked in that direction as well. They frowned as they heard the screams of horror as they walked closer to it. ¡°Let¡¯s check it out.¡± Grey suggested. The others had also heard the noise at this time and nodded. They all hid their auras and rushed in that direction. When Grey and the others got to the place where the fight was taking place, Grey¡¯s expression darkened. People from the Pyrmond Faction were being killed by a group of people. ¡°They¡¯re from the Syphilis Faction.¡± Keith recognized the people and said, shaking from anger. This group from the Syphilis Faction had over fifteen people, and they were beating the group of five from the Pyrmond Faction, on the side, three lifeless bodies could be seen. ¡°Void, let¡¯s go. Ellis, you can help. The others, stay here.¡± Grey instructed. The group of fifteen had about seven people in the Elemental Venerable Plane; he couldn¡¯t take the risk of bringing the others. Presently, he aimed to rescue these people and not fight. ¡®Don¡¯t think of escaping, no matter where you hide, I can track you down. Help me¡­¡¯ The bunny which was in Grey¡¯s palm interrupted him mid-sentence, ¡®I don¡¯t fight.¡¯ Grey looked at it before saying, ¡®Fine, but take them away from this place. Take them to the others and wait there.¡¯ p¨¤§ád¨¢-¨¾?¦Í¨º¦É.§ã¨®§® Grey quickly made the arrangements with Ellis and Void before switching places with one of the people from the Syphilis Faction who was standing close to the others. He had already told Void that he would be switching places with someone, so the moment he switched places, Void attacked. Ellis as well. The person who Grey switched places with was unable to react and was instantly killed. At the same time Ellis and Void were attacking the young man, Grey unleashed his domains as well. All three domains came out, and two people in the Sage Plane were instantly frozen to death. He used his icy fire, making the freezing of his ice domain skyrocket. Both his icy flames and ice domain complemented each other, boosting their strengths.please visit panda-:)????1.co)m Of the fifteen people present, an Elemental Venerable had been killed by the ambush of the group, while two Sage Plane Elementalists were frozen to death by Grey¡¯s sudden attack, the other Six Elemental Venerables managed to react quickly and block Grey¡¯s attack. The remaining Six were all Peak Sage Plane Elementalists. Although they were heavily impacted by the attack, they still managed to survive for a while. ¡°You¡¯re Grey!¡± Someone in the Elemental Venerable Plane exclaimed. Of the Six Elemental Venerables, two were in the Mid stages. They attacked together, sending Grey flying with their powerful attacks. Three of them unleashed their domains, all darkness domains. They were able to corrode Grey¡¯s domains, reducing their size and strength. Grey was not as strong as they were, to begin with, so when three people unleashed their domains, and after having to block the attack that sent him flying, he was unable to enforce his domains, and they soon crumbled. But that gave Void, Ellis, and the bunny leader the chance they needed. Grey took the bunny leader along, so at the time he attracted the attention of the others, the bunny leader vanished, taking the only Sage Plane Elementalists among the group from the Pyrmond Faction away. From the time Grey appeared to the time the others reacted, it didn¡¯t take more than three seconds. In three seconds, One Elemental Venerable, and two Sage Plane Elementalists had been killed by Grey¡¯s group, while one of the five from the Pyrmond Faction had been taken away. The efficiency of Grey¡¯s group was superb! All sides stopped fighting and exchanged glances. Grey was currently standing alone on the other side, while the four remaining people from the Pyrmond Faction were standing with Ellis and Void. At the moment, the people from the Syphilis Faction were in the middle of Grey and the others from the Pyrmond Faction. ¡°Grey¡­¡± Someone from the Pyrmond Faction had a complicated expression as he saw Grey standing on the other side. He was someone from the Grand Elder Archibald¡¯s faction, so seeing that Grey was the one who came to save them, he didn¡¯t know how to feel, especially after the Grand Elder gave them the task of killing Grey if they encountered him alone. Grey looked at the young man, he didn¡¯t know him but still nodded at him. His gaze was cold as he looked at the group from the Syphilis Faction. ¡°Your group is hunting us down?¡± He asked curiously. Since they attacked this group like this, it meant that they planned to kill anyone from the Pyrmond Faction they encountered. ¡°Yes, so what?¡± One of the duo in the Mid stages looked at Grey with a frosty expression. Even after their combined attack, he could tell that Grey was unscathed. This was a shocking thing. Even an Elemental Venerable in the Mid stages would not necessarily be unscathed from both their attacks. There were also the three domains that attacked Grey¡¯s domains as well. ¡°Attacking fifteen against eight, that¡¯s a little too much, don¡¯t you think?¡± Grey didn¡¯t want to fight with them now. However, he wasn¡¯t scared if a battle really broke out. Of the four from the Pyrmond Faction, one was in the Mid stages, while the others were in the Early stages. However, two of them were injured, so the probability that they would be able to unleash their full strength was very low. If that was the case, it was best to take them away for treatment. ¡°What are you talking to him for? Kill him!¡± The other person in the Mid stages from the Syphilis Faction who was a young lady spoke up. 1101 Evil Grey Boom! Grey collided with the attack of the two in the Mid stages and was sent flying once again. However, he wasn¡¯t hurt by the impact of the attack. He wanted to use his domain, but realizing that they were too strong for him, he didn¡¯t bother. ¡®Void, kill off all those in the Sage Plane. Even if we have to leave, we should make sure that they feel some pain.¡¯ He said as he was entangled with the two in the Mid stages. Ellis was fighting against two people in the Early stages of the Elemental Venerable Plane. Both people were already in the Third stage of the Elemental Venerable Plane, so they were not people that he would be able to defeat in a short time. However, he was suppressing them completely. The young man from the Pyrmond Faction in the Mid stage also had to fight two against one, his opponents were a bit weaker than Ellis¡¯ opponents. He was already injured from the first battle, so he was only able to fight them to a draw, Even with this, there were still two more Elemental Venerables, Void was given the task of killing the Sage Plane Elementalists, so the others had to fight alone. The heavily injured duo from the Pyrmond Faction had to fight against one person, while the other person had to fight against one person. Of everyone present, Grey was the one who faced the greatest pressure. He was not even able to counterattack, the duo was beating the crap out of him. p¦Ánd¦Á no¦Í?1,§ão§® Grey crashed into the wall of the building by the side, as the duo was about to turn around and help kill the injured duo, Grey changed places with one of them and attacked with a powerful chaos orb. Although he could not use the Fusion State any longer, he could still create the chaos orb. Boom! The strength of the attack actually forced the young lady who was already in the Fifth stage of the Elemental Venerable Plane to take a step back. Even though it was just one step, it was still a frightening show of strength from Grey. One had to know that Grey was still in the First stage of the Elemental Venerable Plane, while the other party was four stages above him, yet he actually forced the other party back. The young man who Grey switched places with soon arrived and attacked. Grey was unable to use the chaos orb immediately and could only block. He was sent flying, crashing to the ground. Even though he was being beaten, he made sure the two Elemental Venerables didn¡¯t leave. This was his task, and he was doing it. The two were still being pestered by him when they heard a scream. Turning around, one of the Peak Sage Plane Elementalists exploded. He was dead. Grey¡¯s domain affected them from the start and the icy chill was still wreaking havoc in their innards, with Void attacking them, he was able to quickly kill one of them. The expressions of the duo in the Mid stages from the Syphilis Faction changed and one of them rushed over, leaving Grey to just one of them. ¡°Where do you think you¡¯re going? I¡¯m your opponent.¡± Grey yelled but was blocked by the young lady.please visit p¦Á§á?¦Á-:)????1.co)m She attacked, and just as her attack was about to land on Grey¡¯s figure, Grey switched places with the Elemental Venerable fighting with the two injured from the Pyrmond Faction. The bunny leader appeared on his palm and took the duo away. They were already bleeding all over and it was unknown if they would die at any time. The attack of the young lady hit the Elemental Venerable and sent him flying. Grey sneak attacked one of the Elemental Venerables fighting against Ellis and the young man was soon injured. The other Elemental Venerable who was heading over to rescue the Sage Plane Elementalists was stunned. In the second that he left, Grey had taken away the two who were heavily injured and even sneak attacked another person. ¡°Seal the void!¡± He yelled and three darkness domains spread out in the area. They wanted to lock the space around them. Grey was too troublesome, his space element and how well he uses it makes him an even more frightening existence in such a battle. Although they had the advantage with their numbers, it was actually putting them at a disadvantage. With the appearance of the domains, Grey, Void, and Ellis all unleashed their domains as well. Ellis was a Water Elementalist, so it started to drizzle soon. A snowstorm also started due to Grey¡¯s ice domain, while Void used his space domain. This time, he didn¡¯t use it to trap people, rather, he had learned to use it as a means of attack. Spatial distortions appeared randomly. However, the moment this happened, the sky reacted to it and rumbled. The expression of everyone present changed drastically. ¡°Shit! Run!¡± Grey didn¡¯t even bother with these people and rushed out of the place. Void and Ellis did the same as well. The sky seemed to be crumbling down, seemingly wanting to envelop that place. The group from the Syphilis Faction reacted a tad late, but it was almost at the same time as Grey¡¯s group. Just as they were escaping, two chaos orbs appeared in front of them and clashed, exploding with even more frightening power. ¡°Bastard!¡± The young man from the Syphilis Faction roared. Even when running for his life, Grey still attacked them. What was hateful about what Grey did was that it blocked their escape route for a second or so, but that was enough for the sky to cover them. Forgetting about the others, the young man used all his strength and broke through the area, creating enough space for him to escape, he couldn¡¯t really care about anyone else at this time. The young lady was the same. The other four Elemental Venerables used a combined attack to break through the attack. Unfortunately for the Sages, they were unable to break through and were soon enveloped by the sky. They didn¡¯t have the time to scream before their bodies disappeared. 1102 Battle Hungry Group ¡°You¡¯re growing evil.¡± Klaus said when Grey ran back to where they were. They were already thinking of joining the battle and trying to see if they could kill off all the Sage Plane Elementalists, who would¡¯ve thought that an accident would occur and Grey would even use it to his advantage and even attack those from the Syphilis Faction. ¡°They¡¯re stupid if they think they can escape from a conflict with me unscathed. Even if I can¡¯t beat them now, it doesn¡¯t mean I won¡¯t make them regret it.¡± Grey replied, not too bothered about the others. They all had the same thinking to begin with, Klaus might be worse since he would use his words to infuriate these people. All he did was take advantage of the opportunity that presented itself and make them suffer some losses. At least now, these people would think twice before crossing paths with him or anyone he knew. ¡°Thank you for helping us, I don¡¯t know what would¡¯ve happened without you coming.¡± The young man who was in the Mid stages of the Elemental Venerable Plane thanked Grey and the others. Although he was strong, other than escaping with his life, there was nothing he could do in that situation. Grey looked at the young man, he felt the young man was not a bad person since he decided to stay with the others when he could¡¯ve escaped. If the young man had escaped, the others would have undoubtedly died before Grey and his friends got here, but he would¡¯ve been safe. However, he didn¡¯t leave, rather, he stayed there with them, helping them fight against that group. People from the Pyrmond Faction were all told repeatedly of teamwork and building trust amongst themselves, and Grey could see the impact of it. They were not leaving anyone behind. Of course, he knew not every member of the Pyrmond Faction had this sense of togetherness with the others. ¡°Do you have any items that would help with healing?¡± He asked after looking at the others. Their injuries were by no means light, if they had arrived a few minutes late, then only the young man in the Fifth stage of the Elemental Venerable Plane had a high chance of survival. ¡°Yes, we can manage, we still have some things.¡± The young man said. He didn¡¯t want to look at Grey, so after thanking him, he left. ¡°Did anyone else notice his awkwardness or is it just me?¡± Klaus looked around after the group left. The others nodded. Keith gave a wry smile before explaining, ¡°He should be part of Grand Elder Archibald¡¯s faction. A student of one of Grand Elder Archibald¡¯s sons.¡± ¡°Who¡¯s Grand Elder Archie?¡± Klaus asked with curiosity. ¡°Archibald.¡± Keith corrected. ¡°Archie sounds better, don¡¯t you think so?¡± Klaus replied with a grin. Grey shook his head and let Klaus be, not speaking of how he addressed him, it wasn¡¯t like it had anything to do with him. He told the group of his encounter with the Grand Elder of the Pyrmond Faction. ¡°You were almost crippled?¡± Klaus and the others had frosty expressions, especially those that had known Grey for a long time. Alice and Reynolds looked like they would attack the Grand Elder if he were in front of them. ¡°The Faction Leader helped me resolve the matter, and with the appearance of my father, he had to back off. But I don¡¯t think he has given up on the matter.¡± Grey explained before looking at the area where the energy erupted. If they were a bit slower, then they would¡¯ve been in trouble. He still felt a bit fearful. ¡°Void, don¡¯t use your space domain any longer.¡± He warned. ¡°I know.¡± Void replied, he was also frightened by the attack. Luckily, they managed to react fast. ¡°Can we use this again?¡± Klaus asked with a thoughtful expression. ¡°Most definitely. But it¡¯s too dangerous. There¡¯s no need in endangering our lives, of course, it wouldn¡¯t matter if we were in danger in the first place.¡± Ellis said. Of all of them, he was the strongest, so he had a higher grasp of the power that erupted there. There¡¯s a chance that he might survive, but if he was delayed there, then it was a different story. ¡°Let¡¯s continue.¡± The group continued on their journey. Grey didn¡¯t want them to split up now since they were already in the more dangerous parts of the ruin. Every person who entered this place would soon start to cross paths since their paths would grow smaller as they head to the middle of the ruin. ¡­. While the group were advancing, Grey had no idea he was being tracked by a group. This group all wore black cloaks, but released sinister auras. Even the grass they step on die from the baleful aura that they released. In the group, a little girl who looked to be around six years old was skipping around, looking at the place with a playful expression.please visit p¦Á§á?¦Á-:)????1.co)m ¡°You¡¯ve still not found him, who will I play with now?¡± She said in a cute manner while staring at the black cloaked figures. The black cloaked figures didn¡¯t say a word but they all increased their speeds, heading in a particular direction. ¡°You found his traces? Yay! It¡¯s been so long since I had a good playmate. I heard he¡¯s very good.¡± The little girl giggled as she rushed in the direction the black cloaked figures were headed. In total, there were six people in the group, including the little girl. Other than the little girl, the others all wore black cloaks. The little girl and her group disappeared. ¡­. On another part of the Ruin, another group was also searching for Grey. This group was even more ostentatious than the previous one. They were hunting down the people from the Pyrmond Faction in search of Grey. Of all the people who entered this place, the Pyrmond Faction had suffered the greatest casualty, and all this was because of one person, Grey. Some people who died were all aggrieved, they died for someone they didn¡¯t even talk to. Since joining the Faction, Grey rarely came out of his building, other than when he was heading to the library, going out for a mission, or leaving the Faction ground, they rarely saw him, yet they were being killed because of this person. There were even some who had not seen Grey before due to some circumstances. Many people in the Faction and the Continent knew of the name Grey, but only a few had seen him. After the battle with the Syphilis Faction, he was challenged by the young lady from the Syphilis Faction, but he refused to appear. Grey wasn¡¯t the only one who had communication devices, so the news of people from the Syphilis Faction hunting Grey down soon spread among those from the Pyrmond Faction. The Syphilis Faction only attacked small groups, the group Grey encountered was one of the largest groups that the Syphilis Faction had attacked. Keith was quite social, so he managed to get the news two days later. ¡­. ¡°They¡¯re killing or Faction members because of me?¡± Grey frowned when he heard this. ¦Ñ¦Á§ád¦Á n?¦Í?| §ãom ¡°Why didn¡¯t that moron say anything about it?¡± Grey felt annoyed. Those three died because of him, even if he didn¡¯t feel any form of attachment to them, he would¡¯ve made sure he killed the group from the Syphilis Faction. As long as he was willing to pay a price, he would¡¯ve been able to kill them, that, he was confident in doing. ¡°Didn¡¯t you see how fast he ran when he met you? He also wanted to do the same to you, but he¡¯s not as open as the others.¡± Klaus replied nonchalantly. ¡°Damn it!¡± Grey hated being hunted down by people, but he hated it even more when those who had nothing to do with him had to suffer because of him. ¡°Let¡¯s go kill some people.¡± He said in annoyance, ¡°I¡¯ll make them tremble at the mention of my name.¡± ¡°Sure, traveling without doing anything is boring.¡± Klaus was excited, he had a feeling he would break through soon, the sword had been really helpful to him. ¡°Keith, you have a wide social network, ask them if they know the route of those from the Syphilis Faction.¡± Grey turned to Keith. Ellis was a little taken aback, Grey was really ready to hunt down these people. Even Klaus who was still in the Sage Plane was excited about this. Thinking of how they fought, he couldn¡¯t help but shake his head. This group of friends were all battle maniacs. Forget how it looks like Grey and Alice were the only ones who liked fighting, Klaus and Reynolds were no different, Void as well. During their time in the Azure Continent, they almost fought against the entire Continent. They had to go through battle after battle. That had turned them into the battle hungry people that they were at the moment. Klaus and Reynolds might still have some reservations, but Grey and Alice were different. 1103 Plotting Against The Syphilis Faction Grey and his friends soon started their hunt for those in the Syphilis Faction. Since the people from the Syphilis Faction started this, Grey wanted to make sure they regretted it. Keith soon got news of a group that was not too far from them. According to the information, the group attacked and killed some people from the Pyrmond Faction, and they were currently headed in their direction. With this information, the group started to lie in wait. They wanted to ambush the group. It didn¡¯t take long before they met with this group of people, other than two people, the others were in the Sage Plane. ¡®Such a weak group and they dared to attack people.¡¯ Grey snorted and soon came out to attack. The group consisted of six people, and with Grey¡¯s friends present, there were more than enough people to handle Thea¡¯s people. In the space of a few seconds, only the two on the Elemental Venerable Plane were left alive, the other four died from the attacks of Klaus, Reynolds, Alice, and Kieth. The two in the Elemental Venerable Plane were unable to help due to being held down by Grey and Ellis. One of the reasons they didn¡¯t die on the spot was that Grey was thinking of a way to contact others from the Syphilis Faction. He couldn¡¯t let this go on for long. If those from the Syphilis Faction continued hunting his fellow Faction members, then more people would die. ¡°Tell them I¡¯m here.¡± He said to the young lady amongst the duo. ¡°So you can kill them?¡± The young lady didn¡¯t believe Grey would want the others to come without wanting revenge. ¡°Do you want to die instead?¡± Grey¡¯s voice was cold. His intention was clear, either you call the others, or I kill you. No matter what, no one wanted to die. Seeing that Grey wanted her to call the others over in exchange for her freedom, she only hesitated for a while before agreeing to it. Before she contacted them, Grey made sure to confirm how many of them entered this place, and also what their strength was like. It would be stupid if he carelessly called them over only to be beaten by them. There¡¯s even a chance that they might be heavily injured if they were not careful. According to the young lady, about fifty people came from the Syphilis Faction, and fifteen of them were in the Elemental Venerable Plane, while the others were in the Sage Plane. Grey did a rough count and deducted one person from the number of people in the Elemental Venerable Plane, making them only fourteen. He had previously caused the death of six Sage Plane Elementalists, if he included these four, then ten Sage Plane Elementalists had died from the thirty-five. He didn¡¯t know if others had met some mishaps as well, but he just made a rough calculation that only eleven people had died, it was better to be on the safer side.please visit p¦Á§á?¦Á-:)????1.co)m This left thirty-nine people. They were only nine in their group, and the young lady accompanying Ellis couldn¡¯t really be involved in such a battle, so they were eight. If they met a group of fifteen, Grey was confident in himself and his friends that they would be able to fight it out with them. All in the premise that there were not more than four or at most five Elemental Venerables. If there were more than five Elemental Venerables, things would be very difficult for them. ¡°Okay, is there a way you can get their exact positions and the people in the groups?¡± Grey asked another question. If possible, it would be best to separate them. This would make it more convenient and less dangerous for the group. The young lady shook her head. Grey knew not to believe her words completely, there was a high chance that the number of people in the Elemental Venerable Plane was higher than what she called, but there was nothing they could do. This place was huge, so they couldn¡¯t start searching for people all around. Take for instance, these people from the Syphilis Faction who had been searching for him for a while, even with different groups, yet they had not encountered each other, if not for Grey sensing the fight the last time, he wouldn¡¯t have seen them. p¦Á§á?¦Á-no¦Í?1¡¤§ão§® The young man was a little taken aback by his request, but he still spoke anyway. When he was done speaking, Grey, Void, and Ellis attacked simultaneously. The young man tried to block the attack, but facing an attack from three Elemental Venerables, he was powerless. Of the three people, Void and Ellis had a higher stage than him. He was in the same stage as Grey, but Grey¡¯s attack power was far superior to his, so he was not even a match for one of them, much less all three of them. Within a few seconds, the young man died. Grey turned to the young lady with a smile. He took her spatial ring, as well as the one with the young man. After searching, he saw the communication device. Some communication devices could project bodies while speaking, while others were like the one Grey made, just transmitting voices. Grey didn¡¯t want the young lady to be the one to transmit the message, the reason for this was simple, he didn¡¯t trust her. If she were to set them up, there was no way he would know about it. Ellis and the others were impressed with Grey¡¯s reasoning. He was very astute when it came to things like these so he wouldn¡¯t be the one who would eventually suffer a loss. He mimicked the young man¡¯s voice and tried communicating with some people from the Syphilis Faction. Before long, he managed to get a group who were also close by. This group had only five people, two Sage Plane Elementalists, and three Elemental Venerables. 1104 Sage Plane Elementalists Against An Elemental Venerable ¡°What are you doing?!¡± The young lady screamed. ¡°Nothing. I promised not to kill you, and I¡¯m keeping my promise.¡± Grey smiled as he casually shattered the cultivation of the young lady. He had already restrained her from the start, so it was quite easy to destroy her cultivation. With her cultivation shattered, in a place like this, she was as good as dead. Grey didn¡¯t kill her, but he left her in a state where her survival was only one percent. ¡°Bastard! You¡¯ll die a horrible death!¡± The young lady screamed hysterically, she was going crazy. She even rushed over and started punching Grey. ¡°You¡¯ll not be able to witness it, I fear.¡± Grey¡¯s reply made her even crazier. She wanted to kill this black-hearted fellow, even if it meant that she would die in the process. Seeing how the young lady was causing a scene, Grey opened a spatial tunnel and tossed her in. She would appear in a random place in the ruin. If she survived, then it was her luck. If not, then it had nothing to do with Grey. It¡¯s not like he was the one who killed her. Besides, did the young lady think she wouldn¡¯t die after killing different people from the Pyrmond Faction? After killing these two, the number of the Elemental Venerables from the Syphilis Faction had gone down to twelve. Of course, he couldn¡¯t be too sure since there was a chance that the young lady was lying. ¡°We¡¯ll take out the next group as we head to the center of the ruin.¡± Grey tidied himself and they continued walking. Ellis couldn¡¯t help but shake his head, those people from the Syphilis Faction had provoked a maniac, and now, they would suffer for it. Grey obviously had no plans in doing things the same way as them. He was dividing the group and killing everyone. Even the ones he didn¡¯t kill were not different from a dead person. This was a place filled with Magical Beasts that would attack any human they come across, as long as they encountered that young lady, they would definitely rip her to shreds. Some time passed and they encountered the next group, just like the first one, the Sage Plane Elementalists were the first to die, and the three in the Elemental Venerable Plane were a little harder to deal with, but with Grey, Ellis, and Void working together, it was not impossible. On the contrary, they were confident in killing the group. ¦Ñ¦Á§ád¦Á n?¦Í?| §ãom This group actually had two Elemental Venerables in the Mid stages, and the other one had a higher cultivation stage than Grey, so they hadn¡¯t been able to take them out yet. ¡°Leave this one to us, you should assist Void.¡± Klaus suggested. He was already very close to breaking through, if he and the others joined hands, they could stop this Elemental Venerable. There was four top-notch Sage Plane Elementalists present, and there was also Keith as well, so it wasn¡¯t a joke to say that they would stop this person, they even had a chance in killing this person.please visit p¦Á§á?¦Á-:)????1.co)m Grey didn¡¯t delay and created an opportunity for the others to close in on the Elemental Venerable as he rushed to where Void was fighting. Ellis was the one who had the highest chance of killing his opponent first. When Klaus and the others arrived, Klaus unleashed his ice ability to the fullest. Reynolds¡¯ Elemental Warrior stepped out from the void and attacked. Alice merged with her Seelie and her strength spiked to the very Peak of the Sage Plane. Kyle was not someone to be trifled with as well. Among Sage Plane Elementalists, he could be considered a top expert as well. Of those in the Sage Plane, Keith and the young lady accompanying Ellis were the weakest. The Elemental Venerable was in the Second stage, so he couldn¡¯t suppress this group of people, rather, he was the one on the back foot the second the battle started. He tried to attack, but Klaus unleashed an ice wall with the help of the thin sword. After using the sword for some days, he was getting used to it. Although the consumption of essence was high, it wasn¡¯t beyond what he could handle. The attack slammed into the wall, and although it managed to break it, most of the power was already depleted, so with a stream of water sent out, it quelled the attack. Klaus¡¯ use of his special water had gotten to a frightening level. Presently, if some people in the Early stages of the Sage Plane were trapped in it, the water pressure would be able to crush them to death. His water emulated the water pressure at the bottom of the ocean, powerful to the extreme. Grey was also learning this, but he couldn¡¯t be compared to Klaus who was a Water Elementalist and had to focus on this alone, he had to focus on all elements, so he had less time to study each element to the extreme. This was the disadvantage of having too many elements. His mastery was not on the same level as these people, luckily, he could make up for this with his other elements. The young man was stunned when he realized his attack was blocked by just one person. With that, he had to defend himself against the attack of the others. Reynolds¡¯ Elemental Warrior thrust a spear toward the head of the young man, the speed of the spear was shocking, he managed to move his head to the side, but he was faced with an attack from Alice which almost struck his defenseless body, but black mist came out of his body to block it. While he was blocking that attack, Kyle attacked. Just like Grey, he had a special flame, and it was powerful. Boom! Keith also attacked at this time. The young man took a few steps back, he was rocked by their attacks. 1105 Not In Sync With His Cultivation Stage The young man was subdued by the five of them from the first attack. He couldn¡¯t even counterattack after the first time and was forced to only defend. While the young man was being subdued by the others, Grey and Void had completely taken advantage of their numbers and the young man who was in the Fourth stage wasn¡¯t able to hold on against them. Within the space of only a few seconds that Grey joined in on the battle, the young man was forced back and he couldn¡¯t defend himself properly. Although Grey was not in the same stage as the young man, Grey¡¯s attack power was terrifyingly strong. Those in the same stage wouldn¡¯t be able to take Grey¡¯s attack properly. Void was also attacking, so the young man was in a difficult position. Void knew not to use his space domain, so when the young man used his domain, Grey was the one who activated his domains, fighting back against the power of the young man¡¯s darkness domain. Void used his space elemental attacks on the young man while also using his newly awakened innate ability after breaking through to the Seventh Rank. The young man was not able to defend against the attack of Void¡¯s space element. He soon started to fidget. If the battle lasted any longer, he would die. ¡°Damn it!¡± He cursed. p¦Ánd¦Á no¦Í?1,§ão§® They all knew that Grey was a difficult person to deal with. After the competition, many people started to keep their eyes on him. Of course, Grey disappeared for a long period and only a few people knew of his whereabouts, but they managed to find out about his previous battles before he joined the Pyrmond Faction, so they knew he was well-versed with his elements. ¡°Together!¡± He screamed as a dark mist came out of his body. Not just him, but it came out from the others¡¯ bodies as well. The mist soon converged and formed an orb. It happened so fast that even when Grey and his friends tried to stop it, they were unable to. ¡°Grey, it¡¯ll increase their strength for a short period.¡± Klaus was the one who spoke up when he saw the orb. It was like a technique from the Moonlight Faction that could increase their strength for a short period. During this time, the explosive strength of the trio in the Elemental Venerable Plane would be greatly increased. Grey knew these people wouldn¡¯t be able to defeat them, so the possibility of them wanting to escape was very high. This was something he didn¡¯t want to happen, if these people escaped, then he wouldn¡¯t be able to continue hunting down the others from the Syphilis Faction since they would know of this and group together.please visit p¦Á§á?¦Á-:)????1.co)m ¡°Don¡¯t let them leave.¡± Grey created a chaos orb in his hand as he threw it at the young man fighting with Ellis. The young man was the strongest in the group, so he wanted to make sure he suffered more before their strength increased. The young man was about to block when Ellis sneakily attacked. The position of his attack was quite ingenious, and if the young man didn¡¯t block, he would suffer greatly from the attack. Ellis smiled when he saw this and forced the young man to take Grey¡¯s attack. The young man gritted his teeth and with no other choice, he could only try to minimize the damage from Grey¡¯s chaos orb. He already knew that Grey¡¯s attack power was not at the same stage as his cultivation stage. When the chaos orb got to where he was, he soon regretted his decision. The power of the attack was well in the peak of the Mid stages of the Elemental Venerable Plane. This was something beyond his expectations. Even if Grey¡¯s attack power was strong, it shouldn¡¯t be on this level. One has to recall that Grey was still only in the First stage of the Elemental Venerable Plane. If his attack was already this powerful at this stage, then what would it be like when he¡¯s in the Mid stages of the Elemental Venerable Plane? He soon guessed that this was not the strength of Grey¡¯s normal attack, rather, it was more like a special attack. However, even if it was a special attack, the margin was still so large that it was ridiculous! Boom! He was pushed back, but at the same time, the mist from the orb expanded to his side and his aura increased, but it wavered, it was clear that he was hurt by Grey¡¯s attack. If not for the fact that he still set up some defensive walls just as the attack was about to hit him, he would¡¯ve been in danger. Grey felt a bit regretful, but he didn¡¯t feel too disappointed. The young man was stronger than him, to begin with, so being able to disrupt him to this level was not bad. Ellis on the other hand couldn¡¯t help but look at Grey. Although he had already accepted the fact that Grey was a monster, he was still shocked by the power of the chaos orb. He also sensed that there were multiple elemental essences mixed up in the chaos orb. He was curious, but he didn¡¯t speak about it, after all, he only had one element. If he had multiple elements, he would¡¯ve asked Grey for the technique. Ellis used the opportunity and continued attacking, since the young man was hurt by Grey¡¯s attack, he wouldn¡¯t be able to unleash his full strength, even with the increase in strength. Grey and Void continued fighting with their opponent. Klaus and the others were the ones who felt the most change, the reason for this was that their opponent¡¯s strength increased and he was no longer being suppressed by them. It was time for his counterattack. 1106 I Wish I Was Deaf! Klaus and the others were still able to hold out, but they weren¡¯t able to suppress the young man any longer. ¡°F*ck! You moron, why are you cheating in the battle?¡± Klaus cursed as he fought with the young man. The young man looked at him, speechless. Five people were fighting against one person, and although his cultivation stage was higher, it was still not a fair battle. Yet, just because he used something to increase his strength for a short time, Klaus was cursing at him, accusing him of cheating. If they were to say anyone was cheating, it was most definitely Klaus and his friends. ¡°If you know you were born, don¡¯t use this external power. I¡¯ll respect you. If not, your parents are dogs!¡± Klaus cursed. The young man¡¯s expression darkened. Klaus¡¯ words were a bit annoying to listen to. ¡°Get away.¡± He focused his attack on Klaus, leaving the others. ¡°Shit! Attack the others, why are you attacking only me? Is this how you bully those younger than you?¡± Klaus cursed and continued blocking, but this time, he was sent flying by the attack. Now the attack was stronger than what he was previously able to handle. Before he could even get his bearing, the young man was already in front of him and he attacked. Klaus¡¯ body glowed with a brilliant white light and an ice armor covered his body. Boom! His figure was sent flying once again, but he was still protected. ¡°What the hell are you guys doing? F*ck! I always knew you didn¡¯t like me!¡± Klaus yelled at the others as he ran in their direction. The others wore embarrassed expressions, they couldn¡¯t help it. When the young man exploded due to Klaus¡¯ curses, they were unable to hold him back. Apparently, he was fully focused on Klaus and didn¡¯t want anything to do with anyone else. p¦Ánd¦Á no¦Í?1,§ão§® They rushed over to help him when they saw that he was truly on the verge of breaking down. The second they managed to block the young man, Klaus took in a deep breath before unloading a barrage of curses at the young man. This time, even the eyes of the others twitched. You just managed to escape from his hands, and you¡¯ve started cursing at his entire family. Klaus even went further to curse his future generations. What infuriated the young man was Klaus¡¯ last words, which were, ¡°Are you married? If yes, you would be cuckolded by someone close to you. If not, then forget it, you can never get married in this lifetime.¡± Klaus didn¡¯t forget to add, ¡°It will also be a shame if you were a virgin. If yes, then you¡¯ll die a virgin. From the way you look, I don¡¯t think you¡¯ve ever been with a woman.¡± This time, even Alice couldn¡¯t take Klaus¡¯ words any longer and said, ¡°Shut up! If not, I¡¯ll beat you up.¡±please visit p¦Á§á?¦Á-:)????1.co)m Klaus was infuriating to listen to, even when he was only abusing his enemies. Can¡¯t he be a little less shameless with his words? He dared to say anything, truly, he dared to say anything and everyone close to him was aware of this. ¡°What? I¡¯m just saying.¡± Klaus shrugged, but wasn¡¯t bothered by Alice¡¯s words. He gritted his teeth and a moon appeared behind him. ¡°Do you think you¡¯re the only one who can do this? Bloody idiot.¡± He cursed once again and charged at the young man, this time he was intent on attacking. His strength soon broke through the stage of the Sage Plane. The sky rumbled slightly. ¡°You see that? I¡¯ll break through and beat the crap out of you.¡± He laughed in delight. He never expected that doing this would be the last thing he needed to break through. ¡°Do you want to kill us? Shit! Restrain your aura!¡± Grey almost exploded from anger when he saw this. What stupid breakthrough? Was something wrong with Klaus¡¯ head? If he was breaking through normally here, although it would still be slightly dangerous, they would be able to take care of it. But now, the situation there was that the space was already unstable from their battles, if Klaus were to connect with the origin source at this moment, then the sky would attack them, just like the last time. Klaus soon realized, and he couldn¡¯t help but give an embarrassed smile, his aura which was rising soon started to slow down. Although doing this was bad, it wouldn¡¯t affect him too much. He was a genius, he knew that he could still break through whenever he wanted to. Even if he didn¡¯t break through now, he could still break through next time. Some people would not want to miss such an opportunity, even the trio from the Syphilis Faction was stunned when they saw that Klaus was actually stopping his breakthrough. What is wrong with these people? This was the only question resonating in their heads. Klaus actually stopped his breakthrough. They couldn¡¯t help but feel regret, if Klaus had continued, then they would¡¯ve been able to escape since Grey and the others would also have to run for their lives, but now, Klaus had stopped. The young man was still looking at Klaus when Klaus said a word that almost made him vomit a mouthful of blood. ¡°What are you staring at? Do you think I¡¯m like you trash? I can break through whenever I want.¡± Klaus snorted and released his aura and hid it again. ¡°See, it¡¯s all within my grasp, idiot.¡± At this point, the young man gave up, he almost wanted to pray that he was deaf, so he wouldn¡¯t have to hear Klaus¡¯ voice any longer. 1107 Fight To The Death Grey and the others looked at Klaus, a little exasperated. While he was showing off to the young man they were fighting against and cursing at him, the sky would react whenever he increased his aura. ¡®Stop it already.¡¯ Even Ellis was a little afraid of what might happen if the sky attacked them just like the last time. He wasn¡¯t certain they would be able to escape on time given the reaction from the sky. Luckily, Klaus soon stopped when he saw that the young man couldn¡¯t take it any longer. The young man had an expression of wanting to fight to the death with him, of course, Klaus was never going to let that happen. He was not a match for the young man, so why would he court death? Alice and the others were still holding the young man down and Klaus sent out a small ice needle that he had been preparing. He covered his aura, but he was not any weaker than before. The only thing he made sure of was that he wouldn¡¯t break through during the fight. His attack power successfully climbed into the Elemental Venerable Plane and when the needle was released, the young man sensed a threat to his life. Without waiting for anything, he forcefully broke through from the entanglement of Alice and the others and dodged to the left. He couldn¡¯t take this attack, if not, he would be in danger. The needle breezed past him, grazing his right cheek. Blood didn¡¯t come out, rather, he started to feel an intense cold. One of the frightening things about Klaus¡¯ ice was that, presently, it didn¡¯t only freeze the body, but everything as well. Essence, physical body, and even spiritual consciousness. The young man noticed his movements started to slow down due to this attack. ¡®Crap! Who¡¯s this guy?¡¯ He complained internally. He didn¡¯t know of anyone with such an ability within the younger generation. Compared to Grey and his friends, he was a bit older, almost thirty years old. He could still be regarded as a youth. Elementalists all had a long lifespan, so even someone who is a hundred years old would still be considered a youth to some of those old guys who had lived thousands of years. The young man used the darkness element to corrode the cold, trying to eat it up. He knew that he couldn¡¯t expel it, so he directly tried to consume it. Before long he regained his previous state. Reynolds¡¯ Elemental Warrior used the opportunity to send an arrow at the young man who was still fighting with the cold from Klaus¡¯ attack. The arrow hit a dark film that appeared around the young man, and with a strange vibration, it was stopped by the film. Alice attacked at this time as well, using a powerful lightning elemental attack. Although she had awakened her fire elemental domain, her lightning element was still her strongest element. Kyle also attacked as well. Before long the dark film broke down, but the young man had already regained himself and sent out a powerful rain of darkness arrows. An ice wall rose up and covered the others while ice shards shot at the young man. Knowing that it was Klaus¡¯ attack, the young man didn¡¯t dare to be careless as he hurriedly blocked them. Seeing how things were, he immediately turned around, he wanted to escape. Fighting was meaningless, he couldn¡¯t defeat them, nor could they defeat him in a short time, but he knew that once his boost was exhausted, then he would not be able to leave, and might truly die in the hands of Klaus and the others. He looked at his comrades and realized they were in an even more dangerous situation. As long as those ones were defeated, he would undoubtedly die. ¡®Escape.¡¯ He turned around and escaped immediately. Klaus¡¯ expression wasn¡¯t good when he saw this and he rushed to stop him. He couldn¡¯t let this guy go. Who would be his whetstone if this guy left? This was the best chance for him to fight against an Elemental Venerable. He didn¡¯t dare to spar with Grey, he knew Grey would beat the hell out of him, Void was even worse, so he didn¡¯t ask any of them. He had been searching for a good opponent, how could he let this guy go? The young man didn¡¯t know what was in Klaus¡¯ head, seeing him block his path, he sent out a palm. A large palm made of the darkness element appeared and covered Klaus¡¯ figure. Just as the palm was about to close up, ice spikes sprang out from Klaus¡¯ body as he tried to destroy the palm. Holes opened up in the palm and Klaus reappeared, he slashed the sword at the young man who was trying to escape. The attack power was so strong that the space shook. A large ice blade shot at the young man who was escaping. He sensed the danger and was forced to turn and block it. ¡°You think you¡¯re my match?¡± He snorted and spread out his hands.please visit p¦Á§á?¦Á-:)????1.co)m Two palms made from the darkness element came out and clasped. The ice blade was held firmly by the hands. The young man threw out a spear, it was clearly an elemental weapon. Sensing the baleful aura that was coming from the spear, Klaus quickly blocked. An ice screen appeared in front of him. Although it was called a screen, it was very thick, over one meter thick. The spear hit the screen and it penetrated it with ease. Before long, it was already over half a meter deep. At this time, the others had arrived and unleashed their respective domains at the young man. The young man was infuriated by the group, they were not as strong as he was, but each of them was very difficult to deal with. Klaus was the strongest, and he had the strongest defense as well. Even against an Elemental Venerable, he was not completely defenseless. The others didn¡¯t have his powerful attack, but they had a powerful attack to make up for it. Reynolds¡¯ Elemental Warrior was particularly frightening. The young man might be an Elemental Venerable, but his physical body wasn¡¯t omnipotent. As long as he was struck by any of its attacks, he would be injured. The young man blocked their attacks with an irritated expression. p¦Á§á?¦Á-no¦Í?1¡¤§ão§® Klaus was about to heave a sigh of relief when he sensed a great threat of danger. He hastily retreated while covering himself with ice armor. The threat came from the spear, even when it was already stopped, since there was still a threat, he didn¡¯t want to know what it was. Just as he was retreating, the spear exploded. The explosion drew the attention of the others fighting against him, they knew Klaus was in the direction the explosion came from. The young man used the opportunity and turned to escape. ¡°Where do you think you¡¯re going?¡± Klaus¡¯ voice came from behind the explosion. Before Klaus¡¯ voice died down, a thin long ice spear shot at the young man with incredible speed. The young man was once again forced to block Klaus¡¯ attack. ¡°Damn it!¡± He couldn¡¯t help but feel frustrated. He could sense the power in his body dwindling. If this continued, he wouldn¡¯t be able to escape. The young man¡¯s pupils constricted but he still forced himself to block the attack. He couldn¡¯t help but feel a bit aggrieved. ¡°Look, we don¡¯t have any enmity. Let me leave. If you force me, I¡¯ll fight you with everything I have.¡± He gritted his teeth. ¡°Oh, what have you been using since? You¡¯ve been holding back? I never knew. Come on, show me what you have.¡± Klaus laughed and continued attacking. He wasn¡¯t scared of him. The young man was clearly in a state of desperation, he could already see that he couldn¡¯t escape, so he was threatening them. The young man felt his world crumbling, Klaus was an unreasonable person. He didn¡¯t even want to listen to him. Klaus and the other hand was smug. ¡®You want to fight to the death? Come on. Do you think we¡¯re afraid of you?¡¯ This was his thought. The others looked at the young man with pity. Klaus was too evil. They couldn¡¯t help but look at him, wasn¡¯t he afraid that the young man would forget everything and try to kill one of them. The second the young man removed all reservations, he would be a deadly force. As long as he didn¡¯t care about anything, he might be able to kill one of them before dying. 1108 Shocking Fighting Style Klaus wasn¡¯t scared of the young man, he knew he wouldn¡¯t want to die, so why should he be afraid of his threats? While they were fighting, he had secretly communicated with Grey, he would create an opportunity and Grey would unleash his ice domain. He would also use his personal domain with it as well and also send out a powerful ice attack with his sword. With all these, the possibility of the young man not freezing to death was low. Grey had agreed to it without a second thought, if they could take this person out, it wouldn¡¯t be a bad thing. ¡­. On Grey¡¯s side, although he was not pressured, he was a little taken aback when Klaus suggested their joint attack. He had seen a glance of Klaus using the sword and knew that it was a great weapon. It was most likely something he obtained here since he didn¡¯t know of it. p¦Ánd¦Á no¦Í?1,§ão§® When Klaus appeared, he was already preparing a powerful attack, so he unleashed it at once. Grey appeared on Klaus¡¯ end and his eyes glowed with a brilliant light. It had been a while since he used his mental attack. His icy flame didn¡¯t give him physical attack prowess, but it also gave him mental attack prowess as well. He still had the lotus in his head which had been developed by a large margin. Presently, its attack power was far higher than what it used to be. The young man was frozen when he stared into Grey¡¯s eyes. Grey didn¡¯t hold back and used both his icy domain and ice domain to attack the young man. Including the mental attack, it was both an internal and external attack, this made it impossible for the young man to move. Grey switched places with Klaus once again, appearing in front of who he was fighting against. Klaus appeared and attacked. Just like some moments ago when he switched places with Grey, he unleashed one of his greatest attacks. The young man was already starting to show signs of fighting back against Grey¡¯s attack. So when Klaus arrived and sent out his attack, the young man who was just about to break free from the ice domains and ice mental attack was almost defenseless against Klaus¡¯ attack. The small defense he managed to set up was useless against the blade light that shot out of the sword in Klaus¡¯ hand. The sword hit the body of the young man, and to the shock of the others, he was sliced in two. Before Klaus¡¯ attack hit the young man, their attacks had hit him, but other than causing some injuries, they weren¡¯t too fatal. Klaus¡¯ attack on the other hand directly cut the young man into two. Klaus¡¯ blade cut the young man in his waist, directly cutting him in two. However, he didn¡¯t die from this attack. The vitality of Elementalists in the Elemental Venerable Plane was higher than that of those in lower Planes. In this stage, after connecting to the origin source, their life force increases by a large margin. In fact, unless they were completely obliterated, there was a high probability of coming back to life. But one of the easiest ways to kill them was by directly crushing them with powerful attacks, or destroying their spiritual senses, making them empty shells. The Elemental Venerables Grey and the others killed looked quite easy mainly because they had the strength to completely overwhelm them. They killed these people without giving them any chance of survival. On a few occasions, Grey even destroyed the body and the spiritual senses with an attack. Klaus and the others were still lacking in this aspect, but with the body of the young man halved, his strength had dropped drastically. There was no way he could use up to sixty percent of his original strength now. His shrill scream resounded in the area.please visit p¦Á§á?¦Á-:)????1.co)m From the first time Grey and Klaus switched places to when Klaus came back and cut him in half, it wasn¡¯t even up to two seconds. The coordination of the duo was impeccable, so even though the time was small, they still managed to do everything they wanted to. Klaus did a complete outburst of his strength twice in the space of two seconds. It might look easy, but not many people could do it in such a short time. Looking at Klaus, it was easy to see that he was slightly affected by this. ¡­. Grey didn¡¯t bother with the young man¡¯s scream, he just figured out something and he couldn¡¯t help but feel annoyed that he hadn¡¯t thought of this before. He could switch places with Ellis, this way, there would be a certain unpredictability about them when they fight since their opponents wouldn¡¯t be able to guess who was attacking. Ellis was just about to attack when he felt a strange force in his body, before he could react, he was already in the position Grey was while Grey appeared at the place he was standing. Grey¡¯s voice resounded in his head, ¡®We¡¯ll be fighting in this manner henceforth.¡¯ This would make the battle easier. Ellis didn¡¯t reject the idea and attacked the young man Grey and Void were fighting against. Ellis was stronger than the young man in the first place, so when the young man received an attack stronger than what he had been taking, he was not able to react on time and was sent flying. Void took the opportunity to chase after him. Ellis was about to continue when his vision changed and he appeared before his previous opponent. He gave a wry smile and continued fighting. ¡­. Some minutes later, all three young men from the Syphilis Faction were dead. They couldn¡¯t hold on against Grey¡¯s evil methods. The young man who was cut in half was the first to die. After he died, the next person to die was unexpectedly the one fighting with Ellis. The reason for this was simple, Grey sent Void that way. With Ellis and Void working together, they took him out with ease. The young man who was alone with Grey thought he could take advantage of the opportunity to escape, unfortunately for him, Grey wasn¡¯t prepared to let him leave. 1109 Center Of The Ruin ¡°Are we going to continue? You should know others are heading to the center of the ruin now.¡± Ellis asked after they killed the last young man. Although revenge was good, they had a mission here, and that was to get benefits. They couldn¡¯t forget it because they wanted revenge. ¦Ñ¦Á§ád¦Á n?¦Í?| §ãom He felt they should also focus on the task ahead. Besides, they¡¯ve killed a good number of those from the Syphilis Faction. He knew for a fact that with the two in the Mid stages of the Elemental Venerable Plane killed, the overall strength of the people from the Syphilis Faction who entered this place had dropped drastically. Previously, they had killed eleven, adding this five to it, it was sixteen. Grey thought about it and nodded. He was not clouded by revenge and can¡¯t reason. Even while they were hunting down the people from the Syphilis Faction, he made sure that they were still headed in the general direction. The group soon left the place, heading toward the center of the ruin. ¡­. Some minutes after Grey and his friends left the scene of the battle, a group arrived. It was a group of people who wore black cloaks. The little girl looked at the environment and laughed. ¡°A battle took place here. Some people with the darkness elements.¡± She said while studying the place, after some time she added, ¡°Special icy flames. He¡¯s the one with that attribute, right?¡± The cloaked figures didn¡¯t say a word as they just stood motionless. The little girl muttered some words and after stamping her feet on the ground in annoyance, she moved. The black-cloaked figures moved along with her as well. ¡­. On another part of the ruin. ¡°Father, how did you know this was here?¡± Gilbert asked in shock. He was with his father in a building, compared to others, they were the people who had advanced the most. His father seemed to be familiar with this place and they were able to maneuver through the terrain and arrive at a large palace-like building. His father didn¡¯t even bother with anything and directly headed for a room. Inside the room was a crystal book. After his father took in the information inside, the crystal book shattered. ¡°I¡¯ve been here before.¡± Gilbert¡¯s father said, his hands behind his back. In his eyes, one could see the melancholy in it. ¡°You¡¯ve been here? When was that?¡± Gilbert asked. He was suspicious of this when they were moving through the place, but hearing it from his father, he didn¡¯t feel too shocked about it since he had already guessed it. What he found strange was that his father said that he had been here before. This was a place that produced the last True God, if his father had been here, how long was it, and what did he obtain here? ¡°Don¡¯t think about these. Let¡¯s get going. Others will be appearing here soon. Later on, you can fight for some opportunities.¡± His father didn¡¯t say anything and walked out of the room.please visit p¦Á§á?¦Á-:)????1.co)m ¡°Can¡¯t we check out the other rooms since we¡¯re already here? We would be able to gain more benefits.¡± Gilbert was a bit surprised by his father¡¯s words. ¡°It¡¯s best if you wait for others. This place, it¡¯s not as simple as it looks.¡± His father replied, ¡°The only reason we can come here is all because of this.¡± Gilbert looked at what appeared on his father¡¯s hand curiously. He had seen this thing before, at that time, he was still very young. He didn¡¯t know what it was, but his father used to stare at it for a long period in the past. The item was a small jade pendant. In the pendant, there were writings and drawings. He could read the writings, so he didn¡¯t bother about it. His father kept the pendant after showing it to him. ¡°Let¡¯s go outside, it wouldn¡¯t be good if anyone sees us leaving this place.¡± Gilbert¡¯s father said and walked out. Sometime later, they came out of the building and headed straight for the woods. A few minutes later, the first batch of people arrived. If Alice were here, she would recognize them, it was the group from the Vaergahl Family. They all had shocking auras, and some of them had signs of just breaking through. Obviously, they¡¯ve gained a lot from this place. Of course, they seemed to be missing some people. This place didn¡¯t house only opportunities, but it housed dangers as well. When this group arrived, they stared at the palace-like building but didn¡¯t rashly rush into it. They knew this place was most likely the most important place in the ruin, but there was a chance that it was also the most dangerous. The probability of this being true was very high, so they didn¡¯t dare to be rash. Time slowly passed and more people started to appear. People from different forces started to appear. From the Burchard Family to the Moonlight Faction, to the Dawson Family, and the Pyrmond Faction. Of each force, those that were separated would immediately group up with the others the moment they arrived. Traveling together meant safety, but that would limit the number of people who could obtain anything, so after a few days, most of the groups were divided into smaller ones. ¡­. Some hours later. The place was already filled with people. The father and son duo who left before anyone came had appeared as well. Gilbert was looking around when his eyes caught sight of some familiar figures walking out of the woods. Grey and his friends just arrived, and they were all staring at the large building in front of them. This was the thing that would naturally take their attention the moment they appeared. ¡°Father, let¡¯s meet up with them. I know some of them.¡± Gilbert pointed at Grey and his group. ¡°Huh?¡± A surprised look appeared on the face of Gilbert¡¯s father as he raised his head to see Grey and Klaus who were walking side by side. 1110 I Don’t Know You Gilbert noticed the strange reaction of his father and couldn''t help but ask, "Is everything alright?" "It''s fine. You should go ahead. I''ll catch up with you later." Gilbert''s father said and didn''t accompany him there. Gilbert wanted to speak but his father had already turned around and was leaving. Grey and Klaus saw him at this time, seeing the figure leaving, they felt a sense of familiarity. "Have you seen that person before?" Grey whispered to Klaus. "It feels like it. But I don''t know where." Klaus replied with a thoughtful expression. He was still thinking about it when Gilbert walked over. "You''ve broken through to the Elemental Venerable Plane as well." Gilbert said as he saw Grey. He couldn''t help but sigh. Grey truly was a freak. When they met the last time, Grey wasn''t at the Peak of the Sage Plane. But now, he had broken through to the Elemental Venerable Plane, around the same time as himself. "I got lucky." Grey replied. "Who was that with you earlier?" Klaus asked after exchanging pleasantries with Gilbert. "My father. He had something to do so he left first." Gilbert replied. "Oh, alright." Klaus didn''t dwell in the matter any more. He just felt the person was familiar, so he wanted to ask about the person. Since it was Gilbert''s father, then he wouldn''t bother about it. Grey had the same thoughts as Klaus, so after Klaus asked about it, he also didn''t speak about it again. "What do you think is in this place?" He looked at the palace-like building. He could sense a fatal threat from it. From the looks of it, this was most likely the most important thing in this place, but it was also the most dangerous. If his guess was correct, this was most likely the place the True God stayed when he was still around. "I wonder what happened to the True God." He said out loud. "Probably dead." Klaus replied carelessly before adding, "There''s also a chance that he had gone to another world. I heard that there''s actually a place where True Gods ascend to after breaking through the shackles." Grey turned to look at him curiously, "Really?" He had read some things about the True God Plane, but he didn''t get too much information on it. Apparently, Klaus seems to know more than he did, so he was a little curious about it. "Yes. That evil lady told me about it." Klaus nodded as he said. "Evil lady? I wonder what the Mistress will say when I tell her about how you address her." A cheeky laugh came from behind Klaus. Klaus'' expression changed slightly when he heard this. The person who spoke just now was someone from the Moonlight Faction. She was in the Elemental Venerable Plane Elementalist and could be said to be the leader of the group that came out for this expedition. "Lara, you''re here." Klaus gave a fake smile. "Hmph! Don''t think I''ll not tell the Mistress about this. I''ve always heard how you addressed her. Do you think she doesn''t know?" Lara snorted. She didn''t seem to have a good impression of Klaus, to her, any guy who wanted to join the Moonlight Faction had evil thoughts. One of the things she didn''t like about Klaus was how he was treated by the Faction Leader and some of the top Elders. It has to be known that even those geniuses who were already in the Elemental Venerable Plane aren''t treated as well as Klaus in the Faction. He literally has free reign over all the techniques in the Faction, something that others had to work hard for. Lara didn''t wait for Klaus to reply as she glanced at Grey, "You''re Grey?" Grey looked at her, studying her. She was in the Sixth stage of the Elemental Venerable Plane, so even if he went all out, he knew he was no match for her. If it was when he still had access to the Fusion State, he wouldn''t be afraid of anyone in this place. He nodded at her, exchanging some pleasantries with her. The group from the Moonlight Faction left after some time. Although Lara doesn''t seem to have a good impression of Klaus, it doesn''t mean that the others don''t. She also spoke with him like an elder sister before leaving. Grey and Reynolds poked fun at Klaus when they found out that he had an elder sister in his Faction. Klaus naturally couldn''t be bothered with them. He started to look around when he sensed a deadly gaze in their direction. Grey and the others sensed it at the same time as well and looked in that direction. "They''re from the Syphilis Faction." Keith said. The group from the Syphilis Faction was led by a young lady. When she saw Grey, she gave him a bright smile as she walked with her large group in their direction. While she was walking in their direction, the people from the Pyrmond Faction saw Grey and Keith and also walked in his direction. Not just those from the Pyrmond Faction, but those from the Burchard and Dawson Family also walked over. The area suddenly turned strange. A lot of people knew that Grey and the Syphilis Faction were at loggerheads. Many people had heard of Grey''s name, but most of them hadn''t seen him before, they''d only heard of his battles and how powerful he was. This was the first time most of them were seeing him. The group from the Nether Faction also looked on with curiosity. They didn''t want to involve themselves with this battle since there were multiple people involved in it. Seeing the number of people who were on the side of Grey, those from the Syphilis Faction paused, and the young lady looked at Grey with a playful smile. "It''s been a while." She said. "Do I know you?" Grey looked at her, seemingly thinking of when he saw her last. The young lady''s expression changed when she heard his question. She was someone who had exchanged blows with Grey, so seeing that Grey didn''t recall her, she couldn''t help but feel annoyed. "It can''t be helped, of all the people who had exchanged blows with you, you''re very insignificant." Klaus added on, making the young lady even more furious. "Who are you to speak in my presence?" She asked, annoyed. "I''m someone he knows, does he know you?" Klaus mocked. The young lady''s eyes turned red from anger. Klaus'' words were hurtful. He was purposely taunting her with these words. Seeing that she was about to explode, Grey added. "To be fair, I don''t really know you. Where did we meet?" The young lady snorted and decided not to speak to them any longer. If she continued talking, she might explode from anger. Klaus and Grey were two hateful people. She had decided to make sure she killed them before they left this place. They all decided to wait until after they were done exploring this place. They all wanted to get the benefits, fighting now would only leave them injured. Besides, it wasn''t like they had a death feud. Grey might want them dead, but those from the Syphilis Faction don''t think that they have a death feud. Grey was willing to use this to his favor. "We''ll kill them as they separate. She looks familiar, but I don''t recognize her." He whispered to the others. When Ellis and Gilbert heard that Grey was not thinking of letting them go, they couldn''t help but feel pity for the group from the Syphilis Faction. Apparently, Grey wanted to ensure that he killed all of them before leaving this place. Even after killing so many, he still wasn''t satisfied. Klaus and the others nodded. They were the ones who were more familiar with Grey, Keith might also know something since he had moved with him and saw how he went back for revenge even when he knew that the background of the person was strong. Since he could take revenge against someone from his Faction, he would definitely take revenge on these people. "Alright, but we should focus on getting whatever benefits we can from this place first." Ellis suggested. Grey nodded, he didn''t have any issues with that. All he wanted was to make sure that these people suffered for having the thought of even wanting to kill him. Almost everyone who was still alive was already present. Their number was staggering. Without any further delay, they started to troop into the building. This was a historic place and it definitely housed some treasures. The things people saw on the way here were precious, there''s a high chance that they would see even better things once they head in. Grey and his friends also went in as well. The moment they stepped into the building, it was like they were transported into another place. The world inside the building was shockingly large. 1111 Grey’s Cockiness The group were separated when they stepped in and only Void and Alice were in the same place as Grey, the others seemed to have been transported to another place. Grey, Alice and Void were not the only ones present here. There were still a large number of people. Afterall, the number of people who entered the place was by no means small. The group appeared in a hall, in this hall, there was a large throne that was in the middle, facing them. Beside the large throne, there were five smaller thrones. Other than the thrones, there were a large number of chairs as well. Grey guessed that this was most likely the place where the True God and the other people held a meeting. When they entered, they seemed to hear some inaudible voices, arguing. Everyone looked at the thrones curiously. "What do we do now?" Someone from the crowd asked. They didn''t see any way out of this hall, so it was clear that they had to search for the way out. There should be some good things here as well, so they wanted to also search for them. Some people suggested that they should check out the thrones. Alice and Void were about to move when Grey stopped them. "I don''t think it''s that easy. Leaving this place is definitely associated with those thrones, but we shouldn''t be careless." He said thoughtfully while staring at the thrones. He was not the only one who had this thought as well. Some people didn''t move, waiting for the others to investigate first. Only after they''ve confirmed that it wasn''t dangerous would they head out. The person who suggested this was in the Mid stages of the Elemental Venerable Plane, seeing that others wanted him to take the lead, he snorted and randomly pointed at a Peak Sage Plane Elementalist at the side. "You, go and test it out." The face of the Sage Plane Elementalist he pointed turned pale, he knew that it was most likely dangerous, so the fact that he was the one chosen meant that he would die and the others would learn from his mistake. To him, this was a painful pill to swallow. Unfortunately, there was nothing he could do. He gritted his teeth and walked toward the thrones. He didn''t dare to go for the biggest throne, so he went for one of the smaller ones. At least, he might be able to survive the attack from this one if there was any. When he got close to the throne, he sent a small wisp of wind element at it. He was a Wind Elementalist, so he went for the softest possible way to test it out. The attack hit it while the young man bolted away for his life. The result was not what they expected, rather, a gentle force came from the throne and wrapped itself around the young man who was trying to escape. Before anyone could react, the young man was nowhere to be seen. The expressions of everyone changed when they saw this. None of them knew if the young man was alive or dead. "I sensed spatial fluctuations." A Space Elementalist in the crowd said. Other Space Elementalists chimed in to agree to what this person said. Although they couldn''t be sure, they still felt the possibility of this person being killed was low, rather, he was most likely teleported to another place. This place was strange to begin with. Grey looked at the thrones, then at Alice. Void was clearly waiting for Grey''s go ahead so they could go as well. Others had started moving, interacting with the thrones and being teleported away. A larger disturbance came from the side, someone had touched the largest throne, and the commotion was quite bigger compared to the other ones. The person who touched it wasn''t teleported instantly, but only after a few seconds. This person was in the Mid stages of the Elemental Venerable Plane, the same person who suggested they investigated the thrones. When the others saw this, they all instinctively wanted to head over there. But something odd happened when the next person tried to interact with it. The moment the person''s elemental essence touched it, the person screamed and was almost killed. If not for the person acting fast, he would''ve died. The expression of Grey and the others changed drastically. ''These things are testing people before teleporting them away?'' This was the thought that came into his head the moment he saw this. Anyone with discerning eyes could tell that the teleportation of the Mid stage Elemental Venerable was slower than that of others when they used the smaller thrones. It most likely had something to do with the large throne. "Do you think it''s accessing people''s strength?" Alice asked. The first person who used that throne was in the Mid stages, but this person who was almost killed was still in the Early stages of the Elemental Venerable Plane. If that was the case, that meant only those in the Mid stages or with strength in the Mid stages of the Elemental Venerable Plane could use that throne. "That might not be the case, let''s watch." Grey replied. He didn''t feel like that was the case. Of course, he wasn''t sure as well. Maybe when the next person tries it, they will know the requirements of using this throne. Grey was not the only one who was analyzing the thrones. The others were also making their own deductions. Some time later another Mid stage Elemental Venerable stepped out, after interacting with the large throne, he let out a muffled groan and was sent flying. Seeing the figure crashing on the ground, the expression of the others changed once again. Looks like strength was not the only thing needed, or it was probably not what was needed to step into the space there. Luckily for this person, he wasn''t as injured as the Early stage Elemental Venerable who tried it out before him. Grey looked at the throne once again, before turning to Alice, "Do you think we should try it? The smaller ones are safer, but if there is anything to gain, the larger one should have more things." Alice didn''t hurry to make up her mind, the risk was quite large. If she didn''t meet the requirements, she would be injured. "What do you think?" She asked Grey. "I''ll naturally meet whatever requirements is set." Grey said matter-of-factly. He didn''t even have the least bit of reservations, he outright said it. Of everyone here, if they were to ask who the most talented was, he was probably the number one. Everyone in the Elemental Venerable Plane that was present here was at least two to three years older than him. Adding the fact that he started cultivating three years later than others, and was also in a continent with lesser elemental essence, he felt for a fact that none of the people present was more talented than he was. Of course, there is also the possibility that this thing was not testing talent. Either, he would find out when he got there. Alice was left speechless when she heard this, she was about to speak when Void added. "As long as he can go, so can I." Void was even more carefree compared to Grey. It should be known that Void was very lazy when it came to cultivating, if not for Grey forcing him at times, he would never cultivate for a long time. He even felt his talent was higher than Grey''s. Grey could increase his elemental grades to the highest level which would definitely increase his talent, Void on the other hand was born with the highest elemental grade, and it was for all his elements. There is a difference between the two, one was working towards it, while the other didn''t even need to do anything. It was clear as day who the superior one was. Alice felt a headache when she heard the duo brag. Well, she couldn''t really call it bragging. Grey and Void were special, so, yes, there''s a high chance that they could enter. There wasn''t even a bit of doubt in their eyes. "Since you''re confident, let''s go. Standing here is not good for us." She urged them. Some people had already given up on the large throne and were using the smaller ones. Not everyone wanted to risk their lives for something they didn''t know if they could pass. There were naturally people who also went to test it out, some passed while others failed. Of all the people testing the large throne, not even five percent had been successful. Around forty people had tried it, yet of the forty people, only three had gone in. It was a staggering number. Most of the people had managed to enter the smaller thrones, but surprisingly, some people were not able to do so. Grey, Alice, and Void finally walked in the direction of the large throne. They were the ones with the lowest realm that had walked in that direction. 1112 A Garden As the trio headed in that direction, a few people couldn¡¯t help but look at them. Some people snorted, looking at them with disdain; they felt like the trio overestimated themselves. Being looked at by so many people made Alice a bit uncomfortable, especially given how they stared at them as if they were looking at fools. ¡°You don¡¯t need to bother with them.¡± Grey whispered to her as they got close to the throne. They stood in front of it, and before they could even touch it, the throne reacted and actively sent out a gentle stream of force their way, it soon covered Grey and Void, and only after a short moment did it cover Alice as well. It was clear that Grey and Void triggered it. Alice, who was with them, was accessed by it before it surrounded her and took her with them. It wasn¡¯t that Alice didn¡¯t meet the requirements, but Grey and Void exceeded it by far, so it was naturally triggered. Being with the duo meant she would have to be accessed first before being sent through with them. The strange situation made the others look at Grey and his friends with mouths wide agape. There were a few people who knew Grey, so when they saw the reaction of the throne, they were beyond shocked. ¡°Could it be that it doesn¡¯t access strength but potential?¡± Someone from the crowd asked. Those rejected were older compared to those who entered. Age might not be the only factor the energy was accessing, but it should also be among the requirements. The others fell deep into thoughts, and a few in the Sage Plane suddenly had the urge also to try. Since Alice could enter, then they could as well. ¡°Don¡¯t be rash. Do you think you¡¯re like them?¡± An Elemental Venerable chided when he saw someone from his Faction trying to go and try. He was the leader of his group, so he had the final say. Everyone saw that, unlike the previous times, there was a different reaction when it got to Grey and his friends¡¯ turn. There must¡¯ve been something that triggered this. The Sage Plane Elementalist paused and looked at the throne, his eyes burning with passion. He felt he was on the same level as the trio who were accepted. Even a cat could enter. How could he be inferior to a dumb Magical Beast? This was the question in his head. Everyone saw the cat that entered with Grey; it was also accessed by the energy, if not, it would not have been able to enter. ¡­.. While those people were considering the requirements to enter with the large stone, Grey, Alice, and Void appeared in another space. They arrived at a large compound, and looking around; they couldn¡¯t find anyone. ¡°Another space, I wonder what it holds. There should be rewards, I think.¡± Grey said thoughtfully. None of them knew anything about this place. ¡°Do you think those people from the Heavenly Fate Faction got to this place?¡± He suddenly asked. There is a high chance that they did, but it was probably too dangerous, or the tasks were too complicated, so they needed more people to try and break through it. ¡°We¡¯ll only know when we explore this place.¡± Alice said.please visit p¦Á§á?¦Á-:)????1.co)m ¦Ñ¦Á§ád¦Á-n?¦Í?|-§ãom Grey shrugged, he was only curious. The trio soon started to explore the place. Other than a garden, they didn¡¯t see anything else. Void suddenly thought of something, and he brought out a small bunny. He had kept the bunny in his spatial storage under Grey¡¯s instructions, but seeing a garden, he recalled it. The bunny looked at them with an annoyed expression. It couldn¡¯t believe they kept it in such a place for so long. ¡°Don¡¯t look at me that way, it was his idea.¡± Void shifted the blame to Grey. He only followed Grey¡¯s instructions, so it had nothing to do with him. Grey smiled sheepishly before looking away as if he didn¡¯t do anything. The bunny couldn¡¯t complain and only stared at the garden in front of it. ¡°Let¡¯s explore this place together.¡± Grey suggested to the bunny. The bunny didn¡¯t say anything and just hopped around. A few seconds later, it said to Grey. ¡®Something is guarding this place. It won¡¯t come out now, but it will come out later.¡¯ Grey didn¡¯t sense anything. He relayed the message to Void and Alice, they sensed for a while but didn¡¯t find anything unusual. ¡°How did you know?¡± He asked the bunny. ¡®What do you take me for? I¡¯m a top-tier expert, and I¡¯m used to these things. You¡¯ll need to pass through a trail to break through this place. It should have something to do with this garden.¡¯ The bunny looked at Grey in disdain. Grey didn¡¯t mind being looked down on by the bunny, it could say whatever it wanted. He told Void to keep the bunny the last time because it didn¡¯t want to fight, so there was no need to keep it there. Grey tried to keep it in his storage ring but realized he couldn¡¯t. Void was surprisingly able to, so he left it to Void. After some thought, he walked forward. There was nothing he could do. The compound was covered with a film, and he knew there was no way he could break through it. He didn¡¯t even bother to try. When they got close to the garden, a projection appeared. Some sort of spiritual energy formed it. The projection was that of an old man who looked harmless and friendly. The old man looked at Grey and Void before looking at the bunny leader. Alice was the last person it looked at, a little taken aback. It seemed to have some sort of intelligence. ¡°To pass this stage, you must care for the plants.¡± With that, the projection vanished. 1113 Finding Balance Grey looked at where the shadow had disappeared from, a bit shocked. ¡°It has intelligence. Do you think we can ask the senior about this place?¡± He looked at the others. ¡°After passing this place, it might appear again.¡± Alice replied. Grey nodded before looking ahead, and his expression changed slightly. How were they going to take care of the plants? Each plant looked alright. ¡°You should know more about plants. What¡¯s wrong with them?¡± Grey turned to the bunny leader. ¡®They lack some things. You can sense it with your spiritual senses, are you that lazy?¡¯ The bunny leader transmitted its voice. p¦Á§á?¦Á-no¦Í?1.§ão§® Grey walked closer and tried to sense it, but he didn¡¯t feel anything strange and looked at the bunny leader with a frown. ¡®You¡¯re not even trying. Look at every particle of it, and you¡¯ll see what¡¯s wrong.¡¯ The bunny leader said with a sigh, a bit disappointed that Grey was this daft. Alice also heard this, and just when she was about to sense it, she took out her Seelie. These things were quite close to nature, so they should have a good chance of discerning what was wrong with the flowers sooner. When the Seelie came out, it quickly burrowed into one of the plants. It came out and merged with Alice. Her eyes shone with a bright light. Grey looked at her, he could tell that the Seelie must have found what was wrong. He also started to study the flower carefully. Even though Grey knew he could just wait and listen to Alice, he felt there might be something to gain from this, so he didn¡¯t mind and started studying it. One has to recall that he was a study freak, so he would forget about everything else when he started. The bunny leader didn¡¯t know anything about Grey, so it only felt like he was talented but very lazy. Void lay on the side. He didn¡¯t bother even to try to do anything. He hated doing all these things. Grey would never leave him behind, so as long as Grey could figure out how to pass this stage, he would definitely take him along. The bunny leader already knew how to pass the trial, so it lay next to Void. It was around the same size as Void at the moment. Void and the bunny leader had their eyes closed as they took a nap, while Grey and Alice had their eyes closed as they studied the flowers. Grey¡¯s expression changed from time to time as he examined the flower. He was apparently starting to see some things he had missed the last time. ¡°So it¡¯s like this¡­.¡± He muttered before moving to the next flower. The garden wasn¡¯t big, around twenty or thirty square meters. There were flowers planted all over, but not too much as well. Grey didn¡¯t rush to study the others, after seeing what was wrong with the first flower, he tried to see if he could settle the issue. This flower had some more dominant cells, and it affected the overall growth of the flower. Presently, if people looked at it, they would not see anything wrong with it, but as time passed, the flowers would develop some issues and die out very quickly. These flowers were different from normal flowers since they were made entirely of energy, they had to be balanced, if not, they would explode from the unbalanced energy.please visit p¦Á§á?¦Á-:)????1.co)m Grey realized that this flower had eight types of energy, and they all correlated with his eight elements. He opened his eyes and looked at the flower once again. ¡°Alice.¡± He called out softly. Alice turned to look at him, slowly opening her eyes. ¡°How many elements appeared in the flower you¡¯re checking?¡± He asked straightforwardly. ¡°Three.¡± Alice replied. She had two elements, adding the ice ability of the Seelie made it three. Grey nodded before closing his eyes once again. He couldn¡¯t be distracted. After confirming what he wanted, he focused his time on balancing the energy in the plant. The more elements one has, the harder this task is. He soon released some essence inside the flower. Streams of energy from all his elements entered the flower, and he started to balance the cells with the lesser energy of each element with the other elements. His expression soon changed, and he opened his eyes and ran away. Boom! A loud explosion rang out, sending Grey, who was running away, flying. ¡°F*ck!¡± He cursed in annoyance. He could not balance the energy in time, and it exploded on his face. If not for the fact that he was fast, the attack might have injured him. This thing was not as easy as he thought it would be. Balancing the energies required more than he thought. Alice opened her eyes to stare at Grey¡¯s sorry state, and her expression was also more serious after this. Since this happened, it meant that if she were careless, she would face the same fate as Grey. Void opened his eyes, and seeing Grey, he closed his eyes again. The bunny leader looked at Grey and smirked. It wanted to laugh at Grey. It could do this task with its eyes closed, yet Grey failed. Grey couldn¡¯t be bothered with others. His expression was not the best. Although not injured, he still felt annoyed that he was sent flying. He had to make sure that he was more careful during his next try, if not, he would suffer again. He calmed his mind and started balancing the energy once again. The energy distribution was different with each element, the light element had the lowest while the others had a higher ratio. 1114 Finding Balance II ¡®Could it be related to my elemental grades?¡¯ Grey thought when he looked at the distribution of essence. His light element was the lowest of all his elements, while his fire was the highest. It had been a while since he checked his elemental grades since he had been going from one place to another. He hadn¡¯t even had the time to cultivate properly, other than the short time in the Pyrmond Faction before they came here, he wouldn¡¯t have cultivated for a long time. ¦Ñ¦Á§ád¦Á-n?¦Í?|-§ãom When he appeared on the mountain, he could not help but look at the place, lost in thoughts. His cultivation journey started from this place. It had been around seven to eight years since he started cultivating, and it had been a thrilling journey so far. There had been good and bad times, and he had nearly lost his life on multiple occasions, but he always managed to survive each difficult situation and come out stronger than he previously was. He sighed and then walked to the temple, looking at the device used in checking his elemental grade, he was quite curious about how it appeared here. Thinking about it was not going to give him anything, so he gave up and placed his hand on the device. After the usual routine, he looked as the light lit up. As usual, his fire element was the highest, being the only one of his elements that were in the emerald grade, after the fire element, he surprisingly had three elements in the yellow grade, namely; his earth, water, and lightning elements were all a grade below the fire element. These four were the highest, followed by the wind, darkness, and space element which were all in the cyan grade, only the light element was still in the blue grade. Seeing the light element still in the blue grade, he could not help but feel a bit disappointed. His other elements were all miles away from it. Nevertheless, his fire element was the one he felt more helpless towards because it had been the emerald grade for a while now, but it hadn¡¯t shown any signs of upgrading. One has to know that he was just one grade behind the legendary black and white elemental grade. Once this element advances, he feels he would gain something from it. Unlike Void, who was born with such a high elemental grade, he had to work hard to increase his own. Luck has been on his side, and he had obtained some treasures that helped him advance faster than usual in his fire elemental grade, but his hard work could not be undermined. Grey didn¡¯t stay in the Chaos Space any longer. Now that he got a general idea of his elemental grades, he would work with that while distributing the essence in the flower. It would also be helpful to him a well. This could help strengthen his chaos orb but it couldn¡¯t unleash its full potential since the energy distribution was not balanced. ¡­. In the outside world, Grey opened his eyes and stared at the flowers, he muttered while looking at them, ¡°Maybe this stage wants to see the control an Elementalist had over their elements.¡± Grey didn¡¯t rush, he created an essence orb in his palm and started to distribute the energy, it was a painstaking task given the large difference between the elemental grades of his elements, but he knew if he could get it, it would be beneficial to him. The bunny leader looked at Grey, stunned by what he was doing. It was mainly staring at the essence orb in Grey¡¯s hand. It could tell that it was not ordinary. Grey didn¡¯t trust the bunny leader, so he made the essences obscure. This way, no matter how the bunny leader probed, it would not be able to see through it. He seemed to sense the bunny leader¡¯s gaze and smiled at it. The bunny leader turned away, not bothering him any longer.please visit p¦Á§á?¦Á-:)????1.co)m The place turned quiet as everyone was busy with something. Alice and Grey focused on cultivating while Void and the bunny leader slept. ¡­.. Three hours later. Grey opened his eyes with a sigh, he was mentally exhausted! This was the first time he was actively trying to balance his power, and contrary to his expectation, it was difficult. Initially, he thought after getting the idea of his elemental grades, he would know in what ratios he would distribute his energy. However, this was easier said than done. In the past three hours, he had tried it over a thousand times, and the essence always seemed to lose stability and explode in his face. If not for the fact that he was using a small prototype, he would¡¯ve been injured if he had tried using a larger orb. Grey was not the only one who was having difficulties, Alice was also having some issues, but her situation was not as bad as Grey¡¯s. The duo exchanged views, they could see the tiredness in each others¡¯ eyes. ¡°If we can master this, our strength will increase. But is it that easy?¡± Alice wore a helpless expression. After some silence, Grey said, ¡°I feel I should be able to pass the trial with what I¡¯ve gained so far.¡± ¡°Want to try it out?¡± Alice asked. Grey shook his head, ¡°I wonder if we¡¯ll only have to deal with one or more at the same time?¡± The old man told them to care for the flowers, it was unknown if they had to care for just one or all the flowers in the area. Without even checking, Grey knew for a fact that each flower had a different distribution. If they had to take care of them, they had to think of a way to learn how to balance their strength in different scenarios. It was both a good and a bad thing. They would gain strong control over their power if they could learn how to distribute their strength in different volumes. Achieving this was the difficult and time-consuming part. 1115 Freakish Magical Beasts Chapter 1115 Freakish Magical Beasts Grey knew he would only see the answer to the question when he tried it out. He had studied the first flower and had gotten a rough grasp of stabilizing the energy for some time. As long as he wanted, he could solve the problem for now. They wouldn''t have to stay here long to stabilize it. According to the old man, all they needed to do was take care of the flowers. Grey calmed his mind and started to work on the flower, he infused more of the light element, not daring to add anything to the fire element. He didn''t necessarily need to infuse essence for each element since some had more, all he needed was to balance it with the others. The flower shook for a second but was quickly able to keep the essence in the flower steady, making it almost balanced. He couldn''t achieve a perfect balance for now, but there was no issue with getting something close to it. After some seconds, the flower lit up. Grey sensed strange energy from it and grabbed it without even thinking. The energy burrowed into his body, and he felt a great sensation, it was like all his power was being merged. He raised his brow and looked at the flowers strangely, "They can help stabilize the power in your body." Alice studied Grey''s condition and nodded, this energy was a strange yet beneficial to them. With it, they can get better control over their strength. When the sensation died down, Grey created an orb made from essence, he wanted to see the difference now that he had this energy. His eyes opened wide, and he laughed delightfully, "It can help with this. Wouldn''t this make the level simple?" Alice tried as well after Grey''s successful attempt. She had a better grasp of it than Grey, so her control was by no means lower than his, instead, it was higher. When Alice sent a stream of energy inside the flower, there was no fluctuation, and before long, the same scene that appeared when Grey stabilized the first flower happened. Alice also merged with the energy, this was a good treasure, so she would naturally not want to lose the opportunity. Alice was ecstatic when she absorbed the energy. "Void, stop sleeping and learn this, it will help you stabilize your power." Grey called out to Void. Void opened his eyes and looked at Grey oddly, "My power is balanced." After saying that, an orb appeared in front of him. Grey''s mouth twitched when he saw this. At first, he thought Void was only saying it to escape the stress of learning this, but he didn''t speak any further after seeing the orb Void conjured. Void''s energy was more balanced compared to theirs. Even Alice was lacking when it came to Void''s control. ''What the hell is this cat?'' He complained. How could Void''s control be so high? It was shocking. Void rarely cultivated and only slept. Since when has sleeping been able to make people so strong? Void couldn''t be bothered with them, he closed his eyes and continued sleeping. The bunny leader, sensing Grey''s gaze, also created a ball in front of him and tossed it at Grey. Grey caught it, and his expression turned sour. These two Magical Beasts were far superior to them. From the looks of it, they should have at least ninety-eight or ninety-nine percent control over their strength. Grey might be powerful, but he didn''t dare to say he had more than seventy-five percent control over his strength. He didn''t bother with the duo anymore and continued accessing the next flower. Just as he was about to sense it, the old man''s projection appeared again. "Little friend, since you''ve balanced the flower, you have passed this stage." The old man said with a soft smile. "Oh, are we not allowed to continue?" Grey asked suspiciously. "You can, but since you''ve already balanced the energy in one flower, you can leave this place and go to the next one." The old man explained. "Will these things disappear forever if we balance all of them?" Grey asked another question. The old man smiled, he could tell that Grey was attracted to the energy he absorbed, so he probably wanted to absorb more. "They will reappear once another person enters this stage." The old man replied with a chuckle. "Oh, then I would like to continue, senior." Grey bowed respectfully. "Alright. But be warned, it will only continue to get harder with each flower you balance." The old man said and his projection disappeared. As the projection disappeared, a spatial tunnel appeared on the side. Apparently, the old man didn''t bother with Void and the bunny leader, this meant that they could leave without doing anything. Grey looked at the flowers and turned to Alice, "Would you like to try?" Alice thought for a while before nodding. The energy was a treasure, she wanted to absorb more of it if possible. Grey nodded and went to the side. He sat down cross-legged and entered a cultivation state. Alice knew he was probably preparing for something, so she went ahead with her business. ¡­. Two hours later, Alice gave up with a helpless expression. She only managed to balance four more flowers. The difficulty was more than ten times harder than when she started. "I can''t continue." Grey opened his eyes when he heard this. "Alright, it''s time for me to try." He muttered and walked over to the garden. He didn''t start to balance them instantly. First of all, he wanted to see how many flowers were left, and if could do more than Alice. He started to sense them, and after some time, he knew that he would be able to balance at most five more. ''If I follow the conventional path, then I won''t be able to go far.'' He thought to himself. Just like Alice, he sensed that the difficulty was stronger than the first time he balanced it. 1116 Klaus’ Breakthrough Chapter 1116 Klaus¡¯ Breakthrough Grey calmed his mind, and his spiritual senses spread out, covering at least fifteen flowers. When Alice saw what he was doing, her eyes opened wide. She couldn''t believe what she was seeing. Grey wanted to stabilize fifteen flowers at the same time. This was a shocking thing. She frowned and said, "Grey, don''t be greedy. This is dangerous." Most of the time, she didn''t bother with anything Grey was doing, but after recalling what happened the first time Grey tried to stabilize the first flower, she couldn''t help but feel it was too dangerous. If one flower could send Grey flying, then fifteen would be able to do serious damage to him. His strong body would not be able to help him in such a situation. Grey didn''t respond to her, he had already started to infuse the flowers with his essence. "Void, get ready to help him if needed." Alice''s face was serious. Grey had already started, so she couldn''t stop him. The only thing she could do now was to make sure they were prepared for what would happen next. If Grey lost control, then the energy would explode. The power might be at the Peak of the Elemental Venerable Plane, given the number of flowers. Alice was not the only one who frowned at what Grey was attempting, in the void, even the projection of the old man was also frowning. He shook his head with a sigh, "Youths are too impatient." With Grey''s talent, he would be able to stabilize five more, he might even be able to add another one to make it six. But Grey was overshadowed by greed, and he directly tried to balance fifteen. If this wasn''t greed and overestimating oneself, the old man didn''t know what was. Void and the bunny leader looked at Grey. The bunny leader was a little taken aback, it didn''t think that Grey was the greedy type. It had been traveling with them for some time, so it at least knew some of his characters. Sweat gathered on Grey''s face, dripping to the ground. He was under immense pressure, any slight mistake and the energy would lose control. As long as he loses control of one of them, just like a ripple effect, the others will lose control as well and explode in his face. He didn''t dare to be careless. Contrary to what the others thought, he didn''t feel like he was overestimating himself. He sensed them properly, and carefully picked these fifteen. Of all of them, only one of them did not need him to infuse the fire element. This would help him maximize his strength. His control over his fire element was the highest, so since he had to place it on more flowers, it would be easier for him to control. The others held their breaths as they watched Grey balance the energy in fifteen flowers simultaneously. Time went by slowly as everyone''s hearts were at their throats. The time needed for this one was higher than the previous ones, which was expected, but it was not as long as the time Alice needed to stabilize five. ¡­. Grey was slowly infusing them, making sure he didn''t rush any of them. If one of the flowers were to be stabilized, then Grey''s efforts would be wasted since the difficulty would increase, putting him in danger. After twenty minutes, Grey''s eyes shone with brilliance and with a grunt, he managed to stabilize all fifteen flowers at the same time. The flowers gave off a blinding light. Given the high number that was cleared at the same time, the energy that came out was stronger, and there seemed to be some sort of transformation. In the void. The old man looked at Grey with a shocked expression. He had sensed Grey''s spiritual sense and knew it was not even on the same level as Void and the bunny leader, yet he managed to succeed. Although the old man was only a projection, he still had some sort of intelligence. "Merging with more would make his strength more balanced. Eight different energies." He muttered to himself before shutting his eyes. He could sense the energies in a single flower, and when Grey tried to merge all fifteen together, he sensed that there were actually eight energies in one of the flowers. This made him flabbergasted. The difficulty of achieving the feat Grey just achieved with two elements was very low, much less with eight elements. ''A monster has appeared.'' This was the only thing in the head of the projection. ¡­. Grey had no idea that achieving this had given away the fact that he had eight elements away, luckily, the old man was just a projection and naturally had no enmity with him. Grey was currently smiling from ear to ear as he looked at the others who had their mouths agape, "Shocked?" Seeing his smug face, Alice felt annoyed and sent a lightning bolt at Grey. Grey dodged it with a laugh. He was ecstatic. Merging with these energies would be very beneficial for him, given the high number of elements he had. This was the reason he made sure he absorbed a high number of it. He soon started to feel a difference, even without checking, he could tell that there was an increase in his light element. Presently, his body was actively absorbing light elemental particles at a crazy speed. He closed his eyes to stabilize his mind before they set off. ¡­. While Grey and Alice are in the garden, Klaus is surprisingly in an unfortunate situation. When he stepped into the building, he was transported to another place. None of his friends were with him. This was not what he found annoying, rather, Lara was with him. Just like Grey and Alice, they also saw five thrones. Each throne giving off spatial fluctuations. Lara suggested they go for the safer, smaller thrones, but Klaus naturally refused. He dashed to where the large throne was located and touched it. Just when he thought he was about to escape from her, she grabbed him and teleported with him. He felt the throne would not accept her, but to his surprise, she met the requirements. They appeared in a volcano. Being Water Elementalists, they favored being in the water or even the ground. Although water could suppress fire, in such a place, a Fire Elementalist would have the advantage. In the volcano, they were currently faced with flying Magical Beasts that started attacking them the moment they appeared. "Damn it! You''ve spoiled my luck!" Klaus cursed as he was sent flying by an attack. He was still at the Peak of the Sage Plane. What attacked him was already in the Elemental Venerable Plane. Lara didn''t say anything but frowned as she fought off the Magical Beast that attacked her. She was almost the same height as Klaus, being slightly shorter. Her jade-like skin glowed even in the volcano. Klaus was cursing as he ran around. "Stop moving. How will I fight them if you''re not staying in one place?" She complained. "F*ck you! If not for you, I wouldn''t have been in this mess." Klaus knew how great his luck was. There was no way he would''ve been in such a situation if he had been teleported alone. But Lara just had to follow him. Lara felt a headache as she looked at him. She had always known Klaus had a bad mouth, so she didn''t like speaking with him. ''If not for the mistress, I would''ve killed him myself.'' She looked at him coldly. Klaus sensed her cold gaze and couldn''t help but shiver. He wasn''t afraid of her, but he knew he was no match for her. "Block them, I''m going to break through." He said and sat down, leaving everything to her. He didn''t have a choice, he had to break through now. If not, Lara will not be able to protect him forever. Lara looked at him, her eyes showing a different emotion. She snorted but still blocked the Magical Beasts that were trying to go close to him. She even created an ice dome around him. Klaus was sitting cross-legged and sensed the ice dome. He reinforced it with his element as well. Lara might be in the Mid stages, but he was still more confident in his ability to protect himself. Now that he was so close to the Elemental Venerable Plane, he knew that his defensive ability would not be any weaker than someone close to the peak of the Early stages in the Elemental Venerable Plane. Lara saw what he did, but didn''t bother with him. She focused on fighting the Magical Beasts that doesn''t seem to have an end. Boom! Bam! She attacked them continuously. Klaus'' aura started to climb, since they were in a secret space, it was as if he was hidden from the energy outside, so the commotion of his breakthrough was limited. Even Lara couldn''t sense it. 1117 Dungeon? "Broken through just like that?" Klaus was a little doubtful as he checked himself out. He didn''t stand up from where he was seated due to how simple it felt. Initially, when breaking through to the Elemental Venerable, there was supposed to be some sort of commotion. Recalling how serious it was when he wanted to break through the last time, he couldn''t help but shake his head. ''Forget it. I''ll just take it that I broke through while in seclusion.'' He consoled himself. He was still in his thoughts when he heard Lara''s voice, "Aren''t you done yet?" She couldn''t sense his aura and didn''t know if he had broken through or not. Like Klaus, she also expected to see some sort of disturbance. She had broken through to the Elemental Venerable Plane and had also seen others break through. It was very normal for her not to think that Klaus hadn''t broken through. Klaus stood up, and with a wave of his hand, he destroyed the dome. When Lara sensed his aura, she was slightly taken aback, "Elemental Venerable?" "What do you think?" Klaus retorted while sending out an ice shard that struck down the Magical Beast coming his way. The Magical Beast was already in the Early stage of the Seventh Rank. Since Klaus'' attack could bring it down, it meant that his attack power was already in the Elemental Venerable Plane. Previously, only his defense was in the Elemental Venerable Plane, but now, his attack had also reached this stage. Lara was able to guess why there was no disturbance, "Good, protect yourself." Klaus didn''t say anything else, it''s not like he wanted her protection anyway. After his breakthrough, the duo started to ascend the volcano. They needed to go out of the volcano. Lara realized the longer they stayed in the volcano, the more suppressed the water element was. They would stay for some time before their attacks would become almost useless against these Magical Beasts. ¡­.. Grey had successfully passed the stage he appeared in. Klaus was still facing the challenge of climbing out of the volcano. Reynolds and the others were also going through different challenges at the same time. With the exception of Keith, the others successfully used the large throne to enter the secret space and were all facing different opportunities and dangers. ¡­. Grey, Alice, Void, and the bunny leader stepped through the passage and appeared in another location. This time, they saw a large hall in front of them. At the front of the hall, a Bull was standing guard. Seeing the Bull, Grey told Klaus and the bunny leader to check it out. Hearing the arrangement, the bunny leader showed a displeased look on his face. "It''s a Magical Beast. Wouldn''t be easier for you two to check it out first. You just have to retreat if it''s dangerous." Grey explained. The bunny leader wanted to say something, but it stopped itself and followed behind Void. They soon got close to the Bull, but there was no reaction from the Bull whatsoever. It was like it didn''t see the duo. Grey and Void exchanged glances, and with a nod of the head, Void took another step. The moment he stepped on the stairs leading to the hall, the motionless Bull moved. It sprang to life and blocked the path of Void and the bunny leader. The Bull didn''t do anything else, only blocking their paths. With the size of the Bull, as long as it didn''t move, there was no way for anyone to enter the building. Void turned to Grey again, seeking approval if he should attack the Bull. Grey nodded. The next moment, Void''s aura changed, and a sharp claw made of the darkness element appeared and attacked the Bull. The Bull''s eyes shone before it rammed into it. The claw was destroyed instantly. Void''s expression changed and he hastily retreated. The bunny leader tried to use the opportunity to sneak into the building, but the Bull stomped on the ground aggressively with its hindlegs, almost stamping the bunny leader. The threat of death made the bunny leader rush back to Grey''s side, even faster than Void. It shook his head at Grey, telling him they were not as strong as the Bull. Grey studied the Bull for a while before walking forward. The Bull''s dull eyes came to life, and it charged at Grey. "Go in, I''ll block it." By the time Grey''s voice was heard, he was already entangled with the Bull. In front of the Bull''s large figure, Grey looked like an infant, but he was very fast. The Bull was unable to hit him due to his speed. Void joined him as the duo teamed up to harass the Bull. Alice and the bunny leader were free, and they walked toward the door leading to the hall. The Bull, sensing this, rushed at them. Grey and Void blocked its path. Grey even used the chaos orb. The strength of the orb was frightening after the last round. Now that Grey knew how to balance his strength to minimize the effort and maximize the result, it was pretty easy to create a chaos orb. They were alone, so Grey had no reservations when using his elements. He created the chaos orb with all eight elements. Even if the bunny leader were to see this, it wouldn''t be able to speak about it since it''s always with Grey. Of course, Grey didn''t make it too obvious. He made the elements known by most people dominant to hide the aura of the other ones. After grasping how to properly control his elements, he had no issues with this. The Bull didn''t take this attack on, instead, it opened its mouth and shot out a stream of water. The water collided with the orb and exploded. The pace of the explosion forced Grey and Void back, the Bull however, didn''t move from its spot. Alice and the bunny leader entered the building at the same time as the explosion. When the explosion died down, Grey looked around and saw the Bull at its original position when they first entered this place. "So its job is to stop people from going in?" Grey looked at the Bull. He wasn''t sure of this, but he felt it would be better if Alice was able to find something inside while he was entangled with the Bull. At first, he thought he would have to kill the Bull to pass through this stage. However, that doesn''t seem to be the case. The second Alice entered the building, the Bull stopped fighting and went back to where it was lying. Grey walked to the building and stepped in. Alice turned to look at him, she also sensed that the battle had stopped. The inside of the building was the normal size which made Grey heave a sigh of relief. Since Grey entered this secret realm, almost all the buildings he had entered were the same, looking small on the outside while being large on the inside. They didn''t rush to do anything as they stood in the same spot, waiting for instruction like in the first round. Five minutes breezed by, and they didn''t see anyone. "Maybe that place is different." Alice said. "I guess so." Grey agreed with her words and they decided to start exploring the place. The hall was mostly empty, but on the sides, there were rows of doors. He walked closer to one and tried to open it. No matter how he tried, he was unable to open it. He even went as far as using elemental attacks, but it was futile. After he failed to open the first one, he went to the next one. In this place, other than doors, there was nothing else. So their only choice was to try to open the doors. Alice, Void, and even the bunny leader all started to try to open the doors on the side. A few minutes later, there was finally a reaction. It was from one of the doors Void tried to open. It shook for some time before making a loud clicking sound. "It opened." Alice and Grey rushed to the door. The bunny leader also stopped what it was doing and rushed there as well. It was curious what was inside these doors. The door opened slowly. The group looked at it with anticipation, but their expressions soon changed when they saw what was inside. The door opened, and a room appeared in front of them, chains were on the walls, and a skeleton could be seen chained to the ground. "A dungeon?" Grey blurted out. That was what this thing looked like. But a normal dungeon looked cruder. This place was a beautiful large hall, if this was its purpose, Grey felt a bit disappointed. "Probably." Alice replied as she stepped into the room. Other than the skeleton chained to the ground, there were some things carved on the wall close to it. 1118 Was That There? Chapter 1118 Was That There? Grey and Alice walked over to read what was written on the wall, but it was in a language they did not know. "Do you know this?" Grey asked the others that were there. The bunny was mysterious and should''ve been in this place before them, so Grey felt it was best to ask it since there was a probability that it would know. ''How would I know?'' The bunny leader looked at him oddly. Grey could only give up, however, he didn''t forget to write it down. This was probably valuable information. He didn''t know too much about ancient times, so it wouldn''t be bad if he could decipher this. They continued trying to open the other doors. Three more opened but just like the first one, other than chains and skeletons, there was nothing else. Grey was not too picky, he picked up all the chains, while being looked down on by the bunny leader. He couldn''t care about how the bunny leader looked at him. What was important was that he got something from this place. When he touched the chains, he noticed that they seemed to be able to restrain his ability to access his elements. If not for the fact he only held them for a short time, he was certain that he would''ve lost his ability to use his essence for some time. ''Good stuff!'' This was all he exclaimed as he picked them up. With this, if he could use it to chain down anyone that was stronger than himself, he would be able to beat them up. Of course, that was all on the premise that they didn''t break free from it on time. Anyone stronger than him would not have any difficulty with breaking free from the chain if Grey tried to use it to pin them down. He might have a stronger physique, but those people had powerful elemental abilities, so all they needed to do was to make sure that they were not caught by the chain. After taking all the chains he could take, he also tried to see if there was anything special about the skeletons. At this point, even Alice started to look at him strangely. "Don''t look at me like that, this thing is a treasure. No one knows how long they had died, but the bones are still intact. This shows that they had a powerful physique as well." Grey explained. Alice didn''t say anything, she didn''t know what to say. All she could do was to let him do as he pleases. Grey had the thought of taking one of the bones for further study, but then he decided against it. Although he was curious about it, it was disrespectful to start studying the bone of a dead expert. They soon walked out of the building. The Bull was lying in the same spot, not looking at them. "How do we leave?" Grey looked around. He had gotten some things here, and since there was nothing else, he didn''t want to waste his time any longer. Alice shook her head. They entered this place the same time, so there was no way she would know how to leave. "Why don''t we kill the Bull?" Void suggested. The Bull looked real, and he couldn''t help but wonder what it would taste like. This Bull was definitely raised in this place, so its strength was above average. Its meat would also be very delicate as well. There was nothing else, so the group went over to kill the Bull. Alice didn''t join them since she was still in the Sage Plane. A single attack from the Bull might be able to kill her, so she decided to sit this one out. While watching them, she studied the place, frowning slightly. She was a hundred percent certain that killing the Bull would not send them to the next stage. There was no way the chains were what could be taken out of this stage. From the first stage, it was easy to see that there would be things they would have to do for them to advance to the next stage. ''What could this stage task be?'' She fell deep in thought. While she was thinking of how to leave the place, Grey and Void had started their attack on the Bull. The bunny leader also joined in on the fun, attacking the Bull''s legs as it cursed at it. Apparently, it was still feeling vexed from the time the Bull almost stamped it. They fought the Bull for over ten minutes before they managed to successfully take it down. When it died, contrary to what the others expected, it vanished. Turned into energy and entered the body of Grey, Void, the bunny leader, and Alice who was sitting on the side. Alice raised her head to look in their direction. ''I was wrong, can killing this Bull take us to the next stage?'' She thought internally. However, after the Bull died, nothing happened. Other than the energy that entered their bodies, there was no change. "Damn it! Who told them we wanted energy? Give us back our meat!" Void cursed. The energy that entered their bodies only helped in replenishing their used up strength. This was not what they wanted. It was a huge loss in their book. Grey was also thinking at this point. They had killed the Bull, yes, they expended a lot of energy. But it wouldn''t really matter to them. It wasn''t like¡­ His expression changed and he tried to absorb elemental essence from the surrounding. He soon realized that he was unable to. ''I was able to absorb light essence in the last stage.'' He thought to himself with a frown. Alice was looking at his face with an odd expression, "Did you notice it as well?" Grey nodded. There was no essence in this place, so as long as they fought against the Bull, if they didn''t defeat it on time. Then they would be the ones in trouble. "What would''ve happened if we ran out of energy?" Grey couldn''t help but ask. They had been fighting for some time and their essence was drained. "Send out an attack." Alice said. Grey didn''t think too much and did as told, his eyes showed a strange look. "The consumption here is stronger than other places." He said. The casual attack he used just now had the same consumption as when he uses a large scale attack. It was a shocking discovery. "Do you think there is a problem with this place?" Alice asked. Grey nodded. Of course there was a problem with this place. How could Alice even ask such a question? The consumption of essence was higher, and the other things were not as it usually was. If this place didn''t have a problem, what did? They once again started to go through the place slowly. There would be something that was different here that would help them pass through this place. Void and the bunny leader also joined in on the search. When they came here, the Bull and the large hall in front of them was the only thing that caught their eye. So even when they didn''t get anything from the hall, they diverted their attention to the Bull. Now that the Bull was nowhere to be seen, they focused on the hall again. This time, they didn''t only look inside, but outside the hall as well. "Were there any stairs in the hall?" Grey suddenly asked. Alice shook her head. Grey pointed at the top of the building, there was a window there connected to the hall. They took flight and appeared in front of the window. There was a passageway there. "How come I didn''t notice this window the first time?" Grey was suspicious. Even though he didn''t survey the place well, he still felt that such a large window would not have been able to escape from his view. "Neither did I. I think we felt it was part of the building and naturally didn''t care about it." Alice deduced. Grey nodded and brought out a smaller chain that he started to study. Of course, he didn''t hold it. Placing it some distance away from him, he used an elemental weapon to hold it as he studied it. He had obtained a lot of elemental weapons during his journeys. "The metal is forged with something. This is what''s giving it the ability to restrain elemental essence. I wonder what it could be." He muttered as he continued observing the chain. They were currently walking in the passageway. So he didn''t feel too stressed. Alice would notify him of anything that was happening. Before long, they got to the end of the passageway. A large field appeared before them. Grey kept the chain and studied his new environment. He didn''t want a repeat of what happened the last time. The field didn''t have much, just a way down a cave. As they walked, Grey recalled that this place was just like most on the places he had been to in this secret realm. Small on the outside, large on the inside. 1119 Ancient Cultivation Path? Chapter 1119 Ancient Cultivation Path? At the front of the cave, they saw the projection of the old man once again. Grey and Alice heaved a sigh of relief since they would get instructions on what to get from this stage. When the old man saw them, his eyes showed confusion. "Did you fight the Bull?" He asked when they got close to him. Grey nodded. "Strange." The old man muttered. Grey and Alice were still full of energy, even though they had fought with the Bull, which shouldn''t be. The Bull is programmed to be as strong as whoever it''s fighting. It would not completely dominate the person, but it would be able to fight them till they were exhausted. Only then would this passage open up, and they would be transported here. The old man didn''t stay on the topic too long. Since these people passed, then he would let them into the next stage. "Go through the passage, it will release its pressure on you. The longer you can endure, the better the rewards." The old man said and disappeared. This stage would''ve been better if they were tired since the pressure would push them to the limit. But Grey''s group was fine, which was out of the expectation of the old man. Grey and Alice exchanged glances before heading into the cave. All they saw was a long passage stretching as far as the eye could see. "I wonder what''s releasing the pressure." Grey looked at the passage with curiosity. After some time, he took a step into the passage, and his body shook, but he regained himself almost instantly, and the pressure he suddenly felt vanished as if it had never appeared. On the other hand, Alice paused for some time to adjust to the pressure. Void and the bunny leader were the same, only, they had it easier than Alice. They were Magical Beasts, so they had an excellent tolerance for these things. Grey was the only one who didn''t feel anything. He continued forward in a carefree manner, not bothering with this stage. Seeing how Grey was walking without a trace of pressure, Alice followed behind him. The pressure at the start isn''t something that could stop her from advancing. Hundred meters, two hundred meters, three hundred meters. The further they go, the stronger the pressure. It started to affect Alice as her breathing started to get heavy. She looked at Grey''s expression and was once again dumbfounded by this friend of hers. Grey didn''t even break a sweat, it was almost like he was taking a stroll. "Aren''t you feeling the pressure too?" She couldn''t help but ask. "Pressure? Not really. I feel a tingling sensation on my skin if that counts." Grey replied. Alice''s face turned dark when she heard this. Sometimes, she just wished to beat the hell out of Grey. "Are you sure you''re not feeling any pressure?" She asked again, to be sure. Grey liked to joke with his friends, so she had to confirm whether he was joking. "I''m serious. I don''t feel any pressure at all." Grey replied seriously. Alice looked at him with an odd expression. The bunny leader was shaken when it saw and heard all this. It couldn''t believe it. It was feeling the pressure, and even though he had no problems advancing for now, it was unknown if it could reach the passage''s end. Void didn''t show too much surprise, he had always known Grey was a freak. Whenever he sees any new freakish thing done by Grey, he shows no shock. "Can you continue?" Grey asked. Alice nodded with a grit of her teeth. Grey didn''t speak any further and continued walking. Alice followed behind him, a little slower now. Once she got to a certain stage, she knew it would be dangerous. Five hundred meters. "I can''t go any further." Alice supported her body with the walls of the cave. At this stage, Grey also started to feel it on his body. The pressure was getting stronger, and his body felt like a heavy boulder was pressing it. ''It can only suppress things related to my cultivation realm.'' He thought to himself. When he first stepped foot on the passageway, he felt a foreign force trying to enter his body and mess up his essence. His essence, however, was no longer in his body. It was kept in the Chaos Space. Not just that, but the orb in his body reacted and destroyed the energy that entered his body. This was the reason why he had been carefree. The case was different since it had started to pressure his physical body. ''Could this be a trial to train the body? I wonder if ancient Elementalists cultivate their bodies.'' Grey thought to himself as he studied the pressure on his body. Alice stopped at the five hundred meters mark. She was barely holding on, and she couldn''t take it anymore with her physical body being pressured too. "I''ll be going ahead then." Grey said before he continued going further. Alice sat down cross-legged and started to cultivate. She could tell that this place was also perfect for her essence and body. The result was evident in her essence since she had walked a good distance on it. Void and the bunny leader followed Grey, they could still go on, so there was no need to stay behind. Besides, it was quite beneficial for them. Especially this part that worked on the body. Magical Beasts had strong bodies, to begin with. A man and two small Magical Beasts standing on each side of his shoulder began heading further into the cave. ¡­. In the depth of the cave. A pavilion could be seen, and in the middle of it was an armor floating on its own. The armor sparkled with brilliance. Even after staying in this place for so long, its radiance couldn''t be hidden. At the side of the pavilion, a figure could be seen, it was unknown if the figure was alive or dead. 1120 What Has The World Turned Into? Chapter 1120 What Has The World Turned Into? On the passageway. Grey was still walking further into the cave. It was starting to get harder for him to continue. The bunny leader was panting heavily, finding it hard to keep its body upright. From the start, it was standing on its hind legs, but now, it was on all four as it was finding it hard. Grey thought the pressure on him increased because he was carrying the bunny leader and Void, but when he dropped them, he found out that it was the same. After Void''s plea, he carried him. The bunny leader couldn''t help but beg as well. Grey''s current figure from a distance was like one of someone with three heads, just that the other two are way smaller than the middle one, and they had different shapes. He couldn''t be bothered with all these. At the moment, he had walked over a thousand meters. His speed was by no means slow, but with every two hundred meters crossed, the pressure would almost double. He couldn''t see Alice anymore, unsure if there was something impeding it. Normally, he should be able to see her since the path was a straight line. But contrary to his thoughts, it wasn''t so. "Do you think we can reach the end?" Void asked, panting. His tongue was out as he struggled to breathe. "I can''t tell. Another five hundred meters, and I''ll be at my limit." Grey responded with difficulty. His carefree attitude was long gone. ''You should sit and strengthen your body, and then continue.'' The bunny leader suggested. Grey thought about it and sat down cross-legged, he soon started to feel his body growing stronger. He broke through to the Elemental Venerable stage and acquired the abilities of an ice dragon. His body also grew stronger. Presently, the explosive force of his body was stronger than his elemental attack. Only the chaos orb is stronger than his attack His body greedily used the pressure from the cave to temper itself, growing stronger as time went on. Grey enjoyed the feeling of his body getting stronger as he sat that. Before he knew it, three hours passed with his eyes still closed, fully in a cultivation state. One more hour went by and he opened his eyes, excitement flashing through them. "Hahaha." He laughed and jumped back up, he threw his fist forward, and an explosion rang out in the cave. The strength of his physical body had climbed to the Mid stages of the Elemental Venerable Plane. It was originally in the Early stages, but now, it was close to the peak of the Mid stages. The bunny leader and Void were startled, both falling from Grey''s shoulder. The bunny leader was cultivating, like Grey, it was lost in the feeling of strengthening its body. Void, on the other hand, was sleeping. Void flipped mid-air and landed on his legs. The bunny leader was not as agile as Void, but it managed to make sure it didn''t land on its head. Its butt slammed into the ground and it groaned in discomfort. Looking at Grey who was smiling foolishly, it couldn''t help but snort coldly. It was the one who told Grey to cultivate his body, yet, this was how Grey paid him back. Grey scratched the tip of his nose, a little embarrassed. Void jumped and landed on his shoulder, but the bunny leader opted to walk on its own now. Void was used to always being on Grey''s shoulder whenever they were walking, and it was tiring to have to walk on his own. The pressure lessened after their round of cultivation. They walked another five hundred meters and could barely move their bodies. Grey tried cultivating, but he realized that it was useless. His body couldn''t advance any further for now. He was about to give up when he caught sight of a light from the other side of the tunnel. "The end of the tunnel." He pointed at the light, diverting the attention of the two Magical Beasts to it. One has to know that they were under more pressure compared to Grey. Grey only had to focus on the pressure of his physical body, while the two Magical Beasts also had to face the pressure of their elemental essence. Seeing the light, they were rejuvenated and walked faster, trying to reach the end as soon as they could. Grey also walked faster. He wanted to run, but his body couldn''t take that much. He also tried to use the space element, but it was useless since he couldn''t open the space here. They walked to the end, the bright light almost blinding them. Their visions returned to normal after some time, a pavilion appearing before them. "A place to rest?" Void asked. "Not likely. There should be a reward." Grey looked around. The bunny leader also looked around, a little expectant on what they would gain from this. If anyone appeared now and told them that the increase in their physical bodies was the reward, they might beat up the person. Although they were all happy with the increase in their strength, they still wanted to get more rewards. Not seeing anything outside, Grey knew it was time to walk inside the pavilion and inspect it. As they walked closer to the pavilion, the motionless figure inside the pavilion, who hadn''t been moving all this while, opened his eyes. The figure was that of a young man who looked to be in his early twenties. The figure walked closer to the armor, caressing it, his eyes showed an expression of pain. Before long, he turned to the door. Grey and Void walked in at this moment. "Oh." A surprised exclamation escaped from the mouth of the young man. He didn''t expect a human and two Magical Beasts to be the ones to pass through the trial. One has to know that even Dragons had failed the test, yet, a bunny and a cat even passed it. "What has the world turned into?" The young man muttered. 1121 Feeling Cheated Grey looked at the young man curiously, he didn¡¯t know if this was a real person or not. The young man didn¡¯t look like a projection, but he felt that there shouldn¡¯t be anyone still alive in this place. ¡°How was the trial?¡± The young man asked gently, his face showing a soft smile. ¡°Not bad. Any longer, and I wouldn¡¯t have been able to make it.¡± Grey answered sincerely. He was lucky he found the exit from the passageway at the time he did, if not, he would¡¯ve turned around and headed back. There was no way to improve his body any further, and he had stayed here for a long time. Alice was probably waiting for him outside. The young man nodded, at least Grey didn¡¯t say it was easy. ¡°It¡¯s not that hard.¡± Void spoke up at this time. The young man looked at Void oddly, ¡°A Rank Seven Magical Beast that can speak, guess you¡¯re not ordinary.¡± ¡°I¡¯m unique!¡± Void replied with a smug expression. The young man didn¡¯t mind Void¡¯s statement, he turned his attention to the bunny leader, ¡°Can you speak as well?¡± The bunny leader shook its head, a hint of embarrassment flashing past its eyes. It felt that even the stupid cat could speak, yet it couldn¡¯t. Void looked down on the bunny leader, showing his superiority. ¡°Interesting companions.¡± The young man commented, he could already tell Grey¡¯s journeys were always filled with excitement with this duo being with him. p¦Ánd¦Á,no¦Í?1,§ão§® The young man followed Grey¡¯s line of sight, seeing how Grey was almost drooling over it, e chuckled. ¡®Looks like the world is still normal.¡¯ He thought internally. ¡°Senior, why is that here?¡± Grey asked tactfully. The young man was impressed by Grey¡¯s way of thinking, ¡°It¡¯s a reward.¡± The young man¡¯s reply was simple, but it was all Grey wanted to hear. ¡°Reward for passing through the tunnel?¡± Grey asked another question. ¡°Not entirely.¡± The young man shook his head and explained, ¡°Passing through the tunnel is just the requirement for the next trial. Pass the next one, and you¡¯ll naturally get the armor.¡± Grey listened to his words and was a bit disappointed. His mood soon lightened up, at least he could still fight for it! Besides, there was no way he would leave this place without taking that armor, he was already thinking of ways to get it in case he failed the task. ¡°What¡¯s the challenge?¡± He asked. The young man looked at him with a soft smile and responded, ¡°Break through my defense.¡±¦Ñ¦Á§ád¦Á `n?¦Í?| §ãom Grey raised his brow, a little apprehensive. One has to know that he had been standing for some time now, but he had not been able to sense any fluctuations in the young man¡¯s body. This meant that either there was no essence in his body, or his strength was frighteningly high that Grey couldn¡¯t even sense it. If the young man was too strong, then there was no use trying since even if the young man stood still, he would not be able to break through his defense. As if knowing what Grey was thinking, the young man spoke up, ¡°You don¡¯t have to be worried about my realm, I¡¯ll naturally lower it to your level. I can see that you have a strong body and a First stage Elemental Venerable.¡± The young man¡¯s body shook lightly, and the aura of a First stage Elemental Venerable appeared on him. ¡°We can start now.¡± Grey didn¡¯t attack immediately, instead, he asked, ¡°What about them? Can they help me with this? After all, we all passed through the tunnel.¡± The young man paused momentarily, not expecting Grey to ask this. This was not out of question since, technically, Void and the bunny leader also passed the first trial. But the armor was for a human, although it could take on any shape, he felt it would be better with Grey. After some time, he answered. ¡°Since they are here, they can fight, but I¡¯ll have to increase my realm.¡± A brilliant smile appeared on Grey¡¯s face, just as he wanted to attack, the young man smiled and continued, ¡°Of course, they will have to agree to give you the armor. The armor is something made by a True God, a powerful weapon. It has both defensive and attacking features. Once worn, an Elementalist¡¯s overall power would increase significantly. It can also help maximize your essence.¡± The young man knew Grey wanted to exploit the fact that Void and the bunny leader were here to his advantage, but he would not allow him. Grey might be cunning, but he was still lacking. The young man explained everything about the armor to ensure Void and the bunny leader knew what they would miss if they gave it to Grey. ¡°Any objections?¡± Grey looked at both Void and the bunny leader. Void had no issues giving up on the armor, only the bunny leader hesitated. ¡°Void, do you still have that pot with you?¡± Grey asked, his eyes still on the bunny leader. ¡°The bunny pot? Yes, I think I lost the pig¡¯s pot.¡± Void¡¯s reply was quick. Hearing the conversation of the duo, the bunny leader nodded. Under the eyes of the young man, Grey had successfully coerced the bunny leader into agreeing. The young man couldn¡¯t help but sigh. His aura spiked, stopping at the peak of the Sixth stage. Grey had a powerful physique. Void was already close to the Mid stages, and there was also the bunny leader. ¡°Begin.¡± The young man¡¯s voice just died down when silver scales covered Grey¡¯s body, and Void and the bunny leader vanished. Void¡¯s darkness domain appeared. The bunny leader used the space element to attack from the side. Grey¡¯s figure shot out like an arrow. He soon appeared in front of the young man. His fist with blazing flames as he punched out. The young man was stunned beyond word. He didn¡¯t understand what had just happened. ¡°What has the world turned to?¡± The young man felt cheated. 1122 Twilight Faction Chapter 1122 Twilight Faction Boom! A loud explosion followed after Grey''s punch. The figure of the young man was sent flying, but he maneuvered mid-air and balanced himself. His figure was covered with lightning, but he couldn''t help but look at Grey, shaken. Yes, he was shaken. Grey''s strength was beyond his imagination. Not just Grey, but Void and the bunny leader as well. Each of them had unique abilities. Seeing the scales on Grey''s body, he guessed some things. ''He still shouldn''t be this powerful.'' He felt a bit downcast. The feeling of being defeated by a single attack was something he almost couldn''t take. It was infuriating just thinking of it! Void and the bunny leader were also freakish entities as well. Void''s darkness domain was the main thing that weakened his defenses on time before Grey''s attack, while the bunny leader''s attack didn''t give him the chance he needed, giving Void''s darkness domain to eat up his defense. This showed how well-coordinated they were. He shook his head with a sigh and looked at the armor, "It is yours." Grey didn''t stand on ceremony, stretching his right hand, he grabbed at the armor. The armor buzzed, and a strange scene occurred. The storage ring on Grey''s right hand shone with a bright light, and something flew out. "My shiny sword!" Void exclaimed. Grey rolled his eyes at Void''s statement and pretended he didn''t hear it. He still recalled the day in the cave when he chased Void because of this sword. The eyes of the young man gleamed when he saw this sword, "Where did you get this?" "True Dawn Faction." Grey''s reply was short. The young man nodded without any doubt, it was clear he was familiar with the True Dawn Faction, "I see. Are you part of them?" "No, I chanced upon it when I went there some years back." Grey didn''t hide how he got it, telling the young man how they went to the trial land. "Destroyed as well?" The young man sighed. "Not likely. But they should be in a dormant state." Grey replied, he didn''t know much about the situation in the True Dawn Faction. His Teacher knew more, but he didn''t tell him anything. "The True Dawn Faction is the number one array master, the same goes for crafting weapons. This sword is a pair with the armor. I guess you truly are fated with this armor." The young man explained softly. Grey looked at what was happening, intrigued. He almost died when collecting this sword. To think that it was actually a pair with this armor. "Guess my luck isn''t that bad." He chuckled. The sword and armor started to merge, forming a single entity before long. The glow of the armor became more brilliant. "How is your body so strong?" The young man asked Grey. Even during his time, there were few people with bodies as strong as Grey''s, and they focused on mainly using the elements to nourish their bodies making their elemental essence lacking compared to their bodies. Grey answered after taking the armor, "I train my body." The moment he touched it, the armor drilled into his body and he felt a connection with it. The young man was once again depressed. This was an armor that required a lot of nourishment before it can be connected to the physical body in this manner, but in Grey''s situation, it didn''t require any of that and directly linked with him. ''He has the sword, it should be because of that.'' He consoled himself. While he was still thinking about this, the armor appeared on Grey''s body, and a pair of gloves appeared in his hands. The gloves suddenly transformed into a sword, a spear, and even a bow. It transformed into a variety of wepons. The young man''s view was once again shattered. Even after linking with the armor and the sword, an Elementalist would need at least some days or even months before being proficient with it. But Grey dified his thoughts, catching everything straight up. ''He doesn''t know it''s this hard, so there''s no need to tell him.'' While still consoling himself, he saw the armor float out of Grey''s body, covering Void''s body. "You can leave now." The young man didn''t want to be in the same place Grey was anymore. Grey was a little taken aback, he was just testing some things before he asked the young man a few questions, but the young man''s mood suddenly changed when he was at the end of his test. He noticed he could use the armor to protect those close to him, so he wanted to try it out. "Senior, I have some questions." He said hurriedly. "Leave, I''m not in the mood to speak any further." The young man snorted. "Is there any way I can get some answers from you?" Grey didn''t want to give up. The young man sighed and asked, "What do you want to know?" "The path to the God Plane is blocked, this is the general trend everywhere. This Faction is said to be the last Faction to produce a True God. Does senior by any chance know why the path is blocked?" Grey asked hurriedly. "Blocked?" The young man''s face showed an odd expression. Grey nodded and explained the general situation in the Aurora Continent to the young man. The young man muttered in a low voice, "It shouldn''t be blocked. How come that fellow didn''t break through that barrier?" He knew of a freakish genius in the True Dawn Faction that had the potential of being a True God. According to what he knew, the path could be broken, but not in the normal manner. When someone who can easily fight across Planes appears, then the perso would be able to destroy what was stopping others from stepping into the God Plane. "Could he have died?" He looked up, lost in thoughts. Unlike the True Dawn Faction, this Faction was truly destroyed. Seeing the look in the eyes of the young man, Grey didn''t speak and waited. A few minutes later, the young man looked at him, "Would you like to learn the essence of the Twillight Faction?" 1123 Chased Out ¡°The essence of the Twilight Faction?¡± Grey didn¡¯t expect the young man to ask him this. The young man felt a bit irritated when he saw Grey¡¯s expression, ¡°If you don¡¯t want you can leave, I¡¯ll dissipate soon.¡± Grey was shocked by the young man¡¯s words, ¡°You¡¯re not real?¡± ¡°Of course not! Is something wrong with your head?¡± The young man looked at Grey strangely, adding, ¡°I¡¯m like a spiritual body. Once you¡¯ve taken the armor, I¡¯ll dissipate. The armor was the only thing sustaining me for so long.¡± ¡°Oh, okay.¡± Grey still continued looking at him, and he advanced, almost trying to touch the young man¡¯s body. The eyes of the young man twitched when he saw how Grey was examining him like a specimen, he calmed himself and asked again, ¡°Do you want to learn it or not?¡± Grey nodded, ¡°Yes, senior, I do.¡± ¡°Good, I can sense you have the lightning element. Condense a lightning orb.¡± The young man instructed. Grey did as instructed, creating a lightning orb in his hand. The young man looked at it and said, ¡°You¡¯ve been helped by the previous tests, but you still lack control over your essence. The top priority of the Twilight Faction is getting perfect control over your elemental essence. Since I¡¯m a Lightning Elementalist, I¡¯ll use the element I¡¯m more proficient in to help you.¡± He opened his palm, and a lightning orb appeared on his palm. It was extremely docile. p¦Ánd¦Á`no¦Í?1¨C§ão§® Grey looked at the young man, unsure of what to do. When he sensed the young man¡¯s gaze, he threw caution to the wind and touched it. His expression changed and his eyes widened when he did this. ¡°Impossible.¡± He blurted out unconsciously. His hand was currently in the lightning orb, but all he felt was a warm sensation. One has to know that the lightning element was a destructive element, no part of it was docile, but the one in the young man¡¯s hand was different. It almost felt like placing a hand in warm water. ¡°How¡¯s this possible?¡± He couldn¡¯t help but ask. The young man chuckled, ¡°This is what happens when you have a hundred percent control over your essence and element.¡± The young man tossed the orb to the side, what happened next shocked Grey to the core. The previously docile lightning orb gave off a frightening explosion. The strength of the blast was beyond Grey¡¯s expectations. However, that was not the only shocking thing, the range of the explosion was so well contained that other than feeling the strength of the explosion, Grey didn¡¯t feel its impact. Seeing not just Grey¡¯s shocked face, but Void¡¯s and the bunny leader¡¯s also gave him a certain sense of satisfaction. The trio didn¡¯t give him the chance to show his abilities the last time and he was depressed because of that. He was a top expert, yet he was somewhat manhandled by these juniors. Now that he saw their dumbstruck expression over his abilities, he was satisfied with their reactions. ¡°Void, touch mine.¡± Grey said with a playful smile. ¡°Touch it yourself.¡± Void disappeared from Grey¡¯s side, going closer to the young man.¦Ñ¦Á§ád¦Á `n?¦Í?| §ãom ¡°You don¡¯t have to tell him to do that. You should naturally know when it¡¯s safe to do so. Doing this is not really the hard part, the hard part is containing your attack into a smaller range, maximizing the attack power.¡± The young man chuckled as he explained. Grey smiled, he was only joking with Void. He knew a thing or two about making his attacks docile, not on the young man¡¯s level, but he shouldn¡¯t be that bad. It was just like the young man said, the other parts are harder. Containing the attack within a particular range and making sure not even a single essence spills while attacking, was the true essence of what the young man was speaking about. ¡°Senior, can you teach me?¡± Grey asked humbly. He wanted to learn all these so he would grow stronger. ¡°I can, but you will only be able to learn this after awakening your lightning element domain.¡± The young man responded. ¡°I already have that.¡± Grey activated his lightning domain, and the silver lightning arcs turned red in an instant. Similar to his fire domain, he can alternate between the two types of lightning he has. The young man looked at him, and even though he didn¡¯t have a heart since he was a spiritual body, he felt his heart throb. Grey was a freak! A freak among freaks! ¡°You can use two types of lightning?¡± He asked in a soft voice. Void added by the side, ¡°And fire. He also has two types of fire.¡± The young man didn¡¯t want to believe this, he looked at Grey, and Grey used his fire domain, changing between the normal and special type. He glared at Void while doing all this. The young man felt his world collapse. ¡°You can use your domain to contain the attack¡­¡± Basically, with the domain, Grey would be able to contain it. This would also help in making sure he doesn¡¯t spill out any essence while attacking. Of course, it wasn¡¯t as easy as it sounds, but that was the general idea. Before Grey could even attempt it, the young man chased him away. He didn¡¯t want to speak with Grey any further. He felt he might break down if he continued speaking with Grey and Void. He would¡¯ve broken down if he had known that Grey also had a water domain. He could tell that Grey recently broke through to the Elemental Venerable Plane, at most, he would only awaken one domain, or maybe two during his breakthrough. He could also have awakened the domains even before breaking through to the Elemental Venerable Plane. ¡­. ¡°He chased us out.¡± Grey stared at the doors to the building. It was shut, and even the building slowly started to become illusionary. ¡°Let¡¯s go, Alice is waiting.¡± Grey shook his head. 1124 All Pawns ¡°What took you so long?¡± Alice asked when she saw Grey walking down the tunnel. She was still in the tunnel, deeper than where she originally stopped. Looking at her pale face, it was easy to see that she was having a hard time staying there. ¡°I had an encounter with something, sorry I took so long.¡± Grey was a bit fearful when he saw Alice¡¯s condition. She was panting heavily and looked like she would collapse anytime soon. Since she took the risk of advancing, it was mainly due to the fact that she was worried about Grey¡¯s well-being and wanted to check up on him. ¡°Let¡¯s go.¡± Grey didn¡¯t want her to suffer any longer, so he hurried her. ¡­.. Outside the cave. The projection appeared when Grey and Alice walked out. He looked at Grey deeply. There was a strange feeling he was getting from him at the moment, different from how it was when he went in. ¡°What distance did you reach?¡± He asked the duo. ¡°About eight hundred meters or so.¡± Alice replied. The projection nodded, impressed by Alice¡¯s statement, he turned to Grey, ¡°And you?¡± ¡°I had a nice chat with the senior inside, he even gave me a gift.¡± Grey grinned. He had shown Alice the armor on their way back, so she knew he got to the end and even faced another trial he succeeded in, before acquiring the top treasure there. The old man looked at him, a bit disbelieving. Grey saw the doubt in his eyes and laughed, ¡°You¡¯re doubting me?¡± ¡°Don¡¯t take it the wrong way young friend, but countless geniuses have gone in, and only a few have been able to get to the last part. The few who succeeded in getting there all failed, without exception. So you might have managed to get there and speak with the master there, but there¡¯s no guarantee that¡­¡± The old man was still speaking when an armor appeared on Grey¡¯s body. He froze, unable to speak any further. His eyes widened. He knew the difficulty of the last challenge, breaking through the defense of the master. When the master was still on the Continent, he was known as the best defense master. He not only has the earth element, but he also has the lightning element as well. He had a total of four elements and each of them had been honed to the peak. The fact that Grey was able to break through his defense was something he was finding hard to accept. He had seen Grey during the first trial, and although he was a bit unorthodox in his ways, he didn¡¯t think there was anything special about him. ¡°It¡¯s a nice armor. I also have the sword that makes them a pair.¡± A sword appeared in Grey¡¯s hand as he swung it around. ¡°It should be nice when cutting down wood for fire.¡± He muttered. The old man, on the other hand, almost had a breakdown. He didn¡¯t expect Grey to also have the sword. He knew of this sword, and it was on the same level as the armor. After moving it a few times, Grey kept the items in his body again. The old man paused and looked at Grey, shocked.¦Ñ¦Á§ád¦Á `n?¦Í?| §ãom ¡°You¡¯ve fused with it already?¡± ¦Ñ¦Á§ád¦Á n?¦Ía| §ãom The old man almost spat out a mouthful of blood in dejection. Grey kept exceeding his expectations. A portal appeared and the old man pointed at it. The duo could leave now, there was nothing left to get here. Even if others came and managed to get to the building inside, they would not be able to gain anything. Grey and Alice didn¡¯t stay any longer and left. After the duo left, the old man looked at the cave with mixed feelings. The figure of the young man appeared behind him. ¡°You don¡¯t need to be this way, you¡¯re already so old.¡± The old man knelt down the second he heard the voice, ¡°Teacher.¡± The young man sighed, ¡°It¡¯s already been so long, why did you have to keep a wisp of your spiritual sense here?¡± ¡°I was hoping I would have the chance to meet Teacher again. Besides, after you left, I took charge of the Faction.¡± The old man said with a proud smile. ¡°I see.¡± The young man nodded, his eyes showing no emotions. This was within his expectations. ¡°Did he really defeat you, or did you give it to him?¡± The old man still couldn¡¯t accept Grey taking the armor. ¡°In one attack.¡± The young man replied, not bothered by it. The old man¡¯s eyes bulged out when he heard the young man¡¯s words. He thought even if Grey won, it would¡¯ve been a hellish battle for him, succeeding by a small margin. But Grey actually won with a single attack. ¡°The kid doesn¡¯t follow the rules, well, it can¡¯t really be said to not be following the rules, more like exploiting it.¡± The young man chuckled, impressed by Grey¡¯s wisdom. ¡°I see. He has done that previously as well.¡± The old man immediately understood Grey might¡¯ve used his cunningness to get the better of his Teacher. ¡°I wonder how far he can go.¡± The young man muttered. ¡°I can¡¯t really say, but he has passed two stages in the shortest time. Not just that, but he¡¯s the only one who has gotten the most benefits from all.¡± The old man explained, ¡°Other than him, there¡¯s another person. I don¡¯t know if this person is talented or lucky, but he took all the benefits from the first stage he passed too. He is currently in the second stage.¡± ¡°There will always be monstrous talents whenever youths are gathered.¡± The young man said. ¡°I¡¯ve seen a few special ones.¡± The old man said, ¡°Of course, none like him.¡± The old man and the young man conversed for a long time before the young man¡¯s body disappeared. The old man sighed and looked at the sky with a melancholic smile, ¡°Maybe we are all pawns in the end.¡± 1125 Testing New Battle Technique Grey and Alice appeared in the next place, which was a mountain range. They felt like the portal teleported them outside the building, but seeing the area, they knew it was different. The projection didn¡¯t appear. Grey and Alice felt like it was the last time they would need to search for the place where the main trial was on their own. Some minutes later, Grey and Alice heard voices in the distance. ¡°There are others here as well.¡± They exchanged glances and darted toward that area. They still didn¡¯t know how it worked, but other than when entering the building, they had been together. Since entering the secret space in the thrones, they¡¯ve not encountered anyone else. Some distance away, three people were fighting with a giant Eagle. These Magical Beasts were always tricky to deal with. Elementalists don¡¯t acquire the ability to fly until reaching a specific Plane. Birds are different; they only need a few months and they would gain this ability. When fighting, they always had the advantage in the sky, unless the strength difference was high or if they were fighting against geniuses and well-seasoned fighters. Grey and Alice were watching from the side and showed no signs of joining in on the battle. The trio fighting with the Eagle had the number advantage, so the outcome was as predicted. After killing the Eagle, one of them hurriedly stored the body in his storage ring. This was a Rank Seven Magical Beast, its body was a treasure trove. In the outside world, humans might be able to kill Magical Beasts, but not wantonly, especially high-leveled ones or those with top bloodlines. They looked in Grey¡¯s direction after storing the body, the leader nodded and left with the other two. All three were in the Early stages of the Elemental Venerable Plane. ¡°Should we follow them?¡± Grey asked. Following behind this group would make this stage easier since the trio could help to be pathfinders for them. Alice thought about it and didn¡¯t see anything wrong with it. Void was sleeping inside Grey¡¯s storage ring alongside the bunny leader. They didn¡¯t think anything was good in this place, so they slept. Grey couldn¡¯t kick them out, so he let them be. The duo followed behind the trio. Sometime later, the trio had to fight another Magical Beast. Grey and Alice were keeping a reasonable distance from them, not wanting to interfere with what they were doing. They didn¡¯t also get close to them when they killed the beast. The trio couldn¡¯t be bothered with them since they were keeping their distance and were not trying to get any benefits from them, then they wouldn¡¯t care about them following them. ¡­. Two hours later. They had traveled a considerable distance in the mountain range, and the Magical Beasts were starting to be fewer, but their strengths had also increased. The trio could not quickly kill off the beasts any longer. Only after a long battle would they be able to kill it. With each battle, they started to wear down. Even after resting, they still felt fatigued. Elementalists naturally wouldn¡¯t get tired. The trio being tired had little to do with the battles but with this place. ¡°Why do I feel this place targets the body?¡± Grey muttered as he looked at the situation of the trio. ¡°There¡¯s something strange about this place.¡± Alice added. Grey nodded. After some time, the trio started advancing once again. They wanted to get to the other side as soon as possible. There¡¯s a high probability that going to the last mountain in this place would be the way to leave. This place had five mountains, and they had already crossed through two. Flying was no good. First, they couldn¡¯t fly too high, and if they flew low, they would attract multiple Magical Beasts. ¦Ñ¦Á§ád¦Á `n?¦Í?| §ãom On the third mountain, one of the trio got injured while fighting, putting the other two at a disadvantage. ¡­. A good distance away, Grey and Alice were watching. ¡°At this rate, the beast will kill them.¡± Alice commented. ¡°Should we help?¡± She turned to Grey. She was still in the Sage Plane, there was no way she could fight against Magical Beasts that were in the Seventh Rank. With the help of a few others, she could, but alone, she would not be able to do anything to it. Grey thought briefly before nodding, ¡°They¡¯ve been clearing the path. It wouldn¡¯t be good if they die.¡± The duo rushed over. Grey didn¡¯t delay, attacking the moment he appeared. He didn¡¯t use his elemental attacks. Infusing the elements in his body, he exploded out with a punch on the body of the gain Lizard the trio was fighting. The Lizard whipped its tail at his fist. Not wanting these people to know about the strength of his physical body, Grey made his blue flames explode when his fist and the tail made contact. Grey¡¯s punch knocked the tail back, and the Lizard retreated. The trio looked at Grey, stunned. Of the three, only one was in the First stage, and the other two were in the Second and Third stages. Hence even though they were wary of Grey and Alice, they didn¡¯t consider them a threat. However, the power Grey just displayed was well above what they could. They couldn¡¯t help but sweat. When Grey and Alice were following behind them, there had been a few occasions when they felt like attacking the duo, but now they felt like it was a bad idea. The Lizard had not gotten its bearing before Grey appeared before its head, his hands covered with scales and blue flames dropped down. The eyes of the Lizard enlarged. It could sense the threat of death from the small fist before it. Without delay, it swung its tail, it would rather lose its tail than die. Just as Grey¡¯s fist was about to hit the tail, it shook slightly before his fire domain appeared around it. The explosive force the Lizard expected didn¡¯t happen, instead, it felt a soft sensation. The next moment, its tail exploded. The explosion didn¡¯t stop there, it continued down its body. Both its hindlegs exploded, followed by the lower part of its body. The Lizard was scared witless, and its half body drilled into the ground with shocking speed. p¦Ánd¦Á`no¦Í?1¨C§ão§® ¡®Amazing!¡¯ 1126 Jar Of Dirt? p¦Ánd¦Á`no¦Í?1¨C§ão§® Grey stood stunned, the trio stared at him, dumbstruck. Alice couldn¡¯t believe her eyes as well. ¡°How is he so strong?¡± She muttered, shocked. One of the shocking things about Grey¡¯s attack was that they sensed very little impact from it. It was contained, of course, not at the level of the young man from where Grey took the armor, but at least, it was far better than these people at the Elemental Venerable Plane. If the young man had seen Grey use the attack so efficiently, he would be dumbfounded. One has to know that this was something that took years to get the hang of. Getting the hang of it is not as hard as actually implementing it in an attack. The reason it looked this good was mainly because Grey used his physical strength. If he had used his elemental attack, he wouldn¡¯t have gotten this result. It would¡¯ve been far from it. Their shock didn¡¯t stay for too long. ¡°Thank you for your help.¡± The injured young man thanked Grey. Grey nodded, ¡°I couldn¡¯t really watch you die.¡± ¡°Should we continue together?¡± The young man in the Third stage asked. Grey readily agreed, ¡°He¡¯ll have to heal first.¡± They waited for the young man to recover from his injuries before they continued on the journey. With Grey joining them, the battles became shorter. Grey originally had explosive attack power, with the help of the new technique, he was able to explode with greater force. At this rate, his attack power was already on the same level as those in the Sixth stage of the Elemental Venerable Plane. Of course, this was mainly due to how high his physique had improved. ¡­. A few hours later, they arrived at the last mountain in the place. It was just as they expected, the route out of this place was on the last mountain. Grey looked at the building sitting on the mountaintop. The building was majestic, exuding an ancient aura. The other trio wanted to head in, but they were a bit hesitant as they shot a glance at Grey. He was the strongest, so he naturally made the decisions. ¡°You can go, I¡¯m not going in now.¡± Grey had no problems with them going in. To his surprise, they didn¡¯t rush in as expected. He raised a brow to look at them, and their next words made him chuckle. ¡°We feel safer if you go in as well.¡± Void appeared on Grey¡¯s shoulder, and stared at the building for a long time before disappearing once again. According to Void, whatever was inside was not really good. Other than shiny things, the requirements of an item to catch Void¡¯s attention was very high, if the treasure was not top-notch, he wouldn¡¯t care about it. ¦Ñ¦Á§ád¦Á `n?¦Í?| §ãom Grey thought about it and still decided to enter. Not everyone is like Void. To people like himself and his friends, some things Void felt were useless might be very helpful. When the trio saw Grey heading into the building, they felt reassured and entered as well. They couldn¡¯t be blamed, if not for Grey, the possibility of them dying in this place was very high. At first, they thought they would only get benefits from this place after passing the first stage successfully without any harm. This stage made them a bit fearful, especially the one injured during the battle Grey helped them with. The group of five entered the building. In a large hall, items placed on multiple tables, from weapons to beast cores, and also healing tonics, all sorts of things. Each item was protected by an array. Grey studied the array for some time and knew it was something he could deal with. The others shouldn¡¯t have any problems with taking an item as well. The items at the front didn¡¯t seem to hold as much value as the ones behind. Alice stared at a particular item around the center of the building. She walked in that direction. Grey stared at what she was looking at, it was a fiery orb. He could tell it had something to do with the fire element. Alice had awakened her fire element, making it slightly superior to her lightning element. Grey, on the other hand, didn¡¯t find anything that caught his eye. There were quite a few good things there, some he had no idea what they were, while others were things he had more or less seen or heard of. While everyone had started to open an array to get an item, Grey was studying the items on each table. The trio placed their focus on the last tables since they seemed to hold more value. Seeing Grey walking over, one of them had a worried expression, his worry died down when Grey walked past as if he didn¡¯t see anything. The young man was trying to get a shield. Grey couldn¡¯t be bothered with such an item, he already had top-tier armor that looked great. He avoided the items that entered the eyes of the trio and only glanced at the rest. When he got to the last table, he knew the array was not something he could break through even if he was given a few days. On the side of the last table, he saw a small black jar with its contents hidden at the side, opening, and his eyes twitched. ¡°A jar of dirt?¡± He was a bit skeptical. This jar was the only thing that wasn¡¯t protected by an array. Technically, even if thousands of people entered this place, none would have any interest in taking this item. Only a few would take it. The reason; it was in this place. Grey tossed the jar in his storage ring before continuing his tour of the place. It was just as Void said, there wasn¡¯t really anything here he felt was good. Of course, he felt like this didn¡¯t mean he was not going to try to take some items away. There were no defensive arrays, after breaking through the arrays, the people present could take the items they wanted. Alice had successfully taken the fiery orb, keeping it safe. Two of the trio had also taken the items they had their eyes on. 1127 Unscrupulous Void The last of the trio was heading still trying to break the array holding the item he wanted. He had the highest cultivation stage among them, and his eyes were placed on a strange snake-like fruit at one of the last few tables. Grey looked at him and found the fruit interesting, but he knew there was no way the young man could break through the array. If he tried to open it now, it might only attract the envy of the young man. He planned to wait for the young man to leave first, then he would try and open it. He had no idea what the fruit was and its uses, but he knew it would be good. Thinking about it, he brought out the bunny leader, alongside Void. Even if not all the items were top-tier, there were still a few that were not bad. The second the bunny leader appeared it moved toward a table, unlike the others, it directly strolled past the array and took the item. Grey gave a wry smile, while others were working hard to open an array, the bunny leader walked past it like it was nonexistent. ¡®Hey, can you take the others?¡¯ He hurriedly asked the bunny leader. ¡®Easy.¡¯ The bunny leader replied and entered another place, taking another item. The eyes of the trio bulged when they saw this, Grey, on the other hand, smiled brilliantly. This was an opportunity for him to take everything in this building. Even if he didn¡¯t take everything, he had to at least take most of the items away. The bunny leader vanished soon after. ¡°Huh! Where did it go?¡± The young man in the Third stage asked, aggrieved. He was about to beg the bunny leader to help it with the fruit, but the bunny leader disappeared almost the same way it appeared. He turned his eyes to Grey, almost pleading. He knew the duo that was there with him, they didn¡¯t have a Magical Beast. The bunny leader belonged to either Grey or Alice, he was sure of it. Grey acted like he didn¡¯t see anything, while Alice showed no reactions. The young man could only give up. Grey had already helped them get here, and although it looked like they were helping each other, they knew Grey wouldn¡¯t have any issues with getting to this point. The young man glanced at the fruit, a little reluctant, but he still left it. Since he couldn¡¯t get it, he would try something else. Void was still around, looking around casually. He stared at the box on the last table and vanished, appearing inside. He opened the box and it was filled with delicious fruits. He laughed in delight and kept it. Unlike the bunny leader, Void was unreserved, he straight up started to plunder everything there. The bunny leader appeared once again and the duo started ransacking the place. The young man in the Third stage of the Elemental Venerable could only increase the speed of breaking through the array. Before the two demons got to where he was, he had forcefully opened it, even risking injury and taking an item. He wanted to explode in anger, but Grey was not only stronger, but the threat of death he was getting from Void was stronger than Grey. It wasn¡¯t that Void was stronger than Grey, but unlike Grey, Void had no reservations about killing him. After taking the item, they all sensed a spatial aura on it. They could teleport from this place once they got hold of an item. ¦Ñ¦Á§ád¦Á `n?¦Í?| §ãom The young man thanked Grey and left with the other two. Alice chuckled seeing them run, ¡°Void is unscrupulous.¡± ¡°It has nothing to do with me.¡± Grey shrugged. Void had always been like this. From the first time he hatched out of an egg, he took up most of Grey¡¯s gains from the trail land at that time. Grey was so vexed that he wanted to kill him. What was worse was that he still gave him part of the treasure he acquired there. A minute later, Void and the bunny leader returned, they had taken all the treasures here. ¦Ñ¦Á§ád¦Á n?¦Ía| §ãom He didn¡¯t take the fruits because they were treasures, when he opened the box, he smelled the delicious fragrance from it and decided to take everything else. There were still a few fruits there. ¡°Where¡¯s my share?¡± Grey asked. Void casually tossed one of the fruits at Grey. Grey didn¡¯t mind and took a bite. The fruit melted in his mouth almost immediately and his tongue gave him a sensation of exploding from the great taste. That was not the only thing, he could feel essence rushing into his body, but his taste buds were giving him terrific feedback at the moment that he even forgot about doing anything with the great impact of the fruit. Void gave Alice one as well. Her reaction was the same as the others. However, her face soon flushed red. She was weaker than Grey and Void, so the essence, although powerful, wasn¡¯t too much for them. She, on the other hand, was still too weak, not even at the Peak of the Sage Plane yet. She sat down cross-legged and started to cultivate. In the blink of an eye, her aura started to increase. ¡°Is it that great?¡± Grey was taken aback. He sensed something from the fruit, but it was not enough for him to break through. Before entering this place, he recently broke through to the Elemental Venerable Plane. He didn¡¯t have any plans of breaking through any time soon. Advancing too quickly wasn¡¯t good for him. Especially after learning this technique from the young man. The more he advanced, the weaker his control over his strength. Once his control drops, his overall strength might not increase much. He only wants to break through after getting used to his current strength. His current plan was to stay in the First stage for a few more months, at least two months or so. If others knew his thoughts, they might die from depression. Others took at least four months or so in a stage when in the Elemental Venerable Plane, these referred to those geniuses from top Families and Factions. Some people even stayed on a stage for more than a year, yet Grey didn¡¯t want to break through, and felt waiting two more months wasn¡¯t bad. 1128 Encountering Some Enemies An hour later, Alice was done with her cultivation, her aura had spiked to the Peak of the Sage Plane. She was close to the Ninth stage during the last trial, and taking this fruit made her breakthrough with ease. ¡°Congratulations, you¡¯re getting closer to the Elemental Venerable Plane.¡± Grey smiled as he looked at her. He felt excited for his friends, they were all advancing faster than most people. Given where they came from, it showed that the reason for their low elemental grade was the Azure Continent. The quality of elemental grades has a lot to do with the environment, the quality of the essence, and the parents as well. Some parents take in a lot of natural treasure, this way, their child will be born with a high elemental grade. Alice was happy with her progress and smiled, proud of herself. In the Azure Continent, her thoughts were getting to the Overlord Plane, and if lucky, breaking through to the Sage Plane. Since meeting Grey, she didn¡¯t know what happened, but she felt like the Overlord Plane was the start of their cultivation. In little over ten years of cultivating, she had gone from a normal human to the Peak of the Sage Plane. She was still thinking about her speed when she took a glance at the fellow close to her. Grey had been cultivating for a shorter time, but he was advancing so fast that it was almost impossible to catch up to him. ¡°Do you think Klaus had broken through?¡± She asked. When they were fighting before entering this place, Klaus almost broke through causing their deaths, luckily, Grey stopped him. ¡°Most likely.¡± Grey replied. They didn¡¯t stay there any further and left. In this trial, other than the corpse of Magical Beasts, the next people wouldn¡¯t get anything from this round. Grey¡¯s group had taken everything, leaving nothing for others. Compared to the last trial, people would have to endanger their lives here, and other than beast cores of corpses, there was nothing like a reward for them. ¡­. The next round. The moment Grey appeared, he was taken aback when he didn¡¯t see Alice with him. ¡°We¡¯ve been separated.¡± He touched his chin as he looked around, his face fell when he saw the group in front of him. The group consisted of six people, and three of them were from the Syphilis Faction. He recognized them from when they were coming his way outside the building. They were currently staring at a figure in an arena. ¡°Ah!¡± The painful scream drew Grey¡¯s attention to it. In the arena, Grey saw two people fighting. One of them was a young man, the other was a middle-aged lady. Thinking about the young man Grey saw at the place where the armor was located, he knew this person was not human. She was a spiritual body. The scream came from the mouth of the young man whose body had been impaled by a long spear made from the earth element. His movement was incomparably slow at the moment. Even an Overlord Plane Elementalist was faster than his current speed. ¡®Guess this round focuses on fighting against that lady.¡¯ Grey wasn¡¯t in a hurry, he wanted to see what the lady was capable of. After a few more exchanges, the young man was tossed out of the arena. The lady spoke mechanically. ¡°Failed.¡± ¦Ñ¦Á§ád¦Á `n?¦Í?| §ãom p¦Ánd¦Á`no¦Í?1¨C§ão§® One of the people in the group of six walked forward. Her cultivation stage was lower than that of the young man who just lost. When she stepped on the platform, the lady spoke mechanically once again. ¡°Defeat me and go to the next round.¡± The young lady didn¡¯t wait for her to complete her state as she attacked. The lady¡¯s cultivation stage had reduced to the same stage as her opponent. This would make the battle fair. Grey already thought of this. The lady and the young lady started to exchange attacks. Being caught off guard by the young lady, the middle-aged lady was placed in a passive state, unable to take control of the attack. She had the same strength as the other, but with vast battle knowledge. Their battle lasted for over ten minutes and the young lady won by a small margin after risking her life. Grey clicked his tongue when he saw her in action, ¡°Ruthless!¡± The other six looked at Grey. The trio from the Syphilis Faction took a glance at Grey. Of the three, two were in the Elemental Venerable Plane, while the last was in the Sage Plane. Their eyes revealed smiles, but they didn¡¯t attack. There were still three people present, if those people decided to help Grey out, then they would be the ones who were in trouble. The young lady advanced and went to the next round, leaving the others. She was injured, but she didn¡¯t want to stay here to heal. The trio from the Syphilis Faction looked at the two who hadn¡¯t attempted the round yet, and after some convincing, they stepped forward. The eyes of the trio were kept on Grey¡¯s body, they wanted to kill him. Grey was smiling as he looked at them, he didn¡¯t even make any movements when he sensed the killing intent in their eyes. One of the duo walked forward and tried, failing like the first young man, grievously hindered as well. The trio from the Syphilis Faction looked at the last one who hadn¡¯t attempted it. Gritting his teeth, he stepped on the platform. In the end, he won, heading to the next round. Two passed, two injured, leaving only the trio from the Syphilis Faction, and Grey. Grey hadn¡¯t gone close to them all this while, keeping some distance from them. ¡°Why don¡¯t you try, it¡¯s your turn.¡± The one in the Second stage of the Elemental Venerable Plane grinned at Grey. ¡°You guys go first, I saw you here, after all.¡± Grey smiled softly. 1129 Stop Him The trio from the Syphilis Faction looked at Grey with dark expressions. They had the number advantage, and of the two in the Elemental Venerable Plane, both had a higher cultivation stage than Grey. ¡°Are you moving or do you want us to make you?¡± The one with the highest cultivation stage asked Grey with a blank expression. Grey took a glance at him and replied, ¡°Even if I go first, it¡¯s not going to change anything for you three.¡± ¡°We know. But go before we do.¡± The young man said. The trio from the Syphilis Faction consisted of two young men and a young lady. The young lady was in the Elemental Venerable Plane. Grey looked at them, and with a sigh, he walked toward the arena, ¡°You better not try anything funny.¡± The trio from the Syphilis Faction looked at him with a cold expression as he walked past. Grey stepped on the platform and the lady on said the same mechanical words. After she was done speaking, she attacked. Grey looked at her, and without attacking, he took a step back and asked, ¡°What do I gain from defeating you?¡± ¡°Advancing to the next round.¡± The lady didn¡¯t stop her attack as she replied. ¡°Just that?¡± Grey asked, a bit skeptical. There had been good rewards in the previous challenges. As long as he won, there was a high chance of getting something good. ¡°Yes.¡± The lady nodded. ¡°What if I kill you?¡± Grey dodged the attack with a cheeky smile. The figure of the lady paused for a split second before replying, ¡°Then you get a reward from this place. ¡°Nice, just what I wanted.¡± Grey¡¯s expression turned serious. The young lady had the same cultivation base as himself. Whenever an individual steps on stage, the cultivation stage of the lady would lower down to the Elementalist¡¯s own. Grey was in the First stage of the elemental Venerable Plane, the lady reduced her cultivation stage to this level, making it the same as Grey¡¯s. The lady had no idea of Grey¡¯s physical strength, so even if she could read his cultivation stage and replicate it, she couldn¡¯t do the same for his physical body. Grey, hearing that there was an extra reward to be earned if he managed to kill the young lady, didn¡¯t hold back. He exploded out with a powerful physical attack. With others watching, he hid this from their eyes, using an elemental attack. Others weren¡¯t able to see this, but the lady he was fighting against had keen eyes. ¦Ñ¦Á§ád¦Á n?¦Ía| §ãom Grey was unbothered by all this, his attack caught the lady, sending her flying. The trio from the Syphilis Faction frowned when they saw this. They all knew Grey was a genius, but this task had been able to stop so many people. If Grey couldn¡¯t be stopped, he would surely leave this place the moment he succeeded. ¦Ñ¦Á§ád¦Á `n?¦Í?| §ãom ¡°Don¡¯t let him pass.¡± The young man in the Third stage from the Syphilis Faction said. They couldn¡¯t let Grey leave. If not for the other people present, they would¡¯ve attacked Grey the moment he appeared. However, they weren¡¯t sure what those people would do, so they kept to themselves and let Grey step onto the platform alone. ¡°What should we do?¡± The young lady asked. She was the other person in the Elemental Venerable Plane, being in the Second stage. ¡°Attack.¡± ¡°Wouldn¡¯t the lady attack us if we stepped on the platform?¡± ¡°That¡¯s why we¡¯re only going to attack from here.¡± After concluding, they decided to attack Grey. Grey was still fighting with the lady, unaware of the plan of the trio. From the first move, he easily gained the advantage and forced the lady into a passive state. The lady could barely defend herself, and just as she was about to be defeated by Grey, an attack came from behind her, forcing Grey back. Grey paused in his attacks and looked at the trio, ¡°What¡¯s the meaning of this?¡± ¡°Nothing, we¡¯re just trying out a few moves, don¡¯t mind us, continue your battle.¡± The young man in the Third stage replied. Grey wasn¡¯t a fool, he knew they were trying to make sure he didn¡¯t succeed. ¡°Don¡¯t annoy me, I¡¯m a vengeful person.¡± He warned, blocking the attack of the lady. If not for his timely reaction, he would¡¯ve been injured by the attacks from the trio. He could neglect the attack of the young man still in the Sage Plane, but for those in the Elemental Venerable Plane, he couldn¡¯t. The trio from the Syphilis Faction didn¡¯t attack him any longer, leaving him for the lady to deal with. Grey was not afraid of the lady, and within a few seconds, he not only gained the advantage, but he injured the body, making the body of the lady more illusory. The lady didn¡¯t attack after Grey¡¯s attack almost obliterated her body, rather, she paused to look at him, a little flustered. Grey was a freak, his physical body was above the lady¡¯s expectations, so even if she expected him to be strong, she wasn¡¯t prepared for this. The trio was not prepared for this as well. After their attack, they felt Grey would need a few more minutes to regain the advantage. Only after his performance did they know that he was not easy to deal with. If not for Grey wanting to kill the lady, he would¡¯ve advanced to the next stage by now. He already could defeat the lady. The trio attacked once again. Grey couldn¡¯t leave this stage, not with them still here. If they had left, it would¡¯ve been a different story, but now, they were not only present, but they even forced Grey to test it out first. Without reservations, they all attacked. 1130 Not Letting Them Through Grey, whose attack was about to end the lady was stunned. His attack was not only blocked but he was sent flying by the backlash. Not expecting this, he couldn¡¯t defend against it. His eyes turned cold as he looked at the trio. ¡°I warned you, didn¡¯t I?¡± He looked at them, his eyes cold. ¡°Sorry, we didn¡¯t mean it.¡± The young man in the Third stage replied. They didn¡¯t want it to seem like they were purposely doing it. Of course, even a child would know their intent by now, much less a figure like Grey. Grey, who was still fighting with the lady vanished, the next moment, the young man who was in the Sage Plane appeared on his spot. The lady was already in the middle of attacking, but before she could reduce the strength of her attack, the attack landed on the body of the young man who was in the Sage Plane. He was not prepared for this, before he could even set up a defensive wall, he was hit by the attack. The attack ripped the young man apart. Being defenseless against an attack from an Elemental Venerable was not something he could take. While he was being hit by the lady¡¯s attack, Grey, who just appeared on the side of the duo from the Syphilis Faction attacked. The attacks exploded at the same time. The duo was shocked when they saw their comrade in Grey¡¯s position, without even thinking, they turned and attacked where the young man was previously standing. Grey was faster, attacking first. He changed places with the young man who had just been hit by the lady¡¯s attack. He was still trying to stop the attack from rampaging his body when he appeared in front of the attack of the duo. His body exploded the moment the attack hit him. With the lady¡¯s attack still ravaging his body, he couldn¡¯t stop the other two attacks. The duo was also sent flying by Grey¡¯s sneaky attack. When Grey appeared on the platform again, he attacked the lady who was slightly confused about what just happened. She saw the young man in the Sage Plane on the platform and tried lowering her cultivation stage to that level so the young man would be able to fight back. Her cultivation stage just dropped when Grey suddenly appeared. Before she could increase it, his attack landed on her body. ¡°Why did you kill your friend?¡± Grey asked with a shocked expression. ¡°Those from the Syphilis Faction are savages.¡± He added. The duo from the Syphilis Faction looked at him with bloodshot eyes. They knew he was the one responsible for the death of their comrade. ¡°I¡¯ll kill you!¡± The young man in the Third stage roared angrily and rushed to the platform. ¡°Stop!¡± The young lady tried to stop him, but it was too late. He had been clouded by anger and rushed to the platform. Grey disappeared from the platform at the same time he stepped on it. ¡°Defeat me, and you pass.¡± The mechanical voice woke the young man up. ¦Ñ¦Á§ád¦Á `n?¦Í?| §ãom Grey, on the other hand, was standing close to the young lady in the Second stage, his face, having a big grin on it. ¡°Come on, fight. We¡¯ll encourage you from the side.¡± Grey said. The young man wanted to rush out, but he was stopped by the lady on the platform. The lady presently had a complete figure, unlike the somewhat illusory figure Grey fought against during the last period. The young man wasn¡¯t stronger than his opponent, so he couldn¡¯t overwhelm his opponent. p¦Ánd¦Á,no¦Í?1,§ão§® The young lady who was in the Second stage tried to escape from Grey¡¯s hands, but Grey held her down. ¡°Watch his battle, where are you running to? I have a short temper, don¡¯t annoy me.¡± The young lady was scared by his words. When he warned them the last time, he killed someone from their group to show them that they shouldn¡¯t mess with him. Now, they messed with him, again. Either the young man in the Third stage fought against the lady or lost and faced an enraged Grey. ¡°Did you win?¡± She couldn¡¯t help but ask. ¡°Of course! I can leave whenever I want to.¡± Grey didn¡¯t hide the fact that he had defeated the lady on the platform. He not only defeated her, but he also got something as a reward as well. The moment he used it, he would grow stronger than he currently was. The young lady looked at Grey with a fearful expression. If what he said was true, then he can kill her while the young man fought against the lady on the platform. Grey smiled at her and focused on the battle that was ongoing, applauding on a few occasions. The young lady felt disgusted, but she couldn¡¯t attack him, so she applauded under his coercion. The young man was fighting for his life on the platform, while Grey was watching. Not just Grey, but the duo who were injured due to their coercion were watching as well. The young lady wanted to help the young man when he was injured by the attack of the lady on the platform. Grey looked at her with a deadly gaze and she paused. She knew if she took a step, she might die from his attack. After a few minutes, the lady said, ¡°Failed.¡± The young man from the Syphilis Faction walked in a depressed manner. He had failed the attempt and was also injured in the battle as well. If not for Grey¡¯s surprise attack, he would¡¯ve won, but Grey attacked him when he was about to win. ¡°Your turn.¡± Grey shoved the young lady forward. The young lady looked at him with apologetic eyes, she didn¡¯t want to attempt this at the moment. ¡°Move, or you¡¯ll fight me.¡± Grey¡¯s face showed seriousness. The young lady had confidence in getting past this stage, but with Grey here, would she pass? 1131 Taking Care Of Business The young lady from the Syphilis Faction walked into the platform, a little fearful. The young man from the Syphilis Faction didn''t dare to walk more than five meters away from the platform. With Grey present there, he knew he would try to kill him. If he was attacked by Grey, he would lose his life. Grey was smiling radiantly at him, but all the young man saw was a devil''s grin. Grey was the devil. When the young lady stepped on the platform, the lady appeared once again and repeated the same words. Grey was watching from the side, sometimes nodding and even applauding the young lady''s effort, other times, booing. In short, he was taking the battle as some form of entertainment. Not just that, but he wanted to irritate the young lady who was fighting. The young man looked at Grey, and saw Grey dart a glance at him. His body shuddered when he saw Grey''s eyes, he knew the current Grey who was applauding the young lady''s performance was not the real Grey. Someone who could kill a person within the blink of an eye was not someone to be taken lightly. Grey might be smiling, but he was evil. The young man kept his eyes on Grey the whole time, he didn''t want Grey to sneak up on him. "Continue staring and I''ll kill you." An eerie voice resounded in the ears of the young man. Grey''s figure was still in the same spot, but he could feel a bone-chilling aura from his back. He knew for a fact that Grey was standing in front of him, even though he could still see Grey''s figure standing in its previous position. His eyes widened in realization when the figure dissipated. "Afterimage." He muttered, a wry smile on his face. Grey''s speed was something he couldn''t fathom. The afterimage represented Grey''s freakish speed. If Grey had used the space element, he wouldn''t have been able to leave an afterimage, only when he moved with his body would an afterimage appear. The fact that Grey could appear behind him with only his physical speed meant a lot. ''How is he so fast?'' His mind was in turmoil. "Did you enjoy my battle?" Grey asked the young man, taking a closer look at the ongoing battle. The young lady was doing well against the lady. It could be seen that she was not using her full strength. This had a lot to do with Grey''s presence. If she tried to use her full strength, she wouldn''t be able to defend herself against Grey''s possible sneak attack later on. The young man was injured and his strength had declined, he was the strongest in the group, but he doesn''t seem to be Grey''s match. She was fighting when she saw Grey standing behind the young man. Her heart skipped a beat, and she made an error, giving the lady the opportunity to beat her down. "Focus on the battle, you have more to worry about after it." Grey said. The young lady was frightened, but there was nothing she could do about it. Grey was too strong. At first, they didn''t think too highly of Grey and felt he was not on their level. They were geniuses in their own rights and felt Grey was not stronger than they were. When they forced Grey onto the platform, they thought even less of him when he agreed to it. To them, a true genius would never agree to that. Only after Grey caused the death of the young man in the Sage Plane did they understand that they had messed with a demon. The young man still had the thought of being stronger than Grey, after all, Grey didn''t fight against them and used trickery to separate them. However, after getting injured, he didn''t dare to fight Grey any longer. Once he was done healing, he would take care of Grey. He couldn''t believe Grey was actually so foolish and allowed him to heal. The young lady on the platform was for her life on the platform after being distracted by Grey''s sudden appearance. A minute later, the voice of the lady sounded once again, "Failed." Other than when the lady fought against Grey, she had been speaking all through. Grey didn''t only beat her, but he directly obliterated her. She didn''t have the chance to tell him he won. "A shame." Grey said when the young lady stepped off the platform with an exhausted expression. She raised her head to look at Grey, and without saying anything further, she walked away. Grey chuckled, "Whose idea was it to kill me?" The young lady paused, while the young man shuddered, but he didn''t show any fear. The young lady didn''t say anything, only staring at Grey. "You don''t want to say? I didn''t expect you to." Grey expected such a reaction. He wanted to grab the shoulder of the young man, but he was covered with black fog. He smiled, not afraid of this fog. His fire domain spread out, covering himself and the young man. The young man turned around and attacked, trying to force Grey to retreat. Grey blocked the attack with his scale-covered skin before attacking the young man with a powerful blow. The young man heard the sound of his shoulder blades breaking and shrieking in pain. Grey''s fist landed on his shoulder, after the first blow, the sound of bones breaking spread out again. Grey punched the ribs of the young man with frightening speed. In the space of a second, Grey unleashed over twenty punches. The young man''s domain was sucked into his body, and his body inflated as he tried to fight through the pain of having his bones broken. The young man''s body started to grow large and he threw a punch at Grey. Grey blocked the attack but took a step back. He raised his head to look at the young man, a smile forming on his face. "Interesting." 1132 Showing No Sympathy Chapter 1132 Showing No Sympathy The young lady froze when she heard the young man''s shriek. They were not the only ones present there. The others who had failed to pass the stage were shocked by the strength of Grey. It had been less than a second since the fog appeared, yet they heard the young man scream in pain. From the way he screamed, it was obvious that he was experiencing an unimaginable degree of pain. They were still thinking about that when the young man''s figure inflated. After throwing a punch at Grey, the impact only made Grey take a step back. "So strong?" This was the only thought in the heads of everyone present. Even the young man fighting Grey had the same thoughts as they did. Grey was too strong. The young lady acted at this moment, seeing the young man using this technique, she unleashed her essence, and darkness essence left her body, merging with the body of the young man. The young man''s strength shot up, and within the blink of an eye, the Third stage rose to the Fourth and then finally the Fifth. The young man could sense the shocking power flowing through his body. He knew it wouldn''t last, so he attacked immediately. Grey, already predicting this, disappeared from where he was standing, appearing close to the young lady and attacking. The young lady was focused on feeding the young man and never expected Grey to change his target. Boom! Grey''s fist landed on her back and exploded with pale blue flames. The young lady shrieked in pain, her scream even louder than that of the young man. Her spine snapped from Grey''s punch. She fell to the ground, unable to stand up. The young man had just rushed over when the young lady was sent flying. He looked at Grey with enraged eyes, roared, and attacked. Grey couldn''t be bothered by him, he knew it would be difficult to fight against the young man in this state. Although he was certain he wouldn''t lose, he didn''t want to expend too much energy here. He had already noticed that there was no way to restore energy here. If he were careless, he might get in trouble. Of course, he was one of the few people who wasn''t too worried, his essence reserves were more than triple that of ordinary First stage Elemental Venerables, The young man continued attacking, Grey dodged, heading for the young lady. He could sense that even with the injury, she was still feeding the young man. When he appeared, he kicked her, sending her flying. The entire left part of her ribs was broken from this kick. She opened her mouth, but blood was the only thing that came out of it. Her physical body was nowhere near that of Grey''s. The young lady landed on the ground and what followed was what no one expected, with the exception of Grey since he was the one who kicked her. The seriously injured young lady heard a voice that frightened her. "Defeat me and pass." Yes, she landed on the platform. In her current state, she couldn''t block any attack from the lady. Even if the lady held back, she would still be able to worsen her injury, if not kill her from the first attack. The lady froze after she said those words, a little confused. This was the first time she was encountering something like this. Even though she paused, she still attacked almost within a second. The young lady, who was still transferring essence to the young man, was forced to stop. She had to try to take the first attack from the lady. The lady would leave her after this attack, she was sure of that. The aura of the young man dropped to the Fourth stage. Grey still didn''t entangle with him, only sending out some occasional attacks while dodging. The young man was frustrated. It had been almost a minute since he used this technique, yet he hadn''t been able to do anything to Grey. He could barely keep up with Grey''s location, much less attack him. The young lady on the platform used all her strength to block the attack and was left gasping for air. She was literally on her last breath after that attack, another attack and she will most likely die. "Failed." The lady disappeared after saying this. The young lady couldn''t even stand from the platform, laying there while dripping blood. She didn''t dare to leave the platform, in fear of Grey attacking her. However, her expression changed drastically when she felt a suction force. Grey had directly used his wind element to drag her out of the platform, she was still showing a fearful expression when she felt her body go back. She felt a bit of ecstasy, but the joy died when she heard the same voice once again. "Defeat me and pass." She looked at Grey who was smiling with hatred. She had not felt this much hate for anyone in her life, and there was a high possibility that she would not get the chance to feel hate for anyone else. The lady paused when she saw the young lady once again. Unfortunately, she must attack since it was the rules. The challenger must at least block or dodge an attack. The young lady could only helplessly watch as the attack landed on her body. She didn''t have the time to open her mouth. The young man who was still in his inflated state looked at the lifeless body of the young lady. Her eyes were wide open, showing her indignation. He turned to look at Grey, "Animal." Grey looked at the young lady''s corpse. He couldn''t say he felt any sort of pity for her. It was nature, if they were stronger than him, they would''ve killed him, but he was stronger, so he killed them. He had always killed whoever wanted to kill him, and he would not feel any sympathy for these people. 1133 Gnomes? Chapter 1133 Gnomes? The young man fought Grey with all he had, his inflated body was starting to shrink after two minutes, and his strength deteriorating as well. Still, he didn''t stop attacking Grey. He wanted Grey to pay, even if he couldn''t kill him, he wanted to make sure Grey would be wounded and unable to advance. Grey was like a fish in the water, easily dodging all his attacks. With Grey''s space element, it was almost impossible for the young man to even touch his clothes, much less harm him. Knowing the attack power of the young man was at its peak, Grey didn''t want to take any attack from him. The young man started to fall into a desperate state as he attacked in a frenzy. No matter how he attacked, he would always miss Grey by a little bit. He knew this was all due to his inferior speed and he couldn''t help but feel helpless. Grey was too fast. Darkness Elementalists are not known to be the fastest, they might have deadly attack powers, but they were not on the same level as Lightning, Wind, Space, and Light Elementalists when it came to speed. Grey had all these elements, alongside his frightening physical speed as well. Not even a Light Elementalist could catch up to him, much less a Darkness Elementalist. The time flew by and the young man returned to his previous state, well, a state worse than his previous state. He could barely stand after his inflated body dried up. Grey shook his head when he saw the young man. He had already injured the young man when he attacked the first time. "I guess it''s time for you to try the challenge once again." He clicked his tongue and said. The young man was not able to respond, he was bleeding from all seven orifices. Grey used the space element to drop him on the platform. He didn''t leave, he wanted to ensure the young man died before he left. The others who were watching from the side didn''t feel too much sympathy for the trio from the Syphilis Faction. All they felt at the moment was fear, fear of the human devil that was standing before them. Grey was strong and cunning. Having these two characteristics made him even more formidable. The lady on the platform appeared, seeing another near-death participant, she couldn''t help but look at Grey. Grey acted as if he didn''t see her, watching the young man''s movement closely. He could see something wriggling in the young man''s skin. When they were fighting, he didn''t take note of it, only now that the young man was unable to move did he notice it. The lady repeated the same words and attacked. As expected, the young man was unable to block it. However, just as he was about to die, something happened. His body seemed to come back to life and he shot at Grey. Grey''s pupils dilated when he saw this as a great sense of crisis arose in his heart, without waiting for anything else, he used the power of teleportation to leave the place. He could leave since he had already passed the stage. The moment he was wrapped by the teleportation powers, the young man appeared before him, and with vicious laughter, he exploded. Grey let out a muffled groan as blood sipped out from the side of his mouth. Even with the teleportation power covering him, he was still affected by the impact. The others who didn''t pass the stage were not as lucky as he was. They died from the explosion. Grey''s eyes were cold as he appeared on the next stage. A place covered with snow. He couldn''t care about the beauty of the scenery before him, he could still recall the eyes of the young man. "Gnomes." He said through gritted teeth. Yes, the young man was controlled by a Gnome. He might not have been aware, but the moment his consciousness faded after the lady''s attack, his body was controlled by something else. Grey was a hundred percent certain that it was a Gnome who controlled the young man. Gnomes had different abilities, and being able to control a dead person was one of the easier ones. Seeing how determined the Gnome was to kill him, he was sure it was aware of his identity. "Syphilis Faction." He muttered to himself. The probability of them being members of necromancers was not low. They were a Darkness Elementalist Faction which had grown slowly with time. In general, all Darkness Elementalist Factions are suspected of being necromancers, but there was no way to clarify it so others left them alone. There have been necromancers who had managed to sneak into even the top Factions, so all Factions were suspected of working with the Gnomes. Grey was an individual these Gnomes wanted dead, at all costs. They saw him as a threat since he could neutralize their strongest abilities, even using them to his advantage. They didn''t know why he hadn''t taught this technique to others yet, and they were glad he hadn''t. Now, they wanted to kill him before he did. Grey knew these people wanted him dead, and given how many times he had almost been killed by them, he hated them to the core. Anyone affiliated with necromancers or the Gnomes was his enemy. He threw that thought to the back of his head and looked around. The snow-white world was captivating to look at. "I wonder what this trial could be." He muttered. Since they were in a new place that needed some exploring, he brought out the bunny leader and Void to help out. The duo started playing in the snow instead of helping out. Grey couldn''t help but facepalm when he saw this. The duo was clearly still young. Well, so was he, but he felt he was more mature than they were. At least, he didn''t play in the snow the moment he saw it. 1134 Divine Luck ?¦Á?d¦Á¦Ç¦È¦Í¦Å| After letting the duo do as they pleased for a few minutes, he brought their attention back to the matter at hand, finding out how to leave this place. Void wasn¡¯t happy being interrupted, but Grey promised to make a place filled with snow for him when they left this place so he was contended. The bunny leader didn¡¯t have any issues with this as well. They started to explore the place, searching for the opportunity to leave. They walked for over an hour before they saw what they were searching for. In front of them was a large crystal building. They could hear the sounds of people inside the building. Grey looked at the duo, especially at Void. Already knowing Grey¡¯s intent, Void replied, ¡°There are no treasures inside.¡± Grey was a little disappointed when he heard this, but he didn¡¯t give up, he knew there was something to be gained from each stage, he just had to make sure he did his best to get them. Take the last stage for instance, teleporting at will wasn¡¯t the benefit he gained from there, rather, it was an elemental technique. Since he didn¡¯t have light elemental techniques, he asked for this. The lady impacted him with a light elemental attack technique. From what he read about it, he knew this technique would be fearsome. He continued walking and stepped on the crystal building. There were rows of tables, and on the side were shelves filled with books. The moment he stepped in, he saw a familiar figure on one of the tables with a frustrated expression. The person saw him as well. ¡°Buddy, you¡¯re here. Come quick, decode this thing.¡± Klaus didn¡¯t give him the chance to say anything and tossed a book at him. Grey instinctively caught the book and took a glance. He felt his world crumbling when he saw the book. There was a special power in it that threw him off guard. When Klaus saw the change in his expression, he gave an embarrassed smile before saying, ¡°I forgot to tell you to prepare yourself.¡± He was in a haste and forgot about the rules before reading this book. Ones mind must be at ease, and they must cover their eyes with their spiritual consciousness. Grey didn¡¯t do any of that and he was almost fainted from the pressure he felt from it. ¡°What are these books?¡± Grey regained his calm and asked. This was the first time he was seeing a book like this, and to be honest, he was quite intrigued by it. ¡°These are questions you will know from the pages.¡± The projection of the old man appeared once again. He had been keeping track of Grey¡¯s progress and saw everything that happened in the previous round. The fact that Grey was able to kill the lady was a shocking feat. He was just as shocked as when Grey managed to defeat that young man. While the lady was still alive, she was known to be almost invisible among her peers. While growing up, she didn¡¯t suffer any defeats until she got to the Peak where she encountered a few frightening figures, the young man included. She lost to them, but it would be difficult if they wanted to kill her. Grey on the other hand killed her while being distracted by others, it was a shocking feat. ¡°It¡¯s you again.¡± Grey said when he saw the old man. ¦Ñ¦Á§ád¦Á `n?¦Í?| §ãom The old man smiled but didn¡¯t speak any further. ¡°Isn¡¯t there anything you¡¯d like to tell me?¡± Grey asked. ¡°Your friend already told you what you need to know. To leave this place, you must understand how it was built. And all those are in the books.¡± The old man said, before taking his seat. Grey looked at the old man, wondering if he would gain anything if he killed him. As if seeing through Grey¡¯s thoughts, the old man said, ¡°I can¡¯t die.¡± Klaus, who was by the side, was taken aback when he heard this. He didn¡¯t understand why the old man was telling Grey he can¡¯t die. This was the third round and he had been stuck here for a while. He blitzed through the previous stages and felt like he wouldn¡¯t have any problems with the others. Unfortunately, he was stuck here. Grey didn¡¯t bother with the old man any longer and took a seat close to Klaus, glancing through the words in the book. This time, he wasn¡¯t hit with an oppressive wave, rather, he saw some obscure words. ¡°Have you been able to read them?¡± He turned to Klaus. Klaus had been here for a while, so he felt he should know some things about it. ¡°Nope. I¡¯ve tried for hours, but nothing. I think they have to do with arrays.¡± Klaus replied. Grey nodded and focused on the book. While Grey was reading, the old man was staring at him with a strange look. When Klaus tossed the book at Grey, he could¡¯ve stopped it, but he didn¡¯t. He was quite curious about Grey and wanted to know how he would react. To be honest, he didn¡¯t expect Grey to snap out of it within such a short time. ¡®This kid is special. Let¡¯s see if he can get to the last stage.¡¯ He thought to himself before glancing at Klaus. ¡®To think they are friends.¡¯ He didn¡¯t know what to think about Klaus¡¯ situation. If Grey hadn¡¯t come, it was clear as day that there was no way Klaus would¡¯ve been able to get through this stage. But Grey came at the time he was getting close to giving up. ¡®Is it coincidence? Or is his luck just that good?¡¯ He had seen Klaus¡¯ cases, and unlike Grey who worked hard for it, Klaus doesn¡¯t seem to do anything special but he gets rewarded. Even in this stage. Others were teleported a far distance away from this place, but he appeared in the building directly. Klaus¡¯ luck was divine. 1135 Getting Cooked? Grey was focused on reading the book while Klaus was studying the building from the side. The ice was so powerful that no matter how hard he tried, he was unable to leave a scratch on it. He had even tried using the sword he obtained from this place, but the result was the same. He was bounced back by the ice. Some hours later, Grey¡¯s eyes glowed with an understanding light. ¡°I see. Such intricate arrays. Good stuff.¡± He exclaimed. ¡°You can leave this place now?¡± Klaus asked from the side. He was tired of playing with Void and the bunny leader. ?¦Á?d¦Á-¦Ç¦È¦Í¦Å|¡¤?¦Èm He finished the book after a few hours. An Elementalist¡¯s memory was terrifying, the fact that Grey read it for so long was beyond Klaus¡¯ comprehension. Only the old man stared at Grey with a shocked expression. Grey was a genius, he couldn¡¯t deny this fact. Most people would only think of how to leave this place, Grey was different, he didn¡¯t want to just leave this place, he wanted more. If he could understand this array, his ability in terms of arrays would skyrocket. Klaus was a bit disappointed and walked to the side. Staying here was almost like the Moonlight Faction. Inside the Faction, he was covered in snow almost all the time. No matter where he went, he would either see snow or water. He was getting tired of seeing the same scenery. Void and the bunny leader were not as enthusiastic as they were the first time they saw this place. ¡®At least it¡¯s better than the Faction.¡¯ Klaus thought to himself as he caught a snowflake. He could sense some things that were different with this snow and the snow in the Moonlight Faction. After a while, he sat down on the snow outside the building and started cultivating. It was unknown what he was doing. ¡°A Water Elementalist. This place is great for him.¡± The old man muttered as he looked at Klaus. Klaus discovered the difference on his own and started to cultivate it. There was a high possibility that Klaus would have a major power-up once he understood a few things about the water element. His domain¡¯s strength would also see an increase as well. Time passed by in the place. Two days went by in the blink of an eye. Grey had been reading nonstop, while Klaus was still cultivating. It could be said that the duo was lost in what they were doing. Only after the third day did Grey stop reading the books. He already understood some of the things in this place, even a certain cultivation technique that caused the snow here to be different. ¡°Good stuff!¡± He exclaimed. ¡°Tell me we can leave now.¡± Klaus walked into the building once again. ¡°We can.¡± Grey¡¯s answer made some of the people present look at him. When he came here, Klaus was not the only person present. There were still a few unfamiliar faces here, and more had entered the place. Some of these people were lost in the books, it was evident that they were able to understand a few things like Grey. Not everyone was like Klaus who was not serious about these things. ¡°Then what are we waiting for? Let¡¯s go.¡± Klaus urged. Grey chuckled and turned to the old man and bowed, ¡°Thank you for the opportunity senior, we¡¯ll be leaving first.¡± The old man looked at Grey and shook his head, he was about to respond when he saw something. His eyes enlarged when he saw this and he chuckled unknowingly. Grey was taking the book that would enable anyone to comprehend the technique. This was a top ice ability technique that would increase the strength of any Water Elementalist. Grey not only understood how the place was built, but he found a way to gain access to it. ¡®How did he manage to use the technique so quickly?¡¯ The old man had some doubts. Even if Grey was able to figure out the technique, he shouldn¡¯t have been able to use it so soon. What Grey did was use a backdoor to remove the most important aspect of the technique. At this rate, no matter how others understood this place, other than leaving, they wouldn¡¯t be able to get anything. The old man didn¡¯t know if he should be impressed by Grey¡¯s genius or annoyed by his actions. With a shake of his head, he watched as the duo and the two small Magical Beasts vanished. He was quite curious about the next place they would be visiting. ¡­. In another location. Grey appeared in a volcano, but he didn¡¯t find Klaus with him. ¦Ñ¦Á§ád¦Á `n?¦Í?| §ãom ¡°Could he have passed this stage?¡± He looked around curiously. Void and the bunny leader were still with him, but Klaus had been teleported to another location. Luckily he thought of this happening and imparted the technique to Klaus. Klaus was a Water Elementalist, unlike him who had so many elements, Klaus depended fully on his water element. Grey had no idea that this was the first place Klaus appeared, and that he had passed this stage. Grey was still thinking about some things when some creatures made from flames attacked him. The strength of these creatures was average, with a wave of his hand, Grey sent them flying. He didn¡¯t have the time to be bothered with things in the Sage Plane. Even An Elemental Venerable in the Early stages wouldn¡¯t be able to make him flinch. After destroying the first batch, more appeared. ¡°I see.¡± He didn¡¯t leave immediately, rather, he used his fire element to fight against these creatures. He noticed there was an increase in his fire ability, although small, he could still sense it. After using his icy flames to attack, he didn¡¯t sense the same increase as before. He continued fighting with the creatures that formed from the flames in the volcano. As the battle progressed, Grey learned some things. ¡®Increase the hotness.¡¯ Void and the bunny leader were already at the top of the volcano where it was safe. The longer they stayed there, the hotter it got. Not just that, but the creatures are getting stronger. Only someone as crazy as Grey would stay there at the moment. Grey didn¡¯t want to just leave this place. Each place had its benefits, he wouldn¡¯t leave so easily. There should be something to be gained from here. He continued fighting under the intense heat, not withdrawing. If Klaus were here, he would¡¯ve cursed at Grey¡¯s stupidity. This wasn¡¯t the place where the main treasure was located. Grey was unaware of this and continued fighting with the creatures. The creatures had started to show the strength of an Elemental Venerable, given their numbers, Grey knew he would have to leave this place soon enough. As he continued fighting he suddenly started to realize something different. ¡®It¡¯s just like the snow. The heat is different.¡¯ His eyes widened. At first, he didn¡¯t notice it, but as the hotness increased, he sensed the difference between them. The hotness here was more intense than in any other place he had been to. He tried to study it, but it was futile. He couldn¡¯t feel anything from it. His eyes showed disappointment. From how things were going, he knew that learning this technique was going to be difficult. He had been trying for a while now, but he hadn¡¯t been able to understand anything. What was worse was that the heat was getting more intense. If he didn¡¯t leave soon, he would be in danger. After a few more minutes, he gave up and left the volcano. He was sweating profusely. Void and the bunny leader looked at him like he was a moron. They didn¡¯t see the reason behind his actions. Grey didn¡¯t bother to explain anything to them. When he stepped out of the volcano, he couldn¡¯t help but give a self-deprecating laugh. If he stayed inside the volcano for the next three years, he wouldn¡¯t be able to understand it, the reason for this was that there was actually nothing inside to comprehend. The reason why the place was getting hotter was that there was someone who was adding something that looked like a coal inside the volcano. This place couldn¡¯t even be called a volcano, it was more like a furnace, shaped like a volcano. ¡°Why didn¡¯t you tell me?¡± He asked the duo. ¡°You seemed to be enjoying your fight with them. We don¡¯t have any form of entertainment here, so why not watch you get cooked?¡± Void replied honestly. They knew Grey wouldn¡¯t die, so they didn¡¯t think there was any problem with not telling him. Grey on the other hand felt a bit strange when he heard the word ¡®get cooked¡¯. As funny as it sounded in his ears, it was the truth. He was literally getting cooked. There was a giant figure adding coal to the fire, making it hotter. 1136 The Same Reason Chapter 1136 The Same Reason Grey walked to where the giant was and inspected the place. He looked at the place where the giant was placing the coals and fell deep in thought. There was a possibility he would be able to comprehend what he wanted from this place as long as he stayed there a little longer. He felt there was a way he could increase the intensity of his flames. Even if he couldn''t increase the coldness of his icy flames, he wanted to make the normal flames hotter. His icy flames had always been superior to his normal blue flames. As he studied it, he soon got the general idea he wanted. "I''ll be cultivating first, you guys can do whatever you want." Grey didn''t bother with the duo any longer. They were on an island and it was worth exploring, but his aim for now was to see if he could increase the hotness of his flames. Void vanished the moment he said this, the bunny leader chasing after him. The giant had stopped adding coal, apparently, only when there were people would it do that. Grey closed his eyes and started to feel the hotness. ''I wonder if I can do something like this, increasing the hotness of my flame as I use it.'' An idea suddenly struck him, if he created some flames and nurtured it, it would grow hotter and stronger. However, that would take a long time to accomplish. ''I should try and see if I can learn this first, if not, I''ll go with the alternative.'' Time went by in the blink of an eye, Grey was seated in the same spot like a statue. His body glowed with blue flames that gave off intense heat. It had been a few hours now, and he had noticed there was a slight increase in it. This place was giving him some benefits, making this easier. From his observation, this was the perfect place to learn how to increase the heat of his flames. Although he was elated, the time needed for an increase was too long. If it continued at this pace, he would need at least a month or so before he could get it to double the previous state. After some thought, he decided to stay for a day. Once a day was up, he would go to the next round. There was no guarantee that the other places wouldn''t take some time. While he was at the side, he noticed the giant moving. He opened his eyes and looked at the volcano-like furnace with a deep gaze, "Someone''s here." He contacted Void, calling him over. He didn''t know which people they were, it would be bad if they were his enemies, and stronger. He looked on for a while and saw a group of five walked out. ''Vaergahl Family.'' He recognized one of them, Ellis told him about this young man, telling him he was the leader of the younger generation of the Vaergahl Family. According to what Ellis said, he was a genius who managed to acquire a Dragon''s innate skill when he broke through to the Elemental Venerable Plane. The young man had a stern look on his face. When he saw Grey, he stared at him for a long time. For some reason, he could feel that Grey was like them. He nodded at Grey, glanced at the giant, and left with his group. Grey watched them leave and told Void of their presence. Since the people were not enemies, Void didn''t return, but he didn''t wander far either. Grey continued his training. The longer he stayed there, the more people came over. A day soon went by with Grey rooted to the same spot. Grey opened his eyes, and at the same time, the giant stood up and started working again. He couldn''t be bothered with who was entering this place, a lot of people had come and gone. Just as he was about to leave, he saw a figure rushing out of the furnace. He saw the face and smirked, it was someone from the Nether Faction. The young lady who stepped out looked at Grey with a cold expression, "You''re Grey?" Grey nodded as he accessed her, she was someone who was in the Fifth stage of the Elemental Venerable Plane. The young lady attacked the moment she saw Grey nod. Grey could only shake his head and block the young lady''s attack. She was a Multi Elementalist, attacking with three elements. Grey blocked the lightning strike, dodging the wind blades that followed. He was caught by a hand made of water. The hand slammed him into the ground. Grey felt his body rocked, but with his strong physique, it would take more than that to keep him down. He stood up and attacked the young lady with his fire element. The blue flames burned with a ferocious intensity. The young lady used the water element to block the attack before lightning fell from the sky, striking Grey. An earth dome appeared above Grey''s head, a shield hidden in it. The shield was made from the armor. He didn''t want the young lady to see it, so he hid it in the dome. The lightning strike was blocked by the combination of the earth dome and armor. Grey disappeared from where he was standing, attacking the young lady from another angle. The young lady blocked the attack, retreating a few steps back. The intensity of Grey''s flames was not like anything she had seen before. She paused, glancing at Grey from a few meters away. Grey didn''t attack as well, staring at her. He knew fighting here wasn''t the best thing. There was no way to recover elemental essence. The young lady knew this as well. She had a shocked expression on her face. She was in the Fifth stage of the Elemental Venerable Plane, Grey was only in the First stage, yet, he was fighting on equal footing with her. It was a shocking thing to experience. The reason she attacked was that she felt she would be able to beat him, but that doesn''t seem to be the case. "Do you still want to continue?" Grey asked with a grin. They exchanged a few moves and there was no way to know who was stronger. Of course, he felt he would be able to beat the young lady in a battle. The young lady was about to respond when they saw the giant moving. Grey turned his attention to the furnace. The giant hadn''t even been able to add more coal when a figure flashed out. The figure was someone Grey was familiar with. The young lady from the Syphilis Faction. When she saw Grey, her eyes lit up and she attacked immediately. The young lady from the Nether Faction didn''t speak and attacked as well. Grey was currently in their middle, so he was attacked from both sides. He didn''t panic, with a sidestep, he dodged the attack of the young lady from the Syphilis Faction and switched places with her. His movement was swift, making it hard for the young lady to react on time. She appeared, facing the attack of the young lady from the Nether Faction. She blocked the attack and snorted, focusing on Grey. Grey smiled when he saw them looking at him. "Why are you guys so bent on fighting with me?" He asked coolly. He wasn''t feeling any pressure facing the duo. Against one person, his chances might not be high, but against two or more, he had the confidence he could mess with them. With his space element, he was not someone they wanted to be entangled with. The young lady from the Syphilis Faction looked at him with a smile, "We are enemies, I''ll naturally want you dead." "When did we become enemies? Did I offend you?" Grey asked. "You took the secret from us." The young lady from the Syphilis Faction replied. "Same here." The young lady from the Nether Faction said. Grey''s offense was the same for the duo, he fought against their Factions in a competition for a secret realm and won both times. On both occasions, Grey could be said to single-handedly win the competition. This was why both parties hated him. Grey couldn''t be bothered with these, "I can''t be blamed for your incompetence." His reply infuriated the duo and they struck out. Grey blocked the attack, dodging the ones he couldn''t. They didn''t give him any chance to do anything, making sure he was only on the defensive. He didn''t even have the chance to switch places. The duo wasn''t going to give him that opportunity. Void and the bunny leader soon appeared, but they were not as strong as the people fighting, so they didn''t join in. Grey had asked them if they knew how to leave this place, and they searched for it. Right now, they could leave whenever they wanted. Grey thought about it and decided to leave the young ladies. He couldn''t fight them together. 1137 Old Turtle ¡°Don¡¯t let him leave.¡± The young lady from the Syphilis Faction chased after Grey as he ran in another direction. The young lady from the Nether Faction snorted at the young lady¡¯s words but she still gave chase. Sensing the duo chasing after him, Grey snorted. ¡°Don¡¯t think I can¡¯t fight you, I¡¯m just too lazy to care about you two now. I¡¯ll play with you two next time.¡± Grey didn¡¯t stop his movements. Fighting against these two at the moment was just a waste of time. With his strength, he could win if he gave everything, but he didn¡¯t want to at the moment. He didn¡¯t know what he would have to face later on, fighting to the death with these people at the moment was simply not worth it. The duo felt Grey was afraid since he was escaping, so they felt more invigorated to chase him. Grey could care less, after getting the direction of where he should head from Void, he didn¡¯t slow down, instead, he increased his speed. The duo who were chasing after him, especially the young lady from the Nether Faction, was shocked. She had both the lightning and wind element, so she could be said to be very fast. She was also in the Fifth stage of the Elemental Venerable Plane while Grey was still in the First stage, yet, she couldn¡¯t catch up to him. No matter how she increased her strength, she was not able to keep up with him, and the distance was getting further and further. The young lady from the Syphilis Faction was even worse, although her strength was stronger than Grey¡¯s, she was even slower than the other young lady. She was a Darkness Elementalist, and speed had never been her best aspect. Grey blitzed through the entire forest, getting to the spot to teleport to the next area. He knew the possibility of them entering the same stage was very low, hence he didn¡¯t care. Void and the bunny leader appeared on his shoulder and he stepped into the portal, heading to the next stage. The young lady from the Nether Faction was a step slower, before she arrived Grey had been teleported away. She didn¡¯t waste any time and stepped into the portal as well, leaving this place. The young lady from the Syphilis Faction was the last to appear. She was five seconds slower than the young lady from the Nether Faction. Seeing no one present, she followed the footsteps of the other two, stepping into the portal and disappearing from the area. ¡­. Grey¡¯s vision blurred, and some moments later, he appeared in another location. This place was more serene than the previous one. He was standing on a quiet hillside. ¡°Hmm, interesting.¡± He looked around. He couldn¡¯t see anything except flowers. Void and the bunny leader came out once again, seeing the place, they started to explore it. Grey walked in another direction while they went in another direction. Before long, they soon saw something different. Grey was the one who saw this and called the other two over. The hill they were actually standing on was not a hill, rather, it was the back of a gigantic turtle. Grey couldn¡¯t fathom how long this turtle had been here. If not for the fact that he climbed down the hill and saw the strange head, as well as the shape of the supposed hill, he wouldn¡¯t have thought this was a turtle. ¦Ñ¦Á§ád¦Á `n?¦Í?| §ãom ¡°Wow! Do you think it will taste good?¡± Void exclaimed the moment he saw it. All he cared about whenever he saw other Magical Beasts was how to eat them, he wasn¡¯t concerned about anything else. Food was the most important! Well, after shiny things. Grey shook his head, but he saw the bunny leader also staring at the turtle with an interested look. It was obvious it was thinking about what Void said. ¡°I thought you were supposed to eat only plants?¡± Grey couldn¡¯t help but ask. ¡®What do you know? I¡¯m a Magical Beast, I can eat whatever I want to eat, meat included.¡¯ The bunny leader said, ¡®Bunny meat excluded. You¡¯re not allowed to eat bunnies. We are divine creatures. Cats can be eaten.¡¯ Void bared his fangs at the bunny leader when he heard this. Grey chuckled when he heard this but didn¡¯t say anything, his interest was on the large turtle in front of him. The turtle hadn¡¯t made any movements since they appeared. ¡°Do you think it¡¯s dead?¡± Void asked curiously. ¡°I don¡¯t think so. If I recall correctly, turtles have long lifespans. Almost double that of an ordinary Magical Beast in the same stage.¡± Grey replied. Magical Beasts had a better lifespan compared to humans, but turtles were special, they were one of the few Magical Beasts with frightening long lifespans. Even a turtle that doesn¡¯t cultivate can easily live more than three hundred years. Those who manage to cultivate can live longer. ?¦Á?d¦Á-¦Ç¦È¦Í¦Å|¡¤?¦Èm The bunny leader was the first to see it and turned the attention of the other two to it. The turtle opened its large eyes and stared at the trio who were floating in the air in front of it. ¡°A human?¡± It spoke in an archaic manner, its voice filled with age. ¡°It spoke.¡± Void blurted out. Other than Void, he hadn¡¯t seen any other Magical Beasts that could talk. This turtle in front of him just spoke, which surprised him. He knew Magical Beasts gained the ability to speak from the Eighth Rank. At the thought of it, his heart tightened when the turtle was staring at him. He might be strong, but against an Elemental Sovereign, he would not be able to even defend himself, much less put up a fight. This turtle must be thousands of years old, fighting it would be even more difficult. The turtle saw the change in Grey¡¯s face and said, ¡°I have no interest in killing you, human boy.¡± ¡°Hmm, where are you from?¡± It didn¡¯t speak to Grey any further, turning its attention to Void. 1138 Learning An Earth Element Technique Void looked at the turtle, after some time he replied. ¡°I don¡¯t know.¡± The turtle wasn¡¯t surprised he could talk, Void was different, from the moment it saw him, it could already feel he was special. ¡°You should be from that place. I think you can only find out when you reach the stage.¡± The turtle said. ¡°What place?¡± Grey was the one who asked the question. ¡°You¡¯re still too weak, you¡¯ll find out when you get strong enough.¡± The turtle said in a mysterious manner. ¡°Can you tell me?¡± Void asked. ¡°There¡¯s no need for you to know about that information for now, it will not do you any good.¡± The turtle replied, ¡°I don¡¯t really know much about it, but I suspect that¡¯s where you¡¯re from.¡± ¡°Where¡¯s that?¡± Void asked. ¡°There¡¯s a higher realm.¡± The turtle thought for a while before saying, ¡°When you get there, you will know why I said you¡¯re too weak to know about it now.¡± ¡°A higher realm?¡± Grey wore a confused expression. ¡°Yes.¡± The turtle replied but didn¡¯t want to say anything about it. Void asked, but the turtle kept mute about it. ¡°How long have you been here?¡± Grey asked. ¡°I can¡¯t remember, I¡¯ve been here for so long.¡± The turtle shook its head. It had been here for a some time now, even before the fall of the Twilight Faction. ¡°Alright, how can we advance to the next stage?¡± Grey didn¡¯t ask any more questions, going to the important part. The turtle explained the rules to Grey. Apparently, Grey was the only one who had entered this place. To get past this place, Grey would have to comprehend a technique passed on to him by the turtle. The turtle was an Earth Elementalist, and was very proficient with the earth element. The technique it wanted to teach Grey had to do with the earth element. Grey listened to the teaching of the turtle, and after a while he paused. The turtle was teaching him a peak defense technique, and if Grey could learn it, his defense would increase. The turtle closed its eyes after it was done teaching Grey the technique. Unless Grey learned the technique and used it here, he would not be able to leave this place. Grey started to learn the technique, not wanting to waste any time. ¡­. On another side. The old man¡¯s projection had a shocked expression on his face. ¡°How did he get there?¡± The place Grey appeared in wasn¡¯t part of the places people headed. This turtle was a beast he couldn¡¯t order so when creating this place, no one added the turtle to it. The turtle must¡¯ve been the one who brought Grey over on its own. The reason Grey was taken there was most likely because of Void who was with him. The old man didn¡¯t know Void was the reason Grey was taken there. ¦Ñ¦Á§ád¦Á `n?¦Í?| §ãom He was shocked by the fact that Grey was actually taken there. From what he was seeing, he could tell that the turtle was imparting a technique to Grey. This would make it the third technique Grey was learning, and all of them were top tier techniques in the place. The ice technique he learned in the ice building, the light technique he learned from the lady, and now he was learning an earth elemental technique from the turtle. He also saw Grey comprehending something from the last stage he appeared on, so there¡¯s a chance he got something good from there. ¡°Who¡¯s luckier?¡± The old man looked at another location, there was Klaus who strolled into a place that was helping him increase his cultivation stage. In all the stages, this was the only place one could increase their cultivation stage. On a normal basis, those who appeared there would have to go through a tough test to try to get there. Not everyone could even get there after passing through the test. Klaus on the other hand was taken directly to the place where he could increase his cultivation. This could make people pull their hair out in frustration, even the old man was a bit envious. The old man sighed, staring at the two. There was Alice who was not having a bad run as well. Other than these three, there were still a few who had caught the attention of the told man. Grey was a freakish entity, after Grey, Klaus was the next one. ¡­. Time ran as Grey was cultivating there. Before he knew it, a day had gone by. He hadn¡¯t been able to learn the technique at the moment. He opened his eyes and looked at the turtle. ¡°Senior, I can¡¯t learn it in a short time. I have to leave soon.¡± Grey shook his head in disappointment. ¡°Don¡¯t worry, the time here is slower than outside.¡± The turtle replied. ?¦Á?d¦Á-¦Ç¦È¦Í¦Å|¡¤?¦Èm If he knew of a technique like this, wouldn¡¯t he be able to cultivate all he wanted? The turtle nodded, ¡°Don¡¯t get your hopes up, you can¡¯t learn it.¡± Grey was a bit disappointed when he heard this, but he didn¡¯t speak about it any further. This was the first time he was hearing about anything related to slowing down time. He didn¡¯t think there would be anything like this. ¡°One day here is two hours outside. So you don¡¯t have to worry.¡± The turtle reassured Grey. Grey nodded and focused fully cultivating. He wanted to learn this technique. Even if he didn¡¯t perfect it, he wanted to at least get a few things on it. The technique involved increasing his body¡¯s strength. With that, his physical strength would skyrocket. The turtle didn¡¯t speak any further and closed its eyes when it saw that Grey had continued cultivating. The bunny leader and Void were playing around, not bothering with anything. They focused on playing. ¡®Do you think we can take the turtle?¡¯ The bunny leader asked Void. Void looked at it and shook his head, ¡°Difficult.¡± 1139 Four Domains Chapter 1139 Four Domains Void and the bunny leader were planning on how to turn the turtle into turtle soup while Grey was focused on his training. This was a good opportunity for him, so he didn''t want to waste it. ¡­. Two weeks went by in a flash. Grey finally opened his eyes and looked at the turtle. The turtle seemed to sense his movements and opened its eyes to take a glance at Grey, a little hint of doubt flashing through its eyes, unsure of why Grey stopped cultivating. "I''m done." Grey spoke up after a moment of silence. "Done¡­ with what?" The turtle was taken aback. Grey''s skin started to harden under the astonished eyes of the turtle. It had been just over fifteen days, and Grey had gotten the hang of the technique. Although it couldn''t be said that Grey had grasped it perfectly. He had however gotten the basics and could use it in the future. The more he used it, the better it would get. The turtle continued staring at Grey in amazement, it couldn''t say a word. The reason for this was that he knew just how difficult it was to master this technique. Grey used only fifteen days, it didn''t even want to believe it. If not for the fact that it knew Grey hadn''t come across this technique beforehand, it wouldn''t have believed Grey learned it in such a short time. ''Genius!'' The turtle''s eyes lit up as he looked at Grey. This was a true genius. Such a difficult technique was comprehended and used within such a short time. It didn''t even know how to classify Grey. To it, others who were regarded as geniuses were just normal people in the presence of Grey. "How long did I cultivate?" Grey asked curiously. He wasn''t aware of the time and was afraid he must''ve stayed for too long. "Around two weeks." The turtle replied. Grey did a rough calculation and realized it was just over a day. It wasn''t bad since his gain was massive. This technique was not the only thing he gained here. Actually, he used about ten days to learn the basics of the technique, and his greatest gain was the increase in the elemental grade of his earth element and the awakening of his earth domain. Grey was only in the First stage of the Elemental Venerable Plane, yet he already had four domains. If people found out about this, they might pull their hair out in frustration. Presently, both his fire and earth elements were in the emerald elemental grade, a shocking feat. Of course, he was still behind Void whose elemental grade for all his elements was the legendary black grade. The turtle had no idea Grey completed his training within the two weeks and even used some time to awaken his earth domain. Grey used the momentum from learning the new technique, the increase of his elemental grade to his advantage, and the earth domain opened up quite easily. He couldn''t hide the pride in his eyes, with his current abilities, his defense had shot up by a large margin. One has to know that he still had dragon scales. Adding this to it would make his body harder than most weapons. There''s also the armor. With Grey''s current capabilities, he might not be able to beat a Late stage Elemental Venerable, but there was nothing they could do to him as well. No matter how they attack, they would not be able to break through his defense. This was a freakish ability, especially given the fact that Grey had terrifying explosive power. All he needed was an opportunity and he might be able to one-shot stronger opponents. The turtle didn''t keep Grey there any longer, "Since you''ve learned the technique, you can leave. Remember, you''re not allowed to pass this on." Grey nodded to the turtle''s words. The turtle was the master of the technique, and since it didn''t want him to pass it to others then he wouldn''t. Void and the bunny leader who had wandered off to explore the place came back on Grey''s call. The duo had a bored expression, it was clear that they didn''t like their stay here. There was nothing interesting to do. Grey thanked the turtle, and after bowing he vanished from the spot, sent to the next stage. The moment Grey left, a figure appeared. "You taught him your technique?" The old man asked. He had been keeping tabs on what was happening here. "Yes. That was the requirement to leave." The turtle replied. "And he learned it?" The old man looked at the turtle with a skeptical look. "Yes, in two weeks." The turtle said with a dry laugh. It couldn''t even hide its shock. "Two weeks?!" The old man exclaimed. The turtle nodded and commented, "He''s the greatest genius I''ve ever seen." The old man looked at the turtle, still in disbelief. If Grey really learned the technique in such a short time, then there was nothing wrong with what the turtle said. Although the praise was high, it wasn''t undeserving. Grey was a shocking genius, this, the old man was aware of. Even still, he didn''t expect him to exceed his expectations. "Where did he get the cat?" The turtle had a strange look on its face. "I don''t know. He came in with the cat. It must have always been with him." The old man replied, he was still in shock. The turtle didn''t speak any further. The old man vanished after some time, he was still in disbelief. ¡­. Grey appeared in a large building, and the moment he appeared, he saw a strange little girl with five others dressed in black robes. The little girl flashed a brilliant smile when she saw Grey and vanished almost immediately with the five others. They had just succeeded in the task and were on the verge of leaving when Grey appeared, when she saw Grey, although she felt regretful, she knew another opportunity to meet him would come. 1140 Not Wanting To Breakthrough Grey stared at the spot where the little girl disappeared for a long time with an odd look. He had a strange feeling when he saw the little girl and an ominous premonition. He could almost feel the threat of death just from looking at her. ¡°What a strange girl.¡± Void commented. ¡°She¡¯s dangerous.¡± Grey¡¯s expression was dark. From the look the little girl gave him, he could tell she seemed to know who he was. If that was the case, she didn¡¯t have any good intentions toward him. Even with his current strength, he still felt danger which meant that the little girl definitely had the strength to threaten his life. He rarely had intuitions like this, but whenever he did, they were mostly true. He threw the thought to the back of his head and looked around. He didn¡¯t have the time to care about someone that was not around, when the issue arises, he would deal with it. For now, his plan was to get stronger. ¡°I wonder how Reynolds and the others are fairing.¡± Grey muttered. He came in with Alice, and had seen Klaus. Both were doing relatively fine, although he didn¡¯t know how Alice was fairing since they separated, he didn¡¯t think she would be doing badly. Klaus had expectedly broken through to the Elemental Venerable Plane when he saw him. His only regret was not asking Klaus how many stages he had gone through. Grey stopped thinking about all this and focused on what was in front of him. He started exploring the building, and some moments later, he realized he had to solve a puzzle to get through to the next stage. There seemed to be different variants of the puzzle, he guessed this had to do with the rewards each person would get. Solving the one that presents itself to you would give you the reward for that particular puzzle. According to what he found out, there were around fifteen puzzles. Grey didn¡¯t think too much about this puzzle, the reason being that it was somewhat linked to the array he learned in the snow world with Klaus. Due to the fact that he learned the array to the smallest detail, he had no issues with these puzzles. Directly bypassing the array set up for the puzzles, he broke through it within the space of a few minutes. A golden light appeared on the roof of the building when he was done passing the stage. Grey raised his head to look at the item, and only after a few seconds did he see it properly. He said slowly, ¡°A beast¡¯s core.¡± This was the first time he was seeing one like this. ?¦Á?d¦Á-¦Ç¦È¦Í¦Å|¡¤?¦Èm ¡°Good stuff.¡± Grey flew into the air and grabbed it. He had used up a lot of essences when he was fighting against the two ladies from the Syphilis and Nether Factions. The moment he touched the beast¡¯s core, he felt a powerful and rich amount of essence gush into his body. He felt all his pores open and became incredibly relaxed. Not just that, but his aura started to climb as well. Before he could control it, he had gotten to the Second stage of the Elemental Venerable Plane. Grey couldn¡¯t help but give a wry smile, he didn¡¯t plan on breaking through so early, but it was beyond his control. After the increase in his earth elemental grade and the awakening of his earth domain, he felt he was really close to breaking through to the Second stage. His aura didn¡¯t stop there, it continued climbing, heading for the Third stage. Grey thought about it and decided against breaking through to the Third stage. Void and the bunny leader were present, so he decided to share parts of the core with them to stop his breakthrough. He wanted to make sure he didn¡¯t break through as hurriedly as he previously did. As he was growing stronger, he started to notice a few things that were wrong with breaking through quickly. First off, his control over his strength was lacking, and compared to old timers, he wasn¡¯t as powerful in the same stage. The reason he had been getting the upper hand when fighting against these people was mainly due to his high explosive attack power. He also had other elements to make up for any issues he would face. Once he gets used to his strength, he would be able to use an even greater explosive attack that might be well over his cultivation stage. For now, only his physical body could help with that. His fire element had also achieved this feat as well. Void glared at the bunny leader while he greedily absorbed the essences short at them. He got a larger portion since he was stronger and had been with Grey for so long. The bunny leader got around half the size of what Void got. The trio absorbed the essence with the rest of their time there. Some minutes later, they were done with this and it was time to leave. Grey didn¡¯t stay any longer, this was the sixth round he was clearing, and he didn¡¯t know how many more rounds he would need to pass through before they could leave this place. According to what he was told before entering this secret realm, they shouldn¡¯t stay more than a month or so. They had been here for a few weeks now, so the sooner he left this place the better for them. While Grey was heading to the next round, the old man almost fainted. Grey didn¡¯t stay in that round for more than fifteen minutes, and the reason for that was that he was absorbing the essence of the beast¡¯s core. One has to know that the beast core had been there for a long time and no one had been able to solve all the puzzles, Grey, on the other hand, did it within a few minutes which was shocking, to say the least. 1141 Turned To Bones Chapter 1141 Turned To Bones Grey was continuously shattering the old man''s view. "He only has two more rounds and he''ll complete the stages." He muttered to himself. In total, there were eight rounds, adding the turtle''s round, it was nine but this only applied to Grey. Others were still in their third or fourth round, Grey had already reached his seventh. It was a shocking thing given some people entered this place before he did. ¡­. Grey''s vision blurred, and when it became normal, he appeared in another space. This place was different from the other places he had been to. Unlike those places, he seemed to be caught in space here. Other than the vast emptiness, he couldn''t see anything else. "Hey guys, you two are good with the space element. Are we stuck somewhere or is this another test?" Grey asked Void and the bunny leader. The duo were masters with the space element, so he wanted to know if they could figure out what was happening. "Not trapped." Void replied within a few seconds. ''Head in that direction, there are some spatial fluctuations there.'' The bunny leader pointed in a particular direction. Void, on the other hand, pointed in another direction, "That way, I can sense some fluctuations there." Grey was caught in a dilemma, the reason for this was because he had also sensed a spatial fluctuation, but it was different from the one the duo were pointing to. "I can sense a spatial fluctuation over there." Grey pointed behind him. The direction Void and the bunny leader sensed the spatial fluctuations were different from each other. Grey thought for a while before deciding, "We''ll each go to the places we sensed the spatial fluctuations. We''ve been together, so even if we get separated, the chances of appearing on the same round is higher." He didn''t know how many rounds were left, but he felt there was a reward in each of the places they were sensing spatial fluctuations. With this thought, he wanted to make sure they got the best out of this place. It would be a shame if they missed out on something great just because they wanted to be together. Void and the bunny leader had no issues with going separate ways. They all turned in different directions and headed into the spatial tunnels that appeared when they got to the place they were sensing the spatial fluctuations from. They exchanged glances and walked in. Grey appeared in a wasteland, the moment he stepped foot into the place, he felt his skin start to hurt. He slightly panicked and looked around. Bones of large beasts were scattered across the place. There was no sign of life, only a sand filled place with large bones. It was clear that the owner of the bones died a long time ago. He took a step and heard a crunching sound, looking at his foot, he noticed he was stepping on the skull of a human. The skull shattered the moment he stood on it. ''My body is drying up.'' He was a bit taken aback. At the moment, he was not losing essence. According to how things had been going here, he should be more worried about his essence, but in this space, he didn''t seem to have that fear, his main fear was the life-force seemingly slowly leaving his body. He unconsciously used his light element to try to balance it, stopping the outflow of his life-force while also enhancing it. As he walked further into the wasteland, he could feel the force sucking out his life-force increase with each step. From where he was standing, he could see the shape of a building. Without needing anyone to tell him, he knew that was his only way out of this place. The only issue was that advancing was very difficult. His life-force was leaving faster than he could replenish it. At this rate, he would be all dried up, if not dead by the time he got to the building. A look of worry appeared on his face, there was no way back. He could only advance, but advancing meant that he might die. His light element was the weakest of all his elements, making his situation worse. Had he been stuck in a place with extreme cold, he would''ve been able to use his fire element to fight against it, but here, he couldn''t do anything. "Damn it! Who created this place?" He cursed under his voice and sat on the ground. He wasn''t even halfway through the journey, but he had already been facing this much difficulty. The thought of how difficult it would get as he advanced made him shiver. Determination flashed through his eyes, "I have to increase the elemental grade of my light element." His only chance of getting through this place was by increasing his light elemental grade. Once he could at least catch up with the outflow of life-force, he would be out of danger. His target was getting into that building. With both eyes closed, he started to control the light essence in his body to repair his skin that was starting to fall off. When it got to a stage, he gave up on that and focused on stopping the outflow of his life-force, that was more important than his appearance, as long as he survived, how he looked doesn''t matter. A few hours later, he felt the outflow of life-force reduce significantly. He heaved a sigh of relief and started walking forward once again. Presently, most of his skin had fallen off and just his flesh and bones were left. He looked hideous, but he didn''t care. It wasn''t like there was anyone present. Even if there was someone there, it had nothing to do with him, his aim was surviving. He could only walk for around five hundred meters before stopping again. The force sucking his life-force had increased once again. With no choice, he was forced to stop and repeat the previous process. This time it was longer before he was able to stabilize it. He continued the same process, going for some meters, pausing and stabilizing it. Hours later he got to the door of the building, his flesh all dried up, he was almost left with only bones. 1142 Morons ¡®How many people would survive such a condition?¡¯ Grey thought to himself as he walked into the building. Not everyone had the determination to hang on, it was evident from the bones he passed through. Some might have had the will, but they didn¡¯t have the strength to continue. Grey was able to quickly figure out a way to solve the issue. A few people might think they would be able to brave through it, only after getting to a position where it was irreconcilable would they know it was a bad decision. The building looked ordinary, other than the futon placed in the middle, there was nothing else. Grey took in everything in the building and realized the force he felt sucking his life force had vanished. He heaved a sigh of relief and tried to recover. Seeing his condition, he could only give a wry smile. It would definitely take him a few hours before he could go back to how he previously looked. ¡°Hopefully Klaus and the others don¡¯t enter this place, if not, it would be dangerous.¡± He muttered and walked over to seat on the futon. Some words appeared in the air when he took his seat. ¡°Strength your weaknesses and you will be invincible¡± Grey thought about the words for a while before it clicked. It wasn¡¯t that this place naturally targeted life force, it targeted his life force because his light element was his weakest element. ¡°Such a strange place. What would happen to the likes of Void then?¡± He felt a bit curious. Void doesn¡¯t seem to have any weaknesses, all his elements were on the same grade, and his physical body was also very powerful. It could be said that Void was the perfect Elementalist, well, Magical Beast. This place wouldn¡¯t be able to be a danger to Void since he didn¡¯t seem to have weaknesses in his cultivation. There might be a few things Grey didn¡¯t know about, so he wasn¡¯t too optimistic about Void not really having any weaknesses. He sat down on the futon and decided to focus on his light element. Since this place wanted him to work on his weaknesses, then he would try to see if he could increase the elemental grade of his light element. Besides, he learned a light elemental attack, without sufficient control over his light element, he wouldn¡¯t be able to use the technique. Time flew by in the blink of an eye and it was the next day. Grey opened his eyes and looked around, a bit stunned. This place was too magical. His light elemental grade had increased, and not by a small margin. It was previously in the blue grade, but now, it had shot to the Red grade, skipping the Violet grade. The thought of staying here a few days crept past Grey¡¯s mind, but he gave up on the thought. He knew their time there was limited, so he had to make sure he left as soon as possible. Advancing two grades was a big boost to his light element, although it was still the lowest, it was better than its previous state. By the time he stopped cultivating, he could already sense the power of teleportation around him and knew that he had passed the requirements to head to the next round. His only concern now was Void and the bunny leader. He didn¡¯t want to advance without them, but he knew there was nothing he could do about it. ¡®Since we¡¯ve passed through so many stages together, the likelihood of us appearing on the same stage is quite high. As long as they don¡¯t wander around, I should be able to find them.¡¯ ¦Ñ¦Á§ád¦Á `n?¦Í?| §ãom His thought process was not groundless. They¡¯ve gone through each of the last six stages together, including this stage making it seven. He didn¡¯t think there would be more than ten stages. Given the fact that they had gone through seven stages, the possibility of them showing up in the same stage was quite high. He didn¡¯t waste any more time and teleported out of the place. ¡­. At another location. Klaus could be seen in a wretched state, his clothes were destroyed as he rushed through the area. Behind him, a group of three could be seen chasing after him. He had surprisingly gotten to the Second stage of the Elemental Venerable Plane, but each of the people chasing after him had a higher cultivation stage. These people were from the Syphilis Faction. They recognized Klaus was traveling with Grey and since he couldn¡¯t provide Grey, they wanted to kill him. ¡°F*ck! Why don¡¯t you guys come one at a time?¡± He spat on the ground, incensed. ¡°Geniuses my foot. You¡¯re all lucky Grey isn¡¯t here, if not, I¡¯d have killed you all.¡± He shouted at the trio while running. They hadn¡¯t been able to kill him, even with their number and cultivation stage advantages, they were still stopped by Klaus¡¯ shocking defensive powers. Klaus had the ability to defend against an attack from a Fifth stage Elemental Venerable at this point, but that was all under the premise he was under attack from a single person. He was being attacked by three people, although none of them had gotten to the Fifth stage, two were in the Fourth stage and the last one was in the Third stage. ¡°Don¡¯t run, we won¡¯t harm you.¡± One of the trio said with a playful smile. ?¦Á?d¦Á¦Ç¦È¦Í¦Å| ¡°Yes, just stop right there.¡± The young lady said. ¡°Alright, to be sure you guys are going to stop too, I¡¯ll count one to three and we¡¯ll stop at three.¡± Klaus said with a relieved expression. The trio looked at each other and smiled, they felt Klaus believed them. ¡°We¡¯ll stop and then attack him once we get close.¡± They whispered to each other. ¡°One, two, three.¡± Klaus counted and to his surprise, they stopped. Klaus didn¡¯t know if they were dumb or thought he was foolish, he didn¡¯t care and continued running. He wasn¡¯t going to foolishly stop and give them the opportunity to catch him. 1143 Easy To Bully Klaus darted through the buildings, looking for a good spot to hide. He wasn¡¯t as fast as Grey or Alice and Reynolds, those were Lightning Elementalists, Grey was even more freakish having the overwhelming space element as well as the light element. While running, he seemed to catch a glimpse of a figure appearing close to him. ¡°Void?¡± He was a bit skeptical. Since Void was present, Grey should be as well, but he didn¡¯t see Grey¡¯s silhouette, just the small silhouettes of Void as he was hanging around. ¡°Wait, Void!¡± He yelled out with all his might. He knew Void was powerful, even if Grey was not present, he would use the help of Void to help him fight against these people. Some distance away, Void was laying on a rooftop, watching the bunny leader chew on a fruit it brought out of its storage. At first he was a bit confused since they haven¡¯t been able to get any delicious fruits on the way, however, he recalled the bunny leader had been staying in a garden filled with precious fruits all its life, of course it would have a large collection of good things. ¡°Hey, give me some.¡± He demanded. ¡®This is the last one.¡¯ The bunny leader replied with a casual expression as it tossed the rest of the fruit into its mouth. Before Void could even say a word another fruit appeared on its small paws and the bunny leader continued eating it with a nonchalant expression. No one would think this was the same bunny that said it was eating the last one. Void was about to explode when he sensed two familiar auras, he heard his name being shouted from where one of the auras was coming from. He turned his head to look in that direction and saw Klaus running in his direction with all his might. ¡°Huh?¡± He was a bit surprised. He turned to the other side and saw Reynolds walking over with a smile on his face, waving his hands at him. When Klaus saw how Void turned his head to the other side, he felt dejected while cursing at the cat in his head. Only when he got closer did he see Reynolds walking over. Reynolds was still smiling when he saw Klaus running frantically in their direction. ¡°Why are you running, bud?¡± He couldn¡¯t help but ask Klaus, while alerted, he was prepared to attack at any given time. ¡°Void, where¡¯s Grey?¡± Klaus didn¡¯t reply, turning his attention to Void. ¡°He should still be in the previous stage. He¡¯ll come soon, or maybe later. I¡¯ll just wait for him here.¡± Void replied. Klaus had managed to give the trio chasing him a good distance, so he was able to pause for a few seconds. ¡°I¡¯m being chased by those animals from the Syphilis Faction, three to be precise.¡± He explained, telling them of the strength of the people after him. When Reynolds heard it was people from the Syphilis Faction, he quickly understood what was happening and his Elemental Warrior appeared. During the stages he had gone through, he had gained a lot and was already at the Peak of the Sage Plane, his Elemental Warrior on the other hand had crossed to the Elemental Venerable Plane.¦Ñ¦Á§ád¦Á `n?¦Í?| §ãom ¡°Void can you stop one of them?¡± Reynolds asked. Void nodded. Fighting against people in the Fifth and Sixth stages of the Elemental Venerable Plane was not something that was difficult for him, much less these people. According to Klaus, the strongest person was in the Fourth stage, and although there were two of them, it wasn¡¯t an issue for him. ¡°Even if he can hold one back, what can we do? We still lack the attack power to actually fight against them. There¡¯s still one in the Fourth stage and another in the Third stage.¡± Klaus said. ¡°Can you give me the chance to attack one of them without having to defend myself?¡± Reynolds asked. ¡°I can block their attacks for a second or two, is that enough?¡± Klaus replied without hesitation. ¡°Enough, I¡¯ll show you my new trick.¡± Reynolds said with a grin. Klaus raised an eyebrow but didn¡¯t say much. He didn¡¯t think Reynolds is as impressive as he is, even if Reynolds did something that was above his expectations, he still wouldn¡¯t agree that Reynolds was better than him. The only reason he doesn¡¯t have the same thoughts about Grey was that Grey couldn¡¯t be regarded as a human, so he didn¡¯t count. ¡®What¡¯s more impressive than me being able to block the attacks of three people who are all above me in cultivation stages?¡¯ Klaus scoffed internally. Reynolds didn¡¯t bother with the eyes Klaus was giving him. Before long, the trio from the Syphilis Faction appeared. When they saw Void, they froze and looked around. It was common knowledge that Grey had a small black cat with him, and the cat with Klaus and Reynolds fits that description. ¡°You filthy thing, you lied to us.¡± One of the duo in the Fourth stage said coldly, not getting close to them. They knew how strong Grey was and knew not to go within a certain distance of him. ¡°Why are you standing there? Are you afraid? Come, attack. Fools!¡± Klaus cursed. ?¦Á?d¦Á- ¦Ç¦È¦Í¦Å|¡¤?¦Èm ¡°To think that people like you three were actually searching for Grey. You¡¯re all too scared to even take a move now.¡± Klaus mocked, after a few seconds he realized something and cursed, ¡°F*ck! Do you people think I¡¯m easy to bully? F*ck your entire family!¡± He instantly started cursing at them. These people were afraid of Grey, but they didn¡¯t hold back when they saw him and started chasing after him. This showed they were not scared of him. Reynolds shook his head when he saw Klaus blowing his top off. ¡°Calm down, it¡¯s not like you¡¯re not afraid of Grey.¡± He said with a playful smile. ¡°Who¡¯s afraid of Grey, I can beat him up even with my hands tied.¡± Klaus retorted before sending out an unexpected attack at the trio. They never thought Klaus would take the initiative to attack them, so they were a bit stunned before reacting accordingly. 1144 Reynolds New Strength The trio blocked Klaus¡¯ attack, but Void moved out at this moment, using his space element to lock onto the two in the Fourth stage of the Elemental Venerable Plane. ¡°F*ck! Void leave that guy for us, take this weak one.¡± Klaus shouted angrily. Of the duo Void wanted to take with him, one of them was a young lady while the other was a young man. The young man was the one who recognized him and told the others of his identity. He was the one Klaus hated the most. He wanted to make sure he was the one who fought against this young man and beat the crap out of him. Void didn¡¯t argue with him and took the other young man with him, leaving the young man in the Fourth stage of the Elemental Venerable Plane for Klaus and Reynolds. ¡°You, I¡¯m going to beat the hell out of you.¡± Klaus pointed at the young man and said. The young man looked around and noticed that the others had been taken somewhere else by Void. Void probably did this to ensure none of them got in each other¡¯s way while fighting. ¡°You think you two can fight against me?¡± The young man scoffed. He was in the Fourth stage of the Elemental Venerable Plane. Removing the fact that he was two stages above Klaus, Reynolds wasn¡¯t even in the Elemental Venerable Plane. Did Kkaus think they would be able to hurt him? He didn¡¯t waste any time and darkness started to spread from his body. ¡°He has a domain.¡± Klaus was slightly taken aback. Although he knew others also had domains, he rarely got to see young geniuses who had awakened it. ¡°Shocked?¡± The young man smirked before adding, ¡°I¡¯m just getting started.¡± Klaus spat on the ground, looking at the young man, unimpressed. A blizzard started with Klaus at the center. The young man¡¯s expression changed, and just as he was about to speak, lightning arcs started to appear in the blizzard, becoming part of it. Now, it was a combination of a blizzard and lightning. The young man¡¯s eyes trailed over to Reynolds who was standing with lightning radiating across his body. He snorted coldly and attacked. His proud smile was long gone, the reason for this was because he was in the Fourth stage of the Elemental Venerable Plane before awakened his domain, Klaus was still in the Second stage, and he had already awakened it. He was almost certain that Klaus had awakened it a long time ago. He was even more envious of Reynolds who was still in the Sage Plane. ¦Ñ¦Á§ád¦Á `n?¦Í?| §ãom His eyes glowed with a fierce light and he decided to kill the duo. The darkness and the blizzard collided. At first, the darkness didn¡¯t seem to get the advantage, but within a few seconds, the powerful corrosive ability of the darkness element started to show forth. ¡°Damn it! Do something.¡± Klaus said to Reynolds who was standing beside him. ¡°Time to show you my new trick.¡± Reynolds laughed and then his Elemental Warrior appeared and merged with him. His aura which was at the Sage Plane shot straight to the Second stage of the Elemental Venerable Plane. He looked like a warrior donned in lightning armor. He raised his hand and a lightning bow appeared, an arrow appeared on his other hand and he notched it on the bow, drawing it back, he released it. The arrow passed through the blizzard and sucked in all the lightning arcs in it, strengthening itself. The young man felt a great sense of crisis from the arrow coming his way and he hastily set up multiple defensive walls in front of him. The darkness element was well-known for its destructive powers, but it was also very good at defending thanks to its corrosive trait. The darkness walls blocked the arrow, but only for a moment as the arrow pierced through it with its domineering power. The hair of the young man stood on end, he could feel death coming at him. He retreated and dodged to the side, hoping to evade the arrow. Klaus wouldn¡¯t give him the chance, an ice wall appeared on the left and right side of the young man, keeping him trapped in the middle. These walls were extremely thick and when the young man tried to break them, he was stunned that the walls countered on their own. Ice spikes grew out of the walls and shot at him. He was at his wit¡¯s end, Reynolds¡¯ arrow was already within a few feet away, if he didn¡¯t move now, he would be fatally injured, if not killed by the arrow. He gritted his teeth and decided to take one of the attacks. Klaus¡¯ ice attack was not as fatal as Reynolds¡¯ arrow, so he went for the ice spikes. Moving to the side, he was impaled by a few ice spikes, but none of the ice spikes managed to penetrate deep into his skin thanks to the darkness essence that filled his body. As soon as the ice spikes managed to break through his skin, the darkness essence eroded them, making them almost harmless. Reynolds¡¯ arrow flashed past and left a light scratch on his left thigh. The jolt he got from the arrow messed up his essence and the last two ice spikes from the ice walls managed to pierce through his right hand and left shoulder. ?¦Á?d¦Á- ¦Ç¦È¦Í¦Å|¡¤?¦Èm His eyes turned ferocious as he looked at the duo, he licked his lips and said, ¡°You two are not so simple. It would be fun killing you.¡± ¡°Hehe, you think you can kill us? Even if I was alone you wouldn¡¯t be able to kill me, much less the two of us while we are working together.¡± Klaus laughed in a carefree manner. He didn¡¯t fear this young man one bit. ¡°We¡¯ll see about that.¡± The young man released a black orb that exploded, unleashing black mist all around. 1145 Beaten In All Ways Void, on the other hand, was not having an easy time since he was facing two people. He could handle himself against them, but it was a bit stressful. The bunny was going from one battle to another, watching the show. After Klaus and Reynolds hit the young man, they didn¡¯t speak any further, attacking him once again. The young man smiled, the dark mist that came out started to spread at a fast pace. ¡®Don¡¯t inhale it.¡¯ The bunny leader warned from the side. Klaus and Reynolds already knew this was not something they should take in, and are already working on ways to fight against it. Reynolds released his domain to fight against it, trying to stop it from touching them. Klaus on the other hand attacked the young man on his own. He might be the one with the best defense in the group, but it didn¡¯t mean he didn¡¯t have strong offensive powers. His heavy water was released as he tried to force the mist and the young man away from where they were. The young man seemed to blend into the dark mist and was out of sight. Klaus didn¡¯t panic as he spread the range of his water. Reynolds attacked at this time as well. Lightning fell from the sky, enveloping the place. The bunny leader quietly slipped away, it didn¡¯t want to be caught in the middle of the attacks. Klaus and Reynolds didn¡¯t put it in mind while attacking. If not for its reminder, they would¡¯ve forgotten it was there. ¡°Hehe, I¡¯ll kill you two slowly, just take your time. You can¡¯t find me, and you¡¯ll die soon enough.¡± The young man¡¯s creepy voice sounded from the mist. They couldn¡¯t pinpoint the place the voice was coming from, the voice came from everywhere the mist was. Even the duo who were covered by the mist heard the voices in their eyes as if the young man was whispering into their ears from the side. Klaus covered himself with a thin film of transparent ice to ward off the dark mist. Reynolds did the same. They¡¯ve noticed their efforts to try to stop the mist from growing were not working. Even with Klaus¡¯ heavy water and Reynolds¡¯ lightning, they couldn¡¯t stop it. Reynolds looked at Klaus, worried, ¡°What do we do? I can¡¯t sustain this form for long.¡± ¡°Since he wants to hide, let¡¯s leave.¡± Klaus started to walk off the second he said this. The young man who was hiding in the mist was taken aback, he didn¡¯t think of this. The duo could easily walk away from this place and no longer have to worry about him or his dark mist. Reynolds laughed, ¡°Wait up.¡± The young man moved and sent a cloud of mist over, trying to stop them. Klaus didn¡¯t even bat an eye to the cloud of mist, he waved his right hand and a large ice wall appeared and blocked the mist. There was no way for it to touch them. The mist turned into black spears that shot at them. Reynolds used his lightning sword to block each of the spears, sending them back. The young man was forced to come out and attack the duo since they had walked out of the range of the dark mist. ¡°Stop!¡± He yelled at the duo. ¡°Oh, you¡¯re done playing hide and seek?¡± Klaus looked at him mockingly. The young man¡¯s face contorted out of anger. ¡°I¡¯ll kill you.¡± He said angrily. ¡°I know, you¡¯ve said that repeatedly, and then proceeded to hide. You¡¯re a weakling who only knows how to weaken his opponents before fighting.¡± Klaus berated him. The young man paused, not expecting Klaus to say things like this. While he was still in his confused state, he was stunned when he noticed his legs had been frozen to the ground. He raised his head only to see Reynolds swinging his lightning blade at him. His reaction was instantaneous, without holding back he unleashed his strength. The young man¡¯s outburst forced Reynolds back. Klaus came close and attacked with the sword that enhanced his ice abilities. The young man didn¡¯t expect Klaus to choose a close range method of attack, but he still did his best to repel him. While he was trying to repel him, Reynolds attacked once again. The duo were doing everything to make sure they killed the young man before Reynolds was exhausted from his current form. The young man also knew of this and stopped attacking them, rather, he focused on defending. He knew as long as he focused only on defending, he would be able to outlast them. A few minutes later. ¡°Damn it!¡± Klaus cursed when he noticed Reynolds¡¯ form was starting to show signs of falling apart. The second the Elemental Warrior detaches from Reynolds¡¯ body, it is over. Reynolds¡¯ aura started to decline in the process as well. The young man was ecstatic when he saw this and laughed in pure delight. ¡°F*ck! Run!¡± Klaus and Reynolds came to the same conclusion after sharing a glance. The young man laughed and ran after the duo. Reynolds¡¯ Elemental Warrior had dissipated, he knew this was the chance he needed to kill them. ¦Ñ¦Á§ád¦Á `n?¦Í?| §ãom Klaus and Reynolds were attacking as they ran, trying to slow down the young man and get a better chance of running. Reynolds turned around and attacked with a lightning bolt. The young man dodged it and a large palm made from the darkness element enveloped Reynolds. As the hand was shutting tight, Klaus slashed out with his sword, cutting it open. ¡°Damn it.¡± They cursed simultaneously and started running again. ¡°Haha, you can¡¯t run from me.¡± The young man laughed. ¡°Who¡¯s running from you? You¡¯re not even fit to clean my shoes, pig!¡± Klaus retorted. The young man didn¡¯t mind his words, he was closer to them now and knew another attack would put them in front of him. He attacked again and the duo were forced to block it. ¡°Got you!¡± ¡°No, we got you.¡± Klaus grinned and turned to Reynolds. Reynolds¡¯ body was covered with lightning, his Elemental Warrior came back full of life as it merged with him. Klaus smiled and blocked the attack while Reynolds attacked. This time, the young man was not prepared for their counter so he was left wrongfooted from the start. Reynolds¡¯ attack was powerful, sending the young man flying, electrocuting him in the process. The young man had not balanced himself when Klaus appeared and attacked as well. The young man was forced to disregard the havoc Reynolds¡¯ attack was causing in his body and block Klaus¡¯ attack. The attack sent him flying, even when he tried to block it, he was still forced back by the heaviness of the water. Reynolds attacked at the same time, striking the young man down from the air. Bang! The young man crashed into the ground, causing a pit on the ground. Reynolds and Klaus walked over to the place and looked at the defeated young man, who was dragging his body out of the pit. ¡°And to think you were shouting about killing me some seconds ago.¡± Klaus looked at the young man with a smug smile on his face. He went on to mock the young man repeatedly cursing him as well. Reynolds could only shake his head as he sent another lightning bolt at the young man. The young man coughed out a mouthful of blood as he struggled to stand once again. When he managed to stand, a large hole was in his stomach. Bang! A large hammer made from ice appeared in the sky and slammed into the young man, burying him in the ground. ¡°Come on, stop showing us such gruesome things.¡± Klaus commented with a straight face. The young man was dead. Klaus and Reynolds exchanged glances and headed for where they sensed Void fighting with the other two. At the time they got there, the young man in the Second stage was on the ground, dead, leaving only the young lady who was in the Fourth stage, struggling with Void. She was not his match, even while she tried to block, she could barely block the attacks. Void was just too fast, what was worse for her was that no matter what she did, her darkness element seemed to have almost no effect on Void. ¡°Should we help you?¡± Klaus asked from the side. ¡°No need, she¡¯s already at her end.¡± Void said. ¡°Hey lady, should we help you?¡± Klaus turned to the young lady. ?¦Á?d¦Á- ¦Ç¦È¦Í¦Å|¡¤?¦Èm ¡°You¡­¡± ¡°You what? Fight, I thought you were all high and mighty while chasing me. Where¡¯s that attitude now?¡± Klaus interrupted her. The young lady bit her lips, she knew her chances of surviving this was very slim, but she didn¡¯t want to give up, not until the end. She was still trying to fight when Klaus started talking again. Void was beating her physically, while Klaus was terrorizing her mentally. Boom! She blew up. 1146 Coincidence? Chapter 1146 Coincidence? Void, Klaus, and Reynolds ran away at the speed of light. They didn''t dare to stay at the place where the explosion took place. The self-destruction of an Elemental Venerable is nothing to joke about. Even if the young lady was only in the Fourth stage, the power of her detonating with all her might was more than an all-out attack of a Seventh stage Elemental Venerable. This was above what the trio could deal with at the moment. "F*ck! She really exploded!" Klaus exclaimed when they got to a safe area while staring at the dust cloud that had risen into the sky after the young lady''s detonation. "Who would''ve thought you could talk someone to their death?" Reynolds said, looking at Klaus he didn''t show a surprised expression and added, "Given her chances, it was better for her to self-destruct than to listen to your yapping." "What do you mean? I was being polite with her." Klaus retorted. Reynolds cursed out and they soon started their usual two man cursing session. Void was watching from the side while the bunny leader was a bit stunned. It never expected the two people to start arguing between themselves out of thin air. "Why must you two be a disturbance wherever you go?" Alice''s irritated voice came from the side. "Alice, you''re here." Reynolds turned in shock. "Not just me, everyone else." She replied with a smile. Grey, Ellis and the others walked out from the side while looking at the duo. Grey shook his head, "Can''t you two be civil for once?" "Who are you calling uncivilized, blockhead?" Klaus cursed out. "We were almost killed cause we were associated with you, dumbass." Reynolds cursed as well. "Who told you two to be so weak." Grey mocked with a smug expression. Klaus and Reynolds rushed at Grey and attacked him. The others could only look at the trio with a smile on their faces. Ellis was already used to them being like this although this was the first time he was traveling with them, the small they spent in the forest before entering this building already showed him how they acted. Grey might be reserved, but in the midst of his friends, he tends to show the goofy side of him. After the trio were done fighting, well, it wasn''t much of a fight, it was more of Grey beating the duo and Alice separating them. "Satisfied?" Grey asked the duo with a grin. "Pray I don''t get stronger than you, I''ll beat you for fun everyday." Klaus vowed. "Me too." Reynolds added. "Me three." "Me too." Grey kept hearing people chip in and couldn''t help but turn to look at the people around. Even Gilbert who was just joining the group in their travel chimed in as well. "F*ck!" Grey couldn''t help but curse out. If all his friends were planning on bullying him when they grew stronger doesn''t that mean he had to grow stronger at a faster pace? Alice laughed and calmed Grey down. "How did we all end up in this stage?" Grey asked, a little curious. He wasn''t sure anyone has gone through as many trails as he has, so the possibility of them appearing here should be low. But shockingly, they were all present. "I have no idea, I''ve gone through five stages." Ellis replied. "I''ve gone through six." Alice replied. "Seven." Klaus said. "Five." Reynolds chimed in. Everyone spoke about the number of stages they had gone through. Grey was the one with the highest while Klaus was just behind him. They all looked at each other a little surprised, they knew they shouldn''t have appeared here since the teleportation was purely random. This was either coincidental or a set up. "Are there other people here as well?" Grey asked. "Well, we''ve seen three people, who tried to kill us because we were friends with you." Klaus brought up the issue again. Grey rolled his eyes but didn''t say anything, he turned his eyes to the others and they each nodded. They''ve all seen other people who were present here. "Guess most of the people who entered this place had been teleported here. My question is why?" Grey was curious, he wanted to know the reason for this. No one had spoken of the challenge that others would go through here. He hadn''t heard the others speak of facing any challenge here so they had most likely not seen the trial yet. After thinking about it, he decided it was best they started to explore the place now. "We aren''t the only ones who would be drawn here by the explosion, it wouldn''t be nice if we see some more enemies and they try to kill Klaus." He said while staring at Klaus with a soft smile. "If I weren''t friends with you I wouldn''t have to be worried for my life." Klaus complained. "Your life would''ve been so boring without me. Stop complaining, it''s not like an entire race is trying to kill you. The Gnome race wants me dead, if you recall the events of what happened in the past, those people almost caused the destruction of our world and those strong experts were only able to stop them for a while." Grey said with a nonchalant expression, before adding with a smile, "Now imagine if they know you''re my friend?" "F*ck it! I even forgot about them." Klaus exclaimed, he turned to Grey and said, "It has been a good ride, but it''s time we parted ways. Henceforth my name is no longer Klaus and we never saw each other." Grey burst out laughing, putting his hand across Klaus'' shoulder. "Being friends with you seems like a shortcut to death." Klaus said in a depressed tone. "Hahaha, at least you get to enjoy your life." Grey added with a grin. The others who weren''t as close to Grey as Klaus, Reynolds, and Alice looked at him a bit apprehensive. The fact that Grey was this calm about the entire Gnome race wanting him dead seemed a bit odd. Given the fact that he was the one who was wanted dead, he should at least show signs of panic, but he wasn''t doing any of that, rather, he was so carefree. Unknown to them, while the group were in the Azure Continent, they were chased by the entire Continent and still managed to scale through it. After going through that, they wouldn''t feel bothered with this. It wasn''t like the Gnomes didn''t want to kill other humans as well. So even if they succeed in killing Grey, they would still kill other humans who don''t submit to them. The group started wandering around the place. ¡­. Somewhere else. The projection of the old man appeared. "Strange, why are all of them there. That guy just started receiving the inheritance, if there is any issues he would lose this chance." The old man was stunned. He had some agreement with a group of people and gave them the chance to receive the greatest inheritance in this place. The Twilight Faction was mainly a Light Elemental Faction, but it still taught other elements as well. The people he spoke with had some ties with the Twilight Faction so he felt it was okay to let one of them inherit all the techniques concerning the light element in the Twilight Faction. His hope was that maybe another God Plane Elementalist might appear among their ranks. If only Klaus had appeared there, he wouldn''t be too worried, but with Grey appearing there as well, he was a bit scared that something might happen. Those two seemed to have a way to get their hands on the highest reward wherever they appeared. He squinted his eyes as an idea appeared in his head. The last stage was quite large and he could somewhat manipulate the surroundings. He wanted to stop the company of Grey and his friends and he knew the only way he could do this was by sending challenges their way. He knew about the duo who chased Grey back at the challenge with the large furnace. And they were present there with their group. He willed it and they appeared in front of where Grey and his friends were planning on going through. ¡­. Back on Grey''s side. The lady from the Nether Faction and six others from the Nether Faction appeared in front of Grey and his friends. Amongst the six people, the young man Grey beat up was present. Seeing them, Grey''s face fell. "Enemies." He whispered to Klaus who was at his side. "Oh, she doesn''t look bad. Did she try to woo you and failed?" Klaus joked. The young lady heard Klaus'' statement and her expression changed, she had seen Grey''s face and of course, she couldn''t deny the fact that he was handsome, but she wasn''t the type who would run after any guy just because they were handsome. 1147 I’m Death Chapter 1147 I¡¯m Death "Hi, nice meeting you." Grey greeted her with a smile on his face, he acted as if he didn''t see the young man. The young man didn''t bother with him, standing behind the young lady. She was the leader of the expedition and had a higher status than he did. Not just that, but she was stronger than he was. "You¡­ I never thought I''d see you here." The young lady said coldly. "Me too." Grey replied while doing a headcount. The young lady had a total of seven people, while on his side, adding Void, they had eight people. Although Alice, Kyle, and Reynolds were in the Sage Plane, it didn''t matter. He could deal with most of the people in the Early stages of the Elemental Venerable Plane, so they wouldn''t necessarily lose out against them. The young lady also seemed to be accessing the situation, after a thought she stepped to the side, to Grey''s surprise. "There''s something here, I can''t be bothered with you. But I''ll deal with you later." She said while moving away before turning to Klaus, her eyes seemed to be colder than when she was talking to Grey and added, "And you too. I''ll deal with you too." "What? Are you falling in love with me too? Let me tell you something, any woman that has her eyes on my friend can''t be with me, sorry." Klaus said, his facial expression was as if he was trying to console the young lady. The young lady gritted her teeth and was on the verge of exploding, she wanted to deal with Grey because of what happened with the competition, Klaus on the other hand, she hated. She didn''t think she had hated anyone as much as she hated Klaus. What was worse was that she had only had contact with him for a few minutes yet she was feeling so much hatred for him. Klaus smiled as they walked past her, flashing his best smile. When they had gone past the young lady, Grey smacked the back of his head, "What are you doing?" "We''re already enemies, what''s wrong with irritating her? Or¡­ don''t tell me you also fancy her?" Klaus said with a shocked expression. The others couldn''t help but look at him with a pitiful look, Grey was only going to beat him up if he continued on that part. And truly, it was as they guessed, Grey beat him up, sealing his mouth with the water element. Klaus kept on mumbling as they were walking. They didn''t walk for more than thirty minutes before they saw another group, this group was larger than the previous one and they were more hostile compared to the first one. This was the group from the Syphilis Faction. They seemed hellbent on killing Grey. They outnumbered Grey''s group with four people. Grey had already removed the seal on Klaus'' mouth at this time, when he saw them. "Crap! Grey." He turned to Grey. "Don''t call my name, maybe they don''t know me." Grey closed his mouth. The group from the Syphilis Faction looked at him and attacked. "F*ck! How are they so many? I''ve killed three, adding the three you''ve killed, that makes it six. Don''t tell me almost twenty of them managed to enter this place. I thought it was reserved for only those special people?" Grey complained and exploded out with an attack. Reynolds merged with his Elemental Warrior and attacked someone in the First stage of the Elemental Venerable Plane. Grey, who was in the middle of attacking, paused, "Damn, he can do that?" He was shocked, not just him, but the others as well. It was the first time they were seeing a summoner merge with their summon. "Cool." Ellis commented. Gilbert was in the First stage of the Elemental Venerable Plane and picked an opponent. The battle exploded out all of a sudden. The young lady who was the leader of the group went after Grey, but Grey left her for Void while taking care of the weaker ones. The sooner he took out those people, the better it was for his group. Kyle and Alice were the only ones without Elemental Venerable attack power, so he didn''t want them to get injured from the battle. The bunny leader was in charge of their safety. Grey threatened to make bunny soup if anything happened to them, so the bunny leader was doing its job wholeheartedly. At first, the battle was chaotic, but Grey was able to quickly force a few people out with him, taking them somewhere else. Ellis, seeing Grey''s actions did the same as well. He still fought against multiple opponents. Void took the young lady with him. Klaus and Reynolds were the ones left to fight against the last three people. Alice and Kyle occasionally attacked the third person making the pressure on the duo less. Grey was fighting against five people while Ellis was fighting against three people, Gilbert was fighting against one person, while Void was fighting against the young lady and one more person. Of the five people Grey was fighting against, one was in the Fourth stage of the Elemental Venerable Plane, while the others were in the Second and First stage of the Elemental Venerable Plane. He knew he couldn''t handle two people in the Mid stages along with these others, so he picked weaker people as well to lessen the pressure. "Do you think you can beat us?" One of the people in the Second stage said with a smile. "If you''ve heard about me, then you should know that I''m more proficient in fighting against multiple people." Grey smirked. The armor was already on his body and he vanished, appearing beside one of those in the First stage of the Elemental Venerable Plane. The young man in the Fourth stage attacked, forcing him back. Grey didn''t act according to what the young man expected, rather, he decided to block the attack and still attack the young man. The young man was scared witless when Grey decided to take an attack just to kill him. He retreated, but he was not as fast as Grey was. Grey grabbed him and poured in a large quantity of miasma into his body. He had been storing miasma in his body for a long time now, and he rarely remembers to use it. While fighting against these people, he knew against weaker people, he would be able to immobilize them with this and decided to use it. The young man tried to yell but he was unable to. To the shock of everyone the young man dried up, as if his life was sucked out of him. The other four paused and looked at Grey. He was unscathed from the young man''s attack, yet he had killed someone with just a touch. "What are you?" The other two in the First stage of the Elemental Venerable Plane were visibly scared. They thought they could at least fight back against Grey, but reality seemed to be different. Grey was far stronger than they thought he was. "I''m death to those who want me dead. I''ll kill you all, then I''ll massacre your entire Faction." Grey''s eyes were cold. For a moment, even the young man in the Fourth stage of the Elemental Venerable Plane felt scared for his Faction. He felt Grey would be able to accomplish what he said. "Come, I''ll take on you all together." Grey welcomed them. He has never been afraid of a fight. The young man in the Fourth stage called the others to his side. "We can defeat him together." He encouraged them and they started to use a joint attack. Grey didn''t stop them, he let them do what they wanted, "Are you guys done?" All four rushed after him, attacking simultaneously. Grey smiled and moved forward as well. His eyes were covered in lightning as a lightning rain started. He might not be able to use the Fusion State any longer, but he was still far stronger than his usual cultivation stage. A multicolored orb appeared on his hand and he sent it at the attack of the four from the Syphilis Faction. The orb and their attack collided and Grey burst through the explosion, catching them off-guard. They were still waiting for the outcome of the explosion when Grey attacked again, with another multicolored orb. This orb was smaller than the first one, but it packed more power compared to the first one. The young man was the leader and knew if he freaked out, it would be the end of them. He teamed up with the others to try to block the attack. Grey didn''t only attack with the fusion orb, but he attacked with his physique which was far stronger than his cultivation stage. Bam! His fist connected with another person in the First stage of the Elemental Venerable Plane and the person exploded. In a matter of seconds, two people had been killed while Grey was still unscathed. 1148 New Type Of Fusion Orb The trio who were left alive looked at Grey with a frightened expression, they couldn¡¯t believe their eyes. They had heard of Grey¡¯s battle prowess, but they never knew when it came to life and death battles like these, he was even more fearsome. The fact that he could hold back when fighting against others in an arena was nothing less than shocking. Not just that, but he was growing too fast. Most of the people he was currently fighting with were already in the Elemental Venerable Plane while he was still in the Sage Plane, but he is able to fight them and kill them with such ease that it was freakish. The last person in the First stage was a young lady and she was currently shaking from fear. From Grey¡¯s previous targets, it was clear that he focused on those in the First stage of the Elemental Venerable Plane. She was the only one left and she couldn¡¯t help but fear for her life. If Grey targeted her, she was certain she wouldn¡¯t be able to block him. ¡°You¡­ what are you?¡± She asked. ¡°I told you before, didn¡¯t I? I¡¯m death.¡± Grey flashed a brilliant smile. The young lady didn¡¯t see a handsome smile, rather, all she saw was the grim reaper, staring deep at her soul, telling her it¡¯s his. ¡°Don¡¯t come near me.¡± She panicked and turned around. ¡°Don¡¯t run off, he will be able to kill you easier if you¡¯re alone. Stay close to me. He can¡¯t kill you, not while I¡¯m here.¡± The young man in the Fourth stage said, urging the young lady back. The young lady thought about it and came back to stand close to the young man. She was standing between them, making sure she wasn¡¯t open to any of Grey¡¯s attacks. The other person was in the Second stage and she felt he might have a chance in blocking Grey¡¯s attack. ¡°Do you think you can be safe from me?¡± Grey¡¯s cold voice echoed in her ears and when she turned around, she was scared witless when she realized Grey had switched places with the young man in the Fourth stage of the Elemental Venerable Plane. ¡°H¡­ ho¡­¡± ¡°Shh, no need to talk, death is here.¡± Grey said slowly. The young man in the Second stage was sent flying with a single attack, leaving the young lady at Grey¡¯s mercy. She wanted to shout but she realized she lost the strength to yell. Her voice was gone, her knees went soft and she fell to the ground. Grey stared at her on the ground, he didn¡¯t feel any emotions as he stared at the young lady who was too scared to even stand. ¡°Hypocrites, I hate your type the most.¡± He waved his hand and the young lady stopped moving, falling to the ground. She didn¡¯t even try to set up any form of defense, she had already given up. Grey¡¯s attack was very simple, but precise. On the forehead of the young lady, a tiny hole could be seen, made from ice. Grey turned to the other two, his face back to its previous nonchalant state. This time, the young man in the Fourth stage showed fear. He knew this wasn¡¯t a human, but a demon. ¡°You¡¯re a demon!¡± He exclaimed, ¡°You don¡¯t deserve to live.¡± ¡°Oh, why don¡¯t you take my life then?¡± Grey raised a brow. He was used to people like this, if they were on top, they wouldn¡¯t mind massacring an entire family, but once they are facing a stronger opponent, they wouldn¡¯t have the guts to fight. The young man turned to look at the other guy in the Second stage and turned around, he didn¡¯t want to fight with Grey any more, he was not confident he could beat him. Since he couldn¡¯t win, he wanted to escape. ¡°Haha, do you think you can run from me?¡± Grey asked, but didn¡¯t give chase. He had already marked the young man so there was no rush in going after him. Right now, he wanted to kill the other young man in the Second stage first. The young man in the Second stage ran in another direction, hoping Grey would not go after him. ¡°Wait, I¡¯m trying to learn a new skill and you¡¯re the perfect target for me.¡± Grey went after him. He soon appeared in front of the young man. ¡°Stop, I¡¯ll make a deal with you.¡± He proposed. The young man stopped, he couldn¡¯t run away from Grey. Grey was not only fast, but he had the space element as well, how could he run from that? ¦Ñ¦Á§ád¦Á `n?¦Í?| §ãom He was mentally drained within such a short time. ¡°What¡¯s the deal?¡± He asked. ¡°Survive this and I¡¯ll let you go. If not, it¡¯s your luck.¡± Grey said casually. ¡°Are you sure?¡± The young man asked, not too optimistic about it. Grey nodded. ¡°You¡¯re wasting time with me, I wasn¡¯t the one who gave the orders. Go after those of higher stages.¡± The young man tried to reason with Grey. ¡°I know, that¡¯s why I said I¡¯ll wipe out your Faction from the surface of this Continent.¡± Grey replied calmly. The young man looked at Grey, stunned by the courage he had to say something like this. The fact that Grey could say these words without even flinching showed how confident he was in his abilities. ¡®Can he really do that?¡¯ He asked himself, a bit confused. If Grey continues growing at this rate, he might be able to really accomplish what he said. This was something he knew for a fact. Grey was only in the Second stage of the Elemental Venerable Plane like himself, but he knew they were miles apart. Grey could fight ten of him and leave alive. Others in the same stage can¡¯t do that. ¡°Fine, you¡¯ll stand by your word if I survive it?¡± The young man gave up and decided to accept Grey¡¯s deal. ¡°An attack, just one, you survive, you go, you don¡¯t, it¡¯s your luck.¡± Grey repeated. ?¦Á?d¦Á¦Ç¦È¦Í¦Å| Grey gave him some time to prepare while he himself only smiled. He wanted to try experimenting with the fusion orb. He was trying to see if he could create it with more of the space element and if it could pack as much power as the regular one. It would be made with multiple elements, but the space element would be the more dominant one. The young man started to create defensive wall after defensive wall. Grey couldn¡¯t be bothered with him as he started to work with the orb. The orb started to form in his hand, the space element taking more than fifty percent of it while the other elements took the rest, all distributed equally with the exception of the space element. At first, Grey started to lose control of the orb and felt his heart skip a bit when the orb almost exploded in his hand. He knew if it exploded he would most likely be seriously hurt. The young man felt the threat of the orb and started to create more walls, he originally created five, now, he felt even ten wouldn¡¯t be enough to ensure his safety. The space around the orb started to show signs of distortions. One has to know that this was a special place and the strength needed to distort the space was well over the Late stages of the Elemental Venerable stage, yet Grey, who was only in the Second stage of the Elemental Venerable Plane was causing the space to distort from a single orb. The young man started to pray internally, hoping for the orb to explode on Grey¡¯s hand. Just when he was starting to feel more pressured, the aura of the orb vanished. What he found shocking was that the orb was still in Grey¡¯s hands, but he couldn¡¯t sense its aura any longer. Instead of him to feel less pressured, his heart felt a tight grip. He knew this attack was even more deadly than what it previously was. Grey, on the other hand, had a huge smile on his face. ¡®So it¡¯s plausible. Keeping the attack between layers of space hides the aura, it might still be visible, but it isn¡¯t in this layer of space. Doesn¡¯t this mean that it can go through any defense?¡¯ While thinking, he tossed the orb at the young man. The orb got to the first defensive wall and phased through it. The eyes of the young man almost bulged out of his body. Without even caring for anything else, he turned around and bolted. If the attack had been normal, he would¡¯ve tried to take it, but this wasn¡¯t a normal attack, there was no way he would take this attack. 1149 Fighting Against The Greatest Genius Grey didn¡¯t feel too much emotion when he saw the young man running, the attack vanished and appeared behind him, hitting him in the back. The young man was unable to scream and his entire figure vanished before Grey¡¯s eyes. There wasn¡¯t any loud explosion like Grey¡¯s normal fusion orb, the orb just vanished, along with the figure of the young man. If a stranger walked there at the moment, they wouldn¡¯t see any signs of any powerful attacks. It was almost as if Grey had been there all alone all this while. Grey didn¡¯t brood over the matter and chased after the young man in the Fourth stage. He already marked him so he knew where the young man was located. When he caught up with the young man, the young man was staring at him, breathing heavily. He was scared out of his mind. ¡°You don¡¯t have to pay evil with evil.¡± He said in a low voice. Grey scoffed when he heard this. The young man knew he was not his match, so he wanted to get Grey to leave him alone. Unfortunately for him, Grey had never been a soft person, as long as he felt threatened by a person, he would take out that threat. Unless he was weaker, but so long as he was stronger, he would remove that threat. He wasn¡¯t in the mood to talk to the young man as he attacked the next minute. The young man was someone in the Fourth stage of the Elemental Venerable Plane. Although he was afraid of Grey, it didn¡¯t mean he couldn¡¯t fight back. This was the reason Grey left him for last, this way he would get enough time to deal with him and the others wouldn¡¯t be able to escape. Boom! The young man blocked Grey¡¯s attack but was forced to take some steps back. ¡®If I can deal with his powerful explosive attacks, then I should be able to deal with him.¡¯ He thought to himself. It was well known that Grey¡¯s attacks were very powerful. He felt as long as he could last for a few minutes, he would be able to get the better of Grey once he started to lose his cool. Grey had no idea what was going through the head of the young man, even if he did, he wouldn¡¯t care about it. Other than his explosive attack power, he still had his terrifyingly strong physique. No one knows of this due to the fact that it was greatly enhanced after he entered this place. Some people knew his body was strong, but only those who had experienced it knew how strong it was. Unfortunately, most of those people didn¡¯t make it out alive. He started to exchange blows with the young man, he gained the advantage from the start, but the young man was able to successfully defend himself against Grey. Fighting against a single opponent, the great advantage Grey had against multiple opponents is not as obvious as now. He can only overpower his opponents at this point, but he had lost the edge of that surprise attack the space element allowed him. This didn¡¯t take away his strength in any way. The young man didn¡¯t try to match Grey attack for attack, blocking the ones he could and dodging most of them. Grey couldn¡¯t help but shake his head. There were things he needed to do, fighting with this young man for a long time wasn¡¯t something he wanted. After thinking about it for a while, he decided to try out his new attack. While he was in the middle of creating the orb, the young man attacked, not giving him the chance. When the young man sensed the aura that was gathering in the orb, he knew he couldn¡¯t give Grey the chance to create it else it would be detrimental to him. Grey didn¡¯t feel down, with a flick of his hand, ice shards started to rain from the sky, accompanied by lightning. His surroundings started to show signs of going through a chance, lava appeared. This time, there was a difference between when he was just using his fire and earth element. The hotness from the lava scared the young man. ?¦Á?d¦Á-¦Ç¦È¦Í¦Å|¡¤?¦Èm The young man wasn¡¯t prepared to be covered in a sea of seething lava. His darkness element spread around his body as he tried to fight against it. While he was doing this, Grey unleashed a lightning storm at him, using his lightning element. ¡°Three domains?!¡± The young man exclaimed, dumbstruck. He had already pieced everything together and knew the lava was made from Grey¡¯s domains. He already felt Grey was a freakish entity for having two domains, with the appearance of the lighting domain, the number increased to three. ¡°Actually, it¡¯s four.¡± Grey said with a smile as a large blizzard started from his side before moving to engulf the young man. ¦Ñ¦Á§ád¦Á `n?¦Í?| §ãom ¡°Impossible! Impossible!¡± The young man was finding it hard to accept the reality of things. Accepting that Grey had three domains was already very difficult and heart wrenching, but now he had to accept Grey had four. This was already past what some top experts had, yet Grey had it. ¡®Four elements, four domains. Still in the Second stage of the Elemental Venerable Plane. Doesn¡¯t this make him the greatest genius ever?¡¯ Even at this point, the young man still had to access Grey. It wasn¡¯t that he wanted to, but he just couldn¡¯t help it. Being forced to fight against the greatest genius of all time was more like a sin. Now he understood why Grey could easily fight well above his stage even when fighting against multiple opponents. ¡®Does he also have one for his space element?¡¯ He asked himself, at that moment he was struck with something, ¡®He also has the space element? Doesn¡¯t that make it five elements?¡¯ Only now did he recall that Grey also had the space element, that made it five elements for a single person, and of the five elements, he had already awakened the domains for four. Just thinking about it made his heart beat rapidly. ¡°Ah!¡± His painful shrieks soon followed. All of Grey¡¯s domain broke through his defense while he was still thinking about Grey¡¯s freakishness. It was unknown if he would¡¯ve been able to escape if he wasn¡¯t distracted by Grey¡¯s awesomeness. Grey had no idea his talent was what shocked the young man to death, and he didn¡¯t care. After taking care of this young man, he noticed there were still ripples of battles from multiple places. ¡®Guess I was the first.¡¯ He turned in the direction of the place where he could feel the strongest ripples. Void should be there since he was the one who took the young lady in the Fifth stage of the Elemental Venerable Plane. When Grey got to the place, he noticed Void was having a difficult time against the young lady and the other person he was fighting. ¡®I¡¯ll take one of them, take out the other.¡¯ He communicated with Void telepathically. His aura was hidden, he wanted to take them by surprise. At least with his explosive power, he should be able to kill or at least seriously hurt whoever he targets. The young lady in the Fifth stage was his original target, but after some thought, he decided to go for the weaker young man who was there. First off, Grey didn¡¯t want to take the chance of him not being able to successfully hit the young lady. With her strength, she might be able to sense him at the last minute. After concluding with Void, he targeted the young man. They planned on how Void would take him close to him so he would not have to teleport for a long distance and be discovered. Void, who was already tired of the battle, dragged them to the place. The young lady didn¡¯t notice anything strange. Only after Void risked injuries to force her back did she notice a strange pattern. ¡°Becare¡­¡± She hadn¡¯t finished her statement when Grey appeared like a ghost behind the young man and grabbed his head, making it disappear from his body. The headless body of the young man fell on the ground. Even Void was forced to take a quick glance at Grey. He sensed the space element in Grey¡¯s casual grab. ¡®His control over the space element has increased.¡¯ He thought to himself. Grey wouldn¡¯t have been able to do this a few days ago, but now, he did it so seamlessly that it would be difficult for others to figure out how he did it. ¡°You¡­ what are you doing here?¡± The young lady asked, a bit shocked. ¡°Oh, your guys told me I can leave, so I came over to help.¡± Grey replied with a smile. 1150 One Survivor Chapter 1150 One Survivor The young lady looked at the headless body lying on the ground before glancing at Grey. Only a fool would believe his words. ''He took five people with him, it hasn''t even been up to five minutes, and he''s killed all of them?'' She found it hard to believe, even though she knew the only way for Grey to appear here in such a carefree manner was if he defeated that group, but she still found it hard to accept. She''s in the Fifth stage of the Elemenetal Venerable Plane, three stages above Grey, and she wouldn''t dare say she would be able to defeat a group of five that had someone in the Fourth stage, much less doing it in such a short time. "What did you do to them?" She kept her gaze on Grey. "Dead, and you''ll join them soon." Grey blocked her escape route. Void was standing behind her while Grey stood in front of her, making sure she had no way to escape. "Do you think I''ll believe you just because you said it?" The young lady scoffed. "Believe whatever you want, it''s not going to change anything." Grey didn''t care if she believed him or not, he would still kill her. The young lady looked at Grey and scoffed, "Even if you managed to kill them, do you think I''m like them?" "It doesn''t matter, the result will remain the same." Grey''s reply was calm. He attacked after saying this. The young lady, seemingly prepared for this, blocked the attack with a dark screen before sending out a fireball attack. Grey dodged the attack and attacked once again. Void did the same as well. The duo soon started to bombard the young lady. Although she was being overwhelmed by the duo, she didn''t lose her cool, she carefully blocked each attack, dodging the ones she could while countering on a few occasions. Grey and Void were still attacking when the young lady suddenly opened her mouth and a dark crow came out from it. The crow enlarged, turning into a giant bird. The crow was a Rank Seven Magical Beast, just like Void. The moment it appeared, it screeched loudly before sending out a darkness elemental attack at Grey. Grey didn''t panic and blocked the attack with ease, bolting into the sky and smacking the crow. The crow dodged and tried to use its razor sharp claws to grab him. Grey dodged it but was met by an attack from the young lady who managed to break free from Void''s attacks. Grey blocked the attack, but it pushed him into the air, closer to the claw of the crow. The crow tried to grab him, but his hands suddenly became covered with scales as he held the crow''s leg and gave a violent tug. The crow was dragged down by the force of Grey''s pull. The young lady distanced herself from the place, seeing that Grey wanted to use the opportunity to go for the kill, she attacked with the fire element once again, sending out butterflies made from the fire element. When Grey''s figure touched one of the butterflies, it exploded, pushing him away from the crow. The crow stabilized itself mid-air and flew to the young lady''s side. She stepped on its head as they faced off against Grey and Void. "Come on Void, grow bigger." Grey urged. "Not against this low life crow." Void shook his head, too proud to increase his size just because of a crow. Grey didn''t bring up the matter any longer, he was more concerned about the duo in front of him. He wanted to take them out. The young lady looked at Grey with a serious expression, "Did you truly kill them?" She was still finding it hard to believe, but she had tried to sense them but realized she couldn''t. This meant that they were dead. If Grey was the one who killed them then his threat was far higher than what they originally thought. "Ask them when you see them." Grey moved for the attack once again. This time, he tried to switch places with the young lady, but to his surprise, she actually resisted. First off, the young lady had the space element, and being aware of this ability of Grey''s, she was already on guard against it. Grey didn''t panic, he didn''t lose entirely in that battle. Since he was unable to switch places with her, he sent an orb there using the shortcut. The young lady was unable to stop the orb from coming, so when it appeared, she could only defend against it. Void attacked with his lightning element, sending out a bolt of lightning their way. Grey didn''t try to create the new form of the fusion orb, he knew the young lady wouldn''t give him that chance. However, he had no issues with sending out multiple fusion orbs. For a long time now, he could instantly create these orbs, so it wasn''t a problem for him. The young lady was able to block the first orb, Void''s lightning bolt was dealt with by the crow. Seeing Grey sending out multiple fusion orbs, she couldn''t help but feel dread. From the first attack, she already knew just how powerful the attack was, and to think that Grey could unleash more than one at a time was beyond comprehensible. The young lady and the crow hastily retreated, making sure they left the area of the explosion when the orbs exploded. At the last moment, she noticed something was wrong and tried to stop the crow, but it was too late. Void had deployed his domain, and reduced the area. When they got to the edge, they were teleported back to the place they were standing, in the middle of the explosion of the fusion orbs. "Smart move, Void." Grey praised Void''s quick thinking. Void raised his head proudly, looking down on Grey. Grey didn''t care about him and placed his attention on the explosion. He knew the duo wouldn''t die so easily. It was just as he predicted. When the explosion died down, the young lady and the crow appeared before them, although they didn''t escape unscathed from the explosion, they were not severely injured by it. "I knew it would take more than that to take you down." Grey commented. The young lady wiped the blood at the side of her mouth, her expression serious. Deep in her eyes, one could still see the fear from almost being blown away by the attack. If not for the crow taking most of the hit, and she setting up a few last minute defensive walls, they would''ve been seriously injured. She stepped on the crow and they turned around to escape. She knew fighting against Grey and Void was a suicide mission, especially with just the two of them. Grey turned to Void, and Void shook his head. His domain couldn''t hold them as long as the young lady is able to find out the breaking point. With the young lady being a Space Elementalist as well, it wasn''t hard for her to find the breaking point. Grey was already giving chase, seeing them break it, he snorted and sent out ice arrows at them. The young lady didn''t even turn around as she blocked the attacks and ran for her life. Grey was fast, but against a flying type Magical Beast, he was a bit lacking. The young lady was using her space element to teleport them occasionally. With time, the gap between them started to widen and Grey could only give up. "Damn it! She escaped." He complained as he watched her leave. "At least she didn''t leave unharmed." Void commented. "I wanted her to stay." Grey said coldly. "There''s nothing we can do. Let''s go help the others." Void suggested. Grey nodded and turned around, after taking a glance at the escaping figure, he snorted and left. He would take care of her later. It wasn''t like they had left the secret realm yet. There was still the chance of meeting her after leaving this building. Unless she left the building before he did, if not, he would kill her. They went on to help the others who were still engaged in a battle. Gilbert was able to take out his opponent since he was on the same stage as the person. Although it took a while, after all, Darkness Elementalists were quite difficult to deal with. Being an Earth Elementalist, explosive attacks wasn''t his strong fort, so he had to slowly grind his opponent till he won. Ellis didn''t take too long with his opponent as well. Klaus and Reynolds threatened to become enemies with them if they helped out, so they could only watch as they fought a long battle that they eventually won. Klaus was slowly getting stronger than he previously was, Reynolds on the other hand was getting a better understanding of his new ability. 1151 Conflict With The Heavenly Fate Faction? ¡°What now?¡± Klaus asked after they defeated their opponent. With no one else to fight, they naturally have to continue their journey. But it was unknown what lied in front of them. ¡°We should get going. We¡¯ve been here for some time.¡± Alice replied. ¡°Hopefully, some people¡¯s enemies won¡¯t try to kill us again.¡± Klaus looked at Grey as he spoke. ¡°I wonder if you¡¯d still have the mouth to say all these when we meet up with those from your Faction, especially that girl.¡± Grey squinted his eyes while staring at Klaus, well, behind him. ¡°Do you think I¡¯m afraid of her? If not for the fact that I¡¯m being ethical, I would¡¯ve beaten the hell out of her by now.¡± Klaus sneered, and added, ¡°In fact, if she were here, I¡¯d beat her up.¡± Grey grinned when he heard this, Alice, Reynolds, and Ellis who were standing beside Grey looked at Klaus with a bit of pity. On seeing their expressions, Klaus¡¯ face fell, ¡°She¡¯s behind me, isn¡¯t she?¡± Grey nodded, a wide grin still on his face. Klaus sighed and turned around to meet the eyes of the young lady. ¡°Lara, I wasn¡¯t the one saying whatever you heard.¡± He turned around to face Grey after saying this, not wanting to look at the eyes of Lara. Lara looked at Klaus¡¯ back view before saying, ¡°I¡¯ll handle you when we get back to the Faction. I came here due to the ripples of battles. Do you mind sharing what happened?¡± ¡°We encountered some people from the Syphilis Faction, it was nothing serious.¡± Grey answered. Klaus scoffed but didn¡¯t say anything else. He was fine with having people to practice with, at least before he would leave this place he might be strong enough to fight back against Lara. If not, then he wouldn¡¯t go back to the Faction and wait until he was strong enough. ¡°The Syphilis Faction, they seem to have a problem with you, correct?¡± Lara raised a brow. When they were standing outside the building, she recalled seeing the people from the Syphilis Faction having a stare down with Grey and his friends. Luckily she and a few others walked forward and that stopped the group from the Syphilis Faction. She looked at Grey then kept quiet for a few seconds, she could sense death in the area. Someone had definitely died here. Looking around, she saw a thin piece of ice. Her eyes turned to Klaus, this was Klaus¡¯ doing. It was a technique from their Faction used in killing people. It was quite efficient as it leaves almost no corpse. ¡°Since it¡¯s been sorted, I¡¯ll leave first.¡± Lara didn¡¯t stay longer, nor did she try to travel with the group. She was only familiar with Klaus, and she wasn¡¯t really in good terms with Klaus. Her figure soon disappeared and Klaus heaved a sigh of relief. ¡°What¡¯s the matter between you two?¡± Reynolds couldn¡¯t help but ask. ¡°The thing is, she confessed her feelings to me and I snubbed her.¡± Klaus gave a cheeky laugh. To his surprise, the other were laughing. He was a bit confused and couldn¡¯t help but say, ¡°I¡¯m only bullshitting¡­¡± He paused and seeing their expressions, he couldn¡¯t help but frown, ¡°She¡¯s behind me again, right?¡± They nodded, with Grey and Reynolds bursting out in laughter. ¡°What¡¯s with you and appearing behind me?¡± Klaus turned around in annoyance. His facial expression changed when he realized he was only talking to thin air, there was no one behind him. ¡°F*ck you, Grey!¡± He cursed, knowing it was Grey¡¯s idea to mess with him. The group laughed as they continued their journey further into the place. ¡­. On another location. The old man looked at the screen in front of him and the group advancing. He couldn¡¯t help but shake his head. ¡°It¡¯s all up to fate now. If they still aren¡¯t able to inherit it before these monsters gets there, then there¡¯s nothing I can do.¡± He muttered before shutting his eyes. ¡­. In the space Grey and his friends were located. Deep in the place, a large building could be seen standing tall. It was the only building in the area. A group of people could be seen walking out of the building, showing signs of frustration. ¦Ñ¦Á§ád¦Á `n?¦Í?| §ãom ¡°Doesn¡¯t this mean only she will get the inheritance?¡± A young man asked, annoyed. ¡°The old man could give just one person access to the array while the others have to go through the challenge. The Faction Leader picked his daughter, we¡¯ll have to deal with that.¡± Another person said. From the symbol in these people¡¯s clothes, it was easy to guess that they were from the Heavenly Fate Faction. When they entered this place the first time, they were able to speak with the projection of the old man. Surprisingly, they seemed to have some sort of connection to the Twilight Faction as a member of the Faction was the one who started the Heavenly Fate Faction. But this member was only a normal member and didn¡¯t have access to the top techniques of the Twilight Faction. He was a genius in his own right and was able to create the powerful Heavenly Fate Faction from scratch with the little he learned himself. The old man agreed to let them learn the core techniques of the Twilight Faction, but given the rules of this place, he could only let one person enter. It¡¯s up to the person if they wanted to teach others. ¡°It¡¯s unfair. I¡¯m better than her. I should¡¯ve been the one there.¡± The young man clenched his fists. ¡°It doesn¡¯t matter. Let¡¯s just guard this place and wait for her to completely accept the inheritance.¡± Another person said. They couldn¡¯t hide the fact that they were annoyed with what was happening, but there was nothing they could do. The daughter of the Faction Leader was not ordinary, she had extraordinary talent and it was right for her to acquire these things. ¡°I¡¯m going to try it out again. No matter what, I¡¯ll pass through it.¡± The first young man went back into the building. The others looked at each other and decided to sit down outside. They weren¡¯t like the young man who didn¡¯t know when to give up. Since entering this place, they¡¯ve been trying to pass through the challenge, but the array was too intricate, and no matter how hard they tried, they couldn¡¯t get past it. The only fortunate thing was that it was pretty much harmless. ¡­. A few thousand meters away from the group, Grey and his friends were casually strolling, talking and laughing. They were still move when Void paused mid-flight, ¡°There¡¯s something up ahead.¡± His ears perked up and his eyes glowed with a fascinating light. Grey and the others looked in front of them and couldn¡¯t see anything. ¡°What¡¯s that Void?¡± Grey asked. Void¡¯s knack for treasure was well known by the others except a few. ¡°I don¡¯t know what it is, but there¡¯s something good in front of us. I can feel it.¡± Void started getting excited. Grey¡¯s eyes lit up. Void being this excited meant only one thing, a good treasure. Void had very high standards when it came to treasures, well, unless they are shiny, then he didn¡¯t have any problems with picking useless things. But on occasions like this, he always tends to find unimaginable treasures. The group started to follow Void¡¯s lead as they headed towards the building they couldn¡¯t see. As they got close to the place, the visage of the incomparably huge building started to show. Not just that, but a group of six walked over. ¡°You¡¯re not welcomed here, leave.¡± One of the young men said as they blocked the path of Grey¡¯s group. ¡°People from Heavenly Fate?¡± Kyle asked, he could see the symbol, but he wanted to be sure. The group of six nodded. ¡®Grey, there¡¯s something good inside. I¡¯m going, we¡¯ll see later.¡¯ Void¡¯s voice echoed in Grey¡¯s head and he vanished. With his small size, the group of six didn¡¯t even see him in the first place. ¡®Crap! Wait for me.¡¯ Grey screamed out. He didn¡¯t want to miss out on this treasure. He didn¡¯t care about these people from the Heavenly Fate Faction, after all, they were not the owners of this place. Grey took a step and the people from the Heavenly Fate Faction frown and one of them sent a warning strike. The strike hit the place Grey wanted to place his foot, he retracted it and looked at the faces of the people. ?¦Á?d¦Á- ¦Ç¦È¦Í¦Å|¡¤?¦Èm ¡°Don¡¯t take another step.¡± A young man in the Sixth stage of the Elemental Venerable Plane said in a cold voice. ¡°There¡¯s something there I need. I don¡¯t have any time to talk to you.¡± Grey was direct. Kyle couldn¡¯t help but walk closer to Grey and whisper, ¡°Offending the Heavenly Fate Faction for a treasure isn¡¯t wise. Since they are here means it was their target.¡± 1152 Entering The Building Grey took a glance at Kyle, not responding to what he was saying. ¡°Are you moving or not?¡± He looked at the young man from the Heavenly Fate Faction coldly. ¡°I¡¯d listen to your friend if I were you.¡± The young man said. He had already sensed Grey¡¯s cultivation realm and knew he was stronger, so he didn¡¯t feel bothered. The only person he felt threatened by was Ellis, but Ellis wasn¡¯t making any moves, and from how Grey was the one standing in front of the group, he presumed he was the leader of the group. ¡°Are you moving? I¡¯ll not ask again.¡± Grey asked once again, his aura incomparably calm. If not for the fact that they knew he was an Elementalist, they would¡¯ve thought he was a normal person. The young man felt a bit threatened by Grey¡¯s somewhat calm manner after giving a threat. He looked at Grey and paused, after a while he said coolly, ¡°I don¡¯t want to make an enemy of you. This place is off limits to others. It will be wise if you try not to go in.¡± Grey looked at him, not making any moves. He was caught between two choices. One, making an enemy of the Heavenly Fate Faction, the other was to lose out on something Void tagged as great. If he didn¡¯t at least see it, he wouldn¡¯t be satisfied. ¡®I already have so many enemies, adding one more shouldn¡¯t be too big of a deal.¡¯ He thought to himself. But then again, this would make it easier for him to die since the people trying to kill him would increase exponentially. One has to know that the Heavenly Fate Faction are quite famous and given them being tagged as the number one Light Element Faction, they had a good relationship with multiple top Factions. The Dawson Family and the Pyrmond Faction wouldn¡¯t be able to deal with so many enemies, at least not for a long period. He couldn¡¯t help but give a sigh while taking a look at the others beside him. If he walked in, he wouldn¡¯t be the only one affected by the conflict. The others who were innocent would also have to bear the brunt of this. ¡°Fine.¡± Grey didn¡¯t stay there any more, turning around to leave with the others. ¡°It¡¯s good that you listened.¡± Kyle said. The others nodded as well, feeling a bit relieved. Of course not all of them were bothered. Klaus had no issues with having any form of conflict with the Heavenly Fate Faction, but he still liked the fact that Grey put them first and didn¡¯t try to have any problems with them. After the group moved some meters away, Grey stopped. ¡°I knew you were not going to give up on it.¡± Klaus said. ¡°What? I just want to take a look.¡± Grey replied with an innocent expression. ¡°What happens when they find you?¡± Alice asked. ¡°They won¡¯t.¡± Grey brought out a mask and wore it before changing his clothes. The others were stunned when they saw his clothes changing while he was still wearing it. This was one of the abilities of the armor he was wearing. After changing his attire, Grey¡¯s figure vanished from the spot. ¡°Is he always this troublesome?¡± Ellis asked. ¡°Well, when he¡¯s not unknowingly offending Empires, he¡¯s knowingly doing it.¡± Klaus said. ¡°So in general, he has always been like this?¡± Ellis asked. Klaus and the others nodded. Since Grey got into cultivation, his journey can¡¯t be called smooth. First off he didn¡¯t have any elements from the start, then he got two, then after going to the Trial Land, he got a treasure that made him the public enemy of the entire Azure Continent. Even after coming to the Aurora Continent, he had been offending one person or another. ¡°I guess such a genius can never have an easy run.¡± Ellis sighed with a shake of his head. ¡°Yeah.¡± ?¦Á?d¦Á¦Ç¦È¦Í¦Å| No one could deny the fact that Grey was a genius amongst geniuses. ¡­. Inside the building, Grey appeared close to Void and the bunny leader. Before Void left, he marked him, so appearing here was no issue. He didn¡¯t know if there would be others, but he made sure to hide his aura as soon as he appeared. When he appeared, Void didn¡¯t show any changes but the bunny leader was a bit surprised. The bunny leader didn¡¯t expect Grey to suddenly appear there. ¦Ñ¦Á§ád¦Á `n?¦Í?| §ãom ¡®Have you found it?¡¯ He asked Void the moment he appeared. ¡®There¡¯s a large array in front, I can¡¯t get past it.¡¯ Void replied. Grey frowned and looked at the hall in front of him. He didn¡¯t sense the array and couldn¡¯t help but take a glance at Void. ¡°Take a step.¡± Grey took a step and his vision changed. ¡®I see. It¡¯s not difficult to deal with, but it will take some time.¡¯ He said to Void. Void heaved a sigh of relief. This was why he was waiting for Grey. Grey was a genius when it came to arrays and Void knew of this. As long as it¡¯s an array, even the one he didn¡¯t know, he would think of a way to break through it. The bunny leader didn¡¯t think Grey would be able to break through it. But seeing Void¡¯s confidence, it felt a bit optimistic. ¡®Can they see us from outside?¡¯ Grey asked. ¡®No, I think there¡¯s one guy inside. But he can¡¯t get through the array.¡¯ Void replied. Grey looked at the array in front of him and couldn¡¯t help but take a deep breath. This array was more complex than any other array he had laid his eyes on. He knew it wouldn¡¯t be easy for him to break through it. He immediately got to work and started to feel the array out. The first thing he needed to do was to get accustomed to the array and know the ins and outs of it. Once he has done that, then handling it would be an easy thing for him. A few minutes went by without Grey talking to either Void nor the bunny leader. They were still trying to understand what was happening when Grey suddenly opened his eyes. ¡°I think I can break it.¡± He muttered. He immediately got to work on the array, trying to break it with what he had learned on it. The little time he used wasn¡¯t enough and he failed. The trio was kicked out of the array and could only look at it from the side. ¡°Let¡¯s go again. I can get past it.¡± Grey said and entered the array once again. He didn¡¯t feel too much pressure. When he was trying to get past it a few moments ago, he was able to get past the early stages of it and get to the middle stages, so he knew that he could get past it. Void and the bunny leader didn¡¯t know of this but they followed him back into the place since they knew he was their only hope of entering it. The moment Grey entered the array, a young man appeared outside the array. It was the young man from the Heavenly Fate Faction who was trying to get into the place. ¡°Damn it! I can¡¯t even get past it now.¡± The young man was pissed. He had tried getting past this stage on a couple of occasions and had failed. Even till now, he was unable to get past it. He didn¡¯t want to try again since he knew no matter how much he tried, he wouldn¡¯t be able to get past it. With so many attempts, he had only gotten to the middle of it. ¡°How can an array be this difficult?¡± He was upset. He could only give up and step outside the place, walking back to the group of six standing outside. When they saw his expression, they knew he had failed and couldn¡¯t help but shake their heads. ¡°Just give up. Hopefully the Faction Leader gives us a chance at them.¡± The young man in the Sixth stage said. The young man who just came out of the building snorted but didn¡¯t give them any reply. He sat down on the side, ¡°I¡¯m not going to give up. I¡¯ll still try, until she comes out.¡± The others sighed, since he wanted this then they would let him do whatever he wished. This wasn¡¯t what they wanted in the first place. Although they wanted to go in, there was nothing they could do. While they were discussing the issue with the young man. Grey had been tossed out once again. This time he was able to advance further with cracking the array, but he was unable to get to the last part of it. ¡°Damn it. Void, it¡¯s not going to be easy. Are you sure it¡¯s worth it?¡± He couldn¡¯t help but ask again. ¡°You wouldn¡¯t regret it.¡± Void replied. Grey gritted his teeth. The complexity of the array was far greater than he imagined.. 1153 Consumed By Greed? ¡°Phew¡­¡± Grey breathed a sigh of relief, he took a glance at Void who was standing on his shoulder and said, ¡°See, done.¡± Void didn¡¯t say anything as he looked at the building. It took a little longer than he thought, but he couldn¡¯t complain since without Grey there was no way he would¡¯ve been able to enter this place. The bunny leader was amazed at Grey¡¯s unique abilities. The fact that Grey could break through this array showed how proficient he was with arrays. This wasn¡¯t an easy array to break, but Grey managed to do it which came as a shock to it. It had been traveling with Grey for a while now, but it still isn¡¯t aware of Grey¡¯s depth. It¡¯s like whenever he thinks he knows Grey, Grey would do something that goes above its expectations. ¡°Come on, someone is taking something of yours.¡± Void said. ¡°Something of mine?¡± Grey looked at him, a bit confused. ¡°Yes, something of yours.¡± Grey didn¡¯t dally any longer and walked past the hall, entering a passageway. He looked at it for some time before sensing where what Void was talking about was located. Well, it wasn¡¯t really hard to find given the fact that there was a room exuding brilliant light. If there was any treasure in this place, it was definitely in there. Grey carefully walked over and when he got to the door, he slowly opened it halfway and took a peek inside. Inside the room, a young lady could be seen sitting down on a futon, absorbing a glowing orb that was floating in front of her. ¡®That¡¯s definitely something nice. It looks like an inheritance.¡¯ He thought to himself. He felt his shoulder become lighter, both Void and the bunny leader were nowhere to be seen. He looked inside the room and didn¡¯t catch a glimpse of either of them. This meant they had most likely gone to another room. ¡®This place is more important to me. I¡¯ll take this and leave.¡¯ He thought to himself. Whatever Void and the bunny leader were doing was none of his concern for now. Maybe when he was done with taking this he would meet up with them. While looking at the young lady, he couldn¡¯t help but recall the last time he saw a scene like this. ¡®I wonder if he¡¯s living peacefully in the Azure Continent?¡¯ The person he recalled was the first genius he encountered during his cultivation journey, when he went for his first test and didn¡¯t have any affinity with any element, he wasn¡¯t the star at that day, there was a young man who took the spotlight. Jonas Giles, the Fire Elementalist with purple grade. At first, it looked like they were going to be rivals since they both joined rival Academies and everything, but by the time they encountered each other, he was already leagues above Jonas. While in the trial land, he encountered Jonas obtaining an inheritance, just like this young lady, but he didn¡¯t try to snatch the opportunity due to the fact that they were acquainted and he was the only one he knew from Red City who was actually strong, other than his parents. This case, however, is completely different from that one. First off, he didn¡¯t know who this young lady was, and he needed to grow as fast as he could. The more things he could get from places like this the better it was for him. An entire race, which was stronger than the human race wanted him dead, he was enemies with over three top Factions and Families, if he were to add the enemies of his father to it, then the list just grows longer. For now his father and a few people could still hold up the sky for him, but it wouldn¡¯t be enough in a few years time. So he wanted to make sure he depended on himself. He had been like this since the Azure Continent, and he would like to continue in that manner. He threw the thought of Jonas to the back of his mind and started to plot how he would be able to take this opportunity without the young lady finding out anything. At first, he was worried if he tried to absorb it in a hurry he would explode from the excess energy, but then again, he recalled the orb he had inside him. It had been magical all this while, there¡¯s no saying what it would do in this case, but it shouldn¡¯t be defeated. He placed all his hopes on the orb inside him and vanished from his spot. When he appeared again, he was standing a few inches away from the orb, he grabbed it, tossed it inside his mouth and tried to leave. The young lady seemed to sense it the moment he grabbed it, she opened her eyes and was left stunned when Grey swallowed it, but she still didn¡¯t let it affect her. Grey stretched out her hand and grabbed Grey¡¯s hand, ¡°That¡¯s mine, drop it before you kill yourself from greed.¡± ¦Ñ¦Á§ád¦Á `n?¦Í?| §ãom Grey covered his mouth which was still shining with a brilliant light, pushing the young lady¡¯s hand away, he tried to teleport. His expression changed slightly when he noticed it was slower than usual. The reason for that was because his essence was churning due to his body trying to rapidly absorb the orb. His head was also being flooded by techniques that he found it hard to think properly. ¡®Fu*k! Will my greed really get the better of me?¡¯ Grey didn¡¯t panic, he knew at times like this he must be calm. The young lady had grabbed him once again, staring at him as if she was staring at a fool. Grey was trying to absorb something she had been trying for days now. Even with the time she had, she hadn¡¯t even absorbed up to half of it, yet Grey wanted to absorb what was left in one go. ¡°You¡¯ll die, spit it out.¡± She said calmly. She wasn¡¯t afraid she would lose it. From what she could sense, she already knew Grey¡¯s essense was a mess and if this continued, he would most likely die. Even if he refuses to listen to her, it doesn¡¯t matter, she would still reclaim what is hers. Grey, on the other hand took a glance at the young lady, shook his head, the essence in his body started to show increasing signs of going out of control. ¡°Dmant it.¡± He blurted out unconsciously. He never expected the orb in his body not to be able to help him out with this. ¡°Let it go, you¡¯ll not survive if you take it.¡± The young lady advised once again. She wasn¡¯t being aggressive in any way, to her, there was no need to do anything like that. Grey shut his mouth as he tried to sort out the issue he was currently facing. Internally, he was panicking, trying to get the orb to work and stop the excess essence. If he doesn¡¯t sort it out, he might really have to give up the orb. ?¦Á?d¦Á¦Ç¦È¦Í¦Å| ¡­. While Grey was somewhat fighting for his life, the projection of the old man had his mouth wide open. ¡°What the hell is wrong with that kid?¡± He couldn¡¯t help but ask after some time. He had been watching every step Grey had taken since he entered that area. Of course, he didn¡¯t try to stop him any more since his previous attempts had failed. But never would he have thought that Grey would actually swallow the orb the moment he saw it. He didn¡¯t know if Grey was being overwhelmed by greed or if he was genuinely stupid. From a distance anyone could sense just how high the essence in that orb was. Yet Grey, someone the old man rated frighteningly high didn¡¯t seem to sense it. It was absurd just thinking about it. A few seconds later the old man¡¯s expression changed slightly, ¡°Huh? How come he¡¯s still alive?¡± Although he could see that Grey was not doing fine, but given how things were, he was supposed to be dead, not feeling some sort of discomfort. One has to know that the young lady had been inside trying to absorb this thing since they located the building. The reason they couldn¡¯t enter the last time was because the old man could not completely break the rules so some people had to at least get through some stages first. So the young lady had spent at least over a week or so inside, yet she had only absorbed one quarter of it, yet Grey swallowed everything. The young lady even had a higher cultivation base than Grey. ¡°What¡¯s really happening with that kid?¡± 1154 Passing It On While the old man and the young lady were stunned at Grey¡¯s stunning ability to actually survive the effects of the orb without exploding, Grey was fighting for his life. Even though he looked calm on the outside, he knew for a fact he might actually die. He was already caught in a predicament, either give up on it or try to hold on for as long as he could. The small time he had held on, he had actually absorbed almost as much as the young lady had during her time. His eyes were calm while internally he was panicking. ¡°Give up.¡± The young lady said once again. She was starting to get a bit impatient since she could feel the orb was actually being absorbed by Grey. The light it was giving was not as brilliant as it used to be, although she could tell Grey was not doing fine, she still felt a bit skeptical about the ordeal. First off, Grey should be dead, but he¡¯s not, and he¡¯s somehow magically absorbing it. Second, in the short time of a minute or so, Grey had absorbed a large amount of it. If things continued in this manner, Grey might not die and she¡¯ll watch him absorb it within the next five minutes. ¡°I¡¯ll attack you if you don¡¯t give up now.¡± She warned. Seeing that Grey was showing no signs of wanting to give up, she attacked. A light beam shot at Grey. Grey tried to manipulate his elements so he could block the attack, unfortunately, there was no way for him to do that. With no other option, he used all his willpower to enforce the armor, at least, he should be able to block her attacks with it and his strong physical body. Under his clothes, Dragon scales covered his skin, reinforcing his defense. Boom! The attack hit him, but the armor and his Dragon scales were able to block the attack. Although he was forced to take a few steps back, he wasn¡¯t harmed by the attack. The young lady was only in the Fourth stage of the Elemental Venerable Plane. Even though Grey¡¯s cultivation stage was only in the Second stage, his physical body had gone as strong as those in the Fifth stage, adding the Dragon scales and armor, he had no issues with blocking the young lady¡¯s attack. Unfortunately, he can¡¯t keep that up for long. The continuous attacks would make the effects of the orb even worse. Just one attack had already disrupted his innards and he started bleeding internally. The young lady looked at him, stunned. She never expected him to be this powerful. Even without doing anything, he was still able to block her attack given his current situation. Her eyes turned cold and she continued attacking, this time, more ferociously. If she doesn¡¯t stop him, then her trip here was a failure. Grey focused on increasing the defense of the armor, this was the only thing he could do. Hopefully he successfully absorbs it in a shorter time. When the next attack came crashing down on him, his figure was sent flying, and blood started to drip from the side of his mouth. ¡®Damn it! Why is this thing taking so long?¡¯ He complained. From what he had experienced, he knew he would be able to hang on until he completely absorbs it, the only issue was that the young lady was not going to give him that chance. He could sense the cold aura coming from her. He picked himself up and wanted to leave the room, but the young lady blocked the way. ¡°You can¡¯t use your elements. This makes you a sitting duck, are you really going to take all my attacks just because of this? You might die from it.¡± The young lady¡¯s eyes turned colder than it previously was. Grey didn¡¯t reply to her words as he continued doing what he was doing. He needed this inheritance, at least. Giving up on two inheritances was not something he wanted to think about. The young lady attacked when she saw that Grey was not showing any signs of wanting to speak. Boom! Bang! Bam! Grey¡¯s figure was like a ragdoll, being beaten and sent flying from one side of the room to another. No matter how he tried to circulate his elemental essence, he was unable to. He coughed up a mouthful of blood, the orb leaving his mouth in the process. The eyes of the young lady turned bloodshot when she saw that the orb had already been halved by Grey. She was about to heave a sigh of relief since it was no longer in Grey¡¯s mouth, but Grey opened his mouth and swallowed it once again. ¡®I have a thick skin. I¡¯ll take her attacks for now. Once I¡¯m done absorbing this, I¡¯ll teach her a lesson.¡¯ Grey snorted inside, but he didn¡¯t try to speak. Absorbing the orb madly. The young lady attacked again, but Grey managed to block it. His robe, which was made from the armor, started to show signs of breaking. ¦Ñ¦Á§ád¦Á `n?¦Í?| §ãom Having to constantly defend without much reinforcement, no matter how powerful the armor is, it still wouldn¡¯t be able to hang on for long. Grey¡¯s hands were soon exposed and his white Dragon scales came into view, stunning the young lady for a few seconds. ¡°Those Dragon people?¡± She muttered to herself. She had heard of a powerful Family that had some sort of ties with Dragons and could even get some abilities from Dragons, but this was her first time seeing one of them. Grey¡¯s Dragon scales were sparkling, but it didn¡¯t stop the young lady from continuing her attack. Grey¡¯s face was covered, so she didn¡¯t know what he looked like, but at least now she was sure of his identity. ¡°I know your Family is strong, but they wouldn¡¯t hide you from our wrath if we decide to take revenge. You¡¯ve already absorbed more than half of it, give it back.¡± The young lady tried to reason with Grey. Grey decided to be shameless and acted like he couldn¡¯t hear a word she was saying. At this point, it had been around two minutes or so since he started absorbing the orb. He had absorbed more than half of it and knew that as long as as he held on for two more minutes he would be able to completely absorb it. His only concern right now was that the more the robe was destroyed, the more heartache he felt. He would have to spend a lot to fix the armor, this was something he knew. Not just resources, but it would take a lot of effort from him as well. The young lady started attacking again when he didn¡¯t say a word. ?¦Á?d¦Á- ¦Ç¦È¦Í¦Å|¡¤?¦Èm The young lady attacked even more aggressively as the light started to dim. Grey was almost done absorbing it. Once that happens, she might be in danger. Since Grey could block most of her attacks without doing much, it meant that he is stronger than her. The young lady attacked, but unfortunately, it was of no use. Grey¡¯s skin was too thick and she was unable to break through it. ¡°Phew¡­.. I thought it would never finish.¡± Grey finally spoke, heaving a long sigh. The young lady on the other hand who was on the verge of attacking him paused, Grey had finished absorbing the orb. Now, he could attack. She gritted her teeth and said, ¡°Do you know what you¡¯ve done? My father won¡¯t forgive you.¡± ¡°Do you think I¡¯m afraid of your father?¡± Grey asked calmly. The young lady looked at him, her fist tightly clenched. ¡°Pass on a few of the things you¡¯ve learned to me. My father sacrificed a lot to get this.¡± She pleaded. ¡°So you guys opened this place just for your own benefit?¡± Grey raised a brow, his tone amused. The young lady looked to the side, not answering his question. ¡°Alright. I¡¯ll do as you want, besides, I¡¯m the biggest winner here. Passing on the techniques I got from it isn¡¯t much of a big deal.¡± Grey surprisingly agreed to pass the techniques to the young lady. Of course the technique was the most important thing, but it was not the only thing in the orb. There was still a lot of essence that could accelerate one¡¯s cultivation speed. The young lady¡¯s face showed gratitude since she didn¡¯t think Grey would actually pass on the techniques to her. Unknown to her, Grey still hadn¡¯t gotten control over his essence yet, he was only being mysterious just to stop her from attacking. Actually, he¡¯s in a worse state compared to when she was attacking him. Presently, he couldn¡¯t even use his scales. The young lady sat opposite him and he truly started to pass on the techniques to her. It wasn¡¯t a bad thing to do, after all. He was only using it to buy his life. 1155 Leaving Grey didn¡¯t hold back and passed on the techniques to the young lady. The young lady was elated as the techniques were being passed to her. This method was actually faster than the previous method she was using. Although she didn¡¯t want to say it, it wasn¡¯t a bad thing Grey absorbed the orb. She might have had some use for the large and pure quantity of essence inside, but her main aim was these techniques. While attacking Grey, she knew she wasn¡¯t a match for him if they fought head-on, hence her request for him to pass on the techniques to him. Grey was taking his time, glancing through the techniques as he passed them on to the young lady. There were quite a few he was interested in learning in a short time, like one that had to do with constructs. The light element is a wondrous element, these constructs, according to the description of the techniques, seemed to have some sort of consciousness. Of course, not on the level of humans nor Magical Beasts, but close to that of Elemental Warriors. The creator of the technique studied how Elemental Warriors were made and gained the inspiration from there to create this technique. These constructs could be used to do menial jobs in the house and also used to fight if needed. They are quite powerful, but their strength largely depends on the strength of the Elementalist who creates them. One advantage it has over Elemental Warriors is that it could stay active for a far longer time. Unfortunately, it requires a large amount of light elemental essence to sustain itself. There is no way for it to absorb the light essence on its own, so the Elementalist acts as the bridge. A reserve for elemental essence can be created inside the construct, this way, the Elementalists would not have to constantly feed it. There were a few more attacking techniques amongst them. Thirty minutes later. ¡°That¡¯s all, I¡¯m leaving now.¡± Grey still had his mask on. Although his clothes were partially destroyed, he made sure to always keep his face hidden. He already had enough enemies, adding the Heavenly Fate Faction to it wouldn¡¯t be a good thing for him. ¡°Wait, who are you?¡± The young lady asked, trying to take a peek at Grey¡¯s face. Grey didn¡¯t respond and vanished from the room instantly. He sensed the young lady was preparing a light element attack to break his mask. That was too much of a risk for him. With Grey¡¯s disappearance, the young lady was the only one left in the room. She couldn¡¯t help but heave a sigh. Honestly, she was freaked out when Grey appeared, it was even more so when Grey started to absorb the entire orb in front of her and there was nothing she could do about it. The pressure of bringing back these techniques was huge and her father entrusted her with the job. Luckily, Grey wasn¡¯t too unreasonable and decided to pass on the techniques to her. Even if he kept some to himself, at least, she got well over thirty techniques which is already above their estimations. ¡°I wonder what his identity is.¡± She muttered to herself before heading towards the door. ¡­. Grey appeared in another room, gasping heavily for breath. He had been pretending all this while. His injuries were not healed yet, and he could barely use his elements. His willpower was the only reason he was able to pass on the techniques to the young lady and even use the space element to leave the area. Now that he was no longer in the same place as the young lady, he fell to the ground, sitting down, drained. Void and the bunny leader were in this room. When they saw Grey¡¯s appearance, they didn¡¯t bother with him and went on with their work. Void was trying to take a shiny pearl. Grey only caught a small view of it but he knew it wasn¡¯t just shiny, it was most likely a powerful treasure. The bunny leader had its eyes on just one thing, a fruit that looked like a pumpkin. There wasn¡¯t anything of interest in the room other than those two things. Well, there might have been some things, but since Void and the bunny leader are there, they must have ransacked the place. Grey focused all his energy on trying to recover his energy while Void and the bunny leader continued what they were doing. A few more minutes went by and Grey¡¯s eyes snapped open¡­ someone was coming. Grey¡¯s eyes darted to the duo who were already done with the place. Only the young lady had managed to pass through the array so he knew she was the one venturing inside. He didn¡¯t want to have any more encounters with her, so he left. ¡°Is there anything else you two need?¡± The duo shook their heads. They could also tell that someone was coming and from Grey¡¯s question, he wanted to leave this place as soon as possible. ¦Ñ¦Á§ád¦Á `n?¦Í?| §ãom Grey motioned for them to come close, ¡°Let¡¯s leave then. I can¡¯t use the space element right now, I¡¯ll have to depend on you two.¡± Void didn¡¯t waste any time and sat on Grey¡¯s shoulder, leaving the place with him and the bunny leader. The moment Grey and the duo vanished, the young lady opened the door. Seeing the place, she knew Grey must have been here and must have taken the treasures kept here. ¡°Greedy.¡± She muttered through gritted teeth before turning around. ?¦Á?d¦Á¦Ç¦È¦Í¦Å| She shook her head and decided it was time to leave. They had been in this place for a while now and according to what was said, they shouldn¡¯t spend too long in this place. ¡­. Outside the building. The young man who was still trying to get through the array seemed to sense something and looked into the distance, in the direction Grey and his friends headed when they left. He was about to head over out of curiosity but the young lady walked out of the building, shifting his attention to her. Looking at her, he snorted coldly before asking, ¡°I hope you got it?¡± The young lady gave him a glance but didn¡¯t respond to his question, rather, she looked in the same direction the young man was previously looking at with an odd expression. ¡°Could he be there?¡± She murmured, turning her attention back to the others, she said, ¡°We better get going, there¡¯s nothing left for us here.¡± ¡°We brought people from all over the world to this place yet we aren¡¯t even as fortunate as them to gain any reward.¡± The young man from before commented coldly. As odd as it sounded, they barely got anything to show for this journey. In fact, if not for the techniques the young lady acquired, this would¡¯ve been a terrible expedition for them and a great loss for the Faction since they lost a few young geniuses while coming here. ¡°We had a mission, since it has been achieved, we should leave.¡± The young lady¡¯s voice became cold before she asked, ¡°Are you planning on defying the mission of the Faction Leader?¡± ¡°I wouldn¡¯t dare.¡± The young man replied and stopped talking. Even though his frustration was evident on his face, he knew better than to speak against the leader of the Heavenly Fate Faction. The group from the Heavenly Fate Faction left after this. ¡­. When Grey reappeared, the others could see the tiredness in his eyes. They couldn¡¯t help but wonder what he experienced in there. However, other than tiredness, they could also see excitement, it was clear he got something good from the place. ¡°Do you need to rest, or should we get going?¡± Alice asked after some minutes of silence. ¡°I can¡¯t move carelessly in this state, I¡¯ll need to recover some of my strength.¡± Grey shook his head. After a few seconds he added, ¡°Oh, I got something for you and Rey.¡± ¡°What¡¯s that?¡± Reynolds asked curiously. He knew whatever Grey had acquired, it would definitely be of great benefit to them. ¡°I obtained a large amount of elemental essence there. I¡¯m in no hurry to boost my cultivation stage as of now, so I think it will be best if you two¡­¡± Grey paused at this moment, his eyes moved to Kyle who was standing there too. Kyle hadn¡¯t broken through to the Elemental Venerable Plane as well, he then added, ¡± Kyle you can join in as well, it should be enough for the three of you.¡± Kyle expressed his gratitude to Grey when he heard Grey offering him part of the benefits. Gilbert couldn¡¯t help but look at Grey, stunned by his actions. Most people in Grey¡¯s situation would want to use the essence for themselves, but he was willing to give it to his friends. 1156 Heading Further Into The Building Grey, Alice, Reynolds, and Kyle opened their eyes almost simultaneously. Grey couldn¡¯t help but look at them with a smile. Not just him, the others were also staring at the trio. Gilbert was still stunned by Grey¡¯s generosity towards his friends. The fact that someone could do something like this was still a shock to him. Comparing himself and Grey, he knew he was not on the same wavelength as Grey. ¡°Congratulations, you¡¯ve successfully entered the Elemental Venerable Plane.¡± Grey said with a smile. ¡°It¡¯s all thanks to you Grey, thank you.¡± Kyle said with respect. He had traveled with the group for a short time, so, just like the few present who hadn¡¯t spent too long with Grey, he wasn¡¯t too clear on his personality. ¡°It¡¯s nothing.¡± Grey nodded before looking at those present, ¡°We better get going. I don¡¯t think my trip back would be peaceful, anyone want to join me?¡± ¡°Will someone try to kill us too?¡± Kluas asked. ¡°You¡¯re with me, of course they would want to kill you.¡± Grey grinned. ¡°Great¡­¡± Klaus¡¯ face fell, a few seconds later, a wide grin appeared on his face, ¡°How can life be exciting without having someone try to kill you? Count me in.¡± Gilbert couldn¡¯t help but look at Klaus. When Klaus asked if people would try to kill them, he felt Klaus wouldn¡¯t want to partake in such a dangerous journey. Who wouldv¡¯ve thought Klaus was just as crazy as Grey. Thinking of it, the first time he met the group, they were trying to raid a necromancers camp, he didn¡¯t expect less from people like them. Alice and Reynolds had no issues with traveling with Grey, nor did Ellis. Kyle and Gilbert were the only ones left to make a decision if they wanted to travel with them or not. ?¦Á?d¦Á-¦Ç¦È¦Í¦Å|¡¤?¦Èm Gilbert decided to follow them for the thrill of it. Although he didn¡¯t want to put himself in any danger for others, Grey allowed him to take the item back for his father, so he at least owed Grey. With everyone on the same page, the group set off on their return journey. After getting the ultimate treasure in this place, the path to leave naturally opened up to everyone present. The group left the place with ease. They didn¡¯t appear in any other place than the building they used in entering the place. Now, not just the thrones were present, there was also a path that led further into the building. Grey had always thought there was something else inside the building other than this secret space. ¡°Should we head in or go back?¡± He asked the group. He naturally wanted to go in, but he knew he couldn¡¯t make the decision for others so he asked first. If all of them disagreed, he would leave with them. Klaus agreed, and so did Alice and Reynolds. Grey didn¡¯t bother about Void and the bunny leader since they would go wherever he went. Gilbert agreed to go too, but Ellis didn¡¯t go with them. He came here with a young lady, and the young lady didn¡¯t enter the secret realm with them, or maybe she did but he didn¡¯t encounter her nor did the others since he had already asked them. So he opted to wait outside for her. Grey didn¡¯t have any problems with that since he would¡¯ve done the same if he was in his position. The group left, leaving Ellis alone in the building. When they walked the path, there was nothing in sight other than the long hallway. ¡°What if there¡¯s nothing special here?¡± Reynolds asked. ¡°We will leave. There¡¯s no need to waste time.¡± Klaus replied matter-of-factly. ¡°No need wishing us bad, let¡¯s see if we can get anything good from this place. There¡¯s no way you can tell me there¡¯s nothing good in this place.¡± Grey said. Reynolds shrugged, not bothered with what Grey said. ¡°Oh, and if you see anyone from the Syphilis Faction, you know what to do.¡± Grey added. The others smiled, Klaus in particular. He was annoyed by the fact that he was chased by them. Being a very vengeful person, he didn¡¯t mind fighting with the entire Syphilis Faction, well, those within his power level, anyone above his level, he didn¡¯t have any enmity with them. ¦Ñ¦Á§ád¦Á `n?¦Í?| §ãom The group continued walking into the place, and they soon got to the end and saw a door. Klaus was originally the one in front, but then he paused and took a glance at Grey, ¡°Open it.¡± Grey darted him a glance, and Klaus gave a harmless smile. ¡®I¡¯m not as strong as you, why should I be the one in front?¡¯ Klaus thought internally, looking at Grey in disdain for putting his friend in danger. Grey couldn¡¯t be bothered with Klaus and walked forward, thinking about it, he looked at Reynolds, ¡°Why don¡¯t you send your Elemental Warrior to do it?¡± Although he wasn¡¯t scared, he hadn¡¯t completely recovered from the battle with the girl from the Heavenly Fate Faction. It can¡¯t really be called a fight, it was more like a beating. Reynolds chuckled and sent his Elemental Warrior to open the door. The moment the door opened up, the others who were on guard looked at it curiously, they heaved a sigh when they didn¡¯t sense any form of attack, but the second the Elemental Warrior took a step past the door, a loud explosion rang out. Grey¡¯s expression turned dark and he couldn¡¯t help but look at Klaus. ¡°How would I know it¡¯s dangerous? Did I set up anything in my previous life?¡± Klaus asked with a snort. Grey didn¡¯t say anything and only watched on. The power of the attack was within the range of what the Elemental Warrior could handle, so he didn¡¯t feel too bad. The explosion soon died down and the group looked inside the room, there were a few people who were staring at the door. When they first saw the Elemental Warrior, they were taken aback, only after seeing the group behind did they understand what happened. There were about fifteen people inside and Grey was only familiar with one of them, Conor from the Dawson Family. ¡°Grey, you made it here.¡± Conor said with a smile. Grey walked over, ¡°Naturally. How long have you been here?¡± He was looking around and didn¡¯t find anything of interest. There were a few items that were sealed, but compared to what he had collected, these didn¡¯t seem to matter much. ¡°Not more than thirty minutes I think.¡± Conor replied, looking at Grey¡¯s group, he said, ¡°There are a few things of value here, want any?¡± A few of the people present were from the Dawson Family and they have all heard of Lucas Dawson¡¯s famous genius son. According to what they know, even the Gnome race were trying to kill him, this shows just how powerful he is and how much of a threat the Gnome race sees him. Some of them didn¡¯t get a good look at him when they just entered the place, so now some of them were studying him. The fact that he was in the Second stage of the Elemental Venerable Plane was something they didn¡¯t think too highly of. If Grey had been in the Fourth or Fifth stage, they would¡¯ve respected him, but they were basically in the same stage, why would they show a large respect for someone in the same stage, if not for the fact that he was the son of the legendary Lucas Dawson, they would¡¯ve even spare him a glance. Grey didn¡¯t bother with them and focused his attention on the things around, he looked at those behind him and none of them was showing any interest in any of the things. ¡°You can have them, we will see if we can keep going.¡± Grey replied. Those behind Conor heaved a sigh. Grey¡¯s status in the Family should be even higher than that of Conor since he is the son of Lucas. ¡°That should be the way to get past here, but I¡¯m not too sure on how to get past it.¡± Conor pointed at a large seal. Grey studied the seal for some time, ¡°Alright, thank you.¡± He headed over with his friends after thanking Conor. The seal wasn¡¯t as powerful as the array he had to get past before taking the inheritance a few hours ago. With enough time, he would be able to handle it. Grey got to work as soon as he got there, first he studied the seal to figure out the best way to crack it, just as he was about to start, he heard the door open and this time, the force of the attack was stronger than what they experienced. The person behind the door managed to block the attack and appeared before Grey. It was none other than the young lady from the Nether Faction. ¡°I see.¡± He muttered. The attack that is unleashed by the defense mechanism on the door depends on strength of the person entering. 1157 A New Opponent The young lady from the Nether Faction looked around after the attack died down, when she saw Grey¡¯s group, she didn¡¯t attack as Grey thought, instead, she slowly observed the others in the place. She was not alone, there were three people with her, but in terms of overall strength, she knew her group was inferior to Grey¡¯s. Grey also didn¡¯t bother with her since he didn¡¯t see any reason to get into a battle with her now. He immediately got to work with the seal. The seal would close automatically after creating an opening, so Grey wasn¡¯t bothered that others would benefit from his hard work. Before long, he cracked it, opening it for his group, he turned to Conor, ¡°Are you coming?¡± Conor thought about it, he could sense that something was going on with Grey and the group of four who just entered the place. He looked at the others from the Dawson Family and they all showed excited expressions. Since that place was sealed off, it meant it had things that were superior to the ones that were in this place. Conor nodded after seeing how eager the others were to get in. The son of the current Family Head was not present, if not, he might not have agreed to getting Grey¡¯s help. The group from the Dawson Family stepped in, Grey threw a glance at the young lady before walking past the seal. The moment Grey walked past, one of the people Grey met there moved with lightning speed, trying to get into the small opening that was left since the opening was closing. Just when he was about to step in, a pale blue fireball exploded in front of his face, pushing him back. ¡°Ah¡­¡± The young man yelled, not expecting an attack to suddenly come, he was hit unprepared. The young lady from the Nether Faction heaved a sigh of relief, she was very familiar with those pale blue flames of Grey. ¡°A cunning fellow, it¡¯s best we don¡¯t have any more encounters with him.¡± She muttered. Unlike most of the people she had crossed paths with, Grey didn¡¯t rely on his superior abilities, he has a variety of ways to sort out each problem and he seems to almost always come out on top. This was a figure she would rather not make an enemy of since Grey held back from attacking her, then she would stop attacking him. ¡­. Grey and his group appeared in another hallway, and unlike the previous one, there were multiple doors this time. Everyone headed to try out different doors, hoping they could find something good. Grey took Void and the bunny leader and walked further into the hallway. The duo were great with treasures, so he was sure the best things would be located by the duo. And his instincts weren¡¯t wrong, after walking past about thirty doors, Void and the bunny leader showed some reactions and darted for a brownish door that the wood seems to be decaying. When Grey got there, he was shocked by the state of the door. It was the only one in this condition, the others were in great condition. ¡°The decay power of the darkness element.¡± He muttered after touching the door. He could sense that there used to be a seal on it, but it had been corroded to the extent of not being able to function any longer. Grey opened the door and stepped in, the first thing he saw were two dried up corpses on the ground. ¡°Stay sharp, there might be danger up ahead.¡± He warned Void and the bunny leader. It hadn¡¯t been more than an hour since these people died, and thinking of the fact that they managed to get past the seal showed that they were top geniuses even among geniuses yet they had died in this place, and it seems to be in the hands of the same person. The room was quite large and there was another door on the side, Grey looked around but didn¡¯t find anything of value. ¡°The person who killed them must have taken the things.¡± They turned their attention to the other door which was in the same condition as the one they used in entering this place. He didn¡¯t speak much, preparing himself for a potentially dangerous battle forthcoming. When he opened the door, he saw a familiar figure. It was a little girl who was surrounded by five people in black cloaks. He recalled seeing this girl while they were in the secret realm, but at that time she was leaving the stage he appeared in. ¡°I thought you would never come.¡± The little girl giggled when she saw Grey. ¡°Necromancer?¡± Grey asked a straightforward question. ¡°What do you think?¡± The girl asked. ¡°You¡¯re here for me?¡± Grey asked another question. ¦Ñ¦Á§ád¦Á `n?¦Í?| §ãom The girl¡¯s reply was the same as the first time, ¡°What do you think?¡± Grey didn¡¯t ask anymore questions and studied the figures covered in cloaks standing around the girl. They were standing in a particularly odd formation which made Grey a bit apprehensive. ¡°Kill him.¡± The little girl said casually. The five figures covered in cloaks didn¡¯t say anything and attacked Grey immediately. Grey was already prepared for an attack from them, sensing their cultivation stages, he heaved a sigh of relief. They were all in the Third stage of the Elemental Venerable Plane. Although it wouldn¡¯t be easy to deal with them, especially when he didn¡¯t know how they fought, he knew he at least stood a chance against them. The five cloaked figures surrounded Grey and all sent out black palms. When Grey sensed the threat of the astonishing level of decay in their palms, he was slightly frightened. He knew not to allow these palms to touch him, even if he had increased the usage of his light element, it would be had to fend off against all five of them at the same time. His armor had slightly recovered thanks to him feeding it with some of the essence he got from the orb. Using the armor and his Dragon scales, he blocked the palms, he held onto one of the palms and dragged the person close to him, releasing a punch on the chest of the figure. The figure was sent flying, disrupting the formation of the group. Grey noticed the cultivation stage of each of them dropped by a stage, going to the Second stage of the Elemental Venerable Plane. ¡°No wonder! Such a nice array!¡± He couldn¡¯t help but praise. Being an array fanatic, he was intrigued at how they managed to do this. He knew of arrays that could increase the power of an individual if multiple people use it, but he wasn¡¯t too familiar with one that would collectively increase the strength of everyone on the formation. The girl looked on with intrigue, not showing any signs of being worried. ¡®Void, keep an eye on her.¡¯ Grey didn¡¯t allow Void to fight now, he was hoping to keep him a secret weapon that would help him in case things went south. Given how calm the girl was, he knew she wasn¡¯t afraid in the least bit. The other four figures didn¡¯t bother about the one sent flying, they each started to attack with the darkness element. Grey blocked the attacks but was pushed back. When he saw that the cloaked figure he sent flying was heading back to the formation, he vanished and appeared close to the figure, striking out another powerful punch. The figure didn¡¯t take the blow without doing anything like the last time. Seeing the fist coming, the figure raised an arm and blocked the fist. Grey imbued the fire element in his fist, so when the blow connected, the cloak on the figure¡¯s arm caught fire and Grey saw a black hand beneath the burnt cloak. ¡°What are you?¡± Grey couldn¡¯t help but ask. The hand was stronger than that of a normal Elementalist, and it made Grey think otherwise. However, compared to the usual puppets he fought against, there wasn¡¯t any form of darkness controlling them. Grey had tried to break the connection of the girl and these puppets. He originally felt they were puppets after confirming the girl was a necromancer, but he was disappointed when he couldn¡¯t. He tried to look into the face of the figure but the cloak covered it completely and all he could see was unending darkness. He opened his mouth and spat out a stream of fire. Since he was the same height as the figure, he aimed it at the face. The figure tried to retreat but Grey held on and didn¡¯t let go. ?¦Á?d¦Á¦Ç¦È¦Í¦Å| He didn¡¯t know if the person was alive or dead, but all he could see was a hairless black face with glowing golden eyes that looked like golden flames. 1158 Not Like Necromancers ¡°This is different from the previous ones, are they alive?¡± Grey turned his attention to the girl, holding the figure by the throat and lifting it up. He was able to easily block it from using any form of elemental attack and he had superior physical strength. The figure struggled but couldn¡¯t escape from Grey¡¯s grasp. The girl looked at Grey, an amused smile on her face and said, ¡°You¡¯re physically strong, stronger than most Elementalists in the Early stages of the Elemental Venerable Plane.¡± ¡°That doesn¡¯t answer my question, what are they?¡± Grey¡¯s eyes turned cold. The young lady smiled from ear to ear and replied, ¡°Open it and find out.¡± The other four figures were charging in Grey¡¯s direction at this moment, just as they were about to get close, Grey tossed the figure he was holding at one of them, taking the two of them out. With two figures out of the formation, the strength of the other three dropped once again. This time, it didn¡¯t leave the Second stage of the Elemental Venerable Plane, but it was clear to see that they were not the same way as they previously were. Grey took a step forward and exploded out with insane speed. His speed was out of this world. Before the figure he targeted could react, Grey was already standing in front of it and attacked with a fireball. He turned to the next one and sent out a blizzard that froze it, leaving just one. The girl still didn¡¯t show any signs of panic, she just washed as Grey was able to easily deal with all five figures. As the battle progressed, Grey was able to quickly incapacitate three of them; he didn¡¯t destroy them, but found a way to seal them. Although he didn¡¯t want to show his light element out, he subtly used it with the help of an array. The girl didn¡¯t sense anything like the light element as she watched on. Five minutes later, all five figures were unmoving, sealed with both an array and ice. ¡°To think you could incapacitate them.¡± The girl commented and looked at the figures on the ground, a bit disappointed. ¡°They were not a problem.¡± Grey looked at the sealed figures before turning to the girl, ¡°Who are you?¡± ¡°Since you defeated them, I¡¯ll let you in on that information. Besides, it¡¯s not like it will be of any use to you anyway.¡± The girl chuckled before adding, ¡°I¡¯m more like a hitman. When people have problems they need help with solving, they call me. You¡¯re wanted dead or alive, preferably dead, and I¡¯m here for the job.¡± ¡°No hard feelings, I really need the rewards placed on your head.¡± Grey frowned, he knew with what the Gnomes placed on his head, he would have a lot of people try to kill him, ¡°You seem confident, I¡¯ve dealt with your toys, do you think I can¡¯t deal with you too?¡± ¡°They¡¯re not done yet.¡± The girl pointed at one of the figures that was not sealed in ice. The figure started to melt right before Grey¡¯s eyes, in the blink of an eye, it vanished like it was never there. Not just that one, but two other figures did the same. Of the five figures, three were nowhere to be seen, leaving just two that were sealed in ice. Grey didn¡¯t speak immediately and observed the two. Crack¡­ The ice sealing the two figures started to crack open and with a bang, it exploded, freeing the two figures. Grey¡¯s eyes turned sharp when he realized that the strength of the two figures had gone to the Fourth stage of the Elemental Venerable Plane. This time, there was no help from any formation, it was their personal strength. ¡°Nice trick, but it will not be enough.¡± Grey¡¯s figure blurred and he appeared beside one of them, just as he was about to attack, the figure reacted faster than he expected, managing to block the attack. The figure was pushed back, but the impact of Grey¡¯s attack didn¡¯t affect it much. ¦Ñ¦Á§ád¦Á `n?¦Í?| §ãom Grey didn¡¯t stop after this, he immediately vanished, going after the second one. The place he was supposed to appear exploded from the fist strike of the figure and Grey¡¯s figure appeared from the void, his face was slightly dark. He barely dodged the attack, if not for his quick reaction, he would¡¯ve been hit by the attack. The girl laughed when she saw Grey¡¯s expression, ¡°Did you think they are like before?¡± She scoffed, ¡°They are stronger, faster, highly sensitive. I don¡¯t believe you currently have a superior physique to theirs at the moment.¡± Grey¡¯s eyes were cold, he snorted but didn¡¯t say anything to the girl. He was not a hundred percent yet, even though he had recovered, he still needed a few more hours or possibly days to completely recover. Having a battle this intense would do him no good. Unfortunately, there was nothing he could do about it. He straightened his back and his eyes turned sharp. ¡®Seems like if they are destroyed, their power would be transferred to the ones still alive. No wonder she wanted me to break them to check how they were made.¡¯ Grey came to a realization of what was happening and knew things would most likely get worse for him. His only hope of not being too stressed out right now was if he could successfully destroy the two at almost the same time. He didn¡¯t know if destroying the two at the same time might work, so he wanted to give the other one at least a second before he would destroy it. This would give it the time to start receiving the power from the destroyed one. The two figures attacked Grey simultaneously, each creating balls made from the darkness element. Black tendrils sprouted out from the ground, heading in Grey¡¯s direction. Grey used his fire element to cut them before blocking the darkness balls, while also attacking them with a lightning strike at the same time. He unleashes his lightning domain on them and charged into it, covered in lightning, he looked like a god of lightning. The two figures were being attacked by the lightning domain, but they still fought against Grey. Bam! Bang! Sparks flew everywhere as Grey engaged in a close combat with them. The girl was astounded by Grey¡¯s seemingly insurmountable physical strength. Even with the increase the figures got, they were still unable to overpower Grey when it came to physical battles. If not for the fact that there was two of them, Grey would¡¯ve been able to deal with one of them with just his physique alone. ¡®If I can get his corpse, I should be able to create an undying monster!¡¯ The girl started to shake from the excitement. Just the thought of having a weapon like Grey made her exhilarated. ?¦Á?d¦Á- ¦Ç¦È¦Í¦Å|¡¤?¦Èm These five figures were genuinely Darkness Elementalists, extremely powerful Darkness Elementalists while still alive. But now, they are nothing more than a mere weapon to the girl. Grey fought ferociously with the duo and his lightning domain slowly started to fade away. Maintaining it for too long is not something he could do at the moment, and he also wanted to switch. The figures were still fighting when a bone-chilling cold spread across the place. After Grey¡¯s trip in the secret realm, his ice ability had increased by a lot, adding his freezing flame to it, it was a powerful combination. Ice started to show signs on the body of the two figures, but they used the darkness element to stop it. Grey switched to the water element, making it harder for the duo to fight against the cold. Their bodies started to freeze at a quicker pace. The girl saw this from the outside and frowned but she didn¡¯t make any movements. She stayed in the same position, watching on. Grey drew close to one of them, and just as he was about to punch it, the freezing cold got stronger there, and the figure started to freeze up faster. The other figure was heading in the direction Grey was, hoping to stop Grey. It was just about to attack when the flames in its eyes died out. It was almost instantaneous. Grey appeared behind it with a sword, piercing it into its skull, killing it. Immediately after killing this one, Grey rushed back to where the other frozen figure was and punched at it. It had already turned into an ice statue, as the glow on its eyes was starting to get brighter, Grey destroyed it. 1159 I Made Some Tweaks To It Chapter 1159 I Made Some Tweaks To It The girl looked at Grey with an incredulous gaze, not expecting him to figure it out so quickly. If Grey had given the other figure one more second, it would''ve had time to react since its strength increased by two more stages, taking it to the Sixth stage of the Elemental Venerable Plane. No matter how powerful Grey was, there was no way he would be able to deal with a Sixth stage Elemental Venerable unscathed. From Grey''s current appearance, it was easy to see that he was a bit stressed from the battle, but he was able to win in the end which was all that mattered. "What will you do now?" Grey turned to the girl with a calm expression. "You don''t think they were my only toys, do you?" The girl smiled. Grey didn''t say anything, preparing for what might come next. However, nothing else appeared. He couldn''t help but look at the girl, foreboding something stronger was going to appear. The girl laughed when she saw Grey''s expectant gaze, "Haha, actually, those are my strongest toys, but not my strongest form of attack. I was only buying time to absorb the power back." The girl who didn''t seem to have any aura of an Elementalist suddenly exploded. She was quite small, not up to four feet tall, yet her small body suddenly seemed to amass unimaginable strength, shocking Grey. Grey never expected the little girl would be the one to get all the strength after the toys were broken. With what he had experienced from destroying them, they seemed to be able to increase the strength of the next user by at least one stage or more. If the little girl''s strength went above the Sixth stage, Grey would be in a whole lot of trouble. Fighting against someone like this wouldn''t have put any pressure on him previously, but that was because he still had access to the Fusion State. Now, he couldn''t use the Fusion State, although he had learned more powerful attacks, he was still not on the level when he could climb five stages. ''Void, get ready to join the fight.'' He didn''t dare to overestimate himself, he knew his limits. Void nodded, prepared to fight. Compared to Grey, he was a bit stronger, well, not entirely, but he could fight against Grey on his own. The bunny leader wasn''t invited to this battle, first off, it didn''t like fighting and relied heavily on those around him. Not just that, but it was still in the Early stages of the Seventh Rank, unlike Void who had gotten to the Mid stages. The aura of the little girl got to the Sixth stage, and just as it was about to go past the Sixth stage, Grey noticed she stopped it. Only then did he recall about the restrictions in this place, as long as the little girl got past the Sixth stage, then she would be attacked by the huge array in this place. "I see, you can''t go past the Sixth stage." He commented. "It doesn''t matter, I can still deal with you in this state, it''s nothing much." The girl replied nonchalantly. Grey smiled but didn''t say anything else. The little girl was pretty confident in her abilities, and he knew he couldn''t underestimate her. The moment the girl said this, she made her move. Her body was covered with a tornado and a powerful gust appeared in the room. Even though the room was quite big, the gust seemed to be able to destroy everything present. The destructive wind came with powerful wind blades that flew everywhere, cutting down everything in their path. Grey created an ice dome, protecting himself from the wind blades. The ice dome soon started to show signs of cracks. Seeing this, Grey''s figure was covered with ice armor and he charged out like a warrior, he attacked the little girl with the fire element. The little girl stretched her hand and a powerful breeze blew the fire attack away. It crashed into the wall, leaving only a mark on it. Grey tried to use the space element to attack her, but the little girl sensed it and moved from the location, dodging the spatial slash. The little girl opened her arm and a black orb floated out, it shot at Grey with shocking speed. Grey reacted abruptly, blocking it with an ice wall, but the wall couldn''t stand the attack and crumbled to the ground. But it managed to stop it for a second, giving Grey the opportunity he needed to escape with the space element. When he appeared, the girl attacked once again. This time, she sent out an arrow made with the light element. The speed of this attack was far more than what Grey could handle at the moment, he fortified all his defenses and took the attack. Boom! Grey''s figure was sent flying by the impact of the attack. He was stunned that the girl had both the light and darkness elements. It was a rare combination. Seeing Grey''s look, the girl smiled with a proud expression, "I can use as many as five elements. I heard you also have a good variety as well." Grey didn''t say anything, he had used four elements already, and to be honest, he wasn''t too confident in defeating this girl. If he showed more elements, he might be in trouble. At most, he can still show his earth element, but that was the most he could do. He looked at the girl with a serious expression and muttered to himself with a sigh, "This will be tough." The girl seemed to hear it and burst out laughing, her cute voice didn''t seem as pleasant as it was supposed to sound since she was trying to kill Grey. A large wind blade struck Grey''s position, but he managed to dodge it by a hair''s breadth, attacking with the fusion orb. He didn''t have the time to tweak it. The normal fusion orb was quite powerful. The girl who had always had a calm expression all this while couldn''t help but take another glance at Grey. She threw another black orb made from the darkness element at it. The two collided and a powerful explosion rang out, rocking the room. Grey and the girl stood on opposite sides, looking at each other. They protected themselves from the impact of the explosion, else they would''ve been injured from it. "What secrets does your body hold? That attack is not something I''ve seen before." The girl''s eyes narrowed to a slit as she asked. Grey couldn''t be bothered to answer her, he was thinking of ways to either defeat her or call for help. Ellis was in the Fifth stage of the Elemental Venerable Plane, with his help, he had confidence in defeating the girl. The young lady saw Grey''s eyes and knew he was most likely thinking of a way to get help, "You can get any help here. I''ve sealed up the place. For some reason, I was a hundred percent certain you would come here." The girl attacked again after saying this. Grey didn''t hold back and attacked immediately as well. The duo started exchanging attacks, this time, they were more ferocious. It was almost as if both had come to terms that only one of them could leave this place alive. A few minutes went by in a flash. On one side, there was a small figure who was overwhelming a figure bigger than her. Grey''s figure was sent flying on so many occasions he lost count. The armor was starting to show signs of falling apart, Grey was slightly bleeding, but his eyes were still fierce. The girl was only slightly better than Grey, but she was still bleeding, and a slash could be seen in her left shoulder, running down to her lower back. They separated once again, each catching their breaths. The girl had an excited look on her face as blood ran down her left arm. "It''s been a few years since I last saw my blood. I''ll kill you slowly for this." She said with cold eyes. "You will not be able to, unfortunately." Grey''s reply was calm. "There''s a clear gap in our strength, why are you still so confident? Do you think whatever talisman you have with you can work? I told you, I already sealed off this area, there is no escaping from you. I''ve never lost a target before." The girl said coldly. "Haha, you call that a seal? I already sensed it from the moment I stepped into this place. I even made a few tweaks to it, I''m just waiting for my friend." Grey laughed, while laughing, the door opened and three figures walked in, "Would you look at that, right on time." Grey cracked his neck and knuckles before asking with a smile, "Now, where were we again? Oh right, killing you." The eyes of the girl widened, shocked by Grey''s words which were true since she was unable to sense the arrival of the three people who just entered the place. 1160 Didn’t Do A Proper Research Chapter 1160 Didn¡¯t Do A Proper Research "How did you do it?" The girl asked a bit hysterical. She had been monitoring Grey''s movement since Grey stepped into the first room, yet she never sensed it when he altered the array. "While we were fighting. I already knew you would sense it if you weren''t distracted, so I walked in here as if I was oblivious to it." Grey chuckled, "Since you''re an assassin then you should be aware of my profile, right?" The girl looked at him, unable to speak. She did read about his profile, but this array was an ancient array she stumbled upon while on a mission. Even her seniors in the Elemental Sovereign Plane were baffled by the array, yet Grey not only managed to sense it quickly, but he could also alter it to his advantage in such a short time. "Impossible! Where did you get the array? Speak!" She didn''t believe Grey didn''t know of the array. Grey chuckled but didn''t say anything. He only managed to be aware of the array thanks to the inheritance he got from this place. Although there were not too many arrays in the inheritance, there were a few, and luckily, this one was part of it. If not for that, he would''ve been stumped. Of all the arrays he had seen, this was the most complex one, even the array he had to get through to collect the inheritance wasn''t as complex as this one. Even if he might have been able to break the array on his own, it would''ve taken him at least an hour, that was enough time for the girl to complete her mission. He couldn''t help but thank the stars he was greedy and took the inheritance from the young lady from the Heavenly Fate Faction. Ellis, Klaus, and Reynolds were the trio who came to his aid. They were the ones closest to him, so they rushed over when they received his distress signal. Grey couldn''t blatantly open this area and make others hear the sound of the battle, so he had to be very subtle with it. "Since my friends are here, it''s time to end this." Grey attacked the moment he finished speaking. He wasn''t in the mood to continue speaking with the girl, who knew if she was planning something else and only wanted to delay them? Ellis and Klaus attacked together. Reynolds summoned his Elemental Warrior and merged with it, increasing his strength to the Third stage of the Elemental Venerable Plane before attacking. The girl tried to fight them off, but with the group fighting together, she was having a difficult time. One has to know that each of them were geniuses when it came to fighting in their own rights, fighting together against a single opponent was just overkill. The girl managed to send Klaus flying, but Ellis attacked at the same time, hitting her from behind. She turned to block that attack, but a large blade made from pale blue flames struck down from above. She dodged the blade, blocking Ellis'' attack as well, but she was forced to take on Reynolds'' lightning spear that pierced through her shoulder thanks to her quick reaction. Reynolds aimed for her heart, but she was able to dodge it. Grey attacked once again, striking with a lightning bolt, aiming for the head of the girl. Reynolds attacked too, aiming for her legs. Ellis was less vicious but more cunning. His attack blocked any thought of escape the girl had. There was no way she could dodge the attack of both Grey and Reynolds and face his. Of the four, Ellis was the strongest, although Grey had the highest attack power, that was if the fusion orb is brought into the picture. Without the fusion orb, his next thing was his physical strength, but it was a tad below Ellis'' attack. While the girl was thinking of what to do. She saw a small flash, before she could even react, a thin needle had pierced the injury on her shoulder. She felt a frightening cold spread across her entire body and for a quarter of a second, she froze. Klaus'' ice ability was almost second to none, the technique Grey gave to him made him even more deadly. Flames rose in the body of the girl, covering her in a dome. Grey and Reynolds'' attack hit the fire dome and it fell apart. The girl appeared before them once again, she was shivering slightly, it was clear she hasn''t been able to deal with the ice in her body. "Little girl, don''t fight it, it will only get worse." Klaus snickered then looked at Grey in disdain, as if saying, ''You''re being bullied by such a small girl.'' Grey could care less about Klaus'' look, he attacked right away. "She''s dangerous, don''t give her any chance to react." Klaus and Reynolds attacked simultaneously, this was the first time they were fighting someone and Grey was actively telling them the person is dangerous. They''ve seen how powerful she was, but they didn''t know if she was as dangerous as Grey was making her seem to be. Ellis was making sure it was impossible for the girl to leave that area, keeping her contained. Seeing Klaus'' ice ability, he was a bit stunned. He was also a Water Elementalist and even had a higher cultivation stage than Klaus, but he wasn''t confident in being able to use his ice ability to cause too much of a problem for the girl. ''They are all geniuses.'' He sighed internally. There was nothing else to say, each of Grey''s friends were freakish people. He used his domain to create a large water dome, keeping everyone inside. Void was watching the battle from the side, still refusing to step in. With four people, there was no need for him to fight too, given his usual personality, he opted to watch. The girl fought hard against Grey, Reynolds, and Klaus, but she was not getting the upper hand. In fact, she was completely overwhelmed. The reason it was this difficult for her was due to Ellis'' devious methods. Had he joined in on the battle, she would''ve gotten the opportunity to at least give the trio some space, but now, whenever she tried to move out of their attack range, she would be faced with a powerful attack from Ellis, and while defending it, Grey, Klaus, and Reynolds would evilly attack her from behind, making her injuries grow. Boom! Grey''s attack hit her back and sent her flying, while she was still in the air, an ice hammer struck her towards the ground, the ice hammer was covered in lightning, a combined attack from Klaus and Reynolds. Bang! She slammed into the ground, spitting out a mouthful of blood. Her body was riddled with injuries at this time, her eyes red. "Aren''t you people ashamed?! Attacking a small girl!" She couldn''t help but scream. "We are a bunch of shameless guys, using our superior numbers to beat you up, what can you do about it?" Klaus said shamelessly. Grey looked at this side, trying to remove himself from what Klaus said. "What are you doing? Weren''t you the one who called us over? You even wanted everyone to come." Klaus looked at Grey in contempt. Grey shrugged, he looked at the girl with an indifferent eye, "I don''t allow people who want to kill me to live. Although it seems cruel, it''s the reality of things. Since you want to kill me, then you should be prepared to die too." The girl looked at Grey with her red eyes, to be honest, she didn''t want to die, she wasn''t prepared for that yet. "I''m the one who kills people, not the other way around." She muttered. "Sorry sweetheart, but life doesn''t always go as we plan it." Klaus attacked, even before Grey did. The girl was already almost unable to put up any form of defense against them. Just as Klaus'' attack was about to hit her, her figure blinked and she vanished. "F*ck! She said she had five elements." Grey exclaimed. The girl was using only three elements while fighting with him, only after the others came did she add the fire element to it. He never thought the last element was the space element. They suddenly heard a scream from the void and the girl appeared once again, spitting out more blood. Her left arm and leg was completely gone and blood were dripping from them. "Good job, Void." Grey said as Void came out from the same spatial tunnel the girl came out from. Void, who hadn''t made a move all this while was the one who reacted first, not only stopping the girl from leaving, but fatally injuring her as well. The girl looked at the small black cat in shock. "If you had done your research, you would''ve known I have a very powerful cat with me, a Space Elementalist cat. Your lack of research is the cause of your death." Grey said calmly. 1161 A Different Breed ¡°You are hot in the market, even if I fail, someone will still kill you.¡± The girl said with blood dripping from her mouth. ¡°I¡¯ll scale through, just like I¡¯ve done today.¡± Grey replied calmly and ended the girl. There was no remorse in his eyes. ¡°Hot guy, guess there will be more people who will be trying to kill you.¡± Klaus joked. ¡°It is what it is. For some reason, the Gnomes genuinely want me dead, and the rewards are quite attractive.¡± Grey said. ¡°Should I send your head over to them? I mean, it would be better if you let your friends get the reward instead of others.¡± Klaus grinned. ¡°Given your attitude, the chances of you dying beofre me should be higher, you make far more enemies than I do.¡± Grey retorted. ¡°Yes, but they are all within my level, you don¡¯t see me offending an entire race that almost wiped out the human race.¡± Klaus said. Reynolds and Ellis nodded in agreement to what Klaus said. Grey was most likely the only one who could make an enemy of such strong people. Klaus might be annoying, but he had always chosen his enemies carefully. He might become enemies with people stronger for the pressure, but not people that could easily overwhelm him. ¡°Why are you acting like I did it on purpose?¡± Grey complained. ¡°You made camp outside the portal that sends them in, almost killed one of the princes, and stopped them from sending in young geniuses because you had killed too many of them. If I were in their position, I would¡¯ve threatened to start another invasion unless you were produced.¡± Klaus¡¯ words immediately shut Grey up. ¡°Okay, I agree that I was a little impulsive.¡± Grey agreed with Klaus¡¯ words, but then added, ¡°They were hunting us, it was only right I did the same.¡± ¡°They are the stronger of the two races, they naturally feel we shouldn¡¯t be able to compete with them, much less bully them to such an extent. You provoked them with your actions, and seeing how talented you were, they took you as a threat.¡± Ellis commented on the conversation. Grey and the others knew he was correct. ¡°I was too impulsive.¡± Grey couldn¡¯t help but sigh. He didn¡¯t think much about this when he was attacking them at the time, he only didn¡¯t want them to bully humans any more, and given his past experiences with them, he hated them. When the opportunity presented itself, he attacked them, making them hide. At the time, it was quite an impressive feat to be honest, and he was quite excited given the battles he had. ?¦Á?d¦Á¦Ç¦È¦Í¦Å| Klaus and Reynolds nodded, but Ellis couldn¡¯t help but take a glance at Grey. The fact that Grey was acting like it was ordinary was out of this world, anyone else would¡¯ve been frightened, but the only thing Grey said was that he was too impulsive. ¡®He¡¯s a different breed.¡¯ That was the only thought in his head. The four of them left the place, Grey didn¡¯t forget to take the storage ring in the girl¡¯s hand, he knew that she must have taken the good things here, even though they might not be of much use to him, it wasn¡¯t a bad thing to have them. When they came out, the others were heading towards their direction. The little girl who entered the place was with them as well. Ellis saw her a few minutes after the group left and decided to go in after them. Breaking through the seal wasn¡¯t too hard. After getting in he saw Reynolds and Klaus heading in the direction Grey was fighting with the girl and joined them. Since it might be dangerous, he didn¡¯t allow her follow them. ¡°Done?¡± Grey asked. They nodded. ¡°We should leave then, I think we¡¯ve been here for at least a month now.¡± Grey suggested. The others nodded, they were tired of this place. Some of them needed to digest the rewards they got here, while others needed to train. Not everyone was like Grey and Klaus who were lucky to almost always get all the good stuff, a few people actually needed to recover their strength. The group soon walked out of the building. Conor left with those from the Dawson Family, telling Grey he was waiting for his next visit to the Dawson Family. Grey waved them goodbye and while they were leaving, he saw a familiar figure. The young lady from the Syphilis Faction he almost killed. The moment the young lady saw him, she turned around and bolted out of the area. Keith soon walked up to them, ¡°I thought we would only see after we¡¯ve left this place.¡± Unlike the others, he wasn¡¯t transported by the large throne, but the other smaller ones. So there was no way he would¡¯ve been able to see them. Seeing that Klaus, Reynolds, Alice, and even Kyle had broken through to the Elemental Venerable Plane, he couldn¡¯t help but feel slightly envious. He knew if he had gone with them, the chances of him actually benefiting too would¡¯ve been quite high as well. Unfortunately, his talent was not high enough and he couldn¡¯t enter the same place as the others. ¦Ñ¦Á§ád¦Á `n?¦Í?| §ãom ¡°I will have to leave now, someone¡¯s waiting for me.¡± Gilbert said, his father was still waiting for him. ¡°It was fun traveling with you guys, I wouldn¡¯t mind doing it another time.¡± He said before finally leaving. Grey and the others waved him goodbye and turned to look at the enormous building once again. They¡¯ve had a few experiences here, and a few of them had almost been killed, especially Grey, but they had also gotten some great rewards from the place. The real winner is none other than Grey who inherited the core techniques of the Twilight Faction. Klaus got a few good techniques as well, also benefiting from some things. Reynolds learned a new form for his Elemental Warrior after being inspired by something he saw in the place. Alice broke through to the Elemental Venerable Plane, the same for Kyle. ¡°Let¡¯s get going.¡± The group started their journey out of the secret realm. ¡­. Outside the secret realm. The Heavenly Fate Faction. In a secluded room in the Faction, the young lady Grey passed on the techniques to, as well as the Faction Leader of the Heavenly Fate Faction could be seen. ¡°Someone stole the entire inheritance from you?¡± The Faction Leader of the Heavenly Fate Faction asked the young lady coldly. ¡°I¡¯m sorry Father, I tried everything but I couldn¡¯t break his defense. He was able to absorb everything in a matter of minutes and he didn¡¯t seem to feel any burden from it. If I were to fight with such a person, I might most likely die. However, he passed the techniques on to me.¡± The young lady apologized with her head down. She knew her Father would be upset by the news but she knew it was only right she told him about it. ¡°Do you know how much I¡¯ve sacrificed for this expedition?¡± The Faction Leader asked. ¡°I know Father, he had a special armor that could transform into a robe, and also dragon scales.¡± The young lady explained. ¡°Are you sure he had dragon scales?¡± The Faction Leader asked after a moment of silence. ¡°Yes, Father.¡± The young lady nodded. ¡°The Vaergahl Family, but what would they want with those?¡± The Faction Leader muttered to himself. ¡°Go, tell them to stop anyone from the Vaergahl Family from leaving, we will question them. I will go speak with the Elder that came with them.¡± The Faction Leader said. The young lady bowed and left. The eyes of the Faction Leader turned slightly cold, with a cold snort, he stepped out. The Vaergahl Family were one of the few who accepted their invitation, so they were staying in the Faction grounds. It didn¡¯t take long before the Faction Leader saw the leading Elder of the Vaergahl Family. A few of the youths from the Family had come out of the secret realm. ¡°Can we speak, privately?¡± He said the moment he appeared. Noticing the tone of the Faction Leader¡¯s voice, the Elder sent the youths away and went inside the building with him. ¡°A youngster from your Family took something that belongs to my Faction inside the secret realm.¡± He went straight to the point, describing the person how his daughter described him to him. ¡°No one of that description came with us. You should know that not all the geniuses from my Family are able to get the dragon scales. The few who came with us don¡¯t fit that description. None of them has blue scales.¡± The Elder said with a calm mannerism. ¡°You mean there¡¯s someone outside the Vaergahl Family that can acquire dragon scales?¡± The Faction Leader looked at the Elder, his eyes turning cold. ¡°There shouldn¡¯t be, but if there is, I would like to know who that person is.¡± The eyes of the Elder also turned cold at this point. 1162 Trouble? Grey and his friends came out of the secret realm a few minutes after the Leader of the Heavenly Fate Faction went to meet with the Elder from the Vaergahl Family. Grey had no idea his use of dragon scales had put the Vaergahl Family into the picture. Now, not just the Heavenly Fate Faction, but the Vaergahl Family were looking for him. Of course, this wouldn¡¯t bother him since he knew there was no way they would think it was him. First off, other than the dragon scales, he didn¡¯t use any form of attacks, so the young lady didn¡¯t know how she could describe him other than the armor and scales. The armor was something he didn¡¯t have prior to entering the place, this made him even more confident that he wouldn¡¯t be captured by others. When they came out, he noticed the strange mood around those from the Vaergahl Family, they seemed to be somewhat annoyed because they were being held back by those from the Heavenly Fate Faction. ¡°What¡¯s happening with them?¡± Klaus pointed the strange situation out. ¡°Nothing we should involve ourselves in. We better get going.¡± Ellis suggested. He had some experience with the Vaergahl Family and knew it was best to stay out of their way. Grey agreed with him and they soon left the area. Keith went over to meet up with those from the Pyrmond Faction, he came with them and it was only right he went back with them. When the Elders from the Pyrmond Faction saw the few people that returned, they couldn¡¯t help but shiver at the thought of the danger within the secret realm. It was only after they heard from Keith how the Syphilis Faction went on a killing spree on them due to looking for Grey did they understand why the death rate was that high. A few of the Elders looked at Grey, they didn¡¯t know what to feel about him. However, when they looked at the side of the Syphilis Faction and noticed of over fifty people that went in, only around eight people made it out, they couldn¡¯t help but clean their eyes. Keith told them of Grey¡¯s act of hunting those from the Syphilis Faction and killing them with ease. The Elders felt gratitude when they looked at Grey, at least with this, they knew he still placed the Faction somewhere in his heart. After finding out that he was from the Dawson Family and even the son of such a famous figure, most of them didn¡¯t think he would want to associate himself with the Faction, but to their surprise, he came back after a long trip. Although he left soon after, he fought for the Faction when the people were being slaughtered, although some might say he was the cause, technically, the Syphilis Faction had always tried to kill those from the Pyrmond Faction with any opportunity they could find. ¡­. Grey and his friends went back to the place they gathered when they first arrived. ¡°Why don¡¯t we go for a short stroll before everyone goes back to their Factions?¡± Reynolds suggested. ¡°That¡¯s the best thing I¡¯ve heard you say for a while.¡± Klaus chuckled and said. Reynolds smiled and replied, ¡°Thanks.¡± He suddenly paused after speaking, he looked at Klaus who had burst out laughing, along with the others. Embarrassed, he yelled angrily, chasing after the already running Klaus who was about to exit the tavern, ¡°What the hell?! Come here, I¡¯ll kill!¡± ¡­. Five months went by in a flash. The entire Aurora Continent seemed to enter a state of quietness, it was like after the last expedition to the Twilight Faction, there was a moment of break. Grey and his friends went back to their separate Factions. Contrary to what most from the Dawson Family felt, Grey didn¡¯t go back with them, rather, he went back with the Pyrmond Faction. Ellis continued his exploration of the continent. He originally came out to train, alongside the young lady with him. Since Grey and the others were going into secluded cultivation, he followed his initial plans. The Pyrmond Faction. Grey was in his building when he heard a knock. He opened his eyes and left his place of cultivation, walking over to the door. When he opened it, he realized it was someone from the Faction¡¯s mission hall. ¡°That time again?¡± He asked. The young lady could only give a wry smile and nod. Although the Grand Elder from the Family Foudre came from wasn¡¯t openly causing trouble for him, he had made sure Grey went for more missions compared to others. ¦Ñ¦Á§ád¦Á `n?¦Í?| §ãom There had been multiple times during the history of the Faction when missions were assigned to a specific individual, so it wasn¡¯t the first time something like this was happening, but it has been the most frequent in a year. Grey sighed, ¡°Let¡¯s get this over with.¡± He came out with the young lady and headed to the Elder¡¯s Area. Apparently, missions of this level are not dropped in the Mission Hall, rather, it is a personal request from a top individual in the Faction. The moment Grey and the young lady appeared, the Elder motioned for the young lady to leave and tossed a scroll at Grey. ¡°Grey, you¡¯re here. Here¡¯s the mission, I want it completed within a week.¡± The Elder said. Grey took the scroll and left. When he got to his place, he sighed. He had broken to the Third stage of the Elemental Venerable Plane, due to spending too much time on missions, he hadn¡¯t been able to advance much, even with the new techniques he got from the place, he had only been able to learn a few new techniques. After accessing all the options with him, he learned the techniques he felt were better. Since his return, Keith, who didn¡¯t benefit too much from the last expedition they went together, had been out of the Faction for a long period, he headed to his building but he hadn¡¯t still returned. Void and the bunny leader sat excitedly on his shoulders, they hadn¡¯t seen anything interesting to do for almost a month now, when Grey left the place of cultivation and went out, they knew he must have been assigned a mission. ¡°I¡¯m tired of these things. I¡¯ll be leaving soon.¡± He couldn¡¯t help but complain when he walked outside the Faction. ¡°What¡¯s the plan this time?¡± Void couldn¡¯t help but ask what the mission was. ¡°I don¡¯t know what populates that area yet, I¡¯ll have to go out first.¡± Grey replied. ¡°Alright.¡± Void said. Grey and the others left the place and headed for the forest around them. The Faction is covered by a large area of mass and it was filled with Magical Beast, and whenever most of the top dangerous missions were assigned to the people from your Faction, Grey has no way of finding out the mission he was assigned was dangerous. Only after he headed to one of the areas does he know that it is dangerous. He was unfortunate to travel for a journey a year ago, so he knew the days he would be able to leave without facing any issues. Grey, Void, and the bunny leader left. Grey had just recently learned a new technique from the ones he inherited, so he was trying to get used to it. When he got to the place, he noticed that the enemy in the place was two stages ahead of his current stage. After five months, he only broke through a stage, the Magical Beast he had to face was only in the Fifth stage of the Elemental Venerable Plane. Grey could fight against these five people, although they were still in the Fifth stage, they were not stronger than other geniuses in the Fifth stage. ?¦Á?d¦Á- ¦Ç¦È¦Í¦Å|¡¤?¦Èm He was still in the Third stage when he went with his seniors in a mission that was in the Sixth stage. He tried to trick a group into making his missions easier since that group wasn¡¯t a top group, they tried to always make sure he was assigned a mission that it was among the top Factions. Grey would have to go with only two people that were in the Fifth stage. This was a mission that was regular to his seniors. On this mission, Grey was shocked when he noticed that the people waiting for the mission were not the last ones. He knew this mission was not going to be like the last one. He looked at the others that were looking at the mission. ¡°Do you think it will be easy?¡± Someone from his regular group for missions asked. ¡°Not entirely. This mission will be harder than the last.¡± Someone said. 1163 A Fools Dream Grey watched this group of new people, although he wasn¡¯t too social, even with the last group of people he usually travels with, he had gotten used to going on the missions with them. He couldn¡¯t help but give a sigh and accept his fate. These people were only a stage above the people he usually travels with. ¡°We should get going.¡± He said, seeing the trio weren¡¯t showing any signs of moving. ¡°We want to accept a mission close to where your mission is going to be carried out. More points for us.¡± A young man from the group of three said with a smile. ¡°I¡¯m not helping out with that, I¡¯m not interested in doing any other missions.¡± Grey was as straightforward as ever. If these people felt they would get him to help in their missions, they were obviously dreaming. He had zero interest in the mission he was assigned, much less that of others. The only reason he wanted to go with them was because it would make his mission easier, and it wasn¡¯t like he was hoarding the rewards since he would be sharing it equally with them. The others nodded. Everyone knew of Grey¡¯s personality, so none of them took offense from what he said. Grey was pleased with how they took the situation and left with them. Just like most of the missions the Grand Elder had assigned for him, this one was still in the forest surrounding the Faction. However, they would have to venture deep into the forest. Grey knew for a fact that the deeper he goes into the forest, the more danger he would come across. When the group got to the edge of the forest, Grey told them of the mission. ¡°Our mission is to bring back the core and corpse of a Three Headed Deer.¡± He looked at the trio with him. When they heard him say Three Headed Deer, their expressions changed slightly. These were incredibly rare Beasts, encountering one was purely by chance, yet, they were sent to go and search for it. These Beasts don¡¯t like socializing with other creatures, so they are usually solitary and keep a very large territory. They are extremely territorial and will fight to the death in most cases if they feel someone or something is trespassing on their territory. As they grow older, they seem to develop a hatred for humans, and would occasionally kill them whenever they cross paths. Grey didn¡¯t care about these things, all that mattered to him was completing the mission within the space of a week. Locating the Beast was the hardest part, but there had been sightings of the Beasts from those who had ventured into the forest for a mission in the past few months. ¡°Our first target is the western part. That is the part that has the most sightings of them. If we¡¯re lucky, we might complete the mission within a day or two.¡± Grey gave them a briefing on what he had found about locating the Beast. The trio nodded and the group walked into the forest. During the first parts of the journey, all they needed to do was to release their auras and the Magical Beasts around would run away at the sense of how strong they were. But the deeper they went, the stronger the Magical Beasts. Before long, they had gotten to the point where there were occasional Rank Seven Magical Beasts. These Beasts were in the same Plane as them, although they might have a higher cultivation stage, these Beasts are not scared to cross blows with them. ?¦Á?d¦Á-¦Ç¦È¦Í¦Å|¡¤?¦Èm Grey and the trio worked together and quickly killed it. After killing it, they kept the corpse. Seeing that they were staring at him, Grey let them take the corpse. There were other things he was more concerned about. The trio showed their gratitude to him for giving them the corpse before they continued on the journey. One after another, Magical Beasts kept coming their way and they would kill all of them. Grey couldn¡¯t help but frown when another Magical Beasts appeared. It was a Golden Spotted Fox. These were shy creatures that rarely attacked people, yet, this Fox had a somewhat enraged eyes as it charged at them. ¡°Strange.¡± He muttered as he dodged the sharp claws of the Fox. ¦Ñ¦Á§ád¦Á `n?¦Í?| §ãom The trio worked with him and the Fox was on the verge of dying in a matter of seconds when Grey received a voice transmission from Void. ¡®Don¡¯t kill it.¡¯ Grey paused for a slight second but reacted accordingly, pushing the Fox from the incoming attacks of the trio. ¡°Wait! Don¡¯t kill it.¡± He said. ¡°Why?¡± The leader of the trio asked, ready to attack. This was the most benefits they had made in a long time, and he didn¡¯t want a free Rank Seven beast core to go just like that. ¡°Haven¡¯t you noticed more Magical Beasts are attacking us? I¡¯ve frequented these areas during the past months, and although there are Rank Seven Magical Beasts all around, they rarely attack people in this manner. I know most of the routes, so I¡¯m sure we¡¯re not in any of these Beasts¡¯ territory, yet they keep attacking.¡± Grey explained in a calm manner. He wasn¡¯t in a hurry, the Fox tried to attack, but it was put down with a casual wave of his hand. The Fox was already severely injured, it was no match for Grey¡¯s physical strength. Grey¡¯s cultivation isn¡¯t the only thing that had advanced these past months, his physical strength had also gone from being level with the explosive strength of someone in the Fifth stage of the Elemental Venerable Plane to someone in the Sixth stage, edging closer to the Seventh stage. This Fox only recently broke through to the Mid stage of Rank Seven, it was no match for him, physically. The trio looked at how easy it was for Grey to push the Fox away, but they still thought about his words. They were also quite shocked by how often they were being attacked, but due to how many free high level cores they were gaining, they weren¡¯t thinking about it. ¡°In most cases, Beasts tend to act like this when there¡¯s something good in the area.¡± One of the trio said, licking his lips. Whenever natural treasures are born into the world, especially in forests like these, Magical Beasts would swarm the area. In these times, people would encounter more Magical Beasts when exploring that area of the forest during the time the treasure is about to be born. ¡°Yes, but don¡¯t put your hopes in getting it. There are Rank Eight Magical Beasts in this forest. I will not want to encounter any one of them just because I was clouded by greed.¡± Grey¡¯s words killed the thoughts in the heads of the trio. ¡°The four of us should be able to deal with a Rank Right Magical Beast.¡± The youngest of the trio suggested. Grey chuckled but didn¡¯t reply, there was no use in reasoning with someone who could bring up such a suggestion. Even a Peak Rank Seven Beast shouldn¡¯t have too much of a problem dealing with all four of them, yes, Grey included, yet, this young man was suggesting they attacked a Rank Eight Magical Beast, one they didn¡¯t even know if it¡¯s in the Early stage or Late stage. ¡°Come on, if we can get that treasure, we will advance faster.¡± Another one of them urged. ¡°I¡¯m not interested in that. You can go if you want.¡± Grey replied as he started to go through the map of the forest he had created in his head. At present, his plan is to avoid the area where the treasure should be born. ¡°This thing will definitely attract Three Headed Deers to the area, this will make your mission easier. Think about it, such a treasure would attract all the Magical Beasts in the area, right?¡± The leader of the trio said, stopping Grey¡¯s thoughts. ¡°Yes, even if we¡¯re not going there for the treasure, we can just wait there and a Three Headed Deer would come to us.¡± Grey couldn¡¯t refute their words, although he wanted to avoid that place, he also knew that with such a treasure, a Three Headed Deer will surely appear there, so long as it¡¯s in this forest. Seeing Grey¡¯s expression, the trio knew that they had been able to convince Grey. ¡°Just to be clear, if an opportunity presents itself for any of us to take the treasure, first to get it, own it.¡± The leader of the trio said. Grey nodded, not even bothered about it. Why would he want something a Rank Eight Magical Beast has set its sights on? He didn¡¯t try to stop these guys from daydreaming. Fools were allowed to dream. The trio all had plans of getting the treasure, Grey on the other hand, just wanted to complete his mission and continue his training. 1164 Instant-kill Grey naturally knew the plans of the trio, but he felt they should get the picture since he had already made it clear to them that other than the mission, he wasn¡¯t going to involve himself in anything else. As long as whatever they had plans of doing was not in line with the mission he had in mind, then he was not interested. It didn¡¯t take long to track the place the treasure was going to be born, all they had to do was to go to the area with a higher concentration of Magical Beasts and they would be able to get the general knowledge of the place. A few days passed while they were waiting for the treasure to be born before the Three Headed Deer appeared. The one that showed its face was shockingly in Rank Eight. Grey wasn¡¯t stupid enough to try to fight the beast, he still had around three days before the deadline for the mission. As long as he was able to complete it, even if it was a day after the deadline, he should be able to maneuver past it. The Grand Elder was trying to be fair with his acts of trying to get Grey killed, so he would be able to deal with him being a day late. One of the trio couldn¡¯t help but ask, ¡°There the beast is, why don¡¯t we take it down?¡± ¡°You believe we are enough to take down a Rank Eight Magical Beast?¡± Grey took a glance at the young man. The young man nodded in reply to Grey¡¯s question. Grey took a peek at the others and saw their reactions, he chuckled internally and said, ¡°The mission required a Rank Seven Magical Beast, not a Rank Eight one.¡± The young man looked at Grey, a bit displeased by his words. He looked at the others and seeing their reaction, he knew he might have overestimated their capabilities. With a snort, he looked away. Grey couldn¡¯t help but sigh. ¡®This is why I liked the old group, they already know what to do.¡¯ He said to Void. ¡®This guy wouldn¡¯t last long if left alone.¡¯ Void evaluated the young man who was trying to get them to attack the Three Headed Deer. Only a fool would believe people in the Mid stages of the Elemental Venerable Plane would think that only four people would be able to defeat a beast in the Eighth Rank. Even if all four of them had Grey¡¯s abilities, they would barely stand a chance against it. The group waited another day and Grey was slowly starting to feel like they might not be able to see a Three Headed Deer here, he was already having the thought of suggesting they leave, but he halted the thought and decided to wait till nightfall. If a Three Headed Deer doesn¡¯t appear in the night, he would leave the next morning. Later that night. Grey was watching most of the beasts coming into the area, he sent Void and the bunny leader to different positions since he wouldn¡¯t be able to get a complete view of all the beasts that were coming into the area. The trio that came with him were also stationed in different places. He was about to give up when one of the trio, the young man who was originally trying to get him to attack the Rank Eight Three Headed Deer appeared. ¡°I saw one entering the area, it¡¯s in the Mid stages of Rank Seven, well within your abilities.¡± He reported. ¡°Alright.¡± Grey called over the others, as well as Void and the bunny leader. They came up with a tactic to attack it. One has to know that this is an area completely filled with Magical Beasts, as long as the slightest ripples of a battle spread out, they would attract so many Magical Beasts that it would be difficult for them to escape, much less completing the mission. By the time they completed the plan, a few more minutes had gone by. Grey didn¡¯t trust the young man, so he decided to send Void ahead to check out if the beast was as the young man said. Sending Void ahead of them wasn¡¯t only to check if the beast was within their power, but to also set up some array points. Void was somewhat proficient in arrays, although he rarely tried it out, Grey occasionally teaches him a thing or two. All he had to do now was to set up the preliminary array for Grey. That way, once Grey appears, all he needed to do was to set up the main array in the middle and enclose this area from others. Grey soon got the word from Void that the young man¡¯s words were accurate and he had set up the array, awaiting their arrival. Void had no issues with fighting against the Three Headed Deer on his own, he was also in the Mid stages of Rank Seven, and he had a superior bloodline. His superior bloodline, however, is the reason he can¡¯t fight against it. Once the Rank Eight Magical Beasts in the area sense it, they would want to devour him. His bloodline might be higher than theirs, and he might have some certain advantages over them, but he can¡¯t cover the sheer advantage they had over him when it came to their cultivation stage. Grey and the others appeared in the cave where the Three Headed Deer was residing, and the moment they appeared, Grey instantly made the last symbols, setting up the array. The symbol he created silently flew into the sky and merged with five other dim lights that had been positioned in different locations. ¦Ñ¦Á§ád¦Á `n?¦Í?| §ãom The trio looked at Grey, amazed by his efficiency. They thought it would take a while before he completed the array, but he completed it almost immediately they arrived which came as a shock to them. ¡°Get to work. It can¡¯t keep the ripples from the Rank Eight Three Headed Deer, it will only delay it. We have to take it down as soon as possible.¡± Grey urged them when he saw them standing in the same place. They nodded and quickly surrounded the place. Grey was going to be the main attacker, he would also be the one that would enter the cave to fight against the Deer, the others would wait outside and attack when the Deer comes out of the cave. Inside the cave. The cave was quite large, and it was also quite deep. Grey rushed inside, Void and the bunny leader were by his side. He has already activated his dragon scales at this time. His body was giving off a faint golden glow, this was one of the new light element techniques he learned from those techniques. It helps with almost instant-healing him whenever he gets hurt. It was a good skill to have when fighting with the physical body. Against a Magical Beast, he would almost always want to use his physical strength to overpower it. After walking for a few minutes, Grey saw the Three Headed Deer lying on the ground, seemingly resting. Grey was a master at masking his aura, there was no way a Rank Seven Magical Beast would be able to sense him, except a select few. ¡®A one shot sneak attack?¡¯ Void asked. Grey nodded, this was the plan. The reason he didn¡¯t take the others with him was because they might not be able to hide their aura as well as he could. ¡®I¡¯ll use my bloodline to intimidate it, while you attack from behind.¡¯ Void said. Grey nodded and went to the side, just as he was about to attack, he saw a smaller Three Headed Deer. He systematically froze, unsure of what to do. This Three Headed Deer had a calf, if he were to kill it, it means he had to kill the little one as well. ¡®I¡¯ll keep it for now, I¡¯ll think of what to do later.¡¯ He sighed to himself. This was his chance to complete the mission, he would not give it up for a small Deer, at most, he¡¯ll take it with him and give it to someone. Thinking about it, he felt it was the perfect Magical Beast to give the little he left with the triplet. Her brother was still in a coma. Since leaving, he hadn¡¯t been able to check up on them. ?¦Á?d¦Á-¦Ç¦È¦Í¦Å|¡¤?¦Èm Void¡¯s aura exploded out and the Deer froze, the smaller one passed out from the pressure. The Deer was still trying to hold on when a large spear made of the space element pierced through its head, killing it in an instant. The Deer didn¡¯t even have the time to react before it was killed by the duo¡¯s cooperation. ¡­. Outside the cave. In another part of the forest. The Rank Eight Three Headed Deer seemed to sense something and opened its closed eyes, it looked in the direction Grey was located and its eyes turned cold. 1165 Stopped From Leaving Chapter 1165 Stopped From Leaving Back in the cave. "Oh crap! It sensed it!" Void exclaimed and headed for the exit of the cave. Grey didn''t need to ask what Void was speaking about, with his reaction, he knew for a fact that it was a Rank Eight Magical Beast. If the beast meets them here, they would be in danger. ¡­. Outside the cave. The trio were waiting to attack the beast, seeing Grey rush out of the cave, they looked behind him, but didn''t see any beast chasing after him. "Is it too strong?" One of them asked hurriedly. "It''s dead, leave immediately. A Rank Eight Beast is coming." Grey warned them. When they heard Grey''s words, they froze at first. It hadn''t even been more than a few minutes since Grey entered, and they didn''t even sense any aura of a fight, yet he said he had killed it. But they snapped back to reality when they recalled the last part of his statement¡­ A Rank Eight Magical Beast was coming their way. Grey was running this fast, it showed that he was not joking around. They ran after Grey when they heard a powerful roar getting close to them. Void and Grey had hid their auras, trying to move as subtly as they could. ''This is why I like traveling alone. I will not take any other missions.'' He sighed. If he was alone with just Void, he wouldn''t have to worry about the safety of others and would''ve easily found a place to hide and wait until the beast was gone, but now, he had to take the safety of the trio into account. As they ran through the forest, they encountered more beasts, but Grey and Void made them retreat in a flash. The sound of the beast''s roar was getting lower and lower. The duo didn''t leave any signs of the battle. Luckily, he killed the Three Headed Deer with one clean strike, so there was no way others would know about it even if they entered the place, with the exception of a few powerful individuals. After running for about thirty minutes or so and confirming their safety, Grey stopped. The trio stopped as well, all gasping for air. They were not as fast as Grey, and flying in a situation like theirs was not the best option, so they had to move on their feet. "It stopped chasing us over twenty minutes ago." One of them complained while catching his breath. Grey took a glance at the person and didn''t respond, if not for the beast''s roar, the trio would never have realized they were being chased by a Rank Eight beast. Void was the main reason he was aware of it, he only sensed the beast after coming out of the cave. While they were running, he lost track of the beast''s aura, luckily, Void was with him. Void was able to locate it and tell him the beast was still chasing them. If the trio had been alone, they would''ve most likely died under the claws of the beast by now. "I hope you weren''t lying when you said the Three Headed Deer was dead." Another one of them spoke up later on. A large beast appeared beside them, and the dead Three Headed Deer was lying there quietly. Of its three heads, only one of them had a hole in it, the others were untouched. The fact that Grey could kill it with such ease shocked them. They inspected it and found out it died from just this one attack. After exchanging glances with each other, they nodded to Grey. Grey was a quite famous figure in the Faction, and his stories about his strength were widely spread in the Faction, but not everyone acknowledged him. This trio were skeptical about his strength, but now, they completely believed him. "What''s the plan now?" The young man who had eyes for the treasure asked. To be honest, given how scared he was when running away just now, he had killed the idea of even seeing the treasure, much less taking it. Grey thought about it and decided to help them out with their mission. He would be leaving the Faction soon to try to see if he could help the young man with the triplet, and given how these guys had been acting, they would most likely die if left alone here. When they heard that Grey was willing to assist them with their mission, they were ecstatic. Their mission didn''t take as long as Grey''s mission and they completed it within the next few hours. ¡­. Some days later. Pyrmond Faction. The Faction Leader was staring at Grey, feeling some sort of headache. He knew all about the Grand Elder''s missions for Grey and had even confronted him a few times, but the Grand Elder didn''t seem to care about it. Grand Elder Archibald looked at Grey with a cold gaze, he still recalled how he felt when he knew who Grey''s father was, and in all honesty, he hated both Grey and his father. "You''re not allowed to leave the Faction ground without going out for an official mission." Grand Elder Archibald said. When Grey tried to leave the Faction some days after handing over the items, he was stopped. Apparently, the Grand Elder placed people at the gate to stop him from leaving the Faction. Grey took the matter to the Faction Leader and the Faction Leader summoned the Grand Elder. "Since when was that part of the Faction rules?" Grey looked at the Faction Leader. The Faction Leader shook his head, "It''s not. However, a Grand Elder or Faction Leader can stop an individual from leaving the Faction if they feel like it. It''s something that rarely happens, but it does happen, occasionally." Grey raised a brow, stunned by what he was hearing. He couldn''t believe they were actually telling him that they wanted to keep him in the Faction. "Boy, stay in your building peacefully, I have a mission you wouldn''t want to miss." Grand Elder Archibald laughed lightly. "Your mission will have to wait, Grand Elder, I have assigned Grey to a mission and he will be leaving in a few minutes." The Faction Leader said calmly. "What do you mean you''ve assigned him a mission?" Grand Elder Archibald''s tone turned cold. The Faction Leader tossed a ring over to Grey and replied, "He will be helping me deliver something private." "I want him back within a week." Grand Elder Archibald said. "Do I look like a toy to you?" Grey felt irritated with the way the Grand Elder was treating him. He knew the Faction Leader only assigned him this mission so he could leave, and he was grateful to him for that. If not for the Faction Leader, he wouldn''t have returned to the Faction after the last incident, but he knew the Faction Leader genuinely cared for him, so he returned. Grand Elder Archibald left a little annoyed with the Faction Leader. "What will I be delivering?" Grey asked after the departure of Grand Elder Archibald. "There''s a rare gem there. I was supposed to hand it over to my sister the last time I went out, but I forgot about it. Now, I want you to help me with this. You should be able to complete the mission within a week at most if you travel with teleportation arrays¡­" The Faction Leader told him the location of where he was headed and the mission. Grey thanked the Faction Leader for his assistance with the Grand Elder and left. This time, he was lucky to find Keith just arriving. "Oh, you''ve broken through." He was a little amazed that Keith had broken through to the Elemental Venerable Plane. He had to admit that Keith was a genius, although not on the level of him and his friends, Keith was quite hardworking, this made up for his lesser talent. "I was fortunate during my return and got a treasure in the forest a few days ago." Keith replied with a smile. "What part of the forest?" Grey couldn''t help but ask. During his mission, he knew of the treasure that was about to be born, but he didn''t want to involve himself with a potentially dangerous battle, so he refrained from going for it. Keith thought for a while before replying, "In the northern part, there was also the corpse of a beast close to it." Grey couldn''t help but click his tongue at Keith''s luck. He not only got the treasure, but the corpse he saw most likely belonged to a Rank Eight Magical Beast, and that in itself was also a treasure. "It''s good you''ve broken through. I''m on my way out, I''m not sure I will return for a few months." Grey said to Keith. Keith nodded, he knew Grey had been in the Faction since returning from the secret realm, given Grey''s personality, he thought he would''ve left earlier. 1166 Can You Deal With Them Grey¡¯s current plan was to search for a way to heal Arya¡¯s brother who was still in a coma. He still hadn¡¯t asked his father if he could help, so his plan was to first ask him if he could help, only after confirming that he can¡¯t will he think of what to do. He had been communicating with the triplet and found out about the current predicament of Arya¡¯s brother¡¯s condition. He recalled the last time he went there and had to fight a group of people using evil methods to increase their cultivation stage. He promised to go back when he got help, but he still haven¡¯t been able to ask his father for help, and he had been very busy with increasing his strength and keeping himself alive. His grandfather also promised him an opportunity when he returned, but he hadn¡¯t gone since leaving. Since he had gotten to the Third stage of the Elemental Venerable Plane, he shouldn¡¯t have too many problems with whatever opportunity his grandfather wanted to offer him. ¡­.. Just like most of the time he¡¯s on a long journey, Grey disguised himself and seemingly disappeared from the world. During his journey, there were a few times he sensed the aura of necromancers and even Gnomes, but he didn¡¯t try to have any contact with them, he knew doing so would not be good for him given the fact that he was being hunted down by them. It had been three weeks since he left the FAction and he opted to travel on his own instead of using teleportation arrays, although that would make his journey faster, he enjoyed traveling by foot more. Two more weeks went by and he finally got to the place the Faction Leader sent him to. It was a small town that didn¡¯t have any great sights, it was like most small towns. Locating the Faction Leader¡¯s sister was quite easy as well. Before leaving, he got a good description from the Faction Leader and also a way to communicate with her. He got to a small house that was isolated from the rest of the town and before he even knocked, the door opened and a lady who looked to be in her mid thirties walked out. ¡°You must be Grey, my brother has spoken a lot about you.¡± The lady said the moment she walked out. She had golden long hair, a soft looking face, pearly blue eyes, and was just around 5¡ä 7. She looked nothing like the Faction Leader. Grey bowed to show his respect and she waved for him to get back up. ¡°I was just about to head out to pick someone up, want to come with me?¡± The lady asked with a soft smile. Grey paused, unsure of what to answer. His original plan was to drop the item and leave immediately. ¡°Don¡¯t worry, it¡¯s just around the corner.¡± The lady said when she saw him hesitating. Grey nodded after giving it careful thoughts, although he was wary of her, he didn¡¯t want her to view him in a bad light. Besides, he would most likely rarely see her after this. Seeing Grey nod, she took a step forward, grabbed him and they disappeared. Grey was stunned when he realized what was happening, the lady didn¡¯t use the space element, rather, she used the light element. He had always known that the speed of the light element was second only to the space element when it came to covering long distances, but for short distances, it was second to none. The place they appeared was around three to four kilometers away from the town. And with the speed of the lady, they appeared there within two seconds. Grey couldn¡¯t help but be shocked. Seeing Grey¡¯s expression, the lady chuckled, ¡°You don¡¯t have to be shocked, you have the space element, which is quite superior to almost all the elements. Of course, each element has their own advantages, but the space element truly is domineering.¡± She didn¡¯t hide her admiration for the space element. Grey didn¡¯t say much and only looked around, they were on a hilltop, and he could vaguely hear the sounds of people, arguing. ¡°What are we doing here?¡± He asked again. ¡°Like I said, I came to pick up someone.¡± The lady headed down the mountain. Grey followed her, not asking anymore questions. He was quite curious why she decided to take him along. As they got closer to the ground, the voices got louder. Before long, he could see silhouettes of multiple people. There were around ten people present, and they surrounded a figure. When Grey got closer, he got a better view of the person that was surrounded, it was a young lady who looked almost identical to the Faction Leader¡¯s sister, but younger, around Grey¡¯s age range or so. ¡°That¡¯s my unruly daughter.¡± The lady said when she saw Grey looking at the young lady. ¡°Oh¡­¡± Grey nodded and watched the scene. ¦Ñ¦Á§ád¦Á `n?¦Í?| §ãom Apparently, these people wanted to rob the young lady. ¡°Why don¡¯t you listen to me and drop everything you have, including your clothes.¡± One of the men surrounding her said with a lewd smile. ¡°Yes, drop your clothes first, we¡¯ll take the rest later on.¡± Another one of the men said. Hearing what they were saying, the young lady spat on the ground in disgust. ¡°You think you can do anything to me? Leave if you know what is good for you.¡± She warned. ¡°Haha, the little lady is threatening us.¡± ¡°We don¡¯t like it when we¡¯re being threatened, especially by little girls like house.¡± The voices of some of the men turned cold. ¡°Hold her down, I¡¯ll make sure she doesn¡¯t forget this day.¡± A handsome man among the group said while licking his lips. The young lady looked at the young man as she was approaching, her eyes cold. She was prepared to fight with them. Just when they were about to get close to her, they heard a voice from behind them, berating someone. ¡°Eleanor, I told you not to go out, right?¡± They didn¡¯t know who the person was or how the person even got there. The young lady on the other hand, had an expression of someone who had been caught doing something bad. ¡°I only wanted to see if it¡¯s still here.¡± She said in a small mosquito-like voice. ¡°I¡¯ll punish you after dealing with these miscreants.¡± The voice of the lady said again. The group of ten turned around and saw two figures, Grey and the lady. They had walked within a few meters of them without any of them even sensing it. One has to know that a few of them were in the Elemental Venerable Plane. Even among them, two had managed to get to the Fourth stage of the Elemental Venerable Plane. The lady took a glance at Grey, she had hidden her aura, and since she was well stronger than these people, there was no way they would be able to sense her aura, Grey on the other hand was only in the Third stage of the Elemental Venerable Plane, yet they were unable to sense him too. ¡®Looks like brother wasn¡¯t wrong, this kid is special.¡¯ She thought about it for a while and asked, ¡°Do you think you can handle them on your own?¡± Grey looked at the group, they wouldn¡¯t be too much trouble to him, especially given their numbers. ?¦Á?d¦Á-¦Ç¦È¦Í¦Å|¡¤?¦Èm The next second, he was standing on the spot the young lady was previously standing on while the young lady was standing in the place he was standing, next to her mother. As Grey appeared on the spot, his aura exploded out and an orb appeared. It was a Fusion orb that had more space elemental essence inside of it. During the past six months since he left the secret realm, he had mastered the ability of quickly creating a Fusion orb like this one. This was not the only variant he created. Having multiple elements, he experimented with all his elements and realized after the space element, the darkness element was the most destructive. Not too many people knew of his darkness element, so he preferred using his space element. The power of the attack was beyond the expectations of the lady and seeing how other than the five in the Elemental Venerable Plane, the others disappeared like they never existed in an instant. The explosion had just started to spread out and five people had vanished after coming in contact with it. The lady felt the power was only so strong, but when it came in contact with those in the Elemental Venerable Plane, only the two who were in the Fourth stage survived, the other three who were in a stage below Grey disappeared into thin air as well. If the lady wasn¡¯t strong enough, she would¡¯ve thought they were teleported to another location, but she saw how everything happened and she was beyond amazed. 1167 You Or The Family? ¡°Who¡¯s that?¡± Eleanor asked her mother, she was still comprehending how fast she switched places with Grey before Grey attacked the men. A group of ten people, with Five in the Elemental Venerable Plane, had reduced to just two in a matter of seconds, and the two left were both missing an arm. It was evident that they had to sacrifice it just to survive the attack. ¡°He¡¯s Grey, your Uncle spoke about him during his last visit.¡± The lady said. ¡°Oh, so he¡¯s the genius Grey.¡± Eleanor looked at Grey in a new light. She and her Uncle spoke a lot about a certain genius making waves in the Continent during the past year or two. Although Grey doesn¡¯t know it yet, his fame was already widespread across the entire Continent. For even the Gnome race to give out the kill order and offer such great things as reward for an individual in the younger generation, it was evident how talented the person was. The lady looked at Grey, still in awe of his abilities. She was praising the space element a few minutes ago and Grey had just shown her why she was doing that. The space element is the most overpowered element there is at the moment and as long as a Space Elementalist can use it to its best, then that person can be said to be unstoppable among their peers. Taking a look at how Grey not only got Eleanor out of danger but also took out eight people in one fluid sequence, it was obvious this wasn¡¯t the first time he was doing something like this. The two people left from the group of ten looked at Grey, frightened. They were literally shaking from fear, each of them lost one arm, and they didn¡¯t even understand how it happened. What was worse was that it was like the arm was never there. They lost it without being able to fight back. ¡°Who¡­ who are you?¡± The young man who seemed to be the leader of the group asked with a shaky voice. ¡°I¡¯m Grey, you?¡± Grey replied casually. The young man wanted to speak but he froze from fear when he heard what the lady said. ¡°There¡¯s no use knowing who they are, just kill them and be done with it.¡± ¡°No¡­ no¡­ you can¡¯t kill me! My father will not let this go if you do.¡± The young man warned. Grey took a glance at the lady. The lady saw his gaze and chuckled, ¡°You¡¯re the son of the greatest genius the Continent has produced in hundreds of years¡­ hehe, I might have to change that in a few years.¡± After derailing from what she wanted to say, she continued, ¡°You don¡¯t have to be afraid of his background.¡± The lady looked at the young man, moving her gaze away from Grey, ¡°I know you, you¡¯re that Mayor¡¯s son, correct?¡± The young man nodded vigorously, it was as if he had seen a ray of hope. Since the lady knew he was the son of a Mayor of the largest city around this region, she would definitely leave him alone. His father was an Elemental Sovereign, a top expert as well. ¡°Wait here.¡± The lady vanished before her voice died down. The duo who had lost an arm clutched onto the rest of the arm, still in shock. They looked at Grey who was standing there casually, not saying a word. The young man who was in the Fourth stage sensed Grey¡¯s cultivation and was stunned when he found out it was only in the Third stage. Thinking about the attack Grey used, he felt it might have been a one time talisman. ¡°We can take him on, the only reason he was able to harm us is because he took us unaware, I don¡¯t believe he can use that attack again.¡± The young man whispered to the other man with him. He didn¡¯t want to know what the lady wanted to do, but he felt it might not be good for him. Since that was the case, he wanted to see if he could leave before she returned. Eleanor was in the First stage of the Elemental Venerable Plane, when she overheard them, she looked at Grey, a bit worried. Even though she had heard of how brilliant he was, he still had to go against two people who were a stage above him and he wouldn¡¯t have the chance to attack them unaware anymore. The duo stood and stood on either side of Grey, prepared to attack. Grey didn¡¯t show any reaction to their movements and looked at Eleanor, ¡°Take a few steps back.¡± Eleanor nodded and did as told. After she took two steps back, the area was instantly enveloped by lightning and the duo screamed in pain. They started convulsing from the shock they got from the lightning. ¦Ñ¦Á§ád¦Á `n?¦Í?| §ãom ¡°She said you should wait.¡± He said after the duo fell to the ground. He took a step closer and an array appeared in the area, sealing their elemental essence. When Eleanor looked at her feet, she realized she was standing only a step away from the array. She soon understood the reason Grey told her to take a step back. ¡®How did he create an array in such a short time?¡¯ She was once again blown away by Grey¡¯s abilities. She suddenly got curious about what he looked like. Grey still had his cloak on, which covered most of his face. Even his mouth which should¡¯ve been visible was covered by a mask. ¡°Can you show me your face?¡± Eleanor said. Grey was about to reply when the lady returned with a figure in her hand. He took a look at the figure and realized it was an advanced man who looked to be close to his fifties. The man was dressed in fancy clothes so he suspected he was from a wealthy family. When the young man saw the figure the lady brought over, his eyes opened wide. ¡°F¡­ather.¡± He called out weakly. After having his essence sealed, he lost most of his strength, he could barely even stand. The array Grey used was quite special. This was the reason he told Eleanor to take some steps back so she would not be affected by it. ?¦Á?d¦Á- ¦Ç¦È¦Í¦Å|¡¤?¦Èm ¡°Mr Mayor, I would like to kill your son, do you object to it?¡± She turned to the man by her side. The Mayor had been staring at his son with an enraged look since he arrived, when he heard the words of the lady, his figure froze. ¡°My lady, please, for my sake, can you spare his life? I¡¯m willing to destroy his cultivation right now.¡± The Mayor went on his knees. He was infuriated at his son, however, he couldn¡¯t just watch as his son was going to be killed. ¡°He tried to do stupid things to my daughter, do you still think I should spare his life?¡± The lady asked. The Mayor only noticed Eleanor when the lady said this. Now he understood what happened. For some reason he felt a wave of sadness hit him. The fact that the lady brought him here meant that she was already prepared to kill his son. ¡°Why did you bring me here if you already made up your mind?¡± He asked, depressed. ¡°I don¡¯t want you thinking of what happened to your son, and according to him, you would know if he¡¯s killed. My young friend here would¡¯ve ended him a long time ago, but it wouldn¡¯t be good for him to make an enemy of you, so I brought you here. At least this way, you would know why your son dies and not try to do anything foolish.¡± The lady said. She knew the thought running through the head of the Mayor, but she could care less. If she had killed the young man on her own, she was sure the Mayor would start searching for her, although she was not afraid, she didn¡¯t want to go through the hassle. The Mayor sighed, he turned to his son, eyes filled with disappointment, ¡°Why did you do this?¡± ¡°Father, you¡¯re going to let them kill me?¡± The young man asked, stunned. ¡°You, or the whole family, choose.¡± The Mayor¡¯s reply made the young man speechless, he couldn¡¯t help but take a look at the young lady again. He only came out for hunting, but then encountered Eleanor. She was a beautiful young lady and he felt he could get her for himself, he tried approaching her but she didn¡¯t give him any chances. Seeing that he was stronger, he decided to take advantage of it. This was not the first time he had done something like this, hence the reason the people with him were so experienced at it. 1168 This Little Guy Is A Jealous Type Chapter 1168 This Little Guy Is A Jealous Type Grey, the lady, and Eleanor returned to the small town. Under the Mayor''s plea, the lady decided to keep the body intact. At least, unlike the others Grey killed, there was nothing left to even remember them. "I''ll be leaving now, I have something I have to do." Grey didn''t want to waste any more time with them. He had accompanied them on a short trip, now it was time for him to leave. "Why the hurry? This place is not that bad, I can show you a few places." Eleanor suggested. "I''m sorry, but it''s quite important." Grey rejected her offer. The lady sighed and said, "You can leave. Tell my brother not to be late with it next time." Grey nodded and left, the Dawson Family awaits. ¡­. The path he took to deliver the Faction Leader''s item was coincidentally the path he used to head to the Dawson Family from the Pyrmond Faction. Grey didn''t know if the Faction Leader guessed his plan was to head to the Dawson Family or not, he just took it as a coincidence. Days went by in a flash and he trained while heading there. By the time he got to the Region the Dawson Family was situated, he had broken through to the Fourth stage of the Elemental Venerable Plane after being in the Third stage for a long time. It couldn''t be said that he was stuck in the Third stage, but given his usual cultivation speed, it did feel like he spent a great deal of time in the Third stage. One of the things about Grey was his shocking speed in advancing in stages. A typical Elemental Venerable should spend around a year or so in each stage. Geniuses advance in a shorter time, spending around six to eight months in each stage. Grey on the other hand seemed to be advancing every three months or so. This time when Grey got to the gate of the Dawson Manor, he wasn''t stopped by the guards there, rather, they bowed and opened the gate for him. He couldn''t help but recall the first time he came here, although he didn''t think too much of it, but he still felt a slight feeling of awe just looking at the manor. The manor is not the biggest he had seen, but there was a certain majestic feeling it gave. Void soon appeared on his shoulder, looking around with shining eyes, the bunny leader appeared on Grey''s other shoulder. "Don''t even think about taking anything." Grey warned. "What do you mean? It''s from your family, which is basically the same as mine. We can take whatever we want." Void said matter-of-factly. "What do you mean by the term ''our family''?" Grey raised a brow, even if he was from the Dawson Family, he couldn''t really say he had fully accepted being part of the family. Grey and Void were conversing as he walked further into the compound. It didn''t take long before Grey saw a familiar face, it wasn''t Conor, rather, it was the son of the present Family Head. The first time Grey visited the Dawson Manor, he was warned to abolish the Dawson name by this young man. He never thought he would find out that he was related to him. The son of the Family Head looked at Grey coldly. Grey had his mask off and his cloak wasn''t covering his face, so the young man recognized him with a glance. It was quite hard to forget Grey''s face, even though he only saw it for a short time. "Brother, you''re here." He smiled and made a motion of wanting to hug Grey. Grey saw his smile, took a step back and stretched out his hand for a handshake. Unlike these people, he had always been bland, never wanting to feign ignorance in things like this unless he wanted to mess with people. The first thing he saw in the eyes of the young man was killing intent, the only thing was that the intent only flashed through and didn''t linger in his eyes. With Grey''s superb intuition, there was no way he would not be able to sense it when someone has malicious intentions towards him. The young man gave an awkward smile and shook Grey''s hand. While holding his hand, a few of those from the younger generation who were walking past stopped and looked at them. They could somewhat sense the tension between the duo. One is the son of the current Head of the Family, while the other is the son of the greatest talent the Family had ever produced, and who was also supposed to be the Family Head but refused. From the personality of the young man, they had always felt a conflict might arise between the duo, and this encounter has proved to them that their thoughts were right. "Grey, you''re here." Conor''s voice came from the background, easing the tension. Grey naturally wasn''t feeling anything, he only shook the hand of the young man, he didn''t care about anything else. The young man let go of Grey when he heard Conor''s voice, before leaving he said, "Welcome to the Family, when I come back, I''ll take you on tour around." "Thank you for your kind offer, but I wouldn''t be staying long." Grey replied while walking in Conor''s direction. The young man smirked but didn''t say anything else. "Aunt Martha has been waiting for you." Conor said when Grey got close to him. Seeing the two Magical Beasts on Grey''s shoulder, most of the youths were staring at him oddly. They felt maybe he liked cute little beasts just because he looked handsome. Void was a cute little beast with his pure black fur and small size, the bunny leader was also the same, small, white, cute, other than the mischief in its eyes, it would''ve been far cuter than Void. Of course, it doesn''t change the fact that it was still cuter than Void, after all, it''s fluffy. Grey didn''t care about the looks he was getting, he continued conversing with Conor, "You''ve broken through to the Second stage, nice." "I can''t be mentioned in the same breath as you, I can''t even sense your current cultivation stage." Conor replied. Grey recalled he was hiding his cultivation stage, so he released it and Conor sensed it. "The fourth stage, you''re advancing too fast." Conor could only sigh. "I only broke through a few days ago." Grey said. The duo continued speaking and before Grey knew it, he had walked deeper into the family compound and to an ordinary looking building. "That''s your parent''s house. Uncle isn''t around now, but Aunt Martha should be inside." Conor led him into the place and the visage of Martha coming from one of the rooms appeared before their eyes. "Grey, you came." She said softly. "Yes, mom." Grey''s reply was just as soft. Martha could hear the tiredness in his voice. When they first reunited, she didn''t see this part of him, maybe it was due to the way they reunited. However, this time, just from what he said, she could tell that he had gone through a lot. Conor saw them and didn''t say anything, leaving in silence. Martha opened her arm and Grey walked into her embrace. "It''s okay Grey, everything is alright." She caressed Grey''s hair while he was in her embrace. Grey was already slightly taller than her, but to her, he was still her baby. After a few minutes of silence, she let go of him. "Come, tell me everything." Void and the bunny leader were at the side, looking at them. Neither of the duo could understand what Grey or his mother were feeling at the moment. Void was only attached to Grey and he had almost always been with him, the bunny leader on the other hand didn''t really feel any emotion for anyone. Grey sat down beside Martha and started telling her of everything, from the day he left her back in Red City till now. Martha didn''t stop him even though she knew about some of these things. By the time he was done, it was already late in the night. Lucas was present at that time as well. "You''ve gone through a lot, luckily, you haven''t been alone." Martha said after some time. "You''ve grown. A little impulsive at times, but you''ve grown up to be a fine young man." Lucas commented. "Void, I heard you like shiny things, you can have this pearl. It''s a defensive treasure I found a few years ago, I have no use for it, so you can keep it." Lucas tossed a pearl at Void. Void caught it with a single leap and his eyes glowed with intense light. "Do you have any for this little guy? He''s very jealous." Void pointed at the bunny leader. The bunny leader moved its nose in annoyance from how Void addressed it. From what it recalled, Void wasn''t with Grey the first time it saw Grey. So technically, it saw Grey before Void did. 1169 Chaos Battlefield Dawson Family. In a room. ¡°He¡¯s back, Father.¡± Lucas bowed to an old man. ¡°Alright, tomorrow I¡¯ll send him there.¡± The old man replied, after some time he chuckled, ¡°He came at the perfect time.¡± ¡°You¡¯re sending him there?¡± Lucas asked curiously. The old man looked at him and replied, ¡°You don¡¯t have to be worried, he will be fine. I¡¯m quite curious how well he will perform.¡± ¡°It¡¯s a shame I won¡¯t be able to see him.¡± He added. Lucas sighed, ¡°He has been through a lot, let him stay a week before you send him there.¡± ¡°He¡¯s being hunted, you should already know how dangerous it would be for him in a few years time. The faster he gets stronger, the better for him.¡± The old man wasn¡¯t moved by Lucas¡¯ statement. Lucas dropped his head and said, ¡°Father, a week.¡± ¡°Fine, he¡¯s your son.¡± The old man finally agreed with Lucas. Lucas heaved a sigh before leaving the room. ¡°Sentiments will take him nowhere. The boy needs to grow, everyday is important for his growth.¡± The old man muttered to himself after Lucas left. If not for the fact that Lucas was already stronger than he was, he would¡¯ve gone ahead and send Grey to the place he wanted to send him to tonight. However, there was no one in the manor that could get close to Lucas¡¯ building without him knowing, much less take Grey from his watch. ¡­. Grey stayed with his parents for the entire week, not even training. He enjoyed the time he spent with them, and he was able to connect with his father. He didn¡¯t forget to ask about the opportunity his grandfather wanted to give to him. Lucas couldn¡¯t help but shake his head when he saw how eager Grey was to take the opportunity. He knew this was the way Grey grew this strong over the years. After Grey¡¯s repeated inquiry, he told him he would leave in a few days. The days went by in a blink of an eye and it was finally time for Grey to leave. ¡°Oh, Dad, I forgot to ask¡­¡± Grey brought up the issue of Arya¡¯s brother to Lucas before leaving. He had been too preoccupied with hanging out with them that he even forgot about the second reason he came to the Dawson Family. Lucas listened to him and furrowed his brows, ¡°It will be difficult. When you return I¡¯ll accompany you there and see if there¡¯s anything I can do. For now, I¡¯ll search for a few treasures that should be able to help.¡± Grey thanked him before leaving with his Grandfather. They disappeared from the Dawson Family, however, they were not alone. There were other youths who followed them, the young man who was the son of the Family Head was one of them. Most of the youths that followed them were in the Mid stages of the Elemental Venerable Plane and above. Had Grey not been in the Fourth stage, his Grandfather would still take him along since he knew Grey¡¯s strength couldn¡¯t be judged by his cultivation stage. ¡°Where are we going?¡± Grey asked when they appeared in a desolate forest. ¡°Have you heard of the chaos battlefield?¡± The young man was the one who asked Grey this, not giving his Grandfather the chance to respond to Grey. Grey shook his head, he was unaware of this place. ¡°This was a secret realm that was created during the times of the Gods. During the great war, most of the battles between the top experts took place here. It¡¯s currently a treasure vault given the number of experts who died here.¡± The young man explained. Grey was about to speak when he heard his Grandfather add to what the young man said, ¡°And a tomb. It¡¯s both a treasure vault and a tomb.¡± ¡°It¡¯s expected, danger comes with wealth.¡± The young man laughed, not concerned by the fact that he hid that information from Grey while telling him about the place. ¡°This is not my first time going to places like this, although none of this caliber, but at least, I¡¯ve had my fair share of adventures with these places.¡± Grey said to his Grandfather. ¦Ñ¦Á§ád¦Á `n?¦Í?| §ãom From his Grandfather¡¯s eyes, he knew he was trying to warn him about the young man, but he could care less about someone that was in the Seventh stage of the Elemental Venerable Plane. Even without his physical body, there was no way this young man could kill him, even if they gang up on him. The only way they could hold him down was if they used an array, and unfortunately, that was one of the things he was very good with, so escaping from them would not be an issue. He was used to having people close to him trying to kill him, and just like always, he was quite confident in his abilities to run. His Grandfather saw the confidence in his eyes and didn¡¯t speak any further. Since Grey was this confident, then it meant he already had his plans. They soon got to a temple, at the middle of the temple was a teleportation portal, and it was well protected with seals. Grey¡¯s Grandfather made a couple of hand gestures and the portal opened up for them. There was no one visible at the moment, but Grey knew there was no way a portal like this would be unguarded. At most, the people are hiding and are well above his cultivation stage, so he couldn¡¯t sense them. The young man was the first to head into the portal, the others followed him in. Just when Grey was about to go in, he was stopped by his Grandfather. After everyone else had gone in, his Grandfather looked at him with a serious expression, ¡°No matter what happens, don¡¯t kill him in there.¡± He had seen that Grey was a decisive person, if he were to decide to kill the young man, then he would most likely succeed. He didn¡¯t want any issues in the Family at the moment, they already had enough problems at the moment, if Lucas and the Family Head were to have a conflict, it would not be good for the Family as a whole. ¡°Don¡¯t worry, Grandfather, I¡¯m not as impulsive as I used to be. Of course, I don¡¯t usually spare people that show any intents of killing me, I¡¯ll teach him a lesson or two, just to put him in place.¡± Grey smiled and replied confidently. When his Grandfather heard him saying he would put the young man in his place, he couldn¡¯t help but laugh lightly. He couldn¡¯t deny it, Grey¡¯s confidence was something that was amusing. The young man was already in the Seventh stage of the Elemental Venerable Plane, while Grey was only in the Fourth stage, that was a different of three stages, and there was a little major gap from the Mid to Late stage, yet Grey was telling him he would teach him a lesson to put him in his place. ¡°Alright, go. I expect greater things from you. Also, be wary of the waters there. There is a certain race that lives there. If you¡¯re not careful, they can manipulate your emotions.¡± He warned. Not just that, but seeing things, he transmitted a few information about the place to Grey. The others already had knowledge of the place, so they wouldn¡¯t have any issues with exploring and avoiding certain places, Grey was a complete noob, he had zero knowledge of this place. After Grey sorted the information in his head, he walked into the portal. His Grandfather was the only one left in the temple. ?¦Á?d¦Á- ¦Ç¦È¦Í¦Å|¡¤?¦Èm His Grandfather nodded. ¡°They both talk big, hahaha.¡± The voice in the void laughed. ¡°He¡¯s better than my son, I¡¯ve seen him in action, Lucas can¡¯t even hold a candle to what this boy is capable of.¡± Grey¡¯s Grandfather said. A figure materialized in the temple, ¡°High praise coming from someone who has always been proud of his son.¡± ¡°He¡¯s my grandson, so technically, he¡¯s still my offspring. Unlike you, I gave birth to generational geniuses.¡± Grey¡¯s Grandfather laughed. The figure that appeared soon showed its face, it was an old man who looked almost identical to Grey¡¯s Grandfather. The face of the old man who just appeared turned slightly sour, ¡°My son is the current Family Head.¡± ¡°No need to continue competing like kids. War is coming, how are things going.¡± Grey¡¯s Grandfather shut him up and changed the topic. ¡®He always changes the topic after showing off.¡¯ The old man gave a sigh before answering the questions he was asked. ¡°It¡¯s worse than I feared. Looks like the time we have is shorter than we thought.¡± Grey¡¯s Grandfather¡¯s face showed helplessness. ¡°Hopefully the kids can grow stronger before then, if not, they will all die.¡± The old man said calmly. ¡°Grey would, I wonder how that brat from your gene would do.¡± Grey¡¯s Grandfather laughed and just as the old man was about to reply, he vanished. 1170 Chaos Battlefield II Chaos Battlefield. Grey appeared in what could be said to be a wasteland, the sky was reddish like it was sunset, but he knew otherwise, there was a great smell of death lingering in the air and he felt a bit oppressed the moment he stepped foot into the place. He was currently standing in a temple, almost similar to the one he used in getting into the place, but this temple looked like it had been built for hundreds of thousands of years, unlike the other one. The youths from the Dawson Family who had entered the place were already heading down the temple. The supposed forest that surrounded the hill the temple was situated on was burnt up, however, it didn¡¯t look like something that had been done within the past years. Grey looked at it curiously, in his world, this forest would have already started to regrow after some time, but the trees were still in their burnt state and hadn¡¯t changed one bit. According to the information he got from his Grandfather, they had been like this from the time they started coming here, thousands of years ago. ¡°Hmm, I guess this trip won¡¯t be easy.¡± He muttered to himself. The son of the Family Head was not close by, so he guessed he must have left with the others. They could all tell that there was a small rift between Grey and the young man, so everyone felt it would be better if they were separated. Grey¡¯s Grandfather felt the same way too. Void and the bunny leader appeared and looked around. The bunny leader looked at the place with a long and desolate look, it seemed to be lost in thought as it saw the place. ¡°Let¡¯s go, there are a lot of places I would like to see. This world is such a big place and I have so little time.¡± Grey started to descend the mountain. The bunny leader was snapped back to reality when Grey moved and its eyes shown with brilliance. The climb down was easy, he tried flying and noticed it was possible. His Grandfather had already told him of it, but he wanted to check if there were any restrictions. The reason people didn¡¯t fly here was simple: don¡¯t attract attention. This place is home to multiple races, some had adapted to the place that even if they were to head back to their original world, they would be almost unrecognizable from the others. There are also humans here who have adapted to the place. It was a place of survival of the fittest, compared to places like the Aurora Continent, this place was far more brutal. It could be likened to the Magical Beasts¡¯ kingdom where death is common due to the slightest conflict. Grey and his two little companions could be killed here, after all, there are Elemental Sovereigns present in this place. ?¦Á?d¦Á-¦Ç¦È¦Í¦Å|¡¤?¦Èm Looking at the map he got from his Grandfather, Grey knew heading there was not the wisest choice for now. He had to get the general knowledge of the place first before taking any action. ¡®Let¡¯s go here.¡¯ The bunny leader pointed at a spot in the map while Grey was looking at it. ¡°Oh, is there something there?¡± Grey looked at the spot curiously. He didn¡¯t know much about the bunny leader and was quite curious about it. It seems like the bunny leader had been here before given how it quickly pointed out the place they should head to. Of course, he can¡¯t be sure, but since the bunny leader could go from the Trial Land to the secret realm where the Twilight Faction was located, there is no ruling out the chances of it coming here too. ¡®There most definitely is.¡¯ The bunny leader nodded. Grey didn¡¯t ask any more questions and headed in the direction the bunny leader pointed him. Void and the bunny leader were quite good with getting treasures, he still hadn¡¯t been able to get some of the treasures they took from the Twilight Faction from them, so he hoped to get some good things here. The place they were headed was not by any means close to their current location, it should take at least two weeks or so before they got there. This place was not good, so they were given a maximum of a year to spend there. After one year, they must leave the place, or else they too would start adapting to it. It¡¯s not a bad thing, per se, but it¡¯s not necessarily a good thing either. Once an Elementalist has adapted to this place, they would have difficulties with absorbing the essence from the natural world. ¦Ñ¦Á§ád¦Á `n?¦Í?| §ãom Their connections with the origin source will be destroyed, and once that happens, there is no going back. This is the reason why there are multiple races here, some got too greedy and refused to leave after seeing the treasures, while some were victims of circumstances. ¡­. A few days passed in a blink. Grey was currently seated on a tree branch, staring at the group in front of him. They were like humans, but with pointed ears and a distinctive well-chiseled face, they had extraordinarily long hair, and tails, yes, tails. Not just that, but they were larger than humans, at least almost twice the usual size of a human. This was the first time he was seeing such a race. These people were speaking in a language he did not understand. After studying them for a little longer, he left. Since communication would be hard due to the language barrier, it was best not to have anything with them. Just as he was about to leave, he saw one of them weave certain signs with a golden light in his hand. The sign was turned into a large seal that shockingly turned into a large creature. The creature seemed to come to life and moved around. The creature was like a snake, only it had legs, curved horns, and extremely sharp teeth. Grey couldn¡¯t help but pause and marvel at the sight of it. If not for seeing it with his eyes, he would¡¯ve thought it was a true Magical Beast. He was quite curious about the golden light in the hand of the figure who made the beast. First off, he didn¡¯t sense anything from it other than its uniqueness. There was no form of energy on it, so he didn¡¯t think too much of it, it was only after the seal turned into a beast did he see the wonder the light possessed. ¡®I need to learn that!¡¯ He exclaimed internally. He didn¡¯t even care about the language barrier at the moment, he wanted to learn how the figure did that thing. Not just that, but what power lies within the golden light. Void couldn¡¯t help but sigh when he saw this, he knew with Grey¡¯s personality of always wanting to learn new things, he would not leave this place until he succeeds, unless something unforeseen happens, Grey was going nowhere. The beast that appeared from the seal attacked one of the figures there and the figure looked to be male, well, Grey didn¡¯t know how to distinguish them since they all had the same body shape. The figure fought vigorously with the beast and won in the end after creating a golden sword. Once again, it used the energy Grey was unfamiliar with. ¡®Could this have something to do with this world?¡¯ Grey thought to himself. There was a huge possibility that this was unique to this world alone. If that was the case, then it would be difficult for him to learn it. Nevertheless, he was not going to give up until he at least attempted it. Giving up on learning something so intriguing was not in his nature. Void took the bunny leader and decided to explore the area around this place. This group they saw here only consisted of a few individuals, Grey wanted to know if this was all, of course, he was almost certain this was just a small batch of them. A few hours later, he got his answer from Void. So apparently, the group only consisted of males, when he saw the females he realized it was easy to differentiate them. Just like humans, the females had notable features to separate them. Grey started stalking the group he encountered, the only reason was because he sensed that they were only in the Sage Plane. The thought of capturing them had come to mind, but he decided against it. He knew nothing about them, and even the information provided to him didn¡¯t have anything on them. There was no way they would record all the races present. The information only told him about the notable ones to avoid. 1171 Chaos Battlefield III Grey stayed with the group for a week and was still unable to learn their language. He knew it would take some time, but he didn''t want to waste such times. Luckily for him, he found a new way to study the energy these people were using. Void and the bunny leader walked to him as he watched the people in this tribe live their regular lives. ''Aren''t you done yet, the thing might be taken if we spend too long here.'' The bunny leader asked. ''What''s the rush, stay calm, I''ll learn it and we will head to our original destination.'' Grey transmitted his voice to the bunny leader. He then added, "Besides, what''s so important about that place?" The bunny leader didn''t waste any time and responded, ''I don''t know, but I''m sure it is good.'' Grey looked at the bunny leader for a while, although skeptical, he knew whatever the bunny leader wanted there was precious. He didn''t speak with the bunny leader any more and decided to kidnap one of the youths from the tribe. After two more weeks, Grey had gotten the basics of how to use the golden light. He didn''t learn their language since it would be a waste of time. After studying the young man he kidnapped using the golden energy, he was able to understand some things about it. Although it sounded like it was easy to do, he found out it was very difficult. He let the young man go and continued his mission to head to speed, and with Grey providing it with all the resources needed, it was advancing at a crazy speed. where the bunny leader pointed him to. The bunny leader was just as fast as Void in terms of cultivation speed, and with Grey providing it with all the resources needed, it was advancing at a crazy speed. A month went by in the blink of an eye. And the trio finally got to where the bunny leader suggested. ''This is a huge city, is this where you wanted to go?'' Void looked at the bunny leader, he didn''t sense anything useful in the place, hence his current annoyance. ''It''s no ordinary place. Come with me, you will see.'' The bunny leader excitedly rushed to the gate of the city. Grey didn''t see any humans entering the place so he knew it was not a place for humans. The people there, well not really people, they were all Beasts, Magical Beasts. Unlike most beasts, they all had one distinctive feature, all of them walked on their hindlegs, none of them walked in all four. Grey used the space element and teleported into the city, surprisingly, there was no array that stopped him. Originally, when he tried to use the space element, he thought he would be stopped, but things didn''t go as he thought. After entering the city, he covered his body with the cloak he was wearing, he knew it would be easy for him to be spotted since he was quite different from the others, even with his body covered, he was still not like the others. He hid in the shadows, not coming out. Just as this entered the city, Void sensed something and couldn''t hide his excitement. ''There''s something good here. Let''s go take it.'' Void urged. ''Calm down, even though all the Beasts we''ve seen are all in the Sage Plane, it doesn''t mean there aren''t stronger ones.'' Grey didn''t want to step out recklessly. He didn''t believe this place would be left still flourishing if there was not at least a Magical Beast in the Elemental Venerable Plane. Since humans have been coming here regularly, they must have gone through this place at a given time and once they find out there aren''t strong Beasts present, they would ransack the place. With how lively the place was, Grey believed otherwise. ''Fine, let''s ask the bunny.'' Void suggested. They hadn''t seen the bunny leader since they entered this place. After waiting for a while, Void was able to track the bunny leader down. It was wandering at the edge of the city. Grey and Void felt all the good things would be kept in the middle of the city, but when they got close to where the bunny leader was situated, they realized treasures were sprawled all over the place. What was unique about this place was that, without getting close to the treasures, there was no way to sense it. Even with Void''s unique treasure sensing ability, he was still not able to sense it, only after getting close did he sense it. Void''s eyes shone with excitement, while the bunny leader was staring at a golden fruit. The fruit was around the size of a fist, and it had black spots on it. It was the only fruit in the tree. This tree was guarded by three large bulls, all at the Peak of the Sage Plane. Grey looked at the fruit in curiosity, he tried to recall all the fruits he had read about but he didn''t seem to have seen this fruit before. ''What''s that?'' He asked the bunny leader. ''It''s a rare fruit. It''s related to the source of this world. There are multiple fruits related to the source of this world, but this one is the best. With it, you can learn to use that golden energy you wished to learn.'' The bunny leader explained. ''Oh, I see. Then we should take it then.'' Grey was quite curious about that golden energy and wanted to learn it, since this fruit can help him learn it, then he would take it. ''No rush. If the fruit is plucked recklessly, it would be useless. From what I know, it should be plucked on the day the world is at its most chaotic.'' The bunny leader stopped Grey in his tracks. ''When the world is at its most chaotic? How would we know when it would be?'' Grey raised one of his brows. He didn''t know too much about this since it wasn''t part of the information his Grandfather passed on to him. ''Due you think this place is called the ''Chaos Battlefield'' just for the sake of it?'' The bunny leader scoffed before explaining, ''Before the battle that wrecked this place, there was already an energy here. All life is associated with the origin source, this place included. However, due to the battle that happened here, the link to the energy source was destroyed, plunging this world into chaos. A few hundred years went by and then the world changed, there was a strange new energy that was born into the world, the chaos energy...'' Grey listened attentively to what the bunny leader was saying, understanding the things about this place. According to what the bunny leader said, when the chaos energy emerged, this place fell into total chaos, most of the lifeforms couldn''t adjust to it and started to die out. Some of them managed to survive during the last second, while others adapted from the very start. The chaos energy soon started to spread amongst all the people in the realm and before long, all of them had been using it. This plant was one of the first few plants that evolved, and it was very important in helping the people in the world to understand the chaos energy. Once every few years since then, the world would erupt with pure chaos energy and others who are closely linked with the origin source would find it difficult to use their elements. ''So you''re saying I should wait till when I''ll be at my weakest before I try to steal it?'' Grey looked at the bunny leader with a cold gaze. He would rather eat the fruit while it''s still at the tree now, than to wait till then. The chances of him being caught at that time would be higher, especially if stronger beasts appear during that time. There were already three Peak Sage Plane beasts guarding it now, he was certain that there were stronger beasts around. ''It''s not like you can''t use your elements, it''s just that it would be a bit difficult. I don''t believe it would be hard for you, others, yes but you, no.'' The bunny leader said. It had been with Grey for a while now and had come to understand him. Unlike most people, Grey was too different. He had seen Grey use every element possible, and he was using them with such ease. Not just that, but Grey was also the best genius he had seen. He knew if not for Grey purposely slowing down his cultivation, he would''ve grown more than he has done now. Grey looked at the bunny leader for a while before looking at the world, he couldn''t help but fall deep in thoughts. ''I wonder if this place is related to that senior?'' He asked himself internally. The orb he got his power from, the chaos orb according to the Chaos God, was the inheritance of the greatest God, well, that was how he addressed himself. Since the Chaos God and this place had chaos in their names, he couldn''t help but wonder if there was any form of relationship between them. 1172 Reacting To The Chaos Energy Eruption Grey stayed quiet for a few minutes before asking, ¡®So when is the next eruption of the chaos energy?¡¯ ¡®According to what I¡¯ve heard, we¡¯re in luck. It should be within the next two weeks. All you have to do is stay hidden till then. Void and myself don¡¯t have to bother about being seen, you on the other hand, will be in some trouble if caught.¡¯ The bunny leader explained. Grey nodded and decided to stay in the city until the chaos energy erupted. Staying outside the city would be safer, but he wanted to plan his escape while studying the city and seeing the best paths to take. Not just that, but he wanted to see if he could find the location of the strongest people around. Void quickly left with the bunny leader while Grey started to work in the shadows. He was also setting up an array around the tree, a large array that would isolate this place from the rest of the city. If his plan was successful, he should be able to take the fruit and leave without any mishaps. He soon got to find the first Rank Seven Magical Beast in the City. This beast was staying in the largest building in the city, it was well decorated with golden statues around it. He hadn¡¯t seen the beast yet, but from what he sensed, he noticed it was most likely an Elephant. All the statues outside were of Elephants and even the few weaker beasts that had left the place were Elephants, and they were treated with respect wherever they went. After a few more days, he sneaked into the place, found the strongest beast in the area was an old Elephant that seemed to be on death¡¯s door. When he saw the Elephant, he couldn¡¯t help but shake his head. The Elephant was in the Early stages of the Seventh Rank and even with its long lifespan, seems to be coming to the end of its life. Grey didn¡¯t bother with it. He wandered around the building in search of anything that might be valuable to him. He saw a few things, which he marked and left. His main objective is getting the fruit, if by any chance his presence was found out by the Elephant, it might increase the security around the City, and might even call others over for help. Over the next few days, all Grey was seeing was a large influx of beasts coming to the area. And they seemed to be preparing for an occasion. He later found out that one of the Elephants is getting married. Grey didn¡¯t bother with them and went on with his plans, he only felt annoyed when he found out that the occasion was going to be held at the spot where the golden fruit was located. Not just that, but he had sensed the presence of two more Rank Seven Magical Beasts, both on the same stage as the Elephant residing in the City. ¡­. The City which was originally filled with activities was quiet in some areas as almost all the residents had moved to the side where the ceremony would be held. Today was the day, and from the reddish sky, one could see what looked like a broken vein. Grey, Void, and the bunny leader were hiding at the side, looking at the place with a cold gaze. ¡®What now?¡¯ Void asked. ¡®We¡¯re taking it, even if twenty more Rank Seven Beasts come.¡¯ Grey said resolutely. ¡®I know, I¡¯m talking about cooking the big guy.¡¯ Void pointed at the Rank Seven Elephant that was entertaining its guests. Grey darted him a glance before replying, ¡®Don¡¯t worry about that. The fruit first, if it foolishly chases us, we¡¯ll cook it.¡¯ ¡®That means we¡¯re cooking it then. The fruit is what it¡¯s using as a gift to the family the beast getting married to its daughter is from.¡¯ The bunny leader said with a smile. It too wanted to see how good the Elephant would taste. ¡®No wonder it decided to host the party here. Unfortunately for it, I want that thing.¡¯ Grey had been wondering why of all places, the Rank Seven Elephant picked this place to host an occasion, it was now that he understood. It was to show its child¡¯s suitor such a stunning treasure. The time slowly went by and the sky started to show signs of cracking, the vein that was in the sky was wriggling like a giant snake and before Grey could get a good view of it, it exploded out with a powerful red energy that fell from the sky. The moment this happened, Grey felt like he was being suffocated. At first, he found it hard to breathe, and then his body started to feel to heavy for him and was weighing him down. While he was going through this, his chaos space started to show signs of collapsing as well. The chaos orb shook and started to spin rapidly. This time, it did something Grey never expected, the amount of chaos energy his body was absorbing started to increase, he could feel his body getting worse, but the chaos orb didn¡¯t seem to want to stop. Like a starving beast, it started to suck all of the chaos energy around Grey. It didn¡¯t stop there, it continued sucking all the energy around them. ¦Ñ¦Á§ád¦Á `n?¦Í?| §ãom The commotion soon attracted the attention of everyone in that area. Grey tried to stop it but he found out that the more he tried to stop it, the faster it started to absorb energy. ¡­. In his chaos space. If Grey was inside, he would¡¯ve been stunned beyond words. A massive change was taking place in the chaos space at the moment. It seemed to be creating something above the temple. A large red sun appeared in the sky above the temple and all the energy that was being absorbed rushed to the red sun. Inside the sun, a rough undecerning shape could be seen. It appeared for only a second before disappearing. The sun started to grow larger and larger as Grey¡¯s body absorbed more chaos energy. ¡­. In the outside world. Grey was unable to move his body, it felt like all the weight in the world had come crashing down on him and he couldn¡¯t even raise a finger, much less leave this place. He was soon surrounded by the beasts in the area, however, none of them dared to get too close to him. Even though they had stayed in the world all their lives, this was the most chaos energy they had seen before. The area around Grey was currently a dangerous place to be, even Void and the bunny leader had left there the moment Grey started to show signs of abnormalities. It¡¯s not that they didn¡¯t want to help, but getting close to Grey would only kill them, and do nothing else. The beasts from all over looked at Grey, not getting close to him, just watching in curiosity. The Rank Seven Elephant walked over, when it saw Grey, it looked at him for a while before speaking to the Bull by its side, ¡°A human, I haven¡¯t seen one in a few years. I thought they stopped coming here?¡± The Bull, just like the Elephant was also a Rank Seven Beast, ¡°I¡¯ve seen a few lately, but like always, we¡¯ve always gone our separate ways. I wonder what this one is doing here.¡± ¡°It¡¯s obviously here for the same reason as everyone else, the fruit. It wants it.¡± A Peacock said. The Peacock was the third Rank Seven Beast. It was invited to the occasion as well. The Bull was the family the Elephant¡¯s daughter is marrying into. ¡°Humph! They always feel like they own everything.¡± The Bull snorted coldly. ¡°It¡¯s only trying to advance. We¡¯ve raided a few places and taken things that didn¡¯t belong to us, so it is quite normal.¡± The Elephant was calm and collected, ¡°What I¡¯m more concerned about is what¡¯s happening with it, and why is it still alive?¡± ¡°Yeah, with the large amount of chaos energy it has absorbed, it should be dead. Even all three of us can not contain that much.¡± The Peacock said thoughtfully. ?¦Á?d¦Á¦Ç¦È¦Í¦Å| The others nodded in agreement to its words. Grey was still in pain and his body was starting to show signs of falling apart. He never expected something like this would happen to him. What was worse was that he was certain that the commotion it would cause would attract the attention of the beasts around. In his current state, he was unaware of what was happening around him. After enduring a few more minutes of pain, it slowly started to subside. He opened his eyes a minute later and saw that he was surrounded by all the beasts that were there for the occasion. 1173 Causing Chaos ¡®Oh¡­ crap.¡¯ Grey knew he was in for it this time. Seeing the gaze the beasts used to look at him, he knew they wanted to know what was in his body. ¡®I hate things I can¡¯t control!¡¯ He felt genuinely annoyed with the orb which was calm at the moment. As much as he liked the fact that the orb gave him the ability to use all elements, he also hated the fact that it seemed to be an entity of its own. With the occasional commotion it causes, he was sure it would put him in a whole lot of trouble sooner or later. He was already in some trouble, if not for the fact that his physical body was well above the strength of these beasts, he would¡¯ve been very worried at the moment. ¡°Human, why are you here?¡± The Elephant was the one who stepped forward to interrogate him. Grey looked at the Elephant and stood up, his body made cracking noises, and the pupils of the Elephant constricted. It gathered with the other two in the Seventh Rank. Although it was small, they all sensed the immeasurable power that lay beneath Grey¡¯s small body. Even the Elephant or Bull didn¡¯t dare to believe they were stronger than Grey, physically. They were Magical Beasts that had grown with the help of the chaos energy here and therefore are stronger than regular Magical Beasts, yet, they felt inferior to a human. ¡°No wonder his body was able to hold so much energy.¡± The Elephant muttered in enlightenment. The Bull and the Peacock all had serious expressions. Grey, seeing them knew that they had sensed his strength, ¡°I don¡¯t want any trouble, I just want to study that.¡± He pointed at the golden fruit. ¡°I told you it¡¯s here for the fruit, greedy filths.¡± The Peacock said coldly. ?¦Á?d¦Á- ¦Ç¦È¦Í¦Å|¡¤?¦Èm ¡°You have a point.¡± Grey replied with a thoughtful expression, however, he added, ¡°I want it, can I take it?¡± The Bull was the first to lose its cool and with a cold snort, it stamped on the ground and Grey¡¯s figure was sent into the air. The Peacock took to the sky and its tail spread out, sharp wind arrows shot at Grey from it. The speed of the arrows was beyond Grey¡¯s imagination. Before he could react, the arrows were already in front of him, his armor sprang to action and blocked the attack, but he was pushed back. He quickly stabilized himself in mid-air, but the weak old Elephant appeared in front of him. This time, it didn¡¯t look as weak as he thought it did the first time he saw it. The space around Grey and the Elephant felt like it was under the control of the Elephant, Grey felt his body being dragged down. While trying to fight against it, the Elephant used its trunk to slam him from above. Boom! Grey crashed into the ground, creating a crater after destroying the building he fell on. The trio of the Elephant, Bull, and Peacock stood in the air as they looked at the crater Grey crashed into. ¡°Do you think it¡¯s dead?¡± The Peacock asked. ¡°I don¡¯t think that¡¯s going¡­¡± The Elephant was in the middle of its statement when a pale blue large fire blade slashed at them from the crater which was still covered by dust. The Elephant and the Bull, who were both Earth Elementalists, worked together and blocked the attack, shielding the Peacock behind them. The Peacock sent more attacks at the crater. The Elephant suddenly realized something and turned around. It saw Grey standing close to the golden fruit. ¡°It¡¯s taking it away.¡± It yelled and rushed in the direction of the fruit. The others who were there for the ceremony had given them a good distance. When they first sensed the ripples from the battle, they knew staying close would only endanger them, so they all left, including those at the Peak of the Sage Plane. A single attack from Grey could easily kill them. Grey, Void, and the bunny leader were staring at the fruit.¦Ñ¦Á§ád¦Á `n?¦Í?| §ãom ¡®You¡¯re saying it will be enough for all three of us?¡¯ Grey turned to the bunny leader. ¡®Not just three of us, but four or five more people. Don¡¯t underestimate the energy stored in this thing. It¡¯s more than five times the energy that almost tore you apart.¡¯ The bunny leader warned Grey. It knew Grey might be having thoughts of wanting to absorb a lot of it, but it felt it was best to warn Grey beforehand. If Grey were to take too much, he might not get the chance to even convert it before he blew up from taking in too much. ¡®Alright, we better get going then.¡¯ Grey didn¡¯t delay anymore and plucked the golden fruit from the tree. The moment he plucked it, he saw the tree dry up almost instantly and all its energy was transferred into the fruit. After the tree dried up, it slowly started to turn to ash. The Elephant¡¯s eyes turned red from rage as it roared and rushed after Grey. It was too slow and Grey left with the fruit. If one looked at the place where the tree was previously standing, one would see a tiny sprout coming from the ground. This was what made this tree special, it only bears one fruit, after that fruit is plucked, it would die and a new tree would be born. This new tree would take hundreds of years and nourishment before it can produce another fruit. Grey naturally didn¡¯t know of this, and even if he knew he would still take it. There was no way he was going to wait for hundreds of years for the next fruit when he could just take this one. ¡­. Outside the City. Grey and the trio exchanged glances before masking their auras and disappearing into the City once again. They originally had a lot of things they wanted to take, but they didn¡¯t want to attract any attention since the fruit was more precious. Now that they¡¯d gotten the fruit, it was time to get the other things they feel might be useful to them. Grey headed straight for the Elephant¡¯s mansion, taking everything he wanted. Although it was a bad act, he didn¡¯t care too much about it. Besides, it wasn¡¯t like he was taking everything, he still left a lot of things for them. Void and the bunny leader on the other hand were not so subtle, they straight up emptied the places they had in mind and left. Later that day, the city fell into chaos due to the trio¡¯s stealing. The trio stood on top of a mountain, unbothered by the chaos that was going on. ¡°How long will this last?¡± Grey could still feel his elemental essence was suppressed by the chaos energy that erupted earlier that day. What he noticed when fighting with the trio was that his attack power had reduced significantly, luckily, he was able to use the space element to get the better of them. This was the main reason he didn¡¯t try to fight with them for long. Even with his physical body, he still felt some sort of suppression. Whenever the Beasts attacked him, he would feel the suppression worsen, this made it difficult for him to dodge their attacks. ¡®At least two months or so. How do you think these people become like this? It was due to constant exposure to this energy.¡¯ The bunny leader replied. ¡°I¡¯m quite curious.¡± Grey looked at the bunny leader seriously, ¡°How do you know all these?¡± The bunny leader replied almost immediately, not hiding anything, ¡®I¡¯ve been here before. I can easily travel through secret realms. Before I appeared in the place you first saw me, I stayed here for a few years. I know the main places to head when you need things.¡¯ Grey already guessed this, but it was still amazing hearing it for himself. The bunny leader was definitely a tier above Void when it came to using the space element, unfortunately, it hated fighting, and would rather have people do its dirty work. This was exactly the scenario that occurred when Grey first encountered the bunny leader. Since he had gotten the fruit, he decided to use it first. He had already gotten a little understanding after studying the young man he kidnapped using it repeatedly, now, he wanted to see if he could use it. If he is successful, he wouldn¡¯t have to bother about being suppressed by the chaos energy since he too would be able to use it. However, before he consumed the fruit he asked, ¡°Wouldn¡¯t this affect me when I go out?¡± ¡®No, unlike these people who adapted to it, you got it instantaneously. There¡¯s a difference.¡¯ The bunny leader explained. 1174 Chaos Arena A week went by in the blink of an eye, and Grey, who had only broken through to the Fourth stage of the Elemental Venerable Plane not less than two months was already in the Fifth stage now, and this was with him trying to make sure he didn¡¯t break through too fast. The chaos energy he absorbed on his own, and the one he got from the fruit was enough to shoot his realm to the Sixth and even the Seventh stage with ease, but he didn¡¯t want to advance with such speeds anymore, he didn¡¯t feel like it was a good idea so he stopped advancing that fast. Void and the bunny leader on the other hand were in the Late and Mid stages of the Seventh Rank, respectively. Void had gotten to the late stage while the bunny leader was at the Peak of the Mid stages. It would get to the Late stages in a short time. ¡°Alright, we¡¯ve advanced well with the fruit. It¡¯s time to get to business. First, I need something better than what my father suggested.¡± Grey focused on the bunny leader. The bunny leader already knew what Grey wanted, and it was something that could heal spiritual consciousness. His father suggested something, but that was all up to luck. Since the bunny leader had come here for a few years, Grey felt that it would know if there was something better than what his father suggested. ¡®There is, actually. But it¡¯s in a place that is more dangerous than where your father suggested, and it isn¡¯t a town or anything, rather, it¡¯s a well known danger zone.¡¯ The bunny leader explained. ¡°How dangerous?¡± Grey asked. If the place was too dangerous, he wouldn¡¯t go there. Although he wanted to save Arya¡¯s brother, it didn¡¯t mean he wanted to lose his life in the process. After some time, the bunny leader replied, ¡®With your current strength, you have a good chance at survival.¡¯ ¡°I see, let¡¯s go then. I¡¯ll access the place when we get there, if it¡¯s something I can deal with, I¡¯ll get it.¡± Grey said and the group started their journey. Their current destination was around a month or so from their current location, so the sooner they head out the better for them. The trio left that day. ¡­. Somewhere in the Chaos Battlefield. An arena. A young man was fighting ferociously with his opponent. The young man was a pure Fire Elementalist, and he was fighting with a creature that was native to the Chaos Battlefield. Even with the suppression of the eruption, he was still able to defeat an opponent that was a stage above him. ¡°Is this all you have? Then there¡¯s no use in me coming any more.¡± The young man commented when he easily defeated his opponent. The strength of his flames was far above others. The crowd staring at the young man in the arena felt their blood boil, but no one stepped up. During the past month, this young man had come to the arena and challenged people two stages above them, and he had unfailingly defeated all of them. It has been over thirty days, and anyone who stepped forward would be defeated with such ease that some people started to doubt his cultivation stage. But after it was confirmed, most of them could only give up. ¡°J! One more fight!¡± The crowd yelled. The young man referred to as J looked at the crowd and chuckled before walking out of the arena. ?¦Á?d¦Á-¦Ç¦È¦Í¦Å|¡¤?¦Èm Grey, Void, and the bunny leader got to the area the bunny leader suggested. They used around a month to get there and that was all that¡¯s to Grey avoiding anything that would hold them back. When they got to the area, Grey was stunned as to how active the place was. Since it was called a danger zone, he expected very few people to be there, but people from all walks of life and form were there. It was as if this was the place to be in the Chaos Battlefield.¦Ñ¦Á§ád¦Á `n?¦Í?| §ãom ¡®This is the place to be in the Chaos Battlefield, the Chaos Arena!¡¯ The bunny leader introduced. Grey looked at the place and at the bunny leader again, ¡°A place regarded as a danger zone is an arena?¡± ¡®You don¡¯t understand, this place isn¡¯t like an ordinary arena. Once you come here, your aura will be picked and you would be assigned a battle. If you¡¯re lucky, you¡¯ll fight with someone two stages lower than you, if not, someone two stages higher. Also, once you¡¯re here, you can¡¯t leave except completing five battles.¡¯ The bunny leader explained. ¡°That¡¯s not hard.¡± Grey didn¡¯t see anything dangerous with this. ¡®You don¡¯t understand, the moment you¡¯re called up, you must fight all five battles before leaving. Even if you¡¯re almost dead from the previous battle, as long as it¡¯s not the last one, you can¡¯t leave.¡¯ The bunny leader elaborated. ¡°Oh¡­¡± Grey turned around and found out that he was unable to leave the area. Even with the help of his space element, he was still unable to go anywhere. ¡°Why didn¡¯t you say this from the start?¡± He asked. ¡®I told you with your strength you should be able to survive it. You¡¯re the one who didn¡¯t ask any more questions.¡¯ The bunny leader shirked away from taking responsibility. Grey didn¡¯t bother with him and headed to the arena. He wanted to get with this as soon as possible. When he got there, he noticed he would have to head over to the place where he would register his name. When he did, he asked the bunny leader why they didn¡¯t need to drop their names. Apparently, both the bunny leader and Void didn¡¯t need to drop their names and the bunny leader dropped a reply that irritated Grey. ¡®Since we¡¯re on you, we don¡¯t need to drop our names. Besides, we¡¯re too small to fight. That¡¯s why I like this place.¡¯ Grey gave up on the bunny leader and decided to look at the rewards, his eyes glowed when he saw what the bunny leader told him was better than what his father suggested. Seeing how high it was ranked, he knew it was no joke, this thing was in the top five things to get, the only issue was that the only way to get those items in the top five was after winning hundred battles, consecutively. He must not lose a single battle in those hundred, if not, he loses. Grey couldn¡¯t help but look at the bunny leader. ¡®It¡¯s a good exercise for you to practice your new strength.¡¯ The bunny leader said. Grey shook his head and looked at the leaderboard, his eyes fell on a particular figure that was presently on eighty plus victories. It¡¯s the only name on eighty plus victories and that person was a stage above him. There was no way for them to fight against each other. Seeing J, and human close to it, he couldn¡¯t help but wonder who this person was. Of the top five treasures, the only thing that he found important was the plant he needed for Arya¡¯s brother, of course the rest things were useful, but he had no plans of increasing his stage anytime soon. While he was looking around, he got to find out that the person referred to as J, had already fought today but will be coming the next day. According to them, he had been fighting everyday for the past days, and would be coming the next day. ¡°Alright, I should go see who I¡¯m fighting with.¡± Grey headed to the arena. His opponent was someone two stages below him, he couldn¡¯t believe how lucky he was, but after thinking about it, he knew it would not get better from there since the next opponents he would have to fight would all be two stages above him, unless he decides to show a weak front. Thinking about it, he didn¡¯t have that time so he straight out one-shotted his opponent. With a single attack, he sent his opponent out of the arena, into a coma. The others were stunned when they saw him. The crowd couldn¡¯t help but roar his name out loud. The four others he got to fight were all two stages above him, but without fail, he defeated all of them with nothing more than a few attacks. Grey¡¯s fame quickly grew in this place. It was very easy to become famous when you can one-shot an opponent two stages lower than you, and even easily overpower your opponent. The next day, most of the crowd didn¡¯t have to wait for just one person to person as brilliantly as J, now, there are two people with such capabilities and they were both humans which made some of the Magical Beasts present a bit angered, some promised to take them down, while others were just watching the fun. 1175 An Acquaintance From The Azure Continent The next day Grey arrived early, the reason for this was that he wanted to see the human, regarded as J, fight. According to what he heard, this person always fights very early and leaves as soon as he¡¯s done with his battles. When he arrived at the place, he looked at the arena and saw a shockingly familiar figure, a figure he never expected to even see in the Aurora Continent, much less the Chaos Battlefield. ¡®Jonas.¡¯ He said to himself. Seeing his expression, the bunny leader and Void knew that he recognized the person fighting on the stage. ¡®Who¡¯s that?¡¯ The bunny leader asked. ¡°He¡¯s Jonas, we are technically from the same City.¡± Grey explained. ¡®Wow, one City producing two geniuses, even if he¡¯s not on your level, he¡¯s still well above others at his level.¡¯ The bunny leader accessed Jonas as he watched him fight. Jonas could be classified as a tier above even Grey¡¯s friends when it came to fighting those in the same stage or above. Klaus, Reynolds, Alice, and even Ellis wouldn¡¯t have any issues with fighting those two stages above them, the only thing is that they wouldn¡¯t be able to dominate them as much as Jonas was doing right now. The bunny leader had seen them in action and knew they were special, but Jonas had something more, something that placed him above others, with the exception of Grey. Grey tilted his head and looked at the figure battling on stage, he was just as fierce as he used to be. He couldn¡¯t help but think of how their stories started. Both were from the small Red City, each entering a top Academy, however, one¡¯s path only climbed up while the other, although showing some prospects, stagnated due to making the wrong choices. However, Jonas¡¯ story changed after the trip to the Trial Land, he became reborn after receiving an inheritance from a top expert. Now, he was advancing at a massive speed. He was presently in the Sixth stage of the Elemental Venerable Plane. Grey already thought his speed was insane, Jonas seemed to be even faster than he was. Jonas quickly finished his battles and as he was walking out, he seemed to look into the crowd, searching for something. He had seen Grey¡¯s name on the board, not just seen, but he had heard of the name. There was only one Grey he knew could cause such a commotion, and it was the same person that he knew from Red City, he didn¡¯t believe there would be another Grey that would be just as heaven-defying as the one from Red City. He had traveled and knew there were places far better than the Azure Continent. Nevertheless, he had never seen anyone on par with that fellow, the one who wasn¡¯t able to awaken his element during his first test. He didn¡¯t see Grey¡¯s figure, but he decided to wait. Since Grey came here, he didn¡¯t believe he would leave immediately after completing the five battles. He would most likely want to get one of the top rewards, just like himself. Time passed and two hours later, the figure he was waiting for appeared. It was like a surreal dream when he saw Grey step onto the stage. Even with a mask on, he knew for a fact that the person standing there was the person he thought. ¦Ñ¦Á§ád¦Á `n?¦Í?| §ãom Everything was confirmed when Grey was able to casually defeat his first opponent. However, his pupils showed some strange glow, he recalled Grey somehow miraculously got the fire element in the Trial Land, even though he was the one who got the inheritance, but he didn¡¯t think about it for too long at that time since there was a chance that Grey might have gotten one too. However, Grey was currently using the space element as well. ¡®How¡¯s this possible? He didn¡¯t awaken any elements at first. Then later awakened two, managed to get the fire element from a top expert, and now the space element?¡¯ Jonas felt his head ache. This was out of his expectations. But with all the things he had seen, he knew there was definitely a reason Grey was able to get all these. He had never heard of anyone getting another element after their original element was checked. Unless¡­ they could hide it from the rock. A thought suddenly struck him, if Grey could hide his element from the rock, maybe for fear of being hunted, then that should settle it. He recalled how Grey was hunted down just by getting a treasure from the Trial Land. Grey knew nothing about what he was thinking, nor did he care. He quickly made short work of his opponents before leaving the stage. He didn¡¯t know if Jonas was still around, and he didn¡¯t have the zeal to search for him. They aren¡¯t enemies, but they can¡¯t be called friends as well. ?¦Á?d¦Á-¦Ç¦È¦Í¦Å|¡¤?¦Èm ¡°I knew it was you when I heard of your name.¡± Jonas said when Grey stepped out. ¡°It¡¯s been a while, Jonas.¡± Grey stretched out his hand. Jonas shook his hand before they walked out of the place together. When the crowd saw them leaving together, and how they interacted, they knew they must know each other. Just thinking of the fact that two geniuses of this caliber are friends annoyed most of them. Grey didn¡¯t really care about all these. He followed Jonas back to where he was staying. After settling down he asked, ¡°How did you end up here?¡± ¡°Well¡­ it¡¯s a long story.¡± Jonas offered Grey a cup of tea. Grey took it and nodded for him to go on with his story, it wasn¡¯t like he had anywhere to go, anyway. Jonas went on to tell him of how he was fortunate to leave the place thanks to a tear that appeared close to him. It was out of his control as he was drawn into the tear. 1176 Catching Up Jonas stayed in the Azure Continent and grew to the Sage Plane years after Grey and his friends left. He searched for them after getting to the Sage Plane, but he was unsuccessful. ?¦Á?d¦Á- ¦Ç¦È¦Í¦Å|¡¤?¦Èm During an exploration, he got sucked into a spatial tear, and then appeared in a strange new world. The elemental essence he sensed there was way above what he ever thought he would experience again. He only experienced such vast elemental essence in the Trial Land, but now, he was sensing it in an outside world. He didn¡¯t venture far before seeing people. Where he appeared was close to a small town. The strongest person in the town was at the Peak of the Overlord Plane. He asked where he was and found out it was a strange place called the Aurora Continent, he asked about it and only got some information. But that was enough for him, all he wanted to do was to grow stronger, and in the Azure Continent, he as already feeling that he was getting to the end of his cultivation journey after getting to the Second stage of the Sage Plane. It couldn¡¯t be helped, the lack of elemental essence there can¡¯t groom an Elementalist to grow to the Peak of the Sage Plane. So once an Elementalist gets to the Sage Plane, their cultivation speed reduces tremendously and they start to feel like they can no longer break through. Jonas was already starting to get that feeling, hence he started exploring the world. He couldn¡¯t hide the joy in his face when he entered the Aurora Continent, he still didn¡¯t know how he got there and how the spatial tunnel came about, but he didn¡¯t care, the main thing was getting to the Aurora Continent and growing further. During his first month there, he was able to get to the Third stage of the Sage Plane and felt his potential had been vastly unlocked. He joined a Faction that saw his potential and they groomed him further, making his cultivation speed skyrocket. Only when he got to the Late stages of the Sage Plane did he slow down. After getting to the Elemental Venerable Plane, the Faction Leader, who was spending a lot of resources on him, decided to send him here once he gets to the Third stage of the Elemental Venerable Plane. Grey listened to his story without imputing anything. There was nothing he had to say anyway. ¡°How long have you been here?¡± He asked after Jonas finished speaking. ¡°In two months it will be a year. I will be leaving soon.¡± Jonas replied. Grey nodded, he had been here for a few months, but Jonas got here before he did. ¡°What about you, how did you end up here?¡± Jonas asked. ¡°Remember the time you saw me in the Magical Beasts¡¯ Forest?¡± Grey recalled meeting Jonas when he was injured in the Magical Beasts¡¯ Forest. Jonas nodded. ¡°I was able to see a teleportation array that sent me to the Aurora Continent around that time. The time I left for a while and returned to fight against the Empires, I had made a trip there first before returning to take my friends back.¡± Grey didn¡¯t say too much, but Jonas understood the meaning of his words. Grey found a way to go to a better place and wanted to take his friends with him. However there was some issues so he sorted it out first. Jonas looked at Grey, he couldn¡¯t help but give a wry smile. When Grey was declared a fugitive across all Continent, he could barely believe that the same person that came from the same City as himself was garnering this much attention from everyone. Not just that, but this person was seen as a threat by all Four Empires at that time and they wanted him gone. If it were now, a single snap of Grey¡¯s finger would kill all of them. He was an Elemental Venerable, a level those in the Azure Continent knew nothing about. He might even be regarded as a God if he went back now. ¡°Wait, you¡¯re Grey Dawson?¡± He suddenly recalled something and asked hurriedly. ¦Ñ¦Á§ád¦Á `n?¦Í?| §ãom ¡°Yes.¡± Grey nodded. Jonas burst out laughing after getting the confirmation from Grey. Even now, Grey was still wanted by factions stronger than him, yet, he was still thriving. ¡®Will this end in the same manner?¡¯ He thought to himself. ¡°You know about the kill order on your head from the Gnomes?¡± He asked curiously. Grey nodded. ¡°You have a way of making powerful enemies.¡± Jonas gave a soft chuckle. ¡°They wanted to kill me, I killed them, now they¡¯re just acting in the manner people with a weak mindset act, using their connections.¡± Grey shrugged. Seeing how carefree Grey was, Jonas shook his head to himself. ¡°I guess you¡¯re already used to being in such a situation.¡± He muttered softly. If he was the one in that situation, he wouldn¡¯t be as carefree as Grey was at the moment. Grey didn¡¯t even seem to have any issues with speaking about it. It was like it was something normal. ¡°What are you hoping to get?¡± Jonas asked. ¡°There¡¯s a flower I want, and I can get it here.¡± Grey said. ¡°Something to heal the consciousness.¡± Jonas blurted out. Grey was a bit taken aback, but then he realized Jonas had been here for a while and there¡¯s just one flower there, and it¡¯s used to heal a damaged consciousness. ¡°Yeah, I have a friend who¡¯s in need of it.¡± Grey answered. Jonas nodded. ¡°There¡¯s a quicker way to get more wins. It¡¯s a bit rare, but at times people do agree to it.¡± Jonas said after some time. ¡°Oh, what¡¯s that?¡± Grey¡¯s interest was piqued. ¡°Betting.¡± Jonas replied. 1177 A Race Skilled In Illusions ¡°The rules are simple, you bet with the current number of wins you have. You can¡¯t go lower than five, and higher than fifty.¡± Grey nodded and looked around the place, waiting for who would step forward to fight with him. When betting, unlike during challenges, you can fight against anyone. In some cases, even with people who are three stages above you, all on the premise that there is mutual consent. After listening to Jonas suggesting this, he came the next day to try it. He already has ten wins, if he bets all ten and wins, he would get ten to his, making it twenty. When the person in charge of the arena saw him, he told him of his desire to bet with his current wins, now, all that¡¯s left is for someone willing to gamble with him to step forward. If he doesn¡¯t see anyone, he would return to his five regular daily challenges. He stood on the platform for over a minute and no one stepped forward. When he was about to give up, a petite figure walked to the arena. ¡°I¡¯ll take that ten wins off of you.¡± The petite figure said with a soft chuckle. It was a young lady who looked quite thin, but Grey didn¡¯t think much of it since there were multiple races here and he had seen a group that had the same features as the young lady. ¡°Since I¡¯m three stages above you, I¡¯ll offer double what you wagered.¡± The young lady said. Grey turned to the man in charge, who nodded to what he wanted to confirm. The man was also from one of the races in this place. The young lady chuckled softly as she accessed Grey, ¡°Why don¡¯t you take off your mask?¡± ¡°I¡¯m sorry, I have a bad scar.¡± Grey replied calmly. The young lady didn¡¯t push any further and waited for the start of the battle. Everyone looked on with interest, Jonas also wanted to see just how far this young lady would be able to push the seemingly invincible Grey. The man in charge of the arena called for the battle to start. The young lady¡¯s figure faded off the arena, leaving Grey alone. ¡®Be careful, she¡¯s from a race that excels in illusions. They use mists to create things that will confuse you.¡¯ The bunny leader transmitted its voice to Grey. Grey was alerted and increased his guard. He even set up his new light element technique of instant healing whenever injured. If he were to be caught unaware and unable to block the attack, he would use this to heal himself and start his fight with the young lady. ?¦Á?d¦Á- ¦Ç¦È¦Í¦Å|¡¤?¦Èm Grey covered his body with flames, not letting the thread touch him. However, the thread passed through the flames, grabbing his hand. He saw the thread tug, and subconsciously, he took a step forward, leaving the protection of his flames. The young lady appeared by his side and threw a punch, Grey¡¯s figure was forced a few steps back. Grey touched his right arm which he used to block the punch and sensed that it was cold. His eyes glowed with a blue light and he looked at the young lady. This was an attack he hadn¡¯t used for a long time, and there were even occasions when he forgets that he has it, but whenever he faced tough opponents, who are aware of some of his abilities, he would use this to catch them unaware. ¦Ñ¦Á§ád¦Á `n?¦Í?| §ãom The young lady looked away the moment she saw his eyes. On the sitting area. Jonas looked at the duo standing on the platform, a strange look in his eyes. Since the start of the battle, the young lady had been standing in one place, and so has Grey. He suddenly saw Grey move forward as if he was being tugged, and then he moved to the side, while in a blocking pose. He looked at the young lady and after digging through his memories, he recalled the race she was from. They were people who excelled in using mental attacks and illusions. He never thought Grey would encounter such a tough opponent during his first battle. What was worse was that the young lady had a higher cultivation stage. Even with Grey¡¯s unique abilities, he didn¡¯t think Grey would be able to easily deal with her. His expression, changed when he saw Grey¡¯s eyes glow. Not just him, but everyone else. They never thought that Grey was also proficient in mental attacks as well. With this, he would be able to fend off the mental attacks of the young lady. ¡­. On the arena. The eyes of the young lady glowed with dark blue light and turned to Grey. She looked at Grey, surprised before saying, ¡°You can also use mental attacks?¡± Grey looked at her, and then at his arm which he couldn¡¯t feel the cold sensation from before anymore, and nodded, his eyes stayed glowing as he rushed after her. When he was attacked by the punch, he knew that there was something wrong with the attack, and recalling the words of the bunny leader, he acted quickly. The young lady chuckled and said, ¡°It¡¯s still not going to change your fate.¡± After she finished saying this, mist started to spread on the platform. Grey halted in his tracks and blue flames rose from where he was standing and started to spread everywhere, fighting against the mist. He didn¡¯t want to allow the young lady to do as she pleased. His attack power was strong, just on par with the young lady¡¯s. She was in the Eighth stage of the Elemental Venerable Plane, yet, she couldn¡¯t overpower Grey who was still in the Fifth stage. The mist tried to push forward, but Grey¡¯s flames stood strong, fending it off. An ice rain started to fall. The ices were all in the sharp of sharp needles. Grey created an earth screen above him, blocking all the needles that were falling toward him. 1178 Elemental Advantage While blocking the needles, Grey attacked with the earth element, slamming a large hammer at the young lady. The hammer hit the young lady, but just as it was about to hit her, her body turned to water, and the water splashed across the platform. Grey looked around, trying to sense her current location. He turned around hastily and blocked the large ice spear that was about to be impaled into his back. The spear was unable to touch him, but he was forced a few steps back. He looked at the spear, and the figure that was previously standing behind it had turned into water once again, disappearing from his view. Grey''s expression turned serious and the area around him was enveloped with flames, hot flames. He heard a scream from a region and attacked that area. While attacking, he felt a chill run down his spine, and his figure blinked, disappearing from where he was standing. A large ice spike rose from the ground, almost piercing him between his nether region, luckily, he managed to react quickly. The laughter of the young lady reverberated across the platform. This time, they were not fighting a mental battle, so everyone could properly see them. Just like Grey, most of the people were still searching for the young lady. After being attacked, Grey couldn''t stop the young lady from creating mist across the platform. Even though he was trying to use his fire domain to block it, he was still not able to remove it. Jonas, who was watching, gave a wry smile after seeing Grey''s domain and muttered, "As expected." He too, had already awakened his fire domain, but compared to Grey''s blue flames, he was a bit envious. One has to know that special flames in some cases give unique abilities. Taking the cold flames Grey got later on, for example, he managed to get a mental attack in the process. Back in the arena. Grey looked at the spike that sprouted out of the ground and gulped down, a bit fearful of what might have happened if he didn''t sense it quickly. The young lady only screamed to draw his attention just so she could attack him. And she was almost successful too. He calmed down and settled his mind. The only way to fight against such an opponent is by being calm¡­ or¡­ by setting the entire platform on fire. Grey stamped on the ground and the earth started to show signs of turning into lava. Not just that, but the heat around the place shot up, even those that were in the stands felt the uncomfortable heat and started to retreat back. The man in charge of the platform couldn''t help but give them some space. He was only at the Peak of the Elemental Venerable Plane, although he could handle the heat, he didn''t want to stress himself. Besides, there''s a certain thing about Grey''s attacks that scare him deep down. The arena transformed, from a stage, it turned into a pool of lava. A certain part showed signs of cooling off, the part where the young lady appeared. "Oh, I thought you wouldn''t come out." Grey chuckled and his figure vanished. It was his turn to haunt the young lady. Unlike her, he was a Space Elementalist, he didn''t need to turn into water, all he had to do was disappear and appear. He appeared close to the young lady and attacked with the fire element, the hotness of the fire was above what it used to be. The young lady dodged it, and the sound of water touching fire gave off steam as she stepped on the lava outside the cooled area where she was originally standing. Grey didn''t stop there, he attacked once again. This time, he used the lightning element. Sending a lightning bolt at the young lady. She tried to turn into water, but it only aggravated the pain she felt from the lightning attack. Coupled with the hotness there, she could barely use her water element properly. Grey turned to battle around with a single move. Putting himself in a more favorable position. Everyone watched on as Grey slowly gained the upper hand before completely suppressing the young lady. Jonas was a bit disappointed since he didn''t get to see Grey put in too much effort. Even though there was a period that the young lady had the advantage, it wasn''t for long and she didn''t even hit Grey with any powerful attacks. ''It''s over.'' He concluded internally. And before long, the pained shriek of the young lady reverberated everywhere, along with the voice of the man in charge calling for the end of the battle. It was not a battle to the death. Of course, on some occasions, there have been one or two deaths, but it wasn''t common. Grey turned the platform to its original state before looking at the young lady who had burn marks across her body. He didn''t say anything, with a nod to the man and the young lady, he turned to the crowd again, offering all thirty of his current wins. However, everyone was still in a state of shock that they weren''t able to react. One minute the young lady almost impaled him, the next she was lying on the floor in pain. One has to know that Grey was three stages below the young lady. If he could do this to her, then who would dare to fight against such a figure? While the people were still contemplating, a Tiger stepped forward, it had fiery red stripes on its body. "He only won due to the elemental advantage. He''s strong, but not invincible." The Tiger opened its mouth and said before jumping onto the platform, "I''ll take you on your offer." Those familiar with the Tiger looked at it in shock. Yes, Grey was able to capitalize on his advantage, but looking at it, was it only by using his elemental advantages that he won? None of them believed so! WSA entry 1179 Déjà Vu "Thirty wins, I''m only a stage above you, I believe you will be a worthy opponent." The Tiger commented as he stared at Grey with ferocity. Grey looked at him and nodded, he was currently having thirty wins thanks to the young lady from the previous battle, now all he needed was seventy more. If he wins this battle, he would get thirty more, taking his total to sixty. He couldn''t help but thank Jonas internally. If he had known of this from the start, he wouldn''t have wasted his time staying till the next day. Of course, he knew the reason the Tiger accepted his challenge was due to wanting to test his abilities. They all believed they were powerful in the same stage as others. Since he had that many wins, it''s normal for him to be very confident in his abilities. Grey looked at the man in charge and the man said the words, ''Begin''. The Tiger exploded out with terrifying speed, rushing at Grey in all four, it stretched out its claws which were covered in flames, and slashed them at Grey. The claw attack enlarged as it got closer to Grey. Grey created an earth wall. A large claw mark appeared on the wall, creating a hole that showed what was on the other side. Grey''s figure could be seen sliding back as he looked at his arms which flashed with a white mark before quickly changing to lightning. His dragon scales appeared on their own, helping him block the hidden attack of the Tiger. The fire element was not the only thing the Tiger had, it also had the wind element as well. It used both to attack, but the fire element being as dominant as it usually is covered the wind claw. The wind claw was also a bit late, giving the fire claw the chance to first destroy Grey''s defensive wall. Grey hastily hid his dragon scales, luckily, it didn''t show too much and he also used the lightning element to cover up the place, tricking others to feel that was what appeared. Also, the scales only appeared for only a quarter of a second, and he reacted quickly. His eyes turned sharp as he took another glance at his hand before looking at the Tiger. The Tiger smirked and charged at him once again. The explosiveness of the Tiger was out of Grey''s expectations, given its large size, he never thought it would be this fast. Grey is faster than most people in the same stage, and even those a stage or two higher than him, but the Tiger is slightly faster than he is. The Tiger attacked once again, using the same method. The fire element first breaks his defense, then the wind element which moves in an almost untraceable manner. Even when prepared for the attack, Grey still found it difficult to track it and was once again forced back. He was not hurt by it this time, but he was still not able to deal with it easily. "You have quite a strong body. I want to see how long it can sustain the impact of the attacks." The Tiger laughed and attacked again. Yes, Grey was blocking each attack, but his body was still suffering from the impact of the attack, hence being pushed back. Contrary to the Tiger''s thought process though, Grey''s physical body was far stronger than what it thought. So no matter how much it attacks, it wouldn''t really be able to do much harm to him as long as he blocked it. Grey continued blocking the attacks of the Tiger as he adjusted to the speed of the Tiger. He hadn''t even been able to use his space element due to how fast the attacks of the Tiger were coming, if he tried to move, he would be forced to defend. After some thought, he decided to use a unique space skill to counter the Tiger. Since it relied heavily on its speed, it will naturally take a short pause after attacking, that was all the time Grey needed to turn the battle in his favor. The Tiger once again attacked, and as usual, it expected Grey to block the attack. This time, Grey did what no one expected, he took a step forward and welcomed the attack. He didn''t set up a defensive wall, rather, he moved forward with his body. Most of the people present felt like he had gone mad. Their minds were blown when Grey didn''t even bother to stop the attack when it hit him. Their expressions changed when the explosion that was supposed to follow suit didn''t occur, rather, the attack passed through like there was no one there. The pupils of the Tiger constricted when it saw this and hastily tried to retreat. Grey, who had managed to create an opportunity for himself, would never let this chance go. He took another step and appeared in front of the Tiger, his right hand clenched into a fist and struck the Tiger on the head. A pale blue flame appeared on the tip of Grey''s fist just as it made contact with the Tiger and a large explosion rang out. Roar! The Tiger''s roar was heard around as it was sent flying from the attack. Grey didn''t stop there, his figure flashed once again and he appeared by the Tiger that was still mid-air, just as he was about to attack, the Tiger opened its mouth and tried to bite him. He was forced to retreat, but it didn''t stop him from attacking. A lightning bolt struck the airborne Tiger, making it roar in pain once again. Those in the crowd looked at the scene in shock. It was as if they were re-watching what happened with the young lady. All it took Grey was a single chance he created for himself and the battle was pretty much over. Once again, he had created the chance, and he had started beating the Tiger, overpowering it with ease. 1180 Challenged The Tiger found it very hard to defend against Grey. it was trying to regain its original superiority in the battle, but Grey refused to give it that chance. Before it could properly stabilize from one attack, Grey had already come with another one. Even if it manages to force Grey back, it would only be for a second since he would be back as soon as possible. Everyone watched on as Grey slowly took the Tiger apart piece by piece. Knowing that there might be a chance for the Tiger to get back into the battle, Grey focused on decapitating it. He first broke one of its hindlegs, before breaking the other. With its powerful hind legs broken, the Tiger could barely stand, much less move with its previous explosive speed. Grey stopped his attacks after a few more seconds. The Tiger was almost lying on the ground, only able to keep itself up with its front legs. ¡°Do you really still want to keep fighting?¡± He asked with a casual expression. There was no form of showing off, it was simply asking a question, trying not to waste any time. The Tiger looked at its current state before laughing at itself, ¡°Hahaha, I underestimated you, you win.¡± After that, the Tiger leaped off the stage, it needed to get some treatment. Grey heaved a sigh of relief. Although the Tiger was a little harder to deal with compared to the young lady, after getting himself together, it wasn¡¯t much of a deal handling it. This was his third day here and he already had sixty wins. He almost couldn¡¯t believe it. At first, he thought he would have to stay here for months, but from the looks of it, he might leave this place within three days. ¡°Forty wins, who is willing to take up the offer?¡± He looked at the crowd. This time, there was no one who would underestimate him. When the Tiger spoke up and started to suppress him, they felt like even though he was strong, he only won due to the elemental advantage, but they reverted to their initial thought after this battle. Grey was a monstrous freak that could fight against most of the people a stage or two higher than him, even those three stages higher. Grey stood on the platform, waiting for someone to take up his challenge but no one stepped up. He knew his previous performance from the last two battles would dissuade people from wanting to battle with him, only those who are truly confident in their abilities would fight against him. After almost five minutes, he could only give up. He turned to the man in charge, ¡°Can I still fight my normal five battles?¡± The man shook his head and Grey gave a wry smile. He knew that people were afraid of fighting him now. Although he somewhat expected it, he didn¡¯t think it would happen this early. He felt he would fight at least three battles. Since it was impossible, he walked off the stage. Jonas looked at him as he walked close to him, ¡°You¡¯ve grown too strong. I¡¯m afraid no one would want to fight with you unless they want to test their abilities against yours.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t see what they¡¯re afraid of.¡± Grey said grumpily before adding, ¡°We should wait in case anyone decides to bet.¡± ¦Ñ¦Á§ád¦Ás `n?¦Í?| §ãom ?¦Á?d¦Ás ¦Ç¦È¦Í¦Å|¡¤?¦Èm ¡°Don¡¯t worry, there are a few people I know will come for you tomorrow.¡± He comforted Grey. ¡°Oh, are they strong?¡± Grey asked. ¡°A little, they are certainly stronger and more difficult to deal with than the two you fought against today.¡± Jonas replied. ¡°Good, these guys weren¡¯t too difficult to handle. I wonder if those guys will give me a challenge.¡± Grey¡¯s words made Jonas feel a bit downcast. ¡®He¡¯s still the same person. Unknowingly arrogant.¡¯ Jonas thought to himself. Grey might not show his arrogance, but on some occasions, he shows it. He can¡¯t be blamed since it was something that he was used to. Fighting against tough opponents was what he desired in situations like this. They left the arena. Unlike Grey, Jonas wasn¡¯t in too much of a hurry to leave this place. He had advanced at a pace he wanted and didn¡¯t want to leave without getting the item he set his sights on. ¡­. The next day came and just like what Jonas said, someone openly challenged Grey. The person stood in the arena before it was Grey¡¯s turn and openly challenged Grey, offering whatever wins Grey wanted. ¡°I told you someone would come for you. Even if you beat him, another person would still come.¡± Jonas said when he saw the person who challenged Grey. The person was in the Fifth stage of the Elemental Venerable Plane, but his strength was far above his stage. This person was quite famous in the area and had gone seventy-five battles undefeated. This person was from one of the races in this place and wanted one of the treasures there. Grey looked at the young man on the platform who had a strange physique, although it was easy to see that the figure was male, the figure also had a face of a fish. Grey didn¡¯t spend too long on the side and jumped into the stage. ¡°Forty wins.¡± He went straight to the point when he appeared. ¡°Forty wins, you win, you have them.¡± The young man said. Grey nodded and looked at the man in charge of the arena. The man didn¡¯t say too much, since both parties had agreed to it, what was there for him to say? Grey looked at the young man, waiting for the start of the battle. The man in charge declared the start and both figures shot at breakneck speed at each other. 1181 Unending Surprises ?¦Á?d¦Ás¦Ç¦È¦Í¦Å| The young man with the face of a fish covered his entire body with lightning as he flashed through the arena, charging at Grey. Grey reciprocated his energy, using the lightning element to bolster his speed as well. When they were about to collide, the young man¡¯s speed shot up by almost double. A small tornado formed behind his legs, making him faster. Apparently, he was not just a Lightning Elementalist, but he also had the wind element. Grey was almost tempted to do the same, but he held himself back, besides, he had the space element, there was no need to show more of his elements. Boom! Both parties collided and Grey was actually forced back by the strength of the young man¡¯s attack. The young man attacked with the lightning element, sending out a lightning bolt that wrapped itself around Grey¡¯s leg. With a pull, Grey lost balance but he used the earth element to create hands that he used to clamp onto the lightning holding onto him. He stabilized himself but felt a powerful wind pushing him in the direction of the young man. He didn¡¯t fight against the wind and let it carry him in the direction of the young man, a fireball appeared on his hand which he threw at the young man. The young man was forced to dodge the attack, unable to complete his plan. Grey landed on the ground and let out a soft smirk, his leg muscles contracted and he exploded out with speed superior to what he showed the last time. The young man smiled and also shot at Grey, this time, his hands were covered with the lightning and wind element. Grey¡¯s right hand had only the fire element, their fists collided and they were both pushed back, but it was only for a second. Both rushed at each other and started trading blows, blocking the attack of each other as they attacked. The intensity of the fight made the blood of those watching boil. This was what they wanted to see, a fight that would put them on the edge of their seats. Grey had been too overwhelming in his previous battles, the same could be said for this young man. Now, they were both equals and their battle was refreshing for these people to watch. Boom! Bang! Bam! The sounds of fists hitting each other didn¡¯t stop, and neither did the explosions that came with their elemental attacks. Grey threw a right hook at the young man, but the young man managed to dodge it on time, watching the flames-covered hand pass, before delivering a powerful punch of his own to Grey¡¯s head. Grey raised his left arm to block the punch of the young man. The part of his arm used in blocking the punch was covered with earth armor, which broke apart almost immediately after the fist made contact with him. But that was enough time for Grey to give a spinning kick. While kicking out, Grey¡¯s feet were covered in flames, and the flames followed the movements of his spinning kick, giving an enchanting view to those who were watching. ¦Ñ¦Á§ád¦Ás `n?¦Í?| §ãom As for the person receiving the kick, it was by no means enchanting, all he saw was something he should avoid at all costs. He sent a lightning bolt at Grey¡¯s feet and both attacks collided, forcing the duo to take some steps back, giving each other some space. ¡°You¡¯re strong.¡± The young man said, not showing any signs of tiredness. ¡°You too.¡± Grey nodded at the young man as a show of respect. Of course, he hadn¡¯t gone all out, but the same can be said for the young man. He was certain that someone of the young man¡¯s caliber would definitely have awakened his domain. And he wasn¡¯t wrong, the area surrounding the young man started to show signs of a lightning and wind storm. A mixture of the wind and lightning domain. Grey didn¡¯t shy away as his fire domain appeared, covering the area he was standing, he took a step forward. The young man did the same, pointing at the sky, the area surrounding the arena turned dark. He pointed at Grey and a lightning bolt shot at Grey from the sky. Grey sent a stream of fire at the lightning bolt, easily dealing with the attack. However, he noticed that wind blades were coming his way from the lightning and windstorm behind the young man. Each wind blade was filled with tiny specks of lightning. He looked at the attack and an earth wall rose from the ground, blocking the attack coming his way. The sound of the wind blades hitting the earth wall just started reverberating when the young man appeared on the side of Grey, just as he was about to attack, he felt the gravity suddenly increase and his figure fell to the ground. Grey looked at the young man, and from the sky covered with dark clouds, a lightning rain fell on where the young man was kneeling. For some time now, Grey had rarely utilized his gravitational force field, it wasn¡¯t because he had forgotten about it, but the opportunity just hadn¡¯t presented itself. This young man liked close-range battles, so he decided to use it against him. The young man¡¯s roar was heard from the lightning rain and a large figure made from wind appeared. When Grey saw it, he couldn¡¯t help but recall a familiar sight. Due to Reynolds, he had actually forgotten that there were actual normal Summons and not only Elemental Warriors. Elemental Warriors were the upgraded versions that were stronger, but Summons were still by all means very powerful. He looked the Wind Summon in the eyes and didn¡¯t back down, rather, he attacked first. An orb, dark in color appeared. When those in the crowd saw this, they were stupefied, they could all sense the power lying within the small orb. They all felt that Grey had shown all his strength, but the more he was pushed, the more powers he showed. It was as if Grey hadn¡¯t even shown his true strength from the start. 1182 Collecting The Reward Chapter 1182 Collecting The Reward Jonas looked at the orb and couldn''t help but feel a certain way deep down. He knew not to underestimate Grey, but the fact that Grey had always been above whatever way he evaluated him was a little crushing to him. All geniuses had their pride, even with that pride he agreed that Grey was superior, but he didn''t think the gap would be too large. Yet, Grey''s performance was making him doubt himself. Against this young man, he stood a chance, in fact, he was confident that he would win. However, against Grey that he was a stage above, he didn''t even have the slightest bit of confidence. Grey was very mysterious, and whenever he battles, he doesn''t show signs of actually putting in all his effort, it was almost like he was holding back. Take this attack Grey just used, for instance, the fact that Grey had that in his arsenal and had used it since he started battling was something else. The orb appeared on Grey''s hand almost instantaneously, but everyone above the Sage Plane knew that Grey was the one who created it within a second. This meant that he could use it, but he didn''t use it during his previous battles. ''I should stop comparing him with humans, that should make it hurt less.'' He consoled himself. Back on the platform. The young man, who was standing behind the Summon instantly retreated, not daring to be in the attack range of that orb. He didn''t know what it was, but the power inside of it was clear for all to see. The Wind Summon subconsciously grabbed the orb as it was coming its way, the moment it made contact with it the explosion people were expecting didn''t occur, rather after the orb disappeared in a flash, the hand of the Summon started to disappear, and within two seconds, the Summon vanished, it was like it was never there. Everyone looked at the scene in horror. Some of them looked at Grey''s calm expression and couldn''t help but feel a chill run down their spines, especially those that had fought with him before. None of them were sure they would be able to block this attack. The Summon disappeared, unable to block the attack. They all sensed attributes of the space element, so they were sure it was the doing of the space element. At first a few thought the Summon was teleported away, but when they realized that it disappeared bit by bit instead of instantaneously, they knew it wasn''t teleportation, rather, it was destroyed bit by bit. Just the thought made their hairs stand on edge. The young man who was fighting against Grey looked at him, a bit fearful. Although he knew the attack was dangerous, he didn''t think it would be this dangerous. In fact, if he was asked if he could block it, he would not be able to respond because he knew he couldn''t. ''What sort of freak is this?'' He thought internally. When he saw Grey standing harmlessly in his sea of flames, and his outstretched hand, he shivered and shook his head. "I admit defeat." That line silenced the entire place. The young man has always been known for his unyielding attitude, but they all saw him give up in the presence of the mask wearing Grey who seemed incapable of hurting a fly due to his reserved attitude. The man in charge of the platform declared the winner and Grey''s wins were awarded. The man told him he could go collect his reward from the hall. Grey nodded and walked away from the platform. The man watched his figure walk away from the platform, a little voice asking in his head if he could defend against that attack. The greatest strength of that attack is the fact that defending against spatial attacks is the most terrifying thing. The other attacks are easy since they could be seen, as for spatial attacks, they come at you suddenly, giving you almost no chance to defend against them, unless you''re a Space Elementalist and sense the spatial ripples on time. When everyone saw the orb, no one expected it to have such an outcome, all they knew was that it was powerful. But no one knew what outcome it would produce, and most thought it would explode with frightening strength like most elemental attacks. ¡­. Outside the place. Jonas, Void, and the bunny leader were waiting for Grey. Seeing Grey use that attack was nothing new to Void and the bunny leader, but to Jonas, it was something he had not seen before. He was staring at Grey with a shocked expression. "Where''s the Hall located?" Grey asked the moment he walked out. Jonas pointed him in the direction and followed from behind. Void and the bunny leader sat on each side of Grey''s shoulder. When they got to Hall, Jonas stood outside. "Is there anyone inside?" Grey asked. "No." Jonas replied. "Can''t anyone just come in and steal the items?" Grey couldn''t help but ask. "This is a place created by Gods, it will take a God to steal from it." Jonas chuckled before explaining, "Just like how you must have five wins before you can leave this place, that''s how you must have a hundred wins before you can step into that place." Grey nodded in understanding, "Oh, so that''s how it works." He climbed up the short flight of stairs and opened the door. A force surrounded him for a brief moment before disappearing. Since he came in with Void and the bunny leader, he could enter this place with the duo as well. When he entered the Hall, he saw a vast and slightly empty place. There were a few shelves, but nothing else. ?¦Èm Grey looked above the shelves and saw that some things were written on them. Each row of shelves had a specific item, when he saw the one belonging to herbs, he walked in that direction. Void and the bunny leader left his shoulder and decided to explore the place. 1183 An Expedition With Jonas Grey didn¡¯t care about where Void and the bunny leader went to, he knew nothing would happen to them, at worst they would be sent out of the place and would wait for him outside. After walking to the shelf that had the herbs sign, he started to go through all the herbs that were placed there. To be honest, he was very impressed and also stunned by the number of items present there. Some of them he had no knowledge of, while a few were things he had seen or read about. He glanced through and soon found what he was looking for. The flower had an odd-looking fruit. The fruit had the shape of a baby¡¯s head, but without eyes. Although it was an odd item, it didn¡¯t stop him from marveling at the item. He wanted to take it but knew that the second he removed this item, he would be sent out of this place. Thinking about it, he decided to glance through all the things that were present here. Since Void and the bunny leader were able to enter, maybe they can take some items out as well. Things like these usually have flaws that can be taken advantage of. ¡®You guys didn¡¯t touch anything, right?¡¯ He asked while leaving the area where he was standing. Void¡¯s voice echoed in his head, ¡®We can¡¯t.¡¯ Grey was a bit disappointed, but since he could take what he wanted in the first place, he didn¡¯t think too much about it. It took a few minutes, but he was able to go through all the items in this place. Although there were many items, it wasn¡¯t hard since they were well arranged. ¡­. Outside the place. Jonas was starting to get a little worried when Grey walked out of the Hall. ¡°Got it?¡± He asked to be sure Grey was able to take what he wanted. There was something in there he also wanted, if by any chance Grey didn¡¯t see what he wanted, it would be a huge loss for him. ¡°Yeah, I was just sightseeing, hence my delay.¡± Grey nodded. Jonas heaved a sigh of relief before the duo headed back to his place. At the moment, he already had ninety wins, two more days and he would leave this place. ¡°Why don¡¯t you wait for me before leaving, I have a place I want to explore, I was unable to the last time I went there. I believe with you, we can get something.¡± Jonas spoke up when they got to his place. The reason he hastily did this was that he noticed Grey was already preparing to leave. Before coming here, while exploring this place, there was a sight he chanced upon, unfortunately, he was unable to explore it. He doesn¡¯t know what it holds, but he believes it would be beneficial to both of them. Besides, it wouldn¡¯t be bad to travel with Grey. He personally believes Grey is someone heavily favored. Grey thought about it and gave a nod. Since Jonas was taking the normal route, it would take at most two days before he completes his hundred wins and leaves. Jonas was happy seeing that Grey agreed to go with him. ¡­. Three days later. ¡°Damn it! How did it awaken the moment we arrived?! I thought they said it usually sleeps during this period!¡± Jonas complained as he ran through the woods, sending out attacks to the large creature behind him. Grey¡¯s expression was sour as he also attacked. He had always believed his luck wasn¡¯t as good as Klaus¡¯. This was not the first time he was experiencing things like this and after multiple experiences, he was quite experienced in escaping. He didn¡¯t say anything and attacked as they ran away from the creature. Roar! The beast seemed to be angered by their continuous attacks on it as it chased them. It opened its mouth, wider than over three meters and sucked in. All the trees in the area were sucked in its direction, losing their energy. When Grey and Jonas saw this, they felt a chill down their spines and increased their speeds. Only after a few more minutes of running did the beast finally give up since they were no longer in its territory. The duo stopped running and started to pant, trying to regain their breaths. ¡°That beast is crazy.¡± Jonas commented as they watched the beast walk back. What they found annoying is the fact that they were not the only ones passing that area at that time, but they were the ones it chose to chase. ¡°Can we go around it?¡± Grey asked. He was quite curious about the place Jonas wanted them to head to. ¡°Yes, but it will take longer. Taking the risk of entering its territory again wouldn¡¯t be wise.¡± Jason replied. ¡°We can go round, there¡¯s no rush.¡± Grey said. I think you should take a look at The beast was already close to breaking through to Rank Eight, unless he had the Fusion State, he didn¡¯t want to have any thing to do with such a Magical Beast. Jason had no problems with what he said and showed him the way. ¡­. The duo had to go around the Beast¡¯s territory and before long, they soon got to their destination. The place was like a cave, but it had a large door at the front of it. ¡°Did you go past this place?¡± Grey asked. ¡°Yes, there is a certain array here, but it wears off after a few days.¡± Jonas replied, he looked at it and said, ¡°In about two days time it would be open for us to go in.¡± Grey nodded and sat down, studying the array set on the place. This array was a first of its kind and he was very curious about how it was set up. He studied it for the two days they sat outside and Jonas was unable to speak to him when he saw him in a meditative state. It was only after the door opened did he open his eyes. ¡°Such a complex array, once I can master how it¡¯s made, I can create a powerful array.¡± He muttered to himself. Jonas didn¡¯t heat what he said since he was more concerned about entering the place. The door was pushed open by him since they were the only people present there and they walked into the place. They were met with a long passageway, but after walking for a few minutes, they saw its end. ?andasnovel¡¤?om ¡°No, we¡¯ll be able to clear it soon.¡± The second after Jonas finished his statement, some creatures appeared in the place. ¡°That¡¯s our challenge. It¡¯s not much of an issue and I¡¯ve passed this place before.¡± He said when the creatures appeared. Grey looked at the creatures and nodded. They were all in the First stage of the Elemental Venerable Plane. In a matter of a minute or so, they were able to easily deal with them. ¡°The next round wouldn¡¯t be an issue as well. What I¡¯m concerned about is the fourth round. I ended there and was unable to get past it even after almost a week.¡± Jonas said. ¡°Oh, what¡¯s there?¡± Grey asked, curiously. ¡°You¡¯ll see when we get there. Don¡¯t get me wrong, as long as we¡¯re together, we can handle it.¡± Jonas said. Grey looked at him for a while, and thinking of the fact that he left the place, he didn¡¯t speak too much. ¡°Alright, let¡¯s get to work.¡± The duo started to pass through each stage with much ease. After almost one hour, they appeared on the fourth stage. When Grey arrived, he understood why Jonas asked him to come with him. This place, they had to defeat three opponents that were two stages ahead of the person with the highest stage there. If they had more numbers, they wouldn¡¯t have any issues, but they were only two, so they had to fight three opponents with the strength of a Sixth and Fifth stage Elemental Venerable, while fighting against three Eighth stage Elemental Venerables. ¡°Can you manage?¡± Jonas asked. ¡°Don¡¯t worry, it¡¯s not much of an issue.¡± Grey answered. Jonas heaved a sigh of relief before charging into battle. Grey didn¡¯t hold back and fought against them as well. He didn¡¯t go all-out. Although he didn¡¯t have any issues with Jonas, he still preferred keeping must of his abilities to himself. He only used the orb he used when fighting against the young man with fish face. After a long battle, the duo defeated their opponents and were soon free to head to the next stage. ¡°I¡¯m not aware of what is coming next, I ended here the last time. So we¡¯re going there blinded.¡± Jonas said after they defeated them. ¡°Okay, I¡¯ll try my best. If we can¡¯t defeat them, we should just give up.¡± Grey said. Jonas had no issues with what he said and they soon went on to the next stage. 1184 Deciphering The Array When they appeared on the next stage, the duo stood on a platform, array lines drawn on the ground. Jonas was not good with arrays, he couldn¡¯t help but turn to Grey, ¡°Do you have any ideas with arrays? I¡¯m not good with it.¡± Grey studied the array for a while, there was a slight difference between it and the normal one he was used to, but they were basically the same. All he needed was some time to get used to it and he would be able to deal with it, hopefully. ¡°I can try. This array is different from what we know.¡± He replied before squatting down and studying it. He closed his eyes to get a better view of it in his mind while sensing the array with his spiritual senses. Grey took his time to study the array, feeling every part of it. After some time, he brought out a small piece of paper and started drawing lines on them. He would occasionally pause and give a thoughtful expression before removing a line and changing it with another. Jonas watched as Grey got fully immersed in trying to break the array. He knew Grey was an Inscriber, but he didn¡¯t know if he was well versed with arrays. Almost one hour went by without Grey making any movements, he was still studying the array, and only after a few more minutes did he stand up. ¡°Take a few steps back. This is a trap array. I¡¯ll see if I can break it.¡± He said to Jonas. Jonas didn¡¯t argue and moved to the side, standing behind Grey, subconsciously. Grey spread out his spiritual energy and started to work on breaking the array. If he could break it in one go, he would be really impressed with himself. His first attempt, just like his expectations, was a failure, and there was also some sort of retaliation from the array. Jonas looked at Grey with an amazed face, even though Grey had never seen an array like this before, he was able to figure out which type it is and how to work on it. Although he hadn¡¯t broken it now, Jonas felt some confidence from his first attempt. Grey waited for a few more minutes, and after sorting out some things, he started working on the array again. This time, he showed considerable progress, but he ultimately still failed to break it. The signs the array was showing were not good ones. ¡®It has a limit. I can¡¯t make more than four attempts. Two already failed. If I miss this one, I must get it right on the next and final attempt.¡¯ He thought to himself when he sensed something new in the array. It was well hidden that if he wasn¡¯t trying to break the array, and was also very careful while doing it, he would never have sensed it. The pressure on him was larger compared to before. He originally thought there was no limit, but now that he understood that there is a limit, he knew he had to make sure he was successful, or at least get past eighty percent during the next round. He had been able to break approximately forty percent of the array, and still needed to understand the last sixty percent. However, the further he goes with breaking the array, the more complex it gets. This array was constantly changing, almost like it is alive as it makes itself more difficult to break. Grey didn¡¯t rush with the next attempt, he made some small scale arrays on a plaque and started to see if he could do the same with them. These arrays were almost like this, but Grey hadn¡¯t been able to understand how it continues changing. If he could understand that then breaking the array would be very easy for him. He took his time, but he was still unable to create an array like that. Thinking of it, he decided to attempt breaking the array. It would make it easier to understand the concept behind it after breaking the array, this was something he was very much aware of. With a deep breath, he started to work on the array once again, this time, he was even more cautious. Jonas could almost feel the pressure Grey was on, even without knowing what was happening, he could tell there was a difference in Grey¡¯s attitude towards breaking the array compared to the last time. Grey was very meticulous with it and it took him twenty minutes before he failed once again, but this time, he managed to get to around sixty five percent, and the retaliation of the array was getting stronger. Only with the help of everyone except the bunny leader were they able to block it. Grey¡¯s expression was not too good. The reason for this was that there¡¯s still about thirty five percent left and he only saw an increase of five percent, even with all his meticulousness. He calmed his mind and waited for almost one more hour. I think you should take a look at ¡°If I can¡¯t break it this time, I¡¯m sorry but we¡¯ll be out of attempts.¡± Grey turned to Jonas. ¡°It¡¯s okay, at least you tried.¡± Jonas didn¡¯t feel worried about it. He was the one who suggested they came here, Grey has obviously been trying his best. If he¡¯s unable to break the array, even after so long, then maybe they were not supposed to enter this place. Grey nodded when he saw his reaction and decided to attempt it once again. The tension in the atmosphere was very clear. Jonas was on the side, hoping that Grey was able to break it. Time went on and he saw Grey slowly breaking the array. It continued to increase, seventy percent, seventy-five percent, eighty percent. At the time it got to eighty percent, the signs of slowing down started to show on the array. There was only so little left to break, but it felt like a large mountain. Jonas could hardly breathe as he watched on. It soon moved, getting to eighty-five percent before halting again. Grey was sweating, slowly breaking the array. He didn¡¯t try to rush it since it wasn¡¯t appropriate. He took it slowly, even going slower than he previously was. Before long, he had gone to ninety percent and the progress halted once again. Jonas looked on weakly. He was on the verge of almost wanting to give up, but seeing just how close they were, he didn¡¯t want to lose this opportunity to see what lies inside this place. Grey, who hadn¡¯t said anything all this while opened his mouth, ¡°Get ready, I think I found a loophole in the last parts of the array, but I¡¯ll need your help.¡± ¡°Alright.¡± Jonas didn¡¯t ask what he had to do, but prepared himself. Grey explained his task to him, and it was just as he expected. He had to attack the array at the time it was going to retaliate. All this while, they had been only blocking it, never did they try to attack it. It wasn¡¯t that the thought had not crossed Grey¡¯s mind, but he knew it was completely useless. It soon got to ninety five percent and the array had started to show signs of instability. ¡°Now!¡± Jonas saw the array and unleashed his domain, sending out a powerful stream of fire, while also sending out fire arrows. An inscription appeared in the air and a large black spear was sent at the same spot Jonas was attacking. Grey focused on stabilizing the array, but he knew he could not go past this level with this attempt. Unless this loophole he found works, they have failed the stage and would leave here with nothing. The explosion from the attack died down and both Grey and Jonas looked at the place with serious eyes, the next thing they saw was a large figure standing on the spot their attacks landed. Although they couldn¡¯t see it properly, they saw its shape. ¡°Damn it! It has a defense mechanism!¡± Jonas complained. Grey was still keeping the array stable, so he knew their attempt was a failure. However, the appearance of that figure confirmed his guess, they could use that way to break the array, if not, this figure would not have appeared. ¡°Attack it, don¡¯t let it disrupt me.¡± Grey said when the figure started to walk in his direction. He turned to look at Void, ¡°You too.¡± Void stood up from his lying position and disappeared. The figure walked out of the explosion, and everyone saw what it was, an Elemental Warrior. 1185 A Little Genius? Grey looked at the Elemental Warrior with a serious expression. It was in the Seventh stage of the Elemental Venerable Plane, Void and Jonas wouldn¡¯t have any problems with dealing with it. The duo soon started to overpower it, while Grey focused on the array. When the Elemental Warrior was about to be defeated, it created an arrow that it shot at Grey. Just as the arrow was about to hit Grey, it passed through a small spatial tunnel that appeared in front of Grey. The arrow came out from another spatial tunnel behind the Elemental Warrior and struck it in the head. This was the final attack that knocked it down. ¡°Attack that spot now.¡± Grey urged them when he saw them standing. He was slowly losing his ability to keep the array stable, in a matter of time it would fall apart and all their efforts would be a waste of time. Jonas and Void hurriedly attacked the spot and the array showed cracks, with a few more attacks they were able to break it down. When the array broke apart, a door appeared, leading to the next side. This time, they could see that they were back in the cave. Grey heaved a long sigh after finally being freed from his previous state. Keeping the array stable was by no means an easy feat, if not for his tenacity, he wouldn¡¯t have been able to hold on for too long. One has to know that he had been trying to break it for a long time now and had used a lot of spiritual energy. He decided to take a break, after twenty minutes they went on to the next place. When they walked past the door, they were met with a large area, there were some herbs planted on one side while on another part, there was a single helmet. Grey glanced through the herbs planted and saw not just the flower his father told him to get, but even the one he got as a reward from the arena. He couldn¡¯t help but feel a bit depressed, if he had known this would be here, he would¡¯ve taken something else from the arena. There were quite a few items he wanted, but he gave up on them. ¡°We should take them and leave.¡± Void bolted straight for the helmet. ¡°Stop there.¡± Grey grabbed his tail, before taking a peek at Jonas. ¡°You don¡¯t want it?¡± He asked. Jonas chuckled softly, ¡°I do, but since you did most of the work, I can¡¯t possibly try to take it without your permission.¡± ¡°I have no use for it.¡± Grey didn¡¯t want the helmet. He already had a top-tier defensive treasure, if he were to add another one, the expenses would be too much. Just using the armor was already taking too much, he didn¡¯t know the consumption of this helmet, if it¡¯s on par with the armor, even with his large reserve, maintaining them would be too hard. Jonas thanked him and headed straight for it. Void was struggling to leave, but Grey refused to let go of him. Unlike Void, the bunny leader didn¡¯t have an obsession for shiny things, so there was nothing it wanted to do with the helmet, its eyes were glued to the little garden there. After Jonas took the helmet, the group went over to the garden and started taking most of the plants they wanted there. Well, even the ones they didn¡¯t want, they took them as well. The bunny leader was very familiar with them and what they were used for. They soon left the place. ¡­. ¡°I guess I¡¯ll be leaving now.¡± Jonas said as he looked at Grey. ¡°Yeah. It was nice seeing you again.¡± Grey replied. He wasn¡¯t too close with Jonas, even after this trip and the few encounters they have had in the past, they were nothing more than acquaintances. Jonas nodded, ¡°Likewise. I believe we¡¯ll see each other again in the Aurora Continent.¡± Jonas left after that statement, there was no need to stay any further. Grey watched his figure disappear into the trees. ¡°What now?¡± Void asked. I think you should take a look at They have completed their original objective here, and Grey still had about eight to nine more months to stay here. ¡°Let¡¯s explore. Maybe there will be something good for us.¡± Grey said while opening his palm, a golden light flashed around it. He was already able to absorb the chaos energy in this place and use the golden energy. Unlike the natives of this place, Grey was a little different. After taking the fruit, he developed another core inside his body, an energy core. This was a strange thing. Luckily, he wouldn¡¯t get hurt from it. Apparently, when he spoke with the bunny leader who had more knowledge of this place, it was unable to understand how he was able to create a separate core for the golden energy. Grey didn¡¯t dwell on the matter for too long, since it wasn¡¯t causing him any harm, he was okay with using it. He decided to go into seclusion for a month and fully understand the concept behind the array they tried to get past during the trip. He was quite intrigued by it, and rightfully so. ¡­. Two months went by in a flash. Grey had already gotten some things from the array and he even tried to see if he could implement it in his inscriptions. He rarely used it lately since most of the time he is fighting against single opponents. But if he could make his inscriptions stronger, he would use it more frequently again. Now it would take longer before his inscription can be destroyed and even if it is successfully destroyed, there is a retaliation set up inside that would attack the person that destroys it. Not just that, but he was also studying the golden energy, he found out that it had the ability to suppress normal elemental essence. If he were to fight against an Elementalist and use the golden energy, he would be able to suppress the Elementalists¡¯ attack with just the golden energy. This was a great addition to his abilities and he would be able to catch people unaware with this. No one would expect him to use a new type of energy while fighting, and with that, he could change the momentum of a battle. He had been here for almost five months now and he had gained the most important things. The reason he was sent here was to increase his strength, and he had done that. Compared to most people, he didn¡¯t focus on increasing his cultivation stage if he wanted to increase his strength, he was more concerned about his raw power. At the moment, against anyone in the same stage, he could almost one-shot them without them being able to even block it. This was just how powerful he is. With all the things he had, he could fight against people three or even four stages above him with confidence. Other than those at the Peak of the Elemental Venerable Planes now, he is barely afraid of others. It¡¯s not that he could defeat those in the Eighth or Ninth stage, but he was confident that he could escape. ¡­. Grey was traveling through a town when he saw people gathered, staring at a figure that was hung on a wood. He walked over curiously and got to find out that the person was caught stealing and then killed. ¡®A bit extreme.¡¯ He thought internally but didn¡¯t say anything. If he was killed and hanged, there was a high chance that what he wanted to steal might be very valuable, or who he wanted to steal from was very powerful. Grey sensed a powerful killing intent in the crowd, even when it¡¯s not directed at him, he was still able to sense it. Most of the people present were in the Overlord Plane, so it was very easy for Grey to sense these things. The person the killing intent was coming from was a little girl who was staring at the figure hung up with anger in her eyes. From the looks of it, there¡¯s a chance she was familiar with the person, the thing that caught Grey¡¯s attention was just the killing intent, but the cultivation stage of the little girl. She was already at the Peak of the Sage Plane. This was a small town and he could sense that there were only eight people in the Sage Plane, and just one in the Elemental Venerable Plane. Even the person in the Elemental Venerable Plane was only in the First stage. ¡®How did she cultivate so fast?¡¯ He was intrigued. He felt there was more to this than he originally thought. But it was no business of his. There was no way he would involve himself in things like this. There was nothing he could stand to gain. ¡®There¡¯s something good.¡¯ 1186 A Beasts Core Grey took a look at Void, ¡®Oh¡­¡¯ Void only gains interest in valuable things, other than shiny things, anything he can sense from a distance always turns out to be good items. Grey looked at the little girl with interest before disappearing into the crowd. His aim was to track what Void said was good in this area. For some reason, he felt it would be with the person in the Elemental Venerable Plane. After walking through the town for some time, he was taken to a debilitated building by Void. ¡®It¡¯s here?¡¯ He couldn¡¯t help but ask. ¡®Yeah. Whatever I¡¯m sensing is coming from this place.¡¯ Void replied. Grey was about to head into the building when he paused and saw some figures sneaking into the place. The people were in the Early stages of the Sage Plane and were well hidden, well, to those in the Sage Plane, they were untraceable, but to Grey, he could see them as clear as the sun. He didn¡¯t bother with them, hiding himself, he watched them from the side as they broke into the place. ¡°Are you sure this is where he kept it?¡± One of the people asked another with a whisper. ¡°I¡¯m sure. Have you forgotten I planned everything with him?¡± The person asked, replied calmly. Grey¡¯s ears perked up when he heard this. Now he understood how the man was caught, he was most likely betrayed by his friend. What was worse was that his friend wanted to take everything for himself. ¡®I don¡¯t think this is what they stole.¡¯ Grey thought to himself. According to what he heard, the man was caught stealing, not that he had already stolen the item, and was later caught and killed. If he was caught after stealing the item, he would¡¯ve heard of it. Of course, there was also a possibility the information was withheld from the public if the man refused to give up the item. If this man was the person who ratted the man out, it was most likely that he wanted to keep this thing for himself. There¡¯s also the possibility that he didn¡¯t have anything to do with the other man being caught. Grey stopped thinking about it since there was nothing to do about it, all he wanted to see was if he could get the item there. Well, given the strength of those people there, he was very confident in being able to acquire it. The group was five in number, and all of them were in the Early stages of the Sage Plane. In such a place, they were a very powerful group, but Grey could easily kill them with a single attack, so he was not too bothered. The group entered the building silently, and one of them made an array that would notify them if anyone else trespassed into the place. Before he completed the array, Grey used the space element to enter the building without anyone noticing. Just like the outside of the building, the inside was also damaged and the few pieces of furniture inside were on the verge of falling apart. I think you should take a look at The group of five entered and the one who Grey guessed was the friend of the man hanged led the group into the basement of the building and they saw a single piece of core. It was a Beast¡¯s core, but just from the sensation Grey got from it, he knew it was no ordinary Beast core. One has to know that Beasts, especially those with a very high bloodline, have special attributes. Their cores are more than ten times more valuable than a regular Beasts¡¯ core. ¡®See, I told you it was good.¡¯ Void said excitedly. He could sense attributes of the space element in this core and knew it would be beneficial to all of them. Even the bunny leader had glowing eyes at the moment. ¡°With this core, we have hopes of breaking through to the Elemental Venerable Plane in no time.¡± One of the men laughed in delight. ¡°Of course, why do you think the Tekik Family killed Ryla without hesitation?¡± The man who led them here said, excitement could also be heard in his voice. ¡°Is it true that it¡¯s the core of the Space Tiger?¡± Another one of them asked. ¡°I don¡¯t care if it belongs to the Space Tiger or Space Sheep, let¡¯s get this over with soon enough. I can already see how powerful I¡¯ll become when I get out of here.¡± Another one was too eager and had already made movements forward before he paused. He was the one who set up the array on the door, and he sensed some ripples. Although who got in managed to reduce the effect, he was still able to sense it. ¡°Someone¡¯s coming.¡± He whispered to them. The other four looked at each other and one of them motioned for another to check it out. The person who was sent to check it out nodded and walked forward. Grey, Void, and the bunny leader were well hidden, with the help of Grey¡¯s multiple elements, he was able to hide them in the area using his elements to create a camouflage for them. The man walked past him and headed outside the place. Grey raised a brow, for some reason, he felt like he had sensed the aura of the person who just came here. He didn¡¯t dwell too much on it. He saw a lot of people when coming into the town and had sensed more who were hidden, so it was normal to sense a somewhat familiar aura given it hadn¡¯t been up to thirty minutes. The other four looked at each other and each of them prepared for a fight. Whoever entered this place was either too weak and was killed by their companion in one blow, or was stronger than their companion and killed him with one blow, whatever the outcome was, they had to be ready. 1187 A Passerby Chapter 1187 A Passerby Grey looked on, waiting curiously for who it was. "You vermins! This belonged to my brother, just because he''s dead you tried to take it for yourselves!" An enraged scream from a soft voice resounded from the stairs. "Cori?" One of the men turned to look at the man who was friends with Ryla, the man killed. "It''s her." His voice sounded annoyed. He knew she wasn''t someone they could take lightly. The chances of their companion being dead were very high at the moment. This little girl is well known for her killing ability. She was very powerful, not just for her age, but even in her cultivation stage, she was stronger than most of those in the same stage. When killing, she has no reservations. Not just that, but she was a powerful Space Elementalist who could come and go as she wished. Now they understood why there was just one attack. Fighting against this little girl was a dreadful experience. "Cori, what are you doing here?" The man asked, removing his mask so the little girl would recognize him. "Uncle Aaron?" Cori paused when she saw the face of the man. "Yes, it''s me, Cori." The man referred to as Aaron nodded and looked at Cori who had anger written all over her face. "What are you doing here? My brother brought this for me. He''s dead because news of it got out." Cori said with tear-filled eyes. She paused for some time and killing intent started to boil around her, "Did you tell them? My brother said you were the only one who knew about him getting the core." "What are you saying, Cori? Why would I tell people about that when I know it will endanger your brother?" Aaron replied with a wronged expression. He was speaking very calmly as he walked closer to Cori. "I don''t know, maybe because you wanted it for yourself!" Cori replied coldly. Her reaction made Aaron halt his movements as he looked at the little girl with red eyes. "Cori, I''ve been friends with your brother since we were boys, do you think I would do something like this to him?" Aaron looked at her with sincere eyes. Cori''s eyes showed confusion when she heard this. Yes, it was true that Aaron and her elder brother had been friends even before she was born. She didn''t know what to think as tears started to roll down her eyes. "They killed him, Uncle Aaron. They killed my brother." She started to wail uncontrollably. Aaron heaved a sigh of relief when he saw Cori breaking down, she was, after all, a little girl. Grey watched the scenes from the side and couldn''t help but shake his head. When he first sensed the realm of the girl, he thought maybe she was like the assassin he fought against, but later on, he realized she was just a little girl which was a bit strange given that most people only sense their elemental affinity around the age of twelve. He didn''t think too much about it, this was another world and the way it works is most definitely not like the Aurora Continent. ''He definitely has a hand in his friend''s death.'' He thought to himself as he looked at the man. He was not too interested in these things, as long as the little girl is fine, he would not bother with them. Besides, getting that core was all that interested him. Aaron walked forward and hugged Cori, gently caressing her hair. The other three men only watched the scene, not making any moves. But their eyes were glowing with ferocity. Even if this core belonged to Cori now, it had nothing to do with them. The little girl might be strong, but with all four of them working together, they would definitely be able to easily kill her. They were still watching when they saw Aaron give them a sign with his free hand. After working together for so long, they all understood what it meant. Without saying anything, they started to surround the unsuspecting Cori who was still crying her eyes out under the embrace of Aaron. After the trio had surrounded her, Aaron let go of her, "You shouldn''t have come here, what if they followed you here?" "I¡­ I didn''t think they would." Cori replied. Aaron continued speaking with her, trying to get her attention from the other three. Cori continued speaking with him, her eyes still filled with tears. Aaron suddenly stopped talking to her and seemed to show signs of struggle before finally sighing, "I''m sorry Cori, goodbye." Cori was confused by his statement, but she was stunned when she saw the killing glow in his eyes. She didn''t have any time to react before attacks rained down on her. Although she was already at the Peak of the Sage Plane, she didn''t set up any defenses, and against such a well-coordinated group, she stood no chance. She could only watch on helplessly as the attacks got to her. Her eyes were still filled with tears and shock, there was confusion and also resentment present in them. Grey sighed when he saw that they truly attacked the little girl. With no other choice, he took a step out and his domain spread out. Each attack of the group froze a few centimeters away from the little girl who still hadn''t made any movements. Aaron and the other guys looked around, shocked by the new development. They all knew that Cori was a Space Elementalist, so there was no way she would be able to use this sort of attack. "Who''s there?!" Aaron asked, looking around, fearful of whoever stepped in. The fact that the person stopped all their attacks with just one move showed that they were not a match for this person. "Show yourself! This has nothing to do with you. It''s a matter involving family." Aaron said. The one who created the array asked, "Are you from the Tekik Family?" "I''m just a passerby." Grey said softly. 1188 Origin Of The Core Grey walked out from where he was hiding and glanced around the room. The little girl was still in a state of shock, while the group of four men were staring at him with a fearful expression. ¡°Who are you?¡± Aaron asked, he couldn¡¯t see Grey¡¯s face, nor could he sense his cultivation stage, but for him to walk out this easily showed that he was not someone who was afraid of them. This meant only one thing, Grey was stronger than they were and was confident he could deal with them. ¡°Who I am doesn¡¯t matter. I¡¯m curious about your reason for wanting to kill the girl. Just for the core?¡± Grey asked as he walked closer to them. He paused halfway, threw a glance at the core, and sighed. To be honest, he was quite interested in taking it for himself, but hearing the words of the little girl when she first came in, he opted to give up on it, for now. It¡¯s not that he didn¡¯t want it, but taking something from the hands of a depressed little girl wasn¡¯t something he wanted to do. His mother would beat him up if she ever found out he did something like this, knowingly. Grey turned his attention from the core before walking over to Cori, ¡°Are you hurt?¡± Cori shook her head to Grey¡¯s question, although she could barely talk, she answered him. ¡°Good, normally, I don¡¯t involve myself in things like this. But since I¡¯m already here, I can¡¯t help it.¡± Grey turned to the four men, ¡°You have two options, either I kill you, or you destroy your cultivation base.¡± The four men looked at Grey and one of them took a step forward, visibly angry. ¡°What do you mean by¡­¡± He was still halfway through his statement when his body started to disintegrate, before long, he was nowhere to be seen. He didn¡¯t make any sounds nor did he show any signs of resisting. In a matter of seconds, it was as if he was never present. Grey glanced at Cori for a little while before turning his attention to them. He wasn¡¯t the one that killed the man just now, Cori did. He didn¡¯t think she would kill him almost instantly. ¡®I should learn that move.¡¯ He thought to himself. Yes, he could also do something like this, but not in the manner Cori did it. Her way was so sophisticated and abrupt that even before one could notice it, they were dead. Grey¡¯s method involved a whole lot of processes that others could dodge if lucky. Aaron and two others looked at Cori with fearful expressions. ¡°See, do as I say, at least, you get to keep your lives that way.¡± Grey said. ¡°You promise to spare our lives?¡± Aaron asked, looking at Grey, fearfully. ¡°I¡¯ll not touch you as long as you do as I say.¡± Grey nodded, affirming his statement. I think you should take a look at People like these would die the moment they lost their cultivation, so he wasn¡¯t worried they would endanger another person. Aaron was the first to come to a decision, with his fist tightly clenched, he controlled his essence and destroyed his cultivation base to the shock of the other two. They didn¡¯t believe he would do it. ¡°Can I go now?¡± He asked. Grey nodded, and while he was about to move, he took a glance at Cori, whose eyes radiated unbridled killing intent. His eyes turned to Grey. Understanding what he wanted, Grey turned to Cori and shook his head, indicating for her to let him go. Aaron walked up the stairs and left. The other two thought it through and followed Aaron¡¯s lead. Two of them were dead under the hands of Cori, and there¡¯s still Grey who was present. They couldn¡¯t fight against Cori, much less Grey who seemed stronger. ¡°In some cases, death might be the easiest punishment to give to some people.¡± Grey answered. ¡°Who are you?¡± Cori asked. ¡°I¡¯m no one important, I was drawn here by something.¡± Grey turned to look at the core again. There was a moment of silence from both people. ¡°Where did your brother get this?¡± He couldn¡¯t contain his curiosity any longer and asked. ¡°There was a Space Tiger that roamed this region, it was a Rank Eight Beast and was well known. According to what I heard, it died some years ago and people had been searching for its remains for a long time now¡­¡± Cori told him what she knew. She might be young, but due to her strength, she was told a few of the secrets her brother knew about the place. This Rank Right Space Tiger was well known for its spatial abilities. It could go from one place to another in a matter of seconds. Its spatial abilities were so strong that even the top powerhouses in this world had come in search of its core. The Beast was said to be injured during a fight and fled to heal. No one had seen or heard of it again and they all assumed it was dead. People, especially Space Elementalists had been searching all over for it, but none of them had been able to locate it. Cori¡¯s elder brother got a map from their parents a long time ago, long before the Tiger died, and while going to the place the map led, Cori¡¯s brother found the remains of the Tiger at his destination. It was purely coincidental and he brought the core back. He also took the bones of the Tiger since its flesh was no longer on its body. Aaron found out about the Tiger when he saw the bones with Ryla, not just him, but when Ryla tried to sell off the bones, those from the Tekik Family found out and inquired about it. There was a distinct feature on the bones of the Space Tiger, unlike any other Beast, its bones were completely black and filled with incredible spatial distortions. 1189 Asking For Help Grey took a glance at Void who looked back at him in disgust. ¡°Don¡¯t associate me with that petty creature.¡± Void said in dissatisfaction. Grey couldn¡¯t help but laugh when he heard this. He couldn¡¯t help it, with all the descriptions he got from Cori about the Space Tiger, he actually did feel like there was some sort of relation between Void and the Space Tiger. He didn¡¯t forget the few times he had seen Void increase his size. To be very honest, Void did look like a large Tiger, and given his spatial prowess, there was a very good chance his bones might also have such attributes. Cori turned to look at Void, a bit taken aback by the small talking cat. ¡°That¡¯s your pet?¡± She asked curiously, her focus fully on Void. ¡°Pet? Not really, more like a companion. He¡¯s like a little kid.¡± Grey chuckled as he replied. When he saw Void¡¯s expression when he was saying this, he almost burst out laughing. ¡°Alright, since that¡¯s all. I¡¯ll be leaving. You should be careful out there. These people won¡¯t let this matter rest with just killing your brother.¡± He advised Cori, before looking at Void and the bunny leader which had appeared, ¡°Let¡¯s get going.¡± ¡°Uhm¡­ can I ask for your help with something?¡± Cori held his cloak, when he turned she hurriedly added, ¡°I¡¯ll pay you for it.¡± ¡°Oh, what might that be?¡± Grey asked, a little curious. For some reason, he could almost guess what she wanted, but he decided to hear from her first. ¡°I want revenge. I want you to help me get revenge against those people that killed my brother.¡± Cori said, her eyes teary. ¡°I¡¯ll give you the core, I know you wanted it. You can also take the bones from their place, it¡¯s there.¡± She added. Grey looked at the core before looking at her again, ¡°Are you sure?¡± Cori nodded her little head. ¡°Your brother brought this for you. He could¡¯ve used it to increase his strength, but he kept it hidden just for you.¡± Grey didn¡¯t give her an answer, only asking her some questions. ¡°I¡¯m sure of it. Even without this, I can grow stronger. But if I don¡¯t get revenge for my brother now, I won¡¯t be able to focus on cultivating.¡± Cori said. Grey gently ruffled her hair before asking playfully, ¡°Do you think I¡¯m strong enough to fight against them?¡± Cori froze when she heard this question, she didn¡¯t think about this and only just blurted out what was in her head. To be honest, she didn¡¯t know if Grey was strong enough to fight against the Tekik Family, all she knew was that he helped her when she was attacked. With her strength, if she was also hiding in the dark, she would be able to stop the attack of these men. She hurriedly tried to sense Grey¡¯s cultivation stage but she realized that she couldn¡¯t sense it. ¡°Un¡­cle, have you gotten to Rank Seven?¡± She asked, a bit worried. She already had the thought of Grey helping her deal with the Tekik Family, and now that she realized he might not be able to, she somewhat didn¡¯t want to believe it. I think you should take a look at ¡°Rank Seven?¡± Grey wore a confused expression on his face when he heard her question, he soon understood that these people had different ways of ranking themselves. Unlike them who use Planes, they use Ranks, just like Magical Beasts. ¡°What¡¯s your Rank?¡± He asked Cori. ¡°Then I should be able to do it. I know the strength of the strongest person in this town, and whoever the person is, they are not that strong.¡± Grey¡¯s reply made a smile appear on the face of the little girl. ¡°If you can, then let¡¯s go now, Uncle.¡± Cori showed some happiness, although she was still very much sad due to the death of her elder brother, she was a bit happy that some of her grievances would be met. ¡°No rush. I¡¯ll go there tomorrow. I feel like something big is going to happen tomorrow.¡± Grey replied coolly. Cori looked at him with her wet beady eyes but didn¡¯t say anything more. She sat on the side as tears started rolling down her eyes once again. Grey looked at her and shook his head. He didn¡¯t know how it felt to watch those close to you die before you. However, he knew how it felt to be left without any family member. He stayed without his parents for over eight years, and even when he met them, he left them for another year or so before going back, he had still not been able to connect with them much. His situation was far better than Cori¡¯s state where she doesn¡¯t have anyone to call family. ¡®How about we share it with her?¡¯ Grey looked at Void. ¡®I thought you don¡¯t care about others?¡¯ Void asked. ¡®I¡¯m not a heartless demon. I took in Arya, what¡¯s wrong if I decide to help this girl?¡¯ Grey retorted. It was common knowledge that he was a ruthless figure, but there had been several occasions when he showed a soft part of him. ¡®What¡¯s your plan?¡¯ The bunny leader asked. ¡®Let¡¯s mess with those people.¡¯ Grey said with an evil smile. ¡®Hehe, that¡¯s what I wanted to say.¡¯ The bunny leader laughed happily. As long as it didn¡¯t have to fight, it was good. In this case, even if it didn¡¯t want to fight, it could use its pressure to subdue everyone in this town, so why be afraid. If not for Grey and Void, it would¡¯ve ransacked the place already. Grey chuckled when he saw its reaction, Void also had a happy expression. Although there were few things of value here, other than this orb, the rest were located at the same place, it was easy for him to know that they belonged to the same individual. If he didn¡¯t want to help Cori, he wouldn¡¯t have bothered with them, but since he wanted to help, there¡¯s no harm in having some fun. 1190 Summoned By The Tekik Family 1190 Summoned By The Tekik Family Later that day, Grey, Void, and the bunny leader headed to the area where they could sense the treasures coming from. They all knew that there was an Elemental Venerable there, but they did not care. Each of them could single-handedly defeat the only Elemental Venerable in this place. When they got to the place, as expected, it was the largest manor in the entire town, well built and the designs outside were amazing. Grey took in the sight before casually strolling into the place. There was an array set up in the manor, but with him around, there was no way they were going to be sensed. Even if he wasn''t around, Void and the bunny leader had their ways of bypassing these things. When they appeared inside the compound, there were naturally guards monitoring the place. The trio strolled through the place thanks to Grey''s camouflage. After walking for a few minutes, they found the place where all the treasures were kept. It was hidden at the back of the manor, away from the main building. If not for the fact that they could sense the location of the treasure, they would never have guessed it was hidden there. ''There are two Sage Plane guards.'' Void reported. ''Should we take them out? Or just enter the place without them knowing.'' Grey asked for their suggestions. ''Entering without them finding out would be better. More drama in the morning.'' The bunny leader quickly said. Grey nodded and they all disappeared, but since the bunny leader was the best with the space element, it was the one who took them inside. The second they appeared, Grey instantly tossed a small ball that disappeared into thin air. He chuckled and said, "Such a sneaky array. If I didn''t sense it on time, they would''ve found us without us knowing." The trio looked at the treasury, and Grey was a bit impressed with the amount of chaos stones present here. Unlike the Aurora Continent, this place has chaos stones instead of essence stones. The amount of stones with high chaos energy concentration were quite high. After doing a rough count, he got about ten thousand high energy concentration stones. He thought about it for a while before taking everything, there might be an occasion he would have the need for them since he''s still here. Besides, it wouldn''t be bad to take this thing back with him. They took the stones, almost every single thing of value, the bones of the Tiger was there as well and they took that too, they also took a scroll that recorded the special technique of the Tekik Family. "How are they going to know we raided them if no one comes in to check?" Void asked just as they were about to leave. "Don''t worry, I set up an array that would trigger their alarm array here in two to three hours. They will definitely know someone came here." Grey smiled. "Nice, let''s get going then." Void commended Grey''s thoughtfulness. Grey looked at Void before leaving the place with the trio. They went into the main building and tried to see if there was anything of value inside. Unfortunately, they only managed to take two items, well, Void only managed to take two items, mainly because they were shiny. Apparently, the Tekik Family kept all their treasures inside the treasury. ¡­. The next morning. The entire town was buzzing with activity, guards from the Tekik Family were moving across every street in search of the stolen items. When the people in the town heard that the treasury of the Tekik Family had been robbed overnight, they were flabbergasted. The Tekik Family were the strongest people in the town, who was bold enough to dare to steal from them. One of the main suspects was, unsurprisingly, Cori. Her brother had just been killed and people felt she had gone to steal from them as a way of getting revenge. Rumors of all kinds started to spread across the town about who the person who robbed the Tekik Family was. ¡­. Cori''s house. The place was a small place with only two rooms. Grey was sitting alongside Cori who just heard of the news of the Tekik Family treasury being robbed. "Did you rob them?" Cori looked at Grey with innocent eyes. "Nope." Grey shook his head, seeing her unwavering eyes, he added, "I just took some things without their knowledge." Cori was a little lost when she heard his statement. She processed it for a few minutes before saying, "Isn''t that the same as stealing?" "No, if they can beat me, it''s stealing, but you see, even if I had asked him to give everything to me, he would have. I just saved myself the trouble." Grey replied with a straight face. He had removed his mask since there was no need to hide his face from Cori. Apparently, when she saw his face, she asked if he was a girl. "You''re their top suspect, so they''ll come here soon. Don''t worry, I''ll play with them before getting revenge. Or should I just go straight to the point?" He asked. Cori thought about it for a while and replied, "As long as you help me get revenge, I''m alright with whatever you say, Uncle." Grey nodded and closed his eyes, with his spiritual senses, he could sense almost everything that''s happening in the area. The town was a bit big, he didn''t even understand why it was called a town when it could easily be called a City, but he couldn''t be bothered with what they called the place. He was stronger than the strongest person here, so whatever he said was law. This was the first time he was going to use his strength to subdue a place. Well, compared to the other times, this time, he isn''t going to be civil about it. They stayed there for a while longer before they started hearing the sound of a knock, coming from the door. Grey looked at the door and said to Cori, "They are here, let''s go." He stood up and walked beside Cori as they headed to the door. When they opened it, they saw a guard who was wearing the uniform with an insignia of the Tekik Family. "How can I help you?" He asked. "We''re here to summon Cori to the Town Hall." The guard replied. He didn''t put Grey in his eyes since he couldn''t sense any form of energy from him. "Cori, they want you." Grey said to Cori with a soft smile. He left with Cori, along with the guard who came with the message. The news of Cori being summoned quickly spread across the Town and almost everyone headed to the Town Hall, waiting for what would happen. They had just killed the elder brother of Cori the previous day, and a few people believed the same fate awaited Cori. The last time, there was no evidence and the Head of the Tekik Family said Ryla was the perpetrator and should be executed, he was the strongest person present and had all the power, so his words were final. The people felt he wanted to kill Cori just like he did her elder brother, but none of them dared to open their mouths to speak against it. This was a matter between the Tekik Family and Cori''s Family, and it had nothing to do with them. ¡­. The Town Hall. Seeing the multitude that arrived, Grey wasn''t surprised since he had already guessed something like this would happen. He walked behind Cori calmly, his steps were steady and firm. His long black robe rubbed the ground as he walked. His handsome face and short hair made him the center of attention even though Cori was the one who made everyone come here. Grey walked confidently and entered the Hall, still behind Cori. Even though he knew he would take out the Tekik Family, he still stood behind Cori. When they arrived, the Head of the Tekik Family was not present at that time, and only a few people from the Tekik Family were. A young man who was around Grey''s age took a look at Grey, before looking at Cori. "First your brother, now you? I can''t believe you''re all a family of thieves." The young man commented when Cori stepped into the Hall. Grey looked at him, and unsurprisingly, he was still at the Peak of the Overlord Plane. In a place like this, being at the Peak of the Overlord Plane in such an age was an accomplishment, and the young man had every right to be proud, but due to the existence of Cori, he couldn''t. "You people are the thieves." Cori said. She wasn''t afraid. Even though Grey told her to keep his identity secret, she knew she had him behind her and didn''t need to fear anyone. The young man showed an annoyed expression and just as he was about to stand up, the announcement of his Grandfather coming made him take his seat with a snort. "We''ll see if you still have this mouth when Grandfather comes." He muttered.H 1191 Cori’s Guardian Chapter 1191 Cori¡¯s Guardian A middle-aged man walked into the Hall, his hands behind his back. He heard a serious expression and his beards had hints of turning gray. Grey accessed the man as he walked into the place. When the man was walking by, he paused and looked at Grey, then turned his attention to Cori, who was standing beside Grey. He hadn''t seen Grey before, but after trying to sense his cultivation and was unable to, he felt disdain. Although people like this were rare, it didn''t mean they didn''t exist. The fact that Grey didn''t exude even the tiniest bit of essence proved that he didn''t have any element. Such people are regarded as a waste to society. He didn''t spare them a glance and walked to the main seat in the Hall, after taking his seat, he looked at Cori with a cold expression. "I made an example of your brother because he was caught stealing from me. Now, you dared to do the same thing?" He said coldly. "I didn''t steal from you." Cori pouted. "Little girl, return the things you took. I''ll not ask you again." The man said coldly. He was furious, his treasury, everything he had collected over the years and even before he became the head of the Family was gone. "I didn''t take anything from you." Cori stood her ground, just like a ferocious little tiger, she looked defiantly into the eyes of the man. "Take her storage ring. You''ll suffer a fate worse than your brother." The eyes of the man exuded killing intent. But he was in no hurry to kill Cori, he couldn''t afford to leave those items behind. If he killed her now, how was he going to get them back? His plan was to torture her into telling him where she kept them. After retrieving them, he would kill her. One of the guards in the Overlord Plane approached Cori, but her aura exploded out and the guard was sent flying, slamming into the wall by the side. "Little girl, you dare show you little strength in front of me?" The man stood up and the aura of an Elemental Venerable spread out. Everyone below the Elemental Venerable Plane found it out to breathe, they could barely keep their heads up as a few of the weaker ones even fell on their knees. Cori tried her best to withstand the pressure, but she was slowly going down. Of everyone present, the pressure was focused on her, so she felt the brunt of it. Just when she was about to fall, a figure walked in front of her and everything disappeared. She raised her head and saw the familiar black cloak that belonged to Grey. The old man, along with the rest of his family who were sitting behind him, looked at the scene in shock. The man in particular couldn''t believe his eyes. He originally thought the pressure would kill Grey, but Grey was not just fine, he stood in front of Cori and the pressure he was using to suppress her was gone. "Isn''t this a bit too much for a little girl?" Grey asked with a calm expression. He didn''t seem to be under any duress, whatsoever. The eyes of the man turned sharp and he asked, "Who are you?" "Her guardian. I believe we can work things out without you having to bully her." Grey smiled. The young man who was speaking to Cori before the appearance of his Grandfather stood up from his seat angrily and reprimanded Grey, "Who do you think you are to speak¡­" His voice disappeared mid speech, and so did he. No one understood what happened, except for the middle-aged man, his Grandfather. The eyes of the man enlarged when he saw how Grey killed his grandson in an instant. "I don''t like noisy people." Grey commented after dealing with the young man. The technique he used was a simple space elemental attack. But he timed it very well, and given his strength, he hid it from the middle-aged man. As long as the attack wasn''t aimed at the middle-aged man, there was no way he would be able to sense it. He used an enlarged form of dimensional slash, but kept it hidden until the last minute. "You¡­ who are you?" The middle-aged man stuttered, he couldn''t believe his eyes. Not sensing Grey''s cultivation base only indicated one thing, Grey was far more powerful than he is. "I already told you, I''m her guardian." Grey said calmly. A chair appeared behind him and Cori, made purely from the earth element. The duo took their seats and he looked at the man coolly. "Right, where were we? Oh, I believe it''s discussing the terms of falsely accusing her." His sitting posture was one of an unruly king. Everyone present in the Hall gasped in shock when they heard his words. This was the first time they were witnessing anyone speak to a member of the Tekik Family in such a manner, and this middle-aged man was not just any member, but he was the Head and strongest person in the Family, yet Grey was showing him little to no respect, and even sent the grandson away. Most of them didn''t believe Grey killed the grandson of the Tekik Family, even those close to the young man didn''t think he was dead, they all felt he was sent to another place. The middle-aged man was no fool, seeing Grey use the space element, he quickly understood that he was the one who must have robbed them. He soon started to think of a lot of things. ''He wasn''t here when I ordered for Ryla''s execution, he must''ve come after the execution. How did he become friends with Cori then?'' He spent more time thinking of what and how someone like Grey would choose to become friends with Cori after just spending a day in their town, but he couldn''t think of anything. "I don''t understand what you''re getting at." He feigned ignorance and replied. "Oh, you don''t?" Grey raised an eyebrow. The middle-aged man shook his head. They both fell silent after his reply. Grey raised his right hand and pointed at one of the young men sitting by the side of the man. 1192 Are You Calling Me A Thief? Chapter 1192 Are You Calling Me A Thief? "Do you understand now?" Grey asked, still pointing at the young man. The middle-aged man looked at the person he was pointing at and then at Grey once again. His eyes turned serious and he made a decision internally. He didn''t know if he could fight against Grey, but this was the best way to test Grey''s strength out. If he could block Grey''s attack this time, then he would know if he''s within his league or not. Although he still felt that Grey was powerful, the fact that he never expected Grey to attack or even kill his grandson never crossed his mind, so when it happened, he was slow to react. ''This time, I''m prepared, let''s see how you''re able to kill anyone else.'' He thought internally. "I don''t understand what you''re saying." The middle-aged man answered. Grey chuckled, he already knew what the middle-aged man was thinking, but he was not bothered. There was no way the man would be able to block his attack. With a nonchalant wave of his finger, the young man he was pointing at started to disintegrate right in front of everyone present. The pupils of the middle-aged man shrank. When he was about to block the attack, he saw a small orb appearing beside the young man. Even he felt some threat from it. Of course, he believed it wouldn''t be able to kill him, but the feeling the attack gave him was one that unless someone was in the Elemental Venerable Plane, they wouldn''t be able to block it. Grey saw the eyes of the man and chuckled, he purposely didn''t create an orb that would be too threatening to the man. He wanted to give the man a little hope and then crush it. People like this man who abuse their strengths are one of the few people Grey hated. He was not against stealing from others, he had done it a lot of times. But oppressing others with his strength was something he wouldn''t do unprovoked, much less m stooping as low as threatening a little child. The man looked at Grey and felt he could match Grey''s strength. "Look, I''ll admit that you''re strong, but do you think you''re invincible?" The middle-aged man snorted and stood up from his seat, "You come to my town and wantonly start killing my grandchildren, after stealing from me too!" The aura of the middle-aged man spiked at this moment, he was staring at Grey like a lion ready to pounce. Grey tilted his head to the side and his eyes turned blue, "Sit down." His voice was low, but everyone present felt their souls freeze up just from it. The middle-aged man felt a cold chill run down his spine and the entire Hall fell silent. The cold in the Hall started to increase and the middle-aged man felt his body starting to freeze up, not just his body, but even his consciousness started to freeze. His aura which spiked a few seconds ago had deteriorated. His body started to shake from the cold, and when he could see his breath while breathing. He looked at his fingers and saw it had started to freeze, without hesitation, he sat down. The cold in the area died down almost immediately when the middle-aged man touched the seat. Grey grinned and said, "See, isn''t it better now?" The others in the Hall looked at the middle-aged man, unable to process what just happened. Grey only made a statement and the entire Hall almost froze. They looked at Grey who was still sitting casually and looked at the middle-aged man once again. The guards didn''t even dare to go close to Grey. Even if the middle-aged man told them, they would refuse. If even the middle-aged man is powerless against Grey, then what about them? "Okay, I''ll ask again, do you understand?" Grey asked, his eyes turning to a young lady who was luxuriously dressed. The middle-aged man saw this and his body went stiff, he could see Grey''s intent from his eyes. Grey wasn''t admiring the beauty of his granddaughter, rather, he was prepared to kill her if he didn''t comply with what he wanted. With a long sigh, a defeated expression he replied, "Yes." Grey chuckled playfully and said, "Haha, you see, civil. I''m a very civil person." "For accusing her of stealing, you''ll compensate her, twenty thousand high grade chaos stones." When the number left Grey''s mouth, the entire Hall found it difficult to breathe. Even the middle-aged man froze, he almost wanted to tell Grey to kill his entire lineage. There was no way he could provide such a sum. Even when Grey robbed them, they didn''t have this much, much less now. Grey smiled widely as he awaited his reply. The middle-aged man looked at Grey, with a dry smile he said, "I don''t have that much. Besides, you took all we have." Grey raised a brow, a bit displeased by the man''s statement, "I told you I''m a civil person and you''re also accusing me of theft?" "No, no, no. But I was robbed last night, there''s no one in this town that can achieve such a feat while I''m in the town." The middle-aged man shook his head before explaining, after some time, he added, "Except, you." "So you''re saying since I''m here, I''m the one who stole from you, correct?" Grey asked. The middle-aged man wanted to subconsciously nod, but he froze. He didn''t even know what to do at the moment. If he nodded, it meant he was saying Grey robbed them, if he shook his head, then it meant Grey didn''t. His head started to ache as he looked at Grey, who was waiting for his response. A staff appeared on Grey''s hand and he started to play with it, he looked at the man and said, "Come on, I''m waiting." When everyone saw the staff on Grey''s hand, they gasped. That was definitely from the Tekik Family, it even had their insignia on it, yet Grey was still claiming he didn''t rob them. 1193 Youre Screwed Grey was still playing with the staff when another item appeared on the paws of Void, it was an item the people from the Tekik Family are very familiar with. The round ball was something made from a special ore available only to the Tekik Family, it was impossible for anyone else to have something like this, unless they stole from the Tekik Family. Everyone stared at Grey with a shocked expression, he was clearly the one who stole from the Tekik Family, now he was saying they were accusing him of stealing, and it wasn¡¯t false. The crux of the matter is that he¡¯s stronger than the Head of the Tekik Family, and since he said he didn¡¯t steal from them, then there was nothing the Head of the Tekik Family could do. In this world, strength was all that mattered. As long as one is strong, they can do whatever they want without having to face any consequences, the Tekik Family had been doing it all this while, now, it was their turn to experience it. A few of the people in the Hall couldn¡¯t help but feel like the Tekik Family deserved this, after all, they killed Ryla the previous day all because they claimed that he stole from them. Grey looked at the Hall and listened to their murmurings, he couldn¡¯t help but smile softly. His aim had been met, he wanted the Tekik Family to experience the same feeling that they had subjected those weaker than them to feel over the past years, now, he knew they were fully experiencing it. ¡°What do you want?¡± The Head of the Tekik Family asked, his head lowered in defeat. ¡°The same as my previous offer¡­¡± Grey paused when he got to this part and added with a smile, ¡°Oh, you accused me as well, so you¡¯ll also have to compensate me as well.¡± When the Head of the Tekik Family heard this, his head almost exploded from pure rage. ¡°You vile creature! You clearly stole from¡­¡± The person who stood up to speak this time was an Old man, but just like what Grey had been doing all this while, the Old man vanished right before the eyes of everyone. Those from the Tekik Family watched with agony filled eyes, they couldn¡¯t believe one of the oldest person from their family was killed just like that. A young lady wanted to speak, but when she realized what would happen to her, she kept quiet. Grey still had the same nonchalant expression as he looked at them, not bothered with how they looked at him. To be honest, he felt if not for the fact that Grey has uses for him, he would¡¯ve killed him already. Grey had already robbed him, yet he seems to want more. He looked at Grey then paused, for some reason, he didn¡¯t feel Grey was the greedy type. His eyes trailed around Grey then turned to the little girl sitting beside him. He was soon hit with realization, Grey wasn¡¯t doing all this because he wanted things, he didn¡¯t even steal those things because he wanted them, it was all purely for revenge, revenge for Cori. What he couldn¡¯t understand was why Grey was helping Cori. If Grey was acquainted with them from the start, he would not have allowed Ryla to be killed the previous day. So there was a chance he only got to know Cori the previous day. ¡°Sir, I don¡¯t have what you want. Even if I did, it¡¯s all gone now. Is there anything else I can use to cover it?¡± He had fully submitted to Grey at the moment. Trying anything now was just a waste of time. Grey was a Space Elementalist, before he could even try anything, Grey would¡¯ve already killed whoever he wanted dead. By the time he was done with them, only he would be left alive. Grey looked at the man¡¯s current attitude and couldn¡¯t help but praise the fortitude of the man, for him to submit to him was by no means easy, but he did it just for his family. ¡®What a commendable attitude. Unfortunately, he has a terrible side as well.¡¯ After a while, he looked at the man then turned to Cori, ¡°Whatever she wants.¡± The Head of the Tekik Family looked at Cori with a smile before saying, ¡°Cori, you know your brother has been with us all his life. We trained him. I admit that the way he died was wrong, but he stole from me, I can not allow such people to go scot free.¡± ¡°You falsely accused my brother, you deserve death.¡± Cori said angrily. ¡°Your brother stole from me, I have proof of it.¡± The Head of the Tekik Family said. ¡°The bones of the Space Tiger was found by my brother.¡± Cori retorted. ¡°I¡¯m the leader of this place, anything found should be given to me first. I gave your brother the resources he needed to grow, I even gave him the things he needed to go on that expedition, why didn¡¯t he come back to me with anything?¡± The Head of the Tekik Family asked with a wronged face. I think you should take a look at Cori wanted to speak but then the Head of the Tekik Family said again, ¡°I gave him everything, I shielded him when he offended the Grule Tribe, I healed him when he was injured¡­¡± Against a small girl, of course the Head of the Tekik Family would be able to easily subdue her. Cori froze, unsure of what to say or do. Grey gave her the chance to take revenge, but according to the Head of the Tekik Family, he did nothing wrong. To be honest, they had indeed helped her brother. Grey watched her struggle to make a decision and chuckled. The Head of the Tekik Family was a smart fellow, and there was no way Cori could match him. Seeing that Cori was no longer saying anything, the Head of the Tekik Family looked at Grey with a soft smile and said, ¡°She doesn¡¯t seem to want to do anything to us. Does that mean we can go?¡± Everyone from the Tekik Family looked at Grey with hopeful eyes, waiting for what he would say. ¡°Since that¡¯s the case, and I am a man of my words, I¡¯ll follow what I said from the onset.¡± Grey said, he looked at Cori and asked, ¡°Are you sure with this?¡± Cori shook her head, ¡°I don¡¯t know.¡± ¡°That technically means we don¡¯t have to pay for anything.¡± The Head of the Tekik Family said confidently. Grey nodded, ¡°Naturally.¡± The eyes of the people from the Tekik Family shone with excitement. For a moment, they forgot that a few of them had been killed. Grey suddenly stood up and said, ¡°So¡­ there was something I forgot to tell you.¡± When everyone focused on him, he said with a shy smile, ¡°I¡¯m a liar.¡± His statement made the entire Hall fall silent. It was already silent to begin with, but now, they could almost hear all the breaths of everyone there. Cori looked at Grey, stunned. Not just her, everyone standing in the Hall looked at Grey, no one could believe their ears. Grey said he was a man of his words, yet, within a minute he said he was a liar. What did that mean? It meant that the people from the Tekik Family were screwed. Grey was a psychopath bent on getting revenge. The Head of the Tekik Family looked at Grey, ¡°What is the meaning of your statement?¡± ¡°Simple, you¡¯re screwed.¡± Grey replied casually. There was almost no form of remorse in his eyes, it was like he was used to doing something like this. After hanging around with Klaus for so long, of course he would also be shameless as well. Klaus was the most shameless person he had seen, and on a few occasions, he learned a thing or two from him and also implements it. The eyes of the Head of the Tekik Family turned red and he was visibly shaking from anger. It was clear that he never expected Grey to do something like this. Grey looked at him with bashful expression. The more the people from the Tekik Family saw him like this, the more they felt angered by him. They couldn¡¯t believe he was saying this with such an expression. Who didn¡¯t hear him would think that he was an innocent person, but only those who had experienced this know that he was a vile and ruthless character. ¡°I¡¯ll not take this from you. What are you trying to do?¡± The Head of the Tekik Family said. ¡°I don¡¯t care if you will take it from me or not.¡± Grey¡¯s expression turned cold. 1194 Ill Satisfy Your Wishes The tension in the Hall got to its peak as Grey started walking in the direction of the Tekik Family, however after getting a few steps close, he paused. He turned to look outside the Hall, an Old man could be seen walking towards the Hall with staggered steps, it was almost as if he would fall if touched by anyone. Grey¡¯s expression wasn¡¯t good as he saw the Old man. ¡°My friend, you¡¯re here.¡± The Head of the Tekik Family laughed in delight at the appearance of this Old man. Grey smiled when he saw this and went back to his seat. He didn¡¯t show any signs of being bothered with the arrival of this Old man. The Head of the Tekik Family looked at Grey and let out a small grunt. ¡®I¡¯ll like to see if you can act in the same cocky manner.¡¯ He thought before moving his attention to the Old man who had walked into the Hall. ¡°Hmm, I smell death. What¡¯s happening?¡± The Old man asked as he walked into the Hall. ¡°I¡¯ve been having some troubles from my little friend over there.¡± The Head of the Tekik Family explained. ¡°Oh, such a young genius. You must not be from this world, correct?¡± The Old man asked. Grey looked at the Old man and declined to reply, he gave a smile and looked at the Head of the Tekik Family again, ¡°Is he here to help you out with the compensation?¡± The Head of the Tekik Family felt like a thorn was piercing his skin when he heard Grey¡¯s words. After some time he looked at the Old man who nodded to him. That was the signal he was waiting for. He had been communicating with the Old man, trying to know if the Old man could deal with Grey. The Old man was able to sense Grey¡¯s cultivation stage and realized he was within his expectations. He was two stages ahead of Grey, and was very confident in his abilities, naturally. Although Grey was hiding his cultivation stage, the Old man had his ways of figuring it out. ¡°Boy, I don¡¯t think you understand your current predicament.¡± The Old man said as he walked closer to Grey. ¡°I think you¡¯re the one who has all this messed up.¡± Grey¡¯s reply was calm as always, he looked at the Old man and said, ¡°If you¡¯re here to help him out with the chaos stones, then do so.¡± Grey paused and his eyes turned cold, ¡°However, if you¡¯re here to accompany your friend in a death wish, I¡¯ll naturally satisfy your wishes.¡± The confidence in Grey¡¯s tone was evident for all to see. They couldn¡¯t believe even when he was outnumbered, he was still speaking with such confidence. The Old man chuckled, ¡°Cocky. The satisfaction I get after breaking people like you is exquisite.¡± The Old man was not bothered with how Grey was speaking. He felt Grey was only saying this due to his nature. Geniuses of Grey¡¯s caliber will always have that confidence and invincibility about them. However, in most cases, these attributes which make them unparalleled geniuses end up causing their deaths. A normal person would retreat when faced against two people in the Elemental Venerable Plane, especially when one of them is stronger. But geniuses like Grey would not back down even in front of five opponents stronger, much less just one. The Old man had fought more battles than Grey could ever think of, well, so he thought. ?andasnovel¡¤?om The ease at which Grey kills people is something that amazed him. Grey looked at the duo who somewhat surrounded him. Void jumped off his shoulder and went over to meet Cori. The bunny leader did the same. They were not going to get involved with this battle. After hanging around with Grey, the bunny leader had come to know that against multiple opponents, he doesn¡¯t seem to have any issues. Of all of them acquainted with Grey, Cori was the only one who had a worried expression. She didn¡¯t know if Grey would be able to fight off these people. Other than that, the other thing she was thinking about was the question the man asked Grey. ¡®What did he mean by not from this world?¡¯ She was a bit confused about this. She looked at Grey¡¯s back view, ¡®Is he from another world?¡¯ She had encountered people who were not from their region, but no one had ever said they were not from their world. ¡®Are there other worlds?¡¯ I think you should take a look at More questions rang in her head. Grey couldn¡¯t care about what Cori was thinking at the moment. He was more concerned about the Old man who was two stages above him. He didn¡¯t know the strength of the Old man, so he didn¡¯t know how tough it would be to fight against the man. If it were someone in the Aurora Continent, he would have a hundred percent confidence in defeating them, but one has to know that the fighting style of some of the races that have grown here are different compared to that of those from the Aurora Continent. He looked at the Head of the Tekik Family with a serious expression, ¡°Are you not going to compensate us?¡± The Head of the Tekik Family looked at the Old man, who nodded once again, and replied, ¡°Kid, leave now and I¡¯ll forget about this matter.¡± After a few seconds he added, ¡°Of course, you¡¯re going to have to drop the things you stole from me, and compensate my good old friend here who came because of you.¡± ¡°Oh, I¡¯m the reason he came?¡± Grey wore a surprised look. To be honest, he didn¡¯t know when the Head of the Tekik Family contacted the Old man, if he knew, he would¡¯ve ended this from the get go and not let it become any longer. With the appearance of this Old man, he didn¡¯t know what might happen. However, he was still very confident that he would be able to defeat them. Even if not alone, but with Void and the bunny leader present, he was fine. ¡°Kid, stop pretending like you do not know why I¡¯m here. Drop the things, as well as the girl.¡± The Old man said. Grey¡¯s eyes turned cold when he heard him say he should leave Cori behind. ¡°Hmph! Old man, don¡¯t test my patience. Pay up or suffer the consequences.¡± He slammed his palm on the earthen chair he created before and it shattered to dust. ¡°I guess words can¡¯t get through to you.¡± The Head of the Tekik Family said and charged at Grey. The Old man moved at the same time as well. Just when they got within twenty meters of Grey, the scenery changed. Grey was still standing in their middle, but they were standing outside the Town, in the forest around it. ¡°Since I¡¯m such a nice person, I don¡¯t want others to get hurt because of this fight.¡± Grey said with a smile. ¡°But you brought my family here!¡± The Head of the Tekik Family scolded angrily. ¡°Oh, they¡¯re not part of the people I don¡¯t want to hurt. I very much want them dead.¡± Grey¡¯s reply was straightforward. The Old man and the Head of the Tekik Family rushed at Grey. One of them was covered in flames, while the other had winds surrounding him. Grey¡¯s eyes were cold, his skin turned into pale blue scales, and even the shape of his pupils changed slightly. Not just that, but his physical appearance enlarged by a lot. Compared to how he previously looked, now, he was over two and a half meters tall, and had a bulky body. His usual appearance was one of a moderate body, but well built. The Old man and the Head of the Tekik Family paused, Cori, who was also watching from the side, couldn¡¯t help but exclaim. ¡°He¡¯s a Beastman!¡± This was the same thought in the heads of the Old man and the Head of the Tekik Family. They knew of a particular race that could showcase attributes like these. Transforming from normal people and having attributes related to Beasts. If Grey was a Beastman, then they had very little chances in defeating him. ¡°What¡¯s a Beastman?¡± Grey¡¯s thickened voice brought them back to reality. They soon understood that he didn¡¯t know what they were talking about. He couldn¡¯t be blamed for this due to the fact that he only developed these abilities a few days back. He didn¡¯t know he would be able to even do something like this, but while experimenting on a few things, he noticed this was possible. One of the things he got from increasing his size is that, his strength, speed, and defense increased exponentially. 1195 A Beastman? ¡°You don¡¯t know what a Beastman is?¡± Cori couldn¡¯t help but ask from the side. ¡°A Beastman is someone¡­¡± Cori went on to tell him about Beastmen and how they originated. Grey couldn¡¯t help but be amazed by it. This was the first time he was hearing about this. Apparently, there were people who mixed their bloodlines with that of beasts, thereby, increasing their physical strength. Unlike those Barbarians he saw when he first came to the Aurora Continent, these were people who were like half humans and half beasts. It was a strange concept that amazed him. The Vaergahl Family was not like this. Ellis had told him all he needed to know about the history of the Vaergahl Family, so he knew this was not how they were. ¡®If these people can maximize the abilities of these Beasts, it would be better for me.¡¯ He thought internally. The truth is, he got the motivation to experiment on his transformation after encountering a race here. While experimenting, he noticed he could increase his size, and that was all he could do. But from what Cori was saying, there¡¯s a certain level these Beastmen would get to, they can alter their appearance and look exactly like the Beasts they are affiliated with. Of course, not all of them have this ability. Only the few lucky ones can exhibit such attributes, and those people are regarded very highly by their tribe. Grey clicked his tongue at the thought of it. It¡¯s almost like the way the people who could not just attain scales, but also an innate ability among those from the Vaergahl Family were quite rare. At the moment, he could still barely believe how lucky he was to be able to get both of them, while only getting one attempt and not even having anything related to a Dragon. While Grey was caught up with what a Beastman was, the Old man and the Head of the Tekik Family decided to strike. Since he wanted to get distracted, who were they to stop him? After all, it was in their favor. Grey snapped back and faced the duo who were standing before him. The Old man was the Fire Elementalist, while the Head of the Tekik Family was a Wind Elementalist. When Grey attacked them, he noticed that his attack was swallowed by the Old man¡¯s flames, while the attack of the Wind Elementalist charged at him with frightening speed. He was able to quickly set up an earth wall to block it, but slashes were left on it. He could barely believe the attack power of these people. On a normal note, it would be difficult for someone two stages above him to overpower him, but the Old man used his attack to do that. What had him even more worried was that he used his fire element, yet, it was blocked by the Old man. He attacked once again, this time, he used the earth element to create a large hammer that he slammed at the Wind Elementalist, while facing the Old man, he used his water element against him. The Old man sent out another stream of flames that covered the water and didn¡¯t give it any chance to even get close to him. The Wind Elementalist had a more difficult time, but he was able to dodge it at the last minute, escaping from the range of the attack at the last minute. Grey looked at them and chuckled, he didn¡¯t feel too much pressure. With a wave of his hand, two inscriptions appeared in the sky, both made from the lightning element. The inscriptions shot out lightning bolts at the duo. While they were blocking it, Grey decided to use his physical strength against them. His figure started to fade, a sign of afterimage. The eyes of the Wind Elementalist enlarged since he was the first to sense it. The Old man on the other hand, felt a threat to his life and quickly created a fire orb around him, but he saw a pale blue hand, filled with claws pass through it and reach for his throat. He tried to grab onto the hand, but it was too strong for him and he could only make an attempt to push it to the side. Unfortunately, the hand was able to grab a hold of his left hand and yank him away from the protection of his fire orb. When he saw the figure standing before him, he didn¡¯t panic, but opened his mouth and a large stream of fire was sent to the face of the figure attacking him. At such close range, even with the help of his scales, Grey didn¡¯t dare to take the attack of the man head-on, and could only toss the man to the side while he retreated. I think you should take a look at The Wind Elementalist used the opportunity to shorten the space between them and cover Grey with a tornado. Grey felt like blades were slicing his skin as he was stuck in the tornado. His scales made it feel like it wasn¡¯t that dangerous, but without it, another Elementalist might have been chopped to pieces by it. He quickly broke out of the tornado and attacked the Wind Elementalist. The Wind Elementalist knew not to engage in a close battle with Grey, so he quickly retreated, giving the Fire Elementalist space to attack. Grey was once again forced back. After retreating, he paused and looked at his opponents. Other than the place where he injured the Old man, he hadn¡¯t really been able to do much harm to them. For some reason, he noticed that these people had the advantage over him, like his element was being restricted. ¡®It¡¯s like when the chaos energy erupted. Their power is subduing mine.¡¯ He thought internally. Normally, he would¡¯ve been able to defeat them, but for some reason, his attacks were not as strong as they usually are. Even if he could suppress the Wind Elementalist, he wouldn¡¯t be able to suppress the Old man. ¡°Are you tired already? We¡¯re just getting started.¡± The Head of the Tekik Family licked his lips. Grey looked at him and chuckled, ¡°Not really, I¡¯m just getting warmed up too.¡± ¡°Good.¡± The Old man laughed and started to make hand seals. Before long, a large Snake appeared mid-air and charged at Grey. Grey looked at the Snake, he almost had the same feeling like when he was dealing with the first race he encountered, but compared to that one, this one feels real, and looks real as well. He didn¡¯t think too much about it and unleashed a fusion orb at it. The Snake opened its mouth and swallowed the orb, and when Grey was expecting it to explode, it didn¡¯t. His expression changed slightly, but he didn¡¯t panic, with a snap of his hand, an explosion rang out inside the belly of the snake. Luckily, he created a certain fail safe when making fusion orbs. Although he had not really experienced something like this, he felt it should only be right to prepare for it. So while training, he found a way to create a method to detonate it if it doesn¡¯t explode. As long as it¡¯s not destroyed, he could make it explode at will. Not just that, but he could also trick people with it, making them feel like it¡¯s of no use but then make it explode at the last second. The Old man, who had a smile on his face, felt shocked when he saw the Snake he created destroyed by Grey¡¯s attack which was not supposed to have such a reaction. This Snake had a special ability, as long as the attack power was not above the ability of its owner, it could swallow it and there would be no effect. But Grey¡¯s attack was clearly different. Not only was there an explosion, but it was destroyed as well. The Old man took another look at Grey, then he turned to the Head of the Tekik Family. His expression was not pleased in any way. He didn¡¯t expect Grey to be this hard to deal with. From the message he received and after sensing Grey¡¯s realm, he felt like he could easily deal with Grey. But Grey has made it impossible for him to do what he felt he could do. Even those in the same stage as himself find it difficult to deal with this particular Snake, yet, Grey dealt with it with only a single attack. If not for his friendship with the Head of the Tekik Family, and what he stood to gain from a foreigner, he would¡¯ve exited the battle after this. The Head of the Tekik Family gave him a reassuring smile, he felt confident that they would be able to deal with Grey. 1196 What Are We Sharing? ¡°Kid, you¡¯re stronger than I expected. I¡¯ll get serious now.¡± The Old man said after Grey destroyed his Snake. ¡°You¡¯re not bad yourself.¡± Grey replied. The Old man looked at Grey but stopped speaking, his eyes turned serious and he spat out blood. After spitting out blood, he started to make some series of hand seals before another Snake appeared. If the previous Snake he created looked real, the new one he just created was lifelike. It was as if was a living creature. Grey looked at the Snake and tried the same method. A Fusion Orb shot at the Snake, and it swallowed it, but the expected result did not happen. Grey couldn¡¯t help but look at the Snake, his eyes showing a more serious expression. Grey looked at them, not even bothered by whatever was going through their heads. He looked at the Head of the Tekik Family before turning his eyes to the Old man. The Old man looked at his gaze and said, ¡°Kid, leave now or else you will regret it.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t worry, I¡¯m not concerned about regrets. I don¡¯t do things I know I¡¯ll regret.¡± Grey replied. He could barely bother with these people. Void and the bunny leader were still there. Even if he could not fight against these people on his own, with Void, he would be able to beat them, adding the bunny leader to it just assured his victory even more. The Old man looked at him, and seeing his expression, he smiled and the Snake charged at Grey. Grey looked at the Snake coming his way, with a wave of his hand, a large seal appeared in the air. This seal was larger than the usual inscriptions he usually made. The seal unleashed a powerful attack that launched at the Snake. The Snake opened its mouth, but compared to the last time, it didn¡¯t swallow the attack, rather, it spat out a stream of fire. Grey¡¯s attack collided with the stream of fire and exploded. Grey looked at the Old man, and just when he was about to prepare another attack, the Head of the Tekik Family attacked. Just like the Old man, he created a creature made entirely from the Wind Element. The creature was a Leopard Beast, made from the wind element. Grey didn¡¯t attack it, rather, he dodged its attack. He dodged the few he could while blocking most of them. The Old man attacked at this time, creating a small snake made from the fire element. Compared to the last one, this one was smaller, and had a higher number. Some of them were not even the size of a pinky. Grey didn¡¯t expect the Old man to attack in such a way, so he didn¡¯t expect it when small fire snakes started to appear around him. His pupils constricted when they exploded, sending him flying. The eyes of the Old man and the Head of the Tekik Family shone with brilliance. They felt since this could affect Grey, then they had a good chance to defeat Grey. The Old man created more small snakes that charged at Grey, who still hasn¡¯t gotten up from the previous attack. While the dust cloud could go down, they heard another explosion. The Old man sent these snakes in case Grey was still moving, and with the explosions, he confirmed that Grey wasn¡¯t dead from the last attack and the next one should be able to do it. ¡°I¡¯ll take his ring. I¡¯ll return all that is yours.¡± The Old man said to the Head of the Tekik Family. ¡°I¡¯ll go through his ring first. After all, there¡¯s no way you would know what belongs to me inside his ring.¡± The Head of the Tekik Family said. ¡°My friend, you don¡¯t have to worry. Once I get the ring, I¡¯ll naturally know what¡¯s not from this place. I¡¯ll give you the rest.¡± The Old man said. ¡°You see, there¡¯s something of mine he took, you wouldn¡¯t believe it belongs to me.¡± The Head of the Tekik Family said. The duo paused and looked at each other. They already felt Grey was dead and were still thinking of how to share his properties. ¡°I¡¯ll take seventy percent of all he has, you have the remaining thirty.¡± The Old man said. ¡°Minus my Family¡¯s things?¡± The Head of the Tekik Family asked. ¡°Yes, excluding your Family items.¡± The Old man said. The Head of the Tekik Family smiled, and just as they were heading to where Grey was located, they heard a voice. ¡°Do I also have a share?¡± Grey¡¯s voice woke them up from their state and they looked at the place the explosion happened. I think you should take a look at They didn¡¯t feel he would be able to survive it, so hearing a voice from that place shocked them. They looked at that area and saw Grey¡¯s figure walking from the explosion. ¡°I wonder what good things I¡¯ll get from this treasure.¡± The duo froze when they saw Grey¡¯s figure, shocked by the fact that not only did he survive the attack, but he was completely fine. One has to know that the attack the Old man used was a sneak attack, even Grey didn¡¯t sense it. Yet, he was walking out of the explosion without any injuries. The Old man could barely believe his eyes, while the Head of the Tekik Family looked at the Old man. Even he didn¡¯t believe Grey would have been able to survive that without any injuries, yet, that was the case. ¡°Come on, whose treasure are we sharing? I¡¯m really interested in it.¡± Grey asked with a curious expression. The Old man and the Head of the Tekik Family looked at each other, when they saw Grey¡¯s face, they smiled. The Head of the Tekik Family looked at Grey, ¡°The ring on your hand.¡± Grey chuckled, ¡°The ring on my hand?¡± The Old man grinned and said, ¡°Yes, the ring on your hand. We actually threw a ring to you while the explosion occurred.¡± Grey laughed when he heard this, not expecting the Old man to say this. After gaining a better understanding of the space element, he stopped using spatial rings and created another storage space. Grey removed the ring on his hand and played with it, after a few seconds, he tossed it at them. ¡°This will stop all the fighting, correct?¡± He said as he threw the ring towards them. The eyes of the Old man gleamed and he subconsciously took a step forward, blocking the view of the Head of the Tekik Family, he stretched out his hand. But his eyes suddenly changed and he hastily retreated while saying to the Head of the Tekik Family. ¡°I don¡¯t know what items belong to your family, why don¡¯t you remove them first?¡± The Head of the Tekik Family looked at the Old man with a calm expression, ¡°You¡¯re my senior, and also stronger, it wouldn¡¯t be courteous of me to take this. Please, do the honors.¡± Grey kept the ring floating in the air as the duo argued on who would examine the ring. They knew Grey was a cunning fellow, so the fact that he willingly gave them the ring meant that it was most likely a trap. Seeing the two of them argue, Grey said, ¡°Since you don¡¯t want it, I¡¯ll take it back.¡± Grey beckoned for the ring, and it started to float back towards him. The eyes of the Old man changed, and after struggling, he pointed at an unassuming young man from those from the Tekik Family, ¡°You, check it out.¡± When the young man heard this, he shook from fear. He couldn¡¯t help but turn to the Family Head with a pitiful expression, hoping to be spared. The eyes of the Head of the Tekik Family turned serious, ¡°Check it out. Make sure all our Family¡¯s treasures are intact.¡± The heart of the young man sank when he heard this. He didn¡¯t dare to disobey the Family Head. With shaky legs, he walked over to the ring, the second he stretched his hand to touch it. ¡°Boom!¡± He hurriedly withdrew his hand and felt like his life had left him. Only when he didn¡¯t sense anything did he look around, only to see Grey chuckling. Grey made it sound as if the ring exploded with the help of his lightning and fire element. The funny part was that everyone from the Old man to those from the Tekik Family jolted when they heard the sound, this showed how they all felt. ¡°Get this over with, I¡¯m in a hurry.¡± Grey urged. The young man gulped down his saliva and grabbed the floating ring, his heart skipped a beat, but he was elated when he didn¡¯t get the reaction he expected. ¡°Well, what¡¯s inside?¡± The Old man asked hurriedly. He was in a haste to see if Grey really gave them his treasures. ¡°Orbs.¡± The young man muttered in a soft, shaky voice. 1197 Want More? Chapter 1197 Want More? "Orbs?" The Old man asked. The young man nodded and reaffirmed, "Yes, multicolored orbs. It''s like nothing I''ve ever seen." The Head of the Tekik Family fell deep in thought. When he heard the word ''orb'', he thought of something, the orb Grey used to kill those people from the Tekik Family while they were at the Hall, the orb he felt great fear from. But after hearing the young man say, multicolored orbs, he felt a bit conflicted. There are Magical Beasts that grow these sorts of multicolored orbs, they tend to be very rare and possess exceptional abilities. If these were the sort of orbs that Grey filled that spatial ring with, then it was priceless. Unlike the Head of the Tekik Family, the Old man had just the thought of these multicolored orbs. He felt they were the cores of such rare beasts and if he could consume a few of them, his strength would skyrocket. Thinking of it, these creatures might be rare in their world, but there''s a possibility that it was almost everywhere in the world Grey came from. "Kid, pass the ring to me." He said hurriedly. The young man didn''t delay and tossed the ring in the direction of the Old man. The Old man caught it and before he could examine it, he felt a great sense of danger coming from the ring. Grey could easily create fusion orbs now. Although he had found ways to make different types of them, the strongest still remained the original one. During his free time, he would occasionally create them and seal them in his storage ring just to mess with people. During his journey in this world, this was the second time he was giving his ring to others. The first group was a bandit group he encountered, and being too lazy to fight with them, he passed them a ring filled with fusion orbs, running immediately he did so. He didn''t forget to act scared so the people would let him go without disturbing him. A group of Early stages Elemental Venerables and Late stage Sage Elementalists wanted to rob him, of course, they wouldn''t be able to defend against over a hundred fusion orb. The result was as expected, the area turned into a deserted place, not even the trees within five hundred meters of the place survived, much less the people who were within a hundred meters away, max. ¡­. The Old man tried to throw the ring away, but he noticed that even though he was able to throw it, it was only for a few meters. The Head of the Tekik Family had already sensed something wrong and moved his Family, alongside the young man who examined the ring away from this place. Boom! A loud explosion rang out. This time, it wasn''t Grey tricking them, this was a true explosion. Even the Town was rocked by the explosion, even when it was around ten kilometers away from where the explosion occurred. Grey and Void were in a safe place, staring at the explosion with excitement in their eyes. "I wonder how powerful it would be if I put up to a thousand inside." He muttered as he watched the explosion. The fusion orb took a large amount of elemental essence, hence, Grey was very careful when using it. Whenever he was creating them in store, he would usually create around ten to fifteen in a week. He doesn''t always remember to make them, so there are occasions when he goes months without creating a single fusion orb. After a minute or so, the explosion died down and Grey walked towards the place. Void also headed there in excitement. Cori, on the other hand, was looking at them like they were a group of freaks. This was the most powerful attack she had ever witnessed. One has to know that although she is young, she has been exposed to things like this. When they got there, Grey let out a surprised exclamation. The Old man was not dead yet, well, he wasn''t in a good situation either. Both his hands were gone, and part of his head was destroyed. "You don''t look so good." Grey said as he looked at the Old man. The fire dome covering the Old man was almost fully destroyed, not just it, but there were a few ruins that protected him. "You psychopath!" The Old man yelled. "Oh please, I didn''t do anything. You were the one who brought those dangerous things out of the ring." Grey gave a bashful smile. The Old man looked at him and felt like killing him that instant. Grey rarely did things like this, but when he''s ready to completely mess with anyone, he was ready to go all ''Klausy'' on them. The term ''Klausy'' was something the group used whenever any of them decided to act as shameless as Klaus. Of course, they couldn''t be as good as the original, but it was still enough to annoy people to the extreme. Grey occasionally does this whenever he''s in another world and there''s someone he wants to provoke. "You shouldn''t be screaming, your eyes want to fall out." Grey said, making the Old man start to shake from anger. Grey could care less about the Old man''s state, he had seen worse than this. When fighting with necromancers, he had occasionally fought with puppets that had half their heads shattered. The Head of the Tekik Family returned, his expression sour. Grey looked at him and chuckled, he knew there was no way he would''ve been able to save everyone. From his facial expression, he knew there were a few losses. "So, what do you all think about my orbs?" Grey grinned, "Do you still want more?" The Old man retreated when Grey opened his hand and another fusion orb appeared on it. He didn''t think Grey would have more of this thing, but seeing another one form in Grey''s hands, he knew otherwise. 1198 Extortion The Old man looked at the Head of the Tekik Family, ¡°You called me for such things?¡± He was visibly angry, shaking from anger even. Grey was far stronger than what he expected. ¡°Why are you blaming me? You were the one who told me it was alright to fight him.¡± The Head of the Tekik Family snorted, he was also infuriated. From the explosion a few minutes back, more than half of the people from the Tekik Family were wiped out. Even with his help, that was all he could do. If not for the Old man¡¯s greed and poor judgment, they wouldn¡¯t have fought with Grey. At most, they would think of a way to negotiate with him and leave. But the Old man told him he was stronger which gave him the confidence to fight. Now, the Old man was blaming him? He was infuriated. ¡°Fix this, accept his offer, and let us leave.¡± The Old man didn¡¯t want to die here. He was already seriously injured from the explosion, he didn¡¯t dare to fight against Grey again, especially with that orb still floating above his hands. The Head of the Tekik Family thought about it and turned to Grey, ¡°I can¡¯t offer that much. Five hundred high-grade chaos stones are the most I can fork out right now.¡± A confused expression appeared on Grey¡¯s face, not comprehending what he was talking about. ¡°What are you talking about?¡± He couldn¡¯t help but ask. ?andasnovel¡¤?om ¡°Oh, that?¡± Grey asked with a look of realization. The Head of the Tekik Family nodded, hoping Grey would accept. ¡°I¡¯m no longer interested in that. You tried killing me, there¡¯s no way you believe that is enough to compensate me, do you?¡± Grey replied coolly. The Head of the Tekik Family felt like collapsing when he heard this. He was almost certain that when they were in the Hall, Grey would¡¯ve accepted this offer, although not completely sure then, but he felt it would¡¯ve worked when his friend appeared. But not only did he not offer this, but he attacked Grey. Only after seeing that Grey is the stronger person did he decide to make this offer. While he was thinking of it, he heard Grey¡¯s voice. ¡°If you offered this before, I would¡¯ve accepted. It¡¯s a good thing you¡¯re willing to give me better things.¡± Grey sighed as if the Head of the Tekik Family was gifting him good things on purpose. The Old man looked at Grey and the Head of the Tekik Family with a serious expression, ¡°Boy, what do you want?¡± ¡°Three chaos fruits. Also, I want¡­¡± Grey started to name the items he wanted and both the Old man and the Head of the Tekik Family felt like they were about to go crazy. I think you should take a look at The things Grey was naming were things they wanted. They would even kill those close to them to get them, yet, Grey was mentioning them as if they were something casual. To be honest, Grey had very little knowledge of most of the things he was naming, but after entering the Hall from the Arena, he knew a lot of treasures that were only present in this world. It would be very difficult for an Elemental Sovereign to have the items Grey was asking for, much less an Elemental Venerable. ¡°Even if we tried till we¡¯re dead, we won¡¯t have all the items you¡¯re calling. Not even half.¡± The Head of the Tekik Family said with a sad face. ¡°Oh, I didn¡¯t know they were that precious. I got a few after only a few months here, I expected you guys to have more. After all, you¡¯ve spent hundreds of years here.¡± Grey brought out a fruit and the eyes of the Old man and the Head of the Tekik Family enlarged. ¡®Just how lucky are those favored by the heavens?¡¯ This was the question in their heads. If Grey knew that they felt he was favored by the heavens, his only reply would¡¯ve been. ¡®Wait till you encounter Klaus.¡¯ ¡°Look, I can offer a few, but that¡¯s all.¡± The Old man said. Seeing the gaze Grey looked in looking at the Old man, the Head of the Tekik Family said hurriedly with a wronged expression, ¡°I would¡¯ve been able to offer some too, but I was robbed.¡± ¡°Oh, let me see them first.¡± Grey said to the Old man, he turned to the Head of the Tekik Family, ¡°As for you, it¡¯s a shame you were robbed. Protect your things properly next time.¡± The Head of the Tekik Family felt a slight sense of relief, feeling Grey would understandably let him go since he had already robbed him clean, but hearing the other part of Grey¡¯s statement, he almost couldn¡¯t feel his heart. ¡°What are you going to offer now? After all, you were robbed clean.¡± The Old man didn¡¯t bother with the Head of the Tekik Family, he already felt like killing him, so he didn¡¯t care if Grey wanted to kill him or not. He brought out some items, and they were indeed the things Grey wanted. There were a few Grey only saw in the Hall when he was in the Arena, but the Old man had them. Grey felt a little excitement, but he didn¡¯t show it. There was an item there that would be great for Klaus, and he wanted to bring it back the moment he left this place. Not just Klaus, but even for Reynolds, there was something that would help his Elemental Warrior improve dramatically in strength. Grey took the items without hesitation and looked at the Old man with a reassuring smile, ¡°You can leave.¡± The eyes of the Old man shone brightly, and without a second thought, he left, not bothered with his friend who was still under Grey¡¯s mercy. 1199 A Fate Worse Than Death The Head of the Tekik Family looked at his friend leave, stunned that Grey didn¡¯t stop him. ¡°I don¡¯t have anything, I¡¯ve given you all I have.¡± He said with a frustrated tone. ¡°Oh, you have? When?¡± Grey questioned, looking at the Head of the Tekik Family with a playful smile. ¡°You took them without even leaving one thing for me! What else do you want? Half of my family is dead, isn¡¯t that enough for you? Haven¡¯t you taken your revenge?¡± The Head of the Tekik Family started to show signs of losing it. At the moment, he knew he was at Grey¡¯s mercy, but there was nothing he could do. Grey literally took all they had, and had killed half of his Family, as if that is not enough, Grey is still demanding an outrageous amount for compensation, he couldn¡¯t take it anymore. Grey sighed, ¡°I guess you¡¯re right. But, I don¡¯t like leaving behind hidden dangers. What are the odds that you won¡¯t attack me after you get back up? Little, very little.¡± ¡°How am I going to get revenge on you? You¡¯re not even from this place!¡± The Head of the Tekik Family replied. ¡°Fair point.¡± Grey rubbed his chin and said. ¡°If that¡¯s the case, choose two people.¡± He added. ¡°Two people¡­ for what?¡± The Head of the Tekik Family asked. ¡°I still haven¡¯t made up my mind, either they die, or they will be the only ones left.¡± Grey replied casually. When the others behind the Head or the Tekik Family heard this, they felt their solids leave their body, they couldn¡¯t believe Grey was threatening to kill all of them, and there was nothing their all powerful Head could do about it. The most hateful part is that he was the one being subjected to Grey¡¯s pressure. How did Grey expect him to pick just two people to live and the others would die, or two people to die and the others live. ¡°Why are you doing this?¡± The Head of the Tekik Family asked, he was breaking down psychologically. Grey was messing with him with this request, and he couldn¡¯t bring himself to even agree to the request. How would the rest of the family look at him if he picked two people to die for them. Yes, they would be happy that they were part of the lucky ones that survived, but will they ever trust him? The answer is no, no they won¡¯t. ¡°I¡¯m a sadistic maniac, I like having fun with people like you.¡± Grey¡¯s reply made the Head of the Tekik Family almost go down to his knees. After a moment of silence, he looked at those behind, ¡°Who would like to join me?¡± The others looked at him, understanding the meaning of his words, he decided to pick himself as part of the two who would either be killed or leave alive. Grey looked at the man and couldn¡¯t help but chuckle. ¡®Cunning fellow.¡¯ Although most people aren¡¯t thinking too much about it, the chances of the two people being spared and the others being killed was very high. Grey knew the Head of the Tekik Family had considered this and decided to act in a selfless manner. This would make those from the family believe he was willing to sacrifice himself for them. I think you should take a look at A minute passed before a young lady walked over and decided to join him. The Head of the Tekik Family looked at Grey, ¡°Here we are.¡± ¡°Alright, the rest of you can leave. There¡¯s no point staying any longer.¡± Grey said to the ones behind him. He didn¡¯t want to be a sadistic killer, and he would prefer to kill the person making the others oppress people. To be honest, while attacking, he was very careful, other than the top geniuses in the family, the other people he targeted were the strongest ones. At the moment, only one person was left in the Sage Plane, and that person was an Old man who was already nearing the end of his life. At most, ten years and he¡¯s dead. With all the people the Tekik Family had oppressed, they would not be able to come out in public again in fear of the potential attacks from those people. The others walked away, leaving only the Head of the Tekik Family and the young lady who was still in the Overlord Plane. ¡°I¡¯m not too interested in killing you, rather, I have a better idea.¡± Grey said. The Head of the Tekik Family looked at Grey, awaiting judgment. He was usually the one who passes judgment, now, he was the one being judged. ¡°Cori, would you like to see them powerless?¡± Grey turned to Cori with a smile. The second the Head of the Tekik Family heard this, without hesitation, he stood up and bolted away. The stronger one was, the more afraid they were to lose their power. The reason for this was that, after getting to that level, they must have used their strength to suppress a lot of people. If he were to be caught by an enemy who had gotten stronger than him, he would die without hesitation. Grey chuckled, ¡°Do you think you can escape from me?¡± ¡°Come on, you have to do better than that if you want to escape from me.¡± The Head of the Tekik Family looked at him with depressed eyes, he couldn¡¯t even look at the young lady that was there with him. He didn¡¯t feel any embarrassment from running, if he lost his strength, even she would suffer from it. ¡°I¡¯ll give you the chance to do it yourself.¡± Grey didn¡¯t look at the young lady since he didn¡¯t really care about her. The Head of the Tekik Family clenched his fists, ¡°You¡¯ll have to kill me first before I do something like that.¡± ¡°Grandfather, you can cultivate again.¡± The young lady tried to console her Grandfather. ¡°Listen to her, it¡¯s not that difficult.¡± Grey said with a grin. 1200 Going After The Old Man The Head of the Tekik Family looked at the young lady, "Do you think it''s that easy? I spent hundreds of years attaining my current strength. Why would I willingly lose it?" "Alright, I''ll help you." Grey walked closer to the Head of the Tekik Family. Before he could react, Grey had shattered his origin, breaking his core. The Head of the Tekik Family lost all his essence and his figure started to grow old in a matter of seconds. Grey felt a bit odd, but didn''t bother with them any longer. "Leave with your Grandfather. If you eventually grow as strong as he is, or strong enough when you think you can get revenge on me, I''ll be waiting." He said to the young lady. After saying this, Grey walked over to where Cori, Void, and the bunny leader were seated, watching the fight. "They were so stupid. How can they be tricked that easily?" Void complained. "Did you want them to beat me?" Grey looked at Void coldly. "You need to he taught a lesson on a few occasions." Void shrugged. Grey looked at Void, almost wanting to beat him up, but he refrained from doing anything. He didn''t have the Fusion State he could use to completely suppress Void at the moment, so it was better to let him say what he wants. ''Did you let that guy leave just like that?'' The bunny leader asked. "Of course not! I believe he has better things. Since he tried to take my things, I''ll check if he has any important things I want." "Haha, nice!" Void laughed. "He has already gone a good distance away from here. It will take a while, but I should be able to get to where he is within a few seconds." Grey chuckled when he tried to track the Old man. He marked him during their fight, so he had zero issues with tracking him down. All he had to do was pinpoint the location and teleport there. It would naturally be harder the further the Old man goes, but it isn''t impossible. Grey turned his attention to little Cori, "I''ve done all I can to help you avenge your brother. There''s no point in killing all of them. They will get what is coming for them with their pillar gone." Cori looked at him, paused, and asked, "Uncle, are you leaving now?" "Yes, I have some things I need to attend to." Grey nodded, feeling a bit low in spirit. The thought of leaving this little girl on her own didn''t sit right with him. If her brother''s friends didn''t try to kill her, he would not have been worried, but since they tried to kill her, it meant she had no one else in this place. Even with her strength, she would find it hard to survive and would be used by others. When he left her with the decision of what to do to the Head of the Tekik Family, with only a few words from the Head of the Tekik Family, she was unable to say anything and froze. Even in his current state, the Head of the Tekik Family would be able to take advantage of her. Grey thought about it for a while and asked, "Would you like to come with me?" The eyes of Cori shone brilliantly when she heard this and she asked excitedly, "Really? I can follow you, Uncle?" Grey nodded, "Yeah, I''ll take you with me." Cori giggled happily when she heard this. She didn''t think Grey would suddenly decide to take her with him, but she was happy and felt safe with him. She had seen him in action and knew that he was very powerful, even stronger than the Head of the Tekik Family who she thought was invincible. Grey laughed when he saw her reaction and said. "Let''s visit an acquaintance." He said with a playful grin. ¡­. Far away from where Grey ruined the entire Tekik Family. A figure broke through the sky and appeared outside a cave. It was none other than the Old man who assisted the Head of the Tekik Family to fight against Grey. He was furious. "Damn it! That fool! He offended someone he knows is stronger than me. Why did I even go to his aid?" He complained as destroyed a rock by the side. "Luckily I didn''t take all my items with me. If I had lost these things, I would''ve killed him with my hands." He picked up another ring and placed it on his finger, after doing that he looked around and left the place, disappearing with a shocking speed. A few minutes after he left, a small portal appeared and two figures stepped out of it. Grey, who had Void on his shoulder, alongside him was Cori who had the bunny leader in her hands. "He left so soon. But he''s not far." Grey said after inspecting the place. He didn''t sense anything out of the ordinary in the place, so he knew the Old man only stopped by and didn''t keep anything here. Void and the bunny leader didn''t sense any treasures, so there was nothing here, or the area around this place. The group disappeared and Grey appeared outside a City. This place was far larger than the Town they just came from. Grey sensed around and he could already count around ten Elemental Venerables, he hadn''t even covered half of the City, but the people in the Elemental Venerable Plane there had already entered double digits. "What''s the plan?" Void asked, he could sense a few things and wouldn''t mind taking them. To be honest, he wanted to take them, but he was just stopping himself because Grey had not given the go-ahead. "Wait, he''s with three Elemental Venerables. Although I''m not afraid, it wouldn''t be good if there are too many of them attacking." Grey replied. Void nodded and didn''t ask any more questions. The group walked into the City, Grey hid the bunny leader and Void, covering himself with a cloak. Only Cori was not in a disguise, but there was no need for her to be. 1201 Traumatized Old Man Chapter 1201 Traumatized Old Man Somewhere in the City. The Old man from before was sitting beside two others. "I''m telling you, this kid is definitely loaded. But, he''s very powerful, I can''t deal with him alone." He said to the other two. "How will we track him down?" One of the duo present asked. "You don''t have to worry about it. I can track him down, the moment you''re ready, we can go after him." The Old man answered. "You said he was able to escape from you the last time?" The other man asked. "He''s a Space Elementalist, you know how difficult they are to keep around, especially when they''re stronger." The Old man replied. Seeing their skeptical expression, he said, "I can assure you, with you two, he stands no chance." The duo were a combination of two middle-aged men. "Alright, we accept. But we''re taking seventy percent, you take the rest." One of them replied. The Old man thought about it for a while and said, "That''s fine by me." The Old man spoke with them for a while, telling them of Grey''s abilities before leaving. Outside the building. The eyes of the Old man showed pure hatred, "I''ll kill that little brat." He didn''t come to these people because he wanted to take Grey''s belongings, rather, he came here all for revenge. The fact that Grey not only almost killed him, but also taking his things was one that didn''t sit right with him. The duo he came to ask help from where around the same level as himself. When fighting with Grey, he felt if there was another person in his cultivation stage, he was confident that they would be able to defeat him. With the duo, he was more confident that they would be able to kill him. Grey humiliated him, he would not stand for it. ¡­. While the Old man was thinking of how to get revenge on Grey, Grey and his group were going through the City. Given their normal ways, they started moving from one restaurant to another in hopes of getting good food. Grey had enough chaos stones to pay for their expenses. The City was very active even at night, and the group strolled through the entire City overnight. ¡­. The next morning. The group left the City before daybreak. Their target left the City during the night, so they had to follow him. ¡­. In the cave the Old man stopped by, the Old man and the duo who wanted to help him were currently seated, looking at a symbol on the earthen table in front of them. "Is this accurate? Why is he coming towards us?" One of the duo asked. "I''ve used this for over a hundred years, of course it''s accurate." The Old man replied. He couldn''t help but look at the thing, stunned that Grey was coming towards him. What made him even more frightened is the fact that Grey was coming from the direction of the City he left. If this was what he thought about, then Grey was tracking him. ''Why is he tracking me? Does he want to take more things from me?'' The Old man didn''t think about it too much, he wasn''t afraid, with the company by his side, he was sure they would be able to defeat Grey, no matter the tricks Grey uses. "We should wait, I''m sure he''s coming here." The one with a cold face among the duo said. The Old man nodded, that was what he had in mind as well. Moving from here was of no use, so he decided to stay in the same spot. After some time, Grey''s figure appeared in the area. "Oh, a welcoming party." Grey chuckled as he walked over. The three men stood up and faced Grey who had two cute animals with him and a small girl. They didn''t think Grey would come with such a lineup. The girl surprised the duo, but they were not too bothered about her. As long as they could get what they wanted from Grey, they were satisfied. The two small animals didn''t even come to mind since they didn''t sense anything from them, they were almost nonexistent. The duo looked at him and one said, "Kid, drop your storage ring and leave." "Alright." With a pleasant smile, he tossed a ring at the duo. The Old man subconsciously retreated, not even daring to touch it. He knew what he experienced the last time Grey did something like this, and he didn''t want to fall for it twice. "Don''t open it." He yelled after giving them some space. The duo, seeing his reaction quickly understood there was another thing about this and quickly moved aside, dodging the ring. "Haha, are you afraid of a common ring?" Grey grinned, amused by the way they reacted to the ring. He knew the Old man would be apprehensive towards it, but he never thought they would be this afraid of it. Thinking of it, he didn''t expect much from the Old man, this trick almost killed him the last time, and it was only a day ago, only a fool wouldn''t be scared if faced with such a situation again. Grey beckoned and the ring floated back to him, he picked it and a core appeared on his hand. The core exuded a pleasing aura, and the moment the duo saw it, they took a step forward, they knew what that was, and how precious it was. The core of a Snow Armadillo was very precious in their world. The Snow Armadillo is the best light elemental beast in this place and its healing capabilities were second to none. If one who is close to death consumes this, they would go back to normal. Grey played with it and kept it again, "Are you sure you don''t want the ring?" The duo looked at each other, "Why would you hand it to us without any struggle?" "I don''t like fighting. I thought he was the only one here, hence I came." Grey pointed at the Old man while speaking, after a while he added, "With you two with him, I stand little to no chance against you three. Why stress myself and fight?" The duo thought about it and nodded, they felt Grey''s reasoning was accurate. "Alright, give us the ring." Grey smiled and tossed the ring to them, again. The Old man looked at Grey, he could barely believe that Grey gave them his possession that easily. After encountering Grey, he didn''t think the possibility of him being this reasonable was high. He believed Grey was only trying to trick them, unfortunately, there was no way for him to find out. "Don''t believe him, he''s very cunning." He warned the duo. The duo looked at the Old man and nodded, they''ve worked with him before, and hearing him warn them meant that he was very apprehensive of Grey. They started to doubt his words. When he came to them, he told them that he almost killed Grey, although with the help of someone, but Grey managed to escape. However, since Grey appeared, the only thing they could see in his eyes was fear. Grey must have traumatized him, making him fear him this much. One of them grabbed the ring, and brought out a pearly multicolored bead. While studying the bead, he felt a chill run down his spine and hastily threw it and the ring in another direction, shockingly, he picked the side the Old man was running in. Boom! The bead and the ring exploded out with a powerful attack. Along with the explosion was the shrill scream of the Old man. He was clearly in pain after being covered by parts of the explosion. Grey chuckled when he saw this. Originally, the ring was not supposed to get to the Old man, but he used the space element to make it move further at a faster pace. Before the Old man could escape, he was caught in the explosion. "You little brat." One of the duo said coldly. The way everything happened was by no means a coincidence, it was obviously all Grey''s plans. The second the man who held the ring brought out the bead, sensed the danger and tried to throw it away, Grey opened a small spatial tunnel close to him and the ring entered. The ring appeared close to the Old man who was already on the run. "You want to set us against each other? You''re still too young to trick us." One of the duo said. Grey shrugged, looking at the place where the explosion took place. He wanted to see if the Old man would be injured or not. The explosion died down and the Old man appeared before everyone. The sorry state of the Old man made the duo shake their heads. They couldn''t believe his state. Grey''s attack was more than what they expected. Although they sensed the aura, but they felt it was not that strong. 1202 Tricked Thrice? ¡°You again.¡± Grey remarked and the Old man who was trying to regain himself stumbled, almost falling to the ground. He understood the meaning behind Grey¡¯s words, hence his reaction. ¡°I¡¯ll kill you, even if it¡¯s the last thing I do.¡± The Old man said coldly. He turned to the duo, of course he was a bit stumped by the reason why the ring and bead was tossed in his direction, but he wanted to deal with Grey first. After taking care of Grey, he would think of what to do to the duo. ¡°Help me take him down.¡± He said to the duo. The duo nodded. The Old man was already starting to show signs of healing from the injuries. As an Elementalist grows in strength, their healing capabilities increases. From what Grey has read, those Elementalists who had gotten to the God Plane can even come back to life from a single drop of blood. It was no wonder those in the God Plane were called immortals in all the books. Unfortunately, there are none of those immortals in the present world of Grey. Grey looked at the trio who wanted to fight against him. He didn¡¯t think the Old man was a threat, and since he hadn¡¯t seen the duo display their abilities, he was clueless about what they were capable of doing. ¡®Do you need any help?¡¯ Void asked, although he was not prepared to help, he just wanted to ask. ¡®No need, I¡¯ll be able to deal with them.¡¯ Grey rejected his help, as he expected. Without waiting, he took Cori and went to the side to watch the battle. The bunny leader went with them, it doesn¡¯t involve itself in any battles from the start, so there was no way it would join in on this one. Grey focused on the battle ahead, the Old man and the duo had already grouped together, preparing to attack. One of them made some seals and drew lines made of gold in the air. Grey felt his heart palpitate just from watching the lines come to life. At first, he thought it was something like what the Old man did when he was fighting with him the previous time. At the end, he realized this was completely different, it was an array. For some reason, after the man completed the array, he felt himself being shackled, and moving seemed very difficult for him. He didn¡¯t think too much about it, but when he wanted to use the space element to move closer to them, he noticed the difference¡­ he was unable to use the space element. Since this person used this from the start, it meant that the Old man must¡¯ve told him about his abilities. ¡®This will not be easy.¡¯ Grey thought to himself. The trio were prepared to fight with him, and since they knew of some of his abilities, they could neutralize some. One of the abilities Grey had grown used to when fighting was his space element. It was very vital to over eighty percent of his victories since acquiring it. Not being able to use it is bad news for him. Scales appeared on his body, and he exploded out with shocking speed, his target, the man with the scar in his neck. He was the one who created this array that blocked the space element, as long as he could take him out, then he would win. Grey appeared in front of the man in a flash and threw a blow. Just as the blow was about to hit the man, he didn¡¯t feel any sort of contact and knew that the man dodged the attack. ¡®Huh?¡¯ He was a bit confused since the man was still in front of him, but he soon understood. ¡®It phased through.¡¯ This was an ability Grey was very familiar with, he occasionally uses it too. It was something from the space element. Now Grey understood why this man was able to completely seal the space in the area. He was also a Space Elementalist, and with that, he knew the ins and outs of the space element. ¡®Damn it!¡¯ He couldn¡¯t help but complain. He left the man alone and tried to get the other man who came with this man. The Old man hurriedly attacked, using the fire element to send out a snake that chased after him. The other man of the duo was a Water Elementalist. Seeing Grey come in his direction, the man created an ice dome to block Grey¡¯s attack before creating ice spikes around him, hoping to pierce Grey with one of them as he approached. Grey unleashed his fire domain, increasing the heat to the pick, and before he even got close, the Water Elementalist among the duo was open for him to attack. The ice dome the Water Elementalist created was useless against Grey¡¯s domain. The Water Elementalist was stunned when he saw this and couldn¡¯t help but freak out, he hastily created a stream of water and sent it to Grey. I think you should take a look at Grey¡¯s domain made light work of the water and he was left defenseless against him. He didn¡¯t even waste any time and attacked, sending a blow in his direction. The blow was enhanced with all his elements. Although he wanted to fight them on his own, he still didn¡¯t want to take any chances. The opportunity presented itself for him to take one person out at the start, and he naturally wouldn¡¯t miss it. The Water Elementalist tried to block it with his hands, but when Grey¡¯s fist hit his arm, he was sent flying. The bones in his hands shattered from the start, not even giving him the chance to block. Luckily for him, he was able to use it to his advantage and keep his life. The slight delay he got from using his hands to block was enough for him to retreat. The Fire Elementalist and the Space Elementalist quickly came to his side before Grey could come close to him and end him. With the duo by his side, he started to heal, reforging his bones. The bones would not be as strong as they previously were since they were just destroyed, but after a few weeks of constant nurture, they can return to the previous state, stronger even. ¡°You little piece of shit! I¡¯ll kill you!¡± He yelled in pain, exuding unbridled killing intent. Now, not just the Old man wants Grey dead, even this Water Elementalist wants to kill Grey. Grey looked at him and felt a bit annoyed that he was unable to kill him. But he didn¡¯t attack again, he was trying to see if he could break the array the Space Elementalist made. If he can, then he would be able to deal with them faster than supposed. ¡°Kid, why are you endangering yourself? Hand us your treasures and we¡¯ll let you leave.¡± The Space Elementalist said. ¡°Go? Go? We¡¯re killing him! Even if he gives us the world!¡± The Old man would never let Grey leave, especially with this two with him. The Space Elementalist looked at the Old man, his gaze cold. He wanted to see if Grey would hand over his items. That way, if they were unable to kill him, they would still get something from it. But the Old man seems so bent on killing Grey that he lost his reasoning. Grey looked at the Old man, ¡°I like honest people. I¡¯m an honest person myself.¡± When the Old man heard Grey call himself an honest person, he felt like killing someone that moment. How could Grey, someone who had tricked him once, and almost killed him with a trick twice, say he¡¯s an honest person? ¡°You¡­¡± The Old man wanted to speak, but stopped. ¡°Kid, we won¡¯t kill you. Give us the things and go.¡± The Space Elementalist said. ¡°He doesn¡¯t have the same thoughts as you.¡± Grey pointed at the Old man. ¡°You don¡¯t need to worry about him. As long as we don¡¯t help him, he won¡¯t dare to attack you.¡± The Space Elementalist said. Grey thought about it for a while, and seeing the expression of the Old man, he nodded and tossed a ring at them. The Space Elementalist wanted to catch the ring, but after what happened the last time, he forced the ring back to Grey. ¡°How can we know you¡¯re not messing with us?¡± He asked. ¡°Tell someone to check it.¡± Grey said, then pointed at the Old man, ¡°He¡¯s fond of checking rings, why don¡¯t he do it?¡± The duo looked at the Old man and the Space Elementalist nodded, ¡°Alright, he¡¯ll check it.¡± The Old man looked at them, and just as he was about to argue, he saw the cold gaze of the duo. ¡°Fine.¡± He didn¡¯t want to check it, but he didn¡¯t really have a choice in this situation. If the duo teamed up with Grey, the chances of him escaping was very small. He stretched his hand towards the ring, grabbing it. 1203 Can We Call It A Day? Grey wore a grin on his face as he looked at the Old man holding onto the ring. He could visibly see how scared the Old man was and couldn¡¯t help but chuckle. The Old man looked at Grey, and the feeling of fear enveloped him. He took a peek into the ring with his spiritual senses and hastily retreated, setting up multiple defenses. However, after retreating, he paused and a confused expression appeared on his face. The reason for that was because he didn¡¯t see anything harmful inside, rather, there were multiple things of value inside. He quickly sent his spiritual senses into the ring again, and just as he thought, it was filled with treasures. His eyes lit up and looked at the other two and nodded. ¡°His things are here.¡± The Old man grabbed the ring which he had used his spiritual senses to keep afloat, his previous expression was gone and a smile was on his face. Grey looked at the Old man with an amused smile, he didn¡¯t know if to laugh or not. He really did pass on a ring with some treasures to them, he wanted to see how they would react. The duo walked over to where the Old man was standing and just when they were about to take the ring, Grey snapped his finger. ¡°Boom!¡± He said softly. The sound echoed in the ears of the Old man and the duo and they retreated. ¡°What? Did I scare you?¡± Grey asked with a playful laugh. The Old man composed himself, but before he could grab the ring, the duo had taken it. The Space Elementalist was the one who took the ring, and he was about to check the items inside, he felt a grave sense of danger and without hesitation, he tried to toss the ring away while also teleporting away. Boom! The ring exploded, engulfing all three of them. Even the Space Elementalist was unable to escape from it. Void appeared on Grey¡¯s shoulder and said, ¡°I took some things I liked.¡± Grey¡¯s smile faded when he heard this and he tried to grab Void, unfortunately, Void was too fast for him. Given his small size, it was easy for him to leave Grey behind. ¡®I¡¯ll stop giving you anything I cook if you don¡¯t return them.¡¯ He threatened Void who had gone back to where the bunny leader and Cori were watching from. Although the Space Elementalist locked down the space in the area, it was targeted at only Grey, Void had no issues with removing all the treasures from the ring and replacing them with the fusion orbs Grey had created. When Void heard Grey¡¯s threat, he sighed in defeat. He didn¡¯t want to miss Grey¡¯s cooking for something that wasn¡¯t even important. He could get some of the things on his own if he wanted. Even if he asked Grey for some, Grey would hand them over to him. He returned the items to Grey while grumbling. Grey could care less about Void¡¯s grumblings. He was still checking the items in his ring when he sensed danger. He wanted to teleport, but then realized he was still unable to use the space element. His body was covered with lightning and dodged to the side. The Space Elementalist appeared and slashed out with a powerful spatial slash that caused a spatial tear in the air. His face was badly mutilated from the explosion. He was the closest to the ring and even with all his abilities, he was almost defenseless against the attack. After confirming from the Old man that the ring was filled with treasure, and seeing the eagerness in the eyes of the Old man as he tried to retake the ring, he dropped all defenses. Not just him, but the Old man and his companion were also injured by the explosion, only, his case was worse. Grey stood across the man and wore an innocent face, ¡°What did I do to you?¡± ¡°I¡¯ll kill you, boy.¡± The Space Elementalist said. The Water Elementalist appeared and attacked Grey, alongside the Old man whose face and body was badly mangled. He had suffered from the same attack in the space of twenty-four hours, and his innards were currently a mess. Even his core had started showing signs of crumbling down. Grey looked at the Old man who was in such a state and couldn¡¯t help but laugh, ¡°You always fall for it.¡± The Old man looked at Grey and felt like giving him the most brutal death possible. ¡°You¡¯ll suffer for the rest of your days, I¡¯ll make sure you die the most gruesome death possible.¡± The Old man said, seething with anger. ¡°I don¡¯t think you¡¯re capable of achieving such a feat.¡± Grey said softly. The Water Elementalist sent a stream of fire at Grey, and even the Space Elementalist attacked once again. Grey used the lightning element, and a little bit of the wind element to dodge the attacks, he drew closer to the Space Elementalist and he unleashed the gravitational force field. I think you should take a look at Arrays lit up in the sky and started attacking the Water Elementalist and the Old man, stopping them from getting close to Grey or the Space Elementalist. The sudden change in the gravity took the Space Elementalist by surprise and he fell to the ground, unable to stand up. Grey got close to him and attacked, sending his body flying. The Space Elementalist wanted to use the space element to dodge it, but he realized he was unable to use the space element. While his figure was still in the air, Grey appeared beside him, clenched his fists and smiled. ¡°Do you think you¡¯re the only one good with arrays? Bam! Grey¡¯s fist hit the back of the Space Elementalist and he slammed into the ground with full force, causing a crater on the ground. The Water Elementalist, seeing his companion taken down with such an attack, had the urge to leave. Unfortunately, Grey would not allow that. ¡°I¡¯m a very vengeful person, since you attacked me and tried to kill me. I¡¯ll do the same to you.¡± Grey¡¯s voice lingered in the ears of the Water Elementalist as he tried to escape. Grey appeared, and like a lightning god, he pointed at the Water Elementalist and a large lightning bolt fell from the sky, striking the Water Elementalist. The Old man turned around, and without hesitation, he fled. Grey would never let him escape, just as he was about to chase after him, he noticed a powerful aura coming from the place the Space Elementalist crashed. He knew that Space Elementalist wouldn¡¯t die from the attack, but seeing him come out this early and with such an aura, he knew things were about to get serious. ?andasnovel¡¤?om ¡°Die!¡± With eyes wide open, he attacked the Old man. The Old man could barely understand what was happening as his figure was cut in two by a spatial tear. After killing the Old man, a portal appeared and consumed the Old man. The eyes of the Space Elementalist was blood red as he looked at Grey. Grey felt like he was a lonely boat in a storm in the sea. The eyes of the Space Elementalist carried so much pressure that even Grey felt it. He only felt the pressure for a brief moment, his eyes glowed with a pale blue light and he stared right into the eyes of the Space Elementalist. The Water Elementalist walked towards the Space Elementalist and his aura also changed. Grey looked at the duo and said, ¡°Since he¡¯s dead, why don¡¯t we call it a day?¡± The Space Elementalist¡¯s eyes were cold as he replied, ¡°Unless you¡¯re dead, you¡¯re not leaving this place.¡± Grey shrugged, ¡°I tried. He¡¯s already dead, and if you want to join him, I¡¯ll indulge you.¡± The Water Elementalist was covered with ice armor as his figure floated up. The Space Elementalist grabbed the air and the array that Grey had modified shattered like a glass. Grey was surrounded by blue flames which was had tiny silver arcs around it. He was utilizing both the lightning and fire domain. The duo had increased their strength, and other than the Fusion State, he had other ways to increase his strength. But he didn¡¯t have any plans of doing that now. At the moment, the pressure he was getting from the duo was that of someone close to the Peak of the Elemental Venerable Plane. Fighting one would be very tough task, much less fighting against two at the same time. He looked up and the sky darkened as a storm cloud appeared in the area. The Space Elementalist took a step and the ground shook, he vanished and appeared beside Grey in an instant. Grey used the gravitational force field, but felt a powerful repulsion force that sent him flying. 1204 Top Tier Space Elementalist Grey flipped mid-air and turned to look at the Space Elementalist, who had used a technique he was quite familiar with. Before he could balance himself mid-air, he felt a strong suction force dragging him in the direction of the Space Elementalist. The Water Elementalist appeared from behind the Space Elementalist and a large sword made from ice slashed at Grey. Grey opened his mouth and spat out a large stream of fire, cutting the ice sword into two. That wasn¡¯t the end, he continued with two inscriptions appearing in the sky and attacking the duo. The Space Elementalist made a slashing motion with his hand and the two inscriptions were but in two by a powerful spatial tear. The Water Elementalist looked at Grey and a snowstorm started. He was a bit taken aback, since he wasn¡¯t the one who did this. Grey smirked and ice armor appeared on his body. A large ice sword appeared in the sky, the color of the ice had a darker blue compared to regular ice. Just like Klaus, Grey also learned how to increase the water pressure as well. With the current pressure of water, a normal human would die if caught inside, only Elementalists whose bodies have been tempered by the elements can survive it. Using this water to create ice makes the ice over five times stronger than regular ice. Klaus could already increase the water pressure to a state that it increases his ice attributes by almost ten times. Grey had other elements to work on so he can¡¯t obviously focus on just the water element. The ice sword, reinforced with the heavy water and also the snowstorm shot at the Space Elementalist. The Space Elementalist tried to use the space element to cut the sword open, but he was stunned when he noticed it was harder than he expected. The Water Elementalist made a water dome and tried to contain the ice sword inside, trying to stop it from moving forward. The second the ice sword touched the water dome, the water started to show signs of freezing. The Water Elementalist was stunned by the development. He never expected Grey¡¯s ice sword would affect the water dome he created. Even Grey was a bit stunned when he saw this. But it was nothing for him to worry about. The dome froze and shattered after being pierced by the ice sword. The Space Elementalist hastily retreated, dragging the Water Elementalist along. The ice sword stabbed the ground the second they left the place, almost hitting the Water Elementalist who was slightly slower in reacting. Luckily, he was helped by the Space Elementalist. Grey didn¡¯t stop, his fire and lightning domain engulfed the duo. Lightning bolts shot out from the domain, attacking the duo. The Space Elementalist created a space cloak around his body and was able to successfully block all the lightning bolts coming his way. The Water Elementalist created another water dome, but this time, it wasn¡¯t overpowered by Grey¡¯s attacks. Since the lightning bolts weren¡¯t as powerful as Grey¡¯s usual attacks, they could casually block all of them. Grey charged into the place and used the gravitational force field, but the Space Elementalist was able to counter it. Forcing Grey back with an unexpected attack. Grey took a few steps back and saw a spatial tear in front of him. The attack power of the Space Elementalist was very strong, adding the fact that he was a Space Elementalist, he had a very strong grasp on using the space to his advantage. Grey was still too young and hadn¡¯t used the space element as much as the Space Elementalist, so he was lacking in this area. Even Void might not be able to match the Space Elementalist in terms of controlling space. The Water Elementalist struck while Grey was retreating, making spikes shoot out from the ground. Grey rose into the air the moment a spike came out from where his feet were. He raised his arm and different weapons made with the earth element appeared in the sky. The weapons were not only made with the earth element, but with a combination of the fire element as well. Each weapon had lava running across it, and they were quite large, at least four meters long. Grey dropped his hand and the weapons started to fall in the places where the Space and Water Elementalists were standing. The duo started to dodge, but the more they dodged, the more the weapons dropped on them. They could barely keep up with the speed of the attacks. With the multitude of elements Grey had at his disposal, it was easy for him to fight against multiple elements with ease. Grey stepped on the ground and made it shake. His body covered with scales shot at them, shortening the gap between them. He struck out a blow, aiming for where the Water Elementalist was moving to. I think you should take a look at The Water Elementalist saw the strike late, but luckily, his ice armor was on. The armor helped him block off some of the power of the strike, but he was still sent flying. After sending the Water Elementalist flying, Grey felt a sense of danger and hastily tried to withdraw his hand, but he was too slow. ?andasnovel¡¤?om He felt a sharp pain in his hand and without hesitation, he used the space element and the rest of the attack phased through. By the time he did this, the attack sent his way had cut through half of his hand. Had he been a second slower in reacting, his hand would¡¯ve been cut off from the wrist. He turned his head to see the Space Elementalist who was still dodging the attacks of the falling weapons looking at him with a deadly gaze. ¡®Shit! I was too careless.¡¯ He thought internally. He originally felt with the attacks keeping them busy, the Space Elementalist would not have the time to help his companion. He didn¡¯t expect that the Space Elementalist had kept his eyes on him all through, and attacked him at the right time. To get the accurate timing, he had to wait until Grey¡¯s fist hit the Water Elementalist before his attack got to the designated location. This meant that he attacked, all with the hope that his companion could not block Grey¡¯s attack and would then be sent flying, leaving Grey¡¯s arm open for attack. Grey felt a bit fearful at the thought process of the Space Elementalist, he was simply too daring. The light element got to work and started to heal the place that was cut. He couldn¡¯t help but feel thankful that he was able to increase the grade of his light element when he used that trial in that secret realm. His armor seemed to have suffered from the previous attacks of these people, so it was unable to stop that attack. The Water Elementalist stood up from the rubble he was in and nodded to the Space Elementalist before sending a jetstream of water. The stream was very thin but possessed unimaginable cutting power. The stream of water passed through all the earth weapons falling from the sky and cut them in two. Grey sighed when he saw this. This was the toughest battle he had gotten involved in since coming to the Chaos Battlefield, and he was fully enjoying every bit of it. He charged into battle once again they started to exchange blows. The Space Elementalist was in charge of escaping and attacking secretly while the Water Elementalist was the main attacker. The synergy between them was top notch and Grey soon started to feel the difference between them and others. If there were four more of these people, Grey would be in serious trouble. He had tried to switch places with the Water Elementalist on multiple occasions, but the Space Elementalist had stopped him without fail. When he tried to switch places with the Space Elementalist, he was almost thrown into a spatial turbulence and didn¡¯t dare to attempt it again. The Space Elementalist truly was on another level in terms of his control of the space element. Boom! Bam! Grey crashed into the cave, destroying the upper part of it. The Water Elementalist couldn¡¯t stop Grey¡¯s attack from hitting his hand. The attack almost cut off his arm, but he managed to stop it. Grey crawled out of the cave, breathing heavily. Not just him, but the Water and Space Elementalists were also catching their breaths. They never thought Grey would be this difficult to deal with. Even after using their ultimate attacks, they were still unable to take each other out. Grey opened his palm and a fusion orb appeared. This was the only thing he knew made the duo apprehensive of him. Seeing the fusion orb, the Space Elementalist took a step forward and Grey could feel the space around them shake. It was almost as if the Space Elementalist could summon spatial turbulences. 1205 Anyone Who Intervenes Dies The area around Grey started to show signs of cracking and he noticed the fusion orb was shaking. Whatever the Space Elementalist was doing at the moment was messing with the elemental energy in the area, making it hard for Grey to keep the fusion orb stable. Seeing this, Grey decided to improvise. There was still the golden energy he acquired here, but he had barely used it since obtaining it. He wanted to see if he added it to the fusion orb, what reactions it would have. He had never attempted it before, but he was inspired during the battle and wanted to try it out now. Golden energy appeared on his palm and slowly started to merge with the fusion orb. The rate at which the orb was shaking started to increase, and before long, small arcs could be seen on the surface of the orb, it was no longer smooth. Thin threads of energy could be seen sticking out of it. With the addition of the golden energy, Grey felt a shocking amount of power hidden within it, not just that, but it has regained its calmness, no longer showing any signs of wanting to fall apart. Grey chuckled to himself, elated by his quick wittedness. He would¡¯ve been forced to discard the fusion orb by whatever the Space Elementalist did, but after adding the golden energy, it got stronger and more stable. He tossed the fusion orb in their direction, and just as it was getting closer, it vanished. All signs of the attack vanished, and the Space Elementalist tried to sense if Grey was using the space element to move the orb. However, try as he may, he was unable to sense anything regarding the attack. It was like it never existed. Even Grey had a somewhat confused look on his face. The attack he put so much into vanished just like that. Just as they were about to continue the fight¡­ the Space Elementalist felt a powerful force hit his chest. A hole the size of the fusion orb appeared on his chest and accompanying it was an explosion that sent him flying. The Water Elementalist was left dumbstruck by the sudden turn of events. From the aura he sensed, he was certain that it was the fusion orb that vanished a second ago, but he didn¡¯t understand how it came back after disappearing. ¡°What? How?¡± He questioned in disbelief. ¡°Don¡¯t ask me, I¡¯m still as shocked as you are.¡± Grey replied, still stunned by what happened. When the attack reappeared, he almost couldn¡¯t believe his eyes. ¡®This is a new discovery. Even I can¡¯t sense it, but it¡¯s still very much aware of its target.¡¯ He speculated. He didn¡¯t know anything about how this attack works for now, but it is definitely going to be one of his hidden cards later on. With this, he can take anyone unaware. Well, once more people know about it, it wouldn¡¯t have that element of surprise any more, but it was still something worth having. The Water Elementalist rushed to where the Space Elementalist crashed and saw the large hole in the chest of the Space Elementalist. The Space Elementalist was bleeding profusely from the hole, and even when he tried to open his mouth, blood was the only thing that came out. His internal organs were currently hanging out from the hole in his stomach. Not just his chest, but even his stomach was blown open. The force of the attack is something he didn¡¯t dare to imagine. First off, he was defenseless against it, and even though he tried to act quickly, he was still a bit too late and managed to only ensure his heart wasn¡¯t destroyed. He protected some other vital parts, but left the rest. I think you should take a look at Right now, he was feeling pains all over, but he kept his head focused on the main issue, he could get killed in such a state. He could barely fight at the moment, much less try to defeat Grey. ¡°We¡¯re leaving.¡± He managed to cough out this little words. The Water Elementalist nodded and used the water element to keep his body intact before picking him up. Grey, seeing this, took a step forward. He was still raring to go. ¡°Where do you think you¡¯re going?¡± He asked coldly, his gaze on the wounded Space Elementalist. ¡°That garbage is dead, why don¡¯t we call it a day?¡± The Water Elementalist replied. ¡°I¡¯m sorry, I¡¯ve moved on from that state. Remember I said the same thing before you two tried to kill?¡± Grey answered with a chuckle. He said this after the Space Elementalist killed the Old man, but they refused and even tried to kill him. Of course he was not going to let them go now that all the advantages lays with him. He would kill them. This has always been how he was. ¡°Kid, you¡¯re a foreigner. Don¡¯t make an enemy of the natives here, you will regret it.¡± The Water Elementalist warned. ¡°This is not the first time I¡¯m making an enemy of natives in another realm.¡± Grey snorted coldly. Even the Gnomes wanted him dead, who were these people he should be scared of? The duo realized Grey had no plans of letting them go. ¡°Hmph! We¡¯ll see how you¡¯re going to make it out of here.¡± The Space Elementalist said softly. He could sense the aura of other Elemental Venerables rushing to the place. ?andasnovel¡¤?om ¡°Anyone who dares to intervene will meet the same fate as you two. Remember, I only had an issue with people from the Tekik Family in a Town, the Old man intervened and he¡¯s dead now, you two did the same, and are about to face your deaths.¡± Grey replied calmly. The duo looked at the Grey, the confidence in his words. ¡®Anyone who intervenes will die, no matter who the person is.¡¯ 1206 I Dont Care Grey and the duo faced off when seven Elemental Venerables appeared. The one with the highest cultivation stage was just in the Fifth stage. When they arrived, seeing the state of the place and the conditions of the Space and Water Elementalists, they turned to the young figure who was standing opposite them. ¡°What¡¯s going on here?¡± One of them asked. ?andasnovel¡¤?om ¡°Haha, aren¡¯t you ashamed? Lying against me.¡± Grey laughed and gave the Water Elementalist a look of disdain. He turned to the seven Elemental Venerables and said, ¡°They attempted to kill me, but are too weak, so I¡¯m returning the favor.¡± Grey¡¯s words might be simple, but everyone understood the underlying meaning behind them. If you join the fight, as long as I¡¯m stronger, I will definitely kill you. ¡°My young friend, you came to our world to train and hunt for treasures. With your strength, I believe you must have gotten a fair amount of treasures. There are few places you will feel any form of danger. Why don¡¯t you let them go?¡± An Old man in the group said. He was in the Second stage of the Elemental Venerable Plane, but when speaking, everyone looked at him with respect. Grey guessed he might¡¯ve been a big shot while the others were younger. ¡°You¡¯re right. There are few places I feel any form of danger. But I¡¯m a principled person, as long as I sense any form of killing intent from anyone, I¡¯ll strike back.¡± Grey spoke to the Old man in a respectful manner. The Old man thought about it and looked at the duo, the Space Elementalist was already on his last leg, the Water Elementalist didn¡¯t look good either. From his assessment, it was obvious that Grey had beaten them to this state. He turned to look at Grey, and he could barely see any form of injury on his body. Other than his clothes which were destroyed and his disheveled hair, he would have thought Grey only came here a few seconds ago. ¡®How did they get entangled with such a figure?¡¯ The Old man thought to himself. He understood what Grey meant. To be honest, most Elementalists are like this. If they sense anyone as a threat and are stronger than them, they would naturally want to take that person out with any chance they get. He also had such a character. ¡°Are you willing to offend all of us just because of your vengeful attitude?¡± A middle-aged lady snorted coldly, ¡°Kid, you better do as he says and let them go.¡± Grey chuckled when he heard the middle-aged lady¡¯s words, he turned to her and said, ¡°I should be the one asking you that question, are you willing to offend me because of them?¡± The lady snorted when she heard Grey¡¯s words, she hated the pride with which he was using to speak. From Grey¡¯s words, it was clear that he didn¡¯t put them in his eyes and it infuriated her, not just her, but the others as well. Of all seven who just arrived, only the Old man didn¡¯t seem to have any sort of reaction to Grey¡¯s statement. From Grey¡¯s attitude, he didn¡¯t think he was clouded with pride, rather, it was the utmost confidence in his abilities. Any Elementalist with such confidence in their abilities are frightening figures. One of the things that made the Old man cautious of Grey was the fact that, against seven people, Grey still showed no signs of backing down. He still wanted to do what was on his mind. That alone was enough to tell the Old man that Grey was not scared of them. In fact, there¡¯s a possibility that he would be able to kill all of them if they teamed up against him. I think you should take a look at ¡®How did such a monster get conceived?¡¯ He looked at Grey, and almost wished he was his son, or even grandson. Having such a fine character as a child was something to be proud of. The Old man placed his hand on the shoulder of the man who was in the Fifth stage of the Elemental Venerable Plane and shook his head. His motive was obvious, don¡¯t get involved in this. The man was shocked by the Old man¡¯s intentions. ¡°Fa¡­¡± The Old man shook his head once again, not letting the man finish his words. The man nodded and moved to the side. Now, the Old man and the man in the Fifth stage of the Elemental Venerable had separated themselves from the other five who had the intent of attacking Grey. ¡°Arthel, what¡¯s the meaning of this?¡± The middle-aged lady asked. The man, referred to as Arthel replied, ¡°Myself and my father will not involve ourselves with this.¡± The middle-aged lady was about to speak when a man in the Third stage stepped forward, ¡°You and your father have always been cowards, I¡¯m not surprised you¡¯re afraid of a little boy.¡± The Old man and Arthel didn¡¯t respond to whatever they said and moved even further away from them. The Water Elementalist looked at the Old man with a serious gaze, to be honest, if he had made the same decision, they wouldn¡¯t be in such a predicament. Unfortunately, they were clouded by greed and got involved in the battle. Although they were tricked at the start, it didn¡¯t change the fact that Grey actively wanted to stop the battle. The Space Elementalist had been able to regain some strength, ¡°Kill him, I¡¯ll reward you heavily.¡± At the moment, his eyes were glued to Grey¡¯s spatial ring, there was something in Grey¡¯s ring that could heal his current state, he wanted it. ¡°Get his ring. That¡¯s the best way I can recover. Cut off his hand if you have to, just get his ring.¡± He said to the Water Elementalist. ¡°What if he tricks us again?¡± The Water Elementalist still had fear from the last time Grey gave them a ring. ¡°I don¡¯t care!¡± 1207 Preparing A New Recipe For Grey The Space Elementalist wanted the item Grey showed them at the start, the core that could heal his current wounds. If he can lay his hands on that, he wouldn¡¯t need to spend a long time in seclusion trying to recover, he would recover instantly and fight against Grey even. Grey didn¡¯t know the plans of the Space and Water Elementalists at the moment, his eyes were on the five people who wanted to join the battle. If he added the Water Elementalist to it, it would make them six. Even with that number, he still showed zero fears. Without the Space Elementalist, he didn¡¯t need to fear anyone here. Even if ten more people came, so long as none of them was above the Fifth stage of the Elemental Venerable Plane, he didn¡¯t have any fears. This didn¡¯t mean that he wasn¡¯t wary of some of these people. He didn¡¯t know their abilities, and if it¡¯s something that could stop some of his abilities, then he would have a tough time. ¡°We¡¯ll kill him, together.¡± The Water Elementalist said to the five. The five nodded and came close to the Space Elementalist. His condition made a few of them take another glance at Grey, and they showed signs of hesitation. The Space Elementalist was stronger than them, but he was beaten to such a state by Grey, who didn¡¯t have any physical injuries on his body. That alone shows the disparity between them. If Grey could beat the Space Elementalist to this state, it was unknown what he would do to them. ¡°Be careful of his space element. His fire, water, lightning, and earth element are powerful as well. Make sure there¡¯s someone to support you and don¡¯t attack him rashly.¡± The Water Elementalist gave them a series of warnings. After he felt he had warned them enough, he took the lead. Grey was powerful, no doubt, but the Water Elementalist felt that with the people beside him, they should be able to win the fight. ¡°Wait, give me anything that can heal me that¡¯s on you. I¡¯ll recover and join the battle as soon as I can.¡± The Space Elementalist stopped them. The five didn¡¯t hesitate and handed over treasures that could heal injuries. The items might not be on the same level as what the Space Elementalist wanted from Grey¡¯s ring, but they would definitely help his current state. Hopefully, he can join them in battle and kill Grey. He would heal up completely after killing Grey. Taking a look at the five, he threw a glance at the Old man and Arthel. He grunted softly and walked to the side to heal his wounds. ¡­. On the side. Cori, Void, and the bunny leader were watching the scene. ¡°Is he going to be alright?¡± Cori asked, worried about Grey¡¯s well-being. ¡°He¡¯s fine. These people can¡¯t kill him.¡± Void replied, while gulping down the meat they bought from the restaurants in the City.I think you should take a look at It was quite succulent and there was a difference in the cooking pattern compared to how Grey usually cooks. He suggested that they kidnapped one of the cooks so they could get the recipe, but Grey declined, with the excuse of not being able to cook as he used to. Void didn¡¯t argue since he knew Grey was right. With him going into seclusion, trying to grow stronger, searching for treasures, and staying alive with so many people wanting to kill him, he barely had the leisure time to cook again. Even though he occasionally cooks, it is quite rare now, and the days are few and far apart. Void didn¡¯t mind and still kidnapped one of the cooks, he got the recipe. And even got a few of the ingredients for the food. Whenever Grey plans on cooking again, he would pass it to him. Like Void, the bunny leader was not worried about Grey¡¯s well-being. He had traveled with them for a few months and knew just how powerful Grey was. Even if Grey could not kill these people, he wouldn¡¯t be defeated by them either. Cori looked at the nonchalant expression of the duo, and was more shocked at how the bunny leader was eating meat with a pleased face. She had always thought that bunnies only ate vegetables and herbs, but the bunny leader has proved her thoughts wrong. Not only did it like eating meat, but it even openly said that eating meet was better than those herbs. According to it, meats were much more tasty than those herbs. She didn¡¯t feel it was wrong though, after taking in a few well cooked meat from the City, she knew that compared to the few low leveled herbs she had eaten, meat was far superior. It even had essence inside, just as potent as the herbs she had eaten. ¡­. Grey had no idea Void was planning on how to get him to cook for him, or Cori¡¯s worries. He was only focused on the people before him. With a flash, his figure moved and he headed for the middle-aged lady who instigated the others into fighting with him. The middle-aged lady was in the Second stage, seeing Grey vanish, she naturally was alarmed. With the strength of everyone here, she was one of the weakest and felt Grey would want to reduce the numbers as soon as he could. The Space Elementalist was not as powerful as he previously was, so tracking Grey in the void was very difficult. Just as he sensed Grey, Grey appeared in front of the middle-aged lady. ¡°Look out!¡± He yelled, warning the lady of Grey¡¯s arrival. Grey appeared in front of her and his hand which was covered with lightning, the lightning shaped like a blade pierced through the heart of the lady. The lady saw Grey and felt a sharp pain in her chest. She hurriedly retreated. Even though her heart had been pierced, she could still survive as long as she healed up. 1208 Just You Two The others reacted the moment Grey attacked the middle-aged lady, drawing closer to him. Even though they were close to her, they were unable to sense Grey¡¯s appearance. Of the other four, there was another Space Elementalist, but compared to the first Space Elementalist Grey was fighting with, he was still lacking. There was no way he would be able to sense Grey¡¯s movements in the void. Grey, on the other hand, can keep track of his movements. The others got close and attacked Grey, with the hope of forcing him to leave the lady alone. Grey couldn¡¯t be bothered with their attacks, only the attack of the Water Elementalist could threaten him, and when the attack got close to him, it phased right through him hitting the ground. His armor and physical body could take the current attacks these people were sending at him. None of them had an attack power as strong as him, so there was almost no need to bother about them. He shortened the distance between him and the middle-aged lady, and attacked her head, destroying it with the next attack. The expressions of the other four who joined the battle changed drastically. It hadn¡¯t even been up to a minute and Grey had already killed one of them. If the heart was destroyed there was still hope for an Elementalist, but once the head was destroyed completely, the spiritual consciousness of that Elementalist would quickly start to dissipate. Unless there was a top spiritual Elementalist close by, there was no way for that person to survive. A spiritual Elementalist was very rare, even rarer than Multi Elementalists. These are people that only focus on strengthening their spiritual senses and forgo improving their elemental essences. The only way this is possible is when you have people protecting you. A Spiritual Elementalist is almost useless until the Sage Plane. In the same Plane, a Spiritual Elementalist has almost zero advantages over his opponents, only after getting to the Sage Plane could they affect those in the same stage as they were. In some cases, some could affect those higher than them. The benefit of being a Spiritual Elementalist is that even if your head is destroyed, not just your head, but your entire body, you can still come back to life as long as your spiritual energy is strong. Only a few people decide to take this path since it was fraught with danger and death. Very few people make it to the Sage Plane, so others refused to take this path. ¡­. The others could only give up when they saw the head of the middle-aged lady destroyed. They knew there was no way to get her back. After killing the middle-aged lady, Grey didn¡¯t stop there, rather, he turned to the other person in the Second stage of the Elemental Venerable Plane. His plan was simple: take out the weaklings and fight against the strong ones. The only bad thing for these people was that there was no strong one. Other than the Space Elementalist who was injured, Grey didn¡¯t think there was anyone else who could give him any sort of trouble. The only reason the Space Elementalist was special was that he was better than Grey when it came to the space element, and used his advantage to the fullest. The next person was the Space Elementalist. He was only in the Second stage of the Elemental Venerable Plane. When Grey targeted him, he could barely react before he was blown to smithereens. Just like the middle-aged lady, he was unable to defend against him. With the death of two people, the other three started to feel fear and without hesitation, they retreated. They were supposed to be the ones with the advantage, but against Grey, it was like they were useless. I think you should take a look at ?andasnovel¡¤?om Grey saw the trio stopped attacking, and even the Water Elementalist stopped and chuckled, ¡°You don¡¯t understand. The moment I see you attack, I will attack as well.¡± The pupils of the trio constricted. They thought Grey would let them go if they stopped attacking, but Grey clearly didn¡¯t have any thoughts of stopping. And from how he took the storage rings of the people he killed, it was obvious that he wanted their treasures as well. ¡°We can give you our rings. All our possessions are there. Take it and let us leave.¡± The strongest amongst the group said. Of the trio, he was the one who felt the luckiest. If Grey had started from the strongest, he was certain that he would¡¯ve died without a doubt. From Grey¡¯s attacks, he knew he couldn¡¯t fight against him. On the side, Arther looked at his father. ¡°I told you, my intuition never lies.¡± The Old man said with a proud smile. Arther wanted to get involved in the fight when he saw the gaze the Space Elementalist used in looking at them, but the Old man stopped him. Although he couldn¡¯t understand why, he still chose to believe the Old man and held back. At the moment, he couldn¡¯t help but feel thankful. Grey was too strong. Now he understood why the Space Elementalist was in such a state, and wanted help. Even two of the Space Elementalist wouldn¡¯t be enough to stop Grey. The trio, who were still alive, handed their rings to Grey under the eyes of the Space and Water Elementalist. The Water Elementalist felt like his world was crumbling down while the Space Elementalist was trying to heal as fast as he could. Against Grey, only when he was at his Peak could he escape. Grey took the rings of the trio and told them to wait. He promised not to kill them, only to check their treasuries. They were the strongest in their families and naturally had the key to their treasuries. The trio nodded and went to the side. ¡°And then there¡¯s two.¡± 1209 My Father Wants A Word With You Chapter 1209 My Father Wants A Word With You "What are you doing? He''s going to kill you anyway. Stall him for some time, I''ll be able to fight soon." The Space Elementalist said angrily. He never thought that even these three would chicken out of the battle in such a pathetic manner. All Grey had done was to kill two people, and they were already scared for their lives. "I''m sorry, Lord Nicola, we can''t fight against him. You can punish us later." The middle-aged man said with a straight face. The eyes of the Space Elementalist turned cold, he understood what the middle-aged man was saying, the possibility of him surviving this battle was quite low, this was something he was certain of. How would he be able to punish them if he was dead? The Water Elementalist turned to the Space Elementalist, his facial expression sour. Things were not looking good for them. "What do we do now?" He asked softly. "Don''t worry." The Space Elementalist reassured him and turned to the Old man, his eyes trailed on the body of the Old man for a while before he looked at Arthel, "Help me, I''ll give that item to you." Arthel felt moved when he heard this, he had been trying to get a special item from the Space Elementalist for years now, he even offered to trade for it, but the Space Elementalist had always refused to give it to him. This was something that would make his cultivation not only increase faster, but it was very good for improving his elemental strength. The eyes of the Space Elementalist didn''t leave Arthel''s body as he awaited his response. Arthel looked at the Old man, and he saw him shake his head. He couldn''t help but sigh and turn to the Space Elementalist. "Any other time, I would''ve helped you." Arthel shook his head, "But in this situation, even if I want to help, I can''t." The Space Elementalist kept a straight face when he heard Arthel''s reply. He clenched his fists tightly, it was as if he could sense death looming around him. No one wanted to help him, even after offering a life-changing item as reward, they still refused to help. "Don''t die." He muttered to the Water Elementalist. Hearing this statement, the Water Elementalist understood what the Space Elementalist wanted to do. The Space Elementalist was planning to sacrifice himself for him. Grey heard this and smirked, there was no way he was going to let any of them leave. The Water Elementalist had already been marked by him, so no matter how far he runs, he would still be able to find him, except he leaves the realm. The Space Elementalist took a step forward and stood in front of the Water Elementalist, he pointed his finger at Grey, and a black light beam shot at Grey. Grey sent a fireball to intercept the beam, while also moving in the direction of the Space Elementalist. The two attacks collided and caused an explosion. Just as Grey was about to get past the place the attacks collided, he sensed something odd in the attack and hastily retreated. The space around the place he was previously at started to shake. If he had been in that place, he might''ve been sucked into the void. Even though he also had the space element, he didn''t dare to get caught in the void. He might be transported to another location altogether, hence his carefulness when it came to it. Grey tried to teleport to the place the Space Elementalist and the Water Elementalist were standing, but he noticed the space around his area seemed to have been disturbed, whenever he tried to create a spatial tunnel, he would be blocked or would notice that the tunnel wasn''t protected, exposing him to the spatial turbulences. His eyes turned serious. After fighting with the Space Elementalist, he knew it wouldn''t be that easy to kill him. He created a small orb that he sent into the explosion. This orb was different from his normal attacks, rather that exploding, it implodes, sucking everything around it inside. It was made with the space element. Grey took flight as well, and three inscriptions appeared behind the Space Elementalist who was preparing to leave. It was clear that the attack he used and trying to stop Grey from using the space element was quite taxing on his already injured body. When the inscriptions lit up the sky, the Water Elementalist slashed at two of them before they could attack, but the third one attacked very quickly, sending a lightning bolt to the back of the Space Elementalist. The Space Elementalist was unable to block the attack and was hit by it. His injuries wish had stopped bleeding due to the help of the healing tonics he had taken and had even shown signs of healing started bleeding once again. He coughed out a mouthful of blood and staggered forward. He sensed a grave danger in front of him and hastily forced his body to come to a halt. The explosion in front of them suddenly disappeared, along with his efforts of trying to stop Grey from using the space element. He looked up and saw a thin ice arrow heading for his head. One of his feet moved forward and his body flashed. He appeared close to the Water Elementalist, breathing heavily. The constant use of his essence in such a state was affecting him. The Water Elementalist used the water element to seal the places the Space Elementalist was injured and supported him to stand upright. "I guess¡­ my time is now." The Space Elementalist commented and looked into the eyes of the Water Elementalist. He tapped him on his shoulder and the figure of the Water Elementalist vanished from the place. Grey made a move, jumping into the void. His intention was to stop the Water Elementalist from leaving. Boom! The void shook and Grey''s figure shot out of a tear in the sky, slamming into the ground. "I''ll still kill him." He stood up and wiped the dust off his clothes. "The mark you places on us? I wiped his the second I sent him away." The Space Elementalist chuckled. Grey couldn''t help but be impressed by the Space Elementalist''s abilities. He had done this multiple times, and this was the first time he was seeing someone deal with it so casually. He nodded at the Space Elementalist before shooting a beam of light at him. The beam had multiple colors, five to be exact. With a combination of five elements, even the Space Elementalist knew that it would be difficult for him to block the attack. Just as the attack was about to reach him, he used the space element and tried to make it phase through him. However, his expression changed. He didn''t have access to the space element. He looked up and saw Grey''s smiling face. His body soon started to dissipate. The space element destroyed his body bit by bit. Within a few seconds, the powerful Space Elementalist was no more. The trio who were by the side could only watch on with mixed feelings. They didn''t expect that such a young figure would be powerful enough to kill the Space Elementalist. Grey turned to them, his expression, calm. "Shall we?" He looked at them curiously. "Huh?" One of them wore a confused expression. He didn''t understand what Grey was asking from them. "Yes, yes, young Lord, we can go now." The other middle-aged man by the side nodded. Grey was asking about their treasury, he told them he would check it out. And now that he was done with the battle, he wanted to see if there was anything worth taking. They all left the area, Void, Cori, and the bunny leader went with them. The trio were quite rich, and Grey even got to find out the location of the Space and Water Elementalists'' building. He went there to check if there was anything he needed, but it had been wiped clean. Grey didn''t take anything from the trio''s treasury, there was nothing he found interesting there. Only Void and the bunny leader picked a few things, but they weren''t of any importance, even the trio didn''t mind them taking it. He also returned their storage rings to them, only taking the things he needed from it. ¡­. Outside the City. Grey, Void, Cori, and the bunny leader stopped as there was someone standing in front of them. It was Arthel. "My father would like a word with you, Lord." Arthel said, he was very respectful when speaking with Grey, even though he was older, he was weaker than him, so there was no shame in being humble before him. Grey looked at him and nodded. He recalled the Old man who stopped his son from getting involved in a battle that might have gotten him killed. "Follow me." Arthel said and walked into the City. Grey and his company followed behind him. 1210 Let Me Ask My Companions In a manor in the City. Grey was invited inside the building in a respectful manner. When he saw the Old man sitting there and casually drinking tea by the garden, he sensed the serenity of the place. ¡°Forgive my manners, I couldn¡¯t approach you myself, hence I sent my son. Hope you¡¯re not offended?¡± The Old man stood up to greet Grey. Strength reigned above everything else, seeing Grey¡¯s strength, he knew he was below him and had to act accordingly. ¡°No worries.¡± Grey smiled and looked around, ¡°I suppose you have something to tell me.¡± The Old man nodded, ¡°Yes, I called you here for a reason.¡± Grey¡¯s attention turned back to the Old man when he heard him speak. ¡°What might that be?¡± His curiosity was piqued. ¡°I want my son to follow you.¡± The Old man said. The eyes of Arthel changed slightly when he heard this, ¡°Father¡­¡± The Old man raised his hand to stop Arthel from speaking and kept his gaze on Grey, waiting for his response. ¡°Why would you want your son to follow me? You don¡¯t even know me.¡± Grey said coolly. He was quite astonished by the request of the Old man. When coming here, he thought the Old man wanted to propose an offer for him for an expedition. He felt maybe they were not strong enough to get the treasure so he wanted to ask for his help to get the treasure. The Old man¡¯s words were completely out of expectations. ¡°I know. But I¡¯m a good judge of character. If my son follows you, he will grow stronger. There¡¯s nothing here for him, but I believe in your world, he would be able to become a true powerhouse. He¡¯s a genius, even amongst those his age.¡± The Old man explained. To be honest, after seeing Grey, he was interested in him. From Grey¡¯s strength, to his demeanor, he was different from the other foreigners he had encountered. The decision to let his son follow Grey came after he saw how Grey dealt with the trio who stepped back from the battle. He kept to his promise and even returned a few of their items. Grey contemplated the matter and said, ¡°I can¡¯t take him with me. I know nothing about him, nor do I know your purpose. What if this is all a ploy to kill me?¡± The Old man laughed when he heard Grey¡¯s words, not disappointed with him rejecting his request, ¡°Haha, this is why I requested this from you. I¡¯ve seen a few who would¡¯ve been willing to take him with them, but none of them is like you.¡± ¡°There¡¯s something unique I can sense around you. Anything close to you will succeed. I want that for my son too.¡± The Old man added. Grey looked at the Old man, a bit surprised. He had also noticed there was something odd about his friend group. Take for instance, when he first knew Keith while trying to get into the Pyrmond Faction, he wasn¡¯t that fast when it came to advancing in cultivation stage. But after getting to know him, he started improving rapidly. I think you should take a look at From the start of his cultivation journey, while he was still a new to cultivation, Klaus, Alice, and Reynolds were all in the Arcane Plane, while he hadn¡¯t even entered the Collection Plane. However, after catching up with them, Klaus, Alice, and Reynolds started advancing at a pace they didn¡¯t imagine. To be honest, he looked at the others in the Academy at that time and noticed other than himself and his friends, no one else was advancing this fast. He didn¡¯t think too much about it, only now that the Old man mentioned it did he recall about that thought that had been thrown to the back of his head. ¡°Hmm, I¡¯m still a little worried about taking someone I don¡¯t know with me.¡± He said. He had every right to be worried, after all, this was an Elemental Venerable. Even if he could suppress him, he didn¡¯t want to take any chances. ¡°I can offer you a technique you can use to seal his core. With a thought, you can easily kill him.¡± The Old man suggested. Grey raised a brow and took a glance at Arthel, wanting to see his reaction to his father¡¯s words. To his surprise, Arthel didn¡¯t show any reactions at all, he stood there mute. If not for the fact that Grey knew he was human, he would¡¯ve even thought he was a statue. ¡°What do you say?¡± The Old man asked when he saw Grey hesitating. ¡°Wait, let me consult my companions.¡± Grey said and turned to Cori, Void, and the bunny leader who were behind him. ¡°What do you think?¡± He asked with a nonchalant expression. Cori looked at Arthel, ¡°This Uncle doesn¡¯t seem to be a bad person. I don¡¯t mind traveling with him.¡± Just as the bunny leader was about to speak, Void spoke up, ¡°You don¡¯t need to talk. I¡¯ve spoken for us.¡± Grey laughed when he saw this. The Old man and Arthel exchanged glances, shocked that Grey was referring to a small black cat, a white bunny, and a little girl who didn¡¯t look to be older than ten their opinion on the matter. The Old man chuckled and whispered to Arthel, ¡°He takes relationships very seriously. As long as you don¡¯t betray him, you will enjoy him.¡± Arthel looked at his father, he didn¡¯t know what to say, but nodded. Since this was the case, why bother. He would do whatever his father wanted. The reason he grew this powerful was all due to his father¡¯s advice he took. He always did as told and grew at a very fast rate. Of all the Elemental Venerables in the City, he was the only one below a hundred years. In fact, he was sixty-five to be precise. ¡°Your companions seem to have agreed to him joining you.¡± The Old man spoke, drawing Grey¡¯s attention back to him, ¡°What do you say?¡± 1211 With Him, Anything Is Possible ¡°Alright.¡± Grey nodded, taking a glance at Arthel. He was still a bit confused, but there was nothing he could do about it. This was the first time he was encountering such an event, so he was naturally not sure how to react. ¡°Thank you.¡± The Old man smiled, pleased that Grey agreed to his request. ¡°But he can¡¯t come with me now. I¡¯ll leave in a few months. Since you have such confidence in me, I¡¯ll come take him.¡± Grey broke the silence in the area. ¡°There¡¯s no problem with that. We will await your next arrival.¡± The Old man said. Grey nodded and said, ¡°I¡¯ll be leaving first. When it¡¯s time to leave, I¡¯ll come for him.¡± The Old man nodded, having no issues with Grey¡¯s plans. Arthel and the Old man followed Grey and they left the manor. The Old man didn¡¯t go with them to the City gate, but Arthel did. He barely spoke through the entire ordeal. A few minutes later. Arthel returned, taking a glance at his father, ¡°Why?¡± ¡°Like I told him, it¡¯s for your good.¡± The Old man¡¯s face was serious as he said, ¡°There¡¯s nothing left for you here. Can¡¯t you see him? So young, yet already so powerful. His thoughts are quite different from the rest.¡± ¡°What about the unique aura about him you spoke of?¡± Arthel asked. ¡°Oh that? There are children known as heaven¡¯s favorites. They spend little to no effort and get the same rewards, no, even better rewards compared to those who have trained all their lives.¡± The Old man explained. ¡°These people are so blessed that even those around them don¡¯t feel any sort of pressure when training as well. Just being involved with these people would make your path easier.¡± ¡°Of course, there are disadvantages with following them. They tend to make enemies with extremely powerful people, and those who are not lucky among his group of followers would die.¡± ¡°Wouldn¡¯t that put me in danger?¡± Arthel asked. ¡°The path of an Elementalist is fraught with danger. Even if you¡¯re alone, you would still encounter danger.¡± The Old man waved his hand nonchalantly, and added, ¡°Hehe, why not follow someone that would make your life exciting?¡± ?andasnovel¡¤?om A few years ago, he brought up the suggestion of leaving, but his father refused it. Reprimanding him in such a manner that he never even had the thought of leaving again, much less to another place. I think you should take a look at Now, his father was the one who was suggesting that he left. He even wanted him to follow a young boy who didn¡¯t look older than twenty-five years old. The stark contrast in the two scenarios was baffling. ¡°You will get to understand what I mean after leaving. For now, consolidate your realm. You would be breaking through in a matter of months now, not years any more.¡± The Old man said with confidence. ¡°Father, miracles don¡¯t happen in the path of cultivation, only hard work can get you to where you want.¡± Arthel looked at his father, reminding him of the same words he used to train him from young. ¡°I know, but with that boy¡­ anything is possible.¡± ¡­. Grey had zero knowledge of the confidence the Old man had in him. At the moment, he was staring at Void coldly. He felt the need to cook, and just as he was about to start, Void passed him a recipe, one that he was not familiar with. The writing style of these people was different from theirs, so he could barely understand what was written in the recipe. ¡°Why don¡¯t you cook that up yourself?¡± He asked coldly. ¡°I¡¯m not the one who announces to everyone that he¡¯s a great cook, am I?¡± Void rolled his eyes. ¡°Why didn¡¯t you even bring it out sooner? I literally don¡¯t know a single word written there.¡± Grey facepalmed, faced with Void¡¯s antics, he didn¡¯t know what to do. ¡°I told you we should take a cook, you said no.¡± Void refuted. Grey wanted to speak but stopped, Void was right about that. However, it didn¡¯t change the fact that Void made a mistake here. With no way to understand what was written there, all he could do was guess work. There was no way he would be able to make the meal as well as the cooks who made it before. With no other choice, they headed back to the City. He needed someone to help him translate the recipe. To be honest, he was also a bit interested in the meal, hence his calm reaction to Void¡¯s words. They headed back, took one person, the same cook Void kidnapped at first and got him to explain the method of using the recipe step by step. With the help of the cook, it was quite easy for them to get what they wanted. Grey left the place and made the food later on. The group ate happily before leaving for the next place of their adventure. Presently, they didn¡¯t have any plans in mind, and just explored the Chaos Battlefield for the rest of their time. During Grey¡¯s time so far, he had met a few people from the Aurora Continent, but he rarely spoke with them. He had even encountered two people from the Dawson Family, but they were people who had close ties with the young man who was the son of the Family Head. When they saw him, their gazes were cold, and Grey could barely be bothered with them. The Chaos Battlefield was large, and there was a lot to be explored. Grey naturally knew he wouldn¡¯t be able to explore everywhere, but he still wanted to see how many places he could cover and also see if there was any new energy or array he could learn. The golden energy had been helpful so far, it wouldn¡¯t be bad to get something else as well. 1212 Training Two months went by in a flash. Grey and his group had explored a good part of the Chaos Battlefield. He had gotten to the Seventh stage of the Elemental Venerable Plane already. Since coming here, he had spent around six to seven months or so, and had broken through two stages. One of the stages was a major stage, going from the Mid stages to the Late stages. On some occasions, some people get stuck in the bottleneck for some months, some even get stuck for a year or more. Grey on the other hand, was the one holding himself back from breaking through. With the treasures and essence he had consumed since he entered this place, he should¡¯ve gotten to the Eighth or even Ninth stage given his usual cultivation speed, but he refused to do that and kept consolidating his realm. His cultivation stage has never had any influence with his strength. From the start of his cultivation journey, he had almost always been stronger than his cultivation stage. At the moment, he has no issues with fighting against those in the Ninth stage of the Elemental Venerable Plane. The only people he was still wary of were those at the Peak. The Peak of the Elemental Venerable Plane was quite different from the Peak of the Planes lower than it. While Grey was still in the Seventh stage of the Sage Plane, even without the help of the Fusion State, he could still compete with certain people that were at the Peak of the Sage Plane, but in the Elemental Venerable Plane, it was not the same. A Peak Elemental Venerable could easily decimate a large group of Late stage Elemental Venerables. They wouldn¡¯t have any issues with fighting against ten, twenty even. And for those with far superior abilities, they could fight against fifty. When Grey was still at the Origin Plane, there was something he learned about Overlord Plane Elementalists, the ability to control the elements of those weaker than them. However, this only implies to those far weaker than they are. Once an Elementalists gets to the Peak of the Elemental Venerable Plane, this ability is heightened to a frightening degree. The control one has over the elements depends on their elements. On some occasions, there are a few who can even manipulate the essence in the body of those weaker than they are. Even if said person doesn¡¯t use the same element as the Elementalist at the Peak of the Elemental Venerable Plane, it doesn¡¯t matter, they can manipulate the essence and make it extremely difficult for them to use their elements properly. Without their elements, an Elementalist is nothing but a sitting duck when faced with an opponent on the stage, much less one that is stronger than they are. Grey had always been very confident in his abilities, but he knew that before he could attempt to fight a Peak Elemental Venerable, he had to wait till he got to at least the Eighth stage or Ninth stage for a better chance of winning. Void and the bunny leader had grown as well, both getting to the Eighth stage. Grey stopped Void from advancing too quickly, so he could also get used to his new strength, consolidating it as well. Cori was the only one who was still at the Peak of the Sage Plane; she hadn¡¯t been able to break through to the Elemental Venerable Plane. Grey didn¡¯t know if he should be happy or worried that she was stuck at a bottleneck. She was still very young and Grey knew there was a lot she wouldn¡¯t be able to understand about the space element at the moment. Thanks to his battle with the Space Elementalist two months ago, he had gotten a clearer understanding of the space element. He had trained with Void and was trying to see if he could also cause spatial tears in the air. This form of attack was even more deadly than Void¡¯s spatial distortions. Void was well aware of this and was also putting in the work to learn it. I think you should take a look at The bunny leader¡­ well, he wasn¡¯t all that interested in fighting and preferred to play with Cori while the duo trained on it. Even after two months, they hadn¡¯t been able to crack it. Other than getting better control over the space element, and being able to create a stronger form of distortions, they had been unable to learn anything else. There was something else Grey was very curious about as well, space blocking. When fighting with the Space Elementalist, he was blocked a couple of times. At first, it was with the aid of an array, but after breaking the array, the Space Elementalist still blocked him as well, even attacking him while he was in the void. His plan was to learn this and get an edge over other Space Elementalists as well. This would be something he could use to stop enemies from escaping, or like the Space Elementalist, use it to buy time for his companions. He had been practicing with Void as well, but just like the spatial tear, he hadn¡¯t been able to get anything from it. ¡­. ¡°This thing is harder than I thought.¡± Void complained. ¡°He spent hundreds of years learning or maybe even creating the technique. It¡¯s just a shame I was unable to get my hands on it.¡± Grey replied. He didn¡¯t show too much frustration, he knew they wouldn¡¯t be able to get it in a blink. Void looked at him, ¡°You were the one who killed him so suddenly. If you had offered for him to teach you and then you spare him, he might¡¯ve obliged.¡± ¡°It has already passed, there¡¯s no use regretting it now.¡± Grey shrugged. ¡°We should go back to Cori.¡± He looked at the City that was far away. They made a stop at a City after months of traveling. They had been training for almost a week now and hadn¡¯t returned. 1213 Show Some Sincerity Grey and Void rushed back to the City. Meanwhile, in the City. Cori, and the bunny leader were staring at the crowd curiously. ¡°What¡¯s happening?¡± Cori asked the bunny leader. ¡®I have no idea. I think something important happened.¡¯ The bunny leader replied. ¡°I hope Void and Big brother Grey are fine.¡± Cori said. She had been with the group for some time now and since Grey wasn¡¯t used to being called Uncle, he told her to call him Big brother. He insisted that being called Uncle made him feel old, and he was still very young. In fact, if not for the fact that Cori was still a little girl, in terms of how long an Elementalist¡¯s lifespan is, he was still a child compared to others. Take the Space Elementalist for example, although he looked to be around forty something or so, he was hundreds of years old. There was a certain way to sense the age of Elementalists, bone age. That never lies. Appearances might lie, but the bone age of an Elementalist can not be altered easily. The processes involved in altering one¡¯s bone age was very tedious, so even if there are people who have that thought, they wouldn¡¯t want to go through that pain. Grey and Void soon returned, they quickly found the duo and walked over. Grey looked around, and wanted to send out his spiritual senses, but after recalling that there was a Peak Elemental Venerable staying in that particular building, he refrained from angering such a figure. Most of the people he was seeing being let into the place by the guards were all in the Elemental Venerable Plane, and there was one that caught his eye, the son of the Dawson Family Head. ¡®What¡¯s he doing here?¡¯ He wondered to himself. With his curiosity being piqued, he strode forward, Cori, Void, and the bunny leader behind him. People saw him approaching and since they couldn¡¯t sense his cultivation stage, they made way for him. For someone to walk forward this confidently and they being unable to sense the person¡¯s cultivation meant only one thing, that person was stronger than they were. In fact, they didn¡¯t need to sense Grey¡¯s cultivation stage, there was literally a little girl behind him that had all of them stumped. Cori was barely ten, but she was already at the Peak of the Sage Plane. With such a person walking behind Grey, there was no doubt that he was at least in the Elemental Venerable Plane. Grey didn¡¯t bother with anyone, on getting to the gate, he saw the guard and asked, ¡°Please, can you inform me on what¡¯s going on?¡± The guard wanted to speak coldly, but when he sensed the cultivation stage of the little girl behind Grey, he shut up and swallowed whatever he wanted to say. He was no match for Cori, just the thought of how powerful Grey might be since he had such a little girl with him made him feel fear. I think you should take a look at ¡°My Lord, the Master called for powerful figures around to help him out on an expedition.¡± The guard explained. ¡°I see.¡± Grey rubbed his chin thoughtfully. Something that a Peak Elemental Venerable would need help with must definitely be a top tier treasure. His only concern at the moment was the son of the Dawson Family Head. He was not the only one he recognized, there were four others with him, and all of them were already in the Eighth and Ninth stage of the Elemental Venerable Plane. Of course, he wasn¡¯t afraid of them, but if they were to cause any problems for him, he wouldn¡¯t mind teaching them a lesson or two. The issue now is that, if they were going for the expedition, then they all had to make sure not to have any internal fighting between them. ¡°Can I go in?¡± He asked the guard. He knew the guards would let him in, but there was no need to treat them in a demeaning manner. The guards nodded. They heaved a sigh of relief that Grey wasn¡¯t like most of the people who had come early and treated them as if they were not people. Grey nodded at them and entered with his group. ¡®Void, you and the bunny should hide. I don¡¯t want them to recognize me. If they do, there will be trouble.¡¯ He suggested. Void nodded, and he vanished, dragging the bunny leader with him. There was a good space in Grey¡¯s spatial storage that they had made just for them. There was lots of good stuff there and on a few occasions, Void liked going there to sleep. Grey and Cori walked into the building, and the moment they did, everyone turned to look at them. Even the man dressed in a golden robe, who seemed to have a heavenly demeanor turned to look at Grey and Cori. There were about forty people in the large Hall, and all of them, with the exception of three who looked to be the golden robed man¡¯s children, were in the Elemental Venerable Plane. ¡°Are you here to help me?¡± The golden robed man asked. Grey nodded. ¡°Then take off your mask, that will at least show your sincerity. Even though we are all here for our benefits, I wouldn¡¯t want an enemy of mine to come and take me unaware.¡± The golden robed man said. Grey looked around, and to be honest, he was the only one with a mask on. This naturally made him seem mysterious. The golden robed man didn¡¯t have any doubts about his strength, but he wanted to know the identity of the person who came with a mask on and a freakish little girl. Such a figure should surely be well-known since they could have someone as young and powerful as Cori following him respectfully. Grey sighed, and with no other choice, he slowly brought his hand to his face and removed his mask. 1214 Why Isnt She Leaving? Everyone looked at Grey with curiosity, his face has always been something that has attracted attention wherever he went. There were a few female Elementalists in the place, and even though they were far older than he was, they seemed to show signs of actually falling for him. Not just the older ones, but of the three children of the golden robed man, one of them was a young lady who was in her early twenties, the sight of Grey¡¯s face dumbstruck her that she couldn¡¯t peel her eyes away from him. Only after being nudged by her brother did she regain her senses. She blushed slightly, but didn¡¯t say anything. The son of the Dawson Family head, as well as his companions looked at Grey coldly. They never thought that he would make it all the way here. Sensing his cultivation stage, they were thrown off their feet. It had only been a few months, but Grey had already grown this fast. If they heard that Grey was purposely slowing down his cultivation, they would never believe it. ¡°Such a young fellow. I wonder what your name might be.¡± The golden robed man was clearly intrigued by Grey. ¡°I¡¯m Grey, and this is my little sister, Cori.¡± Grey introduced himself, as well as Cori. ¡°You are a foreigner, correct?¡± The golden robed man asked. Grey nodded in reply to his question, he could already tell where the golden robed man was headed. ¡°She¡¯s a native, how can you two be related?¡± The golden robed man asked the question Grey was expecting. ¡°A long story, but she lost her family and I happened to stumble upon her then. With enemies prowling around her, I decided to take her with me.¡± Grey didn¡¯t dive deep into his explanation, but those around could guess what might¡¯ve happened. However, they all felt Cori was from a powerful family and they wanted to kill her, Grey stepped in and saved her, but decided to take her with him for her well-being. If they knew she was from a poor family, they would never believe it. One has to know that even the children of the golden robed man were still at the Sage Plane. None of them had gotten to the Peak, and the strongest was in the Ninth stage. The young lady, who was the second strongest, was in the Eighth stage. All three of his children were older than Cori with at least twelve years, yet she has a higher cultivation stage than they do. The golden robed man nodded and diverted his attention from Grey. After all, Grey was not the only one present, he was just about to address the people there when Grey arrived. He started, ¡°Alright, I¡¯ll get straight to the point. As you all know, I need your help with something.¡± He looked at the faces of everyone and continued, ¡°I know some of you are wondering why I would need your help when even someone with my strength is unable to get whatever I¡¯m aiming for.¡± ¡°Well, the answer is simple. I need the help of multiple people because what I¡¯m fighting is not just one thing at the Peak of the Seventh Rank, but two creatures. I don¡¯t think they are Magical Beasts, but they seem to be constructs of some sort.¡± I think you should take a look at ¡°This is the reason I requested such a large number of experts for help. Of course, the reward is bountiful and we will all get a share in it.¡± After listening to the words of the golden robed man, some people fell into thoughts. There were quite a few people in the Ninth stage of the Elemental Venerable Plane present. If these constructs can¡¯t use the elements as well as an Elementalist, then with twenty Ninth stage Elemental Venerables, they should be able to deal with it. At present, there were only eight Ninth stage Elemental Venerables, if they added the Eighth stage Elemental Venerables to it, their numbers would increase to twenty-three. But an Eighth stage Elemental Venerable is not as strong as a Ninth stage Elemental Venerable, so they would definitely need a few more weaker Elemental Venerables. ¡°Do you know what the rewards are?¡± Someone asked. It was an Old man in the Eighth stage. He wanted to see if it was worth it to join hands with the golden robed man, and also the possible ways it would be shared. If the golden robed man had an idea of what treasures lie in store for them there, then they would arrange how it would be shared amongst them and then select the group leaving. The Ninth and Eighth Elemental Venerables are definitely going to go, the only people they needed to select from was the Seventh stage Elemental Venerables. ¡°Unfortunately, I do not. But do not fear, I won¡¯t take you for an expedition just to throw yours and my life away.¡± The golden robed man said. ¡°A few of us here know your reputation, so we will naturally trust you. But not everyone can go.¡± The Old man in the Eighth stage said. Apparently, just like Grey, a few were traveling around and came over when they heard the news. The group from the Dawson Family did the same too. ¡°Anyone below the Seventh stage of the Seventh Rank should leave the Hall, I¡¯m sorry for the inconvenience. You can head over to my Inn and you will be treated well for the next few days.¡± The golden robed man said. Those below the Seventh stage could only leave begrudgingly. Even though they wanted to join the team on the journey, they knew they were not as strong as the others. ¡°Why isn¡¯t the girl leaving?¡± The son of the Dawson Family Head asked Grey. ¡°Like I said, I¡¯m all she has. Wherever I go, she goes.¡± Grey¡¯s reply was calm, his demeanor one of extreme confidence. 1215 Abandoned Underground Castle Grey had the same expression from when he removed his mask till now. His nonchalant expression was something that had been with him for a long time now. It has always been difficult for others to read what was going through his mind since he barely reacts to things. Other than the times he had shown anger, his facial expression when communicating with others, especially people he regards as enemies has always been one of nonchalance. The son of the Dawson Family Head turned to the golden robed man, ¡°Taking a weak little girl with us is only going to inconvenience us.¡± ¡°How sure are you that he would even go with us?¡± One of the youths with the son of the Dawson Family Head asked with mocking smile. Grey didn¡¯t reply to their words and kept his gaze on the golden robed man, ¡°She will not inconvenience you in any way.¡± The golden robed man looked at Grey, ¡°How strong are you?¡± He was quite curious about Grey¡¯s strength. From the way the son of the Dawson Family Head spoke to Grey, he could already guess that they were acquainted, and their relationship wasn¡¯t the best. If Grey only had the strength of a Seventh stage Elemental Venerable, then there was no need in bringing him with them since he was insistent on taking Cori with them. ¡°Strong enough to participate.¡± Grey replied casually. The golden robed man looked at him and fell deep in thought, he closed his eyes, and when he opened it, a light beam shot at Grey. The light beam was very fast, but it was well regulated by the golden robed man, only those who were close to the Eighth stage and above could deal with this attack. If Grey finds it difficult to handle this attack, then he wouldn¡¯t go with them. For some reason, he didn¡¯t think this would be enough to stop Grey. If he was testing anyone else in the Seventh stage, he would¡¯ve used strength of a Seventh stage Elemental Venerable, but from the way Grey had spoken all this while, he thought very highly of him. Those in the Eighth and Ninth stage saw the attack shooting at Grey and they looked on to see how he would deal with it. Grey stretched out his hand, and under the shocked gazes of every, he grabbed the light beam. ¡°Moron.¡± Someone snickered from the crowd. The voice came from the son of the Dawson Family Head¡¯s group. While everyone was waiting for Grey¡¯s hand to turn into meat paste, they didn¡¯t get the expected reaction. Rather, Grey was still standing there, his hand still grabbing onto the light. The powerful light beam they thought would destroy Grey¡¯s hand turned docile and eventually faded off. The expressions of everyone, including the golden robed man changed. They looked at Grey¡¯s hand and saw that it was covered with a dark light. It was easy for them to sense the space element from it. I think you should take a look at ¡°I see.¡± The golden robed man muttered. A Space Elementalist has always been a dreadful figure for most people if encountered. These people, especially those who have a good grasp and understanding of the space element can easily decimate a large group without putting in too much effort. While they were all marveling at Grey¡¯s strength, Grey couldn¡¯t help but chuckle internally. The only reason the space element appeared was to hide his terrifying physical strength. He used his bare hands to block that attack. Since the expedition in the secret realm, his physical body has always been stronger than his cultivation stage. So even now that his cultivation stage was in the Seventh stage, his physical strength is almost equivalent to a Ninth stage Elemental Venerable. Grey was automatically the first person picked out among those in the Seventh stage of the Elemental Venerable Plane. Although there were some that felt they could block that attack too, they didn¡¯t think they could do it as casually as Grey was doing it. The golden robed man quickly picked out the people who would be joining them and they soon set off. Grey was naturally part of that group. On the way, he didn¡¯t even spare the group from the Dawson Family a glance, there was no need to. All he needed to do was to make sure that he would get whatever reward there was and leave. Well, other than that, he was hoping to see something similar to the golden energy. From what he knew, the golden energy and chaos energy were not the only types of energy in this place. If he could get more, it would add more to his strength. Cori naturally went with him, Void and the bunny leader were still resting in his storage space. His plan for them was to help protect Cori if there was any form of danger to her life while they were there. The journey took two days. ¡­. The group arrived at an abandoned underground castle. Well, it was more like a small City that resided inside a castle. The castle was extremely large, and after entering inside, they saw multiple buildings. Grey and a few others who were not from the Chaos Battlefield were dumbstruck by the place. It had an archaic air around it and it was obvious that it had withstood the passage of time. At the gates of the castle, there were statues that stood over a thousand meters high. Each statue felt like it was alive, and it exuded some sort of pressure on the people walking into the place. Cori walked close to them, and just as she was about to touch one, Grey held her back and shook his head, he could sense something off in this place. It wasn¡¯t hard to guess there was something off, after all, the golden robed man brought them here in hopes of getting treasures. 1216 Odd Reaction Chapter 1216 Odd Reaction Grey told Cori to stay close to him, walking with the group. The Old man in the Eighth stage walked up to the golden robed man, "Where did you encounter the danger?" "Everyone, please stay alert. The constructs attacked me while I was exploring the place." The golden robed man said to everyone, he added, "This place was a very prosperous City while its occupants were still here. There is no sign of a battle, nor did I see any bones during the last time I was searching the place. But I wasn''t able to get too far before I was stopped by the constructs." "Take note, there might be more. If they are more than we can handle. We will go out and regroup again. There''s no use forcing our way in and having people die for no reason." Everyone nodded to the golden robed man''s words. No one wanted to die a meaningless death. All those who came here all came for the possible benefits they stood a chance to gain, if they were killed and didn''t even get the chance to even see what they came here for, it would be a shame. The party started to advance into the place, each carefully looking around, alert, prepared for a possible battle. If there were constructs here, then it meant there was something left here worth protecting. If these constructs had the strength of a Peak Rank Seven Elementalist, then whatever they were protecting was very valuable. Grey looked at each house curiously, he almost wanted to go in and check them out, but he didn''t want to take any silly risks. However, this is where Void and the bunny leader comes in. With their adept control of the space element, even the golden robed man would find it difficult to sense them as long as he wasn''t trying to. With the golden robed man''s focus on the constructs, Grey knew it would be very hard for him to focus on something else. So he sent the duo to head out and check the houses and see if there was anything of importance. If they didn''t find anything, he told them to take books if they found any. Void and the bunny leader naturally didn''t think books were of any value, hence he had to remind them. There might be some information inside. Well, that all depends on if he is able to decipher it. Grey acted like nothing happened. He was slightly alarmed when the golden robed man suddenly paused at the exact moment Void and the bunny leader left, but after looking around, he continued walking. He heaved a sigh of relief seeing the golden robed man continue. ''Try to stay hidden, Void, this guy is powerful.'' He sent a telepathic message to Void. ''I know. Don''t worry, we were careless when coming out, he won''t sense us again, unless we want him to.'' Void replied. Grey didn''t communicate with them any longer and continued following the group while looking around. While walking, he suddenly saw a figure walk over to him. He was not the only one who brought someone below the Elemental Venerable Plane for the trip. The golden robed man brought his three children. Grey expected this when he saw them in the Hall, so he wasn''t surprised. "Your little sister is something else." The figure said with a soft voice. Grey took a look at the delicate looking figure standing before him, it was the daughter of the golden robed man. He should be around two or three years older than she is. "Yeah, a true gem." Grey agreed with her statement. Even in the Aurora Continent, Cori would be adored wherever she went and the top Factions or even Families wouldn''t mind fighting just to take her into their ranks. "I''m Miya." The daughter of the golden robed man introduced herself, stretching out her hand. Grey shook it, "Grey." He took the chance to take a good view of the young lady standing in front of him. She was donning in a blue gown and her long golden hair fell down all the way to her waist. Her brown eyes brought out her pretty face. After Grey''s initial glance, he looked forward once again. Miya didn''t seem to mind Grey''s actions and asked, "Where are you from? I''ve always wondered how the foreign realm is." "The Aurora Continent, it isn''t really different from this place." Grey replied keeping an eye out for any possible attack. "Really? I asked father if he could let me go, but unfortunately, there was no way we can leave, unless¡­" Miya paused and looked at Grey, "We are taken by a foreigner." "Hmm, our worlds are two different places in terms of energy. Here you guys use the chaos energy while in my world, we use essence energy." Grey continued looking around, occasionally giving Miya a glance to show some interest. Even though he wasn''t too interested in speaking with her, it would be wrong to chase her, especially after she left her group and came over. "Essense energy?" Miya wore a curious face as she asked. Grey wanted to explain to her, but thinking about it, he brought out an essence stone and passed it to her, "This is an essense stone, it''s filled with essence energy." Miya took it from her, it was almost the same as chaos stones, just that it was filled with a different energy. She tried to sense it, and while trying to manipulate the energy in it, she yelped softly, covering her mouth in the process. "It burns." She whispered. "Huh?" Grey looked at her, a little surprised. He had given Cori an essence stone before and she didn''t have such a reaction. She was even able to absorb it at a crazy speed. "It burns. This energy of yours burns." Miya said. "That''s odd." Grey said internally. He was able to absorb a large amount of chaos energy and didn''t feel any discomfort, and so was Void and the bunny leader. Even Cori was able to absorb essence energy with no issues, why was the reaction of Miya different then? 1217 Battling The Constructs Chapter 1217 Battling The Constructs Grey was still thinking about it when he noticed a movement ahead of them. He was not the only one who sensed it, everyone saw three figures walk towards them. "I thought you said there was only two?" Someone asked the golden robed man. "There was only two when I came the last time, I never expected that there was another one." The golden robed man said, before adding, "We should be able to deal with them." The number of people present was enough to deal with them, so there was no issue with doing that. The constructs were not like humans that could manipulate other peoples elements, so it wasn''t too difficult for them to fight against them. They were just very powerful. "What''s the plan?" The Old man in the Eighth stage asked. "I''ll deal with one, some of your will take care of another one, while the others while deal with one." The golden robed man said. He was confident he could kill one of them within a short time, but he was couldn''t kill it in a short time. This is where he needed the people to help him hold back the other ones. When it''s done with the one it was fighting, it would then go over to assist the others. "Stay behind us." The golden robed man said to his children. They were only in the Sage Plane, even the aftereffect of their battle could kill them. Cori went with the trio as well. Shockingly, the youngest amongst them was the strongest person. ''Void, make sure nothing happens to Cori.'' Grey called Void and the bunny leader back from exploring the buildings. They had been there for a few minutes and should''ve taken whatever was worth taking. Void appeared beside Cori, shocking the trio with his appearance. "Such a strange cat." Miya said as she looked at Void who was standing on Cori''s shoulder. She didn''t see him while they were coming, so she was a bit amazed. "He''s Void, he was hiding in my spatial ring." Cori said with a soft smile. The reason Void appeared on Cori''s shoulder was so that he would be able to act quickly in case of anything. In front of them, Grey was standing close to eight Eighth stage and three Ninth stage Elemental Venerables. He was grouped with them to fight against one of the constructs. The son of the Dawson Family Head was part of Grey''s group. The Ninth stage Elemental Venerables were the main attackers while the others were there to make sure the constructs was unable to focus on them. They soon surrounded the constructs and started to attack it. The golden robed man had already started to fight against one of them on his own, while the other group had also started to fight their own. The son of the Dawson Family Head was the first that attacked the construct. When the attack touched the construct, the construct waved its hand and smacked the attack away. The construct took a step and appeared beside him, sending out an attack at him. The son of the Dawson Family Head was able to dodge the attack, and another Ninth stage Elemental Venerable attacked, taking the attention away from the son of the Dawson Family Head. The construct turned to him, but another person attacked it too. Grey took a step forward, and unleashed a fusion orb filled with more space essence. The construct turned to the attack and just like the first time, it smacked the attack in another direction. The attack exploded close to the son of the Dawson Family Head, and he looked at Grey coldly. A light beam shot out of the eyes of the construct, aiming at Grey. Grey let the attack phase through him, before attacking the construct as well. The others continued attacking as well, pushing the constructs back. The group had been able to contain the construct so far. Not just them, but the other group as well. The golden robed man had it easier as he was able to use his full strength against a single construct. It didn''t take long before the constructs started to show signs of falling apart. They were made of extremely tough metals, but after continuous attacks, it was normal that they would start to fall apart. To the surprise of the golden robed man, he was not the first to defeat his construct, rather, it was Grey''s group who defeated theirs first. With the help of multiple Water Elementalists, they froze the joints of the construct, making it difficult for it to move freely. Open to being attacked and a reduced speed meant that it was unable to attack, nor was it able to properly defend itself against them any longer. "The Water Elementalists should freeze its joints." The Old man in the Eighth stage was also in Grey''s group. Grey was the one who gave them this suggestion, and after seeing how effective it was, he hurriedly told the others. Although they had all been able to contain the constructs, he was hoping that there wouldn''t be any injuries or deaths. No one had been injured so far, and with all of them using the strategy of freezing the joints, they were able to take down the construct. The freezing part sounded easy, but it was not as easy as it sounded. With the strength of the constructs, it was able to quickly break the ice, but with a continuous stream of Water Elementalists freezing it, it was unable to keep up. A few minutes later. All three constructs laid on the ground, frozen solid. "Thank you for telling us this." The Old man in the Eighth stage turned to Grey. "It''s nothing. I''ve faced a situation like this before, so I''m used to the method of taking it down." Grey didn''t feel he did anything important. The golden robed man walked over and finding out that Grey was the one who brought the idea of how to take down the constructs, he felt relieved that he brought him too. 1218 An Eerie Opponent The son of the Dawson Family Head looked at Grey and smiled softly. The others from the Dawson Family walked over to where the son of the Dawson Family Head was standing. Other than him who wasn¡¯t showing any signs of hate towards Grey, the others weren¡¯t really making any effort to hide theirs. It was clear for others to see that there seemed to be some sort of rift between them. Grey didn¡¯t bother with them as he walked over to where Cori was standing, just as he got close, his expression changed drastically and he vanished, appearing beside the group of four, he created a large earth dome. Boom! The earth dome shook and started to crack. ¡°Another attack!¡± The golden robed man¡¯s scream woke the others from their dormant state. None of them expected that there would be another attack so early. Void was already prepared to take Cori away from the place, but Grey stopped him and jumped in to save them. He didn¡¯t want to expose Void just yet. Since he could do something to block the attack, it was best to keep Void¡¯s strength hidden. If not for the fact that the bunny leader didn¡¯t like fighting, he would¡¯ve had two powerful Magical Beasts with him, but the bunny leader liked it when others did the hard work. It had even suggested to Grey to let it go and bring its servants. It had been with Grey for a while and Grey said after they left this place, he would allow it to get them. It was a good way to strengthen his group, so there was no harm in doing so. He was confident the bunny leader wouldn¡¯t escape. Unlike humans, Magical Beasts don¡¯t like deceiving people and are almost always true to whatever they say. Of course, given the cunningness the bunny leader had shown from the first time he had seen it, there was a good possibility that it was lying. But Grey was optimistic, besides, he marked it. If it ran away, he would be able to eventually track it. The mark he used on it was more complex compared to the ones he had been using. There was almost no way for the bunny leader to remove it on its own. ¡­. The dome soon fell apart and Grey and the other four appeared in view. The attack seemed to be invisible as no one saw it. They only sensed it. Grey took them and teleported to where the others were standing. He kept the four who were in the Sage Plane in the middle of the group of Elemental Venerables. This was the only way they would be able to protect. The others surrounded them, hoping to protect them from another attack. They all looked around, all on high alert. They soon heard a giggle, an eerie one that sent chills down the spines of everyone that was present there. ¡°It has been a long time since I had human blood.¡± The voice said, still giggling, ¡°Hmm, one of you has a familiar smell.¡± ¡°Oh, you¡¯re the human who came here the last time, right?¡± The voice asked. The golden robed man knew he was the one being asked the question. ¡°Show yourself, why stay hidden if you¡¯re so powerful?¡± The golden robed man asked with a mocking tone. ¡°Kikiki, you don¡¯t have to worry about me. I wanted to taste the blood of those fries, but it looks like I¡¯ll have to kill you all first before I can do that.¡± The voice said, still hidden from them. ¡°The person who saved them, you have a unique smell. I don¡¯t mind letting you leave.¡± The voice said. It clearly didn¡¯t have any plans in letting the others leave, but it said it would let Grey leave this place which surprised the others who were there. ¡°Did you plan this with it?¡± One of the youths from the Dawson Family asked. ¡°Do you have a brain leakage? If I knew of a place like this and also have a good relationship with whatever that is, why would I bring people here when I can just take everything for myself?¡± Grey didn¡¯t understand how the young man could even ask such a question. Sometimes, he was surprised at how daft some people proved to be. He didn¡¯t bother with them, as he stood close to Cori. His responsibility was to make sure that no matter what, he saved her. Void was there as well, so worse comes to worse, Void would have to save her and take her out while he was holding down the helm. The golden robed man looked around and started muttering something, he made some hand seals and a large array appeared. The array sent out a wave of energy that started to spread across the entire space. They were currently standing in a street, with buildings on both sides. At the moment, there was a large probability that the owner of the voice was hidden in one of these buildings. The array the golden robed man used was a detection array. As long as there was another person present, it would be able to sense the person and even point him in the direction the person was hiding. This array had helped him a lot over the years and now, he was hoping to use it once again. He didn¡¯t think the array would work for this entity though, he had been trying to sense it, not just him, even Void had been trying, but they hadn¡¯t been able to find out where it was. The voice sounded like it was coming from all angles. The energy wave came out from the array multiple times, but it was unable to detect anything. ¡°Over there!¡± Grey pointed in the direction of one of the Seventh stage Elemental Venerables and an attack exploded there, sending the figure flying. Before the figure could hit the ground, he vanished into thin air. 1219 Fear Of The Unknown ¡°What happened?¡± Someone in the Seventh stage asked in fear. They didn¡¯t see the end of the man who was sent flying, the figure just disappeared into the air like it was never there. Even Grey looked on with an alarmed expression. He didn¡¯t sense the use of the space element, so he was startled with what just happened. ¡°Whatever this thing is, it¡¯s not using the space element. Nor can we see it. How can we fight it then?¡± Someone in the Ninth stage asked with a serious expression. They were still celebrating the fact that none of them were injured or died during the battle a few minutes ago, but now, with just a single attack, one of them was dead. This was a dreadful feeling, the fear of the unknown is something that affects everyone, Grey and the golden robed man included. ¡°How do we fight it?¡± Another person asked, a bit panicky. ¡°Calm down, we should stay together. Create an energy wave around you so you would be able to sense whatever comes within it.¡± The golden robed man suggested. Grey didn¡¯t do that, rather, he used the gravitational force field. He covered the entire group of four who were below the Elemental Venerable Plane. His gravitational force field is far better than the energy these people were using. With it, as long as the entity comes close, it would be dragged down with the sudden change in the gravity in that area. Grey calmed himself down and he looked around. ¡°Kikiki, you all are so funny. Do you think that can stop me?¡± The voice resounded in their ears once again, echoing from all angles. Grey had a calm expression, even the golden robed man also put on a calm demeanor, he didn¡¯t show any signs of panic. Other than three people who were panicking, the rest had calmed themselves down and were trying to make sure they were not caught off-guard. Someone suddenly took a step back and attacked a particular area. Bam! The attack hit the thin air as there was nothing there for it. The man looked at everyone and said, ¡°I sensed something creeping into my space.¡± The others nodded and didn¡¯t say anything. They were all focused, making sure they wouldn¡¯t be the ones attacked due to this distraction. One of the young men from the Dawson Family took a step forward and attacked. This time, there was a counterattack. He was able to block the counterattack since he was prepared for it. ¡°Smart fellows. I¡¯ll still pick you all off, one by one.¡± The voice said, it didn¡¯t show any anger in its voice. ¡°Heh! You¡¯re only so so, no wonder you¡¯re hiding away. I can kill you in a one on one fight.¡± The young man snickered. From the counterattack of the entity, it was clear for them to estimate its strength. Well, they can¡¯t be too certain, however, it¡¯s strength should be around the Eighth stage of the Elemental Venerable Plane. There¡¯s also the possibility that it used that attack to trick them and it might be just as strong as the golden robed man. If that¡¯s the case, then it would be able to take out the young man if it went all out. Killing an Eighth stage Elemental Venerable as a Peak Elemental Venerable was very possible, even to one-shot them, but that all relies on if they could catch them unaware. A prepared Eighth stage Elemental Venerable would be able to fight back. Only those in the Ninth stage have a slight chance of survival against a Peak Elemental Venerable. However, with so many people present, even killing a Seventh stage Elemental Venerable would be very difficult for even a Peak Elemental Venerable. The group didn¡¯t move from their current positions, they all stood in the same spot, waiting to attack whenever the entity came close to them. Bang! The sound of something hitting the ground resounded in the area and everyone turned to Grey¡¯s position, they clearly saw the small dust that rose up after the figure hit the ground. The figure never expected that there would be a gravitational force field around Grey, just when it was trying to get one of the four in the Sage Plane, it was hit by the sudden change in gravity and slammed into the ground. Grey, and the golden robed man attacked that spot the moment they heard the sound. They attacked within a second after they heard the sound. A painful shriek resounded in the air, but it soon faded away. The place regained its previous silence. A few minutes passed with no one making a sound. The group didn¡¯t take a step forward. ¡°There¡¯s no way we can be sure.¡± The golden robed man said, ¡°But we can¡¯t keep standing here. Let¡¯s continue. Keep your energy active, just to be extra safe.¡± The group nodded and continued walking. The golden robed man walked closer to Grey, he was curious about what Grey used, and when he walked into the area, he felt his body going down on its own. He reacted quickly and left the area before taking a glance at Grey. Grey was getting more and more mysterious. Of all the people present, Grey was the one who didn¡¯t have a single idea of how strong he was. He couldn¡¯t see through him, and that had him a little worried, but he didn¡¯t have the thought of him being involved in anything here. Since Grey protected his children, he didn¡¯t mind. If not for Grey, the trio would¡¯ve been dead before he could even react. Now he understood how dangerous it was to bring his children here. They continued walking in the area, their pace very slow. They didn¡¯t dare to move too fast lest they walked into more trouble. The direction they were headed was towards the largest building in the place. There was no sunlight in this place, but it was still as bright as it is outside. If they didn¡¯t know that they were in a cave, some wouldn¡¯t know the difference. 1220 Can You Do This The group walked forward cautiously, they all knew there was a hidden danger, and things might get worse for them if they were to face any other opponent as they moved forward. They were still thinking about that probability when the golden robed man paused and looked ahead of him. His expression changed slightly and he said to the others. ¡°There¡¯s an array up front. I don¡¯t know what type it is, but I don¡¯t think it will be something that would aid our course.¡± Grey squinted his eyes and sent out his spiritual senses to chest out the array. It was a quite complex array, and he could sense different overlapping arrays on top of each other. ¡®This will be difficult. And with that thing lurking around, we will be in some sort of danger.¡¯ Grey thought internally. He wasn¡¯t sure he would be able to keep the gravitational force field active while in that array. The best option was to get rid of the danger that could hurt them before stepping into the array. ¡®Hmm¡­¡¯ Grey looked around, an idea echoing in his mind. Without wasting much time, he executed it. His eyes glowed with a pale blue glow as he looked around. A smile broke out on his face when he looked around, the reason for that was because he could see an additional figure. This was a figure he couldn¡¯t see previously. The figure had the shape of a human, but looked to be more like a specter. It had loose clothes and was floating in the air. The golden robed man and the others were still speaking when they saw Grey¡¯s eyes glow blue. Some of them were about to ask what he was doing when they saw a smile break out on his face as he was staring in a particular direction. ¡°What¡¯s wrong?¡± The golden robed man was the first to ask. ¡°It¡¯s there.¡± Grey pointed behind an Eighth stage Elemental Venerable. This specter seemed to be following one of them very closely, in fact, it was following him as if they were one. The person it was following looked at Grey, his expression cold. ¡°Why are you pointing at me?¡± The man asked. He heard Grey¡¯s statement, and he was a bit confused by it. ¡°Whatever is attacking us is behind you.¡± Grey said. ¡°How are you certain?¡± The golden robed man asked. ¡°Is there anyone present who can use this sort of attack?¡± Grey asked while pointing at his glowing eyes. After looking around, no one stepped forward. This means there was no one else to help him confirm his words. Of course, he didn¡¯t really need any confirmation, after all, he was seeing the specter with his eyes. The reason he was asking is that he wanted another person to confirm to the group. Grey didn¡¯t reply, but his figure blinked and before anyone could realize what was happening, he had switched places with the man who the specter was standing behind. He wanted to confirm something first before attacking. When he changed places with the man, he got confirmation for what he wanted to know. The man was tied to the specter. ¡°Kill him.¡± Grey said coldly. The man looked at Grey, his eyes cold. Even the golden robed man looked at Grey, a bit confused. ¡°What¡¯s the meaning of this?¡± The man asked coldly, his eyes showing a bit of rage. ¡°I¡¯m saying you¡¯re the one who brought the phantom here. If not, it wouldn¡¯t be that close to you even with your energy field on. I saw it when I activated this, and since I didn¡¯t want to falsely accuse you, I switched places with you just to be sure if it was hiding behind you or if it¡¯s part of you.¡± Grey explained calmly. ¡°My switch technique will not take along something that doesn¡¯t belong or isn¡¯t tied to the individual I¡¯m changing places with. There¡¯s also no way for the phantom to predict that I¡¯m about to use that skill, so it was impossible for it to move that quickly and appear behind you once again.¡± The golden robed man looked at the man Grey was accusing of bringing the phantom that attacked them. He didn¡¯t know what to say since he couldn¡¯t see what Grey was seeing. This was the first time he was working with Grey, but this man, he had worked with him once, not on an expedition like this, but on something else. To say the least, he had a bit of trust in this man, compared to Grey. ¡°How come you¡¯re the only one who can see it?¡± The man asked a very important question. Grey accusing him was something he would not stand for. The fact that Grey was the only one who could see it was a little suspicious. ¡®I should¡¯ve kept shut.¡¯ Grey felt a growing headache. Of course, he was still confident in being able to confirm his words, but with everyone staring at him now, he didn¡¯t want all that attention. The only reason he even spoke up was due to the array that was in front of them. Heading there with a hidden danger was not something he dared to do. Unless he was confident in breaking the array with ease, he would never enter with that danger still there. This was the first time he was seeing an array like this and he knew that if he dared to be careless, he might face some dangers. ¡°You¡¯re seeing the change in my eyes, right?¡± Grey asked. ¡°It doesn¡¯t change anything. Anyone can make their eyes glow.¡± The man said and even his eyes glowed with a silver color. ¡°You see, simple.¡± All he did was to channel his lightning essence to his eyes and his eyes glowed silver. ¡°Alright, do this then.¡± Grey used his mental attack on the man and the body of the man started to freeze at a speed visible to the naked eyes. 1221 Believe Me Now? Chapter 1221 Believe Me Now? The golden robed man prepared to attack, but he wasn''t facing the Lightning Elementalist Grey was attacking, rather, he was facing Grey. "Don''t be alarmed, this is a special method of attack known as mental attacks. It''s the reason I was also able to see the phantom behind him." Grey explained to the golden robed man. The golden robed man turned to the son of the Dawson Family Head, seemingly wanting some sort of confirmation from him. He could tell he was acquaintances with Grey, but they didn''t seem to have a good relationship. If he confirmed that there was something like what Grey was speaking of, then he would not attack Grey, but if there wasn''t, then he would attack Grey, and would also believe Grey was the one who brought the phantom. After all, it was quite odd that he was the only one who could see this mysterious phantom. Besides, there was also the possibility that they had killed it from their last combined attack. The son of the Dawson Family Head looked at Grey, then at the man and nodded at the golden robed man. Even though he was not a fan of Grey, it doesn''t mean he would foolishly let a hidden danger go with them. The phantom was something they could not see and if it were to attack them again while they were fighting, then they would be in serious trouble. As much as he wanted the golden robed man and Grey to fallout, he wasn''t foolish enough to do that at his own peril. When the golden robed man saw him nod, he looked at Grey again and said, "Unfreeze him." Grey didn''t argue with him and did as he was told. The golden robed man was even more intrigued by Grey''s abilities. With nothing but a lot, he literally made an Eighth stage Elemental Venerable defenseless. If he recalled correctly, Grey was a stage weaker than this man, and this man also had years of experience, yet he was like a small child before Grey. If the duo were to fight, it was easy to know who would win. Just this mental attack was enough to incapacitate the man, much less Grey putting in more effort. After unfreezing the man, Grey switched places with him once again, making sure the children of the golden robed man, and most importantly Cori wouldn''t be hurt by the phantom. He was standing close to them from the start, he only changed places with the man to confirm something. Now that he had achieved his purpose, he didn''t dare to delay any further, if not, they would be in danger of being killed with a single attack. The golden robed man looked at the man, a bit conflicted, he asked, "Why did you attack my children?" "I didn''t. Why are you believing the words of these foreigners?" The man couldn''t believe the man was telling him he was the cause of the phantom''s attack. Although he was frozen, he was still well aware of what was happening while in that frozen state. "But he said the phantom is behind you." The golden robed man said. "Did he prove it to you? He accused me and you believed just like that? Are you that naive? What if they are planning to reduce our manpower so they can keep everything for themselves! Never trust these foreigners!" The man asked a series of questions, speaking with a wronged tone. From the perspective of others, the man was pained by the fact that the golden robed man believed the words of Grey and the others without even doubting it. He was even prepared to attack him, which was absurd from their point of view. The golden robed man paused and looked at Grey. Yes, he was acting a bit too quickly. ''I was a bit rash. The voice clearly said it recalled my smell from the last time. That should mean it sensed me then¡­ but, what if it''s all an act by the phantom. I mean, I did tell them I''ve been here before.'' He was conflicted, unsure of who to believe. On one side was a long time acquaintance, on the other hand were the untrustworthy foreigners. If he were asked to choose who to believe, he would pick the man without a doubt. But Grey saved his children, and he didn''t feel Grey would do something like this. From how Grey has acted all this while, he judged that he was not one who would act in such a manner. He looked at Grey and said, "Prove it." "Prove that the phantom is behind him." "I''ll not prove that it''s behind him, but I''ll prove that I can see it." Grey replied. The golden robed man looked at Grey, a bit displeased. "The phantom can move, remember?" Grey''s next words cleared the doubts in the mind of the golden robed man and the others. The phantom could indeed move from one place to another. It was proven the last time they fought it. Grey looked at the man and said, "Protect them." He couldn''t leave Cori unprotected, he would rather not try to prove anything and leave immediately than to do so. Even with Void standing by, he didn''t want to take any chances. The golden robed man had no issues with that and covered them with his energy. Grey walked forward and stared straight at the eyes of the phantom that was still behind the man. The phantom looked at him, and its face which was covered with a veil revealed a chilling smile. The teeth were damaged and each of them were not whole. The phantom moved away from the man, flying high into the sky. Grey sent out an attack, and just as the phantom was about to dodge it, a small snow storm started in that particular place, keeping it in check. Its movement slowed down and Grey''s attack hit it, sending it crashing to the ground. Boom! With the sound of the phantom hitting the ground, the others believed Grey''s words. 1222 Taking Out The Phantom Chapter 1222 Taking Out The Phantom "Believe me now?" Grey asked calmly. The golden robed man and the others nodded. At first, they kept their eyes on the place where the phantom landed, but right after, their gazes turned to the man Grey accused of controlling the phantom. "I don''t know anything about it." The man still stuck with his initial words. "Did you keep your energy field active?" The golden robed man asked. "Yes, I didn''t deactivate it for even a moment. I don''t know how that thing stuck to me. How are we even sure it stuck with me? It was clearly struck down from the sky." The man said. He wore a wronged face, shocked at the current situation that was unfolding. "If your energy field was active, how come you didn''t sense it?" The golden robed man would not believe the words of the man so easily. Grey had proved that he could see it, now that he had proven himself, it meant that he was right when he saw the phantom was stuck to the man. "I don''t know. But I didn''t sense it, nor did I bring it here." The man still didn''t change his words. The golden robed man had a confused expression on his face. From how adamant the man was, he was starting to feel like he truly had no idea of what was happening. His gaze fell on Grey and another thought came to his head. ''What if he''s the one controlling it? If he has some sort of dissatisfaction against him, then it would make sense to frame him and get him killed.'' The thought of Grey being the one who controls the phantom was very much in the head of the golden robed man, not just him, but a few others as well. However, they didn''t see any reason why Grey would want to frame this man, he was stronger than the man when it came to attack power. Besides, the only person they felt Grey wouldn''t mind framing was the young foreigner who seemed to have an issue with him, but he didn''t, and the son of the Dawson Family Head even confirmed his mental attack theory to them. The man felt his head ache and he couldn''t come to a conclusion in a short time. "Fine, since you can see it, destroy it. We have no tangible evidence against him, we can''t attack him." He concluded after a minute of silence. Grey didn''t argue with him and walked over to the phantom that already had some parts destroyed. He unleashed a powerful fire attack and the pained shriek of the phantom resounded in the place. Its horrifying scream made the people around feel goosebumps on their body. Those below the Elemental Venerable Plane felt a chill run down their spines. "Dead." Grey turned and walked over to where Cori was standing. The golden robed man kept his gaze on Grey''s facial expression, as well as that of the man Grey accused, but he didn''t see any changes in their face. Grey had the same nonchalant expression, and the man had a vexed expression. That expression has been there since he was trying to explain himself to them. Now that Grey had killed the phantom, there was even a hint of relief in his eyes, he looked at the golden robed man, displeased at the fact that he suspected him. The golden robed man gave him an apologetic nod and they continued their journey. There was still an array before them. The only reason they stopped was due to Grey saying he could see the phantom. To be honest, everyone loosened up now that the phantom has been destroyed. While it was still uncertain if it was alive or dead, they were all on high alert, not even able to walk at their normal speed in fear of being attacked out of the blue. Now that the phantom was out of the picture, they could move as freely as they wanted to. The golden robed man was the first to step on the array. Grey didn''t wait for anyone and also took a step into the array. He didn''t allow Cori to enter with him, telling her to wait for him. Once he cracks the array, he would take her with him, but for now, there was no way he would dare to take her into the array with him. While sensing the array, he turned to the golden robed man, "Can you break it?" "There are a series of overlapping arrays. I can''t deal with all of them." The golden robed man replied. "I can break a few, but it will take some time." Grey said. Surprise engulfed the face of the golden robed man when he heard that Grey was also good with arrays as he asked, "You''re good with this as well?" "I know a thing or two." Grey replied casually. The golden robed man felt Grey was getting more and more mysterious. A powerful cultivator with such a high realm at such a young age. What was more shocking than his cultivation stage? His strength! His strength was above his cultivation stage by a mile. Even though he didn''t use a powerful attack while testing him, given the ease Grey used in blocking the attack, it was easy to see that he was way stronger than a Seventh stage Elemental Venerable. Grey''s methods were also a means of surprise as well. He was able to make his eyes glow and see something they couldn''t. If not for him, his children would''ve been dead as he didn''t sense the phantom early. Now, Grey was still good with arrays. One has to know that it should take years to learn all this, but Grey was barely twenty-five or twenty-six, yet he had managed to learn so many varieties of things that would aid him when it came to battling. The golden robed man had seen a few foreigners, but none of them were like Grey. While he was still in thought, Grey had started to decipher the array on top. "Anyone else good with this?" The golden robed man asked. Five people stepped forward and they all started to work on the array. Hey guys, here''s the chap! Don''t forget to vote with powerstones and golden tickets. Let''s try to get into the top 20 in the golden tickets rankings and I''ll drop a bonus chapter! Cya next chap! 1223 Shouldnt Have Told Them With seven people taking care of the array, they were able to quickly break the first layer of the array. The moment they broke it, Grey was the first to rush out of the area, the second he came out, he took Cori and left the area immediately. The golden robed man was the next, he took his children and retreated as well. The other five who were working with them were a little slower, but they still managed to make it out of the place. The second they left the place, a large explosion followed suit, making the place shine with a bright white light that engulfed the entire City. This City was well over fifteen kilometers wide and over twenty kilometers long, but the light engulfed everywhere. After the light died down, they all returned to the scene. When Grey escaped with such speed, those waiting outside didn¡¯t need anyone to explain anything to them as they all rushed to an area that they felt was safe when they also saw the golden robed man running frantically from the place as well. Before the other five came out, there was no one else waiting outside the array area, all of them had evacuated the area. ¡°Such a powerful attack.¡± The golden robed man spoke, fear was evident in his voice. He turned to Grey once again. Each time something happens, he only gets dumbfounded by Grey. They were all in the place together, he was the strongest, yet Grey was able to sense the danger before anyone. He did warn them as he was leaving. But before his voice faded he was already nowhere to be seen. The golden robed man sensed the danger at the time Grey¡¯s voice was about to fade and he left immediately. The other two escaped thanks to Grey¡¯s warnings. They sensed the danger, but only when they were already at the edge of the array and the attack was about to be unleashed then. If not for Grey¡¯s warning, they would¡¯ve most likely died, or if they were lucky, they would¡¯ve been badly injured. The five of them looked at Grey gratefully. None of them were annoyed Grey didn¡¯t try to help them, he warned them, that was enough. They knew if he wanted to save them, he would spend a longer time to save all of them, so he left while warning them of the danger. Grey didn¡¯t speak to either of them, his heart was still racing. The hairs on his hand were still standing, it was evident how scared he was when he sensed the danger. Looking around, he realized that none of the buildings close to the place got damaged. In fact, even the place a meter away from where the explosion occurred didn¡¯t show any signs of suffering such a powerful blast. ¡®Looks like there¡¯s something that keeps it all within that area.¡¯ He heaved a sigh of relief after this discovery. ¡°Are we still going to try to break it?¡± One of the five men asked. ¡°This is the only way forward. Either we try, or we give up.¡± The golden robed man said. ¡°That¡¯s easy for you to say, you weren¡¯t the one whose life was in danger.¡± One of the five men said coldly. They would never put their lives on the line for the benefit of these people. If they were to attempt to break the next layer and die in the process, these people would turn around and not even think about them after leaving. While their own lives would be cut short just for wanting to break an array that would benefit all of them. Thinking about it, they felt the risk outweighed the reward, in their opinion. The golden robed man saw their expressions and knew they wouldn¡¯t dare to enter that place again, and he didn¡¯t blame them. His eyes moved to Grey who was staring at the array, clearly fascinated. He couldn¡¯t help but wonder if Grey was fascinated by the array he ran away from with his tail hidden between his legs a few seconds ago. Grey naturally couldn¡¯t be bothered with them, he was still studying the array. Unlike most people who only saw the lines stacked on top of each other and the complexity, what he saw was an art, a beautiful, beautiful, art. It was so compelling that he couldn¡¯t peel his eyes away from it. He saw a few nodes in the array and laughed in delight. His sudden strange behavior stunned a few that were present, while the son of the Dawson Family Head felt amused. Void almost wanted to facepalm as he whispered in Cori¡¯s ears, ¡°He¡¯s doing that thing again. So embarrassing.¡± ¡°What¡¯s he doing?¡± Cori asked Void curiously. ¡°Whenever he sees something new to learn, he gets excited. Look, his hands are shaking, he¡¯s getting close to the peak of excitement. He has probably seen how to break this array by now.¡± Void replied. Cori looked at Grey, amazed. This was the first time she was seeing Grey break out of his usual calm character. ¡°Don¡¯t worry, you¡¯ll get used to it.¡± Void comforted her. While Void was telling Cori about Grey¡¯s behavior he found embarrassing, Grey was nodding and getting more excited. ¡°I can break it. I just need three people, including you, Sir, which makes it four.¡± Grey said to the golden robed man. The golden robed man looked at the five who helped them the last time. ¡°Don¡¯t worry, you guys will be at the edge. This time, it will attack faster than the previous time.¡± Grey said. When they heard it would attack faster than the previous time, they all took a step back. They barely managed to escape the last time with their lives, and now Grey wanted them to enter this one which would explode faster than the previous one. The golden robed man looked at Grey with a disapproving eye. Grey soon understood the mistake in his words. He knew these people were still afraid, but he didn¡¯t think about it when he said this time the attack would be faster. ¡®I shouldn¡¯t have told them.¡¯ 1224 I’ll Manage Chapter 1224 I¡¯ll Manage After much convincing, three of the five agreed to help Grey and the golden robed man. Grey stood at the center of the array and drew a hexagram in the sky with his energy. While standing in the middle of the hexagram, he made the golden robed man and the other three stand in four strategic positions. Having six people would''ve been better, but Grey wasn''t certain he would be able to control it with six people, so he went with what he knew he was capable of doing. He instructed them on what to do and they carried out the instructions perfectly. These people were, after all, old fogeys with hundreds of years of practice with arrays under their belt. The only reason Grey was able to get the method of cracking it was due to the vast variety of arrays he had encountered over the years. From the beginning of his journey to becoming an array master, he had been learning, and even to date, he was still learning new arrays and creating new ways to get past them. The method he thought of to break the array was from one of the books he had read about arrays from the past, while he was still in the Azure Continent. Surprisingly, although that place was the smallest and most mediocre place he had been to compared to the other places he had explored, it still managed to bring some things that were valuable. It is as they say, no knowledge goes to waste. Grey was standing in the middle of the hexagram as he gently channeled his spiritual senses into the array, carefully removing the overlapping arrays. The first attempt made the hearts of the trio who were working with the golden robed man at the edges jump. The array showed signs of instability, and they knew what followed after that. But for some reason, the previous result was not the case. There was no explosion, and neither did they see Grey running for his life like the last time. They''ve all come to terms that Grey''s ability to detect danger was superior to theirs, so they all kept their eyes on Grey, while also doing as they were told. Before long, the first overlaying array was broken without any reaction. Compared to what happened when they broke the first one, this one seemed relatively easy. Grey and the other four heaved a sigh of relief. The golden robed man was once again impressed by Grey''s abilities, the same could be said for a few others as well. "We can break it. There should be three more." One of the trio said. "Yes, but it''s not any easier, it will only get harder since these are more complex." The golden robed man didn''t need Grey to tell him this. He was also a master of arrays and had seen it. They nodded and turned to Grey, awaiting his order like the previous time. Grey calmed himself and focused on the array, after studying it, he gave them instructions and they followed. This time, there were some changes in the instructions which came as a surprise to the golden robed man, he wanted to ask if the same method as the first time wouldn''t work, but as they were midway through breaking the array, he understood why. Thirty minutes later. The five of them fell to the ground, all gasping for air. Even the golden robed man was no exception. Other than Grey, he was the one who took on the most pressure and it took a toll on his body. The other three were tired and almost had the urge to sleep. After using much of their spiritual energy, they all felt exhausted even when they didn''t engage in a long battle. "Should we advance?" Someone from the group asked. "We can''t fight now. Unless you''re certain of whatever lies ahead, I''ll suggest you wait for us." The golden robed man didn''t look at the person but still replied to his question. The others could only wait for them. While they were waiting, Grey sent the bunny leader to search the buildings once again. They advanced further into the place and were already in front of the castle. If not for their exhaustion, they would''ve gone in by now. He hoped the buildings close to the castle would hold valuable items or information. Void couldn''t leave Cori''s side now, so the bunny leader went alone. Grey couldn''t communicate with it telepathically like Void, but Void could, so they used him as a way to communicate. Ten minutes later. The five of them had gone back to their normal state. Grey recovered before any of them, but he realized he had been too dazzling since he encountered the golden robed man, it wouldn''t do him any good, so he still pretended to catch his breath while listening to what the bunny leader was saying. "Are you sure you''re okay?" The golden robed man asked, he was a bit concerned about Grey''s well-being. Grey was important in this expedition and was indispensable due to the abilities he had shown. "I can manage, you don''t need to worry about me." Grey didn''t speak fast, trying to put on his best act. The golden robed man nodded and turned to the others, "Let''s go." The group advanced and headed to the castle. Like the golden robed man, everyone felt the treasures were in this place. Not everyone was like Grey who wouldn''t mind getting a book at the very least, the people who came here all had the same motive, to grow stronger with the aid of the treasures they might find here. The golden robed man was the one taking the lead, after ascending the short flight of stairs, he grabbed the large handle on the door and pushed it open. The door creaked, giving the sound of extremely old wood. Dust came out of the small opening after the first push, and they all felt an archaic smell hit all of them along with the dust. 1225 Avoided By All As the door opened, everyone in the group prepared to attack. When the golden robed man pushed the door to the end, the first thing he saw was a skeleton of a beast, blue in color, radiating intense water elemental essence. When Grey saw it, his eyes lit up. He knew it was good stuff. The inner part of the castle was dark, but at the door, they could already see the bones of a powerful Magical Beast. Just the bones showed that or was no ordinary beast while it was alive. Grey had the urge to take it, but he didn¡¯t make any attempts at taking it, just staring and looking away. The other Water Elementalists in the group didn¡¯t have such reservations, some of them were ready to pounce at the bones at any moment. ¡°Calm down, we¡¯ll distribute these things when we leave. For now, I¡¯ll keep them in this storage ring. I urge everyone to hand over any treasure found inside so we can all get a share of it.¡± The golden robed man said. ¡°What about treasures we personally risk our lives to get?¡± Someone asked. ¡°Then it¡¯s yours. But for treasures like these that are accessible to everyone, we should do well to place them here so we can all benefit. After all, if we were to say the strongest keeps them, only a few people will be able to get anything after risking their lives here.¡± The golden robed man explained. Everyone nodded, seeing reason with what the golden robed man said. As long as it was a treasure everyone can access, then it would be kept and later distributed, but if not, then whoever finds it can keep it. The inner part of the castle soon started to brighten up, it was as if it was sucking light from the outside and lighting up the place. The view of the castle soon came to view and they all got to see the magnificent place. They were looking at a large Hall, large pillars held the ceiling which seemed to stretch into the clouds in place. The pillars had engravings on them and the Magical Beasts drawn on them seemed like they could move. At the center of the throne, there was a large core that struck fear into the hearts of people staring at it. Grey felt his heart palpitate as he stared at the majestic throne. For the first time, he felt inferior just by staring at a throne. He couldn¡¯t help but feel curious about who sat on such a throne. His curiosity made him want to study the throne, but as he sent his spiritual senses close to it, he sensed a danger far greater than whatever the array unleashed and he gave a wry smile. This throne was out of the picture, if they dared to go close, they might die, much less trying to take it, then they would die without a doubt. He turned and saw Void¡¯s glistering eyes, he hastily warned him of the danger. ¡®I know, why do you think it¡¯s still there?¡¯ Void replied, annoyed. It was clear that he felt pained by the fact he couldn¡¯t take the treasure. He too had sensed that getting close to the throne would only cause him more harm than good. The golden robed man looked at the throne but also felt the dangers that came with it and could only give up. In this case, everyone else knew that this throne was out of the question. There were multiple doors that led to different hallways. ¡°What¡¯s the plan?¡± Grey asked, ¡°Move as a group or individuals?¡± The golden robed man looked at the hallways, there were at least twenty hallways the group numbered around thirty or so. With this many hallways, there were bound to be more rooms and possibly secret places that they could explore. However, if they were to move individually, the danger would be higher, and also the rewards. The people would keep all the treasures they found, and he wouldn¡¯t benefit as much as he thought he would. ¡°In groups.¡± He said after some thought. ¡°Of course, some people can move out on their own. But you all should be aware that although you will benefit more, the chances of dying would also increase. I do not know what hides within these walls.¡± ¡°I¡¯ll explore alone, with my little sister, of course.¡± Grey didn¡¯t waste any time and said his stance. He had always had reservations about doing things like this with people. Now that there was an opportunity for him to separate himself, he didn¡¯t think twice and quickly did that. A few people also decided to explore the place alone, while the majority formed groups. There was safety in numbers, after all. Other than his children, the golden robed man didn¡¯t take anyone else with him. He was the first to pick a room. Grey didn¡¯t waste any time and did the same as well. Of all the people, only one person was unable to join a group. The man Grey accused of controlling the phantom. His expression was sour as he looked around. Although there were a few people who he was previously close with, they gave him space at the moment. They didn¡¯t want to take the risk of moving with someone who might want to kill them. If what Grey said was true, then he might kill them if they find any treasures. He clenched his fists, annoyed at what happened. ¡°This stupid brat. Now no one agreed to pair with me. I better go in the same direction as him. I¡¯ll kill him if the opportunity presents itself.¡± 1226 Special Fruits Chapter 1226 Special Fruits Grey was the only one who took that path. With the man following behind him, they were two people who took the same path. Grey had no idea the man was following due to anger of not being able to partner with anyone, and even if he knew, he wouldn''t be bothered in any way. He saw the phantom behind him, and with the phantom moving with him when he switched places with him, he was a hundred percent certain there was a certain relationship between them. There was no way it would''ve been taken by the switch skill when it was not Grey''s target, unless it was attached to the person Grey wanted to switch places with. The switch skill doesn''t make use of a large spatial tunnel, all it did was to take the exact size of Grey and the target he wants to switch places with. If any other things follows, then it was part or attached to the target. ¡­. After entering the hallway, Grey was greeted by a long tunnel. He never even thought it would be like this, he expected to see doors, a lot of doors. The bunny leader was out now and it was staring around. "Can you two sense anything good?" Grey asked Void and the bunny leader. "Nothing." Void shook his head, but then added, "Maybe there''s something hiding it from our senses. Once I get closer, I''ll know if there is anything good or not." Grey nodded and started to walk further into the tunnel. "I wonder if the other ones are like this." He muttered. He was quite curious about it, but there was no way for him to find out about it unless he walked there to check it out. "Someone''s behind us." Void said. "I know." Grey replied, he knew someone would definitely take the same path as him, it wasn''t like he was the owner of the place. The group continued walking forward with Cori looking around curiously. This was her first time being in a place like this, and it was quite exciting. They walked through the tunnel and before long they started to see an opening on the other side of the tunnel. There was light on the other side, almost as if they stepped outside the cave. As they got closer, they could even feel the cool breeze of the wind. "We''re going outside?" Cori asked, a little amazed. "Not likely. Maybe there is a special spot here." Grey looked on with a normal expression, this was not the first time he was experiencing something like this, so he had little knowledge about it. When they got to the end of the tunnel, their vision was blinded by the bright light, after a second, their eyes adjusted to the place and they welcomed a scene like spring, flowers sprouting from the ground, beautifying the place. "It looks so peaceful." This was the only statement that came out of Grey''s mouth. He expected something that would want to kill them, but to his surprise, he seemed to have entered a place that looked like a garden. "Is there anything good?" Both Grey and Void turned to the bunny leader, it was the one who had dealt with plants more, so it should know if there is something good here or not. The bunny leader stopped to sense the place. It closed its eyes, but it doesn''t seem to sense anything. Just when it was about to stop, its nose twitched. Grey and Void knew that was a small sign that it must''ve sensed something. "What did you get?" Void asked curiously. ''My favorite flower is planted here.'' The bunny leader said. "And what does your favorite flower being here have to do with us?" Void asked with an annoyed expression, he suddenly paused and asked, "Is your favorite flower a treasure?" ''No.'' The bunny leader shook his head. "Then why are you wasting our time?" Void looked at it, a little vexed. ''My favorite flower doesn''t grow in a place that doesn''t have a special fruit. This fruit can strengthen the essence of an Elementalist and even make their physical body grow stronger.'' The bunny leader explained. "So that''s it. Lead us there then." Grey said. The bunny leader nodded and took the lead, Grey, Cori, and Void followed the bunny leader. They soon got to where the fruit the bunny leader was speaking of. This fruit was present in the garden Grey first saw the bunny leader. He was unable to get this particular fruit at that time. Just as Grey was about to grab it, he paused and looked behind him. "It''s you." He said casually when he saw who was walking behind him. "Yes¡­" The figure said slowly before staring around, "What''s this place?" "I have no idea. I saw myself here after getting to the end of the tunnel." Grey shrugged and bent down, picking the fruits. He only paused because he sensed someone coming close, now that he had confirmed who the person was, there was nothing else stopping. The figure he was speaking of was surprisingly not the man he accused, but the son of the Dawson Family Head who didn''t even think of taking the same path as Grey. He didn''t understand how he got to this place. The son of the Dawson Family Head looked at the fruit Grey was taking. There was around ten, and Grey had already taken nine. "Stop." He called out as he walked closer to them. Grey touched the fruit and it vanished. He looked at the son of the Dawson Family Head with a nonchalant expression, "What?" The son of the Dawson Family Head looked at Grey, with a sigh he replied, "Nothing." Grey chuckled and turned to look in the direction of the place he came from, he saw the man who he accused. "It''s you." Grey said casually. The man paused when he saw the son of the Dawson Family Head with Grey. ''I thought they had some issues.'' He looked at the duo, as well as the young Cori. Void and the bunny leader were nowhere to be seen as they hid in the tall flowers. Even the golden robed man would not be able to sense them, much less this man who was still in the Eighth stage of the Elemental Venerable Plane. 1227 Amazing Drawings ¡°Is there no way out?¡± The man asked when he saw the duo staring at him. ¡°I have no idea.¡± Grey replied. He turned to the son of the Dawson Family Head who shrugged. ¡°Alright. There doesn¡¯t seem to be anything of value here.¡± He said. ¡®Didn¡¯t he move out with a group, why is he here alone?¡¯ The man thought to himself. He didn¡¯t think too much about it and walked further into the place, searching for a way to leave the place. Since Grey wasn¡¯t alone, he didn¡¯t have any plans of confronting him. He originally wanted to confront Grey for the accusation, but he was scared they would team up against him, so he gave up on the idea for now. ¡®I wonder why he¡¯s here alone.¡¯ Grey thought to himself while looking at the son of the Dawson Family Head. From how they moved from the start, he felt the son of the Dawson Family Head would continue with his group. Seeing him here alone alerted him, of course, he wasn¡¯t afraid of him, but he wanted to be on the safer side. With the man appearing as well, it might be a little dangerous for him. While the man was searching for a way to leave the place, five more people appeared there. They were all people who they met in the golden robed man¡¯s place. They looked around, and when they didn¡¯t find a way to leave or a treasure, they turned to the people that were present. Even the son of the Dawson Family Head was searching for a way to leave the place, Grey was the only one who didn¡¯t seem to care. He was playing with Cori there, unbothered by the number of people that was increasing. Before long, their numbers increased to ten. When it did, something unexpected happened. The people who had been searching for a way to leave were stunned when they appeared on a platform. There were ten platforms, and each of them stood on one platform. Cori didn¡¯t get a platform and she was still on the side, neither did Void and the bunny leader. Grey and a few others found it odd that Cori wasn¡¯t assigned a platform. Even if Void and the bunny leader were ignored, Grey felt Cori would at least be involved. ¡®Luckily she wasn¡¯t assigned a platform.¡¯ He thought internally. Although he found it odd, he was happy by the fact that she wasn¡¯t made to fight anything. It was unknown what they would be fighting, if it was something that could kill her, he would not forgive himself. Some figures appeared before them on the platform, along with it came a voice. ¡°Win and pass, fail and stay.¡± The people present showed a somewhat panic striken expression. Only a few sigh as Grey, the man he accused, and the son of the Dawson Family Head didn¡¯t show any reactions. What they were fighting was on the same stage as them and they were all people who were confident in being able to kill someone on the same stage as them. ¡°How come there is such a thing?¡± One of the other seven people asked. Grey didn¡¯t ask any questions as he attacked the figure in front of him. The figure was in the Seventh stage of the Elemental Venerable Plane. It wasn¡¯t as powerful as Grey in any way and could be beaten by those close to the Eighth stage. Grey destroyed it with a single attack. The second he completed the battle, Cori appeared beside him and they were teleported away from the place. The eyes of those present changed slightly. Seeing how Grey was able to easily defeat his opponent, the others felt some encouragement and they all attacked. Only after attacking did they know that it wasn¡¯t as easy as it looked. Only three people were able to quickly dispatch of their opponents and were sent out, the rest weren¡¯t able to do so even after ten attacks. The son of the Dawson Family Head defeated his opponent after three attacks, he was the fastest. After him, there was an Old man who was able to quickly defeat his opponent with only four attacks. The man Grey accused succeded after eight attacks. The others found out it wasn¡¯t as easy as Grey made it seem like. They quickly recalled that Grey had a very powerful attack power. With that, it would be very easy for him to one-shot anyone without the strength of an Eighth stage Elemental Venerable. ¡­. On another location. Grey was taken out of the place and appeared in a room. Void¡¯s eyes lit up the second they appeared, the reason for that was that there was something glowing in front of them, not just that it was shiny, but it was also a powerful treasure. He didn¡¯t know what it was, but he was certain that it was no ordinary item. Just as he was about to head over for it, Grey stopped him. ¡°Why in such a hurry? Calm down, we¡¯ll take it.¡± He said. Void looked at him and didn¡¯t try to take the shiny item from where it was hanging. The bunny leader looked at the room and was dumbstruck with the drawings on the wall. Grey also placed his focus on these drawings. The longer he stared at it, the more he felt like they were moving. On one of the drawings, there was a man who stood in the air, facing a large group of warriors. There wasn¡¯t any sign of fear on his face as he faced off against multiple opponents, rather, he was nonchalant. With a wave of his hand, more than half of the warriors were wiped out. The ones left submitted in fear of being annihilated. The man was magnanimous and let them leave after they gave up. ¡°Such a marvel.¡± Grey muttered. 1228 Taught By A Drawing? Chapter 1228 Taught By A Drawing? They continued staring at the painting, but Grey''s eyes didn''t leave a particular painting. In this painting, a figure was sitting alone on a mountaintop. It looked ethereal as the figure blended with the environment. While staring, one would get the feeling that this figure wasn''t there, but at the same time, it was as if this figure was larger than the mountain itself. There was no movement from the figure, just sitting there as if it owns the world. From its casual sitting position, Grey felt his entire body rocked as he continued to stare hard at it. Grey''s figure waved slightly and it was like his consciousness was pulled out of his body and he appeared beside the figure, watching it sit there peacefully without doing anything. The figure gave the feeling of sensing someone appear beside it and it turned to take a quick look at Grey. When their eyes met, Grey felt a lightning bolt down his spine, he was flabbergasted by what was happening. All the figure did was glance at him, but his legs went soft and he almost fell to the ground. There was no need to say anything, he knew the figure painted here was a great person while still alive. What he couldn''t wrap his head around was how they made it come to life, seemingly. This wasn''t his first time seeing a drawing, but this was the first time he was getting such a lifelike feeling from one. Both the figure in the drawing and the artist were two exceptional people while they were still present. Grey didn''t know much about the Chaos Battlefield, nevertheless, he felt the figure here must''ve been a godlike entity, if not, why would it have such elegance? After some time, Grey was dragged out of the place his consciousness was dragged into. He didn''t know how long he was inside the drawing, nor did he care. The short exchange he had with the figure gave him a powerful technique that he didn''t want to waste any time and immediately started practicing it. There''s a possibility that this technique would be able to help him here. Void and the bunny leader didn''t get anything from the drawings, neither did Cori. Grey was the only one who got something and he immediately started practicing it after almost twenty minutes of staring at the drawing. When they saw him in that state, they didn''t bother with him and started to search the place, hoping to find something good. Of course, it wasn''t that easy. Other than the drawings, the only thing present was the door to leave this place. The room was quite large, around fifty square meters or so. After almost thirty minutes, Grey opened his eyes, he heaved a sigh of relief before standing up. "Finally, we can leave." Void said. Grey smiled and stared at the drawing once again, he had gained from it. With a slight bow, he took the lead and the group left the room. There was nothing for him there. After they left, the drawing of the figure he saw sitting on the mountaintop turned to look at where Grey sat. It looked at the spot for a few seconds, shook its head softly, and turned back. If not for the fact that one could clearly see that it was a drawing, people would think that it was alive given its mannerisms. It gave off the feeling that it was well aware of the happenings outside the drawing. ¡­. Grey, Cori, Void, and the bunny leader appeared in another hallway, unlike the tunnel, this one had doors on multiple sides. "Could it be that this is the main room but we were sent to another place the first time?" Void asked. Grey shrugged, he didn''t know how this place worked. He walked up to the first door and tried to get it open. To his surprise, it didn''t budge. Even after using all his strength, the door refused to open. Just when he gave up, Cori walked close to it and it opened. A confused look appeared on his face as he found what just happened to be odd. He stopped Cori from going in and the bunny leader and Void were sent ahead. They were both small and could hide from danger. Void and the bunny leader didn''t have any complaints, after going through the place, they called the duo over since it was safe. Grey took Cori inside the room and his eyes nearly popped out. This place was a bedroom, and it seemed to belong to a little girl. There were dolls in the place, but Grey was certain that each one of these toys was enough to make an entire city go to war. He could sense that they were each made from precious materials. There were four in total, and all four had unique characteristics. When Grey got close to them, all four dolls started to enlarge. Their strength was around a Fifth stage Elemental Venerable. "They act as some sort of defense as well? Nice!" Grey couldn''t hide his impressed expression. It wasn''t easy to create something like this, neither was it hard for him to take them down. He was too strong for them to begin with. What he found more impressive was that the regenerating ability of the dolls was amazing. One of them which had almost half its body blasted was able to go back to its original state within a few minutes. "I think these belong to you." He passed them on to Cori. Cori took them and smiled happily, clearly pleased with having them. They searched the room but didn''t find anything else of value. Since there was nothing to take, they left and continued searching the other rooms. Other than that room, there were still around fifty rooms, but the next twenty gave them nothing. Either they didn''t find anything of use inside, or they were unable to access it. The inaccessible rooms seemed to have been assigned to only open for certain people. 1229 Drop It Grey and his group explored the place and barely got anything else that was good. He left the place and headed straight out of the hallway. There was no way forward, so he went back. They appeared in the same Hall as they used to enter the place. The Hall had a few people present already, and Grey recognized two of them. When they saw Grey, they wanted to approach him, but they stopped midway. From their facial expressions, Grey knew they didn¡¯t get anything good. Other than the dolls he gave to Cori, then the technique he got from the drawings, he also didn¡¯t get anything much from the place. Compared to what they had to face to get here, he was pretty disappointed at the reward. But he couldn¡¯t complain, he knew he wouldn¡¯t always benefit from these places. Of course, Grey wasn¡¯t foolish enough to believe that all of them didn¡¯t get any good rewards. Even he got a top technique, there was definitely a probability that some of them must¡¯ve gotten a good amount of treasures and just decided to hide it from others. They were all cunning people after all. He didn¡¯t leave and waited for others to appear. As time went on, more and more people started to come out. Of the twenty plus people who entered the place, only eighteen had made it out. The golden robed man and his children were part of the people who had arrived. The youths from the Dawson Family were all out, and even the man Grey accused was out as well. ¡°Let¡¯s be patient, if they do not come out within the next one hour we¡¯ll leave.¡± The golden robed man replied calmly. He was the one who brought them here, he didn¡¯t want to abandon them just like that. He planned to wait for them for another hour and if they didn¡¯t come out then, he didn¡¯t mind leaving them behind. Besides, they knew the way out. There¡¯s a possibility that some of them got top treasures and didn¡¯t want to come out in fear of sharing their treasures. Of the absent people, most of them were in the Seventh and Eighth stage. It was clear that they were either dead or afraid to come out. ¡­. One hour went by once again. ¡°Let¡¯s leave, I¡¯m tired of waiting.¡± Someone said angrily. Only one person came out in that one hour, and the person didn¡¯t speak after coming out. The golden robed man opened his eyes and nodded. The time he promised was up, there was no use in waiting any longer. They got up and just as they were about to leave, the doors which had been open since they came in slammed shut with a ¡®bang!¡¯. ¡°What¡¯s happening?¡± They were all alarmed at the sudden change. The throne which had been untouched started to glow. ¡°It¡¯s glowing.¡± Grey muttered. During the time he had been waiting, his eyes had always been on the throne. To be honest, he coveted it, but he didn¡¯t know how to take it, and the danger he felt from it was too serious. He was certain that he would die if he dared to touch it, so he just admired it from afar. The others turned to the throne when they heard his words. Even without his words, most of them would¡¯ve turned either way, the throne gave off a bright glow that only a blind person wouldn¡¯t see it. ¡°Why is it glowing?¡± Someone asked, a bit fearful. No one answered his question. They all came here together, so how did he expect anyone else to know the reason for the sudden glow in the throne? ¡®Why do people like asking stupid questions in situations like this?¡¯ Grey shook his head as he thought to himself. The group was curious, but none of them walked close to the throne, they could all sense the threat of death from it. Before long, an array appeared on it and it shot to the ceiling. Everyone looked at it and was stunned by what they were seeing. In the ceiling, some creatures started to crawl out, these things were drawn on the ceiling. When they first came in, they saw them, but they didn¡¯t take it too seriously, after all, they were just drawings. ¡°This¡­ what¡¯s this?¡± Fear started to show in the faces and voices of a few people. A powerful voice came from the throne. ¡°Drop it.¡± The people present looked at each other, stunned. They all took one thing or the other from the place, so they weren¡¯t sure what the voice was speaking about. Grey looked at the dolls in Cori¡¯s hand and dropped them. This was the only thing he took. When they entered the other rooms, he didn¡¯t take anything since they were of no use. Even Void and the bunny leader left them alone as they were of no use. The voice spoke once again. ¡°Drop it.¡± This time, the voice was starting to show anger and the creatures coming out of the ceiling were increasing. ¡°What¡¯s it talking about?¡± ¡°Drop whatever you took from this place.¡± The golden robed man advised and dropped the things he got as well. The others started to do the same. Before long, all sorts of treasures appeared on the ground and the eyes of others lit up when they saw some things a few people dropped. The golden robed man and Grey also took a glance at these things, although they were interested in them, they didn¡¯t show it. Grey wasn¡¯t the greedy type, since these people got these things, as long as they managed to take them from here, he wouldn¡¯t bother them. The only times he had done things like that were when he needed the items. There were a few things of value there, but none of them could move him. Void and the bunny leader were different though, their eyes lit up even brighter than the light coming from the throne. 1230 Coffin Thief? Chapter 1230 Coffin Thief? "Oh right." Grey seemed to recall something and dropped some fruits. He forgot about them since he didn''t really think they were of any value. After dropping them, he stood there casually. The son of the Dawson Family Head saw what Grey dropped and was a little surprised. Given Grey''s personality, he didn''t think he would hide anything if they were in such a predicament, he even dropped the fruits he saw him take the first time. Since these were the only things Grey dropped, then there was a high likelihood that they were the only things he took from this place. ''How can that be?'' He asked himself. He wasn''t the only one who was asking that question. Everyone had dropped at least one thing of value, but Grey only dropped those dolls that looked useless and the fruits. Compared to what others dropped, the dolls and fruits didn''t seem to have as much value as one of their treasures. "Drop it!" The voice said once again, this time, it was seething with anger. "Are these the only things you got? Drop the treasure before you cause our deaths." Someone scolded Grey angrily. Grey looked at the man but didn''t reply, the creatures were getting closer to them. These beasts walked on all fours and looked like dogs, but there was a clear difference between them and dogs. "Drop it!" This time, the voice echoed in the Hall, making the ground shake. "Are you crazy? Do you want us to die?" Someone else spoke up. Grey was the only one whose items had the least value, so they all felt he was hiding something. The golden robed man looked at Grey, he didn''t see Grey as one who would endanger his life due to greed, "Are these the only thing you got?" "The other thing is ingrained here, unless it wants me to forget it, there''s nothing I can do." Grey pointed to his head. He learned a technique, but that was while staring at a drawing. He was even careful and didn''t allow Void to take a few things. Although, they weren''t of any value so Void wasn''t adamant about it. Now that he had dropped the things with him, he was carefree. The golden robed man stared at him for a long time and shook his head. "Fine, but I hope you''re not lying to me." Grey nodded and didn''t say anything else. If he took anything of importance, he would''ve dropped it. Just when the creatures got close, a scene appeared before them and they understood something, the voice was speaking to any of them, rather, there was a man who was inside and was carrying a coffin. The coffin was almost four meters long, but it was not an issue for this man. The man was one of them, but he didn''t seem to be the same person. When they entered this place, he was only in the Seventh stage, but from the screen that appeared before them, even without going close, they could tell that he was already at the Peak of the Elemental Venerable Plane. This meant two things, either he perfectly hid his realm the first time, or he met with a tremendous fortuitous encounter. Grey was the first to keep his items, along with the golden robed man. Void and the bunny leader were currently nowhere to be seen and Grey knew they had gone treasure hunting. There were a few good things present, and given the nature of the duo, they would want to take a few. ''Don''t steal anything from them¡­ yet.'' Grey said to Void. It already seemed like he had drawn the ire of a few people present. If some things were to be lost, he would be the first one suspected again, even when he didn''t do anything. After taking his items, he went to the side to ensure that he wasn''t standing close to anyone''s treasures. The creatures had surrounded them, and they knew that leaving this place would be difficult. But they had to keep their treasures first. That was the most important thing. "You''ve all seen who the voice is referring to. What should we do now?" Grey asked. They were not the ones who took the coffin, but they were the ones about to be attacked. If the creatures attacked, they would have to fend them off for someone who wouldn''t want to give them any share of whatever he got. "What can we do?" The golden robed man asked in a self-depreciating manner. There was no way to get past these things they must attack them. Even if they didn''t want to fight with them, the creatures would still attack them. The others all wore annoyed faces and one person suddenly spoke in an angered voice, "Who took it?" While asking the question, he turned to everyone that was around him. When taking back the treasures he dropped, he noticed one of them was missing. This thing was almost insignificant, but it was the most important thing in his collection. Those around him looked at him with an odd expression. The man was in the Ninth stage of the Elemental Venerable Plane. He was about to snap when he heard the voice of the golden robed man. "There shall be no infighting until we''re out of our current predicament." The golden robed man snorted coldly. One of the creatures suddenly attacked, and the rest did the same. Grey stood in front of Cori, and without taking a single wave of his hand, he sent the creature flying, crashing into the other creatures. The second the creature crashed into them, it exploded with a powerful force, killing all the others close to it. When Grey attacked it, he sent a fusion orb as well with it, helping wipe out more of the creatures with just one attack. The golden robed man attacked as well, sending the creatures in front of him flying. The others attacked too, keeping the creatures away from them. 1231 A Deal With The Voice ¡°How are we going to get to him?¡± The son of the Dawson Family Head asked, irritated by the creatures. They might be stronger than the creatures individually, but with the collective number of the creatures, they were at a disadvantage. They could barely keep the area around them safe since the creatures were just too much. The likes of Grey, the golden robed man, the son of the Dawson Family Head, and the others in the Ninth stage of the Elemental Venerable Plane had been the ones who took up most of the workload, the others were just trying to make sure they were alive. ¡°Who knows which path that guy took?¡± The golden robed man asked after sending another batch of creatures back. The others shook their heads, none of them knew which path this man took. Apparently, of the group he went with, he was the only one that they can confirm is alive, the rest of them could be presumed dead or still in search of treasures. The group all exchanged glances when they saw that there was no way to find this person. The voice was still yelling angrily. It was very obvious that the coffin was something that was quite important to the voice. The voice might just be a remnant piece of consciousness, but it was very upset with the man who picked up the coffin. The others were unfortunately facing the brunt of the anger. ¡°We aren¡¯t the ones who took it. Let us go and make him drop it.¡± Grey suddenly spoke up. Since the voice could feel anger, he felt there might be a chance that he could reason with it. As long as it could be reasoned with, then they would be in a good position. For now, they had to face the brutal attacks of the creatures. Grey had even used his inscriptions to fight off the creatures. Four inscriptions surrounded Cori, forcing back any creature that goes close to her. He couldn¡¯t always be close to protect her, and he was still hoping to keep Void and the bunny leader hidden, after all, there¡¯s a good chance that they might take a few things from a few people here. First off, he didn¡¯t like the man the phantom attached itself to, and he saw that he had a good item. The treasure wasn¡¯t all that important to him, but it would be good for Klaus, and he wanted it. Most of the treasures he had been acquiring were for his friends. Klaus was the only one he rarely got anything for, the reason being that it was Klaus. Of all his friends, Klaus was the luckiest, even without his help, Klaus would grow at a frightening speed. Reynolds was still good, Alice as well, but getting them treasures to boost their strength wasn¡¯t a bad thing. There was still Keith, Ellis, and even Cori who was here with him. He wanted to make sure everyone associated with him grew stronger. For some reason, he could feel that there was unrest, even while in the Chaos Battlefield, he felt the unrest more intensely. From the few things he had heard, he guessed it had something to do with the Gnomes, but he wasn¡¯t a hundred percent certain. The others looked at him as if he were a fool, none of them thought of even reasoning with the voice because all it had said so far was to drop it. The main reason Grey attempted to communicate with it was simple, it showed them the coffin and who took it. He felt the consciousness saw them dropping their items and felt it needed to clarify what needed to be dropped. Just as some of them were about to speak up, they heard the voice once again. ¡°Help me retrieve it and you would be rewarded.¡± Shock appeared on the faces of everyone present. Before Grey could say anything, he felt a powerful suction force, and without hesitation, he grabbed Cori. There was no way he would leave without Cori. Void and the bunny leader could fend for themselves. Of course, the duo would never let him go without following. They all vanished from the spot. The creatures didn¡¯t stop attacking the others who wore flabbergasted expressions. ¡°He can do that?¡± The son of the Dawson Family Head was shocked by Grey¡¯s intuition. The golden robed man and a few felt aggrieved that they weren¡¯t the ones that were transported out of this place. Fighting against these creatures and fighting against just one person were two different things and most of them in the Ninth stage would prefer the latter rather than the former. They were still fighting when Grey appeared on the screen. ¡­. On a large tunnel, Grey appeared in front of the man who was running with the coffin. ¡°Stop, drop it.¡± Grey said calmly. The man paused when he saw a figure appear in front of him. Seeing that it was Grey who was in the Seventh stage of the Elemental Venerable Plane, he snorted in disgust. ¡°Get out of my way kid, I¡¯m not going to say it again.¡± ¡°You don¡¯t understand, you can¡¯t leave this place even if I decide to leave you.¡± Grey wasn¡¯t pressured by the man. ¡°Heh! You think it would send you to stop me if it knew I wouldn¡¯t be able to leave?¡± The man said mockingly before adding, with the coffin firmly on his shoulder he said, ¡°This is the key, with it, I can¡¯t only leave, but I can return whenever I want.¡± ¡°Oh, that was unexpected.¡± Grey was taken aback when he heard this. ¡°Let¡¯s leave together kid, I will give you some treasures. I know you¡¯re strong, but do you really think you can win against me?¡± The man asked. ¡°It promised me a reward, I don¡¯t know what it is, but it would most definitely be better than whatever you have to offer.¡± Grey replied, he looked at the man and his eyes turned cold, ¡°Drop the coffin and leave.¡± 1232 What Are You? ¡°Kid, do you think I¡¯m afraid of you?¡± The man asked coldly. Bang! He dropped the coffin from his shoulder as he stared at Grey. He was already in the Ninth stage of the Elemental Venerable Plane. The only reason he offered to give Grey something was so that he wouldn¡¯t be kept here while fighting with Grey. If Grey thought he was afraid of him, then he was dreaming. ¡°You should be. I¡¯m not like anyone you¡¯ve ever encountered.¡± Grey chuckled. ¡°I know, but you¡¯re still no match for me.¡± The man replied and his expression turned serious. He knew Grey was not like others his stage or age, he was very strong and also seemed to make the right decisions in most cases, except this one. Grey took another glance at the coffin, ¡°Are you sure this is worth your life?¡± ¡°You want to kill me?¡± The man asked with a playful smile. ¡°Oh, you don¡¯t want to kill me?¡± Grey realized the error in his words. ¡°Oh, I do, I really do want to kill you. Especially if those things catch up to me.¡± The man replied. Grey heaved a sigh of relief, ¡°Why didn¡¯t you say so initially? I was worried I was the only one taking things too seriously.¡± The man looked at Grey but didn¡¯t reply, rather, he took a step forward and his aura changed. The pressure he released was stronger than it previously was and Grey knew that he had improved his strength. The man didn¡¯t want to waste any time and quickly entered his strongest state. He unleashed a powerful lightning bolt at Grey. Grey immediately used his domain and was able to easily block the attack. He used the icy fire domain, and before the lightning bolt got to him, it froze. The man looked at him and snorted, he attacked once again. This time his target was Cori who was standing behind Grey. Grey, seeing this was a little infuriated and quickly stood in front of Cori, blocking the attack. Due to not being well prepared to take the attack, he was forced back by the impact of the attack and his hands felt numb. Even though he used the ice element to create an ice wall, he was still strongly impacted by the attack. He looked at the man and his eyes turned cold. If he only wanted to kill the man due to his mission before, now, he really wanted to kill him. After blocking the attack, he didn¡¯t give the man the chance to unleash the next attack, he vanished and appeared close to him, but just as he was about to attack, he was sent flying by the attack of the man. The man managed to sense where he would appear and attack before he even appeared. Everything happened within a second, and the man reacted very fast, sending him flying. Before Grey hit the ground, the man attacked once again. Although Grey was in mid-air, he flipped and got his balance, staying in the air for a while. When he saw the attack coming his way, he acted quickly, dodging it. The attack hit the walls, but there was no visible damage to it. He attacked with a fire arrow, but the man was able to block it. The man attacked once again. As Grey tried to block it, he was pushed back. Even with Grey¡¯s powerful attack, his attack power still can¡¯t be measured with a powerful Ninth stage Elemental Venerable. The man was quite powerful even in the Ninth stage. Grey tried taking the attack but he was pushed back. His pupils dilated when he saw the man attacking Cori once again. Since he still didn¡¯t have any plans for others to know the abilities of Void, especially the son of the Dawson Family Head, he was forced to block the attack again. After blocking it, he waved his hand and Cori was sent further behind him. He didn¡¯t say anything about the man trying to attack Cori, it might be an underhanded tactic, but all is fair in love and war. While doing that, he also created a fusion orb that he sent to the man. This was the first attack that made the man worry. Being distracted by the inscriptions, he didn¡¯t sense the attack early. When he sensed the attack, without a second thought, he retreated as fast as he could. Grey took the opportunity and decided to use his physical strength. His figure suddenly faded. Unlike when using the space element to teleport, his figure didn¡¯t vanish instantly, rather, it showed signs of fading, an afterimage. He appeared in front of the man while the image of his figure still standing in his previous spot was still there. Without holding back, he punched out. The man crossed his hands in front of him and tried to block the attack. However, he felt a scrutinizing pain that made him scream uncontrollably. The bones in his hands weren¡¯t the only things that broke, but some of his ribs broke as well. His chest caved in slightly and he coughed up a mouthful of blood. One has to know that Grey¡¯s physical strength was above his cultivation stage. The man didn¡¯t know this so when he tried to defend Grey¡¯s punch, even when using a bit of his essence to enforce his hands, he still wasn¡¯t strong enough to block the attack. Of course, it didn¡¯t mean that it didn¡¯t help. If not for that, his chest might¡¯ve been blown away by Grey¡¯s punch. ¡°What are you?¡± He asked while catching his breath. He was in severe pain, but he couldn¡¯t help but ask this question. This wasn¡¯t his first time fighting against a foreigner, but he had never had such an encounter with them. Grey¡¯s physical strength was on par with beasts which was a shocking discovery for him. ¡°I¡¯m Grey, Grey Dawson.¡± Grey replied with a smile and disappeared. 1233 Fighting Against The Voices In His Head The man and Grey¡¯s battle intensified. With Grey using his physical strength, he quickly took advantage in the battle. The man was forced into a defensive state, but he was still barely able to fight against Grey. Before long, he was left in a sorry state. Grey looked at the man, he wanted to kill him, but after thinking about it, he decided to let him leave. If he was killed by others, then it was his fate. ¡°I¡¯m not interested in killing you.¡± Grey picked up the coffin and started walking in the direction the man was walking from. ¡°Fifty-fifty, we¡¯ll share it fifty-fifty.¡± The man yelled. ¡°Do you think you¡¯re in a position to bargain?¡± Grey raised a brow, ¡°The coffin is with me, if I¡¯m interested in whatever is inside, I¡¯ll take everything and not give you any.¡± The man looked at Grey and said, ¡°They will kill you. Don¡¯t go back.¡± ¡°What?¡± Grey paused and turned to the man. ¡°Those things. They killed my partners. I¡¯m begging you, give me just a little bit of the things there.¡± The man begged. Grey looked at the man and was a little confused. ¡®Why is he begging this much for whatever is in this coffin?¡¯ He wondered. The second he opened it, he felt a powerful spiritual energy rushing into his body and an impulse to absorb the bones started to grow in him. At first, it wasn¡¯t big, but within a few seconds, it was starting to grow stronger. Before he knew it, he was standing in the same spot, thinking of what to do. He wanted to return the coffin, but he felt indescribable greed toward the coffin and wanted to absorb the bones. In the coffin, there was nothing else other than bones. ¡°Are you okay?¡± Cori asked when she saw Grey¡¯s sudden strange behavior. ¡°I¡¯m good. Don¡¯t worry.¡± Grey reassured her and continued walking in the direction the man came from. Just when he was about to get to the door the man used to come out, the feeling got stronger and he paused, turned around, and took a step. For some reason, he didn¡¯t want to return the coffin, rather, he wanted to absorb the bones inside. He heard a voice in his head that said once he absorbed the bones, he would be the strongest person in the world. ¡°Aren¡¯t you returning the coffin?¡± Void asked when he saw Grey walking back. ¡°There¡¯s no need. That voice can¡¯t do anything to me here, that¡¯s why it sent me to stop that man.¡± Grey replied in an almost robotic way, ¡°With what¡¯s hidden here, I will become unstoppable and you can get all the treasures you want.¡± Void looked into Grey¡¯s eyes and knew that there was something wrong. Grey¡¯s pupils had dilated, there was a certain strangeness in them. He had been with Grey for a long time now and knew everything about it. Seeing Grey in such a state, he knew this was not the same person he usually speaks with. ¡°Grey, stop!¡± He called out. ¡°Void, stay hidden. I don¡¯t want others to know about you.¡± Grey said, after a thought, he said, ¡°Don¡¯t worry, you can come out, after this, no one can take you away without my permission.¡± ¡°Grey, drop the coffin.¡± Void said, his usual playful voice becoming stern. ¡°What¡¯s the matter, Void? Since when are you the one making the decisions?¡± Grey¡¯s face turned cold. ¡°Since you¡¯ve lost your mind. Drop the coffin and let¡¯s leave this place.¡± Void said. He could tell that there was something wrong with Grey, and it started when he opened the coffin. Now he understood why the man attacked them when they wanted him to leave the coffin. Also, after they defeated the man, he stopped trying to fight with them. He felt there was a reason for that. As long as Grey refuses to leave the coffin, he would not understand this. ¡°Lost my mind?¡± Grey scoffed, ¡°If I remember correctly, you¡¯re the one who keeps putting my life at risk. I can¡¯t even count the number of times I¡¯ve almost died due to your antics. And now I¡¯m losing my mind? You must be going crazy!¡± ¡°Grey, you¡¯re not yourself.¡± Void said calmly. Grey¡¯s eyes started to show signs of red, and without any warning, he attacked. Void was already prepared for the attack and blocked it with ease. ¡°Grey, get a hold of yourself.¡± Grey didn¡¯t seem to hear what he said, he attacked with ferocity and used his fusion orbs. Void blocked the attack once again, making sure Cori was safe. With Void¡¯s current strength, there was no way Grey could overpower him unless he still had access to the Fusion State, but unfortunately, he didn¡¯t. Grey wanted to use the space element, but he was unable to. Void had used his space domain, trapping Grey there. With Grey¡¯s strength and his current state of mind, there was no way he would be able to leave this area. Void took a step and appeared before Grey, he sent a claw out. Void was a Magical Beast, although he was small, he had a frightening strength. Grey tried to block the attack but was sent flying. He into a wall and got back up quickly, just as he was about to continue his attack, he froze and clutched his head. Void didn¡¯t continue his attacks since he knew Grey was most likely coming back to himself. The fact that Grey stopped and held his head meant one thing, he was fighting against the voice in his head. Void went to where Cori was and stood to watch Grey as he fought against the voice in his head. A minute later, Grey held his head and screamed loudly, clearly in pain. Cori wanted to go closer to him, but Void stopped her. ¡°Leave him, he¡¯ll be fine.¡± Cori stood on and watched as Grey fought against the voices in his head. 1234 A Gods Bones Grey was standing in the same position, trying to get control of himself once again, but he was hearing a voice in his head which was repeatedly saying he should absorb the bones and become stronger. According to the voice, these were bones of a God Plane Elementalist and his strength would skyrocket the second he absorbed it. It even used the case of the man Grey fought as an example, telling him that the man increased his strength due to just opening the coffin and absorbing the stored essence there. With the complete bones, the God Plane was not far from him. In the darkness, Grey couldn¡¯t see anything, but he could hear a voice. ¡°Absorb it. Take it all in. You¡¯ll become stronger.¡± ¡°I¡¯ve grown this strong without having to absorb any bones, why would I do that now?¡± Grey asked mockingly. ¡°A god¡¯s bones is not something you should compare with that of others. Kid, this is an opportunity you shouldn¡¯t let go. Just imagine how strong you will become after absorbing these bones.¡± ¡°Hmm, what do you want in return?¡± Grey asked with an expression of contemplating the offer. ¡°I like smart people.¡± The voice praised before saying, ¡°You will help me come back to life.¡± ¡°And how will that work?¡± Grey asked. He was exceptionally calm while listening to the voice. ¡°You don¡¯t have to worry about that, I¡¯ll sort that out myself. I¡¯ll give you some instructions and that¡¯s all, first off, leave this place and absorb the bones.¡± The voice said. Grey thought about it for a while, and while the voice waited for a positive response, he heard a resounding ¡®No¡¯ from Grey. ¡°I¡¯m not interested in absorbing the bones of an old guy. Don¡¯t worry, someone else might come and absorb your bones, I¡¯m not interested in that.¡± When the voice heard Grey¡¯s answer, it snorted coldly and Grey felt a wave of energy rushing into his body, heading for his head. Just as the energy was about to reach Grey¡¯s head, it stopped and vanished without a trace. Grey noticed the orb in him move, so he knew it was its doing. ¡°Kid¡­ what¡¯s that?¡± The voice asked, fear-stricken. ¡°You don¡¯t need to know, now return to your coffin.¡± Grey took a step, and the previously dark place shone with a brilliant light. Grey¡¯s dull eyes regained their colors and he looked at Void and Cori who were on the side. ¡°Where¡¯s the bunny?¡± He asked when he couldn¡¯t find it. ¡°Hunting for treasures.¡± Void replied. ¡°Bring the bunny back. I¡¯ll go return the coffin.¡± Grey picked up the coffin and carried it back to the room the man took it from. When he walked inside, he noticed the obvious space in the center. An erected rock laid there, there was also some writings on it. The letters were something he was not familiar with, but he still brought out a piece of paper and copied everything into it. After a while, he dropped the coffin on the place that it was supposed to be. ¡­. While Grey was going through the ordeal of taking back the coffin, the others he left in the Hall were still fighting for their survival. The strength of the beasts increased by a stage and went up to the Sixth stage. With the increased strength, a few of them started to get injured, those in the Seventh stage to the exact. They could barely fight against two, much less when they had to fight against four or more. When Grey was around, he was able to take off some of the pressure, but with him gone, there were more chances for the creatures to attack. The golden robed man was more focused with keeping his children safe, so there was no way for him to help others out. Those in the Ninth stage did the best they could, but there was no way to fight against all the creatures, there were just too many. ¡°How come they¡¯re still attacking? Hasn¡¯t he returned the coffin?¡± Someone asked after getting scratched by one of the creatures. They saw the event when Grey took the coffin from the man. But after that, the screen went off. Now, they didn¡¯t know what was happening at the moment. They felt since Grey had taken the coffin, the attacks would stop. It had been a few minutes now, but the creatures were still attacking. They were still worrying when Grey suddenly appeared. On seeing that they were still fighting, he wanted to go back, unfortunately, he wasn¡¯t the one in control of it. Without any option, he jumped into the battle. The only good thing was that the creatures stopped coming out from the ceiling. After a few more minutes of fighting, they managed to kill off all the creatures with no one getting killed. Some of them were injured, but it wasn¡¯t too serious. ¡°What did the voice give you?¡± Someone asked Grey. Grey looked at the man but didn¡¯t reply. What he got wasn¡¯t something he would tell these people. After returning the coffin, the voice fulfilled its promise and took Grey to a treasure room. The thought of stealing everything entered his head, but he knew there was no way he would be able to take them. In the end, he was given a single bead. According to the voice, it contained a powerful attack. It didn¡¯t tell him the strength of the attack, but from his guess, he felt it should be enough to wipe out a group of Peak Elemental Venerables. The golden robed man looked at Grey, also curious about what he got. Seeing that Grey didn¡¯t have any intentions to speak, he didn¡¯t ask any further. With the creatures defeated, the door opened. His children were behind him. The only person he trusted enough to protect them was Grey. With nothing attacking, he didn¡¯t want to bother Grey. Miya wasn¡¯t concerned with her father as she walked in Grey¡¯s direction. 1235 Harvesting Spatial Rings Grey, Miya, and Cori spoke as they left the place. Their return journey wasn¡¯t as eventful as when they were going there. After leaving the castle, they didn¡¯t encounter anything else and walked out of the place with relative ease. Other than the man who asked Grey what he got the first time, a few more people walked up to him, but just like the first time, he kept mute. He didn¡¯t want any of them to know of what he gained. After all, it wasn¡¯t like there was a need to tell them. When they saw that he was keeping it to himself, a few snorted coldly, while others had an odd facial expression. Grey made sure to take note of how they reacted. He knew some of them would try to rob him, and he wouldn¡¯t mind taking all their treasures. Miya spoke with him for a long time, even suggesting that she traveled with him. She tried to use Cori traveling with him as an excuse, but Grey refused. The reason he took her with him was due to her age and situation. Miya was already old enough to take care of herself, so he naturally had zero plans of taking her with him. ¡­. Outside the cave. The group walked out and heaved a sigh of relief. The man dropped it for those in the Seventh stage. They soon shared it and everyone separated. Grey was the last to leave the place. He didn¡¯t want to leave too early. Even with everyone gone, he could sense some eyes on him. ¡°Void, are you sure there¡¯s no way into that place?¡± He asked as he looked at the entrance to the cave. ¡°Nope.¡± Void shook his head, ¡°Without it, there¡¯s no way there.¡± ¡°What¡¯s it using them for? It should¡¯ve given me everything.¡± Grey continued looking at the cave. He finally gave up after a minute. ¡°Let¡¯s go, some of them have some good things. Hopefully, they attack.¡± He turned around and prepared to leave. Void understood what he meant and chuckled. He also wanted some of the treasures he saw and hoped the people holding the ones he wanted attacked them. Just as they were leaving the place, they encountered the first person who went with them on the expedition. It was shockingly the son of the Dawson Family Head and the other youths with him. ¡°What do you want?¡± Grey asked. ¡°I just came to warn you. You¡¯ll be attacked if you travel alone.¡± The son of the Dawson Family Head said, ¡°Come with us and you¡¯ll be safe.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t worry, I¡¯m hoping that happens.¡± Grey smiled softly. The son of the Dawson Family Head looked at him with a weird expression, Grey was the first person he saw that was hoping he was attacked by people. Most people didn¡¯t want to be bothered, but Grey seems to derive a certain type of pleasure from it. ¡°Will you be fine?¡± He asked. Grey looked at him and nodded. Although he didn¡¯t expect him to be this caring, he didn¡¯t feel bad about it. From the start, he didn¡¯t want to have any issues with him, he was the one who acted like they had an unsettleable argument. ¡°Don¡¯t worry, I¡¯ll be good.¡± He said. The young man nodded and left with his group. Grey chuckled softly before walking forward with Void and the others. He could already sense the first person that was waiting for him. When he noticed that it was someone in the Seventh stage, he didn¡¯t know what to think. Although he didn¡¯t show his full strength, he at least expected only those in the Eighth stage to wait for him, sensing someone in the Seventh stage was out of his expectations. He didn¡¯t bother and walked closer to the place the person was hiding. ¡°Hand it over.¡± A voice said, and when he turned to look in the direction, he saw a man standing there. ¡°You shouldn¡¯t be doing this.¡± Grey said coolly. The man looked at Grey, his expression turning cold. He understood the meaning of Grey¡¯s words and felt insulted. He was a Seventh stage Elemental Venerable, and so was Grey. He felt he could defeat him. Grey took a step forward, and the man didn¡¯t even sense him. With a single blow, the man was sent flying. The man crashed into a tree. He managed to raise his head, when he looked at the place Grey¡¯s fist hit, he almost fainted. There was a big hole on his chest, the size of a fist. It was clear that it was from Grey¡¯s punch. When Grey was fighting while they were still in the Castle, he felt he would be able to at least fight on equal footing with him, but with only one attack, his hopes were destroyed. Luckily, Grey didn¡¯t show any signs of wanting to attack again. Grey looked at the man who hadn¡¯t been able to stand up and shook his head. With the help of his physical strength and his explosive speed, there was no way someone in the same stage as himself could fight him. Even those who are lauded as prodigies would not be able to compete with him. He left with his group after taking the spatial ring of the man. Within two minutes, he was stopped once again. This time, the man who stopped him was in the Eighth stage. Before the man could speak, he moved, sending the man flying. He didn¡¯t want to waste time with people that wouldn¡¯t be able to give him a good fight. Of course, he didn¡¯t forget to take away the man¡¯s storage ring. 1236 Battling A Ninth Stage Elemental Venerable Grey didn¡¯t kill the people he encountered. He might want their items, but he didn¡¯t want to end their lives. Losing their storage rings was enough punishment for them. Only those who came with clear killing intent would be killed. He only encountered three people, and they only wanted to take the treasure he was rewarded by the voice. After beating them, he took their rings and let them be. Almost one hour later, Grey stopped by a riverbank. ¡®Someone¡¯s following you.¡¯ Void said telepathically. Grey was a bit astonished when he heard this, he had been very careful and had been sensing his environment, but he had not sensed the presence of anyone. He knew Void would never lie to him about something like this, so he was certain that someone with adept hiding skill had been following him, hopefully waiting for the perfect time to attack. ¡®Strength?¡¯ He asked. ¡®I don¡¯t know. I only managed to confirm it after so long. But since they can hide from me for such a long time, it means that they are strong.¡¯ Void replied. ¡®Or just insanely good at hiding.¡¯ He added. Grey squinted his eyes, but didn¡¯t show any signs of finding out that he was being followed. There was no use doing that now. The person was still hiding, and he hoped it was someone in the Ninth stage who got a good treasure. When everyone dropped their treasures, he made sure to take a good view of everyone¡¯s treasures, as well as the people they belonged to. The group decided to rest there. Their journey to the underground castle was stressful, especially during the ending part when Grey was slightly possessed. He wanted to rest his head, while Cori wanted to play around with the bunny leader. Void was more interested in the storage rings Grey had acquired. There were a few things he was certain he needed¡­ well, wanted in them. Grey kept the storage rings in his spatial storage, and he couldn¡¯t go there now since he was the only one who could sense the person following them. Thirty minutes later. Grey, who was seated in a lotus position with his eyes closed, suddenly opened them and looked in a particular direction, a small smile formed on his face. ¡®I guess they are tired of waiting.¡¯ He thought internally. A figure walked up to him, staring into his eyes. When Grey saw the face of the man, he almost jumped in delight. Of all the people he wanted to acquire their treasure, he had the greatest urge to steal from this man. The thought of even following the man came to him, but he didn¡¯t want to be the bad person, so he let him go. Who would¡¯ve thought the man would deliver himself to him? His eyes shone with a brilliant light, and for the first time, Void saw a glow in Grey¡¯s eyes, one that he was very familiar with. Grey¡¯s eyes shone in the same way Void¡¯s eyes glow whenever he sees shiny things. ¡°Kid, I don¡¯t want what you have, I¡¯m just curious about what the voice gave to you.¡± The man spoke calmly. ¡°There¡¯s no need for you to see it, it¡¯s useless to you.¡± Grey answered. The man paused and took a glance at Grey, for some reason, he could tell that there was something wrong with the way Grey was reacting. He could even sense some sort of excitement around Grey. When he was following him all this while, he didn¡¯t sense this, it only appeared when he showed himself. ¡°Kid, just show me. I know it¡¯s not important for me, I just want to fulfill my curiosity.¡± The man walked closer to where Grey was seated. He had monitored Grey¡¯s movement and knew there were no prepared traps. During their time inside, he knew Grey was a fearful array master. Grey looked at the man and chuckled, he stood up from where he was standing and said with a straight face, ¡°There¡¯s no need in hiding your true intentions. You followed me here, the fact that you waited till now means that you¡¯re certain you can take it from me.¡± The man didn¡¯t speak, he kept staring at Grey. After some time, he spoke up. ¡°Yes, I want whatever you were given. Since I have no idea what it passed on to you, hand over your spatial ring.¡± ¡°That¡¯s more like it.¡± Grey laughed softly and his aura calmed down, he raised his head up and muttered, ¡°I hope he doesn¡¯t disappoint me.¡± The man was taken aback by Grey¡¯s statement, but when he recalled how easy it was for Grey to take out those people, he understood what he was saying. The only error in Grey¡¯s thought process is that he doesn¡¯t know that the man is already aware of his freakish physical strength, and already had a plan to counter it. The man continued walking closer to Grey, his face still straight as he said, ¡°You have a bright future ahead of you, it will be a shame to die for mere treasure.¡± ¡°Worry about yourself, not me.¡± Grey replied and his aura changed. His figure blinked and before the man could react, he appeared before him and punched out. His hand entered the body of the man, and Grey¡¯s eyes widened. The expected result wasn¡¯t what he saw, rather, he didn¡¯t get the feeling of hitting anything. He raised his head to look at a smile on the face of the man who was still standing in the same spot. ¡°You think I would attack that blindly?¡± The man asked, ¡°I¡¯ve followed you, I studied your attacks.¡± Grey withdrew his hand and tried to touch the man once again, but his hand went through. He looked on with a thoughtful expression, and used the earth element to try to hold down his foot, but it was futile. Without wasting any time, he vanished from the spot he was standing. The second he left the place, an attack came from below him. ¡°So sharp.¡± The man commented. Grey squinted his eyes and his spiritual senses spread across the place. He wanted to figure out where the main body of the man was hiding. He didn¡¯t believe this was the main body of the man. ¡°You¡¯re searching for me?¡± The man looked at him thoughtful, he smiled and said, ¡°Unfortunately, you¡¯re still too young.¡± Grey tried to find out the position of the man, but he was unable to. The man continued attacking while speaking with him. ¡°I¡¯m not demanding much, just give me your storage ring.¡± The man said. Grey finally stopped searching for him, he had been attempting it for a while now but it was unsuccessful. ¡°Just the ring?¡± He asked. ¡°Naturally. I¡¯ll have no benefit in killing you.¡± The man nodded. Grey put on a pained expression before tossing a storage ring at the man. The man stretched out his hand and grabbed the ring. When the man was grabbing the ring, Grey focused all his senses there, he noticed a slight tear in the place. ¡®Got you.¡¯ He said internally. ¡°Out.¡± He said softly and with a snap of his finger, a loud explosion occurred in the void and a spatial tear appeared in the air, along with it was a human figure that rushed out of the place. ¡°You think I can¡¯t get you out? Stop dreaming.¡± Grey sneered. The man was hiding in the void, although he didn¡¯t know why he was unable to track him, he knew as long as he passed the ring to him, he would have to use his body to receive it. What appeared before him was like a projection, now, he was facing the real person. The man stood mid-air and looked at Grey, his facial expression was ugly. ¡°You¡¯re smart for a little kid. But it doesn¡¯t change anything, I¡¯ll still take what I want.¡± The man settled himself and looked down on Grey. Grey took flight and stood in the same position as the man, looking him straight in the eyes, ¡°Much better, now say that again.¡± The man didn¡¯t speak, rather, he attacked. He made use of the space and lightning element, sending out multiple lightning bolts that disappeared and reappeared close to Grey. Grey dodged them and attacked. His attack was more direct, but stronger. The man blocked the attack and moved closer, attacking with a powerful lightning blade. Grey blocked the attack, but was forced back. The man¡¯s attack power was strong, especially when he focuses everything on one attack. The man continued attacking, but Grey kept on blocking the attacks. He dodged some and blocked most of them. Even when the attacks pushed him back, he wasn¡¯t hurt in any way. The attacks weren¡¯t on the level that would endanger him, yet. 1237 Human Ghost Grey and the man continued fighting, exchanging attacks. The man had a higher attack power, but Grey was more versatile and he was able to force the man to retreat a few times. He tried to close the space in the area with the little he learned from the Space Elementalist he fought a few months ago, but he wasn¡¯t strong enough and the man was able to easily destroy his attempts to block it. However, his spatial distortions attacks were stronger now. Even though the man also had the space element, he had to be careful of this attack. It possessed terrifying power and he knew not to mess with it. Just when Grey was about to gain a slight advantage over him, Grey sensed an incoming attack and without hesitation, he retreated. ¡®Who¡¯s that?¡¯ He looked around, but there was no one in sight. The attack was dangerous, and he got a familiar feeling from it. ¡°Hmm¡­¡± He squinted his eyes and turned to the man, ¡°I¡¯ve seen this form of attack before.¡± ¡°So you were the one who brought the phantom. Guess I was wrong with my calculations.¡± He placed his hand on his chin. The attack was exactly the same as the time Cori and the children of the golden robed man were about to be attacked. He never expected that the phantom was attached to that man by another person. Given the situation then, he didn¡¯t think of this possibility. He had never seen the phantom prior to the time he tried to use his mental form, and at that time, the phantom was already attached to the man. ¡®He attached it to him from the start. So while it was attacking, it had always been attached to him.¡¯ Grey was impressed by the man¡¯s cunningness. With his plan, he took all the suspicion from anyone else and dropped it on the man. This way, no one would think of anyone else as the culprit, except for the man. ¡°I¡¯m impressed. To think you were the evil one.¡± The man chuckled and praised, ¡°You caught on pretty quickly. I didn¡¯t think you would be able to sense it even while fighting.¡± ¡°I¡¯m always cautious.¡± Grey shrugged. ¡°There¡¯s no need pretending any longer. Hand over the ring, and I¡¯ll let you leave.¡± The man said in a commanding tone. Grey fished out another storage ring from his clothes, and asked with a sly smile, ¡°Are you sure you want it?¡± The man was about to nod his head when he suddenly paused, he seemed to recall what happened the last time and froze, he was caught in a dilemma, unsure of what to reply. He wanted the ring, but he was afraid Grey would use the same method to attack him once again. Grey chuckled and a goblet appeared on his hand, he dropped it, ¡°Here.¡± The man looked at the goblet Grey dropped on the ground, not believing that was what Grey acquired. ¡°That¡¯s not the treasure.¡± He said coldly. ¡°How are you sure it¡¯s not it? Did you follow me? Were you there?¡± Grey sneered. The man looked at Grey, he didn¡¯t know what to do, ¡°Give me the ring.¡± Grey grinned and threw the ring in the direction of the man. The man wanted to grab it but paused. He stopped to think and after a while, he gritted his teeth and sent the phantom towards it. Grey couldn¡¯t see it, but when he saw the ring floating in the air, he guessed it was the one checking it. With a snap of his hand, an explosion happened and the phantom was unable to survive. It was instantly obliterated. ¡°Hehehe.¡± Grey¡¯s evil laughter resounded in the area. The eyes of the man turned red from anger. He spent a lot of resources on creating these phantoms, yet Grey killed two of them. He started to regret using the phantom to attack the first time. The reason he did that was so that the others would put their full strength into what lay ahead of them. Unfortunately, that was a grave mistake by him. Grey has casually destroyed tons of resources on his own. ¡°Little bastard! I¡¯ll kill you, and anything related to you.¡± ¡°Haha, you can¡¯t kill my cat. I¡¯m not even joking.¡± Grey pointed at Void who was resting by the side. The man looked at Void, and he suddenly remembered that the first time they saw Grey, the cat wasn¡¯t with him, it was after they entered the castle did the cat appear, and it was with Cori all through. ¡°What¡¯s so special about it? It¡¯s just a stupid cat. Hand over the treasure, I won¡¯t ask again.¡± He was losing his patience. ¡°You¡¯ve been asking for it for so long, don¡¯t you know my answer yet?¡± Grey asked nonchalantly. The man clenched his fists and took a step forward, his aura changed. It didn¡¯t increase, rather, it started to fade away, ¡°You brought this on yourself, kid.¡± Grey concentrated fully on the man, but he almost stopped to sense him, before long, the man vanished, and just like his phantoms, he was nowhere to be seen. Grey¡¯s eyes turned blue as he tried to search for the man. He saw a shadow approaching him, and a grave sense of danger accompanying it. Without hesitation, he retreated, attacking the shadow. The shadow vanished. He looked around anxiously, and he unleashed his gravitational force field. This was what he used in tracking if the phantom had gotten close to him the last time. After the man entered that state, he was difficult to track compared to the phantom he noticed the second his eyes turned blue. Now, even in this state, the man could still hide from his senses, only when the man was attacking could he sense him. Boom! Grey took some steps back and transmitted his voice to Void. ¡®Go to Cori, make sure nothing gets close to her.¡¯ 1238 Poisoned? Bang! Grey crashed into the rock by the side, shattering it. The figure of the man was still hidden. No matter what Grey had been doing, he had not been able to force out the man. The man walked closer to him and Grey made use of his lightning domain, covering the entire area around him with lightning. He noticed a slight reaction in one part of the domain. Without hesitation, he attacked that place. That was the only place he could sense something abnormal. The attack proved to be fruitful, he felt a resistance. His attack was blocked by the man who was still in his invisible state, but the lightning from his attack covered the bother of the man. Not just that, but he used it to mark the man. While they were fighting, he hadn¡¯t been able to mark him, but now, he didn¡¯t let the opportunity go. The lightning acted as a distraction, his main arm was marking the man. As long as he could mark him, then he would be able to track him and attack him too. The figure of the man appeared for a short while due to the effect of the lightning. Although he blocked the attack, the lightning traced down the shape of his figure. When he noticed this, he chuckled and vanished once. Grey didn¡¯t show any frustration, rather, a large array appeared on the ground and lightning came from below, covering a large area. The moment the lightning appeared, Grey¡¯s figure vanished and he reappeared in another spot, attacking the place where the lightning had taken the shape of a human figure once again. His attack grazed the figure which took to the sky. Grey didn¡¯t feel any frustration. He was already starting to get the opportunity he wanted. Since the man didn¡¯t want to have a fair battle, he would use everything he had with him. With the large array of elements, as well as his abilities as an array master, he was certain that he could defeat the man. During the last attack, he infused the darkness and light element into the body of the man where his attack touched him. He knew the attack opened a small injury on his body. The man didn¡¯t expect anything like this since he was more focused on dodging Grey¡¯s attacks. While he was in the air, he saw a lightning rain falling down on him, and before he knew it, an ice hammer came crashing down on him. He moved to the side, his figure still visible due to the lightning as he dodged the attack. Unknown to him, the spot he was heading to, an earth hammer appeared all of a sudden and struck down with an even fiercer force than the ice hammer. He tried to block the attack, but he was hit by the sheer brute force and came crashing down. Grey sent a fusion orb into the place the man crashed. The orb exploded, causing further destruction to the place. The man groaned in pain, although subtle, it didn¡¯t escape Grey¡¯s sharp ears. ¡®Hehe, I¡¯ll kill you.¡¯ Grey said internally. Of all the people he faced, this man was the only one he had the thought of killing. The reason for that, he hated him the second he knew he was the one behind the phantom. This man made someone hate him to the core due to the false accusations. If not for the fact that the golden robed man didn¡¯t take action, the man in the Eighth stage would¡¯ve been killed because Grey didn¡¯t confirm his speculations. This was a blemish to his good name! He would not accept it. The man didn¡¯t know the second Grey was aware he was the one who had the phantom, he decided to kill him. If he knew, he would¡¯ve regretted why he brought out the phantom once again. In two separate occasions, he had unknowingly made Grey want to kill him. The crater that formed from the man¡¯s attack was over six meters deep and even wider. Grey walked to the place, and looked down on it. The man appeared, this time, he wasn¡¯t able to disappear instantly like the last time. He was in a slightly sorry state, but he wasn¡¯t seriously injured, just superficial wounds that were on his body. ¡°Ki¡­¡± He opened his mouth, but he froze and spat out a large amount of black blood. Grey chuckled when he saw this and couldn¡¯t help but say, ¡°Took long enough.¡± ¡°Wha¡­ what did you do to me?¡± The man asked with enlarged eyes. Grey looked at him with cold eyes, ¡°Do you know of miasma?¡± The man¡¯s countenance changed the second he heard Grey¡¯s question. Everyone who was powerful knew of miasma, they were powerful poisonous gas that can easily kill a top notch expert if they unfortunately take in a large amount. ¡°You¡­ you have that?¡± He asked, coughing in between his speech. When the man saw how Grey was speaking about miasma, he felt a chill run down his spine. He tried to think of when Grey used it on him, but he found it hard. ¡°When?¡± He asked. ¡°A few minutes ago, before you took flight.¡± Grey replied. When he was attacking him, and placing the light and darkness element in his body, he used the opportunity to infuse a large amount of miasma into his body. The miasma was even more difficult to sense compared to the darkness and light element. The darkness and light element were used in the same way as the lightning element, as a form of distraction, hiding his true intentions. The miasma would not immediately kill the man, but it would place him in a state he wished he was dead. The man used his hand to cover his mouth as he coughed out more black blood. ¡°You¡­ you¡¯re evil!¡± ¡°I know.¡± 1239 Too Stunning! Grey was still with the man when Void sent a message to him, Cori and the bunny leader were nowhere to be found. It was as if they vanished from the place. The thought of the bunny leader taking them away was quite high, but Grey didn¡¯t want to take any chances. He tried to see if he could still sense the mark he placed on their bodies, but he was unable to sense it. When the man saw Grey¡¯s facial expression, he knew something had happened. ¡°You¡¯re only sensing their disappearance now? I¡¯m a little disappointed.¡± The man struggled to say. The man was in a weak state, but he couldn¡¯t help but smile when he saw Grey¡¯s situation. Before attacking, he wanted to make sure Cori wouldn¡¯t be part of Grey¡¯s squad any longer. Grey¡¯s face contorted and he asked coldly, ¡°Where is she?¡± He was still coughing severely from the poison miasma in his body, but putting Grey in such a state was very exhilarating to him. He tried to use his essence to prevent it from getting worse. The second his essence touched the miasma, it was quickly broken apart. A miasma is just like the darkness element, it contains a very high level of decomposition. The man laughed at Grey¡¯s situation, even with his terrible state, he still found Grey to be more miserable. Grey took a glance at him and asked softly, ¡°Where are they?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know.¡± The man replied. Grey attacked after the statement left the man¡¯s mouth. He didn¡¯t hold back and unleashed a frightening attack at the man. The man, who was finding it difficult to stop the miasma from causing too much harm in his body, was sent flying. He managed to muster a little bit of elemental essence and was able to set up a defensive wall, but it wasn¡¯t strong enough to stop Grey¡¯s attack. While mid-air, Grey appeared beside the man and attacked once again. His punch packed a powerful fire elemental attack with it. It caused a huge explosion and the man slammed into the ground once again. The man coughed up even more blood and his body started to show signs of drying it. He quickly started to look malnourished. The man tried to stand on his feet, but he fell to the ground, unable to keep himself standing. ¡°Kid, kill me and you will never find them again.¡± He threatened. It was clear that Grey wanted to kill him, but at the moment, he had the edge over him. Grey had no idea where Cori and the bunny leader were, but he did since he was the one who took them. If Grey wanted to see them again, then he should make sure to keep him alive. ¡°I¡¯ll ask you once again, after this, I won¡¯t ask another time, where are they?¡± Grey¡¯s coldness started to affect the area. From where he was standing, ice started to spread from his feet. His aura had spiked and there was an eerie feeling the man sensed from him that sent chills down his spine. ¡°My answer is the same, I¡­ don¡¯t¡­ know.¡± The man said, slowly saying each word. Grey vanished, this time, the man was unable to track him. When he reappeared, he was standing close to the man, a leg in his hand. The man looked down and noticed his right leg was missing from his knee down. Grey dropped the leg and looked at the man, he waved his hand and the left leg of the man was cut off. Unlike the first one, the man felt excruciating pain. Grey used the miasma in the man¡¯s body to double the pain he feels from these things. After cutting off his legs, he cut off his hands. The man still refused to say anything, and without the slightest bit of hesitation, he killed the man, cutting off his head. He had the thought of torturing the man, but quickly decided against it when he sensed their presence in the void. When he passed through the void to cut off the man¡¯s leg, he sensed them. This was the reason he was decisive when killing the man. The man died with shock on his face, he couldn¡¯t believe Grey killed him without waiting to check on Cori. ¡°Found them.¡± Void appeared with Cori and the bunny leader. Before the man came to attack Grey, he used his phantom to attack the duo, but with the bunny leader present, nothing happened to them. The bunny leader was a top notch Space Elementalist, even better than Void at it. Its only issue was that it hated fighting. The second they were attacked, it knew they wouldn¡¯t be able to fight back, or run to where Grey was, so he took Cori and hid in the void. Even a Peak Elemental Venerable would not be able to find them in the void, much less this man. Grey heaved a sigh of relief seeing that they were okay. He took the storage ring from the man and started to go through it. He found what he was looking for, as well as the method to create those phantoms. He thought about it for a while and decided to learn it. Those phantoms were strong, and unlike the corpse puppets necromancers use, this one is created from a bit of spiritual consciousness of the creator and a ton of resources. Resources are something Grey didn¡¯t lack at the moment. He had gotten a fair amount of resources after acquiring a few people¡¯s storage rings. They should be enough to create one or maybe two phantoms. His plan was to attach the phantoms to Cori and give her complete control over it. She already had those dolls, adding one or two phantoms to it would further increase her safety. ¡°We¡¯ll rest, after that, we¡¯ll leave this place.¡± Grey took a seat and started to go through the scroll that had the method of creating the phantom. Cori didn¡¯t wander off this time, she was still a little afraid of what happened the last time. Moving away from Grey would put her in danger. ¡­.. Aurora Continent. Grey had gone missing for a few months now, and only those from the Dawson Family knew of his whereabouts. The hunt for Grey¡¯s life had intensified after reports of him being the son of Lucas Dawson spread across the entire Continent. Other than those from the Pyrmond Faction, Grey¡¯s friends, and those from the Burchard Family, only a handful of people knew of his identity as Lucas¡¯ son. The news came from nowhere and spread across the Continent very fast. Grey had already become a well recognized genius by the majority of the top Factions and Family in the world. He either had a good relationship with some of them, or a bad one with them. A few Factions wanted him dead, while others wanted to befriend this shocking genius who has a connection with the great Lucas Dawson. News of Grey¡¯s battles from competitions to regular battles started to spread, and everyone realized one thing, he was never on the losing side. The incident when he killed someone from his Faction also came out, but just like the others stories, he was not on the losing side. ¡­. The Moonlight Faction. Klaus wasn¡¯t bothered when he heard about the news of Grey spreading. It was normal. When they were in the Azure Empire, the news of Grey acquiring something good also spread across the entire Continent. The difference here is that, now, there is a powerful group behind Grey. Not just his Family, but also the Faction he was from. Even the Faction and Family he had associated himself with wouldn¡¯t mind helping him. The greatest issue was the Gnomes and necromancers. The price on Grey¡¯s head increased the moment he vanished. According to what was said, he was getting stronger and was already regarded as a threat to the Gnomes. ¡°Why are they so scared of him?¡± Klaus was currently seated with one of the girls in his Faction. The question was asked by the young lady. ¡°He¡¯s too stunning.¡± Klaus replied with pride. ¡°There are a few geniuses who can match him, what¡¯s so special about him that the Gnomes are even willing to reveal the people they¡¯ve planted for so long?¡± The young lady didn¡¯t see meaning to what the Gnomes were willing to do just to take down Grey. Grey wasn¡¯t even an Elemental Sovereign yet, much less a Half God, but he was already regarded as a serious threat, it was out of the expectations of many people. ¡°Because he¡¯s friends with me.¡± Klaus said with a grin. The young lady rolled her eyes, she¡¯s already used to Klaus¡¯ playfulness. They continued conversing before she asked a question that made Klaus stop to think. ¡°Wouldn¡¯t you be in danger since you¡¯re friends with him?¡± Klaus froze for some seconds before replying with a shrug, ¡°I¡¯ll be in danger either way, why not while having such an awesome friend?¡± 1240 Preparing To Leave The Chaos Battlefield Chapter 1240 Preparing To Leave The Chaos Battlefield Grey was unaware of what was happening in the Aurora Continent. Although he would be quite surprised by the fame he had garnered due to the Gnomes wanting to kill him at all costs, he wouldn''t be too shocked. The Gnomes hated him for a reason, he could stop their greatest means of attack. In a well-thought-out plan, he could easily take out a large group of Gnomes if he had others to help him out. This was exactly the reason why the Gnomes wanted him dead at all costs. Grey was a time bomb waiting to explode on them. At the moment, they still had the advantage over humans, but the moment someone like Grey steps into the fray, they would be in trouble. When battling with humans, they tend to collect the corpses of the top experts they kill, turning them into puppets they use for their future battles. While humans are reducing in combat strength, the Gnomes are increasing their numbers. Three more months went by in a blink and Grey was preparing to leave the Chaos Battlefield. His strength had gone to the Eighth stage, but he was already close to the Ninth stage. Cori was still at the Peak of the Sage Plane, Grey had blocked her from breaking through. After spending time with her, he noticed the reason she was able to awaken her elements earlier than usual was due to a rare deformity in her system. What was supposed to be a curse turned into a blessing for her. The disadvantage of that though was quite powerful. Grey was able to sense it early, or else Cori''s life would''ve been in danger if she had broken through to the Elemental Venerable Plane within such a short time. Her body isn''t strong enough to contain the strength of an Elemental Venerable. At her current state, she was already at her maximum, adding any bit of strength would make her explode. Cori was excited about leaving the place when Grey spoke about it. She had stayed in the Chaos Battlefield all her life, now was the time for her to finally leave and explore the new world. Grey didn''t show the same excitement. His only thought was how to get back to the Aurora Continent and help Arya''s brother. Once he''s done with that, he would continue his usual training, hiding in the Faction to increase his knowledge or strength. As they were about to head for the portal, he was reminded by Void about Arthel. Grey promised to take Arthel with him when leaving. To be honest, he had completely forgotten about it, but Cori remembered and told him about it. With no other option, they had to head back to the City where Arthel resided. It took around a week or so. Grey traveled at full speed, carrying Cori. With his current speed, he was confident he would be able to outrun most Peak stage Elemental Venerables. The only ones who can give him a hard time are those who focus mainly on speed, the others wouldn''t be able to catch up to him. On his way back, he passed through some Peak Rank Seven Magical Beasts'' territories, but none of them attacked him. His speed was enough to scare them off. They didn''t need to sense his cultivation to know that he was a powerful foe. No one wanted to face off against someone that could give them a tough time, even fatally injuring them in the process. And from how fast Grey was going, they knew he didn''t have any plans to stop by, so they let him do as he wished. Grey was stopped by a Golden Horned Lion which felt it was disrespectful for Grey to fly above it. The result, it was smacked down by Grey the moment it rose into the air to stop him. When the Lion hit the ground, it didn''t dare to come back up, pretending like nothing happened. Grey didn''t stop either, continuing his journey. When he got to the City, he met up with the Old man who broke the news of Arthel not being in the City to him. He pleaded with him to wait for a day while he went out to bring Arthel back. According to him, a strange occurrence happened close to their region and Arthel with a few other Elemental Venerables went out to check it out. Grey didn''t want to spend too much time here, so he went with the Old man. He left Cori and the bunny leader in the City. She would be safer there. From what the Old man said, he wasn''t too sure about what happened. This was also the reason he wanted to check it out, he was curious about what would''ve happened to cause a massive fissure in the sky. Grey followed the Old man, and after ten minutes, they got to where the incident occurred. ¡­. "This is unbelievable." Grey said softly. This was the first time he was seeing something like this form on its own. The destructive power he could sense in it scared the living daylight out of him. If he could harness such a power, he would be even more frightening. "This is not the first time something like this has happened." The Old man explained, "On one occasion, it wiped out an entire City as powerful as ours." Grey didn''t doubt the Old man''s words, just from standing there, he could already sense the threat it posed. If this thing were to open up in an unsuspecting City, the consequences would be severe. Just like the Old man said, it could destroy the entire City. "Where are they?" Grey couldn''t see anyone present here. Arthel and the others should be here, but they weren''t. The Old man pointed at the fissure, "They must have entered it." "People can go in?" Grey was taken aback. "Yes." The Old man nodded and explained, "After the initial destruction, it would become docile and can be explored." "Oh, but we can''t get close to it at the moment. How are we going to enter?" Grey asked. 1241 Tracked Into The Chaos Battlefield ¡°There¡¯s a moment when it becomes calm, it can be explored then.¡± The Old man explained, ¡°Everytime this thing appears, there is always an unexplored area inside. It always attracts a lot of people.¡± ¡°News of this one hasn¡¯t spread out, hence the current peace. The second news of it circulates, people will flock over.¡± ¡°Of course, it¡¯s just as dangerous as the opportunities it presents. Only on a few occasions has the place been safe. Well, not really safe, it was just that the strength of the creatures there was too weak. Even the little girl with you can dominate the entire realm.¡± ¡°Oh, so it¡¯s like that.¡± Grey nodded in understanding. It was unknown what¡¯s inside these realms since they were unexplored, but one thing is certain from what the Old man had said so far, there¡¯s always treasures inside. Natural treasures made without any human interference. Void was a greedy little cat and wanted everything for himself, so even with the vast amount of treasures he had hoarded, he wasn¡¯t satisfied. Between him and Grey, he had at least double of the treasures Grey owned, and they were more valuable than what Grey gets. There have been occasions he ventured into places and took a lot of treasures without Grey¡¯s knowledge. ¡°We should wait, it will settle down in a few hours.¡± The Old man said. Grey nodded and settled down by the side, while he was waiting, he sensed something and looked to the north. He saw some people rushing over, all were in the Early stages of the Elemental Venerable Plane. When the group saw Grey and the Old man, they paid their respects to the Old man and went to the side to wait. It was clear that their intention of coming here was to get into the new realm. ¡°They got the news quickly. More people will arrive since this group has caught wind of it.¡± The Old man whispered to Grey. Grey closed his eyes and didn¡¯t pay any attention to the group that just arrived. The group consisted of four people, but the strongest was only in the Third stage. With his current strength, only those at the Peak of the Elemental Venerable Plane could catch his attention. A few hours later. Two more groups had arrived, the strongest being in the Seventh stage. The fissure had started to calm down. Grey opened his eyes to look at it. ¡®Why do you keep closing your eyes when you¡¯re with people?¡¯ Void asked in disdain. Grey didn¡¯t reply to him, he had been in the chaos space, studying it. To be honest, it had been a long time since he entered the chaos space. When he first entered the Chaos Battlefield, he had the thought of entering the chaos space due to feeling there might be some connection between them. He was caught up by a lot of things and forgot to enter. When he came here, waiting, he decided to check it out. The change shocked him to the core. What was more shocking was the small sun that appeared in the chaos space. The chaos space had always been lit, but there wasn¡¯t any sun that was lighting up the place. The sun that appeared was not only lighting up the place, but he could sense some energy from it. It was a shocking sight to him. ¡®What¡¯s this place? Who is the Chaos God?¡¯ Questions rang in his head, but he didn¡¯t have the answers, nor did he know who could provide him with any answers. He could only slowly explore it and find out the answers to his questions. The fissure soon stopped and a portal appeared in the middle of it. Grey looked at it and stood up, taking a step forward. ¡°Kid, don¡¯t you know your elders should go in before you.¡± A man¡¯s voice came from behind him. Grey didn¡¯t turn to look at who was talking. He had already heard this person speaking all this while. Although he wasn¡¯t too interested in them, he made some investigations. This man was in the First stage of the Elemental Venerable Plane, but he was accompanied by the man who was in the Seventh stage. This made the man speak down on others around. For some reason, the man in the Seventh stage didn¡¯t reprimand him for his behavior, so Grey guessed he was the one encouraging it. Grey kept his cultivation stage hidden, so no one knew how strong he was, but they didn¡¯t think he would be stronger than the man in the Seventh stage. ¡°Are you coming?¡± He asked the Old man. The Old man thought about it for a while and nodded. ¡°Let¡¯s go.¡± Grey took a step forward and the Old man followed behind him. The man in the First stage was about to speak up when the man in the Seventh stage stopped him, he looked at Grey with serious eyes. The Old man was in the Third stage, yet he followed behind Grey like a servant, he didn¡¯t need any explanations. Grey was definitely stronger than someone in the Third stage, and not by a single level at that. The man in the First stage didn¡¯t speak any more and followed behind the man in the Seventh stage as they walked into the portal. The rest of the people in the place followed behind them, entering by their strength level. After they entered the place, another group appeared, and if Grey were here, he would¡¯ve been shocked. The group that appeared were Gnomes. The Chaos Battlefield was a place that had portals to different places, and the Gnome race¡¯s realm wasn¡¯t an exception. ¡°Are you sure he¡¯s here?¡± One of them asked. ¡°Yes, the track leads here. He must¡¯ve entered that place.¡± Another one replied. ¡°Fine, let¡¯s go. We¡¯ll kill him there.¡± 1242 Good Treasure, Bad Effect The Gnomes entered the portal after Grey and the other people had gotten into the place. ¡­. Inside the portal. Grey appeared in a vast wilderness, there were large trees all over and a thick expanse of grass ahead of him. He sensed the area and felt the strange energy that pervaded the place. This was the first time he was sensing such an energy. He stayed on the same spot for a while before taking a step forward. The Old man followed behind him, staring at the place carefully. This wasn¡¯t the first time he was exploring a place like this, so he wasn¡¯t too fascinated by it. If Grey hadn¡¯t asked him, he wouldn¡¯t have followed him inside this place. Void looked around with glowing eyes, he could feel the rich energy here. It might be different from that of the Aurora Continent or the Chaos Battlefield, it was easy to sense its richness. With such rich energy, it was easy for more natural treasures to form. Everyone was aware of this fact. ¡®Head to the areas that have sparse energies.¡¯ He suggested to Grey. Grey quickly understood what he meant. An area with sparse energy in a place like this only meant one thing, something had sucked all the energy dry from the place. When natural treasures form, they tend to absorb a large amount of energy to form. These energies are needed for the treasures to form. They quickly set out, and before long, he sensed an area with lesser energy compared to the other places. Without wasting any time, he rushed there. When he appeared, he was stunned by what he saw. ¡°Seelies?¡± He blurted out. There were over ten Seelies within sight and they all consisted of different elements. The moment the Seelies sensed him, they ran away, hiding in the bushes around. Grey chuckled, he couldn¡¯t help but recall the time Alice got her Seelie. They might be fascinating creatures, but he wasn¡¯t interested in having one. Satisfying Void and the bunny leader was already hard enough, adding another to it would make things difficult for him. Not that he didn¡¯t want to increase his strength, but he would rather have an Elemental Warrior than a Seelie. ¡°Fairies!¡± The Old man exclaimed. Grey took a casual look at him but then started to look around in search of potential treasures. The Old man saw Grey¡¯s reaction towards the Seelies and was a bit astounded. Anyone from the Chaos Battlefield who saw a Seelie would freak out, and rightly so. These things were known for the extraordinary strength they give to an Elementalist, yet, Grey didn¡¯t seem to have any interest in it. There was even a look of nonchalance on his face which showed that it wasn¡¯t the first time he was seeing it. ¡°My young friend, don¡¯t you know what these are?¡± He asked carefully. ¡°I know of them. But I¡¯m not interested in having one.¡± Grey replied. The Old man stared at Grey, speechless. Grey was the first person he had encountered that didn¡¯t want to have a Seelie. These things would rile up an entire city filled with Elemental Venerables, yet Grey didn¡¯t want any. It was a shocking discovery. ¡°There¡¯s nothing good here. Let¡¯s head to the next place.¡± Grey gave up when he couldn¡¯t find anything. The Old man was thrown off his feet with Grey attitude towards the Seelies. If not for the fact that he knew Grey was stronger than him, he would¡¯ve reprimanded him for being so clueless. With no option, he followed behind Grey as they walked out of the place. He looked back with reluctance, but since he entered this place with Grey, then he would naturally have to follow his words. The duo left that area and before long, appeared in another place. This time, this place had conscious plants. The Old man was amazed at how Grey was able to keep locating these places that had top-tier items. If it were anyone else, they would¡¯ve spent a lot of time to locate the Seelies, much less these plants, yet Grey did it within one hour. ¡°Is there any way you can contact him?¡± Grey asked after studying the plants. The plants didn¡¯t attack them, so he didn¡¯t bother with them. ¡°There¡¯s a nectar that tree stores in its body, will you leave without it?¡± The Old man pointed at a particular tree. ¡°Oh, what¡¯s the use of it?¡± Grey raised a brow and looked at the tree the Old man showed him. The tree had a strange branch formation, and its leaves were not the normal shape, rather, they were triangle. ¡°The nectar juice can help in comprehension. It makes ones state of mind clear. Not just that, but it¡¯s a great supplement for your body and its taste is topnotch.¡± The Old man explained. ¡°Oh.¡± Grey¡¯s interest was piqued, and just when he was about to approach it, the Old man coughed lightly, adding another statement. ¡°It¡¯s a powerful aphrodisiac as well.¡± He said softly. Grey paused when he heard this, his eyes twitched slightly, unsure of what to do. He didn¡¯t mind having something like this that would help him, but the aphrodisiac part wasn¡¯t something he was expecting. ¡°I¡¯ll keep it for Klaus.¡± He muttered. He felt grateful the Old man told him about it, if not, he would¡¯ve consumed it carelessly and might¡¯ve had a serious issue. The tree wasn¡¯t strong, only around the Overlord Plane. ¡°Don¡¯t attack it carelessly, they can destroy the nectar inside.¡± The Old man told Grey of the nature of the trees. ¡°Is there a way to take it without harming them?¡± He asked. ¡°Yeah, but it¡¯s not always effective. Most people prefer killing them, but they are very resilient. This tree can take an attack from that little girl with you without dying from it.¡± The Old man explained, ¡°Of course, you¡¯re different. A single attack is enough to end it.¡± 1243 Punished By Greed Chapter 1243 Punished By Greed "Is there a way to extract it if it''s not mobile?" Grey asked. The idea of using his mental attack to freeze the consciousness of the tree came to him. If he could extract the juice on his own, then there was no need to kill it. "Yes, it''s not difficult." The Old man nodded. Grey''s eyes turned pale blue as he nodded, "Alright." He stared straight at the eyes on the tree, and before the Old man looked, it appeared before them, motionless. Grey''s control over his attacks had grown over the years; now, he could control the intensity of the attack, making sure he didn''t kill the tree. In this state, no harm will come to the tree''s consciousness, unless he wants to kill it. The Old man applauded Grey''s efficiency in his heart before extracting the juice. Grey saw the orange juice and just from the amazing smell, he almost wanted to take a sip. The juice was thick just like honey, and it had small glistering white spots on it. He felt it was due to the tree. Void wanted to take a sip, but he stopped him while explaining what it can cause to him. Void didn''t care and still took a sip of it. It was something great looking, of course he would take a sip, why should he care about what the effects had on him. After taking a sip, Void unceremoniously disappeared without saying a word a few minutes later. Grey laughed when he saw how Void was acting before he disappeared. The Old man looked at Grey and his cat and felt a bit odd about how their interaction was. "Since we have the juice now, is there a way you can track him?" Grey asked. He didn''t mark him, so there was no way for him to get the location of Arthel. There''s no telling where they might be since the realm was large. "Yes." The Old man nodded and shut his eyes. A few seconds later, they headed toward the east. According to the Old man, he had a connection with Arthel and can pinpoint his general location. Time went by and in the blink of an eye, they had spent six hours in the realm. They still hadn''t seen Arthel or anyone from the City yet, but they''ve started to encounter stronger creatures. Grey saw another tree that looked like the one he took that juice from. This time, its strength was at the early stages of the Elemental Venerable Plane. He didn''t dare to engage it in a battle. The Old man spoke of these things tenacity, and he wasn''t interested in finding out about it for now. He already had the juice from a weaker one, of course a more powerful one would give him better effects, he wasn''t willing to test out the other effects. Void had been gone for over four hours now, he had only checked up on him once, but they didn''t speak for too long. There was no issue with Void finding him, so he didn''t worry about him. Void could take care of himself in this place. Except an Elemental Sovereign appeared, he was untouchable here. Another hour went by before the Old man told Grey he could sense Arthel very close. There was no way to pinpoint it, but Arthel was close to them. "I think I might know where he is." Grey said. He could sense an area with stronger energy compared to the others here. The two places he had been searching were places with vast energies and places with lesser energies. The reason for this was simple, Uthose places housed more treasures or creatures. Grey headed to the place he could sense a large amount of energy and his guess was right, there was a sign of a battle not too long ago in front of a waterfall. They started to examine the place. While examining the place, Void appeared with a flushed expression. "How are you?" Grey asked. "Good." Void replied before burrowing into Grey''s storage, he seemed to be in a vexed state. Grey didn''t bother with him and focused on searching for Arthel. While they were searching, the Old man called his attention to the waterfall. "There''s a cave behind it." When they walked closer, with a wave of his hand, he separated the waterfall and saw the entrance to the cave. The duo took flight and entered the cave. The cave extended deeper than they imagined and the signs of battles could be seen as they walked further into it. "They must be here." The Old man said. "Or maybe they''ve left." Grey said. It was not out of the question, after all, there was a good chance the fight started from inside the cave and ended outside. When they got to the end of the cave, they were greeted by the sight of a large beast. The second the beast sensed them, it roared angrily and without hesitation, it attacked. "F*ck! I was right." Grey exclaimed softly and blocked the light beam coming their way as they retreated. The beast was a large goat-like creature, and it was in an irritated state. Its eyes were red, it was clearly still annoyed from its previous battle. The Old man retreated while Grey held the fort. The Beast was in the Ninth stage of the Elemental Venerable Plane, but its strength can be measured alongside that of a Peak Elemental Venerable. Grey didn''t dare to be careless, he blocked all the attacks and refused to attack. The Beast was in a vexed state, he was certain it had something to do with Arthel and his group. "I''m not here to fight with you, don''t force my hand." Grey said after smacking its attack away. The Beast looked at him, snorted coldly before retreating back into its abode. Grey left the place, catching up with the Old man who was already waiting for him outside. When the Old man didn''t see the Beast, he heaved a sigh of relief. "They must be around then." He said 1244 Not A Fan Of Safety In Numbers Grey and the Old man started searching for where Arthel and his group could possibly be. After almost one hour, they finally found them. The group was resting in a safe area. The battle with the beast left most of them injured and they didn''t dare to continue their exploration in that state. If any of them were killed, the rest would find it more difficult to continue. When they saw Grey, the facial expressions of the few who had an encounter with him changed. They were all extorted by Grey when they were unable to defeat him. Although it didn''t look like it, they were a bit vexed by what happened. There were a few others who didn''t have any encounters with Grey, and there were six, with three being in the Late stages of the Elemental Venerable Plane. When Grey and the Old man appeared, the six looked at them with an odd look. At the time this place appeared, they asked the Old man if he was willing to come with them, but he refused. "Father, you''re here." Arthel stood up to receive his father. He was one of the few people who were injured from the fight. His injuries weren''t light as well. "Yes, we came for you." The Old man nodded. Arthel already understood why his father came when he saw Grey. He was meant to leave with Grey. In all honesty, he didn''t think Grey would come back for him. He felt Grey only agreed to take him so he could leave there at the time. Seeing Grey come back for him was a shocking sight. The others came over to greet the Old man. It was clear that he was well respected even if he was amongst the weakest. The six who didn''t have any knowledge of Grey stared at him, a little warily. "He''s not an enemy." The Old man reassured them. They nodded, but still kept their vigilance. "What happened?" The Old man asked. "We encountered a Beast''s lamb, and killed it..." Arthel explained. When they got to the waterfall area, they saw the goat-like Beast''s lamb while exploring the cave and without even thinking, they killed it, wanting its core and body. Unfortunately, after they killed it, its parent turned out to be a powerful beast. Even with their high numbers, they could barely contest with an enraged Beast that was close to the Peak. The Beast fought them with its life on the line, prepared to die as long as it took them down with it. The battle lasted a long time, and they were only able to survive with these injuries. The beast fought without regard for its life, so it was not unexpected that it managed to cause such damage to their group which consisted of twelve people. Grey had seen the beast and knew just how powerful it was, so he wasn''t too surprised. Against these people that the strongest was only in the Seventh stage, their chances of defeating it were almost nonexistent, unless they sacrificed a few people. They came here to rest and hadn''t come out since leaving that place. "This is a safe area. But not for long. Something will come out soon, I don''t think you would want to stay here in the next day or so." Grey remarked. "How are you so sure?" One of those in the Seventh stage asked. He couldn''t sense why Grey said this. Also, if there was something coming, then they wouldn''t mind seeing it. It might be a treasure they''ve wanted for a long time. The time they''ve spent here has been short, but they have gotten massive rewards. This is the reason most of them had recovered considerably from their injuries. They''ve managed to acquire some items that help quicken the healing process of an Elementalist. "Intuition. I don''t know how dangerous it would be, and I''m not all that interested in finding out." Grey replied in a calm manner. The man in the Seventh stage was about to blow off, but after exchanging glances with one of the few people Grey extorted and seeing him shake his head, he paused and kept mute. They were all prideful people, since these guys are holding back from speaking against Grey, it meant that there was something he didn''t. He transmitted his voice over to them and when he heard the news of how Grey killed the Space Elementalist, he thanked the person that stopped him from provoking Grey. The Space Elementalist was a respected expert in the City. He was very powerful, and given his methods, it would be difficult for someone in the Ninth stage to even kill him. Yet, he was killed by the young man standing before them. "We should get going then." The man urged. Grey didn''t have issues with that, his only problem was that he had zero plans of exploring this place with them. "Keep this, you can contact me whenever you''re ready to leave or in any danger." He passed an item over to Arthel and turned to look at the Old man. "Let''s go, we''ve confirmed he''s still alive." He said to the Old man. He didn''t want to travel with them, but he needed the Old man''s knowledge at the moment. The Old man knew a lot of treasures here, and he didn''t want to miss anything. "I can contact you with this?" Arthel looked at the plaque oddly, this was the first time he was seeing something like this. Grey explained the method of using it and left with the Old man. He marked the plaque, so as long as it was with Arthel, he could locate him anytime he wanted. The reason he gave him this was to reassure the Old man. "We''re not traveling with them?" The Old man asked as they left. "I don''t like moving with a crowd, especially in dangerous places. As much as I''d like to protect those close to me, I still prefer when I travel alone. It makes things easier." Grey explained. The Old man saw reason with Grey''s words, but most people, himself included preferred safety in numbers. 1245 My Turn Grey and the Old man left the place, heading further into the place. There might still be a few things that might be of value to him here. ¡­. A few hours later. Grey and the Old man were standing in front of a swamp, staring ahead of them. They didn¡¯t know what was ahead, but they were certain that the strength of the creatures they would encounter would get to the Late stages of even the Peak of the Seventh Rank. Void had finally come out, his expression was still sour. Grey had attempted asking him what happened during the time he was away, but Void flipped out the second he asked and even almost fought with him. Grey stopped asking when he saw how Void was reacting to the question. The Old man only chuckled whenever he saw Void¡¯s expression. He could guess what might¡¯ve happened, of course, he wasn¡¯t too certain, but he felt the probability of it being what he felt was quite high. ¡°There should be something good here.¡± Grey wasn¡¯t in a hurry to enter the place, he turned to Void and asked, ¡°Should we go in or not?¡± ¡°Aren¡¯t you the one making the decisions, since when do you care about my input?¡± Void wasn¡¯t pleased in any way. ¡°You¡¯re the strongest. If there are any battles at the Peak, you¡¯re the one who¡¯s going to take care of it.¡± Grey tried to sense if there was any danger in the beginning of the swamp. ¡°I¡¯m not fighting for you.¡± Void said, still pissed. ¡°Stop making a fuss. I warned you not to consume it, you were the one who couldn¡¯t control your greed.¡± Grey reprimanded, he added, ¡°I¡¯ll stop making any meal for you if you continue like this.¡± Void wanted to speak up when he heard the first part of Grey¡¯s words, but when he heard the last part, he kept shut. He didn¡¯t dare to offend him, especially when it came to food. ¡°Do whatever you want. I¡¯m not fighting any battles I can¡¯t win.¡± Void said coldly, he had given up on going against Grey. Although he was the strongest, Grey was still the one in charge. When the Old man heard Grey say Void was the strongest, he almost lost his cool. At the time Grey was fighting with the Space Elementalist, he didn¡¯t see Void, only after the Space Elementalist had been defeated did he show up. Now he understood where Grey¡¯s confidence came from. Even when fighting against multiple opponents, Grey had a back up that could almost one-shot most of them. With Void attacking unaware, they wouldn¡¯t have been able to even set up a defensive wall before dying. ¡­. Ten minutes later. Boom! ¡°F*ck you! Didn¡¯t I say I wasn¡¯t going to involve myself in any losing battle?¡± Void complained after blocking an attack. ¡°How am I supposed to know there are three more?¡± Grey complained. Before them were four huge snakes, all at the Peak of the Seventh Rank. At the time they saw the first snake, the man told them it had a crystal on its head that was very useful. Albeit it was at the Peak of the Seventh Rank, with Void and himself, Grey was confident that they would be able to defeat the snake. They didn¡¯t sense any other snake, and Void willingly joined the battle. Only after the battle started did they realize they¡¯ve made a massive mistake. There wasn¡¯t just one snake here, rather, there were four. They were already trapped in the middle of the fight, and with the Old man present, it was very difficult to fight against the snakes. The safety of the Old man was of utmost importance to Grey. The Old man was literally useless in the battle, infact, he was holding them back in the battle. He could only hide behind them and pray he wasn¡¯t caught by any of the snakes. These snakes were too strong for him, a single attack would kill him, and he was well aware of this. Grey and Void battled against the snakes, trying to force open an escape route for them. One of the snakes was well versed with the space element and it had been able to keep them in place, making it impossible for them to escape. Grey¡¯s skin glowed silver as scales appeared on them. He didn¡¯t want to take any chances. The armor was presently with the Old man. Before entering this place, he wanted to leave it with Cori, but after giving it some thoughts, he decided against it. One of the snakes swept its tail in their direction. An earth wall rose from the ground, blocking the attack. But the attack was too strong for the wall and it came crumbling down. The tail was like a metal sword as the broke through the wall and went for Grey and the Old man. Void jumped forward and he increased his size, from a small cat that could fit into the palm of Grey, he became over five meters tall. With a swipe of his claws, he sent the tail which was coming their way back. He felt his body jolt a little due to the fact that the snake¡¯s tail was covered in lightning. The Old man was amazed by Grey. Most Beasts feel pride in their size, yet Void liked his small size. He soon understood why. Grey jumped on top Void¡¯s head and Void snapped. ¡°Get off!¡± He yelled angrily. ¡°Focus on the battle in front of you. You¡¯ve been riding me for so long. What¡¯s wrong with me returning the favor?¡± Grey tapped his foot on Void¡¯s head, enjoying the moment. ¡°F*ck off!¡± Void cursed, ¡°I¡¯m not those little beasts you ride.¡± Grey naturally wouldn¡¯t bother with Void¡¯s yelling. After waiting for so long to ride Void, there was no way he would get off. Void was pissed, and he turned his anger to the snakes. 1246 Dealing With The Gnomes Void started attacking the Snakes with renewed vigor. The anger of Grey stepping on him was unleashed on the Snakes. The Snakes which had the advantage were a little taken aback when Void attacked with such ferocity that they didn¡¯t have an answer for his attacks. Void continued attacking with anger. Making sure none of them were able to fight properly. Even with the Space Snake blocking him from using the space element, it still didn¡¯t stop him. Void had the lightning element which could still increase his speed. The Snakes could barely keep up with his speed. With Grey standing on his head and attacking, they were able to force the other snakes back. The Old man was amazed by the strength and coordination of the duo. Void¡¯s strength shocked him the most. Unknown to him, Void was venting on these Snakes. This was a situation he had tried to avoid at all costs, yet, he was forced into it by these Snakes. At first, he didn¡¯t think of it when he increased his size, but the second Grey stood on top of him, he realized what he had gotten himself into. They continued fighting with the snakes, forcing it back. The Old man was in a safe space without the snakes attacking the area he was standing, but then another issue came up, Wasps started attacking the place he was standing. Each Wasp was in the First stage of the Elemental Venerable Plane. When Grey saw this, he quickly left Void alone and came back to help out. With a single attack, he was able to force all the wasps to retreat. He wanted to tell the Old man to leave the area, but he wasn¡¯t sure if he would be okay so he told him to follow them. The Old man felt relieved when Grey forced the Wasps back. ¡°Void, we need to leave.¡± Grey didn¡¯t want to continue the battle any more. Getting the crystal from the head of the snake wasn¡¯t too important to him. With the strength of each snake, it would be difficult for them to defeat them. The only thing they could do at the moment is to block the attacks and hope the snakes would eventually give up as they escape from the area. The Old man was behind them as they retreated from the swamp. While fighting, they had destroyed most of the trees around, and Grey was using his fire element at full force. The snakes might be powerful, but they didn¡¯t dare to take his attacks. Their thick scales had been burnt from his fire attacks. Void used the space element for most of his attacks, and the strength of it was tremendous. He was more dangerous than Grey, however, being the strongest of the duo meant that he had to take on more responsibility while fighting the snakes. Boom! Grey found an opportunity and tossed a fusion orb made with more space essence at the largest snake. The Snake was kept busy by Void¡¯s attacks, so it didn¡¯t sense Grey¡¯s attack early. The second it hit one of the snakes, it exploded with a powerful impact that made the snake hiss in pain. It opened its mouth wide and spat out yellowish substance in Void¡¯s direction. Void didn¡¯t need anyone to tell him before he avoided the substance. The substance touched the ground and smoke rose into the air. The Snake was injured from Grey¡¯s attack and hurriedly went to the back of the other three. Given the Ranks of these Snakes, their intelligence was quite high. It knew that with the injury, the chances that it might get killed increased. Grey created three more fusion orbs and threw it in the direction of the other three. They saw the attack and dodged it. The opportunity Grey and Void had been waiting for finally came, without any hesitation, they retreated as fast as they could. Grey unleashed a few more attacks at the Snakes to slow them down from chasing after them. A few seconds later, they were out of the area where the Snakes resided. Void returned to his normal size, tossing both Grey and the Old man to the side. Grey flipped mid-air and balanced himself while chuckling. After some thoughts, Grey decided it was best if he left. He was interested in getting more treasures, but he didn¡¯t want to lose his life over them. This place was a new region and he had zero knowledge of it. They spent one more hour before Grey asked the Old man a question he forgot when entering this place. ¡°How do we go out when we don¡¯t know if the fissure is calm or not?¡± He asked. ¡°There aren¡¯t any restrictions when leaving.¡± The Old man explained. Apparently, they only need to bother about the fissure when coming in, but when leaving, there was no need to wait. Grey nodded and contacted Arthel. While he was heading to the exit, he paused as looked ahead of him. The Old man also sensed something and stopped. ¡°Gnomes.¡± Grey muttered as he saw the people blocking his way. He has had frequent encounters with Gnomes, hence identifying them wasn¡¯t a problem for him, even while they were in disguises. The Gnomes in front of him all looked like a normal human. Grey is one of the few people that can identify them even in such a state. ¡°Grey Dawson?¡± One of the men asked with a playful smile. Grey looked at them and his expression changed slightly, they were all in the Late stages of the Elemental Venerable Plane. He wasn¡¯t afraid of them, but the puppets they would bring out. With such strength, the chances of them bringing out a Peak Elemental Venerable puppet was very high. ¡°We¡¯ve been running after you for a while. Good thing you came to us.¡± Another one said with an evil grin. Grey accessed his situation and just as he was about to turn to Void, he noticed Void had disappeared. He shook his head at how unreliable Void could be sometimes. ¡®Void, don¡¯t give them any chances. Once you come out, kill one person.¡¯ He didn¡¯t get a reply, but he knew Void was around. The battle started the next moment. Three corpse puppets appeared and it was just as Grey feared, they were all at the Peak. The only thing worth mentioning is that these puppets aren¡¯t as powerful as a true Peak Elemental Venerable, but it doesn¡¯t change the fact that they were powerful. There were five Gnomes and only three of them brought out their puppets. Of course, they only brought out just one each. Grey located the connection they had with the puppets, and before they realized what was happening, they felt a sharp pain in their heads. All three of them grabbed their heads and screamed in pain. ¡®Void, now!¡¯ Void appeared out of thin air and attacked the trio who were clutching their heads in pain. Before the other two could react, the trio disappeared like they never existed. The duo were stunned when they saw this. They knew the trio didn¡¯t just disappear, but were wiped out. ¡°You want to kill me and you¡¯re not aware I can incapacitate you with your puppets? Are you guys stupid?¡± Grey smirked. His previous nonchalant expression changed into one of disdain. For some reason, he hated Gnomes. To be honest, after they tried to kill him multiple times, he had every right to hate them. Gnomes and necromancers made him run for his life for a long period of time. That was something he wouldn¡¯t forget anytime soon. ¡°How do you do it?¡± One of the duo left asked. His expression had calmed down. It was like he didn¡¯t witness his companion being killed. ¡°Simple, I studied it, just like you guys.¡± Grey shrugged. He didn¡¯t plan on telling them how he managed to find the link they have with the puppets. It was a strange situation since he was the only one who could do that, at the moment. ¡°Which means you¡¯re one of those necromancers?¡± The man asked. Grey shook his head, not opting to speak further. He took a step and his figure appeared in front of one of them. He unleashed a punch, sending the figure flying. The other one attacked, but without the help of their puppets, they weren¡¯t on the level of Grey. It didn¡¯t take long before Grey made short work of them. The Old man watched Grey demolish a group of five like they were children. What he found scary was how easy it was for Grey to deal with the puppets. The puppets which were at the Peak didn¡¯t even have the chance to show their strength before he killed them. 1247 Feeling Of Unease Grey, Void, and the Old man had caught up with Arthel and were on their way out of the place. The things Grey acquired here were things he rarely use. Thinking about it, he decided to leave early rather than keep too many things he wouldn¡¯t have any use for. Besides, it was already getting close to the time for him to leave this place. The Old man had been left speechless during the short time he had spent with Grey. He already thought very high of him, after traveling with him, he had to reevaluate him. At the moment, the idea of wanting to go with them crossed his mind. He might be old, but Elementalists have a very long lifespan, especially those in their level. There might be a way for him to increase his strength when he leaves, and it was looking very tempting just thinking about it. In the end, he dropped the idea. Grey had already agreed to take Arthel with him, he didn¡¯t want to make it difficult for him. They left the place, and just as the Old man speculated, a large crowd was already outside. In the crowd, one group stood out the most. The group had a few people at the Peak of the Elemental Venerable Plane. Seeing people step out of the fissure, they looked at them with a serious expression. A light flashed through the eyes of some of the people present there. The thought of taking the items Grey and his group acquired was very appealing. Other than Arthel, Grey and the Old man weren¡¯t worth looking at in their eyes. Grey hid his cultivation stage as usual, while the Old man didn¡¯t have a high cultivation stage to begin with. Void wasn¡¯t even noticed. Arthel saw the looks some people gave them and couldn¡¯t help but feel pity for any of them that would dare to approach them. According to what he had seen, he knew Grey was a decisive person and would most likely attack once provoked. He naturally thought of the large number of people present and hoped nothing like that would happen. Grey might be strong, but he was not invincible. Grey didn¡¯t bother with anyone and quickly left the area, heading for the City. While they were leaving, someone approached them. It was one of the people at the Peak. She came with an amicable smile. ¡°Are there any good things inside?¡± The lady, who was dressed in a red skinny gown asked with a soft voice. ¡°Yes.¡± The Old man replied calmly. ¡°Oh, thank you for the information.¡± The lady bowed softly before asking another question, ¡°How dangerous is it?¡± ¡°You shouldn¡¯t have any problems as long as you don¡¯t go too deep.¡± The Old man said, after a while he added, ¡°There might also be creatures powerful in the early parts of it. I¡¯m not too certain about that, so be careful when you go in.¡± The lady nodded, thanked them and went back to her group. All she wanted to know was if it was worth going in. Grey¡¯s group was the first to have stepped out, and they were quite curious about what was inside. They received the news of this place not too long ago, yet Grey¡¯s group were already out. It meant two things, either the place was too dangerous, or there was nothing inside. The warning of the Old man only proved to them that they had a good chance of getting good treasures inside. They were all powerful experts and wanted to get as much benefit with hopefully a lower risks. ¡­. The City. Grey had taken Cori and was prepared to leave, Arthel and the Old man were standing close to him in front of the City gates. The father and son duo exchanged goodbyes before Grey departed with the others. Grey didn¡¯t know what to take of Arthel following him. Other than the triplet from the horned race, he didn¡¯t really fancy the idea of having anyone else following him. But for some reason, he felt it would be a waste not to let Arthel follow him. Having a powerful individual in the Elemental Venerable Plane who could possibly become an Elemental Sovereign wasn¡¯t a bad thing when he thought of it. ¡­. The days went by in a flash, and before long, a month went by in a blink. Grey and his group finally got to the temple where the portal to leave the Chaos Battlefield was located. His journey here had been somewhat eventful. He acquired a new form of energy, saw an old acquaintance, increased his cultivation stage to the Eighth stage of the Elemental Venerable Plane, and acquired a ton of treasures. Although it didn¡¯t seem like much, it wouldn¡¯t have been an issue for him to get to the Peak of the Elemental Venerable Plane. However, he wanted to grow slower than his current pace. He was advancing too quickly which was not entirely a good thing for him. Lately, he has occasionally been feeling uneasy as he breaks through each stage. For some reason, he didn¡¯t feel any sense of thrill or excitement that he was slowly getting to the peak of the world. The feeling of unease had been growing the stronger he got. At first, it was very little, but when he entered the Chaos Battlefield and absorbed the large amount of chaos energy, it erupted. He felt like he was missing something, but he didn¡¯t know what it was. After contemplating the situation, he gave up, there was nothing he could think of. Other than the Gnomes and necromancers who wanted him dead, and a few Factions, there was no other danger. ¡­. ¡°This is the way out?¡± Arthel¡¯s voice brought Grey out of his train of thoughts. ¡°Yes, this is it.¡± Grey nodded as he stepped into the temple. Arthel was the first, and just as he was about to step in, he sensed a great sense of danger and took back his foot. Grey also sensed this and was also able to figure out where it was from. ¡°Interesting, they can attack from the other side.¡± He looked at the portal with an intuitive look. ¡°Wait here, I¡¯ll be back soon.¡± Grey¡¯s figure disappeared into the portal after he left these words with Cori and Arthel. Arthel didn¡¯t complain and waited outside the temple. He had heard of how difficult and dangerous it was for someone from the Chaos Battlefield to leave and enter another realm. Unlike Grey and others from other realms, the chaos energy was vastly rejected outside the Chaos Battlefield due to how chaotic it is to others. Not just that, but there was something else that would be fully displayed once they leave the Chaos Battlefield, their energy could disrupt the essence of the people from other realms, giving them an advantage. Because of this, the experts of other realms wouldn¡¯t actively want them to enter their realm. ¡­. Aurora Continent. Grey stepped out of the portal and was greeted by the sight of an Old man. He wasn¡¯t familiar with him, but he guessed he was from the Dawson Family. ¡°Hm?¡± The Old man raised a brow as he took a glance at Grey. ¡°You¡¯re Lucas¡¯ son, Grey, correct?¡± He asked. Grey nodded and bowed to show his respect. ¡°Why are you with two of them?¡± The Old man asked. He wasn¡¯t aware of what was happening on the other side, but he knew there were two people from the Chaos Battlefield who wanted to step into the temple. ¦Ñ¦Ánd¦Ás¦­¦Ïv¦Ål ?¦Ïm ¡°Oh, so there¡¯s such a little girl there?¡± The Old man was amazed when he heard about Cori. Cori was still at the Peak of the Sage Plane due to Grey making sure she couldn¡¯t break through. But it doesn¡¯t change the fact that she was still a marvel to others. A little girl who hadn¡¯t gotten to the age of awakening already being at the Peak of the Sage Plane was unheard of. Even for this Old man who had seen a lot, he was still interested in her. ¡°Kid, I¡¯ll let you bring them over. But you¡¯ll owe me a favor.¡± The Old man smiled softly. Grey was about to agree when he heard a voice. ¡°Stop being hard on him, he¡¯s like your grandson.¡± Grey recognized the voice even though he had only heard it a few times. It was none other than his grandfather. His grandfather hadn¡¯t appeared yet, but his voice was already there. It was quite easy for powerhouses in his level to transmit their voices to a far distance. From the looks of it, he had been paying attention to this place, although he wasn¡¯t close, he was well aware of what was happening there. ¡°Call me grandfather, and I¡¯ll let you bring them over.¡± The Old man said. 1248 A New Member Of The Dawson Family Chapter 1248 A New Member Of The Dawson Family Grey stood on the spot, confused with the request of the Old man. He heard his Grandfather''s remark, but he didn''t expect this Old man to tell him to call him Grandfather. Thinking about it, there was no harm in calling the Old man grandfather, so he did. The Old man beamed with a smile as he nodded to Grey, complimenting his talent and good looks. Grey''s grandfather appeared and gave the Old man a cold stare. The Old man acted like he didn''t see anything and disappeared. "You said brought a little girl who''s already at the Peak of the Sage Plane?" Grey''s Grandfather asked. "Yes, I''ll go get them." Grey walked back into the portal. ¡­. In the Chaos Battlefield. Cori and Arthel were still standing outside the temple, unaware of what occurred on the other side. When Arthel saw Grey return, he heaved a sigh of relief. He didn''t know if they would be able to leave, especially when he was attacked the first time. Now that Grey came back, he felt he had sorted the issue on the other side. "Let''s go." Grey smiled at Cori. Void, who was being carried by Cori, jumped to Grey''s shoulder. Arthel took a long look behind him, he never thought he would get the chance to leave this place. The Chaos Battlefield possessed some remarkable treasures that came with unimaginable dangers. There were also a few limitations there, but on the Aurora Continent, he felt he would get the chance to grow further than his current realm. Arthel turned around and walked into the portal. It was the start of a new journey for him. ¡­. Aurora Continent. When Grey''s grandfather saw Cori, he was astounded by her. He had never seen such a case. "You blocked her body from increasing its essence capacity?" He asked Grey after taking just a glance at Cori, he had checked her body and noticed the irregularities. "Yes¡­" Grey explained his reason for doing so and his grandfather nodded in agreement. Grey''s thoughtfulness was impeccable, if not, Cori would''ve exploded from too much essence. Her body isn''t strong enough to take in so much essence, had she broken through to the Elemental Venerable Plane, she would''ve died. "She''s lucky she met you at the right time." Grey''s grandfather said. He looked at Arthel who was behind them and accessed him. "Not bad." After commenting on him, he waved his hand and the trio vanished. The Old man appeared once again, standing beside Grey''s grandfather. "What do you think of the man he brought?" "Not bad. If he wants to build something big, he will need loyal people who would fight for him. This is a good start." "I don''t think he has any plans of building anything. He was just unable to reject him, so he brought him with him." "What do you know? He''s my grandson." "He''s my grandson." "He acknowledged me a few minutes back." "Aren''t you too old to be this petty?" The duo bickered for a few more seasons before Grey''s grandfather asked a question. "He''s the last one out, correct?" "A few who went in with Eirik haven''t come out yet. I believe they''ve met with some misfortune, but I''ll wait and see if any of them will come out within the next few months." "Eirik came out two months ago. If they were alive, they would''ve come out by now." The two old men spoke about the possibility of their family youngsters being dead inside the Chaos Battlefield and couldn''t help but feel sad. Although they are well aware that was the cruel fate of some people, they still couldn''t help but feel bad about it. These youths were the future of the family, yet they had died trying to find better opportunities to grow. Life truly was cruel to those who aren''t strong enough. Grey''s grandfather never had a doubt about Grey dying inside due to the confidence he had in his grandson''s ability and decision making. "I''m heading back to the manor, you should come too. There had been unrest in the Continent over the past few months. It''s common knowledge now that the seal will be broken in a short time." "I''ll wait a month or two more. If no one comes out, I''ll seal this area and come over." Grey''s grandfather nodded at the Old man before disappearing. The task of guarding these portals has always been very important and for one such as the portal to the Chaos Battlefield, it must be guarded by a powerful figure in the family. The two old men might like bickering with each other, but they always put the benefit of the Family first, no matter what happens, they always try to settle all the unease in the family. ¡­. Grey and his group who were still in the void were wondering what was happening before they suddenly appeared in a familiar garden. They had arrived in the Dawson Family manor, his grandfather''s courtyard to be precise. When Grey arrived, he noticed there were a few people who were present there. His father being one of them. "Father." He paid his respects to his father and turned to do the same to his mother. The duo nodded in relief when they saw their son. With Eirik coming out a month earlier than Grey, they were a little worried, but then again, they knew Grey would never travel with Eirik. Everyone''s attention soon turned to the duo standing behind him, their gazes were naturally caught on Arthel given the fact that he was a man and was already in the Elemental Venerable Plane, but they soon forgot about him when they saw Cori. Cori was only around ten years or so, and it was very evident, yet they could all sense the boundless essence around her, she was a powerful Elementalist for those on the same stage as herself. "Grey, who are these?" Lucas asked. Other than Lucas and Martha, there was also the current family head and three other Elders. The shock they received from Cori was even more than what they received when they found out Grey was Lucas'' son. "This is Arthel, I met him in the Chaos Battlefield and he asked if he could follow me out." Grey introduced Arthel first. Arthel stepped forward and bowed to the people present with his head down. The pressure he was feeling from each of them shocked him to the bones. He knew these people could kill him with just a sneeze. He took a peek at Grey''s parents and understood why Grey was so astounding. With such powerful parents, even an idiot would grow powerful. He also knew everything couldn''t be credited to Grey''s parents, but he felt at least eighty percent of Grey''s success was thanks to them. If he were to find out that they abandoned Grey and he literally had to fight for his life over and over again to get to where he currently is, his respect for him would shoot through the roof. Those in the courtyard nodded, but their interest was more on the little girl in the group. He stepped back a little awkwardly. The first time he saw Cori he also had such a reaction, so it was very understandable. "This is Cori, a little Space Elementalist I chanced upon when trying to take a treasure that got her brother killed." Grey said with a light laugh. It was still strange that at the time, he was more interested in the treasure. If Cori hadn''t come the time she did, then he would''ve left there without a care in the world. He didn''t know if it was fate that took him there at that time or it was greed. Either way, he was pleased with the little companion he gained who was like a little sister. He had the same encounter with Arya, so it was quite easy to travel with a little girl. Since he had never had a sibling, he didn''t mind taking her as his younger sister. Besides, there was a sense of pride with having such an outstanding younger sister. "Cori? What a beautiful name for a beautiful little lady." Martha commented as she caressed Cori''s face. Cori didn''t sense any malice from Martha, so she let her do as she pleased. Since she was Grey''s mother, she didn''t believe she would want to harm her. "You''ve improved a lot as well." Lucas said when he sensed Grey''s aura, his gaze lingered on Grey as he gave him a questioning look. He could sense there was something else about Grey. Grey gave him a smile and he understood that it was a conversation for later. Lucas couldn''t help but chuckle inwardly. Grey was wary towards the Family Head and the other Elders, hence his reluctance to speak about what he must have acquired. "Oh right, I was attacked by some Gnomes." Grey spoke, "Apparently, they tracked me there." "Their means are quite fascinating." Grey''s eyes glowed with great curiosity. Lucas'' expression didn''t change when he heard this. Everyone knew of the hatred the Gnomes have for Grey. "I wonder why they''re so hellbent on killing you?" The Family Head spoke to Grey for the first time. "I camped outside their portal in a secret realm and killed whoever entered. They didn''t dare to send anyone inside for over a month." Grey laughed cunningly. 1249 A Counter To The Gnomes The Dawson Family Head was stunned when he heard Grey¡¯s words. He never thought the reason the Gnomes hated Grey so much was this bad. To be honest, if he were in their position, he too would be infuriated by such an act of disregard. Grey single-handedly rattled the entire race, and their wanting to seek revenge was rightfully so. The Elders and the Family Head stayed a little longer before leaving. Grey and his entourage stayed in his grandfather¡¯s courtyard a little longer. ¡°That¡¯s not the only reason they want you dead, right?¡± His grandfather asked. ¡°Nope. Actually, how should I put it¡­ I studied a bit of necromancy and one thing leading to another, I can sever their connections with their puppets.¡± Grey explained to his grandfather. ¡°I can be said to be their natural counter.¡± He added. The eyes of the Old man almost popped out when he heard this. This was a shocking discovery. ¡°Why haven¡¯t you impacted the knowledge to others?¡± He asked. If more people mastered this technique, it would significantly boost their courage when fighting against these Gnomes. The most hateful thing about fighting the Gnomes was that whenever they lost a powerhouse, the Gnomes might be able to steal the body and use that powerhouse to fight against them. They would lose a majority of their forces while the Gnomes would only lose a few people and a lot of puppets. The losses on the side of humans were just too massive. The thought of fighting against Gnomes has always been frightening to them. But with this technique Grey created, they would be able to plummet the strength of the entire Gnome race with nothing but a thought. ¡°That¡¯s the thing, I can¡¯t. There¡¯s something different about me, hence I¡¯m able to do it. It looks simple, but without what I have, others wouldn¡¯t be able to do it.¡± When Lucas heard this, his thought jumped straight to the orb in his body. He never expected the orb would be able to bring out something like this. Grey is not the only one who has studied necromancy, a lot of top powerhouses have done the same in the past, but none of them has been able to produce the same results as Grey. This confirmed what he is saying. ¡°Doesn¡¯t this mean that with you, we can defeat the Gnomes?¡± Martha asked. ¡°Not entirely. I¡¯m too weak, and can¡¯t be everywhere at a time. So I can only suppress some places. With my current strength, only those in the Elemental Venerable Plane and below can be dealt with.¡± Grey¡¯s grandfather felt a headache when he heard this. They¡¯ve been stuck with the issue of the potential war that was coming. Everyone was aware of this and had even stopped their battles in the meantime. Of course, not everyone stopped. There were still a few people that were trying to incite conflict between some top Factions. ¡°We¡¯ll discuss that later. What else are you hiding from the Chaos Battlefield?¡± Lucas put that matter aside. He wanted to know what Grey would want to hide from others. Grey grinned and opened his palm, and a golden energy appeared. Lucas, Martha, and his grandfather stood on the spot, thunderstruck. It was like a rain of lightning poured on them as they were unable to utter a single word. ¡°Tha¡­ tha¡­ how¡¯s this possible?!¡± Arthel was the first to exclaim in shock. He knew what this was. It was chaos energy, in its purest form. Whenever there was a chaos energy burst in the Chaos Battlefield, a lot of people try to absorb as much as they can. All the top-tier mythical plants would absorb a large amount of it and become even better. The energy Grey just released was on a frightening level. The thing about this was that it could be used in so many ways. Just the thought of it almost made Arthel faint from the shock. Cori looked at it, ¡°It looks beautiful.¡± ¡°Kid, what¡¯s wrong with your body? How can you do that?¡± His grandfather couldn¡¯t help but ask. This was not supposed to be possible. They all knew what the chaos energy was and how powerful it can be. If Grey were to show this outside, a lot of people would want to kill him. With this, Grey has gotten the advantage over anyone fighting against him. No one would want such a figure to grow to the level where he would be unstoppable. ¡°Don¡¯t show this anywhere else. Unless you have no other choice, you must not use this now.¡± His grandfather didn¡¯t bother about Grey not answering his questions and warned sternly. ¡°I know, grandfather.¡± Grey nodded. ¡°Actually, there might be a way you can integrate it into your main essence and completely hide it from others while still being able to use it.¡± Lucas said with a thoughtful expression. Grey¡¯s grandfather turned to his son with a questioning look. ¡°I saw an old text that might be of help here. It teaches only how to integrate other powers into your essence. It¡¯s quite powerful too.¡± ¡°There¡¯s such a thing?¡± Martha asked, a little surprised. Lucas nodded and explained to them, ¡°I chanced upon it when exploring an old site. It didn¡¯t seem too important, but I decided to keep it. Who knew it would be of use to my son years later?¡± If Grey could learn that, it would greatly increase his overall strength. He¡¯s already so powerful against those in the same stage. Thinking about what he could do is frightening. ¡°I¡¯ll start learning it now. The sooner the better.¡± Lucas and his grandfather agreed with his words. The sooner he learned it, the better it was for his well-being. Grey¡¯s grandfather never thought that Grey would bring back so many surprises from the trip to the Chaos Battlefield. His initial plan was to let Grey grow stronger there, but Grey not only grew stronger, but he brought back so many surprises that it was fearsome. Grey left his grandfather¡¯s courtyard and headed straight for his father¡¯s building, he still had to think of what to do with Arthel. Cori is still a little girl and she could be left under the care of the Dawson Family, but Arthel wasn¡¯t in the same position. Arthel was a grown man who needed a good chance to grow. The Dawson Family might be good, but it wasn¡¯t the right place for him to stay. ¡­. ¡°Why don¡¯t you travel alone for some time?¡± Grey asked Arthel when they were alone. ¡°I do not know this place, and people will be able to easily figure out I¡¯m not from here. Wouldn¡¯t it cause any problems?¡± Arthel didn¡¯t feel too comfortable with traveling on his own for now. Grey thought about it and nodded. He didn¡¯t think about that part and just wanted to get rid of him as soon as he could. ¡°What do you have in mind then?¡± He felt a slight headache. Arthel was about to speak when Lucas appeared. ¡°Don¡¯t worry, I have the perfect solution for this.¡± He smiled at the duo. ¡°Then we¡¯ll do as you say, Father.¡± Grey couldn¡¯t be bothered with how it was sorted. Lucas smiled when he saw this. He motioned for Grey to follow him. Grey stood up and left Arthel in the room, heading out of the place behind his father. They walked to the courtyard and sat down together. ¦Ñ¦Ánd¦Ás¦­¦Ïv¦Ål ?¦Ïm ¡°Yes, a good treasure, actually.¡± Grey brought out the treasure he got from the Chaos Battlefield. He obtained this from the arena, and according to the bunny leader, it was top-tier and would certainly heal Arya¡¯s brother. When Lucas saw the treasure Grey brought out, he was slightly taken aback while staring at it. Seeing the look on his father¡¯s face, he explained how he got it. A thoughtful expression appeared on Lucas¡¯ face, ¡°So that little bunny is so knowledgeable about herbs?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°I have a few things I have no knowledge of. I haven¡¯t been able to see any books that made mention of them, nor did I find anyone with sufficient knowledge about them. With this little guy, I will know if they are useful or not.¡± Grey and his father spoke for some time and he found out that he was able to also get something that might help heal Arya¡¯s brother. However, it wasn¡¯t something he could say was certain. The duo would be using the fruit Grey got from the arena. Grey planned to leave as soon as possible. This matter had been bothering him for some time now, so he wanted to sort it out now that he could. ¡°I¡¯ll have to borrow your little companion first. When he¡¯s done helping, you can leave.¡± Lucas stopped Grey in his tracks. ¡°Spend some time with your mother, she has missed you.¡± 1250 Provoke Them Lucas left almost immediately, leaving Grey alone with Martha in the building. He didn¡¯t forget to take the bunny leader with him. Arthel was also taken along, supposedly, Lucas said he had a job for him and took him as well. Grey had no issues with his father taking them away and headed over to accompany his mother and Cori. Void was with them and his mother had prepared a good meal for them. Grey joined them and when she saw his mother¡¯s questioning eyes, he told her of his father¡¯s departure. Martha didn¡¯t think too much about it, Lucas was always out and it had become a norm. With Grey staying with her, she wouldn¡¯t miss the departure of her husband too much. The trio alongside the little cat ate a good meal and even had a long conversation before Martha started Cori¡¯s training. She might be a Water Elementalist, but she had no issues with training a Space Elementalist. Grey left them alone and went inside to rest. He rarely sleeps nowadays. At his stage, he could go years without sleeping. However, on some occasions, he needed to rest his head, and as always, sleep was one of the best ways to do that. Of course, it doesn¡¯t always work out, but on most occasions, it¡¯s all that¡¯s needed to reboot the body and head. The days went by fast and Grey didn¡¯t bother with anything other than making sure he got enough rest and enjoyed his mother¡¯s company. Martha gave Cori a training routine that would improve her body¡¯s capacity so she would be able to advance to the next level. A few days later, Lucas returned. Grey was about to leave when Lucas stopped him. ¡°You still haven¡¯t integrated the chaos energy into your essence. You can¡¯t leave without doing that.¡± When Grey heard this, he recalled that his father spoke about a technique, but his father left in a haste and he completely forgot about it. With no other option, he stayed a little longer and started to learn the technique. The first time he saw the technique, he thought it would be a walk in the park. Only after he started to practice it did he understand it wasn¡¯t as simple as it sounds. He would need a lot of time to fully connect the two together. What makes it difficult is the fact that the chaos energy isn¡¯t connected to the origin source, so merging it to his essence was difficult as the origin source was rejecting any form of outside energy. Lucas couldn¡¯t help him with this since he didn¡¯t have any experience with it, all he could was to try to help him with what he understood about it. Martha was focused on training Cori while Lucas was focused on Grey. This part of the Dawson Family entered a period of calm as there was no activity from them other than training in the confines of their building. A few people came over to visit, but they were not able to see them. Lucas had always been very strict when it came to training, and everyone in the family was well aware of this. The moment they heard he was practicing with Grey, they all left them alone. The first person Grey was acquainted with from the Dawson Family came over as well. But he was forced to leave by Lucas. The world was bussing, but it had nothing to do with Lucas, Martha, Grey, and Cori. They were focused on their respective tasks. Cori¡¯s body capacity was slowly increasing while Grey¡¯s experience with merging two essences together was starting to bear some fruit. One of the things that helped him during this training was the Fusion State. He had the experience of merging different cores into one, so he started to use that route while following some of the instructions from the text his father showed him. ¡­. Two months went by in the blink of an eye. Grey was presently seated in the courtyard, both eyes closed as he focused on merging the chaos energy into his essence. He had been getting good results over the last few days and he was starting to get confident that he would be able to merge it soon. Lucas appeared silently behind him, when he saw his state, he didn¡¯t speak and watched from the side, making sure no one came over to distract Grey. Grey heaved a long sigh of relief and opened his eyes. He gave a self-deprecating laugh and said. ¡°This thing doesn¡¯t seem possible.¡± Lucas walked over and placed his hand on Grey¡¯s shoulder, ¡°It is. You¡¯ve been attempting it for a while now and have seen that there are signs.¡± ¡°Why don¡¯t you try to merge it with the origin source first?¡± ¡°How can I do that?¡± ¡°Locate the origin source. That shouldn¡¯t be too difficult for you. It¡¯s not as hard as what you¡¯re trying to attempt now, is it?¡± Grey shook his head when he heard his father¡¯s question. He hadn¡¯t thought of trying it in this manner before. Maybe he would be able to merge them if he could connect it to the origin source. Over his previous attempts, he knew that the main issue was getting the origin source to accept the chaos energy. For the past few days, he had been trying to force them into merging and just when he thought he would succeed, he would receive a backlash which would in some cases cause him some injuries. Luckily, he was always very careful and the injuries weren¡¯t that dangerous. Grey calmed himself, took in a deep breath, and let his consciousness wander in the vast space of the world around him. His target was to try to locate the origin source that was natural everywhere and nowhere at the same time. It was a spectacular thing since until an Elementalist gets to the Elemental Venerable Plane, they would not be able to have any knowledge of it, but without connecting to it, there was no way to break through to the Elemental Venerable Plane. Grey, having so many elements had a longer experience with it so if anyone could locate it, he had the highest chances of anyone in the Aurora Continent. He focused seriously on locating it. Lucas didn¡¯t spend any more time with him, leaving him to his work. He also had a few things he needed to sort out. While they were training, he received a message from Arthel on the mission he sent him on. ¡­. In a mountain range some distance from the Dawson Family manor. ¡°Hmm, I can¡¯t leave now.¡± Lucas placed his hands on his chin while looking at Arthel who was standing before him. ¡°Wait here, I¡¯ll go get Grey.¡± Lucas disappeared and soon reappeared with Grey standing beside him with a confused expression. ¡°I¡¯m sorry, but this is important. You will have to represent me in a meeting.¡± Lucas explained to Grey. ¡°Huh?¡± Grey was left speechless by his father¡¯s statement. His father was the one who told him to focus on training, now he was sending him out to represent him in a meeting? ¡°You see, this is important to the Family. I didn¡¯t think they would be having it on such short notice. To be fair, they didn¡¯t invite me, I just want to barge in. If I go personally, they wouldn¡¯t show their true colors. Even if you go they would be wary, but they wouldn¡¯t be as reserved as if I¡¯m the one there.¡± Lucas explained with a smile. ¡°So, what am I going to do there?¡± Grey asked. ¡°Simple¡­¡± Lucas said with a grin, ¡°Provoke them.¡± Grey was dumbfounded when he heard his father¡¯s words. His father was sending him out to cause trouble? He never expected something like this would ever happen. ¡°Don¡¯t worry, nothing will happen to you. Who would dare to kill my son? Even the strongest experts would think twice.¡± Lucas stated proudly. Grey didn¡¯t doubt his father¡¯s statement, he just found it odd that he was sending him on such a mission. ¡°Of course, the angrier they get the better.¡± Lucas replied. ¡°Alright. I will need to head to the Moonlight Faction then.¡± Grey said. ¡°You have a friend there, correct?¡± Grey nodded. Lucas had his research about those close to Grey and knew of a special talent that managed to enter the Moonlight Faction even though he was a boy. It was even rumored that the Faction Leader was the one training him too. He didn¡¯t have too many interactions with the Moonlight Faction, so there was no way for him to verify this rumor. He didn¡¯t want to waste any time investigating one person since there were still others he wanted to know about. All he knew was that Klaus was Grey¡¯s friend and he was also a top genius in the Faction. 1251 Why Would I Change? Moonlight Faction. Klaus had been training intensely for the past months and it has been showing a great result. He has so far managed to get to the Seventh stage of the Elemental Venerable Plane. In the history of the Moonlight Faction, no one has advanced as fast as he does. Whenever he leaves the Faction, it was rumored that he would always have a great encounter that would make him advance at a frightening speed. When they left the secret realm, he had only just broken through to the Elemental Venerable Plane. But now, within the space of a year, he had gone from the First stage of the Elemental Venerable Plane to the seventh. He advanced seven stages in a year, a shocking feat to achieve. What was worse was the fact that he was not weak in any way. He had sparred with people in the Eighth stage of the Elemental Venerable Plane and came out on top. This goes to show that he was still that same genius that could easily fight above stages. The young lady who he was paired with when they entered the secret realm, whom he didn¡¯t like, was in the same stage as he is now, he had completely caught up even with the large gap between them a year ago. What the young lady found annoying was that Klaus was presently stronger than she was and he wasn¡¯t hiding his feelings of revenge in any way. With Klaus becoming stronger than she is, she rarely stays in the Faction ground anymore and focuses more on completing missions that would take her away from the Faction. ¡­. The young lady had been gone for a few weeks and just when she returned, she caught sight of a familiar figure walking towards the Faction gates. She approached the figure and spoke up, ¡°Grey Dawson?¡± Grey turned to look in the direction of the young lady. He was someone pretty easy to recognize, first off, he was the only one who had a small black cat on his shoulder when traveling. The bunny leader is often staying in the spatial storage and rarely comes out unless something exciting was taking place. Whenever Grey was not in a hostile place, he would most often bring Void out. Unless they were stationary, or he wanted to train, Void hated being inside the spatial storage. The young lady recognized Grey with Void who was sitting on his shoulder. Besides, Grey¡¯s visage was one that was quite hard to forget. ¡°It¡¯s you.¡± Grey gave a soft smile. He had forgotten the name of the young lady hence his response. The young lady didn¡¯t show any annoyance. Compared to someone like Grey, she couldn¡¯t hold a candle. Klaus was already enough to cause trouble for her, she knew Grey was miles ahead of Klaus. Adding the fact that he was the most astounding genius the Continent had seen in a long time and that he was the son of the Continent¡¯s two last most promising and fastest risen geniuses in the Continent had seen in hundreds of years, his reputation was far above that of others. ¡°You¡¯re here to see Klaus?¡± She asked. Grey nodded, he was very modest while communicating with the young lady. When he noticed she was already in the Seventh stage of the Elemental Venerable Plane, he couldn¡¯t help but click his tongue at her speed. However, his jaw dropped when Klaus appeared in front of him. Grey rarely gets shocked by things like this, but Klaus was clearly defying normal logic. ¡®How is he doing it?¡¯ He could not comprehend how Klaus was advancing so fast. In his case, he had to make sure he didn¡¯t advance too fast so he could get full control of his power. Klaus was a completely different story. It was like he didn¡¯t have to worry about that, and to be honest, he didn¡¯t. Whenever Klaus advances, he always seems to have perfect control over his strength. Being able to access a hundred percent of your strength is something that makes you an even greater genius. The higher one advances, the harder it is to get a hundred percent control, but for some strange reasons, Klaus appears to be exempted from this theory. ¡­. ¡°Haha, hey bud, how are you doing?¡± Klaus laughed out loud as he approached Grey. ¡°I was just thinking of you and I was told you are here.¡± ¡°What? Shocked speechless by my brilliance?¡± ¡°I know, I know, I¡¯m a radiant star. Even the best stars wish they were me.¡± Klaus didn¡¯t even give Grey any chance to say anything as he bombarded him with words. The group of friends rarely used their communication devices as they usually do. Well, the others do, but since Grey was always going to another realm, there was no way to contact him. And even when he came out, he forgot about using it. The only thing he did with it was to track Klaus. When he got close to the Faction, he realized Klaus was in the Faction. ¦Ñ¦Ánd¦Ásn¦Ïv¦Ål.c¦Ïm This was the reason he came to invite him for the mission his father was sending him on. Since he needed someone to provoke a large group of people, the best bet was Klaus. Grey was certain if Klaus had gotten the number of encounters he had with the Gnomes, they would also want him dead due to how annoying he would¡¯ve made them. Grey took a step and appeared in front of Klaus, and before Klaus could react, he stretched out his fist, wanting to punch him to the ground, in the same manner he was forced into the ground the last time he came to see him. However, Klaus was prepared, he created a thin ice wall, but Grey could feel how powerful it was from a glance. Those around were shocked at the sudden change. They were still in front of the Moonlight Faction gates, and there were a lot of young members around. A few wanted to see the outstanding Grey Dawson, while others were curious as to what brought Klaus out. Some Elders were observing the scene, and when they saw this, some of them prepared to attack. Grey smiled and the energy in his arm increased, his muscles contracted but he made sure to put some sort of fire essence at the top of his fist to make people feel like it was the strength of his fire essence. When his fist hit the ice wall, a shockwave spread across the entire area. His fist stopped in the same place. Klaus smirked, but his expression changed drastically. The thin ice shattered, and as usual, Grey¡¯s fist connected with his head and he sank into the ground which had been softened by Grey. ¡°Shut up, you talk too much.¡± He added after Klaus sank into the ground all the way to his mouth level. Grey squatted down and studied Klaus properly, ¡°You¡¯ve become arrogant just because you got to the Seventh stage? Just so you know, I¡¯ve killed Peak Elemental Venerables, stop trying to flex your might in front of me.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t you know how it always ends?¡± Klaus tried to shake while held tightly by the ground, but he was unable to leave. However, ice spikes sprouted from the ground and shot at Grey, making him take to the air. With Grey no longer standing close to him, he destroyed the ground and came out. ¡°Of course I do, I always beat your ass up.¡± Klaus swiped his hands across his nose proudly. Even though Grey just beat him to the ground, he would still be shameless. Besides, who has ever seen Grey beat him up among the people present? No one! So Grey had no evidence. He would just take it that the reason he got beat just now was because he miscalculated. There was no way others would know what truly happened. Well, except for those Elemental Sovereigns in the Faction. Grey shook his head when he heard this, he understood what Klaus was trying to do and couldn¡¯t help but laugh, ¡°I see you¡¯re still the same way.¡± ¡°Why would I change?¡± Klaus retorted with a snort. The Elders and members of the Faction were once again left speechless at the conversation of the duo. They wanted to believe Grey, after all, he did get the advantage, but Klaus was able to break out of his entrapment and force Grey back. Given the fact that Klaus was also a genius from the Faction, they were more biased toward him. But Grey¡¯s reputation was something a lot of them were aware of, especially those close to the upper echelons of the Factions. 1252 Might Soon Run Out Of Luck The duo soon stopped fooling around and soon left the Faction gates. Grey was invited into the Faction ground, but Klaus refused to allow him into the Faction grounds. He had been in the Faction for so long and was already tired of staying there. He was already planning on going for a trip, seeing Grey come over, he was elated. ¡­. Moon City. ¡°Where have you been? I¡¯ve been trying to get to you for a long time now, but to no avail.¡± Klaus complained as they sat down in the Inn. ¡°The Chaos Battlefield.¡± ¡°Oh, I¡¯ve heard of it. I didn¡¯t know the Dawson Family had a portal that leads there. Coming from such a powerful Family must be something to take pride in.¡± Klaus had heard of some of the secrets of the world. His high status in the Faction was no joke. He was highly favored by the Faction Leader, and even the previous Faction Leaders held him in high esteem. Klaus might have an annoying and playful attitude, but his talent was second to none when it came to ice abilities in the entire Moonlight Faction. According to how the Faction Leader accessed Klaus¡¯ talent, he said it was second to none in the entire Continent. That made him the number one person when it came to using ice in the world of Elementalists at the moment. Technically, he can¡¯t be called the number one person yet since he was still too weak for those top Ice Elementalists, but in terms of pure ability, he was above them. ¡°You¡¯ve also heard of it?¡± Grey was astonished by Klaus¡¯ knowledge. From the looks of things, Klaus seems to know about more things than he did. The fact that he was the first to come in contact with the Aurora Continent, yet the last to have such knowledge about it was shocking. But thinking about it, he rarely spent time with those powerhouses and focused more on training whenever he was not on a journey. The few times he spends with them, it was when they mostly have a mission for him. In the Pyrmond Faction, he had a high reputation thanks to the Faction Leader and who his parents were, but he barely spent time with the Faction Leader unless there was an issue. These are things Klaus would know when casually speaking with the Moonlight Faction Leader. ¡°Of course. I would¡¯ve gone there already if not for the fact that we don¡¯t have a portal, and getting a spot from the top Faction in the Middle Continent was not easy.¡± Klaus answered matter-of-factly. Grey suddenly recalled about Jonas, ¡°Oh, remember that guy who came from Red City?¡± ¡°J¡­ J something?¡± Klaus had completely forgotten about Jonas, it had been years, and he didn¡¯t have a good relationship with him in the first place, so he forgot about him. ¡°Jonas, I saw him in the Chaos Battlefield. He¡¯s already in the Elemental Venerable Plane. He should be close to the Peak now, if not at the Peak.¡± Grey spoke of his encounter with Jonas in the Chaos Battlefield. ¡°He managed to get here. He sure is lucky. First he got that Fire Elementalist¡¯s inheritance, and now he came here and got into a top Faction all due to luck.¡± Klaus was surprised by his story, he then added with a slick smile, ¡°Maybe I¡¯m not the most favored person after all.¡± Grey almost wanted to beat him up when he heard him say this. Klaus was the only one who would use his luck as a medium to brag. Although he wasn¡¯t lying, it was still quite infuriating listening to him say that. ¡°I was planning on going for a trip, and I decided you were the perfect person I should take with me.¡± He told Klaus of his reason for coming to see him. ¡°Oh, what trip is that?¡± Klaus asked. ¡°Well, we¡¯re going to annoy someone. My father gave me the mission, but I believe you¡¯re the one best suited for it.¡± Grey answered. ¡°You believed right. That¡¯s what I was born to do.¡± Klaus laughed in delight. He had been waiting for something like this for a while. ¡°Alright, so when are you ready to head out?¡± Grey asked, he knew Klaus would be more than ready to travel with him. No matter what Klaus was doing, he knew he would leave it and travel with him. ¡°We¡¯ll make a stop on the way. There¡¯s someone I want to see.¡± Klaus said, giving Grey a knowing smile. Grey looked at him with a confused expression, he didn¡¯t understand what Klaus was insinuating with his facial expression. ¡°I¡¯m going to see Luthera, I haven¡¯t seen her in a while. I¡¯ve been stuck in this place for so long. I barely get any chance to go out. And visitors aren¡¯t allowed to see me on most occasions. You were an exception due to your reputation, they know they can¡¯t turn you away.¡± Klaus explained. ¡°Lu¡­¡± Grey paused, but then recalled the wedding Klaus took him to break up. ¡°Oh her, I¡¯ve almost forgotten about her. How is she doing?¡± ¡°We¡¯ll find out when we get there.¡± Klaus answered with a cheerful smile. He was more cheerful compared to when he met with Grey. ¡°I didn¡¯t know you could be this happy.¡± Grey teased. ¡°F*ck off!¡± Klaus said in annoyance. ¡°Let¡¯s head off then.¡± Grey stood up. Klaus rose with him and they headed out of the City. ¡°Don¡¯t you plan on letting them know you¡¯re heading out?¡± Grey couldn¡¯t help but ask. ¡°Don¡¯t worry about it. They know whenever you come I use it as an excuse to leave the Faction. I¡¯ve been stuck there for months now, I¡¯m not going there. If not, I¡¯ll be trapped.¡± Klaus rejected the idea immediately. Grey chuckled and followed behind Klaus. He started to speak about his encounter in the Chaos Battlefield since Klaus didn¡¯t have anything else to say other than being kept in the Faction and training. Although, he did have a few opportunities to travel out, and there were a few stories, but they weren¡¯t as thrilling as staying in the Chaos Battlefield for a year. Klaus was exasperated as he listened to the words of Grey. When he heard about the Seelies, he was thrown off his feet. He had always been envious of Alice¡¯s Seelie and wanted one. Unfortunately, he didn¡¯t know where to get one. Well, he did now, but there was no saying how he would be able to get into the Chaos Battlefield, much less locate the place where the fissure was and where the Seelies resided. Grey and Klaus spoke all through their journey to where the Braun Family was situated. The Region they were headed was close and would take them at least a week if they flew there at full speed, however, Grey and Klaus had tons of essence stones with them, so in three days, they used teleportation arrays and got there quicker. The reason they spent so much had a lot to do with Klaus wanting Grey to cook for them. So they made stops to travel on their own on some occasions. ¡­. The Nexis Region. This was the area the Braun Family was situated, and they resided in Devon City. Although the duo had gotten to the Region, it would still take a few hours to get there from the City they appeared in. Klaus didn¡¯t want them to appear there immediately, so they flew there. ¡­. Devon City. Grey and Klaus arrived in the Braun Family Manor. Klaus heaved a sigh of relief, it had been a while he came here and he was a bit nervous. ¡°Come on, you got this.¡± Grey nudged him on his shoulder. Klaus nodded and headed towards the gate. When they stood there, he was surprised the guard there knew him and allowed them into the Manor. He was escorted to the Manor¡¯s visitors Hall. He was surprised Luthera¡¯s father was the first to come over. ¡°Kid, I thought you¡¯d forgotten about my daughter.¡± Luthera¡¯s father¡¯s stern voice came from behind them. Klaus shook his head, ¡°Of course not, Uncle, how can I forget about her?¡± ¦Ñ¦Ánd¦Ásn¦Ïv¦Ål.c¦Ïm Klaus raised a brow, ¡°Is she okay?¡± ¡°Yes, but she went on a trip and hasn¡¯t returned yet. She is supposed to come back, but they are facing some complications.¡± Luthera¡¯s father explained, ¡°I¡¯ve sent people over to help out, but no news yet.¡± ¡°Where?¡± Klaus asked. ¡°Livcor Region.¡± Luthera¡¯s father answered. ¡°What a coincidence, we will be passing that region on our trip.¡± Grey turned to Klaus. ¡°I feel like at this rate, I¡¯ll luck out soon enough.¡± Klaus grinned. Grey didn¡¯t have any words for him and just focused on the tea they were just served. If he were to listen to Klaus speak about his luck, he would most likely beat him up. 1253 Use Your Background To The Fullest **** An: Guys I just found out the last three chapters were not from this book, it has been fixed, reload the last three chapters to get the contents. **** Grey and Klaus didn¡¯t stay in the Braun Family manor any longer and quickly left the area. The time for the meeting Grey¡¯s father sent them for was in a week¡¯s time, so they had to make sure they were done with whatever they needed to do with Luthera within that time. Klaus had no issues with them using teleportation arrays this time since they had to hurry over. It was a three day journey, hence the reason Grey didn¡¯t bother with Klaus when he was delaying their journey. Three days went by in a blink. Klaus didn¡¯t goof around since he was a little worried. Before they left, they asked t What happened with Luthera¡¯s journey and her father gave them the complete breakdown of it. Luthera was supposed to deliver an item to a powerful Faction in the Livcor Region, but due to some misunderstanding, she was held captive there. They only got to find out after her capture. Luthera¡¯s father has sent people over to inquire what the problem might be, but he hasn¡¯t gotten a reply yet. He was still waiting for the people he sent over to come back with news when Klaus and Grey came over. With the duo heading there, he was almost certain that Luthera¡¯s safety was guaranteed. One was the top genius in the Moonlight Faction, a Faction on the same level as the Faction Luthera was being held, while the other was a genius from the Pyrmond Faction which was also on the same level as that Faction, but his background was even more frightening, not only was he from the powerful Dawson Family, but he was the son of the famous Lucas Dawson. Even the top Factions in the Middle Continent would think twice before offending such a figure. ¡­. ¦Ñ¦Ánd¦Ás¦­¦Ïv¦Ål ?¦Ïm ¡°Yes, this is the Faction.¡± The man nodded. He was someone from the Braun Family, and the duo managed to somehow contact him thanks to Luthera¡¯s father. ¡°Alright, we¡¯ll take it from here.¡± Klaus sent the young man away and headed straight to the Faction gates. There were members of the Faction standing guard outside the Faction. Seeing two strangers approach them, they stepped forward to intercept them. Grey and Klaus naturally wouldn¡¯t barge into the Faction, they didn¡¯t have that strength to do that. ¡°State your purpose.¡± One of the members asked. He was only in the Sage Plane, but he was very proud. ¡°I¡¯m Klaus Ealdian from the Moonlight Faction, and I¡¯m here in regards to Luthera Braun who is being held captive here.¡± Klaus introduced himself. Although Klaus wasn¡¯t as talented as Grey, and hadn¡¯t gotten into as many skirmishes, he was still very popular. One has to know that the Moonlight Faction was a well-known Faction that takes in only female members, accepting Klaus was a shocker, and the news of him being taught by the Faction Leader sent waves through the entire Aurora Continent. ¡°And you.¡± The young man turned to Grey, his previous proud demeanor was already swept under the rug. ¡°Grey.¡± Grey replied. Unlike Klaus, he wasn¡¯t a fan of using his reputation to scare people. Klaus knew Grey wasn¡¯t like that, but he understood that they had to make these people wary, hence he stepped forward. ¡°He¡¯s Grey Dawson, the son of Lucas Dawson and also a member of the Pyrmond Faction.¡± He introduced Grey on his behalf. Grey took a glance at him but didn¡¯t say anything. There was no stopping him since he had already let out all the information about them. ¡°Well, you two are highly welcomed to the Lanark Faction.¡± The young man bowed slightly before motioning to them, ¡°This way, please.¡± Grey and Klaus followed them into the Faction. When Grey was about to step into the Faction, he seemed to sense some disturbance in the space, it was very subtle, but he sensed it either way. He looked up before walking past the Faction gate. ¡­. In the void. Two figures could be seen. One of them was one Grey had seen occasionally, it was the man who was protecting him. ¡°That¡¯s Lucas¡¯ son?¡± The unknown man asked as Grey walked into the Faction. ¡°Yes, and please do well not to harm me.¡± Grey¡¯s protector nodded with a smile. ¡°What¡¯s he doing here?¡± The man asked. ¡°I think something relating to a girl held here.¡± Grey¡¯s protector replied. He couldn¡¯t hear every word Grey speaks now since he has to keep a good distance from him. The few times he had tried to probe, Grey had almost always caught him. It was a shocking thing to him. Since Grey¡¯s senses were already this high, he decided to just watch from afar. ¡°You don¡¯t know?¡± The man asked. ¡°I¡¯m not sure. I can eavesdrop on him. You also saw how he noticed when you came.¡± Grey¡¯s protector didn¡¯t feel any shame as he explained. ¡°Understandable.¡± The man nodded, ¡°You¡¯re not welcomed into the Faction grounds. I assure you that no harm will come to either of them.¡± Grey¡¯s protector smiled and watched the man leave. He wasn¡¯t too sure of why Grey and Klaus came, but he was able to eavesdrop on Luthera¡¯s father and found out the reason for their departure. He just didn¡¯t want to tell the man everything. ¡­. Inside the Lanark Faction. Grey and Klaus were escorted into the Faction and they entered a large building which seemed to belong to a young man. The young man was the only person they saw when they got there. ¡°Who are these people?¡± The young man asked, visibly upset with the young man in the Sage Plane who brought Grey and Klaus over. ¡°Young Lord¡­¡± ¡°We¡¯re here for Luthera Braun, she¡¯s supposed to deliver something to you. And from what I know, she has delivered it but is being held captive here.¡± Klaus stopped the young man from speaking and said. ¡°Luthera?¡± The young man wore a confused face, but the young man in the Sage Plane leaned forward to explain to him and he soon recalled who it was. 1254 Bold Action ¡°The items she brought were fake.¡± The young man said after he was told who the person Grey and Klaus wanted to see was. The only reason he didn¡¯t blow his top off was due to the fact that he knew that the young man who was standing guard wouldn¡¯t foolishly bring people with low statuses to him like this. It meant the status of the duo was probably very high. His status in the Faction was only below the Elders and the Faction Leader. He was well above other members in the Faction, and with his strength of being a Fifth stage Elemental Venerable, he could take the position of an Elder if he wanted. But he was still young and didn¡¯t want such a status. He¡¯d rather be the way he is at the moment than take such a title. He didn¡¯t want to even think about how awkward it would be if Grey and Klaus came and had to address him as an Elder when they were all around the same age. ¡°If I may ask, who are you two?¡± He asked after saying the reason Luthera was held captive. The guard was the one to introduce the duo this time. When the young man heard their names, he understood why the young man brought them over. He couldn¡¯t help but appreciate the fact that he didn¡¯t answer them in an annoyed tone. ¡°The Braun Family has been delivering these things to your Faction for years now, and there has never been an issue with you people receiving any fake item. How come there¡¯s one now?¡± Klaus questioned. He wasn¡¯t pleased with what he heard. To him, he felt like the young man was spouting bullshit. ¦Ñ¦Ánd¦Ás¦­¦Ïv¦Ål ?¦Ïm ¡°Yes, and we¡¯re also diligent in our payments. But this particular item almost caused the death of an Elder¡¯s son. Hence, the Elder out of anger imprisoned her, without the permission of the Elder, we can¡¯t take her out.¡± The young man explained. He wasn¡¯t the one who made the decision, neither did he know the full story. The Elder only told them that his son nearly died and sent people out to stop Luthera from leaving. ¡°Can we see her?¡± Klaus was more concerned about Luthera¡¯s current well-being. ¡°Sure.¡± The young man had no problems with taking them to the place Luthera was being kept. He sent the young man away to continue his duty as the guard and escorted Grey and Klaus. He had tried sensing the strength of the duo, and he only sensed Klaus¡¯ cultivation level which sent chills down his spine. Most people knew of Klaus and the last time he was in a public place, which was the secret realm, he had just broken through when they were leaving. In the space of one year, Klaus had broken through to such a frightening level. He couldn¡¯t help but wonder what Grey¡¯s strength was like now. If Klaus was able to grow this fast and powerful, then surely the son of the great Lucas Dawson must have grown even further. The duo were led into a dungeon under the Faction and the young man was stunned when he couldn¡¯t find Luthera. ¡°Where is the lady kept here?¡± He asked the guard watching over the dungeon. ¡°Elder Thorunn took her away a few minutes ago.¡± The guard reported. The young man¡¯s expression changed slightly. He didn¡¯t think too much about the situation but when he recalled the personality of the Elder, he was stumped. ¡°We should head over to his place.¡± He left the dungeon hurriedly with Klaus and Grey behind him. He was in such haste that he forgot the no-fly rules in the Faction as they rushed to where the Elder resided. Grey and Klaus naturally followed him as they shot to the Elders¡¯ manor. When they got there, the guard wanted to stop them, but he was sent flying. ¡°Elder Thorunn, where¡¯s the prisoner?¡± The young man roared as he entered the mansion. The Elder, who was inside, came out with an annoyed voice. The young man, Grey, and Klaus were presently standing in the Hall of the building and the Elder walked out from the stairs that led underground. ¡°Ralf, what¡¯s the meaning of this?¡± Elder Thorunn asked coldly. He was at the Peak of the Elemental Venerable Plane, and even though he was on the same Plane as Ralf, he was still stronger, and expected him to respect him. ¡°Where¡¯s the prisoner?¡± Ralf asked, not responding to the Elder¡¯s question. Elder Thorunn looked at Grey and Klaus, ¡°Who are these people, you dare to barge into my manor with these miscreants?!¡± Without hesitation, he unleashed an attack on Ralf, Grey, and Klaus. Klaus took a step forward and his ice domain spread out. Grey disappeared and when he reappeared he was standing in front of Elder Thorunn, all it took was a single attack, and he was sent flying, crashing through the walls of the building and landing outside with a large crater. Grey has never been one to hold back, and from the looks of things, he knew this Elder was up to no good, hence his reaction. With this attack, the other Elders in the area had rushed over and even those few normal members who were in the Elemental Venerable Plane came over. ¡°Who dares attack an Elder in our Faction? Are you looking for death?!¡± A thunderous roar came from above and an Old man appeared, his expression was murderous. When he saw that it was Elder Thorunn, he paused and accessed the situation. He was familiar with Ralf, but he didn¡¯t know Grey and Klaus. His eyes turned cold and just as he was about to attack, a figure appeared beside him and whispered into his ears. He paused once again. Grey and Klaus walked out of the building with a stunned Ralf who couldn¡¯t believe his eyes. 1255 Did I Fail You? Grey just sent an Elder who was at the Peak of the Elemental Venerable Plane flying with a single attack, while Klaus was able to block the attack of a Peak Elemental Venerable with such ease. Neither of them showed any signs of difficulty when accomplishing this feat. ¡°What¡¯s going on here?¡± The Old man asked with a cold look, his eyes concentrated on Grey¡¯s figure. This was the young man who made him stop his attack. If not for Grey, he would¡¯ve attacked the duo the second he appeared. He sensed some disturbance in the air, but he didn¡¯t think it would be anything serious so he didn¡¯t bother too much about it since the Faction has always been a safe place. Only after Elder Thorunn attacked did he sense the abnormalities, but before he came over, the Elder had been sent flying by a young man who wasn¡¯t even close to one-fourth of the Elder¡¯s age. ¡°He held my friend captive for an unnecessary reason and was trying to have his way with her.¡± Grey stepped forward and spoke up. He was the one with the highest status, so he was naturally the one who had to speak up. ¡°She brought fake herbs that nearly cost my son his life. Shouldn¡¯t I hold her accountable for it?¡± Elder Thorunn asked, incensed. He was embarrassed that Grey sent him flying in one attack, but he would never back down in front of so many people. ¡°The Braun Family has been delivering the same herbs to your Faction for decades and there have never been any issues. Why is it that there¡¯s only an issue when she came over to deliver the herbs?¡± Grey interrogated, he looked Elder Thorunn straight in the eyes, ¡°Why would you take her from the cell she was held captive in and take her to your place if you weren¡¯t trying to have your way with her?¡± The Old man who was standing mid-air looked at Elder Thorunn and asked coldly, ¡°Is this true?¡± ¡°He¡¯s obviously lying, Grand Elder, I didn¡¯t falsely accuse the little girl. And you can¡¯t find her in my building. You can search.¡± Elder Thorunn replied with a wronged face. ¡°Then why¡¯s she walking out of the underground building now?¡± Grey asked with a smile. Two guards appeared beside him, both incapacitated. Void appeared on his shoulder with his usual nonchalant look. He didn¡¯t even bother with the people present as he started to clean his paws. ¡°You wanted them to take her out of your place. I already figured you¡¯d do something like that.¡± Grey¡¯s voice made Elder Thorunn shiver. ¡°You¡­ you¡¯re lying on my good name. I¡¯ve never seen this lady in my life.¡± Elder Thorunn stammered. ¡°Then how did you apprehend her if you haven¡¯t seen her before?¡± Klaus asked coldly, ¡°The guards in the dungeons were the ones who told us you took her away. Mister Grand Elder, you can ask the guards while we¡¯re here. No need to take him with you since he can intimidate them into lying.¡± The Grand Elder took a glance at Ralf, who nodded to affirm Grey and Klaus¡¯ words. ¦Ñ¦Ánd¦Ásn¦Ïv¦Ål.c¦Ïm Grey, Klaus, Luthera, Ralf, and Elder Thorunn followed the Grand Elder and went to a more secluded place. The Grand Elder didn¡¯t want the matter to escalate. From what he knew about Elder Thorunn, he was confident Grey and Klaus weren¡¯t lying, but he obviously can¡¯t say that out loud. ¡­. In the Grand Elder¡¯s manor. ¡°Thorunn, what¡¯s the meaning of this? Even if you want to have your way with these girls, can¡¯t you be more careful with the people?¡± The Grand Elder was annoyed. He took Elder Thorunn to another room and questioned angrily. ¡°She¡¯s a girl from a family where the strongest person is only in the Mid stages of the Elemental Venerable Plane, I had no idea she has connections with those two.¡± Elder Thorunn dropped his head in fear. He knew the Grand Elder had caught him and didn¡¯t dare to make the matter worse since the Grand Elder was the only one who could save him from the hands of Grey and Klaus. For some reason, he felt if Klaus was the one who attacked, he wouldn¡¯t have had these light injuries. From the looks of things, Klaus was emotionally attached to the young lady and was more furious, Grey was the more rational one and knew that fatally injuring an Elder in his Faction was a form of disrespect and total disregard for a Faction which the Faction Elders and Leader would not take lightly. ¡°The one who attacked you is Lucas¡¯ son. You know we can¡¯t afford to offend such a figure.¡± The Grand Elder said. When Elder Thorunn heard the name, Lucas, he felt his body go cold. There¡¯s only one Lucas the Grand Elder will be wary of, Lucas Dawson, the terrifying genius of the Dawson Family. There¡¯s also Martha who was his partner, they were both freakish entities. Thinking of it, he couldn¡¯t help but feel grateful that he was weaker than Grey, if not, he didn¡¯t even know what to say if he had accidentally harmed or even killed either of the duo. ¡­. While the Grand Elder and Elder Thorunn were speaking in one room, Grey, Klaus, Luthera, and Ralf were left in the Hall, awaiting them. ¡°How are you?¡± Klaus asked Luthera softly. ¡°I¡¯m fine. What took you so long?¡± Luthera pouted angrily. ¡°To be honest, we would¡¯ve arrived a few days earlier, but I was goofing off. I didn¡¯t know you were in danger.¡± Klaus answered truthfully. If they had followed Grey¡¯s words and rushed to the Braun Family the first time, they would¡¯ve gotten here a day or two earlier, but Klaus wanted to goof off, which delayed them by a day or so. ¡°You¡¯re lucky you came on time, if not, I would¡¯ve broken off all connections with you.¡± Luthera spoke gently while resting her head on Klaus¡¯ shoulder. ¡°I called out for you repeatedly when he brought me to his house a few minutes ago, you¡¯re lucky you showed up.¡± ¡°I told you if you¡¯re in any danger, call my name, and I will show up. Did I fail you?¡± ¡°No, no you didn¡¯t.¡± 1256 Youre Not One Of Them Grey and the other trio waited patiently and the Grand Elder came back with Elder Thorunn after a few minutes. ¡°There was misunderstanding and the Faction will send envoys to the Braun Family to apologize and also show how sincere we are to do business with them as usual.¡± The Grand Elder said after everyone was seated. The reputation of the Elder was already down, there was no use in criticizing him in front of these youngsters. Grey had already disgraced him enough. Grey and Klaus had nothing to say, and neither did Luthera, she was more than satisfied with leaving this place and never coming back. At the moment, all the trio wanted was to leave the Faction. The Grand Elder nodded and turned to Ralf, ¡°Take them around the Faction, they should be given one pill each.¡± Klaus was about to reject the offer, but Luthera hurriedly stood up and bowed, ¡°Thank you.¡± This pill was what the Lanark Faction were renowned for. There were a few of them in circulation, but getting one was very difficult and quite expensive. Grey didn¡¯t know what the pill was made for, and he didn¡¯t bother too much about it. Since Luthera wanted it, he didn¡¯t mind getting it too. Klaus also didn¡¯t speak up, they both thanked the Grand Elder and left the place, following Ralf. They told him they didn¡¯t need a tour of the place, it was all formalities, what they truly wanted was to leave, and they obviously can¡¯t do that without the pills they were supposed to be offered. Ralf understood what they meant and didn¡¯t waste any more time, taking them to where to get the pills, he handed them over and gave them a brief explanation of what the pill was used for. Grey¡¯s body jolted when he heard the use of it. Apparently, when a Sage Plane Elementalist was on the verge of breaking through to the Elemental Venerable Plane and can¡¯t find the origin source, this pill will heighten their senses toward it and give them a better chance to locate it and connect it to their essence. It has an eighty percent success rate which was pretty frightening, but Grey had zero interest in all that, what he was concerned about was locating the origin source. Presently, he was trying to locate the origin source and merge the golden energy he got from the Chaos Battlefield into it. If he could locate the origin source, he might be able to increase his strength by a whole lot. He never thought that thanks to Klaus, he would be getting such a high end pill that would help him fulfill his wish. It was truly fascinating just thinking of it. His thoughts were kept to himself, he knew if Klaus were to find out that thanks to him he would be able to achieve something he had been attempting for, he would brag to no end about it. As much as he didn¡¯t want to beat up Klaus, he might not be able to stop himself if Klaus found out about this. ¡­. ¦Ñ¦Ánd¦Ás¦­¦Ïv¦Ål ?¦Ïm ¡°What¡¯s the plan now?¡± Luthera asked Grey and Klaus. ¡°We were originally going for a mission, but he wanted to see you so we stopped by. We still have a few days to go. So we can spare a day.¡± Grey replied, not giving Klaus the chance to speak. Klaus looked at him with grateful eyes, he thought Grey would rush them and he wouldn¡¯t be able to spend time with Luthera, but luckily, Grey was smart enough to know that he needed some to spend some time with Luthera before they left. Unknown to Klaus, the reason Grey did this was so that he would be able to try out the pill. He was currently out and needed to increase his strength. The fastest way was to increase his cultivation stage to the Ninth stage, but he promised himself he would take it slow. Since that was out of the picture, his next best pick was to merge the two energies together and create a better one. With these two energies, he would be able to defeat stronger opponents with much ease. In Grey¡¯s books, he didn¡¯t include Elder Thorunn as a Peak Elemental Venerable. He had encountered the really strong Peak Elemental Venerables, and they weren¡¯t as weak as Elder Thorunn. Even a normal Ninth stage Elemental Venerable amongst the young geniuses in the Continent would be able to make light walk of this Elder. Grey knew the Lanark Faction wasn¡¯t the only one who had such an Elder, even the Dawson Family, and the Pyrmond Faction had such Elders. Getting to the Peak of the Elemental Venerable Plane was no easy feat, but if one doesn¡¯t get the complete attributes of a Peak Elemental Venerable, then they were useless. ¡°We should head into the City, you coming?¡± Klaus asked. ¡°Don¡¯t worry about me, we can meet up tomorrow. I have some things I need to take care of.¡± Grey waved them off. Klaus didn¡¯t ask again and left with Luthera. Grey watched the duo leave before turning to stare at the large expanse of forest before him. His current target was to get to a secluded area and see if he could locate the origin source on his own. He would resort to using the pill if his efforts fails. After all, this pill was a valuable treasure that could be used to help others. ¡°The city would be fun, you know.¡± Void said. ¡°Training is fun. Come on, we might see something good in the woods.¡± Grey chuckled. ¡°There¡¯s nothing good about training.¡± ¡°You literally advance your realm while sleeping. Unlike people like me who have to put in the work.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t think you should classify yourself in that category.¡± ¡°What do you mean, I always work my butt off.¡± ¡°No, not exactly.¡± ¡°What do you mean?¡± ¡°Reynolds, now that¡¯s someone who works his butt off, you just get one thing and boom, an upgrade.¡± 1257 Party Crashers Grey and Void went deep into the forest. On the way there, they saw someone from the Lanark Faction, but the person let them through. There was no way an Overlord Plane Elementalist could stop them. It''s not that they couldn''t secretly enter, but they couldn''t. There was a large array across this entire part of the forest and there was only one spot open. Even Grey didn''t have the confidence of creating an opening without the creator of the array finding out, so he went through the normal place. Since he didn''t want to provoke the Lanark Faction any further, he decided to make sure the young lady guarding the gates into the place was aware of him entering the place. The only thing she said to him was not to kill the low Ranking Magical Beasts since they were what the Faction uses in training their members on some occasions. Grey didn''t have any plans of killing anything when he came here, so he had no problems with that. All he wanted was a secluded place to train. After entering the forest, he ventured deep into it. With his current flight speed, it didn''t take long for him to fly over a thousand kilometers. He got to the area where there were only Rank Seven Magical Beasts, found a lair belonging to one of the few close to the Peak, and with a little effort, he chased it away. He didn''t care what it would do after leaving, and truthfully, he didn''t care much. With a cave all to himself, he started his training once again. Before leaving the Dawson Family, he only recently got the idea of trying to merge his golden energy with the origin source. There was no need rushing to use the pill when he didn''t have to. There''s a good chance that he might be able to locate it without the pill and this pill might be of use to anyone from the Dawson Family or Pyrmond Faction. ¡­. Later that night. Grey was seated down cross-legged in the cave with his eyes tightly closed. He had been like for over six hours now and no result. He still hadn''t been able to locate the origin source and he was contemplating if he should use the pill or not. They would be leaving once it''s dawn, and if he is still unable to locate it, then he would have to travel without merging them. He opened his eyes and looked at Void who was sleeping on the side. The bunny leader was also out, but it was exploring the area, ensuring that Grey trained without any disturbance. It might not like fighting, but like Void, it had a high cultivation stage and could easily frighten those beasts below it. It wanted to build a large bunny army, just like the one Grey had been chased by on several occasions. With its space element, it could keep them in spatial storage and bring them out. With their current strength, it knew that it needed a bunny with the strength of at least the Mid stages of the Seventh Rank. Coming here, it decided to search the area for any potential bunnies in that range. Locating the bunnies was something very easy for it. In the space of the six hours Grey had been training, it had seen over a hundred bunnies, and only five of them met the requirements. It kept all of them inside his spatial storage and continued recruiting throughout the night. Grey finally decided not to use the pill since it was more useful for others and he hadn''t tried enough. Only when he was certain that he wouldn''t be able to locate the origin source will he use the pill, but for now, he would keep trying and see if he would be lucky. The bunny leader managed to recruit two more bunnies to its bunny empire. Now, it truly befitted the name, the bunny leader. With his new growing army, it would be able to terrorize the life of others, just like he did to Grey, but in this case, he would be doing it for Grey, and not to him. Grey had no knowledge of the bunny leader creating its mini-empire, and even if he did, he wouldn''t care. ¡­. The next morning. Grey went straight to the City and met up with Klaus and Luthera, who had grouped up with the person her father sent over to find out what happened. Klaus said his goodbyes to her and the duo started their journey. If they decided to travel nonstop, they would get there within two days. But traveling through space was not something that should be done on a constant basis. It was okay if one went through a long spatial tunnel thrice or four times a day, but once it starts to go above that, it would start to affect the body. Only those above the Elemental Venerable Plane don''t have any issues with this. They could use spatial tunnels almost unendingly. "Where''s the target?" Klaus asked. "We''re heading to the borders of the Continent, close to the Middle Continent. There''s a meeting there we''re supposed to crash. According to my father, it would best we get there after it has started." Grey explained. "Nice, that''s what I like." Klaus laughed. "That''s why I called you over. You already know your task." Grey looked at the teleportation array before them. Klaus nodded, he was raring to go. He hadn''t been able to annoy people that were well stronger than him and had always offended those in the same stage as himself. Now that a great opportunity presented itself before him, he didn''t want to miss it. Luthera left the duo with her companion and headed back to the Braun Family, expecting the arrival of the envoy from the Lanark Faction. Grey and Klaus walked into the teleportation array and a bright light enveloped the duo. When the light faded, the duo were gone. 1258 Klaus At Work Selkirk Region. The border of the Western Continent and the Middle Continent. This was one of the regions before the Middle Continent, it stands as a good trade spot between both Continents. Grey and Klaus arrived at the time they needed to, before the meeting took place. They arrived a day before the meeting and the duo started to wander around the city, in hopes of finding something good. However, even after spending hours in the streets of the City, they were unable to find anything good. They did get to eat in one of the good Inns in the City and even drank some of the best wine they''ve ever tasted. ¡­. The next day. The meeting was held in a secret room that night. Over fifteen figures in the Elemental Sovereign realm were seated as they started the meeting. "What do we do about them? They are already a tumor, with the seal weakening, they will eventually come as a threat to us." "They are a threat, but don''t forget about the Dawson Family, they are holding onto a very important secret realm. With it, we will be able to grow more experts needed to fight against the Gnomes." "The Dawson Family found the secret realm first, according to the rules, they have every right to keep it to themselves." "What are you saying? We all need to grow stronger if we need to fight against the Gnomes." "Yes, Lucas is always trying to flaunt his strength before us. Who knows if that''s where he grew that powerful?" ¡­. Different discussions broke out, but it all focused on one topic, the secret realm the Dawson Family found. There has been a few people who had attempted to snatch it but to no avail, now they were searching for a way to get the top Factions in the Middle Continent to come and intervene and force the Dawson Family to relinquish their hold of it. They were still talking about measures to force the Dawson Family into letting others enter the secret realm when two individuals swaggered into the room. It was, of course, Grey and Klaus. Grey was walking in a more serene way, Klaus on the other hand, was walking as if the world belonged to him. It couldn''t be helped, this was a moment he would cherish for a long time. One of the men who was adamant on the Dawson Family letting others into the secret realm turned to the duo. "What are you two kids doing here?" Before Grey could speak, Klaus spoke up, "We''re the representative of the Dawson Family." Klaus looked around and noticed there was no seat for them. "Grey, there''s no seat for us, would you be kind enough to make one for us." He asked with a smile. He walked to one of the men, particularly the one who asked who they were and said with a blissful smile, "Can you move your seat a little, we need a spot here." The man was about to attack when Grey brought out a seal. When everyone present saw the seal, their expressions changed slightly, it belonged to Lucas and they''ve all heard of the rumors of Grey being the son of Lucas Dawson. While thinking about that, they suddenly thought of another thing, how did Grey and Klaus get into the place without them finding out until they were already close? Grey and Klaus naturally wouldn''t speak of that. The man didn''t want to move, and Klaus wanting to make sure he annoyed the people to the extreme, created ice to push the man''s seat a little further away, creating space for himself and Grey. He created an ice chair in the shape of a throne, higher than that of the others and sat down comfortably. Grey didn''t say a word, his facial expression was the same as when he came over and he sat down beside Klaus. "Alright, we should continue with the meeting." Klaus said, "What did I hear about the Dawson Family?" The men present were left speechless, they couldn''t even say a word. One of them finally spoke, his tone one of immense anger, "Little boy, do you know the presence of whom you''re sitting before?" "I''m representing the Dawson Family, I believe I have every right to sit with you people. Unless¡­ you know, you believe you''re above the Dawson Family. I''ll leave and report to Uncle Lucas and we''ll know what steps to take." Klaus was unmoved by his words. He was never one who could be easily intimidated, especially when he has such a superpower behind him. With Grey''s father, he had zero fears for these people. In fact, he knew these people wouldn''t dare to attack them. They might be from top Factions, but offending the Dawson Family wasn''t something they would want to do so openly. Only a few of them would do that, and the consequences of their actions weren''t light. The Faction fighting against the Dawson Family for that secret realm had lost a lot of talents due to the war, especially when Grey was sent out. Grey killed some of their top talents in that cultivation stage at that time which naturally weakened their future prospects. "Kid, even if you''re from the Dawson Family, there are ways you should act outside." One of the men looked at him with cold eyes. "And how am I acting?" Klaus asked. "The same way a dead man would." Another man replied. This man''s face was stern and his eyes radiated a little murderous intent. "Did we come to the wrong meeting? I don''t recall Uncle sending us to meet up with dead people, do you?" Klaus'' words infuriated not just the man who asked the question, but everyone present as well. Grey couldn''t help but look at him, seeing that they were going nowhere, he tapped Klaus on the hand and their seats went down a little, becoming level with the others. Not only that, but it changed its shape and became a normal chair, made of stone. "Forgive my friend''s behavior, please, if you don''t mind, I would very much like for the meeting to continue." His voice was calm and confident, giving the others a feeling of someone who had everything under control. Annoying these people was part of the plan, but he also needed to find out the ones that needed to be dealt with. 1259 Use Him As Bait Chapter 1259 Use Him As Bait Klaus didn''t speak any further, since Grey wanted him to stop for the moment, then he would. Besides, he was just getting started. It would be a shame if these people didn''t have some sort of control over their emotions. With Grey speaking up, the men in the area had a change of heart. He spoke in a manner that washed away all the anger they were previously feeling. To be honest, they didn''t have any reasons to be upset with them, if not for the way Klaus had been speaking since they showed their faces, there was no reason for them to feel angered by them. "It''s okay, I understand the impulsiveness youngsters can have." One of the men replied with a smile. He was the only one who didn''t seem to have any issues with the duo''s presence in the meeting. When they were discussing previously, he was also the one against others wanting to take the secret realm from the Dawson Family. "We should continue the discussion, don''t you guys think so?" He asked the others with a raise of his brow. If anyone wanted to cause a problem due to Klaus'' statement, then that person was probably up to no good. The others, although annoyed, decided to continue with their conversation. However, to the surprise of some of the people present there, they didn''t speak of forcefully taking the secret realm from the hands of the Dawson Family, rather, they moved on to another issue, necromancers. Necromancers have planted spies in every top Faction or Family over the past hundred years, and it was starting to become an issue. Especially now that the seal was weakening. The current state of affairs wouldn''t allow them to let such people grow in the Factions or Families. The best thing to do was to wipe these people out to remove any hidden problems for the future. The main problem stands in locating these people. A few of them could be picked out, but not all of them were as useless as those few. In most Factions, the ones found were only those below the Elemental Sovereign Plane. Getting those in the Elemental Sovereign Plane was the task that lay ahead of them. "Aren''t they searching for a way to kill him? He should be the easiest way to bring them out." Klaus pointed at Grey. The others in the meeting turned to look at Klaus and then turned their attention to Grey. The Gnomes did want him dead, and given the loyalty necromancers have for Gnomes, there''s a high chance that they would want to kill Grey at all costs if the opportunity presents itself. "That''s not a bad idea, but it''s too dangerous. I don''t think Lucas would want to endanger the life of his precious son." "The boy is here, all we need is his consent and then we can go ahead with the plan." "Setting an Elemental Venerable against a Sovereign is just sending him to his death. I''m not in support of this idea, and kid, I''ll advise you to do the same." "Why are you so against us getting anything good? Are you one of the ones planted in a Faction?" As expected, not everyone was in support of sending Grey on such a dangerous mission. They all knew that Grey might most likely lose his life, even if they set up a lot of protections, it still wouldn''t mean anything. If a top Sovereign wanted to kill him, before others would arrive, he would be dead without a doubt. While they were arguing about if Grey should do it or not, Grey was staring at the situation with an expressionless face. He didn''t know if he should be happy about Klaus'' suggestion or not. It was a brilliant way to fish out the necromancers who were planted in the Factions. Nevertheless, it was dangerous, too dangerous. If things don''t go well, he would most likely die before any help comes. As much as he wanted to help find those people, he didn''t want to carelessly lose his life. Klaus wasn''t worried about anything, he looked at Grey with a confident expression. He nodded at him as if suggesting that he should agree to it. "Have an idea?" Grey asked with a whisper. "Yeah, just play along. If any of them is a necromancer, we will be able to know. Will we be receiving any help?" Klaus thought for a while before asking. "Since my father wants to make them angry, he should come. I can''t say for sure. But I can sense that we''re being followed by a powerhouse." Grey replied. Their voices were almost inaudible to themselves, much less anyone else. They were certain these people wouldn''t be able to hear what they were saying. To be on the safer side, they also protected the sound and it only sounded after getting to the ears of the other person. Grey and Klaus discussed secretly, and so did the men in the room. They were all arguing about possibly sending Grey on such a dangerous mission. Only a few of them were against the idea, the others were stronger behind it. It wasn''t like Grey was related to them. And if Grey were to die by any chance, it would be a piece of good news for them. Lucas was already enough to make them think twice when it came to the Dawson Family, if Grey were to grow to his level, there was a large chance that he would be even more frightening than Lucas. That wasn''t something they all wanted. If the genius isn''t from their Family or Faction, they didn''t want them to be too strong. "Kid, accept this. You will be doing a great job in making the world a safer place." "Yes, don''t worry. You can start from my Faction. There''s no way the information of this plan would leak out." "No, come to my Family first, we can provide you with the ultimate protection against whoever dares to attack you." Even without Grey agreeing to do it, they were already arguing about where he should head first. They were all aware that the plan might be exposed after the first top expert had been killed, so they all wanted to clean their Factions or Family first. 1260 We Don’t Mind A Few Allies Chapter 1260 We Don¡¯t Mind A Few Allies "Sorry, but I''m not interested in doing anything like that." Grey replied with a calm expression. He looked at everyone present with a straight face. There was no way he would accept this proposal, first off, it was too dangerous. Second, Klaus wasn''t too certain if his plan would work out, so after much deliberation, the duo decided to cancel the plan. Either way, Klaus only said it out of impulse, it was the issue of these men who took it too seriously. And from how they were acting, he was almost certain these people wanted Grey dead at all costs, if not, why would they be so adamant that he accepts the proposal and were even already discussing how he would move. Grey stared at the few people who were not in agreement with him doing that mission. He has been taking note of the reactions of the people who were not in support of him accepting the mission. There was only two reasons he could think of, either they wanted to protect him, or they were necromancers. The former was more believable than the latter. Necromancers would want him to take on the mission and even want him to come to the Faction they were a part of just so they could be the one to kill him. The benefits a necromancer can acquire from killing Grey was far above that of when a normal person kills him. The Gnomes would give them a high status when they finally invade and defeat humans in the battle over the control of the Aurora Continent. If things go as planned, then the Aurora Continent would be a minor part of the Gnome Race''s world and could be used to build the strength of their talents. Of course, it wasn''t something set in stone as humans were capable of fighting back against these Gnomes. Only the top necromancers know of Grey''s ability to cut off their connections with their puppets, rendering them unable to move for a short time. That was enough time for anyone to kill them. This was the reason necromancers wanted Grey dead just as much as the Gnomes did. The Gnomes were physically stronger than necromancers, so even if they do lose their puppets, they might still be able to survive. Necromancer? Not so much. Grey was also aware of the plans of the necromancers, hence his focus was more on the ones who wanted him to accept the proposal more than the others. "What do you mean by that?" One of the men asked coldly. He never thought that Grey would reject the idea, especially when his friend was the one who came up with it. "I said I''m not interested. You guys should worry about how to purge them out, it has absolutely nothing to do with me." Grey''s words were firm, he didn''t want to do it, and there was nothing there people could do to change his mind. The meeting entered a momentary silence, no one said a words as everyone stared at Grey. Grey was unmoved by their gazes, he sat down calmly as he looked around the place, trying to see if he could sense anything wrong with any of them. Unfortunately, anyone who could easily hide in the midst of multiple Peak Sovereigns wouldn''t have any issues hiding from an Elemental Venerable. He soon gave up on the idea and focused on the main thing, finding the few people who his father wanted to deal with. According to what his father suggested, they should speak more about the secret realm and see the stance of the people present. Once they could know the stances, then they could revert back to annoying these people. That was Klaus'' job. "My father said there would be a discussion about our secret realm. A few people has been waging war with us over the past few years for it. We all know how good it is, but according to the rules, since it''s located in our region, and it was found by one of us, then it belongs to us." Grey''s eyes were sharp as he looked at everyone present and said, "Why aren''t you people doing anything to stop them. In fact, I believe you people seem to be waiting for an opportunity to take advantage of the situation." Grey didn''t hide the cold and murderous intent in his eyes. A few of the men were annoyed by the fact that Grey was openly threatening them, and they weren''t able to do anything about it. "What do you mean by that?" The man sitting close to them asked coldly. "We don''t like people who wants to take advantage of us. If I find out any of you have such intentions, you shall bear the brunt of the Dawson Family." Grey turned to man, "Even if we have to fight to our last blood, we will make sure you get nothing." Grey understood what his father wanted to do, but he didn''t want to cause more problems for the Dawson Family. Fighting against more people would not do anything good for them. His plan was to intimidate them. Anyone who steps forward with the idea or plan of taking advantage would be dealt with, even if it means the Dawson Family would suffer, they would make sure they don''t have any manpower to keep the secret realm. The eyes of everyone were serious. They understood the meaning of Grey''s words, however, a few of them didn''t seem fazed. The secret realm was something they wanted, not at all costs, but they wouldn''t mind a few sacrifices to attain it. Grey looked around and smiled softly, "We don''t mind having a few allies." When everyone heard his statement, they were stunned. The Dawson Family didn''t mind having a few allies? This was a completely different situation compared to how it previously was. In this case, they would be able to able to get into the secret realm without having to lose anyone. 1261 End Of The Meeting Outside the meeting room. In the alley beside the building the meeting was being held, a figure stepped out of the void in the darkness, accompanied by another. ¡°This kid doesn¡¯t listen.¡± The figure sighed. The face of the figure became clear and it was none other than Lucas Dawson. Behind him was the man who was protecting Grey secretly. ¡°What did the young Lord do, my Lord?¡± The man asked respectfully. He wasn¡¯t as strong as Lucas, so there was no way for him to eavesdrop on the meeting. He had no clue about what was going on inside, but he was certain there was no way the people inside would dare to hurt Grey. Lucas recounted Grey¡¯s suggestion to him. ¡°The young Lord is thinking of the benefit of the Family. If we can get more people to support us, we will be able to properly defend the secret realm, while also grooming more talents.¡± The man was in support of Grey¡¯s suggestion. The Dawson Family has always been overbearing which made them have very fast allies. If Grey were to be able to forge an alliance with a top Faction in the Middle Continent, it would be a massive boost for the Dawson Family. ¡°You¡¯re right.¡± Lucas nodded. People are wary of attacking the Dawson Family now due to their strength. If they were to find out that they had formed ties with a powerful Faction, it would make them even more scared. The Dawson Family has a few allies in the Western Continent, but they had more enemies. The only reason their enemies hadn¡¯t ganged up on them was mainly due to the fact that none of them wanted to take the lead. The Dawson Family was a large and powerful Family that even if ganged up on, would be able to cause massive damage to anyone they can attack. This means that the ones leading the battle would suffer more. None of them wanted to be used as a sacrificial lamb for the others, hence their current stance. ¡°Has anyone agreed to join him yet?¡± The man asked. Lucas shook his head, ¡°Not yet, the situation seems to be tense. A few are contemplating it while the others don¡¯t want it that way.¡± ¡­. In the meeting room. The place fell silent after Grey¡¯s words. He first threw out a threat and then suggested a friendly deal. This wasn¡¯t something most of the people present felt would¡¯ve been possible. The Dawson Family are known for their personality and would never back down. ¡®Could it be that they aren¡¯t as strong as they used to be?¡¯ This was the thought in the heads of most of the men. If the Dawson Family was starting to grow weak, then it was an even better opportunity for them to attack them and forcefully take the secret realm from them. That¡¯s not the only thing that could be acquired, there were a few things that were only available in the region the Dawson Family resided. These treasures were rare and very difficult to acquire. The Dawson Family has a monopoly over it which makes a few Factions and Families not too happy. ¡°Anyone interested?¡± Grey looked at the people who were quiet. He was still carefully studying how they were reacting to these things. ¡°Is this the thoughts of the Dawson Family, or just yours?¡± Someone finally spoke up, asking a very important question. They wouldn¡¯t carelessly believe everything Grey says just because he was representing the Dawson Family. If they were to agree to this and they don¡¯t get what they were supposed to get when they head over to the Dawson Family, they would be livid. ¡°This was my suggestion, I¡¯ll naturally take it back and speak with my father and grandfather.¡± Grey didn¡¯t hide the fact that he was the one who came up with the idea. The others exchanged glances, amazed by Grey¡¯s gut. Coming up with something like this without the permission of those above him took a lot of guts and courage, but he still did it. When they thought about it, this was the best way to resolve the matter of the secret realm. The Dawson Family as well as other Factions and Families will benefit from it. ¡°Kid, this isn¡¯t a place to play around. Only speak of things you¡¯re sure of.¡± A man said coldly, he was one of the few who brought the suggestion of taking the secret realm from the Dawson Family. ¡°We should think of how to strengthen ourselves before the seal is completely broken. There are obviously other ways. But we all know how great the realm is. With its help, the Dawson Family has been producing geniuses among geniuses over the years.¡± He added. ¡°If you¡¯re suggesting that we hand the realm over, please, eliminate the thought. The realm is ours, and we will only share it with whoever we wish.¡± Grey expressed his and the Dawson Family¡¯s stance. It was okay for others to enter the secret realm, but it was only those they accept that can. If others tried to face their way in, then they were declaring war on them, and they would retaliate. The man who spoke the last time looked at Grey, his eyes were cold. ¡°Your father would give it up, if we have you.¡± The man¡¯s eyes were on Grey. ¡°There¡¯s also the Gnomes who can offer you a good sum for him.¡± Klaus interjected. Everyone in the room looked at Klaus and didn¡¯t know if they should call him Grey¡¯s friend or enemy. A friend wouldn¡¯t come up with the ideas he was coming up with. Each of them had involved the Gnomes in one way or the other. ¡°Why do the Gnomes want you dead?¡± Someone asked. ¡°I almost killed one of their princes, and I killed thousands of them.¡± Grey didn¡¯t show any fear as he said. ¡°You¡¯re just one kid. How can you make the Gnomes want you dead at all costs?¡± ¡°I have no idea.¡± Grey shrugged. ¡°Anyway, that¡¯s not the reason for the meeting.¡± He continued, ¡°Isn¡¯t there anything else? If not, we better get on my way.¡± The men exchanged glances and continued with the meeting. While they were speaking about something, Klaus suddenly interjected. ¡°You know, I was wondering if there¡¯s someone who can help us contact the Gnomes and have a peaceful diplomatic conversation with them.¡± ¡°What¡¯s with you and the Gnomes?¡± Someone couldn¡¯t hold it in anymore and asked. The man who spoke up was someone who had rarely spoken up since the duo arrived. ¡°I just don¡¯t want them to kill my friend. Is that too hard to ask?¡± Klaus wasn¡¯t bothered, he added, ¡°Those little girls are trying to kill someone just because he¡¯s so outstanding. What if they try to kill me too?¡± The man looked at Klaus, he stood up, ¡°I¡¯m done with these shenanigans, I believe there¡¯s nothing more to do. Lucas wants to provoke us, hence he sent these little kids here.¡± ¡°I will settle this with him when I next see him. This is disrespectful, and even if he¡¯s strong, he should know that we¡¯ve lived longer than he has.¡± The man stormed off the room, and others followed behind him. Klaus was straight up disrupting their meeting. Other than the breaking seal, they were speaking about an old ruin they located in the Western Continent. This ruin was so ancient that the expert who found it had zero clues about it. They were speaking of exploring it and when to potentially leave before Klaus interrupted them. ¡°Did I say anything wrong? I¡¯m worried about mine and my friend¡¯s well-being.¡± Klaus said with a wronged expression. The others looked at him and some of them started to rise to their feet. ¡°We will have this meeting some other day.¡± Klaus said when he noticed everyone leaving. Before long, there was just the duo sitting in the room. ¡°You didn¡¯t even let me annoy anyone, why did you bring me here then?¡± Klaus asked, annoyed. ¡°You¡¯ve already annoyed them all. What else do you want?¡± Grey rolled his eyes. He saw the hateful gazes most of them are giving them while leaving, it was evident Klaus had infuriated them, especially at the time they just appeared. Grey was able to settle the matter somewhat, but since he didn¡¯t agree with their idea of using him as bait, they were a bit annoyed. ¡°Let¡¯s go, it¡¯s not going to be a peaceful night.¡± Grey stood up, and like the others, they left the room. He had a feeling things wouldn¡¯t be as smooth as he thought. Even with the threat of his father, a few of the people present seem to have an idea. The man who told Grey his father would give up the secret realm for him might have an idea of kidnapping him and using him as a means of taking control of the secret realm. But Grey didn¡¯t think too much about it, since the realm is stationary, it wasn¡¯t a wise idea to want to kidnap him. 1262 Even Void Has Done It The night went by slowly and Grey and Klaus spent their time going through the City. There were a few places worth visiting, so they went there to spend their time. Since moving to the Aurora Continent, Klaus had stopped most of the things he usually does. Grey was a little happy for him since it meant Klaus wouldn¡¯t bother him with those things again. All they do now is enjoy good wine and food in each others¡¯ company. In an Inn. Grey and Klaus were eating while talking about the meeting they just left. Klaus soon changed the topic. ¡°Grey, you¡¯ve never had a girlfriend, I¡¯m starting to get worried about you.¡± Klaus looked at his friend worriedly, ¡°What¡¯s the problem? Is it that you don¡¯t find beautiful girls? I can find one for you if you want.¡± Grey didn¡¯t expect Klaus to bring this up all of a sudden and almost choked on the wine he was drinking. ¡°For now, I¡¯m not interested in that.¡± He replied after a light cough, ¡°And I haven¡¯t found the one yet.¡± ¡°How will you find the one when you already have the mentality of not wanting anyone?¡± Klaus used his index finger to hit Grey¡¯s head as if telling him to think, and then added, ¡°You¡¯re too stuck up. All you do is train, train, and train.¡± ¡°The few times you¡¯re not training, you¡¯re either going on a competition or an expedition to increase your strength.¡± ¡°You¡¯re too focused on trying to grow too strong that you¡¯re losing sight of the beauty of life. Have fun, there¡¯s no harm in that.¡± Grey looked at Klaus and thought hard about it, to be honest, Klaus wasn¡¯t wrong. It¡¯s not that he hasn¡¯t seen beautiful girls, or girls with good values, but he was still too stuck up with wanting to grow strong enough to protect everyone that he didn¡¯t want to give himself a shot at love. It was a beautiful thing, but at the moment, he didn¡¯t think it was meant for him. ¡°You don¡¯t understand. I have goals I need to achieve.¡± ¡°Boohoo! You didn¡¯t awaken your elements like others and was late by a few years. That¡¯s all in the past. Look at you! You¡¯re literally the dream of every girl, yet here you are, single to the core.¡± Klaus knew Grey¡¯s reasons, but he didn¡¯t think it was enough to deny himself a good life. ¡°You¡¯ve grown so much. What more do you want?¡± He asked. ¡°I¡¯m someone a lot of people want dead.¡± Grey said, he took a sip of the drink and said, ¡°You said it yourself back there, what if they wanted to kill you just because you¡¯re friends with me?¡± ¡°Wouldn¡¯t it be selfish of me to put someone in danger just because I want love?¡± ¡°What if they kill her? What would you want me to do?¡± Grey asked question after question which Klaus had no answers to. ¡°You see, it¡¯s not that I don¡¯t want that, but I can not bring myself to do that. I¡¯ve thought hard about this, and to be honest, I¡¯m praying the day I fall in love with someone doesn¡¯t come any time soon.¡± ¡°Heh! You won¡¯t be able to escape it.¡± Klaus scoffed and added, ¡°People like you are the ones who tend to love the most. The moment you find someone, you¡¯d love them wholly. It¡¯s good, but given your current thoughts, it¡¯s not something I¡¯ll advise.¡± ¡°So, why are you bringing it up?¡± Grey asked. ¡°You¡¯re too lonely.¡± Klaus smirked before looking at him with disdain, ¡°You¡¯re already past twenty-five and still haven¡¯t had any sort of intimacy with a woman. To be honest, I¡¯m disappointed.¡± Grey wanted to speak when Klaus cut him off again. ¡°I¡¯m sure even Void has been with another cat.¡± Void, who was by the side eating, was stunned when he heard his name in the conversation the duo were having. He raised his head to look at the duo, and his small mouth which was filled to the brim with food was funny to look at. ¡°See, he can¡¯t even deny it.¡± Klaus pointed out. Void looked at Klaus as if wanting to say something, but food was still in his mouth, and he was even too surprised to say anything. Grey looked at Void oddly, and then thought of something. ¡°Oh right, I have something for you.¡± The juice he got from that tree which according to the man had aphrodisiac in it came to mind. He didn¡¯t want that, and he was sure Klaus would most definitely want it. When he explained the uses of the juice to Klaus, Klaus was grinning from teeth to teeth. ¡°Give it to me.¡± He stretched out his hand, after a while he said, ¡°No wait, you¡¯ll keep some for yourself. Its uses are not that bad. You know you need to comprehend the elements and increase their grades.¡± ¡°Why don¡¯t you try using it? Don¡¯t worry, I¡¯ll make sure you get to relieve yourself. There are tons of girls in this place.¡± He tried to convince Grey into using the juice. Grey wasn¡¯t that foolish, so he naturally wouldn¡¯t fall for that. Klaus shrugged when he saw it, ¡°At least I tried. But just so you know, if your dad was like you, you wouldn¡¯t have been born. Think about that while you train.¡± Grey wanted to speak but shut his mouth, there was nothing for him to say. Arguing with Klaus would not bring him any benefits, and Klaus would most likely win the argument anyway. Void just stared at the duo, unsure of how to react to Klaus¡¯ statement. When Klaus noticed he was still staring at him, ¡°What? Was I lying?l Void swallowed his meal and focused on eating and drinking his wine. Those close to them who heard their conversation looked at the duo and the cat eating seriously, unsure of what to do with the information they unwillingly obtained. 1263 Ill Kill You If You Dare Say It ¡°I wonder how the Instructors are doing.¡± Grey wondered out loud. He rarely thought of Instructor Blake and Delia, but occasionally he does think about them. Before leaving the Azure Continent, his Teacher told him he would be taking the duo, along with the Principal who was injured during the battle with him. Since then, other than occasionally speaking with his Teacher, he didn¡¯t know how they were doing, the Principal particularly. ¡°Yeah.¡± Klaus¡¯ countenance changed when Grey brought up this topic. He had been trying his best not to think about his father¡¯s condition. He didn¡¯t know if Uncle Chris would be able to heal him. ¡°Don¡¯t worry. Teacher isn¡¯t that bad, he will be able to help out. Besides, he can¡¯t sit by and watch his best friend stay in that condition for too long.¡± Grey comforted him. ¡°I know.¡± Klaus cheered up instantly, a sly grin appeared on his face as he asked, ¡°Do you think Instructor Blake and Instructor Delia have a child yet? I mean, it¡¯s been a few years now.¡± Grey almost wanted to knock Klaus out, unfortunately, he couldn¡¯t. ¡®How I wish I could beat him up.¡¯ He thought to himself. ¡°Oh right, did I tell you Alice has a boyfriend?¡± Klaus spoke up. Grey raised a brow when he heard this, he didn¡¯t think Alice would find someone so soon, but when he thought about it, everyone was not like him, Alice might like fighting and training, but she was still a person who had basic needs. ¡°What do you know about the guy? Is he bad? If yes, let¡¯s go beat him up, if not, they should have the best time together.¡± Grey squinted his eyes. Klaus saw his eyes and nodded, ¡°I¡¯ve done all the investigation I can do. He¡¯s from an average Family. His talent is not on Alice¡¯s level, but he isn¡¯t that bad. With a few treasures, he will grow faster.¡± Grey didn¡¯t speak too much, since Klaus said the guy was okay, then it had nothing to do with him. If it was one of those guys who just wanted to take advantage of Alice, then they would beat him up, there was no way they would let someone hurt their friend. Alice was the only girl in the group, and they naturally protected her a lot. ¡°How¡¯s Rey doing?¡± Grey asked. He hadn¡¯t seen them for over a year now, he is quite curious about all of them. ¡°From what I¡¯ve heard, he¡¯s doing fine. Having an Elemental Warrior means even if he¡¯s still in the Fourth stage of the Elemental Venerable Plane, he could fight with those in the Seventh and Eighth stage.¡± Klaus reported, ¡°His status is pretty high, and from what the moron told me, he said he wants to take the position of an Elder. Apparently, there is an Elder he wanted to beat up, but he can¡¯t do that with his current status in the Faction.¡± Grey burst out laughing, this was something he was sure Klaus would do, so he wasn¡¯t too surprised. ¡°I¡¯ve missed you guys.¡± He said softly, ¡°Why don¡¯t we ask the others to join us on our return journey?¡± ¡°Sure. It¡¯s not a bad idea.¡± Klaus answered. ¡°You know what?¡± Klaus suddenly spoke up. Grey shook his head, wondering what Klaus was up to. ¡°You already know the seal will be broken soon and the Continent will descend into war.¡± ¡°I¡¯m aware of that.¡± ¡°Why don¡¯t the four of us go on a trip? Who knows, it might be the last time we will be able to do this.¡± ¡°I¡¯d like that.¡± Grey agreed to Klaus¡¯ suggestion. There was a high probability that he might be one of the first people to die during this war. Given how high the Gnomes placed him on their kill list, they would try every means possible to want to kill him. It wouldn¡¯t be a bad thing if he accompanied his friends this one time. The duo spent the entire night at the Inn, reminiscing about the old days. The times at the Lunar Academy were quite peaceful compared to what they were facing at the moment. Grey was just a nobody who people didn¡¯t care about. Klaus was the son of the Principal of Lunar Academy, as well as the Mayor of the City, so his reputation was quite high. They spoke about their encounters with the Crowned Prince and the Emperors. In the end, they succeeded and even managed to create a new Empire. Their journey has been quite entertaining just thinking about it, but they¡¯ve faced so many death experiences that to be honest, they weren¡¯t afraid of it any longer. They could¡¯ve died years ago, but they were still here. If the war happens and they end up dead, then it wasn¡¯t all that bad. Klaus had already contacted Alice and Reynolds, and before dawn, they received the news from the duo that they would be heading over to meet them at the Dawson Family manor. Since it would take a few weeks before they got there, Grey decided to check up on Arya¡¯s brother and heal him first, before heading back to the Dawson Family. He had a feeling his father was already aware of what happened in the meeting. But he still had to head give him the news. Klaus had nothing to do, and heading back to his Faction was completely out of the picture. Since that was the case, he tagged along and headed to check up on Arya¡¯s brother. He was also very curious about the Dawson Family, so he wouldn¡¯t mind visiting. ¡­. Two weeks later. Grey and Klaus arrived in the small town the triplet from the horned race were staying with Arya. When Grey arrived, it didn¡¯t take long for him to locate them. He was amazed by how much they¡¯ve grown. Arya was already close to the age of going for the test. ¡°Master, you¡¯ve returned.¡± Klaus¡¯ eyes twitched and he looked at Grey with a weird expression. ¡°I¡¯ll kill you if you even dare to say it.¡± 1264 Do You Value Your Life? Klaus shut his mouth when he heard Grey¡¯s words. He didn¡¯t have any plans of saying anything bad, but since Grey felt this way, he shut up. Grey went over to look at Arya¡¯s brother who had been in the same state for well over a year plus. The bunny leader appeared and told him how to use the fruit to help Arya¡¯s brother. Grey followed the bunny leader¡¯s instructions and to his surprise, KY worked faster than he even imagined. Within a few minutes, Arya¡¯s brother opened his eyes, staring around in confusion. Arya, who was watching him closely, rushed over to hug him when he saw him open his eyes. She was relieved to finally see her elder brother. He was the only family he had, and although Grey came into the picture, he was always traveling. Grey smiled when he saw them, this was something he had wanted to do for months now. Now that he has been able to help them out, he was happy. ¡­. A few hours later. It took a while before Arya¡¯s brother got up from the bed and started talking, after all, he had been in that position for a long time. ¡°Thank you for helping me. I thought I was dead.¡± He bowed to Grey, showing his gratitude. ¡°It¡¯s okay. I promised Arya would save you, and I¡¯ve fulfilled that.¡± Grey ruffled Arya¡¯s hair while speaking. Arya giggled when Grey ruffled her hair. She was beyond happy at the moment. She never thought that Grey would be able to wake her brother up, but he did. ¡°What can I do to repay you?¡± Arya¡¯s brother asked. ¡°Nothing. I did this for her well-being.¡± Grey shook his head, he looked at the duo and decided to bring them back to the Region the Dawson Family was situated. There was no need bringing Arya and her brother to the Dawson Family, Arya¡¯s brother¡¯s talent wasn¡¯t up to par, and he didn¡¯t want those from the Dawson Family to treat them in a bad way. However, they would be safer if they were close to the Dawson Family. He could at least get a few people to watch them and keep them safe. He knew his mother would have no issues with taking care of them, but like his father, she too didn¡¯t stay at home frequently. Grey spoke with them for a while before heading out to meet Klaus who was enjoying the scenery. The triplets had decorated the place to look very nice and it was a good place to sit and think. Of course, Klaus had nothing he was thinking about, but he felt quite peaceful there. ¡°What¡¯s up?¡± He asked when Grey walked over. ¡°I¡¯ll take them back with me. I won¡¯t take them to the Dawson Family, but close by. My mom should be able to get someone to watch them.¡± ¡°That¡¯s nice.¡± Klaus picked up a rose flower, ¡°I didn¡¯t think you would be saving people you¡¯re not close to.¡± Grey shrugged when he heard this. He knew Klaus wasn¡¯t trying to be sarcastic. Given his personality, he rarely saves people, but there was no helping it. When he saw Arya, he just couldn¡¯t watch her travel alone in that place. So with nothing left to do, he had to help. Unfortunately, things went the way they did, so he took her with him. Since he didn¡¯t want the responsibility, he dumped them with the triplets who had done a great job with taking care of them. The triplets were all at the Peak of the Sage Plane at the moment. Even while taking care of them, they¡¯ve never neglected their training, and it was evident. Grey and Klaus sat down in the garden as they passed off time. The bunny leader had run off. Grey didn¡¯t know where it went, but for the past few days now, whenever they took a break in any area, it would always run off to the forest and come back late. Grey knew it was up to something, but he didn¡¯t know what it was up to. Void didn¡¯t sense anything interesting around, so he stayed with the duo, sleeping for most of the time. They asked Alice and Reynolds if they¡¯ve started their journey to the Dawson Family manor, and the duo replied with the same answer, yes. They were all eager to meet up, especially with Grey who they hadn¡¯t been able to speak with for over a year now. Not just that, but they also wanted to see how the Dawson Family was like. It was a famous Family and anyone would be proud of coming from such a Family. Grey and Reynolds stayed with the triplets for a day, and after giving them freedom to travel across the Continent, but return to the Dawson Family manor before the upcoming war, Grey let the triplets go and took both Arya and her brother with them. It would take at least two weeks or so to get there from their current location. Grey planned on seeing if he could contact his Teacher with the device they came up with to send food over. It had been over a year since he sent a meal over to his Teacher, and to his surprise, his Teacher had not requested for one yet. He wasn¡¯t too sure about the current situation of his Teacher, but he hoped that he was okay. Klaus was more curious about his father¡¯s health than anything else. While heading to a City so they could use the teleportation array, they passed through a forest and Grey easily killed a Sage Plane beast and made a scrumptious meal with it, sending it over to his Teacher. He stayed in the area for a while, awaiting a reply from his Teacher. Just when he was about to give up, the plague lit up and he saw a note. The note read, ¡°Boy, did you want to kill me? I¡¯ve been starving for so long!¡± Seeing this, Grey laughed out loud. Looks like his Teacher was still very much okay since he could sense this. He took out the note he had prepared beforehand and sent it over. It didn¡¯t take up to three minutes before they got their reply. Klaus¡¯ father was still being treated, and even after so long, it was unknown if he would be able to use the elements again. Contrary to Klaus¡¯ expectations, Blake and Delia didn¡¯t have a child yet and were more focused on their training. According to what Grey¡¯s Teacher said, they were both in the First stage of the Elemental Venerable Plane. Grey didn¡¯t think they would¡¯ve grown by so much. He couldn¡¯t help but wonder where they were training. The place had to at least be as good as the Aurora Continent if they wanted to improve by so much. Klaus wrote more messages, which Grey¡¯s Teacher replied to. In the end, he asked for more food and told Grey to train hard. He said a calamity was coming, and there was no certainty if they would be able to escape from it. Grey knew he was speaking about the seal which was about to be broken. Klaus was happy that his father was still alive, although vexed by his current state, there was nothing he could do. ¡°Do you by chance have anything that can help?¡± He asked Grey after they finished speaking with Chris. ¡°Nothing.¡± Grey shook his head, seeing Klaus¡¯ dejected face, he added, ¡°I¡¯ll ask my father or grandfather, they should be able to help.¡± Klaus nodded, but didn¡¯t say much. If even Chris was unable to help his father in the place he currently is, he wasn¡¯t too confident that Grey¡¯s father or grandfather would be of any help. The duo didn¡¯t stay in the forest any longer and rushed to the city close to them. ¡­. Days went by as the group traveled from city to city, with the help of the teleportation array, it didn¡¯t take too long for them to get to the Region the Dawson Family was located. When they got there, they stopped using teleportation arrays. According to Klaus, they needed to see all the nice places in the Region. Grey didn¡¯t have any issues with them and took them around. He had been to a few nice places while traveling, so he didn¡¯t stop them from heading there. A few days later, they were at the Dawson Family manor. Arya and her brother were left behind, as the duo went to the Dawson Family alone. Klaus could barely believe his eyes, when they first met, he was the one from a powerful Family while Grey was a late bloomer who just awakened his elements after three more years. But now, it was like their roles were reversed, the only difference is that he was a genius. When they got into the Dawson Family, Cori rushed over to greet Grey. ¡°You¡¯re back!¡± Grey¡¯s expression fell and when he turned, he saw Klaus staring at him with a strange look. ¡°Do you value your life?¡± Klaus nodded. Grey smiled, ¡°Good, shut up.¡± 1265 Crazy Kid! Klaus looked at Grey, feeling a little odd. He refrained from saying anything. Grey would most likely beat the hell out of him if he were to utter the words in his head at the moment. Martha stepped out of the house to welcome Grey and Klaus. ¡°I see where you got your looks.¡± Klaus couldn¡¯t help but mutter. Grey¡¯s mother was a beauty, and adding his father¡¯s handsomeness to it, it is understandable that he looked that handsome, well, beautiful in some scenarios. Grey glanced at him coldly, but walked up to his mother, bowing slightly. Klaus hurriedly did the same as he greeted her with a wide smile. He introduced himself as the one who has been taking care of Grey all this while. Martha chuckled as she listened to Klaus. From the conversation she heard when the duo just arrived, she knew Klaus was most definitely outspoken, and her husband told her of the outcome of Grey¡¯s journey before they came. ¡°It¡¯s nice you were able to take care of him.¡± She responded to Klaus¡¯ claim. Klaus nodded proudly and gave Grey a look of disdain. ¡°Two others will be coming, we should make a scrumptious meal, don¡¯t you think?¡± He asked, giving Grey a glance. Grey agreed with Klaus¡¯ words. This was the first time his friends were visiting his home, well, although he doesn¡¯t really see it as that, but since his parents were here, it technically is his home. With his friends coming, it was only right he threw a small feast for them at his place. Lucas appeared beside Martha as he took a glance at Klaus. To be honest, Klaus was good looking, if not for Grey who was standing close to him, he would easily always get all the attention wherever they went. Klaus was the first to notice Lucas, he gasped softly, took a look at him, then at Grey, and after doubletaking twice, he exclaimed in dejection. ¡°Damn!¡± Lucas was taken aback when he heard Klaus¡¯ remark. Grey also couldn¡¯t help but look at Klaus. ¡°You see that, that¡¯s what it means to be handsome. You, you just look like a guy with a beautiful lady¡¯s face.¡± Klaus shook his head as he took in the face of Lucas. Lucas was a bit embarrassed when he heard Klaus¡¯ words. Martha on the other hand covered her mouth so she wouldn¡¯t laugh out loud. Grey¡¯s eyes twitched when he heard Klaus¡¯ words. If not for the people present, he would¡¯ve knocked Klaus into the ground. Klaus walked over to Martha and complimented while giving her a thumbs up, ¡°Aunty, you have good eyes.¡± Martha couldn¡¯t hold it in and laughed out, saying after, ¡°We should go inside.¡± Lucas walked behind them while sneaking a glance at Grey who had his palm on his face. He chuckled softly as he entered the building. ¡®It¡¯s nice he has a friend like this.¡¯ Klaus and Grey were two opposites, Grey was reserved while Klaus was open. He could make friends with the entire world, while making some of them hate him to the core. Lucas had seen Klaus at work and knew just how sharp his tongue was. If given the chance, he would be able to annoy an entire continent on his own. Grey walked in with Cori walking beside him. He passed on a small trinket to her. It was something he bought at one of the stalls while they were walking around after the meeting. Compared to Arya, he felt closer to Cori and took her like a younger sister. Arya had her elder brother, but in Cori¡¯s case, he was all she had. Grey went on to report the meeting to his father who told him that he was aware of what happened. The result was not what he wanted, but it was a little good for them. At the moment, a few top Factions in the Middle Continent has extended an invitation in hopes of being allies with them, so they could also benefit from the secret realm. Lucas had no issues with that. The greatest benefit of the secret realm is the rare items it contains that were almost unattainable in the Aurora Continent. Giving some of it to another Faction and getting their help in the process wasn¡¯t that bad of a deal. ¡°You handled the situation nicely.¡± Grey was pleased when he heard this. He knew not everyone in the Family might agree to this idea, but he was confident that most of them wouldn¡¯t mind sharing. ¡­. The others arrived in a few days and they were invited into the Dawson Family manor. Seeing Alice and Reynolds for the first time in over a year, Grey couldn¡¯t help but see the change in them. Reynolds had the most noticeable change, he had started keeping a moustache. ¡°What the hell is with that look?¡± Klaus complained the second he saw Reynolds. ¡°It¡¯s my manly look.¡± Reynolds replied with a proud smile. ¡°F*ck! You look like my grandfather.¡± Klaus remarked. ¡°You don¡¯t know how your grandfather looked.¡± Reynolds rolled his eyes. ¡°Exactly.¡± Reynolds didn¡¯t have the time to quarrel with Klaus, he was taking in the view of the Dawson Family as they walked towards where Grey¡¯s parents¡¯ how resided. Unlike Klaus and Alice who were from fairly large Families while in the Azure Continent, him and Grey were the only ones who didn¡¯t come from a big family. Although Grey¡¯s background was mysterious, it didn¡¯t point to anything in particular. Seeing now that he was the one from the strongest Family, he felt a big weird, but in a good way. He knew Grey had been worried about his parents and family for a long time, so seeing them together made him feel happy for his friend. Alice on the other hand changed as well, her cheeks were more refined now, and looked chiseled. The fat on her cheeks were long gone and her beauty was drawn out even more with her chiseled jawline. When they entered Grey¡¯s parents¡¯ courtyard, her Seelie rushed out in curiosity and headed straight for the flowers planted on the side. ¡°Oh, a Seelie.¡± Martha looked at the Seelie with interest. These were magical creatures that were quite rare to see. Finding an Elementalist that owns one in such a state was even rarer. Most people who own Seelies have them with the help of other means. This makes the Seelies stale and preferring to have as little contact with humans as much as possible. But Alice¡¯s Seelie looked more like a companion than what others make of it. ¡®Worthy of being friends with our son.¡¯ She transmitted her voice to Lucas who was in the void. ¡®Naturally. One of them has an Elemental Warrior.¡¯ Lucas¡¯ voice echoed in Martha¡¯s head. Martha looked at Reynolds, she knew it most definitely wasn¡¯t Klaus. Given Klaus¡¯ nature, he would¡¯ve been using the Elemental Warrior as his body guard, not caring about the essence he would spend. The group sat down and started to enjoy the feast Grey and Martha prepared. Lucas only came when they were almost done with the feast. He had things he needed to take care of, but he could still sense everything happening here as he wasn¡¯t too far away. After they were done with eating and other things, Lucas left along with Martha. Cori was also taken along as they wanted the friends to have some time to themselves. ¡°You guys have grown so much.¡± Grey laughed as he said this. ¡°What do you mean by that?¡± Alice scoffed and said, ¡°If I remember correctly, you were not an Elementalist while we were all in the Arcane Plane.¡± ¡°That¡¯s my point.¡± Grey smiled, ¡°I¡¯m already close to the Ninth stage, while you guys are below me.¡± Reynolds took a glance at him, ¡°My Elemental Warrior wouldn¡¯t mind sparring with you.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t get cocky just because you¡¯re advancing this fast. Not everyone is a deal like you.¡± Klaus snorted coldly, and added, ¡°I don¡¯t mind assisting the Elemental Warrior in teaching this cocky bastard a lesson.¡± ¡°Stop lying, you¡¯re only looking for an excuse to fight with me.¡± Grey waved his hand and with the help of his wind element, he flicked Klaus¡¯ hair. ¡°Damn it! Let¡¯s fucking beat this guy.¡± Klaus was raring to go. Just as he was about to attack, he heard a soft cough. ¡°Don¡¯t destroy my place, I have a good spot for you four.¡± Lucas¡¯ voice faded right after and the group were teleported to another location. They appeared at an abandoned mountain which had some arrays in it. ¡°Go all out, don¡¯t worry about anything else.¡± Lucas¡¯ voice echoed around once again, before finally fading away. ¡°Thank you, Uncle! I know you want to beat him up too, I¡¯ll fulfill your wishes!¡± Klaus yelled into the void. ¡­. Outside the mountain, Lucas and Martha were sitting mid-air. Lucas hurriedly shook his head, ¡°Of course not, darling.¡± ¡°Good.¡± Lucas whispered softly, ¡°That crazy kid.¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°Nothing.¡± 1266 One More Sparring Session Chapter 1266 One More Sparring Session Grey stood opposite his friends, his face calm as always. "Do you think you can win against us?" Klaus asked, he was standing in front of Reynolds and Alice. Among all three, he was the one with the highest cultivation stage. Alice was in the Fourth stage of the Elemental Venerable Plane, while Reynolds got to the Fifth stage. With his current realm, his Elemental Warrior can match an Eighth stage Elemental Venerable. Klaus was in the Seventh stage, but they all knew his strength wasn''t average. "Since I don''t want to be a bully, I''ll let you guys attack first." Grey stood with one hand in front of him and the other behind him, waiting for them to attack. "Hmph! Don''t think this is like before." Klaus snorted and he pointed at Grey. Ice started to move from where he was standing, heading straight at Grey. Freezing the ground as it moved. Grey smirked when he saw the ice coming, "Is this your first attack?" Just as he wanted to punch the ground to break up the ice, he saw Klaus'' figure melt into the ground and reappear in front of him instantaneously. The second Klaus appeared, a large ice spike sprang out of the ground, forcing Grey into the air. While mid-air, Grey felt his stomach ache softly, the ice spike hit him in his stomach which sent him flying. Grey flipped mid-air, and balanced himself, only to see the Elemental Warrior holding a long staff with it. The staff enlarged and came crashing down. Grey created an ice shield that he used to block the attack. But a large fire spear shot at him from the other side. He turned the ice shield into a dome, protecting him from all sides. Klaus took flight as well, holding onto the sword he acquired from the secret realm they all went to the last time. He slashed out. A trail of ice followed behind the blade energy that was headed towards Grey''s ice dome. Seeing the sword energy coming at him, Grey knew there was no way the ice dome would be able to withstand all the attacks. The blade energy cut the ice dome in half and another fire spear shot straight into the place, aiming for where Grey was previously standing. Grey used dimensional slash to counter the energy blade and fire spear, but he was hit by the staff of the Elemental Warrior. The staff wasn''t able to hit his body, but the impact of the attack forced him down. He crashed into the ground, causing a dust cloud. "Hehe, we''ll beat the hell out of you." Klaus laughed maniacally. Alice and Reynolds didn''t have the same reaction as Klaus, but they were both heating up. Fighting against Grey was the ultimate battle for all of them. Grey is someone they all regard as the number genius, and he was invincible against those in the same state. Even if they were using their numbers advantage over him, they didn''t mind getting the victory over him. Since Grey had gone above them in cultivation stage, all they''ve done is chase and chase, but they''ve all been unable to get close to him. This was the only chance they could defeat him, but they also knew it would not be as easy as they thought. The dust cloud faded and Grey''s figure appeared, he looked at all of them who were mid-air. After dusting his body, he flew back up. "Watch out." His voice hadn''t died but his figure was no longer in the same spot. Klaus was the first to sense something and he turned to look behind Alice. He thrust his sword at the spot just behind Alice. Alice took a step forward, body covered with lightning, she increased her speed and went closer to Klaus and Reynolds. Klaus'' sword grew longer and Grey appeared on the spot Klaus attacked. Grey grabbed the tip of the sword firmly as he looked at Grey with a plain look. Reynolds attacked while Klaus was keeping Grey distracted. His Elemental Warrior unleashed a barrage of lightning bolts at Grey, who was holding onto the tip of Klaus'' sword with immense strength. Sensing the incoming attack, Grey knew he shouldn''t let Klaus'' sword touch him, he tilted his body to the side and allowed Klaus'' sword go past him while he turned around to block the lightning bolts shooting his way. Alice attacked when he was blocking Reynolds'' lightning bolts. Her dominant element was the lightning element, but her fire element gained more power after she merged with the Seelie which was an ice Seelie. She couldn''t use the water element, but she was able to use ice however she wanted. She attacked with the lightning element, and Klaus, whose sword was still in a thrusting motion suddenly moved his hand to the side Grey was standing and blocking the attacks. Grey was still mid-air, and the sword was around his shoulder, when he sensed it coming towards him again, he let his body fall, using gravity to take his body down. Just as his body was heading down, he felt his body stand on a solid ground. He looked down, only to see ice below his feet. Klaus was smirking when he saw this. The sword was already by his side and it was about to hit him within the next second. Grey didn''t hold back, his body shook and he phased through the ice that was under him. Klaus'' sword passed the place he was standing. Klaus'' face twitched slightly, "F*ck it! He''s a cheat!" He couldn''t help but complain out loud. Having so many elements meant that Grey had more means of evading them. They''ve forgotten about him being able to phase through things like a ghost. This was not the only thing he forgot. He suddenly looked at the side and realized that Grey didn''t get past the entire ice he created, rather, he reinforced it and switched places with Reynolds'' Elemental Warrior. He trapped the Elemental Warrior, appeared unknown to the others and attacked. Reynolds was his target. Without the Elemental Warrior, Reynolds, a top tier Fifth stage Elemental Venerable stood no chance against Grey. Even Klaus stood no chance against him, much less Reynolds. Reynolds was sent flying with just one attack from Grey. Klaus was the first to move, Reynolds'' body which was moving at a fast speed after being struck by Grey entered a large water ball Klaus created. The water ball slowed Reynolds down and spat him back out, in the direction of Klaus and Alice. Alice hurriedly merged with her Seelie. Her attacks were the weakest amongst the trio, with the Seelie she would be able to unleash even greater strength. Unfortunately, it was nothing to Grey. Klaus looked at Grey coldly, "Do you want to kill him?" "We''re not holding back. Of course I''ll attack him at full force." Grey shrugged, of course he didn''t try to kill Reynolds, but he didn''t hold back either, "You good, Rey?" Reynolds took in a deep breath and nodded, his eyes turned serious and the Elemental Warrior smashed out of the ice he was being sealed in, before long, it appeared behind Reynolds and merged with him. "This is what I''m saying. Go all out." Grey laughed excitedly. He wanted to have a good battle with his friends, and for the first time, they were not going to hold back! They wouldn''t actively try to kill each other, but they would attack with their full strength. Reynolds'' strength soared and before long, his aura was that of a Ninth stage Elemental Venerable. His new form was something he found out while they were in the secret realm, now, he wanted to use it against his friend. Alice''s strength was bordering between the Sixth and Seventh stage of the Elemental Venerable Plane while being in the Fourth stage. Klaus looked at Reynolds, "Damn! Let''s fucking go!" He was excited at the thought of his friend''s increased strength. At this moment, he was exhilarated. Alice stood behind the duo, Klaus and Reynolds standing ahead as they look in Grey''s direction. Grey''s eyes lit up with a pale blue light, he truly was going all out this time. He was the first to rush forward, Reynolds flew in his direction, blocking him. They both threw a punch. Their fists collided, causing a spark mid-air. ¡­. Outside the mountain. Martha and Lucas exchanged glances. "Do they plan to kill each other?" She asked a little worried. "No, but they want to see just how strong Grey is." Lucas replied thoughtfully. "Do you think they''re envious of him?" "Yeah, but not in that way that they want his downfall." Lucas looked at the group of friends, "He''s their motivation for going stronger. He''s a bridge they want to at least get to. They know they can''t cross it, but they want to get to it." Martha watched and seeing the spark from the duo''s collision, she muttered, "Just how strong is his physical body?" 1267 All Out Chapter 1267 All Out "Just how strong is his physical body?" "I think it''s quite close to the Ninth stage of the Elemental Venerable Plane." Lucas replied after a while. He knew Grey''s physical body was strong, but he didn''t know how strong it is. Now that he was seeing him fight against Reynolds in his current state, he got a small view of what he felt about it. ¡­. Grey and Reynolds'' fist where still in contact when an ice blade slashed at Grey''s head. Grey retreated and tried to counter the ice blade, but he was left a little annoyed when Reynolds got close and engaged in a close battle with him. They were both throwing fist after fist. Reynolds blocked his punch and kicked out, but Grey was able to block the attack. He was grabbed Reynolds'' leg and swinged a round before letting go. Reynolds was sent flying and his body was spinning in the process. Klaus attacked, unleashing blade after blade. Grey blocked each attack coming his way, not giving Klaus the chance to get the better of him. He was about to move closer when a dual domain appeared, it was Alice''s fire and ice domain. The dual domain took the shape of a sword and it started hacking at Grey. Grey was stunned, not believing that Alice could use her domain as a weapon. Grey could only use it in a small space, he didn''t think he could turn it into a weapon and unleash it at people. He created a large fire hands that grabbed the sword, keeping it away from his body. Reynolds had stopped spinning at this point and was rushing back to the battle scene. Klaus created a half moon behind him and his aura went up by a bit. He attacked, forcing Grey back while also cutting one of the fire hands Grey used in blocking Alice''s domain attack. Grey groaned softly when this happened, but he didn''t have the time to scold Klaus, Reynolds was back, and it looks like his previous spinning trip enraged him. A lightning domain formed around his body and he rushed at Grey. ''What''s up with all these?'' Grey was baffled as the way his friends were using their domains. He originally thought it was a means of increasing their strengths while fighting, and a little other things. However, Alice used hers as a weapon and Reynolds was using his as a form of armor. He almost wanted to believe that while he was away, a new way of controlling domains was made public. He dodged Alice''s attack, but Reynolds drew close to him and started attacking with his lightning spear. The strength of his thrust only grew stronger. At first, Grey was able to easily deal with it, but as time went on, he realized there was something wrong. Reynolds'' attacks were getting stronger with each attack. Before he could completely comprehend what was happening, Klaus, the troublemaker came into the fray once again, this time, he made sure Alice was close and would be able to fully utilize her domain sword. Klaus and Alice joining the fray made life difficult for Grey. He was trying to block each of Reynolds'' attack, but Klaus, who had gotten more dangerous started to attack with his sword. The strength of the sword was something Grey felt a little wary of, so whenever that attack comes close, he would dodge it at all costs. Before long, he was soon overwhelmed by the trio, and was forced to retreat. He stood mid-air and looked at the trio with serious eyes. He knew they''ve grown stronger than what they previously were. "You guys are strong." He commented. "I want to see you go all out, you''re still holding back." Klaus said with a serious look. "You know I can''t go all out." Grey replied with a shake of his head. "Are you looking down on us?" Klaus asked, a bit angered. "No, it''s just that I can''t use that state any more." Grey shrugged, "All I can do is use a few more elements." "Oh, then what''s holding you back? Using more elements wouldn''t necessarily give you the advantage over us." Alice was the one who spoke up this time. "I''m well aware of that. But using them at the necessary time will give me the advantage I want." Grey didn''t refute her words, only changing it. If he used the elements at the right time, he would be able to defeat them. Take for example, when he phased through the ice and switched with Reynolds'' Elemental Warrior. He was able to get a small advantage due to making the right choices while fighting. In the end, it all comes down to fighting experience, and that''s something all four of them had. But it terms of who has been in more complex battles, it had to be Grey. He''s the one who people are always trying to kill. So he believed he had more experience compared to his friends. However, he didn''t say this out loud. There''s also Alice who was a battle maniac, and there''s Reynolds who had been in tons of life and death situations. Klaus, well, he is always lucky, so he wasn''t too sure of his battle experience. If Klaus knew of Grey''s thoughts, he would attack him with all his might. Grey was clearly looking down on him. Klaus saw the look Grey was giving to him and felt strange. ''Why is he giving me that look? Could he be looking down on me?'' He asked multiple questions concerning Grey''s gaze, unfortunately, he was only speaking with himself. "Alright, I''m going all out. If I win, you guys should be ready for a good thrashing." Grey spread out both hands and inscriptions lit up the sky. This time, more than ten inscriptions appeared simultaneously. They all unleashed attacks at the same time. The trio blocked all the attacks coming their way, not giving any of the attacks chances. Grey knew his inscriptions wouldn''t be able to do any damage to his friends, he only wanted them to distract them while he did the damage himself. His figure bolted through the sky, almost causing a tear. When he got close, he used the space element to attack. He learned something new when he went to the Chaos Battlefield, and now, he wanted to use it against his friends. The Space Elementalist he fought there helped him hone his usage of the space element when it came to attacking. Now, he wanted to use it to the fullest. He used dimensional slash once again. Reynolds was the first to sense the attack, he thrust his spear at the attack, but his expression changed drastically when he noticed how it was able to easily destroy his lightning spear. Klaus unleashed an ice blade at the slash coming their way. Alice wanted to use her dual domain to attack it, but Klaus realized the strength of the attack and stopped her from doing it. Reynolds moved fast, retreating from the place. Klaus and Alice left the range of the attack as well, making sure they weren''t hit by the attack. Grey sent out chaos orbs at them, using more of the space element. When the orb exploded close to them, a spatial tear appeared. The trio felt a great sense of threat when the attack came their way. ¡­. Outside the mountain. Grey''s grandfather was sitting with both Lucas and Martha. Seeing Grey unleash an attack that caused a tear in the space, he couldn''t believe it. If he wasn''t seeing it, he would''ve beaten up whoever told him that it was possible for Grey to do it. "How''s he so strong?" He turned to Lucas. "I have no idea. He''s stronger than before he went to the Chaos Battlefield." Lucas replied. When he said this, he didn''t mean in terms of cultivation stage or attack strength, but the current Grey was very different from the previous Grey. This Grey could beat up the previous Grey even if the previous was is given a stage advantage, that goes to show just how much Grey has grown. His attacks are more precise, and his thought process was also staggering. For someone his age, he shouldn''t have this much battle knowledge. This was also what Grey''s grandfather felt the first time he saw Grey fighting. His battle knowledge was far above his age. While they were praising him, they couldn''t help but look at Grey''s friends. "His friends are freaks too." Martha commented. Lucas nodded. Grey''s friends could be considered geniuses even in the midst of geniuses, yet in front of Grey, they seemed to be average people. Klaus was a shocking youngster, the half moon behind him was one of the core techniques of the Moonlight Faction. Grey was given a technique similar to this one, but it was the normal one. The one Klaus was using was something that even the top experts in the Moonlight Faction are still trying to learn. 1268 You Asked For It **A.N: Reload the last three chapters, there is an error with them.** Klaus was not the only one who they thought highly of, Reynolds was another one. Having an Elemental Warrior automatically gives him the edge over other geniuses, being a genius in his own right made him even more frightening. He was a member of a lightning Faction and was representing them well. Alice was using the fire element more compared to her lightning element. The special thing about Alice was her Seelie, and her ability to manipulate her domain. Grey wasn¡¯t going crazy, there truly was a method on how to manipulate domains, but it was something very few people could achieve. Alice was one, Reynolds was another. But Reynolds didn¡¯t have the versatility of Alice. Alice having a dual domain made her special in that aspect. When the information of her being able to manipulate her domain this well came out in her Faction, she gained a little more fame, and as expected, her status in the Faction increased. One of the most important things in these top Factions was how powerful or how much of a genius one could prove to be. The better you are when compared to your peers, the stronger you would become later in the future. These are the people a Faction would want to build around, so when Alice showed this potential, her status was elevated. Klaus and Reynolds have always had a good position in their Factions, Klaus was more fortunate since he gained the tutorship of his Faction Leader. Grey was also in the same position, but he didn¡¯t really care much about his Faction Leader. Fortunately, he was being protected by him which was enough for him. ¡°All four of them are special kids. We¡¯re truly blessed.¡± Grey¡¯s grandfather said softly. ¡°According to what they¡¯ve said, they were all friends from after Grey awakened his elements and went to an Academy¡­¡± Martha recounted what Klaus told her. Klaus was quite talkative, and she was very curious to know how Grey spent his life. Even though he had told her about it when they reunited, she wanted to hear it from someone else¡¯s mouth. To her surprise, it was more thrilling when Klaus was saying it. She knew he wasn¡¯t lying since some of the things he saw was exactly the same thing Grey told her. When listening to how the group met, both Lucas and Grey¡¯s grandfather was amazed. Their friendship was really good since they¡¯ve been through all those events. ¡°Who do you think will win?¡± Martha asked Lucas after she was done telling them of the groups journey. She didn¡¯t want to spend too long with telling them the information, so she transmitted her voice which only took a few seconds for the others to get everything. ¡°They might be equals.¡± Lucas said, he added, ¡°Of course, Grey might have the advantage. You know he has more means of attacking, giving him a large variety.¡± ¡°It¡¯ll all come down to experience.¡± Grey¡¯s grandfather spoke up. ¦Ñ¦Ánd¦Ás¦­¦Ïv¦Ål ?¦Ïm They felt Grey would have the edge when it came to experience, he had been fighting since they knew, which said a lot about his lifestyle. ¡­. The battle had gotten very intense. The trio were able to break out of Grey¡¯s barrage of attacks and they¡¯ve started their own attacks. Grey might be strong, but they didn¡¯t believe he would be able to easily defeat them. Reynolds drew closer to Grey, but he felt his body sink down. ¡°Hehe, you¡¯ve forgotten about this?¡± Grey attacked, punching Reynolds to the ground. A water ball appeared once again, stopping Reynolds from hitting the ground. ¡°You¡¯re a hateful fellow, do you know that?¡± Grey looked at Klaus. ¡°Shut your mouth. If not that I want you to impress your parents I would¡¯ve beaten you black and blue.¡± Klaus retorted. Grey was about to speak when his face fell following Klaus¡¯ next words. ¡°Uncle, Aunty, do you know Grey is planning on not giving you guys grandkids?!¡± He yelled at the top of his voice, making sure Grey¡¯s parents who he believed were outside would hear it clearly. Grey¡¯s mouth twitched when he heard this and for a second, he didn¡¯t attack. ¡°Moron.¡± Klaus cussed out. Reynolds was already standing behind Grey, and the momentary pause gave him the opportunity to strike, his fist hit Grey¡¯s back, sending him flying. Alice attacked too, sending out a lightning bolt that made Grey¡¯s descent faster. ¡­. Outside. Martha and Lucas exchanged glances, their eyes twitched softly. This was a very delicate conversation, and Grey¡¯s reaction might affirm Klaus¡¯ words. Grey¡¯s grandfather was the only one laughing, ¡°Haha, I like this kid. He¡¯s very smart.¡± Her was praising Klaus¡¯ wittiness. One has to know that being able to destabilize your opponent mid battle was something that top experts are certainly capable of. Klaus was able to disrupt Grey¡¯s thoughts which was enough to show that he was a genius when I came to doing this. ¡­. Grey shot up from the rubble, his face was a little dark, he had forgotten Klaus was very good with his words. With just a word he was able to change how the battle was going. ¡°You¡¯ve forgotten about my abilities, bud, you¡¯ve been slacking off.¡± Klaus returned Grey¡¯s words to him, although different, it was the same thing he meant when he attacked Reynolds. Grey rubbed his nose and replied, ¡°I was careless.¡± He flew up and went back into battle, there was no use in speaking any more, if not, Klaus might just say something that would completely make him unable to fight any longer. Klaus knew Grey rushed back into battle because of him, but it didn¡¯t mean he wouldn¡¯t speak. He was just waiting for the right time to throw Grey off again. Grey and Reynolds were into hand to hand combat, while Alice and Klaus were attacking from the side. Their coordination was top tier. Grey was forced into a stalemate. Even with his inscriptions and arrays, he wasn¡¯t able to shake them off. He almost wanted to use his golden energy, but then thinking about it, he decided against it. It wouldn¡¯t be right to use it in such a situation. Of course, with the element of surprise, he would be able to catch them off-guard, unfortunately, he didn¡¯t know who was watching. Using it to be victorious and then exposing himself to the world was far too dangerous just because he wanted to win a spar. The battle got more intense, but as the fight gets longer, it started to become more obvious that a winner might not come out from the battle. Grey has been able to occasionally send them flying, but so has they. They fought a little while longer, destroying parts of the mountain. However, the result was the same. No clear winner. Just when Grey was thinking of giving up, he noticed a change. Klaus¡¯ half moon suddenly enlarged and formed a complete moon. ¡°Huh?¡± He was slightly shocked. Klaus¡¯ aura spiked and shot to the Peak of the Elemental Venerable Plane. If this had happened when the fight just started, then he wouldn¡¯t have been worried, but the problem is that they¡¯ve been fighting for close to thirty minutes, and he was slightly exhausted from the intensity of the battle. Klaus, bringing out his ultimate technique meant that he has been waiting for so long to use it. Grey¡¯s expression wasn¡¯t nice, and he too came to a decision, he would use the golden energy. Since Klaus was using this, he didn¡¯t want to lose to Klaus. Given Klaus¡¯ personality, if he lost to him, he would never hear the end of it. Grey prepared himself while Klaus sent out a powerful attack. When Reynolds saw the thin ice needle forming in front of Klaus, he couldn¡¯t help but suck in a cold breath. This has always been Klaus¡¯ ultimate attack since leaving the trial land years ago. He acquired this technique at that time and has been honing it as time went on. Now, it had been honed to a frightening level. The ice needle is almost invisible, this goes to show just how tiny it has been compressed to. The smaller it is, the stronger it is. With its current strength, it would be able to easily kill a Peak Elemental Venerable. Grey might be strong, but Reynolds didn¡¯t think he would be able to survive if hit by this attack. Klaus didn¡¯t have any plans of holding back. ¡°Bring it on.¡± Grey spoke from the side, he was prepared. This would be the strongest attack he has been faced with, and he knew that he risked getting seriously injured if he was careless. ¡°You asked for it.¡± Klaus unleashed the attack. Grey gulped down and awaited the attack, he would block this attack. 1269 A Facade Grey stood mid-air, awaiting the final attack of their spar. If he blocks this, then he technically has the advantage, if he¡¯s unable to block it, it will be a defeat for him. He wanted to use the golden energy, but in the end, he managed to restrain himself from doing that. There was no need in using all his trump cards now. He took in a deep breath and started creating multiple chaos orbs. This time, he created the original chaos orb, using a bit of all eight elements he had access to. The energy contained in the chaos orb seemed to be able to rival Klaus¡¯ ice needle. One has to know that Klaus was currently at the Peak of the Elemental Venerable Plane, and his strength was superior to most Peak Elemental Venerables, yet, Grey was matching him in terms of attack power. It was unknown how Grey has been able to achieve this, but his potential was something that scared even his parents who were watching. This was the first time they were seeing Grey use his greatest attack power, and they were beyond stunned. Klaus, looked at Grey and couldn¡¯t help but complain, ¡°What¡¯s wrong with him? Can¡¯t we just beat him once?¡± ¡°Fuck it! Take your lose and go man!¡± Reynolds complained as well. He thought this was their chance to finally get the win over Grey, but from the looks of it, Grey didn¡¯t have any plans of losing to them. He stayed in his merged state, and without delay, he created a powerful lightning spear. After creating the spear, he was completely drained, he couldn¡¯t even keep his Elemental Warrior active any more as he used up too much essence while creating the spear. Alice, seeing this, also joined in, creating a three colored arrow. The arrowhead had the silver color indicating the lightning element, the red for the fire element, and light blue for her ice ability. Klaus exchanged glances with all three and they released their attacks simultaneously. Grey opened his palm and the chaos orb shot at the three attacks. He created just one chaos orb, but this was the strongest attack he has ever created since he started his cultivation journey. It might be attributed to the fact that he was stronger now, but it also has a lot to do with all he has learned all this while. He had a better understanding of his elements and is able to compress the chaos orb to a frightening level. The current chaos orb was so small it could fit into the hole of a person¡¯s ear. The smaller he compresses the orb, the more deadly it is. ¦Ñ¦Ánd¦Ás¦­¦Ïv¦Ål ?¦Ïm Boom! All four attacks collided, and it was followed with a powerful explosion that rocked the mountain the group were fighting on. ¡­. Outside. Lucas, Martha, and Grey¡¯s grandfather stared at the scene in utter awe of the group¡¯s strength. At such a young age, being able to use such strength was unimaginable. Each of them had exceeded what they thought of them, Grey and Klaus especially. Reynolds was also amazing, and so was Alice, but Klaus and Grey were a notch above the duo. Klaus being better than Reynolds was more like a one time thing since it was obvious that he couldn¡¯t use the full moon for more than one attack, hence the use of it at the end. Reynolds could stay in his merged state for a long time which gave him the advantage over Klaus in a prolonged battle, well, that¡¯s if Klaus doesn¡¯t take him out with this attack. None of them made a move, they watched anxiously, waiting for who would come out on top among the friends. Grey was practically fighting against three of the best geniuses the Continent has produced in a long time, yet he was able to match them. At the moment, it was unfair to rate him alongside other geniuses, he was in a league of his own. The explosion died down and all four people could be seen standing mid-air. ¡­. Klaus clenched his fists when he saw that Grey was still standing with a calm expression. His clothes were slightly damaged, but he looked fine. They, on the other hand, didn¡¯t look the best. ¡°It¡¯s a tie.¡± He said before flying down. He was expended, only a fool would want to continue fighting with a freak like Grey. Thinking about Grey¡¯s insane physical strength, he was more than satisfied with taking a draw. Alice and Reynolds followed behind him, all fully aware of his thoughts. Grey watched them descend, looking at the destruction their attack caused, he wanted to open his mouth, but blood came from the side of his mouth. Seeing that none of them saw it, he wiped off the blood and flew down to meet up with his friends. His light element was doing it¡¯s best to make sure it healed him as fast as possible. The impact of the attack was something that he knew would be almost impossible to defend against. Even with his armor and everything, he was still badly hurt by it. A few days rest and he would be fine, but for now, he has to pretend to be okay in front of Klaus and the others. When he got down, he didn¡¯t walk up to them first, he still couldn¡¯t speak. There was still blood in his throat, waiting to come out. Martha saw how blood came out of Grey¡¯s mouth, the others with her did as well, but none of them spoke about it. Since Grey was able to chase Klaus and the others away with his facade, then it was best they left them alone. Klaus walked over to them, seeing Grey, he couldn¡¯t help but hit him softly on the shoulder, ¡°Bud, you should¡¯ve at least let us win.¡± The second Klaus¡¯ hand hit Grey, Grey almost spat out the blood in his throat, while hissing from the pain of being hit on the back. 1270 Ninth Stage Grey placed his hand on his mouth to stop himself from coughing out blood. Lucas walked over, ¡°Grey and I have some unfinished discussions, he will come back later.¡± Martha heaved a sigh of relief internally, while Grey¡¯s grandfather chuckled. Klaus felt it was a bit suspicious that Grey¡¯s father would take him like that, but he didn¡¯t care about it. Since Grey didn¡¯t defeat them, they were good. ¡°Come on, let¡¯s go back with Aunty, there is more of that delicious meal waiting for us.¡± He urged the others. Martha was quite fond of Klaus, he was very talkative, and also a likable person, as long as he likes you too, if not, you¡¯d want him dead. Take for instance, while they were waiting for Reynolds and Alice to come, they encountered Eirik, the son of the Dawson Family Head. And from what she heard, Eirik wanted to fight with Klaus for some reason. Eirik was a proud person, but as he grew older, he had stopped being rash. The fact that he was prepared to fight with Klaus proved that Klaus truly was living up to his name of being able to annoy anyone. ¡­. In the cave Grey was first taken to by Lucas when they first reunited. The second they appeared, Grey spat out a mouthful of blood and fell to the ground weakly. ¡°Thanks, Dad.¡± He said weakly. Klaus¡¯ soft punch on the shoulder almost made him show them that he lost against them. With Klaus¡¯ personality, Klaus would never let him hear the end of it. ¡°Is he that bad?¡± Lucas asked. ¡°Not really, but my pride won¡¯t let me show him that he won. He¡¯ll get ahead of himself.¡± Grey replied after wiping the blood off his mouth. ¡°I see.¡± Lucas gave an understanding nod, he looked at Grey and asked, ¡°The attack you used last, what was it?¡± ¡°Oh, this?¡± Grey opened his palm and a weaker version of the chaos orb appeared. Making the complete one was still a little longer than usual, especially when he wanted it to be as powerful as the one he used some minutes ago. Lucas nodded as he inspected the chaos orb from closer inspection. He gasped and said, ¡°It¡¯s a combination of eight elements.¡± He was marveled at the chaos orb. Seeing something like this was exciting, he never expected it would be possible to see something like this. ¡°Did you learn this on your own?¡± ¡°How¡¯s it even possible?¡± Grey saw his father¡¯s excited expression and couldn¡¯t help but laugh, now he understood where he got his intuitive personality from. His father was just like him whenever he saw something new he wanted to understand. ¡°You¡¯re the one who placed the thing in me. The orb was from a God, the Chaos God. There were a few things I could learn as I grow stronger.¡± Grey explained. When he told Lucas of the Fusion State, Lucas was left dumbstruck. He couldn¡¯t believe what he was hearing. Being able to increase your cultivation stage by eight stages was something that shouldn¡¯t be possible. If an Elementalists in the Second stage of any Plane fights against someone in the same stage as themselves, being able to increase your cultivation stage by eight means that the Elementalist can go from the second stage to the Peak of said Plane, completely overwhelming their opponents. This was something that shouldn¡¯t be allowed to happen. Luckily, Grey said he isn¡¯t able to use the State anymore, if not, wouldn¡¯t Grey be as strong as he once he gets to the Third stage of the Elemental Sovereign Plane? Well, since Grey was in danger from multiple people who wanted him dead, it wouldn¡¯t be a bad thing to have such a trump card. Lucas looked at Grey, ¡°You said there¡¯s a world in your consciousness?¡± Grey nodded. ¡°Is it possible to take me in?¡± Lucas asked. ¡°I¡¯ve never tried to take anyone else inside. Maybe it is possible.¡± Grey said thoughtfully. To be honest, he never even considered the possibility of trying to take someone else¡¯s consciousness into the Chaos Space, but now that his father brought the idea up, he felt like trying it. Maybe others might also be able to benefit from this. ¡°Alright, let¡¯s try it.¡± Lucas said with anticipation. Grey looked at his condition and replied, ¡°I¡¯ll need to rest first, Father.¡± ¡°Oh, yes, yes.¡± Lucas forgot about Grey¡¯s condition, he brought out an item and passed it to Grey, ¡°This will help with your healing process. You should be good as new within a few hours.¡± Grey grabbed the pill and he could sense a massive essence stored within it. ¡®He would¡¯ve never given me this is not for the fact that he wants to see if I can take him into the Chaos Space.¡¯ Grey pouted internally. It couldn¡¯t be blamed, Lucas would¡¯ve let him heal on his own, after all, he has the light element, but this was something he was anxious about, so he naturally wanted him to get back to his best state as soon as possible. Grey didn¡¯t say anything to his father and took the pill, he entered the cave and sat down cross-legged. Lucas set up some array formations around to keep Grey safe and make sure he doesn¡¯t get disturbed. Just to be extra sure, he sat down cross-legged outside the cave as he started to think of multiple possibilities. Only those close to Lucas have seen him in such a state. The same could be said for Grey, whenever there was something new, he was always like this. ¡­. A few hours went by shortly. Grey finally opened his eyes, he sensed that he was about to break through to the Ninth stage of the Elemental Venerable Plane. He had been holding himself back for a while now, but he knew he finally won¡¯t be able to stop himself anymore. A soft crackling sound resonated inside his body. He took in a deep breath, ¡°The Ninth stage.¡± 1271 Taking Another Person Into The Chaos Space Chapter 1271 Taking Another Person Into The Chaos Space "You broke through¡­ took you long enough." Lucas commented when Grey walked out of the cave. He sensed it the second Grey broke through. While Grey was fighting with Klaus and the others, he sensed that Grey would''ve been able to break through while fighting, but he stopped himself on multiple occasions. The intensity of the battle was exactly what Grey wanted to hone his cores. Grey continued honing his cores as the battle intensified. After a few more times, he knew he was ready to finally break through to the next stage. He took a glance at his father and smiled softly, before nodding. His experience has been one of surprise. If he was told ten years ago that he would be where he is at the moment, he would never have believed it. From a regular person, to a Ninth stage Elemental Venerable. In the Azure Continent, he could wipe out all the forces there with nothing more than a wave of his hand. Even in the Aurora Continent, he could be regarded as one of the top experts in the Continent, his age would make his status above those old fogeys who were still in the Ninth stage. With his current advancing speed, it would take at most a year before he breaks through and becomes an Elemental Sovereign. In less than twenty years, Grey went from a normal person to a Sovereign. This would be a record in the history of the Continent. No one has broken through this quickly in hundreds of years. Even Grey''s parents didn''t get to the Elemental Sovereign Plane until they were over thirty. Grey would get there before even getting to thirty. Not just Grey, but Klaus was someone who might still be able to achieve this feat. Of course, Grey would break through first and would also use the shortest time, but it was still a shocking achievement for him to break through before getting to thirty. It was unlikely for Alice and Reynolds, but Reynolds had his Elemental Warrior which would give him an advantage when he gets to the Ninth stage or Peak of the Elemental Venerable Plane. ¡­. Grey sensed the new strength that was flowing in his body. In his current state, he was certain that he would be able to defeat the trio of Klaus, Alice and Reynolds. "Do you want to attempt it now?" He asked his father. The reason he healed up here was due to his father wanting to attempt going into the Chaos Space. To be honest, he didn''t know if it would be possible, but since his father spoke up, he wanted to at least try. "Sure." Lucas had been patiently waiting for this. Grey nodded and took a seat close to his father, they were both sitting cross-legged, and they shut their eyes simultaneously. With both parties closing their eyes, Lucas took control over the process. He was the strongest and naturally had a stronger spiritual consciousness. It might be dangerous for Grey to try it, so he wanted to be the one leading the experiment. Grey let Lucas'' spiritual consciousness to wrap his own and it was a strange feeling for him, this was the first time he was in such a situation, but he felt a sense of safety while being covered by his father''s spiritual consciousness. After being covered by his father''s spiritual consciousness, Grey carefully tried to see if he could get into the Chaos Space. The second his spiritual consciousness got close to it, he sensed a great sense of rejection from it, as if not willing to let him bring in someone else into the Chaos Space. The rejection was there, but it wasn''t too evident, so Grey felt like there was a chance for them to get his father''s consciousness into the Chaos Space. There was also the possibility of the Chaos Space giving them this opportunity in hopes of causing great damage to the consciousness of the intruder. Even with Grey there to help his father get it, it still wouldn''t be easy. They attempted it once more, this time, the rejection was still there, but Grey was certain that with a few more tries, they would be able to get in. It was just as Grey said, after three more attempts, the feeling of rejection disappeared. Lucas and Grey''s consciousness were taken into the Chaos Space. And the moment Lucas entered, he felt an unbelievable pressure on his consciousness. He could barely even lift his head, much less have the time to take in the sight of the place. Looking below him, he knew he was standing on a temple, but he didn''t know what the other sides of the temple looked like. "Are you okay?" Grey asked when he saw his father''s spiritual consciousness grabbing both knees, trying to keep himself standing. "You don''t feel it?" Lucas struggled to speak. "Feel what?" Grey had a confused look on. "The pressure. There''s a powerful pressure here, even with my strength, I can barely stand." Lucas explained. "Not really. The only time I remember feeling any pressure is when I go to each element''s region. I haven''t been there in a while." Grey replied. He has come here hundreds of times and only when he''s trying to comprehend elements and head deeper into the regions does he feel these pressures. If he stayed in the outer areas or even in this mountain, he always felt like he was in the real world. Lucas stayed in the same position, trying to get his spiritual body to get used to the pressure. He knew that the longer he stayed here, the better his endurance would increase. In no time, he would be able to move freely here. Grey didn''t want to disturb him and left him alone. He started to investigate the place. There were a few changes from when he used to previously come. Like the sun and a few other changes in the element''s regions. Now that he took his time, he could sense a massive amount of chaos energy stored in the sun. 1272 You Have Nothing To Do With It Grey flew into the sky, heading for the sun. He soon came to a realization that no matter how much he flew, he could not get close to the sun. He could sense the presence of the sun, but he found out that it was like the sky was endless and the sun was at the end of the endless sky. After a few more minutes, he gave up and went back down. He appeared on the ground the moment he thought about going down. An idea struck him when this happened. If he could appear on the ground with a thought, maybe he could appear in the sun with a thought as well. He quickly put his theory to test and was elated when he appeared inside the sun filled with golden energy. The energy there was enough to destroy his spiritual body, however, since he was the one who had the Chaos Space, it did nothing to him. His eyes were wide as he didn¡¯t know when this happened. ¡®Could it be that it was when I was hit with the chaos wave?¡¯ This was the only time he knew that he absorbed a large amount of chaos energy. The golden energy he could use was the pure form of the chaos energy, and that was what filled the entire sun. He couldn¡¯t even see the end of the sun, and the thought of that frightened him. It was unknown just how much energy was stored there, but he knew it would be enough to overwhelm someone. He stayed there for a while, after moving around, he left the sun and headed back to the temple. ¦Ñ¦Ánd¦Ás¦­¦Ïv¦Ål ?¦Ïm Lucas sighed and said, ¡°It¡¯s a wondrous place. It¡¯s a shame if I force myself to stay for too long, then I¡¯ll cause irreparable damage to my spiritual body.¡± Grey looked at the flickering body of his father and was slightly taken aback. ¡°Will the light element be able to help?¡± He asked. Lucas thought about it and replied, ¡°It¡¯s worth trying. There¡¯s nothing to lose.¡± ¡°Let¡¯s go there, the light essence there is better.¡± He pointed at a certain region. In this place, all he could see were mountains and trees, but the essence he sensed around the place was beyond belief. There were eight different places where he could sense eight different elemental essences in abundance. If anyone were to cultivate in such a place, the person would grow in weeks. ¡°Have you tried bringing in your physical body?¡± ¡°No. I don¡¯t think that is possible. The senior told me I can only come with my spiritual body.¡± ¡°I see¡­ Either way, there¡¯s no harm in trying. Who knows, you might be able to benefit more from this place.¡± Grey followed the flickering body of his father as they headed towards the light element region. He could clearly see the light elemental essences around, but from how his father was staring at the trees, he knew he wasn¡¯t seeing it. His father sat down cross-legged and told him to begin. Grey controlled some of the light essence around, and used it to cover the flickering body of his father¡¯s spiritual body. Lucas felt invigorated the moment his spiritual body was covered with light elemental essence. He felt a sudden calmness that made him relax his mind. Unfortunately, his body was still flickering even with the light essence that was used to wrap it. Lucas sighed when he saw the situation, ¡°It¡¯s no use. I can¡¯t stay here more than a few minutes.¡± ¡°Those weaker than I am won¡¯t even be able to get in.¡± He added. ¡°Oh, I see.¡± Grey knew nothing about this, but from how his father was struggling, he knew it was impossible for people below his father¡¯s strength to last more than a minute here. ¡°It¡¯s time for me to go out. I wanted to explore this place, but it seems like I won¡¯t be able to.¡± Lucas shook his head, although he was thrilled by this new discovery, he was still sad he isn¡¯t able to explore the place in its entirety. Grey didn¡¯t delay any further and sent his father¡¯s spiritual body out of the Chaos Space. He left as well. When they both regained control over their bodies, Grey stared at his father in shock. His father had always looked like someone in his early thirties, the same goes for his mother even though they were both well over fifty. But now, his father looked at least five to six years younger and his skin was glistering. If not for the fact that he had a small beard, it would be easy to take him for Grey¡¯s older brother. The resemblance between them made it even more believable. Lucas already sensed the changes that happened in his body. There were a few complications he had, but now, he couldn¡¯t sense them any longer. Seeing Grey¡¯s shocked look, he looked at him questioningly. Grey created an ice mirror for him, and when he saw his face, he was speechless. ¡°The light element surely is the most intriguing element of them all.¡± Lucas spoke out loud, amazed by the wonders of the light element. He knew what happened was due to Grey enveloping him with the light element while they were in the Chaos Space. ¡°I don¡¯t think mom would be too happy with your sudden youth.¡± Grey remarked. When Lucas thought about it, he realized Grey was correct. Every woman cared about how they look, especially when next to their husband. If Lucas were to look far younger than her, she would most definitely be irritated by it. She could make herself look younger with her strength, but there¡¯s a difference with the method Grey used and the one she would use. ¡°Come on, let¡¯s go show her my new look.¡± Lucas chuckled. ¡°Remember, you have nothing to do with this.¡± 1273 A Way To Connect To The Origin Source Chapter 1273 A Way To Connect To The Origin Source Lucas and Grey soon arrived at the Dawson Family manor, the duo went to Grey''s parents'' building. At the time they got to the house, it was already night, but everyone present was still awake. When Martha saw Lucas, she didn''t even need to speak before she saw the difference in his appearance. She looked at Grey and he was still the same. "What happened to you?" She looked at him with a questioning look. "Nothing." "What do you mean nothing? You look totally different." "I''ve always been like this, what are you talking about?" Klaus and the others saw Lucas and their eyes popped out, Klaus especially. "Uncle, where did you do this, and can I do it too?" He asked immediately. Lucas looked at the eager Klaus, "I don''t know what you''re talking about." "Where''s the food?" He asked as he walked into the house with a calm face. Grey watched his father walk into the house, under a barrage of questions from everyone present. The only person who didn''t walk over to Lucas was Grey''s grandfather. He came over to Grey. "My grandson, where did you two go to?" He asked with a warm smile. Grey told him about the cave. His grandfather knew about his injuries so he knew that he needed to heal. When his grandfather asked about what happened to his father, he told him he wasn''t aware of it since he was inside healing while his father was outside. "Come on boy, I know you''re well aware of what happened to your father." Grey''s grandfather said with a straight face, "Alright, I''ll give you access to a certain place. I heard you''re trying to connect to the origin source, with it, you can." When Grey heard this, his ears perked up. If his grandfather really knew such a place, then he would like to enter that place. With it, he would be able to increase his strength once again. "I''m coming, I''ll speak with Dad." Grey said. "Good boy." Grey''s grandfather patted his head. Grey walked into the house and went straight to his father. It was when he entered the house his mother realized that Grey had been with his father, that meant that he should at least know a thing about what happened with him. When she looked at Grey, Grey''s soul almost left him. Of everyone present, Martha and Alice were the duo who had almost red eyes. They seemed desperate to get this. Klaus was also among those who wanted it, but he wasn''t as desperate as the two ladies. "Grey, where have you two been?" Martha asked, staring at Grey dead in the eyes, trying to see if he would flinch. Grey, being well adept at things like this, didn''t even blink before replying, "The cave." Martha paused, she knew of Grey''s condition, so heading to the cave to heal was something that was expected. Grey would most likely be healing, with the help of his father he would heal faster. From her knowledge, they shouldn''t have spent this long there. "Nothing else?" She asked. "None that I know of." Grey was prepared to follow his father''s words. Unfortunately, he knew that if his mother were to find out that he was the one who made his father like that, she might beat him up. ''I''ll tell her later. I can''t tell her in the presence of others.'' He concluded internally. If he were to tell his mother in the presence of the others, it wouldn''t be too nice since Alice was too weak to enter the Chaos Space. Only his mother and grandfather would be able to bear it. Maybe after Alice gets to the Elemental Sovereign Plane, she would be able to enter, but for now, it was too dangerous to take her in. The same could be said for Klaus and Reynolds. He walked over to his father, while avoiding his mother''s gaze. After whispering into the ears of his father, the duo walked out, and left with his grandfather. Martha was about to follow them, but she realized the void was sealed, along with it a voice that echoed on her ears. ''This is a boys thing.'' Martha pouted, feeling this had to do with the secret Grey and his father were keeping. But just as she was about to storm off, another gentle voice echoed in her ears. ''Mom, I''ll help you later.'' She smiled and went back into the house, her expression was calm as she looked at the others and told them to calm down. ¡­. In the cave. "You didn''t allow me in there, why are you offering to send him there?" Lucas looked at his father seriously. "He''s more promising than you were." Grey''s grandfather said with a straight face, he then added with a chuckle, "Besides, he seems to know what can make me look young, you obviously don''t." Lucas wanted to complain but he didn''t know what to say. His father was right. Grey was the one who could make him younger, and he didn''t have the talent Grey was showing. At this age, he was still in the early stages of the Elemental Venerable Plane. "Alright." He gave a sigh of relief. When they told Grey''s grandfather of how it was done, he was flabbergasted. He never thought that covering the spiritual body with the light element would work. Neither did he know that Grey had the light element. "How''s that even possible?" He was speechless. If Grey could do something like this, then he was beyond special. Lucas didn''t speak much, he only told him to reinforce his spiritual body and the duo sat down cross-legged. Grey and his grandfather had their eyes closed while his father kept watch. It didn''t take too long before his grandfather''s body started to glow. When Lucas was inside, he didn''t know what was happening outside, but now that he was watching from outside, he saw what was going on. His father''s body was completely covered with the light element and he could visibly see the wrinkles disappear from his father''s body. He was dumbfounded at the sight of it. His father''s spiritual body was what was covered with the light element, yet it reflected in his physical body. "The light element truly is wondrous." He muttered. A few minutes later, his father looked like someone in his late forties. One has to know that a few minutes back, his father looked like someone that was well over seventy-five, but now, he was completely different. He looked younger and more vibrant. Grey and his grandfather opened their eyes almost at the same time. When he saw his grandfather''s current look, he was stunned beyond words. His father''s case wasn''t as good as this. "You look so young." He commented, creating an ice mirror for his grandfather. His grandfather looked at himself, his previously gray hair was pure black. He smiled to himself. "Haha, so refreshing. Thanks kid." He laughed out loud. "Tomorrow I''ll take you there. I''m going to meet someone." With that, he disappeared, leaving only Grey and his father. The duo exchanged glances before going back to the Dawson Family manor. When they returned, they saw the group still seated talking. Lucas and Grey sat down and joined them. Before they knew it, it was daybreak. Alice, Reynolds, and Klaus wanted to explore the area. Grey was cool with it since he wanted to visit the place his grandfather promised. And he still had to make his mother look younger. The trio left and he couldn''t help but look around for Void and the bunny leader. Since they came here, the duo left and he hadn''t heard anything from them. When he contacted Void, he found out that the bunny leader was gathering a legion of bunnies to help its cause. ''It''s just like how he chased me.'' He recalled how the bunny leader had other bunnies to help it fight. After a while, he helped Martha with her own. Although Lucas wasn''t fully in support of making her look younger so soon, there was nothing he could do. Especially when Martha saw how Grey''s grandfather looked. When he was done with that, his grandfather took him to the place he promised. Lucas wanted to follow, but Grey''s grandfather debunked him, and he was forced to stay back with his wife. Grey''s grandfather took him out of the region completely. The duo arrived at a secluded mountain. Grey''s grandfather made a few hand seals and a passage opened. Grey followed his grandfather into the passage. To be honest, he didn''t even sense any passage there, only after his grandfather made the seals did he sense it. The duo walked through a long passageway, and after a few minutes, they arrived on the other side of the passage. Grey was left stunned when he saw the place. It was almost like he had been taken to a paradise. "Amazing." 1274 Shaking The World Grey stared at the same spot for almost a minute. ¡°Get to work, boy. The faster the better. Keeping this place active takes up a lot of resources. This is the reason I never took your father here.¡± Grey¡¯s grandfather¡¯s words woke him up from his daydreaming. He didn¡¯t know it took up resources to keep this place active, so hearing his grandfather¡¯s words, he was taken aback. Seeing his grandson¡¯s confusion, he explained, ¡°To connect to the origin source is not something that should be accessible to us, only those in the God Plane should be able to do it. However, we¡¯re from a family that has produced a God during its history, and he created this place for us. However, without his strength, we can¡¯t access it. Only while spending considerable resources can we bring it to life, but it¡¯s only for a short while. Its consumption is massive.¡± Grey could sense the heartache at the end of his grandfather¡¯s words. Grey¡¯s grandfather looked at him, to be honest, he wanted to bring Grey here when he heard that he was trying to connect his golden energy to the origin source, he just brought up the idea of bringing him here as a benefit from making him look younger. Grey was naturally unaware of this, but he knew the reward he was getting for making his grandfather look younger was far more than what he did. The two could not be compared. He quickly closed his eyes and got to work. Thinking too much would only waste more of his grandfather¡¯s resources, that was not something he wanted to do. With both eyes closed, he tried to sense the origin source, to his shock, this place truly was as amazing as his grandfather said, he didn¡¯t even try and just with a thought, he could already sense the origin source. Now that he has located the origin source, his next step was to try to connect the golden energy to it. Once he does that, he should be able to merge the golden energy to his core and possess a stronger attack power. Grey¡¯s grandfather watched from the side as Grey tried connecting the golden energy to the origin source. He could sense what Grey was doing after all, he was a top expert. Time went on and after a few minutes, Grey opened his eyes. He failed in his first attempt. Just like when he was trying to merge it to his core, he sensed the same rejection, this time even stronger. ¡®Could it be that there¡¯s no way to merge them?¡¯ He thought to himself, his eyes open as he looked around. He was still thinking when an idea struck him. ¡®It shouldn¡¯t be a bad idea.¡¯ He said to himself. He wanted to try to see if he could swallow up the origin source with the golden energy. The golden energy was from the chaos, and has proven to be stronger than the energy acquired from the origin source. If it¡¯s stronger, shouldn¡¯t it be able to swallow up the origin source? It was a daring idea, just the thought of the possibility excited Grey to no end. What was it like swallowing the origin source? Wouldn¡¯t that make him one of a kind? He calmed his raging emotions and started his plan. His first objective was to bring out the chaos energy from his body, and then use it to wrap the origin source. Previously, he had been using the gentle way to try it, but now, he wanted to do it by force. He would use the chaos energy to wrap up the origin source, swallowing parts of it in the process. While Grey was bringing out a large amount of chaos energy in the direction of the origin source, Grey¡¯s grandfather¡¯s eyes opened widely in shock. He didn¡¯t even dare to believe what Grey was trying to do. ¡°He shouldn¡¯t be trying to cover it up, is he?¡± He muttered to himself. While thinking of it, he thought about what might happen if Grey was able to achieve what he¡¯s planning to do. Taking part of the origin source will affect the world. ¡®No, I shouldn¡¯t allow him to do this.¡¯ He quickly came to a decision. ¡°Grey, stop!¡± Unfortunately, he was too late. Grey was already entrailed in the midst of covering the origin source with the chaos energy. ¡­. Outside. The sky in every part of the Aurora Continent changed, not just the Aurora Continent, but even the Azure Empire. They were all part of the same world. The entire world seemed to fall into a state of momentarily silence as everyone, both old and young, strong and weak looked up to the sky. The previously blue sky was enveloped by a domineering force. The force wanted to consume it. The sky wanted to fight back, but in front of this force, it was very weak, too weak to even lift a finger. Lucas and Martha stared into the sky and the eyes of Lucas changed drastically. ¡°It¡¯s him. How¡¯s he causing such a commotion?¡± He knew from the second he saw it that it had something to do with Grey. Only when the origin source is being messed with could something like this happen. What he couldn¡¯t understand was why the origin source was so docile in the presence of Grey and his chaos energy. The chaos energy of the Chaos Battlefield was strong, but not enough to overwhelm the origin source. ¡­. In the cave. Grey¡¯s grandfather wanted to move close to Grey, but he was forced back by a tyrannical energy that scared him. He looked at Grey in fear. ¡°How¡¯s he like this?¡± He didn¡¯t know what was occurring outside, but from what he was seeing, he didn¡¯t sense anything good. Grey on the other hand was covered by this tyrannical energy. Nothing could touch him. Inside his body, the chaos orb was churning in excitement. It was like it had come to life. In the Chaos Space, the sun that was hung high in the sky was also sending energy out. Grey could sense the changes, but he didn¡¯t care too much about it. His bold idea was coming to pass and he didn¡¯t think it was possible. Just as Lucas thought, even though the chaos energy was powerful, it wouldn¡¯t be able to overwhelm the origin source in such a manner, the reason this was happening was all due to the chaos orb that resided in Grey¡¯s body. Grey¡¯s grandfather was watching the scene in shock, his shock soon turned to pain when he sensed the rate at which his resources were being used up. ¡°Hundreds of years of resources are gone, just like that.¡± He didn¡¯t know how to feel. Seeing that Grey was still in the midst of his experience, he couldn¡¯t help but pump in more resources into the place. ¡°This kid better make it worth it, else I¡¯ll kill¡­ his father.¡± For some reason, he liked Grey more than his son, and has spent more on Grey than he has done on Lucas. It hasn¡¯t even been up to twenty minutes, and Grey has drained a lot of his resources. Luckily, he saved up a lot. ¡­. Outside the cave. The Magical Beasts¡¯ forest. A figure appeared deep in the Magical Beasts¡¯ forest as he looked at the temple in front of him. His eyes were cold as he looked in the sky. ¡°What¡¯s happening? The origin source is being messed with?¡± The man spoke softly. It was none other than the Old man who took Chris as his student in the trial land. ¡°This is bad, the seal is weakening without the support of the origin source.¡± The origin source has been of great help in holding the seal together, but now, with the origin source being covered up by Grey at the moment, the seal was weakening. The only good thing was that the members of the Gnome race hadn¡¯t sensed the anomaly, if not, they would¡¯ve broken the seal by now. The man made some hand seals and managed to open up the sky, creating a space for the origin source that was radiating straight to the seal, helping reinforce it. The seal was finally stable, but the damage was still done, the seal was still weaker than what it used to be. ¡°This is bad. It won¡¯t last up to four months.¡± The man¡¯s eyes showed despair. ¡°It¡¯s time to awaken the Faction. We¡¯ve slept enough.¡± The man disappeared from the spot, but unknown to him, a small black shadow came out from the seal. The shadow looked around and drilled into the ground of the Magical Beasts¡¯ forest. ¡­. The Aurora Continent. Inside the cave. Grey had no idea of what was happening outside the cave, he was still swallowing up the origin source. After a few minutes, he opened his eyes with a smile. ¡°Haha, finally.¡± He laughed in delight. 1275 Why Does It Sound Familiar? Grey¡¯s body stopped giving off the oppressive energy and the chaos energy he used to cover up the origin source had successfully eaten a chunk of the origin source. The fact that something like that was even possible was beyond Grey¡¯s imagination. A bold thought came to pass and it was something that he never thought would¡¯ve been possible. Now that he had eaten a chunk of the origin source, he noticed that there seemed to be a difference in his elements. Not just that, but there was something else, he could vaguely sense the existence of more than eight elements. The feeling was small, but he had this itch in his heart that there were more than eight elements. He didn¡¯t think too much about it, after all, all he had heard of was eight elements, and he had all eight of them. Even though a few of them were weaker, he was certain that he would be able to raise all of them to the peak elemental grade. ¡®I wonder what grades my elements are now.¡¯ He thought to himself. Just as he was about to shut his eyes once again. Grey¡¯s grandfather grabbed him by his hand and without hesitation, he threw him out of the cave. ¡®Get out! Do you want to ruin me?!¡¯ He screamed internally. It was inappropriate to say this to Grey, after all, Grey sees him as an all-powerful figure, and he didn¡¯t want to ruin his reputation in the eyes of his beloved grandson. ¡­. Outside the cave. Grey was unable to fathom what just happened, one second he was sitting in a marvelous dream-like place, and the next he hit a tree. ¡°Huh? What happened?¡± He looked around. Only now did he recall that he was there with his grandfather. He was about to call out for him when he appeared beside him. He was about to speak when his eyes changed, ¡°Something happened. Let¡¯s go back.¡± He could sense the changes in the essence, even without being told, he knew something grave had most likely happened in the world while they were away, and from his assumptions, it looked like it had something to do with Grey. ¡­. Dawson Manor. Klaus and the others had returned. They weren¡¯t able to enjoy their time since they could also sense the changes in the sky. Being guests of the Dawson Family, they knew it was safer there, so they went back there. When Grey and his grandfather returned, Lucas turned to Grey, and then his grandfather. ¡°What did he do?¡± He asked, his expression severe. ¡°I think he consumed part of the origin source. I¡¯m not too sure, but that¡¯s what I saw.¡± Grey¡¯s grandfather responded. ¡°What?!¡± Both Lucas and Martha exclaimed in shock. If Grey¡¯s grandfather wasn¡¯t the one telling them this, they would never have believed it. They saw the phenomenon outside, but they never thought it was this unimaginable. ¡°This is bad. Isn¡¯t the origin source the main thing used in the seal?¡± Martha asked. ¡°Yes, since it was hidden for a few minutes, the seal must¡¯ve weakened further.¡± Lucas¡¯ facial expression was unsightly. He looked at Grey who was staring at them with an innocent expression, he had zero clue about what his act had done. ¡°Show me what you can do now.¡± Lucas turned to Grey. Internally, he was screaming it better be worth it! However, he didn¡¯t feel there was anything that would be worth loosening the seal that would allow the Gnomes to invade them. Grey opened his palm and the combined chaos essence and origin essence appeared. The eyes of everyone present were glued to the orb on Grey¡¯s hand. It looked normal, but the destructive power it possessed was superior to what he created even with his strongest fusion orb. One has to know that this was him casually making it, if he were to attempt creating the fusion orb with this merged form, its power would be frightening. Lucas was at a loss for words, he didn¡¯t even know what to say. Was it worth it? Probably not, but is his son stronger than any Elemental Venerable has ever seen? Yes, he was freakishly stronger than any Elemental Venerable in the history of the world. ¡®If only he¡¯s a tad stronger. Even the Early stages of the Sovereign Plane, and he would¡¯ve been useful, but for now¡­¡¯ Lucas sighed as he looked at his son. He was proud to have such an outstanding son, but then again, there was nothing that could be done, if the war started again, although he wasn¡¯t around during the last one, he knew that they stood no chance against the Gnomes. If they had a chance, they wouldn¡¯t need to sacrifice people to create a seal. From what he knows, there are two portals that were sealed, not one. One was hidden away from people, and was sealed by a single individual, the other was a group effort. Grey looked at his father¡¯s expression. Although he was standing there, only when his father asked him to show him what the merged form of the chaos and origin source was, did he hear him. Apparently, even though he could see their mouths moving, he didn¡¯t hear a single word, the same could be said for Klaus and the others. Void and the bunny leader appeared out of thin air. They stared at the trio of Grey¡¯s parents and his grandfather who was speaking and then at Grey who had a confused expression. ¡°Did something happen?¡± He turned to the others when he saw how serious the conversation between his parents and his grandfather was. ¡°You didn¡¯t see it?¡± Klaus asked in surprise. Grey shook his head, ¡°No, I was training indoors. The moment I stepped out, Grandfather said something happened and brought me back.¡± Klaus went on to explain what happened to him, how the sky was covered by a powerful energy that wanted to consume it. Hearing their words, he felt a sense of familiarity with their words. ¡®Why does it feel like they¡¯re talking about how I took a small part of the origin source?¡¯ 1276 No Way To Check Elemental Grades Grey had a bad feeling that what happened was not as simple as it looked. From how serious his parents and grandfather were talking about it, it looked very serious. He walked up to his father, ¡°Is something wrong?¡± Lucas looked at his son, and seeing the innocent look on his face, he nodded, there was no need to hide it from him, the only thing he wasn¡¯t going to tell him was that he was the cause of it. Having such knowledge will only put more pressure on Grey, and he was still too young to have such pressure on him. It was best no one knows of what happened today. Luckily, only Grey¡¯s grandfather and his parents knew of it, even Grey¡¯s friends didn¡¯t have a clue about Grey trying to merge the chaos and origin energy together. At least, no one would put the blame on him. ¡°Don¡¯t worry, focus on your training, there¡¯s not much you can do now.¡± Martha caressed Grey¡¯s face. Grey looked at his mother and nodded. Now, he didn¡¯t plan to stop himself from breaking through. He would advance as fast as he could. He suddenly had a sense of urgency, and for some reason, he felt like if he didn¡¯t grow stronger faster, his family and friends would be in danger. Grey walked back to his friends, Void and the bunny leader walked over to them. ¡°What do you think caused it?¡± Alice asked. It was a huge phenomenon, and every single individual in the Continent naturally wanted to know what caused it. ¡°I don¡¯t know.¡± Grey and the other two shook their heads, they truly didn¡¯t know. Grey had some thoughts, but he wasn¡¯t certain, so he naturally didn¡¯t want to say. The last time he shared something with his friends, the entire Azure Continent went after them, all four empires in the Continent, he didn¡¯t want that to happen again. Grey¡¯s grandfather and his parents left, leaving only the four youths there, Cori was inside training, and seeing that Grey was not leaving, she came out to speak with him. It hadn¡¯t been too long since Grey went out to train, yet he was back again. Grey looked at the little girl, she was still at the Peak of the Sage Plane, According to his mother, she still needed at least a year before she could enter the Elemental Venerable Plane. Cori would be at most eleven or close to twelve at that time, yet she was already entering the Elemental Venerable Plane. If not for having multiple elements, Grey would¡¯ve believed that she was more of a talent than he is. He threw everything to the back of his head, since his mother told him to focus on his training, that is what he was going to do, before that. He wanted to check what elemental grades each of his elements had gotten to. Previously, his fire element was the highest, he was quite curious to know if the others had advanced or caught up. After they got into the building, he didn¡¯t spend too long with his friends before leaving them and heading for his private room. He shut his door, set up a few arrays, and entered a cultivation state. Sitting cross-legged, he closed his eyes and entered the Chaos Space. He appeared in the all too familiar temple and went straight to the pillar that was in the middle. When Lucas came, he didn¡¯t see this pillar, other than the grand temple, he saw nothing else. Grey placed his hand on the pillar and for the first time, he didn¡¯t get any reaction. Previously, he would sense an energy enter his body. Well, this time, he did sense it, but it was only for a split second, he almost missed it, but luckily for him, he was well focused on his body. What he sensed for that split second was the energy being decimated the second it entered his body. At the moment, he could sense the miasma in his body being fully suppressed, it was so docile that even Grey was beyond shocked. It seemed afraid to show itself. ¡°Just how powerful is this thing?¡± He muttered to himself. After a while, he gave up on trying to sense his present elemental grade. Since it wasn¡¯t possible to check it, why waste time? ¦Ñ¦Ánd¦Ásn¦Ïv¦Ål.c¦Ïm He walked into each element¡¯s region, and to his surprise, the previous pressure he would sense from them was gone. He strolled through the region like he was taking a walk in his backyard and didn¡¯t feel anything. When he sensed this, he couldn¡¯t help but feel a little worried, he tried to manipulate his elements and realized how easier it was for him to do so now. In the Chaos Space, it was at least three times harder to manipulate the elements, but now, it was like he was in the normal world. In fact, it was easier than when he was in the normal world. The merged form of the chaos and origin energy was even more powerful than he expected. But there was something else, after consuming part of the origin source, the chaos orb was more active, it was more domineering and powerful. Grey explored the Chaos Space a little longer, but with his objective being a total failure, he left the Chaos Space after a while. Before leaving, he didn¡¯t forget to visit the sun, and just as he speculated, the small part of the origin source he consumed was there. He didn¡¯t know what to feel about this situation, the origin source was originally something that everyone in the Aurora Continent connects to, even he connected to it when he was breaking through to the Elemental Venerable Plane. But now, he has absorbed a portion of it. Grey left the Chaos Space and went in search of Void, he recalled that he had a few devices that could be used to check elemental grades. Void gave him one in exchange for getting the answer to what happened. He has been traveling with Grey since he was born, so amongst everyone, he was the one who could say he knew him the most, he was certain that whatever happened had to do with Grey. 1277 Chaos Is Coming Grey took the device and just when he tried to test his elemental grade, the device imploded. He looked at his hands in shock, unsure of what to feel. For some reason, he was certain that his elemental grades had increased, but there was no way for him to confirm it since he couldn¡¯t check it. Apparently, the second the energy enters his body, the chaos orb automatically reacts, destroying it. It was a strange situation, and there was no way he could control it. ¡®Looks like I made it more arrogant.¡¯ He chuckled internally. There was nothing he could do, since the chaos orb didn¡¯t want him to check his elemental grade, then he would just let it be, besides, since getting to the Sage Plane, his elemental grades hasn¡¯t affected his strength much, the only time it is effective is while he was using his domain. With a better elemental grade, he could make his domains stronger. ¡®I wonder why I¡¯m getting this feeling.¡¯ He recalled the feeling he got when he was consuming part of the origin source, although it was vague, he sensed there were not only eight elements. After a while he gave up on it, there was no need to think too much about it. Grey walked over to the others who were seated outside the house. ¡°What¡¯s the plan now? I¡¯m done with my training.¡± ¡°Hmm, we should start our journey then. I believe after what happened, there will be unrest in the continent.¡± Klaus responded after giving it some thought. Grey nodded, ¡°I should get Arya and her brother settled first before leaving.¡± He decided to tell Arthel to watch over them. Arthel was an Elemental Venerable expert, he was more than enough to take care of the duo. Arya¡¯s brother is naturally too weak to be taken into the Dawson Family, if not, Grey would¡¯ve told his parents about it. He went over to meet up with his parents and then told them of their upcoming journey. Lucas was in support of it, Martha, not so much. She felt with the seal weakening, Grey would be in danger from the Gnomes who would most definitely start to attack soon enough. It took a bit of convincing, before she agreed to let him go. Being the top expert she is, she decided to give Grey a few things that he could use in cases of any emergency. Grey took them and left with his friends. ¡­. The Dawson Manor. In a secret room. ¡°What¡¯s going to happen now?¡± ¦Ñ¦Ánd¦Ásn¦Ïv¦Ål.c¦Ïm ¡°I don¡¯t know, but I sensed a top expert from the Gnome race entering our world.¡± ¡°Chaos is coming.¡± ¡°We¡¯ll be ready for it.¡± ¡­. The entire Aurora Continent was in an alert state. The phenomenon that occurred stirred something in the Continent that had been sleeping for a long time. Deep in one of the forests in the Aurora Continent. A group of people could be seen gathered. ¡°The seal is weak now, we should attack now.¡± ¡°No, they are all alert and ready to defend. If we attack now, we will wait until they let their guard down.¡± ¡°Strike while it¡¯s hot.¡± ¡°This is why your entire group was demolished, you never think with your head.¡± ¡°Say that again.¡± ¡°You¡¯re a moron.¡± ¡°Settle down. I just received information that someone has slipped through the portal.¡± While two from the group were arguing, an old man walked into the room. Everyone shut their mouths as the man walked in. ¡°Are we going to receive this person?¡± One of them asked. ¡°I¡¯ve sent out word, the person will come here on his own.¡± The Old man said slowly, his hands slightly on his chin. ¡°To be honest, I¡¯m more interested in what caused the phenomenon.¡± He added. ¡°The origin source was messed with. It seemed to have been oppressed by something stronger.¡± One of the men said. ¡°A part of the origin source has been taken, I can fill it.¡± The Old man¡¯s words shocked everyone. ¡°Impossible! How can the origin source be taken?¡± Someone spoke up. ¡°Not all, just a little part of it.¡± The Old man smiled, ¡°There¡¯s someone who can take the origin source, and I want to know who.¡± The Old man looked at everyone present and their eyes were serious, they understood the implications behind the words of the Old man. If there is someone who could take part of the origin source, that person would be a heaven-defying figure. With such a person present, it would be very dangerous for them. There¡¯s a possibility that it might even be the work of a True God. That¡¯s the only possibility they could think of, locating the origin source is something that is deemed impossible for them. Other than when breaking through to the Elemental Venerable Plane, an Elementalist could barely get the opportunity to have contact with the origin source again. Now, there was someone who took parts of the origin source in the Aurora Continent. ¡°Could it be the work of one of the True Gods from the Gnome race?¡± Someone asked. The possibility of this being what happened was very high. However, they felt like if they were the ones who did it, they would¡¯ve attacked the portal at the same time too. The Old man squinted his eyes and said, ¡°I believe it¡¯s one of the young geniuses.¡± The others looked at him shocked. ¡°It¡¯s just my thoughts, I feel only one of those youths who is daring would dare to do something like this. Even I would be scared to do something like this if I had the chance.¡± The consequences that could come with messing with the origin source is something all the top experts would be wary of, but a youth wouldn¡¯t be bothered with all this, and would just try out his luck. The more the man thought about it, the more he felt like it was what happened. ¡®I wonder how this person has improved.¡¯ He thought to himself. The Old man and his group continued speaking with the others when a shadow entered the room. ¡°You found us so soon.¡± The Old man didn¡¯t need to look, he could already sense the presence of a top expert. ¡°You didn¡¯t make it hard to find you.¡± A voice came from the shadow. ¡°What¡¯s the plan?¡± The Old man asked. ¡°Nothing for now.¡± The voice said, it looked at the people present and asked, ¡°Is this all that¡¯s left?¡± ¡°No, there are some in different places. You know we can¡¯t all be gathered in one place.¡± ¡°Alright, send out words to the others, find the boy called Grey, and kill him.¡± There was silence in the room, then the voice spoke up again, ¡°No wait, don¡¯t kill him, I need him alive.¡± ¡°What¡¯s so special about this boy?¡± The Old man asked. ¡°Let¡¯s say, he¡¯s someone who can make life hell for all of us.¡± The voice said. ¡°Don¡¯t just send the word out to kill him, gather the others, we should prepare for war.¡± ¡­.. This wasn¡¯t the only place conversations like this are taking place. Everyone was curious about what happened to the origin source, while the top experts were more concerned about who was bold enough to take a part of the origin source. It was something that shouldn¡¯t have been possible, yet it is. The search for the person who could do this was one, while the search for the expert from the Gnome race who entered the Aurora Continent was also on. They couldn¡¯t give the Gnomes the chance to get a good strong hold in this place. They already had necromancers who were making things difficult, if an expert of this level were to unite with them, it isn¡¯t something they would want to happen. Unknown to them, the figure had already met up with the necromancers and was even preparing for war. ¡­. The border of the Western Region. Grey and his group looked at the town in front of them. ¡°The Middle Continent is somewhere we will have good fun.¡± Klaus smiled. ¡°There are top Families and Factions there, we shouldn¡¯t get into too many troubles.¡± Grey looked at Klaus. He already had an enemy there, luckily, he also had an ally. He didn¡¯t mind visiting the Burchard Family if he went to the Middle Continent. According to the plans of the group, they would go to all five Continents within six months, and train on the way. It would be a great way for them to spend time together. ¡°Don¡¯t worry, I believe I can make a few friends, with my brains and your face, we should be good.¡± Klaus wasn¡¯t bothered with Grey¡¯s words. Grey knew Klaus didn¡¯t even think much about what he said. Either, there was no harm in warning him. With that, the group walked into the city, heading to the Middle Continent. This would be Grey¡¯s second time coming here, and this time, he didn¡¯t want to be in a near death situation. Chapter 1278 Dont Leave The Faction Grey and the group crossed through the border city and entered the Middle Continent. This was the first time the others were entering the Middle Continent, and from the onset they sensed the massive increase in the elemental essence around them. "I should''ve joined a top Faction here." Klaus said admiringly, "Do you think my Faction Leader would be upset if I joined another Faction now?" "She will most likely want to beat you." Reynolds replied. "So long as she doesn''t kill me, taking some beating seems worth it." Klaus replied with a cheeky smile. "She won''t kill you because there are others in the Faction who would do her the honor." Alice rolled her eyes. When Klaus thought about the number of people that wanted to get their hands on him, he shuddered. He might be a friendly person, but that was with people he sees as friends, if he doesn''t like any individual, he shows it in his words and actions. And given Klaus'' big mouth, he will definitely make the person hate existing with a few sentences. Grey knew someone who wouldn''t mind beating the crap out of Klaus, the young lady he saw when he went over to meet Klaus. She was originally stronger than Klaus, so she was able to put him in his place then, but now, she was weaker and Klaus was taking full advantage of it. She has been driven to cultivate harder, just due to the sheer pressure she was getting from Klaus who was making life in the Faction a living hell, well, not that much, but he was doing his best to annoy her any chance he gets. Grey took another glance at Klaus and shook his head, "Where are we headed? I don''t know too many places here, so there''s nothing I can do about suggestions." "We''ll go where the wind takes us, you know we''re just exploring, and we only have about two weeks or so to spend here before leaving." Klaus said. Grey and the others didn''t have any complaints with Klaus'' suggestion. The group followed Klaus'' words and moved in another direction, since they didn''t plan on heading back to the Western Continent, they faced another direction, hoping to go to the Northern Continent next. There were a few rumors they had heard about that place and they didn''t mind spending a longer time there. ¡­. Time went by slowly. While the group were exploring the Middle Continent, trouble was brewing in other places. The short time that the origin source was enveloped, a few things were put out of place. More secret realms started to appear across the entire Aurora Continent, and most of them were war-torn and chaotic. When some people went over to explore these new realms, they were met with shocking scenes. Only a few of them seemed to be in a normal state, but these ones were not of any use. For some reason, a few top experts feel like these places only appeared as a means of escaping the Gnomes. There was also a top expert who escaped from his imprisonment due to the event. Grey had no idea that the idea that came to him would bring so many unforeseen events. Dawson Manor. Grey''s grandfather and a few Elders in the Family were seated. "This is getting out of hand, why are they attacking more viciously?" One of the Elders said. "Well, they don''t seem to have any problems with what happened. That means they are either necromancers, or closely related to the Gnomes." Another man said. "That''s a bold statement to make. Even if we have problems with them, accusing them of being with the Gnomes is not something we should say so casually." An Elder said. Grey''s grandfather, as well as Lucas were both listening to the words of the Elders present. The present Family Head turned to Lucas, "Brother, what do you have to say about this?" A few of them felt the Gnomes would target them sincs Grey was from the Dawson Family. The fact that they placed such importance on his head showed just how angered they were with what he did. Lucas turned to his brother, his face expressionless. "I have nothing to say about this. A few people have come in hopes of being allies, I see no reason why you''ve refused all of them." "That place belongs to us, only we have the right to enter." The Family Head said with a cold expression. "With an ally, we can ease the pressure on us. Don''t tell me you aren''t aware of this." Lucas looked at his brother. His brother snorted coldly, "You can''t possibly say we should listen to the suggestions of a child. We''ve sacrificed so much to gain complete control of that secret realm, we''re not giving it out just like that." "And you''re willing to let more people die due to your pride?" Grey''s grandfather spoke up, looking at the duo. The Family Head wanted to speak, but seeing the person who spoke up, he shut his mouth. "We will follow Grey''s suggestion, ally with one or two top forces, that should be enough to force them off our backs." Grey''s grandfather said, "We don''t have to give them complete access to the secret realm. Being the ones in charge means we have knowledge of when they enter." Lucas nodded, in agreement with his father''s words. His brother, the current Family Head didn''t seem to like the idea of sharing the secret realm. However, with Grey''s grandfather bringing up such a suggestion, there was nothing he could do to go against it. He snorted coldly, but shut his mouth and listened to the other discussions. The secret realm was not their only problem, no one has been able to locate the top expert from the Gnome race that sneaked into the Continent during the short glitch with the origin source. It would''ve not been too much of a problem, but the seal has weakened, if more top experts were to sneak in, then the Aurora ¡­. Continent was doomed. Not knowing when the Gnomes would attack is not something they wanted. The discussion raged on. ¡­. The Dawson Family were not the only ones who were having a conversation about the missing Gnome expert, other top forces were also discussing what measures they would take against them. The Middle Continent. The number one Faction. Deep in the Faction, a meeting was taking place. "How did he escape?" "We have no idea, he just disappeared." "That''s the first person who defected and joined the Gnomes, how could you be so careless?" The voices in the room were filled with anger. Inside the room, a middle aged man could be seen, before him was a seal which had chains that were on the ground. Beside him were two men who were both in the Elemental Sovereign Plane. They were both in charge of watching the man that was held there, but presently, the man has escaped, and they didn''t know how it happened. "Send the word out, we need to take him down. A Gnome expert sneaked into the Continent, but we still haven''t found him. I feel he has already met with the necromancers group. The person you let escape is more dangerous than the Gnome expert that sneaked in." "Spread the word, the entire Middle Continent will go under inspection, he must be found." "Send words to the top Families and Factions too, we need all the help we can get." The two men nodded and left the place, their faces showed worry. The middle-aged man sighed when he looked around, he didn''t know what to say anymore. The escape of this person was out of his expectations. He was too bothered with the issue with the origin source and finding the expert that came into the Aurora Continent that he neglected this person in his Faction. "Teacher, is there anything I can do to help?" A delicate voice came from outside the room, a young lady who looked to be in her early twenties showed up, her blue eyes glowed even in the daytime, and her long curly hair fell to the side, bringing out her beauty. The middle-aged man looked at the young lady, "Nothing. You should stay in the Faction for the next few days, it might get chaotic." The young lady looked at her Teacher, she nodded, but there was a little hint of rebellion in her eyes. The man caught it and couldn''t help but shake his head. Although this student of his was amazing, she was too impulsive and on a few occasions, she never listened to his words, especially in situations like this. He snapped his hands and a large figure covered the sky, from the shape of it, it was clear to see that it was a Magical Beast. The beast flew down from the sky, still covered by clouds. "Don''t let her out of your sight." The middle-aged man said. A soft growl came from the clouds. Chapter 1279 I Decline Grey and his friends had started their adventure in the Middle Continent, but they were soon met with slight complications, the Continent was in a mess and they could tell that whenever they went to new cities, they were watched during their entire stay there. It has been a week since they entered the Middle Continent, and it has been largely uneventful. They tried asking questions about any place that was worth visiting, but they''ve been given the silent treatment. "Do you think they hate strangers?" Klaus couldn''t help but ask Grey. They knew Grey had been here before. "No, we should visit the Burchard Family, they might be of help." Grey said after some thought. They were close to the place the Burchard Family resided, and since there were some issues, he wanted to see if it was something that might affect them. He was very observant and has noticed that not just them, but any stranger that goes into a city gets to experience these weird inspections. He had been here before and knew how it was like, having to experience such a thing now meant that there was a problem. The group listened to him and headed straight for the Burchard Family. Grey shuddered at the thought of meeting Sylvia once again. She somewhat tormented him, taking him from competition to competition. Although he liked the idea of fighting more to get stronger, he felt that it was just too much. He fought so much that he almost went numb. He fought for so long that his battle awareness became extremely sharp. The last time he saw Sylvia, she was in the Elemental Venerable Plane. Well, she was also in the Elemental Venerable Plane the first time he saw her. At that time, he thought that she was a top expert, only after getting to know how everything works did he understand that she was strong, but that was only for places where the strongest person is in the First or Second stage of the Elemental Venerable Plane. If she were to encounter the current Grey, she would''ve been decimated with a single attack. ''She should''ve broken through by now.'' He thought to himself. The thought of her being weaker than him also somewhat thrilled him, he might be able to get back at her for all the times she oppressed him with her strength. ¡­. The Burchard Family. It took the group a day, but they got there in a very short time compared to the distance they had to cover. When the guard at the gate saw Grey, he was very familiar with the young man who walked around with a cat on his shoulder. According to the information he got, this was the person that helped the Burchard Family acquire the secret realm back. He invited the group into the Family manor and sent them straight to where Grey stayed the last time. Grey didn''t hurry to meet up with Sylvia and the others, after all, he was only wellacquainted with Sylvia, and he wasn''t that close to her, their relationship was a strange one. It didn''t take long before Sylvia appeared before Grey. She still looked the same as the first time he saw her, a young lady who was in her late twenties, beautiful and walking with an air of elegance. "Grey, it''s been so¡­" Sylvia froze mid-sentence, the reason for that, Grey''s current cultivation stage shocked her. The last time she saw Grey, he was only in the First stage of the Elemental Venerable Plane, but now, he had already gotten to the Ninth stage. It hadn''t been up to two years yet, but Grey has already grown so much. She didn''t know what to say, the reason was because she was also in the Ninth stage of the Elemental Venerable Plane, well, she was very close to breaking through to the Peak, but she was still too slow when compared to a freak like Grey. When she saw Klaus who was in the Seventh stage, she didn''t know how to feel. Klaus was someone who caught her attention at that time, the reason for that was because he was standing close to Grey, not just that, but he was the only male in the Moonlight Faction, that alone was enough to tell just how talented he was before he was taken into the Faction. When she thought about it, only Grey grew faster than Klaus. One has to know that Grey was already in the Elemental Venerable Plane at that time while Klaus was still at the Peak of the Sage Plane. ''Just how are they getting so strong?'' She was flabbergasted. Grey was already enough, adding Klaus to the picture almost made her faint. She looked at Reynolds and Alice, and although she felt the urge to heave a sigh of relief, when she thought about the geniuses from their Family, she felt like hitting their heads against a wall. Even the top genius from their Family was only in the Third stage of the Elemental Venerable Plane, and Alice, who looked to be the weakest, was already in the Fourth stage. ''I''ll just take it that they are all freaks. At least, none of them is as freakish as him.'' Grey still retained the top spot of the most freakish person she had ever encountered. For someone that was able to absorb some of her lightning the first time they met, he was very strange. Out of curiosity, she opened her palm and a lightning butterfly appeared, it flew in Grey''s direction, and just like before, only, faster now, it was absorbed quickly. The butterfly wasn''t meant to harm him, just to zap him a little. However, he seemed to be immune to it. "Wow! You can absorb others'' elemental attacks?" Klaus looked at Grey and attacked with a powerful ice snake. "Not this type." Grey waved his hand and casually destroyed the ice snake. Sylvia''s eyes twitched softly, first off, she didn''t expect Klaus, who was Grey''s friend to attack him all of a sudden, then there was also how easy it was for Grey to destroy that attack. Yes, she would''ve been able to destroy it too, but she didn''t think it would be that easy. Thinking about it, she turned to look at Klaus once again. His attack power is stronger than someone in the Seventh stage of the Elemental Venerable Plane. ''What did I expect from a freak?'' She thought with a self-deprecating laugh. "It''s not appropriate to exchange blows here." She coughed softly to bring the duo''s attention back to her. "Grey, we haven''t seen each other for so long, you''ve already caught up with me." She looked at him as she spoke, before unknowingly blurting out,"How?" Grey chuckled when he heard this, "I''ve actually been holding back." Grey''s words destroyed her worldview. She was already dumbstruck by his speed, yet he was saying that he was holding back. If not for the fact that she knew him, she would''ve been angered that he was mocking her. But she believed his words, a hundred percent! Grey looked around and went straight to the point, "The reason we came here is that something seems off in the continent¡­" He explained what they''d experienced so far. Sylvia''s expression turned serious and then she said, "A powerful enemy of the human race escaped a while back, we''re trying to make sure he doesn''t meet up with the other necromancers." Sylvia explained the background of the person that escaped. She knew of Grey''s encounter with the necromancers and also the Gnomes. "You should be careful, even though he has been trapped for a long time, he''s still aware of a few pieces of information, so he will most likely want to kill you if the chance presents itself. Remember, he''s an expert that even your father has to be wary of, don''t think he''s not a problem." Sylvia''s warning made Grey a bit frustrated. He was still being hunted down, now there''s a top expert that might be around the Middle Continent who would kill him any chance he gets. "With your mark, he should''ve sensed you if he''s close to you." She added. "I''ve sorted out the issue of the mark. There''s no way they can sense me" Grey''s words threw Sylvia off her feet. She was with Grey when he was marked, and even with all she did, it was impossible to remove the mark, well, according to what they knew. Even the strongest expert was unable to remove the mark from the body of a genius, yet Grey was saying he had dealt with the mark on his body. "What are you?" She was too stunned to say a word. "I''m Grey Dawson." This was not the first time Grey was getting a reaction like this from someone, so he didn''t worry too much about it. "Can you see my Father, you might be able to help someone very important, if truly you can remove the mark." "I''m sorry, but I'' decline." Chapter 1280 Help Hold The Fort **A.N: The last two chapters has been fixed, reload them. Sorry for the inconvenience.** "Why?" Sylvia didn''t believe didn''t want to help out. "I already have so much attention on me, I don''t want to bring more to me." Grey replied. If he were to involve himself with someone important, just like Sylvia''s words, then it would put him in even more danger. It''s well known that the necromancers have people in top places, if they were to find out that he could not only remove the mark, but could also use it to track people down, it would make them chase him with all they have. He hated being chased, this was why he wanted to kill so many Gnomes in the first place, if he were to be chased relentlessly again, he would lose it. "But, don''t you want to save a life?" "Yeah, I want to save mine. You know of the kill order in my head from the Gnomes?" "Yes, but it doesn''t mean you can''t help this person." "Is the person dead?" "No." "Dying?" "No." "I''m sorry I can''t exchange my life for anyone else, except well, maybe my mother." "What about your friends?" Klaus asked from the side. "Shut up." Both Grey and Alice turned to Klaus, shutting him up. "You know I wouldn''t mind helping, but this will only put me in more danger. I can''t make myself bait so others would be able to catch these necromancers." Grey refused to help out. "You''re not making yourself bait." Sylvia tried to convince him. "Okay, how well do you know this person and the people around them?" Grey asked. Sylvia paused and then got the reason Grey refused to help out. There were a few people that wouldn''t mind selling Grey out just to get some benefits, even from Gnomes. If Grey were to help remove the mark and these people hear about it, once the news reaches the Gnomes or necromancers, it would be over for Grey. Even with such a powerful father, he wouldn''t be able to save himself. Sylvia sighed, the little hope that came to her died instantly when she realized that Grey helping her would put him in a dangerous situation. "My father would like to have a word with you, there have been some issues in the secret realm after you left." "Oh! You know what, I don''t mind entering the secret realm. I might be able to rattle the Gnomes once again." Grey said with a playful smile. "You''ve rattled them enough." Sylvia said with a straight face. When she heard of what Grey did inside the secret realm, she couldn''t believe her ears. However, she didn''t think that was enough reason for the Gnomes to send out a kill order for him. It was said that he almost killed one of the sons of the Emperor. The Emperor has other sons, so there was no way he would want to kill Grey at all costs. Of course they were pissed with what he did, but promising such rewards for a Sage Plane Elementalist was a little too much. "I''m coming." Grey left with Sylvia, leaving his friends behind. "He must have made the place a living hell for the others." Klaus chuckled. "Well, after always being dominant, when someone like him shows up and single-handedly forces all of them to compromise, it is easy to guess how they will retaliate, especially after he''s gone." Alice said. "Hopefully he''s not in any trouble." Reynolds commented. "I don''t think he is, if not, they wouldn''t have called him over so civilly." Klaus squinted his eyes, he took a seat and picked up one of the fruits on the table, eating carefreely. ¡­. In the Burchard Manor. Grey was taken to the Hall. When he entered, a few people were present. Seeing Sylvia walk in with Grey, they were a bit surprised. When they all sensed Grey''s cultivation stage, they didn''t know how to react. They all had a deep impression of Grey, after all, he made it possible for them to take the secret realm back from the hands of the Nether Faction. At the first time they saw him, he was only a Fifth or Sixth stage Sage Plane Elementalist. It has been around two or close to three years now, yet, he has already gone from the Fifth stage of the Sage Plane to the Ninth stage of the Elemental Venerable Plane, catching up with a few Elders present. Even Sylvia who they thought was a shocking genius wasn''t on the same level as Grey. The young man who led the group for the competition, Sylvia''s younger brother, was present. When he saw Grey, he didn''t know what to say. He was at the Peak at the time of the competition, now, he was only in the Third stage of the Elemental Venerable Plane, and he was already advancing pretty quickly, yet, it still wasn''t enough. His advancement speed was a joke in the presence of Grey. "Hello, I heard you wanted to have a word with me." Grey bowed to the Head of the Burchard Family to show his respect. "There''s no need for the formalities. I need your assistance." Sylvia''s father said. "With what?" Grey raised a brow. "Can you hold the fort in the secret realm for a week? My son needs to get something, but unfortunately, the Gnomes are more aggressive, since you left." Sylvia''s father explained. "Sorry about that." Grey apologized. humans. Unfortunately, he was too shortsighted. A smile appeared on his face, "I don''t mind holding the fort for a To be honest, he didn''t think about this possibility. He felt since he was no longer there, the Gnomes would not bother with the other humans. Unfortunately, he was too shortsighted. A smile appeared on his face, "I don''t mind holding the fort for a week. I have some friends who came with me that can help me do that." "Alright, you can head there now." Sylvia''s father didn''t expect Grey would agree to it. He sensed Grey''s strength when he entered the manor and was amazed. When someone came to call Sylvia, the idea struck him, to get Grey to help his son. There''s a special treasure there his son needed, but there was no way for him to get it with his weak strength. The people at the Peak of the Elemental Venerable Plane he sent there were not able to stop the Gnomes, so they were forced to leave. Grey was about to turn when Sylvia''s father recalled something. "Oh, I think your old friend is there too. Remember the prince you humiliated?" When Grey heard this, he smiled in delight. He never thought he would go to this secret realm again, but since the opportunity presented itself, he wouldn''t seat back. Grey went back to tell the others of their trip to the secret realm. Klaus was excited when he heard this. He was already feeling that the Middle Continent was too boring, now, he has the opportunity to accompany Grey in accomplishing something great. Reynolds and Alice were also a little intrigued at the idea of getting into the secret realm. Unlike Grey, they hadn''t been into too many secret realms. Grey was from a top Family, and he had also built ties with a few, so he was more fortunate when compared to others. Before they left, Sylvia told Grey that a few more people would be going in with them. According to what she knew, the Faction Leader of the number one Faction wanted to send his student into the secret realm for her safety. Grey found the timing quite suspicious. But then again, he knew that the Burchard Family allowed people to enter the place, and maybe they had denied others entry since it was too dangerous, but with Grey and his friends attracting all the attention, it was time for the others to go in and search for opportunities. They left the Burchard Manor the next day. When they got to the portal into the secret realm, Grey realized it was the same Elder that was protecting it. "Uncle." He bowed slightly. "Kid, you sure are trouble. Make sure you don''t die in there." The Elder said. He is the one in charge and knew just how many of their talents had died inside there. He couldn''t blame Grey since during the time he was there, he helped them groom a few top talents since they were able to roam freely. "Don''t worry, Uncle. I''ll be fine." Grey smiled. "You should head in, the other group is coming now." "Hmm." Grey nodded and took a step towards the portal, before entering, he turned to look back and saw a large Magical Beast flying over. Even though he hadn''t seen a Dragon all too much, he was able to discern that the Magical Beast approaching was a Dragon. They vanished into the portal. Sylvia''s brother would be going in with the other group. His group didn''t have to put themselves in a tough position. From what he has heard, he could tell just how dangerous it was to travel with Grey in this secret realm. Chapter 1281 Neglected Void Inside the secret realm. Grey appeared in the familiar yet odd-looking realm, he didn''t know what to feel. He was always quite curious about what the part belonging to those in the Elemental Venerable Plane looked like, unfortunately, it was the same. It only had more essence which would produce more treasures. "Let''s move out, I don''t think they want us to travel with them." Grey said to his friends. He let out the bunny leader, "You might be able to get stronger bunnies here for the army." The eyes of the bunny leader shone brilliantly, with a nod of its cute head, it disappeared. "You''re creating an army?" Reynolds couldn''t help but ask. "No, it''s creating an army. It will be good to get more helpers, so I let it do as it pleases." Grey explained. "What if he creates a powerful army and gets out of control?" "Not possible, Void and I can deal with it, right Void?" "Easy peasy." Grey was the first to take a step forward, with his next step, he took others leave? I''ll buy you guys some time." A young lady said. She was in the Mid stages of the Elemental Venerable Plane, the flight and flew in the direction he could sense some activity. ¡­. Not too far from the portal, a group could be seen battling with Magical Beasts. These beasts were all in the Mid stages of the Seventh Rank, all exhibiting frightening powers. "Matt, at this rate, we will not make it. Why don''t you and the others leave? I''ll buy you guys some time." A young lady said. She was in the Mid stages of the Elemental Venerable Plane, the strongest in her group. The others were all in the Early stages which made it difficult for them to match the strength of the Magical Beasts. Even though they had superior numbers, they were still lacking in terms of sheer strength. The young man referred to as Matt, looked at the young lady with somewhat teary eyes. They were on their way out of the realm when they were ambushed by a group of Gnomes, as if that was not enough, the Gnomes lured these beasts over when they realized they couldn''t defeat them. "But¡­" "No buts! Leave now, I''ll follow right behind you." The young lady interjected when Matt was about to speak. Matt gritted his teeth and without hesitation, he took the other four that were with them and was about to leave. "Oh, what do we have here?" A calm voice woke him up from his short moment of hysteria. He didn''t know who the voice belonged to, but for some reason, he not only found it to be familiar, but a sudden sense of safety overwhelmed him. Grey was the first to appear, due to his speed, it was like he stepped out of the void. Behind him, Klaus, Alice, and Reynolds appeared. Void was still on his shoulder, looking at the scene without much enthusiasm. These were only Magical Beasts in the Mid stages of the Seventh Rank, they were not enough to entice him. "It''s you!" Matt exclaimed when he saw Grey. Grey had a face that was unforgettable. Being a male and being regarded as almost beautiful made it easy for him to always leave an impression on others. That, along with the last adventure he had here made him quite popular amongst the people that stayed there. Matt was one of the few people Grey encountered when he was in the lower realm in this secret realm. They were both in the Sage Plane at that time, of course, Matt was already at the Peak at that time. He only met with Grey a few times, but Grey gave him a feeling he had never felt from anyone else. "Hello, I can see your friend is in a bit of trouble, I''ll come back to you." Grey didn''t speak with him, the reason was not because he wanted to hurry to help the young lady, but because he didn''t recognize the young man. From how the young man reacted, it was clear that he knew Grey, unfortunately, Grey didn''t know him, and he didn''t want to be put in an awkward position. He was about to make a move when Alice and Reynolds stopped him. "Let us deal with these things, they wouldn''t stand a blow from you." Alice suggested. Grey didn''t think twice and let them make the move. Alice''s body cackled with lightning all over as she moved straight into battle, Reynolds didn''t see any need to bring out his Elemental Warrior, these beasts might be strong, but not enough to trouble him. There were only three. Boom! Alice was the first to attack, and from the onset, the difference between her and the young lady who was holding the beasts back was seen. Her attack power was superior to that of the young lady, even though the young lady was a stage ahead of her. Reynolds was even more powerful, he sent one of the beasts flying with one attack while cutting off one of the hands of the other one with a clean strike. He looked at the young lady, smiled softly and said, "Don''t worry, we will handle it from here. You should heal up." The short time she spent with the three Magical Beasts, although not more than a few seconds was telling on her, she was injured since she had to stop the beasts from chasing after the others. She didn''t argue with them and left, heading towards Matt and the others. She didn''t know Grey. At the time Grey came here, she was already in the Elemental Venerable Plane and didn''t get to meet him in the lower realm. She was too preoccupied to even hear the reaction of Matt when Grey appeared. Grey and Klaus stood mid-air while Matt and his group were behind them. They watched as Alice and Reynolds pummeled the group of Magical Beasts that had almost taken all their lives. The difference in terms of genius was clear as day. And from what they could sense, they knew Grey and Klaus looked to be the strongest in the group. Void, as usual, was neglected. Chapter 1282 An Exhilarating Feeling! It took the duo a minute or so, but they defeated the Magical Beasts they were fighting with ease, killing all three of them. The young lady, and the young man called Matt looked at the duo in shock. Reynolds was in the Fifth stage, just like the young lady, but he possessed more power. Alice was a stage lower than the young lady, but she was also stronger than she was. One has to know that she was someone regarded as a top genius in the Faction she came from, but in front of the duo, she didn''t stand a chance. She stood in the same spot, staring at the duo, she then turned to look at the two who were standing carefreely mid-air. All she knew was that they came with the duo who helped her out, but she didn''t know too much about them. After calming down, she looked at Matt inquisitively. "That''s Grey, remember him?" Matt didn''t need to explain much, Grey''s name was very popular amongst those who had been in the secret realm for a long time. "The one that caused havoc in the lower realm?" The young lady asked. "The one and only." Matt gave a wry smile. The young lady looked at Grey, who had Void sitting on his shoulder. He looked so detached from the scene, nor did he look like someone who would do something he was being lauded for. Everyone in the higher realm of the secret realm heard of Grey''s deeds, after all, the entire Elemental Venerables on the side of the Gnomes were forced to make a meeting, not just that, but they also sent people down to hunt down this person. However, this person escaped from their hands on two occasions. She never thought she would see that famous figure so soon, neither did she expect that he would already be so strong. Grey always has his cultivation stage hidden whenever he''s in a place like this, but it was easy to guess that he was stronger than the other two who fought the beasts. She was already a Venerable while Grey was still in the Sage Plane. At the moment, just like Sylvia and the others from the Burchard Family, she didn''t know what to feel, but the feeling of inferiority was very clear. Grey was just too much of a monster, making others feel useless. Alice and Reynolds returned. "Took you guys long enough, I thought you wouldn''t be able to finish them off." Klaus mocked. "We don''t have to go all out for these beasts. If they were a bit stronger, then we wouldn''t mind." Reynolds said coolly. When the young lady and Matt heard their words, they almost fainted. They just realized the reason Alice and Reynolds took a minute to kill these beasts was because they didn''t want to go all-out. They didn''t know how to feel while listening and looking at the group. "Come on, let''s head deeper. We''ll encounter better targets there. I also have to visit the Prince of the Gnomes, I feel. He has missed me a lot." Grey chuckled. "Alright, let''s go meet your date." Klaus mocked. Grey rolled his eyes, he turned to Matt and the others, "You guys will be free for the next week or so. Do whatever you want." After finishing his statement, Grey left, not waiting for a response from them. Matt and the young lady exchanged glances. Matt, being a little familiar with Grey, understood the meaning behind his words. "We''re not leaving. This is our chance. Let''s go back to take that treasure we couldn''t." He said to the others. "What does he mean by ''we will be free for a week?''" The young lady asked. "He''s going to meet up with the Prince of the Gnomes, the one he almost killed while we were in the lower realm. According to what I know, they would focus all their attention on him while he''s here. The same thing happened the last time." Matt explained. "Wait, he''s just going to barge into their hideout?" The young lady asked. "Actually, the last time, he killed a few of them when he went to visit the Prince, making the Prince mad with fury. This time, I think there''s another Prince here, the older brother of that Prince. I don''t know what he''s going to do, but I know we''re free and safe. Even the Giant race doesn''t want to mess with him." Matt explained. He looked at the group and his eyes shone, "We''re so lucky to encounter him. With him here, we''re not only safe, but the benefits we can get are unimaginable!" The young lady looked at Matt, not sure why he had such faith in Grey, after all, he was just one man. Well, thinking of the people around him, she still didn''t think they would be enough to rival the entire Gnomes in this place. "Alright, let''s stay for a while. We will monitor what''s happening on his end, if it''s safe, we can go get the treasure we wanted." The young lady was the strongest, so she had the final say in the group. Matt didn''t have any problems with her decision, he was very confident that Grey would be able to draw all the attention to himself, giving them the chance they needed to acquire treasures and grow stronger. ¡­. Grey and his group didn''t go far, they stopped after only a few kilometers. The reason for that was because Grey sensed a familiar aura. "Hehe, Gnomes are around the corner. We should be able to have some fun before we head to their hideout." He laughed softly. "Oh, I forgot you can sense these guys." Alice said. "Alright, bring them out. I wanna beat those guys." Klaus was raring to go. "No rush, they''re coming to us now." Grey smiled, his eyes closing slightly. He was feeling a bit exhilarated. He had missed this feeling, a lot. Chapter 1283 Slaughter In The Secret Realm Grey and his group didn''t leave the area they stopped, they waited patiently, and just like Grey said, the Gnomes walked into them. "More humans, hehehe." One of the Gnomes laughed evilly. "Do you think the others ones are already dead?" Another asked while licking his lips. "Damn! These guys look freakishly ugly!" Klaus exclaimed. Of the group, Grey is the one who has had encounters with Gnomes. The others were aware of them, but they hadn''t really seen them. Grey had seen them on multiple occasions, so he knew just how little they were. "Not all of them look this way." Grey said. His words calmed the infuriated Gnomes, but the next statement sent them hysterical. "But these guys, they are ugly. Even the worst beasts don''t look this bad." He added. "Did your parents reject you guys after giving birth to you, or were they forced to accept you as their children?" Klaus asked while laughing his head off. The Gnomes that came out were five, but they had the number advantage. Two of them were also in the Mid stages of the Elemental Venerable Plane, while the other three were in the Early stages. They couldn''t sense Grey''s cultivation stage, but they were able to sense Klaus'' own. Although they were a bit apprehensive, they didn''t feel any fears. They were Gnomes, the dominant species between the two. They''ve always had the advantage when it came to strength, adding their puppets to the picture, they were even more frightening. Unfortunately for them, they encountered the most freakish entities among humans. Of course, there were also a few who were almost as strong as Grey and his friends in the same stage, but people like that were quite rare, especially for their age range. "Hey, little kid, daddy is calling you, it''s bedtime." Klaus continued messing with them. And the group of five snapped when they heard Klaus'' words. Each of them brought out their puppets, and just when they were about to attack, Grey grinned and said. "Didn''t daddy tell you not to play with dangerous toys?" Before they could react, they were all frozen in fear, their connections had been forcefully cut from their puppets, making them momentarily incapable of doing anything in a short while. That was enough time for Grey and this group to kill them. Internally, they were all screaming a particular name, "Grey Dawson". This was the only person that could do something like this, they''ve heard of it, but they found it difficult to believe. Now, they''ve experienced it, unfortunately, they wouldn''t be able to live to tell the tale. Grey looked at them as they were killed. He didn''t feel anything as he swiped their storage rings away. "Come on, there is more upfront. We should wipe them out." His eyes glowed with a ferocious light. He knew a war was coming soon, he had to do his best to take out as many geniuses as he possibly could. If the opportunity arises, he wants to kill a few Princes. Grey and his group started a clear out of the secret realm, killing any Gnome that they encountered. It was a brutal activity, but not for Grey or his friends, rather, it was for the Gnomes. In the space of twelve hours of entering the secret realm, they had killed over fifty Gnomes. One has to know that the number of Gnomes was superior to that of humans in the secret realm, so they naturally occupied more areas. Grey and his friends would encounter at least one Gnome within the space of a few kilometers. Anyone seen was killed without mercy. Alice and Reynolds were the two who had gotten the most battles, they were the weakest, well, not Reynolds since with his Elemental Warrior he could battle with someone in the Eighth stage, even the Ninth stage. Alice could fight with someone in the Sixth stage, and barely hold her own against someone in the Seventh stage, that was if she used all of her strength, including her Seelie. Reynolds was only using the Gnomes as a means to hone his skills. It got to a point that he told Grey to stop breaking the link between the Gnomes and their puppets so they would be able to get a good battle against them. The battles last for a few minutes, but in the end, they are always victorious. Void and Klaus were starting to get bored since they hadn''t encountered anyone that would pose a threat to Alice and Reynolds, and even if they did, so long as it''s just one individual, Reynolds dealt with it. Void was okay with not getting any action, Klaus was not okay with it. Seeing only Alice and Reynolds fight made him itch and raring to go. Unfortunately, there was nothing he could do. With no choice, he killed a Gnome that was in the Fifth stage with a single attack before the others could react. He pretended like he had nothing to do with it, but the broken ice sculpture of the Gnome was glaring evidence against him. No one bothered with him. "When can I join in on the fun, I''m bored." Klaus asked after Alice and Reynolds killed another group of Gnomes. "We''ll tell the next ones we meet to take us there." Grey looked around, and after trying to sense if there were any other Gnomes around, he was disappointed with the results. "Hmm, looks like we''ve killed quite a lot of them." ¡­. While Grey and his group were thinking of how to get to the Gnomes. In a large castle. A large group of Gnomes were gathered, they looked a little worried. The reason for this was obvious, over fifty people seemed to be missing. Normally, they wouldn''t have noticed this early, but when a few people tried contacting their friends, they noticed that they were not responding. More people started to try to communicate with their friends, and while a few were able to reach out, a lot were not able to respond. It meant one thing, they were dead. 047ef5dfb388ead907809d215fe9f4a46e50a676d655d0086bb133601c1bb6e6 Chapter 1284 Traumatized Gnome Prince "Why does this sound familiar?" In the castle, one of the top figures seated asked with a curious face. For some reason, he felt he had experienced something like this before. It took only a second for him to recall why it felt so familiar. "Could it be him?" His eyes widened. He didn''t want to believe it, but he didn''t feel there was another human that would be bold enough to do something like this. "Stop associating everything with that fellow. He wouldn''t dare to step foot into here." Another one of the Gnomes said, looking at the figure who just spoke in disdain, "Little brother, you have so much to learn." The Gnome referred to as little brother was none other than the Seventh Prince from the Gnome race. He still dreamt of the horrors he faced when he was bullied by Grey. His father, the Emperor placed all the blame on him, and was even more furious when they were unable to get him, even after getting to the Elemental Venerable Plane. "I don''t think one person is capable of achieving such a feat. It must be the work of a group. Find them, I want to see who is bold enough to attack us." The elder Prince said to the people present. They nodded and all left the castle, leaving only the Seventh Prince, the elder Prince, and a few others who were in the Late stages of the Elemental Venerable Plane. "Brother, if he''s the one, then this isn''t a wise decision." The Seventh Prince warned. "Don''t worry, even if it''s him, he isn''t invincible." The elder Prince looked at his younger brother in disgust. He was the Second Prince, and was almost ten years older than the Seventh Prince. He didn''t think much of his younger brother, after all, they were opponents when it came to fighting for the position of future Emperor. Although the others were older, the Seventh Prince was quite talented, hence giving him some chance against the others. It had only been around two years plus, but the Seventh Prince was already in the Fifth stage of the Elemental Venerable Plane. The Second Prince has been in this place for almost eight years, and he was only at the Peak of the Elemental Venerable Plane. At the current rate the Seventh Prince was advancing, there''s a good chance that even if he doesn''t catch up to him while he''s still in the Elemental Venerable Plane, he would definitely catch up to him in the Elemental Sovereign Plane. The Second Prince didn''t think too much about what the Seventh Prince was warning him about, if Grey was in the Sage Plane at the time he caused his younger brother''s trauma, he should at most be in the same stage as his younger brother or weaker. Well, from what he heard, then he should be weaker. He would be able to beat his younger brother, much less someone that is weaker than his younger brother. ¡­. While the Seventh Prince was a little worried about the mysterious killer being Grey, the Second Prince didn''t care about it. Grey and his group cared even less about what they thought. After almost two hours of not encountering any other Gnome, they finally met another one, this one, was one Grey was all too familiar with. This Gnome was the other Gnome that tried attacking him in the lower realm. "It''s you!" The Gnome was stunned beyond words. "Of course, how are you doing?" Grey asked with a smile. When he sensed the Gnome''s cultivation stage, he shook his head in disappointment, "Still in the Fifth stage." The Gnome was taken aback when he heard Grey''s words. He didn''t know why Grey would tell him such a word. "I''ll enjoy killing you. The rewards placed on your head is very tempting." The Gnome didn''t think too much and charged at Grey. Since he was aware of Grey''s ability to cut off their links to the puppets, he didn''t try to bring it out, he just felt there was no need. He attacked, but to his surprise, he was sent flying with one attack from Grey, who stopped the others from intervening. "Now, tell me where your hideout is." Grey walked over to the Gnome who still hadn''t been able to comprehend what just happened. He didn''t know when Grey attacked him. "You¡­ how did you do that?" He asked in shock. "What?" Grey asked and punched out again, "This?" The young man was sent flying once again. He wasn''t even able to defend himself. Grey appeared in front of him and attacked once again, asking the same question, while punching him. After he was done with his Gnome punching bag, he stopped and finally focused on what he wanted to find out. "Oh right, where is your hideout located?" He forgot to ask the important question because he was too caught up with beating the hell out of the Gnome. The Gnome didn''t understand what was happening, he had been beaten black and blue, yet he still couldn''t understand how it was possible. Yes, he wasn''t able to defeat Grey the last time, but it was all due to the short time he could spend there, not because Grey was stronger or anything. Now that they encountered each other again, he couldn''t even defend himself against Grey. It was unfathomable to say the least. "Not answering? Alright, I''ll just kill you, there are others who would give me the answer I want." Grey said before sending the Gnome flying once again. While the Gnome was still mid-air, Grey appeared, on his palm was a little mass of destructive chaos orb. A great sense of crisis rose in the heart of the Gnome and the opened his mouth, unfortunately, it was too late. The orb touched his body, and compared to the usual large commotion, there was no noise. The body of the Gnome disappeared within a second. Grey sighed, but he soon sensed other Gnomes coming towards their area. It seems the slight noise from their battle alerted those close by. Chapter 1285 Will You Believe If I Said No? Grey took a look around, since others would be coming soon, he didn''t need to leave, what he started to do was to create a few chaos orbs, while also creating a large array he wanted to use to seal the area, making sure the noise from the battle wouldn''t alert too many people. He still had to be wary of the Giant race. The only reason he was this carefree about the Gnomes was that he had their weakness on the palm of his hands, so they couldn''t fight with their full strength. If the Giant race were to start helping them out, it would be catastrophic for the humans in there. His group wouldn''t have any problems with dealing with the Giants, but the others would be in so much danger. "How come we haven''t seen any of those people from the Giant race you spoke of?" Klaus asked while getting ready for the upcoming slaughter. Grey spoke of another race being dominant here, and even though they had spent more than half a day here, other than Gnomes, they hadn''t seen any other foreign race. "It''s best we stay out of their way. I don''t think they would condone being threatened. We are already enemies with the Gnomes, adding the Giants to it wouldn''t be a wise choice." Grey said. "Who said I wanted to make them enemies?" Klaus looked at Grey oddly, he then added, "I''m just curious about them, that''s all." Grey took a glance at Klaus, not wanting to believe his words. Klaus was a certified troublemaker, and he didn''t want anything that would cause more trouble for these people that are present in the secret realm. He already felt bad that because of him more of those who ventured inside faced an infuriated Gnome race, the Giant race was still out of their way, and that was something he wanted to stay that way. "If only we could seal the other two portals." He sighed. He did attempt to seal the portal of the Gnomes, but to his shock, no matter how hard he tried, he wasn''t able to and with a simple push from the other side, his seal was broken. It was something he didn''t have too much of a high hope for anyway, so he wasn''t too disappointed. "Come on, let''s get ready." ¡­. While Grey and his group were causing a commotion in the secret realm, drawing all the attention to them, a few people were moving carefreely in the secret space. The son of the Burchard Family Head, as well as the young lady who was the student of the number one Faction Leader. "Are you telling me just four people took away all the Gnomes?" The young lady couldn''t believe her eyes. The son of the Burchard Family Head gave a wry smile, "I know it''s hard to believe, but yes. Actually, the Gnomes are more focused on a certain individual, Grey Dawson." "I believe you''ve heard of him." "Hmm, the one that has the kill order on his head?" The young lady asked after some thought. "Yes, that one." The son of the Burchard Family Head nodded, he started to explain what happened during the last time Grey was in this secret realm. Obviously, he didn''t have all the details since only Grey and the Gnomes knew all that transpired, but a few did know a few things, and even heard of how Elemental Venerable risked getting killed by the force just to take Grey''s life. No one knew if they were able to find Grey, but it was clear that they were unsuccessful in taking his life. The young lady was marveled by Grey''s words, not sure of what to say about such a daring figure. "But I still find it strange that we''re given such free reign to move as we like. I recall how difficult it was to even locate the place, much less attempt to take it." The young lady sighed. She was in the Seventh stage of the Elemental Venerable Plane, younger than Grey and his group, and was highly valued by the number one Faction Leader. She was a Multi Elementalist, with very high elemental grades. From young, she had been taken into the number one Faction and groomed by its Leader. There were a few rumors which stated that she was the daughter of the late Faction Leader, hence her high status, but there was no way to verify that claim and the present Faction Leader hasn''t spoken a word on where he found her. The son of the Burchard Family Head didn''t speak much, he decided to focus on their mission. They were lucky Grey came at the time he did, and with his help, they would be able to get what they needed without having to face too many dangers. He knew Grey wouldn''t make the entire realm completely danger-free, but at least drawing most of the attention to himself was enough for the others to be safer. ¡­. Grey had no idea what was going on in other places of the secret realm, at the moment, he was more concerned about the people standing in front of him. This group numbered over fifteen, something that was out of his expectations, and five of them were already in the Late stages of the Elemental Venerable Plane. ''Void, you will help out this time, I don''t think we can do this alone. Well, unless they foolishly bring out their puppets.'' Of the fifteen people present, none of them knew Grey. "Are you the group killing our people?" One of the Late stage Elemental Venerables asked. This person was a lady who looked well over thirty, she was in the Eighth stage of the Elemental Venerable Plane. "Will you believe me if I say no?" Klaus asked with a friendly smile. In front of him lay a Gnome''s corpse. Grey didn''t even know when and how Klaus managed to obtain the body of a Gnome. Seeing the corpse in front of Klaus, the lady got the answer to her question. Chapter 1286 You Asked For It The lady attacked the second she saw the corpse in front of Klaus. They were searching for this group, and she wanted to kill them and get rewarded. Klaus chuckled and glanced at Grey, giving him a smile before charging forth. He had been dying for some action, and the chance had finally come for him to show his strength. Grey smiled, knowing this was something Klaus had probably been waiting for a while now. The lady didn''t bring out her puppet, which he found odd, but he didn''t think too much about it, attacking as well. Reynolds brought out his Elemental Warrior, this wasn''t the time to hold back, their opponents were quite popular, and given the number advantage they had over them, he wanted to make sure he was at his strongest. Alice''s Seelie appeared beside her, "Time to fight." The Seelie merged with her, and her strength shot up. Given her usual strength, she had no issues fighting those in the Seventh stage, even though her strength only got up to the Sixth stage. She was a genius who could fight across stages, so fighting against someone in the Seventh stage wasn''t a problem for her. The lady wasn''t the only one who attacked, the others by her side attacked as well. The group of fifteen had a few people in the Late stages, and only about five were in the Early stages. Grey and his group were outnumbered, but with Grey''s inscriptions, he managed to completely neutralize those in the Early stages. They were more focused on defending and couldn''t involve themselves in the battle. Alice, with the help of her Seelie, managed to hold down two Mid stage Elemental Venerables. Reynolds held down four on his own, leaving the rest in the Late stages for Grey and Klaus. Grey was the one who took on most of the pressure, after all, he was the strongest. He was fighting against three people who were all in the Late stages. Klaus was fighting against the lady who was the strongest person in her group. She was in the Eighth stage of the Elemental Venerable Plane, and Klaus was in the Seventh stage. Their first class was a draw, her attack wasn''t able to cause any harm to Klaus since he was able to easily block it with an attack of his own. Boom! "Fuck it! I need help!" Reynolds screamed for help, he was stronger than the people he was fighting against, but he was outnumbered, and the people he was fighting against were all in the Sixth stage, making it even harder. Alice was in a tough spot and couldn''t help, Klaus was the only one fighting a single opponent, but his opponent was too strong, if he dared to take on another opponent, he would be badly beaten by them. Grey was already fighting against three people, all in the Seventh stage, while also controlling his inscriptions to deal with those in the Early stages. Technically, he was fighting eight people at the same time since he had to share his focus. But there was still someone who hadn''t made a move yet. ''Void, take out that person. Be discreet, I''ll send out an attack to make it look like me.'' Grey didn''t want the lady and the others they were fighting with to know that there was still a powerhouse hidden from sight. He sent out a punch in the direction of one of the people Reynolds was fighting with. The punch looked ordinary, but everyone could sense the power behind it. It suddenly vanished, and before one of the men fighting with Klaus could figure out what was happening, a small hole appeared in his chest, killing him in the process. The man and the others with him couldn''t understand what just happened, all it took was a single attack from Grey and he was able to kill the man. The man was a Sixth stage Elemental Venerable, they all sensed the attack after Grey unleashed it, even if it was a threat, it shouldn''t have been able to take the life of the man in such a manner. "How did he do it?" Someone blurted out worriedly. Grey was able to kill one of them casually, they naturally had every right to be worried. Grey didn''t speak, he knew it was all thanks to Void who amplified the attack. He focused on the battle before him. The trio he was element, while one had the fire element and the other the wind 10:36 fighting consisted of two Multi Elementalists who possessed the fire, earth, and wind element. They both possessed the earth element, while one had the fire element and the other the wind element to complement the earth element. "Bring out your puppet if you know you don''t want to die." Klaus screamed while fighting with the lady, neither of them had the advantage, but he was the one whose voice was the loudest in the scene. "Don''t say I didn''t warn you! Now that I''m still going easy on you, take out your puppet so I can have a proper fight." Seeing the lady unresponsive to his words, he increased his strength a notch, a small moon appeared on his back, and for the first time, there was a clear advantage in their battle. Klaus pushed her back for the first time. The expression of the lady changed softly, she couldn''t believe Klaus was stronger than she was. Klaus flicked his nose lightly, "Come on, I''m getting bored here. Can''t you do something interesting?" He attacked once again, forcing the lady to retreat. She tried to match up with him as she had previously done, unfortunately, she noticed that her attacks seemed useless against Klaus, they weren''t even able to stop his attacks. She was getting completely overwhelmed in the space of a few seconds. "Guys, stop playing with them. They''re no fun, the others were more entertaining." Klaus''s words infuriated the group they were fighting. It was as if he was taking them for some toys he wanted to play with, now that they were no longer fun, he wanted to do away with them. "You asked for it." The lady shouted, infuriated. Chapter 1287 Wheres Your Big Mouth? Klaus looked at the lady as if she was a moron. He was obviously riling her up, but she couldn''t see it because she was clouded by anger. This was one of Klaus'' greatest abilities, making his opponents lose control while battling. He didn''t want the battle to last for a prolonged time. As much as he wanted to enjoy the battle, he didn''t want a scenario whereby more Gnomes would be drawn over and they would have to run with their tails between their legs. They are the ones who should chase people away, not the other way around. Grey was pleased internally, but his expression changed softly, the reason for this was because only the lady brought out her puppet. If the others didn''t bring out theirs as well, it would be difficult to take them all out at the same time. At the moment, if any of them tried to escape, the chances of that happening were pretty high. They had more people, so as long so they went different ways, it would be impossible to keep all of them here. ''Void, can you keep all of them here?'' He asked telepathically. ''No, only a few. If those you''re fighting with want to leave, it will be difficult for me to stop them, especially with the others assisting them.'' Void shook his head. He doesn''t like overestimating himself. Since he couldn''t keep them, there was no use in lying to Grey that he could, or even attempting it. If he were to fail, it might bring unwanted consequences. ''Hmm, I''ll think of a way to deal with these guys, just try to see what you can do.'' Grey replied and continued his battle. The trio he was fighting continued attacking ferociously, he was cool and collected as he evaded and blocked their attacks. ''Hmm, if only they were together.'' He complained internally. He wanted to use his switch skill, but the trio he was fighting against were in three different locations, so if he were to attempt it, it would be useless. He sighed, and with a shake of his head, he continued fighting. An idea came to him and he quickly said to Reynolds. "Send one over, these guys are too weak." Reynolds was obliged, forcing one of them in Grey''s direction. Even though he was now only fighting against three people, he didn''t mind lessening it. If he were to fight only these two, he was certain that he would be able to kill them with ease. "Fuck! Do you want to kill me?" Klaus yelled angrily. "I thought you had a big mouth some minutes ago, where is it?" The lady asked, with a mocking grin. It hadn''t been up to a minute since she brought out her puppet, and the puppet was in the Ninth stage, it was stronger than Klaus, forcing him back, and adding her to the battle made life extremely difficult for Klaus. "Shut up!" Klaus said angrily. The lady was pleased to see Klaus in such a state, "After killing you, I''ll use your body as one of my servants." "If you were a little better looking, I wouldn''t mind being the one bathing you, but with your face, even if I am dead, I''ll never be able to do anything for you." Klaus said, his face showing a look of disdain. "I''ll really enjoy killing you." The lady smirked. She knew she was stronger than Klaus, and wanted to take advantage of it. At the moment, she was wary of two people, Grey, and Reynolds. The lightning element had a little advantage over them, and since Reynolds had a Lightning Elemental Warrior, her puppet wouldn''t be of much use against him, Grey was too strong. She could see how he was fighting against the trio and was still able to kill one person, and also even ask for another person. She also knew that he was the one who was using the inscriptions. Such a person wasn''t someone she could beat head-on, even with the help of her puppet. On Grey''s end. The man Reynolds forced over wanted to rush back, but Grey naturally wouldn''t allow that to happen, so he sent an attack his way, forcing him to stop in place. "Stay." The trio he was fighting with felt insulted by what he did, of course, they knew he was stronger, but they thought they should at least be able to stop Grey from doing as he pleased in the battleground, but it was clear he didn''t put them in his eyes. They attacked, and one of them brought out his puppet. His puppet was in the Ninth stage, which surprised Grey. The man was in the Seventh stage, so having a Ninth stage puppet looked out of place. But he soon understood why, the puppet wasn''t that strong, even for a Ninth stage Elemental Venerable. With a single smack, Grey sent it thousands of meters away from the battleground. The man was furious when he saw it, it was as if he was being humiliated by Grey. Grey smiled, looked at the people left, and started to plot. Void said he could keep those below the Late stages back, which meant that as long as he was able to take out the lady Klaus was fighting with, the trio in the Late stages, the battle would be over since the others wouldn''t be able to escape. One of the trio in the Seventh stage brought out a puppet, but it still wasn''t enough. He turned his eyes to the man in the Sixth stage, and without a word, he vanished. He appeared beside the man and punched him in the direction of the two of the trio. The duo he punched the man in their direction weren''t close, but they were around one hundred and fifty meters apart. Calculating his speed, he felt confident in being able to at least kill one of them with the help of this man. After killing one, if things go as planned, he might also be able to kill the second. Chapter 1288 Klaus Vengeance The man Grey sent flying soon got in the middle of the duo Grey was aiming to kill. They were both Multi Elementalists and the most difficult to deal with, so Grey wanted to use the element of surprise to take out one, or both if possible. While sending the man flying, he had already prepared a chaos orb that had more space essence within it. He switched places with the man the second the man got to the spot he wanted. The movement of the man didn''t spot, rather, he continued moving forward, towards the direction of the single Elementalist that was on the other side. Grey''s plan was simple, kill one or both Multi Elementalists, and also use the momentum to kill the single Elementalist as well. None of them saw Grey''s switch coming, the second Grey switched with the man, he attacked the Multi Elementalist that had both the fire and earth elements. The one with the wind element might be able to react quickly, but this one wouldn''t. The chaos orb already on his palm struck the man in his chest. The sequence was very fast, from Grey switching places to closing in on the Multi Elementalist and also attacking. Everything happened within a second. The Multi Elementalist was still trying to comprehend what happened when he felt a pain coming from his chest. Looking down, he saw a hand passing through his chest, his heart, destroyed. Not just his heart, but he could sense his cores imploding inside of him. He raised his head and saw Grey''s figure. He couldn''t help but look behind Grey, and he saw another Grey, direction of the Multi Elementalist who had the wind element, but that one retreated very quickly. but that one slowly started to fade off, it was an afterimage. Grey didn''t stay there, after attacking, he left, rushing in the direction of the Multi Elementalist who had the wind element, but that one retreated very quickly. Grey knew that even though he could catch him, he would miss the opportunity to take out the single Elementalist, his figure vanished and the man he sent flying with a punch appeared in the place he previously was standing, slamming into the body of the Multi Elementalist he just killed. He appeared in front of the single Elementalist who was trying to understand what happened. The eyes of the single Elementalist enlarged when he saw Grey standing before him with a wide grin. Grey attacked, using the fire element to cut his opponent. The man tried to block the attack, but Grey was too strong for him, his defense was cut in two, and the fire sword continued down, cutting off his arm. "Arghhh!" The man screamed in pain. He didn''t think that Grey would be this strong. Grey kicked him and attacked with a large fire sword that cut the man into two. This didn''t kill the man, after all, he was in the Elemental Venerable Plane. He tried to escape with the upper half of his body, and discarded the other part, but Grey would never let that happen. He took a step forward in the air and appeared beside him, he swung his fire sword again. This time, the man panicked and quickly brought out his puppet. Grey smiled when he saw this. "Klaus, now!" He screamed. The other Multi Elementalist he let go was the one who brought out his puppet, and he was already prepared to cut the link with it. Even the puppet the lady used in bullying Klaus was no exception. The reason Grey hadn''t done any of that was due to Void''s words, but now, he didn''t have to think too much about it, everything was in place now. He cut off the link all three of them had with their puppets and they were momentarily completely vulnerable. Klaus was the first to act, even before Grey. He was infuriated by the lady who was forcing him back. A complete moon glowed brightly behind him, and the air around him turned chilly, anyone standing close to him could see their breaths. He brought out his sword and instead of directly killing the lady, he stabbed her in the stomach, aiming for her cores. With a single attack, he rendered her incapable of using the elements. Grey killed the single Elementalist quickly, he knew that the timeframe before the Multi Elementalist would regain his consciousness was short, so he had to act fast. He appeared before him when he just regained consciousness and attacked. The man was able to put up a defensive wall, but a Seventh stage Venerable, against Grey, a Ninth stage Venerable with attack power on the same level as a Peak Venerable, wasn''t able to do much. His wall was easily broken through by Grey''s fire stream. The attack hit him, sending him crashing into the ground. "Void, do your thing." He said as he flew down to the man who was on the ground. The man coughed up a mouthful of blood. By this time, Grey had completely left the inscriptions, which gave the Early stage Venerables the chance to escape. However, it was too late. Void used his domain to cover the area, completely sealing it. Alice was still fighting with her opponents. Reynolds had killed one, and there was only one left who was trying to escape. She brought out her puppet, but Reynolds made short work of it. Grey left Reynolds alone, he attacked one of the duo Alice was fighting with, distracting him. Alice capitalized on it and was able to finally kill him. She turned to the other one and continued fighting. Grey turned to Klaus, seeing the state of the lady, he couldn''t help but pity her. He saw the wound in his stomach which implied that Klaus had shattered her core, turning her into a Gnome without any elements. He turned his attention to the five Early stages Venerables. To him, they were ants, thinking about it, he left them alone first and turned to the man who helped him achieve all this. The man was still staring at the hole in the chest of his companion, unable to fathom how it happened. Chapter 1289 I Hope It’s Him "Your turn." The man heard a voice behind him that made him shiver. He still recalled the force of the punch he received, how he moved to three different spots was unexplainable to him, yet the monster who did that was standing behind him, waiting to take his life. "P¡­" He wanted to beg, but then he realized how foolish it was. If he was the one in Grey''s position he wouldn''t leave anyone alive, after all, they were mortal enemies, so why should he beg? "Please, make it quick." These were the only words that came out of his mouth. Grey was a little taken aback, but he didn''t mind, he pointed his index finger at the man''s head and a stream of energy entered, with the pure chaos energy merging with his normal essence, his essence was a force to be reckoned with. The man died after this movement from Grey. His eyes were open, there was no remorse or sadness in them, just a blankness. Grey didn''t need to look at the corpses, he burnt the corpse there and left the place, heading towards the five Early stages Venerables who were trying to escape. The five were standing in the same spot with flabbergasted expressions on their faces. They ran away a few seconds ago, but to their surprise, they appeared in the same location. They attempted it several times, but it was to no avail. "What''s happening?" "Why can''t we leave?" They were panicking. Grey stood before them with a calm face, he didn''t speak, but his eyes turned pale blue and the bodies of the five of them who uncontrollably looked him in the eyes started to freeze. Their eyes were the first to turn solid ice, before the rest of their bodies started to freeze up. Within a few seconds, they were completely frozen. Grey tapped them on the body and the bodies shattered into smaller bits of ice on the ground. He looked at them, emotionless, before turning to look at his friends who were finishing their battles. Well, Klaus wasn''t fighting anyone, his opponent was on the ground, bawling her eyes out as Klaus mocked her. "Enough, don''t let her go crazy before you kill her." Grey waved his hand and the lady stopped moving. She was a normal Gnome now, he didn''t need to do much to kill her. "You ruined my fun. She annoyed me when we were fighting." Klaus pouted, he looked at Grey angrily, "Why didn''t you do that thing you usually do to their puppets?" "She was the only one who brought hers out, I couldn''t take the risk of letting the others escape. Besides, you were the one who asked her to." Grey shrugged. While the duo were still speaking, Reynolds had already killed his opponent, and Alice was in the process of it. "That was fun, but we should achieve what brought us here. You know we still need to search for treasures." Reynolds said seriously as he walked over. "Don''t worry, we still have time. Besides, it''s not like we can''t stay here for a little over a week." Grey wasn''t bothered with this small delay. He wasn''t too interested in treasures, he had taken too many treasures, and even the origin source. What else did he need? The trio waited a few more seconds before Alice finished off her opponent. "What now?" She asked. "We should head that way." Grey pointed in the northwest direction. "I can sense more of them coming from that direction, so I suppose that''s where their hideout is located." He explained. "Let''s go then, what are we waiting for?" Klaus was the first to move forward. The others followed behind him, moving very quickly. They wanted to take out more of them before getting to the hideout, this was Grey''s plan. The more of them he was able to take out, the better it would be for them when they got to the hideout. From the number of Gnomes they had encountered since they entered the secret realm, he didn''t believe that was all. They had killed close to roughly one hundred or so, but he knew there should be more of them present here. During their journey, other than the first group of humans they met, they''ve only seen humans once, and it was a lone Elementalist who was at the Peak of the Elemental Venerables Plane. Grey presumed the reason he was okay was because he was alone. Traveling alone was safer than in groups in an area like this. ¡­. The Gnome''s castle. The eyes of the Second Prince was serious, there was a small light in front of him, and hundreds of light dots on them, but the dots were reducing at a shocking speed. In some cases, a large number would go off in seconds, while in others, just one dot would disappear. "It''s been six hours, how come no one has reported back?" The Second Prince was fuming! "It''s him." The Seventh Prince said from his seat. "Take a look at the pattern, he''s headed here." He said while pointing at the way the light dots were going off, and truthfully, only the dots in the direction of the castle were going off. "It can''t be him. He dares to show his filthy face here? I''ll kill him in honor of Father." The Second Prince said, his eyes chilly. The Seventh Prince didn''t speak much, he only took a glance at his brother and sat relaxed in his chair. This wasn''t his problem to deal with, it''s his elder brother''s. He hasn''t forgotten the humiliation he had to go through due to Grey''s actions, now, it was time for his brother to face that demon. To be honest, he wasn''t a hundred percent certain, but he was hoping the person coming was Grey. If it was Grey, he would watch as his brother was also frustrated by someone they would normally regard as an insect. ''I hope it''s him.'' Chapter 1290 We Wait "They call that a hideout?" Klaus asked as they looked at the huge castle that rose into the sky. Even a moron would be able to identify that it was the Gnomes'' hideout, there was a large statue of someone there, Grey wasn''t familiar with the face on the statue, but given the way the person looked, it was easy to know the person was a Gnome of high status. "Well, they''ve never been subtle in their ways." Grey said, not too surprised this place was like this. When he also found the hideout in the lower realm, it was almost in the same way as well, but this castle had more majestic designs, giving it a look befitting a king. "Do you think they already know we''re coming?" Reynolds asked. "I guess so. Since people stopped coming from this direction, and the others in the other areas seemed to be gathering there, I guess they could already tell we were coming." Grey replied while still staring at the castle. He had been keeping tabs on the other Gnomes around, he could sense them, so he knew their general direction. From what he was sensing, they were all coming towards the castle, from all angles. "Should we barge in?" He asked the others. If he were alone, he wouldn''t bother about it, but he didn''t want to recklessly endanger his friends. "Don''t worry, we can deal with them from here." Klaus said. Grey took a glance at Klaus, almost wanting to ask if he was the same person he knew. Klaus has always liked things like that, but for some reason, he decided to use his head this time. "Why are you giving me that look? I''m not a moron. Since they already know we''re coming, they must be prepared." Klaus grunted when he saw the look Grey was giving him. "Let''s cut off the others that are heading back." Reynolds suggested. "That''s not a bad idea. It''ll infuriate them even more." Klaus said, he looked at Reynolds and praised, "I see you''ve grown more sensible since the last time we traveled together." "What do you mean by that?" Reynolds looked at him, a little annoyed. "You know, you''ve always been a mo¡­" Klaus paused mid-sentence when he saw the lightning figure standing beside Reynolds, "I mean, you''ve always been smart. But you''ve gotten smarter now." Alice and Grey chuckled when they saw Klaus'' sudden change of heart. "Come on let''s go, what are we waiting for?" Klaus asked the others. They all nodded and went in the other direction, they wanted to make sure they killed as many Gnomes as they could. Even if the Princes came out to fight them, they would''ve taken out most of the Gnomes present in the secret realm. The group left the place they were hiding and headed in the direction Grey was sensing more Gnomes. They didn''t need to do much, with Grey and Void''s help, they were able to seal the area, making sure no ripples from the battle would leak out. They made sure the people were killed in a short time. After killing the ones coming from a certain direction for about five to ten minutes, they left that area and went to another place. The reason for this was so that in case those in the castle sensed them, they wouldn''t be able to set up an ambush on them. ¡­. While Grey and his friends were going around the castle, killing all those moving in the direction of the castle, the Second Prince was on the verge of losing his mind. He had already set up a good ambush, all that was left was for Grey and his friends to show up, however, to his disappointment, they were going around killing people. He noticed that the light dots were going off at different angles, which meant that they were not coming to the castle, rather, they were killing everyone around the place. "How are they able to track them so efficiently?" The Second Prince clenched his fists, almost shattering the throne he was sitting on. His younger brother, the Seventh Prince wasn''t as tense as his elder brother, "There''s only one person I can say is capable of doing this, and it''s him." "Even if it''s him, he''s not invincible." The Second Prince said in annoyance. He hated the fact that his younger brother was right, although he wasn''t a hundred percent certain, but from how easy it was for Grey''s group to take out their people, he believed it must be someone who could cut their links with their puppets. "Find him." He screamed angrily. "You''re only sending them to their deaths. Tell the others not to return, he''s only going to kill them." The Seventh Prince wasn''t in support of the Second Prince''s orders. If more people left, they were only throwing their lives away, there was nothing they could do to stop Grey. At the moment, the Seventh Prince had no idea Grey was with a group, but even so, he still felt that Grey was someone who did things with confidence. He dared to come to the hideout in the lower realm, it meant that there was nothing he didn''t dare to do. "What do you suggest then, little brother?" The Second Prince asked. "We wait, he''ll surely come on his own accord. If I''m not wrong, he''s trying to take out as many people as he can." The Seventh Prince answered calmly. Those in the castle looked at the Seventh Prince, they all knew he had had encounters with Grey, and lost in each of them, even when he got to the Elemental Venerable Plane and Grey was still in the Sage Plane. The Second Prince wasn''t impressed, but he didn''t argue with his younger brother. Since his younger brother was so confident in Grey coming over, they would wait. "Alright, little brother, I hope you''re not wrong. If this enemy escapes, it''s your fault." The Second Prince calmed his mind down and relaxed on his throne. Chapter 1291 Face-Off "No more are coming." Reynolds said after the group had waited for over thirty minutes, not seeing a single Gnome. "I guess they truly are aware of what we''re doing." Grey wasn''t too surprised, he looked at his friends and said truthfully, "Going there will be very dangerous, it''ll be best if I go alone." "I''m going with you. If I go all out, I can use an attack close to the Peak of the Elemental Venerable Plane, I have nothing to be afraid of." Klaus wasn''t going to miss out on such an opportunity. "My Elemental Warrior will give me increased speed, with it, I''m confident I can escape without being a burden to you." Reynolds said. Everyone turned their eyes to Alice, who clenched her fists, disappointed in herself for being so weak. At a certain time, she was the strongest, but now, her friends had all gone beyond her. She was trying really hard, but the others were just freaks. Reynolds was a high grade summoner, so even if she were to be a stage or two above him, it wouldn''t change much. Klaus could be said to have unlimited luck, everywhere he goes, he sees something that''s very beneficial to him. Grey, she didn''t even know what to think about him, he''s just too freakish. Just when she was about to say she wasn''t going, a small cat appeared on her shoulder and her eyes sparkled. Yes, Void was present. At the moment, Void might even be a little stronger than Grey, well, in terms of cultivation stage, he is stronger than Grey. Void also had the space element and was more adept at using it than Grey. "Void will watch over me, you don''t have to worry about me." She said. She might be frustrated, but she didn''t want to be away from her friends. She didn''t want to hear how they made the lives of the Gnomes in the castle. She also wanted to see the reaction of the Prince Grey frustrated the last time, and how he would react to Grey''s sudden appearance. Grey didn''t say anything, he wasn''t the one who told Void to jump over to Alice''s hands. In all honesty, the true reason he warned them about the danger was because of Alice. The other two could handle themselves, but she was just too weak. Since they would be fighting a large group of people, he didn''t want a scenario where he would be bothering himself with making sure nothing happened to Alice. ''Void''s getting smarter.'' He thought internally. If Void were to hear this statement, he would most definitely lash out at him. "Alright, let''s go." He said to the group and they walked in the direction of the castle. They weren''t even subtle with their movements, walking down the pavement that led to the front of the castle. Klaus was walking in a poised manner, looking at everything as if it didn''t mean anything. There were a few Gnomes around, seeing the group of humans walking into the castle region, one of them in the Late stages of the Elemental Venerable Plane charged out, attacking them. His puppet came out, assisting it. Grey saw this and smiled, he knew it was a test to see if it was him, and he couldn''t be bothered with him, without saying anything, the puppet that was a few inches away stopped moving altogether, the same could be said for the man who released the puppet. Before he could get himself, Grey was already in front of him, with only a touch, the body of the man started to fade off. It was a shocking scene, but it also showcased Grey''s immense strength. This was what he came here to do, to intimidate the Gnomes. He knew the Gnomes had a certain weakness to the light and lightning elements, so with the help of both these elements, as well as the space element, he was able to achieve what he just did. Grey looked around, arranged his clothes, and walked gallantly up the stairs leading to the castle door. Klaus swaggered behind him, when they got to the door, Klaus didn''t wait for Grey''s order, he touched the door and it started to freeze up. Creak! Bang! The metal door was completely frozen in only a few seconds, and it shattered. Grey and his group saw the large numbers of Gnomes inside the castle Hall waiting for them. Not just that, but they also saw the ones that were coming from all sides of the castle, surrounding the castle from outside. He smiled, and when he looked at the Seventh Prince, twenty spatial rings appeared and floated in front of him, each ring starting to circle the castle. Although the castle was huge, it wasn''t hard for Grey to control these rings to circle the castle. "Alright, let''s get to business." Grey said to his friends as they walked into the castle. The eyes of the Seventh Prince showed a little bit of apprehension when he saw the rings, he had experienced something like this, Grey passing a ring to him, which almost took his life. If that was the same thing Grey planned on doing, then they were in some trouble. He tried to see if he could sense Grey''s cultivation stage, but unfortunately, he couldn''t. No matter how much he tried, he was unable to sense it. He moved closer to his brother and whispered, "Can you sense his cultivation stage?" The Second Prince had also tried to sense Grey''s cultivation stage when he just walked in, but to his surprise, he couldn''t. He had already sensed the cultivation stages of Klaus and the others, but Grey was like a normal person to his senses. However, he saw what Grey did outside and knew that he had to be careful of someone like this. If he were careless, he might not know what killed him. "Bold of you to walk into my castle." He didn''t show any fear in his eyes, he was a Prince, and he had nothing to fear. Besides that, he was also at the Peak of the Elemental Venerable Plane, and very few people on the same stage as him could defeat him, killing him though, was out of the picture. Chapter 1292 The Two Princes Grey wasn''t too bothered with the words of the Second Prince, he took a glance at the Seventh Prince and said, "I have a present for you." The moment the Seventh Prince heard this, he recalled the last time he tried to take some things from Grey and felt a bit scared. He didn''t want anything from Grey, even if it was something meaningful, he didn''t want it. Grey would not give anyone a gift, especially someone who takes you as an enemy. "What do you have for him?" The Second Prince was the one who spoke up. "Hmm, don''t worry about it, you''ll find out what it is soon enough." The Seventh Prince took a glance at his elder brother, seeing his expression, he shook his head, clearly indicating that whatever Grey had for them was not something they should look forward to. "Why are you here?" The Seventh Prince spoke up, he knew that if they were to leave Grey and his friends to do as they pleased, he would once again camp in front of their portal. This wasn''t what they wanted to see. The first time Grey did this, humans grew more powerhouses compared to before. This time, they didn''t want to take the chance. They''ve always been privy to humans and how they grew, but during the past year especially after Grey, they had zero knowledge about this secret realm, they''ve been lacking information about humans in general. Other than Grey, they didn''t have any other humans in their sights. "I''m here to make a deal." Grey looked around, after seeing that none of them tried to attack him, he smiled softly and re-evaluated the Seventh Prince, anyone else would''ve attacked with their puppets, but against Grey, except the Seventh Prince, no one else knew how to deal with him. "A deal?" The Seventh Prince took a glance at Grey, he didn''t expect that Grey would drop such an offer. After a while, seeing that the group was serious, he replied, "Fine, but you will not attack anyone from our group within that time." The Seventh Prince replied. "Haha, I always knew you guys were scared. Fine, not just that, but we need to spar with some of you, give us a few people and we''re good." Klaus laughed mockingly. Although he knew that the Seventh Prince was afraid of Grey, he didn''t expect it to be in such a manner. The expression of both the Seventh and Second Prince turned sour. They''ve been trying to keep it in all this while, but Klaus'' words made him think about Grey''s advancement indepthly, and unfortunately for him, there was nothing holding Grey from using all his elements. "You don''t want to do this, you''ll only regret it." The Seventh Prince said with Grey standing before them. "I''m not afraid, show me everything you have." Grey replied calmly. The eyes of both Princes changed slightly. Usually, whenever they were facing someone weaker, all that they needed was the rude awakening of reality, but in this situation, they didn''t have the advantage, instead, they were the ones who needed the rude awakening. There was no one who could help the group other than him. Grey stepped up and created an earth wall to block the attack that was coming in his direction. Boom! The attack was destroyed as he looked at the face of the group attacking. "You can''t win." He said softly. "We can win. You''re the one who can''t win." The Seventh Prince had been waiting for his revenge against Grey for a long time now, when the opportunity presented itself, he didn''t even think twice and attacked. Grey looked at the Seventh Prince, he didn''t think much of his attack, with a single move, he blocked the attack and sent him flying in the process. The Seventh Prince who left his area of comfort couldn''t believe his eyes, with a single attack, Grey was able to force him back. This was beyond his imagination. "You¡­ how come you''re stronger than me?" He asked. "I''ve always been stronger, I just wanted to make you feel good the last time." Grey gave a sarcastic reply. There was no way the Seventh Prince was going to know that Grey''s response was sarcastic, he was infuriated by his words. "Elder brother, kill him." He said angrily. "You''re not the one in charge here." The Second Prince said. He took a glance at the Seventh Prince and the himself before coming to a conclusion. "It can''t attack. You already know me, why let your brother bother?" Grey made the puppet the Second Prince brought out useless, but he was unable to attack. The reason he attacked without a care in the word was because he had the others behind him. If he dared to attack without their permission, he was done for. The Seventh Prince was a little apprehensive of Grey, and although the Second Prince didn''t want to carelessly attack Grey, he knew that if he attacked without any help, he might place himself in a bad situation. The Second and Seventh Prince looked on as Grey and Klaus were able to take out all the people before them with ease, they didn''t show even the slightest stress while taking them out. "If this is all you have, then I''ve wasted my time." Grey''s words rang in the ears of the Second and Seventh Prince, but there was nothing either of them could do. Grey was too fast, and keeping up with him was almost impossible. The battle in the castle quickly erupted. Grey and his group were strong, but the Second Prince already had people waiting for them. If not for Grey, the Second Prince would''ve gotten the advantage, but luckily, the Prince didn''t have anyone coming from that area, so Grey and his group didn''t have to worry about anyone. Grey used some of his elements, with his increased essence, he was able to easily show the difference between him and the Seventh Prince, while also sending the Second Prince flying. Chapter 1293 The Two Princes II The Second Prince took a glance at Grey after getting himself back. He couldn''t believe what just happened. He was someone at the Peak of the Elemental Venerable Plane, yet Grey was able to send him flying with just one attack. In his defense, he didn''t expect Grey would attack him in such a manner, and also wanting to make sure he protected his younger brother, he didn''t allow the impact to affect him. Although they were both vying for the same position, he didn''t dare to watch his younger brother die. Knowing his father, he knew that the consequences of such action would be severe. He calmed himself down, took a glance at the others that were in the Hall. Grey and his group managed to force the first few people who wanted to attack back, but there was still a good number of people present. "Look, you came with an offer, and we agreed to it. What''s the meaning of this?" The Second Prince asked coldly. "I didn''t take you guys to be someone who would cower, so it''s either you want to attack me secretly, or you''re waiting for more reinforcement. It''s better I do away with you now, than to wait for you to come back with stronger people." Grey replied coolly. He didn''t believe the words of the Second Prince, only a fool would easily believe the words of their enemies. Gnomes have always taken humans to be inferior to them, so now that they were being forced to do something they didn''t want to, it''s natural they would react in a manner expected by everyone. "Good guess." The Second Prince smiled, there was no need to pretend anymore, to be honest, after testing Grey out, this was his plan. Presently, there were only two more people who were at the Peak of the Elemental Venerable Plane. He wasn''t confident that they would be able to kill Grey, so he wanted to call for more people at the Peak of the Elemental Venerable Plane. If at least eight to ten more people came over, they would be able to easily kill Grey. "Anyone can guess your plans." Grey said. "Since we''re on the same page now, what are we waiting for?" Grey was the first to attack, the orbs outside started exploding the second Gnomes from outside the castle tried to get in. He didn''t need to worry about the castle collapsing, he had already sensed the massive array that was placed here, it would protect the castle and take most of the impact from the explosion. However, those outside wouldn''t be as fortunate as those inside the castle. Boom! Boom! One by one, the orbs exploded, causing the castle to shake from the tremendous destructive power it contained. Grey didn''t stop there, he continued attacking, not just him, but his friends did as well. Alice, with the help of her Seelie, engaged a group of Early stage Elemental Venerables. Even though she was stronger, the group she was fighting numbered over ten. Reynolds'' Elemental Warrior appeared and he merged with it from the start. Attacking three of the Late stage Elemental Venerables. He couldn''t attack more than these three, if he dared to overestimate his ability, he would be left in a bad state. Klaus was the most shameless, he only attacked a group that were in the Early and Mid stages. Yes, he attacked more people, but with his superior strength, he was able to easily overwhelm them. Grey took a glance at the people they were fighting, when he saw the number of people left, he couldn''t help but shake his head. ''Damn.'' He thought internally. Without thinking, he charged into the large group of Gnomes. One of them took out his puppet, and before the Seventh Prince could warn him, Grey had already capitalized on it, killing the person within a second. The explosions outside were still booming, and the impact from the battle inside was resonating in the entire Hall, yet Grey had been able to kill the first person in such a short time. Grey didn''t think too much about it, the person he killed was standing in a group of five, he appeared in the middle and used his space element. A terrifying repulsive energy spread out, forcing everyone away from where he was. Each of the five people were sent flying in areas that had people grouped up. Grey used the switch skill and switched places with one of them, he unleashed a powerful attack there, before disappearing and switching places with another one of the other four. Once he appeared, he attacked once again, using the space element to unleash a destructive attack similar to spatial distortions. The group he hit with this attack didn''t know how they died. They were dead even before Grey changed places with another figure. The two Princes, and a group of seven that were in the Late stages were stumped beyond words. Grey''s efficiency was impressive, they were in awe of his abilities. The Seventh Prince who had already seen some of Grey''s abilities was still shocked. The scene before him was mind-blowing. "You''re watching? Kill him!" The Second Prince was the first to come out of his awestruck state. At this pace, he was certain that Grey would be able to finish off everyone, and they would keep on watching in marvel. It couldn''t be helped, Grey''s coordination was shocking. One has to know that it hasn''t even been more than ten seconds since Grey used the first attack, yet he had already killed more than ten people. It was unknown how many people died outside from the explosions of the orbs. The Seventh Prince was a little afraid, Grey was too strong. Yes, they had more people, but it doesn''t seem to have any effect. Grey was like a fish in water, killing as he pleases. He exchanged glances with his younger brother, and they both showed the same expression, dread. Yes, they were scared of this enemy standing before them. Chapter 1294 He’s Not The Only Threat "We should leave." The Seventh Prince said. "No need. I''ll assist them, there''s no way he can defeat all of us together. He might be powerful, but don''t forget who I am." The Second Prince threw the feeling of fear to the back of his head. The seven Late stage Elemental Venerables that he sent out had already been able to stop Grey from killing anyone else, but there were inscriptions that lit up the sky, attacking anyone below the Fifth stage. Grey wasn''t even holding back, he was killing everyone that he could. The more he killed, the better for them. Klaus and Reynolds had been able to kill one person each. Alice was able to hold the people she was fighting back, which was enough for her. The Second Prince walked forward and joined the group of seven, he didn''t want to return home in the same manner as his younger brother, he wanted to win and show everyone why he should be the next Emperor. Unfortunately for him, his opponent was Grey. Grey might not be as strong as all of them combined, but he was very versatile, and with so many elements at his call, he wasn''t afraid, at most, he would escape. The battle intensified the moment the Second Prince joined in on the fight. Of everyone present, he was the one who possessed the most powerful attack, except for Grey''s chaos orb, nothing else could match his attack power. Unlike the Seventh Prince who had five elements, the Second Prince only possessed the fire and darkness elements. He could use both so perfectly that it was hard to differentiate them. The Second Prince had trained his use of both of his elements to a stage where he could merge both, giving him a blackish flame that possessed the abilities of both the fire and darkness element. It was almost like a special flame, but it wasn''t on the same level as Grey''s blue flames. The Second Prince used his black flames, burning down the earth wall Grey created. The others used the opportunity to attack with their respective elements. Grey used his blue flames to counter, seeing that he was being suppressed, he used his lightning element to force them back. The reason he had been able to fight with them had a lot to do with the chaos energy he merged with the origin source. With both combined, his attack power was more than what he would usually produce. He has always possessed strength equal to someone who was at least a stage ahead of him, adding the merged form of the chaos energy and origin source, his attack was on another level. The Seventh Prince didn''t join the battle, not that he couldn''t, but his strength was minimal. Seeing that he was practically useless against Grey, someone he was at least able to put up a fight against the first time they met, he felt a little depressed. Even Grey''s friends were all stronger than he was, the only person he could try to cause problems for was Alice, not because he was stronger than her, but because she was fighting more people and him joining would count as a means of distracting her. He thought about it and decided to stay put, ready for a quick getaway. To be honest, he was a bit scared of Grey. If not for his superior strength the last time he saw Grey, he knew he would not have survived the encounter. Grey was ruthless, this is something he is aware of. With his meager strength, Grey might just decide to kill him even while being bombarded by the Seventh Prince and the others. Boom! Bang! Klaus and Reynolds were fighting with all their might. It wasn''t easy being in such a brawl, but they were both too excited to care. "Haha, Rey, this is the life!" Klaus yelled to Reynolds after sending someone flying in his direction. Reynolds, in his full Elemental Warrior armor swung his sword at the person, cutting the person with the lightning sword, "Yes! Now I know why Grey''s always traveling. This is fun!" The group they were fighting against felt like they were fighting against two psychopaths. Well, in all honesty, they were not too far from being referred to as psychopaths, especially given how they currently look. They were both covered in blood, it was unknown if it belonged to them or their enemies. Ice spikes rose from the ground, forcing those close to Klaus back. Klaus took the opportunity to move closer to Reynolds and while Reynolds was attacking someone, he created an ice shield behind him. Just after he created the ice shield, an attack hit it, but it stood firmly. This was the reason he was still fighting so comfortably, although he had been hit a few times, his defense was just too powerful. Only someone like the Second Prince could easily break it, and even he would need a few tries. Reynolds didn''t even turn to thank Klaus, the Gnome before him was already injured, this was the reason he discarded his defense and focused on attacking. "You owe me something nice." Klaus used his domain, making the entire Hall chilly. Klaus was not the regular Water Elementalist, his ice ability was far ahead of his normal water ability. His ice contained more raw power, making it a force to be reckoned with. The second Klaus'' domain started to take effect, everyone that wasn''t his friend felt the brunt of the chill. The ground started to freeze up, and even a few people felt like their souls were about to be frozen solid. The Second Prince was alarmed when he saw this. He already felt like Grey''s friends were all powerful figures, but now, he knew that even without Grey, the humans had young geniuses that could pose a threat to them. The only thing was that Grey posed the highest level of threat with his ability to cut off their links to their puppets. Chapter 1295 Each Showcasing Their Abilities Alice, seeing that Klaus had used his domain, used hers as well. Unlike Klaus, she didn''t occupy the entire Hall with it, rather, she used it to form a broadsword and grabbed the handle. The sword was over three meters long, watching her hold the sword, Klaus and Reynolds burst out laughing. Alice didn''t have the largest figure, standing five foot six, the broadsword was around double her size. However, it didn''t change the fact that with the sword in her hands, she looked like the battle maniac she has always been lauded as. On one side of the broadsword was the ice ability of the Seelie, and on the other side was her fire element. The contrast on both sides shocked the people present. She charged into a group, slashing her broadsword at them. With just one attack, she sent a few people flying. The impact of the attack was beyond imagination. Reynolds also used his lightning domain, manipulating it to form a lightning armor around his Elemental Warrior''s armor on his body. Now, there was not a single space left to see any part of him, he was fully covered by lightning. The eyes of the Second Prince almost popped out. When he first saw Reynolds'' Elemental Warrior, he was already stunned, seeing them merge sent chills down his spine, now that he was seeing another form of it, he didn''t know how to react. Grey and his friends were freaks, that''s all he could say. ''Damn it! Where are they?'' He worried internally. After testing Grey out, the small time he chatted with him, he used it to summon the other Peak Elemental Venerables that were in the realm. Sadly, they were not close, so he had to take up the monumental task of holding back Grey and his friends. He thought with their large group, they would be able to do it with ease, but Grey started a killing spree within the first minute. In all of his life, even after being with multiple generals and in a few wars, he has never seen anyone that was as proficient in killing as Grey was. It has to be said that Grey was good at killing, especially when put in such a situation. ''A few minutes.'' He said to himself and just then, the worst happened. He was already having a headache dealing with Klaus'' ice, yet Grey unleashed his domains on them. His fire domain spread out, and it was not the regular fire, rather, it was his icy flames. This increased the speed at which the place was freezing and even those in the Early stages of the Elemental Venerable Plane saw ice forming on their bodies. Grey didn''t just take out his icy flames, but he also made use of his lightning domain. The already weak Gnomes weren''t able to hang on any further and they started to succumb to the chill. The most frightening thing happening to them was that as they were battling, they could sense their consciousness slowly being eroded by the cold. It was only a matter of time before they started to fall down, alive, yet in a coma. Their consciousness frozen, unable to wake up in the nearest future without help from a top expert. "We''re losing more people as the battle progresses, let''s retreat." The Seventh Prince spoke up, although he was not feeling the impact of the attack, he was a little apprehensive. Grey hadn''t used his full abilities, and they had already caused this much damage, he couldn''t help but imagine just how destructive this group of four were. The Second Prince looked around, and with each ten seconds that passed, at least one figure dropped to the ground. "This is our base, we can''t run from it." He said coldly. "We''re not running, we''re only retreating, we will take it back." The Seventh Prince convinced his elder brother. The Second Prince took a look at the place, thinking about the repercussions if all of his subordinates dies, he turned around, and just as he was about to leave. "Don''t worry, you don''t have to leave." Grey said, and to the shock of the two Princes, Grey and his people vanished, Grey left behind a statement, "We''ll come back some other time." Klaus'' irritating voice was also heard from the void. "Don''t forget to give up tea the next time we come. Do you guys have some nice wine?" The Second and Seventh Prince didn''t understand what was happening, Grey and his friends barged in, started a battle, and left just like that, and it was even when he has decided to abandon the castle so more of his people wouldn''t die. "What just happened?" The Second Prince asked, unsure of how to take what Grey and his friends just did. "He came to tell us he''s around." The Seventh Prince replied. This was the same thing Grey did to him, well, in his case, Grey didn''t have any help from these freakish people, so it wasn''t as bad as this one. In this case, Grey and his friends completely wrecked everyone and left. What was worse is that there were people outside who still hadn''t been able to make it inside the castle, he didn''t even know how Grey and his group were able to achieve that. Unknown to them, the array present in the castle was what Grey used to help himself block help from coming in. With a smaller number of people, they would be able to fight to their heart''s content without having to fear being overwhelmed. "This¡­ what¡­" The Second Prince was trying to speak, but he couldn''t put his words together. He was shaken to the core. He had never seen any act of such caliber in his life. ¡­. In a forest some kilometers away from the Gnome''s hideout. Grey and his group were breathing heavily, all gassed out. They might''ve put on a calm front when fighting, but they were tired, Klaus and Reynolds were on the verge of collapsing. "That was fun! Damn!" Klaus exclaimed. Chapter 1296 Cowering Before Humans "What''s next?" Alice asked. They''ve attacked the two Princes, giving them a warning. After the battle, she didn''t feel there was a need to attack them further, except Grey had plans of killing the Princes. The Princes were already scared of them, they would stay put and refuse to leave their zone for the meantime since they didn''t want a situation where they would be attacked by Grey. "I don''t think they will do anything anytime soon, we can just hang around just to be sure." Grey knew the Princes wouldn''t be careless henceforth, and that was what he wanted. With the Princes too afraid to leave, it would make the lives of the others better. The Princes will bring all their powerhouses together, giving humans the chance they need to seek treasures and increase their strengths. Grey took a look at his friends, a smile on his face. To be sincere, he enjoyed the battle, it was both thrilling and dangerous. Any mistake and things might''ve gone bad for them, luckily, everything was fine in the end. Alice and Reynolds were both powerful, Klaus as well, and they didn''t try to fight people too strong. Grey also fought tactically, using his elements to his advantage. His battle awareness was supreme, and it showed itself when the battle started. The manner at which he killed the first group scared the others, which gave him more free reign to continue his wanton killing spree. The Second Prince was the only one in at the Peak of the Elemental Venerable Plane which gave him the edge. With the number of people present, the Second Prince couldn''t attack carelessly, Grey and his group on the other hand didn''t need to bother about anything as they attacked freely. "We won''t be able to get anything good if we stay here." Reynolds said. Unlike Klaus, he wasn''t blessed with infinite luck, Grey was also someone who had Void with him, getting treasures was too easy for him. Him on the other hand needed to go through a lot of difficulty to get just one good treasure, so he was always hoping to take advantage of any opportunity that presented itself. This was a great chance for him to power up, but they were stuck here, making sure others are able to get whatever treasures they needed. "Don''t worry, we still have time. We''ve only been here a day or so." Grey did a rough calculation in his head. He didn''t keep up with time, and this place was a little different from their world. Reynolds took a glance at him before nodding, Grey was right, they still had time. He was only in a hurry to increase his strength. He had also heard the rumors of the upcoming war, he didn''t want to end up being a cannon fodder, so he had to level up as fast as he could. Grey was advancing pretty quickly, the same could be said for Klaus, but himself and Alice were lacking. This was not something they wanted. The the last time, it was thanks to Grey that they were able to step into the Elemental Venerable Plane. He didn''t want to fully depend on Grey, although he didn''t have any problems with that, he didn''t feel it was appropriate, at least, he wanted to get some things by himself. Alice was also in the same spot as Reynolds, so she was ready to start treasure hunting now. Grey took a glance at them and said to Void, ''Contact the bunny leader, we need its help.'' The bunny leader had a lot of subordinates under it, if they could get it to set them as spies, they would be able to move freely, getting the chance to not only find treasures, but also be informed about the happenings in the Gnomes'' zone. ¡­.. While Grey and his friends were discussing on what steps to take next. In the Gnome castle, the Second Prince and Seventh Prince could be seen standing side by side, before them was a group of eight individuals, all of them were at the Peak of the Elemental Venerable Plane. If this group was present when Grey and his friends came here, things would''ve been very different. Grey knew for a fact that with such people present, even with his amazing abilities, he would''ve found it difficult to do everything he did when he came. "Where are they?" The Second Prince asked, his eyes slightly red from anger. He was enraged, Grey came with his friends, killed people and left without any consequences. This was not something he could take, he wanted Grey dead, and he didn''t care what it would cost him. "They vanished without a trace. I tried marking them, but he erased them as soon as the mark was placed." One of the few in the Late stages spoke up. When Grey was about to leave, the man acted quickly, marking them before they left, but to his shock, the mark disappeared almost immediately they were placed. This was a strange experience for him. The Second Prince clenched his fist, gritting his teeth hard. "We can''t let them wander freely after what they did." He said through clenched teeth. "I know, but we can''t leave your side. If he''s as strong as you say he is, then you will be in greater danger once we leave." One of the men at the Peak spoke up. "I survived just fine before you came." The Second Prince took a glance at the man who spoke up. The man didn''t shy away from his gaze as he replied, "But for how long? The castle was almost destroyed, the array was messed with. I think the reason you two are alive is purely because he wanted to leave you guys alive." The Second Prince wanted to speak, but he thought about it and didn''t say anything. The Seventh Prince stepped forward, "So what do you suggest we do?" "We can''t leave them out there, since when do we have to cower before humans?" Chapter 1297 Walking Into A Trap The man looked at the Seventh Prince, "Don''t get me wrong, Prince, they''re going to suffer for what they have done. However, we can''t take the normal approach. Clearly, they are after you two, and if they choose to hide, we can''t find them. If that''s the case, why don''t we force them out?" "How are we going to do that?" One of the men in the Late stages asked. "Simple, slaughter humans." The man at the Peak replied mercilessly. He has always looked down on humans, he could never accept the fact that a group of humans dared to step into their territory and even killed multiple people right in front of the Princes. He didn''t think highly of the Princes after this incident. The Princes could see the changed in the eyes of the man, not just the man, but all those at the Peak who returned. When they saw the situation of the castle, and how many people died, and after finding out it was done by a group of four youths who only had one person that was at the Peak of the Elemental Venerable Plane, they felt irritated. "Since that''s what we''ve come up with, we should execute it then. I''d like to see how they would react." The Second Prince said. The Seventh Prince took a glance at the man and asked, "Forcing them out will warrant us to leave the castle too, wouldn''t it be dangerous?" The eyes of the man who brought the suggestion changed softly, he didn''t think about this part. "Don''t worry, we will be by your side, the others will be the ones who have to carry out this mission." The man reassured them of their safety. "You said he''s the one who can cut off our links to the puppets?" Another man at the Peak asked curiously. The Seventh Prince nodded to the question. "Hmm, he''s too dangerous, we must kill him, no matter the cost." The man said. "Exactly." This was all the Second Prince wanted to hear, how to kill Grey as soon as possible. Forcing Grey out will take quite some time, he wasn''t interested in wasting so much time, the sooner he killed Grey, the better he would feel. "Alright, I have a plan, but it will put the Princes in some danger, don''t worry, we will ensure your safety." The man at the Peak said. "Go on we''re listening." ¡­. Grey and his friends made camp close to the castle, although they were not directly close to the castle, they were not too far from it. Within a few blinks from Grey, he can appear there whenever he wants to. The group stayed there, awaiting the arrival of the bunny leader. Grey knew that with the bunny leader''s help, they would be able to make life hell for the Gnomes while also heading out and getting treasures for themselves. The area they made camp had zero things of interest, if not for the fact that they needed to keep the Gnomes in check, they would''ve never stayed in a place like this. It has been over five hours since the battle and everyone had more or less recovered from the fight. With Klaus present, they weren''t too bored. The bunny leader appeared two hours later. It had been running there with all its speed. Grey released it after they just entered the secret realm, so the distance between them was quite far. ''What do you want?'' The bunny leader asked. It was standing on the head of a larger bunny that was at the Peak of the Sage Plane. Grey looked at it from head to toe before saying, ''I want you to help me monitor the movements of some people. You can communicate with your subordinates even when far away from them, correct?'' The bunny leader nodded its small head. ''You just need to gather some information, they don''t need to engage in any battles.'' Grey said to it. The bunny leader brought out some smaller bunnies, all were in the Sage Plane. The bunnies were so small that finding them in a short grass would be almost impossible. Grey told the bunny leader where he wanted to send the bunnies to, and the bunny leader followed his commands. It didn''t even take up to twenty minutes before he got a report from one of the bunnies, the Princes were moving. Grey didn''t want them to leave this area, he wanted to make sure they were within his grasp. He knew the others at the Peak had arrived, he sensed their auras after they escaped. "It''s a trap." He said to the others. "You don''t have to be a genius to know it''s a trap." Klaus said. "What are you going to do?" He asked Grey. "I''ll go see what they have to offer. I can''t let them leave this place. With the Princes here, the other Gnomes would not dare to attack rashly since they know the life of their Prince would be at stake." Grey answered calmly. He wasn''t scared of their trap. The best he could do was go alone, and escape if things went south. "You know they have more powerful people now. If they stop you from leaving, you''re toast." Alice said. "I''ll take Void with me, and there''s also this guy." Grey picked up the bunny leader, "Although he hates fighting, he''s quite adept in escaping." "Fine, but don''t die foolishly." Alice replied. Grey smiled, "Don''t worry, I''ll be fine." Grey picked up both Void and the bunny leader, after getting the direction of where the two Princes were located, he charged there. Klaus and Reynolds were a little worried, they felt they should go with him, but sensing they weren''t as strong as Grey, they decided to sit it out. Alice was worried, but she didn''t think too much about it. She was confident that Grey would be able to come out of it alive, as long as the bunny leader and Void were with him, they should be able to keep him alive. Chapter 1298 I’ve Never Seen Your Emperor Grey knew he was walking into an ambush, but there was nothing he was really scared of. With his proficiency with arrays, there was no way someone would be able to use it to trap him. So even if they create an array with plans of using it to stop him, it''s going to be unsuccessful. ¡­. A few minutes later. In a pathway through the forest, the two Princes could be seen casually walking. "We''ve already gone far from the castle, if he''s not coming we better head back instead of wasting our time." The Second Prince said, irritated with what they were doing. "Don''t worry brother, I believe he will show up." The Seventh Prince calmed his brother down. Although he didn''t want to say it, he wasn''t also in support of this, but he was confident that his elder brother would be able to keep him safe before the others step out. They had to at least make sure Grey wouldn''t be able to escape before stepping out. The Second Prince was about to speak again when he sensed Grey''s presence, "He''s here, and he''s not even hiding himself. Such confidence will be the end of him." "He dared to come to the castle, you should already know he dares to do anything." The Seventh Prince wasn''t surprised that Grey came, if anything, he would be surprised if Grey didn''t show up. "I can''t believe you miss me already, it has only been a few hours, and here you two are." Grey said as he appeared. "You''re too confident in your abilities." The Second Prince said, he looked at Grey and asked, "What do you think of yourself?" "I''m supreme, people like you can''t harm me." Grey''s response provoked the Second Prince, but he didn''t attack. "Where are the others, are they preparing a surprise for me or something?" Grey looked around, he couldn''t sense the presence of others which made him a little worried. ''Void, take the bunny leader and scout the area, I need to be aware of the positions of the others.'' He said to Void who was hiding in the void. Void and the bunny leader without making a fuss, the Second Prince who was already at the Peak didn''t sense anything strange. The Seventh Prince however sensed some ripples in space, the space element was one of his five elements, and he was quite good with it. He looked around but didn''t sense any abnormalities. He decided to stay alert since he knew Grey was a tricky person to deal with. Grey noticed the slight change in the body language of the Seventh Prince and couldn''t help but applaud his sharp senses. Void and the bunny leader were too fast for the Seventh Prince to sense, if he were in the same stage as the Second Prince, then he might''ve been able to sense them better. "You clearly know there are others, are all humans this stupid or are you just a special case?" The Second Prince said with a straight face. To be honest, he didn''t see the reason for Grey to come here just because they were leaving the castle. Even if he wanted them to stay, anyone with brains would know that they were walking into a trap. "I''m special." Grey replied with a smile, still not able to sense anyone, he said, "Be quick with this, I have some things I need to attend to. Since they are not coming, I''ll be taking my leave." Grey was about to leave when a voice sounded in the area. "Don''t be in such a hurry my friend, the fun just started." Grey turned to see who was speaking, but to his shock, he couldn''t find anyone. ''Void, any news?'' He asked the duo. They were his greatest hope in sensing people hiding. The reply the duo gave him was one he didn''t expect to hear, neither of them had been able to sense anyone else in the area. This meant that to their senses, other than the two Princes, there was no one else present except for Grey. "I don''t like speaking with people I can''t see. If you''re not going to show yourself, I''ll take it that you''re a coward, just like all the Gnomes." Grey''s eyes were full of disdain. He wanted to force this person, or the others lying in wait out. Once he could see the full strength of the Gnomes in this secret realm, he would think of how to sort the issue out with them. "My Prince, if you will." The voice came from all around. Grey''s eyes scanned everywhere, but he didn''t see or sense anything, his gaze fell on the body of the Princes and he noticed that after the voice made its last statement, their bodies showed signs of movement. The Princes were still standing on the same spot, but a few more figures started to appear around them, in the space of five seconds, eight figures appeared, all at the Peak of the Elemental Venerable Plane. Unlike the Second Prince, each of these people looked well over forty which indicated that they possessed sufficient experience. "You''re the one the Emperor wants dead." The man who the voice belonged to spoke up. Grey took a glance at the man, and seeing how he was speaking, he knew he was most likely the one leading the mission. "I''ve never met your Emperor, I wonder why he wants me dead." Grey wore a thoughtful expression as he asked. "Kill him." The man wasn''t in the mood to have a long conversation with Grey, seeing that Grey was there, he attacked. Unlike the Princes, he had nothing to tell Grey. Grey was taken aback, he wanted to delay them a little longer and try to get Void and the bunny leader to help him out with creating an array he could use to make life difficult for them. The man obviously wasn''t interested in giving him that chance. Chapter 1299 Join Us And Attain Godhood Boom! Crack! The ice wall Grey created to block the attack of the man was destroyed with just one attack from the man. The attack power of the man was superior to that of the Second Prince. Grey didn''t dare to take the impact of the rest of the attack, with a simple movement, he dodged the attack. But he was met with another attack from another one of the men at the Peak of the Elemental Venerable Plane. ''This might''ve been a bad idea.'' He thought internally as he scurried to dodge the attack. He turned his attention to one of the men, just as he was about to use the space element, he noticed that the space in the area has been sealed. ''Great!'' He exclaimed internally. Of course, he didn''t show any signs of frustration, he was still coolheaded as he fought against all eight of them. The Second Prince was watching, not joining in on the battle. Void and the bunny leader were also watching the battle, getting ready to intervene when needed. The bunny leader didn''t mind sacrificing a few of his bunnies to help distract the men Grey was fighting so Grey would be able to escape. Grey and the men got into an intense battle from the start, none of them gave the other a chance. Even after being overpowered by his opponents, Grey didn''t only defend, rather, he attacked whenever the opportunity presented itself. He knew that defending only would put him in a bad spot. Two inscriptions lit up the sky, both over five meters large. The reason he didn''t create more was so that he could use the inscriptions at their strongest. Each of the two inscriptions had attack power almost equivalent to a Ninth stage Elemental Venerable which was an amazing thing. The Gnomes didn''t bring out any of their puppets which made life a little easier for Grey. Well, it would''ve been much easier for him if they do decide to bring out their puppets since he could capitalize on it and defeat them in a jiffy. Grey used his speed to the maximum, dodging all the attacks coming his way while also making sure he countered. The inscriptions helped him a lot as he was able to halt some of the attacking sequences of the group he was fighting against. Boom! He was sent flying, crashing into a tree by the side, completely destroying it. The eight Gnomes rushed toward the place he crashed, unfortunately, they didn''t see him there, rather, they were met with a powerful explosion that forced all of them to retreat. Grey had managed to not only leave that place, but he left three fusion orb that contained more of the space element. The spatial tear that occurred right after the explosion caught one of the Gnomes, almost destroying his body. Fortunately, he reacted quickly and only lost an arm. The other seven who were fortunate to have escaped from the region looked at each other, fear hidden deep in their eyes. Never did they believe that even under such circumstances, Grey would be able to unleash such a deadly attack. What made it more frightening was that he didn''t use this attack all this while, rather, he waited for them time all of them would be together and used it, getting the best possible result out of it. "This boy shouldn''t be taken lightly, he must be killed." The man leading the group said with a cold expression. Grey had opened his eyes to what the Second and Seventh Prince saw, he was a threat to everyone, if he was allowed to grow more, then they would be even more danger. At the moment, they''ve been able to ascertain that he wasn''t at the Peak of the Elemental Venerable Plane yet. If someone at the Ninth stage of the Elemental Venerable Plane could fight against eight Peak Elemental Venerable to a draw, and still even manage to threaten their lives, it was unknown what he would be capable of doing once he gets to the Peak. "Such a shame. I thought I would''ve been able to kill one of you." Grey''s voice came from above them. When they raised their heads, they saw Grey staring down at them, he was still in a good condition. This meant that the previous attack that sent him crashing into a tree was a ruse, he only pretended to have been hit. Such cunningness plus his shocking abilities makes him a fearsome opponent to have. "Kid, I must give it to you, you''re special." The leading Gnome said. "I''ve heard that a few times." Grey said in a nonchalant manner. "Have you ever thought of joining us?" The leader of the Gnome group asked a question that shocked everyone present, even the two Princes and Grey were speechless, they didn''t except such a request. "Join you guys?" Grey couldn''t help but ask, before the man could reply, he added, "Hard pass. You guys made me run for my life for months, I''ll never forgive that." "It can be made up for. You''re someone even the Emperor would appreciate. Wouldn''t you want to reach the God Plane?" The man asked, trying to entice Grey, "I know you humans can''t break through to the God Plane, but with the help of our world, there might be a way for you to break through to the God Plane. Think about it, who doesn''t want to enter that Plane and become a God?" Grey took a glance at the man, at this point, he was flabbergasted, he knew that the chances of breaking through to the God Plane in the human world was nonexistent, that was what has been said for a long time now. Not that he had any thoughts of breaking to the God Plane for the moment, just being in the Elemental Sovereign Plane was an amazing thing. "The God Plane¡­" He muttered softly and his expression changed lightly. The eyes of the leader of the Gnome group showed some delight. There seems to be some hope in getting Grey to join them. Chapter 1300 Killing A Peak Elemental Venerable "Sorry, not interested. If I want to get to the God Plane, there are other ways to achieve it." Grey wasn''t the least bit tempted by the offer. He knew there was something blocking those from the Aurora Continent from getting to the God Plane, but that was still a long way away, he would cross the bridge when he gets to it, but for now, he didn''t want to bother himself with it. "This is why you humans never succeed. We came with an offer to assist your kind, but you rejected us. Like the last time, you will regret your decision today." The leader of the Gnome group said. "Why are we even bothering with him?" The Gnome who lost an arm to Grey''s previous attack asked coldly, he was incensed! Of everyone present, he was the only one who got injured from Grey''s attack, he wanted revenge against Grey. To him, Grey must be killed. "We can always grow him as a puppet. If you feel he has enough potential, hand him over to one of the Princes after he''s dead." The man added. Grey looked at the man who had only one arm left, "I should remove the other one, maybe you''ll learn to keep shut when real people are talking." The man''s expression changed when he heard Grey''s words. Grey was disregarding him, which was something he could not take from someone he believed is inferior to him. "Kid, I''ll enjoy killing you." The man licked his lips before attacking. Grey smiled when he saw this. The time he was speaking with them, he had already set up an array with the help of Void and the bunny leader, now, all he had to do was to kill one of them before retreating. He knew he wasn''t strong enough to kill all of them now, so he wanted to kill at least one of them before leaving, this will make them more wary and they wouldn''t want to cross paths with him for the time being. His intention was simple: intimidate them. This was also why he went to the castle for the first time to fight, he wanted to intimidate them and make sure they didn''t dare to attack humans wantonly for the time being, but with the addition of these Peak Elemental Venerables, it wasn''t achieved. But now, if he can kill one of these Peak Venerables with the many people present, the rest would be wary, after all, who wasn''t afraid of death? The man was charging over when Grey''s figure suddenly multiplied. To the ordinary eyes, more Grey''s appeared, but only a few people knew that it was just Grey''s afterimages. He was moving so fast that before one afterimage could dissipate, another appeared. He was not just using his physical speed, but he was also using all his elements that could boost his speed. His red lightning was faster than his silver lightning, coupled with his wind element, he was a frightening figure to keep up with, even for these guys at the Peak. Before the others could react, Grey had already appeared behind the man, with a punch, he blasted the man into the sky. His fist was enveloped with the space element, a destructive form of it that when he made contact, before the force could send the man flying, parts of the man''s body had started to slowly vanish, being eaten by the destructive spatial distortions. The man screamed but reacted on time, using all he could, he once again had to sacrifice a part of his body to keep himself alive. The man cut off the part of his body which Grey''s fist made contact with, creating a hole in his stomach. One could literally see the other side from the hole. The place was bleeding profusely, but he still hadn''t dealt with the entire attack, Grey''s fist contained immense strength to begin with, so the man was still facing the full force of Grey''s aggressive attack. After Grey sent the man flying, he was surrounded by the other seven men, this time, even the Second Prince joined in on the action. They knew they shouldn''t give Grey the free reign, if not, they would all be in trouble. Grey was quickly suppressed by their attacks, he was just one man, there was only so much he could do. Seeing that they were getting the upper hand, the man, who was severely injured from Grey''s attack, rushed over once again; he couldn''t let Grey escape, not after everything Grey had done to him. His arm wasn''t healing, and neither was his stomach. The attack seemed to have another effect, stopping him from healing. At this rate, unless he takes in a top tier healing treasure, he might die. Grey was bombarded by all their attacks, but he remained calm. With the help of the array, his speed had shot to a shocking level, so he was still able to at least dodge most of their attacks. "Die! Die! Die!" The man was screaming as he attacked in a reckless manner, all he wanted was to see Grey dead, nothing else was important to him. Grey, on the other hand, was waiting patiently. ''It should start taking effect now.'' He thought to himself as he took a short glance at the man. His space element was not the only thing in that punch, he added bits of the poison miasma that was in his body into it. The spatial distortions would not allow the wounds to heal in a short time, giving the poison miasma enough time to get into the body of the man and cause havoc. As the man attacked continuously, the poison miasma was doing damage to him. His essence was being used up at a faster rate, and it was also strengthening the miasma. The pain from Grey''s punch hid the presence of the miasma, only when it was too late did he sense it. He was about to unleash an attack when he suddenly coughed up a mouthful of black gooey blood. Chapter 1301 We’ve Planned The Funeral "What did you do to me?" The man stopped attacking, not just him, everyone who was attacking Grey stopped attacking too. The Second Prince was the first to retreat when he saw the gooey blood, the reason for that was because the moment the blood hit the ground, smoke rose up from the place it hit the ground. He didn''t need anyone to tell him how dangerous the blood was. "Nothing, I just punched you, and added something else into your body." Grey smiled and looked at the man. He was under serious pressure while under siege from Nine Peak Elemental Venerables, but now that they''ve stopped attacking, he wanted to catch his breath. The others looked at the man, and when he tried to get close to one of them, they retreated with a serious face. "Get your body under control. Whatever is inside you is dangerous, getting close to us will only put us in danger." The man said as he retreated further away. No one was interested in fighting with Grey at the moment, all they wanted to do was get away from their poisoned companion. The man who was the leader of the Gnome group tossed something at the man and said, "Try to use it to calm it down. We will help you after you''ve stopped the outbreak." The others could see the places the man was injured had already started to rot. From what they knew, anything like that would be dangerous to them, and they didn''t want to die for a careless reason. The man took the thing and swallowed it with a gulp, the second he took it into his body, he screamed in pain. "Arghh¡­" The man clenched his head, unable to stand on his feet, he fell to the ground, screaming in pain. Grey watched on with interest, he didn''t know the poison miasma has already gotten this powerful, if he knew, he would''ve been using it more often. He didn''t even inject a large amount of it into the body of the man, yet the result was this disastrous. He couldn''t help but wonder what would happen if he injected more into his body. "What did you do to him?" The leader of the Gnome group asked, his expression showing some signs of worry. They didn''t know what happened to the man, yes, they saw Grey attack him, but other than that, they didn''t know what he did to the man. Grey was naturally not obligated to tell them what he did to their companion, the lesser they knew, the more wary they would be of him. People tend to be wary of the unknown. The man was still on the ground, wailing in pain. It was clear that he was in serious pain from what Grey placed on his body. Grey looked at the man who was on the ground, then at the two Princes. The Seventh Prince was the one who had the most worried expression, he couldn''t believe he wanted to kill someone who was capable of doing something like this. Till now, no one has been able to figure out what Grey did to the man. This was someone that was at the Peak of the Elemental Venerable Plane, yet Grey reduced him to such a state that he had even started crying from the pain. "It''s time for me to leave. I''d advise you not to try to stop me." Grey said, he paused and smiled, "If you don''t want to end up like him, that is." The Second Prince looked at Grey, his expression was very severe, he knew in this place, unless they had more people, Grey was invincible. The fact that in the presence of so many people that were at the Peak, he was still able to do such damage showed how frightening he was. The leader of the Gnome group watched on as Grey left, not waiting to see the result of his poison miasma. Grey left the place, leaving the others speechless. Other than the screaming man, no one else was making a sound. "What now?" The Seventh Prince asked, he was clearly traumatized by what he was seeing, not just him, but everyone present were afraid of what Grey just did. It was obvious that the man was in serious pain, and they couldn''t do anything about it, which made the situation worse. They watched on as the man continued screaming, before long, the man''s voice was barely audible. After a while, his body dried up, and to the shock of everyone present, the body turned to dust. Even after seeing it, they still found it hard to believe that this was something Grey was capable of doing. "We need help." The Second Prince said with his head down. As hard as it sounds, he knew they wouldn''t be enough to contain the monster that was hunting them down. "The Giant race, they helped me out while I was tackling him in the lower realm." The Seventh Prince said. The Giant race has a few Peak Elemental Venerables, with their help, they might be able to deal with Grey. Grey was a single individual, they couldn''t help but wonder what would happen if he came with his friends once again. His friends might not be the strongest, but each of them was difficult to deal with. ¡­. In the forest. Klaus and the others were waiting anxiously for Grey''s return. They didn''t know what was happening and it had been a few minutes since Grey left. "Do you think they''ve captured him?" Reynolds asked. "Stop spouting nonsense, he has only been gone for a few minutes." Klaus smacked Reynolds'' head. Alice didn''t say anything, she turned her gaze to the direction of the castle. "If he doesn''t return, we hunt them down." She said coldly. "We will definitely avenge him." Klaus said. "Who are you avenging?" Grey''s voice came from the void before his figure appeared. "We''ve already planned your funeral, all we need is for someone to kill you." Klaus said with a straight face. Alice and Reynolds rolled their eyes when they heard this. Chapter 1302 Each With A Plan Of Their Own Grey and his friends joked around as they stayed there a while longer. While Grey and his friends were speaking about what to do, the Gnomes were also discussing what measures they needed to take to ensure they took Grey down. ¡­.. The Gnome''s castle. "He''s too dangerous, we can''t let him come and go as he pleases." The Second Prince said seriously. "I know. But even with nine of us, we aren''t able to take him down. I''m sure if there is more, he will still be able to maneuver his way out of danger." The man who was leading the other group of Gnomes said. He was an expert and knew that someone of Grey''s caliber wouldn''t foolishly fight against them if he didn''t have the confidence that he would be able to escape. Only a fool would walk into their own death. Grey wouldn''t want to die, the humans also wouldn''t want someone as capable as Grey to die for a few treasures, unless they don''t know how valuable he is. "So what do we do?" The Seventh Prince asked. "If we can trap his group of friends, or someone important from the side of the humans, we can use that person as leverage against him." The leader of the group said. "How can we do that? He''s monitoring this place, if we take a step out, he will attack. With the appearance of you guys, he wouldn''t allow you to leave. If you leave he will certainly hunt you guys down." The Seventh Prince said. "He''s just one man, we have the advantage of numbers. I''m the strongest, so I''ll lure him away, you guys leave and find someone important from the humans. I heard some important figures entered the realm after he came in." "If I''m not mistaken, the reason he''s here is to ensure he keeps us occupied to guarantee the safety of those people. If we can capture one of them, we should be able to defeat him." The leader of the group suggested. "It''s not going to be easy. Even if they sent him here to keep us busy, those people should still have protectors. It wouldn''t be easy to capture any of them alive." One of the men at the Peak said. "Have you forgotten who we are? Unlike when fighting against him, we don''t need to bother about not using our puppets. He''s the only one who can endanger us with them, as for the others, they can''t." The leader of the Peak Gnomes said. When they heard his words, they nodded in agreement. Yes, Grey was the only one who was a threat to them. Without Grey, they could use their puppets which gives them the advantage they have always had over humans. "To be on the safer side, I''ll visit the Giants, I have a few friends who might be interested in fighting against him." The Seventh Prince said. While they were in the lower realm, Grey threatened the Giants not to get involved in the battle between humans and Gnomes. Due to Grey''s brazenness and superior abilities, the Giants naturally cowered before him, not daring to get involved in any battles. But now, he didn''t believe they wouldn''t want to fight against Grey. To them, he was too proud. "If you can bring two or more Peak Venerables from the side of the Giants, we should be able to settle the score with these humans." "Alright, everything is settled. The sooner we get to work the better." The leader of the Peak Venerable Gnomes said, he looked at the others and said, "I''ll be leaving in an hour, save your strength. He might be able to figure out our plan and come after you all." "What if he doesn''t follow you?" The Second Prince asked. This was a serious question, if Grey didn''t follow him, then he would be leaving them to Grey. He was the strongest individual present. Against Grey, if even just one person is absent, he might kill all of them. "I''ll go after him. He doesn''t have a choice, he will definitely fight me." While they were having this conversation, unbeknownst to them, there was a little bunny that was at the side, listening to everything they were saying. The bunny was so tiny that it was very difficult to spot. What was worse was that there was no way to sense its presence. ¡­.. The bunny was transmitting everything to the bunny leader, who in turn was telling Grey everything. "Oh, interesting." Grey said. "Alice, I''ll leave the Seventh Prince to you. He''s only at the Fifth stage. You should be able to deal with him." Grey told his friends of the Gnomes'' plan and also devised a plan of his own. Since the Seventh Prince would be leaving on his own, it was best to send Alice after him. Alice could handle him, although he was a tricky opponent, Alice had a Seelie which could count as an opponent for the Seventh Prince''s puppet. Alice nodded, she didn''t have any issues with going after the Seventh Prince. This was a good opportunity for her to test her strength. "Rey and Klaus will slow down the other group." Grey said, seeing the expressions on both his friends'' faces, he laughed and said, "The bunny leader will accompany you, it has a few guys that can help when things are tough. It can also help take you guys out of danger." "Can''t Void come with us?" Klaus asked, he felt safer with Void. The small time he had spent with the bunny leader, he knew it didn''t like fighting. And at the moment, it doesn''t have any powerful underlings under it. He felt he would be safer with Void who was even more powerful than Grey. "No, Void has another mission." Grey shook his head. He planned to secretly send Void to accompany Alice. Alice was the weakest of the group, and he knew that the Seventh Prince was a powerful genius, if Alice wasn''t careful, she might lose her life to him. Chapter 1303 You Believe That? "Wouldn''t they be in danger? You know they will have to fight multiple opponents." Alice asked, worried about the safety of Klaus and Reynolds. "They will be fine. They don''t have to throw their lives away, just bugging them will be enough." Grey said. Alice looked at Klaus and Reynolds who didn''t seem to have any problems with the arrangements, besides, they had the bunny leader that is going to help them out in case of any tight situations. "Since it''s settled, we should all use this time to rest. We will leave as soon as they set off." Grey said. The others nodded. Of everyone present, the bunny leader was probably the only one who didn''t like the idea of involving himself in any form of fighting. Its original plan was to have enough underlings it could send out to bully others, just like on the two previous occasions he saw Grey. Grey and his friends were planning how to deal with the Gnomes, while the Gnomes were also plotting a way to apprehend or at least keep Grey at bay. If they let Grey continue in this manner, he will kill all of them. This is something they were all aware of, and they couldn''t sit by and wait for their deaths. The Seventh Prince was the one most scared of Grey, after all, he had that terrible experience with him. The Second Prince is still a little confident that they will be able to kill Grey. Time went by in the blink of an eye and before they knew it, the leader of the Peak Gnome group had set off, his aura was spread out for a couple of kilometers, there was no way someone of Grey''s abilities wouldn''t be able to pick it up. He shot away at top speed, and just as expected, an aura not as potent, but way more dangerous came up, it belonged to no one else but Grey. Grey was showing a very confident side, he had been ambushed a few hours ago, yet he was still willingly chasing after the leader of the group showing his full aura as well. Only a fool would do something like that. They didn''t take Grey as someone who was stupid. ¡­. The Gnome''s hideout. "Something isn''t right." The Seventh Prince said with furrowed brows. He didn''t believe Grey would fall for the trap so easily. "What''s not right about it?" The Second Prince scoffed, "He''s an egotistical person, remember how he camped outside the portal in the lower realm?" "He believes we can''t do anything to him, this is why we have to make sure he regrets this choice of his." The others looked at each other, feeling what the Second Prince was saying was accurate. Grey had the guts to camp outside the portal in the lower realm, after what he did a few hours ago, he had every right to be confident. There''s a high likelihood that Grey was acting according to what the Second Prince speculated. "Let''s wait until their auras aren''t nearby before moving out. Make sure to watch out for his friends." The Second Prince said. The other nodded, waiting to leave any moment from now. ¡­. The forest Grey and his friends were previously resting. "Moved out yet?" They turned to the bunny leader. Grey had gone after the leader of the group, who seemed to be the strongest among the Gnomes. If Grey was lucky, he might be able to kill that man and hurry back to deal with the others. The bunny leader shook its head, it was getting first hand information from one of its underlings. The second the Gnomes moved, it would know of it. Alice and the others nodded and started to move closer to the castle. If they got there silently, they would have enough time to track the Gnomes they were going after. Grey''s aura was getting further and further away, from what they guessed, the other Gnomes were probably waiting for Grey to leave the area. ¡­. Grey was chasing after the man, but not at full speed, he didn''t want to catch up to the man too soon, so he was giving the man the chance to get further away before catching up with him. Unlike the man, Grey had a very powerful spiritual senses which could cover a larger area, so he knew the Gnomes had not made any movements yet. This was something he expected, so he didn''t hurry. ''I should at least make them wait a little longer.'' He thought internally. His friends would use the opportunity to get close to the castle since all eyes were on Grey at the moment. After a few more seconds, Grey sped up, he had gotten to the area he knew they weren''t sensing him again, the reason he knew this was because the Seventh Prince had moved out. He was the first to step out before the other Gnomes moved out. ''Kill him if possible, if not, hurt him and let him escape.'' This was Grey''s objective. He knew killing a Peak Elemental Venerables wouldn''t be easy. He might have been able to kill one while fighting against multiple opponents, but it was all due to the fact that he was fighting against multiple opponents that gave him the opportunity to capitalize on it. He was an expert when it came to fighting against a large group of people, and has excelled when fighting against a group than when fighting against a single individual. ¡­. "Stop running, I''ve already caught up." Grey''s voice echoed in the sky and the flying Gnome paused, he looked around and saw Grey''s figure appear in front of him. "Where are the others, bring them out." Grey said with a nonchalant expression. He was acting like he didn''t know the plan. "I don''t need them to deal with you." The leader of the Gnome group didn''t have any fears when facing Grey. Although he had seen Grey kill one of them, and knew how dangerous he was, he believed the only reason that happened was because they were caught off-guard. "You believe that?" Grey sneered. Chapter 1304 Fighting Against The Leader Of The Gnome Group Grey''s question infuriated the man, but he knew deep inside him that he didn''t believe he would be able to do anything to Grey. Grey was just too strong for them to handle, and with his ability to use the puppets against them made it even hard to deal with him. Their puppets have always been their biggest advantage, but against Grey, it became their greatest weakness. "I know you''re strong, boy, but don''t get ahead of yourself, we can easily kill you off if we want to." The man said coldly. "You guys have been trying to kill me since I was in the Sage Plane, I''m currently close to the Peak of the Elemental Venerable Plane, and here I am, still very much alive." Grey chuckled, he took a glance at the man and a cold light flashed through his eyes, "I can''t say the same for you though." The man unconsciously took a step back mid-air, he was frightened. When he realized this, he felt his heart beat faster than it previously was. He couldn''t believe he was afraid of a little kid. He had been at the Peak of the Elemental Venerable Plane for years now, even longer than before Grey started his cultivation journey, yet, he was afraid of a boy who hadn''t even gotten to the Peak. Grey saw the body language of the man and knew that he had been able to affect him physiologically. At present, the battle was already won because the man couldn''t use his full strength any longer. The fear he felt towards Grey wouldn''t make him display his abilities to the fullest. The man tried to snap himself back to normal, as an expert, he knew he shouldn''t start a battle with an inherent fear of his opponent, but it couldn''t be helped, Grey was a freak of nature, he should not exist. "I''ll kill you and take your head back to the Emperor." The man said. "Alright." Grey said in a sarcastic tone. There was not a single atom of confidence in the words of the man, and that boosted Grey''s confidence even more. ''I should deal with him and rush to help Klaus and Rey.'' He thought to himself. Alice would be fine since Void was there to rescue her. Void wasn''t allowed to intervene in the battle, just rescue Alice and leave. So if Alice is unable to kill the Seventh Prince, Void would let him leave alive, but if Alice was able to kill him then it was his luck. The man was the first to make a move, just like all Gnomes, he had the darkness element in him, but added to it was the water element. In common sense, he was a Water Elementalist. Unlike humans, Gnomes only use their darkness element to control their puppets, so not many of them have perfect grasp of their darkness element. The man created a water storm that he sent at Grey. Grey didn''t panic, with a wave of his hand, a powerful earth wall appeared in front of him, he didn''t create a normal wall which would take in the brunt force of the water storm, rather, it was in a triangular form, with the tip facing the incoming water storm, so instead of taking the force of the attack, it just directed it to two different sides, leaving Grey completely untouched by the attack. "You''re going to do more than that if you want any chance to even touch me." Grey mocked, his aim was to further affect the mental fortitude of the man, making his job easier. The man snorted and moved his hand, the water which had gone to the side turned around and wrapped around the triangular wall, and to Grey''s surprise, the water started to squeeze the wall. The wall which was supposed to stop the water started to show signs of cracking in the blink of an eye. The man clenched his opened palm and the wall broke apart, exposing Grey who was in the middle. Grey reacted quickly, using the space element to escape from the clutches of the incoming water. If he were caught in that, he wasn''t certain he would be able to escape with the space element. The force he felt from the water was massive. His opponent was a Peak Elemental Venerable, after all. Grey''s figure appeared a few hundred meters away from where the attack took place as he saw how the powerful water collided with each other, luckily, he was not there. The man didn''t stop, rather, he turned to water into ice spikes and sent them at Grey who was standing mid-air. The speed of the spikes was shocking. Grey''s body was covered with red lightning, he rarely uses his red lightning, but when it came to dodging attacks with such speed, he would make use of not just the wind element but also the red lightning, as well as his physical speed. Grey''s figure bolted straight into the sea of ice spikes that were rushing at him. Each spike was dangerous enough to instantly kill an Elementalist in the Seventh stage of the Elemental Venerable Plane, and seriously injure one in the Ninth stage, but with Grey''s speed, it was like a walk in the park. He dodged them, and the ones he couldn''t, he would make use of his fire element to destroy them. The man didn''t expect Grey to stroll through his attack with such ease. Yes, he could see that Grey was strolling through at a frightening speed, but it was still shocking to see. "Damn it!" He had used two attacks, but they seemed useless against Grey. A large palm made of water appeared to cover the sky, and came crashing down on Grey. The palm got to where Grey was and closed quickly, trapping him inside. Grey didn''t bulge when he saw this, rather, the lightning on his body increased, and he flew into up, charging into the upper part of the palm. The man was about to tighten the space in the palm when he noticed a red hot spot at the top of the palm, before he could even realize what was happening, Grey burst out of the palm. Chapter 1305 Nothing But Awe The man was shocked, it didn''t even take close to two seconds before Grey shot out of the palm. With his strength, he felt he should at least have been able to keep Grey there for five to ten seconds, but to his surprise, Grey burst out of it almost immediately which wasn''t what he expected. ''Damn it! This kid is hard to deal with. Since when does he have red lightning?'' The man thought to himself, he was a bit annoyed, and surprised. The last time they were fighting with Grey, he didn''t see Grey use red lightning, rather, he only saw him using just the normal silver lightning. The fact that Grey could use two types of lightning made him even more scary. Grey burst out of the palm and charged at the man, his body covered with red lightning. He was like a large red beast that was charging into a storm with no fear. The man didn''t have time to think about Grey being able to use red lightning, he had far more things to worry about. Grey was coming for him, and he knew from experience not to take Grey''s attack lightly. If he was hit physically, he was prepared to cut off the place that was touched by Grey. He could still hear the screams of the man Grey killed after just a punch. Grey drew close to the man and attacked, using his speed to his advantage, he wanted to punch the man. But the man was prepared for anything he threw at him. When Grey''s fist was about to hit him, the man created an ice wall, blocking the fist. The ice wall cracked, but it didn''t give way. Grey might be powerful, but in the end, compared to the man, his attack power was a little lacking. The man took advantage of the close range and exploded out with a powerful water stream that sent Grey flying. Grey crashed hundreds of meters away. The man rushed towards the place Grey crashed, and just when he was about to attack, Grey''s lightning-covered body shot out of the dust cloud, heading straight at him. The man covered a fifty meters radius around him with water, making sure it was impossible for Grey to get to him with his speed. Grey shot into the water, and seeing that there was no way to shorten the gap, he retreated, not daring to stay within that area. The reason for this was simple: he felt an immense pressure trying to crush his body. Although it was not as strong as the heavy water he could use, the man already had a great grasp of the water element and could somewhat emulate the pressure of the deep ocean. The pressure was something that scared Grey, luckily, he acted quickly and left the place as soon as he felt it. The man stood in the middle of the water, staring at Grey. He didn''t expect Grey to be able to leave so soon. Grey stood mid-air and looked at the man, he knew with this thing there, there was no way he would be able to get close to the man. ''I need to cut it open.'' He said to himself. With this thought in mind, he prepared an attack, a powerful space elemental attack that he was confident would be able to do what he had in mind. A powerful force surged in the air as spatial elemental particles started to gather and take the form of a thin long blade. The blade spanned over twenty meters in length. When the man saw the black blade hanging over his head like an executioner''s blade, he couldn''t help but gulp down his saliva. He didn''t think Grey would have such a skill set in store. They had fought with Grey before, and given the position they put him, he felt he had used all his skills, who would''ve expected he still had something like this hidden? ''Fuck!'' He exclaimed internally and fortified the water. He knew Grey''s plan, and he didn''t dare to imagine what would happen if Grey was successful. Grey smirked when he saw the man getting to work, he didn''t hurry to attack, he let the man fortify his defense. He wanted to see just how powerful this strike would be. He wasn''t using his essence to create the attack, rather, he was using the elemental particles in the realm to create it. This was something used by most Peak Elemental Venerables and Sovereigns, but here Grey was, a Ninth stage Elemental Venerable, capable of already achieving this feat. The man could also do it, but it took a massive amount of focus. Grey could do it with ease because he had a powerful spiritual consciousness which gave him other abilities. One shouldn''t forget that he could also use mental attacks which also amplified the strength of his spiritual consciousness. The long blade that was hanging in the sky soon came crashing down, heading towards the man. The man didn''t show any fear and with a loud roar, he took the attack head-on. His water had been fortified, and just like Grey, he added elemental particles from the realm to it, making it even stronger. ''He''s a fool to give me the chance to use it.'' The man felt Grey was too confident in his abilities. Well, he would also be confident if he had such abilities, but against an opponent as experienced such as himself, he wouldn''t dare to let them have the time to get a hang of themselves. After the initial shock, he would attack instantly. The blade made contact with the water, and at first, it was unable to penetrate. Only after a little over a second did what the man didn''t expect happened. The blade started to cut through his water that had been fortified with the help of the elemental particles as well. It took no time before the blade cut halfway through it. His eyes bulged out in pure awe. He hated Grey, but he was in awe of him. Chapter 1306 Going After The Seventh Prince While Grey and the leader of the Gnome group were fighting, the other Gnomes had moved out. The Seventh Prince, who Alice was going to handle, was the first to move out. After he left, the others left as well. The Second Prince didn''t see the need in doing all this, but the fear of Grey coming to attack him while he was alone made him follow the other Peak Venerables out of the castle. For the first time since Gnomes were in this realm, their castle for those in the Elemental Venerable Plane was empty, and it was all because of the same person that made something like this happen in the lower realm, Grey. The fear of Grey didn''t let anyone stay after the departure of the Peak Venerables, the rest left the place. A few of them even decided to head back to the Gnome world. Some of them had been in this realm for tens of years, but now, due to the fear of death, they were leaving. They couldn''t be blamed, given the number of people they''ve confirmed dead, all under the clutches of Grey and his friends, they didn''t want to be among the unfortunate people. ¡­. Klaus, Alice and Reynolds were scouting the castle. "Your target is leaving, you should go after him." Klaus was the one with the highest cultivation stage, with the exception of the bunny leader, so he was the one who sensed the departure of the Seventh Prince, and he hinted it to Alice. "Which way?" Alice asked, she didn''t need to speak too much, she already knew what she was supposed to do. Klaus pointed her in the direction, and just as she was about to leave, he stopped her and said, "Don''t die out there." "I should be the one telling you two. Compared to your opponents, I''m going to be having an easy time." Alice replied with a smile, it was nice to know that her friends cared for her well-being, but she was also annoyed by the fact that she was the weakest, which placed Klaus and Reynolds in a dangerous spot. If Grey were the one going after them, then she wouldn''t be bothered, they all know Grey''s abilities, but Klaus and Reynolds were different. They excelled in individual battles, not against crowds, especially ones that had people stronger than them individually. Klaus and Reynolds nodded their heads to assure her they would be fine before she left. "Why didn''t Grey leave Void behind?" Reynolds complained. "He probably has something important to do." Klaus said, he closed his eyes, took in a deep breath before saying, "Let''s go, they''re on the move." Reynolds took in a deep breath as well, he knew just how dangerous their mission was, so he didn''t dare to slack. Klaus and Reynolds moved out as well, heading in the direction of the group of Peak Elemental Venerables. They were both excited and scared. If they were told they would ever have to chase after Peak Elemental Venerables at their present level, they would never believe it, but here they are. ¡­. The Seventh Prince didn''t feel there was something strange with how long it took for Grey to catch up with the man. Amongst everyone, he was the one who has had the most encounters with Grey and he felt with Grey''s speed, he would be able to catch up with the man within a short time, but to his surprise, it took longer than he expected. With the speed Grey and his friends used in leaving before the arrival of the Peak Venerables, he was confident Grey would be able to catch up to the man before leaving their scope of senses. He decided not to dwell on the matter, all he wanted to do now was to seek aid from the Giant race, if they could offer help, he was sure the threat of Grey would be greatly reduced. Also, humans wouldn''t want to anger the Giant race since they knew they couldn''t fight against both races at the same time. After all, there was only one Grey. Grey might have no issues with fighting against all of them, but the other humans act like he is. "We have to kill him." He muttered to himself. His steps suddenly halted. Due to the fear of being noticed by Grey, he didn''t dare to take to the sky while leaving, rather, he opted to walk. He heard a rustle from the woods by the side and paused to look in that direction. "Who''s there?" He asked, not taking another step. "Your senses are sharp, Prince." A lady''s voice came from the woods and Alice''s figure walked out from the shadows. She wanted to creep up on the Prince and attack while he wasn''t on guard, unfortunately, she didn''t expect his senses to be this sharp. "It''s you?" The Seventh Prince recalled Alice''s face in a glance. Anyone associated with Grey wasn''t someone he would forget in a short time. Grey''s face has haunted him for a long time now, and now, his friends'' faces had been added to the picture. "You''re so weak, yet you dare to step forward. I see, no wonder he took so long. His plan was to get me all along." The Seventh Prince felt like he unraveled the reason Grey was slow. He was just starting to ask himself this question, and the answer came to him in such a short time. "I think after killing you, I should make you one of my puppets just to mess with him, that should teach him not to mess around with us." The Prince said coldly, his eyes were burning with intense cold flames, he was ready to kill Alice. "You don''t have what it takes to kill me, I''m sorry to inform you." Alice wasn''t bothered with the Prince''s threat. "Heh, we will see about that." The Prince snorted and a puppet appeared beside him, the puppet had the strength of a Seventh stage Elemental Venerable. Contrary to when Grey is around, he didn''t have to worry about his puppet being used against him while fighting with Alice. Chapter 1307 Battles Everywhere Boom! Bam! Alice slammed into a tree. Before her body fell to the ground, a human figure appeared before her, the figure attacked, kicking towards her head. On the leg of the figure was a boot made from the earth element. Alice saw the leg approaching and without delay, she tried to use her fire element to force the leg back, but it only managed to delay it. With the help of her lightning element, she was able to quickly move back, dodging the leg. The kick missed her and she balanced herself. She took a glance at the Seventh Prince, her Seelie was standing beside her. "Is this how you''re planning to fight against me? Sorry to say but you won''t survive five minutes with me." The Seventh Prince was a proud figure, he was a genius even amongst the other geniuses in the Gnome world. Against anyone else, he was certain of his abilities, Grey was the only one who had left a scar in his head. Alice didn''t say anything, her eyes were serious as she looked at the Prince and his puppet. The puppet was quite powerful, more than what Alice felt she could deal with. If she were to merge with the Seelie now, she would be able to fight with the puppet on equal footing, the only problem was the Prince who was by the side. With the Prince there, it would be difficult for her to gain any advantages. ''I can deal with both of them. I just need to endure for a while.'' She had a plan, and all she needed to do was to make sure she didn''t accepted your places. We are the superior ones, and you''re just toys waiting for us to pick you up." give in. As long as she continued fighting against him, she was certain her chance to take him down would come. The Prince saw her eyes and chuckled, "You humans still haven''t accepted your places. We are the superior ones, and you''re just toys waiting for us to pick you up." Bang! A lightning bolt fell from the sky, striking the place the Prince was standing on. The Prince reacted fast, and was able to dodge the attack by a hair''s breadth. "Keep talking." Alice attacked once again. This time, she sent the Seelie to fight with the puppet while she went after the Prince. The Seelie wasn''t as strong as the puppet, but it should be able to at least hold it back for a while. The Prince smirked when he saw Alice coming towards him, with a confident face, he struck out. At the moment, he didn''t want to kill Alice, they originally planned on capturing Grey''s friends, and now one of them had walked forward to be captured, he couldn''t believe his luck. He attacked ferociously, not letting Alice get any chance in the battle, he was stronger, had more elements, and was able to overpower her with ease. Boom! Bam! ¡­. At another part of the secret realm, two figures could be seen rushing through the woods, behind them, was a group chasing after them. "Fuck! Why do we always get the hard part?" Klaus caused as he looked behind him. The group of Peak Elemental Venerables were chasing after them. All with their puppets out. Reynolds'' body was covered in his lightning armor. Without it, he would not have been able to run this fast. Klaus was using the help of his boosted strength to run as fast as he could. The fact that they could run this fast stunned the Gnomes. They were all at the Peak, yet two people that had the strength of at most a Ninth stage Elemental Venerable were running faster than they were. It was a shocking thing to see. If they were told something like this was possible, they would''ve never believed it. Reynolds looked behind them and sent out a lightning arrow. Given the speed at which the Gnomes were coming at them, it made the lightning arrow seem faster than it usually is. The person the arrow was aimed at dodged to the side, but the arrow grazed his shoulder. The man''s expression didn''t change as he continued chasing after them. This wasn''t the first time they had been attacked. Of the duo they were chasing, they were more afraid of Klaus. When they left the castle, including the Second Prince, there were eight of them. Now however, there are only seven of them. The Second Prince was still with them, but one of them had been taken down from Klaus'' attack. The attack was too sudden and before they could even react, the man had turned into an ice sculpture, before breaking apart. When Klaus and Reynolds first appeared before them, Klaus attacked with the help of the bunny leader. The man didn''t even know how he died. Klaus had been preparing an ice needle all through the time they were following behind the group, so when they came out, the first thing he did was to attack, taking out one of them in the process. The others were furious about it and had been chasing after the duo for a while now. Klaus had attacked just once since then, and the person he attacked was forced to cut off one of his legs. They''ve all seen that Klaus can''t use the attack continuously, but the two times he had used it had been very effective. "We have to make sure we capture them. If we have these two, we can use them to bring him in." The Second Prince said. "We''re aware of that, but as you can see, it''s not easy to catch up to them." One of the men said as they were flying through the woods. Klaus knew that if they flew through the sky it would be easy for the Peak Venerables to catch up to them, so he chose the option of the forest. With it, there would be obstacles, and they could also use it to attack them too while they were dodging the trees. In conclusion, going through the trees was a big plus for them. Chapter 1308 Objective Achieved Boom! Bang! Klaus and Reynolds slammed into a tree simultaneously, but they didn''t dare to stop. With the help of the bunny leader, they were able to leave the place before the others could get close to them. Their objective was simple, keep these guys busy for as long as possible. They knew Grey would be coming soon, and once Grey came, they might be able to kill another one of them. Klaus didn''t like the way the Second Prince was talking, so he would like it to be the Second Prince. "How do they keep escaping so fast?" The Second Prince asked, stunned. From the last attack Klaus and Reynolds took, they were supposed to at least stop for a second or two, but the duo seemed to have continued running without even stopping to process the pain they had just taken. It was as if they were immune to it. This wasn''t the first time the duo had been hit, and just like the other times, they had managed to escape from their planned encirclement. If things continue in this fashion, they don''t believe they would be able to capture them. What made the situation worse for the Gnomes was that they wanted to make sure they didn''t kill the duo, so they had to hold back. "Are we holding back too much? Or are they just stronger than what we thought?" One man at the Peak asked. "Everyone, send your puppets after them, even if it means sacrificing one or a few, we must ensure they do not escape from us the next time we make contact." Another man said. The group agreed to the man''s words, Klaus was still cussing at them which was quite infuriating. ¡­. On Grey''s end. Boom! Bam! Bang! Crash! The battle they were fighting was of high intensity. The leader of the Gnome group was strong, and so was Grey. Grey had so many things he could use against the man. However, the man was very powerful. His water element was already very strong. Grey felt the only people he knew with better control over their water element were his mother and Klaus. Klaus might be more focused on the ice attribute, but after learning how to use the water pressure from the deep ocean, his control over the water element was impressive. If not for the cultivation stage advantage his mother had over Klaus, he would''ve said Klaus was a better Water Elementalist. The man paused after taking a hit from Grey, he took another glance at the young man standing before him, he didn''t know what to say. Grey had far exceeded his expectations. "Kid, the offer still stands. The Emperor will definitely forgive you if you join us." The man said. "And like the last time, I''m not interested in joining you guys." Grey attacked after replying, he was concerned about the well-being of Klaus and Reynolds. Alice would be fine since Void was there. If Void was the one who was with Klaus and Reynolds, he wouldn''t be too bothered, but given the bunny leader''s laziness, he was a little afraid it might act a little too late. Grey moved closer to the man, and just when the man was about to attack, he felt a terrifying force pull his body towards the ground. He didn''t expect it and he lost focus. Grey''s attack followed the man down, and so did he. Before the man could get himself, Grey''s fire orb struck the man, sending him flying down with an even greater force. The attacks didn''t stop there, Grey teleported there and wrapped his leg with three different elements, focusing more on the earth element to make sure the force in his legs would be horrifying. He kicked at the back of the man, and the force with which the man came crashing down tripled. Bang! The man slammed into the ground with shocking speed, creating a large crater. A large dust cloud rose into the sky. Grey stood in the air, observing the ground where the man crashed into. He knew this wouldn''t be enough to take out the man, but it was enough to injure him. He squinted his eyes when he saw a figure charging at him with lightning speed. Taking an attacking pose, he was about to unleash another powerful attack when his eyes widened. Without another word, he hastily retreated. The figure coming at him was not the man, rather, it was a puppet. He didn''t need to wait to see the reason the puppet was charging at Even with Grey''s speed, he was still caught by the impact of the shockwave. He couldn''t use the space element since the shock him, from the energy it had amassed, it was clear what the man wanted to do. Boom! The puppet self-destructed, causing a powerful wave to spread out. Even with Grey''s speed, he was still caught by the impact of the shockwave. He couldn''t use the space element since the shock wave would disrupt the tunnel putting him in more danger, so he had to rely on his speed. Grey was very fast, but the attack was faster. Grey''s figure, like a broken kite, flew through the sky before crashing down. Luckily for him, he still had the armor with him to protect himself from any unexpected attack. Bearing the full brunt of a Peak Venerable self-destructing was no joke. Most people at his level would not be able to survive it, much less even stand back up. But Grey was able to stand up after a few seconds. The hole he created after crashing down was well over four meters deep. When he climbed out of the hole, he noticed a figure flying in another direction as fast as it could. It was none other than the man. Apparently, after self-destructing his puppet, he didn''t have any plans of fighting with Grey any longer. To him, he had achieved his objective and the others must have gone out by now. Unbeknownst to him, Grey knew about their plans and had made the appropriate plans to stop them from going anywhere. So the man''s efforts were useless. Chapter 1309 Seventh Princes Nightmare Grey took a glance at the man, and without hesitation, he went after him. Although he was worried about the well-being of his friends, he knew they would be fine. If he could kill the already wounded man, he was sure that things would be easier for them. Besides, his friends had two top-tier Space Elementalists with them who could help them out of any situation without any hitch, so they wouldn''t die. The man was flying as fast as he could, anyone below the Mid stages of the Elemental Venerable Plane might not even be able to catch a glimpse of him before he breezed past them. Grey was also just as fast, adding his space element to the fray, he was a tad faster. In no time, he was able to catch up to the man who had the head start. The man couldn''t believe his eyes when he saw Grey standing in front of him. He was still bleeding from his mouth, breathing heavily. "Why are you so adamant about killing me?" He couldn''t help but ask. "Nothing, I just want to ensure that I take out as many of you as I can. If you survive, you might become a Sovereign in the future and that would put more humans in danger." Grey replied in a nonchalant manner, it was as if he wasn''t speaking about killing someone. The man already knew there was no way he could beat Grey, surviving was also going to be difficult. He thought after self-destructing his puppet, Grey would let him leave, but to his surprise, not only was Grey not injured from it, but it didn''t even help delay him for more than a few seconds. Since Grey was not delayed, he was able to catch up to the man in such a short time. "Don''t worry, I will give you a smooth death." Grey gave the man a death sentence right before his eyes. The man looked at Grey, his eyes slowly turning red. "Hehe, since you''re so confident, I''ll show you what makes people like me different from others." After saying this, the man opened his mouth and three puppets came out of it, each of them was a Gnome, all at the Peak of the Elemental Venerable Plane. "I''ve been keeping these guys for a long time now, I think they are raring to go." The man laughed hideously. Grey''s expression changed slightly, he tried to see if he could cut off the connection between the man and the Gnomes, but to his surprise, he couldn''t find the connection. "The human body and that of Gnomes are different, you will need a long time before you can find the connection." The man laughed, he saw the expression on Grey''s face and knew he had attempted to cut off the link. "Let me tell you something, others see making a Gnome a puppet as a sin, but not me. I use what I see." "If the others find out about this, I don''t think I need to worry about killing you, they will do it themselves." Grey said with a straight face. "This is why they will never find out, I''ll shut you up forever." Grey smiled, he wasn''t scared of what the man said, to him, the man was just babbling nonsense. ¡­. On Alice''s end. Alice was being brutally beaten down by the Seventh Prince. One has to know that he was someone who was very powerful for anyone on the same stage as himself, much less someone who was a stage below him. Even if Alice was a top genius, she would find it difficult to stand toe to toe with the Seventh Prince. The Seventh Prince was slowly starting to become a little vexed, the reason for this was that he felt he should''ve incapacitated Alice by now, but even after over five minutes, he still hadn''t been able to get her down. Alice was very powerful, that was something he couldn''t deny, but with his strength, he believed he should''ve been able to easily subdue her. Alice was sent flying, but she used the lightning element to help herself and balanced herself mid-air before taking a look at the Seventh Prince, she was panting heavily, but she still didn''t have any plans of retreating anytime soon. "You stubborn pests, I''ll kill all of you, every single one of you." The Seventh Prince said in a disgusted manner. "I''m still here. You fought against my friend and from what I can tell, you''re pretty traumatized by his mere presence." Alice mocked. "If I''m not mistaken, he''s always looming over your heart. His face is the first thing you see when you wake, and the last you think about when you go to sleep. Even while training all you think about is him, right?" Alice''s words rendered the Seventh Prince speechless, the reason for this was that it was too accurate. To be honest, since his encounter with Grey, he had been seeing him every day. In everything he does, the picture of Grey comes to mind. To some extent, it could be said that he was obsessed with Grey. All he wanted was to be the one who ended the life of Grey. Or at the very least, be the one to acquire his body. The Seventh Prince attacked with renewed vigor, this time, he brought out another puppet. This one wasn''t as strong as the one Alice''s Seelie was fighting with but it was still in the Fourth stage of the Elemental Venerable Plane, the same Plane as Alice. With it, the Seventh Prince completely overwhelms Alice, not giving her any chance to show any of her abilities. "Don''t worry, your friend will see your lifeless body." The Seventh Prince remarked as they forced Alice into a tight spot after only a few seconds. Alice gritted her teeth as she fought on for her life. She knew if she dared to slack, she would lose her life, and she didn''t want that to happen. Chapter 1310 Destructive Blow "How do you want us to kill him?" Klaus asked Reynolds as they were running through the woods. The battle was getting more intense, if not for the bunny leader, they would''ve been caught a long time ago. Yes, they were also attacking, but with their normal speed, there was no way they would be faster than the Peak Venerables chasing after them, adding the puppets to it made life even worse for them. At the moment, Reynolds could barely keep his Elemental Warrior active, after taking multiple hits, it was starting to show signs of wearing off. He knew that he needed to take a break soon, and if he didn''t, it would take a while before he could use the Elemental Warrior again. "We''ll decide after surviving this." He replied while looking behind them. Their pursuers are getting closer once again. The puppets were the ones leading, while the others were behind the puppets. "Where''s the rabbit?" Reynolds asked. He couldn''t take it any longer, he needed to leave now. Taking the risk of not being able to use his Elemental Warrior for a long time wasn''t something he wanted to do. The bunny leader appeared as soon as he spoke. "Take us out of here. Not too far so we can make sure they don''t leave." Klaus said to the bunny leader. The bunny leader nodded and before the puppets could get close to where they were, they vanished without a trace. The puppets didn''t know where to go and paused, waiting for the Gnomes. "Where did they go?" The Second Prince looked around questioningly. The others had the same expression, they didn''t know where Klaus and Reynolds disappeared to, one minute they could sense them, and the next it was as if they were never there. "Search around, they must be hiding somewhere close by." Klaus and Reynolds had managed to evade them, giving themselves breathing space and a chance to recover some of their energy. ¡­. On Grey''s end. The battle was at its peak. The Gnome puppets the leader of the Gnome group was using were exceptional, they might not be stronger than Grey individually, but together, along with the man, they were all a force to be reckoned with. Any other person at the Peak of the Elemental Venerable Plane would''ve been defeated by now, much less someone who was in the Ninth Stage. Grey didn''t feel any fear as he battled them, he knew all he needed was an opportunity and he would be able to take out the man who was controlling them. The man was shocked by Grey''s abilities, even someone of his character was shocked by Grey''s tenacity. The fact that Grey could fight against so many opponents and still look so cool-headed was shocking for someone his age. If not for the fact that the man could sense Grey''s age, he would''ve said Grey was over a hundred years old. Grey was calm and composed as he fought against the puppets, the man didn''t involve himself too much in the battle as he was afraid of Grey''s explosiveness. Grey might look calm, but he believed that Grey was plotting how to take him down with a single blow. To be fair, this was exactly what was going through Grey''s head, but the man had been too cautious and it was impossible for him to do anything. The man was so wary of his switch skill that he didn''t dare to be close to any of the puppets, giving them a good distance. Grey had been planning on how to take him down, but he knew it wouldn''t be easy. Boom! Bang! Grey and the puppets exchanged blow for blow, the bodies of the puppets were extraordinarily strong, and so was Grey''s physical body, so whenever they exchanged blows, it sounded like metal clashing against metal and not flesh hitting flesh. Grey was battered from the blows, and the puppets were no good either. The man was still trying to recover his strength from the blow he took from Grey, so although he was occasionally interfering, he knew not to be too involved. Grey created two inscriptions that possessed high attack power, and unleashed them on the puppets, keeping them at bay. He didn''t stop there, rather, he made use of the array he had been creating since the start of the battle. The second he saw the Gnome puppets, he knew that this would be a tough battle, so he started to create an array that he would use to bolster his strength. Now, the array was ready. The man was caught off-guard by the sudden inclusion of the array. Grey''s abilities shot up and his figure vanished faster than it usually does. Before the man could pinpoint his location, he felt his body being pulled down by a shocking force. Grey was using both the gravitational force field as well as the help of his space element to drag the man down. The man tried to take control of his body, and after noticing that it wouldn''t be easy, he summoned the puppets over. Only one of the puppets was able to get close to him as the other two were held back by the inscriptions. These inscriptions possessed the abilities of a Ninth stage Elemental Venerable. Even if they were at the Peak, the man couldn''t let the attack hit them carelessly. If not, his puppets might take irreparable damages. Grey naturally wouldn''t give the man the chance to balance himself, he charged toward the man and unleashed a powerful punch, the punch was filled with the space element, releasing a destructive power that scared the man witless. The man didn''t think twice and the puppet that he called to his side was placed to take the punch that was coming his way. The body of the puppet started to fall apart after being hit by the blow. The power behind the punch and the use of the space element made it a very destructive blow. Chapter 1311 Is He Coming? The man saw how the puppet fell apart little by little and shuddered at the thought of what might''ve happened to him if he were the one that was hit by the attack. Grey''s attacks were too powerful for someone who hadn''t even gotten to the Peak of the Elemental Venerable Plane yet. Once he got to the Peak, it was unknown just how powerful he would turn out to be. ''He must die.'' The man finally came to this decision. At first, he wanted to recruit Grey into their ranks, but now that he knew there was no way Grey would join them, it was best to kill off the horrifying threat to his people. Killing Grey would come with a big merit for him and it might be just what he needs to break through to the Sovereign Plane. Grey saw the determination in the eyes of the man and couldn''t help but chuckle, he knew the man wanted him dead now, and would do everything he could to kill him now. ''A shame he''s only realizing it now.'' He said to himself. The reason he felt like this was that it was already too late for the man. He had been able to figure out how the link with the puppets worked, so even if the man had come to the decision of wanting to kill Grey, it was not going to be possible with his puppets out. These puppets didn''t show a visible link, rather, it was a connection of spiritual consciousness. All Grey needed to do at the moment was to attack the spiritual consciousness of the puppets and the man would also be affected. If he could destroy the consciousness that was placed inside, the man would be greatly affected and might weaken. The man was about to attack when he saw Grey''s eyes glow pale blue. Before he could speak another word, he held his head in pain, part of his consciousness had just been frozen solid. He couldn''t explain how it happened, but he knew it was Grey''s doing. ''Fuck!'' He screamed internally, but there was nothing he could do, the pain of having his consciousness forcefully destroyed is something that no one could bear. Grey drew closer and attacked, using the poison miasma in this attack. The man managed to dodge to the side. Grey''s attack grazed the right torso of the man, and a little bit of blood came out. The poison miasma didn''t get the chance to get into the body of the man as the man used the water element to create a small protective shield in his body. He had been wary of Grey''s attacks, so even while he was down, he didn''t dare to slack off. The gruesome death of his companion told him all he needed to know about Grey''s attacks. The man retreated hastily and hurriedly tried to call back his last Gnome puppet. To his shock, the puppet was unable to move back to where he was. He turned to look at it and realized it was trapped in an ice dome. He was at the Peak of the Elemental Venerable Plane and had the ability to control the elements of anyone below him using the same element as himself. With a wave of his hand, the ice dome turned into water and the puppet was free. Grey grunted before creating an earth dome. He forgot about this, but luckily, he reacted pretty fast, stopping the puppet from returning to its owner. The man looked at Grey with cold eyes, he could already guess Grey''s plans. Grey wanted to use the puppet against him while they were in the middle of a fight. He is currently stuck in a dilemma, either he personally breaks off his connection with the puppet, or he gives Grey the opportunity he wants. These puppets were hard to groom and they consumed a large amount of resources, the thought of just leaving the last one like this was painful to even process. If he was given a chance, he would kill Grey this instant for incapacitating two of them. Grey didn''t feel bothered with the man''s expression, he liked what the man was going through at the moment. He wanted to ensure he killed this man, and without any of the puppets, he was certain that he would be able to kill him. The man took a glance at the puppet and without hesitation. Boom! Since Grey wanted the puppet so badly, he can have it. The puppet self-destructed, causing a massive shockwave across the area. Since he was already prepared for this, the man was the first to retreat. Grey was a little slower than the man and was sent flying. "Fuck!" Grey cussed out as his figure broke through the sky. He could sense the aura of the man leaving the battleground. ¡­. On Klaus and Reynolds'' end. The duo had been forced to come out again when they saw that after only two minutes of searching the group was giving up and about to continue their original journey. When they came out, Reynolds was the one who attacked this time. He unleashed a powerful lightning bolt that struck one of the men. The man couldn''t defend against it due to sensing it late. After being struck by the lightning bolt, the man fell to the ground, unconscious. In the same manner, Klaus and Reynolds had managed to take out one of these people. When they left the castle, there were eight, at the moment, there were only six of them with fighting abilities. Klaus directly killed one of them, and it was unknown if the one Reynolds attacked would gain consciousness anytime soon. They were about to attack when the Second Prince stopped them. "Don''t you notice a pattern in what they are doing?" He asked the others. The others had also noticed it, but they just couldn''t let go of the fact that Klaus and Reynolds were killing their companions. "If I''m correct, they don''t want us to leave and are delaying us." The Second Prince looked around, his expression changed softly and he asked, "Could it be that he''s coming?" Chapter 1312 Taking Advantage Of The Situation When the others heard the question of the Second Prince, their expressions changed slightly. If it''s true, and Klaus and Reynolds were delaying them for Grey''s arrival, then it spelled trouble for them. Klaus and Reynolds were already troublesome to deal with on their own, if Grey were to be added to the fray, then they would be in serious danger. "We have to leave. I don''t care if it''s just me overthinking or whatnot, I can''t take the chances of having to battle with him, especially when Elric isn''t around." The Second Prince was not willing to be attacked by Grey. Just like the Seventh Prince, the Second Prince has a phobia when it comes to Grey, he doesn''t want anything to do with the freak of nature. If Grey knew the Princes were this scared of him, he would be flattered, to say the least. It was quite satisfying to know that the mortal enemies of humans seem to have a deep fear for him. With this, he could walk with his head held up high. The others looked at the reaction of the Second Prince, to be honest, they all agreed with how he reacted, none of them wanted to face Grey. Grey was too strong, and if he were to appear now, they would be in serious danger. Elric who was the strongest amongst them had drawn Grey away, but they were all certain that there was no way he would be able to defeat Grey, so they all hoped he delayed for as long as possible so they could escape. However, when they saw Klaus and Reynolds, they felt their luck was amazing, only for one of them to die at the start, killed by a Ninth stage Elemental Venerable. During the first time they crossed paths, Klaus used all he had to boost his strength, unleashing that attack that had the power of someone at the Peak of the Elemental Venerable. Unfortunately, he couldn''t use it continuously. These guys went after them with the hopes of capturing them, but their efforts were futile. Even when they would strike the duo, the duo would still for some unknown reasons manage to continue running as if they weren''t hit by any attack. This has been a source of worry for the group chasing after them. Thinking they would eventually catch them, they didn''t give up on the chase, even after seeing all these things. Only now that they thought of Grey arriving did they start to think of other possibilities. The Seventh Prince halted, no longer willing to give chase. "We can''t leave like that, the Water Elementalist is very dangerous." Someone at the Peak said. If they wanted to escape, then they risked getting attacked by Klaus. An attack from Klaus was too dangerous, this was not something they wanted to bet their lives on. "One of us will stay back to block them while the others leave. Either that or we all stay and risk getting killed." The Second Prince suggested. The others exchanged glances, they all fell deep in thought. If one of them offered to stay back, the chances of getting killed by the combined effort of Klaus and Reynolds were pretty high. The duo could incapacitate two people while they were running from such a group, it was easy to imagine what they could do if they were fighting against just one person. Seeing their faces, the Second Prince sighed, "Alright, this is what we will do. Everyone goes their separate ways, and after they pick their opponents, the rest of us can ambush them." "This will give us an edge over them." The others instantly agreed with the Prince''s suggestion. If they were the ones who ambushed the duo, then the matter would be settled. Klaus and Reynolds were too weak to defend against the ambush of such a powerful group. While the group were plotting, Klaus and Reynolds were sitting on a tree branch, waiting for them to chase after them. "What''s taking them so long?" Reynolds asked when he didn''t sense any movements behind them. "They''re probably planning on how to deal with us." Klaus said with a chuckle, "Your last attack stunned them." The duo laughed after Klaus'' statement. They were still speaking when Klaus sensed the auras of the Gnomes going in separate directions. "Fuck it! They''ve seen through our plan." Klaus cussed out, he turned to Reynolds, "Rey, who do we attack?" "The Second Prince." Reynolds didn''t hesitate. After they came to a decision, they rushed towards the direction the Second Prince took. When the Second Prince sensed that he was the one they went after, he cussed out in annoyance. He didn''t want to be the one who would have to act as bait. What if he was killed before the others came to his rescue? He increased his speed, not daring to wait for the duo to catch up to him. Klaus and Reynolds were chasing after him, both having a grin on their faces. They were finally the ones who were doing the chasing. This was what they were used to, and not the other way around. "Do you think it''s a trap?" Reynolds asked as they chased after the Second Prince. "Haha, of course it is, but they will regret it." Klaus said matter-of-factly. He didn''t even for one second think it wasn''t a trap. Why would a group of six Peak Elemental Venerables go different ways if it wasn''t in a bid to force them into chasing one person? The only mistake in the plan of the Gnomes was that they had zero knowledge of the bunny leader being with the duo, so they could utilize it to their advantage. Before the others could get close, they would at least seriously injure the Second Prince and then escape. "Rabbit, take us closer to him, not too close, but close enough so I can strike him down." Reynolds said. His body was fully covered by lightning. The bunny leader appeared and the duo disappeared. Klaus could feel his heart racing at the thought of bullying the Prince of the Gnome race. Chapter 1313 Taking Advantage Of The Situation II The Second Prince was rushing through the woods, cursing the fact that he was the one the duo chose to go after. His expression changed when he saw Klaus unleashing an ice arrow at him. He was still okay with blocking it, but when he saw the arrow multiply, his eyes nearly bulged out. The arrows became well over a hundred, shooting towards the Second Prince at a shocking speed. The Prince waved his hand and blocked the attack with a simple fire wall. The flames burned down the ice arrows, making sure none of them got close to the Prince. He brought out his puppet as he waited for Klaus and Reynolds. He knew there was no way he would be able to escape any longer, so he decided to fight it out with them. Besides, they were not Grey. They might be strong, but all he had to do was to delay them for a few minutes and the others would come to his aid. A lightning bolt shot through the fire wall, heading straight for the head of the Prince. The puppet jumped in front of the attack, and it blocked it. The puppet was an Earth Elementalist, with the help of its earth element, it was able to block the attack that was heading in their direction. Klaus and Reynolds soon appeared before the Second Prince and his puppet. "You''re slow, for someone who claims to be powerful." Klaus said as he arrived, he looked around, to be sure there was no one else present. "You two don''t know¡­" Boom! The Prince was cut short when Klaus suddenly used his domain. He didn''t even give the Prince any time to say anything before attacking. ''Hehe, did you think I would wait for reinforcement to come? I''m not that stupid.'' Klaus said to himself as he attacked. With his domain present, his strength would see an increase. Inside the icy world that he created, a large moon hung high in the sky, covering the sun. The Prince didn''t know if he was still in the secret realm or he had been transported to another dimension. Klaus'' domain looked very realistic, and with the help of the trees, it was as if he transported the Prince and himself into another world entirely. For someone who was still at the Elemental Venerable Plane, Klaus'' domain was already starting to show signs of someone close to the Peak of the Sovereign Plane. This just goes to show what sort of a genius he is. Even Grey''s domain was not on the same level as that of Klaus. The Prince looked around, and seeing both Klaus and a lightning figure standing in front of him, he knew the duo had no plans of talking with him. A large blade appeared on his hand, it was amber red and radiated intense heat. Even the area close to the Prince showed signs of burning up. The snow around him all melted the second he took out the sword. "Alright, let''s fight." The puppet was standing beside him, and without another word, they both attacked. Klaus and Reynolds didn''t hold back, they rushed towards the Prince and his puppet, both attacking ruthlessly. The Prince was at the Peak of the Elemental Venerable Plane, no matter how strong Klaus might be, he was still a little lacking when compared to the Prince standing before him. Reynolds was in his merged form, making sure to use his abilities to the fullest. Klaus had a full moon shining behind him, with the domain active, the moon radiated another light unlike its usual form, a more intense light. The two parties clashed, both fighting to ensure they were the victors. ¡­.. On another end. Alice was still being overpowered by the Seventh Prince, and even with all her strength and tactics, she was still on the losing end. The Seventh Prince was just someone that was a little above her league. Only someone like Grey would be able to defeat him while being a stage weaker. Alice had been trying her best to take down the Seventh Prince, but no matter what she tried, the Prince was still able to overpower her. As the battle went on, she started to give up on the thought of defeating the Prince. She was not someone that would foolishly fight a losing battle, since she was already aware of the possible outcome, she didn''t have any reason to stay there for too long. ''Fighting him for this long is already very beneficial to me.'' She said to herself. This statement was true in the sense that fighting against the Seventh Prince had pressured her to improve even more than she expected she would. She was certain that with a day or two of cultivating, she would be able to break through to the next stage. Getting to the Fifth stage of the Elemental Venerable Plane after just one tough battle against the Seventh Prince. The Seventh Prince saw Alice''s eyes and felt infuriated, she wasn''t showing any signs of giving up which annoyed him. He had been beating her since the start of the battle, yet, she was not even showing any signs of defeat. ''Fine, since you''re so foolish that you can''t even see that you''re not a match for me, I''ll kill you.'' The Seventh Prince wanted to take advantage of the opportunity that presented itself and kill Alice. From their exchange, he knew that it would be almost impossible to capture Alice alive, so the best option was to kill her and turn her into a puppet. She would be a good puppet, and the second Grey sees her, he will definitely lose control of his emotions. Alice didn''t know what was going through the head of the Seventh Prince, but she suddenly sensed the murderous aura that filled the air all of a sudden. ''Is he planning to kill me?'' She thought to herself, but there was no atom of fear in her eyes, she might be weaker than the Prince, but if he thinks he can kill her, then he was deceiving himself. Chapter 1314 Surrounded Alice''s Seelie was overpowered by the puppet while the Seventh Prince was pushing Alice back as the time went on, there was no way she could fight against him without the help of the Seelie increasing her strength. In the void. Void was watching the battle casually, while also eating a big chunk of meat from the plate in front of him. It was one of the meals he kept, and he didn''t see a better time to eat than now. He knew there was no way the Seventh Prince would be able to kill Alice, and even if he were to get the chance to kill her, it wouldn''t be that easy. "She''s getting stronger. Nice!" He commented when he saw Alice take a blow from the Seventh Prince. When the battle started, Alice wouldn''t have been able to take a blow of his power, but now, she managed to take it head-on and even stayed in the same position. Void wasn''t the only one seeing the sudden increase of Alice''s strength, the Seventh Prince was seeing it too. He knew that as they battled, she was getting stronger. ''Why are all these humans suddenly freaks?'' He was stunned beyond words. He just came to the conclusion of killing Alice off, yet she had grown stronger as they battled, doesn''t that mean it would become harder for him to kill her now? The Seventh Prince''s frustration increased even more and he attacked more aggressively. His attacks kept easily destroying Alice''s defense, and the impact kept forcing her back. Alice had been on the back foot since the start of the battle, and even with the Prince''s increased pressure, she didn''t fold. She knew an opportunity might present itself to her and she would take it without hesitation, even if it turned out to be very dangerous. Alice was someone who enjoyed fighting, she was a battle freak, now being against someone that was stronger than she was, she didn''t want to give up, not because she felt she could win, but because she knew that the longer she holds on, the stronger she could grow. There might also be a chance for her to take down the Prince. If that happens, then she would grow even further than what she would expect. ¡­. On Grey''s end. Grey didn''t opt to chase after the man, the reason for this was because he knew breaking the connection with the puppet would seriously harm the man. It would take the man a few months at the very least to recover from the injuries he sustained from the battle, and at least three to five years before he recovers from the connection break with these puppets. These puppets were different from the normal ones. If the connection with a normal puppet was broken, it would only affect the person linked to it for a few seconds, but these ones have a long lasting effect. The man was still clearly suffering from the last one Grey cut off the link with, and now forcibly breaking the connection and also self-destructing it would make his mental injuries even worse. "I won''t be seeing any of him for a long time. I should go help out the others before they plan my death." Grey looked around and sensed the region Klaus and Reynolds were, he didn''t bother too much with Alice. With Void keeping watch over her, he was sure nothing bad would happen to her. At most, she might sustain a few not so lethal injuries. After getting the direction of Klaus and Reynolds, Grey went after them. The bunny leader was also there to help them out, but he knew it wouldn''t be easy for it to take them out of there unscathed. ¡­ On Klaus and Reynolds'' end. The duo were fighting with the Second Prince, the battle was just as they expected, but it was not going according to their plan. Yes, they were a tad stronger than the Second Prince and his puppet, but they hadn''t been able to deal any serious injuries to the Prince. The Prince focused more on defense, so even with the duo fighting with all their might, they were still not able to break the defense. Klaus'' domain was on the verge of falling apart after so many attacks. The Prince''s blade was seething with flames. Klaus was holding onto his thin sword as well. The sword he got from the secret realm that increases his ice abilities was what he was using to fight with the Second. Both parties were holding swords that opposed the other person''s elements. Clank! Bang! Bam! They attacked, each releasing powerful attacks with their swords. Reynolds was the one who was fighting against the puppet. He was in his merged state and even with the puppet being at the Peak, it isn''t strong enough to over Reynolds. Reynolds and the puppet was fighting in close range, both using their fists and legs. Their battle was more brutish compared to Klaus''. "You will die before anyone comes to save you." Klaus said as he attacked. The Second Prince didn''t say anything, he didn''t expect Klaus had such a magnificent sword as well. His sword was powerful, and so was that of Klaus. Klaus slashed at the Second Prince, but the Second Prince blocked it, using his fire element to force Klaus back. While they were still fighting, Klaus sensed something and his expression changed. "Haha, they''re coming." The Second Prince laughed in delight. He could sense the aura of five others, coming from different directions. It was clear their motive was to ensure there was no way Klaus and Reynolds would be able to escape their encirclement. Reynolds and Klaus attacked more aggressively, trying to make sure they at least harmed the Second Prince. ''Damn it! Why did they come so early?'' He complained internally. It hadn''t been up to two minutes since they started fighting, and he didn''t expect the others to rush here so soon. Even with delaying, it still wasn''t enough. Reynolds took a glance at Klaus, seeking what their next step would be. Chapter 1315 Tricking Them Reynolds stopped fighting with the puppet and moved closer to Klaus. "What do we do?" Reynolds asked. The bunny leader would be able to take them out of there if they asked it to, but Klaus seemed to be delaying a little longer. "Wait, we''ll try to see if we could kill him, if not, then we''ll leave before they show up. It''ll take a bit before they get here." Klaus didn''t stop his battle, his sword was still moving while speaking. He didn''t want to miss any chance. The Second Prince was a good target for him to increase his strength, but with the puppet and the others coming there, there was no way he would be able to fight with him for a long time. The Second Prince was more relaxed when he sensed the arrival of the other Peak Venerables coming over. He didn''t even bother with Reynolds who left his puppet. He faced the duo and with his puppet by the side, they continued fighting. Reynolds joined Klaus and made use of his lightning domain as well. Things were not as easy as they previously were, now they had to take out all their skills if they wanted to achieve their objectives. A few seconds later the Prince was still there, unharmed. "Crap, let''s get out of here." Klaus shook his head and gave up on the Prince. He knew there was no way they would be able to cause any injuries to him. Just as they were about to leave, the Prince smiled and asked. "What''s the rush?" He attacked with his sword, sending a blazing strike in their direction. The spatial tunnel the bunny leader just created to take them out of the place shattered the second the fire blade touched it. With such a powerful attack, there was no way they could use the space element to leave the area. "Stay, let''s have some fun." The Prince smiled. He was pleased with being able to stop the duo from leaving. After sensing the use of the space element, he didn''t delay and attack almost instantaneously. Klaus and Reynolds took a glance at him, their eyes turning cold. "You don''t want to keep us here." Klaus said coldly. "Actually, I do." The Second Prince didn''t finish his statement when the first person at the Peak arrived, beside the man was his puppet. "It''s time we kill you morons. There is no need to keep you two alive. The girl is enough bargaining chip." The man said when he arrived. "I was just thinking the same." The Second Prince said. They had no idea Alice was fighting with the Seventh Prince, and he was already thinking of how to turn her into a puppet. If they knew, they would value the lives of the duo in front of them a little higher. Klaus and Reynolds stared at the two after hearing what they said. The two smiled and moved closer to them. Klaus didn''t delay shooting out a needle he had been keeping for a while. He wanted to use it to kill the Prince when he was not watching, but his life was more important, so he used it against them now. The duo dodged the needle with ease, but Klaus and Reynolds got the time they needed to run in another direction. They knew fighting with those two would do them no good. The Second Prince and the man chased after them with a smile on their faces. They warned the duo dead, the Second Prince especially wanted it more. As they were going after them, another person appeared, grouping up with the duo, their numbers increased. Klaus cussed as they ran through the woods. They were both scared witless. Even the bunny leader isn''t able to help them since there is no way to use the space element thanks to the Second Prince. "What should we do?" Reynolds asked. "Try to stay alive, I guess." Klaus replied. The bunny leader was useless at the moment, because there was no way it could use the space element. "I wonder where Grey is." Reynolds said as they ran through the woods. "I need to see him¡­" Klaus said calmly, his eyes showed anger the next moment and he said, "So I can kill him myself!" Reynolds smiled but didn''t say anything. Just as they were still running, they suddenly saw a figure coming towards them at full speed. "Is that¡­ Grey?" Reynolds asked loudly, one could hear the joy in his voice. Klaus didn''t say anything and spat something out of his mouth, aiming it at the figure coming towards them. They couldn''t see the face of the person properly, neither did they know who it was. Due to Grey always hiding his aura, it was very difficult to differentiate him from someone else. Well, that only applies to people he didn''t know. The figure rushing towards them suddenly screamed and to the surprise of everyone behind the duo, the figure fell from the sky. "Haha, good work bud!" Klaus burst into laughter. Even when being chased by so many people, he still didn''t have any reservations. The item he spat out was a needle. This needle was the strongest he had ever made, and thanks to using that weaker one as a way to deceive the others he couldn''t create another, Reynolds tricked the person in front into believing he thought he was Grey. This made the person lower his guard. The eyes of the trio behind them turned even colder. They couldn''t believe that even with them, Klaus still managed to kill someone. "What sort of freaks are they?" One of the men with the Second Prince asked. "Dead ones." The eyes of the Second Prince were slowly turning red. He could accept this from Grey, but not anyone else. To him, Grey was the only human who was talented, now that he was seeing someone of Klaus and Reynolds'' level, he was finding it hard to believe it. Chapter 1316 Polite Klaus Five, from eight, they were now five. They were fighting against two people who hadn''t even gotten to the Ninth stage of the Elemental Venerable Plane, Reynolds was still at the Fifth stage, and his increased strength was all due to his Elemental Warrior. Yet, they had succeeded in killing two people, while incapacitating one of them. This was something the Gnomes would not believe at the start, but to their surprise, it was happening right before their eyes and they couldn''t even stop it. "I want to skin them alive." The Prince said through gritted teeth. The others all had the same thoughts, but deep down, the feeling of fear was starting to sprout. After seeing two of their comrades get killed by the supposed weak humans, they didn''t have the same feeling of superiority over them. Even with their puppets, they still weren''t as strong as the duo. It was a shocking discovery. The thing that made it even worse was the fact that the duo they were fighting wasn''t even at the Peak. They were at least two stages below them, yet they were able to kill them. If all humans were like Grey and his friends, then they didn''t want to invade the human world any longer. A Peak Elemental Venerable human might be able to kill them with ease. If Klaus and Reynolds were at the Peak, they couldn''t help but think about what might happen in this battle. The Prince was the first to chase after them, he didn''t even spare the man who was killed by Klaus'' attack any glance, his eyes were bloodshot, set on the running duo. While the Prince and his group were chasing after the duo, Klaus and Reynolds couldn''t believe their luck. They have managed to kill two Peak Elemental Venerables, although it was mainly due to tricks and the fact that they didn''t defend against their attacks, it still didn''t change the fact that they had achieved such a feat. Klaus was the one with a proud smile on his face, he was the one who killed the duo, so he felt most of the credit belonged to him. Reynolds couldn''t be bothered if he was the one who got the credit, as long as the number of people chasing them reduced, he was okay. The duo continued rushing through the woods. "I can''t go any further, I need some rest." Klaus said, his smile not one of ecstasy anymore, he was genuinely tired of this cat and mouse chase. "Rabbit, take us away." He said. However, the bunny leader he was waiting for didn''t show up. He looked around, but there was nothing in view. A strange coldness went through his body and he took another glance around before calling for the bunny leader. Just like his first attempt, his calls fell on deaf ears. "Damn it! I thought Grey said this rabbit would help us whenever we called?" Klaus cussed out. "It has been helping us since, what suddenly happened?" Reynolds'' words reminded Klaus of the bunny leader''s role in them still being alive and also being able to kill two Peak Elemental Venerables. "Did something happen to it?" Reynolds asked as they rushed through the woods. They noticed the speed of the Prince and the others chasing after them suddenly increased. A few puppets seemed to be burning as they were chasing after them, an effect of going more than what they could handle. Seeing this, they knew the group of five all had the same thoughts; kill the duo. The duo felt a chill run down their spines. "Fuck! Why did something have to happen to it now?" Klaus was almost losing his mind. It would''ve been fine if the bunny leader didn''t respond when they were chasing after the Prince, at that time, they would''ve known what to do, but now, the bunny leader wasn''t responding, and the duo were almost at their end. The full moon behind Klaus had already reduced to a half moon, and at the pace it was reducing, it would only take at most a minute before it completely faded off. His strength would fall back to the Seventh stage, this was not in his plans. Reynolds was no better, his Elemental Warrior was fading off slowly, and to make it last longer, he had even stopped using any form of energy from it, this is one of the reasons his speed reduced, just like Klaus. The Prince and the other Peak Elemental Venerables that were with him already sensed the reduced speed of the duo and knew that whatever technique they were using to increase their strengths was starting to wear off. "Haha, I''ll see if you can survive any longer." The Prince laughed maniacally. He was on the verge of going mad. Presently, his hate for Klaus and Reynolds was superior to the one he had for Grey. Although he was afraid of Grey, he wasn''t tormented in such a manner by him. Klaus and Reynolds on the other hand made him feel like his existence was meaningless. He had never felt this way about himself before. "I must kill them." He whispered through gritted teeth. Klaus and Reynolds had no idea the amount of hate they just caused for themselves. All they wanted at the moment was for the bunny leader to answer them, Klaus was literally close to crying. His speed was reducing at a very fast rate, the same could be said for Reynolds. They were both tired of the constant running. Before long, the Prince was the first to catch up to them, alongside his puppet. "I want to see just how powerful you two are." The Prince''s voice was cold, sending chills across the area. The other four soon caught up, their puppets flying beside them. Klaus and Reynolds stopped running, they knew turning their backs to them would only put them in danger. "We''ve already killed two of you, and the other can''t fight. Why don''t you wait for an hour?" Klaus asked politely. The Prince didn''t even give them any chance and attacked without hesitation. The expression of Klaus and Reynolds changed drastically, they knew they couldn''t block this attack. Boom! Chapter 1317 Get To Know Each Other Boom! "Shit! Hide your puppets!" A scream came from the side of the Gnomes, and Klaus and Reynolds who subconsciously had their eyes closed opened them to see a familiar figure standing before them, one of his hands in front of him. "I''m sorry I took so long." Grey''s voice sounded in their ears. Klaus was the first to heave a sigh of relief. He quickly sat down on a tree. He knew with Grey here, he didn''t have to worry about anything else. Reynolds was just like Klaus, tired. He didn''t even care to bother with how Grey planned on dealing with the Gnomes in front of them, he sat down cross-legged and said, "Please, be as quiet as possible." Grey''s mouth twitched slightly, but when he thought about what they had to go through, he didn''t complain. He counted the people present and noticed three Gnomes were missing. He shook his head at the missed opportunity when he realized that he couldn''t kill the Gnome he cut off his link with his puppet. Due to having to save the duo, he only cut off the link to distract them and make sure they didn''t leave before blocking the attack, he wasn''t even able to send out an attack. Grey smiled when he saw the duo and took a glance at the Prince and the others. "Did you miss me?" He asked with a grin on his face. The faces of the Prince and the other Gnomes were livid. They thought they would be able to kill Klaus and Reynolds, but with Grey present, their chances of achieving that were almost zero. "Damn it!" The Prince cussed out. He was irate with the presence of Grey. If Grey had delayed for a minute, then they would''ve killed the duo before he arrived, but unfortunately for them, he came at the perfect time, they weren''t even able to cause any serious harm to them. "What are you doing here?" The Prince asked with a cold voice. "What? You thought that guy could hold me back?" Grey asked mockingly, "Well, he''s seriously injured." The Prince was about to speak when Grey suddenly recalled something and said, "Oh right, I didn''t know you guys also used Gnomes as puppets. They''re very tricky to deal with, but thanks to that guy, I can just about handle them." The eyes of the others changed when they heard this. "What?!" They all exclaimed. "Wait¡­ you didn''t know?" Grey asked with a look of surprise. He knew for a fact that they didn''t know about it, he just wanted to pass on the news and leave them disorganized. The Prince couldn''t respond, and neither could the others. They all knew that doing something like that was an abomination in their realm. "He''s lying to us, he wants us to hold a grudge with him." The Prince said to the others, as if seeing through Grey''s ploy. "Why would I take the effort of cooking up such a lie? Unlike you guys, I don''t have time to waste on useless things." Grey sneered. He didn''t want to rush into battle, because he couldn''t sense the bunny leader. It was okay if the bunny leader was around and didn''t help the duo, but it not being around was a different story. Grey might not fully trust the bunny leader, but he felt it wouldn''t leave in such a manner. "Something''s wrong." He muttered to himself. The Prince looked at him, and seeing Grey''s expression, a part of his mind was telling him that he wouldn''t do such a thing, but another part of him didn''t want to believe it. The act of using another Gnome as a puppet was forbidden, and if anyone was caught, they would be executed without exception, even the Emperor was not included from this. This goes to show how seriously the Gnomes take this rule, yet, there was someone who had the courage to do such an act? "Even if you don''t want to believe it, it has nothing to do with me, I just thought it was common among you guys." Grey said coolly before his gaze turned cold. "Where are the others? I don''t want to bully you guys." He added. The Prince and the other four felt angered by his words, but when they thought about what happened the last time they encountered Grey, they didn''t even know how to feel. When faced with nine Peak Elemental Venerables, Grey still managed to kill one of them, and leave when he wanted to without them being able to stop him. Now, against five of them, the chances of him doing as he pleases was very high. Adding the fact that the strongest person wasn''t even present made it worse. Five Peak Elemental Venerables were worried about facing a single Ninth stage Elemental Venerables. If news of this went out, it would cause an uproar, especially when the five were Gnomes and the person they were afraid of was a human. Grey took a step forward and the Gnomes felt a strong pressure mount up on them. And they subconsciously took a step back. When the Gnomes realized what was happening, they all felt a sense of shame, and at the same time, anger. They''ve always been superior to humans. Why should they be afraid of a single person now? This was a question they couldn''t answer, even if they were given a year or ten years, they still wouldn''t be able to come up with why they were innately afraid of Grey. At the moment, it wasn''t just a fear due to being able to cut off their links with their puppets, rather, it was another type of fear. It was like the fear of Grey was deep-rooted in them and they couldn''t dare to go against him. Grey smiled when he saw their reactions, "Good boys. Now, let''s get to know each other more." After that statement, they couldn''t find Grey''s figure anymore. "We have to leave." Chapter 1318 One Versus Five "We have to leave." The person that made this statement wasn''t the Prince, rather, it was one of the other four Peak Elemental Venerables. They didn''t feel confident in being able to keep Grey at bay, so they believed the best thing to do was to leave the woods and return to the castle. If possible, they didn''t mind leaving the secret realm entirely. Grey''s figure appeared close to them, and without hesitation, he attacked. His fire domain spread out, covering a large area, he didn''t use the normal flames, rather, he used his icy flames to slow them down. The icy flames had the ability to slow down the thought process of anyone caught in it, so it was very effective against such a group. Especially given their current mental state. Grey took advantage of this and attacked immediately he used his icy domain. The five Gnomes'' reaction was a little slower than it previously was. Grey''s attack was able to get to them without them being able to dodge it. With no other choice, they were forced to block the attack. Grey''s attack was very powerful, and even those at the Peak would have to think twice before taking such an attack head-on. All five figures were sent flying, all going in different directions. When the attack struck, the expressions of all five Gnomes changed. One of them took a glance at the Prince, he was the strongest among the people present so he was able to fairly shake off Grey''s attack. He took another glance at the others. "The Prince can not die here." He muttered to himself, with determination in his eyes, he stood in front of the Prince. "Leave the realm, take your brother and leave. You can not die here." The man''s words struck deep into the mind of the Prince. From what the man was insinuating, they couldn''t stop Grey, and although they didn''t want to accept it, they all knew it was the truth. Grey was just too powerful for them to deal with. Since that was the case, they needed to make sure the lives of both Princes were safe. The Prince closed his eyes, took a deep look at Grey, and turned around without hesitation. There was no need to die here, since these guys have offered to stop Grey from going after him, then he would leave. Grey didn''t try to stop them, he only took a glance at his friends and realized they were in no shape to chase after the Prince. ''I''ll let him go. It wouldn''t be too bad if two Princes are terrified of me.'' He thought to himself with a smile. The Prince''s figure soon disappeared from view. "Alright, I''ve given you guys enough time." Grey said and took a step forward, his icy domain speeding towards the four Gnomes. "Surround him." The man who was the strongest took charge. He knew the others were afraid of Grey, and he couldn''t blame them for it, he too is afraid of Grey. With someone leading, the other three got their emotions together and did as commanded. If they were in the same place, Grey could use it to his advantage and focus the domain there, but once they were in different directions, the effect of the domain would be reduced since covering such a large area would mean Grey was exchanging quality for quantity. Grey''s figure blurred and he went after one of the men, since they were going to stand in separate areas, then he would just kill them one by one. He was about to attack when one of the Gnomes attacked from the side. He blocked the attack, but that was enough time for the man he wanted to attack to not only retreat, but to also unleash a powerful strike. Grey blocked the attack and took a step back, his eyes turned serious. He knew even though he was stronger than they were individually, killing all of them wouldn''t be as easy as he initially thought. ''I forgot they are all at the Peak.'' He had to change his thought process. Due to seeing the fear in them, he underestimated them to a certain extent. Now, he wasn''t going to underestimate them again. Two inscriptions lit up in the sky and Grey''s eyes turned pale blue, he was going all-out. ¡­. On Alice''s side. Alice has been the subject of a serious beating, she couldn''t keep up with the Seventh Prince and the puppet. However, she was still standing, ready to fight with the Prince. Since the start of the battle, she has been overpowered, but she still didn''t have the thought of giving up. She could still stand, attack, and defend. Not just that, but the real reason she didn''t want to give up was because she could sense that the longer the battle goes, the stronger she was getting. She has been in multiple battles, but this was the first time she was fighting someone of the Seventh Prince''s level, and with the Seventh Prince adamant on wanting to kill her, he wasn''t holding back. Alice has been fighting for her life since the start, and this was making her stronger. It was like she was tapping into an energy she never knew existed, and the feeling was captivating. The Seventh Prince has also noticed that the more they fought, the stronger Alice was getting. "What''s wrong with all of them?" He felt there was something they didn''t know about the current generation of humans. They had seen and heard all about humans, and none of their stories mentioned people behaving in such a manner. First it was Grey, and now he came in with three friends who were almost as freakish as he was. To a certain extent, a few of them were showing shocking levels of abilities. Grey had multiple elements, so some of his abilities could be attributed to that, but the others only had a single element, yet they were doing things others couldn''t. Alice could sense the frustration in the body of the Seventh Prince. She didn''t feel any sense of accomplishment from this, yes, it was good to see that the Prince was getting frustrated, but with her strength, she felt she should be able to at least put up a good fight against the Prince and not get run over. The Prince calmed himself before attacking once again. He was not going to let her rest. Since she was still standing, he would kill her from exhaustion. He was certain that there was no way she would be able to escape from him, so he decided to take his time on her. "I''ll break you apart piece by piece." Alice wasn''t flustered, she took all the attacks that came her way. The ones she could dodge, she would, while the others she took head-on. The impact of the attacks was starting to physically affect her, but with her strong mental fortitude, she wasn''t going to let her physical exhaustion affect her. The Prince didn''t stop his attacks when he saw this, rather, he continued at a certain pace, not giving Alice any chance to catch her breath. The puppet made it easier for him since it blocked the As time went on, she started taking more hits. Her reaction speed had reduced significantly after being hit by the shockwave of the attacks and the exhaustion was starting to show. "It can only get you this far. In the end, you''re still a weak human." The Prince mocked when he saw Alice''s state. Alice wanted to speak, but she decided against it. Presently, she needed all the energy she could use and speaking in such a state took a great deal of strength, one she wasn''t willing to waste. The Prince saw her expression and laughed, he continued attacking, this time, his attack speed was faster. He didn''t need to hold back any longer, there was no need for his systematic attacks, now, he could go all out against an already defeated opponent. Alice kept blocking the attacks coming her way, but she was getting hit more and more. She knew if she took more hits at this rate, she truly might get killed here. Recalling what Grey told her before leaving, she knew she could not die. She was in a merged state with her Seelie, yet they were still oppressed by the Seventh Prince and his puppet. The Seelie soon vanished, making Alice show a weaker front compared to a few minutes ago when she first arrived. The Prince didn''t smile when he saw Alice in such a state, to a certain extent, he felt embarrassed that it took him this long before he could take down such a weak human. "Your kind should be nothing but slaves and puppets." "But you, you don''t deserve to exist. I originally wanted to turn you into a puppet, but I''ve decided against it¡­ die¡­" Chapter 1319 Always Thoughtful The Seventh Prince attacked after saying this. Alice was in a state where she couldn''t block any attack coming her way. She tried to drag her body out of the way, but she was too exhausted to do anything. Even though she wanted to leave, she realized she couldn''t. Her body was completely worn out, there was nothing she could do to stop the attack from hitting her. The Seelie which had originally disappeared reappeared and stood in front of her. It had bonded with Alice and knew that if she was hit by this attack, she would die, which was also bad for it. But it was different if it was the one hit by the attack. The Prince watched on coldly when the attack made contact, giving off a powerful explosion. His eyes were cold as he looked at the place the attack struck. His lips curved upwards, he was about to break into a smile when he noticed something wasn''t right. "Why does it feel like the attack didn''t hit them?" He muttered and squinted his eyes, staring into the flames from the explosion. He waved his hand, forcing the smoke and flames from the explosion away. His pupils enlarged when he noticed there was no one there. Alice and the Seelie were nowhere to be seen. He spread out his spiritual senses, but he still wasn''t able to locate the duo. The thought that the duo vanished without a trace angered the Prince. "Impossible!" He was fuming. While he was still searching for them, he turned to look behind him. He seemed to catch the glimpse of a small black figure, but he wasn''t certain what it was since it was very fast. But the reason he turned around wasn''t because of the black figure, rather, it was because he could sense his brother''s aura rushing towards him. "Why''s he coming back?" He was surprised. There were seven other Peak Elemental Venerables with his brother, and the strongest person was holding Grey back. When he saw Alice, he already knew the plan of Grey and his friends. So he guessed his brother''s group would also be attacked. However, he wasn''t too bothered about it given their numbers and strength. "Why are you still here?" The Second Prince appeared close to his brother, when he took a glance his eyes turned cold. He could tell a battle took place here, and seeing the current state of his brother, he knew his brother was the one who got the better of his opponent. Alice was the only one he didn''t see, so he could already guess what happened here. However, he couldn''t help but feel a certain way. He was in a sorry state, and his younger brother was able to deal with the person sent after him. "Did you guys get attacked too?" The Seventh Prince asked. "We''re leaving. Staying here is too dangerous. We have to get father to increase the bounty on his head. He''s too dangerous." The Second Prince said, and took flight after finishing his statement. The Seventh Prince didn''t need any explanation, he could already tell who his elder brother was talking about. From his elder brother''s manner, it was clear that he was terrified of Grey. "Don''t tell me he killed the others¡­" The Seventh Prince looked in the direction the Second Prince was coming from and he couldn''t sense anyone coming from that angle. "He defeated all of them." This realization scared the crap out of him. If Grey defeated them and forced his elder brother who was very prideful to run in such a manner, it meant that he was even more of a freak than he thought. Grey chased after the strongest among them and still managed to go back and attack the Second Prince''s group. It was shocking just thinking about it. If Grey was able to catch up to them so early, it meant that he had already dealt with the man who was supposed to hold him back. "It hasn''t even been up to twenty minutes¡­" The Seventh Prince didn''t know how to feel about Grey. At first, he believed he would be the one to kill Grey, but after meeting Grey for the second time, he knew his dream was not possible in any way. Grey was advancing too quickly, and in a matter of months, he would get to the Sovereign Plane. If someone like Grey were to reach the Peak of the human world before the war breaks out, they would be in trouble. The Seventh Prince didn''t dare to stay there any longer, he chased after his elder brother, their destination was the portal. They had to leave this place as soon as possible. ¡­. Alice opened her eyes to total darkness. She didn''t understand what happened, one moment she was about to be hit by a life-threatening attack, the next moment she was in a dark place. She tried to look around, but she couldn''t see any light. "Don''t worry, you''re safe here." A small voice resounded in her ears, she didn''t need to ask who it was. She had been with Void for too long not to recognize his voice. "So Grey sent you to make sure I don''t die." She asked. "Just a precautionary measure. The bunny is with the other two as well." Void replied, for some reason, he could sense a hint of sadness in Alice''s voice. It was as if she was sad with the fact that Grey didn''t believe she was strong enough to defeat the Prince on her own. But when she thought deeply about it, her sadness disappeared. She knew what she was capable of, and so did Grey. The Seventh Prince was someone Grey had fought with before and to a certain extent, it could be said that he knew what he was capable of. Since he sent Void, it meant that he didn''t want anything to happen to Alice if by chance she wasn''t able to defeat the Prince or escape. "He''s always so thoughtful." She said with a soft smile. Chapter 1320 Seeking Treasures Alice and Void spoke for a while before she asked Void to take her to the others. Void didn''t disagree with it since he too wanted to go back to Void and rest. Watching over someone was exhausting, he didn''t know when to jump in and on a few occasions, he wanted to come out and beat up the Prince for a while before letting Alice deal with him. But now, he understood why Grey didn''t want him to interfere. Unlike Klaus and Reynolds who were both shameless, Alice would feel Grey was looking down on her hence the reason he sent Void to help her. Even though she knew Grey was only worried about her well-being, she still felt if Grey believed in her abilities, there was no need to send someone to watch over her. Void didn''t think too much about it as he shuttled through space, rushing towards Grey''s direction at lightning fast speed. ¡­. On Grey''s end. He had finally sensed where the bunny leader was, and he didn''t know how to react to it. Someone or something blocked the bunny leader from using the space element. From its tired voice, he was certain it got into a fight and somehow managed to come out on top, hence the reason it was able to come out from the place he was confined in. Grey was relieved when he heard its voice once again. Having such a powerful and somewhat knowledgeable bunny by his side was quite enjoyable. It would''ve been a shame to lose it. Klaus and Reynolds were still resting, trying to recover their strength. The four Gnomes were all seriously wounded by him. Two had lost both their arms, while the other two had holes in their bodies. It hadn''t been more than three minutes since the Second Prince left, yet Grey had already done so much damage to them. All four of them knew they were going to die, unless someone came to help them. Grey paused his attack because of the bunny leader, but now that he had clarified everything with it, there was no use keeping these guys alive. He attacked with even more ferocity. His figure was going from one place to another without a quarter of a second. Before long, all four Gnomes who were all mentally and physically exhausted were killed by Grey. Void and Alice arrived immediately Grey killed off the last Gnome. Alice took a glance at Klaus and Reynolds who were resting and knew the duo were exhausted given the fact that they didn''t even bother to open their eyes to see who came. She decided to do the same, jumping onto a tree branch, she shut her eyes and started meditating. Void jumped on Grey''s shoulder. "There''s something in the space here. Very powerful." Void said to Grey. "It caught the bunny, but it managed to escape from it." Grey looked around, this strange creature interested him. He wouldn''t mind having another powerful Space Elementalist among his ranks. The bunny leader and Void had been so helpful. "Don''t even think about it. You can''t control it, neither can I. Its bloodline is quite high." As if he could see through Grey''s mind, he warned him against having any thoughts on the creature. Grey gave a stiff smile before taking a look at Alice. He could see that she was in a bad state. Now that he was no longer fighting, he raised his hands in the direction of his friends and a golden light shot towards them. He wanted to use the light element to help them recover. A few hours later. The group was well rested. To be fair, if not for Grey using the light element, it would''ve taken longer than it did. "What now?" Klaus asked. They''ve defeated the top Gnomes, and he was sure they wouldn''t bother them anytime soon. "The Princes are gone. They will not stay here since it''s too dangerous. We''re free to explore now." Grey said coolly, "Thanks to them wanting to take us out in such a hurry, we''ve dealt with them." "The only issue now should be the Giant race. I would''ve gone over to intimidate them, but that wouldn''t be good for us. We''re already enemies with the Gnome race, adding the Giant race to it will only make life more difficult." "Yes, now that we have nothing to fear, I say we should go out to seek opportunities." Reynolds had been waiting for this for a while now, "You two are already close to the Peak of the Venerable Plane, we''re lacking behind. We need to increase our strength too." "War is coming, we all need to increase our strength." Klaus said. "Since the Gnomes are gone, it''s best we go separate ways." Grey suggested. Whenever they enter places like this which are filled with opportunities, the best thing to do is to go separate ways, they can obtain more things this way. But staying together was the safer option. The others didn''t see anything wrong with Grey''s statement. Staying together would be good for their safety, but with the top Gnomes gone, and the rare conflict with the Giant race, they were actually very safe. So they didn''t have to worry about getting killed by someone from the Gnome race. The bunny leader was the first to leave, it was in the process of building an army before Grey called it over, now, it wanted to continue its work. Grey and his friends stayed together for a little longer before they started to leave one by one. In no time, Grey was the only one left, well, Void was still on his shoulder so he had a companion. Klaus and Reynolds paired together, as usual. Alice went on her own, she had her Seelie with her. It has not completely recovered, but they should be fine against anyone below the Late stages of the Elemental Venerable Plane. "I wonder what sort of treasure would make them need my help." Grey whispered. Chapter 1321 An Invitation From The Giants Grey and Void started their journey through the secret realm. With the powerful Gnomes no longer active in the secret realm, they didn''t have anything to worry about. Grey didn''t even bother to head back to the castle which is the hideout of the Gnomes, there was nothing left for him there. He knew the Princes wouldn''t dare to return, well, unless they brought reinforcement. However, that would take a long time and he had to make the best of the current opportunity he had. He still had a few people he had to give treasures to. Although Arthel was presently under his father, technically, he was the one who brought him here so he still had to be responsible for a few things relating to his training. There was also Cori who was like his little sister. She needed a good amount of treasure to make her body grow faster into her current strength so she would be able to increase her strength and fight stronger opponents. Grey didn''t need her to stay weak, war was coming, and the stronger she was, the safer she would be. There was also the triplet from the horned race, and also a few friends. He wasn''t too concerned about his friends who weren''t here, but the triplet needed all he could provide them if they wanted to boost their strength faster. They were still at the Sage Plane, and getting to the Elemental Venerable seemed very far from them. Unless Grey were to bring back a handful of treasures that would be helpful to them. At the thought of all this, Grey couldn''t help but give a wry chuckle. He couldn''t believe he was preparing for a war that might eventually end the human race. ''If only I was stronger¡­'' He thought to himself, but he soon tossed it to the back of his mind. There was no use bothering too much about something like this since he wasn''t strong enough. If the sky was falling, there would be people who would hold it for him. Until he got to that stage, all he needed to focus on was getting stronger. With all the things he has learned so far, he was certain that against anyone on the same stage as himself, he was invincible. The merging of his chaos and essence energies made his attack power even more destructive. Adding his space element, as well as his miasma, he could insta-kill anyone at the Peak if he attacked them without them being able to defend. Even Klaus is capable of achieving such a feat, so it was natural that it wouldn''t be hard for him to do something like that. "Is there anything good around?" Grey turned his attention to Void. He had to make good use of the time he had on his hands. Void and the bunny leader were his best asset when it came to treasure hunting. With the bunny leader absent, Void was the only one tasked with sensing treasures. Void shook his head, he had already tried sensing if there was any treasure around, but there wasn''t any that caught his attention. Grey didn''t speak too much, if he saw anyone around, he would take it, if not, he wouldn''t bother. Before any treasure can catch Void''s attention, then it has to have a very high level. Void rarely looks at low ranked treasures so Grey had gotten used to it. The duo started exploring the secret realm, with their strength, there was nothing they were afraid of. Other than a few traps which could be very deadly to them, there was nothing else. The rest things here all had the strength of a Peak Elemental Venerable, which was within their ability to deal with. ¡­. Time went by and in the blink of an eye, four days had gone by. Grey and Void had been exploring the place and thanks to Void, they''ve managed to only get one treasure. Neither of them knew what it was used for, but since Void said it was good stuff, Grey took it. Grey didn''t know how the others were doing, but he felt they were doing okay. During these past four days, he had crossed paths with a few humans, and also a few people from the Giant race. He didn''t have any clash with the Giant race as there was no need. There was no treasure in sight when he encountered them, so he let them be. "All the good stuffs has been taken away. There''s nothing else for us here." Void said in dissatisfaction. They''ve been searching for a while now and they still hadn''t encountered anything good. With his good senses, he would''ve been able to at least sense where a few treasures were located, but other than the one they didn''t know what it''s used for, there was nothing else they''ve found and he was starting to lose interest in this place. There was nothing fun to do, and there were no treasures. "We still have to wait for the others, so we can''t leave now." Grey was feeling the same way as Void, but he didn''t see any reason to leave. They might not see anything valuable in some of the treasures here, but Klaus and the others wouldn''t mind taking a few things. Alice and Reynolds especially. They had the lowest cultivation stage and wanted to improve as fast as they could. Void took a glance at Grey and gave a little grunt of dissatisfaction before disappearing. Grey shook his head, he knew Void wanted to rest inside his spatial ring. With a sigh, he started exploring the place on his own. If there was anything of value, Void would come out, this, he was certain of. The day went by very quickly, and Grey took all he saw. He didn''t worry if they were good or not, he took almost everything in sight that he felt was of value. He continued moving through the secret realm, not contacting the others. ¡­. Across the secret realm, there was a certain atmosphere. Without the Gnomes to cause trouble for humans, humans have been able to gather a lot of treasures. Unlike before when they had to be cautious, now, all they needed to do was to ensure they didn''t have a fight with the Giants and they would be relatively fine. The news of the Gnomes being decimated by Grey and his friends quickly spread across the entire secret realm. Only those who were aware of Grey''s presence knew it was his handiwork. ¡­. The Giant race''s hideout. "Are you sure it''s the same person?" A voice asked. "I''m certain it is." Another person replied, the person added, "He''s the only one I know who can overpower the Gnomes." "Hmm, I''d like to meet him." "Alright, I''ll send out words for him. With his guts, I don''t think he would reject your invitation." The person said. The duo spoke for a while longer before the figure left the place. The Hall they were in was extraordinarily large when compared to that of the Gnomes of humans. When the figure in the Hall stepped out from the large doors, a Giant figure could be seen. The figure had a familiar face, it was the Giant Grey who went to meet at the time he was in the lower realm. He was the leader of the Giants at that time, now though, he was in a lower cultivation stage, but he still enjoyed a high status here. The person who was leading them was at the Peak of the Elemental Venerable Plane. He said some words to a few people and after describing what Grey looked like, he went back inside. Grey was the one they wanted to see, they had no interest in the other humans. He also told them not to get into any conflict with humans, just telling them to pass on the invitation over to Grey. ¡­. A day later. Grey soon got word of the invitation. He was a little taken aback because he didn''t expect the Giant race would invite him to their hideout. Searching for a Giant wasn''t difficult, and before long, he was on his way to the Giant race''s hideout. ¡­. Somewhere in the secret realm. A young lady looked at the Giant before her, curious. She turned to the human who was with her. "Who''s this person they are inviting over?" "It''s Grey." The young man beside her said. The young man was the younger brother of Sylvia. He was in shock at Grey''s efficiency. It took less than a week before Grey had the entire Gnome race in a chokehold, now, the Giant race was inviting him over to their hideout. "What do you think they want with him?" The young lady asked. "I have no idea. But I''m sure he will go." Sylvia''s younger brother said. "Should we head there too, just to make sure it''s not a trap? The Gnomes might have contacted them." The young lady suggested. Chapter 1322 Going To The Giant Races Territory The Giant race''s hideout. Grey was accompanied by a Giant, so it was very easy for him to get into the place. He didn''t delay and went straight to the main Hall. The Giant who was the present leader of the Giants was present, and beside him was the Giant he saw back in the lower realm. "That''s him, I can''t forget his face." The Giant who had seen Grey before spoke up. "You''re the one who dealt with the entire Gnome race here?" The leader of the Giants asked, looking Grey in the eyes. Standing before them, Grey looked like a little child standing in front of adults. His head barely got past their thighs. "Not really, I just took out their leaders. With no one to lead, the subordinates will naturally crumble." Grey replied matter-of-factly. He was calm and composed while in the presence of so many Giants, there wasn''t even an atom of fear in his eyes, only curiosity. To be honest, he was a little baffled why the Giants wanted to meet up with him. "You didn''t call me here to speak about the Gnomes, did you?" Grey raised a brow, "If that''s the reason then it seems I have wasted my time." "Straightforward, nice. I''ll go straight to the point then. There''s something I need a few human''s help for..." The leader of the Giants didn''t speak about anything else and went straight to the point. There was a place he needed to access, but unfortunately, only humans can open it. A powerful one at that. They had tried capturing a few people, but none of them had been able to open the place. When he heard about Grey, the thought of exploring that place came to mind and he believed with Grey''s prowess, he should be able to access it. After entering, they will discuss on how to share whatever treasures they find inside. "I see. Who are you taking with you?" Grey squinted his eyes. "Four others, three at the Peak and him." The leader of the Giants pointed at three people at the Peak of the Elemental Venerable Plane like himself and then pointed at the Giant Grey saw at the lower realm. "I can bring other humans too?" Grey asked an important question. If he was going alone, although he was confident they wouldn''t be able to kill him, after all, Void was there with him. But he still had to be cautious when dealing with others, especially powerful people like the Giant race. With a few people by his side, he would feel a lot safer. "Yes, you can pick four others to go with us." The leader of the Giants didn''t want Grey to feel like he wanted to outnumber them, so he told him to take four other humans with him. Grey took a look at the people the leader of the Giant race picked and sensed their auras, they were all top powerhouses at the Peak of the Elemental Venerable Plane. It would be very difficult for Peak Venerables on the human side to match any of them, unless they were people of Klaus and Reynolds'' caliber, Alice included. Only top geniuses like his friends would be able to match up to these people. The issue is that none of his friends had the strength of a Peak Elemental Venerable. Klaus might be able to unleash an attack on the level of a Peak Elemental Venerable, but that was when he was given the chance, and it wasn''t something he could do whenever he felt like it. Taking his friends with him didn''t seem like the more reasonable option, but he didn''t want to go on such an expedition without them. They too needed as much treasures as they could find. ''With Klaus'' luck, he should get something good from this place.'' Grey fell deep in thought, ''Should I call Alice over? She might''ve not seen anything good during her search.'' He was stuck in a dilemma. While he was still thinking, he raised his head to look in the direction he came from. There, he could sense the aura of a few humans. "Huh? Who are those people?" Grey muttered unconsciously. The leader of the Giant race took a glance at Grey, seeing his confused expression, he knew he had nothing to do with the arrival of the newcomers. "Why don''t we go and find out?" The leader of the Giant was the first to stand up, he walked out of the Hall, heading for the pathway that led into their hideout. Grey followed beside him, he was also curious about the identity of these people. The aura he sensed didn''t belong to any of his friends, so he was sure he didn''t know the people there. A minute later, they were standing at the gate into the hideout. Eight people could be seen standing outside the gate, they didn''t try to enter the place, just standing there and staring at the two Giants who were the guards there. The reason the Giants didn''t attack was because they didn''t sense any malice from them, and the humans said they just wanted to make sure their companion who came here was safe. They all knew of the invitation for Grey, so seeing others coming just to ensure he was safe didn''t make them worry. Grey was safe, so there was no need to start a fight over anything. When Grey walked out, he was staring at the group of people when his eyes rested on the body of a young lady. It was the lady who came in with Sylvia''s younger brother. Grey looked at her for a long time, not averting his eyes. ''Did I sense wrong?'' A confused look appeared on his face. He sensed the aura of a mark on the body of the young lady, although it was very faint, he still sensed it. He had worked with the mark before and could sense it from a mile away. The fact that he only got a short sense of it made him doubt if it were true. ''Maybe it''s something related to her cultivation.'' After trying to sense it again and failing, he gave up. The young lady on the other hand was amused with the way Grey was staring at her. Not just her, but everyone present could see that from the second Grey stepped out, his eyes had not left the body of the young lady. A few people looked at Grey and felt he had fallen in love with the young lady just like most young people who had come in contact with her. She was a stunning beauty. However, they were all surprised when Grey''s expression fell back to its normal indifference. He didn''t even spare the young lady another glance, rather, he took a look at Sylvia''s brother. "You''re here." He nodded to him. Sylvia''s brother nodded as well, he took a step forward and said, "We heard you were invited by the Giants and we came to ensure your safety." "How did you know I''d come?" Grey asked with a playful smile. "You dared to go to the Gnome''s hideout, there''s no place in this secret realm you wouldn''t dare to go." Sylvia''s brother said. Grey chuckled but didn''t say anything. To be fair, Sylvia''s brother was right. There was no place he didn''t dare to go in this secret realm, however, the only reason he came here was that he was curious about the reason the leader of the Giants would want to see him. Now that he has confirmed it, he was satisfied. There was also the tempting offer of having to go search a place. He didn''t know what was inside, but since the Giants have been trying to open it, he felt there must be something good inside. "Thank you for your care, but as you can see, I''m doing fine." Grey appreciated their kind thoughts, but he wasn''t really close to them, so there was no need talking too much with them. He was still thinking about who he would take with¡­ It suddenly struck him, there are at least four Peak Elemental Venerables present on the side of the humans there. All he needed was to take Sylvia''s brother, and any other three Peak Venerables and he should be okay. This will guarantee his safety, while also giving him a chance to obtain some good treasures. "You know what¡­ I need your help. The reason I came here is that I want to go on an expedition with the Giants. I need you, and those three at the Peak to come with us." Grey didn''t tell them that the Giants needed a human to help them open the place since he didn''t find it appropriate. Rather, he told them he was going on an expedition with them. The three Grey picked were all at the Peak, and he sensed they were quite strong. Two of them seemed to be well over thirty, only one of them was in his late twenties, very close to thirty. Chapter 1323 Whos The Necromancer? Sylvia''s brother and the three men picked all paused, they didn''t know what was happening. They came here to check on Grey, how come he''s suddenly picking them to go with him on an expedition with the Giants. What was worse was that, the young lady who was the strongest amongst everyone present wasn''t even picked by Grey. "Wait, what''s going on?" The young lady was the one who asked the question. "They''re going with me on an expedition, of course, it''s their choice if they want to or not. If not, I''ll just call my friends over. Although, it will take a while, they wouldn''t mind." Grey replied in a nonchalant manner. "You know the reason I''m asking this question." The young lady said, staring straight at Grey''s face. Grey didn''t flinch, he took a glance at her and said, "I don''t know you, neither do I trust you. I can''t let you watch over my back." "You don''t know them either." The young lady pointed at the trio he picked, as well as the Giants. She knew Grey was familiar with Sylvia''s brother, so she didn''t add him. "What are your names?" Grey asked the trio, in which they replied to his question, "You see, I know them now." "And I''m very okay with doing business with the Giants, this is not my first time with them." The young lady was stunned. She didn''t understand why Grey didn''t pick her to join the expedition group. Of everyone present, if Grey wanted to pick someone, then she was the first person he was supposed to pick, yet he was completely neglecting her. Only her Teacher has treated her in such a manner, she was a top student of one of the most powerful individual in the entire Aurora Continent, yet Grey was treating her like she was an everyday young lady. Sylvia''s brother, sensing the tension walked over to Grey to whisper a few words to him. He didn''t want the duo to get on each others had sides. "You don''t get it, I don''t trust her. She has a certain dark aura. I''ve only sensed it with a certain group of people." Grey didn''t hide his words, staring straight at the young lady. There was no certainty she was marked by a necromancer, so it only meant one thing, she was one herself. Grey didn''t have any plans of exposing her, but he also didn''t want to travel with her. The eyes of the young lady widened when she heard this, she wanted to speak but couldn''t. For some reason, she could understand the meaning behind Grey''s words. ''How did he sense it?'' She was stunned, her eyes suddenly turned hostile. Only a necromancer or Gnomes could sense the mark on her. Grey is most definitely a necromancer, hence the reason he was able to sense it. And he must have mastered the technique to the peak, if not, how could he sense something her Teacher used a secret technique to cloak? Grey saw the change in her eyes and felt he was right in his speculation, she was definitely a necromancer. He didn''t know how the Burchard Family were not able to sense the dark aura on the young lady, nor did he care. As long as she didn''t cross paths with him, then he wouldn''t bother with her. "You''re a necromancer." The young lady pointed her finger at Grey. Everyone on the side of the humans gasped in shock, while Grey on the other hand burst into laughter. "A necromancer will kill off so many Gnomes? Do you only have water in your head?" Grey''s question brought everyone back to reality. Yes, they all knew how much necromancers revered Gnomes, it would be impossible for anyone who is a necromancer to think of even killing Gnomes, much less doing it to such a level that a large bounty was placed on his head by the Gnome race. "Are you people coming with me or not? I can''t stand here arguing with her, I have things to do." Grey asked Sylvia''s brother and the other three. If they didn''t show any interest in going, then he would just call his friends over. With Klaus and the bunny leader, he was sure he would be able to keep everyone alive, at least. Being ignored by Grey infuriated the young lady even further. With her teeth clenched, she walked closer to Grey. "Then how did you sense it?" She set up a barrier, blocking everyone else from listening to what she was asking Grey. On the side of the Giants, they didn''t interfere with what was happening. At first, they thought Grey was the one who called them over, but after seeing their dispute, they were sure Grey didn''t have any thoughts of calling them over. Grey was even on the verge of chasing them away when he thought about bringing them with him. "What should we do?" One of the Giants at the Peak asked the leader. "We watch. Whatever differences the humans have, they can settle it themselves. It has nothing to do with us." The leader replied calmly. He didn''t expect to see something like this, but he wasn''t too worried. From how the young lady acts, it was easy for him to see that she had a very high status. Grey not putting her in his eyes showed that his status was at least on the same level as the young lady. What he didn''t understand was how come Grey, who was still in the Ninth stage could scare the entire Gnome race in the secret realm, while this young lady who gave off an aura of a top powerhouse couldn''t? When he probed the young lady, his senses were shattered the second it came close. This showed just how powerful her senses are. He wasn''t confident in being able to defeat the young lady in a battle. In the barrier. Grey feigned ignorance and said, "Give it up, I don''t like necromancers. I will not say anything about it to others, just don''t bother me." "I''m not a necromancer, and from the looks of it, you''re not one either." The young lady said. Grey saw the seriousness in her expression and asked, "You''re not?" The young lady shook her head. "Then the aura of necromancy I sensed on your body?" "I was marked." "Oh¡­ haha, that explains it all." Grey gave his forehead a slight smack as he laughed awkwardly, "How did you hide it?" He couldn''t hide his curiosity and asked. "How did you sense it?" The young lady didn''t answer his question, rather, she asked a question of her own. Grey didn''t think too much about it and replied, "I''ve been marked before." The young lady noticed Grey''s wording and couldn''t help but wear a confused look. From Grey''s words, he was marked, but the mark was no longer there. "How could this be possible? It''s impossible to remove the mark!" She couldn''t believe her ears. "It''s for you people. I''m different." Grey said and then waved his hand, destroying the barrier. He didn''t want to extend the conversation any further. If the young lady continued asking questions, she would want Grey to help out with removing the mark. This was something he wasn''t interested in doing. First off, he needed life-force to deal with it, and there were no Gnomes in sight. Besides, he didn''t really like the young lady, so even if he could help, there was no reason for him to. Her mark was well hidden that even a few Gnomes would find it difficult to sense it. Seeing Grey destroy the barrier, the young lady bit her lower lip and stomped on the ground. "You''re not going, I''ll go with them." She pointed at one of the men, the one with a long mustache. The man couldn''t help but take a look at Grey who gave a ''I don''t care what you guys decide'' look. He could only sigh and walk back. He knew this was a missed opportunity. The probability of death didn''t scare him, they all knew that opportunity came with the dangers. Only the lucky ones comes out of these events on top. He had been on a few expeditions, but he didn''t think there would be anyone on the same level as this one. Grey turned to the leader of the Giants, "When are we leaving? I already have my group." "I''ll make a few preparation and we can leave tomorrow morning." The leader of the Gaints said, and then he added, "Those going are more than welcome to come reside inside before we depart." Grey smiled, he knew what the leader of the Giants was doing. He was subtly chasing the other humans away. Although they wanted to collaborate for an expedition, it didn''t mean they and the humans were on the same side, they were only allying due to aligned benefits. Grey didn''t stand on ceremony and walked into the Giants camp, alongside the five going with him. Chapter 1324 Beasts Bloodline? ***A.N: Apparently two chapters were messed up. Reload the last two, they''ve been fixed*** The next morning. Grey and the Giants were already waiting outside to leave. The last person to come out was the young lady. She took a glance at Grey but didn''t say anything. During the past day, she had been trying to talk to Grey, but it has all been futile, it was like she was speaking with a wall. Grey wasn''t even answering any of her questions, he wasn''t even looking at her. During the entire time, he had his eyes closed and didn''t bother to spare her a glance. Void came out and took a deep look at her, but he disappeared soon after. He didn''t want to alert others. The young lady was stunned, she had heard from Sylvia''s brother that there was a small mysterious black cat that was always with Grey. She had wanted to ask about it earlier, but she didn''t think it was appropriate, so she refrained. Seeing Void appear and disappear without leaking out even a bit of aura put her on alert. She was at the Peak of the Elemental Venerable Plane, yet, she couldn''t sense Void. If not for the fact that the secret realm would attack anyone about the Elemental Venerable Plane, she might''ve concluded that Void was in the Elemental Sovereign Plane. Had Void not appeared in her line of sight, she wouldn''t have even sensed his presence. This showed how well hidden he was. Grey said to the Giant leader, "Lead the way, there are still things to do." The leader of the Giants didn''t delay and nodded, he took to the sky, his giant figure shrinking to the size of humans as they flew through the sky. ''I wonder what sort of items they use in making their clothes.'' Grey thought deep down. The clothes of the Giant shrunk with him, fitting his new size perfectly. He didn''t bother to ask as there was no need to. He followed behind the leader of the Giant, not saying another word. Sylvia''s brother and the others were speaking on the journey. The direction they were headed was a little familiar, but they opted not to say anything. On the way, Grey got to find out the young lady''s name was Elaris. And the two men were Brax and Victor. Grey only listened to them on the way, he had also forgotten Sylvia''s brother''s name and luckily for him, he got to hear it while they were headed to their destination. Before long, he was familiar with everyone even though he wasn''t even speaking with them. It took about one hour before they got to the place they were heading to. Josh, Sylvia''s brother moved closer to Grey and said. "There''s a place here that''s only accessible by humans. However, we still haven''t been able to locate it yet. Don''t tell me they found it." Josh couldn''t believe his eyes. "I don''t know, but I think so." Grey replied. He knew the others would be against letting the Giants go inside so he added, "Tell them not to make any rash decisions. The Giants are the ones who found it, if we dare to attack them, we''re only calling more enemies for us." "I have my way in dealing with the Gnomes, but not Giants. I can''t fight off all of them." Grey warned them. Josh nodded and relayed the message to the others. Elaris was already about to speak up against the Giants, but after hearing Grey''s words, she refrained from doing so. She didn''t want to cause more trouble for humans. Grey nodded internally when he saw their reactions, at least he didn''t have to worry about any of them betraying the Giants. "It appears the others have heard of this place, they just don''t know where it''s located." Grey watched the reaction of the leader of the Giants while he spoke. The leader of the Giants nodded, "It''s expected, but I know locating it would be impossible for humans." "From the looks of it, only a Giant can locate it, while humans are the ones who can open it." The Giant leader''s words made Grey realize it isn''t as easy as it looks. Who would create such a place that would require humans and Giants to work together? Could there be an underlying meaning behind this? Multiple questions came to Grey''s head, but he didn''t think too much about it, first of, they needed the Giants to take them to the place first. The leader of the Giants didn''t go back on his words, he took Grey and his companions to the place. They were currently in a mountain range, and each mountain looked exactly the same. The five Giants went to five different mountains, and after a few hand seals, a large door appeared in the middle of the five mountains. Grey and the other humans moved to where the door was located. The door looked ancient, and just the aura it gave off was intimidating. When Grey got close to the door, he heard Void''s voice. "Be careful, this thing is dangerous." Grey retreated the instant he heard this, not because of Void''s words, but because he sensed a powerful attraction force from the door. It was like something inside wanted to devour his blood. Yes didn''t know what it was, nor did he care to stay to find out. It was just too dangerous. Grey wasn''t the only one, the others all retreated as well. "What''s the meaning of this? You want to use us as sacrifices?" One of the Peak Elemental Venerables humans turned to the Giant, extremely angry. "You don''t understand, it needs the bloods of humans to open it up. Without it, there''s no way it can be opened." The leader of the Giants explained. "If this thing takes our blood, we will be weakened." Grey spoke up, taking a glance at the Giants. Although he wasn''t scared, he didn''t want a situation where the others will also be in danger because of him. Both parties stood on the same spot, facing each other. Grey was not willing to endanger his life as well as the life of others on just the words of the leader of the Giants. He''s not that foolish. The Giants on the other hand were staring at them with utmost sincerity, just from their looks alone, it was easy to see that they weren''t lying. But Grey wasn''t willing to take such an opportunity. If things went south, then it was over for the others. He still had Void, and with the help of the space element, he will not only survive, but he could also explore this place. The same couldn''t be said for the others. Once they were weakened, there was no way they could get help. And since others saw him take them along, everything will be pinned on him. "How can I make you trust us?" The leader of the Giants asked. He knew it wouldn''t be easy to get Grey and the other humans to open the door with their blood due to how they would be after the extraction. "We''ll have to wait for at least an hour. We have no problems with removing some blood and storing it somewhere. After recovering, we can come here to open this door." Grey suggested. "Do you think it will work?" One of the Giants turned to their leader. "It''s worth the try. But first off, you will have to remove some blood and put it there, if it''s reacts to blood that''s not directly from your body, then there''s no harm in doing it that way." The leader of the Giants said. Grey didn''t argue, he cut open his arm and the injury only opened up for a second before healing up. He managed to extract a small pint of blood and he tossed it in the direction of the door. The door absorbed it in the blink of an eye, and red marks started to appear on the door. But the marks didn''t go far before fading off. It was clear that the blood it received wasn''t enough. Those present didn''t look at the door, rather, their attention was on Grey. The speed at which he healed was frightening. Even those at the Peak wouldn''t heal that quickly, yet he healed up so easily. It was as if his body was in a hurry to stop any leakage. That was not the only thing they sensed, there was also the massive energy stored within Grey''s body. It was a shocking thing to think about. Grey cut his arm open for less than a second, yet they weren''t able to come to terms with how things were. The Giants were also in awe at Grey''s healing speed. They didn''t think too much about his blood, although, they felt it was almost identical to that of a powerful Magical Beast. How could a human possess the blood of a Magical Beast running through his veins? Chapter 1325 Attracting Powerful Magical Beasts Grey wasn''t too interested in what the others thought, but he realized something when he did this, he had absorbed the blood essence of a Dragon, one of the top bloodlines in the Magical Beast world. Originally, he didn''t think too much about it, but now that he studied his blood more intently, he realized it was no longer as it used to be. To a certain extent, it has changed completely from that of a human. He rarely bleeds when fighting, and even on the few occasions he does, his bleeding stops very quickly, and due to the intensity of those battles, he doesn''t even have the time to notice the changes in his blood. But now that he was the one who actively cut himself open and extracted some blood, he realized his blood was not like anything else. He had eaten a good number of Magical Beasts, and those had in some way integrated themselves into his blood. There have been a few high bloodline Magical Beasts he has eaten which has also helped him out in this. ''Don''t expose your blood outside. You''ve attracted the top Magical Beasts in the area. Hide.'' Void''s voice echoed in Grey''s head. Void almost wanted to ask Grey if he were stupid. But he refrained from doing so. Grey was human, even though he absorbed the blood essence of a Dragon, although there were some changes, he didn''t think Grey''s blood would change this much. To a certain extent, it can be said that there was something off about Grey, hence the change. Even the people from the Vaergahl Family wouldn''t have such a change to it. They might be able to activate a Dragon''s innate ability, and also attain scales, but gaining such a change in their blood was almost impossible to achieve with only one blood essence. ''How did this happen?'' Grey asked. Even he didn''t expect this change. ''You''ve taken in too many natural treasures. This must be a result of one of them, even I didn''t notice it until just now. You have to be very careful henceforth. Also, try to tell those present not to say a word about it outside. You already know the consequences.'' Void said and gave him some warning. Grey already knew this, he took a glance at the others and said, "We should look for somewhere to rest. You guys will have to cover my side." They understood the meaning of his statement. From the looks of it, it seems he wasn''t aware of the change in his blood as well. "Also, to prevent any issues, I wouldn''t want this to spread out." Grey''s eyes were cold as he locked onto the faces of all the humans present. The cold gleam that went through his eyes told everyone all they needed to know. If word of this spreads, Grey wouldn''t mind killing the person. Every single person from a top Family or Faction knew who Grey was. The son of the great Lucas Dawson who himself is a generational talent, even more freakish than his father. The Dawson Family is renowned for their strength, and more recently, the freakish strength of Lucas Dawson. Grey got fame when the news of the Gnomes wanting him dead spread out. For the Emperor of the Gnome race to issue out a kill order on his head, and also placing top treasures on his head told everyone one thing, he was someone the Gnomes didn''t want to see grow. The few people who knew of Grey''s presence in the recent happenings in the secret realm further confirmed he has a way of dealing with the Gnomes which the Gnomes knew about and want to kill him off as soon as possible. Of course, a few people have brought up the question, but Grey has been mute. He has too many secrets, luckily, he is the son of a powerful man, and from a powerful family, one, everyone would think twice before offending. "Let''s leave, I seem to have attracted a few Beasts over. Peak Rank Seven ones, I don''t think we want to get entangled with them." Grey said to the Giants and humans. Everyone present had already sensed the Magical Beasts racing over and knew it had to do with the blood that came out of Grey''s body, although it wasn''t even up to three seconds, it was powerful enough to draw the attention of these top Beasts that would rarely move when some natural treasures form. The leader of the Giants took a deep look at Grey, he didn''t say anything and returned to a human size before leaving with Grey and the other humans. The other Giants naturally followed him, not daring to ask any questions. A few seconds after they left, a large Golden Eagle appeared in the sky, its beak radiating a powerful light. It gave a loud squeal as it looked around. Before long, different types of Magical Beasts started to appear, including a gigantic tortoise. The tortoise appeared to be walking slowly, but in truth, it was traveling over ten kilometers within the space of two seconds. All the top Rank Seven Beasts appeared and studied the area. They could sense that the owner of the blood was nowhere to be seen, nonetheless, the thickness of the bloodline and also the quality of it was not something they wanted to give up on. They were all top Beasts who all had a territory they were keeping watch over. Most of the time, they wouldn''t get into conflict with each other since it would only benefit another, but in this case, none of them was willing to back down. But being the smart Beasts they were, they decided not to get into any conflict until they acquired the beast that possessed the bloodline. Only after acquiring it would they make a move. They all agreed and dispersed. Even though they didn''t trust each other, they knew that whatever Beast possessed such a high bloodline would be no pushover. So even if one of them finds it, it would not be able to kill it with ease. Chapter 1326 Eye In The Mountains Grey didn''t bother to extract any blood from his body since he didn''t want to attract any more attention to himself. Rather, he brought out a top-tier healing tonic and offered it to anyone willing to fork out more blood. Brax was one who agreed to his offer, and he offered more blood. With the help of the tonic, he not only recovered, but he sensed that he grew a bit stronger. It might seem negligible, but in his current cultivation stage, growing every bit was very valuable. Grey thanked him and after a few more hours they went back to the mountain range. With the presence of the Magical Beasts there, they had to be very cautious. Given how they were moving around, they all knew what the Magical Beasts were searching for, and if they were to see any humans or Giants around, they wouldn''t hesitate to attack. When they headed back. The five Giants went to their positions and after doing the hand seals, the door opened up. The blood that had been stored was released into it. Unlike the enthusiasm the door showed when it was absorbing Grey''s blood, it was a little slower when it started absorbing the blood of regular humans. It only showed an increase in pace when Elaris'' blood was placed on it. The lines on the door started to glow with more intensity as well and the ruin marks started to show. Grey, unlike the others who were just watching the door open up, was studying how the door was absorbing the blood and also the ruin marks on the door. He was not only looking at it, rather, he was drawing it mentally to ensure he didn''t forget it. He has always been curious about anything relating to arrays, so seeing this piqued his interest. "At this pace, the Beasts will sense it and attack us." One of the Giants spoke up. The door hadn''t shown any signs of opening up, and with the glow the door was giving off, it was only a matter of time before the Magical Beasts in the area notices it and rushes there. With how smart these Beasts were, they wouldn''t attack since they were also hoping to acquire some good treasures as well, and any place that would require both the Giant and human races working together would definitely possess impeccable treasures. "Don''t worry, I''ll set up an array to make it hard for them to sense anything from here." Grey said. As much as he wanted to study the ruin marks on the door, he also wasn''t interested in getting entangled with these top Magical Beasts. They were too tricky to deal with. And some of them might even be thousands of years old. Magical Beasts with such age would be even more powerful when compared to a regular genius Peak Elemental Venerable. With the experience it has amassed and also the multiple battles, it would not be easy to deal with. Grey brought out a few energy stones, mixed with chaos stones, he tossed them in different directions, and with a few hand seals, a large barrier covered the area. With this barrier active, there was no way the Magical Beasts would be able to sense anything, unless they were very close to the area. However, Grey''s expression changed when he noticed a large eye staring at him. The most shocking thing was the fact that the eye was from a mountain. He took another look at the mountain and realized it wasn''t a mountain, rather, it was the head of an extraordinarily large Beasts. "Crap! We''ve been seen." He alerted the others. The only reason he hadn''t made any move was because the creature wasn''t making any moves, instead, it was just staring at everyone present. Its eyes soon locked on the door, and the blood that was being absorbed. A soft growl came out of the creature''s mouth. It soon opened its mouth and spoke. "I have no interest in what you people are doing, I just need to know the whereabouts of whatever''s blood was used here a few hours ago." Grey''s heart sunk, he knew this was what the creature was definitely getting at. He looked behind the head of the creature and all he could see was a mountain. He was about to ask what it was when Void''s voice echoed in his head. ''That''s a King Tortoise. They are very rare and possess an exceptional bloodline. Their abilities are even more heaven-defying. Of course, it''s not on my level, but it''s top-notch nonetheless.'' ''If you can get parts of its blood essence, you might be able to attain their innate defensive abilities. All King Tortoises have the same types of innate abilities, and they are all defensive abilities.'' Grey was tempted after hearing Void''s words, but when he took a glance at the Tortoise, he knew this thing was well over a thousand years old. Its defense must be at the very top when it comes to Peak Rank Seven Magical Beasts. One has to know that the defensive abilities of Magical Beasts are far superior to that of humans, much less a Magical Beast like this that focuses mainly on defense. Grey recalled his encounter with another powerful Magical Beast like this. "We only came here a few minutes ago, we have no knowledge of what you''re talking about." Grey wasn''t the one who spoke, but it was the leader of the Giants. He knew that if this Tortoise were to get into a struggle with them, the other Magical Beasts would be drawn over from the battle. The best thing to do was to speak amicably with it and hope it doesn''t try to force the matter. "I''m no fool. You people left after sensing that the blood attracted us. I sensed the movements here, but I lost you guys. The reason I didn''t move from here was because of this." The Tortoise couldn''t be fooled by their words. Chapter 1327 Where Are You? ''Make a deal with it. Since your blood is already like this, all it needs is a small amount. You can also get some of its essence for yourself.'' Void said to Grey. Grey already had the thought of making a deal with the Tortoise, this way, the Tortoise would get what it wants, while Grey would also get what he wants. If he gives the Tortoise some of his blood essence, the Tortoise wouldn''t mind giving him part of its own. "I''ll speak with it, you guys continue." Grey said to the others and then stepped out of the barrier. Elaris looked at him, curious about how he was going to deal with the giant Tortoise. She wasn''t afraid of having a conflict with this Tortoise, even though it''s powerful, she was confident she would be able to take it down. Outside the barrier. Grey created another barrier to isolate himself and the Tortoise. "If you''re willing to make an exchange, then I might give you the blood essence you want." He stared at the large eyes of the Tortoise. "What type of exchange?" The Tortoise questioned. "A like for like exchange. Your blood essence for mine." Grey replied with a serious expression. "You''re the owner of the blood?" The Tortoise asked in disbelief. It found it difficult to accept that Grey, a human, possessed such a terrifying bloodline. Multiple thoughts flashed through its head, but it still wasn''t able to come up with anything. "The blood is mine, and I''m aware you need it to advance." Grey nodded. The Tortoise didn''t speak for a while, seemingly thinking about the pros and cons of the exchange. The blood essence will indeed help him advance after so many years, but if he were to give Grey some of his blood essence, he would need some time to recover and would fall into a short time of weakness. With the other Beasts lurking, it would be very dangerous for it to make such a deal. "I can not agree to that." It shook its large head. It was too dangerous. "It''s only fair to make a trade of the same value." Grey wasn''t willing to let go of this chance. He knew if he can''t convince the Tortoise, he would miss out on a golden opportunity. "You do know the situation you''re in." The Tortoise wasn''t flustered, it said, "All I need is to spread out my aura and the others will rush here. Someone with such a bloodline will not be easy to defeat, I''m well aware of this fact. I have no issues with sharing you with them." Grey chuckled when he heard this, "If you wanted to share me with them, you wouldn''t be talking to me in the first place." "There''s no need to speak too much, my offer is the same, my blood essence for yours. If you''re not willing, I''ll leave. If you believe you have what it takes to stop me, you can try." The Tortoise saw confidence oozing all over Grey and from its perspective, it knew there was no way it would be able to stop Grey from leaving. If the Golden Eagle was the one who encountered Grey, it would''ve been easy for it to keep Grey due to its speed. "Also, don''t act like you don''t want to be the king of the mountain." Grey added, "With this blood essence, you''d advance, putting you above the others." The Tortoise was well aware of what Grey was saying, and that was also what was in its head, it just didn''t want to take the risk of weakening himself for a period of time due to it. Its enemies were numerous, and they would capitalize on his weak state. If it was killed before even using the blood essence, then it was useless to take it. The opportunity was almost impossible to reject. The Tortoise fell into silence, contemplating the matter. After a while it said. "I''ll make the exchange with you, but not here." Grey was elated when he heard this, but he didn''t show it out. He looked at the Tortoise and said, "I have no problems with that." "Fine, come with me." The Tortoise threw out its front claw, grabbing in Grey''s direction. The claw seemed slow, but within a blink, it was already in front of Grey. The expression of the Tortoise changed softly when it realized its claw phased through. "There are certain things I have to wrap up first, I''ll come find you after that." Grey said politely. The Tortoise took a glance at the door and knew it was what Grey wanted to deal with first. "Alright, but how can I be sure you''ll come?" It asked. "I need that more than you do." Grey replied. The Tortoise saw his seriousness and nodded. Grey tapped the claw of the Tortoise and it sensed a strange almost indiscernible aura. If it didn''t see Grey tapping it, it would never have even tried to focus on this. "I''ve tagged you, I can track you wherever you are." Grey said. The Tortoise nodded and vanished into the mountain range once again, it was like it was never there in the first place. Grey heaved a sigh of relief before heading back into the barrier. The door was already more than halfway glowing, and it was also showing signs of opening. The others took a glance at Grey, none of them knew what he said to the Tortoise, but from how it left, they knew Grey had sorted out whatever the issue was. "I thought it wanted to attack you when it threw its claw at you." Elaris said, hoping this would get Grey to speak about what he said to the Tortoise. "It''s smarter than that. Why stand a chance to gain nothing when you can get everything?" Grey shrugged and focused his attention back on the door. The Giants didn''t ask him about it since they didn''t think there was a need to. Only Elaris asked about it, but from Grey''s reply, it was evident he didn''t have any intentions of speaking about it. "The door will be opening soon. In what manner will we go in?" Brax asked. "It''s wide enough, we will all go in at the same time." The leader of the Giants said. When Grey heard this, he looked at him with a knowing smile. In places like this, those who go through first stand the chance of getting anything in sight before the others arrive. The issue is that there''s a probability of facing a life-threatening attack that might take the life of the person. The leader of the Giants was scared something like this would happen, so he didn''t dare to take the risk. It was riskier to let the humans head in first, cause they might set an ambush for them at the other side, which will in turn put them in grave danger. No one had any issues with what he said, even the humans had the same reservations, so it was better if they entered at the same time. After a few minutes, the door finally opened. It took more than they expected, luckily, they extracted extra. On the other side of the door was a desert, a pyramid could be seen from the side they were standing on. Everyone took a glance at each other before advancing into the place simultaneously. On the other side of the door. The second they appeared in the desert, the door closed shut and disappeared from everyone''s sight. They all expected something like this, so they weren''t surprised. They were soon hit by a wave of hotness, their bodies started to dry up from the heat in the atmosphere. Grey didn''t have any issues as water coated his body. Not just Grey, but the others who had the water element used it, covering themselves with it. They helped those who didn''t have the water element, keeping all of them moist. "That''s the only thing here, it seems." One of the Giants pointed at the pyramid. "We should head there. There''s no use staring from this side." The group started to advance cautiously towards the pyramid, although they hadn''t sensed anything, or seen anything else, they didn''t want to get comfortable. ''Void, can you sense anything good?'' Grey asked. With Void''s sharp senses, he would be able to sense if there were any treasures inside. ''Nope.'' Void replied a few seconds later. ''Why does it sound like you''re not close by?'' Grey asked. One of the things he has noticed when communicating with Void telepathically is that whenever they are apart, and not close to each other, their voices would take a little longer to relay to the other person. ''Nothing, I dozed off.'' Void replied hurriedly, but it was still slower compared to before. "Fuck!" Grey cussed out loud. ''Void, leave some for me! Damn it!'' Void had rushed to the pyramid, not waiting for him. When the others saw Grey''s sudden outburst, they were stunned. Grey didn''t even try to explain, he said, "We should hurry up, there doesn''t seem to be anything blocking our path." Chapter 1328 Battling The Scorpion Grey was the first to get close to the pyramid, but he quickly slowed down when he sensed trouble ahead. He had a certain feeling of unease and knew that it was his senses warning him about any possible danger. ''Hmm, there''s something ahead, I just don''t know what it is.'' He said to himself while looking around. The others had already caught up with him, and just like Grey, they were also getting the feeling of unease. "Something''s ahead." One of the Giants said. The eyes of every one were serious at the moment, they didn''t know what was ahead of them, so they had to be cautious. ''Void, what''s ahead?'' Grey tried to see if he could get some answers from Void. ''A scorpion, not too hard to deal with, for me, that is. As for you guys, it will be quite difficult.'' Void answered. ''A scorpion¡­'' Grey calmed down when he found out what it was. The pyramid was right in front of them, and whatever they faced would not be above the Peak of the Seventh Rank since they were still in the secret realm. He was only cautious when he didn''t know what it was, but with Void''s help, he knew what he was getting into and was already planning on how to deal with it. It took only a few seconds before the scorpion shot out of the sand, attacking the group who didn''t expect it to come out from the sand. Even Grey was taken by surprise, to show just how well the Scorpion''s camouflage was. Grey and the others were able to compose themselves and block the attack of the Scorpion, ensuring no one was taken out by the attack. Grey was the one at the forefront, so the Scorpion''s deadly tail was aimed at him. It was hoping to kill him off with a single attack. It swung its pincers at the others, sending a deadly sand attack at them as well. Grey was blown away by the new form of elemental attack he just witnessed. This was the first time he saw anyone or anything control sand just like the other elements, and for a brief moment, he was stupefied. This made the tail of the Scorpion almost hit his left shoulder, but he was able to gain himself back and with the help of his frightening speed, he dodged the attack before unleashing an attack of his own. His blue flames, like a sharp knife, headed straight for the tail, wanting to cut it off. When the flaming blade made contact with the tail, Grey was left speechless as the attack didn''t even leave a scratch on the tail of the Scorpion. ''Magnificent defensive ability!'' He couldn''t help but praise deep down. His fire was his top elemental attack aside from the fusion orb, yet it didn''t seem to cause much harm to the Scorpion, this speaks volumes about the fantastic defense of the Scorpion. ''How are we going to deal with it if its defense is so tough?'' This was the question on everyone''s minds. They''ve all dished out an attack, and just like Grey''s flames, the attack didn''t have any effect. The Scorpion screeched loudly and charged at them once again. Its speed was heaven-defying, with a short movement, it had dashed into the middle of the group. It noticed Grey was too fast and powerful for it to take down, so it changed its tactic, its current aim was those who were below the Late stages of the Elemental Venerable Plane, Sylvia''s brother to be precise. Grey was just as fast as it was when it came to movement speed, when he saw that it was targeting Sylvia''s brother, he didn''t stay idle, within a second, he switched places with him, standing in front of the Scorpion. The Scorpion was taken by surprise when its original target turned into the trouble guy it wanted to avoid. When Grey appeared, he bolted at the Scorpion, aiming a punch at its head. The Scorpion waved its pincers at it, but he maneuvered mid-air, dodging them, he got close and unleashed a blow on the head of the Scorpion. Boom! A powerful explosion sounded out as a large dust cloud appeared. The ground where the Scorpion was standing sank. Grey jumped into the air and used the fusion orb, unleashing a destructive space elemental attack with it. "Dimensional slash¡­" He muttered. Bang! Bam! The sound of his attack making contact with something hard reverberated across the area. Everyone around had retreated, and when they saw how Grey was able to deal with such attacks in quick succession, their view of him changed, especially the Giants. They felt there was a reason Grey was a menace to the Gnomes, after all, how could one man challenge the entire Gnome society here and win? But now, they understood it was not just that advantage, he was shockingly powerful too. Adding his terrifying battle awareness to it, he was an enemy nobody wanted to have. Grey appeared beside Sylvia''s brother, staring at the explosion ahead of them. "Thank you." Sylvia''s brother thanked him for saving his life. "As long as you''re with me, it''s my obligation to ensure your safety. I might be stronger than her now, but she''s still scary." Grey replied. Sylvia''s brother understood what Grey was saying. From what he knew, Sylvia tormented Grey, making him fight competition after competition. To some extent, although she was making Grey grow stronger, she wasn''t giving him any chance to do anything else. Fighting constantly will make anyone tired. And threatening to beat him up on a few occasions when he refused to go to the competitions. To some extent, Sylvia could be said to be the one who contributed to Grey''s current freakish battle senses. Fighting so many battles in such a short time will make anyone grow at a frightening speed. This was exactly what happened to Grey during the time he spent with Sylvia. Screech! They all heard a loud screeching sound come from the place of the explosion, along with the sound was a beam of light that shot at them. The light possessed destructive power that made everyone''s hair stand on edge. Grey and the others dispersed to different locations, making sure the light beam didn''t touch them. They could all sense the power contained within the light beam. Elaris looked at the explosion and couldn''t help but shudder. If she was hit with such an attack, she wasn''t certain she would be able to defend against it. She turned to Bang! The light beam hit the ground, causing a powerful explosion to set off. Grey made sure to take Sylvia''s brother with him since he didn''t want to endanger his life. Elaris looked at the explosion and couldn''t help but shudder. If she was hit with such an attack, she wasn''t certain she would be able to defend against it. She turned to look at Grey, and the question popped in her head¡­ Will he be able to defend against it? She didn''t know what the answer would be, but she knew her defensive abilities were not on the same level as that of Grey. The Giants didn''t dare engage the scorpion in a fight. "How do we deal with it?" One of the Giants asked. "Its defense is too strong, we can''t break it." Another one replied. Grey appeared close to them and asked, "Do you have the same strength while in this size as when you''re in your large form?" The leader of the Giants nodded. Grey continued, "Elemental attacks can''t work on it for now. We should use brute strength." He turned to the others, "Anyone with the earth element can join in on the battle. The ice element can be used as well." He knew his blow to the Scorpion hurt it, and if the Giants joined in, they would be able to deal more damage to it. The Giants are known for their immense physical strength. Adding the earth element as well as the ice ability of the Water Elementalists present, they should be able to defeat the Scorpion in no time. The Giants followed Grey''s plan and they all stood in different directions. The dust cloud from Grey''s previous attack died down and the figure of the Scorpion appeared, it looked to be alright, but everyone present had very sharp eyes, they were able to discern that Grey''s blow was able to leave a small crack on the head of the Scorpion. They all couldn''t help but take another glance at Grey. One has to know that they''ve tried all forms of elemental attacks and nothing worked, yet Grey was able to cause a crack on its hard exoskeleton of the Scorpion. Grey on the other hand didn''t think about it too much, he felt it was only natural. After all, he made use of his fire element in the attack as well. And his dimensional slash was aimed at that same spot. He was even surprised at the fact that the Scorpion was able to only sustain that little damage. Any other Magical Beast would''ve been seriously wounded, yet the attack was able to only leave a small crack on its head. Chapter 1329 Terrifying Killing Intent Grey was the one who led the attack, he was the one who brought the idea of them using physical attacks and also earth and ice attacks, and with the help of his space element, he was more mobile. The plan was for him to attract all the attention to himself and give the others free reign to attack the beast without having to face too much resistance from the Scorpion. When he arrived in front of the Scorpion, he didn''t hold back and unleashed a powerful lightning bolt at it. The Scorpion moved its pincers to block the attack, but Grey drew close to it and attacked once again, this time, with his fist. He struck one of the pincers of the Scorpion. However, the result of the punch was completely different from the previous attack. The last time, the Scorpion didn''t expect his punch to pack that much power and didn''t do much to defend against it, and it was also taken by surprise. Now that it knew Grey''s ability, it didn''t dare to take him for granted. It reinforced its defense before taking Grey''s blow. Unlike the previous time that it was sent flying, it only moved back by a few meters, using its other pincer to swipe at Grey. Just as Grey was dodging, it unleashed a beam of light from its mouth. Grey, seeing where its attack was aimed at couldn''t help but cuss out lightly. The attack was so well timed by the Scorpion that he was forced to either take that attack head-on or take the pincer attack head-on. Grey wasn''t one to be stuck in a dilemma when placed in such positions, without even thinking, he moved back to where the pincer was coming from and silver scales appeared on his arms as he crossed them in front of him, blocking the attack that was coming his way. Like a broken kite, Grey''s figure shot through the air, slamming into one of the sand mountains on the side. At the time the Scorpion''s attack just hit Grey, the Giants, as well as the other Earth and Water Elementalists attacked, not giving the Scorpion any chance to reinforce its defense or even prepare for their attacks. They all made sure before attacking, the Scorpion wouldn''t have the chance to block it. It was a well-planned move, and to be honest, it was a good plan. All their attacks landed on the large body of the Scorpion at the same time. The punches of the Giants, as well as the earth elemental attacks. The ice attacks weren''t as many as the earth elemental attacks. All the attacks simultaneously hit the Scorpion and it let out a pained screech before burrowing into the ground, rushing to leave the area. Bang! The Scorpion which just disappeared into the ground was sent flying into the sky, and it crashed into the ground, causing sand to fly all around. Grey''s figure appeared from beneath the ground. He had been waiting for this opportunity after being sent flying by the Scorpion. Luckily, he had the space element, so it was easy for him to return here. When the others saw Grey''s figure, they were a little taken aback, but after recalling how easy it was for him to move from one location to another, they stopped getting surprised by it. ''It''s a good thing I marked it while dealing that blow.'' Grey thought to himself. The large frame of the Scorpion sprang back up, confusion evident in its eyes. It thought it had escaped, only to find a powerful force sending it flying from the ground. It looked around and saw the person behind it. A hint of hatred flashed through its eyes when it saw Grey. Grey was too difficult to deal with, and seeing how Grey''s condition was, it couldn''t help but feel aggrieved. Even after taking the full force attack of the Scorpion, Grey was perfectly fine, other than the sleeves of his clothes which ripped apart, there was nothing else. It was as if he didn''t get hit by the Scorpion. The Scorpion wasn''t the only one shocked, Elaris and the other two at the Peak were beyond shocked. They all saw Grey taking the blow, but none of them noticed Grey''s arm turning silver during the last second before getting hit. So they didn''t understand how Grey was able to take the blow without sustaining any injuries. The Scorpion moved very fast and before they knew it, it was already in front of Grey. Its dangerous tail stabbed at the place Grey was standing, but it didn''t meet any resistance, hitting the ground. The figure of Grey which was there started to fade off. "An afterimage!" One of the Giants said with a serious expression. "Just how fast is he?" his extraordinary speed. A freak born for battles! Grey having the space element already made him extremely difficult to handle when fighting against him. Now, the fact that he could leave behind an afterimage showed them that he was still very fast without his space element. This meant that if they were planning to seal the space to deal with him, he was still very dangerous due to his extraordinary speed. A freak born for battles! This was what they felt Grey was. All the abilities Grey has displayed prove why they felt he was born for battles. He had multiple elements, could easily go from one place to another, and was terrifyingly strong with both his elements and physical strength. He was the perfect warrior. The Scorpion didn''t stand idle after missing the first attack, it sank into the sand and disappeared. Before anyone could figure out where it or Grey was they all heard an explosion come from the area where Sylvia''s brother and the other Giant that was in the Mid stages of the Elemental Venerable was located. The expressions of everyone changed, however, they noticed the explosion wasn''t because the duo took a blow, rather, it was the clash between Grey and the Scorpion. The duo was perfectly fine thanks to Grey who made sure the duo didn''t feel any impact from the attack. "Stay in the air, don''t give it the chance to attack you guys." Grey said before trying to force the Scorpion back. The others at the Peak came at this time and they all attacked, embroiled in a fierce battle with the Scorpion. Magical Beasts, especially types like this Scorpion that didn''t only have a powerful attack but also possessed a powerful attack were very rare. They were too difficult to handle. Even when fighting against multiple people at the Peak of the Elemental Venerable Plane, it was still not overwhelmed. But after taking a few hits from the Giants and Grey, it started to show signs of wearing down. Although its armor only had a few cracks, it was evident that its innards had suffered a great deal of damage from the attacks. Everyone could see this as the speed of the Scorpion reduced significantly. The Scorpion unleashed a light beam, forcing the others back, but just as it was about to sink into the ground, it felt a powerful suction force drag it into the air, in the direction of Grey who had his palm outstretched. Grey already alerted the Giants to be prepared for the next round of attacks. He didn''t want the Scorpion to escape, and he wasn''t in too much of a hurry as he used to be, the reason for this was because he had sensed that Void''s movement had come to a stop. This meant that he wasn''t going any further. ''Something must''ve stopped him. I''ll kill this guy and make use of its armor.'' Grey''s eyes shone with a brilliant light as he looked at the Scorpion. He exuded a shocking killing intent that frightened not just the Scorpion but everyone present. If Grey targeted a weak-willed person with this killing intent, the person wouldn''t be able to even lift their hands to defend against an attack from him. The Scorpion wasn''t one of such, it was powerful and had seen its fair share of battles, unless the strength gap was insurmountable, then it would never give up when battling someone like Grey. Grey attacked with conviction, making use of the space element once more to attack. This time, the power behind his dimensional slash was even greater than what he had ever shown. He mixed the attack with a hint of spatial distortion, making the attack even more dangerous. The Giants attacked as well. Due to being dragged back against its will, the Scorpion was forced to block the attacks coming its way, including Grey''s fearful attack. Bang! Bam! All the attacks hit the body of the Scorpion, but all the focus was on Grey''s attack. The Giants felt dread when they saw the attack and the intent behind it, some of them were asking themselves if they could block the attacks. Elaris took another glance at Grey. And for the first time in her life, she started to doubt her abilities. Chapter 1330 It Looks Delicious Grey wasn''t bothered with the expression of the others, his attention was focused on the Scorpion which used its pincers to block the dimensional slash. A pained screech was heard before the sound of something large hitting the ground, along with a little dust cloud. Grey tossed a fireball in that direction, but it wasn''t a normal fireball, he only used it to force away the dusk cloud. A battered Scorpion appeared before them, on the side was one of its large pincers, detached from the other part of its body. Grey''s eyes lit up when he saw this. Due to the Scorpion using some of its strength to block the attacks of the Giants as well as the others, it wasn''t able to focus its full attention on Grey''s attack which gave Grey the chance to cut off one of the pincers. The Scorpion screeched in pain and they could all sense that it was about to go berserk after losing one of its pincers. Such an injury was very dangerous to it and it was being clouded by rage at the moment. Its eyes locked onto Grey and even the others could feel the tenseness in the atmosphere. Grey had a warm smile on his face, it was as if he hadn''t even done anything to the Scorpion. Well, in all honesty, if they didn''t fight back, the Scorpion would''ve killed them, so they weren''t in the wrong. The only thing was that Grey''s smile looked a little evil, given the fact that he just cut off one of the pincers of the Scorpion. "It''s wounded, it''ll be even more dangerous now. You guys should be careful, and make sure its full focus is on me before attacking. I can''t save everyone." Grey warned. "We''re not weak." Elaris was the one who spoke up. Grey''s statement made it seem like they were weaklings who needed his protection. Grey shrugged and didn''t bother with her, the only person he was obligated to protect was Sylvia''s brother, he only warned because he didn''t want any issues to come up because of anyone''s ignorance. Just like before, Grey took the lead once again, attacking the Scorpion. He didn''t use the dimensional slash once again. Such a powerful attack always takes a lot from the user, mixing it with spatial distortions made it evident. Grey doesn''t usually face things like this due to his immense reserves. Not just him, but most Elementalists always use elemental attacks they know wouldn''t take up too much essence so they could fight for a longer period and also protect themselves. Very few of them tend to use elemental techniques that would take up large portions of their essence reserves, but for someone like Grey who has more than triple what any normal Elementalist has, he barely gets to face such events. But the dimensional slash he just used showed him some signs of using up too much essence. The Scorpion attacked Grey, but even in its berserk state, it was still watching around, wary of not the others'' attacks, but of Grey suddenly unleashing the attack he used a few moments ago. It didn''t want to take such an attack again. This time, it didn''t dare to get close to Grey, with the help of its ability to manipulate sand, it was attacking from a good distance away. Grey was continuously edging closer as he blocked and attacked the Scorpion. The others were also getting closer to the Scorpion. Sensing that it wouldn''t be able to defeat them, the Scorpion gave up on stopping them and rushed straight at one of those using ice. It wanted to kill that person before escaping. The person it picked was Victor. Victor didn''t expect the Scorpion to come after him since its focus had been on Grey since the start of the battle. However, he had been in a few battles and knew not to panic. Using the earth element, he covered himself in armor before attacking with a large hammer. The hammer was an elemental weapon, imbued with the earth essence, the hammer increased in size and its weight increased significantly. The hammer crashed into the Scorpion and it halted its movement, that was enough time for the others to react to the Scorpion''s change of opponents. Grey was the first to react, after already marking the Scorpion, it wasn''t hard for him to appear close to it. After appearing, he attacked with the earth element, creating a large earthen hammer and slamming it at the same spot Victor''s hammer hit. The Scorpion which halted its movement was forced back. Elaris made a move at this moment, with a move of her hand, an ice hammer appeared and it struck the Scorpion at the same spot Grey and Victor''s attack hit. Not just her, but the other Giants attacked, their target was the same spot. After the third Giant''s fist hit the spot, a cracking sound resounded in the area, the Scorpion''s hard shell had been broken through. Unlike the previous times where only cracks appeared, this time, its soft flesh came into view. The Scorpion screeched in pain. When Grey saw the meat poking out of the broken shell, the first thought that came to his head was¡­ ''It looks delicious.'' ''Void, come back, have you tasted Scorpion meat before?'' ''Huh? Scorpion meat?'' Void replied. Grey could almost see Void drooling when he heard how he responded. ''Yes, I''m about to kill this thing, and the meat looks delicious.'' Grey''s words enticed Void. ''Keep some for me, I''m coming.'' ''I''m not going to cook it now, you starving cat.'' There was no way Grey would cook it now, he still had to search for treasures, what time does he have to deal with cooking? ''Alright, but be fast with it. I want to taste it. From how it looks, I think it will be delicious.'' Grey laughed and continued his attack on the Scorpion. At the moment, the Scorpion was trying to escape with all its might. But there was no way Grey would allow his dinner to get away so easily. Even when he didn''t have the thought of eating it, he would not let it escape, much less now that it has enticed his hunger. If not for the treasure, he would''ve eaten the Scorpion immediately after killing it. He secretly kept the pincer he cut off the last time. With only one pincer, the Scorpion wasn''t as dangerous as it used to be. Grey once again used dimensional slash, mixing it with spatial distortions to ensure it was very powerful. With a single slash, he was able to cut off the tail of the Scorpion. And just like before, he kept it in his spatial ring. This time, he wasn''t subtle, and the others saw it, but they didn''t care, they were more interested in the treasures that lay inside the pyramid. In no time, Grey had cut off all eight legs of the Scorpion, as well as its last pincer. When everyone saw the condition of the Scorpion, they took a peek at Grey who was looking at it weirdly. It didn''t take long for them to understand what Grey wanted. They could all see the excitement in his eyes, and with the continuous licking of his lips, they knew he wanted to eat it. Elaris found it odd that Grey had such a character, while the others didn''t think too much about it. They''ve all seen top experts who loved eating different delicacies. Grey was the one who dealt the killing blow, and before the others could heave a sigh of relief that the powerful Scorpion had been killed, Grey kept it in his storage ring. His countenance returned to its normal indifference after keeping the body of the Scorpion. He opened his arm and tossed a small black orb at the leader of the Giant. It was the core of the Scorpion. This was a Peak Rank Seven Magical Beast, and although no one said anything about Grey keeping its body, they all eyed its core. The only reason they kept shut was because Grey was the one who made sure they could kill the Scorpion. Receiving the core from Grey reaffirmed their assumption about Grey only wanting the body of the Scorpion. Of course, they all knew that the body of the Scorpion was also a good thing to possess since there were a few valuable things in it, but nothing was as valuable as the core which Grey passed to the Giant without hesitation. "Keep it, you''re the one who made it possible." The leader of the Giants gave it back to Grey. Grey held it and chuckled, "I already have a few of these to play with, who wants it?" Victor raised his hand and Grey tossed it to him as if it was a useless item. Victor didn''t know if he should be happy or sad at the core he just received, after all, it was as if everyone was rejecting it. Chapter 1331 A Tomb The group of ten headed towards the pyramid. They''ve already dealt with the Scorpion and they increased their speed, it took them only a few minutes before they got to where the opening into the pyramid was located. Grey was standing behind the leader of the Giant. Even though he had already shown some of his prowess when it came to fighting, there was no use in bothering with who was leading the group. All he was interested in was getting treasures he could use to help those around him. The leader of the Giants didn''t rush into the opening, he sensed it for a while to know if there was any danger, after getting nothing, he walked in, accompanied by Elaris. Grey was behind them, he already knew there was nothing ahead that would stop them thanks to Void who was the first to enter. After entering the pyramid, all they saw was a long path ahead of them. They moved along the path, carefully observing the place. As they were moving, Grey was focused on the marks that were on the wall. From his observations, they were a form of writing, but they looked very similar to array lines which he found a bit odd. ''Could it be that arrays are a form of language?'' He thought to himself. He has always been fascinated as to how arrays came about, after all, it was quite strange that drawing some lines would make someone grow stronger, or become faster or the other abilities array has been able to give Elementalists. The lines were all so strange yet so wondrous to see. Grey was staring at the marks and making a mental note of some of the marks. The marks were similar to the ones he saw at the door. Due to encountering the Tortoise, he was forced to stop his observation, now, he didn''t have to bother with anything. Before they knew it, they got to a place that led to three different places. All three paths looked alike, but they all knew they led to different places. "What now?" One of the Giants asked. "We have two options, go into the same path to ensure our safety and risk losing more treasures, or spread out so we can get more treasures but risk getting in danger." The leader of the Giants told them their options. "We should split up. After all, the goal from the start was getting into this place. Since we''re already here, there''s no need to team up. This will save us the trouble of having to clash due to wanting the same treasure." Grey was the one who answered. The leader of the Giants nodded to Grey''s words, although they didn''t sound kind, it was the truth. They might be getting along for now, but that was all because there was nothing that would cause a clash of interests, once there was, then they would clash. "Thank you for helping us open this place, I''ll be leaving with my people now." The leader of the Giants took the middle path and left with the other four giants. "Why did you say that?" Elaris asked, a little annoyed at Grey. "I don''t think you come out often, if not, you''d know the sooner we split up the better it is for everyone." Grey didn''t bother with her and went straight to the path on the right. That was the side he was sensing Void from, and with Void picking that path meant only one thing, it held more treasures. Elaris felt irritated at the way Grey was treating her, if not for the fact that she didn''t want to fall out with him, she would''ve attacked him the second he spoke to her in such a manner. She still followed behind Grey. Sylvia''s brother and the other two followed behind them, they knew that with Grey and Elaris taking this path, they didn''t have any other choice. Besides, now that they were separated, if they were to be caught by the Giants, they risked getting attacked by them. After all, the only reason they were together was due to an alignment of interest, now, the goal had been achieved and they didn''t need each other any longer. Grey continued following Void, and before long, they got to a large opening. The place was like a Hall, and there were chairs around. A tomb could be seen in the middle of the Hall, and things made of gold and some other materials could be seen. These things didn''t attract too much attention from those present, rather, it was the flowers that were planted around the tomb that drew the attention of everyone present. These flowers all possessed different elemental essences and a very large concentration of said elements. "Amazing¡­'' Brax muttered. Grey didn''t hurry to get close to it, he was a little wary of this place. He didn''t believe it would be that easy to acquire these things. Not just him, but the others as well. However, after watching it for a few minutes, they realized it was safe to walk close to it. Elaris headed for the flower that gave off a chilly aura. Snow could be seen around this particular flower. Grey wasn''t in a haste to check out the flowers, he was observing the tomb, wondering if it was inhabited. What sort of person would be buried in a place like this, surrounded by gold and other forms of treasures? This was the question in Grey''s head. He suddenly found something odd. Void saw shiny things yet he let them be. Void would normally take any type of shiny object regardless of whether it was of value or not. Yet Void let go of these. ''Something''s wrong.'' Grey''s eyes opened and he studied the place. The problem was that he still couldn''t sense anything wrong, but he was getting a growing feeling of unease. "We should leave." He said to the others. They looked at him, and Elaris was the one who spoke up, "What is it with you? If you want to leave you can, you''re not the leader of this group, you know." "I have zero interest in leading anyone." Grey started walking towards the exit of the place. He was about to take a step outside when he sensed danger, turning around, he noticed something no one else had. The tomb was open¡­ ''Fuck it! I hate these types of opponents.'' He complained and rushed to where Sylvia''s brother was and grabbed hold of him. Sylvia''s brother was about to ask what happened when he saw a large skeletal hand grabbing at him. "Don''t go, nourish me." The eerie voice sent a shiver down his spine. The skeletal hand was getting closer to him and he could feel his essence being drawn from him. ''No wonder Void didn''t stop.'' Void''s intuition towards danger was very high, and he knew staying to pick up treasures would put him in some danger. "We''re leaving." Grey threw a stream of fire at the hand and dragged Sylvia''s brother with him, he didn''t care about the safety of the others. Since they wanted to listen to Elaris, he didn''t have any reason to bother about their safety. Elaris moved fast, she froze the hand coming towards her and rushed towards the exit. Brax and Victor followed behind her. The moment they left the place, a skeleton with little parts covered with decayed flesh appeared. "It''s been so long, how much longer will it take before I can awaken? Even these flowers are useless." The skeleton spoke in a cold tone. It soon sensed something and when it looked at the flowers, its expression changed drastically. They were all gone, all sixteen flowers. "Damn it! When did they take them?!" It roared furiously. These flowers were products of hundreds of years of planning, and they were all gone. "How? Who?" Its bluish flaming eyes, just like an inferno spiked up, it realized when the flowers were taken. The time he was attacked by the stream of fire he noticed something strange about the flame, but due to how quickly everything happened, it didn''t think too much about it, and there were others it targeted. But now that they were all gone, it realized the abnormality with the flame. "I''ll kill you!" The skeleton which had not left this place for hundreds of years moved towards the exit of the tomb, its treasure was stolen and it wanted it back at all costs. ¡­. Other than Grey, no one else understood the meaning behind the roar of the skeleton. Grey had a nonchalant expression on his face, but he was elated deep down. The flowers were taken by none other than him. He didn''t actually need the flames to force back the hand since there was no way it would be able to reach him, but there was no way he would give up such an opportunity. He used the flames to hide his true intentions, and no one knew he took it. Well, the skeleton knew, but it was none of his business. Unbeknownst to Grey, he was being hunted down by the skeleton. Chapter 1332 Heading Deeper Into The Pyramid *A.N: Reload the last 4 chapters, I was having an issue with the site but it has been fixed and the bug of wrong chapters will not come up again. Sorry for the inconvenience* The human group of five didn''t know there was a skeleton chasing after them. After leaving the tomb, they all felt a sense of relief and a little hint of sadness. If they were able to get even one of those flowers, they would''ve been able to benefit greatly from it, but unfortunately, they were unable to get anything from it which was a little frustrating, especially after seeing just how good they were with their own eyes. Grey was the only one who didn''t show any signs of reluctance after leaving the tomb, but the others didn''t suspect anything since from the start he didn''t even bother with any of the flowers, rather, he urged them to leave the place. If Grey hadn''t been as sharp as he was, Sylvia''s brother would most likely have been hurt by now, or even worse, killed. The path before them was still as long as the previous ones, and they didn''t have any choice other than walking it. They didn''t dare to rush through the path since it was unknown what dangers lay ahead, all they could do was cautiously walk through while ensuring their safety. Sylvia''s brother was standing closer to Grey now since he had saved his life twice. He knew what he should do if he wanted to guarantee his safety in this pyramid. Grey was the only one who was walking ahead with a blank expression, with the help of Void, he knew the areas that possessed the best treasures, the only drawback was that with top treasures came danger. The better the treasure the more dangerous he felt it would be. This was something that had been happening for a long time now, and everyone present was aware of how the world works. But none of them is willing to give up on the opportunity that has presented itself before them, Grey included. Unless he knew it was a certain death situation if he went for a treasure, he would never back down. ¡­. "Not again." Brax complained when they arrived at another intersection, this time, there were four paths. Elaris unconsciously took a glance at Grey and to her surprise, he was already walking towards the last path on the left. He didn''t even pause to take a glance at the other three paths, he just walked straight into the path. "Dammit¡­" She muttered through clenched teeth, but she still followed him. She had seen how powerful he was, and even though she didn''t want to admit it, she saw him as an equal. She felt the only reason Grey was powerful was due to his unpredictability. Having multiple elements and being able to unleash such powerful explosive attacks with his fists was something that set him apart from others. Nevertheless, she didn''t think she would lose against him. The only reason she was following him was to make sure all five of them who entered this place came out alive. If Grey were to encounter something he couldn''t handle, Sylvia''s brother would undoubtedly die, and that wasn''t something she wanted to see. Grey heard the grumbling Elaris, but he couldn''t care less. He wasn''t forcing them to follow him. From the start, he didn''t even want her to be in the squad. Elaris was more annoyed at the fact that Grey wasn''t even giving her any face. He was acting like she didn''t exist, something that had never happened before. For someone who has grown accustomed to always getting attention from those around her, it was a new feeling being treated in such a manner by Grey. Even her Teacher didn''t treat her in such a way. While she was still being pissed about what Grey was doing. They soon walked into an underground stream. Grey was standing before the stream, he placed one of his fingers inside as if he was testing something. He removed it just as quickly as he put it inside. The others only saw a ripple on the surface of the water, other than Grey, no one else knew what happened. ''There''s no way we can defeat it inside the water. It''s in its best environment.'' Grey felt a headache when he thought about what they had to face. A powerful Magical Beast was lurking in the underground stream, one that possessed frightening attack power. When in the water, it''s a fearsome beast to battle against. "There''s a treasure inside the water." Elaris pointed at the shiny object that was lying deep in the water. Even with how dark it was, and the depth of the stream, it still couldn''t hide the gleam of such a tremendous treasure. "And something is waiting to kill you the moment you attempt to take it." Grey said, bringing the others back to reality. Yes, there was a treasure lying there, but there was also something in the water that would not hesitate to take their lives. "How many?" Elaris asked Grey. "Three, all at the Peak of the Seventh Rank." Grey answered her question, which came as a surprise to her. "I can deal with one, although troublesome, but not impossible. With your strength I know you can too, the others shouldn''t have any problems with taking care of the last one." Grey didn''t bother with Elaris'' reaction as he gave the order in which they would be able to take what lay in the depth of the stream. Elaris pouted as she didn''t like the fact that Grey was the one giving the orders, but there was nothing she could do about it. Grey was the one who checked the water and knew how many opponents they had to face. Other than herself and Grey, Brax, and Victor were also at the Peak of the Elemental Venerable Plane. They would have an even easier time than them when dealing with the beast hiding in the water. Tens of lightning arrows appeared in the sky and shot into the water. Grey wanted to see if he could force out the beasts inside. His attack paid off as a large creature jumped out of the stream, its exceptionally large figure and green scales running through its entire body would make anyone doubt if they could ever break through its defense. "Not again." Grey felt like crying. Chapter 1333 Journey To The Center Of The Pyramid Grey groaned coldly while staring at the beast in front of him. It was none other than a Crocodile, of all the things he has come to hate amongst Magical Beasts, it was types like these that had such strong defenses. Take the Scorpion for example, it isn''t that the superiority in strength was large, but its defense was just too powerful that it took such a large group of people to take it down. Now that he has to fight one on his own, all he felt was pain. The good news now was that of the three beasts he sensed inside the water, only this Crocodile had shown itself which might be a bonus for them. If they could kill it with their numbers advantage before the other two stepped out, they would''ve already established a good position for themselves in the battle. The Crocodile stared at the intruders coldly and contrary to what they expected, it didn''t attack, instead, it tried to communicate with them. ''Leave this place, I''m in no mood to fight anyone.'' The voice of the Crocodile echoed in their ears. Grey studied the Crocodile and almost burst out laughing, a small part of its tail had been gnawed off. The place was so small that it was almost impossible to notice, but with Grey''s keen eyes, and a little hint from Void, he was able to see it. When he saw the Crocodile, he asked if Void wanted to eat it, and Void said he had already tasted it and didn''t like how it tasted. The Crocodile expressed its desire not to engage in any form of battle at the same moment which made Grey almost laugh out loud. The Crocodile looked traumatized by the experience it had with Void. "Do you think that thing can benefit any of us?" Grey pointed at the shiny object. Void didn''t take it, which meant it most likely wasn''t a shiny object, it might be good, but not what he wanted. The Crocodile was irritated by Grey''s words, and just when it was about to snap, Grey whispered so only it could hear. "My cat doesn''t think you taste good, but I''m a very good cook, I can make you taste good. All I need to do is call him back." The moment the Crocodile heard those words, its large body shivered. Grey was astounded, he couldn''t believe Void, the small cat that could barely fit into his palm, left such a large creature in such a state. ''Size truly doesn''t matter.'' The Crocodile looked at Grey and the others and indicated to Victor before saying to Grey. ''It''s not something that will be of use to most people, but it might help extend his life force.'' Grey''s pupils contracted when he heard this. He wasn''t close to Victor, but he never thought he would have an issue with his life force. Victor didn''t look like someone who had a problem with his life force, and he didn''t look to be over forty, so Grey never really thought there would be an issue with him. "Then bring it." Grey said to the Crocodile. The Crocodile didn''t delay and brought it over to them. Grey took it and tossed it to Victor who couldn''t believe his eyes. They could all sense the item oozing with life force. "We have no use for this, but it might be of use for you." Grey left those words before turning his attention to the Crocodile. Since it was willing to communicate, he was quite curious as to how it got into this place. Due to the long process it took them to get into this place, he didn''t think it was that easy for anyone to bring in a Magical Beast in their free time unless it was the person who created it in the first place. ''I''ve been here all my life.'' This was the answer Grey got, something he wasn''t hoping to get. No matter what he asked, the Crocodile didn''t show any signs of knowing the answers. Grey could only give up and leave with the others. There was no need to stay behind, and since the Crocodile let them leave in peace, it was for the best. The group of five passed through the underground stream before heading into another path. ¡­. While the humans were having a relatively easy time passing through each obstacle, it wasn''t so easy for the Giants. They''ve faced different dangerous situations, but the rewards have been massive as well. The leader had ensured that nothing happened to the others. Of course, he couldn''t always save them, but he made sure none of them suffered attacks that could kill them or fatally wound them. They were also heading deeper into the pyramid, just like Grey and the others. ¡­. Time went by and before they knew it, they''ve been stuck in the pyramid for over two days, in search of the center of the pyramid. They all knew the best treasures lay there, but locating it in these maze-like paths was no easy feat. Void was the one leading the humans, and if not for the continuous good items they would occasionally get, Elaris would''ve been irritated by the fact that Grey was just randomly jumping from one path to another without even thinking. ¡­. "At this rate we might never be able to leave this place." Sylvia''s brother spoke up when the group appeared at a Hall. This Hall wasn''t like the tomb, but this wasn''t the first of its kind they had seen these past days. "We can. But with the treasures still present, I don''t think there''s any use in us rushing." Grey didn''t feel any pressure. "What if the Giants beat us to the center, what then?" Elaris asked. "We go home. We don''t always have to win in such tussles." Grey was unbothered. He knew there was no way in hell the Giants would get to the middle first before Void, so he wasn''t afraid. The worst that could happen was that he would have to beg Void for a few treasures when he gets there before them and take everything. Chapter 1334 Hidden Enemy Void was slowly edging closer to the center of the pyramid, the same could be said for Grey and his group who were following behind him. The Giants were also advancing closer to the center of the pyramid. After two more days, Grey and his group got to a door Grey believed led to the center of the pyramid, the reason for this thought, well let''s say a black little cat found it difficult to get past the door. Void had been stuck there for a while now and led Grey right to him. When Grey and his entourage were almost there, he hid in the void. With his impeccable hiding skills, other than Grey, no one else would be able to sense his presence. "This should lead to the center of the pyramid, or at least to a new area." Grey said. He had grown tired of seeing the same long empty paths. Elaris looked at the door, "How do we open it?" She asked curiously. Grey looked at it, he had been studying the ruin marks he was seeing on the path and had gotten a little understanding of them. Unfortunately, it was not enough for the door that was in front of them. "I have no idea. Maybe we should attempt the same method as we used in entering this place. Who knows, it might work." He suggested. "I was thinking the same thing." Brax agreed with Grey''s words. Compared to the first time, he was more relaxed, after gaining a few treasures thanks to following behind Grey, he was more than elated. This had been the most fruitful journey he had ever had. He cut open his arm and the second the blood got close to the door, it lit up and ruin marks appeared. The door shook softly before going quiet. The light only came up for barely a second before going off. "Looks like it will work." Sylvia''s brother spoke up. The others nodded and followed Brax. Other than Grey, the rest of them were giving their blood in hopes the door would open soon enough and they get the chance to acquire different treasures. In no time, the door had drunk enough blood and it started to rumble loudly. After shaking for almost a minute, while still violently sucking the blood from the bodies of the four who were feeding it, it started to slowly open up. Just as the door was opening, Grey felt a sharp sense of danger and without hesitation, he set up all his defenses, even making use of his dragon scales, not caring if the others would see him in that form. Bang! A powerful attack struck his back, leaving a large wound in it. Everyone present was shocked when they saw Grey''s bloodied figure shooting past them and crashing into the door which just opened. The rest of them didn''t need any warning before rushing through the door and cutting off the supply of blood. The place they appeared in wasn''t like the other places they''ve been visiting, this place was like a different world. They were on a small hill, but that hill presently had a newly formed crater, and a bloodied figure could be seen inside of it. Grey wasn''t moving, but they could tell that he was alive. Void''s figure appeared beside Grey and before anyone could get close, he shut off the space while tossing all the healing tonics he had with him at Grey. Grey''s injury was severe, even with the help of setting up all the defenses he could make use of, he was still left in such a sorry state. This goes to show just how powerful the assailant was. Sylvia''s brother and the others only saw a glimpse of Void''s figure before the place was sealed and started giving off a fierce white glow. With Void present, Grey also made use of his light element to help hasten the healing process. He didn''t know what was hidden here, if he were attacked now, he would be in danger. It took over ten minutes, but no one left the place. Grey finally stood up and couldn''t help but cuss at whoever attacked him. The attack power was well over what someone at the Peak of the Elemental Venerable Plane could make use of. If he even used the best form of his fusion orb, he wouldn''t be able to unleash such a powerful attack. Void removed the seal from the area while standing on Grey''s shoulder. Grey took a glance at everyone present, his face slightly pale. "Did anyone see who did it?" He asked. They all shook their heads. At the time Grey was attacked, he was the one furthest from the door when they were giving it blood, and since all their attention was on the door, they didn''t get the chance to know who attacked Grey. Even when they could''ve looked behind, they were worried at the fact that Grey, the person with the best defense, could barely block the attack. ¡­. While they were inside trying to figure out who attacked. A voice could be heard in the passageway. "How did he survive that attack?!" "Even a First stage Sovereign will find it hard to survive, especially given the proximity." "You have to hand it to the kid, his senses are very sharp." "There''s nothing good about him. I want him dead. He took what''s mine, I need them." There was not just one voice, but multiple voices. However, there was malice in one of them. The owner was the one who attacked Grey. ¡­.. If Grey were to see who attacked him, even with his current state, he would want to fight the person to the death. He hated being sneaked up on, especially by such a powerful figure. "I''ll kill you, just you wait." Grey said through gritted teeth while looking at the door that led into this place. He wasn''t even in the mood to check out the place. Chapter 1335 Five Pillars Elaris and the others looked at Grey, and their eyes turned to the small cat that was on his shoulder. No one saw it with him when he was coming in, only when he was injured a few minutes ago did the cat suddenly appear. "Since when did you have that?" Elaris asked, pointing at Void who was on his shoulder. "He has always been with me." Grey replied casually. Without having to worry about who attacked him now, he turned his attention to the place he was in. He could sense a good amount of elemental particles, it was almost on the same level as his Chaos Space. Of course, he hadn''t ventured to the deepest part of each element''s region, and for a long time now, he hadn''t even bothered with it. His grades were increasing, and there was no need to bother too much about it. Grey''s armor repaired itself with the abundance of essence in the area, fixing the destroyed part on the back and fixing up Grey''s clothes once again. Seeing that Grey was alright, another person asked Grey a question he expected to come. "How do you have scales?" Brax was the one who asked, his body posture showed that he was prepared to attack. Grey chuckled and asked, "You haven''t seen or heard of people being able to show some attributes of Magical Beasts?" He wasn''t worried he would be attacked, even if they dared to attack him, he wasn''t worried. He might be hurt, but he could still escape with his speed. "We know of the Vaergahl Family, but not of others." Victor answered. "Don''t keep yourself limited, you''ll find out things aren''t that difficult to achieve." Grey advised before adding, "Oh, keep this to yourself so as not to attract too much attention. I don''t want people bothering me." Grey was unbothered by the way they were looking at him, rather, he was now fully interested in the hill they were standing on. There was a sky above them, and he could feel the breeze on his face, but he also knew they weren''t in the outside world and were still in the pyramid. This wasn''t even a special place created in the pyramid, it was part of the pyramid just like the underground stream and other Halls. Grey looked towards the top of the hill and saw stone carvings that stretched to the sky. He walked closer to the stone carvings. There were markings on it that looked similar to the ones he saw on the door and also on the paths. The markings were even more intricate than ruins and the only form of understanding he has got from his observations over the past few days is that they were a form of writing and not casually drawn arrays. It was as if the writings were trying to tell him a story, but he hadn''t been able to comprehend the meaning behind them so he was lost. The more simulations he made in his head about the writings and drawings he made, the more he felt it was just too complex. It was as if he was trying to understand everything about the world in one go, this was how this thing felt to him. What he found a bit annoying was the fact that he hadn''t seen anything that could be of help to him in his endeavor. He was studying blind and coming up with assumptions on his own which might be completely wrong. He placed his palm on the carvings on the stones, but other than the coldness from the stone he didn''t feel anything. "Where''s this place?" Sylvia''s brother asked. The stones looked very mysterious, and he could also sense an odd aura from them. The stones looked like they were the pillars keeping the world afloat. This was the feeling he got while staring at them. "It''s magical." Elaris exclaimed softly as she worked close to the stones. She ran her fingers across the surface of the stone, the coldness sent a chill down her spine. Brax and Victor looked around, and in this entire place, other than the extraordinary abundance of essence, all that was in sight were these large stones that stretched into the sky. They all walked closer to it and tried to feel it. The stone didn''t seem to be made from ordinary rock, but from a material none of them had ever seen. Grey tried to manipulate the stone, but to his surprise, there wasn''t any form of reaction from it. "Not under the earth element?" He was a bit confused. He repeatedly tapped it and increased his force as time went on, trying to see if he could cause any form of destruction to it. But the stone didn''t budge, it was as if Grey wasn''t trying to destroy it. ''This thing is strange, stop hitting it.'' Void stopped Grey from hitting it any further. Grey, who was already preparing to use all his strength, stopped attacking it. He knew Void had a great intuition, so he didn''t dare to continue. There were five stones that were in different positions, four making a square while the last one was in the middle. Grey walked away from the one he was studying and walked towards the one that was in the middle. Attacking it was no use, so the best thing he could do was at least study it and try to see if he could decipher the marks on it. He started to look at each mark, trying to see if they had a meaning while flying into the sky, heading higher as he looked through each mark. While looking at the marks, he was making a mental note of each, drawing them in his head, trying to see if all of them were drawn out and whether he could get something useful from them. The higher he went, the more intricate he felt the marks were. A strange feeling started to grow in him. Unknown to him, the more mental marks he was drawing that were in correlation with this one, a dime glow was starting to appear on his body and those markings were slowly appearing on his body. Chapter 1336 Cracking The Secret Behind The Pillars As Grey went higher, the symbols appearing on his body became more noticeable, not just to himself but to the others. "What''s happening with him?" Victor asked, amazed that Grey had made the stones show some kind of reaction after such a short time interacting with it. Grey was also amazed at what was happening, and he never thought his casual attempt to comprehend the marks would produce such an effect. ''I wonder what this means¡­'' He thought to himself but didn''t dwell too long on it. After all, he wasn''t even halfway through the marks on the stones. The others watched as Grey continued to ascend higher, the marks on his body glowing brighter and brighter. Brax decided to copy what Grey was doing and started circling the stone he was previously studying. He looked at each mark diligently while slowly ascending. Unfortunately for him, Grey wasn''t casually staring at the patterns; he was making mental notes of them in his head, which might have resonated with the stone, causing the phenomenon they were all witnessing. Elaris looked at Grey with her bright eyes, curious about what he was feeling now. While the others were wondering what Grey felt from the glow on his body, he also wondered what the light and marks represented. He hadn''t felt any changes since the marks started showing on his body, which he felt was odd. Void was the only one who didn''t react, and he couldn''t care less about what was happening to Grey. His eyes were set on what was hidden beneath the stones. The pillars might be precious to others, but not to him. He came here from the start because of the treasures hiding underneath these pillars, and from the looks of it, only Grey could break the seal blocking his path, successfully. Grey continued with what he was doing while the others could only watch without being able to do anything. After a few minutes, Grey was at the peak of the pillar. He was expecting some sort of reaction from the pillar, but to his shock, the pillar only gave off the same lights on his body. ''What the hell?'' He complained internally. After carefully studying the marks and with the sudden glow on his body and the pillar, he thought something magnificent would happen when he was done with it. Who knew the pillar would only give off a light and nothing would happen? "A waste of time¡­" He muttered to himself before looking at the top of the other four pillars. His eyes shone with delight, and he chuckled softly, giving a self-deprecating laugh, "I can''t believe I missed it. After all my years learning arrays, I still missed something so easy." Now that he was looking at the pillars from above, he got the catch of what was happening. It was a simple array. Of course, with how it was from the start, it was tough for anyone to realize it was an array, especially when there was a sudden reaction when he was taking mental notes of the marks on the pillar. In all sincerity, he was expecting something to happen. Only now did he get the hang of what he needed to do before anything will happen. Grey started the same process on the other four with one lit pillar. It was useless to tell Elaris and the others since they weren''t arraymasters. Elaris and the others gave him space to continue with whatever he was doing. It took a little longer than he thought, but in the end, all five pillars were brightly lit after just over thirty minutes. When the last pillar fully lit up, the other pillars reacted to it. All five pillars sent a bright light into the sky, before merging. The light in the sky soon descended, stopping at the central pillar and creating a small passage large enough for humans to walk through. Before anyone could react, Void was already gone. Other than Grey, no one else sensed the quick movement of Void. "Fuck!" Grey cussed out again due to Void rushing into the place before him. After cussing out, he didn''t waste any time and charged in, right behind Void. He would not let Void benefit so much from his hard work. Void barely did anything! He couldn''t take away the fact that without Void, they wouldn''t have been able to locate this place, and even if they did, it wouldn''t have been with such ease. Nevertheless, knowing how greedy Void can get, he didn''t dare to give him too much time alone in there; the chances of him wiping the place clean before they entered were very high. Elaris wanted to ask Grey how he knew how to open it, but then she heard Grey cussing and rushing into the opening. She looked at the disappearing figure of Grey, unsure of what to feel about his actions. "Let''s go." She went after him, reminding the others not to slack behind. Brax and Victor also rushed in, leaving only Sylvia''s brother behind. He found Grey''s behavior strange, but since he wasn''t close to Grey, he didn''t speak about it and entered through the opening behind the others. If they knew there was a little thieving cat on the verge of stealing all the treasures they might grab from this place, they wouldn''t be moving as slowly as they were. ¡­. Inside the passage. A small black dot shot through the place with lightning speed. Behind it was a far larger shadow moving just as fast, if not even a bit faster. ''Void!'' ''What?'' ''Slow down.'' ''No.'' ''Damn it, Void, if you take everything, I''ll kill you!'' Grey and Void continued exchanging words as they headed deeper into the place. Void was following his sharp senses, while Grey was following Void. The duo didn''t even take a glance at their surroundings. If they did, they wouldn''t be in such haste to get to the treasure. Elaris and the others weren''t as brash as the duo, and the sight before them made them feel a cold chill run down their spines. Chapter 1337 Remarkable But Proud On the side of the path were corpses, and all of them looked very lifelike. To a certain extent, these corpses could be said to be staring at them. The feeling they got from the corpses was one of dread. It was as if their souls were being stared at by a supreme being they couldn''t hide from. Grey and Void, who were at the forefront, got most of the attention from the corpses, and after a few seconds, they sensed the eyes of the people watching them from the side. Void paused when he saw the people staring at them, and without hesitation, he vanished, hiding in Grey''s storage space. Unlike Void, Grey didn''t have anywhere to hide. He felt these weren''t just corpses, even though they were apparently dead. He stopped his movements and waited for the others to get to where he was standing. Other than staring, the corpses weren''t making any movements, making Grey sigh in relief. He knew they might''ve been in danger if the corpses had made other movements. "What do you think they are?" Sylvia''s brother asked, a little worried at how intensely the corpses were watching them. "Dead, that''s what they are." Elaris regained her composure and replied. She had studied the corpses; other than moving their eyes in their direction, they weren''t doing anything else. Grey, who was ahead of them, had also come to this conclusion, but he decided since Void was with him, there was no use in leaving the others behind. Although it looked strange, he wasn''t the type that would take all the treasures and leave nothing for the others. The only reason he rushed in was to stop Void from taking everything. "You''re no longer rushing to take everything?" Elaris asked with a mocking smile before adding, "Don''t tell me you''re scared of dead people." Grey didn''t bother with her and turned his attention to the path before him. He could sense some danger in front of him, but he was confident it was something he would be able to deal with. Since he was already ahead of them, he continued leading the way. Elaris scoffed and followed behind him, ensuring a reasonable distance between them. She wanted Grey to be the one to deal with all the troubles that would later surface. ''Being greedy comes with a cost.'' She felt the only reason Grey stopped was because he realized the danger ahead of them and didn''t want to deal with it alone. Elaris wasn''t the only one with such thoughts. Sylvia''s brother had the same opinion about Grey. After all, he rushed in the moment it was open, only pausing after getting far away. He only felt Grey would wait for them because he wanted their help to resolve the problem. "You want me to solve the problem for you? Heh! You must be dreaming." Grey chuckled and advanced calmly. He knew his actions were wrong, but the fact that Elaris wanted to take advantage of him was something he would not let happen. Since he wanted to act smart, he didn''t mind playing with her. Before long, the danger he sensed ahead appeared. It wasn''t something that was difficult for him to handle, but he wanted Elaris and her group to suffer, except for Sylvia''s brother. A large Bull was blocking the path ahead, and it was at the Peak of the Seventh Rank. When it caught sight of Grey, it charged at him. Grey didn''t flinch, and with a soft movement, he dodged the Bull, taping it on the side. The Bull suddenly disappeared, and Sylvia''s brother was on the spot the Bull was previously standing on. Grey had his hand across his shoulder with a soft smile on his face. The Bull, on the other hand, appeared on the spot where Sylvia''s brother was previously standing. Its sudden appearance shocked the group, especially Elaris. But then she recalled there was someone proficient with the space element in the group; the person was ahead of them. ''Such a hateful fellow.'' Elaris cussed internally and immediately acted, forcing the Bull to go behind them. She was the strongest and acted first. Luckily, Sylvia''s brother stood behind them, so it wasn''t hard for them to negate it when it turned around. She sent the Bull flying, but with its sturdy skin, it didn''t feel any pain from the attack. It opened its mouth, and a fiery light shot at the group. Grey made a move this time. He didn''t want it to seem like he was trying to have any sort of conflict with Elaris and the others. He appeared before them, and his blue flames rose, shielding the others from the attack of the Bull. The Bull charged forward when it saw its attack wasn''t effective. Grey was standing composed when the Bull was within fifteen meters of him, he took a step forward, planting his right foot on the ground. The charging Bull suddenly felt its large body pulled by an irresistible force. Due to the suddenness of the attack, it could not defend against it even though it possessed tremendous strength. The Bull fell to the ground, and Grey used the earth element to imprison it. With its entire body held down, it was unable to break free. If it had been standing, then the chances of breaking free would''ve been high, but in a situation like this, it was almost impossible to escape from Grey''s clutches. "You guys alright?" He asked after incapacitating the Bull. "You''re the one who sent the Bull here. I wonder if you want us to be alright." Elaris said. Grey refusing to take her with him at first, and then his unwillingness to help her with the mark gave her a wrong impression of him. Yes, she wasn''t going to deny that Grey was remarkable, but she also felt he was prideful. Grey wanted to speak, but refrained. He didn''t have the time to argue with her. He shook his head and walked closer to Sylvia''s brother, who was still where Grey left him. Chapter 1338 White Bones Grey led the group, with Void directing him on where to go. The treasure was getting closer and closer, and Void could sense it. The others followed behind Grey. Elaris was still annoyed that Grey sent the Bull in their direction. As they went deeper into the place, they soon got to a door. Grey saw the same signs on them, but this time, they didn''t need to do anything. All Grey did was push it, and it opened for them to step in. The door led to a large room. Multiple tables were standing in direction locations in the room, and items were on each table. Grey was dumbstruck at the sheer number of top-tier treasures he was seeing. Not just Grey, even Elaris, who was from a top Faction, was also left speechless by what she saw. Void appeared once again, his eyes lighting up as he saw the things laid there on the table. Before anyone could move, he was the first to make a move. He went for a golden ring lying on the floor close to one of the tables. Grey''s head almost exploded when he saw this. There was no way Void would take a useless ring when there were countless treasures here. He immediately went after him. The others didn''t mind Void going after the ring. After all, it was on the ground. If not for Void rushing there, they wouldn''t notice it. The others all went for different treasures. There were quite a lot of treasures there that attracted their attention, and they couldn''t wait to take it. With Grey and Void going after the ring they deemed useless, there were fewer contenders for the treasures they picked. Over twenty tables were in the room, and all twenty of them had a top treasure on top of them, from elemental weapons to rare Magical Beasts'' cores and rare flowers. All kinds of treasures lay on the tables, and they were all up for grabs. Grey caught up to Void and stretched to pick up the ring. Void was faster, and with his smaller build, he maneuvered right through Grey''s fingers and took the ring from his grasp. "Fuck! Void, give it back." Grey said, a little annoyed. Void naturally didn''t pay any heed to his words. He opened his tiny mouth and swallowed the ring with a satisfied smile on his face. Veins appeared on the side of Grey''s head. He knew since Void had already kept it, it was almost impossible to take it from him. What was worse was that he didn''t know what was inside the ring, so even if Void decides to trick him later, there was no way he would be able to know if it was a trick. "Greedy little cat." He said through gritted teeth before moving to another treasure. There was no need to bother about the ring and its contents, he knew there was no hope. Void laughed in satisfaction. He, too, went after another treasure. The others had already taken their first choice of treasures and were going after the next ones. Seeing Grey and Void going at the treasures, they were flabbergasted. In a second, each of them had cleaned five tables. One has to know that some of these items weren''t easy to take from these tables, but Void was directly going past while Grey acted like he wasn''t being repelled. It was a shocking yet annoying sight to behold. Unlike Grey and Void, they needed some time to break through some of the table''s defenses. Grey stopped after they ransacked ten tables, but Void didn''t have any plans of stopping. He moved quickly, rushing for the next table. Grey acted quickly, stopping Void from taking anything more. ''Enough, do you want them to hate us?'' ''It''s not like they like you in the first place. What''s the point of letting them have any? We all know that the treasures are taken by those who can acquire them. They might get upset, but there''s nothing they can do. Do they want to blame you for their uselessness?'' Grey paused when he heard Void''s words. To be honest, Void''s words were logical. It was common knowledge that treasures were taken by the capable. If one can''t even move as fast as the other, then they would lose out. He still stopped Void from taking anything else. Of course, he didn''t care about what Elaris and the others thought of him, but it wouldn''t be nice if he took everything and left nothing for them. Void grunted but disappeared when he saw that Grey wasn''t giving him an inch. He already had enough, so there was no use arguing over if he should get more or not. Grey was satisfied when he saw this. Elaris and the others heaved a sigh of relief when they saw Grey stop Void from taking anything else. Seeing that Void was just as fast as Grey, if not even faster, they knew the chances of them catching him was almost zero. The other four didn''t waste too much time and started to go through the other things. In no time all the tables were cleaned and every single treasure was taken out. "Alright, we better get going." Since they''ve collected everything, Grey saw no point in them staying there. Elaris and the others had the same thought as well. As they headed toward the door, Grey felt a cold chill down his spine and hurriedly retreated, dragging Sylvia''s brother with him. Boom! A small explosion happened on the spot he was previously standing. Elaris and the other two were a tad slower, but they managed to escape from the impact of the explosion. They couldn''t help but take a look at Grey once again. His reaction speed and sensitivity to danger was way higher than theirs, Elaris included which was a little shocking. Grey squinted his eyes and looked at the cause of the explosion, his eyes widened when he was greeted by pearly white bones. It was the bones from a palm. Chapter 1339 Thats Just The First Part "Kid, you have something of mine, return it." An eerie voice came from the dust, and the full skeleton came to view. Its greenish flamy eyes struck fear into the eyes of everyone who stared at them for too long. Grey was able to recognize the skeleton in an instant and his expression fell. He never thought the skeleton would come after him. In his defense, the flowers were there for the taking. "This is troublesome." He caressed his head softly. "I''ve been hunting you for a while, where are my flowers?" The skeleton asked coldly. "I have no idea what you''re talking about. But I have some flowers with me, I don''t know if they''re yours." Grey replied with an innocent expression. The eyes of the skeleton flared up when it heard Grey''s words. "Kid, don''t try to act smart with me. I''ve seen it all." The Skeleton was not having Grey''s smart play. Grey saw their situation and given the space in the room he couldn''t help but feel slightly annoyed. If he were alone, he wouldn''t be afraid to fight with the skeleton, but with others here, he didn''t want them to get hurt. Not just that, but the others wouldn''t want to help him when they wouldn''t be getting anything out of it. ''Void¡­ wanna help out? I''ll give you one flower.'' Grey asked Void for help. Void didn''t reply to him. ''Fine, two flowers.'' He increased the offer. Void finally spoke up, ''It''s too strong. Give up on them.'' Grey was taken aback by Void''s words. From his usual experience with Void, he didn''t take Void for someone who was scared of a battle, but from the looks of it, Void was afraid of getting into a battle with this skeleton even with Grey assisting him. ''Tough.'' Grey thought to himself before bringing out all eight flowers. When the others saw the flowers with Grey, they were beyond shocked. Of all of them, Grey was the first to leave the room, yet he managed to take all eight flowers. One thing worth noting was that the flowers had all lost a bit of essence compared to how they were the first time they saw them. "What did you do to them?!" The Skeleton was irate. "Nothing I swear. When I took them I accidentally absorbed a bit of them, I didn''t even expect it to happen." Grey explained. Even though the flowers were in his spatial storage, he was still able to absorb some of their essences. When he tried to, he realized how easy it was for him to, and before he knew it, he had absorbed quite a bit of essence from all eight flowers. The Skeleton looked at Grey, shocked. The only thought in its head was how Grey was able to absorb all eight elemental essences from the flowers. "Oh, my cat has some elements that I don''t have, so he absorbed some too." Grey threw some of the blame to Void. He knew it would be dangerous if the Skeleton knew he could use all eight elements. "Kid, you will have to compensate me." The Skeleton said. Grey heaved a sigh of relief when he saw this. Since the Skeleton was ready to speak to them in a calm manner, then they would be able to agree on something. From the looks of it, the Skeleton didn''t want to get into a fight with them which Grey felt was logical. The Skeleton might be strong, but there were more people present and its strength was only at the Peak. It might be able to take on two of them, but with all of them combined, the chances were slim. Grey thought about it and brought out an orb. When the Skeleton saw it, its eyes lit up. This was exactly what it wanted. Something that has a large amount of essence in it. The orb Grey brought out fitted perfectly in this description. Over the years, Grey had acquired quite a lot of treasures, this orb being one of them. He didn''t have any use for it, so it was okay to hand it over to the Skeleton as compensation for using the essence in its flower. After tossing it over to the Skeleton, who took it quickly, he prepared to leave with the others. "Did I say you''re free to go?" The Skeleton asked with an amused voice. Grey halted in his steps, unsure of what the Skeleton wanted even after he had given him the orb. "I''m only taking that compensation for the essence you removed from the flowers." The Skeleton laughed, it added slowly, "Now I need you all to compensate me with your lives." "I know you''re strong, but don''t think you can defeat all of us." Elaris was the one who spoke up this time. She might''ve been shocked with the fact that Grey was able to take the flowers, but it didn''t mean she wouldn''t unite with him now that the Skeleton wanted to kill them. Grey was very powerful, that was something she had already seen from the last time Grey acted. The fact that Grey gave up the flowers and even offered more showed that he knew he wasn''t a match for the Skeleton. She, too, had accessed the situation and realized even the two of them might not be able to stop this Skeleton from doing whatever it wanted. "You might want to bring out your cat." The Skeleton looked at them and said to Grey with an amused voice. Grey''s expression turned serious. He never expected the Skeleton to know Void was currently with him. Yes, he spoke about him, but since he wasn''t here, it was easy for the Skeleton to assume that he wasn''t close by. However, the Skeleton looked him in the eyes and told him to bring Void out, it meant it knew Void was close by. Brax and Victor walked closer to them when they saw the tension. Sylvia''s brother was the only one left behind them. Chapter 1340 Battling The Skeleton The Skeleton watched them as they gathered, not fazed with the increasing strength of the group. "Ready?" It asked with a playful voice. Grey''s expression was serious when he sensed the strength of the Skeleton. Now he understood why Void was avoiding a battle with it. Its strength was obviously above the Elemental Venerable Plane. Although its cultivation stage was at the very Peak of the Elemental Venerable Plane, the aura it was giving off was way higher than that. "It''s strong, our best bet is to retreat while fighting." Grey whispered to the others, who nodded in agreement. They could all feel the pressure the Skeleton was putting on them, and from how carefree the Skeleton was, it wasn''t even trying to show off. This meant once it was serious, its aura would be higher than what it is at the moment. Grey took the lead, his blue flames shooting towards the Skeleton. The Skeleton opened its palm and its white bones expanded, it soon covered the flames coming its way, extinguishing it with a simple wave. The wave of its hand didn''t only extinguish Grey''s flames, but sent a powerful gust at him, forcing him to retreat. The others who were behind him also moved back due to the power behind the gust. "Is that all you have? If it is, you should give up now and not waste my time." The Skeleton looked at the group who just regained their balance from its previous attack. Grey didn''t worry about what the Skeleton was saying, he made sure Void was still hidden, hoping to use him at a critical moment. The Skeleton might be aware of Void''s presence, but without Void appearing, there was nothing it could do. If the battle got to an intense state, then there was a good chance it might forget about Void. If this were to happen, then Void would be able to play a crucial role in the battle. Elaris took a step forward, and an ice spear appeared. The cold radiating from the ice was so intense that even those standing close to her couldn''t help but shiver. Grey was the only one unmoved, he opened his eyes and looked straight into the eyes of the Skeleton. His eyes glowed with a pale blue light. The Skeleton''s fiery eyes locked onto him, and when this happened, the Skeleton was slightly taken aback. This was the opportunity Elaris needed. She unleashed her attack, sending it forward with tremendous speed. The Skeleton regained its senses, but the spear was already in front of its head, on the verge of penetrating it. "Hmph!" A cold snort shattered the ice spear that was in front of the Skeleton. The snort was from the Skeleton, it was the one who used a snort to destroy the ice spear. Grey knew it wasn''t done by a spear, when he spread out his spiritual consciousness, he noticed the change around the essence close to the Skeleton. ''He can manipulate the essence of the world? Or¡­ does this have something to do with his domain?'' These were the two questions in Grey''s mind. The former was difficult to accept, but the latter was very believable. If the Skeleton released its domain silently, it would be able to destroy the ice spear within a second. Grey didn''t stay idle, with the ice spear destroyed, he attacked. With a flash, a lightning bolt struck the Skeleton, forcing it back a step. The attack was too fast, no one saw it coming, even the Skeleton. Brax and Victor each took a step forward and attacked. They were both Earth Elementalists. A large boulder dropped on the spot the Skeleton was standing. But it was destroyed in a second. After the boulder was destroyed by the Skeleton, an earth hammer came from the side, slamming into the Skeleton. The Skeleton stretched out its palms and held the hammer. The jammer was more than five times its size, but the hammer wasn''t able to make it move an inch. Brax, seeing this attacked too, using another hammer from the side, with the hopes of crushing the Skeleton in the middle. The expected result didn''t come, rather, the Skeleton used one hand to stop Victor''s hammer, spreading his other arm apart to stop Brax''s hammer. Another lightning bolt struck the Skeleton while it was in this position. Not just a lightning bolt, but multiple ice arrows bombarded the place the Skeleton was standing. Boom! A large explosion rang out, raising a dust cloud on the place the Skeleton was standing. The group looked on, they were well aware that wouldn''t be enough to cause any harm to the Skeleton. And just like they predicted, when the dust cloud subsided, they saw the Skeleton covered with a glowing transparent blue dome. Their hearts sank when they saw this. "I must applaud your effort, it was quite thrilling. But it ends here." The light dome shielding the Skeleton started to expand, moving very fast. ''Don''t let it touch you.'' Void''s voice echoed in Grey''s head. Grey didn''t need Void to remind him about this, he could sense how dangerous the light coming was. He focused and used his fusion orb, sending two at the light. The light coming paused, and a slight crack was seen on it. Grey''s eyes brightened when he saw this. He retreated and attacked it once again. He could only create two fusion orbs at a time, and while creating them simultaneously, they wouldn''t have the strength of his strongest fusion orb, but each was still very destructive. When the Skeleton saw this, its eyes glowed with a mysterious light. The previous blue fires which were in the place of its eyes turned pitch black. The aura in the room changed drastically and Grey noticed the elemental particles in the area were being controlled by the Skeleton. If this continued, he wouldn''t be able to complete the next set of fusion orb, and will most likely not be able to break through this light coming their way. Chapter 1341 Creating A New Technique Bang! An ice spear struck the same spot Grey''s previous fusion orb cracked. Not just the ice spear, but earth spears, as well as a lightning spear as well. Grey, seeing the others help out nodded and created two inscriptions. Since the Skeleton wanted to make use of its superior abilities to stop him from creating the fusion orbs, he would use his inscriptions to fight against it. The inscriptions appeared inside the light and started attacking the Skeleton. The Skeleton didn''t think too much of the attacks. If it were any Peak Elemental Venerable, they would have to defend against the attack, but not it. It was in a state where its defenses were far superior to even most top Magical Beasts. It would be almost impossible for these inscriptions to hurt it. Seeing this, an idea struck Grey. He had never thought of this before, but tough situations make one think more than usual. ''If I can create a fusion orb normally, there''s a good chance I can create it with my inscriptions. I just need to overlap three or four. What if I modify the inscriptions?'' Grey paused, while in the middle of battle, he was engrossed in the thought of creating something new that he completely forgot the reason he was thinking about it in the first place. "Grey! What are you doing?!" Everyone noticed Grey''s absent mindlessness, and Victor called out to him. Grey snapped back to reality and started attacking the crack, along with the others. To be honest, he was too excited about the thought that just came to him and he even started working on it immediately. The two inscriptions attacking the Skeleton didn''t stop what they were doing, rather, they started to merge together. The Skeleton wasn''t bothering to defend the attack, so it didn''t notice that they were merging. It was more interested in stopping Grey from creating any more fusion orbs. He sensed the deadliness of the attack and didn''t want Grey to destroy the light. As long as the light manages to hit them, then he wouldn''t need to fight any longer, they would be done. From how serious the group were attacking, he was aware they had already sensed this. The crack was getting bigger, but at the pace the light was moving, it would be able to cover the entire room before they managed to even create a small hole in it. ''Void, get ready.'' Grey didn''t know what the outcome of his experiment would be, after all, he didn''t think something like this would be possible, so he was preparing to bring Void out during the last second to help them break through this light. He had made use of his fire domain, but it still wasn''t fast enough. Before long, there was only about twenty meters left in the room for the light to cover. However, the inscriptions had already merged at this time. Not just that, but Grey added two more inscriptions to it just to be on the safer side. The second the last inscription merged into the larger one, Grey experienced something he hadn''t experienced in a long time¡­ ''Crap!'' "Stop attacking the light!" He yelled to the others and started to create multiple layers of defense. His sudden change alerted the others, and trusting that Grey wouldn''t play with his life, the others did the same. The Skeleton was the first to notice something wrong. "Huh?" It raised its head, and above it was an unstable inscription that contained unimaginable power. The Skeleton was stunned to the point it couldn''t make a move. The reason its reaction was this strong was because it didn''t sense this until the last moment. Bang! An earth shaking explosion happened, but the light dome that was supposed to protect the Skeleton from the attacks of Grey and his group became a prison as it stopped the explosion from going out, containing most of the attack before finally breaking down. Even though it was just the impact from the attack, Grey and the others were still sent crashing into the walls. Each of them created an almost ten meters deep hole in the walls. Thanks to Grey, the attack didn''t affect Sylvia''s brother much. The Skeleton on the other hand was nowhere to be seen. The light from the explosion died down after a few seconds, but it still didn''t show up. Grey and his group came out of their holes, seeing that the Skeleton wasn''t present, Grey made a run for it. He didn''t know if the explosion was enough to kill the Skeleton, but he knew this was their chance to escape. If the Skeleton comes out now, it will be angrier than it previously was. Elaris was stunned by Grey''s decisiveness, but she rushed after him, along with the others. When Grey was leaving, he took Sylvia''s brother along with him. He felt he was responsible for his safety, so he placed it above others. The previously small room had turned into a large underground cave. The door was gone, and even the pathway was almost completely destroyed. The main reason the destruction was this minimal was all due to the light the Skeleton used, if not, the impact would''ve been far more horrifying. As Grey bolted for the exit, he saw an almost endless pit. He didn''t need to guess what or who created it. This was clearly where the Skeleton sank into. If it survives this attack, it would definitely want to kill Grey at all costs. Grey''s speed when espacing had always been amazing. Without looking back, he ran for it. Elaris and the others were far behind him, and they were not able to even catch a glimpse of his back. The distance between them was shocking. All three people behind them were beyond shocked at the pace at which Grey moved. From how Grey moved, they were certain it wasn''t the first time he did something like this and ran away. As they were running, they all heard a bone-chilling roar behind them. Chapter 1342 An Aggrieved Skeleton Grey knew who the roar belonged to and didn''t want anything to do with the owner. He ran at his top speed, and before long, they were out of the place. They soon appeared on the Hill with the large stones. The second he came out, he waited for the others. When they were out, he struck one of the pillars with a powerful punch, and a crack appeared. "Damn it!" The pillar was too strong. He continued hammering down on the pillar. There was no way they could outrun the Skeleton as long as they were in this place, he was well aware of this. The best they could do was to trap it inside this place. The cracks on the pillar continued to expand, but he could also sense a baleful aura coming from the portal. It was like an open door, and he could hear the hateful screams coming from inside. The Skeleton was incensed! Just when the Skeleton was about to get to the door, the pillar finally crumbled, and the door started to shake profusely. Seeing this, Grey knew even if the Skeleton could come out, it would take a long time for it to stabilize the portal. The reason the portal wasn''t wholly damaged was due to the presence of the other four pillars. But passing through it as it is was a dangerous endeavor that would cost the Skeleton a lot. Grey turned to the others, and they continued their escape. He knew this would only delay the Skeleton and not stop it. Once the Skeleton was out, it would definitely go after them. Since they''d taken the best treasures this place had to offer, there was no need to stay there any longer. Also, when passing through the pit the Skeleton fell in, Grey, being a Space Elementalist, managed to get into the spatial storage of the Skeleton and not only steal the flowers but the orb as well. Although he was in a hurry, he still had time to take those things. He had already marked them, so locating their coordinates was easy. He still took some random items. There was no time to look around, and Void didn''t want to take on such a risky mission. "Kid! I''ll kill you even if it''s the last thing I do!" The roars of Skeleton could be heard, but it wasn''t advancing, which indicated that the portal had stopped it. Elaris and the others couldn''t help but internally applaud Grey''s quick-wittedness. In such a situation, they weren''t sure they could even think about what he did, and even take the risk of doing it. Only someone as powerful and as quick-witted as Grey would not only think of such a thing but also execute it. ¡­. A few minutes later, they reached the tomb where they first encountered the Skeleton. This time, Grey went straight to the tomb and opened it. His eyes lit up when he saw the items inside. There were a good number of treasures present inside, and they were ownerless at the moment. Being the generous person he was, he couldn''t let them sit idly without any owner, so he picked them up. When the others saw him robbing the Skeleton''s grave, they didn''t know if they should feel bad for the Skeleton or commend Grey''s bravery. The Skeleton was already swearing on its life to end Grey, yet Grey was still here, attempting to rob its grave. If they found out that Grey went as far as taking the flowers and the orb he gave the Skeleton, they would be beyond amazed. Grey naturally didn''t have time to sit and talk, so he left the place as soon as he was done. The other four followed behind him. In no time, they were on the long path that led to the tomb. They were all top Elementalists, and their memory was far more potent than a regular human''s. It didn''t take long for them to navigate through the paths they previously used. Before long, they were on the spot they split up with the Giants. ¡­. "Should we wait for them?" Brax asked. "Nope. We''re leaving." Grey had no plans of staying there. The Skeleton might have already escaped from the portal. Once it sees the current state of its grave, it might want to fight to the death with Grey. Grey would feel a lot safer when he''s no longer in this place. In fact, if given the chance, he would leave the secret realm as a whole. His target had been met, and with the things he had, he could give some to his friends to grow. This will be enough to encourage them to leave this place. Elaris agreed with Grey. From how the Skeleton acted when Grey stole its flowers, it would definitely come after them as long as they were still inside the pyramid. Their best bet now was to leave this place. With Elaris agreeing with Grey, the others had no reason not to leave. They all left the place and headed straight for the pyramid''s exit. What happens with the Giants is no concern of theirs. Their truce ended when they stepped into the pyramid. ¡­. Inside the Pyramid. The Tomb of the Skeleton. When the Skeleton managed to pass the portal, its previous white bones had a hint of black on them. "That little brat. I''ll kill him. You wait for me to recover fully." "You dare defy a God." The Skeleton was rambling when it opened the grave, the flames in its eyes nearly extinguished. "Gone¡­ they''re gone." It knew only one person dared to empty its grave, and it was the person who left it in this state. "I should''ve let him go." A hint of regret was in its voice when it said this. "At least I got the flowers and¡­" The Skeleton wanted to bring out the flowers from its spatial storage, but it was shocked when it noticed not only it missing but other valuable treasures as well. "Ah!!!" The aggrieved scream of the Skeleton resonated across the entire Pyramid. Chapter 1343 Making Trades Outside the realm. Grey and the others appeared on the mountaintop. They had been inside not more than a few hours, but it had been quite eventful. Grey looked around and nodded softly to the others. "I''ll be leaving now." With that, he didn''t even wait for their reply before disappearing. Elaris stamped her feet lightly on the ground when she saw this. She wanted to ask him if he was willing to help her out with the mark now after they''d gone through this experience together. But from how Grey ran, it was like he was avoiding them like a plague. "We should leave as well. Since he''s not here, the Giants might want to know what we acquired there." She said. Brax and Victor nodded. Sylvia''s brother looked at the place Grey was previously standing on before shaking his head lightly. He left with the group. Grey clearly had no plans to hang with them, and there was no need to force him to stay. ¡­. At the Giant''s castle. Klaus, Reynolds, and Alice were camping outside the place. Just like Elaris, they found out about the Giants inviting Grey over. Knowing Grey so well, they knew he would check out the place. So they came to see if anything happened to him. After arriving here, they discovered Grey and the Giants'' leader were gone. They weren''t in on where they went, so they decided to wait for Grey since they couldn''t communicate with him. "He should be fine. I heard some humans came here, they might have come to help him out." Alice suggested. She needed to grow, and although she was worried about Grey''s well-being, she knew that Grey was the safest person in this place. With all the trump cards he had, there was no way he could be killed. At most, he would be injured, but he would be able to escape from whatever situation he was placed in. As long as there were no Sovereigns present here, Grey was literally unkillable unless he wanted to die. "Let''s wait till the end of tomorrow, if he doesn''t come, we''ll continue with our treasure hunting." Klaus said while looking at the castle with shining eyes. There was something inside he could sense. He wanted it! ''If only Void were here, he would''ve been able to take it for me.'' He thought internally. This was the reason he hadn''t left this place. His gut feeling was telling him whatever he sensed was very beneficial to him, and he didn''t want to leave until he got it. If not for the fact that he wasn''t as fast as Grey, he would''ve charged in and taken it alone. ¡­. On another side of the secret realm. Grey was standing in front of a giant Tortoise, a small dark red bead in his hand. "This is my blood essence. I''ve sealed its aura so as not to attract others. I believe you''ve prepared yours." Grey said while holding onto the bead. The large eyes of the Tortoise looked at the small dark red bead on Grey''s hand, its eyes glowing in delight. With this, it would be able to advance and become stronger than all the other Kings in the area. With its new strength, it can enjoy a better life. The Tortoise opened its mouth, and a large head-sized black bead appeared. Compared to Grey''s own, it looked more potent. But the Tortoise didn''t care; it was a purebred Magical Beast, and Grey became this way thanks to having ingested multiple Magical Beasts'' blood essence, which changed his bloodline. The Tortoise''s blood essence was more potent, but Grey''s blood essence had a far greater potential. Even the Tortoise was aware of this, hence its lack of complaint even though the blood essence Grey gave it wasn''t much. Grey took the blood essence of the Tortoise. After studying it and confirming it was authentic from Void, he nodded and left. The Tortoise had zero issues with Grey leaving as soon as they finished the trade. All they needed to do was to trade blood essence, and that had been done. Grey returned to the mountain range. Void told him of a Magical Beast with a good bloodline they could benefit from. Well, primarily, Void could benefit from it, but it was a Lightning Magical Beast and might be helpful to Grey. If Grey could absorb some of its blood essence and integrate it with his own, he might be able to awaken a new innate ability. Void needed it to improve his bloodline, while Grey needed it to gain a new innate skill. They soon located the Beast, and it was a cat type Magical Beast. When the cat saw Grey and Void, it wanted to lash out at them, but Grey''s dragon scales appeared and his superior bloodline started to show its use. Void also used his superior bloodline as well. With the duo using their bloodlines to suppress the Beast, it wasn''t able to move. "We need some blood essence, in return, we''ll give you something you want." The Beast wanted to refuse, after all, it wasn''t only about bloodline, if the duo weren''t strong enough, it might be able to kill them and consume them. Void unleashed his Peak Rank Seven aura, and so did Grey. To a certain extent, he was almost more Magical Beast than human given the current state he was in. Of course, he was still human, but he only had a few abilities of Magical Beasts. The Beast cowered when it sensed this. There was no way it could compete with the duo standing in front of it. With no other option, it gave them two blood essence. This took a lot of energy from it, but it was better than dying under their hands. Grey laughed and a white light covered the Beast, he used his light element to heal it. Before giving it a small bit of blood essence. It was one-fourth of what he gave to the Tortoise. Chapter 1344 Klaus Special Ability After making a trade with the cat-type Beast, well, more like oppressing the Beast, he left. He wanted to leave the place as soon as he could. He brought out his tracking device to see where his friends were located so he could track them down. ''Huh? Why are they together?'' When they split up, he didn''t expect to find all three together when he left the secret realm. ''Did they find out about the Giants wanting to meet you with me?'' This was the only question that came to his head. He knew there was no way the trio could get together unless they heard about the Giants wanting him or one of them was in a difficult position. He didn''t overthink about it and headed to where they were residing. With his speed, it was easy for him to get to where they were. On the way, he realized it was the Giants'' hideout, and it confirmed his first assumption; they must''ve heard of him being invited over, and they came to see if it was a trap or not. ¡­. It didn''t take more than an hour for Grey to get to where his friends were hiding. "What are you guys doing here?" His voice startled his friends who were seated. "Damn it Grey! Stop moving like a thief!" Klaus cussed out while holding onto his chest. He nearly had a heart attack thinking one of the Giants had sneaked behind them. If not for recognizing Grey''s voice, he would''ve attacked without thinking twice. "I''m not the one who has poor senses." Grey rebuked. "What the hell?! Rey, bring out your Elemental Warrior, let''s teach him a lesson." Klaus was ready to go to war. Alice, seeing that Grey would most likely not give in to Klaus, stepped in. "You really shouldn''t be doing this. We''ll be forced to attack you one day." She said while standing in front of Klaus. She might not always support Klaus, but she was with him in this. She just didn''t want them to get into a fight here. Grey didn''t speak about it anymore and went back to his initial question, "What are you guys doing here?" He paused and laughed, "Don''t tell me you were worried about me?" He knew the answer, but he wanted to hear it from Klaus'' mouth. "To hell with you! I wanted to invade this place and called them over." Klaus was never going to accept that he was here because of Grey. Grey turned his gaze to Alice and Reynolds, and unlike Klaus who could lie to Grey without an eye, they couldn''t. So they avoided his gaze. Grey was already aware of the reasons they were here, but he still decided to play along with Klaus. "Oh, what might that be?" He asked. "I don''t know, but I sensed it when walking past so I called them over. I heard the leader of the Giants wasn''t around, along with a good number of Peak Elemental Venerables. So I''m seeing if I can take it before they return." Klaus explained. Alice and Reynolds were shocked at Klaus'' statement. They didn''t think he would cook up such a lie within a few seconds. Klaus'' serious expression surprised them. "Where''s Void?" Klaus asked when he didn''t see him on Grey''s shoulder. "He''s busy. Why? Aren''t I enough to help you steal what you want?" Grey was convinced Klaus was playing around. "Hmm, since you can sneak up on us, then you shouldn''t have any problems with doing this." Klaus replied after thinking for a while, he added, "What I want is in the eastern part of the castle, I''ve not been there so I don''t know what it is, but since you have the water element, you should be able to sense it when you get close to it." "Uh?" Grey was confused, but seeing Klaus'' face, he knew he wasn''t lying. What he couldn''t understand was why the others didn''t know about it. The facial expressions of Reynolds and Alice indicated this was the first time they were hearing about this treasure Klaus was speaking about. "Wait, you''re serious?" He asked when he saw the seriousness in Klaus'' face. "Why would I lie?" Klaus asked with a straight face. Grey squinted his eyes and said, "Are you sure about the area you sensed the item?" Klaus nodded. "I''ll go check it out. If you''re right, I''ll bring it for you." Grey said and vanished. "The space element sure is very convenient." Klaus muttered after Grey disappeared. If he were the one who had the space element, well, he would''ve taken a lot of items he wanted by now. There have been treasures he sensed but he didn''t dare to take them due to the danger that came with them. The ones he takes are those ones he knew he wouldn''t lose his life over. ¡­. In the Giants'' hideout. Grey appeared in a secluded place where he was alone. He was still surprised by the fact that Klaus was actually right. ''Maybe he sensed it when he came here searching for me.'' Void appeared and after sensing the area, he didn''t find anything nice and disappeared once again. Grey saw this and concluded maybe it had something to do with only Water Elementalists. The only thing was that he didn''t sense it the last time he came here. Well, he didn''t really explore the place. Maybe if he had walked to a few places, he would''ve been able to explore the place and sense it. ''How come he''s able to sense it from so far out?'' Klaus was a strange individual. The fact that he could sense something from so far out and Grey, who was inside the hideout still hadn''t gotten a wind of it tells you a lot about the type of person he was. Now Grey was starting to understand why he was able to get so many good things whenever he was out. With such sensory ability towards water elemental treasures, it was a walk in the park for him when it comes to locating them. Chapter 1345 Depressed Giant Leader Grey explored the place, going to the side Klaus told him to check. When he got there, he sensed something. ''No wonder it''s hard to locate for us. Even when I''m here, I can still barely sense it.'' He thought while looking at a particular building. The building looked ordinary, but he knew otherwise. He headed into the place, and just when he appeared, he overheard the Giants who were guards there speaking about his expedition with their leader. ''Guess they''re not back yet. I better take this and leave.'' He could sense the treasure better now and knew it truly is beneficial for Water Elementalists. To be precise, it was great for increasing the ice abilities of a Water Elementalist. He could sense the chill that was coming out of one of the boxes that was on the other side. The only thing stopping him was not the two guards here, but the fact that there was an array here that would alert everyone once the box was moved. Since Klaus and the others were close by, it would be a little difficult to escape with ease. He disappeared and went back to his friends. ¡­. "You''re back." "You''re sharper than before." It was clear that Grey wasn''t going to let go of any opportunity to poke fun at the others. "Did you find it?" Klaus eagerly asked. "Yes, but I can''t take it now. You guys will have to move to another area. It''ll make escaping easier." Grey explained. "Let''s go." Klaus stood up and started heading in another direction. Alice and Reynolds chuckled softly but followed behind him. Grey was once again left alone. He was a little stunned by the fact that Klaus didn''t even argue and left the second he told them to leave this area. He sighed and waited for a few minutes so his friends would''ve gone a considerable distance before heading back. He already knew where the box was located. When he appeared once again, he bypassed the first set of arrays and was able to easily pick up the box, even though the guards were standing there. Only after picking up the box did the array give him away. He vanished the second the array lit up. The guards didn''t even catch a sight of him, all they saw was the empty spot of the box. "The box has been stolen." The guards couldn''t believe their eyes. They saw the box a few seconds ago, yet it was gone in the blink of an eye. What was worse was that they didn''t even see who did it. "Quick, raise the alarm. As long as the person is still close to this place, we should be able to locate them." One of them ran out of the room, yelling. The Giants outside were already aware of what was happening. Seeing one of the guards rushing out in a panic, they knew whoever stole from the treasury was gone. The reason they didn''t suspect any of the guards was the fact that they saw the light flash past them. Since the box was still in the area close to the treasury where the array was located, they would be able to see it glow. However, the glow was only temporary, it disappeared in barely a second. Whoever took it was even faster than those at the Peak of the Elemental Venerable Plane. Unknown to the Giants, the thief was someone they recently invited to their hideout. ¡­. Inside the Pyramid. The leader of the Giants noticed his ring glow with a light. He knew what it meant, but he couldn''t react, the reason for this was because they were currently battling a vengeful Skeleton. If not for the fact that they were physically strong, they would''ve been killed by now. "Damn it! At a time like this?!" The leader of the Giants was pissed! The Skeleton they were fighting was the same one Grey provoked before running away. It was minding its business when some intruders came. At first, it didn''t want to react, but then some of them spoke of a human who fit perfectly into Grey''s description, and it lost it. It didn''t even speak and just attacked, hoping to unleash some of its piled up anger. It gave them a good beating before sending them out of the Pyramid. It didn''t kill them, well, not that it didn''t want to, but it realized it was impossible to do so. Hence it let them go, but after a good beating. When the leader of the Giants saw himself outside the Pyramid, it was incensed. Unfortunately, there was nothing he could do. "Fuck!" "Who stole from us! I''ll kill that person!" Since he wasn''t as strong as the Skeleton, he wanted to direct his anger at the person that stole from them. Being the leader of the Giants, he had a connection to the array with his ring and could sense further than the array. Just as he was about to make a move, he saw the light dimming. "What the hell?!" He was beyond shocked. The reason the light was dimming was clear, whatever treasure was stolen was being destroyed or used. "Fuck it!" ¡­. In the secret realm. Klaus got to work the second Grey handed the box to him. He didn''t see any reason to delay. Alice and Reynolds could only watch with envious gazes. "I got you guys something from my expedition." Grey handed the duo a fire and lightning flower each. The essence they sensed from it stunned them. They''ve gotten a few things, but none of them were on the level of the flower Grey handed to them. And just like Klaus, the duo started absorbing it. Grey was tempted to absorb the blood essence he got from the two Magical Beasts, but he was afraid of causing a ruckus. He wanted to wait until the trio were done and then he would get to work. With them looking out for him, he didn''t have anything to worry about. Chapter 1346 Sparring With Klaus In no time, Klaus'' cultivation started to increase. From the Eighth stage, Klaus soon rose to the Ninth stage, and he didn''t have any plans of stopping there. The box contained an ice lotus flower which helped Klaus in his advancing. Grey didn''t think Klaus would be able to advance so quickly. Klaus wasn''t the only one advancing, Alice and Reynolds were showing signs of advancing as well. Alice broke through to the Fifth stage, while Reynolds was on the verge of breaking through to the Sixth stage. Alice was the one with the lowest cultivation base among all of them, but with the help of the flower, she was advancing, even faster than Klaus and Reynolds were in their current training. Grey had nothing to do, so he sat down and decided to go through the array marks he saw in the secret realm. He felt they were some sort of language or means to communicate with elemental particles. He continued trying, but he still couldn''t pry into the mystery they contained. Two hours went by in the blink of an eye. Grey was still in the process of trying to unravel the mystery behind the symbols, while the others were still cultivating. Klaus was the first to open his eyes. "Hahaha, come Grey, let''s spar." He laughed in delight and attacked Grey with a powerful ice arrow. The speed of the arrow was on par with Klaus'' strongest ever ice needle he has made. This showed the enormous increase in his strength. His casual attack was now on par with his strongest attack when he was in the Eighth stage. Grey noticed Klaus'' movement, although he was taken by surprise when Klaus suddenly attacked, he was still very composed. After all, he was quite fast. Red lightning danced around his body and the arrow passed through his figure. But on further inspection, one would realize the attack hit an afterimage image and not Grey. Grey appeared behind Klaus and just when he wanted to grab a hold of him, an ice spike came from Klaus'' body and hit Grey, forcing him back. When Grey was hit by the attack, his body started to freeze. Grey was taken aback when he noticed this. Klaus'' attack didn''t usually possess such traits, these were new. "How do you like my new attacks? Touch it and you''ll be frozen. Luckily, you''re powerful." Klaus laughed. The ice lotus he absorbed gave him this new terrifying ability, and he loved it. This will make his ice attacks more potent. If he were to use his ice needles now, they would be even more dangerous. Very few people would be able to defend against them now. Grey shook off the attack before sending out a palm made of flames. He didn''t want to give Klaus the chance to mock him. If Klaus were to get the upper hand in this bout, then he was done for. Given Klaus'' usual antics, he would bully him till the end of the world. Klaus blocked the attack with ease, before sending out an attack of his own. Grey blocked it and snorted. His eyes turned pale blue and his fire domain surfaced. Even if Klaus had improved in strength, he didn''t believe Klaus would be able to oppress him when it came to using their domains. Klaus didn''t hold back and also made use of his domain. His ice domain spread out, freezing everything around them. "Are you dumb? Do you want to involve them in this too? Stop playing around." Grey made a move when he saw Klaus'' domain getting close to Alice and Reynolds. They were only sparring, he didn''t want to disrupt the cultivation of Reynolds and Alice. "Oh, I forgot about them." Klaus chuckled awkwardly. To be honest, he was too engrossed in the battle and forgot about the others. All he wanted to do was to see the complete extent of his new ability. And from the looks of it, they were more than impressive. It even exceeded his expectations. Grey had no issues with him, since he had come back to his senses, then he was fine with continuing the spar. "Void, watch them." With that, he disappeared with Klaus. If the duo were to continue their spar here, they would inevitably disturb the other two. After saying this, Grey vanished, taking Klaus with him. Void appeared, grunted softly but still sat down on a tree to watch them. As long as he doesn''t have to fight with anyone, then he was okay with watching over Alice and Reynolds. ¡­. Grey and Klaus appeared a few kilometers away from their friends. "Alright, go all out, I want to see what you''re made of now." Grey said to Klaus. "Don''t beg me when I''m beating you up." "If you can beat me, I''ll admit defeat. You know I''m not that petty." "Watch out for my deadly fangs." Klaus'' scream surprised Grey, but he still comported himself and his skin turned silver. Dragon scales appeared on his body and he let out a soft breath. The cold breath made the grass below him freeze solid. Klaus cackled and charged at Grey, covering his entire body with ice. He was going to defeat Grey for the first time in years now, and he wanted to savor the moment. Grey, seeing Klaus in this state didn''t panic. With a simple movement, an earth wall rose in front of him, blocking Klaus'' movement. Klaus flew up in a bid to dodge the earth wall, but he was met with an attack that forced him back down. Grey used the earth element to hide the fire elemental attack he wanted to use. "Fuck! That''s cheating!" Klaus yelled. "How''s it cheating?" Grey smiled, he then added, "It''s not my fault I have multiple elements now, is it?" Klaus didn''t know what to say, in anger he released his ice domain, hoping to stop Grey from making any further movements. "These are the scales of an ice Dragon, do you think you''re better than they are?" Grey asked with a playful smile. He walked casually through the ice domain. When Klaus saw this, he used multiple ice spikes, attacking with them. Grey didn''t bother about them. A thin sphere appeared around him and blocked the ice spikes that came his way. When Klaus saw this, he almost gouged his eyes out. "What the hell man?!" Klaus wanted to give up. Fighting with Grey was a headache. Especially when he was using all his elements. "Time out! Time out!" Klaus called for a pause. Grey didn''t do anything and waited for him, "What?" "You''re not allowed to use all your elements." "Oh, how many should I use then?" "Three max." "Just that?" "Also, your space element is ruled out." "So any three with the exception of the space element." "Yes." Grey laughed when he heard this, "But wouldn''t that mean if you win, you didn''t win me at my peak?" "It doesn''t matter, you''re too overpowered with all your elements." "I see." Grey touched his chin, "What about this, I can use my space element and any other two. This way you''ll be more proficient when fighting against Space Elementalists." "Hmm, understandable." Klaus nodded, agreeing to Grey using his space element. Grey laughed when he saw this and his figure faded. Klaus, already expecting Grey to attack, reacted quickly, blocking Grey''s attack. Grey''s fist hit the ice wall that surrounded Grey, but the fist didn''t stop, it broke through the defense of the wall, heading straight for Klaus'' head. "Shit!" Klaus shouted and retreated at full speed. Only now did he recall that Grey''s physical strength was far above that of any other Elementalist. In fact, with his silver scales added to it, he was more frightening. Grey laughed and continued his assault, there was no way he was going to let Klaus get away. His attacks were fierce, but Klaus'' defense was strong as well. Klaus blocked the attacks, making sure Grey wasn''t given the chance to get close to him. Grey was just too freakish! This was the only thought in Klaus'' head. He held on, and after blocking one of Grey''s attacks, he used an ice hammer to strike the ground, forcing Grey to retreat from the broken ice shards that came out of the hammer. Klaus didn''t aim the hammer at Grey, rather, he smashed it into the ground to disrupt Grey''s continuous attacks. Grey commended his efforts, but didn''t stop his assault. With the elements he had in his arsenal, he was a full-time attack minded Elementalist. The only time he doesn''t attack as often is when he is surrounded, and even in that situation, he still occasionally lets out outbursts. Klaus continued his defense, he was well disciplined, not giving Grey any space. Grey''s expression started to become serious as the battle continued. He realized with Klaus'' new strength, it wouldn''t be that easy to defeat him. Chapter 1347 Attack Vs Defense The spar between the duo started to get more intense. With Klaus'' strong defenses, Grey was forced to use more destructive attacks, yet Klaus was still able to block them. No matter what type of attack Grey used, Klaus had an answer for it. "You see, it''s not as easy as you thought it would be, right?" Klaus asked with a proud smile after blocking yet another destructive attack. Grey used three destructive elements, his space element, his fire element, and lastly, his darkness element. Of all his elements, the darkness element has been the only one he had somewhat neglected a lot. Even his light element was used more than his darkness element. The reason he picked his darkness element was so he could break through Klaus'' defense with it. "You having a higher cultivation stage made it easy for you to defend against my attacks." Grey replied with a smile, he couldn''t take away the fact that Klaus was able to defend against his attacks. Given his attack power, others at the Peak would find it difficult to block against his strikes, well, except for those top-notch defense masters like Klaus. However, Klaus was different from them, he also possessed frightening attack power. While fighting, Grey had been careful so as not to be hit by any of his attacks. Even with his ice Dragon scales, he was starting to notice that the few times he had been hit by or touched any of Klaus'' attacks, he was starting to slow down. If his hypothesis was correct, then cold was slowly accumulating in his body as he made more contact with Klaus'' attacks. The thought of someone having an ability like this was shocking. With this ability, Klaus could fight with others and just focus on his defense and be able to beat people that were stronger than he is. All he had to do was to make sure he occasionally hits them and in no time, their system will slow down, before freezing solid. The reason the impact of the ability was slower with Grey was due to his Dragon scales. If Klaus uses this on others, the impact would be faster, and some might not even be able to notice it on time until it was too late. Klaus was well aware of this, but seeing that Grey wasn''t showing any reactions, he felt he wasn''t using enough. Well, the problem was that getting to touch Grey with his attacks was very difficult. With the space element, Grey was almost untouchable. This was the reason he suggested Grey didn''t use the space element at first, but after listening to Grey, he felt he made sense and agreed to it. Had Grey wanted to depend on his speed alone, there was no way he would''ve been able to defeat Klaus without the help of all his elements. But with his space element, as well as the Dragon scales, he stood a higher chance of defeating Klaus. Klaus was the first to attack this time, there was no use in talking too much. The entire area has been frozen solid from Klaus'' domain, and even Grey''s fire domain didn''t seem to be a match for Klaus'' newly powered domain. Grey still couldn''t believe a single lotus changed Klaus this much. ''His luck is infinite.'' He sighed in dejection. The reason Klaus was able to receive this item was due to the fact that the Giants wanted to contact Grey but there was no way to contact him, so they sent out word and Klaus came fearing the Giants wanted to do something bad to Grey. Just the thought that Klaus got this strong and also this ability from this coincidence made them believe his luck was genuinely unbelievable. Grey blocked the ice attack coming his way with a fire screen, but the screen started to show signs of freezing up. Seeing this, Grey used his dimensional slash. At the moment, this was one of the strongest attacks he had in his arsenal. Well, since he couldn''t use all his elements, his fusion orb wouldn''t be as strong as it used to be. It was better to focus more on using each elemental attack. Klaus saw the black slash coming his way and reacted accordingly, his ice domain spread out and a thick ice wall appeared in front of him, blocking the attack. When the attack struck the ice wall, Klaus'' expression changed slightly, he noticed it easily breaking through the ice wall. This was a wall he made using the heavy water, yet it was still being destroyed by Grey''s attack. Klaus took another glance at Grey. He couldn''t help but wonder just how freakish his strongest attack was. Of the duo, one was an attack master, while the other focused more on defense. Now, they wanted to see who would be supreme, the attack master, or the master of defense. ''I''ll surely hold longer than he does.'' Klaus was riled up. This was the closest he had ever gotten to Grey, and it encouraged him. Now he realized that Grey wasn''t unreachable after all. If he worked more than he usually does, then he might just be able to not only get close to Grey, he might one day be able to walk on equal shoulders with him. Klaus is most likely the only one who had the audacity to have such thoughts. Grey was a genius even older generation geniuses feel they will never be able to reach his level. Given the fact that Grey didn''t even start cultivating from the same age as them, and adding the fact that compared to the geniuses who grew up in the Aurora Continent, he was in a more secluded place, yet he was still far above all others made him more terrifying. Grey wasn''t having the same thoughts as Klaus, although he commended Klaus'' strength, he stopped joking around. Three inscriptions lit up in the sky. He wanted to use his strongest attack now. There was no point delaying any further. Chapter 1348 Here We Go Again Klaus was able to defend the dimensional slash. After blocking it, he raised his head and saw Grey''s inscriptions. A smirk appeared on his face. He knew the capacity of Grey''s inscriptions and knew they wouldn''t be able to threaten. Grey appeared in front of him and threw a punch. But his fist was blocked by ice. The ice stopped the fist when it was a few inches away from Klaus'' face. "This new defensive side of you is amazing." Grey commented. "Thank you. But I don''t see why you''re using your inscriptions. They can''t break through my defenses." Klaus asked playfully. "They can at least distract you enough for me to get a good hit." Grey shrugged and retreated. An ice spike sprouted from the ground, almost hitting him. Klaus clicked his tongue when Grey dodged the attack. He wanted to use the ice blocking Grey''s fist to hold him down, but Grey destroyed it with ease and escaped. Grey''s senses were too sharp, this was one of the reasons it was very difficult to defeat him. Grey''s inscriptions attacked, but none of the attacks were able to get past Klaus'' automatic ice defense. This new defensive system was fully automated and Klaus didn''t have to use too much effort. It was as if his ice was conscious and it was able to block any attack coming his way. Well, as long as the attack was not too strong, then it would be dealt with easily. If not, Klaus would have to make an effort. The benefit of having this was that he would be alerted to sneak attacks faster. Of course, if the person moved with unprecedented speed, even if Klaus senses it, it might be too late. Klaus didn''t worry about the inscriptions that were attacking above him and just focused fully on Grey that was in front of him. He blocked all the attacks while making sure to have as much contact as he could with Grey. He noticed Grey wasn''t as fast as he used to be, which was clearly the effect of his ice. Once Grey''s speed had reduced to the same as his or even lower, then he was certain of victory. ''I don''t need to do much, all I just have to do is stand here and wait for him to turn into an ice sculpture.'' This was the only thought in Klaus'' head. He stopped attacking and focused fully on defending. He didn''t pay Grey''s inscriptions any mind and just focused on the bombardment he was receiving from Grey. As time went on, Grey''s attacks started to become erratic. Klaus noticed Grey was in a hurry and knew Grey was afraid of slowing down completely. This reinforced Klaus'' mind and he increased his focus, defending with everything he had. While doing this, all three inscriptions merged. The second all three inscriptions merged, his heart skipped a beat and he saw a grin on Grey''s face. Grey''s previous panicky expression was gone, now, he had a wide grin on his face. He looked at him inquiringly, and Grey pointed above him. When Klaus looked up, he saw an unstable inscription, but that was not the main issue, the issue was that he could sense the power that was about to explode from it. "Fuck me!" He couldn''t believe his eyes. There was no way anyone in the Elemental Venerable Plane could defend against an attack of that nature. "Do you want to kill me?!" Klaus yelled in frustration. "Of course not. Are you forgetting how great your defense is? You can block this." Grey said with a playful voice. Klaus felt his soul leaving him as time went on. "Damn it! I quit. You win!" He yelled in defeat. Yes, he wanted to defeat Grey, but right now, all he could do was give up. Grey saw this and nodded, "Oh, I can''t stop it." The inscription was already on the verge of exploding. When Klaus heard Grey''s words, he fell on his knees, wanting to cry out his eyes. How could Grey use something he couldn''t stop? Was he planning on killing him? Weren''t they just playing around? Grey vanished, appeared beside Klaus just when the explosion hit off and disappeared with him. Klaus had the same dejected look on his face when they arrived at the place they were camped. Seeing that he was fine, he heaved a sigh of relief. "Remind me to never spar with you again. You''re such a vile person." He said coldly, he added, "If not for the fact that we''ve come a long way, I would''ve stopped talking to you." Grey laughed when he heard this. He could still hear Klaus'' heart beating fast. "You needed to see your face bud, it was hilarious." Grey burst out laughing. "If you find my expression when facing death funny, then you must be sick in the end." Klaus wasn''t in a good mood. Grey crushed his hopes. At the moment, he realized being on the same level as Grey was nothing more than a pipe dream and he had given up on it. Luckily, he wasn''t his enemy. If he made such a horrifying enemy, he would hide in a cave for the rest of his life. Grey was laughing while Klaus wasn''t in any mood to say anything. They could still feel the reverberation from the explosion, even though they were kilometers away from the area. Klaus couldn''t help but think about how he would''ve ended if he were to face that attack. "How the hell did you even come up with that?" He asked after some silence. "Easy, it''s like my fusion orb, but created with inscriptions. It''s actually stronger in this form." Grey explained. Klaus didn''t really know how Grey makes his fusion orb, but he knew it was by combining all the elements. After a while, Reynolds opened his eyes. He had gotten to the peak of the Seventh stage and was on the verge of breaking through to the Eighth stage. But that was not the noteworthy thing. His Elemental Warrior had gotten to the Peak of the Elemental Venerable Plane. "Hahaha, Grey, let''s spar!" When Klaus saw this, he shook his head in pity. ''Here we go again.'' Chapter 1349 Cruel World Klaus didn''t even put in any effort to stop Reynolds from getting himself beat up by Grey. Unlike when Grey sparred with Klaus, they didn''t exchange any moves here. He directly transported Reynolds to another place. A few minutes later, they returned. Reynolds was in a sorry state when they returned. Klaus was smart and told Grey not to use all his elements, Reynolds didn''t think about that and straight up started fighting with Grey. Grey didn''t give him the chance to state any stipulations for their spar, and he beat the shit out of him. "Did he use his new technique on you?" Klaus asked when he saw Rey''s face. Reynolds shook his head, but then he realized the meaning behind Klaus'' words. Klaus sparred with Grey, and Grey used a new technique on him to defeat him. He wasn''t as lucky as Klaus and was beaten blue and black. In fact, he tried running away, but Grey didn''t give him the opportunity to do so. After his event, he had already concluded he would never spar with Grey again. "Do you think he takes us as his friends?" Reynolds asked with a serious expression. "Actually, I''ve been having the same feeling. He tried to kill me when we were sparring. At least you didn''t go face to face with death." Klaus replied with an honest look on his face. Grey was staring at the duo as they spoke about him right before him. They weren''t even hiding their urge for revenge. He laughed and came to the conclusion never to allow himself to be weaker than they were. If not, he''d be in deep shit. Klaus was already hoping to beat the crap out of him, given the last experience, Klaus would most likely beat him until he was close to death. His spar with his friends showed him their new strength and how it was almost impossible for them to see a match in the Elemental Venerable Plane. If Grey was taken out of the picture, then Klaus and Reynolds could be considered among the very best in the Elemental Venerable Plane. Even with Grey, they were still considered as such, but Grey didn''t make them feel that way. Klaus and Reynolds continued speaking on how Grey was an evil fiend when Alice opened her eyes. Just like Reynolds, she got to the Seventh stage, merging with the Seelie would take her to the Ninth stage of the Elemental Venerable Plane. When she saw how the others were doing, she felt a little downcast. Of all of them, she was still the weakest. At a time, she was the strongest in the group, but not only did Grey top her, but Reynolds and Klaus did the same as well. At least she was still in the same stage as Reynolds, but his Elemental Warrior made it meaningless. The thought of sparring with Grey didn''t even come to her mind. Yes, she knew she might be able to stand her ground against some Peak Venerables with her new strength, but against Grey, there was no need to embarrass herself. "You guys are done with your level ups. Now it''s my turn." Grey said with a smile. "Why didn''t you just do it when we were at it?" Klaus asked grumpily. "Because someone needed to protect you, stupid." "Nice, protecting me just to kill me." "Get over it." "No, hand over a few treasures. There''s something good on you, I want it." "Get away. I already risked offending the Giant race for you, don''t annoy me." "What are you going to do about it? Reynolds is here, don''t think we''re afraid of you." "Yeah, the two of us can take you on." Alice watched the trio as they started bickering, but from what she was hearing, it was like Grey beat the duo after they were done with their training, and now they wanted to pick a fight with him. Together, they stood a good chance against Grey now, but if he increased his strength to the Peak of the Elemental Venerable Plane, then they didn''t stand a chance. They bickered for a while before Klaus finally let Grey cultivate. Of course, he didn''t stop hurling abuses at him. Grey might be stronger than him, but he wasn''t on his level when it came to talking. Before Grey started using the blood essence, he created an intricate array to seal the area, blocking any aura from the blood essence from leaking out. After doing this, and with the help of his friends watching over him, he started to absorb the blood essence of the Tortoise. Void was not interested in the Tortoise, but he was very interested in the blood essence of the cat-type Beast. Grey opted to use the blood essence of the Tortoise first. It took a while, but the blood essence started to merge into Grey''s body, assimilating with his already beast-like bloodline. Grey''s body started to glow with a dark brown light. He had already awakened his earth domain when he learned the earth elemental technique from the Old Turtle. Now that he was using the blood essence of an Earth Elemental Tortoise, the domain came up again, and it started to show signs of transformation. Klaus, seeing this, had tears in his eyes, "Why''s the world so cruel to us?" It hadn''t even been up to an hour since his new ability, yet Grey was upgrading his. And four domains! Grey didn''t use his earth domain much, and they forgot about it. Now that they saw it coming out on its own, they didn''t know what to feel. "He really is heads and shoulders ahead of everyone else." Alice remarked. "What do you mean heads and shoulders? He''s an entire fucking body ahead of everyone. It''s just cheating at the moment." Klaus was dejected. He could not compare himself to Grey. Not to forget that Grey also had a water or ice domain, a fire domain, a lightning domain, and now his earth domain. "At least we get to witness his growth." "Yeah, I remember the days I was encouraging him to train." Klaus said. "That never happened." Klaus'' expression darkened, and he retorted, "I was close to him before he knew you guys. I don''t like talking about our early days much." Alice and Reynolds rolled their eyes. There was no way they would believe his lies. Chapter 1350 Youre Leaving Like That? The next day. Grey was done with his training, unfortunately, other than the transformation of his earth domain, there were no other substantial improvements. He used the blood essence of the cat-type Beast and his cultivation got to the Peak of the Elemental Venerable Plane. Now of the four, Klaus and Grey were at the Peak. Alice and Reynolds were in the Seventh stage and they weren''t too far from the Peak. They both possessed strength to fight against anyone at the Peak, well, mainly Reynolds thanks to his Elemental Warrior. Alice was a little weaker, but she shouldn''t have any problems with fighting others at the Peak, as long as they were not on the same level as Grey and the others. "Do you guys still want to stay, or should we leave?" Grey asked. Their original plan was to explore the Aurora Continent, and they''ve spent quite a lot of time here. He felt it was time for him to leave this place and go to the other continents he hadn''t been to before. "I''m already at the Peak, there''s nothing here for me." Klaus said. Given the restrictions here, he didn''t want to break through here. Even if he might be able to, the possibility of having to be attacked by the world wasn''t something he wanted to attempt. The duo turned to Alice and Reynolds. They were the only two who were still in lower stages. "Let''s leave. We have already made good improvements here." Alice said. When she came here, she was only in the Fourth stage, but now, she has advanced three stages thanks to Grey and her efforts. There was no point staying here any further. Especially since Grey and Klaus wouldn''t really improve here. As much as she wanted to catch up, she knew advancing recklessly would do more harm than good. Reynolds had his Elemental Warrior so he was cool with leaving at any time. Grey nodded and turned his attention to the human settlement. The portal leading out was close to the human hideout. "Hmm, looks like they''re after the person who stole from them." He muttered after sensing some unrest on the territory of the Giants. Klaus and the others sensed this as well. "I think it''s best we leave now." Klaus suggested. Grey nodded and they headed for the exit. Their original mission here had been accomplished so they could leave. The Gnomes were all in hiding and couldn''t cause any trouble to the humans that were present. ¡­. The group soon got to the human''s hideout on their way out of the realm. When they got there, Grey saw the group they encountered when they entered. He recalled telling them that they would be free for a week or so to do whatever they wanted since he was going to deal with the Gnomes. They thanked Grey when they saw him. If not for his words, they would''ve missed this golden opportunity. Not just them, but multiple Elementalists benefited greatly from Grey''s actions of keeping the Gnomes at bay. Grey made sure to tell them of his departure. If they continued the same way, they risked getting killed by the Gnomes. The Gnomes knew he couldn''t stay here forever, so they would come back again. By the time they eventually come back and Grey isn''t around, they will take out their anger on the humans that were present. Word of Grey leaving started to spread among the other humans. They ensured to keep it within themselves so as to benefit more from Grey''s previous actions. The Gnomes wouldn''t dare to come out now as they were all afraid of Grey. Only after a long period of time passes and they don''t hear or see Grey would they realize he isn''t in the secret realm anymore. Elaris and the others soon got word of Grey''s departure and she rushed towards the exit. She needed Grey''s help, and wanted to ensure that he helped her. ¡­. At the portal. Grey and his friends were just about to leave when Elaris and Sylvia''s brother arrived. "You''re leaving like that?" Elaris'' voice stopped them from leaving. Grey was taken aback and turned to look at the person who spoke. Seeing Elaris, he didn''t know what to see. Klaus and Reynolds on the other hand had their hands on their mouths. "Bud, what did you do?" Reynolds asked. "I must say, she''s quite beautiful. You saw her here?" Klaus asked with a teasing smile. Grey didn''t bother with them, "What do you want?" "You promised to help me with that, but you''re leaving like that." Elaris replied. "I didn''t promise to help you with anything. You''re the one who''s forcing me to help you with it." "What''s the difference?" "I can''t help you out, there are no Gnomes present, and I have a lot on my hands right now." "Bud, what does she need help with? I can help out." Klaus moved close to Grey. "You can''t help. And don''t you have someone already?" Grey pushed Klaus away. "Yeah, but Rey is single." Klaus pointed at Reynolds. Grey facepalmed and said, "It''s not something you can help out with. Don''t bother me." "Are you helping me or not?" Elaris asked. When she saw that Grey''s friends were in support of her, she wanted to see if they would help her convince Grey. "I''m not, you can leave now." Grey turned around, ready to leave. "Why are you so stubborn?" Elaris couldn''t believe Grey rejected. She added, "I can offer you some treasures." "I have more than enough. I''m not interested in working for hire." Grey''s reply frustrated Elaris even more. Klaus and Reynolds felt like beating Grey. A pretty girl was asking for his help and he was rejecting her in such a manner, he wasn''t even giving her any face. "This is why you can never have a girlfriend." Klaus muttered. Grey took a glance at Klaus and said, "I didn''t say I was looking for one. I have more important things to worry about." Chapter 1351 Forced To Help Alice saw the desperation in Elaris'' face and moved closer to her. "What does he have to help you with?" She asked with a friendly tone. Seeing Alice asking, Elaris lowered her tone and spoke softly, ensuring only Alice could hear her. "A necromancer marked me. My Teacher helped seal it, but it''s still noticeable by powerful necromancers and even easier for Gnomes." Elaris explained. Grey could remove the mark, something someone as powerful as her Teacher couldn''t. She doesn''t travel often due to the mark on her. If Grey could help her remove the mark, she would be indebted to him. She was from the top Faction in the Continent, and there are certain things she could offer Grey that he wouldn''t be able to get anywhere else. However, Grey doesn''t seem thrilled at the thought of those treasures. After listening to her, Alice understood why she asked Grey for help. She knew Grey had been marked by necromancers, but for some reason, he was not only able to remove the mark, but he could even sense if necromancers were close by. She didn''t overthink it before, but now she understood that what Grey managed to do was something that was deemed impossible. She glanced at Grey, astounded by the feats he was seemingly capable of achieving. ''How does he keep doing all this?'' At the moment, if she were told a God was helping Grey out, she would believe it was true. Even without anyone saying that, she felt that was what was happening. Grey is just too unique when compared to others. First off, he didn''t awaken an element, and now, he has all eight elements. He already has four domains, and the probability of him having all eight before he gets to the Peak of the Sovereign Plane is very high. She returned from her train of thoughts and looked at Elaris, "I''ll talk to him." A gleam of hope flashed through Elaris'' eyes when she heard this. From the confidence behind Alice''s tone, she felt there was a good possibility she might be able to convince Grey to help her. Grey, who was prepared to leave, didn''t have a good feeling when Alice went over to meet Elaris. Seeing that she was coming back, his face fell. "Grey, help her out. You know how hellish it was for you when they were hunting you down." "I found a solution myself, while endangering my life. I have zero obligations to help her." "You''re a good person." "To those I''m close to, she''s not someone I would take the stress of helping out." Klaus and Reynolds joined in convincing Grey. Klaus wasn''t too interested in Elaris. Yes, she was beautiful, but he already had someone in his heart. Honestly, he wanted to make sure Grey got into her good book. Maybe she might start developing feelings for him if he helped her out. "You guys are impossible! Do you know how long it will take to remove the mark? Not just the time, but the burden it will cause on me?" "We don''t. That''s why we''re begging you to do it." Klaus replied with a cheeky smile. "If she had come while we were killing Gnomes, it would''ve been easy. But now, most of the Gnomes are gone, and locating the few that are left will not be easy." Grey gave up and tried to reason with his friends. "You can track them, remember?" Reynolds commented. Grey felt a vein pop in his head. If not for the fact that he didn''t want others to think he was a savage person, he would''ve attacked Reynolds after his statement. Reynolds saw Grey''s expression and sneakily moved closer to Elaris. Elaris noticed this and chuckled softly. From the looks of it, Grey''s friends wanted him to help her out. And given how Grey was acting, it was clear that he couldn''t go against all three of them. ''I''ll see how you''re able to reject me now.'' She was pleased internally. If she knew, she would''ve come to meet him when she started hearing of him dealing with the Gnomes. With Grey''s friends present, they would''ve been able to convince him to help her. Grey grabbed his head and looked at Elaris, seeing her pleased expression, he felt even more annoyed. But Alice, Klaus, and Reynolds wanted him to help her. "This will take some of the time we''re supposed to use on our journey. Are you sure you don''t want to think it through?" He asked his friends. They nodded. There was no change in their decision, and they felt Grey should help her out. Grey sighed in defeat. Since the others wanted him to help her out, then he didn''t have any choice. Of course, the only reason he agreed to do it was because it wouldn''t put him in any danger. If it were to be something dangerous, he would''ve never agreed to it, even if it meant his friends would be angered by his decision. Ultimately, it was his decision to make. Elaris was elated when she saw this and thanked Alice, Klaus, and Reynolds before thanking Grey. She knew if Grey didn''t want to do it, there wasn''t much his friends could do about it. "Let''s go. We should hurry. I don''t want to stay here for more than three days." Elaris nodded and followed behind Grey. She could sense that he was at the Peak of the Elemental Venerable Plane. During their first encounter, although she knew he was powerful, she was also aware that he was in the Ninth stage. But now, Grey was a Peak Venerable, just like she was. ''If he uses that attack now, I wonder how lethal it would be.'' The scene of Grey''s fusion inscriptions flashed through her eyes when he noticed his increased strength. At that time, the attack was already more than she could deal with. Someone like Grey will definitely improve after breaking through a stage, so his attack power would be on another level now. Chapter 1352 Forced To Help II Grey didn''t dilly-dally and straight out started hunting down any Gnome he could sense. He needed life force to erase the mark from Elaris'' body. Luckily, the mark wasn''t as powerful as his own. Now he understood why her Teacher was able to seal it from the sense of most necromancers and Gnomes. If the mark on her body were reinforced by a Gnome just like his own, then the probability of sealing it would reduce drastically. They soon found the first Gnome, a first stage Elemental Venerable. Grey brought out the bunny leader and said, "Don''t you have some Early stage Rank Seven bunnies under you?" The bunny leader nodded after looking around carefully. "Let them deal with this guy, and they should be fast. You can train them this way." Grey suggested. The bunny leader''s army is technically his own, and the stronger they were, the better it is for him. If he had an army of top Magical Beasts under him, it would be amazing. Just the thought of it was already thrilling. The bunny leader thought about it and found some truth in Grey''s words. The other thing it thought was that Grey was too lazy to deal with this Gnome. In no time, the bunnies made short work of the Gnome. Just as they were about to end the Gnome, Grey arrived and sucked out the life force of the Gnome using the darkness element. But he coated it with his arrays to make it seem like he wasn''t using the darkness element. This was also part of the reason he didn''t want to help out. Very few people knew about his darkness element, and he didn''t want more people to find out, at least not until he was strong enough to protect himself from any potential danger that might come with his secret being exposed. The life force taken from this Gnome wouldn''t be enough to wipe off the entire mark, but they wouldn''t need as much as the one Grey used for his own, so he predicted that getting a few more would be enough. He got to work immediately and used the life force he had with him on the mark. Elaris was keeping tabs on the mark; it didn''t take long for her to notice the reduction in it. With Grey wiping off part of the mark, the seal her Teacher placed on it was even more effective now, and unless those top experts among necromancers or Gnomes were close to her, they wouldn''t be able to sense the mark at all. The impression she had of Grey was beyond what she could comprehend. In her eyes, Grey was a mysterious youth who knew everything. He was talented, handsome, and didn''t give a shit about her beauty. For a bit, her heart skipped a beat. This was the first time she was feeling this way about someone, and it was strange. Of everyone present, only Klaus noticed the change in the eyes of Elaris. Even though it was only for a brief moment, he still caught it. He had been observing her actions while Grey was working on the mark, and this was all he needed to affirm that she was starting to feel something for Grey. ''It''s only in the early stages, but if I try to act as a mediator, it should work out. But alas¡­'' When he looked at his ignorant friend, he gave up on the thought of even trying to get them together. If he attempted to do that, Grey would definitely flip out. Knowing Grey, he knew he didn''t have a single atom of feeling for Elaris. ''There''s no hope for him.'' He didn''t speak about anything and followed behind Grey as they continued hunting down Gnomes. The next day. Klaus and the others realized why Grey didn''t want to help out. After only finding just two Gnomes and extracting their life force to clean the mark, they noticed Grey''s pale appearance. His eyes were hazy, which was a sign of tiredness. "How long do you think it will take?" Klaus asked. "With the rate we''re finding Gnomes, four to five days." Grey answered while caressing his head. Seeing Grey''s appearance, Elaris felt a little sense of guilt. She was the one who asked Grey for help, she didn''t expect him to be reduced to such a state after just doing the procedure two times. The toll it was taking on Grey was stronger than what they imagined. Grey, on the other hand, wasn''t bothered with his pale complexion. He was more worried about finding more Gnomes and getting this over with. "Bud, you okay?" Reynolds was forced to ask. "Sure, I''m good." Grey didn''t show any signs of weakness and was hurrying to locate the next Gnome, so the others stopped worrying about him and focused on finding the Gnomes. Once Grey was done with the procedure, he would be able to rest. Two more days went by in the blink of an eye. "One more and you''re good." Grey''s complexion was paler than the previous day, and in all honesty, everyone had begged him to stop, but he didn''t listen. According to him, the sooner he cleared the mark, the sooner he would leave this place. "You can stop now, it''s barely noticeable now." Elaris didn''t want him to continue. "Don''t worry, I can sense the location of the last Gnome needed." Grey went in the direction of the Gnome he was sensing. The others could only shake their heads and follow him. Grey located the last Gnome, and it was someone in the Eighth stage. "Alice, wanna deal with this guy?" He turned to Alice. The bunny leader had been training the bunnies all this while, it was time for Alice to test out her new strength. Alice nodded and walked toward the Gnome while the others were in a secluded location. The battle between the duo started instantly, and before long, Alice started to overpower the Gnome. The Gnome brought out his puppet, but Alice''s Seelie held it at bay. Chapter 1353 Increase The Offer "It''s gone." Elaris said in disbelief. Grey had wiped off the mark from her body, something her Teacher isn''t capable of doing. Grey did it within just a few days. After Alice defeated the Gnome, it was very easy for Grey to extract its life-force and finish the process of removing the mark from her body. Even though she had been seeing the entire process, she still found it unbelievable that Grey was able to actually remove a mark that was said to last forever until she was killed. "I can move freely now¡­" She muttered softly. She looked at Grey, a little teary eyed, "Thank you, thank you so much." This was the first time Grey was seeing her in such a manner. He didn''t think she had such mannerism. From the first time he saw her, all he thought was that she was a proud lady. He believed this even more when she arrogantly removed someone from the group he picked and placed herself in. If not for Sylvia''s brother, he would''ve kicked her out. ''So she''s just like every other girl¡­'' He thought internally. His previous pale complexion regained color all of a sudden and he said to his friends, "Let''s leave. We still have things to attend to." Grey had helped Elaris remove the mark, so it was better they left the secret realm. Alice nodded happily, she walked over to Elaris, nodded gently to her and turned to follow Grey. "Goodbye." Klaus and Reynolds waved and turned around to follow Grey and Alice. Elaris could barely see them, the only person in her view was the nonchalant facial expression of Grey. His blank expression, and his back gave two contrasting feelings. His blank expression gave one the feeling that he didn''t care about anyone else, but his back view portrayed a valiant hero who would hold the sky up for others. It was a strange feeling for her. "You said he''s from the Dawson Family?" She asked Sylvia''s brother. "Yes, his father is none other than the legendary Lucas Dawson" Sylvia''s brother replied with a nod. "I see. So he''s the one the Gnomes sent out a kill order for. Who would''ve thought." Elaris stood on the same spot for a while longer. "How long will it take before we can acquire it?" She asked after a minute of silence. "Tomorrow." "Okay, I''ll leave once we''re done." ¡­. Klaus was beside Grey as they were heading to the portal once again. "Bud, what do you think of her?" "Huh?" "What''s your view of Elaris?" "She''s okay. Strong-minded and powerful." "Nice, why don''t you consider getting together with her?" "..." "Even Alice has someone now." "What do you mean by that?" "Hey¡­ stop! Grey, tell her to stop!" "Fuck! I''m stronger than you! Why are you still bullying me?!" "Because I can. Do you dare to strike back?" Klaus wanted to say yes, but when he saw the eyes of Grey and Reynolds who were like that of wolves ready to kill, he swallowed his words. Alice laughed when she saw this. Being the only girl in the group meant she had privileges. And those privileges includes bullying the guys, even though they were stronger. The other one is that her friends were all extremely protective of her. When she was the strongest, she was the one doing the protecting, now, the others took the job. Klaus gave up, "I didn''t mean it that way, I just wanted Grey to at least live." "How old is he? Twenty-Six, twenty-seven, and he has never been with a lady. How''s that even allowed to happen with such a face?" "You do have a point¡­" Reynolds agreed with Klaus'' words. "I have the perfect thing for him." Klaus gave a wide grin. Grey gave him a tree sap that had exceptional qualities, the only down side was that it acted like a aphrodisiac. As long as Grey can not control it, he will surely do it! "Or could it be that you''re interested in men? I have a few friends I can link you up with." Grey''s expression fell, "If you keep talking, I''ll beat you up." "Aren''t you guys going to support me? Do you want Grey to die a virgin?" "Fuck! That''s enough, Klaus." "What do you mean it''s enough. Until you accept to be with someone, I''ll never let you be." Klaus didn''t give in to Grey''s fake rage. "Wait, how come your complexion is back to normal already, were you acting like you were hurt?" Klaus was the first to speak on this matter. Due to the fact that they left the place in a hurry, the others didn''t speak on how his complexion returned to normal. But now that they didn''t have to look at Elaris'' beautiful face, Klaus was back to his normal senses. "Yeah, I thought you were dying." "Did you do it to make her feel pity for you?" "That''s my man! Now she''ll think you risked your life to help her. Smart move bud. I''m impressed." Hearing their assumptions, Grey felt like beating someone up. To be honest, he did act a little bit, but he didn''t want to rest because he wanted to leave soon so they could continue their adventure across the Continent. The longer they stayed there, the shorter the time they would spend together. Thinking about it, they were still spending time together here, it''s just that there were others as well. He let the trio come to whatever conclusions they had in mind while he headed for the portal. It was time to leave this place. They''ve spent longer than they were supposed to. The group spoke as they headed for the portal. ¡­. "He needs to be stopped. Such atrocious behavior can not be condoned." "He almost killed the Princes too." "They were useless. How could such useless people be called Princes of our glorious race?" "Your brother''s son is one of the people killed." "And he was weak, just like his worthless father." "Are we going to pretend like he''s not a treat? It''s been only a year or two, yet he''s already this powerful. According to the page at which we''re moving, we''ll still need a few more years before the seal is fully broken." "How strong will he be then?" "I''ll tell His Majesty to increase the offer on his head. He shouldn''t be allowed to break through to the Sovereign Plane." Chapter 1354 Hand Over Your Treasures "How hard could killing a young kid be? Are those humans so incompetent?" "You saw how he ran through all the Venerable Gnomes in the secret realm. Even if you want to discredit the humans, it''s not going to change the fact that this boy is a genius like no other." "From what I know, he''s the son of two prodigies who got married." "No wonder they gave birth to such an anomaly." "Stop heaping praises on this kid. We want him dead." "What about bringing him over to our side? If we can groom him, we''ll have a good chance of creating a True God that will give us a better chance of crossing over to the higher Plane." "It wouldn''t change the fact that he''s a human. What if he opens the way for them too? It''s best we kill him and get it over with." "We haven''t been able to visit that realm for hundreds of years now. We need to grab any opportunity that comes our way." "We should be reasonable with this. I''ll talk to the Emperor and hear what he has to say about this. In the meantime, try to get as much information about him as possible. We need to stop this kid." ¡­. Grey had no idea that he was being discussed about in the Gnome race''s Continent. They just stepped out of the secret realm. "Ha¡­ nothing like the fresh air of our continent." Reynolds said with a sigh. "Yeah. What''s the plan now. We should be done with our trip to the Middle Continent. Where should we head to now?" Klaus asked. "Southern Continent?" Alice asked "Alright." The others nodded. They didn''t really have a choice. As long as they ended in the Western Continent in the end of their trip, they were satisfied. The group headed in the direction of the Southern Continent after leaving. The Elder from the Burchard Family watched them leave with a smile on his face. He recalled when he traveled the Continent as well as a youth. Now, he was too old for all these. Unless it was a treasure or a great battle, he had zero reasons to leave the Middle Continent. ¡­. The time went by in a flash and they soon arrived on the border leading to the Southern Continent. "Do you think we can get to the Sovereign Plane before going back?" Klaus asked Grey. Alice and Reynolds were still some time away, but the duo were already at the Peak of the Venerable Plane and they didn''t think it would take too long before they broke through to the Sovereign Plane. "Maybe. Depends on our encounters. Given your luck, you might be able to. I''m not so sure about myself." Grey replied. "I feel you have the higher chances of breaking through." Klaus said. Grey shrugged, he wasn''t too interested in advancing too fast. This is the reason he was only at the Peak of the Venerable Plane. Given his normal speed, he might''ve most likely broken through to the Sovereign Plane by now. The only drawback is that he wouldn''t be as strong as he is now that he''s at the Peak. ¡­. Three weeks later. Grey and his friends were in a canyon in the Southern Continent. "We''re being followed." Grey said to his friends. "Oh, they should be entertaining this time. The last group we fought weren''t all that." Klaus said. During their journey, being as young as they were, they were targeted by a lot of groups of thieves. Unfortunately for them, they weren''t even all that. A simple release of aura and they were trembling in fear. Grey didn''t want to bother with killing them, but Alice killed them all. According to her, she didn''t want these people to go on and take innocent lives. They had no problem with her killing them. They had encountered three groups so far, and Alice has made sure all three groups were eradicated. She was quite fierce when it came to things like this. "Yeah, I haven''t been able to even test out my moves." Reynolds said. Grey squinted his eyes and looked behind him, a smile formed on his face as he said, "Don''t worry, these guys will be a handful." Hearing Grey''s words, they knew they were about to face a group of powerful bandits. They camped in one of the paths of the canyon. There was no point in leaving without having to face their guests. It didn''t take long before this group of bandits appeared. This time, even Klaus was a bit serious. These people had six people at the Peak of the Elemental Venerable Plane, and the rest forty or so members were in the Late to Early stages of the Elemental Venerable Plane respectively. "An entire group of Venerables, that''s something you don''t see everyday." Reynolds remarked. "You guys were the ones looking for a challenge. Well, there it is." Grey said. "We can deal with them. There''s nothing to worry about." Klaus was confident. Reynolds was also just as confident. Alice might not be as strong as they were, but she was confident in her abilities. As long as she merged with her Seelie, she has no issues with fighting against some Peak Venerables. "I''ll let you guys deal with them. Void and I will watch from the side." Grey disappeared after saying this, his voice echoed after he left, "Enjoy." "Do you guys think we should beat him to a pulp one of these days?" Klaus asked. "Very much so. Unfortunately, we''re still to weak for now." Reynolds replied. "Don''t worry, I''ll get to the Sovereign Plane before him. He''s toast once I break through." Klaus said. "You guys know I can hear you, right?" "It doesn''t mean we won''t speak. We''re not afraid of you." Klaus retorted. "Focus on the battle in front of you before you get robbed." "These guys aren''t enough. If they want to rob me, they''ll need more people." "Hand over your belongings." One of the Peak Venerables among the bandits said. "I was just about to say the same to you." Klaus smirked. Chapter 1355 Battling The Bandits Bam! Boom! The battle was intense from the start. Klaus was the only one at the Peak in his group, but he wasn''t the only one who had Peak Elemental Venerable strength. Reynolds'' Elemental Warrior could use strength equivalent to that of a Peak Venerable. If Alice merges with her Seelie, she can show strength on par with a weak Peak Venerable. They were all strong, unfortunately, they were completely outnumbered by their opponents. The six Peak Venerables didn''t engage at the start of the battle, rather, they let their underlings do the work for them as they watched from the side. If that number of Venerables can''t take down three Peak Venerables, then they were useless. Klaus used his domain from the get-go. Anyone below the Mid stages of the Elemental Venerable Plane found it difficult to survive the cold. Klaus'' domain was freezing those who were too weak to fight the cold. In the space of a few seconds since the start of the battle, Klaus froze seven people who were in the Early stages of the Elemental Venerable Plane. It was too easy for him against these weaker opponents. Alice used her dual domain to cause havoc, while Reynolds'' Elemental Warrior flashed through the crowd with lightning speed. It was unstoppable. The six Peak Elemental Venerables were stunned at the abilities the trio were showing. They never thought they''d encounter powerful youths like them. The group were all dressed in expensive clothings, so it was easy to guess that they were all from rich families or top Factions. The plan was to rob them and acquire some valuables, and from how they dressed, they thought it would be very easy to accomplish this. Unfortunately for them, only three of them were cutting through their group. "The more powerful they are, the greater the treasures they possess. Kill them all, don''t give them any chances!" One of the six Peak Elemental Venerables yelled. He was pumped. "If we can take their treasures, we will be able to break through, I can feel it!" Another one of them said. "One of them is missing. I can''t sense his presence. Don''t take them for granted, these kids are not ordinary." A serious looking one said with a blank face. "Yeah, I remember there was only three of them. Where did the last one go?" The one with a blonde hair asked. "He''s very skilled at hiding his aura, we should be careful of that one. He might be plotting something." The others looked around, unsure of what to do. As long as they couldn''t sense Grey''s whereabouts, they knew they would be in danger. They might have the advantage, but they knew that one mistake will cost their lives. Of all six of them, none of them wanted to die here, especially when they will defeat their opponent in the end. If they died, the others will benefit from it. So it was best to take precautions. ¡­. Grey was looking at the battle from above. "Those guys seem to be afraid of you." Void commented. "Naturally. I''m too astounding, it''s normal for them to be afraid of me." Grey said with a playful smile. Void rolled his eyes. Grey watched the battle with interest. He didn''t feel any interest in getting involved in the battle. Although it might seem like the trio were outnumbered, in truth, it was only a matter of time before they defeated the large group of bandits. Grey was certain that the only people that could trouble them were the six people at the Peak of the Venerable Plane. Other than them, the trio were good. "Will you help them?" Void asked. "Depends." "On?" "If they can''t deal with those six." "What if they join in now?" "Hmm, that will be troublesome. Since they are already wary of me, I''ll just make a move to stop them whenever they want to interfere in the battle." Grey was fast, so he would be able to deal with them before they caused any harm. Void didn''t have any issues with Grey''s plan, as long as he didn''t have to do any work, he was good with whatever decision Grey made. ¡­. On the canyon pathway. Klaus was like an ice God. His eyes glowed with silver light, and chilling snowy breeze blew through the area, freezing anything in its wake. Reynolds'' Elemental Warrior was flashing through the crowd, cutting people down for fun. The coordination between Klaus and Reynolds was already at the highest. Without thinking, they knew what the other person wanted to do and how to react to the actions. It was like they were working with one brain. Alice was on the side, battling through the group attacking her. The advantage of fighting against a large group was that there is a large target to aim at. She, on the other hand, was very difficult to hit. Her lightning element made her very fast. Since she had the Seelie, she has focused more on her fire element since the ice ability of the Seelie complimented her fire element. The awakening of her fire and ice domain made her fire element even stronger than the lightning element. As time went on, the size of the group started to dwindle. Before long not more than fifteen were left alive, the rest were either incapacitated, or dead. Klaus and the other two were very brutal with their attacks, not holding back one bit. Reynolds'' Elemental Warrior had the most kills. Klaus was a close second thanks to his wide range of attacking ability. His domain was even stronger now that he has gotten accustomed to his new abilities. His ice was ferocious, and it seemed to have a mind of its own whenever someone Grey deemed as an opponent gets close to him. Broken ice sculptures littered the ground, while the scent of burnt flesh filled the air. Reynolds'' lightning, and Alice''s fire were enough to cause such effects. The fifteen bandits left, aside those at the Peak, were all in the Late stages of the Elemental Venerable Plane. Seeing how the trio managed to kill so many of their companions, fear started to creep into their heads. It''s one thing to be able to hold their own against such a large group, but being able to kill so many while sustaining few injuries was something else. Klaus didn''t even look like someone who got into a fight. His clothes were spotless, and even his hair wasn''t ruffled. None of the attacks from the bandits managed to get through Klaus'' impeccable defense. The automatic system of his ice defense made him untouchable. Klaus wore a smile on his face when he saw the look of fear in the eyes of the fifteen. "Scared? Haha, don''t worry, we will go easy on you guys." One of those in the Late stages felt insulted by Klaus'' words, but he didn''t speak up. Klaus was too strong. If he were to fight against him alone, he was certain he wouldn''t be able to break through Klaus'' defense, much less being able to cause any harm to him. However, he found Klaus'' grin hateful, and for some reason, he wanted to kill Klaus. Well, the reason is clear, while they were battling earlier on, Klaus made bad comments about his ancestors, something he could never take. "Don''t think too highly of yourself, boy. If the masters join in, you''ll be toast." The man in the Eighth stage of the Elemental Venerable Plane snorted coldly. "I''ll beat them to a pulp and make them lie naked while pleading for their worthless dogshit lives." Klaus gave an evil smile after saying this, he took a glance at the six that were behind them. ''I wonder how we''ll fare against them¡­'' He thought they were strong enough to fight these people one on one, but with all six joining hands, it would be very difficult for them to win with ease. Of the six at the back, three took a step forward. Boom! They retreated hastily. The attack struck where they placed their legs. If not for the fact that they were fast, they would''ve been hit by it. "Who''s there?" One of the men at the Peak asked. "Just someone who isn''t willing to let you guys interfere in the battle. As long as you hold your hand, I won''t attack." Grey''s voice came from the void. The fear of the unknown is something that even top powerhouses have. Grey was able to attack without making a sound. They weren''t able to sense his general location when he attacked just now which meant he was well hidden from them. "Don''t try to act mysterious, I know you''re the one who disappeared when he came." The man with blonde hair said. "We''ll kill you and the three before us. Since you don''t want to show yourself, we will kill them and see what you can do about it." The man with a cold expression said. Chapter 1356 Always Stay Focused **A.N: Reload the last chapter. There was an error with it.** Grey scoffed when he heard this. He wasn''t the least bit threatened by these people. Did they think Klaus and the others were random people they could kill with just a few attacks? Klaus alone was enough to ensure that the others didn''t get hurt. The Elemental Warrior had terrifying attack power, this is something Grey was aware of. Then there''s also Alice, her attacks can not be neglected, if not, she would cause them great harm. "I just don''t want you guys interfering. Take a step, I attack. Stay in the same place, I watch." Grey said softly. "I want to see what gives you such confidence." The man with blonde hair took a step forward. Grey attacked when he saw this. Using the dimensional slash. The man looked at the direction the attack was coming from and with a wave of his hand, a large portal opened up and Grey''s attack was gobbled up. The attack appeared on the exact place it came from before exploding. The blonde haired man squinted his eyes when he didn''t get the reaction he was expecting. "He''s not there." "Let''s kill these guys first. They are still very much worthy of us making a move." The man said as they walked towards where Klaus and the others were standing. Grey attacked once again, but his attack was sent back to the direction it came from. The exact place the attack was unleashed. ''This guy will be difficult to deal with.'' With such an ability, it will be difficult for Grey to attack this group. With no other option, he appeared. This time, his attack wasn''t casual, it was a powerful fire spear that was laced with lightning. The spear shot at the group of six at breakneck speed. The portal was on the verge of opening when the spear blasted through, aiming for the head of the blonde haired man. The man scoffed and his figure disappeared, dodging the attack. Bam! The spear struck the ground, causing it to slightly cave in and crack. "A Space Elementalist." Grey looked at the blonde haired man with interest. Space Elementalists had always been difficult to handle, especially those that only had the space element. Unlike Grey who had to focus on other elements, an Elementalist with just the space element didn''t need to worry about honing anything else. They would put their full focus on the space element and master it. Some of Grey''s difficult opponents over the years have been Space Elementalists. The other five didn''t flinch when Grey''s attack struck. The one with a cold looking expression grunted and took a step forward, the place his foot touched started to freeze. The ice ran through the ground, heading straight for Grey. Grey sent a wheel of flames at it, burning it up. The ice stopped, but only temporarily. "Looks like I''ll fight with the group." Three inscriptions lit up in the sky and attacked simultaneously. Three men moved out to block the attack of the inscriptions. Grey didn''t stop with just using his inscriptions to attack, he personally attacked as well. Using the earth element, he created a large maze, with the aim of separating the six men. When the maze came out from the ground, the men reacted accordingly, striking it as soon as they saw it. Grey noticed it wouldn''t work, so he used his domain as well. The maze formed a lot faster and the group of six were separated. Grey focused everything on one place and attacked one of the men. When Grey was attacking, the blonde haired man had already gathered the others. Grey''s attack just struck when they arrived at the place Grey was located. The man who was Grey''s target defended with all his strength. If left alone, it was evident he wasn''t on Grey''s level. The others arrived on time and ensured Grey didn''t attack again. They joined hands and destroyed the maze Grey created. Grey knew these guys weren''t going to let him win. ''I can stop them until the others deal with the others and come help out.'' With this thought in mind, he stopped his attack and focused on only stopping these people. ¡­. On the other side. Grey''s sudden appearance didn''t shock his friends. The fifteen bandits however were beyond shocked. Six Peak Venerables weren''t able to take out a young man. Standing before them, Grey looked quite timid. Seeing Grey in action said otherwise. "Those guys don''t seem to be much." Klaus commented offhandedly. His mannerism when making the comment infuriated the group of fifteen. Their leaders were being looked down on, this was something they didn''t want to accept! "Hurry, we have to go help him." Alice said, she knew if Klaus was given the opportunity, he''d talk for the entire day. Klaus shrugged and attacked. An ice needle had been prepared while Grey was fighting with the six Peak Elemental Venerables. The fifteen Late stage Elemental Venerables didn''t notice it since they were distracted, and Klaus capitalized on it. The ice needle pierced through the head of the man he was speaking with. He noticed the man was the one keeping this group organized, so he took him out. The man was about to say something when he suddenly went mute. The others behind him didn''t notice anything and prepared to engage Klaus and his friends in a battle. One of them walked past the man, and his shoulder hit the man. To his shock, the man fell to the ground, before shattering into small ice pieces. The others behind the man were stunned when they saw this. They didn''t know when it happened. Their eyes turned to Klaus who had a wide smile on his face, clearly pleased at the results of his attack. His new ability made it almost impossible for people to sense the ice needle. The only thing was creating it without drawing any attention. The ice power it contains is higher than Klaus'' normal attack. At the moment, this was still his strongest technique, and it was what made his ice ability so phenomenal. Chapter 1357 Always Stay Focused II "Always stay focused when fighting, if not, you''ll lose your life like that pig over there." Klaus advised the others while pointing at the man who had been shattered to pieces. Hearing how he referred to the man, the others were vexed. Klaus was a shameless and annoying individual and they wished to end his life. Klaus knew these people wanted to kill him, the killing intent they were all radiating was something he was all too used to. "You want to kill me? Haha, with such weak strength? Even if I stand here and let you attack all you want, you still wouldn''t be able to touch a single hair on my body." Klaus laughed. "I''m still in a good mood. Why don''t you scurry off like the dogs you are. If not, I''ll kill you." Klaus'' expression turned cold, and the temperature dropped significantly. It was evident that it was Klaus'' doing. "What are you doing? Do you want to freeze us too?" Reynolds'' words brought Klaus back to his senses as he gave a sheepish smile. "It''s for dramatic effect. Don''t tell me you can''t handle this little cold?" Klaus gave Reynolds a demeaning look. "Who are you looking at? I''ll strike you if you try it again." Reynolds said with a serious expression. "Don''t think I''m afraid of your Elemental Warrior. If you know you''re a man, fight with me one on one, don''t ask for help from your Elemental Warrior." Klaus looked at him, ready to fight. "You think I can''t take you on?" "Not without the Elemental Warrior." "It''s part of my strength." "That''s just an excuse to hide your weakness. If not for the fact that we''ve been friends for a long time now, I would''ve beaten you up." "Hehe, I don''t think I have any problems with handling you. Have you forgotten all the times I beat you?" The other fourteen paused when they saw Klaus and Reynolds in a heated argument. Their expressions showed that they were ready to attack any minute. Just as they were about to get back to their normal fight, they noticed that the other person that was at the Eighth stage was frozen solid. "I thought I warned you guys to always focus when fighting? What the hell are you doing now? Damn it! Now they''ll say I''m a terrible Teacher." Klaus facepalmed. In the blink of an eye, the two people with the highest cultivation stages were taken out by Klaus. What was worse was that they didn''t see the attack until it was too late. Klaus and Reynolds were arguing, but now they understood the duo weren''t actually arguing, rather, they were buying time for Klaus to prepare his attack. The infuriating thing was that they got confused when they saw them arguing that they actually didn''t attack them. Klaus was a dangerous individual, but from the looks of it, he needed some time to prepare for this deadly attack. This was the only good thing on the part of the bandits. If Klaus could just shoot out infinite ice needles, then they were dead. "You¡­ you¡­" "You what? I''ve been taking so much time to teach you guys simple battle knowledge, yet you still failed." Klaus was like a disappointed Teacher. "Woefully at that." Reynolds added. "Thank you." Klaus thanked Reynolds for his inclusion and said, "Now you see why I refused to take you guys in?" The remaining thirteen people stared at the duo. To be honest, if anyone walked there, they would truly think Klaus was their Teacher. His acting was top notch. Even they were almost convinced. "Are you dumb? Attack you fools!" lights¦­¦Ïvel.c¦Ïm One of the Peak Elemental Venerables, the leaders of the bandit group yelled from the side. They witnessed everything that happened and they don''t know what to say. Klaus was an evil genius, while their men were just dumb fools that shouldn''t even be alive. Grey was laughing his head off while watching Klaus play with the bandits. Klaus even made sure to include the leaders too, "Shut up! After all I taught you, see what you groomed!" The man who spoke almost vomited blood when he heard this. Klaus was genuinely the person he hated the most at the moment. He didn''t think there has ever been a time he hated someone as much as hates Klaus right now. "I''ll rip your flesh out and feed it to the dogs." "Which dogs? These ones aren''t capable of even barking." Klaus retorted. The thirteen who were yelled at to fight weren''t able to attack due to Klaus exchanging words with their leader. Before long, two more people fell to the ground. Klaus had struck again. This time, he killed two of them with one attack. These guys were only in the Seventh stage, and with his strength, he was certain he could take out two simultaneously with one attack. The man who yelled almost dragged his hair out. "Fuck! I''m going to kill him!" The man wanted to head over to where Klaus was located. "Calm down, when I''m done playing with them, I''ll come play with you." Klaus said nonchalantly, he then added, "After all, you''re the biggest dog among them. It''s a shame that the bigger the dog, the stupider it gets." Reynolds and Alice were in awe of Klaus'' performance. He was single-handedly frustrating his opponents while killing off most of them. "Stupid fools! Attack you fools!" The man couldn''t move, Grey was stopping him from going over to attack Klaus. Klaus attacked again, and another figure hit the ground, turning into an ice sculpture. "I don''t even know what to say. Calling you guys fools is like an insult to fools." Klaus sighed in defeat. He didn''t think he would be able to use the same trick so many times. In fact, they were well aware of his intentions, yet they were foolish watching him speak. "Didn''t I tell you to always stay focused?" "Bad students." Chapter 1358 Quick-Witted Klaus Of the fifteen in the Late stage of the Elemental Venerable Plane, only ten were left alive, and they hadn''t even started the battle yet. Klaus had killed off five people in such a short time, using the exact same trick. What was worse was that they didn''t know how to react to his taunts. Klaus was too powerful, and given their strength, there was no way they could beat him. lights¦­¦Ïv¦Ål ?¦Ïm "Kill him! Don''t let them team up." One of the Late stage Elemental Venerables spoke up and rushed forward. This time, they wanted to take action. "After so long, I was starting to get bored of waiting." Reynolds smirked and his Elemental Warrior appeared. He hadn''t merged with his Elemental Warrior since it got to the Peak of the Venerable Plane. The thought of merging with it came to mind, but he decided to wait until they were facing the six at the Peak. Although Grey seemed to be doing fine, it was evident that he was stressed. Stopping all six of them from heading to the other battlefield was quite difficult, even for Grey. If not for Grey''s space element, he would''ve not been able to achieve this. He was difficult to stop, while it was easy for him to make sure these guys didn''t go anywhere. Reynolds charged into battle, alongside his Elemental Warrior. Now, they didn''t have to worry about the large numbers. With just ten people left, he was confident in being able to handle some of them. Alice also didn''t merge with her Seelie, there was no need to since their opponents were all in the Seventh stage, something she could deal with. Klaus was the only one who''s cultivation stage was far ahead of the group of ten, and it started to show from the start of the fight. The first person that came his way, he was able to kill the person with three attacks. The person managed to block the first one, while surviving the second, but the third one was beyond him. Reynolds'' Elemental Warrior made short work of the first person it attacked. It''s lightning spear pierced through the man''s head. The man was an Earth Elementalist and had raised an earth wall before him, unfortunately, it still wasn''t enough to stop the Elemental Warrior''s attack. In the space of a few seconds, the numbers of the bandits had reduced by two. Reynolds and Alice fought off two simultaneously, while Alice''s Seelie also took on two. The two who were left attacked Klaus, at the same time. Klaus'' ice defense came to play as they blocked the attacks coming. Klaus turned his attention to the men, and focused on one of them. He didn''t need to worry too much about the other one, with his ice defense active, he was sure they couldn''t break through it, even if he wasn''t putting in too much effort. He was about to attack when he sensed danger. Without hesitation, he focused all his energy on defending himself. Boom! The ice dome that appeared cracked the second it appeared. Klaus'' eyes widened. The crack expanded and to his shock, the ice dome fell apart. It managed to stop the attack, but it fell apart after just one attack. "What the fuck are you doing Grey?" Klaus yelled when he noticed one of the Peak Venerables was closing in on them, and it was the one who hated him the most. "Come deal with them if you think it''s that easy." Grey replied while trying to free himself from the other five that stopped him from interfering. His original intention was to stop the six from intervening in the battle, now he was the one being stopped. "You''re on your own. Think of a way to handle him. It''s just one guy." He added and focused on the task at hand. Klaus felt like punching Grey, unfortunately, even if he had the chance, he wouldn''t be able to do anything to him given his physical strength. ''I should try training my body too. Maybe I can beat him up if I trick him not to use his elements.'' Klaus thought. "Rey, send your Elemental Warrior after that guy." He said and turned his focus to the two. He knew with Reynolds'' Elemental Warrior present, he had nothing to fear. "Already ahead of you." Reynolds'' Elemental Warrior was already standing in front of the man. The Elemental Warrior struck out, but the man blocked it. The man coming their way was a Darkness Elementalist. The man didn''t budge when the Elemental Warrior appeared, rather, with a simple movement he appeared behind it, striking its back. It was almost as if the man vanished and came out from the ground behind the Elemental Warrior. The Elemental Warrior didn''t move an inch after being struck by the Darkness Elementalist. "Klaus, you''ll have to focus on him. My summon will need a few seconds before it can regain control." Reynolds said when he saw his incapacitated Elemental Warrior. Klaus felt like cussing the world when he heard this. "Damn it!" He left the duo since he wasn''t able to kill them in such a short time and prepared for the Darkness Elementalist. When the Darkness Elementalist closed in, Klaus created an ice wall to block the man. The man sank into the ground. Klaus'' eyes widened when he sensed the man appearing behind him, stretching his hand toward him. ''Fuck! I messed up.'' Klaus gritted his teeth and his entire body froze solid just before the man''s palm hit him. When the palm hit him, his frozen body was sent flying forward. The man noticed his hand starting to freeze and hastily retreated while forcing off the ice in his body. He looked in Klaus'' direction and saw his body regaining its normal color. "Such a quick-witted kid." He snorted coldly. His only chance of catching Klaus unaware had been destroyed. Now that Klaus is aware of this, the chances of catching him again are very slim. Chapter 1359 Cutting Off A Palm Klaus regained his normal color and heaved a sigh of relief when he saw the ice on the ground. The ice had turned completely black from the man''s attack. "Such a potent attack. This guy shouldn''t be allowed to touch anyone else. I better cut off his hands." Klaus said while shivering. If not for his quick thinking, he would''ve been dead by now. When the man attacked the Elemental Warrior, he didn''t see it and felt it wasn''t something so serious. But now that he was a victim of the attack personally, he knew that it wasn''t something so easy. If not for his increased senses due to his automatic ice defense, he would''ve been toast. From the color of the ice, it was clear that the man wanted to kill him with just this attack. And to be honest, if it had touched him, he would''ve been killed. Unless he had some miracle healing tonic. "You piece of trash! You thought you could kill me? Keep dreaming..." Klaus yelled different insults at the man while slowly walking close to the man. The man saw Klaus and chuckled, "I can sense you gathering ice elemental particles, I''m not a fool." Klaus shrugged, "Can''t blame me for trying." The man attacked, not giving Klaus the opportunity he wanted. Klaus blocked the attack coming his way. Since he was already prepared for the man, he didn''t use the same technique to get close to him, rather, with the help of the other two, they started bombarding Klaus'' defense. Klaus'' defense was strong, but against three people, especially when one of them was a Peak Darkness Elemental Venerable, it was hard to block out all the attacks. The Darkness Elementalist was the main attacker while the other two attacked when Klaus'' defensive wall had been broken down. Klaus'' ice defense was working full time, but it wasn''t able to stop both their attacks. This time, they weren''t attacking from different angles, but the same place. Not just that, but they were also attacking a slight second slower than the other. This gives the time for Klaus'' defense not to be able to react to the last attack. Klaus was hit by one of the attacks. But an ice armor made it impossible to be defeated by the duo''s attacks. "Even if you let you guys attack for the rest of the year, you still wouldn''t be able to cause any harm to me." While blocking their attacks, Klaus was still cussing at them. Infuriating his opponents was something he had grown accustomed to. And it''s not always he gets to see people to abuse nonstop. Reynolds'' Elemental Warrior soon came to and rushed after the man, attacking him. The man tried the same trick. After dodging the first attack, he wanted to use the same attack. But his palm was met with a lightning bolt that forced him back. The Elemental Warrior didn''t give him the chance to use the same attack. The man cussed softly but didn''t give in. This was why he only used this technique during the first attack. Most of the time, he gets the desired result, but whenever he doesn''t, he finds it difficult to take down the opponent. Klaus was aware of the attack, and so was the Elemental Warrior, or whoever was controlling it. There was no way he could use it against them now. With him tied down, Klaus was given free reign on the other two Seventh stage Elemental Venerables. It didn''t take long before one of them was killed. Klaus was very efficient when he was serious. He knew there was no point wasting time, especially given Grey''s situation. So he killed when the chance presented itself. The man vanished, leaving the Elemental Warrior and rushing to the aid of the other man. Their subordinates were almost all completely killed in their presence, and there was nothing they could do. Klaus created an ice dome when he saw the Darkness Elementalist''s attack coming his way. But the man disappeared and appeared inside Klaus'' dome. Klaus smiled and his thin sword appeared. The sword was so thin that it was almost unseeable. He turned around and slashed his sword at a frightening speed. The man didn''t see the sword coming, and seeing Klaus turn with a smile, he retreated hastily. When he appeared outside the dome, he heaved a sigh of relief. Seeing Klaus react so soon showed how prepared he was for him. This was why he didn''t like using the technique after using it once. But either he used it or he watched his subordinate die. "Those palms of yours are really hateful, luckily, you have just one now." Klaus'' statement shocked the man and he looked at his hands. He noticed that one of them only had from the wrist upward, his right hand to be precise. Only his left hand was complete. He looked at Klaus and saw a sword in his hands. "When?" The man was taken aback. He didn''t see Klaus bringing out a sword, much less using it. "Oh, when I created this dome, I brought out the sword, waiting for your arrival. And like the stupid dog you are, you came." Klaus explained. Klaus was the only one who would tell his opponent how he attacked him. Well, the reason for this was just to poke fun at the man. The man didn''t think something like this was possible, and Klaus wanted to infuriate him even more. The man gritted his teeth. The bleeding had already stopped, but it will take a while if he wants to regrow his hand. "I have to give it to you, you''re something else." "Thank you. You''re not so bad yourself with your one palm and stuff." Klaus'' reply once again almost sent the man into a frenzy. The man calmed himself and looked at the subordinate he saved, his eyes almost popped out when he saw the Elemental Warrior cutting off his head. He sacrificed himself and still wasn''t able to keep the man alive. Not just that, but Klaus and Reynolds'' Elemental Warrior could team up against him now. Chapter 1360 Klaus Overbearing Ice Ability The Darkness Elementalist looked at his wrist and couldn''t help but cuss out with veins popping on his head. He wanted Klaus dead, he wanted Klaus and his friends dead. Presently, killing Klaus was the only thing in his head. Klaus, on the other hand, was laughing in delight, purely with the aim of annoying the Darkness Elementalist. The other five were stunned when they saw Klaus cutting off one of the man''s palms. Reynolds killed one of the duo he was fighting with, leaving just one more alive who would most definitely not last for long. The Seelie had also killed one of the duo it was fighting. Only Alice was still fighting with the two bandits. Her opponents were already seriously wounded, but they could still hang on for a little longer. The Seelie didn''t come to help as it focused on the opponent before it. Reynolds was also focused on taking down the person before him. Klaus and the Elemental Warrior were standing on either side of the man, making sure it was impossible for the man to escape from their attack range. The man grunted and charged at Klaus. Klaus smiled and prepared another ice dome. His sword, still in his hands. The man knew better and didn''t try to get close to Klaus, rather, he released a large stream of darkness. The darkness covered Klaus in his ice dome. The lightning made Elemental Warrior charged through the darkness, cutting a path for itself. The Darkness Elementalist hid perfectly in the darkness. This was the Darkness Elementalist''s darkness domain, with it, he could hide and appear wherever he wanted. The Elemental Warrior was sent flying out of the darkness domain by the Darkness Elementalist. Klaus looked in the direction the sound of the attack came from, but he couldn''t see anything outside his ice dome. "You want to play with domains? Fine." Snow started to fall in the darkness that covered Klaus and the man. Klaus knew there was no way he could fight with the man without using his domain, so he used it as well. The chilling cold started to freeze even the darkness that was circulating. Klaus'' ice ability was on another level after using the ice lotus. Now, its freezing capabilities are unbelievable. The man noticed the sudden change and felt aggrieved. Never did he expect that Klaus'' domain could overpower his own. Unfortunately, it was happening right before him. While this was happening, he sensed danger and vanished from where he was standing. A lightning blade slashed through the place he was standing on. Klaus removed his dome and swung his sword in a circular motion, cutting through the darkness around him. His attack covered a three hundred and sixty degree angle, making sure he cleared the darkness around him. The man was lucky to dodge the attack after just dodging the attack of the Elemental Warrior. Klaus wasn''t one to dilly-dally in such a fight. After creating the opportunity, he increased the intensity of chill coming from his domain. The darkness started to freeze at a faster pace. His intention was evident, he wanted to destroy the man''s domain. If his domain was forcefully destroyed, it would affect him. This was something they were all aware of. The man retreated when he saw this, and hastily withdrew his domain. The Elemental Warrior went after the man, making sure he isn''t able to go back to the other five at the Peak. This was a great opportunity for them, and killing him off will make things easier for them when they face the remaining five. The man could see the motive behind their actions and panicked. He tried escaping from Klaus and the Elemental Warrior, but it wasn''t happening. "Forget him, come here." He was just one man, escaping from Klaus and Reynolds'' Elemental Warrior seemed to be a pipe dream. The best thing to do now was to get the five to leave Grey and come help him out. If he were killed, the others will surely face the same fate. The others are aware of this and tried to leave Grey. Grey did his best to stop them, but he knew he wouldn''t be able to stop them for a long time alone. He was about to call Void for help when he saw Alice rushing to where the man was located, on the verge of attacking. The Seelie killed the last opponent and helped her kill off the duo she was fighting with after merging with her. Alice''s strength was on the same level as some Peak Venerables, so she has no issues with fighting against the man. With Alice joining Klaus and the Elemental Warrior, the man started to get anxious. They would kill him in no time. Looking at Reynolds'' side, he noticed Reynolds was on the verge of killing his opponent too. ''Since that''s the case, I''ll attack him.'' The man devised a plan that involved taking the risk of attacking Reynolds. If he could attack Reynolds, the others wouldn''t want him dead, and if he was given the chance to infuse enough darkness particles into his body, they would be too focused with treating him that they would let him escape. The man''s plan was exquisite, and with his experience, it wasn''t hard for him to get away from Klaus, Alice, and the Elemental Warrior. After getting away from them, he appeared behind Reynolds. Just when he was about to strike him, his eyes widened. The young man standing before him was covered in glorious lightning armor and his cultivation stage had shot up. From the Seventh stage, he was radiating an aura of something on the verge of breaking through to the Sovereign Plane. Reynolds turned, and just like Klaus, he aimed the lightning sword in his hand at the man''s wrist. The man only had one palm, if Reynolds'' attack struck, he would lose his ability to use his special technique. His reaction speed was just as fast, without hesitation, he put his other hand that was just from wrist up in front of his other hand, blocking the attack. Chapter 1361 Who Wouldve Thought Youd Go This Way Reynolds turned and his lightning sword turned into a spear that he stabbed in the direction of the Seventh stage Venerable he was fighting with. The Venerable tried to block the attack with his water element, but the lightning destroyed everything in its path before striking the head of the man. The man died with his eyes open. The gap between a Peak Venerable and a Seventh stage Venerable had never been as wide as what Grey and his friends were displaying. Klaus was a freak, the bandits all thought he was the only one. Grey''s appearance changed that thought, now Reynolds'' merged form has also proven to be a freakish entity as well. If these bandits at the Peak were asked if there were anyone at the Peak they would be afraid of, they would say no. But now, they were frightened of Grey and his friends. Individually, other than Alice, they couldn''t put up a fight against the other three. Grey, Klaus, and Reynolds were just too strong. "This isn''t fair." One of the five Peak Venerables Grey was holding back said with a depressed look. "Kill the girl." Their plan was changed to killing Alice. She was the only one they had any hope of killing right now. Two from the five were able to break free of Grey''s hold and rush into battle. Now, it was three on one on Grey''s end, while it was three on three on the other end. Klaus blocked the path of the Darkness Elementalist with a grin, "I''m your opponent. Don''t worry about them, they will join you. Just try not to be the first to die, it will be embarrassing." The Darkness Elementalist snorted, he knew at his current state, he wasn''t a match for Klaus. But if Klaus thought he could kill him, then he was a fool. Alice was faced with an Earth Elementalist, while Klaus faced a Dual Elementalist who had both the fire and wind element. The Space Elementalist didn''t leave Grey. He was the only one who could at least keep Grey in check. They''ve seen Grey''s strength and knew without the Space Elementalist, he would decimate them. Grey felt relieved when he had to face only three people. There was a short moment of silence before Grey took a step forward. His figure blurred as he bolted straight for the Space Elementalist. Klaus attacked too, sending out ice arrows at the Darkness Elementalist. Alice and Reynolds started their battles as well. Boom! Bam! Bang! The battle peaked right from the start. Grey used his destructive elements to the highest, not holding back with his attacks. Reynolds was the second most destructive person present. His lightning attacks were fierce. The Space Elementalist dodged Grey''s attack, and tried to create an opportunity for the others. But Grey was quick to react as he left the place, not giving the Space Elementalist the chance he wanted to block his path. The other two attacked, but Grey was able to block it, even though his earth wall was broken down after the attack, he was able to stop them. He used a technique he hadn''t used in a long time, meteor descent. Fire covered rocks started to fall in the area where his battle was taking place. The power behind each rock was shocking. The Space Elementalist had no issues with dodging the rocks. The other two were forced to take the attacks. The good news was that since it was a large-scale attack, the attack power wasn''t on the same level as each of Grey''s normal attacks. While they were blocking the attacks, Grey made the ground they were standing on soft. The sudden change made them lose their balance and focus. A lightning bolt fell from the sky, landing on the bodies of both men. The Space Elementalist attacked, using his space element to cut through all of Grey''s defenses. Grey dodged the attack when he saw that his defenses were useless. Of everyone present, only the Space Elementalist gave him a headache. To be honest, he didn''t enjoy facing Space Elementalists. They always take away the advantage he has with his space element, and also make life difficult for him. The Space Elementalist''s aim wasn''t to take Grey down, he knew that attack wouldn''t be able to do it. His aim was to stop Grey from continuing his attacks against the duo, who had already been hit by lightning. With Grey not being able to continue his planned assault, the duo were free. Even though they were struck by lightning, they could still fight. On Klaus'' end, things were not looking good for the Darkness Elementalist. As the battle prolonged, he started to notice something strange, he was slowing down. At first, he felt it was due to the strain on his body after his hand was cut off, but he realized he was not only slowing down physically, but even his elemental attack was slowing down. He''s finding it difficult to control his elements. "You¡­ what did you do to me?" He didn''t need anyone to tell him this was Klaus'' handiwork, Klaus was smiling sheepishly in front of him. "Oh, what are you talking about?" "Stop playing dumb!" Klaus gave an innocent smile and explained, "I injected a good amount of ice particles into your body. Particles that are slowly shutting you down." "Given how long it took before you noticed it, I''m sorry to say, but you''re finished." "If you had sensed it sooner, you would''ve been able to expel it. But I made sure to use very little on each contact to ensure you don''t sense it." "Who would''ve thought you''d go this way." Klaus'' words left the man dumbstruck. He was a Darkness Elementalist and was a master in the art of slowly poisoning people with his element. He knew what Klaus said was hundred percent accurate, especially in a situation like this. If the other five weren''t fighting, then they would be able to help him expel it, but since they were fighting, he had to do it on his own. He wanted to use his darkness element to fight against it, but when he saw the condition of his body, he was flabbergasted. Even his bloodstream was freezing. At this pace, in a few minutes he would be fully frozen. Chapter 1362 Changing Opponents Mid-battle The Darkness Elementalist started to panic, this wasn''t part of his plan. Their motive was to rob the group and then advance in their cultivation, but now, he was about to meet his end in the hands of the annoying kid standing before him. Klaus'' laughter made it even worse. He felt like punching Klaus, but he knew the further he was from Klaus, the safer he would be. He surveyed everyone''s opponents and he was left with two choices; the first choice was to change opponents with the man fighting Alice, or, he would change places with one of the men fighting Grey. If he were to change with any of the two, he was confident that he would be able to slow down the ice in his body. Even if not he doesn''t stop it, at least slowing it down would give him the chance he needed to think of a solution. Klaus saw the man''s wandering eyes and couldn''t help but laugh once again, "You think I''d give you the chance to switch places?" Before the man could speak, Klaus added, "Actually¡­ I don''t mind. I mean, you''re my dog and I can deal with you whenever I want to. Don''t worry, go over there. When I''m done with whoever comes, I will get back to you." Klaus'' confidence infuriated the man. It was clear that Klaus was looking down on him. The only reason he wasn''t going to fight to the death with Klaus was that Klaus'' defense was almost impenetrable, and the time he had at hand was minimal. The Darkness Elementalist didn''t care about his dignity, his life was more important. He called out to the man fighting with Alice and told him to switch places with him. When the man saw his condition, he knew it was serious. "Take her." The Earth Elementalist had the upper hand when fighting with Alice, but he hadn''t been able to cause her any serious injuries. Alice was catching her breath as the Earth and Darkness Elementalists switched places. Although she didn''t want to admit it, she wasn''t on the level of these Peak Venerables just yet. The Darkness Elementalist had been injured by Klaus, she could tell he was weaker than the Earth Elementalist she was fighting just from a single look. This was a good opportunity for her to hone her skills. The Darkness Elementalist might be strong, but he shouldn''t have any thoughts of being able to kill her. Klaus watched as the Earth Elementalist stood before him. "Did he tell you what you need to avoid?" Klaus asked with a nonchalant expression. The Earth Elementalist looked at Klaus and his expression turned serious. He knew how powerful the Darkness Elementalist was, yet he doesn''t seem to be a match for the young man standing before him. ''No, he''s not that strong. He had help from the Elemental Warrior, that''s why they were able to harm him.'' The man recalled that the Darkness Elementalist was fighting against Klaus and the Elemental Warrior before they came over to help. Without the Elemental Warrior, he was certain he could take Klaus on and win. Killing wouldn''t be easy, but it might be possible. Seeing the man not answering his question, Klaus attacked. Ice spikes came out from the ground as it raced towards the man. lightsn¦Ïv¦Ål The man didn''t flinch, he was an Earth Elementalist, and defense was his forte. There was no need to worry. All he needed to do was to block all of Klaus'' attacks and he would be fine. An earth wall appeared and stopped the ice spikes from advancing. Klaus didn''t stop there, a large ice hammer slammed into the ground. The Earth Elementalist didn''t expect Klaus to attack so soon. His figure was covered by the ice hammer. On Reynolds'' end, just like Klaus, he had the upper hand against his opponent. Yes, his opponent was a Dual Elementalist, but it still didn''t mean anything in front of his current state. His Elemental Warrior already had the strength of a Peak Venerable, adding his strength to it made him use unimaginable strength. The Dual Elementalist was using his wind element to escape Reynolds'' attacks while using his fire element to attack. Reynolds used his lightning sword to cut through whatever attacks the Dual Elementalist sent his way. The battle intensified as the walls by the side of the path in the canyon started to show signs of cracks. The power behind each attack was enough to destroy a mountain, much less this canyon. The canyon was quite large, so even if the battle destroyed a kilometer or so of the area, it wouldn''t change much. Grey''s battle was the most destructive. He wasn''t holding back since he knew his opponents would kill him if he held back. The Space Elementalist was able to make life difficult for Grey, but Grey was on the verge of completing an array. Once he completes it, the Space Elementalist would be toast. The array would amplify a technique he learned when he entered the Chaos Battlefield. The Space Elementalist he fought there was able to freeze the space, making it impossible for him to use his best element. Now, he wanted the Space Elementalist to feel the same way he felt when he was faced with such a challenge. His condition was better since he had other elements. Without being able to shuttle through space, the mobility of the Space Elementalist, and also his ability would be cut down by over fifty percent. The Space Elementalist didn''t have any idea what Grey was up to. He focused on not just dodging Grey''s attacks, but he made sure Grey wasn''t able to attack the others wantonly. Grey didn''t show any signs of panic, his inscriptions lit up as they attacked. With two inscriptions active, he could not only block the Space Elementalist, but the other two as well. On several occasions he had wanted to attempt using the switch skill, but the chances had been very bad. The trio he was fighting didn''t stand close to each other, so there was no way to capitalize on the element of surprise the skill gives. Chapter 1363 The Bigger The Dog, The Stupider It Is ''Finally.'' Grey''s array was ready. With this array, the Space Elementalist would become almost useless in this battle. Without the Space Elementalist to block his movements, no one could match him in terms of sheer speed. A soft smile appeared on Grey''s face and he sent out a fire attack in the direction of the Space Elementalist. As usual, the Space Elementalist tried to open a space tunnel to send the attack back to Grey. lightsn¦Ïv¦Ål His expression however, changed when he noticed he couldn''t create a space tunnel. The sudden realization came too late as the attack was already in front of him. His pupils constricted and he reacted quickly, blocking the attack with his hands. He used the space element to reinforce his hands, making it hard enough to block the attacks. His figure was sent flying after taking the strike. Grey used the opportunity to catch up with the Space Elementalist while he was still mid-air. He was about to attack when he sensed an attack coming from his back, he smiled. His target was never the Space Elementalist. He switched places with the other bandit while charging at the one who attacked. His movement was flawless and before the others could process what was happening, one of them was standing in front of a powerful wave of water, while the other saw a smiling fiend on the verge of attacking him. The water wave and Grey''s fist struck the duo at the same time. They were not able to defend against it and were cleanly hit by the attacks. The man who was hit by the water wave wasn''t fatally injured, the one who was attacked by Grey lost part of his body. His right hand and part of his chest was blasted off by Grey''s attack. The sight was gruesome to look at. The Space Elementalist crashed into the wall at this time. He crawled out of the crater, and the view before him was one he never expected. Grey was able to fatally injure one of them while giving the other two minor injuries with a single move. ''He''s battle sense is too high for someone his age.'' The Space Elementalist couldn''t believe his eyes. Most of them were over a hundred years old with only some being in their fifties. Although they all had the look of someone in their thirties, they were all old. Yet, Grey was able to outsmart them battlewise. The Water Elementalist who had part of his body blasted off pain didn''t end there, Grey continued his attack. His intention was obvious, he wanted to kill this man. The Space Elementalist unleashed a powerful attack. The void started to show signs of cracking. This was a powerful attack he rarely uses due to the toll it takes on him. When Grey saw the attack coming his way, he smiled and grabbed hold of the Water Elementalist, who was defenseless at the moment. The Space Elementalist saw Grey''s smile and held back his attack. Unfortunately, that wasn''t enough to stop Grey. Grey grabbed the other hand of the Water Elementalist and ripped it off from the shoulder. His fearsome physical strength came to play here. The Water Elementalist yelled in pain. Being alive and watching on helplessly as Grey ripped off his hand was something he never thought would happen to him. His injury stopped bleeding, but the pains didn''t stop. "You evil fiend!" The Space Elementalist yelled. He never thought Grey would be so brutal. This wasn''t a personality someone so young should possess. Grey''s eyes were cold as the man in his hand started to burn. His domain was contained into the body of the Water Elementalist as he started to burn. The Water Elementalist screamed in pain. His scream was the only thing resonating in the entire place as the others stopped fighting. Everyone''s attention was drawn to that place. When they saw how Grey was dealing with the man they all shivered in dread. Even Grey''s friends felt a little fearful of this side of Grey. While burning the man, Grey had a soft smile on his face. His expression was different from that of the man who was screaming and wriggling in pain. Grey held the man in place as he was burnt. Klaus, being the smart person he is, prepared an ice needle and before anyone could react, he sent it at the Darkness Elementalist who was trying to recover. Fighting against Alice gave him the chance to expel some of the ice in his body, but he knew he would need at least five days to remove them. He was still expelling the ice when he sensed a massive wave of cold seep into his body. "Wha..." He wasn''t able to finish his statement as he saw his arm freezing. He looked at his chest and noticed a small hole in it. It was almost indiscernible. There was only one person he knew who could do this. "You¡­ why do you have to be so shameless?" "I was teaching your dogs earlier, yet you made the same mistake. The dog truly gets stupider the bigger it is." Klaus laughed. One person was burning, screaming in pain, while the other was slowly turning into an ice sculpture. What was worse was that the other one was killed due to him losing focus because of the other one who was screaming. The irony of everything is that Klaus had spoken about them not losing focus while battling on multiple occasions over the past few minutes, yet he was still able to use it against them. The other Peak Venerables didn''t know how to feel about this. Does this mean that what Klaus said was true? The bigger the dog, the stupider it is. They soon came to a realization, they just referred to themselves as dogs. Their shocked expressions soon turned to rage. Two of their comrades were killed. When their subordinates were being killed, they didn''t feel anything, but these were people they''ve been working with for a long time. Chapter 1364 Killing The Bandits The Darkness Elementalist and the Water Elementalist Grey held died under the watch of everyone. One was screaming in pain, while the other one was watching his body turn into an ice sculpture. Klaus'' method was the less brutal way, but in the end, they both wanted to kill their opponents. The Space Elementalist was stunned at how quick-witted both Grey and Klaus were. Grey was the main instigator, but the fact that Klaus could capitalize on it showed he was also smart when fighting. Everyone was distracted except him. The Space Elementalist didn''t think he would have the mind to think of harming anyone when someone was being tortured in such a way. The scream alone was enough to distract him, but Klaus took advantage of this distraction and killed someone. ''We can''t kill them, we have to leave.'' The Space Elementalist came to a realization pretty quick. With two people dead, there was no way they could compete with the four of them. Grey, Klaus, and Reynolds were just too strong. Even Alice wasn''t easy to deal with. Running away was their best option, the problem is that the possibility of escaping is very low. Grey was a Space Elementalist and he had locked the space around this area making sure there is no way for the Space Elementalist to manipulate the space there. As long as he couldn''t manipulate space, there was no hope of escaping for him. The Dual Elementalist was the only one who had a good chance of escaping due to his wind element. The problem is that he was also facing a speedster. Klaus with his Elemental Warrior is faster than most Peak Wind or Lightning Elementalists, so catching up to him wouldn''t be an issue for him. Grey let go of the Water Elementalist and his lifeless body fell to the ground. He tilted his head and took another look at the Space Elementalist. He didn''t see the other man as a threat. Reynolds attacked the Dual Elementalist, resuming their ongoing battle. Alice stood motionless, her opponent had been killed by Klaus, and Klaus was still fighting with the Earth Elementalist. Grey killed one person while fighting against three, which meant he wouldn''t need any help against the two he was fighting with. However, he was the only one who was facing multiple opponents. "Grey, I need one of them." She said to Grey. Grey didn''t worry about it and told her to come close. Taking one of his opponents wasn''t any big of a deal. He wanted to deal with the Space Elementalist, so when Alice came, he handed the other man to her. Alice was raring to go and attacked the man the second she had the opportunity. Grey looked at the Space Elementalist who could barely use his element. "You''re limited with this space restriction." He said softly, "I once faced this same situation, so I know how it feels when you can''t use the space element." The Space Elementalist didn''t say a word as he watched Grey slowly walk up to him. He knew alone, he was no match for Grey. But he wasn''t going to give up that easily. As long as there was an opportunity, he would use it and strike Grey down. His survival was his ultimate aim. The reason he wanted to rob Grey and his group was due to their treasures. Since Grey and his group were too strong for them, there was no use in trying to rob them any more. They''ve already lost all their subordinates, and two of their companions have lost their lives. Fighting any longer was nothing short of suicidal. ''How are they able to fight for so long? Even after such a long time they''re still going.'' This was the thought in the Space Elementalist''s head. "Do you regret your choices?" Grey asked as he walked closer to the Space Elementalist. The Space Elementalist didn''t respond, he looked at his comrades and knew their chances were too slim. "I''ve never regretted any decision I made in my life." He responded. "Good, you won''t be alive to regret this one too." Grey said casually. The Space Elementalist roared and attacked. On Reynolds'' end. The Dual Elementalist was starting to show signs of breaking down. Watching two people die was not something he thought he would do today. Two of his friends were dead, and there''s a good possibility he might be one of the people to lose their lives here today. This wasn''t something he planned or prepared for. Reynolds wasn''t giving him any chance to escape which made him worried. He was very powerful, but if he can''t escape, then death would be his ultimate end. Grey and Klaus were powerful, he could see them overwhelming their opponents. Klaus was stronger than he is, which meant that three out of Grey''s group of four had strength above theirs. Alice was the only one whose opponent seemed to have a chance at survival. Reynolds used a lightning spear to stab in his direction. But he dodged it, attacking with his fire element. Reynolds was fast and dodged the attack while also calling a lightning bolt from the sky. The attack was very fast and struck the man where he was standing. The man used both his elements to block the attack since it was too late to dodge it. Reynolds sent multiple lightning arrows at the man. The Dual Elementalist blocked with a windscreen before unleashing a tornado filled with flames. The fire made the tornado very dangerous. Reynolds was caught in the tornado and was forced to defend against the attacks of the wind blades striking him from the tornado. Each wind blade had fire in it, making it stronger than a regular one. Reynolds continued his attempt to survive the attack, but it was quite powerful. He didn''t let the attack get the better of him as he blocked the ones he could while dodging the ones he couldn''t. On Klaus'' end. The Earth Elementalist was having the worst time of his life. Klaus'' mouth made fighting with him hell. He was not only using his superior abilities, but also his mouth as well. The Earth Elementalist was having a difficult time defending on both ends. He needed to be stable mentally before he could fight, but Klaus was making it impossible with his curses. The man tried his best to control his emotions, but Klaus was not someone he could use just sheer determination to defeat. The words Klaus said were too hurtful. "Boy, I''ll make sure your parents regret ever bringing you into this world." "At least they''re still proud of me. Your parents wished for death the second they saw that ugly face of yours." "If they were given the chance, they wouldn''t want to be born so they won''t have to produce a hideous person such as yourself." Klaus'' words hit the man''s heart. His parents didn''t like him much, which made Klaus'' words cut even deeper than a knife. He roared and attacked, using his earth element to its fullest. Klaus made use of his domain, causing a snowfall. "How do you like my snowflakes?" Klaus asked with a playful smile. The Earth Elementalist was about to continue his attack when he sensed something and his expression changed drastically. His body was starting to freeze. This was an effect of Klaus'' domain. Naturally, he would have been able to deal with it, but he wasn''t stable and Klaus took advantage of this. "You''re going to end just like your friend over there." Klaus pointed at the Darkness Elementalist. While they had been fighting, he had been slowly infusing ice into the man''s body. Just in the same way he did to the Darkness Elementalist, he made sure his opponent wasn''t able to sense his actions. The face of the Earth Elementalist showed his worry as he thought about what his outcome would be. Klaus was an evil individual, and he knew the only way he could survive was by escaping. He attacked and turned around. Klaus blocked the attack, but when he saw the man disappearing from view, he smirked. "Do you think I''m a fool?" He asked as he stamped his foot on the ground. The Earth Elementalist who sank into the ground to escape was forced out of the ground. He didn''t know how Klaus was able to sense him after hiding underground. "You have my essence in you and think you will be able to escape?" Klaus'' question brought him to reality. He forgot about Klaus'' essence in his body. If he had recalled this, he would''ve used his earth element to mask it. Klaus attacked, not speaking any further. With the Earth Elementalist being affected by his ice, his reaction speed was slower. He was on the verge of killing his opponent, but not just him, Reynolds and Grey were more likely to finish off their opponents before him. Grey''s opponent didn''t even try to fight back. Only Reynolds'' opponent was trying to escape. Before long, they''ve killed their opponents, watching Alice battle with hers. Chapter 1365 The Firelord Alice''s opponent died a few minutes later than that of Klaus and the others. Grey and the others didn''t intervene, but their presence meant the man would inevitably die. The fear of dying and his wish to escape caused his death. "Well, what now?" Alice asked. "We shouldn''t have killed everyone. They might have good things in their hideout, but now there''s no one to take us there." Grey commented. "Oh, a few are still alive, frozen, but alive." Klaus said, pointing at a few ice sculptures. These people were too weak to break through Klaus'' domain and were frozen solid. They didn''t really die, but if they stayed in that state for a few more hours, they would definitely die from the cold. "Bring two, the rest can die." Klaus nodded and unfroze two from the multiple people that were frozen. The duo were both in the Early stages of the Venerable Plane. When they regained consciousness and saw the condition of the path, they were left speechless. Grey and his friends were still alive which meant they''ve defeated not just the large group of bandits, but the six Peak Elemental Venerables. "Where''s your hideout located?" Klaus asked after unfreezing them. The duo snapped out of their shock and took a look at Klaus, shivering in fear. "Thi¡­ this way, my Lord." The one who spoke bowed in fear, not daring to look Klaus in the eyes The other man bowed as well. The group followed the duo, heading deeper into the canyon. The bandits had been staying here for a long time and they knew every terrain and path. After a few twists and turns, they arrived at a cave. "Here, the hideout is in there." "Alright, lead the way." Klaus shoved the man that spoke. There was no harm in ensuring they weren''t being set up. Grey closed his eyes and his spiritual senses spread out. He soon scanned through the cave and shook his head. "There''s nothing inside. It''s worthless." Klaus looked at Grey, and then turned to the two men, "Why didn''t you tell us there was nothing inside?" "I¡­ I¡­ my Lord, you didn''t ask." One of the men fell to his knees, banging his head on the ground as he pleaded. "Are you dumb? What would I want with your hideout if not to loot it? There''s nothing here, why did you bring us here?" Klaus scolded coldly. The men didn''t know what to do and both started pleading with the group while kowtowing. "We should leave, there''s no point wasting more time." Grey said and vanished. Klaus snorted coldly, waved his hand and both men started to freeze. He smiled and said, "I''ll leave your heads out, if you can survive, then it''s your luck. If not, you''re just unlucky." Klaus shrugged and went after his friends who were already leaving. Their encounter at the canyon was over, and they needed to continue with their journey. They still needed to explore the continent as much as they could. ¡­. Time flew by in a flash. It had been three months now since the group decided to go on this trip. They were presently deep in the Southern Continent. After exploring the Middle Continent, they''ve started exploring the Southern Continent. This Continent is said to be the home of the greatest ever Fire Elementalist in the Aurora Continent. The group has all read about the man born from flames who went on to become known as the Firelord. It was said that he could call out fire Dragons and even create volcanoes. His abilities with the fire element knew no bound. Eventually, he vanished from the world before the great war of Gods. Some believed he ascended and became a God, others believed he was dead. In short, he was a great man that disappeared without a trace. He created a Faction while he was still present and it grew to become the best fire elemental Fire in the Aurora Continent. It was deserving since it was created by such a legend. Grey and Alice wanted to visit this place, and it lay in the center of the Southern Continent. Klaus and Reynolds had no issues with going there. ¡­. The Center of the Southern Continent. Grey and his friends stood before a majestic gate. The gate was flaming red, and there were Dragons drawn on it. "Is that what I think it is?" Klaus pointed at a drawing that looked to be alive. Grey and the others'' attention was drawn to the drawing. "A Phoenix. I heard the Firelord owned the last one. Is it true there are no more Phoenixes?" Reynolds looked at the drawing, intrigued. "It looks so majestic." "Dragons are still roaming the world, there''s a huge possibility that there are still Phoenixes in this world. If not this one, some other realm must have them." Grey stared into the sky. Phoenixes are legendary birds, and they were mostly attuned with the fire element. Their greatest ability is the Phoenix''s rebirth from fire. An element known for its destructive and wild nature can be tamed and made docile, using it as a means of healing. The thought of using the fire element to heal someone was absurd given its nature, but they''ve all read about it. According to what Grey heard, the Faction set up by the Firelord had a secret technique. This technique can turn the fire element into a great healing tool. "What do you guys think their secret technique is?" Reynolds asked. Grey and Alice exchanged glances and shook their heads. "There''s no way to find out. We''re not part of their Faction, and they will never agree to showing strangers their secrets." "Why would you ask such a question?" "I''m curious, don''t tell me you aren''t." "I''m not a moron like you to speak out about it. I know it''s not possible in any way, why waste my strength?" Reynolds looked at Klaus who shrugged. He didn''t have any problems with poking fun at Reynolds any chance he got. Reynolds wanted to attack, but paused when he saw some figures walking in their direction. A beautiful girl with fiery red eyes and hair that was tied behind her back led the group. She looked to be in her early twenties, but she was already at the Peak of the Venerable Plane. Her group consisted of seven, and all of them had one similarity, the fiery particles surrounding them. It was as if a spark was about to go off. As they walked closer, the temperature started to shoot up. Klaus, sensing this, breathed out. The temperature dropped in an instant. The young lady and her group were standing before them, but the difference between both sides was shocking. On Klaus'' side, the temperature was extremely low, while on the fiery eyed young lady''s side, the temperature was well above the burning level. When she looked at Klaus, she opened her mouth, and a melodic yet cold voice sounded, "I''m sorry, I didn''t mean to cause you people any discomfort. We just came from a training session, hence the heat." Her voice was the exact opposite of what she was displaying. Hearing her apologize, Klaus stopped dropping the temperature. He thought she was doing it on purpose, but hearing the sincerity in her apology, he decided to let it slide. "It''s alright, I''m not just a fan of the heat." Klaus replied with a smile. The group moved aside so the young lady''s group could walk past. "Are you guys from this Faction?" Reynolds asked as they were about to walk past them. "Yes, we''re part of this prestigious Faction. Can we help you? What are you doing at our gate?" A young man in the group asked. This man was in the Late stages of the Elemental Venerable Plane. "Oh, we''re touring the Continent and have all heard of the famous Firelord''s Faction. We wanted to visit it and see it for ourselves." Alice spoke up. She was currently in the Eighth stage of the Elemental Venerable Plane. The same as Reynolds. The duo broke through a few weeks after the battle with the bandits. But they hadn''t been able to break through again since then. Grey and Klaus were still at the Peak. The same as Void who hadn''t tried to even break through. He had been sleeping in Grey''s spatial storage, and only came out when he felt hungry or whenever Grey was cooking. "May we know where you are from?" The young lady asked with a friendly tone. "We''re all from the Eastern Continent. We came here to increase our experience." Grey replied. The young lady tried to access Grey, but she found out that she couldn''t see through him. Klaus'' aura was that of a Peak Venerable, Alice and Reynolds were both in the Eighth stage. For their age, they could still be regarded as geniuses. But she didn''t think they were on the same level as her. However, no matter how hard she tried, she couldn''t sense anything from Grey. Chapter 1366 A Flaming Trial The young lady looked at Grey, and then turned to the others. "Well, you guys are in luck. Our Faction is hosting an event. We''re welcoming young talents all over the Continent. You guys are no exception." She said while opening the gates to the Faction for the group. Her group were the first to step into the Faction. Grey and his friends exchanged glances before walking toward the gate. They didn''t hear about this event, so they were a bit skeptical. Nonetheless, they still entered. This was a good chance for them to see something new, at worst they could use their reputations to save themselves if there''s trouble. When the group walked past the Faction''s gate, their skepticism died. They saw different people moving around in the Faction. Most of them were Fire Elementalists, but they could see some people that didn''t fit into the Faction''s aura, just like their group. "Head to that place, they''ll offer you four an accommodation." The young lady pointed them in the direction they were to go and left with her group. Void appeared and sat down on Grey''s shoulder. "I smell something nice." He said with glowing eyes. "Get back inside, we can not afford to cause any trouble here." Grey tried to send Void inside the spatial storage. Void was a better manipulator of space, so Grey being able to force him back was nothing more than a pipe dream. Grey didn''t try any further since there was no point in doing it. Void was the superior one. Only the bunny leader might have a chance against him, but the bunny leader was not with them at the moment. According to it, there were a few good bunnies around this area and it had to go recruit them into its army. The army will be of some help to Grey later, so he was fully in support of the bunny leader getting more bunnies. The more the merrier. Void stayed on Grey''s shoulder as they walked in the direction the young lady pointed. An accommodation was soon provided toe them. According to the person, the event will be taking place later that night. "Why''s it so hot here?" Klaus asked after they got to their accommodation. "The entire Faction is built on top an active volcano." The young man from the Faction replied with a soft smile. Klaus'' expression changed softly, "You''re saying we''re on top an active volcano? That can erupt at any time it wants?" "The volcano is what strengthens us. We''re the only fire elemental Faction that''s built in such a way." The man expected Klaus'' reaction, this was what everyone reacts when they find out for the first time. "And¡­ what if it erupts?" Klaus asked, he wasn''t too comfortable here. "The Grand Elders are going to help. You have nothing to worry about. Rest assured, the volcano will not erupt during your stay here." The man reassured Klaus and the others. Grey and Alice didn''t have any issues with staying here. With their fire elements, it was easier to cope with the pain from fire. The man left, leaving the group alone. "What should we do now?" "Nothing, we wait. Going out will only bring trouble our way. Let''s avoid any trouble."Grey''s said. ¡­. Time went by in a flash and before the group knew it, it was night. They were all fascinated at the thought of them being above an active volcano. Volcanoes possess incredibly abilities. Grey knew not go get caught in one, even top Sovereigns are very cautious around them. Certain volcanoes are stronger than others. Usually, the bigger they are, the stronger and more dangerous they are. But according to what Grey learnt from some books, the most dangerous volcanoes had turned out to be the smaller ones. The group were invited to the Hall the event would be taking place. They still didn''t know what the event was about, but since young geniuses were being invited to the place, it wouldn''t be more than sparring. The others might want to test their hands, but not Grey. He didn''t have any interest in competing in things like these anymore. He has been in so many competitions over the years that he had even lost count. Since coming to the Aurora Continent, it had been one competition after another, especially when he was with Sylvia. Now, he was more focused in increasing his strength. There was no point trying to compete with anyone else, he knew what he was capable of, and his days of enjoying these were over. When they got to the Hall, they saw multiple people gathered. They saw the group of seven once again. This time, their auras were calmer compared to the fiery heat they were unleashing when they first met. Grey nodded as a sign of greeting and took a seat. Klaus and the others followed suit. "I wonder what they''re doing." Reynolds commented with curiosity. He didn''t think these people would be doing anything other than a competition. "Everyone, welcome to Phoenix Faction." A voice drew everyone''s attention. It was a middle-aged man who was standing at the center of the Hall. The Hall was decorated in a way where all the chairs faced the center. Grey and his friends turned to look at the man. He had a red robe on, a drawing of a burning Phoenix was on the back of his robe. "Some of you might be curious why you''re invited here, while a few of you are already aware of what''s happening here today." "On this day, every fifty years, the volcano sends out a blessing thanks to a formation set up by the Firelord hundreds of years ago." "This blessing will help increase the ability of anyone it''s bestowed on. However, there''s a prerequisite before anyone can acquire it. You have to go through the trials of the volcano." "Succedd and you''ll be blessed, fail, and you''ll get burnt." "Do not worry, we will ensure you''re not harmed. Just ensure for the first second you survive the flames." Chapter 1367 Intricate Formation "That''s setting people up to die. Anyone who can''t survive the flames will die." Grey whispered softly to his friends. "What''s the point of sending people out on a trial that might claim their lives?" Someone from the crowd asked. "Nothing is given for free. You either fight for it, or someone does it for you." The middle-aged man didn''t see anything wrong with this question. He knew some of the people would ask about it. "It has been like this since time immemorial. A sacrifice must be paid. Pass the obstacle, and you grow stronger. Fail, and you fall." "Only the strong and relentless grow to become the best. Anyone else who can not even dare to face a challenge shouldn''t call themselves an Elementalist." "Living itself is a challenge. From birth we all struggle, and until our last breath, we will continue to struggle." The man continued with his speech as a path opened up in the center of the Hall. The man took flight as he looked at the fiery path below him. "Those who feel they are worthy should descend into the volcano." Grey looked at the volcano, he didn''t have any interest in going in. "There''s something good. I can assure you. It''s on the level of that Dragon''s blood essence." Void showed excitement. Grey tilted his head to look at the opening better. He didn''t know what was inside, but he wasn''t too interested in it either. Void might be excited about something inside the volcano, but he wasn''t. He had gotten so many treasures already, putting himself in harms way for a new treasure wasn''t something he would do, especially now that he had countless treasures. Void saw his lack of interest and his excitement died down. "You''ve become very boring." "Not boring, but cautious. My enemies are powerful, too much for me. I don''t know where or when they will attack. It''s best I''m always on my toes." Grey didn''t feel bothered about Void''s words. "You guys are free to head in. I''m not going." He said to his friends. "I don''t like hot places." "I''m better off watching them." They turned to Alice and saw her looking into the place with intensity. "You can go, just be careful." "I know. But I don''t think it will be that easy." Alice shook her head with a sigh. She wanted to go, but she could sense unprecedented danger in there. There was also opportunities, but she knew the danger was higher. "I''m not going. We should all stay back and watch. Who knows, it might be interesting." She added. Grey nodded. He didn''t want to enter the volcano in the first place. Since he wasn''t prepared for what might happen, it was best to stay out and watch others. The young lady they met earlier walked over when she noticed none of them was standing up. "Aren''t any of you going to try?" "No, we''re not interested in getting any blessings. We only came here to see new things, and watching will be beneficial to us than experiencing it." Klaus replied. "Understandable. I''ll take my leave first, hopefully we see when I come out." The young lady left them, heading for the opening. She was the first person to step into the opening. With one person taking the lead, the others started to troop in one by one. After a few minutes, the Hall was almost empty. Only a few people were left. Most of them were elders, but there were also a few youngsters like Grey and his friends. The man who gave the speed took a glance at the few who didn''t go in. "Are you sure you want to watch this opportunity slip?" Those who were seated nodded. They''ve all accessed their situations and felt it was better not to step in. The man didn''t say anything and went to take his seat. The show was about to start. A large screen appeared in the Hall and they could see all the people that were inside the volcano. "That''s some impressive formation." Grey muttered when he saw the people. He could work out something like this if given the chance, but other than his communication and tracking device, he had stopped researching on this aspect of arrays. When he first met Ellis, he got a communication device he could see the figure of the person he''s talking to. So he knew things like these were possible. Everyone focused on the screen before them. There were a few people who were still slightly considering if they should go in or not. The scene in the screen changed and a large group of skeletons rose, charging towards the people that just stepped into the volcano. "This is the first trial. Defeat the skeletons and get to the other side." The man explained to those watching. "Not everyone has to kill the skeletons, as long as you can get to the other side, you''re good." "These things are difficult to defeat. And if one manages to defeat ten, the other skeletons will let them go through without bothering them." "The more skeletons you defeat, the better your reward after the trial." Grey and the others listened as the man spoke. The battle erupted soon after. Most of the people that entered were in the Late stages of the Venerable Plane. There were a few in the Early and Mid stages, while there were others in the Sage Plane. "Wouldn''t this trial be unfair for those who are weak?" Grey asked a question. The man glanced a Grey, "Not entirely. Due to the formation, there''s not really a concept of strong and weak. Everyone faces an opponent on their level." "Since you''re at the Peak of the Venerable Plane, your opponent will be at the Peak as well." "It all depends on your ability. If you can''t hold your own against someone in the same stage as you, what makes you a genius?" Grey nodded. His eyes were glowing, the intricacy behind this formation left by the Firelord was stunning. At the moment, he felt like going in, not for the treasure, but to study the array formation. Chapter 1368 Passing Through In Style Grey watched the screen for a while and opened his mouth, "Is there a way I can study the formation in there?" The man looked at Grey, for some reason, he was very interested in him. Grey didn''t act like others his age, and given the fact that he was already at the Peak, he was so composed. The man was in the Sovereign Plane, but he was only able to sense Grey''s cultivation stage after a few seconds of inspection. And from Grey''s reaction, he knew Grey was able to sense him. Grey''s senses were too sharp for a Peak Venerable. "I don''t think there has been anyone who wanted to enter the volcano just because they wanted to study the array. But I''ll add it as part of the reward, if you can get through the trials, then you can see the formation." The man said after a moment of silence. "Anyone want to join? It''ll be fun." Grey asked his friends. "Let''s go play. We''re free to do whatever we want with the skeletons, correct?" Klaus raised a brow. The man nodded. "Rey, let''s go." Klaus and Reynolds stood up. To be honest, after seeing the screen, each of them started contemplating if they should enter or not. With Grey taking the lead, they all followed suit. Grey walked through the opening and was greeted by intense heat. It was like even the air he was breathing was made of flames. He took in a deep breath and his entire body''s temperature shot up. It was as if he was in flames. "Good stuff." He clicked his tongue before walking forward. Klaus entered and covered his body with small white particles, looking closely, one would see that the particles were snow. The snow was falling directly on his body and within the place he was standing. Reynolds walked in and his body was covered with lightning. His hair fluttered as the hot air blew past him. Only Grey, Alice, and Void weren''t worried about the hot air. They all had the fire element. Just the air here felt like a good supplement for them. "If only we can stay here for a while. But we''ll have to leave within a short time." Alice felt a bit depressed at the thought of leaving this place so soon. "I would''ve regretted not entering. To think all this is possible thanks to an array. It''s amazing the capabilities of arrays." Grey was more fascinated by the fact that all these were possible due to an array. After staying there for a while to familiarize themselves with the place, they headed forward, to the area the fighting was taking place. Some people were still in the process of fighting the skeletons, while others had managed to get to the other side. "You guys wanna have a taste of fighting skeletons? Or should we just head to the next round?" Grey asked. "You can go on your own, we all want to go in our own ways." Klaus pushed Grey to the side and started to walk straight into the army of skeletons. "Always wanting to steal all the spotlight." He muttered as they walked closer. He understood the meaning behind Grey''s words. According to the man, they didn''t need to defeat ten skeletons to get to the next round. As long as they could get to the other side and pass through the door, with whatever means necessary, they had advanced. Seeing the latecomers walking into the army in such a manner took those present with surprise. There was a certain pride that was in Klaus'' eyes as he walked into the army of skeletons. A look of disdain as he made eye contact with the skeletons. "Don''t come close." Klaus'' body turned into ice as he started to walk right through the army. He wasn''t even attempting to fight them as he just ranted off. "Are you guys real people''s skeletons or are you made by the array?" Klaus walked nonchalantly through the army without getting hit by a skeleton. With each movement Klaus took, two skeletons turned into ice sculptures. Before long, Klaus was on the other side. He left a path made by ice skeletons in his wake. A long path from one side to the other was created as the skeletons seemed to create a way after being frozen in place. Grey chuckled when he saw this. Klaus was just using this as an opportunity to show off his abilities. The group of seven they encountered earlier in the day doesn''t seem to be present, but there were a lot of people who looked at Klaus differently. Being able to achieve something like this in such a manner was astounding. Klaus, seeing that his aim had been achieved gave Grey a look of disdain. Grey shook his head and with a step forward, he vanished, appearing beside Klaus. "Easy." "My turn!" Klaus laughed and his body was covered with lightning armor. He had merged with his Elemental Warrior. Like a bolt of lightning, Reynolds flew through the army, destroying anything that dared to block his path. Klaus and Reynolds showed off tremendous abilities, while Grey somewhat cheated. There were other Space Elementalists present, but none of them could teleport to the other end. They''ve tried repeatedly and were knocked back by the spatial rules here. Grey didn''t seem to have any problems bypassing this. Outside the volcano. The elders of the Phoenix Faction were in shock. Even some of them couldn''t use the space element proficiently inside that place, yet Grey was able to do it with such ease. "Where are they from?" The middle-aged man was stunned at their abilities. Klaus and Reynolds were still slightly acceptable, but Grey was just too freakish. When speaking with them, he knew Grey was the most mysterious one, but being able to do this makes him a terrifying person. Whichever Family or Faction that was able to groom such a genius should be respected. Even if Grey is the only one like this, it was still amazing to think about. Chapter 1369 She Enough? "I don''t think they''re from our Continent. There''s a possibility that they''re from the Middle Continent given their abilities." Someone said from the group of Elders. "Such amazing abilities, we have to create a good relationship with them." The middle-aged man said. "That''s not going to be difficult. From the looks of how they interact, they are pretty friendly." Someone else spoke. They were still talking when Alice started to move. Unlike the boys, she was more subtle, but she displayed exceptional abilities. She was able to get through the large army in a short time while weaving a way through the crowd. She used the lightning element to increase her speed, the ice ability of the Seelie to defend, and the fire element to blast away any skeleton blocking her path. All four friends displayed amazing techniques to get through the army. They showed that against those in the same stage, if one wasn''t a true genius, they wouldn''t even be able to lift a finger before them. They were not the only ones who achieved such a feat, but theirs was more outstanding given all four of them were extreme geniuses. They''ve gone beyond the level of a normal geniuses and could be called extreme geniuses according to how they''re ranked in the Southern Continent. "That was easy, what next?" Alice said as she appeared on the side of her friends. Klaus and Reynolds had returned to their normal appearance. "We walk through this door." Klaus pointed at the door behind them. The group nodded and left. There was no point watching others struggle with the skeletons. There are a few people worth watching, but Grey wasn''t interested in that. They had limited time and it was best he locates the array quickly. The sooner he finds it, the more time he would get to study it. The group walked through the door and appeared on the other side of the door. This place, just like the first place, was filled with hot burning air. This wasn''t able to cause any problem for the group since it was something they could handle with little to no effort. "I wonder what this trial is all about." Klaus could see only one thing in this place, and the group of seven they saw earlier was here. Not just them, but most of the people that had gone through the first trial were present here. With the appearance of Grey''s group, the number of people present went over fifty. Grey and his friends moved closer to see what was going on. They saw a platform with a man seated. There were no movements from the man, and all they could sense was that the man was lifeless. "What''s this stage all about?" Klaus asked. The young lady was shocked to see them come in, but she didn''t speak about it and replied. "That''s a creation of the Firelord. According to what I''ve heard, all you need to do is to survive one of its attacks, and also use just one attack on it." She explained. "Oh, that''s simple." Someone from the crowd said and jumped onto the platform. The man stood up and took a look into the eyes of the young man who jumped onto the platform. "Survive one attack, and you get the chance to unleash one attack. Defeat me in one blow or face double the power of my first attack." The man''s voice was hoarse, but everyone heard it clearly. "Interesting. If it can''t be defeated in one attack, then the challenger gets to face double the strength of the first attack." Grey rubbed his chin as he studied the man. The man moved after completing his statement. His figure was covered in blazing black flames. Grey''s pupils constricted when he saw this. This was the first time he was witnessing the legendary black flames. These are said to be the most destructive flames. He never thought the creation of the Firelord would possess such flames. "Just how powerful was he?" Grey got lost in thoughts. While Grey was thinking about how strong the Firelord was, the man on the platform attacked. His attack was fast, and equally destructive. The young man tried to use the fire element to block the attack, but he was sent flying. His reaction was too slow and he was taken out by the man on the platform. The man walked back to his previous position and sat down. He had defeated the challenger. The young man who was sent flying crashed into the ground. He was bleeding from all seven orifices. His ribs were broken from just one attack. When everyone saw the condition of the young man, they reassessed their situation. Taking an attack didn''t seem as simple as it sounded. "I''ll be leaving now." The young lady said to Grey and his friends before leaping onto the stage. The man opened his eyes and repeated the same statement. The young lady braced herself and was able to block the attack of the man. She was quite powerful and did this with some effort. Grey was certain she had no problem with getting through the first stage. "She''s quite strong." Klaus moved closer to Grey, "She enough?" Grey pushed Klaus'' face away from him. He knew what Klaus was implying and wasn''t in the mood to even answer him. The young lady took her time to prepare her strongest attack. "Oh, feisty, just how Grey likes them." Reynolds joined in on the fun too. Alice laughed as her friends poked fun at Grey. The young lady attacked, and was able to force the man to take a few steps back. The man opened his mouth and said. "You win, you may leave." "That''s all? Pushing him back?" Someone from the crowd asked. "He says defeat it with a single attack. This attack was enough to defeat him. However, he''s indestructible, so he took a step back." One of the young men in the young lady''s group explained. He''s also from the Phoenix Faction. "I see." Chapter 1370 Cockiest Person Alive "Rey, want to go first or should we wait and watch others?" Grey asked. "It''s cool, we should see how others fair against him first." Reynolds replied. He didn''t want to get ahead of himself. They might''ve breezed through the first challenge, but it didn''t mean they should not take the challenges seriously. Grey nodded and watched as more people tried to get through the challenge. As time went on, only twenty percent of the people they met there managed to get through, the rest were not able to get through. Some managed to block the first attack, but their attacks weren''t strong enough to defeat the man. So they had to face double of what they first faced. None of them dared to take the attack, they all got off the platform without a second thought. The first attack was already almost beyond them, if they were to take double the attack, then they would be in serious trouble. More people entered this place, but Grey and his friends continued watching as more people tried and failed. "Done watching?" Klaus asked. "Pretty much." Grey vanished after his statement and appeared on the platform just after the man just finished taking out a young lady. The man repeated the word, and Grey couldn''t care less about it. He wanted to try out the man''s attack. The man took a step forward, and his countenance changed, it was about to attack but paused and took a deep look at Grey. "You¡­" It was as if a moment of brilliance flashed through the eyes of the man, but it was only for a second, before he continued his attack. Grey didn''t know why the man paused, or what he wanted to say. But he could tell there was something the man recalled and tried to say, but since the man couldn''t complete his statement, he was not going to stay and find out. If there were any secrets, he could uncover them when he finds the array formation. The man attacked with a flaming fist, but Grey blocked it with a casual wave of his hand. He couldn''t help but raise a brow, "That''s it?" The man retreated. After attacking Grey, he had to wait for Grey''s attack. He, too, would try to block it. Grey shook his head at how easy the challenge was. He was forgetting the part where he is a monster and shouldn''t be associated with other Peak Venerables. He walked toward the man and punched out. The punch looked ordinary, but for the first time, the man was sent flying off the platform. Everyone watching, especially those that had been here since the young lady from the Phoenix Faction passed the stage had their mouths wide open. It was as if they were watching something that was impossible. "Does he always have to show off?" Klaus complained with a disgruntled voice. "I should''ve gone first." Reynolds sighed. Grey''s performance has taken away anything they could do, which was infuriating when thinking about it. They could''ve been able to at least see the look of surprise in the audiences'' faces as they easily pass through the challenge, but Grey blew the man away, what''s the point of even competing with him? Grey didn''t expect the man would be taken out with just one attack. He walked forward and noticed the man was fixing part of his body that was damaged from Grey''s attack. The man jumped back onto the platform and everyone saw the hole in his chest. Grey''s attack caused a hole in his chest. The surprise in the eyes of everyone became even more apparent. Klaus and Reynolds on the other hand felt like beating the man up. "Couldn''t he have waited to heal fully before coming up?" Klaus complained through gritted teeth. "He''s making things worse." Reynolds added. "Do you think he''s doing it on purpose? I saw him pause when he wanted to attack Grey." Klaus asked with a thoughtful expression. "I have no idea, but I''m going to burn him up." Reynolds was poised for his turn. "I''ll turn him into an ice sculpture when you''re done." Klaus was pumped up too. The man took a deep look at Grey and said, "You passed." Grey didn''t walk through the door, rather, he bowed slightly and stood at the side, waiting for his friends. After walking to the side, and leaving the platform, Reynolds appeared on the platform. The man stood up once again and repeated the same words before attacking. His fire elemental attack was about to strike Reynolds when his Elemental Warrior suit covered his body and he slashed through the fire attack with a lightning blade. The lightning blade didn''t stop with just cutting through the attack, it went on to slash the man who didn''t prepare to block the attack. Just like in Grey''s case, the man was sent flying, but the man regained his composure mid-air before landing at the edge of the platform, a large gash could be seen on his chest. The cut was so deep that it almost opened up a hole on his back as well. Reynolds nodded in satisfaction and returned to his normal state. The man was burnt from the lightning shock, and the damage caused was also massive. The man healed up once again before saying to Reynolds, "You passed." Klaus jumped onto the platform after Reynolds walked to Grey''s side. "I''m not like them, please take care not to hurt me." He said with a respectful smile. Only those who overheard his and Reynolds'' conversation knew that he had an evil plan awaiting the man. The man, after fully healing himself repeated the same words to Klaus. "I know, I know, get on with it already. I have some things to attend to, I don''t want to be late." Klaus waved his hand as if to tell the man to get on with it. His present appearance was different from the one he used when speaking for the first time. If people didn''t hear him speak before, they would''ve said he was the cockiest person alive. Chapter 1371 Leaving Everyone Speechless The man didn''t take any offense with Klaus'' words, he prepared himself and attacked. His fire attack was stopped by Klaus'' domain. Klaus didn''t use anything else, he didn''t set up any defenses, he only caused it to snow on the platform and the man''s fire attack was extinguished before it got close. To the ordinary eyes, Klaus used the extreme cold in his domain to stop the attack, whereas in truth, there were a lot of things involved. Klaus not only made use of his ice domain, but he brought to full effect the power of the heavy water. Integrating it into his domain made each snow falling in the domain one of substantial power. It took multiple snowflakes to take down the attack. "He always wants to look good. I''m afraid he''ll hit himself on the foot one day." Grey shook his head at the antics of his friend. Klaus, on the other hand, used the side of his eyes to spy and see the reactions of the crowd watching. Seeing their flabbergasted expressions, he chuckled, while giving Grey a look of disdain. He wouldn''t have had to work this hard, but Grey''s performance was just too extraordinary. He knew he couldn''t match him, but he didn''t want to be left behind. The challenge was just like the previous one, only this man was stronger than those skeletons. If all Peak Venerables are graded in terms of strength, then the skeletons were grade one Peak Venerables, while this man was a grade three Peak Venerable. Grey and Klaus were far above their grades. So defeating them with one attack was within their ability. Reynolds had it better since he was not yet at the Peak, so the strength the man shows is on the same stage as himself. But once he adds the Elemental Warrior to it, his strength shoots well above that of a grade five Peak Venerable, hence his superior ability. Klaus didn''t attack immediately, he gave the man time to prepare himself to block the attack, "Are you ready?" The man didn''t reply to his question. He knew the man wouldn''t reply, but he just felt like asking. With all eyes on him, Klaus took in a deep breath and his domain shrunk in an instant. A single long silver ice needle appeared. The air around the needle started to show signs of freezing. "What the hell?!" Someone exclaimed from the crowd. Everyone was in awe at Klaus'' ability with his ice. One has to recall that this was a volcano and all Water Elementalists, especially ice users are at a disadvantage, yet Klaus was outright freezing the hot air. Now, a few of them started to understand the reason behind his cockiness. For someone as talented as Klaus, he had every right to be cocky. A proud genius is not arrogant, they just can''t hide their glow. To most people present, they felt they would act in the same manner as Klaus. They didn''t see anything wrong with how he was acting in the first place. The ice needle floated in front of Klaus, it was like he was giving everyone time to take it in its full glory. After making sure everyone had seen it, he pointed at the man. No one saw the ice needle move, but they all saw Klaus walking in Grey''s direction. The man started to turn into an ice sculpture. Just as Klaus said he would, he turned the man into an ice sculpture. The array formation was working hard to unfreeze the man, but the ice was faster. Before long, the man was frozen completely. Silence. The entire place fell into silence. Not just here, but outside the volcano, in the large Hall of the Phoenix Faction, everyone watching the scene held their breaths, unable to react. Klaus froze the man with such a powerful technique. The most shocking aspect of the attack was not the extreme cold, but the speed. The attack was so fast that very few people caught sight of it, and they were all above the Venerable Plane. Even Grey wasn''t able to keep up with it. Those at the Early stages of the Sovereign Plane could barely keep up with it. The middle-aged man said after a few seconds, "What sort of monsters are they? They will wreck the ancestor''s formation at this point." The middle-aged man was on the verge of crying. The formation was in charge of giving the man energy to attack and defend. If he sustained any injuries, the formation would heal it, but it took a large amount of resources. The man had already used a lot of resources to heal up from Grey and Reynolds'' attacks, now, he was fully frozen. The array was currently working on multiple stages of the trial, so it couldn''t put its entire focus on this level, hence Klaus being able to fully freeze the man. It took a while before the other Elders regained themselves, "Such a frightening Water Elementalist. He''s going to be well-known in a few years." "The Lightning Elementalist is no different." Another Elder added. "The girl as well. We''ve not seen her in full strength." The Elders all started to make their assessments of the group, some of them almost completely forgot about Grey. Yes, he was the one who did the first damage, but Klaus'' performance was so exceptional, and since it was the recent one, it overshadowed Grey''s performance for now. ¡­. Back in the Volcano. The entire place was still silent after Klaus'' attack. It took a while, but the man started to unfreeze. After unfreezing, he looked at Klaus and said, "You passed." Klaus had a wide grin on his face and said, "It''s nothing special." Grey felt like smacking the back of Klaus'' head. What was the point in replying to the man''s words? He knew the man wouldn''t say anything else, then why bother? Alice jumped onto the platform, landing before the just unfrozen man. The man opened his eyes and stood up, repeating the same words to Alice. All eyes fell on Alice, her friends'' performances had been nothing short of extraordinary, they all wanted to see if she could repeat the same feat. Chapter 1372 Beautiful But Deadly Alice didn''t rush onto the platform like the others. She was a little taken aback at the performances of the trio. She knew they were all outstanding, but with everyone staring at her, she couldn''t help but feel some way. From the start, she used to be the shining one, but now, the others have all grown to shine brighter than her. No matter how hard she tries to catch up with them, they keep getting brighter and brighter. She was proud of her friends, and even if she wasn''t as powerful as they were now, she could still beat them up¡ªthe privilege of being the only girl in the group. ''Why do they always have to show off? Couldn''t they just pass in the simplest way?'' She pouted as everyone watched her. She jumped onto the platform and glared at the trio. It was as if they could tell what was in her head, and they all looked away, avoiding her gaze. Klaus even started whistling, acting like he didn''t even know her. Alice sighed and looked at the man who had stood up to face her. She was an Eighth stage Elemental Venerable, a genius in her own right, and confidently well above a grade three genius. The man repeated the exact words and attacked. Alice''s fire and ice domain came out and blocked the attack. Like her friends, she didn''t flinch in front of the man''s attack. After blocking the attack, lightning flashed through her body, and she bolted straight at the man. As she moved, a colorful scene appeared. Her fire and ice domain followed her, with lightning at the center of the fire and ice domain. It was a beautiful sight to behold. Bang! Just like the trio, she struck with a deadly attack. The man wasn''t sent flying like in Grey and Reynolds'' case. Instead, just like in Klaus'' case, the man stood in the same spot, but three different elements were visibly causing havoc to his body. The man tried to block the attack. Unfortunately, it was just too powerful. On the left part of the man''s body, the fire element was blazing, in the middle, the lightning element came into play, and on the last part, the ice ability of her Seelie came into play, freezing the man''s body. Once again, the man faced enormous damages, which strained the array as it worked nonstop to fix the problems caused by their attacks. Alice left the crowd silent. Grey and his friends had been giving them one shock after another since they decided to face the man. Only a few people knew Grey''s performance was the best. When Grey attacked, he didn''t try as hard as the others to impress those watching; he only used a casual attack and was able to cause so much damage to the man. Reynolds and Klaus tried so hard and made an impression on everyone. Alice, on the other hand, was forced to show what she could do. She didn''t want to damage the man this much, but since her friends had already done so much, it was only fitting she followed the same path as them. She was a genius, and she didn''t want to be looked down on when with her friends. She already hated the fact that she was the weakest; becoming even worse was going to make her flip out. The man soon recovered and said to Alice, "You passed." Alice nodded to the man and walked elegantly to where Klaus and the others stood. "Shall we?" She asked with a soft voice. The others shivered when they heard this. Whenever Alice speaks in such a manner, she has terrible plans for them. "Yes, let''s get going." Grey was the first to rush to the door. Of all of them, he was the one who had suffered the most at Alice''s hands. During their sparring sessions, while he was still very weak, Alice didn''t show much mercy. Of course, she didn''t give him any severe injuries, but she made sure to beat him up every single time. At that time, she kept saying, ''If you don''t take a spar as seriously as a life and death battle, you will only limit your growth.'' So even though she is stronger than Grey, she always takes her spars very seriously. Grey, being the unfortunately weak one had to face so many deadly attacks. However, these sparring sessions made Grey who he is. He became so battle-honed that when he entered the world, although there were a few hitches, he still managed to come out on top and become an even fiercer warrior than Alice. Klaus and Reynolds ran right after Grey, not waiting for Alice to go before them. "So rude." Alice grunted. She followed them and walked through the door. During this time, everyone were still silent. The four friends'' performances were stunning! Everyone kept asking the same question¡­ ''Who were they?'' Everyone watched them leave in awe, starstruck at what they were able to perform. Just one attack, one powerfully destructive attack was enough to announce the names of the four to the world of the Southern Continent. "Did anyone catch their names?" Someone from the crowd asked. "I heard one of them being called Rey, that''s all I know." Someone who was standing close to Klaus and Reynolds spoke up. "Rey? He''s the lightning guy, right?" Another person asked. "Yes, yes, he''s the Lightning Elementalist." The person nodded vigorously. "A Lightning Elementalist called Rey, and I don''t think I''ve heard of such a name among the top ranked geniuses in the Continent." "Me neither." "Do you think they''ve been training in seclusion and only recently came out to test their strengths?" "No, they didn''t want to come in. I saw them when we were about to step in. They were watching." "Could they be from another Continent?" "The Middle Continent, most likely. Their talent isn''t something that could be grown in other Continents. I heard the Middle Continent is the top in terms of growing such young, talented Elementalists." "Yes, according to what I heard, the famous Lucas Dawson gave birth to a generational talent as well. So I''m not sure only the Middle Continent can create such geniuses." Different speculations came up about the four, but they were not there to provide these people with any information. Chapter 1373 A Grade Five Powerhouse Outside the volcano. The middle-aged man and the Elders were all dumbstruck with Alice''s display. Just like the other three, she was also above others in the same stage as herself. "All four are extraordinary!" An Elder commented. Going through the first stage was not as impressive as the second stage. The reason for this was due to the grade difficulty of each stage. A grade three Eighth stage Venerable could achieve what they achieved in the first grade. This goes to show the strength gap between each grade. "The next level is against a grade five Venerable in any stage. If they can deal with that with such ease then we most likely have grade nine geniuses on our hands." An Elder said with seriousness. "A grade nine genius? When was the last time such a person appeared?" Someone asked. "It has been so long. I can''t help but imagine if all four of them are grade nine geniuses." The middle-aged man sighed. If all four turn out to be grade nine geniuses, it would be the shock of the century. Four friends, all grade nine geniuses. Just the thought of this thrilled all of them. The Elders could barely keep their composures when they heard this. "We''ll find out soon enough." ¡­. Inside the volcano. Grey and his friends appeared on another level. This place was hotter and required more effort from them to repel it. Grey and Alice had no issues with absorbing it. Although it was difficult, Klaus and Reynolds didn''t have any problems with resisting the heat. "Why repel it? It''s good nourishment." Grey said. "Oh." Klaus let the heat touch his body and felt relieved, however, he was soon hit with intense heat. A thought came to him and he executed it. He left tiny holes in the snow he created around his body to stop the heat. The heat would be able to get through the holes to give him the nourishment Grey spoke of while his snow would regulate it, making sure it didn''t do any harm to him. "Rey, you should try it." He recommended it to Reynolds. He was getting into a better state while absorbing part of the heat. Reynolds followed Klaus'' instructions and was soon able to feel the same nourishments. "Nice." Reynolds commented, he gave Grey and Alice a side eye. He couldn''t believe they''ve been enjoying this and not even offering to tell them. Alice and Grey shrugged, they weren''t too bothered with him. "Does everything involving this Faction have to do with fighting?" Klaus asked when he saw the group in front of them fighting seriously with another group. One set of them looked human, and the other, not so much. Although there was a slight resemblance to humans, the lava running through their bodies suggested otherwise. Grey squinted his eyes and said, "They''re stronger than the man from the previous level." "Of course they are. The higher the level the stronger the opponents." Klaus said matter-of-factly. He gave Grey a detestable glance before saying, "These things are all on the same stages as their opponents, but they all fight with stronger powers compared to what we fought in the first level." "Yeah, could the opponents be getting stronger in the same stage?" Grey asked, he thought for a while and said, "Is this trying to see how powerful an Elementalist could get in a single stage?" "Most likely. If that''s the case, then this is a good chance to test our strength." Alice replied. "I can''t believe you didn''t want us to come in." Klaus dumped all the blame on Grey. "Yeah, if we hadn''t insisted on coming, we would''ve missed such a nice opportunity." Reynolds joined in as well. Grey almost wanted to punch the duo in the face. He told them he didn''t want to go, but they could go. They refused, and when he decided to enter, they followed. Now they were blaming him for almost missing out on this. "Hypocrites." He remarked under his voice. The duo looked at him as if he offended them, but he couldn''t even bother with them. "Looks like we can fight in a group this time." Seeing others fighting against the opponents in a group, Grey felt this was the case. "So it seems." Alice nodded, agreeing with his analysis. "Should we try now, or wait to watch?" Reynolds asked. "Let''s watch and get a better idea of what we''re going to be up against." Klaus suggested. The group didn''t have any issues with his suggestions and walked to the side, not stepping into the place for the battle to begin. They couldn''t find the young lady''s group and concluded they''ve gone to the next round. They watched as different groups fought against their opponents. Some of them were able to quickly defeat those they were fighting, while others were having a difficult time. Not everyone was a grade five genius. After watching for a while, the group got a hang of it. They could assist each other if needs be, or they could all fight one against one. It depends on how they wished to fight. As long as they grouped together, they would have to fight against four different opponents on the same stage, but all grade five powerhouses. "Should we try now?" "Sure, I told you I have some things to take care of." "When did you say that?" "I¡­" "If you don''t shut your mouth we''ll beat you up." Klaus wanted to turn to Reynolds, but he found out his usual partner in crime was slowly creeping over to Grey and Alice''s side. "Rey¡­" "Oh, hey buddy." Reynolds gave him an awkward smile, while still slowly going over to Grey''s side. "Fuck! Let''s just go." Klaus could only give up. He thought it would''ve been a two on two, but Reynolds had betrayed him to join the enemies. Such a devastating feeling. With no hope of winning, why bother? Grey was enough to squash him, adding Alice made it overkill. Reynolds didn''t have any issues with beating him up too. Chapter 1374 Do You Want Me Dead? Grey''s group entered the area and a group of lava men appeared. Each man had strength equivalent to each of the group. "This formation really is something." Grey clicked his tongue. Alice nodded, impressed at how many things the array formation has been able to conjure. First the skeletons, and then the man from the previous stage, now, it''s a group of men made with lava. And being able to show strength that was on the same level as them was also amazing. "I''ll fight that guy, he''s at the Peak. You guys fight those on the same level as yourself. You can take Grey''s opponent if you want to test your strength." Klaus charged at one of the lava men at the Peak. His expression, however, soon changed drastically when all four lava men attacked simultaneously. Their attacks were intertwined, enforcing each other. "Shit!" Klaus exclaimed and blocked the attack. His ice wall was broken through and he was forced to take some steps back due to the impact of the attack. "Isn''t that cheating?" He complained, "I only wanted to beat that guy up! Why must you all try to bully me?" Klaus'' aggrieved questions fell to deaf ears as the lava men attacked once again. "Crap! Guys, together." Klaus called for back up. Grey took a look at the attack pattern of the men and commented, "Their corporation is on another level." "Fighting them together is harder than when you''re fighting them alone." Reynolds remarked. "Yeah, with them working together, we''ll be forced to fight a more powerful unit." Alice added. "What the fuck are you guys talking about?!" Klaus yelled while being bombarded with attacks from the lava men. "Help!" Klaus screamed again, he continued, "Can''t you see those other guys? Why are you attacking only me?" "Is your brain fried? I came here with them, we came together!" "Shit! Shit! Shit!" Klaus was being forced back as the lava men continued attacking relentlessly. Grey and others were still standing on the side, speaking about the lava men. It was as if they couldn''t see Klaus'' seemingly dire situation. ¡­. Outside the volcano. The middle-aged man and the other Elders were stunned at the scene. Not by the fact that Grey, Alice, and Reynolds weren''t helping out, but by the fact that Klaus was holding off four grade five powerhouses. Two of them were even at the Peak, just like him, and the other two were in the Eighth stage. An Eighth stage grade five Elemental Venerable could go one on one with a Peak grade one Elemental Venerable. This shows just how powerful they are, yet, somehow, Klaus was able to hold them off on his own. Although he looked to be completely overpowered, it would take a while before these guys could defeat him. "This boy is amazing." An Elder said with a look of shock. "I wonder how the others are in such a situation." "They''re all most likely all grade nine geniuses. Unbelievable." The Elders and the middle-aged man was lost for words at Klaus and the others. ¡­. Back in the volcano. "How long do you think he can last alone?" Reynolds asked with a playful expression. "Five minutes max." Grey replied. "I''ll say three." "Wanna bet on it?" "What do you have to offer?" Klaus was left speechless when he overheard Grey and Reynolds betting on his head. "I''m literally standing right here! What the hell is wrong with you two?!" Klaus once again felt like killing someone, unfortunately, the lava men were too strong. No matter how hard he tried, he hasn''t been able to separate them, which made battling them harder. ''Why aren''t they attacking those cowards?'' ''I can''t believe Alice joined in on this!'' Klaus was complaining internally. "Stop playing around, do you want to see him get hurt." Alice spoke up when she saw Grey and Reynolds on the verge of bringing out what they wanted to stake for the bet. Grey actually said he would give Reynolds Void if he won. Void annoyed voice came from the void, yelling and cussing at Grey for wanting to give him away. Grey shrugged when he heard Alice''s words. "Be prepared." After saying this, he took in a deep breath and his countenance changed. It was like he was a completely different person. The previous person who was joking around was gone and the battle warrior appeared. Reynolds nodded and his Elemental Warrior suit appeared on him. Alice merged with her Seelie as well, bringing out her domain. "Attack!" Alice and Reynolds turned to attack Grey the moment these words left his mouth. Klaus, sensing this was stunned beyond words. "What the hel¡­" He froze mid-sentence when he recalled something and couldn''t help but cuss at Grey. "You fucking show off!" Grey switched places with one of the Eighth stage grade five lava men. After appearing among the other three lava men, Grey spread out his hands and a powerful repulsion force sent all three flying. The lava man that appeared on the spot he was standing on was killed by the attack of both Alice and Reynolds. The lava man didn''t expect the attack, and didn''t prepare to defend against it. Facing such an attack, defenseless, there was no way he would''ve been able to survive the attack. From the lava man''s head down to his waist disappeared, leaving just from the waist down. The body fell to the ground after a second. "That wasn''t so hard. Why were you yelling? You almost destroyed my eardrums." Grey used his pinkie finger to clean his ear as he talked. Klaus dropped his ice wall and not seeing anyone other than Grey, he felt depressed. Grey appeared and everything was almost instantaneously solved. He had been getting abused by these lava men all thanks to his friends who refused to help out. "You guys are hateful." He said through gritted teeth. "We have dealt with one of them, can''t you handle to other three?" Grey asked. "Do you want me dead? Tell me, I''ll kill myself. No need to go through pains before eventually dying." Klaus asked. Chapter 1375 All Grade Nine Geniuses The remaining three lava men soon came running back while Grey was poking fun at Klaus. "Since when did you turn into a bully?" Klaus asked. "I''ve always been a bully." Grey replied with a laugh. Klaus sighed and said, "You guys deal with them, I''ll be in charge of stopping all their attacks." He had the strongest defense among them and could easily protect the others. The others all had destructive elements and could deal a good amount of damage to the three lava men. "I''ll protect myself, I can''t trust you with my life. You might just allow them to strike me." Grey said. Klaus chuckled but didn''t say anything. He actually had the thought of letting them hit Grey one or two times. With Grey''s strong physical body, he knew he wouldn''t die from the attack. At most he would just feel some pain. Unfortunately, Grey knew his intentions and didn''t want his help. Since he had the earth element too, he could defend the attacks. "A shame." The three lava men started their combined attacks once again. But with all four friends working together. It was too easy for them to deal with the lava men. Klaus, just like the plan, was in charge of defending all attacks coming their way. He blocked each of the lava men''s attacks before they could even move three feet from them. Alice and Reynolds attacked, Grey acted like a support too. Only attacking occasionally. Before long, all three lava men were dealt with. Grey didn''t get too involved in the battle. Alice and Reynolds were the only attackers, but they managed to kill them off within three minutes. Klaus blocked all the attacks, which made things easier for Alice and Reynolds. "Well that was easy." Grey commented from the side. "You always watch from the side, useless." Klaus said. "I''m the group''s cheerleader. You guys need me to cheer you on." Grey replied shamelessly. "At times, I tend to forget how shameless you are." Klaus gave up. Grey always shows this serious and nonchalant look that even his friends tend to forget he was occasionally playful and shameless, just like Klaus. "Should we move on to the next round?" "It''s going to be harder than this one." "The harder the better. I need a real challenge." "Yeah, me too. These levels have been too easy." "Weren''t you being beaten up a few minutes ago by those lava men?" "Fuck! I was ganged up on! Can you fight four of them on your own?" "Of course, didn''t you see how easy it was for me to handle three of them?" "I could''ve handled them too if I had the space element you pig!" "Who are you calling a pig?" "You. What can you do about it? Pig!" Grey and Klaus started their cussing session with Reynolds not joining the party this time. Klaus has always had the advantage whenever it comes to this, and since Grey is too strong now, he also has his own advantages. It was best for him to stay on the side and watch the duo. ¡­. While Klaus and Grey were having a battle of words, the middle-aged man and Elder were stumped. "Did you see what he did?" The middle-aged man couldn''t help but ask, pointing at Grey. The Elders nodded. When they saw Alice and Reynolds attacking Grey all of a sudden, they thought maybe something happened since they couldn''t hear what was happening inside. But all of a sudden, they saw one of the lava men standing on the place Grey was standing on while Grey appeared among the lava men and attacked. "Such battle knowledge. They are all so well familiar with each other." "Being able to switch places with an enemy at any time is a dangerous skill to have. Such a figure can not be made an enemy, no matter what!" "The boy is something else. I wonder how he was able to get this powerful." "I believe they are all grade nine geniuses. If that''s the case, they are special." "Building a bond with them won''t be that easy. If only we can recruit both Fire Elementalists." "We can offer them some techniques." "We''ll wait for them to step out." ¡­. Inside the volcano. Grey and his friends had gone to the next round, and to their shock, the next challenge didn''t have to do with fighting. It was breaking through an array formation that could attack. Any wrong move and they would be blasted by a powerful attack. "This shouldn''t be difficult." Grey sensed the array and said, "Give me some time, I''ll make a few tweaks to this thing and we''ll be able to pass through with ease." This time, they encountered the group of seven once again. As they advanced, the number of people they encountered started to dwindle. It was common in trials like this. Since each level gets harder, fewer people would be able to advance. It was like a way of filtering the talents. Only those who are strong enough could get to the last levels. The deeper you go in, the better it is for you. Also, the heat had gone up once again. However, with the heat comes some benefits. Absorbing it gives each Elementalist a good amount of nourishment, and their essences are well filled. The constant fighting and nourishment will make one''s essence grow stronger and they can use more powerful attacks. Grey and Alice had it easier since they had the fire element. Klaus and Reynolds continued with the same method as before, but this time, they''ve been able to increase the size of the hole. They''ve seen the benefits and didn want to waste the opportunity. The trio waited as Grey went to work. After about ten minutes, Grey stood up and wiped off the sweat on his head. "We can go now." He took the first step and instantly retreated. "Well, not just yet." He said with an awkward smile as an explosion rang off. Chapter 1376 Getting Through With Ease Klaus looked at Grey in shock, "You''re planning to kill us, aren''t you?" "There was a little error, I''ll sort it out. If you know you can''t wait, you can enter and be like those guys." Grey retorted. Klaus looked at the group of seven and the other few people in the array that were moving cautiously. Explosions rang out occasionally, followed by screams of pain. It was clear that getting through the array wasn''t easy by any means. "I''ll just wait, it''s not like I''m in a hurry anyway." Klaus cowered away. "Coward." Grey spat on the ground. Klaus pretended as if he didn''t hear anything Grey said. There was no way he was going to stress himself when Grey could easily make them walk through the array without facing any challenges. They all knew Grey''s capabilities as an array genius and knew that as long as he was focused, he would surely be able to tweak this array, no matter how old it was. While Grey was working on the array, the group of seven, were drawn by the explosion. Seeing Grey and his group in such a lively manner, they were slightly taken aback. "They made it this far?" One of the young men in the group asked, a little surprised. "Well, so did we. I didn''t think they would be this talented." A young lady from the group said. The reason they managed to get to this stage was thanks to the help of the young lady leading the group and two other young men who helped out during the group battle on the previous round, if not, some of them would''ve been held back. Luckily, this level doesn''t involve fighting. As long as they were not hit by an attack from the array, they were good. The young lady and the other two young men were on a tightrope as they tried all their might to block the attacks in their stead. Although it was quite stressful, they knew the others needed the rewards to grow as well. "Is he trying to work on the array, or are they just watching?" The young lady leading the group asked with a questioning expression. "What? What if he messes up with the array and we get killed?!" Someone exclaimed from another group when they overheard the young lady''s question. "I don''t think he will mess up with the array, you don''t need to worry." The young lady said. "But what if he does? What do we inside do then?" The person wasn''t willing to take any chances, he has managed to come this far, and wasn''t willing to lose it all due to someone else''s attempt, "If you are acquainted with him, tell him to stop!" The young lady thought about it and felt it was a good choice to stop Grey. If he costs others their opportunity in this trial, he would attract the ire of a lot of people. This was not something she wanted for Grey''s group. She found them amicable, hence she didn''t want them to get into any conflict while they were in the Phoenix Faction. "Hey, what are you doing?" She used her essence to increase her voice as it traveled to where Grey was seated. Grey, who had both eyes closed, opened them and looked in the direction of the young lady. He waved, "Oh, I''m trying to see how this array works. I overheard everything. Tell them to be rest assured, nothing bad will happen to them. If not, I''ll take all the responsibility." The young lady looked at Grey''s eyes and nodded. She didn''t need to relay any of his messages since they heard him clearly too. Since he was willing to take any responsibility, then there was no need to worry about it. The young man who spoke up grunted and continued advancing. He wanted to get through before the madman finished whatever analysis he was doing on the array. They all heard how he was attacked from the start, and the attack was even more powerful than what they had been facing. From what he guessed, it was an act of retaliation from the array for Grey trying to mess with it. Grey couldn''t be bothered with these people as he focused fully on the array. ¡­. Outside the volcano. "Don''t tell me he''s trying to figure out how the array works?" The middle-aged man felt a headache coming. He recalled the only reason Grey entered the volcano was all out of his curiosity towards the array the Firelord placed inside. Now that he saw him seated with his eyes closed in front of an array, he started to feel it was a bad idea letting Grey enter the volcano. Grey had already surpassed all his expectations, and he knew that if Grey manages to get the crux of the array, then this wouldn''t be a challenge to him and his friends since he could use the weak links. "It can''t be that he''s actually going to be able to decipher such a complicated array, right? Even the Faction Leader, a renowned array master, hasn''t been able to decipher it." An Elder said. "Should we be worried that the works of the Firelord can be taken by this kid?" Another Elder asked. "No need to rush to conclusions, we''ll see how it goes. Let''s keep watching." The middle-aged man calmed the nerves of the others. It was clear that they were all starting to get agitated, and rightly so. Grey''s performances all through the trial had been eye-catching. At the moment, they didn''t believe Grey would be able to get the basics of the array, but for a reason, they all felt like he would succeed in this endeavor of his, and it was a feeling they all didn''t like. They continued watching as Grey sat on the same spot, not making any moves. ¡­. Inside the volcano. Grey was seated, going through the array. Klaus and the others were standing, bored as there was nothing to do. "Come on, hurry up." "I thought you said you were not in a hurry?" "It doesn''t mean I don''t have to tell him to hurry up, does it?" "If you keep talking I''ll throw you into the array." "I can always walk out of it." "Don''t distract him, you''re making too much noise." "So what if I don''t stop talking?" "You''re looking for a good beating." "Don''t think I''m afraid of that stupid clothes you wear when it''s time to fight. For your information, it doesn''t look nice. Why don''t you try changing how it is when you use it next time." "I''m not interested in how it looks. As long as I can beat you up with it, I''m good." "I''m done, what are you guys yapping on about?" Grey''s voice broke the tension between Klaus and Reynolds. "Don''t you think that stupid armor or whatever he turns his Elemental Warrior into looks bad?" Klaus asked. "Well¡­ as long as he can bring out the best of his abilities, there''s nothing wrong with how it looks." Grey replied. "You see, even Grey knows it looks crappy." Klaus pointed out. Grey''s slight hesitation indicated what Klaus wanted. "I can''t be bothered with how you see my body armor." Reynolds didn''t care about what Grey or Klaus felt about his armor. "Well, it looks crappy, and since you''re fighting beside handsome guys like myself and Grey, it will make us look bad. Fix it up." Klaus wasn''t going to give Reynolds a chance. "I can beat people up with how ugly it looks. Fuck what you think." Reynolds'' nonchalant attitude infuriated Klaus. "Alright bud, why don''t I make some suggestions for you?" Klaus asked, he knew there was no way he could get to Reynolds with such an approach, so he changed his approach. Reynolds snorted, not willing to answer him, "Aren''t we going any more?" Grey laughed and said, "Let''s go." Grey took the first step, and this time, unlike when he tried it the first time, an explosion didn''t take place. "Take the same path as me." He said to them. Klaus and the others nodded and followed behind him. The group of seven were about to get to the end of the array when Grey and his friends stepped on it. With Grey at the front, they walked casually through it. It was as if they were taking a stroll in their backyard. Not a single explosion rang off, and within a few seconds, they were on the other side of the array. "That was easy." Klaus commented as they left the array. "You thought I was joking when I said it''ll be easy?" Grey asked. "I never doubted you, I just wanted to mess around with you." Klaus said. Grey chuckled, he believed Klaus'' words fully. The group of seven were in shock when they saw how easy it was for Grey and his friends. Not just them, but everyone else who was present there. "Impossible!" Chapter 1377 A Fraud? **A.N: Please reload the last chapter, there was an error with it but it has been fixed.** "Nothing is impossible?" Klaus said. Someone who had been forced out of the array saw this scene and couldn''t believe his eyes, without any hesitation, he charged straight into the array. The memory of an Elementalist was excellent, especially one at such a level. The young man took the same path as Grey and his friends. "Sto¡­" Grey''s voice was covered by the explosion that followed suit. The young man didn''t set up any defenses and assumed he would be able to pass through with the same ease Grey and his friends did. Unfortunately for him, he was blasted into the sky, before crashing into the ground, losing consciousness. Grey shook his head when he saw this. He sighed and said, "Wait for me. I''ll be back real quick." He entered the array and walked over to where the young man was lying. A few people were staring at the injured young man, but none of them were making any moves to help him out. When Grey arrived, some of them looked at him and he shook his head, "I wouldn''t try that if I were you." He understood the meaning behind their looks. Some of them had the intention of forcing him to make the path safe for them. None of them had the intention of rushing through the path like this foolish young man, and they felt it would be easier to follow Grey or better still, force him into creating an open path. A liquid substance appeared on Grey''s palm and he placed his palm on the young man''s chest. The seriously injured young man started to show signs of recovery. The heat in the volcano shockingly made healing even quicker. The young man opened his eyes and saw Grey''s face. "I have no reason for helping you but since you were injured due to your ignorance, I''ll help out just this once." After saying this, Grey turned around and walked into the array. Before entering, he said to the eager crowd ready to jump in. "You all know how deadly it is, if you think I''d help heal the next person, then you''re all fools. Also, don''t even think about attacking me, you''ll not like the outcome." With that threat, Grey walked into the array. After taking his first step, he shook his head, he knew some people wouldn''t take his threat seriously and would definitely attack him. "Don''t take another step, or else I''ll kill you here and now." A young man said, his voice was cold. He was the one who told the young lady from the group of seven to stop Grey from doing whatever he wanted to do. Grey tilted his head slightly and used the side of his eyes to look at the young man. He shook his head and took another step. The young man attacked when he saw this. Grey turned and with a wave of his hand, the attack was destroyed. One hand was placed behind his back while his other hand was in front of him, his expression turned cold, and without hesitation, he attacked. He warned them from the start, but the young man thought he was stronger. He wanted to make sure he used the young man as a scapegoat. The young man was a Fire Elementalist, and his flames roared as he unleashed it at the incoming Grey. Grey acted oblivious to the flames as he phased through it. His body shone with pale blue flames as he attacked with ferocity. The young man could barely defend against his attack as he was sent flying. With just one attack, Grey showed his superiority. The others didn''t dare to try to get in his way any further. The young man spat out a mouthful of blood before getting back up. He didn''t think Grey would be this powerful. Now, he didn''t know what to do. In his present condition, passing through this level was impossible. His only chance was by healing up and attempting to go through the array once again. ¡­. Outside the volcano. While Grey was walking through the array like it was nothing, the middle-aged man and the other Elders couldn''t believe their eyes. Grey was breaking every form of logic they thought they had. "How?" This was the only question coming out of their mouths. They couldn''t believe someone like Grey actually existed. He cracked the array and got through it safely with his friends within thirty minutes. One must be a genius in the art of arrays to be able to get the hang of this array in such a short time. Either that, or he had prior knowledge of this array. However, from his first attempt, it was evident he didn''t have any prior knowledge of it. "So he broke through this array in such a short time?" An Elder asked. "You saw it too, didn''t you?" No one was willing to give an answer to the Elder, just like him, they didn''t know what to say about Grey''s performance. "Isn''t that the kid that Old man is so proud of? Flint or what is his name again?" An Elder pointed at the young man Grey sent flying. "Yes, I remember him. That Old man said he was the greatest student he had ever groomed. A grade seven genius, I think." Another Elder added, confirming the words of the first Elder. "He couldn''t take one blow from him. Is the difference between a grade nine genius and a grade seven genius so high or is it that the Flint kid is a fraud?" "There''s a good chance he''s a fraud. I don''t think the difference should be that high." "Haha, I can''t believe that Old man has been cheated." An Elder laughed in delight. The Old man they were referring to had been using the young man named Flint to show off before them for a while now. Seeing Flint being beaten with a single blow made them feel a certain sense of satisfaction. Even though they had nothing to do with Grey, they were happy someone could beat up that Old man''s student. At least the Old man would stop showing off in front of them after this. Chapter 1378 Im The Smartest Person Here Grey walked to the other side of the array and looked at his friends. "We should get going. I don''t think those guys like me much." "You just walked through something that has been giving them difficulties, twice, even I have the urge to attack you." The young lady from the group of seven said when she saw Grey. Klaus gave a sheepish laugh and said, "He warned them beforehand, they were fools to try to attack him." "Who in their right mind would dare to attack someone who could get through this array with such ease?" He asked. The young lady didn''t see anything wrong with Klaus'' statement, and much as it sounded prideful, it was the truth. Anyone capable of achieving such a feat isn''t someone she would underestimate. From how easy it was for Grey to send Flint flying, she felt Flint underestimated Grey. She has sparred with him on a few occasions and she barely gets the win. Most of their spars tend to end up in draws. She knew just how powerful Flint was, and she didn''t believe Grey would be able to defeat him with one blow if he was prepared for it. "You''re benevolent for helping that guy, he might''ve gotten worse if not for your help. However, if he were conscious, he would''ve been fine." The young lady said. "I noticed there''s a special attribute here, healing seems pretty quick here thanks to the heat from the volcano." Grey said. "I didn''t expect you to notice it so easily. But you''re right. The healing process here is very fast. Most of the Faction Elders and top geniuses come here to heal up after a tough battle." The young lady nodded to Grey''s words. "It''s just like our Faction''s ice tree." Klaus wasn''t too impressed with this. There was a tree made entirely of ice in the Moonlight Faction. According to the legends, the tree was brought by a God Plane Water Elementalist. Although he didn''t believe it much, it was said to be grown on the moon. It''s the only one of its kind, and could not live outside the Moonlight Faction. The Elders and Faction Leader held this tree in high esteem, and even treated it like it was a good. However, Klaus has never doubted its healing capabilities. There had been an occasion where an Elder was seriously wounded, on the brink of death. But the Elder was brought back to life by the tree. If not for the fact that he didn''t know where his father was located at the moment, he would''ve already taken him there. "An ice tree?" Reynolds asked in curiosity. "Yeah, I don''t talk about it much, but it has one of the greatest healing abilities I''ve ever seen." Klaus commented. "Damn, and I almost died from my stupid Faction''s lightning healing technique. I don''t know if that''s even a healing thing or if they just wanted to end my life." Reynolds couldn''t help but complain. "Did you heal up?" Klaus asked. "After almost one month of being constantly struck by lightning." Reynolds shivered, it was as if he could still feel the spasm from the lightning shock. "Haha, that''s not a healing technique, but it''s a good method to strengthen the body while also healing up." Klaus laughed. "They used the lightning to stimulate your healing, while also training you. It''s more like a two in one technique. It''s quite good, I''d recommend it." Grey explained when he saw Reynolds'' expression. "I know, but it''s not something I would want to go through another time." Reynolds pouted. "Enough talking, we should head deeper into the volcano. I wonder what lies ahead." Alice said. "You''ll find out when you step through that door." The young lady from the group of seven took the lead. Grey and his friends didn''t rush there, they waited until they''d gone through before they decided to go in themselves. On the other side of the door. Grey and his friends felt the heat surge. "If I''m not mistaken, this should be the last level." Grey said as he saw the burbling lava. "By chance, is this thing going to, you know, erupt anytime soon?" Klaus asked with a somewhat shaky voice. He could sense the danger from it and didn''t want to go anywhere near it. "Relax, she said their Elders will deal with it if it erupts." Alice said. "I''m not really too confident in leaving my chances to others. What if they''re a little slow. We''d be toast." Klaus said. "Don''t worry, I wouldn''t come in here without having plans of leaving in case of danger." Grey said, he paused and said, "The space here is quite difficult, but with Void present, we''ll be able to at least transport us to the first level. Leaving the volcano will be easy once we''re there." Klaus heaved a sigh when he heard this, "This is why I like going to dangerous places with you. You''re always thinking ahead in case of any danger. Unlike an ugly armor wearing fellow who just charges in without thinking of what dangers it holds." "Aren''t you the same?" Reynolds retorted. "No, I''m a civil person. You act like a barbarian in these situations. You always believe you''ll survive one way or the other. Although this makes you strong, you''ll get in serious trouble sooner or later." Klaus reiterated. Reynolds and the others thought about Klaus'' words and they couldn''t deny it. He was right. If Reynolds continues in this fashion, he will be in danger sooner or later. "Since when did you get so smart?" Alice asked. "I''ve always been smart. Don''t mistake my playfulness for stupidity. If I''m not mistaken, I''m the smartest person in this group." Klaus said, he looked at Reynolds and said, "Unfortunately, you''re the last." "It''s a tight competition between you two, but I believe Alice is smarter. Grey believes too much in his abilities and sometimes acts like Rey, charging into an ambush." He added. Everyone paused for a moment, Klaus actually made sense with his statements. There had been a few times Grey almost got into trouble due to his overconfidence in his abilities. Chapter 1379 A Phoenix? Grey didn''t say anything to Klaus since he knew he was right. Of course, he wouldn''t agree to Klaus saying he was the smartest, he''d rather he continued believing so. For someone who makes enemies all over the place, how could someone like that be the smartest person in the group. "What do you think this challenge is about?" Klaus asked. "Most likely crossing the lava." Alice pointed at the group of seven as they made their way across the lava. "They can''t be serious¡­" Klaus had a skeptical look on his face. "We''ll never know until we get to the other side." Grey said. He didn''t waste any time and teleported to the other side with his group. When he arrived, he was met with an attack. The group''s senses were sharp, and they reacted accordingly. The attack that shot out of the lava burned out their defenses, but they were still able to dodge it. The defenses they set up were able to slow down the attack speed of the lava. "Damn, these things are hot!" Klaus commented and shut all the holes in his snow protection shield. He wasn''t the only one, Reynolds, Alice, and even Grey set up protection against the heat from the lava. Apparently, this heat was not beneficial to them in any way. The only thing to do was to make sure it didn''t touch them. "What the hell is this? Are they planning to kill us for some sacrifice or something?" Reynolds exclaimed. The group of seven looked at them and the young lady explained, "You were attacked because you chose the shortcut. If you had gone across the lava like us, you would''ve had time to adjust to the sudden increase in heat." "Oh, I see. Well, we''re already here, there''s no point going back." Grey shrugged, he looked around and asked, "Is this the challenge? If it is, I''ll be a little disappointed." The young lady shook her head, "This is only one part of the challenge. The next part is on the other side. Walk a little further and you''ll see." The young lady was from the Phoenix Faction, and her status might be high given her talent. It was normal for her to know a thing or two about this place. Grey had zero apprehension about her words since he knew it was most likely true. The group weren''t attacked again as they advanced forward. Just like the young lady said, as they walked forward by a few meters, they saw what they would be fighting. Well, it was more like individual battles. "Is that thing alive?" Klaus moved closer to Grey and asked. "Nope. It''s just like that man. But it does have features of a living being." Grey explained. He had the light element and had a close connection with life. He could sense if a being had any form of life essence in them or not. Seeing the creature before them, he knew there was no form of life in it, even though it looked like it was alive. "That''s scary, how do they do it? I wouldn''t mind tricking a few people." Klaus asked. "I''ll find out after cracking the array the Firelord placed here." Grey replied. "You better get the hang of it, I wanna scare the living daylight out of my Faction members." Klaus gave an evil grin. The others knew he was planning something evil for his Faction members. It was a smile they were all too familiar with. "Don''t do anything stupid, dumb head." Reynolds said. Klaus didn''t care about what they were saying, "Oh, can we take this thing with us?" The young lady who was still crossing the lava with her group heard his words and almost lost focus, tripping and almost falling in the lava. "Don''t you dare think about anything!" The young lady lost her composure for the first time since Grey''s group encountered her. She has always been very calm and composed, but Klaus'' words threw her off her feet. Not just his words, but she got to find out the reason Grey entered this place. She recalled Grey and his friends didn''t show any interest in coming in, but she suddenly saw them inside. Who would''ve thought their intentions was to steal the formation of the Firelord? She panicked, but then given her status, she knew a thing or two about the array formation and calmed down. ''There''s no way he would be able to get it.'' She calmed herself. However, there''s a good chance Grey and his friends might be able to steal the creature that was there. She had heard about it and knew that it was a sacred beast. Klaus heard her scream and chuckled awkwardly, "I was only joking." The creature before them was none other than a Phoenix. The legendary Magical Beast that is said to be extinct. They''ve seen drawings of it and its distinct features were not something they could mistake for something else. "To think we''d see a Phoenix here." Reynolds remarked. "A dead Phoenix kept in good shape by a powerful being." Klaus corrected his statement. "It doesn''t change the fact that it''s still a Phoenix." Alice said. "Since it''s a Fire Phoenix, I''m not too interested in it. If it had been an Ice Phoenix, then, I would''ve shown interest." Klaus wasn''t too impressed with the Phoenix. The others shook their heads. They all knew how Klaus was like and couldn''t be bothered with him. "This is most likely the last level. I''ll be able to see the array formation after this." Grey said to Klaus, his intention was clear, be focused. "I know, I know." Klaus waved his hand at him, "I also have use for such a magnificent formation." "It''ll cost you." Grey said. "Don''t worry, my Faction has a lot in our reserves. The Faction Leader will only be upset for a few days. She can''t stay mad at me for too long. At most she''ll keep me inside for a year or two." Klaus didn''t seem bothered with Grey''s words. He knew Grey wasn''t speaking about payment, rather, resources to keep such a formation active. Klaus'' intention was for Grey to set up a formation like this in his Faction. He knew Grey wasn''t as powerful as the Firelord, but a small scale formation would be enough to groom a few talents. Of course, it all depends on if it will be worth it or not. If it is worth it, the Faction Leader wouldn''t punish him for too long. If it is not, then he was toast. Grey didn''t speak any further. They had to focus on what was at hand. Dealing with the Phoenix before them. "How powerful do you think it is?" Reynolds asked. "Not above our capabilities. I don''t know if we have to fight it together or individually." Grey wasn''t worried about the Phoenix. He had sensed its strength and knew it was within their ability. The only thing that has him confused is that he didn''t know if all of them would fight it simultaneously or individually. He soon got his answer when the Phoenix started to separate. It soon turned into five. "Oh, Void, looks like it sensed you too. You can''t avoid this." Grey chuckled. Void came out, looked at the Phoenix, "Stupid bird." After that statement he vanished, along with one of the Phoenixes. Of the five Phoenixes, three were at the Peak. It was evident that it was for the trio at the Peak. "Let''s deal with ours and leave." Grey said to the others. He didn''t know where Void disappeared to, but he knew he was safe. ¡­. Outside the volcano. The middle-aged man was stunned when he saw how Grey crossed the lava. He directly disappeared to the other side. What was worse was that they managed to block the attacks. Each of these attacks was a grade seven powerhouse attack, yet they managed to survive it. He was left astonished by the groups strength. "How are they all so powerful?" Another Elder asked. "I have no idea, but it''s safe to say they''re all grade nine geniuses." Another Elder said. They already had this thought in mind, but now that they saw them in action, they confirmed their guesses. Grey, Klaus, and Reynolds were the ones who drew the most attention. But from the looks of it, Alice was also on the same level as them. "Why did five Phoenixes appear and one of them disappeared all of a sudden?" An Elder noticed the anomaly. Void was too small, so when he appeared, they didn''t know he appeared. He disappeared with one of the Phoenixes, due to how fast everything happened, some of the Elder felt there was an error. "The formation has never made a mistake before." The middle-aged man said. "Could it be that there are five of them?" An Elder asked. "A Magical Beast hidden perhaps?" "Most likely." 10:46 "How come it hasn''t been sensed since?" Chapter 1380 Wheres It? "What sort of Magical Beast do you think they brought in?" Someone asked. "One with a top tier bloodline. Since the array wasn''t able to sense it early on shows that it is quite adept at hiding itself. We weren''t able to sense it as well." The middle-aged man said to the other Elders. They all nodded. When they saw Grey, they didn''t think that he had a Magical Beast on him. Well, neither did they sense the Seelie that was on Alice. But the case of Alice and the Seelie is different given the fact that they merged, unlike Grey''s case that an entire Magical Beast was completely hidden from them. "Did anyone get the strength of the last Phoenix that appeared?" An Elder asked. No one could answer, Void left too early, taking it with him. Since they couldn''t sense the cultivation stage of the Phoenix, there was no way they would be able to know just how powerful the Magical Beast is. "It should be powerful since it''s with them." The Elders all continued their conversation. ¡­. Meanwhile, Grey and his friends had started their battles with the Phoenixes. These Phoenixes were stronger than anything they''ve faced so far. Klaus was having difficulties oppressing it with his ice as he had done all through the trial. Not just him, Reynolds and Alice as well. But the Phoenixes didn''t have it easy as well. They couldn''t overpower their opponents which indicated that they were around the same strength. Well¡­ not all of them. Grey had the advantage over his opponent. It was easy to say that with his multiple elements, fighting someone on the same level wasn''t really a fair fight for the other person. Grey was too versatile, making him a pain in the ass. With his versatility, he could use multiple tricks, forcing his opponents into difficult situations in a short time. Grey was used to fighting people stronger than he is, and even during those times, he still tends to get a certain type of advantage over them. Fighting a grade eight opponent of the same cultivation stage was a little different when compared to when he was fighting against those people who were stronger than he was. A grade eight opponent in the same stage as himself could accomplish some of the things he does, which includes fighting against opponents on a higher cultivation stage. Grey didn''t think too much about his opponent, he knew he had the advantage, and he was using it to the fullest. The Phoenix was forced back from the start of the fight. Grey''s attack power was stronger than its own, adding the fact that he could disappear and appear whenever and wherever he wanted, it made him a tough target. The Phoenix kept missing its attacks while Grey''s attacks came from unpredictable angles, forcing the Phoenix which was in the air lower to the ground. Grey was making full use of his abilities, and the Phoenix was not able to keep up. Two inscriptions lit up the sky to add to Grey''s already overwhelming arsenal. With the inscriptions in place, the Phoenix slowly started to show signs of being completely suppressed by Grey. At this rate, it would not be able to last a few more minutes. Grey was forcing his opponent back, beating it up, while the others were still struggling with theirs. They weren''t oppressed by their opponents, but they didn''t have the complete advantage like in Grey''s case. Klaus'' defense made him a hard nut to crack, Reynolds and Alice''s speed made them difficult to get a hold of. They kept attacking the Phoenixes, but these Phoenixes were also just as fast as they dodged most of the attacks coming their way. Other than Grey who was having a field day, the rest were in a real tussle. In no time, Grey managed to defeat his opponent. The Phoenix, after a long battle, was taken down by Grey and it soon turned into elemental particles that started to merge with Grey. Grey wanted to move away, but he sensed that it was good. He didn''t dodge it and allowed his body to be covered by the particles. After a few seconds, he absorbed all there was to be absorbed. "Looks like I can''t help them." He muttered after absorbing the elemental particles. If he helps the others out, he might get a share in these spectacular particles. He didn''t want his friends to miss out on this, and from the looks of things, he knew they would undoubtedly win. "So long as they don''t make any mistakes, they will be good." Void suddenly appeared on his shoulder, "Defeated yours?" "Light work, you?" Grey asked. "Yeah. The particles are great stuff. Take more if you can." Void advised and vanished. ''Where are you going?'' Grey had a bad premonition. ''I''m going to steal a little from their reserves. They won''t even know.'' Void''s voice sounded in Grey''s ears and Grey felt like he had been struck by lightning. ''Fuck! Void don''t steal anything! Wait until I''ve seen the array!'' He panicked. He didn''t know much about the array, but he was afraid they might be kicked out if Void was caught stealing. His intention hadn''t been met yet, there was no way he was going to leave without checking out the array. As long as he could get a sense of the array, he would be able to understand a few things from it. He had been studying the symbols he saw in the secret realm he visited the last time with the Giants. Although he hadn''t been able to understand much from it, the few things he had understood were breathtaking. His eyes have been opened to another dimension of array formations he never knew was possible. If he could learn this as well, he would truly advance in his studies of formations. He was still thinking on how to stop Void when the young lady and her group arrived. They managed to get through the volcano after some minutes. Seeing Grey standing idle, the young lady understood what happened, but she didn''t want to believe it. "Where''s the Phoenix?" Chapter 1381 What Are You Up To? Grey looked at her strangely, there were multiple Phoenixes present, yet she was asking him where it was. He soon realized she was asking for his opponent, "Defeated. It wasn''t much of a hassle." "You defeated a Phoenix so soon?" The young lady asked. "Yes, is there something wrong with doing that? Mind you, I did not in any way steal it, it turned into particles." Grey explained. He thought she was asking these questions due to Klaus'' statement prior to the battle. Klaus spoke of taking them away, so not seeing one, Grey thought the young lady felt he had taken it away. She looked at Grey but didn''t know what to say. The fact that it only took less than five minutes for Grey to defeat a grade eight opponent was shocking. One has to know that grade eight powerhouses are the top tier powerhouses in the entire Continent. Yet Grey was able to defeat one in less than five minutes, it was a shocking thing to think about. ''A grade nine. He''s a grade nine.'' A realization dawned on the young lady and she lost her ability to breathe for a few seconds. She lost composure and took another look at Grey. To be certain, she asked again, "The opponent you fought was on the same stage as you, right?" "Well, they''re all fighting opponents in the same stage as themselves, so yeah, the Phoenix I fought was on the same stage as myself." Grey didn''t understand the reason behind her questions, he raised a brow and asked, "Is something wrong?" "No, nothing." The young lady shook her head. She couldn''t wait to rush back to the Faction and report her findings to the Elders and Faction Leaders. A grade nine expert appeared, and he was so young as well. This was a chance for them to strike a good relationship with him. She took a look at Grey''s friends, and her eyes widened. All of them displayed abilities stronger than their peers. The Phoenixes they were fighting were all in a difficult position. They could barely keep up with their attacks. At the current pace, she knew they would be able to defeat the Phoenixes in no time. Klaus and Reynolds in particular seemed to be on the verge of defeating their opponents. ''I''m no match for them.'' The young lady felt her usual pride sink. She has always held herself in high esteem due to her exceptional abilities, but Grey and his friends crushed her confidence with their abilities. Grey was out of this world, that was all she could say. His friends, they were bordering between the very peak of the world and wanting to become out of the world, just like their friend. "How did such figures exist?" She muttered in shock. She was the only one who knew the strength of these Phoenixes. Her chances against one in the same stage was very low, but due to being from the Faction, and also highly valued and favored, she was given a few items in case she couldn''t win on her own. Well, the Faction Leader knew she couldn''t win, hence the reason he gave the item to her. Seven Phoenixes appeared and faced each of the seven new people that just arrived. The young lady looked at Grey who was standing there, waiting for his friends in an idle manner and didn''t know what to feel. He was like a shooting star, drawing all the attention to himself. Grey stopped bothering with her and focused on trying to get to Void. If Void was successful, he wanted to tell him to take a few more for him, if he wasn''t, he wanted to reprimand him. Void didn''t reply him no matter what he said. ''Damn it!'' Klaus'' laughter soon rang out, attracting Grey''s attention. "You silly bird, daring to go toe to toe with your daddy. Did you think I wouldn''t defeat you?" Klaus asked after piercing his thin blade into the body of the Phoenix. The Phoenix started to freeze, soon turning into an ice sculpture. It shattered and the particles came out, rushing into Klaus'' body. When Klaus sensed it, he smiled and said, "Good stuff. How can we get more?" Grey saw his expression and knew he had the same thoughts as Void. Luckily, Klaus didn''t have the space element, if not, he would''ve left this place already. Seeing his eyes move to Reynolds and Alice''s Phoenixes, Grey said, "Don''t even dare." "Relax, I''m not that greedy to take away good stuff from my friends." Klaus said nonchalantly, his attention turned to those from the group of seven. "You''re not allowed to interfere, it''s their business. Don''t cause any trouble for us." Grey was forced to warn Klaus. Klaus chuckled and looked away. He walked over to Grey and whispered, "Where''s Void?" "He''s still fighting." Grey replied. "Who are you lying to? I saw him appear beside you, and you two were talking." Klaus glared at Grey, he added, "Fill me in on it or I expose you." "Expose me for what?" "I don''t know, whatever you''re doing?" "How are you going to expose me when you don''t even know what I''m doing?" "Don''t try me." "I''m not in a mood for this. Once the others are done we''re leaving. I still have to find the array formation." "Come on." Klaus was disheartened when he saw that Grey wasn''t willing to tell him anything, "Do I at least get some benefits from it?" "Move away." Grey pushed Klaus away from him. Reynolds soon defeated his opponent, and after a few more minutes, Alice was done with her opponent as well. "That was testing. I wish they were a little stronger, I feel I would''ve been able to break through if I had fought a little longer with them, but under pressure." Alice said with a look of regret. She absorbed the particles, but it wasn''t enough to satisfy her hunger to grow stronger quicker. "Let''s go. There''s nothing for us here." Chapter 1382 Locating The Secret Cave Outside the volcano. The middle-aged man could barely believe his eyes. They already knew this was the case, but seeing it was quite unbelievable. Four grade nine geniuses, all four are friends. Just how powerful is their background that they were able to create such elite figures. These were geniuses whose names would go on to shake the continent in the next ten years or so, as long as they didn''t die prematurely, they were all bound to become famous. "They''ve all completed the trial in such a short time." One Elder commented. The others nodded. Grey and his friends managed to achieve something they didn''t think they would see in their lifetime. As much as the Elders were flabbergasted, they were also extremely envious of the force that had the trio. From their fighting techniques, it was clear that they were all from different forces. They only managed to become friends through one way or the other. How the four became friends is none of their business, but the fact that they were all grade nine geniuses was beyond imagination. "How can we form ties with them?" An Elder asked. "We first need to know where they''re from. If we can pay them a visit some time in the future, they will certainly remember us. Also, they should be indebted to us since we let them use our trial to grow. Even if they wouldn''t grow much, they still can''t deny the fact that they got some things from this place." An Elder made mention of the benefits the group had already benefited. They didn''t have to pay anything to get these, so it could be said to be a way of building ties with them. "You''re right. We''ve given them the privilege of using our volcano. Even seeing the Phoenixes and absorbing them is an honor for anyone, no matter how talented they are." Another Elder said. "We''ll see how they act after they come out." The middle-aged man said. He agreed with what the Elder said, but he wanted to ensure that they didn''t rush this. They had to be very delicate with this issue. The discussions of the Elders and the middle-aged man had been kept away from the ears of the few people who didn''t enter the volcano. The last part wasn''t visible to others, only the Elders and the middle-aged man. Only they were able to see Grey and his friends battle with the Phoenixes. Seeing the group walking further, one of the Elders raised an alarm. "Where are they going?" "Huh?" The middle-aged man and the others were taken aback and looked at the group of four. Contrary to what they expected, they weren''t heading towards the bright light that would take them out of the volcano, rather, they were headed in another direction. The expression of the middle-aged man and the Elders changed drastically. "How did he find it?" The middle-aged man was shaken. Grey wasn''t headed out of the volcano, rather, he was heading towards what seemed to be a waterfall, but instead of water, lava was what was falling off the place. Only those who knew this place knew of the secret passage there. But Grey was heading there as if he knew about it before entering. They knew certain Grey didn''t have any idea of this place before coming here, they saw the curiosity in his eyes. Nevertheless, his current performance was starting to make them doubt if he truly had zero knowledge about this place. Knowing there was a passage there was one thing, being confident enough to know that the lava wouldn''t hinder him was another thing. They all froze as they watched Grey''s group stand in front of the lava. From how Grey was walking around, and his thoughtful expression, they knew he didn''t know how to pass the place. They heaved a sigh of relief when they saw this, but their relief didn''t last for long. The reason for this was because Grey used an inscription to attack the lava. Seeing his attack disappear into it, he created multiple inscriptions and attacked simultaneously with them. An opening showed up and the group bolted through it before it closed up. This told the Elders and middle-aged man that he didn''t know it was safe to pass through. But this didn''t change the fact that he had passed through. "Is he truly going to be able to study the array?" One of them was short of words. The middle-aged man didn''t know what to say. ¡­. Inside the volcano. Grey was able to sense this place thanks to Void. Although Void didn''t speak to him, he was still able to sense his general location. Following him, he found out he was somewhere behind the lava. After getting through, what he had been waiting for came into view. An intricate array appeared before his eyes. The array was on the same level as the ones he saw in the secret realm. ''Damn! I thought it wouldn''t be this difficult.'' He complained internally. He quickly got to work after seeing the array. An entire cave was filled with array lines, and he knew this wasn''t the complete array, but the core. If he could understand this, he didn''t need to worry about the other part of the formation, he could use this to create it himself. Klaus looked around, sensing the array, he looked away. He didn''t want to burn his brain cells. This wasn''t for him, and he wasn''t going to pretend it was. "Don''t you know where we can get more of that good stuff?" He asked. "I''m studying, don''t bother me. You can explore the cave. If you find anything good, it''s your luck." Grey chased them away. When they saw his current state, they knew nothing would be able to get Grey from this place. Other than the Faction Leader or Elders of the Phoenix Faction, anyone weaker than him wouldn''t be able to get him to move. Chapter 1383 Looking For A Rematch Klaus and the others left Grey to go ahead with his study as they started to explore the cave. The cave was quite large, and they could see a few passages. They knew if they headed in that direction, they would be able to see a few things. "Should we go that way?" Klaus asked. "It''s best we stay put." Alice said, "We just absorbed some good stuff, we can use it to strengthen ourselves." "Besides, he''s the only one who can ensure our safety. If we move recklessly and he isn''t there, we might get in a whole lot of trouble." She added. Reynolds nodded to her words. Klaus sighed, "You guys¡­ forget it. Let''s wait for him." "If only Void were here." He muttered after seating begrudgingly. He wasn''t into staying idle, but Alice was right. Grey was the only one who could teleport them out of this place in case of any danger, and he was presently studying the array he was also interested in. So instead of causing him any trouble, it was best he stayed put and watched him. There were a few things he could still do before Grey was done. On the other side of the lava waterfall. The young lady and her group finished the trial after over thirty minutes. She was the only one able to defeat her opponent, the others were beaten. Even though they lost, they still gained some benefits from the Phoenixes. She didn''t recall seeing Grey and his friends leaving this place. "Where could they have gone to?" She asked. No one from her group could answer. They were all engrossed in their battles and couldn''t keep an eye on Grey and his friends as they left. "We should head out, there''s nothing here. I think they''ve gone out." Someone said. The young lady looked towards the volcano with a skeptical look, but didn''t think too much about it. She felt maybe she was overthinking it. There was a good chance the group of four had walked out of this place already. "Let''s go out." She said and took the lead. While they were leaving, no one else had managed to get to this stage. Walking through the portal, they appeared outside the volcano. Seeing the people staring at them, they all felt a sense of pride. They all got to the last stage, and that was an amazing achievement. The young lady however was searching for someone, someone he couldn''t find in the crowd. Most of the people who entered the volcano had come out after not being able to advance to the next rounds. At least ninety percent of the people that entered the volcano were out, only a few were still trying to get past the stages. Some of them would eventually give up, while a few would be able to get to the next stage with sheer tenacity. Those who can break through their limits will experience a short growth spurt that will see them advance at a faster pace for a short period. Seeing that neither Grey, nor any of his friends were present, she walked over to the middle-aged man and the other Elders who were seated in a secluded place. She bowed to them, and seeing all their attention on the screen where she just stepped out, she knew the only other thing of interest there was the lava. "Uncle, did he go through that lava?" She asked. "You guessed right, he managed to pass through." The middle-aged man replied. "But¡­ how can he pass through? That place is very dangerous." The young lady found it hard to believe. "Your Teacher will explain more about it. For now, you can join the others. We will reward the few who weren''t able to get to the last stage." The middle-aged man said. The last stage was the main reward, for Fire Elementalists, it was a holy trove for them as it will make them grow quickly. But anyone who didn''t get to the last stage will be rewarded according to their performances. Although it looked like the Phoenix Faction were losing, in truth, they were gaining a lot. Being able to create ties with so many young geniuses was a very important part of their Faction. These young geniuses will grow to feel indebted to them and will in most cases come to their aid if needed. This was a ploy to get more people to not only join the Faction, but also avoid having any issues with them. Imagine offending a powerful Faction that has ties across the world. Just the thought of that was frightening. Only someone with a death warrant would want to have a feud with such a Faction. The Phoenix Faction was so smart with this move that they ensured it was only done once every fifty years. This will give the geniuses time to grow, and some would even send their offsprings to this place. The middle-aged man addressed the young group and started handing out rewards. He looked around and saw a figure missing. It was Flint, the young genius of the Old man. He was on the verge of getting to that last trial. The middle-aged man felt it was good for Flint if he managed to get to the last trial. He would be able to increase his strength. His only concern is that, if Grey were to step out and Flint tries to attack him again, he would be in serious trouble. Flint is known for his unyielding attitude, after almost always being on top, and then getting bested by Grey with a single attack he would want a rematch. Grey was stronger, but Flint would not believe this. The middle-aged man was very certain of this. ''I wonder how he would react if he was beaten again.'' The middle-aged man thought of something and shook his head. The Old man who was Flint''s Teacher had a bad temper and might come for Grey if he heard that he beat up his precious student. Chapter 1384 Ploy To Create Ties ''Speaking of the devil.'' The middle-aged man looked in the direction of the large door leading to the Hall, and an Old man could be seen walking into the place. There was nothing special about the man from a glance, however, anyone powerful enough could sense the hidden strength in the seemingly harmless body of the Old man. The Old man didn''t draw any attention as he appeared, he silently walked into the Hall, disappearing into the crowd. The next time he came to view, he was seated with the Elders of the Phoenix Faction. "Flint is still inside?" The Old man inquired about his student. One of the Elders pointed at one screen, and Flint could be seen trying to cross the lava. "I knew he would make it this far." The Old man didn''t seem surprised that his student made it that far. In truth, other than the group of seven, only Grey''s group managed to make it to the last level. The group of seven had the advantage of being from the Faction, and the young lady was given a few things that helped them through their journey. The fact that Flint could make it this far on his own showed that he was a top genius. In the entire Phoenix Faction, only the young lady who was the leader of the group of seven could achieve such a feat without any help. leader of the group of seven could achieve such a feat without any help. "Did anyone else make it to that level?" The Old man asked. When the Elders wanted to speak, the Old man added, "With the exception of your Faction''s people." The Old man knew the Elders of the Phoenix Faction wanted to use the chance to brag about their members already passing that stage, so he didn''t give them the chance. As long as his student is the only one who gets to this level, he has all the bragging rights. "Well¡­ a group of four made it to this level. They completed it in a short time too." One of the Elders said, one could almost hear the gloating in his voice. The Old man was taken aback when he heard this. He knew that for anyone to get through this stage, said person needs to be at least a grade eight genius. Then being able to complete it in a short time meant that person must be a grade nine genius. "Stop joking around, I know you don''t want me to brag about my student''s superior ability. But don''t you think saying four kids passed it in such a short time is a bit too much?" The Old man found the Elder''s words hard to believe. If the Elder had said one person, he would''ve not argued since the possibility, although slim, is not impossible. But four friends? Impossible! He would never believe such lies. To the Old man, this Elder was spewing lies. The middle-aged man came in at this time. He overheard the entire conversation and said, "They''re not lying. There truly is a group of four who passed this stage in less than ten minutes." "They must have helped each other." The Old man said. "I wish that was the case." The middle-aged man shook his head. He, too, found it hard to believe, but he saw it with his own eyes, there was no way he could doubt that. What was worse was that Grey was currently seated in the cave, the core area of the formation. He recalled Grey didn''t want to enter the trial from the start, but after seeing and hearing about the array, his interest was piqued and he entered. The reason the middle-aged man could not chase him out was due to the fact that he told Grey he would be able to see the array if he entered. When he said this, he didn''t believe Grey would be able to get to the last level, much less able to locate the array. He started to worry when he saw how easy it was for Grey to get through each stage. He was thrilled at the thought of a grade nine genius appearing, and then once again, he was scared by the possibility of the Firelord''s formation being figured out by a kid. The Old man was short of words. He knew the middle-aged man well, and knew he wouldn''t joke about such an event. "Where are the kids, I''d like to see them." The Old man asked, looking around, trying to see if he would be able to fish them out on his own. Such outstanding individuals wouldn''t be hard to pick out. "They''re still inside." The middle-aged man said. "What are they doing inside? Haven''t they completed the last level already?" The Old man was confused. The middle-aged man explained, "One of them wanted to see the array. I didn''t think they would be able to get to that level. So I told him he could see it if he entered the trial." "In my defense, I didn''t know they were grade nine geniuses at that time. After all, it''s not written on their faces." The middle-aged man dropped his head. The Old man processed what he just heard and burst out laughing. He couldn''t believe the Phoenix Faction''s most revered array was being studied by a total stranger. "You really messed up. I wonder what that fellow will say when he finds out about this." The Old man laughed as he spoke. "My brother will let it slide. It''s not like this is an array that can be understood in a few days. Creating a tie with such geniuses at the expense of the formation isn''t too bad." The middle-aged man said, even though his expression said otherwise. "Why''s your face black if you know he won''t say anything?" The Old man asked with a laugh. "What are you even doing here?" The middle-aged man felt annoyed that the Old man was poking fun at him. "The Phoenix Faction is my benefactor. You guys tied me down to your Faction, just as you''re planning to do to those kids. But unlike me, I believe they''re already allied with powerful forces." The Old man shrugged. He wasn''t a member of the Phoenix Faction, but he had a very close relationship with them. "Oh right, one of them beat up your precious student." The middle-aged man said with a smile. The Old man raised a brow, "What?!" "With a single punch. He sent Flint flying." An Elder said, emphasizing on the single punch. The Old man''s expression darkened, "I will like to see which force they are from for they to dare bully my student." The Old man''s reaction was as the others expected. He was erratic and a few times, he acted on impulse. Although he is old, he reacts to things however he likes. Take nothing away from him, the reason he acts this way is not due to having the backing of the Phoenix Faction, but he was a powerful expert in his own right. A grade seven expert in his stage. Such a powerhouse isn''t someone anyone wants to mess with. Just like the Old man, Flint was also a grade seven powerhouse, this gave the Old man inexplicable joy. Now, he was hearing his precious student was bullied? He will never accept it. While they were speaking, Flint had gone past the lava and was about to face off against the Phoenix. ¡­. Inside the volcano. "A Phoenix. Teacher did say I would see one if I came here." Flint said. "According to what I know, it''s a grade eight expert on the same stage as me." "Can I defeat a grade eight opponent?" Flint was excited. He had never gotten the chance to fight against anyone who was in grade eight before. The only person he had fought with who was strong was the young lady leading the group of seven, and she was a grade seven genius, just like himself. Their spars occasionally end in draws. The few times he had lost against her was due to him either not taking it seriously or he was distracted. "I want to see if I can fight it." Flint charged at the Phoenix, attacking it. On the other side of the lava waterfall. Grey, who had his eyes closed for over one hour, finally opened them. His expression was serious, "This will take a while." "Does that mean we''re going to stay here longer?" Klaus asked, he was frustrated. "Nope. I''ve gotten the entire drawing in my head. I''ll slowly decipher it on my own time." Grey shook his head. "Good, let''s go." Klaus said. "I don''t think they will allow us to pry into their secrets. The fact that we''ve been allowed to stay here and not leave is already showing benevolence, let''s not take advantage of their kindness." Grey didn''t agree to them exploring the place. Besides, Void was back and according to Void, going past those tunnels was dangerous. Void wasn''t able to get anything, he was noticed the moment he showed up and had to leave immediately. Chapter 1385 Sharp Senses "So we''re leaving just like that?" Klaus asked, stunned at Grey''s words. "Pretty much." Grey nodded, seeing Klaus'' reaction, he added, "Do you think you can take something from a place even Void couldn''t?" "Valid reason, let''s go." Klaus didn''t argue any further after hearing this. Who was he kidding? Getting something from a place Void wasn''t able to? It was impossible even in his dream, much less in real life. It was best they left now. Grey shook his head when he saw this. Klaus might be troublesome, but he always tries to ensure he doesn''t purposely cause trouble with people that were too strong for him or those around him to handle. Thinking about it, Klaus had a knack for being troublesome, yet, he has never in any way offended anyone above their league. ''Is he doing it on purpose?'' Grey took a glance at Klaus who was leading the group out of the volcano. He followed Grey''s method and attacked continuously, and after creating a hole, they jumped out of the cave. The second they came out of the cave, they saw Flint getting beat up by the Phoenix. "A show, we should watch." Klaus brought out a chair and took a seat. It was no regular chair, but a throne. This throne has been in his possession since his they left the Azure Continent. He shared it with Reynolds a few times, but now, it was his. "You still have this?" Grey was short of words. "Of course! It''s quite exquisite. I haven''t seen any throne on the same level as this since I came here." Klaus responded, he pouted and said, "I''m pretty disappointed at them. They couldn''t even create a throne with the remains of a Dragon or something. Given the powerhouses present, I''m ashamed of them." Grey looked at Flint''s figure and recalled their previous encounter. "He''s the guy who tried to attack me." He said softly. "He''s not bad then, being able to get to this stage shows that he''s quite powerful." Alice said. "Yes, but he''s too proud. He will lose to the Phoenix. Tenacity can not make up for his weakness in such battles, it will only get him killed." Grey said. "Stop talking like an old man, you''re no older than he is." Klaus said after hearing Grey''s words. Grey shrugged, he didn''t mind Klaus calling him an old man. But the fact remained that Flint is not as strong as the Phoenix. It''s understandable if it''s a life and death battle, but in a position like this, it is not only a waste of time, but there is also the risk of getting seriously injured. Flint noticed the eyes on him, but he didn''t have the chance to look in that direction. He was fully oppressed by the Phoenix, any lapse in concentration and he might get seriously injured. This is something he was all too aware of, so he kept his focus. Besides, anyone who appears here wouldn''t want to attack him. His safety was guaranteed here, as long as he didn''t attack anyone like the last time he attacked Grey. He continued fighting with the Phoenix, trying to make sure he wasn''t defeated. A few minutes later, he could only give up. The Phoenix was too powerful, and he wasn''t strong enough. For some reason, the array is aware from the moment anyone gives up on the battle as the Phoenix stopped fighting the second he gave up. It went back to sleep and disappeared. Some essence from the place the Phoenix disappeared floated into the body of Flint. Flint knew this was the ultimate reward here, so he carefully absorbed it. After absorbing it, he turned around. Seeing Klaus seated on a throne, and then Grey seated on an ice throne. Klaus didn''t want them to look out of place, so he created ice thrones for the other three. Although his golden throne was more attractive, it didn''t take away the beauty of the ice thrones which looked like they were made from crystals. Klaus started applauding when Flint turned to look at them. Grey''s eyes twitched when he heard Klaus clapping. "Fuck!" Flint exclaimed uncontrollably. It was like he was a showman performing for Grey and his friends. What annoyed him isn''t the fact that Klaus was seated on a throne, or the fact that he was clapping, well, it did annoy him, but not as much as seeing Grey''s nonchalant face as he sat on the ice throne, staring at him. "You angered him." Reynolds commented. "We better get going." Grey stood up and walked in the direction of the portal leading outside the volcano. "Where do you think you''re going?" Flint asked, he was incensed. "Out." Grey didn''t stop as he replied. Flint wanted to make a move but then he felt the temperature drop, his gaze turned to Klaus he had a grin on his face. "I wouldn''t do that if I were you." ¡­. Outside the volcano. The Old man was furious. He watched the whole ordeal, from Grey and his friends appearing, to them sitting on a throne. The throne Klaus seated on was better than all the chairs he had ever taken a seat on, he was hundreds of years old, yet he had never seated on such a luxurious seat. "I''ll kill that brat!" The Old man said. From Klaus'' actions, he felt he was the leader of the group. Klaus was the one who had the demeanor of a top talent. He felt he was the one who attacked his student. Seeing his student show anger towards Grey, he assessed the situation. However, he still felt like killing Klaus. Klaus made a jest of his precious student, this could not be allowed. "Old man, don''t make any rash moves when they come out. This is the Phoenix Faction, until we know the full extent of their backgrounds, you can not make any silly moves." For the first time, the usual nonchalance on the expression and demeanor of the middle-aged man changed, a touch of seriousness came in. They might be a top Faction in the Southern Continent, but they aren''t willing to offend multiple top Factions all because this Old man''s ego was stepped on. "Never tell me what to do." The atmosphere became tense with the Old man''s response. It was clear that he was not in a good mood. The middle-aged man felt a headache, he couldn''t help but wonder why Klaus would even have any interest in taking out a throne to watch someone else fight. He was already done there, what''s the point in staying there to watch. What was worse was that he not only watched, but he applauded after the show was over. Any genius would feel insulted if someone their age treated them in such a manner. Much less a grade seven genius of Flint''s caliber. Flint will not take this lying. His Teacher was not taking it lying, much less Flint himself. The middle-aged man knew he was going to have to settle this as soon as they came out, if not, it might escalate beyond this. With the Old man''s personality, he will never let this slide. ¡­. Inside the Volcano. Flint looked at Klaus, he was also at the Peak of the Venerable Plane, so he was by no means intimidated by Klaus'' show of power. "An ice user dares to show off in front of me?" His body blazed with flames. Flint was a Fire Elementalist, and he felt he was superior to anyone using the water element. In a volcano, he had all the advantages. Klaus laughed when he saw this, "Did he hurt your little ego when he beat you up?" "He attacked without warning, he''s no match for me in a true fight." Flint snorted. To be fair, he didn''t expect Grey to attack with such force, so he didn''t really put up a strong defense. He was stunned when the strike hit him. "In a ''true fight'' as you call it, you''d be dead." Klaus laughed and walked toward the portal as well. There was no point in speaking with people like Flint, he will never admit to being inferior. Reynolds and Alice followed behind him as they left the place. Flint walked right behind them, he was going to show Grey who was better. ¡­. Outside the volcano. A light appeared and Grey was the first to step out. Klaus and the other two followed behind him before Flint stepped out. The second they all appeared, Grey sensed hostility and looked straight at the eyes of the Old man. The middle-aged man was shocked at Grey''s senses. The Old man was hostile, but only top experts could sense it. The fact that Grey was able to sense it the second he stepped out of the volcano was amazing. Grey squinted his eyes, and just as he was about to speak, Flint spoke up. "I''m challenging you to a duel." Chapter 1386 Afraid To Lose? Grey turned his attention away from the Old man and looked at Flint, his gaze lingering on his body before shaking his head, "You''re not my match. Don''t embarrass yourself." Grey''s reply was even more insulting than if he accepted and beat Flint up. Flint would have no problem with that, but Grey outrightly saying he was not his match was the most humiliating he had ever gone through. "You¡­" "To be sincere, you''re no match for me as well. Why don''t you fight with Rey? He''s the weakest. If not for the fact that Alice''s cultivation stage is two stages lower than yours, she would''ve beaten you up too." Klaus stepped in front of Grey and pointed at Reynolds. Of all of them, Alice was the only one who couldn''t use strength belonging to a Peak Venerable. Well, their term of Peak Venerable was someone that had the same strength as them. Anyone below grade five couldn''t defeat Alice even though she wasn''t at the Peak of the Venerable Plane. Grey saying it was already humiliating, Klaus not just saying it, but also adding to it made it more embarrassing for Flint. The veins on his head bulged out as he was on the verge of losing his temper. "Because he attacked me when I wasn''t prepared, he thinks he''s better than me?" Flint was furious, "I want to challenge him, if he has the guts he should accept it. After I''m done with him, I''ll beat you up as well." "You do have a point, why don''t we do this. You start with Reynolds, if you''re successful in your attempt, I''ll give you all the time you need to rest before you fight with me, alright?" Klaus asked with a smile. Klaus'' expression showed that he didn''t take Flint''s words seriously. Grey chuckled when he saw Klaus'' antics. He knew Klaus was only doing all this as a means to relieve his boredom. "I''m stronger than you, why does he have to fight me first when you''re clearly the weakest?" Reynolds asked, annoyed at the fact that Klaus was demeaning him in front of others. "What do you mean? You''ve always been the weakest, now shut up and beat him up. Don''t embarrass us." Klaus waved Reynolds off. Lightning danced on Reynolds'' body as he replied, "I''m more interested in beating you up." Klaus'' expression changed and he moved closer to Grey, "Stop acting like you''re not raring to go. Well, here''s a free meal." Klaus'' attitude startled those watching. Due to Flint challenging Grey the moment he appeared, everyone present watched them, without even bothering about anything else. The fact that Grey replied in such a manner, and that Klaus said Flint was not also his match was exciting. All these geniuses knew of Flint''s fame, so seeing these guys speaking to him in such a manner, they were excited at the battle that was about to ensue. The middle-aged man stepped in to act as the peacemaker. "There will be no fighting in our Hall¡­" He looked at the duo, the eyes of everyone dulled, but they brightened with his next statement, "We have an arena for disputes like this." The Old man at the side didn''t have a good impression on, the reason for this was because he knew, if what the middle-aged man and the other Elders said was true, then his student truly was no match for the group of four. However, telling his student this will damage his confidence and pride. ''Who says a grade seven can''t beat a grade nine?'' This was the question in his head as he scoffed. He believed in his student, as long as he was intentional, he had a great chance of winning. Battling a Magical Beast that doesn''t have a consciousness is different from battling an Elementalist. One couldn''t come up with plans when fighting against a stronger opponent, the other could. Everyone in the Hall moved to the arena area. The youths were excited at the battle that was going to take place, while the Elders all looked on with interest. Grey didn''t head to the platform, he didn''t see any reason in doing that. Flint stood on the platform and pointed at Grey, "I''m challenging you to a duel. Not anyone else, just you." "You attacked me while we were in the volcano, I want to have my revenge." Grey looked at Flint, a little amused as he replied, "I only retaliated to your attack. If you want to blame me for your incompetence, then you have no hope." Flint felt even more irritated by Grey''s words. He was about to speak when a deep voice was heard across the arena. "Boy, you''re challenged by someone, as an Elementalist, you should honor this challenge." Grey looked straight at the Old man. This caught not only the Old man off guard, but all the Elders as well. Grey was able to pinpoint where the voice came from accurately. "I forfeit. Can I leave now?" Grey spoke up coolly. The Old man was stumped when he heard this, he couldn''t believe his ears. Grey just said he forfeit the battle. ''What sort of genius is this? Being able to fight a grade eight Phoenix but is afraid of entangling with him?'' The Old man wasn''t the only one with this thought in his head, the middle-aged man, the Elders, and even the young lady from the group of seven was shocked at the fact that Grey refused. The young lady saw the exchange between the two while they were in the volcano and knew Flint would definitely try to seek revenge. He never expected Grey was so nonchalant towards things like these. Flint and even worse reaction to this. The more Grey refused to fight with him, the more he wanted the fight so bad. "Are you afraid you''ll lose?" He asked through gritted teeth. "No, I just don''t want to hurt your soft ego." Grey''s answer was one that infuriated Flint when more. Chapter 1387 Deadly Speed Flint flew into rage due to Grey''s words. Grey could care less about his feelings, he would not agree to satisfy the ego of this person before him. "Klaus, if you''re looking to play, he''s right there. I''m not interested in all this." Grey whispered to Klaus. Those close to them didn''t hear this, neither did Flint, but the Old man and the Elders heard his words clearly. The Old man grabbed the armrest on the chair he was sitting on and it cracked under the pressure. The middle-aged man saw this and was left speechless by Grey''s attitude. Grey was proud, and it was clear that he didn''t have any intention of fighting with Flint. Seeing the middle-aged man on the verge of losing his temper, he stood up and vanished, appearing on the platform a few seconds later. "Defeat him, and I''ll let you in on a secret about the formation." His words felt like the soothing spring to Grey''s ears, it warmed his heart, and he felt a cool breeze blow through his hair. Grey''s figure appeared on the platform silently. "I''m here, give it your best shot." Grey said to Flint. Flint was even more angered by the fact that Grey was promised something before he stepped up. He was not angered by the fact that he was promised something before he appeared, he was angered at the confidence Grey portrayed. The fact that he didn''t even think twice before appearing on the platform meant that he was certain of his victory. ''I will make sure you regret your decision.'' He concluded inside. He positioned himself, ready for the battle. "Don''t spend too much time, remember we have more places to visit." Klaus'' voice came from the stand. Flint was furious when he heard this, but then he calmed down. He knew not to get emotional before any battle, and even during the times he gets emotional, he wants to ensure he channeled into his battle, using it to fuel his attack power. Grey looked at Flint''s calm demeanor and was impressed. Given the words he had said so far, as well as Klaus'' words, he expected him to be on the verge of losing control. To be honest, the reason he didn''t want to fight was because he didn''t see any point in doing that. He had already tested Flint''s strength and knew he was not on his level. He might be strong, but not strong enough to fight him on his own. He thought Flint knew this as well, but from the looks of it, it seems he misunderstood what happened during their first exchange. ''Did he misunderstand or does he not just want to accept it?'' Grey thought. This was a valid thought process. Anyone with a good brain should already see the difference between them after their first exchange, but Flint seems to have fried his brain and believed he could fight with him even after being overpowered with a casual attack. The duo prepared to fight. The middle-aged man called the fight. He told them the normal rules of not killing their opponents and then left them alone on the platform. Flint didn''t speak and attacked as soon as the man said they could fight. Grey didn''t waste any time either, after all, Klaus told him to hurry up. Grey took a step and vanished, he appeared behind Flint and attacked. Flint was already aware of his ability with the space element, so he was prepared for something like this. His first attack was actually a bait, his intention was for Grey to attack from behind him. As soon as Grey appeared, the entire area around Flint turned into an inferno. The flames covered both of them and he turned around to attack with a swipe of his leg. Grey didn''t shake, even with the appearance of the flames, he grabbed Flint''s leg, his expression the same. After grabbing hold of Flint''s leg, he pushed him back with a simple movement. The inferno moved with Flint. Grey''s unused appearance was seen by everyone, and a few of the youths gasped. They couldn''t believe Flint''s powerful domain was dealt with so easily by Grey. Grey didn''t even show any signs of discomfort while he was inside the domain, he only grabbed Flint''s leg and pushed him away. Flint didn''t seem too surprised, he knew Grey was going to be an easy opponent, but he was confident in his abilities. He rushed forward once again, and unleashed an attack. This time, Grey didn''t dodge, two palms made of the earth element appeared and did a clap, stopping Flint''s attack that was coming towards him. Grey finally decided to make a move after blocking this, his figure started to fade. Those with keen eyes saw another figure of Grey standing close to Flint. A pale blue flaming lotus exploded in that direction. The explosion took place before Grey''s figure faded off completely. "An afterimage!" A few shocked shouts came from the crowd. Flint''s figure shot out of the explosion, closely followed by a figure covered in red lightning. Grey decided to make use of his red lightning since it made him faster compared to the normal silver lightning. He soon caught up with Flint who was mid-air and attacked. Flint was sent crashing into the ground. Even though he blocked the attack, the impact was beyond his comprehension. His back hit the ground, and after the first bounce, before he could regain clarity, he saw Grey, who was covered with red lightning standing close to him. An earth pillar sent him up, and Grey appeared above him. Grey stomped on his stomach. The force of the stomp sent him through the pillar that was over ten meters high in the sky. Flint''s figure slammed into the platform with a loud bang. Everyone present was shocked at what just happened. Grey moved with deadly speed that only those above the Venerable Plane was able to keep up with his speed. Chapter 1388 Sometimes It’s Best To Let Go The entire arena was deathly silent, no one spoke a word. Klaus and Reynolds'' chattering was the only sound that was heard. Grey was standing on one side of the arena, not bothered with the dust cloud that his attack on Flint just caused. He looked in the direction of the Old man, he could see not only shock in his eyes, but there was an unbridled rage in them. It was almost as if he wanted to get down to the arena and beat Grey up himself. ''Why''s he so edgy? I wonder what his relationship with this guy is. He seems to hate me. Could he be a necromancer?'' A lot of questions ran through Grey''s head as he saw the man''s face. The man could barely hide his rage. The only reason Grey wasn''t afraid was not because of the fact that the powerhouses from the Phoenix Faction were present, it was due to the fact that even though he was sensing some sort of hostility from the Old man, there was not even a single atom of killing intent. His senses was very sharp and he was certain that there was no way the Old man could hide his killing intent from him. As long as the intent was directed at him, he was sure he would sense it. ''Such a strange Old man.'' If the Old man was hearing Grey''s thoughts, he would''ve told him he wanted to beat him up a long time ago, and would''ve beaten him up too! "Oh." Grey looked in the direction of the dust cloud that was in the arena. It had not died down, but a chain made of flames shot at Grey with breakneck speed, wrapping around his leg. The chain was tugged from the other side, but Grey didn''t move an inch. He stood on the same spot while the fire chain passed through his leg. The chain phased through his leg which took most of the people present by surprise. Grey had shown his unbelievable speed, now he was showcasing an astonishing technique. ''How can he be defeated?!'' Most of the youths present were at a loss for words. Grey''s speed already made him a fearsome opponent to have, now he also had this ability too. Having just one of either could elevate an Elementalist''s fighting ability to a terrifying level, yet Grey had two. It was a bit unfair just thinking about it. Grey naturally didn''t know what was going through the heads of the people present, all he wanted to do was to get this over with. The Old man heaved a sigh of relief when he saw a reaction from Flint. He didn''t want Flint to be defeated so easily. As long as Flint is able to put up a fight against a grade nine genius, then he was also not too far behind. He might even be able to get to the stage of a grade eight genius. At that time, he would become a fearsome powerhouse in a few years. Elemental Venerables are already distinguished powerhouses since they were already very close to the top. Most Venerables could assume posts of Elders in some Factions. A Peak Venerable could even create a Faction of his own. So in respect to their societal level, they were already powerhouses in the eyes of a lot of people. There have been countless geniuses that weren''t able to get past the Sage Plane. Some of them even ended in the Elemental Venerable Plane due to not being able to awaken their domains. His student has already awakened his domain, was a Peak Venerable, and could also break through to the Sovereign Plane in a short time. In short, he has a top talent in his hands, but watching said talent being overwhelmed by a random stranger wasn''t pleasing. The dust cloud died down and Flint''s figure came to view, he was standing shakily, but it was clear that he was still able to fight. His clothes had been destroyed to some extent, but it was still okay since only his upper body was open. He looked at Grey''s eyes, "Again, you use such cunning methods. Fight me face to face." "Being smart is a bonus skill to have. If I''m not as strong as you say, yet I''m always able to defeat you due to my cunningness, that''s also an attribute of my abilities." Grey didn''t deny Flint''s words, he didn''t see any reason to. Flint didn''t want to accept the fact that he wasn''t as strong as Grey, and Grey could care less if he agreed or not. "Fine, so we go blow for blow." Flint''s eyes were red, he was blazing with rage. He wanted to take Grey down, especially with his Teacher watching. He didn''t want to let his Teacher down. Grey saw the rage and determination in Flint''s eyes and couldn''t help but shake his head, muttering, "Sometimes it''s best to let go." Flint sent out an attack, and this time, Grey didn''t dodge it, rather, he blew it away with an even stronger attack. After doing that, he moved closer to Flint and attacked, forcing him to block the attack. Flint blocked the attack, but he was pushed back due to the sheer pressure from the impact. Flint couldn''t believe his eyes, he was trying his best, but it was as clear as day that he was not on the same level as Grey. Even though he didn''t want to believe it, he found it hard to believe that there was someone that is so superior to him. He tried attacking once again, but Grey blocked the attack with an earth wall. The wall had cracks, but it didn''t fall apart from his attack. Grey took a step and the platform shook. It was like a giant was stepping on the platform. He took another step closer to Flint and the gravity changed. Flint found it impossible to keep himself standing as a powerful pressure was forcing him to the ground. Chapter 1389 A Dilemma The middle-aged man looked at the platform and muttered, "An earth domain." The Old man nodded as well. Grey''s earth domain had the ability to change the gravity of the region around him. This was a very powerful domain to possess. Most of the domains of Earth Elementalists tend to include visual appearances of different rock shards, but Grey was different, it made use of gravity. The earth element is generally known for its defensive ability and also heaviness. There are a few people who could increase their weight, making a regular punch deadlier than an elemental attack. "I don''t think this is his only domain." The middle-aged man said. They''ve seen Grey use multiple elements, mainly the fire and space element. Although they''ve seen him use both the lightning and earth element, they expected him to have a domain with his dominant element, which was either his fire or space element. The fact that he was showing the domain of his earth element when he rarely uses it meant that he had a domain in either his space or fire element. If they knew he didn''t have two, but four domains, they would drag their hairs out. Grey had already awakened four domains, and with the exception of the water domain which was awakened thanks to the Dragon blood essence, his fire, lightning, and even earth domains all seem to have special features. His fire domain could toggle between hot and cold. His lightning could go from silver to red, depending on the one he chooses to use, and his earth domain, thanks to the technique he learned from the Old Turtle, as well as the blood essence he got from the King Tortoise a while back, it had a few changes. On the platform, Flint was doing his best not to drop to the ground. His eyes showed determination as he roared out, letting out flames from his body. His entire body was ablaze as he resisted the gravity. He attacked Grey even while in this state. Any attack that got close to Grey was blocked by an earth wall. The wall wasn''t like the usual earth as the color had changed. "His earth can turn to crystal?" The Old man felt his mouth twitch. Even someone as old as himself felt inferior to Grey. Grey had red lightning, blue flames, and now his earth has gotten to the stage when it comes out as crystal. What else could he do? The middle-aged man chuckled with a shake of his head. At this moment, he didn''t even know if he was impressed or jealous. Grey''s performances so far have been nothing short of mouthwatering. ''How can one person be so talented?'' This was the question revolving around the heads of almost all the Elders present there. All the youths didn''t even know what to think, their heads were practically empty. Grey had made them go dumb. Flint didn''t have any reaction when he saw this, his roar increased and he used a powerful technique, one even stronger than anything he had ever used. The attack struck the crystal wall and the wall cracked. Another attack hit it almost immediately and it fell apart. Grey was forced back a few steps, and Flint used the opportunity to retreat from the range of Grey''s gravity domain. He was breathing heavily, trying to catch his breath. Resisting the gravity domain took immense strength and effort. If not for his willpower, he would''ve crumbled under the pressure. He looked at Grey once again, this time with a complicated gaze. "It''s okay to give up." A voice sounded in his ear. He raised his head to take a look at his Teacher who nodded at him. He was all too familiar with that voice, it was the voice who trained him from when he was little till date. He had always trained hard, never given up on anything thanks to the teachings of his Teacher. He followed his Teacher''s words and became the genius he is today, and for the first time in his life, his Teacher told him ''it was okay to give up''. During his early days, if he was told a day like this would come, he would never believe it. He steeled his mind and turned to Grey, the look on his face only grew stronger. His determination grew stronger. ''Even Teacher doesn''t have any hope I will be victorious. I will prove Teacher wrong, I will prove all of them wrong!'' Flint was brimming with renewed vigor. When the Old man saw this, sadness crept into his eyes, and his gaze toward Grey turned chilly. The reason for the sadness was that his student got to this stage for the wrong person. If his student was moved to this extent while facing anyone below grade nine, it would''ve been great news for him since his student might be able to enter the eighth grade, but he was fighting someone like Grey, even if he entered the eighth grade, it was useless. What is annoying is the fact that as long as he isn''t victorious, he wouldn''t be able to sustain that grade and will fall back to grade seven, forever unable to enter that grade once again. "Why now?" Even the middle-aged man felt pity for Flint. Against anyone else, a draw would keep him in this grade forever, but a defeat would devastate him, forcing him back to the seventh grade. That was not even the risky part, the risky part is that he might fall a grade lower than his original grade. Grey looked at Flint and was a little taken aback. He sighed in annoyance. ''What a load of crap. If I beat him now there''s a good chance he will never get to the level he''s about to show. But not beating him will make him arrogant.'' Grey knew what was happening and how devastating it could be to some geniuses. However, he didn''t want to be a stepping stone for others. Nevertheless, he knew there was a war coming and the stronger humans were, the higher their chances of winning. Chapter 1390 Giving In Grey saw the worry in the faces of the Old man and the middle-aged man. They knew Flint was no match for Grey, but they never thought the battle against Grey would stimulate Flint to this extent. If he had just improved by a little, it would''ve been okay. But losing such a talent, at this level was going to be heartbreaking for the Old man, and also humans in general. Grey could only shake his head as he muttered, "One person less wouldn''t change the dynamic of the battle." The thought of not defeating Flint was thrown away, there was no way he was going to let Flint win in such a manner. But he also felt it would be better if Flint was allowed to break through. ''Just stay on your own and you''ll be good.'' Grey was praying fervently for Flint not to try to make any moves on him. As long as Flint stayed on his own and completed his breakthrough, he would advance, even if Grey beats him. However, things like these are always so simple. First off, Flint was in the middle of a battle and would most likely attack once he felt confident enough. This was the reason Grey fell into a dilemma. If he tried to tell Flint to break through first before fighting him, Flint would believe Grey was looking down on him again, given his pride and would attack. Grey thought about it and suddenly sat down, seemingly as if comprehending something, he whispered to Flint, "When I''m done comprehending this, we will continue our battle." Flint found Grey''s words baffling, but he didn''t try to attack. Others would call him names if he dared to attack someone in the midst of a breakthrough. With no other choice, he was forced to complete his breakthrough. Although a battle would make it better, there was no way to fight now. The Old man and the middle-aged man heaved a sigh of relief, but then there was also a hint of pity. Since Flint could not fight Grey while in the midst of this, he couldn''t advance to a good stage. He might''ve become a grade eight expert, but there wasn''t much difference in his strength. Fighting Grey at that time was the perfect way to sharpen his new strength, but since he can''t fight, his strength wouldn''t soar as it was supposed to due to the increase in grade. ''It''s better than being knocked back or even going lower after getting beaten.'' Both the Old and middle-aged men came to the same conclusion. This was for the best, and Grey''s thought process was quite different since he was able to think of such a way that would not really change the outcome of the battle, but it would still somewhat benefit Flint. ''This kid is smart, very smart for his age.'' The Old man squinted his eyes. It only took a minute and Grey noticed it was fine to attack Flint now. He stopped his pretense and asked to continue the fight. Flint was in high spirits, he could feel the increase in his strength, the sudden surge in his elemental essence. He attacked, and he felt this attack was on another level. Grey saw the attack and took a step forward, unleashing an attack of his own. The two attacks collided, and to the shock of everyone present, the outcome was still the same. Flint was pushed back from the impact while Grey took another step forward. Flint, who was in high spirits felt like he a bucket of cold water was poured on his body. His expression changed when he realized even with the increase, he was still no match for Grey. With a single attack, Grey showed him the difference between them, while also doing it with relative ease. It was evident Grey wasn''t even trying too hard, he was just fighting as if there was no other option. Flint steeled his heart, he was going to continue. He wouldn''t stop the fight unless he was defeated. There was still a chance for him to emerge victorious from the battle, all he needs to do is to stay calm. Grey naturally didn''t have any of these thoughts, he took another step, and it was as if a giant was stepping on Flint''s heart. With each step Grey takes, he felt his heart skip a beat. Grey was too strong, and at this rate, he would eventually accept the fact that he was not on the same level as Grey. But how could he? Grey shook his head when he saw the series of emotions flashing through the face of Flint. This was a good resolve to have, but certain times, it was better to give up. Grey knew for a fact that if he were in the same position as Flint, he would''ve given up a long time ago. There''s no shame in admitting that someone is better than you. Flint even got a little upgrade, that was the best scenario. Grey had faded multiple situations where he had to lower his head down for others due to not being strong enough to challenge them. When he first came to the Aurora Continent, he was used by others, Sylvia included for their personal gains. He knew resisting was futile, so he gave up and decided to follow them. Since these people didn''t have the intention of killing him, then he would do as they want. Now he was stronger than Sylvia, after a few years. If he had been stubborn and got on Sylvia''s bad side, there''s no guarantee that she wouldn''t have killed him. It was that simple, the strongest person has the right to do whatever they want. Flint''s eyes glowed with fierce determination and he charged at the incoming Grey, even if he were to lose, he would not lose with his head down. "Good spirit!" The Old man praised from the side. The middle-aged man was also impressed by the spirit of Flint. Unfortunately, his spirit is not enough to fight against someone as powerful as Grey. The middle-aged man was getting a feeling that there''s a possibility that even a grade nine expert might not be on the same level as Grey. Grey was literally fighting against someone who was in the eighth grade, effortlessly. If Grey were to show his full strength, it''s unknown if Flint would be able to take a single attack. What the middle-aged man found odd was that he didn''t know the strength gap between a grade nine expert and a grade eight one. A grade eight expert rarely appears, much less a grade nine one like Grey and his friends. ''I think I should urge that little girl to challenge the Water Elementalist.'' The middle-aged man wants to see how Klaus would perform to know how he would classify Grey. Personally, he felt Grey was superior to a regular grade nine expert, and the only way to find out is by seeing the strength of another grade nine expert. ''Could his advantage have to do with having multiple elements? With more things at his disposal, he will naturally be far more dangerous.'' Multiple thoughts raced through the head of the middle-aged man, but he didn''t know his answer. His eyes moved to the face of the young lady who was the leader of the group of seven, he had no choice, he would have to force her into challenging Klaus. The chances of her getting defeated was very high, but this will also give him a general idea of how a grade nine expert was. ''Is there a grade higher than nine?'' While the middle-aged man was thinking about all these, Grey was unleashing some attacks on Flint. Flint tried to best to match up to Grey, but the difference in strength only became more evident as the battle intensified. Before long, it was no longer a battle between too people, but it was just a case of how long Flint could withstand Grey''s seige. Grey was too strong, that was obvious, but Flint being able to last this long while being at a disadvantage from the start showed how powerful he was as well. It was unfortunate he had to face someone like Grey who was above his league. Boom! Bam! Flint''s figure was sent flying multiple times, but he still kept coming back. A few more times and he could barely stand on his own. Grey walked over to him and said, "You''re strong. Not on my level, but strong compared to most I''ve seen." Flint almost wanted to feel like it was an insult, but seeing Grey''s expression, he knew it was some sort of compliment. "I''ll accept my defeat today, but this will not be our last battle. I''ll come back once I''ve grown stronger, and I will defeat you." Flint replied. Grey shrugged with his usual nonchalance, there was no point in speaking any further. Flint was not on the same level as he is, and even in a year or two, he still wouldn''t be in the same level as him. Chapter 1391 Klaus’ Opportunity ***Reload The , it has been fixed.*** Grey was about to walk away when he noticed Flint was walking out of the platform, "Still want to go?" Flint shook his head and a wry smile appeared on his face, Grey saw his legs about to give way and quickly understood what was happening. Being forced to receive continuous attacks from Grey, Flint''s body was on the verge of breaking down. Had he not accepted defeat, he would''ve done more damage to himself that would take a long time to fix. Grey disappeared, taking Flint along with him. Flint had a certain pride, and Grey didn''t want to be the one to squash it. He had already defeated him, but he liked how Flint finally realized there was no point in fighting and gave up, hence his current attitude towards him. The Old man was about to react, but he sensed that Grey only took Flint to an area where no one else was present. The middle-aged man also sensed this, but he had something else on his mind. He appeared on the platform and took a look at the young lady, before giving her a knowing smile. The young lady, as if already knowing what the middle-aged man wanted stepped on the platform and looked straight at Klaus. "You''re my opponent." She declared. Klaus, who was seated was stupefied when he heard this, "What? Who told you I''m willing to fight with you?" "Your friend already showed what he has in store, wouldn''t you want to do the same?" The young lady asked. Klaus thought about it, and given the fact that Grey would steal all the shine if he didn''t fight, he couldn''t help but nod his head, "You''re right, I should also try out my strength." The young lady sighed when she saw that Klaus was willing to fight with her. As much as she was curious about his strength, she also knew that there was no way she would be able to beat him. She was not as deluded as Flint who would self-hypnotize himself into believing no one was superior to him. She knew how the world works and knew that there would always be someone stronger. Well¡­ in the case of Grey, she didn''t know if that would be possible. Grey stood with a calm and collected expression, his hands on his back as he looked at the young lady, "May I know your name?" The young lady was taken aback, but she replied, "Aries." "Nice name." Klaus complimented, "Well, I''m Klaus. Don''t forget the name of the man who''s going to make you famous just by being defeated by him." Hearing Klaus, Aries realized Flint was not on the same level as Klaus when it came to self-hypnosis. Klaus was on a level of his own when it came to this. It was genuinely shocking that someone as powerful as Klaus had such a habit. Klaus, naturally, didn''t know anything about what she was thinking about. His main priority was defeating her in style. He felt he would be able to show an even more dominant style compared to Grey. He saw the battle and knew Grey held back to a certain extent. It had to do with Flint breaking through, but it was still a little sad that he didn''t show off some of his strength. Klaus wasn''t going to do the same. Well, this depends on if Aries made the same breakthrough as Flint. If she makes the breakthrough, then he would let her advance, if not, he would beat her up. The battle started and Aries attacked with the fire element. She was a Fire Elementalist, one of the best in the present day Phoenix Faction, among those in the younger generation. Klaus, a Water Elementalist, was fighting a Fire Elementalist who was close to an active volcano that would increase all her attributes, yet he showed no fear. He stood against her valiantly and blocked all the attacks she sent his way. His ice was impenetrable, no matter how much Aries attacks, she isn''t able to break through it. It was one thing when you''re fighting against someone, it''s another when you can''t even break through their defenses. As long as Klaus doesn''t make a move, she will never be able to win or even break through his defense. After her first three attacks, she knew there was no way she could break his defense. Klaus, seeing that everyone was speaking about his lack of attacks, he decided to spice up the battle. The entire arena started to freeze up as his domain came into play. Snow started to fall and with each one that touched Aries, she felt her body showing signs of freezing. "Such intense cold¡­ how is this possible?" The middle-aged man was stunned beyond words. Klaus being able to use such an intense amount of cold was frightening. This shouldn''t be possible for someone of Klaus'' level. "A grade nine expert, just how terrifying are they?" He asked himself. The Firelord was known as a grade nine expert who roamed the world. His strength knew no bounds. He traveled to multiple places and his name shook the world. With Grey and his friends being grade nine experts, will they have the same fate as the once famous Firelord? The middle-aged man had a lot of questions, but there was no answer. These guys were shockingly powerful for their age, and there was still more hidden potential to be unlocked. Aries called upon her fire domain as well. She knew against Klaus'' ice domain, she would most likely turn into ice before she could even try to do anything. Ice shards appeared in the sky and attacked Aries. Aries used her fire element in a bid to block the attack, but she found out to her shock that the ice shards were not melting, even under her blazing hot flames. She couldn''t melt the ice. She found it strange, but continued attacking. After a while, she noticed the platform turn wet, and curiously looked below. When she saw it, her heart tensed up. Klaus was turning the platform into the perfect ground for him to fight. And just as she feared, the water on the platform started to show its use. Klaus used the water to attack her, while also using ice attacks. She decided to fly up since there was no way she could withstand the double attack. Klaus went after her, attacking continuously in a calm manner. The difference in strength, just like in Grey and Flint''s case was evident for all to see, Aries was on the losing end in this battle, and it was only a matter of time before she was defeated. Aries was finally forced down after a snow storm pushed her down. The entire platform was shrouded with the storm, and when it died down, Aries was held up by ice, as her body from her chest down had been frozen, a large ice spear floated above her head, and Klaus could be seen sitting on the other side of the platform with a peaceful expression. Other than those above the Venerable Plane, the others didn''t see what transpired inside the snow storm. The middle-aged man looked at Klaus, and then he looked at the Old man. "Did you see that?" He asked. The Old man nodded, his eyes almost closed, "These kids are all unique. How is his water and ice so different from that of a regular Water Elementalist?" "Do you think the other two will have any special treats for us? The first two has already blown us away." The middle-aged man asked. "There''s no harm in trying. At least, we get to watch some entertainment." The Old man said. The middle-aged man appeared on the platform and Klaus removed the ice holding Aries hostage. "You did good." The middle-aged man said. Aries nodded, she wasn''t disappointed with her defeat, she already knew what awaited her. But to be honest, she did find the experience worth it. Now she understood why Flint was able to level up during the battle. These guys were just too strong. Klaus smiled at her and turned to leave the platform. The middle-aged man spoke up, "Since we''ve started out this way, why don''t others come forward and challenge these young champions?" A Peak Venerable jumped out almost immediately and pointed straight at Alice. Alice was in the Eighth stage of the Venerable Plane, so it might be a little odd that someone at the Peak challenged her, but she still stood up and walked to the platform. She would never back down from a fight like this. Besides, she had seen Grey and Klaus show their strength, she wanted to see how well she would do. On the side, Klaus and Reynolds started talking. "Do you think they''re testing us?" Klaus placed his hand on his chin. "Isn''t it obvious?" "It is, I''m just curious as to why. We didn''t offend them. It''s okay if that guy tried to fight us, but these people, something isn''t adding up." Chapter 1392 Don’t Give Her So Much Time Outside the arena. Grey took Flint away from the platform and watched him drop down to his knees, he was exhausted. He was about to help out when the Old man appeared, he took a glance at Grey, and then at Flint. He picked Flint up and took him away, before heading back to the arena. Grey found the Old man''s behavior strange, but he didn''t think too much about it. He wondered if he should go back to the arena or not. If he could stay somewhere that was peaceful, he would be able to study the array formation, but his friends were still in there. From his speculation and the sound of fighting ongoing, he could tell that Klaus was fighting with someone. "I better go back before they do something bad." He didn''t rush to go back, he was going through formation as he headed back. It hadn''t been long he acquired the formation and he didn''t get the chance to go through it before being challenged to a battle by Flint. Now that he wasn''t going to fight anymore, he decided to check it out as he headed back. By the time he got back to the arena, Klaus was no longer on the platform, rather, it was Alice who was fighting against someone at the Peak. This person isn''t as powerful as the likes of Flint and Aries, but he was still a Peak Elemental Venerable. Grey walked over to Klaus and Reynolds, "Why did you let her fight that guy?" "Oh, you''re back." Reynolds said, he looked at the platform and said, "She should be fine. Besides, she knows her limits." Grey nodded and didn''t say anything else. Grey''s appearance drew the attention of most of the people present in the arena, he was the reason they all came here in the first place. Seeing Grey and no sight of Flint, they were a little curious, but there was no way for them to confirm what happened. All they were certain of is that there was no way Grey was going to kill Flint in the Phoenix Faction. Everyone soon turned their attention back to Alice and the young man who were fighting. The battle was heated up and the young man seemed to have the advantage from the start of the battle. Alice wasn''t making use of her Seelie from the start, rather, she was trying her natural strength. She was repeatedly on the back foot as the young man overwhelmed her. Her opponent was a Dual Elementalist who had both the fire and wind element. This made him very dangerous thanks to his speed. The reason Alice was still in the fight was due to her lightning element which increases her speed as well. The duo were flashing through the platform as they battled. Even though the young man had the advantage, Alice was not giving up without a fight. Bang! Alice was hit by an attack and was sent flying. She crashed into the platform, and the young man continued his assault. He could tell she was special just like her friends, so he wanted to end the battle before it got too late. Alice, covered with lightning, shot up. But she was met with a powerful tornado which came from above, pushing her back to the ground. Her body glowed with a bright light and she merged with her Seelie. Boom! She used both the ice ability of the Seelie and her fire element to attack the tornado, causing a large explosion. The impact of the attack made her take a few steps back. The young man''s gaze turned serious. He could tell this was her getting serious with the fight. As long as he could defeat her in this state as well, then he would be victorious. He didn''t even want to think about the possibility of there being another state. He attacked, but Alice blocked and countered. This time, his attack wasn''t overwhelming hers, so she had all the chance to counterattack, unlike the first time. The young man dodged the attack, and sent wind blades at Alice''s direction. Alice was technically two stages below the young man, but it was clear to see the duo were fairly even now that she had merged with her Seelie. At the current rate, it all depends on who could grasp a moment and take the advantage. The young man was being careful not to give Alice that chance, while Alice, on the other hand, was attacking aggressively. She has never liked holding back when battling. She preferred attacking consistently, and since the young man was holding back, it was the chance she needed. The young man kept his cool as he faced the repeated attacks from Alice. This was the first time he was showing signs of being on the back foot since the start of the battle. However, everyone watching knew that he was by no means on the back foot. Both fighters are hoping their method would win them the battle. Alice''s constant attacks against the well-composed young man. As time went on, it became evident that the battle was most likely going to stop there. Grey shook his head and said, "Alice will win. Against anyone else, that guy would''ve won. But giving Alice a free reign to attack is a terrible thing to do." "Yeah, especially with so much time as well." Klaus chipped in. "He''s not even trying to counter. Such a shame." Reynolds added. All four friends knew what each other were capable of. Grey and Reynolds presently had the most explosive attacks, but Alice was no pushover either. Since she awakened her fire and ice domain, she rarely uses her lightning element, even though it was originally her dominant element. In times like this, however, her lightning element comes into play. She would use the fire and ice element to soften her opponent, and when he unleashes the explosive attack of her lightning element, her opponent would be caught off guard. And just as the friends thought, Alice used her fire and ice domain to strike. The young man focused all his strength to block the domain attack, but his pupils constricted when he sensed danger. Buzz! Bang! Chapter 1393 Sit And Watch A lightning bolt fell from the sky with frightening speed. Before the young man could react, he was enveloped by it. Alice stopped her fire and ice domain attack and used the ice element to freeze the ground, freezing the young man''s feet to the ground She attacked with her fire element, sending him flying. With a series of continuous attacks, she was able to take out someone that was on the same level as herself in terms of battle strength. The young man had the cultivation stage advantage, but she made up for it with the help of her Seelie. The mistake the young man made was thinking he would be able to defend against her. He planned for a lot of things, except for her lightning element which other than boosting her speed, she hadn''t used it so far for any form of attack. It was easy to assume her lightning element''s attack power was minimal since she barely uses it. The Old man and middle-aged man exchanged glances once again. "These guys are just something else. What are people like them doing here?" The Old man couldn''t help but ask. "To train. It''s understandable, given the talent they possess." The middle-aged man said. "Aren''t their Family or Faction leaders afraid to lose such talents?" The Old man would never allow his student to travel in such a manner without protection. "They can''t grow to their full potential if they''re always being looked after. Danger brings out the hidden strength of geniuses. I believe they''ve faced a couple dangerous situations that made them the people they are today." The middle-aged man said. He understood the reason behind the Faction and Family leaders of the group letting them come out to train. "I''ll never put my student in such a situation." The Old man said. "Hence his inability to defeat them." The middle-aged man''s words hurt the Old man, but he pretended he didn''t hear it. "Time to check out the strength of the last one. I''m quite curious about his strength." The middle-aged man didn''t mind the fact that the Old man was pretending not to hear. When the Old man heard this, he nodded and looked into the crowds. He wanted to see who was best to challenge Reynolds, seeing the person who stepped out, he couldn''t help but turn to the middle-aged, "Good choice." "Of course, all opponents were carefully selected. This is the only person except Aries who can put up a fight against these grade nine kids. He''s the only one who will not be defeated instantaneously." The middle-aged man nodded. The young man who challenged Alice, and this young man stepping out were carefully selected by the middle-aged man. When he came out to give the announcement that battles would take place since they were already here, he transmitted his orders to the duo secretly, while also ensuring they were the first to come out after Aries and Klaus'' battle ended. The young man stood on the platform and pointed at Reynolds, "I''d like to test the strength of a foreigner, please." The young man was polite in inviting Reynolds onto the platform. Reynolds took a look at the young man and nodded. On his way, he turned to Klaus and asked to borrow the throne. Klaus, being Klaus, refused to give it to him. Reynolds grumbled as he walked to the platform. When he arrived, the young man prepared to fight. Reynolds, on the other hand, walked to the edge of the platform, sat down cross-legged and closed his eyes. The young man was a little startled and he asked, "Foreigner, what''s the meaning of this?" Reynolds opened his eyes, when he saw how the young man was staring at him, he replied, "Oh, don''t mind me, you can attack." Reynolds wasn''t making a move, and the young man felt disrespected by this. He attacked, sending a fire snake at Reynolds. Reynolds was motionless. Just as the fire snake was about to hit him, a humanoid figure appeared and grabbed a hold of the snake. The snake struggled to break free from the grip, but it was impossible and it was destroyed. When everyone saw the humanoid figure, they thought someone was helping Reynolds out, only after a few seconds did they understand what happened. "An Elemental Warrior!" An exclamation came from the crowd. Summoners are highly regarded anywhere, a high grade summoner even more. Reynolds, being a summoner already gave him the advantage in this battle. The Elemental Warrior that appeared had the strength of a Peak Venerable, the same as the young man. The middle-aged man was surprised, he recalled when Reynolds was fighting with the Phoenix, he wore a strange armor. ''How come he isn''t using it?'' The young man attacked once again, but he was on the same stage as the Elemental Warrior, defeating it with just casual attacks was out of the picture. His problem wasn''t the Elemental Warrior, but Reynolds who was sitting quietly by the side. Summoners could still fight while controlling their summons. An high grade summoner doesn''t even have a need to control their summons, all they needed to do was mark the target. There was only one target present, and it will naturally become the target of the Elemental Warrior. The young man and the Elemental Warrior started to exchange blows. The fact that the Elemental Warrior could fight both a long and short range battle made it fearsome. One moment it was attacking from a distance, the next it was standing before him, using a short range attack. On the side. "No wonder he wanted the throne. So he wanted to show off. Such a pretender." Klaus said, but deep down he felt like crying. Just the thought of doing what Reynolds was doing thrilled him. "He''s just watching. The battle should be over by now. I see no point in playing this much." Grey said with folded arms. "Yeah." Alice and Klaus nodded. If Reynolds merged with his Elemental Warrior, he could use more power which will make him above the league of his opponent. Chapter 1394 Learning From Klaus Grey and the others watched as Reynolds was sitting on the same spot, motionless, while his Elemental Warrior fought with his opponent. His opponent was inferior to the likes of Flint and Aries, so even though Reynolds didn''t go full power on him, there was no way he would be able to fight on equal footing as the Elemental Warrior. It only took a few minutes and the young man started to crumble under the consistent attacks of the Elemental Warrior. He was eventually defeated after a few more minutes. There was no point in fighting on, so when he realized he could win, he accepted defeat and gave up, giving Reynolds a simple victory. Reynolds acted bored as he sat on the platform, "I still have time, why don''t another person come forward to try their luck?" When the crowd heard his words, a few of them wanted to make a fuss about his pride, but then thinking about how he was able to effortlessly defeat the young man who was his previous opponent, they couldn''t help but swallow down their words. Reynolds was powerful, and the strong had the right to be proud. Everyone present who was at the Peak of the Venerable Plane dropped their heads, none of them wanted to try their strength against Reynolds. They were not as strong as the person he just defeated, so what was the point of coming out? Reynolds was a little surprised when he didn''t see anyone step forward. "Alright, I''ll fight two on one." He added to his initial statement. The eyes of a few people lit up. One of the main reasons they felt the young man lost against Reynolds was due to his presence. The young man couldn''t put his entire focus on the Elemental Warrior due to Reynolds, but with two people present, it was a different story. Reynolds was only in the Eighth stage of the Elemental Venerable Plane, and the Elemental Warrior was at the Peak. If one of them fights off the Elemental Warrior, the other person can easily take Reynolds out. With Reynolds defeated, the Elemental Warrior will naturally disappear. Different discussions started in the stands. Some people felt Reynolds, just like Klaus was too proud. While others felt there was a reason behind Reynolds'' words and he was confident he could defeat them. Others believed Reynolds was joking. Their speculations died down when two people at the Peak stepped on the platform. A young man and a young lady, but Fire Elementalists at the Peak of the Elemental Venerable Plane. They were on the same grade as the young man whom Reynolds defeated a few minutes ago, both grade three experts. Reynolds'' Elemental Warrior had the strength of a grade six expert at the Peak of the Venerable Plane. A difference of three grades was quite massive, but against two opponents, unless he was like Grey who had a lot of tricks under his belt, it would be difficult to defeat the duo with just that strength. The young man and lady stood on either side of the Elemental Warrior, but prepared to attack. Reynolds, who had always been seated, finally stood up. "Don''t be in a hurry, since there are two of you, I need a little power up." He said with a smile. The duo didn''t attack as they waited for him to power up according to him. Reynolds appreciated their patience and walked over to where the Elemental Warrior was standing, he ran his finger across the body of the Elemental Warrior before chuckling and walking into the body of the Elemental Warrior. Those watching were stunned beyond words when they saw this. This was the first time they were seeing a Summoner enter their summons. "What''s happening?" An Elder asked. "He''s merging with it." The Old man and middle-aged man replied at the same time, their expressions as serious as it could be. Each one of the four friends have shown abilities unlike no other. They are all unique and they use abilities that would shake the cultivation world. "How did they become like this?" The middle-aged man was shaken. The Old man was just as astounded as the middle-aged man. If he were told he would witness such geniuses in this lifetime, he would''ve never believed it. As they watched, Reynolds fully merged with the Elemental Warrior. The Elemental Warrior disappeared from view and Reynolds, donned in silver armor appeared before everyone. His eyes had lightning arcs flashing through them. It was a sight to behold. The aura Reynolds gave off scared the duo who originally felt they had a chance against him. The young man he defeated the last time didn''t feel any sense of shame being beaten in such a manner. If anything, he was grateful for Reynolds for showing him mercy and giving him face. If Reynolds had used this technique from the start, he would''ve blown him away with only a few moves. Just the thought of it frightened him. The duo who were facing Reynolds felt like crying, they didn''t expect his power up to be by this much. They felt even if he could increase his strength, it still wouldn''t be able to match up to their combined strength, but with what they could feel, they knew the chances of them being able to defeat him was almost zero. The duo exchanged glances and couldn''t help but feel a little excitement. Fighting people of this caliber always tends to be thrilling. Geniuses like these could always stimulate their opponents, making them grow stronger. Therefore, even though they were weaker, there was a good chance they could improve. They all saw how Flint leveled up during the fight with Grey, and couldn''t help but think if something like that could happen to them too. "Ready?" Reynolds asked after fully merging with the Elemental Warrior. The reason he didn''t speak early was because he was giving them time to take in his look. After hanging out with Klaus so much, he had picked up a thing or two. Chapter 1395 Intense Battle Grey and Klaus felt their eyes twitch repeatedly. "Beat him up when we''re leaving?" Klaus looked at Grey. Grey nodded, he was willing to indulge Klaus this time. Reynolds was showing off too much. For some reason, this entire trial has been a means for Klaus and Reynolds to show off. Even Alice wasn''t an exception. Due to the blazing performances of her friends, she couldn''t be left out which made her show off to a certain extent. Of all of them, Grey could be said to be the only one who acted naturally. Well, given the fact that he was always the first to make a move, which would in turn set a high bar for the others to attempt. Reynolds didn''t know the plans his friends had for him, he was more focused on dominating his opponents. The duo attacked, charging at Reynolds with flaming swords. Reynolds created a lightning spear and started an epic battle with them. Elementalists rarely fight in this manner, so it was a great sight for those watching as it was something fresh. While watching, most of the Elementalists recalled their days before they got to the Arcane Plane. During those days, they couldn''t manipulate the elements outside their body. Other than using the elemental essence to strengthen their bodies, there was no way to use elemental attacks. For those in the Aurora Continent, they don''t really have much experience with this since they blaze through the first two Planes due to the abundance of essence present here. But for those like Grey and his friends who grew up in the Azure Continent with lesser essence, their first journeys always have to do with them heading out without being able to use elemental attacks. How well one could strengthen themselves with the elements determines how strong they are. "Rey has the advantage in both speed and strength. Adding the fact that he had a longer time fighting with weapons, he shouldn''t have a problem quickly defeating them." Grey speculated. Klaus and Alice also felt the same way, but they didn''t come to a conclusion since they knew nothing was certain. On the platform. Things went just how Grey said it would. Reynolds was using his superior speed and strength to get the better of his opponents. The fact that he was also using a spear made it even more terrifying for his opponents. They could barely get close to him while due to his long range of attack, he is able to strike them. "At this rate, they will lose even before the start of the fight." The middle-aged man said. The duo, as if they could hear what the middle-aged man said, changed their tactic. From swords, they started attacking with flaming arrows. They knew there was no way they could get close to Reynolds, so they started using long range attacks. Reynolds tried to close the gap between them, but they kept their distance as they started to use long range attacks. ''I thought I''d be able to play a little longer. Guess I have to go with the flow too.'' Reynolds stopped trying to get close to them and multiple lightning bolts fell from the sky. He used the technique, lightning rain. When he was still at the Lunar Academy, he attempted learning this technique, but it was one of the top lightning techniques in the Faction that was very difficult to master. Grey caught the hang of it very quickly, and so did Alice, although a little slower than Grey. Reynolds learned it a little slower, but he was able to learn it. With his current strength, he could cause a continuous lightning rain for a few days if he wills it. Of course, it would expend a large amount of essence, but it''s something he can work with. The lightning rain forced the duo into a corner, but they were covered with flames as they both made use of their domains. Reynolds, seeing this also used his domain. The domain of the duo clashed with his, while he sent bolts of lightning at them. A large lightning snake flashed through the sky as it opened its mouth and tried to swallow the duo. The duo knew if they were caught in that attack, it would be the end for them. They steeled their minds and created two large fire dragons that charged towards the lightning snake. The attacks crashed into each other, causing a large explosion. The impact of the attack rampaged on the platform. Reynolds, being the superior one stood on the same spot, not moving an inch. The duo were forced to take some steps back. This was their strongest attacks, but even when combined, they were only able to just barely block Reynolds'' attack. They knew for sure that this was not Reynolds'' strongest attack. They started to have a feeling of doubt. If Reynolds used an even stronger attack, they were finished. Reynolds looked at them, he chuckled and attacked once again. There was no point delaying any further. The duo prepared for this attack, they wanted to make use of their domains for this attack. A lightning snake appeared once again. This time, it was larger than what it used to be, the attack power was more than the previous one. The duo created the fire dragons once again, thus time, their domains were placed inside it. The fire dragons were stronger than the previous one, just like Reynolds'' own. Boom! The attacks struck each other and a powerful shockwave spread across the entire platform. Everyone watching stared at the platform with curious eyes. They didn''t think the battle would be this intense. This was the strongest clash so far. Grey overpowered his opponent, so did Klaus. Alice fought with her opponent due to being at a disadvantage, while Reynolds was fighting against two people. The attack died down and the platform came to view once again. Reynolds was standing on the same spot, while the duo were both on the edge of the platform, both breathing heavily. Blood could be seen on the side of their mouths. Chapter 1396 Meeting The Faction Leader Of The Phoenix Faction Reynolds and the duo stood on the platform. Reynolds was still in the same condition, but the duo were finding it hard to catch their breath. Blood was dripping from the side of their mouth as they tried to breathe. They looked at Reynolds, both stunned beyond words. They never thought Reynolds would still be able to overwhelm them even with their combined strength. Yes, they saw that Reynolds'' attack had an increased strength, but they also increased the strength of their attack and still weren''t able to get the advantage over him. "He''s too strong." One of them said. The other one nodded. He was also confident they would be able to at least fight Reynolds to a draw. Reynolds looked at the duo, he didn''t feel strange by the fact that they survived the attack. To be fair, he knew there was no way he would be able to defeat them with just that strike. However, just like the duo, he was a hundred percent certain that he would defeat them. "Still want to go?" He asked with a calm expression. The duo nodded and prepared to attack. They''ve come to understand that giving Reynolds the chance to attack was a grave mistake, so the best option was to be the one taking the lead. As long as they didn''t give Reynolds the chance to unleash his dreaded attacks, they would be safe, and the battle might tilt to their side. Reynolds saw them and lightning arcs appeared around him on the platform. He was making use of his domain, while also using the Elemental Warrior. The duo made use of their domains as well as they attacked. Multiple fire blades shot towards Reynolds. Reynolds created a lightning screen to block the attack, but the screen broke after receiving multiple attacks. Reynolds was aware the screen wouldn''t be enough, his aim was to stop the attack, giving himself time to move away from the targeted spot. His plan was successful since he got the chance to dodge the attack, while also countering with lightning bolts. The duo didn''t try to dodge the lightning bolts, rather, they made sure to use their fire element and their domains to block against the attack. Boom! The attacks collided, causing an explosion. Reynolds moved into the middle of the explosion and unleashed more lightning attacks at the duo. The duo followed Reynolds'' lead and jumped into the dust from the explosion, attacking with everything they had. Other than Alice''s battle, this was the most intense battle. And unlike Alice''s battle, Reynolds had the advantage, but the duo were still fighting due to sheer determination. Given the impact of attacks they''ve received while going toe to toe with Reynolds, they should''ve given up by now, but they didn''t want to. To the duo, this was their chance to improve from pressure, and they didn''t want to miss this chance. Reynolds was forcing them back with each attack, but they continued coming back. As the battle progressed, Reynolds started to show signs of losing his temper. He had been holding back since he didn''t want to accidentally kill the duo, but with them not wanting to give up, he wanted to crush them and be over with it. Reynolds'' mood changed, which also affected the strength of his attack. At this point, he wasn''t holding back any further and his attack power has seen a significant increase. The duo he was fighting didn''t sense the difference until they were hit by his attack. This time, they weren''t able to block the attack and were both sent flying. One of them left the platform completely, but the other was able to stay inside with the help of the other one. "You can''t fight me on your own." Reynolds said when he saw just one of them left, blood dripping from the side of his mouth. "Since we challenged you together, he can come back to the platform. We haven''t been defeated yet." The young lady said. The young man sacrificed more injuries to ensure the young lady stayed inside the platform. This will give them a chance to continue their battle with Reynolds. Reynolds laughed and his figure flashed through the platform, like a lightning bolt, he appeared close to the young lady and attacked. His attack power was beyond what the young lady could defend against on her own. The young lady''s figure was sent flying, but Reynolds saw another person standing on another side. "You guys don''t care about your safety, do you?" Reynolds spoke, a little dissatisfied with how persistent the duo were. "We''ll¡­" The young man was about to reply, however, he shut up when he saw a bolt of lightning headed his way. He tried to defend against the lightning. Things didn''t go according to his plan when he saw that the lightning bolt wasn''t actually a lightning bolt but Reynolds himself. The young man, who wasn''t at his peak was left speechless. He tried to block the attack, but the force was beyond what he could handle. A Peak Venerable appeared, but neither of them stopped their battles. They both were confident in their abilities. Reynolds'' strike sent the young man flying. The young lady tried to get back on the platform, but it was already too late as both of them had been sent out of the platform. The young lady stepped on the platform, but both figures were outside the platform, so it was Reynolds'' victory. "You tried, but I believe you know I will win." Reynolds said to the young lady. The young lady felt dissapointed at the ease with which Reynolds was able to beat the two of them. ''He''s too strong.'' She said with a sigh of defeat. There was no way for her to defeat Reynolds, and since she wasn''t able to get on the platform before her counterpart was eliminated, it was over for them. She wanted to try to slow Reynolds down since the victor hadn''t been declared yet, but she didn''t stay on the platform for more than a few seconds before she was also sent flying by Reynolds. Reynolds smiled and looked at the middle-aged man who appeared on the platform to announce the winner. After being declared the winner, Reynolds left the platform and went back to his friends. "Where did you go to?" He asked when he saw Grey. The other two looked at Grey, waiting for his reply. Grey didn''t hide anything from them and told his how he took Flint away from here before he fell to the ground. "How honorable." Klaus commented. "Yes, very honorable." Reynolds added. "Well, there''s no point letting him pass out here. Besides, I was already victorious. That''s enough." Grey knew why they were speaking in such a manner. "That''s your choice. I don''t like cocky people, so I wouldn''t mind putting him down here." Klaus shrugged. "That''s because you''re an evil person." Alice said. Klaus grinned, not denying her statement. With the four showing off their abilities, others came up on stage to show off their abilities as well, fighting against anyone they felt like. Other than Alice who fought above two stages, no one else repeated such a fit. In short, the things the four friends did were not repeated by anyone else as the battle went on. Klaus and Reynolds started to feel bored and wanted to leave, but there was no way Grey was going to miss out on the chance of getting a few tips on the array formation. He was waiting for the battles to be over before he heads over to meet up with the middle-aged man and tell him to fulfill his promise. They stayed there for a few hours before the battle was finally over. Everyone left, but Grey and his friends sat in the same place, staring at the middle-aged man. The middle-aged man seemed to understand why Grey was staring at him and he walked over to them. "You want what was promised, don''t you?" He asked Grey. Grey nodded. "To be fair, that''s all on the Faction Leader, but I''ll make sure he helps you with it. What he impacts to you depends on how he sees you." The middle-aged man didn''t hide the fact that he didn''t have the power to impact the knowledge to Grey, but he also made him aware that he would be able to help out to ensure he got what he was promised. Grey didn''t see anything wrong with the man''s words, he knew that was how some Factions were, and the Leader was the one with most of the power. "Uncle¡­ you''re really going to take him to see Teacher?" Aries asked when the middle-aged man walked over to where she was. "Yes, what''s the point in going back on my word?" The middle-aged man didn''t see anything wrong with it. "But¡­ that''s the Firelord''s secret formation and something available only to the Phoenix Faction." Aries tried to argue. "Don''t worry, I know what I''m doing." The middle-aged man said and invited Grey and his friends over to go meet with the Faction Leader. Chapter 1397 Against The Elders The middle-aged man was surprised at how easy it was for Grey to follow him. Grey didn''t hesitate which he found odd. Anyone who is cautious enough should be hesitant to head over to see a Faction Leader of a Faction of the level of the Phoenix Faction, but Grey, nor his friends showed any signs of fear. ''I guess they''re already used to seeing leaders of such powerful Factions.'' The middle-aged man came to a conclusion in his head as he took them there. Aries followed along, after all, they were going over to see her Teacher. A few minutes later, they were all in a secluded building in the Phoenix Faction. The middle-aged man led them into the room, and a man, identical to the middle-aged man, was seated crossed leg on a futon. "Brother, they are you." The middle-aged man said and walked to sit at the side. The man seated on the futon opened his eyes to stare at Grey and his friends. This was the first time the group were seeing such a figure, but when he opened his eyes, they all felt like they had been sucked into his world, a fiery world with Phoenixes soaring across the sky. It was both beautiful and deadly at the same time. Nevertheless, none of them showed any fear as they watched the soaring Phoenixes in the fiery world. "Four tremendously talented geniuses, I wonder where you are from." The man opened his mouth to speak after a short moment of silence. "We''re humbled to be in your presence, My Lord." Klaus was the one who spoke up with a bow. Among the friends, he was the one who knew more about etiquettes since his father was a Mayor of a City and he got to meet with important figures all the time during his stay in the Azure Continent. "We''re from the Western Continent and are traveling across the other parts of the Aurora Continent to learn a thing or two from other cultures." Klaus continued, "I''m Klaus Ealdian, that''s Alice Reiss, Reynolds Orvyn, and that''s Grey Dawson." Klaus introduced the group one by one to the Leader of the Phoenix Faction. When Grey was introduced, there was a reaction from the man, as well as the middle-aged man. "That Grey Dawson?" The man asked calmly. "The one and only." Klaus replied with a smile. "I see, Lucas is the greatest genius to have appeared over the past five hundred years in the Aurora Continent, it''s normal for his son to surpass him." The Faction Leader squinted his eyes, now, they didn''t seem all too shocked at Grey''s abilities. Lucas Dawson is famous across the entire Continent. A generational genius who managed to rock the world at a young age. He was someone that grew to fame very quickly. His son however seems to be miles ahead of him. Lucas Dawson is well-known in the Aurora Continent, but everyone knows that the Gnome race has issued a kill order on Grey''s head. That is more telling compared to his father''s antics. "I never expected Grey Dawson to visit my Faction. Since you''re here, I believe it''s only right that I give you a few pointers." The Faction Leader''s cold expression died down and he looked at Grey in a different way, "I have something for everyone of you." Seeing the expression of the group as well as his student, Aries, he couldn''t help but laugh and add, "I have some close relationship with your father, Grey. If he knew you were coming here, he would''ve told you to come see me." "Oh, so that''s how it is." The others came to a realization. They initially felt the Faction Leader was trying to be nice to Grey due to knowing his father was a top powerhouse, but from the looks of it, it seems they had a good relationship. The Faction Leader recalled something and said, "Also, don''t let that old guy know you''re Lucas'' son. He still hasn''t gotten over the fact that he was beaten so many times by your father. He''s very vengeful and might want to beat you up in your father''s stead." "He beat up the old guy''s student too." The middle-aged man chuckled from the side. "Oh, that''s interesting." The Faction Leader smiled in amusement. Grey''s father beat up the Old man, and now Grey beat up the Old man''s student. It looked like an unending cycle of the Old man getting defeated repeatedly. If the Old man were to find out about this, he would seek justice for his student, and mostly himself. He was a shameless figure who wouldn''t mind beating Grey up. Of course, he wouldn''t want to get on the nerves of Lucas, so he would only give him some superficial injuries. "Actually, I was promised something else." Grey said. He didn''t want the Faction Leader to forget about this since he was saying he wanted to give them pointers. The Faction Leader smiled and said, "Don''t worry, I''m aware of that. I would''ve had some reservations if it was someone else, but you''re different, so I''ll give you a few tips. Not much, but it should help you with some of the basics." Grey thanked him after getting the confirmation the Faction Leader would give him tips on the array formation. The Faction Leader soon got to work. There was nothing else to talk about. He wanted to give Grey and Alice a few pointers on the fire element. Alice and Grey benefited from his pointers, after all, he was the leader of the top fire elemental Faction around. And since the Faction was created by the legendary Firelord, it''s normal for it to possess fire elemental techniques unique only to it. Klaus and Reynolds didn''t know what to do as they watched Grey and Alice being tutored by such an expert and started to pick a few things from whatever the man was teaching them. The thing about these things is that all elements are intertwined and one could use the teachings from one element to bolster their other elements. Take for instance, Klaus, being a Water Elementalist and also an ice user could take into the account the method of heating up a flame and use it to make his ice even colder. It was more like a difference in their elements. As long as it involved the manipulation of their elements, there was no way he couldn''t use it as well. Reynolds used the same for his lightning element, making his attacks pack more power compared to how it used to be. In short, the training session benefited all four of them. When the Faction Leader saw how the other two were learning from it, he started to show them a few more things as well, different from what he was teaching Alice and Grey. It would be better for the duo to work with this than what they were trying to do from what he was telling Alice and Grey. The duo benefited better from this than when they were learning from what he was teaching Grey and Alice. A few hours later, Grey was taken to another place. Klaus and the others were left on their own. "He''s going to teach him about the array?" Reynolds found it a bit odd the Faction Leader would be willing to give out such important information. "Well, since he has a good relationship with Grey''s father, he might not see anything wrong with it." Alice replied. "He''s the Faction Leader, not the one with complete monopoly of the Faction. There are still Elders he would need to consult for things like this." Klaus said. "Don''t worry about your friend getting that information, my brother will make sure he tells him a thing or two." The middle-aged man who overheard their conversation said. "Uncle, the Elders will not agree to this." Aries spoke up. "And who says they''re going to know about it?" The middle-aged man raised a brow. Aries understood they wanted to teach Grey these things without the knowledge of the Elders. Thinking about it, she knew it was something her Teacher and Uncle could do. This was not the first time they were doing things that were not accepted by the Elders. The only reason they could still do something like this is because in the end, the decisions made by the duo have always come out to be very good for the Faction. The Phoenix Faction is one that thrived due to making connections with geniuses and powerhouses. With a figure like Grey, and given who his father is, it''s not odd that the Faction Leader and his brother are willing to take the gamble on him. As long as Grey didn''t meet an untimely death, he would grow to become one of the strongest experts in the Faction, it was something everyone is aware of. However, with the Gnomes wanting him dead, he was in danger of getting killed pretty quickly. Chapter 1398 Unique Individual In a secret room. "What do you know about the formation?" The Faction Leader asked Grey. Grey looked at him before telling him all he got from the short time he studied the array. The Faction Leader was stumped beyond words when he heard Grey''s words. The things Grey told him about were basically what he planned to teach him. If he taught Grey just those things, it would be difficult for Grey to fully utilize the array since that was just the beginning of it and it required more complexity. He never thought Grey already had the basic knowledge which means he had to tell him about a more complex part of it. ''If I teach him just one part, with his brain, I''m certain he will be able to notice that I omitted a few things.'' The Faction Leader was in a dilemma. The plan was to teach Grey the basics, but Grey already knows this. If he taught Grey anything more intricate, Grey might be able to eventually figure out how the array works in the future. ''There are a few secrets I''ll have to keep. I''m sorry kid, you''ll have to do the rest on your own.'' The Faction Leader concluded. Grey noticed the Faction Leader was lost in thoughts and didn''t interrupt him. He knew what the Faction Leader was about to do was not good for his Faction, but he was still willing to teach him despite the issues it might cause. After a while, the Faction Leader went on to teach Grey the few things he felt were enough. It didn''t expose too much of the secrets behind the array formation, but it was enough for Grey to grasp it over time. But he was confident it would take a long period, maybe a few hundred years before Grey gets the core of the array. However, things started to take a turn after he told Grey the first step. Apparently, this was something Grey had been thinking about for a while since he had the entire core array drawn in his head. When the Faction Leader spoke to him about the issue, Grey was not only able to quickly grasp it, but he was able to link it to three other aspects of the array formation which scared the hell out of the Faction Leader. The three things Grey understood were among the few things the Faction Leader was willing and also not willing to show him. One was something that took him over ten years of study, and also with the help of the older Elders to understand, yet Grey was able to get it with just a hint. The Faction Leader concluded Grey was a scary individual and someone also worth investing in. The biggest investment in the world is human investment. Find someone with a good potential, invest in them, and reap the benefits in a few years time. This was something the Phoenix Faction and a few other top Factions and Families has been doing since time immemorial. They all have a few people they''ve invested in due to the potential they see in them. Grey is someone even an enemy would want to invest in just to make sure they were on good terms. A genius both on and off the battlefield was a rare sight. For a moment, the Faction Leader was stunned beyond words when he heard Grey''s analysis. It was evident that Grey had been trying to bypass this particular issue for a while now, and after being given a hint that isn''t even directly relating to that issue, he was able to dissect it due to the fact that an array formation is intricately linked. So understanding one part of the formation will help him understand more parts of it. The Faction Leader thought about it and he suddenly became curious, just how freakish is Grey? With that thought in mind, he continued teaching Grey about the array formation while purposely omitting more information. This time, he didn''t give Grey the obvious hints like the last time, but he was left speechless at Grey''s attention to detail. With each of Grey''s responses, it was like he could see the array formation in front of him and it was slowly being taken apart one piece at a time to understand how it works. To a certain extent, the Faction Leader saw new things he hadn''t seen in the array formation before and he was also able to understand some things that he had always been confused about. It was a strange feeling. To a certain extent, it was as if he wasn''t teaching Grey, but they were both trying to unravel the same secrets and each was bringing out what they understood about it. Time went on and before the Faction Leader knew it, the short lesson he had in mind for Grey was long discarded as he was also learning from Grey''s words and perspective on the array formation. Time went by and the next day soon came. Grey and the Faction Leader spoke throughout the night, and even when it was dawn the next morning, they still weren''t done with the conversation. The array formation was so complex that even with Grey''s input and the Faction Leader''s knowledge, they still weren''t able to cover five percent of it. One has to know that they were only still speaking about the core of the formation. Grey had some insights thanks to the array he had been studying since leaving the secret realm, which came as a help to the Faction Leader. The Faction Leader was the one who did most of the unraveling, but Grey''s input cannot be undermined. His thinking process was completely different from whatever the Faction Leader had seen which made it possible to see a new part of the array formation he had been missing. The middle-aged man and Aries were both shocked at the length at which Grey and the Faction Leader were speaking. They originally felt it wouldn''t take more than an hour or two, but it had been over twelve hours, and the duo were speaking enthusiastically. They looked at Grey''s friends and didn''t see a surprised expression on their faces. Sensing the middle-aged man''s gaze, Klaus laughed and said, "The mistake you guys made is to think he''s like every normal person. You''ve seen him fight, do you think he used up to fifty percent of his strength?" The middle-aged man was dumbstruck by Klaus'' question. How could one who trained so much to become a master Elementalist still have the time to become such an expert in the art of array formations. From how lost the Faction Leader is, and the occasional excited screams he makes, the middle-aged man knew that he was understanding some things that had been proving difficult for him. What he couldn''t understand is how Grey was able to make this possible. Grey is a youngster who was still in his twenties, yet his insight on arrays has gotten to such a frightening level. If not for the fact that he could tell Grey''s age from his bones, he would''ve never agreed to him being this young. Klaus and the others were freaks, but it was clear that they only focused on being freakish Elementalists. Grey on the other hand was different, he was a freak at everything he does. If they knew about Grey''s exploits in battle, they would be astounded by his battle knowledge. Grey was too young for the abilities he possesses. This is something he knows, which is why he always tries to ensure he doesn''t go overboard whenever he''s doing things like this. Seeing Grey and the Faction Leader talking, the middle-aged man looked at Grey''s friends and asked. "Can you tell us how he trains?" He asked curiously. "No one knows how he trains. But he trains more than the regular Elementalist. That''s clear for all to see." Klaus explained, "Not just that, but he has always been curious towards arrays, so he learns about to to whatever end." Klaus didn''t spill any information about Grey, only speaking about basic things like how much he liked training and learning about arrays. The middle-aged man looked in the direction Grey was and then at Klaus and the others. As if he could tell what the man was thinking, Klaus raised both hands, "Don''t look at us, we''re not like him. Who has the time to train both their elements and also master arrays. You can only he one of either, Grey is unique, as you can see." The middle-aged man nodded, he knew Grey was unique. He didn''t need anyone to tell him Grey was unique. Even a blind man could tell Grey was unique. It was just so shocking to see someone of Grey''s caliber in person. Grey was shattering everything he knew about geniuses which he found crazy. If he were to continue watching Grey, he might pass out. Chapter 1399 Raid Grey had spent two more days with the Phoenix Faction Leader, speaking nonstop on the array formation. In the end, they were only able to uncover a few more things about it. As they unraveled things about the early stages of the array, it started to get even more complex the deeper they went. Grey got to understand why the Faction Leader and the Elders of the Phoenix Faction hadn''t been able to understand the array even after so long. This was an extremely complex array that required a long period to understand. With what Grey understood, there was no way he would be able to set up the formation. Even making an easy form of it was impossible, there was no easy form of this particular array, you either get it or you don''t. Klaus was getting bored waiting for Grey so he went to the City close by with the others to have fun. There was nothing special about the city. Other than the Faction that was close by, there was nothing else to do around. ¡­. In the Phoenix Faction. Aries looked at the bored Klaus and asked, "Do you want to follow us for a raid?" Klaus'' ears perked up when he heard this, and he nodded, a look of curiosity appeared on his face, "You guys go for raids?" Aries chuckled when she heard this and replied, "Occasionally. Mostly when we''re bored. There''s a group of bandits that usually nest close to a volcano." "The volcano is in the woods and close to a path in the forest. They would come up and you know, rob." "We''ve been getting reports of kidnaps going on there lately, so we want to go check it out. I''ve been delaying it, but since you guys are here, and Grey''s working with my Teacher, I don''t mind taking you guys there." Klaus turned to Alice and Reynolds who both nodded. They were also in support of heading out for the raid. Aries took that as the go ahead and took them out of the Faction once again, heading towards the woods. They disguised themselves so as not to give away their identity and make the bandits come out. Klaus was dressed elegantly while the others were dressed as his guards and servants. Klaus played his part to the peak as he would occasionally cuss at Reynolds. Reynolds didn''t have the chance to speak back since he was technically a guard. Although he couldn''t speak back, it didn''t mean he can''t get back at Klaus while doing his duty as a guard. He would occasionally swing the spear in his hand which would then go on to hit Klaus'' head. "Fuck! If not for my father I would''ve killed such a stupid pig!" Klaus fumed when Reynolds did it again. Reynolds dropped his head as Klaus continued cussing at him. Klaus was about to hit him when a group stepped out of the bushes. "My Lord, you shouldn''t be yelling this much. Don''t you know you might attract bandits?" One of the people who just came out from the bush said with a sarcastic smile. "Who are you to tell me what to do? Get the hell out of my sight, clowns!" Klaus turned to the person that spoke and yelled at him. He looked at the others and seeing how they were dressed, he asked, "Are you guys going for a show? I''ll pay good money to watch you guys fool yourselves." The mouth of the man who spoke twitched when he heard Klaus'' words. They were clearly dressed like bandits, yet Klaus was saying they were clowns. It was clear he didn''t take into account what they could do to them. In the group of bandits, three of them were at the Peak of the Elemental Venerable Plane, while five were in the Ninth and Eighth stage. Aries didn''t bring anyone else with them so they were clearly outnumbered. Of course, these people at the Peak couldn''t be measured with Klaus, Reynolds, and Aries'' level, but they were still at the Peak, nonetheless. With eight members in the Late stages of the Elemental Venerable Plane, this could be said to be a deadly force in the woods. There were still around ten that were in the Early and Mid stages of the Elemental Venerable Plane. "Kid, I don''t think you know what''s good for you, if not, you would''ve shut your mouth." One of the bandits at the Peak said. "Shut up! What do you know, swine!" Klaus cussed and even picked up a small rock and tossed it at the man. The rock hit the man''s head, but it wasn''t painful. Although other Elementalists are not like Grey who has trained his physical body so high, they were still Elementalists and their bodies benefit from housing elemental essences. The essences strengthen their bodies and they become stronger. A stone from Klaus wouldn''t be able to hurt a Peak Elemental Venerables, unless the throw was enforced with the elements. The man looked at Klaus, his eyes twitching from anger. "What Family are you from? They better be rich, if not, I''ll personally make sure you beg for death." The man said. Klaus looked at him and smirked, "What does my Family being rich have to do with you? So what if they''re not rich, what will you do?" "I''ll... Why am I explaining to you?" The man wanted to tell Klaus what he would do to him, but then he realized something and felt angered, he looked at those in the Early and Mid stages, "Seize them. Keep most of them alive. The more we have, the better we can benefit from this." Klaus was already waiting for them to come close. He wanted to make sure they took out as many as they could from the first attack. This will tilt the battle over to their side. With the numbers on the side of the bandits, they had the advantage. But if they could take out a few of the top powerhouses, or take out most of the weaker Elementalists, they will be able to shorten the gap. The Early and Mid stage bandits rushed over to where Klaus and the others were standing, all with grins on their faces. Some of the men had their eyes on Alice and Aries. They were both beautiful, so it was normal for these people to have their eyes on them. Alice and Aries felt disgusted with the way the men were staring at them. Before Klaus and Reynolds could even react, the duo had killed three of the men that went close to them. Klaus spread out his domain and froze those who were close to him. Reynolds sent lightning bolts at the few who were close to him. In the space of a second, ten Early and Mid stage bandits were incapacitated by the group of four. One has to know that even though the group of ten weren''t making any attempts to defend, it was still a shocking feat to achieve. The fact that they were taken care of within such a short time was baffling. The trio at the Peak of the Venerable Plane were stunned. They couldn''t comprehend what just happened. Their underlings were killed before them and they couldn''t even make any moves. "You filthy clowns tried to touch me, you have another thing coming." Klaus pushed the head of one of the bandits he froze and the bandit fell to the ground, shattering after making contact with the ground. "What are you looking at? Do you want to experience the same thing?" Klaus looked at the trio at the Peak in a threatening manner. When they disguised themselves, they originally hid their true cultivation stage, but now, there was no need to hide it. The trio at the Peak realized they had been tricked by this group of four, but they quickly relaxed their minds when they sensed the cultivation stage of the group. Even though there were two at the Peak, the other two only had the strength of an Eighth stage Elemental Venerable. They might be stronger than the regular Eighth stage and Peak Venerables, but they were still outnumbered. Two Peak Venerables will be able to kill one of the duo at the Peak, and then two Ninth stage Venerables will team up with the other Peak Venerable at the side of the bandits and fight against the second Peak Venerable on Klaus'' side. This was the plan that came to them when they saw the strength of the four of them. "What''s the point of showing your strength? You''ll still get kidnapped by us, and we will make sure to make you suffer for killing our brothers." One of the Peak Venerable bandits said coldly. "Do you think you can beat us?" Klaus asked mockingly, a grin on his face. The man looked at him and turned to the other man at the Peak, "We''ll take this brat." Chapter 1400 Amazing Klaus "Two is not enough, you should join them." Klaus pointed at the third Peak Venerable. He was looking down on the bandits, and it infuriated them even more when they saw the eyes he was giving them. Klaus had no respect for them and felt he could defeat all of them on his own. This was something the bandits didn''t want to accept. There was no way they would believe they would be defeated by a single kid. Klaus didn''t have any qualms with fighting them on his own. Well, he didn''t really want to fight them on his own. He''s just riling them up before the battle. The man moved close to Klaus, one of the bandits at the Peak joined him and they charged at Klaus. Klaus snorted and an ice wall appeared before him, blocking the path of the duo who were coming his way. "Don''t rush. I''m enough for you guys. Tell the others to wait, I''ll kill them when I''m done with you guys." Klaus said to the others who were about to attack Aries and the others. Aries couldn''t help but take a glance at Klaus. Alice, seeing her reaction, said, "That''s how he is. He has no interest in fighting with them. He''s just distracting them." Realization dawned on Aries when she heard Alice''s explanation, now she understood why he was talking this much. In all honesty, she could see that the bandits all had him in mind and if given the chance, they would all charge at him. To be fair, she thought this was a nice skill to have, but being able to irritate so many people was not something just anyone could do. "How''s he still alive?" She blurted out. "Well, we''re always with him. And he''s smart enough not to annoy people above his backing." Alice expected her to feel this way. For someone able to annoy people this much, it was easy to assume he had too many enemies. Reynolds didn''t rush into battle, he brought out his Elemental Warrior before fighting with those in the Late stages. Aries was fighting with one Peak Venerable and one Ninth stage Venerable, Alice didn''t merge with her Seelie and was fighting with someone in the Eighth stage just like her. Reynolds took over those that were left. The appearance of Reynolds'' Elemental Warrior took the entire battlefield by surprise. The Elemental Warrior made things tilt over to Klaus and his friends'' side. The duo at the Peak who were fighting with Klaus couldn''t believe their eyes, they looked at Klaus who had a grin on his face. "You guys are morons. Don''t you even think? Do you think we''d want to fight with you guys without being confident?" Klaus started cussing at the bandits, his voice was loud enough for all of them to hear. He abused them in so many ways that even when the thought of escaping came to their heads, they were too vexed not to even think about it. All they wanted to do was to kill Klaus. They weren''t too interested in fighting with the others, all they wanted to do was to kill Klaus, that was all they were concerned about. Aries was shocked at the rate at which these people hated Klaus. All he did was to say a few words, well, she would be vexed at the words if they were directed at her, but she didn''t feel she would have the same reaction as the group. Klaus was laughing hard, even though he was being bombarded by multiple attacks, he was laughing his heart out. His defense was too strong and it was frustrating the duo fighting with him. Before they could take down one wall, another would appear, making it seem like all their efforts were in vain. Aries was stronger than her opponents, but since there were two of them, she wasn''t able to deal with them in a short time. She had the better attack power, but she had to focus on two places at the same time which made things hard for her. Alice was fighting with two opponents in the Eighth stage, and it wasn''t easy for her. She was under some pressure, but she wasn''t worried. With her strength, all it would take was time and she would successfully be able to defeat them. Reynolds'' Elemental Warrior had been able to send the Ninth stage Venerable it was fighting with. Being at the Peak, there was no way this person would be a match for it. After injuring him, it moved closer to Reynolds and attacked the person fighting with Reynolds. The man didn''t expect the Elemental Warrior to attack while he was under pressure from Reynolds'' attack. He was forced to take Reynolds'' attack while blocking the Elemental Warrior''s attack. Unfortunately, he was in the Eighth stage of the Venerable Plane, there was no way he would be able to block the attack of the Elemental Warrior that''s at the Peak of the Venerable Plane. Both Reynolds and the Elemental Warrior''s attack hit him at the same time. He was clamped in the middle of the attack and felt the full brunt of it. There was no way he could survive the attack of the duo, and he died under the impact of the attack. "Rey, you always make it so easy." Alice complained and her Seelie appeared. When Alice''s Seelie appeared, it dawned on the bandits that this was a battle they couldn''t win. The thought of escaping came to them at this moment. Since this wasn''t a battle they could win, then the best thing to do was to run away. Reynolds and his Elemental Warrior naturally wouldn''t allow the Ninth stage Venerable with them escape. Alice and her Seelie also held back the duo with them. Aries and Klaus were fighting with two, and none of their opponents would want to show their backs to the duo, they knew just as dangerous each of them were. Klaus might''ve only been defending all through the battle, but the men knew he was by no means dangerous when it came to attacking. Aries was a relentless attacker, even when fighting against two people, she was still the one who held the initiative due to always being on the front foot when fighting. The best defense is to attack. "Use them, don''t hold anyone back!" One of the Peak Venerables fighting with Klaus screamed. They could see their defeat slowly coming. After Reynolds joined his Elemental Warrior against the Ninth stage Venerable, they killed him in a very short time. Of the large group of bandits, only six were left, Klaus had two of them, Aries had two, and Alice had two. Reynolds had killed the duo with him, and he didn''t help anyone else, rather, he was standing on the side, waiting for who might attempt to escape from the area. Alice''s Seelie was stronger than the Eighth stage Venerable it was fighting with, and so was Alice. Before long, the duo had seriously injured their opponents, leaving them on their last legs. Not just them, but Aries had been able to also severely injure the Ninth stage Venerable. Klaus was the only one who hadn''t caused any harm to his opponents. After one of the Peak Venerables said this, those left alive brought out a talisman. Aries'' eyes enlarged when she saw this and yelled, "Retreat!" She knew what these things were and didn''t dare to be hit by them. The bandits tossed the talisman towards Klaus and the others. Klaus, seeing all of them smiled and used his water element to gather all the talisman, compressed them into a small ice ball and tossed them at the group of bandits who were also running. He was so fast that even his friends didn''t know when he completed it. Boom! A loud explosion came from where the bandits were headed. Aries paused when she sensed where the explosion came from. "What happened?" She couldn''t help but ask. Klaus, being the only one left standing, explained, "I took their talisman and tossed it at them." "Wait, what?" Aries couldn''t believe her ears. "They were struck by their talisman." Klaus said. Reynolds looked at Klaus and said, "Since when did you become such a great fighter?" "I''ve always been a good fighter, I just don''t like showing off." Klaus snorted. Aries looked at the duo, still stunned with what she just heard. She could see where the explosion happened and knew Klaus wasn''t lying, but she still found it hard to believe. What she didn''t know was that due to Klaus'' ice ability, he was able to use the cold to slow down the explosion of the talisman, giving him the chance he needed to compress them into a single ice ball and send it towards the bandits. "We better go capture them. You know they won''t die from that attack." Alice reminded the group. Aries nodded, still in shock at Klaus'' feat. Chapter 1401 Amazing Klaus II Klaus and the others rushed to where the explosion happened and they found the figure of those in the Ninth and Eighth stage, the trio at the Peak were nowhere to be seen. The duo Alice was previously fighting with couldn''t survive the explosion and died from it. The Ninth stage Elemental Venerable Aries was fighting with was still barely alive. Only the trio at the Peak were nowhere to be seen. Klaus looked towards the volcano and said, "They''re there. You guys can go deal with them." "You''re not going?" Aries asked. "I don''t like volcanoes." Klaus said, but after thinking about it, he added, "I''ll just go since I''m the leader of this squad." "Who made you the leader?" Reynolds felt like beating Klaus up. "We all agreed whenever Grey is not around I''ll lead the group. Do you think you can lead the group?" Klaus asked with cold eyes. "I think Grey has messed up your head after beating you too often." Alice shook her head and moved in the direction of the volcano. Klaus and Reynolds continued arguing while Aries followed behind Alice. She has come to understand that there was no speaking with the duo, they would argue over everything. Reynolds wasn''t willing to be below Klaus, and Klaus seems to enjoy putting Reynolds below him. Well, that was how she saw it. Unknown to her, even when Klaus was weaker, he was still like this. The only person he willingly gives in to is Grey, other than Grey, he would never give in to anyone else. Even Grey tends to be a victim of his abuse on some occasions. Klaus and Reynolds continued arguing as they headed toward the volcano. "Damn, we really have to go in." Klaus dropped his head when he saw this. It was clear that the bandits ran into the volcano, and if they wanted to capture them or even kill them, then they had to go into the volcano too. "Yes we do. Don''t tell me the great ''squad leader'' is afraid." Reynolds teased. "Who do you think you''re talking to? I''ve been to bigger and more dangerous volcanoes. This is a walk in the park." Klaus grunted and walked forward, taking the lead. He couldn''t see any opening on the body of the volcano, so the only in was through the top. They flew to the top before entering the volcano. After entering, they saw the trio close to the lava, they were healing themselves using the essence from the lava. "You couldn''t even go far? Who runs to their hideout when being chased?" Klaus'' irritating voice echoed in the volcano. The trio raised their heads and looked at Klaus. "It was you!" One of the Peak Venerables pointed his fingers which only had bones at Klaus. He was the last to leave and saw the others escaping, except for Klaus. He recalled seeing a grin on Klaus'' face when he was turning around, but he didn''t think about it, only now that he saw Klaus'' face did he recall it. Klaus was an evil fiend that deserved the most gruesome death. "It''s good you know the name of your killer. I would''ve been disappointed if you pointed at someone else." Klaus shrugged, clearly proud that he was remembered by the man. One of the men did a hand seal and the volcano started to show signs of activity. Klaus froze when he saw this and asked, "I thought it wasn''t active?" "Not to my knowledge." Aries replied. "We''ve been keeping this guy from erupting for years now. We kept it this way for a situation like this. Since we want him dead, we''ll unleash it on you." One of the bandits said, his face was half flesh half skeleton. Lava started to shoot out of the lava pool the bandits were standing close to. Klaus and the others who were mid-air were forced to dodge the lava. Klaus wanted to use his water element but he noticed an abnormality. "Fuck! This is why I hate volcanoes!" Klaus'' water element was being suppressed due to the volcano. The effect was stronger due to the volcano being on the verge of erupting. However, Aries and Alice could feel the fire essence in their bodies heat up. Alice took in a deep breath and a sound of pleasure left her mouth, "Ah¡­ this is so satisfying. If only volcanoes would erupt more often." Aries nodded in agreement before charging at the trio who were on the side. Reynolds didn''t feel his element being suppressed, nor did he feel any boost in his strength, he looked at the trio and his armor appeared on his body. Klaus was the only one who had a grumpy expression on his face. He couldn''t believe there was nothing he could do due to the suppression of his element. Alice merged with her Seelie and her strength shot up. Not to the Peak, but she had no problems with fighting against one of the bandits in her current stage. The bandits were not at their peak, so they naturally wouldn''t be able to suppress her. Reynolds, after merging with his Elemental Warrior, was at the Peak. Aries was also at the Peak, so Klaus wasn''t technically needed in this battle. A fierce battle started the moment the trio from both sides clashed. The bandits were already seriously injured, so they were fiercer in the battle. If they held back, they would die, this was something they were aware of. Alice was a battle maniac and enjoyed battles like this. Reynolds didn''t mind engaging in these types of battles since he had the Elemental Warrior armor. Aries was a fearsome fighter, so she could deal with battles like these. Klaus was annoyed there was nothing he could do and turned his anger to the volcano. Since the presence of the lava was making him weak, he would freeze it. Klaus'' domain appeared and his body started to show signs of freezing. His skin turned pale white from the drop in temperature and even his eyes turned silver. A large silver moon appeared behind Klaus, and with a wave of his hand, a large gust of snow blew toward the volcano pool. The bits of volcano that were spewing out froze the second the snow blew past it. Klaus was incensed, and he was going to go all-out against this volcano! The trio were in a heated battle against the bandits, while Klaus focused on the volcano. The lower part of the volcano was hot from the heat leaving the lava, but the upper part of the volcano was freezing from the cold leaving Klaus'' body. Klaus turned his body into an ice dispenser. He was sending out a chilling cold that even those who were in the middle of battle could feel it. They paused and looked in Klaus'' direction and they were amazed, even Alice and Reynolds were dumbstruck by Klaus'' current appearance. His eyes were the most dazzling. The silver eyes along with the moon behind him gave him a striking appearance. Klaus yelled and a large ice needle appeared. The cold it gave off shook the hearts of those present. The bandits knew that if this attack hit any of them, they would not be able to survive it. Klaus, who everyone thought had his eyes on the volcano suddenly unleashed a tiny needle at one of the bandits. "Stay focused. Hahaha!" Klaus'' laughter accompanied his attack as the man was frozen solid. Aries and the others were once dumbfounded by this. Klaus had the time to even do a sneak attack even when in such a condition. It was clear that he was vexed by the fact that he couldn''t join in on the battle, now after drawing all the attention to himself, he killed off Reynolds'' opponent. "Fuck! Why did you have to kill the person I''m fighting?!" Reynolds suddenly realized something. Klaus didn''t kill anyone else''s opponent, rather, he killed his. That was annoying. "Hahaha, even when I''m not interested, I can beat someone you can''t! Weakling." Klaus laughed once again. Like a maniac, the large needle was sent toward the lava. As soon as the tip of the needle struck the lava, the lava gave off steam. It was clear that the cold and heat were fighting each other. Reynolds didn''t continue to fight with the bandits, leaving only Alice and Aries to fight with them. This time, they didn''t dare to be distracted by Klaus'' fight with the volcano. One of them was already dead, and there was no way they could escape now. The only chance they could escape from them was if they could win against the ladies. As the battle between them got to the peak, they sensed the temperature drop to a staggering level. This time, they were forced to look, and once again, they were left speechless. "Amazing¡­" Aries couldn''t keep it in. Klaus truly was amazing. Chapter 1402 Frozen Volcano ***A.N: There''s an issue with the last 2 chapters, I''ll sort it out before the end of today!** "It''s¡­ freezing¡­" One of the bandits said with a low voice, he couldn''t even summon enough courage to speak properly. For the first time in his life, he was truly astounded by someone''s ability. Klaus was freezing the lava. This was something he never thought he would experience in this life, but it''s happening right before his eyes and he didn''t know what to make of it. Klaus, a youth in his twenties was freezing a lava, something that was extremely hot was being frozen solid by a young man. It was an unbelievable sight. Reynolds and Alice were shocked when they saw what was happening. Klaus exceeded their expectations which was something he rarely does given how highly they all thought of each other. Other than Grey who frequently exceeds their expectations due to his uniqueness, Klaus was not someone they thought would do something like that given the fact that they all thought very highly of him. "Show off." Reynolds mouthed. Klaus not only killed his opponent with a single attack, but he also froze a lava. What else could be described as showing off if not this. Klaus was a show off and Reynolds wanted to beat him up for it. Aries was just as stunned as the bandit. At the moment, she didn''t know what to say about this group of friends. There was the freakish Grey, Reynolds who was a high grade summoner, Alice who had a Seelie, and then there''s Klaus, someone capable of freezing lava powerful enough to kill them all. "Hahaha, next time you wouldn''t take me to a stupid volcano! I''ll turn it into a snow garden!" Klaus laughed like the evil genius he is. Reynolds and Alice couldn''t help but shake their heads. Everyone present could sense that Klaus'' aura was starting to increase, a testament of the lava being suppressed. Aries and the other Fire Elementalists present felt the boost they have starting to decline, not just that, but it was affecting their strength as well. If this continued, then there was a high chance that they would not be able to use their full strength. Luckily, their opponents would also be weakened as well. Alice on the other hand, although her fire element''s strength was seeing a decline, the Seelie, being an Ice Elemental Magical Creature started to surge with power. Just like Klaus, it was being repressed, but not any more. Klaus unleashed a terrifying cold that spread across the entire place. "What sort of monster is he?" One of the bandits said. "A maniacal one, that''s for sure." Reynolds answered spitefully. "Stop being envious. Savor the moment, it''s not everyday you get to see a genius in action." Klaus said, annoying Reynolds even more. "You''re a weirdo, I''m very sure of that." Reynolds snorted. "Haters will hate, but it will not deem my light." Klaus had a smug look on his face. Alice and Aries went back to their intense battle. This time, the intensity on the side of the bandits dropped drastically, but Alice''s strength increased due to the Seelie and she was able to quickly overwhelm her opponent. Before the bandit could try to escape, she froze the bandit. Unlike Klaus, the Seelie, an Ice Elemental Magical Creature wasn''t able to freeze the innards of the bandit. This goes to show just how powerful Klaus'' ice ability is. The fact that even Ice Elemental Creatures couldn''t compete with him shows his uniqueness. The bandit frozen by Alice broke the ice and didn''t even attempt to continue the battle, he instantly tried to make a getaway the second he was free. Alice gave chase, thanks to her lightning element, and the decrease in the overall attributes of the bandits due to Klaus freezing the lava, she was faster and was able to catch up to him before he was able to leave the volcano. "You think you can escape?" She asked. "No, but I''ll kill you!" The bandit laughed and an excited look appeared on his face, he looked at Alice who had a strange expression on her face. Alice looked around and asked, "How? If I may ask." The bandit looked around, and then his eyes turned to Klaus. "You! You froze our array formation?!" The bandit felt like his head was about to explode. The array formation was the last method he could use to escape when chased into the volcano, but Klaus had unknowingly froze it which means it was not going to work. Without the array, his odds of escaping was slim. "Fuck!" "Hahaha, I''ll freeze you too if you don''t get off my sight!" Klaus was smug, saying whatever he wanted. "You don''t need to worry about him, I''ll be enough to deal with you. Just make sure you don''t expect anything else to help you out." Alice said and without waiting, she attacked. The bandit didn''t expect Alice to attack instantly, he was hoping to rest for a while, but Alice made it impossible for him to do so. Aries'' opponent wasn''t having an easy time either. He had lost one hand, and was bleeding profusely. He was standing with sheer willpower. Dying was not something he wanted to accept, even though he could already tell his chances of survival was minimal, he didn''t want to give up until the very end. Aries wasn''t expending too much energy as she fought against the bandit. Reynolds wasn''t bothered with the battle any longer, he was still grumpy that Klaus took away his opponent. Klaus still had a maniacal look on his face, he looked at Reynolds and said, "You still have time to beg for forgiveness. You know I have a soft spot for you since you''ve been following me for a while now." "Beg?! When I''m done with you, you''ll be the one who has to beg for forgiveness!" Reynolds was vexed by Klaus'' words. "It''s naturally that you feel angered by my brightness, I can''t keep it down, if not, I would. Don''t worry, my light will shine on you and make you better." Klaus started spouting nonsense, well, to Reynolds it was. The duo started arguing while Aries and Alice dealt with the bandits. A few minutes later, Alice and Aries were done with their opponents. Alice, seeing the two still arguing but not as intensely as the start couldn''t help but shake her head in embarrassment. The duo didn''t have any shame, Grey included. She knew if he were here, he would''ve also joined them. The days of the trio cursing each other flashed through her mind as she saw the duo in this act. Even after so many years, they''ve not changed. This was one of the things she liked about the guys, no matter what they go through or their current situation, they didn''t change towards each other, they still laughed and joked with each other. "Is there anything else we can do?" Klaus asked, he didn''t want to go back to the Phoenix Faction and continue waiting for Grey, for some reason, he felt Grey would still be trying to decipher the array with the Phoenix Faction Leader which would just make them stay there for a while longer while doing nothing. "Well¡­ there''s another place we wanted to raid. We''ve been getting reports on it for some months now. No one has been chanced since there aren''t too many Peak Venerables present in the Faction who are youngsters. The rest are all old guys dying to make a breakthrough." Aries explained. "What are you waiting for then, let''s go!" Klaus said. "What about Grey?" Alice asked. "What about him?" Klaus looked at Alice with a weird gaze. "Nothing, let''s go." Alice knew Grey was not going to be free anytime soon and it''ll be a pain in the butt if they were to go back and Grey was still in the process of trying to comprehend the array formation. Klaus and Reynolds would probably not let her see the end of it. Aries took a glance at Alice and realized she just gave in to Klaus''. ''What a weird friendship.'' She thought internally. Normally, the guys are usually the ones who give in to the ladies in most friendships, but in this case, that wasn''t the case, rather, Alice was the one who was giving in to Klaus. To be fair, Alice also didn''t like sitting idle, so since there was something to do, it wouldn''t be bad to keep Grey waiting. Seeing that none of them had any issues with heading to the next location, Aries went on to tell them what the situation was. Apparently, in a neighboring town close to the Phoenix Faction, there have been multiple cases of someone going missing. Mostly those at the Peak of the Sage Plane. When the Faction heard news of it, they sent an Early stage Elemental Venerable Plane member to check it out, but the situation was the same, the person vanished without trace. It was after a Late stage Venerable disappeared did the Faction get alarmed, mainly due to the fact that the person managed to report back, saying there was a hidden expert at the Peak of the Venerable Plane hiding there. Chapter 1403 A Grieving Father In a town some kilometers away from the Phoenix Faction. Alice and Reynolds stepped into the town, looking at the place that looked almost deserted. It was already approaching sunset, and there was no one in sight. It was almost as if all the people from the town went into hiding. Alice took a glance at Reynolds, "Do you think this will be dangerous?" "Of course, but don''t tell me you don''t have anything in case you meet with a Sovereign?" Reynolds didn''t seem bothered. If by any chance their opponent was a Sovereign, he had something from the Faction he could use to scare the person away. Even if the person is bad, they wouldn''t want a powerful Faction like his own to go after them, so they would most likely leave him alone. All he has to do is say he wouldn''t pursue the matter. "I do, I just don''t like leaving my survival to chances." Alice replied. "Don''t worry, we''ll be fine." Reynolds reassured, he grinned and said, "Don''t forget we have the legendary Lucas Dawson on our side too." Alice thought about it and nodded, very few people would want those sort of enemies on their tails. As long as Alice and Reynolds didn''t have any plans of taking what belongs to a Sovereign, the Sovereign would not bother with them once they find out about the people backing the duo. Klaus and Aries didn''t follow them into the town so as not to alarm the suspected Peak Venerable. If the person was at the Peak of the Venerable Plane, there was no way the person would come out when two Peak Venerables are present, unless there wasn''t one person but multiple people at the Peak. Alice and Reynolds were sent there since they were the ones with lower cultivation stages but high attack power, Reynolds especially. So long there is only one Peak Venerable, Reynolds would be able to deal with the person with the help of his Elemental Warrior. "What''s about the possibility of more Peak Venerables?" Reynolds asked. "We''ll stall so Klaus and Aries will come help." Alice replied. "I''m saying what if there''s more than ten Peak Venerables, how are we going to deal with them?" Reynolds rephrased his question. "Well, none of us is Grey. We''ll escape, what else can we do?" Alice shrugged, she didn''t even need to think about it. Escaping with their lives was more important. As long as the intel was wrong, they would escape and talk about it later. They had a few items that should help with escaping from situations like these. Reynolds nodded to her words. This was also what he wanted to confirm. Grey could fight against more opponents on his own. The others could do it, but if they were heavily outnumbered, it was best to escape first. "Why aren''t people outside?" They could sense the presence of people, but they were all inside their houses. Most of them were still in the Overlord Plane, only a few people had high cultivation Planes, being in the Sage Plane. This was the perfect place for an Elemental Venerable to hide since they could hide without being caught. Reynolds and Alice quickly scouted the place and found the abnormality. It was quite easy to notice since there was a foul stench of decay coming from the place. The duo''s expressions changed when they got to the place. "Necromancers?" Alice looked at Reynolds. They''ve dealt with Necromancers on a few occasions due to Grey being marked and they were familiar with this stench. This was something they perceived when they raided a hideout together. Reynolds nodded and his demeanor changed, he knew this was not something to be taken lightly. If there were Necromancers here, it would completely change a few things. First off, the Necromancers wouldn''t be afraid to kill them since they already had a bone to pick with everyone else in the Aurora Continent. The duo hid their aura as they tried to sneak into the building that had the stench of decay. They were successful in getting into the place, but they soon realized something was horribly wrong. A figure was waiting for them, the figure had some parts of its face hanging out. It was like the figure was purposely disfigured for things like this. The duo were stunned by it and just as they were about to turn, they heard a voice. "Another set of specimens, I didn''t think that fellow would send so many good specimens over. Having a friend in high places is very convenient." The voice was eerie, making the hairs on both Reynolds and Alice''s body stand on edge. The duo exchanged glances and nodded, wanting to escape. But they saw more figures appearing. Some of them were young while there were a few old ones, all of them were Elemental Venerables, Late stage Elemental Venerables. Over ten figures came out, surrounding the duo. "Don''t rush out, come in for tea. I''ve been expecting my supply for some days now." The voice spoke from inside the building. Reynolds and Alice looked at the figures blocking their path and they noticed they all had one thing, they were all dead. "Puppets." Alice said through gritted teeth, "I hate Necromancers." "Kikiki, don''t worry, you won''t feel anything soon enough. Come have tea, at least before you join my legion." The voice didn''t seem to mind Alice''s words. "You''re the one who''s not going to feel anything soon enough." Alice said and she walked straight into the building. Reynolds looked at the puppets and felt his heart weigh heavily on him. ''If only Grey were here, he would''ve deactivated this guy with nothing more than a thought.'' Reynolds sighed as he followed Alice into the place. The building was simple, not too large and properly lit. "Welcome, please, take a seat." The voice came from inside the house. A young girl walked out, with a tray in her hand. There were two cups on it, and just as the voice said, there was tea inside. Alice looked at the little girl and she spat on the ground. The young girl who should be around eight was also a puppet. "How can you even kill someone like this?" Alice asked, on the verge of exploding with anger. "That''s my daughter. I''m trying to bring her back to life. But there isn''t much I can do now. This is why I need a good amount of supplies for my research. I''m getting really close, I''ve had a major breakthrough during the previous experiments." The voice came from inside once again. "The dead should stay dead." Alice said calmly. Hearing the words of the voice, she felt calmed down. She took a look at the little girl but she didn''t feel that what the voice was doing was right. "The dead should stay dead¡­" The voice repeated Alice''s words and there was a short silence in the place, footsteps were heard as a figure walked out of one of the rooms. A well-dressed middle-aged man walked out from one of the rooms. His well chiseled face was a complete contrast of his voice. "My daughter was my life. Do you think I should let her stay dead when there''s a chance of bringing her back?" The man''s voice wasn''t as high pitched as he was making it sound when he was hidden away. "You know too well that no matter what you do, she can''t come back to life. You''re not a God, how can you bring the dead back to life?" Alice looked straight into the eyes of the man and said, "Stop playing around, you''ve killed so many people just because you''re chasing a stupid possibility." "I like you, kid. But you''ll never understand the pain of a father watching his daughter die while being unable to do anything." The man was calm, he wasn''t bothered with Alice''s words. No one could understand what he was going through, and there was no point in trying to make them understand it. "Huh? You don''t seem to be from the Phoenix Faction. Did that guy send you over or did you come on your own?" The man was confused when he sensed their auras, a thoughtful look appeared on his face as he said, "To think of it, he didn''t inform me as well." "You have an accomplice in the Phoenix Faction?" Reynolds asked. "Of course, why do you think I can comfortably camp in their territory without having to worry? I''m not doing too much to attract the higher ups, so I''m good." The man said. "I see. I''ll report back to the Phoenix Faction with your corpse. They should know how to deal with their internal moles." Alice understood what was happening and didn''t seem too surprised. Things like these happen everywhere, she was aware of it. "Little girl, I like your confidence, but do you think you can defeat me?" The man chuckled. Chapter 1404 We’re All People Alice took a glance at the man and chuckled, her aura burst out as she instantly merged with her Seelie. Reynolds sighed softly and said, "We shouldn''t rush into this." He also merged with his Elemental Warrior. He knew this man wouldn''t be an easy opponent and he didn''t want to take any chances and then have to be forced into a tight spot. The man saw the increase in the strength of the duo and laughed, "You think you can defeat me with this? I''ve been alive for so long and two little kids think that because they have a method of increasing their strengths, they can fight me on equal footing?" "You two must be delusional." The man scoffed, he looked at Alice and said, "Especially you. At least he has what it takes to talk to me, although he''s still not on my level, but he has what it takes. You little girl do not. I''ll let one of my toys play with you." A lightning bolt shot at the man, it was an attack from Alice. But before the attack could strike the man, a figure appeared and blocked the attack. This figure was that of a lady, and she was at the Peak of the Venerable Plane. It was evident that she was dead, just like the other puppets of the man, but compared to the others, there was something off about her. "You see this puppet, even the Gnomes have been searching for a breakthrough. I was able to do this after years of research." The man explained proudly. The duo could tell how proud the man was at this puppet, and when they sensed its aura, they understood why. This puppet seems to have retained the original strength of the person while she was still alive. This is a very strange thing to experience because all the puppets they''ve encountered were always weaker than their original version, unless cultivated. This one wasn''t cultivated in any way, rather, it retained its original strength. "You''ve noticed the difference. I guess it''s expected since this doesn''t seem to be your first encounter with necromancers. However, this is your first encounter with a necromancer of my caliber. I''ll change the entire world once I bring my little girl back to life. Even those who hated necromancy will be forced to practice it. Everyone has that special person they wish to bring back to life." The man said. Thinking about it from his angle, it was understandable to say something like this. There are people who have lost someone close to them and have been thinking of ways to bring them back to life. This was an opportunity almost anyone would take up, Alice and the others included. Fortunately for the duo, they weren''t in such a position, so the best thing they felt to do was to kill off this man before this spread. Once it spreads, then the Gnomes will take control of the human world, this was not something any human was willing to accept. The lady blocked the lightning bolt and looked at Alice with her listless eyes, she took some steps forward and Alice unconsciously took a step forward as well. There was no fear in her eyes, she can never back down from a fight, even when she''s the weaker one, she will never back down from a battle she knows she has a slight chance of winning, especially one of this importance. Reynolds didn''t try to get involved, he knew the man was his target. He let Alice deal with the puppet while he focused on the man. The man was different from other necromancers who were mostly scrawny. This man was well-built, and it was evident that he wasn''t weak either. "Kid, I''ll play with you for a while. If that girl can survive ten minutes with her, I''ll applaud her strength." The man didn''t think Alice stood a chance against the puppet he just brought out. This was a puppet that belonged to a grade four Peak Venerable. Alice didn''t even have the strength of a Peak Venerable, so how could she fight against a grade four Venerable. The man made sure his special puppets all had high grades. This will make using them better. As long as they retained their original strength, they would be able to cause unimaginable damage to others. Especially those who look down on puppets. This was his biggest confidence, this was why he had never tried to leave this area. With a steady supply of information from the Phoenix Faction, he knew when to leave and when to stay. As long as a Sovereign didn''t show up, he was fine. Even if multiple Peak Venerables come, he has a few tricks up his sleeves to deal with them. Also, grade four Peak Venerables aren''t all that common, much less those with higher grades. He didn''t know what grade Alice and Reynolds were, but he didn''t think they would be above grade three. Reynolds and the man didn''t immediately engage in a fight, instead, they faced off. Reynolds was just as relaxed as the man, it was as if he wasn''t about to get into a life and death battle. The man was captivated by Reynolds'' composure. "Join me, boy. You''re different from that girl." The man suddenly spoke up. "I''m sorry, my friend doesn''t like you. I''m good staying by her side." Reynolds rejected the man''s offer without blinking. The man chuckled, "You''re a man, you''ll understand what I''m speaking about soon enough. Women mostly make rash decisions based on their emotions. Sooner or later, she''ll get you killed." "I mean, take a good look at your current situation, this isn''t something that should be happening if not for her rash decisions." The man tried to convince Reynolds. "You''re doing something based on your emotions right now. What does that make you?" Reynolds asked. Reynolds'' question stunned the man. In truth, Reynolds was right. He turned to necromancy because he couldn''t bear to lose his daughter. And he had been conducting multiple researches and tests just to make sure he finds a way to bring back his daughter. "It''s different. I''m still calm even with what I''m doing. Yes, I indeed get into this due to my emotions, but it''s different. Men and women think differently, you know that." The man said. "I know, but in the end, we''re all people. Women are wired to be more emotional, we are different, we''re wired to be rational." Reynolds didn''t seem moved by the man''s words. "Hahaha, you''re a smart kid. I want you to join me even more now." The man laughed, he looked at Alice who was holding her own against the puppet, "I might''ve underestimated your friend. How about it, I let her go and you join me?" "That''s a good deal." Reynolds squinted his eyes and said, "The thing is, you''re in no position to make such deals. I''m very confident we will be able to get out of this alive. I don''t know about you, but I''m confident we will survive this." The man looked at Reynolds, then at Alice. He smiled and with a wave of his hand, another figure appeared. A puppet just as strong as the lady that is fighting with Alice. The man took note of Reynolds'' facial expression and didn''t see any changes. "Looks like you have so much time on your hands. How about I keep you entertained." Reynolds vanished after saying this. He was currently in his merged state, his speed was frightening. The man''s pupils constricted and he turned to his left. A dark screen appeared there, and with the appearance of the dark screen came a ''bang!''. Reynolds was standing on the other side of the screen which was starting to crack from the fist that collided with it. Reynolds'' fist was covered with a lightning gauntlet made from the Elemental Warrior armor, increasing the strength of his attacks. The man frowned when he saw this. He understood that he miscalculated the strength of not just Alice, but Reynolds as well. From what he saw, Alice and Reynolds were definitely around grade five experts. ''If I can add them to my collection, it''ll be amazing!'' The man thought internally. He was more interested in Reynolds and the lightning armor he was wearing. He could tell that Reynolds'' increase in strength has everything to do with the lightning armor. What he couldn''t understand was how it was formed. He didn''t see any signs that it was an elemental weapon which was very strange. ''Could it be a secret technique?'' He wondered. The thought of dissecting Reynolds started to become very interesting in his head. Yes, he wanted to revive his daughter, but that doesn''t mean he didn''t want to increase his strength as well. If he could get a technique like the one Reynolds has, his strength would move to the same level as those grade seven experts, if not even a grade eight expert. Chapter 1405 A Powerful Puppet ''I must acquire whatever he has!'' The man came to a decision in his head. This was something that might change the trajectory of his life. With this technique, he would be able to acquire more items and more people that he would use to quicken his research. The man suddenly burst out laughing, pleased with what was about to happen. "I don''t know where you come from, but you''re what I''ve been missing all this while. Once I have you in my grasp, that''s all I truly need." The man spoke while laughing. "It''s a shame that whatever you have planned out will not work. It''s unfortunate you have to meet up with me and her. If you had encountered anyone else, you would''ve had it very easy." Reynolds wasn''t bothered with what the man was yapping on about. He had seen far too many psychopaths to be worried about this man. For someone who has been friends with someone as crazy as Klaus, there was nothing that could shake him at the moment. The man saw Reynolds'' calm expression and laughed, the more he saw Reynolds like this, the greater his curiosity grew. He wanted what gave Reynolds such confidence. This wasn''t something that was ordinary, it was clearly from the fact that he was confident in his abilities. Why would he be confident in his abilities if not for this technique? The man had everything figured out and already knew his plan on extracting the technique from Reynolds. Reynolds didn''t know what the man was thinking about, neither did he care. He took a peek on Alice''s end and his face changed slightly. Alice had no problem with fighting the lady, but with the addition of the other puppet, she was starting to feel the burden of being outnumbered. ''I have to help her. If this continues she might be in danger.'' After coming to a decision, Reynolds didn''t delay any further and attacked once again. The dark screen had already been destroyed from his first attack, now, he wanted to get a clean hit at the man. The man''s body moved in a weird manner and he was able to dodge Reynolds'' fist even though it was such a close range. Reynolds didn''t give up as he continued attacking. His domain came out and covered a large area. Making sure there was no way the man wouldn''t be caught up in the domain. The man let out a dark mist from his body. He was also going to make use of his domain. Since Reynolds wasn''t playing around, he too would take this seriously, after all, Reynolds could kill him given how high his attack power was. The battle intensified as the duo started to exchange moves at a quicker pace. The house was quickly destroyed thanks to both them and Alice''s fight. Alice was being pushed back by the puppets, but she was holding her own against them. She was irritated with what the man was doing, and that rage was fueling. Her attack power was showing signs of growing stronger than it previously was when she had been fighting. Reynolds and the man took to the sky. Neither of them wanted to interfere in Alice''s battle. The man felt once Alice was defeated, Reynolds would give up and try to escape, that''s where he would catch him. Reynolds on the other hand didn''t want Alice to be injured. Taking out the man would incapacitate the puppets, this was something he was aware of and that was his plan. He had to take out the man before Alice was seriously wounded. As Reynolds and the man''s battle started to get more heated, the man quickly realized something, he was no match for Reynolds. Boom! Bang! The man was tossed around by Reynolds'' attacks. Even when he manages to block the attacks, the impact of it alone is enough to send him flying. He had crashed into the ground on so many occasions within such a short time that it frightened him. Nonetheless, the excitement he was getting from this revelation seemed to overthrow the pain he was feeling from being beaten by Reynolds. Once he manages to get this technique, he would become invincible! This was the only thought in his head. Bam! A lightning arrow struck his shoulder, making him jolt from the pain and shock. He looked at Reynolds who was still well organized, and then at himself who was in a sorry state. He couldn''t help but give a self-deprecating laugh. He knew the difference between him and these top grade geniuses was big, but he never thought it was this massive. ''I can''t fight him alone.'' He soon came to a conclusion. He looked at Reynolds and gritted his teeth, "You better be worth it!" With that statement, another figure appeared close to him. This was a figure of a young man who looked to be in his twenties. The man was a puppet, just like the others, but the aura he was giving off was on the same level as Aries and Flint. "To think you have such a specimen hidden." Reynolds commented. He didn''t think the man would have a puppet of this quality, and he was a little worried. If another puppet of this caliber were to show up, then he would be pressed. It was different if he were fighting with normal puppets, but this was different. These puppets retained their original strength which means they would be very powerful. The man laughed, he saw the seriousness in the eyes of Reynolds and knew Reynolds was apprehensive of him now. "Kid, I''ll let you and your friend go, but for a price." The man felt it was best to offer a deal now. This was the best time he could do it. With this puppet, and himself present, there was no way Reynolds would be able to win this battle. "You still don''t have the right to bring up offers." Reynolds shut the man up as he was about to continue his words. The man was stunned when he heard Reynolds'' words. "What do you mean I still don''t have the right to make any deals?" The man asked. He saw the change in Reynolds'' eyes, but it quickly went back to his previous confidence. "Because I said so." Reynolds said calmly. The man snorted, "Then I''ll kill you. When I''m done with you, I''ll make you into one of my precious toys." "You''re not worthy of having someone like me or her as your puppets. The thought of even doing something like that is sacrilegious and you deserve death because of it." Reynolds chuckled. The man squinted his eyes and for the first time, he took the lead in the battle, attacking, alongside the puppet. Reynolds was prepared for them, without flinching, he blocked the man''s attack, but wisely moved away when the puppet was about to attack. He was stronger than the puppet, but he knew that fighting the duo simultaneously wouldn''t be easy. At times like this, he couldn''t help but wish he learnt inscribing just like Grey. If he had been an inscriber, even without having the space element, he would be able to attack from two different angles simultaneously. ''My Elemental Warrior wouldn''t be able to hold off this puppet on its own, neither can I fight the man on my own.'' Reynolds was deep in thoughts. ''Do I really have to summon that cocky guy?'' He pondered. Given Klaus'' strength, Klaus would change how the battle would take place if he was invited. However, once he comes, he would rant about too many things. This wasn''t something Reynolds wanted. He took a peek at Alice, who was bleeding from the side of her mouth. It was evident that she was trying hard against the puppets but it wasn''t easy since her cultivation stage hadn''t gotten to the Peak of the Venerable Plane yet. Reynolds took a deep breath and started attacking the man. He wanted to see how far they could go. Alice might be injured, but it was nothing serious. She knew when to move away, there was still a chance for her and she was trying to create the opportunity. The same could be said for Reynolds. He knew there was a good chance for him to defeat the man and this puppet, but it would take a lot from him. He''s contemplating what to do as he attacks. The puppet was a Fire Elementalist and its strength was on another level. Unlike the man who couldn''t handle Reynolds'' attacks, the puppet could. Not just that, but it was also able to counterattack as well. This gave the man the opportunity to attempt a sneak attack on Reynolds. But Reynolds was on guard against this and always moved away whenever the man''s attack was about to hit him. The man didn''t get frustrated, he knew it wasn''t going to be that easy. Chapter 1406 Borrowing Klaus’ Attitude Bam! Reynolds slammed into the ground after getting hit by the man''s attack. After trying repeatedly, the man was finally able to cleanly strike Reynolds down. Reynolds couldn''t do anything about the attack and was forced to take it head-on. Even though he knew taking on such an attack was dangerous, he didn''t mind it, the reason for this was because¡­ Boom! Bang! "Ah!" The man screamed in pain as his figure also slammed into the ground, a few hundred meters away from Reynolds. Reynolds let the man strike him, but he didn''t let the man go without any sort of retaliation. He detached from his Elemental Warrior at the last minute and the Elemental Warrior was able to slash at the unprotected back of the man. The man didn''t know Reynolds had an Elemental Warrior and never prepared for something like this. After striking Reynolds, he felt inexplicable joy, but it quickly turned to pain when he sensed a deadly force hitting his back. He coughed out a mouthful of blood as his figure broke through the sky, crashing down outside the town. Reynolds crawled out of the crater he made, looking in the direction the man crashed. He heard the man''s scream and knew his plan worked. He looked at the black patch on his right shoulder and frowned. ''This will be troublesome.'' He could tell this black patch wasn''t ordinary, but he was more interested in taking down the man and felt it was alright to make the sacrifice. As long as he was alive, he would think of how to deal with it. He took flight and just as he was rushing to where the man was located, he saw the man climbing out of a pit. The man was in a sorry state. His back was bloodied, and his left shoulder had a large cut on it. The slash the Elemental Warrior gave it came from his left shoulder onto his back. The man wasn''t able to protect against it and was left in such a bad state. "Ah! I will kill you! Filthy brat!" The man was incensed. He never thought that Reynolds would play such a trick on him. What he found appalling was that he still didn''t have any idea of what struck him, all he knew was that it was powerful and the attack was enough to kill him if hit again. "Stop yelling, do you want the entire town to hear the voice of their oppressor in such a state?" Reynolds said with a smile. With the man annoyed, Reynolds had a goal in mind, and that was to irritate him even more. This was something he learned from Klaus and from experience, he knew that it always works. Especially against people like this man who feel they are above everyone else. Once such people start to realize what their reality is, they will find it difficult to accept it, which will bring in room for other things. In this case, losing focus in this battle and getting killed by Reynolds who would enjoy doing it. The man looked at Reynolds and asked, "What did you do?" "I attacked you, were you blind? Didn''t you see me attack you?" Reynolds stood mid-air, looking down at the man. The man gritted his teeth, "Kid, I''ll wake this one last time. What did you do?" "Looks like the strike has made you lose your senses. I thought you were always sensible, what''s up with this dumb question?" Reynolds continued to rile up the man. The man shot into the air, straight at Reynolds when he heard this. Reynolds wasn''t going to give him the answer he wanted, it was evident. So he knew what to do, he was going to get the answer himself. The puppet also came out and started attacking Reynolds as well. Reynolds didn''t show any fear as he continued to take on the attack from both the man and the puppet. While focused on only blocking and dodging, he started to cuss at the man. Now he understood how Klaus felt whenever he''s focused on defending while cursing at people, it was a good feeling. Reynolds was fast thanks to his lightning element, so unlike Klaus, he didn''t need to stay in one place defending, he could move. He was faster than the puppet and the man. With none of them being able to get a good shot at him, the man started to lose his cool. It was okay when Reynolds was actually trying to fight, now that he focused on running from the attacks, the man had almost no chances of hitting him. The man looked around and his gaze turned to Alice, he licked his lips as he bolted in that direction. ''Since you''re not going to fight me, I''ll kill your friend.'' As the man was rushing towards Alice, Reynolds, who already expected the man to do this, attacked. His attack was blocked by the puppet, but the impact forced it back a few meters. Before the puppet could regain its footing, Reynolds flashed past it. Like a bolt of lightning, Reynolds crashed into the man. The man was already expecting something like this to happen, so when the puppet blocked Reynolds'' attack, he had already prepared his attack. As soon as Reynolds reached him, he turned and attacked. This time, he saw what happened clearly. Reynolds detached from a lightning figure and escaped from the attack, letting the lightning figure crash into the man. The man''s attack hit the Elemental Warrior, while the Elemental Warrior slammed into the man at full speed. The impact of the attack broke most of the ribs of the man as the duo fell to the ground. Reynolds was on the side, watching this with a grin on his face. He managed to trick the man twice, and this time, the chances of the man actually being able to walk away from this attack was slim. Boom! A loud explosion rocked the town. Chapter 1407 Unexpected Change Alice was still battling with the puppets. Even though she was bloodied, she still had a clear view of everything that was taking place. She had been keeping an eye out for Reynolds'' battle. Seeing the man sending Reynolds flying the first time, her heart skipped a beat, but then she saw the Elemental Warrior behind the man and knew it was all Reynolds'' doing. She couldn''t help but applaud Reynolds'' determination. The fact that he was willing to take a dangerous blow just so he would be able to land one of his own was courageous. The slight distraction made the puppets overwhelm her. She was starting to run out of breath due to the pressure from the puppets. Fighting two puppets of this level was something she shouldn''t be doing, but she wanted to test her strength, and thanks to the man, she had to push herself even more. Her combined fire and ice attack was showing signs of evolving as the battle extended. She felt if she fought with them for at least thirty to sixty minutes, she would be able to see the evolved form. Her only concern was if she would be able to keep herself alive until then. She knew what she was capable of doing, and fighting these puppets for the next ten minutes would revolve around if Reynolds would be able to assist her at important intervals. If Reynolds is able to ensure she doesn''t get hit by a powerful attack while also keeping the man alive, this would be a massive upgrade for her as her attack power would increase exponentially. On Reynolds'' end, he flew towards the place the man crashed after being hit by the Elemental Warrior. The man wasn''t able to dodge the attack, and even though his prepared attack hit the Elemental Warrior, it wasn''t enough to negate the full impact of getting rammed into by a full speed Peak Venerable Elemental Warrior. The man lay on the ground gasping for air as blood repeatedly poured out of his mouth. The man had an incredulous look on his face. The scene of Reynolds separating from the Elemental Warrior was repeatedly playing in his head even with the pain he was going through. He quickly disconnected his pain receptors in his body. After playing around with the human body on such an extensive level, he knew a thing or two he could do in situations like this. He had to keep himself conscious, and he knew there''s a chance he might pass out from the pain. Of course, he knew the downside of doing this, but at the moment, there was no way he would be able to think properly while going through so much pain. He had assessed his condition and knew that he could survive it and even still fight as long as he doesn''t feel the pain. Since there was grade seven Peak Venerable on his side, he didn''t have anything to fear. The puppet would attack Reynolds while he tries to get himself together. Reynolds was about to charge at him when he suddenly sent the puppet after him. Reynolds was forced to stop and retreat. He looked at the puppet and knew that he couldn''t neglect it. He turned to look in Alice''s direction and his expression changed. He separated from the Elemental Warrior and let it deal with the puppet while he rushed to Alice''s aid. With a lightning attack, he sent one of the puppets flying. The puppet, although at the Peak didn''t sense Reynolds rushing over and the man didn''t have the time to even send the information over to them since he was more concerned about fixing his damaged body. Alice felt relieved the second one of the puppets was sent flying. With her focus placed on just one puppet, she started to gain advantage over it. Reynolds also used the opportunity to properly help her, slicing off one of the arms of the puppet. This was the cons about puppets. So long as the necromancer doesn''t pass any information to it, it wouldn''t stop its initial command. When the man sent them after Alice, his command was for them to kill her. They have no instructions on what to do with Reynolds, so they didn''t try to attack him. This gave Reynolds the freedom to do whatever he wanted. Fortunately for the puppets, he wasn''t at his full strength since the Elemental Warrior was dealing with the grade seven puppet. Reynolds was strong, but not strong enough to kill a Peak Venerable without the help of his puppet. "Don''t worry, I can deal with them. Do not let him escape." Alice said when she saw Reynolds still helping out. She was worried about the man escaping when they''re not focused on him. Reynolds nodded and rushed back to the battle with the puppet. The man was still seated in the same spot. He hadn''t tried to make any moves. Seeing this, Reynolds didn''t bother with him. This was an opportunity to take out this puppet. Once he achieves this, the man was as good as dead. He would be able to defeat the man with ease. He merged back with his Elemental Warrior and started attacking. The second he merged with it, the attack power increased and the puppet which had the advantage lost it in an instant. It wasn''t able to deal with the sudden change and was quickly pushed back by Reynolds. ''Yes. I can end it before he comes to.'' Reynolds felt inspired. Once he takes out the puppet, the battle was over. After getting the advantage, he didn''t give the puppet any chance to regain itself and he released attack after attack on it. The puppet started to show signs of some parts of its body starting to break apart. ''Just a little more.'' Reynolds pushed, and just as he was about to end the puppet, it disappeared. Well, not completely disappearing, but it shrunk into a bead and flew to the man''s outstretched arm. "Hahaha, thank you, kid." Chapter 1408 Stop Him! **A.N: Reload the last chapter :)** Reynolds looked at the man, a little surprised that the man was thanking him. But for some reason, he could feel like things were about to take a turn. The sudden change in the puppet, making it turn into a bid was strange. One thing he noticed when he saw the bead was the enormous energy it contained. Not just that, but the energy was completely without any impurities. It could be consumed without any fears of there being any backlash. ''Oh no!'' Reynolds'' heart sank when he figured out what the man was about to do. The man wanted to consume the energy. From the looks of it, the man got the motivation to do this after seeing Reynolds merge and detach from his Elemental Warrior. ''Why does the evil guy have to be so smart?!'' Reynolds couldn''t believe what was happening. He sent a lightning bolt at the man, hoping to stop him from consuming it. Unfortunately, he was too late as the man consumed it even before the attack finished forming. The man''s aura exploded out and the buildings close to him were crushed to smithereens. Reynolds'' attack was destroyed. The man''s aura spiked and for the first time, Reynolds'' felt his heart beat heavily out of fear since the start of the battle. He sensed an aura from the man that he had only ever sensed in one person who was still in the Elemental Venerable Plane, and that person was Grey. Grey''s strength has clearly exceeded the Peak of the Venerable Plane, even though he was technically a Peak stage Elemental Venerable, only a fool would accept that he was a Peak Venerable. Grey was the strongest person in the Venerable Plane, and anything above his current strength was the Sovereign Plane. The man being able to exude such an aura meant one thing, he was heading into the Sovereign Plane. The man couldn''t achieve the same feat as Grey, but he could break through to the Sovereign Plane. The second he does this, Reynolds and the others are dead. Even if Klaus and Aries came over to help, they wouldn''t be able to fight against a Sovereign. A Sovereign was just that powerful. Reynolds threw away his pride and quickly summoned not just Klaus, but Aries as well. Before the duo came over, they were both given two talismans each, to use in summoning the duo. The duo would be instantaneously teleported to their current location once used. Reynolds didn''t see any need in using it all this time, but now, he knew there was no way he could defeat the man at his current state. Their only chance of winning is ensuring they take out the man before he breaks through to the Sovereign Plane. "Damn, you finally called for help. I''ve been waiting for so¡­" Klaus was speaking when he paused and turned to look at the man. "What the fuck man?! What did you do?!" Klaus was stunned when he saw the man about to break through. They were usually the ones who broke through when fighting against their enemies, now this man was breaking through, and from his condition, it was obvious that he had been badly beaten by Reynolds before this. "He comprehended something when he saw me merge with my Elemental Warrior." Reynolds said. "Fuck! You''re giving the bad guys ideas now? Really?!" Klaus was shocked at what he was seeing. "I didn''t know he could do something like that." Reynolds complained. He too was at a loss for words at the fact that the man was able to do something like this. "Will you two stop quarreling and help me stop him from advancing?!" Aries couldn''t believe the duo were still arguing at such a time. "Who says weren''t not helping?" Klaus asked. The entire area had turned into a snow covered valley without the trees. Klaus'' use of the ice element seemed to slow down the speed at which the man''s aura was improving. Without sufficient elemental essence, there was no way the man could break through, and Klaus was freezing the elemental essence precisely. He might be arguing with Reynolds, but he got to work the moment he saw how bad the situation was. There was no harm in yelling at Reynolds, so why not? Aries was once again dumbfounded by Klaus. The fact that Klaus thought to do something like this showed just how quick-witted he is. The man was also shocked at what Klaus thought of. "You brought help. Hehe, looks like I''ll have a lot of good things to work with this time." The man laughed, he looked at Aries, "Aren''t you the jewel of the Phoenix Faction? What are you doing here?" Without waiting for Aries to reply, he said, "It doesn''t matter, I''ll go into hiding after killing you kids. You guys are really a good batch. I made the right choice to wait a little longer." "Does he talk so much?" Klaus turned to Reynolds. "Yeah, it''s nice you''re here, you guys can get to know each other." Reynolds nodded. Klaus snorted before taking a look at Alice, an ice needle formed and shot at one of the puppets. The puppet didn''t even have time to react before it was frozen solid. Alice was already aware of Klaus'' appearance when the temperature suddenly dropped. She sensed the change in the man''s aura and knew that this wasn''t the time to try to evolve her cultivation technique. They will be in serious trouble if the man breaks through to the Sovereign Plane. Klaus, Reynolds, and Aries didn''t stand idly any longer, they charged at the man after Klaus made things easier for Alice. As much as he wanted her to join in on the fight, he didn''t want her to get close for now. It was too dangerous for anyone below a grade seven Peak Venerable. Even Aries who was a grade seven Peak Venerable might also be in danger if they were careless. "Don''t let him break through." "You think you can stop me?" Chapter 1409 Naturally Talented Klaus Boom! Bang! "Fuck! He''s already as strong as Grey!" Klaus cursed when his ice dome was shattered by an attack from the man. Grey was the only one who could destroy this, and the fact that the man could break it now meant that he was already touching the threshold of the Elemental Venerable Plane. Anything more than this and he would be unstoppable. They wouldn''t be able to deal with him even with all the people they have with them. "Come on, we have to try. We fought Grey to a draw the last time." Reynolds said. "Are you stupid?! We were sparring, no matter how powerful our attacks were, we all still held back in the end." Klaus felt like knocking Reynolds senseless, but when he thought about it, Reynolds was already senseless, doing that would make life hell for him. "Oh¡­" Reynolds didn''t argue with that cause he knew it was the truth. If they were in a life and death battle, they wouldn''t worry about harming the man, but when fighting with Grey, they all held back, Grey especially. Grey had the higher attack power, and given the fact that he also had the space element, there were a few times he would''ve been able to open them up, but he held back. Klaus didn''t say anything and hurriedly created an ice wall to block the attack. This time, he used the ice technique he learnt while they were getting the Ice Seelie. When the man attacked, the ice wall retaliated. This gave them the chance to also counter, forcing the man to take a step back. The man was strong, but he wasn''t invincible. With a good plan, they will be able to defeat the man. Klaus was the one who had to block the attacks of the man while Reynolds and Aries were the main attackers. The trio were smart, and even though this was their first time fighting one opponent together, they were able to cooperate flawlessly. Reynolds and Aries had frightening attack power that even in his current state, the man knew not to take their attacks lightly. Reynolds was stronger than Aries, but Aries'' attack packed a different type of power that made the man worried. The man tried to take out Reynolds, but he was blocked by Klaus'' ice attacks that forced him back. "Damn it!" Frustration slowly started to creep in. Yes, he was stronger, but there was nothing he could do with Klaus present. Klaus'' ice was too strong. No matter how powerful his attacks were, they could only break them, but the entire impact of the attack is almost fully absorbed by the ice wall before they break, which makes it impossible for them to cause any harm to Reynolds and Aries. "Since you want to die so much, I''ll follow your wishes." The man was vexed and decided to turn his focus to Klaus. Klaus looked at the man with a smile, "An old guy that can''t beat three youths, I can never take someone like you seriously." "You¡­" "You what?" Klaus asked with a mocking tone, "I understand why your kid died. She probably wanted to escape from you." Reynolds had told him about what happened and knew the man was trying to resurrect his dead daughter. What''s the best way to make the man lose his senses if not with her? This might be a low blow, but as long as they were able to take the man down, then he was okay. The man''s eyes turned red when he heard Klaus'' statement. This was the first time in his life that he felt such pain from words spoken by others. He has been abused and talked down on, but he had never felt this much pain in his chest from just words. It was like a large sword was used to stab his heart as Klaus made that statement. "Take that back!" The man''s red veiny eyes showed his anger. "Bud, you outdid yourself this time." Reynolds couldn''t help but applaud him. He had been trying to get the man to go berserk all this while, but it didn''t take long for Klaus to do it. "What can I say, I''m naturally talented." Klaus gave a smug smile. Aries, on the other hand, was left speechless. ''This is also a battle tactic?'' She was dumbfounded. Although a berserk version of the man looked tougher to deal with, in truth, he is easier to deal with in his current state. He would barely care about his safety as the only thing in his head would be to kill Klaus. This will mean he might even neglect the existence of the others and focus his attention on Klaus. "I said take that back!" The man roared and dark clouds covered the area. "Don''t think you''re the only one who can make the clouds change." Klaus didn''t bother with him and turned to Reynolds, "Bud, light it up." Reynolds chuckled, "With pleasure." Reynolds'' figure shot straight into the dark clouds which had covered the area and a large lightning web stretched across the dark cloud. Klaus attacked the man while Reynolds was doing this. He used his heavy water to grab hold of the man''s legs. The man tried to break free, but he noticed the abnormality of the water. "Ah!" He roared and exploded out with a powerful darkness dome that shattered the water. The dome didn''t stop as it continued to increase, destroying anything it came in contact with. Klaus looked at it and felt chills in his spine, "Damn¡­ that''s strong." "Bud, aren''t you done yet?" He looked at the sky while retreating. Just as Reynolds was about to speak, a figure covered in lightning shot into the cloud as well and the duo created a large flash of light that shattered the dark clouds. "Good, now destroy that." Klaus pointed at the dark dome that was advancing forward. "The townspeople!" Aries exclaimed. The dome was getting close to where people lived in the town. If they were caught in this, they would definitely die. Chapter 1410 Dangerous Opponent "Bud, help them." Klaus said to Reynolds, he turned to Alice, "You too. You two are the fastest here." Alice and Reynolds didn''t speak and disappeared from where they were located. A lightning flashed went through every house in the town and out. The duo were taking each family out of their houses and taking them to a safe place, ensuring they wouldn''t be harmed by the darkness dome that was moving. Klaus looked at the man, he frowned and said, "We should take him down. The quicker we do that, the better it is for us. He''s too dangerous." Aries had no problems with that, she also wanted to take the man down. From how the man was able to create such a powerful technique just from watching Reynolds merge and detach from his Elemental Venerable, it showed that he was an outstanding genius. Klaus used his ice ability to attack the dome while it was moving. He noticed that it had some effect from the man''s domain, and also used his own in his attack. Aries also attacked, ensuring the dome was destroyed. If the dome were to continue spreading, it would be dangerous for them as well. The duo''s attack was able to create an opening in the dome which halted its movement. The man raised his head to look at the duo. "You two think you''re something, right?" He asked, he watched them and said, "This is how things are going to work from now. You''ll escape so I don''t kill you within the next few minutes. If not, you''ll regret your decision." Klaus looked at the man and knew the man''s strength was increasing. ''Even with my ice domain, he will continue improving. I need to make sure he''s defeated.'' Klaus realized that his domain will only be able to delay the man and not stop him from getting to the Sovereign Plane. The only thing they can do is stop him from breaking through. And that''s by killing him. "Let''s kill him." Klaus said to Aries and Reynolds. The dome stopped moving and it gave Alice and Reynolds the chance to come back. Although Alice joining isn''t enough to stop him, Reynolds was present there and with his strength, they will be able to stop the man from breaking through. This was one of the differences when they fought against Grey. Even though they all held back, Grey wasn''t using his full strength since Alice wasn''t on the same level as Klaus and Reynolds. The man would not think twice and will definitely try to kill Alice. It was just as Klaus feared, from the second Alice joined the battle, the man turned his attention to trying to kill her. He didn''t even hide his intentions. Alice also had the ice ability which made his breakthrough even slower. Thanks to Klaus'' domain, Alice''s ice domain saw a boost in strength and the man noticed the speed reduction of his breakthrough. His focus turned to Alice, but with Klaus present, it was wishful thinking if the man thought he would be able to kill Alice. Klaus blocked each and every attack that came Alice''s way while also making sure Reynolds and Aries had the chance to attack him. The man was held back by Klaus while being bombarded by both Aries and Reynolds. ''These kids are smart.'' The man might be going berserk, but he still had a sense of reasoning. As things stand, he knew the numbers of his opponents meant that he had almost no chances of winning as it is. ''If that''s the case, then there''s no point fighting.'' The man wanted to kill Klaus, but he also wanted to survive. Reynolds and Alice were able to call for help when things started to go wrong, the man is afraid that they''ve already called for help and were just trying to stall before help arrives. In truth, the group had indeed called for help. When Reynolds and Alice were in the cloud, they contacted Grey. Even though he was still caught up with learning about the array formation, this was very important. Klaus is aware of this and wants to make sure they stall until Grey comes. With the man''s current ability, other than Grey, only those in the Sovereign Plane could stop him. The man attacked, and when the group blocked the attack, the man turned to escape. "Don''t let him leave." Klaus rushed after the man. Reynolds was the fastest so he caught up with the man. The man turned and looked at Reynolds, he felt a strong hatred for Reynolds because he was the one who caused such damage to his body. Although Klaus'' ice domain could be said to be the reason for his delayed breakthrough, the main obstacle was the fact that Klaus seriously wounded him and even his core had cracks. Unless those cracks were healed, he wouldn''t be able to break through. He was on the verge of fixing those cracks when Klaus came and slowed it down with his ice. Now he had a few seconds with Reynolds, he wanted to kill him with his overwhelming strength before the others came in to help. Reynolds didn''t think about fighting with the man, he knew he was no longer his match, all he wanted to do was ensure the others came over. While he was about to exchange moves with the man, Alice arrived. The man changed his focus to Alice and struck out. Alice expected this and dodged to the side, while also attacking with the lightning element. The man blocked the attack and moved closer to her. "Don''t forget about me." Reynolds attacked with lightning arrows. The man created a darkness dome and used it to block the arrows. He was about to get close to Alice when he sensed a powerful attack coming his way. A large lightning spear broke through the dome and was heading for his head. He was forced to turn and block the attack. But it was at this moment that he felt a bone chilling cold close to him. Even before the attack got to him, he sensed his body started to grow cold. ''That bloody Water Elementalist!'' The man was caught between taking Klaus or Reynolds'' attack. Each was dangerous, but the danger level he was reading from Klaus'' attack was off the roof. If he dared to take it, then he should forget about ever breaking through. He wouldn''t even be able to escape with his life. The man turned and spread out both hands, he focused more energy on his right hand which he sent a darkness beam out of, striking the ice needle that was coming his way. His left hand unleashed a darkness orb that struck the lightning spear. Both attacks didn''t stop, they only slowed down. While the man used the opportunity to move up, hoping to dodge the attacks. To his dismay, a large fire snake was coming at him with shocking speed from above. He opened his mouth and sucked in a large breath, the fire snake was swallowed and the man looked at Alice, he opened his mouth and spat out the snake. He hurriedly flew into the air, narrowly dodging both Klaus and Reynolds'' attack. The only issue with narrowly dodging Klaus'' attack was that his right foot, from the down, was frozen solid. All the ice needle did was graze it, and it was still able to cause such a degree of damage. The man felt his heart almost jump out of his throat. Klaus and the others were using their numbers to overpower him, and he knew he couldn''t beat them like this. ''Fucking brats! I''ll kill you all when I break through.'' The man focused on escaping, that was all that was important at the moment. "Where are you going? Are you such a bad father that you don''t even want to try to bring your daughter back?" Klaus started talking as he chased after the man, "I knew all that talk about wanting to bring back your daughter was a lie. All you wanted was to grow stronger. You just needed an excuse to become a crazed necromancer." Klaus'' words pierced the man''s heart, but he didn''t dare to slow down. He could feel a cold creeping closer to him. The cold felt like the hands of death and he knew if it caught up with him, he would most definitely die. Reynolds and Alice soon caught up once again and forced him to slow down. "Arghhh!" The man was getting frustrated with his constant failed attempt to escape. He was once again caught in a pincer attack and was forced to take some damage to escape. The battle continued in this manner. The man''s strength was growing stronger, but he was still not able to overwhelm the group of four. As he was escaping, he noticed something odd, it was as if he was being forced towards a certain direction. "Huh? Could I be wrong?" Chapter 1411 Stop Bullshitting! **A.N: Reload the last chapter, it''s been fixed!** Boom! Bam! "Why are you brats so persistent? Did I kill anyone you''re acquainted with?" The man asked after forcing both Reynolds and Alice back but was stopped from escaping by Klaus and Aries. "You''re a bad guy, we''ve made it our business to kill bad guys." Klaus replied. "Which one of you hasn''t done anything bad?" The man asked. "Me." Klaus raised his arm. "You''ve never forcefully taken a treasure from those weaker than you?" The man asked. "The treasure was mine, I was only taking what was mine." Klaus replied matter-of-factly, he smiled innocently and asked, "Is taking what''s yours a bad thing now?" The man was stunned when he heard this, even Aries couldn''t help but take another look at Klaus, Klaus was shameless to the core. Putting it in that manner meant that he obviously took things from those weaker than he is, but it was only because it was his to begin with. "What¡­ what stupid logic is that?!" The man yelled. Speaking with Klaus was something he shouldn''t have been doing. Klaus doesn''t seem to have a care in the world about anything, and he''s slowly finding out. "What? They were mine. I gave them and they refused to give it back. I have every right to beat them up for holding onto something that isn''t theirs." Klaus said calmly. "You''re sick in the head." The man gave up on communicating with Klaus and attacked. Klaus laughed proudly and blocked the attack. He wasn''t scared of the man, and if the man thought he would back off, then he was joking. Klaus'' ice wall cracked after being hit, and fell apart, but he had enough time to dodge the attack thanks to his ice wall slowing it down. "You can''t even hit me. Your daughter must be disappointed in you." Klaus mocked after dodging the attack. The man gritted his teeth and tried to escape. The second he faced a particular direction, Alice, Reynolds, and Klaus jumped forward and attacked aggressively. ''I knew it! They don''t want me to head in that direction.'' The man''s heart turned cold, he looked behind him and felt his body shake involuntarily. ''Someone dangerous is coming. They''re aware of this. Looks like they were the ones who called the person.'' The man felt his heart skip a beat and then without worrying about whether he would sustain any injuries, he charged straight into the trio, taking them head-on. He had already cut off his pain receptors, there was no point in being afraid of the pain he would go through. The expression of the trio changed and they attacked with increased strength. ''What''s holding him?!'' Klaus looked behind the man. They''ve been flying towards that direction for some time now and should''ve already shortened the distance. Although it seems far, for Peak Venerables such as themselves, it''s something they could cover within a few minutes. The man saw their eyes and knew he was right. He didn''t hold back and attacked with full force. The trio tried their best but were sent flying by the man''s attack. Klaus was able to pierce the man''s right arm with his needle, but to his shock, the man cut off his own arm to stop the freezing. Reynolds and Alice''s attacks were also taken by the man, but he was able to force his way through the trio. Aries was behind, and seeing the man, she unleashed a powerful attack she had been preparing while the trio tried to stop him. Boom! The man blocked the attack and forced her back. Making sure they wouldn''t be able to get close to him. The man was powerful, and after throwing caution to the wind, he was even more dangerous. Reynolds and Alice were injured, bleeding from the side of their mouth. Klaus wasn''t any better, but they could still fight. Aries had it worse as one of her arms was broken. Unlike the trio who had to cushion the impact of the man''s attack together, she was blown away by a full force attack from the man. The man was desperate and didn''t try to block much of her attack which meant he had enough time to attack without her being able to block against it. The man left the place, rushing away from the area. "Fuck it! Go after him!" Klaus and the others chased after the man. Aries stood up and followed behind them. With her injury, she knew her strength would decline during the battle, but she didn''t want to stand back. This man had killed some of her fellow Faction members, a few of them were people she was acquainted with. Knowing that they died because of this man''s selfish interest, she wanted to ensure that he was taken down. Klaus and the others soon caught up with him once again. But this time, the man was able to hastily deal with them. The group''s strength was slowly reducing, but so was the man''s strength. He wasn''t at his peak strength, even though he was still on the verge of breaking through, there was no way he could use his full strength. Part of his right foot was frozen, his right arm was cut off. He had to focus some energy into healing those places, so even when he wants to use his full strength, there''s no way he can do it. The group were chasing him as if their lives depended on it which irritated him. He was a figure about to break through to the Sovereign Plane, yet he was being chased by a bunch of Venerables. And these Venerables were kids. Also, there was one who couldn''t keep his mouth shut! If the man had the chance, he would kill Klaus. He has already made his decision, as long as he survives this, he will kill Klaus. He might let the others go, but Klaus was a no-no. He will chase him to the end of the world if possible. Klaus said things that shouldn''t be said and he wanted to make sure he paid for his foul mouth. Everyone could see the hatred the man has towards Klaus in his eyes. Whenever he looks at Klaus, it is evident that he wants him dead. Klaus could also feel this as well, but he didn''t care what the man felt like. All he wanted to do was to stop the man from escaping. They had to kill him. The man was trying to escape, while the group chased after him. The fight went on in this manner. When the group catches up with him, the man would strike. Even though they were being injured, they were still making sure the man was getting slower. "Fuck! Why are you people so adamant?!" The man couldn''t believe his eyes. The group was already seriously injured, yet they were still coming back. They didn''t even worry about their injuries as they came back. Such valor wasn''t something he expected. ''Are they afraid of death?'' The man asked himself. The reason he''s running so fervently was because he didn''t want to die, especially now that he''s about to break through. Klaus and the others seem to have thrown their lives away with how they were chasing after him. Boom! Bam! Bang! The fight dragged on and it was starting to show its toll on the body of the group, as well as the man. This time, they paused and exchanged glances. They were all exhausted, and Klaus and his group were bloodied. The man was in no better shape. Parts of his body were frozen and some were missing. The man wasn''t able to cause as much as the group caused him due to their numbers advantage. "We''ll make sure you regret your decision to mess with us." Klaus said with a raggedy voice. "What do you mean? I was on my own and you people barged into my business!" The man couldn''t keep up with Klaus'' reasoning. "I don''t care, you messed with the wrong set of people. Even if you''re strong, we''ll pester you." Klaus waved him off and added, "I know you''re about to break through, even with all we''ve done as long as you''re given the chance you''ll break through. I will never allow that!" "We''ll have to see who has more zeal to survive this brutal game." Klaus added. "What do you mean?! You''re obviously trying to stall so someone strong will come and end me!" The man was having a mental breakdown. "That doesn''t change anything. If we outlive you then you''ve failed once again as a father." Klaus said, "Also, you can submit your research as a means of making up for the evil you''ve done so far." "What do you mean?" The man asked. "We might bring back your daughter. I''m friends with some Gnomes, they''ll be able to work with it more than you." Klaus said. "You know some Gnomes?" The man asked. "Of course!" Klaus exclaimed. "Stop bullshitting you piece of shit!" Chapter 1412 Hes Here "You''re just a kid who knows nothing. You might be smart, but I know what you should or should not be able to achieve, becoming friends with the Gnomes is one of the things you can not achieve." The man didn''t believe a word coming out of Klaus'' mouth. "Do you know the people I can connect you to? Just kill yourself and you''d be shocked." Klaus said with a straight face. Reynolds and the others took a glance at Klaus. The fact that he could say that with a straight face as if it was something natural baffled them. ''How does his brain work? Who would even think of saying such things?'' Aries was beyond flabbergasted by Klaus'' use of words already. She had heard him say things she could never even dream of, yet he keeps saying more. What is worse was the fact that he doesn''t even have to think hard before saying such sarcastic words. It has been a few hours, yet it has been like she had been traveling with Klaus for years now. She couldn''t help but wonder how exciting it is to travel with this group. They were clearly all talented, yet they each had other personalities that made them different. She genuinely thought Grey was the only different one given his curiosity towards arrays, but Klaus was just as different as anyone else with his thought process and words. Reynolds was a deadly fighter, while Alice enjoyed battles, especially ones where she''s the underdog. The thrill of defeating someone stronger than yourself has always been magnificent. This is something she has also felt, but it was very dangerous and shouldn''t be advised to be done repeatedly. But over the course of the few hours, she has seen Alice do this repeatedly. Even during the trial and the challenges in the arena, she also fought with people stronger than her. ''How did they all end up together?'' This was the strongest thing. Meeting one unique person like them was rare, but the fact that four oddballs could get together and actually become friends was just amazing. The man was breathing heavily, not attacking any longer. "Tell me, who''s coming?" He asked after a short silence. "Who says someone''s coming?" Klaus asked. "I''m not dumb." The man looked in the direction Klaus has been occasionally staring at. "Why did you say that while looking in another direction, are you afraid to look me in the eyes?" Klaus berated the man. The man wanted to pluck out Klaus'' tongue. He was obviously indicating at the place Klaus had been staring at, but Klaus turned it against him and started berating him. He didn''t think he had ever been this angry in his life. In fact, if someone told him he''d ever get this angry, he would never believe it. Klaus looked at the man, unbothered by his look and said, "It''s normal to be afraid of me. I mean, I too would be afraid to stare in the eyes of greatness." The man was about to explode from anger, but then he breathed out a sigh, he looked at Reynolds and asked, "You don''t look too good. I''m surprised you''ve been able to hold on this long." "Once you''re out of the picture, no one will be able to stop me from escaping." He added. The man''s words made everyone turn their attention to Reynolds, and Klaus and Alice''s expressions dropped instantly. Some parts of Reynolds'' face had started to turn black. "What did you do?" Klaus asked, this time, his voice was plain. No sign of anger, no sarcasm, nothing. "I attacked him before you guys came over." The man chuckled when he heard Klaus'' voice and explained, "In some minutes, he''ll find it difficult to breathe." "Unfortunately, you guys can''t save him. No healing tonic or method can." The man laughed, he then gave them a sarcastic look, "Of course, I can stop it. And if you''re truly friends with the Gnomes, as you said, then they should be able to help him." "However, he''d most likely be dead before then." The man took pleasure at the expression of Klaus. He had been tormented by this fellow for so long, and now that he had the advantage, there was no way he was not going to cause him pain. If not for his condition and the fact that it seems like help was coming over to kill him, he would have ensured that he killed Klaus himself. But he didn''t have the luxury of time. The main figure holding him down has been dealt with, his chances of escaping before help arrives was higher now. "Kid, tell me your name. I''d like to know your name so I can hunt you down in the future." The man asked. But to his surprise, Klaus didn''t have the worried look on his face any more. Rather, he was relaxed. "If you had said there was no way to save him, I would''ve been depressed, but you saying he can be saved by a Gnome or another necromancer makes it easier for me." Klaus said with a cold smile, "My name is Klaus Ealdian, and don''t worry, you''ll be seeing me soon. Sooner than you can wish for." Klaus didn''t say anything more, he turned to Reynolds and chuckled, "Bud, keep that ugly armor away. I''ll be freezing you until he comes. He''ll know what to do, he always knows what to do." Reynolds didn''t argue, he was already overexerting himself trying to keep himself conscious to fight. But seeing Klaus in this state and saying these words, he knew that there was no point in trying to keep the pretense. Klaus nodded and sealed Reynolds with his ice. The man and Aries were both speechless. But the man didn''t stay to watch, leaving as soon as Klaus did this. Alice wanted to give chase but Klaus turned to her and said, "Let him go, he''s close by. He''ll bring him back to us." Alice nodded and didn''t go after the man. Aries looked at them, confused. Both Klaus and Alice didn''t show any fear after the man said there was a way to heal Reynolds, rather, they were calm. Klaus even said someone was close and would bring the man back to them. A minute after the man escaped, a tear appeared in the sky and Grey stepped out of it. He saw his friends, and the frozen Reynolds. He didn''t speak with the others, just exchanging glances with Klaus before disappearing once again. Aries wanted to stop him, but before she could say a word, Grey was gone. "You guys think he can deal with him? Aren''t you worried he might end up dead?" She asked the other two. "If he can''t handle him then he''ll escape. He''s the reason we''ve been stalling that guy, and with what I know about him, this guy will be easy to deal with in his current condition." Klaus wasn''t worried, he took a glance at the frozen Reynolds and cursed. "Stupid fool, you couldn''t even speak out. I would''ve slowed it down while keeping you conscious." "When you''re healed, get ready to go back to death''s door, cause I''ll be sending you back. Moron!" Klaus was cursing at Reynolds who couldn''t hear his words. Alice didn''t bother as she stared at them. At first she was scared, but the second the man said Reynolds could be healed, she threw away her fear. They had Grey, a freakish genius who has even found a way to deal with not only Necromancers but Gnomes as well. As long as a Gnome or Necromancer can help Reynolds, then Grey is going to be able to help him. Aries looked at the two friends, stunned beyond words. But then again, she decided to keep shut. Klaus wasn''t a fool, he had seen how strong the man was, if he didn''t believe in Grey, then it meant that he was sending him to his death. ¡­. Grey appeared in the sky in a forest, and after keeping his eyes shut for a while a cold smile appeared on his face. "Klaus, you smart fellow." Klaus didn''t leave him chasing after an unknown opponent, in fact, Klaus gave him a perfect way to track down his opponent. While they''ve been fighting all this while, Klaus was making sure he loaded the man with excess heavy water. The man didn''t notice this due to the condition of the battle. One thing about heavy water is that whoever knows how to use it can track it for hundreds of kilometers. This is something he found out some time back and told Grey of while on their journey. He never expected that an opportunity to use it would come so soon. Grey''s eyes were cold as he rushed after the man. He wanted to capture the man and bring him back to where Reynolds was located. The reason he didn''t walk over was because he had already seen Klaus'' eyes and they were hopeful. Chapter 1413 You Have The Right To Be Cocky Grey didn''t give up in his chase as he went after the trail. A few minutes later, he looked towards an empty stone building. The building wasn''t large but it was quite secluded in the woods. "Well hidden. A shame for him made sure he wouldn''t be able to escape." Grey chuckled and went towards the building. As soon as he got close, he sensed an unstable aura. He was about to enter the place when he sensed an attack. "Oh, an array." He wasn''t bothered with the array as he waved his hand which dealt with it easily. The array appeared and broke apart. Grey noticed movements in the house as the man walked out of the place. "You''re the one who harmed my friend?" Grey took a good look at the man. The man was staring at the young man standing in front of him, a little stunned. The fact that Grey was able to track him here showed how outstanding he is. However, he didn''t sense the aura of a Sovereign, rather, he could tell that he was at the Peak of the Venerable Plane. "You''re the one that''s coming?" The man asked, he suddenly burst out laughing, "Hahaha, I should''ve stayed and killed that punk if I knew it was a kid that''s coming." The man then looked at Grey, licking his lips maliciously, "Looks like I''ll kill you first and turn you into a puppet. That stupid kid has halted my breakthrough, I need new supplements to help me achieve what I need." "Oh, no wonder. Klaus has always been very wise." Grey understood the reason behind the use of such amount of heavy water. It was not only to track him down, if not he wouldn''t have used this much, rather, it was to make it impossible for the man to break through to the Sovereign Plane. The fact that Klaus could think ahead even in their current state showed his incredible thought process. Grey looked at the man and said, "My friend, the ice guy, he wants me to bring you to him. Apparently, you angered him. I''ve only seen him this angry on one occasion, and the outcome wasn''t nice." The man looked at Grey, "Even in this situation, I can take you on. I''ll kill you and then kill them." "You see, he''s not the only one who''s angry. I too am very angry, but I''m quite civil." Grey said with a cold smile. The man saw Grey''s smile and he couldn''t help but wonder what''s wrong with the kids he encountered today. It was like they were all psychopaths. First it was Alice and Reynolds, and then Klaus who irritated him to no end, and now there''s Grey. Unlike the others, he''s getting a different feeling from Grey. It was the feeling of someone capable of achieving anything. The man''s aura burst out and its domineering nature spread out. Even though the man hasn''t broken through to the Sovereign Plane, he could be regarded as a Pseudo-Sovereign, an entity that almost got to the Sovereign Plane but failed due to some issues. There are some people who actually become too strong in the Venerable Plane and directly become Pseudo-Sovereigns, but they are rare. Most Pseudo-Sovereigns always tend to break through to the Sovereign Plane, only a handful find it impossible to achieve. "You think I''ll be afraid because you''re a fake Sovereign?" Grey asked mockingly. The man looked at Grey, "Kid, I''ll be a Sovereign soon, and once I''ve attained that, I''ll kill you and your friends. None of you will make it out alive. Even your family members will not be spared." "If I take you to my family, you''d end up being a servant." Grey''s words angered the man. The man exploded out and attacked. Grey was a Multi Elementalist who had every element possible, there was no way he was on the same level as Klaus and the others the man was fighting. An earth wall came from the ground to block the attack. Bang! The man''s attack hit the wall but it only showed some cracks, it didn''t fall apart. The man was taken aback when he saw this, and just as he was about to attack, he felt a sense of danger and turned to see Grey''s fist coming towards his chest. The man knew there was no way to dodge the attack from such close distance. He used a black orb to strike Grey''s fist, hoping to force Grey back. To his shock, this didn''t deter Grey''s fist, but the first moved faster and struck him cleanly on the chest. Grey looked at his fist and shook his head, "A shame I couldn''t hit him full blow." The man was able to significantly reduce the impact of the attack thanks to the darkness orb he used to attack Grey at the last minute. The man slammed into Grey''s earth wall, breaking it apart and continuing his crash. He crashed into some trees, felling them in the process. The man coughed up a mouthful of blood and looked at his state. "It hasn''t even been minutes since I used that tonic. What''s wrong with all these kids?!" The man was stunned. He used a powerful healing tonic he acquired some years back. The tonic was able to make his healing faster and help him regrow the missing parts of his body. But now Grey''s first attack has broken the ribs he just fixed. He couldn''t believe all this happened from just one attack. When he thought about the fact that he didn''t take the full powered attack but part of it, he shivered at the thought of what could happen to him when one of Grey''s attacks hit. "A Space Elementalist, no wonder he caught up with me so soon." The man had a worried expression on his face, now he understood why the others were waiting for Grey. Although it has been just one attack, Grey has shown him that he wasn''t like the others and was very deadly. The fact that he was a Space Elementalist made him even more dangerous. Being able to move wherever he wants against an opponent as slow as the man meant that he had the advantage in this fight. Of course, this doesn''t mean the man can''t fight with Grey, it just means that he would take a good beating, but there''s hope for him to win as long as he fought with his brain. The man walked out of the place, watching Grey who stood on the same spot, waiting for him. "Cocky, I must say you have every reason to be." The man praised while spitting off the bit of blood that was still in his mouth, "But one thing you should know is that disobeying your elders will never end kindly for you." "You''re strong, I''ll give you that, but if you think you can kill me, then I''m sorry to say that you''re dreaming." Grey tilted his head sideways, and after getting to an angle, he paused, gave a smile and a black long slashed appeared close to the man. "Fuck!" The man cursed unconsciously. The danger level of this attack was off the roof. And given how sudden the attack was, he didn''t have time to react. He did his best to dodge the attack, but his left arm was hit and was cut off. "Damn it! I just fixed one and now this?!" The man was irate, but this wasn''t the time to feel that way. Grey was exceeding his expectations, and if this continued, then he would surely die at Grey''s hands. He didn''t want to die, especially now. Grey, like a machine, rushed after the man, dishing out one attack after another. The man blocked as if his life depended on it, well, it did depend on it. Grey was a mixed form of Alice, Reynolds, and Klaus in one body. He had Klaus'' defense, both Alice and Reynolds'' speed, and then Reynolds'' explosiveness. Since he was a single entity, it meant he could work in better coordination compared to the others, and he also didn''t have to worry about blocking attacks for anyone else. This is one of the reasons Multi Elementalists are feared. However, not all of them are as well rounded as Grey is. Grey has trained his elements very highly and also attained four domains. Doing that was unbelievable. Only a Multi Elementalist like Grey could put a Pseudo-Sovereign in such a state, other Multi Elementalists, even if they were equipped with the elements Grey is using for this battle, they still wouldn''t be able to achieve this feat. The man focused on defending, he was already injured from the previous battle. He hadn''t completely healed up from that battle but he had been injured once again. This was a depressing thing to experience. Grey wasn''t in a hurry, he could tell the man wasn''t in a good state, and taking him out would only take some time. Chapter 1414 Remarkable Specimen Boom! Bang! "Damn it!" Bang! "Ah! What are you made of?" An aggravated cry accompanied with pain sounded in the forest. The stone house had been destroyed and this part of the forest had been almost wiped clean of trees from the impact of the battle between Grey and the man. Grey was currently using his armor, not just that, but he activated his earth domain and made it thanks to a technique he acquired after consuming the Tortoise''s blood essence which made his defense almost impenetrable. The man had managed to land a few attacks on Grey''s body, but they all bounced off which angered the man. It was like he was fighting against a figure that can''t be harmed. What was the point of fighting against such a person, it was absolutely pointless. Escaping was out of the question, he knew he wasn''t as fast as Grey, so there was no point even attempting that. Grey was relentless in his attacks, not giving the man any chance to even catch his breath. The man had tried to engage him in a conversation a few times since the start of the battle, but Grey hadn''t obliged with his intentions which he found very frustrating. "That friend of yours will die soon, I can feel it. Why don''t you take him somewhere he can get healed?" The man tried to convince Grey. Grey didn''t respond, using his blue flames to send a flaming wheel at the man. The man blocked the attack, but couldn''t keep his footing and staggered back. "Fine! I''ll heal him!" The man didn''t want to take the risk of fighting a life and death battle with Grey. One of his hands has been cut off and so had some ribs been broken, but he could work them out later on. If the battle continued, he honestly did not know what the outcome would be, but he was sure that his chances were pretty low. He''s a veteran and knows when there''s a chance and when there isn''t. "I''ll take care of him, you don''t have to bother about him. Worry about your life." Grey finally responded, but it wasn''t a reply the man was hoping to get. "Fine, since that''s how you want it, I''ll accompany you. After killing you, I''ll hunt every single person you know." The man said with a cold expression and a little figure appeared before him. "I''ve dedicated my life''s work into her body. She contains so much energy, with it, I''ll be able to instantly break through to the Sovereign Plane and end you." The man laughed evilly, as much as he wanted to bring his daughter back to life, his life is the most important in the end. At the moment, there was no way to save his life. If he fought with Grey in this state, he would undoubtedly be defeated and killed. He raised his hand towards the little figure, and just when he was about to grab her, the figure didn''t react the way he wanted. He looked at it and the little figure wasn''t as little as it used to be, rather, a cold looking young man was standing in front of him, a punch heading his way. Grey switched places with the puppet the man brought out. He tried to cut the connection the man had with it and realized it was actually very different from the other puppets he had encountered. He could break the connection, but it wouldn''t be instantaneous, so he did the next best thing, he didn''t know what the man wanted to do, but luckily, the man spilled the beans. The man reacted quickly, and created a thick darkness dome that he used to block the attack. He was covered in the dome, but he was sent flying while still in the dome. Grey didn''t stand to watch, he rushed to where the little girl was and when he saw that she was dead but turned into a puppet, he felt irritated at the man. He wanted to kill the man when he saw this. He sensed the girl''s body and noticed what the man said, there truly is a vast amount of pure energy in her body. Grey kept the puppet in his spatial storage, while warning Void not to touch it. He wanted to study how the man was able to achieve this feat. "Where did you put her?!" The man''s enraged roar came out from the darkness dome that had cracks all around. The man wasn''t like his previous state, rather, he looked to have entered a frenzied state. "Looks like this girl is important to you." Grey commented. "That''s my daughter, hand her over." The man attacked while speaking. The man suddenly grew faster and even his aura changed slightly. Grey looked at the man and frowned, "At this rate he will break through." Even with Klaus'' heavy water, it could only slow down the breakthrough, not stop it completely. The man is in an enraged state and his senses are heightened. This was normal for Elementalists, especially those close to a breakthrough. A small change in emotions or even environment can arouse them and hasten the breakthrough. "Good thing Klaus used a lot." Grey heaved a sigh. If the man truly broke through, then he would escape without looking back. No matter how strong the man would become, there was no way he could travel thousands of meters in one step. But Grey could do that in his current state and he would leave in a flash. But due to Klaus using a lot of heavy water, even with the change in emotion, there was no way he would be able to break through soon. Grey attacked the man, but the man blocked it. He was in a stronger state compared to before and he attacked, this time, he was the relentless attacker. However, against an opponent like Grey, that was the worst thing to do. After two attacks, the man didn''t attack in that manner and switched up very quickly. The man was still taking the lead, but he didn''t try to force his way against Grey anymore, rather, he started attacking ingeniously. Grey started to show signs of some struggle keeping up with the man. He was faster, but the man managed to break through his defense two times and each of the man''s attacks were dangerous. If not for his strong physique, he wouldn''t be standing. The man was dumbfounded at the fact that Grey was still standing. He knew that he had only hit him twice, but each of those attacks was enough to take the life of a regular Peak Venerable. Even if Grey was not a regular Venerable, he should still show the signs of the attack, but Grey still had the same demeanor and movement from the start. It was as if he hadn''t been hit by any attack. Grey continued fighting and the man soon made use of an array which surprised Grey, but then he recalled about the array he shattered when he arrived. A battle of arrays had always intrigued Grey. He didn''t stop the man, rather, he also created a quick array. He didn''t spend too much time and his array was ready when the man''s attack was heading his way. His array blocked the attack coming his way, making sure it couldn''t touch him. The man''s eyes were filled with shock when he saw Grey using an array as well. "What are you made of?" The man asked once again. At the moment he purely believed that Grey was given birth to, rather, he was created by someone. There is no way a human should have such abilities at such a young age. Grey didn''t reply to the man as he continued to use his array to attack the man. The man blocked the attack and tried to get closer to Grey, with the help of another array, his speed increased significantly and he was as fast as Reynolds. Grey used his space element to create a distance between them once again and continued his battle. He didn''t want to allow the man to get close to him. The man''s current strength meant that a close battle would be dangerous for him. If he was hit by another of the man''s attacks, he wouldn''t be able to hold up and might cave in. Once that happens, the man would be able to kill him. The man noticed that Grey didn''t want him close to him and realized his attacks were working, it''s just that they weren''t enough to take Grey down yet. This thought amazed him, anyone else would''ve been down after being hit with them, but Grey was still fighting such a high intensity battle. ''A remarkable specimen. I''ll keep his corpse intact. Such a puppet will take me to the top!'' And since his daughter was with Grey, he had to make sure Grey releases her before he dies. Chapter 1415 Broken Universe Bam! Grey''s figure slammed into the ground, bouncing off it. Grey didn''t let his body hit the ground again, he quickly regained himself and flew into the air. ''Dammit! This guy is getting stronger.'' Grey could not only sense the man getting stronger, but he could feel it, literally. The man has been able to break through his defense once again and even managed to break a rib with his attack. Grey''s defenses were terrific, yet the man was able to get through them. The man saw Grey standing once again and felt a surge of anger build up, Grey was too strong. He thought he would be able to take him down after his sudden increase in strength, but it seems that''s not going to be the case. Grey still being able to stand up that fast shows that he''s still ready for a fight. "Kid, have you seen my puppets? They will bring pride to your body. I will bring pride to your corpse. Just give me back my daughter and kill yourself, you won''t feel any pain." The man said. "How stupid do you think I am?" Grey asked with a straight face, he chuckled and said, "You might have the advantage for now, but do you think I haven''t been preparing for this?" The man was taken aback, but the sight of a multicolored orb brought him back to reality. He could feel a chill run down his spine. Not just that, but there was a certain unique energy he could feel from this that somewhat inspired him. The man acted quickly and dodged the attack, although impacted by the aftereffect of the attack, he was able to dodge it. "You kids keep motivating me!" The man yelled and three figures appeared. They were all puppets in the Sage Plane. However, something strange started to happen, these puppets started to merge. "Fuck!" Even Grey couldn''t keep calm when he saw this. If Klaus were here, he would''ve scolded him for giving the bad guy ideas just like Reynolds. Grey acted quickly, and another orb was sent toward these puppets, this time, the orb was different. He infused more space elemental essence into it to make it more of a spatial attack, but dangerous nonetheless. The reason for this is that the spatial tear the space element of the attack will create will be amplified by the other elements and this will in turn make the turbulence even more dangerous. The man saw the attack and without thinking, he retreated from the area. As he was retreating, the orb exploded and the puppets were torn to shreds before his eyes, even the shreds vanished from the surface of the world. The man clicked his tongue and took another look at Grey. "You have so much in your arsenal. If you had met me some hours before this, then I would have not been able to even put up a fight with you. I could barely fight with the Lightning guy, much less you, that''s even more dangerous." The man said. He didn''t mince his words, Grey truly was a terrific individual. He was powerful and knew how to use his powers. He didn''t hold back while fighting and was also very strategic. The man was about to move but was hit by an attack that he didn''t see come from Grey. He raised his head and saw two inscriptions in the sky. "An Inscriber? You truly are a remarkable specimen. I''ll enjoy working on you." The man said with a vicious smile. "Don''t worry, I also have plans for you. But my friend will be the one to execute them." Grey said and attacked. The man didn''t fret and continued fighting with Grey. The battle had gotten to its peak, and the man could tell that in a few minutes, he would be able to break through. Now, he wasn''t afraid that Grey would stop him, rather, he wanted to keep Grey alive until after he broke through. Grey saw the man''s eyes and could somewhat tell what was going through it. ''Void, extract whatever is in that girl.'' ''She''s a little girl.'' ''She''s dead. You''re aware of that, right?'' ''Oh, I''m working on it now.'' ''Wow! Such an amazing thing. If I eat this I''ll break through.'' ''You''d break through either way, don''t you dare eat it!'' Grey was arguing with Void who wanted to eat the energy while also fighting with the man. The man was stronger, but Grey''s speed and inscriptions evened the odds. Now, he changed the use of his earth domain. Rather than using it for defense, he used it as part of his offense. The change in gravity put the man off, giving him a chance to attack. But the man was so strong that even though he was getting hit repeatedly, he was still able to stand and fight. The man was tenacious, this could be seen from his battle with Klaus and the others. Even after losing an arm and leg, he was still ready to fight with them. This was all due to him cutting off his pain receptors. Grey could sense that the man didn''t seem to feel any pain and couldn''t help but wonder why. At the start of the battle the man would occasionally scream from pain, but all of a sudden, he stopped. It was as if he was a different person. "How come you''re this way?" He asked. "No pain? Easy, let me kill you." The man said with a smile. "I''m sorry, but I''ll pass." Grey didn''t bother and continued attacking the man. He didn''t care if the man could feel pain or not, it had nothing to do with him. While the battle was going on, the two inscriptions which were attacking the man had already stopped, and something new was taking shape. The inscriptions were merging. Just like Grey''s fusion orb, he was using his fusion inscriptions. With them merging, he would be able to unleash a great attack. The reason he was slightly hesitant is that he didn''t know if the man will be able to survive the attack. Klaus would kill him if he took the corpse of the man back or if he couldn''t come back with a corpse. The man didn''t sense the inscriptions merging, he was fighting with vigor. As the battle went on, he could feel himself growing stronger. The feeling was intoxicating and he placed all his focus on learning more about Grey as they fought. This was the best way to understand Grey''s strength. Boom! Bang! The battle continued, and a change suddenly appeared in the sky. The change made the man halt his battle and he forced Grey to retreat. "Hahaha! It''s finally time. I''ll become a Sovereign and end all this!" The man laughed in delight, he looked at Grey and said, "Kid, it''s your honor to watch me become a Sovereign!" "Watch as the world gathers all the energy and help me break through and become a Sovereign." Grey looked at the man. Breaking through to the Sovereign Plane doesn''t cause too much commotion, only those around a few kilometers away can sense the exact position of the person breaking through. Not just that, but other Sovereigns can sense the appearance of a new Sovereign within a few thousand kilometers around them. But they can''t pinpoint the location. Grey looked into the sky, and then at the man. He gritted his teeth and created two more inscriptions. He could barely control the two element fusion inscription, but he wanted to add to more. He wanted to attack the man before he broke through. With the surplus energy present here, he didn''t have to worry about not being able to have enough essence to sustain the inscriptions. The man laughed as he looked at Grey''s face. The emergence of the other two inscriptions alerted the man and he noticed what was happening. "Hahaha, a futile effort. To show my benevolence, I''ll allow you to do whatever you want. Besides, it''ll only take a few seconds before I break through." Grey gritted his teeth and the other two inscriptions started to merge with the already merged two. Halfway through, the expression of the man changed drastically. He couldn''t sense the aura from them due to the change in the sky, but now that he sensed them due to the instability after Grey added more, he was alarmed. Whatever Grey was doing was too dangerous. Without even thinking, he tried to retreat, but it was too late. Grey couldn''t control the inscriptions and they exploded. Boom! The explosion was so massive that it covered over a five kilometer radius. The sky which had energy gathered from the man who was about to break through was destroyed, not even a bit of energy was left after the explosion happened. The man who tried to escape was caught toward the edge of the explosion and was struck down, but that was not what scared him, what scared him was that he couldn''t feel anything from the universe, rather, his aura started to decline. "He broke the universe?" This was the only question in his head as he crashed to the ground. Chapter 1416 Descendant Of A God? Bang! The man crashed into the ground, dazed from what he just witnessed. Grey was on the other side of the explosion, he was also impacted by it and felt a tinge of burning sensation as the heat from the explosion blew past his skin. The result of the explosion was beyond Grey''s imagination. He knew it would be strong, but he didn''t expect it to be this powerful. "He broke through?" He murmured, but then he looked at the sky and shook his head. "No, that''s not how this usually works. The energy should''ve been transferred into his body, but now the energy has dispersed." Grey thought hard and he came to the same conclusion as the man, he has forcibly stopped the man from breaking through to the Sovereign Plane by destroying the energy that gathered in the sky. ''But¡­ that shouldn''t be possible, right?'' Grey was left speechless by his deduction. If he''s accurate, doesn''t that mean others could stop people from breaking through to the Sovereign Plane at the last minute. Just the thought of it alone scared him. If the world were to find out about this, then everyone would be more secretive when they want to break through and have trusted people to guard them from any potential attacks on the energy. Grey was baffled at the scene, he had never heard of the energy being dispersed before. ''Is it that no one ever attempted to do this?'' He wondered as he took to the sky, patiently awaiting for when the explosion would die down. Without the explosion dying down he could already sense the energy that was destroyed. He literally blew a hole in the sky, causing a large spatial tear. This is something incredulous on its own, dispersing the energy a Venerable wants to use to get to the Sovereign Plane was even more unbelievable. Grey could sense the presence of the man, he marked him after all and could tell that he wasn''t far away. Just like Grey, he was also impacted by the attack. But unlike Grey, he wasn''t fast enough to get to a place with minimal damage, so he was injured from it. Grey didn''t wait for too long as the explosion died down within a minute or so and he went straight to where the man was located. When he got there, he saw a figure that seemed lifeless. The man was alive, clearly still alive, but his eyes were listless. It was obvious that he still couldn''t accept the fact that Grey stopped his breakthrough in such a manner. It was too shocking to accept. Grey shook his head when he saw this man, "There''s no point with me causing you any more harm. Klaus would know what to do with you. You''re of no threat to anyone like this." The initial plan was to destroy the man''s cultivation base, but right now, he could sense that the man''s cultivation stage dropped from being a Pseudo-Sovereign to being an Eighth stage Elemental Venerable. Grey didn''t know the backlash from not being able to break through a major Plane would be this alarming. ''I really need to be extra careful henceforth.'' He couldn''t imagine what would happen to him if he attempts to break through, and while in the process of breaking through, he fails. Klaus would not let him hear the end of it. Not just that, but there were also his enemies who would capitalize on this any chance they get. Grey knew not just the Gnomes were his enemies, there were also some figures who he had offended in one way or the other who were looking to take him out. There''s also the Necromancers. He didn''t dwell on this issue, it was something for the future, it wasn''t like he had any plans of failing to break through in the future, so there was no point in thinking about it. If something like that were to happen, he''ll go hide behind his father. That''s the use of having a strong background, and a powerful father too. Grey looked at his clothes and realized they had been destroyed from the battle. With a quick movement, he changed and picked up the man who didn''t even try to resist. He took the man who seemed to be lifeless with him as he left the sight, leaving a wreckage behind. ¡­. On Grey''s friends'' end. "What''s taking him so long? That silly thing is still moving." Klaus studied Reynolds intensely and said. "He will return soon, you know that man is powerful." Alice said. "What do you mean? We left that guy at death''s door before handing him over to Grey. If I were to catch him in that state at my peak, I would''ve killed him already." Klaus complained, he looked into the sky and said, "Grey''s always so slow." "You''re not even as powerful as he is, yet you''re acting all high and mighty." Alice rolled her eyes, but there was worry in her face, just like Klaus, she was worried for Reynolds'' satefy. Aries looked at Klaus, dumbstruck. Klaus was just on another level. Just as Klaus was about to continue speaking ill of Grey, a fissure tore in the sky and Grey''s figure slipped through it elegantly, on his shoulder was the man who wasn''t moving. "You killed him?" Alice asked. Grey tossed the man to the ground and chuckled sinisterly, "No, I destroyed his hope of breaking through." "Oh, I see. He''s in the Eighth stage now." Alice nodded after studying the man. It wasn''t hard to get the current cultivation stage of the man, he wasn''t trying to hide it anyway. The man could barely even see them, his eyes were focused on the sky, and he finally opened his mouth, "How is it possible to destroy the sky?" He looked at Grey and said, "The universe is unshakable, how can you destroy the energy? That''s impossible!" As the man was speaking, everyone could see that he was on the verge of going mad. He saw something that left him in a state that shaked him up. Aries looked at Grey, and then at the man. She couldn''t help but wonder what Grey did that left the man in such a state. Halting the man''s breakthrough shouldn''t make him go mad, unless he did it in a manner that shouldn''t be possible. ''He destroyed the energy?'' Aries wondered and then she recalled the process of breaking through to the Sovereign Plane. During the process, the world would gather a special energy and fill up the body of the Venerable that is breaking through. "That''s can be destroyed?" She blurted out with a shocked expression. "Who knew?" Grey shrugged, not too bothered about it. He looked at Reynolds, and then at the man, "Fix him." "You¡­ you¡­ what are you?" The man asked, "Are you the descendant of a God? Only Gods can achieve what you just did. Tell me! I''m ready to be your slave." The descendant of a God would definitely know a lot of secrets, if Grey were to take him in, he would be able to bring back his daughter. "Are you brain dead?" Klaus spoke up when he heard the man''s demands. "We want to kill you and you''re begging to become his slave? Do you think we''d take an evil person like you in?" Klaus asked. "Actually, it''s not a bad idea. Although he''s a Necromancer, and I detest Necromancers, I do have someone there that provides me with some information. It''s been a while since I contacted him. I wonder if he knows my identity now." Grey said with a thoughtful expression. The man did something that intrigued him, which was merging the puppets. As much as he hates Necromancers, this man is clearly a genius. Having such a servant isn''t a bad thing, but it''s not generally a good thing either. With how smart the man is, no matter what he does to him, there''s a good chance he will be able to destroy it. So even placing an array in his brain or heart wouldn''t really be of much help. "Grey, are you crazy? He tried to kill Rey!" Klaus felt like smacking Grey''s head. "I know, but what''s the harm of having one of the enemy''s guys? We get more information and other benefits. There''s just the fear of him leaking a few things." Grey shrugged, he looked at the man seriously, contemplating if it was worth the risk. The man would be a good addition to those he has taken in, he just needs to make sure the man''s in check and everything would be good. "Heal my friend, we''ll talk after." Grey pointed to Reynolds, and just as the man was about to move, "Also, I''m no descendant of a God." The man froze when he heard this, clearly hesitating. "Your choice." Grey walked to the side after saying this, he was a little tired from the fight, and a few ribs were broken which needs fixing. Chapter 1417 Evil Grey "You''re just going to leave Rey''s life in his hands?" Alice walked up to Grey when she saw him walking away. "There are two Peak Venerables there, if they can''t even stop him before he does anything to Reynolds then they''re useless." Grey said calmly, then he looked at Alice with a smile and said, "Besides, do you think I''d be that careless with Rey''s life?" "The technique he used is very delicate, if I''m not careful I might kill Rey while trying to help him. I''m not sure the Gnomes will even be able to create something like this." He added. A look of realization appeared on Alice''s face, now she understood why Grey asked the man to heal Reynolds first. He was afraid of harming Reynolds and could tell that this technique isn''t as simple as he thought. He could solve it, but he would need a lot of time, and from the movement of the dark patches on Reynolds'' body, they clearly didn''t have that much time. He couldn''t take the risk of trying out what he could when there''s a chance he might be mistaken and then harm Reynolds in the process. This is one of the main reasons he decided to listen to the man. Of course, there''s also the part where the man is a genius. Having someone like this isn''t too bad. Controlling him might be an issue, but he has his ways of tracking the man if needs be. All he needs to do is ensure that there''s something he can implant in the man''s core, and he''s about to think of it. The man seems to be an expert in arrays so doing that wouldn''t be good. "Ah! I got it!" Grey suddenly exclaimed. Alice looked at Grey, wondering what''s wrong with him this time. "I have a way to control him." Grey chuckled devilishly. "Sometimes I wonder who''s more evil, you, or Klaus." Alice shook her head. "Klaus is stupid, you can''t compare him to myself." Grey laughed. "What''s your plan in controlling him then?" Alice asked. "He has to agree to be my servant first. I''ll take him to my father when we''re going back." Grey didn''t say and looked at the man who seemed lost in thought. To be honest, Grey was a little worried since they didn''t have all the time. Just when he was about to lose it, he saw the man make a move. The man opened his remaining arm and the dark patches on Reynolds'' body started to move, even while Reynolds was still frozen, they could see the dark patches receding. "Good, he has made his choice." Grey''s eyes closed to a slit. His plan of controlling the man was actually simple, implanting two fusion orbs in the core of the man. He would use an array to keep them stable. The second the man or any array master dares to even touch it, without Grey''s presence there, the fusion orbs will explode. Also, if Grey were to die, the fusion orb would explode too. For someone like the man who had a good grasp of arrays, this was the best way to get him under control. Even if the man tries to break it, as long as even a tiny bit of the fusion orb absorbs outside energy, it would explode. The orbs being in the body of the man wouldn''t impair the man''s cultivation, so it was quite safe. "Mind telling me how you intend to control him now?" Alice heaved a sigh of relief when she saw the patches on Reynolds'' body slowly fading off. "Simple¡­" Grey went on to explain how the fusion orb would work. When Alice heard that if Grey dies, so does the man, she was flabbergasted at her friend''s mind. "Don''t give me that look. I''m only sparing his life cause I feel he has some use to me. If I''m no longer alive, what''s he living for?" Grey shrugged when he saw Alice''s look. "Oh, he has information on a spy in the Phoenix Faction that gives him information and sends young talents his way for his research purposes and making them his corpse puppets." Alice recalled the man''s words and said. "That''s originally the Phoenix Faction''s business." Grey didn''t seem to mind. "Aries heard him speak about this, so we have to take out the Necromancer in there." Alice said. "Oh, I''ll ask him. He should be able to tell us the identity of these people. We''ll kill them before leaving." Grey said. "What about him?" Alice pointed at the man. "He''ll continue staying here, just without his diabolical things. When we''re heading back from our tour of the Continent I''ll come pick him up." Grey said. "You already have all this figured out." Alice praised. "Of course, I think thoroughly before making decisions like this." Grey replied with a smug smile. "He''s done." Grey said after seeing the man collapse on the ground, exhausted, the process wasn''t an easy one. "You''re lucky you removed this shitty thing from his body." Klaus said coldly, he didn''t like the man since he tried to kill Reynolds, well, not just Reynolds, but himself as well. Why should he have a good impression of someone like that? But then thinking about it, the man wasn''t wrong with some of his words, after all, this was a world where the strong rule and the weak can only be stepped on. The only reason they could force the man to heal Reynolds was because Grey was powerful and the man was weak. Klaus thawed the ice on Reynolds'' body, staring at his friend whose face had previously gone pale regain some color. It didn''t take long before Reynolds regained consciousness, he looked around, and seeing the man, he instantly went into attack mode. "Take off that ugly armor you clown, he''s not an enemy, at least right now he isn''t." Klaus calmed Reynolds down when he saw him about to attack the man. Reynolds, although just regaining consciousness, didn''t argue and removed his armor. He looked around and saw Alice and Grey talking on the side. "Oh, he''s here already. No wonder." He said calmly, and then a look of shock appeared on his face when he sensed the man''s cultivation stage, "What happened to him?" Klaus looked at the figure Reynolds was pointing at and motioned with his head at Grey, "Apparently he blew up the sky." "Blew up the sky?" Reynolds was confused. "If my speculation is right, Grey forcefully stopped him from breaking through even at the last minute, hence the backlash." Klaus said with a hand on his chin. "That shouldn''t be possible unless he killed him, but he didn''t kill him, so how was it possible?" Aries interjected in the conversation. "He blew up the energy that the world gathered for me." The man said in a low voice. "I''ve heard you say it, but how''s that possible? The energy isn''t tangible to anyone else except the person it''s meant for. How did he blow it up?" Aries asked, her expression showing that she wanted to find out what Grey possibly did to achieve such a feat. The man was about to speak when Grey walked over, "It''s nothing serious. I just blew it up, like he said. What''s the point of asking so much?" Grey''s eyes had a nonchalant gaze, but Aries could tell it wasn''t that simple. Knowing that she was somewhat overstepping her boundaries, she shook her head and said, "It''s nothing, I was just curious, that''s all." "Alright. Since we''re done here, I''ll be leaving with him." Grey said that, nodded to his friends, telling them he was still busy with the array and left with the man. Klaus and Reynolds stretched their bodies and then took a glance at Aries, "Anywhere else we can go? You heard what he said, he''s still busy with the array." "I have to ask that man some questions." Aries said. She didn''t have the time to ask about the person passing on the information from her Faction. This was a matter of utmost importance to the Faction. "Don''t worry, I''ve spoken to him, we''ll make sure you get the information of the person before we leave. We''re not fans of Necromancers either." Alice smiled at Aries. Aries, hearing Alice speak, knew Grey would not hinder her from finding out this information. "Alright, let''s continue then. There are a few places we can go that wouldn''t be as dangerous as this, and will be within our level." Aries replied. "This was within our level, there were just a few mishaps." Alice consoled her when she saw her expression. Aries nodded and then walked forward, taking them in the direction of the place they could go to spend time before Grey finished with his array deduction with the Phoenix Faction Leader. The group followed behind her. They were all fired up after their last battle, Alice especially, she could feel the birth of something new in her. Chapter 1418 Each With Their Selfish Desires "You decided to follow me, I presume?" Grey asked the man with his hands behind his back as the duo stood on top of a cliff. The man hung his head low and nodded, "Yes, you might not be of a God''s descent, but you''re still unique, nevertheless." "I see. You are following me purely for your selfish desires." Grey turned to look at the face of the man. "Yes. I won''t hide it, I didn''t decide to follow you because of the fear of death, I had already given up when you created a hole in the universe, but then my curiosity kicked in and I want to know more about the individual who could do something like this. How better to know if not following?" The man didn''t hide his intentions, he was genuinely curious about Grey and what other abilities he possessed. This was a genius who could quickly learn a few things just from looking at them. Seeing Grey, it was like a box of surprises waiting to be opened to him. He wanted to spend time with Grey so he could see to what extent he could learn. The attack Grey used to destroy the sky intrigued him too. "Selfish, good, very good." Grey nodded, he paused and said, "I can''t leave you out of a way to control you, so even if you want to follow me, your life and death will be in my hands." The man didn''t argue, "I''m aware of this. I''ll be dead if you didn''t agree for me to follow you, so do as you may." Grey was pleased with the man, he didn''t stress him which was something he expected, but to his surprise, the man was already aware of what was coming and had embraced it with open arms. Grey didn''t delay and created a fusion orb, while also making a fusion inscription, before sealing them with his array. He made sure to leave them in an unstable state, this way, the second the array formation was touched by outside force other than him, it would explode. "You see this, the moment I die, so do you." Grey didn''t hide that part of the information. The man didn''t argue, "What do you want me to do as my first task?" "First off, I would like to get the name of the person who is working with you from the Phoenix Faction, and some information about any potential necromancers camp lying around. I have some hatred for Gnomes and Necromancers, and want to wipe them off the surface of this world. Maybe not all the Gnomes, but Necromancers have to go." Grey said calmly. "I see, there are two hideouts in this region. You probably wouldn''t be able to do anything to one of them since they have a Sovereign, but the other one is within your abilities. There are six Peak Venerables and one Pseudo-Sovereign, you and your friends will be able to deal with him." The man said, then he looked at Grey and said, "Also, as for the person in the Phoenix Faction, he''s pretty high ranked, but he''s still in the Venerable Plane, so it shouldn''t be too difficult to deal with him. When you''re ready I''ll fix a meeting with him." Grey was impressed at the man''s words and nodded, "You can return to whatever you''re doing. Stop killing people, I don''t like it when innocents die. You can kill those who are enemies and do whatever you want with them. But those who are not shall not be tolerated. One wrong move and it''ll be the end of you." "Yes, young master." The man bowed. "I don''t really like formalities, you can call me Grey." Grey waved his hand. "Grey¡­" The man fell silent when he heard the name, it sounded familiar to him. His eyes suddenly widened and he asked, "You''re Grey Dawson?" "Oh, I''m that famous?" Grey raised a brow. He knew all the Necromancers knew of him, but he wanted to play it cool. Even the entire Gnome race knew of him, why wouldn''t the Necromancers? Almost every top Family and Faction in the Aurora Continent has heard of the name Grey Dawson due to the kill order placed on his head. There are a few people who were hoping to cash in on his head with the Gnomes. "I get why you''re such a wonder now." The man commented. Grey laughed and looked away, "I''ll be leaving now. Just keep doing you, without killing innocent people and youths from top Factions. I don''t want any dirt on my name. As you can see, it''s quite prestigious." The man didn''t say anything and watched on as Grey disappeared from view. "Such a strange boy. How can I contact him?" The man muttered, but to his surprise, a small plaque appeared on his hands, and he heard Grey''s voice from the void, "I''ll be reaching you through this. If you have anything good for me, you can tell me. Other than business, don''t randomly reach out, I''m a very busy person." The man held the plaque and it was a communication device he had never seen before. He sensed it and was intrigued. "There''s a mark on this, he can use this to track me whenever he wants to. Is there a way I can override this to also get his location?" The man started fickling with the array on the plaque and a smile appeared on his face, "It''s a one way away. Such a smart figure. There''s no way I can track him, but he can track me as long as I have this item." The man kept it in his spatial ring and then a dull look appeared on his face, all his puppets had been destroyed, and even the one of his daughter was taken forcibly by Grey. If he had known he was fighting with the famous Grey, he would never have dared to bring out the puppet of his daughter. It was like showing a thief the location of one''s wealth, especially when you can''t protect it. He sighed, "Forget it, forget it." There''s no way he''s getting that back from Grey. At most he''ll still continue his research, but not kill innocents. Luckily, there are quite a good number of bad guys in the world of Elementalists. All he has to do is find one and he''ll be able to continue his research. He looked around, "I need to heal up. I''m out of good items for healing. Guess I''ll have to take my time." The man left to search for a good hiding spot where he could safely recuperate from his injuries. He could tell his injuries were quite severe, but since he can''t feel the pain after cutting his pain receptors, he didn''t mind. Since he was still alive, he could heal himself. ¡­. Two more days went by. Grey was still in the Phoenix Faction, deciphering the array formation with the Faction Leader while his friends were still out. The array was too complex, and even with all the time spent, they''ve still not broken much of the array. At this rate, Grey knew the only way he could get this was by staying indoors with the Faction Leader for at least a year, maybe even two or five. He didn''t have that time, and with no other choice, he gave up. There''s no point in trying to decipher it right now, it wasn''t like he needed to use it right away. The Phoenix Faction Leader was tempted to keep him in the Faction so they could decipher the array formation, he has been trying for so long, and a little kid coming helped him out with his insightfulness, he didn''t want to stop it, but he knew he couldn''t keep Grey in the Faction. "It has been wonderful working with you on the array." The Faction Leader said with a smile. "The honor is mine." Grey bowed to show his respect, he was about to leave when he recalled something and turned to the Faction Leader, "Oh, I have some information that one of your top Faction members, still in the Venerable Plane is working with the Necromancers." He hadn''t told the Faction Leader of the reason he left earlier, only telling him now that he wants to leave. "The rat has finally exposed himself, I see. Do you know him?" The Faction Leader asked, clearly, he was aware of a rat in the Faction, he just didn''t know who. "I''ll need a week. Until then, I''ll go hang out with my friends." Grey replied, he then added, "Once he has been caught, Aries will bring him to you." The Faction Leader nodded, he knew of Grey being someone the Gnomes loathed, which means the same goes for Necromancers. As long as Grey was willing to help take out this rat, he didn''t have any problems with it. Grey nodded and left. He was also contemplating if he should divulge the location of the Necromancers hideout with the Sovereign in it to the Faction Leader. Chapter 1419 Hypocritical World Grey left the Phoenix Faction and went to search for Klaus and the rest. Being able to locate them made it very easy and after a few hours of constant flying and teleportation over long distances, he was able to locate the group of four on their way to a cave. "You guys have been busy." He said when he sensed the aura of all four. They seem to have been having battles upon battles since he left them. It was very evident in their aura as there was a sharp killing intent looming around them, anyone with sharp senses will be able to sense it from some distance away. "Not as busy as you, oh young master Grey." Klaus bowed theatrically. Grey knew what he was implying and chuckled, "It''s not as easy as you see it. Either way, I have a good place for us." Seeing Grey''s eyes, they knew that Grey had plans of taking them somewhere dangerous, well, dangerous enough for them to survive, at least. "Where might that be?" Alice asked. "A Necromancers camp." Grey gave a soft smile. "Those guys are too easy for you to deal with, why do you want us?" Klaus said. "This is a chance to kill some necromancers." Grey shrugged, seeing Klaus'' reluctance, he looked at the others, "You guys in or¡­" "I''m in." Klaus was the first to raise his hand. The others nodded as well, they didn''t have any good impression of Necromancers and wouldn''t mind killing all of them. Th1s chapter is updated by n)ovel/\bin/\ "Before that, we have some Barbarians we want to deal with. They''ve been hunting people from a neighboring town and eating them." Alice said. "Did you say eat?" Grey asked for confirmation. The group nodded. Grey shivered at the thought of Barbarians hunting and eating people. He didn''t really see them as another race, he just saw them as overgrown humans. But from the looks of things, it looks like he was wrong. "Alright then. Let''s go, I have nothing to do for now." He opted to follow them. The group had no problem with having Grey with them, if anything, it would ensure their safety. With Grey''s presence, their chances of survival and facing harm has reduced significantly. Well, there were few things below the Sovereign Plane that could harm them, however, if they were outnumbered, they would be in serious trouble. With Grey in their group, they would be able to escape with relative ease. Grey''s space element makes him a great figure for escaping. Grey didn''t know what the others had in mind as they all walked towards the reported location of the Barbarians. Grey asked and found out only a few Barbarians eat humans right now. According to what Aries knew, during older times, most Barbarians tend to enjoy human flesh, but then humans rose to the peak of the world. Having the strongest individuals in the world meant that they had the highest authority. For the safety of their race, most Barbarians stopped eating humans and resorted to eating the meat of Magical Beasts, just like most humans. Only a handful of tribes among the Barbarians feast on humans, the others would kill when provoked, but they try to avoid conflict with humans as much as possible. Some hours later, they got to the location of the Barbarians, and they saw large cages hanging in the air, and humans could be seen in them. Each cage contained at least ten people, and a maximum of twenty people. There were over fifteen cages, and each was occupied except one. "Well, these guys have been eating well." Klaus gave a sarcastic comment when he saw the pile of bones that was on the side of the tribe. The tribe wasn''t large, around three hundred square meters. Like any tribe it contained kids, women, and old people. The strong men were stationed close to the gates and some of them were scouting the place to ensure they were safe. Grey stared at the people that were hanging in the sky, shaking his head. He didn''t feel any emotions from the view since he also kills Magical Beasts and doesn''t feel they were any different from humans other than being from another race. Unfortunately, he was human and had to fight against anything that threatens the human race. As much as it sounded hypocritical, it was life, and there was no way to change it. If he were to come from the Barbarian race, he would''ve also hated humans and wanted to kill them since they''re threatening his race. "There are quite a few Venerables present." Grey said to the group. "Have an exact number?" Klaus asked. "Probably over fifty. But only ten of them are in the Late stages and above. However, there''s another aura I''m sensing, more powerful than a Peak Venerable, but not in the Sovereign Plane." Grey replied. "A Pseudo-Sovereign?" The others asked. Grey nodded. "I''ll take care of whoever the person is." Klaus said hurriedly. "You''re only at the Peak, how can you defeat him?" Grey asked. "You''re also at the Peak, why can you defeat him and I can''t?" Klaus retorted. "Probably¡­ because I''m stronger than you are?" Grey raised a brow. "Fair point, you take him, I''ll deal with those at the Peak." Klaus didn''t even try to argue with Grey and just moved on. Even though he said he wanted to take care of the Pseudo-Sovereign, he didn''t mean it in any way. There was no way he would fight a Pseudo-Sovereign, the last time he fought someone like that, he almost died, even with the help of Alice, Reynolds, and Aries. Grey looked at the others and said, "We should deal with those scouting. This is a tribe that will never stop this act unless eradicated." "None will be left alive?" Alice asked. "Unfortunately not. They already have these act planted in them, no matter how you try to change it, they will eventually revert back to the same old ways at the slightest chance. You know this, you just don''t want to kill the kids." Klaus explained. Alice dropped her head. Aries had the same reaction as Alice to Klaus'' words. They knew he was correct, but the thought of having to kill even the defenseless children didn''t sit right with them. "Sometimes, we have to sacrifice parts of us for the greater good of humans. That''s what it means to be stronger." Reynolds said. "Since when did you start giving motivational words?" Klaus laughed when he heard Reynolds'' words. "What do you mean?" Reynolds frowned, he looked at Grey and said, "So you two can say these things but I can''t?" "Technically, yes." Klaus nodded with a serious expression. "You two are crazy." Reynolds gritted his teeth at the fact that Klaus and Grey were making fun of him. Grey and Klaus on the other hand were laughing, holding themselves back not to laugh too loud and draw attention to them. After they were done laughing, Grey said, "We should get to work. Spread out, kill any Barbarian you find. We''ll wipe out the tribe when we''re done with that." Aries nodded and went out. Alice looked at the children in the tribe a little longer and left. If she were killing men and women capable of fighting, then she could do that, but against unarmed children like these, she didn''t like it. Klaus and Reynolds didn''t have any reluctance as they went their separate ways. Grey looked at the place, the children playing, and then turned his gaze to those in the cages in the air. Those were humans, yet they were trapped in such a state. "A shame. I don''t really like such acts, but it''s something I can''t stop." He shook his head and vanished from view. He could sense a few Barbarians close by, but his friends were going after those people, so he turned his attention to farther places. Unlike the others who were starting from here, he was going to kill from the other side. Grey was fast, the scouts weren''t in the Venerable Plane yet. There was no way a Sage Plane Elementalist could sense Grey''s presence. With a short movement, the figure of the person disappears from view. Grey was killing them within a second. None of them could stand a chance against him. Not just him, Klaus and Reynolds were on a rampage as well, killing whoever they saw. In no time, they''ve wiped out all the scouts and rendezvous at the same place. "All dead on your end?" Klaus asked. Grey nodded, "What about you guys?" "Ice sculptures all around. They will shatter in a few minutes." Klaus replied. Alice and Aries nodded when they saw the gazes of the guys. "Alright, since that''s the case. Let''s go save some people." Klaus stood up, taking the lead. "No plan?" Aries asked. "What''s the point? Only those in the Late stages and at the Peak are our concern. The others will not be able to withstand the aftershock of the battle." Klaus shrugged, standing at the front gates of the tribe. Chapter 1420 Ill Be Dead Before Then The Barbarians standing at the gate were alarmed when they suddenly saw a young human standing in front of them with a smug smile on his face, before they could say a word, Klaus opened his arm and they were frozen solid. Klaus looked at the two figures with a smile and said, "So easy." "Come on, let''s go on a rampage." He let out a burst of laughter and rushed into the tribe, unleashing his domain at everything. He wasn''t softhearted like Alice and Aries, and since his method was the least harmful to the defenseless children, he opted to use his ice domain, freezing anyone below the Venerable Plane. Those in the Sage Plane couldn''t fight against the cold and only managed to withstand it for a few seconds before freezing. Klaus walked through the tribe, unhindered. Before anyone stepped up, Klaus had frozen almost half of the tribe. Most of them being the children. "Such vile human, you will pay for this evil act!" A scream of anger came from the middle of the tribe, accompanied with an overbearing aura that shot towards Klaus. When Klaus sensed it, he couldn''t help but feel his heartbeat increase, not from fear, but from excitement. He wanted to test just how powerful such a figure could be. "Bud, leave him to me for a few seconds, please." He begged Grey who had appeared in the sky above him. Grey looked down at Klaus'' eyes, and when he saw the excitement, he couldn''t help but sigh. With no other choice, he turned his attention to the rest of the people that were rushing out. "You better not regret this." He left with that statement. "It''s only for a few seconds, I''m not that stupid to want to fight with him for long." Klaus laughed and his body was covered with ice armor. Alice and the others had arrived, seeing Klaus'' work, they were dumbfounded at his ruthlessness. The fact that he had killed so many people before they came was shocking to say the least. Aries rushed towards one of the few Peak Venerables present. Alice and Reynolds did the same, leaving the rest for Grey who still hadn''t made a move. Grey looked at the place and quickly came to a conclusion. It was best to continue Klaus'' actions. He could see that those at the other side of the tribe were attempting to leave the tribe. This was not something he wanted. At least all those present here must be eliminated. He didn''t care if there were others from the tribe outside, he just had to make sure those here were killed. Grey switched places with one of the multiple Venerables, before unleashing a powerful attack that sent them flying. He not only did that, but he used the process to mark them too. He wanted to make sure all of them got killed. After doing this, he made use of his water domain, using his ice ability to freeze those who were fleeing. Klaus was slow since he didn''t have any other elements, Grey on the other hand was very efficient. With his space element, he was able to move quickly, stopping those who were trying to escape while also simultaneously dealing with the Venerables. Within the space of a few seconds, Grey had not only killed almost everyone that was escaping, he had also killed six Mid stages Venerables, and seven Early stages Venerables. In the sky. Klaus and the man met eye to eye. "How come you''re smaller than the others?" Klaus asked when he saw the Barbarian that was a Pseudo-Sovereign. The Barbarian looked at Klaus, and then at Grey who was massacring his people and his eyes turned red, without replying Klaus, he rushed toward Grey. Klaus, knowing this might happen didn''t stand by, he attacked, forcing the man to stop in his tracks. "I am this tribe''s leader. Anyone who dares to offend us will be killed. I''ll kill you then kill that stupid kid." The Barbarian said coldly. His small human-like body started to expand, and before long, he was well over three and a half meters. He was even larger than the other Barbarians. The aura coming off the Barbarian Tribe''s Leader was immense, intimidating Klaus. Klaus naturally didn''t have any intentions of backing down. He looked at the man with fire in his cold eyes and said, "I''ve always wanted to fight someone like you. Let''s go!" Klaus didn''t hold back and attacked with a large ice hammer. The Barbarian Tribe Leader didn''t dodge the attack, rather, he threw a fist at it, and in front of Klaus'' shocked eyes, the ice hammer shattered with just a single blow. "Shit!" Klaus exclaimed when he saw this. Without hesitation, he retreated, not daring to get close to the Barbarian Tribe Leader, but he was met with another surprise. The Barbarian Tribe Leader was a Lightning Elementalist. With a lightning covered body, he moved faster that even Reynolds, appearing before Klaus, sending out an attack. "Fuck! Grey! Come fight him! I want nothing to do with this bastard!" Klaus yelled as he created a thick ice wall to block the Barbarian Tribe Leader''s attack before running away. If the Barbarian Tribe Leader used the elements to fight, then he would''ve been able to at least put up a fight against him, but against someone who was using his physical strength and was also very fast, it was a death wish from him if he tried to fight against him, and he knew this. Grey was in the process of killing some of those escaping when he heard Klaus'' yell. "You can''t even hold him back for a minute?" He asked. "I''ll be dead¡­ fuck!" Klaus ran away after another of his ice walls was shattered with a punch. "I''ll be dead before then." Grey saw the Tribe Leader and understood Klaus'' plight. A lightning based Barbarian is very dangerous. "Give me some time, I''ll be there within a few seconds." "Fuck! Don''t you hear I''ll be dead before then?!" Chapter 1421 Dont Forget Your Job "Grey, If I die I''m taking you with me!" Klaus yelled as he ran away from the Barbarian Tribe Leader''s attacks. Grey finally finished up the last of those trying to escape before switching places with Klaus. "Deal with those guys." "Gladly!" Klaus replied with joy. With these Venerables, he still had a good chance of survival, but against the Tribe Leader, his chances of survival were very minimal. Grey didn''t try to exchange blows with the Barbarian, he knew he was not on the same level as the Barbarian and would only suffer pains if he dared to fight with his physique. "You." The Barbarian looked at Grey with red eyes. Grey literally wiped out his tribe right before his eyes. As the tribe leader and the protector of the tribe, he had failed them all. This was a disgrace, and even if they managed to get through this hurdle, this event would haunt him for the rest of his life. Grey could see the hatred in the eyes of the Barbarian leader and said calmly, "It''s life. You harm my race, I come after you. Given you people eat humans, we''ll have to make sure you guys are uprooted. Leaving the young ones alive is too dangerous." The Barbarian Tribe Leader heard Grey''s words and knew is too dangerous." The Barbarian Tribe Leader heard Grey''s words and knew Grey was right, but these were his people, there is no way he would take this lying down. The Barbarian Tribe Leader looked at Grey and said, "I''ll kill you and use your blood as the sacrifice for their deaths." Grey shrugged, not bothered with what the Barbarian Tribe Leader said. He would stand on his side of the world, and the Tribe Leader was on his side of the world. The Barbarian Tribe Leader moved close to Grey, but unlike Klaus, Grey was fast, even faster than the Pseudo-Sovereign Plane Barbarian Tribe Leader. The Tribe Leader punched, but missed his attack. He tried to attack once again, but Grey dodged it again. He attacked with a fireball, but the Barbarian Tribe Leader was able to block it with his lightning element before attacking Grey aggressively. Being a Space Elementalist at the Peak of the Venerable Plane, no matter how powerful the Barbarian Leader was, there was no way he would be able to hit Grey as long as Grey focused fully only on dodging. The Barbarian Tribe Leader tried to stop Grey, but Grey didn''t have any problems with playing with the man, he didn''t give him any chance as he dodged the attacks while attacking. He didn''t focus on attacking, just holding back the Tribe Leader. The Tribe Leader soon got tired of attacking Grey and turned his focus to Klaus. Without hesitation, he rushed after Klaus who was having a difficult time dealing with those people in the Venerable Plane. They were just too many and difficult to deal with. Luckily, he had a very tough defense that even with such a large group, he was able to block their attacks. When he sensed the Tribe Leader coming his way, he yelled, "Grey! Are you forgetting your job?!" Grey appeared in front of the Tribe Leader and was faced with a powerful attack coming towards his face. He reacted accordingly, dodging the attack before unleashing a punch of his own. The Tribe Leader, seeing Grey throw a punch his way, didn''t try to dodge, rather, he welcomed it, hoping to grab Grey''s hand when the punch landed. However, his expression changed the second the punch landed on his stomach, he felt a stinging pain and his figure shot back with shocking speed. The power behind Grey''s punch was something he didn''t prepare himself for. What was worse was that Grey didn''t try to hold back, attacking with everything he had. The Barbarian Tribe Leader coughed out blood as his figure was sent flying. Grey''s punch was almost lethal, luckily, the Barbarian made sure he didn''t allow Grey to punch any place that would be deadly to him. Grey flew after the Barbarian Leader, hoping to take advantage of the situation. The Barbarian Tribe Leader didn''t allow Grey''s first punch to let Grey take advantage of it. He hurriedly blocked Grey''s next blow, before trying to grab Grey. The Tribe Leader was fast and Grey knew that dodging this was impossible, however, he didn''t have anything to worry about. The Tribe Leader''s arm got to Grey''s head, and it went right through Grey''s figure. Grey was there, but at the same time, he wasn''t there. The space element was too mysterious, and so were its abilities. The eyes of the Tribe Leader opened in shock, but that was not the end. After his arm went through Grey''s figure, Grey attacked. A fusion orb was unleashed on the chest of the Tribe Leader. The Tribe Leader found it difficult accepting what just happened, but the force from the fusion orb said otherwise as his figure was thrown straight to the ground. Bang! The sound of the Tribe Leader slamming into the ground drew the attention of all the Barbarians present. They couldn''t believe their leader was beaten by Grey. Those fighting with Reynolds, Alice, and Aries were in a tough spot, but they were still able to stand up, their Tribe Leader on the other hand had been sent flying into the ground in a shocking turn of events. Most of them placed their hopes on the Tribe Leader, yet he was the first to be sent to the ground. "You little brat! I''ll kill you and all the other humans!" The enraged voice of the Tribe Leader came from the dust cloud and so did his lightning covered body as he shot at Grey. Grey was just as fast, flashing through the sky, taking out one of the Mid stage Venerables in the process. The Tribe Leader felt insulted by this act and sent a bolt of lightning at Grey. For the first time since the fight, the Tribe Leader didn''t resort to physical attacks, rather, he attacked from afar. Chapter 1422 He Complicates Things Grey blocked the switched places with one of the Barbarians. The Barbarian he switched places with didn''t expect the Tribe Leader''s attack and was struck by the attack. This Barbarian was only in the Early stages of the Venerable Plane, there was no way he could withstand the attack of a Pseudo-Sovereign. The Barbarian was killed by the attack. When the Barbarian Tribe Leader saw what Grey did, he was incensed. Grey used his own attack to kill one of his people, this was even more hateful than what Grey did while he was chasing him. His hatred toward Grey had grown stronger than what he has ever felt. He wanted Grey dead at all costs. "My brethrens, we must kill them. Forget the price we have to pay, they must die!" The Barbarian Tribe Leader exclaimed. He didn''t go after Grey anymore, rather he stood on the same place in the sky as he looked at his fallen tribesmen. The other Barbarians gave a warcry, and they retreated from battle. Reynolds and Aries were able to stop their opponents from retreating. They were stronger than their opponents, so there was no way they would allow them to escape that easily. Reynolds managed to seriously wound his opponent when she tried to join the other Barbarians. Aries'' opponent was lucky to have dodged the attack, if not, she would''ve been in the same situation as the person Reynolds was fighting. With the Barbarian''s current state, there was no way she could last another minute while fighting with Reynolds who was vastly superior to her now. But she didn''t fear, with a strong conviction, she attacked Reynolds, making sure he isn''t able to stop the others. She has watched as their numbers dwindled under the attacks of Klaus and Grey. This was something she couldn''t bear to see. Even if she could only hold one person back, it would give the others time to complete the formation. The other Barbarians started a chant and Grey, who was watching from the side, felt his heart sink. "Stop them!" He rushed towards the direction of the Barbarians, but he was stopped by the Tribe Leader. He wanted to switch places with one of the Barbarians, but he noticed it was impossible. The space there was solidified, there was no way to break through it. "Fuck! Klaus!" He yelled while being held back by the Tribe Leader. Klaus knew what he had to do, but three Late stage Venerables were fighting with him, disregarding their lives. Yes, Klaus would have an easier time killing them, but it would be impossible for him to recklessly break through and then stop the Barbarians who were gathered. Klaus felt a frustration and exploded out with a powerful chilling snow storm, hoping to freeze anything in his path. The snow storm was amplified by his domain, making it even more dangerous. He wanted to freeze everything before him and stop the other Barbarians. The three Barbarians saw the snow storm coming their way, but they gritted their teeth and jumped into it, charging head-on towards Klaus. Two of them used themselves as shields to ensure the safety of one of them who was forced through the snow storm all the way to where Klaus was standing. When Klaus saw the Barbarian stepping out of the snow storm at such a close range, his pupils constricted, but then an evil smile appeared on his face. ''A futile sacrifice.'' A thin sword appeared on his hand, giving off an even greater chilling aura than his snow storm. The Barbarian saw this and his gaze changed, he realized they''ve been played by Klaus. Klaus thought ahead and was prepared if they did something like this. Klaus swung the sword at the Barbarian, but the Barbarian didn''t back down, he was an Earth Elementalist, covering his hands with a brownish glow, he grabbed the thin blades of Klaus'' sword. The second his hand touched the sword, he started to freeze from his hand, however, the determination in his eyes didn''t dimmer, rather, it became brighter. Something Klaus never expected happened, the Barbarian started to turn into a statue, but not an ice statue like Klaus'' expectations, rather, an earth statue, with Klaus'' blade firmly in his grasp. Klaus realized what the man wanted to do, but it was already too late. The man had a firm grip on his sword and he didn''t have the physical strength to drag it away from him. A smile formed on the man''s face when he saw this, his objective had been achieved, now all he had to do was leave everything else to his fellow tribesmen. Klaus snorted coldly, "You think I''ll let you die with a smile?" An ice spear appeared in the sky and Klaus stabbed it into the chest of the Barbarian whose chest hadn''t turned into an earth statue yet. The face of the Barbarian showed pain, but his smile was still there. The Barbarian knew this effort of his would only stop Klaus for a short time, but that was all that was needed. Alice and the others were in the same situation, only Reynolds had it easy. When he saw the situation, he didn''t delay and detached his Elemental Warrior from his body, sending it at the gathered Barbarians. The Barbarian before him wasn''t strong enough to threaten him even though he was two stages below him. With his current strength he could kill him with time. But that was not the main point, the issue now is that they had to stop those people from completing whatever they wanted to do, and his Elemental Warrior was strong enough to put a stop to it. Klaus, seeing Reynolds send his Elemental Warrior over heaved a sigh of relief, but his expression changed when he realized something, the Barbarians suddenly stopped their chants, and their body was covered with a glowing light. "Why don''t we ever have it easy?" He complained. He couldn''t help but turn to Grey. The mission they''ve been doing all this while had been within their capabilities just like Aries said, but with Grey''s appearance, this mission suddenly became so complicated. Chapter 1423 Were Fucked Klaus looked at the Tribe Leader Grey was entangled with and couldn''t help but cuss out. With no other choice, he resorted to his ice needle. The Tribe Leader was focused on fighting with Grey, so the chances of him being able to sense and even dodge the attack would be very slim. Klaus attacked without hesitation, at least they should deal with the Tribe Leader who was the strongest person present. To Klaus'' shock, the Tribe Leader moved at the last second, dodging the needle by a hair''s breadth. "You think you can attack me?" The Tribe Leader snorted. Klaus and Grey chuckled. Grey smiled and asked, "Who said he was trying to reach you?" The Tribe Leader''s expression changed when he saw the ice needle which was supposed to disappear appear in front of the Barbarians that had already stopped chanting. "No!" The Tribe Leader rushed there, hoping to stop the needle from hitting the Barbarians, however, he noticed something off. Grey had a wide smile on his face, while Klaus was laughing. The Tribe Leader was forcefully pulled into space and then his figure was replaced by Grey who had a fusion orb on his hand, the Tribe Leader however felt a cold sensation from his back, when he looked behind him, he was shocked that his back had been frozen. He studied his body and found an ice needle resting between his spine. Grey unleashed the fusion orb on the Barbarians that seemed to be on the phase of merging together. "Damn you filthy humans!" The Tribe Leader yelled angrily and without hesitation, he flew towards the Barbarians that had been attacked by Grey''s fusion orb. He still didn''t know how he was hit by an ice needle when he clearly dodged the first one and wasn''t even hit by the other one. Unfortunately, he didn''t have the time to think about it, his focus was making sure his last surviving tribesmen efforts didn''t go to waste due to Grey''s attack. Grey didn''t stop him, rather, he threw two more fusion orbs into the explosion and went over to Klaus. "Quick thinking bud, this guy was a hassle, and there was no way to switch places with any of those guys." Grey grabbed the sword that was still held by the Barbarian who had turned into an earth statue and the Barbarian''s hand broke apart. Klaus took back his sword when he saw Grey studying it, "Of course, you know I''m always thoughtful. I guessed you couldn''t switch places if not, you wouldn''t have asked for my help." Grey didn''t mind Klaus'' act of taking the sword away, he looked at the explosion and asked, "Do you think that would be enough." "For those guys, yes, but you already know how powerful that guy is. He''ll survive." Klaus replied. "Even with your ice needle?" Grey raised a brow. He knew the quality of Klaus'' ice and was very confident it would be able to slow the man down, even causing serious damage to him. "Most likely." Klaus nldded5. "He''s a Barbarian, that should be the only reason he will be able to survive this without any serious injuries." Grey waited for the explosion to die down. Alice and Reynolds were able to kill off their opponents. Reynolds'' Elemental Warrior wasn''t able to do much to the Barbarians after they started their chants, so he withdrew it and with its help, he killed off the Barbarian he was fighting with. Aries and also defeated her opponent with some distractions from Grey harming the Barbarian Tribe Leader thanks to Klaus'' ice needle. Everything happened all thanks to Klaus and Grey''s impeccable understanding of one another. Grey knew Klaus was aware the Tribe Leader would be able to sense the attack, so he used it in a way Grey could get in front of it, then teleport it to another location, and then switch places with the Tribe Leader while also sending it back to that place. The ice needle continued its usual movement and hit the Tribe Leader after Grey switched places with him without his knowledge. The entire situation relied heavily on the duo''s trust of one another. If Klaus didn''t trust Grey''s quick-wittedness, he would never have attacked. But since he was confident in his friend''s ability and thought process, he didn''t hesitate and attacked. This trust led to their minor victory. Of course, their victory wasn''t certain yet since they don''t know the outcome of Grey''s fusion orb barrage. "Hey, why don''t we just send more attacks there?" Reynolds suggested, seeing their faces, he added, "Just to be sure." The others were about to do as he said when they saw a figure shooting out of the place, it was the Tribe Leader, but he was almost double his previous size. Bodies started to drop from the sky, and when the others looked at the bodies, their expressions changed drastically. The bodies were shriveled, one should know that a normal Barbarian is well over two and a half meters, yet they''ve shriveled and shrunk to a size of below one and a half meters. The aura of the Tribe Leader spiked, but it still didn''t go above the Pseudo-Sovereign Plane, it was only stronger. But that wasn''t the main issue, the issue was that there were two more dangerous auras that were close to the Tribe Leader''s previous state. The two auras were at the Peak of the Venerable Plane, but very close to becoming Pseudo-Sovereigns. "We''re fucked¡­" Klaus couldn''t believe his eyes. "Well, if you think about it properly, this is a better situation compared to what would''ve happened originally." Grey looked at their current opponents and couldn''t help but wonder what would''ve happened if they didn''t attack them at that time. With the numbers present, they would''ve been able to produce at least four more Peak Venerables who are close to a Pseudo-Sovereign, at that time, they would''ve been in danger. But in this case, he wasn''t too scared, he still had Void he could call on. Void had been sleeping a lot lately and he guessed he would enter Rank Eight very soon. Chapter 1424 Powerful Tribe Leader Grey looked at the Tribe Leader who was giving off an aura that threatened him. "This guy''s tough. Void and I will handle him, you guys take care of these guys." Grey said to them, "I''ll tell the bunny to help you guys out." "Will it come in person or just its helpers?" Klaus asked. "It''s a little busy, and you should know it doesn''t like fighting. It got a Peak Rank Seven Magical Beast lately, I''ll convince it to tell it to help you guys out." Grey chuckled and left the place. The Tribe Leader followed him into the sky, knowing Grey was his opponent. "Boy, I''ll kill you. I wasn''t confident about this before, but now, I''m certain you''ll die by these hands." The Tribe Leader raised his right hand as he finished his speech. "Well, today''s not that day, and you''re not the one, unfortunately for you." Grey didn''t worry about the Tribe Leader. ''Void, I need your help. This guy is too strong for me to handle.'' ''Sovereign?'' ''Close.'' ''You know I''m not a Sovereign yet, right?'' ''Yes, but I can''t fight him on my own.'' ''Alright, you''ll be the main force, I''ll keep him distracted.'' Void said. After saying that, Void appeared on his shoulder. The Tribe Leader was taken aback when he saw the appearance of the small strange black cat on Grey''s shoulder. "You have a Peak Rank Seven Magical Beast?" He scoffed and said, "No wonder you''re so confident." "He''s not much, doesn''t really like drama. We should get this over with." Grey shrugged. "Yes, we should. I still have some scores to settle with you and all the humans within this area." The Tribe Leader replied. "I don''t think you have to worry about that." Grey moved out, without hesitation, he attacked, sending out a dimensional slash at the Tribe Leader. The Tribe Leader snorted at Grey''s confidence in himself, this was the first human he was seeing brimming with such confidence. He waved his hand and a lightning bolt struck the dimensional slash, destroying the attack. Grey knew his attack was not on the same level as the Tribe Leader, but he was shocked at the fact that the Tribe Leader dealt with his attack with such ease. The Tribe Leader stretched his body, and Grey could hear his joints crack. The joints hadn''t finished sounding out when Grey suddenly felt a sense of danger behind him. Grey turned, only to see the fist of the Tribe Leader heading towards his face. He couldn''t believe his eyes when he saw it. The speed of the Tribe Leader was above what he expected. Void reacted quickly, using the space element to force the Tribe Leader back a few meters away from them. The Tribe Leader had gotten to the state where using the space element to manipulate him was almost impossible for both Grey and Void. Void had a better control over the space element which made this possible. Grey used the opportunity to retreat from the place, leaving a large flaming fist that slammed into the body of the Tribe Leader. The Tribe Leader wasn''t able to dodge the attack since he was still in motion, and collided with it. However, he was in a state where an attack of this level from Grey couldn''t cause any harm to him. The Tribe Leader flashed through the flaming fist, destroying it in the process. After destroying it, he attacked Grey once again, not giving him the chance to have time to think. He already saw how dangerous Grey was when the opportunity presented itself, he didn''t want him to have such an opportunity anymore. Grey felt the pressure from the start of the battle, stunned at the persistence of the Tribe Leader. At this point, he was certain if they wanted to retreat, the Tribe Leader would not let them leave, this was how enraged he was with them. To be fair, the group of five came to their tribe and killed every living thing. The Tribe Leader can''t blame them for this since the Barbarians were the ones who hunted humans. The Tribe Leader attacked Grey ferociously, unleashing attack after attack. Grey focused on dodging, he didn''t even dare to block any of the attacks up close. He tried to use his gravitational force field, but against the Barbarian Tribe Leader, it wasn''t effective. Barbarians have a closer relationship to the earth element, and even those like the Tribe Leader who don''t have the earth element have a great understanding of how the earth element works. Grey''s gravitational force field was useless, his earth walls and other defenses couldn''t withstand one punch from the Tribe Leader. The only way he stood a chance against the Tribe Leader was if they fought with just their elements. The Tribe Leader however, didn''t seem keen on giving him such an opportunity. Void''s involvement in the battle is the main reason Grey was still in this fight. Grey was fast, but compared to the current state of the Tribe Leader, he wasn''t capable of outrunning him. The Tribe Leader had a stronger defense as well as attack power. The only positive is that both him and Void possess the space element and the Tribe Leader doesn''t. This gave them a small chance at escaping from the Tribe Leader''s attacks which were all life-threatening. ''Why''s he so strong?'' Void asked. ''You can tell what stage he''s in. Figure it out.'' Grey didn''t have the time to explain, he was currently running for his life with the Tribe Leader hot on his tail. The thought of going all out flashed through his head on a few occasions, but he didn''t want to act recklessly. If he were to use all his elements and still isn''t able to take down the Barbarian, it would spell danger for him. News of his ability spreading wasn''t something he wanted, at least not yet. Boom! Bam! Bang! Their battle shook the sky and the clouds were gradually disappearing from a two kilometer radius due to the impact of the duo''s fight. Chapter 1425 Team Of Two Boom! Grey''s figure shot through the sky, but Void stopped the Tribe Leader from getting close to him, making sure it was impossible for him to get close to Grey who was still mid-air. The Tribe Leader tried to punch Void, but given his small size and also his speed, it was almost impossible for the Tribe Leader to strike him since he was prepared for whatever attack that was coming his way. Grey balanced himself mid-air and took a look at Void and the Tribe Leader ahead, before rushing back into the fight. Void was fast and can use this to his advantage, making sure the Tribe Leader didn''t have the chance to strike him. Grey''s armor had some cracks from the Tribe Leader''s attacks. The Tribe Leader didn''t flinch under the constant attacks of the duo, he continued fighting with intensity, he was certain he would be able to defeat them. ¡­. On Klaus'' end. Klaus and Alice teamed up against one of the Peak Venerables while Reynolds and Aries fought the other one. Klaus had a good attack power and was also the best when it came to defending, so the best person who could protect Alice there other than Grey was Klaus. The man they fought against didn''t give them any chance as he attacked without end. Klaus didn''t show any signs of fear or worry, he blocked each of the man''s attacks while also counterattacking. Alice attacked, but the man was able to almost ignore her attacks since it wasn''t enough to cause him any significant injuries in this state. If she were attacking a normal Peak Venerable, the person wouldn''t dare to ignore her attacks, but against Barbarians who had tremendous defensive abilities, and also in this state, they could neglect the fact that she was even present. The only reason she was attacking was to help reduce the pressure on Klaus. Klaus was not on the same level as the Barbarian, so he needed her. If he tried to fight against him on his own, he wouldn''t be able to win. "All I need to do is hold on for a few minutes and this state of yours will be over with. At that time you''ll only be a defenseless pig begging me to kill him." Klaus said. The expression of the Barbarian changed when he heard this, he didn''t expect Klaus to say something like this. Klaus, seeing it figured this technique would not last for long. This meant that his assumption was right and all he needed to do was to defend while waiting for the aura of the Barbarian to start its decline. He became relaxed and fixed all his attention on blocking, he didn''t even try to expend any energy in attacking. Not just that, but he also told Alice to stand behind him, telling her what he had in mind. Alice didn''t argue with him and did as she was told. The Barbarian saw their reactions and knew that he had made a mistake. With a powerful roar, a brownish glow appeared on his body. "I''ll kill you, filthy creatures." The Barbarian''s speed increased and he was able to get past one of Klaus'' defenses, but Alice reacted first, attacking the Barbarian as he came close. The Barbarian forced his way through Alice''s attack, but he was still slowed down. This gave Klaus the opportunity he needed to bring out his domain. The area around them was covered with snow. This time, he didn''t make it simple, the snowstorm was so strong that it impeded the view of the Barbarian. It didn''t only impede the Barbarian''s vision, it also stopped him from using his spiritual senses to track them down. Alice looked at Klaus and praised, "Your domain is so special." She had tried to get through it but she couldn''t sense anything more than five meters away from her location. Klaus nodded and said, "I read about this in my Faction. It''s a useful technique when you''re fighting against an opponent that''s stronger than you are." "Unlike others here, my vision is not impacted, so I can attack whenever I want to." Klaus looked at Alice and said, "I''ll need your help. You''re faster than I am, but I have a better attack that will affect¡­" Klaus paused mid-sentence when he sensed a strong wide range attack. "This is not going to be easy." He murmured. The Barbarian, knowing he would be in danger if his vision was impaired quickly blasted a large attack, creating a space of at least twenty five meters, even though it was not large, it was enough for him to sense whoever comes out of the snowstorm around him. Klaus tried to force the snowstorm to cover up the destroyed parts, but he realized he couldn''t. This was done thanks to the domain of the Barbarian. The Barbarian used his earth domain to create a space for himself in the snowstorm. Klaus sensed the space in the snowstorm and said, "We''ll have to change our plans. He now has some space to himself, we''ll have to work with that. But it increases the risk factor of it." ¡­. Reynolds and Aries were the ones who had it easier amongst everyone. Reynolds was a top tier Peak Venerable, adding Aries made the team even stronger. Since their opponent was a single individual at the Peak of the Venerable Plane, it was within their capabilities. The Barbarian didn''t have the chance to have any advantage in the battle as the duo were able to keep him in check. Reynolds'' speed and attack power was frightening. Aries beside Reynolds made their team deadly for this Barbarian. The Barbarian was quickly subdued by the duo. And his aura was starting to show signs of decline. When the duo sensed this, they were elated. They will be able to kill the man in no time at this pace. Once they''ve defeated their opponent, the others wouldn''t have to go through the stress of having to fight their strong opponents in fear. Chapter 1426 Violent Tribe Leader Grey and Void were the one fighting with the strongest person present, and since they were both the strongest from their group, it was normal for them to fight the strongest person from the other side. The Tribe Leader didn''t hold back as he fought with Grey and Void, but he started to show anxiety when he sensed the decline in the aura of the Barbarian Reynolds and Aries were fighting against. If that Barbarian dies, it will affect the battle. They have the advantage now, and due to the way their technique works, as long as one of the individuals who was shared power with dies, the strength of the others will start to decline, returning to their normal state. "Help me take them down." The Barbarian who was fighting Reynolds and Aries begged the Tribe Leader for help. Grey had not been able to observe the situation on the other battlefield, but seeing that Reynolds and Aries were on the verge of taking down their opponent, he was ecstatic. As long as Reynolds and Aries succeeded, then the outcome of the battle would be decided. He didn''t know if that guy''s death would affect the other Barbarians, but it would significantly reduce the pressure on his group, giving them the victory. The Tribe Leader flew in the direction of the Barbarian Reynolds and Aries were fighting, but there was no way Grey and Void would let him go there without stopping him. The duo appeared in front of the Tribe Leader and attacked with the space element simultaneously. The space element is a dangerous element when used in attacking, and the Tribe Leader was aware of this. He paused, not daring to take the attack head-on. A lightning spear struck the attack of the duo, but their combined attack swallowed the lightning spear. Even though the attack swallowed up the lightning spear, the size of the spatial attack reduced in size. The Tribe Leader was forced to retreat, not daring to let the attack touch him. If that attack hit him, he knew it would be dangerous. Reynolds and Aries saw what was happening on Grey''s end and quickened their attacks. They became more ferocious. It was clear the Tribe Leader didn''t want this Barbarian to die, and they wanted to ensure he was killed so the pressure on the group would be significantly reduced. Klaus and Alice were having it hard, Klaus was on the verge of going crazy from how hard it was to hit the Barbarian. Even with the help of his snowstorm which kept the Barbarian in a confined space, they still weren''t able to cause any harm to him. The Barbarian made sure it was impossible for him to get hit by an attack, after creating a large space with the help of his domain, he had complete awareness of anything that enters within that small space and is able to react accordingly. Klaus and Alice had tried multiple options, but none of them was able to hit the Barbarian. The reason for his anger was that he couldn''t keep the snowstorm domain active infinitely, which meant it would fade off very soon and the Barbarian would be able to see and attack them however it liked. Klaus wasn''t prepared for something like this, and neither was Alice. The previous times they''ve tried exchanging blows with the Barbarian, they were on edge due to his speed and his attack power. If he had just those two it would''ve been manageable, but having such an amazing defense coupled with his attack and speed, the Barbarian was one they didn''t want to face. On Grey''s end, the Tribe Leader was agitated and started to attack the duo, but they held him back no matter what. The Tribe Leader even tried to attack Reynolds, but Grey made sure to block the attack before it got close to Reynolds. Void attacked the Tribe Leader during this period, stopping him from any other plans he wanted to do. Frustration started to show on the face of the Tribe Leader. "Team up with Eskiel!" The Tribe Leader yelled and his aura dropped by a small margin. Grey and Void sensed it, even though it was almost unnoticeable, the duo had very sharp senses and were able to notice the difference. Grey turned to look in the direction of the Barbarian Reynolds and Aries were fighting and noticed his aura increased. "Don''t let him escape!" He said to Reynolds and Aries. "You don''t have to tell me." Reynolds charged after the Barbarian who was on the verge of escaping, stopping him from going into the snowstorm. Aries attacked with her fire element, and the aura of the Barbarian which just saw an increase started to decline after being struck by a lightning bolt. Reynolds aimed to kill, the Barbarian knew he couldn''t dodge the attack, so he went for the best thing, taking very minimal damage from it however way possible. The Barbarian roared in annoyance and tried to force them back, but his declining aura meant that there was no way he could get the better of the duo. Aries was just as ferocious as Reynolds as they attacked. Before long, the aura of the Barbarian dropped lower than how it was before the help of the Tribe Leader, and this time, he was losing an arm. "Chieftain! Help me!" The Barbarian yelled out. The Tribe Leader looked at the Barbarian and his eyes turned red from rage. His aura spread out and Grey was forced to retreat, taking Void with him. The Tribe Leader was in a state whereby the only way they could defeat him was by wearing him out. Recklessly attacking him in such a violent state was not something they wanted to risk. The Tribe Leader was in a state he might ignore taking any damages just to ensure he killed them, and they didn''t want to get in such a struggle with him. The Tribe Leader bolted straight toward the man, but Grey and Void gave chase. Chapter 1427 Escape Grey and Void attacked the Tribe Leader simultaneously, stopping him from making any advances. The Tribe Leader turned to block the attack, then using the impact of the attack to increase his speed. The speed of the Tribe Leader almost tripled and in no time, he was standing beside the Barbarian that was on the verge of being defeated by Reynolds and Aries. He attacked the duo, forcing them to retreat. Aries was slightly rocked by the Tribe Leader''s attack, while Reynolds acted quickly, dodging the dangerous attack the Tribe Leader unleashed on them. After getting hold of the Barbarian, the Tribe Leader transferred some energy to him before saying, "Leave this place, I''ll stop them." Grey and Void arrived and attacked, not giving the Barbarian nor the Tribe Leader any chance to escape from this place. The Tribe Leader blocked the attack with one arm while pushing the Barbarian away with his other hand. "Rey!" Grey yelled and signalled him for attack. Reynolds nodded and without hesitation, he attacked, but to the shock of everyone present, his attack wasn''t aimed at the Tribe Leader or the Barbarian, but it was aimed at Grey. "What are you doing?!" Aries screamed in surprise. Everything happened so fast and before her question left her mouth, Reynolds'' lightning spear struck Grey. But something happened, something neither Aries nor the Tribe Leader expected. The figure they saw there wasn''t that of Grey, but it looked quite identical to a Barbarian''s. "What''s happening?" The Tribe Leader and Aries had a shocked look. Then it rang in their heads, Grey could switch places with whoever he wished to, as long as the person isn''t able to resist the pull. They then turned their attention to where the Barbarian was previously standing, and a smiling Grey appeared before them. "You beast, I''ll end your lives." The Tribe Leader acted very fast, making sure the Barbarian wouldn''t be killed. The consequences of that Barbarian''s death were too high. He didn''t dare to make such a careless mistake. Before the Tribe Leader got to where the Barbarian was standing, Void, who was close by, attacked. The Barbarian was still in a state of shock as he didn''t know how he was brought there or when this lightning spear struck him. The Tribe Leader was fast, but so was Void''s attack. .com As soon as the Tribe Leader grabbed the Barbarian, Void''s attack struck. The Tribe Leader was able to draw the Barbarian away, but one of the Barbarian''s arms was cut off by Void''s attack. The Barbarian screamed in pain when he felt this attack. Reynolds'' attack was sudden which made him a little confused, Void''s attack however was very deadly. Even though he almost dodged it with the help of the Tribe Leader, he was still seriously injured by it. Grey came over and attacked. Since the Tribe Leader was bent on protecting this Barbarian''s life, then it was the opportunity they needed to take him down. He struck with a punch, cleanly hitting the back of the Tribe Leader. His attack wasn''t simple, the miasma he had stored in his body was released into the body of the Tribe Leader. The Tribe Leader found it difficult to dodge Grey''s attacks. Reynolds and Aries were attacking, trying to wrest the Barbarian from the Tribe Leader''s grasp. This distracted the Tribe Leader, giving Grey the opportunity he used. The Tribe Leader had blood slowly dripping by the side of his mouth, but he didn''t scream, he kept shut and turned to escape. He knew with four of them attacking at the same time, this battle was over. He could still handle Grey and Void, but with two people supporting the duo, they had the freedom to do whatever they wanted to do to him without him being much of a threat. The Tribe Leader knew when it was time to give up, and this was it. Grey didn''t care about anything else and gave chase. Reynolds followed behind Grey, while Aries went over to assist Klaus and Alice. "After so long! Fuck!" Klaus exclaimed and started fighting with renewed vigor. If Alice was just as powerful as Aries, they would''ve killed their opponent by now, but Alice wasn''t, which placed so much pressure on him. The Barbarian they were fighting saw the Tribe Leader escaping with his counterpart and also decided to escape. Unfortunately, there was no way Klaus was going to let him go away. This was the same person who had caused him so much anger, of course he would want to kill him! The Barbarian saw them give chase, but he didn''t care, what was important was getting out of this place. The fact that Grey could make the Tribe Leader run away meant that he was very strong. If Grey were to come back after failing to find the Tribe Leader, he would unload his anger on the Barbarian that is present, which was him. The Barbarian didn''t want to lose his life, at least not when the Tribe Leader also chose to escape. Klaus gave chase, laughing maniacally with pleasure. He was the one who was under pressure a few minutes ago, now that things had changed for his good, he wanted to enjoy it. "Do you think after bullying me I''ll let you leave, alive?" Klaus attacked with ice arrows as he gave chase. The Barbarian was an Earth Elementalist and wasn''t the fastest. Klaus was able to catch up to him while he was defending against one of Klaus'' attacks. Alice appeared and attacked with his fire and ice domain. Aries came and did the same. The Barbarian wasn''t able to keep up with all their attacks and chose to defend alone. He was an Earth Elementalist and had great defensive abilities. All he had to do was to settle down and he should be able to create an opportunity to escape. He wanted to trick Klaus into believing that he would leave this state soon, but now he didn''t have such luxury. Chapter 1428 Freedom The Barbarian was still holding on when he sensed his aura declining at a rapid pace. "Oh no." The Barbarian''s heart sank when this happened. This meant that one of the trio alive was dead. He didn''t think it was the Tribe Leader, but the other Barbarian who had been injured by Reynolds and Aries. Grey had the assistance of Void and Reynolds, there was no way the Tribe Leader would be able to escape with the Barbarian in tow. After Grey and his group killed off the Barbarian, the link between the trio shattered and the gathered energy that boosted their strengths leaked out. This was why the Tribe Leader didn''t want the Barbarian to die in the first place. Klaus and Aries sensed change in the aura of the Barbarian, so did Alice. The Barbarian was shockingly only in the Seventh stage of the Elemental Venerable Plane. The moment his aura reduced to this state, his defense wasn''t capable of holding its own against Alice''s attacks, much less Aries of Klaus. "Damn! This is no fun. I''ll leave him to you, Alice." Klaus gave up and stopped attacking. There was no point in him attacking, he would kill the Barbarian within a few attacks. He thought he would be able to beat the Barbarian while he was still in that strong state, but from the looks of it, there was no need to waste his energy. Alice didn''t mind Klaus no longer attacking, she struck out and the Barbarian''s previously powerful defensive wall wasn''t able to hold up against Alice''s attack, shattering after just one attack. The Barbarian was sent flying by the impact of the attack. Alice flew after him, but so did Klaus and Aries. "You never can tell if he''s pretending or not, but to be ready than to be too late." Klaus said when he saw Alice''s strange gaze. Klaus might not want to waste his energy on the Barbarian, but he also wouldn''t make a mistake like this. If the Barbarian is pretending that his aura had returned to this state, then Alice would be in danger if they went too far. Alice understood why he did this and decided to let it go. She focused on the Barbarian and within two minutes, she ended the life of the Barbarian. Some minutes after they were done, Grey and his group returned. It was evident they were also able to kill their opponent since the Tribe Leader''s corpse was with Grey. "What do you intend to do with it?" Reynolds asked as they were returning. "I''ll give it to that guy. You said he could make puppets that retain their original strength, correct?" Grey asked. "Yes, don''t tell me you''re going to make an army for him? This is the same as being a Necromancer, the only thing is that you''re not the one doing the evil." Reynolds said, giving Grey a weird look. "I''ll decide on what to do when I go back to him. Maybe having someone like that isn''t too bad." Grey said, he looked at Reynolds and asked, "Do you think doing that is evil?" "Necromancy is evil." Reynolds replied. "Do you know how I managed to remove the mark on my body?" Grey raised a brow. "With Gnomes?" Reynolds answered a little skeptical. "Actually, I extract their life force and use it to wipe off the mark. Was that an evil act too?" Grey asked. "It''s different." "In what ways?" Reynolds paused, not answering his question. Grey saw his silence and said, "As long as he didn''t steal the corpse, or kill someone innocent to get it, I''m fine. I used to have this mentality too when I first came in contact with Necromancers, but as time went on, I realized they just use it as a means to make ends meet" "It doesn''t matter, necromancy is shunned on." "Rightly so, but what if it''s our only chance at defeating the Gnomes?" Grey asked, "I did an in depth study of necromancy before I was able to figure out how to cut their links with their puppets. And I did even deeper research when I was searching for ways to remove that stupid mark." "Don''t write off things like these just because they don''t meet the moral standards. Sometimes we have to use unconventional methods to win." Grey added. He saw Klaus and the others and nudged Reynolds, "Don''t think about this too much.l Reynolds nodded and went over to Klaus and the others. "Was he hard to deal with?" "Alice was the one who dealt with him. He lost his boost after you guys left." "I see. The Tribe Leader also lost it when we killed that guy." Grey finally understood how the formation worked. It was quite strange that all three lives were linked. The second one of them was killed, they weren''t able to do anything and lost their improved strength. "Where did you send the cage?" Aries asked. Before the start of the battle, Grey teleported the humans in the cages away to keep them safe. Since they were done with the battle, it was time to release them. Grey teleported them to the place where the cages were. The humans were still there, incapable of using their elements. When they saw Grey and the others appear, they all begged them to free them. .com "We didn''t save you people, you only entered new management. Of course, we won''t eat you like those guys did, but we might do worse than whatever they had in store for you." Klaus said with an evil grin. When he saw the scared expression on the faces of the people, he laughed and said, "I''m just joking, you guys are free to go. The Barbarians are all dead, they won''t be able to harm you anymore." The people heaved a sigh of relief, all excited that they were alive and well. Grey and the others looked at Klaus, wondering why he enjoyed messing around with people. Chapter 1429 A Dangerous Life The group released the humans from the cages and inspected them at the behest of Aries, after ensuring their well-being, they let them leave, giving them directions back to their town. The people were grateful, but there was little they could offer to people of Grey and his friends'' level. The group weren''t too interested in getting anything from them anyway, so they left the place after this. "What now?" Klaus asked. "We should get the guy that''s hiding in the Phoenix Faction." Grey replied. "What about the Necromancers hideout?" Aries gave Grey a questioning look. "We''ll sort it out on our way out of here. We''ve spent too much time here." Grey answered her truthfully. He wanted them to continue their journey as soon as possible. He was the reason they''ve been doing all these missions. It would be bad if any of them were to get seriously injured while working on a mission for a Faction they have almost no affiliation with. "Oh, right, right." Aries nodded. She forgot the group were on a journey. To be honest, she had gotten used to Klaus, Reynolds, and Alice helping her out with these missions that she actually forgot she has been spending only a few days with them. Given the situations they''ve gone through, she felt like they''ve spent years together. These battles has been exhilarating, to a certain extent, she didn''t want this to end. This was the first time in her life she had lived on the edge, and it was a thrilling experience to say the least. Alice smiled when she saw Aries'' expression, she knew what it meant, she didn''t want them to leave. Actually, this is how she always feels whenever the group is going separate ways. There was no way she would be able to get this excitement if she traveled with others or even alone. Unlike most, Klaus and Grey were very daring, and as long as they had a chance of winning, they would jump into an army of thousands without looking back. This was the type of life she had grown with since leaving the Lunar Academy, and not having to be in such a scenario felt like hell. From the short time she spent with Aries, she could tell she was one who liked fighting just like her. However, there was no way for her to engage in such daring acts on her own, nor would she want to endanger the lives of her fellow Faction members for her personal pleasure. Klaus didn''t speak much, he turned to Grey, "So we''re going over to meet that guy?" Grey nodded, he knew Klaus was referring to the man. ''I don''t even know his name.'' Grey chuckled when he recalled he didn''t bother to ask of the man''s name, and the man was too intrigued with Grey that he didn''t even bother to tell him what his name was. The group took to the air and rushed in the direction of the town the man resided. ¡­. Some hours later. "Who would''ve thought this place was like this?" Klaus commented when he saw the busy streets of the town. The town was completely different from what they saw the first time they came here. This town, which was almost like a graveyard the last time they came was bustling with activity. "Yeah, you can see just how much harm one person can cause to a place." Grey looked into the town, his gaze resting on an unassuming cabin. "That''s where he''s located. I''ve told him of our presence, he will contact the person now. According to him, the person usually responds within a few hours." Grey explained, then said, "Let''s hope he comes fast." The others didn''t say anything and all disguised themselves, before slowly disappearing into the busy town. The group soon mixed with the crowd, all with a distinct appearance, different from what they looked like. The person coming is from the Phoenix Faction and should have the position of an Elder, at the very least. If said person appears, the person will most definitely recognize the faces of Grey and his friends, Aries included. Grey and his friends were pretty popular during the trial, so it was normal that he would recognize them. Aries is the golden youngster of the Faction, her status is equal to the Elders present in the Faction. Only those above the Late stages of the Sovereign Plane have a better ranking than her. The person will definitely recognize her once they arrive. Time went by and before long, it was dark. Even during the dark, the city was still so lively, a complete contrast to what it looked like the first time the group came here. The damaged parts of the town had been fixed and everyone of the townspeople knew of the extermination of the villainous evil man that lived in the town. Very few people knew how the man looked like, so it was quite safe for the man to stay in the town while hiding. Late in the night, when the town wasn''t as busy as it used to be, a vague shadow could be seen moving through the sky. The shadow didn''t seem complete, it was as if it was made of fog. This shadow went straight to the original place the man used to stay, when it noticed that the place had been destroyed, it paused mid-air and turned around. Just as it was about to leave, a figure appeared behind it. "You don''t have to be alarmed, those people were tricky, but I dealt with them." The man said before stepping into the light. When the shadow saw the man, it paused and a raspy voice came from within the cloaked shadow, "Who would dare to attack you?" "Some rogue bounty hunters who felt they could take me down." The man replied before ushering the shadow to his new place. The shadow paused when he saw the building, he looked at the man suspiciously but followed behind him. If the man was captured, he would''ve been killed by now. "What''s the urgent news, why did you call me out?" Chapter 1430 I Know That Cat! "The bounty hunters said they were sent here by Aries, your Faction Leader''s student." The man said, he looked at the shadow and said, "Do you by any chance know how she got wind of my strength? All my puppets are gone." The shadow was shocked when he heard this, he knew Aries was not in the Faction, but he didn''t know where she went. Grey''s presence in the Faction had taken most of his time. All he heard was that Aries left with Grey''s friends. ''Could she have sent his friends here?'' The shadow thought. "Aries has been out of the Faction for some time now, I don''t know her whereabouts. But no one has accepted that mission which means it''s still active." The shadow didn''t voice out his concerns, only telling the man what he knew. "What about the people, did you kill them?" The shadow asked. "No. I handled the matter, but I couldn''t kill them. They''re too powerful. But they''re seriously injured, I don''t think they will be coming out anytime soon." The man replied. "A shame." The shadow shook its head before looking at the man, "What about my goods, are they safe?" "I don''t use your puppets, they''re still in the safe." The man snorted. The shadow heaved a sigh of relief. He had expended a lot of energy to get those people to come out and be killed by this man. They usually share the people in half. He had sent a good amount of people over to the man and the man had killed all of them. He picked his puppets and preserved the others for the shadow. The shadow hadn''t been able to take some of the recent batches, so he had quite a good number of people present. "So what now?" The shadow asked. "I need to know if she will still come after me or not. Those people are alive and know that they would need a little more help and they can kill me. If they send a Pseudo-Sovereign my way, I''m doomed." The man said. "Why didn''t you leave this place then?" The shadow asked. "The best hiding place is in plain sight. Who would believe that instead of me leaving this place after it was compromised, I still chose to stay here?" The man shrugged. The shadow thought about it and nodded. Indeed, everyone would think the man was no longer present here, especially given how boisterous the town has been recently, it was easy to assume that the man had been gotten rid of. "I''ll take my goods and then head back to make inquiries about Aries'' whereabouts." The shadow said, he paused and said, "If the people are the ones who left the Faction with her, then they are trouble. There''s an even stronger one still in the Faction." The eyes of the man widened, "I better leave then. I need to find a better hiding place. Do well to make sure I''m able to travel through without any hitch." The shadow nodded and turned around, he seemed to have seen something and paused, "Since when did you have a cat?" "A cat?" The man asked with a questioning look. "There''s a small cat there. It''s not yours?" The shadow pointed at the small black cat that was resting by the side. "It must be a random cat from one of the townspeople. There''s no need to worry about it." The man waved it off. ¡­. In the town. Grey and the others saw the shadow when it was moving around. Klaus was about to step out when Grey stopped him. "That''s not his real body." "What do you mean it''s not his real body?" Klaus was taken aback. "He''s very cautious. He''s afraid of being captured. Luckily, there''s no way he will be able to control that thing without being close." Grey said, he called for Void and Void appeared on his shoulder, "Head over and tell him to stall this guy. I''ll use him to track the original body." Void appeared lazily on his shoulder, looked around and disappeared. "Alright, let''s get to work." Grey sat down and closed his eyes, he quickly picked out the link from the shadow and started to track it. He was very careful so as not to alert the original body of the shadow. The others watched Grey, waiting for him to move. Grey opened his eyes after three minutes or so, "There are three tracks." The facial expressions of everyone changed. "What does this mean?" Alice asked. "Either there are three people, or this guy purposely spread out the link just to be safe." Grey explained. "I''ll give you guys the location to the other two links, I''ll go after the last one." Grey took their location plaques from them and after a few seconds, they saw another glowing light dot. "You''re such a freak." Klaus was left speechless when he saw how quickly Grey dealt with this situation. The fact that he was able to easily place the exact location on the tracking device so easily was astounding. Aries looked at the items in the hands of the people present, shocked. "Alright, let''s go, we don''t have all day." Grey was the first to leave, heading in another direction. The others split into groups of two just like when they went to fight Barbarians and rushed toward the light dot. The group left the town, all heading toward different places outside the town. ¡­. The shadow looked at Void, not moving his eyes away from him. "I know this cat." The shadow murmured. "What?" The man didn''t hear the shadow''s words and questioned. "I know this cat. It belongs to Grey Dawson." The shadow panicked. "This cat belongs to Grey Dawson?" The man pointed at Void, "You mean the Grey Dawson the Gnomes want dead?" "Yes. They''re close, we need to leave, now!" The shadow hurried. "What about me, you''re leaving me here to die?" "Think of your own way to survive, I can''t die because of you." Chapter 1431 Three Links In the forest outside the town. Grey followed the trail deep into the forest. Before leaving, he didn''t want any complications with locating the real body, so he sent Void to the man''s house to make sure he delayed them, giving him the time he needed to track the main body. As he entered the forest, he followed the trail all the way to a large tree that had a hole in it. Just as he was about to reach the tree, he saw a figure rushing out of the tree hurriedly. The figure wore a cloak as he left the tree in a haste. Grey didn''t waste any time and disappeared, appearing in front of the man. "What''s the rush? I just got here and you''re leaving already?" Grey''s voice stopped the man, as well as his towering figure that was standing before the man. The man wasn''t the largest, around five foot four, but Grey was five foot eleven and his broad shoulders made him look exceptionally big when compared to the lanky body of the man. Even the cloak couldn''t hide the real body of the man. "Boy, who are you? And what do you mean by that?" The man asked with a calm voice. "Hmm, strange. You don''t know me and why I am here?" Grey raised a brow. He knew the man was pretending since he already tracked the link to him. This was definitely the person he was searching for. "Oh, there are two more of you?" Grey asked with a surprised expression before the man could answer his first question. "Two more of me? What are you even saying, kid?" The man asked, dumbfounded by Grey''s questions. "Stop pretending, I know what you are, I''m just curious as to how you were able to link up with three others to create that shadow. I don''t think he has ever seen your face, has he?" Grey asked. "What the hell are you even talking about kid?" The cloaked man asked, he looked at Grey and said, "Look, if you have nothing good to say, then I have to leave. There are things I need to attend to, and you''re basically spouting nonsense, wasting my time in the process. Please, get out of my way." "You''re really good at acting." Grey couldn''t help but praise the man''s acting. The fact that the man was acting like he doesn''t even know what Grey was talking about was amusing to Grey. The man looked at Grey and said, "Kid, if this is all you have to say, then I''m sorry, I do not have the luxury of entertaining you. There are important businesses I have to attend and you''re blocking my path." Grey sighed, he took a step and grabbed the man on his neck, raising him into the air, "I''ll ask you some questions, and you will give me the answers I need." The man was only in the Ninth stage of the Elemental Venerable Plane, against someone like Grey who was already close to the Peak of the Venerable Plane with his physical body and was already at the Peak with his cultivation level, there was no way the man could defend against him. Grey''s arm was wrapped around the neck of the man, but the man didn''t flinch, he said coldly, "Kid, I know you''re strong, but this is bullying. I''ll let you know that I''m an Elder from my Faction, and your actions will meet deadly repercussions if you don''t let me go." "An Elder, even more reason for me to kill you. You''re working with a Necromancer, killing all those young talents from your Faction just to grow stronger. Did you think you wouldn''t be caught in the end?" Grey tightened his grip and the man started to find it hard to breathe, his face was going red from it. "I do not know what you''re talking about, your accusations are preposterous!" The man flared up. "Don''t worry, when I''m done with you, you''ll understand what I''m getting at." Grey loosened his grip on the man''s throat and just as he was about to send elemental essence into the man''s body, incapacitating him, the man reacted quickly, squashing a talisman that appeared on his hand, disappearing into the void. "Haha, against a Space Elementalist, you think you can escape?" Grey laughed and tore right into the void, closely following behind the man''s trail. ¡­. On another path of the forest. Klaus and Alice found the other link at the same time as Grey, this one hadn''t tried escaping, rather, the person was still seated in the tree, thinking. When Klaus and Alice arrived, Klaus wasn''t like Grey who wanted to have a civil conversation with the person first, he straight up froze the tree, trapping the figure inside. Alice was stunned by Klaus'' method. He didn''t ask any questions and straight up kept the figure locked up inside the tree. There was no way the figure could get out of that place, unless said person was at least at the Peak of the Venerable Plane. "What?" Klaus looked at Alice when he saw her reaction. "Nothing." Alice replied with a chuckle. Klaus nodded and turned to look in another direction, the direction Reynolds and Aries went. ¡­. Reynolds and Aries caught up with their link when the figure was about to escape, seeing Reynolds and Aries, the figure froze, before walking off in a calm manner. All three figures were covered in cloaks and without them speaking, there was no way they could tell what their identities were. "Stop!" Aries said with a cold voice. The figure stopped and turned to look at Aries, "How can I help you, little girl?" It was the voice of a lady, but it was unlike anything Aries had ever heard. "What are you doing here?" Aries asked. "What are You doing here?" The lady asked, emphasizing on the ''you''. "I asked the question first, and if you want to leave this place, you must answer the question." Aries said. Chapter 1432 I Dont Need Any Evidence The atmosphere became tense between the trio. The lady didn''t immediately reply to Aries'' question, nor did she react to what Aries said, she stood on the same spot and looked into the sky. "Why do you want to know what business I have here?" The lady asked. Aries looked at the lady and said, "Cause you''re linked to something I want to get to the bottom of." "Oh, I''m connected to what brought you into the woods at such an hour? I wonder what that might be." The lady chuckled, but didn''t seem tense. "It involves you working with a Necromancer." Aries didn''t hide what brought her there. "Do you even know me to lay such accusations on me?" The lady asked with an amused tone. "I don''t care who you are, but since you''re involved with Necromancers, you deserve nothing but death." Aries said. "What''s with all this, just incapacitate her and get it over with." Reynolds said when he saw the time they were wasting with their long conversation. The lady looked at Reynolds, "I like you, you''re quick to act, unlike some people who want to ask questions." "But, I do not know what you''re talking about, neither have I ever worked with a Necromancer. So you have the wrong person. If you''ll allow me, I have some things to attend to and can''t stay and chat." The lady turned and was about to leave, but Reynolds appeared before her and said, "You''re not going anywhere, not under my watch." The lady chuckled and scoffed, "What are you going to do to me, boy?" Reynolds threw a hand forward, but before he could grab the woman, she vanished with a ''poof''. "She''s close! This is why you don''t talk to the evil people." Reynolds moved out, luckily, Grey''s way of tracking the lady was still there and he could spot which direction she headed. Aries didn''t speak and followed the lightning covered Reynolds as he went after the lady. Of all three people found, only Klaus'' opponent didn''t have the time to escape simply because unlike the others, he didn''t have a conversation with them. He directly froze the place the person is located, trapping the person inside. Only someone on the level of Grey and Void could use the space element to escape from Klaus'' ice cage. Anyone else below that level will have to forcefully break the ice before escaping. ¡­. On another part of the woods, deeper this time. A fissure tore in the air and a figure came out of it. It was none other than the man Grey went after. "That kid, to think they''re unto us. I told them the emergency message was suspicious. Damn it. We''ve been exposed. I need to leave the Faction." The man muttered and he brought out another talisman, just as he was about to use it, he noticed that another figure grabbed his hand, it was so fast that before he could react, the figure was firmly holding onto the talisman. "You think you can escape from me using a spatial talisman? I''m a Space Elementalist, also very adept with it." Grey smirked. The man was surprised at how quickly Grey caught up to him. He knew Grey was a Space Elementalist, he had seen Grey during the trial and also when he was challenged, but he never thought he would be this fast with his space element. "Kid, I don''t want any trouble with you, why are you bothering an old person like me?" The man asked. Grey had assaulted him, now he chased him here too, he was worried. "Stop with the act, I''m not going to give you that opportunity again. Your cultivation will be sealed by me and I''ll take you back to your precious Faction." Grey was said, he paused and said, "Or better still, why don''t I just kill you and end all this. It''ll be more efficient. There''s no point in taking you back to the Faction since you''ll be killed too." The man froze when he heard Grey''s statement, "What do you mean by kill me? Did I do anything wrong? Do you have any evidence that I committed an offense worth me getting killed over?" "I don''t need evidence to kill you. I''m stronger than you, that''s all I need." Grey''s reply was deemed arrogant in the eyes of the man. "Arrogance will be the end of kids like you. You might be strong, but you will never live long enough to see yourself succeed." The man said coldly. "Well, you''ll be dead before then. So I don''t think you need to worry about me being alive or dead." Grey''s arm had a fireball on it as he was prepared to strike. "You''ll regret this decision, boy." The man''s voice changed, before deeper than what it used to be. His little figure expanded and his aura spiked to the Peak of the Venerable Plane. "Since you want to die, I''ll entertain you." The man said, and he struck first, using a fire elemental attack. Grey blocked the attack before countering. The man used the darkness element to block Grey''s attack, comfortably blocking it. "You''re mine." The man said and attacked once again. Grey was calm and composed, taking each of the man''s attacks while making sure to block off all paths of escape. Two inscriptions lit up the sky as he used them to attack. The man was forced to take attacks from three different angles which was a little difficult, but being a veteran combatant, he was able to keep up with Grey''s attack method, biding his time, waiting for the opportunity to strike Grey down. But as time went on, he realized the opportunity he was waiting for might not come, and Grey was slowly penetrating through his defense. The man gritted his teeth, "Kid, what''s your problem with me?" "You''re a necromancer, and I don''t like you." Grey replied. "Fine, then deal with them." The man was tired and brought out his puppets. Only after he brought them out did he realize he made the biggest mistake of his life. Chapter 1433 Under Control Grey quickly found the link connecting the man to the puppets, unlike the man he took under him, this guy''s necromancy was normal and he was able to cut the link between them and the puppets. The second he cut off the link, the man wasn''t able to move and Grey walked over to him, placed his palm on the man''s stomach, then his facial expression changed drastically. "This is not the main body." He frowned and sealed the energy stored inside the body before him. This body that he thought was real, isn''t actually the main body he was searching for. ''It must be one of the other two.'' Grey thought, but then he thought about the puppets this guy was able to control and how when he cut off the link the guy froze. "He''s alive, but not alive." A realization came to Grey. This was beyond what he thought was possible. This man''s brain had been corrupted by someone else, and the culprit was the one who was pulling all the strings. ''This is bigger than what we even thought. A Necromancer able to use people who are still alive. This is bad, this is really bad.'' Grey was worried, if such a Necromancer was set on the loose, then it was the end of the world as they know. Imagine what this person will be capable of doing? The fact that they could control whoever they wanted at will and others will not notice the difference between a normal person and a puppet was shocking. There was an energy core in the body of the man, but it wasn''t the same as the normal cores Elementalists had. This was the only way Grey was able to sense the abnormalities. He sealed the energy core in the body of the man. Before turning the man into an ice statue. The man was still alive, but unable to make any moves whatsoever. Grey contacted Void, ''Track that shadow down. It''s very suspicious.'' ¡­. In the town. The shadow had already disappeared from the man''s place, but it hadn''t left the town, rather, it hid in one of the abandoned houses. Void had noticed the abnormality about it and went after it while staying hidden. When he heard Grey''s words, he told him he was already following the shadow. In the abandoned building, the shadow turned into a middle-aged man. "How did they know? This is bad, I need to escape." The man muttered softly to himself. He looked around and said in a soft voice, "After getting the goods. I worked so hard for them." "Yes, yes, most definitely." The shadow spoke once again, but the voice was deeper. Void watched the shadow talk to itself, yet it felt like it was speaking to someone else. Void didn''t do anything, only watching from the side. ¡­. In the woods outside the town. Grey appeared beside Klaus and Alice. "You acted quickly." He commented when he saw that the man was sealed in ice. "Were you expecting a battle? I didn''t even try to talk to whoever is there, I just froze them. There''s no point going through the hassle when all I need is to apprehend the person." Klaus shrugged. Grey nodded and went close to the ice cage, he motioned for Klaus to reduce it so he could get close to the figure. Klaus'' ice cage had the ability to counter, just like the ice when they found Alice''s seelie, and he wasn''t in the mood to get attacked by ice. Klaus obliged and did as told. Grey followed the same process as when he caught the man on his end, and just like what he thought, this person also wasn''t the main body. This person was also being controlled by someone else. Grey walked over to Klaus and Alice and told them about his new findings. "What?!" Both Klaus and Alice couldn''t believe their ears. If someone like this existed, then it was trouble for the entire Continent. There is no telling where that person has infiltrated and what power the person currently possesses. "We need to make sure the one Rey is following isn''t the main body. Also, I have a suspicion about the shadow we saw earlier." Grey answered. "But you said it wasn''t the main body." Alice said. "An illusion it made me believe." Grey didn''t deny he was the one who sent them on the hunt for these people after saying the shadow was being controlled by someone else. Initially, they felt the person used three links to ensure that if whoever notices this tries to track him down, it would be very difficult. The fact that there were actually three people was amazing to achieve. Now that these three people are not even the ones behind this, the situation has gotten even more complicated. Klaus and Alice didn''t have a problem with getting to the person Reynolds and Aries went after. With Grey present, it only took a minute or so before they caught up with them. When they arrived, the lady was fighting against both Reynolds and Aries, with the help of her puppets. The moment Grey arrived, he didn''t even speak and directly cut off the lady''s link to the puppets, before sealing her energy core. This was the first time Aries was seeing someone handle Necromancers in such an easy way and she was bamboozled by it. "These guys aren''t the problem, the problem is someone probably stronger than what we thought." Grey explained the situation to them, and Aries couldn''t believe what she was hearing. How could someone be able to control other people that are still alive? It was impossible! The only way they felt a living person could be controlled was forcibly, and this is what they felt this situation was. "As much as I don''t want to believe this myself, it''s the truth and whoever is behind this is still out there, with the knowledge that these three have been captured." Grey woke them to the reality of their situation. Chapter 1434 Of No Help "What do we do now?" Aries asked, knowing the severity of the situation. "Take a look at them, if you recognize them from your Faction." Grey removed the cloak of each of the trio. When Aries saw their faces, a gasp of shock left her mouth. "I know them. They are from one of the average Families connected to the Phoenix Faction. They''ve been members of the Phoenix Faction for hundreds of years and each generation has Elders in the Faction." Aries answered. "Then we know this might have something to do with that Family." Grey said, he paused and asked, "Is there anyone else within the same generation as these guys?" Aries thought for a while before answering, "Yes, there''s a man. He''s different from the rest of them, always alone. He rarely has dealings with our Faction. There were rumors that he''s unstable, mentally, but all the times he has come into crowded places, he always acts normal which debunked the rumors." "There''s a good chance he''s the one behind this. Let''s all hope he is the one. If not, I won''t be able to assist with it since it will become a matter of your Faction." Grey said after some moments of silence, there was only so much he could do. Being able to find out something like this was already exceptional, there''s nothing else he needed to bother himself with. This was a serious matter and if not handled properly, it might cause the destruction of the Aurora Continent. A Necromancer with such an ability should not be allowed to have any form of contact with Gnomes, if not, humans would be finished. This is something everyone present is aware of and wouldn''t want to happen. However, if the opponent is already at the Sovereign Plane, there is nothing Grey can do. Fighting such an opponent in his current state is nothing more than a suicide attempt. "He''s on the same level as these guys. But I feel he''s stronger than them." Aries replied, she too was deeply worried. Just how many people from her Faction were under control of this person. "I know where he is, let''s head back to the town." The group went back to the town. It didn''t take more than a minute or two before they got back to the town. It was just as peaceful as it was when they left. They didn''t cause any commotion, so there was nothing that alarmed the townspeople. Grey followed Void''s directions and soon arrived at where the shadow was said to be hiding. Void appeared on Grey''s shoulder, "It''s there." Grey nodded to Void''s words and walked into the building. He didn''t hide his aura, nor did he hide the three people he had captured. When the shadow saw Grey walk into the building with those three floating behind him, the shadow was surprised. "I always knew you were a threat that should''ve been dealt with." The man said. "Don''t flatter me." Grey said with a smile, before asking, "How were you able to achieve something so incredible?" Grey couldn''t deny the fact that although it was insidious to control people, it was nevertheless incredible. Being able to make others do your will without killing them and keeping them at their complete strength was an amazing thing to achieve. "You want to learn it? I can teach you if you want." The man replied. "I want to understand something, are you the real person or are you still under control by someone else?" Grey asked. Another voice replied, "What does that have to do with you? You little cunt!" "Well, that settles that. You''re under control I see." Grey came to the conclusion of the man being under control. "Haha, you think I''m under control? But I''m not, this is me." The voice said, and then the man''s voice reverted back to the way it previously was, "And this is also me." Grey was stunned when he heard the two voices saying this is me, for some reason, as impossible as it may seem, he believed the voices. It was almost like the voices were two separate people stuck in one body. "I think we need to have a long conversation, let''s get out of here, shall we?" Grey asked. The man looked at Grey and then at the people behind him, "Bring those friends of yours, I don''t mind turning them into something really nice. They might be of use for your practice." Grey laughed, "Don''t worry, I''m a fast learner, I won''t need them. Besides, I have you." The man laughed and his figure disappeared into a smoke. Grey could sense where he went and disappeared, going after him. Before he left, he said to the others, "Don''t worry about me. Make sure these guys don''t die. I''ll see what I can do." When Grey''s voice sounded outside, Klaus was the first to rush into the place. "Fuck it! I told you guys he never thinks before acting. He''s too confident in his abilities and it will put him in a lot of trouble someday." Klaus was annoyed at the fact that they were left behind by Grey. "You know he always heads into dangerous situations alone to ensure our safety." Alice tried to defend Grey leaving them behind. "Who is going to ensure his safety?" Klaus asked, annoyed. "Don''t forget Void is with him. Even though he acts lazily, he''s still a very strong companion to have." Alice replied. "I hate that he always does this. Every single time. It was the same when we were in the trial land and that Dragon woke up." Klaus said. "We''re not as strong as him, there''s no point beating ourselves over it. Become stronger and he''ll take you with him." Reynolds finally spoke up. Klaus snorted coldly, "Not everyone is as freakish as he is. The only way I can be stronger is if I''m a Plane above him. Do you think if you''re only two stages above him you can beat him?" Reynolds gave a wry smile. As much as they want to help Grey, he truly is too freakish. Chapter 1435 Dont Underestimate Me **A.N: Reload the last four chapters, they''ve been fixed!** Outside the town. Grey and the man stood opposite each other, staring at each other. "What do you want?" The man asked Grey. "You''re a dangerous person, but we can work together." Grey replied. "You want to work with me?" The man asked. "You have such a great ability, it''ll be a shame not to use it to our advantage, don''t you think?" Grey asked. "You managed to coerce that guy into joining you too, didn''t you?" The man asked. "He''s of use, I couldn''t end his life when he can be of use." Grey replied, "The same can be said of you. You too are of use and shouldn''t be killed unless there''s no other choice." "You''re very political for a young boy." The man said. "When you have an enemy like the Gnomes, you will want to use anything to your advantage. In this case, I stumbled upon someone like you, of course there''s no way I will want to kill you if you''re of use to me." Grey didn''t deny the man''s words. As he grew, he understood not all enemies should be killed. Of course, making enemies into allies was a dangerous risk, one that could even cause his death, but it was also rewarding if well executed. He knew the benefits when his father sent him to that meeting to cause havoc, he not only disobeyed his father, but he made a decision on behalf of the Dawson Family which gave them some moments of peace and also allies which were greatly needed. As he grew, he understood not all enemies should be killed. Of course, making enemies into allies was a dangerous risk, one that could even cause his death, but it was also rewarding if well executed. He knew the benefits when his father sent him to that meeting to cause havoc, he not only disobeyed his father, but he made a decision on behalf of the Dawson Family which gave them some moments of peace and also allies which were greatly needed. As strong as the Dawson Family and Lucas Dawson, they were only one Family. If over five Families were to gang up on them, they would be in danger, and would most likely meet their end under the hands of these people. The best thing to do was to divide the strength of the enemies and draw some people over to their side. With these people, they will be able to fight against their enemies. The man looked at the Grey, "You''re wise, but you''re a fool to believe that I''ll work with you." "You''re Grey Dawson, a figure wanted by the Gnomes. Someone with an even greater potential than the freakish Lucas Dawson, who happens to be your father." The man laughed, he added, "I''ll make good use of your body after beating you." "Do you think I''ll come here if I don''t have the confidence in being able to convince you?" Grey asked the man. "I don''t care, all I need is you. Once I have you, I''ll finally get to the Sovereign Plane and then the world shall tremble at the mention of my name." The man said. A voice came soon after and added, "At the mention of our name." The man reverted back to the original voice and said, "Yes, our name. Our name shall shake the continent." "I want to get something straight, you believe you''re two?" Grey raised a brow, thinking the man had gone crazy. "We are two people in a single body." The man replied. "We were supposed to be born as twins, but our mother was attacked by a necromancer who went as far as experimenting on her." The man explained, and the voice came back, "Our father was able to track our mother and save us in the nick of time, but the damage had already been done, irreversible." "Oh, that''s an odd story." Grey placed his hand on his chin, shocked by the story, he looked at the man and asked, "Is that what made you a necromancer?" "I''m in no mood to speak about my past. I want to end your life and make you my puppet. If we can get to the Peak of the Sovereign Plane and get to become Half Gods, we will be able to finally break this evil thing done to us." The man replied. "Oh, there''s a way to separate you two?" Grey asked. "Yes, and we will succeed with your help. Well, not really your help, but you understand what we mean." The man said. Grey nodded, "I understand what you mean, but that''s not going to happen." Grey looked at the man and said, "However, this is what is going to happen. I''ll help you guys as a reward for assisting me. Mind you, I''m very generous to those working for me." "Why would I need your generosity when I can take whatever you can offer for myself?" The man asked. Grey shrugged and didn''t say anything else, preparing for a fight. There was no way he would be able to get the man to work for him without the man being subdued. At the moment, he had a plan, and it involved going back to the secret realm where he could easily find Gnomes he could place under the control of this man. The man didn''t want to cooperate, but he was sure the man would cooperate in the end. The man prepared to fight, and just as he was about to bring out his puppets, the realization hit him, he couldn''t use his puppet against Grey. He saw what happened with his siblings, doing that was just a death wish. He gritted his teeth and charged at Grey. He was at the Peak of the Venerable Plane, there was no way he couldn''t fight against Grey who was also at the Peak of the Venerable Plane. He knew Grey was stronger than most young geniuses, but he didn''t believe someone as powerful as he is will lose to Grey. "Haha, you''ve already seen you can''t win, haven''t you?" Grey laughed when he saw the man running desperately in his direction. He saw how the man''s confident facial expression turned to one of desperation. "Don''t waste your time on this and just give up." Grey said. The man didn''t listen to his words as he attacked him. Grey blocked the attack, but was forced to take a step back. The man was stronger than he imagined. "Don''t underestimate me!" Chapter 1436 Unsealed? The man attacked Grey after forcing him back with the first attack. Grey was taken aback with the strength the man was portraying. This wasn''t the strength someone at the Peak of the Venerable Plane should possess. Grey blocked the attack with more force this time and countered, but to his surprise, the man was covered in both lightning and wind and reacted quickly, dodging his attack. The man already had the darkness element, and when he attacked, he used the fire element, now, he is using two more elements which indicated that he had four elements. "You have four elements?" Grey was surprised. "What, you''re the only one allowed to have four elements?" The man asked. Grey shook his head, "I''m just surprised you have four. And why are you so strong?" "You''ll find you when you''re defeated." The man attacked with his lightning element, striking Grey with a lightning arrow. Grey was equally as fast as the man, if not even faster. There was no way the man''s attack was going to hit him. He dodged and appeared close to the man, about to attack. The man, seemingly prepared for this, attacked the second Grey''s figure appeared. Grey blocked the attack, but he felt his figure forced back by the impact of the attack. Grey didn''t stay back and attacked, but the man dodged the attack, before turning to run. Grey went after him, but the man was very slippery, escaping from Grey''s whenever he got close to him. The man was a genius when it came to escaping from someone stronger than himself, not just that, but while running, he used the puppets in the Early stages of the Venerable Plane as a means of distraction, exploding them as he left them on the path while he ran away. Grey found it very frustrating and made use of his water domain. A snowstorm started and the man was caught in the middle of it. The man used his lightning domain, making the snowstorm light up with a beautiful color. Grey wasn''t interested in the man''s lightning domain, he closed up to the man and made use of his earth domain. The sudden change in gravity threw the man off his feet, before he could regain his footing, Grey was already standing in front of him, attacking viciously. The man blocked the attack, but he was sent flying by the aftereffect of the attack. This attack wasn''t a regular one, but it was a fusion orb of three elements. Grey didn''t want to kill the man, so he naturally wouldn''t use an attack that might take the life of the man. The man slammed into the ground heavily, before rushing out from the ground like a flash of lightning. Grey, covered in red lightning, caught up to the man and attacked once again. This time, he used his space element to drag the man towards him and he struck him with a bolt of lightning. The man was once again sent flying by Grey. He spat out a mouthful of blood, but didn''t give up, he knew he would be able to keep up with Grey, all he needed was an opportunity to strike. As the battle went on, he started to realize the opportunity he was waiting for might never come. Grey was a calculative fighter, not giving his opponent any opportunity to take advantage of. He was someone who used to fighting in this position and knew just what the man was waiting for, there was no way he would give the man such an opportunity. The man was starting to lose up, and then Grey''s inscriptions lit up the sky, giving Grey the chance to attack from three different angles. And just like the man Grey fought with in the start, this man couldn''t keep up and slowly started to get injured by Grey. His movements started to slow down and Grey was able to apprehend him. Grey didn''t delay and rushed over, sealing the man''s cultivation. Grey heaved a sigh of relief, and said, "You know, this would''ve been over if you had just let me seal you from the start." "You think I''ll let myself be taken without a fight?" The man asked. Grey shook his head, "What''s the outcome of your fight? Getting beat up and still getting caught." The man snorted coldly, "Do you think this is over?" Grey''s eyes suddenly widened when he sensed energy in the body of the man. "What''s happening?" A great sense of crisis came to him and without hesitation, he vanished from the spot. A large explosion rang out on the place Grey was standing on. Under the ground, multiple puppets could be seen planted in the ground. The man turned them into mines waiting to explode. He baited Grey into coming close before detonating them. In the sky. Grey looked at the explosion in shock. What he couldn''t understand was how the man was able to use his essence. He sealed the man''s essence and he shouldn''t be able to do anything, yet he was still able to achieve this. "It should be impossible." He closed his eyes and sensed the direction the man ran to. He marked the man when fighting with him in case an accident like this happened, who would''ve thought that he would need to track the man in the end? Without wasting time, he went after the man. The man had run deep into the woods, frightened at the thought of almost being captured by someone. He was still trying to do something when he heard a voice behind him. "You think you can run away from me?" "What are you?" The man almost fainted when he heard Grey''s voice. "How did you escape?" Grey asked. "Why will I tell you my secret?" "Even if you refuse to tell me, I''ll know either way." Grey wasn''t pressured, he walked closer to the man and attacked. The man was only able to defend with his fire and darkness element, before being sent flying. "Odd." Chapter 1437 Someone Must Take The Fall "Stop! Stop! I surrender!" The man screamed after receiving a heavy punch from Grey which crushed his left shoulder. Grey looked at the man, a little wary. He had tried sealing the man before and the man managed to escape from his sealing. He didn''t know how the man was able to still use his elements, but he noticed the man was able to only use his darkness and fire element. Even when he was getting beat up, he still didn''t use the lightning and wind element. This discovery startled Grey since he already expected the man to have four elements. But seeing him use only two elements only showed that something was wrong. ''He only stopped using it after I sealed him. Could there be something else that''s wrong with him?'' Grey looked at him, not rushing to get close to the man. He could beat the man, whichever way he is, except he manages to break through to the Sovereign Plane, but that doesn''t look likely at the moment. So he wasn''t too worried about that. Nevertheless, he was worried about the sneak attack the man used the last time. The explosion of the puppet was very dangerous. From Grey''s senses, he felt it was a Peak Venerable puppet. The force behind such power was shocking, so Grey didn''t want to experience that threat again, and this time, the man might be able to actually hit him since he missed the first time due to Grey''s quick reflexes. Grey wanted to attack again, but the man begged, falling to his knees, "Please, I''m no longer in the mood to fight. You''re too strong." The man couldn''t use his puppets and was naturally at a disadvantage against someone as powerful as Grey. If the man was fighting against any other Peak Venerable, he would''ve been able to beat the breaks out of them with the help of his puppets, but Grey was different, he was unique, which made him special. Being the natural counter to Necromancers and Gnomes meant that they were useless against him. Any of them without good strength will be taken down with relative ease. Grey looked at the man in his defeated state, "I''ll only believe when you tell me how you broke free from my seal." The man dropped his head and said, "I told you we''re twins, correct?" Grey nodded. "You sealed my brother''s core, mine is hidden behind his. Only myself and now you are aware of this information." The man replied, his voice down. "Wait, you mean you have two cores?" Grey was shocked. The man nodded and said, "It didn''t come out early, and only came after we got to twenty. So we started working on it. Most people don''t know I have two more elements. The ones that do are already dead." "I see. That''s a great trump card to have. Who would''ve thought two people would be living in the same body simultaneously." Grey shook his head, he genuinely couldn''t believe what he was hearing. To be honest, although he felt he was listening to two different people when the voices changed, he still felt maybe it was all thanks to the man''s mental issues. He never thought they were actually two people with separate cores and elements. This was mind-blowing! "You guys are an anomaly. I don''t think there has ever been a case like this." Grey said, he walked closer to the man and asked with a calm expression, "Are you really willing to work for me?" "Mind you, I''ll need your complete obedience and also you should only do things in line with what I want." He added before the man could reply. "Yes, I don''t mind you implanting whatever in my body." The man replied. "Well, you''re too dangerous, so I''ll not only put something on both your cores, but your brain as well." Grey said, he thought of something and asked, "Do you have two brains too?" The man nodded. "Oh, I see." Grey said and his gaze moved down the man''s body, "And¡­?" The man nodded. "That must be tough. I have to tell Klaus. I wonder how he would react." Grey muttered to himself, but the man heard his words clearly. The man didn''t know who this Klaus was, but from Grey''s expression, he didn''t think he was a good person. Why else would Grey be interested in telling this person about his crotch? "Well, I''ll be sealing your cores now. However, we have a serious problem. Someone has to take the fall for you." Grey said, he looked at the man and asked, "Is there any hope for your siblings?" "Yes, as long as I remove the control, they will revert back to normal with no memory whatsoever of what happened during the time they were under control." The man replied. "Actually, they''ve been in control of themselves most of the time, I only take control of them when I need them." He added. "So that means they will lose memory of everything?" Grey frowned. He needed this man, but someone had to be punished in the Faction for these atrocities. Aries might not speak too much on the man who was staying at the town, but she wouldn''t want Grey to take this man under him after everything he has done. The man thought for a while before saying, "There''s someone else in the Faction, a Necromancer." "Oh, there''s another one in the Faction?" Grey''s interest was piqued. "Yes, he''s more dormant, barely comes out. He''s also an Elder at the Peak of the Venerable Plane." The man explained. Necromancers tend to target those people stuck at the Peak of the Venerable Plane and unable to break through to the Sovereign Plane. The reason for this is that these people were desperate and needed to break through at all costs, especially those close to the end of their lifespan. "Alright, he''ll do. You can return to being the person you used to be. Your siblings are under control and should be fine from facing any issues." Grey concluded. Chapter 1438 Wheres The Real Culprit? "How do we get him?" Grey asked the man. "I can bring him out, but it''ll take a while." The man replied. "Alright." Grey walked over to the man and for precautionary measures, placed the fusion orb alongside an array on both his brains and cores. He didn''t want to take any chances with someone as powerful as the man. This was a person who created a method of controlling someone without them even being able to remember what happened during that period of time, the chances that he can easily bypass just the fusion orb was really high. When Grey got close to the man, there were signs of hesitation from him, but he didn''t argue and let Grey do what he wanted. "If I take you back, Aries will want you dead. I''m going back to tell her the culprit will arrive shortly." Grey said. Grey didn''t think he would meet two special people in such a short time, and unlike the previous people that had followed him, he was the one who recruited these ones. To a certain extent, it could be said that he was slowly building an army of freaks to fight against the Gnomes and the rest of his enemies. Being able to control someone and know what is happening wherever they are is amazing. "Get him to come meet us somewhere close, I''ll be hiding around to take him out." Grey said and vanished, he didn''t take the man with him. ¡­. Back in the town. Klaus and the others were still in the building, the man they fought here was also there with them. "Why is he taking so long?" Reynolds asked. "He''ll be fine." The man said. Klaus glared at the man, it was clear he still didn''t have a good impression of the man. Even though the man helped them apprehend whoever was causing all this, it was not enough for him to forgive him for what he did to Reynolds. If he didn''t act quickly by freezing him, and had Grey delayed, then Reynolds might''ve been dead. He isn''t sure there''s anything the man could do that will make him forgive him for that. The man saw Klaus'' gaze but didn''t think much of it. He wasn''t too interested in Klaus and the others, if not for Grey, he wouldn''t even be here in the first place. They were about to speak when Grey suddenly appeared. "Where is he?" Aries asked hurriedly. "Don''t worry, the main culprit will be coming soon." Grey smiled before turning to Klaus, seeing his expression, he knew he was upset. "He''s not a difficult person to deal with. You know necromancers are useless against me." Grey chuckled and walked over to where the trio were kept. "What about these guys?" Reynolds pointed at them. "They don''t know what''s happening. According to what I know, they won''t even have a memory of what they''re doing while being controlled." Grey said. "So you''re saying?" Aries questioned. "They are good." Grey answered, "They have no memory of ever being necromancers, nor do they even recall coming here." "How can such a technique exist?" Even the man was stunned by this discovery. He didn''t think there was a way something like this would happen, only after hearing it from Grey''s mouth did he realize that it was true. "Difficult, but as you can see, it''s possible thanks to a crazy mind." Grey answered. "We should leave, I''ll take you to the person doing all this in a few hours." He turned to Aries and said. Klaus looked at Grey coldly, but didn''t say anything. He was still pissed that Grey left them behind while chasing a dangerous opponent. "You''re too confident in your ability, it''ll put you in trouble some day." He commented when he saw Grey''s nonchalance. "Don''t worry, I''m not dumb. I''ll make sure to be very careful whenever I do things like this next time." Grey said in a defeated manner, he knew arguing with Klaus was pointless, and besides, he knew Klaus was right too. Klaus didn''t say anything, he snorted and went outside with Alice and the others. Grey was left inside the place with the man. "Did you kill him?" The man asked. "No, let''s say he picked the same option as you did." Grey replied. "Why are you gathering us?" The man asked. "I''m in a situation I can''t handle alone, I just need some help." Grey replied with a shrug. Grey and the man spoke for a while before leaving and meeting up with his friends. This was the first time he was having a good conversation with the man and he learnt his name in the process, the man was called Lewis. ¡­. "Who''s the culprit?" Aries asked when Grey stepped out. "Another Elder from your Faction." Grey replied, seeing the skepticism in the face of Aries, he said, "This one knows what he''s doing." "And the person you went after?" Aries asked. "Not troublesome, he''s cool." Grey replied. "Meaning?" "He''s only a pawn. There''s no point killing him." "But he''s the one the link is connected to." "It''s not that serious. Don''t worry." "Why are you covering for him?" "He''s of use to me. He will not cause any more problems here." When Aries heard this, she didn''t speak anymore. "Make sure he doesn''t cause any problems here." "Don''t worry." Grey smiled, he recalled something and said, "Oh, and he''ll be leaving this place soon, so you don''t have to worry about him. There are others you should be concerned about though." Aries didn''t like the fact that Grey was seemingly recruiting these evil people, but she didn''t hassle over it since there was no point in doing that. They all left for the location Grey said the culprit would be and after some minutes of water, Klaus asked, "Where are they?" "Don''t be in a haste, they''ll be here soon." Just as Grey finished his statement, two figures appeared. "What''s the meaning of this?" Chapter 1439 Id Like To Try "Elder, I couldn''t succeed with the mission, someone beat me to it." One of the figures replied. The two figures soon came to light and they were the man Grey spoke with a while back and the other person was an old man with wrinkles. "What do you mean someone beat you to it?" The old man asked with a cold expression. "Lewis was defeated and all the goods were destroyed." The man replied. "Such incompetence." The old man scolded, "How did you come about this information?" "Lewis sent for me and told me about it. While I was here, my siblings were apprehended. Apparently, Lewis was under the person who defeated him and he tried to betray me." The man replied. The old man snorted coldly, he looked around. "Who is the person capable of defeating your siblings?" The old man asked. The man was about to reply when Grey and his group stepped out. "It''s us, we are the ones who defeated them. You''ll be joining them soon." Grey said. "What''s the meaning of this?" The old man turned to the man. "I''m sorry, but I had no choice." The man shrugged and retreated a few steps back, standing behind Grey''s group. "Elder Julian." Aries cried out. She was familiar with this Elder, he was one of the oldest Elders in the Faction and even though he is still in the Venerable Plane, he was highly respected. Only a handful of people could be said to be on the same level in terms of status with the old man in the Phoenix Faction. Aries would never believe such a respected Elder would be involved in something like this. "Little one." Elder Julian dropped his head, he knew Aries. He wasn''t familiar with Grey and his friends since he didn''t step out during the trial, he had more important things to do at that time. "You''re a Necromancer?" Aries asked, still in disbelief. Elder Julian wanted to deny this, but then again, thinking of the fact that they overheard his conversation, he didn''t speak. "For someone my age, and with my cultivation stage, I have no other choice. I would''ve been able to break through if I was given a few more years to complete my plan." Elder Julian said. "At the cost of the lives of our Faction members?" Aries asked, "These people have families that were waiting for them, but you ended their lives because of your selfish desires." "I''m sorry, I truly am, but there are certain things I had to do. I''m nearing the end of my lifespan, I need to increase my cultivation to ensure that I will have longer years ahead of me." Elder Julian said. "You''re already so old, what more do you want to experience that you haven''t?" Klaus asked seriously. Everyone looked at the man, awaiting his reply. "The birth of a God. I want to see a God being born from this continent." The Elder replied emotionally. "There was a vision about a God being born in the near future, I have to be part of the people to experience this." He added. "You killed them all because you wanted to see someone become a God after hearing or seeing that vision?" Aries asked. The man nodded. Aries'' voice shook as she asked, "What about the people you caused their death, don''t they deserve such a future as well?" "A little sacrifice for the greater good." "What about you seeing the birth of a God is a greater good?" Klaus was stunned at the man''s shamelessness. If the man had said he was the one who was going to become a God after killing all those people, it would''ve at least been reasonable, but the man is saying he killed those people just so he could stand a chance to see a God. What was the possibility he wouldn''t be killed in a fight before that time? "You¡­" Grey attacked, he wasn''t in the mood to listen to the man''s useless sermon. If he had been saying something worth listening to, he would''ve at least tried to listen to him, but in this case, there was no point doing so, the man was a psychopath who shouldn''t even be listened to. Klaus and Reynolds followed Grey''s lead, attacking the man as well. "He''s close to becoming a Pseudo¡­" Aries paused mid-sentence as the trio''s attacks were sent flying back to them. "He has the ability to repel attacks. He''s a Space Elementalist, but also has the fire and darkness element." She explained. "I see." Grey didn''t budge, destroying the attack coming his way. He also knew how to use his space element to repel attacks, but he wasn''t as proficient with it like the man. The man stood in the sky, untouched by any of the attacks. "Little one, you know me so well. You should also know that if I get serious, only those in the Sovereign Plane can stop me." The old man was calm, he looked at Grey, "I know you. You''re the one the Gnomes want dead." Grey didn''t know how the man was able to recognize him even though he hadn''t said his name, but he wasn''t worried. He would kill the man even if he doesn''t know. "Attack together, we can end him." Klaus said. "There''s a limit to the strength of attack he can repel." Grey was composed. He joined Klaus and instead of using his normal blue flames, he used his icy flame domain, enforcing Klaus'' attack in the process. The second the domain covered the man, a thin shield appeared around the man, it was clear that it was what he uses to repel attacks coming his way. When the domain hit the film, the domain couldn''t pass through and was forced to move around it. The man was covered in the domain, but he was perfectly safe in his space. "This is my space, do you think you will be able to break it?" The man asked. "I''d like to try." Reynolds prepared a lightning spear, focusing all his energy at the tip. The man scoffed as Reynolds sent the spear at him, but his expression soon turned serious. Chapter 1440 Tactful Old Man The pupils of the old man dilated when he saw the spear coming at him. This wasn''t a spear created by just Reynolds, as soon as the spear made contact with Grey''s icy flame domain, the tip was reinforced, further strengthened by it. Not just that, but Klaus'' initial attack also merged with the tip of the spear. The old man wanted to move, but he knew it was too late. If he tried to shuttle through space, he would be struck with this attack which is very dangerous for him. The spear hit the film, and just as everyone expected, it wasn''t repelled by the old man, rather, it broke into the old man''s space, heading straight for his head. Reynolds went for the kill. The man was already prepared and spat out a dark substance from his mouth which immediately covered the entirety of the spear. The spear started to wear down from the tip. The more the spear advanced, the more the black substance wore it down, dissolving it. In no time, the lightning spear was nowhere to be seen. "Impressive, but you will have to do better." The old man wiped the black substance at the side of his mouth. The old man just finished his statement when he felt a chill run down his spine, literally. On his right shoulder, a thin hole could be seen and it was starting to not only freeze, but the chill was spreading across the man''s body, in an attempt to turn him into an ice sculpture. Reynolds'' attack was just a distraction, the main attack was Klaus'' ice needle he had been preparing even before they came out. Klaus could prepare these needles and store them, but they are not as effective when stored, so he didn''t like doing that. This ice needle is one of the strongest he has created so far, and he could tell that even if it doesn''t stop this old man, it would at least slow him down, giving people like Grey the chance to attack. The old man started to freeze, but Grey didn''t stop there, he appeared before the man, his eyes glowing pale blue. The second the old man''s eyes made contact with Grey''s, he closed it in an instant, knowing what will happen if he stared at them for long. Grey punched the old man''s chest, sending him flying. But while the man was sent flying back, Grey stretched out his hand and the old man''s body propelled back to his hand. Grey grabbed the man by the neck, staring at him coldly, "It all ends here." The man wanted to open his mouth, but Grey grabbed his mouth, making he isn''t able to open it. "Do you think I''ll let you do that?" Grey asked. The old man was held tightly by Grey, and his back was still in the process of getting frozen solid. The man focused his energy and fought off the ice in his body, dispelling all of it, but there was no way he could escape from Grey''s grasp. The old man moved his hand, trying to use his fire element to attack Grey, but Grey stopped the attack even before it could be formed. However, this was within the expectations of the old man, he didn''t panic as a powerful repulsive force came between him and Grey. Grey was forced to take some steps back, but Grey''s grip on the man''s neck was firm, and he was being forced back, he didn''t let go of the man''s neck, making sure the man was dragged with him. When the man realized there was no escaping from Grey''s clutches, he switched his tactics. This method would only put him in danger. The man tried all means, but Grey didn''t let go of the man''s neck, his grip only got tighter and fiercer. If the man wanted him to let go, then he had to cut his hand. This was exactly what the man attempted next. Two fire blades appeared and slashed at Grey''s hand. Grey didn''t dare to let them touch him, he dragged the man into the attack. When the man felt the heat, he knew Grey had drawn him close to the attack and he scoffed inside, he didn''t do anything else, exploding with a fiery attack. With him at the center, the flames spread out. "Klaus." Klaus was already close before Grey even mentioned his name, his domain appeared and a large sea of water poured on the man. This wasn''t any ordinary water, but it was heavy water. Against the old man''s flames, Klaus'' heavy water made short work of it, making sure there was no way the man could use the flames to harm Grey. Grey wasn''t hurt by the heavy water, but the ice left in the body of the man was riled up once again due to the heavy water and it started to act up again. The man found it hard to keep both the ice and Grey''s grip away. His mouth was closed by Grey which made it hard for him to speak, and so was his eyes shut so he can''t look into Grey''s eyes. He was caught in a dilemma, but he didn''t want to give up. He had noticed Grey trying to seal his cultivation on a few occasions and Grey had failed both times due to his resistance. The old man thought about it and realizing there was no way for him to see and understand what''s happening, he brought out a puppet, just for a short time so he could understand what was happening. Doing this gave him the chance to see what was happening outside. He studied the location of everyone and without hesitation, the puppet exploded. Grey was about to use the puppet against the man, but to his shock, the puppet exploded. Grey feared for his friends'' safety and let the man go. Making sure nothing happens to them. Their safety was very important. Chapter 1441 Necromancers Meeting Ground? Boom! The puppet exploded loudly sending out a powerful shockwave across the plain. Grey had already left the place with his friends, escaping to a place that was safe from the explosion. He didn''t care if the man got a chance to escape, he had already marked the man and was sure he would be able to locate him again, however, if his friends were caught in this attack, it would be very dangerous. He didn''t forget to take the man who brought the Elder to him. This was a very important person that could be used to his advantage later in the future, so he didn''t want him dead yet. ¡­. A few kilometers away, Grey and his friends looked at the large light that was coming from the explosion. Even given the distance, they were still able to feel the power of the explosion. "That''s not a normal puppet. It was created particularly for this purpose." The man who Grey carried with them said. "Does that mean it wouldn''t affect him?" Grey asked. "He''s fine from the explosion. He will feel some discomfort, but it isn''t really all that important. After all, he managed to get you off his back, for now." The man explained. Grey frowned and looked towards the explosion. He tried to sense the man and his expression turned ugly, he couldn''t sense the man close by. "This is bad, he''s no longer close." He commented. "Wait, you can sense him from this distance?" The man was flabbergasted by Grey''s words. What Grey''s saying should be impossible for someone in the Venerable Plane, a Sovereign can achieve that, but for a Venerable to be able to sense the position of another Venerable from such distance is shocking. Grey nodded, affirming the man''s words. "Incredible." The man was lost for words. The fact that Grey could achieve this was beyond natural. Grey didn''t care about the man''s praises, he needed to get the man. "I''m leaving. Don''t worry about him." Grey said to the others and disappeared. He was referring to Aries in particular. She had kept her eyes on him all this while, ready to pounce. The meaning behind Grey''s words was that the man was out of the equation and shouldn''t be attacked. Aries didn''t mind Grey''s words and nodded. Klaus and the others looked at the man but didn''t mind him, since he hadn''t tried to kill any of them like Lewis, they didn''t have any issues with him. Of course, they didn''t like Necromancers, but Grey seems to have some use for these people and they didn''t want to bother about it. Grey was a smart person and wouldn''t do anything that would endanger himself or his friends, so they were confident that the man wouldn''t even dare to attack them. ¡­. The sight of the explosion. Grey came back to see if the man was hiding here. He tried to sense the man and he couldn''t sense his presence here. Part of his aura was left here, but he was clearly gone. "A teleportation talisman." He muttered. Even though the explosion hadn''t died down, he could still sense the presence of the use of the space element. "Void, can we track it?" He asked. Void appeared on his shoulder, "Maybe, but it will not be easy." "There''s no harm in trying." Grey said, he thought for a while and said, "He wouldn''t dare to return to the Faction. But he won''t be far from it." Void and Grey started sensing the space residues in the place and Void was able to crack open the same portal the man used in leaving. It was very easy as long as one knows what they''re doing. While hanging around the bunny, although the bunny was a lazy fighter, it was very good with the space element. Void learned a few things, and this was one of them. To a certain extent, the bunny could be said to be the best Space Elementalist among them as it could even travel across realms with ease. These secret realms created by the powerful God Plane experts aren''t out of reach for the bunny which was a shocking thing. Grey still doesn''t know what kind of bunny it was, all he knew was that it had a knack for getting underlings that it could use to beat others up. The duo entered the spatial tunnel and soon appeared in the middle of a sea, and island to be precise. Grey didn''t recall any sea being close by, nor did he see any islands. He turned to look at Void with a questioning look, but before he could ask any questions, he sensed the presence of the old man here. "Whoever created this spatial talisman must be an expert." Grey praised. The island was quite large, but he could sense the presence of the old man deep inside. A forest was on the island which meant that there were also inhabitants. They were cautious as they moved towards where he could sense the man''s aura. Before long, they appeared at a place that made them stop, the reason was that the man wasn''t the only one present here, there was someone else, and this person was also close to the old man when it came to strength. There were multiple people present, and they were all staring at the old man as they conversed. ''Hmm, should I call for backup? Or should I go in alone?'' Grey thought as he watched them. In total, there were only five people, however, each of them was at the Peak of the Venerable Plane and Grey knew they would be difficult to handle alone. ''Void, go back and bring that guy. I''ll need him and his siblings.'' Void vanished after Grey''s words. Grey knew it would take a while before Void returned, so he kept his eyes on the people in front of him. These people were all Necromancers, and from the looks of it, they all resided in this Continent. Chapter 1442 Reassess Your Choice Of Friends "A nice time to kill off a few Necromancers. I don''t think this is the hideout that guy told me about." Grey deliberated on it. If this was the hideout Lewis told him about, then there should''ve been Necromancers with weaker cultivation stages, but there are only five Peak Venerables present. Grey couldn''t sense the presence of anyone else which also indicated that these were the only people present here. There are Magical Beasts in the area, but they were all low leveled and weren''t of any threat to him. A few minutes later, Void returned with the man and his three siblings. The three were under the control of the man which was what Grey wanted. "I didn''t know there''s a place like this in the region." The man looked around curiously. This was his first time being here as well. This confirmed Grey''s hypothesis, this wasn''t the Necromancers'' hideout he was planning to raid with his friends. "Are you familiar with them?" Grey asked the man. "Just him. The others look familiar, but I can''t put my finger around where I know them." The man replied. "Okay. The Elder isn''t in his full strength, you should be able to handle him. I''ll kill off one of them with a sneak attack, do well to kill the person that will appear on this spot." Grey told the man his plan. Since these people didn''t know of their presence, he would use it to his advantage and take out two of them with a single attack. If two of the five people present die from the start, it''ll give their group the advantage over them. His plan was to switch places with one of the men and attack the person close to that person. At first, he wanted to use a wide scale attack, but after thinking about the strengths of each of them, he knew a wide range attack wouldn''t be able to kill them all, so instead of doing that, he wanted to focus all his energy on just one person, and he already had his target. A man that had short hair. The person he would switch places with was a lady that was sitting close to the man. The twins'' job was to kill the lady he''s going to change places with. "There''s an array here." The Twins said. "It has been sorted. I''ve bypassed it. They won''t sense it until it''s too late." Grey waved it off. The twins were impressed at Grey''s efficiency. The fact that he left only a few minutes ago but he had planned so much and even bypassed such a powerful array shows that he wasn''t a rash individual. "Alright, let me know when you''re ready.l The twins replied. Grey prepared himself, thinking of the sequence of attacks to use to ensure the man dies before he can even react. A minute later he opened his eyes and said, "I''m ready." The twins prepared to attack, also controlling their siblings to attack the position Grey was standing on. "Attack!" Grey said and his figure blinked and changed to that of a lady. The twins and his siblings didn''t waste any time and attacked as soon as Grey''s voice faded. The lady who Grey switched places with didn''t know what was happening until it was too late. Her eyes were wide open as the attacks of all four people rained down on her. Even with her Peak Venerable cultivation Plane, she wasn''t able to react to such an unexpected attack from people of this strength. This wasn''t the only place an attack was taking place. On the place the lady was seated, Grey suddenly appeared and his eyes locked on the man''s eyes. The man didn''t expect the person he was looking to change, nor did he expect to see such spectacular pale blue eyes. The eyes were the last thing he saw before he felt his consciousness start to freeze. Not just that, but he sensed a powerful attack on his body. He wanted to move, but he found out that his body was stuck to the ground. The gravity in the place had changed from what it used to be, and he couldn''t adjust to it in time. The attack landed on his body, but that was not the end. More attacks rained on him and his eyes continued staring at those pale blue eyes before he finally lost consciousness, he was dead under the barrage of attacks. Everything happened within a second that the others still hadn''t gotten time to process what just happened. They heard the attacks from the side where the lady appeared, and just as they were turning to look at what was happening, they heard another attack close to them. This was too dangerous. Their attention turned back to the man Grey chose to attack, and they felt dread when they saw a multicolored orb tossed at them. Without hesitation, they all flew into the sky, retreating from the range of the attack. "Haha, so easy." Grey''s horrifying voice echoed in the explosion before he flew up, confronting them. The old man who ran here was stunned to see Grey standing before him. "You¡­ how did you get here?" He asked, shocked. "I''m a Space Elementalist. Do you think I can''t track you down even with that trick of yours?" Grey asked with a sneer. "Impossible!" The old man exclaimed. "He''s Grey Dawson?" One of the other two who survived asked with a cold look. "Yes, he''s Grey Dawson. The kid the Gnomes want dead." The old man replied. "And you brought him here?" One of them asked, not pleased with Grey''s visit. "You don''t have to argue, I''ll be leaving soon. I just need him dead. You guys didn''t offend me." Grey smiled, "Hand him over and I''ll leave." The twins and his siblings flew to Grey''s side. "Oh, and I have backup." He added with a cheeky smile. The men looked at the old man, but the old man said, "You''re still a kid, do you think you can trick us?" "You would need to reassess your choices when making friends." Grey saw the eyes of the duo standing behind the man and said coolly. Chapter 1443 I Should Join You Too The old man turned to look at the duo behind him, he could sense their gazes but he wasn''t afraid, he scoffed and said, "As much as they would like to ensure their safety, how will they be sure you will agree to let them leave after apprehending me?" "The second I''m taken out of the picture, they will be heavily outnumbered. We''re already outnumbered as things stand, losing one more person will only make their deaths certain, but with me here, there''s still hope." Grey didn''t reply, he kept his eyes on the body of the duo behind the old man, awaiting what decision they would make. "If we hand him over to you, how are you going to guarantee our safety?" One of them asked. They were accessing their options and it wasn''t looking good. Grey killed someone the moment he arrived, this meant that he was strong enough to kill anyone of them. The reason they all felt scared of Grey was mainly due to the fact that Grey had the ability to counter their greatest strengths, their puppets. Yes, Grey was powerful, but if they were able to use their puppets, they wouldn''t be worried. Some of them have top notch puppets that even with the help of the people behind Grey, there was no way they would be able to match them in terms of strength. "That''s the thing, you won''t be able to guarantee it. All you have for it is my words." Grey replied with a smile. "What do you take us for? Idiots?" The other man asked. "Well, if you put it that way." Grey shrugged. He didn''t really care if these guys agreed to help him out or not. "If he wanted your help, you wouldn''t have killed those two." The old man said to the duo to make sure they understood they didn''t stand any chance against Grey if they let Grey kill him. "Well, you guys wouldn''t really let me come in here and demand for his head now, would you?" Grey asked, "The only way you would listen to me is if those two were gone." "Don''t listen¡­" "What''s the point of all this, kill them." The man behind Grey said. "You know what, you''re right." Grey attacked as soon as he finished his statement, but he was blocked from switching places with any of the trio. One of them was a Space Elementalist and he was able to block Grey from using that skill once again. Grey didn''t mind and used his fire element to unleash a rain of arrows at them. He also used an old technique, meteor descent. The three men used their respective elements to block Grey''s attacks. The inception of this chapter''s publication is linked to B00kW0rm. The twins and his siblings rushed out to fight as well. He had never really liked people to begin with, and since this was one of the few chances he got to kill people to his heart content, then he was going to do it. Grey, like a flash in the sky, picked out one of the men who was relatively stronger than the rest, leaving the others for the twins and his siblings. The man Grey picked had the space, lightning, and darkness element. Being a Multi Elementalist meant that he was difficult to handle and Grey didn''t want any of them to escape, this was his intention from the start. When he started the battle with the man, he quickly realized something. This man wasn''t like the regular Necromancer, in fact, most of the people he had encountered in this region weren''t like the regular Necromancers. These guys also focused on improving their strengths. Of course, not all of them did this, but the majority of the ones he had encountered here had the ability to at least put up a fight with him. During his earlier times, the Necromancers he encountered were only those who focused on improving the strength of their puppets. There''s also a difference between the methods applicable here. ''I wonder if this has something to do with whoever brought it here. Why''s it so different?'' This was the thought in Grey''s head as he fought with the man, not giving him the chance he wanted to escape. The man didn''t bring out his puppet since he knew of Grey''s abilities. This made life difficult as he found it hard to keep up with Grey''s strength. Grey was too powerful, and he could see it just from the first few exchanges. "A kid like you shouldn''t be allowed to wander on your own." The man said as he exchanged blows with Grey. The strength of Grey''s attack forced him to take some steps back, but he wasn''t harmed by the attack. "Who says I''m alone?" Grey asked while attacking once again. "We''ve all heard about your travels. News of you being in this region has spread across the Continent. People will be coming for you soon, especially those who are interested in the rewards offered by the Gnomes." The man said. "Let them come, I''ve never been afraid of anyone." Grey didn''t seem phased as he continued his assault on the man. The man could barely hold his own as Grey attacked with ferociousness. The man looked at the old man who brought Grey here with hate, to a certain extent, he wanted the man dead. If not for the fact that Grey doesn''t have a good relationship with Necromancers, he wouldn''t mind handing the man over. When he looked at the twins, his eyes sparkled. "Since those people are with you, why don''t I join you?" He offered. "Not interested." Grey''s reply was accompanied with his earth domain''s gravitational field. The sudden change in gravity threw the man off balance and he found himself going down. Grey attacked at this moment, slamming the man with a large earth hammer. The man tried to dodge the attack, but Grey locked the space, making sure there was no way the man could escape it. With no other choice, the man took the attack head-on, striking it with a lightning bolt. Bang! Chapter 1444 Different Puppets The strength from Grey''s hammer sent the man crashing into the ground. The man slammed heavily, causing a large crater on the ground, followed by a large dust cloud. Grey didn''t move from the place he was standing, he squinted his eyes and saw a flash heading at him from the dust cloud. He wanted to use his space element to escape, but just like what he did to the man, the space around him was locked and he was forced to take the attack head-on. After the attack left the dust cloud and came to view, he noticed it was a puppet holding a large sword. The speed of the puppet was beyond his expectations and before he could react, it was already before him. He didn''t have the time to cut off the link to the puppet as he was forced to block what was before him. He blocked the attack, but the strength of the puppet was unlike anything he had ever experienced. His eyes widened when he took a closer look at the puppet. "A Barbarian." Shock was written over his face, but he didn''t stop blocking the attack from the puppet. The Barbarian was at the Peak of the Venerable Plane, but that was not what made it different, it''s the fact that there was no way it would be worried about Grey causing it any harm which would make the Barbarian dangerous. Other than that, the puppet was different, Grey could tell it wasn''t under control by the man. "Hahaha, after we heard about you, we''ve been researching unendingly to get a way to have puppets we won''t be linked to, and I got it. You don''t need humans for this, but Barbarian. Hahaha!" The man laughed out loud from the rubble as he stood up. The reason he hadn''t brought it out earlier was due to not having the time. He only had two Barbarian puppets, and given their strength and features, he needed time to mark Grey, ensuring that the puppet fought with only Grey and no one else. Of course, there was a massive disadvantage with this since it meant there was no way he could do combined attacks with his puppet, but as long as he could survive against the infamous Grey Dawson because of this, then he was satisfied. Grey didn''t have the time to look at the man as the attack on him continued from the Barbarian. ''I didn''t expect I''d fight one of you in this state.'' He thought as he looked at the listless eyes of the Barbarian that had only him in his head. The Barbarian had been ordered to only attack Grey, which means no matter what happens, until Grey was dead or the Barbarian was kept by the owner, it would continuously fight with Grey. Grey didn''t feel any pressure, he created a large sword with the fire element and slashed it at the puppet. The puppet blocked the attack with its blade and used the water element to grab hold of Grey''s leg. The puppet created a tentacle-like water and after grabbing Grey, he dragged him towards him while simultaneously swinging his sword in that direction. ''I hate these guys.'' Barbarians have always been great fighters. A Barbarian in the same stage as most humans would almost always win a one on one fight. This Barbarian showed the difference between its kind and humans. Even with the man''s strength, he still wasn''t on Grey''s level, but the second it appeared, it showed the difference. Grey created an earth wall to slow down the sword before using the lightning element to destroy the water that was holding his leg. After doing that, he was about to attack when the man appeared behind him, sending out a large darkness palm. The palm spread out and when it got close to Grey, it closed. Grey burst out with blue flames and silver lightning, shattering the palm into particles. The man didn''t say anything, all he wanted was to stop Grey''s escape from the puppet, and his aim was achieved as the puppet sliced through the earth wall Grey set up before attacking him with ice spears. Grey used a stream of flames to burn the spears, melting it before using his inscriptions to attack the man who was stopping his movements. The puppet moved closer, but Grey was prepared, attacking with a multicolored blade. He used his elements to create a fusion elemental blade, rather than making a normal orb, he ungraded it and created a blade that was even more powerful. Creating the blade required more time, but it was worth it after he attacked the puppet. The sword of the Barbarian was cut in half and the puppet could only withdraw from the attack. It might not have the intelligence of a living Barbarian, but its battle experience was still there. To be honest, Grey was impressed with the man''s method. Being able to accomplish something like this was not ordinary. Unfortunately, the man wasn''t someone he needed. He vanished and appeared behind the puppet as it was escaping from the fusion blade, before attacking with a dimensional slash. The puppet turned around, but it was a little late and the attack struck its shoulders, cutting off the hand it used to hold the sword, which was its left hand. The man saw this and his eyes almost popped out, "Stop!" Grey pretended not to hear him as he used the fusion blade to cut off the other hand. With both hands gone, the Barbarian stood in the sky, with just its legs, it used the water element to create hands made with water and grabbed the sword before attacking. Grey smiled and charged at the puppet. The man knew if the duo clashed, his puppet would be destroyed. But when he thought about his safety, he looked away and brought out a talisman which he crushed. He was covered with the spatial particles as a tunnel opened up, just as he was about to step into it, it shut down. "Your array was very useful." Grey commented. Chapter 1445 No Escape The man was startled when he heard Grey''s remark. Grey was still fighting with the puppet and he had gotten the advantage over the puppet. "The array here¡­" The man turned his attention to the array set in this place. He knew of the array and was one of the people who even set it up. When he inspected it, his pupils dilated, he couldn''t believe Grey worked on the array right under their noses and they couldn''t even sense it. He was thinking about how Grey was able to sneak so close without them being aware, but now he understood the reason, Grey messed up with the array in such a delicate manner that they weren''t even able to find out until it was too late. ''How''s he so fast?'' The man knew when the old man appeared here injured. Even if Grey came with him at the same time, he would need hours to accomplish something like this. Messing with the array so they couldn''t sense him was one thing, remodeling some parts of it to help him stop them from escaping with the space element was another thing which would need a longer time frame to achieve. They were top arraymasters present, yet Grey has been able to somewhat outsmart them which was unbelievable. Grey punched a hole in the chest of the Barbarian and chuckled, "Your array is easy to sort out. It''s not that complex. I''ve seen more complex things." Grey''s words shook the man. If what Grey is saying is true, then his knowledge in arrays was shocking for someone his age. Grey didn''t speak any further, casually destroying the Barbarian. "Do you have more? If not, just surrender." The manner with which Grey speaks is one that showed his utmost confidence in himself. "You''re powerful, kid, I''ll not deny that, but don''t think a man on the brink of death isn''t dangerous." The man said with a cold face. "You''re not the first person I''ve faced like this, and you will not be the last." Grey stared down at the man, not worried that the man would be able to escape. He casually cut the links of one of the puppets of the men facing the twins and his siblings. The person whose link to his puppet was cut off froze, and so did the other puppets he brought out. Compared to people like the twins, these old guys have a large number of puppets under them and they have great control over them all. Necromancers mainly revolve around their mental energy, the stronger one''s mental energy was, the more puppets they could get under their command. These people have trained their consciousness to a very high level which in turn has increased their mental energy. When the old man noticed the abnormality with his companion, he realized it was Grey''s work and quickly went to aid his partner. "Keep him busy, will you?!" He scolded the man Grey was fighting with. The man was annoyed with the old man''s statement, but seeing Grey in work against their puppets, he was genuinely scared. Someone being able to achieve this at such a young age will grow up to be a very powerful figure later on. The fact that Grey has the entire Gnome race and the Necromancers community rattled showed how significant this skill is. The man gulped and attacked, engaging in a battle with Grey. To a certain extent, he was annoyed that Grey picked him out of them. If Grey had picked anyone else, he would''ve already tried to escape while fighting the twins and their siblings. There is no point in trying to save the others, his life was more important. And in all honesty, he knew that was what the others were doing as well. A thought came to his head, but the risk outweighed what the reward was. He wanted to bring out all his puppets, and while Grey was busy cutting off each link, he would escape. He noticed that Grey only needed a second to cut the link between one of the puppets to the man. He didn''t need more than a few seconds to escape from this place. So if Grey was focused on all the puppets, he would have the chance to escape and self-destruct them. But then thinking if Grey is able to cut off the links connecting to all his puppets simultaneously scared him. His brain might be fried if that happens, and he would most likely not be able to move for close to a minute, that''s enough for Grey or anyone else to kill him. ''Self destruct, I will self-destruct them. That''s my only chance.'' He came to a conclusion. He looked at the others and didn''t even care about them, his safety was the number one priority. The man was a decisive person. He was still locked in a fight with Grey while thinking about all this. The moment Grey forced him to retreat with a heavy attack, he took the chance. At the same time, the old man and the man''s other companion came close to him and they all nodded. The man brought out all his puppets and Grey saw the decisiveness in their eyes. "Fuck!" Grey realized the danger they would be in, and with both hands spread apart, he did something that shocked everyone. The Necromancers thought Grey would escape with his entourage, but that didn''t happen, rather, a large suction force appeared in the sky and all the puppets were forcefully dragged into a large dark pit in the sky. "What?!" "Do it now!" The men panicked and hastily self-destructed their puppets, but it was too late. Grey was already prepared for this. This was the reason he worked on the array to begin with. Not just him, but Void was also part of the person who worked on the array. Boom! A large explosion happened kilometers away from the island and a powerful wave came from the sea, headed towards the island. Chapter 1446 Leaving The Region Grey gave the twins a nod and they sent out a few puppets to stop the large wave of water headed their way. The trio were shocked that their attempt to escape had not only been sabotaged, but their hopes of fighting back against Grey and the twins had been destroyed with it. There was no way they could fight against the twins who had multiple puppets and also Grey who was stronger than they were. As things stand, they might die under the hands of Grey and the twins. "Kid¡­ why don''t we work for you? You can do whatever you did to him to us as well, we''ll work for you, do whatever you say." The old man Grey followed here said. "That''s pretty thoughtful, but I don''t need you guys." Grey didn''t say anything else and attacked. The twins and their siblings helped out. ¡­. Back at the forest. Klaus and the others saw Void come over to take the twins along with their siblings with them, and they knew a battle would definitely start there. "Why didn''t he bring us this time?" Klaus was pissed. "We''re not expendable, they are." Alice explained. She understood Grey''s intentions in carrying the twins and their siblings, and although she would like to help out, she could understand why Grey acted in that manner. He wanted them safe. The attack the old man used was very dangerous and Grey had to take them to a safe place. If Grey was fighting alone, he would''ve had a better chance fighting against the man than when he was with them. Unless there were more opponents, it''s relatively safer and better to fight alone. l--B1n. The group continued discussing for a long time before Grey appeared along with the twins and their siblings, they also brought back the trio they found there. The duo who were killed were left there, and only the trio were brought back. They were still alive, but they all had dull eyes. "Kill us, what''s the use of keeping us alive?" The old man who was an Elder of the Phoenix Faction said. "That''s up to her to decide. I''ve done my part which was fishing you out." Grey threw them at the feet of Aries. The old man looked at Aries, eyes filled with sadness. "Elder, you''ll be taken back to the Faction for judgment. You and your accomplices." Aries said. "Then what about them?" The old man pointed at the twins and their siblings. "They didn''t know what they were doing. They were all under your control. It''s best if you leave them out of this." Grey said, "Those guys have no clue what they were doing, and I''ve taken over the one who was behind it." Aries looked at Grey, even though she was not in support of this, all this wouldn''t have been possible if Grey didn''t come. He was the one who stopped Lewis, and got him to contact the person that was hidden in the Faction. Who would''ve expected things would take such a turn and there was someone else inside the Faction that needed rooting out. Everything happened in a manner she didn''t have control over. She opted to let Grey do what he wanted, and since Grey helped deliver this Elder to her, she was grateful. At least an unknown thorn has been taken out of the Faction. Grey saw the displeasure in her eyes, but he ignored it, choosing not to explain. "I also have some information I''ll pass on to your Faction. It''s about the necromancer''s camp. There are two, myself and my friends will deal with one on our way out. The other one is out of our league, that''s for your Faction to handle." Aries'' eyes widened when she heard there were two camps. She nodded to Grey''s words, grateful that he was able to help them in such a way. Even though he took two necromancers who should''ve been killed under him, it was clear he wanted to rid the region of necromancers. Also, these people under him will all have to be under control since they do not want to offend their master. All in all, Grey had somewhat eliminated necromancers from their region. "Let''s go. We''ll visit the Faction one more time before leaving." Grey said to his friends. They nodded and headed back to the Faction with the prisoners in tow. Given their speed, it was easy to get back to the Faction grounds. The event of capturing the Elder took place late in the night, by the time they got back to the Faction, it was already sunrise. ¡­. The Phoenix Faction. "He''s a necromancer?" The Faction Leader pointed at the old man in shock. This was one of the most respected Elders in the Faction, he found that allegation astonishing. "Yes, and he has been aiding other necromancers with acquiring the talents from our Faction and turning them to puppets all for the chance to break through to the Sovereign Plane." Aries explained. The Faction Leader looked at Aries and then at Grey and the others. "I''ll be leaving with my friends¡­" Grey told the Faction Leader of the location of the necromancer''s camp that had a Sovereign and also told him he would be dealing with the other camp. The Faction Leader was still in a state of shock when Grey left with his friends. He decided to take the twins along with him to attack the necromancer''s camp. There was no harm in having such a figure with them as they razed the place to the ground. Back in the Phoenix Faction, there was distrust in the Faction due to the revelation of the Elder being a necromancer. The Faction Leader kept it close and only related it to the few people he was confident in their identities. If there were more Necromancers present in the faction, then they were in trouble. They were aware there''s a chance a necromancer might have creeped into their Faction, but they didn''t expect the necromancer to have such a high status. Chapter 1447 Unsettled Continent Grey and his friends left the region, but not the same way they came to it. With Grey''s help, they managed to take out two necromancer''s camps, while the threat of an Elder from the Phoenix Faction being a Necromancer was also sorted out. He didn''t take the twins with him as he left the region with his friends. After giving them the same orders he gave to Lewis, he left them alone. There was no point speaking too much. He would be updated on what''s happening here thanks to his newly found wide network. v3l.B11n. ''Who would''ve thought the bunny leader''s network had spread even to this region?'' To Grey''s surprise, he found out the bunny leader had actually created a large network between bunnies and it was updated on what was happening on most of the regions in the Aurora Continent. The thought that the bunny leader possessed such means was frightening. No one in the Continent would ever suspect that they were being watched by tiny bunnies. The bunny leader joined the group as they left the region which made it very convenient for Grey. With the bunny leader by his side, he would be able to keep tabs on the twins and keep them in check. He learned the duo had just one name, Robert. It wasn''t strange since their parents wouldn''t believe they were actually two people and not one person. The group continued their travel across the continent. While they''ve been away from the main stage in the Aurora Continent, trouble has been brewing, the Continent was in danger. Everyone was aware of this, but they didn''t know when the darkness was going to strike. Reports of multiple Gnome attacks have been spread across the Continent, it is unknown if they were true or if this was just a plan by the Gnomes to disrupt the lives of humans. All the people knew was that they had to settle this issue as soon as they could. Meetings have been taking place in the Continent among the top forces on how to fight against this growing threat. The Gnomes were coming, and it might happen sooner than they expected. Since leaving the Phoenix Faction region, the group''s journey had been peaceful. There hadn''t been anything eventful so far and after destroying the necromancer''s camp, they had not been involved in any other form of battle. They''ve been sparring more often because of this which pleased Grey, but not the others. Alice enjoyed fighting, so sparring wasn''t something she would ever turn down. Grey and the others were lying in a small cabin when the bunny leader came to them. It told them of what was happening in the world and the threat of the Gnomes. Its suggestion is that we left this place and hide until the battle was over. The bunny leader, even with its underlings, it didn''t like fighting. Grey went on to pass the message to his friends. "What are we doing here then? Let''s go kick some fucking Gnome ass!" Klaus was pumped when he heard this. "Not so fast, there are still certain things we don''t know about." Alice stopped Klaus from doing anything rash. "There''s no information on their location." Grey said. "You''re like a walking magnet for these guys, just step out and they''ll come after you within seconds." "It''s too dangerous. We don''t know the strength of all the Gnomes in the region." Chapter 1448 Revisiting The Burchard Family Grey and his friends soon heard of a city that was reportedly wiped out by Gnomes close to the region they were. "We should go check it out." Klaus suggested. "No, like I said the last time, it''s too dangerous." "We better head back home." Alice said. Grey and Reynolds had no problems with Alice''s suggestion, they also had the same idea in mind. If they followed Klaus'' words and encounter people too strong for them to handle, it would be dangerous. As much as Grey hated Gnomes, he has always tried to do things within his abilities. If the Gnomes dared to do something like this, then it meant they were prepared for whatever might happen if the news of this spread out. They found out about this thanks to the bunny leader''s network of bunnies that has spread across the entire Aurora Continent. As it stands, there''s almost no one with as much current information as the bunny leader. It knew about almost everything happening in the Continent. "Our adventure has been cut short by those short bastards. I''ll send them all down into a frozen lake." Klaus complained. He enjoyed times like these, having to go back to the Faction is one of the most frustrating things to do. He would have to focus only on training which he didn''t even enjoy. Grey and the others had the same thoughts towards the Gnomes. None of the people in the Aurora Continent liked them, with the exception of Necromancers. The Necromancers know what they stand to benefit once the Gnomes take charge of the Aurora Continent hence their devotion towards helping them. Given the fact that necromancy came from the Gnomes was also one of the factors that helped solidify their stand in this war. But there are a rare few who didn''t entertain the Gnomes taking over the Aurora Continent and wanted them to stay in their own world. "We''ll only know when we see him." Sylvia replied. She always had a soft spot for Grey after he fulfilled his promise to her. She never thought Grey would be the one to help them conquer the Nether Faction, but as luck would have it, without Grey, they would''ve lost this battle once again. The guard went out to invite Grey and his friends inside the place. When Grey saw Sylvia''s father, he bowed to show his respect to him. He also bowed slightly to also give Sylvia her respect. Even though he was stronger than her now, he still couldn''t forget the times she was stronger and forcefully trained him. As much as he hated competitions and tournaments because of this, he also knew her hard training was one of the reasons he was able to grow quickly during a certain period. After greetings, Grey went straight to the point, "Can I enter the secret realm with him, there''s something we want to try out." When Sylvia''s father heard Grey''s request, he took a glance at Sylvia. Normally, he wouldn''t entertain anyone randomly coming to him for a chance to get into the secret realm, but this was Grey and they were indebted to him. He also heard of how Grey helped out his son and the special guest they had in the secret realm the last time he came. "Will it endanger the lives of those training there?" He raised a brow. "No, we''re only targeting a few Gnomes. Those close to the top but not at the very top. Of course getting a few at the top wouldn''t be bad." Grey explained, he didn''t go into details, but he let them know that their target was Gnomes, and he wasn''t even going to kill any of them. Sylvia''s father was a little taken aback when he heard that Grey wasn''t going to kill them. According to all he had heard about Grey''s exploits in the secret realm, he always gives the Gnomes a run for their money, why the sudden change? He wanted to ask, but then he realized Grey purposely left out that detail which meant he didn''t want to disclose it. "Alright, you can use it." He readily agreed. Grey thanked him and left with Robert. The others were left to stay in the Burchard manor. Chapter 1449 Tricking The Prince Grey and Robert headed straight into the portal. This was Robert''s first time entering the secret realm and he was astonished at the energy in the place. "This is a nice place to train. A shame I''m already at the Peak of the Venerable Plane, I would''ve stayed here a little longer." Robert commented. Grey nodded, this was a good place to train, but he wasn''t interested in training. He wanted to complete what brought him here and head back to the Pyrmond Faction. He planned to visit his parents on the way to the Faction. "Let''s get to work. A Peak Venerable will do nicely." Grey flew up and flew in the direction of the Gnome''s camp. He knew where it was located after attacking the place the last time, so they didn''t have to go through the stress of searching for it. ''I wonder if they still gather there.'' He thought as he flew in that direction. On the way, he sensed some Gnomes, but he didn''t bother with them as their level was too weak. He wanted someone strong and also with a strong background. That way, he would be privy to some secrets of the Gnomes. It didn''t take long for them to get to the place, and when they got there, Grey and Robert hid, hiding their aura as well. Grey didn''t want the Gnomes to know of his presence here. He didn''t want to kill anyone, and didn''t want to draw the ire of the Gnomes towards the humans in this place when he''s gone. They looked at the place and started screening the candidates. He wanted to see if any of the Princes were present, but even after they waited for two hours, he didn''t see any signs of the Princes, and rushing into the place would only alert the people there. ''Void, do you remember the faces of the Princes?'' He asked Void who was sleeping in his storage ring. ''No. I''ll break through soon, don''t disturb me.'' Void''s reply wasn''t what Grey expected, but the news of Void breaking through soon was amazing. Void rarely trains, all he does is to eat and sleep, yet he is able to actually break through with such ease. To a certain extent, Grey was a little jealous of Void''s method of cultivation. How does sleeping make one advance? Well, Void has eaten a large amount of natural treasures which are all helpful to him and make him grow faster, but the fact that unlike others, he didn''t need to cultivate was painful to think about. Grey left Void alone and looked to the large building, and after a while he looked at Robert. "You''re a Necromancer, Gnomes have a close relationship with Necromancers." He pointed out. Robert nodded, "There have been times I heard that some meetings were held with Gnomes." "Are you implying I walk in there?" He asked Grey. "Yes, since you''re a Necromancer, they won''t attack you. They will allow you to walk amongst them freely, they might even want your help with targeting humans." Grey explained. The plan was to get Robert to lure the people out and they subdue the person so Robert can work on the person. According to what Robert told Grey, the person must be subdued so he can penetrate the person''s brain with his mental energy. After doing that, he would do whatever he wanted. "Alright, I will go in and bring someone out." Robert nodded and then stood up, walking towards the gate that led into the place. The Gnome''s hideout was like a small town, with a large gate. There were houses in different parts of the place. The second Robert walked close to the place, three Gnomes stepped out and prepared to attack. Robert already expected this and quickly brought out one of his puppets, "I''m a Necromancer, I want to come see your leader, I have a proposal for him." The Gnomes that came out were in the Early stages of the Elemental Venerable Plane, when they saw the puppets, they held back, but they were still prepared to attack. "A low life form like you think you can see the Prince?" One of the Gnomes said in disgust. Robert looked at the Gnomes and saw contempt in their eyes, it was clear they didn''t think highly of humans. Grey knew the Gnomes felt they were superior to humans, but Robert hadn''t had any encounters with Gnomes and didn''t know how they were toward humans. This was his first encounter and he was surprised at the way these Gnomes looked at him. "This is something the Prince would not want to miss out on. If he finds out that you made him miss such an opportunity, you will regret it." Robert didn''t let their gaze and words bring him down. He looked at them with cold eyes and said, "If you don''t want me to go to him, I will leave. But the Prince will eventually find out about this and he will send for me, but it will be too late then." The three Gnomes exchanged glances and then decided to take Robert inside. They didn''t know if he was lying or not, but they didn''t want to offend the Prince. The Prince has been in a bad mood for some months now. Robert was escorted into the place, heading for the castle that was situated in the camp. This was the place the Prince resided. He looked around and saw other Gnomes looking at him with scorn, they clearly didn''t think highly of any human, not even one that was a Necromancer. Robert didn''t mind the looks as he walked towards the building. Inside the building. The Prince was seated in the middle seat, and there were five people with him, discussing. The large metal door was knocked and one of the Gnomes stepped in. "My Lord, there''s a human here to see you, he said he has a proposal you won''t want to miss for you." The Gnome said while bowing. The Prince looked at the Gnome and said, "Bring him in." If Grey were here, he would''ve recognized the Prince. It was none other than the Seventh Prince, someone he had encountered on both sides of the secret realm. .com. The Gnome went outside and brought Robert into the place. One of them pushed Robert at the back and said coldly, "Bow." Robert looked at him, and then turned to the Prince, bowing slightly before looking him in the eyes. "You said you have a proposal for me, I''m listening." The Prince went straight to the point. "I would like to talk to you alone, my Prince." Robert said. The seventh Prince looked at the five people in the room with him and signaled for them to step outside. They didn''t go far away, just by the door. "Don''t come close, say whatever you want to say from there." The Seventh Prince said when he saw Robert taking a step. Robert halted and said, "There''s an important person that is coming in here later today. She''s the daughter of one of the top powerhouses in my Continent." "Of what use is this information to me?" The Seventh Prince asked coldly. "Here''s the thing. I know you''re looking to apprehend Grey Dawson. This person has a bad relationship with the Dawson Family. My proposal is this, kidnap the daughter and offer to make an exchange for the head of Grey Dawson with this man. He will not think twice about doing the exchange." Robert explained. When the Seventh Prince heard this, he stood up. "This is a good plan. When is this person coming? I need them caught immediately!" The Seventh Prince was excited. Grey was his greatest enemy, he wanted Grey to die at all costs. He had never thought of doing something like this, nor had such an opportunity come his way. Now that Robert brought such information for him, he was thrilled. This was finally the chance he was searching for to kill Grey. "My Prince, what about the rewards?" Robert asked with a little smile. "You will be rewarded when the mission is complete. I''ll put you in charge of bringing this person over. You must bring them or I''ll have you killed." The Seventh Prince said. Robert bowed and said, "Thank you, my Prince. I will surely deliver her to you. But I can''t do it alone." "She will be protected by top experts during her time here. There''s no way I can deal with them alone." The Seventh Prince nodded, "Naturally, I''ll send my top experts to assist you. Just say what you need." Robert bowed and told the Prince he would be leaving in a few hours and the Prince should call over the people who would be following him. He didn''t need too many people, three would be fine. The Prince summoned his two strongest experts and told them to follow Robert as he left. Chapter 1450 Kill Anyone To Stands In The Way Grey was waiting outside when he saw Robert walking out of the Gnome camp with two Peak Venerables. Even from the distance, he could tell these people were very strong. ''How did he get them to send these two with him so quickly?'' Grey didn''t know what Robert spoke with the Prince, so he was a little startled that the Prince sent these two with him. Grey didn''t know which of the Princes were present here, but he knew one of them would at least be here and experts like these two are those who are charged with protecting the Prince. He didn''t think too much about it, there was no reason thinking about it. The plan was to immobilize these two and send them back to force out whichever Prince is hidden there. If Grey could get a Prince under Robert''s control, they might be able to acquire a shocking amount of information. Grey wore a cloak and covered his face, he didn''t want to be recognized by these Gnomes. As long as they don''t recognize him, they will bring out their puppets which will make taking them down very easy for Grey. This was Grey''s plan, and since he had Robert there with him, he was certain of victory. .com. ¡­. Some kilometers away from the Gnome camp. Robert suddenly stopped and looked around, lost in thoughts. The duo following him stopped as well, when they saw his gaze, one of them said coldly, "You better keep moving, I''m not in the mood to entertain these things. If not for the importance of your information, we would''ve killed you." Robert turned around with a smile, "Oh really? I wonder what you will want to do when you know what I have planned for you guys." The duo changed their expression and turned hastily, and a powerful bolt of lightning was heading their way. "You traitor! I told the Prince never to believe your kind." One of them shouted as he blocked the attack with the help of his companion. The strength of the attack was beyond what one of them could block alone. Luckily, they weren''t alone, and with the help of each other, they managed to block the attack. "Thank you." After saying this, before Grey could even reply, he had already gotten to work, placing one hand on the head of the Gnome and another on the stomach, directly on the spot where the core is located. Grey didn''t bother with him and went over to bring the Gnome he sealed. When he got to the place, the Gnome had started to run, hoping to escape from Grey. Grey didn''t know what to think and with a blink, he appeared in front of the Gnome. "Where are you going?" He asked calmly. "You''re Grey Dawson." The Gnome pointed at him. "What if I am?" Grey didn''t deny the Gnome''s words. "Why¡­ why are you here?" The Gnome asked "I was bored, I needed something to excite me." Grey sat down close to him before saying, "Tell me, what is the plan to take over my world?" "Simple, kill anyone who stands in our way of control." The Gnome replied confidently. Even if he was captured by Grey, he was still a top expert who was part of the prestigious Gnome race. To all Gnomes, all humans are below them. Humans are inferior beings and shouldn''t fight back even when being killed. "Nice plan. Looks like you won''t be able to do something like that." Grey told the Gnome as he dragged him back to where Robert was located. "Done?" He asked when he returned. "I still need some time, maybe two hours." Robert replied. Grey didn''t argue with him, he walked to the side and sat down cross-legged. Chapter 1451 Hi There, Its Been A While "My Prince, we need you to come see this yourself. It''s a serious matter." "You''re saying you two found a treasure and that filthy human attacked you?" "Yes, he couldn''t defeat us. He has a few tricks, but we dealt a deadly blow to him. If not for the fact that he self-destructed his Peak Venerable puppets, he would''ve been dead by now." "Where''s the treasure now?" "That''s the thing, we can''t take it out of the place, if not, it''ll not be as effective as it is there." The Seventh Prince took a close look at the duo who had their heads bowed. These were the two people who he sent out to follow Robert to apprehend the human girl, he never expected something like this would happen that would cause a fight to break out between them. "Humans are always greedy, hence their decline." The Seventh Prince snorted and stood up. "Take me there, we should be fast before that guy comes back with reinforcement." He ordered. "Don''t worry my Prince, there''s no way other humans will be as unruly as him to come there, except for ''him''." One of the Gnomes said. When the Gnome said ''him'', the Seventh Prince knew who he was talking about and snorted coldly. "He''s not here, if he is we would''ve gotten wind of it and ended that bastard." The duo didn''t speak and led the Prince out. For precautionary measures, the Prince took two more Peak Venerables with him. There''s a chance that humans would come to the place, so there was no harm in being prepared. Robert heard Grey''s statement and thought about what Grey made him say. Now he understood the meaning behind the word ''him'', and why the Prince had such reactions to it. Robert did as told and ensured that the duo who accompanied the Prince were standing close to each other. It wasn''t difficult since all he had to do was to make the two guys he was controlling stand on the same side and discuss certain issues under their breath. The other two naturally teamed up. The Seventh Prince couldn''t be bothered with what was happening. He told them to find the girl once they were done with this. As they headed closer to the place, the Seventh Prince felt unsettled, for some reason, he felt something was wrong. ''Since I encountered him, I''ve been worrying whenever I leave the castle.'' Although the Prince didn''t want to accept it, he couldn''t deny the fact that Grey had cast a shadow on his head which was playing with him. The sooner Grey was caught and killed, the better his life would be. ''I just need to end him. Even if not personally, at least I should be involved in it.'' The Prince was lost in thought when he suddenly felt a fluctuation in the space behind him. His pupils dilated because he was familiar with this thing. He had experienced it before and knew who it belonged to. Before he could react, it was too late. Grey had switched places with one of the men behind him and he attacked the other one the second he appeared, immobilizing him with a single attack. The other guy wasn''t as fortunate as this one, Robert directly killed him. "Hi there, it''s been a while." Grey waved with a grin on his face. Chapter 1452 Nothing Can Go Wrong Now "You¡­ what are you doing here? They said you were training." The seventh Prince felt chills run down his spine when he saw Grey''s evil smile. He was seriously afraid of encountering Grey. When he had the higher cultivation strength he couldn''t beat Grey, now that Grey was the one with a higher cultivation level, it is easy to predict who would win if they fought. "Nothing, I''m strolling and thought I should come say hi to you." Grey replied calmly, he looked at the duo who were standing there without making any movements. "Kill him!" The Seventh Prince ordered the two of them, pointing at Grey. "Hehe, how did you think you got into this situation?" Grey asked with a smile. The Seventh Prince wore a confused expression on his face, Gnomes would never betray their race for a lowly human, this is something he was well aware of. But from what he was seeing, it was as if these two had pledged allegiance to Grey. He was about to speak when Robert walked out from the side. "I told you it would be easy." He commented as he flew to Grey''s side. "You traitor!" The Seventh Prince yelled. "Stop being dramatic, I promised you the opportunity to capture him. Well, here he is." Robert shrugged, not bothered with the Seventh Prince''s enraged look. The Seventh Prince felt like wiping Robert of the face of the world for that statement. if he had the strength to kill Grey did Robert think they would be in such situations now? He had encountered Grey on a few occasions and had failed miserably in all attempts to end Grey''s life. Even during their last encounter, Grey didn''t even look at him which although shameful, he felt relieved Grey didn''t try to fight with him. There was no way he could match up with Grey. As if seeing through the thoughts of the Seventh Prince, Grey said, "You see, I do want you to receive me, but under my terms and my control." With that statement, Grey moved closer to the Seventh Prince and sealed his cultivation. "Don''t struggle, it will be over soon." Grey said as he sealed the cultivation of the Seventh Prince. "What are you doing?" The Seventh Prince yelled, scared for his life. "Don''t worry, no harm will come to you." Robert stepped forward and said, before placing one hand on the Seventh Prince''s head and another on the stomach. The Seventh Prince was suspended in that manner and soon lost consciousness after Robert started the entire process. Grey looked at the Seventh Prince and shook his head. He never thought he would be able to do something like this, but being able to encounter Robert meant that he could think bigger than what he originally wanted. He had always wanted to visit the Gnome world, but he didn''t know how to enter and what awaits him there if he ventured there without sufficient knowledge of the place, but with Robert things would be different. He would not only have someone there, but he would have someone that would be able to gain access to most of the important information of the Gnome world. "Nothing can go wrong now." Just as Grey made that statement, Robert spoke up. "There''s an array in his consciousness, I can''t break it." "Fuck me!" Chapter 1453 Following Him Isnt Bad "What do you mean his consciousness has an array in it? Is that even possible?" Grey was taken aback. "There''s an array in his consciousness, and as you can see, it''s clearly possible." Robert replied. "Is there a way to go through it?" Grey asked. "It''s beyond anything I''ve ever seen. You''ll have to take a look yourself." Robert made way for Grey. Grey stood in front of the Seventh Prince and his mental energy burst out. When Robert saw this, a thought came to his head, but then he shook his head. Before he could even begin his plan, Grey might''ve killed him already. ''Amazing!'' He was startled with the amount of mental energy Grey possessed. With such mental energy, Grey would have zero issues with controlling ten Peak Venerables which is something only those in the Sovereign Plane should be able to do. ''What sort of freak is he? Freakishly strong with his elements, and now even his mental energy is far above anything I''ve ever encountered.'' Robert was stupefied by Grey. While Robert was still wondering what sort of person Grey was, he heard something that scared him. "I can work on it, but I''ll need a few days. The array is made like an alarm, if tampered with, the person who placed this array there will be able to find out about it." Grey explained. ''This thing can help fix leaking cores.'' He had read about this particular item before, but it was so rare that finding it was almost impossible. He never expected the Seventh Prince to have one in his possession. Klaus'' father, the Principal, had an issue like this after the final battle at the Azure Continent. The last time he spoke with his Teacher, there wasn''t much positive news from him about the Principal''s condition. With this, he could help restore the Principal back to normal state. ''If I take this he will notice it, but who cares, there''s no way he would know that he''s under my control.'' Grey didn''t bother about how the Seventh Prince would react when he noticed this item missing and took it. He also took some top notch treasures before sending the Seventh Prince back to the Gnome camp. The duo who were under Robert''s control were sent back with him. The person Grey left alive was killed in the end. Robert couldn''t put too many people under his control, and already having these two along with his siblings was taxing. There was no harm in slowly scraping off some of the Gnome race''s strength, although two Peak Venerables aren''t that important in the general scheme of things, it didn''t matter. "Alright, we should head back now. There''s no point staying here." Grey took the lead as they headed towards the exit. Robert looked at the back view of Grey, still stumped by what happened these past three days. The fact that Grey not only found the loophole, but also learned the mind control technique in such a short time was monstrous. This shouldn''t be possible, but Grey did it. ''Following him might not be bad after all.'' He thought as he followed Grey. Grey and Robert left the secret realm in the same manner they entered, without making any fuss. Other than the person guarding the portal, no other human saw them enter and exit the place. On the Gnome''s end, only Robert was seen, and they didn''t know anything about him. The Prince left and returned some days after, rushing into his room and telling the others not to disturb him. Only two people of the four who went out with him returned, and no one questioned him. Chapter 1454 Lunatics The duo spent a total of three days in the secret realm before stepping out. When they came out, there wasn''t any difference from when they entered the place. The Elder from the Burchard Family guarding the portal expected to hear stories of Grey''s exploits in the secret realm once again, but when he was greeted with people casually stepping out without any breathtaking stories, he was astounded. It was common knowledge that whenever Grey steps foot in the secret realm, he causes chaos in the camp of the Gnomes, sending them into retreat. As a matter of fact, the geniuses who entered during the time Grey came the last time grew the most. They had the opportunity to explore the place and search for more treasures thanks to the fact that the Gnomes were nowhere to be seen. Humans and Giants don''t have any conflicts and they rarely encounter each other, much less fight for treasures unlike the Gnomes who actively seek out humans. The Gnomes need humans to turn into corpse puppets, so they naturally search for them even when the humans are hiding. The Burchard Family. Sylvia was sitting in her courtyard, drinking some tea while lost in thoughts. Her serene appearance was a contrast to her feisty nature. The flowers in the courtyard made the atmosphere exceptionally calm as she looked into the sky. "I never thought I would see you in such a manner." Grey''s voice brought her back from her train of thoughts. Sylvia turned to look at him with a dazzling smile, "You returned earlier than I expected." "Yes, I''ve accomplished what took me there." Grey nodded and took a seat. "Your friends went out to explore the City, they will be back shortly. Why don''t we reminisce about the old times?" Sylvia offered Grey a cup of tea. "He truly is something else." She gave a self-deprecating laugh as she continued drinking her tea. ¡­. Grey and his friends left the Burchard manor immediately. When the others saw Grey, they didn''t ask any questions and decided to continue their journey. On the way, they heard something that made their blood boil. Grey wanted to sneak into the Gnome world, and he wanted them to come with him. This was heaven-shaking news. If they entered the Gnome world and caused havoc there, they would be able to slow down the process with which the Gnomes would want to invade their world. Of course, there''s also the possibility of them increasing the speed. All in all, it was a risk worth taking. Grey and his friends were a group of psychopaths, and it''s natural that none of them even had the slightest hesitation towards this, rather, they were all riled up. Among the group, Robert was the only one who was thinking properly, and he was praying deep down that when the day comes, Grey wouldn''t need him to accompany him. Actually, one of the reasons he willingly taught Grey the mind control technique was due to this fear. Yes, Grey wanted to enter the Gnome world, but what about him? Did Grey think he would actually follow him there? If he was in control of the Seventh Prince, there''s a chance he would have no choice, but when he''s not in control, he doesn''t have to worry about anything. ''You can go there and get captured, I''m not going there with you!'' This was the only thing in Robert''s head. The group of friends discussed what they would potentially do in the Gnome world while Robert watched the lunatics as they ventured deep into the Middle Continent, on their way to the Western Continent. This set of lunatics were on a mission to save their Continent, but before that, they wanted to cross a massive bridge first, becoming Sovereigns. Chapter 1455 A Way To Heal The Principal The Venerable Plane is already such a monumental Plane to reach as an Elementalist, but that wasn''t the end, to some extent, some might say it''s just the beginning. Getting to the Venerable Plane means one has the potential to become a Sovereign. In the Aurora Continent, Sovereigns were highly regarded. These were the people who show up on most occasions and tend to appear the most. Of course, the true people pulling the strings were those above the Sovereign Plane, but getting to the Sovereign Plane means one has the opportunity to take the step further and become a Half God, and existence akin to a God. According to what Grey knows, his father had already taken the step years ago. From what he heard, his father is the fastest person to take that step in the last one thousand years or so. He didn''t know how difficult it is and neither had he heard anyone speak about it, but given the way it was written in the books he had read, he knew it was something that isn''t easy to accomplish. Grey had always wondered if Void would sleep and then just wake up as a Half God Magical Beast someday. If others hear about that, they might pluck out their eyes. Only someone like Void could achieve something like this with such ease. Void was currently on the verge of breaking through to becoming a Sovereign. Once he achieves that, then the Half God Plane would be within sight. One thing Grey had heard about the Half God Plane is that it''s even harder than when one is breaking through to become a Sovereign. This is expected since he''s already aware that with his Plane, the difficulty of breaking through increases exponentially. There are people who still haven''t been able to get past the Origin Plane even before Grey was born, and till date, they''re still trying to break through that Plane. Some of them were regarded as geniuses while they were in lower Planes, and even after getting to the Origin Plane. But they will run out of luck and their cultivation will stagnate, without moving an inch, no matter how hard they try. A few eventually break through after trying all sorts of things, while others remain in that Plane until the end of their lifespan. This is a sad reality all Elementalists have to live with. Grey was also stuck in the Origin Plane for a long time, and only after figuring out he needed to increase his physical strength did he finally break through the gap. There are others who need just a little enlightenment and they will be able to soar, but not everyone is lucky. ¡­. The group soon got to the Western Continent, and of all of them, Alice''s Faction was the first they would get through. "After getting to the Sovereign Plane, we will meet up to go-ahead with our plan." Grey said as Alice was about to depart from the group. There was a time they were surrounded by a group of Magical Beasts at the Peak and Klaus shamelessly said he could fight all of them on his own. Did he do it though? Of course not! Klaus ran into their midst, forcing them to fight with the Beasts. In the end, they ran away after a stalemate. Of everyone present, Klaus was the one who shouldn''t even speak about this topic. Klaus wasn''t bothered with their looks, he said in all seriousness, "Next time, don''t say things like this." Alice gave up and hugged the group while saying her goodbyes before walking towards her Faction. If she didn''t do this, Klaus didn''t seem to have any plans of stopping his bullshit. Klaus and Reynolds continued bickering as they went on with the journey. Reynolds'' Faction was the next stop. Surprisingly, Grey''s Faction was next after Reynolds, but he wanted to visit his parents. This meant he would go close to Klaus'' Faction, but he still won''t get there. The group traveled for a few more days before Reynolds was left at his Faction. Klaus urged Grey that they should move at a slower pace, he didn''t want to return to his Faction so soon, but Grey wasn''t having it. He had important things to attend to and needed to make sure he wasn''t delayed. As they were walking, Grey stopped Klaus to tell him about something he found. "You''re saying it can help my father restore his core?" Klaus asked, agitated. "That''s the use, but we''ll only know after we see the Principal." Grey answered. "Let''s go then, what are we waiting for?" "Calm down. I need to be sure of something first." Chapter 1456 Short Reunion "What do you mean you need to be sure of something?" Klaus asked, still agitated. "I don''t want a situation where it won''t work. So I''ll confirm from my father if this is what I want and then relay the message to Teacher." Grey explained. "Uncle Chris will understand. Just tell him it might help." Klaus didn''t want to wait. "We''ve waited for years, what''s the point of rushing now?" Grey wasn''t in support of rushing, like Klaus. Klaus thought about it and seeing it from Grey''s end, he knew Grey was right. "Thank you." He said softly. "For what?" Grey couldn''t help but ask. "Keeping my father in your head. If he hasn''t recovered, this should be of great value to him." Klaus said with a serious expression. "Don''t be like that. He''s my Principal, and I''m part of the reason he ended up like that." Grey didn''t feel he was doing anything out of the ordinary. "I know, but thank you either way." Klaus said sincerely. Grey looked at Klaus'' serious face and couldn''t help but laugh. This was not the normal Klaus he knew, but since Klaus was serious, he wouldn''t say anything else. The duo continued their journey, and on the way, they were forced to stop. A group was blocking their path, and they wanted payment if the group wanted to pass through this place. If they want to go around, it will take around a week or so. This was the fastest way to get to their destination. The group blocking their path didn''t actually have the strength of a Peak Venerable which made the duo laugh at them. Klaus could easily turn them all to an ice statue without much effort. Klaus, who was in a hurry for Grey to speak to his father, didn''t even have any time to speak with these people, he directly froze one of them and the others escaped, not daring to fight with them. Grey laughed "You didn''t kill him, did you?" "Nah, he''ll be good in a few hours." Klaus replied. Grey didn''t speak much, he looked at the ice stature and moved it to the side where it wouldn''t be damaged before continuing the journey with Klaus. It was evident Klaus wouldn''t leave until this matter was settled. ¡­. A few days later. Grey and Klaus arrived at the Dawson manor. Grey was already well-known there and he didn''t have to stop for any inspection. He took Klaus inside and headed straight for his parent''s building. When he got there, no one was home. The duo went over to Grey''s place, waiting for his parents to come back. Grey knew his parents was always busy, but he was a little taken aback when he didn''t find the little girl he brought back the last time. He didn''t think too much about it and waited at his place, he knew they would return eventually. They didn''t have to wait for too long, after two days, his father was the first to return. "Where''s mother?" He asked when he saw his father. "She went out to train the little one. They should be back in a month or so." Lucas replied. Grey didn''t think too much about it, he went straight to why Klaus was still waiting. "Where did you find this?" Lucas questioned the second he saw the item in Grey''s hands, he didn''t even reply Grey''s question. "The Prince of the Gnome race had it. He offered it to me so I won''t kill him." Grey said. Lucas looked at Grey, finding it hard to believe this, but he didn''t ask too many questions. Grey didn''t say anything else. He knew his father would never agree to him wanting to enter the Gnome world, so there was no need to tell him about it. At least not now. Klaus was the one who didn''t even speak, he only looked on as Lucas studied the item. After some time, Lucas spoke up. "This should be able to heal an Elementalist''s core, but it depends on the damage dealt to it. There are damages that can not be healed." Lucas explained. Grey went on to tell Lucas about the Principal and how he wanted to use this to heal him. "You can try, but given the time difference, I''m not very optimistic about your chances." Lucas told them his opinion. This was a very important treasure and wasting it on someone that doesn''t have any hopes of healing wasn''t something he could bring himself to accept. However, this item belonged to Grey and he didn''t have much say on what it could used for, especially since the Principal sustained his injuries because of Grey. Grey told him of his desires and he encouraged it. Klaus felt hopeful when he heard this. As long as his father could be healed, he was satisfied. Grey didn''t waste any time and contacted his Teacher. Luckily, there was a means of communication between the two, and even though they rarely use it, it was still there. Grey''s Teacher replied quickly, telling him of his intentions to come to the Aurora Continent for an errand. As much as it sounded odd in Grey''s ears, there was nothing he could do. "Teacher will come next week. I''ll pass it over to him when he comes." Grey relayed the message to Klaus. "I would like to see Uncle Chris, it''s been a while I saw him." Klaus said. Grey didn''t have any issues with this. To be fair, he also wanted to see his Teacher. The last time his Teacher came to the Aurora Continent, he didn''t have the chance to see him. Now, he had the chance to see him. The duo stayed at the Dawson manor until Chris was available. ¡­. "Isn''t this where he said we''re going to meet?" Klaus asked as they waited for Chris. "Yes. Now we wait." Grey replied. "We''ve been waiting for a while now." "It''s not even been one hour." "That''s still long." "If you don''t want to wait, you can leave, you know." "I''ll wait. It''s not like I have anything to do in the Faction." "Then shut up." "Don''t tell me what to do." Grey and Klaus continued bickering until a silhouette teared through the void and appeared before them. "How come you are in this exact location?" The figure asked with a shocked expression. "I''m familiar with places that has a high spatial fluctuations, so I located this place." Grey replied. "You have the space element?" Chris asked when he heard Grey''s explanation. "Pretty much." Grey shrugged. When he sensed his Teacher''s cultivation stage, he was shocked. He couldn''t sense it at all. This meant he was either in the Sovereign Plane or didn''t have a cultivation base. Grey believed it was the former instead of the latter. He couldn''t believe his Teacher was actually in the Sovereign Plane. One has to know that they were advancing at a frightening speed, yet his Teacher was faster. "Oh, you''re already at the Peak of the Venerable Plane." Chris was taken aback. He thought he was the fastest person, but he never thought Grey and Klaus would already be at the Peak of the Venerable Plane. "Teacher, you''re already in the Sovereign Plane." Grey replied, "I''d say you''re the fastest person here." "I''m your Teacher, do you expect us to be in the same category?" Chris asked with a scoff. Grey didn''t say anything, but Chris could see the reply on his face. Grey caught up with Sylvia who had a higher cultivation stage than his Teacher at the time. He thought he would be ahead of his Teacher, but seeing that his Teacher had a higher cultivation stage, he was shocked. Chris wasn''t bothered with Grey facial expression, he looked at Klaus and said, "You too. How come you''re also at the Peak of the Venerable Plane?" "Uncle, I have a better talent than you, remember?" "No one has a better talent than I do." Chris didn''t even hesitate to say. "What about him?" Klaus looked at Grey. "He''s my student. Of course he''s supposed to be special." Chris said shamelessly. One has to know that he didn''t teach Grey for a long time, yet he was shamelessly saying Grey should have a good cultivation stage at the moment. "Uncle, how''s my father?" Klaus asked. "He''s fine. Can''t cultivate, but fine." Chris replied. Klaus'' expression dropped when he heard this. He didn''t think the situation was still the same. "Didn''t you say you would help?" Klaus asked. "I''m doing all I can. But there''s no way I can help him." Chris replied downcasted. "He''s here with a way to help." Klaus pointed at Grey. "I know." Grey looked at the duo and said, "I can speak now, correct?" "Yes. Go ahead." Klaus replied. Grey glared at him but didn''t say anything, he showed his Teacher the item and his Teacher took it. "Why are the Gnomes looking for you?" Chapter 1457 Short Reunion II "A long story." Grey scratched the back of his head with an awkward chuckle, but when he saw his Teacher''s look, he coughed lightly and explained, "I have a way to make them almost useless¡­" Grey went on to tell Chris about his first encounter with a Necromancer and how he managed to figure out a way to remove the mark from his body. Chris listened intently, he never thought something like this would happen to Grey, but to be honest, he didn''t think it was out of the ordinary. When he recalled what happened when Grey entered the trial lands for the first time, he knew Grey was a magnet for trouble. "Haha, such a good student of mine. Now, come here, tell me how it works." Chris laughed before moving closer to Grey, placing one hand across his shoulder. "Well, it''s not entirely something anyone else can do. There''s no point in telling you since there''s no way you can use it." Grey replied. Chris looked at him then threw a glance at Klaus who gave a nod of approval. Seeing Klaus'' nod, Chris dropped his head. He knew about the Gnomes and was interested in being able to weaken them just as much as his student, but seeing that there was no way for Grey to teach it to anyone else, he didn''t speak about it anymore. "You two seem to be doing well." Chris said while properly looking at them. He could sense the insane amount of vitality in the bodies of the duo. "Uncle, why do you look younger?" Klaus asked with a smile. "What do you mean look younger? I''ve always looked like this." Chris retorted shamelessly. "If I recall, at the time I saw you in Red City, you looked a little old." Grey commented. "You''re my student, you''re supposed to be on my side." Chris glared at Grey before continuing, "Also, I''ve always looked this young. I was just keeping a facade so I won''t be disturbed by ladies." The trio spoke for a while before Void and the bunny leader appeared. When Chris saw the bunny leader, his reaction was one of anger, and he was prepared to attack. "You know this guy?" Grey asked when he saw his Teacher''s reaction. "That stupid rabbit tricked me into its area and had me beaten by some bigger ones. I had to force it to escape after growing stronger." Chris pointed at the bunny leader. Grey threw a glance at the bunny leader who dropped its head, pretending it didn''t hear Chris'' statement. "Well, looks like I wasn''t the only one it tormented." Grey laughed. Chris stared at it, then at Void before saying with an evil smile, "Want to make me bunny soup? It''s been a while since I ate it. And as we have it, we have a good one here." The bunny leader disappeared the second it heard Chris'' words. There was no way he would stay here any longer. Chris seemed to still hold a grudge against it and he didn''t want to forgive it even though it was with Grey. Grey laughed when he saw the bunny leader''s reaction before answering his Teacher, "I can search for another bunny here. It won''t take long." "Get to it then, I''ll speak with my nephew." Chris waved his hand and moved closer to Klaus. Even though Grey was his student, he had a better relationship with Klaus since he saw Klaus grow up. Klaus was also very comfortable with Chris and the duo started to talk about their journeys. Chris hadn''t been doing anything dangerous for some time now. He had been sent on multiple missions by the Old man who was training him, but none of the missions were dangerous. He was sent to locate some Factions that were dormant just like the Old man''s Faction. With a special token, he could locate and even enter these places before communicating with the guardians there. He had been to a total of eight and would be heading to another one after he was done with the boys. It didn''t long for Grey to return with a dead bunny in his hand. The bunny leader was very efficient and found one very quickly. Grey prepared bunny soup for the group and they all ate, with the exception of the bunny leader who was seemingly sad at the demise of the bunny. It felt that bunny would''ve been good for his army, it was already at the Peak of the Sage Plane and would be getting to the Venerable Plane in a short time. Yet it was taken down with a single attack by Grey. The bunny leader didn''t speak much while the others ate. During the entire period it was there, Chris was giving it menacing looks and it shuddered at the thought of Chris attacking. Chris was a Sovereign, not a Venerable he could easily escape from. If Chris wanted to attack, it would be dead. But from the relationship between Grey and him, it was obvious Chris was restraining himself. To be fair, it indeed terrorized Chris. Tricking him to believe it was defenseless while taking him to his area where the other bunnies ganged up on him. In the end, Chris was only able to escape after sustaining some injuries. But who could be blamed, Chris wanted to take some of the items from its garden. It didn''t like sharing those things. Grey didn''t know the details of what happened between them, and when he asked his Teacher for more details, his Teacher sent him flying. This casual strike from his Teacher showed him the massive gap between a Venerable and a Sovereign. He didn''t even have time to react before he was sent flying. His Teacher was lenient, making sure the attack wasn''t harmful. He just wanted to make sure Grey was sent flying for asking such questions. And when Grey came back, his soup mysteriously vanished. Well, the plate was still there, but it''s contents had mysteriously disappeared. Grey looked at both Klaus and his Teacher, but both of them had the same expression as they did before he was sent flying. It was as if nothing happened. ''Damn it! Now I know where he got his character.'' The more he looked at Klaus, the more he understood the reason he was acting so shamelessly. Growing up with someone like his Teacher by his side, even though the Principal was decent, there was no way Klaus would be decent having someone like that by his side. Chris was eccentric and did whatever he wanted without fearing what the consequences may be. He was very smart, but his strength made him a somewhat reckless figure who did whatever he wanted. Growing up with someone like that meant the young Klaus would learn from him more than his father since he was the fun one. Now as Klaus grew older and stronger, he was showing the same attributes of Chris. However, although Chris did whatever he wanted, he was also very smart not to overstep his boundaries. A smart yet reckless individual. Grey was forced to watch the duo eat, and other than him and the bunny leader, the others were busy munching on bunny meat, while slurping on the soup, Void included. Grey sat next to the bunny leader and they both entered a silent state, it was almost as if the duo were mourning the dead bunny while the others were enjoying it after its death. Time passed slowly and after they were done eating, they stayed together a little longer before Chris told them he was leaving for his mission. After bidding him farewell, it was time for the duo to head back to where they came from. Klaus was going back to the Moonlight Faction to try to break through to the Sovereign Plane, while Grey would head to the Dawson Family first before heading for the Pyrmond Faction. His intention was the same as Klaus'', breaking through to the Sovereign Plane. "Bud, break through as soon as you can. I need to make sure the Gnome world is destroyed by me." Klaus said. "You don''t entirely have the means or strength of doing that." Grey commented. "Don''t underestimate what I''m capable of doing. Once I get to the Sovereign Plane, my ice abilities will see a greater boost. Even you will show me respect then." "Good luck with that." Seeing that there was no way to get through to Grey, Klaus grumpily gave up and said, "I''m being serious, break through soon. The war is closer than we think." He had a long conversation with Chris so he was privy to some things Grey didn''t know about. Chris didn''t have the intention of telling Grey. "I can tell." Grey nodded and looked in the direction his Teacher faced. He knew the reason Klaus made this statement was because of something his Teacher told him. The duo didn''t speak any longer, after a handshake, the duo went their separate ways. Chapter 1458 God’s Favorites Three days later. Grey appeared at the gates of the Pyrmond Faction. He looked at it with some emotions. When he came here he was in the Overlord Plane, but in a matter of a few years, he had grown to the Peak of the Venerable Plane, on the verge of becoming a Sovereign, being close to the very top of the Aurora Continent, yet he didn''t feel safe nor comfortable, rather, there was a force urging him to grow stronger. He was growing stronger, yet the forces after his life were getting even stronger. In the Azure Continent the strongest experts there were only in the Overlord Plane, with a few at the Sage Plane. But now, he was against a foe that had God Plane Elementalists in it. Not just him, but the entire Continent. The difference between him and the others was that the Gnome race wanted him dead at all costs, while the others could be pardoned if the Aurora Continent was successfully invaded by the Gnomes. To a certain extent, the humans were all fighting for their lives, but there was a good chance they could also survive under the control of the Gnomes. Yes, they would be restricted from doing certain things, but there was a slight chance they would survive. Grey was different, with his ability, the Gnomes didn''t want him to grow. At the moment, even with his current strength, they feel he''s already becoming more of a threat. Someone as dangerous as he is shouldn''t have been allowed to grow. However, he was discovered very late which was to his advantage. At the moment, it was common knowledge that Grey is wanted dead by the Gnomes, and recently, the price placed on his head had been increased. Grey sorted out his feelings before walking into the Pyrmond Faction. He was still a member of this once prestigious Faction, and would always be. Even though he had some issues with one of the Grand Elders, his status as the son of the great Lucas Dawson was enough to ward off any evil eyes placed on him for the meantime. Other than the Gnomes and Necromancers, the rest didn''t want to have any issues with Lucas, hence the reason some people hadn''t taken on the task of killing Grey and collecting the rewards. When Grey entered the Faction grounds, he was surprised that he didn''t even get the chance to get to his house before he was teleported to the Faction Leader''s place. Grey bowed to greet the Faction Leader when he saw him. When he sensed the teleportation energy, he knew where it was coming from so he didn''t fight it. "Peak of the Venerable Plane. A prodigy from the Dawson Family indeed." The Faction Leader nodded in approval when he saw Grey''s current cultivation stage. He knew Grey was going to get to the Sovereign Plane faster than his father, Lucas Dawson, but it is looking like it would be faster than what he imagined. "It''s good you''ve returned safely from your journey." He added. "Thank you." Grey bowed once more. "I''m sorry for this, but I was looking for the perfect person to send out for a mission, and since you''re here, I couldn''t help it." The Faction Leader gave a wry smile. Grey wanted to reject, but seeing the Faction Leader''s sorry expression, he knew he was doing it because there was no other option. "What is it about?" He questioned. "You have to escort some of the weaker members into a region and ensure they don''t get attacked by Rank Seven Magical Beasts while they train." The Faction Leader explained. "Can''t one of the Elders in the Faction do it?" Grey raised a brow. From his perspective, this was something one of the Faction Elders should be doing. He wanted to get to the Sovereign Plane. Within these past three days, Void had gotten to the Eighth Rank and has been very cocky. Whenever Void or Klaus had the higher cultivation stage, they tend to bully him before he catches up. Well, Klaus has always failed, rather, he was beaten up instead. Void on the other hand was too strong and he only attempts this when he''s in another Plane. Since Grey caught up with him, he stopped training with Void as much as he used to. "You''re one of the Elders of the Faction, and has recently been announced as one of the potential next Faction Leader." The Faction Leader replied with a grin. "Uh?" Grey was speechless when he heard this. He rarely spent time in the Faction since he found out he was from the Dawson Family, yet he was already an Elder and also announced as one of the potential future Faction Leaders? "I''m sorry, but I can''t accept these things. I''m not cut out for leading. I have too many people who want me dead that just being in this Faction is already implicating it." Grey didn''t want to take up such a responsibility. "I know, and that will make the others strive to get better, taking this Faction back to where it belongs before the start of the war. In all honesty, I believe you should take up this offer. There are certain things that will be very beneficial to you." The Faction Leader tried to convince Grey. Grey shook his head," I''m sorry, but it has never been my intention to rule over a Faction." The Faction Leader lowered his head when he heard this. Grey''s brows were knitted before he added, "However, I would protect this Faction to the best of my abilities. I''ve been doing this since I joined the Faction, and until the day I die, I will protect this Faction." A smile appeared on the face of the Faction Leader when he heard this. To be honest, he was more interested in hearing this than Grey accepting he wanted to become the Faction Leader. Both cases were to the benefit of the Pyrmond Faction, and as long as Grey was willing to protect the Faction, it doesn''t matter if he was the Faction Leader or not, at least as long as Grey was alive, they had the backing of the powerful Lucas Dawson. Grey saw his expression and knew this was what the Faction Leader wanted to hear. "Also, about the mission¡­" "You can''t refuse that." The Faction Leader cut Grey off, "You''ve not been in the Faction for a while now and you need to at least complete some tasks. I''m sorry, but you have to accept it." "You don''t have to worry, they wouldn''t be venturing deep into the forest, just enough for them to train." The Faction Leader said, seeing Grey''s expression he added, "Also, none of them will be aware of your presence. With your strength, don''t tell me you can shield yourself from a bunch of Sage Plane Elementalists." Grey thought about it and nodded. Since he didn''t have any choice, he didn''t mind following them. Besides, he had Void who was already a Rank Eight Magical Beast. Void would protect them while he trained somewhere else. "When are they heading out?" He asked. "In two days. So you have sometime to rest." The Faction Leader said. Grey didn''t speak any further and left the place, heading to his building. He was quite famous in the Faction, and the others were able to easily recognize him. As he walked through the Faction, he was getting looks from those around and those in groups started to discuss him. There were a lot of rumors that were about him and one of the most common one was the fact that he was very powerful for his cultivation stage. Not just him, but his group of friends were also very powerful. "You don''t have to worry, they wouldn''t be venturing deep into the forest, just enough for them to train." The Faction Leader said, seeing Grey''s expression he added, "Also, none of them will be aware of your presence. With your strength, don''t tell me you can shield yourself from a bunch of Sage Plane Elementalists." The group of friends were even called ''God''s favorites''. As Grey walked, he heard all sorts of rumors and couldn''t help but frown. His reputation had grown more than he expected. He didn''t find this pleasing in any way. He liked being anonymous, but with his present fame, it would be difficult to even walk in the Faction without having so many looks from others. ''Klaus would be enjoying this.'' This was the only thing in his head as he dropped his head and walked into his building to hide. It didn''t take long before a visitor arrived. It was none other than Keith, the only person he regarded as a friend in the Faction. It had been a while he saw Keith, and when Keith entered the place, he found out Keith was already at the Peak of the Sage Plane, and with a little push, he would break through to the Venerable Plane. "You''re back." Keith said as he walked in. "Yes. I didn''t find you in your place so I decided to rest for a bit." Grey nodded. "I just returned and heard some people talking about you, so I came here as soon as I could." Keith explained. He tried to sense Grey''s cultivation stage, but he couldn''t. As a matter of fact, as he tried to sense it, it was as if he was being dragged into the boundless space. Chapter 1459 Hoping To Awaken Another Domain Keith couldn''t start to comprehend what stage Grey had gotten to now. To be fair, he was growing at a very fast pace, but he paled in comparison to freaks like Grey and his friends. One has to know that they were regarded ''God''s favorites'' for a reason. At first, Grey was the only one in the limelight, but then the news of three others advancing at a shocking speed started to spread, especially the news of the only male in the Moonlight Faction. It was said that he was an individual the entire Faction was envious of, even the Faction Leader. Keith didn''t think about it much since there was no point in doing so. Grey spent some time with Keith and found out he was the one leading the group that was about to venture out for training in a forest. He didn''t tell him he would be going with them, but he told him he didn''t have anything to fear in the journey as he would be safe. They spoke for a while with Keith telling him about his journey all this while. Grey listened to everything he was saying while occasionally speaking of similar events he encountered. In general they had a good conversation before Keith left so he could rest. It had been a while since Grey was settled and felt he was in safe hands, so he did something he hadn''t done in a while, which was getting a good sleep. Elementalists generally don''t need sleep. They could stay awake for years, even hundreds of years without sleeping, but occasionally, it was good to have a shut eye. It keeps the mind sharp and refreshed. Grey didn''t have any reasons to keep himself awake so he slept. Time went fast and before long the two days he was given by the Faction Leader arrived. The lives of the group were placed in his hands and he needed to ensure none of them died. Of course, it didn''t mean he had to intervene in whatever battle they were going to have as long as it was within their ability. However, if they were confronted with people above their level, he would step in and ensure that they were safe. Grey didn''t think much about it. All he had to do was scare all the Rank Seven Beasts in the area while keeping the ones in Rank Six there. There''s a way for him to do that, without alerting the Rank Six Beasts. After a short trip, the Pyrmond Faction members were present. Grey had to follow them through the journey so as to prevent any unforeseen events. After they got to the place, the first thing he did was to search the area. Only after he didn''t find any traces of anyone above the Sage Plane did he go inside, with the others already about to step in. Grey was very efficient. With Void with him, there was no way anything above the Sage Plane or Sixth Rank could hide from them. They saw a few Rank Five Magical Beasts at the start of the forest, but they were within the abilities of those who just entered so they didn''t bother. Even though Rank Five Magical Beasts should generally be in the depths of the forest, there are a few occasions where they stroll to the edge for certain reasons. This was the reason Grey and Void were at the forefront, ensuring they scouted the place first. They didn''t go too far from the group, making sure the group was within their scope. Void had a larger range than Grey which made it easier for them. As they headed deeper, the frequency of Rank Five Magical Beasts started to increase and there were even a few Rank Six Beasts that were in the area. But they were still in the Early stages and wouldn''t be trouble for a group that had over ten Peak Sage Plane Elementalists. Soon enough, the number of Rank Six Beasts shot up and Rank Seven Beasts started to appear. Grey and Void got to work, chasing them away from the area the group wanted to train. They didn''t care where they went, but as long as they weren''t in this area, they were fine. The good thing about the Magical Beasts'' community is that the Beasts in the Early stages are at the front while those in the Mid stages are above them, and so on. This meant that if they headed deeper, they would mainly encounter Beasts in the Mid stages of the Seventh Rank. After clearing the area, Grey and Void hid in the skies as they watched the group advance. To be honest, this was a strange feeling for both. They have always been the ones in these situations while there was a figure watching from afar, keeping them safe. But now, with the increase of their strengths, they are the ones in this situation as they have to protect these weaker people. Void was about to hide in Grey''s storage ring when Grey said. "I''m going deeper. You''re already in the Eighth Rank, watch over them. I need to break through too." Void didn''t even have the time to respond before Grey vanished. In the end, Void was the one who was watching over them while Grey had ventured into the forest. Void wanted to be the one who entered the forest since there would be good things inside, but Grey was the one who left him there. He grunted but still stayed to watch over Keith and the others. ¡­. In the deeper parts of the forest. Grey went straight to the very edge of the part that had Peak Rank Seven Magical Beasts. He knew he could deal with them easily, but after taking a blow from his Teacher, he didn''t want to venture into the area of the Rank Eight Magical Beasts. When Void broke through, he tried to take an attack from him to see the difference between him and a Pseudo-Sovereign, and the difference was beyond words. He didn''t know if it was because Void was generally stronger than those in the same stage as himself, but he knew at the very least, Void could kill him with at most three blows. This was a realization that made him know his current place in the world. Luckily he didn''t plan to sneak into the Gnome world while he was still in the Venerable Plane, if not they would''ve thrown their lives away if they encountered a First stage Sovereign, much less one in the Second or Third stage. "I need to see if there''s any Beasts with special bloodlines present. If there''s any, it might be a shortcut to the Sovereign Plane." He murmured to himself. One of the safest methods Grey knew to improve his strength was by assimilating with Beast blood essence. As long as he gets a top Beast''s blood essence, he could easily improve his strength, and there''s even the possibility of getting a bonus package as well with it. This was something he knew all too well, and he enjoyed it. At the moment, he would prefer seeing a Wind Elemental Beast so he could awaken his Wind domain. He already had lightning, fire, water, and earth. If he could add the wind or any other element to it, his strength would skyrocket while having five domains. This was unheard of, yet there''s a possibility Grey would be able to achieve something within such a short time. He moved across the place while searching for the perfect Beast to take their blood essence, but he didn''t find anyone. ''I knew it wouldn''t be this easy.'' He shook his head with a sigh. The chances of finding beasts with top bloodlines was very difficult. The beasts that usually have top bloodlines were Dragons, Phoenixes, Griffins. Every beast mentioned there were legendary beasts and always have high and pure bloodlines. If Grey could capture one of these, he was sure of attaining a good blood essence from them, and being able to awaken whatever elemental domain it''s element is. Since he already has the fire, water, lightning, and earth domain, he didn''t want to waste his time to capture any of these Elemental Beasts, but if he encountered anyone with either of the four elements he hadn''t awakened their domain, then he would capture it with all his might. However, he knew it was a fool''s dream if he believed he could locate one in this area of the forest. A low leveled Dragon was far superior to these guys, and they usually reside in the depths of the forests, just like any other Magical Beast. A Rank Five Dragon can easily become king in an area like this, as long as it comes from the depths of the forest. None of these Beasts wants to offend the Dragons, so they would usually let them do as they pleased. Nevertheless, there are a few Beasts who wouldn''t mind becoming enemies with the Dragons as long as they break through to the next Rank. Chapter 1460 Making A Deal With A Dragon Grey continued to move across the place in search of the perfect Beast or opportunity for him to break through, while the others were training under the watchful eyes of Void. Although Void can be very nonchalant, as long as he was given the job by Grey, he would do his best to accomplish it. He didn''t want to miss out on Grey''s delicacies. Just like Chris, he enjoyed Grey''s cooking. Not just Chris, but everyone else that is close to him, Grey''s parents included. While Grey was walking around, he got a message from Void about something he found around the place. He couldn''t go and check it out since he couldn''t take his eyes of the people training but Grey could go. Grey didn''t think twice about it and hastily rushed back. With his strength it only took a few minutes before he returned. When he got back, Void told him the area he sensed it and told him that there seemed to be a Peak Rank Seven Beast hiding there too. The place was around the region Early Rank Seven Beasts usually stay in. Hearing that a Peak Rank Seven Beast was hiding there, Grey knew whatever it is Void sensed was worth it. Without hesitation, he rushed there. And the closer he got to the place, the more he could feel what Void was talking about. He followed his senses and soon saw a large waterfall. A deep lake was beneath the waterfall. Grey looked at it and he couldn''t sense anything from the waterfall, but the lake itself. "Underwater. I don''t want to improve my water element, but there''s no harm in checking out what it is." He murmured and shot into the water. He was a Water Elementalist so he had no problem with breathing under water. With the help of a few air bubbles, he didn''t have any problems. As he went deeper into the lake, he realized it was not a regular lake. The depth of this lake was beyond his expectations, and the deeper he went, the stronger the pressure as well as the feeling he was getting. The lake was also getting wider and darker. But for someone of his cultivation stage, there was no way he couldn''t see in this darkness. A normal human would''ve died under the pressure of the water, but for Elementalists, especially Water Elementalists, it was a walk in the park. Grey went deeper and soon noticed the source of the feeling he was getting. There was an underwater cave, and after swimming up, he came out of the water to see a large Magical Beast lying on the ground, beside it was an egg that contained tremendous energy. Grey almost gasped out loud when he saw this. ''A Dragon!'' He laughed internally. What were the odds of seeing a Dragon this far out? Almost zero, yet here it was, a living, breathing Dragon in front of him, and it even had an egg. From the looks of it, he could guess it was a female Dragon. The Dragon had dark scales and it gave off an eerie feeling. Its belly had a blue color. Both its horns had two different colors, one dark while the other was blue. ''It has two elements? Water and something else. Space or the darkness element wouldn''t be bad.'' Grey started thinking of what elements the Dragon had and what ways it would be beneficial for him. However, his expression changed when he noticed the large wound on the left side of the Dragon as it turned around to inspect the water pool in the cave. The wound was still very fresh, and when he saw how the Dragon moved, he knew that it was very weak. "Who''s there?" The Dragon spoke in the human tongue as it questioned. Grey could sense the tiredness in the voice which seemed like it would fade away in a short moment. He didn''t step out from his hiding place, opting to stay hidden. "Do not be alarmed, I know of your presence, human. I can sense the dense Dragon essence in your body." The Dragon spoke one again, and this time, Grey had no option but to step out. He never thought the Dragon would sense him due to the Dragon essence he consumed. He didn''t show any fears as he stepped out, the reason for this was because he was confident in his abilities, and also due to the fact that the Dragon was seriously injured. He knew it posed no harm to him in its present state. "Fascinating." The Dragon spoke once again, but this time, its voice contained shock. At first it could only sense the Dragon blood in Grey''s body, but as Grey stepped out, it could sense that there was not just Dragon blood in his body, but other powerful Magical Beasts'' blood essence as well. "Why are you hiding here?" Grey asked calmly. "As you can see, I''m injured. If I return to my tribe, I will be killed and my child will be devoured." The Dragon spoke slowly, taking deep breaths between each word. Grey inspected the Dragon and knitted his brow, the injury the Dragon sustained was not as simple as he thought it was. As a matter of fact, it was very severe and the chances of the Dragon surviving it was zero. There was no way it could be saved at the moment. "What happened to you?" He pointed at the place the dragon was injured. The Dragon wanted to explain, but it would take too long, after thinking about it, he transmitted its voice into Grey''s head, explaining everything within a few seconds. The Dragon was sent out from its tribe for a mission. On the way, it was attacked by a group of Magical Beasts. All were in the same stage as itself. Being a Dragon gave it the advantage and it was able to fight against them, gaining the opportunity to escape. To its shock, on its way back, the son of the Tribe Leader stopped it and attacked, using a special technique he seriously wounded her, while also giving the other Beasts the go-ahead to attack her. With no other option, she fled. The reason she was attacked was due to the fact that the son of the Tribe Leader wanted her to be his mate, but she didn''t and mated with someone else. The son of the Tribe Leader found out when she was close to laying her egg and decided to achieve his plot. She was lucky to have survived the attacks and even managed to hide someone to lay her egg. Dragons find it very difficult to conceive, but she was one of the few who got pregnant very quickly. She kept it hidden, but for some reason, the son of the Tribe Leader found out and wanted both her and her offspring dead. The father of her offspring was not from her tribe which made things difficult. The Tribe Leader will find it hard to keep the child since it wasn''t from their tribe. This was the reason she didn''t try to go back to the tribe. She has been here for a few months now, and her offspring will be hatching soon, but she wasn''t confident she would be able to keep herself alive long enough to take care of it. Grey listened intently to the Dragon''s story. He felt a bit of pity for her since he didn''t expect the Dragon tribes to be this way. Since they rarely conceive, he believed they should at least be able to keep all their eggs with them. "I''m sorry you had to go through all this trouble." He said softly. He truly did feel pity for the Dragon. Something like this only happened to humans, or so he thought, but this Dragon changed his view on things. "Your offspring will be coming to life soon, I can help keep you alive for a few more months." Grey had some things that could extend the Dragon''s life, but they were very valuable. As much as he wouldn''t generally want to use it, he felt pity for this Dragon and he wouldn''t really mind helping her. "There''s no point in keeping me alive for a few more months." The Dragon shook its large head. "What do you mean?" Grey asked. ''Keeping me alive for a few months isn''t enough to train my offspring. I need at least fifteen to twenty years. And there''s still no hope for me. Death is certain for me with this injury.'' The Dragon explained telepathically. "What do you plan on doing then?" Grey asked. ''Well, I didn''t know, until you arrived.'' The Dragon gave Grey a deep look. Grey looked at the Dragon, giving him a strange look. He didn''t understand the meaning behind the look he was getting from the Dragon. "Human, are you willing to make a deal with me?" The Dragon asked with her raspy voice. Chapter 1463 Making A Deal With A Dragon II Grey was startled when he heard the question the Dragon asked. He had never expected that the Dragon would be willing to make a deal with him. He even suggested he could offer something that would keep the Dragon alive a little longer but the Dragon doesn''t seem to have any interest in temporary solutions, rather, it wanted a permanent one. Grey remained silent, and after a while he moved his head slightly, "What''s the deal about?" He wanted to know if it''s something within his capabilities before agreeing. What if it was something about sneaking into a Dragon tribe? With his current strength, the only thing that awaited him was death. This was something he was certain of, so he didn''t want to take such risks. He preferred that the Dragon told him what the mission was first before he agrees to whatever deal the Dragon asked. ''Are you willing to take my offspring and bring it up?'' The Dragon transmitted her voice, at the moment, she was finding it harder to speak in the human tongue, so he opted to transmit her voice. "Oh¡­" Grey never expected such a request from the Dragon. It was literally giving him the go-ahead to take her baby. Most Dragons wouldn''t want a human to have custody of their children, but this one doesn''t seem to have a choice. ''I have something precious, I might be dying, but I''m a Dragon, after all.'' She said with a proud pose. Grey saw the elegance of the Dragon and nodded. To be honest, he never thought a chance would come where he would get one of the legendary Beasts. Having the baby Dragon had already made this journey worthwhile, even if there was no chance he couldn''t break through. He didn''t show the excitement out, but internally, his blood was boiling. "If I agree to take care of your offspring, this is a big if, what''s in it for me?" Grey asked. He didn''t want the Dragon to think that he felt privileged to train a Dragon, therefore, asking for a reward would make the Dragon know he wasn''t one of those people who took Dragons as supreme beings. ''Like I said, I have a special treasure I can pass onto you, and a Dragon technique, however, I''m not sure you can learn it since it requires one to have Dragon scales.'' The Dragon was in the middle of speaking when Grey''s body glowed with bluish light as scales appeared on his body. He awakened his water domain thanks to something from Dragons, and it seemed to be from a Water Dragon. The Dragon was taken aback when she saw the scales on Grey''s body. ''I stand corrected, you do have the facilities to learn this technique.'' She said after seeing Grey. Grey motioned for the Dragon to continue. ''Does this mean you accept the deal?'' The Dragon asked. Grey thought about it and nodded, "All I have to do is train your offspring, correct?" ''Yes.'' "Revenge?" ''You don''t have to. There''s no point in having revenge against him.'' "What if the opportunity arises in the future?" ''Then do what you must.'' Grey nodded, even though he wasn''t obligated to take revenge for the Dragon, as long as he was going to take care of her offspring, then he was going to make sure if the opportunity arose, he would take revenge for her. "Pass on the technique to me and some memories I can pass on to your offspring." Grey had read about Dragons being able to pass on their memories to the next generation or someone of their choice. He didn''t doubt it in any bit since it was something he read from a book at his father''s house. The Dragon didn''t argue and moved her large claw in Grey''s direction. Grey didn''t move since he wasn''t afraid of being attacked by the Dragon. She placed the tip of her claw on Grey''s forehead and a bright light passed through her claw into Grey''s head. Grey''s eyes shone brilliantly and he couldn''t help but shiver from the influx of information into his head. It was almost as if he was living through the life of the Dragon. From the Dragon she had the offspring for to her tribe, he saw it all and even how to get into the tribes. It was a strange experience. This was the first time he was experiencing something like. After a while his eyes dimmed. He had not only learnt about the life of the Dragon, but he had also learned a few techniques from the dragon tribe. Each Dragon tribe had a special technique, and according to the hierarchy, there was a Dragon tribe at the top that had a technique that could make Dragons take the form of humans. It was said to be passed down from the Dragon God and only those worthy of it could learn it. Regrettably, this Dragon''s tribe didn''t have such technique with them. Grey found out the name of the Dragon and also the name of the Tribe Leader''s son who attacked her. Her name was Melmera, while the name of the Tribe Leader''s son was Sirevius. After taking in so much information, Melmera looked at Grey and said. ''I have two elements, and I can give you the essence of one of them. Which would you prefer?'' "What are the elements?" ''Water and¡­ the darkness element.'' Melmera''s reply was within Grey''s expectations. He knew the dark color on the horn of the Dragon signified it had either the darkness or space element. He wouldn''t mind taking the essence of either since it would mean the chance of awakening either of the domains. He didn''t really care which one he awakened, as long as he awakened a new one, he was satisfied. Grey didn''t think twice as he said, "The darkness element." ''You also have the darkness element?'' Melmera knew Grey had the water element, and she could sense a vast amount of earth, space, fire and lightning element around him. This meant he had five elements, having the darkness element meant that he had six elements. The senses of Dragons were very sharp, so she was sure of what she sensed. Grey nodded, there was no point in hiding from her. Since he would be taking care of her offspring, he needed to come off as someone she could trust. "I''m curious about something." He spoke up. Melmera looked at Grey curiously. He didn''t mince his words as he asked, "Why do you trust me? You''ve just been betrayed by one of your kinsmen, why do you think a greedy human like me would not take advantage of your predicament?" ''I''m just placing my hopes in you. I can''t say I''m certain you will hold your end of the deal, but I believe you would at least want to have a Dragon. We are at the top of the Magical Beasts'' world, no human would pass up the opportunity to have a Dragon as a loyal companion.'' Melmera explained. Grey couldn''t help but applaud her statement. In all honesty, she was right. There was no human that could pass up the opportunity of having a Dragon. Even the top powerhouses wanted Dragons, but only a few have them, especially one of such pure bloodline. Most of the Dragons used as steads are those with impure bloodlines, they have all the features of a Dragon, but they lack the essence of Dragons. In truth, Dragons like Melmera who had such high bloodlines are what are regarded as true Dragons, the rest can be called Dragons, but they know they''re not on the same level as these true Dragons. Grey was impressed with Melmera''s thought process. "There''s another thing, I can''t wait until it hatches¡­" Grey explained his purpose of coming to this forest and the responsibility that was on his shoulders. Melmera didn''t complain, rather she looked at the egg before saying. ''I have a way to quicken the process, but it means I will die after it hatches.'' Melmera''s voice was calm, it was as if she wasn''t afraid of death. As long as her offspring could live, she was okay with dying. This was something Grey believed all parents had. Well, there are a few who aren''t afraid of sacrificing their children to save their lives, but he knew the majority of them didn''t want anything to happen to their children. "Alright, go ahead with the process. Is there a way you can pass on some memories to it before you hatch it?" Grey wanted the Dragon to know a few things about its life after it hatches. Melmera didn''t have any issues with that, as a matter of fact, she had already done that. She only transmitted the information of her making a deal with Grey to the Dragon. Grey watched as Melmera started the process, and as he looked at the egg, he couldn''t help but recall how Void, a cat, seemingly came out of an egg. Chapter 1464 Birth Of Eisendrache **A.N: Reload the last chapter, it has been fixed :(** Grey watched the whole process while thinking about Void''s hatching. Void ate his treasures as he came to life. The scene of a small cat sleeping inside his bag with a big protruding stomach was funny as he thought about it. ''I wonder what type of cat Void is¡­'' He thought to himself as he watched the scene before him. It took almost one hour for the process to complete, but then Grey started to hear cracks from the egg. Melmera has quickened the whole process and the egg which was supposed to take a few more weeks hatched in less than one hour. ''Changing the time of something is really strange.'' Grey thought. He recalled the time he spent with the old Turtle that seemingly had the ability to change the time in the space. He spent what seemed to be weeks there and it was only a few days. It was a strange concept. Time isn''t something he believed could be played with, but there are two instances now that he has witnessed it himself and he was starting to have another thought about it. If there''s a way he could mess with time, then he didn''t mind doing it. Take for instance he could isolate himself somewhere where the time was moving around ten to twenty times slower. He would be able to achieve something of twenty years in a year there. Just the thought of this made his blood boil, unfortunately, it was something that was out of reach. There was also something the Turtle said about Void being from somewhere else. Grey threw all these to the back of his head, there was no use in thinking about them now. He had more important things to attend to now which was surviving. The Aurora Continent was on the verge of being attacked by the Gnomes, according to what he knew, this was what was referred to as the War of Gods that happened years ago. Many heroes fell during that way and it was on the verge of happening once again. There''s a chance humans might not survive it this time, or even if they do, he might not necessarily be alive since the Gnomes wanted him dead at all costs. The cracks on the egg started to increase and before long, a small Dragon head popped out. The head looked around and placed its eyes on the large Dragon that was looking at it, exhaustion evident on its fate. "My dearest Eisendrache, I''m afraid I will not stay with you through your journey. You must stay with this human¡­" Melmera paused as she looked at Grey. Grey knew she didn''t know his name and he went on to say it. "Grey Dawson, he will be your guide and also your family. He will take care of you, and you will do the same." The little Dragon, Eisendrache didn''t say a word as Melmera said her last words to her child. Eisendrache, a male dragon came out of the egg, a supposedly joyous day was one filled with sadness. His beady eyes were filled with tears as he seemingly knew what was happening. His mother, Melmera was dying, and there was no way to save her. The human who was standing by the side, Grey Dawson was the person she was handing him over to. She didn''t know his character, but she didn''t have any choice. Having his mother transfer some of her memories to him meant that he was very smart, even for a newborn. Dragons aren''t like humans who tend to be incapable of doing anything at a young age, especially the types like Eisendrache whose parents transfer some of their memories to. Melmera knew transferring most of her memories to him would affect his growth, so she only transferred the ones she felt he needed. However, those were enough for him to gain a little information about some things. Grey didn''t say anything as he watched the mother and son share the last moments. A few minutes later, Melmera glowed with a brilliant light as two lights came out of her body, a bluish and a darkish light. One shot into Eisendrache''s body while the other went Grey''s way. ''This is the essence, do with it whatever you want.'' Melmera''s voice came with it. Grey looked at the light, and then at Eisendrache, he shook his head with a wry smile and waved his hand. The light shot into Eisendrache''s body. He had both elements of his mother, but there were two more colors on his horn which meant he had four elements. This information shocked him to the core. The two elements were the wind and earth element. As much as he wanted the darkness element, he didn''t mind giving it to the little Dragon. Melmera and Eisendrache were shocked at the decision of Grey. "I may want benefits, but I''m not heartless. Let him have everything." Grey said when he saw the look Melmera was giving him. The look the little Dragon gave him changed slightly as there was a little softness in it. Eisendrache absorbed everything, and the Dragon which was born only a few minutes ago started to see a change in its cultivation stage. Eisendrache went from Rank One to the Fourth Rank in the blink of an eye. Grey watched everything unfold before his eyes. Eisendrache started to grow in size, and before long, the small Dragon was almost the same size as Grey. One has to know that a fully grown Dragon was well over eight meters long and fifteen meters long. In the space of a few minutes, Eisendrache went from barely half a meter to close to two meters tall and over four meters long. As Eisendrache was growing in size, Melmera was turning into lights. Grey could see that she was starting to fade away. Eisendrache was growing stronger while Melmera grew weaker. A few minutes later, Melmera faded away, while Eisendrache was over three meters tall in the end. Grey watched everything with a sad expression. He didn''t expect to see something like this. Chapter 1463 A New Member Of The Family Eisendrache started crying as soon as his mother turned into light particles. ?? ??? ???? ?? ???? ???? ???????s, ????s? ??s?? ?ovel(?)?re.n?t Grey didn''t rush to move close to him, he stayed in the same location as he watched the saddened Eisendrache. He stayed for a little while, before walking over to where Eisendrache was located. "Hey¡­" Eisendrache looked at Grey while prepared to attack. He was in Rank Five while Grey was a Peak Venerable which was equivalent to the stage his mother was in, Rank Seven. Even his mother at the Peak wouldn''t be able to defeat Grey, much less a Mid stage Rank Five Dragon. "Don''t do that. Even your mother in her prime can''t beat me, much less you in your current state." Grey''s words was like pouring cold water on his body, Eisendrache calmed down, but the tears on his face were evident. "I can''t say I understand how you feel, but to a certain extent, I know what it feels like losing a parent, both in my situation¡­" Grey tried to calm Eisendrache down, after all, he was only a child. Even though he was quite large for a little Dragon, he was still only a child. Grey spoke with him and was able to go close to him after a while. Eisendrache wasn''t evil, he just didn''t feel okay with what just happened. Grey didn''t rush his conversation with him which gave him the chance to accept him. Eisendrache was a little child Grey had to raise, and after having to deal with Void''s shenanigans, he didn''t think Eisendrache would be worse. Void was a magnet for trouble, he literally always goes in search of trouble actively which was a characteristic Grey thought only Klaus possessed. After they stayed for a while, Grey said. "I promise to help your mother take revenge. I know it''s your job, but I can''t allow a child like you to take on such a responsibility. He''s someone I can deal with now, but there''s no way I can sneak into the tribe." Grey explained, he looked at the agitated Eisendrache and said, "I''ll wait till I''m strong enough to do whatever I want." Eisendrache didn''t see a problem with his statement. The fact that Grey passed on his supposedly payment over to him meant that he wasn''t like other humans, he was greedy, but to a certain extent. And when he saw the memory of his mother with Grey, he saw the place where Grey was asking for revenge. This meant he had it in mind, but would only do it when he could. Eisendrache didn''t say anything more and asked when they could leave this place. "Well¡­ you''re a Dragon. As much as I would like to take you out of here with me openly, I can''t. You''re one of the most sought after Magical Beasts in the world. The second you step out, even other Dragons will want you." Grey didn''t dare to take the risk of bringing a Dragon out with him. He didn''t mind keeping him in his spatial storage, but the problem is that, unlike Void and the bunny leader, the Dragon couldn''t enter on his own. He couldn''t keep a living Magical Beast in there, but Void could. Eisendrache looked at Grey, with a sad expression. "Don''t worry, I have a way to sort this out." Grey consoled him before contacting Void. ''Hey bud, come over to help.'' He transmitted his voice to Void. ''There''s a battle ongoing, once it''s done I''ll come.'' Grey didn''t have any issues with that, rather, he started playing around with Eisendrache, seeing how proficient he was with his elements. It took a while but Void came over eventually. "Fuck! Why are you so deep underground?!" Void complained so he appeared with water falling around him. He hated getting wet, but he made a mistake when calculating Grey''s location and appeared inside the depths of the lake. He was soaked, to say the least, and was fuming! "Stop complaining, Void." Grey said. When Eisendrache saw that the figure Grey was waiting for was a cat, he was taken aback. Originally, he thought the person Grey was waiting for was another human, he never expected the figure to be a Magical Beast. And given how Void spoke to Grey, it was clear that their relationship wasn''t that of a Magical Beast and a human. "Oh, a giant lizard, how nice!" Void said as he looked at Eisendrache. "Stop being rude, Void." Grey reprimanded Void before saying, "This is Eisendrache¡­" Grey told Void about what happened when he came here and Void couldn''t help but take another look at Eisendrache. "So you''re saying we have a means of transport now?" Void asked. Grey couldn''t help but facepalm. He just recalled how Void treated Dragons. Unlike humans, Void felt Dragons were inferior creatures which was a shocking thing to say. Dragons are even more powerful than humans, yet Void felt that they were inferior to him. Void has never seen Dragons as beasts above him in any way. "Void, he''s like a baby brother to you. Don''t tell me you want to use your baby brother as a stead?" Grey asked with a long face. "Well, he''s quite big. What''s the problem with sitting on his head?" Void retorted. Grey peeked at Eisendrache and gave him a look of ''reduce your size''. Eisendrache did as told by Grey and reduced his size to the same as Void. "I''ve already seen your size, do you think you won''t be my stead?" Void asked. "Void, don''t annoy me." Grey said with a cold expression. When Void saw Grey''s expression, he smiled pleasantly and said, "I''m joking. Welcome to the family oversized lizard." Seeing the change in Void''s disposition, even though he still referred to him as an ''oversized lizard'', he noticed he at least gave in to Grey''s demands. Now he didn''t have to worry about being oppressed by Void. "I have to hide him in the spatial storage. Do what you''re good at." Chapter 1464 No Treasures, Just Responsibilities Void took a look at Eisendrache and without hesitation, he teleported him into the spatial storage. ''So easy. I wonder why he''s able to bend the rules of space to his favor and I can''t.'' Grey pouted as he thought. This was something he has never been able to understand. Void and the bunny leader were able to access his spatial storage and even that of others they are stronger than, yet he couldn''t. They could even enter and actively stay there, but Grey couldn''t bring in living beings, except on a few occasions like the triplets from the horned race. "Hey, why can''t I do this and you can?" He couldn''t help but ask. Void shrugged as if saying he had no idea and before Grey could speak, he disappeared. Grey could only watch him leave with veins almost popping on the side of his head. Since Void broke through, he had been very cocky. He sighed and muttered, "I need to break through." After looking at the place, other than the egg, there was nothing left. Thinking about it, he picked up the egg shells and threw them into his spatial ring. These were the shells of a Dragon, of course they might be special. He didn''t know if there was nothing special about them, he was just going to keep it for the time being. After a while, he looked around, since there was nothing to do, and he already had a means to increase his domain. Of course, it wasn''t a hundred percent certain, but he felt the chances were high, so he decided to study the technique Melmera passed on to him. The technique involved the delicate use of the dragon scales. According to it, it''s a means of deflecting attacks coming his way without having to expend too much energy. All he needed to do was to vibrate his scales in a certain manner and towards a certain direction and each attack sent at him would be deflected. This doesn''t mean he could deflect all attacks, just the ones within his capabilities. If he were to be attacked by some Late stage Venerables and he used this technique, he should be able to deflect the attack. But Late stage Venerables like Alice and Reynolds were not added to this mix. People like those two possessed a stronger attack power compared to normal Late stage Venerables. But in general, with this technique, he could easily stroll into a crowd of Late stage Venerables without having to defend against their attacks. ''Pretty cool'' He soon started to practice the technique, but as time went on he realized it was very difficult to achieve. This was something that involved moving all the scales which were supposed to be on his body. There were hundreds of scales on his body, and he needed to control each of them in perfect synchronization. Controlling one proved difficult after a few hours and he could only give up with a shake of his head. He was a fool to think a technique passed on by a Dragon would be easy to practice. ''I should get going, there might be other opportunities for me outside.'' This generally wasn''t a great opportunity, yes, he had a Dragon, but he couldn''t extract Eisendrache''s blood essence without his permission. It was safe to say that as long as Eisendrache didn''t agree to it, he couldn''t have some of the much desired blood essence. Rather than getting an opportunity, he got a young Dragon he had to be responsible for instead. Grey scanned the place one more time, and after confirming there was nothing present, he dived into the pool, swimming towards the surface of the lake. ¡­. Time went by and it has been over two days since they came here. "Why am I so unfortunate?" Grey sighed when he looked at the item in front of him. A great treasure was born in the woods, but it was practically useless to him. One of the things he hated about his new strength was the fact that it was getting harder to see things that could quickly increase his strength, unlike when he was in lower levels. His mind went to Keith and he could only pass on this chance to him. However, Keith was the person leading the group and he didn''t want to interfere with their expedition. "He''s smart, he wouldn''t tell others I''m keeping watch." He said and went over to the group. Void was bored from watching them and was playing with a black orb that was causing the space around him to crack. When Grey arrived, he felt his heart palpitate when he saw that orb. The orb was strong enough to kill him, this wasn''t something he doubted. "Fuck! Put that thing away!" He yelled from a distance. "Relax, it''s not dangerous." Void said while playing like a normal house cat as he hit the orb which was tied to a string. Grey felt his heart beat faster with his hit Void gave the orb. If that orb fell to the ground, at least an entire kilometer or two would disappear from the face of the world, and Grey wasn''t exaggerating. "Put it away, please. I don''t want any incidents." Grey could only say with a soft voice. The most update n0vels are published on Nov?l??re.n?t If he had the strength to stop this, he wouldn''t be scared, but he didn''t, and there''s a chance Void''s casual nonchalance might come. Void grumpily put the orb away before asking, "What do you want? Didn''t you say you''re searching for opportunities?" "I saw something I want to give to Keith." Grey pointed in Keith''s direction. "Oh, him. He''s been doing pretty well. He has already fought off two Peak Rank Six Magical Beasts and won." Void recalled who Keith was. "Good, this is a chance for him to get to the Venerable Plane." Grey nodded. "I thought you didn''t want them to know we''re here?" Void asked. "He''s not going to tell anyone about it." Grey didn''t see any problems with this. He quickly sent a transmission to Keith telling him to move away from the group. Chapter 1467 Shortcut To Success Keith was looking around as he was giving orders to the others when he heard a voice transmission. He froze for a second but quickly regained his composure. ''I didn''t expect him to be the person sent to watch over us. Hehe, I''m in luck.'' He was pleased to hear from Grey. One of the things he has found out with following Grey was that whenever he was traveling with him, he was always getting benefits without having to do much. He had been stuck at the Peak of the Sage Plane for a while now and hadn''t been able to find the right opportunity to break through, with Grey here, he suddenly felt like there was a huge opportunity before him. The fact that Grey contacted him meant that the opportunity might have already presented itself. With a pleased smile, he excused himself from the group and went over to a place where he wouldn''t be seen by others. Grey soon appeared from the void, with Void on his shoulders. "Why didn''t you tell me you''re the one in charge of this mission?" Keith asked begrudgingly. "It was on a short notice." Grey replied and said, "You''ve been doing well. However, I think it''s time you step up a little. The Venerable Plane is just within grasp, and I have the perfect opportunity for you." Keith was elated when he heard this, he knew this was the reason Grey called him, but he never thought Grey would be so direct. Without hesitation he nodded. "I''ve been stuck at the Peak of the Sage Plane for a while now. I have been trying to break through but there has been no chance of doing so." Grey grabbed him by the shoulder and Keith saw his environment change. He was still in the forest, but he was in another part of it. When he sensed the essence in this place, he realized this was the deeper parts of the forest. At the time Grey came back, he found a large bird in this place, the bird had its eyes set on the item he wanted to give Keith. The second it noticed them, it looked at them with cold eyes and its aura spread out, trying to intimidate the duo. Keith sensed the pressure only for quarter a second and he felt as if his lungs wanted to implode. He found it hard to breathe, but before the pressure could affect him, it vanished into thin air. "Get the fuck away from my belongings." Grey''s voice was calm, but the chilling cold that accompanied his voice made the bird shiver in fear, and after squawking, it flew away, not daring to stay there any longer. The bird was only in the Mid stages of the Seventh Rank, yet it wanted to intimidate someone like Grey who could kill multiple Beasts at the Peak of the Seventh Rank, much less itself that was so weak. Keith was in awe of Grey''s overbearingness. This is what the strong do. This was an attribute only the strong could showcase. Imposing overbearingness. Grey said the treasure was his and there was nothing the bird could do. There might be a chance that it had been nurturing this treasure in hopes of using it to increase its strength, but Grey found it and said it was his, and that was the case. There was nothing the bird could do to change it. Keith looked at Grey''s back view, but Grey didn''t think much about it. He didn''t want to kill the bird since there was no need, hence his tactic of scaring it off. He said to Keith, "That''s it. I believe you will be able to break through after consumption." "I''ll help you set up an array to ensure you don''t attract attention." Grey left the place as soon as he was done speaking. This was a Magical Beasts'' forest and possessed powerful Beasts. He had already encountered a Dragon, although it was all due to circumstances, he didn''t want to take any chances. If another legendary Beast were to be attracted over due to Keith breaking through, and it happens to be stronger than he is, then he was toast. He went to work while Keith grabbed the opportunity presented before him. This was something he would never give up, and since Grey was going to watch over him and ensure his safety while he breaks through, there was no point in thinking about anything else. Time went by and before long, the process was complete. Keith had broken through to the Elemental Venerable Plane with the aid of the treasure. He didn''t consume the complete treasure, but what was left is inside his body and will make him grow at a quicker pace during the early stages of the Elemental Venerable Plane. "How nice." Grey commented as he appeared. He was pleased that his friend broke through and looked to be very close to the Second stage as it is. He could sense there were still leftovers in his body and if his calculations were right, then it should get Keith to the Fourth or Fifth stage within a few months. "It''s all thanks to you." Keith said with gratitude, his eyes were filled with emotions. Since he encountered Grey, he hadn''t done anything for him, yet Grey had been helping him over and over again. He even made him relevant in the Faction. Now he has helped him to get to the Elemental Venerable Plane. "I don''t know how I can repay the kindness you''ve shown me all this while." He said with his head lowered. "Haha, you don''t need to talk in that manner. We''re friends, it''s only right I help you get stronger." Grey said, he added with a smile, "You would do the same for me if you were in my position. So there''s no need to repay me." Keith laughed and nodded, "Most definitely. I didn''t think you would help me so early after your return. Having a friend like you is like a shortcut to success." Chapter 1468 Abominable Act Grey and Keith continued talking for a while before Grey took him back. Keith was the leader of the group yet he had been away for quite some time, and it was best to send him back to the others. When they returned, the others couldn''t believe their eyes when they saw Keith. Some moments ago he was at the Peak of the Sage Plane. He walked out and came back after some time and he was already in the First stage of the Elemental Venerable Plane. This was something that was unbelievable if they didn''t experience it. One thing they found shocking was the fact that Keith didn''t cause any commotion as he broke through. Even though it could be controlled, they should still be able to at least sense it. However, they didn''t sense anything, rather Keith walked out from where he hid as a First stage Elemental Venerable. Grey watched the entire scene from the sky before smiling to Void, "See how nice it is to help friends." Void didn''t show much reaction on his face, only taking a glance at Keith''s expression before looking away. "When are we leaving?" He asked tiredly. "They''ll be here for a while." Grey replied, after watching Keith for a while he said, "I''m heading deeper." "If I contact you know I''m in trouble." He added before disappearing. He wanted to head to the side that had Rank Eight Magical Beasts. If he were to be sensed by any of them, he would be in serious trouble, this was not something he wanted for himself. Void could only complain after Grey left him to babysit the group who came into the forest. ¡­. On Grey''s end, he was very careful with his movement as he moved into the area he knew belonged to those Rank Eight Magical Beasts. These beasts wouldn''t think twice before taking his life. The Dragon blood essence in his body would make him easily noticeable by other Dragons, but he didn''t have to fear being sensed by these other Beasts. Unlike the Rank Seven Magical Beasts area of the forest, this area had tribes. Each Magical Beasts were part of a tribe and there was a clear hierarchy. The tribes had outer and inner areas. The weaker beasts are in the outer areas while the stronger ones are in the inner area. Beasts born in the inner area of these tribes usually possess top tier bloodlines of their respective species. Grey arrived on the perimeter of one of these tribes, searching the memories he was impacted by Melmera, he knew this was the Lizard tribe. Only special Magical Beasts like Dragons and other legendary Magical Beasts have multiple tribes in the inner part of the forest which is referred to as the inner court amongst these lower leveled beasts. Each type of Lizard species resides in the Lizard tribe. "If I recall correctly, she was attacked by one guy from the Lizard race who was promised some benefits." Grey murmured to himself. He didn''t know the benefits the Lizard was promised, but it was something that should be worth it since it dared to attack a Dragon. After thinking about it, he decided to take the risk. The Lizard was one of the weakest Magical Beasts who attacked Melmera, and was injured during the fight. Even though it had been weeks ago, Melmera believed it would still be hurt, and so did Grey. He traveled through the outer regions of the tribe in a very cautious manner. If his aura was sensed here, then he was doomed. Even Void would have a difficult time taking him out of this place. He sneaked through the place, escaping from the senses of the Lizards guarding the place. Most of the Lizards were in the Sixth Rank, but he occasionally saw a few in the Early stages of the Seventh Rank. It took a while, but he soon saw a Lizard that fit the image of the Lizard in Melmera''s memory. All he needed to do was to take it out of this place and interrogate it. He didn''t only want to interrogate it, but he also wanted to see if there was anything worth taking in the outer regions. Most of the Lizards in the inner region wouldn''t take some treasures in the outer region seriously. It took a few hours, but he managed to follow the Lizard until it was alone before appearing. According to the memory of Melmera, the Lizard was in the seventh stage of Rank Seven. The Lizard before Grey was indeed in the seventh stage of Rank Seven, and he could also sense remnant aura from Melmera''s essence. As someone who had seen Melmera''s essence, he could catch the aura no matter how small it was. Without hesitation, he took the Lizard and disappeared from the place, moving to the perimeters of the tribe. The Lizard didn''t panic when it saw the change in scenery. It felt since it wasn''t killed by the first attack, it meant the person wanted it alive. Grey didn''t speak much, only asking the vital question, "How did you get injured?" The Lizard looked at him, and after seeing his eyes and sensing the killing intent, he didn''t hide anything from him. When Grey was serious, it was very easy to scare anyone before him. This Lizard was the same, it didn''t even have the chance to say anything before it was filled with dread. Grey let it speak after his short intimidation. "Oh, so you attacked a Dragon. How bold of you." Grey praised sarcastically. The Lizard dropped its head, given the normal hierarchy, it shouldn''t have dared to attack a Dragon, but the chance of acquiring a Dragon blood from the tribe leader was too thrilling to let go. No Lizard would dare to let go of such a chance. Only those honorable Lizards wouldn''t dare to attack Dragons, but most Snakes and Lizards wouldn''t think twice, especially when the risk is nonexistent. From what it was offered, there was no risk factor in the plan. "Well, looks like I''m here to make you pay for your crime." Chapter 1467 Unexpected Change The Lizard started pleading for its life. It didn''t want to die yet, the only reason it dared to take on the mission was because the Tribe Leader''s son told them there was no danger. In fact, it wasn''t the only reptile that dared to attack, even a Snake was involved in the attack. The Snake was already at the Peak of the Seventh Rank and was one of the main forces during the fight. The Lizard was scared, Grey sounded like he wanted to kill it, and it didn''t want that. Grey looked at the Lizard that was trying to plead its way back to life. "Unfortunately, you already made the mistake and I plan on getting revenge for her. Well, when I can." Grey didn''t take its words to heart, he knew every party that was present during Melmera''s attacks through her memories and he planned to take all of them out, not just the figure who instigated it. The Lizard begged continuously and Grey gave an evil smile, "What special treasures are in the outer region of your tribe?" The question took the Lizard by surprise and it froze, but then a gleam of hope flashed through its eyes. Since Grey was questioning it about treasures, it meant there was a good chance that as long as it gave him the information he wanted, he would let it live. Without a single ounce of hesitation, it started speaking on all the treasures that were in the outer regions and even how he could sneak in without being detected. To be honest, Grey was impressed with the Lizard''s details in each information. He told it he would let it go after getting the treasures which the Lizard didn''t argue with. Grey didn''t know if he should call the Lizard a dummy or if it was genuinely that innocent. ''It should be smarter than this since it dared to attack her.'' He thought to himself. He threw the thought to the back of his mind before sealing the Lizard''s cultivation. It was at that time he realized the Lizard was only trying to get him to leave soon. Seeing the Lizard''s reaction to him sealing its cultivation, he couldn''t help but ask curiously, "Did you think I would leave you like this without holding you somewhere?" Seeing the look in the eyes of the Lizard, Grey almost burst into laughter. There were some cunning Magical Beasts, while there are the dull ones like this Lizard that thinks it''s very smart. "If I go to these places and do not find anything relating to everything you''ve told me, I''ll come back and remove one of your legs, permanently." Grey released a bit of his aura and the Lizard knew he wasn''t playing around. Given Grey''s cultivation stage, he could severely wound it and make sure the injury doesn''t regrow. The place might heal, but there''s zero chances of regrowing any part that is cut off. The Lizard nodded, affirming that everything it told Grey was true. Grey didn''t hassle with it any longer and shot straight into the tribe. Without any hesitation, he headed for the nearest place. According to the Lizard, there are three places that possessed treasures in the outer region and they were all protected by a Ninth stage of the Seventh Rank. As long as Grey could take out these guards without alerting anyone, he could take all three treasures without having to worry about being caught. As he moved to the first one, he was cautious, although he somewhat believed what the Lizard said, he wouldn''t carelessly risk his life due to a statement of a Lizard that attacked a Dragon. When he got to the location, he waited patiently as he studied the place. To his surprise, it was everything the Lizard described, not even a blade of grass was in the wrong location. ''It shouldn''t be this accurate.'' Grey was taken aback by the Lizard''s description. After a while, he followed the Lizard''s instructions, of course, cautiously. In the end, he was able to accomplish the task. The person guarding the place was a Ninth stage Rank Seven Lizard just like the Lizard described. It was very easy for Grey to immobilize such a Magical Beast. After taking what he needed, he took the Beast with him. Leaving it there might attract some unwanted attention, and he wanted to complete the process without having to worry about alerting the tribe. The second place was the same, and it was finally time for the third place. Just like the description of the Lizard, it was also very accurate, nevertheless, during the last mission, something unexpected happened. Just as Grey was about to take the last treasure, the other two he had in his possession left his spatial ring and merged with the last one that was hanging in the sky. "Fuck! Don''t tell me it didn''t know about this?!" Grey was irate. He never expected something like this to happen, if not, he would''ve been prepared. During this last phase, he tried to be extra cautious and search everywhere for any traps, but he never expected it to be something like this. What was annoying was the fact that the treasures were lighting up the entire area. ''Damn it!'' He tried to hurriedly seal the area, but it was too late, some part of the treasure''s aura had already seeped out. Without hesitation, he grabbed the still merging treasures and disappeared, his target was somewhere unexpected ¡­. Deep in a cave, under a lake. Grey appeared in the same cave he encountered Melmera. This was the safest place he could come to with this thing still active. The distance and water should be able to help him out. Not just that, but he instantly started working on it, and before long, he was able to contain the aura there. He waited for a few minutes, and after being certain it was fine, he brought it out. He didn''t go to the Lizard Tribe''s region, rather, he went over to meet up with Void. Chapter 1468 Traitor The treasure completely fused before Grey went to meet up with Void. When the duo met up, Void could tell that Grey was able to get something good. After probing, he got Grey to tell him the item he got. He only saw it for a second, but he could already tell that it was a top tier treasure. "This is good stuff. Is there more?" "None in the outer regions of the tribe. You will be able to get better things in the inner region, but I won''t advise it." The inner region definitely had better items, but the risk was higher. The Lizards they would encounter there aren''t those in the Seventh Rank, rather, he would be facing Eighth Rank Lizards who are more deadly. Void also thought about it, after calculating the risk and rewards he decided to give up. Grey stayed with them for a few hours before heading back to the Lizard''s region. He had to deal with those guys he kept in the cave. Some of them had to die. He didn''t want to kill the guards of the treasures, but the Lizard who attacked Melmera definitely had to die. He wanted to see if he could sneak into the Snake Magical Beast''s tribe. If he could, he would kill the Snake that took part of the mission as well. The Snake was one of the main attackers that made Melmera''s injury worse. ¡­. In the cave where he kept the guards. All three guards were still unconscious, while the Lizard who gave him the information was still alive. The second he appeared, the Lizard heaved a sigh of relief and transmitted its voice over. ''I thought you had forgotten us.'' "I can never forget about you." Grey said with an evil smile, and just as the Lizard was expecting him to free it, Grey stabbed a large spear into the chest of the Lizard, stabbing its heart. "The punishment for attacking a Dragon, a superior species, is death." Grey''s voice was ice cold, like an executioner, he executed the Lizard while passing on his final judgment. The eyes of the Lizard remained wide open and it couldn''t say a word even after it had been attacked. It watched Grey with a look of shock, not believing what was happening. The Lizard was large, but Grey killed it without it being able to even react. To be fair, the difference in strength was massive, and it was just recovering from Melmera''s attack during the battle. Grey looked at the three guards, there was no point in killing them. However, he didn''t take them out of this place, he wrote the word traitor on the body of the Lizard he killed before leaving, his next target, the Snake tribe. He wanted the Magical Beast''s kingdom to know that someone was out for revenge, and he would kill only those that attacked Melmera. By the time the people of the inner court will find out about it, the son of the Tribe Leader would know someone is out for revenge, and live the rest of his life in fear of being killed. Such a psychological torture is even more deadly than actively killing the Dragon. The Dragon will be on edge for the rest of its life, and only when he has confirmed that the person after him is dead will he be settled. ¡­. The Snake tribe. Just like the Lizard tribe, the weaker and those with impure bloodlines are left in the outer region while the more powerful ones reside in the inner region. Grey''s target stayed in the outer region, close to the inner region due to its strength. The Snake was a golden horned snake, a powerful earth elemental Magical Beast that was very difficult to take down. One of its greatest attributes was its dazzling scales that were almost impenetrable. Grey knew getting to it would be very difficult since it was very close to the inner region and he might draw the attention of those Rank Eight Beasts. As much as Grey wanted to take revenge, he wouldn''t risk his life for it when he knows he can always come back to get revenge against the Snake. After careful planning, he kidnapped one of the Snakes in the outer region, one he knew was dispensable and he used the mind control technique on it. Although Magical Beasts are different from humans, the mind control technique solely relies on the consciousness of the being, so be it human or Magical beast, as long as they have a consciousness, it could be controlled. After taking over the Snake, Grey sent it into the tribe and after asking around, he found the Snake he was searching for. The Golden horned snake was very popular due to its unique traits. Grey didn''t waste any time as he hurriedly cooked up a story to lure the Snake out. Given the greedy nature of the Snake, and its urge to grow stronger, this was an opportunity it wouldn''t want to miss. Grey used this against it, and the Snake fell for it. It didn''t even doubt the Snake that came to pass on the news of the treasure. The Golden horned Snake sneaked out of the tribe with the other Snake, while making sure that they weren''t being followed. Grey was waiting for them a long distance away from the tribe. One of the reasons the Golden horned Snake didn''t doubt the other Snake was due to the location of the place where the treasure was located. According to the way the forest was shared, only Beasts in the Mid stages of the Seventh Rank reside there. The Snake that came to call it was in the Mid stages, and there was no way it could fight all the others alone. The deal was to share the treasure equally, but the Golden Horned Snake had other plans. There was no way it was going to give this Snake a share of the treasure. Chapter 1471 Traitor II The Golden Horned Snake didn''t know that it had already fallen deep into a trap, it was still thinking of ways it would take advantage of the other Snake. Since it was stronger, it believed the other Snake didn''t have any share in the treasure. If only it knew there were no treasures. Grey was waiting for them at the place they were headed. His plan was a quick sneak attack. He was an expert in hiding his aura, and as long as the Snake doesn''t sense him quickly, he should be able to deal a fatal blow before it would react. This was a powerful Snake and he didn''t want to have a prolonged battle with it since there''s a chance others might be drawn to the place. His plan was to deal with it quickly. After a while, the two Snakes came into his view. He prepared a deadly attack at the tip of one of his fingers, and after a deep breath, his figure shook and turned to that of a Snake. He switched places with the Snake which was behind the Golden Horned Snake. The Golden Horned Snake didn''t notice the change until it was too late. Grey''s finger was already pointed at the head of the Snake like a gun, it released fire. Just one shot, that was all it took and a multicolored ray of light passed through the head of the large Golden Horned Snake. One has to know that the Snake was at least ten meters long, yet it was killed with a single attack from Grey who wasn''t even as big as the Snake''s head. The gigantic body of the Snake fell to the ground, motionless. It was dead from the attack. Grey''s attack ended its life within a matter of seconds. Attacks to the head have always been more effective when it comes to quick deaths than one to the heart. Grey looked at the enormously large body of the Snake and couldn''t help but think of what price it would fetch if he went to sell it. This was a treasure, but he didn''t want it, he wanted the others to know that there was someone who was killing some targets, and all of them had a hand in the death of Melmera. After Grey was finished, he took them back to the Snake tribe and left them alone in a hidden place. He wrote the word traitor with the blood of the Golden Horned Snake on its body, making sure it would also be seen on it. He knew the Magical Beasts would know a human is the one carrying these acts, but they would be curious as to the reason a human was killing some of them and writing the word traitor. If some of them decide to investigate, there''s a huge possibility they would uncover the truth. Grey''s next target was surprisingly the Cat tribe. There was a cat in particular that had a hand in Melmera''s death. It was a Wind Elemental Magical Beast, one of the fastest Beasts in the forest. It was the one that made escaping difficult for Melmera. Even with her powerful attacks, this Cat was so fast that it was difficult to hit it. And it attacked, making sure there was no escape for Melmera. The cat was also in the Seventh Rank, in the Late stages of the Seventh Rank. As long as Grey catches it unaware, there was no way it could escape. The only issue is that the Cat stayed in the inner region of the tribe. Locating it would be very difficult. As long as he could use the same tactic as he used for the Snake, he would be able to kill it without much hassle. After a while, he caught a Cat from the outer region and tried to investigate the whereabouts of the tricky cat. It took a few hours, but he got news after a while. The Cat was actually outside the tribe, and the location was a very favorable one for Grey. The only thing was that it wasn''t alone as there were two Peak Rank Seven Cats with it. Grey wasn''t confident he could kill the Cat without being detected, but he was sure before the others could react, he was done with his act. ''I don''t want them to know I''m the one.'' Grey is a very famous figure, he didn''t know if his fame had spread to the Magical Beast''s kingdom, but he didn''t want to take any chances. He gave it some deep thought before deciding to see the situation, if the opportunity presents itself, he would kill the cat, if not, then he would move on. When he got to the location, he almost burst into laughter. It was as if the universe wanted him to exert revenge for Melmera. ''Hehe, even the world hates these guys. I wonder if Melmera was special.'' He thought to himself as he prepared to attack. The Cat he was after was actually all alone. The two Peak Rank Seven Cats were nowhere to be seen. This was Grey''s chance, and he was not going to let it go. When the Cat was less vigilant, he struck. The Cat didn''t even know what hit it before it died. Its eyes were still open, staring into space. Grey was exacting revenge on Melmera''s behalf. She was dead, but her offspring is still alive. He also wanted something to do while he was here. This was the best Beast he could kill, the reason for that was because he was searching for a Wind Elemental Magical Beast all this while, and who would''ve thought such an opportunity would come to him. Encountering Melmera gave him this opportunity. Without hesitation, he took the blood essence of the Cat, this was what he had been searching for, why would he let go of such a chance? After taking the blood essence, he left without hesitation, not forgetting to write the word traitor. Chapter 1472 Heading Into Seclusion With A Goal Time slowly went by and a few weeks passed within the blink of an eye. During the past weeks, Grey had been on a killing spree, taking out any of the Magical Beasts involved in the attack on Melmera. To a certain degree, it caused an uproar in the Magical Beasts'' kingdom since a human was going about killing some Magical Beasts, but after careful thoughts, they realized there was something strange about the Beasts being killed, they all had a link, and that was working for a certain figure that was close to the inner court. It''s common for those powerful figures in the inner court to have Magical Beasts outside doing some of their bidding, but when all those affiliated to a certain power start to get killed and the word traitor branded on their bodies, it means that something happened behind the scenes that prompted these killings. Grey couldn''t be bothered with what was going through the heads of those in the tribes he had attacked, but he knew one thing for sure, the last three people were proving very difficult to deal with. The reason for this was because they were all in the same place and seldom moved alone. All three were also at the Peak of the Seventh Rank, and he couldn''t take all of them out with a single blow. The best chance was by getting one of them out, after incapacitating it, he would put it under his control and trick the others out of the tribe. His efforts during the past few days however have been futile. Eight Beasts attacked Melmera in total, and he had killed five who were in different tribes. He''s left with these three, but they were cautious given the fact that Grey''s attacks on the other tribes had been made known to most of the Beasts in this area. At the moment, most of the tribes are aware of the attacks. Grey waited patiently for the time to come. Seeing that it would take longer than expected, he decided to try to absorb the blood essence of the Cat. If he''s lucky, he might be able to awaken his wind domain which will be a massive step for him. If he''s not, there would be no changes. With his current cultivation stage, it was difficult for him to level up with just this blood essence. If the blood essence was from a legendary beast, then there was a good chance he would be able to break through with its help, but with the current level of the beast, awakening his domain was all he had in his mind. Grey was about to start the process when he received word from Void, the group was about to leave. He stopped and looked in the direction of the tribe he camped at the perimeters. He could only sigh as he gave up. He didn''t want to leave any of them alive, but since there was nothing he could do about it, he had no other option but to leave. Grey headed back to the outer regions of the forest to meet up with Void and the others. As he went further away from the depths of the forest, he noticed the decline in the quality of the essence. "Shame humans don''t have the same privileges.'' Compared to humans, the Magical Beasts have a better training environment. Of course, those in the inner region and inner court have it better, but even the area that housed Rank Six Beasts has a better essence than most places. Only top Factions and Families can rival these places. The essence in the Dawson Family and that of the Pyrmond Faction were ahead of even the outer regions of the tribe area in the depths of the forest, but Grey wasn''t sure if it would be on the same level as the inner court. The more he thought about the inner court, the greater his curiosity towards it. If the opportunity arises, he will surely visit it someday. ¡­. "What have you been doing?" Void asked when Grey appeared. "Nothing important." Grey shrugged his shoulders before looking at the group, Keith wasn''t the only one heading back with a big boost, one more person broke to the Elemental Venerable Plane, and from what Grey knew, this guy had been at the Peak of the Sage Plane for over seven years. At the time Grey came to the Pyrmond Faction, this person was at the Peak. "At least they grew, unlike me who got a Dragon instead." He murmured before moving with the group. Void perched on Grey''s shoulder as they escorted the group back to the Faction. If anyone heard Grey''s statement, they would definitely try to end his life. Grey treated a Dragon as if it wasn''t important. What was worse was that this Dragon had a pure Dragon bloodline which makes its potential limitless, yet Grey didn''t see anything with it. It was strange how Grey didn''t care about things that will make others close to the verge of madness. ¡­. The journey to the forest was uneventful, and so was the one back. The group wasn''t attacked by anyone above their league, therefore, Grey''s intervention wasn''t needed. In the end, if he hadn''t assisted Keith, he wouldn''t have done anything for the group during the journey. After they got back to the Faction ground, Grey went to report to the Faction Leader, at least he didn''t need to bother about any more missions for the meantime. He wasn''t held back by the Faction Leader, nor was he given another task. The Faction Leader acknowledged his task before dismissing him. Grey went straight to his building and activated his array. With the array active, no one would disturb him unless it is a matter of life and death. His first objective was awakening one more domain, if the blood essence doesn''t work, he has another alternative. Once he had awakened another domain, his next target was breaking through to the Elemental Sovereign Plane. This was his aim, and he plans to achieve it. Chapter 1471 Return Of A Rebellious Daughter The Northern Continent. In a large hall. A group of four could be seen gathered, discussing intensely. One of the people present was Grey''s father, and beside him sat a beautiful lady who looked to be in her thirties. It was none other than Matha, Grey''s mother. The duo were surrounded by elderly people and one of the people had a striking resemblance to Martha. She was a woman who looked to be in her fifties but she looked very healthy and could be mistaken for someone in her thirties. "My grandson is in danger and you still refused to bring him here." A man in the hall asked calmly. He looked even younger than the woman in her fifties, and unlike the woman, it was very difficult to associate him with someone more than fifty. "Grey''s safe, and under the watch of the Dawson Family." Martha replied while staring into the eyes of the man. "Hmph! What can the Dawson Family do in perilous times like this? They have so many enemies they would most likely be destroyed by humans." The lady who had a striking resemblance to Martha snorted coldly. "The Dawson Family''s business is my business, and I will go down with them if need be." Martha replied with a calm expression on her face. The lady looked at Martha and was about to speak when the man raised his hand to stop her. "She has your mannerisms, and she will only run away if you force her hand." The man was calm as he spoke, his eyes didn''t radiate the same youth as his face, he looked at Martha and asked, "You left over thirty years ago, I''ll forgive you since you''re my daughter." "Knowing you, you didn''t come here because you missed us." He added. "There''s something I need, and as much as I do not want to stay here, this is the only place I can get it." Martha didn''t hide the fact that she came here in search of something. The man thought calmly before asking, "You''re here for that thing?" "Does my grandson have issues with his cultivation?" Martha''s mother asked. "Hus cultivation is going very smoothly, you should''ve heard about some of his battles given he''s quite famous amongst the top Families and Factions." Martha replied with a proud smile. Her son didn''t need the fame of her parents to grow, he was a genius who is even above them in terms of talent and perseverance. Not everyone would take on the task of training their body after not being attuned with any element during the affinity test. "Naturally, everyone has heard of Grey Dawson. Someone wanted dead by the Gnome race isn''t someone people wouldn''t be interested in. I, too, am interested in the boy. I wonder what makes him so fascinating." The man didn''t hide the curiosity in his eyes. He should''ve been proud that he had such a grandson, but his relationship with Martha wasn''t the best. Most people didn''t even know Martha was from this Family, a powerful Family that resided in the Northern Continent. They ruled most of the top Factions here and almost everyone bends to their will, well, except for their rebellious daughter. "Then why are you in need of it? You know there are very few left, and everyone one of them is very precious." Martha''s father asked. "I have a little girl under me, she''s growing too fast. We''ve tried to stop it, but all our efforts have failed. She''s on the verge of breaking into the Elemental Venerable Plane. If that happens, she''ll explode from the excess energy." Martha explained. The reason Martha came over to her Family was all due to Cori being on the verge of breaking through. Grey''s attempt to halt her cultivation has been futile, and even after her training, she realized the essence was just too much for her. She knew of a way to remove the dangers of breaking through, but that would mean she had to come to the Northern Continent. She used her own method and even asked Lucas for help, but in the end, they were only able to slow it down and not stop it. The fact that as the day goes by she draws nearer to breaking through made things worse for them. With no other choice, she finally came to the conclusion of coming, but she dragged Lucas with her. This was Lucas'' first time here, he knew her Family, but he didn''t come due to Martha''s request. The idea of finally being able to meet Martha''s parents personally intrigued him and so he didn''t argue with her. "How old is she?" Martha''s mother asked curiously. "Eleven." Martha''s reply shocked those in the room, with the exception of Lucas who was already aware of Cori''s age. "How''s that possible?" Martha''s father was genuinely bewildered at the age of Cori. In the Aurora Continent, only after one gets to the age of twelve are they able to know what elements they have an affinity to and start training. He had never heard of someone being close to the Venerable Plane at such an age. "My son¡­" Martha told them of how Grey brought her out of the Chaos Battlefield. When they heard of the story of how Grey took in Cori, they were amazed at Cori''s luck. Grey found her right after her brother had been executed. The little girl didn''t know the right step to take, but Grey appeared and made everything right, helping her in the end. "I wonder what sort of man my grandson is growing up to become. Now I''m truly interested in seeing him." Martha''s father squinted his eyes as he looked into space. Lucas looked at the expression on the face of Martha when he heard this, and to his surprise, she didn''t seem pleased in any way, rather, there was anger in her eyes. He grabbed her hand as if to tell her it was fine. Martha gave him a glance before smiling and looking back at her father. "Will you help me?" Chapter 1472 The Lyttelton Family "I would like to see this child." Martha''s father requested. "Impossible." Martha showed her stance to the request. There was no way she was going to let Cori come here. Her father is someone who liked dictating how the lives of those around him goes. This was the main reason she left and didn''t come back, not even once during the past thirty years she has been away. If her father thought she would bring Cori here, then he was joking. "Don''t speak to your father in that manner." Martha''s mother scolded harshly. Martha grunted and didn''t say anything else. Lucas saw the tension between them and said, "Sir, we have no issues with bringing Cori here, but she will leave with us as well." Martha wanted to speak but Lucas grabbed her hand tightly, making her stay quiet. She needed this for Cori as this was the only way she knew they could help her, but she didn''t want her father to forcibly take Cori away from her. "Do you still have so much hatred for your father?" Martha''s father asked, he looked at her expression and added, "Given the fact that you relinquished the Lyttelton name, I shouldn''t have given you an audience. But you''re my daughter and I want the best for you." "You put me through hell." "I shaped you into the woman you are today. You''re known as a groundbreaking genius after you left, second only to Lucas Dawson. That''s all thanks to me." "You made my life miserable." "Hard decisions make your life easier. The decisions I took for you made you who you are today. Don''t discredit my impact in your life." "You don''t care about what I feel about your decisions." Lucas watched as the father and daughter went back and forth, and to be honest, this was the first time he was seeing such an emotion from Martha. When he first met her, she refused to tell him her last name and only went with her first name, Martha. She became famous across the Western Continent at the same time as he did, but she was only known by her first name. After they spent a long time together, and had fallen in love, she told him her full name, Martha Lyttelton. There was only one Lyttelton Family in the entire Continent. This shows just how powerful their last name was. This was a Family that was in power even during the times of the Gods. They had multiple God Plane powerhouses and the last name Lyttelton was never used by anyone again. The Dawson Family was a Family that rose to power, the Lyttelton Family on the other hand has always been in power. The difference between the two was massive. No one dares to go against the Lyttelton Family, well, except for Martha who is from the Family. She had such contempt towards them that she warned Lucas that if he dared to visit them, she would break all ties with him, even during the time she was pregnant. Martha and her father continued discussing while Lucas watched them without interfering. In the end, even though Martha didn''t agree to her father''s statement, she agreed to bring Cori over since this was the only way to save her. "You''re too stubborn." Martha''s mother commented. Martha looked at her mother but didn''t say anything. Her mother had a fiesty temper just like her. Her father was authoritative, but very calm when handling things. Her mother on the other hand, she doesn''t like pissing her off, even till this day. Martha gave her husband the go-ahead to bring Cori over, and Lucas left the hall. It was disrespectful to use his strength here when it''s not an emergency, so he could only walk out of the large hall. It took only a few minutes before he returned with the little Cori in tow. "Fascinating." Martha''s father said the second he saw Cori. Such a child was not something he thought he would see. But to his surprise, here Cori stood, at the Peak of the Sage Plane, on the verge of breaking through to the Elemental Venerable Plane before the age of twelve. This was something that could be said to be out of this world. If he had known there was a child like this in the Chaos Battlefield, he would''ve sent people there to bring her over. "Ma¡­" "No." It was as if matter already knew what he wanted to ask and declined instantly. She had already told him from the start that she was not going to let him have Cori. Martha spent her youth days with her father and knew him well enough, he was addicted to training talents. Amongst all his children, Martha showed the greatest talent as a child, and her potential was limitless, so he spared no effort in her training. Martha started her training from the day of her test. Unlike Grey who had to wait for a test to be conducted in Red City, a prestigious Family like the Lyttelton Family had their testing stones in their manor. The second Martha became twelve, her entire life changed before her eyes. There was nothing she could do about her. At the start, her mother tried to plead with her father, but after realizing that it was impossible, she could only give in. Martha was trained by her father personally, and he was a perfectionist. This made Martha''s life hell. She couldn''t make any friends and all her time was focused on training. In the end, Martha''s father betrothed her to his best friend''s son who was also a top talent. When Martha found out during her early twenties, she ran away from the Lyttelton Family while telling them she was no longer part of the Family. They tried to get her back, but after being trained by an expert such as her father who was the head of the Lyttelton Family, she knew how to evade her pursuers. But of course, given the resources the Lyttelton Family has, her father found her himself, and she threatened to not only kill herself, but to disgrace the Lyttelton Family as well. In his anger, he let her leave. Chapter 1473 The Lyttelton Family II "I will not train her in the manner I trained you." Martha''s father didn''t want to let go of such an opportunity. Being able to train someone like Cori was a pleasure he didn''t want to miss. "No. She''s my daughter and I will train her, personally." Martha refused. She was very adamant with her refusal. There was no way she was going to hand Cori over to her father, especially when Grey was the one who brought her to them. Martha''s father tried insistently to convince her, but her reply was the same, she didn''t want to hand Cori over to him. "Okay, what about you let her stay with me until she breaks through to the Venerable Plane. That should be enough, right?" He asked calmly. "Yes. She will be left with you until she breaks through to the Venerable Plane. Once she has done that, we will take her back." Lucas replied. He knew Martha was never going to agree to leaving Cori here. "If she''s staying here, then so will I. I have to make sure you''re not putting her through those grueling practices of yours." Martha said. "You''d be surprised how much I''ve changed over the years." Martha''s father smiled softly at her, before motioning for Cori to come over. Cori took a peek at Lucas and Martha, and seeing Lucas nod, she walked over. "Such a lovely little girl." "Come, I''ll start the process now. She''ll need to be prepared. It''s a good thing you''re here to help her throw it." Martha''s father ushered them into the inner part of the manor. The Lyttelton manor was larger than that of the Dawson Family. In fact, it could almost rival a Faction ground which shows just how large it is. Only those with the Lyttelton name or blood are allowed to stay here. Only during a few instances will someone else be allowed in, and that is from marriage. Lucas was allowed in because he''s married to Martha. Although Martha dropped the Lyttelton name, she was still from the Lyttelton Family in the end, and her father was the Family Head. They didn''t spend too long walking before they got to a room. The room was filled with a strange energy that Lucas had never sensed before, but he could feel the peace in it. He didn''t know how to describe it, but there was a certain way it made him relaxed. Martha became a tour guide to him as she was telling him what the place was and what effect the energy possessed. Lucas was impressed by just this thing. He had never seen it before, and given his cultivation level, he had traveled to multiple places. The fact that this was the first place he was seeing something like this showed how majestic the Lyttelton Family is. Martha''s father made Cori sit down cross-legged at the center of the place while giving her a particular breathing routine. He wanted to use this to expel all the impurities in her body before he used the treasure to help her break through. The process would take a while. From what Martha told Lucas, it could last a week or close to a month depending on Cori''s impurities. Cori was from the Chaos Battlefield, so she expected her to contain a lot of impurities. And since she had been breaking through while in the Chaos Battlefield, there was no way she wouldn''t have too much undiluted chaos energy in her body. Those energy would need to be expelled before the treasure could be used. Lucas only stayed for a few days before leaving. He was one of the pillars of the Dawson Family, staying away for too long might be troublesome. The Dawson Family has other powerhouses like him, but he is the one that can instill fear in the hearts of others, and that could move freely. No one knows what the Dawson Family is capable of doing, but everyone for sure knows that if Lucas Dawson comes after a particular figure, it doesn''t end nicely for that person. When one cultivates to such a level, they value their lives very much. Not just that, but Lucas has proven to be very powerful compared to others in the same stage. There''s a high chance that he could defeat over ninety percent of the old people in the same stage as himself. This showed the level he has attained. No one wanted to be used as a scapegoat, so everyone gave him his due respect. There are people who hated Lucas Dawson, but none of them would dare to step forward for a fight with him. Lucas left, leaving Martha and Cori behind. Martha and her father didn''t speak much as they were waiting for the impurities to be expelled out. But she didn''t speak with her mother who, although not pleased with her leaving, had missed her a lot. She wanted to see her grandson, and after repeated pleading, Martha gave in. "He''s not in that Dawson Family. When he came back from his journey, he went to the Pyrmond Faction¡­" Martha told her mother how they left the Aurora Continent to hide in the Azure Continent. Her mother was displeased with Lucas'' unwillingness to take on the responsibility of the Family Head. Given his strength, it was only right that he was the one who leads the Dawson Family. But due to not wanting any conflict with his brothers, he left, along with his pregnant wife. What Martha''s mother believed was that if Lucas'' family had known that Martha was from the Lyttelton Family, they wouldn''t dare to stand against them. This would''ve made taking up the role as the Family Head easier for Lucas. Martha didn''t see the need for them being the ones leading the Family. She preferred their current carefree role compared to having to take responsibility for the entire family. In the end, her mother could only give up seeing that Lucas and Martha were on the same page. Chapter 1474 Meeting Conor Dawson Once Again Western Continent. The Pyrmond Faction. Grey could be seen sitting silently in his building. It had been a few weeks since he returned, but there had been no changes for him. He sighed and gave up on getting another domain. Since he returned, he locked himself up for weeks and absorbed the blood essence of the Wind Elemental Cat, but he wasn''t able to awaken his wind domain. He wished he could awaken another domain before breaking through to the Sovereign Plane, but it didn''t look likely at the moment. With no other choice, he gave up. "I don''t know what will happen when I''m breaking through to the Sovereign Plane." He murmured to himself, after careful thinking, he decided to leave the Faction. During the last few times he had broken through, there has been one commotion or another. If he caused a commotion here and his secret was exposed to everyone, then the danger he would be in might multiply. ''I should get father to watch out for me. He knows everything.'' He thought and without hesitation, he walked out of his place. On his way out of the Faction ground, he received a voice transmission from the Faction Leader. Before he could react, he was teleported to the Faction Leader''s cave. "You''re leaving again?" The Faction Leader looked at Grey curiously. He had been monitoring Grey''s movement since he returned from the mission and he had been inside all through. Seeing him walk towards the gate the second he stepped out was a little surprising. "I have to search for opportunities to break through to the Sovereign Plane outside the Faction. From the looks of it, I can''t break through while idle." Grey explained. Most of the times he has gotten a major breakthrough to the next Plane, there has generally been something to stimulate him, or so he wanted the Faction Leader to believe. "I see. Since you''re leaving I won''t stop you." The Faction Leader nodded in understanding before bringing out a few talismans, "Take these. I know your father might have given you stronger ones, but this should help against weaker opponents." Grey was someone he cherished, and he knew the danger Grey was in at the moment. Most people want him dead, and there''s no way Grey could fight against Sovereigns if he were attacked by one while he was on the course of getting to the Sovereign Plane. The only way he could protect him was by giving him multiple talismans. He might not be as strong as Grey''s father, but he was a top expert at the Peak of the Sovereign Plane. Grey didn''t reject the talismans, he took them and bowed to the Faction Leader. With nothing else stopping him, Grey left the place, heading in the direction of the Dawson Family. He needed to meet up with his father. On his way to the Dawson manor, he tried to check his connection with the Seventh Prince. The Seventh Prince was still in the secret realm which he expected. After observing what was happening, he left. He didn''t want to blow his cover, at least not so soon. If others notice a change in the actions of the Prince, there is a chance they might suspect something like that happened. ¡­. A few days later. Grey arrived at the Dawson manor very quickly. At the time he arrived there, he didn''t meet his father, but he encountered someone he was acquainted with, Conor Dawson. The duo hadn''t crossed paths in a long while and to Grey''s surprise, Conor was in the Mid stages of the Venerable Plane when they met. "Grey, it''s been a while. How are you?" The duo started conversing as they waited for Grey''s father to return. Conor knew of Grey''s parents'' absence, but Lucas returned some days ago and has been in the manor ever since. He left for some business before Grey arrived and would return the next day. Grey and Conor spent the day talking before they went into the City to explore it. Grey hadn''t gone to too many places in the Upoya Region, and after the duo explored the City, Conor suggested they head out. One of the guards was told to inform Grey''s father of his presence so as to ensure he didn''t leave while the duo were away. ¡­. "What happened to the war for the secret realm, did they stop?" Grey asked as they walked. When he was brought to his grandfather the first time, he fought for a while in the war, killing multiple people. He found it strange that for a while now, he hadn''t heard anything about it. "Thanks to you, they stopped attacking after we got allies. You didn''t know?" Conor was shocked at the fact that Grey didn''t know about it. Grey shook his head. He didn''t really concern himself with the aftermath. Conor went on to tell him how his act saved the Dawson Family from the stress of war. The reason Lucas could travel this freely was all due to this. Also, there''s the supposed upcoming war with the Gnomes. Everyone knew there were bigger things to concern themselves with than killing each over a secret realm neither of them could enjoy if they didn''t fight off the Gnomes. In the end, Grey''s actions as well as that of the Gnomes stopped the war that had been raging on for so long. ''Amazing how they stopped just like that after causing the deaths of thousands.'' Grey thought to himself. Most of the people who died as a result of the battle are those who weren''t at the top of power. It was a sad thing thinking about it. They died fighting for something they couldn''t enjoy. Even if they didn''t die and won the battle in the end, most of them still wouldn''t get the opportunity to enter the secret realm. He shook his head and continued following behind Conor. Being Venerables meant that they could travel kilometers in a matter of seconds. Before long, they were almost at the end of the Upoya Region. Grey stopped and looked behind him, "We''re being followed." Chapter 1475 Greys Signature Move ?Grey and Conor exchanged glances after he made that statement. ''Void, be ready to help out if there are any Sovereigns.'' Grey didn''t dare to take any chances. Since he could sense that they were being followed, he knew they were people within his capabilities. As long as the people were too many for him, he didn''t have any issues with taking on three to five Peak Venerables, but once there''s over five or close to ten, no matter how great he was when it came to fighting against multiple opponents, he would find it difficult to defeat them. ''One of them is a Pseudo-Sovereign, the rest are just at the Peak. You''ll be fine.'' Void replied nonchalantly and went silent. Grey couldn''t help but shake his head at Void''s usual nonchalance. Unless Grey was in danger, Void didn''t like fighting much, especially when it wasn''t against strong opponents. "How many?" Conor asked. "Five or so." Grey wasn''t certain of the number, but he knew the people were more than three, he just couldn''t get their accurate number. The duo didn''t act like they were aware of the presence of these people and continued their normal journey. They joked and laughed, and just as they turned around at the edge of the Upoya region, the stalkers stepped out. There were six people altogether which was close to Grey''s estimation. One of them was in the Pseudo-Sovereign stage while the others were at the Peak of the Venerable Plane. Conor isn''t capable of fighting against a Peak Venerable with his Mid stage cultivation level. C Grey observed the numbers and couldn''t help but complain internally. ''If Void isn''t so lazy he would''ve helped out.'' Void didn''t have any plans of stepping out of the spatial storage to help, and fighting all six on his own was too difficult. Grey thought about it carefully and said to Conor, "You have some Sovereign level talismans, correct?" Conor nodded. "Alright, on my signal, use it against me. And retreat as far as you can. I''ll find you." Grey instructed. He didn''t want to get Conor involved in the fight, but he needed to at least take out one of the people from the start, and this was the best way to do that. As long as Conor used the talisman right, he should be able to kill the person he switches places with. An Elemental Venerable can''t defend against a Sovereign''s attack, which was in favor of the duo at the moment. Coming from a top Family like the Dawson Family meant they would at least have one with them. Grey spoke up, "Why are you following us?" "Hehe, the brat from the Dawson Family. It''s said you''re very courageous. Looks like they didn''t lie." The man in the Pseudo- Sovereign Plane was the one who stepped forward from the group, he didn''t even bother with Grey''s questions, his eyes were placed on Grey''s body. "Actually, we''re stuck in a dilemma. Should we capture you and hand you over to the Gnomes, which is very dangerous?" The man placed a finger on his chin before looking at his comrades, "Or¡­ should we take him and demand a ransom from his father." "The great Lucas Dawson, he''s bound to have treasures that will be equivalent to whatever the Gnomes are offering." Grey didn''t show any reactions to his words, "You''re here for me?" "You''re very hot in the market, everyone is out to get you. I didn''t expect you to pass through our territory. It''s only right that we take advantage of this opportunity." The man said with clasped hands. "Now!" Grey wasn''t interested in speaking any further. Since these people were after his life, there is no point in delaying. It wasn''t like they were waiting for backup. Conor reacted very quickly, sending a talisman at Grey. When the man saw this, he thought Grey and Conor wanted to use the talisman to escape. With a cold snort, he stretched out his hand and rushed towards them. "Not under my watch." His expression however, changed drastically when he realized that Grey''s figure remained planted on the same spot, and just when the talisman was about to strike him, the figure changed to that of one of his men. It came as a shock, and before he could react, a powerful attack struck the unsuspecting man. But that wasn''t the only thing that happened. At the moment this attack struck the man, another powerful explosion rang out behind him. This one was more controlled which indicated that it was done by someone powerful. Grey didn''t have a need to waste his Faction Leader''s talismans, at least not yet. With his fusion orb, he could deal a deadly blow to the other four Peak Venerables. The Venerable he picked among them was the one he sensed was below on the Pseudo-Sovereign. He could sense that the rest recently just broke through to the Peak of the Venerable Plane, and it would make it easier for his attacks to be effective. The Sovereign Plane talisman used on that man meant his death was almost guaranteed. The Pseudo-Sovereign stood in the middle, motionless. He stayed in the same attacking stance as when he was about to stop Grey, but his facial expression didn''t hold the same viciousness, rather, there was genuine shock. The man in front of him was blasted to smithereens by the attack, and from the impact of the attack behind him, he didn''t think all four Peak Venerables would survive. And the ones who would survive the attack will be seriously injured. Grey was a vicious fighter, and the man just realized it. ''Could this be the reason they want him dead?'' This was the question that echoed in the man''s head. From the start of the encounter, Grey was already prepared to fight them. Not just that, but he acted in such a manner that there was no way the man could predict. No one would expect Grey to be the first to attack in such a situation. Unknown to the man, this was one of Grey''s signature moves when battling multiple enemies. Chapter 1476 Sky-shaking Battle ?Grey stood in the middle of four figures that were sent flying. He didn''t make another move, he could already tell that all four of them were dead. The man in the Pseudo-Sovereign stage thought at least one or two of the people would survive, but Grey didn''t attack with the intent of letting any of them go. When Grey appeared, he unleashed his shocking killing intent which froze the unsuspecting men before using the fusion orb. He didn''t only use it, but he attacked with a series of attacks that went off at the same time. The fusion orb was the strongest and it covered the rest of the attacks. This was the reason the Pseudo-Sovereign didn''t notice it. He heaved a sigh of relief when the Pseudo-Sovereign didn''t go after Conor who left as soon as he used the talisman. It was clear that the man was still in shock at Grey''s sudden attack. The Pseudo-Sovereign turned around slowly, and his eyes widened when he realized that all four people were dead. Their bodies suffered from different elemental attacks, from rotting from the darkness element, to being frozen by the water element, one of them was burnt to a crisp, while the last suffered from Grey''s fire elemental attack. Grey used four elements to attack while also using the fusion orb which was very powerful. The four didn''t have the chance to defend against Grey''s attacks since they didn''t expect him to attack them at such a time. In the end, Grey killed all of them with the aid of his ability to launch a surprise attack. The Pseudo-Sovereign looked at Grey, his eyes turned red from anger. "You¡­ killed them." "You didn''t think I''d follow you without retaliating, did you?" Grey asked with a sarcastic smile. The Pseudo-Sovereign laughed and nodded, "Haha, good, I''ll enjoy killing you." Grey could sense the killing intent from the body of the man, but he didn''t feel any fear. He had a greater killing intent than what the man was showing. Grey''s killing intent had the ability to render his opponent motionless. He had trained it to a stage where it could be used as a form of mental attack. As long as he was stronger than his opponent, and they had a weak will, they could be easily overwhelmed by his killing intent, rendering them incapable of fighting back. The man attacked, but Grey was prepared. Over the past few weeks, he wasn''t on the same level as the first time he encountered a Pseudo-Sovereign, now, he could put up a fight against one. Even though he hadn''t broken through, he was still growing in strength everyday. The man''s attack was blocked by Grey who countered with an attack of his own. He didn''t give the man any chance to take advantage of his superior attack power. The man was taken aback when he saw Grey countering his attack. He never thought a Peak Venerable would ever be able to fight back against a Pseudo-Sovereign like himself, but to his shock, Grey was fighting against him without feeling the pressure of his higher cultivation stage. He couldn''t help but wonder if he was useless, or if Grey was just too strong. He soon got his answer after taking one of Grey''s attacks head-on. The attack rocked him, making him take a step back. He didn''t know whether to celebrate that he wasn''t useless or be dumbfounded at Grey''s shocking attack power. Grey attacked once again, but this time, he was already prepared for it. Without hesitation, he dodged it. He was a Wind Elementalist which gave him frightening speed. He didn''t give Grey the chance to attack again before unleashing his wind domain. A wind gust enveloped the area and multiple wind blades shot at Grey. Grey tried to use his fire and lightning domain, but the wind domain of the Pseudo-Sovereign overpowered his domains which was within his expectations. He withdrew his domains and brought out his earth and water domain. They were the best for defense, so he opted to use them. With his earth domain, the area around him was within his control, and his water domain created multiple ice shards that shot in every direction. The man blocked the attacks before attacking Grey. The duo engaged in a back and forth battle. Both parties were almost on the same grade, strength wise, but anyone with discerning eyes could tell that the Pseudo-Sovereign had the slight advantage. The Pseudo-Sovereign hadn''t been able to take advantage of this due to Grey''s versatility. Having the space element, water and earth element meant that his defensive prowess was unbelievable. He could dodge most attacks at shocking speed, and retaliate within a second. Their battle shook the skies and powerhouses in cities kilometers away could feel the pressure from the fight. Most of the Cities at the edge of most regions didn''t have people above the Sage Plane in most cases. While there were a few in the Venerable Plane. The battle currently taking place was above their level, and if they dared to go close, they might get caught in the aftereffects and get seriously wounded, if not dead. Kilometers away from the battleground. Conor looked at the sky that was changing colors from the battle that was taking place. "To think he''d grow so fast." He said with a wry smile. He thought he was advancing at a quick speed, but Grey was a freak. Not just Grey, he also knew of Grey''s friends and their cultivation speed as well. It was as if all those close to Grey were not advancing at the same pace as others. It was shocking to think that they''ve not been well-known in the Aurora Continent all this while. Such geniuses are heavily guarded by their Factions, but the group of friends are almost always out of the Faction, with the exception of the figure in the Moon Faction. Conor wanted to grow stronger, but he knew it was a fool''s wish to think he could catch up to Grey. Chapter 1477 A God’s Apparition The Pseudo-sovereign started to show signs of panic as he noticed something strange as the battle progressed¡­ Grey was getting stronger. At the start of the fight, his attack power was stronger and Grey relied heavily on his versatility to stand against him. As the battle progressed, Grey started to go against him blow for blow. His attacks didn''t seem to carry the same weight as it did the first time. After careful consideration, he realized it wasn''t that his attacks didn''t carry the same weight, rather, the person he was fighting was increasing in strength. This was a scary experience for anyhow in such a close battle. At least, he could still put up a fight when he had the strength advantage, but the second Grey catches up to him in attack power, his outcome is almost predictable. With no hesitation, he unleashed a powerful attack to force Grey back, and to Grey''s surprise, the man didn''t think twice as he tried to escape. The man didn''t have any more of Grey, but Grey didn''t want him to leave. This was a chance to increase his strength, of course he was going to take it. Not just that, he could sense that he was on the verge of breaking through. One of the things he loved was breaking through while in a fight. He would be able to consolidate his new realm while still battling which would make it very easy for him. He chased after the man, and being the faster Elementalist, he caught up with the man in a matter of seconds before unleashing attacks on him. The Pseudo-sovereign was forced to stop and block Grey''s attacks. He couldn''t neglect any of Grey''s attacks. ''Fuck!'' Regret washed over him. He didn''t want to admit it, but he regretted following the duo here and even attacking them. If he didn''t follow them, he wouldn''t lose his comrades, nor would he be in such a situation. He fought vigorously with Grey, but Grey was only growing stronger. Before long, Grey had not only caught up to his strength level, but he was starting to show signs of overpowering him. Despair and desperation appeared on the Pseudo-sovereign''s face. This was a mistake that might prove to be very costly to him. If Grey didn''t let him go, or an opportunity didn''t present itself, he was sure Grey would most likely kill him. Boom! Bam! Bang! Their battle raged on and the man started to notice a change in the sky. Essence was gathering from around the world. He knew what this meant, someone was breaking through to the Sovereign Plane. If he were the only one present, he would''ve been excited since it would''ve meant he was getting to the next level, but he wasn''t the only one here. His eyes locked onto Grey''s figure which had already started greedily absorbing the essence even though it hadn''t fully formed yet. The Pseudo-sovereign''s heart sank when he saw this. If Grey breaks through, then his death is certain. ''I have to stop him!'' He came to a conclusion internally. There was no way he could escape, he had already seen how persistent Grey could get. The only choice was to stop him from breaking through and giving himself better chances of escaping from this demon''s hands. Grey laughed as his body absorbed so much essence. ¡­. On another part of the Aurora Continent. While Grey was on the verge of breaking through, a phenomenon happened. A large figure loomed over the skies of the Aurora Continent, visible to everyone. This figure was aloof as it looked at the rest of the people like they were ants. Every single individual in the Aurora Continent saw this phenomenon and they all stopped everything they were doing. The aloof figure in the sky was looking down on ants, and those who were on the ground couldn''t help but feel awe and a majestic pressure from this figure. Discussions broke out in different parts of the Aurora Continent. Everyone was speaking about this apparition, and it was called the apparition of a God. Some bowed down to worship it, while others looked at it in fear. The figure didn''t say a word, only the act of looking down on all lives. In the depths of the Magical Beasts'' Forest. The Trial Lands. The Old man who was teaching Chris stepped out of the realm and raised his head to stare at the figure above. ''It''s coming soon.'' This was a sign, a sign of calamity. The first time this happened, the Gnomes invaded and the human world was almost destroyed during the war. A large population of humans died in that war due to the onslaught of the Gnomes. Now, this figure has appeared once more, it means calamity will befall the Continent sooner than expected. The Old man sighed and disappeared from view. In the Aurora Continent, all top Factions and Families were watching the apparition in the sky, shocked at the sight. This was the first time most of them were seeing this thing. Old Families like the Lyttelton Family who had experienced a lot frowned at the sight of this, while the others who knew little about this felt their hearts throb. To some, this was calamity, while to others, it was a sign that a God was watching over them. Nonetheless, the apparition drew the attention of everyone in the Continent. Even the Magical Beasts'' Kingdom were drawn to it. ¡­.. The apparition which attracted everyone''s gaze to it in the Continent surprisingly didn''t appear on the place Grey was breaking through in. The sky was covered from the battle of the duo, and Grey''s sudden breakthrough covered the sky in this region. Grey and the Pseudo-sovereign had no idea what was happening, and neither did Conor. The Pseudo-sovereign rushed after Grey and attacked. These were desperate times for him, and he had to take desperate measures. A large scythe appeared in his hand and he said coldly, "I''ll be the one to end your life." Chapter 1478 It’s Not Enough "Hehe, even when you had the advantage you couldn''t beat me." Grey chuckled as his body was filled with the energy he was taking in, "I wonder what gives you the courage to utter such words." The Pseudo-sovereign slashed out with his scythe and a powerful wind blade shot out. This wind blade wasn''t like the other attacks he had been using. The wind blade had rough edges like the teeth of a wild animal. And just like an animal, the blade struck, slashing Grey''s figure. To the shock of the Pseudo-sovereign, he saw his attack deflected to another direction. "Haha, you''re such a great sparring opponent." Grey laughed delightfully. He just learnt the technique Melmera passed to him when she died. He had been practicing during his seclusion, but he hadn''t been able to master it. However, on the verge of breakthrough, he got an insight on it and mastered it. The thought of using it came to mind and he used it against the Pseudo-sovereign''s attack. To his bewilderment, it was very strong. He didn''t think there would be a technique that possessed such abilities. The Pseudo-sovereign looked at Grey and attacked once again. This time, he made use of his domain, increasing the strength of his attacks. Multiple wind blades shot at Grey and after deflecting two, realized there was a scratch on his scales, and they looked to be on the verge of being destroyed. ''Guess I can''t use it against someone of his level.'' Reality hit on Grey, and he reassessed his choices. He wanted to use just this technique to deflect all the attacks, but he realized against someone like the Pseudo-sovereign, he had to be careful. This gave Grey the strength of the technique. It was powerful, but like all techniques, it had its limitations. Against someone on the same level or stronger, using it was only detrimental to himself. The Pseudo-sovereign noticed Grey started moving which made him smile. The sky was filled with multiple blades as he attacked Grey aggressively. Grey was still in the middle of absorbing the essence around the area. His eyes glowed and his icy flames spread out. A large ice wall, accompanied with flames appeared before him to block the blades coming his way. Two symbols lit up the sky and he created his domains to fight against the Pseudo-sovereign. The Pseudo-sovereign didn''t expect Grey to use inscriptions. What he also didn''t expect was how long it was taking for Grey to break through. Grey''s cultivation was still at the Peak of the Venerable Plane which was shocking given the amount of essence he had taken in. The Pseudo-sovereign blocked the attacks from the inscriptions, but this was the chance Grey needed to get close to him. He threw a fist at the man, and the man was sent flying by the punch. Grey''s physical attack power was on another level. The Pseudo-sovereign didn''t even get the chance to block the attack before it hit. Grey was too fast which made it even harder to block. The Pseudo-sovereign crashed into the ground. Grey didn''t rush to attack him, rather, he stayed mid-air, quickly absorbing as much essence as he could. Internally, he was on the verge of tears. ''Why is it taking so long?!'' He never expected that his breakthrough would take so long. The thought of his breakthrough not causing a commotion made him calm down and want to break through quickly, but now, it was looking so difficult. Even with the amount of essence he had taken in, he hadn''t even got past the Peak of the Venerable Plane. He was on the verge of begging for the Pseudo-sovereign stage. At least he would know there was an improvement. The Pseudo-sovereign attacked once again, his attack power was stronger this time. On his head, a large feather appeared, made purely from wind essence. On a normal day, achieving this was almost impossible, but Grey was in the midst of breaking through, and the essence in this place was higher than anywhere else in the entire Aurora Continent. The Pseudo-sovereign used the opportunity to use one of the greatest wind elemental techniques of all time. With this feather floating above his head, his cultivation spiked, getting to the very edge of the Pseudo-sovereign stage and bordering the Sovereign Plane. When Grey saw this, he knew the man was taking advantage of the situation, but he didn''t care. He wanted to break through, and since this man was going to be his stepping stone, he would never allow him to escape. The battle broke out once again, this time, it was even more intense. Grey is probably the only one who could take this long to break through to the Sovereign Plane. With the amount of essence he had absorbed, he should''ve broken through to the Sovereign Plane already, but it was proving difficult. ¡­. As the battle raged on, the phenomenon in the sky on the other parts of the Continent started to show signs of fading. The Phenomenon which had hung on the sky for a few minutes and made everyone stop whatever they were doing was on the verge of disappearing. No one knew what caused the phenomenon, nor did they truly understand what it means. All they could feel from the apparition was that it was supreme to them all. Even the likes of Lucas Dawson felt inferior to the apparition. ¡­. Grey and the man were in a stalemate, the only way the battle could be concluded was with Grey breaking through, or the Pseudo-sovereign escaping. Grey slowly started to notice something happen¡­ the essence isn''t enough. ''What the hell?!'' He couldn''t believe his eyes. He had absorbed enough for two people at the Peak to break through, but it wasn''t enough for him to break through to the Sovereign Plane. The feeling of the essence slowly weakening around him made his heart sink. Just as the essence was about to fully fade away, another one happened. This time, it was a reaction from the man. "Haha, you''re finished!" Chapter 1479 Stealing Grey looked at the man with red eyes. His break through was about to end while the Pseudo-sovereign was on the verge of breaking through to the Sovereign Plane. If he continued fighting he would definitely lose. The issue was that he couldn''t retreat at this moment. The moment he tries to retreat, the Pseudo-sovereign will never give him that chance. He looked at the man with cold eyes. "If I don''t break through, then you should forget about it." He said coldly. His eyes were red and he attacked the Pseudo-sovereign. Since the start of the battle with the man, he had been on the defense, but now, he attacked. He didn''t want the man to break through while he was still stuck in this stage. The Pseudo-sovereign didn''t mind his attacks, he focused on defending. As long as he didn''t give Grey the chance to catch him unaware, he was certain that he would survive. Once he breaks through, he would kill Grey and hand him over to the Gnomes for the rewards. As he was breaking through, he couldn''t help but thank Grey. The reason he wanted to attack Grey was because he was trying to break through, but now, he didn''t even need to hand Grey over, yet he was breaking through to the Sovereign Plane at the moment. Grey attacked in a vicious way, but the Pseudo-sovereign didn''t shy away, rather, he stayed and blocked Grey''s attacks. He knew even though Grey''s attacks were powerful, they wouldn''t be able to kill him. All he had to do was defend against them and he was fine in the long run. Grey''s essence was stopping, meaning the end of his attempted breakthrough, while the man''s essence was increasing, signifying his breakthrough. At the moment, one failed while the other was on the verge of getting the Sovereign Plane. Grey didn''t know how to react. He wasn''t afraid since he had Void by his side, but he was a little worried about himself. He couldn''t break through to the Sovereign Plane even after absorbing so much essence. The only thing he could do at the moment was ensure his survival against the Pseudo-sovereign. The Pseudo-sovereign was in high spirits as he attacked Grey. He knew with his current state, he could not only defeat Grey, but achieve something he never thought was possible. The fight was very aggressive, but the Pseudo-sovereign gained the advantage as his essence increased while Grey''s essence decreased. Grey looked at the situation and a smile appeared on his face. ''I''ve stopped one Pseudo-sovereign from breaking through before, I can do it again.'' This was the thought in his head. Since he couldn''t break through, there was no way he was going to allow his opponent get to the Sovereign Plane which was going to guarantee his death. He had stopped someone from getting to the Sovereign Plane before, and that was his plan at the moment. Without hesitation, he shot straight to the essence that we are gathering in the sky. "Haha, even with your presence, I''ll still break through. I want you dead, and you''re going to die." The Pseudo-sovereign laughed in delight. He already declared Grey death when he sensed the situation. Most people in the same position as himself would do the same. Grey thought this was a situation he wouldn''t be able to escape without the help of his Faction Leader''s talismans or his Father''s help, but things didn''t go the way he thought. There were things that showed that he wouldn''t need to experience the same situations. The main reason was that he was different. Unlike others who had to face an opponent that was breaking through, he had the chance to change his opponent to one who wasn''t breaking through. And something unlike ever came to his mind. ''What if I absorb his essence?'' This was the thought in his head. He could destroy the essence one needs to break through, what if he attempts to absorb the essence they need? It was only a thought in his head, but he soon tried it with others. And the answer was something he expected. He could actually mess with when people broke through to the Sovereign Plane. At the moment, he was the only one with such an ability. And he didn''t allow others to know about it. Grey shot into the sky, and did something that had never been done before, he tried to absorb the essence that belonged to the man. Since he could destroy it, he felt he could absorb it as well. The Pseudo-sovereign didn''t think something like this was possible, but to his greatest surprise, Grey started to suck in the essence he was absorbing. "What the hell?!" He screamed in shock. This was the first time he was experiencing something like this, and he never thought it was possible. Without hesitation, he attacked Grey. Grey, who was mid-air, was shocked at what was happening. To be honest, he wanted to disrupt the breakthrough of the Pseudo-sovereign, but he never thought he would be able to absorb the essence. ''I''ve destroyed it. Does this mean I can absorb it as well?'' Grey thought as he tried to stop the man from breaking through. The Pseudo-sovereign didn''t think something like this was possible, so when it happened, he was caught off-guard. Grey is a greedy individual, especially when it comes to absorbing essence like this. The Pseudo-sovereign absorbed as fast as he could, while Grey did the same. ¡­. Outside this place. The apparition that was showing signs of fading off started to show signs of solidifying. Most people didn''t know what the sign was, but some took it for what it was and used it to their advantage. They tried to increase the cultivation of some of their Venerables. They all knew that this was something that happens when a Venerable tries to get to the Sovereign Plane. Grey watched as the Pseudo-sovereign''s cultivation stopped increasing. Unlike him who had to know from the Pseudo-sovereign''s cultivation, the others didn''t need it. They could see that a Peak Venerable was on the verge of the Sovereign Plane, even though there was something that showed that it was out of the ordinary. The Pseudo-sovereign was stunned when he noticed something strange. The essence he was receiving wasn''t as much as he expected. In fact, it was so little that he knew that there was no chance he would be able to get to the Sovereign Plane. ''What the fuck?!'' He thought internally. He knew this was something that had been on for a while, so seeing someone that has managed to bypass it was shocking. ¡­. The entire world was placed on freeze. No one thought what happened would happen. Grey literally paused the world and continued it. Most people don''t know how powerful Grey''s attacks are, only when they try to use it do they know how strong it is. Grey doesn''t care about all this, he attacks with intent, making sure whoever his enemies are, he gains the advantage. Some people do not know of this and try to attack Grey who''s in a dormant state. Only when they attack does he fight back. The fight was very aggressive, and both people wanted each other dead. Grey didn''t know if the other partner would survive, neither did the other. The duo tried to kill each other off to favor theirselves, but in the end, it only favored the web. The battle was very aggressive as both partners tried to make sure there was no way the other party wouldn''t survive the attack of the other. In the end, both parties not only survived, but they thrived. Grey was very aggressive in his attacks, he didn''t want the Pseudo-sovereign to get to the next stage, while the Pseudo-sovereign was trying to ensure he broke through to the next stage. In a moment, it was a battle of time. Each party was fighting for who would get to the next stage first. Grey didn''t know if there was any chance for him, while his opponent was certain. His only chance war to make sure he broke through before his opponent. ¡­. For others. The apparition that was fading off wad starting to gain color. It didn''t only fare, but was starting to retain the previous color 8t had. As long as it regained the previous color, it had had itself. Grey was delighted when he noticed that he. Could absorb the essence of the Pseudo-sovereign. As long as he could asbob it, it meant that he could get to the next stage before the opponent. He knew that most do the people in the same stage as himself would have a change against him but once he used his advantage against them, he would be able to beat them. As the fight raged on, none of them was able to break through to the next stage. Grey had a way to stop him, he wouldn''t let it go. Chapter 1480 Awakening The Wind Domain ?Grey and the Pseudo-sovereign were in a tug of war, he was going to absorb more essence. The Pseudo-sovereign was the clear favorite since it was his essence to begin with, but Grey was robbing him of that essence. If he was told something like this was possible, he would never believe it. As a matter of fact, he would attack the person who said such words. But now, he was seeing it with his own eyes. What was shocking was the fact that Grey, someone that was on the verge of failing his breakthrough was about to get to the Sovereign Plane thanks to his sudden breakthrough. It was surreal. ''How''s this possible?!'' He exclaimed internally, but there was nothing he could do. He was sharing his essence with Grey, and the annoying part is that Grey was absorbing more than he was. If this continued, then Grey would definitely take more than he would, and also put a stop to his supposed break through to the Sovereign Plane. Currently, his breakthrough didn''t look like a great opportunity for him, rather, it was a regrettable moment. If he didn''t break through, Grey wouldn''t have any way to get to the Sovereign Plane and would fail. But now, thanks to his help, he was not only going to have a better chance of breaking through, but he was also going to stop him from breaking through as well. This was the worst thing that could happen to anyone. The Pseudo-sovereign was a Wind Elementalist, so more wind elemental essence gathered in the area. As Grey was absorbing more wind essence, he noticed something that put a brilliant smile on his face. "You''re such a gem!" Grey laughed out in pleasure. He wasn''t even trying to fight with the Pseudo-sovereign at the moment. All he wanted to do was to ensure that he absorbed as much essence as he could. His wind domain was about to be awakened. He never thought that he would have such a lucky break. He literally failed to break through while absorbing the blood essence of a Wind Elemental Magical Beast, yet, he was on the verge of breaking through thanks to this Wind Elementslist who wanted to break through. Grey was pleased with what was happening, but the Pseudo-sovereign didn''t like it. Grey was spoiling his plans, and if he doesn''t break through, Grey would kill him without hesitation. He attacked ferociously, but Grey wasn''t in the mood to fight at the moment. If he tried to fight, he wouldn''t be able to absorb as much essence as he wants to. The man chased after him, while Grey focused on evading the attacks. "At this rate, you will never break through. Take advantage of this opportunity, my friend." Grey said to the man. The man didn''t think much of Grey''s words, there was no way he was going to listen to the person who was on the verge of making sure he didn''t break through. If anything, he wanted Grey dead, or at least not absorbing the essence meant for him. He chased after Grey, while Grey ran, absorbing as much essence as he could. He could sense his wind domain was on the verge of awakening. Even if he doesn''t get to the Sovereign Plane, at least having the wind domain has increased his strength significantly. The Pseudo-sovereign chased and chased, while Grey wasn''t in the mood to fight with him. The thought of escaping at this moment came to the mind of the Pseudo-sovereign, but he couldn''t leave this place. The essence had gathered here, and there was no way it would follow him if he left this place. This meant that if he tried to leave, he had given up on his chances of breaking through to the Sovereign Plane. For people like him, missing such an opportunity was hellish. The chances of him getting it again without any top natural treasures was almost ten percent. This shows how hard it is to break through to the Sovereign Plane. Grey''s an anomaly given the amount of essence he absorbed yet he wasn''t able to get to the Sovereign Plane, not even the Pseudo-sovereign stage. The Pseudo-sovereign couldn''t miss out on such an opportunity, so he was forced to endure with Grey, while also trying to attack the person stealing his essence. ¡­. While Grey and the Pseudo-sovereign were in a tug of war, the entire world''s attention was placed on the apparition in the sky. They all thought it was done when it started to fade, only for it to rekindle its spark on the verge of completely fading off. It started to grow even clearer. The apparition looked at those living in the Aurora Continent as ants. If Grey was able to see this apparition, he would be shocked. The apparition had the same features as the Chaos God he saw during the early days of his cultivation journey. This was the same aloofness and features that spoke to him at that time. The apparition was looking down on all figures, and for the first time, there was a slight reaction from the apparition. It looked in a certain direction with nonchalant eyes. The place it was staring at was the direction the Trial Land was located. ¡­.. Grey didn''t know what was happening outside, all that mattered to him at the moment was to get enough essence from this man''s breakthrough and use it to his advantage. At least getting to the Pseudo-sovereign stage was a massive step. This was the first time he was finding it difficult to break through to the next Plane even after meeting all the criterias. He didn''t think too much about it and focused on the fight before him. The essence was about to fade off, and if he didn''t take more for himself, then it was a loss for him. The man stopped attacking Grey and focused on absorbing the essence as well. Since Grey didn''t want to give him any face, he was going to break through and kill Grey. Chapter 1481 Battling A Sovereign ?Grey was on the verge of awakening his wind domain, while the Pseudo-sovereign was on the verge of getting to the Sovereign Plane. A few moments later. Both parties burst into laughter simultaneously as the essence faded off. The man had gotten to the Sovereign Plane. But he didn''t know why Grey was laughing in delight. He took a closer look at Grey and realized that he had gotten to the Pseudo-sovereign stage. He laughed even harder when he sensed this. A Pseudo-sovereign against a Sovereign was not even a contest. The Sovereign would defeat the Pseudo-sovereign at any encounter. Grey didn''t think much about the man. He looked at himself in pride. Yes, he failed to break through to the Sovereign Plane, but it didn''t change the fact that he was one step closer to it. Getting to the Sovereign Plane from the Pseudo-sovereign stage was easier than getting to it from the Peak of the Venerable Plane. "Kid, unfortunately, you couldn''t stop me. Now, I''ll cut off your limbs before taking you to my hideout." The man laughed. "I''m sorry, but you''re not enough to make me scared." Grey didn''t feel any pressure from the First stage Sovereign standing before him. He could sense the power coursing through his body and knew what he was capable of. A First stage Sovereign like this man isn''t enough to make him worry, and he was certain of it. The man didn''t think much of Grey''s words, he chuckled as he replied, "I''m not going to deny that you''re a genius. But a Sovereign against a Pseudo-sovereign? Not a chance." Grey didn''t respond and prepared for a fight. All he needed was for the man to attack and he would retaliate. The man laughed slightly and sent out a casual attack. Grey blocked the attack, but he was forced a few steps back. The sight of this made the man laugh. He knew Grey wasn''t his match after his breakthrough, but since Grey wanted to test his ability, he didn''t mind waking him back to reality. ''People like this have clouded judgments.'' This was what the man thought of Grey. He felt he was one of those people who didn''t know their limits and feel like they can do everything. He was still Sovereign, yet Grey, a Pseudo-sovereign, felt he had a chance against him. Even if he didn''t want to say it, he felt Grey was a fool. Only a moron would have such a thought process. Grey couldn''t be bothered with what the man thought of him. He looked at his hand and couldn''t help but shake his head. ''The gap is wider than I thought.'' Grey thought to himself but he didn''t show any signs of backing off. The gap might be more than what he imagined, but he was confident he could take down the man. The man wasn''t one of the people Grey would back down against. If he were fighting someone on Alice''s or any of his friends'' caliber, he would''ve escaped a long time ago. However, this man was one of the weaker people on the same stage. He knew he could close the gap because of this. The man didn''t think about all this. He had gotten to the much coveted Sovereign Plane, his next step was to grow stronger at a faster pace. As long as he could get to the Mid or Late stages of the Sovereign Plane, he would be almost untouchable in the Aurora Continent. This was the life he had been praying for, and with Grey''s rich background, this was the only chance he could achieve it. Grey looked at the man with cold eyes and said, "I''m not on the same level as you when you were a Pseudo-sovereign. You might not be able to fight against a Sovereign, but I can." "Haha, I''ll like to see that happen." The man laughed and attacked once again. Grey blocked the attack, but was forced back by the force of the attack. He knew the man''s attack was above his own, but he had his ways to fight against it. He didn''t dare to phase through the attacks. The man had gotten to a level where he could affect the space around Grey with his attacks. Doing something like that would only put him in serious danger. He is aware of this and didn''t try to do it. He focused mainly on defending and also evading the attacks. There was no point trying to block all attacks. His scales and defensive suit can''t take on attacks like these continuously. The plan was to let the man drop his guard and attack when he was not suspecting. The man didn''t have any plans of leaving. Seeing that Grey was no match for him, he wanted to relish the feeling of oppressing him before taking him out of the picture. His attacks were powerful and he forced Grey back with each one. Grey took each attack calmly, making sure he didn''t show any weakness. The man was attacking, Grey was evading and defending. Time went on and the man started to feel bored of bullying Grey. At first he wanted to fill his ego since Grey made life difficult for him while he was in the Pseudo-sovereign stage. Now that he had the advantage, he wanted to make Grey regret his choice of not escaping when he could. Grey didn''t see anything wrong with what the man was doing, he would''ve done the same. Well, not really. Unlike most people, he didn''t like underestimating his opponents. He continued taking the man''s attacks, and when he noticed the man had changed completely from how he previously was, he knew that things were about to get serious. He increased his guard and didn''t let anything slide. He was facing a Sovereign, someone that could wipe out the entire Azure Continent with one move. Red City wouldn''t even survive the aftereffects of such an entity. Chapter 1482 Incredible Explosive Speed Boom! Grey''s figure slammed into the ground, causing a large crater on the ground. The man stood in the air, like a supreme overlord, he looked down with disdain. Grey might be powerful, but he didn''t believe he was on the same level as himself. Yes, when he was in the Pseudo-sovereign stage, he wouldn''t dare to fight against a Sovereign, and even if he did, he wouldn''t do as good as Grey''s doing at the moment. This however doesn''t change the fact that he didn''t think much of Grey. To him, Grey was a youngster who overestimated his abilities and is paying for it. Anyone in their right minds would''ve tried to escape, but Grey was fighting with him which he saw as a sign of disrespect. A Sovereign should never be disrespected, this was something that was common, unless it was by another more powerful Sovereign. Grey, an individual who just got to the Pseudo-sovereign stage was challenging him in a battle and didn''t even try to escape. The man was still staring at the ground when a lightning orb shot at him. The lightning orb had Grey''s blue flames surrounding it. When it got close to the man, he blocked it, but it exploded, sending out frightening levels of force. The man felt his body shake, but he didn''t show it out. This attack from Grey was stronger than anything he had used since the start of the fight. If Grey could continue using this attack, there''s a chance he might be able to cause the man some injuries. This made the man even more infuriated. At the moment, he was angered by Grey''s stunning abilities. Envy clouded his mind and he was genuinely ready to kill Grey without even thinking of keeping him captive. Such a figure was too dangerous to capture and left alive. He would rather he killed Grey and look for other ways to increase his strength than to try to collect any reward from either the Dawson Family or the Gnomes. Grey shot out of the dust and attacked. This time, he used a three element fusion orb. He didn''t want to use all the elements since he wasn''t sure he would be able to control his new strength. At the moment, he was using this to test his strength. This time, the man didn''t try to block it, rather, he dodged it. But the fusion orb chased after him. A pleasant smile was on Grey''s face when he saw this. The effects of the man''s previous attack had worn off so he wasn''t in any pain. With his defensive armor and scales, it was very difficult for him to sustain injuries. Not just that, but on most occasions, he uses his light element as soon as he feels any pain in his body. This made it easy for him to quickly recover from such impacts of attacks, especially when there''s no significant injuries. The man was running to escape from Grey''s attack, while Grey stood on the same spot with a mocking expression on his face. He could tell the man was very proud, so the best way to get to him was by using Klaus'' technique of baiting. In a short time, the man would succumb to his emotions and would try to kill Grey at all costs. At the moment, the man wasn''t a hundred percent into wanting to kill Grey, he was only attacking due to what he had experienced. Once he steeled his mind into wanting to kill Grey, he would take attacks like these just to get closer to Grey and attack. The man saw Grey''s expression, but he didn''t lose control of himself. While evading the attack, he sent an attack Grey''s way. Grey stood his ground and actually took the attack head-on. To the shock of the man, unlike the previous outcome, Grey only took a few steps back. "This is all a Sovereign can muster? I''m ashamed." He shook his head at the man who violently struck Grey''s fusion orb that had been pestering him for a few seconds. Grey laughed when he saw the man''s reaction, he attacked once again, this time, using two fusion orbs, both had four elements. He was starting to get serious. There was no way he would let this man win. Of course, he knew keeping the man here was impossible, but he could at least use the man as a means to master his new strength and grow stronger. His aim was to keep the man for as long as possible. The man wanted to kill him, but he was confident there''s no way that was happening. All he needed to do was to use the talisman given to him by his Faction Leader, he would be able to kill this man with a single attack. Even if the man survives, he would be fatally wounded. His Faction Leader was a stronger Sovereign, after all. The man saw both orbs coming his way and shot straight through them. Making them explode in the process. He was heading towards Grey with a vicious expression. Grey didn''t expect his sudden reaction so he was caught off-guard. The man was a Wind Elementalist, being in the Sovereign Plane meant that compared to a Venerable or Pseudo-sovereign, he was faster and stronger. He used his superior speed and ability to cut through the attack while quickly blasting through before it exploded. Grey realized he underestimated the man and quickly changed his tactic. ''I wonder how powerful he is, physically?'' This was something Grey was certain he had the advantage over the man. And there''s only one way to find out, getting close to the man and attacking. The man was coming towards Grey quickly, but Grey didn''t shy away, rather, he used his explosive speed and moved at a speed that was slightly faster than the man''s speed. Due to his incredible physique, Grey had shocking explosive speed. In a short dash, he might even be faster than a Second stage Wind Elementalist, much less this man that was in the First stage. Chapter 1483 Can’t Bear To See You Endure Such Torment The man never expected Grey would move with such explosive speed, nor did he expect Grey to come towards him. Anyone in Grey''s position would be looking to escape from his clutches, yet Grey was not only trying to escape, but he was actively coming his way. The annoying thing is that due to his speed, there''s no way he could move away from the incoming Grey. ''I''ll prepare an attack before he can.'' This was the only thought in his head. Grey didn''t prepare and attack beforehand, so he had nothing to fear. As long as Grey paused to create an attack, he would be able to attack before Grey''s able to do that. Sovereign''s can attack almost instantaneously, while Venerables are a little slower compared to them. Grey might be a Pseudo-sovereign, but he can''t be as fast as the man. The man who was waiting for Grey to use an elemental attack was given a rude awakening when he saw Grey''s fist striking his chest. Grey was moving at a scary speed, being struck by a fist that was moving at such speed, even if Grey wasn''t physically strong, the man would still break a few ribs from the attack. The man noticed something strange happened, the blow was stronger than what he expected. As a matter of fact, he could sense a hole in his chest. ''What''s happening?'' The man was confused. He couldn''t comprehend the sharp pain he was feeling in his body. Grey''s fist passed through his chest and the bloodied arm was seen on the other side. Grey stopped moving and the man was sent crashing into the trees on the ground. The man''s body crashed on the ground for over five hundred meters, destroying all the trees that were in his path. Even a small hill was destroyed by the force at which the man crashed into it. Grey stood in the air, looking at the result of his attack. A proud smile appeared on his face. This was one of his biggest secret weapons. No one expects an Elementalist to possess such a powerful physical body, so whenever he attacks them, he''s always catching them off-guard. Before anyone realizes what''s happening, they were already placed at a disadvantage. Grey only admired his work for a few seconds before he shot towards the man. He knew he didn''t have the advantage of power over the man, and he could only use such explosiveness a few times. The man wouldn''t fall for it again, so it was best to use this opportunity. He arrived at the place the man crashed and to his surprise, he didn''t find the man. "Huh?" He raised a brow and his eyes widened. The man was escaping underground. He never thought the man would escape after being struck by such an attack. The man didn''t want to fight with him again, but Grey felt the need to stop him. The reason for that was because he was a hundred percent certain he had the complete advantage over his opponent. One of his trump cards was also his ability to create poison miasma in his body. On most occasions when he''s fighting people stronger than he is, whenever he gets the opportunity to use his superior physique to attack them, he always pumps in as much essence as he can into their bodies. They usually don''t realize it until a minute or so. Grey hadn''t used his miasma for a long while now and he had quite a good amount stored in his body. He offloaded almost everything into the body of the man. Even if he doesn''t chase after the man, the man is finished. There''s no way for him to recover from the poison miasma, and it would only take a few months before he dies. Grey, being a good guy didn''t want the man to go through such torture before he dies. He felt it was only right he helped the man, by killing him. The man only managed to escape a few kilometers before his speed reduced. He came out of the ground and saw the hole in his chest. It wasn''t healing, rather, it was covered by a black patch. "What''s this?" Fear and confusion enveloped him. He didn''t know what was happening, and how this thing was on his chest. At first, he thought it was from the ground, but after careful consideration, he knew there''s no way he could enter something like this without being aware of it. Unless¡­ "Impossible!" "Right?" Grey appeared with a smile, he added, "I''ve always found this ability so fascinating." The man looked at him, understanding what he meant by his words. This was Grey''s doing, and he seemed pleased with himself. "You¡­ what are you?" The man asked. "Someone with a massive reward on my head. Capture me and get what you''ve always wanted." Grey''s reply was sarcastic. The man sensed the strength leaving his body. He soon realized he was infected with. "Miasma¡­ but how''s it possible?" He asked with a confused expression. He had seen a few people that were stuck in miasma for a short time. They only survived due to not spending a long period of time there. The amount of miasma in his body was more than enough to kill at least two Sovereigns. "How did you manage to get your hands on miasma? Can it be controlled?" The man was thinking straight and started asking questions. "It''s a long story. I don''t think you have such time on your hands." Grey said with a thoughtful expression. The man''s expression changed when he heard this. He knew Grey was right, but he was finding it hard to accept. There was silence in the place. Grey broke the silence, "I''m here to help you. I''ll make sure you don''t have to go through the torment of having to live with this only to die from it." "What do you mean?" The man asked. "Simple." Grey grinned, "I''m going to kill you." Chapter 1484 Change In Physique? ?The man was taken aback by Grey''s words, but as he felt the strength leave his body as he was getting corroded by the miasma, he knew escaping was out of the picture. "Please¡­ help me." The man had crumbled completely. His chances of survival were currently in Grey''s hands, and he hated it, but he didn''t want to die, not now that he just got to the Sovereign Plane. Everything is supposed to go well after he got to the Sovereign Plane, he would be open to greater chances to grow and become a significant person in the world, but he was on the verge of being killed by a young kid who hadn''t even gotten to the Sovereign Plane. Regret filled his mind, but the emotion in his mind that was more than regret was the will to live. He didn''t want to die. This was the start of his journey, so why would he give up now and die? At the moment, he was willing to do whatever Grey wanted, as long as he was able to live on, even as a slave to Grey, he didn''t care, as long as he wasn''t killed by Grey. "You see, I wouldn''t mind having someone in the Sovereign Plane to be my servant. But you''re not needed. I have people who will get to the Sovereign Plane in a few weeks or months, and they''re much more useful than you are." Grey didn''t feel moved with the man''s begging. He could also tell the man was on the verge of death, but he didn''t care. This was someone who hunted him down, and if not for his strength, he would''ve been captured by this guy. It was unknown if he would''ve met a cruel fate under the man or not. Since he had the advantage, he didn''t mind killing the man. The man was about to beg, but his eyes soon turned listless. The man was in his weakest state mentally, and Grey used his icy flame mental attack on him. The man couldn''t defend it and his consciousness was frozen instantly. Grey destroyed the body with an emotionless expression, he looked in a certain direction and vanished. He didn''t want to stay here for too long. ¡­.. Some kilometers away. Conor was still in his hiding spot. He noticed the impacts of the battle had reduced, but he didn''t dare to come out. He didn''t know what the outcome of the battle was. If Grey was defeated or if he fled the area, he would be the one in danger. He didn''t know if Grey was able to kill those people, all he did was attack and escape under the cover of the talisman''s explosion. He was still hiding when Grey appeared before him. "They''re dead, we should get going." Grey said when he arrived. "Didn''t you break through to the Sovereign Plane?" Conor raised a brow. Grey saying those people were dead meant that he was the one who broke through and killed them with his new strength. Hearing Conor''s question, an awkward smile appeared on Grey''s face as he scratched the back of his head, "Well, I wasn''t the one. I only got to the Pseudo-sovereign stage." "Huh?" Conor found Grey''s response unbelievable. Grey was a genius well-known across the entire Continent. There was no way anyone would believe he failed to break through to the Sovereign Plane and only stopped at the Pseudo-sovereign stage. Someone of Grey''s caliber shouldn''t have any problems with getting to the Sovereign Plane from the Peak of the Venerable Plane. "It''s nothing. We should head back, father should have returned by now." Grey changed the topic. To be honest, he was a little ashamed of what happened. But there''s nothing he could do. He never thought that the essence he needed to break through was more than what just one phenomenon could produce. One thing he noticed was that his physical body experienced a massive change. In fact, his body was the main thing that absorbed most of the essence, his core wasn''t able to absorb enough of it, which caused his failure to break through. Only after his body seemed to have gotten enough did his core start to absorb more. The impact of his punch on the man''s body was more than what he expected. This showed that even he underestimated the strength of his physical body. His explosiveness was also on another level as well. After the failed breakthrough, he was still fighting so he didn''t have the chance to think about the process. But now that he was no longer fighting, he placed his mind on it. Apparently, his body is a vessel that needs to be filled up. Only after it was filled did it allow his core to absorb some of the essence. But there was a difference with the essence entering his body. It was in a completely fused state. Meaning, all elemental essence was fused before it was absorbed by his body. He didn''t know how it happened, but that was how it was. His core continued absorbing the normal way, while his body absorbed the fused form. Thinking about it, he didn''t think something like this was supposed to happen. Unfortunately, there was no one he could question about what was happening, all he could do was learn on his own. As much as he liked the fact that he is able to use all elements and increase their grades, he found it frustrating that he has to go through all these things on his own. Grey didn''t let this affect his mood, he followed Conor with a bright expression. The Pseudo-sovereign stage was an upgrade, and he already noticed he could fight against a First stage Sovereign which meant he didn''t have to worry about being in danger when faced with such opponents. Grey didn''t expect to achieve such a status in such a short time. But he was proud of himself and the fact that he never gave up on himself, no matter the situation. Chapter 1485 Such A Thing Happened? ?Grey and Conor were heading back to the Dawson Family, while the entire Continent was in an uproar. The apparition of a God appeared in the sky, even though it wasn''t clear, it was something that gave some people hope that a God Plane Elementalist might be appearing in the Continent soon enough. If this happens, then the current state of things in the Continent would change drastically. There are hundreds of Half-God Plane Elementalists present in the Aurora Continent, but none of them have been able to get past this blockade. All they needed was for one person to shatter the shackles and the rest would be able to follow suit in a short time. This is something everyone is aware of, but the problem is that no matter how hard they try, none of them has been able to achieve this. This was a sign of something, most people didn''t know if it was a good or bad sign, but they knew things would be different very soon. The appearance of that apparition means that something was happening behind the scenes, and only a few people might be aware of this. ¡­. The Northern Continent. When the apparition appeared in the sky, Martha was with Cori in a room. The duo stepped out and Martha looked at the apparition with squinted eyes. When Cori saw the figure in the sky she smiled and called out softly, "It''s him." Cori''s words drew Martha''s attention, "Who?" "Elder brother Grey." Cori said seriously. Martha''s expression changed drastically. The thought of this being caused by Grey didn''t cross her mind, but the moment Cori made this statement, she recalled something. ''He has a God''s orb in his body. Could this mean that he has the chance of getting to the God Plane?'' Her mind started moving quickly. This was a serious matter. If Grey has the potential to become a God, then he has to be protected at all costs, even if the entire Continent was sacrificed, as long as he got to the God Plane, it was worth it. He would break the chains holding them down and reconnect the rumored broken path. ''If others find out about this, he''ll be in danger.'' She understood what came with such responsibility. "Never say this to anyone, okay?" She turned to Cori. the seriousness in her expression was taken aback, but she nodded her head. She always listened to her. Well, how could she disobey her? She had seen how she handles Lucas whenever he makes a wrong decision or says something wrong. She admired her and wanted to be like her. Martha smiled and gently caressed her hair. They continued watching the phenomenon, and even when Martha''s father came over, Cori didn''t make any statement about it apparition being Grey. Martha wasn''t certain, but with whatever that was written in that scroll, and Grey''s ability to use all elements, this was quite easy to believe when she connected all the dots. Being able to use all elements was something she felt only a God should be capable of doing, and even in the ancient texts, the Gods that roamed the Aurora Continent didn''t have the ability to control all elements which made the God Grey got his orb special. After a short while, the apparition faded off. She heaved a sigh when the apparition didn''t show Grey''s visage. The fact that Cori was able to recognize it was beyond her, but she didn''t doubt the little girl. ¡­. The entire Continent were in a heated discussion about the apparition on the sky. As Grey and Conor headed back, they noticed that whatever Town or City they flew past, everyone was gathered outside, all discussing fervently. It was fine if it was just one, but three Cities were in such a state and the duo''s curiosity made them stop. And when they listened to what happened, their eyes widened. "You''re saying a large figure appeared in the sky?" Conor was in a state of disbelief. "You didn''t see it? I''m certain that figure could be seen across the entire Continent¡­" One of the young men they asked replied with a serious expression as he explained what happened. The young man was only in the Overlord Plane, and seeing young people like Grey and Conor, he felt they were on the same level as he spoke to them carefreely. Conor and Grey exchanged glances. Conor gave Grey a strange look, while Grey wore a confused expression. He didn''t see any apparition. The duo disappeared on the spot, leaving the City and appearing on a hilltop. "Could the man''s process of breaking through have blocked the sky and not allow us to see such a phenomenon?" Grey placed his hand on his cheek while his heart was beating rapidly. He used his superior ability to hide this detail from Conor as his expression was calm. The description of the apparition according to that young man was exactly how his breakthrough happened. If the young man was correct, that meant the apparition in the sky was a visual of his breakthrough. ''This is bad. Will I get noticed?'' Grey was panicking internally, but in front of Conor, he wore a calm expression. "Your battle was very serious, covering a large area due to it. There''s a good chance it might have blocked us from seeing it." Conor replied. He couldn''t accuse Grey of being the one who caused it, even though he suspected it, he didn''t dare to make such allegations. "What do you think the apparition in the sky means? Did someone become a God? Or did a God come over to take a peek at how we''re leaving?" Grey asked multiple questions in a row. He wore a perplexed expression as everyone else who saw the apparition. There was no way he was going to give himself away. Conor was also just as perplexed, his suspicion towards Grey was thrown to the back of his mind. There were hundreds of Half-God Plane Elementalists in the Continent, there''s a good chance one of them might''ve actually broken through. Chapter 1486 The Pros Outweighs The Cons Grey spent some hours with Conor before getting to the Dawson Family. There''s nothing else they could get from the people outside the Family. They''ve learnt everything there was to learn outside. When they got to the Family manor, his father still wasn''t around. He had to wait for his return once again. It took a few hours until Lucas finally arrived. When he saw Grey, his expression changed. He knew that Grey had gotten to the Pseudo-sovereign stage with a single glance. He didn''t expect it, but he was able to sense it almost instantaneously. "When did you get to this stage?" Lucas raised a brow, slightly confused Grey was stuck in the Pseudo-sovereign stage. He didn''t expect someone of Grey''s caliber to fail to break through. To most people, the Pseudo-sovereign stage was a sign of failure of one''s attempt to get to the Sovereign Plane. Seeing Grey in that stage didn''t look good. Grey told him of his experience with the man, and how he fought for his life. "I see." Lucas nodded, he looked at Grey and said with a thoughtful expression, "You broke through in the process?" "Yes, during the fight." Grey replied. Lucas thought about it for a while and asked, "Did you see the apparition that appeared a while ago?" "Personally, no. But someone told me about it on my way back. At the time, I was still battling with that man. I wasn''t given the luxury to look around. And the sky was covered due to the man''s breakthrough." Grey explained. "Do you have any idea if it''s connected to you?" Lucas questioned. Originally, he didn''t have such thoughts, but the second he found out Grey was in the midst of breaking through at that time, he started to grow suspicious. It was too much of a coincidence for such a thing to appear when Grey was in the middle of breaking through to the Sovereign Plane. Adding the fact that Grey failed and how the apparition almost completely faded off at one point showed that there''s a great chance they might be connected. Grey paused to think, seeing the seriousness in his Father''s eyes, he took it seriously too, "I''m not sure of the specific details or if I''m connected to it. But I can confirm it indeed happened during the battle and during my breakthrough. I don''t know what it means." Lucas looked at Grey with a thoughtful expression and said, "No one should know about this, except your mom, of course." Grey nodded. After getting that out of the way, Lucas looked at his son, "Why did you leave your Faction?" Grey rarely leaves his Faction unless there was something he wanted to do. Either he wants his father''s help with something, or he''s going out for another journey. "I''m on the verge of breaking through, and over the last few years, there has always been a commotion whenever I break through a major Plane." Grey explained, he looked at his father before adding, "Something like what happened today, for instance." Lucas took a glance at Grey and he suddenly understood why Grey came to him. If he causes such a commotion in the Pyrmond Faction while breaking through, there''s a chance they will try to investigate why something like this only happened when he was breaking through. "Good thing you came to me." He applauded Grey''s smartness. Grey knew what was best for him, and breaking through in his father''s presence will put him in lesser danger. "Alright, I''ll make preparations for your breakthrough. Will you need anything?" He asked Grey. Grey thought about it and told his father of how the essence he absorbed wasn''t enough and was only able to break through to the Pseudo-sovereign stage with the help of the essence the man was using to break through. Lucas wore a dumbfounded expression on his face, "That''s possible?" "I''ve stopped someone from breaking through by destroying the essence gathered, so I thought of absorbing another person''s own, and to my surprise, it worked." Grey explained. "You mean¡­" Lucas was finding it difficult to believe, but he knew Grey wouldn''t lie to him. And from how the apparition faded at the time, he knew Grey was not lying, but it was still a shocking thing to accept. How could someone actually achieve something like that? "Are you sure about this?" Lucas couldn''t help but ask once again. Grey nodded. "Impressive." Lucas was genuinely impressed with Grey''s ability. As if having the ability to learn all elements wasn''t enough, now he could even stop people from breaking through. Not just that, but he could absorb the essence for himself. Grey was a cheat to the rest of the world. Having such abilities shouldn''t be possible, but he not only has one, but he has so many. Lucas has seen him use Dragon scales and knows he''s also able to use that. It was another shocking discovery at the time, but that isn''t as astounding as what he''s hearing right now. Even someone of Lucas'' status was a little envious of what Grey''s able to do. This was not something he could do even in a hundred years. "That orb truly is special. You, my boy, deserved it." He commented as he looked into space. Grey sighed, "Yes, but now it needs too much essence. I should''ve gotten to the Sovereign Plane by now if not for it." "Sacrifices my boy, sacrifices." Lucas didn''t think this was a challenge. Compared to the things Grey''s able to do thanks to the orb, these obstacles weren''t anything serious. As long as Grey could still break through in the end, all this didn''t matter. One thing he knew for sure with the appearance of the apparition is that it is certain, Grey will get to the God Plane as long as he didn''t die. For someone to have such a high probability of getting to the God Plane in their world meant more than a little set back. Chapter 1487 The Ultimate Ice User Lucas took Grey away from the Dawson manor. Given what might happen, he didn''t want to take the risk of Grey breaking through while they were in the manor. Grey was a very important figure right now. At the moment, Grey represented hope, not just for himself, but the entire Aurora Continent as a whole. A person who can get to the God Plane would change the trajectory of the upcoming war. As long as they could hold on for a year or two, Grey should be able to get to the God Plane at that time. This was the rise of a God, and with a God Plane Elementalist, the Gnomes wouldn''t dare to attack them anymore. Not just that, but Grey would open the way for other Gods to emerge, making the Continent to have more Gods given the large amount of people that were already at the very peak, like Lucas and the other top powerhouses in the Continent that has been alive for hundreds of years, some even thousands of years. ¡­. Time went by as Grey prepared for his breakthrough. Lucas was preparing for Grey''s breakthrough, while Grey was also doing the same. The entire Continent was still speaking of the apparition. This was a sign of hope for a lot of people, and they knew this very well. As for others, it was calamity. To Necromancers, Grey is someone that shouldn''t be allowed to grow. But to a certain extent, those Half-God Plane Necromancers wouldn''t mind it if Grey got to the God Plane. The reason some of them got into necromancy in the first place is to increase their cultivation stage and try to attain the elusive God Plane. Once Grey opens the door, the rest will be able to follow his footstep. ¡­. Grey set up a large array in the place while Lucas went out in search of a few items that will increase the essence Grey could absorb. He wanted to make sure the essence wasn''t short, so he had to prepare well for it. Grey on the other hand was also using a gathering array that will act in such a manner and also hide his aura. He was a famous person that if wanted dead by a lot of people, if they sense him while he was in the middle of breaking through to the Sovereign Plane, he would find life difficult. ¡­. In the Moonlight Faction. While Grey was preparing to break through to the Sovereign Plane, so was Klaus. Compared to Grey, Klaus didn''t need to fear that he might not get to the Sovereign Plane. He was in one of the top water elemental Factions in the entire Continent that deals with ice. There''s no way there wouldn''t be enough essence for him to break through. The matter of the apparition was starting to die down, of course there were still discussions, but it wasn''t as much as the first few days. Klaus was in the Faction''s special training ground. Sitting in the middle of a large block of ice, his eyes were shut. Two women were present, watching him. It was as if they were there to make sure Klaus didn''t escape. All of a sudden, they heard Klaus laughing in delight. "Haha! I''m definitely breaking through before that bandit." Klaus laughed in ecstasy. His eyes opened wide and they glowed with a bright light. His hair stood straight to the sky, as it started to turn white, just like his eyes. Klaus, in the middle of the ice seemed to have turned into a pure white snow. It was as if he hadn''t seen or experienced anything bad. Given Klaus'' nature, it was difficult to associate him with a pure person. Even his current psychotic laughter was a pure contrast to the energy he was giving at the moment. His entire body was covered with a white glow as he actually started to absorb the ice around him. "The sacred ice!" One of the women shouted. "Quick! Get the Faction Leader!" The other woman with a higher cultivation stage said in panic. "Don''t worry, I''m already here." A serene voice sounded behind them and snow gathered before them. The snow formed a figure. A lady who looked to be in her mid twenties appeared, but anyone who knew her knows that she''s well over a hundred years. She was calm as she watched Klaus. "The sacred ice, Goddess." One of the women bowed and said. "Don''t worry about it. I want to see what it makes of him." The Faction Leader said. Klaus was still laughing like a psychopath as his figure absorbed more of the ''Sacred Ice''. Unlike others, he didn''t need the essence from across the world. The Sacred Ice was present and it will not only fill for essence, but it was the best thing he could actually use at the moment. Klaus'' figure started to freeze up, alarming everyone present, including the Faction Leader. "Goddess!" One of the women called out I''m fear. "Don''t worry, he should be fine. He knows what he''s doing." The Faction Leader said. She had been with Klaus the most and knew his character, he rarely does things that endangers his life. He has a knack for locating ice elemental treasures. From the first time Klaus came to the Moonlight Faction, he has been wanting to come here. Only now that he was close to the Sovereign Plane did she finally agree to it. Now, she didn''t know if it was a good thing or not. The Sacred Ice started to reduce in size while Klaus'' aura spiked in the process. The essence of the world started to gather. The ice essence that came with it was purely different from when a Water Elementalist breaks through to the Sovereign Plane. All Water Elementalists only draw the water essence, but Klaus was drawing pure ice essence like an Ice Magical Beast. Only Magical Beasts such as Ice Dragons and Phoenixes have the capacity to do things like these, but Klaus was doing it. "The ultimate ice user is born." Chapter 1488 The Ultimate Ice User II The Faction Leader watched as Klaus was in the final stages of his breakthrough. The temperature around the Faction had dropped even further down, showing the signs of the tremendous impact of Klaus'' breakthrough. In the place Klaus was breaking through, the expressions of the three ladies present soon changed a little. The Faction Leader''s mouth twitched softly as she saw something that shouldn''t be happening. "Is¡­ that supposed to happen?" One of them ladies asked with a soft voice, trying to make sure she didn''t interrupt Klaus'' breakthrough. The Faction Leader sighed and shook her head, "He''s doing it himself." She has been around Klaus for a few years now and it could be said she knew a little about his antics, and seeing what he''s doing at the moment, she knew for a fact that Klaus was doing it on his own. Klaus was currently floating mid-air, his hair white, eyes glowing, and a majestic long robe made entirely from ice was fluttering in the wind behind him. He made himself a robe befitting of a king as he was breaking through. The two ladies didn''t know what to think about Klaus. He is the greatest genius the Faction had ever seen when it came to life ice abilities. This was one of the reasons he was taken in, and also the fact that he went on to learn the hardest ice techniques with ease. It was as if Klaus was born to be the ultimate ice user, and seeing what is happening as he is breaking through, they confirmed their guesses, Klaus truly is on course to become the best ice user the Faction will ever produce. The robe was long and Klaus'' figure soon started to descend. It was as if a king appeared before them. He gave them the feeling of a sovereign, not just in his cultivation, but a true sovereign reigning over them. "It''s enough, we get it." A young lady''s voice sounded from behind the Faction Leader and the two ladies. It was one of the top talents in the Faction. She was the number one person before the arrival of Klaus. She couldn''t say she hated Klaus for taking her spot, but she didn''t have a good impression of him due to it. When her eyes trailed to the once magnificent block of ice that had been reduced to barely the size of a human head, she almost went red from rage. "What happened to the Sacred Ice?" She asked one of the ladies. They might be older, but just like Klaus, she had a high status in the Faction and could question them. "He absorbed it during his breakthrough." One of them answered. "He what?!" The young lady couldn''t believe her ears. "It''s only right I used it while breaking through. A little sacrifice the Faction has to pay." Klaus was in high spirits, and rightly so. He just broke through to the Sovereign Plane and was in a great mood. He could tell that his ice ability has shot up thanks to him absorbing this ice. "You greedy, self-centered, ab¡­" "Enough!" The Faction Leader stopped the young lady, "The Sacred Ice was on the verge of melting off. There''s no need arguing over it." "But¡­" "It''s fine. We can get another one." The Faction Leader said. Klaus grinned as he looked at the young lady with proud eyes, the snow-made robe was still on him and his hair had reverted back to its usual color. "You see, we can get another." He strode forward as he spoke, on the verge of walking out of the place. The Faction Leader''s next statement made him freeze in place. Like shattered ice, Klaus felt his heart break. "Klaus will get us another one." "I think there''s a mix-up somewhere." Klaus turned around and asked, "I''ll do what?" "You will get us another ice, just like this one. Or else, I''ll make sure you cough up every single ice essence you took from it." The Faction Leader wore a dazzling smile as she spoke. The face of the young lady lit up when she heard this. The Sacred Ice was indeed obtainable, but it was in a very dangerous place, and few Water Elementalists can get close to it without freezing up. An array was placed in the Faction that helps reduce the freezing effects of the ice, giving them the opportunity to cultivate in it. "I could kill myself. I mean, there''s no difference between the two right now." Klaus felt like crying. That was a death sentence, well, at least that is how he saw it. "You''ll be fine. I wouldn''t want to kill my precious student." The Faction Leader laughed and disappeared. "Fuck!" Klaus was visibly upset and the temperature around the place dropped even lower. Even for these people that were part of a Faction that focuses on ice, they felt a cold in their spine. The eyes of the young lady dilated when she sensed this. She had always known she was not on the same level as Klaus when it came to pure ice abilities, but experiencing this solidified it. Klaus stormed off, heading straight for the exit of the Faction. His intentions were simple; Run! He didn''t mask it and headed straight for the gates. The young lady rushed to report to the Faction Leader, but she was fine with Klaus leaving. She knew for a fact that Klaus would definitely return, so there was no point in chasing him. ¡­. Some kilometers away from the Moonlight Faction. Klaus looked around in a City, after confirming he wasn''t being followed, he heaved a sigh of relief. ''I''ve always known she doesn''t like me.'' He thought to himself before disappearing into the crowded street. Due to the way Klaus broke through, news of it soon started to travel across the Continent. Making the temperature of the entire Faction drop was a stunning feat. Klaus'' fame started to spread, while Klaus himself was making the most of it. Chapter 1489 Not Fair Grey had no idea Klaus had broken through to the Sovereign Plane. He was still focused on himself and concealing his breakthrough as much as possible. If the same phenomenon occurs, it might lead people to him, especially if he breaks through. He was afraid that compared to when he got to the Pseudo-sovereign stage, the phenomenon would be greater if he had actually gotten to the Sovereign Plane at the time. Now, he wanted to conceal it, and so did his father. They both knew the danger that might come with Grey''s breakthrough, especially in such a manner. The Gnomes wants him dead. If they find out that Grey not only has the ability to keep them at bay, but also get to the God Plane, they will do anything in their power to kill him. Lucas already has a plan he wanted to suggest to the top powerhouses in the Continent, but that will be after Grey''s breakthrough. If his plan works, a lot of people, especially the top powerhouses will most likely die, but the possibility of Grey being given the chance to grow and get to the God Plane was not something he wanted to take chances with. It took a few days, but both Grey and his father were finally ready. "These should be enough to get two people to the Sovereign Plane." Lucas said as he looked at the large number of treasures lying on the ground, all were absorbable, and they contained an insane amount of pure essence. ''If these aren''t enough, then¡­'' Lucas didn''t know what to think at the moment. It soon struck him. ''If breaking through to the Sovereign Plane is taking up this much resources, what will he need when he''s about to reach the God Plane?'' The question stumped Lucas because he didn''t know how to answer it. He is using most of the treasures he had in store, and even had to go out in search of other treasures as well. Not just that but he traded with some people to acquire some of these things. He shivered at the thought of what Grey would need to break through to the God Plane. "I''m ready." Grey took in a deep breath. He wanted to break through once again. He could feel that he could activate it whenever he wanted, all he needed was a good amount of resources with him and he should be able to do it. Lucas nodded and flew up, "I''ll make sure the place is secure, you can go ahead now with it." Lucas disappeared after this statement. Grey sat down cross-legged and like a magnet, he attracted all the essence in the area towards his body. His body was like the ocean, endless as it sucked in an insane amount of essence. If his father were to witness this scene, he might freak out from shock. Grey was taking in so much essence that would make even a Mid stage Sovereign explode. It was almost as if Grey wanted to kill himself. Grey picked up one of the treasures that was a fruit and gobbled it down without hesitation. He didn''t stop there, he picked on a magical beast''s meat he prepared as well and munched on it. Grey was feasting on the food while his body was absorbing all the essence from it without stop. The sky surrounding the place started to go dark as a large cluster of thunderclouds appeared with lightning running through it. From the side. When Lucas saw the sudden appearance of the thunderclouds, he didn''t know if to smile or cry. This meant Grey was most likely going to break through at least with the help of the items, but how is he causing such a commotion just by breaking through to the Sovereign Plane? Lucas didn''t understand how it is possible, but as long as he could make sure no one senses Grey''s presence here, he was fine. With a wave of his hand, he created something that looked exactly like the sky and he actually used it to hide the thunderclouds that were above Grey. He didn''t want to cause any issues by destroying the thundercloud, but he also didn''t want people to see it. On the other side, he felt an immense pressure and when he raised his head, the figure was once again looking down on them from above. This time, it looked real and the pressure it gave off was enough to make even someone like him shake in his shoes. This was the aura of a God, a dignified person that was high above the rest. Just this alone was enough to put fear in his heart, he wondered what it would be like to face a God. His fear suddenly disappeared and it turned into excitement. Grey was going to become a God, and that will open the path for others to follow suit. He has a very good chance of becoming a God as well. Although he knew it wasn''t something that was easy to achieve, he believed in his talent. ¡­. The entire Continent once again fell into complete silence. This time, people could barely speak as the pressure the figure was giving off was too strong. This was a God! In a busy City street, Klaus was looking at the sky and his face was twitching endlessly. ''Grey¡­ damn it!'' He didn''t even get the chance to show off his amazing breakthrough, yet Grey was doing something like this? ''How''s this even fair?'' He dropped his head low. The first time he saw the apparition, he felt a sense of familiarity from it, but it wasn''t solid, so he didn''t think too much about it. But now, he could almost recognize Grey''s features on the apparition. There was only one way something like that was happening, Grey''s on the verge of breaking through. ''This guy will never let me have a good laugh over him.'' Klaus sighed. He had given up. Chapter 1490 Against The Universe The Aurora Continent was placed in a standstill as everyone watched the figure in the sky. The figure was staring down with the aloofness of a God, and people found it hard to look into the eyes of the figure. Klaus recognized the features as that of Grey, but he wasn''t the only one. Both Alice and Reynolds also recognized him too. Other than Cori, they were the only ones who recognized Grey''s features from the figure. Even Grey''s parents wouldn''t know it''s Grey if they weren''t informed about it by Cori and Grey. Other than these people, no one else knows this figure has anything to do with Grey. Grey might be famous in the Continent, but there was no way people would associate him with something like this. There was someone else who had a suspicion, Conor Dawson. At the moment, Conor was in the Dawson manor, staring at the figure in the sky. He sensed the overbearing pressure that the figure was releasing and he couldn''t help but look in the direction his Uncle, Lucas Dawson resided. Grey had been with him for a while. And it was said the duo left for a mission some days ago. No one knew their whereabouts, so there was no way for him to locate them even if he wanted to. ''If he comes back as a Sovereign, does it mean that he''s the one who caused it?'' He thought internally as he looked at the figure in the sky. He was skeptical about this, however. Even if Grey does come back as a Sovereign, there''s nothing actually tying him to the figure in the sky other than a weird coincidence. From Grey''s reaction, he could tell Grey had no idea about what happened. The confusion he saw on Grey''s face was enough to let him know he didn''t know about the figure in the sky. He didn''t think too much about it, even if he finds out who is making this apparition to appear in the sky, there was nothing he could do about it. With that, he threw the thought to the back of his head as he continued watching the apparition just like everyone else. Everyone had a thought or two about what was happening, but everyone have to keep shut since they did not know the cause of the apparition. ¡­. On Grey''s end. He was absorbing so much essence. The lightning clouds above him raged on and they seemed to be on the verge of striking down. Grey wasn''t the one who conjured the clouds. This meant they appeared on their own. He was crazily absorbing the essence when a lightning bolt struck. Grey didn''t sense it and only when it landed on his head did he sense it. His entire body jolted and he instinctively entered a fighting position, only for his eyes to widen when he saw another, slightly more powerful lightning bolt coming his way. He bit onto a fruit, and with the fruit in his mouth, he placed both hands before him and created a seal. An inscription appeared, different from the ones he usually uses, a powerful attack struck the incoming lightning. He nodded proudly and removed the fruit from his mouth. To his greatest shock, he felt his body jolt once again from the shock from being hit by another lightning bolt. It was the exact lightning bolt he tried to stop a few moments ago. Apparently, it just went past his attack and struck him. He wanted to take a step, but he noticed something strange¡­ ''My body is getting stronger.'' It was little, but he sensed the change in his physical strength. The last time he was only able to absorb so much essence into his body and he felt that was the end. He didn''t think his physical body would continue growing stronger unless he had broken through to the Sovereign Plane. Nevertheless, he was getting stronger now even when he thought he had gotten to the limit. ''Was my body too weak hence my failed breakthrough?'' This was the question that popped into his head. He didn''t stop the next lightning attack coming his way, rather, he prepared himself. He ate more of the treasures present while also absorbing all the essence he could from the surrounding. He didn''t only create an array to hide himself from the outside world, there was another array that gathered more essence to the center of it, the place Grey was standing. The next lightning bolt was stronger. It shot down, heading straight for Grey''s head. Grey didn''t move away, he looked up and with an intimidating smile, his aura burst out as he welcomed the lightning bolt. The lightning bolt struck, and the impact was stronger than the previous ones, but it wasn''t enough to get Grey to move. "Is this all you have?" He spat on the ground in disgust. As if sensing the disrespect, the next lightning bolt was almost two times stronger than the previous one. ''I was only joking.'' Grey''s eyes twitched when he sensed the strength behind it. He didn''t know what created the lightning clouds, but it looked like it was the universe, and it seemingly doesn''t like being challenged. The lightning bolt struck, and for the first time, Grey took a step back. He looked up and his eyes turned cold before he stood back on the same spot, with a wave of his hand, he didn''t try to eat the treasures any longer, rather, he sucked out all the essence. This was something that required a powerful consciousness to achieve, and that was something Grey has always had. His mental energy was as a result of his powerful consciousness. He looked up as his aura burst out once again. It was already at the threshold of the Pseudo-sovereign stage and the Sovereign Plane. At the moment, it was only a matter of time before he becomes a Sovereign, and a powerful one at that. "Let''s see who will win." Chapter 1491 Against The Universe II Grey stood on the same spot as the lightning came crashing down. One after another, it didn''t stop, it only got stronger. Grey didn''t take a step away from the place he stood, he prepared each time a lightning was about to strike and withstood it without any thoughts of backing down. The lightning got fiercer, but Grey stood in the same spot. With the help of all the defensive abilities he had in store, he withstood all the attacks. Luckily, he has had a few encounters with not just one but two tortoise type Magical Beasts, one of the Beasts known for their impressive defensive capabilities. Those encounters were enough to equip him with what it took to withstand these attacks. With every attack, he felt like he was poking ever stronger at the veil blocking his path from getting to the Sovereign Plane. He wanted to achieve this, he was desperate to achieve this. There was no way he would give up now that he was so close to achieving this. The sky roared, as if angered that Grey was on the verge of breaking through. Grey looked at it, not showing any signs of backing down. As long as he had already gotten to this stage, he would see it through. ¡­. A few kilometers away. Lucas'' attention had been drawn away from the apparition for the first time since it appeared. He sensed a powerful aura at the place Grey was breaking through. At first, he thought someone powerful had sneaked to where Grey was and attacked him. But when he spread out his senses he realized there was no one there, rather, Grey was being attacked by the sky. "The world is fighting him." He speculated. The path to the God Plane which has been broken means the universe will do whatever it can to stop anyone from getting to the God Plane. Normally, it would win, but Grey was an anomaly. The heart rate of Lucas started to beat faster. Grey was fighting for the chance of not just himself getting to the God Plane, but the chance of everyone in the Aurora Continent. Even some necromancers wouldn''t mind ensuring Grey wasn''t killed if they found out about such news. The chances of them getting to the God Plane was more important to them than whatever rewards promised by the Gnomes. One of the reasons the early necromancers started was so they could try to break the curse which was the Half-God stage. The Half-God stage is the same as a Pseudo-sovereign, it''s just that there was a massive gap in strength between a Half-God and a God. Even someone like Grey will not be able to bridge it. Grey was able to fight with that man even though he was a Pseudo-sovereign and the man was a Sovereign. But in the Half-God and God Plane, it is completely different. There was no way anyone could bridge the gap. A God was a God. Lucas looked at the sky and his eyes showed concern. He was worried for the safety of his son. ''Those should be enough for him, right?'' He thought as he looked at the treasures left. Grey has used over half of the treasures, but he felt they should be enough to get Grey to the Sovereign Plane. The intensity of the attack was already on the Sovereign Plane. As long as Grey could last a little while, he should be able to push through. The apparition in the sky was releasing an even greater pressure, and it was as if it was fighting against something that wanted to stop it. Only Lucas knew that the figure was indeed fighting against something, and it was nothing else but the universe. The universe should be undefeatable, but a God naturally has the ability to defeat it. Lucas watched Grey nervously, waiting to intervene if Grey''s life was endangered. ¡­. Grey on the other hand was standing firm. Since the first time, he hadn''t been pushed back by any other attack. He had stood in the same spot, taking all the attacks. The energy in his body at the moment is enough to make a Sovereign explode, but he was still fine. He gritted his teeth as he looked at what was left. The sky was still rumbling, but his eyes were placed on what he had left. ''I''ll absorb them all. With the sudden boost, I might be able to break through.'' He came to a conclusion and without hesitation, he started the process. The essence from everything laid before him was taken in instantly. Grey''s body showed signs of cracks, the amount of essence he took in at once was too much, and even with his special body, he found it very hard to keep it in check. His eyes turned red, but he didn''t let any of the essence leak out of his body, not even a tiny bit of it. ''We''ll see who wins.'' He roared internally and his body started to bloat. ¡­. While cracks appeared on Grey''s body, the same happened to the apparition that was in the sky. Everyone saw the cracks in its body and even for a short moment, they saw it start to bloat. Everyone wondered why the sudden change in the apparition''s image. Only those who knew of Grey''s identity showed signs of worry. They could tell this was connected to Grey in some way. They all knew he was at the Peak of the Venerable Plane and might be on the verge of breaking through to the Sovereign Plane. If this apparition breaks apart, it meant Grey was done for or so they assumed. They watched it with worry in their eyes. ¡­. Grey on the other hand was stubbornly absorbing everything. A lightning bolt struck him and the cracks in his body increased, but his size was going back to the original state. The cracks were still there, but he wasn''t bloating again. Another lightning bolt shot his way, but there was no signs of fear in his eyes, rather, there was only excitement. Chapter 1492 The Sovereign Plane Grey could sense the strength that was flowing through his body. At this rate, he was a hundred percent certain that a single punch from him could make a Second stage Sovereign Plane Elementalist explode from impact. He was getting stronger, but so was the lightning. However, he didn''t show any signs of worry as he faced the lightning that was coming his way, rather, he was excited. The more he was struck by the lightning, the stronger he got. If this continued, he would be able to fight with a Mid stage Sovereign while he was still in the First stage. He was planning to sneak into the Gnome world. As long as he could get stronger before he entered that place, he didn''t mind if he had to suffer a little. With the increase of his strength, he could withstand the attacks. They hurt a little, but it wasn''t something he couldn''t bear. His body was strengthened by all elements as he broke through to the Sovereign Plane. This was the greatest boost he has received since he started cultivating. Other than the Fusion stage which suddenly disappeared, his greatest benefit at the moment was the fact that his physical strength could withstand the attacks of someone close to the Mid stages of the Sovereign Plane as he gets to the First stage of the Sovereign Plane. All the essence his father prepared for him was soon finished and he had to rely on the essence he was getting from the array he created. He could feel the veil was on the verge of breaking, it only needed a little more push and it would break. Once it breaks, he would become a Sovereign, one of the top experts in the Aurora Continent at such a young age. The cracks on his body were still there, but he had returned to his normal size, and he could feel the significant increase in his strength. The next lightning bolt struck him, and blood dripped down the side of his mouth. This attack was strong, and since he wasn''t taking in so much energy now due to the finished items brought by his father, he couldn''t match up with the increase in the strength of the attack, but he still took it. With a serious expression, he brought out all the items he had with him that could increase the essence he was taking in at the moment. He knew all he needed was a little bit more and he would become a Sovereign. The next lightning bolt struck, and Grey roared, but instead of from pain, his energy spiked and it passed the stage of a Pseudo-sovereign, finally getting into the Sovereign Plane. The energy his body contained at the moment was so much that even he found it hard to take in everything. The items he brought out were not as much as the ones his father gave him, but they were still too much for him. Another lightning bolt was preparing, he could sense that it was the last one. And with no other choice, he knew he had to dispel the excess energy in his body which caused the cracks. He flew into the sky, waiting for the attack from the thundercloud. The lightning struck, but Grey pushed all the energy in his body into making the lightning bolt weaker. The first time, he used his normal elemental attack, so there was no change in the lightning attack. This time, he was using pure essence to attack the lightning which was also made of pure essence as well. The two collided and for the first time, Grey saw a change in the lightning bolt coming his way. The lightning wasn''t as strong as the previous ones. When it hit his body, he felt as if he was having a warm bath. He was refreshed compared to the previous pains he felt from it. ''So refreshing.'' This was the only thought in his head. The lightning bolt didn''t make his muscles jolt anymore, rather, it made them feel relaxed. Grey himself calmed down. ¡­. On the outside world. At the time Grey absorbed more energy, the cracks on the body of the apparition increased, as if it was about to break apart. But after a few more seconds, it started to heal up. The cracks healed very quickly and the apparition was even more magnificent as the cracks started to disappear from its body. It was as if it was a new being. The pressure the apparition released spiked for a moment and most people below the Late stages of the Venerable Plane found it hard to even take a breath. It was only for a moment, but they all felt the pressure, even those people secluded. This time, all the Half-God Elementalists in the Aurora Continent were alerted by it. It lasted only for a second, but it was enough to tell them something serious was happening. The apparition soon started to show signs of fading. During the final moments, it looked towards a certain direction, as if attracted by something. The direction it was looking at was the part of the Aurora Continent that was cut off and had become the Azure Continent where Grey and his friends were born. After that short look, it faded off completely. ¡­. On Grey''s end. His body had healed up and he could sense the immense energy his body contained. If he used an explosive attack at the moment, he would be able to shatter a Fourth stage Sovereign, and even a Fifth stage Sovereign might not be safe. However, he knew it wasn''t something that was permanent. He could only use it for at most three to five attacks. Only after using it can he know how many times he can use the explosive energy in his body. ''Another valuable trump card.'' He thought internally. With this, he would be able to attack Mid stage Sovereigns by surprise. None of them would expect him to use such a powerful attack, so they wouldn''t be prepared for it. Chapter 1493 Movement From All Around The entire Aurora Continent was still looking at the sky even when the apparition had faded off. On Grey''s end, he had broken through and was seated on the same spot once again. "The Sovereign Plane." He muttered. He didn''t see too much difference between it and the Pseudo-sovereign stage. Other than the significant increase in his strength, there wasn''t much that impressed him. "In the end the increase in cultivation Plane is just an increase in overall strength." He said. As he studied himself, his father appeared in front of him. Lucas sensed Grey''s cultivation stage and nodded. At least Grey got to the Sovereign stage this time. When he saw the cracks on Grey''s body, he was very worried about his safety, but now that he had seen him with his own eyes, he was calm. "How do you feel?" He asked. "Energized." Grey relied. His eyes were closed as he was trying to familiarize himself with his new strength. After a while, he opened them and looked at his father. He smiled and said, "Thank you." Lucas didn''t expect Grey to thank him. 11:41 "It''s fine. You''re my son, if I don''t help you, who would I help?" He replied Grey''s words. Grey smiled, he expected such a reply from his father, but he felt compelled to thank him since he was the reason he could safely hide and get to the Sovereign Plane without having to worry about anything else. The duo spoke for a while before Lucas suggested they headed somewhere so Grey could consolidate his strength. Compared to most people, Lucas felt the best way to consolidate one''s new strength is through battles. Most people would rather sit idly and consolidate their realm. But Lucas was different, he believed fighting is the only way to do it right. Grey followed him without hesitation. ¡­. While Grey and Lucas were on a journey to consolidate his realm, the entire Continent was once again busy conversing about the apparition. This time, the conversation was bigger than the last time. The apparition gave the people a hint with the direction it looked at. Of course, they didn''t know the exact place the apparition looked at, but they knew the direction. All they needed to do was search in that area. Grey and his father didn''t go in that direction, rather, they were in the opposite direction, so they had nothing to worry about. ¡­. Klaus sensed the unrest in the Continent and couldn''t help but worry about the safety of his friend. He soon found out the reason most of the people were hiding in that direction. "You mean there''s a chance to become a God there?" He asked the young man that was speaking to him in surprise. The person talking to him was a genius from a top Faction. Klaus had managed to build a great reputation for himself. If not for Grey who was overshadowing his great achievements, he would''ve been the most famous talent in the Continent. But since Grey was alive, he had no choice but to be second. He was well known in the Continent and could speak with most of the top talents in the Continent. "Yes, that''s what the Faction Leader said. Everyone is going there in such of an opportunity." The young man said. Klaus looked at them like they were morons, yes, he was slightly suspicious of the direction the apparition looked at, but he knew the apparition was Grey. To him, he felt the only reason the apparition looked in that direction was because Grey wanted to distract everyone. He didn''t know that was where the Azure Continent once resided, so he didn''t think much about it. ''Such a brilliant tactic.'' He thought to himself. "Since that''s the case, I believe only those at the Peak or close to the Peak of the Sovereign Plane will be able to get it." He said to the young man, he looked at him and said, "A Peak Venerable wouldn''t stand a chance in such a situation." "I know. But you never can be sure of what will happen. What if a Venerable or even a Sage Plane Elementalist is the one destined to obtain such an opportunity?" The young man was at the Peak of the Venerable Plane, but he didn''t want to give up on such an opportunity. To be honest, he was right with his assumption, but Klaus didn''t even think about it. Grey already had everything, what were these people rushing to obtain? "I see. Good luck with your journey. I''m not going to be participating in this thrilling adventure." Klaus smiled at the young man. The young man didn''t mind Klaus'' words. Not everyone would want to attempt such opportunities. He thanked Klaus and left. Klaus burst into laughter when the young man was a distance away. ''That guy would rather give such an opportunity to Void than let others have it.'' He knew Grey''s character, and Grey would never accept giving others an opportunity like this if it was even valid, much less giving them a hint. "I wonder where he is. I want to see how strong he is now." He murmured to himself before leaving the place. ¡­. Most of the top people in the Aurora Continent were headed in the direction the apparition looked at. Even some of the top powerhouses in the Upoya Region did the same. The Dawson Family searched for Lucas, but they couldn''t find either him or Grey. Some of them thought he had left with Grey. The duo were the two top geniuses in the Family, and might most likely have the greatest chances of inheriting a God''s inheritance. Even though the duo were not around, others from the Family still headed out. ¡­. Alice and Reynolds followed Klaus'' footsteps and didn''t head for the expedition. They knew there was nothing to be obtained, so what was the point? Even if there is something to be obtained, it belonged to Grey. Chapter 1496 Lucas’ Deductions Boom! Bam! The sound of an explosion rang out in a forest as a large creature crashed into the trees. "Impressive, but this is one of the weaker ones." A voice commented on the side. The dust from the explosion died down and Grey looked at the large Bull that he struck down. This was a top Magical Beast with amazing defensive abilities. He literally just barged into the Rank Eight Magical Beast''s zone, and the first beast he encountered, which was this Bull, attacked him. He fought back, defeating it after a tough fight. The Bull''s skin was very thick and Grey''s attacks could barely penetrate it. Luckily, he was able to use brute force to send it flying. The impact of his brutish attacks rocked the innards of the Bull. Lucas was watching Grey from above, ensuring that any potential danger that lurks around could be prevented. Rank Eight Magical Beasts might be plentiful across the Continent, but they couldn''t just go around killing high ranked Magical Beasts. This might cause an uproar in the Magical Beasts'' kingdom, and given their superior numbers, humans didn''t want to have any sort of war with them. The Bull stood up and shook its gigantic over three meters tall body. It looked at Grey, its eyes red. It was as if it wanted to kill Grey with his look. Grey didn''t back down from the Bull''s gaze. He has never been afraid to fight. This Bull might be powerful, but he knew he would be able to eventually take it down. The Bull charged at him once again, its horns pointed in Grey''s direction. Grey stood in the same spot as the large Bull ran in his direction. To the amazement of Lucas, Grey stretched out both hands and grabbed the horns of the Bull. The speed and force of the Bull pushed Grey back, but he didn''t let go. His legs slid on the ground, drawing a line on the ground. He held on, and with a powerful roar, he used the momentum of the Bull and flipped it into the air. With the Bull hanging in the air, Grey disappeared and appeared above it. His hand was covered with flashes of flames and lightning. He unleashed a mighty punch on the body of the Bull. The Bull crashed into the ground once again. This time, it wasn''t able to get back up I''m a short time. It stayed on the ground as Grey gently floated close to it. "I''ve never eaten a Rank Eight Bull meat." Grey rubbed his chin and looked at his shoulder where Void had already appeared at the mention of Rank Eight Bull meat, "What do you think, Void?" "It looks delicious. Let''s cook it." Void was a hundred percent behind Grey killing and cooking the Bull for their consumption. Lucas looked at Void with a curious expression. He had tried to see what species of cat Void was, but he hadn''t seen anything about him. Void could enter and exit Grey''s spatial storage at will which was also a shocking fact. As if sensing Lucas'' piercing gaze, Void looked at his direction and gave a brilliant smile. He was genuinely afraid of Lucas. He couldn''t sense Lucas'' strength, and what he found the most shocking is that he had encountered other Half-Gods, but none of them gives him the feeling Lucas gives him. Lucas smiled at Void and looked at the Bull. To be honest, he didn''t mind eating this Bull. He had tasted Grey''s cooking and knew he was a great cook just like his mother. Even though Elementalists don''t get hungry, it doesn''t mean they don''t enjoy eating. The delicate flavors they taste from the meals is always a great feeling. The Bull stood up and Void wanted to attack. "Calm down, it''s mine." Grey sensed the energy gathering around Void stopped him. This was his target for training. It might not have powerful attack power, but it had a great defense for an Early stage Rank Eight Magical Beast. Void stopped, but he was eager to eat the meal. He hadn''t eaten in a long time, and even during Grey''s breakthrough when Grey prepared a large meal, he didn''t get any because Grey was keeping them for his breakthrough. At the end of the breakthrough, there was nothing left for him to eat. With a dejected expression, he hid inside the storage ring. He had been coming out as they traveled, but he rarely stayed out for long. Grey attacked the Bull once again, and this time, he noticed the skin of the Bull changed, not just that, but the Bull turned around and retreated. It was smart enough to know it wasn''t Grey''s match, so the best choice for it was to escape. "Not under my watch." Grey''s figure blitzed through the forest and caught up with the Bull. He struck out once again, punching the Bull in the head. The Bull tried to dodge the attack, but it was a little too slow and was caught in the attack. The Bull staggered back, and its vision blurred. Before it could react, Grey started to rain punches on the body of the Bull. Like a defenseless child, the Bull couldn''t even fight back as it was soon hammered to death by Grey''s punches. Lucas was watching from above and was astounded by Grey''s immense physical strength. He knew Grey''s body contained incredible explosive energy, but he didn''t think it was on such a level. "Is this how a God is as well? Strong all-round?" This was the only question in his head. It was common knowledge that only Magical Beasts and Barbarians possess such insane physique. Most humans only have amazing elemental strengths. Yes, their bodies grow stronger as they grow stronger, but it isn''t to a state they could rival Magical Beasts with just it. Grey could achieve this, which made him different. ''There has never been any teachings about improving one''s physique. Or could it be that it was removed?'' So many questions flashed through Lucas'' head and he came to an assumption, a God needed to be perfect, and having a weak physique was a weak spot.